This was the hardest chapter to write. Maybe. I definitely might come back and update certain parts. It feels jerky in some places. I don't know. Anyway, someone DIES.

Exsanguination is hard to describe in text for some reason.

Bellatrix sat on the patio with Andromeda with the sunset in the distance. Hermione, Blaise, Luna, and Draco played in the pool, and the other adults spread themselves around the villa. Severus and Xeno caught up on reading, and Daniel and Mathias played muggle chess on the balcony. Anathema was doing her hair while Elena slept off her third glass of wine. Bellatrix had no idea where Narcissa or the young Greengrass girls were, but they were around. Andromeda turned and rested one leg on the arm of the chair.

"How are you, Bella? Truly?"

"Question of the hour, isn't it?" Bellatrix moved her curls to the side and brought her knees to her chest. She laid her head on her legs and gave Andromeda a tired smile. "I've never been more exhausted in my life. It's become a game to Him, a challenge of pride rather than skill, and I've lost respect for Him. I dedicated my life to Him, and it cost me fourteen years. It feels like I'm just waiting for the world to fall out from under me all over again."

"This isn't like the first time, okay? I'm not going anywhere, and you have Thema and Cissy. We're all here for you, and you know Hermione isn't going to let anything happen to you. Not to mention Daniel and Xeno and Mathias…." Andromeda trailed off. "We won't let anything happen to you, Bella."

Bellatrix studied her, and she said, "Don't make promises you can't keep, Andy. You have a family-

"And I love them more than the Earth itself, but you are my sister, my kin. I will protect you with every breath in my lungs," she interrupted. "That's something Dora and Ted have always understood because Dora would do the same for Hermione and the others. It's how we operate as a family, Bellatrix. Don't count us out just yet."

"I love you, Andy," Bellatrix whispered.

Andromeda got up from her seat and sat down in her sister's lap. She hugged her tight and kissed the top of her head.

"I love you, Bella. That will never change."

Hermione relaxed against the side of the pool while Blaise and Draco tried to do handstands under the water. Luna swam up to her and leaned down on the ledge.

"You alright? You kind of spaced out on us for a second."

"Something feels off,' Hermione said.

"Off how?" Luna repeated.

"I'm not sure," she said.

"Well, what does it feel like?"

"Fear," she confessed.

Luna glanced at something behind Hermione and said, "I think you might want to table the fear talk."

"Why?"

Luna jerked her chin, and Hermione turned around. She grinned when Narcissa exited the house with Daphne and Astoria. The Greengrass siblings wore similar swimsuits, but while Daphne's was a two-piece, Astoria wore a one-piece. Narcissa, on the other hand, settled down next to her sisters in a summer dress. She seemed lighter, happier, and Hermione hadn't realized she'd been staring until Blaise dunked her under the water. Hermione pushed him away and came up for air.

"Sorry, sister. You were drooling," he teased.

Hermione scowled at him and lifted her brother into the air on a small funnel. Blaise screamed in both terror and delight. She kept the funnel spinning for a moment, then she clenched her fist. Blaise stayed in the air for five seconds before he dropped into the deep end of the pool. Hermione slowed his descent through the water, and her brother barely touched the bottom before he was back in the air again. The next time she dropped the funnel, Blaise did a back-flip as he came down. Daphne swam over to them while Astoria stayed in the shallow end. Luna winked at Hermione before she went to keep Astoria company. Blaise broke the surface with a wide grin, and Daphne splashed water in his general direction.

"You have to stop bothering her when there's water around," she said.

"There's water everywhere, Daph," Blaise laughed. "She's like a water magnet."

Daphne and Hermione both rolled their eyes. Blaise smiled and turned to Draco, but his smile fell. Hermione was the second to notice, and she swam over to him. Draco was pale and struggling to breathe. He held his arm against his chest, and Hermione touched his cheek.

"Draco?" she said. "What's going on?"

"I don't- I don't know," he confessed.

Blaise came over with Daphne, and Blaise threw Draco's arm over his shoulder. Daphne took the other shoulder, and they started to swim Draco back to the shallow end. As soon as Blaise and Daphne got Draco out of the water, there was a shout of pain. All eyes turned to Bellatrix, who kneeled on the concrete beside Andromeda. Even from the other side of the backyard, Hermione could see Bellatrix clutching her arm in pain. Hermione rose out of the water and walked quickly to her godmother. Andromeda moved slightly to the side, but it was clear what was wrong. Xeno ran out of the house, breathless, and Hermione knew what he was about to say.

"Sev is gone, isn't he?" she interrupted.

