fall of the house of death | hazel

[asher rowan burke]

my dagger and swagger are useless

in the face of the mirror

when the mirror is made of my face

June 6, 2026
Hazel Rosalie Burke

Asher barely felt the shackles around his wrists. At first, they had been uncomfortable. The unfamiliar feeling of strange metal against his skin and the bones in his wrists, but now it simply felt normal. Even the strange feeling of his magic being blocked began to feel normal like the emptiness was who he was now. Actually, he had no idea if his Occlumency technically worked. Bianca hadn’t tried to pry into his brain. Maybe that would have worked on a common criminal, but there was nothing common about Asher Burke in chains sitting at a station with an invisible wall in front of him and an empty chair.

He was actually surprised, and he sat there staring at the surface of the table in front of him and his shoulders slightly slouched. His robes were the shabby gray of a convict. This wasn’t the same man who stood proudly in the Ministry of Magic as the Head of a Department. Bianca had been questioning him constantly, still insisting that Ivy had something to do with why he was in chains. But Asher couldn’t believe that. Just as much as he hadn’t believed that he would be allowed a visitor. Maybe it was Ivy? The idea that Hazel would willingly walk in here to speak to him was doubtful, and as much as they hardly ever had a typical friendly conversation, the idea that she would never come did bother him.

Not that he’d admit it out loud. While he couldn’t stand tall, it didn’t mean his pride wasn't there. Albeit wounded by a lost duel against Blaise, but that was a formidable opponent he had come across. Finally, he heard a door open, and footsteps before someone dropped in the chair. Looking up, he saw his own blue eyes staring back at him: Hazel. This was unexpected, and Asher didn’t know what it meant yet. The family name and legacy were important to all of them, even if their mother cared about her children marrying. Asher was wary as he sat back in his chair, hands in his lap, so the chains were less visible. ”Hazel.” Asher greeted his sister. ”I wasn’t expecting you.” His hair might have been overdue for a haircut, and his facial hair more grown in than usual, but it was still Asher. That authoritative tone never quite left, even if his usually icy blue eyes were starting to look a bit tired.

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[Hazel Rosalie Burke]

6 June 2026

“I demand that you let me in right now! I know he’s in there, with Merlin knows what being done to him, and I want to see him NOW!” Hazel screamed, feeling her composure slip away as her face turned red with indignation and fury and the growing fear that she would never see him again. Merlin, these stupid Ministry rats! What right did they have to separate the Burkes from each other, to stop her from seeing that Asher was at least alive and being given the decent treatment that the last male heir of an old pureblood family deserved! She’d gotten past the damn interns ages ago, pushing past them and watching them struggle weakly to inform her that prisoners weren’t allowed to see anybody, especially convicted Purifiers that hadn't even been sent to trial yet. A chill ran down Hazel’s spine as she abruptly ignored their weak whining, and eventually she’d gotten to stand in front of a hard-faced Auror with scars running down his temple and his solid arms crossed in an unconvinced manner as he stared down at her. “No visits for prisoners,” he repeated gruffly, and Hazel grit her teeth as she gave an impatient shriek and stamped her foot in frustration.

“Do you know who I am?” she demanded. “No, obviously not, or I wouldn’t be standing here talking to a dumb pile of bricks that thinks he can dictate to me what I can or can’t do. I came here to see Asher Burke, and I’m going to see him today. Now.” It was only then that Hazel realized she had never actually said Asher’s name out-loud before, because the air turned chilly as the Auror’s gaze sharpened and his knuckles whitened as his hands tightened into fists. Hazel gulped slightly, although she didn’t take a step back like her instincts screamed at her to do for angering this very large and very grizzled Auror. But she never had a chance to speak again and keep pressing her point, because a new voice suddenly rang out from nearby as a woman entered the room, her gaze sharp and posture rigid. Hazel couldn’t imagine who she must be for everybody in the room to suddenly redirect their attention towards the new woman like her presence actually meant something. But she must have been important, because Hazel was suddenly promptly ignored as everyone waited for the newcomer to speak.

