The first thing Daxia realised was happening was the gasp of shock leaving her lips as Sirius dove over her to protect her from the falling glass "What's going on?!" she exclaimed as he shoved her behind the curtain and into James and Lily's booth.

"Nothing!" Lily answered quickly "We were just-" another loud crash stopped her sentence as she jumped in her seat "What's going on?!"

"You need to take her back to the castle," Sirius said to James as he nodded towards an offended looking Lily "Daxia too, I think there are Death Eaters in the village."

"Wow good deducing Sherlock," Daxia answered with an eyeroll, glancing across to a subtly nodding Lily to make sure she had given the right example in her sarcastic snap "But if you think you're getting me back to the castle without you you're insane."

"We'll all go," James spoke up as yet another crash rumbled throughout the pub, glancing out of the booth for a few seconds he ruffled at his hair nervously "We just need to get to either Honeydukes or The Shrieking Shack."

Nodding reluctantly Sirius grasped hold of Daxia's hand, pulling her back out of the booth "Can't see your boyfriend anywhere," he mumbled to her, earning a scowl in return. It was definitely not the time for joking or bringing up their previous argument "Sorry," he coughed tugging her along with him as they crouched down beside the bar, James and Lily joining them barely a few seconds later.

They ducked as the pub rocked again, free arms arching over their heads as debris fell from the roof. Pulling their wands from their pockets the four of them flattened against the side of the bar as they noticed a group of masked figures staring in through the windows.

"What do we do?" Daxia whispered as Sirius's grip on her hand tightened. Glancing around helplessly she exchanged a scared look with Lily; it would be muggleborns the Death Eaters were after and she was definitely not putting her friend in danger easily.

"We could cause a distraction?" James said looking to Sirius, the glint of a Marauder causing mischief in his eye and the duo exchanged smirks. It was almost like they could read one another's minds "You two head out the back and run towards The Shrieking Shack, stay ready for attacks okay?" he continued as Sirius nodded along with the plan.

"The Shrieking Shack…really?" Daxia asked in a small voice, escaping from The Death Eaters avia the most violently haunted building in the United Kingdom seemed a little crazy.

Sirius rolled his eyes as the dark pub was lit up with a multitude of coloured curses flying outside "C'mon Vix, you know about Moony…where do you think he's taken to change on a full moon? It's not ghosts haunting that Shack it's our friendly dorm-wolf!"

Looking irritated by their lack of attention to his plan James continued as he shoved Sirius's shoulder to listen "So the girls go out the back and we'll head out the front-"

"What!"

"-Evans! Will you just listen!" he exclaimed ignoring the glare being sent his way "We won't go out there looking for trouble-" at this point he shared a small smile with a smirking Sirius "-we'll just be heading towards The Shack a different way to you."

As the girls narrowed their eyes in suspicion a curse hit the bar behind them, smashing the bottles lined up across the shelves "Fine," Lily huffed brushing both Firewhiskey and the glass it had been encased in off her shoulders and out of her hair "But I'm not happy with this."

"Are you ever happy with anything the Marauders do Evans?" Sirius asked, reaching over to nudge the redhead's leg "At least we're doing this now to save you."

Lily was chewing on her bottom lip as she moved her gaze from one boy to the other. Daxia knew she was feeling guilty, that she knew they were sending her off to keep her safe because she was a muggleborn; the type of witch or wizard the Death Eaters would be targeting "Promise me you'll be careful?" she asked in a small voice and the boys exchanged glances.

"We're always careful!" Sirius grinned.

"So go!" James insisted.

Lily seemed to be in two minds as he let go of her hand and jokingly, gently pushed her towards the back of the pub "Be careful," she asserted before practically jumping at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck for a few seconds "I'm serious Potter!" she let him go quickly before crawling across to Sirius and hugging him with a little less force "You too Black."

As the boys promised to do their best she nodded and gestured to Daxia to follow her. Glancing up to her friends, wondering if she should do the same as Lily, Daxia pursed her lips before hooking one arm around James and the other around Sirius mumbling "Don't be ages." as she ruffled their hair.

As they watched the two girls crawl away toward the back entrance of The Three Broomsticks, pulling fellow Hogwarts students out of their hiding places as they went, James turned to Sirius with a goofy looking grin "Evans just hugged me."

Rolling his eyes Sirius turned towards the door, just as it was kicked open by a large figure dressed in black and covered with a mask "Let's just get up to the castle yeah?"

