OPTIVUS by: P.P.V.V.

Disclaimer: The Standard Disclaim applies. All original ideas/characters are mine to claim.

AN: I don't think I've ever had such a long period wherein I did not update. Almost half a year. The last time I updated was in April. Apologies. Here you go, my longest (and latest) chapter to date.

Enjoy.

Previously:

Seth knew they were all in danger.

Again, he glanced over his shoulder.

While they had made great progress already and covered a long distance, he had a sense of foreboding.

Maybe...

Just maybe he was able to outrun them.

But he knew deep down that it was impossible: his cover had been blown.

They knew.

He was no longer safe.

Trying to shake off the feeling of foreboding, Seth clutched the flasks he had been asked to fill to himself and went to the river. The water was cool and fresh over his hands – against the heat of the day, it felt good. He couldn't resist the urge to plunge his face in and take a long drink.

He was just finishing up when he heard footsteps behind him. "I've got them," he called, scrambling to his feet, and capping the skins. "Sorry, I was just - " He didn't get a chance to finish his sentence because something struck him hard. He was so surprised that he could not even cry out.

The leathers fell to the floor, and he followed soon after.

Chapter 21

- When Complications Arise -

Sirius impatiently swatted at a mosquito as he bent down to retrieve his pack. It rattled and smacked against his leg and he quickly turned to see if he had somehow roused Peter with the slight noise.

The boy lay under his blanket, fast asleep.

Breathing out a sigh of relief, he began to try and find Peter's medication. He tried to mentally calculate how much time it had been from his last dose and realized, with a start, that he had not administered it at all to his charge since they had left the hospital.

"All right there, Sir Sirius?" Sir Rick called, having seen Sirius freeze.

Bleakly, Sirius glanced at Peter's sleeping figure again, feeling very guilty. "I'm fine," he replied. If only he hadn't been so preoccupied with his frustration at moving so slowly, he wouldn't have forgotten. He knew, though, that it was not a good excuse. He could not jeopardize Peter's health...he couldn't afford to.

He found the plastic container and stared at the pills within. No wonder Peter had been moodier than usual. Sirius had passed it off as Seth's influence that had been the reason to the boy's dampened spirits.

Speaking of which...

He bounced the medication in the palm of his hand once, calling, "Sir Rick, have you seen Seth?"

Rick looked up from grooming his horse. "I haven't seen him since you asked him to fill the leathers."

"It's taking him an awful long time just to get water," Sirius said, with a frown.

"Maybe he got lost," Rick offered.

"Or maybe he's run back to whomever it is that sent him to spy on us," Sirius countered.

Rick looked up while running the coarse brush over his horse's flanks. "Sir Sirius..."

Sirius stood up. "I find I cannot shake the feeling of uncertainty when it comes to him. Ever since we first laid eyes on him in the hospital, he's..." he trailed off, unsure how to word himself. He let out a huff of air. "I just don't trust him, Sir Rick. He's up to no good." The boy had seemed a bit too helpful – too cheerful. It almost seemed...well, it almost seemed fake.

As if to interrupt them, Malony tossed her mane and stomped impatiently. Tossing the small bottle of pills to Rick, he called, "I'm going to go check on him. Give these to Peter when he wakes!" And before the elder man could stop him, Sirius disappeared into the brush.

There were things Sirius was certain he was able to boast about: tracking was definitely not on the list. Remus was very good at that, and he wished his friend were there to help him as he pushed further into the forest, looking for a trail that Seth might have left behind. He remembered Remus teaching them how to spot different clues that might suggest a certain road that the traveler might have chosen to take.

Having a father who was a war leader might have something to do with how Remus had learned about the trade.

Having a father who actually took the time to teach him the trade might have something to do with it, too, Sirius thought, darkly. Before his thoughts could turn to his own father, Sirius instead tried to remember Remus' short lessons.

He began to search the soft ground for any footprints and he easily found a trail heading toward the brook. Good. So the boy didn't wander off after all. Irritated, Sirius followed it. Why was Seth taking so long? They had to get moving. If he had known that the boy would drag his feet, Sirius would have done the task of getting water himself.

