The group that lived in Grimmauld Place was relaxing in the kitchen, though there was a certain degree of tension in the air as Harry, Sirius, and Kylie all glanced at me periodically, probably waiting for me to burst out my confession of what had happened.

I was cozied into my two boyfriends as we all sipped on our hot chocolates, hyper-aware of George's arm slung around me, our chairs all scooted together as close as possible, Fred's hand resting casually on my bare thigh. I could feel George's heat through the fabric of my top, and every time Fred moved his fingers even a centimetre, tingles danced across my skin. 

Was it even technically correct to call them 'my two boyfriends' though? I mean, sure, Fred was definitely my boyfriend, but I was just dating and being physically intimate with George at the moment. It wasn't confirmed as a relationship status between us yet. It was like a trial run, a test drive. 

Not yet. He's not my boyfriend yet. 

I looked up into Terry's eyes, which had been watching me over the table as I thought this, and he smirked at me. 

'But he could be...' 

Oh my Godric. Seriously? I made a mental note not to think of anything private while looking into Terry's eyes in the future; his Legilimency had gotten too good. 

'Or you could just practice your Occlumency like you were supposed to have done in fifth year, you dingbat.' 

I glared at the grinning Terry for a second more, then hastily looked elsewhere. 

And at this moment, a laughing Sirius looked away from a grinning Emily, who had obviously just said something extremely amusing, and said across the room, "And on the topic of jealous partners, Daisy, George, you're looking awfully close there. How does our man Fred feel about this?" 

It was said in a humorous tone, with no malice, and Sirius's eyes were twinkling. He wasn't really calling us out, it was obvious by the way he said it, so he clearly didn't suspect anything. Not the truth, which was that Fred was more than fine with me and George being 'awfully close.' 

I felt my face flush, and I shot a quick glance between the twins. George's cheeks were suddenly pink, and Fred sent half a glance at the two of us before opening his mouth, a smirk on his face. 

I dreaded what he was going to say. Was he going to expose us? Was he going to make a dumb joke about the situation? For the first time, I felt a sort of guilty fear at what people would say, or think about me if they knew what I'd signed up for. I knew I'd been thought of as the school slut by the Slytherins ever since my hoe phase in sixth year, but this was a real, actual polyamorous relationship I was now in, and more people than the Slytherins could have a problem with it. Harry... Sirius... Fred and George's siblings... oh Godric, Mrs Weasley... 

Calm down, Daisy. You're just a lover. A lover of people. My heart can love multiple people at the same time, and there's nothing wrong with that. 

Right? 

I was saved from having to worry about Fred's answer by the kitchen door swinging open, and Lee and Dean entering. 

"We're back, bitches!" Lee announced, and then his eyes landed on me. "Shit - Daze! Oh my Godric -" 

Dean made an excited noise as the two ran to me, and I stood from my chair, detangling from Fred and George, and reached over to hug them both in turn. Lee held on a little longer, squeezing me tight to him, and we both beamed at each other. 

"I'm so glad you're okay." Lee said, his eyes wide and bright with joy. "I missed you!" 

His hands rubbed up and down my back in glee, and in his excitement I don't think he even noticed that his hands slipped a bit too close to my rear. My eyes widened - 

"Oi - hands off!" The twins chorused. 

- and I giggled. Lee pulled his hands back from my body, scandalised, and held them up in the air; he then directed a suspicious look at George. 

"Hang on; George, mate, did -" 

"I think I'm ready to talk now!" I blurted out. The room went silent. Everyone's eyes were now on me; Lee and Dean glanced around the room, then dropped into chairs nearby. I slowly sat back down too, looking into everyone's faces nervously - Terry nodded at me, Harry leaned forward, his eyes softening, Ron smiled reassuringly. Fred and George slung their arms around me again, their thumbs tracing comfortingly over my skin. 

I took a deep breath. Was I really about to do this? Tell them... everything? 

And so I spent the greater part of the evening explaining every last detail to them, everything that had happened after Riddle Apparated me out of Floppy's manor, right up until I'd been rescued for the benefit of Lee and Dean, who explained that they had been travelling with Lupin and Kingsley for a few days, featuring them on Potterwatch.  

