The shadowy night flitting in through the closed window was all that illuminated their new landing. A usual crash and accompanying of curses rang about, but as Frank rubbed at his eyes and glanced around wearily once more, he squirmed in an old kind of unease at what he found around him.

On a desk stood what looked like a large, cracked, glass spinning top; recognizing it at once as a Sneakoscope from previous descriptions of it, though it was much larger than Harry's had been described.

In the corner on a small table stood an object that looked something like an extra-squiggly, golden aerial. It was humming slightly. What appeared to be a mirror hung opposite on the wall, but it was not reflecting the room. Shadowy figures were moving around inside it, none of them clearly in focus.

It was an exact replica of how Moody's office had been described, and the book sat open and waiting on the desk next to what could undeniably be a hip flask, the chapter title Veritaserum at least promising some full-fledged answers were coming.

Frank stretched uncomfortably as he got to his feet and went to go for the book and get just that, but stopped in surprise when Alice rushed right past him and crouched down behind the desk instead. He didn't know how she'd seen him back there, but now he too saw Regulus curled into himself and sniffling slightly. He hadn't seen the kid so upset-looking since Riddle's reveal, and then his big brother had stepped in and seemed to do something to help alleviate the situation.

Now Sirius Black stood in the corner, huddled with his friends and whispering to each other like old times, seemingly ignoring his existence. He wondered what they were talking about, it looked like some kind of disagreement. Peter Pettigrew certainly kept looking over his shoulder at him, but Sirius Black was stanchily shaking his head and Potter too was crossing his arms and not looking very happy.

It didn't seem they'd reached an agreement when Sirius Black turned away and all three of his friends looked on at him in exasperation, but he walked right past Frank as if he weren't there and then picked up the book to start reading like nothing had happened.

He didn't feel it was his place to ask after, any of them, and while he wanted to go and help Alice he wasn't quite sure what he could say she hadn't already. She didn't seem to be saying much of anything to him, just hovering kindly next to him with that patient smile of hers, waiting for the youngest to tell whatever was on his mind as she so often did for him. He had a feeling that wouldn't work as well on the stubborn Slytherin he'd only vaguely gotten to know, so turned to Lily to see how she was doing.

It was clear she'd been crying, understandable in all this, but the weird thing was she wasn't even trying to hide it. The guarded, cold and harsh girl that had started all this hadn't been around in quite some time, at least with him and Alice she'd relaxed enough she smiled more often than not. He had yet to see her so vulnerable though, and she wasn't even trying to hide it.

As he went towards her though, still listening intently as Sirius Black read out Moody separating Harry up to this very office, she met his eyes and shook her head. He hesitated a few feet away, acknowledging she didn't want company even if she was no longer hiding she needed it, but certainly not secure enough to encroach her himself. He still might have tempted fate anyways, they were at least friends now he was sure, but the impending idea of his Auror future and what he could be leading Alice towards made him even more skittish to encourage any of this. Would he not even be better off breaking up with her rather than risking this future? He sighed, feeling of no help to anyone as he turned his full attention to the book and regretting he'd been beaten to it now more than ever.

The interaction between Harry and Moody was strange enough to hold his attention anyways. He wasn't the only one who quickly lost interest in his own self-reflections as soon all attention was riveted on the book, and not the person holding it for once. Alastor Mad-Eye Moody, the famed Auror, had turned into a Death Eater? Was sharing with pride his master plan to Harry Potter with a wand about to blow off the teenager's face?! Truly this future was beyond all reason and logic, either that or the Auror position was as cursed as the DADA position and it's why the Ministry had such a hard time keeping their policing staff up.

The moment Harry mentioned it, Frank turned wildly to watch the Foe Glass himself now, but no swirling image solidified, no Dumbledore entered the room with a bang, yet here and now for them, the door was still blasted off its hinges, striking right into Peter Pettigrew. He groaned and rolled about freely though, clearly not Stunned as Moody now was in the book.

Remus Lupin went to his side and offered him a hand up while James Potter went to the chair Harry was being held captive in and used his own wand to blast it apart in frustration they were still being attacked during this upheaval of a life!

Still things only got stranger from there, as apparently that wasn't Alastor Moody at all, but an imposter. A supposedly dead one. This world really would never stop fooling them that dead didn't mean dead in this future. The insanity continued as Crouch Jr. under the forced feeling of Veritaserum, explained the whole insane plot. Frank could have kicked himself, or any number of people at how much passed under their nose. He wished he could have gone back and reread every interaction this Fake-Eye had with Harry, and cursed the book for only showing them the chapter they were in- he froze over in disgust as one particular past interaction came to the forefront of his mind. This scum had taken Neville aside, and comforted him during that ghastly lesson over the Unforgivable Curses! He'd been one of the ones to do this to Alice, leave Neville in this future like he was, and had the gall to-

"Frank?"

He only vaguely noticed Lily had come out of her own stupor, he wasn't even sure what she saw on his face. He only had eyes for Alice, who was still listening to Sirius Black read with a look of horror for all the people being murdered in droves, her eyes always on anyone but herself.

When finally all was said and done, it wasn't nearly the amount of answers he would have demanded from this world if he could. He didn't know who to ask of them, or even how to go about getting them himself. Was there even such a thing as an answer to this life anymore that would save them?