i fear no fate

The Shade

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“If you’re interested in doing some business, I only operate by appointment. Though if you have an emergency, I could always schedule some room…” Molly crossed her legs where she sat at her father’s bar, finger idly following the rim of her glass as she made eye contact with whom she was talking to. “…for a price, of course. A convenience fee, if you will.”

(More accurately he’d skulked around the basement fiddling with Glenda’s equipment until she had all but shoved him back up the stairs but that was beside the point.)

Wading through the high tide of excitable gingers he added a solid thump to Arthur’s arm on the way past in lieu of negotiating all of that weird energy he was projecting at him and hooking a chair out from the kitchen table to a loud protest from behind him ( “That one’s mine, Uncle Gid”), “S’pose I need to step up my game if Sungmin is beating me,” he pulled a face at Charlie and received one in response, “I could try again if you like, Arthur. Lockhart used to have this great trick where he’d—” Gideon paused, eyeing the attentive faces of his nephews as they clamoured for seats at the table and cleared his throat before snagging a roll off of Percy’s plate (to a gasp of dismay) and taking a large bite, “Maybe another time. How are the Weasleys today?”

Molly raised an eyebrow when Gideon mentioned being downstairs, leaning against the kitchen counter. When had he gone down there? She certainly hadn’t heard him enter, but then again, Gideon could be rather quiet when he wanted to be. “Glenda’s working down there,” she said simply, shaking her head. “I’m sure she’ll talk to me if it becomes more than work.” Well, mostly sure. Molly didn’t really mind if Glenda lived down there, but it obviously couldn’t be a free ride. That would be something she’d have to discuss with the other some other time. “At any rate, she’s been wonderful, so everything is fine for now.” Molly moved to make Gideon a plate, walking over to where he was sitting (and ignoring Percy’s protests over his seat being taken) and placing it down in front of her brother. A groan escaped her, and Molly looked to Arthur.

“Don’t remind me. The confetti took ages to clean up, and Fred and George insisted on playing in it while I cleaned.” Her gaze shifted to Gideon, a stern look that clearly said no. “Please, do not step up your game. Spare me a little.” At least he wasn’t continuing with his story about Gilderoy. Molly didn’t need the boys to get any bright ideas. Speaking of… “Now all of you, back to eating. Uncle Gid being here doesn’t mean you get to do whatever you fancy.” She shook her head. “Arthur took them out to the garden to degnome, if that’s exciting to you.” Though, judging by the fact that the gnomes always returned, she figured that Arthur didn’t do as well as he could. 

“Are they gone for good this time, dear?”

Settling back to his place just in time for him to catch Gideon’s palm and respond with a groan of his own and surreptitious rubbing at the spot, Arthur kept his eyes at his brother in law as he got back up and grabbed a chair from the other side of the room so Percy can squeeze in next to him. It was something of a new sight, almost unfamiliar, to have Gideon under this roof. When Fabian was still around, their visits had been more frequent and loud, that much he did remember, but after that, scarce was really the only way to describe these visits. Oh, and maybe a little tense, but that didn’t seem the case anymore and he was grateful for it. Merlin knows the boys needed their uncle around. “Right. Don’t try to do confetti better.” he mimicked after Molly, but as soon as she turned away, he looked at Gideon and mouthed Do it along with an encouraging nod of his head, covering it up with a spoonful of food into his mouth once Molly was looking back at them. He looked a little guilty when Molly mentioned degnoming, avoiding her gaze as he spoke.  “Right, yes, the gnomes. It really wasn’t... well, I s’pose it was less of degnoming the garden and more of, er... naming the gnomes, so to speak. Y’know, speaking of Gilderoy, one of them was named that. He was a bit of a farter, actually, that’s what made it difficult hurling him out, he kept aiming at my head, but-...”

The boys started snickering into their food at the mention of farts, just as boys often did, and Arthur realized he had gone off into a rant again and proceeded to look even guiltier than before, looking up at Molly with an apologetic smile. “Enough about... that, then. You’d do well living in our basement, Gideon. It’ll be nice having you ‘round all the time instead of us wondering where you’re off to. Those poor dragons, mate, leave ‘em alone.”