"You just hugged Potter!" Daxia smirked once they had reached the back room of The Three Broomsticks, untouched by any curses and well hidden from sight.

Lily rolled her eyes as she checked over the Hogwarts students they had picked up on their way from hiding beneath tables and chairs. It was mainly third years who had obviously been looking forward to their first trip into the village yet found themselves glancing around a crumbling Three Broomsticks, eyes wide in terror "They're risking their lives for me," she mumbled as she wordlessly opened the back door with her wand, glancing outside to ensure the coast was clear.

"Us," Daxia insisted with a small smile, not wanting her friend to take all of the guilt if one of the boys managed to get themselves hurt "The others did stay in the castle today didn't they?" she asked, thinking of Adiya, Remus, Peter, Benji and Mary, noting she hadn't seen them around the village.

Lily nodded before quickly explaining that Adiya was ill, Remus was tutoring, Peter had detention and Benji and Mary were taking full advantage of the peace and quiet in the common room "C'mon everyone," she whispered once she was sure their path was clear, head girl authority turned on to the max "I'll lead you follow," she said to Daxia who saluted her reply "Everyone get your wands out and be prepared."

They had never run so fast in their entire lives. Lily, Daxia and a few sixth years with them protected the younger students helping them to navigate through the back streets of the village, picking them up as they stumbled over uneven ground and calling to duck if they came to an open space easily spotted by their potential attackers. Unable to help it, Daxia found herself holding back a few steps every now and then to shoot some hexes between the buildings towards the fearsome looking dark figures.

Each and every time Lily scolded her for risking their safety but, at the same time, looked oddly impressed when her best friend hit a Death Eater.

With the run to safety seeming to go on forever they hadn't realised just how far away The Shrieking Shack had been from the Three Broomsticks until that moment. Daxia made a mental note to thank James for all his ridiculous running exercises in their Quidditch training wondering, at the same time, if he and Sirius were okay.

Her questions were answered as soon as they all climbed through the fence surrounding the rickety looking building (Lily having to convince a few of the younger students that they knew what they were doing). Also practically falling into the grounds of the Shrieking Shack were James and Sirius.

"What?! How?" she found herself questioning a little louder than she intended when they reached the Shack and stood waiting for them were Remus and Peter.

"They had the other mirror," James explained breathlessly, leaning down with his hands resting on his knees as he referred to the magical two way mirrors both he or Sirius always had on their person "They were gunna come help but took bloody ages!"

Before Remus or Peter could argue Daxia glared at all of them "How did you distract the Death Eaters?" she asked hoping, with Lily busy persuading and helping the younger students get into the Shack, they'd tell her the truth.

Instead they grinned down to her "Ask me no questions and I'll tell you no lies Vixy," James replied before his attention was lost to Lily appearing.

"You're back!" she exclaimed, ignoring Remus and Peter's sudden arrivals, as she pulled James into the second hug of the day "Are you alright both of you?"

"Just a few cuts and bruises," Sirius answered and Daxia suddenly felt ashamed at herself for not also asking how they were when she first noticed them being more concerned about how they'd managed to get away. As she glanced up to her, much taller, friends she noticed the imperfections on their faces.

As the group turned to head back to Hogwarts, Peter transforming into a rat to race ahead and paralyse the Whomping Willow protecting the end of the secret passageway before anyone else could see him (Lily grinning in delight at witnessing her first animagi action), Daxia held back to walk with Sirius. Gently linking her arm through his she looked up to him with a smile "I'm glad you're okay," she said quietly.

He looked down to her with a smile of his own, pulling his arm from her grasp to drape it over her shoulders "I'm glad you're glad I'm okay."

It was then, as he leant on her slightly while they walked, she noticed his slight limp "And you're sure you're okay?"

"Almost positive."

He'd had a broken ankle.

As Madam Pomfrey had scolded them for their stupidity while fixing up their small(ish) wounds (a broken ankle for Sirius, a dislocated shoulder for James along with numerous cuts and bruises for both the boys and the girls) Dumbledore had arrived, late, to award them numerous points to Gryffindor and praise their bravery. Though they had attempted to get more information on the attack in Hogsmeade out of him (if there were any arrests, injuries or deaths) they'd managed to find out more from the Daily Prophets arriving over the next couple of days.

Not that even that was a lot of information. It seemed both the ministry and the newspaper were still as eager as ever to keep Voldemort from the public eye.

