Squib On The Run (sequel to Squib In The basement)

61. The Veil

Remus made Cassiopeia and Sirius vegetable soup for dinner, while they waited for the other core members of the Order to arrive.
Cassiopeia ate hers very slowly, as she was still recovering from the effects of the cursed necklace.
She only just finished her meal before Alastor Moody and Nymphadora arrived.
Kingsley was the next to appear after the aurors, but as he was greeting those in the room, a Patronus suddenly entered the kitchen, putting everyone immediately on edge.

Cassiopeia watched as the doe Patronus circled the room, before speaking with Snape's voice.
"Potter is missing. He went into the Forbbiden Forest with his friends and Dolores Umbridge, and no one has seen him since. He believes Cassiopeia and Sirius are being tortured in the Department of Mysteries, by the dark lord. I fear he has headed there himself to rescue his godparents".

As the Patronus dissolved into nothing, the room was sent into a panic.
"Surely he wouldn't have gone all the way to London on a whim? He's a smart boy, wouldn't he have wanted to make sure you were really at the Ministry, before heading there to rescue you, in case it was a trap?" Asked Kingsley.
Cassiopeia and Sirius locked eyes, both realising what had happened.
"He would have used to fireplace, to check if we were here not not" Cassiopeia said quietly.
"And that's why Voldemort made Narcissa send you that cursed necklace. He wanted to make sure that we would all be upstairs if Harry tried to make contact with us" added Sirius.
"So now Harry is walking into a trap, trying to save us" replied Cassiopeia.
"And Voldemort is going to get his hands on the prophecy"
"Not if we get there first".

"Now hold on, we can't just go charging into the Ministry, to fight Voldemort and all the death eaters. There's not enough of us" insisted Remus.
"He's right, we need to wait for Dumbledore to get him" agreed Nymphadora.
"We don't have time. Harry is in danger now, he needs us" announced Sirius as he jumped to his feet.
"You all need to go now, before it's too late. I will wait here for Dumbledore and once he arrives I will tell him what has happened. Then the two of us will join you at the Ministry" instructed Cassiopeia.
"I guess we don't have a choice. If we don't leave now, Potter is going to get himself killed, and all of our hard work defending the prophecy will have been for nothing" sighed Alastor.

Cassiopeia cautiously pushed herself out of her chair and walked over to Sirius.
"Bring our boy home" she begged, as she tightly gripped his forearms.
"I will. I promise" replied Sirius.
"And try to stay safe" added Cassiopeia.
"I will do whatever it takes to protect our boy. His safety has to come first"
"I know, but look after yourself too"
"I'll try"
"Goodbye Sirius, and good luck"
"Goodbye Cass".

The Order then sped out of the kitchen, leaving Cassiopeia alone.
Being in 12 Grimmauld Place without Sirius, made her feel very anxious, which is why she knew she couldn't just sit and wait for Dumbledore to arrive.
She headed upstairs and got changed into a comfortable outfit which was easy to move in. She then grabbed her satchel before heading back downstairs and filling up her bag with medical supplies.
The Potions room by the kitchen, contained useful items like essence of dittany, yarrow, shepherd's purse, and witch hazel.
Cassiopeia also grabbed a bunch of cloth she could use as bandages, for she feared they would not get out of this fight unscathed.

When Dumbledore eventually turned up, Cassiopeia quickly recounted what had happened.
He was hesitant to bring her to the Ministry, as it would put her in great danger.
But after some arguing, he agreed that having a healer with them would be a good idea.
So Dumbledore apparated them to the Atrium, which was the only place in the Ministry that you could apparate into. He then began running through the building towards the Department of Mysteries, which was where the hall of prophecies was located.
Cassiopeia would have had no idea where to go, if she had been alone, so she stuck close to Dumbledore's side, to avoid getting lost.