Alone in the darkness

[Susan Bones]

What a time to be alive? Susan thought as she made her way threw the crumbed city. She never would have seen this coming even in the worst nightmare. She still had a wand with her but that was not what was seen. She had a bow over her shoulder and a number of arrows. Lined with poison they where a good weapon when needed. In this time no one walked without something to protect them. A wand would not help though. Witch hunters larked the muggle towns and then Death Eaters everywhere else.

A dirty face looked to be on the street for a while, as she was. No real place to call her own after her family home was torched. She was too late for them but now she had other problems. She had not seen or heard from any friendly voice in far too long as she walked keeping an alert eye and ear.

Voices occasional entered her head that was not hers. Screams fears and doubts were natural. She however was not ready for such a power as much as she practiced. Possible because of all the hard times it came out in the open but she still had limited control over hearing others thoughts. She began to hear something that stuck out however. ‘That’s right a little further.' It was not a pleasant thought either that entered her mind. She could not tell where it was coming from or who until she took one more step she was faced with a raged Vampire that grabbed her. Susan refused to have her fate turn like this and turned quickly pulling his arm down then pulling an arrow from her sack. She was not placing it in the bow he was far too close.

“Oh, you really think your going to kill be? Little girl all I want is a taste.” He said but his mind spoke of other things. She lunged at him and he did not move to far out of the way; Vampires heal fast but not with this arrow. This will kill them in time. She plunged it into his shoulder, he only laughed, but Susan laughed inside. It was then that his face turned sour. “You Little Witch!” he proclaimed as he could feel the poison working its ways. It would not work fast enough and Susan knew it as he came for her. She found that hand-to-hand combat was not that hard after you have had the practice.

She pulled the arrow from his shoulder when he lunged at her and aimed for his heart this time, not games. She was lucky this particular vampire had not eaten in a while and was a little weakened. She was doing well to keep in the shadows, there were many to lurk in. she moved and found herself in the heart of London; well what was left of it. She smiled looking at the old Big Ben Tower. She sighed thinking that things had changed so much; and she was so alone.

[George Adam Sparewell]

A small bell on a string began moving, sending a chime into the ears of the hermit. His eyes darted open, from his slumber, and he immediately got up. He cleared his mind of all things since the last encounter he had with a victim, a death eater who turned out to have the gift of legimens. He threw back on the old, tattered Ministry robe from his early days, and left the safety of his room, inside the tower of Big Ben.

It didn't take long to quietly navigate the rubble he spent months memorizing, and before long, he took a step back, seeing the target ahead. A young woman it appeared to be, either lost, admiring the surronding... or something a bit more sinister. Especially since realisitcally, he was wanted for many things, by both the Dark Lord and witches and wizards alike, to answer for surrendering the world. Still, if this person was here for him, then he was not going to dissapoint her, even if she would never be able to tell whoever she was from of his whereabouts.

He leaped up and landed a small distance away from her, holding a stick in one hand and a gun in the other. "Turn slowly, and don't move. A bit lost, aren't we?" George Sparewell said, his eyes spiking at her.

[Susan Bones]

It was not soon after she had encountered a hungry vampire she was confronted with another problem. She heard a mix of emotion coming from behind her; it was so strong that she could not nearly make sense of it. It was hard to describe others thoughts; some think differently then others and not to her surprise she was not sure what to think anymore. The barrel of a gun she heard close to where she stood and then a not so family voice rang into her ears.

"Turn slowly, and don't move. A bit lost, aren't we?"

She searched her mind for the voice; any hint of knowing. She was so stupid to have let her guard down long enough to be in such a position. She however realized a key element in this sort of attack. She was given a chance. “And what of it then?” Susan said as she began to slowly turn to see who was begging her on. She turned slowly ready to take the fate that could be coming to her. A young girl only 20 years old was nothing for a death eater to kill. There were much younger then her that had died. She held her eyes down and saw the robes of the ministry. What would she expect in such an area? It however made her look up and see the face behind the gun. The image in the paper flowed into her mind. “Minister Sparewell?” She asked more childish then she would have enjoyed.

No they had never formally met; but a student at Hogwarts knows about the government. She had seen an old press page with his image on it a few times. She was not sure what side he was on; his mind was such a rumble to her she could not take any of it in and her head was beginning to throb with pain. Never being properly trained will do that to someone.

[George Adam Sparewell]

George froze for a moment. This was rather unexpected, the person he would bump into. However, he was kinda unsure of Susan's standing in the world. There were two diffent extremes to him, the Death Eaters trying to recapture or kill him, and the wizards out to find him to answer for his "betrayal" of Great Britain. To be honest, he had not seen Susan Bones since his last year at Hogwarts, with the Tri-Wizard Tournament.

