"HEADMASTER DIPPET," ROSALIND GREETED when she walked into the Headmaster's office. Dippet gave her a small, sympathetic smile, that made her once again wonder what she'd done. Dumbledore was standing by his chair, behind the neatly organised desk, and another man that she did not recognise was seated in the armchair right beside the bureau.

The Headmaster gestured for her to sit across from the stranger, and she obliged silently.

"Miss Bonaccord, this is Mister Theseus Scamander, a well-known auror from the Ministry," Dippet introduced, causing Rosalind to feel her heart drop into her stomach. It all made sense. They were about to question her on Samantha's case.

"He's here to ask a few questions about Mrs. Hallock, seeing as she was your mother's nurse," Rosalind nodded silently, averting her gaze to the rather intimidating auror across from her. She could tell he was in his fifties, if not even older.

The french blonde was still composed, but she had to leak a few tears.

She'd been preparing for this since the moment she read about Samantha's disappearance on the Daily Prophet. She knew this time will come, she had to be interrogated, and she'd spent all her sleepless nights at Noah's hotel making up and revising the lies she'd have to tell. But Rosalind felt utterly and completely screwed. Would she really be able to deceive an experienced auror, as well as her headmaster and her wise professor?

"Miss Bonaccord, what do you know about Samantha Hallock?" Scamander was observing her intensely, as though trying to read every one of her movements and actions.

She sniffed, staring at a certain point in the scarlet carpet. "I'm afraid I d-don't know much, sir," Rosalind started, her eyes getting slightly watery as she tried her best to look sullen.

"But there's one thing," she looked into his eyes, because a liar would not make eye contact. She made sure to stare at him, a sad gleam shining in her green irises, "One very important thing."

"Do tell, my dear," Dippet leaned forward in his chair, anticipation and curiosity clear in his posture and eyes.

"Samantha Hallock works for Grindelwald."

Her statement rendered the room silent. Dumbledore and Scamander were analysing her, while Dippet seemed shocked to the core.

"Oh dear Merlin! A mother of a Hogwarts student! She seemed like a kind woman. Kind, indeed," the headmaster seemed to be speaking to himself, a wrinkled hand covering his mouth in astonishment.

"Headmaster Dippet, it would be much more convenient if you control your nerves," the auror spoke rather harshly, but the ancient man seemed to ignore him.

"Go on," Theseus urged, "how did you discover this sensitive information, miss?"

"I- my mother wrote me a letter. She told me everything. How Samantha threatened her, how she kept messing up her medications, Samantha even told my mum that she would've killed her if Grindelwald hadn't asked not to." Tears were spilling out of her eyes then, because everything she said was completely true, except the letter part, of course. She felt angsty and dread at the thought of her mother suffering so much. She was glad Jewel was living happily with Robert, safe in Australia.

"And what did you do about it?"

"N-nothing, sir. I was too scared. I couldn't tell anyone about Samantha or else she'd hurt my mum. I was afraid and clueless," she whimpered, wiping her eyes hastily. Rosalind didn't know she had such acting skills.

"I didn't have the courage to go home on Christmas, I was terrified Samantha would hurt me as well. I-instead, I wrote my mother a letter, telling her to inform the Ministry. And I haven't heard from her since," she was sobbing by then, her face in her palms as she shook and shivered. "I think Samantha found that letter."

Her words were muffled by her hands, and although she couldn't see properly, she could tell all three of the wizards had gone silent.

"Did she hurt my mother?" Rosalind glanced at Scamander, a look of agony and fear taking over her features. "You need to find her! Please, I have no one other than my mum!"

"Mister Scamander, I figure we should let the young lady go rest in her dorm. I'm sure she cannot handle any more emotional turmoil," Dumbledore interfered, now standing by Rosalind's side. He placed a hand on her shoulder, a firm look directed at the auror.

She couldn't comprehend that Dumbledore, the wisest wizard of all time, completely believed her. Or did he?

"But Albus, the headmaster said that Miss Bonaccord left the school during Christmas break. Where could she have been if she has no one other than her mother?" Scamander seemed skeptical enough, which was never a good sign. Perhaps if she could only convince him that she'd gone somewhere with Tom. .

