False Sense of Security
The Woods' flat was once again slightly crowded on Friday, the weekend after the ball. All four siblings had been enjoying a well-deserved break from practice, though Daisy was still heading into the gym every day to keep up her form. She was still there even though Wills was at the flat, along with Chris and Dominique who had taken to popping by after they finished work for the day. Daisy was expected soon, according to Wills, who had just gotten a message from her.
"So… Christos… noticed you spent a fair amount of time with Roxanne at the ball," Dominique said, smiling slightly. For the first since they had all met him, he blushed slightly. Dominique supposed that out of all her cousins, if he was going to fall for one, Roxanne did make the most sense.
"She is interesting to talk to," he said nonchalantly. "The Mayan culture is fascinating."
"Sure… that's what's fascinating," Chris replied, smirking slightly.
"It is. It has a very long and colorful history," Christos insisted.
"Sure it's not the beautiful witch conveying the stories of the culture?" Wills asked, grinning. Christos didn't answer, just took a drink instead.
"But what about Molly?" Alan asked. By this point it was no longer a secret in the family that she fancied him.
"She is very kind and nice and…" Christos stared.
"Completely not your type," Dominique finished. Christos stared at her a moment. "It's fine, I actually saw that one coming. Poor Molly… always going for the wrong sort."
"I'm surprised Toby and Molly haven't ended up together yet, to be honest," Chris said. "As much time as they spend together." Dominique snorted.
"Toby is kind and probably a good fit for her, so of course Molly wouldn't go for him. Besides, we spend the same amount of time together and yet, we're not together," she replied. Chris nodded slowly.
"I see you're point," he said. "But a lot of that has to do with the fact you're with Cunningham."
"Still, even if it weren't for him, I highly doubt you and I would have gotten together," she replied. Chris frowned slightly as Alan laughed.
"I resent that," he said.
"Roxanne is our little cousin, you know," Remus said, frowning at Christos. The young man laughed.
"Ah, so when it's a cousin the same age as you, you do not mind. But Roxanne…" Christos started.
"Come off it, Remus. She's an adult now," Dominique said, swatting at him. Christos chuckled.
"Do not worry… I am focused on the task at hand at the moment. And that is whatever danger is coming. Dating will wait," he said.
"Yea, but that could be awhile," Wills replied. "Might as well have a bit of fun in the meantime."
"Spoken like a true player," Dominique commented. Wills scowled at her.
"My playing days are over," he said.
"We know, mate. You announced it to the world at the ball by calling Dad 'future father-in-law' in front of all the reporters," Alan said while laughing. "He looked like he was going to kill you with his glare alone."
"I only did it then because I knew he wouldn't try anything with all the press there… and it's kind of fun to see his face go all red," Wills admitted. "He'll get back at me once practice starts up again."
"And we'll be there to watch it," Remus said in glee, glancing over at the chaser.
"All worth it for Pix," Wills said, smiling.
"Pix still not in?" Jamie asked as he walked into the kitchen from the corridor.
"Not yet, but I suppose she'll be here soon," Wills said with a sigh.
"Still hiding from the press?" Jamie then asked, glancing over at him.
"A bit," he said. "We did actually make the front page with that kiss at the final."
"At least they were nicer this time around," Dominique said, reaching for a copy of Witch Weekly. A photo of Daisy and Wills from the ball was on the cover. There had been a flurry of articles in the week since the ball and reporters were still following them around. "They're all speculating when the wedding is going to be."
"Not until she's 25," the triplets and Wills said in unison. Dominique looked up at them and snorted.
"Been practicing that?" she asked.
"No, just heard it enough in the last week since the ball," Wills said. He looked at the Woods as Jamie walked into the living room. "Your dad sent me at least five Howlers." Dominique's eyes widened as she started to grin.
"No way," she said, giggling. Chris just watched with an amused look on his face.
"You brought that on yourself, mate. At least from what I read," he said, glancing over Dominique's shoulder as she flipped through the magazine to a story on the ball.
"Could have been worse. He could of come over and jinxed you," she said. "Without Daisy around to protect you, that is."
"You don't think he would, do you?" Wills asked, his face going pale.
"Best to stay here where it's safe," Remus commented. "At least Jamie can protect you when Pix isn't around." Wills looked towards the door.
"Where is Pix?" he asked. "That woman takes her game too seriously."
"You know her, she'll be there at least another hour," Remus said with a sigh. He looked over at Dominique. "Say anything about Kingfisher this time?"
"Witch Weekly ranked him as the most eligible bachelor in the league now that Wills is taken," Dominique said. "Seems you and Alan are out of the running as well, showing up with dates and all."
"We always have dates, doesn't mean we aren't still eligible," Remus said, frowning. Dominique rolled her eyes at him.