Daxia groaned as she stretched along the sofa in the common room, she had awoken earlier than usual and headed down for a change of scenery. The first years, always eager to get to their lessons on time, had disturbed her first exclaiming their apologies to the girl they'd heard had helped fight the Death Eaters over the weekend. The second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth years all followed close behind, emerging and irritating her before her friends were even awake.

She had forced herself to move with fifteen minutes before she was due in her charms lesson. Forgetting a shower, after laying in the bath for at least two hours the previous night, she quickly changed into her uniform and applied a small amount of makeup. She would have done anything to not be in her seventh year so she could just skive off the rest of the day to laze around the common room.

Lily had scanned the paper for more news at the breakfast table as James informed her and a recovered Adiya of his plans for their evening Quidditch session after their classes. Pretending to listen Daxia was really flicking the 'v's toward an amused looking Sirius as she hid from Ludo Bagman (both he and Marlene, along with her friends, had reached the castle early and unharmed the previous day).

"I'm just going to head to class early," she said as she stood, swinging her bag onto her shoulder before practically running from the great hall as Bagman glanced over from the Hufflepuff table. Unable to tarnish her reputation by arriving at a lesson…early she headed for the owlery, pretending to have an unavoidable need to write somebody a letter.

She settled herself down in the corner of the owlery with the least droppings as her very own owl, a snowy beauty named Boo (eleven year old Daxia thought she'd looked like a ghost okay?), swooped down to sit with her. She played with Boo's feathers until the bird had realised she didn't have any treats with her, soon became bored and flew off to her perch.

"So you're writing to him…now?" she sat up as a voice echoed up the stairs toward where she was hidden, a voice she recognised from years of, well, being related to the person speaking "Won't he be a bit busy?"

She hid in the shadows as Rodolphus appeared, his hands running through his short dark hair as he spoke to the person beside him. Craning her neck as she stayed hidden she noticed Severus Snape, flicking his greasy hair from his face as he called down his owl.

"Of course I'm writing to him now!" he argued back to her cousin "He specifically asked me to keep them informed on the mission."

"And Malfoy's going to give us our next target?"

'Target?' Daxia mouthed back to herself in confusion. The disappointment of her cousin's involvement with people like Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy (an older boy she remembered terrorising the halls and clashing with the Marauders a few years previous) weighing heavy on her heart.

"No," Severus was tutting as he scribbled an addition to the note he'd carried in with him before tying it to his bird's leg "That's up to us isn't it."

Rodolphus laughed menacingly "How we'll move on from Evans I'll never know," he was chuckling, Daxia's stomach flipped uncomfortably; surely they didn't mean Evans as in Lily "Head girl, muggleborn and friends with the Marauders? Where to move on to next!"

She felt sick as she emerged from her hiding place, unable to keep quiet in the presence of her best friend's attackers "You? It was you who attacked Lily!?"

The two boys spun on the spot, each withdrawing their wands as Severus' owl swooped out into the open air "You don't know what you're talking about Daxia," Rodolphus said almost pleadingly, not wanting his cousin involved in the entire situation.

"Oh I think I do," she replied with a snarl not even thinking to withdraw her own wand as she took a step toward the two Slytherins, she'd do anything to punch Severus Snape in the mouth "Are you honestly that stupid Rod? Attacking people under Dumbledore's nose?!"

"The old man hasn't a clue!" Rodolphus exclaimed almost as though he were expecting her to be impressed.

"Thick!" was all she managed to reply with for a few seconds, her hands grasping at her hair in disbelief "And you Severus…allowing people to attack Lily? Lily Evans?"

"Don't Lestrange," Snape said in a threatening manner "I mean it."

"Oh you mean it do you?" she took another step towards them as she shook with anger "What are you going to do? Kill me? Or won't your 'master' allow you to touch purebl-"

"STUPEFY!"

Rodolphus let out a shout of shock as the red light emerged from Severus' wand, his cousin crumpling to the floor almost gracefully "What did you…why…how are we…?!"

"Rodolphus! Shut up!" Snape exclaimed as he jumped into action. Grasping Daxia by the back of her robes he dragged her to the back of the owlery, laying her in her previous hiding space "We can't have her blabbing to her friends or Dumbledore what she heard just now!" he explained to his pained looking friend. He knew both Rodolphus and Rabastan still cared for their cousin and, with his feelings for Lily still ever present, could understand but he couldn't afford for her to tell of anything they were doing "So I'm going to modify her memory okay?"

