Note: Thank you all for showing me so much patience the past few months. I know it's disappointing when stories we love aren't updated in a while so I appreciate those of you who have taken the time to check in on me and the continued support and encouragement from you all. I truly do appreciate you.

I do want to reassure you that I definitely haven't and will not abandon any of my works. I will update them all eventually and I hope this update goes a little way in reassuring you of that.

The past few months have been crazy for me and my family. I finally got housed! After 18 months of waiting it finally happened which was such a relief. I met the most wonderful human being in existence, honestly I wish you all could get to know her because her strength and bravery blow me away daily. She's been a fantastic support and it's been an incredible journey for us so far. My Uncle, who was more of a dad to me than my own ever was, unfortunately passed away and it was heart breaking. Losing him knocked me a lot and my family and I have been trying to cope the best we can. My partner and I adopted two rescue cats (a girl and her baby) who are just the cutest little pair and I start my dream job tomorrow morning. So when I say its been crazy, its been crazy, so I thank you all again for the patience.

Anyway, Chapter 6 is finally here, as always comments and feedback are always welcome. I hope you're all doing alright.

All my love ~ Nell xoxo

Edited 08/01/2025

~ Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry ~

~ November 19th 1992 ~

~ Hermione's POV ~

Hermione kept her eyes focused on the gentle flicker of the candle light as its reflection, filtering through the cracks in her curtains, danced on the top of her bed posts. It was late, later than she had been awake for a while. The school had long ago settled down for the night and she had the suspicion that even Filch, their miserable caretaker had retired for the evening and he loved staying up late to try and catch students out of bed. He was the type of man everyone avoided, unkempt, bitter and entirely too full of his own sense of importance. The brunette almost felt sorry for him in a way. She could see that his ill temper and rough appearance were to mask his hurt and loneliness. He had lost his wife – a half blood witch who had been the victim of a maledictus curse – was now permanently stuck as a cat who he referred to as Mrs Norris. He himself had been born to a pureblood family but no one knew which one, he had been cast out at eleven when it was obvious the little magic he possessed would never be strong enough to carry a simple spell of any kind making him a squib (a child born from magical parent that possesses little or no magic). His family had removed their names from his memory, and their association to him had been wiped from anyone's mind that knew them before his eleventh birthday, such was the shame they felt for their squib child. From there he grew up a ward of the ministry, allowed to attend Hogwarts only as an aid to the professors.

It was a sin in the brunette's eyes, to know that the man he had become had been shaped by the treatment he received from others. It made her worry about what that truly meant for her, unwanted and abandoned as she was. Hermione yawned tiredly, her muscles stretching and aching in protest of her lack of rest. Yet she lay awake, despite the darkness that had surely settled beneath her eyes and the way her eyes stung from exhaustion. It was very obviously beyond time she too slept, but such a thing had evaded her so far.

Her mind was preoccupied. As it had been since she had come back to school this year. It had been arduous in the summer to cope with mundane muggle life after spending so long immersed in the magical world. The feel of a world where magic wasn't rife all around her was almost painful in its uncomfortableness to her and as a result she had been beyond excited to get back to Hogwarts. Back to the place that despite its difficulties had begun to feel more like home to her than she had ever known.

The welcome back feast had gone just as expected. The first year sorting saw no drama and the muggle born was even quietly hopeful that this year she wouldn't be as much of an outcast in her own house seeing as none of the usual glaring had occurred. It still hadn't, her housemates had apparently decided over the summer months that she wasn't the pariah they had made her out to be the previous year and had collectively decided to leave off making their dislike for her known.

Ravenclaw had also gained a few new students and Hermione had been overjoyed to see Cho again. After a summer of loneliness and matrons incessant nagging over every little thing, the brunette had all but flung herself into her best friend's arms on the train. Cho had simply held her tightly before asking her about how her summer had gone. In brief her summer was insignificant and she had told Cho exactly that. The dark haired witch had again accepted her answer at face value as she always had. A relief to the brunette considering she didn't think her friend would appreciate the knowledge regarding the locking up of all things magical as soon as she had stepped foot through the orphanage doors.

The second week into the school term is where all the chaos started. Of all the things she had ever dreamt of, not once had she imagined that one day her school would be stalked by an unknown threat that was intent on killing her simply because she was born to two non-magical parents. Apparently though she should have imagined such a scenario for then it wouldn't have come as such a surprise to her when that is the exact predicament Hogwarts now found itself in.

