Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Harry Potter. If I did I would be a far richer man. And I'd be a woman.

AN: Again, thanks to my beta, Grey Raven 09. This chapter is a bit of a beast, and definitely longer than the norm for this fic so I hope everyone enjoys the extra portion. Also, Happy New Year!

Please enjoy and let me know what you think in a review if you feel like it!

Chapter 11: Exodus

"Dear can you get that? I have breakfast on the stove!" Dora heard her mother yell from beyond the door's boundary as the ring of the doorbell died. She snorted in amusement at the "Yes, dear," reply. Her father was a wonderful man and a fantastic lawyer, but he was also a person who chose his battles well. A battle over getting the door was not a winning battle. Especially not when loss of breakfast was the losing condition.

As the door opened her father stared at her for a brief instant before a smile spread from ear to ear and he reached forward to pull her into a hug. "Dora! Welcome home sweetheart. You're just in time; your mother has pancakes and bacon almost done."

"That's good to know Dad, but I'm not really here for food," Dora replied chuckling. She allowed herself a few moments to bask in the warmth of the hug before pulling back. Her hair shifted to match Ted's chocolate brown as she stepped into the foyer and followed him into the kitchen. "Wotcher, Mum. How're things in the land of the outcasts?"

"Same as usual," Andromeda replied. Dora didn't have to see her mother's face to see the eye roll accompanying the reply. "Sit. Food. Then business."

"I really don't have time, Mum, I – " Dora cut off as Andromeda gestured offhand with the wooden spatula and she was forcibly shoved into the nearby kitchen table and a plate flew from the cabinet to land in front of her with silverware right behind it.

"Sit. Food. Then business."

Dora resisted the urge to groan at her mother's antics though just barely. Their one-upmanship games could become rather interesting at times if she let herself truly get into them. "Mum, I appreciate the gesture – and the display of wandless spellwork is impressive by the way – but this is actually important. And I really do have a few other stops to make."

"Compromise then?" Ted asked with a smile. He sat himself down across from Dora and poured them both some juice. "Business while we eat? Andi honey, does that work?" He winked at Dora as Andromeda sighed dramatically and flipped off the stove.

"Fine, fine. But you promise to finish at least one pancake before you leave or so help me, girl!"

"Mum!"

"What? You're skinny!"

"Because I work out, Mum! And in case you forgot I'm a Metamorph," Dora retorted. "I can be as fat or as skinny as I want." Just for emphasis she ballooned her belly out to Slughorn levels until Andromeda glared at her then dropped it back down to normal.

As the food was plated her father looked over to Dora shoving half of the pancake into her too-large-for-normal-humans mouth and smirked. "So, Dora, to what do we owe this honor?"

She glared around the huge mouthful of food at him and completely ignored his chuckles. It was her own fault for being greedy of course, but she'd never let him know that. Finally swallowing, she took a breath and sat up straighter before replying. "Mum, Dad, you need to pack up the home, and leave the country. As soon as possible. I'll be following behind you as will my cousins; all three of them."

Ted's fork clattered to his plate and his mouth fell open. Andromeda's response was far more measured though the way her eyes narrowed and the tightening of her fingers on the knife belied her actual feelings on Dora's proclamation. "And just how what is causing this declaration of doom, child?"

"Voldemort is on the cusp of returning and we're abandoning the country."

"But, but you're an Auror!" Ted exclaimed pointing a finger at her. "How can you just leave?! Dora! We taught you better than this! And – "

"Ted," Andromeda laid a soft hand on his arm and he quieted though the scathing glare he directed towards his wife did force a grimace onto her face. Andromeda turned back to Dora and waved towards her. "Go on, sweetheart. Obviously something major has occurred. Why don't you start with why Sirius is included in the list of those we are protecting."

"Wait, that's who you meant by third cousin?" Ted asked scowling. "What the bloody hell makes you think that? The man is a murderer, Andi. She's probably talking about Draco Malfoy."

"Draco?" Dora exclaimed pulling back and nearly hissing the name. Her hair flamed to a vibrant red and her teeth grew pointed. She scowled and had to concentrate hard to get her teeth back to something normal so she could talk. "No. Not Draco. Draco is dead, and good riddance to the little wannabe rapist."

Andromeda nodded. "Harry and Rose?"

"Yes."

"What?" Ted whipped his head back and forth between the two women before finally sighing and pushing his chair back from the table. "This is a Black Family conversation isn't it? I'm not going to be able to follow the two of you at all."

Andromeda grimaced again and squeezed her husband's hand hard. "Honey, that's a good thing. You're a good man. My family is…not."

"Our family is not evil, Mum," Dora said scowling.

"No, but we are not good either. Now go on, Nymphadora. Tell us everything."

Dora nodded. Her hair faded back to a jet black as she started talking. "Sirius is innocent. He was never Secret Keeper, it was Peter. He got screwed by the Aurors who never bothered to question him or give him a trial. When he got out, he tried to protect Harry and Rose from Peter. They found out the truth. Snape tried to kill Sirius and Harry and make Rose his bitch; literally. It didn't work obviously. Lupin lost all of their – and by extension mine – trust after he was more concerned with their relationship than that Snape just tried to use him to murder them. Someone has recently entered Harry into the Tournament this year attempting to get him to a meeting with Voldemort where the wanker is going to be resurrected using Harry in a ritual. We've messed with that original idea enough that things are in flux on that front so we're not sure if he's still planning that or playing speed chess. Right now, all we know for certain is that Voldemort is coming back."

Andromeda nodded. "The two are fully involved then?"

Dora sighed and crossed her arms as she leaned forward on the table. "Please don't tell them that I was the one to tell you."

"I suspected it for a long time, dear. Most of the old families probably do judging by how they interact with each other, both in public and private. Skeeter's story recently just confirmed things. I can read between the lines. Most of what the woman writes it utter horseshit, but there is always a grain of truth somewhere. I will, however, keep your name out of it, should it ever come up," Andromeda replied shrugging.

"Thanks, Mum." Dora snapped her fingers and continued quickly, "Oh, almost forgot, Gabrielle is also with them, so don't forget that. They get touchy about it."

"Understood." Andromeda chuckled. "Now, why are we abandoning Britain entirely? Sirius' treatment is horrid yes, but nothing new and the twins have been rather beset by the public for quite some time."

Dora knew her hair was turning red again and felt her teeth sharpening though she didn't even bother trying to stop it this time. "That's just it, Mum. They've never not been attacked! Every year it's something! Even when they're doing everything they can to help the people around them, all that happens is they get shit on. They saved that Lovegood girl and they nearly get beaten by the Ravenclaws. They show that Sirius didn't get a trial and they are accused of being liars and spellbound. They fight against the Death Eaters at the World Cup and they're a hair's breadth away from being arrested! Now they're being attacked for being cheaters despite this Tournament not being their fault, Skeeter is targeting them, Snape tried to fucking enslave Rose, and Dumbledore wants to separate them and send her back to her rapist uncle!" Dora's fists were balled and slammed against the table by the end of her rant and the world had taken on a distinct yellowish tint like it usually did when she truly let herself go. She pulled back and sat back down trying to force the rage down and at minimum get her yellow, slitted eyes back to more normal ones.

"I never should've let you watch those movies as a child. You always did think demons made for the best intimidation," Andromeda sighed, shaking her head. "Okay. So I understand now why we are angry with the Ministry, Hogwarts and Dumbledore in particular. Can I assume that you had a hand in Snape's 'disappearance' as well?"

Dora nodded. "After the fact. Helped with the alibi. It wasn't planned on their part."

"Well that's good to hear at least, though I do hope they are ruthless enough to take the necessary actions. If we are planning to leave the country to Voldemort it could become quite ugly for them."

"Mum…You really, really don't have to worry about those three being ruthless. They can be…scary when they are the warpath. Imagine a focused Aunt Bella with a bit more stability and rounded out between three different people to smooth down the rough edges."

"Oh my, that does sound intimidating. I'm surprised there haven't been more deaths if that's the case," Andromeda said smirking and laughing a bit.

Dora frowned and shook her head. "Mum, things have changed recently. I can't tell you why, it's not my secret to tell. They're more focused, but less stable. The important thing is that I'm trying to make sure that they keep their attention only on the people who deserve it. Helping them get out of the country and get their friends out should make that a lot easier."

