Even to those closest to her, Althea was as much a mystery then as she is now. As a girl, she was driven by her ambition and thirst for knowledge to a place very few could follow, and she didn't hesitate to leave them behind. But now, after living a...
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"WHERE IS HE?"
Her breathing was rapid, shaky as she took in her surroundings, her grip tightening on her son's hand as she slowly recognized the narrow, dark hallways. She hadn't been there in years - and never would she have thought that the most ancient house of Black would play host to the Order of the Phoenix. "You'll be safe here, Miss," muttered the house elf to her right.
She smiled down at the creature, thankful for the bittersweet connection to an old friend he provided. "Thank you - for everything, Kreacher." No one, the house elf's current master especially, would ever see a smile quite like the one Kreacher gave the woman then. He led the pair down the narrow hallway to a closed door, and motioned for them to enter as he scurried up the stairs.
Alone in the hallway with no one but her young son, the woman couldn't help but hear the distressed murmurs beyond the door she stood before. She closed her eyes and listened closely, wondering if she'd hear his voice, hoping she'd still recognize it. Inhaling deeply, she pushed open the doors.
She didn't quite know what to expect, but half a dozen wands pointed at her and her son was not at all on that list. "Merlin - put your wands away! She has a child!" came a motherly voice that she didn't recognize, but as she looked around, she was thankful to find faces that she did.
"My god, it can't be - "
But despite her attempts to find him, the one face she was so desperate to see was nowhere to be found. She looked into the grey eyes of the one person in the room with his wand still at the ready. "Where is he?"
Sirius Black, with a sudden pang in his heart at her words, lowered his wand, ignoring the stares he was getting from his fellow Order members. Her eyes were the same he remembered so clearly, but the woman before him was nothing like the girl that left him, and as he watched her, he couldn't believe his eyes.
He quickly walked around the cramped dining room table, bumping a stunned Molly Weasley as he did so. He stopped only when the small, tan boy beside the woman cowered more behind her, her arm instinctively wrapping around him. "Where is he, Sirius?" she said again, her voice becoming more and more desperate, causing Sirius to wonder even more just what had happened in the time they'd been apart. "Where is my brother?"
There was a hush about the room as Sirius closed his eyes, feeling as though a boulder had just dropped onto his chest. The young boy seemed to be just as confused as the others, and as he looked up to the woman, he squeezed her hand. "Mum, what's going on?"
Sirius took another cautious step forward, his features much softer, almost hurt, as he approached them. "This is your son?" he asked the woman slowly.
She noticed the look on his face, and her own features softened. "Yes," she uttered, "now where is my brother?"
Sirius's shoulders slumped as he wearily, shakily responded, "I don't know if you want your son to hear this, Thea."
A dreadful feeling overcame her, and it felt as though she were being pulled underwater by haunting, soulless hands. She could hear only muffled noises as her son was guided away by a pale but kindly-looking red-haired woman and she was pulled out of the room by a man she thought she would never see again. Before the doors closed, she caught sight of her scared little boy, and gave him a gentle smile. "It's okay, Reg," she assured softly. "We're safe - Mummy will be right back."
Sirius tensed at her words for a number of reasons, but decided now was not the time to ask questions. He didn't know where she had been all this time, or what she knew - but he knew that it wasn't much.
She turned back to a face she once knew so well and noticed how much it had changed. Sirius had apparently seen the worst of a war Althea had escaped. "Sirius," she whispered. She closed her eyes and reminded herself why she was here in the first place. "Where's James?" she paused, the silence and the blank stare she was receiving nearly unbearable. "Where is my brother?"
"Brother?" came a voice, and though it sounded close, Althea found no one when she looked around. Sirius grimaced. "James Potter was your brother?"
