Dumbledore's Secret

Chapter 16

He was dancing with Tonks in the middle of Radu's laboratory when Lupa began screaming, "Changeling, changeling!" Tonks morphed into Snape, who then proceeded to peck at his arm and hoot insistently.

"Stop that, Snivellus!" he muttered angrily, though the hooting only became louder.

Suddenly, Remus's eyes flew open, and the owl fluttering near his head finally stopped nipping at his arm.

"What the ..." he muttered, sitting up. The owl dropped a scroll of parchment onto his lap before quickly flying out the window of his room in Grimmauld Place. Rubbing his eyes, Remus tried to adjust to the bright sunlight streaming through his window. Then, anxiously, he unrolled the parchment and began to read:

Dear Remus,

Stopped by St. Mungo's this morning ... Kingsley is awake! He isn't up to seeing anyone yet, but let everyone know he's recovering.

Also, if you need to talk, about anything that's going on, anything, stop by my cubicle at the Ministry.

I really enjoyed celebrating Harry's birthday with you last night.

Sincerely,

Tonks

Remus couldn't stop smiling as he showered and dressed. Not only was Kingsley conscious, but Tonks had had a good time last night. True, they'd been with about ten other people, but somehow, the evening had still seemed as intimate as a date. How many glances had they exchanged while watching Harry blow out his candles and rip open presents? And before Harry had arrived, they'd talked, really talked. Not about Order business - after the adventures they'd both had that day, there didn't seem to be any desire to discuss that. Their exchanges had been completely mundane: she updated him on the latest Quidditch standings since he'd been away from the country for most of July ("The Chudley Canons are losing, of course, but I'm sure you could have guessed that!"); he raved about the food and weather in Austria, one of the places he'd gone to recruit werewolves ("Tonks, you've got to go sometime, you'd love it; just, uh, stay inside during the full moon."); she'd given him the gossip on some of the Aurors in her office ("You should see Emmaline's cubicle - she has pictures of herself posted all over the walls!"); he'd told stories about Harry's third year at Hogwarts ("Snape looks rather good in a dress, actually."). It had been small talk, but it had also been so easy, so friendly; it had lacked the awkwardness that had existed between the two of them in June.

As he slipped a tattered robe over his frayed t-shirt and scruffy jeans, Remus felt almost confident enough to admit that Tonks did indeed seem interested in him. His smile widened, and even began to whistle as he hurried down the kitchen stairwell.

"Good morning!" he said, pushing through the door.

Molly was by the stove, cooking (of course); Snape was in his corner, scowling (as expected); Ron, Ginny, and Hermione were all at the table, heads bent close as if they were scheming (naturally).

Remus said cheerfully, "Well, I must have slept late if there are teenagers up and about before me!"

Everyone in the room looked up at him and frowned. He felt his smile falter a bit, but decided to ignore the decidedly bad feeling forming in the pit of his stomach.

"Where's Harry?" Remus asked as he got some tea.

"He's in the drawing room with Albus and Minerva," Molly said, handing him a plate of sausages.

"Thanks, but you didn't have to cook for me..." Remus began.

"Now, now, just eat up, dear. Eat up," Molly said, patting him on the shoulder sympathetically. He glanced warily at her before taking a seat. Just as he dug into his breakfast, Charlotte came into the kitchen.

"Good morning, Remus," she said with a tight smile. Book in hand, she sat down across from him and began to read. But every few minutes, she'd glance up at him, a look of compassion in her eyes.

Something was definitely wrong.

As he ate, he heard the three teens whispering, "But, shouldn't we say something? I mean, it's not right ..."

"Let Mum or Dumbledore or someone tell him."

"Well, I think they should do it soon."

Remus looked up at them, and all three blushed profusely and looked away.

"What are you three being so conspiratorial about?" Remus asked them, pushing his plate away.

"Uh ..." Ron began. "Uh ..."

Hermione shoved what looked to be a newspaper into one of the pockets of her robe.

"What are you three doing with that?" Molly demanded, coming to stand by the table.

"With what?" Ginny asked innocently.

"I saw that. You stuck something in your robe, Hermione."

"Geez, Mum, it's just a copy of the Prophet," Ron said with aggravation. "It's not like we weren't going to find out Dad was running for minister sometime or another!"

Remus nearly dropped his teacup. "Arthur's running for Minister of Magic!"

"Oh, you haven't heard yet," Molly said, and she quickly told him about the shake up at the Ministry.

"Is that what everyone's so uptight about?" Remus asked. No one would look at him, and he sighed. "Well, I've some good news at least. Tonks just owled. Kingsley's awake."

"That's great news!" Molly said.

"Why wouldn't Mr. Shacklebolt be awake?" Hermione asked suspiciously.

