Please take this gift as a token of my love. A peace offering. Whatever you need to do. I know it's been too long, but I will finish even if I'm 90 on my death bed. R&R Love you all!

Hermione

I did my best to avoid the dark woman after that night. Not wishing to be bombarded with ridiculous questions. I was lucky enough never to run into her at Grimmauld Place again, and soon we returned for another year at Hogwarts.

It went on as usual after the first few weeks where my mind was plagued by a certain Death Eater, but as classes began in earnest, I found myself too busy and my mind too occupied to dwell much longer. Then there was Ron. Ron, who was acting strange around me now, even more so than before. It was evident to me what caused the change, but that didn't mean I liked it. We were all the closest friends! What would it do to us if Ron and I were to date? Or even worse if it didn't work out. I wouldn't be able to look him in the eye for who knows how long and what would that mean for our friendship? Not just Ron and I's, but Harry's as well. Would we slowly grow apart?

I wasn't even exactly sure if I reciprocated his feelings. More often than not it felt like I was just falling into an atmosphere that was expected of me. Harry had his romance with Ginny and everyone just assumed Ron and I would be the next couple out of the group. Don't get me wrong; Ron had his charms, but I couldn't talk with him like I wanted. The conversations we had were simple in a way. Mostly about our day, what we thought would happen next in the war on Voldemort, and what we thought Harry was going through. Other than those things he only talked about wanting my help with his school work, Quidditch, or weak attempts at capturing my affection. He wasn't interested in most of the things I wanted to talk about or had no real input. It wasn't stimulating conversation. It wasn't enough. When he began dating that airhead Lavender I wasn't hurt, just thankful that they distracted everyone from making aggravating assumptions about Ron and me.

It was best not to think about it. Not now when a full on war was looming on the horizon. Especially now with Dumbledore gone. Harry saw what happened with his own eyes, and even he couldn't believe it. Draco's cowardice, Bellatrix' presence, and Professor Snape's ultimate act of betrayal. It was…devastating. Without Dumbledore, it felt like we were lumbering through the dark without a light. Harry knew what we had to do, find and destroy Voldemort's Horcruxes. He just didn't have the faintest clue on where to begin. Wandering through the dark.

Leaving Hogwarts was nothing but bittersweet. Had I known that would be my last time seeing the beloved castle in its glory I would have savored the beauty of it more.

Moving Harry was a disaster. They had to have known that we were planning to move Harry that night and how. The stench of betrayal was in the air, but no one took notice immediately. Not with the death of Mad-Eye still so vivid and shocking. He was so invincible to those around him I don't think any of us thought it was possible for him to die let alone be killed at the hands of those he was trying so desperately to defeat. Much like Dumbledore. Eventually, we all came to terms with the loss and agreed that if Mad-Eye had to go out, he'd want to go out fighting.

It was only a few days later that Lupin came to speak with us. Harry and Ron were engrossed in a game of wizard chess of which Ron was handily beating Harry. Ginny and I were sitting and talking with Fred and George, who had not stopped making variants of "ear" and "hole" jokes all day. You would think that the joke would have lost it's grandeur by now or that they would have at least run out of material, but this was Fred and George we were talking about.

"Hello, all. Having a good evening, I see. I don't mean to interrupt I'd just like to borrow the Golden Trio for a moment." Lupin was all pleasant smiles, but after hours of conversations with the man, I could see by the bags under his eyes that what he wanted to talk about had been troubling him for a while and that it was not as pleasant as he let on. Judging by the look Harry gave Ron he knew as much.

"What is it, Lupin?" Harry asked almost immediately upon sitting. We were in the shed Mr. Weasley used to store all of his Muggle artifacts.

"Forgive me; I don't exactly know where to begin. I suppose with you, Harry. I trust that Dumbledore told you about…certain things before his untimely demise?" He was pacing slowly; I guess to keep his thoughts moving instead of crashing all at once in his mind.

"The Horcruxes, yeah he told me, but how do you know? He made me swear not to tell anyone except Ron and Hermione, and he was just finding out about them himself." Harry asked wearily.