"And then we can help them all heal from whatever trauma has caused the change." Andromeda nodded. "You know the cause?"

"I do."

"It's justified?"

"It is."

"And – Nymphadora I need you to be completely honest with me here – do you feel like we are justified with abandoning Britain to its fate? I am not asking you as Harry and Rose's guardian. I am not asking you as their friend. I am asking you. Is this the correct course of action? Have the people fallen so far that someone with your principles feels comfortable leaving them to fend for themselves?"

Dora scowled and nodded as she crossed her arms across her chest. "If the people of this country care enough about their safety, then they can fight their own bloody war, mother. I will not protect them after what they have done – and will do – to my family."

Andromeda smiled and reached over the table to squeeze her daughter's hand with a surprising amount of warmth. "I knew I raised you right. I'll get the bags. You finish your bacon and then go collect the other parents on your list, sweetheart."

Ted just looked between the two grinning women and rubbed his temples. "I swear I will never understand this bloody family."

Sirius Black whistled as he strolled up the long walkway towards the front door of the mansion ahead of him. It wasn't quite as lavish as the Malfoys or as nondescript as his old family manor however it was quite impressive. The gargoyles and the hedge maze just visible around the side where very nice touches indeed.

He grinned as the front door swung open just before he could raise his hand to knock. It was oh so nice to have some punctual friends. "Catherine! Long time no see! How have you been?"

"Better than you, Sirius," Catherine Greengrass replied, her wand pointed towards his groin. Her husband standing just behind her was a bit more kind with his wand pointed towards Sirius' chest. "Azkaban not suit you, old friend?"

"Nah, the meals were shite and the guards weren't very chatty. But why talk about old abodes? I'm here to talk about new ones! Nice place by the way. You could probably use a fountain though." He gestured vaguely towards the front lawn and shrugged.

"I told you it needed a water piece," Marcus Greengrass murmured to his wife. Shaking his head he continued louder. "Why are you here, Mr. Black? We remained neutral during the last war and have no interest in aligning with the Dark Lord's faction openly during the coming one either. If you are here to intimidate us, I respectfully request you leave our property."

Sirius clutched his heart and gasped. "Intimidate? Little old me? Never! I already told you, I'm here to talk about new accommodations." He paused for long enough that Catherine's wand twitched and her eyes narrowed. Finally Sirius rolled his eyes and said, "And I'm not with Snake Face. I never was. Ask your wife, she knows me better than that Lord Greengrass. I'm here on behalf of Harry and Rose Potter, Gabrielle Delacour, and your daughter, Daphne."

"What proof do we have that you support the Potters?" Catherine asked frowning. "From what I understand you were their Secret Keeper. Their great betrayer in fact."

Sirius scowled. "Peter did a really good frame job without having to actually try that hard on that one. To answer your question, Cat, Astoria's favorite color is sea glass green colored red and pink by seashells. Now is that actually her favorite color or is it just a funny passphrase? Because if it is, your daughter is beyond adorable!"

Catherine and Marcus immediately both lowered their wands and laughed as smiles crossed their faces. Both moved back from the door and waved Sirius in behind them. "Believe it or not, it is her favorite color. She only ever describes it that way with family though otherwise it's just 'sea glass green'. Alright, as much as I would love for an explanation as to the past, I get the feeling that the future is more important, Mr. Black," Marcus said still laughing as he led the way to a sitting room and gestured for them all to sit. A house elf popped in and left a plate of biscuits and tea on the table before quickly leaving the trio alone.

"It's Lord Black actually," Sirius replied reaching for a biscuit and nearly melting at the taste. "Mmm, my compliments to the chef! Anyway, my father never took me off the family registry so I'm family head. Funny how things work out eh, Cat?"

"Indeed," Catherine sighed. "Siri, look, we can play this game all day or you can cut to the chase. What's going on?"

"Man, where did the fun loving snake girl I used to know go?" Sirius asked wincing.

"She grew up and had two precocious daughters. Now start talking mister."

Sirius held up his hands and laughed. "Alright, alright, I got it, I got it! So basically, I'm here to tell you that you should start moving as many assets as you can overseas. The Potters are heading to Australia at the end of the school year and while it hasn't been officially confirmed, the Tonks are probably following along."

Marcus frowned as he leaned forward to focus on Sirius better. "Just why do we in particular get this warning?"

"Your oldest has been good to my godchildren. Daphne has helped them out and they have a mutually beneficial arrangement. We weren't sure if she had told you yet to start moving out of the country so we thought in case she had and you hadn't believed her, I'd come over and lend some weight to her words."

"Daphne has mentioned that she's been working for powerful players and helping to clean up messes for them," Catherine said softly. "Well slap my arse and call me Molly, she finally got in with the bloody Potters…How deep in is she? I'm guessing fairly deep if you're doing favors for her."

"My godchildren consider her a full ally and she's rapidly approaching 'friend' status. That's a pretty big deal for them."

Marcus' frown deepened. "Daphne is not the type to make friends. Astoria, certainly; the poor girl doesn't have an ounce of deception or malevolence in her. But Daphne is not a very…pleasant person."

Sirius just shrugged. "I honestly can't comment, Marcus. I've yet to meet her. I only know what Harry and Rose have said and they both trust Daphne has their backs."

"That does sound like her," Marcus said. "If she thought they would allow her to speak for them later on…The Potter twins are notorious about their hatred of being in the limelight after all and Daphne rather basks in playing politics despite her young age. She would fully support them if only to secure them as allies in the future."

"Whatever her motives, as long as she's loyal, that's what matters to them." Sirius leaned back into his seat and steepled his fingers most of the levity leaving his features and his face settling down into the mask of stone that left no illusions about his previous abode. "Catherine, Marcus, make no mistake about what I am telling you. If you value your lives and lives of your daughters you need to leave the country by the end of the school year. Voldemort is on his way back to power and we are not intending to stop him."

Catherine reared back and Marcus blinked repeatedly. "I'm sorry, can you repeat that?" she choked out. "The Potters are not fighting the murderer of their parents?"

"That's correct," Sirius said. "They never knew their parents. They do however know how the people of the UK have treated them. It has not been kind. From Muggle to Magical, the attitude has been fairly consistent with only a few exceptions. Daphne has been one of those exceptions, so she is being rewarded with a warning. We are leaving Britain to fend for itself and fight its own civil war – without its punching bag figureheads. If you wish to come with us and setup anew with our families' professional relationship intact please feel free. We intend to move to Australia; I'll send you the details shortly."

Marcus wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders and pulled her against his side staring at Sirius. "What happens if we say we wish to stay?" he asked, a note of steel entering his voice.

Sirius shrugged his shoulders ever so slightly. "Then I leave and wish you luck. I'll tell Harry, Rose, and Gabrielle this evening your decision. From there I can pretty much guarantee they will inform your daughter and from the impression I've gotten of her, Daphne isn't going to rest until she has browbeaten you into agreeing to leave. Or at least to let her and Astoria take a few months holiday to see if our information pans out."

Catherine's smile was thin, but genuine. "You're probably right about that. You wouldn't take any reprisals against us or any ensure our silence on this matter?"

"We are not Death Eaters, Cat." Sirius sighed as he leaned forward shaking his head. "The teens are tired and they just want to be left alone. Tonks and I are helping them to get away from everything and everyone. While we do so, we're helping them get the people they consider to be friends to safety as well."

Catherine nodded slowly. "They don't want their allies hurt just because they've decided to leave Britain to reap what it has sown. Okay. Thank you for the warning, Sirius. Marcus and I have much to discuss. I believe we will be moving the majority of our holdings to new territories shortly."

"Good to hear." He smiled as he stood up and shook Marcus' hand before engulfing Catherine in a brief hug. "I hope I'll be seeing you both soon. Alrighty, I better get going. Places to be, things to see, people to do."

"Sirius," Catherine sighed as they walked to the door while rolling her eyes at the man. "If you see my daughter before I do, please tell her that I hope she has chosen her side well."

"She did, Cat. She did."

