(A/N): We're back with Amelia, Jules, Nolan, Logan, Annette, Spencer, Marta, and the other gardeners. Whew, packed room!

Trigger Warnings: Discussion of child abuse/possible (but not actual) child murder.

October 19th, 1967

Amelia

My blood ran cold as Jules's words reached my ears- as they penetrated my brain- and the feeling of abject dread only grew as every person within hearing range turned to look at me. Nolan was the only one whose eyes I actually wanted on me, but he turned away far too soon, clearly concerned that if he attempted to comfort me, he might accidentally reveal- or at least confirm- our relationship to those we'd worked so hard to keep it from. Despite everything, I genuinely appreciated the way Logan subtly squeezed my shoulder, even if it didn't really do anything to ground me. "Wh-what?" I stuttered out, and Jules swallowed thickly.

"I think they may have killed him," She repeated, which- wasn't as helpful as she likely thought. "Leonides. I think- Obviously, I have no proof-" Because it isn't true, I wanted to shout. It can't be true, it simply can't! "But why else would they- And wouldn't he- He'd say something, wouldn't he? Even if he was immeasurable pain-" I winced. "-especially if he was in pain- wouldn't he say something? Anything?" She sounded almost halfway as desperate as I felt, which was at least some small comfort. "It seems absurd, but... Well, doesn't just about everything they do?" I felt my brow furrow, but when I didn't speak up, Nolan did so in my stead.

"First of all, your concerns are noted, Jules." She nodded somewhat hesitantly. "This isn't something we can ignore, even if they want us to- which I'm sure they do." Oh, undoubtedly. "Annette, you told Amelia that Mistress Cipicia told you all that Leonides wasn't to be allowed food last night, right?" The other gardeners- particularly Logan and Spencer- blanched, and Annette nodded reluctantly.

"Yes, and that's not- She was more firm about it than usual, too. Typically, she just says, 'no food for Master Leonides', and swans off, but... this was different. She told us that none of us were to try to interact with him in any way or attempt to enter his bedroom, which is strange, because as I'm sure you know- being under similar orders- we're not to do either of those things typically, anyway. The only time we enter their bedrooms without explicit permission is when the children are at their lessons, so I don't know why..." She trailed off, probably sensing that we all understood what she meant, and that we were already adding this to the piling list of evidence.

Jules only looked even more concerned, since the reminder of the previous night's orders had added further credence to her fears. "I don't believe breakfast was brought to his room, either... and with them getting the house-elves to tell everyone to scram, I doubt any of them is going to be having lunch any time soon." The pile of evidence was growing.

"Why kill him, though?" Logan asked from beside me, sounding more curious than confused- though I suspected that was only true because he didn't think Leonides was actually dead, and was mostly just humoring us. "I mean, the kid broke a leg, they don't have to put him down because of it- what is he, a horse?" Nolan shot him a dark look, and I couldn't tell if it was more for the ill-timed joke, or the continued presence of his arm across my shoulders. I would shrug it off to see if that expression changed, but I needed all the comfort I could get right now... and unfortunately, that arm was quite an effective source.

"I don't think the cause is going to be anything so obvious," I said quietly, and Logan shifted as if trying to hear me better- despite the fact that he was by far the closest to me, physically. "It's either going to be some convoluted secret, or one of them lashed out in anger and pushed things too far. It's never going to be just because he had a broken leg- that he misbehaved by climbing the tree, maybe. That one or both of them suffers from moon sickness? Also possible. But considering what she said to me before she took Leonides into his room, I don't think- If it happened- if he is- then... I don't see a way where it wasn't premeditated."

Silence. I looked up and met Nolan's eyes- those lovely hazel things that were always so full of love and tenderness, but were now also swamped with pained sorrow. "What- What did she say? To you?" His voice was slightly croaky, as though his throat was dry- he swallowed thickly, but I doubt it did much to alleviate the issue.

"She told me... She instructed me to cast a silencing spell, so Miasenna didn't hear anything. It... it wasn't an order, merely a suggestion- I don't think she cared all that much if we heard anything, but whether that's because she cast a silencing spell of her own, or had a plan to deal with us should we hear anything... I don't know." I lifted one shoulder in a weak shrug, and it felt vaguely alien- and not just because the weight of Logan's arm on top of them was a foreign one.

Everyone looked appalled, though none more so than Nolan. Well, okay, maybe Spencer, but that wasn't entirely a fair competition given the extreme expressiveness of his facial features. "She asked you to cast a silencing charm?" Marta asked, sounding both perplexed and disgusted, and I nodded.

"I don't know how long she was in there with him, the next time I heard anything from anyone, it was when Annette came to bring Miasenna dinner- presumably at our Mistress's order." She echoed my nod. "She could have closed the door and avada'd him, or spent hours-" I couldn't finish that sentence, but they all knew what I meant if the collective flinch was anything to go by.

"I doubt they killed him," Logan said, albeit without much of his usual, trademark confidence. "There's probably some other explanation for everything that we're not capable of seeing- not something rational, per se, because this family doesn't do that sort of thing, but something legitimate, nonetheless. Maybe they found something else at Mungo's, and he's not allowed to eat because it messes with the potions he's on."

There were a few murmurs from behind me that I couldn't tell were related or not, but I got the feeling that people thought this was plausible, if not exactly likely. I shook my head. "Leonides doesn't get sick," I said. "Or at least, not very often, and not with something that doesn't take a few other people out of commission, as well. The last time he was ill was that flu he and Miasenna both got last year- and even then, they got caught in the rain. I'm sure that contributed, if not outright caused it." It hadn't caused the cut on each of their palms, though, which I had made sure to heal before letting them anywhere near anyone who could report my failing to our Masters- which is to say, anyone.

It hadn't even been my fault- one of their tutors had released them early without telling anyone, and the two children had been all too happy to have the time to themselves... Anyway, that didn't matter right now. What mattered, was the fact that Leonides had a pretty hardy immune system, and anything that would require him to be on an all-potion diet would almost certainly also require him to stay at the hospital overnight- which he clearly had not.

"There's a first time for everything," Logan said, sounding slightly less sure than before, and I turned back to Jules.

"You said none of them tried to talk to him- not even Miasenna. Is that correct?" She hesitated briefly, likely at where that question might be heading rather than the question itself, then nodded. "If there's anything I know, it's that Miasenna is incapable- incapable- of ignoring her brother. I also know if he was dead in that room, she wouldn't stay quiet about it. Still, she wanted to talk to me about something important-" The others jolted, as if just now adding that clue to the tally of weird happenings. "-which makes me think..."

I trailed off, and Logan jostled me with the arm he had on my shoulders. "Come on, genius- don't hold out on us. Bust this case wide open!" It felt more encouraging than joking, so I allowed it- and allowed it to work on me, too.

"I think you're right, Jules, just not in the way you thought you were." She blinked, evidently confused. "I don't think Leonides was in that room, which means... they're not trying to cover up his murder, but his disappearance."

(A/N): Jules is sort of like a Phoebe Buffay or Luna Lovegood, if they were a bit more low-key about their special interests and more concerned with other people's perception of them. Like, yeah, Jules is a bit weird sometimes, but she's aware that she's weird, and can hide it when she feels the need to.

Also, yes, the incident Amelia is referring to, where Leo and Mia had cuts on their palms and got sick after being in the rain was, in fact, when they made their blood pact.