Disclaimer: Nada is mine.
Authors note: OKAY, I need your help. I can't decide if this is clever, annoying, confusing, awesome, or really annoying. Its sort of all of the above? Read the chapter, then read the note at the end about the annoying thing. Slash, we're getting to the more exciting bits! Wooo! Almost there! Comments always appreciated, enjoy!
"Alright my children, we have a cry for help. Tyche, go broadcast our message received signal." The small boy nodded, and slipped out of the main entrance to the Lair, as they affectionately called their room.
"Now, we'll have two teams. Alpha team is yours truly, Deimos, Phobos, and Moros. Beta team will be Oberon, Nyx, Pan, and Nemisis. The rest of you ungrateful heathens will wait here for us, and try to minimize the shock. Cerberus, you're in charge while we're gone, Pallas, you're on guard tonight." The group all nodded.
Draco had never though he would be here, in this position, but little Flora's idea had taken fire, and seeing the place where their mothers had died, and living there had bred an iron like urge for revenge, and eventually Blaise had talked Draco into letting them try to be a guerilla war group. Little Anthony Vaisey, now Tyche, had managed to make a broadcasting device that emitted to be picked up by the wizarding wireless. He and the twins, Hypnos and Nemisis had been coming up with ways to try and communicate, but until today they'd thought no one was listening.
They had nearly been caught once, on their first mission, out trying to find the Dark Lords new lair, and had almost been caught and fed veritaserum. It was this that finally led to the older kids letting Flora excitedly make everyone a pseudonym. They also had their own veritaserum, and had tested it, and if they thought of each other as their code names hard enough, they could name their accomplices only by false name under veritaserum and without hurting themselves, they could manage to withhold the given name, if in their heads the other ones were only their pseudonyms.
The wizarding wireless that was on the mantle crackled to life, and Tyche's voice came across, lower than normal, as he used voice-altering charms when broadcasting. "Listen up, kittens, we've heard your public school cries, get your uniforms ready, private school is coming for you whenever the laugh is heard. Keep your heads down, and shit packed, and try not to get wet under ghost tears. This is Professor Mockingbird, and your homework is 10 inches on why authority is-"
"Turn that thing down before Nyx faints from the curse words our little broadcaster is letting spill forth," Said Pan amiably enough, as he sharpened one of the silver daggers scavenged from the burnt manor.
"So what's the plan then, Da?" Nemisis asked brightly, using the not funny nickname that his friends had assigned to him, something about him worrying like a parent. At least he wasn't Pan, who was lovingly called Ma, Mum, or Mother. She had with her some bread from the kitchen, brown and of questionable edible nature, but that was something they were all used to at this point. Cerberus had taken over trying to cook, using the house elves cook books, but none of them had ever tried this, and so her success, while it was increasing, was somewhat limited in the culinary arts.
"I am not your father, you manner less brat," He responded affectionately, glancing at the large grandfather clock that they had dragged into the Lair. "We'll get going as soon as its dark out, and be there before the moon is out so no one get scared. Then Pan and I will get in, and spring the gates for you lot, and then the two teams will separate. Beta, so you, will go get whoevers waiting for us. We'll take care of the guards."
Nemisis grinned, and went off to get dressed, or give Draco a panic attack, or find her sister, or one of her other standard activities.
So far, they'd found the dark lords new hide out, and managed to kill a few patrols, though they had managed to break in and spoil some of the food, and Pansy, or that is Nyx, had gone and given any house elf she could find clothes, and then of course there had been the whole turn a group of death eaters into a pile of muggle rubbish bags. All in all they were probably more annoying than a real threat, but Nemisis was right, it made Draco feel better, and like he was having a say in what was happening.
Draco stretched, and got to his feet. He knew it wasn't really necessary, but he was going to get dressed in his go-clothes, even though it was a full moon, so he wouldn't be a person for that long. It was cloudy tonight though, so he didn't know exactly when he would transform. He moved through the dark room, to one of the corner where he slept. After the first night, they'd gone and taken every mattress, cushion, pillow, blanket and drape, and set up areas to sleep in. The younger kids slept next door, in what Draco assumed had once been some sort of servant room or something, or maybe a small guest room, but a few days after, they had blasted through the wall to connect the two rooms with a hole about the width and height of a person, since Astoria (Eris) didn't like sleeping unless she could poke her head in and look at Daphne (Hebe), and secretly Hecate felt the same way about Deimos, but he was too busy pretending to be a manly little 14 year old to admit it.
