"The Ministry has Fallen"

August 1997, 2 months later

A storm was in full force when an Owl burst through a hatch built into the outer dining room wall of the Rier Estate.

The poor creature was sodden, holding tightly to a dripping newspaper wrapped in twine, as it landed on the table in front of Théo. Théo looked at the owl with wide eyes and a mouth full of food, completely at a loss what to do with the creature. They had heard of the English using messenger owls but had never been confronted with one until now. It looked like a drowned rat.

Fortunately, Erin re-entered the room with their drinks in hand and pursed her lips at the state of the owl.

"Look at you," she spoke gently to the owl, putting the drinks down and accepting the newspaper from them. She waved her hand towards the fireplace and a great fire erupted. While the owl flew to sit beside the fire and dry off, Erin passed a hand over the bound newspaper to dry it- the magic preventing the ink from running any further- and unrolled it carefully. The ink had all but ruined the back page of the paper, but it was the front page which made her heart race. "Merlin's beard..."

"Ez?" Théo stood, abandoning their food, and rested their chin on Erin's shoulder as they read the headlines. "Mon Dieu," they muttered as their girlfriend grabbed their hand and ran from the room.

They paused in the foyer, long enough for Erin to listen to the house and hear her family speaking in the lounge. When they burst in, it was as if the entire family had gathered with the same news although Erin was the only one holding the newspaper. Dexter was present, which was her biggest shock since he was often in Hogsmeade during the summer break.

"Have you seen this?" She held up the paper.

Everyone was scanning the headline which dramatically announced the death eater's siege on the Ministry of Magic when the window burst and a ball of light floated to the centre of the room- a patronus.

The wind of the storm rattled the windows now that it could enter the room and the fire flickered in the fireplace. Christian raised himself from his seat as the patronus seemed to suck the light from the room. Tendrils of ghostly white smoke whipped fled from the light, forming images of ministry officials running in terror. as a voice echoed from it.

"The ministry has fallen. The minister for magic is dead. They are coming. They're coming."

The patronus faded, bringing the light back into the room as the wind whistled through the window. Everyone was shocked, unsure of what to say or do. Dexter looked up at Christian, who inclined his head to the window. The glass started to mend itself and fix back into place.

"What was that?" Théo asked, pointing to the spot where the patronus had once been.

"That was the patronus of Kingsley Shacklebolt, one of my old colleagues." Christian looked around, sharing a concerned look with Irene before reaching out to Serenity. "They'll be coming for you."

Serenity's eyes widened and she sunk down onto the sofa, watching the fire slowly start to rebuild itself.

"We won't let them." Erin spoke, confidence in her voice despite her grip on Théo's hand tightening. "Never again." She met Serenity's eyes and nodded, as if her cousin needed further confirmation.

Serenity tugged at Chrisitan's sleeve. "They'll hunt down Lakita if they can't get to me."

"Do we even know where she is?" Irene interposed, unwillingly to let her family go into danger without a serious plan. "You don't even have a wand, Ren."

"Since when did a Rier need a wand?" Serenity stared down her aunt for a moment, feeling a tiny remnant of her pride bubbling up.

"Since you-"

"You can use mine." Dexter cut in, earning a glare from Irene but ignoring it nonetheless as he removed his wand from his pocket. "Laurelwood, like yours was." He held it out to her without hesitation. In truth, he kept his wand for show as a Professor of Hogwarts to prevent any assumptions of power division among his colleagues. Besides, the last time a Rier used wandless magic in Hogwarts it demonstrated how vulnerable the castle truly was.

"I don't know any spells anymore," Serenity mumbled, handling the wand with care. "It used to come so naturally but I- I forget."

"I'll teach you," Dexter offered, pulling her off the couch. His lip twitched as he reminded her, "I am a professor, after all."

*

Thankfully, Serenity was not only an easy student now that she was older but she was also a fast learner. She had picked up her old lessons easily and, by the end of the next day, she was ready to retrieve her sister. Dexter tried to warn her against acting too brashly but she insisted on going that night.

Irene was tightening Christian's scarf around his neck, batting Hayley's hands away whenever she tried to help or adjust a stray piece of hair. There always seemed to be a slight bit of tension between the two women since Irene had returned. Hayley tried to give them space to be together. She could see that Irene was still in mourning, but each night she saw the consequence of Christian having to substitute for their other sisters- who had died.

It was taxing, to be the only two remaining when they were used to being five. But, Hayley knew her husband was learning to move on and Irene was not helping.

"Come back to me," Irene told him as she put his wand into his hand and stepped away. She watched him expectantly until he nodded assuredly. Then, she turned and walked away.

Christian heaved out a breath and finally turned to his wife. Hayley smiled up at him, her eyes constantly warm and comforting. He found himself melting into her arms as she cupped his cheeks in her hands and pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek, "I'll be waiting for you, love."

"Don't lose sleep over me."

"I would never," she told him half-heartedly, "but I still worry."

"He'll be okay." They looked around as Serenity descended the stairs. She had changed from her usual loungewear into black trousers and a form-fitting beige top with a loose turtleneck. She had stuffed the cuffs of her trousers into mid-calf boots and finally had her hair brushed up into a ponytail. Her coat billowed around her as she half-jogged down the stairs to join them with a smile on her face. "He's got me."

"Are you wearing makeup?" He asked her, noticing the straight line of eyeliner tracing her upper eyelid and flicking out just past her eyelashes. Her smile faltered.

