Heh heh... hey there.

Alright, I have been FLOODED with homework lately, trying to play catch up with the horror that IS school, so I am not ready to reply to reviews JUST YET, but I want you to know that I read ALL of them. Never have I ever skipped over a review in my life. SO, besides thanking you for all of your love like I always do (that should be implied by this point because y'all are so amazing that I say it every day), I'm going to answer some FAQs:

1) Melissa. WHY Melissa? HOW Melissa? Well, my dears, if you go back and read through, you will see VERY SUBTLE HINTS that I dropped toward it being her. You could already see the tension between her and Spencer during that very first chapter, and some of you started to get suspicious of her early on once Spencer discovered she could speak Parseltongue. Also, the dream that Spencer had was explained last chapter. It was Melissa sending her a message. Voldemort was able to do the same to Harry because of the connection that they shared, and clearly Spencer and Melissa have a connection of sorts... I mean they're SIBLINGS for crying out loud! Also, at one point Ezra points out to Spencer that the Heir doesn't have to attend Hogwarts, and if you read the prologue to this story, now knowing that it was indeed Melissa speaking, you can tell that the person does not attend the school (or at least not anymore). There were many other hints that I dropped throughout, and the skeletons in Melissa's closet and why she did it will all be answered in the next few chapters. The Hastingses have some baggage to carry around, I'll say that, and that baggage is about to explode in everyone's faces. You know how some people load luggage on the backs of their cars for road trips and the luggage ends up falling off of the back and popping open in the middle of the road? And clothes and shoes and makeup are spewed everywhere? Yeah. Like that.

2) Aria. As you all can infer, Aria is hiding something. That doesn't necessarily mean that she is evil, but she definitely knows something that she is not letting on. That also will be explained in the next string of chapters. Remember, Aria was looking suspicious early on when she snuck into the restricted section of the library. She saw something in there that freaked her out, and from then on out was very skittish whenever it seemed like the girls were getting closer to figuring something out... yet she herself was working hard to figure it out as well. Just keep that in mind... AND keep in mind what Toby found in her dorm room. The two connect to something very big next chapter, where it is all explained.

3) What happens next. Many things. Many MANY things. There is a good 10 more chapters left of this story, and SO much happens. Even though the biggest question on all of your minds was answered, we've still got another chunk of the story to go, and while you'd think it shouldn't contain much since the biggest plot point is resolved, I promise you it is PACKED. There is action, there is romance, there is drama, and there. Are. TEARS. And it all takes place on the same day. This next series of chapters is probably the best work I've ever done on any story I've ever written. It all ties together in an insane, horrifying, amazing way, and I can't WAIT for you all to read it!

Now, without further ado... enjoy :)


The four girls gawked, and Melissa flashed an evil grin before swiftly lifting her wand, pointing it remorselessly at her sister. "Stupefy!"

Aria darted her eyes toward Spencer, realized before anyone else where the spell was directed.

"Spencer, look out!" she screamed, leaping up to push Spencer to the ground and out of the way of the spell. Both girls fell to the ground as the flash of scarlet shot out of the wand, right past them, and into the brick wall about 20 feet away, shattering it to pieces.

Melissa stared at the place where the wall had exploded before turning back to the girls, glaring straight at Aria. "You'll pay for that, you little bitch."

Emily and Hanna managed to dodge the spell, too, diving out of the way just in time. Without even taking a moment to think about it, Emily, sprawled across the floor, held out her wand and screamed, "Imperio!"

Within seconds, Melissa stiffened. Emily's arm was shaking, but she lowered her wand, still keeping a firm grip on it as she sent Melissa to the ground, completely in power; completely in control every thought, every move Melissa made from then on out. But no sooner had Melissa dropped did she immediately leap back up, much to the girls' surprise.

She whipped her head toward Emily, murder crystal clear in her brown eyes. "Never used an Unforgivable Curse before, have you, my dear?"

Emily felt her breath catch in her throat as Melissa took small, slow, gradual steps toward her. She knew she wasn't ready for that kind of power. She knew it would backfire against her. Why did she have to ruin everything?

"You need to mean them!" Melissa said eerily. "You need to really want to cause pain. To enjoy it. Righteous anger won't hurt me for long."

She then gave all four of the girls a once-over before flashing an ingenuous smile that, underneath the surface, dripped with malice. "I'll show you how it is done, shall I? I'll give you a lesson."

Emily stood still, her limbs turning to jelly as Melissa continued to stare at her, taking seconds, minutes, to deliver the final blow. After several moments of suspense, Melissa finally lifted her wand. "Crucio!"