"Never you mind that," Molly muttered.

Ginny sighed. "Mum, you're always trying to keep things from us! We're not kids, you know."

Molly said nothing, turning back to the stove.

"She's just trying to protect you," Charlotte murmured, looking up from her book with a sympathetic smile.

Ron snorted. "She could protect us from our homework. If I have write another essay on the properties of bicorn horn... ouch! Hermione, watch your elbow!"

Hermione glared at Ron before nodding none too subtly over at Snape.

"Oh, right," Ron muttered.

"Mum, tell us about Mr. Shacklebolt," Ginny demanded.

"No."

"Professor Lupin ..." the youngest Weasley asked with pleading eyes.

He shook his head. "If your mother doesn't want you to know, then it's not my place to say."

"Shacklebolt was almost killed by death eaters yesterday," Snape said from his corner.

Molly slammed her coffee mug onto the counter. "Thank you, Severus!" she snapped.

He only sneered at her.

The three teens gaped at their potions professor, then turned to Molly. "Really?" Hermione asked. "Oh, that's horrible!"

"Well," Remus said, "he's doing better now. In fact, I should tell Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall. Then I think I'm going to take a quick trip to Diagon Alley ... have some things I need to get. Can I tempt anyone with some Honeydukes chocolate?" he asked with a wink. Albus had given him an advance on his first month's salary, and although it wasn't much, he felt like a rich man

"Oh," Molly said. "That's nice. But I think first you ought to ..." She looked away and didn't finish her statement.

Remus raised an eyebrow. "I ought to what?" He looked around the room, and not even Snape would meet his eye. "What is going on?" he asked again, this time his voice slightly angry.

It was Charlotte who spoke up. "Give him the paper," she said to Hermione softly.

Hesitantly, Hermione handed him The Daily Prophet, and he stared at the first page, bemused. "But you already told me about Arthur ..."

"Page 3," Snape bit out.

Remus forced himself to read the article dispassionately. "I'd been expecting this," he said with a poor attempt at a smile. Putting the paper down, he said, "Really, it's not a surprise at all." Still, his heart was beating madly. Branded? He was going to be branded?

Molly let out a long sigh. "Oh, Remus, are you sure you're okay? It's so horrible ..."

"What's horrible?"

Remus turned and stared at Harry. He stood in the doorway of the kitchen, hand in his messy hair, a half smile on his lips.

"Happy birthday, Harry!" Remus said, forcing himself to grin at the younger boy. Do not lose your temper, do not upset him ...

Albus and Minerva came in behind Harry, and when Remus met their eyes, he could almost feel their pity wash over him.

Taking a deep, steadying breath, Remus said, "Do you have any plans for your big day, Harry?"

Harry looked at him a little oddly. "Professor Lupin, are you alright? You sound a little..."

"Perfectly fine!" he said, widening the smile on his lips. His face began to ache, and the blood vessel at his left temple felt as if it were going to pop.

"Well," Albus said, coming to sit at the table. "I have one last present to dole out before we leave."

"Really?" Harry asked with an excited grin. "Ron, 'Mione, Ginny, you have to see the motorbike, it's fantastic ..."

"This is a gift to all four of you," Albus said with a gentle smile. "If you go upstairs to the back door, you'll find that the two-foot patch of grass between this house and the next has, well, grown a bit since your last visit. Indeed, it's now just wide enough to contain a set of Quidditch hoops ...mind you, they're shorter than normal, but ..."

"Perfect!" Ron said, standing up from the table so quickly that he almost knocked over his pumpkin juice.

"But, beware not to fly too high ... we can only expect the muggles to ignore so much," Albus said.

"Oh, and Miss Granger," Minerva added, "I've made sure to include a nice lawn chair for you and your books ..."

Hermione smiled brightly. "Thank you, Professor! Though, I have actually been playing a bit of Quidditch myself ..."

Harry gaped. "But, 'Mione, you hate flying!"

She shot a quick glance at Ron. "It's not so bad. Ron's taught me some ways to improve my technique, and ..."

At this, Ginny burst into a fit of giggles. "They've particularly been working on some French moves," she managed between laughs.

With a bemused look, Harry said, "French moves?" He looked at his two best friends, whose faces were now identical shades of red. "What French moves?"

Ginny's laughter grew even louder as she made kissing noises. Harry's mouth widened into a surprised O, and Remus felt his heartbeat slowly return to normal.

"As fascinating as your infantile remarks may be, there are those of us trying to work here," Snape snarled.

Harry's bemused smile died away, and he stared angrily at Snape. Neither said anything for a long moment, then Harry snapped, "What are you doing here?"

Snape said nothing as he continued to glare at the young man.

"As I explained upstairs, Harry, Professor Snape is staying here for the summer, and you will treat him with due respect," Albus said, his tone serious.

