Philomena

***A Quarrel, a Lesson, and a Cryptic Letter***

Remus let out a long sigh as he sank into the wooden kitchen chair. "You weren't going to tell me about the letters."

Philomena didn't look at him. "I didn't see why I should."

Remus shook his head. "Why not?" he asked. "I could have prevented this."

She laughed mirthlessly. "By offering Ralf your throat?"

He gave a low growl and flashed an angry look at her.

She tossed her head. "Why shouldn't I say it? You're as helpless with him as I was."

"Perhaps," he said, "but I would prefer to know when you are threatened by someone; when you know somebody is going to arrive here to confront you, I ought to be informed."

She sighed. "Nothing happened."

"But something could have happened," he insisted. "Why didn't you say something?"

"It hadn't anything to do with you," she said.

"If your safety has nothing to do with me, what has?" he asked.

"I don't know," she answered. "Maybe you should make up your mind."

"Make up my mind?" he repeated. "You're my daughter, and it's my duty to protect you. I can't do that if I don't know what's going on!"

She gave an exasperated sigh and hopped down from the table. "A few days ago you said you wanted me to have a large degree of freedom. That you'd be willing to help me no matter what I decided. Now that I actually did something on my own, you're upset that you didn't have a finger in the pie and - "

"You didn't do something," he contradicted, "you decided not to do something."

"Doesn't matter," she said turning her back on him. "If you want to control everything I do - I just won't let it happen again. I won't."

"I'm not trying to control you," snapped Remus. "I'm trying to help you."

"I don't need your help!" she shouted. "You said it yourself - I'm of age, and I ought to be doing something more than sitting in your attic doing your research!"

Remus gave a deep sigh and shut his eyes. "Philomena... I simply want to know when you've a problem. I won't force you either way, but I insist on the right to know, and the right to give you advice, whether or not you take it."

After a long silence, she relaxed from her tensed state, and turned back to him. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I... I just... you acted like him, and I..."

He rubbed at his forehead with one hand. "It's all right," he said. "I shouldn't have snapped at you."

She smiled slightly, walked hesitantly over to him and perched herself on the arm of his chair, putting her arm around his shoulders to steady herself. "It was too easy to pretend there wasn't anything wrong," she said. "I didn't want to face him again."

He nodded, and placed his hand over the one on his shoulder. "I meant what I said. While I certainly won't agree with every decision you make, I will not force you one way or the other - though I believe I ought to be able to at least know and talk to you about it."

She nodded and squeezed his shoulder. For a moment, neither said anything.

"Well," he said, giving her and a final pat before he disentangled himself to reach for his cup of tea on the table, "that's the first domestic quarrel I've had in a long time."

She smiled. "I'd never gone so long without one before."

"I haven't had one in over twenty years," he said, resting his tea in his lap, leaning his head back.

She shifted slightly, until she could sit without the support of either hand and began carding one through his hair. "Ralf and I fought all the time."

"Always fighting is only slightly worse than never fighting," said Remus.

"Isn't never fighting the ideal?" she asked, still idly playing with his graying hair.

He smiled sadly. "It ought to be, but if every possible argument is skirted 'round, if people just keep on not agreeing but don't do anything about it nothing is ever resolved. Discontent and anger fester and ... with enough time every cross thought, every small bit of discontent is released at once in an explosion of conflict. Enough to ruin anybody's love for anybody else. Poisonous. "

Remus broke of with a sigh and took a sip of his tea.

"I suppose it's a question of balance," she said.

"You've a greater question of balance," he said, twisting his head to look her in the face. "You'll fall. You're forever perching yourself on things."

"You said you shouldn't force me one way or the other," she reminded playfully. "If I fall, you're permitted to say 'I told you so,'."

He smiled. "Enough drama for one morning. Would you like to go over those Personal Wards again for the Order?"

She slid of the arm of the chair. "Yes, let's," she said. "And after, why don't we write to Uncle Igor?"

XXX

At precisely six that evening, a quiet knock sounded at Professor Snape's door.

He gave a sigh as he sensed it was Potter and waved the door open. There was a shuffling noise and the door shut itself.

"Remove it," ordered Snape.

Harry required no clarification, but simply slipped the Invisibility Cloak off and hung it over one arm. He had followed the Headmaster's instructions, had worn his heavier cloak and his boots.

Severus frowned. "Didn't the Headmaster tell you where we were going?" he asked. "Your hands will freeze."

Potter sighed. "Couldn't find my gloves in time."

The Professor gave an exasperated sigh, wandlessly conjured a pair of gloves and tossed them to the boy who caught them reflexively.

"Put those on."

Snape strode towards the door of his office and retrieved his cloak from its hook by the door. Pulling it over his shoulders, he fastened it with the silver pin, removed his own gloves from a pocket and finally donned his hat.

Potter had pulled the gloves on and turned towards his Professor. He gave an odd sort of half start and seemed to be trying hard not to laugh.

Severus froze. "What is so amusing?" he asked dangerously.

Harry, still trying very hard not to laugh, said, "It's your hat, Professor. I'd never seen you wearing one, and ..."

"Potter, if you even think of mentioning Lupin's class, Dementors, or Longbottom, I shall personally hex you six ways past Samhaim," snarled Snape. "Is it so odd that I wear a hat?"

"Well, everybody wears hats," said Harry reasonably, having gotten over his amusement. "But you aren't everybody, sir."

Severus gave a huff, adjusting the plain black Wizard's hat on his head. "Put that ridiculous cloak back on and follow me closely. If you get lost in the forest I shall not hold myself responsible."

Harry quickly pulled the Invisibility Cloak back over himself. "Yes, sir."

Severus frowned and watched the boy disappear under the shimmer of silvery fabric. "Silently, now," he warned, "and keep close."

Snape opened the door and slipped into the corridor. He felt Potter's cloak brush past him as he shut the door, reinstating his Wards with a careless flick of the wrist.

Walking quickly, Severus seemed not to care whether or not the boy was still with him, but he was keeping a careful ear for the faint scuffing sound of Potter's shoes and quiet breathing.

Snape ducked through a low archway Harry couldn't remember having seen before. Going through it, they came into a long tunnel that appeared to slope upwards ever so slightly.

Snape drew his wand to cast Lumos just before the archway disappeared. A few small torches on either side sputtered to life. Harry blinked as his vision slowly adjusted to the semi-darkness, before hurrying to catch up to Snape who had not broken stride.

As his eyes adjusted to the half-light, he realized with an inward start that Snape had no shadow and that, although the heels of his boots glittered hard and metallic, they made no sound on the stones.

Snape walked on, tucking his wand back into his robe's pocket.

The corridor twisted and turned, slowly spiraling upwards, and Harry began to wonder if they were somewhere inside the walls of one of the towers. He knew better than to ask.

After what seemed an interminable amount of walking they reached a row of doors, one of which creaked opened as they approached. Snape turned on his heel and went through. Harry followed, nearly getting his foot caught as the door slammed shut after them.

They were outside; the sudden cold wind caused Harry to shiver and draw both the Invisibility Cloak and his regular one tighter around himself. He turned back to the castle, somehow unsurprised that the door they'd come through had disappeared entirely. Turning back to Snape, he ran to keep up.