"We heard about the Support Daisy Potter party, we broadcasted about it!" Lee said brightly. "Hagrid's fucking awesome for doing that; he's okay, he's on the run in the mountains." 

I breathed a sigh of relief. At least Hagrid's alright. 

"What happened to Draco, after? Was he -?" Terry asked, in a sort of strangled voice. 

I shook my head. "I'm sorry, Hopper, I don't know." I looked at Terry's crestfallen face, and continued, "I know nothing bad could have happened to him, though - Riddle would have loved nothing more than shoving it in my face if it had." 

It didn't seem to help much, but Terry lifted his gaze again and smiled weakly at me. 

"And geez, Fred, you used the Killing Curse on Voldy?" Lee said, amazed. "Awesome!" 

"Yeah, I - uh - was really pissed." Fred chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "Wish it connected, though." 

But people had other questions. And they were the questions I'd been dreading. Ever since I'd explained what Riddle had meant when he was taunting Fred, Fred had stiffened beside me and had been very, very quiet. 

"So... you chose to have sex with Voldemort?" Harry said in a similar voice to Terry's.

"Listen, don't -" Ron started, but Harry continued. 

"There's no way. He must have done something to you - the potion must have worked, and you just didn't notice -" 

"I know exactly what the potion feels like when it works and when it doesn't, Harry." I said, my voice quiet and laced with shame. "I know the difference well." 

"Well, then, he coerced you." 

"He didn't." I looked down into my lap. "I did it completely willingly." 

The room was deathly silent. My heart was sinking into my stomach. They all hated me, surely, after this news... 

"But you didn't, did you?" Fred said beside me. I wasn't expecting this; I looked up, surprised. "You were kidnapped and being held captive, how is that willing?" 

"You don't understand, Freddie." I pleaded softly. "I cheated on you, you have every right to be mad, I don't understand why you're not. I let him do it because I was bored, because he was there and attractive, because he teased me every day and night -" 

Fred looked sickened, but cut me off determinedly. "I do understand! And I'm not mad! I'm sorry, there's just no way you were in your right mind when any of this happened, he coerced you and took advantage of you, and might I remind you, he was your kidnapper!" 

"Yeah, princess, you can't tell us that you weren't afraid of what would happen if you said no to him." George said on the other side of me. 

I guess. A few times I had wondered... 

"It's called Stockholm Syndrome, Softpaw." Terry said. "Fred and George are right. Remember, we discussed it last term; it was more obvious then, but he'd been getting in your head since we escaped last time, hadn't he?" 

I looked into Terry's eyes, sighed, and nodded. 

"Right. So he's been conditioning you from afar. It's genius. He'd been keeping the Stockholm Syndrome going, making you believe you were in love with him, and look what's happened - it worked. You know, Amortentia can have no effects on someone if they even just BELIEVE they're in love with the subject?" 

I blinked. Wow. That would explain a lot. 

"And there's no way you actually love him. I've seen the way you look at him compared to these tw- I mean, Fred. There's no contest." 

"It wasn't your fault, sweetheart." Sirius said from across the room. "Stockholm Syndrome had you in its grasp; it was all a ploy, an evil tactic to make you believe you needed him." 

I looked around the room. Everyone was looking back at me, nodding, shrugging in agreement with Sirius's words. "You guys really believe this?" 

"Yeah." Fred said loudly, firmly. "Yeah, we do. He's a sick piece of shit; I'm more willing to believe that he got in your head and conditioned you, than believe that you are actually, genuinely in love with the man who killed your parents." 

A rush of some strange emotion went through me at the thought of Riddle and my parents, and my wedding ring burned for the second time. 

"Well... that's good." I said. "I - I hope you're not all still too angry... because there was a bit I left out." 

They all looked inquisitively at me. I took another deep breath, the sick feeling inside me rising. And so I told them all about Floppy, how he'd kidnapped me and held me hostage in his chalet, letting him and the other Death Eaters have their turns on me. As I told the story, I noticed the anger on their faces increasing, and by the time I'd finished, the tension in the room was tenfold. 

