I'd like to point out right now that a scene in this chapter was heavily inspired by a scene from Justified.
Chapter 5
"As Head of this Household, I hearby reinstate Andromeda Tonks to the Family of the Ancient and Noble House of Black." declared Sirius as he cast a spell on the Black Family Tree, with Andromeda, Tonks, and Ted in the room with him.
Instantly, the scorch marks surrounding his and Andromeda's names disappeared. As they did, Ted and Nymphadora's names were added onto the tapestry as well.
Before anyone could say anything though, Tonks pulled out her wand and scorched off her first name. She said, "Not even a Family Tree is allowed to call me that."
Everyone gathered had a good laugh as they celebrated Sirius' good fortune, as well as receiving a hug from him for the first time as a true family.
Meanwhile
"So what are we going to do now?" asked Antonin as he skeptically looked at the motley crew. Though he was glad to have left the Dark Lord, he was beginning to have doubts about their future.
They were all wanted fugitives. While he enjoyed staying with his family at the pub, Tony knew they wouldn't be able to stay forever.
"Sure as bloody hell can't go back to the Dark Lord," commented Rabastan. It was obvious he was depressed about the situation.
"The Order of the Flaming Chicken won't take us either. They'd just put us back in prison. Sodding Bastards." said Bellatrix.
They then turned to Rodolphus, who was deep in thought. Antonin asked gruffly, "Something you'd like to add, Rod?"
The younger man looked up, and asked, "Why don't we make our own side?"
Bellatrix stared at her husband of nearly 30 years and said, "Rodolphus, that's the dumbest idea I've ever heard in my entire life. Hell, that's worse than your idea to sell exploding loos!"
"Hang on there, Bella. Rod, you got my attention. What do you mean?" interrupted Antonin before Rodolphus could retort to his wife.
"We band together because we are all we really have. The Ministry has too many twisted politics and the Death Eaters would kill us on sight. We trust each other while everyone else won't. If neither will help us, we help ourselves. Get it?"
"I like it, Rod. It's a good idea, since we aren't obligated to follow the law like the Aurors are." said Antonin in reply, smiling at his friends thinking.
"Sounds good out in the open, Rod. But if we want to do any damage, we're going to need more than just us." pointed out Rabastan skeptically.
"Well I suppose we'll just have to go find some then!" yelled Bellatrix excitedly.
"I thought you said it was a dumb idea."
"Changed my mind."
That gave them all a chuckle before Tony said, "Well, we can't exactly go out into Diagon Alley and recruit off the street. We need people we can trust absolutely. I got a guy in mind. Remember my old cellmate, Victor Korbut?"
"I do. And I've got someone else in mind that we can trust. He's a sly old devil," commented Bellatrix.
Rodolphus caught on to her drift when he heard the final word out of her mouth before she yelled out, "Kreacher!"
With a loud crack, Kreacher appeared. He said, "Mistress Lestrange call Kreacher?"
"Yes, I did. We need you to find two people for us."
Meanwhile
"Andy, I want to thank you for helping me when you did. I appreciate it. Congratulations on being reinstated onto the Black family tree." said Cissy, hugging her sister affectionately.
"Thank you, Cissy. It took a long time to hear those words from you but I am happy to hear them nonetheless." Said Andromeda before she asked, "Where's your son, Cissy?"
"He's at Hogwarts, right now. I'm afraid Lucius is going to have him Marked at the end of the Summer," replied Narcissa, shaking at the thought of it and feeling her heart clinch simultaneously.
"Cissy, we've got to do something. If not, he's going to either be buried in a pine box or become a full fledged servant of the Dark Lord." said Andromeda, dreading both outcomes.
"I never wanted him to be a murderer. I only wanted to honor our family's beliefs and ways of life."
"You wanted to make Mum and Dad proud and this is where you wound up." Andromeda said solemnly. "I would suggest that you stay here, Cissy. There's no telling who might be a spy out there waiting for you to pop your head out of hiding."
Looking out the window, Andromeda sighed. "Despite the fact we haven't seen each other in so long and everything that happened between us, I hope Bellatrix is out of harm's way."
Meanwhile
"Raise," said a man with a raspy voice as he faced the other four players. He was in his 30s, pale as a ghost and though his left eye was hidden beneath an eye-patch, his right eye saw plenty.
"800." said another man.
The pale man slammed his cards down on the table in victory before he happily collected the large pile of galleons from the middle of the table.
It was his 5th win of the night. A few more and he'd have enough to be OK for a few more weeks before he had to restock on his poker winnings.
The door opened and everyone who looked up nearly went for their wands as Bellatrix and Rodolphus Lestrange walked in.
Rodolphus smirked at their reactions and said, "No need for that, gentleman. We're only here to talk to someone."
The pale man sank down in his seat as much as he could. Maybe they wouldn't notice him.
His hopes were dashed the moment that Bellatrix opened her mouth and said, "Hello, Devil."
Devil looked up and stared into the violet eyes of the beautiful woman he had lusted after since he was 17 years old and her husband. They had come to kill him for deserting Voldemort when he broke him out of Azkaban.