Harry gaped at the headmaster. "What about him? He's the one making sarcastic remarks the minute I walk into the room!"

"Why don't we go outside and play some Quidditch?" Ginny said, getting up quickly and heading for the door. Ron and Hermione followed her lead. But Harry did not move.

"I can't believe," he said, his face bright red, his finger pointed angrily at Snape, "I can't believe you're sitting here, in his house, after all that's happened ..."

Snape simply raised an eyebrow. "In fact, I think I might sleeping his room, too..."

Harry strode toward Snape, and Remus only just barely caught his arm and dragged him back. "Come on, Harry," he said softly. "Don't let him get to you. Not today, okay?"

Breathing heavily, Harry looked at Remus with bright green eyes and said, "That bastard, I hate him, I ..."

"Shh..." Remus said, standing up. "Come on, I'm an old man, but I still have a few Quidditch moves in me.

He led Harry up the stairs and out into the newly made, mini-Quidditch pitch. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny were already outside, looking anxious.

"I want to kill him! I hate him! He's nothing like my father, nothing ..."

"Harry," Remus said firmly, taking him by the shoulders. "Harry, don't do this to yourself, okay?"

Harry closed his eyes and gulped in air, almost as if he were drowning. When he finally opened his eyes, he looked at Remus and whispered, "I hate this."

Remus nodded and said nothing.

"When's it going to go away?" Harry asked, his eyes suddenly bright.

Remus shook his head. "I don't know, Harry, I don't know."

They looked at each other for a moment, then Harry took a deep breath. "I'm okay now."

"Are you sure? If you want to talk ..."

Harry shook his head fiercely. Then he looked over at his friends, who were staring at him with concern. "I want to play Quidditch."

Hermione opened her mouth to protest, but before she could say anything, Ron grabbed her arm and said, "Great! Let's play. I need to practice blocking. You three can be chasers."

Harry looked over at Remus and managed a weak smile. "You wanna play?'

Remus said, "If you don't mind putting up with a slow old man." Then he grimaced. "But I'd better go back to the kitchen for a minute. I need to see Professor Dumbledore before he leaves."

Harry nodded, and Remus watched as the four teenagers mounted their brooms and started zooming around the small space at the back of the house. With a sigh, he headed back to the kitchen, wishing that he could somehow make things easier for Harry. Remus suddenly pictured Snape's taunting face, and his heart began pounding furiously. The vein in his temple began to pulse, and by the time he had reached the bottom step, his vision was slightly blurred. Walking almost blindly into the kitchen, he felt his hands clench into angry fists.

"I can't believe what you would say such a thing to him, on his birthday no less!" Molly was yelling.

Remus headed directly for Snape, only hearing Albus's cautionary, "Remus!" after his knuckles had ground into Snape's face.

In the shocked silence that followed the cracking of Snape's nose, Remus looked down at the potions master with an air of satisfaction.

Snape put a hand to his nose, trying to catch the blood that was now pouring from it. "Resorting to muggle combat, Lupin?" Snape asked softly as he pulled the sleeve of his robe to his face and wiped away the blood. Then, without any warning, he stood up and shouted out a blasting curse that sent Remus toppling backwards into the table. Reaching for his wand, Remus tried to shoot a round of stinging hexes at Snape, but before he could utter the words, his wand soared from his hand.

"That's enough!" boomed Albus. Glaring first at Snape, then at Remus, the headmaster said, "I expected better from both of you." Remus felt his anger shrink under the old man's intense stare. Then, Albus added softly, "Especially you, Remus."

His fury returned as quickly as it had dissipated. "Especially me? Oh, of course, I understand," he snarled. "The gentle werewolf, is that it? The good, tamed little beast." He ran an angry hand through his hair. "I'm so fucking tired of this! Why do I have to watch my every move? Why am I the - how did Odgen put it in that article- the animal masquerading as a man? I'm the beast no matter what I do." He let out a bitter laugh. "And yet you," he spit out, glaring at Snape, "you are a man? You're the man, and I'm the beast? For the gods' sake, Severus, you're 30-fucking-7 years old! He's 16, 16! And he's grieving, and it's his birthday, and ..." Suddenly, Remus felt drained, and he stopped speaking.

With a low, almost inaudible voice, Snape said, "Am I the only one here who sees that worshiping the ground that boy walks on is not the answer?" His voice grew progressively louder with each syllable. "Am I the only one who realizes that your mollycoddling him will do nothing but make him weaker? Do you think Voldemort will give a damn about his grief or his birthday?"

Remus scoffed. "Do not try and feed me that bullshit, Severus. You are not making him tougher. You're killing him!"

"I'm killing him? With a quip about his dead godfather? Then we're really in trouble, if this is supposed to be our savior," Snape retorted, his now-bloody hand still cradling his nose.

