𝐀 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞. ᴴ ᴾᴼᵀᵀᴱᴿ ᵁᴺᴵᵛᴱᴿˢᴱ

21

"Leo!? What are you doing with...with him! I thought-"

"It's complicated," Sirius replied from behind Leo once he forced himself between his cousin and Mona.

"We can explain all of this, Mona. We can," Leo assured her, "just let us in."

"No!"Mona replied sharply, "He's a murderer-"

"What's going on?"

            Molly Weasley appeared in the Burrow, just at the bottom of the stairs, and behind Mona. Her eyes quickly landed on Leo, and then Sirius who was just a step behind him. At first, there was confusion, and then fear, and then what looked like disappointment.

"Mona, dear," Molly said, walking up behind Mona who had yet to lower her wand. Even after Leo stepped between her and Sirius. "it's alright."

"Molly!" Mona snapped back, "That's Sirius Black!"

"I know, dear." she said, putting a hand on her shoulder and practically pulling her further into the house so she could get a better look at the two men outside the Burrow. But when here eyes landed on Lydia, her eyes became so wide that it looked like they would pop right out of her skull. "Mona, go wake Arthur." she ordered simply.

          Mona reluctantly turned and went to do as Molly told her. Leo wanted to explain everything right then, right there. He had never seen actual anger on her face, her eyes never had so much rage. At least not that he had ever seen.

"Get her inside, quickly," Molly said, motioning to Lydia and snapping Leo out of his thoughts.

          Leo went back to Lydia, who had stood still in one place. Probably not trusting her own legs to let her walk far on her own. So Leo helped her make it the rest of the into the Burrow, and Molly stood in the living room and was moving a few pillows off of the couch so Lydia could lay down flat.

"Sirius, what happened?" Molly questioned, Sirius who was still by the door.

"Leo didn't know anything about the dark mark over Corner's flat." Sirius replied.

"You didn't?" Lydia questioned, after overhearing Sirius once she was on the couch.

Leo shook his head.

"The auror's office didn't know?"

"I think they thought it was me...or my mom," he said simply, "what happened?"

           Before Lydia could even begin to say anything else, Arthur Weasley appeared at the foot of the stairs. A old looking robe covered in mismatched patches on over his pajama's and Mona standing right behind him.

"Mona, could you tend to Corner?" Arthur questioned, looking over his shoulder at Mona. "Leo, could you join us in the kitchen?"

          Leo glanced at Lydia but then rose to his feet and made his way towards the kitchen, Mona brushed past him without even a glance. Leo watched as Mona took a seat beside Lydia where Leo had been for a moment before following Arthur the rest of the way into the kitchen.

"I'm sorry, Molly," Sirius was saying to a beyond upset Molly already in the kitchen. "this was the first place I thought to go. They'd check Grimmauld, Leo's, and Lydia's, they wouldn't think to check here."

"Are you sure of that?" Arthur questioned, stepping beside Molly and peering out their kitchen window. "What makes you so sure of that? Sirius, things are different now. People don't want to believe that you know who is building up his forces again. You can't just go off on your own mission and say it's for the order this time around. You can't be so reckless-"