𝐂𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐋𝐄𝐒 𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐌𝐁𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 (OC x OC) - Full Series

[007] CHAPTER 30 - FREE NOW

"how does pain taste when it melts into your tongue?"
|| gracie abrams

Annelise Lupin

Mattheo and I are running through the halls when we run into Makayla in the Great Hall.

An involuntary gasp rips itself from my throat at the sight of Nora, dead in her arms. She's crying. It must have just happened—seeing as Mattheo and I heard a scream not too long ago.

Without even thinking, I rush over, pulling Makayla into a one-sided hug. She subconsciously leans into me, sobbing as she digs her face into my shoulder. I rub my hands up and down her back as she cries against me. My eyes never leave Nora's body.

One hand leaves her back to gently brush the hair out of Nora's face. Her skin is still warm.

Oh, Makayla...

"It's my fault," she sobs. "I shouldn't have left her alone. I should have taken her home myself—"

"Don't say that, Maky..." I whisper, squeezing her tighter. "You couldn't have done anything to stop this..."

"That's not true..." she snivels. "That's not true... That's not true..." She won't stop saying it.

"Maky, what do you mean?"

"I could have stopped it..." she sniffles. "He told me what to do and I didn't listen..."

"Voldemort?"

"Who else?" she wails. "He told me to kill Louis if I wanted Nora to live and I couldn't do it. This is my fault—"

"Makayla Malfoy," I snap. She falls silent. I take a deep breath before continuing, "You are one of the strongest women I've ever known. You've endured through so much in just eight years and I am so proud of you. You've lost Cedric. You've lost Jordyn. You've lost Sirius. You've lost Kai. But that—"

"And Chase..." she whispers, making my heart ache more.

"You've lost Chase, too..." I add, swallowing the lump in my throat. "But that doesn't mean that any of this was your fault. I am aware that what happened to Kai was at the hands of your wand, but you had no choice. You didn't know what Voldemort was going to do if you didn't listen to him, so you had to do what you could to save yourself. It's not your—"

"But why do I have to be so selfish to only think of myself?" she shouts, clinging onto Nora's limp, lifeless body even tighter. "My life isn't even that valuable. The only good thing I've got going for me is the ring on my finger and the children my mother has been taking care of. And I've already gotten Louis to be upset with me, so the ring probably won't last long!"

"Makayla—"

"Penelope is a walking prophecy, Annie!" she interrupts me again. "In her world, I die. There's nothing we can do to stop that!"

There's a moment of silence between all three of us. No one says a word. I stare at her in horror, realizing that she has officially lost hope. If anything, I'd think that she wants to die. But I think that's been going on since Jordyn happened.

"How would you know that?" Mattheo asks, his voice deep with emotion. Surprisingly, the two of them have gotten close recently. Probably from bonding over having horrible parents and a dead Jordyn in their lives—a ghost that'll haunt them until they're in a coffin. They've managed to replace her with each other. Makayla is now basically Mattheo's sister and Mattheo is her best friend—kind of.

"She looks like me. She's Louis' kid. And she is a 'Warrior of the Mind' as well."

"What the heck is a warrior of the mind?" I ask.