Grindelwald's P.O.V (Third Person)

There was nothing. No engraving. He sat slumped in his office chair, staring at the wall. Could there be another possibility? Could it be a fake?

He closed his eyes and shook his head. Stop thinking about it. You've got proof now it's not true, he told himself.

But there are too many similarities, it can't be a coincidence!

He closed his eyes and sighed, rubbing them. ''I need to sleep,'' he said, however, he did not make any move to leave. No, he remained seated, staring at the wall. Maybe if it's true, she knows? Maybe that's why she's here?

He was starting to feel his mind slowing down, his head falling back as he momentarily closed his eyes. Despite his reluctance, his eyes didn't open again, and he sat there in his office chair, slumbering.

There was a knocking on the door, but he didn't hear it, he was still asleep. The door opened a few moments later and a man entered, staring at him as he slowly approached.

He stood in front of the desk with a frown and said, ''Sir?''

He shot up, staring right back at him. The man watched him surprised. ''Sir, you're bleeding,'' he said as he raised an eyebrow.

Drops of blood were dripping onto his lap and he took a second before reacting. He cursed and held his nose closed.

The man had his wand in his hand. ''Should I...?'' He stepped forward, but Grindelwald shook his head and stood up, he conjured a bowl and stood over it. ''It'll stop at some point,'' he said dismissively.

He watched him perplexed until Grindelwald snapped, ''Never seen a nosebleed before? Why are you here?'' That pulled him from his trance and he cleared his throat. ''To report, sir,'' he said as he watched Grindelwald stoically.

''It can wait, go and come back later,'' he stated. The man remained a second before leaving without a word.

It took some time before the bleeding stopped, and when it did he realized that he must've been bleeding for some time before he woke, his clothes were coated by dark, red stains.

''Dammit,'' he muttered as he took a deep breath. Rolling his eyes, he started making his way to the door.

He received several strange and concerned glances from passersby as he was striding through the corridors, trying to find his way to his quarters. His mind was currently with you, had you done this purposefully?

He shook the thought away as he entered his chambers and started taking off his stained clothes.

His neck hurt from the position in which he'd slept and it made him feel agitated. He approached the dresser to get a clean shirt when suddenly he noticed two figures walking away from the castle below.

He leaned closer to the window to try and get a better look, and his suspicions were confirmed. It was you and Alyx who were entering the woods.

(Y/N)'s P.O.V

We were walking through the forest, laughing as we went. Alyx had made sure we were gone before anyone could wake. Except for Alyx's father and Grindelwald himself, maybe.

''I hate my family,'' she said as she rolled her eyes with a chuckle. I knew she was trying to be funny, but I couldn't laugh about it. A family is a blessing. Usually. It's what it should be. ''What's so bad about your family?'' I asked her with a curious glance.

I would've done anything to have grown up in a family like hers, even if it meant I couldn't be myself. Everything would be better than the orphanage.

''They're so...I don't know. My father doesn't approve of me. My mother never dares to disagree with him. They have this idea of me and what I should become. But I don't want that. He never let me go to school, he taught me magic himself. He was afraid what people would think of the family if they knew what I was like,'' she said as she hopped onto a fallen tree trunk and balanced on it.

I raised an eyebrow. ''What are you like? What's so different about you? Besides, of course, that you're a kind, caring and adventurous person of which there are too little on this world.''

She looked at me with a small smile and as we made eye contact my stomach flipped again. I returned the smile before breaking the eye contact. What's happening to me? I thought cautiously.

''My father thinks he can keep controlling me and force me into a marriage. But he's wrong, I won't let him. I'll leave this place when I can, as soon as possible. I want to see the world and have adventures,'' she looked at me again and smiled once more.

''Why don't we have one right now?'' she extended a hand to me and I could feel my breath hitching as I looked into her twinkling eyes. They were so...lively, so warm. So curious.

I slowly placed my hand in hers and watched her with a curious gaze. ''Where are we going?'' I asked softly as she pulled me closer. ''Diagon Alley,'' she said as we disapparated.

When we reappeared I was overwhelmed by all the people there. All the gazes that pointed toward us. How I felt so seen. Shock and fear rose up in me as I looked at her anxiously. I quickly scanned the people around me; no disturbances.

I focused on Alyx again and pulled her along into a dark alley. It was a little more narrow than I had expected and we were forced to stand close. If I had not been completely overwhelmed by the panic and fear of being discovered, this would definitely have freaked me out.

''Alyx, you don't understand. I can't be seen in public,'' I whispered urgently. ''I'm probably the most wanted person at the moment, besides, maybe my f-'' I caught myself quickly and looked at her cautiously. She watched me confused. ''Why? What did you do?''

I sighed. ''Nothing. I didn't do anything. It's not... '' I took a deep breath and looked up at the sky. ''It's hard to explain.''

Suddenly there were voices nearing the alley and I listened hard, cautiously. ''I swear. I saw her. She was standing right here.'' That's when three people appeared at one end of the alley and my breath caught as I made eye contact with one of the Aurors who were present at the mausoleum.

I grabbed Alyx's wrist and pulled her along. ''Time to go,'' I said quickly as we ran down the cobbled path. There were heavy footsteps following us, but I was too busy trying to figure out where to go, and more importantly, how to get away.

When we escaped the narrow alley, I glanced at our surroundings and started heading down the road, keeping my face down as we passed people, hoping there weren't any more Aurors stationed here.

I tried disapparating but nothing happened. ''I can't disapparate,'' I said to Alyx. She watched me with anxiety in her eyes. ''I can, but I can't take you with me,'' she replied her expression a mix of fear and confusion.

