Welcome to Until The End. We are a moderate Harry Potter role-playing site set in the Marauder's Era. Our plot is generally derived from details in the book, but as an AU site we do take liberties most anywhere we like. Those who died in the books can have a second chance at living, and those who lived are always at risk.
Tom Marvolo Riddle has long since disappeared and in his stead Lord Voldemort has risen, bringing a small army with him. The Ministry of Magic has thus far ignored the growing menace that is the Death Eaters and Albus Dumbledore has taken it upon himself to defend the wizarding community from an evil he knows is building. War is coming. Pick a side!
School's Out For Summer
The Hogwart's Express has pulled up to the station in King's Cross station and the summer holidays have officially begun. What mischeif will you get into in the warm summer sun?
*Coming Soon* - Summer Solstice Carnival
Travel by portkey to the biggest summer celebration in wizard society - The Summer Solstice Carnival! There will be food, games, prizes, fun and more!
Post by Christian Anthony Ward on Jul 27, 2019 15:43:53 GMT -8
"Why the fuck isn't it done, yet?!" The glass bottle shattered as it hit the wall with enough force to tear the wallpaper. Noticeable scuff marks on the hardwood floor mapped out the route Christian had been pacing all morning, and most of the evening prior. Christian seethed as his grip tightening around the banister, expecting a response from Burke in the next room. Knowing whatever the younger man said would bring him no relief. "We're wasting fucking time, Burke!"
The men were upstairs, waiting on a locator potion that should have been the solution to this horrible waiting game Alessa had them playing. It had been three days since Derek tripped the alarm at the Hollow Tree Inn, scaring Alessa off without telling Christian where his wife was hidden. Christian blamed the man for the unsuccessful meeting but not completely. Derek's incessant nagging about making a plan and not falling for Alessa's trap may have wriggled its way into Christian brain the slightest bit. He'd been rash and explosive, but Alessa seemed to enjoy it. Perhaps it was a family trait that led the Crawford women to find pleasure in pain and danger. Christian prayed silently that the same gene not be passed onto his daughter, wherever she was.
Roselyn could be heard down stairs in the kitchen. She'd come to prepare a healthy lunch for her son and had promised to stay out of the way as the men worked but her loving scolding could be heard faintly from the stairwell near where Christian stood. "It's not his fault, darling. Don't yell at the lad." Roselyn had taken a shine to Derek, just as she had Diana. It was infuriating at the best of times but as Christian's diet lately was more liquid than food, it was for the best.
Saw the Darkest Hearts of Men and I saw Myself Staring Back Again
D
erek felt the full weight of his failure. Yes, he had warned Christian about rushing in, but it had also been the right decision - really they didn't have a choice. They had to play Alessa's game her way.
It stung that Derek had triggered the alarm and ended the meeting early for Alessa, but he could hardly be blamed. In addition to jinxes and hexes set around the inn there were armed guards and invisible barriers. Voldemort's headquarters weren't as well guarded as Alessa's temporary meeting place had been - then again whoever broke in would undoubtedly have to deal with Bellatrix and Derek imagined almost anything was a lesser evil than dealing with that witch.
Derek managed to get the drop on most of the guards and undo several hexes, but he had miscalculated one of the guard's level of unconsciousness and triggered an alarm whilst being attacked from behind.
The only thing that soothed Derek's frustration with himself was the fact that Diana hadn't been at the inn. Based on the intel that Christian had shared Alessa wanted to draw things out and Derek had been right about her wanting to use Christian to end Diana's life. That gave them time to turn the tide - even if they didn't have a solid idea on how they would do it.
Christian's yelling didn't bother Derek at this point - he was quite used to the man. He probably would have delivered a wise crack in return if he wasn't still sore over the incident at the inn.
He exited the room a moment later with a somber expression, "It's done." he said wiping his eyes, "But Alessa isn't stupid - it's a crack pot shot that the potion will work and even then we don't know what countermeasures she has." Ordinarily a locating potion wasn't that difficult, but there were ways of making yourself less locatable - that's when additional skill was required. Skill and time. Once a link could be made between the strand of hair Christian grabbed and Alessa herself the bubbling grey liquid would turn a shimmery blue. Then the liquid simply needed to be poured over a map and it would be drawn to Alessa's location. They had tried this already with Diana's hair but it yielded no results.
