Yeaaaa new update!! 🍻

Now why does the chapter title rhyme with "Willy Wonky"...

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Drew shot awake. Blinking away the spots and headache, she scanned the home around her. No one was in sight, but she could hear someone rustling around in the next room.

She couldn't move. She was lying on a worn couch, facing a coffee table. She moved her eyes down to her hand, and it was still slick with blood, staining the green fabric of the chair. It's just red nail polish, she thought. Totally. Totally.

For a living room, it sure didn't look like anyone lived in it. It was messy, but the way an office was. Newspapers and books were piled on the shelves, pens and sticky notes were scattered across the table before her, and the air smelled like coffee and dust.

Not fancy or big enough to be a townhouse or anything. There were only windows on one wall, both hidden by curtains, so Drew guessed it was a flat.

Xavier — well, she assumed it was him — was still preoccupied, so she reflected on her situation. Okay, so she was trapped and he was Imperiused.

It was a good curse. His eyes had betrayed neither confusion nor an empty shell. And if he had been like this since she met Carolina, it had been cast at least seven months ago. Ones this advanced weren't a Sickle a dozen.

A mass of harsh whispers circled her mind.

THAT SEBASTIAN KID KNEW YOU TOO. I MAKE TOO MANY MARTYRS. WHO WAS THE LAST MUDBLOOD YOU SENT TO AZKABAN INSTEAD OF THE GRAVE? IF YOU CARE ABOUT YOUR LIFE, DON'T FIND XAVIER.

Her friends had to be worried sick, but they could find her with the blood map. It would take some time though. The map wouldn't be detailed enough without attaching a more specific map. And if they hadn't been in this area before, it would be hard to Apparate here.

Once Xavier returned, she needed to stall for time. And right now she needed to get out of this godforsaken immobility spell.

It was like breaking free from sleep paralysis. Her fingertips gained feeling first, and she twitched and flexed them until her hand recovered, and then her wrist and arm. She grabbed at the coffee table for some purchase. Then something on it caught her attention.

She picked it up. It was a pile of bound papers — a huge list of people wanted by the Ministry, open to a certain page.

✘ GETAWAY, AURORA - 17, Hogwarts student
white, female, brunette, brown eyes
~ 5'3" / 8 stone 7

9 Ardour Gardens
Manchester, UK

Threat Level:
LOW

WANTED FOR:
＊ Failure to register Muggle-born status
＊ Theft of magical power
＊ Terrorism — aided the 'Student Alliance' (refer to B.8) and 'Dumbledore's Army' (B.1)
＊ Smuggling of illegal materials (D.42)

Drew's was exactly the same. Accompanying both were cut-outs of a blurry class photo from last year, but Aurora's face was crossed out in black.

This was ridiculous, Drew scoffed. What part of learning innocent spells and textbooks was criminal enough for Azkaban? Let alone terrorism? Also, she was taller than that.

She got her other arm free and flipped through the book, searching. What the older man had said about Sebastian disturbed her, but she couldn't remember the prefect's last name.

Finally she landed on the right page and skimmed through the information. It wasn't what she expected, to say the least.

✘ DOGE, SEBASTIAN - 19, Archives assistant
(SPECIAL INSTRUC. - deliver body to H.MLE, preferably alive and recognizable)

Threat Level:
LOW

WANTED FOR:
＊Common assault of 'Brayan Lee'
＊Link to Elphias Doge (p. 7)

His picture was crossed out in red. A quick look revealed what seemed like his entire family tree listed alongside him. All there because of their relation to Elphias Doge, apparently a big-wig lawmaker and friend of Dumbledore who had drafted laws to protect Muggles. All of them were crossed out. In red. Every last one of them.

Drew tried to make sense of it. And what did 'that Sebastian kid knew you too' mean? The only conclusion she could come up with wasn't a great one. If an Imperiused Xavier was a seasoned serial killer and a mass murderer, she might be screwed.

She was just gaining back the feeling in her legs when she heard a door open. She put the papers back, snatched up a pen, and laid down again.

Xavier must have noticed that something was different because he said: "Drew? You're awake?"

He sounded suspicious, so she listlessly shifted a bit, pretending she had just moved in her sleep. Her kick-started heart made it hard to stay still.

