For Jen. Love you.
I want to give a MASSIVE Thank You to SunriseImagination for Betaing this story for me. She makes my story better for you guys. Definitely, go check out her and her story.
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Now on to the chapter!
Chapter 17
December 16th
Monday
~oOo~
Rose sat eating her late breakfast, her eyes sparkling with amusement as she looked around the Great Hall. Since both she and Scorpius had a free-period that morning she was able to sit by herself admiring the Christmas decorations and enjoying the revelry. Her friends were already off to their early classes, Scorpius was across the hall talking to other students, and Al had yet to make an appearance. Rose was waiting for him.
She smiled as she observed her peers. Hogwarts was going nuts like it always did this time of year. Students everywhere were sitting nervously, looking around with wide stressed eyes, whispering with their friends, flirting across the hall; it was madness.
The Yule Ball was less than a week away, and the students who hadn't gotten up the courage to ask someone yet were to put it simply, panicking.
She couldn't help but grin at the frenzy of alarmed students around her. If they hadn't found a date by now, there was probably a slim chance they would in time. It was funny. The way students kept throwing glances at the people they wanted to ask as though their eyes could say it all was amusing.
Because once upon a time that had been her. Not the one throwing glances, but the one on the receiving end of those panicked gazes. Yes, this time of year the boys that had been interested in her since the start all finally had a chance. While most were still terrified that Albus and or the rest of the Gremlins would beat them up for even looking at Rose funny, it was an unspoken rule that for the Yule Ball they were allowed to ask her and if she accepted to take her.
This rule that been established during her second year when she had been the only one in her friend group to not have a date because of Albus and his Gremlins. She had cried, mainly out of frustration because even back then, at the young age of twelve Albus had not wanted boys around her. She hadn't been interested in dating, she was only twelve after all, but Albus had thought differently, thinking that all boys were out to get her.
So he had chased off anybody that had wanted to ask her, rendering her dateless and alone. She had gotten her dress weeks before, planned out her hair and what little makeup she'd wear. She had been giddy, looking around and smiling at the boys that were looking at her, waiting for them to come up to her and ask. But they never did because Al got there first. Because of his actions she had run out of the Great Hall crying, her dress billowing behind her.
After all that, Albus had relented and said that he wouldn't chase off a guy that wanted to take her to the Ball again. That for that night only, she could have a date.
Somehow the boys at Hogwarts found out about this and every year since Rose had a date. And even though Albus usually lurked in the background, his eyes burning holes into the back of her date's head the whole night, Rose had been happy.
Now she sat in the Great Hall, the smell of breakfast in the air along with the hint of pine from the trees around them and smiled. She was so glad she didn't have to deal with that drama anymore.
"Good god this is all giving me a headache."
Rose felt her smile widen as Hugo slumped down on the empty bench next to her, letting out a groan and plopping his head down on the table.
"Is brother dearest not feeling festive?"
Hugo turned his head and glared at Rose, "It's not the holiday I'm pissed at, it's the event planned for the holiday."
Rose mimicked her brother's position with her arm's crossed and head on the table, "What don't you like about balls? The dancing, the food, the music? It doesn't fill you with joy and happiness?"
Hugo let out a loud snort and rolled his eyes at his sister. "I think I'd rather help Hagrid with bathing the blast-ended skrewts."
This comment made Rose smirk. "That could be arranged."
Hugo glowered, his features scrunching up in disgust at the thought of blast-ended skrewt bathing duty. Rose chuckled, she loved teasing him.
"I take it by your mood that you don't have a date yet?"
Hugo sighed. He turned around on the bench, leaned back against the table, elbows resting on top feet stretched out into the aisle. "No," He answered, not meeting her eyes, "I got someone to go with."
Rose was shocked. Out of the four years he had been at Hogwarts, not once had he ever had a date to the Ball. He hated the thing. Dressing up, the large number of people shoved into the same room, the music, the hype leading up to it. Everything about it irritated him, so he had put as little effort into it as possible. Hugo had to go, but he didn't dress up more then he had to and he never danced.
Now he had a date.
"Who?" Rose asked, unable to hide her surprise.
Hugo tilled his head back and looked up at the ceiling which was currently swirling with snow, mirroring the outside world. "Eva."
Rose stared for a long moment, her eyes widening at the faint blush she could see splashed across his freckled face. Eva? It took a moment to figure out who on earth Eva was but then the name clicked in her mind and Rose's mouth fell open. Her eyes instantly darted over to the Hufflepuff table and after a moment of searching, landed on a short blonde girl. She was a Gremlin from what Rose knew.
