✔️ 𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐓&𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 → 𝑓. 𝑤𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑙𝑒𝑦

14 | T R U T H

•••
my mother was a genius.
my father commanded respect.
when they died,
they left no instructions;

just a legacy to protect.
•••

"We will start our business at six p.m.", Fred told her, an unusual stern look on his face, same as George.

"You can sneak into her office at about five past six, but don't hesitate", George retorted. "There's an ugly pink box with floo powder standing on the board beyond the fireplace."

Lynnea nodded, nervous as hell; not because of herself, but because she feared the consequences for Fred and George if she'd get caught. Or them.

"She can't follow me? Or find out where I'm heading to?", she asked, rubbing her neck to give her hands something to do.

"No, she can't, her chimney is the only one in this whole castle who can't get tracked", Fred explained.

"I got myself in detention to find out", George said, threwing a knowing look at Lynnea's hand. Her cheeks blushed, but there was no time for those talk now. She looked at him intensely, begging him silently to keep this promise, and he seemed to understand, his head tilting barely noteable into a small nod.

"You have two hours", Fred talked on, not noticing the silent conversation between his brother and Lynnea. "At eight we'll start the second maneuver, you need to come back at five past eight."

"Got that", she replied.

"Ron, Harry, Hermione and Ginny will keep nosy students away from the corridor."

"So you have plenty of space", Fred finished George's sentence.

"The plan is foolproof -"

"- nevertheless take care of yourself "

Lynnea's stomach jumped, and the way he looked at her send shivers down her spine.

"You better get ready now." George's voice snapped her back to reality.

It was really easy. After Lynnea heard an enormous loud bang in the northern part of the castle, she left the library with everyone else, but instead of following the crowd she let herself fall behind and headed to Umbridge's office. The door fortunately was unlocked, so she quickly slipped in, grabbing a hand full of floo powder and stepped into the fireplace.

"Grimmauld Place", she just dared to whisper, before she was sucked into a whirl of colors, but not for long. Her feet hit the floor, she stumbled and fell head over into the gloomy cellar kitchen of Number Twelve Grimmauld Place.

"Lynnea!", a raspy voice gasped, chairs were moved over the ground, as Lynnea swished the hair out of her sight, before she tried to push herself up. A pair of hands grabbed her under her arms and put her on her feet. Weakly she smiled at the astonished face of Remus Lupin. "What are you doing here?", he asked, startled.

"Missed us, huh?", another amused voice questioned. Sirius was also on his feet, a wide grin on his face. Next to him sat Moody, his wand half raised, both eyes fixing the girl.

"Of course I did", Lynnea said, brushing off the dust from her clothes. "But I hope you're not too sad if I tell you that this is not the reason I am here."

"So why exactly are you here? Isn't that a bit risky?", Remus asked, and slowly the color was returning to his pale face.

"I need to talk to you", she said, sitting down at the long table, opposite to Sirius, who had taken his seat. Remus let himself sink on the chair next to her.

"And that couldn't wait until Saturday?", Sirius laughed his deep growling laughter that sounded like a dog's barking.

Lynnea's cheeks flushed pink. "To be honest, no. No it couldn't." Staring down at her hands, she was searching for words.

"Well, then fire away", Sirius said, the smirk still on his face.

"Who am I?" She didn't really know how to take the awkwardness out of this question. Of course she'd planned a detailed explanation before she'd come up with it, but she couldn't wait any longer. Sirius' smile immediately dropped, and the bit of color Remus had regained left his face again, leaving him even paler than before.

"What are you talking about?", Remus said sharply.

"Well, I had a date with the son of a Death Eater - long story short", she hastily said, as the three man watched her bug-eyed. "And he told me, that - that his father sold me to Voldemort, that my parents had to die because of this, and that I am not even their daughter. So who am I? Is this true?"

"Lynnea, see -", Remus started, but was harshly cut short by Lynnea herself.

"I heard you and Sirius talking during summer." Her face flushed crimson. She didn't want to admit she eavesdroped, but she didn't want them to lie at her again, too. Her voice high pitched she told them: "Sirius wanted to tell me who I am, but you refused. So please don't lie to me, okay?"

"Tell her", Moody growled after awkward seconds of silence. "She'll find out anyway."

Remus stared down at the table, sighing deeply. Lynnea's fingers drummed against the chair, impatiently waiting for a response. Sirius had furrowed his eyebrows, staring grimmly at his friend. A long while Remus seemed to fight a war inside his head, before he finally cleared his throat.

"It is true", he admitted. "Michael and Marguerite weren't your parents. They adopted you."

Whatever was an appropriate feeling as a reaction to his words, Leah didn't find them. Instead she felt dead empty, but immediately excited as well.

"Your parents died during the war, it was Voldemort himself who killed them", Sirius said.

"Marguerite was already an Auror back then", Remus told her, still staring at his hands, thinking deeply about every single word. "She wasn't able to get kids her own, so she adopted you together with Michael. Dumbledore asked her for it and she didn't even hesitate for the blink of an eye. It was important to keep you away, to not leave a link to your true family. Voldemort let you live, we still don't know why. Dumbledore's suggestions - and they barely fail - was, that he wanted to take you with him." He made a pause, cleared his throat again, before he finally looked up at Lynnea. "Everyone thought, you had died together with your parents. The history books forgot about you. The memory of your existence faded out of the people's mind. They were all too busy with the boy who lived."

Lynnea blinked. "What's Harry got to do with this?"

"Everything, Lynnea", Remus said in a raspy whisper. "That's what I'm about to tell you."

"I don't get it?"

"In the night Harry survived, it wasn't just him. It was pure coincidence. If you know who hadn't shown mercy ... No one knows, why he did. He never does", Remus said in a quiet voice. "We have some presumptions, as I told you. Not more ... Well, fact is, you survived together with Harry."

"I - okay, but - sorry, I don't get it, that makes no sense", she said.

"The only persons knowing, you're alive, are Dumbledore, the Order and Voldemort himself", said Sirius. "Though he doesn't know who you are and where you are. We did't know how he found out you're with the Baileys. Well, until now. Dumbledore decided that it's best for you, if you'd go to Hogwarts, you're safest there. But He wants you."

"Why?"

"He doesn't know that Potter has no clue about you", Moody growled. "We are presuming, he needs you to get Potter to come to him, to save you, what he'd of course do. But if he'd know who you truely are -"

"He'd use you", Remus cut Moody short. "He'd plant thoughts in Harry's mind, he'd drive him mad, he'd make him do things ..."

Lynnea was highly confused by now. She looked at the three men in front of her and didn't get a single word they said. "Why would he? Of course we're friends, but he could use Ron and Hermione as well, they are so much closer to him."

"Lynnea", Remus took her hand across the table, his eyes pierced into hers. "You're his sister. You're twins. You're Lynnea Lilian Potter."