Author's Note: My brilliant beta, Arnel, has warned me that this chapter should be labeled as dark. You have been warned. MNF
Chapter 22:
Waiting for the Dawn
1 September 1981
"Anwen, do you have any Burn Paste?" Poppy called over to the younger healer. Anwen had been pressed into service at Hogwarts, of all places, to help treat students. Eva was currently counselling students with Professors McGonagall and Sprout while Professors Flitwick and Sinistra attempted to calm most of the student body down. Professor Slughorn had taken the Slytherins to their common room, where there were DMLE officials questioning them. The ride on the Hogwarts Express had been harrowing, with Death Eaters stopping and attacking the train.
"Yes, hold on," Anwen said from where she was treating a first year with a compound fracture. Lily grabbed the pot from Anwen and rushed it over to Madame Pomfrey. Everyone who lived on their compound was here, save Dorea and Charlus, as they were at Stargazer's Summit with Arcturus and Walburga. While the train was attacked by Death Eaters, the alarms were sounded at Linfred Hall. The family had been in the process of moving into the safe room when Fawkes came for Anwen. It was then that Lily, Eva, Remus, Alice and her parents decided to decamp to Hogwarts for safety. The elves had popped everyone and then stayed to care for the babies. James, Frank and Sirius were all at the Ministry, and Remus couldn't defend the house on his own. The extra hands were proving to be helpful as Lily and Remus were acting as assistants while Clare and Jeffrey were getting students water, warm blankets and being a shoulder to cry on.
"Okay, sweetheart, this might hurt a bit, but then I promise it will start to feel better," she promised. Taking a deep breath and meeting Remus' eye so that he knew to hold the girl steady, Anwen used magic to return the bone into her thigh. The little one tried to be brave, but she screamed out when the two halves met up in the right place. Anwen gave her a tight smile, and began to bind the bone, then the flesh and finally her skin with magic. Remus gave her the already measured Pain Potion as well as a dose of Numbing Tincture, which had a bit of Dreamless Sleep added to aid the child in resting. That was what her body needed the most.
Anwen removed some of the excess dressings that she'd cut away to set the bone, and the bloody bandages from where the bone had poked through her skin. The girl had a few cuts on her face and hands from glass breaking when the Death Eaters stopped and boarded the train looking for Muggle born students. Few had opted to return this year, and even those that had wanted to were urged by Professor McGonagall to stay home. Dumbledore was rarely at the school these days, trying to keep peace in the Wizengamot and beg for help from the ICW.
"Anwen, I can do this healing and clean things up," Remus said to her. "I'll give her a child's dose of Blood Replenishing before I go. Now that she's asleep, it will be easy to spell it into her stomach."
"Thank you," Anwen said with a sigh, wiping her hands on her apron and then doing a Cleansing Spell, as she made her way over to Poppy Pomfrey. "What's next?"
"You had the last severe case," Poppy said. "All that's left are minor cuts, bruises and scrapes. Go home."
"I'm not sure what my house will look like when I get there," Anwen said before sitting down for the first time in hours. "I think the wards held; I certainly haven't felt them fall but fire…"
"Where are James and Sirius?"
"With Frank, at work. There were multiple calls tonight. It's been like this since they burned down the Bones' home. Anyone that stands in opposition is their enemy. They burned down the Longbottoms home a few nights ago. Thankfully the estate was empty, all the furniture and artwork had been put into storage when Augusta left for the continent. Frank says they can rebuild when everything is over."
"Will this ever be over?" Poppy asked the air, and all Anwen could do in response was shrug.
"I don't know who might have come in at the infirmary," Anwen said, standing. "I should go and check there."
"Use my Floo, you know it's attached."
"Please tell Lily and Remus where I've gone. I'll check the house too, do a little fly by if any of the Death Eaters are still there." Poppy nodded and Anwen took a pinch of powder, threw it in and was gone.
It was three in the morning when Anwen finally made it home. There were several burn victims at the infirmary, and two older folks who had suffered heart attacks when their homes were attacked. Frank and James had come by to tell her the house was fine, and they were going to Hogwarts to bring everyone home. Sirius was already outside Linfred Hall with Wilken cleaning up the rubble in the garden and patching up the charms that protected the house. A few of the outermost fortifications had fallen, and some of the parapets on the walls had been blasted apart, but nothing more serious. Wilken was more upset that one of his flowerbeds had been trampled.
When the weary Anwen reached their room, she opened the door a crack, surprised to see a light on. Sirius was sitting up in their bed, little Violet resting on his shoulder. She was sleeping soundly; he was staring at something a million miles away. When he realized she'd entered, he smiled at her. "She's still teething," he said quietly, referring to their daughter. "I try to lay her down and she wakes up and starts screaming."
"She might have developed an ear infection from the swelling in her gums," Anwen said. "I'll put a charm on her and then we can try her crib again." Violet's mummy waved her fingers at the little girl's left ear and then baby sighed in her sleep. "Hindsa," Anwen whispered, and the nanny elf arrived quietly and took her charge. Anwen dropped her clothes on the floor leaving only her knickers on, she then grabbed the tee shirt Sirius had left on the footboard of their bed and slipped it over herself. Sirius opened the pocket of bedding, and she slid into the bed and then his embrace, her back to his chest and his long limbs surrounding her small frame.
"How many attacks tonight?" she softly asked.
"Seven, eight, I'm not sure. The worst was the train," he said. Anwen nodded.
"There were burns, compound fractures, concussions, one child had a nearly severed spinal column," she explained. "They went after the half-bloods when it was discovered the Muggleborn weren't on the train."