Post by Christian Anthony Ward on Jul 27, 2019 18:46:45 GMT -8
"I don't give a shit," he remarked coldly as Derek tried to mediate any potential disappointment. "I'm done waiting for the bitch." He was more than done, Christian was at his wits end. Diana was due to have Liam any day now. Their lives were still bound together, and Merlin only knew the sort of torture Diana was being put through all because her father had written her into his will just before his death. Nothing that had happened to Diana had been justly earned, from his abandoning her in their younger years, to the lies her father fed her, and now her aunt hiring an assassin to murder her. None of it was due Diana's actions and yet she suffered the brunt of everyone else's evil. Christian might have been sick thinking about it, but he was more furious than anything.
Stealing the potion from the cauldron and funneling it into a bottle, Christian didn't bother to cork it. They'd be using it straight away. He stepped over the shattered glass that covered the floor, strode passed Derek, and headed for the stairs. Alessa could have been anywhere, and they needed a map big enough to display all of the UK, along with a surface large enough to splay it on. The map had been waiting in the dining room for two days now.
Making his way down the stairs, Christian caught sight of his mum working away in the kitchen. He avoided her gaze as he turned and headed into the dining room. Large hands smoothed out the map's creases. Without waiting to see whether Derek had caught up with him, Christian tipped the contents of the bottle out onto the center of the map and stared hard at the liquid, willing it to move. The potion shimmered in the light streaming through the yellow glass in the windows. Planting his hands firmly on the edge of the table, Christian leaned forward and concentrated, looking for any sign of movement. Any hint that their plans would be successful. His concentration was broken by his mother's voice.
"Would you boys like a sandwich?" she asked sweetly, as if they weren't in the midst of a dangerous operation.
"No, mum!" he snapped, his head jerking up to glare at her.
"Christian Anthony Ward, don't you dare take that tone with me! You may be busy, but I am still your mother. Now dear," she said, her voice softening as she turned her attention on Derek. "Would you like a sandwich? How 'bout some crisps?"
Saw the Darkest Hearts of Men and I saw Myself Staring Back Again
D
erek rolled his eyes, well accustomed to Christian's moods. It had taken all three days for the bubbling liquid to turn in color, and while Derek was impressed with his work, he was still skeptical.
They also still didn't have a plan. It was all well and good to kill Alessa and rescue Diana, but the process on how they were going to accomplish said feats was still hazy. He followed Christian downstairs to the map and remained silent. The brief interaction between mother and son brought a smile to Derek's lips. Were the situation not so grave, Derek would have added his own smart ass remark about Christian's tone when speaking to his mother.
"Thank you Roselyn." he said accepting whatever food she had prepared. Unlike Christian he still consumed non-liquid calories.
Post by Christian Anthony Ward on Jul 27, 2019 21:16:44 GMT -8
Roselyn smiled and gave Derek a nod, then disappeared into the kitchen. She returned a few moments later with two plates, each with a sandwich, a pile of crisps, and a pickle spear. She handed the first plate to Derek and then sat the second plate at the edge of the table near where Christian was staring intently at the shimmering blue liquid that had slowly begun to move. She made sure the plate didn't touch the map, as to give her son no further reason to snap, then patted his hand. "You'll find her, my darling boy. If anyone can do it, it's you." Christian turned and pulled his mother in for a hug, his eyes still tracking the moving liquid. Roselyn hugged her large son in return and gave him a pat on the cheek before leaving the dinning room and heading up the stairs to clean the mess Christian had made in his earlier tantrum.
"Shut it," Christian growled in Derek's direction after his mother had gone. He didn't need Burke taking the piss out on him and if Derek knew what was good for him he wouldn't even try. At least not today. Christian picked up the sandwich his mother had left for him and took a bite, watching the liquid on the map swirl. It seemed aimless at times, spreading out over the map in various directions then coming together and moving as a single puddle before splitting off again. Finally it settled. "She's in Haverfordwest," he said, squinting at the map. "Come on." A cliff-side village in Wales. Christian had never been there before, and he hoped to never need travel there again.
A pop signaled Christian's departure from the house, followed almost immediately by Roselyn's voice billowing from upstairs. "I'll make a roast for tea." Her announcement went unanswered.
Post by Derek Auberon Burke on Jul 27, 2019 21:56:38 GMT -8
"Saw the darkest hearts of men, and I saw myself staring back again."
Derek made a silent motion of sealing his lips when Christian warned him, but he had been less provoking as of late. They were indeed close to something, but he wasn't sure how this time would be any different than their last failure. Not a total failure. Christian and Diana were still alive - Derek too for that matter - and they had new information. But everything had been on Alessa's terms. She had been prepared to meet them and she had forced them to play by her rules.