They hurried across the grounds and quickly reached the Forbidden Forest. The Professor slipped between the trees, using his wand to clear the way of branches and undergrowth, cruelly allowing the sharp brush to snap back into Harry's face.

Harry gritted his teeth, forcing his way ahead, a bit to the side, so that he could walk in the path Snape cleared without suffering either the branch's backlash or the clearing swipe of the Professor's wand.

A rushing sound joined the odd creaking and wailing of the forest but Harry was too busy trying to keep from being hit to notice it.

Minutes passed before they finally reached a clearing where the forest stopped abruptly, as though somebody had deliberately cut a perfect circle from it. The ground was covered in a thick layer of brush and old leaves, uneven and rough.

There was a stream at their feet, running softly and lightly turning to ice around the edges. Harry squinted, trying to locate its source, but it seemed to be meshed with the ending of the forest, burbling from nowhere and flowing in an odd swerving path, disappearing into the distance.

Snape advanced several feet into the clearing, stepping carefully to avoid the water. He stopped abruptly and turned to face Harry, who had stayed at the edge of the forest looking about in confusion and awe.

"Cloak, Potter."

Harry's fingers fumbled as he pushed the hood from his head and swung the Invisibility Cloak off of his shoulders. He folded it carefully and tucked it into his roomiest cloak pocket, sparing a thought to be eternally grateful for Fortifying Charms without which it would surely have been ripped to shreds by the forest.

Snape jerked his chin towards the water. "Merlin's Rill," he said. "An example of why things Conjured in a hurry ought not to endure."

Harry surveyed it, head to one side. "Why did he Conjure it?"

Snape shrugged. "I suppose Merlin needed one in a hurry and put more power into the Spell than he intended."

"How far does it go?" he asked, peering into the distance, trying to see if it terminated the same way at the other end of the clearing.

"Far enough," answered Snape.

Harry sighed and wondered what it was Snape was trying to tell him. "It isn't often one needs a rill in a hurry."

A corner of Snape's mouth twitched. "Indeed."

Harry swallowed. "Will it be Curses or Legilimency? And are you sure we couldn't have spared ourselves the trouble and had this lesson in the Castle?"

Snape smiled nastily. "I think, Mr. Potter, it is time we got back to Occlumency."

XXX

Igor Karkaroff let out a sigh as he closed his shop for the day. Business had been slow. Considering how choosey he was about customers, this was hardly unusual. "I'll have to warn Severus about Narcissa," he thought to himself

Slipping the final bolt into place and adding his usual Wards, he surveyed the empty shop with a sigh. He decided he would write to his cousin immediately and crossed through the shop and laboratory to reach the small living quarters behind them.

He let his overly bulky robes fall to the floor carelessly and tossed his mask onto the desk. Igor ran his fingers through his hair and ruffled it vigorously; a welcome relief considering it had been flattened by his disguise for hours on end.

He found his quill beneath an herbal and pulled a sheaf of blank parchment towards him after a bit of shuffling. Dipping it into an inkwell the shape of a duck, he began to write:

Severus,
A conversation has been overheard which causes concern:
The wife of the man who recently tried to convince you to conduct Poison research has plans against him. She works towards gain of wealth, and quite possibly a replacement for him. A ruthless researcher - she never misses a dotted T.
Be on your guard and enjoy mint,
The Owner.

Satisfied that nobody would understand who did not know, he sealed and sent it just as he would any mundane business correspondence.

***Experiments, Duels and a Reunion of Sorts***

Remus heaved a deep sigh as he reshelved some of the testing equipment.

"They don't work," he sighed. "It's a dead end."

Across the room, Philomena looked up from tallying test results. "Don't be such a pessimist."

"The committee and I have been working on them for over a month now and it's always the same," protested Remus, crossing the lab to where she was. "The Charms aren't held active long enough to be of any use."

"It's not as bad as all that," she said. "They're easily recharged."

"But that defeats the purpose," said Remus. "They're supposed to eliminate the need to waste energy on personal Wards. They were supposed to be something you could easily carry with you, added security without extra trouble. If our operatives need to spare a thought on whether or not their Wards are still active and take time to recharge them, then the Wards are not worth producing."

She frowned. "I think it's because they're weakened by the Charms used to throw the Ward from the item to the wearer."

"That can't be helped," said Remus. "There wouldn't be a point to the project if we could Ward the people directly. We can't because that's a Magical strain, not to mention that the Ministry Workers are screened for that sort of thing."

Philomena nodded. "There's no chance of our using phoenix ash?"

Remus shook his head. "Even if it weren't impossible to get without spending an arm and a leg, Albus would kill me."

She redipped her quill and continued to tally the figures. "The Wards simply aren't meant for inanimate objects."

"That is why we're supposed to be modifying them," he said dryly, with a crooked smile.

She tapped her chin with the quill. "They would last longer in an object with active Magic in it."

Remus dropped a book he had been about to shelve onto the table. "I suppose," he said. "What sort of object do you have in mind?"

Philomena shrugged. "Something that wouldn't seem odd for a person to carry. Anything imbued with a permanent, constantly active Charm. A No-Smudge ink tip might even do it, if we can find a way to add the Ward to it without disturbing the original Spell."

"I have it!" cried Remus, turning towards the shelf, where he quickly found the book he wanted and began to leaf through it. "It might just work - it'd take a terrible amount of Casting to set up, a Stasis Charm on the original Spell, the Charms to add the Wards, and then to deactivate the Stasis without deactivating the Wards..."

She rose with a sigh and gently took the book away from him. "We've been down here working on the Wards for the last three hours. I don't know about you, but I think its time we took supper."

He laughed as she put the book away, along with the one he'd dropped, and led the way back upstairs to the kitchen.

"You should have said to come up while I still thought it was impossible," he said. "Now you're going to have to suffer through my being completely restless and edgy."

Philomena rolled her eyes. "You? Restless? Call the Daily Prophet!"

XXX

Harry stood with his feet braced and his hands on his hips, chin defiantly in the air.

Snape stood several feet from him and gave him no warning before he cast, "Legilimens!"

Severus put his usual amount of strength into the Spell but, instead of the regular open tunnel behind Potter's eyes, he saw nothing. He increased the level of energy he was putting into the Spell to no avail.

Instead of even reaching towards a mental wall or other barrier, he found himself not even able to establish the connection. Impressed in spite of himself, Snape cut off the Spell. "Adequate."

Harry nodded sardonically. "Thanks."

"You were braced for the attack, however," said Snape maliciously, "and the Dark Lord does not give warning."

Potter grinned in anticipation.

"So we will work on how well you shield with the distraction of a duel," said Snape.

"Now?" Harry asked, looking about and reassessing the terrain. "Do we have rules?"

Severus nodded. "We will not cast Unforgivables or any deadly Spells. Your object will be to reach the other side of the Rill without taking a hit or allowing me to penetrate your mind."

"Yes, sir," said Harry, getting out his wand again and starting to back warily towards the rill.

"I shall count three," said Snape. "One, two - Merlin's Beard!"

Harry laughed as Snape retrieved his hat from where a large tawny Owl had knocked it off, but helpfully caught the bird as it swooped towards the ground taking the scroll from its leg.

The scroll was tied with standard brown twine and addressed to, "Potions Master, Hogwarts."

"Here you are, Professor," he said, handing the letter to Snape.