And everyone erupted at once. The room was full of yelling, rage, and bangs as chairs were kicked over, people standing up, wands being grabbed, and the door wrenched open. 

"Guys!" I shouted. "GUYS!" 

Fred, George, and Terry were by my side, and Harry, Sirius, Ron, Kylie, and Emily were at the door, all having been vying to get through it a second before. Lee, Dean, and Hermione were furious also, but bewildered by all the clamouring. 

"It's no use. We don't know where he is." I said. 

"He's not at Hogwarts with that piece of shit Riddle?" Sirius said roughly. 

"No. He fled." 

"You have no idea where he is?" Harry shot at me. 

I shook my head. "Thanks for the support, though, I guess?" I joked weakly. 

Even though they'd heard the same story earlier, the twins and Terry looked just as angry as the others, having it refreshed in their minds. Fred's knuckles were white as he clenched his wand. 

"Well." He said through his clenched jaw. "Well, I still think we should do something. We know the diadem is still at Hogwarts, right? Did you see it while you were there, baby?"

"No." I said. "But I know he didn't move it to a different location. He'd have gloated about it, he'd have wanted me to know I had no access to it." 

"Let's go, then." George grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair. 

"Go where?" 

"To Hogwarts. We have to find it and destroy it. Then it's only the fucking piece of garbage and his snake left." 

I looked between the twins. Everyone in the background was nodding, murmuring amongst themselves. They agreed with them. 

"You guys can't be serious." I said, my voice faint. 

"Oh, we are." Fred said. "This needs to end. Riddle and Floppy need to die. They've hurt my girlfriend enough." 

