Chapter Eighteen
Confronting the Faceless 💀 CompleteDecember 18-29, 1997
"Indifference and neglect often do much more damage than outright dislike"
"Good evening, Mr. Case. I'll see you in the new year, then?"
Aiden nods at Channer Lindberg's inquiry. His boss had kindly approved a two week vacation period during the holidays so Aiden can stay home with Logan, and as such Aiden had pulled a late night on his last day in the office.
"Happy holidays Mr. Lindberg." He says in turn, and Channer raises a hand in idle farewell, returning full focus to the document Aiden had brought in moments before.
He honestly had been somewhat concerned that his request would be denied - he wouldn't normally expect it from the Authority Head but Channer has been somewhat out of sorts lately. Aiden hopes he takes some time off to spend with his own family in the coming weeks.
Personally he's looking forward to being at home for a while - the office has become a bit of a nightmare recently. Yurina Nakayashi is often found prowling around, and though she hasn't targeted Aiden yet he's seen the aftermath of some of his colleagues and he really doesn't want to cry at work. It would be humiliating.
He's picking up Logan the next day, so he spends what's left of his evening getting the house ready for his ward's return. He cleans the sheets in Logan's room and makes sure there's space in the closet for his clothing. He also pulls out Nelson's food bowls and refills the litter box since Logan never leaves their cat at school during breaks despite the pet service provided by the house elves.
He then double-checks that Logan's present is safely wrapped and hidden where the teen won't be able to find it before finally settling in for the night.
The next day is partially spent doing work, despite his not being at the office. The Hogwarts Express doesn't get in until three in the afternoon so he has some time to spare before having to head out. After the massive reset of the West End last month, Aiden has been toying with the idea of a total overhaul of the system, since now other areas of the Network are starting to act up (though he suspects the new employees may have something to do with that - he swears he's seen them mess with the lines they're supposed to only be observing).
He heads out to King's Cross at a quarter to three and arrives on the platform about ten minutes before the train should be arriving. As usual he scans the crowd for Ismelda Hopkins so they can wait together.
He's surprised to see that she's brought her older son along with - normally her husband Jason would accompany her, but Aiden suspects that the man was one of the victims of the Muggleborn trials from back in September. He makes his way over to the two cautiously.
Carl Hopkins spots him first, and grins a bit tensely in greeting. "Afternoon Mr. Case." He offers formally. "Things going well for the Floo Network Authority?"
Aiden offers what he hopes is a warm smile and not an awkward twisting of his face. "They're going, which is all you can hope for some days."
Carl chuckles at that, and Aiden celebrates internally. "How about yourself, you're doing secretarial work for the Wizengamot these days, correct?"
Carl's expression instantly sours and Aiden could kick himself. Obviously working any level of law enforcement right now isn't going to be particularly enjoyable with Corban Yaxley overseeing it all.
"I'm actually about ready to quit and try again later." He grumbles, his voice dropping several decibels as he glances at the other parents waiting around them.
Ismelda places a hand on his shoulder and looks around cautiously as well. "It's less a fit than he was hoping." She says with forced cheer. "I'm sure you took some time to find your way to the Floo Authority, right Aiden?"
Aiden clears his throat. "Ah, well, no actually, I started training as an Engineer for the Authority right out of school." He admits. "I was always fascinated by how things fit together, so it seemed an obvious choice. Professor Flitwick was the one to suggest it actually."
Ismelda purses her lips nervously and the three fall into an awkward silence that claws at Aiden's skin uncomfortably. Why couldn't he have just made something up?
The tension is cut by the chime of the church bell declaring that three o'clock has arrived - but the train hasn't.
Something in Aiden's gut drops hard and fast. "Has the Express ever been late before?" He asks Ismelda, even though she only has one more year of experience with this than he does.
Her lips are pressed together tightly as she shakes her head. "Never to my knowledge."
The whole platform is alight now with nervous energy as parents crane to look down the track to where the Express should be. It's a grey, overcast day and the radio said they might be getting the first snow of the season today so visibility is rather poor. Still, the Express is bright red - surely if it was close it would be at least somewhat detectable?