Snape snatched the letter from him and shook it open.

Severus,
A conversation has been overheard which causes concern:
The wife of the man who recently tried to convince you to conduct Poison research has plans against him. She works towards gain of wealth, and quite possibly a replacement for him. A ruthless researcher - she never misses a dotted T.
Be on your guard and enjoy mint,
The Owner.

Severus read the missive twice, understanding it only roughly and cursing his cousin for being deliberately more obtuse than he'd any cause to be. He pushed the note into a side pocket and irritably shooed the owl away.

One look in Potter's direction ensured that no questions would be asked.

"We begin again, on the count of three," said Snape. "One, Two - LEGILIMENS!"

XXX

Karkaroff had just settled himself with a good book and a glass of wine when he was interrupted by the insistent tapping of an owl at his window. Expecting Severus' reply, he set his book to the side and twisted to open the window behind him. The owl swooped in, along with a great gust of cold air.

"You're not mine," he said to the owl as he pushed the window shut and latched it. "Where'd you fly in from?"

The owl gave a hoot and stuck out its message-bearing leg. Igor removed the scroll, letting the owl move from the windowsill to perch on his shoulder.

Karkaroff broke the wax seal with a fingernail and unfolded the note. He recognized the handwriting with a jolt of joy and read it quickly:

Dear Uncle Igor,

It has been a long time since we saw each other last, and I hope you are quite well. For some time I had been unable to reach you, and I assume that your owl had equal difficulty. By good fortune, I met my Uncle Severus, though I hadn't known him to be such, and he informed me that you were looking for me and how to reach you.

Ralf, as I am sure you've found out on your own, has left Britain. He has left me in the care of one Remus Lupin, my father. He's turned out to be a right good old egg - we're getting along swimmingly, had our first spat this morning, as it turns out, but there was no Wolf involved and we're back to normal already.

He's the academic type, just like you and Uncle Severus, but sadly a bit absent minded at times. Strictly on the up and up, so he's naturally unemployed but gets by on reviewing books for the Smethwick Library, and freelance Charm and Ward work. His specialty is Defense, but that branch of things is regulated so tightfistedly by the Ministry, that he's not really able to use that officially.

I really hope I can see you soon! You and Remus ought to get along famously. You could both theorize for hours on end without realizing that your tea has spiders in it, or that you've got a quill stuck in your hair.

I've saved the best news for last. Uncle Severus and he managed to reverse the Stasis! We've also gotten Ralf royally peeved by refusing blood. Feel much better without draining myself all the time - though initially groggy when I missed the first several, Remus suggested a potion and I'm right as rain - and nearly as tall as you!

Not only that, as if it weren't enough, Uncle Severus created a Potion that made my "condition," completely manageable. Blue flames abound, and they're far more interesting than the Daily Prophet, I can tell you! I'm sure Uncle Severus has been quite smug about it and you've probably already heard of it, even if you didn't know I'd taken it.

Do let me know how you are, not to mention where!
All my love,
Philomena

P.S. I still have the talisman you gave me. Right useless against Werewolves, it is!

Igor read the letter over again with a smile. His niece had always been a bit overenthusiastic about him, as Ralf had always tried to keep her under his thumb. Although Severus had already told him her news, it made him doubly happy to hear it from Philomena herself.

He turned back to the second sheet of parchment that had fallen into his lap when he had opened hers. Igor unfolded it resignedly, knowing that Lupin's letter would be of a more serious nature.

SVBE, Karkaroff.

Having recently been informed that we are, to an extent, related, and that you have an interest in the care and upbringing of your niece, I humbly request that we meet in person to discuss this and other matters, at your earliest convenience. This could take place either at my place of residence, or in a spot of your choosing.

Yours in faith,
Lupin.

P.S. Apparition Coordinates: 392L, 234H, 191D, 224F.

It was just like an English man, Igor thought, to write an entire paragraph of nothing and save any real content for a discussion, which would no doubt involve tea. It was better to get such things over with quickly, not to mention the fact that the sooner he saw Philomena himself, the sooner he could be absolutely sure she was safe.

Throwing a traveling cloak over his shoulders, he tied it at the neck and pulled the hood over his head. The Obscurous charm in the cloak activated, making his face appear to be little more than a blur.

He Apparated with a resounding crack.

XXX

Having had their supper and written their letters, Remus and Philomena decided to take care of the rapidly accumulating leaves in their yard.

Remus was working at this unpleasant task as he did every autumn, that is, by Ventus Charm. The Charm caused a great gust of wind to erupt from the tip of his wand, blowing the leaves towards the edge of the lawn.

Philomena leant on the front door as she watched him swishing his wand back and forth, recasting the Charm with every swipe.

"That's a dead stupid way to go about it," she said.

Remus stopped abruptly and shot her a glare. "All right then," he said, "you do the leaves!"

She gave a decidedly Snape-ish smirk as she straightened and made a sweeping motion with one hand.

"Coacta Iacio!" The leaves from the side Remus had not yet gotten to flew up and followed her arm, before hurtling towards him in a wave of orange and red.

Caught wholly off guard, Remus clamped his eyes shut against the oncoming dust and cast "Evanesco!" blindly.

He cautiously opened one eye then the other, and then blinked both. The leaves had been Banished, which was impossible to do collectively while they were lying scattered about on the grass. He worked his jaw speechlessly for a moment, looking from his daughter to the now pristine side of the lawn and back again.

She smirked at him and gave a sarcastic little wave towards the leafless side. "Tada!"

"You'll pay for that!" he shouted, dashing up towards the house and shaking a fist at her mockingly. "You dare set leaves upon me?"

"I dare!" she shot back, running to the rail of the porch and lifting herself over before dropping to the ground. "You just try and catch me!"

He grinned, hefting his wand and watching her sprint towards the side with the remaining leaves. "Ventus!"

She stumbled as the gust of wind hit her and she turned back with some difficulty. "Alter Dexter!"

He tried to raise his arm to block the Spell, but his left arm rose instead. He tried to lower it, and ended up stretching his right behind him. She had switched the control of his arms.

It was a bit of an awkward maneuver, but by using what he felt was his left hand, he managed to get his right to perform the suitable wand movement. "Finite incantatem!"

Now free, Remus retaliated with, "Stata!" causing her feet to stick to the ground.

Philomena twisted around to see him and flailed a bit before she was able to release herself. "Cogo!"

The remaining leaves of the yard collected in a heap before her.

Remus pocketed his wand and ran forward, pushing her headlong into the pile and diving after her.

She gave a shriek and began to pelt him with handfuls of leaves.

Neither noticed the crack of Apparition at the edge of the Wards, nor the figure who was walking slowly towards them.

Just as Remus was pushing her back into the leaves in revenge for her stuffing some down the neck of his robes, a voice demanded, "What do you think you're doing?"

XXX

Severus grinned and cast the Tripping Hex yet again.

Harry dodged and shot back a Tarentallegra, which Snape easily blocked, while Harry advanced a few feet towards his goal.

"Locomotor Mortis!" Snape said, almost lazily.

Harry, who had looked away for a critical second to see where he was going, took the Curse full strength. His legs snapped together and he fell backwards, catching himself on his elbows.

Snape continued to grin and twirled his wand as Harry glared at him. "You'll never get across at this rate, Potter," he taunted.