"A quip?" Remus asked incredulously. "Your comment wasn't a little joke, Severus."

Snape growled, "And I suppose you would know all about what constitutes a good joke, wouldn't you?"

Remus gaped. "Bloody hell, how long has that been? Over twenty years? Can't you let it go yet?"

"Let it go? Which part? Almost getting mauled by a werewolf?"

"Look, I had no idea what Sirius was up to! How many times ..."

Snape continued as if Remus had said nothing at all. "Or how about being continually humiliated by you and your gang?"

"You know, this is rich, really rich," Remus said, his voice rising to a shout. "Snape, the ex-death eater, unable to forgive. What did Sirius do to you? So he played a prank. What did James to you? He had the audacity to save your pitiful life. What have you done? How many deaths have you been responsible for? How many lives have you ruined?"

"Please, stop!" Minerva cut in, her voice weary. Remus glanced at her in surprise, having forgotten that there was anyone else in the room. Looking around guiltily, he saw that Molly appeared to be near tears, and Charlotte had her head in her hands, as if she couldn't bear to listen. But it was the sight of Albus, with his eyes closed and his face etched with wrinkles, that caused Remus actual physical pain. The most powerful wizard in the world suddenly appeared to be no more than a disappointed old man.

"We will never win this war," Albus said quietly, his eyes still closed. "Not like this."

Remus opened his mouth to say something - an apology, a protest, something - but he could produce no sound. To his surprise, it was Severus who managed to mutter, "Albus, I'm sorry."

Albus's eyelids flew open, and he slammed his hands onto the table. "Then act like it for once!"

Pushing himself from the table, Albus said nothing to Remus. He walked to the doorway, and with his back to them all, he said in a low voice, "Molly, take care of Harry."

"Yes, Albus, of course ..."

"Charlotte," Albus said, still with his back to them, "see Minerva and me out please." He then left the room without another word.

Minerva, shooting both of them looks of disgust, and Charlotte, refusing to meet either man's eye, quickly followed Albus. Molly muttered, "I'm going to go check on the kids," and she hurried out of the kitchen, as well.

Remus stared at Severus, whose nose was still bleeding. Letting out a long sigh, Remus asked, "How many more times do I have to apologize for that night in the Shrieking Shack?"

Severus said nothing. Instead, he took his wand, pointed it at his nose, and muttered a healing charm.

"I asked you ..."

Squeezing his eyes shut, Severus bit out, "No more. You don't have to apologize any more."

"I know we caused you a lot of pain, Severus, but you have to remember ... Harry is not James!"

With a low, uneven voice, Snape muttered, "He's just as arrogant! He's a foolish, pigheaded..."

"Severus ..."

"Do you know what it's like to suffer humiliation day after day simply because you exist?"

Remus met his gaze. "Yes, actually, I do."

They stared at each other for a moment, then Snape turned and left the room with a swish of his robes. As Remus watched the lab door slam shut, he fell into a chair with a heavy sigh. He sat there for several minutes, staring at the ceiling, wanting nothing more than to hide himself away from the world. For once in his life, he actually wished it were the full moon, as it would give him an excuse to be a recluse. As it was, he had to pretend, for Harry's sake, if for not for his own, that everything was just fine.

"Here."

Remus's head jerked straight, and he stared at Severus, who stood in the doorway of the lab. The potions master held a vial of gold liquid in his outstretched hand.

"What?"

"Here, take it."

Lifting the container to the light, Remus watched the potion swirl alluringly against the glass. "What is it?"

"It's a concealer potion, particularly good at concealing brands. I ... I've used it in the past to cover the dark mark." He snorted. "And Lucius Malfoy practically drinks the stuff by the gallon. The mark never goes away, but it becomes less noticeable, at least for several hours after ingested. I don't know how it will affect the charm that's supposed to replicate the brand onto your clothing, but ..."

Remus looked at the potion for several more seconds, then glanced at Snape. "Thank you, Severus, thank you. This ... it means a lot."

He must have sounded too grateful, too sentimental, because Snape rolled his eyes and muttered, "I'm doing it as much for Albus as I am for you." Without another word, he hurried back to his lab and shut the door.

*

Ron trudged up the stairs to his and Harry's room. Their morning quidditch had been interrupted by a rain shower, and although he, Harry, and Ginny had wanted to keep playing, Hermione had gone inside, and his mother had insisted that the three of them follow her lead. "You're getting soaked," she'd complained. "I'll not have you getting ill on Harry's birthday."

Ron glanced over his shoulder, and Harry gave him an awkward grin. "Maybe it'll clear up this afternoon," Harry said, rubbing a wet sleeve across his even wetter glasses.

