A/N: Sometimes I read my own chapters and want to vomit. Like the previous one. #Regrets

Also, Percabeth x Solangelo: Thank you sooo much for that review, it almost made me cry :')


Chapter 32: Love and Blood


Unedited...

"Lizzy, there really isn't any point in putting this off –"

"– I don't want to talk about this anymore!"

"SHE HAS A RIGHT TO KNOW!"

"SHE IS MY DAUGHTER, MY CHILD!" roared back Elizabeth Williams. "I decide when to tell her and when NOT TO!"

Richard Williams stared blankly back at his wife, desperation getting the better of him.

"Darling, she is going to learn the truth one day whether you like it or not," he started, trying to reason with her. "And I'd rather she hears it from US than someone else!"

"She's not ready yet," Elizabeth replied curtly.

"She's fifteen years old!"

"NOT TO ME!" Elizabeth screamed, her voice echoing through the walls. Shaking and trembling with emotion, she sat down at the dining table, stubborn as a mule. "Not to me," she repeated. "She will always be my little baby and I will protect her with my life!"

"And what if we're not there for her anymore?" Richard asked quietly. "What then?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Rich –"

"– We won't live forever, Lizzy," Richard said shakily. "We can't always be there for her –"

"– You can't change my mind about this, Richard."

"YOU KNOW WHAT'S COMING FOR HER!" Richard bellowed, finally losing his cool. Elizabeth feverishly looked up, her face marred with dread. "And you know nothing you do or say is going to stop it from happening..."

A visceral sob escaped Elizabeth.

"Don't say that...!" she sobbed, practically shaking in fear now. "That is not true..."

"I don't want it to be true either, but darling we must be ready... She must be ready when the time comes and for that she ought to know," Richard said pleadingly. "It's very important that she knows..."

Elizabeth had all but collapsed on the table, crying in full measure now.

"I hate that shabby old witch!" she mumbled.

"But she's right..." Richard said apologetically, putting a comforting hand around his wife. "Izzy needs to know."

The couple fell silent as they soaked up the bitter reality that awaited their daughter.

"Alright," Elizabeth said after long last, "alright, we shall tell her but," she paused, her eyes brimming with tears, "I decide when to tell her about it," she declared. Richard sighed exasperatedly. "No, really," she said, placing her hand on his worried face. "I promise to tell her real soon, just... Let me do it when I think the time is right?"

Richard didn't say anything, but mutely wrapped up her up in his arms as a way of giving his consent. "You're her mum," he mumbled. "You know what's best."

...

~oO Emerna Shallows, Fayburne Willow

It was a still, quiet afternoon in Fayburne Willow.

Nothing moved, not even the odd tawny owl that sat upon a high branch and watched a tired old witch approaching the deep blue pond in the middle of the woods.

The old witch put her mast down and stared at the still waters in front of her; there wasn't even a ripple of movement on it.

*Crack!*

A loud noise resounded behind her indicating that the person she had been waiting for had finally arrived.

He was fairly tall, thin and very old going by the heavy wrinkles that marred his face and hands. He looked up and a sense of relief washed over his face as his eyes found the old witch waiting patiently by the tiny pond. He hadn't seen her in ages, actually several decades if he was being quite honest. Guiltily, he made his way towards Mother Medea; guilty because he owed his all to her, his long life, his immortality, his whole existence, and he hadn't once, in recent times, taken the effort to find out her whereabouts; he hadn't sought her out and yet, here she was, still humble and forgiving as ever...

"You know, you could simply Disapparate to Hogwarts instead of going on this rather arduous journey?" croaked Nicholas Flamel as he approached her.

Mother Medea didn't say anything and continued to stare into the blue depths of the enchanted pond.

"You might be right about that," Medea started, "but at the end, it really is all about the journey, isn't it?"

Nicholas simply smiled.

"It's nice to see you after all this time, Mother."

Mother Medea looked up.

"You look rather frail. Have you not been taking your monthly dose of the elixir properly?" she asked, surveying his sallow face.

"It's been several decades since we've taken the elixir, actually," Nicholas admitted sincerely. "Perenelle insisted that we stay off it until you visit us next..."

Medea turned around looking aghast.

"Why, that's mighty foolish of you two, don't you think?" she chided, regarding her old friend accusatorily. "Have you forgotten your responsibility? You have a burden on your shoulders, don't you?"

"It didn't feel right, Mother –"

"– I left the Stone in your possession, because I needed someone I could trust with it!" Medea continued rather crossly. "I need you and Perenelle alive and well long after I've left this realm..."

Nicholas, however, merely blinked confusedly.

"But, Mother..." he began, "The time has come, hasn't it? The Keeper of the Stone has already been born, she's here now, isn't she...? I heard she's fifteen years old already," he said, a fond smile tugging at his withered lips. "It's time we finally passed on the legacy to the True Owner of the Haden Heirloom, isn't it? It's not ours to possess –"

"– I've met her, Nicholas," Medea said, her old age bearing her down terribly now. "And I've seen into her future," she said, a heaviness creeping up her chest. Looking up through glassy eyes, she met Nicholas's pale face. "Unfortunately, she's not destined to outlive the Dark Lord it seems..."

Nicholas breathed in sharply.

"D'you mean that?" he asked, his already pale face, losing more blood.

Medea said nothing, but simply stared into the pond, her glassy eyes filling up slightly.

"Sometimes I wish I didn't know everything..." she said, trying to shut out the images flashing through her mind. "There's darkness coming for her..." she whispered. Shakily she looked up only to find him standing transfixed on his rock.

"I know now, why you summoned me, Mother Medea," he said, already reaching into his robe and pulling out a tiny, ruddy stone. "She will need the Stone's protection from this second on then..."

Medea merely nodded.

