Chapter eleven; Elf and Wizard boxing match

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Olivia dropped the Daily Prophet onto the kitchen table in the middle of her pacing. She placed both hands onto her hips and stalked backwards and forwards, shaking her head and mumbling to herself quietly. She was absolutely livid, and the trembling in her fingers proved so. The Wizarding World was falling to shit even quicker than she had anticipated. She was growing irritated quickly and was sick of Grimmuald Place already, only having been there a week or so. The other three sat at different places on the kitchen table as the front page stared at them in the face.

Harry Potter, the undesirable number one, followed at a close second by Olivianna Black.

If she wasn't sick.

By now the words in the paper had been drilled into her skull, the amount of times she had proof read it just to be sure was unbelievable. She shook her head as she turned again, "Pius fucking Thicknesse." She swore, "Minster of Magic? What an absolute joke." She laughed humorously.

Ron and Hermione shared anxious glances, "Liv—"

The girl slammed her hands down on the table, "Him and Umbrigbe restoring us to former glory?!" She spat bitterly, "Temple of fucking death more like it .. working with the scum of the earth to hunt and track down muggle-borns."

Hermione cleared her throat, "Olivia it's alright—"

"No Hermione it's not!" She snapped, "Your name is listed in that paper, you are listed as a person wanted for questioning. How long will it be until we have Snatchers on our tails? Not only that but every employee in the Ministry has to submit for questioning .. Ron, your dad."

"I'm trying not to think about it, but thanks for the reminder Olivia." Ron grumbled.

She dropped her head and shook it to herself, "We need to make some sort of plan here. We can't just sit around and wait for Kreacher to find Fletcher. What if he doesn't find him? It won't be long before they find us, and when they do we're all as good as dead." Olivia said, pushing off the table and leaving the room.

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They were sat in the living room a few hours later when Olivia had eventually calmed herself down to a point where she didn't feel like she would implode. She laid out on the black sofa with her nose in several books. Her and Hermione had 'borrowed' some books on advanced spells, potions and all sorts of other things from Madame Pince out of the Restricted Section before they left Hogwarts. Olivia had one about defensive magic open and resting across her stomach while she read the one Dumbledore had given her in his will.

So far the tale of Olivianna as the girl had called it was providing her with nothing she didn't already know. She grew fed up quickly and had thrown the book into various different walls over the short span of time she had been reading it. Olivia was only twenty or so pages in, but she felt like she was reading her life story or something bizarre like that.

Over at the piano Hermione was attempting to teach Ron a muggle song that sounded nothing like it was supposed to. And even though Ron was a menace playing the piano him and Hermione being so close together and smiling brought a rare smile to her face.

Hermione laughed as Ron played out of tune again, "No .. here, try this." Both her and Harry turned around to watch them interact, Harry looking away from where the Golden Snitch floated in front of him. Hermione recited the melody again, playing it slowly for Ron to grasp. Only Ron wasn't watching Hermione's fingers, instead his gaze was transfixed on her face. Olivia's heart warmed watching the two. When Hermione finished, she looked up to Ron who looked down to the piano again.

He tried once more, correctly playing the first few notes but straying back out of tune once more. Hermione laughed again as he continued to play and Olivia tore her gaze from the pair to look to Harry, "You're losing a winning battle there mate." She said casually. Harry nodded his head once for her to continue, "You can stare at it all you want but it's not going to give you what you want."

Hermione stepped out from the seat at the piano and walked over to the sofa Olivia was sat on, lifting up her legs and sitting down before placing them on her lap, "Don't listen to her." Hermione said, looking to Olivia, "They have flash memories. When Scrimgeour first gave it to you, I thought it might open at your touch .. Dumbledore might've hidden something inside of it."

As Hermione paused the only sound that could be heard was the radio Ron had playing, tuned to the list of missing people. It was awfully depressing to listen to, but neither Harry, Hermione nor Olivia had the balls to ask Ron to turn it off. In some strange way they all found a form of comfort from it, not hearing the names of loved ones, family and friends kept them motivated to carry on.