"Is it too much? Erin did it for me, she found the boots as well, we had to alter them but she said it really brought the outfit together and I want to look like me for Lakita. I mean, the last time she saw me I did ki-"

"Ren." Hayley interrupted her, holding out her arms and taking hold of Serenity by the wrists. "You look beautiful."

"Really?" They smiled at each other and Serenity allowed Hayley to hug her. She mumbled a 'thank you' into her shoulder and Hayley simply hugged her tighter. When they drew back, Hayley glanced over at Christian, who was recomposing himself and pretending as though his mind hadn't been elsewhere. "We, uh, should probably go." Serenity brushed herself down, double taking as she walked past the woman she realised was her stepmother. "Thank you," she said again before bee-lining for the front door.

"Look out for each other, you two."

*

Serenity and Christian apparated to Diagon Alley the second they were off the Estate. Christian had purposefully apparated them into an alcove across the street from their destination where Serenity hoped her sister had remained.

The alley was mostly run-down. It had been under siege for months now, most of the shop windows smashed in and Ollivander's Wand Shop completely burnt to the ground. She glimpsed the wreckage briefly as they crossed the alley to the ice cream store and felt a tug on her heart.

Christian rattled the doorknob, unsurprised to find it locked. Serenity kept watch as he drew his wand, becoming distracted as memories flooded back to her. Memories she had dug so deep she'd forgotten they were there. For a moment she saw Herself and Merritt running down the street, she saw a towering half-giant laughing with her father- Hagrid, she reminded herself- and, in the empty street in front of her, she remembers causing the death of multiple death eaters in order to save herself from the same fate.

She winced as the shop bell rang and hurried in behind Christian, who locked the door behind them.

"Lumos," she spoke, holding up Dexter's wand. It was the only spell she had remembered since escaping Azkaban without any encouragement.

The ice cream shop was covered in a layer of dust, the freezer lay dormant and empty at the register and the chairs were all stacked onto the tables. As Christian lit his wand too, Serenity approached the front desk and lifted the hatch to allow them access to the back of the store.

"Fortescue?" Christian called out as Serenity passed through the beaded curtain wall.

To her left was a kitchen space, occupied mainly by a deep sink and shelves stacked with bowls and serving glasses. At the end of the room was a large freezer which stored the ice cream.

To her right was a set of stairs which led to a single door which, no doubt, led to the flat situated above the store.

Serenity knocked on the door. She could see candlelight flickering under the doorframe and stepped down a step, waiting to hear anything. There was scuffling somewhere in the distance but no sign of approach. She contemplated knocking again when a glass smashed inside.

"Alohamora!" She directed her wand at the door and it popped open. Allowing herself entry, she stepped into a hallway lit by a spent candle attached to a wall brace. The surrounding rooms, revealed by two mirrored archways, were in darkness. One, at the front of the building, likely remained unlit to prevent anyone from knowing if the occupants were home. There was scuffling in the room to the left, desperate grunting and the occasional spell being tossed.

Christian rushed forward stepping into the room to see what the commotion was.

"Expelliarmus!" He shouted as Serenity entered the room to provide light to the space. "Stupefy!"

A woman, with dark hair and dark clothes, dropped her wand and dropped the ground as her body seized up. Her target, who was standing behind the fridge door holding a mirrored serving tray, rushed forward to claim the wand and aimed it at them.

In the dim wandlight it was hard to see anything. Christian held out his hand and summoned a ball of light which floated to the ceiling and rested in the centre of the room.

Now, they could see that the target was a woman with blonde ringlets, still brandishing the serving tray along with the wand. She watched them blankly for a moment, prepared to defend herself, before realising who they were. Her hold on the tray faltered as her gaze flickered between the two. Sure, Christian had more wrinkles, and Serenity no longer held her youth as well as she did, but Lakita would recognise a Rier when she saw one.

Her arms dropped in relief and disbelief.

"You have no idea how exhausting Fortescu was to live with."

She abandoned the tray but kept the wand as she wrapped her arms around Christian and Serenity.

"Where is he?" Christian asked, looking around the apartment.

"Who?" Lakita stood back before realisation struck her. "Oh, he died last year when the death eaters came for the store." She spoke in the deadpan of someone used to losing people. "I wasn't sure who was still around or how to even contact any of you so I stayed here. They took his wand, of course, but I had to deal with his body."

"His-" Serenity blinked, shaking her head as she processed everything her sister was telling her. "Are you okay?" Her gaze strayed to the death eater on the floor.

"Me?" Lakita glanced back at the woman as well and shrugged. "Yeah, they scout the shops every now and then for squatters to recruit but they never notice when one of their own goes missing." A sneer settled on her lips as she looked at the death eater a little longer. Finally, she turned back to her sister and father. "Why are you here?"

"The ministry's been taken, nowhere's safe anymore so we came to get you." Christian watched her expectantly, his light dimming as his anxiety creeped in. He wanted to leave this place, the longer he stayed the more it reeked of death.

"That's the only reason?" She countered, crossing her arms. Nodding at Serenity, she continues, "you've been free for years now, why didn't you come before."

Looking down at her feet, Serenity's shoulders dropped in disappointment. She was so excited to see her sister again. She'd thought about it for so long but never felt strong enough to carry out the task herself. In fact, the longer she was away from the Estate, the more she could feel her grasp on herself slip.

"I lost my magic," she mumbled, lowering her head.

The room was silent for a moment. Lakita watched Christian look between the death eater on the ground and over his shoulder at the windows, his light flickered every time he looked somewhere new. Serenity shuffled on her feet, twisting to balance on the side of her feet and tugging at the neck of her shirt.

"Okay," Lakita said quietly, uncrossing her arms and approaching them, "let's go."