"How did you find me?"
"You were never the type to turn down a poker game, especially one where you could clean up big and leave with sacks of Galleons." Bellatrix said, taking sight of the small fortune in Devil's hands.
"Devil? Cute name. Who the Hell named you that?" came the voice of another player in the room, amused at the banter.
Rodolphus let out a laugh and said, "Actually, that's not his name. It's more along the lines of an Honorary Title. He's an old friend of ours."
Bellatrix cackled and walked over to Devil with a wicked smile on her face before placing her hands on head, stroking his hair and said, "I was the one who gave him that title. The day he earned it was one of the proudest days of my life."
"Snake-Face send the two of you here to kill me?"
"No, old friend. A lot has changed lately."
"Yet somehow, things appear the same. You're just as crazy and captivating as you ever were." Devil said.
"Why don't you buy me and Rodolphus a drink? You certainly seem like you can afford one for a few old friends."
Before Devil could reply to her question, a man burst into the room, wand drawn and yelled out, "Everyone on the damn ground! This is a hold up!"
"Stupefy!" yelled out Bellatrix and Rodolphus simultaneously as they drew their wands. The blagger was thrown backwards and knocked out cold.
Suddenly, Bellatrix turned her wand on the players and Rodolphus said, "Devil, pick up your winnings so we can leave."
Devil looked confused at the statement and asked, "You serious?"
Bellatrix leaned down to his ear and purred, "We came here for you. But we'll leave with all your winnings, if that is what you'd like."
"Can you protect me from the Dark Wanker?" asked Devil.
"We absolutely can."
Devil smirked wickedly, picked up his sacks of Galleons, and rasped, "Guys, it's been real but I gotta go," as he, and the couple left the room.
Meanwhile
If asked whether or not the 5 years he had served in Azkaban for robbery had changed him at all, Victor Korbut would simply challenge them to a game of Italian arm wrestling, which was just a fancy way of making someone hit themselves with their own fist.
Most walked away afterwards. Some demanded a rematch. It ended most of the time with them in St. Mungo's for sustained concussions.
Either way, it was highly amusing to the 38 year old psychopathic Russian while his sipped his hot cocoa in the pub. It was located in Knockturn-Alley, had been for 50 years.
The cocoa was laden with marshmallows and a shot of Fire-Whiskey. He had never tried it and found that it kept the cocoa from going cold and had quite a kick.
Glancing at the cocoa for a infinitesimal fraction of a second, Korbut never saw them coming until they were seated across the table from him.
"How does freedom taste, Vic?"
Looking up with his wand instantly flying to his hand underneath the table, Korbut saw his old friend and fellow Russian Antonin Dolohov sat next to Rabastan Lestrange.
"Well, it feels good, considering I did my five years the legal way. Didn't expect to see you, Tony, or your buddy." Said Korbut, glancing at Rabastan, who was smoking his pipe. "So what brings you here? Recruitment mission for your Dark Lord?"
"No, Vic. We burned that bridge and that's now behind us. However, you weren't so off point about the recruitment idea." replied Rabastan, smirking at the accusation.
"I'm going to have to call bull-shit on that, Rabastan. There's no way the two of you would leave that psychopathic, workaholic jackass."
"Well, Vic, I'll put it to you like this: The fact you aren't dead yet because of that comment should be all the proof you need." growled Dolohov, his hand fingering his own wand.
"Fair enough. So what do you mean by recruitment?"
Rabastan put down his pipe and replied, "Me, my brother, Tony and my sister-in-law have created our own faction for when this war comes out to the public. Trust us. It's going to be bloody."
"Why should I trust in let alone join up with a faction headed by four wanted fugitives, which I'm sure the Ministry would not condone if they knew about it."
"The Ministry didn't condone us before on our own. I'm sure it won't be any different now that we're all together." Rabastan said nonchalantly.
"As for why you should join us, you wouldn't have to follow their rules, Vic. Neither the Ministry nor the Death Eaters. We would fight on our own terms. More importantly, you're one of the few who, while never having been a Death Eater, isn't afraid of getting his hands dirty." explained Antonin, referring to some of the stories Victor had told him while they had shared a cell in Azkaban together.
"Well, you do have some good points there. I got one question though. If I decide I've had enough, and leave of my own accord, would you, or anyone else kill me?" asked Korbut suspiciously.
"No. None of us would."
Putting down his drink, Victor held out his hand and said, "I'm in."
Meanwhile
"I hope she's safe too." said Cissy, taking a sip of tea before Andy looked away from the window and asked, "Cissy, what did the Dark Lord order Bella to do that was so unspeakable that she would suddenly desert him?"
"He wanted to heighten his resources and influence and the Black Family is plentiful of all that and more. The current Lord Black isn't likely to support the Dark Lord at all." replied Cissy.
"Does he know who the current Lord Black is?"