"Everything is probably fine mum, Muggle trains run late sometimes." Carl's voice breaks through Aiden's own mounting panic and he turns to his companions immediately, hoping he can offer some comfort as well.
"No they don't." Ismelda says flatly. "They're quite proud of that. And even if they did, we have magic there's no reason why-"
She's cut off by a blast from a train whistle. Every person on the platform turns to face the tracks in time to see the crimson engine fly in, looking undented and cheery as ever despite its five minute delay.
It huffs to a stop and the doors swing open. A few moments later students start exiting the train and looking around for their parents.
Aiden strains to spot Logan and Wayne - Susan will have stayed at school over the break unfortunately, so he doesn't have her bright auburn hair to serve as a beacon - in the mass of exiting students. As he does he overhears one frantic red haired mother demanding why the train was late and he can't help listening to her daughter's response.
"They took Luna off the train. Just stopped the whole thing and dragged her right out of the car." The girl looks absolutely furious even as her mother's face drains of color.
Aiden feels much the same as the mother at the news - 'they' must mean Deatheaters, and they'd kidnapped a child right off the Express.
Obviously Hogwarts is even less safe than he'd thought.
The mother is dragging her daughter away now even as the girl shouts farewells to some of the other students and keeps insisting she tried to fight to her mother, who seems less than pleased by this particular tidbit of information.
Aiden pulls his eyes away from the two to refocus on finding his own ward, mentally begging that only this 'Luna' had been taken.
Thankfully he spots Logan and Wayne fighting their way through the crowd a few moments later and he hurries over to them.
"Heya Mr. Case." Wayne greets cheerfully.
"Hello boys. Everything alright on the train ride back?" He asks, hoping it comes across as casual. He takes Logan's bag from him so his ward can focus on balancing Nelson's cat carrier.
"Well-" Wayne starts eagerly, and then gets an elbow in his side from Logan.
"There was a stop for a few minutes and a bit of commotion from one of the other cars but nothing really." His ward says quickly, and Aiden frowns. Why would Logan want to hide what really happened from him? Or maybe he doens't know? His actions suggest otherwise though.
"Alright." He says slowly as he leads the two back over to where Ismelda and Carl are waiting.
"Heya bro!" Wayne exclaims, dropping his suitcase so he can enthusiastically pound his brother on the back.
Carl laughs and drags Wayne into a side hug. "Heya bro." He responds lightly. "How goes the schooling? Is it just as horrific and stressful as I remember?"
Aiden and Logan don't linger for much longer, saying their farewells and happy holidays to the Hopkins before heading off the platform and back to a safe area to Apparate home.
"So," Aiden says idly once they're back in the house and Nelson has been freed from his carrier (he'd started whining halfway to the Apparation point). "What really happened on the train?"
Logan groans. "Nothing, I already told you. It wasn't a big deal."
"If it's not a big deal you can tell me about it, right?" Aiden points out, worry rebuilding in his gut. Logan has never lied to him before, not even lies of omission. And really, this is the worst possible time to start developing a rebel streak - they're in the middle of a war after all.
Logan sighs. "Look, they took one girl off the train because her dad writes the Quibbler and was revealing all the lies the Prophet is printing." He glares at the floor stubbornly as Nelson winds around his feet.
Aiden struggles to keep his expression and tone neutral - he does't want Logan to think telling him was the wrong decision. "There, that wasn't so hard. Did you know her?" He asks carefully. Don't scare him off, don't scare him off...
Logan finally looks up, tentatively but it's improvement. "I... kind of. Indirectly. I know her friends better than I knew her, really."
Aiden tilts his head. "Well, you're home now, and safe. That's what counts." He says firmly, ignoring the slightly disbelieving look on Logan's face. "What do you feel like having for dinner?"
Things settle a bit after that, at least until Logan takes a shower and comes out to dinner in his sleepwear. The short sleeves show off bruises and cuts that his robes had hidden from Aiden earlier.
