A/N: Just want to clarify a few things: I don't know that Unspeakables have to cut off all ties from their family, but since Cedric/Harry/her neighbors and good friends were obviously chummy with Dumbledore, they (Dumbledore, Adelaide, etc) did not want to ruin Adelaide's chance at being accepted into the Department. Does this make sense? Also, it was a plot thing.....I hope this clears some stuff up? If not, lemme know!!
Post-Hogwarts:
Keep on, keeping on
Keep on keepin on.
Was this Snape's idea of a sick joke? Granted, he didn't know - nor, did anyone know - that she was friendly with Sirius, let alone even knew who he was. And no one knew (for certain) that she had fancied herself nearly in love with him. But still. To write someone a letter to "Keep on keepin on" in light of what had taken place in her workplace?
A cruel, cruel joke. Or at least an awful reminder of what her world had become.
She was to continue to work at the Department, continue to ignore her friends and family, continue to ignore the Prophet, ignore Fudge's declaration that yes, The Dark Lord had indeed returned, and yes, Potter, Diggory and Dumbledore hadn't been looney. She had to continue to pretend that she did not exist. She had to continue to pretend that she was fine.
Not that anyone was checking on her. She had not seen Remus since she had watched him fight in the Death Room. She figured he was grieving for his best friend, alone, at the secret location of the Order. But she knew he probably wasn't alone. Wasn't Sirius always going on about how he thought his cousin, Dora?, was smitten with the werewolf?
Now Remus had forgotten her too.
She had hoped that once Fudge had admitted his stupidity, she would start to get letters from her family and friends, begging her to return to England, to admit that she had been foolish. But clearly, they had forgotten her.
Or given up hope.
So she continued to go to work. But her research on space and thought seemed so frivalous in light of the impending war. All of the time turners had been destroyed, all of the prophecies, lost. And here she was, expected to continue her study of space and the history and theory of thought and mind.
So she often found herself standing in the Death Room, watching the constant fluttering of the Veil, despite the lack of breeze. She could find no current or even past studies of the Veil. What was it? Where did it lead to? Why was it here? She had no answers. And she dared not ask anyone. What would be the point? To obsess over someone who was lost forever when she should be researching how to prevent more deaths from occurring.
Who knew how many would die before the Dark Lord would be defeated. How many of her acquaintances, of her colleagues, of her former professors and schoolmates, of her friends, of her family. Sirius's death would be the first but it would surely not be the last.
So she would pry her eyes away from the Veil, and she would try to avoid thinking about the odd fact that there was no written literature about the Veil at all. Nor did she try to think about the cold feeling she always got when she walked into the Death Room. Why anyone felt the need to study Death, she was not sure. But she was determined that one day, once this mess was all over, she would venture back and research the bloody thing, figure out why it was even there, why it was so creepy and seemingly oozed dark magic. She knew it would not be the last she saw of the Veil.
So it was as she was attempting to 'Keep on keepin on' that she finally decided to put an indefinite hold on her current research so she could attempt to create a new batch of time turners. Or, at least, to start with a single time turner. She spent days reading up on time turners and time travel, both magical and Muggle readings; the ridiculous idea that if people travelled too often through time their ages would alter, their brains would fry; she read about the 'grandfather paradox'; read about the alteration of the fabric of time; the devastating effects one could create whilst traveling through time. It was a good idea to travel through time, some argued, while others argued it was a terrible idea that would only cause more problems. But Adelaide herself understood that if used with caution, used wisely, and by a intelligent and unselfish person, a time turner could be terrible useful. So with her hair pinned back and her sleeves rolled up, she finally began her experiments in creating time turners.
From scratch.
--
It was now nearing the end of August and she still had not heard from anyone. Not Remus, not Snape, not Dumbledore, not anyone in her family. No one. She read about Cedric and Neil a few times in the Prophet, about the 'hot date' Neil had gone on, about Cedric's more recent and frequent appearances in society after a year of nearly disappearing from the public eye. But it never said exactly what Cedric was doing. The only time the Prophet ever reported seeing him was around the twins' new store.
Adelaide had been livid when she discovered the twins had left school without properly graduating. They knew how important their education was, despite the fact that they were terribly good businessmen. Didn't they know how disappointed she'd be? Didn't they care about their family's disappointment? About hers? She was proud of them, of course, since she knew it was only a matter of time before their dream was achieved, but she would have liked them to properly graduate first. She knew they were both extremely intelligent, knew they did finish their assignments, knew that there were certain subjects they had enjoyed. And yet, she couldn't entirely blame them. That Umbridge woman had been terrible and had made it extremely difficult for them and everyone else to survive the school year.
She had wanted to berate them at first. Then she wanted to congratulate them on their store (from what she had read about it, it looked fantastic). Then she wanted to visit the store to see all of their products for herself. But she could do none of these things and she knew that. But it still hurt.
But those summer months since Sirius's untimely death, Adelaide had drowned herself with work, barely ever sleeping, barely ever giving herself time to think about Sirius, about Remus, about the twins or Cedric or her family or anyone. She had covered her mirror with a sheet. Stopped shopping for new Muggle clothes, stopped going to the theater, and only went to the Muggle library to get books on time travel. She was focusing on her work.
It was the only thing she could think to do.
And then Dumbledore summoned her.
And she grew livid.
--
She was standing outside the gate of the castle, waiting for someone to escort her. She tried to keep her emotions in check, to reign in her anger, but she could not. The proximity to the castle, the last place she had been truly happy, only made her more angry. Sirius was dead. She had no friends. She hadn't even heard from Remus. She had had not human contact in months. She had had no further instruction aside from 'Keep on keepin on'. She was all alone. And now, suddenly, he wanted to speak with her.
How dare he.
It was McGonagall who stopped at the gate, her robes fluttering in the evening wind, her face hidden in the darkening night shadows. "Hayworth?"
