Here it is. Chapter 24. I had thought about making this chapter longer, but I decided to split it.

Since the news of Nayeli's condition two weeks ago, Sheeva's thoughts worsened. She'd squish them as much as she could, desperate for them to go away. For her to show this weakness meant that the others wouldn't be able to rely on her. She was the oldest. The smartest. She was supposed to be their guide in this, having dealt with such things for the last twelve-thousand years.

This time, the circumstances were different. Much different.

She'd searched every inch of the castle in search for Nayeli's spirit, or better yet, any indication she was still with them. At least if her spirit was in the astral, they could figure out a way to work with this. She'd even utilized the Marauder's Map, marking off areas she knew she'd checked, and finding a few new places to hide.

Tomorrow would be the end of February. Her hope was considerably diminished; barely a sliver remained. Her ambition had died sometime between today and yesterday. She didn't care.

Despite sharing a bed with Draco and Blaise, she hardly spoke to them. She'd even taken to sleeping on the couch, drained from searching the castle from dawn to well after dusk. On days that she didn't join them for mealtimes, her family (and to her honest surprise, Cowles) would bring her food, begging for her to eat. She'd eat a few bites, enough to appease, and when they turned their backs or left, she'd scrap the rest to the carnivorous plant that Draco was raising for a potion he thought could help Nayeli.

True, the grief was taking its toll on her. If asked, she most likely would not be able to tell you the day, nor the last time did she eat a full meal. She hid herself away from the students especially. Her shoulders slouched. Her eyes remained downcast, avoiding the eyes of anyone that crossed her path. Amid the black, hooded-shawl she wore, her light skin now appeared even paler, almost sickly. She knew she'd lost a dangerous amount of weight, but she couldn't care less.

She stared at the map, but couldn't seem to see it. She knew that her husbands were talking to each other while Draco graded the papers that he still had to attend to, but she couldn't discern what was being said. She felt removed from reality.

She took a breath, and closed her eyes for a minute. When she opened them, she looked back at the map, folded neatly to show the hospital wing. She watched as Madame Pomfrey's label hovered next to her daughter's, and then tottered off into the adjacent room where she slept. No doubt she was retiring for the evening. Sheeva hoped that the tired nurse rested well now that the wing was empty.

The day had been rough for the medi-witch, having to treat students from a dangerous explosion of a Horklump fungus in the Herbology greenhouse. The sticky, stinky spores had landed on various students, infecting them with rather viscous boils.

Sheeva waited for a good thirty minutes before she stood and grabbed her shawl off of the hanger by the door.

"Going to visit Nayeli?" Blaise asked, looking over at her. His eyes drooped from lack of sleep. Draco looked up from his papers, looking just as tired as Blaise. She paused, the door wide open. She turned her head in his direction and nodded, wrapping her black shawl around herself and throwing the hood up and over her head.

Without a word, she left. Blaise's face contorted to one of worry, and he locked eyes with Draco. It was Draco's turn to be supportive now. He set a hand on Blaise's and stood, pulling him to his feet and wrapping his hands around his middle, hugging him tightly.

Blaise broke, resting his forehead on Draco's shoulder and sobbing quietly, clenching fistfuls of Draco's robes in his hands.

"Haven't seen her- hic-this way since-since…" He tried to state, finding it hard to do so with the lump of pain in his throat. It stuck there like something glued.

"Since Snape?" Draco finished. Blaise nodded, sniffling as he calmed down.

True, her actions reminded them greatly of the horrifying experience. However, this time around was much more difficult to deal with. They hadn't really gotten themselves the help they needed to move on. They'd all relied on each other. Perhaps maybe, too much.

Draco took a deep breath, and rested his head on Blaise's chest, shifting around to give him a more comforting hug. Draco eyed the map on the coffee table, a small smile forming on his lips as he saw that Sheeva's label was in the hospital wing. He set Blaise down on the couch where Sheeva had just sat, and poured him a small glass of whiskey, taking a sip for himself and handing it to Blaise. Blaise took it and began to chug it, and Draco snatched the glass out of his hand, spilling the expensive stuff all over Blaise's lap.

"Don't start that. I'll have to smack the shit out of you." He cursed, glaring at Blaise. Blaise stared back, the alcohol beginning to kick in. He hadn't eaten much at dinner time.