22 May 1982

@artweasley 

Molly couldn’t believe this was happening.

She should have, because the past few days had had her more tense than usual, completely on edge and staying closer to her family now more than ever. Her children, her husband, her brother leaving her sight made her want to run after them, take them by the hand and say, Don’t leave, not yet. It was easier with her children and with Arthur, but any time she saw Gideon, his leaving left her uneasy for hours afterward. It was only comfort from her husband that made her eventually relax. They put wards up around the Burrow once they were sure something was going to happen, and she was there when Dorcas and Benjy delivered medical supplies to their home (as well as being attacked by their gnomes). She set everything up, had it all ready and the basement locked up tight. The Burrow was, and hopefully always would be, a safe house for the Order. Whatever was going to happen tonight, Molly was sure that whoever came here would be healed and safe.

That, unfortunately, was a nice thought, but ultimately a rather naive one. 

It was the tunnel in their basement that started it all. What was another battle raged on at Lestrange Manor, but Molly stayed home with Arthur and, occasionally, Sungmin. Then a thud came from the basement, and she grabbed her wand at once, standing and ushering her kids behind her. A pause showed that it was nothing but a thud, however this was disproved a moment later as the smell of dirt and rotting flesh wafted up and through the door, said door breaking open and hundreds of Inferi beginning to swarm their home as she turned to tell Arthur that they had to go, now. And oh, there were so many, with recognizable and unfamiliar faces alike. She had to ignore her kids’ screams though, had to focus on getting them out and away from the home, a safe distance so she and Arthur could grab them and go to Hogwarts–

“Uncle Bean!”

No.

Charlie had slipped out from behind her and was running, and Molly turned to come face-to-face with the disfigured corpse of her brother. Fabian was there, for the first time in seven months, and Molly felt frozen, unable to move. It was in that moment that he reached down and grabbed Charlie, his now-scared screams breaking her out of her small trance. “Charlie!” she yelled, but Arthur was there at once, getting him away from her undead brother before anything worse than a mere injury could happen to her child. With that the Weasleys were gone from there home, Molly catching one last glance of Fabian before her vision was filled with the image of Hogwarts. She got Charlie looked at the moment they arrived, visibly shaking but brushing off anyone who asked if she was alright. No, she wasn’t, but there were more important things to handle at the moment. Take care of the injured, keep the kids away from danger, and wait for Arthur and Gideon to get back safe and sound.

That was the thing with war, she supposed. Nothing could ever turn out happy in the end, and there would always be loss. Molly should have expected a lot of things tonight, but it was like she flashed back to October 22 the moment she saw Arthur’s face. Her heart beat fast, and she wasn’t quite sure that she wasn’t hyperventilating. No, don’t be dead, please be good news. He said he wouldn’t die, he promised.

After the kidnappings, Arthur had drifted amongst the Order members in a daze, doing his best to act as normally as he would but ultimately failing to keep his guilt from dragging him two or three notches down. He did his best to make up for it with small gestures - visiting the younger members at their homes or inviting them over, offering company and a willing shoulder, an ear to listen - and still the helplessness that he felt then didn’t dissipate. His thoughts kept flying to how they were the ones who had jumped to task to save their taken friends, and his first instinct had been to grab his wife and leave, make sure that his family was safe while ignoring a huge chunk of them too. Like it or not, a lot of these men and women were like his... well, as odd a thought as it was, he considered them among the ranks of his own sons and it was tantamount to failure as a father that he’d abandoned them when the going got tough.

This time, Arthur decided, he wouldn’t be so lacking. Dividing his time between Hogwarts and the Burrow, letting his guard down the tiniest bit over his family since Alastor had helped him put up wards around his home and he had the utmost fate in Molly’s capabilities to look after their sons, he was a grim image of seriousness as the day drifted on and people prepared for a battle. And a battle did come, he saw and heard as much from the people that arrived at Hogwarts from Lestrange Manor, prompting his racing heart and rising panic that he quelled in his chest. Luck would have it that he’d just about apparated to the Burrow after making sure things were still peaceful at Hogwarts when Molly started shouting. 