Suddenly, he heard a voice, and instinctively, Sirius drew back. Had Toma's men managed to follow them? But they'd been so careful! Peeking over the hedge he was crouched behind, Sirius saw a man dressed in supple clothing colored dark green and brown. Splotches of black lined his figure, making him seem to blend in with the forest. He was holding what looked like a crudely made club. Looking closely, Sirius could see Seth's body, sprawled before the man.

The boy was struggling to his hands and knees. One of his hands reached up to touch his forehead and came away with blood. When the man behind him spoke, Sirius saw Seth stiffen and turn. "Kessick..." he breathed, in a half-whimper.

"It's not fun when I have to run after you," Kessick responded, in a voice that was just as flat and empty as his eyes. "I hope you didn't forget our deal?"

Seth considered asking to get out of it, but he knew that it would only result in his death. "I...I haven't forgotten," he whispered.

Kessick considered his words, tapping the edge his club the palm of his hand. "Oh, good," he said, in an almost lazy way. "For a minute there, I thought you did. I've come to collect my due – I don't like being cheated." He brandished his weapon, meaningfully.

"I..I don't have it yet...but I'm close, Kessick!" Seth begged. "I wasn't running away. I promise!" he had flipped himself over fully, now, on his back so that he was facing his pursuer. "I...I just need a little more time..."

Kessick let the weapon thump in his hand once. "Sorry. You've missed the deadline. There is no more time."

Without thinking, Sirius charged out of the brush, just as Kessick raised his club.

In surprise, the man turned and managed to brace himself against the impact of Sirius' body slamming into his. Seth forgotten and weapon dropped, he turned his attention to Sirius, hands grappling as Sirius managed to knock him off his feet at last.

Sirius was fast, but Kessick proved to be faster, gaining the upper hand as the element of surprise faded. In moments, he had Sirius pinned beneath him. But Sirius was strong, and with a grunt, the student grasped the man by the collar and putting a foot to the man's middle, he threw him over.

Kessick was on his feet in a flash, a snarl in his throat. Sirius shivered involuntarily at it – this was a man who would not shy away from killing someone. With a stab of fear, Sirius thought of Peter and Rick. Were there others with this man? If so, he was willing to bet that they would not hesitate to kill either. He panted as he rolled over and hunkered down, trying to think.

Sirius was never good at confrontations. He was more the type to avoid such situations, and was rather good at doing so. He could remember running away from his father when the man had been in the mood to strike him. He disliked close combat.

Memories of his childhood came rushing back and threatened to choke him as Kessick came forward and locked arms with him again. Kessick's punches were just as hard, just as painful. In seconds, Sirius lost his sense of equilibrium, staggering backward.

Behind them, Seth watched, cowering.

"Who the hell are you?" Kessick shouted, driving a knee up into Sirius' groin.

Sirius cried out, curling in on himself as pain made his vision go white.

In his mind's eye, Sirius could make out his father's advancing figure. Hatred flared in him, hot and furious. How he'd wanted the man to drop dead, back then! Shaking, Sirius blinked, feeling the same anger toward this total stranger, who represented a very real threat not only to him, but to his friends.

Seeming to come to his senses, Seth grabbed the fallen club. With a sickening crunch, the boy swung the weapon around and slammed it into Kessick's legs. The man's shriek of agony rang through the small clearing, and Sirius felt himself moving again, aiming to use Seth's distraction to its fullest. His hands pulled his sword free from his waist and Kessick's second scream was cut short as Sirius swept his blade across the man's neck.

He watched as Kessick's wide eyes stared in disbelief, his hands reaching up to clutch at his severed windpipe. When he tried to gasp for air, his mouth filled with blood. There was so much of it that Sirius felt his stomach flop uneasily – now he understood why Remus did not like the sight. In sudden exhaustion, Sirius stumbled backward again, sword falling from his fingers, and with a splash, fell on his bottom in the water that surrounded them. His breath came in ragged pants, and he eyed the man's writhing body that had crumpled to the bank. In moments, it stopped convulsing and stayed still.