"However, I do not think it is fair to lay the burden of immortality on such a little girl. Hence, after her time, I need you take the stone back into your possession. The pain of living forever for the sake of protecting the Haden legacy should end with us," she said definitively. "Therefore, I decree that the Stone does not get entrusted to Isabella Williams..."

"As you command, Mother Medea," Nicholas conformed. "I am, after all, only the alchemist."

Medea smiled. "You're quite the Philosopher, aren't you?" she said, trembling from the effort.

Nicholas didn't say anything and simply stared back at the old hag, memories of several centuries flashing before his eyes. He had run into the old witch in this exact location around six hundred and thirty years ago, pleading and gasping for life. He recalled how his wife Perenelle had been hysterical when Mother Medea had come to investigate the situation... Back then, Nicholas hadn't an iota of hope that he would survive the Dragon Pox, because there wasn't yet a cure for it. Therefore, it was sheer miracle when Mother Medea had presented them with an old ruddy stone that she claimed would keep him alive forever, on the condition that he would take the burden of safeguarding it upon himself... Brimming with gratitude, the pair of them tearfully promised to keep it safe with them for as long as the Mother wanted them to.

"How much longer do you have left in this world, Mother?" he asked.

Medea leaned tiredly onto her mast and smiled. "Not very long."

Nicholas shifted uneasily. "Mother, the waters of Emerna Shallows is right here, though," he insisted. "I could concoct the elixir from the stone in a second for you... Just a couple of decades more... The world couldn't do without you, not yet. Dumbledore, too, would need you by his side –"

"– I think not, old friend," Medea replied. "It really is time I joined my sisters, I reckon..."

"Very well, then," Nicholas said, before placing the tiny red stone in her hand.

But just as she turned to leave, Nicholas spoke again. "Will I see you again, Mother?"

Medea, however, didn't give a direct reply as a response. "You take care, Nicholas Flamel..."

...

~oO Hogwarts

Several weeks flew by within the Hogwarts walls with nothing significant happening in the lives of the Gryffindor fifth-years, except perhaps the mind-numbing stress that everyone was undergoing with regards to their fast approaching exams. All students fifth-year and above were preparing day and night for their A.P.E.s. And just to make it clearer as to who was preparing for what, the general term for the exams got changed to "OWL A.P.E.s" for fifth and sixth years and "NEWT A.P.E.s" for the seventh years.

However, no matter how hard the students worked, the general standard of performance in class was dreadful. Some would argue that just the O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. level syllabus was enough to make the screws run loose in the students' heads. The A.P.E.s, therefore, was testing them all at a whole other level and it was naturally turning out to be one of the hardest exams that students had ever have to face in the history of Hogwarts.

In fact, the exam situation had gotten so bad of late that for the first time in a hundred and twenty three years, the Quidditch stands were near empty during one of its matches. The turnout for the last and final match between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff around the third week of May was so abysmal that McGonagall nearly considered cancelling the match entirely. However, with Dumbledore's insistence, the match commenced, but was said to have lasted just a little over forty minutes - the shortest for any full-fledged Quidditch match ever played.

As for Isabella, she finally made up with Lily and Claiborne. Lily, for her part, made her promise to NEVER indulge in anything stupid as long as she was with her too, and Claiborne made her promise the exact opposite - to NEVER take her along in one her adventures ever again. Things improved between her and Lucius, as it always does, and for the first time in several weeks, she was starting to feel herself once again.

And if things were finally going well for Isabella, there was one other person who was secretly suffering in silence - Lily Evans. Deny as she may, she could not overlook the fact that her relationship with Severus was steadily deteriorating to a point of no return. What troubled her the most, however, was the fact that the farther she moved away from him, the closer his bond got with his fellow House mates, which only managed to annoy her more. And although she would never admit it to herself, their friendship in recent times had gotten so strained that the pair of them hardly recognised each other anymore...

And while all this was happening, a new kind of trend seemed to have gripped the school, and whether the students and the professors saw it manifest for real or not, somehow everyone in Hogwarts was able to sense the growing power of You-Know-Who... He was everywhere, in the papers, in the letters they received from home, in the conversations around Hogsmeade, even on students' lips, with the Slytherins unabashedly (and quite proudly) calling themselves 'Death Eaters' without even knowing what a Death Eater really was...

And although the final few weeks of May was filled with a bit of drama, witnessing a petulant gang war (one that would hardly even count as a squabble, honestly, but since the boys insisted on calling it otherwise) between Gryffindor and Slytherin, Remus's monthly transformations bothering Severus so much that he went down to the Shrieking Shack himself and nearly got killed in the process, and Sirius quite massively (and publicly) breaking the heart of Eudora Bearfist, that, when June finally arrived, all that anyone ever cared about was passing their A.P.E.s.

Just like the original O.W.L.s, the OWL A.P.E.s too were spread over two weeks, with theoretical exams scheduled to take place in the mornings, and practicals in the afternoons. In all honesty, Isabella didn't even care as much about the written exams as she did the practicals, because she suddenly realised she had not even spent a decent amount of time concentrating on her studies with everything she had going this year. And, as much as she had LOVED all the adventures ("I mean, visiting the Hidden Kingdoms? A land that NO wizard has ever set foot in? How could anyone NOT be thrilled about that?!"), she had all but started to deeply regret ever having a 'happening' life now.

In a blur, the days flew by, with the Gryffindor fifth-years performing worse and worse in the exams consecutively - all except Lily, perhaps... And Remus. And James, and Sirius... And Claiborne AND Mary and Alice.

Even Edgar...

FINE! Everyone did relatively well except Isabella! (A/N: Are you happy now?).

