( 𝔳𝔬𝔩𝔲𝔪𝔢 𝔦𝔦𝔦, 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝖋𝖔𝖚𝖗𝖙𝖞-𝖘𝖊𝖛𝖊𝖓 ) — battle of the department of mysteries

It was to nobody's surprise that Evangeline had been sacked the following day.

Umbridge took great satisfaction in making a spectacle of the whole situation, although her nonchalant demeanor wasn't fooling anybody for two reasons: not only had all the fifth years had seen her assaulted, but the bright bruises blooming over her skin were a tell-tale sign.

The Rosier girl was more than pleased to leave. She had packed up her bags at once, said goodbye to her students, had one last public confrontation with the toad-like woman, and left for Number Twelve Grimmauld Place.

''You punched her?'' Sirius clarified, looking awe-struck. ''You actually punched her?''

''We've been over this, Sirius,'' Remus sighed, preparing some potions for the brunette's hand. ''Yes, Eve punched that poor excuse for a human.''

''And slapped and kicked,'' the Black man trilled, clapping the pure-blood witch on the shoulder. ''I feel like a proud father, honest to God.''

''What is God?'' She asked, sat at the dining room table with a cup of tea.

''The topic of a conversation we'll be having another day,'' the Lupin man summarised, taking a seat beside her. ''Give me your hand.''

He dabbed at the minor injuries endlessly, taking great care and apologising profusely after every wince. Sirius watched the scene with a knowing smirk; there had been a great deal of conversations and confessions to do with Evangeline ever since the Christmas holidays.

''You'll have plenty of time, now that you're out of a job,'' he agreed. ''Welcome to the club of the idle, Rosier.''

''Not by choice, Sirius.''

''Not the point, Remus.''

''I am just worried about Harry,'' she confessed. ''I was there to watch over him, and now that I have got myself sacked . . . ''

''We've still got Snivellus,'' Sirius spat, kicking his legs up on to the table. ''If push comes to shove, he'll have no choice but to keep us updated — Dumbledore's orders.''

Their conversation was cut short by the delicate symphony of a Patronus. A silvery doe galloped into the dining room, enamouring the air around it with a glittering mist.

''The Potter boy had a vision. This time, one of you, Black — he has been led to believe the Dark Lord is holding you hostage at the Department of Mysteries in the Ministry of Magic. I have alerted all Order members. As soon as you get this message, meet at the visitor's entrance.''

As Snape's drawling voice faded away, an impending sense of doom and panic infected and spread through Evangeline's bones like a poison. Sirius jumped from his seat, nearly knocking a candle stick over as he hurried out the room.

''We're Apparating!''

Remus and the younger girl shared a glance; no matter what anyone did, this wasn't going to end well.

''Sirius, please,'' the Lupin man bugged, rushing after him as the other man was putting on his shoes and searching for his wand. ''You're still wanted, what if someone sees you—''

''Let them!'' He roared. ''Let them see me!''

''Sirius,'' Evangeline interjected. ''Take a moment to think. What if Snape—''

''I'll think when I'm dead!''

''Sirius—''

''No! This is about Ja—Harry! Harry is in danger, and nothing you two can say or do is going to stop me from helping my godson!''

''Sirius—''

''I wasn't there when Voldemort attacked James and Lily. But I will be there when he attacks Harry, and this time, I'm not going down without a fight.''

Evangeline, Remus, Sirius, Mad-Eye Moody, Dora, and Kingsley Shacklebolt sprinted into the room.

Lucius Malfoy turned and raised his wand, but the Tonks girl had already sent a Stunning Spell straight at him. The Death Eaters were completely distracted by the appearance of the Order members, who were now raining spells down upon them as they jumped from step to step toward the sunken floor. Through the darting bodies and flashes of light, the brunette could see Neville crawling along in Harry's direction.

Sirius began to duel with a Death Eater some ten feet away. Kingsley was fighting two at once; Dora, still halfway up the tiered seats, was firing down spells at Mulciber whilst the Rosier girl battled with Bellatrix.

''Titillando!'' The woman yelled, her face twisted with a sick expression of glee. ''Your filthy-blooded pals aren't here to protect you now, are they, little Eva?''

The pure-blood's stomach gave an odd sort of lurch at the nickname; it was as if an old memory had been unlocked in her brain. Suddenly, she was a little girl at her fifth birthday party, having her face painted by a woman with black curls and a tight corset.

This was no time to reminisce on the past — that was then, and this was now. The brunette dodged her tickling curse, sending a stream of hexes from the tip of her wand.

''I do not need protecting, Bellatrix! I have grown up whilst you were rotting in Azkaban!''

''Now, now, that's no way to greet your Auntie Bella,'' she chastised, pulling her full lips into a pout. ''Crucio!''

Evangeline dived behind a shelf of prophecies, only narrowly missing the curse as she fell onto her ribs with a faint crack. A searing pain spread through her torso before she scrambled to her feet, rounding on to her opponent.

''Tarantallegra!'' She shouted, pointing her wand at the Lestrange woman, whose legs immediately went into a kind of frenzied tap dance, unbalancing her so that she fell to the ground. ''It was lovely seeing you again, Auntie Bella.''

The pure-blood witch wasted no time in looking for Harry, encountering a small clan of four Death Eaters on her way through the department. Spells were flying everywhere, ricocheting off of surfaces, but in the end she managed to remain unscathed . . . for the most part.

Aside from the cracked ribs, several bruises dotted her body, and there was a large gash splitting the skin of her left thigh. It stung with a sort of pain she had never experienced before, marked with splotches of red, but there was no time to dwell on it as she ran into Dolohov and Harry.

The Death Eater made a slashing movement with his wand, just as the Potter boy yelled, ''Protego!''

The force of the spell knocked him sideways on to Neville's frozen legs, but the Sheild Charm had stopped the worst of the curse

Dolohov raised his wand again, unperturbed. ''Accio proph—''

Sirius hurtled out of nowhere, rammed the man with his shoulder, and sent him flying out of the way. Evangeline swiftly sent a Full Body-Bind curse in his direction, smirking as he went as rigid as a board.

The prophecy had flown to the tips of Harry's fingers but he managed to cling onto it, fighting off a Death Eater that skidded across the floor, his wand at the ready.

''Nice one!'' Sirius shouted, forcing Harry and Evangeline's heads down as three Stunning Spells flew towards them.

''We need you to get out of—''

They both ducked again. A jet of green light had narrowly missed Sirius; across the room Dora fell from halfway up the stone steps, her limp form toppling from seat to seat, and Bellatrix, triumphant, running back toward the fray.

''Harry, take the prophecy, grab Neville, and run!''

''Go, Harry! Make haste!''

The pair were urging him to safety whilst dashing to meet Bellatrix — it was a family matter. They cornered her successfully onto the dias, but she was unfortunately putting up an adequate fight.

Minutes passed, and only they were left battling, unaware of Dumbledore's arrival. The elder woman was much more eager to harm Sirius than Evangeline, simply shrugging her off like an irritating fly.

The Black man ducked her jet of red light. ''Come on, you can do better than that!'' He mocked, his laugh echoing around the cavernous room.

The second jet of light would've hit him squarely on the chest had the younger girl not tackled him to the floor. They rolled around for a few seconds, before she felt something grip her forcefully by the nape of her neck.

The contact of a blisteringly cold hand against her warm skin was the last thing she felt, before a pair of sharp pricks sank into her jugular and her vision went black.

a/n     a rather anti-climactic chapter, but i was tired lol