Seth was on his knees in the sand, trembling, his hands clutching the club with a white-knuckled grip. "Y-you just..."

Sirius pinned a glare at him. "He was going to kill you," he growled.

When Seth glanced at Kessick's body fearfully, Sirius got up. "Don't worry, he's dead." He scooped up his sword and, using the water from the brook, washed it clean. Then, he bent over the dead body and wiped it on the man's clothes.

He didn't want the blade to get rusty.

Seth could not move, still watching Sirius in disbelief as the older man worked. How could he be so calm and collected? Suddenly, he knew that Sirius' threats were not something to be taken lightly. For the umpteenth time, he wondered if he had made the right choice in following them. But he needed Peter's help so badly...again, he eyed Kessick's body, and suppressed a shudder.

"I saved you because I know Peter would be upset. But now," Sirius said, sliding the sword back into its scabbard, the motion frightfully meaningful, "you will answer my questions."

0-0-0-0-0

James sucked on a mint leaf, hoping that it would help him to quell the nausea he was feeling. He had a powerful headache, almost as though he had bashed it against the wall. It was so bad that it was upsetting his stomach.

"Your headache is the result of your lack of sleep," Kenji's knowing voice made James straighten from his position against the wall where he had slumped over as he waited for the worst of the pain to pass.

"I was just..."

"You need your rest," Kenji said, ignoring James' effort to come up with an excuse. "If you pass out in the middle of battle, I fear your headache will be the least of your concerns."

Despite the graveness of the situation, James felt himself smile. The mere action, however, made his face feel like it was going to break. He'd had headaches in the past, but this one was beyond painful. "I can't rest," he said. "There isn't any time..."

Kenji looked over his shoulder, where a few of the King's Army were gathered around Moody. They were busy with the weapons that they had managed to retrieve from the Russian Army. What they were doing with them, he had no idea. He turned his attention back to James. "My mother used to tell me that ten minutes of rest does the body a world of good."

James rubbed at his forehead, tiredly. "Ten minutes..."

"I shall stand watch, if you would," the Ravenclaw offered. "If anything should happen, I shall wake you." Without waiting for a response, he grasped James by the forearm and all but dragged him down the hallway toward the Lounge. James was too tired and in too much pain to do anything but stumble after him, protesting the whole way.

Once inside the room, Kenji had him sit down on one of the couches. "No one will disturb you," he promised.

"But what of Toma's intentions? Have we heard anything?"

"Strangely enough, Toma did not send us a reply to our declaration of war. I think he fears what happened to his men within these walls."

James shook his head, and instantly regretted doing so, because the pain in his head flared white hot. "That does not give us an excuse to get lazy."

Kenji huffed, "Resting and being lazy are two very different things, good sir. Now, I insist that you close your eyes at the least. You've gone through much, and have done enough for now. Let us take care of the rest."

The cushions were awfully inviting. Like a ton of bricks, James felt the fatigue that Kenji had spoken of, fall on his shoulders. He was certain he could fall asleep for more than ten minutes if given the chance. The sudden quiet was soothing.

He moaned, putting his head in his hands and breathing through his mouth. He didn't know when Kenji left the room, just that when he returned, he found himself curled into a ball at the edge of the couch. He was handed something to drink.

Medicine.

"It will help," Kenji told him. "I retrieved it from Madam Pomfrey's cabinet." At James' skeptical look, the man added, "My father is a doctor, sir. Fear not, I know my medicines well."

James did not care to argue. Suddenly, he wanted every precious minute of the sleep that was being offered to him. He was close to tears with the pain, so he took the medicine obediently and stretched out on the couch. He feared he would not be able to sleep because it hurt so much, but he quickly slipped off, even as Kenji was speaking to him.

When he woke, it was to an odd sound. Groggily, he wondered if the sound had been part of his dreams. He sat up, glancing around the room, trying to gather his bearing. He remembered that he was in the Lounge room. The room was cramped with plump furniture and a few long tables that allowed students to sit around and work on homework in groups. Most of the time, however, it was used as a Tea Room or a place wherein friends could gather during free periods to chat and hang around.