The chilling words - 'The Chamber of Secrets has been opened…. Enemies of the heir …. Beware…' - appearing on the wall, in blood, in the dungeon corridor had been their first warning that something was very wrong and even now Hermione wished she hadn't ever questioned what it all meant. Now she was left understanding too much and entirely not enough all at once. Hence her mind's refusal to surrender to the sleep her body craved.

Harry bloody Potter and Ronald bloody Weasley were of course at the centre of it all again. Of that she was certain. Particularly if she takes into consideration their recent request for her to brew a batch of Polyjuice potion. An idea she had overheard them admitting to stealing from Ronald's older twin brothers; Fred and George.

If she had rolled her eyes, because of course the boy who didn't die and his sidekick weren't in the slightest bit intelligent enough to come up with the idea themselves, then Matron would never have to know. Lest she be on the receiving end of a less than gentle reminder regarding etiquette and politeness.

However, her current predicament was one that truly stumped her. The dunderheaded boys had asked her to participate in their scheme to find out if Draco Malfoy was truly the heir of Slytherin like they had foolishly predicted. Of course she knew he wasn't, the boys would too if they shared even half a brain cell between them - she was sure. Anyone with the slightest bit of intelligence would be able to access the library and view the Malfoy and Black Family bloodlines. There wasn't a hint of Salazar Slytherin in their lines and she would know. She had checked - personally. Her research had indicated that the heir had to lie within the House of Scamander or Gaunt, both of which had very few family members this side of the mortal realm and none that she could find that still resided within the UK.

Not that Harry or Ronald had listened to her when she had meticulously tried to explain such things.

So here she was, awake and alert when she really should be sleeping. She wasn't even sure why her stupid, over productive and over active mind had decided the boys conundrum was her own. She didn't even like them, for Merlin's sake! They had been nothing but rude and demanding since the very start. Yet she had provided the help whenever they had foolishly needed it. Despite their propensity for irrational thought and downright disregard for her as an individual. Or her safety.

She felt like they had latched on to her and she knew they were using her really, but wasn't it better to keep them sweet for now while she was still finding her way? Morally she didn't know how good of a person it made her to be using them as they used her, but with her current lack of sleep and the danger that she seemed to attract she couldn't find it within herself to truly care. It was an issue she could debate later.

Much later.

She was also torn over who they were suspicious of. Draco Malfoy was an arrogant little fool but he had kept the Slytherin bullies away from her so far. Granted it was under his aunt's orders but he had still done so. He was protecting her in a world where she knew she would be a target for no other reason than the blood she was born with. Was it truly wise to help Draco's rivals investigate him?

Not that she was going to ever outright tell the blonde haired Slytherin boy that she was helping Harry bloody Potter in any way. The brunette groaned loudly, pulling the covers up over her head in frustration. It amazed her that this was her daily life, but sometimes, if she let her mind wander unregulated, she wished she was born into another life. One where her parents had wanted her, had kept her and cherished her the way she had always dreamed to be. The way her peers were by their parents.

If she imagined it hard enough, she could picture it. A large house, two doting parents, a cat like her CrookShanks, maybe a sibling or two. Days like today would be celebrated and she would be happy. She would be care free. There would be no need for the guarded girl she had become, nor would she ever feel the resentment that bubbled below the surface of her heart every time she saw her peers embrace their parents. She would know that type of unconditional love.

She wished she had the ability to shut off her mind. It would be helpful right about now. She groaned again, forcing back the moisture that came to her eyes. She refused to cry. Refused to acknowledge their absence any more than she already had. Today wasn't any different from every other day she had survived on her own. She didn't need them.

"Happy Birthday, Hermione." She whispered into the darkness.

~ Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry ~

~ February 2nd 1993 ~

~ Hermione's POV ~

Hermione closed her eyes and sighed quietly when she heard her best friend approach from behind. She had been hiding in the library for days now. Mainly to avoid interacting with Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumber, as she had taken to calling the two Gryffindor boys. Not to their faces of course., though she just might if they were to continue their constant urging of her to figure this all out.

The library was her safe place, where she was almost certain to be left alone to read at her leisure. It was her escape from the anxiety and fear that had taken over the entire school as of late. Professors and students alike seamed to walk the halls with terror lacing their steps. Every one of them, anxiously waiting to become the next target of the Slytherin heir. Several students had already fallen victim. Filtch's, Mrs Norris too, had been found petrified in the corridors, their faces shrouded in sheer horror. Alive but unmoving as their bodies were frozen in the exact moment they had come face to face with whatever monster lurked in the shadows of Hogwarts.