"Su-Susan Bones? It's been a long time since Hogwarts. Merlin knows where you have been." George said, his gun not moving, and his stick stright and true. Someone, it seemed, tried to pierce into his mind, and George could not allow that, and to be safe, he had to assumethat Susan did it. Then again, until she proved otherwise, George had to assume the worst from her. It was very dangerous for someone to wander here. George was not the kind-hearted save-the-world type of person. After everything he went through, his heart turned cold, and he didn't mind ending a life.

[Susan Bones]

It was true, Susan was not really sure of all places she had been. It was a rumble of thoughts that sickened her. “Sir, time has not brought good fortune.” She said trying to ease a little but in times as these it was not that simple. No one of her family was left; she was only lucky not to have been there when it happened, for it was not a pleasant site to bare witness to. “It seems you yourself have been among the lost for a time now.” She said hoping not to invoke any sort of reaction. The last she heard was the newspaper, the final one.

Susan had no smile she once carries as she took a step closer hoping it showed him a sign of trust on her part, her arrows were not any match for the bullets, she was not so talented to dodge any bullets. Then again that was on of the muggle weapons that seemed to catch Death Eaters off guard, the primitive techniques, as some would say, were the only hope for the survivors. “It seems that we all have traveled from the path.” She said as she was still searching for a place to call her own. She hoped to meet with the knight mages, but was the idea pure fiction? Who could know unless a part of the fight. So little known for certain, to be safe it had to be such a way.

[George Adam Sparewell]

Her words seemed to echo through him, and yet still, his emotion for the time being seemed unchanged.

“Sir, time has not brought good fortune.”

"Aye, it hasn't. There is no denying that." George said, his weapon lowering a little. It was true, ask anyone one wanted, and it still turned true. slowly George began to relax a bit, and was starting to believe that she was just lost. Unfortunatly for Susan, it was her next comment that hit George the wrong way.

“It seems you yourself have been among the lost for a time now.”

George snapped back to his prvious position, the gun held back at her face. "Yes, I have, and for the time being, it's where I would rather have stayed. It's nothing personal, Susan, but I have too many people after me for different reasons, and not a soul on earth would understand what actually occured. I'm sorry Susan, I would rather you leave, unless you don't mind sleeping with the fishes. I'm afraid I'm not the George Sparewell everyone remembers. Do not make the mistake of judging my past to me."

“It seems that we all have traveled from the path.”

George stopped, and the gun lowered slightly. "Yes, I guess we have." he said, when he heard the faint chime of a bell he had atuned himself to. Closing his eyes, he calmed himself to slowly shut down all senses but his ears, and heard them coming. The way they moved was unmistakable. Death Eaters.

"Very Well, Miss Bones, I take back my command, I suggest you come with me, unless you appreciate confronting evil." he said, clicking the safety on his gun, stuffing it in a self made pocket of his old robes and grabbing Susan, leaping over the rubble he learned like ti was nothing, and trying to keep the girl with him. He could not believe he was actually doing this, letting another person learn of his hideout. But even with his colder heart, he still had the faint instincts of saving the world, even if it only came out rarely.

Finally he was almost there, an so were the Death Eaters, with a final jump needed, George looked at Susan, before grabbing her and leaping off a hill of rubble, headed for a hole in one of the faces of the clock, holding her head close to his chest and preparing for the shock of the fall.

Finally, George removed his hand from her mouth, and helped her off the floor, after landing, he made sure that she not make a sound, even if she knew not to. George then walked over to his makeshift kitchen, placing an old but clean kettle on an old campstove, and began to heat water. All strewn everywhere were old copies of the Daily Prophet, photos of old friends.. basically it looked like a homeless person's attempt of remembering his former life. An old matress served as a bed, and a mostly whole talbe as his dining area. All in all, George had made himself as best as he could, for someone who was basically a fugitive on nearly all sides.

"Well, congrads, you're perhaps the first person ever to see my hideout. Welcome to my humble home."

[Susan Bones]

"Very Well, Miss Bones, I take back my command, I suggest you come with me, unless you appreciate confronting evil."

The flash of fear, anger, and a cold sick feeling as Susan’s own fears came to her when the gun raised to her head, this was going to be her end? However it was not what was happing at this time, it was a fright and unexpected thing that happened to her as she was pulled along from her spot. The girl was not very strong, could be considered weak even as she nearly flew along side the former Minister. It seemed to happen to fast for her mind to take it all in.

