Chapter Ten
Confronting the Faceless 💀 CompleteNovember 4-6, 1997
"Let's not lose sight now of what we're supposed to be doing"
Saundra is dead.
Saundra is worse than dead and Claire has been hovering at the edge of a panic attack for a week now waiting for the hammer to fall. She keeps going to work - Python had contacted her shortly after Saundra's trial and told her what had occurred and to continue living as normal until she's contacted again.
It's the first communication she's had with the other Underground member - before she'd always just messaged Saundra if she'd had questions or ideas. Now she supposes she'll have to actually talk to the other two members.
If there even is an Underground anymore. With Saundra gone they don't have a leader. But Claire doesn't want to think about that. Without the Underground she's on her own again, and she'd barely survived the stress of doing that for one day.
At least work has actually slowed down a little - some of the other Commission Secretaries are even being relocated to other departments since their workload is a lot smaller than it had been at the beginning. Fewer Muggleborns are showing up to their trials and the Snatchers are having difficulty with another group that Saundra called "The Order" when she'd told Claire about it a few weeks back.
Claire doubts she'll be moving due to her familiarity with the Records room after over a month of being the go-to for correcting it every time her Underground colleagues messed it up (colleague? Saundra tended to accidentally imply things a lot when they talked, so Claire things Rat might be the primary one responsible for the mess, though Saundra did admit to doing it a few times herself), but part of her does hope for a new assignment. The further she is from the Muggleborn trials, the less likely her connection to Saundra is discovered.
She's no coward, but Max and her dad have been out on a mission for a week now and she wants to see them again. If she's caught... they probably won't be coming home. They try to shield her from the worst of their work, but Claire isn't stupid or deaf - she's heard enough to know what happens to people who displease the Dark Lord. Which is of course just one more reason why she has to help.
She just doesn't know what that looks like anymore.
Her days drag by endlessly, and her evenings are spent deflecting worried questions from her mother who has always been more observant than anyone gives her credit for.
It's the first Tuesday after the trial that Python finally makes contact again, and it's almost amusing how similar the meeting is to Claire's first encounter with Saundra.
She's walking home when someone grabs her and pulls her into a side alley and Apparates them both to a painfully familiar room.
"Don't flip, I know you know this place which is why we're here, but we have to leave soon. Saundra's roommate will be home sooner rather than later since she's under watch right now." The woman speaking has blonde hair, storm grey eyes, and a general air of impatience.
"You're Python?" Claire guesses and the woman smirks.
"Got it in one. Now come on, we're going to a safe spot." She pauses, makes a face, and then, "At least, it's a lot more secure than here, considering the circumstances."
Claire just tilts her head and lets Python Apparate her again. This time they end up in a quiet corner of Hogsmeade.
"Come on, we're going to hit the pub." Python sounds slightly amused. "The barkeep agreed to lend us one of the private rooms upstairs so we can talk."
It takes Claire a minute before she realizes that they're walking to the Hog's Head. "Um, not to question you Python-"
"Don't say that unless you mean it, Lion." The woman shoots back with a slight sneer and an intonation indicating that she was insulting Claire rather than using her codename. Probably a Slytherin then.
Claire frowns. "Okay fine. To question you then, the Hog's Head is a popular Deatheater spot to relax."
"You would know that." Python observes idly. "And yeah, I know that too. It's why it's perfect. Aberforth doesn't care who's in his pub so long as they leave him out of it. And here we are." She opens the door with a wave of her wand and strides through like she owns the place. Claire follows with a bit less drama.
The pub is mostly empty but Python still moves like she has an audience and Claire mentally confirms to herself that she was definitely a Slytherin in school (which explains her messenger's form). Only the snakes can be that dramatic for no apparent reason (she almost smiles thinking of her own brother's endless teenage drama, but then she remembers that Max has been away for days and a bit of cold reality settles over the happy memories).
"We have a reservation." Python declares once she reaches the bar. She rests with a hand on her hip, refusing to touch anything in the dingy pub aside from the floor.
