Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or it's characters... Just wanted to make that clear... haha

This story is rated T for foul language

Chapter 10

James' POV

We land with a "thud" in the middle of a clearing. There are flowers of all colors in here; red to pink, blue to purple, and orange to yellow. I can hear birds chirping overhead and the sound of children laughing and playing nearby. Ariana kneels down and picks up a handful of flowers. "This is where it all started…" She inhales deeply, a small smile playing at her mouth. She drops the flowers in her hand and stands up abruptly. She has a distracted look on her face as she sprints out of the clearing. I look over to Freddie, whose confused expression matches what I'm feeling.

We push through the low hanging branches and hurdle over the exposed tree roots as we try to follow her retreating silhouette. We emerge from the forest and our feet smack loudly against the cement sidewalk as we continue to chase Ariana. Her blonde hair flows wildly behind her as she rounds onto a neighborhood street.

Freddie and I turn onto the same street Ariana did, both of us panting as we do. We've almost caught up to her when she stops briskly. Freddie and I skid to a halt as we turn to look at what has captured all of Ariana's attention.

Sitting in front of us are the grey, charred remains of what was once a house. There are broken beams lying on top of other pieces of burnt wood. Placed on the ground in front of the house are small stuffed animals and signs that say:

"Always in our thoughts"

"Praying for your safe return, Ariana"

"The search will never end"

Ariana steps forward and touches a piece of the burnt framework. I roll my eyes and reach forward to shake her out of whatever funk she's in, but Freddie stretches his hand out and stops me.

Suddenly Ariana breaks the silence. "It's been two years and it looks the exact same…" She steps into the broken home and runs her hand along the remains of some stairs. She turns to the side and crouches down. She crouches down and runs her hand along a light shape on the floor slowly.

I roll my eyes again and groan. "Ariana, what the hell are you doing?"

"I found him here. He was so… burned. We almost didn't make it out…" She is still touching the spot as she talks.

"Merlin Freddie! Why does she always have to be so cryptic? Why are we even at this crap hole?"

He shrugs his shoulders and whispers "I'm not sure. I actually don't know that much about her past…"

She doesn't even move, she just continues to touch the light spot on the floor. Obviously somebody important was there, but she's probably being dramatic. "Who are you talking about Ariana?"

She looks up at me with tears streaming down her face, her eyes wide and child-like. "Before I lived with your family, this 'crap hole' was my home for fifteen years… That is, until my father died."

I look at Freddie then back to Ariana. "What?"

She pushes up off the floor and looks at us plainly, wiping away her tears. "Never mind… Let's go."

As we walk out of the burned home, a small elderly woman walks out and grabs her mail. She turns and looks at us absentmindedly and then drops her mail and looks at us more intently. "Ariana? Ariana Brighton?"

Ariana turns her head in the direction of the woman and nods. "Yes... wait… Mrs. Johnson?"

The woman squeals and runs to Ariana, wrapping her in a hug. "Oh my dear girl! We thought you were dead!" She releases Ariana and runs back to her house. "Frank! Frank, come out here!" The door shuts and we are left standing on the sidewalk in silent confusion.

I look at Ariana and say "Mrs. Johnson?"

She nods. "She used to babysit me when my dad had to work late."

We can faintly hear sirens off in the distance, which seems to worry Ariana. She looks around and narrows her eyes. "Something isn't right…"

We stand in front of her house for a what feels like ten minutes, facing the direction of the approaching sirens. Suddenly three police cars come swerving around the corner and skid to a stop in front of us. A man gets out of the first car and looks at us. "Are you Ariana Brighton?"

Just then Mrs. Johnson comes out of her house and sees the police. "Ariana is right here!" She runs over and wraps an arm around Ariana with a big smile. The first officer nods to the other two cars and the other two officers get out of their cars. One of them, a woman with short brown hair, grabs Freddie and puts him into her car. Then a squatty male officer grabs me and tries to put me in his car. I start to struggle but Ariana gives me a harsh look that warns me not to. I get into the back seat of the car and watch Ariana and Mrs. Johnson talk to the officer outside.