Nodding robotically, Rodolphus joined Severus at the back of the circular room "Have you ever modified anyone's memory before?"

Snape nodded once in a very unconvincing manner. Sure he had used the charm on muggles who'd seen him accidentally use magic but he'd never stuck around long enough to see if it had worked properly…and the muggles had never had the charm used upon them while they were stunned.

"We need to get out of here," he insisted once he was finished, grabbing Rodolphus by the lapels and dragging him back down the stairs "You cannot tell anyone this happened okay?"

"Do you think Dax is taking this hiding from Bagman thing a little far?" Sirius questioned as the group of Gryffindor seventh years headed toward their Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson "She wasn't even in Charms and he hasn't taken that lesson!"

"Maybe if you hadn't teased her about it she wouldn't feel the need to hide from him," Remus spoke up nudging Sirius with his elbow.

"Ey! It was Prongs who was annoyed with her for going out with him!"

"Don't blame this on me!"

Lily and Mary exchanged exasperated looks as the boys ahead of them argued pettily "Maybe she's waiting for us in the DADA class with Benji?" Lily offered; Benji Fenwick had rushed off to their next lesson to speak with Professor Remy about their coursework before the class began.

"You better hope she is Black," James spoke sullenly and Lily couldn't help but grin at his brotherly care toward her best friend, his over protective nature toward the tiny Lestrange girl he usually kept under control bursting into show.

They entered the room and took their normal seats, Sirius and James extracting their books from their own bags (cursing Daxia for rushing away before they could burden her with them, in her charmed bag which held everything, like normal) before each and every one of the group scanned the room.

"I don't see her," James pointed out obviously.

"She'll be along," Sirius replied in a bored tone "Dax never misses Defence Against the Dark Arts. Would think she fancied the professor if we didn't have a new one every bloody year."

But, as Benji Fenwick took his seat and Professor Remy began his lecture, Daxia didn't appear. "Where is Lestrange?" Remy asked barely a few moments into his speech "It's been five minutes and I haven't been interrupted once."

"We're a bit worried actually," Remus said glancing around to his friends before reminding their professor of Lily's attack not so long ago "We were just wondering if we could head out to look for her?" he asked, everyone (even Remy, a new professor that year) was well aware that nobody knew the castle like a member of the Marauders.

"I…of course," Remy replied cautiously "You go and look for Lestrange and I'll send a note to the headmaster."

They had already stood and headed towards the door before he'd even spoken his answer, the rest of the class (a handful hailing from each house and including a very worried looking Rodolphus Lestrange) gaping on at the scene.

"We'll let you know when we find her," Peter called over his shoulder as they left the room not stopping to hear anyone's answer as he and his friends piled into the corridor and split into pairs.

"We'll head back to the common room," James said referring to his obvious partnership with Sirius and their need to retrieve the map (each of the Marauders thoroughly irritated they didn't have it on their person as they normally would) "You have the…um…so you can, yeah?" he spoke vaguely to Remus and Peter who were still in possession of Sirius' mirror.

"How are you lot the geniuses of the school when you can't even string a sentence together," Adiya huffed as her, Lily (unaware of the third Marauder secret), Mary and Sworn-to-Secrecy-Benji looked on to the four friends in confusion.

"Geniuses," James repeated "Thanks Tink!"

Adiya rolled her eyes as the two partners in crime spun on their heels and headed toward Gryffindor tower at a sprint "And why do they get the common room? We know she isn't in the common room!"

Remus and Peter had merely exchanged a look, knowing they couldn't divulge the information on the incredibly helpful map their friends were heading off to recover and instead sending their friends off to various other points of the castle. They knew it would be their best option to check the secret passageways Daxia, as an honorary Marauder, knew of.

Up in the common room James and Sirius were solemnly swearing they were up to no good and watching eagerly as the lines making up the Hogwarts castle spread across the previously blank piece of parchment.

"The owlery?!" Sirius exclaimed with a frown as he located Daxia's, very stationary, dot "I told ya mate," he continued as they began their trek to one of the highest points of the castle "Taking this hiding business a bit too serious, what d'you reckon this Bagman bloke did to her in Hogsmeade?"

"Bored her to death if it's the same Bagman I know of. You lot think I talk about Quidditch too much."