"In truth, that was a lie. The night Bellatrix came to us she told us of the Horcruxes. It took us all by surprise of course, but Dumbledore took it with a grain of salt. Wise I suppose, but he wouldn't let us mention it or even give the impression that we knew of them for whatever reason. It doesn't matter now. Dumbledore was a secretive man even to those closest to him. He had an idea about the Horcruxes and you, Harry. How the two are connected is lost to me, and he didn't disclose that to anyone. All we could get out of him was that it must be you who destroys them. Please tell me he told you that night." Finally coming to a stop directly in front of Harry, Lupin looked like a man who hadn't slept in weeks., perhaps he hadn't with everything that was going on. Harry shook his head "no," too shocked to answer. "Did he give you even a hint as to where to begin?" Again, another shake of the head. Lupin sighed, "I feared as much. I'm afraid to say that the other Order members and I will be of little help to you in your hunt. Not only because of Dumbledore's orders but with things unfolding the way they are. The Aurors and the Order are stretched thin. Not to mention Bellatrix has tipped us off about a flush of infiltrations to take place in the Ministry. Things are looking grim."

"So, what are you saying? 'Hey we know nothing, you're on your own, happy hunting!'" Ron asked. His sentiment was shared at least.

"No! Well, yes. Yes and no. We won't be there to hold your hand through everything, but if you really need help, we will do all we can." Lupin was getting exasperated and why wouldn't he? He must feel useless.

"Well, what if we get captured by Death Eaters? What then? Send a Patronus, and you'll be on your way?" Harry asked, well he was closer to yelling now.

"You forget you have allies on the other side." Lupin stated simply.

"You mean Snape? After what he's done? I'm sure he told them about moving me as well, and you want me to trust him with my life?" Harry roared.

"You may have to. If it comes down to life or death, you may have to try to appeal to the side of him that was an Order member. But, there is another, less pleasant, option." He left it hanging in the air for us to grasp. Harry and Ron wore faces of puzzlement, but I knew immediately who he meant.

"Bellatrix." One simple answer. If we found ourselves in unfriendly company, we may have to rely on Bellatrix. A mad woman.

"Like it or not, her survival is tied into your freedom. All of you." Lupin looked us in the eye in turn.

"That's what she wanted then? A get-out-of-jail-free card. After everything she's done!" Harry roared. The year had not softened his opinion it would seem.

"Among other things." Lupin answered quietly. What else could there be?

"So trust her then? What other choice would we have in a situation where we had no other allies?" It was more than obvious that Harry didn't particularly like the idea of his life resting in the hands of Bellatrix no matter the situation, but he grudgingly accepted the possibility. Seeing as Ron and I went wherever Harry did it somehow felt important that he came to this conclusion.

"If it comes down to it." Lupin looked to be standing on thin ice, pleading silently that Harry actually did trust the Death Eater to save us.

"What other choice would we have then? Are we done?" Harry waited for Lupin to give a satisfied nod before storming off, Ron hesitantly followed behind him.

"Remus, could I ask you something?"

"Of course, anything." He crossed his arms and relaxed only a little bit.

"Do you trust Bellatrix? The things she's been telling us? I've been trying to convince myself I did the right thing by convincing the others to listen to her, but every day since then I've felt like I've opened the door to a horrendous trap." It was a feeling that had built over the year, and I tried desperately to bury it deep within myself, but it hadn't worked.

"Well, I trust her a whole lot more than I trust Snape that's for sure. Not to mention all the information she's given to us has been correct and useful. So, yes. I do trust her as should you. For whatever reason, she decided on this new path on her own. Well, I know the reasons, but I don't understand the moral rights or even if there are any." He was confident in his conclusion, but that did little to calm my racing conscience.

"Do you…do you think there are any moral reasons?" I asked, grasping for something overtly positive about this situation and the dark woman that caused it.

Lupin sighed and wrapped his arms tightly around himself, something he often did before giving very insightful advice. "Honestly, I can't say for sure. There isn't always a deeper meaning for other's actions. Sometimes people just act on impulse and sometimes there is a conscious choice with reasons we will never know. Only time will tell if there is or is not a deeper meaning behind Bellatrix' actions."

I felt deflated; I'd built myself up for some grand, elaborate, and enlightening piece of information only to find out it may not even exist. "Of course, thank you anyway. Get's some rest Remus, you look exhausted."