She never stayed in a place for long, that was far to dangerous. She had worked hard to keep herself where she was, a fragile girl in this weary world it was a surprise she had made it at all, to her most of all. It was a mix as she could hear the thoughts of others around them as she was pulled along, not that she could resist; however she was alive for the time being and that suited her.

"Well, comrades, you're perhaps the first person ever to see my hideout. Welcome to my humble home."

Susan finally had the chance to breath never mind speak as George Sparewell spoke. She looked around the room, it was better then some of the places she had slept in recent times, as her heart slowed down a little more. “Why did you not just leave me for the Death Eaters? I am of little use.” she asked him still standing in the same place, she sensed now that it was indeed the thought pattern of the typical Death Eater. She knew that she was not a wonderful fighter, and had not used magic in nearly a year’s time; all she had was her arrows. She was not going to argue with him but then again it was a secret fear that she may not leave this place, it was true, and this was not the George Sparewell they had known before.

[George Adam Sparewell]

"Why? Are you implying that you would rather be with the Death Eaters than myself? Then so be it! Go on ahead! I guess you really are just like everyone else! If you are so afriad I will betray you too, then go ahead and leave my sight!" George said, with a large hint of furious in his voice. But just as soon as he began, George calmed down, and turned around, giving his back to her. he returned to his kettle, continuing preparations.

"You wouldn't understand or believe me. No one would. For many years my family had shown themselves to be one of the noblest, and because I failed in my first day in office, I am considered the fall of them. You all think I had the choice. No one would understand." he said, pouring out a cup of hot tea.

"It wasn't my fault."

[Susan Bones]

Susan was getting far more this day then she was bargaining for as the former Minister spoke. She learned to be cold and distant and not to give trust to anyone, or anything. She could not trust her own mind at all times with the thought of others learning around, sometimes it was far too hard to turn off the ability.

“Clearly you do not understand.” Susan said taking in her surroundings. “In the world like this a girl has to e worried. No matter whom they are with.” She said. It was strange talking to someone, it had been long overdue.

“I am quite aware of the imperious curse sir. That is for certain. I cannot find blame in something without control. Some branches of magic should never be learned.” She said getting the intense feeling that it was such a case. It would explain things well enough as well, but what could prove he was not connected still?

“You know that day so long ago? You’re not the only one who had despair. What was left of my family was no more, my parents were inside a torn building, but they themselves were torn. Don’t make it sound like you’re the only one who caused the world this way.” She knew that one person was not the way such a battle would be won.

“The problem was that no one ever challenged the evil that was.” She by no means did not mean Harry or even the DA. The problem however was certainly that it was only a bunch of children, young witch and wizards who challenged Him. The wizarding community should have worked more closely together. But then again they were so separated it was not so easy.

“We all have changed.” Susan said, “and I can not say for the better.” She still had no left her spot. She was cautious and scanning the place for exits it needed. She did not want to be stuck anywhere without an escape. It was also clear that Mr. Sparewell was hiding, from both sides.

[George Adam Sparewell]

"You are, perhaps the first person to not question if I was ever under the Curse. I would have thought your age group in particular would find it hard to decipher whether someone truely was cursed or not, especially after Moody's constant lecture about the Curses." George said, pouring another cup of tea.

"No, I know I wan't the only one, but I still feel responsible. At least Scrimgeour stood strong up to his death, not ever changing once. Me, I become the weak one, the upset of the family. There was so much more we should have done, and if it wasn't for the delayness the Ministry suffered with Minister Fudge, things might have turned out different, and young Potter would not have lost his childhood, and his life. But what can we do?"

"Susan, there are many thing I could go over what should have done, but it doesn't change the fact in the least that we are in a totalitarian regime. That we live in a dying world. I may be in hiding from everyone, and to be honest, I don't plan on revealing myself to any of my enemies, Supporter or Rebel, but I am at least trying to make things right. You may stay as long as you wish, but be warned; I will not accept a loose tongue of my location. I will find you if you betray me. You have earned my trust for now, but time and time again I have had trust so easily broken. Don't think I won't kill you. But for now, as I have said, you have earned my trust."

[Susan Bones]

Susan took a step closer to Sparewell, she knew that no one believed in an honest voice these days. It was so hard to find that Susan herself feared to believe her own at times. “At lease you have a place to call yours.” She said to him not giving into the fact that it was by no means glamorous but it was safe, and better then Susan herself had been in for a long while.

“As I have said we have all changed. I have learned Legilimens, I have learned enough to know the truth in someone’s words.” She said hoping that the offering of her gift would be a sign that his secret was safe with her but in case it was no enough Susan continued.

