Rhett lay on his bed, staring up at the ceiling with his hands under his head. Sharka lay beside him on the bed, her arm draped across his chest and her head resting comfortably against the inside of his shoulder. Talak was playing chess against Vilandra on the floor, Sterling sleeping with his head on her lap. Leroux was across the room, writing letters to Jase so that when he had the chance to send them, he would have had enough time to prepare a really, really good one. Salai was watching Talak and Vilandra play chess, rubbing her shoulders as he watched the game. Alca was with her mother and Kei, the two of them helping her with some potions she wanted to learn. Rhett suddenly let out a loud growl, forcing everyone to freeze and turn to stare at him.
"I'm going mad!" He exclaimed annoyed. "We've been sitting here for—Merlin knows how long! Isn't anyone else going completely bonkers?" He demanded. Talak raised his hand.
"I swear, if I lose one more game to Vilandra, I'm throwing myself out the window." Vilandra grimaced.
"Would this be a bad time to say Checkmate?" Talak turned to her, eyes bulging.
"What!" He looked down and groaned. "Bloody hell, woman. I swear, you cheat."
"I do not!" Vilandra exclaimed insulted.
"I'm going to ask mum if we can go to Diagon Alley." Rhett shifted away from Sharka and she sat up to let him stand. "You all interested in going?"
"Sure." Vilandra shrugged. "We have nothing better to do."
"Smashing." Talak stood up. "Let's go, brother." The two of them trotted out of the room and bounded down the stairs.
"Mum!" Talak hollered from the bottom of the stairs.
"She's in the kitchen." Lupin grimaced as he rubbed his ear, heading for the door with Snape.
"Oy, where are you lot going?" Rhett asked, pushing past his brother onto the landing.
"That's none of your concern, Potter." Snape hissed. Lupin rolled his eyes annoyed.
"We're just running an errand for Professor Dumbledore. We should be back before nightfall."
"Where's Hagrid? He usually runs them with you." Talak insisted.
"Hagrid's left already. He's doing something else." Lupin informed.
"Thank you, Remus, for informing them of our plans." Snape sneered. "Can we proceed?" Snape turned and marched out of the house, the twins shooting dirty looks after him as he disappeared. Lupin gave them a sheepish smile and followed the Potions Master out the door, closing it behind him.
The twins turned and headed towards the kitchen, entering it and looking around for their mother. They saw her at the table, reading through a book.
"Mum?" She slammed it shut, turning to her sons with a guilty expression on her face. Talak raised an eyebrow. "What were you doing?"
"Nothing!" She insisted urgently. Rhett frowned as he recognized the book she held tightly in her hands.
"Is that—"
"Mum!" The two yelled, almost ashamed.
"I know! I know! I'm not proud of it, but—I'm just—I'm scared, all right!" She insisted as she clutched Harry's journal tightly in her hands. "I just needed something of his to read. I needed something to ease my mind." The twins shared a look and sighed. They understood how she felt. It didn't make it right, but at least they understood. "What was it you wanted?" They turned back to her.
"We were wondering if Leroux, Vilandra, Salai, Sharka and the two of us could go out to Diagon—"
"No!" Ginny cut Rhett off before he even finished his sentence. "Absolutely not."
"But mum—"
"No 'buts' Talak Potter, the answer is no!" Ginny insisted.
"Oh, come on, mum! Please?" Rhett begged, his hands folded together.
"No!"
"What if we brought Kei?"
"No!"
"What if we went with—"
"Rhett Potter, my answer is no!" Ginny hissed. The twins sighed and stalked out of the kitchen.
"And yet another day of boredom." Talak muttered as they headed for the stairs. Rhett frowned and held out his hand, hitting his brother in the chest, forcing him to stop.
"Not necessarily." Rhett grinned at his brother. As they so often did, the two were on the same brainwaves for Talak started grinning seconds later.
"We tell them she said yes?" Talak asked.
"We tell them she said yes." Rhett confirmed. Talak's grin faded.
"But won't it be dangerous? I mean, he's looking for all of us. And he can read minds. What if we accidentally let him know about the password?"
"Simple." Rhett insisted. "We don't think about it!" Rhett rolled his eyes and headed up the stairs. He entered the room, grinning.
