"I just can't fucking believe it." Andromeda spat. She was sat on the sofa before. Now she was on the floor. The floor felt safer. "I am an auror Cepheus. An auror! It was going on for years. I am the world's shittest auror."

Her hair had lost its deep sheen. It was a boring brown. It was lifeless. Her skin was pale and she looked thin. She did not look like she could kick anyone's ass. There were big shadows under her eyes. They were not drinking beer. They were drinking spirits. She had fallen off the sofa trying to punch it. The conversation kept going round and round in circles. "I wish Ri were here. I wish Ari was here. I wish we could make it all better. I hope they throw away the key. He makes me sick." Andromeda knocked back another shot. "People think we are monsters Ceph."

Cepheus slid to the living room floor to his sister's right and put the near-empty bottle on the table. He had no concept of what time it was, just that the two of them had probably been going round in circles all evening about this, and that they hadn't eaten near enough to cope with what they were drinking.
"I know, I know." He muttered to his sister, extending his left arm to her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders like they had done as kids, cross-legged on the floor. Andie looked more like he remembered her when she was little, what with her lapse in metamorphmagi. Her dark brown hair like his was under the magical disguise she wore.

"Ari's safe at Hogwarts, Nad told her, she's her mum. Ri will be here, when he gets here, I'm sure." Who knew if their owls had got to him. Even Devia Orbis weren't entirely sure where he was - that was exactly how Ri worked.

"I don't think he'll be getting away from this... fuck knows what they were thinking. What were they even doing with that many students? And the ..." Ceph gripped his sister tighter, trying not think about how much blood had been stolen from St Mungo's. "It's not your fault, sis. He was a Department Head - and he did it right there."

"But how!!" Andromeda protested. She threw her hands up. "How did he do it? WHY did he do it? If they meant it never to be found, why did they not kill them all?" She was angry. She always thought her mum and dad were the most clever people she knew. Now they were known for being crazy people who kidnapped kids. "Who is to say they did not do this before? You know dad has been obliviating mum for years. She told me she prefers it because she got to have dinner with the Minister. I think it is sick!" Andie curled up her legs. She was glad her brother was there to talk to. She wanted to break things. She would not break things in his flat. "Where is she now? Do you think dad has done something to her?" Andie was too drunk to think straight. "I wish I could talk to him. I would make him talk."

"It's... it's ok to be angry." Cepheus heard himself say, as much to Andromeda as to himself. It was as if he was listening to himself as a third party. Through the drinking and the horrible thoughts going through his head since they found out, Ceph felt detached from himself. Like it was all a strange dream, a nightmare, where you didn't feel anything really, and you couldn't quite keep grip on the situation.

"He can't be right in the head, that's all I can figure." He spoke in a calm tone, gently rubbing his sister's arm. "He's always been a bit odd, you know... we just accepted it as how he was, but ..." Cepheus frowned, trying to string a sentence together, "... I always thought it was a bit weird the way he took interest in us and the others as kids. Oh fuck."

Ceph lifted a hand to his face and closed his eyes. His mind's eye was picturing his father towering over the kids his mother tutored alongside her own when they were growing up. Their father had often asked if anyone had shown signs of magic. At the time, Cepheus had perceived it as a matter of pureblood pride, that early arrival of magical potential and accidents showed a strong future magician. But now his mind was full of doubts and rather more sinister thoughts.

"That sounded worse out loud." Ceph added grimly, "It is sick, which is why I can only believe he is sick somehow. All those years in Mysteries has done something to his head." He raked his fingers through his hair and gripped Andie with his left arm. "As for Mum, gods knows. Carstairs said she was down there too, her fingerprints, right? Then she's either changed her face or dead too. Dad will have to tell them." Ceph reached for the bottle and lifted it to his lips again. "He'll have to. We all need answers, not least the poor students." 

"The Prewetts will hate us. And Nadine! Poor Moses. He did not deserve that! Why did dad not realise who he was? Did he not care?" Andie was so angry. "Siana Prewett. She was in Hufflepuff. She should be at school studying for her OWLS." She said to Cepheus. "Henry Beatty, Gryffindor. He was Muggle born. He is not less than them. He was a fourth year. We should remember their names and make amends. Something!" Andie snatched the bottle from her brother. She drank a lot. "I will fucking kill him."

“Hey!” Ceph exclaimed as his sister snatched the bottle from his hand. “I get the angry, I get the rage Andie, but I think we should stop drinking. I don’t think it is getting any better.” He reached out and clasped the bottle his sister had in a grip. He was pretty drunk himself but he wasn’t necking it down like his sister. “We don’t want to go St Mungo’s.” Cepheus didn’t realise his words were ever so slightly slurring now. “And we won’t forget them. We won’t forget this all our lives. Just like Hogwarts. And he won’t get away with it. We can make sure. He’s not our father. He is not a Gamp. We don’t deserve to be sad.”

Andromeda's lip wobbled. She did not cry. She hated crying. Cepheus said they did not deserve to be sad. Why was she sad? She let him take the bottle. She was sad because their mum and dad were terrible people. All of her happy childhood memories were lies. They were horrible horrible people!! She was also very drunk. She could probably not get up now. "I did not see they were bad people. I find bad people. I am shit at my job." She tried hard not to cry. She breathed in deep. "I should stop being an auror. I let those kids down."

“You’re not shit at your job.” Cepheus assured her. Gosh his sister really had drunk too much. She was getting sentimental and depressed! He hadn’t been in the situation of looking after her like this since they were little, and she used to hold onto his hand at parties and gatherings with adults. They’d been drunk many times, but for happy reasons, or putting the worlds to rights. “Shh. Stop it now, this is just overwhelming.” He pushed the bottle across the table and away from them before drawing his sister closer to him, rocking her unevenly. “I’m too drunk to reason with you, and you’re too drunk to call yourself shit,” he slurred. “Claude! Get us some water.”

"Yeah Claude!" Andromeda said. She laughed. It was not a happy laugh. But it was a laugh. Andromeda gave a big sigh. She hugged her brother tight. "I am glad I have you brother." She said to him. If she did not have her family she would be alone. Andromeda did not have best friends. Her friends were other aurors. Now what did they think about her? "I wish this never happened."

Ceph laughed weakly at his sister’s cry to the cat. They really had drunk too much. It was going to hurt in the morning, but it felt cathartic to get pissed, swear until the air was blue and cry. They’d been trying to remain professional, the whole damned family wrapped up in the Ministry apart from Ri and their missing mother. They had jobs to do. Their father had a job to do, but he decided to abuse it, grossly.

“I know sis,” Cepheus replied, folding her head under his chin, “I wish it never had too.” He held her just as tight and rocked her gently.

End