Lyra thought that day would be just like any other. She'd eat a delicious breakfast with Lucius and they'd discuss the last letters Draco had sent them. Then he'd leave and be gone for most of the day. She'd either go meet with the Order or with one of her friends/political connections. But, as fate would have it, that wouldn't happen.

Lucius hadn't been gone for only a few hours that day. He had left the night before and still hadn't returned. Lyra knew she should trust him and have faith that he was alright, but if she wouldn't hear anything soon then she would try to get in touch with the Minister. 

To try and calm her nerves, she had decided to finally pick up the Daily Prophet for news that morning. She thought she'd see the same old, some sort of smear campaign on Harry and Dumbledore, along with some fluff pieces to ease the minds of every witch and wizard in Britain. But that's not what she saw. 

MASS BREAKOUT FROM AZKABAN
MINISTRY FEARS BLACK IS "RALLYING POINT"
FOR OLD DEATH EATERS 

 The Ministry of Magic announced late last night that there has been a mass breakout from Azkaban. Speaking to reporters in his private office, Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, confirmed that ten high-security prisoners escaped in the early hours of yesterday evening, and that he has already informed the Muggle Prime Minister of the dangerous nature of these individuals. 

"We find ourselves, most unfortunately, in the same position we were two and a half years ago when the murderer Sirius Black escaped," said Fudge last night. "Nor do we think the two breakouts are unrelated. An escape of this magnitude suggests outside help, and we must remember that Black, as the first person ever to break out of Azkaban, would be ideally placed to help others follow in his footsteps. We think it likely that these individuals, who include Black's cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange, have rallied around Black as their leader. We are, however, doing all we can to round up the criminals and beg the magical community to remain alert and cautious. On no account should any of these individuals be approached."

Lyra felt like she had gotten all the breath knocked out of her. Bellatrix was out of Azkaban. She hadn't seen her sister in over a decade, and for good reason. She was a psychotic woman who loved causing pain and she can't have gotten any saner throughout her tenure around the Dementors. 

But the fact that Bellatrix had been broken out wasn't her only worry. Her sister may be crazy, but she doesn't hurt her family members without reason (Sirius did not count as a family member in her eyes, however, so she quickly made a mental note to make sure they never came face to face). 

Who else had the Death Eaters broken out? If Bellatrix was out, then her husband surely was as well. And if Rodoplhus was free, then she might as well assume his brother was. That was an old friend she hadn't mentally prepared herself to see ever again. The last time she saw him he looked like he was losing his mind. That mind must have been completely lost by now. 

Lyra barely had the opportunity to digest the news when someone burst into her fireplace with the help of Floo powder. Instinctively, she grabbed her wand from her robes, afraid she might have to use it if it was one of the Azkaban escapees. 

To her great relief, it was one of her saner sisters. Narcissa frowned deeply as she noticed the wand pointed in her face. "Good to see you, too, Lyra. I guess you've heard the news."

"I just read it in the Prophet," Lyra spoke quietly, lowering her wand. "Do you know who's escaped? I know it was Bella as much as the thought might terrify me. But do you know any of the other nine?"

"Hector just came home and told me everything," Narcissa whispered, looking quite nervous. She started tapping her fingers on the nearest wooden coffee table for some sense of relief. "All the Lestranges are out at least."

The younger sister released a deep breath, but not in relief. It was more filled with a scared anticipation. She then realized what her sister had said. "Wait, Hector's home? I thought he'd be one of the people breaking everybody out."

"He was. He's back, they're taking everybody to safe houses," Narcissa revealed. Her breathing was quite shallow. "Well, I was home before because there were some Ministry officials who came over to see if Bella was hiding at my house which is ridiculous. Have they been here?"

Lyra hadn't even thought of that. If the Ministry was going to suspect anyone of harboring Bellatrix, it was going to be one of her younger sisters. She had hoped they were still on the Sirius trail so they wouldn't think of it, but they weren't that lucky. 

She shook her head slightly. "No. Nobody's come here. I suspect Lucius must have spoken with someone at the Ministry. Perhaps even Fudge himself. He's not one for loose threads. Always has a plan."

"Maybe." Narcissa didn't seem convinced, glancing towards the entrance hall, waiting for someone to break through the doors. "I just wanted to warn you, just in case. I'm not sure where the inmates are."

"Since Lucius hasn't come home yet, they're probably with him," Lyra deduced, throwing her copy of the Daily Prophet on the sofa next to her. "I wonder where he'll be taking them."

"I just hope they'll be safe." They both knew Narcissa meant something else by those words. She mostly hoped other people (especially muggles and muggleborns) would be safe from them. Nobody knew how sane they were now that they were out. They didn't have something to hold onto like Sirius did. 

They stayed quiet for a few moments, neither of them knowing what else to say. All Lyra wanted was for Lucius to come home and tell her what the hell was going on. Hopefully, she wouldn't be faced with her sister, brother-in-law and old friend so quickly, if ever. 