"If you do not want to be known you don’t have to threaten me to protect it.” Susan would have no reason to let anyone know where the former minister was, what would it gain her? Another day perhaps at best but Susan was smarter then that, yes she still had hope.

“Even the strongest person has a weakness. Good or evil.” Susan spoke, not only for Sparewell but Voldemort as well. “You can not define yourself by them.” Susan said thinking for a brief moment about it all. Good people general did define themselves by their faults; perhaps making them feel more real, while evil would never give up such valuable information. It was just another difference in the vast world of good and evil that they were now consumed by.

[George Adam Sparewell]

(ooc: Its been too long... *blows dust off of the frozen scene of this thread* Well, I'm ready to get back in.. lets go!)

"Legilmens, huh?" George said, taking a sip. It started to make perfect sense. "So it was you who tried to pierce my mind when I met up with you. Thats comforting."

He moved around, going to his makeshift cot, and picking up a box. There was unmistakably a set of movies, all having to do with the mafia, with "Godfather" being the one on top. He then went over to the stick he used to face Susan with, and broke it in half, putting it in a little fire that was going ont eh stove, for no reason.

"I guess all I can do now is hope, and do as much damage as I can until I find that weakness." George said. Suddenly he heard it. Faint a weak, but definatly he heard it. Another almost invisable chime, but way it went off, meant on thing. Death Eater Assasin.

"We have trouble."

[Susan Bones]

[ooc: I agree I was having a fun time on this one!]


You learn to grow up far too fast in this world they have created. It was just all so much to take in, and yet not enough at all. Nothing was ever finished, nothing was ever good anymore, and there was not a time to smile. Still somewhere in that dusty corner of the world there was hope, hope that once day this will be a mere whisper of the past, a past never to be repeated.

She listened to the old minister, still on edge, like always. It was what kept you alive, it was what kept her alive. “It was, but in my case you are far stronger then I. That is to be expected. I only just learned the art. It is not that easy to control.” It was then he feed the fire, Susan still had her wand, it was something that reminded her of the past, the life she should be leading, but she dare not to use it, that could be deadly.

It was then the old minister was alerted to something, and it may not be something good. In fact there were so few things that are good anymore, why should this day be any different. She never was with someone, always defending herself and herself alone. She did not even know what to expect, who or what was coming for them. She had became independent, and a fighter.

She let her mind wonder, hoping to find the location of whomever was coming, all she could tell was he was close, very close. She hated the thoughts that death eaters thought, and blocked them out looking at George Sparewell. “He is close.” She whispered as she assumed that this old wizard had plenty of tricks up his sleeve, but in case she pulled out an arrow, ready to fight.

[George Adam Sparewell]

George moved to the entrance of his little cave. There he stood, looking around, and reached down to grabbed an old antince telescope. Quickly raising it, he saw him. Sure enough, it was an assasin, he moves with complete precision, able to walked through a pile of leaves without a sound. The guy had a wand at the ready, and he looked like he had a purpose.

"New to the art, well, even if you were experienced, you wouldn't be able to. I took Ministry training to a whole new level. My mind is completely blocked. But if you could, I would ask if you knew what his purpose was. Luckily, if he entered the radius I have set up, I will know, and then he will not have a good day. Who would have thought this hermit from teh highest authority of wizards in Brittain would be able to take some.. uncivizied action to heart."

"He's got about a foot or so left.. can you read his mind? All I need to know is his intended target."

[Susan Bones]

Susan shook her head as she looked at the minister, at this point she still saw him as such, he minister of magic. Why did he have to hide, hide in this little shack but then she remembered the last headline from the prophet, and it all made sense. He had few supporters. Susan was young though, she was not the smartest in her class, but one gets smarter in times like these as she closed her eyes and concentrated.

To pry into someone’s mind was not an easy feat, and it made her vulnerable because at this stage in her development it took a lot of concentration. She thought, concentrated and finally made the full connection she had avoided just moments earlier. A death eaters mind was sickening, and purely evil. Remembering the stories about how they said they where under a curse and had no control, that was not the case as she nearly felt the evil from this particular ones mind.

A few seconds was all it would take to know. A few seconds was all that she could take. She opened her eyes taking a breath, he was looking for someone, and that someone was in this very room. Clearly it cold not be her, she was nothing in the scale of things, almost weathered to nothing by this point in time, it had to be the minister. They had suspected his ware bouts. They still did not know, maybe it was fate that Susan was there.

“If he does not return they will send in many more.” She said looking at him speaking in a low sound. “You should stay out of site, if you want to remain unknown let them find me here, alone. I am of little reward for a death eater.” She said as she felt that he might be a point of refuge, a light at the end of a tunnel. If they where to completely loose him, hope might be lost as well.