Xavier came closer and set something glass-sounding on the table.

Drew launched herself at him with a shout, knocking him right into the ground. She stabbed him just above his collarbone as he tried to block her blows.

He covered his face with his arms, "Drew — get off me!"

She jabbed at his hands with the bloody pen. "Let me skewer your neck, asshole!"

He knocked the pen away and she seized him by the throat, throwing her whole weight into the chokehold. Xavier grabbed her wrists and pushed until she was practically floating above him.

She tried to bite his nose off and nearly did before he threw her off him.

"You tried to stab me in the neck?" Xavier gasped, standing up. "And strangle me on top of that? That could kill me!"

"You slammed my head into a wall, dimwad!" she shouted back, scrambling to her feet. "You're a murderer three times stronger than me — why would I not make my first blow a killing one?"

Xavier coughed with some difficulty and held up his hands. "Drew, I am not going to hurt you again. I promise you. And I'm not a murderer."

Drew narrowed her stare. This was weird. His eyes were watering, but that was probably from her throttling skills. But most of all, this did not match up with an Imperius Curse. He sounded just a tad guilty. Imperiused people hardly ever felt guilt while following instructions. Had he actually gone to the dark side?

"I trusted you," she snarled.

"I know," he said. The blood was staining his uniform now, and his eyes were steady. "You went to Caro's looking for me, is that right?"

She huffed. "Well, not anymore. You're ugly now."

"You want my help? You can have it. I'm sorry that I shoved you like that. I had to be convincing."

Drew paused. There was no way he didn't have his wand on him, yet he wasn't reaching for it. "Convincing?" she repeated.

He put his arms down, crossing them. "I'm a double agent, alright? One of the only ones left. I fake people's deaths by pretending to kill them so they can escape the Death Eaters. Understand?"

Drew thought this over. It could certainly be true, but she felt her injured fingers, and the second thoughts returned. "You could've let me Disapparate."

"You couldn't leave the house with the enchanted barriers still there. I could briefly break them to get Wilby out because some of them were mine. And better for you to get captured by me than anyone else."

Xavier droned on. "I don't know how you found Caro, but do you have any idea how many bounties are on her head? And that's just one Fernández. Half the Hit Wizards in Britain have a Trapping Spell on that house. You're awfully lucky I checked this time when the sensors went off."

The lecturing had started and it felt like she was back in second year, when he'd jinxed the common room door so she wouldn't sneak out and get killed by Slytherin's Monster.

She ran all this over in her mind a few times. "So you're not evil?"

"Evil doesn't exist," he sighed. "It's a reductive concept that ignores any nuance —"

"That sounds like a yes."

"No, I'm not evil. Now sit. I'm going to heal you."

She finally looked at what he'd placed on the table. It was an amber potion.

Not much choice here. She sat down and watched him suspiciously as he poured some of the mixture on a cloth. He handed it to her. "This will work on your wounds. I'm sorry about your nails. I'm sure there are potions out there that will grow them back faster. And I already fixed your concussion."

The headache did disappear unnaturally fast, she admitted to herself. And she definitely had had a concussion.

He got another cloth and soaked one corner, then held it to his collar where she'd stabbed him. "Oh, and here's your wand." He tossed it to her, and she caught it in surprise.

He still wasn't holding his wand, and now she was armed again. Alright then.

The rag in her hand smelled faintly of Murtlap. Encouraged, she touched it to her fingertip, and the place where her nail was torn out felt a hundred times better. She wrapped the rest of her fingers and held it to her head.

It was working, she noted. Her fingers were healing over.

Xavier had seated himself in the armchair across her, clearly trying to seem unthreatening. She dabbed some of the healing potion on her cheek. Maybe he was telling the truth. Regardless, he wasn't killing her, so that was a win.

Unsure of where to go from here, Drew pointed to the stack of papers. "I, er, peeped at that list. What's with the red all over Sebastian's family? Is it different from black?"

Xavier's head lifted the second she said the prefect's name. He swallowed and said: "Red crosses mean dead. Murdered." His voice was distant. "I'm only telling you this so you trust me. Don't go around broadcasting that you know this."

"What happened?"

