Chapter 83: The Plan and a Lost Hope

The wind blew harshly against her, threatening to push her off of her broom as she stayed hundreds of feet above the ground. Back and forth, left and right her hair, which was secured in a tight ponytail, went as the bipolar breeze kept ramming against her. It was getting annoying. Several squeals in the audience were heard when a mighty gush of wind passed, blowing the hair of the girls right in front of their eyes, shocking them and stopping them from seeing the rest of the match for that split second.

Lucy rolled their eyes and thought to herself 'Smart of them to come to the match with their hair all flowly. Like that's going to help them.' The game was intense. There was no room for pleasant thoughts in the Emeraude's head. She needed to be fierce and focused. Shaking her head and clearing her mind, Lucy furrowed her eyebrows and held onto her broom with an iron grip, her eyes squinting as she scanned her surroundings.

Below her, she could see the flashes of red and green dashing back and forth. Some of the Chasers were either dropping the Quaffle, having it taken from their clutches or shooting it through one of the three tall hoops, scoring a point. A loud cheer was heard and Lucy knew that Gryffindor had scored another point.

Not too far from her, Lucy heard an angered curse and the swift sound of someone flying down several feet only to stop abruptly. Lucy raised a brow and a smirk graced her lips. The Slytherin Seeker, a boy she did not care to remember the name of, was violently turning his head from left to right, up and down, trying to search for the flying golden ball that would hopefully grant a win for his house.

No such luck. The reason for his abrupt flight was the trick of light, making him think that he had seen the Snitch. Lucy looked up from the angered Slytherin, planning to continue her search when her eyes widened and she swiftly flew down to avoid a fast Bludger heading her way. She looked back just in time to avoid it once more.

"Sirius!" Lucy yelled, the merciless wind almost muting her, "Sirius! Aren't you supposed to take care of those bloody Bludgers?"

"I'm doing my best, love," Sirius said, holding his bat up high, aiming at one of the Bludgers and hitting it to kingdom come. He flashed a smile at the Seeker. "Nasty little buggers aren't they?"

Lucy didn't reply. Her eyes reverted into squints as she looked at Sirius. Sirius' smile disappeared for a moment before it returned as a grin. "Come on, Luce, don't be like that. I promised I won't let them lay a bloody finger on you, didn't I?"

"I can't believe you still –" but Lucy didn't continue. Her brown eyes had drifted away from Sirius in embarrassment, her cheeks already showing a hint of pink, when she had caught sight of something rather… disturbing. "JAMES POTTER!" the Emeraude exclaimed, causing Sirius to whirl around, searching for his friend, and several other students – Gryffindor or not – to look for the Gryffindor Chaser.

When they finally saw him, the air was filled with catcalls, whistles and comments, all were unheard by James and Lily. The boy in question was balancing on his brooms with his knees while his hands clutched onto the ledge in front of him. Lily, on the other hand, had her hands on top of his and the upper half of her body was leaning forward. The two were locked at the lips, eyes closed and completely lost in their own world.

Remus, who was sitting behind Lily, had his eyes wide with shock as a chocolate bar lay forgotten in his mouth. The Emeraude figured he was just about to bite a piece of it off when the scene happened in front of him. Natalie, who was seated beside Remus, had a cat like grin on her face as she let out a laugh while Peter was snickering. Lucy inhaled deeply and her eyes flared ever so slightly.

At the sight of the couple, Sirius barked a laugh and called out, "Have you gone off your rocker, mate? This is Quidditch! You can have your celebratory smooch after!"

"He'll get his 'Celebratory Smooch' when there's actually something worth celebrating," Lucy grumbled out, "We're going to loose if they don't come out for air sometime."

"We're ahead, Luce, don't worry," Sirius looked at her. "And besides, with them doing that, everyone's distracted," he sent her a wink soon after he said that.

Lucy's brows shot up and turned to look at the Quidditch pitch. It was true. Everyone's focus was on the Gryffindor couple snogging. The Emeraude rolled her eyes and looked to Sirius who was minding his own business, throwing his Beater's bat in the air, making it flip in its flight, before catching it. He looked up to Lucy and sent her a questioning look. Lucy shook her head.

"Is snogging ones brains out so interesting that an entire Quidditch game has to be stalled just to see it?" Lucy asked, "And what about the teachers? I'm surprised McGonagall hasn't whacked James's head with a pig or something to get him back in the game."

"If you really want to know if snogging is attention worthy, why don't we give it a shot?" Sirius suggested; his brows wiggling with humor and a smirk graced his lips. Lucy puffed out her cheeks and planned to send a kick at him but missed when he flew out of the way.

"I'm being serious here," Lucy told him.

"Then I'm being Lucy."

"That joke is getting –"

"Old. I know. But it's so much fun to use," Sirius chuckled before flying back to his place beside Lucy. "In my opinion. I think this whole snog session is quite mesmerizing –"

"Don't make me hurl, Sirius. Just get to the point," Lucy begged him, not one for doing PDA or witnessing it. Both just seemed to bring her to an uncomfortable place.

" – Because who would have thought James and Evans would get together let alone snog in public, am I right?" Sirius cut to the chase, "I mean, I'm pretty sure the Professors are wondering if they're dreaming or not as well."

Lucy slowly nodded her head, seeing what Sirius meant. She was just about to ask another question when something caught her eye. Right beside the third hoop on the Slytherin's side of the pitch was a small, gold ball fluttering from left to right like it wasn't so sure which direction it wanted to go.

"Hey, Sirius?" Lucy asked, her eyes never leaving the Snitch, "Would it be bad if I caught the snitch while everyone is busy ogling at James and Lily?"

"Bad?" Sirius looked to where Lucy was and a twinkle in his gray eyes appeared. "Like hell would it be bad. I'll back you up," he held onto his bat tightly as his body leaned forward a bit, ready to dash towards the Snitch, his bat at the ready just incase any Bludger decided to come their way.

"Brilliant," Lucy smirked, her body leaning forward as well and in a blink of an eye, the two went.

Teleporting was nothing like Apparating. Instead of feeling like you've been forced through a very tight hole, teleporting made you feel like your limbs, hair and intestines were being forced out of you before being left alone when you finally reached your destination. The Teleporter never experienced such a traumatizing feeling but the same can't be said for those who are dragged along with him.

Damiana, of course, knew what was coming and was prepared for the pain but Zoey had no idea what was in for her when she was abducted. The Emeraude screamed with all her might as she felt her arms and legs stretch to great lengths and a painful tug at her stomach made her lurch forward.

The pain didn't last long, no, for soon Zoey found herself face flat on the dusty ground of her home, breathing heavily in hopes to catch the breath she lost from her scream. Zoey withered and closed her eyes, praying that all this was just a dream.

She wished that she was back at the Graduation Ceremony, having fallen asleep during one of the speeches. She hoped that all this was just a nightmare. A scene that her tired mind made up.

Sadly, Zoey was introduced to the harsh reality when a sharp kick was sent to her ribs, knocking her to her back. Zoey yelped and clutched the injured area, opening her left eye to see Damiana glaring down at her.

"Who says you can rest?" the woman asked, her voice coming out like the hiss of a snake. The man who teleported them into the house was standing not too far away, watching Zoey whimper in pain. There was a shine of glee in his eyes.

"How the bloody hell does it look like I'm resting?" Zoey forced her voice out of her throat, "I'm in pain."

Another kick was sent and this time, it was aimed at her stomach. Zoey twitched forward and took a sharp intake of breath, trying not to scream. Damiana's shoes were sharp at its point, jabbing Zoey with each kick. She cursed who ever designed such horrid footwear.

"Don't use that kind of language in front of me, Zoey," Damiana glared, walking towards Zoey's crippled figure, her shoes clicking and clacking against the floor, filling the air with its eerie sound. "I would have thought you would have learned a thing or two having been placed under Dolores' wing."

"The only thing I learned was that she grew uglier over the years that I have not seen her. A Slytherin's boily arse would look better than her," Zoey glared at the woman and was pushed by an invisible force against the wall. Her head banged hard against the concrete wall and her vision was filled with black spots before it cleared up once more.

"I should have never allowed you to return for your final year, you little brat, you grew some backbone," Damiana said, twirling her wand in her hand before pointing it back to Zoey, threatening her.

"What are you going to do? Use Crucio me? Don't have any new tricks up your sleeve?" Zoey laughed without humor. A person could only take so much before she completely loses it. "I'M NOT AFRAID OF YOU!"

Damiana took a step back from the volume of Zoey's screech before regaining her composure and hardening her glare. She took a couple more steps closer to the suddenly brave girl and smirked. The woman then muttered a spell that caused the end of her wand to extend to form a glowing white whip. She lifted her arm before bringing it back down with great speed, hitting Zoey on the shoulder.

Zoey let out an ear-piercing scream as the cloth on her shoulder ripped and caught a light fire before dying out. A long red gash was then shown, bleeding and staining her uniform. The whip was burning hot like a knife that was placed on top of a fire for hours.

"You very well should be," Damiana said in a whisper before straightening up and turning back to the Teleporter. The Teleporter, tearing his eyes away from the crying Zoey, bent a hand in front of him and bowed lightly at Damiana's gaze. "Take her to the entrance hall, Lecso."

The Teleporter, Lecso, bowed once more before straightening up and walking towards Zoey. When he finally reached the girl in pain, he not so gently grabbed hold of her arm, lifting her from the ground. Zoey screamed from the force.

"Where in the entrance hall, Madam Emeraude?" Lecso's voice was strong and intimidating, his grip tightened around Zoey's thin arm and the Hufflepuff was sure that he was going to leave a large and painful bruise.

"Oh, anywhere is fine," Damiana said with a small wave of her hand showing that she didn't particularly care, "Just as long as she can see everything along the halls."

"Would you be following, Madam Emeraude?" Lecso then asked, prepared to leave once he had everything to his understanding.

"Of course, now go," Damiana's grin was anything but beautiful. In fact it was the most frightening thing Zoey had ever seen.