"Don't be ridiculous, you're going to ace them, Izzy," Lily said comfortingly, but before she heard Isabella's response, something caught her eye. "HEY! LEAVE HIM ALONE!" she shouted, her wand drawn out. Isabella and Claiborne looked up shocked to find Severus hanging upside down in the air, his robes falling over his head to reveal skinny, pallid legs and a pair of graying underpants.

"Ah, Evans, don't make me hex you," said James earnestly.

"Take the curse off him, then!" Lily said irritably.

James sighed deeply, then turned to Snape and muttered the countercurse.

In all honesty, Isabella couldn't blame the knobheads for this behaviour, for she knew they were only getting back at Severus for snooping in on them all the way into the Shrieking Shack...

"There you go," he said, as Snape struggled to his feet again, "you're lucky Evans was here, Snivellus —"

"I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!"

Lily blinked. "Fine," she said coolly. "I won't bother in the future. And I'd wash your pants if I were you, Snivellus."

"Lily!" Isabella chided, but Lily remained unperturbed. It seemed she had already mentally severed all ties with the plonker the moment that unforgivable word had left his lips...

"Apologize to Evans!" James roared at Snape, his wand pointed threateningly at him.

"I don't want you to make him apologize," Lily shouted, rounding on James. "You're as bad as he is..."

"What?" yelped James. "I'd NEVER call you a — you-know-what!"

"Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can — I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK."

She turned on her heel and hurried away.

"Evans!" James shouted after her, "Hey, EVANS!"

But she didn't look back.

...

~oO Later that night...

"I'm sorry."

"I'm not interested."

"I'm sorry!"

"Save your breath."

It was nighttime. Lily, wearing in her dressing gown, and stood with her arms folded in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady, at the entrance to Gryffindor Tower, while Isabella and Claiborne watched the whole thing pan out from the inside.

"I only came out because Mary told me you were threatening to sleep here."

"I was. I would have done. I never meant to call you Mudblood, it just–"

"Slipped out?" There was no pity in Lily's voice. "It's too late. I've made excuses for you for years. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious little Death Eater friends – you see, you don't even deny it! You don't even deny that's what you're all aiming to be! You can't wait to join You-Know-Who, can you?"

He opened his mouth, but closed it without speaking.

"I can't pretend anymore. You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine."

"No – listen, I didn't mean –"

"– to call me Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?"

He struggled on the verge of speech, but with a contemptuous look she turned and climbed back through the portrait hole, leaving him gaping back at her. The portrait door slammed on his face even as she walked back towards the table that Isabella and Claiborne were sat at...

"Hey," said Isabella, comfortingly wrapping her hands around Lily as she took her seat next to her on the couch. "You continue to surprise me, you know, Lilianne?" she said, smiling proudly at her friend.

"That's not my name," Lily mumbled sadly.

"I know! But both Clay and I have long names, I thought you ought to have one too!" said Isabella frowning playfully.

And like a miracle, Lily burst out laughing in spite of herself. Claiborne too chuckled from the side. "You truly are a force to reckon with, you know, Lily Madelyn Evans."

Lily, however, shook her head. "I'm nothing compared to you, Claiborne Jones..." she said, taking her hand in hers. "With everything that you're going through, I don't think I'd even be able to smile as much as you do," she said, her voice genuinely oozing with respect.

Claiborne, though, merely snorted. "What? Hardly!" she said, trying to seem as unconcerned as possible. "I mean, if you could live without Severus, I can quite easily do without Remus too," she said, sporting a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

Lily's eyes automatically found Isabella's, and the two of them instantly knew they were thinking the same thing. "But..." Lily started, regarding the glare that Isabella was sending her way, but choosing to ignore it anyway. "Clay, I don't need Severus the way you need Remus..." she said, hitting the nail on the head for the first time ever.

Isabella's jaw dropped while Claiborne blushed magenta in the face.

And at once, a mental war of words ensued between Lily and Isabella, with Isabella telling her off for getting nosy.

Claiborne, who was oblivious to this off-the-radar conversation, finally allowed the sadness to show on her face. Remus, after all, had been one of the closest friends in Hogwarts.

"Well, it doesn't matter now, does it?" she said, sighing heavily. "He doesn't want anything to do with me, and I need to respect that," she said, this time gladly accepting the group hug that Isabella and Lily extended.

...

The last day at the school was rather cheerful, with the burden of exams behind them and the students getting to finally relax before they all headed back home. Most students from other Houses could be seen either lazily lounging around bare stretches of corridors that overlooked the grounds, or sunbathing near the lake, trying not to think about the results, but the Gryffindors had other agendas at hand, and one of them included planning a farewell party for the seventh-years.

The NEWT A.P.E.s, from how the seventh-years had described it, had apparently been so bad that it could make a battle with a Swedish Snorkack seem tame. And to let them know that their friends from the years below empathised with them, the fifth and sixth-years decided to take up all final Prefect duties off the seniors' hands and run the show themselves, a display of camaraderie that left the younger students in the House struck with awe.

And today, everyone was busy doing odd jobs around the Common Room, preparing the space for the party later that night. Isabella, along with Claiborne, Lily, Alice, Adaire, Eudora, Emily and a few other second and third-year girls were on the floor, either cutting large pieces of crimson and gold ribbons and fashioning them into decorative pieces, or conjuring up other golden decorative trinkets, while the boys helped with the logistics.

"Merlin, am I going to miss Walker," muttered James, fastening a streamer onto a hook on the wall.

"Yeah. Best Captain ever," replied Frank gloomily, as he used the Sticking Charm to get the Lion's crest pasted onto the large crimson and gold fabric piece that hung above the entrance to the Common Room.

"Better than even Ly Avery," Robert Mathews concurred, chewing on a Bertie Botts'.

It went without saying that the general mood in the room today was melancholic, thick with yearning. This year was supposed to have been Gryffindor's. The whole school had rooted for the Lions to lift to the Quidditch Cup, if not the House Cup, under Walker's captaincy, and finally end the decade-long Slytherin domination, but things don't always go as planned, do they?