"She left with a friend, Theseus. Perhaps Mister Dippet did not mention that part?" Dumbledore defended, his hand leaving her shoulder and settling formally behind his back. But why was Dumbledore getting her out of this? She was sure he knew that Tom lived in an orphanage. He couldn't have possibly forgotten that, could he?

"Oh! My bad. Yes, she left with Mister Riddle during the break."

"Very well then. Miss Bonaccord, please go get some rest. We'll try our best to find your mother," Dumbledore patted her once more, and she nodded, scurrying out of the room with tears barely drying on her cheeks.

Rosalind ran until there was no breath left in her lungs, to the only place she considered a safe haven.

***

Rosalind walked hastily into the Room of Requirement, her heart leaping when she found Tom seated in his usual armchair.

"How'd you know that I'll come here?" She inquired, taking slow steps towards the person that managed to bring out the worst in her.

"Abraxas told me that the headmaster asked to see you. I figured it would be about Samantha," he stood up, looking her over and taking notice of the tears staining her face.

"How did it go?" He asked gently, his eyes roaming her face for any sign of bleakness or agitation. He found none. She seemed to be better.

"They all believe me, I guess," she sighed, sitting on the comfortable sofa. She was terrified of what she'd become. Since when was she indifferent to manipulating people into believing her? She managed to deceive three remarkable wizards, but she was almost certain that Dumbledore knew something.

She couldn't tell Tom about that. She had no idea how he would react to such a major inconvenience, so it would be much safer if this certain part of information was kept from him. She'll have to deal with Dumbledore on her own.

"What did you say?"

"I really don't want to talk about it," she mumbled, and Tom only nodded in response.

He sat beside her, unable to find a single word of comfort. His head tilted back as he leaned against the couch, staring at the ceiling. He felt useless. For once he could do nothing to help her and he hated it.

She felt gravity abandon her when he wrapped his arms around her. And at that moment, he truly felt like home, like she belonged in his arms.

"I want to stay like this, forever," she whispered, immediately regretting uttering those foolish words. Tom wanted so much more in life. He wanted power and glory. He didn't want meaningless love. But she did, and that thought tortured her.

He did not reply.

***

It had been a couple of weeks since they'd come back to Hogwarts, and the stress of the finals was lurking around the students in the castle. Rosalind had much more important matters to stress about, however.

The conjectures of Grindelwald's purposes were slowly seeping into her mind, creating a cyclone that left her with a throbbing headache. She was trying her best to remain as sedate as she could, but the attempt was deemed impossible.

The Ravenclaws were in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, along with the Slytherins, on a Monday morning. The desks and chairs were all moved to the sides of the class, and the students were left in the centre with nothing but a closet facing them.

"Good morning, class. On the last period, we discussed Boggarts, so right now, we will be testing our abilities practically!" Merrythought explained cheerfully, leaving the class rather flabbergasted. No one wanted to face their greatest fear in front of the whole class. Most of them would probably see spiders or another silly thing, but Rosalind had seen a lot. She was sure her worst fear would be something traumatising.

She looked up at Tom, who was stood beside her, and she could tell he was squeezing his wand uncomfortably. She had a good idea of what Tom's worst fear would be.

"We'll be going by alphabetical order," the professor stated while looking over the list in her hand, "Black, Lucretia, please step forward."

Lucretia seemed firm and determined as she stepped closer towards the closet, the rest of the students shrinking away from her. With a wave of Merrythought's wand, the door of the closet flew open, and out stepped a furry creature, howling and growling at her. It was a werewolf.

Lucretia took a deep breath, tears glistening in her eyes. "Ridikkulus!"

The werewolf morphed into a small puppy, jumping around the Slytherin's legs, leaving her cheerful after seeing such a terrifying sight.

"Magnificent job, dear. Black, Walburga."

The other Black seemed to have a smug sneer on her face, stepping forward with her chin held high. The puppy changed into a man and a woman, whom Rosalind suspected were Walburga's parents. The latter gasped, taking a few steps backwards.

They were both shouting, scolding her and even fighting with each other at some point.

"Walburga Black, you are such a disappointment!" The woman scolded, her face flushing in anger.

"You're a disgrace to this family."

"R-ridikkulus!"