"Yeah, maybe," Ron said as they entered their room. Going over to the corner to grab some dry clothes, Ron muttered, "Uh, Harry, are you ..."

"I'm fine," his friend said in a tone that clearly told Ron to mind his own bloody business.

"Actually," Ron said with a small grin, "I was going to ask if you were going to use the loo first."

Harry's face reddened. "Oh. Right. No, you go ahead."

Ron nodded and started for the door. But before he left the room, he took a deep breath and said quickly, "But, if you're not okay, you know, if you want to talk about anything..."

Harry just looked at his feet.

"Snape's a greasy git, you know," Ron finished lamely.

Harry looked up and managed a smile. "Thanks, mate. Really." Then he sighed. "I guess ...I guess there are some things I need to tell you and Hermione, but ... not right now, okay?"

Ron nodded and left for the bathroom. A few minutes later, on his way back to his room, Hermione stuck her head out of hers and Ginny's bedroom. "Oh! Hi! Is the bathroom all clear?"

"Uh, I think Harry was going to use it next, but I can tell him ..."

"Who is it?" he heard Ginny ask from behind the door.

Hermione said, "It's Ron, he's on his way back from ... Ow!"

Ron watched with amusement as Hermione stumbled from behind the door, wearing only a towel. The bedroom door slammed behind her.

"Ginny, what are you doing?" Hermione demanded, trying to get back into the room. Then she looked over at him and blushed. "Uh, I was going to take a shower, but if the bathroom is in use ... Ginny!" she said, pounding on the door.

He could hear Ginny laughing. "Sorry, 'Mione! Just thought you could use some alone time with Ronniekins!"

Hermione looked over at him with a scowl. "Your sister locked me out."

Ron glanced at her bare legs, then slid his gaze up her frame until he was staring at the line where the towel ended and the curve of her breasts began. "Uh, remind me to thank her later."

Hermione said, "Very funny. You Weasleys ..." Then she laughed. "Ron, my breasts aren't talking, my mouth is."

Ron dragged his eyes to her face. "Uh, right, sorry."

"Well, I guess I should take a shower ..." she said, moving toward him.

"Uh, yeah," he said, taking a step toward her. "Yeah, I guess you should."

When they were only inches apart, she whispered, "I hope your mum doesn't come upstairs ..."

"Hmmm..." was all he could manage. His ability to complete sentences - or even words for that matter - seemed to diminish every time he got close to her. He leaned forward and put his lips hesitantly on hers. Though they'd snogged several times in the past few weeks, he still felt amazed and somewhat frightened by the idea that she actually wanted to kiss him. But apparently, she did; her lips parted eagerly, and her hand snaked around the back of his neck to pull his mouth closer.

Somewhere, far away, he heard a voice and a set of footsteps. But, he was having much too good of a time running his tongue along the inside of Hermione's mouth to care. When she jerked away from him and said, "Oh, hi Harry!", Ron had little choice but to pull away as well.

"Uh, mate, sorry, I didn't see ..." Ron began.

"No, I'm sorry, I didn't mean..." Harry said, trying his best to look anywhere but at the two of them.

"No, we shouldn't have ..."Hermione began.

"Well, I was just going to the loo ... but Hermione, if you ... you look like you're going to take a shower ..." Harry said, blushing. "Uh, not that I'm looking, Ron, or anything..."

"What? No, I mean, she's wearing a towel, it's a good assumption ..."

"Oh, yeah, well, I was on my way to the shower, when ..." Hermione mumbled.

"See, Ginny locked her out," Ron explained quickly.

"Yeah, and Ron was just going back to your room, and ..."

"Well, I'm just going to ..."Harry pointed to the bathroom.

Both Ron and Hermione nodded mutely, and Harry rushed into the loo.

"He looked like he was going to be sick," Ron muttered.

Hermione sighed. "No, he was just embarrassed."

Ron said, "I hope he's okay."

Hermione looked strangely at him. "Why wouldn't he be? You mean, about us?"

Ron shrugged. "I don't know... it's kind of weird, isn't it? I mean, we were all best friends, and now ..."

Hermione pulled her towel tightly around herself and scowled. "Well, we still are! I don't see how this changes that!"

"Hey!" Ron said, holding up a hand. "I'm not saying it should. But ... well, it kind of does, don't you think? I mean, we used to tell each other everything, right? But, I can't very well tell Harry, hey mate, just snogged Hermione and it was fantastic!"

"Yeah, I guess your right." Hermione sighed. "We need to talk to him."

Ron groaned. "You're always wanting to talk to him about stuff. He's not really into that, you know?"

"Well, how else are we supposed to communicate with him? Telepathy?'

"Tele ... what?"

"Muggle Legilimency. Really, Ron. What else do you propose we do?"