The painful tug of teleporting together with Lecso's iron grip did not help Zoey get used to the process and when the girl was reunited with the cold hard ground, she was worn out beyond belief. Her legs gave way the moment they touched the marbled floor and Zoey was sure that if no one were holding onto her, she would have broken her nose when her face met the ground once more.

Lecso noted Zoey's slumped figure, she was only supported by his hold on her, and gave her a harsh tug, forcing her to use her legs to support her own weight. Her head lolled to the side and soon, the soft pop from Damiana's arrival was heard.

"Straight back, Zoey dear," Damiana sneered, transfiguring her wand into an iron pipe to hit Zoey's back before returning it to it's normal material and size.

The pain from the hit was unimaginable. It felt as if her back would give out, and she felt that her spine had been damaged. Zoey didn't need to be a healer, or a healer in training for her case, to know that she would not be able to stand straight, nor be able to get rid of the back pain for weeks. What did she do to deserve this kind of torture? She let out a small yelp, trying to show her aunt that it did not affect her as much as she had hoped, and did as she was told. She would not give her aunt the satisfaction of seeing her in pure agony, but she was tired of the pain and did not want any more of it inflicted on her.

Without a word, the girl forced her back to straighten and bit her lip to stop the tears of pain from slipping out.

Damiana gave a malicious smile when she saw the way Zoey's body shook from fright and forced discipline. She still remembered the consequences of not having the appearance and grace of a perfect Emeraude woman. Straight back, perfect teeth, reasonably tall height, thin, fair skin and all other factors that Zoey did not posses.

The girl had perfect teeth, yes, but she was not born with them. They were magic-ed to align themselves before she was sent of to school. She learned to have a straight back at all times; the instinct did not come to her naturally. Reasonably tall height? Ha! Zoey was the shortest among all Emeraudes her age. Fair skin? Zoey was as pale as a ghost! The Hufflepuff's thinness was not of a healthy sort so it did not count. Zoey did not look like a true Emeraude.

"You're very hideous, did you know?" Damiana said in a soft voice, giving Zoey a scrutinizing look, "A complete disgrace to the Emeraude family beauty."

"Why am I here?" Zoey whispered, ignoring the insult her Aunt sent her. She knew that she was not beautiful. She knew that her looks did not compare to that of her family's. She knew that she was as plain as the backside of a rubber duck. She knew all that and she did not want to be reminded. "I thought the agreement was that I was to stay in my house, hidden from all to see. Didn't you want to leave me there to rot?"

"Yes, that's a very appealing idea, isn't it?" Damiana hummed, twirling her wand once more, "It's a brilliant plan, really but… I feel like you would not stay still if I were to leave you in that big house all alone. Without me knowing, you could be planning an escape plan behind my back."

"I promised that I would never leave," Zoey told her, wincing at her words. She promised something she never wanted to keep. The truth stung her greatly and like her appearance, she did not want to be reminded.

"How am I so sure that you would keep such a promise?" Damiana tested her, "But in any case, you're here because I wanted to show you something."

"And what would that be?"

"Keep that dirty mouth of yours shut and then you would know," The older of the two sent the younger a look before pointing her wand to the air and casting a silent spell.

Suddenly, the dim glow of the entrance hall turned to a blinding white shine. Zoey's hands instantly went up to her face to shield her eyes as everything took on a lighter appearance. Damiana looked down at her niece and furrowed her brows at her. She instantly took hold of both of Zoey's wrists and forced them back to her sides, making the girl endure the eye watering brightness.

"Don't close your eyes unless you want your eyelids glued open for all eternity," Damiana said in a dangerous tone near Zoey's ear making the Hufflepuff squint her eyes ever so slightly but she did not dare shut them.

After forcing her eyes to get used to the change of light, Zoey was finally able to make out the objects around her. She was in the Entrance Hall of the Emeraude Estate, the place where the family held all the reunions, birthday celebrations and holiday gatherings. All of which Zoey was never allowed to attend unless she was being dragged by her aunt and forced into a corner, starving as she watched everyone in her family feast.

The Entrance Hall, Zoey noted, went on for a good ten or more – possibly more – meters before meeting a dead end; the dead end being a large wall that held a portrait of the early Emeraudes.

Along the seemingly endless hall, statues were placed on both sides, each having a very peculiar stance. These statues looked nothing like the elegant, marble white ones Zoey would see in both wizard and muggle magazines nor would they look like the unique, aged ones she would hide behind in Hogwarts. No. These statues were all in positions that made one think that they were being attacked.

A statue of a girl to Zoey's right looked as if she was pushed against the wall, screaming at the impact as her wand was shot out of her hand while the statue to Zoey's left was of a man grabbing hold of his head, mouth wide open indicating a bloodcurdling scream. Down the hall, Zoey could make out a woman no older than she was, looking as if she were running away from something very frightening while opposite of her was man pinned to the ground, eyes staring soullessly ahead of him.

These statues had only one thing in common and that was that they were all suffering. Left and right, the people looked pained, scared and tortured. You could see the fright in their stone colored eyes and could practically hear their screams of despair when you looked hard enough. The thing about these statues was they looked almost life like. It was almost like they were real people, petrified.

"Beautiful aren't they?" Damiana said once Zoey looked away from the scene, not being able to stand anymore of the horror, "Each one, very special."

"What… what are they?" Zoey gasped out, staring at the closed doors behind her Aunt. She could make out the large lock on it, stopping her from a mad breakout if she wanted to.

"They are the Emeraude family's most prized possessions… in stone form of course," Damiana said, her voice like a snake once more.

"Stone form?" Zoey managed a peak at her Aunt. The woman was smiling happily as she looked at each statue that was within seeing distance. The smile on her face would have looked very innocent if the person looking did not know the true meaning behind it. Zoey's stomach churned as the screams of the people echoed in her head.

"Yes, stone," Damiana replied, turning to look at Zoey and grabbing hold of her arm, making her face the statues again. "They were complete disgraces when they were… alive, if you will," a grin then replaced her smile, "Your mother would be there too if not for her body disappearing under the rubble you used to call your home."

"Take that back," Zoey said automatically, her fear gone from her voice. She was not afraid to stand up to anyone who dares disgrace her mother's name. Even if it was her own Aunt.

"And why should I?" Damiana asked innocently, "It's true. Even our own parents thought so."

"TAKE. THAT. BACK!" Zoey yelled, struggling against Damiana's hold, "YOU BLASTED WOMAN! TAKE THAT BACK! MY MOTHER, NONE OF THESE PEOPLE DESERVED THIS KIND OF PUNISHMENT!"

Damiana said nothing. She merely raised her wand and pointed it at Zoey, forcing the girl's mouth shut and sending a powerful punch to her chest, making her stagger backwards and falling to the floor. Damiana kept her hold on her though so Zoey's arm was lifting her body inches above the ground, making her slightly bleeding shoulder sting. Her mouth opened to indicate a scream.

"You're too noisy for my liking, brat," Damiana said calmly, tugging at Zoey's arm once more, lifting her fully. Zoey stumbled to her feet and was caught by Lecso who forced her to look back at her aunt. "Keep that up and you'd be one of them."

Zoey's eyes widened with horror.


"–ed!" Fred twitched a bit and looked around his surroundings with confusion. He could have sworn he heard his name as he chatted with his friends. Was it just a trick of his ears? Probably seeing as the entire Great Hall was filled with cheers, laughter, animated talking and such, it was very probable for Fred to think that he had heard his name.

The Weasley shook his head and turned back to his friends, grinning as they conversed. He couldn't believe that Lee, Echo, Bridgit, Angelina and Alicia had all graduated without him and George. Yes, it was t be excepted seeing as they did drop out of Hogwarts but still, seeing them walk down the hall, walk up on stage and hear the Head of their House announce their achievements and such. Fred would be lying if he said he wasn't jealous.

"– ed!" he heard once more but shrugged it off, thinking it was just another trick of sound. It could have been someone else? Surely he wasn't the only Fred in the room, in fact, it could have been "Ed!" for all he knew.

"You little booger, getting away –"Fred began saying but was interrupted when he heard a familiar voice over the noise of everyone else.

"FREDERICK GIDEON WEASLEY!" the voice exclaimed and automatically, his, George's, Echo's, Bridgit's and Lee's heads shot up, looking towards the source of the voice.

"Damn right she can be the loudest voice when she wants to be," Lee laughed as Fred's smile turned to an earsplitting grin as he caught sight of his girlfriend. The shortest of the bunch was dancing on her tiptoes, trying to remain in sight.

"ZOE!" he couldn't help but yell out as he gestured to his friends to follow him. He needed to get to her. He needed to talk to her again, hug her again, and kiss her again. He had not realized how deprived he was until he saw her walking down the hall when the Ceremony started.

Fred was almost there. It annoyed him that so many people were in his way but he didn't dare do anything to push them away ahead of time. He just needed to get to her. Several people he bumped and squeezed through and yet it looked like she was nowhere nearer than she was moments ago. Just a little bit more, Fred kept telling himself every time he took a step closer. Almost there, he would think.

Just a few more feet and he would be within an arm's distance. He would be able to reach out to her and pull her against him. He was just about to reach out to her when a familiar figure made its way behind Zoey, leaning down to whisper in her ear.

The Weasley watched as Zoey's eyebrows shot up and her head turned to look at the person behind her. Not even a second passed before Zoey looked back to Fred, distress and fright in her eyes.

"FRED!"

He heard her scream before she disappeared in a blink of an eye. So fast that Fred did not have time to react.

What just happened? Fred thought, staring at the spot where Zoey had stood merely moments ago. "What in the bloody hell happened?" Fred now shouted, causing people around him to silence in his rage. How could they not? Fred's voice was a mixture of pain, anger, frustration, and hurt.

"Fre –" Lee had tried to say, trying to place a hand on his friend's shoulder, but Fred had shrugged him away and turned towards his friends. George and Echo were clutching to one another, Echo silently crying on to George's chest as he stroked her back in a comforting manner. Lee had sent him a sad glance, confused as to what had happened, while Bridgit just stared at the floor, not showing her reaction at all.