"Remus, you and Laura have been together since the New Year's Ball in 2021. You're no longer eligible," Alan said.
"Who was the lovely young lady on your arm?" Dominique asked, grinning at him.
"Bridget. She's a healer. Did a round as a medic on our team in the first half," he said casually, though a slight pink tint had come over his cheeks.
"Something going on there?" she asked.
"Maybe… supposed to go out this weekend," he replied. "Take it things are going well with Cunningham." It was Dominique's turn to blush slightly.
"They are going rather well," she said, smiling. "He's asked me to consider moving in. I'm not sure if now is the right time, though. I told him I'd think about it." Chris glanced down at her, slightly shocked. He hadn't heard this news.
"Isn't it a bit soon? You two did just get back together," he said. Dominique shrugged.
"Well… we were together for awhile before the break-up. When you take that into consideration, it's not unusual. Though I think it's because he wants to keep me close with whatever's coming," she said.
"Suspect after Jamie and Lila, you two might be next in the wedding line," Remus replied, grinning. Dominique just smiled and shrugged.
"I wouldn't mind it," she confessed. "But as Christos said, we've got bigger things to focus on at the moment."
Suddenly, Nikos appeared silently in the middle of the room, looking around frantically.
"Good, most of you are here. I must speak with you now," he said, breathing heavily. "It's of the utmost urgency."
Daisy breathed heavily as she continued on the treadmill. It was the last thing she had to do before she called it a day and headed back. While her brothers and Wills opted to take time off, she didn't want to lie around and get lazy before practice started up again.
Not to mention, they had the workshop coming up and she needed time away from Wills and her brothers to think about it. She would be meeting up with Nilsson and the other players next week to go over the plan. So far about 100 girls had signed up, making it a much bigger enterprise that the previous ones.
Music pumped through her headphones as she bobbed her head in time with it, humming along. Her thoughts began to wander a bit. It wouldn't be long before she, Jamie and her mother returned to the island for more training. They were planning to go for a couple weeks this time, see if they could suss out just what her gift was. And then it was back to practice. The workshop. The machine beeped, signaling that she had reached her set distance. Daisy powered it down and hopped off, walking over to her bag and pulling out a bottle of water.
She was the only one there. Coach had been in his office earlier, but said he was heading out soon. He and his girlfriend were taking a weekend trip to the mountains. She looked around the gym and then over at the clock. Everyone would probably be at the flat by now. She should hurry and hit the showers. Wouldn't be long before Wills started complaining over how long she was taking.
Daisy froze slightly, seeing something move out of the corner of her eye. She looked over towards the open door out of the gym, frowning as she didn't see anything in the darkened hallway.
"Coach?" she called out, pulling her headphones off. "That you?"
There was no response. Daisy shrugged and turned back to her bag, tossing her water bottle inside and then hoisting in onto her shoulder. At that moment, she froze slightly.
"DAISY WATCH OUT!"
She turned quickly, about to apparate to the flat when the curse hit her. She never even saw it coming as everything went black.
"Let me get mum, Dad and Pix," Jamie said, his face immediately looking concerned.
"Hurry, I must tell you now," Nikos replied. Dominique looked at Chris and back at Jamie.
"Send word to Teddy too," she said. Jamie nodded.
"I have found many things," Nikos said. "While you came back, I went searching for this evil on my own."
"But… why didn't you say anything to us," Dominique asked, frowning. "We could have worked together."
"I couldn't send word. It could have been intercepted. And I do best on my own, to be honest. I had been keeping Christos updated," he said. Dominique and Chris stared at him momentarily, causing him to fidget. "But… there is a group… studying ancient magic."
"We know. We've been looking into them. Teddy's been going undercover to their meetings," Chris said. Nikos shook his head.
"It is not just the one group," he said. "There is a network of groups all over the world. I do not know exactly how many. They are all studying various ancient magic and cultures. Some the same things, some different things."
The group was silent, watching Nikos as his words settled in. They hadn't known about the other groups.
"Someone is using these groups. There is a leader who has been taking part in some of them – going by the name OP. They believe that you are connected to the prophecy," he said, looking at Jamie. "We must get you all to safety. Right now. They are planning to use you and your family to pass through the veil."
"But I thought you said it's not possible?" Jamie said.
"We do not have anyone with that gift, no. But they do not know this. They do not know about the Prostatis or what the prophecy says. Only that you, Daisy and Iris have gifts. A great power. They think Remus and Alan do as well," he said. "And they think they can use this power over the veil."
"How did you find out all of this?" Dominique asked.
"I infiltrated their headquarters," he said. "Read through their correspondence. They are planning to take you soon, though I could find nothing of how they plan to do that. I hope that by informing you now, it is not too late and we can thwart those plans and take them down before they even start."
