Light and Shadow

The dishes floated up in the air and stacked themselves neatly in the cabinets while Aurelia finished up in the sink. The small house was quiet and dim, as it always was, but during mealtimes they were a bit more lax with the house rules. They didn't have much, but they had each other.

A young, teenage boy with red hair paused in his chore and watched her in awe from across the kitchen. When she was finished, she turned to meet his gaze with a curious cock of her head.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to your magic, Rel," he said. "It's still as amazing as it was the first time I saw it."

"These are just simple charms, Rolf," Aurelia laughed a little and moved to wipe down the kitchen table. "They're hardly anything."

But Rolf was a muggle boy who hadn't been gifted with such abilities. His path crossed hers one fateful night and she easily welcomed him to come take refuge with them. It wasn't a large group, but a majority of them were muggles and they relied heavily on the three magic users that were kind enough to extend protection. Outside the safety of their hideaway, the world was ridden in chaos and the grounds were steeped in the blood of those who were of the resistance and who were not of pure families.

"I'm all finished here, do you need help with anything else?" Rolf asked, stowing away the broom and dustpan. "Do you need me to look after Clyde?"

"You can go ahead to bed," Aurelia said with a smile. "Cho is taking care of him. Thanks, Rolf."

He nodded and bid her goodnight before disappearing upstairs, leaving Aurelia to her own devices. She stepped out of the kitchen and extinguished the light. Cho was hovering over a still figure lying across an old couch in the next room and she considered them for a moment before lighting a lantern in the makeshift study. Silently, she worked until the raven haired witch left Clyde's side and approached her.

"We're running out of food," Cho said, voice low. "And Clyde isn't doing so well. He needs a healer."

Aurelia looked up from the encrypted rolls of parchment spread out over the desk and stole a glance at the man lying unconscious across the room. It had been a couple years since Hogwarts fell, but the war against the Dark Lord still raged on. Aurelia ended up taking shelter with Cho Chang and a number of muggles in the run down household within a long abandoned district. Clyde was a wizard who had been taking care of various errands while she and Cho remained behind to protect their base and everyone seeking refuge in it. But Clyde had run into some trouble a week ago and now he was out of commission.

"I'll go," Aurelia replied, cleaning up the mess she'd unintentionally made. "I'll get supplies and bring back a healer."

"The situation is dire, but Rel, you can't," Cho whispered, placing her hand over Aurelia's as if it would stay her intentions. "It's too dangerous. We should wait for Harry. He'll only be another week at most."

"Clyde doesn't have a week, Cho," the blonde said with a sad shake of her head.

"You don't know that," she insisted.

"But I do," Aurelia straightened and turned to lean against the desk as she eyed Clyde from where she stood. "I come from a bloodline with close ties to Death and Clyde doesn't have any more than a couple days."

Cho was silent for a while and Aurelia immediately knew what she was thinking.

"You can foresee death?"

"Only on those that linger long enough between this life and what comes after," she murmured. "The sick or the injured… I couldn't know what was going to happen to Cedric."

"Right. Of course," Cho chuckled sadly. "I'm sorry, Rel."

"It's alright. I wish I did," Aurelia sighed, glancing over the scrolls again. "I'll be heading out then. You know how everything works, Cho. If I'm not back by that time, you take everyone and move to the next location. Destroy everything."

Aurelia reached forward to grab her wand from the corner of the desk and tuck it into her sleeve. Her cloak was stowed away in one of the cupboards, so she fetched it and threw it over her shoulders. She worked the strings into a secure knot and made her way to the door. As she moved to leave, Cho abruptly stopped her by pulling her into a tight hug. The blonde hesitated, but returned the gesture in kind. Cho had been her constant friend since the Fall of Hogwarts and together they had made a good team.

"Be careful, Rel," she urged. "Promise me you'll come back."

"I will," Aurelia replied. "I have to."