But the woman’s dark eyes were focused only on Hazel, and even though the Burke towered over her by a few inches – she felt quite small under her piercing gaze and stern expression. “You’re here to see Asher Burke?” the woman repeated, an unknown accent lacing her words and a strange expression flitting across her face as she pursed her lips and let her gaze run over Hazel. She must have seen the resemblance between them, the icy blue eyes that both Burkes shared, because she didn’t ask any questions about who Hazel was or why she wanted to see the Ministry’s most high-security prisoner for the moment. Instead, the woman appeared to be deep in thought, her mind furiously racing as if she was contemplating and rejecting a hundred scenarios all at once. Finally, she turned her back on Hazel (oh the nerve!) and curtly ordered to the grizzled Auror, “Thirty minutes.” And with that, Hazel’s mouth dropped open in indignant shock as the woman promptly left without saying another word or sparing even a glance towards the youngest Burke, and the guard shot Hazel a dirty look and began to lead her down a depressingly dark hallway. Hazel almost wanted to call after the woman, demand to know who she was to think she could dictate terms to Hazel like that...but she was getting what she wanted, so she kept her mouth shut.

Hazel kept her head high even as her insides shriveled with fear and disgust at where she was right now as she glanced around the dimly lit hallway. Merlin and Morgana, these were the sorts of conditions they were keeping Asher in? He had never been her favorite sibling, never held a candle to Hazel’s adoration of Ivy, but her heart pounded in fear for what she would find. Because he was still her brother, and he deserved better than to be treated like a mudblood. Eventually, the guard stopped outside a battered door, the paint peeling off the frame, and gave her a curt nod to allow her to enter. Hazel shot him one last dirty look and waltzed into the room like she was about to walk into a party and she was in the middle of making her grand entrance. But she swallowed thickly at what she found. Asher looked…terrible. Well, Hazel always told him that since the boy had the fashion sense of their grandparents, but now it was true. His robes were thin and worn and his face was lined with all the horrors he must have been put through since his arrest.

All at once, their eyes locked and Hazel felt the haughty expression on her face flicker into something more open and vulnerable. She couldn’t bear to see her brother at his worst, how far he’d fallen after always being the golden boy of the family. His posture was still rigid, and he still held himself with the proud bearing of a pureblood. But it didn’t match his ragged robes or the magical chains shackling his wrists to the table. And it was a far cry from her last meeting with Ivy only a week ago, begging her sister to stay and figure things out with Hazel. Together. Ivy was slowly becoming like Asher, and Asher...well, he had fallen so far. “Well, you definitely weren’t expecting company at all if you look like that,” Hazel responded with a sniff, delicately taking a seat across from her brother and crossing her legs under the table. His eyes, at least, looked the same as always – authoritative and unquestioning, like he knew exactly what he could demand from himself and from her. But Hazel’s face fell as his situation, as their situation, truly began to sink in. Consequences. Those damn consequences suddenly making an appearance in her life again, and now she was alone to face them as Ivy had fled the country as soon as she could. She didn’t know where to start…they hadn’t spoken in weeks, and it felt like there was too much to say and also like there was nothing at all. “Ash…” she began, feeling her voice crack with the exertion of being the last Burke left. Or at least it felt like it. She crossed her arms defensively, aware that they were probably being watched and unwilling to let any of those damn Aurors see her fall apart. She was still a Burke, after all, and that meant she was above them. “Well anyway, I’m here. That’s what family does, right? We visit each other. We bring each other new robes so we don’t embarrass ourselves in front of the guards. Geez, Ash..." Her voice cracked slightly. "What would you even do without me?”

asher rowan burke

[asher rowan burke]

my dagger and swagger are useless

in the face of the mirror

when the mirror is made of my face

June 6, 2026
Hazel Rosalie Burke

There was a shift in Hazel’s demeanors, Asher could always tell. They were trained to be observant and vigilant about it, especially regarding their work and business dealings. But Hazel was alone, and that was something he’d found odd. Maybe Ivy was in hiding after the events at the Castle. Due to Blaise’s intervention, Asher failed to find either of his sisters that night to ensure their safety and cooperation. ”Not like they give ma choice in here.” Asher looked around warily. They were given more privacy than he imagined, figuring Aurors would be hovering and lingering to listen to their every word. But he wasn’t stupid enough to think that there weren’t enchantments in place aside from the table where he sat and his chains.

Because of the isolation he’d been kept in for almost a month, he had no idea who else was in chains. The use of his childhood nickname caught him off guard. If anyone that wasn’t one of his sisters ever dared to call him ‘Ash’, they would be in for a surprise. Even then, Hazel didn’t say it often. ”And will your new robes do anything about these?” Asher moved his hands to the table’s surface to reveal the enchanted shackles that kept his magic in check. Wandless magic was a skill of his and practiced in the Department of Mysteries. The shackles were quite effective against it though every prisoner got them. Frustration surged through him, and he took a deep breath and let it out through his nose, the chains clinking against the table softly.

