Chapter 24: The Order
July 17 - 10:30pm - Grimmauld Place
Ron Weasley sat on an overstuffed dark red sofa in the front parlor of Grimmauld Place. He stared down at his hands as he thought about everything that he had witnessed in the past few months. Neither of his two best friends had really spoken to him in days. Hermione locked herself away in the library, and Harry had done the same, only his hiding place of choice had become Sirius's old bedroom. He knew something was different about his friend's relationship. He wasn't that dense. He suspected the loss of their families had driven them closer together, just as Neville's loss of his gran had further cemented his link to the trio. 'Not much of a trio lately,' Ron thought as he wondered at everything that had happened to them all.
His mother had relented, and he and Ginny now traveled to Hogwarts three times a week for defense training with other members of the D.A. Various members of the Order alternated teaching the original D.A. members. Harry and Hermione taught the newer members and children and adults who wanted to learn how to better defend themselves against death eaters. They were now allowed to attend Order meetings, though neither told Ron about their acceptance into the group. He and Ginny had only discovered their membership when the two were allowed to stay for a meeting, while his mother ordered he and Ginny from the room. He didn't understand why neither of his friends had mentioned this new development to him. He snorted, of course, they hadn't bothered to mention they were going to be teaching some of the defense classes either.
Even more surprising, Luna and Neville stayed behind for the latest meeting as well. Neville, he sort of understood, since technically Neville was the same age as Harry and Hermione and his gran couldn't protest it. But Luna, he couldn't understand that since she was Ginny's age. He thought of the praise that Fred and George heaped on Luna. Apparently, she was incredible, some kind of potions genius and partially responsible for his being alive. He felt bad about calling her loony, though she still wandered around Grimmauld as if in her own little world. She often disappeared as well, and no one would reveal where she had gone. He supposed that like Hermione and Harry, she too, had been given an assignment. Thinking about that, he felt useless.
He thought back to his conversation with the others. He'd barely seen Harry to talk to him about their ideas. He wasn't sure, but he suspected his friends were avoiding being alone with him. He knew he wasn't the best at defense, but chess had honed his skills as a strategist. Not that anyone seemed to care. He kept thinking that if he could just talk to someone, they would all realize how helpful he could be to the Order. He considered talking to Bill or Charlie. Perhaps he could convince them that he too, had skills that the Order could use. He knew his mother wouldn't listen as she still saw both he and Ginny as children. And his dad would agree with his mother. Fred and George never took anything he said or did serious. As Percy was still being a git that only left his oldest brothers.
He fancied himself more like Charlie. Especially since Bill had taken Dudley Dursley under his wing, and whenever he was at Grimmauld the two would find an empty room where Bill reviewed basic spells with Harry's cousin. Bill had ordered Ron away once when he'd stumbled upon them and laughed when Dudley tried to accio a book and ending up bringing nearly an entire shelf towards him which knocked him over into a heap on the floor. Ron thought it the funniest thing he'd seen that summer, though Dudley had flushed red with embarrassment. Finding out that Dudley Dursley was a wizard had been on par with the shock of waking up in the same room in Grimmauld with Draco Malfoy. He didn't understand why Bill seemed to care about teaching the git, but maybe it was an assignment of his from the Order so Dudley could manage in the wizarding world on his own.
After thinking over Bill's behavior with Dudley, he resolved to talk to Charlie at the first opportunity and felt better. At least now he had a plan of action. He was tired of feeling left out and not knowing anything about what happened. Even his friends, who normally shared things with him, were withholding information. He tried not to think about his friends more recent behavior as he watched the fire in the grate as it licked along the few logs someone had added earlier. Many of the rooms in Grimmauld remained cold even in summer. The fire also tended to make the rooms cozier, though Dobby's redecorating had helped more with this.
"Hello, Ronald," Luna greeted entering the room and interrupting his thoughts. She was dressed for bed with a turquoise robe wrapped about her and cinched tightly at the waist. Ron could only stare. She moved closer to him before saying, "Am I interrupting?"
"No," Ron managed looking back down at his hands. He didn't know what to say to her. Luna didn't seem to notice his discomfort as she sat down in a chair across from him near the fire.
"I've been hoping to talk to you for awhile," Luna said in her soft lilting voice.
"Really?" Ron squeaked feeling nervous, his face flushing lightly.
"Yes," Luna replied working on finding her own courage. At least Hermione knew that Harry liked her, she thought, thinking back to her earlier machinations to prompt Hermione to make up with Harry.
"Look, Luna, I'm really sorry about calling you loony before," Ron apologized barreling ahead with his apology before he lost his own nerve. Luna stared at him and he squirmed in his seat.
