Finding out we were witches was the biggest shock of Hermione's and my life. Well, one of the biggest. Being friends with Ronald Weasley and Harry Potter had led to many more shocks; club-weilding trolls, possessed teachers, petrification, mass murderers, dragons, and visions from a dark lord to name a few. Said visions are what got us into our current mess: surrounded by Death Eaters in the Department of Mysteries.

I brandish my wand in one hand, clutching the fabric of my twin sister's shirt in the other. Everything is happening too fast. I barely have time to process the fact that Bellatrix Lestrange and Lucius Malfoy are standing in front of us before all hell breaks loose. The glass orbs containing prophecies are crashing and we're all running, throwing spells in every direction. In the fray, Hermione, Harry, and Ron become separated from us. I run alongside Ginny, trying to keep up with Luna and Neville. A stray curse trips me up, causing me to stumble. This is my saving grace, keeping me out of the path of a falling shelf full of orbs. I push myself to my feet and keep running, now separated from my friends. A man in a silver mask is on my tail, corralling me with hexes and curses. I soon find myself cornered.

"Ready to give up yet, mudblood?" The Death Eater growls, twirling his oak wood wand between his fingers.

I bare my teeth at him, holding up my own redwood wand, not willing to go down without a fight. I sling a slicing hex followed by a barrage of Bombardas and Stupefies, hoping at least one will hit its mark. The attack seems to take the wizard by surprise, causing him to hastily throw up a shield, backing up a few steps. It's only a few seconds before I'm dodging and putting up a shield of my own. Purple, red, and green spells rain down on me. My eyes widen as a green curse slips past my shield, hitting my shoulder. We both freeze when nothing happens, the spell bouncing off harmlessly.

"Impossible," I look back at the man as he mutters, seeing his wide blue eyes through the mask. His gaze moves from my shoulder to my face, seeming to actually see me for the first time. "Cassandra… You're supposed to be dead."

Shouts a few rows away bring me back to my senses. Taking his confusion as an escape, I take off running once again.

"Rosie!" I see Neville waving up ahead, the other five with him as they sprint. I pump my legs harder to catch up, but stumble slightly when the Death Eater behind me gives a shout.

"Cassandra!" I glance back, glimpsing him running after me. "Stop!"

I can feel in my bones that nothing good awaits me if I follow his orders. Instead, I catch up with the others, taking the hand Hermione offers me as we rush through a door. Suddenly, we're falling. I hear the screams of my friends, feeling one rip from my throat as well. Seeing the ground coming closer, I brace myself for impact.

Thankfully, Hermione keeps her wits about her, swiping her wand through the air. We all freeze, inches above the ground. It only lasts a few seconds before we fall the rest of the way, though the impact is no longer fatal. The seven of us scramble to our feet, putting our backs to each other, wands out.

Death Eaters apparate before us and a scuffle ensues. In the chaos, my wand arm is wrenched behind my back and the tip of a wand is shoved into my neck. I feel myself being dragged a few steps back as the physical fight dies down.

"How are you alive?" The grip on my arm loosens the slightest bit, becoming less painful as the question is hissed in my ear. I stomp the heel of my muggle sneaker into his foot as hard as I'm able. His grip tightens once more, tugging my arm further up my back. Hissing from the pain of his actions, I scan our surroundings, seeing all of us but Harry are being held hostage. Malfoy Sr. stands before him, bargaining for the prophecy in Harry's hands.

I can't understand what's being said, but suck in a sharp breath as Harry seems to hand Lucius the glass orb. Relief fills me as he drops it instead, causing it to shatter on the stone floor. There's a moment of shocked silence before Malfoy growls, tightening his grip on his wand. Before a spell can be thrown, there are several cracks of apparition. Sirius Black shoves his way between Harry and Malfoy before throwing a punch. This seems to be the signal as spells begin flying once more. The man holding me is thrown back by a hex from Auror Moody, giving me the chance to get away.

I lunge toward my sister, putting myself at her side. We throw spells in tandem, knowing each other well enough to predict the other's movements. We tag team one of the Death Eaters, I believe someone had called him Dolohov. He's vicious in his casting, aiming to kill us both. Hermione is distracted by the man from before screaming at me again, calling for someone named Cassandra. Dolohov uses this to his advantage, throwing a curse past our defenses. Time seems to slow as the purple light heads for my twin. Before I can even question it, I throw myself in front of her, bodily protecting her from what I can only guess is certain death.