Aiden can't even form any questions about them at first, can only stare in horror and remember the image of Logan's parents laid out on the ground, battered and bloody.
Logan seems confused by his reaction at first, and then glances at his arms and grimaces, quickly figuring out the problem. "It's nothing, Quidditch practice." He waves it off easily. "Our next match is against Slytherin you know, so Captain Smith has us practicing for their inevitable cheating."
Aiden doesn't quite buy it, but he has heard quite a few complaints from Logan and his friends about Zacharias Smith in the past, so the story isn't completely unbelievable.
"I thought Smith was removed from the team last year?" He offers instead of pushing it, and Logan sags in relief, dropping into the chair across from Aiden.
"He was, but then we played absolutely horridly. We only beat Gryffindor because they decided to put an idiot on the field and Potter was taken out so we got a free hundred and fifty points right there. And Summerby was good. Not, like, Cedric Diggory good, but still fantastic. But he graduated last year and we all realized that even if he's a self-serving arse with a massive ego, Smith is actually a good strategist. We crushed Ravenclaw in the November game, though I suppose it could be because they've got a new Captain who doesn't know what she's doing."
Aiden half-listens as Logan rambles on about Quidditch - he's never liked that his ward started playing his fourth year, but Logan loves it and Aiden knows that Hogwarts has several safety precautions in place so Logan can't be too hurt while playing. He still worries though.
He sleeps better that night than he has in a while (bar the day they rebooted the West End of the Network - he'd been too exhausted to do anything but pass out after that mess) knowing that Logan is safely in his room and not thousands of miles away.
The next few days are, for the most part, calm. Logan and Nelson fill the house with noise that has been starkly absent while they've been at school, and Aiden alternates his time tinkering with ideas for the Network and joining Logan and Nelson in whatever mischief they've decided to get up to. They go Christmas shopping for Logan's friends in Muggle London and Logan insists on getting hot chocolate at every single store that sells it "for science!"
This of course leads to a night of making and drinking so much hot chocolate Aiden is pretty sure they're both going to get ill just from mentioning it for quite a while.
But despite the general lightness of their time together, Aiden can't help noticing certain things are off.
Nelson has always been an affectionate cat, but he seem to be attached to Logan most days, following him closely and nosing at him constantly as if looking for something. And Logan is jumpier than usual. He tries to hide it, but it's clear that some part of him is scared of something the way he's constantly checking corners and shadows as if looking for monsters.
It eats at Aiden's consciousness, the flinching, the fear, until he finally concludes that he can't knowingly send Tanner's son back to Hogwarts and whatever horrors are waiting for him there. So a week after Logan comes home - on Christmas Eve - he begins to plan their escape.
He starts after Logan and Nelson have fallen asleep, the cat curled up on Logan's feet, and Aiden has placed the presents under their small tree. He then skips going to sleep and creeps into his home office to determine what needs to be done if he wants to vanish the two of them entirely from the system.
A Fidelius on the House is an obvious start, but he'd need a Secret Keeper, a witness, and someone to cast the spell with him - Logan's magic won't be powerful enough to manage it, not yet. Tests have long showed that it isn't until the age of twenty or so that magic evens out enough to manage complex spells like the Fidelius - it's honestly fascinating, and plenty of papers have been written on the subject.
None of which matters - the point is that a Fidelius is likely out of the question. Which is going to make this a lot harder than it was already going to be.
He stays up all night, only sneaking back to his room when he hears the tell-tale sound of Logan slowly waking up a hour or so after dawn. He closes his eyes and rests for a few minutes before his ward bursts in and pokes at him until he groans and rolls out of bed.
"Come on old man, presents!" Logan grins. Aiden smiles tiredly as the teen spins and bounces out of the room, though it drops into a frown when he spots the yellow of a faded bruise on Logan's hip.
He hauls himself out of bed, pushing away the frustration at his ward's unwillingness to be honest with reminders to himself that he's going to keep Logan safe. He'll have a game plan fully executed by New Years Eve.