The boy didn't react to his goading, but efficiently cast the Counter Curse and scrambled back to his feet. "Stupefy!"

Snape set up a purposely flashy shield, hopping to distract. Harry, however, was picking his way across the rill on the scattered dry spots, keeping one eye on his adversary and one on the opposite shore.

Dispelling the shield, Snape cast a freezing charm at the rill, instantly turning the water where Harry was walking into slick ice.

Harry was momentarily distracted, trying to remember a melting charm but using Flagrate, which did nothing to ease the situation and merely caused a cold, flaming X to appear on the surface of the ice.

Snape took the chance to cast Legilimency silently, looking for an opening in Potter's mind.

Harry tried to step out onto the ice, which gave an ominous creak. He managed a second step before he lost his footing and sprawled out on the ice. "Expelliarmus!"

Snape allowed his wand to fly from his hand and gave an exaggerated stagger, mentally probing for a way in, or even a visible defense. At last, he had it! While Potter's mind surged in triumph, he managed to slip in.

Quickly, he snuck through Potter's memories, not in his normal abrupt way, but carefully and quietly, as the Dark Lord would. He reached and found a memory that seemed promising and held on to it.

Harry, in the meantime, had scrambled to his feet, clutching his own wand in one hand, Snape's in the other. He'd quickly slipped and slid across the ice to the other side, where he turned to grin in triumph. "I win!"

Snape laughed sinisterly. "A Pyrhric victory, Potter. Tell me, do you smash mirrors in your dorm often, or only after a death in the family?"

Potter let out a cry of anger and hurt. "How dare you!"

"You fell for an old trick, Potter," said Snape softly. "You concentrated on the physical objective, on the thrill of the duel and on winning, forgetting your mental barriers to the point where I could infiltrate your mind without your even noticing I was there."

The boy glared back at him with undisguised hatred. "You sadistic bloody damn - "

"Pull yourself together," snapped Snape. "This was to teach you a lesson. Never forget your defenses; never let your guard down. The Dark Lord does not wait until you do not have distractions."

Harry refused to look at him, trying to calm himself down.

"Conliquefacte," incanted Snape wandlessly.

The ice melted and the damped gurgle of the rill returned to its full force.

"The lesson is over, Potter," said Snape tersely.

Harry tucked his wand away and stomped back across the rill, rudely shoving Snape's wand to him. Unfazed, Snape pocketed it, and jerked his head towards the path back to the castle.

Potter set his features in an angered grimace and headed towards the forest.

Snape privately thought that were it not for the scowl, Potter would let loose and try a curse or two. "Cloak on," he ordered, "and back to the Castle."

Harry pulled the Invisibility Cloak over his head irritably and followed Snape out of the forest.

Snape returned to the Castle, simply tapping a brick with his wand to open the passageway they had left it by. As soon as he opened the door to the main corridor, he heard Potter's footsteps as he stormed off in the opposite direction.

Severus smiled to himself. It was good, he thought, that the boy was upset; it would cause him to work harder to prevent such a thing from happening again.

Snape fumbled in his pocket for his cousin's letter and pulled it out. He read it once more, and decided it was better that he simply see his cousin and ask directly what the letter had meant. With a scowl, he turned back into the corridor and left Hogwarts once again, Apparating for Karkaroff's shop as soon as he had cleared the grounds.

XXX

Remus and Philomena sat up abruptly and stared at their visitor, who pushed his hood back to reveal his face.

Karkaroff stared back. "Philomena?"

She was the first to recover, jumping up and, headless of the leaves in her hair, she ran to give him a hug. "Missed you!"

Remus got to his feet awkwardly brushing himself off. "Igor Karkaroff?"

Karkaroff nodded and held out a hand. Remus shook it. "Lupin, I presume."

Remus smiled. "Yes."

A crack of Apparition interrupted them. Snape strode over, cloak billowing behind him.

"Severus?" asked Remus, now a bit confused. "What brings you here?"

He jerked his head towards Karkaroff. "Looking for him."

Igor smirked. "I thought you would be. How did you find me?"

Snape gave him an exasperated look. "You've allowed me to Apparate into your home. From there it was a simple trace Apparition."

Philomena laughed. "It's a bit of a family reunion, what?"

Remus smiled weakly - and invited them all in for tea.

***Circumstances Begin to Converge***

Snape and Igor left together, leaving behind a slightly amused Philomena, a tired Remus, and barely touched tea.

"Well," said Philomena, once they were gone, "that's that."

Remus nodded. "It's good to know that you've a hand up for university at least."

She smiled. "You think its possible I go to Equinox?"

Remus sighed. "Yes, it's possible. It's in Wales?"

Philomena nodded. "Best for Divination and Arithmancy."

Remus refilled his teacup. "Not that you really need to study Divination."

With a smirk, Philomena perched herself on the edge of the table. "I'll need to study the layman's methods," she said. "Sooth, Astrology ..."

"Old tea leaves," teased Remus. "Animal entrails."

"Of course," she agreed. "I could never set up a practice without being a certified practitioner of faulty methods."

"They've a certain element of truth to them," said Remus mildly. "At least, done by qualified people."

"Done in the right circumstances, by a Seer of any degree of power," she corrected, "with a bit of luck, yes."

"Shaky profession, that," he said wryly.

She nodded. "Worst comes to worst, I can always teach."

He gave a half-offended scowl. "I'll have you know that teaching is not the worst of the worst."

"Then what is?" she teased.

"Editing," he said decidedly. "Spending all your time underlining peoples' mistakes, making them feel bad, and dealing with them yammering and disagreeing with you, defying the rules of grammar and in general making a nuisance of themselves. It's a horror."

"And Warding?" she asked.

He gave an exasperated sigh. "It's not a lot better," he ranted. "You've either the customers who'll haggle with you and bother you for the cheapest security available and then complain that your price is far to high since they could erect that level of Ward by themselves... or you have the people that want their hearth to have Wards right out of Tutankhamen's tomb, with no need for them at all. It's a nightmare, honestly."

"Teaching?"

"The committees are as bad as the publishers," he said with a groan. "The staff meetings come a fair bit close to a small war - and Circe's Hat, the essays!"

"Then, as a combination of the three, in a sense, it must be the worst," she said triumphantly. "But do you seriously think Equinox would accept me?"

He gave a shrug. "An exam or two to show you've had the equivalent of a Hogwarts education shouldn't be that hard for you to pass. We'll just have to figure some way of making it appear that you use a Wand as per normal and get you a bit better versed in practical Potions and whatnot. A few months study and you should be set."

"Well, we've time," she said. "We can start a regular course of study after Christmas."

He smiled. "At least I know that Karkaroff isn't as bad as some people have made out."

She rolled her eyes. "He's a bit of a wimp," she said, "and he's not the best for morals, but he's not a bad Bart."

"He's decent as far as a former Death Eater can get I suppose," he said with a sigh.

"Well," she said, "back to the Warding Project?"

He rose from the table and began to clear it. "Yes, I suppose, a bit more before the committee meets tomorrow."

XXX

"All right then," said Snape when he and Karkaroff where finally alone. "What in the name of Hagga were you trying to tell me?"

Igor smirked. "Narcissa is trying to kill Lucius."