"Like you give a damn. How can you grade papers at a time like this?" Blaise asked, frustration in his voice. Draco scowled, hurt by the statement. Of course he cared—if he didn't, he wouldn't let Blaise drink himself to stupidity, among many other things.

Draco sat down on the coffee table in front of Blaise, and set a hand on his shoulder for comfort.

"You're my best friend. You're Sheeva and I's husband. You're a father to our awesome, strong, crazy, wild kids. Right now, we need each other. I'm hurting just as much as you are. But I have an obligation to those kids that we teach, mate. And so do you! Don't you ever say that I don't give a damn." Draco hissed, eyes reddening with anger.

Blaise softened, and let out a deep breath, his eyes glossed over. He set his hand on Draco's chin and pulled him in for a kiss, catching Draco by slight surprise. However, he gained himself and kissed him back, passionately.

Draco moved into Blaise's lap, straddling his hips, and Blaise thrust his hands along Draco's back, noticing that his ribcage was a little more prominent, and his hips were a little more protruding. So Draco hadn't been eating much, either. Blaise gripped them lightly, as though to make a point.

Draco definitely understood the point. After all, he wasn't that oblivious. Still, it did make him incredibly horny, and sex between the two of them was a rare occurrence. It usually only happened when Sheeva was gone (which had only been a handful of times), or when Sheeva was watching them, 'enjoying the show'.

Blaise hadn't intended for this to turn into sex, but as he felt Draco's heartbeat grow faster and felt the bulge in his pants, he figured: To hell with it. Blaise ran his fingers through Draco's hair and grabbed a tuft of it at the back, roughly, but nicely, holding his head in place to kiss him.

"I'm sorry I said…" Blaise began, turning Draco's head to lick his neck, drawing his earlobe in between his teeth with guidance from his tongue. Draco gasped in and shuddered. Blaise knew his points quite well.

"…that you don't care." He finished, pulling Draco's shirt off of his body and letting it fall carelessly to the ground. Draco almost pouted, still concerned about keeping his clothing well-cared for. Blaise soon wiped the thought from Draco's mind as he kissed Draco's collar bone and down his chest, relishing in the tangy sweat.

Draco's eyes rolled and he closed them, squeezing Blaise's shoulders. Blaise smirked and hastily unbuttoned and unzipped Draco's pants, sliding his hand in and grasping his member in his large hand. Draco finally groaned, a sound that was music to Blaise's ears.

"Damn, Blaise, what are you—

-Lie back, Draco." Blaise ordered, giving Draco a fiercely suggestive look. Draco snapped his eyes open, slightly confused.

"Lie down. On the couch. Now." Blaise continued to order him, shifting his eyes to motion towards the couch that they were sitting on. Excited by this new side, and slightly intimidated, Draco did as he was told, unsure of what to expect. Blaise tore Draco's pants down around his knees, grabbing his shaft rather hard and beginning to move his hand up and down. He stuck his own two fingers in his mouth, coating them with a copious amount of saliva and then circling them around Draco's anus, slowly inserting one.

Draco bucked his hips up, crying out and gripping the couch.

"Holy sh—

-shut up, Draco." Blaise ordered, slurring slightly.

Blaise used some of the fluids seeping from the tip of Draco's cock to lubricate Draco a little more, finding that he was able to insert a finger with ease. Finally, finally, Blaise put his mouth to Draco and took him in a little bit. Draco bucked again, blushing.

"Fuck, Blaise!" Draco growled, grabbing a tuft of Blaise's hair and pulling it. Blaise responded by thrusting his fingers in and out a little faster, the tip of his fingers rubbing against what he guessed was Draco's prostrate. Draco brought his arm to his mouth and bit it to stifle his moan at this.

"Be quiet. You'll wake Jeffrey." Blaise stated with a devious glint in his eye. Draco reached for his wand to muffle the room and lock Jeffrey's door, but Blaise caught his arm and pinned it beneath Draco.

"Without magic." Blaise added, slurring fully this time. Blaise stuck Draco back in his mouth and thrust his fingers as deep as they would go and his head down as far as he could handle. Draco kept his arm beneath his body as though Blaise had tied it there, and let out a whimper as quietly as he could.