His mental reassurances to himself don't stop him from having to blink away images of Logan's parents' bodies out of his mind's eye as their son eagerly tears into his presents. He'll protect Logan like he promised he would. He will.
Logan has gotten him a tie for Christmas, as he does every year. It's a running joke for the teen but Aiden has worn every single one of the ties several times to work and to formal events.
This year it's a stark red skinny with gold ts.
"Gryffindor colors?" Aiden asks, mostly amused but also a bit confused. He's Ravenclaw himself, and so usually the ties are some shade of blue or bronze.
Logan shrugs a bit awkwardly. "Well, it's a tough time. Thought it was appropriate to use colors that represent bravery."
Aiden smiles slightly. That makes sense, but it's still a bit odd. Not that oddness will stop him from wearing this on his first day back in the office - whenever that ends up being.
Wayne had given Logan a new broom care kit, and Aiden had picked up a few Muggle books he remembers Evelyn loving that Logan has already eagerly started to flip through as Aiden cleans up their sitting room post-unwrapping. Susan's gift had been rather odd - a small gold coin. Logan had laughed and quickly said that it's part of an inside joke and not to worry about it, which of course means Aiden's worrying about it.
He decides to try probing a little more gently though. He settles on the couch once the wrapping paper is in the garbage and leans towards his ward.
"Sooooo. In joke with Susan? Something I should know about there?" He grins teasingly, and it's barely forced - this is familiar territory.
Logan nearly drops the book on his face - how he's reading practically upside down in the chair Aiden doesn't understand but he's done it since he was a child - and turns red.
"No! Nothing! Oh my gosh Mr. Case why?"
"Aiden." He corrects automatically. "And I dunno, she's very pretty, and very smart as well. I'd understand if you wanted to pursue something there."
"She's my best friend that would be so weird no." Logan whines, covering his face with the pages but Aiden can see his ears glowing red.
"I'd think that would make it that much easier to fall in love with her, don't you?" He presses, his grin relaxing into a genuine one as Logan tries to sink down and become one with the couch cushions.
"Nooooooo." Logan moans pitifully. "It's Christmas, have mercy." He begs.
Aiden laughs and pokes his side. "Oh alright sport. Only because it's Christmas." He sits straight. "Speaking of, shall we see what ridiculous Christmas specials are playing?"
There's an old Muggle television in the living quarters of their house, leftover from the former Muggle owners of the place. Logan had gotten it into his head at seven years old to get the old thing running again, and it had been a fun challenge he and Aiden had worked on during the weekends for the better part of a year. Since getting it up and running, watching Muggle Christmas shows has become part of their yearly holiday routine.
"I'll get the cookies!" Logan agrees immediately, jumping up and hurrying to the kitchen whil Aiden grabs the remote.
Aiden accidentally nods off in the middle of A Charlie Brown Christmas, which Logan always insists on trying to find since it's been their favorite for years. He's woken by Logan bouncing the couch cushions and demanding they bake more cookies because he's eaten all of them already.
Normally Aiden would scold him for ruining his appetite, but it's Christmas, and maybe he feels a little bad that this might be the last time Logan gets to feel normal for a while. So they go make more cookies the Muggle way, and turn on the radio to the special Muggle/Wizard mixed channel that only plays in Tinsworth so they can have a backtrack of carols while they work.
"Everywhere should be like Tinsworth." Logan declares when the cookies are in the oven. "I feel like there'd be less prejudice against Muggles and Muggleborns if everyone lived in a mixed town like this, instead of isolated like they are in London."
Aiden smiles faintly. "You're probably right." He acknowledges, even though he knows that intermingling probably makes Tinsworth more of a target than other places with the current political climate. That's a thought that has kept him up several nights before, but so far their little coastal town has managed to stay off the Deatheaters' radar.
Aiden does his best to keep those sorts of thoughts at bay though, focusing on the here and now so that Christmas is enjoyable for them both. He thinks he's managed to be successful on that front when he says goodnight to Logan that evening. His ward is beaming as he and Nelson settle in, and Aiden smiles back.