"I knew that," snapped Severus. "I've known that for years. Hardly a reason to send me an Owl at an extremely inconvenient time!"

"She's looking at getting her overly manicured fingernails on you," said Igor. "She'll have your last name for her collection."

"And I've known that for over twenty years," said Snape exasperatedly. "She wanted me as a first, you know. Right out asked me to marry her, manner-less thing."

Igor looked bemused. "And you refused? Are you dead?"

"There's more to life than blond hair and - that's not the point," said Snape. "At any rate, I refuse to emulate the many husbands of Alice Anderphil."

"Anderphil?" asked Igor, "Who in the name of Bendis -"

"Mrs. Zabini, now," said Severus. "Went through six or seven husbands, you know. Not important, not important. Whatever did you mean about dotted Ts and enjoying mint?"

"She knows about my being alive," said Igor, "the handwriting in the notes. Florean overheard them talking about it in his shop. I can't believe you didn't copy them before, just a simple -"

"Lucius was supposed to see them," snapped Snape. "He was supposed to know that I had someone at my back, that he was being watched - and copy them himself before sending them on to Antonin and Rabastan. I never dreamt they'd be recognized - he can't tell a flourish from an inkblot except that he practices the one and blames the other on his Elves. How did Narcissa get hold of them? Who else knows?"

"I doubt that Lucius even read it," said Igor, "simply passed the scrolls down to Lestrange, who thought it well to mention it to Narcissa, partly in the hope that she could prevent him from getting killed, and partly to incite her to carry out her plans regarding Lucius."

Snape ran a hand through his hair and sat down heavily. "Confusticate and befuddle Lucius."

"Confusticate him?" repeated Karkaroff incredulously. "Befuddle him? I'd say goddamn him to bloody hell."

"You always did talk like a guttersnipe," said Snape. "Igor for - just explain what the matter is before you upset yourself about how I ought to be reacting to it."

"Well, Florean came over to my place to explain how he'd overheard Narcissa and Rabastan talking about you and me and Lucius. They know you worked on the project and Rabastan is a bit upset that you were given more knowledge about it than you were supposed to be allowed.

Igor paused. Severus waived an impatient hand for him to continue.

"Then Rabastan told Narcissa that I was alive and that Lucius has obviously been keeping that information from her. She revealed that she'd been eavesdropping on him, that she knew that Lucius was planning on having both you and Antonin killed in the process of tearing down the Dark Lord to set himself up in a position of power."

Snape groaned. "I knew somebody was watching," he muttered to himself. "Now I know who."

"They've joined forces," continued Igor. "She wants the Malfoy estate, the Black estate, probably even your estate. Rabastan wants to live - and they've both a bit less love for Lucius after the entire fiasco with Azkaban prison."

Severus snorted. "She could accuse Rabastan of the same thing," he said. "He got himself out of prison - he could have used his defense to get his brother and sister-in-law acquitted if he'd wanted to."

Igor shook his head. "It was unlikely they all be acquitted without Lucius' supporting testimony. He insisted on only commenting on his own case, you remember. Rabastan was acquitted under lack of evidence and your testimony, but Bellatrix and Rodolfus were never quite as covert about crime as they might have been. You know how Avery and Nott put a Spanning Spell into things with -"

"Never mind exactly how," said Severus, rising and beginning to pace, "the fact remains that Narcissa and Rabastan bear a grudge, however nonsensical, against Lucius for the incarceration of Bellatrix and her husband."

"That's right," Igor agreed. "Now, Narcissa's plan is to influence the Dark Lord, discreetly of course, to have Rabastan and Antonin removed from the project on account of incompetence, and replaced with Lucius Malfoy. She guessed, of course, that your figures were slightly incorrect..."

"Brilliant," breathed Severus. "Of course, they'll suffer a Cruciatus or two before the Dark Lord's through, but Lucius will be pleased as punch to be in charge of something so delicate ... and when it fails!"

"Show a little less glee about the potential death of someone who's your cousin several times removed," Igor admonished jokingly. "After all, blood is blood."

Severus grinned widely. "The Blood Magic, when activated, should sufficiently protect Potter to allow him to get close enough to - we can have the Dark Lord eliminated before New Year."

Karkaroff rubbed his palms together. "I knew you weren't in with them," he said.

"Of course you did," said Severus, clapping him on the shoulder. "You might be a bit of a timorous man, but you've never been stupid."

Karkaroff returned the gesture with a grin. "It's all coming together now, isn't it?"

Severus shrugged off Karkaroff's hand and let his own drop. "That it is," he agreed emphatically, sinking into one of Igor's chairs. "I need tea."

XXX

The next morning, Lucius Malfoy was reading in the solarium when it filled, quite suddenly with green smoke. He let his book fall to the floor and screwed his eyes shut against the stinging fumes.

A moment later, with a zishing sound that a Muggle might mistake for the pull of a zipper, the smoke consolidated into green stars, which formed a hovering Dark Mark.

Blinking rapidly to clear his eyes, Lucius gave a half bow towards the mark without leaving his chair.

"Lucius," Voldemort's voice hissed from the mark, "you have displeased me."

Lucius clasped his hands in his lap. "I beg forgiveness, my lord."

He was not quite certain that this method of communication worked both ways, but he wasn't willing to take the chance.

As though he hadn't spoken, the mark continued, "I should have been informed that you had discovered a weakness in my followers," it hissed.

A jolt of pain passed from Lucius' mark through his body, making him twitch. "I -"

"But I am pleased that you were so willing to put yourself into the place of Dolohov and Lestrange, to do their duty in order to give greater service," it rasped. "Continue as you have been - I expect the project complete and perfect before the month is out."

With a rumble the mark dissolved into nothing. Malfoy fell back in his chair swearing weakly in French.

"Either I'm dead or he'll be," he muttered. "Why do I do these things?"

XXX

As soon as Rabastan could breathe again, he sent Narsissa a note of congratulations for her swift action.

***Members of the Order***

That afternoon Severus tried to suppress his manic glee. It was difficult, after all, to properly punish students when one felt like grinning from ear to ear.

As a Professor, Snape had found it necessary to give up grinning and smiling altogether - nobody, particularly those eleven years old, could take a man seriously when his dimples were showing.

Snape wasn't sure if the old problem with smiling still existed as he'd become a bit gaunt over the years, but bad habits were not to be taken up again lightly, and thus while acting as a Professor, Snape did not smile.

Albus, however, had not much need of facial features as a means to determine what a person was feeling and shot Severus an inquiring glance across the Head Table.

Severus met the Headmaster's eye and allowed himself a vindictive smirk.

"Are you quite all right, Severus?" asked Sprout, who was not quite as adept as interpreting feelings as Dumbledore. "You look ill."

Poppy looked up sharply only to grimace when she caught site of Severus' expression and turn her attention back to her plate.

"No, Pomona," said Severus, "everything is in order."

McGonnagal's eyes shifted and gave him an appraising glance. "Good or bad?" she asked quietly.

Severus raised an eyebrow at her and, ever so slightly, let the corner of his mouth twitch.

Satisfied, she took a sip of her pumpkin juice. "Good."

XXX

Alastor Moody and Sturgis Podmore sat morosely in the kitchen of Grimauld Place, waiting for Kingsley to arrive.