"I swear, the school needs to remember his legacy forever," Ryan added under his breath, as he and a couple of fourth-year boys worked on rearranging the furniture in such a way that they lined the walls to make space in the centre.

"Oh, they will," Remus suddenly said, smirking, as he handed over a bunch of decorative items to Sirius who was mounted atop a table and gluing them up to the ceiling.

Isabella's head spun around, and so did the others'.

"What d'you mean?" Robert demanded, getting up from his corner.

James and Remus exchanged glances first before turning to look at Sirius's delighted face, and the three of them simultaneously broke out grinning.

"What's going on?" asked Oliver, suspiciously eyeing one from another.

"Well," started Remus, busying himself with the trinkets once again, "let's just say if one were to take a stroll down by the first floor this very second, one might suddenly find themselves facing a questionable golden placard that discreetly reads, 'Thomas Walker, God of Quidditch' pinned on the Quidditch Wall of Fame just above the glass case where all the trophies are kept," he said, shrugging unconcernedly.

"WHAT?" Isabella exclaimed, jumping up to her feet and rushing towards Remus. "You're joking!"

"Oh, I wish he were," Sirius grinned. "It was an impulse decision, really," he said, not even taking his eyes off the ceiling as he hung more of the decoratives that Remus handed him.

"But..." started Puck, truly dumbfounded now, "that's going to get taken down in a second! I mean, FILCH!" he cried, as if just stating Argus Filch's name ought to convey his point across.

"D'you honestly think we'd be thick enough to NOT use a permanent sticking charm on the placard, Oleus?" James called out gleefully, and for the first time since the morning, a slight cheer crept up their faces.

"This is crazy," Julius muttered under his breath, but he was grinning nonetheless too.

Isabella, though, was almost choking now, overwhelmed with joy to say the least. "I love you, James," she said, and before he could even cast her a look of surprise, she'd flung her arms around him, swallowing the lump in her throat.

James simply smiled and hugged her back. "I know."

...

~oO Gryffindor Common Room
10:30 PM

"So, rumour has it that Evantrap finally grew a pair to come talk to you?" wheezed Thomas as the boys roared in laughter around him.

Isabella scoffed. Shaking her head in absolute exasperation, she said, "And that's our Captain, ladies and gentlemen," she mused sarcastically.

"I'm afraid you heard right, though," grinned Ryan while also sporting a look that suggested that he might just lazily lay punch on the ex-Captain's face.

It was half past ten in the night and the seventh-years had walked in to their surprise farewell party after their formal graduation dinner at the Great Hall. But unlike the usual obstreperous spirit that Gryffindor parties generally assume, tonight was more slow and civil, maudlin even.

"Bottom line's I'm glad," said Thomas, taking another swig of Firewhiskey. "The less conflict, the better chance of us winning next year, innit?" he said, grinning tipsily. "Eh, James?" he asked, making James look up surprised at the sudden mention. "Whack the Snakes outta the park next year for me?"

James blinked in confusion. "Why, of course..."

"As Captain."

Everyone around had gone very quiet, numbed in stupefaction.

James, though, merely looked like he'd been kissed by a mermaid.

"But – er – there's still Goody and McAdams and –"

"– You'll be Captain," said Thomas decidedly.

A light cry of surprise erupted around him as everyone turned to look at James, awestruck to say the least. Isabella quickly looked to Sirius to find him dumbfounded with pride. James? Captain? Could this day get any better? she thought, beside herself with joy.

A second later, James let out a nervous-cum-surprised laugh.

"Ohh, the Snakes are toast. Consider them DESTROYED!" James declared gleefully, and a roar of celebration erupted around him, even as he and Thomas broke into laughter, giving each other a firm pound shake.

"Make them pay, man!" sputtered Thomas, even as Sirius grabbed him roughly by the neck to show his cooperation too. "It'll be our farewell gift to you," Sirius grinned, making Thomas stupidly snigger too.

"Good Godric, Tom, watch out," Martin suddenly spoke up nudging him on the side, his tone bearing great urgency.

Thomas looked up and found Clarissa Goody storming towards him, with a look that screamed murder.

And for some reason, he suddenly looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"Whoa... Clare..." yelped Isabella, but Clarissa merely ignored her and stomped her way towards an extremely pale-looking Thomas.

Nobody spoke for a long time, as they watched the two of them stare each other down with bated breath.

Giving him one look of pure hatred, she looked at Sirius and Isabella and back at Thomas. "You'd rather have them than me on the team, won't you?" Clarissa muttered, hurt oozing from her eyes.

Thomas looked absolutely dumbstruck. "Well... I... No?" he weakly offered, still looking very shaken but finally leveling up with her.

Still seething, she crossed her hands. "I'm a decent person unlike popular belief," she started, her expression unreadable now. It looked like Clarissa was making sure she avoided looking at anyone else as she spoke. "And I er... I actually came here to... to apologise," she said and Thomas gave her a questioning look. "For the Ravenclaw match...?" she added, her lips quivering with emotion now. "I wasn't a good sport."

And all of a sudden, a monster seemed to have woken up inside Isabella as memories of the fated match came rushing back to her. All the hurt, the humiliation, the rotten eggs and the heartbreak that followed, everything... Grinding her teeth, she resisted the urge to hex Clarissa right in the face, but Thomas continued to look unbelievably calm.

With a slight shake of his head, he pushed his glasses up his nose and simply said, "I understand."

"Blimey!" Sirius whispered to himself even as waves of shock crashed into the onlookers. "That's your bloody reaction?" he demanded while stabbing Clarissa with a glare.

Clarissa, though, seemed in the least affected by the animosity gurgling around her.

