It was a restless night for everyone in the house. Things seemed a bit more real now that they were taking the first step forward. Madeline tossed and turned in her sleep with nightmares of what may come and what has already been, while Harry seemed to be living his own nightmare. Soon after the boy had fallen asleep his first dream startled him back awake as he heard Voldemort's voice hissing the killing curse. He lay on his back next to Madeline quiet aware of her tossing and turning but seemed at a loss for a way to help her without waking her up, and Merlin knows she needed all the rest she could get—they all did.

"Mm no, no please—" She mumbled in a panic.

Harry looked at her, it wasn't right to watch her relive nightmares. Carefully he reached his hand over and shook her gently to wake her. She jumped and sat up feeling the cold sweat settling on her skin.

"Harry, what—what's wrong?" She exclaimed.

Harry looked at her lamely and simply said, "You were having a nightmare."

Madeline scoffed, "Is that all? I have them every night, I've seen a lot and felt a lot, Harry. But you should know all about that, shouldn't you?" She paused for a moment mulling something over in her head when suddenly she straightened a bit more alarmed this time.

"I didn't wake you did I?" she asked worriedly.

Harry sat up with her and shook his head, "No…I had a nightmare the minute I fell asleep and I've been awake for a few hours."

She looked at him shyly. It was odd sharing a bed with someone let alone a boy. Odd and yet she enjoyed knowing that there was someone beside her, that she wouldn't be alone when she woke up. "What time is it?"

Harry looked at his watch on the nightstand and sighed, "two o'clock…"

"We should at least try to get some rest again," Madeline stated halfheartedly.

Harry shook his head, "I don't want to see that nightmare again."

Madeline peaked at him through the shield of hair and fallen in front of her face, "Mind if I inquire as to what you nightmare was a about?"

Harry chewed his lip, "It was partially about the night my parents died, I have that dream at least once every two days. But then everything went black and I heard Voldemort cast the killing curse, I hear his voice Maddie…and it was so real…"

He paused and shifted so that he faced her, "Do you know how sick and tired of seeing that green flash of light I am?"

"I can only imagine yet at the same time, it never gets old it never stops scaring you."

Harry nodded, "And your dream, what was it about?"

"This time it was the first time the Cruciatus curse was ever used on me," she stared off into the distance remembering the night she was forced to become a death eater.

"When did it happen?" Harry inquired.

Madeline shifted her gaze down to the sheets and smoothed them out, "It was right after my parents were killed, Voldemort called me into the room and I wasn't exactly sure what had happened to my parents until I walked in and saw their bodies on the floor. They weren't necessarily bad people, even in their involvement with the Dark Lord they tried their best to keep me away from it, to not get me involved with him…but when I walked into the room he had Belatrix convince me to join on my own free will. He sat down on his ruddy throne and watched while she used the Cruciatus curse on me. I wasn't aware that such magic existed at that point and I was mortified by the pain and I couldn't fathom that magic could have been that evil…I was just a little kid after all." She paused, "I was tortured well into the night and partially into the morning until I finally broke, I begged to join them, I pleaded if only to make the pain stop. I wouldn't have been able to survive another curse. I had no choice, my family was gone and they were all I had left."

Harry stared at her, he didn't know what to say so he just looked. Madeline had come a long way from the crazy mess of a girl he met only a month or so before. Her dark hair was long and combed out cascading down her left shoulder her pallid skin glowed in the minimal moonlight that shone through the dusty window. Harry couldn't decided whether her eyelashes were darker or equally as dark as her hair but they were think and long curling upward to give her a doe eyed effect. Her cheeks had a slight pink tint to them whether it was because she was in bed with him, he didn't know. And her soft pink and full lips were set in a frown as she reminisced on the day that ruined her life. She was truly a beautiful girl.

Dawn seemed to follow midnight with indecent haste.

"You look terrible," was Ron's greeting as the two teenagers entered the downstairs kitchen. She was being served coffee and hot rolls by Kreacher and wearing a slightly manic expression hat Harry associated with exam review.

"Not for long," said Harry, yawning.

