Disclaimers: Once again, Mag 7 is owned by CBS, Harry Potter is owned by J.K. Rowling and Lenny Hoskins is owned by Bernadette (in more than a mere mentioned role). Once again I have no money to give you (really, I'm trying to win the lottery but it's not working!), so please do not sue me.
Spoilers: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
They Called You?
Amanda B.
Ezra opened his door to incessant knocking and ringing. It was Saturday morning and he had errands to run, people to meet and he had told his co-workers this. In fact, he was quite clear and adamant of this. Why they decided to come at six o'clock in the morning he had no idea!
"All right, I'm here!" he called out as he opened the door without thinking. "Lenny?"
Leonard Hoskins, friend, brother, former fellow FBI agent came in with a duffle bag. He walked straight into the living room, threw down the bag and faced his 'younger brother.' "What's going on?!?" he demanded.
"Lenny," Ezra began as he closed the door, "It's really nothing."
"Nothing?" Lenny asked incredulously. "Listen, Ezra, 'nothing' is not the correct answer! 'Nothing' would not have made Larabee call me AT WORK and DEMAND that I come on the first flight over and talk to you! 'Nothing' would have made Maude call me and say incoherent babble--and I do mean babble--about you joining, 'The Order.' "
"They called you?!?" Ezra asked incredulously. Upon seeing a quiet nod, he went to the kitchen and motioned for his friend to follow. He need coffee and he needed it now! "What exactly have you been told?"
"I know about Sirius' death, and I'm sorry. I know that he was a good friend of yours, and a fellow classmate . But why did I have to hear that from Larabee? Why didn't you phone and tell me?" Lenny sat down at the kitchen table.
"Sorry, Lenny. I wanted to tell you that myself."
"Ezra, it happened three weeks ago! You've had plenty of time to tell me!"
Ezra closed his eyes hearing the hurt in his friend's voice and quickly finished pouring the water into the coffee maker. He opened his eyes, closed the lid and joined his friend at the table. "That is because I wanted to tell you everything."
Lenny narrowed his eyes. "So I'm right in assuming that this has to do with the wizard world." Ezra nodded. "God, I need a drink."
"Will coffee do?"
Lenny nodded. "But you have none at the moment."
"I am sure that you will be able to survive for ten minutes without a cup."
"Ezra..."
The Denver agent sighed. "Remember how I've told you on length about You-Know-Who?"
"Yes, but you said that he was dead."
"Apparently he's back."
"What?!?" Lenny's eyes went wide open at this admission. "Can wizards come back from the dead?"
Ezra shook his head. "Not usually, but his original demise was...a bit exceptional."
"How so?"
"The killing spell that he said was turned onto himself. However, it didn't kill him as we all thought. It just made him...bodiless for a while," Ezra explained.
"And now he has a body once again. Like what, possession or something along those lines?"
Ezra shook his head. "No, not possession. He just got hold of something that let him get his body back."
"How does Sirius' death fit into this?"
Ezra explained everything to his friend. Lenny was like a brother to him and the only muggle with whom he had ever shared his secret with. Not that he had a choice. Originally, he had no intention on informing his best friend of what he really was. Unfortunately, a perpetrator that they had been chasing once back in Atlanta, had been a wizard. It was hard not to explain why the Southerner reacted the way he did, when the suspected pointed a 'stick' at them and cried out, 'Crucio.' It was also hard to get out of explaining why he insisted to Hoskins why they should not call for back-up and have an, 'Auror' come for the said suspect instead. Then he had to say what an Auror was and they did.
At first he had been leery and scared of what his friend's reaction could have been. Needless to say he was pleasantly surprised in how open-minded and accepting Lenny was. After all, one of his favourite stories told by his father, was of his mother's reaction in finding out that her husband was a wizard! He still could not imagine his mother standing still and opening and closing her mouth, not saying anything for close to an hour, then fainting. Then after awakening and shown more of his abilities, repeating the process.
All that Lenny had said was, "Why didn't you say anything before?" soon followed by, "You haven't done any magic while working, have you?" He then assured his friend, that he never did magic while working if he could help it. Especially so when it was factored in that he never brought his wand with him to work.
Then Lenny would point out that Ezra was able to do wandless magic.
By the end of the lengthy explanation, both friends had had several cups of coffee, with more questions asked and answered.
"I know that I've said this before, Ezra, but I am sorry about Sirius' death. I know that you don't like losing friends from both worlds."
"Thank-you, Lenny. That means a lot from you."
Lenny swallowed the rest of his coffee. "Is there anything I can do?"
"You can do a thorough explanation of why you are here, my friend. Not that I mind you being here! I mean, no offence, but I cannot believe that my mother...babbled!"
Lenny sighed. "Ezra, I heard her crying and saying things like 'owl' 'Eustache,' 'The Order,' 'Sirius is dead,' 'Dumbledore,' and 'Auror.' And I couldn't get a word in edgewise before she hung up! Then Larabee called and ground out that your friend Sirius was dead--and upon hearing my reaction, asked if I knew Sirius."
"What did you say?"
"I said that I never met the guy, but I knew that you two had been schoolmates in Europe. But I never told him everything, and I think--no, I know that he knew this."
"What else did he say?" fished Ezra.
"Just that you haven't been your loveable self. Ezra, they said that you've been quiet! That got me worried enough to actually take the red-eye out of Atlanta."
"I apologise for not telling you sooner, and for my colleagues unnecessarily calling you."