"Ah, Ms. Caldwell." Aberforth drawls. "Upstairs, third door." He informs her, tossing her a pair of keys that she catches with a spell instead of her hand.
"Thank you." Python says, her tone indicating she's saying it out of habit than actual politeness. She flicks her wand and the keys fly at Claire, who barely manages to catch them.
Claire stares hard at Python's back as the other woman strides to the indicated room, her mind whirling. Aberforth had called her Ms. Caldwell, which can only mean one thing.
"Yes, I'm Badger's sister." Python says flatly once they're in the room, almost as soon as Claire has locked the door behind them. "And it's a damn good thing I am too, mine and Rat's acting abilities stopped them from looking too far into the Underground. No one has any idea that Saundra wasn't working alone, so you're in the clear for the time being."
Claire nods slowly. "Right, okay, that's good." She mumbles. "But... what do we do now? They know the spells according to your last message so what can I do?"
Python's face twists into something that Claire thinks was supposed to be a grin but comes across as a predator baring its teeth at cornered prey. "You really think we didn't have backup plans for something like this?" She asks pointedly. "You met my sister once, that should be enough to know that she makes plans in her free time for fun."
Claire blinks and then nods slowly. "Okay, but if we're switching things up I think I have some ideas too."
Python doesn't look thrilled, but tilts her head in acknowledgement. "Learn the new spells first, then we'll talk." She agrees after a moment.
Luckily the messenger spell wasn't uncovered by the investigation, so they don't have to change those. Unluckily, all of the other spells Claire was actively using are now compromised, so she has to start from scratch with the backups. Python isn't nearly as patient a teacher as Saundra had been, and thirty minutes in her coarse attitude and snippiness are starting to get under Claire's skin.
"Maybe if you explained better I'd have it by now." She snaps when Python makes a snide comment after Claire fails once again to produce the new copy spell properly. "It's like you don't even want this to work - you're the one who didn't want to expand, aren't you? Saundra always cut herself off when talking about it but it's pretty obvious you don't really want to be here."
Python doesn't reply for a long moment, and Claire finally looks up to see that her lips are pressing together and her eyes are squeezed shut. Her breathing is unnaturally even, in the way that suggests she's trying to keep herself in check.
Another long moment passes before the other woman finally speaks, eyes flicking open dangerously. "My sister decided to give her life for this cause. I'm not letting that be for nothing. That's all you need to know." Her tone is flat and any indication of vulnerability has been erased from her features. "Now try it again."
Claire complies, and the rest of the lesson passes in mostly tense silence. At least Claire is able to eventually get the new spells, albeit with some shakiness.
When Python is content with her progress she gestures for Claire to put the wand away and settles into the frayed armchair that serves as the only real seat in the small room. "Alright, good enough. You said you have ideas?"
Claire blinks, having honestly nearly forgotten her terms from before the lesson, but she quickly recovers and sits on the cot so she's eye-level with the other woman.
"You know Sau- Badger, you know that Badger wanted to take the operation larger."
"If it was larger we would have never been able to hide it." Python counters immediately, clearly ready for an old argument.
Claire shakes her head. "And a week ago I would have agreed. But now they think they've stemmed the problem, and I - and I assume Rat as well - am going to have to keep my head down in the next few weeks. We won't be able to move within the Ministry too aggressively until the dust has settled. But because of that-"
"No one will question things happening outside the Ministry." Python breathes, finishing the sentence. "Hate to say it, but point to you Lion. Honestly I'd already wanted to bring Aberforth in so that we could keep using this room to meet, so I was already wiggling on the 'not expanding bit', before you get a big head about that." She adds gruffly. "Anyway, Rat had a bit of an idea as well, and since we're sharing and I like it a lot better than this one: we all need secondary wands. Our usual ones can't have these spells on them, it makes us too easy to pin if we're suspected of anything."
Claire blinks. It's a smart idea, so she agrees with it easily. "How do we get them though? Ollivander's is shut down."
Python smirks. "Oh please, you were a Gryffindor. Like you don't know about the Kiddells."
Claire actually does need a moment to place the name, but then she can't help but laugh at herself just slightly.
