divided.

Installment Four.

"So...I tried to figure out what your little Order was," Niamh shared over a plate of cheesy chips in Eddie Rockets on O'Connell Street in Dublin. The twins both froze. "Woah." She dropped the chip she had been about to eat. "That's quite the reaction, my friends, you'll give yourself away." Still more shocked silence.

"Wh--How--"

"Oh, don't you worry." She laughed. "I didn't figure it out." A cheeky smile. "Do you have any idea how many 'Orders' there are out there? From stuff as silly as the Ancient Order of Gobstones Professionals--hah!--to ones as impressive as the old Order of the Phoenix, who resisted Voldemort in the last war." There was an awed expression on her face, which was quickly replaced with a look of mischief. "Even if they were still operating, there's no way either one of you two are cool enough to be a part of that!" She laughed forcefully.

"What?! Why not?!"

"Of course we are!"

"Riiight. Keep telling yourself that, boys, and maybe someday it will be true."

Silence followed for a moment, both boys feeling indignant at the suggestion that they were unworthy of the Order of the Phoenix, bothered by Niamh's inadvertent support of all their real life detractors. Neither was sure of how exactly to respond or continue the conversation, knowing the Order was an extremely sensitive subject at the same time as it was a really bad idea to try and ignore the line of conversation Niamh had just opened up. Ignoring it would be suspicious and therefore, just as risky as actually taking about the Order in public. Across their table in the crowded restaurant, they made eye contact, both trying to figure out what to say next. Fortunately, neither one of them had to make that decision.

"It would be really neat though, wouldn't it? To be a part of something like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like the Order of the Phoenix...I mean, I guess it's probably not as glamorous as it seems...it's got to be really dangerous and stuff. But. There's something about it that seems really exciting. Imagine--fighting along side Albus Dumbledore and The Potters! You would feel like you were really contributing, you know? Like you were helping the world or something. ...Plus, it's all clandestine and... What?" Her eyes, which had previously been unfocused on the distance, suddenly came back into focus, looking between the boys.

"Oh, ehm. Nothing."

"No. There's something. You two are giving each other these looks...god, twins." She shook her head, but laughed at them. She had become quite accustomed to being on the outside of their little party of two, and she was fine with it, she had to be. She enjoyed their company far too much to allow herself to be bothered by something so far beyond her control.

"No, really, its nothing."

"We were just thinking of how you remind us so much of..." Fred started, trying to distract her, but unable to think quickly enough to finish his sentence.

"Harry!" George added, trying to pick up his brother's slack.

"Yeah, Harry." A nod of agreement. In a way, they were lying through their teeth. The connections between Niamh and Harry were harder to make than they'd ever admit.

"Your little brother's friend?" she asked, quizzically. They hadn't spoken much of Harry in their time together.

"Well, yeah. He's a little more than that--" began George, Fred shot him a dark look and he stammered on, "b-but its hard to explain, and, it's--he's. Oh, sod it, you'll meet him some day."

"You two are up to something. I can feel it. You're the worst liars ever."

"We are not 'up to' anything," Fred insisted, but she could see right through him, and he knew it. She was right. It was unclear how they'd ever managed such heights as mischief makers, because they couldn't lie worth a knut.

"Speaking of being up to something, why'd you bring us all the way to Dublin, Miss Niamh?"

"Way to change the subject, George, really slick."

"I'm only after asking you a question, Niamh. I don't know what you're going on about; I'm not trying to change anything." He shot her a cheeky smile, the same as the one she'd offered earlier in their conversation. They may not be great liars, but they could out-sass her any day. She was no match for their mischievous wit, and someday, she'd be forced to admit that.

****

Fred's stomach felt a bit queasy as he sat at the kitchen table with George, going over their presentation in hushed tones, waiting for everyone else to arrive. It was only the second major meeting of the Order of the Phoenix since the pair had been allowed to join, and this would be their very first presentation in front of nearly the entire organization. Though they would never admit it to anyone else, secretly both of them were twisted with nerves over the whole thing. It had been difficult enough to convince the senior members of the Order to allow them to join, they didn't want to mess up their very first presentation and chip away at what small bit of respect they'd managed to build for themselves.