I can hear several screams as the spell hits me before I'm consumed by what must be never ending pain. There's even more screaming then. It takes me a moment to realize that the screeching is coming from me. Hermione's face fills my darkening vision. Her wide brown eyes that match our mother's, filled with fear, are the last thing I see before my sight goes completely black.

A groan escapes my lips as I slip into consciousness. Opening my eyes seems impossible, the light streaming in through the ever familiar windows of the Hospital Wing causing me to squint.

"Rosie! She's awake!" Another moan leaves me at the loudness of Neville's voice. He follows it with a mumbled, "Sorry Rose."

I finally manage to fully open my eyes as Madam Pomfrey appears at my side. "Hush, dear. Don't try to move. You might reopen your wounds." Her words cause my brow to furrow.

Wounds?

I tilt my head forward, trying to glimpse what she is doing to my torso. I see bandages completely covering the area, red stains of blood peaking through. The room starts to spin, making me lower my head back onto the pillow and close my eyes. I hear Luna mention something about an abnormal amount of nargles in and around my head.

"What happened?" I murmur, my voice barely a whisper. I feel a hand slide into mine. Peeking through my lashes, I see Hermione sitting on the edge of my bed. Her eyes are rimmed red and have dark half moons beneath them. She looks as if she hasn't slept in days, her hair even more frizzy and untameable than normal.

"Rosalind Marie Granger, if you ever scare me like that again, I'll-I'll-" My sister bursts into tears before she can finish. She clutches my hand to her chest. "Why did you do it? You could have died! I- I almost lost you!" She sobs, hugging my arm.

Wincing, I lift my other arm, reaching for her. She lunges forward, wrapping me in her arms. I whimper from the pain of her impact, but tighten my arms around her as much as I can in my weakened state. "I couldn't lose you, Mya. I wouldn't have survived losing you." I whisper, shutting my eyes as I lean my face into her larger than life hair. There's a few moments of silence, the only sound in the tense room being Hermione's sobs.

"Okay dears, that's enough. Miss Granger can't do too much physical activity at the moment." Hermione slowly pulls away at the Matron's words, a guilty look on her face as she lowers herself into the chair at my bedside. I take a moment to examine my surroundings.

Hermione sits on one side of me while Madam Pomfrey stands on the other. Harry, Ron, Neville, Ginny, and Luna are scattered around the foot of my bed. I see Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore standing off to the side. Everyone seems a little worse for wear.

"What happened?" I ask again, looking around expectantly. There's a moment of hesitation, as if everyone is unsure of who should speak.

"Antonin Dolohov hit you with a dark curse. We believe it was meant to dispel your internal organs." I flinch at the Headmaster's description. "Thankfully, someone threw a shield in front of you right before the spell's impact. While it broke through the shield, it lessened the effects of the curse."

"You're going to be here a few more days yet, and will need to take it easy once I release you." Madam Pomfrey picks up where Dumbledore leaves off. "I'm afraid there's not much I will be able to do about the scarring. It will take several weeks, possibly a few months, but you should make a full recovery."

I stare at the elder witch for a moment. "You said a few more days. How long have I been here?"

"Eleven days." Harry is the one to speak this time, turning my attention to him. I notice that he almost looks worse than Hermione. Almost. "There's still two weeks of classes left. The lower years are still taking their exams."

His news shocks me. Eleven days . I look at my sister once more. Her golden brown eyes are dimmer than normal, she looks lost. "'Mione, when was the last time you slept?"

Ron answers for her. "She's hardly left your side. Though she did fall asleep in her porridge yesterday, if that counts."

I narrow my eyes at her. "Well, I'm awake now. Madam Pomfrey said that I'm going to be okay. There's no reason for you not to rest." I turn my gaze to Ginny. "Please make sure she goes to bed."

Ginny cracks a small smile. "Don't worry. I've been trying for days, but now she has no more excuses." I hear Hermione huff at our exchange. I let a small smile grace my lips as well before letting out a yawn.