Laurel, Willow, and Holly Kiddell, two Gryffindors, all the daughters of wandmakers. Their family has a shop that the youngest one - Holly - had shouted about pretty regularly in the common room now that Claire is thinking about it.
"My bad. How do you want to play this?"
"You need to talk to Holly." Python says immediately. "No one is really suspicious of me since I was Slytherin in school, but I still have to be careful about who I'm seen with. You're okay because of your parentage but you may have noticed that no one really had a chance to see us together."
Claire nods. "It might take a few days but I'll see what I can do." She agrees. "You're on Aberforth then?"
Python hums. "I'll keep you updated on that front. Rat won't be messaging for a while because of the heat from the trial so it's just us for the time being." She hesitates, and then, "Good luck."
With that, Python strides back out of the room. Claire opts to Apparate back home instead of taking the extra time to leave the pub, since it's getting late and her mother is probably wondering where she is.
Sure enough her mother is pacing the kitchen and looks ready to hex her when Claire walks in. "And where have you been young lady?" She asks, her tone and expression deceptively calm.
Claire winces apologetically. "Sorry mother, I ran into someone from school who I haven't seen in a while, we got a bit caught up chatting. You remember Bill Weasley?"
Her mother's frown deepens. "That isn't a good family to be associating with Claire." She replies carefully.
Claire holds up her hands. "I know, I know but... well I overheard father mention a group that's been cause problem and I thought I might be able to get something to help." She quietly hopes her tone is appropriate - what does a mixture of apologetic, determined, and disappointed sound like?
Whatever it is she apparently gets it right as her mother's expression shifts to fond concern. "That's very sweet of you Claire, but you just focus on your Ministry career, alright? I don't want you getting hurt associating with those sorts of people."
Claire nods. "Sorry mother, it won't happen again." She promises. Which means she'll have to start staying at work late to justify when she needs to meet with Python.
She excuses herself to bed but it's quite a while before she actually finds sleep, her mind too caught up thinking about the meeting with Python and how to approach the Kiddells without rousing suspicion.
She's as such a bit sleepy at work the next day, and Phipps (one of the secretaries working with the Commission) takes note.
"Late night Rosier?" She observes. "Probably want to wake up a bit, the boss is in a right mood today."
Sure enough Runcorn spends the entire morning glowering at anyone who tries to talk to him, which actually works out well for Claire as her rushing out the door the moment lunch hour begins is entirely unquestioned.
She invites Valerie to eat with her, knowing the other woman will decline but needing that bit of an alibi since she's about to pull something rather risky.
"I'm getting tea with Branwen if you wanted to join us?" Phipps offers a bit unwillingly, but Claire begs off, citing a distaste for tea.
Besides, while Branwen may have most of the Ministry fooled, Max had accidentally revealed to Claire some weeks ago that she's a loyal Deatheater charged with observing the everyday Ministry employees to suss out potential traitors. As such, Claire intends to avoid the other woman as much as humanly possible.
She should probably warn Python and Rat about that too, now that she thinks about it. She doesn't know what Python does professionally, but Rat definitely works in the Ministry. She'll send them a message later tonight.
She makes her way out of the Ministry and promptly Apparates to Diagon Alley to throw off anyone who might be following her. She can't imagine why anyone would be, but still. Saundra isn't even a week cold, she's thinking extra caution isn't the worst thing to be engaging in right now.
She meanders for a few minutes - not too long, she only has an hour for lunch after all - and then finally pushes open the door of her destination.
A tall man with black hair and dark eyes greets her politely. "Welcome to Kiddell's Wands, how can we help you?"
Claire recognizes him from school. Emery Grant had been in her year and a Gryffindor to boot. She's pretty sure he's trustworthy, as he's a muggleborn from what she remembers (and how is he still standing out front so freely with the Commission active?), but she still starts to mentally revise her plans just in case she can't talk to Holly in front of him. "I need to speak with the owner, if that's possible? Ministry business." She adds. She'll have to come up with a story for that in case this gets back to her boss, but she should have some time for that. For now the words definitely get Emery's attention.
