The New Brown House :A

Kelsi smiled weakly. "For the past hour, I've been wishing somebody would say, 'Oh, haha, it's all a joke! Look, everyone's fine!' But I know it won't happen. Everything's ruined, though. If I really am- a- those things, then imagine the prejudice."

Rachel was outside of the Brown House, cheerfully knocking from the outside. She hadn't spoken to her friends in a little bit, and she was anxious to catch up on them. She was however, completely oblivious to what have happened to the last few days.

Kelsi held her breath in. "How are we going to break it to Rachel? About Nicolas?"

"I dunno. I think Katherine should tell her--it is HER brother, after all."

Coincidentally, Katherine answered the door. "Hi!" she greeted her cheerfully. Then she realized who Rachel was. "Hey, um, you're Rachel Monaseem, aren't you?"

Kelsi nodded. "That's true. I guess we should let her explain to Ra- Hey, is that her at the door?"

Rachel smiled happily. "Yeah, hi! Hey-what are you doing here at Libby's house anyway? Are you and your brother vising here?"

"Sounds like it."

"Umm, no..." Katherine looked down, then back up at Rachel. "You're Nicolas's girlfriend, aren't you?"

"Yeah... what?" Rachel's face suddenly looked concerned, as well as the tone of her voice. "Did something happen?" she asked, immediately rushing to the worst.

Katherine took a deep breath before saying hurriedly, "We-were-playing-baseball-with-some-neighborhood-kids-then-Death-Eaters-came-and-the-kids-ran-and-so-did-I-but-they-got-Nicolas!"

"...What did you just say?..." whispered Rachel, staring right at the girl.

"We were playing with some neighborhood kids and then some Death Eaters came, and everyone ran, and they Stupefied Nicolas but I managed to get away. They. Have. Nicolas." She sniffled, not even attempting to keep herself from crying.

"YOU MEAN THEY TOOK HIM AWAY?!" she shouted rather loudly, with fresh tears running down her face.

"Stay here, Kelsi," Libby glared at Kelsi, and ran out of her room, down the stairs, to where Katherine and Rachel were.

"YES!" Katherine screamed.

"YOU'RE KIDDING!" she said half yelling and half sobbing. "You-you're just playing some kind of sick joke on me!" she then gestured towards the house. "All of the people in there are!"

Kelsi's eyes filled up with tears as she heard Rachel's agonized screams.

"Why would I kid about my own brother?!" Katherine yelled. Libby walked up behind her.

"She's not kidding," Libby supported Katherine.

"I don't believe it." she snarled angrily.

Kelsi, once again, got out of the bed. She made her way down the hall and down the stairs to the entrance. "Hey, Rachel." she said with a weak smile. "I swear, on our friendship, and my life that this isn't a sick joke. They're going after all the muggle-borns. They took Robin, too. I know Katherine through Andrea, she'd never joke about this stuff."

"..."

Rachel gazed dumbfoundly at each other person, staring at them for a minute or so. She then suddenly started to sob again and collapsed into Kelsi's arms.

Libby instinctively hugged both of her friends. Katherine, however, just stood by the door, glaring at the floor.

"Oh-" Kelsi swore. "That hurts."

"I told you not to get out of bed. Twice."

"Well... still. I wanted to see Rachel. And help Katherine."

Amanda stared at her friends, her face hard with sorrow. She watched Rachel cry and hug them tightly. She stood on the stairs and just watched from the background. I haven't talked to either of them in months. I don't fit into this. Not my sister. Not my boyfriend. Not my best friend.

And so the two fell out of the fireplace.