May 5, 1987

Callie Potter stepped out of the elevator, steeling herself and steadying her trembling hands. This was it. This was the day her life changed forever… if she lived long enough. She walked across the hallway, knees nearly knocking, took a deep breath, and opened the door labeled: "Auror Office".

She was struck by the noise and bustle of the enormous room, like the Daily Prophet after a major incident. People shouted over each other, ran around the room carrying parchment and quills and sporting injuries, some of which looked nasty. She approached the nearest desk, clutching a portfolio. "Excuse me," she said. The woman looked up, her eyes discerning but not unkind. "I'm Callie Potter, and I'm here to-"

"Oh, you're the new girl!" The woman stood up, smiling, and extended her hand. "Denise Wilde. Pleasure to meet you. I assume you haven't met your Supervising Officer yet?"

Callie shook Denise's hand and returned the smile. "No, I haven't. I'm not even sure who it is."

Denise took the portfolio from her hands and opened it. She scanned several lines, grinned, and handed it back. "Lucky you. He's over there." She pointed to a desk several yards away, behind which a man sat studying a report. "I'll warn you, though: He believes strongly in the sink or swim method."

"He looks nice enough," Callie muttered to herself.

Denise's grin widened. "Oh, he is. Reformed the whole bloody office, he did. Took ideas from the Muggle MI-6 and CIA, I think. You'd best keep on your toes, though."

"Has he ever trained anyone before?"

"Not officially." Denise looked at her. "Go on, say hi." She gave her a little push, a wink, and a reassuring smile. "Tell him I sent you."

Callie glanced back uncertainly. Her heart beat wildly. She forced her knees to stop shaking, reprimanded herself for being so nervous, and marched to his desk.

"McKinnon! Get me everything we've got on the Malfoys!" the black-haired man shouted across the room. Callie could tell he was the sort of person people followed, even if they didn't quite know why. When he didn't acknowledge her, she cleared her throat. The man held up an impatient hand, finished scanning the last few lines of cramped writing on the parchment in front of him, and said, "Who are you?" without looking up.

Confused and a little put-off, Callie replied, "I'm the new Auror." She held out her file, and he took it deftly.

Long fingers opened it and scanned over the first page. She took the time to look him over. His face bore all the marks of a well-bred family. The stubble along his jaw spoke of days in the office and the dark circles under his eyes told of long, sleepless nights, but neither could conceal the fact that he was most definitely one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight.

He finally looked up at her out of startlingly clear silver eyes, and smirked in a familiar, confident way. "Callie Potter," he said. "You've grown up."

It struck her like a bolt of lightning. Long-forgotten memories of her brother's best friends flooded into her mind, and she vaguely remembered James telling her she'd already got a friend in the Auror office. She'd no idea he'd meant his own best friend!

"Sirius Black," she responded. Her face broke into a wide smile. "James didn't tell me you were an Auror."

"I think he did." Sirius grinned, and she saw that sixteen-year-old runaway peeking around her family's kitchen door in search of a midnight snack and catching her red-handed with a forbidden cookie in her ten-year-old hand. He stood up and gave her a once-over. "Merlin's pants. James said you were coming, but I was rather expecting that little girl who used to spy on us."

Callie chuckled. "Well, sorry to disappoint."

"No, no, I'm not disappointed." He smirked mischievously. "We always seem to be missing each other, don't we? What's it been, eight years?"

"Nine. Still got that motorbike?"

"Are you kidding? It'll be a cold day in Hell before I give that thing up."

"It used to scare mum to death. She swore you'd crash it and kill yourself."

"And yet, here I am." He smirked. "And here you are. The first Potter in Slytherin for a century, and the first Black in Gryffindor for longer than that. We should get along swimmingly." He walked around his desk and faced her. He crossed his arms and leaned back against the desktop, regarding her thoughtfully. "So tell me: What made little Callie Potter decide to be an Auror?"

Callie responded automatically, mind turning back to those months of horrors before the war turned in their favor. "I was in Slytherin during a hard time. My friends were dropping out of school to join their parents under Voldemort, or to join their parents in hiding. With my own family in Gryffindor, and my own brother on the front lines, I felt guilty for not being able to do anything to help." Sirius nodded in understanding. She continued, "It felt wrong not to do anything, and I've always loved dueling, so I thought this would be the best place for me."

