Life After Death - An Erica Black Continuation (4)

Thirty Five

It had taken every spare moment she'd had over the last month but finally, just in time for summer, the house was finished, fully decorated and ready for the family to move in. Three vast floors, The first was neat, a display for passing guests much as was customary in a manor home; just a kitchen, dining room, a large event hall, and right at the back of the house, tucked away behind the parlour, was a stunning library. The second floor housed both Erica's own study and Draco's. It was also where the twins' room was, the room that had been designated to become the nursery, the two master bedrooms and the rooms that Regulus and Scorpius would inhabit whilst they were staying.
The third and final floor of the manor house was split relatively evenly between study spaces (a small potions lab, a large storage room, a sizable office for homework and a second, more homey living room) and guest quarters (six guest rooms that could each sleep two people easily, a mixture of double beds and twins)
Whilst decorating, Erica had kept the size of her extended family in mind but she hadn't been completely honest with her husband when discussing her reasoning for wanting so much extra space for guests... She and her uncle had been stealing secret moments to discuss the upcoming war and what they needed to do to prepare and they had come to the conclusion that they would not be the only people who would be returning. They had concocted a plan but they couldn't be sure it would work and this had been plaguing Erica's thoughts for the last few days...

"Okay, are we all ready?" fussed the black haired woman, her hand resting protectively on her small bump as she checked ad double checked everything.
"Yes mum, I think we are all here and ready" piped up the eldest twin as she picked up her own trunk. Her sister groaned loudly, turning her attention to her mother for a moment,
"Why can't I get the train with my friends?" she whined.
"Because we are going to the new house and your mother has enough to do today without having to go to the train station" Explained Draco Black to his step-daughter calmly, she huffed her frustration but nodded.
"Draco's going to take you, Lottie and I'm going to take you, Willow - remember to hold on now girls" Erica sighed, and just like that, the four of them apparated.

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"How are we going to know who to bring back and how will we find them?" Whispered Erica as she closed the door to her study.
"Well, we do what you did for me, we go to the place they died and we reach out to them I guess" Shrugged Regulus Black, his niece hesitated before responding,
"But- what if there was another way? An easier way...."
"You've lost me, how else would we do this?" The man asked, his confusion evident from his face
"Well, theoretically.. If a pre-existing gateway to the spirit realm were available to us... Couldn't we just go on one trip and bring back all of those who we needed?" Erica elaborated slowly, considering each word before it left her mouth, clearly developing the idea as she spoke.
"I mean.. Yes. theoretically but I've never heard of such a thing, have you?" Regulus was having a difficult time understanding what she was trying to get at but if she was onto something then this could change everything.
"Well, yes.. Or at least, I think so.. When Ginny told me about how my father died, she mentioned how he fell through something called 'the veil' in the Department of Mysteries... She said it's supposed to be a barrier between the world of the living and the world of the dead." suddenly a smile broke onto the mans face,
"And that.. veil? It still exists?" He asked, his interest clearly captured by this new information.
"Yes. I can't imagine they'd destroy such a thing" she spoken hesitantly, her brow furrowed slightly in thought.
"That's true. You think we'll be able to gain access to it?"
"Sure, why not? The Ministry is hardly known for it's security measures" She shrugged.

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Willow Black sat at the large round table in the library of her family's new manor house. It had quickly become her favourite place to read, to write and to just exist. It was her own private piece of heaven, she rarely had to share it and the reasonably sized room was lined floor to ceiling with every book imaginable. In a way, she preferred it to the Hogwarts library as her mother had ensured there was a variety between wizarding and muggle literature as well as an entire section devoted to wands, wandlore and even branching out into wandless magic. Draco Black stood in the doorway for a short moment, watching his oldest step-daughter lean over her notebook, her pen moving quickly and continuously, not even pausing as she referred to the open book beside her. He smiled, he had always been impressed by the drive the young girl had. It was a shame she struggled with practical magic because she was a force to be reckoned with.
"Hey Willa, what're you working on?"
"Unicorn hair cores" She mumbled, her hand never faltering, not even looking up from her page her voice ever so slightly muffled by her ebony ringlets as they fell in front of her face.
"Oh?" he asks, "Have you found out anything new?"
finally, she paused in her writing, looking up at her professor and step-father with a slight smile, "you want to know something really cool?" she asked, he noticed her fingertips anxiously rubbing together as she spoke,
"Of course, when don't I?" He chuckled, pulling out the chair besides her.
"Unicorn hair cores are the most consistent wands, they are the least likely to get a blockage or to fluctuate." She grinned up at the blond man brightly, she was always so excited to talk about wands to anyone who would listen, and Draco was always so willing to listen..