If only he could keep that smile forever, but the real world isn't so kind. Aiden sleeps that night - he can't afford not to, the nap during the specials wasn't nearly enough to keep his mind in top form - but the next day he tells Logan he needs to get some things organized for work and he buckles down in his office to properly flesh out their plans of escape.
They can't stay in Tinsworth, that much is certain. It's only a matter of time before the Dark forces turn their sights on this little mixed town and turn it to ash, so when that happens they can't be here.
It's honestly harder than he'd like, but he eventually figures out how to disable their Floo without setting off any alarms. He doesn't deactivate it right away - no need to risk anything if it goes poorly - but it's a first step. From there they'll have to leave by Muggle means, which means hunting down his and Logan's passports and taking a trip into the city to book plane tickets out of the country since they never reconnected the old landline in the house.
He doesn't tell Logan - he'll do that the day before they leave. He doesn't want Logan to spend his last break stressed out if he doesn't have to be.
He goes into London on the twenty ninth, leaving Logan and Nelson to fend for themselves for lunch. He excuses the trip by taking his briefcase along with, citing that there are some numbers not adding up and he wants to consult with his boss. It's not uncommon for him to do this, even when on vacation, so Logan just waves and asks if he can go to the local grocer and buy one of their pre-made sandwiches.
Aiden Floos to Diagon Alley, deciding to not risk Apparating into any part of Muggle London considering it'll be particularly packed for the holidays. He avoids talking to anyone and beelines for the Muggle exit through the Leaky Cauldron. He's already mapped out how to get to the airport to purchase tickets, but he'll need to convert some of his Galleons first so he can take Muggle transportation.
Tom looks up as Aiden approaches the Leaky's bar. "Can I interest you in a Dark 'n' Stormy Case? You used to love those."
"Not for seventeen years I haven't." Aiden sighs. "I need an exchange Tom, that's all."
The bartender snorts. "Yeah yeah, I'm on it. Gimme a minute."
Aiden stands stiffly by the bar - he knows Tom cleans it but it still looks sticky - while the older man gathers Muggle money from a safe kept in the back. Aiden isn't supposed to know about the safe, but Evelyn used to work as a waitress in the summers and had seen it once.
Tom returns and hands over the money, and Aiden counts it carefully before nodding to the other man and heading out.
"There's always an open spot at the bar whenever you like!" Tom calls after him cheerfully before shuffling off to the next customer.
Aiden ignores the offer - he stopped drinking when Logan came into his life and he has no intention of starting again when this entire trip is about keeping his ward safe. He takes a taxi to Heathrow airport and successfully books two Economy-class tickets to France for New Year's Eve. The woman helping him is quite chatty and he does his best to be charming but he's pretty sure he just comes across as tense and awkward, which weighs on him the entire way home.
He Floos back into the house a little after four in the afernoon and is startled to find Logan sitting on the couch, gripping some files in his hand and looking upset.
"Logan? What are those?" He asks slowly.
His ward glares. "You tell me Mr. Case. What are these? Because it seems to me they're plans to run away."
Aiden breathes out slowly. "Logan, why were you in my office?"
Logan laughs. "Why? I was hoping you'd have something helpful. Instead I find this." He throws the papers onto the floor. "I know you're not the epitome of courage but I didn't realize you were a full-on coward."
"You come home covered in injuries and somehow I'm the bad guy for wanting to protect you?" Aiden's aware his voice is rising to match Logan's, but the accusation stings and he's feeling off-kilter.
"I'm fighting back!" Logan shouts, standing from the couch with his fists clenched. "I'm fighting back, at school. I take punishments so that first years don't get tortured. I stand up to the Carrows and Snape with the rest of Dumbledore's Army and I don't regret a single injury. We're all that's keeping hope alive in those walls - if I run away now, it's not just cowardly, it's selfish and cruel."
Aiden winces. "I'm just trying to protect you-"
"No you're trying to protect you!" Logan shouts. "And you can go right ahead, but I have kids to take care of, and I'll be on the Express when it returns to Hogwarts, whether or not you're the one dropping me off." With that, he spins on her heel and storms out the front door, slamming it behind him.