There is silence in our car until the first officer puts Ariana into his car. It isn't until then that the officer who's driving the car I'm in says anything. "Did you kidnap Ariana Brighton?"

I laugh and shake my head. "Are you bloody joking?"

The officer looks at me in his rearview mirror as he pulls away. "You didn't answer my question."

"No, I didn't kidnap Ariana you oaf."

He raises an eyebrow. "What was that?"

I smirk and shrug. "Nothing. Where are you taking me?"

"Back to the station." He turns his car into the parking lot of a building that says Denver Police Station. The officer gets out of the car and pulls me out of the back seat, keeping a hand on my shoulder the entire time. Ariana is holding her purple bag tightly as she gets out of the car. She looks at me and nods then does the same thing to Freddie. We nod our understanding and wait for further instruction.

"NOW!"

We all pull out our wands and say "Stupefy!" The officers in front of us drop to the ground, unconscious.

We hear the doors open and someone say "Stop! Ariana Brighton! You're under arrest for the murder of Jonathan Brighton!"

Freddie and I run over to Ariana and look at her desperately. "What now?"

She crouches down behind a car and frowns. "Now… Now we need to run!" She looks back at the officer and yells "I didn't murder my father!"

We take off in a mad dash back toward the forest where we first landed, officers pursuing us as we do.

Ari's POV

I sit in silence in the squad car with Officer Parker for only a moment. As soon as the squad car pulls away from the remains of my house, he looks in the rear view mirror and asks "Were you kidnapped?"

I shake my head and he nods. "Do you know how the fire at your house was started?"

I shake my head again, wondering where he's going with this. He nods again. "Did you know arson is a crime?"

I nod this time, the gears in my head slowly moving as I realize where he's going with this. He nods again. Then his radio crackles to life. "Do you have Ariana Brighton?"

Officer Parker picks up the radio and responds. "Yes, I have the suspect with me now." He puts his radio back down and looks at me in the rearview mirror again. "Did you know murder is a crime?"

"Officer, are you insinuating that I killed my father?" I narrow my eyes at the man driving the squad car.

He stares at me intently in the rearview mirror. "Was that a confession?"

"No it was not, officer. I'm not a murderer."

The officer smirks as we pull into the parking lot of the station. "We'll see…"

I'm not sticking around for this, and I don't plan on dragging Freddie or James into this either. I clutch to the bag Hermione gave me as Officer Parker pulls me out of the car. I look over to James and nod subtly and then do the same to Freddie. They both nod their understanding. I look around and realize it's now or never… "NOW!"

The three of us whip out our wands and say "Stupefy!"

The officers in front of us drop to the ground with a thud as another officer runs out of the station yelling "Stop! Ariana Brighton! You're under arrest for the murder of Jonathan Brighton!"

Freddie and James run over to me, desperation apparent on their face. "What now?"

I crouch down behind a squad car and frown. "Now… Now we need to run!" I look at the officer running toward us and yell "I didn't murder my father!"

We sprint away from the station, heading in the direction of my clearing. The officer from the station pursues us on foot. He grabs the radio on his shoulder and calls for backup.

We get just outside the clearing and a spell shoots past us, hitting the officer who was chasing us. I look at Freddie then James, each shaking their head to tell me they didn't shoot the spell.

We get into the clearing and see three Death Eaters standing in front of us. The one in the front speaks first. "You could still go home. None of you need to die today."

I smirk and point my wand at him. "The only ones dying today are you three."

We all stay silent for a moment, all with our wands pointed at the opposite group, until the head Death Eater shoots a spell at Freddie. This one action sends us into a battle with each other. James takes out his Death Eater right away then turns to help me. I nod to them both, then leave to take care of the police. Before I get through the tree line, I wave my wand and say "Avis." A flurry of small birds appears above me and I grin.

I run from the forest and see at least five squad cars sitting outside the forest with officers getting out of them. I point my wand at the officers and say "Oppugno!" The birds all swarm the officers, pecking at their faces and scratching at their exposed skin, and diverting their attention from me.

