Chapter Thirty | Knock Knock

"...What?"

Sitting across from her, Hermione neatly folded her napkin, thumb flicking across the rounded edge she'd created. Quinn barely noticed any of that, her heart pounding a steady pace that echoed through her skull, fingertips tingling as they flexed uselessly in an attempt to clench tighter a knife and fork that had already clattered onto the table.

"We went to the Malfoy hearing to speak in favour of-"

She blinked at her friend, a slow, dawdling motion, left sluggish by her shock. Lips moved before her eyes as if in slow motion, dreamlike, making not a single sound that could be heard through the rising buzz in her ears. Quinn didn't notice, and a tiny voice in the back of her head wondered if Ginny was doing well preparing for her upcoming exams.

"No. No- that's not-" Taking off her glasses and pinching the bridge of her nose, she forced a sharp breath out from between clenched teeth. Out of nowhere a confused smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. Reflex, and an odd one at that. A remnant of the Dursleys.

Quinn could remember trying to please Petunia in her earliest years, fawning over her aunt in some ill-advised attempt to be treated with the same choking imitation of love that Dudley was perpetually showered with. How envious she was, too young to see the poison in their adoration. She'd gotten a smack for her childish pandering, but the habit never quite went away.

'Smile for the neighbours, dear,' her Aunt would say through teeth bared in poor imitation of a smile. 'Otherwise they'll think something's wrong with you.'

"You can't have done that," Quinn finally breathed, yanking herself away from memories best left forgotten. "This is- it's a joke, right? You're having a laugh. Ha-ha, brilliant, now-"

"It's not a joke, Quinn. They helped us win the war."

Again, she blinked a long, slow blink. Her mouth opened, though no sound came out, lips once more curling into a perplexed smirk that twitched, shattering in an instant. "What?"

"Quinn…"

"Sorry Hermione, no- I don't-" She waved her hand about, shaking her head alongside it. "You're not making any sense. Helped win us the war? They deserted to save their own arses. What next? Are we gonna' pass out medals to people for- for what? Not getting involved in the first place?"

"That's beside the point-"

"How is that beside the point? Yeah, Narcissa lied to Voldemort, but only because I told her Draco was still kicking about. She and the rest of her family backed out at the last possible moment, and you defended them because of that? Are you even listening to yourself?"

"Can you let me talk, Quinn? Can I talk, or are you going to keep interrupting me?"

"She watched you get tortured! She did nothing!"

Hermione's fist struck the table, silverware bouncing on the spot. "Will you stop bloody interrupting me!? For God's sake, Quinn! Let me speak!"

Instead of saying anything Quinn waved her hand, flippant, before crossing her arms and leaning back in her seat, as if to say 'Go ahead.' Hermione scowled at her, but spoke all the same, the bags beneath her eyes belying her true state of mind.

"The war is over, Quinn. We won. All I want to do- all Ron wants to do, is move on. Rebuild. We can't do that without compromises, and you saw the Malfoys. We all did," she added, gesturing around the table, Ron putting his arm around her shoulder in support and giving Quinn a pointed look.

For Quinn's part, she frowned at him but didn't speak, scarcely able to believe that he agreed with Hermione let alone took part in this whole charade.

"They've been beaten. Everyone can see that. Narcissa's lost what must be two stone and she was already thin as a rail, not to mention Draco looks like an inferi. Lucius isn't faring any better, flinching at anyone who comes near him." Raising her hand slightly, as if asking for silence, Hermione continued. "I refuse to stoop to their level. I want to tell my children someday that I held my head high and did the right thing, even after the war was won."

"So that means they get to walk away from a prison sentence? They get to just- just-" Her hands clenched tight, fists trembling beneath the table. "What was the verdict?" Quinn blurted, in lieu of the venom that simmered just below her tongue.

"Home detention, two years."

Head jutting forward, she blinked rapidly, unsure that she'd heard Hermione properly. "I'm sorry?"

"Two year's home detention," Ron answered, speaking up for the first time since he'd welcomed Quinn into his and Hermione's flat. "Most of their money's been seized too, and that's going to… rebuilding Hogwarts, I think? Gotta' admit I'm not too pleased about it, but I agree with 'Mione's thinking. Lucius sold out a bunch of his mates to boot, and those bastards are going away for life. Anyways, that family isn't gonna' get up to much with the Aurors breathing down their neck. You and me can keep a close eye on 'em, right?"