Nelson mewls worriedly and Aiden drops onto the couch numbly. "He'll be back Nelson. He wouldn't forget you." He assures the cat. Assures himself.
An hour later Logan isn't back, the sun is nearly set, and Aiden realizes his ward didn't bring a coat when he'd stormed out. Suddenly frantic, he grabs a jacket from the coatrack and rushes into the freezing evening, wand in hand, ready to cast a search spell.
"Took you long enough." A voice grumbles, and he spins in relief to find Logan sitting on the porch, wand in hand and creating a heat shield around himself. Aiden awkwardly offers the jacket, which is hesitatingly accepted.
"Look, I'm... sorry, I didn't tell you." He says after a long moment of silence. "I just... I..." He pauses. He's never told this to Logan before, but his ward is an adult now. It's probably time. "I'm the one who found your parents. And I just... I look at you, and I see them, and I don't want to fail you. I don't want to break my promise to keep you safe - it's the last thing your parents ever asked of me."
Logan's mouth purses into a thoughtful frown that reminds Aiden painfully of a young Hufflepuff girl he used to know. Logan really does look like his mother. "I... get that. But to me, isn't it better to fight back and try to make sure other families don't have to go through that? Running away still doesn't fix the problem."
Aiden doesn't reply immediately, though he wants to. He forces himself to roll Logan's words around in his mind, try to fit them with his need to protect the teen - and comes up with Tanner's grinning face instead.
"I think it's great you're joining the Floo Network, Moonsong! Think of all the people you can help out doing that!"
Aiden lets out a shuddering sigh. He's spent all this time worrying about what he thinks he should do to honor his friends, but he seems to have lost track of what Tanner and Evelyn would have actually done in this situation.
"You're right." He finally says, and Logan startles slightly next to him. "They would have wanted to help people. Both of them." He sighs and looks over at his ward with a strained smile. "You really do remind me of them. More and more every passing day."
Logan hesitates, and then leans over. "Mr. Case? Could we go inside, and you could tell me about them?"
Aiden hesitates. "I have told you about them before." He points out.
Logan shrugs. "Not much though. Tell me about your school days, and what they were like. All the details, not just the nice ones."
Aiden snorts. "Well you get your temper and stubbornness from your father, that I can say with certainty."
Logan grins and pulls them both up. "That sounds like it has a story behind it." He encourages as they go back into the house and are jumped by a very worried gray fluffball.
It's cathartic, telling Logan all the details about his parents that Aiden has kept back over the years. He'd always tried to paint Tanner and Evelyn as nearly perfect to their son, but Logan seems to love the stories of Tanner getting into trouble and his mother cleverly winning cases at work with some slightly under-handed tactics.
"It makes them more real. Thanks Aiden." Logan says that night when they're both retiring to their rooms.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier." He replies honestly. "They were great people. I wish you could have met them."
"Me too." Logan says softly before he and Nelson vanish into his room for the night. It isn't until he's in his nightshirt and setting into bed that Aiden realizes Logan had used his first name.
The rest of the holiday break is somehow both lighter and heavier for Aiden. He feels closer to his ward now than he has in the past, but the knowledge that Logan is going back into a lion's den in just a few days nips at his heels constantly.
"I get that you're worried, but I promise to not do anything stupid, okay?" Logan says when they're packing his things to head back to the Hogwarts Express. "But do me a favor too?" Aiden tilts his head to show he's listening. "If you're able to help in some small way, please do. I know you can."
The words settle into Aiden's bones as he and Ismelda wave from the platform a few hours later, watching their boys go back into the unknown horrors of Hogwarts. Do something to help? Well, the least he can do is keep an eye open for opportunities.
He thinks he hears Tanner cheering him on.
Author's Note: Haha, the non sequitur parent chat in the last chapter has payoff! It was really fun writing this chapter, Aiden and Logan's interactions were a lot of fun ^^ And guess what guys? There's only one more chapter in December, which means we're nearly to 1998!
Next Week: Romance ruins everything - even the fake kind
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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