There was a movement by the doorway. Alarmed, James focused on the figure and breathed a sigh of relief when he realized it was just Kenji. True to his word, the Ravenclaw had stood watch. The way he was looking about cautiously told James that he had also heard the sound that had woken him from his rest.

James quickly took a look at the clock and did a double take. Three hours had passed since he had lain down. "Why did you not wake me?" he demanded.

Kenji shrugged. "Moody was not pleased to find that you were unwell," he answered. "I was on Moody's strict orders not to wake you unless absolutely necessary."

As if that reminded him, James gingerly probed at his forehead. The headache was gone for the most part; a dull throb remained as a ghost of the pain. Compared to earlier, he felt great. "I'm better now," he said, sitting up. He ignored his body's protest for more rest and stretched.

But if Kenji had not woken him, then who had?

As if to answer his unspoken question, they heard soft giggling.

"Whoever is in the room, you'd best show yourselves," James announced.

There was a brief silence and James sighed. "Right now," he ordered.

Almost simultaneously, two heads appeared from behind the couch on which he was sitting. Freckles and brown eyes adorned both their faces, and each was crowned with flaming red hair. They looked so alike that it was like seeing double.

Twins.

Children.

...Children?

James wondered if he were still dreaming.

It was Kenji that spoke though. "I dare say...those are Sir Williams' relations!"

"Sirs...Ted and George, wasn't it?" James asked, still in a daze.

One of the twins scowled. "It's 'Fred'," he corrected, in his small voice. "Frederick Weasely, thank you very much!" and his tone was so insulted that James was obliged to bow his head in apology.

"I beg your pardon, Sir Frederick," James said. "But I will have you beg mine also: what are you doing at the Academy when you were ordered to flee?"

It was George who answered though. "They said all the women and children were to flee and the men were to follow afterward."

"And if they so desired, they could volunteer their services here as guards," Fred put in.

"So we stayed behind..."

"...to volunteer our services."

James could not help gawking. "Volunteer your services?" he repeated, incredulously. "You are no more than five years of age!"

Frederick shook his head, scowling once more. George did the motion at the same time and scowled in the same manner that James had a hard time believing the two were separate beings.

"I'll have you know that I am five and two years already!"

"Five and three years by this August!"

"And we are almost in Fourth Form!"

They were switching back and forth so fast that it was all Kenji and James could do to keep up with them.

Kenji asked, "And does your Professor know that you volunteered yourselves?"

This time, the twins glanced at each other before shaking their heads.

"Eight..." James said in disbelief, running a hand through his hair. His head was beginning to pound again. "You should be ashamed of yourselves! Professor Medy is probably beside herself with worry looking for you two!"

One of the twins started to say, "But...!"

"I shall hear no excuses!" James said, heatedly. "We have just declared war. We have more than enough to worry about without having two children to mind." He turned to Kenji. "Of all the times..."

"Calm down, sir," Kenji said. To the twins, he said, "You both ought to be punished, but that will have to wait. We are short in numbers as it is, but we will need to assign you a guard and have you go into hiding."

Fred and George ran around toward the front of the room, their hands clenched in determined little fists. "But we can help!"

"We don't want to hide!"

When James got to his feet, their protests died on their lips. Still, they stared up at him, defiantly. "And what will you children do?" he demanded, stressing the word. It was bad enough to have to be responsible for the lives of his men. But to be responsible for the lives of these children...what had they gotten themselves into?

"We can help!" George (or was it Fred?) said, confidently.

"Your numbers are short..."

"...but we have a plan!"

The way they complimented each others' sentences was quite astounding. If the situation wasn't as serious as it was, James would have liked to have a chat with the two just to hear them talk as one. He had to take a deep breath to calm himself down. "You must understand that this is not a game," he said, sternly. "Many lives are at stake. Your lives are at stake. It's best if you don't sully your hands whilst so young."

Fred (or was it George?) planted his hands on his hips. "We are the future. We want to have a say in how it's created."