"21, 23, ah here we go, 25." Dora smiled as she finally found the correct address for the Granger residence and stepped up gate. It was a quaint little house in the suburbs complete with a picket fence and everything. The rather expensive car in the driveway was quite impressive. "Guess dentistry pays well," she muttered to herself as she stopped at the door and knocked. This was supposed to be their day off so hopefully they would be home and this wouldn't be a waste of time.

Happily, the door quickly swung open after only a few seconds revealing a middle-aged man who was quite obviously Hermione's father. Dora had only met the bookworm two or three times, but the bushy hair was memorable. While the man didn't have much in the way of hair, it was more than enough to show just where Hermione had received her genes from. Plus, Dora made it a point to internalize faces as a rule anyway just in case she ever needed to morph into someone specific and his features strongly reminded her of Hermione.

"Hello. Can I help you?"

"Wotcher, I'm Dora Tonks," Dora said thrusting her hand forward and grinning wide. "I know your daughter, though I'm more friends with her friends: Harry and Rose Potter. I'm technically their guardian if you want to be all official about it."

Mr. Granger raised one hand to cover his mouth while his other reached out to take the proffered handshake. "Oh my! You're that Tonks! Hermione has told us so much about you and how amazing you were to take her friends in like that. Please, come in. How can I help you?"

"Aww, that's sweet. Thanks, Mr. Granger." Just for fun, as the door closed Dora changed her hair to a bright bubblegum pink. The ear-to-ear grin from the man was totally worth it.

"Please, dear, it's Richard. You're not in school anymore after all."

"Yeah, thank Merlin for that," Dora agreed sitting down on the arm of the proffered easy chair while Richard took the main couch. "Is your wife home too?"

"She's at the gym actually. Why, is this about Hermione?" Richard asked.

Dora did an odd head shake and nod that almost unbalanced her enough to knock her from her perch. Momentarily cursing her own clumsiness Dora said, "No, not really, but also yes sorta. So both yes and no. Essentially, we need to talk about what's going down in a few weeks and some preparations that your family should really be taking starting right now."

"That doesn't sound very promising," Richard said the smile dropping from his face and his posture straightening up. "I'd even go as far as saying that almost sounds downright ominous."

Dora nodded and let her hair shift back to a muted black. "It's supposed to."

"Perhaps we should back up a bit then." Richard rubbed the bridge of his nose and frowned. "Are we in immediate danger? I gather Hermione is not, otherwise she would be here with you, or you would be conducting this meeting in a far more urgent fashion."

Dora chuckled. "Oh yeah, definitely see the family relation here. The danger isn't immediate, no, but it's going to become so within a few months at minimum, possibly sooner. How much has Hermione told you about the Blood War a few decades back?"

"Next to nothing," Richard said snorting. "I believe she was trying to sugarcoat the Wizarding World's history. She forgets however that she is not the only one with access to books and other resources. Squibs can apparently enter Diagon Alley without issues so even when she is away at school, it's fairly easy for my wife and I to do a bit of research on our own into this world that Hermione is a part of. We will not lose our daughter just because she has magic and we don't."

Dora was shocked by that little tidbit of information enough that she did fall off her perch onto the chair proper. "Wait, wait, wait! You two are Squibs?!"

"Hmm? Oh, no not us! They are easy to find though once you know what to look for. Disillusioned folk who seemingly pop up out of nowhere with such a disturbing lack of life skills and knowledge that you wonder how they ever managed to live beforehand? That's a Squib. Every. Time." Richard shrugged and pointed towards a rolodex on the desk in the corner. "I have a weekly golf game with three Squibs now, a bowling tournament with another group and Amber has set up a book club with some of the others."

Dora gaped wider than should be possible for a normal mouth to open. It took her almost ten seconds to recover. "Okay. You two, you guys are scary. No wonder Rose and Gabi turned to your daughter for help when they needed to break the bloody universe."

"Break the universe?" Richard asked frowning. He leaned forward and cupped his hands together. "Now this is getting interesting. We're not just talking theoretical are we?"

"Yeah, I'm not saying anymore on that topic." Dora shook her head and waved her hands in front of her. "I've said way too much already, and you probably will already figure it out before we're done as it is if you can apparently track down half the country's Squibs without even trying."

"Fair enough."

"So. Yeah, Blood War. You know about it apparently. Voldemort is coming back fairly soon. If you've been following the Triwizard Tournament you can probably read between the lines there."

Richard sighed and leaned back, nodding. "We were all getting a bit worried that it seemed to be heading in that direction what with poor Harry's inclusion. The boy is violently protective of his sister; he'd never willingly let himself be entered into a deadly competition that could take his protection away from her. If he's being setup and the Death Eaters are active again, it stands to reason that Voldemort is on the rise."

Dora scowled and tried to wring the Minister's neck by willpower alone. "Why can't we have more people using logic in the magical world? This would be easy then! Arg!"

"It's probably better not to ask that question, dear. That way leads to madness," Richard said with a smirk.

"You're telling me. Okay, well this is going a heck of a lot easier than I had expected. Look, when he comes back, I'm taking the Potters and some friends and we're leaving. We're planning to head to Australia. I know that Sally-Anne Perks is already enrolled in Beauxbatons so if you want to keep Hermione in one of the other major institutes while getting the hell out of Dodge that's a good option."

That finally seemed to set Richard off balance as he sucked in a large breath and pulled back from her as if he'd been hit. "You're not intending to fight these psychopaths? What about everyone – " He cut off and frowned. A moment later he got up and headed towards the desk in the corner. Returning with a paper in hand he flipped the page and Dora saw an image of the Daily Prophet. Her hair flipped momentarily to orange before she pulled it back under control. Rita wasn't worth the rage. Not just yet at least. That was for later…

"Well…fuck," Richard muttered as he flipped the page again. He tossed the paper onto the table and fell back onto the couch with a heavy sigh. "Your kids have given up on the populace and with this thing you don't even care to try to talk them out of it do you?"

Dora shook her head and gave him a small, sad smile that did nothing to touch her eyes. "It's a lot more than just the paper and the population of idiots, Richard. Those three have a bad life. They just want to be left alone and that's never going to happen here. I can't ask them to fight a war that they have no business being a part of. Especially not for people who keep trying to hurt them every time the opportunity arises. It's not right and it's not what family does for each other."

"No, no it isn't. Dammit." He wiped a hand down his face and fell silent. Dora let him think for a few minutes. Finally he continued on softly. "The good side isn't going to win is it?"

"I'm not really so sure there is a good side anymore, Richard," Tonks replied just as muted.

"The Ministry isn't ready for a war. Not without a figurehead to lead it."

"Dumbledore will still be here. There's a chance."

"Fudge won't allow it. He's a fool of the highest caliber, we had one of his ilk a few years back on our side of the veil. He'll sideline the Headmaster while steeped in denial and that'll be that."

Dora smirked, her eyes no longer seeing the living room but Voldemort and Dumbledore dueling each other on the parade ground. "Oh don't worry about that. We're going to make damn sure that Voldy and Dumbles have a nice little battle out in public before we go. We can't expect to be left alone unless both sides are too busy dealing with each other to come looking for little old us."

Richard nodded. "Good strategy. I doubt it'll work, but it gives you a head start at least." He slapped his knees and stood up to grab a piece of paper and a pen proffering it to her. "Here, I don't suppose you happen to have a telephone do you? Or the address to your new abode? Hermione's going to want to write."

"Don't have the address yet, but I'll give you my number," Dora replied taking the pad. "Do you intend to leave as well?"

"Most likely. I'll have to talk it over with Amber, but I imagine we will be moving, yes. We'll probably go to France though rather than Australia. All three of us speech French to varying degrees and we have a relative with a summer home there that we can borrow for a bit until the practice is sold. I'll have to tell our friends here as well you understand. I'm not abandoning them."

"Of course. Just keep it as quiet for now as you can."

Richard snorted. "Oh no worries about that. Who would believe me anyway? I can't exactly say that I got my warning from the foreknowledge of a set of time-traveling twins, their half-bird girlfriend, and their shape-shifting guardian angel."

Dora groaned and slapped her forehead. "Not. One. Word."

Richard laughed and mimed zipping his lips shut. "Amber and I shall take their secret to our graves. Go, Dora Tonks, go, you have a lot to do and I have a practice to sell and a group of angry Squibs to round up!"