Sirius chuckled. "Being an Auror is a lot more than dueling. It's a lot of investigative work." He picked up her file from behind him again and flicked through a few pages. "Top marks in Defense, Potions, History… Played Quidditch as a Seeker… Recommendations by Dumbledore himself. Very impressive." He glanced up at her. "Any experience?"

"Not much to speak of." She paused nervously, biting her lower lip. "Is that bad?"

"No, it's just something I'd like to focus on first. I'll be training you."

Something in the way he said this made her frown in suspicion. He was smirking. "Wait…" Callie said slowly. "Did James put you up to this?"

"Of course he did, but I'm pleased to do it. Getting to train my best mate's little sister in the art of detection, dueling, and seduction will be a blast."

Callie raised an eyebrow. "That last one?"

He leaned in with a devious smirk and whispered, "The thrill is in the chase, never in the capture." He winked and walked back around his desk. He sat down and reclined, leaning his chair back on two legs. "So tell me a little more about yourself. Your likes, dislikes, anything pertinent that a future partner might need to know."

Slightly put-off, she hesitated. Nothing really came to mind. "Well, I'm best at dueling-"

"Not what I meant," Sirius interrupted. He put a finger to his lips and regarded her carefully for a moment. "Who is Callie Potter? What are her likes, dislikes, how does she take her tea?"

Surprised again. Why would he need to know that? "I'm sorry… why is this relevant?"

"We're going to be working together, aren't we? I don't want all my information about you to come from James and a lump of parchment." He seemed to sense that she had no idea where to begin, so he continued. "I like Quidditch, I listen to Muggle rock music, and I hate wearing these blasted wizard robes. Your turn."

She opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off by a hand appearing over her shoulder, holding out a stack of papers. "Everything we've got on the Malfoys, as ordered." Callie turned to see a tall witch. She was pretty, except for the scar in her right cheek.

Sirius took the file with a smile and introduced the two women. "Callie, this is Marlene McKinnon. Mar, this is Callie Potter."

Marlene smiled and shook Callie's hand. "Sirius' new protégé." She chuckled. "It's nice to meet you. You're James' little sister, right? Sirius said James asked him to keep an eye on you. Be careful with this one; he's a bit mad."

Sirius faked an indignant expression. "Mad? You think she'd have more respect for her ex-partner. I've saved her arse enough times."

Marlene laughed. "And I've saved yours just as much." She turned back to Callie. "Really, though, best of luck. We can always use the extra pair of hands." She looked at Sirius pointedly. "Be nice."

"Me? Never." He smirked. "Get back to work. You've got another two years before retirement kicks in."

She gave him a rude gesture, but the sparkle in her eyes rather ruined the affect. She smiled encouragingly at Callie before disappearing again. Callie turned to Sirius slowly. "I thought there were rules against 'fraternizing' with other Aurors."

Sirius looked impressed. "Officially, by law, I'm required to say there are." He winked. "But things have changed around here, and they continue to change every day, so don't worry about that." He grinned, and let his chair fall back with a bang. "You'll have Death Eaters to worry about soon enough." He stood and rummaged through the files in a cabinet for a moment before withdrawing one with an ugly, scarred face staring out of the picture on the front. "We're going after this one first. He's small beans, but it'll get your feet wet. Read over the file tonight and make a note of what you think is important. I'll come get you in the morning."

Callie took the file, hand trembling a little. The face leered up at her, daring her to try him. She took a breath, let it out, and looked up again. "I won't need to come into the office?"

"You rarely will. We're only ever here for research or to write reports. The real job's out there." He pointed to the farthest wall with a grin. "You'll get used to it. You didn't join the Auror Department for a comfy desk job, did you?"

Callie shook her head. She tried to think of something else to say, anything that didn't sound stupid, but nothing came to her. "I'll see you tomorrow, then."

Sirius nodded. "Looking forward to it." He flashed her a smile. "I'm sure you won't disappoint."

Already feeling like she was destined to disappoint him, Callie turned and strode out of the office. The room seemed louder than ever, and the outside world seemed a little darker and more wild. Hyper aware of every shadow, she went home, locked her door, and settled down to read and reread her target's file, praying she wouldn't disappoint Sirius Black.