Authors Note: Ladies and Gentlemen may I present my new co-writer in crime, Becca. Becca wrote about half of this chapter. Why? Because she plays GABE, of course! HRTHRTHRT

All characters are © their respective players. I do not own Harry Potter (though I wouldn't mind .) nor do I own Albus Dumbledore (Thank God..), Hogwarts, or pretty much anything JK Rowling wrote. I do however own Calista, who in this Continuity was the Head Girl in Harry's 6th year, so if you even so much as –think- of stealing her.. I would be flattered. I will sue the pants off of you.. but I'd be flattered. Becca owns Gabe. Though.. Calista would like to think otherwise.

Sunset

Ch. 3

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Dreaming about Providence
And whether mice or men have second tries.
Maybe we've been living with our eyes half open
Maybe we're bent and broken..

Broken.

We were meant to live for so much more
Have we lost ourselves?
Somewhere, we live inside.

We were meant to live.

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"It's been a long time."

Calista stood just inside the door to the Donnybrook Estate, having opened it just a minute before once she heard the doorbell. She stared at the man in front of her, the shock plain on her face.

"..You going to invite me in, or..?"


"O-oh, Merlin, I'm sorry, of course.."

She held the door wider, letting him walk in. "Here, let me take your-"

"No, I can't stay long.."

She pursed her lips in annoyance, the shock of seeing the man before her after all these years wearing off quickly enough.

"You're going to leave so soon?"

"I can't help it. You know that."

He took a seat on the couch as if he owned it, and patted the spot beside him, inviting her to sit down. She complied, and he put his arm around her shoulder. She looked up at him quizzically.

"So.. I suppose you're wondering why I'm here."

"The thought had crossed my mind, Uncle Mikal."

Mikal Hailey chuckled softly and looked down at his niece, a smirk flickering against his hardened features. He looked to be in his late 50's, perhaps early 60's, but the man was younger than that. Despite his age, however, he was nearing the end of his time.

"We've got a lead."

Calista's brow perked at his vague words, and she glared at him as she spoke. "A lead on what?"

"What do you think?"

A moment of tense silence followed, in which she refused to show any reaction. Deep down, she had a suspicion of what he meant, but..

"Oh for crying out loud.. You're just as stubborn as your mother was."

He pulled out a slip of paper, folded twice, and handed it to her. Within it was an address, a name, and nothing more. He got up off the couch and rubbed his neck, heading for the door as he spoke. She unfolded the paper, gave it a glance, and got up out of her seat to follow him quickly.

"Who is this?"

"Our lead." He answered, turning in place to face her once he reached the door. "I knew him personally, when he was one of us. And he was one of us, Calista. Make no mistake."

"So, what difference does that make?"

"He just celebrated his 90th birthday."

The words slammed into her so hard that it took her breath away. A Wandless, living that long, was unheard of.. except for one. Dumbledore.

"You are our most.. convincing member, Calista.", he went on. "If there's anyone who could manage to get some answers out if him, it's you."

She clutched the paper in her hand, breaking the silence of the moment by the sound of paper crinkling softly under her fingertips. She didn't want to have to 'convince' some damn old man of anything.. but the one hope she had left in her life rested on this. She should have known better than to keep any hope at all.

If the Wandless discovered a way to live a full wizards life, then maybe, just maybe, after all of this was over, and Gabe was free to come back to her again.. they just might have a chance at a life together. She had a chance at buying time.

She just wished she knew what it was she was waiting for.

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"Tymes! Wake up, kid."

A mop of long red strands shot into the air as Adrius kicked the baseboard of the rickety cot.  He grunted as he watched Gabriel open his eyes to glare at his partner.

"Unless this place is burning down, you best have a damn good reason for waking me up…"

Gabriel muttered as he stretched his long arms and peeling himself out of the bed with a grunt.  He brought a gloved hand to his head and tousled his hair before moving to smooth his pants and throw his robe over his head. Adrius moved to sit down on the cot, watching his young partner ready himself.

"We've got a deviant." His tone was cool, almost indifferent, and yet…there was something in it that sounded uncertain, as though he was explaining to a muggle that unicorns really do exist, they are just hard to find.