Exhaling sharply, Quinn covered her mouth with a fist, turning her head to the side as she did her best not to remember the Relocation Camps, and what the Death Eaters were clearly turning them into. Half-bloods and first gen mages packed into shacks overseen by watchtowers, their wands taken from them and turned to kindling, the sparse shreds of which kept the hovels they were packed into just above freezing. That didn't stop half of them from succumbing to the cold, their bodies left outside to rot for days until another portkey came by to drop off another batch. She'd watched from afar as Snatchers shoved their captives into one of the crooked shanties, but not before dragging the corpses aside and setting them ablaze in front of the new prisoners, that reeking miasma of burning flesh still seared into her psyche.

It had been over a year past, and Quinn knew that wretched stench would stay with her forever.

Ron and Hermione hadn't come with her. Had gone off on their own to recover from a botched skirmish that ended in them both injured, unable and unwilling to deliver a killing blow to the monsters that haunted their steps. It was to Shell Cottage they'd returned, licking their wounds, and Quinn had set off with Griphook to a village outside Canterbury.

They wanted to check in on reported Goblins held prisoner. Instead, they'd wandered into something so much worse.

A patting on her shoulder made Quinn startle, her arm swinging out in a sharp jab only to be caught at the wrist. "-okay? You're safe. You're safe."

"Wicker?"

"Snitch. We're friends, Quinn. We're all friends here."

Her breath caught and she looked about, dazed, expecting the sight of moss-choked undergrowth and a dense blanket of naked branches overhead, only to be met with the pale face of Hermione. Quinn's head turned, jittery, to see Ron at her side, hand wrapped around her wrist and his cheeks pale

"Oh. Sorry. I'm sorry." She blanched, sick to her stomach, and lowered her arm, avoiding eye contact with her two friends. Friends she hadn't seen in a month, either at work or locked away in Grimmauld place, those days spent cleaning.

People were too much. Too busy. Too loud. Too insistent on taking her hand and shaking it, stammering their thanks. She'd almost punched someone in the throat on reflex the first time it happened, and decided then and there her time was better spent away from the gaggle and clamour of busy streets.

From the corner of her eye she watched as Ron returned to his seat and finished off the last of his drink in a single swig. "Sorry," she repeated, a quiet echo that Quinn wasn't quite sure actually came from her, unable to feel her lips through the electric buzz that swept through them, lips that must be cold and pale as all the blood rushed from her heart to her arms, her legs – ready to fight or flee if able.

And then she remembered why her arms were trembling, why her heart was pounding a mile a minute, and she looked up from her lap to glare weakly across the table, haggard and betrayed. "I told you what I saw. I told you, and you- you defended them."

"Quinn-"

"No. I can't- you- both of you-" she stood up, pointing at the two of them. "You defended them. Lucius should fucking hang for what he's done and- and you defended him. Defended that monster!? The things he did to Luna. To Dean. Ollivander." Sucking in a shaky breath, she couldn't stop her mind from drawing up an image of that dungeon in Malfoy Manor, her friends left to rot in a windowless, frigid cell, stewing in their own filth. "I can't… I don't even- I don't recognize either of you. You're just… just strangers."

Quinn felt like she was going to be sick. Gut churning, acrid slime bubbling in her throat. Instead of emptying her stomach she emptied her mind, and all the poison that had lurked within. "Not strangers. Cowards. Fucking cowards. You ran while I fought, while I killed, to make sure that everyone would be safe. To make sure you would be safe." She spat at her feet, lip curled with contempt and an anger, a fury, that had festered in her for years. Then she laughed, half-mad as her body shook with adrenaline and tears burned in her eyes. "I died for you. I died! Did I tell you that? Or did you think I was faking when Hagrid came back carrying me?"

Hermione blanched, going white as a corpse in an instant. "What!? You- what!? How on earth did you- and you never told us-?"

"No! I never told you! And you never wondered why, did you? No. You were perfectly fucking happy to let me do all the work because you were both so worried about keeping your precious little hands clean." A sudden urge hit her to bring her fist down on her plate, to let the shards of it sink into the meat of her palm. Instead she laughed again, quietly this time, and shook her head.

"Don't contact me," she seethed, gaze flicking to a shadow clawing at the window, a tree brushing at the glass, its branches swaying in the wind. "Don't try to talk to me at work. Don't come to my house."

"You're going to shut us out? Just like that?" Ron shouted, the table rattling as he shot to his feet.

Later, when she remembered that night through the haze of liquor and anger both, their fog having muddied her memory, she would notice no anger in his words. Only worry.

"Yeah." She grabbed her coat, slinging it over her shoulder before she could change her mind. "Just like that."

And then she was gone.

-::-

"This is goodbye, then."

"Well, you don't have to say it that way. All dramatic and stuff…" Ace scratched the back of his head, almost knocking his hat off in the process. "Gave me a Transponder Mirror anyways – or whatever you wanna' call it."