But that moment, they could hear the front doors be opened quite dramatically. Lyra could recognize those dramatics anywhere. That could only be Lucius. It was expected for a man who had peacocks in the garden to be such a drama queen. 

Lyra and Narcissa exchanged worried glances when they heard hushed voices speaking to one another. They all sounded rather familiar. And they were 100% sure they weren't legally allowed in the manor. 

They stayed put though, not daring to move a muscle. Some irrational part of them said, if they don't move then maybe all the convicted war criminals would go away. But they weren't that lucky. 

"Lyra? Are you home?" Lucius's voice rang out through the manor. For a moment, Lyra wondered if she could just apparate away from her problems. It may be a childish alternative but a possible one. 

But before she could do anything, he pushed the doors open to the parlor, where they were standing with their mouths wide open. He sighed, putting his hands on his hips. "There you are. Hello, Narcissa. I wasn't expecting you."

"Well, here I am, Lucius," Narcissa responded, surprisingly snarkily. She was usually very polite to her brother-in-law, but not today. Today was a day when they all wanted to know what was going on. "I heard you weren't alone."

"No, I'm not. I see you've been reading the Daily Prophet, Lyra." He looked at his wife, who still hadn't said a word to him, only watching him warily. "I think you know who I have with me. Both of you do."

"In our home, Lucius?" Lyra whispered, hoping none of the fugitives could hear her. "What if you're caught keeping them here? You can talk yourself out of a lot, but I'm not sure you can come back from this one."

Lucius chuckled lowly, moving closer to put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Not to worry, Lyra. I've already talked to the Minister and promised him that I would do everything in my power to help him find them. He won't suspect us at all."

"How long are you going to make ut wait out here, Lucius?" a scratchy, female voice asked, seeming quite impatient. Both Lyra and Narcissa froze once again, quickly recognizing their older sister's voice. 

"Azkaban hasn't done anything for your patience, Bellatrix," her husband, Rodolphus, responded. Well, there still wasn't much love lost between that married couple after over a decade in different cells without contact. 

Lucius tensed, looking like he wanted to throw his sister-in-law out of the house already. He forced a very tight smile as he made eye contact with his own wife. "Fine. You can all come in here."

Lyra looked down, she didn't want to make any eye contact with the fugitives. She didn't know which one of them Lucius must have brought with him, except for her sister and brother-in-law. It didn't sound like there were ten of them, after all. 

"A moment, Lucius!" another familiar voice, though male, called out, sounding quite angry. It had been a while since she had heard the voice, but it must have been Antonin Dolohov. He had committed some horrid crimes during the last war. He was clearly arguing with someone with hushed voices.

But a few of them took a step into the parlor, all of them wearing the raggedy outfits all the prisoners in Azkaban wear. They were all quite pale, but they must have been given the opportunity to wash up because they looked quite clean even if their clothes didn't.

"My dear sisters," Bellatrix Lestrange cackled loudly, opening her arms as she approached Lyra and Narcissa. Behind her was Augustus Rookwood and Rodolphus. 

Narcissa was the first to start smiling, though Lyra couldn't see if it was genuine. She truly did have a gift for faking happiness and love for people and things, it just made her a lot more difficult to read. "Bellatrix, so good to see you out and about. I've missed you."

Bellatrix and Narcissa kissed each other's cheeks, whispering between themselves joyfully. Lyra couldn't make out what they said, not that she wanted to. She didn't trust the mental state of any of them. Bellatrix least of all. 

The oldest of the sisters then looked past Narcissa to the youngest, who was watching them warily. She smiled widely, her teeth looking very yellow. "Lyra, aren't you going to say hello to your favorite sister?" 

"Hello, Narcissa," Lyra smiled sarcastically. It wasn't a lie, but she mostly said it to keep Bellatrix at an arm's length for a while longer. 

"Cheeky as always." Bellatrix chuckled, stepping closer to the youngest of them, and pulling her into a hug. Their reunion was definitely not as warm as the one she had with Narcissa, but she honestly didn't care. She was free after all and she was going to fight for the Dark Lord's cause. 

The fighting in the other room had ended and the two men who had been fighting stepped into the room. Antonin Dolohov looked quite pouty, seeming to have lost the argument. He nodded briefly at Lyra and Naricssa in greeting. 

The next person, though, was someone Lyra was very familiar with. He had a scruffy beard now, his hair was longer and he no longer looked as chiseled as he had done when they were teenagers. But there was no doubt that this was Rabastan Lestrange. 

Lyra gaped for a moment. She knew it was a strong possibility that he was going to be the other man in the room, but she didn't want to consider it. She wasn't sure if having him around her would be a good thing or a bad thing. "Rab-"

She wasn't able to finish her sentence because he had rushed at her, knocking the air out of her as he picked her up into a big hug, spinning her around. He was laughing joyously, though his voice sounded quite hoarse, like he had barley spoken in years. That was probably the case. 