The boggart morphed into a replica of Roderick Lestrange, smiling at her softly. This caused a crimson blush to cover Walburga's cheeks, who looked at Lestrange in nothing but embarrassment. The latter seemed shocked to the core, his mouth agape and his eyes wide. He was certain for a long time that Walburga hated him.

"I thought you were with Orion?" Druella piped in, a satisfied smirk making its way on her face when Walburga glared at her.

"Bonaccord, Rosalind."

She felt all eyes on her while she strode to the centre, her heart beating wildly in her chest. Lestrange immediately transformed into two people; the dearest to her heart.

Her uncle smiled at her sadly, before dropping to the ground with a flash of green. Her mother, who was standing next to him, did not seem to notice as she also smiled at Rosalind. The simper left the woman's face, however, when she started convulsing and fell to the floor. Blood-curdling screams were emitted from Jewel, leaving Rosalind shaking and barely able to grip her wand properly.

Why was she reliving this? She did not want the rest of the class to see her in such a state. She didn't want people knowing so much about her.

She could not fail. She had to fight back. Rosalind was the brightest witch of her age and she knew it.

With a firm determination washing over her features, Rosalind rose her wand upwards. "Ridikkulus!"

Her mother and uncle were no longer on the floor, but instead she saw a Thestral, stretching its wings and moving around her swiftly. The class was left speechless, thinking that Rosalind simply made the boggart disappear. Only very few seemed completely entranced with the magnificent creature, those who were able to see it.

She did not have time to gauge out their reactions, for she felt a sudden hot liquid trail from her nostrils. Rosalind touched her nose, seeing the smudge of blood on her fingers.

"Shit." And then she blacked out.

***

Darkness. Darkness was all she could see. Rosalind tried moving her limbs, only to feel the metal of the shackles weighing them down. The eerie silence left her ears ringing. She was trying to concentrate on every tiny sound, to the point that what she was hearing was definitely the works of her imagination.

"Mum? Mum, are you here?" Her voice came out tiny and hoarse, she hadn't had a glass of water for days. "'Nyx?"

"Uncle Onyx? Is anybody there?" The fear of the unknown seemed to strangle her. She did not know where she was, she didn't know where her uncle and mother were, and she doubted she would make it out of this horrible place alive.

She was completely alone.

"Oh, you're finally awake," A disembodied voice echoed throughout the mysterious cellar she was in, but she was sure it was the voice of a man. She heard the sound of clanking metal, as if the door was being unlocked.

Rosalind was too terrified to utter a word. Why did this have to happen to her?

"Lumos," the spell lit only the man's face, and he seemed nothing but a couple of years older than her.

"I'm sure you have a lot of questions," the guy started, a sinister smirk covering his features. "And I'm sure the Dark Lord would enjoy answering a few of them."

He hauled her up harshly, the shackles clinking against each other. He used a nonverbal spell to free her, holding her arms behind her back firmly.

"Vandalov, Zhelyazko Vandalov," he spoke in her ear, leading her to an unknown destination.

"As far as I know, my furthest concern is your name right now," Rosalind bit back, unable to hold her tongue. The last thing she wanted was to converse with the person that was possibly responsible for her abduction.

"I do like my girls feisty, for the record. Too bad the Dark Lord seems to take a particular interest in you-"

"Where am I?" She interrupted, certainly not caring how this git liked his girls. The place seemed like a huge prison, cellar after cellar lining the walls. He led her to a spiralling staircase before answering.

"You're in Nurmengard," Vandalov stated dryly. Why was he answering her questions? He appeared to be weirdly civil for a kidnapper. Rosalind looked at herself for the first time. There was no sign of bruises on her body, and she didn't feel any symptom of pain. They didn't seem to have hurt her in any way.

A chill ran down her spine as she registered her surroundings. She was taken captive by none other than Gellert Grindelwald. Where did this come  from? Why would a dark lord be interested in her and her family?

She still had no idea where her uncle and mother were.

"You've been unconscious for three days," he informed, stopping at a large, silver door engraved by a strange mark. A triangle, within which was a circle, and a vertical straight line.

"We're here, dollface," Rosalind managed to stomp on his foot because of the revolting nickname, but he paid her no mind.

Vandalov knocked on the door twice, hearing a clear 'Come in' afterwards.

