Unspeakable

Chapter 90: Preparations

Natty walked with Diane through Hogsmeade to meet with William, having sent an owl the day before to arrange a meeting. William had sent an owl to Diane to confirm who Natty was, which she admittedly found a bit amusing. William was just as cautious as ever. She couldn't really blame him for it though, considering their family.

Diane knocked on the door to his house and smiled when it opened to reveal a gruff looking William. He brightened at the sight of Diane, smiling as Diane hugged him tightly.

"Hello, Will!" She said cheerfully.

"Hello, Diane. Go ahead and head in, Connor made cupcakes." William said gently, moving aside for her.

"Ooooh." Diane said with interest moving further into the house.

"You must be Natsai." William said, offering a hand for her to shake.

"William Walsh, I take it?" Natty said, her tone all business. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise. I wish it was under better circumstances. Come on in, we'll talk in the parlor." He said, letting her in. He looked out the door warily, his gaze harsh before he closed the door firmly and locked it before following Natty into the parlor.

"Would you like a cupcake too?" Connor peeked around the corner to them as they sat down.

"I would love one, thank you." Natty smiled.

Connor brought her over a cupcake, before moving behind William who was sitting on the sofa. He dangled the cupcake in front of his face teasingly with a grin, before he chuckled when William rolled his eyes and begrudgingly took it, though with a bit of a smile.

Natty chuckled from the interaction, feeling a bit more at ease. William looked rather fierce and terrifying, and she knew very well from her research that he had no qualms about using dark arts or unforgivable curses without any hesitation. That was a surprisingly sweet interaction, though.

"So you said my family is involved in a potential attack on Hogsmeade?" William said, getting right to business as he unwrapped the cupcake and bit into it.

"Yes, and I was hoping you could give me more information on him so we can know what to expect." Natty said, her tone formal as well.

"Of course. Who is it?" He asked idly.

"His name is Kyle Walsh." Natty saw Will stiffen and let out an uneasy sound. "So you know him?"

"Very well, unfortunately." William said darkly, as Diane came into the room as well, Connor close behind her. Connor sat beside William, leaning back on the sofa with his legs crossed casually, his arm over the back of the sofa behind William.

"Kyle is a master of surprise attacks and tactics. He's very patient... and very deadly. He's also very good at hiding and never goes into the front lines alone, preferring to surround himself with others as fodder." William explained.

Diane looked down with a frown, remembering it was Kyle that had brought her to her father that night last Christmas break.

"That is grave news." Natty said softly, deep in thought. "We will have to be wary with someone like that involved. There's no telling what he could do."

"He prefers to pick people off one by one rather than taking on a whole crowd." William said darkly. "So keep that in mind. He'll leave people in groups mostly alone."

"So we'll have to be sure to stick together as much as possible." Natty sighed. "That will limit our strategies and tactics."

"That's his goal." William nodded. He looked to Diane, "have you told Sebastian, yet?"