I run back into the clearing and see the head Death Eater hiding behind a tree. He aims his wand at James and then everything moves in slow motion. I sprint over to James and tackle him to the ground, causing him to hit his head on a rock, while pointing my wand at the Death Eater. The Death Eater's spell leaves his wand just as my spell does. A giant fireball erupts from my wand and engulfs the Death Eater, his spell and the tree he was hiding behind.

The tree explodes violently from the heat, sending flaming bark and sparks flying everywhere, along with lighting the surrounding trees and grass ablaze. A chunk of the shrapnel lands on my exposed forearm and I wince at the pain. I fling the chunk of burning wood off my arm and turn to see James is on the ground, unconscious. I roll my eyes and call Freddie over and tell him to grab my arm. He shoots another spell at the distracted Death Eater and runs over to me. He grabs my arm as I grab James' arm and we apparate away.

We land in the cold snow outside a tall flat. I look at James and grimace. His head is bleeding from where it hit the rock. I look to Freddie and say "Watch him. I'll be right back." I walk up to the door and look on the intercom for the familiar last name. "Franklyn… Franklyn… Franklyn!" I push the button to call up and wait for a response.

The intercom crackles to life with the sound of a male voice. "Who is it?"

"Is this still the Franklyn residence?"

It crackles again. "Who's asking?"

I press the button firmly. "Ariana Brighton."

I wait for another response, tapping my foot on the ground impatiently. Suddenly the door to the flat opens and reveals a shocked, yawning male. "Ariana? Is it really you?"

"Yes it is…" I look around warily then focus on the face in front of me. He towers over me, has light brown hair that is very messily strewn about, bright blue eyes, a slender nose with small freckles that dance across his nose, and full lips. He is wearing blue plaid boxers and a white wife-beater. "Hold on… Eli? Is that you?"

He grins and wraps me in a hug that lifts me off the ground. "Ari it IS you! I missed you so much! Oh! Brittney is going to be so happy to see you!"

I laugh and let out a cough as he squeezes me. "Let me down Elijah!" He sets me on the ground and I frown. "Can we come in?"

He looks at me with a raised eyebrow. "We?"

I pull him around the corner, his bare feet trudging through the snow, and show him Freddie and James. He looks them over and nods. "Of course, but only because it's you."

Freddie and I pick up James and carry him into the flat. I look at Eli again and try to remember when the last time was that I saw him. It's been a really long time… "Are you lot still on the top floor?"

He nods and leads us up the stairs. He flings open the door to the Franklyn loft and exposes his living space. The building, on the outside, looks run down and small but it's a wizard loft so the inside is gigantic and lush. The Franklyn's loft has marble floors, a large kitchen, at least ten bedrooms. Each bedroom has its own bathroom, walk in closet and fireplace. The living room has a large crystal chandelier that hangs from the ceiling and a large television hanging on the wall. When Freddie sees the inside, his mouth drops open in shock. I look around and smile. This was another one of my childhood homes.

Eli guides us to a spare bedroom and tells us to lay James down in there. We do as he says and then he leads us out to the kitchen. "Sorry it's so empty. Mom's out on business and Brittney won't be back from Salem until tomorrow." He grabs a box of cereal and pours himself a bowl.

Freddie and I take a seat at the table and he immediately asks the question I know he's been itching to ask. "What the hell happened back there?"

I shrug my shoulders and look at the glass table. "It's a spell I've been working on. It's obviously not been perfected yet."

"I don't care! It was bloody awesome!"

I can feel a blush creeping up my face so I change the subject. "Oh! I'm being unbelievably rude! Freddie this is Eli." I've known Eli since birth, although he is a year older than me so technically he's known ME since birth.

Freddie an Eli shake hands and smile politely. Eli sits down across from me and takes another bite of his cereal. "Where have you been? We thought you were dead."

I roll my eyes and groan. "Why does everyone keep saying that? I was living in England with James' family after my father was murdered. Oh, James is the boy in the spare room by the way."

I get up from the table and walk to the living room. I grab the remote and turn on the TV, changing the channel to the news.

