Rise of the Death Eaters [3]

Chapter 66: Walking the Line

There was a short grace period between my last ball and my leaving for Hogwarts. But each day moved at a snail's pace, and my anxiety over my parents, who roamed the halls of the London property more often than I felt was normal, made my appetite disappear, and my sleep restless.

I was terrified each day I passed my father on his errands, giving me a façade of a fatherly smile, that felt more like a wolf's grin. I could swear he smelt my fear, if he could not otherwise see it in my face. Parents, no matter how screwed up, have a tendency to read their children pretty well. I was smart enough to know that I had no control over the present situation, and that the only way I was to go to Hogwarts was to roll over and accept this new delusion of my father. Even if my parents had given me rules to live by over the summer, they could just as easily change their minds and move to homeschool me.

It was for that reason alone that each time he stopped in the hall to ask what I was up to, I always had an answer ready for him.

"I'm catching up on a potion's text Professor Snape mentioned."

Or

"I'm studying the French literature Mamen wants me to look at."

I couldn't pull off looking happy in front of my family, but a look of boredom had seemed appropriate enough. The illusion of their spoiled daughter who was always used to getting what she wanted over the summer was suddenly forced to attend less soirées, not go home to her normal social grounds of Newport RI, and must settle with tanning up in the roof garden rather than one of the family's sailboats.

Tragic.

No wonder their daughter looked so bored.

Ed, to his credit, made a habit of making things difficult for my parents by bringing up his increasing distaste of being 'locked' in a dreary city like London. Especially when a place like Santa Barbera existed where a job and an apartment lease waited for him with his name on it.

My father's temper, though still an uncontrolled storm behind his Fountaine-blue eyes, never reached a level that showed in physical outbursts like before. So Ed's momentarily relapses of displeasure of 'doing his duty for his family and history' remained a raised brow but no comment affair from the end of the table.

My mother maintained her work with WBE over owl, with Miss Clara coming by on occasion through floo network to discuss complicated affairs that a simple owl wouldn't do justice. I would hide to listen to any fragment of information from the American world—hoping to hear of any new information from the political realm that I could otherwise never get my hands on.

But whatever Miss Clara had to say, it was always muffled by a new silencing charm implemented no doubt by my mother upon my arrival back into the house. So I was truly in the dark on all matters.

The orb Theo had given me moments before his mysterious disappearance was a heavy weight in my pocket and something I had almost lost hope in until one night when it sparked at me after a long and tedious dinner of flank steak and asparagus, two days before my planned journey back to Hogwarts.

Damion was back from an unexplained expedition of his own and looked like shadows had taken refuge in every curve and line of his frame. But to our father, I noted he maintained a nonchalant attitude and discussed his reluctance to do the bare bone paperwork his ministry job required upon his return the following morning. My mother had been nursing a third glass of wine in one polished hand and remained a fly on the wall for the entire conversation but I sensed her sharp eyes lingering on me whenever I took my eyes off of her.

Safe to say, I reached for that sparkling marble orb the moment it flashed my way that night after dinner and held it up to the ceiling, waiting in vain for something to happen.