"Prongs you do talk about Quidditch too much…maybe you should date Bagman!"

Their voices had echoed up the steps to the owlery in the same manner Severus and Rodolphus' had merely two hours previous. Their laughter at one another bounced off the walls and disturbed the winged inhabitants of the circular room.

"Dax?" James had called as they reached the top, him having to send his owl away as they glanced around the room expecting their friend to jump out at them with a laugh on her face and excuses for her lateness on her tongue.

Instead Sirius was giving a shout of surprise when he noticed the, what looked like, pile of robes at the back of the owlery, a snowy white bird sat next to it.

As his friend raced across to check on Daxia, confirming she was alive and stunned James reached for the mirror nestled in his pocket calling "Remus Lupin!" as loud as he could.

The werewolf, always the one to put his book-smarts to good use before allowing his emotions to take over as his friends continually did, calmly told them to use the 'rennervate' counter-charm, instructing Sirius to aim for her chest as he spoke then to meet him and the others in the hospital wing as soon as possible.

"I can't," Sirius was mumbling, catching onto James' attention immediately. There wasn't anything Sirius Black couldn't do "You do it James. I can't."

Turning back to face his two friends, the two closest to him, he found himself relaxing his frown into a look of understanding. Sirius was knelt beside Daxia, her head in his lap and his shaking fingers running soothingly through her long hair. Remembering how fucking useless he himself had been when they'd approached Lily collapsed in the corridor; how Daxia had practically had to kick his arse into gear to help him move his legs properly James didn't even say a word. Instead he ran over and performed the counter-charm himself.

Daxia gasped as she woke, her eyes snapping open in a panic as she gazed between the two boys kneeling before her in utter confusion "I…wh-what? Who?"

Sirius sent James a helpless look as she scrambled away from them, folding herself tightly into the wall of the owlery beneath the lowest of the perches.

"C'mon Dax, it's alright," James used the most calming voice he could as he shuffled after Daxia slowly "It's us! James and Sirius!"

The fear in her eyes they'd never expected to see aimed towards them slowly pacified as she allowed his words to sink in "James and Sirius," she repeated in a whisper, nodding her head slightly as she unfolded her limbs and tentatively re-joined them out into the open. Extending her hand she allowed Sirius to pull her gently to her feet with him, collapsing against his chest with a sigh of relief.

"C'mon, let's get you to Madam Pomfrey."

"But Poppy, we're practically old buds now!"

"Didn't you say we were your favourites once?"

She wasn't having any of it. Dealing with a stunned, terrified seventh year (the same girl who had only been in twice in two days with a Quidditch injury and after a Hogsmeade Death Eater attack) was more than enough for Poppy Pomfrey to manage without half the Marauders poking their noses in "Go and speak with Dumbledore," she insisted sending them on their way, promising them their friend would be in good hands.

"Fiiine," James Potter had huffed over dramatically before both he and Sirius Black lurched forward to catch one last glimpse of Daxia Lestrange before they finally bade their goodbyes and disappeared off deeper into the castle.

"How is she?"

The two boys strolled to a stop, arms folding over their stupidly puffed out chests as they glared over to the wary looking Slytherin before them "And why would you care?" James asked Rodolphus in a cutting manner.

"She's still my cousin," was his feeble reply, his right hand lying protectively over his left forearm as he looked to the two Marauders with hesitance and hope.

"Very noble of you Lestrange," Sirius spat bumping into James' outstretched arm as he took a menacing step towards Rodolphus "She'd insist you and that brother of yours had her best interests at heart, looked after her, cared about her-"

"We did!"

"And what a fine job you did do eh?" Sirius practically growled, glaring down to the arm James was holding him back with "She was attacked Lestrange! She's scared, confused and hurt…does that make you and your Death Eater buddies feel good?"

"If anyone's to blame for her attack it's you two," Rodolphus replied, shedding the concerned cousin act "Biggest blood traitors Hogwarts has seen and she manages to get herself mixed up in the middle of them!"

"Mr. Lestrange to your head of house!"

