"guys?"
"yeah, yunhee."
"a while ago, when we were in hiding, i found a cute cozy house in the middle of a beautiful meadow full of flowers. i want to live there — i mean, i know it's cheesy — but you guys are my best friends and i don't want to be separated from you ever again. so i was thinking... would you all like to move in with me?"
"i'd love to!" jeno exclaimed, taking her hand.
"i think it would be really nice." renjun said.
"i thought we made this plan already when we were kids, but it didn't include these lot." jisung mumbled.
"what he means is he'd love to." yunhee told the others as she slapped his back.
"then we're all moving in together? it's a promise?" chenle asked and at the nod of everyone's heads, he hugged mark.
but yunhee noticed something off about the gryffindor. his leg kept bouncing and he seemed deep in thought, biting his lip.
"mark? what's wrong?" she asked, snapping him out of his trance. he hadn't even realised chenle was hugging him.
"i— guys..." his voice was quivering and he looked like he was about to break down any second. "i won't be joining you all."
"what do you mean?" jaemin asked.
"i-i'm sorry..." he burst into tears, sending them all into panic mode. they huddled closer, trying to comfort him.
"why are you crying?" yunhee asked, wrapping her arms around him as jeno rubbed his back soothingly.
"i have t-to go somewhere and i'm not coming back." he said and only a few of them caught onto what he meant by that. the others were slightly confused.
"no. no! mark lee, you are not going to the forest!" renjun yelled, shaking mark's shoulders when yunhee let go of him.
"what the hell. you were going to go?!" donghyuck exclaimed.
"i have to! it's the only way for this to all end. you all know that as much as i do. you also know that there's a reason why i can hear the horcruxes and—"
"no. absolutely not! you're not going!" chenle interrupted.
"please don't make this any harder than it already is. i'm going and that's it." he stood up and they all followed, wanting to stop him, but he shook his head.
"i'll go with you." yunhee said, tears in her eyes.
"you have to stay. you can't—"
"no, we're going with you. we're doing this together. none of us are going to go through anything alone." renjun said, taking mark's hand.
"but we'll all die..." jaemin mumbled.
"at least we'll die together, right?" donghyuck said, smiling, despite having tears running down his face.
"you don't have to do this. you don't have to die because of me. this isn't right." mark pleaded.
"mark, we're your best friends and to be honest, going out with my best friends sounds kinda cool. i wouldn't want it any other way." jeno said, shrugging.
"this isn't right..." mark said then turned to yunhee. "yun, you won't ever get that house in the meadows with the flowers you were just talking about."
"that doesn't matter now. i've made my decision. i'm going with you."
"there's really no stopping you guys, huh?"
"of course. let's go."
she linked her arm with his and together, they all began making their way to the forest. they were beyond terrified for sure, but they knew that soon they would be at peace. everything would be okay because they had each other.
"there's something i have to do first." mark said, reaching into his pocket as they came to a stop.
"what is it?" jisung asked.
mark showed them the golden snitch and the words that appeared on it: 'i open at the close'.
"i'm ready to die." he whispered then brought it to his lips, kissing it. there was a soft whirring sounds as the snitch opened up, revealing a floating stone.
"that's the resurrection stone." renjun gasped.
"i want to use it. to speak to my parents before it's time to die." mark told them.
"of course. we'll give you some space." yunhee said.
she gestured to the others to move and they followed her further into the forest, not too far away from mark though. she rested her back against a tree, sighing as they stayed in silence. mark's voice could be heard, faintly, speaking to his parents.
"we're really doing this?" donghyuck asked, crouching beside her.
"i guess so." she replied.
"it just feels like there's so much left that i have to do here. i have unfinished business and..." he trailed off and she patted his head, trying to comfort him.
"you're scared. i am scared too and it's okay to be."
"i am, but i'm also ready to do this." he said.
"group hug?" jeno asked, holding his arms out. he was always the one to initiate the groups hugs. jisung was the first to hug him, followed by the others.
"are we group hugging right now?" mark's voice be heard as he joined the hug.
"oh, you're done already?" jaemin asked as they began pulling apart.
"yeah, i spoke to... my parents. remus and sirius too." he told them, his gaze lingering on yunhee who was fiddling with her hands. "yun?"
"yeah?" she looked up at him to see he was holding the resurrection stone out to her.
"i thought you might want to use it... i remember what you said about your sister."
"yun, you have a sister?" renjun asked as she took the stone from mark.
"had." she corrected just like she had in fifth year when mark asked. "can i really use this to speak to her?"
"you can."