"They better prepare." George nodded, his voice dark. "Prepare for fucking war." 

~~~ 

I convinced them to hold off until the following evening, to prepare for our invasion of Hogwarts. I knew we should have waited, because a streak of luck came my way an hour later in the form of my scar; I passed out in the bathroom to see Riddle in Draco's parents' manor, interrogating some random people that I'd never seen before on my whereabouts. 

"Have you seen this girl, yes or no?" My high-pitched, cold voice screamed at the small group of people cowering before me. 

"No, no, we haven't, we haven't, I swear!" A middle-aged man squeaked, his eyes wide in fear. 

"I've met her, but I haven't seen her recently, please!" A young woman pleaded, her pretty face pale with terror. 

"You are of no use to me!" I exploded, raising my wand high. Green light reverberated around the room, dancing over the high walls and windows, and the defenceless group of people fell to the floor like marionettes whose strings had been cut. 

I paced back and forth before them, rage thundering in my chest. If she was not there, in the blood traitors' village, where was she? She could not have returned to her apartment, as I have had my faithful Death Eaters patrolling the area for almost a year. It was possible that she had returned to her godfather's house, but would she really endanger her beloved godfather like that? 

But no matter. I shall find her again. And when I do... I will make her truly mine. I will make her into one of my Horcruxes... make her pay for what she had taken from me... And then she will be mine forever. 

I surfaced, coughing and retching, and I leaned over the side of the bath. I threw up, shaking and shivering weakly. Oh, George... that poor paper shop girl that you entertained with your card tricks... you won't be able to trick her anymore. I sobbed, once, then wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, sitting upright. 

But through the awful heavy feeling in my chest at having witnessed the death of the group of Muggles, came a ray of hope. Riddle had left Hogwarts. He wasn't there right now. He was on the rampage, trying to find me all over the country; it didn't seem as though he'd be returning for days, at least. 

I staggered up, heaving in deep breaths to steady myself, then sprinted upstairs. I knew Fred, George, Terry, and Lee would be in our room, that's where I'd left them to go brush my teeth - I burst in, tumbling in through the door. 

"Does that mean that you're going to let George come inside Daisy, now, Fred?" 

"Oh my Godric, that was private, how did you find out -?" Fred groaned. "Ugh - I mean, maybe, I'll see how I feel about it in the moment -" 

"Freddie, seriously, how many people know about our arrangement now?" I said in exasperation, unable to stop myself. The boys all looked around; Fred sheepish, George with his face bright pink, Terry smirking, and Lee grinning. 

"Only these two, I swear!" Fred said quickly. "And they guessed it, I didn't tell them." 

"I mean, it's kinda obvious." Lee shrugged. 

"And I know everything there is to know about anything that goes on in the Insurgent world." Terry said mischievously. 

"I'm glad to see that you've all calmed down since earlier," I said, "but it's time to get serious again, because I just saw -" 

A sudden sharp, twisting pain rose in my chest. My wedding band was suddenly burning again. I shook my head, ignoring the sensation. 

"I saw -" 

Another huge twist in my chest, almost unbearably painful. I cut myself off, clutching at my chest, my knees shaking. It felt like the ring was going to singe my finger off. 

"Daze, what is it -" 

"Baby?" 

I looked up; this time, the sharpness was unbearable, and I fell to the ground, squealing in pain. Four pairs of footsteps thudded on the ground, and a few pairs of knees came into view beside me before I shut my eyes to the overwhelming sensation of twisting in my heart. 

"What's happening to her?" Either Fred or George yelled. 

The ring on my finger was searing, it felt like fire; I whimpered with the pain of it, my other hand trying instinctively to pull it off; someone grabbed my hands, forcing them apart. 

"It's the Unbreakable Vow!" Terry's voice yelled back over my pained screams. "It's nearly midnight and she hasn't loved Riddle today - get the fucking potion and the Boggart!" 

Someone scrambled away; I writhed as someone held my hands down, far apart from each other. The pain in my chest was increasing with every second, I felt like I was going to die - 

"But the potion didn't work on her when she was with him!" One of the twins' desperate voices said above me. "What if it doesn't work -" 

"That was when she thought she loved him." Terry said firmly, though there was a hint of panic in his tone. "The reason the Vow is trying to kill her now is because she doesn't think that anymore. Because she DOESN'T love him. It'll work. Right, pass it here -" 

Something splashed into my mouth; I struggled, spluttering - 

"Daisy, DRINK IT!" 

The memories of Riddle saying the exact same thing to me came to the front of my mind in full focus; I gargled as I tried to scream, and a hand slammed down over my mouth. 

"Daisy, it's not him, it's not him, it's us! Please just drink it, please!" 

I had no choice but to swallow as the pain increased, and I lost all sense of time, space, and any awareness of what was happening around me except for that the pain in my body was unbearable, I was breaking apart, I was shattering, I was going to die exploding like I had landed on an atomic bomb... 

"Get the fucking briefcase open!" Someone was yelling, though the sound was muffled, as if from far away or from underwater. "Quick, fuck, it's FIFTEEN SECONDS TO MIDNIGHT -" 

Someone pried my eyes open. What looked like Floppy was standing before me, though my vision was blurred with tears - someone else screamed desperately, "NOOO!" 

But then someone else stood beside Floppy. My eyes moved to them, through the pain wracking my body, the tears filling my eyes, someone's fingers holding them open. I tried to blink; the tears fell out of my eyes, and my vision cleared. 

My eyes had fallen on Tom Riddle. His red eyes, his handsome face, his sadistic smirk. He was standing beside Floppy, and the two were undoing their belt buckles. 

And the pain fell away from my chest, leaving me breathless and relieved, and the heat from my wedding ring slowly faded, leaving it cool against my skin. 

The clock chimed midnight. Someone fell on me, hugging me, and I felt their tears on my skin. I couldn't hear what anyone was saying, my eyes fixed on Tom, pink clouding my vision. 

Someone's wand waved out of the corner of my eye and Tom and Floppy vanished, back into the briefcase behind them. Fred and George's faces hovered in front of mine, and I blinked, the pink clouds disappearing. 

"Don't ever scare us like that again." George breathed. 

"Yeah, next time, stay in love with the evil nonce wizard." Fred joked, and my face cracked out into a weary, breathless, weak grin.