"…In other news, a large wildfire has broken out in Denver, Colorado. The cause of the fire is unknown, but Arson experts will be investigating the cause once the fire has been contained. The fire has spread quickly despite local firefighters attempts to contain the fire. Surrounding cities are being asked to evacuate for precautionary purposes…"

"Shit!" I look at Freddie and frown. "I should NOT have done that spell…"

Eli spits out the cereal in his mouth, sputtering and coughing as he does. "Wait… YOU did that?"

I nod and flop down on the couch, slapping my palm to my forehead as I do. "SHIT! I can't believe we did that!"

Freddie stands up and looks around awkwardly before looking at Eli and asking "Where is the bathroom?"

I stand up before Eli can answer and grab Freddie's arm. "I can show you. I have to wrap my burn and check on James anyways…" I drag him to one of the multiple bathrooms and hand him a first aid kit. "Here… If you need to bandage anything up. Towels are under the sink if you want to shower. I'm going to go deal with the cut on James' head."

I grab an ACE bandage and leave the bathroom. I walk to my old room and wrap up the cut on James head. I fluff up his pillow and pull the sheets up over him. I grab the remaining ACE bandage and walk back out into the kitchen. I walk over to Eli and hand him the bandage while extending my arm out. "Wrap it up please?"

He smirks and wraps the bandage around my burn. "Is this your version of flirting? If it is then England has ruined you."

I roll my eyes and punch him in the arm. "Ew! Shut up you prat! I have someone already! Well, kind of…"

He laughs and pats the bandage down. "Really now? Is he blind? Or stupid? Or both?"

I flip him off with a smirk. "You're such an ass."

He smiles widely. "Only to you. Are you hungry?" I nod rapidly, earning another laugh from him. He tosses me a cereal box and a bowl. "Help yourself."

I pour myself a bowl of cereal and sit at the glass table. I take a bite and look around at the loft again. It has to have been at least four years since I've been here. Eli speaks, as if reading my mind. "It's been what, four years, since you were here last? Which would mean the last time I saw you was five years ago… Holy shit we were so young!"

I let out a laugh and nod. "Oh I know! When did you move back in with mum?"

"Last year. She's been having a bit of a hard time with Brittney lately so I moved in to help her out."

I sigh and look at my cereal. "How's Brittney been since I left?"

He shakes his head and frowns. "Not well… She got suspended for fighting the first week of fifth year…"

"I felt truly horrendous for leaving her like that… I wanted to send her a letter, but she probably would have freaked out when some owl dropped a letter off here. Plus, we were living in a secret house after an attack at the manor." Suddenly I'm not hungry. I grimace at my cereal bowl and push it toward Eli. "Go ahead and finish it… I'm not hungry anymore."

He grins and shakes his head while taking a bite of the cereal. "It's as if you never left!"

I smirk. "You left before I did, remember?"

He nods while chewing his bite. "Right, right… So tell me what you've been up to. What brings you to New York?"

"Well, after setting that Colorado forest on fire, we needed a place to hide and this was the first place that came to mind since I used to hide here from my dad all the time."

Eli laughs and finishes the last of the cereal. "Well I'm glad you did. Why did you set that forest on fire, by the way?"

I start off by explaining that there is a Dark Lord who is threatening to kill off American muggles and end with telling him about the radio broadcast and the fight in the forest.

He smirks. "So why did you have to go to Colorado?"

"The headmaster of Hogwarts said we need to warn the President about Caledon. He was supposed to be flying into Colorado today, but I doubt that's going to happen now that I set the entire bloody state on fire."

Eli raises an eyebrow at me. "You know the President is coming here in two weeks, right?"

I give Eli a hug and grin. "I do now! You're bloody brilliant!"

Suddenly the door flings open and I hear "Eli where the piss is she?"

"Mum?" I look to Eli for an explanation and he grins.

"I MAY have texted her when you showed Freddie to a bathroom." He looks toward the door and yells "She's over here mom!"

Eli's mom, who I call mom since she was my mother's best mate back when she was still alive, comes around the corner and squeals. "HOLY SHIT IT IS YOU!" I've literally known her since birth and she's been like a second mom to me.

She wraps me in a hug and squeezes tightly. I smile and gasp for breath. "Hey mum!"

She drops me and rakes her hand across her face. Eli rolls his eyes and throws a balled up napkin at her. "No crying! Go clean yourself up."

