She stopped when she heard a noise. There was a large group of trees to her left. There were several people in the near vicinity. The park was always full of people at this time of day, walking through the park home, or catching an early dinner. Turning on the spot, Lavender dodged out of the way of a jogger as he ran past, brushing at the hair that blew into her face.

"Over here."

Clutching her wand inside her bag, fingers tightening on the wood, Lavender slowly crept towards a bank of trees. "Hello?"

"Shepherd's Market. Ye Grapes."

Growling, she heard the pop of disapparation before she could comment. Why would he want her to meet him here, only to go someplace else?

Someone's found out something. He's being more careful.

She walked the short distance. She'd only been to Shepherd's Market one time with her parents, and she didn't trust herself to find the right pub. She knew there were several wizarding establishments hidden away in the Mayfair refuge, but she wasn't going to take the risk. The walk allowed her mind to race, making each step faster, her thoughts making her dizzy.

If he did escape one of those camps, they have to be looking for him. If they're looking for him, there's every chance that they could find you too. If they find you, they'll kill you. They killed Cat and Steven, they won't think twice about killing you. They'll come after anyone they think you care about.

Parvati.

Susan.

Hannah.

Justin.

Justin.

No. That won't happen. You've done everything you can to keep them out of this. It's only you. It can only be you.

Unaware that she'd started running at some point, Lavender slowed as she neared the area, her breathing labored, her eyes scanning the signs of the restaurants near by. Spotting Ye Grapes, she made her way over to the almost hidden pub. He couldn't have chosen a better place to meet. In the heart of muggle London, at a pub that you had to be looking for to see.

Her eyes went dark as she entered, the sunlight that had been shining outside blinding her to the dim interior. She blinked away the brightness she'd just been in, letting her eyes adjust to the stilted lighting inside. There were very few people in the pub at the time. At this time, most people were probably still at work. You should still be at work. Pushing the thought aside, Lavender took another step into the room.

There were so many little booths, so many dark corners. It was only after she'd accepted the fact that she'd have to walk to parameter of the pub to find him that she saw the sprig of Lavender hanging from one of the tables. Lips set into a thin line, she made her way over, her heart already hammering in her chest.

Silently, she slid into the seat across from the man. Lavender took the time to really look at him this time. Looking past the torn and ratty clothes he was wearing, she saw a thin and fidgety boy with dark circles under his eyes. For the first time, she realized he was younger than her. He didn't look younger, however. When you looked into his eyes, it was clear that he'd been forced to grow up recently. She'd seen the look before. Half of her year-mates at Hogwarts held something similar.

"You need to tell me what you know. I can't do this anymore. I'm not eating, I'm not sleeping. I need to know what you know and I'm not goin-"

"I know." Lavender closed her mouth when he cut her off. "I'm going to tell you everything. I promise."

"Really?"

"Everything. I promised Steven I would." He rose his hand and signaled for a waitress. "You're going to want something to drink."

"What's your name?" Lavender frowned at the look he threw her. "I need to be able to call you something. Anything. It doesn't even have to be real."

"Andrew. Andy."

Now that she knew she'd be getting what she wanted, Lavender sighed. "Andrew," she said again, letting the name roll on her tongue. She imagined Steven saying it, heard it in her ears.
"What do you want to drink?"

"Red wine."

The woman nodded and moved away. They were both silent until she returned with their drinks. Both of them cast several charms, dissuading people from sitting near them, cloaking their conversation, making the woman less likely to return to fill their drinks. Lavender had been waiting weeks for this conversation and she didn't want to be interrupted or overheard.

"I don't remember much about the night they took us," he began. "I think they cast a mass befuddlement charm to keep us from panicking. I was already a little drunk and I just remember getting really dizzy before I passed out..."

Lavender listened silently as he told her what he could from those first few days. They'd kept them confused, purposefully casting charms so they didn't understand what was going on. Slowly, when they needed to be used for labor, they lifted the spells and curses. That was when they actually realized they'd been taken.