"Alright. Now that Miss Granger is out of danger, I want all of you out of my Hospital Wing. Visiting hours are over." Madam Pomfrey's voice is stern as she begins to shoo everyone from the room. "My patient needs her rest if you want her back on her feet any time soon."

I squeeze Hermione's hand, offering her a soft smile as she stands. She returns it with a shaky grin, relief seeming to fill her features. I watch as everyone files from the room, though Headmaster Dumbledore stays behind. Madam Pomfrey stares at him disapprovingly.

"This is not the appropriate time to have such a conversation with Miss Granger, Headmaster. She only just woke up from a traumatizing injury."

"Alas, Poppy. We unfortunately do not have the luxury of time. I must insist that Rosalind hear this news as quickly as possible. She must understand the extent of the danger she is now in."

I stare between the two in confusion before Dumbledore turns his attention to me once more. "Professor?"

"Rosalind, my girl, while you were unconscious I received a disturbing letter from Lord Nott." I furrow my brows at his words, confused on why some pureblooded lord's correspondence with the Headmaster would affect me. "It seems that he has reason to believe that you are actually his deceased daughter, Cassandra Nott."

His words have an instant effect on me, the blood draining from my face as my thoughts begin to race. I think back to the Department of Mysteries. The masked man screaming after me, his harsh grip on my arm, his hissed questions.

"That's impossible, Professor. I'm a muggleborn. Hermione and I are twins. That lord is delusional." I say quickly, my heart pounding in my ears.

"I considered the same thoughts, Miss Granger, but such accusations do cause one to wonder. You must admit that there are physical differences between you and your sister. Enough to make even I question the validity of your parentage." There is some truth in his words. Hermione and I are fraternal twins. She is the spitting image of our mother: chocolate curls, golden eyes, a lean stature, and tanned, flawless skin. I had been told that I got my pale, freckled coloring from my father's side of the family, my dark, auburn waves from my mother's mother, my dark blue eyes a recessive gene. I was shorter and had more curves than Hermione and our mother, but again it was chalked up to our father's family. These thoughts cause seeds of doubt to plant themselves in my mind. What if Hermione and I don't look alike because we're not related? What if I'm not a muggleborn?

"I've taken the liberty of having Professor Snape brew a potion that proves blood relations. I have two doses here. One to test against your sister and one against Mr. Theodore Nott." The Headmaster holds up two vials, each containing a pale yellow substance. "Are you willing to provide a few hairs, Miss Granger? I have already had the house elves collect samples from Miss Granger and Mr. Nott."

I stare at him for a moment. "Does Hermione know?" I whisper, fearing that I'm about to lose everything I love.

"No, my girl. The only people outside of this room that have knowledge of this situation, other than Lord Nott himself, are Professors Snape and McGonagall." Professor Dumbledore's eyes twinkle. It angers me that he almost seems excited by the circumstances.

Taking a deep breath, I nod. "Okay. I'll do it. But I don't want the results to get out. If," I take another breath, hands shaking at the possibility, "If the results are what Lord Nott suspects, he can't know."

Dumbledore nods as I reach up and pluck a few hairs from my head. The exhaustion I had felt a few moments ago seems to have disappeared, replaced by adrenaline. I hold the hairs out to the Headmaster. He sets the vials down and takes the hairs. Opening the vials, he slips the samples into each one. A tense thirty seconds pass, both of us and Madam Pomfrey watching the potions intently. Slowly, the color of the vial on the right begins to change. I suck in a breath as the potion becomes lilac. I turn my gaze back to the Headmaster, my eyes filling with tears.

"Is that Hermione's or Nott's?" I demand, even though I already know the answer, that I can feel the truth deep in my bones.

"I'm sorry, Rosalind." A sob escapes my lips as I lay back on the pillows behind me, turning my gaze to the ceiling. Despair takes root deep in my chest. My entire life is a lie. I wonder if my parents know. It's almost impossible for them not to.

"Leave. Please leave." I manage to say, slinging my arm out to point toward the exit to the Wing. There's a moment of silence.

"We'll speak more on this later, my girl. Try and get some rest. I know your friends are worried for you." I ignore the wizard as both him and the Matron walk away from me. Madam Pomfrey pulls the curtains around my bed closed, offering me some semblance of privacy.

It feels like hours before I cry myself into exhaustion. I feel as if my entire world is crumbling around me.