Hello everyone!

Double update month indeed and right before I reach the craziest part of the month before the kids go back to school. Next month will have some downtime eventually so I'm hoping to be able to get writing again decently. Hope you're having a great August and enjoy the update.

Lots of love,

LSH xxx

Sisters Divided – Part 26:

Hogwarts, a few days later:

Words had reached Dumbledore's ears of a rally from Grindelwald so he had summoned everyone to him.

"As long as Grindelwald doesn't do anything law breaking, he cannot be touched but the more eyes we have there the better," he said as he looked around at everyone gathered. "I know Porp… Tina… will be on the lookout for her sister to see how she is now."

"The situation could change every time we see her so I have to be sure that everyone's words about her not being harmed by him are true," Tina said.

"He won't harm her. I felt something the other evening so I need to know if it is true or not but, if it is, then everything we know has changed and Flora may have been claimed by Grindelwald," Dumbledore said before feeling all eyes on him.

"Claimed? Hasn't he already claimed her as his?" Lally said, almost reading Tina's mind.

"Whilst he had her, he hadn't claimed her as his. I believe he now has and that could change everything yet make it easier for Flora to be away from Grindelwald." The Professor sighed as he looked around at everyone. The colour had drained from Lally's face as she realised what Dumbledore could have been insinuating and she glanced at Queenie who, after reading Tina's mind, nodded at her. If anything had happened between Grindelwald and Flora then the stakes would be raised even more.

Nurmengard Castle:

Flora was getting ready for the rally. She hadn't wanted to go but Grindelwald trusted her to wander around and gage intelligence from everyone there, whether they supported him or not. He knew that Tina and Queenie might be there as well and that was something he'd thought about. A chance to see that their sister was fine and well might give him the upper hand with the remaining Goldstein Sisters as they might not see him as such a threat. He was not a threat to them. He knew that Jacob and Queenie were married and that made Flora happy and that was all he wanted, for Flora to be happy. If that meant going against his beliefs to keep her happy then that is what he was going to do.

She sighed as she looked at what to wear. She was gravitating towards the neutral colours and that is what she decided to go with in the end as she sat down and began to do her make up after she'd put her pale yellow dress on. She watched the door in her mirror the whole time, half expecting someone to come into the room and soon she was proved correct as Vinda walked in in her emerald green pant suit.

"I wondered when someone would come to check on me," she said as she looked at Vinda in her mirror.

"I am ready and Gellert is going through his speech," Vinda said as she sat on the bed. "I am glad to see that you are still going through with coming," she said.

"I need to see my sisters. I just have this feeling that Dumbledore will send them to the rally. Gellert never made a secret that one was happening," Flora said as she worked on her make up before picking out some jewellery to wear. Everything was light that day and not too full on. She didn't want that at all.

Flora glanced up at Vinda before she picked up her hairbrush and brushed out her hair. She sprayed some perfume over herself and secured her wand in her sleeve and grabbed a bag.

The two women met Grindelwald and his supporters going to the rally and the wizard's arm was instantly around Flora's waist and he breathed in her scent, kissed her neck softly, not caring who saw, and Apparated away with her to the centre of Berlin where Vogel had agreed to let him hold the rally.

The Dark Wizard took Flora aside, just wanting to spend time with her before his speech.

"I trust you'll hear the speech even if you are observing people for me."

"You know I will be, Gellert. I am here for a reason," she said before finding his lips on hers and she bent into him and kissed him back, moving to rest a hand on his cheek as they kissed. Grindelwald had been nervous but, knowing that Flora was there, helped him to relax and he was grateful she was there.

Someone cleared their throat near them and the two looked at saw Vinda. The witch announced that a crowd had gathered and Flora nodded, silently slipping away from her lover and headed to mix with the crowds, hoping to catch sight of her sisters… if they were there.

Flora waited until she heard Grindelwald begin to address the crowd before slowly moving through the crowd. She couldn't feel any eyes on her but she could feel someone who wasn't Grindelwald in her head. She moved towards where Queenie was stood and she slipped into the gap that was there for her.

"I wondered if you three would be here," Flora spoke as she looked between her sisters.

"We all are. Lally, Newt, Theseus and Dumbledore are here as well," Tina said. "Just as you are doing your observations, we are as well. I can see that he is still treating you well, which is good."

"Gellert is treating me very well," Flora said as she listened to what Grindelwald was saying.

"How can you be so far away and not be in any pain?" Queenie asked as she suddenly realised how far away Flora was from Grindelwald.

Before Flora could answer, however, Dumbledore arrived.

"Because something has happened to stablise the connection between them," he said and looked at Flora. "I'm right aren't I?" the professor spoke and Flora didn't know what to say. She didn't want to reveal anything. That was private but a gasp from Queenie soon made her realise she'd forgotten to close off her mind to her sister and she bit her lip.

"They've… they've…" Queenie said, her eyes widening as she realised and then Tina looked at Flora.

"Flora…"

"Don't start Tina. The connection was so overwhelming in the end that we could not resist anymore. It was doing us so much harm… more harm to me," Flora explained as she looked at her sister. "I'm not stupid at all and I know what I did."

"I felt it…" Dumbledore said as he looked at Flora. "I felt something the other night and that must have been what I felt but I could see it happening because the connection between you both is so strong that it was hard for you to not give into it."

"I didn't want it to happen and I can understand if you hate me for it. I am not on anyone's side. I cannot betray Gellert and I cannot betray you, my family. There is goodness in his heart and I believe that I can bring it out of him," Flora said as she looked the group. "He is good and everyone will see that because I will make sure they will," she said.

"How do you know that Flora?" Lally asked, being slightly less judgmental than Tina and Queenie.

"Because I have seen a different side to him and I believe that he can show that more. I'm not saying his views are right… because they're not, well maybe they are in some ways," Flora said, "but I believe that I can help him and help him in a good way so people can see the real Gellert Grindelwald that I can."

"He is pure evil Flora and that is all there is to it," Theseus said as he'd joined them. "I want to believe you though," he said as he stood next to Lally. "I do, truly, want to believe that you can change him and that is all I wish for…"

It was in that moment that a lot of things happened and Flora was suddenly pulled away from Tina and Queenie before she was Apparated away, unaware of what was happening. Fear gripped her as she was unsure what had happened and if everyone was OK. Something had happened and she wasn't sure what had happened but something had happened.