Blaise bit Draco's shaft and picked up his pace. Draco was bucking his hips on his own, head draped over the arm of the couch as he lost his mind. Draco's eyes rolled and his bit his arm again to stifle his moan as he came, clenching on Blaise's fingers and spilling into Blaise's mouth. Blaise backed away and swallowed, smirking.

Blaise helped to pull Draco's pants back up around his hips, collapsing on his side and turning Draco to face him. Blaise shifted to lie on his back and draped his legs over the arm of the couch, leaving space for Draco to lie beside him. Draco did so, sluggish and tired.

Blaise was asleep in minutes, despite the raging boner he had brushing against Draco's thigh. Draco fell asleep too, wrapping his arm and leg around Blaise to get a little more comfortable on the small couch. Draco fell asleep as well, too tired to go back to his papers. So much for obligations to his students.

Sheeva stared at the wooden door to the hospital wing before she opened it. The creaking of the door no longer bothered her—if she'd been aware that it had creaked. She swept across the room, and to her daughter's bedside, staring down at Nayeli.

Her face had thinned due to the minimum-caloric diet they'd been feeding her to keep her body sustained. She reached out and took Nayeli's hand. Nayeli's hands were just as cold as Sheeva's, and as Sheeva looked, she noticed that her black hair curled, just like hers did. She frowned when Nayeli didn't respond to her touch, even remotely.

The machine kept its steady pace, the beeping in synch with Nayeli's heartbeat. Nayeli seemed so much at peace as she lied there, unresponsive. Unaware. Sheeva reached out a hand and moved a strand of hair that had gotten itself to lie across her face. Perhaps Peeves was messing with her—in which case, she'd find a way to kill him… again.

Sheeva's hand rested on Nayeli's neck, the cords connected to her heart jutting out of the hospital dress awkwardly. Sheeva readjusted them, and sighed heavily. Kagure's words resurface, and they echoed off her head, taunting her.

Her soul really is gone. You'll have to kill her. Set her free from her bonds. In her normal state, Sheeva would have realized that these phrases were greatly skewed, yet she couldn't discern from them at the moment. Sheeva's hand remained lightly on Nayeli's neck.

Death… To free you from your bond. You can rest, Nayeli. I can make it quick. Her hand tightened slightly, hidden to Sheeva's knowledge.

"Painless." She thought, unaware that she'd said it, too. Sheeva could feel the steady, still strong heartbeat, unresponsive, unreactive to the imminent danger that the body faced. Sheeva felt her chest ache, but she continued to tighten her grip around Nayeli's throat. She could feel the pulse much better, as well as the involuntary bob of Nayeli's throat as her unconscious body swallowed.

A tear formed in Sheeva's eye, but she hardly felt it. Sheeva was trembling, staring wide-eyed as she continued to choke her. She closed her eyes, turned her head, and squeezed as tight as she could. It would only take a few minutes for her brain to suffocate from lack of oxygen. Then, she'd finally be—

"Captain." Joseph's voice called out to her from the entrance to the wing, breaking Sheeva out of her daze slowly. Sheeva immediately released her grip, and carefully let her hand fall to rest on the bedrail. She was trying to keep her movements slow—quick actions would snare Joseph's attention. He was far too smart, well versed in the acts of reading and killing people.

Sheeva let her hand fall to her side as Joseph walked up to her and stood next to her, staring down at the bed's patient. The heart monitor still kept the same beat, not giving off the fact that the body it was hooked to had just been under attack.

"Any luck?" Joseph asked, concerned. Sheeva looked rather creepy, for lack of a better word. Joseph would have almost gone as far as to say she looked possessed by something.

The tear fell from Sheeva's eye and landed on her arm, trickling down it. She glanced at it, blinking. She then glanced to where her hand had just been. A faint, dark-red mark was beginning to fade, and she wouldn't be surprised if there was a bruise mark there in the morning.

As her actions registered, she backed away sharply and took off, her shawl billowing with her turn and run. Joseph only watched as she ran away, shaking his head sadly. He looked over at the foot of the bed and said seemingly to no one: "She is losing mind".

Sheeva didn't stop running at top speed. She crashed into the door to their office, struggled to open the door, threw herself inside, and slammed it shut, locking it tightly. She backed away from it, staring as though it would grow teeth and eat her. She bumped into the couch and barked in alarm, turning quickly.