"Just a minute, she's in the back." He says smoothly. "Do you mind waiting?"
"Not at all." She replies, just as even, and she watches him suspiciously as he vanishes into the back.
It takes several minutes longer than it should, but eventually a young brunette bounces cheerfully up to the counter. Claire gets just enough of a glimpse to realize that the other woman is probably pregnant - or just fat, but she's seen the girl's sisters and no way does Holly not take excessively good care of herself based on those two. Sure, Laurel is a professional Quidditch player and being in shape is part of the job, but even Willow looks like she could snap someone's neck without breaking a sweat and she's just a lawyer.
"Hello! I'm Holly Kiddell, owner of this fine establishment and maker of the finest wands. This is my husband Emery Grant. How can I help the Ministry today?" She asks, bright smile plastered over her face.
Claire honestly can't tell if the smile is faked or not - the wandmaker is good. Which is perfect.
"Full honesty I just said that to get your attention." She admits, glancing at the door and lowering her voice. "I know you have no reason to believe me, but I work for a group that-"
Holly cuts her off with a hand wave, and okay, Claire is definitely impressed now. A wandmaker who can perform wandless magic is definitely a feat. "Not here." Her voice is low, but she raises it quickly. "I'm actually just finishing up a lovely Fir in the back that might be just what you're looking for! Em, watch the front for me?" She rewards her husband with a quick peck when he nods and Claire finds herself ushered into the backroom with no further preamble. There's a separate room all the way at the back of the shop and Claire steps into it with some trepidation - it's pitch black and despite her pregnancy Holly's bare arms confirm that she, like her sisters, could probably commit murder bare-handed.
Still, Claire does step in and a moment later finds her vocal chords have been released.
"Alright Ms. Ministry, what do you want?" Holly is leaning against the door, arms crossed, looking almost amused.
"You can call me Lion." Claire offers. "And I'm here to ask a favor."
Holly tilts her head, and taking a deep breath Claire explains as much as she can as quickly as she can. By the time she's finished Holly has been nodding for a good five sentences.
"We provided wands during the other war as well." She says. "I want you to know I'm only trusting you because Emery knows who you are, 'lion'." How she manages to verbally create air quotes Claire doesn't know. "Screw with that trust and you will feel the Kiddell wrath."
Claire nods solemnly. "I'd assume nothing less."
Holly smirks. "Great, then come back tonight after your work day and I can get you set up. Bring Python and Rat if you like, I'd like to hear their stories as well."
Claire grins and agrees. "I'll send them a messenger. Python might not be able to make it on such short notice and she says Rat is pretty pressed for free time right now but I'll make sure they swing by at some point."
Holly nods and ushers Claire back out of the back. "So we'll have that ready for pick up in a few days." She declares cheerfully. "Say, this Saturday? You can just come by any time after five, we close up around seven thirty."
"Thank you very much." Claire responds curtly before exiting the shop, pushing down an urge to fist pump. Hopefully Python was as successful with Aberforth; having a safe meeting point really would be useful, especially now that she's secured two more members and already has ideas for further expansion.
She ends up having to miss lunch though, which is unfortunate because Runcorn's mood is insufferable on an empty stomach. She somehow manages to power through the rest of her day and then sends an owl to her mother that she's grabbing dinner in the Alley with a coworker to cover her meeting with Holly.
She Apparates to Hogsmeade shortly after and, finding a quiet, dark alley, finally sends a messenger to Python, informing her of the success with the Kiddell wandshop. She considers messaging Rat as well but she doesn't know who that is and doesn't want to get them into trouble if they're still at the Ministry or are under watch.
She once again takes a bit of a long route to the shop before stepping in. Emery is still at the counter, and he gestures for her to head into the back.
"Your friends not coming?" He asks dryly. Clearly he's not as willing to trust Claire as Holly is, despite being the one who actually knew her in school.
"Python might be by, I'm not sure. I only just told her." Claire answers honestly. "Hi, by the way, good to see you." She adds a bit sarcastically, and he cracks a smile.