Tracey Davis glared at the second year that had the misfortune to step into her path as she walked back to her dorm room. The poor kid took one look at the twitching vein on her forehead and her narrowed eyes and immediately held up his hands in surrender and scurried away in the opposite direction. His reaction just increased her bad mood further. It wasn't her fault that she was scaring little kids now was it? When had being 'Slytherin' meant being a bloody evil, conniving bastard?

This wasn't what she'd signed on for.

Slamming the door to the room Tracey stalked over to Daphne's bed and crossed her arms over her chest tapping her foot on the floor. She waited just long enough for her oldest friend to acknowledge her presence before launching into her tirade. "Six. Hours. Six. Bloody. Fucking. HOURS! I had to play nice and friendly with those pigs and their bitchy whore for six hours,Daphne!"

"…Congratulations?" Daphne said cocking her head to one side and peering up at Tracey. Her confusion just had the brunette grinding her teeth in anger.

"What am I getting out of this information? You want me to be a Slytherin? Fine. I'll play your petty game, Daph. I had to laugh at their jokes and let them ogle me for hours. Vincent slapped my fucking arse. And I had to pretend to like it! You owe me! BIG! Now what am I getting!"

Daphne just continued to stare at her for another moment before her face lit up and a shark-like grin spread on her face as she jumped to clasp hands with Tracey. "Minions 1 and 2 and Airhead 1? So they do actually know how Rita gets onto the grounds without anyone knowing? Excellent! This is fantastic!"

"My payment, Daph." If Daphne wanted her to play the part of the evil snake, she'd be the evil bloody snake. No one dismissed Tracey Davis as a mere hanger-on.

"Yes, of course." Daphne stood up straight and let her hands fall back to her side, adopting the regal family pose that she used whenever she was involved in formal business. Tracey despised that pose so much. "A warning for the info. Acting on said warning in order to affect an appropriate response is your prerogative. I recently received word from my family that we are already taking our own measures so I highly recommend you don't simply ignore it, though if you want to take your chances I can't really stop you."

"That's it? Bullshit. Not worth it. Get someone else to be your errand boy."

"It is a very important warning."

Tracey outwardly scowled deeper putting Snape to shame. Inwardly she was caving. If Daphne was willing to trade the warning for dirt on Skeeter this might be a very important indeed. Daphne was anything but impulsive. "I want a favor too; to be determined later."

Daphne nodded almost immediately. "Deal. Now tell me, how does she do it?!"

Tracey hissed and resisted the urge to scream. "Why do I get the feeling that this was what you had expected me to ask for?"

"Because you're smart, sweetie. Now please, Tracey, stop stalling."

"Oh you are so infuriating!" Tracey yelled kicking the bed and gasping at the pain in her toe before glaring at the bed and her friend in turn. "If that was your angle then I want more. A date too."

Daphne frowned and crossed her arms, considering. "That is asking for a bit much, Tracey. You know that I don't really harbor romantic feelings for anyone at this point."

"You were quick enough to loosen your shirt when Cho Chang had the answers to that test last semester," Tracey retorted.

"That was business not pleasure," Daphne replied with a sigh. "I'm trying not to get your hopes up. How about we compromise with a kiss?"

"Arg, fine, whatever!" Tracey exclaimed throwing her hands to the ceiling in defeat. "I feel like I can never win with you! She's an animagus. A stupid, fat, little beetle thing with little circle marks on the back that look kinda like eyeglasses supposedly. What's the warning?"

"Oh of course she'd be something small and mobile, I should've suspected that…" Daphne shook her head and sighed. "Stupid. Alright, well you certainly earned that reward, Tracey. Here's your warning. Get out. Get your father to listen to you by any means necessary and get the hell out of this country as soon as the school year is over."

Tracey froze, the throbbing in her foot and the simmering need to smash something forgotten in an instant. Twisting slowly to fixate fully on Daphne, she said, "I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Use whatever influence you have as the Heir of your House, Tracey and convince your father to get your family out of the line of fire. I don't know exactly what's coming though I have my suspicions. All I know for certain is that my allies are powerful and they are pulling back and have advised me to do so as well. My family sent me a letter this morning explaining that we are moving to Australia this summer as well. I can read between the lines Tracey as can you."

"The Greengrasses are leaving Britain? You're a central family, one of the Sacred 28!"

"And that should tell you just how serious this is," Daphne said all joking and playfulness absent from her voice. Daphne let out of a soft sigh and reached out to squeeze Tracey's hand. "Tracey, I know I am not always a good friend. I know that I am not a particularly pleasant person, yet trust me when I say this: I would like to see you safe. Please leave this country when the year is over. Even if your father won't go with you, enroll in Beauxbatons or Mahoutokoro or Ilvermorny or Durmstrang, I don't care. Just get somewhere safe. You're a half-blood in Slytherin, Tracey. You're marked. You need to leave."

Tracey gulped and nodded slowly. "Yeah. Yeah, maybe you're right. I'll talk to my dad. Can I wait until the school year is over?"

"I think so. I hope so. I haven't been told otherwise and my patrons are rather protective so I think you're fine to wait until school has ended. But watch yourself. Be careful, Trace; just in case."

"I will, Daph. I…thanks," Tracey murmured.

"Of course. I have few friends. I would like to keep those that I do have alive," Daphne said pulling her hand back and smiling wide. She shook herself and just like that the persona was back in place. "Now, if you'll excuse me I have a message to deliver."

The door swung shut before Tracey fully realized that Daphne was gone. With a sigh she sank down onto her bed. "I didn't even get my kiss…"

Rita Skeeter was riding on cloud nine. It had been a week and people were still talking about her latest article. That was nearly a century to a reporter. Well, to a reporter like her at least. She had to stay relevant after all and ensuring that her name forever remained on household lips was the way to do it. If she had to bend the truth a little bit here and there or embellish things every so often – okay, more often than not, but really who cared? – then really why shouldn't she take such steps? It was only the news after all. It's not like this was important.

If people were stupid enough to believe everything she wrote just because she wrote it how could that be her fault?

"Bozo get in here," she called out to her cameraman as he walked past her office. She had an office now! She'd never had an office before those stupid little twins started being making themselves such prime story material. Now at the rate she was going she was liable to have an entire wing! "Bozo, I need an opinion. Do we angle the next story on Harry Potter's obsession with Dark Magic or do we angle it on his obsession with his sister? We could always go for Rose Potter's lust for the female form too I suppose. That's sure to drum up the old buzzards."

"Dark Magic seems to be on the rise lately Rita. I'd say go with that," Bozo said nodding towards one of the articles she had laid out on the desk in front of her.

Rita nodded in thought. She rubbed her chin, shrugged and reached out to take the paper in hand. "Thank you Bozo that's all." As he walked out the door she frowned at the article, crumpled it into a ball and threw it over her shoulder. "Dark Magic, hmph. Tripe. No one cares about Dark Magic right now. Lesbians, that's where it's at! Rose Potter, it's time for your day in the limelight." Before she could reach for the other piece of parchment a voice rang out from the front of the office cutting through the hubbub of the Daily Prophet.

"Rita! Where is Rita? Rita! Get out here Rita!"

Rita scrambled to get around her desk and lunge into the central chambers of the room. Her editor was notorious for giving assignments to random people if he couldn't find the person he was looking for. Why he hadn't just gone to her office now that she had one though…well it didn't matter, she was here and she was going to get the assignment! "Johnson! I'm here, Johnson. Over here!"

"Oh good, you are here. Excellent," her editor said nodding and crossing his arms. Rita frowned; Johnson always said if you had time to cross your arms you had time to write. "Got word from a wealthy donor a few minutes ago. Their kid goes to Hogwarts. Apparently they have a juicy little tidbit. Requested you specifically. Something about how you already know the way in."

Rita's eyes widened and a shark's grin split her features. It had to be Parkinson. The little trollop had something new for her on the Potters. It was bound to be mostly useless, but whatever it was it would give her a perfect excuse to use a good quote for her next article and possibly even inspiration for the follow-on story. "Did they say what it was about, Johnson?"

"Of course not and I didn't ask. I'm just the editor, you expect me to track down your stories for you? That's what I pay you for, Rita." He sneered at her. "Now do you want this or do you want me to give it Eddy."

