Chapter 44
Lily, and McKinnon rushed through the cabins. McKinnon supported her friend with her shoulder as they walked past, crying and screaming, friends and unconscious Death Eaters. The sounds of the battle between the Heamaster and the dark Lord could be heard all over the Express, and the train shook from the impact of their magics, yet they cared not, for they were searching for Alder.
Someone had seen him running to the last cabin, and just as they reached it, the sight of the cabin made them both gasp for it had been torn apart. The walls and the roof were gone, and on the ground lay two bodies, belonging to two very familiar people.
"No," McKinnon and Lily gasped at the same time, as they rushed towards the two bodies, and as Lily ran to her brother, whose body was covered in steel, drenched in his blood, she ran towards the body of Narcissa Black, who lay still on the ground.
She touched her face, and found it cold as she tried to shake her away, she felt no life in her. And as she put her fingers on the carotid, she felt no pulse, and her heart sank at once.
"She is dead," she whispered, and saw Lily pale at her words, as she turned towards her brother.
"NO! NOOO!" she gasped, and his condition was very bad, and the steel had cut into half his face, and it was drenched in blood. There were splatters on the ground as well.
"I can't feel a pulse. I can't..." and McKinnon rushed forward, as Lily began to wail, for she could not believe it. She could not believe it.
"NOO! ALDER! ALDER!" Lily screamed, yet she felt it. A small rustle on air through his nose.
"NO! He is alive! He is still alive...."
ALDER EVANS
"WHAT!" Lily's shock was obvious, as the Evans family all gathered in their home before him and Lily were to leave for the school once again. Most of the students, still attending the school this year, were at the castle, but he and Lily had been allowed to come home because of his unique circumstances.
"You can't be serious," Luly questioned, aghast at his decision, but he had already made up his mind.
"I am," he answered, as Lily turned towards her parents.
"You can't let him do that," she turned to them in desperation, hoping to gain some support for her outrage. Yet their parents simply turned to each other as his father opened his mouth.
"And what do you intend to do?" he asked, and he handed him the letter he had gotten yesterday, and he was much thankful to the Black Family patriarch for arranging this.
"The Ministry is offering me a chance to intern at the DMLE in recognition of my talents," and Lily was already shaking her head.
"They were impressed by the skills I displayed in my two confrontations with...." and he did not dare to utter that accursed name, as his father read through the offer letter.
And while it was termed as an internship, the truth was that he was being hired for he was amongst the few wizards and witches bold enough to face Voldemort head on. That and Arcturus Black needed an instrument to exact his revenge upon the people who had killed his family, and he had chosen him for that task.
"They want him to fight in this war. Please, you cannot let him do that. He is still underage," and he was technically.
"I will be seventeen in January, and will be an adult legally," and then he turned towards Lily.
"This is my decision, Lily," and she knew better than most what this would entail. Their parents had an inkling as well, but only she truly understood the gravity of this. Simply, put, the Ministry was asking him to become a soldier, and he was agreeing to it.
"He will be fighting in the war. You cannot let him do that!" Lily asked, and their mother was crying already, yet she refused to say anything.
"Lily," their father finally turned towards the redhead.
"Let me deal with this," he said, and she was visibly frustrated as tears welled up in her eyes, and he could understand her fears. But he had to do this. He had to stop Voldemort, if not for himself then for her, for them, for everyone else.
"Always! It's always like this," she eeked out in frustration.
"Look at him! For God's Sake, look at his face!" and the scars from that battle.
"Look at what has become of him just because he got himself involved in matters he should have left to the adults. And I won't let him to do that again! I won't..."
"Lily, please..." he tried to say, but she was done listening as she jumped out of her chair.
"NO!" she shouted at him, as a tear fell down her cheek.
"You nearly died! I held you in my arms that day! ME!" and in all their years together, she had never screamed at him like this, but now she was literally screaming her throat out.
"You nearly died! DIED YOU FOOL! AND I CAN'T LIVE THROUGH THAT AGAIN! I CAN'T!" and she was both angry and desperate.
"Lily, please let him speak at least," their father added, and their mother was now crying openly, wimpering as Lily shook her head.
"You support him! WHY! WHY WOULD YOU EVER LET HIM PUT HIS LIFE IN DANGER LIKE THIS!" and she was out of control, and now he had angered both his sisters.
"You wouldn't understand," their father tried to explain, but Lily was in no mood to listen.
"You are right! I won't because I care for him! Because I..." and her frustrations won over as she glanced between him and their parents.
"If you allow him to do this, and something happens to him! Anything!" and the tears and the rage now slurred her words.
"Then I won't forgive you! Any of you!" and with that, she stormed off.
"Lily! Please wait! Lily..." Their mother ran after her, leaving him alone with their father, who still held the letter from the DMLE in his hands. The room remained filled with silence, and he could see his father's frustrations in his clenched hands.
"Are you really sure about this, Alder?" he asked, and there was concern and doubt in his voice, and he knew that his answer would only add to his disappointment, but he had made up his mind.
"I am," he replied.
"And what if I were to say no?" and he would need his signatures on both the offer letter and the application for pulling out of Hogwarts since he was still not an adult in the eyes of the law.
"Well, I could try to get emancipated, but I won't do that. But September will end soon, and in three months' time, I will be legally an adult. So..." and the rest was clear to him.
His refusal would only push this by some three months, and so he nodded. If he was angered by his words, he did not show it, as he gave a sigh.
