The Howling ~ Lara's Memories

Subject: The Howling ~ Lara's Memories Fri Jul 10, 2009 4:17 am

Takes place right after the attack on Viper Manor, 2 months after Sevastyan's Death...

Ten year old Lara released her Mother's hand upon feeling solid ground beneath her feet, still shaking from the fear that coursed through her throughout the attack. She was grateful that despite sustaining injuries her Mother was able to safely apparate all four of them away from the Manor. After all, it was common knowledge and amusement that her Mother had enough difficulties apparating under normal circumstances.

She allowed her eyes to wander through the new surroundings. It was dark considering it was in the early hours of the morning and the sun was yet to rise but Lara's eyes soon adjusted. They were in midst of a suburb, standing in front of a house located on the corner of the block. It was a fairly small house, or at least what Lara deemed as small, comparing it to her other homes Kaminski and Viper Manor, though it still had a welcoming aura surrounding it.

"Mummy, what are we doing here?" her younger brother Demyan who was holding her other hand asked.

"Shh, hush darling." Viper replied in a gentle tone, adjusting her hold on the sleeping four-year-old girl she was carrying on her other arm. Noticing that her oldest child had released her grip on Demyan, Viper turned to the children, beckoning them to walk ahead of her towards the house.

"Lara, hold your brother's hand, please." she asked of her child wearily. Viper knew that the two hated to do so and understood it, but now was really not the time for mindless bickering over "cooties".

Noticing the tone in her Mother's voice, Lara quickly obeyed, grasping for her brother's hand and advancing towards the "small" house with their Mother right behind them, glancing around to ensure they had not been followed. When they arrived on the doorstep, Viper turned to her son with an affectionate smile. "Would you like to ring the door bell, love?"

Demyan grinned in response, nodding eagerly as he reached for the small, lit circle, pressing it over and over again, delighting in the sounds echoing from it. True, it only took one or two presses and more was unnecessary but considering how happy her son looked, an emotion that seemed to occur more and more rarely, Viper let her son be, a soft smile forming on her face from the amusement her son was getting from playing with the muggle device.

Less than a minute later, the door opened, revealing a couple donned in dressing gowns: a tall woman with blonde hair, blue eyes and her husband: a taller man with brown eyes and greying brown hair. "Can we help...you" The woman trailed off before her eyes landed on Viper, and the children with her.

"Come on in." the woman said, opening the door wider and ushering them into the house, lighting the living room.

Viper smiled softly, entering the room, noticing how the children were taking in the strange muggle devices with curious expressions. "Demyan, Lara, this is your Aunt Odessa and Uncle Steven." Demyan and Lara nodded in greeting, smiling politely. "And this is Lynn." Viper added, stroking the child in her arm's hair gently.

Odessa smiled brightly at the children in response. "It's lovely to meet all of you. Here, Steve, why don't you show Lara and Demyan the new game system you bought?"

Steve smiled and nodded eagerly. "Wonderful idea, darling! Come here, kids. I'm sure you'll love this! Best video game ever!"

Demyan looked at Steve blankly. "What's a vid-e-o game?"

Steve raised an eyebrow in suprise before grinning. "One of the best things in life, ever! Come here, buddy, you're going to love this!" He said as he gently led the boy into the family room/game room.

Lara looked to her Mother for approval, which was granted with a nod.

"Go ahead, darling." Viper replied with a reassuring smile.

Hesitantly, Lara nodded, following her brother and Uncle into the other room, leaving her Mother, Aunt, and Sister. As soon as the child was out of sight, Odessa led Viper into the kitchen, sitting her at the table while she rummaged through various cabinets. Meanwhile, Viper reached for one of the roses from the bouquet standing at the center of the table, transfiguring it into a small cot next to her. Just as she rested her youngest child into it, her sister reappeared in a seat right next to her, holding a muggle first-aid kit.

"I realize, of course that you can heal your injuries in seconds with magic, but I need some way to make myself useful." Odessa explained as she soaked a cotten ball in alcohol, gently sanitizing the gash across her sister's face. "What happened?" she asked gently, laying the now crimson bit of cotton aside.

Tears filled Viper's eyes as she fought to control her emotions.Taking a shaky breath, she explained as best as she could. "Do you remember the letter I sent you ten years ago? The one about Purgers?"

Slowly Odessa nodded, her sapphire orbs widening slightly as comprehension illuminated them.

"I-I gave my husband the Vipera Dagger, h-he had it on him, wh-when he died. He held back the purgers so I could take the children and run. Th-They found the dagger on him a-and, and-"

"Were able to infiltrate Viper Manor..." Odessa replied, wincing with sympathy and sorrow.

Viper nodded silently, her emotions winning the battle and conquering her as tears cascaded down her face.

Odessa reached for her sister's hand, squeezing it in a reasuring manner. "You can stay here as long as you need." she declared, her words drenched with honestly.

Slowly, Viper shook her head. "I-I have to go..." she whispered.

The older woman's eyebrows contracted in confusion for a moment before the look on Viper's face clarified everything. "Amaranth, you can't-"

"I have to!" Viper choked out.

"Amaranth, these children need their Mother!"

"They need safety! I want them to be able to sleep at night, knowing that no one will hurt them!" Viper paused for a moment, adding in a lower tone. 'I can't give them that."

Odessa shook her head, her own tears starting to fall. "Amaranth, you can all stay here. You can all be safe!"

