Attack ((Ransom))

[abigailwatson]

Abigail finished her hot chocolate and made quick work of rinsing out her cup as she let her eyes drift to the window. It was getting late, Ransom was out, where she had no idea but Abigail had long since learned not to really question him as much as she wanted to. As long as he was here in the mornings for Rose then she was satisfied. A soft smile settled on her face as she thought about their daughter, who was currently sleeping soundly in her crib upstairs. Abigail actually felt like the luckiest Mum on the planet since the little girl had taken to sleeping through most of the night, only waking up at 5am for a feed before drifting back to sleep.

Shaking her head Abigail smiled softly again and after drying her hands turned to leave the kitchen, pausing when she heard the front door. Not having expected Ransom back so soon her smile widened and she left the kitchen heading out into the hallway, "Hey babe I wasn't expecting you..." Abigail felt the words die in her throat and her blood run cold as her eyes found who had come into the house. Death Eaters. Two of them.

Instinct made her grab for the wand tucked in her pocket, though as soon as her fingers wrapped around it, there was a loud explosion behind her, sending Abigail sprawling to the floor. Crying out she shuffled to her knees against the stairs, and not looking back towards the kitchen where the explosion had come from she fired two spells in the direction of the first two death eaters.

They easily dodged her attack, as Abigail backed up another stairs. "What the hell...an Auror...?" growled a voice from the kitchen, before firing the killing curse in Abigails direction. Deflecting it, she fired another spell of her own, turned and ran as quick as she could up the stairs, staying crouched down as another explosion rocked the house. This time knocking her off her feet and sending her falling down a few steps, as a giant hole was blown through the banister.

"Who cares, kill her..." came another voice. Abigail wasn't sure how many there were, there were countless spells being fired in her direction and she could barely concentrate as she tried to move up the stairs again, her Maternal Instinct going insane. Backing up the stairs, she turned and began to run down the hall when she was body slammed into wall and sent crashing into a heap when the Cruciatus curse quickly followed.

Screaming out, Abigails wand fell from her hands and tears sprung to her eyes. Then as suddenly as it began it ended, gasping for breath Abigail rolled over, grabbed her wand and looked in the direction of her saviour. There stood one of the many house elves that served the Croft Manor, looking worriedly down at Abigail, "Millie...go...go get Ransom...GO!" she yelled, gasping slightly in pain as she moved to stand and the elf disappeared with a 'pop'.

Standing up, Abigail deflected the killing curse once again sending it back to one of her attackers and hitting him squarely in the chest. "Expelliarmus!" she yelled hitting another, then ducking quickly she rounded the corner to Rose's bedroom only to be sent sprawling to the floor just outside the nursery again when another heavy body landed on hers. "Bitch...boys I vote we have some fun before we slaughter blondie here..." he sneered, his breath hot against Abigail's ear as he ran a hand beneath her nightie.

Abigail let out a sound of protest and kicked her legs, unable to move him off her and her wand was too far out of her reach. "Seems she was after something..." another one said, as two sets of feet passed where Abigail lay pinned to the floor, fighting violently against her captor as the other two opened the door to Rose's room. Tiring of her struggling the Death Eater above Abigail grabbed her hair and slammed her face down into the floor, causing a deep gash to tear across her forehead and her nose to bleed. Abigail though only had eyes for the men about to enter her daughters room and she brought her elbow back violently smashing it into the face of the Death Eater holding her down and trying to rape her.

Using his moment of surprise to her advantage she knocked him off her and crawled quickly to her wand, raising it towards him just as her eyes locked onto the new figure who'd just rounded the corridor...

[ransom]

Ransom used a spell to clean the blood from his hands, he had been set on yet another grisly sort of torture mission with a few lower-ranking recruits. Jezebel had seemed to trust him to keep an eye on them. Though unfortunately this group seemed to have a liking for more archaic methods of hurting people. They had been quite fond of their knives and such. And while Ransom wasn't exactly squeamish, he preferred magic. It was cleaner, and one could inflict pain so much worse, so terribly indescribable that it made even his hardened heart become wary. Though they had had their fun, learned what they needed to know.

He had dealt with the mess himself, not trusting the careless new recruits to do a thorough enough job. They didn't need to be traced not at this point. Their organization was not quite influential enough to simply leave bodies wherever they pleased. The ministry had not yet fallen. But Ransom was not expecting to look up from the now undisturbed warehouse floor to see one of his own house elves. She was dressed in a tea towel draped over her skinny little body like a toga, though her murky brown eyes were wide in horror. She grabbed his hand in both her own with a surprising amount of strength for such frail-looking fingers.