"No way!" Vilandra insisted, smiling. "She said yes?"
"Yeah, but we have rules." Talak insisted as he followed Rhett into the room and closed the door.
"Number one, we aren't allowed to think about Grimmauld Place whatsoever." Rhett counted off on his finger.
"Number two," Talak continued. "We're not allowed to go down Knockturn Alley for any reason."
"Number three, if we see any Death Eaters, or the King of Darkness himself, we have to hide and contact anyone from the Ministry or the Order."
"Number four—"
"Bloody hell, might as well stay here." Salai insisted, starting to get annoyed with all the rules.
"This is the last one." Rhett insisted. "Number four is not to go looking for trouble. She said that if we say we're going to Diagon Alley, that's where we're going. She doesn't want us going off to look for the King of Darkness, or Death Eaters or whatnot."
"Agreed." Vilandra said, grinning at Salai. She then shook Sterling awake. He opened his sleep-filled blue eyes and looked up at her. "Hey. Do you want to go to Diagon Alley?" She asked him. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he sat up.
"Are you going?"
"I sure am."
"Okay." Vilandra laughed and stood up, lifting Sterling into her arms.
"Well then, let's be off." Rhett said, clapping his hands together. He severely hoped no one would catch them leaving. The twins would be in so much trouble. But they honestly saw no danger in it.
Since the King of Darkness knew that they knew he was after them, wouldn't he expect them to be hiding? He wouldn't think they'd go out in public, and just let the world know they were there. Besides, Rhett thought to himself, we'll be in a public place. If anything happens, people will see and the Ministry will be there before uncle Ron can say 'gotcha'.
-----
Sharka landed her broom unsteadily, the cold winter winds making it hard for her to keep it steady. The others all landed around her and grinned.
"I'm so glad to be out of that house!" Leroux exclaimed, inhaling deeply. "Fresh air never smelled so fresh!" Vilandra cocked an eyebrow at him, but said nothing. The seven of them dismounted their brooms and headed into The Leaky Cauldron, Salai carrying Vilandra's broom as she held Sterling in the arms. They walked into the dark pub, seeing only two or three people nursing drinks at that hour of the day.
"Hey, Tom." Rhett called to the barkeeper. He spun around and his face broke into a toothless smile.
"Mr. Potter. Doing well, I presume?" Rhett shrugged.
"Can't complain." He admitted as he neared the bar. Rhett was the only one who knew Tom well because every time Harry went to The Leaky Cauldron, Rhett went with him. Talak preferred to stay home with Ginny, and Rhett often teased him of being a 'mama's boy'.
"What brings you out here in these dreary times?" Tom asked as he replaced a glass on the counter. Sharka grimaced at the supposedly 'clean' glass. It looked like it had been washed with mud.
"Just a little shopping, Tom. I was wondering if we could leave our brooms here." He motioned the six brooms and Tom nodded.
"Of course. At the back, by the cloaks." He motioned the small space reserved for cloaks.
"Thanks." Five of them disappeared as Vilandra stayed by the bar, still holding Sterling, waiting for them to return.
"You're Hermione's daughter, aren't you?" Vilandra turned back to Tom, stunned. She knew the man by name and face, but she didn't really know anything about him, and for him to know who her mother was—it was slightly unsettling.
"Yes." Vilandra clutched Sterling more tightly against her.
"You look like her." He commented, cocking his head to one side. She grimaced slightly, unnerved.
"Thanks." She replied uncertainly, turning her back on him as the others came back towards her.
"Thanks, Tom. We'll be back later." Rhett waved as they headed out towards Diagon Alley. They went through the large archway and walked down the brightly lit streets where witches and wizards of all ages bustled happily about their business.
"Can we get ice cream?" Sterling asked Vilandra.
"Of course we can!" She exclaimed, smiling at him. "Anything you want." Sterling smiled happily as she turned to the cousins. "We'll just be gone a few minutes."
"No, why don't we all just split up and meet back here in, say, an hour?" Rhett asked. The others shrugged.