"Looking out for others as always, Ms. Granger. Thank you." He gave me his signature smile. A look and gesture so friendly it was hard to think he'd seen a bad day in his life, but Sirius had the same disposition. Smiling back, I left him to his thoughts, not knowing that would be the last time I saw him or the Burrow for a long time. After that, the hunt began in earnest.

Bellatrix

The Dark Lord was back in control. I had no doubts, without Dumbledore the wizarding community lost their symbol of hope. Now with Potter on the run, they don't believe they have a fighting chance. Who could blame them? Kidnappings, murders in broad daylight, blatant corruption in the Ministry, and now their last fighting chance appears to be running like a coward. I was beginning to lose faith as well, not that I had very much to begin with for the group of incompetent children. Without Dumbledore's old, wrinkly hand guiding them they were equivalent to chickens running around with their heads cut off.

A more foolish part of me screamed to help them, push them in the right direction so as to "get the ball rolling" so to speak. But, as I mentioned, very foolish. The Dark Lord was more omnipresent than ever now and the only genuine moments of solitude I could ever grasp were the few hours at night when I was meant to be sleeping. It was maddening. Watching the things I said even with just Narcissa, one could never know if the room you were in was enchanted to re-tell your secrets. Everything was so different this time. The Dark Lord was driven not by ideology, but by pure madness. Madness I no longer recognized or could empathize with. Even referring to Him as "The Dark Lord" was done now out of obligation rather than truth. How could you rule over men and women and expect them to stand and fight for you; all the while murdering purebloods with the same indifference as if they were muggle born? Loyal wizards like Rodolphus and Rabastan were cut down in a fit of rage or disappointment, some even offhandedly out of boredom.

I'd never too much cared for my husband, but he was loyal from the beginning. Even after The Dark Lord disappeared, his loyalty never wavered. Even in Azkaban, his commitment never wavered. He was rotting in a grave he did not yet earn for simply not having answers that would suit The Dark Lord about the whereabouts of "The Boy Who, Unfortunately, Lived."

Things would have been so much easier had he just…not lived. The Dark Lord would not have vanished, purebloods would be in absolute power, and I would not have wasted so many sobering years in Azkaban. Maybe it was wrong to blame the boy; he was no more than an infant when these things took place. Maybe it would be better to say things would have been easier if The Dark Lord had not risen to power in the first place. Would I have been stuck in a loveless marriage still? Forced into dreaded motherhood like my sister? That life would have driven me just as mad as this one.

When The Dark Lord began his campaign, I saw an opportunity, unlike any other I'd ever known in my life. The chance to be free for the first time in my life. To expand my talents and showcase what I was capable of to the world. I dove head first and completely into the war, not realizing how lost I was getting or the consequences of my actions. As long as I was free.

A fat lot of good that did me.

Now all I could do was pace and hope for something to happen that would require my assistance, either from The Dark Lord or the Order. Just anything to cut the monotony of Malfoy Manor. I was looking at the many tomes and volumes in the library when a flustered Narcissa suddenly appeared in the doorway.

"What is it, Cissy?" I asked, hoping that my wish would be fulfilled.

"The Snatchers, they think they've found Potter. They have his friends, but we can't clearly identify the third one." The words fell with her exhale out of her chest quickly. I do believe this was the first time I'd seen her composure broken.

"Has anyone called for Him?" I asked, hoping no one was dim enough to call The Dark Lord without knowing for sure who they had.

"No, we need to be sure first. Come." I followed a trail of blonde to the main entrance hall where everyone gathered.

It was almost too coincidental. Two of the Golden Trio traveling outside of the magical world with a third boy. I had to give them credit for at least trying to hide the true identity of the boy, but even without Draco's help, it was evident they had finally caught Harry Potter.

My mind was racing with escape options immediately. This could not and would not end like this before it even began. I did my best to keep my usual mask of contempt as Fenrir went on about how they found them, but my interest was actually peaked when the glimmering steel of the Sword of Gryffindor was shown.