"If we don't win, there will be no future," the other twin agreed.

"So, going into hiding would be useless."

The two nodded at each other, pleased at their sound theory.

Kenji shared a look with James and the two men began to laugh. "I can't win, can I?" James asked, between chuckles. And Kenji said, "Such thoughts, for such young minds!"

James knelt down so that he was at eye-level with the two of them. "I admire your courage," he said, putting his hands on both their shoulders. "Your willingness is appreciated. I'm certain that the future will hold much promise for the both of you. I can only hope that your generation will have the same mentality." He smiled sadly, remembering the times when he was a boy. He had never had to think of anything other than being carefree. He paused and then said, "Very well...today, you will be men grown. If we think of you as thus, you must act so." They stood a little straighter, and raised their chins a little higher at his words. "You will fall under command and you will obey everything that is asked of you."

"Yes, sir!" they chorused.

James held up a finger, and their attention was riveted toward it. "Keep yourselves protected. A coward runs, but the wary run and survive. Be wary at all times. Running away so that you may do battle the next day when you are able, is nothing to be ashamed of." Passing on Professor Merrythought's words of advice was the least that he could do.

Solemnly, the twins nodded.

Satisfied that they had taken him seriously, James got to his feet. "Come on then," he sighed. To Kenji, he said, "I'm too lenient."

Kenji smiled, his almond-shaped eyes twinkling. "I'm certain Sir William will not be pleased to find out that his brothers have chosen to disobey the rules."

James flashed the Ravenclaw a grin. "Neither will their mother."

At that, the twins stopped in their tracks. As one they pleaded, "Oh, please don't tell Mum!"

0-0-0-0-0

Seth stumbled forward, falling face-first into the dirt next to the now-tidied campsite. Behind him walked a livid Sirius.

Peter was sitting against the trunk of a tree, looking like he had just woken up. His eyes snapped open, fully, however, when he saw Seth trip. Rick, who had just finished saddling the horses, turned in surprise. "Sir Sirius? What's going on?"

At the same time, Peter demanded, "Seth?"

Sirius had never looked so angry before. Even though Peter was not the object of his wrath, he was still frightened out of his wits. "Tell them!" Sirius commanded.

Before Seth could so much as get a word out of his mouth, Peter asked, "Tell us what? Sirius, what are you doing?"

Sirius jabbed his finger at Seth in emphasis. "Your friend here holds bad company. He isn't what he seems to be, just as I predicted."

Sir Rick led the horses toward them. "What is the meaning of this? Cousin, you look a sight!"

Sirius' clothes were sopping wet. Bruises from his skirmish with Kessick earlier were beginning to show on his face. His lower lip had split open during the fight, and was now swollen. His shirt and breeches were splotched with so much mud that it made the horses look immaculate in comparison.

"Were you two fighting?" Peter asked, coming to his feet.

"Not one another," Seth started to explain, but Sirius cut him off again.

"We are being followed. The mudblood nearly got himself killed."

Seth colored at the wording of choice.

Sirius glared at Peter. "He would have sold you out, just to save himself."

Seth looked to Peter as well, pleadingly. "Wait, that's not...I didn't..."

Peter's voice rang out over the clearing as he yelled, "Enough! If you don't start making sense and soon, I'll bash both your heads together so help me!"

Sirius' jaw almost dropped in his shock. Since when had Peter ever threatened anyone? This whole runaround was making everyone tense. He instead let out an impatient sigh, unconsciously copying James' favorite act of running his hand through his hair. "Seth has a few debts he has to pay back to a group of people he got himself tangled in. Since he wasn't able to deliver on time, they've come looking for him. Instead, he thought to run away and use us as a cover. He planned to use you to his advantage when the time came, but they found him first."

Peter turned stiffly toward Seth. "Is this...is this true?"

Seth squirmed. "Well...yes...and no!" he added, seeing the color drain from the young Prince's face. "I didn't mean to use you to my advantage by selling you out, or anything." When those words only served to upset Peter some more, he rushed add, "I had hoped you would help me avoid them. That's...that's all."

"Is it, now?" Sirius asked, angrily.