Xeno nodded and added, "He was barely able to stand when he left."

"It's because He's angry," Bellatrix said. "Something pissed him off."

"You need to go," Hermione said.

"But Mia-

"Go," Hermione interrupted her. "It's okay."

Bellatrix kissed her forehead in response and disappeared on the spot.

"Hey, back off!"

The group turned just in time to see a house-elf push Blaise clear across the backyard. Xeno had his wand out, stopped Blaise before he crashed into a statue, and Daphne yelped as she was thrown into the pool. Astoria barely managed to keep her sister from hitting her head against the ledge, and Luna reached for Draco's hand at the last second. Hermione and Xeno both shouted as Luna and Draco were whisked away.

"Draco!" Narcissa shouted, jumping up from her seat.

Take her hand, Child. Now!

Hermione did as she was instructed, and another house-elf appeared. It grabbed Narcissa by the wrist, and Hermione had little time to panic before she was gone too.

Luna, Draco, Hermione, and Narcissa landed in the kitchen at Malfoy Manor. Hermione disillusioned herself and Luna just as the doors slammed against the wall. Luna rolled away from Draco, and Hermione squeezed Narcissa's arm before she moved as well. Lucius pulled Draco off the floor and dragged him from the room. Narcissa glanced at where she knew Hermione and Luna were before she ran after them. Through the swinging doors, they saw Voldemort, Bellatrix, Severus, and the other Death Eaters. Bellatrix shivered on the ground, curled in a fetal position, and it seemed as if she wasn't the only one who caught a curse in their arrival. Voldemort paced back and forth, hissing to himself, but when he saw Draco, he gave a cold smile.

"Young Malfoy," he hissed. "I have been waiting on you."

Lucius threw Draco at Voldemort's feet, right next to Bellatrix, and Voldemort stretched out his arms.

"It is time to earn your place at my side." Voldemort pointed at a random Death Eater that was on the floor next to Bellatrix. "Kill him," he ordered.

The doors swung shut, and they were cut out from the scene. Luna and Hermione crawled backward until they were on the opposite sides of the island.

"Shit," Luna breathed out.

"Did Fate-

"Yes."

"Why?"

Luna shook her head. She had no idea, and Luna reached over to grab her hand. Hermione intertwined their fingers, and she released a shaky breath. They were stuck in Malfoy Manor with Voldemort and his Death Eaters, and there was nothing they could do without drawing attention to themselves.

Seconds after they were gone, Daniel and Mathias ran out of the house, wands out, and Anathema was right behind them. She had her hair wrapped in a towel, and she glanced around in confusion with all the missing people. Blaise, Astoria, and Daphne made their way over slowly. Daphne was still shaken up, and Blaise seemed to be favoring his left leg. While Xeno stopped him from crashing, Blaise still fell pretty far to the ground. Andromeda ran her hand through her hair in frustration, and Anathema looked at her.

"What happened?" she asked.

"He called for Severus and Bellatrix, and these two house elves took Narcissa and Draco. Hermione and-and Luna was holding onto them when they were taken," she said.

"Wait, Daniel, how are you still here?" Mathias asked.

Daniel rolled up his sleeve to show the Dark Mark, but it was faded and sickly looking.

"I'm not sure when or how this happened, but He can't summon me anymore," Daniel explained.

"Blaise? Can you hear her?" Anathema asked.

"No," he sighed. "It's like static. I can hear bits and pieces, but nothing concrete."

"So, what do we do?" Mathias asked.

"Can we even do anything?" Daphne added.

"That Manor is locked down tight whenever He's there. If Mia and Luna are there…." Daniel trailed off and shook his head.

"We can't just leave them!" Blaise exclaimed.

"And what exactly do you suggest we do?"

"We go get them," he argued.

"How do you expect us to do that?"

"We can stay outside of the wards, right? The closer I am to Mia, the better the connection we will have, and she can tell me what's going on inside." At Daniel's look, Blaise added sharply, "I don't see you coming up with anything better."

"Blaise, enough," Anathema warned.

"No, he's right," Daniel said. "I'll take Blaise, and we'll check things out."

"I'm coming to," Xeno said, jumping up.

"Xeno-

"Luna is all I have left, and I am not staying here while that- that monster might be-"

Xeno stopped and covered his mouth. Mathias put an arm around him as the man collected himself.

"If he's going, I'm going," Andromeda added.

"We're really doing this then?" Mathias sighed. "Fine. Let me go wake up my wife."

"No, someone has to stay here," Anathema argued.