"Robes, she said under her breath, acknowledging their presence with a nervous nod and continuing to poke around in her beaded bag, "Polyjuice Potion… Invisibility Cloak…Decoy Detonators…You should each take a couple just in case…Puking Pastilles, Nosebleed Nougat, Extendable Ears…"

They gulped down their breakfast then set off upstairs, Kreacher bowing them out and promising to have a steak and kidney pie ready for them when they returned.

"Bless him," said Ron fondly, "and when you think I used to fantasize about cutting off his head and sticking it on the wall."

They made their way onto the front step with immense caution: They could see a couple of puffy-eyed Death Eaters watching the house form across the misty square.

Madeline was first to leave, having never learned proper apparating she relied on her death eaters apparition which was more reliable and faster, although it required dark magic. The golden trio watched in awe as her body faded into a thick black vapour before quickly seeping out from the bottom of the cloak and whizzing outward to her destination. The death eaters watched the black vapor knowing it belonged to one of their own and did not seem alarmed. Harry let out of a breath he didn't know he was holding in as he watched her form retreat.

Madeline zipped through the air with ungodly speed and precision before her vaporized self settled in the tiny alleyway where the first phrase of their plan was scheduled to take place. A few minutes later Hermione arrive with Ron before dissapparating to fetch Harry.

"I don't think I want to learn how to apparate," Madeline said offhandedly.

Ron raised an eyebrow and leaned against the opposite alley wall which was dirty and dingy but he seemed not to notice, "Why?"

"Because it's slow, I had to wait at least three minutes for you two to get here," she answered.

Ron's eye's bulged just as a loud crack sounded and Harry and Hermione arrive, "three minutes? Blimey apparating is supposed to be instantaneous travel."

Madeline shrugged, "I suppose it is but Vaporizing yourself is much faster, I suppose there must be a way to achieve it with regular magic so that I don't have to use dark arts…"

Once Hermione had gathered her bearings she began to go over the plan again quickly, "Right then," said Hermione, checking her watch. "She ought to be here in about five minutes."

"Hermione, we know," said Ron sternly. "And I thought we were supposed to open the door before she got here?"

Hermione squealed.

"I nearly forgot! Stand back—"

Ron, Harry, and Madeline took a few steps back as Hermione pointed her wand at the padlock and door beside them that was heavily graffitied, which burst open with a crash. The dark corridor behind it led, as they knew from their careful scouting trips, into an empty theatre. Hermione pulled the door back toward her, to make it look as though it was still closed.

"Right then Madeline get into position," she said turning back to face the others in the alleyway, "Let's put on the cloak again—"

"—and wait," Ron finished, throwing it over Hermione like a blanket over a birdcage and rolling his eyes at Harry and Madeline before climbing in with her quickly followed by Harry.

Madeline stood in the darkness vaporized, she looked like an apparition in the darkness. Like a dark mass darker than the night that you may see if you stare too much at a spot before you go to bed. The door opened to reveal a young witch who from what Madeline understood from her scouting was very loose and provocative. The witch wore a very low cut black shirt paired with a tight black pencil skirt and sky high heels. Madeline rolled her eyes, "Slut." She whispered her insult before materializing in front of the witch.

The witch gasped and pulled out her wand shakily," Y-you're—"

"Madeline McCorpe, yes," Maddie said dangerously, she was milking the dramatics.

"But you're hel-helping Potter," The witch stuttered.

"No I help myself," Madeline paused while she examined her wand, "Now if you please, we can do this the easy way or the hard way."

"A-are you going to kill me?"

Madeline rolled her eyes, "No you fool, I'm just going to hurt you…badly." Suddenly she received a swift kick from the nothingness behind her.

"Oh alright, alright—" She raised her wand, "Stupefy." As easily as that the witch went down and Hermione threw the cloak off of them in a flurry.

"What was that?" She demanded.

"I was having a bit of fun, 'Mione, calm down." She said as she plucked the hairs off of the woman.

"We don't have time for fun or calming down!" Hermione scolded.

"Give her a break Hermione she got what she needed to get done, done." Ron reasoned.

Madeline rolled her eyes and put the hairs in the potion that Hermione was holding watching it transform into a light pink color before she gulped it down and cringed. Her skin bubbled and to form of the witch she just knocked out as Ron rummaged through her purse.

"Her name is Ashley Burkehart, here take her handbag there are three tokens in it as well." He handed her the bag which was a stylish oversized hobo bag and Maddie slung it over her shoulder after she dressed in the woman's clothes.