"it's been so many years since... thank you..." she said, wiping at her eyes when she felt herself tearing up.
"no need to thank me. i think you really need this." he rubbed her back and then she left to go to where mark was before, so that she could have some privacy.
she glanced around at her surroundings then closed her eyes, squeezing the stone in her palm. she could only hear the soft rustle of the trees and her friends whispering from where they were waiting for her. and then she heard the familiar voice that she hadn't heard in years.
"yunhee."
she opened her eyes and nearly started crying at the sight of her sister standing across from her. she looked the same as she had the day she died. her face, her short hair, her clothes. it was all the same.
yunhee rushed forwards, her arms reaching out to hug her sister, but she felt nothingness. she walked straight through her. devastated, she turned around to face her, but her sister was smiling.
"dahee." she called out.
"you've grown so much." dahee said, lifting her hand to her face. yunhee couldn't feel her hand brushing against her cheek, but she imagined what it would feel like. warm and comforting.
"and you look exactly the same." she sobbed, almost falling to the floor from grief. "i've missed you so much."
"i've missed you way more."
"there's so much i've wanted to tell you. mum and dad—"
"are the same, aren't they?" dahee sighed.
"yes, but i stood up to them a while ago and ever since i've been living with chenle. you remember him, right?" yunhee asked and she smiled.
"i do and jisung. those tiny kids." she held her hand to her waist to represent the heights they used to be.
"they're not kids or that tiny anymore." yunhee laughed. "jisung's a giant now."
"i'm glad to hear you stayed best friends."
"our relationships have been a bit rocky, but things worked out in the end. i've made such amazing friends. that's why i'm even able to speak to you right now."
"yunnie... i'm so sorry i had to leave you. it wasn't meant to happen like this..." dahee said and at the use of her nickname, yunhee almost cried again. "clearly you've turned into such a strong and independent woman. i'm so proud of you."
"you're... proud of me?"
"of course i am. you did what i couldn't do for you. you got out of that house, met nice people and are now living a better life."
"yeah... better life. sure, but i don't really think having people trying to kill me everyday is the best." yunhee mumbled.
"but you're managing well. this is going to end well, right? you guys are going to win." dahee said and yunhee felt so guilty at the look on her face.
"about that... things — it's not — it's not going to end the way you expect." she said, tearing up again.
"no, i do. i know." dahee replied with a gentle smile on her face. "i know what you're about to do. i've been watching over you this whole time. i know about all your friends and how you've been, but i wanted to hear you talk about it. it was nice to hear you talk to me..."
"so you know i plan to die?"
"yeah, i know what you plan to do. still, trust that things will end well."
"i guess because i'll be with you again."
"you'll always be with me. i never left and i never will." dahee said. there was the sound of a twig snapping and she glanced over her shoulder. "your friends are waiting for you. i think it's time for you to go."
"i'm not ready to say goodbye to you yet." yunhee muttered.
"this isn't goodbye. just know i'll always be here for you. i love you, little sis."
"i love you too." she whispered then let the stone drop from her hand. she stared, shattered, at the now empty space that dahee had been standing by.
"yunhee." jaemin called, appearing into view. when he noticed her tears, he pulled her into a hug. "how was it?"
"seeing her again hurt so much, but it went good. better than good." she replied, then turned to mark who had picked up the stone. "you were right, mark, i really did need this."
"good." he handed her the stone. "keep this. you can use it again, whenever you want. just don't get attached."
"what do you mean? there's no need for me to use it. i'll be with her soon anyway." she said, raising an eyebrow at his sudden change in demeanor. she was suspicious of him and she was right to be.
"no, i'm not letting that happen. i'm not letting you all do this." he said, his wand in his hand.
"mark... what are you—" renjun began to say, but cut himself off when he raised his wand at them.
"incarcerous!"
the group found themselves being pushed back by a strong force and next thing they knew, their backs were slammed into trees as ropes circled around them, trapping them tightly against the trees.
"mark! what are you doing?!" donghyuck yelled, struggling to get off the ropes that wouldn't budge at all. if anything, it only got tighter around them.
"i'm not going to let you guys throw away your lives like this. i'm doing this and i'm doing it alone." mark said. "i'm so sorry. you're all just to precious to me. i'm sorry, but goodbye."
"mark! mark! MARK LEE! you get back here immediately!" yunhee screamed, having mixed emotions of extreme anger and grief.
"MARK!"
the others called after him too, but he wouldn't look back at them. he kept walking until he was out of sight and they were hopelessly trapped, knowing their friend was about to die.