"And you remember how to use it?"

"You sure you're not my aunt?"

"I will hit you."

"Can I try?" Luffy asked beside her, the two of them having tagged along to see Ace off. "I still have to get him for embarrassing me on the Merry."

"Wow." Ace crossed his arms, feigning awe. "You learned haki that quickly, huh? Must be a record."

"...Yeah I did. I'm gonna' be King of the Pirates so of course I did."

"Why don't you show me?"

Sticking his tongue out, Luffy went to flick Ace on the forehead, a yelp escaping him when all he managed to do was singe his finger. He blew on it, glaring at his brother. "Jerk."

"How about this? Next time I see you we can have another fight, see how strong you've gotten. That sound good?"

"Like we weren't going to anyways!" Laughing, they clapped arms, Quinn smiling at the two of them, at the ease with which they spoke.

After a moment Ace separated from Luffy, putting his hands in the air. "Alright! Alright! I have to get moving now if I don't want to lose Teach's trail. I'm a busy man now, and so are you."

"Remember to call on the thingamajig! Quinn, what was my name for it again?"

"Het Gwellt."

"Gwe-th. Gwest. Gwess? Why'd I have to get one that's so hard to say?"

"I'm not good with names. It means Straw Hat. First thing that popped into my head," she added at the amused look Ace gave her. "I can change it if you want."

"No! I changed my mind and I like it now," Luffy stubbornly insisted, nodding in determination. "I'm gonna figure out how to say it the right way. Gweth. Gwelth-"

He trailed off and started mumbling the word over and over, blowing a raspberry after a few fumbled attempts before going back to it. Quinn and Ace watched him, both of them wearing matching smirks at Luffy's insistence at getting the word right, until Ace took an awkward step backwards and canted his head towards the eastern horizon, the sun barely peeking out over the great dunes ahead.

"I really do have to go," he said, apologetic. "I'd stay if I could, but-"

"You've got your own adventure! And now we can talk whenever so it's okay!"

"...Stay safe, yeah? Otherwise I'll have to go and kick Blackbeard's arse myself."

Ace bowed his head and then, after a moment's pause, took a step towards Quinn and clasped her arm. "I'll keep what you said in mind," he declared, squeezing her arm as he did. "Besides, I've got stories about my grandfather to look forward to, don't I?"

With that said he let go and began walking east, raising a fist in the air in goodbye. Luffy immediately mirrored his brother, and Quinn did a second after, though it did nothing to quell the sudden ache in her chest. "I'll hold you to it!" she shouted, able to make out Ace's shoulders bobbing as he laughed at her.

She and Luffy watched him go, until his silhouette disappeared past the golden sands and the growing mirage of heat, bending and twisting the air, took even that from view. "Alrighty," Luffy said, bouncing on his heels eagerly as he turned to catch her eye. "You ready to kick Croco's ass?"

-::-

It took another day and a half to make it to Rainbase, a veritable Vegas by the sound of things. A gambling city in the middle of the desert, gathering travelers from all around to come enjoy the food, the lights, the glamour of it all. That was until their pockets inevitably ran dry as the sands outside the city limit, and their fortunes wilted with it.

"It's Baroque Works base of operations, so we should expect plenty of enemies," Sanji said as they approached, the noon sun making itself known, ignoring her cooling charms to the point where she'd given up on them for the sake of preserving her strength. "And I wouldn't be surprised if that Smoker guy found his way here too."

"Tenacious bastard, I'll give him that," Quinn growled around a cigarette, shading her eyes with the flat of her hand. "I've come up with a few ways to deal with him."

"That haki stuff is rough. Glad your brother told us about it though. Let him know we said thanks, eh Luffy?"

Sipping on a water bottle gifted to him by Toto, each and every member of the crew having been given one the morning that they'd left (alongside a profuse string of thank you's), Luffy blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

Chopper poked his leg. "Sanji says thanks for Ace teaching us about that power."

"Oh! Cool!" Shooting Sanji a thumbs up, Luffy went back to glaring at Rainbase, lips moving as he muttered something to himself over and over again, puffing his cheeks out in frustration every so often.

The two of them sighed good naturedly, trotting along in companionable silence and choosing instead to listen to the conversations around them. Nami was interrogating Usopp about any last minute information he could provide her about the climatact, and a short distance away Zoro had stopped to hoist Chopper onto his shoulders, which had earned him a furious glare from Marianne. The instant Quinn set sight on her, Marianne gave up on staring a hole into Zoro's back and shuffled over to join her and Sanji.

"So," she began, forcing herself between the two of them. "What's the plan?"

