~
It had been a month. Bill hadn't seen or heard from Eleanora for an entire month. He'd written her about a hundred letters, all in code, but he'd refrained from sending all of them. He didn't want to be the reason she got caught. Instead, he occupied himself by visiting both Grimmauld Place and Eveline's house nearly every day. The only reason he went to the Black family house was that he was desperate for news on Eleanora. Every single day he got his hopes up that he'd walk in there and Lupin or Moody or Sirius would tell him his girl was coming home. Everyday, though, they came up empty handed.
A week after Eleanora was expected to get back, she was declared missing in action. Bill slept in her room a few nights a week, reminding himself over and over again that she couldn't be dead, she couldn't be dead. It wasn't possible. Eleanora Marks could never die. Not before he had more time with her, not ever.
"No word from her, huh?" Eveline murmured, handing Bill a cup of tea.
He took it and blew the steam away. "No. No word."
Eveline had tried to offer him dinner, noticing that he'd lost weight and that dark circles had formed under his eyes, but Bill had declined. He took the tea, though. It was comforting.
"What do you think about it?" Eveline asked. "About... any of it?"
Bill shrugged. He wasn't really sure what Eveline was asking. "Dunno. What d'you think about it?"
"I think..." Eveline stared into her mug, looking worried. "I think it might not be safe for me to stay here anymore." Bill's head jerked up, but at that moment, there were light footsteps on the stairs. "Daisy!" Eveline called. "Give us a moment, please? Why don't you go draw Bill a picture?" The footsteps receded.
Bill shook his head hard. "What d'you mean you won't be safe? Is everything alright?"
Eveline seemed hesitant, but she took a deep breath and plowed on. "Remus Lupin payed me a visit the other day." Bill was taken aback. He talked to Lupin every day and he'd never mentioned anything about Eveline. "He said there are- what do you call them? Death- Death Eaters?" Bill nodded. "There are Death Eaters who are still mad at Cillian for betraying them all those years ago."
"And they want to take it out on you because they can't find him," Bill finished for her, connecting the dots. "I got it."
"I think..." Eveline swallowed hard. "-I think I should go into hiding for a little while."
"Right..." Bill said, considering. "Where do you think you'll go? I know a few places, I have friends abroad, you know. I could get you somewhere safe-"
"I already have a place lined up."
"Ah."
She was looking at Bill expectantly, but he wasn't catching on. "I have a place lined up... but I can't take Daisy."
"Ah..."
"I was wondering if that offer you made a few weeks ago still holds up. If- maybe- you could take her... just for a little while?" She looked at him pleadingly. "I can come back for her in a week or two, but I need to settle myself first. It would be temporary- I promise-"
"Of course I can take her," Bill said in an even voice. "I already said I would, anyways. When do you want me to pick her up?"
"Well..." Eveline shifted on her feet. "I was actually thinking- maybe today?"
"Today?" Bill looked dubious.
"I'm sorry I didn't give you more of a warning, I just- it's sort of last minute and-"
"It's fine. I can take her today." Bill leaned against the kitchen doorway and sipped his tea. He was exhausted. He'd been at Grimmauld Place until late the night before trying to convince Moody and Lupin to let him go on a search mission for Eleanora. They said to give it some more time, maybe she would turn up. The whole thing was driving him mad. "I can take her right now if you want."
~
When Daisy and Bill arrived in the front yard of the Burrow, Daisy reached up and slipped her hand into Bill's. She'd talked incessantly ever since they'd left her house, but fallen silent upon their arrival. Bill didn't talk much either way. He knew Daisy was excited to live with his family, but he couldn't get into it. As awful as he felt about it, he wished more than anything Eleanora was the one who was coming to stay.
Bill started to take a step forward, but Daisy stayed put. When he looked down at her, she was staring at the house with glazed over eyes. Bill knelt down so he was eye level with her. "Daisy," he said quietly. "You're going to be fine here."
"I don't want to be any trouble," Daisy whispered, and Bill's heart broke a little.
"You're not any trouble at all, Dais. My mum's been asking me for weeks if you could come and stay and you're going to love my little brothers. Eleanora... Eleanora does."
Daisy chewed on her bottom lip, then nodded firmly and tightened her grip on Bill's hand. He stood up again and together they stepped inside of the house.
~
Dear Eleanora,
Daisy came to stay with us today. Your mum sort of sprung it on me at the last second, but it's alright. My mum was really pleased, she loves Daisy already. You should've seen when she first came in, Mum was all over her, trying to feed her sweets and commenting about how Daisy's too skinny. Daisy was worried before we went in, but I think she's alright now. By the end of dinner, Dad had her talking about muggle televisions, so I think she'll be fine. I gave her your room. I hope that's alright. Obviously you can have it back when you come home, or we could figure some sort of sleeping arrangement out. It doesn't matter, I just want you to be here. I hate not knowing whether or not you're okay. I just want some word, some signal, anything to know that you're still out there.
I've been trying to convince Moody for days now to let me go out searching for you, and he keeps saying it would be jeopardizing the mission. I don't give a damn about the mission anymore, I just want you back. I know that sounds selfish, but it's true. Even if I can't have you back here right now, I just need to know that you're alive. If there's any way you could send me a signal, a sign, anything. Please. I love you, Eleanora. Please come home. Forget the mission, let someone else handle it, just come back. I miss you.
Love, Bill.
Bill finished off the letter with a final flourish of his quill. He'd gotten rather good at writing in his and Eleanora's code in the last few weeks. He folded up the paper and crossed the room to Circe's cage. He'd moved her to his room when Eleanora left so he could take care of her. In a way, it felt like a little part of El. "Hey, girl," he murmured, fastening the letter to Circe's leg. "Just find her, okay? Find her." Circe let out a low hoot before spreading her wings and soaring out the empty window. Bill turned and left the room, taking the steps slowly before he heard voices coming from the twins room.
He knocked on the frame and then eased the door open. Fred was sitting cross-legged on his bed across from Daisy, holding a screaming yo-yo. He demonstrated how to use it, and then handed it over for Daisy to try. A few feet away, George sat in an office chair with his feet propped up on the bed. They all looked like they were having a good time, but Bill noticed that the twins were more distant than usual. He felt bad, knowing Daisy would absolutely adore them as their usual selves. All three looked up when Bill stepped inside. He gave Daisy a warm smile, and then turned to address Fred directly.
"Could I have a word?" he said in a low voice.
Fred nodded silently and rolled off of the bed. George got up to take his place, distracting Daisy while Fred and Bill met on the landing.
"What's up?" Fred asked. "Any word on El?" He looked hopeful for a split second, and it killed Bill to let him down.
The two brothers had had their ups and downs in the past, but the one thing they always shared was how deeply they cared for Eleanora. He shook his head.
"No. I just- I need you two to take care of Daisy for a few days, alright?"
"Where are you going?"
"It doesn't matter. Just- keep her entertained, alright? El told her you two are really funny, so don't let her down."
Normally, Fred would've cracked a joke at this, but his face remained serious. "You're going to look for her, aren't you?" Bill's shoulders sagged, confirming Fred's beliefs. "Do you have any leads?"
"No, but I have to- I have to do something. I can't just-" His voice cracked slightly as his hands flew to his hair, a habit he had when he was worked up. "I can't just sit around here and do nothing anymore."
He expected Fred to talk him out of it, to tell him it was pointless, but his brother only nodded slowly. "Find her for us, alright?" he said.
Bill had never heard him sound more worn out. "I will, yeah. I will."