For months the school had been tormented, an unknown beast stalking the halls, unseen to all except those that had become its prey. Though how none of the professor's had found this beast's lair was beyond her. If she was them then she wouldn't have rested until she had found this Chamber of Secrets that had supposedly been opened to release the dastardly thing. How hard could finding a room in a castle be, when you had inhabited it for years and possessed magic? Professor Dumbledore was meant to be the greatest wizard alive wasn't he? So why hadn't he found it? Or why had the school not been closed temporarily? The students guarded better?

But those weren't the current problem the brunette had to deal with. For now, the priority was figuring out what the beast was and how to stop it before she or any other of the remaining muggle born students became the next victim.

How she was supposed to do that with little to no knowledge of where to start evaded her. She had searched half the library by now. Though how she was supposed to find the answer when her hiding spot kept being invaded was beyond her. If it wasn't the dunderheads pestering her on her progress or classwork, it was Cho. Not that she would ever grudge any time spent with Cho, especially when they spent so little time together as of late but Merlin knew she just needed to find the answers she sought, because apparently nobody else in this blasted place was bothered to do so.

"Hermione, hey! I've been looking for you." her friend's soft voice sang as the dark haired girl moved to stand in front of her. Hermione paused in reading the paragraph she was on, glancing up, she shot Cho a sheepish smile. A flash of guilt hitting her in the gut when her eyes met the concerned brown of her fellow Ravenclaw.

"I've been here." She replied simply. Not at all willing to look too deeply into just how much she had seemingly come to care for the other girl. One would think she would have learned by now that forming attachments to others would only ever get her hurt, yet here she sat, guilty and contrite at her lack of availability to spend time with another. Cho nodded, accepting Hermione's brief retort for what it was. The brunette moved over slightly, a silent invitation for the other girl to join her. One that was accepted immediately.

One that with Cho, Hermione hoped would always be accepted.

Once the dark haired girl had seated herself, arranging her Herbology textbooks and parchment, just so, in the way that she always did, the pair lapsed back into a relaxed silence. Both diligently working on their respective parchments. On Hermione's was a varied list of possibilities. She had every animal she could think of written down. Well every animal vicious enough she could think of written down. From giant spiders, werewolves and centaurs. To three headed snakes. So far however, none of them appeared remotely responsible for the recent muggle-born attacks, for none of them had ever been known to leave their victims frozen solid in terror yet alive and unresponsive. It was a peculiar bafflement for the young brunette, frustrating and incredibly intriguing. Her mind loved difficult puzzles and solving them had always filled her with a sense of pride. She didn't think there was a better feeling than the sense of accomplishment she always got after a task well done. However, solving this particular puzzle was proving far more difficult to accomplish. Yet she knew she couldn't give up until she had her answer. Such was the way her brain worked.

So lost in her own thoughts Hermione had all but forgotten her friend's presence when the dark haired girl spoke up, breaking Hermione from her work.

"So…." Cho started, grinning at Hermione when the brunette jumped slightly. "Are you any further forward?"

"You know I would have told you if I was." She sighed, forcing her hands through her untameable mane of hair, bony fingers pulling it back to the top of her head. She wished she had stuck to Matron's preferred ponytail. At least then it may have been slightly more manageable. Less irritating for sure.

"Do you maybe think you should stop?" Cho asked, her question blunt but Hermione could already see the resigned look forming on her friend's face. Apparently she knew her too well already. The brunette merely shook her head as answer, unsure what to say to appease the worried frown Cho wore more often around her than the brunet liked to admit.

"Then when Hermione? You're always researching or studying. When do you stop? When do you rest? You weren't at breakfast today nor dinner last night." The raven haired girl asked, her words laced with a desperation one reserved for a stubborn loved one. Hermione remained quiet. A slight flush warmed her cheeks at the concern she could hear lacing her friends' words. She knew her friend was right. She hadn't been eating or sleeping very much. Not that she had much of an appetite right now. Not when every moment that ticked by with no answers her mind worried about coming face to face with whatever creature stalked the halls. Not when she felt like everything was resting on her to find the answer. Not when stopping for any length of time would allow the loneliness to creep in. Or the fear that Cho would be harmed by the creature. Or the little first year – Luna Lovegood – that had joined Ravenclaw this year, the girl was as ethereal as she was flamboyant and despite the girls kindness she had become a target of every practical joke imaginable. Hermione had secretly become fond of the girl and had taken to foiling the pranks her house mates planned regularly. So stopping wasn't an option.

