❝ FOR FREEDOM.
FOR T R U T H.
AND FOR LOVE. ❞
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
𝐁𝐑𝐎𝐊𝐄𝐍 𝐂𝐑𝐎𝐖𝐍.
1978. Where a squib and a mischief-maker cross
paths at the crux of a war that would eventually
tear apart everything - and everyone - they...
a/n:this chapter is a bit on the lengthier side but it's all one event, so I couldn't find a suitable scene to divide it into two parts. And honestly, I like having all these scenes in the same chapter. Hopefully this chapter still reads well enough because things keep moving along quickly. There's lots of action in this, and, well, important stuff happens. happy reading !
p.s.: sorry about the ending in advance. don't hate me.
*warnings: a few mentions of violence, so expect some blood and gore ahead.
⋆ ˚｡⋆ ✧──────────────✧⋆｡˚ ⋆
❨ chapter twelve.❩ ❛ the writing on the wall. ❜
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
⋆ ✧ ⋆
SET SOME 100 yards around the mansion, the protective enchantments had not incinerated the intruders, nor had they set off warning bells. In hindsight, that should have alerted him of something being amiss. But in the moment, however, Moody thought little of it; surely this was a sign that the Death Eaters were not expecting to be found. They could be very ignorant, this Moody had learnt over the years. Besides, there was always the underlying knowledge that, should things go awry for the Death Eaters, they did not need elaborate curses and wards to protect themselves; they had the greatest weapon of all: a lack of hesitation to use the Avada Kedavra.
And yet, in spite of every fiber within him screaming to not admit it, Moody had to hand it to the Death Eaters: their defenses had been clever. Not complex, no, Moody admitted to himself bitterly as he raced across the unkempt grounds, but definitely effective. The enchantments around the place had removed the disillusionment charms that had been concealing the team of Aurors, leaving them exposed and vulnerable no matter which side they came from. If anyone within the safehouse had been keeping an eye out for intruders — and Moody was under no delusions of this not being the case — then twenty Aurors materializing out of thin air could not have gone amiss by the Death Eaters.
A blur of blue tartan raced past Moody, Frank Longbottom's taller stature affording him a clear advantage. Not that it will help him much longer, thought Moody. He continued sprinting across the hedge-strewn grounds, keeping an eye on the Aurors around him as they too neared the mansion. The Death Eaters would surely have been alerted of their presence by now, and even as they drew closer and closer to their destination, the Death Eaters could have had enough time to strategize, hide, or worse, escape.
Praying against all odds that McKinnon's anti-apparition wards would hold, Moody watched as Scrimgeour reached the ornate front doors. Wands held aloft, Longbottom, Skye Dawlish, and the Weasley twins already stood on either side of it. Skye mouthed an all clear as she finished inspecting the door for jinxes and hexes, and Scrimgeour held up his palm. Behind him, all movement ceased; Moody stood a few paces from the grizzly-haired man, who silently gestured at some of the other Aurors to encircle the building.