"You mean Eva Gray?" Rose asked incredulously, "How do you even know her? You're not in the Gremlins and if I'm not mistaken she's a year younger then you so you don't have any classes with her."
Hugo himself looked over at the Hufflepuff table, his eyes landing on the girl in question. He gave a little shrug after a minute, eyes still trained on Eva. "It's funny actually. Well maybe not funny but I dunno, interesting. We meet just this year. I had no clue who she was until a few weeks ago. It was a few days after the Bonding. I was walking back from the Hospital wing after seeing you and we sort of just bumped into each other. She's so tiny, I nearly bowled her over. Caused her to drop all her stuff. I helped her pick it all up, blubbering on and on about how sorry I was. She just laughed and shrugged it off. I was about to go when she asked about you. She wanted to know how you and Malfoy were getting along. We ended up talking. I walked her to the Great Hall for lunch and we talked some more. It was really nice actually. She's pretty funny and once you get into it she's really interesting too. We've been meeting in the Libray to study and hang out for a while now. When the topic of the Ball came up she admitted that she didn't have anyone to go with yet."
He shrugged again, "I just sort of blurted it out. I don't know why I did but I said I'd go with her if she wanted. Just as friends though. She said okay." Hugo let out a chuckle. "Now I'm roped into going to this stupid thing for real. I can't just stand in the back and eat all the food. Really stupid of me but it made her happy so I'm sure I'll live."
"That's very... Chivalrous of you." Rose finally said her eyes calculating as she looked at her brother. Interesting, she thought. "So you're just going as friends? Nothing more?"
Hugo turned back to her, rolling his eyes again, "Yes Rose, just as friends. I don't need or want a girlfriend. Eva is just fun to talk to so I like hanging around with her. Don't make it out to be more then it is."
It was Rose's turn to roll her eyes. Honestly, the kid got so defensive. A person just askes a little question and you get your head bitten off.
"Alright well, I'm glad you found someone to go with."
Another eye roll.
The rest of breakfast went by pretty smoothly, Hugo stayed and talked with Rose for a little while longer before Lily came over to drag him off so they could get to class on time.
Then just before Rose got up to go get Scorpius herself, she saw something. Abigal, Albus's Abby, was sitting at her table when John Gibbings, a sixth-year Slytherin and a right prat, came up behind her, leaned down with a devilish smirk and whispered something in her ear. As he pulled back Abby nodded and stood from her table, a bright smile on her face, her long black hair swishing behind as John reached out with his hand and wrapped his arm around her waist.
Rose watched with a narrowed gaze as the two slipped through the Great Hall doors, a scowl pulling at her lips as she watched Gibbings' hand slip dangerously low on Abby's back.
Could this be what was upsetting Albus? Her mind whirled, the last time Albus had talked about Abby had been the night of their last Hogsmeade visit. He had been upset because when coming back from the kitchens with food he had stumbled upon Abby flirting with Gibbings. Rose didn't know how but she thought maybe Ablus had found out about this too and had been avoiding all things Abby related since.
"Hey, we need to get to class."
Rose shook her head slightly, trying in vain to stop thinking about Abby and Albus. Absentmindedly she leaned down and grabbed her book bag before standing and finding Scorpius in the crowd. It wasn't hard, a small part of her mind seemed to always know where he was.
He smiled as she walked up to him and she nodded back, falling in step beside him as they moved with the crowd towards their first class.
Rose found herself gazing into space as they walked in silence, her every thought sparking with concentration. She needed to know what was bothering Albus. Was it Gibbings? Or was it something else. Had he and Abby talked maybe? Had they fought? Rose had no clue. Over the years Albus and Abby hadn't talked a lot, both being too shy of each other. It seemed unlikely that they would fight. But what had happened? Abby had had boyfriends over the years and while Albus mopped about and sighed a lot when she did, it had never made him stop talking about her or made him angry at her.
He was always upset but not at Abby. Usually, the Gremlins liked to play pranks on the poor suckers that dated Abby but never had Albus been mad at the girl herself.
It was so confusing to Rose. And what made it worse this time is that Rose hadn't seen Albus since yesterday. Where was he? What was wrong? What had happened? No matter what scenarios Rose came up with in her mind none seemed to fit. It started to drive her nuts.