We have to leave now. 

It took all of his self control not to shout when the first of them popped from underneath the floorboards, black sludge drip, drip, dripping from their... was it flesh still, even? Arthur only let himself shudder before jump starting into motion, hastily grabbing Percy and Bill’s hands while the twins instantly clung unto Molly, tears streaking down their faces. He was ready to apparate them out of there, knowing Molly would be following soon after when her voice pierced through the sound of creaking and breaking and screaming. Charlie! He turned from where he stood to see... Fabian. “Merlin...” he whispered under his breath, unable to quiet himself as time seemed to stand still for all of them, save for Charlie’s rushed pacing towards the other side of the room where... he stood, clearly holding no semblance to the smiling, playful uncle that his son was imagining. What kind of abomination was this war bringing up and how the hell was he expected to just aim his wand and “kill” his brother in law? It wasn’t him, sure, but to do that in front of his sons, his wife, it made him want to be sick. 

Until that ghastly arm reached out and grabbed at his son, and whether it was instinct or a decision made, Arthur didn’t known but in an instant he had his wand raised and spell uttered, sending it reeling backwards and releasing his hold. In a flash, he darted across the room, moving faster than he ever had in his life to place his crying son in his arms then back again to Bill and Percy’s reaching hands. It all must’ve only taken half a minute and a soft pop! for them to drop unto the floor of the Great Hall, chests heaving and faces streaked with tears as Arthur clung unto Charlie, whispering “I got you, Charlie, I got you.” into his ear before Molly moved to take the boy from his arms to get him looked at. A quick check had him heaving a sigh of relief that the other boys were only shaken and with promises of ‘I’ll be right back, okay?’ to their scared little faces, he rushed to tell people about the Inferi and gather a group to put up wards around the castle to keep them all safe. He considered apparating to Lestrange Manor himself to help their people there, but after what happened and Molly’s increasing dread, he couldn’t possibly add to it by disappearing himself so he resolved to do what he could here, protect the people that needed their help and wait until everyone appeared.

But god, if he knew what they would bring back once they did, maybe he wouldn’t have wished for it. Arthur even greeted them with a smile at having his worst fears alleviated until something caught his eye. Perhaps he should’ve known from the way that none of them seemed able to meet his eye or speak a word to him, the way they dodged his questions until... there, at the back of the group, he saw that familiar red. Specked with flecks of black sludge and dirt covered, but still it shown against the light of his wand, a wand that was suddenly clenched tighter in his fist as he put two and two together. “I-Is he...?” was all he could manage to get out between his lips, choking back the rest of his sentence along with the sudden surge of his stomach that made him want to puke again. Their shaking heads was all the answered he needed, all the prompting for him to heave, hands on his knees and tears in his eyes. Fuck, it wasn’t supposed to be like this, it wasn’t supposed to end like this, he should be pushing his way to the front of the group now to punch his arm, throw a joke, a teasing comment, anything that would make this all better and make this night, this battle worth it.

And Molly, oh god. He’d taken this watch along the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest for her, so he could alert her the moment that they came back and stop her worrying about her brother. The only brother that she had left and now here he was, lying on the ground lifeless while the other one had been brought back from the dead and had attacked their family. What was the point in any of this? Of this war? Were they going to have to lose more and more people, was that it? He took a minute to compose and steel himself, to tell them that he’ll be the one to tell Molly - just like he’d been the one to tell her about Fabian, that deja vu kicking in - before making his way back into the castle. He hadn’t yet figured out how to say it, there wasn’t really any sort of practice makes perfect for scenarios like this; it got harder and harder every time, the words were lost and the tears dried up. All he could do was to rush up to Molly and immediately wrap his arms around her, clinging to her as though his very life depended on it when really, he was more so doing it to keep her together because he knew very well that she’d fall apart once he opened his mouth, words repeating like a mantra to her cheek.