"A…what?"

Gabriel had stopped moving, only his eyes and the tip of his nose protruding through the neck of his robe.  He knew what this meant, it was the shock of hearing such that stopped him cold.  He took a steadying breath, before finishing the maneuver to properly clad himself in the robe.

"I thought Dumbledore was the only one who managed that…?"

"That would make our tasks too easy, no?" Adrius retorted with a smirk. "Apparently some of the Wandless found out about him too, which means we have to move fast."

He reached to the side of the bed, and threw one of the boy's boots toward him, followed by the other. He stood, moving with purpose, and grabbed his Nimbus 2000 and his partner's 2001. Gabriel was finishing tying up his boots when he looked up at the brooms.

"I thought you said fast," he joked with his partner.  Though the two brooms were known throughout the world as some of the fastest, there were certainly ways of transport much faster than enchanted wood and branches could provide..

Adrius made a low sound in the back of his throat that sufficed as a laugh.  "I need you at full potential, kid.  If the deviant's lasted this long, there's likely to be more than a few tricks up his sleeve. Besides, he's close- Yorkshire. We can get there within a half hour with flying."

Gabriel nodded, taking his broom and heading out into the night air. He took in a deep breath of the sea air surrounding Tintageal, letting the taste of salt burn itself into his cracked lips. Raising the hood of his cloak, he simply nodded to his partner as he mounted his broom, kicking off and screaming skyward. Adrius followed directly, pulling up beside him so close that he could reach out and grab the quick of Gabriel's broom, easily. He led the way, having more of a sense of direction than Gabriel did. Gliding through the air, the two moved with the speed of shot arrows, black against black, barely seen against the night sky.

It was only when Adrius started to point the handle of his broom downward, that Gabriel felt any sort of emotion at all.  He followed, keeping close enough to his partner that it would be difficult for an outsider to note who was doing the leading.  When both feet were on the ground, Gabriel looked over to the moderately-sized house they had landed on the lawn of.  He handed his broom to Adrius, who was already starting to scout for an area to stash their transports.

"…He's not alone."

"I know."

With those words, Adrius moved back to his partner's side with all the silence and prowess of a shadow, his wand gesturing to the door when they reached it.

"Alohamora."

The spell Adrius used was one of the first useful spells Gabriel had learned in Hogwarts, and somehow, wizards that survived into late years of life managed to not guard against it.  "Careless…" he whispered to Adrius, following the man into the house. "…You'd think he'd be more careful, considering he's fought to age this far…"

Nodding once, Adrius surveyed the first room.  Glancing to the left, he noted the hallway.

"I need a count on the number of bodies in this building, Tymes…" Adrius muttered, turning to shut the door and seal it behind them.

Gabriel held still for moment, letting his eyes stare off—blind to seeing anything at the moment.  They shifted from the icy blue hue to a roiling crimson, before shifting back again after he was done surveying the building with his thaumaturgical vision—counting the vessels of blood that he could discern from the inanimate objects.

"Three human-sized, and one smaller—looks to be a cat, maybe a small dog."

Adrius cursed under his breath.  "I don't like those odds."

"We've been through far worse than this," replied Gabriel easily.

"If those are three Wandless…" Adrius began, shifting his gaze to Gabriel's, whose eyes were just completing their final return to familiar blue.

"Then we'll deal with them, just like anything else we've done."

Adrius nodded, stepping out into the hallway and looking down the way.  He waited for Gabriel to come up behind him before starting up the stairs.  He positioned his foot carefully on each floorboard, willing it not to creak beneath him.  Each of the rooms on the first floor had been opened—doors flung wide for all to see.  Nothing.  Not even the proposed cat. Adrius wondered idly if that meant that the three humans would be in the same room on the upper level. Swallowing a lump in his throat, he reached the crest of the stairs. Pressing his back to the far wall, Adrius motioned for Gabriel to take the lead now. 