Adelaide's jaw loosened, "Hullo, Professor."
McGonagall wave her wand and opened the gate, ushering her through. Adelaide could feel her hesitance to speak as they walked up the path. "I'm not angry at you, you understand, Professor."
The woman was not particularly good at covering her surprise: her eyebrows shot up, her mouth a thin line. "His methods can be -"
Adelaide shook her head, "I'm not questioning his methods. Nor am I questioning his judgments." Her voice was hard and after she spoke, she felt guilty for snapping at her former professor, a woman who had only ever been an instructor to her, a woman she had respected. "I'm sorry, I -"
McGonagall shook her head, "These are tough times, Ms, Hayworth."
Adelaide knew the end of a discussion when she heard one.
--
She sat down in an empty chair in the Headmaster's Office, her anger only increasing when she was informed she would have to wait for the Headmaster to return. Hadn't they made an appointment? Wasn't she on time?
She had barely waited five minutes when the Headmaster strolled in. "Forgive me, Ms. Hayworth, I did not mean to keep you waiting."
She did not reply.
He sat down and folded his hands together, "I have been doing quite a bit of my own research this summer." He paused momentarily and continued when it was obvious she wasn't going to ask him about it. "I expect you are wondering why I did not meet with you earlier after all of the commotion at the Ministry this summer."
She bit her tongue to prevent her from lashing out.
"But I trust you received Severus's note. I hope your research was not too disturbed by the fight." Again, she did not reply. "But despite Fudge's admittance to the Dark Lord's return, the Ministry still is not organizing a movement."
"Fudge is no longer the Minister." Her voice was flat and harsh.
"True. Scrimgeour is the new Minister. And I'm afraid he's going to pester Mr. Diggory and Potter, asking for their assistance or something similar."
"Is he going to bother me?"
Dumbledore looked at her over the rim of his half-moon spectacles, "This is what concerns me."
"Am I to leave?" Her voice sounded eerier to her own hears. Flat and dead.
"Not as of yet, no. We have ears in the Ministry, and if he starts to poke around too near your name, we will know in advance to get you out."
"But why should it matter? What is he going to do? Try to get me to reconcile with Cedric or my brothers? The press has nearly forgotten about me anyway."
Dumbledore frowned slightly and slid a copy of the most recent Prophet over the desk to her. He pointed to a small article on the third page. "Now that Mr. Diggory is no longer considered a liar and proves to not want to live in the spotlight, when will his former flame, Ms. Adelaide Hayworth, who has, to this day, remained invisible, come out of the woodwork to admit her undying love? And will Mr. Diggory, who is said to be one of the top bachelors in Wizarding Britain, take her back?"
Adelaide let out a cold laugh and promptly covered her mouth. "Preposterous."
Dumbledore shrugged, "Even so, we will stay on alert. A publicity stunt like that could help take the heat off the current administration to find and defeat Voldemort."
Adelaide crossed her arms, "I have no time for petty politics."
"But you understand why it is crucial that you continue to have no contact with your family."
She nodded curtly, not trusting herself to speak.
He continued to talk at her for a few minutes, and realizing that she was not exactly paying attention, he leaned forward in his chair, "This will all be over soon."
She let out another cold laugh, "Not soon enough, Professor."
He sat back, looking slightly defeated and Adelaide suddenly felt terribly guilty. "I'm an old man, Adelaide. And I know I have made great and terrible mistakes in my life, but please tell me I didn't -"
She tried to keep her voice calm, "Professor, you didn't force me to do anything. I just wish the circumstances were different."
He sighed, "So do I, Adelaide, so do I."
She stood up, "My research has changed slightly, but I hope that it will help," he raised a hand to stop her, but she shook her head, "I'm trying to fix some of what had been ruined."
She watched him for a moment, fully aware that the gears in his mind only had to turn for a few moments before he would understand exactly what she was saying. "Now, if you'll excuse me, Professor."
"I know you were friends with Mr. Black, Adelaide. And I'm sorry you could not have gotten to know him better. He was a good man, and you two would have had a lot in common, considering your current -"
"How is Remus?" Despite her attempt to remain emotionless and cold, her voice quivered slightly, her eyes shining slightly in the dimness of the office.
"Grieving silently, pushing himself into his work and ignoring the love that some are offering him."
She smiled in spite of herself, "Sirius's cousin?"
"Nymphadora Tonks, yes. I hope that one day he'll let her in to his life." He watched Adelaide stare at the limp hand at her side, standing awkwardly in his office. "And I hope that you do not give up on love either, Adelaide. In this war, we're all going to need love to get us through. You need to remember that your family and friends still love you, in spite of everything. They will forgive you. Do not forget that."
She looked up at him, her eyes wide, her lips trembling and she nodded. "Remember," he said softly, "do not forget how to love or how to be loved."
And with those parting words, she left Dumbledore's office. And only a few months later, she would be relieved that her final parting with her former Headmaster was not angry but comforting.
--
She refused to think about her meeting with Dumbledore. Refused to think about Remus grieving. Refused to think about Sirius. Refused to think about anyone or anything that wasn't directly related to her task at hand: create new Time Turners.
But dreaming was another story.
And going against the advice of her former professors, she started to drink Dreamless Draught nearly every night. And so when she wasn't at work, she was brewing more, acquiring the ingredients through secret mailorders. She hated doing it, knew it was not a good idea, but she had to do it. There was no other choice.
She began to get frustrated with her research, however, and even found herself contemplating what would happen if she simply used it to go back to her final year at Hogwarts: what would she do differently? Refused to let Cedric enter the tournament? Deny her feelings for him and not start dating him? Warn Harry and he about Voldemort's return? Deny Dumbledore's request to defy her family and work secretly in the Department of Mysteries? Go into hiding with Cedric?