"But," she started, inching closer to him. "I will NOT forgive you for taking their side! Ever!" she hissed, tears pooling around the corners of her eyes.

And Thomas's breathing had abruptly gotten heavy, as if he had been running for three days straight.

Quite unbelievably, his blank expression got replaced with a look of absolute, heart-wrenching yearning, as her words slowly sank into his head...

With a vehement shake of his head, he croaked out a, "And you shouldn't!" and before she could turn around and storm away, he pulled her close and kissed her.

Isabella's eyes widened.

Time stopped.

And jaws dropped.

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL?" James whisper-yelled, his hand covering his mouth. James too, like Isabella, looked beside himself with disbelief... Because, up until this second, DESTROYING her by unleashing ten-thousand blood-sucking bats had seemed like the reasonable thing to do, but if the God himself was kissing her, well... it had sort of... turned into something of an anti-climax, hadn't it?

"But – Honestly?" Frank said weakly even as the pair continued to be lost in a world of their own (and Frank had to hold Thomas from the back to keep him from falling!).

Everything was suddenly falling into place though. The whole year came flashing back to Isabella and she finally realised what was happening behind the scenes... Tom and Clarissa had the hots for each other?

"Blimey... One heck of a love story, though, isn't it?" Remus muttered, grinning to himself, seemingly the only person not affected by all this.

And after what seemed like forever, they broke apart, a contented silence abounding in the space between them. The boys, though, automatically broke into nervous giggles first, which soon evolved into loud rounds of cheers and soon enough, they had started wolf-whistling, making Oliver and Clarissa finally burst out laughing.

"You and Goody? You and Goody?" roared Clayton, looking between Martin and Thomas, both of whom sported smug smiles. "I want details!" he cried making Thomas grin sheepishly.

"I've been intensely smitten by this one for the longest time," Thomas admitted whilst grinning down at Clarissa. "Never had the balls to ask her out though. Until now..."

"Some stud you are, aren't you, Tom?" Frank mused sarcastically, grinning at the older boy.

"So, Walker's been you Snitch all along?" cried Sirius, punching Clarissa genially on the arm, even as Thomas put a possessive arm around her neck to protect her from the darned hooligans. "All that drama about losing the game for us was really about getting Walker's attention? How could do this to us?" he yelled, grinning broadly.

"I know... I'm sorry!" Clarissa whined, but Walker cut in.

"Okay, alright! Gather around. Everyone!" he said, making the bunch quiet down at once (the rest of the House STILL seemed to be in blissful oblivion that History just had been made a second ago). "People make mistakes, things go wrong, but it's in the past. The lot of you better be nice to her, alright?" he said, receiving dispassionate nods from the boys. "You too!" he growled, this time looking straight at Isabella, who was glowering in his direction. "Stop it! Get it over here!" he said, pulling her towards him using his free hand. "Don't be stupid, both of you, alright?" he said, looking between Clarissa and Isabella. "The Cup's bigger than your bloody egos, so get over it!" he yelled, inviting yet another loud round of cheer from the group.

And despite the glares that the two girls exchanged, Clarissa put her hand out that Isabella reluctantly took, and Sirius pretended to break down crying with happiness.

~oO* And thus ended their fifth-year at Hogwarts... *Oo~

.O.

~oO Williams Cottage, Islington
15th July, 1976

"Ugh, the Daily Prophet is slowly starting to resemble a vomit-ridden garbage bin these days, doesn't it?" asked Lily, scanning the headlines of the newspaper while sitting cross-legged on Isabella's bed.

"Anyone else we know dead?" Isabella casually asked.

The news of wizards dying had become so commonplace in recent times that it had stopped affecting her like it did before.

"Thankfully none today," Lily replied, tossing the paper aside and slumping back against the pillows.

"I can't believe we have only a little over six weeks left before school starts again," grumbled Claiborne from the armchair by the window.

Just then, the sound of screeching wheels and burning tyres reached them from the driveway below, and Isabella cast a stern look at the window.

Crossing the room in two long strides, she wrenched the window open, stuck her head out and screamed, "HEY! COULD YOU CUT IT OUT? YOU LOT HAVE BEEN AT IT ALL MORNING!"

"Oh, DON'T BE SUCH A KILLJOY, IZZY!" Alexander Hill, her nineteen-year-old cousin, roared from below.

Isabella ground her teeth at the snickering faces in the lane in front her of her house. "You know, Al, it wouldn't take me TWO SECONDS to phone Aunt Eleanor and tell her you're on your wretched motorbike again!"

"OI! WOULD YOU CUT THE MAN SOME SLACK? HE JUS' GOT HERE!" Sirius yelled back from atop his own motorbike.

"YEAH! GO AWAY!" said the extremely articulate James Potter, who was riding pillion on Sirius's motorbike.

With a frustrated groan, Isabella finally accepted defeat. "Remind me to poison their morning tea with Doxycide one of these days, will you?" she said to Claiborne and Lily as she slammed her window shut in James's infuriating face and turned around only to find her two friends grinning densely to themselves.

"Boys," Claiborne muttered watching Isabella irritably plonking down on the bean bag next to the bed. "And that's why Ed will continue to be my favourite cousin," Isabella declared, speaking of Edward Hill, her twenty-three-year old cousin and Al's older brother.

"Yeah, Ed's my favourite too," said Lily, grinning sheepishly. Isabella rolled her eyes, because Edward was Lily's longest standing crush till date.

The door opened and a leaner, slightly taller, Angela walked in holding a large plate of cakes and cookies for the girls. "Yummies from the kitchen!" she sang, hopping towards the girls and collapsed on the floor next to Isabella.

"Ooh, cake!" Claiborne crooned, before jumping up to her feet and helping herself to a large slice of the ginger cake.