His tone got low, steely. "They wanted to put the Imperius on the lawmaker Elphias. Turns out he was tough to control, so they took drastic measures to weaken him. His entire bloodline was gone in less than a week. It was..."

"Oh," Drew said, once it was clear he wasn't going to finish. She'd thought maybe Xavier had faked their deaths. Never seeing that goofy prefect again... It made her shiver. Sunglasses would never look the same again. "What did that man at the house mean when he said Sebastian knew you?"

"He asked for my help before he died. But I couldn't."

It was evidently a sore subject, so she moved on and hit him with another: "Okay, what about Quentin?"

Xavier's eyes flashed. "You're asking a lot of questions."

"I'm just curious. I want to trust you."

"I already saved your life out there. What were you finding me for? The sooner you tell, the sooner my headache leaves."

"Quentin's in Azkaban, right?"

His face soured further. "Yes, you know that."

"My sister's also in Azkaban."

"I know."

His matter-of-fact tone was annoying her. "Well, I want her out! She can't survive in there!"

"You know I can't do anything about that. Once she's in there, it's done. Please don't tell me that this is why you tracked me down."

"What else? She's my sister."

He leaned forward, incredulous. "You're wanted by the Ministry. I figured you needed a place to hide. Your friend Cyndee is at risk, too. I can easily think of two dozen people who want her head because of her parents."

"Blaise's family owns like ten different manors around Europe. Even one in America. We can hide in any of them just fine. Aurora can't."

Xavier shook his head with resolution. "I could be killed for touching anything related to Azkaban, let alone authorizing the release of someone who is clearly a Muggle-born."

"You know she's seventeen, right? That's still a teenager where I'm from."

"Humans are a lot more resilient than we think. If she's anything like you, she'll be fine."

"Nice job, officer, lying to my face. And she's not like me. Either way, don't you remember what it was like being near a Dementor? It's horrific."

"I work alongside them, Drew. Yes, I remember."

"People kill themselves in there all the time. Perfectly healthy and happy people, too. Within months. Even if we win this war, I know it would be too late."

"What do you even want me to do?" he snapped. "I already told you I can't let her free. She's a teenage Muggle-born of, no offence, no use to the Death Eaters. No one would want her out no matter what I say."

She braced herself. "I expected a prison break."

Xavier had the nerve to laugh. "You idiot, that's impossible. And therefore, a waste of time and effort."

"DON'T CALL MY SISTER A WASTE OF TIME."

He was unfazed at her outburst. "I'm calling this outrageous 'mission' a waste of time. If it was possible and worth the risk I'd help, but it's not."

"You're not even going to try? Sirius Black got out!"

"How can you be dense enough to relate a homicidal Dark Wizard's ability to escape prison to your sister's? No one even knows how he did it! Drew, you've got to leave. You are stressing me out."

"Oh GOD FORBID this HEADACHE give you more grey hairs, right?! I'm just bothering you over stupid things again!"

"Yes, you are." He pointed at the front door.

"How did Quentin get in there? What did he do?"

"Do not bring him up."

"You guys broke up, so you're okay letting him rot in there? Decompose? Decay? Deteriorate? Shrivel up and wither —"

"Be quiet. Of course I'm not okay with it, but I don't have a choice. And we only broke up because I couldn't pull off being a spy if I was associated with him. I had to cut contact with Caro too. Are you done listing verbs?"

She felt her tightly clenched fists get uncomfortably hot. "We'll find a way to bust him out too. Why are you so opposed to that?"

"Besides that it's impossible?" Xavier took the book and flipped to the right page without even looking.

✘ STUART, QUENTIN - 21, Obliviator

Threat Level:
MEDIUM

WANTED FOR:
＊ High treason — Theft of sensitive Ministry property (refer to █.██)

"Caro and I helped him steal back an incredibly valuable book from the Death Eaters, and he got caught. My loyalty was questioned almost immediately, and I barely managed to dispel those rumours by testifying against him. If Quentin gets out of Azkaban, I'm dead. Even if it's not traced back to me, everyone will assume I did it."

She stared into his hard brown eyes. "Wow, you're actually cold-hearted."

"I'm saving lives, Drew. Just not your sister's. Now that you know what I've sacrificed and all that's at risk, maybe you'll stop being so selfish."