"Thank you, Ronald, I accept your apology," she finally said and he sighed in relief.
"Thanks, too, for helping Madam Pomfrey take care of me," Ron added. Luna smiled.
"Your welcome," as she said this, Ron met her gaze and smiled back at her. She really was rather pretty with her large blue eyes and long blonde hair. He wondered why he hadn't noticed that before, then reminded himself that this was Luna Lovegood. Of course, he'd never noticed because every other time he had seen her she'd been reading a copy of the Quibbler upside down or saying things that made absolutely no sense. Unsure of what to say, and worried that she would think he were deranged if he didn't stop staring, he wracked his brain for something, anything to talk about.
"Uh, what was it you wanted to talk about?" He finally asked proud of himself for remembering what she had said. Luna looked down and he wondered if he'd said something wrong.
"I just wanted to ask how you were doing?" Luna said scolding herself internally for chickening out of saying what she really meant to say. It was not something that typically happened with her. But then, Ron made her feel differently than anyone else.
"Oh," Ron said, a little disappointed, "fine. It's all a little weird really. I'm mostly just trying to make sense of everything that's happened."
"A lot of things have changed in the last few months," Luna returned thinking back over the last couple of months herself.
"That's what I was thinking. It's not just what happened since the attacks, part of it's been building for awhile now. At least you're busy doing things for the Order," Ron replied a tinge of jealousy in his voice.
"Your talents will soon be put to use as well," Luna reassured him.
"Not unless my mum and dad realize I'm not a kid anymore," Ron scoffed.
"They know you're not a kid. They're just scared of losing you. Your mum was a real mess when you were hurt. She worries about all of you, but feels that the only ones she can still protect are you and Ginny," Luna mused softly.
"I know," Ron replied sighing. "She's got to let go sometime."
"Give her some time," Luna suggested smiling at him again. He smiled back feeling better than he had in days and not entirely sure why.
"Luna?"
"Yes, Ron," she prompted feeling happy just to be near him and be talking.
"Would you like to play a game of chess?" Luna's smile broadened and Ron felt a strange sort of jump in his insides.
"I'd love to," she replied feeling the happiest she could remember as she watched him set up the game.
* * * * * *
July 17 - 12:05am - The Forbidden Forest
"You're late," Severus Snape said coldly as a cloaked figure appeared in the small clearing near the edge of the Forbidden Forest. The night was clear but the thick growth of the forest blocked most of the moonlight.
"Don't tempt me to torture you again, Severus," a soft voice answered seriously.
"I won't be giving you another opportunity to do so," the surly potions master replied surprised at her audacious suggestion.
"Now, Severus, play nice, or I won't reveal why I'm here."
"Do not presume that I care. I am only here because Dumbledore requested that I meet with you," he explained regretting his agreement to that bit of madness yet again. He could see nothing to be gained by trusting Beatrix Zambini.
"Your usefulness as a spy is dangerously close to running out, Severus. You're losing your touch," Beatrix taunted him.
"And you could do better?" Snape enquired attempting to catch her eyes.
"I am an accomplished legilimens. Do you honestly expect to catch me in anything I do not wish to reveal?" A throaty laugh followed the remarks.
"You find me amusing. Perhaps I should show you how amusing I can be," Snape practically hissed. How dare she mock him? The woman was obviously a liability. The old man must be mad if he felt they could trust her. He doubted whatever sob story she had told Dumbledore to convince him of her sincerity.
"I allowed you the opportunity to warn your precious Order," Beatrix reminded him interrupting his thoughts. She remained in the shadows at the edge of the clearing directly opposite her fellow death eater who also remained in the shadows, neither of them trusting the other enough to come out into the open.
'And then went to the Dark Lord, no doubt trying to convince him that I was disloyal," Snape answered. As far as he was concerned she had cost both he and the Order because now the Dark Lord seemed even more intent on keeping his plans to himself, and he found himself no longer a member of the inner circle.
"Your loyalty will always be in question because of the game you play, Severus. A major change in the war in the Dark Lord's favor will occur before the end of this month," Beatrix revealed stepping off the ledge and into the uncertainty of serving two masters herself. Better to take the plunge now and try to save her children, then allow them to fall victim to the Dark Lord as both she and their father had done just out of Hogwarts.
"This isn't a game," Severus cautioned her even as he wondered why he bothered.
"Ah, but it is," Beatrix replied just before she disappeared with the familiar crack of apparition.