"Ignore it?"

"Yeah, that would be your solution," she said, crossing her arms in front of her. Ron nodded dumbly, rather struck by the way that her crossed arms nicely emphasized her cleavage.

"Ron! For goodness's sake, don't you think this is a little more important than my breasts?"

Ron sighed. "Fine, fine. Come by our room when you've gotten dressed." Then he grinned. "Or, you could come to my room now and ..."

She swatted him on the shoulder, then turned back to her room and began banging on the door. "Ginny Weasley, if you don't let me in ..."

"Whatever do you mean?" Ginny called out. "The door is unlocked, Hermione."

"It is not!" she said, but when she tried the knob, it turned easily. With a quick roll of her eyes in Ron's direction, Hermione headed back into her room.

When Ron got back to his room, he sat on his bed and tried to concentrate on what he would say to Harry. "Hey, Harry, hope you're okay about this, but if you're not ..." What? If Harry wasn't okay, would he actually break up with Hermione? Was one friend more important than the other? Ron shook his head and decided he'd be better off not thinking about it at all. He pulled out his wizard chess set and began setting up the pieces, hoping that perhaps the familiar routine might settle him down a bit.

"Hey," Harry said from the doorway. "Getting ready to have your ass kicked in chess?"

Ron looked up and grinned with relief at Harry's friendly tone. "Not bloody likely." He threw his dirty clothes off his bed, making space for Harry on the opposite side of the chess set. "When's the last time you beat me, anyway?"

"Well, there was that time last year after Christmas ..."

"I'd fallen asleep!"

"Yeah, well, you take the wins you can get!" Harry said with a laugh.

Looking down at the chessboard, Ron said, "Uh, about Hermione ... uh, I hope ..."

Harry said, "Look, mate, there's nothing to apologize for, honestly. I'm happy for you. Now, make your move."

Ron looked up and grinned. "Yeah, okay."

Two chess victories later, there was a soft knock on the door.

"Hey, mind if we come in?" Hermione asked softly, sticking her head around the door.

"Nope, as long as you don't mind sitting on my pile of junk," Harry said, nodding to his bed.

Ginny rolled her eyes, took out her wand, and muttered, "Ordino." All of Harry's things organized themselves neatly in the chest of drawers along the back wall of the dingy bedroom.

"Cool, thanks!" Harry said.

"Yeah, you should try learning it sometime," Ginny muttered. "I don't know what it is about boys and cleaning charms."

"What's the point when we've got you, Gin?" Ron asked, moving his knight. "Check."

"That kind of attitude is why I'm never, ever cleaning up for you," Hermione said, throwing one of Harry's dirty socks across the room and hitting him in the head.

"Nice shot!" Harry said, just before Hermione and Ginny both threw socks at Harry's head as well.

"Why did we invite them in again?" Ron asked Harry, rolling his eyes. "And make your move. Don't think that these hormonal girls are going to get you out of losing!"

"You invited us in," Hermione said in a tone that made Ron instantly nervous, "because we all need to talk."

Harry, who was in the middle of placing his screaming queen in the path of Ron's smirking knight, looked over at Hermione and said, "I told Ron, everything's fine, okay? I'm really happy for you two ... just be careful about where you choose to snog. I could have been Mrs. Weasley, after all."

Ron made a face of horror, and Ginny laughed appreciatively.

But Hermione wasn't about to give up so easily. "No, I don't think this is something we should sweep under the rug."

"Huh?" Ron and Ginny asked.

"Muggle phrase," Harry explained. "Hermione, seriously, I don't see what the big deal is..."

"Well, it could turn into a big deal!"

"Apparently, it already has," he muttered, laying down his king. "Well, you've done it again," he said to Ron. "Good game."

"What I'm trying to say," Hermione said, getting up and standing beside Ron, "is that we... I mean, just because Ron and I ... it doesn't mean that all of us ... nothing's changed ... well, I mean, it has, but that doesn't mean ..."

Ron nearly laughed. He'd never heard Hermione this inarticulate before, and somehow, it made him feel good that she cared so much - about both of them - that her usual way with words seemed to have failed her.

"What she's trying to say," Ginny cut in, "is that you're still the Trio, even if she and Ron are now a Pair."

"Exactly!" Hermione said, shooting Ginny an appreciative smile. Then, she frowned. "No, I mean, we're a quartet," she amended hastily. "Ginny, you're also ..."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Please! I know my place."

"No, seriously," Harry said, smiling at Ginny. "Ron told me that the party last night was your idea. It was really great."

Ginny blushed. "Well, not just my idea ... but I'm glad you had a good time."

"Besides," Hermione said with a sly grin. "We can't leave you out anymore Ginny."

The youngest Weasley arched an eyebrow. "Really, why is that?"