"Hi Claire, good to see you too. Now shoo, keeping my wife waiting is not a great idea."
Claire steps into the back and is promptly hit hard with the scent of wood shaving. She picks her way through the shelves of wands before finding Holly near the back, whittling away at a chunk of wood.
"Um, hey, you said to come back later?" Claire offers when the knife isn't anywhere near Holly's fingers. No need to startle the woman and cause undue injury.
Holly hums, her hands still busy working the wood. "I did. You can go back into the other room, I'll be with you in a minute. Just want to lay the foundation for this one, unicorn hair doesn't keep for long when outside a wand."
That's when Claire notices the silver strands lying next to Holly, tied onto what appears to be a particularly long, wooden needle. "No chance I could watch the magic happen?" She tries.
To her surprise, Holly pauses to gesture at another chair perched nearby. "Be my guest. Unlike Ollivander I don't believe in excluding people from learning." There's a cheeky glint in her eye and Claire chuckles as she takes the offered seat.
She keeps quiet as she watches the other woman work. Holly's hands move with a deftness that can only come from experience - a centimeter difference on some of the would cleave the wand in two.
It takes a few minutes, but eventually Holly snags the needle and begins to push it through the base of the wand horizontally. Claire frowns - she'd assumed the hair would just go up through the middle of the wand - but doesn't comment.
Holly weaves the hair around the base of the wand a few times before she presses it through the bottom and threads the wand the way Claire had expected. She clips the protruding end and ties off the bottom before placing the newly made wand onto the table. "There, I can carve it fully after. For now, you need a new wand, correct?"
Claire nods, wanting to ask about the wand but knowing she has a limited amount of time - she'll need to go actually eat after this since her mother won't have anything prepared.
Luckily for her Holly is good.
"I don't believe in trying to use mediocre Legilmency to wow little students so just tell me about yourself and I'll collect a few wands that could match." Holly orders as she leads Claire into the maze of waiting wands. "And before you ask what to tell me, literally anything. Your likes, dislikes, why you're doing this, whatever strikes your fancy. It all helps."
The 'why you're doing this' suggestion gets Claire's mind working and she ends up telling Holly about when she had been working with Wizengamot Administrative Services, sharing times her files had helped close investigations and venting old frustrations about the cold cases they hadn't been able to do anything about. As she talks Holly hums and nods at all the right places, tapping idly on a few boxes apparently at random.
It's fifteen minutes later when she stops abruptly and pulls one of the boxes down. "Here, try this one. I think you'll get along well." She's grinning confidently, and Claire reaches out to release the wand from it's box.
Almost immediately it grows comfortably warm in her palm, and a slight flick causes it to start glowing happily.
Holly grins proudly. "Eleven and three quarters, Chestnut with a Unicorn Hair core. Not much flexibility with this one which is pretty different from your other wand, so you'll want to practice a bit before trying anything dramatic."
Claire cradles the wand in her hand for a few moments longer before sliding it into her left sleeve (wouldn't want to mix it up with her other wand after all). She'd forgotten the rush of geting a new wand, and Holly had impressed her selecting a match on the first try.
She says as much and Holly laughs.
"Oh, it actually was pretty easy if I'm honest. Chestnut with Unicorn hair tends towards people with a strong sense of justice, and you definitely have that."
"Um, Holly? There's someone at the front." Emery pops his head in, timed almost perfectly. Claire wonders if he'd been waiting for Holly to finish with her before interrupting.
Holly hums and bounds out to the front, leaving Emery and Claire by themselves in the back, and Claire immediately feels a bit awkward.
"So... congratulations on the wedding. And the baby?" She offers awkwardly.
Emery gives her a half-smile. "Thanks, we're due in May." He replies. "And I should tell you I was eavesdropping a bit on your conversation and wanted to say I believe you now. We'll both be happy to help your group in whatever ways you need."
Claire grins fully at that. "Awesome. I think we'll be expanding the number of members soon so we'll be needing wands."