Derek was hopeful this new potion would afford them the upper hand, but he didn't have the same confidence Christian appeared to. Then again, the man seemed to be driven by a burning need beyond Derek's capabilities. He didn't envy his friend the grief he must have felt worrying about both wife and child.
He perked up when the liquid began to gravitate toward a singular location. Derek's sandwich lay forgotten as he neared the map to discern Alessa's whereabouts. When the puddle seemed to settle Derek took in the location as Christian spoke. There were no more words between them - they still didn't have a plan - but hopefully the element of surprise would be enough.
Post by Diana Marie Ward on Jul 28, 2019 1:11:01 GMT -8
"Some women fear the fire; others become it."
Alessa wasn't fond of the village either, but it was a decent place to lay low, at least this week. Her meeting with Christian had more or less gone as planned, but despite the small victory she was intensely paranoid. After saying goodbye to her nephew in law, Alessa indeed returned to Diana's location to prevent her henchmen from ending her niece's life. She stayed long enough to fill Diana in on the details of her visit with Christian, but left soon after the monologue.
Alessa couldn't count how many times she had moved in the past few months. Now that she had Diana in her possession the moves had been even more frequent. Because she was a paranoid psychopath, she kept herself and Diana apart. The idea was that if she were captured she had leverage, if Diana was taken from her, then she was still safe. Being together made the location too big of a target, but she was so very tired of running and hiding.
The cliffside cafe was the small saving grace of the village. Alessa had been around the world and yet some of the best caffeinated concoctions were created in a small village in Wales. Whenever she chose this particular location to hide at, she looked forward to the small treat and morning paper. She had avoided routines most everywhere she went, but this was an exception.
Post by Christian Anthony Ward on Jul 28, 2019 13:43:53 GMT -8
The village was small but it still required some effort on their part to find Alessa. It was sickening having to describe his aunt-in-law in the same manner he described his wife, at least physically, but their efforts eventually paid off. A bloke at the local shop had seen a woman who fit the description at a nearby cafe on several occasions. Christian hurried out the door without any sentiment of gratitude for the man's assistance.
The cliff-side cafe was small but appeared well cared for despite the harsh winds that beat at its walls. The only exception appeared to be a single shutter that had been blown off it's hinges and was lying in a bramble bush near the side alley. In their last meeting, Alessa had put on an act portraying Diana in a slinky number that was meant to arouse her nephew-in-law. Another such outfit would have made Alessa stick out like a sore thumb in this place, and yet despite all her cleverness she was still dressed as a vixen sat all alone in the little cafe. She wouldn't be dining alone for long.
"Check the back rooms," Christian told Derek. It wasn't likely that Diana was here, they were not so lucky as to stumble upon her hiding spot, but Christian wouldn't take any chances. Clenching his jaw, Christian moved forward toward Alessa, and sliding easily into the empty chair across from her. "Hello stranger." Christian leaned back casually into the chair, his eyes - and wand, trained on Alessa. He assumed she was using a polyjuice potion, or some enchantment of the like, but there was always something that simply didn't work in her impersonations. He could easily identify his wife, and this was not her.
Post by Diana Marie Ward on Jul 29, 2019 11:04:02 GMT -8
"Some women fear the fire; others become it."
If Alessa was upset she didn't show it. The slight widening of her eyes revealed her surprise, but it quickly shifted to amusement.
"I wondered how long it would take you to find me." she said not lifting her eyes from the paper. She brought the ceramic cup to her lips and indulged in the hot caffeinated beverage, not a care in the world she continued, "I'm rather impressed though. I thought it would take you another week at least. I'm pleased to see that talk hasn't been exaggerated." she gave him a lusty once over, "About certain things at least."
Alessa intended to send an owl again soon, but she was appropriately wary. For once she had all the time in the world, Christian was the last loose end that she needed to tie up, but she had to play it smart - or face an entirely different enemy. She so badly wanted to believe Christian's intentions were true, and for the life of her, she couldn't imagine Diana's supposed allure over the tall dangerous wizard, but there was cause for concern all the same.
Christian had plenty of opportunities to kill Diana before her niece drugged him - so why did he wait? If only Alessa could be sure of the man's heart - fickle as it was.