"Because, you're the genius of the group."

"Me? I thought that was your job!"

Hermione said, "No, I'm the brain. But not the genius ... you're the inventor of the working extendable ears, after all!"

Harry said, "Working extendable ears? What do you mean? Fred and George's ears seemed to do fine."

Ron frowned, suddenly remembering how they'd used the ears last Christmas to overhear his parents talking about You-Know-Who being inside Harry's mind. Without a doubt, finding out that the evilest wizard of all time might be inside his best friend's head had to be one of his least pleasant memories.

Hermione said, "Well, Ginny's ears can beat the Imperturbable charm! Ron and Ginny used them to listen in on..." Hermione stopped suddenly, her face white. "Uh ..." She gave Ron a frantic look. Then she took a deep breath and said, "They used them to listen in on the last Order meeting."

Ron glanced at Harry anxiously. "We know we should have owled you in the summer, told you what we heard, but ..."

Harry sighed. "But it was too dangerous, I know." Looking at his feet, he added, "Why am I always the last to find things out?"

Ron cringed. Though Harry's voice was quiet, it shook angrily, and Ron could hear an outburst approaching.

But, to Ron's surprise, Harry simply took a deep breath and said, "Fine. Tell me what you heard."

"Are you sure you're all right?" Hermione asked, her voice hesitant.

Harry glared at her. "Tell me what you heard," he repeated woodenly.

Ron said, "Well, they began by ..." He stopped. He was suddenly afraid to say Sirius's name. Harry hadn't spoken it since the day his godfather had died.

"Well?" Harry said impatiently.

Ron and Hermione exchanged helpless glances.

"They began by honoring Sirius," Ginny said softly.

"Oh," Harry said, looking away. "Uh, okay. What else?"

Ginny proceeded to recount the rest of the meeting, Ron and Hermione only occasionally adding details. "Oh," Ginny added at the end. "Oh, and yesterday ..." She sighed. "Yesterday, Fudge resigned because the death eaters broke out of Azkaban. Did you know?"

Harry shook his head. "But I guess I saw it coming. Does this mean that this Odgen that your dad mentioned at the meeting... is he now the minister?"

Ron nodded. "Yeah, but only temporarily...and, dad's running against him for the permanent position."

"Really?" Harry smiled for the first time since the conversation had begun. "That's great!"

Ginny shook her head. "I'm not so sure. Mum is upset, and, well, I think The Daily Prophet is going to drag our family's name through the mud."

"Speaking of The Daily Prophet," Hermione cut in, "do you want the last bit of bad news?"

"There's more?" Harry asked with a groan.

"Odgen's passed a new law that requires werewolves to be branded," Ron said, his eyes downcast.

"Branded!" Harry shouted. "They're treating Professor Lupin like an animal!"

Ginny nodded sadly. "He was ... well, I think he was upset, even if he didn't let on."

Harry closed his eyes. "No, he didn't let on, did he? He tried to pretend because it was my birthday ..."

"I wonder what's going to happen to him next year," Hermione whispered. "I mean, it was bad enough when he had to tell employers ... now everyone walking down the street will know ..."

Harry glanced up quickly. "He didn't tell you yet?" And then he grinned slightly. "Well, at least I know a little something that you don't, and it's good news, at that." They looked at him expectantly. "Professor Lupin is going to be our defense professor again this year."

"That's fantastic!" Hermione said. "He was the best professor we've had yet."

"What about DA?" Ron asked, looking at Harry.

Harry shrugged. "I don't know ... maybe we can make it an official club or something."

Ginny nodded excitedly. "That would be great. Oh, I'm so happy for Professor Lupin. At least at Hogwarts ... well, Dumbledore will make sure he's treated well."

Harry scowled. "Though I can see that prat Malfoy giving him a hard time."

Ron rubbed his knuckles. "Well, we'll just have to make sure he doesn't, won't we?"

He and Harry exchanged grim smiles, and Hermione said, "Please, Ron, you look like a b-movie gangster."

"I won't even bother asking what that means," Ron mumbled.

Harry said quietly, "Well, thanks for telling me about everything." He sighed. "As usual, Dumbledore didn't say much of anything when he talked to me this morning." Then he looked away from them. "Though, there are things I'm not telling you ..."

Ron held his breath, but Harry said nothing.

"Well," Ginny said, "You can tell us whenever you like, or never, for that matter."

Harry looked up at her with a grateful smile.

"Harry," Hermione said softly, "don't get angry at me for saying this, but ...don't be too hard on Professor Dumbledore, okay? I mean, his daughter got killed, and ..."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I know. You're right. I'm not angry with him, it's just that ... I wish he would tell me what's going on, you know? Why didn't he tell me about Voldemort killing his daughter? Why didn't he tell me about your dad running for minister or Professor Lupin and that stupid werewolf law? You would think that he'd keep me informed after what happened at the end of term ..." Harry shook his head, obviously unwilling to continue with that thought.

