CHAPTER FOUR
❝requirement❞

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          THE STARS TWINKLED HIGH ABOVE THEM, SHINING BRIGHTLY – A SUPERNOVA BEFORE THEM. There was a slight breeze and Rosalie's hair flowed with it, going into her face before she took her hand to move it out of the way. She always loved the Astronomy tower, sneaking away in the night to look at the stars that she fancied so much. She loved Astronomy class, loved learning all their secrets, loved knowing that she was seeing the supernovas above her. Just shining down on her so lovingly. Though, she supposed, she didn't deserve it.

There was wonder in her eyes as she stared above, just admiring them in the sky because they were so beautiful and she was so ugly, with a mark on her arm that branded her with evil and darkness for the rest of her days. The devil's mark it should be; the devil's mark it was.

Her eyes closed for a moment, reveling in the slight breeze going through her, sending chills down her spine. She loved everything about it; a perfect night before her, a recipe for the beginning of a perfect storm.

"You remember what he told us, right?" Draco's voice broke her out of her wonderful trance of the stars, she looked back, tearing her eyes away from them, to look at his approaching figure. "About the mission?"

Rosalie nodded. She wasn't a fool who forgot the important details; she was smart. She was cunning and she was brave – yet cowardly all the same. "Yes, but you probably know more than me," she told him and at his frown in confusion, she explained, "You were around him more, he probably told you more details than he told me."

The Malfoy boy nodded at the assessment, "You're probably right. There's two main goals; getting the others into Hogwarts and killing Dumbledore."

"But how?' Rosalie asked him before he could continue with anything else, "How are we going to get them in here? I don't – there's no way for them."

Draco's lips twitched upwards, a show of pride as he had bested her, "That's what I thought, too. But then...well, have you ever heard of a Vanishing Cabinet?"

Rosalie frowned. "A Vanishing Cabinet? What the hell is that?" she asked him and he smirked more at her, boastful that he knew more about something than her for once. She hated that smug look on his face instantly.

"It's a cabinet that you can place something in and then it disappears to a different location; a different connecting cabinet," Draco explained.

"So we just need to get one to Hogwarts," Rosalie continued on with what he was saying, walking away from the ledge of the tower and closer to him.

Draco pointed at her. "Not exactly," he started, "If there's one already here, we just need to test to make sure it works."

"But Hogwarts doesn't have one," Rosalie frowned, "I've never seen it."

"Because it's not in a place where everyone can find. I was talking to Pansy about this – she knows the castle like the back of her hand – and she says that the only place something no one else knows of can be is in the Room of Requirement; it's always hiding something," Draco explained. "I'm sure if we asked for a room with a Vanishing Cabinet it would appear."

"The Room of Requirement?" Rosalie asked him, stepping even closer to him, "I've never heard of that."

"On the sixth floor, there's a room that will appear when you need something. All you have to do is ask for a specific room and it'll appear before you," Draco told her, "We found out about it last year when Potter started the whole D.A. thing."

He spat out Potter like it was a curse and Rosalie had to suppress a flinch. She had never seen such a hatred in Draco before; he had only been the meek boy who was scared of his own shadow, curling into himself so no one else in the room would notice him. He never spoke, never said a word, yet here he was now; a boy full of hatred. Full of spite.

It sounded like Death Eaters when they spoke of muggles – this was the beginning stage of that anger, wasn't it? Draco didn't hate muggles yet, but this hatred...if he could brew this hatred for one boy, it wasn't so farfetched that it would continue for a whole race, was it?

"So we could find one there?" Rosalie asked, moving on from her thoughts.

Draco shrugged, "I don't see why not."

Rosalie nodded, "Okay, so let's meet there tomorrow night to see if it's true – after dinner."

"Alright," Draco said going to leave the tower before changing his mind and turning back around, "And what about Dumbledore?"

Rosalie's breath caught in her throat. She didn't want to think about that, to think of the other clause in their mission. They had to kill Dumbledore, they had to murder her mentor. The man who sent her out into the field, the man who gave her a chance at glory, at fame. The chance for everyone to know her name forever. The man that changed her life, who was going to change her life.

But also the man that made her a Death Eater. Who prepared her to be the double agent for the Order, who made her see others being tortured and killed right before her very eyes. Who took away any last innocence she ever had for the betterment of everyone else. Who made her stand and lie, saying that she agreed with very bit of hatred they spewed, agreeing when they took down that bridge in London.

No – but she did this. She agreed. She agreed to this and now she was going to have to kill him; going to have to aid in his death. And she would feel the guilt forever.

"Like I said before, we'll take our time," Rosalie said slowly, making sure no emotion leaked out. She didn't want this but she didn't need Draco to know that. She couldn't blow her cover. "Think of the perfect way to kill him. We shouldn't just rush into things to get it over with."

Draco nodded, looking almost sad that she had said that (sad that she alright with killing him – but she wasn't) and turned back around, leaving her in the Astronomy tower alone. When he was out of sight, Rosalie leaned back against the ledge and let out a shaky breath.

She hated this; she hated how sometimes she showed this weakness, she hated that it came out when she thought of killing Dumbledore – killing anyone. But she had to do this, she agreed to this. She was branded forever, there was no escaping now. No turning back. She had to do this. There was no other option for her now.

