𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬

27. I will not be Forgot

"Regulus?" Maeve mumbled with defeat.

"Yes? I'm here." He pulled her into his arms holding her tight as reality sunk in.
Clara was alive and served Voldemort—and it was her fault.
"We did it, Maeve, it's over." Regulus stroked the back of her head, his fingers running through her rubble dusted hair.

"Not yet." A familiar voice spoke.

"Jane." Regulus sneered as their eyes met, she was out of regulus arms in a heartbeat—her wand drawn.

"Maeve, just give me the locket and it's over. We can be sisters again, mum and dad want you back." She took slow steps foward, her wand tucked away in the Ravenclaw uniform that belonged to the student she had killed. "You would have proven your loyalty, I won't tell anyone that either of you doubted him."

"He is just a man, a man that's only power comes from those who serve him. You join us, leave him, you'll be free and he'll be weaker."
Maeve knew it was likely useless to plead with her, but Jane was the girl she took car of for years, helped her when she was believed to be crippled for life. All she saw was the helpless little girl who was attacked by a werecoyote.

"I owe him everything, you know this! He cured me, accepted me when no one else would—"

"I accepted you!" Maeve cried, "Even before you were cured, when you could barely dress yourself, I accepted you! I loved you!"

"That means nothing, you had to, your my sister it was your responsibility."

"No, I'm your little sister. I did all of those things because I loved you, I killed my best friend to save you, he just used dark magic to make you a useful asset."

"Give me the locket!" Jane screamed, yanking her wand out as dark energy shot out of it, not an incantation was spoken, this was out of control.

The rocks on the roof above began to crumble and crack but Jane made no effort to stop, regulus pulled Maeve back, rushing to a safer place as the rubble began to fall.

Again the air was filled with dust, then one sound, a voice.
The killing curse echoed through the cave, a green glow lighting the shocked for a few moments.

"Maeve, we should leave." Regulus spoke softly, his hand on her shoulder but she barely noticed it.
She ran back to where her sister had been, the dusted settling.

"Clara." She sobbed. "What did you do?"

"It was me or her, I need to show Voldemort I am worthy. Jane favoured her, not anymore." Her voice was raspy and her words were scattered. "Now that Maeve and regulus, the traitors have killed his adored pupil, I will come back with the locket. I will be the favourite, the best."

As she knelt beside her sister's still form, Maeve realized the true cost of war - the destruction of everything that once mattered most to her. She knew now that it was time to end this conflict and make sure no more sisters had to face each other across a battlefield.
"That's it. I quit," she said, looking around at the devastation. "This isn't worth it anymore."

"Fine." Clara smirked. "I win." White spin from her wand hitting regulus and his body met the ground with a thud.

In an instant Maeve was unconscious.

♡

When Maeve woke she was in the infirmary, madam pomfrey rushed over the second she noticed she was conscious.
"Sweetheart, you need to leave, can you walk?"

"Yeah." She sniffled. "Why do I need to leave?"

"Dumbledore wants to see you."

"Where is regulus?"

"You were the only one the order of the phoenix found."

♡

"Maeve look, I want to believe you but with everything that has happened, I don't know I can trust you." Dumbledore sighed, looking over at three of the four Marauders, waiting for their thoughts.

Maeve couldn't believe it, Dumbledore instructed her to do this, and now he was treating her as if she acted on her own accord.

"Just let me tell you the whole story." She begged, as she resisted against her restraints that tied her to the chair in Dumbledore's office.
"I'm telling the truth you have believe me!"

"We don't have to do anything." Remus replied, he wasn't holding a grudge, he was just being assertive.

"I'm trying to protect all of you please, I'm begging!" Maeve let tears fill her eyes, it had been a while since she had cried.

Dumbledore gave her a nod of approval. Hope filled Maeve's broken heart.

"It all started the night of the lunar ball, after I caught Remus cheating.."