Oh, Boy you're the devil

Her concerns had dulled once she had spoken to Emmeline Vance, once she knew that Evan was safe.  She wasn’t afraid of Augustus, but she didn’t want her brother to be caught in the crossfire of what she was sure was eventually to come.  Collateral damage had been expected, and as much as she thought Augustus was the one at fault for not properly warning Priya, she had known Priya.  She had liked Priya.  Augustus could have warned Priya until he had no more words to give and if Priya had her mind set on doing something she would have done it anyway.  And she had liked Priya.  It was unfortunate, but it was also war.

That being said, she knew exactly what her reaction would be had Evan been killed in the attack – it didn’t matter if it was her fault or Evan’s fault.  Nothing would stop her from avenging her brother’s death, and she would start with the people who thought it was a good idea to set a hoard of barely controllable Inferi on a crowded street, inferi without the ability to determine allegiance or innocence or anything in-between.  It wasn’t a great idea, and she had no qualms in admitting that considering it hadn’t been her’s.  In fact, hadn’t she just done that exact thing for an outcome far less permanent than death?  Hadn’t she just left one of her closest friends bleeding out in a field for putting Evan in danger?

Every day that went by since the Diagon Alley attack left her a bit more anxious.  She wasn’t afraid, not really, but it was the unknown that had her on edge.  She was sure that Augustus would come for her – she just wasn’t sure when.  

When he finally called for her she considered not going – but if it was inevitable, and she suspected it was, she’d rather face him on her own terms.  So she spent the morning baking, putting together a dozen muffins, dropping a few drops of poison into just one of the batter-filled circles before popping it into the oven.  As she prepared the basket she took care to wrap each in a different color of plastic wrap, knowing that the poisoned muffin was in the light blue.  If he seemed to be willing to let it go, something she strongly suspected wouldn’t be the case, it would be easy to remove the muffin as she left.  If he didn’t, well – she could only hope that it was Augustus who ate it and not one of the obscene amount of elves the Rookwoods seemed to have.

She was tense, but she was sure that none of it showed on her face as she followed one of the elves upstairs.  She had spent far too long playing a part to let it slip now.  Enough time had passed since Mrs. Rookwood’s death that a friendly smile wouldn’t be out of place.  But as confident as she was in her ability to blend and to wear the appropriate mask for any given situation, she barely managed to hang onto her composure as he slowly turned in his chair.  Had he been taken notes from the super villains in Muggle media?  Although, she supposed it made sense that Augustus had a flair for the dramatic, somewhere deep inside of him.  It didn’t make much sense for Priya to have been the way she was if drama didn’t run through the Rookwood blood.

Carefully she took a seat, keeping her wand tucked away.  Surely he had put up wards or something of the sort.  It was why she and Augustus had always gotten along well enough – they understood each other, something she couldn’t say for most of the death eaters.  She played the part well enough, but she had never understood Bellatrix and Alecto’s blind devotion to the cause.  She wasn’t devoted to anything but whatever it was that gave her the most power, the best ability to set herself and Evan, and Annalise if she ever chose to return to England, up for success.  That was it.  And she suspected Augustus shared at least some of those sentiments.  This wasn’t going to be a physical fight – at least she didn’t think it would be.  At least, it wouldn’t be yet.

“I’m so glad,” she said carefully, forcing her lips into a smile.  “I baked some blueberry muffins last night.  I know it’s a small token, but I didn’t want to come empty handed.  I imagine your elf took them into the kitchen.”  She paused, long enough for him to fill in the silence if he wanted to.  But he didn’t seem to be in any real hurry.  “What can I do for you, Augustus?”

Augustus didn’t falter when he caught a glimpse of Freya’s facade at the unneeded spin of his chair. It was already an interesting choice on his part, one done for his sister, but if he didn’t maintain the illusion of confidence in the act it wouldn’t set up the mood of this conversation. His goal was to sway Freya or to kill her, both could be done, but the outcome would be better for the both of them if she’d been convinced they could fulfill his plan. Otherwise, she might not fully commit, joining him to save her life and running off to expose him gaining the power he held within the death eaters for herself. In this hypothetical he couldn’t blame her, he might do the same if it secured his place, however, he didn’t intend to have that scenario come to fruition. Either she left with him having the confidence in the alliance or she didn’t leave at all.

