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IT WAS HER SIXTH YEAR, AND THE CASTLE WAS COLD WITH CHAOS THAT NIGHT. Mayhem ensued around her as the Dark Mark was terrifyingly clear against the gathering clouds in the sky. Students were sent into frenzy as the reality of the situation had settled in while Professors were doing everything they could to defend the grounds.
Death Eaters had flooded Hogwarts, and Albus Dumbledore was dead. Voldemort, it seemed, had won already.
But Jane paid no attention to the beginnings of war as she wove through the throng of people. Her only concern, as far as she knew, was getting her siblings to safety. She, herself, was not a priority because it would be fine if she got hurt, but there would be hell to face if her younger brother and sister suffered.
William, a year older than Lydia, was tear-stained as his hand grasped tightly onto the robes of both his sisters, linking the three together. Jane was, of course, at the front leading them all, trying to reach the fourth floor. Meanwhile, Lydia remained quiet at the back, fending off any spells that got too close to them with a ferocity that seemed unfitting for a Third Year.
It felt like too long before Jane finally caught sight of what she had been looking for – a mirror on the Fourth Floor and unknown to anyone else, a passageway. It was caved in when she had first discovered it, but she had resurrected it last year discreetly once finding that it would take her stumbling into Hogsmeade.
"Quickly. I've already called mom and dad. They'll be waiting at the other end," Jane whispered to her younger siblings, pulling them to a crouch as she moved the mirror to reveal the tunnel behind it. "Charlotte and Bennet will be there too."
William, starting to cry again, spoke between sobs. "Why does it sound like you aren't coming with us?"
Jane smiled softly at her younger brother. He had always been so quick to notice the words she left out. "I have to help the others, Will. Death Eaters are running the castle over, and I can't just leave when I can help."
"You can't be serious," Lydia said as William clung onto her, using her robe as a tissue for his tears. "You have to come with us, Jane. You can't just stay here."
A crash sounded behind her, and she turned to see a Death Eater, masked, starting to approach them.
"I love you, guys. Don't forget that." Before they could complain, Jane pushed her siblings in, watching their betrayed expressions with a pang of guilt in her heart but a surge of relief in knowing they would now be safe. "Diffindo." Her wand sliced through the air as the spell sliced through the wall. Rock crumbled, blocking the passageway indefinitely.
"You Ravenclaws are too bold for your own good. The Dark Lord would enjoy your support."
The voice came from behind her, and she calmly came to face the Death Eater. The man held just a couple inches over her, and through his mask, she could tell the look in his eyes was nothing short of pride.
Jane scoffed. "And apparently, you Death Eaters didn't learn your lesson the first time around. Good will prevail, and Harry Potter will win, so eat shit."
She could tell she had hit a nerve when she saw his eyes narrow. He moved just seconds before she did, just a moment faster than she was to spit out an incantation.
Yet nothing hit her as the spell was cut short from his lips. The green glow beginning to grow from the tip of his wand faded in an instant. Instead, he keeled over, falling to his knees with a groan of pain. His back was slashed open, blood pouring out heavily from what appeared to be the work of Dark Magic and sloppy wandmanship.
"Go," his voice came softly. "Hurry before more come, and not a word about this to anyone else."
So Jane ran as fast as she could, not turning back as she escaped and not questioning the words or the actions of her savior. Always, in the back of her mind, however, she held onto the humanity she had witnessed in his usually cold eyes. The flicker of good she saw in a person that could be saved, not entirely gone to the Dark Arts.
It was later revealed that when Death Eaters had overrun Hogwarts, they were given orders not to kill any students. Yet there was no doubt in Jane's mind that if it had not been for the intervention of Draco Malfoy, she would have been long dead.
He had saved her seven years ago, and Fate had come for her to return the favor.