They parted and Cho saw her off as she slipped into the inky black of the night. It had been months since she'd ventured out of camp and this would be one of the few times she would glimpse the extent of the destruction brought upon the world by the Dark Lord and his followers. The air was heavy and ominous, but Aurelia pressed forward, pulling the hood of her cloak up over her golden locks to become one with the night. Her feet took her forward, quiet and careful, while her ears reached out for any signs of the enemy that might be lurking in the shadows.

Aurelia understood the danger and the risk she was taking, but she didn't know what to expect as she advanced. She worried about who she was leaving behind, even if it was only for this one mission. Clyde was the only one who would be able to protect Cho and their friends, but his future was bleak. He couldn't protect them now.

A frown settled into the line of her mouth and it deepened the more she realized the true gravity of their situation. They had relied heavily on Clyde's efforts, so much so that they wouldn't have lasted as long as they did without him. As much as Cho insisted that she was a vital piece of their structure, Aurelia knew that Clyde was the foundation upon which they were built. Food wasn't the priority here and neither was she.

Aurelia would find a healer if it was the last thing she did.

xxx

It was in the midst of highly dangerous times. The Dark Lord triumphed that fateful day at Hogwarts, but Harry Potter escaped with the few that were left alive. He now possessed the Elder Wand and there was no wizard who could stand up against him. Muggles were being executed for sport while others scrambled to hide away in remote areas to lay low in the hopes of never being found. The presence of the Order was fading and their members were falling with each passing moment.

They were dwindling, as was all hope.

The Malfoy family was able to regain their footing as trusted followers of Lord Voldemort, a good part of it thanks to Draco's seemingly steadfast dedication to his lord's commands. But his endeavors had turned him into a cold young man, hardened and detached from the grim morals of the actions he was forced to take. In their eyes, he was the perfect soldier, lacking any signs of the compassion and hesitation that hindered him when he was younger. The Dark Lord favored him because although he had failed him in the past, Draco had become a strong asset in his conquest of the wizarding world.

It wasn't unusual for his presence to be summoned, so when he received word that his assistance was needed, he thought nothing of it. He merely rose from bed and donned his robes before making his way down into the dungeons of the Malfoy Manor. He strode down the hall, unaffected by the cells and the stench that lined it.

"My Lord, Draco may be of some service to you," Lucius said upon his arrival, gesturing his son into the cell. "Draco, you were once a student at Hogwarts. Perhaps you can identify this young woman. She's a good measure more stubborn than the rest."

Her hair had grown longer, but it still glittered radiantly like a beacon in the bleak. Her blue eyes remained constant and steadfast, strong willed and deep, refusing to show fear and weakness. Even so, she trembled, supposedly in the aftermath of a Cruciatus Curse. Upon hearing his name, her eyes seemed to sharpen as they sought and found his familiar gray ones.

Draco, aware that all eyes were on him now, cleared his throat and made himself turn to address Voldemort with his usual formalities.

"Her name is Aurelia," he said, glancing at her once more. "She was a Hufflepuff in my year."

Voldemort sneered. "A mudblood? We've managed to extract a bit of information from her about her comrades, but she's quite tricky this one."

Draco merely shook his head.

"She is a pureblood," he informed them. "A direct descendant of the Luxe line. I always believed that she had all the qualities to be in Slytherin."

"A Luxe, you say? I have not heard that name for many years," Voldemort appeared thoroughly intrigued at this as he looked again to Aurelia. "A powerful heritage indeed... It would be a waste to spill such ancient, revered blood."

There was a long silence as the Dark Lord contemplated her fate, fascination glittering in his black eyes. He looked to Draco once, then once more to Aurelia. A wicked grin stretched across his face as his eyes finally settled on the stone faced Malfoy heir.

"I would have liked to keep her for myself, Draco," he said. "But you have served me very well over the years. You deserve a reward for your loyalty, so I will give her to you. I believe her blood and yours will make a fine wizard to carry on the pureblood line."

Draco bowed his head. "You are too generous, My Lord."

"Take her to Draco's chambers and clean her up," Voldemort ordered moments before his minions all began moving to carry them out.

Aurelia's eyes still watched him, but Draco did not look to her again before he turned and swept out of the cell ahead of the rest.