"What's their ultimate goal?" Chris asked. Nikos turned to look at him.
"They wish to raise a dark army by bringing back dark wizards and witches," he said. "They wish to rule over all – magical and non-magical."
Iris hummed to herself as she moved around the office. George was once again in the workshop, where muted explosions could be heard every so often. Sitting at the desk, Iris sighed as she pulled the account books over and started going through them again. She wanted to get this over with so she could get home. She had received word that Nikos was back from Jamie, but thought Oliver could handle it for now. Doing the books was like pulling off a plaster - best get it over and done with or she'd fall behind.
Business was good – as usual. But it was time to take care of the monthly bills and salary. From the corner of the room, there was a bump. Iris looked up and over, frowning slightly when she didn't see anything. She turned back, thinking that her ears must be playing tricks on her. She had been working at the books all day.
She heard the bump again and looked up, still not seeing anything. Sighing she pushed out of the chair and walked towards the far end of the office to investigate. Probably one of George's experiments had escaped his workshop.
"Hello, Iris," a voice said from behind, causing her to jump. She turned and saw Magnus in the door. Laughing softly, she smiled and started over towards him.
"Goodness, you frightened me there a bit," she said. "What brings you here, Magnus?"
"Always wanted to see the shop," he replied.
"Well then, let me show you around," she said. "I need a break from the books anyway."
"That won't be necessary. We don't have long and must get going," he said, checking a pocket watch before returning it to his pocket. "Time is of the essence, I'm afraid."
"We?" she asked.
"Yes, you and I. Daisy will meet us there," he said breezily. Iris frowned.
"What are you talking about, Magnus?" she asked, confused. Something wasn't right. She could feel it in her bones.
"Well… I know who you are," he said. "Iris Evans. A witch of considerable gifts. I have use of those gifts."
A cold dread started to fill Iris as her eyes widened. She looked into his head. It was a blurry mess. She had never seen such a strong obscuring charm before. But she saw enough. The plan to take Daisy at the gym.
"I don't know what you're talking about," she said automatically, hoping to stall him long enough to send word.
"You see… I have been watching you and your children. And I've read quite a lot about you," Magnus said. "Interesting things the Ministry keeps in its archives. Reports, investigations and the like. I bet you didn't even know they had several on you."
"I didn't," Iris replied.
"DAISY WATCH OUT!" she thought frantically, hoping it wasn't too late.
"Interesting information. You see, I'm in charge of a group… a group that doesn't believe we should hide who we are from the muggles. And we're in need of someone with your skills," he said.
"I won't join you," Iris said immediately.
"Oh, I know. I don't need you to join me. I just need you to do a little something for me. And you will… unless you want your daughter to get hurt," he said. Iris' eyes widened as she felt her chest tightened. For a moment she was distracted as she saw a man in a dark coat hit Daisy with a stunning charm. She never saw it coming. Shaking her head slightly, she looked over at Magnus. He nodded slightly. Iris spun around, but it was too late to put up a shield. The jinx hit her in the chest and everything went dark.
"What's going on?" Teddy said urgently as he appeared in the living room, Oliver showing up not far behind him.
"Where's Mum?" Jamie asked, he had thought his father would send word to her.
"At the shop – she said she'd come by once she was done with the books," Oliver replied. Jamie rolled his eyes. He was about to try and connect with Iris again when Dominique jumped to her feet, distracting him for a moment.
"The professor's found them," Dominique said. "It's bigger than we thought and they know about Iris, Jamie and Daisy."
The color started draining from Oliver's face.
"We must take precautions and keep them safe," Nikos said. "Send word. They may need the extra protection."
"Pix's at Appleby. I'll go find her," Wills said, standing.
Suddenly, there was a strangled shout. Every looked over at Jamie as his eyes widened and he froze.
"We're too late," he said, gasping. He looked around the room. "They've already taken them. I couldn't see where they were going, but I think there's really only one place they would go."
"The ministry. They're taking them to the veil," Dominique said.
"Who?" Teddy shouted. "Who's taken them?"
"It's… it's Aunt Hermione's assistant. Magnus."
And now the action starts... This one was tough to write, seeing as I had to get a lot of info in there but make the kidnappings appear near simultaneous. It was the only way the whole heist would work out.
AleenaBean - Well, it seemed like the right thing to do. I mean, yea things are awkward with John and Daisy, but he did help her get back on track during her rough spot in Through the Veil of Secrets (god... it seems like that was so long ago...). And I'm considering it. I had planned to do one before with the previous outline. I kind of want to do one with him and another with Molly. Maybe something later on with Roxanne. But we'll see. Before that, I really should focus on plotting out and writing the last book..
As always, thanks for reading, following and reviewing!