A muscle-bound man perked his head up over a cubicle with a camera hanging over his neck. The predatory gleam apparent from across the room. Rita scoffed at her 'colleague' and glared at Johnson. "As if anyone could do this better than me. I'll head over right away."

"No you won't."

"Excuse me?"

"They said to meet them at 6am tomorrow morning on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest near the Whomping Willow. Kids these days, they all think they're some sort of secret spy."

Rita chuckled along with him and rolled her eyes. "Yes, indeed they do. Alright, I'll be there. Thanks for the tip, Johnson. BOZO! Get your camera; we have to get the next issue ready immediately!"

Dora apparated onto the street near the Perks' residence a few minutes after she'd managed to shake off the reporters from the Daily Prophet. Becoming that sleazy editor had been utterly disgusting and the urge to take a shower was almost overwhelming. The man almost seemed to have no sense of personal hygiene not to mention his horrendous taste in 'stories' and 'editorials'. Shaking herself, Dora cast yet another cleaning charm over her clothes and tried to fix a smile onto her features. She had to keep up appearances after all and this was her last stop of the day.

She'd barely knocked before the door had been pulled open and a snobby, well-dressed couple looked out at her, rolled their eyes, stepped to the side, and waved her in. Dora's smile faltered though her steps, thankfully, did not as she followed Sally-Anne's parents into their living room. "Wotcher. So, err, I'm guessing you were expecting me…"

Mrs. Perks nodded and handed Dora a card from a bowling alley. Dora frowned trying to determine what she was supposed to be doing with that. "Richard called, dear."

Richard, Richard…Oh! Dora resisted a groan as the card suddenly made much more sense. "Ah. Well, I take it you're up to speed already then?"

"You've wasted a trip, Ms. Tonks," Mrs. Perks said rubbing the bridge of her nose and scowling. "Sally-Anne was already being removed from that death trap they call a school, long before Richard called, and ages before your kids finally decided to wise up. The only reason we waited so long was because she begged us to give it a chance. I'm sorry but dragons rampaging around in front of hundreds of guests are the last bloody straw! Now you tell us that a megalomaniac is about to be on the loose again? Yes, she may be annoyed with us for a time, but she's gone the instant that train pulls in. If I could get my money back, I'd have pulled her out at the winter hols."

"Right…Well then, I guess I'll just head off…" Dora said looking awkwardly between the two parents.

Mr. Perks chuckled and held out a full tea cup he'd grabbed from a tray near the kitchen. "Tea before you go, Ms. Tonks?"

"Oh I don't…" she paused mid-refusal and shook her head. "Yeah, sure, why not. Might as well make this trip worth something right?"

At the same time that Dora was drinking her tea in the Perks' living room, Sirius was being ushered into the sitting room of the Longbottom residence by a rather confused house elf. As the elf popped away Sirius politely sipped from his own teacup and glanced around the room waiting for the matron of the home to arrive. He didn't have to wait long. Augusta Longbottom strode into the room with her cane, leaning down on it like a perch and looking at him like a particularly annoying insect.

Sirius let the silence grow for nearly 30 seconds before he caved. "I swear, I will never understand how you make me feel like I'm five years old again, Augusta."

"It is a learned skill, Black," Neville's grandmother replied levelly. She shook her head slowly and her gaze fell into a far less severe expression. The lines leveled out and she looked more her age instead of someone closer to Dumbledore. "So did someone finally spring you or did you break yourself out, boy?"

"Technically I got bored and just walked out," Sirius replied as his eyes crossed. "This is not how I envisioned this conversation going. Aren't you going to ask if I'm a crazed murderer or something?"

Augusta shrugged. "Why should I? You would no more betray James Potter than I would feed Neville to a Devil's Snare."

"…And when did you decide this?" Sirius asked his voice carefully neutral.

"Oh the instant they put you away," Augusta said shrugging. I did try to raise a fuss and get your case looked at but when Frank was attacked it slipped my priority list. By the time I realized no one else cared, the Longbottom name no longer carried enough weight to override Malfoy's gold. I wasn't willing to waste Neville's inheritance for a boy I barely knew – beyond the troublemaking brat who almost burned down my observatory during the Beltane celebration of course.

Sirius winced. "Yeah, okay, I deserve that."

"You do, though I am certain you have paid for it and many other things over the ensuing decade. Now, what are you here for, boy?"

Sirius set his tea cup down and clasped his hands together making an effort to reign in the urge to crack the obvious joke about seducing an eligible, older woman. Something told him that wouldn't exactly earn him any points with Augusta. "Ma'am, I don't know just how much Neville has told you about events at Hogwarts over the past few years, but – "

"Neville has said quite little," she cut in with a snort of amusement. "I sometimes wonder if he realizes I am on the Board of Directors. I am fully aware of all recent happenings including trolls, petrifications, werewolves, and Tournaments with illegal contestants, Black. Continue."

"There you go making me feel like a child again," Sirius muttered. "Alright fine, we'll cut the small talk. The bastard who is the reason that your son was attacked and tortured into insanity and my friends were killed is pretty much about to come back to power if he hasn't already."

"Do you mean Voldemort, Bellatrix, the Lestrange brothers, or Crouch Jr.?"

"Voldemort."

Augusta frowned and shook her head. "No, I'm sorry, but I have a rather hard time believing that. Lily Potter was an exceptional witch. If she put her mind to something, then it. Got. Done. Voldemort is dead and he is not coming back. Now I understand that his lieutenants are on the move again, that much if obvious enough, someone had to enter Lily's boy into the Tournament after all."

"Augusta, believe me, it's him. We have a great deal of reliable information on this and the twins encountered him in person just the other year. Peter went to go find him and help him return when he got away last year. It's Voldemort. He's coming back."

"Even if I believed that fantasy, why does it matter? Why bother informing me instead of someone like Amelia Bones or Albus Dumbledore?"

Sirius sighed and leaned back into the couch gazing at the ceiling for a long moment before replying. "Dumbledore has known for a long time and taken very few measures of any worth. We're going to make sure that he's more active this time than the last go round, but that's about all we can hope for on that round, Augusta. As for Amelia…honestly my faith in her eroded rather heavily when I saw neither hide nor hair of her after I was locked up."

Augusta nodded slowly. "I suppose I can understand a boy scorned at least. Not that I am saying I agree with this at all, of course. Even still, you have yet to say why you are coming to me. Do you expect me to coordinate getting a resistance together? I am getting too old for such a thing."

"No," Sirius shook his head and focused back on the woman across from him. "Ma'am, I'm here to tell you that the Potters, and many of their friends and allies, are leaving Britain at the end of the school year. The country has abandoned them for too long and – "

"No."

Sirius ground to a halt and blinked at her. "I'm sorry, what?"

"No."

"No, what?"

"You are going to try to convince me and my grandson to leave alongside you. No. This is my home, this is my son's home, this is my grandson's home. No. You can do whatever you wish, Sirius Black. You can take your godchildren and your allies and whoever you've convinced and you can run like a dog with its tail between its legs, but we're staying here. We will weather the storm as we have done for the past centuries."

Sirius frowned and considered this. "That is…not what you are supposed to say…" Rose and Gabrielle had assured him that Augusta had been intending to get Neville out of the country once the war started heating up. What the heck had changed? Or, perhaps, maybe things just hadn't gotten bad enough yet? She only sent him away after Harry was sent through a kangaroo court after all and if they could do that to a Potter, who was to say that they couldn't do it to a Longbottom?

"Augusta, look, I get that this is your home, I do. But you and Neville are the last Longbottoms. You can't seriously consider letting him stay here if a war is going to restart."

"Neville is a pureblood and if the majority of you are leaving, he will be mostly associating with purebloods anyway." Augusta shrugged. "Should things grow truly dire I can always send him away to alternative education later. But we have not nearly approached such a point, Black. Now unless you have hard proof to show me that Britain is about to end in fire and flames in the next few months I suggest you finish your biscuit and continue on your way. You won't be convincing me and, I assure you, I am a far better duelist than my age and appearance belie."

Sirius scowled. "I believe it. Augusta, this isn't the smart course, but it's your life and I can't tell you how to live it. Just make sure you don't get Neville hurt because you're stuck on being a stubborn old bint like usual."