So she swallowed down any wishes for another life, for no glory, and left the Astronomy tower. When she was going down a corridor, she heard the pitter-patter of feet against the floor so she stopped. Bracing herself for a prefect, she turned around only to see Luna Lovegood.

"Luna," she breathed out, blinking in surprise as her shoulders relaxed, "What are you doing out so late?"

"Oh, I was just going to see the Thestrals, they're much friendlier at night," Luna explained in a sweet, wispy voice. She looked so pure, so innocent. There was nothing tainting her, she was just so good. So good – and Rosalie wanted that. She wished she could be that, but she wasn't. It was too late to be that. "Do you want to come with me?"

It was so nice of her to offer, but Rosalie didn't deserve her kindness. So, she shook her head, "Not tonight, Luna, maybe another time."

The Lovegood girl took no hurt to her rejection. At least, none that showed. The girl only nodded her head. "Alright," she said, "They're very soft – much softer than one would think."

Rosalie smiled at her sadly, "I'll go with you another time. I'm just very tired tonight."

Luna nodded and kept moving, leaving Rosalie behind. She shut her eyes, calming herself again for a moment before she continued moving to the Gryffindor tower to continue to be the wolf among them.

°°°

ROSALIE LEANED against the wall Draco told her to the next night on the sixth floor. She was bouncing her leg anxiously, biting her lip as she waited, not wanting anyone else to see her or anyone to even pass by while they were around. She didn't have to wait long before Draco showed up, walking to her as if it was any other night; like they weren't going to be one step closer to completing one piece of their mission.

"I don't see a fucking door here," Rosalie told him when he got to her.

Draco rolled his eyes, "It'll appear when we ask for something. It's not just around all the time for everyone to see, it's one of Hogwarts' secrets."

She didn't say anything back, just stared at him before sighing. "Alright then, make a wish...I guess," she muttered the last part to herself, not really believing any of this to be true but just going along for the ride.

He closed his eyes and she stared at him, watching as his lips moved slightly as he thought. Then, she heard movement and as she looked to the wall she was leaning against, she saw a door that wasn't there before. Blinking in surprise, she looked back to see the same smug face on him that she hated more than anything. "Wipe that look off your face, Malfoy," she hissed at him, "So what if this was right, doesn't mean you can look at me that way."

The boy shook his head at her before going to the door. "Shall we?" he asked rhetorically before pulling at the handle and opening it. He stepped inside first and she went after him and felt shocked not to find an empty room with just the Vanishing Cabinet he was talking about before.

No, this room was not like this at all. It was filled with piles of gold coins stacking to the ceiling, with chairs thrown around and different pieces of jewelry mixed into the piles.

The door closed behind them as they stepped in further. Rosalie's mouth was agape as she just stared at the different treasures before her. "I thought you said this room could create a Vanishing Cabinet for us. You know, just that in the room," she said.

"No, I said that this room could be hiding a Vanishing Cabinet. I never said it would be alone," Draco corrected her before letting out a sigh full of awe, "There's so much in here."

"Which'll make it harder for us to even find the damn cabinet – if it's even in here," Rosalie shot back.

He looked at her with a flame in his eyes. "It's in here, trust me on that. We just, like you said, have to find it."

After that, he walked around, leaving her behind as she stared at his back for a minute. "I saw one in Borgin and Burkes a couple weeks before school started," Draco told her, "Had them put it on hold for me. It can be the access point for the others. All we have to do is find the one in here and see if it'll properly connect to that one."

Rosalie huffed to herself, resentment filling inside her because Draco had prepared so much and she was the one feeling like an idiot. It was usually the other way around, the way that she liked it. No, she was the idiot. She knew nothing and Draco knew everything. He had prepared, researched, and she was just tagging along.

This was not how it was supposed to happen, and yet here it was. Her eye twitched at the thought of him but she suppressed the feeling because she couldn't allow her emotions to get in the way of this. Her glory was not at stake because Draco was better than her right now. Nothing was on the line for her. She was alright; Draco could be better right now but she would come out on top.

Dumbledore would make sure of it; her place in the Order would make sure of it. Although, with Dumbledore dead, she now had to consider if there would still be a place for her even with him gone. The others wouldn't tell her anything, except for maybe her uncle, they didn't trust her; didn't like her. She was just the strange girl, the mystery who never revealed herself, to them.

Merlin, Dumbledore was right; she should've gotten close to them. She should've built friendships with those in the Order, with those that were her age for more information in the future. He was right when he said that her friendships would be essential and she was too foolish and didn't listen to him. She thought she knew better but she didn't. She was a fool, and after he was gone her status could be at stake.

The Death Eaters would get rid of her, kill her, if she didn't have any more information, and with Dumbledore gone the Order might abandoned her too. She wouldn't get her glory. But, maybe if she truly did join the Death Eaters, maybe if she stopped playing them but started playing for them something good would come.

No – she had to stop herself. She couldn't think like that. She just...had to believe that everything would be okay. She could talk to Dumbledore about it later, he would know what to do. He always did. It would be okay. It would be okay.

She had to just keep telling herself until she believed that. Maybe then it would come true.