"WILL SOMEONE EXPLAIN WHAT HAPPENED?" Fred shouted once more, making the people stay away from him. They knew well enough not to disturb him, and some were even afraid of him.

"Stop it Fred!" George had exclaimed, his tears now building in his own pair of eyes. "Stop it, you know better than all of us what just happened! You know!" He continued, clutching onto a sobbing Echo tighter.

"NO! That didn't happen! This is just a joke!" Fred continued to shout, not noticing that they were all now alone in the hall. No one had decided to stay, only them.

"Fred!" Someone else exclaimed, it was Bridgit this time. "You know!" Fred dropped to the floor at Bridgit's words and released his own sobs. He could breathe no longer, and he was sure that he would be crying blood soon enough, but he just stayed there while everyone else cried as well.

"Coming to Hogwarts was the best thing that happened to me. I met Echo, You, George, Bridgit and all my friends. I regret nothing," she whispered, "But you know… my freedom came with a price"

Zoey's voice rang through Fred's head…

"To gain my freedom I had to give it back in the end," she said in a quiet voice, "I promised I would tell you this over the summer but we didn't have the chance."

Fred knew that George was comforting Echo, he also knew that Bridgit was being asked and bombarded by questions from Lee, but all he could actually hear was Zoey's voice. Her sweet voice that he wished to hear now.

"The only way I was allowed to go to Hogwarts was if I agreed to make a promise with my aunt," she told him, "The promise was when I graduate, I return to her. I go back to the Emeraude Suburb and stay there. Forever. I cannot leave the house I cannot have any contact with anyone. It would be like I disappeared from the face of the earth. I probably will."

An image of Zoey's smiling face flashed into his mind. The image of her soft smile as she told him all this. He was in tears, maybe that was even an understatement, but she refused to cry, she refused to spoil their Valentine's Day, and she refused to show him her weaknesses. If she was afraid, Fred would have never guessed.

"Because I don't want to waste my limited time crying over everything that has happened to me," she told him, "I want my memories of freedom to be happy."

That was the reason she had given him. It's true, what she said, that their final memories together were so happy and jolly that anyone would smile, but how could Fred smile knowing that he would never see her again? Knowing that he would never see, hug, kiss, or even touch Zoey again? That he would never get to smell her familiar coconut milk scent? How could he live on happy memories knowing that, that was all they were? Memories!

"She can't be gone…" Fred whispered, making all of his friends turn towards him. He looked up to see George's and Echo's tear streaked face, and Bridgit's hazed eyes and falling tears, but he knew none of them could feel what he was feeling. No one's hurt could ever compare to his. Yes, they had all lost a friend, but to Fred, it was as if his heart was taken away. He felt like it had been taken, stomped upon, and crushed into a million pieces and yet he had to continue living with the suffering of it.

"ZOEY!" He shouted, Fred letting out all his feelings. He shouted her name over and over, before he saw George release Echo and kneel down beside him. He felt his twin envelope him in a hug, but Fred continued to shout Zoey's name.

"I promised that I'd make this year memorable for you, and it's eating me inside to know that I'm breaking my promise to you, but I'll make you another promise, and I swear I won't break it this time...I promise, I'll find a way to get you back okay? I'll find a way to save from your aunt."

His own voice now rang in his mind as he remembered what he had told her. He remembered what he had promised, and he was not going to break this one. "I'll get her back," Fred said, making George let go at him. Fred faced the window and looked out into the setting sun.

"I'll get her back if it's the last thing I do!"

"Please don't die,"

Zoey's voice entered his head once again, but that was the only thing he wasn't sure of. He would risk anything for her, no matter how much she protested about it.

He wasn't one of those heroes like Harry, but if he knew one thing…he needed Zoey, and that was why he was going to get her back. No matter what the cost, he was going to have Zoey in his arms again. Even if his life was the price to do so.


Zoey could no longer scream. Her voice was muted by her aunt's spell and even if it wasn't, she was too tired to even whimper. The Emeraude had found herself back on the floor of her dusty house, her limbs and stomach throbbing in pain from her third teleport that day. Lecso had tightened his grip on her and without warning, brought her back to her house before leaving faster than a blink of an eye.

Damiana didn't follow them this time. Zoey was alone in her house, or so she thought. The Emeraude wrapped her sore arms around her stomach and tried to lift herself from the floor to head up the stairs and enter the room that she had once called her bedroom. That was the plan. Today marked the day of her imprisonment. She was not allowed to leave her house under any circumstances. Her house was going to be her coffin from now on.

She was going to live in it and die in it.

That was the plan.

Before Zoey could even rise up to her feet, a melodic giggle stalled her. Zoey froze in shock and debated whether she heard the giggle or if it was just in her head. She stayed still for a couple more seconds before slowly turning around, facing the source of the laugh.

Mary – Sue smiled and waved at the Hufflepuff, pushing herself off from what seemed to be Zoey's suitcase and mother's box placed together on the floor of her house. The blonde patted her micro-miniskirt and fluffed up her hair before lacing her fingers behind her back and leaning forward a bit to study Zoey's battered appearance.

"You look… different somehow," Mary – Sue said, her voice soft like a small bell ringing, she straightened up and walked around Zoey, not even bothering to help the injured girl back to her feet.

"Is it your hair? Your clothes? Maybe you grew a little?" Mary – Sue asked, still continuing to circle around Zoey. She repeated the process three more times, asking more questions she already knew the answers to, before stopping directly in front of the Emeraude.

She bent down to Zoey's height from knee-up and made her blue eyes wider, trying to make herself look like a cute, porcelain doll. "Oh, I know!" the girl giggled, showing her pearly white teeth, "It's your face! You look uglier than ever!"

Zoey felt like she was just slapped in the face with an iron glove as she turned away from Mary –Sue. Must everyone comment on how she looked? She got it. She didn't look as breathtakingly gorgeous as the other Emeraudes but did they have to rub it in? Answer, yes.

"Hey, why aren't you talking? I just insulted you! Where's the reaction?" Mary – Sue pouted as her cheeks puffed up, watching Zoey struggle to get to her feet and walk away from her.

Zoey managed to stand up after a short minute of trial and error. The Hufflepuff then made a move towards the stairs but was stopped when Mary – Sue, who was moving at a normal person's pace, stood in front of her, holding her arms out to keep Zoey from going any further.

"If I insulted the golden eyed freak, she would have lashed out at me, same with the girl with the demonic dog. They're your friends, aren't they? Why am I not getting the same reaction from you?" Mary – Sue questioned, not knowing that Zoey would not be able to speak until someone lifted the spell off of her.

"Speaking of your friends," the girl then said, not really caring that Zoey was not going to reply to her anytime soon, she had lost interest in trying to rile the girl up. Mary – Sue liked to move quickly. If she started something, she wants to suck out all the entertainment value in it before dropping it to the floor like yesterday's clothes and moving onto something else. Something new. Something interesting. "Where are they? Your friends, I mean, shouldn't they be here?"

Zoey sent Mary – Sue a glare that practically screamed "Shut up! You don't know anything!" before trying to side step the picture of perfection so she could go to her probably dust covered bed to sleep and never wake up in.

"They do know that you're trapped here for all eternity right?" Mary – Sue asked, a grin already showing on her glossed lips, "I mentioned it before I left. I bet you told them everything after, am I right?"

Zoey hardened her glare. The kind of glare she used when she was truly angry. Mary – Sue didn't even flinch at the intensity. She wasn't even looking at the Emeraude in the eyes anymore. Her own blue ones were sparkling with more daggers she planned to shoot through Zoey's heart.

"I am right, aren't I? They know that you're trapped and they aren't even going to save you!" she let out another laugh that sounded like wind chimes after a soft breeze blew passed them, "You're screwed! No Prince Charming for you, Missy. You'll be trapped her forever and just rot here like the piece of garbage that you are!"

I'm – not – trash! Zoey's mouth moved but no sounds came out. She squinted her eyes at the girl in front of her and her hands balled into fists.

"Oh, is little orphan Zoey mad?" Mary – Sue continued with a baby voice, taunting the Emeraude some more, "You are an orphan now, aren't you? Your mother's dead and now your father. Pretty pathetic. Child of the rubbish in the family –"

But Mary – Sue never got the chance to complete her sentence for Zoey had launched herself at her, throwing punches and pulling at her hair. Mary – Sue was not worthy enough to be harmed by magic, Zoey did it the muggle way. Slow and dirty.

They Emeraude didn't know how much time passed but she did know that she had caused Mary – Sue a lot of damage on her pretty little face before Lecso and Damiana entered the house, shooting Zoey away from Mary – Sue. Lecso, being the strong man that he was, helped Mary –Sue off the floor and carried her off to the nearest healer in the family. They didn't even leave silently. Mary – Sue decided to make things look worse than they really were and moaned in pain and claimed several body parts were broken even though they weren't.

Zoey, having hit the wall rather harshly from Damiana's blast, winced in pain as she looked up to see her Aunt's eyes looking down at her. They weren't forming slits nor did she look angry. She just looked… expressionless and truth be told, that was one of the scariest faces an Emeraude could ever hold.

"You've got some nerve, punching Mary – Sue and bruising her flawless face," Damiana said in a dangerously soft voice, "I don't like the new you."

Well you take what you can get, Zoey mouthed, still unable to speak.

Damiana, seeing that she had yet to lift the spell of the girl, gave a lazy wave of her wand and forced Zoey's body to press against the wall, arms and legs stretched out and was held down by invisible binds. Zoey struggled against the invisible holds, her face contorting to that of frustration but she was not let down. In fact, it only got tighter.

"Finite," Damiana then said and soon, Zoey was letting out a roar of frustrated words. She was different now but she refused to let a cuss escape her lips.