"You said we can expect a few thousand Baroque Works grunts in the city, right?"

"Something like that."

"Sanji and I are going to play interference with them while Luffy and the rest of you run off and… do Luffy things."

"That's it?"

"Listen. A plan never survives first contact with the enemy. That goes doubly so with Luffy as Captain. I know for a fact he's going to make a bee-line for the Casino, and Zoro and Usopp will be close behind. Nami will…" Pausing to get a look at Nami, Quinn tilted her head from side to side, humming before she continued. "-Nami will probably stick to Chopper or myself once fighting breaks out, and as for Chopper, he's going to follow either you or Zoro."

"...Shouldn't you go with Luffy then? Mister Zero isn't a slouch, and you can make water."

Thinking it over, Quinn chewed on her bottom lip while she studied Marianne. "I haven't seen you fight."

"I didn't get paired with Mister Three for nothing. I can hold my own in a fight, and I've got my paints," she said, patting her waist. "It's not going to be easy to wash them off here of all places."

Barely holding back from putting a reassuring hand on Marianne's shoulder, Quinn chose to just smile instead. "Congratulations. You've just volunteered to take my place and help Sanji. Down for a little subterfuge?"

A wicked grin stretched Marianne's cheeks, and she rubbed her hands together. "I'll have them fighting against each other before you can blink."

"You sure that's a good idea?" Sanji asked.

"Are you doubting me or something?"

"You were our enemy."

"Past tense. And… you guys are okay, for pirates."

"Your friends-"

"Those friends were sick. Miss Valentine would crush people's heads for fun and Mister Five never cared about friendly fire," Marianne spat, kicking at the sand. "Mister Three tortured our targets, but at least he didn't kill someone who accidentally got in our way."

"I wouldn't fault you for hating me."

"They would've killed you and laughed about it. So no, I don't hate you. Especially after what the Princess told me."

"Vivi talked to you?"

Marianne nodded. "Last night. All the things we did… all the things I did." She looked around as they wandered into the city proper, people milling about everywhere the eye could see. The crew bunched up instantly, forming a close pack as they made their way through the crowds. "These people are happy, but only because everyone else in this country is suffering. Operation Utopia… all of it's a lie. I want to fix that."

Smiling at her words, Sanji hummed in agreement. "Luffy's definitely going to ask her to join."

Quinn just grunted, gaze flicking back and forth, scanning the crowd. She kept a hand on the pommel of her rapier, her other hand always floating next to her pistol. Anything could happen now that they were in Crocodile's territory, and she'd be damned if she wasn't prepared. Sanji seemed to pick up on her sudden shift in mood, his shoulders straightening in response and the cheery quirk to his lips thinning out into a straight line.

Here and there she picked out shady figures lingering on the outside of the road, a palpable tension about them. Baroque Works, evidently, judging by their own hushed whispers and the rigid way they held themselves. They'd picked the right day to arrive, she realized, picking at their thoughts as they passed them by.

"Crocodile knows we're alive, and he's kicking off the war today. We're going to get spotted soon," she quietly announced before pushing her way towards Luffy, putting a hand on his shoulder as she sidled up next to him.

"Anything bad?" he asked, noticing her mood immediately.

"Yeah." Quinn caught a flicker of movement to her right, a scar-stricken broad shouldered man leafing through a stack of papers and frowning at their group. "They've noticed us."

Luffy followed her gaze, cracking his knuckles. "Zoro! Nami!" he shouted, swinging his arm back through a now fearful crowd, people scattering in all directions as Agents began to approach from all around. "Keep Vivi safe!"

"What!?"

His fist flew lightning-quick, smashing into the scarred man's face and launching him through the wall behind him. "Usopp! Quinn! Come with me! Chopper, Sanji, Mary – kick their asses!"

"Shit," was all Quinn had to say, grabbing a floundering Usopp by the arm and dragging him with her as she tagged behind Luffy, blasting a hole in the ground with a pistol in her other hand and drowning the Agents behind the explosion in sand. "Let's move!"

"We're fighting!?" Usopp shrieked, throwing a fearful glance over his shoulder before he sprinted alongside her, firing off shots from his much improved slingshot, Kabuto, all the while.

"Baroque Works found us!"

"Why me!?"

Cutting down a woman that came sprinting at them with a wooden bat, Quinn kept pace, their sights set on the looming pyramid of Crocodile's casino, Rain Dinners. "Because you're a goddamn pirate, Usopp! What would Dory and Brogy say!?"

"They'd tell me to be brave!" His shout was accompanied by a magnificent shot he'd laced through the crowd, the projectile slamming into the face of an Agent sprinting directly for Vivi and knocking him out cold. "I'm sorry!"