”Where is Ivy?” Asher asked. ”That mudblood Rivera has me isolated.” For Asher, it was a further fall from power than simply being in chains. Isolated and alone with a single Auror to guard him meant he had no control whatsoever. The eldest Burke felt restless. And he’d never admit it out loud, but Merlin, it was good to see Hazel, a friendly face in his life. If she hadn’t taunted him about his attire or appearance, he would have been concerned that she was Imperiused and here to get information out of him. ”She keeps spinning this story that Ivy went to the Ministry. Absolute nonsense.” He had so many other questions. Had Hazel spoken to their parents? What were the papers saying that morning? Had she stopped by the club to check on things, but he limited himself. There was that paranoia hanging over his head still. ”How did you get in?” Asher asked as a follow-up, his eyes looking around again. All that time in isolation, and suddenly, his sister was here. So far, he hadn’t confirmed nor denied anything in interrogations with Bianca, and he wasn’t going to start now.

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[Hazel Rosalie Burke]

Hazel stifled a gasp as she caught sight of Asher’s shackles, her brother shaking his tattered robes back so she could get a better look. Seeing the conditions Asher was being held in for herself was almost as bad as imagining a hundred different scenarios, anything from isolation to actual torture. Because actually seeing it? It was different from anything that had ever gone on in Asher’s club. Those were strangers, random people that Hazel didn’t care about, if they lived or got hurt or even died. But this was her brother, and the Burkes had been taught just like every other pureblood that family was one of the most precious things in the world. The only thing you could depend on for survival, ultimately, besides your own wits. “Never underestimate the power of haute couture,” Hazel joked weakly in response to Asher’s rhetorical question, although it fell flat in the face of where they were.

Merlin, she wished he hadn’t brought up Ivy so soon. It was a natural question, since it was odd to see Hazel without her older sister too. But it had suddenly become such a complicated issue, and it sounded like Asher didn’t even know which was the worst part about it. “I-Ivy?” Hazel stammered, completely taken aback on how to answer. Her face fell at the realization that Asher seemed to be the only pureblood in Britain that didn’t know what Ivy had done. “You…you don’t know?” she asked weakly, playing with her hair nervously and breaking eye contact to stare at the table. She swallowed thickly as Asher scoffed at the idea that Rivera, whoever that was, kept spinning a story that Ivy had given him up to the Ministry. It was easier to explain to Asher how she’d gotten in, and to vent about the ridiculous way she’d been treated.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Hazel said dismissively, skipping right past any mention of Ivy and making an irritated sound at the memory of the last five minutes. “I was yelling at some gorilla outside and this woman comes in. Didn’t say five words the whole time, but everyone was acting as if the Queen had just come for a visit. Let me right in.” It wasn’t much of an explanation, but Hazel had never been good at seeing all the politics happening behind the scenes. She took things at face value, which was great for society conversation but terrible for understanding the subtext behind most things. Asher had always had a deeper understanding, which she supposed was why he had made it so far. Although…there were some things in which he was blind. And Ivy… “It’s not a story,” Hazel whispered, her voice choking as she suddenly drew in on herself at the thought of their sister. “A few days before…Ivy went to the Ministry. Told them everything. It’s how they were there so fast. It’s how they…how they found out about you.” Hazel’s face was white as a sheet as she finished speaking, folding in on herself at the admission. But now that she had started to talk, the words escaped in a rush and her voice broke as she continued, “And now she’s gone. I asked her to stay, but she left and…Asher, I don’t know what to do.”

asher rowan burke

[asher rowan burke]

my dagger and swagger are useless

in the face of the mirror

when the mirror is made of my face

June 6, 2026
Hazel Rosalie Burke

To say Asher was annoyed was an understatement. His situation wasn’t ideal, and for once, he had to agree with Hazel that being forced to wear the shabby robes of a common criminal was also getting to him. He had already told Rivera that he’d accepted his fate, send him off to Azkaban so he could rot and die already. But, she was in control, and despite what Asher may have thought—he certainly hadn’t made any friends among the other Department Heads. Hazel let out a slight gasp at the shackles. If it wasn’t for his current imprisonment, she’d never be in such a room, let alone seeing anyone in this state. Fashion was not going to fix this, but neither was Alchemy or any metal charming she was capable of.