And then she laughed at herself; she wouldn't change anything. Couldn't. She needed to work at the Department, Cedric would have hated her if she hadn't let him enter the tournament, and would she really not want to have those precious few, happy moments with her only boyfriend? No. Things played out they way they were meant to, they way they had to, they way they needed to. But the more she thought about it, the angrier she got. This wasn't fate. It was simply circumstance.
And so in mid-October, she set aside her scribbled notes, her highlighted passages, her failed attempts at fashioning a new time turner and turned her attention to something else.
Thoughts.
She didn't want to get her hopes up, but she knew exactly what she wanted to determine: why people thought the way they did and how an enemy could use their usual thought process against them. Was there something she could find that could point to what hex a person would use? What their plan was? Could she somehow the Dark Lord and his minions' own, private thoughts against them?
She hoped she could. And with those rousing questions, she delved back into her work. Still addicted to dreamless nights, still not allowing herself to question the past or think about anyone.
--
She had grown so involved with her varying research that she barely paid any attention to the months that had passed since Sirius's death and her meeting with Dumbledore. She only read the paper to make sure no one she knew was murdered and to keep up to date on developing issues, especially within the Ministry. And then suddenly, Dumbledore was dead.
The Prophet did not specify who had killed him, although there were claims that Snape had done it and that he was now on the run with Draco Malfoy and a few other known Death Eaters. Adelaide was horrified. Not only was Dumbledore, the only man who Voldemort feared, dead, but her former Headmaster, the leader of the Order, the organizer of the good side, was dead. Who was to be in charge now? Who was to lead? And Snape?
That was something she did not believe. Severus Snape was a lot of things, but he wasn't a murderer. Especially Dumbledore's murder. She did not and could not believe it. But she knew that not everyone else would think like her - in fact, she was well aware that only she and Dumbledore liked the Potions Master, that Dumbledore was his only vocal supporter. She believed that Snape was a spy for the Light, that he was double-crossing the Death Eaters, but she had great suspicions that not everyone felt that way. Would they excommunicate him? Would they force him to pick the Death Eaters now that the Daily Prophet virtually accused him of murdering the greatest wizard who had ever lived? What would happen to Snape?
And what would happen to the Order? To the cause? To her?
Snape knew she worked in the Department. But he was a good guy, and she believed he was, but she had a growing fear that he could turn on her. Her favorite professor, the one person who knew and fully understood what she was going through and why she was doing it. Even though he had never said so outright, she knew there was someone he was protecting or remembering by being a double spy.
So setting her coffee mug down, she folded the paper and with the flick of her wrist, lit the paper on fire. She would not buy into the Prophet: Snape didn't kill Dumbledore. And if he did, it was for good reason. Severus Snape was a good man. Of this she was certain.
--
She wanted nothing more than to go to the funeral, but she knew she shouldn't. The grounds would most certainly be protected and guarded and she would have to give her name to get through. And everyone she knew would be there. And Remus would tell her if she should stop her research, wouldn't he? He would tell her if she were in danger, if she needed to leave her job, go into hiding. He would know if someone had found out she was working in the Department and wanted to use her as collateral. Remus would tell her if she could rejoin her family now, wouldn't he?
Dumbledore's funeral passed without word from Snape or Remus or anyone. She went on with her normal daily activities. Until she got the invitation.
It was the first letter she had received from anyone in her family, the Weasleys or Cedric in years. A wedding invitation to Bill and Fleur's wedding. Her happiness lasted only a moment; she hadn't even known Bill and Fleur, one of the other champions, were dating. Or even knew each other. She knew she had missed out on Cedric and her brother's lives, on the twins opening their store, of Ron's growth spurts, of Ginny's boyfriends. But she never even thought about what she was missing in Bill and Charlie's lives since they were so much older - just because they had finished school and had already been working for years didn't mean they weren't leading lives too. Bill had dated Fleur. And so he was probably working somewhere in London. How long had he been back? Did he like being back? Was Charlie upset he was the only one still in Romania? Was he even still in Romania?
She closed the drapes in her room and fell into bed, still clutching the invitation that had neither a day or time or place for the happy occasion. She frowned and let the tears fall silently down her cheeks, the first time she had cried in what felt like eons. They were all going on with their lives, making new families and enjoying their lives in these uncertain times without her.
Without her.
--
She woke up in a cold sweat, her palms stinging, her arms aching, her heart pounding. Feeling for her wand, she put all her sense on alert, not breathing until she was certain she heard no one in her flat. She had had a terrifying nightmare and had made a terrifying realization. What if what Voldemort wanted now was a Time Turner? What if he foolishly planned on going back and not killing trying to kill Harry, of leaving the Potters alone so he could continue to live and kill hundreds or not thousands of people? What if they found out she had completed one?
She had not been doing it as intensely as she had in the beginning, but she would take breaks from her other research and would always go back to her original project. What if someone found out? What if they planned on using it? Turning on lights, she glanced down at the invitation as she stood up. Blood from where she had been digging her nails into her palms during her nightmare had made the words "The Burrow, August 1, 2pm". She frowned, probably a trick by the twins or some sort of precautionary measure. She looked up at the bland calendar that hung on her wall. August 1 was tomorrow. She looked out the window. Or rather, today.
Even more upset by this realization and still terrified by her nightmare, she hurriedly got dressed for work. Frowning at her closet, wishing she could go to the wedding.
Shaking her head she said softly to herself, "I wouldn't have anything to wear anyway."
--
She got to work at her usual time, entering in her usual way, but this time, her nerves were buzzing with apprehension. She nearly jumped clear out of her skin when the guard asked her how she was. She was just entering the Department when she nearly ran into a man she had never seen before. She tried to hid her fear and confusion: she never saw anyone in the Department. She had never met anyone else in the Department nor did she even know who else worked in the Department.
The man was short and rather rotund with deep-set dark eyes and a thin, greying mustache. His lips curled into a terrifyingly sweet smile, "Hullo, you're the graveyard shift? I must have stayed her longer than I planned."