"It sounds like you risked a lot just today to be selfish. You went to Carolina's house because you wondered if it was her who set off the sensors. You wanted to be sure she'd be okay."

Xavier looked at her silently. "I don't know what your point is. If she was in Azkaban I couldn't save her either. Even if I could do this, two people are not worth this danger, even if we feel like they are."

Drew tried to keep a cool head. Fine, she'll change strategies. "There's a lot of other innocent people in there. Hundreds, probably. Together they'd be worth anything."

"Yes, but still equally impossible to break out."

He abruptly glanced down, concentrating on the empty air just above the floor. Then he snatched a small mirror off the shelf and tilted it around. "How do your friends know where you are?"

"Not telling," she scorned, and she was thrilled at his discomfort. "Are they here?"

"In the lobby," he said, uneasily sitting back down. "They must have a very good tracking spell on you if it works here. Which one is it?" At her smug silence, he said, "If anyone else can follow you back to here, we'll both be in trouble."

"I didn't think it was that tricky of a spell," she lied. "Maybe you also leave quite the trail. Scary indeed. I bet you're dying to know how we found your friend's house, too."

Xavier glared at her.

A dark presence invaded her mind, grasping for memories to pull to the surface. "Are you using Legilimency on me?!" she demanded, shoving him out of her. "You're not even that good."

"You have a thousand walls around yourself," Xavier noticed, ignoring her. "At least my treason might not get tortured out of you when you're inevitably captured again. Speaking of, I can let you go with the excuse that I'm gathering intel on the Piramyds."

"I'll tell you what tracking spell I used if you help me."

He had the nerve to roll his eyes at her. "No. Valuable, but ultimately not worth it. I'll just move again. Then you won't find me again either."

"Hundreds of people," she reminded him. "Not just my sister. Think of all the important powerful people in there that could help the war if we freed them."

"As I said, it's impossible. And don't say 'nothing's impossible', because that is literally not true."

"Nothing's impossible."

He scowled, jaw set like he was seconds from kicking a wall. She didn't understand how he could feel this way about her suggesting a plan that could save Quentin too.

"Drew," he said, voice evening out. "I'm sorry I can't help your sister, but it's not as easy as having guts and determination. It just cannot be done. There is a regenerating shield around the entire island called the Eternal Siege Curse. No human being can get in or out."

"Then how do prisoners get there?"

"Direct Floo Network to an underground pathway. Then a lift up to the surface, similar to the phone booth entrance to the Ministry. You cannot physically get a hundred people out that way. Besides, the Ministry has complete control over the Floo Network now."

"Okay, so let's break the shield."

"It is powered by nearly three centuries worth of wizards, spells, and artifacts. A thousand wizards can't break it."

She wasn't convinced. "You-Know-Who broke it. Like, a bunch of times."

"He has Dark Magic, Drew. The kind you can only obtain through decades of mass genocide. What he can do is unimaginable."

The idea came to her in a flash. "Well, he's got to be planning more breakouts for his Death Eaters and whatever, right? When he breaks the shield again, we'll go in right after him."

Xavier blinked, for once caught off guard. "That's not — it only improves the odds by a margin. You-Know-Who will be flying around with his Death Eaters and Dementors. They didn't work so hard to jail all those Muggle-borns only to let them walk."

"When's the next breakout?"

"I don't know. Most of his Death Eaters are out by now, except the more disobedient ones he wants to punish. Last time he freed potential recruits: Snatchers, serial killers, assassins, the like. Sometimes he goes to torture information out of someone."

"But it'll happen?" At his reluctant nod, she said: "So we've got a one percent chance?"

"Yes. And that's nothing to hope for."

"I would argue the contrary."

She could tell Xavier's mind was racing as he leaned back, eyes far away. He was considering it now. More than that — he was coming up with ideas. He couldn't help it. Nothing made it more clear that he wanted Quentin back as much as she wanted her sister back.

"Come on," she said imploringly. "Let's make a plan."

An explosion crashed against the front door, raining dust from the ceiling. The door was unscathed, but a massive green protection spell came into sight, flashing with warning.

Xavier rubbed his head. "Go let your stupid friends in. I'll make some calls."

Drew grinned, "You're helping me?"

"Yes. Now hurry up before they somehow break through."