"Merlin's Walking Stick," cursed Moody. "We had a month!"

"I'm sorry, Alastor," said Podmore. "Its simply that with all the work I had with the Ministry, and guard duty on -"

"Hmph," Alastor huffed. "I'm sure that Kingsley managed to squirm in time to finish it."

"Well what were you doing instead?" snapped Sturgis. "It's not as though I was busy with reinforcing my deadly dustbins."

Moody growled. "How many times do I have to remind you that security is vital? CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"

Sturgis winced. "You could have at least worked on your personally keyed Wards so that we had some data to play with."

Moody shifted and his wooden leg clicked against the table's. "'Tisn't a game, lad," he said gruffly. "It's dark business, dark and evil."

Podmore rolled his eyes. "Yes, I know, and we're all doomed unless we keep Potter alive and he manages to save us all again," he said. "Still, the fact remains that we've got a security report to give and we haven't -"

The fireplace crackled and with a flair of green flame, Kingsley Shacklebolt tumbled unto the hearth. Brushing himself off, he said, "Evening, so sorry I wasn't about if you were trying to Floo Call me all this time."

He walked to the table and set down a handful of scrolls he'd been cradling under his arm. "We have half an hour for you to go over these and pretend you worked on them."

"Ta, Kings," said Sturgis, taking up one and scanning it. "Knew you'd be here early."

Kingsley sighed and slumped into a large overstuffed armchair. "Bring this one in from the sitting room, did you?"

"It doesn't like the drapery there," said Moody. "Damnable idiots, the Blacks, no regard for Elementary Furniture Safety. Why, I knew a man who was decapitated by his own headboard.

"He'd animated the bed, you know, to make sure the pillows stayed fluffed and the blankets aired themselves and whatnot, but he forgot to take his shoes off one day and it got offended.

"It cut his neck clean through and his House Elf found him the next morning... Took us three days to calm the bed down enough that we could dispose of it - it couldn't stand the blood on the sheets, don't you know, but - "

"Shut yer gob," muttered Sturgis. "You're making it up."

"Truth, so help me," said Moody, hitting the table with a gnarled fist. "I keep telling people animating household appliances here and there is all very well and good, but not those what can kill you."

"Of course," said Kingsley. "Which explains why you enchant your flask to tell you when its been touched by anybody else."

"Protects me from poison!" sputtered Moody. "I've a Surge Protector on the pocket in case it turned against me, which is only there in case the Holding Runes fail and - "

"Enough," said Kingsley, holding up a hand and laughing quietly. "I'm sure you know what you're doing."

"Don't we all," muttered Sturgis, finished with the one parchment and handing it to Moody.

"Apparently not some of us," said Shaklebolt. "After all, which one of us wrote this report?"

"Ta," said Sturgis again. "There's tea."

"Wouldn't put it past them to have hexed the teapot, but if - "

"It's Molly's kettle," said Podmore. "Really, Moody."

Kingsley accioed himself a cup and poured, reading the notes Sturgis had left in the margins of one of the parchment. "Before the others come, I'd like to show you something rather ... interesting I found the other day."

"Quiet, Kings," said Sturgis. "Let us finish up, first."

"You had nearly a month, man," admonished Shaklebolt. "Honestly."

"What is it?" demanded Moody, whose magical eye seemed to have scanned all of the parchments at once.

"Oh, just something about Lupin," said Kingsley airily. "Some... interesting ... papers on file."

"Oh come off it," said Podmore, dropping the scroll he'd been looking at. "Stop acting like a cat who's just eaten a canary and just tell us what it is you've found."

"About the girl, I suppose," said Moody. "Who is she?"

"That I can't tell you," said Kingsley, "and if you listen to Arthur I oughtn't to be telling you what I do know. But ... "

With a pause that could be either hesitation or simple teasing, Kingsley produced the documents he had found.

"Adopted," said Sturgis with a laugh, "she was adopted. All that bit of speculation for nothing!"

"Idiot," said Moody, "always read the fine print! You never know when it could contain something vital or dangerous! CON -"

"Look at the numbers," interrupted Kingsley. "Remus' and the filer's didn't match - and they were filed a good ten years after the date they claim to be from. It's a forgery."

"A dead good one at that," muttered Moody, whose normal eye was intently studying it, while his other had swiveled into the back of his head. "The Muggles would never be able to tell the difference, but since ..."

"Somebody went through a lot of trouble to hide this girl," said Kingsley. "Somebody obscured his magical signature, forged documents in the Muggle world, hid all trace of her original identity - see, there's no name change, she's simply 'the child henceforth to be known as Philomena Lupin'..."

"Not that unusual," said Sturgis, "there are people who give children up for adoption who simply don't want to be identified or found."

"But they'd go through the usual channels," said Kingsley, "they're guaranteed anonymity. At least that's the way it is in our world, I've no idea about the Muggles..."

"Let alone the fact that Lupin would have no reason to adopt, or even to be allowed to adopt, right out of school, without a job, without a family," put in Moody. "Its an obvious obfuscation."

Sturgis shrugged. "If he had a good reason, if he knew her -"

"If so, then why didn't we know about it?" demanded Kingsley. "It's illegal for a Werewolf to have children, we all know that. Yet he comes in and tells us all she's his, even though he has reasonable papers to show that he's simply her legal guardian and not -"

"Would make sense for him to hide his own child as his adopted child," said Moody, "Double bluff. In case the ministry found her."

"But he hasn't had her since birth," protested Sturgis. "That's what, eighteen years ago? He was running all over London, didn't even have a steady place to live, fighting solo. He'd not have possibly cared for a newborn."

"Nothing says he did," said Kingsley. "Just that he was legally responsible - at least that's what the forger wanted us to think. It's ten years old, you know, and even then Remus couldn't have had care of a child. He was defying death in Albania for Dumbledore."

"You think he agreed to hide her?" asked Moody.

"I think he may have been forced to," said Kingsley. "Think about it. Who at that time would have had ample reason to hide a child? Who still does? Who seems to know her far better than he should?"

"Who did I say could have been related to her the last time we talked about this?" put in Sturgis. "Snape. I said it, and you agreed with me."

"Yes, but then we had hardly any evidence to back us up," said Kingsley. "Now we have."

"No, we don't," protested Podmore. "This could have been anybody, there's no reason to believe that Snape had anything to do with it, or - "

"Who else would have enough of a hold on Remus to convince him to do something this illegal?" demanded Kingsley. "Snape could have threatened to expose his lycanthropy."

Moody's magical eye swiveled madly. "Or there's a double bluff," he said, "maybe Remus wants us to think that Snape wants us to think that -"

"Alastor!" interrupted Sturgis. "I'm trying to think!"

"The question is, why Snape was so keen to hide her in the first place, and what he did with her the first ten years, let alone until now," said Kingsley. "After all, in the first war, he hardly had reason to fear the Dark Lord's forces -"

"That's silly," said Sturgis. "After all what do any of us know about Snape? Did you even talk to him back then? I certainly didn't. I didn't see him, or even think about him, between school and the second calling together of the Order when Dumbledore finally revealed to us what happened last time. He could have had ten daughters and three wives and I'd not have noticed. Or cared."

"He was never married," said Moody. "He can't get married."

"Why not?" asked Kingsley. "Well, aside from the obvious."