"Okay, sure." And so, Talak and Leroux headed towards Flourish and Blotts to find some good Defence Against the Dark Arts books. Rhett and Sharka headed towards Quality Quidditch Supplies, although everyone knew they probably wouldn't be going inside. They just wanted to spend some time alone. So, turning to smile at Salai, Vilandra, Salai and Sterling made their way towards Florean Fortescue's Ice-Cream Parlor.
-----
Parvati wiped her hands on her apron as she headed hurriedly for the door. The knocking was persistent, urgent, and this worried her. She reached it and opened the door, the sight greeting her absolutely shocking.
"Draco?"
"You have to get out of here!" He exclaimed urgently, hurrying into the house and slamming the door behind him.
"Draco, your cover—"
"Parvati, listen to me!" He hollered, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her. "You have to leave, now!"
"Draco?" He looked up the stairs as he heard the voice, Ginny hurrying down the stairs. "What is it?"
"The Death Eaters, they're on their way!" He exclaimed urgently. "Fred accidentally let slip the secret password, and they're on their way now! You need to get out of here!" All the colour drained from the two women's faces.
"Parvati, get the children." Ginny ordered, hurrying towards the back of the house, Draco following her. She turned as she noticed him still behind her and pushed him away slightly, her hand on his chest. "Leave, Draco." She ordered. "We can't afford to lose you as our source—or friend."
"I won't leave until I'm sure you're all safe." He replied stubbornly.
"Draco, you'll be found out if you stay here, and everything we've worked so hard for will be ruined. Please. Think of your children." She insisted. Draco stared at her a long while. "If they find you here, they'll know you're on our side and your children will be in danger. Draco, just go." Pressing his lips together tightly, the handsome man turned on his heel and disappeared from Ginny's sight. Seconds later, she heard the front door slam shut. She hurried back towards the living room, entering it and seeing all the Order members.
"We have a situation." The chatter died down as they all heard the seriousness in her voice. And it had started out as such a good day, too. "We've just been told that the King of Darkness has discovered our password and is on his way. We must hurry and evacuate now. Ackles," she turned to a handsome man in his mid-twenties. "You inform Dumbledore, Snape, Lupin and Hagrid about what's going on." He nodded and headed hurriedly for the door. Ginny opened her mouth to continue when Parvati came hurtling down the stairs.
"Ginny!" Ginny turned and saw the look of panic on Parvati's face. Oh, God, Ginny thought horrified. Are they here already? "They're gone!" It took Ginny a few seconds to register what she'd said.
"Gone? Who's gone?" She inquired.
"The twins! Vilandra! Leroux! Everyone! They're all gone! Alca and Tyr are the only ones left behind!" Ginny paled even more as she realized what had happened.
"Oh, God." She breathed. "They went to Diagon Alley." She pushed past Parvati. "Get everyone out of here!" She ordered as she headed for the door, grabbing her cloak. "I'll go after them. We'll meet back at Hogwarts." She threw her cloak over her shoulders and opened a closet by the door, extracting her broom. She threw open her door and came face to face with a wand. Her breath caught in her throat. She couldn't move. She couldn't even warn anyone else that the Death Eaters had arrived. The hooded figure grinned at her, his mouth the only thing she could see.
"Hello, little sister."
"Geor—" Ginny's shout was cut short as a blue beam flew from Ron's wand and hit her in the chest. Ginny slumped to the floor unconscious, but her cry had caused Parvati to see what the cause was. The second she saw Ron, she shrieked. He aimed his wand at her and a blue beam shot out of it, but she ducked it and ran back into the other room.
Ron stepped over the form of his fallen sister and motioned her to another Death Eater. He picked her up and exited the house, disapparating back to their stronghold. Ron turned to all of his followers, grinning broadly.
"It's show time." He moved deeper into the house and heard people shouting and bustling around. He grinned. This was going to be easier than he thought. He turned and motioned the living room to the Death Eaters following him. He was going after more important people. Namely, his son and daughter. He climbed the stairs slowly, hearing the battle begin beneath his feet.
As he reached the second floor, he ducked to avoid being hit by a curse. He turned his head and saw George down the corridor, Alca being held protectively behind him. Tyr was hugging Alca tightly from behind his uncle. Ron smiled.
"Hello, George. How have you been?" He took a step forward.