"Did any return?"
"A handful of fifth- or seventh-year students, Minerva told me. The professors went and Apparated them to the gates and then brought them up to the school. The carnage today…Sirius they were just children." Anwen felt exhausted and overwhelmed, but sleep wasn't going to claim her soon.
"I know, Luv, I know. The Death Eaters set fire to an entire Muggle caravan park," he told her. "Mostly older people, what does Lily call them," he paused, "pensioners. Nearly all of them died."
"Something must give, Sirius. We can't keep this up."
"Win, James and I saw HIM again tonight," Sirius said after a few quiet moments.
"What?" Anwen screeched, turning to look at her husband. "What happened?"
"He, he was taunting us about the kids. He knows something about our kids and that stupid prophecy."
"Which kids?" Anwen asked, afraid of the answer. "Did he say?"
"Harry, Neville."
"So, he doesn't know about Violet?"
"I don't think so."
"Does it make me a bad mum that I'm relieved?" Anwen said through tears.
"No, it just makes us human. Not that I want anything to happen to our nephews," Sirius hastily added.
"No, I would be heartbroken if anything happened to them, or to their parents but if something happened to Violet or Alfie, I'm not sure I could recover."
"I know."
The pair lay there in the dark, so much needed to be discussed, but neither wanted to broach the subject.
Nearing five, Anwen slipped from the bed, unable to sleep. She quietly padded to the closet and grabbed her dressing gown and tied it around her. She made her way to the kitchen and wasn't surprised that Elba was already awake and baking.
"Is Mistress Anwen wanting some coffee? I can make a fresh pot," the elf said, wiping her hands on the small apron she wore over her little uniform.
"No, I'm actually thinking I'd like tea this morning," Anwen said thoughtfully.
"Master James has a fresh pot, Mistress. He's in the rear lounge," Elba told her, and Anwen nodded, wondering why her brother was up so early. The only one of the DMLE employees who was supposed to go in today was Alice, and she was supposed to be on desk duty. She took her favourite mug from the cupboard went to seek out her sibling.
"What are you doing up?" James asked Anwen as she entered.
"Couldn't sleep," she responded. "You too?"
"Yeah. Sirius tell you about last night?"
"You guys seeing the dark wanker again, yeah. Sorry that he was saying anything about Harry," Anwen poured herself a mug of tea and added a little sugar and lemon and then sat down next to her brother.
"Dumbledore said he knew, it was just shocking to hear my son's name come from HIS mouth. I wanted to kill him, Win." James didn't like killing, not if he could help it. He had no issue with injuring someone, and if they died from the injuries, he wasn't particularly troubled. Killing outright, however, was something altogether different.
"If only it was that simple," Anwen said. "I swear nothing can touch that guy."
"True. I wonder if anyone, even Dumbledore can kill him and make this conflict over." The sky was beginning to turn shades, although dawn was still a while off.
"Jimmy, are we being reckless by having all of us together under one roof, all the children together?"
"Win, this is our home, and it is the safest place –"
"I know all that," she said, cutting him off. "But one of them, whether it's Harry or Neville or Violet is the one in this damned prophecy. Is keeping all three of them under the same roof a good idea?"
"I don't know," James confessed. "But what I do know is that we are safer together. We know how to protect each other. No one is getting into the safe room. No one is going to get at our children if we are under the same protections." They were silent for a long moment.
"What if I, we, want to run away?" Anwen whispered.
"I wouldn't blame you. Sometimes I want to run away too. I know you won't, though."
"How do you know that?"
"Mum and dad didn't raise us to run away." Anwen sighed at her brother's words.
"No, they did not." Anwen scooted closer to her brother and laid her head on his shoulder. He moved to wrap his arm over hers. "I sometimes wish we could go back and have those easy days together again. You, me, Sirius and Reggie doing our lessons with dad or driving mum barmy."
"It wasn't you that made mum barmy, you were always the little princess," James taunted. "We had an idyllic childhood, didn't we?"
"Definitely you and me, I'm not sure things were wonderful at the Black house."
"They weren't," a new voice said from the doorway, and Sirius was standing there with Violet back in his arms. "However, your parents more than made up for it. Reggie and I were safe here. Vi woke up screaming, and Hindsa didn't want her waking the boys up." Anwen reached for her daughter and Violet gladly fell into her mummy's arms. Violet's fingers reached for Anwen's hair, and she began to rub it between her fingers.
"Mum, mum," the toddler muttered in a pitiful way.
"Okay, lovey, let Mummy look at your ear," Anwen said, waving her fingers so she could visualize the small area. "Yes, that ear does look infected." Anwen wiggled her fingers again and a pain relief charm was applied. She then stuck her finger into her daughter's mouth and felt for the tooth bud. "Well, the tooth has broken through, so you should be feeling better soon. I'm going to go get you a Penicillin potion and a bottle, my little love." Anwen rose and headed for the kitchen where such things were kept. She kissed Sirius on the way out, as he had sat down in his favourite chair.
"Is she okay?" Sirius asked his best friend cum brother-in-law.
"As good as any of us are," James answered. "If she wasn't so damned honourable, I think she'd have you take her and the kids away. I know Lily wishes she could leave. I've thought about sending her and Harry to one of the islands or to Italy or Paris."
"Anwen wouldn't leave the two of us behind," Sirius confessed. "Three musketeers and all that jazz."
"I know. Fake Lord what's-his-name and the Death Eaters aren't going to quit coming at us," James said.
"I know. Someone is telling him too much."
"Yeah, there's a spy that knows us well. The question is, who?"