Sirius took a deep breath. 'If he's gone so far as to kidnap Cissy,' he said, 'he'll probably go after Draco too. He may also try to strike at Aries or other family members. I'll go to Hogwarts and fetch the boys. We could also use the help of Remus and Abraxas. Aunt Clytemnestra, I want you to go over to number twelve, Grimmauld Place and have them prepare to receive us. Send owls to Granny, Ignatius and the Tonkses. Let them know what's happened and invite them to join us. I want all the family together before we develop our plan of attack.'
Clytemnestra nodded and headed for the fireplace.
'Grimmauld Place makes sense,' Cassiopeia said. 'It's probably the most heavily warded house in Britain.'
'I don't care,' Sirius replied. 'It's not good enough. I want you to go through your books and put the strongest defences you can think of on that house. I want you to make my father's paranoia look like sweet, childish naïveté in comparison.'
'Any restrictions on the sort of wards I can use?' she asked.
'Don't kill anyone to make them,' Sirius said after a moment's thought. 'But the protections can be as lethal as you like. Do your worst.'
Cassiopeia smirked nastily and headed up the stairs to her private collection of special spell books.
'Mopsy!' Sirius called out, and the faithful house elf appeared with a pop.
'Yes, Master?' she asked.
'The family is under attack,' Sirius said matter-of-factly. 'Prepare trunks for me, Miss Cassie and Mistress Black, then take them over to number twelve, Grimmauld Place.'
'Mopsy is hearing and obeying,' the elf said with a bow.
'When you've done that, come back here and secure the house against intruders. After Miss Cassie leaves, no one is to come in or out without my express authorisation. Do I make myself clear?'
Mopsy bowed in response, and Sirius walked over to the fireplace and tossed a handful of Floo powder into the flames.
'Professor Lupin's office, Hogwarts,' he said in a strong voice, and stepped into the fire.
...
Abraxas Malfoy stood in the front of the Defence classroom, lecturing to a group of sixth-year Hufflepuffs. He would never admit it to anyone, but he had found that he rather enjoyed teaching. Even more surprisingly, he found that he quite enjoyed teaching Hufflepuffs. They might not be the brightest torches on the wall, but they made up for it with sheer diligence. They were respectful, obedient and hung on his every word, which were qualities Abraxas greatly admired in his subordinates. Indeed, he thought, the world would be much better off if most everyone were Hufflepuffs, with just a few Slytherins to rule over them. Perhaps one could add a handful of Gryffindors, just to make things interesting. Ravenclaws, however, Abraxas could very happily do without. They thought far too much for everyone else's good.
Suddenly the door burst open and a wizard barged in. It was Sirius. Achilles' rage had nothing on his. The cold fire in his grey eyes spoke of murder and vengeance. Not for the first time, Abraxas was reminded uncomfortably of just how much Sirius resembled his infamous great-grandfather and namesake, both in appearance and in temperament.
'What's happened, Sirius?' he demanded.
'Remus's office, ten minutes,' Sirius snapped, then turned on his heel and stormed out.
Abraxas turned white. Whatever the problem was, it was deadly serious.
'Class dismissed,' he announced without a second thought, and the Hufflepuffs filed out. Abraxas gathered his things and headed for Lupin's office, stopping by his own quarters for a bit of brandy to steady his nerves. When he arrived at Remus's office, he was unsurprised to find the Transfiguration master waiting with Draco and Aries.
'What's going on, Granddad?' Draco asked nervously.
'I don't know,' Abraxas replied. 'Do you know, Professor Lupin?'
Lupin shook his head. 'Sirius didn't tell me anything. He just told me to gather the children and bring them here.'
A moment later, Sirius himself came in, Headmistress McGonagall following closely on his footsteps.
'There must be some reason, Sirius,' she protested. 'You can't just barge in here and take away two of my students and two of my faculty members without explanation! If this is some prank...'
Sirius spun around and glared coldly at the stern witch. 'Narcissa Malfoy has been kidnapped,' he said. 'I suspect the perpetrator may also come after the boys. I'm taking them to a secure location. As for Remus and Abraxas, I'll be happy to send them back to you as soon as possible, but for now I need their help more than you do.'
The Headmistress nodded briefly. 'I understand,' she said in a businesslike tone. 'In that case, I wish you all the best of luck.' She turned and left.
'Uncle Sirius,' Draco began, but Sirius shook his head.
'Wait till we get home,' he said, and Draco nodded. Sirius stepped over to the fireplace and tossed in a handful of Floo powder.
'Number twelve, Grimmauld Place,' he snapped, and ushered them all through the flames.
On the other side of the fireplace, they found themselves in the midst of an extraordinary amount of hustle and bustle. Melania and Roquefort were standing in the drawing room with an immense pile of luggage. Irma and Kreacher were having a detailed discussion over who would be sleeping in which rooms, whilst Druella and Clytemnestra were yelling at each other in the front hall.
'I tell you, Clytemnestra, we are simply in no position to entertain all these guests,' Druella protested. 'Mother Black and I have grown accustomed to our quiet way of life, and we will not tolerate this disruption.'
'You'll be quiet and do as you're told!' the Squib shot back.
Cassiopeia came in through the Floo, a number of old manuscripts in her arms.
'I have several suggestions, Sirius,' she announced. 'Once we have everyone here we can begin setting them up.'
'Have you contacted the others?' Sirius asked Clytemnestra.