"Mistress has ordered that you be brought home straightaway!" she squeaked hurriedly, looking very panicked indeed. "What is it?" Ransom demanded, perplexed. What on earth could be going on at his property that it would be so important for him to be there right at that moment. "Attackers, sir! Millie isn't knowing how they got in, but mistress needs help!" Millie practically begged, and then without warning teleported away, bringing him with her.

Once both his feet landed firmly in the manor Ransom whipped out his wand and sprinted, following the trail of destruction, the sound of screaming... His blood ran cold when he came across the scene, he had been betrayed by his own! His eyes glinted back, sheer rage filled him. He was a loyal, faithful servant, and this was how he was repaid. "Get out of my house," Ransom snarled in a low tone before sending a curse at the Death Eater holding Abigail down. He was sent head-first into the marble floor, his skull sickeningly crunching against the cold stone. The firefight began almost immediately between him and the other three. He stood firmly over Abigail until he heard the crying- Rose!

Ransom carelessly used a spell that sent the other betrayers over the banister, hurtling down toward the ground level before walking into his daughter's room. She was crying as two Death Eaters loomed over her, talking in excited voices about what they were going to do. Primal rage coming to a peak, Ransom sent Sectumsempra at the one on the left, relishing as dark blood ran down his body, how he collapsed to the floor. The other unceremoniously turned to face him, they both had their wands drawn, pointed at the other. Everything, even time itself had seemingly stopped.

"It's high time you decided where your loyalties lie," said the Death Eater, "she's working against us." Ransom was quiet, they weren't safe yet, there was still danger afoot, and one thing was clear- Ransom needed to get Abigail and Rose out of there. It was selfish of him to have tried to have a family with her. She needed to be someplace safe, someplace where he was not in the picture. Both Abigail and Rose were innocent, and already they were being punished because of him.

"I've done no wrong," said Ransom in that same low, dangerous tone, "and neither has she." He acted quickly, wiping the memory of the Death Eater before him. A blank blissful look overcame his eyes a moment before he looked at Ransom in an alarmed way. "What's happened?" he asked, looking genuinely afraid. Ransom came up with a story on a whim. "Robbery gone wrong, there are aurors all over the place, get yourself out," said he, looking around in an anxious manner, as if they would be discovered any minute. The man didn't need telling twice, and he disapparated with a crack like a whip.

Ransom then bent over the side of the crib, taking up Rose in his arm, holding her close before going to tend to Abigail. She looked definitely worse for wear, he felt shaken himself now that the adrenaline was subsiding. He got slowly down to the floor at her level, his own breathing unsteady, not even noticing the gash on his cheek from a hex he had sustained- there was still enough adrenaline in his system that he did not feel much in the realm of pain.

He wrapped his other arm around Abigail, feeling nearly reduced to tears. This wasn't supposed to happen, he was a loyal servant, he had done no wrong against their organization. He had done everything he was told to do, not even once questioned it aloud. And this was how he was repaid, after everything he had done, everything he had seen. Ransom held both his girlfriend and his daughter close as if it were the only thing he could do. "We need to gather some things," said Ransom into Abigail's hair, "you're not safe here."

[abigailwatson]

It was Ransom.

Abigail felt the smallest amount of relief, but not much, not even when he cursed the Death Eater still trying t attack her before she herself could. Kicking out her legs Abigail kicked his arms off her, and quickly moved to retrieve his wand. Auror training aside, she snapped the wand. Making a move to stand up, she gasped and pressed a hand to her head which throbbed painfully when she moved. So sliding back against the wall, she tried to focus on the nursery but struggled to, so she closed her eyes and released a breath knowing Ransom was here.

Using the sleeve of her shirt, Abigail wiped away the blood on her face, opening her eyes just in time to see Ransom return to her. Blowing out a breath her eyes went from him to the bundle in his arms, she then looked toward the nursery, her eyes locking ont the two unconcious figures before returning to Rose. Tears sprung to her eyes now the adrenaline was subsiding and she reached out for her daughter needing to hold her in her own arms, just to be sure she was okay.

Once she had Rose, Abigail held her daughter close, closing her eyes tightly. "Is she okay...?" she asked, not noticing her voice shake as she loosened her hold on a sniffling Rose so she could check her over for any sign she'd been hurt. Rose was fine aside from the obvious fright and surprise over what had happened. Pressing a kiss on top of her beautiful blonde hair, Abigail held Rose close again before leaning into Ransom, finding comfort in his hold.