There was the thought that maybe Ivy could. She had that calm mind that Asher also had, but Hazel’s response made him sit up a little straighter. As if to prepare for what came next. To brace himself, as they were all taught when conversing and keeping one’s cool. She was vague. Asher didn’t like it when Hazel did that—taking forever to get to the point. ”Don’t know what, Hazel?” His tone was short. Even if he had nothing but time now, he didn’t want to waste it. His first thought was that something had happened to Ivy at the Castle—Blaise had blocked him from fulfilling his mission and finding his sisters, so Hazel sitting in front of him alone wasn’t a good sign to him. But his face remained serious even though he didn’t want to bear the thought of such a thing happening.

It was also odd that she had been led to see him, especially after weeks of isolation. But someone commanding that type of presence among the Aurors guarding these cells was likely Rivera. ”Probably the mudblood.” Asher added as commentary. He’d watched an Auror twice her height be dressed down in front of his peers by her. She had that power—not that it made for a good leader of those men. But Asher fought his rigid posture as Hazel explained the unthinkable. A story so preposterous that Rivera had to have made it up, right? His pride and reality seemed to take a huge hit both simultaneously. And while Hazel sat there looking like a ghost, Asher was actually speechless. His gaze moved away from her for a few moments as he tried to look at anything but her—his sister, who shared the same piercing blue eyes that he did. ”That isn’t Ivy. Why would she turn on the cause?” Asher spoke evenly, though anger was rising from the pit of his stomach. ”Why would she turn on our family—on me.” Asher looked back, jack clenched as he struggled with a mix of fury and incredulousness.

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[Hazel Rosalie Burke]

Asher could be hard to read, if you didn’t know him. He approached every situation the exact same way, whether you’d trapped him in a birthday party or a discussion on current political events. His expression was controlled, distant, disdainful even. Like he didn’t care about anything, and was too busy calculating how he could spin something to his advantage. But Hazel had grown up with him (poor her) and knew how to catch the nuances in his eyes. Whoever this Rivera was – she seemed to annoy the life out of Asher. His eyes reflected equal dismissiveness and disgust as he decided that the woman must have been the mudblood that now squarely held his fate in her hands. Maybe he’d even talked about her before, since he vented about work quite a bit during family dinners. Hazel had never paid attention to that, though. Her brother’s life was about as interesting as discussing golf or the weather.

But as he questioned her now, Hazel shrunk beneath his curt and annoyed demeanor. It was rare for Hazel to know something Asher didn’t, but for once she didn’t relish the thought. Or have the impulse to dangle it over him a while longer, maybe even see if she could needle him into admitting that he needed her help. No, all she felt now was dread at saying the truth out-loud. Because that’s what made it real, didn’t it? But she got it out, and gulped slightly as Asher reeled at the revelation that, for once, a mudblood had been telling the truth. And about a pureblood, no less. Asher looked…lost. As lost as Hazel felt, and it was bizarre for the two contradictory siblings to finally be on the same page about something. “She, er, used a lot of big words. Magical talent gone to waste, sacrifices that had to be made.” That was Ivy, after all – always thinking in a more big-picture, abstract way, worried about ideals and the fabric of magical society and the preservation of knowledge. She was smart, book-smart at least. If Ivy really knew what was good for her, she would have kept her head down. Let this happen. That was the best way to survive.

Asher’s final words hit Hazel hard, knocked the wind out of her. Asher looked angry, but all Hazel felt was the overwhelming despair that she’d been fighting since Ivy had told her she was leaving. Hot tears threatened to fall as Hazel felt her throat close up, but she swallowed thickly and told herself – this is just like Paris Fashion Week when you wore the same outfit as that designer. You’ll get past this. “I-I don’t know,” she said tearfully, feeling her shoulders tense as Hazel folded in on herself. “She thought she had to. She didn’t know what would happen.” Lying felt so wrong, but Hazel couldn’t bring herself to completely blame Ivy and admit that their relationship had changed forever – maybe even ended. Because the truth of the matter was that Ivy was incredibly intelligent and knew exactly what would happen if she went to the Ministry. She’d done it anyway, saved some lives, and doomed their family and her brother to face the consequences. But Hazel couldn’t admit that, or that the Burkes had just gone from three to two. Worse than if Ivy had died in the fire. Instead, she asked desperately, “What do we do?”

asher rowan burke

[asher rowan burke]

my dagger and swagger are useless

in the face of the mirror

when the mirror is made of my face

June 6, 2026
Hazel Rosalie Burke

Asher’s eyes seemed to scan everything that wasn’t his sister in front of him. His heart was beating faster. This wasn’t supposed to happen. As the anger and betrayal built up in his chest, he felt his composure start to crack. It was rare to see Asher react or react in a controlled way by nature. But this had blindsided him, and it meant that Bianca had been right. The thought made him a little physically sick. He was tired of being in chains, tired of being isolated. Being able to see Hazel today (before the news of Ivy) was enough to make him smile—if he was one to smile.