"Get me down from here," Zoey said, arching her back as to try to get away from the wall but it was still no use, she stopped when she felt like the blood circulation in her wrists and ankles were no more. She gave up soon after her limbs began to numb and she resorted to glaring at her Aunt once more.

"I don't think so," Damiana smirked, pocketing her wand and turning around to look over to the luggage Mary – Sue was once sitting on, "I'm just going to do what other parents do to their children. Put them in the corner and make them think about what they've done."

"Excuse me, dear aunt of mine, but I see that you've failed to notice but I'm stuck to the wall, not facing the corner," Zoey spat, watching her Aunt walk closer and closer to her suitcase and her mother's box. She cursed in her head. How could she be so stupid?

Damiana, who was just a mere three feet away from Zoey's belongings, looked over her shoulder and raised a brow at the girl before pulling her wand out once more and with doing a simple flick of her wrist, jammed Zoey into the corner with so much force that the Hufflepuff felt like she was just ran over by a hundred Bludgers flying her way.

"Gah!" Zoey yelled out, screwing her eyes shut from the impact.

"Is that better?" Damiana asked with a sweet tone, looking back to Zoey's things and idly kicking her suitcase over. Raising a delicate, blonde eyebrow, a smirk tugged at the woman's lips. She slowly bent down and grazed her manicured fingertips at the top of a box that stood silently beside the fallen suitcase.

Zoey, regaining her breath, craned her neck in order to see what her Aunt was doing; her eyes widened ever so slightly when she saw what Damiana was touching. The box. It was her mother's box. It wasn't in mini-form. No, oh hell no, this was the real deal. Big box glory. Sucking in a breath, Zoey watched her aunt straighten up and turn her way.

"My, my, my," Damiana began in a tone that suggested that she had just found her treasure, which she did. "This was easier than I thought it would be."

"What was?" Zoey asked stupidly, wanting to keep her Aunt's attention away from her Mother's belongs for just a bit longer.

"Don't act as if you don't know," said Damiana, bending her legs so she would be able to sit on Lucy's box. The box didn't make any sound of protest from the added weight; it just stayed as silent as ever, like any other inanimate object.

"Years of torturing you just to get the whereabouts of this thing and here it is, in plain sight. Come on, deary, I thought you would put more of a challenge," Damiana continued in a mock, baby voice.

Zoey pursed her lips and furrowed her eyebrows. She truly had nothing more to say on the matter. It was her own fault. She had time to pack before the graduation Ceremony. Heck, it was like any other year, she never unpacked; she merely lived out of her suitcase. Lucy's box, she had not opened it in a long time. Zoey did not need to open it.

The Emeraude had already seen its contents, she had read the bocks and added her mother's old clothes in her suitcase. The photo album, she had looked through it and several of the necklaces and earrings from the jewelry box, Zoey had taken the liberty of wearing.

There was nothing in the seemingly bottomless pit of a box, Zoey had not seen.

"Just get your pretty little arse off my mother's things and I'll hide it, then we can continue our favorite game," Zoey said sarcastically, the Gryffindor within her acting out. Or was it Slytherin? Who knows? It just wasn't Hufflepuff.

"I don't think so," Damiana squinted her eyes. She slid of the top of the box and kneeled beside it, opening its lid. Zoey expected to see a bright light or Damiana being sucked into the box or even a dragon coming out to eat the horrid woman but nothing came.

It was just opened. Like a treasure chest but with no sparkling gold and diamonds to blind oneself.

"Now what do we have here?" Damiana began, her voice sounding like a cartoon predator who had just corned its prey.

Zoey bit her lip and looked away, not wanting to see what her aunt was pulling out.


The morning sun slipped through the blinds of the Chatsworth daughter's room window causing several thin yellowish lines to appear all around the stirring form of Jane. The girl was just about ready to get up but her heavy lids just refused to open. Turning a bit more in her bed, Jane brought her hands up to her eyes and rubbed the sleep away, successfully getting them to open. She groaned.

Weeks. It had been weeks since the girl has had a proper sleep and when she finally got one, she didn't feel any better. Weeks since a proper good night sleep. Weeks since she was able to hear herself think without other thoughts circling her mind. Weeks since she had seen her best friend. Zoey was revealed to be a Black on the day of their graduation and on that same day, she had been taken away. No sign of her since that event and its been tearing not only Jane but everyone who knew her inside out.

Swinging her feet off her bed and sitting upright, Jane closed her eyes and rubbed her temples, her head slightly aching. She should just lie back down on her bed and push all the troublesome thoughts away but she couldn't. Zoey was gone and she wanted to find her. She wanted to help find her.

A banging on her bedroom door distracted Jane's mind to wandering over to memories with her Hufflepuff friend.

"Yeah?" she called out, her voice still groggy from sleep. An eerie creak signaling the opening of her door filled the air and Jane looked up to see her mother, Elizabeth Chatsworth.

"Good morning, Mother," Jane greeted, slowly standing up from her bed. Ever since her parents found out about her relationship with Aiden, a muggleborn, things were never the same. Things weren't exactly good to begin with but… let's just say things could have been better.

"Clear out your plans for this weekend," Mrs. Chatsworth said, folding her arms across her chest and leaning against the doorframe of her daughter's door, not even bothering to return the polite greeting.

Jane hummed out a sarcastic tune to indicate thought. "My boyfriend is traveling with his parents, my friends are having family time with their respective relatives, my best friend has been abducted to only Merlin knows where and I've been rotting in this beloved bedroom of mine for weeks," the girl listed out, watching her mother's eyes squint with every word that was being said. "I can't say I'm free for this weekend," Jane added, sitting back onto her bed and crossing her legs.

"Well, prepare your best dress robes for the Emeraudes," Mrs. Chatsworth sniffed, acting as if her daughter had just agreed to what she had said and made a turn to leave when a quick tug at her arm stopped her. The woman looked down to see Jane, her knees on the floor, hand on her sleeve and eyes wide open.

"Get off me, child," Mrs. Chatsworth ordered, tugging her arm out of Jane's grip causing the girl to lose her balance for a moment before quickly regaining it. She stumbled to her feet, her hands out in caution.

"Di… did you just say 'Emeraude'?" Jane gasped out, her knees shaking a bit from nervous excitement.

"Of course," Mrs. Chatsworth rolled her eyes a bit, "Don't you listen, child?"

"I just wanted to make sure I heard right, mother," Jane huffed out, already getting a bad vibe so early in the morning.

"Yes, I said Emeraude. The Emeraude family is one of the most powerful pureblood families in the Wizarding world and we have been privileged to be invited to their annual ball," Mrs. Chatsworth drawled out, "Just your regular pureblood ball, you've been to many so I assume you know how to act, dress –"

"I know what to do, Mum. Who are going to be there?" Jane asked, her heart beating rapidly against her chest.

"The entire Emeraude family of course. There would also be a couple of the most respected pureblood families such as the Malfoys, Parkinson, Zabini and their lot."

"What about the Weasleys?"

Jane avoided a slap her mother sent her way. The girl took several steps away from the woman in front of her and took a defensive stance, keeping a distance and watched as her mother retracted her hand, placing it delicately at her side. Her mother took several deep breaths; the redness her cheeks took from anger was fading slowly and took its usual pale tone.

Mrs. Chatsworth scrutinized her daughter, her own stance taking a stiff form.

"The Weasleys," she began, her voice laced with disgust, "are blood traitors. They'll never be invited to an event held by the Emeraudes."

"Of course. How could I be so stupid?" Jane said, inwardly rolling her eyes.

"Yes, how could you?" Mrs. Chatsworth closed her eyes. "But that's beside the point. We are going to this event whether you like it or not and dates are a must. Don't you dare bring that mudblood boyfriend of yours."

"Don't call him that," Jane shrieked, "And I told you, he's out on vacation!"

"Then invite someone suitable and of a pureblood," Mrs. Chatsworth waved her daughter off, turning around once more and left Jane.

Watching her mother's retreating figure, Jane approached her door and slowly closed it. The eerie creak filling her room once more. Letting out a sigh, the girl walked over to her window and peeked through her blinds, watching one of the family houseelves Apparating to the garden to fix the flower bushes.

Taking a deep breath, a small smirk graced her lips.

"I'll bring a date alright," she muttered silently to herself, "And for sure he'll be a pureblood."


The summer morning passed by as a blur and soon, the afternoon sun was peaking ever so slightly from behind the clouds. A nice summer breeze blew by, messing up people's hair and the like. Children, both magical and muggle, were playing outside their homes, enjoying their summer vacation. They no longer cared about school and the stress that came with it. School was over and children of all ages were now throwing their books out the window and finally had the freedom of fun.

Summer vacation was something for all. It was something carefree and worry-free for all… all except for several people in the Wizarding world. These people were deep in the pool of stress and worry. The cause of these negative feeling was the simple fact that a certain Emeraude, who was close to their hearts, was missing.

A yell pierced through the laughter of the summer afternoon, disrupting the childish sounds, and causing birds to fly away from their homes in the trees.

"FREDERIC GIDEON WEASLEY! Where do you think you're going?"

Fred flinched and slowly looked back at his mother. Ever since Zoey's disappearance he and George have been spending their time in the Burrow just to plan a rescue alongside with Echo. It had been hours… days… weeks and the boy couldn't take it. He needed to see her. Fred figured that if he was able to floo to her dusty old place three years ago, he could do it now... If his mother didn't notice him.

"Just going out to check up on the store," Fred lied, scratching the back of his head as he did so.

"Didn't you and George check up on your store two days ago?" Mrs. Weasley asked, raising a suspicious eyebrow at her son. She was not one to tolerate lies especially from her own kids.

"Oh, but mother dear, you never know what could happen to the place without me and Georgie checking up every once in a while," Fred told her, "Very successful place, cashier filled with galleons and such, people can just enter and steal whatever they can get their grubby hands on."

Mrs. Weasley furrowed her brows and folded her arms across her chest. "I thought you and George had enough tact to put security spells on the shop before leaving and don't you have that girl you hired not too long ago to take care of the place while the both of you are gone?"