"Do you know my mother?" Daphne snorted. "She'll find us regardless."

"Now, hold on, Daph-

"If you fix your lips to tell me I cannot come with you to rescue our best friends, I will seal your mouth shut," she hissed at Blaise.

"Never mind," Blaise muttered.

Astoria didn't bother saying anything. She latched onto Daphne and dared her father to tell her she couldn't go. Mathias gave up. He turned and went into the villa to grab Elena.

"So we leave the villa empty?" Anathema asked.

"If we play this right, we can be back by breakfast," Blaise said.

Anathema groaned and removed the towel. Her braids were gone, and her hair fell in damp ringlets to her lower back. She piled them into a ponytail and stomped into the villa, muttering in Italian about stubborn children. Blaise bounced on his feet in impatience, and Andromeda excused herself into the kitchen. When she was sure she was alone, she removed a necklace from her pocket. She rubbed the gem twice and spoke into it.

"I love you always," she whispered.

Andromeda returned to the group just as Anathema and Mathias arrived with Elena. Daniel and Blaise were the first to leave. Anathema and Andromeda followed, then Mathias and Astoria, Daphne and Elena, and finally, Xeno.

They arrived on the outskirts of Malfoy Manor, just outside of the wards, and the moment they were settled, Blaise held up his hand. The group waited as he seemed to communicate with Hermione. Suddenly, he went down on his knees and cried out in pain.

"Blaise!"

Anathema grabbed Daphne just in time, and everyone jumped as Blaise's body was engulfed by flames. The fire grew in intervals, and sparks started to fly off his skin. Astoria yelped as lightning struck the area a few feet away from her, and Anathema shared a look with Daniel.

"What's going on with him?" Mathias asked.

"The twins always know when the other is in true danger," Anathema said, a touch of fear in her voice.

"He's reacting to whatever's happening to Mia," Daniel gritted out.

"It's You-Know-Who," Elena said. "We all know His favorite curse is-

"Exactly," Anathema finished. "And I doubt he'll play nice with Potter's supposed mudblood."

Daniel twirled his wand in his hand and shook his head.

"The moment we crossed that boundary…" he murmured.

"I'll take the risk," Xeno said darkly.

Daniel nodded sharply. As did the others, and Elena put her hand on Astoria's shoulder.

"Sweetheart, I think we should play backup," she said.

"I know," Astoria muttered. "I just didn't want to be alone."

"You won't be." Anathema turned and placed her hand on Daniel's cheek. "Bring both our children home."

Daniel kissed her forehead and whispered, "Always."

Hermione gasped for air as the spell ended, and she rolled over. She twitched as the aftershocks went through her body, and once she was able to feel her legs again, Hermione spat out blood and stood up. After being caught in the kitchen, then dragged into the room, Hermione somehow lost a tooth and bit through her tongue. It took a lot of restraint not to run to her godmother when she saw her, and it took even more strength to keep Voldemort out of her head. Narcissa had a tight hold on Bellatrix, while Severus kept Draco in place with his hand on his shoulder. Hermione glanced down at Luna, who was still unconscious and sporting an ugly bruise on her temple, and she ground her teeth.

"Why are you here?" Voldemort asked. Again.

"Heard you were having a party," she mocked.

Voldemort didn't even say anything that time. Hermione managed to stay on her feet, and she wasn't sure she could take another one, but she had no choice. Voldemort stopped the spell and glanced over at Lucius, who turned his head toward the door.

"We have company," Voldemort said, unrestrained anger in his tone.

"I'll get rid of them immediately, my Lord," Lucius said.

Lucius hurried from the room, and Hermione spotted lightning from the corner of her eye.

Blaise?

I am on my way.

Hermione sighed in relief. She hadn't been able to reach Blaise initially until mere moments before the first Crucio, but their conversation was cut short. Hermione should've known her brother would've put up a fight about leaving them alone in the manor. Hermione could hear the pain in his voice, and she wondered what the ghost of a Crucio felt like.

Same as a regular one. Hold on for me.

"Who else is here?" Voldemort demanded.

"I don't know," she slurred, spitting out more blood.

"Do not lie to me!"

Hermione wandlessly batted away his next spell, her wand somewhere back in Italy, and it hit the Death Eater that slammed Luna's head into the floor. Whatever it was caused the Death Eater to lose his stomach. Literally. Hermione was very grateful she was paying attention. Voldemort tried again, and she batted it toward another Death Eater. Eventually, Voldemort lowered his wand. Instead of annoyance and fear like Hermione expected, Voldemort stared at her in a new light.