Just as Ron turned in his seat at the stool of the piano and opened his mouth to say something the sound of falling pots clattered throughout the empty house. While puzzled at first, Olivia quickly pushed herself up off the sofa and threw her book into the cushion, "If that's somebody other than Kreacher I think I'll scream." She said out loud, passing the three and walking quickly into the kitchen.

They had anticipated Kreachers arrival for days. And if this was him and he had Mundungus Fletcher there was a chance they could finally start hunting the Horcruxs.

Olivia had one hundred and ten percent not expected to see what was happening in the kitchen. She found herself annoyed at the situation but had to fight to bite back a laugh regardless. Harry, Ron and Hermione ran in after her, just as Olivia had turned to face away from the scene. She pulled her hands through her hair and shook her head, taking a moment before turning back around to see how whatever this was, was going to pan out.

Kreacher and Dobby, two house-elves no taller than Olivia's legs, were wrestling a thief. Mundungus Fletcher to be exact. But the comical thing about it, was that it looked like Kreacher and Dobby were winning the fight against a sort-of fully grown wizard.

"Harry Potter!" Dobby said, looking to them while hanging off Mundungus' left leg. Olivia's had to force back an astonished grin, "How long it's been."

"Get off me!" Fletcher grunted and the three continued to wrestle with Kreacher sat on his shoulders until they all fell to the ground, pots and pans falling with them.

Mundungus stood up quickly as Kreacher moved to close the door behind them and a pan hit the wizard on the back of his head, "As requested," Kreacher said, "the thief."

Fletcher has his wand in his hand that Hermione quickly took as her own, "Expelliarmus!"

"Whatcha' playing at?" Fletcher asked annoyed, "setting a pair of bleeding house elves on me."

Dobby climbed up onto the table quickly to defend himself, "Dobby was only trying to help. Dobby saw Kreacher in Diagon Alley, which Dobby thought was curious, and then Dobby heard Kreacher mention Harry Potter's name," Both Dobby and Kreacher had now taken to walking across the table as they pleased while the others followed them down, "and then Dobby saw Kreacher talking with the thief—"

"A thief? You foul—" Olivia rose a brow curiously as Mundungus stopped himself from advancing on Dobby, instead he lifted his hands to his chest where he tried to redeem himself.

Eventually she grew tired and rolled his eyes, "Aw give it a rest you tosser. You're a thief Dung, everyone knows it."

"Don't try to deny it." Ron supported her.

"Master Weasley! So good to see you again." Dobby said, taking Ron's hand and shaking it again.

Olivia looked to Hermione and shrugged her shoulders, "Hello Dobby, nice to see you too." She mimicked as Ron commented on Dobby's shoes.

"Mistress Black!" The elf eventually caught on, "You've changed since Dobby last met you." He gushed in his high-pitched voice.

With her arms crossed lightly over her chest, a small smile crept up onto Olivia's face. She nodded once at the elf, "Thanks Dobby, and you."

After that they turned back to the thief in the room who was closest to Olivia, backing himself into a corner, "Listen, I panicked alright?" He collapsed back into a chair, "Can I help it if Mad-Eye fell off his broom?"

Kreacher stood the closest to Fletcher, antagonising him, "Tell the truth." Hermione said softly.

"When you turned this place over, don't deny it, you found a locket am I right?" Harry asked.

"Why? Was it valuable?" Dung asked.

"It's worth more than your life at the moment, so I suggest you tell us what you've done with it." Olivia said distastefully, narrowing her eyes.

"Have you still got it?" Hermione asked of him.

"No, he's worried he didn't get enough money for it." Ron enlightened as Olivia snorted bitterly.

Fletcher looked to be furious with himself, to the point where he looked upset, "Bleeding give it away didn't I? Here I was, flogging me ways in Diagon Alley when some Ministry hag comes up and asks to see me license. She says she'd want to lock me up. She would've done too if he hadn't taken a fancy to that locket."

"Who was she?" Harry asked, "The witch do you know her?"

"No I—" Fletcher stopping himself, staring at the floor intensely where he picked an old edition of the Daily Prophet up, "Well she's there." He said, walking over to the table and dropping it on to it, "Look, big bow and all." Olivia peeped over Harry's shoulder to see the paper that been laid out in front of them.