"I thought I'd keep it for myself." Fenrir claimed with that nauseating smile of his. He stared greedily at the shimmering sword one of the Snatchers held. He planned to pawn off the only thing present that could help the Mudblood and her friends destroy the Horcruxes. A sword that was supposedly locked safe away in my vault at Gringotts as well as one of said Horcruxes.

"No!" The protest came fiercer than I thought it would. "Give it here."

The Snatchers, I forget his name, held the sword closer to his chest and wore a face of pure disdain and indignation. With a quick flick of my wand he lay unconscious on the floor. I took the sword from him as he fell.

That didn't go over well with the others, but they met the same fate as Imbecile Number One. I cast spell after spell until Fenrir was brought to submission on his knees in front of me. "Where did you get this?"

"They were traveling with it! If I'd known it'd bring this much trouble I would've left it there to rust." Fenrir grumbled.

With a swift flick of my wand Fenrir lay unconscious like the rest of them. "Draco, take them outside. If you don't have the guts to kill them I'll do it myself later! Pettigrew, put them in the cellar. Except for her," I said looking piercingly at the Granger girl, "I'd like to have a little chat with this one. Girl to girl!"

The look of terror on the other's face was only slightly amusing. If I didn't figure out a plan to get them out of here quickly, all our hopes of life anew would be extinguished. When we were alone I cut directly to the chase.

"Where did you get it?"

"I-I don't know. Harry found it in the woods somewhere." She stammered.

"You expect me to believe that you found that sword in some bloody wood? Is that what I'm supposed to tell the Dark Lord?" I was in her personal space. Physically imposing my authority and conveying my urgency.

"It's true! Harry found it in a pond or lake or something while we were camped out somewhere." She was close to hysterics now. That was good, the more likely the truth would accidentally slip out. And yet…

"I don't believe you!" I wonder if she could hear the uncertainty in my voice or worse see it on my face.

"I swear it! Ron had to pull Harry out; they should still be wet! I couldn't believe it myself but I give you my word! How else would we have found it? We thought it to be in the Headmaster's Office in Hogwarts, not at the bottom of a pond! We thought we had no chance of getting it, we had no clue what to do next." The girl was utilizing every free breath she could muster, no doubt wondering if these would be her last. Quite sad that she would think that, although understandable. I was the big bad wolf after all. Although out of all the bleeding-heart morons in the Order and the Annoying Trio I found her to be the most valuable. Or at the very least the most interesting.

A pause set to burst, you could hear her heart hammering in her chest, almost see the organ pumping like a runaway train. She was wild with fear. That meant one of two things, either she was flying by the seat of her pants and had just told the quickest lie she'd ever formed in her life, or she was telling the truth and had no idea if she had convinced me or not due to the absurdity of it all. What happened next was my decision.

"The locket?" I asked. A wave of breathless relief washed over her visibly.

"Destroyed it then and there. It tore us apart for weeks." She sounded almost distant. Like she was coming back from teetering on the edge of an abyss and was overcome by the security of solid ground. I suppose extreme fear would do that to a person.

"Good. What about the others?" I pressed, keeping a cold formality to my tone. I didn't want her to relax too much. We were nowhere near safe.

"Harry has ideas of what they might be, but we aren't sure where they are or how we would get to them."

"If I gave you a few definite answers are you confident you lot could get the job done?" I asked, watching her face carefully as she answered.

"We've accomplished things that I couldn't imagine when I was eleven. I'm confident we can do this." She left a phrase noticeably unsaid, but tried to recover with a defiant raise of her chin. It was a faltering attempt.

"Or die trying I presume."

"What other choice do we have?" That was good, that was the answer I was looking for. When faced with only two choices, one of which being rather permanent and most likely very painful, people tended to give everything they had to succeed.

Now to feed the information. "In my vault in Gringotts, there is an indiscriminate cup. It belonged to Helga Hufflepuff once upon a time."

"How are we supposed to-." It was a reasonable question, but in this game of chest I was already three moves ahead.

"In the struggle that will lead to your escape tonight you managed to disarm me and retain a few of my hairs, enough to brew a polyjuice potion. There's a goblin in the dungeons who knows Gringotts like the back of his grubby, little hands. He should be able to walk you through the identification process." The actual escape would be messy indeed.