"One more step, King, and I'll kill you." George hissed. Ron smirked.
"King. How—insulting. Never have I heard my name so utterly destroyed." He shook his head. "And I doubt very much, dear brother, that you will kill me. Not in front of your daughter and nephew, at any rate. What kind of example would you be setting for poor, little Alca?" George grimaced but Alca just whimpered, staying behind her father, clutching Tyr desperately.
"Get out of here, now." George hissed angrily. Ron sighed.
"You know, George—I was really hoping it wouldn't come to this."
"Come to what?" George spat, his wand still raised. Without saying a word—or even raising his wand—Ron threw a curse at George and he crumpled to the floor, his head slamming painfully into the ground. Alca let out a shriek of terror, running into the closest room with Tyr and slamming the door. She looked around the small room after having looked the door, seeing nothing to protect herself with.
"Come on, Tyr!" She pulled him as he began to cry and shoved him roughly beneath the closest bed. She scrambled under it after him, pushing the two of them against the far wall, shielding Tyr's body with her own. She breathed hard as she listened. She heard the doorknob rattle and let out a small whimper. Seconds later, the door creaked open and she heard footsteps enter the room. She held her breath, closing her eyes tightly. Tyr had gone frighteningly silent. The footsteps came towards the bed they were hiding under, but Alca refused to open her eyes. She knew no matter what happened, her fate would be just like her father's. And she was right.
-----
"You know what I could go for right now?" Vilandra asked as the seven of them sat within Florean Fortescue's Ice-Cream Parlor an hour later. "I could go for a movie at the cinema."
"Smashing." Rhett grinned. "I kind of miss our Muggle half of life." He admitted. Salai frowned.
"What's a movie?" He inquired.
"Pureblood." Leroux teased and then laughed. Salai didn't find it very amusing, but he said nothing. He and Leroux had actually been getting along, and he didn't want to ruin it now.
"It's moving pictures." Vilandra explained.
"Like our portraits?" Sharka asked, frowning into her butterbeer. She still couldn't understand how Sterling had wanted ice cream when it was still snowing outside.
"No, not like our portraits." Talak shook his head. "They're like—it's hard to explain, really. You'd have to see one to understand."
"Oy! You lot!" They all jumped and spun around as they heard the gruff voice. "What are yeh doin' 'ere?"
"Hey Hagrid." Vilandra smiled at him, but the look he gave her made her smile fade.
"Do yer 'rents know yeh lot are 'ere?" He demanded angrily, looking accusingly from one face to the next.
"Yeah, the twins got aunt Ginny's permission." Leroux motioned Talak and Rhett. Talak gave Rhett a dirty look and he cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Rhett?" He looked at Leroux as he began to take a sip of his butterbeer. "You did get aunt Ginny's permission, right?" He coughed into his drink and then placed it on the table, shifting uncomfortably. He turned to Sharka as she stared at him, his arm around her shoulder.
"Well," He cleared his throat again. "Not-not exactly."
"Rhett!" Vilandra hit him.
"Yeh lot have best be off." Hagrid grumbled angrily. "Yeh mum will be in a right state." The five who weren't aware that they couldn't go out glared at Rhett.
"Why are you all glaring at me? Talak was involved, too!"
"I told you we shouldn't do it." Talak insisted as they headed back towards The Leaky Cauldron.
"But you still went along with it!" Rhett insisted.
"Will you two just sod off?" Vilandra snapped as she carried Sterling, glaring at Rhett. "I don't care whose bloody fault it was. When we get back, I'm telling aunt Ginny the two of you conned us into leaving!"
"I was surprised she let us go in the first place." Leroux grumbled as they entered The Leaky Cauldron. "I should've figured you would do this."
"Like you didn't want to leave the house just as badly." Rhett snapped as they all grabbed their brooms, Salai helping Vilandra with hers since she still held Sterling. They exited The Leaky Cauldron and climbed onto their brooms, kicking off the ground, none of them looking forward to facing the adults when they got home.
"Vilandra, will you just calm down?" Rhett demanded angrily as they flew through the air.
"No! I will most certainly not calm down, Rhett James Potter!" She growled angrily.
"Did Rhett do something bad?" Sterling asked, turning to look at his sister.