Stubbornly, Viper shook her head once more, replying in a tone that held an iron firmness that was not to be challenged. "No. If I stay with my children, they will always be in more danger. Not all of the purgers have seen them, they wouldn't be able to identify them by their looks. Only the ones at Viper Manor and the ones that killed my husband would be able to spot them out and target them. If I eliminate them, I can give Lara, Demyan, and Lynn an opportunity for a better life."

Tears rolled down Odessa's face. She knew that tone all too well, for that stubborn tone was one her two older siblings bore, which led them to their death. And now it seemed it would take one more of Odessa's siblings, the last one she had. The only consolation now was that her sister was doing it to protect her children, not out of greed, or ambition, or to aid the Viper Clan. It was purely out of love.

"Please, Odessa." Viper softly begged her sister, tears and blood mixing and dripping down her pale face.

"Alright." Odessa whispered, nodding. "Steven and I will take care of them."

"Promise Me!"

"Witch's Oath, I will raise and love these children as though they were my own and protect them to the best of my ability."Odessa declared, her voice thick with emotion as she tentively enclosed her sister in a hug, both witches crying as the oath was made and their futures decided.

Neither of them noticed the ten year old girl huddled in a corner a few feet away with tears trailing down her face, having heard all the words exchanged between her Mother and Aunt.

The Next Morning

The sun shined brightly amidst the clear blue sky, yet for one family, or at least the remains of one, it was a solemn day: Viper's farewell. Steve carried Lynn, an innocent four-year-old, completely unaware of what was going on around her. Demyan stood beside his Aunt Odessa trying to figure out why his Mother looked so broken, while Lara stood beside him, a knowing and haunted look lingering in her eyes, a glimmer she would never lose.

Dark shades covering her green eyes, Viper forced a small smile upon her face as she reached for her youngest daughter first, holding her gently against her chest, whispering various words in Parseltongue to her. Viper embraced Lynn once more, kissing her forhead gently, before reluctantly handing Lynn back to Steve.

Taking a deep breath, Viper composed herself as best as possible before crouching on the floor to make direct eye contact with her son, taking him into her arms and holding him tightly, but gently. With one hand, she reached for a small chain around her neck, spelling it off, revealing a locket. Whispering into her son's ear, she said "There are two things in this whole world that your father gave me that I cherish more than anything: This locket, which he gave me years ago for Christmas, and you and your sisters who arrived soon after. Keep them both safe." she asked of him as she placed the locket in the palm of his hand, closing his hand around it. She kissed his forehead gently, whispering to him in Parseltongue how much she loved him, and how wonderful of a son he was and how happy she had been being his Mother.

This time she had to take more than a breath to move on to her oldest. Her composure had weakened greatly and though her shades hid the tears forming, her voice dripped with angst and sorrow. "Lara-" But any words she had for the girl was cut off as Lara more or less charged into her Mother, wrapping her arms around her waist.

"Please, Mummy, don't go! Mummy, please, stay with us. Daddy's already gone, don't leave us too!" Lara pleaded desperately her tears staining her Mother's dark clothing.

"I have to, Lara, please understand-" Viper tried to explain, her tears matching her daughter's.But nothing could console the girl as her cries grew louder and louder, her grip tighter, begging and pleading for her Mother to stay with them.

Viper bit her lip, her already broken heart shattering into even more pieces. "O-Odessa..." she pleaded softly. Odessa nodded, understanding her sister's request. Gently, she pried her niece's grip away from her sister's waist, holding Lara by the wrists, wincing as the child's cries grew at the forced seperation.

"I love you, so much..." Viper whispered kissing her oldest daughter's forehead fervently before placing a small envelope in Lara's hand. Taking in her children's faces, she burned them into her memory, although it wasn't necessary. After all, what parent could forget their child's face?

Not trusting herself and her own will, Viper blew them all a kiss once more before dashing down the road, running far and fast, for the sounds of her children crying were worse than any curse imaginable.She knew how it must have looked to her children, fleeing from them, but she had to do it. Lingering a few more moments might have tempted her to abandon her mission, and that certainly wasn't an option. Viper could only pray that someday they would all understand.

Lara's cries intensified once she saw her Mother start running away. In a moment of sheer desperation, she raised her left foot, stomping her Aunt Odessa's foot as hard as hard as she could, throwing the letter aside. A cry of pain escaped the woman's throat, causing her to reflexively release her hold on her niece and focus her attention on her throbbing foot.

As fast as her legs could carry her, Lara tore down the streets, trailing after her Mother. "Mummy! Mummy! Plese, stop! Wait for me! Mommy!" she screamed.

Viper stopped in her tracks, turning around to see her daughter right behind her. Lara skidded down the road, scrapping her knee as she reached her Mother's feet. Seeing Odessa merely a few feet away, Viper bit her lip, shakily breathing out the words "I'm sorry..." before apparating away.

Despite the hand of sorrow Fate had dealt Viper, she was kind enough to spare Viper from hearing the cry that ripped from her daughter's throat upon seeing her Mother apparating, for it was absolutely gut-wrenching. "NOO!!!!!!!!! MOMMY!!!!!" she cried out loud, sobbing hysterically unto the cold concrete.She felt a pair of arms wrap around her, picking her up gently. At first, Lara protested the movement, trying to shove off her Aunt Odessa before giving up and collapsing her head against her Aunt's chest.

"Mommy's gone..." she whispered tearfully as Odessa's held her tightly, doing what little she could to at least help ease the pain her niece was feeling. Unfortunetly, there was nothing Odessa, or anyone, really, could do to fill that void in Lara's heart.

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