antebellum [t. riddle]

xxxvii.

december 1944
tw: graphic depictions of violence

the six of them apparated out from the entry hall. four of them apparated individually, but since sicaria didn't know where they were going, she had to side-along with adrien.

when they landed, she recognized the street from many maps and photographs she'd seen. it was a legendary piece of magic in london; diagon alley. it's new york equivalent was the 6½ street station, which ran underground between 6th and 7th avenue in manhattan, just below the muggle theatre district. what was so brilliant about diagon alley was that it was hidden in plain sight; just enough enchantments to be unnoticeable to muggles, but not not so many that it was difficult to look for.

it was dark on the avenue, but there were still many groups of drunk wizards stumbling and laughing down the streets.

they were just opposite of a shabby looking pub. the sign hanging above the door said 'the leaky cauldron'. it was full of people carrying around puddlemore united flags, and there was a chorus of drunken singing. apparently the team had just won a match, seeing as there was a wimbourne wasps flag burning on the curb next to the pub. sicaria wrinkled her nose at the sight.

"if at any point you change your mind, apparate back here and wait there for us, alright?" riddle said. he looked down at her, but it was with an expression she'd never seen before. "none of us will hold it against you."

if that was his apology, it was nowhere near good enough.

nonetheless, she nodded, knowing she had no intention of leaving them. it was almost insulting, to be quite frank. they intentionally brought her here to give her another opportunity to back out. it was well thought out though; she couldn't apparate to a place she'd never been before, and if she decided she wanted to leave, they'd never be able to find her. she couldn't apparate back into the estate without abraxas, so this was essentially the only option.

still, it didn't matter. she wasn't going anywhere.

this time, they all held each other as riddle whisked the six of them away from the busy street.

they landed in front of an old looking chapel. there were several towers protruding from the roof, each triangular and pointed straight into the sky, almost like it perfectly aligned with certain stars. there were three gravel trails, search surrounded by pillars which were overrun by brush, moss, and trees. on the left, a sign hanging from a pillar read 'west highgate cemetery' and on the right, 'east highate cemetery'. straight ahead was the entrance to the church.

immediately, the feeling of dark magic lingering in the air suffocated her. not all dark magic had to deal with death, but almost all death magic existed within the sphere of dark magic. this cemetery apparently had a very large concentration of it, and it made her slightly uneasy.

she stood silently as she watched the five of them work.

"appare vestigium," thomas casted, and golden mist shot out from the end of his wand. it created a whirlwind around them, and then settled into the ground. it illuminated footsteps in the ground, which also glowed gold. it was split relatively evenly; one third of the steps went to the east, another third into the church, and the final third into the west. some of the footprints glowed much brighter, as if they were more recent. he turned to look at riddle, who was casting a spell she didn't recognize into the sky. a gust of wind whooshed around them, and it felt like tom had just caused a ripple in the space-time continuum. birds flew from the trees in waves, as if they were being chased away by his magic.

he looked toward thomas, who shrugged, and then toward adonis, abraxas, and adrien, all of whom looked frustrated. sicaria felt slightly out of place, watching them do something while she was just standing there.