"We were separated first. Boys and girls. They were taken to a different side of the compound, separated by a magical fence. For those of us that had gone to the club with people we knew, people we were with... we tried to find them."

Nodding, Lavender took a large drink of her wine. Swallowing harshly, she set the glass back down on the table. "They separated Cat and Steven." It was hard to think of them apart. She'd imagined them together, even in death.

"She didn't take it well."

Lavender snorted. "Yeah." Cat didn't like being told what to do. Sometimes her stubbornness had rivaled Lavender's. "I just bet she didn't."

Andrew frowned, watching as Lavender grinned to herself. "She fought against it. Them. She fought them. Tried to escape within the first week."

The grin slowly faded from Lavender's face. Cat... "What are you trying to tell me?"

"They killed her. In front of all of us. Wanted to send us a message, make us scared."

It shouldn't have mattered how it had happened. Lavender knew Cat was dead. She wasn't coming back. This information that Andy had didn't change this fact. She was still devastated, still broken apart inside. But, now, a part of her was... proud.

Cat had died trying to get out. Fighting. Cat had died fighting.

Lavender's shoulders started shaking with silent laughter, making Andy's eyes widen. "Are you alright? I just told you she was killed."

"I know," Lavender gasped, pressing a hand to her chest. "I know." She laid her head into the bend of her arm, trying to slow her breathing. It was hard to stop once she'd started.

"Lavender..." Andy hesitantly reached out and touched her shoulder.

She looked up at him with wet cheeks. Lavender wasn't sure when she'd gone from laughing to tears, it had happened so seamlessly. She was so very proud of Cat for not letting them beat her, not letting them win. She'd had to be made an example of. She'd been herself until the very end. It took a bit for Lavender to calm down. Andy averted his eyes, watched the oblivious pub patrons move around the small pub.

When she could speak again, could swallow past the ache in her throat, Lavender looked over at him. "Was Steven there? Did he see it? Did he see her-"

"They made sure he was there."

She nodded, brushing at her cheek as a tear slid out. "Gods," she whispered. She couldn't imagine what that would have been like for him, watching.

"Yeah."

When her breath had even out, she looked back up at Andy. "What happened..."

"After? Nothing. Nothing happened."

Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Nothing?"

"Nothing. Everything was just... constant. They woke us up early, before the sun. We worked. Some of us died, either by exhaustion or because we weren't working fast enough. Others just... worked. Over and over again. Day after day. Hour after hour..."

Lavender watched Andy as his eyes looked past her shoulder. She didn't want to say anything. He was somewhere else. He was already scared and anxious, she really didn't want to draw him from where ever he was.

"Steven stopped eating. They tried to force him, and that helped for a little while, but he just... faded." Andy's eyes cleared as they darted up to her face. "What's 'Erato'?"

She tried as hard as possible to keep her chin from shaking. "Why?"

"He kept saying it, over and over, right towards the end."

Swallowing harshly, her chest feeling like it was about to burst, Lavender looked to her right, watching the people bustle around the small pub. She swiped her arm across her eyes, brushing the moisture away. "Me," she said softly.

"What?"

"Me. He called me Erato. It was... me." Her breathing was shallow. It took everything she had not to take deep heaving breaths. She'd wanted answers. She'd wanted to know what had happened to the people she'd loved. She'd wanted to know. Now, hearing the story and knowing... she wished she didn't.

"I was there. When he died." Andy looked over at Lavender when she looked up at him. "He made me promise to find you if I ever got out, to tell you what happened and to help you stop it from happening again. It's why I contacted you. I promised him I would."

"When did you escape?"

"A month ago."

Lavender took in a deep breath, choosing her next words carefully. "How long before that did he..."

"A week."