She attempted to smile her back, but found that she very well nearly forgotten how to smile and only hoped that she didn't looked utterly ridiculous. By the increase in his creepiness, she assumed she had successfully smiled. "Yes, it happens." She went to step around him, but he seemed to be in no hurry.
"Name's Avery. New here last week."
She nodded politely, "Welcome, Mr. Avery."
His smile continued to grew and in her haste to try and leave the creepy man she very nearly missed the slight prickling feeling she felt inside her head. "Name's Hayworth, now if, well, if you'll excuse me, Mr. Avery, I have a lot to finish today," she said rather loudly, hoping to distract him from what she knew he was trying to do. It would not help if he discovered that he couldn't read her mind.
His eyes stared coldly into hers, "Yes, yes, certainly, Ms. Hayworth. Do you mind me asking what it is exactly you're working on?"
She smiled a true smile this time, her eyebrow cocking slightly out of routine from her past life, "Do you mind me asking what it is you're working on?"
Her stomach knotted in fear when he let out a terrifying laugh, "Very good, very good." He nodded and strode past her, "I'm sure we'll be running into each other very soon again indeed."
She made no reply and instead stood rooted in place as she watched him walk down the corridor towards the lifts.
She knew running into him was no coincidence. But who could she inform? She had no way of getting in touch with Remus, Snape was on the run and believed to be working with the Death Eaters and everyone was probably waking up now to begin the preparations for the wedding.
"Last time I work on Saturday mornings," she said to herself.
--
She looked at her Muggle watch. 3:10. With a sigh she looked back at the parchment in front of her. And then she felt it. Another tingle in the back of her mind. And then suddenly it got worse; it got painful. Biting her lip she swallowed her groan of pain and with a lurch she stood up and hastily shoved all of her materials into her bag, confused and worried about who was here and what was going on. She raced quietly to the door, listening for movement. Her hand inching towards the doorknob, she felt something hot in her pocket and she froze. She knew what that was.
A letter from Snape.
Get out. That's all it said, but fear gripped her heart and her blood froze. Death Eaters. And suddenly, everything all made sense.
And then it hit her like a train: the Time Turner.
Without a second thought, she raced further into the Department, away from both the exits and the Death Eaters. She had to get the Time Turner before they found it. A thought sailed through her mind - should she destroy everything? What if Voldemort came in and could make sense of all the research, all the finds and studies, but then she remembered. Avery was one of his minions. Voldemort could acquire any information he wanted now. Throwing open doors, she finally reached the Room of Time and threw herself at the desk, ripping open a drawer and pocketing the small velvet bag. Cautiously, she started to make her way back, hoping that she could out escape the Death Eaters through the maze that was the Department until she could Apparate out of the corridor. But then a high-pitched cackle reached her ears, "We might not be able to read your mind, Adelaide, but we know you're here," the voice cackled again, "and you won't be able to Apparate out of here if we don't want you to!"
She froze. They had made it impossible for her to Apparate? She'd have to cross up into the Atrium to leave...
Would she be able to make it?
She took a deep breath and gripped her wand tightly. She didn't know how many Death Eaters there would be out there, but she'd have to fight them all off to get to the lifts and up to the Atrium. She'd have to rely on her personal library of hexes, her quick-thinking and the adrenaline she could feel already coursing through her veins. She couldn't let them have her Time Turner or her other notes.
She wouldn't.
Her minimal headway with her research wouldn't be as helpful to her now if she didn't know who she was fighting against: in order to understand what hex a person was going to use, she'd have to know who they were. But she had a sinking feeling they'd be using the Unforgiveables. Taking another deep breath, she ripped open the door and ran along the dark corridor to where she knew the next door would be, all the way thanking Merlin she knew a spell to make her footsteps almost too-quiet to detect.
And then there were hexes flying around her head, manic laughing coming from her left. With a grim smile she dodged a red light and aimed a silent hex at the dark-cloaked figure, her feet never stopping as she continued to run, her eyes surveying her surroundings. She launched another spell in front of her, getting the person right in the chest; she leapt over his stupified body as she continued her way, only to throw herself behind a column as Avery sent a hex at her. "Ah, Ms. Hayworth, won't you show me what you're working on?"
She kept quiet, not allowing herself to be sucked into their mind games. "No? Well, I'll tell you what I've been working on, how's that?" She looked frantically around as two other dark-cloaked figures closed in on her. She sent a silent spell at one of them, relieved that no one noticed as they fell silently to the ground. "I've been trying to track what you're been researching these past few years, been trying to check up on you. Seems no one knows you've been working down here. Think you're out in Belgium, is it? Your poor family." His voice was dripping with distaste, but she continued to ignore him as she sent the other figure silently to the ground. She sent a curse at Avery, sending it a little wide when he said, "They were most displeased to see you weren't at the wedding."
The high-pitched laugh sounded from her right as she ran towards the lifts, Avery at her heels, his curses bouncing off the walls as she weaved her away through the corridor. A curse grazed her wand arm, and she let out a groan, catching her wand with her other hand, thankful that her Quidditch-instincts hadn't become too complacent. She skidded into the lifts, closing the door with her wand just as Avery sent another curse in, the laughter echoing around the corridor.
She allowed herself a breath and a hope that there was no one in the Atrium. She used her magic to conjure a towel to wrap around her right arm, and to make the lift go faster. When the door opened, however, instead of a silent and empty Atrium, it was complete mayhem.
There were what seemed like swarms of dark-cloaked figures roaming the Atrium, lofting hexes, some singing and dancing around. She tried to hide behind a pillar, racking her brain for an exit, but then she heard something that nearly knocked the wind out of her. "The Minister's Dead, long live the Dark Lord!"
