A/N: This story contains no permanent pairings, so no one needs to get worried about interactions between the characters ;-)
Located near Hogsmeade village, the only entirely wizarding settlement in Britain, are several small lakes. The largest one is well known because it sits between Hogsmeade and Hogwarts. Yet there are several smaller lakes geographically scattered nearby, the nearest lake is called Secuutus Lake and yet it is this very lake the Hogsmeade villagers avoid.
For well over the last decade, dark rumors have abounded about the lake no wizard villager; will walk too near the lake and most have only spoken of it in a whisper. Near the center of this lake is a small island, mostly a mound of earth and rock that is covered with grass and moss. Rested on this island is a three level stone and wood cottage that is very old, its stone walls covered in moss, vines and other vegetation.
The cottage, which seems the size of a small manor, belongs to a very old Italian wizard family named the Morbinos. The remaining descendents of this family use the cottage as a summer house, an escape from the terrible heat of Rome during the summer, a practice that is common among many upper class Italians, even Italian Wizards. This cottage, as well as the lake, holds a terrible ancient secret. For the Morbino family has been plagued with misfortune, sadness and something that holds sway over everything they have become. Secrets and dark dreams that should have been long since abandoned have consumed them. The morning mist of this lake seems to be alive, unnatural; its whispers float across the cool stagnated air. Yet this summer's end is going to be different from the previous last days of summer that have greeted this lake. Fate has decided on other intentions for the whispers from the mist.