"Your mother is much against this as well. She won't say anything, but she is afraid for you, Alder. She wants you to come with us to Australia," and he shook his head.
"I know, but I need to own up to my actions. These Death Eaters. They killed someone very dear to me, and they need to be stopped before they can do that again," and he gritted his teeth in rage.
"I am going to destroy them. I am going to make sure that they never lay a hand on those dear to me ever again," and he was acting not just for revenge, but in anticipation as well. For soon enough, the very wand that had killed Narcissa would find itself aimed at Lily and their parents.
He had to act to make sure that such a thing never happens. He had to break that wand before such a time.
"So be it," their father sighed, as he rose from the sofa.
"Come with me," and so Alder followed, until they were in the garage, and they had sold the car and the House, everything had been packed for their trip. So the garage was more or less empty except for a box lying there on the table.
It was an old wooden box, and it seemed recently cleaned.
"Your grandfather gave this to me before he passed on, though he hoped that I would never have to use it," and with that, he opened the box to reveal a revolver.
"I never had to use it, but I had hoped to pass it on to you with the same promise. I just never thought that you would have to use it," and it was clean and well oiled, and though Alder did not know much about guns, he could see that it was well cared for.
"The truth is, I don't know much about your and Lily's world. But I do know war. I know how dangerous it can be, and the toll that it can take on a person," and so he closed off the box and handed it to him.
"I won't stop you. But I want you to promise me something, son," and he asked.
"When this is all over, you'd better bring this back to me," and Alder took the box.
"I will...."
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MARLENE MCKINNON
The Great Hall was emptier and quieter than it had ever been, as the school continued to reel from the aftereffects of that heinous attack on the Express. Marlene still had nightmares about that day, and just thinking about the state in which they had found Alder and Narcissa made her gut wrench in agony.
Those of them in the Study Group had tried their best to put up a fight, and though the Patronus charm had been added to the group as a bonus quest, many of them had mastered the charm, which was the only effective tool against the Dementors.
It was the only reason they were still alive. The Death Eaters had expected that the Dementors would cripple them, yet they were able to repel the monsters and put up quite a fight.
They fought, and persevered, and just as they had hoped, help came. And in all her life, she had only ever heard rumors about the Headmaster's prowess as a wizard, and now she finally understood why he was hailed as the strongest wizard of their time.
She had felt it. His magic. It was powerful enough to have a direct physical effect, and the very air had begun to boil with his rage, as he tore through all of the Death Eaters in seconds. The whole cloud of dementors that they barely held back with their combined efforts was decimated in the blink of an eye, by a singular spell from his wand.
It was the same Patronus charm that they used, and yet the difference in power was unimaginable. It was not something new. Even Alder's patronus was stronger than theirs, but the Headmaster's had been on another level.
And speaking of him, today was the day Alder was supposed to return. She had heard rumors that he had come to the dorms last night, and she had spotted Lily's things in the dorms as well, though neither of them had yet to come down to Great Hall.
Unlike the years before, there had been no fancy feast, and even the Sorting had barely lasted a few minutes, as the Sorting Hat sang them a song encouraging unity and perseverance.
Her eyes continuously glanced towards the gates, and yet still there was no sign of Lily or Alder. So, she was forced into standing up and walking up to James and his friends, hoping that they were better informed than her.
"James, have you seen Lily or Alder?" she asked, and the boy frowned.
"Alder's back," and he seemed surprised by those words.
"Yes. Lily's bags were unpacked, and I even heard a first year mention that they spotted Alder in the corridors yesterday," and the boys exchanged glances.
"How could that be?" Sirius began, and they were going to have classes from today, and the twins had been granted a special permission to spend the day at home after the funeral, but they were supposed to be here today.
And yet half an hour remained till the start of the first class, and yet there was no sign of either Lily or her twin.
"How could what be?" she asked, growing more and more worried.
"Alder's bags. They were all gone today," Sirius added, and for a second, she could not believe it.
"We just thought that he was taking a bit of a longer leave, but if Lily's already back," James began, and she finished the sentence for him.
"He's left the school," and the words hit the table hard, as the four marauders all perked up at the insinuation.
"But how could he do that? The year's already begun," questioned Remus, and that may be true for any other year. But this was not a normal year.
"We just thought both him and Lily were taking a few more days, but if she is already back then," Sirius began, and suddenly the doors to the Great Hall opened once more, as she looked up and saw the familiar face of her friend walk in.
"Lily..." and the entire Hall turned their heads to look at the girl, many hoping to see her twin beside her. Yet despite waiting for seconds, no other person walked in after her, as she ran to her.
"How are you?" she asked, and the red-haired girl bit her lip as she answered with a small nod.
"Fine," and her voice was hoarse as she answered her.
"We didn't know that you were coming back today," James asked, and Lily nodded.
"There was also nothing else to do," and all of them hesitated to ask the question. Sirius, though, pushed ahead as he asked.
"Where is Alder?" and Lily's face shifted in an instant, as worry and rage took over her face.
"He can go to hell!" she uttered as she sat down.
"Why...."
"He has left, hasn't he?" Sirius asked, and his expression was one of understanding as Lily gave a reluctant, weary nod.
"Yes," and she seemed nearly tearful as she continued.
"He is going to join the DMLE on an internship," and that was a surprise to them.
"That means....." she gasped.
"He is going to fight," James added.
"No," Sirius cut in, looking rather somber.
"He is going to get his revenge!"
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