Disclaimer: Everything in this story belongs to J.K. Rowling. Anything that sounds familiar is hers. I just enjoy playing with the world she created. All of the chapter names are lyrics from songs from the various bands, named.

Chapter named after "Miserable At Best" by Mayday Parade.

Fred was the first one to Emma's side. Throwing off his headset and microphone, he jumped the few feet to where she lay, completely unconscious.

He took her hand, unsure what was wrong with her. She twitched slightly at his touch and mumbled something.

In a matter of seconds, all the contributors of Potterwatch were gathered around Emma, including Lee, who threw his headset aside with a rapid, "Sorry, technical difficulties!"

Emma stirred and mumbled again. This time it was coherent.

"She's saying, 'My arm burns,'" said Lupin quietly.

Ignoring the gasps of Lupin and Kingsley, Fred quickly rolled up Emma's left sleeve. The Dark Mark was incredibly sharp and pronounced, and looked to be pulsing slightly.

"A Death Eater?" Lupin hissed, his wand pointed at Emma.

"Wait. It's not what you think," replied Lee calmly.

"The Dark Mark on her left arm begs to differ," said Kingsley sternly, his wand out as well.

"Oh, my God." George was beside his twin, staring at Emma's Mark, just as oblivious to their observers as Fred was. He looked up slowly to meet his brother's eyes, his expression horrified.

Fred's voice was strained when he finally spoke.

"He's calling her, isn't he?"

George nodded, his eyes wide.

"What is going on?" Lupin almost shouted.

Lee chose to answer. "Emma is Bellatrix Lestrange's daughter. She ran away from her family when she was fourteen, but recently someone took her back to Malfoy Manor, made her a Death Eater, and then Voldemort tortured her for information about Harry Potter. We rescued her."

Kingsley's eyes widened. Remus, however, looked doubtful.

"And Fred…?" The werewolf gestured towards the redhead bent over Emma.

Fred cut in before Lee could open his mouth.

"Tonks loves you even though you're different, Remus." His tone was controlled but the words were fierce.

Lupin hesitated a moment, caught off guard. Then he nodded briskly.

"I think I'm going to trust her, Kingsley," he said to his companion, turning his wand from Emma.

Kingsley sighed as he lowered his wand as well.

"Alright," he agreed.

Lee crouched down beside his best friends. "What are we going to do?"

"Bring her to consciousness," Lupin suggested. "I could do it."

Everyone looked to Fred. He waved his arm as if giving him permission to proceed.

Lupin slowly brought out his wand, pointing it directly at Emma's chest from where he stood. He pulled it back for a brief second, then gave it a strong flick.

Emma's eyelids flew open. She sat up quickly and blinked, as if registering where she was. Then her eyes focused on her left arm as she winced in pain.

She looked imploringly at Fred, tears forming in her eyes as she bit her lip.

He ran his hand gently up and down her right arm.

"What is it, love?" he whispered.

She didn't break eye contact with him as she spoke, a trembling assurance in her voice.

"I have to go."

Fred's eyes widened and he gripped her arm tighter.

"No!" he gasped.

"Please, Fred. You have to see reason. The burning won't stop until I go."

"What if he's just calling you there to kill you? Then what will I do? I won't even know where you are; won't even know how to help you!" His voice broke on the last sentence.

Emma shook her head. "He won't kill me. It's a group meeting; he won't even be able to tell me apart from the many others."

Fred dropped her arm and stood up. He began to pace nervously, deep in panicked thought. He stopped as Lupin spoke.

"Let her go," he said.

"What?" Fred was furious. "They'll kill her! Don't you see the danger she'd be in by returning?"

"No, Fred." This time it was Kingsley who answered, his deep voice calm and steady. "She wouldn't get hurt. She'd just be there as a spy."

"You don't understand!" Fred yelled. "It's bloody You-Know-Who we're talking about! Not Dumbledore! Not the Order! It's Him and an entire army of his followers!"

"Exactly," Emma interrupted, letting George and Lee help her to her feet. "An entire army of his followers. He'd never be able to find me in that many people."

"Think of the information she'd be able to get." George was siding with Emma.

"Agreed, mate," said Lee, "I'm definitely following Emma on this one."

Fred glared at his brother and friend. "You two don't seriously think she'd be able to get away from him again?" he retorted.

Everyone ignored Fred.

"Do you have the robes?" Lupin asked Emma.

"Of course," she replied, her tone so normal that it was as if they were speaking of the weather.

"Put them on," Kingsley commanded, "And bring the hood down low enough to greatly obscure your face."

"Try not to stand out. Just blend in and listen. However, if he looks at you, you must practice Occulemency. I believe you know how to do that?" continued Lupin.

Emma looked unfazed. "I was taught by the best."

"Good," said Kingsley and Lupin in unision.

"You'll do great," Lee piped up.

"Just have confidence," advised George.