Was Voldemort here? She looked around frantically. How was she going to escape now when she had to cross an Atrium full of rejoicing Death Eaters? She willed her breathing to be normal, made her cloak longer and gave it a hood, hoping to blend in as she began to walk around the perimeter of the Atrium. She was nearly there when she heard that familiar high-pitch laugh and, "She got away, Master, but she must be here somewhere!"
Everyone froze. "Who's here that is so important now that we have control of the Ministry?"
"You idiot, why would you question the Dark Lord's intents!" Someone hissed over the quiet of the Atrium. Adelaide willed her feet to keep moving.
No one responded for a moment and Adelaide wondered if perhaps the Dark Lord wasn't there. She eyed the distance to the exit - she was so close, she wondered if she could make a run for it.
But then her mind tingled. And then, worse than before, it hurt. A groan escaped her lips and she suddenly felt a dark presence next to her. A cold hand gripped her arm and she looked into the smug eyes of a pale, black-haired woman who looked eerily familiar.
But she didn't get to finish her thought because then the Dark Lord himself was standing in front of her, the slits of his cold red eyes glaring down at her, the thin line where his lips should have been curled upwards in a sneer, "Adelaide Hayworth, you have been very hard to find."
She felt her head being pushed down. "You will bow before the Dark Lord!" The woman hissed into her ear and she tried not to shiver.
"It seems rather ironic that your ability to protect your thoughts is what got you caught, isn't it?" She stared directly into his red eyes defiantly and had she not been so scared and so desperate for a way out, she would have been pleased that he seemed unnerved by her defiance. "Being a triplet is nearly as dirty and Blood traitors and Mudbloods, did you know that? Read about that during your secretive research?" He waited a beat, "Tell me what you've been researching."
She stuck her chin out and did not respond. "Answer the Dark Lord!" The woman hissed again.
But Voldemort only laughed, or what Adelaide presumed was a laugh. "Snape said she was insufferably loyal and stupid, despite her supposed studies and her cozy position in the Ministry." He took a step closer to her, "You'll make an excellent hostage, or perhaps, simply a fun one to torture." His lips curled upwards again as he flicked his wand slightly and Adelaide bit her lip from letting out another groan of pain as her insides felt like they were being squeezed through the eye of a needle.
And then the pain stopped and sucking in a ragged breath she said loudly, staring at the Dark Lord, "Have to use a wand, do you?"
There was a collective gasp of shock from everyone else in the Atrium, but the red-eyed creature only let out another laugh. "Oh, yes, very fun indeed." She squeezed her eyes shut as the pain radiated throughout her body again, this time longer.
When she took another breath he said again, "Tell me what you've been researching."
Adelaide could feel the adrenaline pumping through her and she looked at the swarm of people around her periphery and with a slightly cocky smile and a raised eyebrow she said slowly, "No."
There was an uproar as the woman hissed at her again and there were collective shouts of her defiance of the Great Dark Lord and the new Minister, and Voldemort turned his head slightly to quiet his followers. Adelaide used this slight lapse in judgement to her advantage as she used her silent and wandless magic to call back her wand from the woman as she simultaneously sent the woman flying. The Dark Lord closed in on her in an instant, but she had already put up a strong shield charm and grinning wildly she shouted, "Never underestimate Adelaide Hayworth again, Voldy." She ran the last two feet to the door, pushing it open frantically, a hex grazing her shoulder as she raced out into the blinding afternoon sun and spun, Apparating to the only place she could think that would be safe.
--
She attempted to open her eyes, but she was drained. She was too exhausted to be too fearful of where she was now; she knew it had been a risk to try and Apparate all the way here without dying of exhaustion or not enough magic that she hadn't even thought about splinching. But she felt too tired to care, too resigned to attempt to figure out where she was, to try and hide in case they could follow her. The hard ground felt glorious and all she wanted was to go to sleep forever.
"Lenny get over here! What in tarnation has got them all riled up like this?" The voice sounded peculiar to her, the accent clearly not English and she could feel the ground shake with what she assumed were pounding footsteps.
"Weasley! Hayworth! Hold them down!"
"Sir we just got back!" She nearly cried at the familiar sound of Jack's voice.
Her heart raced slightly. She had made it! She was here! She willed herself to sit up, but she couldn't. She tried to yell out but her voice was hoarse. Gripping her wand slightly, she prayed that she had a bit of magic left to send up a small flare. It worked.
"What the bloody hell?" She heard footsteps approach her and she tried to open her eyes, her vision hazy, but she would have to be blind to not recognize the face that was hovering over her, "It couldn't be."
"Charlie," she tried to whisper.
Then Jack's head was hovering next to Charlie's and she nearly wept with joy, willing her arms to lift up to touch his face, as he stared at her, although she couldn't make out his face. "Addie?"
"I -" She didn't finish as she felt a strong arm lift her up into a sitting position and put a cup of water to her lips. "They overran the Ministry, managed to Apparate out, but Voldemort -"
Everyone winced and Adelaide was suddenly aware of the unfamiliar and unfriendly faces standing over her. "We should tell Mum she's here," Charlie was telling Jack who hadn't moved.
"NO!" She yelled and everyone jumped back. Her eyes fluttered close and Charlie caught her before she could fall onto the ground.
He looked at Jack, keeping his face calm and emotionless. "If she Apparated all the way here..."
Jack nodded, "We won't tell anyone until she explains." Charlie lifted her up to carry her to a bed, but he noticed Jack's hurt expression, knowing full well he probably felt too many emotions to sift through: betrayal, relief, anger, joy, hurt... "They all think she's abroad anyway."
Charlie nodded as he walked to his tent, well aware that Jack wasn't following him. He frowned when he noticed Adelaide felt noticeably lighter and he stared at her sleeping and yet pained face. He had no conflict of emotions; he was utterly relieved she was alive.
--
He laid her gently on his bed, to exhausted to search for an empty bed elsewhere; it had been a long day what with his older brother and best friend getting married, the news the Minister had been killed and the onslaught of Death Eaters and the fighting. He hadn't wanted to return to Romania, but his parents and Mr. and Mrs. Hayworth nearly forced Jack and he to return. And then, of course, there was the arrival of Adelaide.