With a nod of his head, he acknowledged the gift before she’d finished her thought, but not interrupting. “ Yes, Gnox had mentioned those. I’m sure they’ll be delicious, a good snack for tea later and enough to share with the elves.” Augustus finally cracked a smile towards his guest, an act of gratitude for her gift. The truth was the only way the muffins had made it to the kitchen was if Gnox hadn’t been able to find a trash can. He may not have been the closest to Freya, but he’d known she was not stupid. She had to have some idea of why he was calling on her, that could be evident in the lack of sightings of her siblings as they were the best targets to go after that weren’t herself. It could be a coincidence, but he thought the woman far more calculating than to leave what she cared about to chance. She would come with some form of protection, and admittedly muffins poisoned or charmed were a good idea, even if she hadn’t left alive there was potential she get revenge from beyond the grave. However, he also was smart and wouldn’t fall for it.

The silence might have been too long, but he wanted to add tension and more importantly, make sure Priya had enough time to leave. She had seen the show she wanted, now the rest of the meeting might go somewhere he’d rather her not see. She’d seen enough carnage, and she had a view of him that distanced the darker parts of him from her. “ I have a proposal.” He stated, quickly opening his mouth again. “ A business proposal.” Augustus clarified not that he believed Freya would have jumped to the conclusion, but if his sister was around she surely would have and he still couldn’t be sure she’d stopped her spying. They’d discussed she’d leave after the spin, but with Priya, she hardly followed his request if they didn’t suit her. “ However, I find these sorts of meetings more pleasurable with a drink in my hand. May I get you something?” He asked, getting up from behind his desk before she’d even got the chance to answer. August hadn’t been a big drinker, often leaving it to social events, especially those with the dull pureblood families. This wasn’t just hospitality or making the discussion more entertaining, no it was a final stall to ensure Priya was gone and picking up the knife set out for him on the bar cart.

As he walked his gaze moved towards the second story of the study, lingering on the bookshelf with a moving back for spying. If Priya was still there he’d know and his serious glance would be enough to express that she’d been dismissed. When he approached the cart he’d made quick work of preparing her drink and his own, grabbing the blade and pushing it up to his sleeve just in case. With the glasses in hand, he closed the distance between them and offered her the drink before leaning on his desk in front of Freya. If things were to get messy it would be best if he could make a quick attack. “ Now for business, I’ve been working on a project, a rather secretive one, a dangerous one, and I think I may need a partner,” Augustus explained, watching carefully to gauge Freya's reaction. He hadn’t given her too much, but she could still have thoughts.

His plan was being pieced together, a few ideas floating waiting to be paired down and selected, and now he was moving forward bringing in another to aide him. Freya Rosier, while involved in the incident that lead to Priya’s injury, unlike Alecto he was sure she wasn’t married to the cause of the Purebloods who served the dark lord. Not to mention she was one of the more capable ones and could actually be trusted to carry this out with him. If he was wrong disposing of her wouldn’t be something that weighed on him too deeply, he liked her, but she did have a hand in Priya’s incident and it was easily justifiable. 

The house elf was off to fetch Freya from the main hall and bring her to the study, the charms were all set to keep her in and protect him once she’d gotten in the room, and his chair was perfectly situated for the theatrics planned by and practiced with his little sister. It wasn’t long until the heavy door was pulled and light foot steps could be heard walking deeper into the room. Augustus sat for a moment, letting the silence fall over the two and to ensure they were alone, or rather alone from anyone, but Priya who was spying surely. With a push of his foot the chair started a slow spin that’d eventually reveal him to the guest. “ I’ve been expecting you.” He drawled, cringing at himself in his mind, but knew his sister was squealing from excitement. “ Please have a seat, get comfortable.”