"Snape isn't in position to inherit," said Moody. "His elder brother, Mordred Snape, disappeared shortly before he ought to have gone to Hogwarts, though the family continues to claim he went to some foreign school or other and lives on the continent. He's never been installed as heir - not magically, at any rate - and so the title, if Lady Snape ever gives up the ghost, would automatically go to ... Lord Snape's cousin, Victor Relnis, unless Mordred resurfaces.

"Which all puts Snape in the unfortunate position of being in no position to inherit the title, even practically disinherited form his family, though nobody can quite tell if that's because he went dark or because he didn't go quite dark enough," Moody went on. "There's nobody that'd even consider a match with him, barring a Muggle-born, and Snape -,"

"I get the idea," said Kingsley.

"I wouldn't have pegged you for the sort that knew that sort of gossip," said Sturgis. "You never seemed to care for the lines or blood purity."

"Of course I know it all," snapped Moody. "Know they enemy! Lack of knowledge will get you killed! CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"

Kingsley winced and said, "That only makes things make more sense. If the girl is somehow connected to Snape's brother, he'd naturally hide her, or perhaps is hiding her for his family to prevent further scandal..."

"I doubt it," said Sturgis. "Snape wouldn't do that sort of thing for somebody else. He doesn't risk himself."

Moody snorted. "He does little else and he'll never live if he keeps it up - no thought at all to elementary precautions."

"But not for his family," insisted Sturgis. "As far as anybody can tell he hasn't spoken to his mother since his father's funeral."

"Now whose the sort to know all the gossip?" teased Kingsley.

"Oh, everybody heard about old Lord Snape," said Sturgis. "There was quite a rigmarole in the Prophet over whether Lady Snape could legally still have the manner and title, according to Femina Tenere, or whether the heir should be brought forth, let alone the fact that he died by falling down the stairs -"

Kingsley held up a hand to stop him. "Podmore, for Merlin's sake, calm yourself. We can't know why right now and it's pointless to sit here and speculate. What we can do is discreetly nudge the others to the conclusion that she's adopted, simply in the interest of protecting Remus."

Moody nodded. "Seems he's gotten himself in a right peck of trouble."

Sturgis nodded. "Right, then. Not a word on what we know, though. Mum's the word until we have something definite."

Kingsley shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "Of course, it's only really our business in regards to whether or not Remus is in it willingly," he said. "Even if he is, he'll only accept help kicking and screaming."

"Nonsense," said Moody, "it's only right to look out for one's allies. After all, one must have CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"

"Remember, only hints," said Kingsley. "He'll be quite upset if he thinks we've been spying on him, and we don't want to anger Snape."

Sturgis nodded. "Right. You tackle Tonks, I'll work on Emaline. The sooner they stop wondering who the girl's mother is the better."

The Floo crackled. Instantly, Kingsley and Sturgis pretended to be completely absorbed in the scrolls - one of which Kingsley had slipped into a pocket - and Moody leaned back in his chair, taking a swig from his flask.

"Oy, there," said Tonks, knocking over the andirons as she clambered out of the fireplace. "Gotten any work done?"

XXX

Remus checked that his pages were in the correct order for the third time before casting a binding spell on the left hand margin. The edges of the pages melted together forming a booklet. Flipping through it to be quite sure nothing was out of place, he smiled to himself.

"I can't believe we didn't see any of this before," he said. "I've you to thank, otherwise I'd never have thought of using something with a prior spell."

Philomena shook her head and laughed. "Anybody could have thought of it. Only you could have done it."

"Me and the rest of the committee," he reminded. "At last I've something positive to report."

"They've only been preliminarily tested," she reminded. "You never know how something might skew the results, especially if they're intended for a battle situation."

He nodded ruefully. "That's so, that's so. But these have ten times the affectivity of a Shield without needed the wielder to concentrate or expend energy on it."

"Yes," Philomena said, "we'll just have to find an object to Ward that everybody can agree on."

"Shan't be to hard," said Remus, "who doesn't have an object with an imbued charm that they use consistently? I always carry a quill, Moody's flask is famous - and even if they didn't, they wear robes with Stay-Fast fasteners, or NeverTrip shoelaces, or..."

She threw her cloak over her shoulders and fastened it at her chin. "Or cloaks with Warming Charms, or unstealable jewelry, or Ever Fresh pants..."

"That last is a bit of a stretch," he said.

She widened her eyes in faux shock. "They don't wear pants?"

He pursed his lips to prevent a smile from escaping - he refused to let her amuse him with such a juvenile joke. "Not the same pants every day."

"I should hope not," she said, wrinkling her nose, truly disgusted this time.

Remus allowed his smile to escape, having won the unspoken game. "Come on, the bearers of good news ought not to be late."

Philomena stepped to the fireplace. "Lets hope there's no other news to counter it," she said, before tossing a handful of Floo Powder into the flames. "Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place!"

Remus followed her a moment later, when he was sure she had time have stepped clear from the hearth.

XXX

***An Abruptly Ended Meeting***

Dumbledore gave a start and shut his book with a snap. It whimpered. "Harry," he said mildly, "whatever are you doing in the restricted section?"

Harry slipped his Invisibility Cloak off and said, "I was looking for you."

"Odd," said Albus, "one doesn't normally look for people after hours in areas one isn't allowed."

"I've had a dream," said Harry. "I'm not sure what it means or if it's real but ... I thought you ought to know."

It seemed as though a look of disappointment crossed the Headmaster's face, but it was gone before Harry could be sure.

Albus tossed the book he'd been holding into the air and it gave a shrill taunting laugh as it soared towards its proper location. Harry caught sight of the title, "Concerning the Lamiae," as it whooshed passed his head.

"I'm sure it was some form of Tom Riddle," said Harry, "I'm sure it was him, but he was older, much older - he looked about sixty. But he was still human, so it wasn't Voldemort."

Dumbledore stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Where was he, in the dream?"

"Hospital Wing," explained Harry quickly. "He was lying in one of the beds - he said it was over. He said he was dead."

"He said he was dead?" repeated Dumbleodore, his eyes bright with sudden interest.

"He said he was good as," amended Harry quickly. "You were there, Madam Pomfrey. She said that he was telling the truth and you looked angry. Snape was there too, but he was dead."

"Where we altered as well, physically?" asked Dumbledore, the fingers of one hand twitching.

Harry blinked. "No, it was Christmas Day, this Christmas Day. But that's not the point -that man wasn't Voldemort. If it's real, if that's what's going to happen, then Voldemort must have some other ... memories of himself stored somewhere. There's going to be something horrific happening - Riddle was there and Snape was dead."

Dumbledore blinked in thought. "Do you know many girls?" he asked. "There's one I'd like you to meet."

Caught wholly off-guard, Harry bolted upright in his chair. "What's that?"

"Not what, Harry, who," admonished Albus with a twinkle. "She'll be at the Order meeting tonight of course. Come along."

"What?" asked Harry again, turning to follow the Headmaster who had started off down the stacks. "Order meeting? Girls? What are you talking about? Haven't you been listening to what -"

"Do hurry or we shall be late," said Dumbledore. "Really, I might have forgotten it altogether if you hadn't come and reminded me."

"But I didn't remind you," protested Harry, now in step with the man. "Are you seriously going to take me to an Order meeting in the middle of the night? What about -?"