He was almost certain Elaine was also dead, but he didn’t ask. Hazel would hardly know, he figured. ”Foolish girl.” He muttered, jaw clenching tight. If Elaine had somehow survived the Castle burning to the ground, then Ivy’s life would have been next. Very few things would have caused him to stand up to Elaine Dupree in such a way, which would have been one of them. It was why he’d rushed to the Castle when he did, to make sure his sisters escaped while he helped push through Elaine’s plan. Hazel seemed just as betrayed and confused as Asher, though she never had a temper about such things.

Asher stared at his chains, not ready to meet his sister’s eyes just yet. Did the betrayal feel worse because it was Ivy? Would Asher be suppressing the same murderous rage if it had been Hazel? Ivy was his sister, a Burke, a Pureblood, and she’d been accepted into their family without question. And yet…she turned her back on them. Looking back up, he noted the sadness in Hazel’s blue eyes, the Burke blue eyes. He wasn’t mourning the loss of a close relationship. He wasn’t one for such sentiments as his sister was. She asked him a simple question, but he didn’t answer—he didn’t have one. ”This changes things.” Was all he said as he tried to think through scenarios.

”I don’t know yet. I need to think. Ivy decided that a handful of children are more important than her family.” Now he felt it, that rage in his stomach. It was probably best Ivy wasn’t in front of him at that moment. Asher took a deep breath and let it out through his nose. He couldn’t think in such a state. ”I need you to handle some of my affairs—the business until I can find a way out of this mess.” It wasn’t a question. It wasn’t a request and a typical order from Asher to his younger sister. But all they had left was one another now. As far as he knew, his business front was solid but behind the scenes needed some oversight until he could figure out his next steps.

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[Hazel Rosalie Burke]

Hazel was waiting for the easy solution. For Asher to say a few magic words and put together a strategy to fix all this with minimal effort. Hazel had never had to work hard for anything in her life – she was talented, came from an important family, and could usually get what she wanted either by smiling brightly or bursting into tears. There had never been anything out-of-reach for her, because she’d been taught since the day she was born that anything was possible if she just wanted it hard enough. Like that sparkly dress in the window when she’d been five and stopped her daddy from going anywhere until he’d bought it for her. Or the recipe list for that tricky little poison she’d come across in Shanghai, coaxing it out of the battered alchemist until that little old man was spilling his soul to her. She was waiting for that now too – for Asher to have a magic idea and wave his wand and make everything right. Ideally without her having to do anything hard that would ruin her nails.

Asher’s words weren't fun to hear, but she supposed he was right. Ivy had always been the smart one, but Hazel couldn’t help but think she’d had a lapse in judgment about this whole situation. If Ivy had really known what was best for her, she wouldn’t have gotten involved at all, wouldn't have interfered with Elaine's plan and simply let it happen. Hazel hadn't gotten into trouble because she'd stayed out of things. Don’t pick a side, can't get caught. But ambitious people just couldn’t help themselves, and Asher and Ivy were both incredibly clever and ambitious. It just so happened that this time, they’d gone in wildly different directions. And as hard as it was to hear Asher criticize Ivy for turning her back on the family…wasn’t he right? Isn’t that what she’d done? And Hazel had begged her to stay, to figure this out together, and for once it hadn’t been enough to get what she wanted. She hated that. No, Ivy and Asher had both been idiots here. Ivy should have kept her mouth shut, and Asher shouldn't have gone to Hogwarts. It was frightful to think that Hazel was the only one who'd managed to keep her name out of this whole mess.

Her face paled at Asher’s words. “H-handle the business?” she stuttered, her eyes wide with fright. She hated admitting to her brother that she couldn’t do something, especially when he already thought that about so many things – but in this case he would be right. “I don’t know how,” Hazel finally said in a whisper, crossing her arms across her chest. She felt so small in that moment, realizing how useless she was. The youngest Burke had never been interested in the boring, business side of things. Asher had always run his club and the less-than-legal parts of it, and he’d done it well. As blah as he was, he was the master of that arena. Hazel wouldn’t even know where to start, much less do it all without her brother’s guidance. Handling her metal charming commissions was nothing compared to what he was asking her to do, so she seized on the only part of his sentence that gave her any hope. “Until you find a way out?” she repeated eagerly, “So there is a way out? How?”

asher rowan burke

[asher rowan burke]

my dagger and swagger are useless

in the face of the mirror

when the mirror is made of my face

June 6, 2026
Hazel Rosalie Burke

It wasn’t often that Asher didn’t have three possible solutions immediately to a new problem. But he actually had none at the moment. He needed time, and for all, he knew Bianca was planning to send him to Azkaban the next day. Hazel seemed to be waiting for that. The typical Burke conversations where Asher led the planning and the other two chimed in with their own thoughts and ideas. But that was all broken now, and it wasn’t a fracture that healed so easily. But, it was difficult to think clearly. All he thought about was the fury he felt toward Ivy, the anger at the betrayal. The hurt, even.