What she saw in that room made her blood run cold. The scene made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. There stood the almighty dark wizard, towering over the crumpling bodies of her mother and uncle.

"Ah, there she is, our dear Rosalind." How did this bastard know her name? Her gaze was fixed on her uncle and mother, who looked like shells of a person.

"No! Please, don't hurt her. I would do anything for you to let her go!" Her mother begged, glistening tears covering her bloodied face. Onyx did not have the energy to speak, he was obviously struggling to remain conscious.

"Oh, dear Jewel, what makes you think I will hurt her? She is very useful. Very useful indeed," The mismatched eyes of the monster studied the teenage witch that was still held by Zhelyazko. His gaze made her shiver in fear and dread, his icy blue eye shining like a haunting spectre, the other dark one threatening like an endless void.

His dark cloak swished as he moved to step above her uncle, sneering down at the almost unconscious man.

"You, however, have already missed your chance," Grindelwald drawled, pointing his wand at Onyx. Rosalind whimpered, still not uttering a word since she was dragged into this office-like room.

"Avada-"

"No!" She thrashed against Vandalov's hold, making the Dark Lord's head snap in her direction. He grinned like a cheshire cat, enjoying every moment of torture.

"Rosalind, my dear, I am not doing this to harm you in any way," he spoke in a sickly sweet voice, "But your uncle did not consider the consequences of his actions when he refused to join my order."

"Avada Kedavra!" Her screams of agony were ignored by both foreign parties in the room, and she watched as the green light hit 'Nyx squarely in the chest, without him having the ability to move a muscle or fight back in any way.

Grindelwald must have used a variety of creative curses on her family beside the Cruciatus Curse, because such Unforgivable curse did not leave visible physical injuries. Yet her uncle was bruised in multiple shades of blue and purple, and her mother was covered in blood that seemed to seep from shallow wounds.

Jewel hugged her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth while her whimpers reverberated inside the room. Rosalind was full-on crying, hoping this was all a terrifying nightmare and she would wake up soon.

"Let go of her, Zhelyazko," Grindelwald ordered, and Rosalind found herself collapsing to the floor.

"Please, please let her leave! Take me instead!" Jewel pleaded, now having crawled to Grindelwald's feet, grabbing onto his cloak. "For the sake of the old times, please." She added in a tiny voice.

The dark wizard's cruel laugh echoed like a sharp bullet, ricocheting off the walls and hitting them like a haunting phantom.

"You did not take my merciful offer either, my darling, Crucio!" Rosalind's screams sounded as though she was the one being tortured, and not her mother.

"Please, I beg you, stop it!"

Grindelwald looked at her, feigning a look of mocking hurt on his ageing face, before laughing like a maniac.

"Don't worry, Miss Bonaccord, you will understand everything soon. You will come to the conclusion that your mother deserves this pain."

Rosalind awoke with a start, gasping for air and gripping the sheets desperately. She was looking around frantically, trying to figure out if she was still stuck in that horrifying cellar.

It took her a while to register that she was in the Hospital wing, the rest of the beds around her empty and neat.

"Took you long enough," the voice on her right made her jump in surprise, not having noticed anyone else in the room before.

Tom Riddle was leaning against the wall near her bed, his hands tucked in his pockets. He turned his head to look at her, a few locks of his hair falling over his forehead. A book was left open on a nearby chair.

"What happened?" She asked breathlessly, her eyes frantic and detached.

"Professor Merrythought said she's never seen such a reaction to a Boggart before. You were out for five days, Rosalind," he explained, pushing off of the wall and reaching towards the chair. Tom closed the book with a thud and placed it on the nightstand.

It was then that she noticed the flowers placed in a vase on the night table, as well as a box of chocolate and several other 'Get Well Soon' cards.

Tom noticed her looking at the array of gifts. "You have your own little fandom, apparently."

She scoffed, straightening her position on the stiff bed. She reached for the chocolate box, shaped as a pink heart. Rosalind read the card attached to it, a smile gracing her features when she noticed Oliver's untidy scribble.

because I know your unyielding obsession with chocolate ;)

-Ollie

******************
Ok y'all imma be basic af and ask you abt coronavirus. How's your country dealing with it?? It's my second week off school

And did i ever mention that Zhelyazko is pronounced as Jelyazko?

~Sparklejet❃