I'm leaving, Dad. Fred and Marcus wanted to see me." She lied easily. He eyed her suspiciously and as green met black he spoke. "Are you sure? For what?" She looked away. Lying to the most important person in her world wasn't as easy as she thought it'd be. She felt a guilty pang in the pit of her stomach and it seemed to Orria that her father, Harry, was examining her soul through her pitch-black, cold, eyes. "Yea. Um... mid-terms. I'm rubbish at Divination." "Fine then. Be sure you have your wand. And the Cloak! How are you getting there? Broomstick?" She nodded. "Put the Cloak over and be careful," she began to walk out of the doorway but he stopped her by placing his loving hands on her shoulders and bending down a little so that his face was just above hers. "Please be careful. You know there've been rumors and nothing's happened...yet. So just make sure you're not the first victim if any of this is true. If you're in trouble and need help, be sure you have your Stone." "Dad, I know. I'll be fine." She turned around and walked over the threshold of Number 12 Grimmuald Place. She placed the Cloak over her and her entire body was concealed under the folds of the watery, soft fabric. She mounted her broom and kicked off from the ground, hard. The wind in her face through the folds of fabric gave her the exhilarating feeling which she so loved. The feelign she only got from riding her broomstick through the night. She could feel her entire body tingling with the sensual sounds of the breezes asking her to go further up into the clear night sky which she so longed to do, but she had a mission and that was to get to Fred's house and meet up with him and Marcus. They needed to discuss grave matters and if Orria's father ever found them out, he'd be furious, for he only sought to protect her.
As she finished the long journey and dipped down into the patches of a giant quilt that looked like Surrey, she dismounted her broom and walked the rest of the way. As she had well known, she did not have a wand on her at the moment. If magic needed to be done she would not be kicked out of school being underage, but she was extraordinarily gifted at magic and could do most every spell wandless, but her family were none the wiser to her power. It allowed her to magic, secretly, at home because the Ministry would brush it off as an unlearned witch or wizard child doing magic that was out of their control. As she reached Fred's house and knocked on the window by the backyard, she heard a loud CRACK and spun around quickly, hand outstretched into the void of trees, desperately searching for the source of the sound. As she looked, a hooded figure appeared out of the darkness.
"Hiya, Ori!" As Orria tried to pull in breath after being scared half to death, the hooded figure took off the cloak he was wearing. She soon realized it was Marcus, her best friend. "Marcus!!! Marcus, I could kill you!" She raised a single finger and pointed it at him. "And you know I damn well I certainly could if I wanted to! He looked startled and stepped back. "Calm yourself, Orria. Has Fred answered the door yet?"
"No, but I'll knock again. He said to knock at the – wait a second – where did you learn to Apparate?" He looked affronted, as though he was trying to come up with something defensive to hide something shameful. "I– I...um...well...see...it's a um...funny story..." He laughed nervously and Orria knew that that laugh usually introduced the truth that almost always followed. "I didn't learn how Apparate properly. I read a book...um... Standard Procedures Of Magical Entrances Exits and it pretty much said how to, so I read it and I foung out that you spin on your heel and think of where you'd want to go and–"
"Where'd you steal it from, Marcus!?" She said, with an air of repetition , as though she'd said these words a thousand times. "The Restricted Section at the library at school." He said feebly. "Marcus! That's only for 6th years studying for their Apparition test!" said Orria, angrily. "I know but my father'd never believe me if I said I was going to study here at Fred's! I had to learn somehow if I wanted to get here." She looked at him and he smirked slightly, as if to get on her good side. "Fine. Now help me get Fred." He smiled and ran next to her to help knock on the window. "FRED!!!" screamed Orria and Marcus together. A face appeared in the top window. "Wait down there, I'll come and open the door!" A few seconds later, Fred had come down the steps of his parents country home and opened the door. He put a finger to his lips in a sign of silence, for his parents were in the sitting room to the right heatedly discussing new information that was just learned for the Order. "Come." He said in a hushed silence and he ran up the steps toward his bedroom.
As Orria and Marcus followed they were sure not to make a sound yet still the force of their footsteps on the old floorboards made a creaking sound so they could only move every so often so that the creaks and cracks of the ancient staircase wouldn't seem so out of place and abrupt. As they reached the bedroom, entered, and shut the door behind them, Fred quickly said, "Blimey, could you come any earlier? You gave me a right good scare there, mates. What happened to you, Marcus? You're pale as a ghost." Orria looked at him an realized it to. "Been Apparating. Not as easy as it looks, thank you very much!" And he plopped down onto the nearest chair, leaving Fred with a bewildered look of astonishment and wonder.