Mom laughs and rolls her eyes. "I'm sorry! I just haven't seen my baby in two and a half years!" She heads to her bedroom and shuts the door.

I look at Eli and frown. "Should I tell her that I didn't come alone?"

He shakes his head. "Not right now. Speaking of these other two, who are they? I know their names but that's about it."

"Well Freddie is one of my best mates and James is an ex-boyfriend turned twat that the headmaster sent along with me."

He nods and opens his mouth to say something but stops and just points to the TV. I turn around and gasp as I look at the screen. Hand drawn pictures of me, James and Freddie are on the screen.

"…These three fugitives are said to be armed and highly dangerous. If you see them, call the police and do not engage. Again the girl is around 5'1, has blonde hair, green eyes and freckles. Both males stand at around 6'0. One of the males has black hair and hazel eyes while the other one has reddish-brown hair and brown eyes. If you see them, call your local police…"

I throw my hands up and groan. "Merlin! What the hell?"

Eli smirks and pretends to be offended. "Oh I know! You've got to be at least 5'2!"

I flip him off as mum comes out of her room and walks over to me with a smile. "How long are you staying?"

"I'm not sure." I say with a shrug. "Probably at least two weeks. My friends and I have a rather important task and I don't know how long that will take for sure. Mum, I'm really sorry that I left…"

She shakes her head with a smile. "Dear, it's alright. As long as you're back now." She looks to Eli. "When does Brittney get back?"

"Tomorrow, I think."

Freddie walks out from the bathroom carrying a towel. I pull him over to in front of mum and introduce them. After she's met Freddie, I drag her into my old room and show James to her, explaining what happened to him as I do. "Can you fix his head wound?"

She nods and waves me out of the room then sets to work on him.

I walk out of the room and find Eli and Freddie talking and watching TV. I flop down on the couch next to them and look at my watch. 9:18 am…

I lie my head down on the armrest of the couch and close my eyes while I wait for mom to finish fixing James.

(Break)

I flail my arms in front of me as someone shakes my shoulders. "What the hell?"

I look around and try to remember where I am. I see the sun still shining through the loft and take a deep breath. Eli is sitting in front of me with a startled expression. "Geez! Someone is a cranky pants!"

I rub my eyes and yawn. "Sorry…"

He shakes his head with a smirk. "I just wanted to let you know that mom finished with James and he's awake. Freddie is in the room with him now but you can go see him once Freddie's done."

I shake my head and lie back down on the couch. "I'm good for now. All that matters is that he's alright. I can't have an injured person tagging along during this."

Eli shakes his head and frowns. "Did something happen with him? Do I need to kick his ass for you?"

I let out a laugh and shake my head. "Very astute of you but no, you don't need to 'kick his ass'. As I told you earlier today, he's just an ex-boyfriend. We don't really get along though because of who he's dating now."

He nods and grabs my hand with a smirk. "Are you sure? Because I haven't been able to kick ANYONE'S ass lately and I'm starting to miss it."

I roll my eyes and laugh again. "You're such a good big brother."

He laughs loudly and nods. "I am, aren't I? Speaking of good big brothers, I never did teach you how to play Quodpot, did I?"

I shake my head and grin. "No, but that's alright. Do you remember when I accidentally blew up a classroom at Salem?"

He lets out another loud laugh and nods. "Yes! You had the quod and thought it was about to blow up so you threw it into a classroom. That teacher was so pissed!"

"And you covered for me and said that YOU threw it instead of me… Like I said, you're a good brother."

I hear the bedroom door open and shut behind me, then see Eli get a mischievous glint in his eye. He pulls my wrist forward and picks me up over his shoulder. He stands up and starts walking toward the room James is in. I hit in on the back and flail my legs around trying to get free. "Elijah Ryan Franklyn! Put me down this instant!"

He pushes through the door and I can hear the smirk on his face as he says "If you insist…" He sets me on the edge of the bed and runs out of the room, shutting the door and holding it shut. "I'm not opening the door until you two talk! Just trying to be a good big brother!"

I groan and look at James, whose eyes are opened wide and his mouth is pulled into a smirk. "Friend of yours?"