"Yes. He does. If Sirius is slain, then the family estate would be up for grabs unless there was a successor to take the ranks. He believes that Draco is the heir. That's all I know." said Narcissa, before picking up her tea from the table and taking another sip.
"He really thinks Draco is the heir to the Black Family?" asked Andromeda incredulously.
Before Narcissa could reply, the door opened and Ted Tonks walked in, carrying a basket of fish he'd caught from his two day trip. He said, "Dromeda, I'm home, darling. We're going to eat good tonight."
It was then that he noticed who his wife was talking to. With his eyes fixed on both Andromeda and his estranged sister-in-law, Ted said, "Narcissa Malfoy. I never expected to see you here."
"It's Black now. You must be Ted Tonks." Narcissa said, taking in the sight of the Muggle-born wizard that married Andromeda. "I trust that you have provided a good life for my sister."
"I'm not a wealthy man but I'm far richer than you. I'm actually surprised that you would acknowledge my wife as your sister after all these years."
"Many things have changed over the years. I will not be surprised if you don't believe me but they have."
Before Ted could say anything in response to the Pureblood witch, all of their stomachs growled simultaneously. Andromeda looked at both of them and said, "We'll discuss it over dinner, you two."
Meanwhile
"Here's to the future," toasted Bellatrix as she, Tony, Rodolphus and Rabastan, as well as Victor Korbut and Devil, toasted with glasses of Fire-whiskey before downing them.
"So what are you 6 going to do now?" asked Alexander as he and Anfis played a game of cards while watching the new faction celebrate it's inception.
Before they could answer, the door opened and Nymphadora Tonks walked inside. The look on her face was neutral as she stared down the older men and women.
"Auror Tonks, is it?" Antonin said as he rose to address Bellatrix's estranged niece.
"Antonin, Anfis and Alexander Dolohov, I've got some bad news for all of you." began Tonks before taking a deep breath. She hated making these kinds of visits.
"What happened?" asked Anfis, concern evident in her voice.
"It's Anna. She was found near Death just outside Knock-Turn Alley. We got her to St. Mungo's. She's alive but in critical condition." said Tonks before she walked out, having informed the immediate family of the victim. Though Tonks had seen death before, seeing a comrade in arms so close to it always shook her up to the point of constant worry.
As she left, Antonin put down his glass, and headed towards the door before Bellatrix asked, "Where are you up to, Tony?"
"I'm up to doing what I do best." Antonin said grimly.
He was about 3 feet from the door when he felt Rodolphus grab him. "As much as I don't blame you for how you're feeling right now, we can't go off into the unknown with bugles blaring and wands blazing if we don't know who put your sister on Death's doorstep. In case you have forgotten, we are fugitives on the run from both the Ministry and the Dark Lord."
"What am I supposed to do? Just let this go unanswered?"
"No. Retribution is coming. Make no mistake of that. Only when it does, it will be in a way that we stay as far away from Azkaban as possible."
Antonin's face seemed to tear up as he said, "I can't let it happen again. Not a third time."
Alexander and Anfis then went to the coat racks, picked up their overcoats, and said to Antonin, "Tony, let's go see our sister. We'll put a disillusionment spell on you. Come on."
1 hour later
"What did he mean by a '3rd time'?" asked Devil as he took a shot of Fire-Whiskey with Bellatrix and Rodolphus. Victor Korbut and Rabastan had gone upstairs to sleep for the night, leaving the three fugitives all alone downstairs.
The bar had been closed for the night. Anfis and Alexander were in no mood to work. They wanted to spend as much time with their sister as they could.
"You don't know?" asked Rod.
"Well, I joined a year before the way ended. Never really got to know Tony. Mind explaining it to me, Bella, Rod?" asked Devil.
Rodolphus sighed, put down his drink, and said, "Devil, this is the 2nd time Anna has been put in the Intensive Care of St. Mungo's. In 1982, she was attacked and left for dead outside of Knock-Turn Alley."
"Good lord. Who did that?"
"Six of her fellow Aurors," began Bellatrix in a monotone, before taking a sip of her drink and continuing, "Their names were Jamal Blum, Reginald McDonald, Ian Thompson, Conrad Bouquet, Matthew Murphy, and I believe Paul Schmidt."
"Why would they do that?"
Rodolphus drained his cup and continued, "Devil, you know as well as my wife, brother, and best friend do that the Dark Arts are addictive and, unless properly controlled, can cause you to start losing yourself. In the First War, the Aurors were given permission to use them. After it was over, those powers were taken away."
"From what I heard, those 6 had no control over their addiction. They wound up using them on several missions afterwards. One time, Anna Dolohov saw this occur. She reported it to her superiors." interrupted Bellatrix.
"They took it out on her. They only made one mistake. They didn't finish the job. When she recovered, she pointed the finger at them, and they got Life in Azkaban." finished Rodolphus, staring Devil right in the eye.
"Shit man. Thanks for explaining that."
Bellatrix then finally said, "Tony isn't going to rest until he's personally killed the person who has attacked his sister. There's no doubt in my mind that he'll make it as painful as he possibly can."
So what do you think?