* * * * * *
July 19 - 8:00pm - Grimmauld Place
Gathered around the kitchen table in Grimmauld Place several members of the Order of the Phoenix sat, leaned, or stood waiting for the latest meeting to start. With the uncertainty of the times, the meetings were smaller, with those attending passing on pertinent information to those who could not attend. When Dumbledore arrived moments later with Narcissa and Draco Malfoy the room fell silent. He motioned for them to take seats near him at the head of the table. Once both the Malfoys were seated, Dumbledore began to speak.
"Thank you all for attending on such short notice. First, I have found that Voldemort expects the war to turn in his favor by the end of the month. I do not know if this means a major attack or that he is close to a discovery of something he expects will help him win the war. This will be everyone's' new assignment." A few members cringed at the use of Voldemort's name, though most had learned to tolerate Dumbledore's usage of it.
"Do you suspect one more than the other?" Arthur Weasley questioned looking tired.
"I have my suspicions, but I want to encourage everyone to remain open to the possibilities as you patrol. Any information you may overhear or any strange or out of place occurrence should be reported immediately back to me," Dumbledore insisted looking over the assembled group. Several people nodded in understanding.
"Will we be going on patrols as well?" Everyone turned to look at Neville in surprise. Molly Weasley looked ready to protest even the idea of sending the teenagers out on patrol. Dumbledore smiled for the first time since he had arrived. All of the newer, young members sat together, and typically, remained rather quiet throughout the meetings. It was nice to see that changing.
"I want everyone to play to their strengths. In your case, I have a project which I will discuss with you and Pomona in more depth later. I have already spoken to some members and others I will speak to as needed. Otherwise, please consider listening for more information on this as part of your regular assignments." He paused after saying this as though waiting for any more questions. After several moments of silence, he spoke again.
"It would seem that Voldemort has his share of supporters in the Wizengamot. There are also those who worry about the risks involved in changing leadership in the middle of what is now a war. Despite my own concerns, I support a vote of no confidence for Minister Fudge. If we could get this pushed through then an acting Minister will be appointed until an election can be held. It would help if we could insure more votes in favor of both a no confidence vote and a new acting Minister who is not a Voldemort sympathizer."
"What exactly are you proposing?" Bill Weasley questioned curious.
"If they will agree, I am suggesting that we take advantage of the fact that we have three young men who are eligible to be declared heads of their own houses, houses which are all ancient family lines that reserved for themselves a seat in the Wizengamot should an heir decide to take it. Typically this is not something that would be done until the young men were finished with school, and even then, only if they wanted to venture into politics." The group fell silent again.
"Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Potter, and Mr. Longbottom, but Albus, none of them are finished with school. How can they be expected to keep up with everything that is happening these days?" Minerva McGonagall broke the silence.
"We will be adults, able to come and go as we please from Hogwarts," Draco drawled looking smug.
"Becoming a member of the Wizengamot is an important responsibility and should not be adopted lightly," Minerva reprimanded from her seat across the table from the Malfoys.
"Minerva is absolutely correct, Mr. Malfoy. There is much more to the position then your own personal freedom of movement," Dumbledore added looking pointedly at Draco. Several older members of the Order nodded at this.
"I am well aware of the responsibility," Draco replied in indignation.
"I'll do it," Neville said firmly. "I've already talked to my uncle Alger and he's willing to sign my emancipation papers."
"How about you, Mr. Potter?" Dumbledore questioned when Harry remained silent.
"If it gets Fudge out of office, I'm all for it," Harry finally said. Hermione squeezed his hand under the table to show her support.
"Excellent! I am very pleased to hear this," Dumbledore replied clasping his hands together as if to seal the deal. "Now, on to the final order of business, I have assigned the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor to Narcissa Malfoy. Starting tomorrow, she will begin to oversee the training of everyone in the defense classes for the summer along with the help of Remus Lupin, Harry Potter, and Hermione Granger. For the moment, neither she nor Mr. Malfoy will be inducted into the Order, but will be included in meetings that involve either or them in some way. If there is no further business, this meeting is adjourned." Everyone started talking at once.
"Her, dark arts professor," Molly Weasley commented looking over Narcissa Malfoy critically.
"Who better?" Narcissa questioned pointedly somehow appearing to stare down at Molly even though she was still seated at the table and Molly was standing.
"I assure you, Molly, Mrs. Malfoy knows what she is doing," Dumbledore reassured her knowing that others had similar fears.
"Do you trust her?" Molly asked watching Dumbledore.
"I do," Dumbledore replied simply. This assurance brought the questioning to a close. Hermione looked at Harry as her teeth worried her bottom lip. She looked nervous about Dumbledore's newest appointment to the teaching staff. The two stood as one and moved towards the door. Neville and Luna followed and the four eventually stopped in Sirius's old bedroom. Hermione and Harry settled on a settee near the foot of the bed while Luna and Neville each took a chair. Luna was the first to speak.