As yet, it seemed Dumbledore was their only ally in the Order. He was the only one who believed in their abilities, and the value of the work they could contribute. Without Dumbledore's support, they certainly would never have become members. They would have been forced to sit by and watch, feeling useless and childish as their loved ones put everything on the line. Which is certainly what both of their parents would have preferred. They had been the first to object to the boys taking part in the Order. And Snape he'd objected as well, though on entirely different grounds, he'd probably still prefer to shove them into the Vanishing Cabinet and see neither hide nor hair of them for a good few months, if not more. And those were only 3 of their detractors, the 3 most vocal detractors. Tonight, they had a lot to prove.

Gathering the whole Order was a painstaking and time consuming process. A great deal of planning had gone into the meeting. The only members not attending were those who were both being suspiciously watched by the other side, and who did not have a presentation to give. Really, this was only Kingsley Shacklebolt and Hagrid. Kingsley would be working overtime, and Hagrid would be back at Hogwarts, training a new Thestral foal--in other words, going about their usual, non-Order business. With all of the other members coming, now numbering nearly 50, some of whom had never been to Grimmauld Place, arrivals had been carefully choreographed so as to keep from arousing suspicion. Then the house had been scrubbed from head to toe, furniture had been rearranged to accommodate the crowd, and Ron and Harry had been trained in taming the beast that was Mrs. Black's portrait.

"TRAITORS, MUDBLOODS--"

Fred and George both winced as they heard the doorbell quickly drowned out by the sound of Mrs. Black's screeching. Newer members must have just arrived; more established members would have known not to ring the bell. Besides, as far as Fred and George knew, most of the more long term members were scheduled to apparate around Number Twelve over the course of the next 20 minutes. They were trying to keep the wizard presence outside in the muggle neighborhood to a minimum, everything needed to be as discreet as possible.

"They were meant to come straight in!" cried Mrs. Weasley, exasperated, as she rushed out of the kitchen. "RON! HARRY!"

Everyone arrived as scheduled (Mrs. Black only making two more appearances), with Dumbledore the very last. They all settled into the kitchen, some seated tightly around the large table, others in temporary chairs conjured specifically for the event. The usually wide and drafty old kitchen felt full and alive in ways it never had before. The presence of new members brought a buzz of excited energy into the house and seemed to rejuvenate even the most tired, overworked members of the Order. Dumbledore called the meeting to order just a few minutes past 7pm and rapt silence settled across the room.

"Good evening, everyone, I trust you all had safe journeys." He cleared his throat. "I'd like you all to welcome our new members to Grimmauld Place." Polite applause drifted about the room and the new members beamed with pride, many of them clearly in awe of their company. "We have much to accomplish tonight and not nearly enough time within which to accomplish it, so I am going to keep the meeting to a tight schedule this evening. We will start with a few of the shorter presentations and points of business, and then get down to those issues requiring more attention." Dumbledore looked about the room to assure everyone was in agreement. "Well then, let's get down to business, shall we? To begin, I'd like to ask Fred & George Weasley to present to us all on their recent progress."

Fred and George both rose from their seats and moved towards the head of the table, near where Dumbledore sat. This was where they'd watched people give their presentations from at the last meeting. Neither one felt sure of how best to stand or hold their shoulders or use their faces. Should they smile broadly in front of the crowded room? Or was this just all too serious for such behavior?

"I'm Fred," Fred spoke first, gesturing to the old Christmas jumper he was wearing, emblazoned with a large F.

"And that makes me George," he was the first to smile tentatively, also showing off the large G on his jumper.

"So, anyway, we've ehm, we've joined the Order to help with the technology end."

"Specifically, weapons and reconnaissance...a little surveillance as well."

"A few projects that are under way include two modifications of our Extendable Ears, which do exactly what their name suggests: allow us to hear things from greater distances." Fred reached into his pocket and produced one of the first sets of Extendable Ears they had ever created and began to pass it around the table. "The first new model will be wireless, and the second, in addition to being wireless, will also have the capability to remember and later recall what it has heard. We're nearing completion on the first set of modifications, and they should be available for beta-testing within the next week. ...We believe these more mobile forms of the Extendable Ear will be useful in our constant search for information about the Dark Side and their whereabouts, membership, and movements, to say the least."