Without noticing, Rose started to bite at her fingernails. A nervous habit she tried very hard not to do.
She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn't notice the sharp gaze she was receiving. It wasn't until a hand reached up and grabbed her own, pulling it away from her mouth and stopping her from ruining her nails that she snapped out of it.
Her eyes flicked to the side and she was met with a storm. Scorpius's grey-blue eyes swam with concern, the look he was giving her was questioning.
"What's wrong? You only bite your nails when you're really troubled." They had come to a stop, the hall around them quieting as students rushed off to class. His eyes were so intense Rose had the urge to look away, "You blocked me out."
She hadn't even realized that she had been doing it. She supposed some part of her didn't want Scorpius in her head.
His words were soft and Rose did look away now, "Sorry," She mumbled.
He shook his head, "It's ok, you're allowed to have your own thoughts, but what made you worry? You're nervous, I can feel it. What's wrong?"
Rose bit her lip, not noticing the way Scorpius's eyes tracked the move before dragging his eyes away. "It's just Albus." Scorpius nodded his understanding. Rose had filled him in loosely about her conversation with her cousin. "I'm just concerned. I haven't seen him since yesterday and I saw something this morning that made me think I know why he's upset."
"What'd you see?"
Rose sighed, "Abby and Gibbings. They walked to class together and the way he was holding her was more than just friendly. I'm pretty sure they're seeing each other. But she's had boyfriends in the past and Albus has never acted like this before." Rose shook her head again, "I just don't know how to help."
Scorpius nodded, his eyes clouded in thought. They started walking again, not wanting to be late for class. "I don't know." He finally said, "Albus and Abby are a hard subject. They're both hopeless with their feelings. Not wanting to admit that they do have them. It's only gotten worse over the years."
Rose nodded, frowning at the thought of all the back and forth those two went through. "I know. I feel like strangling Albus sometimes. If he just said some of the stuff he said to us to her they would have been together ages ago. But no, he just keeps it inside, not even knowing that he's hurting both of them by not saying anything. I just don't understand that. If you like someone you tell them, even if there's a chance you'll get rejected. Don't you think it's worse to live with the thought that you never told them, that there might have been a chance if only you had said something? I think it is. If you have feelings for someone you tell them and then go from there. It might be hard or awkward if you get rejected but at least you know that it's been said. That it's out in the open. God, he is just so stubborn! What am I going to do with him?!"
Rose turned to look at Scorpius, expecting to find him nodding and agreeing with her only to see that his eyes were suddenly far off, his expression troubled. With a start, Rose realized that he had closed his mind to her.
It bothered her, she didn't like not feeling him there in her mind. It was odd.
They had made it to their class, DADA. Rose frowned at Scorpius as his eyes refocused but he didn't look at her. "The bell's about to ring." He said curtly then pushed the door to the class open, holding it there for her to walk in first. She stood there for a second, looking at him but he just gave her a strained smile and nodded his head inside.
As they took their seats Rose's mind still buzzed. With a silent groan she pulled out her books and set up her space just as the bell rang and class started.
All throughout class Rose kept glancing at Scorpius, only to find him staring at the same spot on the desk, eyes unreadable.
God, what have I done now? Rose thought. First Albus and now Scorpius. Why can't I keep my big mouth shut?
The problem was that she had no idea what she had said to make Scorpius withdraw like this. She went over the whole conversation in her head, but nothing seemed to trigger anything.
Class went by in a blur and she started when the bell rang to signal the end of the lesson. She hadn't heard a word the teacher had said. So lost in thought that the whole hour was up before she even knew it.
Rose felt like plopping her head down on the desk and not moving until everything was right again. With a sigh Rose stood and packed up her things, glancing over at Scorpius when he got up without a word and walked out of class. Rose sighed again before jogging to catch up.
~oOo~
Rebel headquarters
Northern Scotland, close to Aberdeen.
It was late. Most of the countryside was asleep, tucked away safe and sound in their beds. But down on the coast, nestled into the wharf, was a large building hiding in plain sight that was very much awake.
At the top of the building, there was a window with a dim flickering light. It was a fireplace in a large dark office, with the only other source of light being a small lamp sitting on a large desk. A woman sat behind the desk, idly flipping through a small notebook. While her eyes seemed trained on the pages, her mind was elsewhere.
She didn't look up when a knock sounded at the door, merely called out, "Yes?"
"Mistress," came the high-strung voice of her secretary, "There has been an incident. We need you." There was scuffling outside and the sound of papers being rustled.