"Yes, Sterling." Vilandra turned to glare at Rhett. "Rhett did something very bad!"
"Will you all just stop, already?" Rhett grumbled.
"Rhett, our dad's cover may have been blown because of you!" Salai snapped. "We assumed Mrs. Potter was all right with it, but now, if any Death Eaters saw us, our father is dead! He doesn't have the luxury of being the King of Darkness' family." Rhett grimaced at the bitterness in Salai's voice. It was true, he hadn't thought about that, and if Draco Malfoy died because of him, he would feel terrible. He turned to look at Talak who pressed his lips together, shaking his head. They really hadn't thought this through before leaving. No, Talak thought angrily. Rhett didn't really think this through. I was against it.
The remainder of the flight home was done in relative silence, no one wanting to speak to one another. Vilandra was so angry she kept going too low and Salai had to go down and bring her back up. They finally reached a marker they recognized and flew down towards the ground, stopping just outside the blank lot that was Grimmauld Place. Each thought the secret password and the house materialized. Talak and Rhett shared a look as the front door hung wide open.
"Why is the door open?" Leroux asked cautiously. The seven of them walked slowly towards the door. Sterling tugged on Vilandra's sweater so she bent down to pick him up, holding him against her hip. They entered the house slowly, Rhett in the lead.
"Mum?" He called cautiously. There came no reply. Rhett turned back to look at Talak.
"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Vilandra whispered, eying the entrance worriedly.
"Past experience?" Salai asked her. They all entered the house.
"I'll check the kitchen." Talak pushed past Rhett. Rhett turned and headed towards the back as Sharka and Salai went up the stairs. Leroux and Vilandra walked cautiously towards the living room, where they knew all the Order members had been earlier that day. Vilandra was in the lead, holding Sterling tightly. If anyone was there and wanted to get Sterling, they would have to pry him from her cold, dead fingers.
She pushed open the door that led to the living room and Sterling screamed. She covered his eyes quickly, turning away and running past Leroux. He stared at them confused, and then looked into the living room. He covered his mouth, turning away, horrified someone Sterling's age had seen what he at fifteen could hardly handle. All the Order members—they were all dead! All of them had blank eyes and mouths wide open.
He hurried back down the corridor, catching up to Vilandra as she stood by the stairs, shushing Sterling as he cried against her shoulder. She turned to Leroux.
"I didn't see mum." He said in a low voice. "I think—I think he's taken family."
"There's no one upstairs." Salai and Sharka informed as they came back down.
"The back is empty, too." Rhett said. Talak appeared down the corridor, white as a ghost.
"Talak?" Leroux ran to him. "Talak, are you all right?"
"Order members." He whispered. "They're dead." Leroux turned back to Vilandra.
"They were probably trying to go out the back door." She whispered. "They probably didn't make it through the kitchen."
"What about mum?" Rhett demanded, pushing past Salai and Vilandra to get to his brother. Talak shook his head.
"I didn't see her."
"He probably took her." They all turned back to Vilandra.
"The King of Darkness?" Salai asked. She nodded sadly.
"At least Snape, Lupin, Hagrid and Dumbledore weren't here." They heard a board creak above them and all of their heads shot up.
"I think we should get out of here." Sharka whispered.
"I think you're right." Leroux agreed as they all made their way to the door.
"Where do we go? What do we do?" Rhett demanded.
"Dumbledore." Vilandra insisted. "We have to find him. Let's go to Hogwarts." They all hurried out the door, heading for their brooms. As they walked down the front walk, they frowned and looked around. Where had their brooms gone?
Leroux heard rustling and he looked around. His breath caught in his throat as Death Eaters emerged from around them, coming out from behind houses and trees. They began to surround the seven of them. Sterling let out a whimper and clutched Vilandra's shirt desperately as she held him. Her breath came fast as she looked around them. Oh, God. Vilandra thought hysterically. Oh, God, no! No, no, no! The six older kids backed into each other, Vilandra trying to protect Sterling with the bodies of the others.
"Plan B." Salai muttered out of the corner of his mouth as the Death Eaters began to draw their wands.
"Plan B?" Leroux demanded. "What was Plan A!"