"You are no ordinary mudblood," he said.

Hermione didn't respond, and Voldemort paced around her.

"Or is that because you are not even a mudblood?" he asked.

Bellatrix trembled in her sister's arms, and Hermione gave her godmother a practiced, subtle smile. One that said, 'I'm in control.' Narcissa begged her silently to stop taunting him, and Hermione turned her head. Voldemort approached from the other side, and he gripped her chin.

"Who are you?" Voldemort hissed.

The doors from the kitchen exploded outward, and the Death Eaters shielded themselves from the bombardment of spells that came at them. Blaise stepped over the threshold into the room, and he grabbed the nearest Death Eater who went after Xeno. The robes caught on fire immediately, and the Death Eater screamed as he was burned alive within seconds. Hermione stayed where she was, locked in a staring contest with Voldemort. He wasn't trying to look into her head, and she wasn't trying to look into his. They were the only two people in the room, even as spells flew around them. Someone came and slid Luna out of the way, and she belatedly realized it was Xeno. But something shifted between them, and Hermione knew Harry was no longer his target.

She was.

Voldemort's gaze promised a second meeting before he vanished in a cloud of black smoke. It passed over her, and Hermione shivered. Many of the remaining Death Eaters took the hint and left as well. There were only a few left, and they were losing. Badly. Lucius ran into the room, his robes torn and a cut on his cheek, and Hermione saw the way his eyes narrowed on Narcissa, who had joined the fight. She was holding up her own, and Hermione was entranced by the way she glided across the room. It was almost like Bellatrix but calmer. Andromeda was brute force, and Bellatrix was like a storm. She was everywhere and nowhere at the same time. The Black sisters were clearly in their element. Bellatrix and Severus pretended to fight the family, light spells that looked dark, and Draco fought next to Daphne and Daniel. Blaise kept watch over Xeno and Luna.

"Narcissa, Draco, enough!" Lucius shouted.

Narcissa was the first one to feel it, and she stumbled just enough for the Death Eater she was fighting to get one last spell in. He made a sudden slashing movement with the wand, and a streak of purple flame struck Narcissa across her chest. She wavered for a moment before she collapsed. Draco was frozen, stuck between the order from Lucius and the fear for his mother. Hermione was in shock, but a voice whispered in her ear everything she needed to know, and Hermione looked away from Severus and Andromeda. Both worked on Narcissa, and Hermione caught Lucius with his mouth open as if he were about to speak. Bellatrix hovered in the background with Daniel.

"Do not say another word."

Her voice carried over the room, and all motion ceased sans Severus and Narcissa. Lucius looked at her in disgust, and Hermione faced him directly.

"Draco, go to your mother," she said.

Like his strings were cut, Draco sagged in relief and ran to Narcissa. Lucius seemed shocked, as did the rest of the room, and Hermione summoned Lucius' wand to her. She walked backward and handed it to Draco.

"Do whatever you want with it," Hermione said, never taking her eyes off Lucius.

"Boy, give me back my-

Draco snapped it. He threw the pieces behind him, and Lucius turned an ugly shade of red. Someone took his voice away, probably Bellatrix, and Hermione looked over her shoulder.

"I need your permission," she said.

"You have it."

Hermione turned back and pointed at Lucius. His arms shot out to the side, and his head snapped toward the ceiling. She ground her teeth she got closer. In the brief second it took for her to gather her nerves, Hermione remembered every bruise, broken bone, cut, scratch, and welt that graced Narcissa's body. Hermione thought of Draco, the boy he wanted to be and the boy Lucius made him be, and her anger grew. She focused on Lucius from the inside out. Hermione had only attempted it once, no matter how many times she joked with Blaise about it, and it was at the consequence of an older man who'd followed her home. Back then, it was fear that drove her to do what she did. She was only ten, but with Lucius, it was rage.

Hermione felt that same magic course out of her body into Lucius, and he started to shake. He grew redder and redder until blood began to stream from his nose, mouth, and ears. As soon as the blood hit the air, it evaporated. Every once of blood in his body was hers to do with as she pleased, and Hermione took great pleasure in watching it disappear. Lucius started to choke, gasp, and finally-

Lucius fell to the floor. What was left of him, anyway, and she stared at him for the longest time. She didn't even notice the gold strands of magic that leaked out of Narcissa and Draco into the air. All Hermione saw was Lucius and Voldemort, and everything felt disjointed.

"Get her back to the villa," she said, her voice sounding foreign to her own ears.

"Mia, what are you-"

She was gone before Daniel ever finished his question.