Post by Christian Anthony Ward on Aug 4, 2019 16:23:43 GMT -8
Her nonchalance fooled no one, least of all Christian. He'd seen the slight widening of her eyes as his presence was made known to her. Her need for a drink hinted that her mouth had gone dry. They were ahead of her schedule but falling sorely behind on his own timetable. "I take my time when it suits me," he confessed, playing her game and hoping it would pay off despite how incredibly twisted it all was. She had his wife's face, her stunning figure, and a clear attraction to him. The demented part was that she was, for all intents and purposes, his aunt-in-law. And he was flirting with her. Mostly sober even, or at least not completely smashed. "Somethings, though, are too important to draw out. You have something that I want, so let's talk." Christian didn't care about her supposed solution to the life bond he shared with Diana. He knew what had to be done and he wasn't prepared to kill off the woman he loved just to save his own pathetic life. It wouldn't come to that, though the final solution to their problem still eluded him.
Answers to other problems, however, were somewhat easier to ascertain. "Where is Diana?" A slight of hand. Distracting her with an obvious first question left him free to probe her thoughts and memories, looking for any hint to the answer to his question. It was muddled but then he saw it; Diana screaming in pain. Christian's grip over his wand tightened but he pressed further. Covered in sweat and tears, Diana cried out as a baby was taken from her, but this wasn't Alyx. Alessa hadn't been present for the initial torturous childbirth where Diana's child had been stolen from her. Diana was older, stronger, and more frantic as the baby boy was torn from her and escorted swiftly out of the room. Christian let out a rugged snarl, his lip curling as he leaned forward to scowl at Alessa. "Where the fuck is my son?"
Post by Diana Marie Ward on Aug 4, 2019 20:34:12 GMT -8
[googlefont="La Belle Aurore"][googlefont="Old Standard TT"]
"Some women fear the fire; others become it."
It was true. Alessa had been momentarily stunned by Christian's arrival, but that was no excuse for letting him into her mind.
When Christian asked after Diana, it immediately pulled her thoughts to the woman herself. Initially the other safe house appeared somewhere near the ocean, but the thoughts quickly shifted to a third darker greyish stone building. The building housed a most unpredictable stray from Alessa's carefully crafted plan. She wasn't expecting to safe guard a second Ward and needless to say it spread Alessa's resources a little thin. But she didn't intend to give this information away so soon, not until she was sure of Christian's trust. Unfortunately Christian was aware of something else that Alessa had meant to conceal. She was charmed by him.
Christian was a handsome devil. She definitely understood her nieces' attraction even if was folly, particularly when Alessa's interest was hindering her better judgement allowing the legendary assassin to probe her mind. His all-too-dangerous snarl pulled her from her thoughts and made her aware of his reading her mind.
Post by Christian Anthony Ward on Aug 5, 2019 8:10:32 GMT -8
He was acutely aware that they were not in private. He had approached Alessa in a public space, without any forewarning, and there were other customers sitting in nearby tables with their own coffees and newspapers. Making a scene, a surly looking man threatening what appeared to be a delicate witch, Christian wouldn't make it out unscathed. At best the muggle police would be called. At worst... Christian had no intention of murdering anyone today, except perhaps Alessa if things went his way.
He continued with his voice low, but the rage was evident in his eyes and clenched jaw. "That was just the beginning, princess." He leaned in further. Dark eyes growing darker. "Whatever else you want can be negotiated. I don't give a shit about this fucking company or the money. I want my son." Quickly, still playing her game as best he could manage given his emotional state, he added, "and I'll take your little cure to this fucking life bond, too."
Post by Diana Marie Ward on Aug 9, 2019 23:33:41 GMT -8
[googlefont="La Belle Aurore"][googlefont="Old Standard TT"]
"Some women fear the fire; others become it."
It was perverse, but the closer Christian got - even in his immense rage - the more excited Alessa became. Hints of arousal could be seen glowing from her warm cheeks and dilated pupils. Then, in a sudden shift in mood, she snarled and pushed at the larger man.
She was tempted to cause a scene, but anonymity had kept her alive this long and no amount of irritation or arousal was worth jeopardizing the chance to come out of hiding.
She smoothed out imaginary wrinkles in her dress before sipping on her drink once more. When she spoke, her voice was harsh and cold completely at odds with the serene smile on her face. "It's almost amusing that you think you're in control..." her brow rose, "Almost."
She took another sip of the now cold beverage before continuing, "Do not forget who holds the cards Ward. If I wanted it, neither you nor your son would live to see the sun set." She moved closer to him, gentle as opposed to his rough intrusion into her mind, "Kill me and the Ward family line ends forever." she threatened in a throaty whisper.
Alessa had seen to it to kill Diana if she didn't check in with her men repeatedly. She didn't want to take any chances, and if she went down she was bringing as many people with her.