The Headmaster stopped dead to look him in the face. "My boy," he said, "I don't do anything seriously if I can help it."

More confused than he had been for a while, Harry accompanied Dumbledore out of the Castle and Grounds, where they popped away in the lurching discomfort of side-along Apparition.

A split second later they arrived in Grimmauld Place, during the usual scuffle before any one section of the Order managed to seat itself around a table. Dumbledore's seat was a forgone conclusion; the head of the table.

However, the seats at his immediate right and left were coveted and McGonagall made sure to have the right, or, if she could not achieve that, the left. Vance seemed to have a preference for the foot, while Moody liked the seat closest to the exit. Of course, everybody had their list of people they simply would not sit beside, on which Tonks, Moody, and Severus ranked highest.

Philomena knew no one present well enough to have any particular preference, but was intent on taking the spot farthest from Fletcher. This left Remus, who did not scuffle but waited for what was left, between Tonks and Jones.

Dumbledore conjured an extra chair for Harry, which fit barely and awkwardly at the corner between the Headmaster and McGonagall. Harry sat gingerly on the edge of it, while Albus stood behind his own waiting to begin.

There was a bit of chatter while everybody settled, which died down when Dumbledore began to speak.

"We have several interesting bits of news to be unveiled tonight," said Dumbledore, "and I thought it only right that Mr. Potter be here to hear them, seeing as they all concern him closely."

Harry, aware that every eye in the room had turned to study him, gave a curt nod back, but said nothing.

Dumbledore seated himself, and then gestured to Remus to begin.

"To be quick," said Remus, "we have managed to develop a system whereby a Personal Ward can be imbedded into any object imbued with a prior continuous Spell. This will enable the wearer to forgo the usual energy drain required to maintain it, and the distraction of renewal.

"The exact Metaphysics is here, should it be of interest," he continued, dropping the booklet he had prepared onto the table. "The Wards have, unfortunately, only undergone preliminary testing but all results have been positive. I advise that our members each create one and carry it at all times, but by no means become complacent. Should any problems arise, the Ward in question should be returned to the committee for further testing."

Finished, Remus watched in amusement as Sturgis Podmore and Arthur Weasley both reached for the booklet at the same time, only to retreat when Moody took it.

Severus Snape raised an eyebrow as he watched the booklet pass from hand to hand, skimmed by each member in turn. A babble arose which evolved into a quite civilized discussion of the logistics of the idea.

Molly suggested immediate distribution of protective items to the various children connected with the Order, and perhaps the Prefects and Heads at Hogwarts.

McGonagall objected, however, to their being informed of all the details, considering that the better known the Wards were, the easier they would be for the other side to override.

Harry insisted that one had to know how something worked in order to use it properly, and that there was no reason to think they'd babble out details to anybody.

Half an hour later, when this had deteriorated into a repetitious argument, Snape had had enough, and cleared his throat loudly. When he had the attention of all in the room, he rose, giving them a baleful glare.

"The Dark Lord intends to attack Mr. Potter, using a form of Blood Magic, on the twenty-fourth of December," said Snape, ignoring the revulsion of the others. "However, the project to do so has been successfully infiltrated. When complete and activated, the Charm will result not in the death, but the further protection of the boy.

"The exact time of the attack is not yet set, nor have those to carry it out been named, though I am quite sure the Dark Lord will be there personally. We must devise a stratagem to keep the Castle and students safe from attack, and to divert the Dark Lord's attention when he finds his plans have failed." Severus reseated himself and waited for the new uproar to dissipate.

After a moment, Dumbledore silenced them all with a rather large bang from his wand. "Please calm yourselves. The situation will be discussed and debated when we have enough information to formulate a counterstrike. As of now, we only have news of an intention.

"For the moment, a review of the Castle's defenses is in order. Should we receive no further details of the attack before the first of December, we shall of course remove Mr. Potter from Hogwarts for the safety of himself and his fellow students. We could also eliminate the option for staying over the holiday should it seem necessary. There is no immediate cause for panic."

Obligingly, the Order ceased panicking, or at least yelling, at once.

"I will provide more information as I receive it," said Severus.

"I thought you said it was good news," said McGonagall crossly. "You had my hopes up."

"It is good," protested Snape. "If the attack is successful it should result in Potter's greater protection, if it fails nothing of ours is lost. The only vaguely upsetting point is that when they find that it doesn't kill Potter they might deviate from the plan and try something else - which we have no way of predicting."

"You still look too much like a cat with a canary," protested McGonagall. "What is it you're not telling us?"

Snape smirked. "For some time now, we have been trying to find a way to deprive Lucius Malfoy of his influence on the Ministry. Once the attack fails, the Dark Lord is very likely to deprive the Ministry of Lucius Malfoy."

Bill Weasley stared. "Deprive the Ministry of..."

"Lucius Malfoy," Snape repeated. "That's right. He was assigned the project I ... sabotaged. Naturally, he will be blamed when it fails."

"Excuse me," said Harry Potter, "but what exactly is the Spell they're going to be attempting, and just what did you sabotage it to do? - Sir."

With a wicked gleam is his eyes, Severus took his time explaining the intricacies of the Blood Magic, leaving out how he had become involved, considering he was still under oath not to, but including every other detail.

As he was explaining how the Dark Lord's blood was still partially Harry's blood, and therefore contained Lilly Potter's sacrificial protection, he took in the looks of his fellow Order members. Some, like Remus Lupin, were keenly interested. Moody looked suspicious, as did Molly Weasley, some were pretending to understand but quite out of their depths like Jones and Vance.

Podmore interrupted before he could finish. "How did you infiltrate the project without them knowing? How much of a guarantee can you give us that they didn't see through you and set this up as a way to allow them to attack without resistance?"

"It's all a trap," muttered Moody.

Severus stared levelly back at him, jaw set. "If I were not sure, I would not have said so."

"I need more security than that," insisted Podmore. "I think we all do."

"Lets put it this way," said Snape, "the last time the Dark Lord suspected me, he removed my right hand."

"But -" started Vance.

"Obviously," Snape went on, "I managed to have it reattached."

"How?" demanded Moody. "You can't -"

Snape stood and glared over the company. "You have no need for details," he hissed. "Nor will I tell you how I managed to convince him to allow me back. But I will tell you that the last time you did not listen to my advice, James and Lilly Potter died."

Absolute silence met that pronouncement. Remus shot a worried glance toward Harry - who was staring at Snape with a calculating look in his eyes.

"Of course," sneered Snape, "that misfortune turned out to be rather beneficial globally, did it not?"

He seemed about to say something further, but whirled away from the table, crossing his arms. He'd been summoned, though he felt no reason to let them know. "Excuse me."

Without another word he Disapparated with a crack.

"Bugger," whispered Tonks.

Harry looked after him in amazement, shook his head and then abruptly left the room, not wanting half a dozen people asking him what he thought or whether he was all right. His scar twitched as he shut the door of the forbidden study after him.

"Remus," interrupted Dumbledore delicately, "if you would...?"

Lupin rose and followed after, shutting the door softly behind him.

"I suppose that's that for tonight, then," said McGonagall briskly. "Any further discussion can take place individually."

"Circe's cat!" whispered Sturgis. "Well, at least we won't have to report tonight."