"Mum –"

"And if you are going to go to the shop, why isn't George coming with you?" Mrs. Weasley already knew what her son was up to, she just wanted him to tell her himself.

"He's hanging out with Echo," Fred gulped.

"Echo hasn't come back yet from gathering her stuff from her own house. George is upstairs, from my knowledge Echo wouldn't allow him to help her," Mrs. Weasley then sighed, "Fred, tell me the truth."

Fred closed his eyes and leaned his back onto the fireplace, pinching the bridge of nose. He should have known better than to lie to his mother. It didn't work all those years ago when he and George broke a vase, it didn't work when they lied about breaking the rules in Hogwarts and it wouldn't work now when he was trying to sneak out to save his girlfriend.

"I think you already know the truth by now, mum," Fred let out a dry chuckle just for the heck of it, "after all, you always had the talent of finding out when me and George are lying or what are we lying about."

"That doesn't mean I'm always right, Fred"

"Why don't you try and make a guess?"

"Why don't you just tell me the truth yourself?" Mrs. Weasley shot back. She was being patient. Her son was hurt; she needed to be there for him.

The boy opened his left eye to pear at his mother before opening his right to fully look at her. He then stuffed his hands into his pockets before kicking an invisible pebble with his foot.

"I just figured I could you know... Floo to her," he didn't need to say who 'her' was. It was common knowledge by now.

"You think that's wise, Fred?" Mrs. Weasley asked in a soft tone, "Do you honestly think that they would keep her floo network open considering the circumstance she is in?"

"You never know –"

"What about that plan you, George and Echo keep discussing upstairs in your old room? You think I don't hear your mutterings?" she interrupted him. "Would you just let your efforts go to waste with you just acting on impulse?" she ended, trying to let him see the danger of his actions.

Fred didn't say anything. His lips formed a tight line and a crease appeared on his forehead as he thought long and hard to himself. His mother had a point. In fact, her point was common knowledge... Common sense. What was he thinking? Flooing to Zoey's without knowing if she is still in her house or in a cage under the earth with her horrendous aunt with her?

The thought made Fred's body shake with anger. He felt the need to punch the wall... Hard... Create a hole that would allow you to have a peak at the garden to see the gnomes running around, swearing at you when they felt like it.

"Fred, just give it some time... Think more on your rescue plan. Consider all the obstacles that you may encounter. Prepare for them," Mrs. Weasley now offered him a soft smile, reaching out to touch his forearm, holding onto it with both of her hands, "Just wait a little more."

"I can't afford to wait any longer, Mum, Zoey could be having the Cruciatus used against her right at this moment!" Fred tried his best not to yell.

"You don't know that –"

"If it isn't the Cruciatus curse, it could be another curse or some physical beating for all we know," Fred's hands formed fists and his knuckles whitened, "We need to save her!"

"I know that, Fred and I know that she's waiting to be saved but do you think she would allow herself to be saved knowing that You, George and Echo would be hurt during the process?"

Fred remained silent. Point two to his mother.

"I'm already allowing you three to do this dangerous task because I, as much as anybody in this house, want Zoey safe and sound but I want you lot to be safe as well. We don't want anyone go be sent to St. Mungo's now, do we?"

"I never thought I would live to see the day my own mother allowing me to go in a rescue mission that would involve violence being inflicted. Must be dreaming," Fred allowed a slight smirk to appear on his lips.

"Yes, well, why don't you head upstairs and being planning while I make up some sandwiches?" Mrs. Weasley patted her son's cheek before turning around to head to the kitchen, the smell of lunch filling the air.

Fred was just about to do what his mother suggested when a whispered call caught his attention. The voice belonged to a girl and she was saying his name. Troubled and curious at what he had heard, Fred looked around his surroundings, trying to see if Echo or Bridgit had come to visit or something.

"Fred!" the voice was a little bit louder now but it was still in its whispered tone. The boy's heart skipped a beat, wondering if it was Zoey but something kept him from jumping straight into that conclusion. The voice was stronger than Zoey's. It did not hold her delicate tone.

"Who's there?" Fred decided to ask, his voice soft so his mother wouldn't come out of the kitchen to wonder who he was talking to. There was a moment of silence before he heard a reply.

"It's Jane. Jane Chatsworth, remember?"

"Jane?" Fred blinked before looking down at the fireplace to see Jane's face pocking out of it from the flames. At the notice, the boy dropped to his knees to talk to her better. "Jane, what the bloody hell are you doing?"

"Talking to you, obviously," Jane said with a roll of her eyes before her expression turned serious, "Listen, I have something important to tell you. Where's George?"

"He's upstairs. I could get him if you –"

"We don't have time!" Jane suddenly said, her voice high with slight panic. "I have to tell it to you, just relay the message to George, Echo and Bridgit."

"What's this important message? Why is it so important that you couldn't – I don't know – owl us or something?" Fred asked, quirking and eyebrow at the pureblood.

"It's about Zoey."

At the mention of the Emeraude, Fred's face contorted into seriousness as well. "What do you know?

"Not much," Jane admitted before her face in the flames disappeared for a moment or two before coming back. "I have to make this fast, I think I heard my dad approaching."

"Just say what you must."

Jane nodded her head and took a deep breath before speaking. "I'm not certain of Zoey's whereabouts but it doesn't hurt to check every place possible, right? So, just this morning, my mother came to my room and told me that this weekend, there's going to be this annual 'Emeraude Ball'. I'm thinking Zoey could be there. Here's the plan, my mother told me that I should bring a date and Aiden's not here and of course, I wouldn't bring him on this mission."

"Where are you going with this?" Fred couldn't help but interrupt. His heart was pounding violently against his chest with every ounce of information Jane was telling him. Sure, it was already beating violently at the mention of Zoey's name but from the slight hope of finding Zoey at the Emeraude Suburb, well, Fred could have been having a heart failure and wouldn't even know the difference.

"Glad you asked. You're going to be my date," Jane then continued before Fred could interrupt once more. "I've checked the invitation and it basically says I'm allowed to invite more people because the Emeraude's believe in "The more the merrier!" Over used? Quite. Helpful? Yes. So you'll be my date and we're dragging Echo and George along with us."

"That's… That's great, Jane! Brilliant!" Fred couldn't help but raise his voice from the excitement he had but had to shut his mouth when he heard his mother drop something in the kitchen. He winced at the sound before bending even lower to continue his conversation with the Hufflepuff. "When do we start?"

"Like I said, the ball is this weekend so we don't have much time to plan anything out," Jane winced at that unprepared fact, "That and I have no idea what the Emeraude Suburb looks like."

"Basically you're saying we're going to have to wing it when we get there?" A twinkle in Fred's blue eyes came and a grin was slowly etching its way to his lips. "My favorite strategy."

Jane gave a small laugh before her eyes widened. She could hear the footsteps of her father getting louder and louder. He was fast approaching now. "Glad to here that. Look, my dad's coming and this is the last thing I have to say. Emeraude's are really big on the whole 'blood-traitor' thing – sorry that I had to use the term – So you and George have to go under disguise seeing as the red hair and freckles sort of throw you two off. You know any look you two can pull off?"

Fred thought for a moment, his mind flashing back to his second year. The grin on his lips grew even wider and his mind already building up countless of ideas. "I don't know if you remember, but George and I look pretty good with black hair."

"Great," Jane offered a smile and before she could even give a proper goodbye, her face in the flame disappeared just in time for Fred to hear his twin going down the stairs.

Straightening up from his crouched position, Fred looked up to see George looking at him oddly.

"Lost something, Freddie?" he asked.

"Bring out your Gringotts key, Georgie," Fred said, standing up from the ground, "We're going to buy ourselves some new dress robes."


Minutes turn into hours, Hours to days, Days to weeks. Weeks have passed since any news of Zoey was heard. She has been silent. No notes, no owls, no anything. This would have been normal to some degree, but it seemed as if she was off the grid! This caused a great deal of worry amongst her friends, Bridgit being one of them.

The brunette sat in front of her desk, a quill in hand, as she tried to write down a lesson plan for her first year as a trainee under Flitwick. She was to help him with his teaching, learn the ropes, and sometimes teach a few classes herself. This would have been a very fun and easy task for Bridgit. If only she was fully focused on the task at hand.

"How do you think Zoey's doing, Shinji?" Bridgit asked, turning to the teacup poodle on her bed. He was chewing on a chew toy and looked absolutely cute doing so. Bridgit smiled at the dog as he looked up at her. He sympathized with her, but didn't have an answer to give either.

"You're right, maybe I should be worried about Fred too." The Parker turned towards the window and looked at the beautiful scenery. The wide field with children playing football outside tempted her to go and join them, just to get away from the stress of the situation.

"CARI GET DOWN HERE!" A voice suddenly roared out, making the girl roll her eyes. Of course, who else to ruin a peaceful moment.

"CARI!" The voice shouted once more, making Shinji growl. She gave her dog a sympathetic look before making her way out of her safe haven.

The big house she lived in could be compared to one from storybooks. Marble walls and ceilings with gold trimmed curtains and furniture. The house was magnificent, but Bridgit didn't care. The only she cared about was how her place looked like. How her room looked like.

"I told you, my name is Bridgit!" Bridgit shouted out, walking down the white marble staircase. She decided to get lazy and just slide down the side to get down to her uncle faster. When she landed on her feet once again, there her uncle stood. "What's up Uncle Drew?" She asked, glaring at the man.

Zachary Drew James was not a very nice person. Well, he was depending on who you talked to. He had a tall build, shoulders broad, and muscular. His mousy blonde hair and sapphire blue eyes attractive as well. "Cari, would you care to explain what this contraption is?" Bridgit rolled her eyes as her uncle refused to call her, her birth name. The name her father had chosen for her.

Drew was pointing towards a box on the table, and Bridgit's eyes grew wide. "Finally!" The girl exclaimed running up to it. She has been waiting for it for almost two weeks now. "My laptop is here!" Before the girl could reach the box however, an arm had tugged and stopped her.