Ron shrugged. "It's the same way with our mum. She won't tell us anything ... I think it's her way of pretending we're still her little children. I don't think she likes the idea that we're growing up."

"Any good parent wants to keep their child from harm," Hermione whispered, her eyes suddenly bright.

Ron reached out and grabbed her shoulder. "Hey, it'll be okay," he mumbled lamely. "I'm sure your parents are fine."

She nodded quickly, then sniffed. "Yeah, sorry. I just hate ... I hate not telling them what's going on!" Then she smiled wryly. "Sorry, Harry. We should be celebrating, having fun ... it's your birthday, after all."

Ron nodded vigorously. "Yeah, we can play a game of exploding snap or another round of chess or ... I know, we'll get Lupa to sneak downstairs and grab some of the leftover cake from last night ... Mum will never let us eat cake before lunch, and ..."

"Who's Lupa?" Harry asked.

Scowling, Hermione bit out, "Miss Richardson's house elf. I can't believe she kept Lupa, poor thing. You should have seen her last night ... pounding on the floor, begging to be free!"

"Yeah, I thought Dobby was the only weird one," Ron said.

"Ron!" Hermione scolded.

"This Lupa actually wants to be set free, and Dumbledore's granddaughter wouldn't let her? Wow, she seemed pretty nice," Harry said.

"Well, I think she is," Ginny said. "She found out about the ears, and she hasn't said anything to Mum. There must be some other reason for her keeping Lupa."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yeah, that reason's name is Severus Snape, the git."

"Whoa! When did this happen?" Ron asked with a grin. "The Hermione I know would never insult a teacher, not even our favorite greasy git."

"Well, if he hadn't interfered last night, Lupa would be free." At Harry's look of confusion, Hermione explained how Snape had brought Lupa into the kitchen and Hermione had almost been able to convince Miss Richardson to give the elf a sock.

"Don't you think it's weird?" Ginny asked. "Miss Richardson didn't even know she had an elf. Where did Lupa come from?"

Ron shrugged. "Who knows. And who cares, I say. I want some cake and ..."

"Really, Ron," Hermione muttered.

Ginny continued, "Maybe she inherited Lupa, maybe whoever used to be Lupa's master is important to the Order."

"But wouldn't Lupa have to stay with the house? Isn't that the whole point of house elves?" Harry asked. Then, he frowned. "Speaking of which, whatever happened to Kreacher?"

"Oh, didn't you see? He's now a wall hanging," Ron said. "I heard mum say that they found some sort of charmed axe next to his bloody head."

Both girls wrinkled their noses in disgust.

"Good," Harry muttered darkly.

"Harry!" Hermione said, scandalized. "Kreacher didn't mean ..."

"Kreacher was a traitor!" Harry burst out.

"He was just ..."

Ron quickly cut Hermione off. "Enough about house elves, okay? I'm hungry."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You're always hungry. And if you want my opinion," she said, turning to Ginny, "I think Miss Richardson is keeping Lupa just to please Snape. I think she has a thing for him."

"What?" Ron screeched. "Please, Hermione, tell me you're not trying to set up Miss Richardson and Snape. I don't care how many house elves she keeps. She doesn't deserve that."

Hermione said, "I don't think there's any matchmaking required. Did you see the way she stood up for him when Dumbledore nearly took his head off last night?"

"Dumbledore yelled at Snape?" Harry asked. "Damn, I'm sorry I missed that."

Ginny shrugged and said to Hermione, "Yeah, maybe. But it's a rather big jump from sticking up for him to sleeping with him, don't you think?"

"Ginny!" Ron moaned. "I don't even want to think about Snape and bed in the same sentence!"

Harry had a similar look of disgust on his face. "How could she ever like him, anyway? He's a mean, ugly, nasty brute ..."

"Well, he did save her life. Sometimes people develop things for ..." Ginny looked away. " ... you know, for their heroes."

"Snape is no hero," Harry muttered when suddenly there was a loud knock on the door.

"Lunch!" Mrs. Weasley called.

"Thank the gods, I'm starving," Ron said, sliding off the bed. He started for the door when Harry shot him a strange look. Ron hung back until Ginny and Hermione had left the room. "What's up?"

Harry glanced at the doorway and said, "Here, I've got something for you."

"For me?" Ron said, surprised. "What..."

Harry rummaged through his trunk. "Here, for you and Hermione to use while we're stuck at Headquarters. As Dumbledore would say, 'Use it wisely.'"

Ron glanced between the invisibility cloak in his hands to the smiling face of his best friend. "You, mate, are a true hero."