Emily gasped as she closed her eyes, preparing for the worst. But she didn't feel searing pain. She didn't feel her entire body go weak as the curse took over her, torturing her entirely. She did, however, hear a blood curdling scream. Confused, she shot her eyes open, wondering what could be happening.

Hanna was on the ground now, writhing in agony as the Cruciatus curse consumed her, letting out strangled sobs as the pain, the torture, increased. Hanna continued to shout, to plead, for the pain to stop, but it just kept going, getting more and more intense the longer Melissa's wand was held. She felt herself start to slip away, no longer knowing where she was or who she was as the curse creeped over her, like knives piercing into every inch of her skin.

Spencer, recovering from the wind being knocked out of her by Aria saving her, shot up out of her repose. "Melissa, STOP! What are you doing?!"

"Please, stop!" Aria begged, desperation clear in her tone as she stared helplessly at Hanna.

Melissa just cackled loudly as Hanna continued to scream, begging for it to end, even if it meant ending her. But she didn't end. She didn't die. She just kept digging deeper and deeper into the torture.

"Ooh, I love it!" Melissa exclaimed gleefully. "I feel so ALIVE!"

"Stop it!" Emily shouted, still not believing that Melissa was torturing Hanna at her expense. "Leave her alone!"

Just as Hanna felt herself finally start to slip away, maybe even for good, she felt a relief in pressure, and she very faintly heard someone shout, "Expelliarmus!"

When she looked up, she saw through her blurred vision a jet of red light shoot through the air, sending Melissa's wand flying out of her hand and over to the other side of the room.

The other three girls looked up, finding Caleb standing before them, hatred clear in his dark features as he stared down Melissa. "Another step closer, and it's over. I have plenty of tricks up my sleeve to end you."

Melissa just rolled her eyes, and Spencer felt like she could see a bit of the sister she knew in her actions. The annoying, pretentious bitch that she had still somehow learned to love because she was still her sister, and she still cared about her.

"Oh please," Melissa shrugged, and with that, Spencer immediately saw the evil return. "Like you'll ever be able to end me."

Nevertheless, she sprinted off toward her wand. In that time, Caleb rushed over to Hanna, scooping her up in his arms like she was a baby. He then turned to the other three. "Let's go, before she gets back. Now!"

Immediately, all three girls scrambled to their feet, dashing toward the door, which was several yards away since the room was so big. Aria sprinted toward the door along with everyone else, but fell behind when her foot caught on something hard; the leg of a chair, she presumed. She fell forward, collapsing onto her stomach with an oomph. But she immediately pushed herself up off of the ground, ignoring the throbbing pain in her foot, before shooting off toward the door.

But she was too late.

Melissa had fully caught up to her, yanking her frail arm and pulling Aria toward her. Aria yelped as she lurched backwards, and Melissa spun her fully around so that she was facing her. She cracked her famous conniving grin as she whispered, "Oh goodie. I get to deal with the little one first."


Caleb opened the door to the Room of Requirement, leaving it open wide enough for the girls to run through, and then shut it closed, collapsing against it as he held Hanna close to him. The gang was all huffing and puffing, gasping for air as their heart rates gradually slowed. Emily and Spencer were both kneeling forward, feeling their hearts thud against their chests as though ready to burst out completely. But they knew their hearts wouldn't manage to actually escape their bodies, and they tried to work the thought into their minds that they themselves had managed to escape. For now, they were safe.

Caleb looked down at Hanna, who was completely limp in his embrace. A tear escaped his right eye as he gently shook her. "Hanna?" he croaked. "Hanna, please!"

This caught Emily and Spencer's attention, and they got up from the ground and ran over to where Caleb was sitting. He stroked Hanna's hair, trying to get some sort of reaction out of her, but she remained still. A suppressed sob escaped Caleb's throat as he continued to beg for Hanna to awaken. "Please wake up," he whispered. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have left you." He paused to paw at his eyes, wiping the tears that had managed to escape. "I shouldn't have left you when you needed me most!" he screamed.

Spencer and Emily sat there, staring helplessly at Caleb as he slowly started to lose it. The one person he loved, more than anything in the world, was slipping away. Spencer reached out for Caleb's arm encouragingly. "Caleb," she said softly, "remember, the Cruciatus curse isn't meant to kill. She's still in there somewhere; you just have to keep pushing!"