"This is exciting. It's an honor to hold a seat in the Wizengamot. And I'll bet Mrs. Malfoy knows a lot of dark arts," Luna said almost in a rush. She bounced on her seat at the thought.
"She's probably a death eater," Harry interjected. Luna waved a hand in dismissal.
"Her aura's mixed. She believes in the purity of blood, but she's refused subtly to take the mark. She won't do anyone's dirty work," Luna replied as if it was the simplest observation in the world. The others stared at her waiting for an explanation, but none appeared forthcoming as Luna now seemed bored with the conversation.
"Uh, Luna, how do you know she's not a death eater?" Harry finally asked.
"Because I would have sensed it, silly, the dark mark is tied to very powerful dark magic," Luna answered leaving the others just as confused as before she had answered the question. Then Hermione brightened, having obviously figured out what Luna meant.
"She can sense people's auras," Hermione explained to the other two. "So you can determine if a witch or wizard is basically good or evil based on the elements of each attached to their own magical signature?"
"Something like that, it gets rather difficult to explain. Each witch and wizard has an aura which includes elements of how magical they are, where their beliefs place them in terms of what we think of good and evil, or dark magic and light magic," Luna added smiling at the others as she stood and crossed the room to pet Hedwig who sat on her perch in the corner of the room.
"Wow!" Neville exclaimed staring Luna as she carried on a quiet conversation with Hedwig.
"A very useful, but very rare skill," Hermione continued thinking about what this could mean about the other girl. Luna shrugged her shoulders as if to say, so?
"Luna, does anyone in the Order have a dark aura?" Harry questioned thoughtfully. Luna turned back to the others at his question and came back to her seat.
"No one who has come to Grimmauld has a completely dark aura, though some have more darkness than others, like Mrs. Malfoy, Remus, and you, Harry," Luna explained.
"Remus because he's a werewolf, Harry because of his connection to Voldemort, and Mrs. Malfoy's, hmmm, because of her connection to the death eaters?" Neville questioned looking first at Luna and then Hermione for an answer. Luna shrugged as if it didn't entirely matter.
"She's also from the Black family, a notoriously dark family who believed in practicing dark magic and supported Voldemort. Those are all possible reasons," Hermione suggested giving Harry's hand a squeeze.
"Just because there's some darkness doesn't mean a person is evil. Harry and Remus are perfect examples of that. We should give her a chance. After what happened at the Abbott's, Voldemort will question her loyalty, especially as without being marked, he cannot get to her," Luna said instead of answering his question. Neville yawned and stood.
"Now that we've settled that, I'm going to bed."
"Goodnight, Neville," Hermione said rising and giving the surprised Gryffindor a hug. "If you need anything, just knock, we'll be here." He smiled then at her understanding. He hadn't slept through the night since the attacks. He should have known Hermione would see past his joking about Ron's snoring keeping him awake, and realize the true cause of his lack of sleep.
"Let me know if you need some dreamless sleep potion," Luna offered. "Madame Pomfrey left some bottles downstairs in case anyone needed them."
"Thanks," Neville replied, "but I'll be alright." The others nodded in understanding.
"I should go, too, I promised Ronald a game of chess this evening," Luna added as an after-thought rising to follow Neville from the room.
"Is this a sort of date?" Hermione asked curious about her other best friend and the intelligent, albeit strange Ravenclaw girl.
"It's a game of chess," Luna answered slipping from the room and closing the door behind her. Hermione turned to Harry, who shrugged.
"It's Ron, so it is probably just a game of chess, for now," Harry said leaning forward and catching Hermione's hand in his. He pulled her closer until she eventually settled back onto the settee leaning against him.
"I miss them," Hermione whispered softly. Harry kissed her forehead and held her close. "I don't know what I'd do if you weren't here with me, poor Neville."
"He's got us. He knows that," Harry tried to reassure her, "having you and Ron as friends always helped me." Hermione nodded against his chest. Silent tears slid down her cheeks as she thought of her parents. The hurt was just as strong now as it was when it happened. She threw herself into her research promising her parents that she would help Harry defeat Voldemort. It held her together, at least in front of everyone else. She worried about Neville. He'd become even more withdrawn as time passed.
"We should try to get some sleep, too," Harry said moments later breaking into Hermione's thoughts. He brushed the tears from her face. She nodded and stood to get ready for bed.
Author's Note: Thanks for bearing with me. I hope you like the latest installment. Let me know. Thanks!