"Speaking of, Ed just phoned," Angela said, beaming broadly up at Lily, "said he'd try and make it home before 10 o'clock tonight."

Lily regarded Angela with absolute delight before sighing dramatically to herself. "Oh, have the heavens finally heard my prayer?" she squeaked, spreading her hands theatrically. "Do mine ears deceive me? Could this day really be happening?" she asked, but the others simply rolled their eyes and unanimously decided to ignore her.

Pulling the paper off the bed, Claiborne began scanning it too while Lily and Angela got busy discussing about the lovely Edward. "Whoa! What?" Claiborne suddenly exclaimed. "'DUMBLEDORE IN TROUBLE AGAIN, FACES CONFISCATION CHARGES FOR ILLEGLALLY POSSESSING THE TIME TURNER'?" she read aloud, looking horrified. "Have you read this?" she asked Lily, who looked equally shocked herself.

"What? No! Gimme that!" Lily said, grabbing the paper out of Claiborne's hands and reading the article herself. "'The Minister of Magic has formally announced that in the recent heist that Dumbledore was involved in concerning The Hidden Kingdoms, the only object that was recovered included the long-rumoured Time Turner. Yes, the golden device was indeed said to have been unearthed from the depths of the Woldorinian kingdom and the same has been confirmed by Albus Dumbledore himself. And if recent reports can be believed, Dumbledore has been sent a confiscation warrant on the Time Turner that he had illegally held on to since the weeks following the opening of the Hidden Kingdoms. The Minister is reportedly planning on slamming Dumbledore with a fine of three hundred thousand Galleons for the same. Orders for Aurors to station themselves at Hogwarts has already been released ahead of the confiscation.

'Furthermore, it can finally be confirmed that, if the goblins are successfully able to replicate it, copies of the Time Turner will soon be sold commercially for the benefit of the Magical community.'"

"WHAT?" cried Isabella, her eyeballs nearly popping out of its sockets.

Lily graced her a terrified look before continuing to read. "'The Common Imp, a goblin-run artefact organisation, is already said to inundate the Ministry with eight hundred and fifty thousand galleons to make copies of the Time Turner for commercial purposes.

'If all goes according to plan, the Magical community is set to benefit greatly through this bold move steered by Minister Bagnold herself,' stated a close associate of the Minister.

Only time would tell what this would mean for the Magical community in the coming future.'"

Lily put down the paper and looked into the blank faces of her friends.

"They're trying to make Dumbledore look like the most rotten wizard to ever exist, aren't they?" she said, and the other two mutely nodded.

"I won't mind having a time-turner at all," Angela casually said, munching on her cookie.

...

~Later that day
9:55 PM

Isabella opened the door.

"EDWARD!" she squealed, and ran into the arms of her terribly tall cousin. "You actually came? You NEVER keep your promises!" she said, grinning from ear to ear as he let her go.

"Well, what can I say? Al said the boys were here and begged me to come. So I came," Edward shrugged, chuckling heartily. "And my, why do you look you've lost about hundred kilos since I last saw you? And you've grown!" he exclaimed patting her on the head, even as Isabella took his travel bag from his hand and led him in.

"Well, it has been over two years since you last visited us, hasn't it?" Isabella said, half-chidingly, only to make him grin even more sheepishly.

Unlike Alex, Edward didn't have three quarters of his hand covered in tattoos, nor was his hair long enough to trail the small of his back. He sported a close cut and a strong jawline, set against thick eyebrows on a square-ish face while Alex had a more thin, pointy face with beautiful big eyes. Also, while Edward always preferred to be clean-shaven, Alex always wore a stubble and surprisingly, both the looks suited the boys just as equally. And just like most men in her family (including her father and her uncle, Jack Hill), both Alex and Edward were very tall, but Edward was the tallest of them all, making it rather hard for Isabella to give either of them a hug.

"Edward! Good heavens, is that really you?" came Sirius's voice from the dining room, followed by the shuffling of feet before the boy himself appeared at the door.

"Gotta believe it, man," Edward replied from her side, bringing the biggest smiles on Sirius's face.

"Merlin, this can't be happening!" exclaimed Sirius. Gushing and beaming, the pair of them pulled into one of the manliest hugs Isabella had ever seen in her life, before bursting out into conversation. "Where've you been, mate? Anyway, you're not going to believe this. I beat Al in motorbike racing today!" Sirius raved, making Edward gasp. "Get out of here!" he said, genuinely taken aback, even as the three of them walked into the dining room to an exceptionally grand reception from the family.

As soon as she saw him, Isabella's mother rushed forwards and pulled Edward into a teary-eyed, rib-cracking hug, while her father beamed at him from his place on the table. James and Sirius spared no time in filling him in non-stop about their day with Alex, about how James had finally perfected how to 'wheel' Sirius's motorbike, earning a reproachful look from Mrs. Williams. And while all this was going on, Isabella noticed how abnormally red Lily's face had gotten as she stood hiding behind Claiborne, who was politely waiting for her turn to greet the newcomer. Meanwhile, Angela couldn't seem to stop jumping on the spot in excitement and Alex merely sat there with a smug smile, as if to say, 'You're welcome!' to anyone who cared to thank him. And watching from afar, Isabella suddenly realised just how content she felt in this very moment, seeing everyone together, laughing and hugging each other...

"So, anyway, where be the boys, eh? Remus? Pete?" asked Edward, as everyone took their seats on the large dinner table, with Mrs. Williams serving them with Alex's and Edward's favourite dinner: chicken and ham pie, mashed potatoes, fried eggs and toasted bread crumbs dipped in creamy mushroom soup.

"Well, Pete's decided to wear a pink mini-skirt and throw cute little tea parties for the near-and-dear so that one of those stuck-up, snotty hags would agree to get their daughters married to him," said James, making Edward nearly sputter out the mushroom soup that he had just put in his mouth, "and Remus couldn't come because of a certain heart-break situation," he said, discreetly pointing in Claiborne's direction.