He finally let her go and allowed her feet to meet the ground. He was grinning widely, his teeth not as damaged as Bellatrix's. She forced a smile in return, mostly shocked at how he had greeted her. "It's good to see you again, Lyra."

"Eh, you too," the blonde stuttered out, though glancing at Lucius, who looked quite annoyed at the spectacle Rabastan had to make in greeting his wife. "It's really good to see you, Rabastan. It's been so long."

"Far too long," he responded. The raspiness of his voice made it sound darker and it almost sent shivers down her spine. He glanced at Lucius as he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close. "But I suspect it was Lucius who wouldn't let you come to visit me."

She was a bit uncomfortable, shifting in his grip. "No, we aren't really supposed to-"

He only chuckled deeply, not seeming very angry, though his words would suggest otherwise. She suspected he might be angry, just not with her. "I'm sure you could have found a way. You've got enough charm to make the Ministry fall."

Lucius staring at the younger man's hand on Lyra's waist, not seeming very happy with it. "I'd appreciate it if you'd stop touching my wife, Rabastan."

Rabastan turned his head away from Lyra, and his once charming smile turned into an angry scowl within seconds. "And I'd appreciate it if you'd keep your grubby hands out of my business, Lucius."

Lyra could see her husband grip his cane, which contained his wand, and realized that this argument could go further than anybody wanted. She reached up and grabbed Rabastan's cheek, pulling his head to her. His face quickly softened, though he didn't smile.

"Come on, let's not argue. This is a happy occasion. I've missed you, after all." Lyra faked the happy, sweet voice that she had perfected over the years of pretending to be a perfect housewife with the perfect family. She turned to her husband. "Lucius, perhaps we should go prepare a feast to commemorate it."

"Alright," Lucius answered reluctantly. He held his hand out, obviously wishing for her to take it. There was a strictness in his eyes that led her to believe that she didn't have much of a choice in the matter. "Come, Lyra. Let's start preparing."

Lyra smiled briefly at Rabastan, who seemed confused at the way she was acting. She never acted like that before he went to Azkaban. She then took Lucius's hand and allowed him to lead her into the kitchen in the next room. 

"You seemed awfully happy to see Lestrange again," Lucius commented off-handedly. He didn't even look at her, but he did let go of her hand. "I thought you didn't think it was a good idea to have them here."

"Of course I don't!" she hissed, forcing him to look at her. Her sweet exterior had evaporated into nothing but annoyance. She crossed her arms across her chest. "But what was I mean to do? Yell in his face?"

"Well, that's an option." He shook his head when she sent him an annoyed look. "Look, this is only temporary. A few days, a couple of weeks at most. Then they'll be moved to a new location and you don't have to think about this anymore. It's my concern, not yours. Even now, don't worry."

"Oh, I'm sorry, is this not supposed to be my concern?" Lyra asked incredulously, raising a cold eyebrow at him. "It became my concern the moment you decided to bring my sister, her husband and Rabastan freaking Lestrange into our house. And Antonin and Augustus, who are definitely going to steal something. I never found my pearl necklace after they came to visit all those years ago."

"Then lock up your jewelry," the blond man retorted. "I don't want them here either, trust me. But I can't say no to the Dark Lord. The best I could do was convince him to split them up. Hector are bringing the others to his and Narcissa's house. They've got the room after Marcus moved out."

"And he didn't tell Narcissa? That's not very husband-ly of him, is it? I suppose that's a trend with our husband," Lyra muttered the last part bitterly, looking away. She would have liked some notice about what was happening, herself. 

"I didn't know until last night myself." Lucius took a breath, not in the mood to have an argument with his wife. After the night he'd had he was exhausted. He reached out to take her hands, who were shaking, into his. "It's going to be alright. Just breathe, fake a smile and be on your best behavior until they leave. You can do that, can't you?"

"Who do you think you're talking to?" she scoffed. "There's nobody better than me at that."

Lucius smiled slightly. Then somebody opened the door to the kitchen and neither of them were very surprised at who it was. Rabastan, of course. He looked like he had finally gotten the opportunity to run a brush through his hair in the past few minutes. 

"Is everything alright in here? I'm not breaking the lovebirds up, am I?" Rabastan joked. For a moment, Lyra was confused. Then she remembered that the last time she had seen him, her and Lucius had a relatively happy marriage and the annoyance Lucius had shown at him touching her wouldn't have given him any other idea.

Lyra tightened her grip on Lucius's hand, though not sure why. Some part of her didn't want to reveal that their marriage was a complete failure to him. "No, we're fine. We were just discussing the menu? You still love pies, don't you? I was thinking we could have some for dessert."

Rabastan smiled. "That sounds wonderful."

Lyra and Lucius exchanged glances, both of them looking a bit nervous, though their stoic faces didn't betray that to their guest. They both knew it would be very interesting to have them in their home. They just hoped they would get out as soon as possible. 

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A/N: Hope you enjoyed!! This is the start of a shift in Lyra's story that's going to be felt in a few chapters. If you'll like it is another story, but it'll shift anyway <3