I roll my eyes and grimace. "Unfortunately, yes… How's your head?"

He rubs the spot and frowns. "It hurts a bit but I'll be fine."

I look at him with a smirk. "Good, I hope it hurts. You're bloody useless in a fight, you know…"

"That was rude!" He places his hand on his chest and his mouth drops open in fake shock.

I roll my eyes and laugh. "Probably, but it's true! That's the second time you've been knocked out during a fight!"

"Yes, but this one was your fault. By the way, thanks for that…"

I look at him skeptically. "What?"

He shrugs his shoulders and grins. "Well, ever since you decided to hit my head into that rock, my memory has been coming back."

My eyes widen and I raise an eyebrow. "How much do you remember?"

"Not much yet. It's been coming back slowly but surely. By the way you, Freddie and Al can all get bent for letting me go out with Monroe for this long!" He flips me off with a smirk.

I roll my eyes again and frown. "We have a couple of problems… One: I accidentally set that Colorado forest on fire and started a statewide wildfire that firefighters are struggling to contain. Whoops..."

"Okay… What's the other problem?"

I sigh and purse my lips. "Our faces are plastered all over the news as wanted criminals. They only have sketches of our faces, but they described us as well, which means we are probably going to have to change the way we look… And it can't be like a polyjuice potion change either… It's got to be fairly long term."

He runs his hands through his hair and grimaces. "Alright…" He picks up a picture that is sitting in a silver frame on top of the bedside table and hands it to me. "By the way, when was this?"

I grab the silver frame out of his hands and smile. The picture is of Brittney, me and Eli. Brittney and I were twelve and Eli was thirteen. We are covered in mud and leaves and laughing, throwing more mud and leaves as we do. Suddenly a giant blob of mud hits the camera and the frame fills with brown goo. "This was during summer break after year two. Brittney and I were swinging when Eli decided he wanted the swing. To get us to leave, he began throwing mud at us. That made us extremely mad so we started throwing mud at him. It ended up turning into a gigantic mud and leaf fight. Mom took this picture right as it was ending."

Eli opens the door and smirks. "You guys all better yet?"

I wave to James and pull out my wand. I point it at Eli and grin while walking toward him. "Oh we're lovely now. I can't say the same for you though."

He backs away with a grin and his hands up in defense. "You're so testy… Freddie wanted me to come get you. He said something about 'your boyfriend's radio broadcast' or something like that."

I tuck my wand behind my ear, grab James and pull him out of bed. I push past Eli, towing James behind me, and run toward Freddie's room. I swing his door open and find him sitting on his bed with a radio plugged in and tuning the station. I jump onto the bed next to him. "Is it on yet?"

He shoots me a dirty look and huffs. "Does it SOUND like it's on yet?"

"Sorry…"

The radio crackles to life and Landen's voice fills the room. "Hello listeners! Chaser one here! This broadcast is to keep everyone on the outside informed about what's happening here at Hogwarts! Headmaster McGonagall is still gone and has Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Seamus Finnegan taking her place. Taking HIS place is the new French teacher Andromeda Clarimonde. There isn't much going on here besides that, but I will be sure to keep you lovely listeners as up to date as possible. Tune in next week for more updates. Until then, I have a special message to a special listener out there. I love you, stay safe and come back soon. Chaser one out."

The radio crackles out and I look at Freddie with wide eyes, his facial expression reflecting mine. "Andromeda Clarimonde? I've heard that name before…"

Freddie shakes his head, smirking weakly "I didn't hear anything over Landen saying he loves me."

I shake my head lightly and frown. "Fred, what's up?"

His expression drops as he looks at the radio. "Andromeda Clarimonde was who Caledon had torture me and Logan when we were kidnapped last year…"

I clasp my hands over my mouth and gasp. "Now she's teaching DADA at Hogwarts…"

James sighs. "Shit…"

Alright so I've come to the conclusion that I'm a terrible student who is never going to study for finals... I'm not even going to lie to myself anymore. Haha

I hope you enjoyed the chapter an I would love to know your thoughts and opinions about it!

Thanks to those who added the story to their subscription list and reviewed! :)

-Tx