Everyone always said Barty was the crazy one, and they weren't exactly wrong. After Evan died, he did lose what little sanity he had left. He went on a killing spree, slaughtering everyone who dared get in the way as he tracked down Mad Eye Moody.
But Barty wasn't the only one who lost it. Pandora was never the same after losing her twin, her other half. The one person who could keep her grounded when the voices got too loud. The only person who had ever matched her crazy ideas with viable executions.
Now, though, she was alone. Her mind ran wild with ideas. The problem was that Evan was gone. So, of course, the reasonable thing to do was to bring him back. The thought occupied her mind every second of the day. She would wake up in cold sweats, having dreamt the perfect solution, only to wake and not remember any of the details.
She researched. It took less than a month to read all the books on necromancy in the open libraries. Pandora went as far as reaching out to McGonagall seeking permission to the restricted section of the Hogwarts library, citing research for the order as her reasoning.
McGonagall's hesitation was understandable. Pandora had stayed out of the war thus far, prioritizing her husband and child. Luna was already nine. She was old enough to remember if something were to happen to either parent, so Pandora had stayed away. But with Evan went her sanity as well, and there was no one keeping her grounded.
Dumbledore vouched for her, for reasons she chose not to question. She got access to the restricted section and finally found answers that pointed in the right direction.
Evan had made her promise to stay out of his side of the war, to focus on herself and her family. She had kept that promise, and despite him being gone, she had no intention of breaking it, no matter how much she needed to go looking in Knockturn Alley. She could, however, reach out to someone who was already involved, someone who wanted Evan back just as much as her.
Barty was hard to track down, despite the trail of bodies he had left. Pandora understood his anger and knew the man well enough to figure out what he was trying to do. In the end, her last resort became setting a trap.
She knew enough about either side and the people involved that it didn't take too much planning to find the right thing to say to the right person for it to get back to Barty. All she needed was for Barty to believe he knew where Moody would be and not kill her when he realized he had been lured into a trap.
The Barty that stood in front of her that night resembled the man she once knew, but that was as far as it went. He was feral with rage, and had she not been lucky enough to be twins with the man they both lost, he would have likely killed her on sight.
Pandora did resemble her brother, though, even more so after cutting her hair. It had been a rash decision, one of those early mornings where the nightmares denied her rest. Now, when she walked past a reflective surface, she was blessed with a glimpse of her brother out of the corner of her eye.
Barty must have had the same experience in that moment because what came out of his mouth was a breathless and pleading “Rosie?”. Pandora was incapable of doing anything other than apologize and did her best to hold him in the following breakdown.
Once he had calmed enough, she explained her plan and told him what she needed. As expected, because if there was one person left that could match her crazy, it was him, Barty was instantly on board. He would do anything to get Evan back, even pause his pursuit for revenge.
It took some time, and Pandora had started to worry Barty was lost to her and she’d have to go get everything herself when he showed up two weeks later with every single item on her list. Apparently, it had taken some persuading to get Mr.Borgin of Borgin and Burkes to part with a few of the items she needed.
Pandora thanked him and promised to reach out when it was all done. Barty was a big help, but he had expended his use, and she did not need distractions. Had she known it would be the last time seeing him, she might have offered a hug.
The following week, Pandora locked herself in her study. She opened the door to retrieve the food Xenophilius had made her, but only after listening to his footsteps retreating down the hall. The door did not open to let him in. It did not open for Luna either, no matter how much she begged for her mother's attention.
Eventually, after a week of prep, her shirt singed from minor explosions and her pinkie bloodied and bandaged from a bigger one, she was ready. She had researched every step of the process, double and triple checked that each component was in the right place, and run several tests, some to greater success than others.
She took a deep breath and prepared herself for the amount of energy this spell would require. Her voice was hoarse from disuse as she looked at the picture of Evan that resided on her desk.
With that, she raised her wand and cast the incantation.
If Pandora would have taken a break through that last week to sleep and eat properly, it might have worked. She had done everything right. In the end, it still wasn’t enough, and she was too exhausted to hold the spell.
Her concentration slipped only for a second, but that was enough for the spell to divert, knocking over potions and powders. Pandora didn’t react fast enough before the components combined, causing the biggest explosion yet. Her back collided with the floor, leaving her winded. She was already exhausted and didn’t have the strength to get back up.
She lay there, unable to move, listening as the room caught on fire and started crumbling around her. Potions fell, the liquid flowing and slowly combining along the floor. The mirror Barty had collected from Borgin and Burkes hit the ground next to her head, shattering.
With her final breath, Pandora smiled at her brother, her twin, her sanity. And as her eyes sank shut, she caught him smiling back just out of the corner of her eye.
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