She barely moved when he adjusted her head on the pillow, her face still twisted into a grimace. He brushed her long hair away from her face and he frowned. Had she dyed it? Why? His heart clenched when she let out a faint whimper and buried her cheek into the pillow. With a ragged breath he pulled the blanket around her, stroking her hair once more. He had missed her terribly, they all had. They had all held out hope that she would return to them, but when Percy hadn't...at least they had seen Percy, knew he was alive. There had been no word from Adelaide in two years, no rumored sightings. They had all stopped talking about her because it hurt too much. But he knew that everyone still thought about her, just like he had everyday.
He placed a soft kiss on the top of her head before, placing her wand on the bedside table, left his bedroom, leaving the door open in case she woke up and walked to the armchair in his sitting room, configuring it into a more comfortable piece of furniture and with another long breath, sat down and shut his eyes, praying for sleep.
--
Charlie was making himself a cup of tea, his eyes flashing towards the door every few seconds, hoping that Jack would show up before Adelaide woke up. He knew Jack was trying to sort everything out, probably upset that he couldn't owl Neil or his parents right away, but he had to respect Adelaide's wishes. It had been nearly 14 hours since she arrived in the middle of the night, and Charlie was relieved that he and Jack still had the day off since they were still supposed to be in England...
He knew his parents and his family were okay - Ron had run off with Harry and Hermione, the bloody Golden Trio, but they were fine, and he had gotten word that everyone else was safe. Currently.
Grumbling that Jack still wasn't here, he sent a Patronus to the younger man, afraid that Adelaide might wake up when he was gone. A few moments later, Jack was there, purposely avoiding Charlie's eyes. "You know me too well, Weasley."
Charlie chuckled, "I know you can't stay mad at her when she looked like that, Hayworth. She must have good reason."
Jack's eyes darted up and Charlie was not entirely pleased to see they were darker than their usual deep blue-grey, something that usually meant he was angry. "It bloody hell be a bloody good reason she went ape on us and Cedric and ignored us all for so bloody long."
Charlie opened his mouth to reply when they both heard the distinct sound of a creaking floorboard and turning around they were staring into the cold, pale grey eyes of a sullen dark-haired witch, her wand pointed directly at them both. "Ch-charlie? Jack?" Her voice was thick and they watched as her shoulders instantly sagged, her wand arm fell limply to her side and she let out a heart-wrenching cry. They were both at her side in an instant.
Charlie led her to an armchair, but she winced as he touched her sore and throbbing arm. He nodded to Jack and went to find his Healing Kit as Jack wrapped his arms around her, careful not to press to hard. "Addie," he whispered into her hair and she let out another sob, still too afraid that this was all a dream to hug him back.
"Jackie?" she whispered hoarsely, "is it really you?"
He let out a chuckle as a tear fell on to the top of her head, "Shouldn't I be asking you that?" He laughed again as he pulled back slightly to get a good look at her, leading her back to the chair and helping her to sit down, sitting on the arm rest next to her. "You look ruddy awful," he fingered a piece of her short hair, "what did you do to your hair?"
She wanted to scold him, slap his arm, but she was too happy to see her brother, to relieved to be in the presence of a brother and a friend, that she couldn't help but smile, tears falling freely down her face.
Charlie came back and with a megawatt smile he began to bandage up her arm, "I knew you couldn't stay angry, Hayworth."
Adelaide's pale eyes flitter to her brother, "I'm sorry, Jack, I wanted to write, you know I did and I-" she stopped, a horrified look crossing her face, "I shouldn't be telling you any of this," she looked at Charlie, "either of you, I could be putting you two in danger -"
Charlie shook his head and Jack grabbed her hand, "You're safe here, Adelaide. No one can Apparate in like you did, trust us. You're related to me, that's the only way you could. And besides, none of us are entirely safe anymore anyway since we're in the -"
Jack was cut off by Charlie who shot the younger man a warning glance but Adelaide finished the sentence for him, "The Order, I know."
They both looked shocked at her and she took a deep breath, "I suppose it won't matter anymore, but," she looked at the both, "you can't tell anyone I'm here. They're after me." Charlie opened his mouth to question her but she shook her head, "I need to eat first, maybe take a bath, then I'll explain everything."
They both nodded, "You can stay here as long as we do, Addie." Jack smiled at his sister, but Charlie knew it wasn't the large, relieved and joyous smile it should have been.
Something with Adelaide had changed, not that he hadn't expected it to after two years, but it wasn't a good change.
--
Charlie did his best to keep the mood light as he quickly whipped up a breakfast of pancakes and eggs for the three of them, with no help from Jack who tried to appear stoic but only succeeded in looking sullen and grumpy. Charlie didn't know exactly what he should talk to Adelaide about - did she want to hear about everyone? Did she care? Would that only make her depressed and tearful again? So instead, he chattered away about the dragons, how Jack was quickly moving his way up through the ranks, about the weather. He only stopped when he realized Adelaide was too busy stuffing her face to really listen.
"You Apparated all the way here?" Jack's voice was void of all emotion.
She simply nodded, her eyes never leaving her plate as she shoveled another bite into her mouth. "That's impressive. To be coherent and conscious after only a few hours of sleep."
Adelaide shrugged and took a huge gulp of water, "This is delicious, Charlie, thanks."
He shrugged, "Not a problem. Bathroom's back there. There are some clean towels in there too."
She nodded and with a grateful glance started towards the bathroom but stopped when Jack said evenly, "Mind fixing your hair, Addie? It's very offputting."
She turned and allowed a giggle to escape from her lips before nodding and with a small smile, locked the door of the bathroom.