I scanned the crowds once more and realized there were several people turned to us, closing in on us in a circle, wands clutched, and obstructing our way. ''It's a trap!'' I said, as I came to a halt and turned to Alyx. I knew what had to be done, and I knew it had to be done quickly. ''When you get back, tell Grindelwald that his suspicions about the bracelet were correct. Tell him that and he'll know what to do. He'll fix this.'' I hope.

This could go two ways. Either, he realizes that I'm his daughter and he comes to get me with all his forces. Or, he realizes I'm his daughter and that I'm better off in the custody of the Ministry of Magic.

I was gambling with my life, but it was a desperate attempt to survive.

She shook her head defiantly. ''I'm not leaving you,'' she said as she looked around at the approaching Aurors. ''Please. This is the only way. If you tell him what I told you, it'll all be fine,'' I urged her. ''(Y/N),'' a voice behind me, suddenly said. ''Get her,'' she said to the two men behind us.

I closed my eyes and turned, standing in front of Alyx. Anne stood there smiling, her arms opened. ''I had thought you were a little smarter than this?'' she said with a maniacal smile. The men were coming close. Too close.

''Go!'' I said as I faced Anne. ''But...''

''No! Go now!''

Then there was a crack and I knew she was gone. ''You really had to cheat to catch me?'' I asked her cautiously, holding my wand tightly. Onlookers were pushed back as Anne neared me.

''Oh, honey,'' she said as she chuckled. ''You should give me that,'' she said as she held out her hand to me. ''Why would I? I'd like to use it to reconstruct your face,'' I said with a sweet smile.

As she took another step I cursed the two men standing behind me which were about to grab me and I attempted to escape, but before I could get far, there was a flash of light and my body went rigid.

I fell to the ground and the silence was pierced by a disapproving 'tut tut tut' from Anne as she approached me. She squatted next to me, bowing down over me and raised an eyebrow as she grinned. ''We're going to play a little game you and I,'' she said softly, so only I could hear her words.

''It's called truth and torment,'' she whispered as she took my wand and hit me on the side of my head. ''And oh, how I hope you'll be choosing torment,'' she said as her voice faded away and my vision went black.

☘

Alyx's P.O.V (Third Person)

Specks of snow were falling from the sky as Alyx sped through the forest, slipping every once and again and tripping over her own feet. The snow crunched violently under her feet and her breath was ragged from running.

There was a sharp pain in her side, one that told her to stop and catch her breath. Ignoring it, she pushed through, gritting her teeth. It had been her fault that you were taken by the Ministry after all.

The branches were getting thicker and were violently sweeping at her face, scraping her cheeks, as she hurried through the woods. Her teeth were chattering from the cold and her lungs were screaming for air.

She paused, leaning against a tree trunk as she bent over, trying to catch her breath before she continued. It took a while before the castle walls finally came in sight, but when they did, she could already feel the panic starting to overwhelm her.

Tears were in her eyes but she fought them and as she entered the castle, she didn't bother to close the door behind her. She rushed through the corridors and up the stairs, running to Grindelwald's office.

She leaned once more against the wall, breathing hard for a few seconds before picking up her pace.

''Alyssia? What are you doing?''

She closed her eyes, turning around to face her father. ''I'm in a hurry, I need to talk to Grindelwald,'' she said, ignoring her father and continuing down the corridor.

''No, you aren't. He's busy...Alyssia!'' he called as he ran after her. She was now standing before the door, but before she could do anything else, he grabbed her arm and pulled her back. ''Father, there are things you don't understand. Leave me alone,'' she said as she yanked her arm from his grip and she banged against the door and throwing it open, not waiting for any reply.

She sped inside, followed by curses from her father. ''Alyssiana!'' he said through gritted teeth. He was still standing outside and Alyx threw the door shut in his face, locking it.

Grindelwald sat behind his desk, watching her with a mixture of surprise and confusion. He raised an eyebrow as she hurried into the room. He frowned as she leaned on the desk, breathing hard. ''Sir,'' she said, between breaths. ''It's (Y/N)."

Grindelwald's eyes suddenly turned alert, staring at her. ''What is it?''

''The Ministry's got her,'' she said softly, tears in her eyes once more. He shot up from his seat and looked at her urgently, waiting for her to explain. ''We were at Diagon Alley and she suddenly freaked out, saying she couldn't be seen and that she was wanted by the Ministry,'' she said, tears now threatening to spill.

''They trapped her, she couldn't disapparate,'' she added frantically. ''And it was all my fault. I didn't tell her where we were going, but I didn't know. I didn't know she was wanted,'' she explained.

Then her breath caught, suddenly remembering what you had said. ''She told me to tell you that your suspicions about the bracelet were correct?'' she said quickly but uncertainly.

His world slowed down and he looked at the girl in front of him, his expression softening. ''What did she say?'' he asked her, now breathless. If he had heard her right, then that meant...

''That your suspicions about the bracelet were correct,'' she said softly.

He turned around, staring out the window. She knew. She knew all along. Everything's falling into place. She looks like me. She has Naomie's eyes. The connection I felt. This is it. This must be the truth.

Then he snapped back to reality and the fact that if he did not do anything about it, she might not be alive long enough to find out.

Then he turned to Alyx. ''Go to your chambers. I'll take care of this,'' he said softly as he looked into her eyes with his calm ones.

No matter how collected he might seem on the outside he was completely overwhelmed on the inside. But there was no time for that now, however, because...

I have to save my daughter.