The woman didn't seem fazed by the news. She simply sat forward, moving to place the book inside a drawer of the desk and shutting it, flicking her wand to lock it before standing and striding to the door.
Upon opening it she found Wellings, her secretary, standing there. Her bodyguard stood beside him.
Though Wellings was taller than her, he seemed to shrink into insignificance in her presence. His brown plain features, nothing special. But he was a necessary tool in her success.
"What is it, Wellings? I have a lot to finish tonight, I don't have time for mistakes."
He nodded vigorously, eyes dancing, "Of course Ma'am. I wouldn't bother you with it unless it was important. There is someone you need to see."
"What has happened?" They started to walk down the dark hall, her guard walking a small distance behind them, just out of earshot. Shadows seemed to flicker on the walls, a trick of the light due to the foreboding dark grey colour.
"There was some trouble with one of the deliveries tonight."
The woman pursed her lips just the slightest bit, the only sign that showed she was bothered by this. "I thought I told you to make sure everything was handled and taken care of."
"I did ma'am," Wellings' voice was as calm as he could make it, which wasn't very. "But this wasn't a problem with organisation."
"What was it then?" They came to the end of the hall, coming upon a landing of sorts. An elevator stood in front of them and the woman reached out and pressed the button, the doors making a dinging sound before opening.
"It was one of the men my Lady." The woman came to a stop as they stepped inside, turning to face Wellings, "while loading the crates onto the trucks the area was invaded. Aurors overtook the checkpoint and have secured the goods that were there. Luckily it was only one of the Eastern holding points and not a large number of goods were taken. But they did manage to take a few of the men in before they had a chance to get away."
Her gaze was steady, "how did the Aurors know where the holding point was? Do we know?"
"Yes. In the midst of the raid, one of our men was seen going over to the Auror's side, clearly knowing them. Cohen managed to grab the man and apparate them both back here. She was injured during the attempt, but she was successful. The man is in a holding cell and Cohen is being treated. The general is waiting for you now."
The woman turned as the elevator doors opened and walked towards a large black door on the far side of the small room. She pulled it open and disappeared down another dark flight of stairs. Wellings and her guard followed behind her, their footfalls loud on the stone. Neither seemed to have mastered the art of walking quietly it seemed.
She made it to the bottom of the stairs and with sure steps, walked down a short hall and opened yet another door at the very end.
The room she entered was tiny, with only a counter in the corner, and chairs along the wall. Behind the counter were a wall of keys, each one hung perfectly on their hook. The whole thing was protected by a soft white magical shield, restricting any that was not authorized personnel from getting their hands on them.
There was a man behind the counter who looked up and straightened immediately upon seeing her. He seemed to bow slightly and his eyes held a hint of nervousness. "Miss." He said and the woman nodded, walking past him to the large steel door next to the desk.
The man scrambled out from behind the desk and with shaky hands unlocked the door for her, holding it open for her and the two men behind her to enter.
They walked into a hallway, it was long and blinding white, the lights overhead almost giving the woman a headache for how bright they were. Along both sides of the hall were steel doors, each with a large red number painted on them. Ten on each side, twenty in all.
At the far end of the hall stood a large man and a woman. They were talking in hushed tones, but when the door opened and the woman stepped in they both straightened and saluted her.
"General," she said as she approached the pair, nodding to the man. She then turned her eyes on the woman, "Cohen. I'm glad to see that you are not too badly hurt."
"Thank you, ma'am," Cohen said, brushing some of her blond hair from her face, revealing a bandaged cut on her forehead.
The woman nodded to her and then turned back to the General. He was a large man with a short military buzz cut, sharp facial features and dark brown eyes that held no give or patience for mistakes.
"Is he inside?" She motioned with her head to the door marked 18 just behind her.
The General nodded, "Yes. I was waiting for you before I went in to question him."
The woman looked over at the door, at the cold unrelenting steel, "did he do everything we thought he would?"
She looked back over at the General, watching his expression. "Yes, ma'am. He went running to the Aurors the minute he caught wind of the news."
The woman nodded, ignoring the frown she was getting from Wellings. "And he has no idea we knew?"
"None my lady."
"Where's his brother?"
The General nodded to a holding cell two down. "In there my Lady. He was not at the holding plant when it happened and claims to know nothing about the events that took place there. I have someone interrogating him now."