"Laptop?" Drew asked, raising his eyebrow. "Cari, do not tell me this is another one of those muggle contraptions!" Bridgit glared as her uncle walked up to the box. She wanted to stop him, but just watched as he took out his wand. He pointed it at the laptop and whispered 'Reducto'. The box and everything inside smashed.

"Why must you keep getting these things? You have the best what galleons could buy! Your father and mother could never have given you this!" Bridgit sometimes wondered if her uncle loved her or hated her. He seemed like he cared, but it still confused her.

"I don't care! I paid for it!" Bridgit shouted back. "What do you know anyway? You always tell me what my parents couldn't do, but you always say you loved my mom! Can you just make up your freaking mind!"

The image of the burning house flashed into Bridgit's mind as tears formed into her eyes.

"Go to your room Cari," Drew whispered, making the glare send him a tense glare.

"MY NAME IS BRIDGIT!" She ran up to her room, wiping away the stubborn tears that continued to fall against her will. She had wanted the laptop for another way of communication with her friends. A safer way. Her owls were being monitored by Death Eaters, and she was already being suspected of betraying them.

"CARI…!" She heard a faint call, but she didn't mind it. She shut her door and lay down on her bed beside Shinji. She hugged the little dog close and wondered once again how Zoey was. Bridgit just hoped that she was in better condition than she was. "Hope that you're doing fine Zee…" Bridgit whispered, making Shinji nuzzle her cheek. She smiled at that.

"You and me against the world right Shinji?" Bridgit said, making the dog bark cutely. The girl looked out the window once again and decided that maybe a game of football with a couple of muggle kids wouldn't be so bad after all.


High and evil cackles that belonged to the young Slytherin girls were carried out in the breeze and filled Zoey's ears. The leader of the three girls had an unpleasant smile plastered on her lips as she held her wand with mastery, a pair of glasses just floating above the point. The two other Slytherins were holding onto a young Hufflepuff, stopping her from reaching out for her glasses.

Zoey was only in her first year at Hogwarts and already she was being picked on. Her book bag was thrown to the floor, her books and rolls of parchment scattered on the grass, and her hair was in tangles. There were even slight rips on her robes and dirt on her shoes. It was obvious that she struggled to fight against the Slytherins but lost.

"Come on, Emeraude," the leader drawled, "You're a pureblood, ain't ya? Why don't you get your glasses from me?"

"I – I'm not allowed to use magic out of class," Zoey said in a strained voice, trying her best to loosen the other girls' grip on her. It was no use. She was too weak and frail to create any force against them. "Please, just give me back my glasses!"

"Why should I give this to a blood traitor like you?" the girl sniffed, her face contorting to disgust at the sight of the battered spectacles. "Trash. I can't believe they even let you into this school."

The two girls holding onto Zoey laughed, their long fingernails digging into Zoey's skin as they did so. The Emeraude winced at the pressure but didn't say anything. "So what do we do with trash girls?" the Slytherin suddenly said, her eyes showing that she had a plan in mind already. "We throw it away of course!" she answered her own question, pointing her wand towards the Forbidden Forest and sending Zoey's glasses flying towards it.

Zoey's gray eyes widened and she let out surprised gasp as the image of her spectacles grew blurrier and blurrier that farther it went until it was out of sight; both from Zoey's vision and someone's 20-20 vision. The girl's holding onto Zoey dropped her to the floor and stood beside their leader, laughing at Zoey's distraught state.

The Emeraude whipped her head to look at them but the three already turned their backs to her and were making their way towards the castle. The sun was already setting and soon, dinner would be served at the Great Hall.

Zoey took in a shaky breath and scrambled towards her fallen school materials before the night breeze could blow them away. Sniffling as she stuffed book after book into her bag, the girl did not hear someone approaching until that someone placed a hand on her shoulder, catching her by surprise.

She let out a squeak.

"Zoe?" it was Fred, Zoey guessed, "Zoe, what are you doing out here? Dinner is about to start."

Quickly wiping her eyes from tears that threatened to fall, Zoey looked up to Fred and gave him a weary smile, placing her tattered bag on her lap. "You should go on without me. I think I'm going to hang around here for a while."

"Hang out here? Zoe, you've always said you hated the Hogwarts grounds after dark. Freaks you out if I recall," Fred pointed out, kneeling on the ground to look Zoey in the eyes, the Emeraude's light gray eyes shining with the tears that had not been shed.

Fred blinked a couple of times before wiping the area below Zoey's eye with his thumb, noting that it was slightly moist. "Where are your glasses?" he asked her, realizing that he did not see the reflection of himself when he looked her in the eyes.

Zoey licked her lips and glanced towards the Forbidden Forest, a shiver running up her spine at the thought of all the creatures lurking in it. Why would someone put a school right next to such a forest? She would never know the reason behind it. The Emeraude drew in a breath and looked back at the Weasley boy.

"Uhm… they're in the Forbidden Forest," she decided to be honest.

"The Forbi – What are they doing there?" Fred asked.

"They... flew," Zoey cringed at her explanation. It wasn't the best in the world to be painfully obvious.

"Flew?" Fred's brows shot up with surprise before breaking Zoey's statement apart and trying to decipher the true meaning behind it. Through his observations, he had come to the conclusion that when girls say one thing they mean the other. One of their confusing ways of trying to get a boy to know what they felt or something. He was eleven, he didn't know if his conclusion was right or not. Nonetheless, he tried to figure out what Zoey really meant. How could glasses fly?

With a snap of his fingers, a humorous grin laced Fred's lips. "You tried that spell we learned in Charms class didn't you?" he asked, thinking that he got the right answer.

"Ch…Charms?" Zoey's brows knitted together, "You mean 'Wingardium Leviosa'?"

"Yeah. You tried it out, didn't you? That's why your glasses 'flew' to the Forbidden Forest?" Fred asked, his grin slowly fading and his voice hinting that he was now unsure of his guess.

Zoey took in a breath and offered a small smile. "Yeah, I tried to see if I could levitate my glasses like that feather and… I sort of messed up," she lied, "I guess I should have worked on something unimportant."

"You would need your glasses in order for you to come back into the castle," Fred chuckled, getting up from the ground, swatting the grass off his pants and robes and holding his hand out to Zoey. The Emeraude took it and allowed Fred to help her up. Once she was back on her feet, she swayed slightly, not used to seeing the word in all its blurry glory just yet.

"Listen," Fred began, "Why don't you meet up with George and Echo back in the castle and while I'll look for your glasses?" The Weasley sent her a smile, his blue eyes already twinkling with excitement at the thought of entering the Forbidden Forest.

"What?" Zoey gasped, "Fred, we aren't allowed out this late nor are we allowed to go into the Forbidden Forest. Going into the Forbidden Forest at this time will equal you double the punishment!"

"I know! Isn't that exciting?" Fred's smile turned into a grin.

"No it isn't! Do you have any idea what's in that forest?" Zoey asked, panicked.

"Of course not. That's what makes it more interesting! Hagrid keeps chasing George and I away whenever we get remotely close to the area, with him either in the castle or asleep in his hut, I can go in there with no problem – Look! It's George and Echo!"

Turning around, Zoey saw George holding onto Echo's arm as he dragged her towards his twin and herself; Echo being too immersed in her book to notice. When they finally reached them, he released his hold on the Veela and looked to his mirror image.

"Where have you two been? Dinner started thirty minutes ago!" George asked, his brows shooting up.

"Zoey accidentally Wingardium Leviosa-ed her glasses into the Forbidden Forest. I was just about to head there and look for them. Want to come?" Fred explained.

"Sounds like a brilliant idea," George grinned before looking at Echo, "You don't mind bringing Zoey back, right?"

"I don't mind," Echo momentarily looked up from her book before her eyes went back to the printed words.

"Echo! You do mind. Tell them it's a dumb idea to go into the Forest!" Zoey said, not believing that her friend casually agreed to bring her back thus not giving a word in on the twins' plan.

"Fine," Echo snapped her book shut. "Tell me whose bloody idea was it to make your glasses fly over to that eerie place? Zwei, you're not that stupid to use the levitation charm on your own glasses. You're as blind as a bleeding bat without them."

"It was an accident! I didn't mean to send them away," Zoey said, her voice taking a higher pitch from her lie mixed with panic.

"Exactly why we need to find it," Fred then said, pushing Zoey slightly towards Echo. "Don't need to worry your pretty little head, love. Georgie boy and I will find them."

Before Zoey could get a word in, Fred and George already turned their back on them and ran towards the direction of the forest, wands held tightly in their hands as they began their little exploration.

The Emeraude's heart was frantically beating against her chest as she felt Echo take hold of her forearm, slowly leading her back into the castle. Zoey stumbled over her feet a couple of times for she could not tear her eyes away from the direction the twins went no matter how blurry it could the farther she was. The only moment she looked away was when her shoe made a slight noise from making contact with the cold floor of Hogwarts.

The next morning, Zoey found herself shifting nervously on her seat on the Gryffindor table as she waited for Fred and George with Echo. Beside her, she could hear Lee chatting with the rest of the Gryffindors. The Hufflepuff felt uncomfortable. She never liked sitting at another house's table without her friends. It was like trespassing. Zoey was just about to excuse herself when Lee tapped her shoulder.

"Did you hear?" he began, a grin on his lips, "Fred and George got busted last night."

"Busted?" Zoey squeaked out, her eyes wide with worry, "Busted for what?"

"I'm not all to sure about the details but from what I heard, they were caught walking around the Forbidden Forest. I knew they weren't afraid of anything but the Forbidden Forest? That's wicked. Kudos to them." Lee laughed.

"Do – Do you know if they're hurt?" Zoey then asked him, already feeling guilty of not telling a teacher of where the twins had gone the moment she entered the Great Hall. Before Lee could reply, Zoey felt something slide from the top of her head only to land on the bridge of her nose. She let out a small scream in surprise.

"Why don't you ask us yourself?" Fred grinned, placing his arm on Zoey's shoulder as he sat beside her, George beside Echo.