"Time to get into character," she said winking and Harry and blowing him a kiss which caused him to blush.

"Stop messing around and go stand watch," Hermione scolded obviously annoyed.

"Just because I look like a whore, doesn't mean you can treat me like a prostitute!" Madeline laughed as she quickly dodged a spell Hermione threw at her and ducked around the corner.

Soon after the three rejoined her looking particularly odd, Hermione was an old lady, Ron was a sniveling pale man, and Harry was a large overbearing man who towered over her at least two feet.

"Well then, don't we look like a burly bunch," Maddie offered attempting to lighten the mood once more earning a glare from Hermione.

They stepped out into the sunlight together. Fifty yards along the crowded pavement there were spiked railings flanking two flights of steps, one labeled GENTLEMEN, the other LADIES.

"See you two in a moment then," said Hermione nervously, and she and Madeline tottered down the steps to LADIES.

When Madeline walked in the other women began to whisper among themselves and stare pointedly at Maddie, "Just because I've slept with all of your husbands and boyfriends doesn't mean that I'm a bad person ladies." The women glared but became silent.

"What was that?" Hermione hissed.

"That was me playing the part," Madeline said cooly.

"Where supposed to be blending in."

"How would I be blending in if this lady was a center of attention kind of girl?"

Hermione didn't say anything she knew Madeline was correct. Both Madeline and Hermione took the two adjacent stalls and closed the door. "What do we do?" Madeline whispered.

Hermione peaked her head under stall to see a witch climb into the toilet, "We climb in," she whispered back.

"Climb in?" Madeline repeated horrified more to herself than anyone else. She sneered and the toilet and gingerly clambered in cringing at the thought of her feet getting wet with toilet water. She opened her eyes carefully when she felt none to see that she was standing above the water completely dry. She looked around the stall for a clue as what to do next and remembered the abundance of flushing.

"Flushing? Are these people mad?" She muttered to herself before pulling the chain and being sucked down the short chute, emerging out of a fireplace and into the Ministry of Magic.

She let out a sigh of relief and turned to see Hermione clambering out of the fireplace to her right, "That was horrifying," Hermione squeaked.

"Tell me about it, come on lets go find the boys," She led the way as they walked through the bustling terminal and spotted Harry's tall stature a few yards away. Suddenly Madeline felt her bum being pinched and snapped around angrily almost breaking character. She heard Hermione squeak in fright before hiding behind a statue.

"Hey there Ashley, you're looking lively today," a grimy wizard drawled.

Madeline felt her nostril's flare with disgust and a look as if she were going to be sick passed on her face if only for a second before she forced a seductive grin on hoping to Merlin that she was doing it correctly and not making a total fool out of herself, "You too cutie. Broom closet, first floor, ten minutes?" She offered hoping she wasn't coming off too strongly or too obvious.

"You got it babe, see you there in a few," the grimy wizard replied before disappearing into the crowd.

"What was that?" Hermione hissed from behind the statue.

Madeline joined her, "I don't know, I was just going with it and oh-he was so gross. I think I'm going to be sick." She squealed in her own voice jumping up and down and shaking her hands as if she were shaking water off of them.

"Oh wait, look, here they come. Psst!"

Harry looked around and spotted them behind the statue before tapping Ron's shoulder and joining them. "You got in all right, then?" Hermione whispered to Harry earning a look from Madeline that practically asked out loud if she was a loon.

"No, he's still stuck in the bog," said Ron, Madeline snorted.

"Oh, very funny…it's horrible, isn't it?" she said to Harry, Madeline followed their gaze to the rather large statue in the middle of the room that she was just now noticing. It was a dominating black statue of a witch and wizard sitting on ornately carved thrones, looking down at the Ministry workers toppling out of the fireplaces below them. Engraved in foot-high letters at the base of the statue were the worlds MAGIC IS MIGHT.

"Muggles," whispered Hermione, "In their rightful place."

Madeline squinted her eyes to get a closer look to see the decoratively carved thrones were actually mounds of carved humans: hundred and hundred of naked bodies, men, women, and children, all with rather stupid, ugly faces, twisted and pressed together to support the weight of the handsomely robed wizards.

"Let's get going."