Jack looked towards Charlie, his eyes furrowing and Charlie could almost hear the gears whirring in his mind. He set down his glance, knowing that Jack was going to do his best to articulate his thought process out loud, something he had grown used to: the two men had grown close over the past two years. All the Keepers on the Reserve trusted each other and treated each other like family, but it was different with Charlie and Jack. They had always been good friends, Jack nearly idolizing the older redhead when he was younger, but when Jack had arrived on the Reserve, they helped each other through the realization that both Adelaide and Percy had excommunicated themselves. Although they were rarely said so out loud unless copious amounts of liquor were involved, they had been each other's rock as they felt their families falling apart in England. They were as close now as Charlie had ever been with any of his other siblings and the pain from being so far away from his siblings both physically and mentally had been healed somewhat by Charlie's presence and constant companionship.
"She's, well, I guess she's changed, Charlie."
"We all have. Always does during a war."
"Why did she come here though? Why would she risk her neck Apparating all this way?"
Charlie shrugged, "I presume she'll tell us."
Jack shook his head, "I'd like nothing more than to berate her, yell at her for leaving us all, for leaving me and Neil and mum and dad and Cedric! Bloody Cedric was a wreck those first weeks," he sighed, "and I'm sure he still wasn't much better long after that, although I wouldn't really know." He ran a hand over his shortly-cropped blonde hair and let out a breath.
"You did the right thing by coming to the Reserve, Hayworth. It's been two years, stop beating yourself up over it."
Jack looked up shocked and let out a low chuckle as he shook his head at his friend, "You're getting to good at realizing what I'm thinking, Weasley."
"She wouldn't be here if she still didn't believe he was back, Jack."
He grimaced, "Well she saw him, didn't she? So of course she'll believe it now." Charlie didn't make to respond, knowing there was nothing he could say to Jack. "She's hurt all of us too much, I don't know if anyone will forgive -"
Neither had heard her reenter the room until the thud her shoes made when she dropped them on the floor. Charlie looked up to see the now-blonde girl, her face pale, her eyes bright and watery and tired looking, wearing the same clothes they had found her in but cleaner, her lips in a tight line. She looked between Jack and Charlie, "I don't expect anyone to forgive me, Jack, I just, need somewhere to stay for a night and then I'll be on my way," she looked at her feet as she continued to ramble on, something Charlie had never remembered her doing before, "I don't have anywhere to go, I presume, but they can't find me to get that information, maybe I could oblivate my memory, hide my papers, and -"
Jack coughed, "Adelaide, you can stay here, but," he paused and looked to Charlie who only stared at Adelaide, his face full of pity and confusion. "I, well, I'll need time to forgive you, and everyone else too, but they'll be pleased to know you're alive."
She nodded and rejoined them at the table, placing her shoes next to her on the floor and clasping her hands together on her lap, not meeting either of their eyes. "Where do you want me to begin?"
--
"Before we left the castle, Dumbledore asked to meet with me and he told me about the Order, explained the cause to me and asked me if I still wanted to work at the Department of Mysteries, explaining that any research I did would be more helpful now than ever, something that I had highly doubted, but he seemed rather convinced." Her eyes never once left her clasped hands, too afraid to look into the angry or pitiful eyes of her brother and friend. "He wanted to know if I wanted to help, if I wanted to protect you all since you'd all be in danger, you Weasleys because you're blood traitors, Cedric because he witnessed it and us because we are so associated with them. I agreed, of course, wanting nothing more than to protect everyone. And then Dumbledore explained to me that I'd have to severe all ties with you all. Publicly."
"But -" Jack started but Adelaide looked up at him with such sadness in her eyes that he stopped.
"Think about it, Jack. Would the Ministry openly hire someone to the most secretive and important of Departments who was a known supporter of Dumbledore who nearly everyone believed to be borderline insane? If I was to be hired by the Ministry, if I was to help the cause, I had to get you all to believe I hated you. And since the paper had been so keen on Cedric and Harry and subsequently on our relationship and on you and Neil, I had to do it in public," she hiccuped when she tried to hold in her sob. "I would have liked nothing more than to tell Dumbledore no, to stay with you lot, to share a flat with Neil and Cedric, but I couldn't. I had to do this," she grabbed his hands, "can't you see?" Her voice was thick and she looked on the verge of more tears as she stared into Jack's eyes, begging him to understand.
"You could have contacted us." His voice was flat.
"No, I couldn't, Jack. What if the Ministry questioned you all? What if they found out it had all been an act? I would be risking my job, my life and the lives of everyone else. It was something I had to do."
Jack stared at her with such annoyance and borderline contempt as he spat out, "You didn't have to do anything, Adelaide! We thought you really hated us, we thought you were dead! Don't you understand? It tore us apart! We were all devastated!" He slammed his fist on the table, staring hard at her as she sinked back into her chair.
Charlie stood up, "Hayworth. You will either let her finish or you will leave right now." His voice was authoritative and calm. "You are not helping the situation by lashing out at her. She has made it perfectly clear that she had no choice in the matter. We've all had to make sacrifices, Jack. But Adelaide's sacrifices have been for our immediate protection." His steely blue=green eyes dared Jack to argue. The younger man stood with jerky movements and stalked out of the small cabin, leaving a disappointed Charlie and a devastated Adelaide behind.
Charlie stared at the door, shocked and appalled that Jack had left like that. He didn't move until he heard a shocked and pained laugh sound from next to him. He sat down and took Adelaide's hand as she continued to laugh in disbelief before letting a few tears fall down her face. "He hates me," she barely whispered.
Charlie shook his head and wiped the pad of his thumb across her cheek, frowning when she seemed to tense at his touch. "He doesn't hate you, Addie. He's just confused and hurt is all." He rubbed her shoulder supportively, "I understand why you had to do it," he said softly, "I know it wasn't something you wanted to do."
She shook her head and took a deep breath as she tried to straighten up. "I'm tired of crying."