"Fred!" Zoey gasped out, her vision of him already clear from the glasses that now rested in front of her eyes. She pushed them further up the bridge of her nose before continuing. "What happened in there? Are you hurt? How long are you in for?"

"I feel like I've answered this question before, don't you George?" Fred grinned, sending his brother a look. George simply laughed and began getting his food from the plates set in front of him. His journey last night worked up an appetite.

"The Forbidden Forest is beyond wicked. At first, I thought that the place was not as cool as I thought it would be because it was all roots and leaves but the deeper you go –"

"The spookier it gets," George continued, "We saw these odd looking creatures lurking around. It sends shivers up your spine just looking at –"

"Their glowing eyes looking right at you. I guess they didn't bother us because we didn't bother them. Anywho, we started looking high and low for your glasses I'm quite sure we passed by a herd of unicorns somewhere in there –"

"The moment we got hold of your glasses though – Hagrid caught us and brought us straight to McGonagall's office," George cringed, remembering the scolding her and Fred got. "But so worth the punishment."

"What was it?" Lee asked, having been listening to the story.

"Nothing new, just our usual punishment with extra weeks. I'm sure we'll be expecting a howler from Mum sometime this week though," Fred's face fell before he let out a snicker, "But like what George said, so worth it."

"How did Hagrid know you two were in there?" Zoey asked as her brows knitted together. She felt guilty for getting Fred and George in trouble but knowing them, they wouldn't take their punishment too seriously. If they ever did, then they wouldn't be the Weasley Twins.

"Apparently this man-horse guy told him or something. I don't know all the details there," Fred shrugged, getting some food on his plate after a loud growl came from his stomach. Before he took a bite out of his food, he bent down a bit to whisper something into Zoey's ear. "Also, don't worry too much about those Slytherin chicks. George and I took care of them."

Zoey's eyes widened and she looked at Fred with disbelief, her mind swarming with questions but Fred said nothing. He merely munched on his food and chatted with his friends.

The Emeraude's eyes opened with a flash and a groan escaped her lips as she blinked numerous times trying to see what was around her. It was no use, the lights were off and her glasses were gone. She wouldn't be able to see anything clearly. Moving her head in order to see what was beside her, Zoey winced. Her entire body was sore. It was like that time she woke up in 12 Grimmauld Place after her escape from the Emeraude Suburb.

Only this time, she wasn't all too sure she was in a safe place.

Beside her, Zoey could see a broken shard of glass and several scattered pieces of parchment. Beads and such were scattered all over the floor and there were limp pieces of string as well. Not too far from these objects were Zoey's missing glasses only she could not see how they would be able to serve her seeing as there was a large diagonal crack going through both lenses.

Weeks had passed since her abduction and since her aunt opened her mother's box and to be frank, her dear aunt Damiana was not pleased from what she saw. Looking into the box and throwing out each and everything that did not grab her interest out, Damiana saw that nothing in this box was of use to her. Her exact words were "My sister's garbage bag." And "Useless crap."

Saying Damiana was angry… furious… enraged was an understatement. Her emotion at that time was like a combination of the three with more. It was unimaginable, scary…horrific even. Unfortunately for Zoey, she had to deal with her aunt's rage – for lack of a better word – and suffered greatly from it.

Yes, she had to endure the usually abuse such as Crucio and other spells that harmed Zoey both physically mentally. Spells that had given her scars that she wasn't all too sure would ever fade and spells that made Zoey lose hope. Hope of ever being rescued from the place she was now supposed to call 'home' but instead called it 'Azkaban Version 2'. She was deprived of food, water, sunlight and friends.

To put things in a simpler way, having your soul sucked out by a Dementor was more pleasing than staying in the Emeraude Suburb.

Deciding that she couldn't stay on the floor of her living room any longer, Zoey regretfully pushed herself off from the ground in order to sit up straight, her body sending tiny shockwaves of distress as she did so. Ignoring the obvious strain she was putting on her body, the Emeraude gingery got up from the floor and limped her way towards her kitchen in order to see if she could scavenge anything edible.

It was pathetic.

The reason for Zoey's limping was not only from the injuries she got but also from the fact that her entire left leg had turned into stone. The gray colored rock began from the tip of her toes and ended somewhere near her hip, making it impossible for her to bend her leg or, in this case, walk properly.

"Alabaster's Passing" was the name of Damiana's Emeraude gift and from the mind-numbing pain Zoey felt as her leg turned into stone, she guessed it was due to her aunt's power that the Entrance Hall of the Emeraude estate was so beautifully decorated by the statures. The Emeraude family's most prized possessions.

"If you don't serve a purpose now. I'll find one for you," Damiana's anything by sweet voice echoed in Zoey's mind as she retreated from the kitchen, not finding anything that would serve her any good. "I'm pretty sure there is empty space somewhere in the Entrance Hall."

Zoey sighed and limped her way towards the window of her living room. She was careful to take gentle steps, not wanting to literally break her leg. Looking at the window she noted its design. It starts from the very top of her wall and ends at the bottom of it. Simple. Damiana had given it large, thick curtains that made it impossible for the sun's raise to pass through and for Zoey to see anything outside and vise versa.

Could she open the curtains? No. Could she hear what was happening outside? Yes. Could anyone hear her? No. Damiana forbad anyone and everyone to go near Zoey's house.

Leaning her head against the stuffy curtains, the Emeraude listened to the world outside the walls of her house. Occasionally, she would hear Audrey's voice discussing something with another Emeraude but that was the only familiar voice that she was able to hear. Everything else were just noise.

That is until a pompous sounding voice caught Zoey's attention, making her lean closer to the curtain in order to hear the voice clearer.

"As one of the Ministry Officials, I do have quite a lot of duties. I am also most trusted by the Minister and am in a high position for the current Wizarding World. Did you know that?" the voice asked, making the owner sound full of himself.

Zoey's heart began to beat wildly against her chest as the voice sounded more and more familiar the more it spoke Percy! Zoey's eyes widened at the realization. She could recognize that pompous voice anywhere. Percy's here! Why is he here?

But she never got an answer for the Weasley's words got fainter and fainter and Zoey was sure he was walking further and further away from her. Her heartbeat slowed down and that small amount of hope she developed was soon washed away and was replaced with despair.

What was she thinking? He wouldn't save her. He probably didn't even know she was taken away from her friends and loved ones.


"As one of the Ministry Officials, I do have quite a lot of duties. I am also most trusted by the Minister and am in a high position for the current Wizarding World. Did you know that?" Percy said as he puffed out his chest, a habit he developed ever since he became a Prefect, and continued walking side by side with Audrey.

Audrey's eyebrows knitted together and a shaky smile graced her lips. She was ordered by Damiana to show Percy around after he had discussed something with her. He had asked Damiana, on behalf of the Ministry of Magic, to consider taking up an important post in the Ministry of Magic. Damiana politely told him that she would think about it and get back to him later in the day. In the meantime, Audrey was to show the boy around.

Was she enjoying this little assignment? She couldn't really say. Percy Ignatius Weasley seemed rather pleasant at first, being all professional when discussing things with Damiana but now that Audrey spent some alone time with him, she wasn't so sure. What she was sure of was that Percy really thought highly of his position at work and his previous positions back at Hogwarts.

"Did I know what you were or did I know what a Ministry Official does?" Audrey asked him, trying to keep the conversation alive and polite.

"That I am one of course," Percy answered, his tone snotty and arrogant. "Everyone knows what Ministry Official does. Unless, of course, you've been cooped up in a place where there's basically no news of the Ministry."

Audrey's already shaky smile twitched a bit at the end and she tried to keep her thoughts in line. This boy…this man in front of her… How big does he want his head to get? Trying to keep herself from lashing out (seeing as she had a low tolerance for egotistical people) Audrey gave him a humored laugh.

"I… Is that so?" her voice wavered, "Well, I bet your family is quite proud of… of your high position."

"Proud?" Percy scoffed as if insulted. "They should be proud," he continued, "But they choose to look down on my position and follow what they think is right and not what is right. What do they have to be proud amongst themselves? They have no achievements, they have no proper pay, and indeed my father works for the Ministry but for a division that is known to be a joke. Truly my family is something."

"Don't you think you're being a tad bit… harsh?" Audrey said, her tolerance level slowly disappearing from hearing what Percy had just told her. "They are your family. I mean, sure your father isn't in a high position like you but I suppose he's doing the best he can to support you and your siblings."

"Harsh?" Percy asked, wanting to laugh at the sound of the word. "Harsh? How can I be? What did they ever do for me? I got a Prefect badge and my brothers disrespect my authority. I become Head Boy and my brothers and their stupid friends play all the pranks they want on me. I become part of the Ministry and my parents and siblings end up getting disappointed instead of happy? I earn a living. I have a decent income. I wake up every morning with no regrets about my life, yet they must always ruin my plans with their long speeches and bloody scolding." He continued, his face turning red with anger.

"Perce – Mister Weasley… Uhm," Audrey wasn't quite sure on how to refer to him but instead continued, "That's just sibling rivalry. They're just messing with you and your parents could just be looking out for you and –"

"All those years of ridicule and shame placed by my brothers by those Slytherins, but I knew I'd be more successful than them," Percy ranted, not taking note of what Audrey was saying. "Now look at me? I'm successful and what are they? My brother's will never succeed like me. It's a known fact that I am the smartest Weasley. Never will I be humiliated by those insolent buffoons again."

"Now that's really harsh. Down right mean. You actually have the nerve to say that about your own family? Your own flesh and blood?" Audrey's tolerance practically just flew out the implied window, her brows furrowing and her cheeks getting a tinge of red on them from the anger she was desperately trying to hold in. "You should count your lucky stars that you actually have a family."

"What's the point of having a family that has no appreciation or respect for what you do?" Percy now retorted. "Family or no family, what you do with your life is what's important, not who's in it."