"I will endeavor to keep that in mind, Black. Rest assured, I do love my grandson dearly. Should the situation change, I will take all appropriate measures required."

"I'm going to hold you to that, lady," he snarled.

Rose whimpered in her sleep rolling to the side and curling into a tighter ball around Harry's arm clutching her to his chest. She wasn't very conscious of him, but she drew comfort from the contact all the same. It was little help against the recurrent nightmare though.

"Kill them! KILL THEM YOU USELESS CREATURE!" Voldemort screamed from the back of Quirrell's head. Now that the Philosopher's Stone was shattered all of his plans were going up in ashes and he not about to let anyone walk away in one piece. Rose tackled Harry to the ground as curses sailed through the air where her brother had been standing moments before. His eyes snapped open as they fell to the ground and his head bounced off the rough rock of the corridor. Rose winced at the crack though Harry barely even seemed to notice. She rolled them to the side as more violet and green curses snapped towards them.

Harry's hand pulled away from his scar and he pushed her to the side with a hard shove knocking her away from Quirrellmort's follow-on spells. She gasped as something sharp dug into her side and drew blood. Rose scrambled over a fallen rock and reached down to pull the offending item from her stomach. She whimpered at the pain the bright orange rock sliver brought as she yanked it out of her side, then watched in fascination as the blood on the rock seemed to flow into the stone a moment after being removed. The pain in her side also vanished almost instantly once the object was pulled out. Before Rose could chuck it to the side her mouth formed a wide 'o' and she gasped. "Philosopher's Stone. Bloody Hell. Bloody. Hehehe," chuckling at her own unintended pun – and just aware enough to realize how much of a bad sign that laughter probably was considering the situation – Rose closed her fist around the sliver of Stone.

She shook her head trying to regain some sense and risked a glance around the side of the rock attempting to find her wand. A spell impacted just to the side of her face sending shrapnel flying and cutting her cheek, forcing her to immediately pull back. Almost without thinking, Rose thrust the slice of the Stone into her pocket.

How had she let the bastard the disarm her?

Where were the teachers?

How was this happening?

How had she let him destroy the Stone?

Why was it just her and Harry down here?

How was this happening?!

*$ !* WHY WAS HER BROTHER RUNNING TOWARDS QUIRRELLMORT?! *! $*

Four voices rang out almost simultaneously as Rose's world crashed down around her.

"You will not touch her!"

"HARRY!"

"Why won't you die?!"

"Kill him!"

Time seemed to stop. Harry roared as his hands stretched out before him towards Quirrellmort in his mad charge. Quirrellmort's wand was rising, the tip starting to glow a deep purple. Rose jumped up and started to sprint towards Harry, all thoughts of caution thrown to the wind as panic set in. Harry let out a primal roar of rage and hatred, leaping at his foe. Quirrellmort's spell left his wand impacting Harry's chest, the purple flames burning the last of his shirt away before dissolving into his chest. Harry's eyes went dead as Rose watched his momentum carry him into Quirrellmort, his body slamming into the monster and bearing the former teacher to the ground with a shrill scream. Rose shrieked as well, her own anguish nearly as pain-filled as Quirrellmort's. The man struggled to lift Harry's dead weight off of his face and finally managed to roll Harry off of him.

Unfortunately for the villainous man, Rose had closed the distance and jumped. Her face twisted into a snarl of rage and hatred just as vicious as Voldemort's had been a few minutes before, she landed feet first on Quirrell's bright red, inflamed, boil-ridden head.

Quirrell did not survive the contact.

"THIS ISN'T OVER CHILD! We'll meet again!" Voldemort's shade screeched as it rose from Quirrell's body and fled the room. Rose barely even registered that it had spoken. She was too busy cradling the still form of her brother. Harry wasn't breathing. His eyes were open and dull and he wasn't breathing. She could barely even see as the tears fell heavier and heavier from her eyes.

"Please no, please no, please no, please no, please no, please no," she murmured again and again as she held him against her chest. "Not like this. You can't leave me alone. You can't die. We're supposed to stay together. We're always supposed to stay together. You can't leave me alone. Please no, please no, please no."

Rose rocked back and forth with Harry hardly able to breathe through her sobs and mantra. He couldn't die, he couldn't. She'd never survive on her own. She didn't know how to live without him. He was always there, always protecting her, always her rock, always the one who – the ROCK! Rose's breath caught and her throat closed up. She thrust her hand into her pocket digging madly. A moment later a strangled shout of triumph rang through the room as she held her prize to the heavens. The bright orange shard glinted in the light.

Rose didn't stop to think. If she stopped to think it probably wouldn't work. Flitwick and Tonks both always said that magic was always more about feeling, believing, and intent than the actual words, movements, or spells. Those were flavorings to put a person into the right frame of mind to shape magic and give it a goal, a pathway to follow to reach the endstate. Well Rose had a very clear goal in mind and she had a tool on hand that was supposed to be able to grant life. Granted the tool was broken and a mere fraction of what it once was…but it was enough. It would have to be enough. Screaming, Rose slammed brought her hand down thrusting the sliver of Philosopher's Stone into Harry's chest right above his heart.

She sobbed as she clutched at the arm wrapped around her holding her tight. That wasn't right. She was the one holding onto Harry. How could he hold her when she was holding him? He was dead. He wouldn't come back. He was still dead. Voldemort had killed him. Voldemort always killed him. And when Voldemort didn't kill him, Umbridge did; or Fudge; or Snape; or a nameless wizard that found out about them; or a –

Below her, Harry gasped and his back arched before his eyes opened and he murmured softly to her. "Shh, I'm here, Rose, I'm here. I'm right here." She whimpered and squeezed into a smaller ball around the arm. "I'm not going anywhere. Together to the end."

"I am here as well, mon cœur." Rose dimly felt another arm drape over her and snake into the snarled mess of limbs. Rose just sobbed again and clung to the anchor pulling it closer.

"Is it always this bad?"

"No, usually she wakes up when it gets this bad." A soft hand brushed a strand of hair off of her wet forehead. "She's already halfway to us. Let her wake on her own otherwise we'll have to memory charm half your dorm when she starts fighting everything in sight that is not us."

"You can't be sure she's fighting in the nightmare can you?"

"She almost never fights in her memories, 'arry. She remembers you fighting. Except now she knows how to fight back so when she wakes she lashes out at the threat. We destroyed many hotel rooms before we learned to start using sleeping potions or just let it run its course."

"This hasn't happened before, Ella. Not since we've been back."

"It comes and it goes. She has periods when it gets bad for a few weeks. I looked it up a while back. I think she has something like what the Muggles call PTSP, no wait, PTSB, no…PTSD, that's it. Your conversation with Dumbledore the other day likely triggered it. I've been expecting this, that's why I've been sleeping with you two for the past few days."

"I had wondered."

"You could've asked, 'arry."

"It seemed like an awkward question, plus, I'm not exactly complaining; two beautiful girls in my bed and all."

Rose heard a snort from above her head. "We are bonded, you are both my Mates. You don't have to worry about awkward questions, 'arry. The compliment is appreciated though."

"Noted."

Rose shuddered and blinked open her eyes. She took in a shaking breath and found herself staring at Gabrielle's breasts through a fairly sheer nightgown. A shiver ran through her and she leaned forward to place a gentle kiss in the center of her Veela partner's chest while her brother squeezed her from behind.

"Hey, Rosie," Harry murmured.

"Morning guys," she replied softly. "Sorry."

"No need to apologize, mon cœur. You are awake now and the nightmare will fade."

Rose just nodded, brushing her lips against Gabrielle's chest again. Now that the other girl was actually looking her age their interactions weren't nearly as chaste anymore. It was just a shame that Quirrellmort had ruined her libido for this morning. "Yeah, I know. It just sucks. I still say it's a shame that Philosopher's Stone fragment didn't make you immortal or anything Harry."

"Philosopher's Stone…Oh," Harry said pulling up a bit closer to the two girls. "So that's what you were dreaming about. I don't need to be immortal, Rosie. I just need to live long enough to have a good life with you two and I'll be happy. Besides, that thing brought me back once already. I think we only get one miracle in life and even that's pushing it."

Gabrielle laughed. "Well I probably used mine when the world didn't blow up zen with my little experiment in time travel."

