The next morning Blaise threw one of his socks at me. I hadn't even fully woken up yet before I had thrown my pillow at him with deadly accuracy. He glared at me as finished pulling on his shirt, and I scowled right back as I sat up and stared at the clock.

It wasn't even seven yet.

"Why the hell did you wake me up so early?" I whined, standing up.

"Because you have a visitor," Blaise replied, walking out the door. I cocked my head to the side and followed, grabbing my sweatshirt off the end of my bed.

"Who could be wanting to see me this early in the morning?" I wondered.

"Rocky's sister," Blaise answered. I frowned.

"What does she want?"

"I don't know. She's like, four years older than me."

"And our parents are nearly twenty years older than us," I countered. "What's the problem?"

"This is a woman, Hermione," Blaise said, like that made sense to me at all.

"Oh, yeah, of course!" I said.

He glanced at me suspiciously, but dropped the subject. I pulled the sweatshirt over my torso, shaking my head to get my dark hair out of my face. I yawned.

Rocky's sister was sitting on the couch, her makeup smeared by tears. I frowned, sitting down across from her.

Emma's purple hair was down; she must have been getting ready to go to work, or something. She had a job at the local grocery store, and it paid well enough for her to take college classes. She was studying to become a teacher, I think. I waited for her to look up at me.

"What are you doing here, Emma?" I asked gently. She stared at me with watery violet eyes, clenching her fist against her black jeans.

"Rocky was kidnapped!"

"What?" I said, the words not processing. "What do you mean, she was kidnapped?"

"R-rocky was taken, and I don't know what to do!" Emma sobbed, burying her face in her hands. I slid over to the couch and put my arm around her shoulders, looking up at Blaise helplessly.

"Why don't you tell us what happened, and then we'll figure out what to do?" I said softly, coaxing my friend's sister to stop crying. She sniffled, wiping her eyes.

"W-well, I was coming home yesterday from work, and the front door was unlocked. Mom and Dad are visiting family in Florida, so I figured that Rocky had just forgotten to lock it," she said shakily. "But the house was trashed, like there had been a fight, and there was a bit of blood on the couch. Rocky was nowhere in sight, and the kidnappers left a note. Hermione, I don't know what to do!"

I sucked in a breath, staring desperately at my brother. He was looking just as disheartened.

"Did you call your parents?" I questioned. She nodded.

"They didn't pick up. I left a message."

"Did you bring the note with you?"

She whimpered and dragged her purse to her side, digging through it before producing a piece of paper. She handed it to me and dropped her head back into her hands. I patted her back as I read the note.

We have taken the girl. Join us or you'll never see her again.

Death Eaters

"B-Blaise," I stammered, the note fluttering to the ground. "They know where we are. They know."

"What are you talking about, Hermione?" he asked, stooping to snatch the paper off the floor. He scanned the short sentences before shaking his head. "No, no this can't be them."

"Blaise," I whispered, pointing to the sign in the corner. The Dark Mark. "It can only be them."

I shuddered and my arm tightened around Rocky's sister. Who else could they take if they had kidnapped Rocky?

Anyone they wanted.

/\/\

Dinner that night was strained. The new of Rocky's kidnapping was devastating, and knowing that my best friend was in some dungeon in Britain somewhere because of me and my family was not making me feel any better.

Mom wasn't eating, just twirling her fork around her salad. Dad was clenching his knife and fork so tightly his knuckles were white, and Chris wasn't even attempting to pretend he was enjoying the food he was eating.

Blaise and I weren't much better. How could we eat when one of our best friends was no longer with her family, all because of us?

Mom finally dropped her fork on her plate, the silverware making a clatter as it smacked the dish. She glared at the wall, until finally she said, "All three of you. Pack."

I stared at her. "Mom? What are you talking about?"

"You three have to leave. I can't take the risk of you getting hurt," she said, gazing at the painting behind me. "Chris can drive you somewhere safe, somewhere he can't get you."

"What do you mean?"

"You can't stay here anymore. It's not safe. You have to get out," Mom said, her voice rising with frustration. I glanced at my brothers.

"Maya," Dad said, laying a hand on Mom's arm. "Maya, honey, you have to calm down. Don't you think you should explain?"

"No!" Mom shrieked desperately. "Richard, they don't need to know. Why should they? The less they know, the safer they are!"

Dad lifted his dark gaze to mine, and he said, "Go pack for a road trip, kids."

Mom was borderline hysterical when we left, and I looked back one last time to see that Dad was whispering to her sadly.

I turned away and hurried up the stairs.

I dragged my suitcase out from under my bed, the dark red comforting and familiar amongst the chaos that was my life now. I dragged a variety of clothes out of the closet, folding them as neatly as I could and shoving them into the suitcase.

Blaise had disappeared into the bathroom, coming out minutes later with four bags – any toiletries we could ever need. He tossed two over to me, and I squeezed them in along with the clothes.

Then I grabbed another bag from the back of the closet and packed anything I would use on a car trip into it. Then I sat on my bed and stared out the window numbly, trying to sift through the thoughts overriding my brain.

Dad walked in a few moments later. He sat down next to Blaise and just stared at both of us for a long time.

"You guys understand that you need to leave for your safety," he finally said. His voice cracked. "As long as you follow our directions, you will be safe."

I nodded, even though I honestly didn't understand. Dad forced a smile, his eyes watery, holding out his hand towards me. I accepted the cell phone with a dazed expression.

"My phone," I breathed, turning it over in my palm. I had gotten it taken away when I had gone over my texting limit.

"Unlimited texting," Dad whispered. He blinked hard. "Now you can always keep in touch."

"Dad," I mumbled, launching myself forward and into his arms. I buried my face in his neck as I trembled, shaking at the prospect of finally leaving home, much too soon for my liking.

I pulled away, staring at my father. He smiled, standing up.

"Come on," he said quietly, grabbing Blaise's suitcase. "Grab your stuff."

I choked back a sob as I walked down the stairs, wondering if this was the last time I would ever see this house. My room.

Chris was hugging Mom by the front door, his face buried in her hair as his shoulders shook. When he lifted his head I saw tears, and the sobs I had been pushing back finally burst forward.

Dad crushed me to his chest, stroking my hair as I bawled, murmuring promises in my ear. Promises he couldn't keep.

I wiped my eyes and forced myself to pull away, choking on air. I embraced my mother, breathing deeply as I smelled her sweet perfume, felt her thin body shaking in my arms. She gripped my arm when I went to shrug my coat on.

"Promise me that you won't do anything that will get you in danger," she demanded. "I need to know."

I nodded, saying, "I promise, Mom."

She let go of me and helped me with my winter coat, stepping back when I bent down to stick my feet in my boots and lace them up.

I straightened in time to see that my brothers had dragged our bags outside to the car, shoving it in the trunk. I walked up next to my dad as Chris and Blaise said their last tear-filled goodbyes before climbing in, leaving the passenger seat to me.

"Dad," I said quietly, and he turned his head towards me. "If you had a choice, would you ever go back to being a Death Eater?"

"No," he muttered. "I will never go back to work for that bastard ever again."

I bit my lip at his answer and stepped out into the cold night, crushing fresh snow beneath my heavy boots as I opened the door to the car and slid in.

A/N: I am sorry for the delay! I was so busy with my other stories, I almost completely forgot about this! I hope the length makes up for the long wait. Forgive me? And review?