Not now.

"I'll leave you to study Hermione but eat that will you? and don't think you're gonna get away with silence forever." Her friend declared, eventually. A cheese sandwich being placed on the parchment in front of her. When it was clear that Hermione had no intention of responding in any way to the dark haired girl, Cho sighed quietly, gentle hands squeezing the brunette's shoulder in silent sympathy before gathering her things.

The brunette stared blankly at the sandwich in front of her as she listened to Cho leave. Her heart hammering and moisture pooling in her eyes. Unsurprised that her friend had walked away but entirely lost on how to stop her without making herself more vulnerable than she already was. She knew Cho was right. She was overworking herself. Exhaustion clung to her but it was a darn sight better than the alternative. Merlin only knew how she would cope with how she felt if she didn't have so many distractions occupying her mind.

But Cho's concern was a dangerous thought to entertain. It made her yearn for the connections she had been denied her entire life. It made her yearn to feel like she belonged with the people around her and most painfully it made her yearn for the parents that had abandoned her all those years ago.

Later that evening Hermione still sat in her hiding spot in the library. Though this time as she stared down at the pages in front of her it wasn't with frustration nor puzzlement but with accomplishment and horror. For she had found the answer to what and how the previously unknown creature was stalking the hall.

At first glance she had dismissed the creature because the article mentioned nothing regarding petrification. Only a deadly stare and venom that was so poisonous it could paralyse and kill within minutes. So of course she hadn't paid the Basilisk mind. She could feel her chest constricting as she hurried to gather her belongings, intent to take her findings to professor Snape. She knew she should take it to Dumbledore or even Lockhart really but Dumbledore didn't seem to be actively searching for the beast and Lockhart was a fraud. The man had run from pixies for Morgana's sake! She doubted he'd willingly try to find and slay a giant snake that was as deadly as it was large. So Snape was her next logical choice. McGonagall would dismiss her. Tell her she shouldn't be involving herself in something so dangerous. Snape however, Snape seemed to understand her better than most. He'd not question why she was researching. He would take her seriously as he always seemed to. She was sure he was the only safe choice to see something done.

The brunette made for the Dungeons, hoping Snape had not left his classroom yet. She pulled her pocket mirror out as she exited the library, it had been a gift from Cho last year on her birthday and it was something she cherished. The ornate design was gorgeous and it was most likely the most expensive possession she owned but she didn't want to take the risk of accidentally turning a corridor and starring the beast directly in the eye.

~ Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Infirmary ~

~ June 23rd 1993 ~

~ Hermione's POV ~

Hermione woke up slowly, her mind registering the voice of Madame Pomfrey as she slowly awoke. Her body hurt. Every muscle screaming at her as she lay on the infirmary bed. She had been here a while. So long in fact that Hermione had lost count of the days and hours that had passed. She was still grateful she had possessed the foresight to use her hand mirror on that trip to the Dungeons so many months ago but she really wishes she hadn't ended up in this position. If she hadn't used the mirror however, she knew she would be dead right now. Instead of alive but trapped inside her own mind. Able to hear those around her but unable to respond. Hermione hearing Cho, the first time the Raven haired girl had seen her in the infirmary, had been the worst. Her friend had screamed and cried and sobbed for hours in the beginning, begging the professor's to do something, anything to bring Hermione round. To wake her up and bring her friend back to her.

Of course without fully matured Mandrake Root it was impossible to wake her up because the restorative potion that was required to reverse the effects of petrification couldn't be made without it. Cho had visited regularly. Hermione would like to say the dark haired girl had visited daily but she couldn't tell one day from the next with her body frozen solid. Madame Pomfrey had also sat by her side a few times but Hermione had hated every moment if the woman's sympathy filled promises that she would have Hermione right as rain real quick. There really was only so much of the well meaning woman's empathetic words she could take and the brunette was sure she would have left or silenced the woman long ago if she could move. The waking world felt like a cruel brand of torture. Each second as painful as it was uncomfortable to the brunette and if she were honest, it only made her feel more alone, left for hours, unmoving, forgotten and alone. Stuck on a bed with no one to care for her except Madame Pomfrey on her rounds or Cho when her friend could get away from her every day life. There wasn't anyone else in this world that was sad for her, concerned for her ow there helping her ride out the endless moments of agonising nothing that she was stuck in.