She closed her eyes, shaking her head slightly, the movement forcing the tears down her face. She'd never been able to see him in her dreams. He'd never been there, it had only ever been Cat. She knew why now. She'd been happy with Justin, and Steven had been wasting away at the same time, a prisoner. Alone. She'd tried to move on and he'd been there, alive, all alone.

"I'm sorr-"

"Don't," Lavender said, holding up a hand. "There's nothing... you did the first part of what you promised him. Now we do the rest."

Andy fidgeted in his seat. "I told you what happ-"

"You said you promised him you'd help me stop this." She turned angry eyes towards him. "We have to go to the Ministry."

"What?! No! I've been hiding from these people for a month! If I go to the Ministry, they'll kill me! They're already looking for me! They have people at the Ministry!"

"So do I!" Lavender said, leaning across the table. "I know people who can help us! My boyfr... I have a man at the Ministry who can help us take these people down! There's already been an article about-"

"It was in the Quibbler! No one believes that rag!"

"Hey!" Lavender was starting to get angry. What good would this information be if they couldn't use it? "The story is out there! You might not trust the Quibbler but people read it! As long as one person believes you-"

"Why don't you tell them!"

"I wasn't there!" Lavender's eyes darted around the room. Two people a few tables over had turned to look in their direction. The charms were starting to wear off. She lowered her voice, anger making it rasp. "You promised him you'd help me stop this. You promised him!"

"They'll kill me if I say anything!"

"Steven would have done it," she hissed at him. Andy seemed to deflate at that. "You were with him for months, months. You were his friend. Weren't you? Weren't you?!"

"Yes," he said, his eyes going down to his hands.

"You have to help me. They won't believe me if I go alone. I wasn't there. You were. It has to be you."

"Lavender..."

"It doesn't have to be right this second, Andy, but it needs to be soon. This is probably happening to other people right now. Can you live with yourself, knowing that you could help it stop? I can't." She jumped to her feet when he stood, their privacy charms evaporating. "You have to tell-"

"Shhh!" He grabbed her arm and pulled her closer to him, lowering his voice. "I'll think about it." He clamped a hand over her mouth when she opened it to argue. "I said I'll think about it. I need time... I'll think about it. It's the best I can do."

She brushed his hand off. "Don't take too long. I can't sit around, knowing this. We need to tell someone soon."

"I'll owl you."

She glared at him, wanted to scream 'coward' and slap him as hard as she could. If Steven had been the one to get out, if he'd escaped, he would have done anything to help. But he didn't. He's gone, and the only thing we can do it try and stop it now. She knew Andrew was scared, knew he had good reasons for the fear. She'd let him have a few days, but if she didn't hear from him soon, she'd tell someone herself, ignoring the fact that she had no proof. Lavender's glare softened slightly as she nodded finally, grabbing her bag from the floor.

Lavender turned back to look up at him with a small, sad smile. "I kind of hate you for telling me everything."

"I know."

"But... thank you." I know now. At least I know.

Her eyes widened when he bent forward and placed a soft kiss to her lips. What the fuck? I'm with... Justin... can't... didn't send signals... Andy pulled back, an apologetic look crossing his face. "Sorry. It's not... He said to. For him. And Cat. He told me to do that and then say: I know." His eyebrows furrowed. "What does that mean?"

A small smile turned her lips, her eyes closing as she remembered what his voice sounded like, what Steven's lips had felt like against hers.

I love you.

I know.

"It's... from one of his favorite films. It's a thing we have. Had."

"Have," Andy said softly. "You still have it. They can't take away your memories." He started walking backwards. "I'll owl you when I'm ready."

Lavender watched him leave the pub, taking a deep breath to calm herself. Breaking into hysterical sobs would help nothing. It would change nothing. Now that she knew, as much as it hurt her, there was only one thing she could do: wait for his owl and then take these bastards down, make them pay for what they did to her loves, and then stop this from ever happening to anyone else... or die trying.



Summary: Lavender finds out what really happened to Cat and Steven. Plans for vengeance and plans for justice sometime walk along the same rocky road.