Post by Christian Anthony Ward on Aug 14, 2019 21:40:01 GMT -8
He was close to her, snarling his demands as softly as he could manage but they were demands nonetheless. He had played his cards too soon. Alessa was not pleased. She pushed at him but he didn't fight back. Instead he simply leaned back into his chair, right hand still gripping the wand that was rested on the table pointed in Alessa's direction, the fingers of his left hand strumming the table irritably. She threatened him once more, and threatened his family. A stupid move, but one that gave Christian an inkling of common sense that his anger had previously ignored despite the many conversations with Derek. "You don't want that, now do you? Me dead." He shrugged, a sneer still present on his face but his voice more even now. "Obviously you don't give two shits about Diana, you've been trying to kill her for how long now? You and all those board members." Christian smiled arrogantly, menacingly. He did not revel in murder, it was a means to an end, nothing more but killing all those wealthy sons of bitches who had been hired assassin after assassin in attempt to get rid of the rightful heir to Crawford Industries was nothing short of enjoyable. "Shame they're not around to help you out. Now it's just me, isn't it? You need something from me, and as I've said, I don't give a flying fuck about the money or the company. I just want my son, so let's talk payment and get this fucking bullshit over with, shall we?"
Post by Diana Marie Ward on Aug 21, 2019 21:53:28 GMT -8
[googlefont="La Belle Aurore"][googlefont="Old Standard TT"]
"Some women fear the fire; others become it."
Alessa released a throaty laugh as Christian assumed Alessa's intentions.
"You think I wanted to share Crawford industries with those imbeciles?" she laughed again, tickled by Christian's ignorance, "Truthfully I should thank you. It's ironic really. I thought taking Diana out would be easy, and getting rid of the other board members would be difficult. But killing my niece has been nothing but trouble, and I didn't have to lift a finger to eliminate those fools. I would have been quick about it though, which is more than I can say for you. I've actually wondered if you enjoy it..." she said eyeing him curiously.
Alessa didn't care for bloodshed. She obviously didn't shy away from it, but it wasn't as though she were a fanatic. She could kill in cold blood any given Sunday and sleep like a baby afterward, but she didn't go out of her way to hurt anyone - just the people in her path. Which is where Christian came into the picture. She didn't want to kill him. She definitely didn't want the consequences that came with killing one of the Dark Lord's most valued assets, but amends could be made, there was always another plan in place, that's how she survived so long.
She sighed, growing tired of Christian's company and his glowering. She supposed she couldn't blame him. She still wasn't quite sure how he felt about Diana and whether he would willingly kill her niece, but she did know that the man wanted his son, and she had revealed that Liam was no longer in utero. That sped their timetable up - Alessa was going to have to determine Christian's trustworthiness much faster than she cared to.
She might have thought to use Veritaserum, but the best assassins and spies had ways around the potion and Christian was indeed the best. She would have to read him the old fashioned way.
"You're not wrong. There is something I want from you. It's the only thing I've wanted since that fool brother of mine finally passed on. Diana's death. You know there was a time when that would have been a mercy. It's hard to believe what she's become, I can assure you she never had such fight or spirit before. Hell, a puppet had more life in it than that girl. But something happened, something changed. I'm not entirely sure whatever she's become is really that much better...well until you. She really does care for you. I mean why else drug a man and force him to marry you? Obsessed more like. Anyway - Yes I want my niece dead. With her out of the way I can resume my rightful place as the CEO of Crawford Industries and yes I would like your help."
She gave him a slightly impressed smile, "I've done my homework you know. I know who you are. I know what you do. Copperbottom was an idiot involving someone as ..."connected" as you, but I can understand why he was so impressed with your resume. You are quite the killer. Or you were. Before you went and got yourself bonded to a psychopath. Now if she dies you die, and if someone kills her, they're killing you. Anyone with their ear to the ground knows something big is coming or should I say someone? There are talks, whispers in dark corners of a leader of witches and wizards alike. It's been said that he grants favors in exchange for service and loyalty. It's also been said that he's raising an army...and I would imagine that would make you something of a General. Now how do you think he would feel losing a general in his army? What do you think he would do to the person who killed his general? Do you see where I am going with this?" she asked hoping he could follow her line of thinking - it wasn't that difficult, but one never knew. "I've spent too many years in hiding, just to rot there for the rest of my days until he finds me. I want Crawford Industries. I want my life back."
Actually, she wanted Diana's life. Diana's perfect unearned life. Diana had everything Alessa wanted, including Christian, and it may have been a stretch, but Alessa was hoping she could play her cards to win not only the game, but the man as well.