Hermione hated it, her mind and heart screamed in protest as the isolation she felt spread slowly in her veins like a poison, the only real peace she ever got was when her exhausted mind finally slipped into unconsciousness.

Not that sleeping was great either, she could still see the gleaming eyes of the Basilisk every time she slept. Its bright yellow eyes filled with a danger she had only ever heard of. The thing had been massive. A lot bigger than the book had declared it to be. How on earth it had fit in the school pipes she had no idea but it had. Just the thought of it caused her to shudder involuntarily. Her body protested the movement as it did so.

The brunette could have gasped in relief when she realised that her body had moved on its own accord, for the first time in what felt like forever. Though the ache in her muscles were apparently taking a little longer to abate.

"Miss Granger, if you are awake dear try blinking your eyes for me" Madame Pomfrey asked gently, as she felt a cool hand brush the hair back from her face. The feeling was foreign, making her flinch hard as she tried to follow the midi-witches instructions.

The cold hand retreated as quickly as it appeared, alongside muttered apologies from the witch attending to her. Hermione lifted her hand shakily, waving the woman's apologies off.

"What's today's date?" She asked, her voice rough and cracking from dissuse. She forced herself upright, ignoring the disapproving huff from Madame Pomfrey who still stood close. The brunette opened her left eye slightly spotting Madame Pomfrey hovering beside her, arms outstretched but restrained as if the woman wished to help her but knew better now than to touch Hermione if there was any other option.

"June 23rd." The woman replied, her tone soft as if she were talking to something fragile. Hermione hated that. Hated knowing this woman felt pity towards her. As if getting petrified by a giant snake intent on killing her for her blood status was the worst thing to ever have happen to anyone. Instead of replying verbally, Hermione merely nodded, taking a deep breath in to centre herself as she processed just how long she had been stuck in the infirmary.

It was a shock, she knew she had been here a while but hadn't realised she had been stuck in the hospital ward for so long. She had missed months of classes, not that she was particularly worried about missing lessons. She was years ahead of her peers in her academic knowledge after all. However the thought of having to catch up on the homework was more than a little off putting. She had time though, she could get it all done if she just got up and concentrated. It would be fine. She was good at meeting deadlines after all, she just had to apply herself.

"Can I go?" She asked, forcing her eyes open to look at the woman, her voice a little more eager than she felt.

"Well I suppose you can dear, just, just rest for a few days please. No classes until Monday and if you experience any pain, dizziness or sickness come back here immediately." The woman instructed decisively, taking a step back from the bed to grab a few potions she had sitting on the side table.

"Take these also, before you go. It's a pain potion and a nutrient potion. Both should help your body recover from the immobility and months of petrification." Hermione took the two flasks without complaint, downing them one after another, it was wise, she decided to take the potions considering all her body had endured. Unknown to Madame Pomfrey, Hermione knew exactly what was in each potions bottle and did not need the explanation. Not that she would inform the woman of that when she was merely trying to help her.

"Thank you." The brunette stated after she had swallowed the last one. She looked at the healer and let a small grateful smile slip onto her freckled face as the last of the pain faded from her body. Madame Pomfrey nodded in acknowledgement, smiling gently at her as she gathered herself and made to stand from the bed. Hermione let herself adjust to being on her feet once more, her legs a little wobbly from months of being bedbound. She was looking forward to a hot shower when she made it back to her dorm. She felt disgusting and wanted nothing more than to wash the feeling of the infirmary off of her skin.

She had just about reached the large Oak doors that would open up into the corridor beyond when the older woman's voice reached her ears again. Ice washing through her veins as she took in what the medi-witch was telling her.

"Lady Lestrange wished me to tell you she stopped by to see you, however she couldn't stay as she had to get home to attend to some urgent family business." Madame Pomfrey called before Hermione heard her footsteps retreating towards her office in the back of the infirmary. It hurt to hear that Lady Lestrange had left her and not returned. More than Hermione thought it ought to. Lady Lestrange was not much more than a stranger despite how much the woman pestered her and claimed to care through letters each week.

She had barely spent any amount of time with the woman and more often than not ignored the letters the woman sent her. But it hurt.

Rejected, again. Betrayed, again.

Abandoned, again.