"Yeah, let's just stop talking about this stuff and cuddle okay? Please guys, can we just cuddle for a bit? We have our meeting soon and I would really like to calm down beforehand."

She felt two kisses settle on the top of her head as answers and Rose snuggled deeper into the embrace of her lovers and let out of a contented sigh. For at least this moment, all was right with the world.

Rita settled onto a tree branch on the edge of the Forbidden Forest keeping a careful watch around her. She despised staying in her animagus form for long. While there was no denying the incredible usefulness of the stupid little beetle form, it was also a huge gamble every time she took it. Unlike most animagi, Rita was effectively defenseless in her form. She couldn't fight, couldn't do magic, had no nature defenses, had no poison, and, besides her hearing and smell, most of her senses were dulled as well. On top of all that, she was tiny enough that even a passing bird or enterprising lizard was a credible threat.

Granted, she was reasonably certain she could change back quickly enough to burst out of whatever was attempting to eat her before they actually managed to crack her exoskeleton and kill her…but that wasn't really a bet she was willing to place her life on.

So needless to say, Rita Skeeter was already incredibly annoyed with whichever 'anonymous source' had decided that the middle of the woods at the crack of dawn was a perfectly reasonable timeframe for a clandestine meeting. This was exactly when the worst of her predators would be waking up and getting hungry. If this story wasn't worth every second of danger, then she'd have a new target for tomorrow's front page story.

Ah, finally, the brat shows up. A Frenchy? Has that little bitch been spreading my secret around? I'm going to have to nip that in the bud immediately once I get this exclusive. Rita mentally added another item onto her to-do list and buzzed down towards the Beauxbatons student. She had no idea who the girl was, but that uniform was recognizable enough even to her limited sight. Let's see what this idiot thinks she has that's newsworthy.

Dora waved to Proudfoot and Dawlish as she walked past their desks towards the Director's corner office exactly at 6am. Dawlish blearily waved back knocking over his coffee mug in the process and almost not even seeming to notice while Proudfoot just yawned. "You're in early, Loki. Don't normally see you for another hour or so."

Dora sighed and yawned back in reply making sure to affect a wide stretch of her arms to either side for flavor. She needed to be memorable here but not to stand out as trying too hard. "Yeah, tell me about it. I've had two cups of coffee already and I'm still barely conscious enough to remember which color I'm supposed to be keeping my hair today. I have a report that Director Bones had been asking for for the past three months so I figured I should probably get it to her sooner rather than later since I finally got the bloody thing finished last night."

"Ouch," Proudfoot winced in sympathy. "The Dementor starvation one? She's been on the warpath for that one. Probably best to beat the morning rush, yeah."

"My thinking exactly. Talk to ya in a few, Proud." Yawning again, Dora clutched the report pile to her chest and turned away. She took care to step just a tad bit too close to his desk as she left and fell over the wastebasket, cursing out loud as she windmilled through half the room 'regaining' her balance, though she kept a careful hold on the report so it didn't go flying. That thing really had taken her ages to get finished. Locking up a Dementor in a boarded room and checking to see if it died every so often was not exactly a fun assignment. Finally, Dora made it to Amelia Bone's office door and knocked. A curt reply later and Dora was inside and sitting in front of the Director of Magical Law Enforcement.

"Auror Tonks, you're in early," Amelia said shuffling some papers to the side and cocking an eyebrow at Dora.

Dora nodded and set the report on the woman's desk. "First, Ma'am, the Dementor report. Apparently it takes at least three months before they even start to show signs of any issues when locked away from food sources. That said, they need to be at a minimum 5 miles from any living being with emotions – including apparently familiars – otherwise they will keep feeding. It is possible to starve them, though I have yet to confirm if we can actively kill them using this method. Every Dementor we've tried it with has become incredibly violent at close to the four month mark and has managed to either escape or attack the investigators enough that the experiment was no longer safe to continue."

"Damn." Amelia leaned back and took off her monocle rubbing at her eyes. "We need to figure out how to destroy these things. It's only a matter of time before the next Dark Lord wannabe rises again and they jump ship. Get with the Unspeakables Tonks, see if they have anything. There was a rumor once upon a time about some combination of steel and poison that could do the trick and if anyone will know, it's them."

"Yes, boss."

"What else did you have?"

"Is this room secure?" Dora asked glancing around and twirling her wand around her fingers in a seemingly playful fashion though most seasoned Aurors would recognize the hidden detection spell if they focused on it.

Amelia frowned, not one to miss the implications of Dora's movements though at least she didn't seem to be taking offense. She nodded slowly and raised a finger to point at a glowing red crystal set into the wall above the door. "If that ever turns yellow – or heavens forbid, green – then the room is compromised. While it is red, no spells or listening devices besides my own are present in this room. What is going on that warrants such a question, Auror?"

Dora cracked her neck and set her wand on the table as she steepled her fingers in front of her. She let her hair flow down into a fashion reminiscent of her mother's style and took on the mannerisms of the Black Family training that had been grilled into her since before she could remember. Her back straightened and her legs uncrossed while her mouth set into a small line. Where mere moments before the playful, fun Auror had been sitting, there was now a pureblood Black daughter staring across the table at the Regent Bones. "Madame Bones, your ward is very good friends with the two of mine."

"What does Susan have to do with this?" Amelia asked, her eyes narrowed to slits as she took in the abrupt change in Dora. "We are not discussing Auror business at all, are we." It was not a question.

"No, we are not and Susan has everything to do with this."

"Then you should have approached me outside of working hours, Miss Tonks," Amelia stated coldly. She was about to push back from the table when Dora's next statement stopped her dead.

"Voldemort is going to return by the end of the Triwizard Tournament if he has not already done so."

"…What?!"

Dora continued in a flat tone, her voice devoid of emotion and merely stating facts. "I am not telling you this as a member of the Aurors. I am telling you this as the guardian of Harry and Rose Potter. Voldemort is coming back. We are leaving the country as soon as it is safe to do so without jeopardizing Harry's magic. We have no intention of fighting in the coming war nor do we intend to allow for the Potters to be used as a figurehead for the government. Speaking momentarily as an Auror, you can consider this my two week notice if you wish. Make no mistake, Madame Bones, as soon as the Tournament is over, I will be taking the Potters along with several others that they consider friends and fleeing the coming violence."

Amelia drew a shaky breath and clasped her hands together over her monocle on the desk. Several moments passed before she murmured, "You said this was about Susan, not the Potters."

"My wards consider Susan a friend and ally. They would prefer to avoid seeing her hurt, but they are aware it is not for them to say that she can or should leave Britain. You are her Head of House and her Aunt. We put a great deal of stock in family and Susan respects you quite a lot. I personally very much doubt that you can be convinced to leave the nation even should I make you aware of all the details that I was recently informed of. However, we do believe that you can be convinced of the urgency in enrolling Susan in alternative education. Beauxbatons is a wonderful option and Gabrielle Delacour has already been providing her and several others in their study group with French lessons in case you choose to pursue this route."

"All that you are aware of," Amelia murmured frowning. She looked up and scowled as she locked gazes with Dora. "It's your duty to report anything and everything that you know about the potential rise of a threat to this nation and its government Auror Tonks!"

Dora had to pause as she suppressed her natural instinct to let her hair flame red and instead kept it the same jet black she had started this meeting with. "Madame Bones, as I have already stated, I was only an Auror here long enough to give my notice. My duty is to my family. My family which has been betrayed, marginalized, criminalized, demonized, humiliated, abandoned and constantly tormented by this department, this government and this government's public mouthpiece." Dora's rebuttal had grown louder and louder as she continued to the point that she was practically shouting by the end and her lips had curled back from her teeth as she glared right back at Amelia. "Neither I nor my family give a rat's ass what the fuck Voldemort does to this cesspit. Every time I turn around the people here hurt those I care about more and more, and I am fucking done with it! When they came to me I thought it would be hard to leave. I thought I would be the voice of reason. But then I found out how you locked up your own Merlin-be-damned boyfriend for twelve years without even looking him in the eyes or sending him to a trial and I stopped caring."