Orria glared in the direction of Marcus, then, noticing Fred's look, she rolled her eyes at his stupidity. "How'd you manage that, Marcus? We're only 1st years! Ori, he didn't steal anything, right? Y'No to learn that?" He looked from Marcus to Orria and then back again, hungrily examining their faces as if it would be the last time he'd ever see them alive. "Fred, what's the matter? You look worried, what's happened? Why've you asked us to come, what's going on? Is it abut him? It is isn't it? Caedus, I mean." His face sunk and he winced at the sound of the name. "Well? Is it, Fred? Asked Marcus. "Yea." he started out into the empty void, pinching his eyes upward and downward until they were slivers, wincing as he did so, as if he was imagining the things the Dark Lord could do to his two best friends who sat with him now. "Ori, you have the broom, do you? Well do that charm you do to make it a tad bigger, it'll need to fit all three of us."
"Oh, very well," she said, bothered. "Wait– Fred, does any of what you're about to tell us put me and Nivi in any danger that we should know about?" she asked, her eyes glittering with the ghost of her dangerous past, the fear of her poisonous future, and what looked like the beginning of tears in her eyes. "I'll leave you to figure that out for yourselves, but you best put that Cloak on." He said with a fearful undertone to his voice. "Fred, you're scaring me. Engorgio Vio." The broom enlarged and Orria picked it up. "Well, lets be off then." She opened the window and again said, "Engorgio Vio." The window grew to three times it's normal size and could fit one full person bottom to top with a few feet to spare. Orria mounted the top of the broom and motioned for Marcus and Fred to do the same. Marcus mounted the broom behind her followed by Fred. "Where are we off to anyway, Fred? The Thicket of London?"
"I think the Thicket. Safer there anyway. No chances to be followed ." He said while nodding. Orria placed the Cloak on her and kicked off from the ground. After about 20 minutes or so they were in the Thicket. A small forest of trees in which they could talk about secrets without being overheard, for there was a small creek leading to a larger river down stream. As Orria, Fred, and Marcus dismounted the broom and Orria made it it's normal size again, Orria and Marcus sat by the river opposite Fred, ready to hear what he had to say. They looked intently at him as he spoke. "Ok, well I'm not to tell you this, but the Order has found something out. Well not the Order really, my parents. They got information from a spy in a Death Eater village that Caedus was back and is trying to gather followers. My parents just got word of this as you were coming in so I suppose they've told you're father, Ori. That's why it was really bad timing. So, Ori, you and your sister are in serious –"
"AARGH!!!" Cried Orria. Her scar seared as if a white-hot metal pole was being thrust in her skull from one side and out the other. "Orria! Are you ok?" Said Fred as he rushed to her side. She fell back and was sprawled out on the floor from the pain of it. "Ori! Ori! Answer me please!!! Please!!! Orria!" he formed a small mattress out of thin air and placed it on the chilly ground below their feet. He picked her up and laid her down upon the soft surface. She was out cold and blood covered the side of her face as her scar had burst open. Fred and Marcus got up and thrust their wands out from beneath their robes and pointed them at the air, fearful that they were being watched. As they nervously flicked their wands at the trees and realized there was no one there the rushed to their knees beside their injured friend. "What'd we do, Fred? Her scar burst; that can't be good. Should we get your parents?" said Marcus, his gut wrenching at the sight of his best friend, lying there, helpless, defenseless, pained. "I think it best. STAY HERE AND DON'T–" A very many things happened in quick succession and Fred was glued to the spot. Fear crept over him as he heard ten to twenty cracks from the surrounding area. Then, the sky went cloudy and dark and 15 discombobulated blobs of concentrated blackness erupted from out of nowhere.
"STUPEFY" cried the Death Eaters.
"GET DOWN!" roared Fred. Marcus dropped down over Orria; shielding her from any harm. Blood from her forehead stained his shirt and he closed he eyes, hoping beyond hope that when he would reopen them, he would wake up and this would all be a terrible nightmare. "HERE! PORTKEY!" Fred threw a torn piece of his shirt toward Marcus and he flew for it. "OY! The only one who can do it wandless is 'Ria! I don't know how!" he bellowed at Fred. "I'M A LITTLE BUSY MARC! FIGURE IT OUT! DO IT WITH 'RIA'S WAND!" Fred roared. "SHE HASN'T A WAND, FRED!!!" he roared back. As he pulled all his magical energy towards his hands and passed it on to the torn orange cloth and as he did so a white hand curved around Orria's neck from behind. That hand was attached to a pale white body with ear length brown hair turned black from the evil in his heart. His eyes were green... but not a normal green. A dark green. An evil green.
Orria quickly woke up with blood staining her hair and her clothes. A bloodcurdling scream issued from her lips and the outline of Caedus's hand on her neck was quickly turning red. His touch was burning her flesh. Orria's hand reached instinctively to her jean pocket and she tried to clutch her wand but it wasn't there. "Stupefy!"Marcus shouted. "'Ria, grab my hand, now!" said Marcus. "Fred! No!"