"Tonks had her baby just hours after you left. She was in labor for nearly 6 hours. The attack happened just hours after Teddy was born. The St. Claire Manor was ambushed and we were all taken by surprise," Celestina started.
"Iniya, Darren, Estella, and Charlie have all gone to help a few allies in Ireland while Althena was at Remus and Tonks' cottage helping out with Teddy. We were short of a few hands. We were walking out of the library when we heard a loud explosion. The protective spells Romare put up crumbled down before we even knew we were there."
"We went to check out what happened, and found Romare, Maxwell, Margot, and Luca fighting off Morana Van Vries, Grayson Hemlock, and six other Death Eaters."
"Six?" Aurora worriedly asked.
Augustus nodded sadly, "Romare yelled at us to run before we could help. M-Maxwell, he..."
"He what?"
"He jumped in front of Augustus when Morana tried to hit him with the Killing Curse. Maxwell's gone," Celestina sadly said.
"We apparated here immediately after."
Aurora shook her head, "I'm going to help."
Celestina stopped her, "No. We have a job to do."
"They could all be dead!"
"If so there's no point in going back and risking our lives," she reasoned.
The three apparated back to Harry, Hermione and Ron.
"That was longer than a second!" Harry snapped.
"What are you two doing here?" Ron asked.
"The St. Claire Manor was ambushed. Maxwell is gone."
Hermione sighed sadly and Ron's face turned in worry, "What if they attacked my home as well?"
"I think they were looking for us," Celestina said.
"The Dark Lord knows about the Horcruxes in America," Aurora informed Augustus and Celestina.
"Brilliant," Augustus mumbled.
Back at the St. Claire Manor, Romare looked around his wrecked home as Margot cried over Maxwell's body.
Althena apparated to the home, "Dear Rowena..." she said in horror.
Ben walked out from hiding, eyes widening at the sight.
"They wanted Augustus and Celestina. Didn't put up much of a fight after they escaped," Romare muttered before walking to Margot. He bent down next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Margot..."
"No!" she wailed.
"Come on, love. We can't leave him like this," Romare quietly pleaded.
She eventually turned her body into his. Romare wrapped his arms around her quivering frame as he stared at Maxwell in horror, and guilt.
Another grave was dug that night. Fred was absent from the burial.
"I sent a Patronus to the four in Ireland, they should be back soon," Althena quietly told Romare as he watched Margot cry over Maxwell's grave.
"It's my fault," he quietly said.
"What?"
"The Protection Spells. I haven't been doing them as much lately, got so busy with missions and Tonks and... they weren't as strong and powerful. If I kept up with them, he'd be alive."
Althena lit a cigarette, "Blaming yourself won't do you any good. It's already happened. All you can do now is be there for her."
"She just lost her bloody twin, Althena," Romare said, his voice cracking, "Her twin. How do you recover from that?"
"I reckon you don't. You learn to live with it."
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