Fred was sure people could see the heat rising in his cheeks. The thought made him feel even more foolish. He never blushed. He never got nervous when speaking publicly. He simply wasn't that type. Usually, he craved this sort of attention--a room full of eyes, all glued to his every word. ...But this felt so different. He felt out of his league in many ways, even though he knew in his heart that he and Fred could really contribute to the Order. But there was this room full of adults, all watching him intently, and suddenly he felt as though he wanted to be somewhere else. Like on the other side of the kitchen door, with his Extendable Ears and insatiable curiosity, trying to find some way to break the Imperturbable Charm his mother always put on the door before meetings. He wanted to be on the outside trying to break in again. Everything seemed a lot less glamorous and a lot more gritty from his position at the head of the kitchen table. It was in everyone's eyes--even the newbies who still seemed excited to be in such company--it was behind those smiles, or soft stares...there was an aura of impending darkness. The kind of darkness that made each moment seem an awful lot more serious than necessary. As he stood there, willing the redness to fade from his cheeks, trying to avoid eye contact with anyone else, Fred missed the levity he'd left behind when he'd walked through the kitchen doors for his first meeting of the Order of the Phoenix only a few months previous. His life was feeling foreign to him.

"The next item we're working on, which is still in early prototypes, is slightly more complex. Their working title is, One-Time-Use-Wands, and they operate in ways similar to muggle 'grenades,'" George spoke as Fred unfurled a length of parchment with diagrams on it, willing his hands to stop trembling. "Here you see the muggle grenade. It is a small explosive device that fits inside the palm of the hand. When it is needed, the pin," he gestured toward the round loop up near the top of the small olive green egg before continuing, "is pulled on, and removed rapidly from the device, which is immediately thrown at the enemy or into their territory, where it explodes, sending fire and shrapnel into the immediate area." George waved his hand at an animated picture of a man using a grenade before continuing.

"Obviously, our style of combat is vastly different from that of the Muggles, but the concept behind this device can be put into use in our world. We are devising a wand which can be pre-loaded with a spell of any type, and then easily activated by someone, no matter their level of magical experience. For example, a child of no more than five could be sent into a location we know to be crawling with undercover Death Eaters. The child would carry the One-Time-Use-Wand, point it at a target, and mutter a code word, which would activate the wand, and send off a spell far more powerful than most wizards could ever hope to conjure--never mind a child--such as the Avada K--you know what I mean."

There were looks of horror on more than a few faces. This was not the example they had discussed using. What was George thinking, talking about using a child? Fred felt compelled to interrupt, before George could make things any worse, make them look any more crazed and unprofessional. He cleared his throat.

"Obviously, we would NEVER send a child into such a situation, that would be incredibly dangerous, not to mention morally dodgy. We're just--"

"Of course, of course. I'm sorry. I'm only just trying to..." George, now very flustered, stopped to take a deep breath. "That was quite a crude example. But its shows the powerful scope of this type of tool. It allows a witch or wizard of any age or skill level, even a squib, to be a powerful asset to the Order, and obviously this type of tool will come in handy in situations where we would like to keep our presence discreet, which is one of our major challenges as an organization."

"At the moment, we are working on safety related issues, keeping the wands from going off at the wrong time, or target, and locking the spell into the wand so that it cannot be unlocked by an outsider. But we are hoping to have working prototypes within the next 2 months." As Fred concluded, George passed around a stack of parchment, each sheet detailing the projects they had just presented. "If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask us."

"Why, thank you, Fred, George," Dumbledore spoke softly. He was always so calm. "We shall have time for questions and suggestions and conversation later, but for now, I'm afraid I must insist that we move forward with the schedule." After a deep breath of a pause, Dumbledore continued, "Shortly, we will have Severus Snape present on his recent progress."