"Is that right?" grinned Edward, casting an astounded look in Claiborne's direction at the far end of the table.

"Oh, nonsense, nobody's that daft," Mrs. Williams said, immediately coming to Claiborne's rescue.

Everyone sniggered, and the company soon tucked in, hungrily attacking the delicious food.

Thirty minutes later, Mr. and Mrs. Williams announced that they were going to turn in and requested the children to go to bed early too, before bidding them goodnight.

And soon enough, all eight of them headed upstairs and stole into Isabella's large bedroom, plonking down wherever they felt comfortable. In the meantime, Lily, Claiborne, James and Angela crowded around Isabella's computer table where Lily taught them how to operate a computer on the side, while, Sirius, as per usual, dived on to her bed and settled there with a petulantly triumphant smile.

"Ah! Parent-free at last!" exclaimed Alex, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it up before any of the others could tell him off.

"Al!" Isabella protested, nearly getting back up from her bean bag, but his big wide smile melted her heart at once. "Alright! But that's the last one, mind you."

"Get off his back, Izzy," grinned Sirius, signing at Alex to pass him one, only to receive a severe, "No way! Al, put that away!" from Edward. With a puerile groan, Alex threw the lighted cigarette out the window and Sirius sulked for good measure; no one was going to disobey Edward though.

"So, where's Regulus, eh?" asked Edward, stuffing his mouth with some ginger cake from the morning.

Sirius merely scoffed. "Away, spending the hols at a foul cousin's learning to do Dark Magic, I suppose," he muttered, watching the expressions of horror on the brothers' faces. "Don't ask," he added bitterly.

"Yeah, what's been going on in your magic world, eh? I'm hearing nonsense!" said Alex, settling down next to Sirius on the bed.

"Ugh... Don't even get us started on that one," said Isabella.

James scoffed. "Yeah. Killings everywhere... Children getting kidnapped... Wizards missing... Muggles too," he said, not taking his eyes off the computer for one second. "And blimey! This Muggle stuff is mighty wicked!" he added, eagerly moving closer to Lily's chair.

Alex and Edward, though, looked lost for a split second. "Muggles?" Alex repeated. "Oh, you mean people like us?" he said, pointing at himself and Angela who was now happily perched on Edward's lap on the floor.

"Yeah," Isabella and Sirius grunted together.

"But, like, isn't your Magic government doing anything to stop this psycho?" asked Edward.

James snorted scornfully. "They're pretending to do something by smothering us all with unnecessarily tough exams starting this year," he said with a smug shake of his head. "Exams. That's their secret weapon, if you can believe it!" he guffawed sarcastically.

Lily's head snapped up from the computer and turned around, looking like someone had secretly eaten the last piece of her pie. "The 'exams' are for getting students recruited into the Auror program who would eventually fight You-Know-Who!" she retorted.

James and Sirius merely exchanged apologetic glances with each other, before snickering to themselves.

"We've been through this, Evans. That's what they want you to believe, and you're falling for it brilliantly!"

"Haven't you worked this out as yet? It's a distraction tactic!" Sirius said loudly. "It's to keep people from discovering the incompetence of the Ministry's defense system as a whole!" he said, managing to enrage Lily even more.

"What? Bollocks!" she exclaimed.

"Sad truth, though," James said, smiling casually at Lily's very unsettled demeanour.

Edward let out a low whistle.

"Bloody hell!" he said, a look of absolute amusement on his face.

"You know what's sadder, though?" said Claiborne, from the chair next to Lily. "We'll most likely receive our exam scores within a day or two."

Everyone groaned loudly.

"Merlin's beard, way to lift our spirits, Clay," Isabella mumbled frightfully. She had, with great difficulty, managed to not think about it and enjoy her holidays when her friends arrived three days ago.

"I know! I don't think I've ever been this worried in my whole life," said Lily, hugging herself.

"You know what might cheer you up?" asked Edward, wiggling his eyebrows at Lily, bringing a shy smile on her face.

A disconcerted frown appeared on James's face as he watched the pair of them.

"I was thinking if all of us could go a road trip this hols!" Edward said, now grinning at the rest of them.

The odd look on James's face got wiped out at once as he and Sirius jumped up to their feet. "Whoa, what are you saying?" James demanded.

"I'm saying, I've brought the convertible, and since Alex has his motorbike too, we could all drive down to Derbyshire... A joyride of sorts, if you will...?"

"MERLIN'S BEARD! YES, I would love that, thank you very much!" James gushed before Edward could even finish talking.

"Now we're talking!" Sirius concurred, hi-fiving Edward, even as Alex watched on grinning to himself.

"You know, one of these days I'd very much like to meet this Merlin chap," he suddenly announced sheepishly. "The constant mention of his beard gives me great anxiety of sorts, man!" he said, making everyone roar with laughter.

"Anyway, the girls are welcome to join too, by the way," Edward said, looking straight at Lily this time.

"Hello, of course, we're coming!" said Isabella, feeling offended that he even felt the need to state it as an option. "'Blood before bros', you hear me?" she roared, nudging him playfully and watching him shrug apologetically to James and Sirius.

"Okay, so what's the plan? We need to leave tomorrow," Alex, pulling out a tiny notepad and a pen out of his brown leather jacket.

And soon enough, everyone had gathered around Alex, excitedly giving in their inputs for the grand plan.

"Ah, bollocks! I wish Frank and Remus were here!" Sirius groaned, a fond smile cutting his face. "They would've loved this!"

"I'm sure!" Isabella gushed.

But no sooner had those left her mouth when there was a sudden CRACK! – right in the middle of the room where everyone was sitting – and for a split second, Isabella's heart stopped beating entirely!