Hazel had been far closer to Ivy. Their sense of loyalty had always outweighed any of their personal feelings for one another, hence why she sat in the chair in front of him. Was his sister here because she worried about her brother’s well-being? Asher didn’t think so, but her sister had just abandoned her, so who else did she have left. Asher wasn’t one to dwell on such things—at least he would tell himself that. But Ivy’s actions stung more than he cared to admit. Asking Hazel to keep his business afloat was asking a lot, but she was a Burke. It had to be her.

”A Burke needs to be there.” Half of the job was the appearance of continuity and solidarity, despite Ivy’s actions. Asher’s gaze didn’t leave his sister. He didn’t feel sorry for her and this rare display of doubt. She was obviously more than capable, even if she wasn’t interested. ”The last thing I need is some upstart like Carrow or Avery thinking they can walk all over what I built.” Arrogant fools. Both were prime exhibits of an unfortunate combination of arrogance and imbecility. Pureblood sons with absolutely nothing in their skulls and delusions of power. But she quickly questions him once more, but Asher didn’t answer right away.

”I’ll find a way.” He spoke, evenly and almost softly. It was a promise, he decided, but the only obvious options were not attractive ones. ”I need you to step up, Hazel.” His tone was stern as if giving an order. Offering soft words of encouragement was not his style, especially not with his family. They were all capable. ”Assert your dominance, and nobody will question you.” It was the type of show Asher ran at the club. A show of power, unwavering ruthlessness, and earned respect. Hazel needed to do the same if they were to survive until there was a plan. ”Ivy might as well be dead.” Asher clenched his jaw as his mind traveled back to his traitorous sister. He almost wished now she had sacrificed herself to the fire for her beloved students. ”We’re all that’s left.”

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[Hazel Rosalie Burke]

Hazel’s breath caught at the stern way Asher was looking at her. He’d always been full of expectations, not least for his sisters. Their parents had always been so focused on shaping Asher into the perfect heir, their only worthwhile child that deserved any investment. They’d sent him to Durmstrang instead of keeping him at home, while it had never even been a debate for her. And now he was under an enormous amount of pressure to marry a good pureblood girl and settle any open questions about the future of the Burke line. Even Hazel, as un-clever as she could be in politics, knew he couldn’t do that from Azkaban. She didn’t know the full scope of his life, everything he did when he wasn’t busy being oppressed under their parents’ strict rules, but one way he’d always coped with the pressure? Taking it out on Hazel instead. Pointed questions about when she would marry, high expectations for her behavior during society events. All the terrible attention she’d never gotten from their parents.

But this request – no, demand…it was so much more than he’d ever asked from her before. She swallowed hard at the stony look on his face. Her tears had never been able to move him like the gullible way some people could be caught and manipulated. He was right, she supposed, in that the Burke family business needed to stay with the Burkes. Some pureblood families simply couldn’t hold on anymore, and she knew that was what happened to the Borgins when they’d lost their store to a Karkaroff. Fat chance they’d ever get that back now that the eldest had his hands wrapped tightly around it. There were constant power struggles between families trying to stay relevant and survive how the world was changing, and this was the darkest moment for the Burkes in a long time. A perfect opportunity for another family to knock them out of the game completely.