"Ezra, get it through that mind of yours, that I needed to be called. I needed to know this! I don't like the fact that you've had to go through this alone." Lenny played around with his cup. "Ezra, are you really thinking of becoming an auror? Like what your father was?" Lenny asked. "Are you really going to join the Order of the Phoenix?"
"Lenny," Ezra sighed. "Consider me a member, who is not on active duty."
The Atlanta agent went cold at this. "No! You're not going!"
"That is exactly what my dear mother decreed on her last visit," Standish stated.
"Do you have..." Lenny trailed looking at his friend, his younger brother in all but blood. "No, you would go. Especially if it gets to be too bad. Right?"
"You know me well, my friend. Especially since Muggles do not possess magic to defend themselves from You-Know-Who. Or Deatheaters for that matter."
Just then there was a knock on the kitchen window. Ezra got up and opened it. A brown owl flew inside and dropped an envelope and what appeared to be a newspaper onto the table, then perched itself on a kitchen chair.
"I take it that this is the owl that your mother mentioned," Lenny mused.
"Lenny, meet Eustache, Eustache meet Lenny." Upon seeing his owl narrow his eyes a bit, Ezra continued, "Lenny is family, Eustache. Think of him as a squib."
Eustache hooted.
"Does this mean that I've been accepted into the family?"
Ezra smiled as he opened the letter. "Lenny, you've always been family to me. Think of it as being accepted as such from another family member."
Lenny smiled. "He's safe, right? Or is he a she?"
"He's perfectly safe, Lenny. Unless you do something to tick him off."
"Who's it from?" asked a curious Lenny, leaning over to get a closer look at the letter.
"It's from Remus. He's just verifying that we're meeting this afternoon," Standish answered.
"Oh."
Ezra gazed at his friend. "Don't look so down, Lenny. You've met Remus before. I'm sure he won't mind if you come along."
"Ezra, I don't want to intrude..."
"It's not an issue, my friend. You will join me at Diagon Alley this afternoon. I need to pick up some more supplies. And you can help me carry them," Ezra announced, getting up. "I need to take a shower."
Hoskins also got up. "Yeah, well, it's almost eight. You have an hour or less to get showered and ready before Larabee and calvary come riding in."
"What?!?" yelled Ezra, as he scampered up the stairs and retrieved a towel from the closet.
"I called them after I landed. They gave me three hours to talk to you before they would come."
"Shit!" Ezra swore. "Lenny, do me a favour and get me some clothes to wear--oh, and my robes are at the far end of the closet! If we time this right, we can floo out of here in fifteen minutes!"
Lenny smiled as the door closed and the water turned on. He went to his friend's room and got out some casual trousers and a long-sleeved polo shirt, with a pullover sweater. He then reached to the far end of the closet and retrieved Ezra's robes. Eustache meanwhile, had followed the FBI agent and perched himself onto the dresser. Looking at the animal, Lenny remembered the paper and letter. Shit! Chris and company had a key to this place! "I don't suppose that you can bring me what's on the table? Unless you want Ezra's colleagues to find out he's a wizard."
Eustache hooted and flew downstairs. He returned shortly after, dropping the requested items onto the bed. Lenny went to the bed, set down the robes and picked up the not only the letter but what was most definitely a newspaper. "The Daily Prophet," he murmured. "I guess it's the perfect name for a wizard newspaper, right?"
"Hoot."
Lenny gazed at the owl. "If something ever happens to Ezra, please let me know." Eustache bristled. "Is that a yes or a no?"
"That is a yes," came a voice from the bedroom door. Ezra came in and quickly changed. "You got the paper and letter. Good."
"I just asked Eustache to get them. I don't think that you want them to know yet."
"That is definitely excellent thinking my friend. No, I do not wish for my co-workers to find out about that aspect of me."
Lenny raised an eyebrow as his friend finished tying his shoes. "For good or just yet?"
"Let me ponder that for a while, and I will give you an answer."
"When?" came the challenge.
"Oh, in two or three..."
"Days? Weeks? Years?"
"Do not be so sarcastic, Leonard! Now let us depart for Diagon Alley. At least after I let Eustache out." Ezra went to the bedroom window and let the owl out. He then closed the window and walked out of the room. Lenny followed. "Now, you remember how to do this?" Standish asked as they went down the stairs.
"Unfortunately," came the answer.
"Good. By the way, what will you tell Mr. Larabee of why we were not present at my domicile?"
"I'll just tell him that you needed a coffee fix. That'll work."
"For the entire day?" Ezra asked incredulously, as they approached the fireplace.
"Remember Ezra, this is me. If they expected me to do what they say. Well, I never promised them an itinerary."
Ezra laughed at this. He was looking forward to the day. he could not think of a better way to spend it, then being with two good friends.
Lenny looked out the living room window and saw a black dodge ram park on the street. "Larabee's here," he said as Ezra gave him some floo power. "It's been less than three hours. I'm surprised that he hasn't come sooner. I know that I wouldn't have."
"Lenny!" cried Ezra.
"Oh fine!" Lenny said as he went into the fireplace. "Diagon Alley," he announced as he swung his hand down and dropped the powder. He smiled. Larabee would have kittens over the two friends not being at the townhouse. Yep, he would certainly receive an earful.
"Who cares?" he said to himself as he arrived in a pub. Maybe when Ezra arrived, they could have some butterbeer. That always tasted good.