"This is our home Ransom where are we going to go?" she asked, not having missed how he'd said 'you' aren't safe as opposed to 'we'. Looking up at Ransom she frowned, reaching up she touched the bottom of his face, "Your hurt..." she said softly, not remembering about her own head gash, right now the pain there had subsided, her only thoughts resting on the little girl in her arms and the man by her side.

With some effort she managed to push herself up into a standing position. Ransom was right about one thing, they needed to get out of here, all of them, and Auror's needed to be called, right now though she couldn't concentrate on worrying about that, she needed to get Rose somewhere safe. Casting a quick spell she summounded all the remaining ones of the Death Eaters to her. Holding Rose tightly Abigail paused at the nursery, then as she went to pass delivered a bruising kick into the stomach of one of the unconcious Death Eaters.

"Should've killed them...they wanted to hurt her..." she shook her head, fighting back the tears she looked at Ransom, "Bind them won't you...we need to pack and summon the Aurors..." she said, biting down on her lip she rocked Rose in her arms and headed down to hers and Ransoms room a slight limp in her step.

There'd been many battles she'd been involved in since becoming an Auror. Never before though had she been left so shaken, so terrified, and she knew the reason for that was in her arms right now. It wasn't just her own life she had to worry about now, she had Rose and Ransom to think about now.

Stepping into her bedroom, Abigail summoned her bags onto the bed, reluctant to let go of Rose. She'd have to put her down to pack, Abigail knew this but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Sighing quietly she sat down on the edge of the bed and closed her eyes, the throbbing in her head growing now as she looked down at Rose, smiling softly to find her daughter snoozing peacefully in her Mothers arms. If only things were so easy for adults...

[ransom]

Ransom felt shaky, unhinged almost. Everything that had been a constant in his world had now been turned on it head, he was a good servant, he had done no wrong, he was no traitor... Jezebel couldn't have ordered this he was so loyal, always did what was asked of him... He was almost reluctant to let go of Rose as Abigail reached for her, though he got it somehow through his detached brain that it would mean more to her to know that their daughter was okay. Ransom instinctively pulled the both of them closer to him, the need to be in physical contact with them both overwhelming.

Rose was fine, Abigail was fine spare for a cut on her head, though he wasn't sure what he could say for himself. For the first time in his entire life Ransom was scared out of his mind. Did this mean that there was no one he could trust anymore? Should he be apprehensive even of the one he loved? And what of himself? Could he even put stock in his own thoughts? His mind and heart were racing, he needed... Ransom didn't know what he needed anymore. Away from this house perhaps? It most certainly was no longer safe since they had somehow found a way around all his enchantments...

He took in a deep breath, though it did nothing to calm him as Abigail mentioned he should bind the ones that he had rendered unconscious, that they needed to call the Aurors. That, if anything, made his anxiety worse. He would be seen as a traitor, end up just like Ascella Malfoy. And not just him either! Abigail and Rose, surely they would be killed too. And if there was anything Ransom was sure of was that once one betrayed the Death Eaters, all hell would be bound to be unleashed upon the sorry soul.

But what could he do? Ransom couldn't kill them, they were too important to suddenly disappear... Their memories, yes, he could wipe them and then what? He was feeling panicked again, Abigail could not know, he needed her to leave, though he didn't want her out of his sight... "Anywhere that's not here," said Ransom, fear showing through in his tone. He could take them to a nice muggle hotel for a couple of nights, then they could figure out what they were going to do from there. That was all the planning his frazzled brain could handle.

His brain was going on overdrive, he needed to figure out what to do with the people that were supposed to be on his side, not the ones that attacked his girlfriend and infant daughter behind his back. He took half a step back, grasping Abigail firmly by her arms, the panic that had shown in his tone appearing quite clearly in his eyes. This wasn't him, he was scared, Ransom never got scared. "Go pack, I'll deal with them myself," said Ransom, using every ounce of sanity he had to keep his voice from shaking.

Once Abigail was out of sight in the master bedroom, Ransom went about wiping the memories of those who had survived his rage. They would have no recollection of this whole incident. Hopefully, it would keep him in the clear with the rest of the Death Eaters. Hopefully, no one else would find out. He could not afford for this to happen again, Abigail and Rose, they meant too much to him. They were the only ones to provide him with a sense of family, and he was not going to loose that. He would forfeit his own life first.