The idea of their fate resting in Hazel’s hands while Asher worked on wriggling out of his current predicament…that was a nightmare of a thought. Hazel flinched at Asher’s rough tone, a warning hidden in his words that she needed to become more than what she had been until now. Whether or not he thought she had the potential to succeed, it was obvious that the status quo didn’t exist anymore. Now it was adapt or be killed. “Ash, they’re all questioning us,” Hazel protested weakly. She’d had former students shove newspapers in her face, asking if it was her brother that had been arrested by the Ministry for being a Purifier. And she knew every pureblood that had ever pretended to be their friend in the past was circling them hungrily now, like a vulture waiting for its target to die. And the blood drained out of her face as Asher asserted their new family truth. There was no Ivy. No more third sibling. Only them. “And…if you don’t find a way?” She hated even the thought of it, but Asher’s final words were sobering. Her voice dropped to a low tone before breaking completely. “We have enemies, and the rumors about Ivy…people already suspect. What if we can’t make it through?”

asher rowan burke

[asher rowan burke]

my dagger and swagger are useless

in the face of the mirror

when the mirror is made of my face

June 6, 2026
Hazel Rosalie Burke

Humanity. It didn’t win any duels or broker any deals. It didn’t sustain a lineage of the more prominent families of the sacred twenty-eight. Humanity didn’t even let history’s heroes be truly happy. And it wasn’t going to get Asher out of his current bind. But, there was at least a shred of humanity…one might say, even empathy in that moment. As long as Asher focused on his rage—he could focus. Rage and anger meant he had a purpose and a target. A goal. It would save him from falling into whatever pit of despair an Azkaban prisoner would fall into as they were forced to contend with their new fate. The worst fate, in his opinion, to fade away into obscurity and die on an old stone floor.

But as he looked at Hazel, his own eyes stared back at him. Was that same level of doubt present in his own? That fear? Their parents had never put the same pressure on his sisters, the same responsibilities. And how could they? When Hazel married, she would be continuing the legacy of another prominent family while it was Asher’s responsibility to add to the Burke lineage. Still, she’d been coddled far too long, and now when she was being called upon, she was wavering. ”We will always be questioned, Hazel.” The words came out quickly. He was growing frustrated, and the more he became aware of the restraints on his wrists again, the worse it felt.

Maybe Asher was complicit in keeping Hazel away from this side of things. The criminal underworld is where the real power lay for families like theirs. ”This—right now—is when we need to be visible. Silence will only prove that we are weak. Ivy does not—will not speak for the Burkes.” Asher’s jaw clenched as he tried to get his point across but anything regarding his former sister only served to anger him. Very few could ever elicit such a response, few wished they could if only to prove Asher was human, but it still pained him how someone so close as family could betray them. The sooner Ivy realized that she only had a brother left—the easier this would be for her.

He would never admit out loud that he didn’t like to see Hazel so doubtful, that while it annoyed him endlessly when she rambled about clothing or her alchemy and this and that—he put up with it. Why? Hazel was his younger sister, another chess piece on the Burke board, and without all the pieces, one would lose the game. Plus the confidence she exuded when in her element. That sense of pride of another Burke sibling and their mastery of some facet of life to prove that they really were that much better than everyone else. But he had to take a moment to consider his answer, staring down at the small table in front of them as his brain began to memorize every mark and blemish as he had with the one in the interrogation room. It was how he knew they always brought him to the same room.

”But, we will.” His tone was calmer and more collected, more like his old self. They had to find a way out of this. There was no other option. ”We will always have enemies, Hazel.” That part was as unavoidable then as it was now with a looming possible death sentence to his family’s legacy. He frowned slightly, rumors were never good for one’s image or business, and they certainly had a hell of an image problem to contend with. ”Ivy gave up her rights as a Burke the moment she betrayed me.” Asher began coldly and plainly. ”People can say what they like. She isn’t one of us anymore.” With an even tone, Asher mentally disassociated Ivy from everything. And while externally he remained calm and collected, it wasn’t so easy to compartmentalize his feelings internally.

His eyes looked away a moment as he paused. Even Asher Burke would struggle with the idea and act of removing his sister from his life. But after he gave himself those few moments, he looked back at his remaining sibling. ”Hazel—you are a Burke. You are my sister. I have never questioned what you are capable of.” That was about the nicest way Asher was physically able to put into words that he didn’t doubt Hazel in her abilities whatsoever. It wasn’t something he said out of desperation but out of watching his youngest sibling grow up over the past three decades. ”If you question yourself, you invite our enemies to do the same, and then they’ll underestimate you.” And that was what his sister would have called a ‘pep’ talk. Though he would have loved to see what happened to the man that would inevitably underestimate Hazel Burke, it would not be pretty. But he felt he’d made his point. ”Plus, this lack of confidence is…” As Asher searched for a word, his eyes looked down at the table again. ‘Unbecoming’ came to mind, but then he’d sound exactly like his father. ”…tacky.” He spoke, almost casually, as he looked back at her. Clearly, he did listen to everything she did say, even if it never seemed like he did.