Amelia reeled back into her seat as if she had been physically slapped. "Sirius? What? What are you…How does…"

"He's fucking innocent, Madame Bones. Which you would've known if you have ever bothered to do your bloody job! We're done with this country; you can all burn in hell. Get Susan out. The twins like her; she has a spine and potential. Make sure your family survives what's coming, Madame Bones. Good day." Dora pushed back from the desk hard enough to send the chair smashing into the wall behind her as she surged to her feet and snatched her wand. Thrusting it back into its holster she twisted and forced her hair into bubblegum pink as she pulled open the door. Schooling her features back into the normal mask she shot a salute towards Proudfoot as she headed back towards her desk.

Rita mentally frowned as she settled on the palm of the tall Beauxbatons student. Who was this girl? She seemed so familiar…Stupid useless beetle eyes. She couldn't even place the voice as the girl started speaking. "Rita Skeeter I presume? Hmm, ah yes, I do see ze resemblance. You have ze most lovely circles around your eyes, dear."

Something in the tone of that girl's voice set Rita's nerves ablaze. Most of her form's instincts were telling her to leave now, fly away while she still could. Her wings buzzed and her feet coiled beneath her. Rita shuddered. No! Stupid insect! I'm here for a story and I'm going to get the bloody story. Everything sets off this stupid form's warning senses. Just tell me what you have brat so I can get the hell back to the newsfloor. She stood up on several of her back legs and performed the equivalent of a bow. It was hard to tell, but she thought that the girl above her smiled at that.

"Perfect. It is you. I guess I was right after all; I just had the wrong insect. Oh well, I owe you 10 galleons, 'arry."

'arry? Rita thought. Who the hell was this girl talking to? It was just the two of them. There was no one else – Rita's instincts suddenly screamed bloody murder at her and her beetle body overwrote all conscious thought as it took flight away from the threat below her. She flew straight up surging into the air before she had even consciously realized she'd moved. Rita had just enough time to think, How is she holding fire in her hand? as thought returned, but then out of literally thin air, a glass jar appeared and closed around her with the lid shutting tight before she could fly out or even consider transforming.

Panicking, Rita buzzed around the perimeter of the jar searching for something, anything, any type of weak spot or crack or seam. There was nothing. There was NOTHING!

"Calm down, Rita. Your air is limited in there. I don't know how quickly bugs work through oxygen, but I imagine flying around and around in circles is just going to make it go pretty fast. It's a fairly small jar after all."

Rita froze in mid-air and turned to face towards the new male voice. This voice she at least recognized. Harry. James. Potter. Her blood chilled. If Harry Potter was holding the jar, then the French bitch with the fire fingers would have to be…Gabrielle Delacour. And now there was a third figure with them, a third figure with red hair; that would have to be Rose Potter. Oh gods no, oh by Merlin and Morgana…But they were just school kids right? She shook herself. Yes, yes they were just stupid school kids, barely even teenagers. They were just trying to intimidate and scare her that was all! It wasn't going to work. She was Rita Skeeter! She wrote what she wanted, about whoever she wanted! She was going to crucify all three of these pathetic little fools when they let her out of this!

"That's better," Harry said nodding. "Now, here's the thing, Rita. That jar is Unbreakable and charmed with enough magic to last for about 60 years. The lid was just sealed on with Stefan's Solvent Solutions. I don't know if you've heard of it, but in case you haven't, it's supposed to last for 100 years on its own unless you apply the counter-potion. We did not put air holes in the jar or the lid. Best guess is you have about 7 hours worth of air if you stay fairly still. We're going to bury you now, Rita. You can either choose to stay a beetle and die a fairly painless death of hypoxia or you can try to change back and hope that your mass overcomes the Unbreakable charm."

"I don't really recommend trying that," Rose said speaking up. The trill in her voice sent shivers down Rita's spine. They couldn't be actually serious could they? They were just…children…Rita focused back on Rose as her wings pulled back against her spine as tight as they could get and she went very, very still. "It's a very painful way to go. I watched someone try it once. He was conscious for a surprisingly long time as he died. Though the container was quite a bit bigger so his head did actually fit without being destroyed in an instant. You might just die right off. Up to you I suppose."

"Right now you are probably saying zat we cannot possibly do zis to you, zat we cannot get away wiz it," the French bitch said. She reached out a hand and fire danced on her fingers heating a portion of the jar. Rita cried out silently and flew as far to the opposite end as she could though the heat still travelled down to her. Finally the girl blessedly pulled her hand back. "You have printed lies and filth about my Mates for years, you vermine! We have killed others for less. You should be thankful zat zis is painless. Ze rest on our list will not be so lucky."

Merlin and Morgana, she really is serious. Oh merciful gods, what have I gotten myself into? It can't end like this! It can't! Rita started flying madly around the jar barely even noticing as it was lifted into the air and the light started to disappear. She had to find a way out. There had to be a way out. There had to be a way out.

There had to be a way out.

She was still searching as the last of the light disappeared.

Voldemort shifted in the blankets supporting him as his loyal followers attending him supplicated themselves at his feet. While it was nice to be worshiped he knew that Pettigrew only did it out of fear of later reprisal and knowledge that he had come too far down this path to ever walk another. Barty though, Barty was another story entirely.

"Your report…Barty," Voldemort wheezed. He internally cursed this homunculus form. It was only slightly better than the spirit he had been for so long and at times he almost wished to return to that form. At least as a spirit he didn't have to catch his breath after every third word.

"My lord, the Potters continue to behave erratically. One moment they will perfectly stable, normal students in my class and the next instant they will be like a whirlwind destroying everything in their path," Barty reported dutifully. He looked up and the worry in the man's eyes was disturbing. Barty Crouch was not only a top actor – being able to play Alastor Moody for so long proved that – but he was a staunch fighter and had nerves second only to Bellatrix. Almost nothing rattled Barty Crouch Jr.

"Are they a…problem?"

Barty hesitated a long moment before replying. "They are dangerous, my lord. They have grown much stronger in a very short period of time and the inclusion of the Veela has drastically improved their combat power both as a unit and as individuals. The issue isn't so much their knowledge of spells which seems to be fairly simplistic and haphazard, it's the raw strength and lack of concern for collateral damage they have when using them. Generally they use quick, simple spells that are absurdly overpowered or highly damaging area-of-effect variants shaped to avoid their trio. They care only for each other. All outbursts I've witnessed have been the direct result of attacks or implications on one of the three, and the others have responded with immediate and overwhelming violence. They trample anything that impinges on their unit and will damn the consequences. Forgive me my lord, but they remind me a great deal of Bellatrix."

Voldemort frowned and reached a hand over to pet Nagini while he considered that information. "Can they…be turned? They would be…powerful figureheads."

"My lord," Barty began slowly, "I would urge caution. They have little love for Dumbledore, but I doubt they care for you either. Should you approach them, you must have a carrot and not just a stick."

"Their parents…are not an…issue then?" Voldemort asked.

Barty shrugged. "I've never heard them mention their parents and I've never seen them respond to anyone insulting James or Lily with nearly the same level of hatred they display towards more personal threats."

"My lord," Pettigrew said, speaking up for the first time in their meeting. "Perhaps we should kidnap one and then we – "

Barty snorted and then outright laughed. "You do that, Wormtail. I'll stand back here and laugh as they eviscerate you."

"They are fourteen!"

"They are motivated," Voldemort hissed. "That is…respectable. It is also…worrisome. I witnessed it…years back as well. We should not wait…any longer. The ritual can be…done on the next…New Moon. Wormtail, prep the potion. Barty, send a…sacrifice. I don't care…who. Not one of…the Potters. Not one of…the ones they claim. If we can…turn them, I want…to try."

"Yes, my lord. It will be done." Barty nodded and stood. He quickly moved to leave the grounds and attend to his task while Pettigrew bowed a few extra times and whimpered something or other which Voldemort ignored.

Instead, the homunculus continued to pet the gigantic snake and frowned in thought. Perhaps, this war would be easier than he had thought. After all, why bother keeping your enemies close when you could make them allies instead?

Fanfic Rec: 'Living Dangerously' by CGPH. This is a Harry/Daphne fic where Harry starts off dating Ginny though fairly quickly realizes he's not actually into her. There's a potion mishap during a detention with Daphne where the two get hot and heavy and they decide to try a relationship secret while dealing with Fifth Year. It's in progress with sporadic updates and is going rather well so far.