Ransom gazed down at the unconscious bodies of who were supposed to be his comrades, now completely unsure of what to do with them. He pulled his hand down his face, only then thinking of the house elves. He called forth a small group of them, they looked up at him with horrified expressions in their ugly, overlarge eyes, though they knew better than to question his judgment, or even ask what had caused the scene. "Take them all out of here, I don't care where," Ransom said quietly, leaning against the wall because of how badly his knees were trembling, "and not a word of this to anyone."

They hurriedly did as they were told, two of them taking each Death Eater and disappearing with barely audible pop!s. Ransom did away with the corpses with his signature transfiguration. They became decorative figurines that the house had been filled with when his mother was in charge of decorating. With a sudden surge of the same rage that had filled him when he happened across the scene Ransom seized the figurines and threw them into the wall, watching with fire in his eyes as little ceramic pieces tinkled to the marble floor.

Ransom then paced back to the master bedroom. The sooner they got out of here the better, he needed away from here, that much he knew. Someplace safe, someplace no one was going to expect him to be. A hotel in Bristol seemed a good choice, it had been the one he was going to take Celeste to on their honeymoon, though that was before their relationship had terminated...

[abigailwatson]

Abigail was struggling to keep herself calm, her heart still thundered wildly in her chest, though the adrenaline she'd felt was slowly subsiding making her feel slightly ill instead. She furiously tried to battle back the tears that threatened to fall, but was unsuccesful and instead found herself squeezing her eyes shut tightly tightly as the tears streamed down her cheeks, whether it was out of relief or shock over what had just happened she didn't know. She'd battled before, guess things really changed when you become a Mum.

Looking down at the small bundle in her arms, Abigail released a small shuddering breath and smiled softly down on her daughter. Pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead, Abigail stood up from the bed and silently summoned Rose's car seat. Despite not having a car themselves, Abigail had insisted, it was a necessity. Reluctantly she placed her daughter into the car seat, wrapping her blanket tightly around her sleeping body. Once Rose was strapped in and secure, Abigail summoned her suitcase onto the bed beside the baby just as Ransom walked into the room.

Waiting till he was close enough to her, Abigail reached up wrapping her arms tightly around him. He'd been scared, worried for them, now she could see it, before all she'd been able to focus on was her daughter but now she knew Rose was safe she felt okay enough to focus on Ransom. "There were too many of them..." she said, a hint of shame in her voice as she pulled back. She was an Auror and the fact she'd fallen so easily disgusted her, "If you hadn't have gotten here in time...it's not worth thinking about what would have happened." she said, tucking her hair behind her ear as she pulled away from him.

Hurrying to the dresser she pulled out a change of clothes for herself and quickly began changing out of her nightclothes. "Millie...?" she called out, waiting for the elf to reappear. Abigail smiled softly when she appeared, her big eyes filled with worry, "Can you pack a bag for Rose, clothes, nappies, bottles, enough for a few days please." with a squeak the elf nodded and scurried to do what Abigail had requested. Abigail finished changing, and as she turned, running a hand through her hair she winced painfully having forgotten about the deep gash on her head. "Damn..."

[ransom]

Ransom didn't know what to do or where to turn, and that was a feeling more scary than anything else. He felt almost paranoid, if they had been able to get into his house, the safest place in the world that he knew- surely he would be found anywhere he went. Should they leave the country instead? Now he was beginning to think the further away the better. But how far away would be far enough? Japan? New Zealand? Perhaps even somewhere in South America? Ransom took in a very deep breath, now he was just getting irrational, though the feeling that they should leave the country wasn't lessening.

Ransom wrapped his arms around Abigail as she did the same, finding a small amount of comfort in holding her as close as was possible. He almost wanted to start crying, though like always deeply suppressed his emotions, no matter how they were threatening to surface in the most violent way possible. He took in a deep breath that shook as much as his knees were. Really, at that point it was all he could do to prevent his legs from giving way beneath him. Ransom found himself very reluctant indeed to let go of Abigail, but they needed to leave.

As she gave commands to a house elf to pack a bag for Rose, Ransom slid out his suitcase from under the bed and went into the closet- and then began to shove whatever he grabbed into the magically extended bag. Ransom wasn't even looking at the things he grabbed. He would buy whatever he left behind in his haste that he needed. Though really this whole event made him want to find a secure room and never leave it. He had never felt so unsteady in his life, and that was a threatening thing.

Ransom still at that point hadn't registered that Abigail had said anything, the panic was still preventing him from rational thought. They just needed to leave. As soon as they got out of there he would be all right. At least that was what he was convinced of.