The headline read, "MINISTRY SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM." And stood underneath the headline was Dolores fucking Umbridge in all her glory next to Mafalda Hopkirk.

Olivia wanted to believe she was dreaming as oxygen struggled to pass through her mouth. She was in utter disbelief but after a few moments let out a loud groan of annoyance that rattled the kitchen, "That old bitch will forever make my life a fucking misery. In life and death."  She swore, banging her head off the wood behind her.

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Olivia landed in the kitchen of Grimmuald with a loud thud. She threw Harry's cloak of invisibility off from her body and dropped the wet garment into a heap on the table with a curse. The sound of footsteps neared her while she pulled her blonde hair she had transfigured out from her hood and muttered the counter-curse, welcoming the sight of her black colour running through her roots quickly to return her hair to its normal colour.

She grimaced distastefully as the three ran into the kitchen, "I'm never spelling my hair blonde again, nor am I going to stand in the fucking rain and spy on three stupid idiots who have the misfortune of working in the Ministry." She scowled, and pulled a chair out to collapse into.

"Tea?" Hermione asked, heading straight to the tea-pot on one of the worktops.

Olivia rubbed her hands together and breathed into her palms in order to warm them up. She nodded in Hermione's direction, "Please, still August and it's bloody freezing outside."

"You didn't actually stand outside all day did you?" Ron laughed in disbelief.

Olivia looked to the boy who had sat down opposite her and stared blankly, blinking every ten seconds, "What do you think Ron?"

"You did?" He gaped.

"Of course I did you twit! If I wanted to get what you needed I kind of had to! By the way, that is the last time I do that."

"You won't have to, I think we've almost got everything that we need." Harry said as Hermione placed a steaming mug of tea down in front of Olivia.

"Thanks." She mumbled and turned to Harry, "What you you mean?"

"We were hoping you got everything we needed today, we've been tailing them for weeks after all."

"Yeah," She muttered thinking back to everything she had seen that day, "I got more than enough."

"How do you mean?" Hermione asked.

Instead of answering straight away, Olivia looked down to her tea and blew on it. She reminded silent for another couple of minutes before sighing, "I had the misfortune of seeing a lot more than what I intended to today."

Ron grimaced knowing it wouldn't be good, "You don't have to tell us if you don't want to."

Olivia nodded, "I don't, but I have to really." Taking another sip of her tea she put it back down on to the table, "The Muggle-borns that are going in for questioning .. the majority of them aren't coming back out. I counted at least ten today that I watched go in and didn't come back out, I don't know what they're doing to them .. but I wouldn't like to find out." She said, not daring to glance in Hermione's direction, "I heard Muggle-borns at Hogwarts are going to be well observed and that he'll have his own there. Snape is headmaster, I got that much."

"Snape is headmaster?" Ron asked in disbelief.

Olivia nodded solemnly, "Not only that but Death Eaters will regularly visit. And—"

"What is it?" Hermione braved to ask. 

"I saw him." She sighed, "He was with Narcissa. I have no idea what they were doing but the weirdest thing happened, you know? I was just stood there, next to a telephone booth under the cloak watching and they moved to cross the road to enter the Ministry for whatever reason and .. he just turned around out of the blue when they reached the other side of the road and stopped. He was staring right at me and I felt like he knew I was there but I was under the cloak so I don't know how."

"You saw Draco?" Ron asked.

Olivia nodded.

"And he saw you?" Hermione said.

"No, he couldn't of. But I felt like he felt like I was there. If that makes sense." The four fell into silence again, Olivia taking another sip of her tea before clearing her throat and composing herself. She shook her head and looked up to Ron, "Okay, Reg Cattermole.."

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In honour of September 1st I'm updating earlier than what I intended on. The only thing is that we're not at Hogwarts, we're in Grimmuald Place still.

A small head up, there is a chapter coming up that is 3000+ words and I'm yet to edit it so there's a chance it can only go higher. So a small warning for that.

Happy September! It's my most hated month of the year because it marks the start of education again:/

*EACH BOOK IN THE SERIES IS UNDERGOING SERIOUS EDITING AS OF 1/09/18*