Ahead of them Luffy cackled, swinging his leg out in an arc and tripping up a dozen more fighters, knocking them aside in a heartbeat. "We're coming for you Croco- Smokey!?"

"I knew I'd find you here, Straw Hat!"

Groaning, Quinn swung her blade towards Smoker's voice, a massive, buffeting gale sending his smoky form flying backwards until it dissipated. The man reformed a second later, dizzy as he tried to find them. "You won't get away from me again! I swear it on my honour as a Marine!"

"Ignore him!" she shouted, locking blades with another fighter and kicking them in the torso, the wind knocked out of them as they collapsed to their knees, heaving as they tried not to vomit all over the sand. "Keep moving!"

With every step they made it closer to Rainbase, the sound of clashing steel and gunshots growing louder and louder, until a sudden torrent of red paint rained down from overhead and coated a gaggle of Marines that made to block their path. They immediately dropped their weapons and began swinging at each other, falling over themselves as they fought. Quinn shot a lightning-fast glance over her shoulder to see Marianne wearing an expression of utter and total nothingness. A blank canvas, she let her paints do the talking instead, swinging her brush like a blade and carving her way through the host of enemies closing in around them. She fought like an Auror, with nimble feet and a quick gaze, she danced her way around anyone approaching and put them out of the fight with a backwards swipe of her brush and a well-placed elbow to the spine.

"Stop watching 'em fight!" A rubbery arm laced itself around her waist and tugged her forward, Quinn huffing out an apology and picking up the pace. She almost stumbled when she realized they'd already made it to the steps of the casino, her neck craning as she looked up at the effigy of a Bananadile looming at its peak – a regular crocodile in appearance bar the banana-shaped growth sprouting from between its eyes.

"White Out!"

Pure instinct had Quinn's sword arm swing about, another gust of wind sweeping aside Smoker's attempt to capture them. He let out a growl, pointing at her with his Jitte. "That power of yours is getting annoying."

She didn't bother to give him a proper reply, instead flashing a V with her fingers and taking the steps two at a time. Quinn met Luffy's gaze as he threw the doors open with his back, grinning at her and Usopp, before he whirled around and shouted, "Crocodile!"

What must have been the entire casino froze at his words, men and women sitting at lavishly decorated slot machines and suede blackjack tables sending the same disappointed looks she'd seen on Purebloods their way. Someone slammed into her back a second later, and Quinn would have fallen over had Usopp not grabbed her by the arms. "Nami?"

"Is Vivi okay?" Luffy asked, stretching his neck so he could look over her shoulder. "And where'd Smokey go?"

"He got distracted by Marianne turning all the Marines against each other," she gasped, catching her breath. "And don't just shout his name! Everyone here thinks Crocodile is a hero. Do you want us to get kicked out of here before we can even find him?"

"Messieurs? Mesdames?" A wiry, mustachioed man asked. Quinn almost punched him on reflex when he gave them a simpering smile, bowing slightly and holding an arm out towards a door towards the back of the casino, a straight line ahead of them. "Monsieur Crocodile is awaiting you."

"Not a good sign," she hissed, taking another look behind them to see Smoker charging towards them, presumably having dealt with or given up on his waylaid Marines. "Got no choice, it looks like!"

"Then let's go!"

Luffy was off in a flash, Quinn following him a moment later. Behind her, she could hear Nami curse loudly and Usopp whimper as they brought up the rear. "This is a trap!" he squealed, though he never stopped chasing after them. "I'm telling you guys, it's a trap!"

"Crocodile or Smoker, who do you wanna' deal with?" Nami asked, sounding far too cheerful when a line of attendants welcomed them through a large door labeled VIP.

"Neither!"

"Cheer up, Usopp! We get to fight a Warlord!"

"That makes it worse, Luffy! That makes it so much worse!"

Humming loudly, Luffy craned his neck at a sign ahead of them. "What's that say?"

"Left for VIP's, right for Pirates!"

"We're pirates!"

With that said Luffy immediately turned right, the furious roars of Smoker growing louder behind them.

"Shit," Quinn uttered, shaking her head. Into the fire we go.

The three of them turned the corner and nearly bowled into Luffy, who was gaping at the dead end they'd found themselves at. "Where's it go?" he asked, scratching his cheek. "There's nothing here."

"This is the trap."

"Shoot."

"Straw Hat!" Smoker came charging at them before his voice had even stopped echoing through the hall, a vein throbbing in his forehead and his glare venomous. "What did you do to my men!?"

Luffy didn't get a chance to answer. None of them did, as the floor opened up beneath them and they fell into the shadowy depths of Rain Dinners.