"Right. Thank you." With one long look at Fred, who seemed about to explode, Emma Apparated to her bedroom to change.

The door flew open just as Emma finished putting her everyday clothes away. She looked to the source of the sound in alarm.

Fred stood in the doorway, looking furious and frustrated. But as he saw Emma standing in her long black Death Eater robes, his anger seemed to melt.

He ran to her instead, pulling her tightly to his chest and burying his face in her hair. She rubbed his back, trying to soothe him.

"Please don't go," he whispered brokenly.

Emma felt a small pang in her heart, but her mind was made up.

"You and I both know I have to."

"No, you don't have to do anything. You could stay here with me instead." Fred sounded pained and desperate.

"I'll come back, I promise. I'll be okay, Fred." Emma spoke softly, but didn't bother to keep her determination hidden.

Fred pulled back for a second to look into her eyes, searching for something.

"How do I know that?"

"Don't you trust me?" Emma responded.

"It's not you I don't trust," said Fred sadly.

Emma sighed. "I know much more Dark spells than you could ever imagine. I know every form of defense possible. I'll be able to take care of myself if anything happens."

Fred raised his eyebrows. "Just like you were able to take care of yourself at Malfoy Manor? With only a few Death Eaters?" he asked coldly.

"This time it's different," Emma snapped.

"How?"

"I have a wand, for one!" She was exasperated.

Fred turned away from her in defeat. Emma straightened her robes and pulled up her sleeve, closing her eyes, about to turn.

"Wait!"

Emma opened her eyes and let her sleeve fall back down. She marched to Fred, irritated.

But before she could express her feelings, he was pulling her lips to his and kissing her with a fierce urgency, unlike ever before. Her lips seemed to burn each time he pressed his to them. It was terrifying and amazing all at the same time, and Emma never wanted to stop.

But Fred broke away from her, smiling sadly.

"Just be safe," he whispered, and lowered her hood over her head.

Emma nodded and stepped away from him, closing her eyes. She focused on the burning of the Dark Mark on her arm before turning on the spot and feeling her insides clench in fear of what was in store for her.

She felt a light breeze greet her as she opened her eyes once more, drawing her hood closer over her face. She gripped her wand tightly in her right hand as it began to dawn on her where she was.

The high ceilings and shiny floors that presented themselves to her eyes unmistakably belonged to the lobby of the Ministry of Magic. All around her, figures in dark robes that matched hers were Apparating or climbing out of fireplaces, greeting each other in cold voices.

Emma looked around apprehensively for the one person that had summoned them all, but he was nowhere in sight. At the head of the crowd, standing on the platform that held the base of an imposing black statue was none other than another Death Eater.

"Silence." Her mother's familiar voice rang over the din in the lobby, magically amplified.

The Death Eaters quieted, turning their attention to Bellatrix.

"The Dark Lord," she began, "has summoned all of you here this evening to receive the latest news regarding our successes in this ongoing war."

Bellatrix's lips curled up in a sinister smile as she paused for the cheers that echoed throughout the room. She then put up her hand to demand quiet once more. The cheers faded.

"He regrets that he is not here to relay them to you himself. The Dark Lord had other business to attend to and asked me to speak to all of you in his place.

"As you very well know, we have now completely taken the Ministry." She raised her arms to the ceiling of the building before continuing.

"And it won't be long before the Ministry begins interrogating Mudbloods. They will finally be put in their rightful places, amongst their beloved Muggles and away from the magic they do not deserve to possess.

"All of this pleases the Dark Lord immensely. However, he remains unsatisfied with the state of things pertaining to Harry Potter."

A hiss rippled throughout the crowd at the sound of his name. Bellatrix nodded at them in approval.

"Our Master asks all of you to pay greater attention to fulfilling his newer goal. It is imperative that we find the boy."

The witched stopped in her speech to smile menacingly once more. "And I've got jobs for each and every one of you to ensure we succeed."

Author's Note:

I appreciated the thirteen reviews I got! I'm at 82 now (:

And those reviews are the entire reason I stopped this chapter where I did. And that is because I am going to have another contest.

Whoever becomes my 100th reviewer gets to be in the story :D Yes, I will name a character after you, and you get to decide whether you want to be a Death Eater or an Order of the Phoenix member! However, the person who reviews all chapters of this story first will also get to be a character and receive the choice as well.

The rules: If you're trying to review all chapters first, you must PM me right as you're done, or I won't know you've won. Second, you have to tell me which side you want to be on, or I will pick for you. Third, you can't just write blah blah blah or "update soon." You can tell me your favorite characters, favorite chapters, what you think of this one, what you think of my writing, what I should fix, possible ideas, and all that jazz. And last, you have to tell me your first and last name and what you look like. Obviously, you can make all of it up if you want and I'll never know or care because I can understand that you don't want to get stalked on here or something.

So! Get to reviewing and whatnot!

-MQ