"Similarly, a tiara that once belonged to a Rowena Ravenclaw stashed somewhere in Hogwarts, lost for many decades. It would seem no one has ever been able to find it." Hopefully, she could read between the very clearly drawn lines there.

"Why would we be able to find it it's been lost for centuries. Where would we even start?" I could see the gears spinning in her head, good.

I rolled my eyes in exasperation because of course I would need to spell it out, "Well, you'd just need to look where all hidden things end up I suppose."

"The Room of Requirement."

"You realize you can't just tell Potter all of this at once, don't you? He'd ask how you came by this information and I doubt he would trust it's validity if he knew it came from me. Drop helpful hints here and there to keep on track. No more of this aimless dilly dallying. We've lost enough time already. End this madness." I don't know why I said it. The stress was causing me to behave desperately and recklessly. That was the only plausible explanation.

Skepticism overtook her features. "Why are you telling me this now? Why didn't you tell us before?" She asked.

"I did! I told the old bat everything before he took his fall, but he refused to tell anyone else. A lot of good that did anyone. He had this insane idea that The Boy needed to figure this all out by himself. Like a ridiculously blind journey! Then you three disappeared and it was impossible for even the Order to reach you!" It was no small task to keep my voice low enough so the others couldn't hear me, or hopefully couldn't hear me or I and all hope were already dead.

There was no response. She still eyed me with undeserved suspicion. I was the one who should be skeptical, I had much more to lose. If everything went to shit they could run and hide anywhere in the wizarding or Muggle world, but I was already trapped within the clutches of fate and so much more than doomed. If they could not succeed and my plot was revealed there would be no cell waiting for me in Azkaban. I'd be put to death in a way befitting someone who has done the things I've done. Never mind why I did them, they don't care that I didn't have a choice. That I did what I did to survive in a life where you either concede or are forgotten until your death. For families like mine, there was rarely an alternative. Andromeda was lucky she found someone who loved her more than status and found a purpose and place in life without the notion of blood status restricting her company or opportunity. She had friends, family, purpose, and love. I wasn't fit for motherhood or domestication, I couldn't mingle with the rest of the world as she did. As if I would ever have the opportunity.

"Well…we can't accomplish anything if we die here." I suppose that was as close to trust as I could hope for. Which was good because for what I was about to do to her she would need to trust me quite literally with her life.

That's how I found myself pinning the little mudblood to the ground, knife in hand.

"You're not actually going to cut me with that are you? You can't actually cut me with that!" Her face was fear stricken and her body tense.

"I'm afraid this is how it has to go."

"But can't you just-"

"I can make it so it doesn't hurt, but anything else would be too suspicious." I couldn't appear to show any amount of sensitivity or consideration on the girl. If I appeared to have been any amount of cautious The Dark Lord would become far too suspicious and I'd find that my days were now closely numbered. The point of the knife sat heavy and sharp on her forearm. Just the slightest amount of pressure would break the skin, but I waited. I don't know why or even what I was waiting for, but the action was paralyzed. As if I needed some form of permission or admission of trust. It was completely absurd. Yet…It was there. It took a moment to settle and take over the overwhelming amount of fear, but there in her eyes there was trust. Not the kind that The Dark Lord had shown me full of expectations and wild, manic eyes. Not like Cissy placing the burden of all her hopes on my shoulders with the expectation of protection that I wasn't certain I could give. This was something different that I could not place. No, it was dangerous. Dangerous and wrong to many degrees. Hurriedly I looked away, steeled my resolve, and began the incantation almost silently.

I felt her stare burning into the side of my face before she even spoke. "You can do wandless magic?" The question was practically breathless and my eyes tore away from the knife instantly. I stared at her. Her eyes were wide with fear and wild unsated curiosity. Brown.

I refocused my attention back to the knife. "It has to be this way. I'm going to be yelling at you every bit as maniacal as you would imagine me. Answer how you would if this were real, it will feel real afterward. You'll scar…and you won't like it."

There was only a hitch of breath in response before I made the first cut. I chanced one last look at her face. She still looked absolutely terrified which was expected, but she met my eyes and took a deep breath before giving the slightest nod. I did the same and filled my lungs until they burned before I started screaming like a fanatic.