They're interrupted by Holly reappearing with Python following behind. The blonde nods to Claire but otherwise doesn't acknowledge her existence.
Claire shrugs. "I guess I'll pay up front?" She offers Emery, and he gives her a half smile and leads her out after checking that no one else has come in.
Claire leaves seven Galleons poorer with a stomach that's very loudly demanding she put something in it before it decides to start digesting her internal organs.
She picks up something quick and greasy from the Leaky and eats it as she walks home, finishing about five minutes out from the Rosier estate.
She's composing a story for her mother about her dinner when she enters the house and notices that there are two extra pairs of shoes sitting on the mat. Any thoughts about her lies fly out of her head as she hurries to the sitting room.
Max glances up as soon as she stumbles in and gives her a grin. "Heya little lion, welcome home."
She punches his shoulder as she walks past him to hug her father.
"When did you get back? Mother if you'd owled me at work I would have come straight home!"
Her mother laughs. "They arrived just after your owl dear, otherwise I would have told you."
Claire ends up curling up in one of the love seats with a cup of tea her mother summons and listens quietly as her brother regales them with tales of a battle against a group of fugitive Hit Wizards. It's honestly intense and Claire would think it an excellent child's tale if she didn't know her brother and father had actually been risking their lives. Only luck meant the tale hadn't ended in tragedy.
It's well after midnight when they all retire to their rooms, and Claire is startled to find a massive silvery snake coiled at the base of her bed. She barely cuts off her own scream and glares at the messenger.
"I'm here, go." She sighs. Of course Python had contacted her, she shouldn't have been surprised.
The snake rears up and it's mouth drops open.
"Meet tomorrow at Hog's Head, lunch hour."
"Very informative Py." Claire sighs as the snake vanishes once the message is finished. Still, it does mean that Aberforth is on their side, which is good.
Claire sleeps well that night, which is also good. It's the first real night's sleep she's gotten in a week.
As such she's fully refreshed the next day - even Runcorn's continued bad mood barely dents her own spirits, though she does rush out again at lunch.
Python is already in their meeting room when she Apparates in, but Claire is surprised to see Emery seated next to her on the bed.
"Lion, you've met Beagle." Python says briskly. "He and Sparrow just joined up, and we were talking further expansion. Goat has provided this meeting point and I propose we start implementing Badger's safe houses. Rat agrees."
Claire blinks. She's figured out of course that Python likes getting things done but the briskness still knocks her a bit off-kilter for a moment. "Um, right, I agree." She says quickly. "I suppose I'll be on point for recruitment on that front?"
Python tilts her head. "We both will be. You need to start teaching the messenger spells though, and the defense. And Beagle here proposed coming up with code phrases so we can identify each other outside of messengers."
Claire likes that idea, especially if they'll be expanding as much as Python seems to be implying. Saundra's safe house idea will require people in the field to track down fugitive muggleborns, people to run the safehouses, people outside the country to help relocate hidden muggleborns out of England, and probably some healers since three months on the run would leave anyone at the very least a bit underfed.
Claire had always liked the idea of the safe house network - what was the point of erasing files if people still had to undergo the risks of hiding? And what about those people they hadn't been able to help? - but it had been too broad and too likely to bring attention onto the group. But Claire supposes that Python is still capitalizing on the relaxed scrutiny created by her sister's execution.
It's rather gruesome, but Claire thinks that Saundra would be proud that her sacrifice is going to help so many people.
Now she just has to figure out who else she can recruit. They're going to save everyone if she has anything to say about it.
Author's Note: This ended up a lot more cheerful than I thought it would considering it's all happening because Saundra was martyred OTL But as H:aH readers know I tend to go ham on wandlore whenever Holly shows up so really I shouldn't be surprised that I got sidetracked and accidentally made this too happy xD Don't worry, we're back to tragedy next week~
Next Week: Sometimes turning a blind eye takes a lot of effort, and not for the reasons you'd think
So I'm thinking I might do a final 'afterwords' chapter to share my thoughts and feelings on writing this story, if that's something people would be interested in? I'm also open to answering any lingering questions people might have there as well!
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