"Well...I mean..." the boy squirmed some more. "I did want to...ask you...to clear my name, seeing as how you are the Prince and..."

Peter shook his head. "You aren't making any sense and I'm ready to lose my patience," he said, hotly. "I am tired, and I am hungry. I wish a bath, and to get out of here if we really are being followed as you say." He looked down at Seth. "Now, tell me your story and quickly before I decide that I will leave you behind after all."

Seth seemed to sag a little because his shoulders slumped and he sat back on his heels. He sounded resigned when he spoke. "I wasn't lying when I told you that I am from the Bailey Household. My father really was disowned after he had me. I was raised in an orphanage as I said. I'd always wanted to be reclaimed by the Bailey household if they would have me.

"A few years ago I was introduced to a group. They called themselves Aurors. I thought they were great – they lived independently and treated each other like family. They were rich and had everything that they wanted. They invited me to join the group, but in order to do so I had to prove myself to them.

"At first, they had me pick pockets. After a while, they promised me that if I brought them enough money, they would clear my name with the Bailey Household so that I could return there and take a place in the Noblemen lineage." He paused for a moment to wipe the back of his hand across his nose before continuing. "They...they told me it was costly – it was more than I could scrounge from picking pockets - so they had me break and enter into people's households and steal money that way. I hated doing it."

Seth stopped speaking then, staring at the dirt by his feet and dragging his right thumb through it, absently.

Peter leaned forward, his hands on his hips. "If you hated it so much, why didn't you stop?"

Seth let out a frustrated sigh. "It wasn't that easy. By the time I realized that their seemingly easy lives were a result of having children like me do their dirty work for them, I was in too deep." He glanced at Peter, helplessly. "One day, I tried to get out of the deal. They beat me nearly half to death."

He began to drag his thumb through the dirt again, letting his words sink in before saying softly, "I was brought to the same hospital where I met you. I thought they would leave me alone after that, but once I recovered they came back. They told me that they were still waiting for my payment. They warned me that if I didn't have the money by a certain date, they would kill me.

"So I planned to start stealing from the patients at the hospital."

Peter's face betrayed no hint of emotion when he asked, "So…you really weren't a volunteer?"

Even though it was a rhetorical question, Seth obliged him by shaking his head in response. "It was a cover up."

Rick and Sirius stood, unmoving, waiting for Peter to say something. "I...I'm sorry," Seth said. "I..."

"-What about the Russian Army, Seth? Would you have sold me out to them for a bag full of gold?" Peter demanded.

Seth shook his head. "I told you, I didn't want to live like that any more. Peter..."

At that, Sirius stepped forward. "That's 'Your Highness'," he corrected, steely. He was about to say more, but Peter stopped him by holding up a hand.

"If what you told us is true, then that means there are other Aurors out there looking for you."

Seth gave Peter a pleading look. "I thought I could escape while the Army was causing so much commotion. I was positive Kessick's group would lose track of me. And even if they didn't, I thought that since I was friends with you, you could help me get away from them. And...and since you're the Prince, you could clear my name with the Bailey Household. They would listen to you – you are after all, Royalty..." he trailed off, realizing that he had begun to babble.

Sirius moved to stand next to his friend, who was staring in disbelief at Seth. "I told you he was up to no good," he growled. "I say we leave him here. We cannot afford to be caught up in his mess." When Peter did not respond, Sirius demanded, "My lord?"

"We must take him along," Sir Rick countered. "It's as I said before: if we leave him behind, he will betray us not only to the Army, but to the Aurors as well."

Seth protested, "No, I would never - "

"-Enough!" Peter's command made all of them fall silent. He was still staring hotly at Seth. "Let us pack our things and leave. We don't have time to stand around and argue like this. It leaves us open and vulnerable to attack."

Sirius could not believe his ears. "Peter, you can't possibly mean to bring him with us!"

"I do." His voice turned to ice, when he spoke to Seth. "I will give your story the benefit of the doubt. However, I will not hesitate to be merciful if I find you have lied to me again." He gestured to Rick, who understood his meaning and clapped a fist to his heart as soldiers were known to do when given a task from their commanders.