"Good." The woman smiled then, a startling bright one that made all but the general uneasy, "Let's go break the news to our dear Atticus, General. I'm sure he's just dying to know what will happen."
She opened the unlocked door of the holding cell and stepped in, smiling all the while. Atticus Bolton looked up from where he sat, his arms and legs chained. His eyes were hard and fierce and the triumphant look in them only made her smile wider. He was tall and lanky, with a thin handsome face. His eyes were a mix of brown and green, and his hair was dark and curly.
"Atticus my dear boy." Her voice was a purr that made the young man squirm slightly. "What is this I hear about you talking to the wrong people? I thought I taught you better than that." She walked around the table that sat in front of Atticus and came to lean gently against it right next to the boy. She reached out with a hand to push a few stray curls from his face.
"Don't touch me, you bitch." His voice was gruff and hard.
Her smile only became sweeter, "Oh no, don't be like that Atticus. You might make me think you don't like me."
His glare was her only reply.
"Not in much of a chatting mood are we? Well, that doesn't matter, I don't need you to talk, you only need to listen." The smile never faltered as she watched a little confusion swim through his eyes.
"You're not going to interrogate me? Or torture me to tell you what I said to the Aurors?"
Her light laugh filled the room, a sound that wasn't pleasant or amused, "Now why would I do that Atticus? I already know what you told them."
His face froze, eyes widening slightly. She could practically see the gears turning. "W-what do you mean?"
She reached out again, her fingers running lightly through his hair. He didn't pull away this time, only sat there watching her with eyes no longer triumphant.
"My dear sweet boy, haven't you figured it out yet?"
There was a moment of silence in which the two sat looking at each other. The General was standing by the door, his eyes harsh as he watched them. Atticus's eyes darted across the woman's face, before finally meeting her gaze. His eyes had a dead look in them now, "You knew."
The smile on her face no longer seemed happy or sweet, it was like his words had corrupted it, turning it foreboding, "Of course I knew." She dropped her hand, "There is nothing that goes on around here that I don't know about Atticus. You were reckless and stupid to think otherwise. I knew when you started questioning me and what I am doing. I knew when you started asking questions you shouldn't have been asking. I knew when you decided that you didn't want to be a part of this anymore; when you started to plot against me."
Atticus's face was slowly draining of colour, his regret and self-hatred for not being more careful written all over his face. "You knew." He repeated to himself like he was trying to confirm it in his mind.
"I knew." She echoed, "When I heard you wanted to go to the Aurors and tell them everything you could I decided to use you. I made sure that some information fell into your lap. You thought you were very clever, finding out all these things that would help the Ministry tear down everything. But did you ever stop for one moment and think about how easily you found those things out? How simple it was? Did you ever stop to think that maybe I knew? That I was simply feeding you information? That I wanted you to go to the Ministry?"
His brown eyes were dark with despair. There was no hope left in them. "You gave me information knowing I would go to the ministry." He said slowly, his voice cracking slightly, his gaze fixed on the table. "If I had to guess I'd say that it was all bullshit. Every location, every number and intel on the goods. Everything I told them will only lead them to dead ends or ambushes." He looked back up at her. "Am I right?"
She smiled wider, like a proud mother at her son for getting all the right answers on the test. "You're catching on."
"So what now? Are you going to kill me? Torture me?"
She let out another laugh, "Of course not. I would never hurt you Atticus. No, I have plans for you."
He narrowed his eyes, a frown pulling at his lips, "You're just going to let me off the hook? Let me continue to live here and work for you? That doesn't make any sense. There's always a punishment, always something, you have never let anyone walk away scot-free."
The woman's beautiful face held no feelings, her eyes were hard and emotionless. Even though she smiled, it was an empty one. "I said I wouldn't hurt you Atticus. I said nothing about your brother."
As if on cue a scream pierced the air. The woman watched Atticus's eyes grow wide and panicked. He lurched forward, straining at the chains that bound him tightly in place. "You bitch! I'll kill you." His voice was also strained, and as another scream cut through the air his breath grew ragged.
"Now now there's no need for that. You wouldn't want the nice fellow who's talking to Asher to accidentally slip with that knife, would you? He might kill someone."
If possible Atticus' face grew even paler. His voice was hard as stone and so low she could barely hear it. "Go to hell."
Her laugh echoed around the room, interrupting the screams. "Oh, sweetie." Her smile never faltered as she leaned forward, getting very close to his face, her blood red painted fingertips grazing along his throat. "You're already there."