Draco and Blaise had woken up, staring at her, heavily confused.

She began to cry hysterically, backing into the door and plopping down onto the floor, huddled against it. She had her arms wrapped around herself for comfort, and was rocking herself back and forth.

"Whoa, hey, Sheeva, what happened? What's wrong?" Blaise and Draco asked, bombarding her with questions. They kneeled down, reaching to pet her hair soothingly, or tried to grab her hands to hold them. Blaise and Draco sat down side by side and set her in their laps. Draco looked in her eyes, and grew even more worried when he saw the terror reflected in them.

"Lock me up! Send me away! To an asylum! For your own good! For Nayeli's good! Do not let me leave!" She muttered, still trying to rock herself. She still trembled, shaking worse than a leaf blowing in high winds.

"Are you crazy? We're not sending you anywhere like that!" Blaise barked, reaching for her hand. She jerked it back and stood out of their hold. She, for the first time in a long time, was glaring at them.

"You have to! Fuck, send me to Azkaban, just get me the hell away from here." She hissed, breathing heavily. Draco moved towards her, but she backed away, crying even harder.

"Please, do not touch me. Just stay away. Stay…" She begged, turning her back on them. Draco and Blaise hesitated for a second, but then reached for her anyway, pulling her to them gently. Tired, Sheeva slowly let herself into their comfort.

"What happened, Sheeva? Please, tell us." Blaise asked, kissing the top of her head. She took a deep breath, and prepared herself.

"I almost killed Nayeli tonight. To end it. So she could rest." Sheeva admitted. Blaise looked up at Draco from her neck, fear and pain in his eyes. Draco's blue eyes were a mix of fear and anger.

"Why would you do that?" Draco hissed, his chest aching, and his stomach churning. He wanted to keel over and puke. Sheeva buried her face, hiding away in shame as Draco pulled away from the two of them.

"Why are you in such denial? She is not coming back, Draco! She will never wake!" She growled, turning to him. Blaise grabbed his wand and silenced the room, not wanting Jeffrey to wake and witness this. He held Sheeva a little tighter, worried that she might turn violent—after all, she'd just confessed to nearly murdering their daughter.

"We don't know that! Give it more time!" He argued back, the fire in his eyes rising even more. She shook her head and frowned, glaring at him.

"It is futile. Your attempts are futile. They will not work!" She was yelling now, and Blaise held her back against him tightly, scared. Draco turned his back on her, and paced the room, seething.

"What do you know? You haven't tried anything! You've done nothing but sulk!" He barked. Blaise shook his head.

"That's not true, Draco, and you know it!" He said. His words were lost, however. Sheeva pushed herself out of his grasp and walked up to Draco, fierce anger in her eyes. He glared back down at her.

"I know what the man said is absolute. She will not wake." Sheeva hissed. Draco's eyes squinted.

"If you hadn't written that damn spell in your precious book, this wouldn't have happened, Sheeva. Whose fault is it that Nayeli's that way? Yours." Draco spat, pointing at her, nearly poking his finger in her chest.

Blaise didn't have time to stop Sheeva. She reared her hand back and slapped Draco, hard. Her open hand collided with his face so quickly that Draco didn't have time to react. He stumbled to the side, catching himself on the table with all of their student's papers.

Stunned, he looked back at her. She was breathing heavily, still outraged. As she calmed down, she realized what she done. She reached out a hand to pull Draco to his feet, and Draco flinched, flashed back to a long-forgotten memory of his father's abuse.

Sheeva withdrew her had as though he'd bitten it, and stood sharply, throwing the door open with a slam and running out. Blaise took off after her, calling her name. He couldn't keep up with her, age getting to him.

"Sheeva, wait!" He begged. He leaned against a statue of armor, panting heavily. He remembered that Draco was in their room, and began to limp back, his knee troubling him greatly.

Draco was huddled on the floor, one hand on his cheek and the other holding his knees. Blaise only sat beside him and pulled him into his lap. After all, what could he say? She didn't mean to slap you? You shouldn't have said that in the first place? He had words for both of them.

Blaise leaned his head back and sighed, staring at the ceiling as Draco cried in his shoulder.

Hope you liked it. Review, as always. Please, and thank you.