"FRANK!" she cried out, seeing the boy ACTUALLY standing in front of them, panting and covered in blood.

A streak of terror ripped through her as her whole world tipped over entirely, leaving her dizzied for a second.

"Frank? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" James demanded, springing up to his feet at once and dashing towards the older boy. "Why do you look like that? Mate, are you alright? WHAT'S GOING ON? There's blood all over you!" he yelled.

"Mate! Frank! What is it? What's happened? Is someone in trouble?" Sirius asked urgently, looking into his eyes, wand at the ready already.

"Alice... Alice, she..." Frank stuttered, still looking completely paralysed with shock.

By now, everyone in the room had jumped up to their feet, looking absolutely stricken with panic.

"Alice? What's happened to Alice?!" cried out Claiborne, inching closer to Frank. "Frank?!" she yelled when she didn't get a response.

Instead, Frank merely broke down crying.

"Black hooded wizards..." he muttered, seeking out James and Sirius. "We were having dinner when..." he stammered, his whole body shaking in dread now. "Mate, we were attacked!" he croaked before collapsing entirely to the floor in anguish.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Alex and Edward cried in unison and dived in front to hold him in time, even as a streak of shock rammed into the rest of them. "Easy, Frank! Sit down! Take a breath, mate!" Alex ordered, as he pushed him into a chair. "Get him some water!" he growled at the girls and Lily dashed out of the room at once.

"Alright, Frank, I want you to calm down and tell us exactly what happened!" Sirius said, speaking very slowly, kneeling down and leveling with his face.

Wiping away another fat tear with a bloodied hand, he looked up and spoke. "Death Eaters, Pads. We had Death Eaters crashing into our house from every direction!" he sobbed, his glasses getting fogged up. "Before I even knew what was happening, they had hexed every last one of us at the table, before ransacking the house... I think they killed poor old Binky... There was blood everywhere!" he cried out and collapsed onto Sirius's shoulder.

"No, no, no, Frank, time's running out!" Sirius said, pulling him back once again. "Is Alice alright?" he asked, clearly starting to panic now.

"I dunno... I was on the floor when I saw several more of them hooded wizards Apparating outside, so I pretended to be dead until the coast was clear... And the second I knew it was safe, I grabbed my wand, grabbed Alice's hand and Apparated here... I didn't know where else to go!"

"That's okay! That's PERFECTLY alright! You did the right thing, mate!" yelled James, giving him a one-armed hug. "That's fine, you did the right thing to come here. Where's Alice, though?"

"Downstairs on the couch..." Frank stammered, and the boys looked up in downright alarm.

"GO! GO! GO!" Alex yelled, ordering the girls to get to Alice at once.

Lily and Isabella sprang up to their feet at once and made a dash for the door.

"I'll come too!" Edward yelled, tearing after the girls.

"Al, watch over Angie!" Isabella screamed, giving her petrified sister one sweeping look before bounding downstairs towards her living room, running behind Edward and Lily.

And Isabella's heart nearly jumped into her mouth when she found the dark silhouette of a limp, long-haired girl lying lifelessly on her couch; there were blood stains everywhere on the white satin.

"Dear God, who would DO such a thing!" cried out Edward, as he effortlessly lifted her off the couch, while Lily and Isabella grabbed several sheets of towels and bandages and bowls to get her cleaned up.

In no time at all, they reached back up to find Frank breathing normally once again.

But one look at the blank, bloodied face of Alice brought him back on his knees.

"Mate, I can't..." he sobbed, burying his face into James's shoulder. "I can't lose her –"

"– You're not going to lose her, do you hear me?!" yelled Sirius, shaking him up roughly. "Okay, a plan. I need a plan. What do we do, Prongs?" he said, looking at his best friend.

"First thing's first, we need to get Alice to St. Mungo's," said James, his hand still securely wrapped around an overwrought Frank.

"We also need to head back to the Longbottoms'. Frank's parents could be gravely injured too!" cried out Isabella.

"How will you get there, though?" Lily asked, shaking from head to foot even as Edward gently placed Alice on Isabella's bed.

"I have my broom," James said.

"We have our brooms too," Isabella said pointing at herself and Sirius.

"And I've my motorbike," Sirius said.

"It'll take us ages to reach there, though!" said James.

"Would Floo'ing there be too dangerous?" Isabella asked, looking at Sirius.

"I can Apparate us all, you know?" Frank croaked blankly.

"But what about Alice?" asked Alex.

For a split second, no one said anything.

"I've an idea," said Claiborne from the back and everyone looked around. "Lily and I shall stay back and look after Alice. If things get bad, I can phone my parents and have them Apparate her to St. Mungo's at once," she said, and Sirius nodded enthusiastically. "Meanwhile, the lot of you could head back to Frank's and take care of things there?"

"Yeah!" said Alex, nodding feverishly. "We could do that!"

"And I'll write to Dumbledore at once," Lily said, a blazing look in her eyes.

"Alright. Yes, that's what we'll do!" cried out James, mirroring Lily's intensity now. "Ed, Al, you might have to come along too, we'll need all the help we can get."

"Of course!" they roared back together. "We want to help too," said Alex, stepping into the circle.

"Yeah, any help," Edward added.

"Let's go then," Frank muttered grimly, putting his hand out as everyone gathered feverishly gathered around, wands at the ready.

"Evans, Jones, keep your eyes open. Try contacting Remus and Peter and get them here AT ONCE!" James said in his most no-nonsense tone, locking eyes with Lily. "If they've attacked the Longbottoms and found nothing, they could even head here next."

"Don't worry, we will take care of things here," Lily said, her eyes alight on fire.

"Be careful!" yelled Claiborne just in time to see them Disapparate in front of her eyes.