Across the table, Fred and George noticed the pronounced scowl that twisted into Sirius' expression. He needed to learn how to mask those feelings of hatred and resentment, because they were only hurting him in the end. Even after his rescue mission at the Department of Mysteries, Sirius continued to feel frustrated and useless. Snape continued to capitalize on that, glad to finally be in the position of schoolyard bully after a lifetime of being the victim. It was starting to get ugly. The twins wondered how much longer Sirius would be able to hold back around Severus. When he finally exploded it was going to be awful, there were decades of resentment built up between the pair of them, just lying in wait. The violence they would unleash on each other would be unimaginable. Ultimately, it would serve only to deepen the divide between Sirius and the rest of the Order. Most of the members were all a bit in awe of Snape with all of his dangerous undercover work for the Light, and unfortunately still unsure of Sirius' innocence. But perhaps worse than the impact on any relationship to Severus and the Order, the impact of the explosion would only serve to set Sirius straight back to High School, to the obnoxious prat with a blackened last name he'd spent most of his adult years trying to out-run.

Around them, the conversation continued, and the boys snapped back into the present.

"But before Severus takes his turn, I will give a quick update on one of my most recent pursuits.

"As you all know, one of my goals as the head of the Order of the Phoenix is to foster an international awareness of this crisis and encourage foreign wizarding nations to band together with us in order to better arm ourselves against Lord Voldemort's increasing influence. I believe international education and cooperation are essential in protecting ourselves against the advance of this evil." Dumbledore had been gesturing animatedly along with his speech, but suddenly he paused and leaned forward, resting his hands on the table in front of him. "I do not believe that Voldemort will settle for control of the magical world in the UK alone. His thirst for power is insatiable, and this second time around I believe he will aggressively seek foreign, and ultimately, global control. He will not wait; even today I am sure he is at work infiltrating foreign wizarding society.

"At every juncture I have encountered resistance and ignorance--people pretending to be completely unaware of our plight, people refusing to admit there is a possibility they could be in danger, people who believe that trying to arm themselves or allying with us is exactly what will bring them harm. This has been frustrating work, and my progress has been slow.

"At this time, thanks to the efforts of Charlie Weasley, we can count Romania and Bulgaria among our allies. I have been focusing my recent efforts on opening the lines of communication and cooperation between the Order and the United States. This has been quite a challenge. The leader of the American Magical Legislature, the equivalent of our Ministry of Magic, is quite thick-headed, if I say so myself, and extremely, foolhardily isolationist. Yet regardless of the struggle it is obviously going to take to get this man to see reality for what it is, I still believe getting America to open up is essential, if not paramount, to our cause. If they join us, the world will follow. They are the key to this battle, I am sure of it.

"That said, I cannot continue this work alone. Soon, the school year will commence once again, and I will need to be at Hogwarts, which will absorb a great deal of my time and attention. In addition, I have many other responsibilities here at the Order, as you well know. It is for this reason that I am seeking assistance in this matter. Charlie Weasley has had immense success in the Eastern European region, and that is where his work continues, I cannot draw him away from there. Therefore, I believe it is time to involve other witches and wizards in this mission. If anyone has experience in international relations, or previous ties to other wizarding communities, especially the American community, your help would be greatly appreciated. I would prefer not to draft members at random, especially because previous experience is almost essential in this field."

Silence blanketed the room. You couldn't even hear people fidgeting in their seats. There was nothing. Just a whole lot of discomfort and nothing more. There was almost no international cooperation in the wizarding world. Sure there was a tiny department of International Relations in the Ministry of Magic, but it was only slightly more respected than the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts office, and no one ever wanted to work there. The witch and wizard who ran the department were stodgy and ancient, and ultimately, spent most of their time smoothing over relations between the muggle and wizarding world within Britain, not between Britain and other wizarding nations. There just wasn't much work to be done there; the lines of international communication were silent, as they had been since Voldemort's last rise. He had scared people into isolation, and now, he would capitalize on that.

"No one with family or friends in other nations? No one with an interest in international communications?" Dumbledore rapped his fingers against the table, then turned and looked pointedly at the twins. Fred felt a flush rise in his cheeks, he looked away quickly. Dumbledore always knew.

"Fred and George have an American friend," Charlie offered loudly, before either twin could speak.