James and Sirius grinned broadly as the sound of their favourite teacher reached their ears "Professor! Finally!" James exclaimed, Professor McGonagall not even taking the time to question the two on their exchange with the Slytherin boy "We thought you'd never arrive, should have known you'd be there for your fave-"

"Alright Potter," McGonagall sighed once she'd watched Rodolphus head for Slughorn's office. Though the Transfiguration teacher would never admit it she had always harboured a soft spot for the loveable rogues who named themselves the Marauders. They were the top boys in their year who worked hard (secretly) and played harder (not so secretly), they were fiercely loyal to their house, their school and one another as well as talented and cocky while remaining down to earth. They never failed to make her smile no matter what they were up to and what she was giving them detention for (though there was nothing she hated more than when the little shits called her Minnie no matter how secretly or quietly they thought they were being) "Professor Dumbledore would like to see you in his office and remind you of his affection for cockroach clusters."

Sirius was pulling a face as McGonagall followed the corridor Lestrange had taken to ensure he had actually gone to his head of house's office "Dumbledore likes cockroach clusters?"

James simply laughed as he led the way to the headmaster's office, his best friend nodding slowly in realisation as the password was spoken and Dumbledore's office opened up. The duo had practically raced up the stairs, their story spilling from their lips as soon as they came face to face with Albus Dumbledore.

The headmaster listened patiently, his head nodding in all the right places while they ranted and raved like mad men. He waited until they came to the end of their tale before he spoke "How is Miss Lestrange now? I trust Madam Pomfrey is taking care of her?"

Frowning, his face flushed with the anger he'd felt relaying his story of the past few days, James huffed "Well…yeah," he said quietly and breathlessly, glancing toward Sirius as though he couldn't believe that was Dumbledore's question.

As the old wizard steepled his fingers and settled back in his large, comfortable chair James practically felt Sirius tense beside him as he spoke in a harsh tone "Well, aren't you going to do anything?"

Dumbledore smiled wisely "Of course I am Mr. Black," he replied simply his bright blue eyes twinkling "It is becoming increasingly harder to pinpoint exactly who is causing all of these attacks but I am working on it, the auror department from the Ministry of Magic are working on it," he explained slowly and calmly "I am doing my utmost to keep this school open and to keep my students as safe as possible."

"Keep the school open?" James asked, unable to think of a world without Hogwarts in it.

"Parents are hearing of the attacks and of the war," he spoke slowly once more, as though thinking over his words before he allowed them to escape "They are wanting to pull their children out of education to look after them themselves, they want their families together to ensure everyone is safe."

"Nowhere's safer than here!"

"Are they crazy?!"

Dumbledore's eyes flickered between the two troublemakers, their loyalty to their school and their headmaster burning in their eyes, and he smiled "Thank you boys," he said gratefully "Now head back to your common room to inform the rest of your friends Miss Lestrange is on the mend and I am doing all that is possible to keep you all safe."

They agreed, all of the anger they had been feeling toward the headmaster and his – seemingly – lack of motivation to do anything evaporating immediately. They should have known Albus Dumbledore, the greatest wizard of their time, had something up his sleeve.

"Where have you been?!"

They smiled apologetically as they clambered through the portrait hole and emerged into the Gryffindor common room. All of their friends had obviously been eagerly awaiting their return, the vast room empty apart from them.

"She's okay," James explained before he began telling of their past hour. Like Dumbledore his friends nodded in all the right places, a few gasps slipping out here and there "So he says not to worry," he finished off digging his hands into the pockets of his robes "Right Padfoot?" he turned to get Sirius's agreement, the space beside him empty "Where?"

"Bed," Remus explained "He looked beat."

Rodolphus Lestrange sighed as he finally reached the Slytherin common room, a seemingly endless list of Saturday detentions staring him in the face over the next few months.

His sigh seemed to last the entire time it took him to cross the room to where his brother was sat alone, Rabastan looking up to him in confusion as he grimaced when he sat "Dax was attacked today," he informed him in a quiet tone continuing on when Rabastan arched his eyebrows in shock and straightened in his seat "It was Snape, she heard us talking in the owlery when we were writing to Malfoy."

"And he…?"

"I stunned her and modified her memory," Snape's nasally tone cut through the brothers' conversation "She was on our list, and I don't see the issue."

"Right," Rabastan nodded in agreement, ignoring Rodolphus tensing beside him as he settled back in his seat "What do you have there?"

Snape glanced down to the note lying in his hands for a few seconds "Lucius wrote me back," he explained "We have a target for a new recruit, he says if we manage it you'll have earned the mark."

As Rodolphus attempted to hide his flinch (his mark still giving him issues) Rabastan grinned widely "And who's our target?"

Almost as though it were planned the door to the common room swung open and, alone as usual, in stumbled Regulus Black.