"How could you have a important – or rather – meaningful life if there isn't anyone to spend it with? Family or no family my arse. Everyone needs a family you prick!" Audrey faltered a bit after her choice of words but maintained her fierce look on Percy.

"Easy," the red head smirked. "You have to make something out of yourself and besides, you wouldn't know what I've gone through. You have this big house with all those people and house elves inside. What do you know about what us real wizards do?"

And that was it. All of Audrey's self-control went out the window together with her tolerance and her politeness. She drew her hand up and sent a strong slap against Percy's cheek, shocking him in the process and causing him to take several steps back to regain his balance, hand on his now read cheek. Percy's eyes were wide and he watched as Audrey's brown eyes flared.

"I know plenty," she said in an angered tone, "I may live in this big house with all those people but they aren't my family. No, we don't have a relationship like what you have with yours. They truly aren't my family. I am no Emeraude. House elves? Who bloody cares? They don't deserve to be trapped in this dump. They deserve to be free or working for kinder masters. To tell you the truth, I would rather have home cooked meals by my mother. But wait, I wouldn't know what they would taste like cause I have no mother." Percy was just about to interrupt but Audrey beat him to it.

"I would rather have a struggling family with lots of love than a wealthy 'family' who brings up their kids to live up to unkind expectations. This place, you don't even know what goes in here," Audrey's mind flashed to a seemingly abandoned house before continuing. "You just work for that Minister of Magic of yours with your high position. Get wondrous credit and acknowledgement instead of going out there and fending off dark wizards and crap like that. Real wizard my arse!"

Percy gaped at the auburn haired beauty, his mouth opening and closing, wondering what to say. Before the boy could even gather up the words swarming in his mind, a gently cough caught his and Audrey's attention. Audrey, realizing what she had done, opened her mouth to apologize but was distracted by the presence of an un-amused Damiana.

The Emeraude quirked a thin eyebrow at the two, folding her thin arms above her chest and tapping her finger on her arms, sending Audrey and Percy a look. Percy dropped his hand to his side and straightened up while Audrey brushed her hair away from her face and straightened up as well.

"Am I… interrupting something?" Damiana asked, her gaze turning to Audrey, "I told you to show young Mister Weasley around and yet I see you two here, standing. Tell me, what have you shown him?"

"The Entrance hall, the playground, the flower maze and…" Audrey trailed off, her face now showing worry and panic. She had not shown him everything. She was just about to lead him towards the directory when they had gotten into their row. Her plan was to ask him what he wanted to see but to the obvious eyes, that didn't happen.

"I see," Damiana then said, seeing that Audrey had nothing more to say. She turned towards Percy. "I'm sorry for Audrey's behavior. I think I may have given her too many responsibilities. She's just about your age, you see, very young yet has the duties of someone my age. You could see that she's under much stress," Damiana apologized to the Weasley.

"Yes… well, I think that maybe she's in need of a break," Percy suggested, "I would be happy to take her off of your hands for a day or two. " He continued, giving Damiana a shy smile.

Damiana's eyes widened while Audrey out right said. "Have you gone mental?" before clearing her throat and continuing, "I don't want to be a bother, you don't need to."

"Oh, you won't be a bother at all," Percy answered, turning to her, "I find you quite… interesting."

A rather odd laugh escaped from Audrey's mouth and she was quick to cover it along with the blush that was forming on her cheeks. The laugh escaped once more before she cleared her throat and looked up to Damiana. "If you would allow me… then I would go with him for a day or two," she said, her voice failing her for her flattered laughs kept trying to jump out her throat.

"Oh… yes… A day or two sounds just about fine," Damiana said, slightly speechless. She then turned to Percy, "Before I take my leave and let Audrey pack, I would have to decline the Ministry's offer. I have duties to my family and I don't think I can squeeze in work at the moment. I'm sorry."

"Oh, that's rather disappointing," Percy commented, his eyes still on Audrey. "But please do contact us if you change your mind."

"Yes, Audrey would Owl you if there is ever a change of plan," Damiana then turned to make an exit, not wanting to stay with the two any longer. Just before she was out of earshot, she turned around to say another thing. "Audrey, before you leave, please do feed the… pet. It's been far too long since she's had a decent meal." And with that reminder, the woman left.

Audrey blinked herself back into reality and nodded her head to Damiana to show that she had heard her, she then turned to Percy and sent him a quick half-smile. "I'll just pack and… feed the pet. I'll meet you at the gates."

"Very well," Percy gave her what seemed like a smile and walked of towards the direction of the said gates.

The girl watched as the back of the pompous Weasley disappeared from her sight before she pulled out her wand and gave it a nice wave. No later than three minutes passed before a plum colored trunk flew through the air and landed just in front of Audrey's feet, packed with all the things she would need for her two days with Percy. Holding its handle, Audrey lifted it up and quickly made her way to the seemingly abandoned house, opening the secret passage to make her way in.

Dropping her trunk near the door, Audrey crept her way up the stairs and made her way towards the living room where she caught sight of Zoey leaning against the curtains, her chest slowly rising and falling with every delicate breath she took. A heartbreaking scene, Audrey took a breath and slowly avoided the shards of glass, ripped parchment and broken glasses on the floor before she was able to reach and yet to be fully turned to stone girl.

Zoey eyes were unseeing. The gray color had taken a misty look and her face was expressionless. She could have been mistaken for the dead if not for the obvious signs of breath still in her. Bringing out her wand once more, Audrey summoned for the plate of food Damiana had said was for Zoey and while waiting, Accio-ed Zoey's glasses and repaired it. She gently placed it on Zoey and tapped the girl's cheek, whispering her name to get her attention.

A soft groan was heard and Zoey's head lolled to the side before she straightened it and looked at Audrey with her misty eyes that screamed despair and loss of hope.

"Perce… Percy Weasley was here… wasn't he?" Zoey's voice was horse and scratchy, obvious signs that she hasn't used in the longest of time. Audrey could only nod in reply. "He… he doesn't know I'm here… He isn't going to save me…"

"No," Audrey cringed at the sad fact, "He isn't."

"No one is?"

Audrey did not reply. Zoey's food arrived and she held it in front of her, waiting for the girl to take her first bite so that she could leave. Zoey never took the first bite, she pushed the plate away and turned her head against the curtains, closing her eyes and going to sleep.

She had lost everything. She didn't see the purpose of eating… or even living anymore.


AND I AM OFFICIALLY DONE WITH THIS CHAPTER!

LET. US. CELEBRATE!

We get to see Audrey once again and according to my friends she's so "BAD ASS!" ALSO! We get to see PERCY~ CLAP CLAP CLAP!

Oh the awesomeness of that couple! I hope to write more of them soon!

Percy sure moves fast :

Okay, so you guys had no update for a little over a month and am HEARTLY SORRY for that. School has been really busy with our practices, home works, requirements and such.

The first term has ended and today was actually my last day of my First Term Exams.

I'm glad about that fact but I cannot guarantee that I can update soon because now that I'm entering Second Term, who knows how busy I'm going to be?

Before I talk more on my lack of update, I would like to thank DresdenDoll15 and HayleyParadox for their continuous help with this story, without them, who know where this story would end up in?

Okay, I last updated on July 26 and on that day I had a English-Research, Science and English quiz, a presentation and a Mass. On the 27th I had to do my Practical Arts homework and I had a quiz. On the 29th I had an activity. On August 1 I had a Recollection then on the 4th I had a Science activity. On the 5th I had practice for a contest. 8th I had to submit a requirement on Filipino. 9th I had a long test in math and an English quiz. 10th and other practice for a contest. 11th, CLE and Social Studies quiz. 12th another school activity, 13th an Outreach and another practice for the contest.

On August 15, I had a Health and Science quiz, 16th I had a practice for the contest until 5pm then a quiz the next day along with Club and another practice. 18th, I had another quiz. 19th of August, I had my English and CLE long test and an English quiz, had practice once again on the 20th. 21st I had to work on a scrapbook project and a research paper that kept me up until 2 in the morning. On the 23rd, the contest took place and on the 24th I had my Filipino Long test and English Quiz. 25th, had a Computer test.

26th, another school activity. 27th, had a check up.

September 1st, first day of Exams, 2nd was the second day of exams, on the 3rd… I got accepted into POTTERMORE so you can see my distraction there… on the 4th I had to study and on the 5th, today, was my last day of Exams.

I'm NOT putting my schedule here to show any malice, I'm just showing you all that I am incredibly busy. Yes, I go online EVERYDAY to see your reviews and such and I really feel guilty for making you all wait. Please believe me when I say, when I have the time, I work on Crossroads but sadly I do not have much time.

AND TO TELL YOU ALL THE TRUTH. Crossroads isn't my only project. I am also working on an Original Story of mine and when I can, I update that to for my friends to read. When I update then, I keep you all waiting. When I updated Crossroads, I keep them waiting.

If you want any updates on how things with Crossroads are going or if I'm updating or not, you can check out my twitter which goes under the same username "AnimeFlowerGirl" you can search it because for some odd reason… I can't put links on my profile so yeah…

ALSO, This chapter is OBVIOUSLY not the last chapter.

It's actually FAR from the last chapter.

Crossroads is a long fic and it's going to be even longer before I reach the final chapter.

AND WHEN I DO.

There's going to be a sequel so you lot have nothing to worry about.

The only thing to worry about is the long days without updates.

Once again I apologize for those.

Please don't rush me when you have not seen an update for so long.

Everyday I think of what I'm going to do for Crossroads in the next chapter and everyday I worry about not updating and rushing me won't help either.

School comes first and I really wish that this and everything else that isn't school comes first but sadly that isn't the case.

OKAY. I think I've said what was needed to be said.

Well, I guess that is all. I have nothing more to say except

I hope you enjoyed the chapter

Please tell me what you thought

Excuse my typos and the like

Don't forget to review and the like

Stay tuned for the next chapter

And

I only own what I own

(PS I got inspiration for that James and Lily smooch-fest from a drawing I saw so I take no ownership over their positions or anything. Like I said… I only own what I own)