Peter turned away from them, but not before Sirius saw the crushed expression on the boy's face. "The sooner we reach the Academy the better. Let's move out."

0-0-0-0-0

"What do you suppose is going on?" Lily asked, looking around with a frown.

Beside her were Pavel and Celena, the two having been her companions for the majority of the trek.

The Academy residents had only started to move forward again at an inching pace. Poor Remus was trying to scout and lead at the same time. He had confessed that beyond the initial shelter that they had rested in, he knew no more of the terrain ahead. Thus, their group stopped often. This time, though, their halt was longer than normal.

"Perhaps we have been discovered?" Celena looked about, nervously.

Pavel rolled his eyes at her pessimism. There was no doubt the Lady was beautiful, but he found her negative attitude rather unattractive. In fact, compared to Lily, he found her dull. He knew Celena didn't like him, and he couldn't help but reciprocate the feeling. Knowing it would make Lily feel very uncomfortable, he tried his best to be as friendly to the woman as possible. "Perhaps Sir Remus and his men are just having a hard time finding a safe passage."

Lily cast him a grateful smile. "I guess I'd better go and see what the reports are. I'll be right back." Without waiting for a response from either of them, she hurried off, weaving her way through the groups of students, looking for her fellow Elites.

It was hard work getting such a large amount of people to cooperate. So far, they were doing well, but another day had almost gone by and it was frustrating that they were not able to cover as much ground as they had hoped.

She found Lorien and Dane, who were having a discussion with Severus and a few Professors. Lucius was not present. She didn't get a chance to ponder on that because as soon as the group saw her, they bowed as one in greeting. Lily returned it, automatically, but without as much grace.

"We were just talking about arrangements while we wait," Severus informed her, before she could ask.

She didn't want to voice her fears that Remus and his group may have gotten lost and injured because there were so many ears listening in on their conversation. Instead, she ventured, "I hope everything is okay…"

"I'm certain they're fine, my Lady," Dane said, with a nod of his head. "As much as I would like to get going, it's better if we take things slowly – it will do us no good if we don't scout the terrain in front of us properly.

"If there is anything to worry about, it's that we won't be able to bring the carts with us the whole way," Dane said. "They're too big and bulky, and the passage we have been traveling seems to be getting narrower…"

Each cart was pushed by a group of six men. After every half hour, the group would switch with another assigned group, ensuring everyone took part in the labor. Even the women had volunteered to help.

Professor Laarni said, "We could split the supplies amongst the faculty and students. There are enough of us so that one person would not be overly burdened…"

Severus grimaced at the suggestion. "If we disperse them in such a way, it would be very difficult to keep an accurate track of our resources, Professor."

Grimly, Dane said, "It may be our only way. If worse comes to worse, we can assign volunteers certain provisions and they can directly report to you so that you may keep your records up to date."

"I'll help," Lily offered. "If we are able to keep tabs on a group each, there's less of a chance that things will go missing."

"We shall help keep tabs also," Professor Binns said, speaking on behalf of the other instructors who were included in the conversation.

They were in the middle of debating the best way to divide the supplies up when shouts caused all of them to pause and look up. Sir Joseph informed them, "The scouts have returned! Sir Remus has some news."

Sure enough, the man was jogging toward them. The look on his face caused a bolt of panic to run through Lily. Sure enough, his news was not good. "We're in trouble," he told them, skipping formalities and courtesies all together.

"Troops?" Lucius' sudden presence made everyone jump.

Remus shook his head, still trying to catch his breath. "We've pushed ahead but no matter what direction we go, we're blocked."

Lorien echoed, "Blocked?"

This time, Remus nodded. "There's no where to go – we've reached a dead end!"

To Be Continued…

AN: Well, there you have it: Seth's true objectives, trouble and the Weasely twins. I hope you enjoyed. Again, I apologize for my delay in updating. Please review and let me know your thoughts. Here's to hoping I'll have inspiration for the next chapter!

Thanks for reading,

-P.P.V.V.