The boy nodded swiftly, taking in a quick breath before starting on.  These doors were closed, which was the very reason why Adrius wanted him to take the lead.  He felt the pounding of blood at his temples, willing it to serve him as he took in the surroundings.  Pausing in front of the first door, he shook his head after a moment.  The first room was empty, with the exception of that lesser body, the pet or familiar of some sort. From the slowed circulation he could sense, he assumed the animal was dozing.

Gabriel steadied himself, pausing for a beat before moving to the next door.  He was barely in front of it when he nodded, holding up three fingers. 

This was it.  This was the door that Adrius wished would never be found.

Gabriel felt the hair stand on the back of his neck, and pulled to the wall, allowing Adrius to do the initial entry.  This was how the team worked.  Adrius, who had more experience, would open the door and Gabe would sweep in behind him.  After four years of this, they were very well acquainted with it. Adrius took one last long look at the door, his nerve slipping as he gripped the cherry wand in his hand. He found his strength in Gabriel, as he regarded the young man waiting vigilantly. 'If this nineteen year old boy can do this..' he thought to himself, '..I am not going to let him down.'  Ruefully, he stared at the make of the door, the memory of it burning into his mind. 

'I'm sorry, Grandfather.'

He rose his wand to the door.  He did not even have to check the door handle, he knew it to be locked. 

'But you were not careful enough.'

The silent spell exploded against the door, swinging it wide from the blast.

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There was the house, just as it should be.. but something seemed off. Something was wrong. She pushed the front door, and it moved easily with a creak. It wasn't even locked.. and that could only mean..

"...Shit."

She slammed into the door, sprinting inside. A quick glance around and she headed upstairs, kicking in door after door. She heard the sound of movement coming from the last, and with wand raised she stormed the room.

She was promptly hissed at.

Ignoring the cat that had been woken from its slumber by her violent entrance, she continued searching, until she found the door she was looking for. It was obvious from its singed and broken doorknob, that someone had gotten there before her.

The question was, were they still there?

She received her answer as the door swung open, and the gruesome scene presented itself. Though all three were obviously dead, only one caught her attention. The sight made her dry heave, her stomach convulsing. The old man lay in a pool of his own blood, his skin entirely drenched in it. It gave off the impression that every pore in his body had been punctured individually. His eyes were open, and his face was plastered with a look of vague surprise. He had died before he even hit the floor.

On the wall behind him was a sickening display, a splattering that looked as if someone had sprayed a firehose filled with blood. She knelt down on one knee beside the other two bodies, checking each for a pulse. It was pointless- it was obvious they were dead, the looks on their faces bearing witness to the Killing Curse. Her fist clenched in anger, nails digging into the soft skin underneath. Her eyes closed helplessly from the sight, as the small hope she had clung to was snuffed out as quickly as these three lives had been. A low, mournful cry emitted from her lips, one that choked and stifled in a sob. Dropping down to both knees, she remained on the blood drenched floor, and her cries were interrupted only by vicious snarls of anger.

"I failed you again, mother. I failed you.. Gabe.."

Her voice had already become hoarse with screaming, as she finally whispered those words out into the air.

There she would remain for hours. When she had finally found the strength to stand up again, after having spent far too much time weeping her sorrows to corpses of strangers, she stormed out of the room. She failed to notice the few drops of blood on the floor nearby that were so completely out of place, that they plainly hadn't come from the victim. Her boot treaded on the drops, smudging the only proof of Gabe's former presence out of existence.

She had failed once more.

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How the hell did we wind up like this?
Why weren't we able, to see the signs that we missed,
And try to turn the tables?
Now the story's played out like this,
Just like a paperback novel..
Let's rewrite an ending that fits,
Instead of a Hollywood horror.
 
Someday, somehow
I'm gonna make it all right, but not right now.
I know you're wondering when

(You're the only one who knows that.)

I know you're wondering when.

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End Note: SHOCKING. SCANDALOUS. OTHER WORDS THAT START WITH S. I know you're liking how I made it seem as if I won't add to this for months if at all.. and I add a new chapter a week later.

…yeah that's right. I'm so mysteriously unpredictable bebi.

Chapter 4.. is.. coming..!

(P.S. I like reviews, they make me a happy panda.)