Caleb gulped back the rest of his tears as he looked back down to Hanna. He leaned down and planted a supple kiss on her pink lips, lingering longer than usual in hopes that he would spark some life into her by doing so. He parted slowly, whispering into her fair face, "Please wake up. I... I love you."

As if by command, Hanna stirred, and her eyes slowly fluttered open. "Caleb?"

Caleb breathed a sigh of relief as he engulfed Hanna in a hug, tears finally pouring down his face. "Don't scare me like that again!"

"Fine," Hanna said, her voice muffled by being smushed into Caleb's shoulder. He pulled back to get a good look at her. She gave him a weak smile as she added, "But only as long as we don't break up again."

"Deal," Caleb said with a small, tear-infested giggle as he gave Hanna one more hug, promising himself, and Hanna, that he would never let go.

"Umm, hate to break your moment..." Spencer said in the background, causing Hanna and Caleb to reluctantly break apart. But when they saw Spencer's face drain of all color, they were immediately attentive.

"Where's Aria?" Spencer weakly whispered. Shocked, all four shot up off of the ground, looking around to see if Aria had walked to a nearby area. But she was nowhere in sight.

"Where did she go?" Emily frantically asked. But no sooner had the words left her mouth did all four stop in their tracks as a horrendous, torturous wail pierced the air.


"I know it was you who stole that book from me," Melissa whispered into Aria's ear. She had her pinned to the ground, her face so close to Aria's that Aria could immediately tell, just by the feel of Melissa's hot breath against her ivory skin, everything that Melissa had to eat that day.

Aria whimpered as Melissa's face inched closer and closer to hers. "That book was hidden in a safe place," Melissa growled, her voice steadily increasing in volume with each syllable. "How did you get to it?"

Aria closed her eyes, trying her hardest to make herself pass out, to block out everything happening before her eyes, but she couldn't. She started to cry as Melissa hissed in her ear, "The restricted section. In the library at Hogwarts. Did you and your friends take from that SECTION?!"

"I didn't take anything!" Aria said softly, letting out a strangled sob as she said it. "P-please, I didn't take anything!" She took a risk and opened her eyes, but immediately shut them again when she saw Melissa's crazed eyes directly in front of hers, fury clear as day in them as she held Aria's shaking body in her grasp.

"I don't believe it," Melissa purred mockingly, and to Aria's surprise she felt a relief in pressure. But as soon as she felt it, as soon as she managed to take some form of a breath, the pressure returned, instead concentrated directly on her forearm. Aria let out a long, chilling scream as Melissa took a knife, carefully carving directly into the smooth surface of Aria's skin. Aria screamed again, flailing under Melissa's weight, but Melissa was unstirred. She just kept carving, resistant to Aria's helpless wails. Aria felt herself trembling as the knife torturously traced along the lines of her veins, slicing across every single one. Where had Melissa even gotten a knife? The pain was excruciating, hitting every single nerve in her body as it made itself noticed. Aria would've taken the Cruciatus curse any day over this.

"WHO STOLE IT, THEN?!" Melissa screamed. "WHO. STOLE. IT?!"

Aria just continued to shake her head, her cries declining to small, pitiful whimpers, and her body shaking tremendously as she felt the blood ooze out of her arm. It was falling out fast, and she was already becoming lightheaded.

Suddenly, she felt a release, only this time it held. She felt Melissa hop up off of her, and could feel the vibrations on the concrete as Melissa's feet met the ground, step by step. Soon, she heard no sound at all, except for the whoosh of Melissa disapparating out of the room. When she dared to open her eyes, Melissa was gone.

With difficulty, Aria held up her trembling arm so that she could see the damage that Melissa had done. But the damage actually done was so much worse than anything Aria could have imagined.

Carved into her arm, oozing her own dark, red, thick blood, was only an 8 letter word, but it held meaning far beyond those 8 letters.

Mudblood.

Aria held her gaze on the word as tears finally met the front of her eyes, and she was still staring intently at it when her eyes finally drooped, sending her into unconsciousness.


Confession time: I wrote this chapter early on, and saved it on a google doc so that I could include it in the story later. It is very dear to me, and it includes one of my FAVORITE scenes from any of the 8 Harry Potter films; one that I absolutely KNEW, from the day I started writing this story, I wanted to include. I sincerely hope you all guess it. There are a total of two references in here, both involving one of my FAVORITE characters from the series. I'll give you a hint: one reference is from the books, one is from the movies. 1... 2... 3... BREAK!

So the battle begins. Blood has been shed, and the stakes are higher than they've ever been. Keep reading to find out more, and don't forget to review/follow/favorite/WHATEVER if you liked it!