He nodded. "I'll keep listening. If you want me to."
She turned her face towards him, appraising him, her sad, pale grey eyes searching his. His breathing hitched as he saw a flicker of her old self, of her old fire in her eyes. She might be changed, might be depressed and guilt-ridden, but she was still the same beautiful, intelligent, loyal girl he had fallen in love with nearly 3 years ago.
"Thank you," she whispered.
--
Charlie was at times outright angry, sympathetic, apologetic, horrified and shocked during Adelaide's tale of the past two years of her life. He made tea for her, attempted to show support by taking her hand or rubbing her back but she always seemed to tense, flinch or pull away making her story only that much more heartbreaking. She told him everything that had happened, excluding what her actual research entailed and ending with her flight from the Ministry.
They were still seated at the small kitchen table and Charlie appraised her face as she took a deep breath, waiting for an outburst that was sure to be worse than Jack's. "Adelaide," her eyes widened, surprised by his gentle and soft voice, "Snape killed Dumbledore. Harry saw the whole thing."
She frowned, her eyebrows furrowing, "Dumbledore must have asked him to then."
"Adelaide -"
"Why would he warn me to get out if he was only working for Voldemort?"
"Are you positive it was Snape?"
She pulled something out of her pocket, "Look," she demanded.
Charlie stared at the unmistakeable handwriting. "Maybe he is a double agent, maybe he hasn't been helping He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named, but -"
She slammed her fist on the table, completely startling Charlie. "No." Her voice was fierce and threatening and the fire in her eyes worried him slightly. "He wanted me out of the Department, was angry that Dumbledore wanted me to do this, he was the only one who understood what I was going through, what my life was like and I know if he could, he would have written me or continued to visit even after Remus stopped. So don't you dare argue with me, Charlie, about the merits or loyalty of Snape."
All Charlie could do was nod.
She took a ragged breath and sank back into her chair, "Sorry," she said softly and sincerely, "I expect you want to yell at me like Jack? Merlin knows I deserve it."
Charlie hated seeing her this way: the once energetic, passionate, out-spoke, courageous, confident, fun, loyal, funny, well-loved, intelligent and athletic girl was now a broken shell of her former self. He hated pitying her, but how could he yell at her to buck up when she left like this. He let out a sigh and ran a large hand through his unruly hair. "Adelaide, you don't deserve it. He's just - he just can't quite sort out his feelings yet. He's pleased your alive and that you never hated us, but he's angry he has to keep this from Neil and everyone and he's probably bloody pissed at Dumbledore." He watched her tuck some hair behind her ear, "Adelaide, you're safe now. And as soon as I knock some sense into old Jack, I expect you to pick yourself up, stop crying and try to act like your old self. Yea?"
She attempted a smile and a nod before saying quietly, "This is the most I've talked or seen anyone in ages."
Charlie tried not to frown, reminded of the way she had rambled and faltered through her story, as though she hadn't spoken actual words in years. He was about to suggest they have something to eat when someone burst through the door.
Charlie watched as Adelaide stood up defiantly, her jaw locked, her lips tight, her eyes wild, her long, dirty blond hair behind her shoulders and her arms crossed as she faced her brother: she looked like her old self. Jack, however, rarely one to be on the receiving end of her anger was caught momentarily off-guard. He opened his mouth to speak but Adelaide spoke first. "Jack, I understand that you're angry and I know that everyone else will be angry with me too, but you should know that I always believed Cedric and Harry and I never wanted to ignore you and Neil and everyone else, but I didn't have a choice. And I know you don't want to hear my excuses, but had there been any other way...you needed to know the truth."
There was a labored pause before Jack swallowed, "I know, Addie. I always held hope that you were lying and just needed to get away or wanted to break up with Cedric or something, I just never thought you'd be doing something important and confidential for the cause." He took a breath, resisting the pull to hug her tightly, "But," he started, holding up a newspaper, "We have bigger problems."
WANTED:
Adelaide Hayworth, Unspeakable
Fugitive, Evading the Law, Illegal Use of Hexes and Spells on Ministry Employees, Stealing Confidential Materials from the Department of Mysteries
Last seen Yesterday Apparating away from the Ministry
Believed to have been posing as a Muggle
Thought to be hiding with family members or former friends
She looked up frantically at the two me, "I've put everyone in danger!"
Jack put a hand on her shoulder, "No one at home knows so they won't be lying, they'll be fine, Addie."
She looked searchingly into his eyes, "But what about you two?" She watched helplessly as Charlie and Jack looked meaningfully at one another.
"You're on assignment in Russia -"
Jack shook his head, "I'm staying here. I've already oblivated everyone's memory and I'm her brother. If I'm not here, they'll keep searching for me but it'll be less suspicious if you're out looking for rogue dragons..."
Charlie gripped the taller man's shoulder, "You already had Chief write the assignment."
"Broom and tent are outside." He turned towards his sister, "Don't argue, Adelaide. It's the only way. Once this all blows over," he smiled sadly, "maybe I'll be quicker to forgive you, not be such a prat."
She hugged him tightly, "I wish we could be together longer."
He kissed the top of her head, "Take good care of Weasley here, all right? He's the best Keeper we got."
Adelaide stayed inside the cabin as Charlie walked Jack back to his own cabin to oblivate his memory of Adelaide's presence. When he got back Adelaide had already packed some of his clothes for him and some to shrink for her and had pocketed the bag, trying her best to remain strong as Charlie beckoned her on to the broom. He told her to try and sleep as they flew low through the forest, hidden from any possible Death Eaters.
His arms tight around her middle, he navigated them along grateful when he could feel her breathing change. Sleeping was better than crying.
--
A/N: This was going to be a bit longer, but then it ended up being too long, etc but don't worry, the next bits will be about Charlie and Adelaide roughing it out in the woods…..and I'm not that happy with the fight scene, but oh well.
PLEASE REVIEW!