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[Hazel Rosalie Burke]

It was amazing how little of Asher’s life she truly knew about. He’d always been a known figure, someone she could easily figure out by reading the expressions on his face and the little mannerisms she’d seen for as long as she could remember. He was her drab, responsible, boring older brother. Easy-peasy, simple, predictable. But, as he sat in front of her – torn robes, unshaved face, and magical restraints tightly clamped around his wrists – it suddenly occurred to Hazel that she must not know very much about him at all. Asher had always been so much more involved in the Purifiers cause than she had been, and Hazel wasn’t dumb. She knew there were things that he and Ivy talked about, worked on together without including her. He ran his club, and of course Hazel knew about the existence of the backroom and Asher’s tendency to gravitate to the darker side of the trade – higher risks, higher rewards.

But she’d never been an equal player in the business, or included in the deals that went on behind-the-scenes. That didn’t bother Hazel, because she had never seen that world as her own anyway. Her father had old-fashioned ideas about what a pureblood woman’s place in the world was, and for the most part – Hazel was happy to play along. It meant less responsibility for her, fewer people counting on her to do the wise thing. But, sitting at this scarred interrogation table now…was she sitting across from her brother? Or some stranger wearing the same imperious expression as her brother, but involved in a whole other world she knew nothing about? She’d had the same questioning thought about Ivy, not so long ago, and it had shaken the foundations of her entire life. Hazel thought she knew the pureblood world, and everything it demanded of her and her family. But, she was just starting to realize…she’d only seen one side of it, until now. What a rude awakening.

Asher spoke with absolute certainty now, and it was the same tone of authority that Hazel was familiar with. That comforted her, even if his words felt like the time she’d tried the Polar Plunge and thought she might actually drown in the ice-cold waters (man, the things we do for publicity, right?). But she supposed it was the same thing now, only Asher was demanding so much more from her than jumping into a lake so she could turn it into thousands of hits on her page later. Hazel’s face was pale with the thought of keeping the family business afloat while he was away. There was no clear end date, no obvious way to end it quickly. Just the promise of so much pain and embarrassment and no end in sight. As well as the ever-present threat of other pureblood families that couldn’t wait to take out a major threat and wipe the board free of any Burkes at all.

“Asher,” Hazel said his name in shock at the way he brushed Ivy aside. Like she wasn’t a key player in this big game, or part of their family. “How…how can you just say that? Like she doesn’t mean anything to you?” she demanded, the natural instinct to defend her sister rising up inside her. Merlin, she felt so full of contradictions these days. When Ivy had come to say goodbye, Hazel couldn’t push her away fast enough. It felt like the easy thing to do, a way to avoid confronting the pain that came with her betrayal. But now, hearing the same kind of thought from Asher in a cold tone like he was discussing one of his business deals…it seemed impossible to pretend that Ivy didn’t mean anything to her at all. She still loved her sister, which is why the distance hurt so much.

She felt her breath catch at his final words, because…it meant he’d been listening, all these years. Sometimes it had seemed like Hazel was talking to a wall – a self-righteous wall that knew better than her in just about everything. His words were daunting, but there was a challenge to them too. The same kind of challenge that she loved about alchemy – realizing the full potential of an element, turning it into the gold that it had always been destined to be. Merlin, Hazel wasn’t some cheap piece of lead, a replaceable pureblood that everyone would forget about soon enough. No, the Burkes weren’t out of the game just yet. “That’s literally the rudest thing you’ve ever said to me,” Hazel said haughtily, although she felt her chest grow warm with a flicker of hope. If Asher still had confidence in the family, and in her, then that meant there was a chance for success.

Hazel wanted to say more, had novels more of things to say to her brother. After not having access to him for months, and having just been given the biggest assignment of her life…they weren’t anywhere near done. But as Hazel opened her mouth, the door swung open suddenly and she flinched. It was the same woman as before, the one who’d brushed her aside like Hazel wasn’t the daughter of an important pureblood family who demanded to be treated like the royalty she was. ”Time’s up”, the woman said abruptly, her eyes locked on Asher like he was personally offending her just by sitting there. “No it’s not,” Hazel replied hotly, arms crossed and ready to sit there until the end of time. But she could see the large figure of the scarred Auror lurking just past the doorway, and the thought of being forcibly carried out – ugh, disgusting. So Hazel stood up in a huff. “I’m going to see my father and tell him exactly what I found here. And if he comes to visit and Asher still looks like this, then there’ll be hell at the Ministry.” With that, Hazel brushed off her robes in disgust and stomped out of the room. This was hardly the end – for her, for Asher, or for the Burkes.

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[End post Hazel!]