The woman had told her she was family, had promised Hermione that she cared. Yet had come and gone while Hermione was stuck, petrified by a monster. Not that she would have been there very long, Hermione hadn't felt the woman's magic, hadn't sensed the sandalwood perfume that the woman wore. Which meant that even while 'visiting' her the woman had not come near her bedside. She had left her, abandoned her. Helpless on an infirmary bed. She had left. She had left her and not come back and yes Hermione knew she was being irrational, over sensitive and emotional but it hurt. It hurt and she hated it.

She hated her.

"I don't care." Hermione whispered to no one, furiously wiping the lone tear of her cheek that had fallen without permission.

"I don't care." She repeated just as quietly, Unsteady hands pushing the doors to the hallway open. Intent on showering and moving forward. She refused to think any more on it.

~ Azkaban Prison, Somewhere in the North Sea ~

~ June 30th 1993 ~

~ Unknown POV ~

The cold was biting at her skin more than usual and the smell of damp and decay seemed to be more prominent than it had ever been. Her stomach growled and groaned in upset and her skin had paled more than it ever had. Not that she had ever not been pale. She had been deemed the Black Family Ice queen as she grew. No matter how much sun she had gotten she never had been anything other than pale.

Yet despite the decay that surrounded her, she was in quite a jovial mood. She had just received a letter from her dearest sister regarding her husband and their house elf Dobby. Or should she say ex house elf? Was that a thing? She didn't know.

Nor did she care.

Lucius was a vile excuse for a man, pure-blooded or not. It was rotten luck she had been cornered into marrying the man all those years ago. Her son was doomed. Of that she was sure. Her Dragon had been forced to grow up without her because of Lucius' selfish choices and now all her boy had was her vile husband as an example of what a true wizard was. Merlin knew the boy had little hope now. He'd be thirteen now. In his second year at Hogwarts, about to go into his third. It broke her heart if she let herself think about it. But here, where the dementors were watching and waiting she tended to keep all thoughts of her boy buried. She didn't want to risk the dastardly things taking any of those memories and twisting them.

But Lucius, thinking of him was her favourite pass time. Specifically thinking of all the ways she could get her revenge on him. He had set her up for his crimes after all. Painted her out to be a vile cruel woman.

A criminal.

Convinced the world she was Mad.

So hearing from her Andy that a twelve year old girl had tricked him into freeing his slave was welcome news. She knew fine well how much Lucius had liked tormenting the elf's. No matter how many times she had told him not too. After all the elf's new everything there was about the families they worked for. So to keep an elf happy was a wise investment wasn't it? Yet her thick headed husband couldn't or wouldn't grasp such a concept.

And to be tricked by a little girl of all things!

She was ecstatic to say the least. When she got out of here, because she would, she would find this girl and shake her hand. Maybe even gift her a property or two because the girl deserved it. Her husband was many things but his cunning was something he prided himself on. Yet he had been bested by a child.

It was the best news she had heard in years and it brought a genuine smile to her hollow cheeks that made her look as mad as Lucius had claimed her to be. She cared little about that though. Not when she could focus on the furious embarrassment she was sure had plastered itself upon his face.

Oh it was a wonderful thing.

Yes her sister had spoken of this twelve year old oddly. That was something she had to investigate further. But Lucius' torment was just too good not to revel in.

Her sister had said the girl was an enigma. A muggle born who apparently possessed great magical ability, even at 12. A girl Andy was drawn too and had ordered be protected. Of course it was rather funny to think of her little sister chasing after this twelve year olds attention because apparently the girl refused most of Andromeda's letters. It frustrated her sister who had come to see the girl as her child. Of course she could relate to Andy's plight but for now, until she could actually be of some help to her sister, the witch chose to focus on her poor excuse of a husband.

His face must have been a picture she would have paid good galleons to see. The witch shivered, the wind sneaking in through the cracks in the stone wall to lash at her cracked skin, though her grin grew. Until eventually she laughed. She laughed for the first time in many a year, her laugh one that was loud and manic in the eery prison, echoing off the walls and bouncing around her as she did so.

She would have to remember to thank her darling sister, as soon as she got out of this damned place. For she had given her a gift that she could not truly replay. Her laughter bubbled and sored and the woman felt genuine warmth grow on her cheeks for the first time since her wrongful incarceration all those years ago. Despite the chorus of the many that surrounded her laughing and shouting as she cackled, the witch rejoiced in the moment. Treasuring the victory over her disgrace of a husband and forgetting momentarily about the ice cold shackles and damp rot that surrounded her.

As she quietened she smiled again and settled herself down to dream of the many, many ways she would devastate Lucius when she finally got free of this Morgana forsaken place.