Draco had taken the mattress from his own room, and had also dragged a set of drawers down here, tossing out the suit of armor that had stood in a little niche in his corner, and put his set of drawers in the niche, so that his mattress could guard it, but he could still sleep with his back to the wall. He pulled out his muggle facemask. It was thick and black, and covered ones entire face and head, and all and all was good for their purposes. He slipped on a black jumper that they'd stolen during one of their raids on a muggle shop, and his dark black trousers, the only thing he was wearing save the ratty muggle shirt that was actually his. He flopped back on his bed, and there was a squeak, as Nyx emerged from his covers.
"Err, hello, you are aware this is my bed. Right?" His tone was dry, and he didn't bother getting up, remaining flopped across her legs.
"Yes, but Hebe is snogging Phobos in my bed, and plus, I figured you wouldn't try to cop a feel while I slept. Maidenly virtue and all that."
"I'm ashamed that my reputation is not the tarnisher of young girls reputations."
"Oh, I don't think it's the young girls that need worry," She said, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively and kicking at him from under his covers. He rolled his eyes, fluttering a hand dismissively at her, and shifted off her legs, to lie on a bit of unoccupied bedding.
As it turned out, without house elves, the group of once spoiled Slytherins were a bit messy, perhaps even slobs. Draco had been under the impression beds sort of made themselves because they liked looking nice or something, but his never obliged and merely remained rumpled day after day.
"Hey! Bossman! I think I've got it!" Oberon came bounding over, his blonde hair a bit wild. Draco sighed and sat up a bit, tilting his head at his longtime friend.
"Alright then, pretender, lets see your best shot."
Oberon grinned and closed his eyes breathing slowly. He'd been after Pan and Draco to teach him how to be an animagus, and while Draco had just laughed, Pan had caved because he was overly nice like that. He took a deep breath and mumbled the mantra, pointing his wand at himself. He winced as he slowly began to shrink, and sprout fur before his transformation picked up speed. Once he was done, Draco burst out laughing.
"Pan, Pan, look. Your star pupil, as it would turn out, if the actual ferret here." Nyx poked her head back out from under the covers and surveyed the small weasel like animal before joining Draco in laughter.
"Don't be rude now, he's obviously a pine marten. Uneducated plebeians," said Pan, calling over from where he was still seated, by the fire. His good-natured grin was visible even through he shadows.
"Fret not, my children, the mighty Oberon will protect yo- Ow." Draco sat up, nursing the bite on his hand. "Merlin, you do not take jokes well. Very useful, having a nice small animagus in the family, good for sneaking, stop biting me."
When Oberon ignored him, baring his teeth again, Draco narrowed his eyes and shifted, snapping his large hyena jaws at the odd smelling little rodent, who squealed, and leaped, slithering almost as it moved away, before Theo reappeared, sprawled on the floor.
Draco pounced up onto the couch, showing off by gracefully transforming mid jump and managing to swing himself into a seated position on the couch, smiling smugly at Theo- that is to say Oberon's sprawled form. He might be an unshaved, under fed refugee, but at least he still had his style, right?
Authors note: Ok, the code names, I thought were a cool way to get around some issues with guerilla war tactics. It allows them to get their way around veritaserum a little more, and it also lets them talk amongst themselves in front of other people (well not now, now there isn't anyone else there to talk in front of, but the time will come!). I also feel like it helps them step out of who they are, you know? Like without having to worry about their family name and all that family garbage I'm sure Lucius has been shoving down Draco's throat all his life. Also if they needed to call to each other, or write to each other they would be able to remain anonymous.
So, the question is, is it super annoying? To remember who is who and have to figure it out? Or is it fun? I originally had the characters name in parentheses next to all the code names for the readers reference, but then I posted this version instead, because that one looked sort of annoying to me. Or, I could start posting the list (I have a list) of what name is whose up top, next to the disclaimer and all that.
But having to think so hard feels like hard work for the reader? Thoughts? I'm torn in about 600 ways over this! PM's, Reviews, anything, I'm stumped on how to handle it, and I'm hesitant to just erase the whole lot of it, because I sort of like how Marauder with a Slytherin twist it is.
For initial reference, at least:
Adrian Pucey - Phobos
Liam Baddock - Deimos
Theodor Nott – Oberon
Draco Malfoy – Chaos
Vincent Crabbe - Moros
Gregory Goyle - Pallas
Blaise Zabini – Pan
Pansy Parkinson - Nyx
Daphne Greengrass - Hebe
Morag Macdougal – Nike
Millicent Bulstrode - Cerberus
Elijah Harper - Cratos
Anthony Vaisey - Tyche
Malcolm Baddock – Hecate
Astoria Greengrass - Eris
Flora Carrow - Nemisis
Hestia Carrow – Hypnos