AN: So, as promised this is chapter 4. If you are returning, thanks for coming back. I hope this story is to your liking so far but, you've probably started skipping these notes. If it's your first time… well by now you've probably stopped reading these too. Anyhow here we go.
Gateways
Chapter 4
"Alphonse, no! No, dammit. You won't take him too. Give him back! He's my brother! Take my leg. Take my arm! Take my heart, ANYTHING, YOU CAN HAVE IT! Just give him back! He's my little brother, he's all I have left!" –Edward Elric
Number 12 Grimmauld Place, London, England
July 23rd, 1995 (Gregorian Calendar)
Al woke up from his nightmare with a violent start. His looked around in panic which caused him bolt upright in the creaky bed. Then it all came back to him the mission, the Gate, the mission, and the dinner. After the meeting the members split up including Molly and her husband. They said something about a family to care for of which their pompous guide at the Ministry was a member. It was a sore spot for them.
Only Edward, Alphonse, and three of the Order members stayed to eat. Sirius Black was a wanted fugitive who owned this grim abode he was obviously malnourished but, his long graying hair was clean and goatee was trimmed. Remus Lupin was an old friend to Sirius who was in his mid-thirties. His graying brown hair was neatly trimmed and his face was marred by three scars. Tonks was a young witch with a peppy personality who Al had the pleasure of sitting with during the meeting. Her status as a metamorphmagus had shocked the Amestrians but it was clearly not a cause for concern her so they tried to relax around her.
The five of them spent the evening covering many topics. They compared Amestris and England. Remus offered to assist the boys in creating lesson plans and the basics of being a Hogwarts teacher as he himself had been a professor a few years prior. Sirius and Tonks had given them some helpful advice for how to deal with Ministry officials as they were an ex-auror and auror respectfully. There was also a good deal of story trading between all of them. Overall, it was a good night.
Alphonse stretched and looked over to Ed's empty bed. 'He must already be up,' he thought. He rose from the bed and headed for the dining room on the floor below. The rough cold floor caused him to move gingerly to the door but he stopped when he heard a conversation through the dining room door.
"…So Ed, can I ask what happened to your arm? You were rather quiet on the subject last night," Al heard Sirius say. He must have been up early too. Given twelve years in that hellhole of a prison it wasn't surprising.
Ed sighed heavily and put down what sounded like a pen on the table. "Sure. I won't tell you everything but… I can give you the gist." He paused and slurped from a drink. "There are certain limits on what magic can do, yeah?"
There was a pregnant pause where Al assumed that he was nodding. "They can be somewhat flexible though."
"Alchemy has those too. Only without the flexibility. If you exceed those limits there is a rebound. If a certain act is attempted there is almost never equivalence. I convinced Al to try and attempt one of the forbidden acts. As a result, Al was put into a fatal position. I traded my arm to save him."
"You now, magic can sometimes regrow limbs. Maybe…"
"No," came Ed's reply. "Because of the way I lost it, there are only two ways I can get my arm back. One, is horrible and we have promised never to use it. The other would mean reversing trading Al."
There was a pause filled by the creaking of a wooden chair. "I'd make the same call for Remus and James. Even my actual brother, the bloody bastard."
Ed slurped his drink again. "You have a brother?"
"Not anymore. Regulus died during the war. He sided with Voldemort, much to my parents delight. Never found out how he passed." Sirius' voice was quiet. It had a sadness that only crept into his voice when he spoke of James the night before.
"I'm sorry."
Sirius didn't respond for a moment. "He may have been the enemy… but he was still my little brother."
There was a long pause where neither man spoke. Al figured it was that was his cue to enter. He walked in to see Ed in the long sleeve shirt and pajama pants he wore the night before. Sirius was in similar attire. Before each man was a mug of coffee and Ed also had a notebook and pen. "What are you two doing up so early?" asked Al trying to shift the subject to something lighter.
Ed smiled at his brother. "The damp here is hell on my ports. Woke me up a little bit ago."
"I couldn't sleep," said Sirius simply. He slurped at his coffee. "So when do you plan on asking out my cousin?"
Al's eyes went wide and he started stammering.
Ed rolled his eyes. "Calm down, ladies' man. He's joking." He gestured down to the notebook in front of him. "I've started on those lesson things Remus mentioned."
Al fought down his blush and sat next to Ed. "Well, then I better make sure you don't maim anyone!" He was punched in his arm with a metal hand.
Sirius smiled at the brothers working in front of him. It took him back twenty years. Back to before Hogwarts, before he and Regulus grew apart. Simpler times. The man swept away the tear forming in his eye then began to give his input.
Outside Number 4 Privet Drive
Little Whinging, Surrey, England
July 23rd, 1995 (Gregorian Calendar)
The man standing before the residence of Harry Potter wearing a face that was not his own. He stood directly below a streetlamp and within perfect view of the smallest bedroom of Number 4 Privet Drive. It was the perfect way to play with the mind of his quarry. This continuing alliance with this 'Dark Lord' character was proving to be quite fun. Of course the involvement of those blasted Amestrians from that damned Gate had almost caused the collapse of the plans they had developed concerning the Potter boy. Especially, those Amestrians. If that plan failed then he and his siblings would never get their revenge.
Originally, the Man with the Borrowed Face and his siblings had convinced Voldemort to allow the Ministry to tear the boy apart. He would be removed from the equation by the Ministry officials trying to discredit the Dark Lord's return. It was perfect. The damned 'ambassadors' had mucked it all up. Now they had to take direct action and the new plan had to rely on that Dumbledore fool's habit of playing it close to his chest.
But, that doesn't mean he couldn't have fun in the meantime. Across the street there was movement in the window. His quarry's eyes widened in horror and let out a yell that didn't reach the ears of the Man with the Borrowed Face. He smiled in glee and turned on his heel and Harry Potter watched as Cedric Diggory walked into the darkness.
Number 12 Grimmauld Place
London, England
July 29th, 1995 (Gregorian Calendar)
The Weasley Family flooed to the sitting room of Headquarters in the early evening. Molly had been arranging this with Sirius and Dumbledore since the last Order meeting. Dumbledore was hoping to fully open the house to create a true safe house. Sirius just wanted the cheap labor to clean out the nasties. In response Molly, had gotten her underage children to pack their trunks to stay at the Black family home for the remainder of the summer.
Sirius greeted them in the hall. "Hello, Molly," he whispered somewhat coldly. He obviously didn't care for the woman. But he did turn on some charm to the children. "And hello to you guys. How's your leg Ron?"
Ron's face flushed and he returned the bright smile somewhat nervously. "Fully recovered."
"Good, good. Now we don't have an Order meeting in the dining room tonight so we should probably get your trunks squared away so we can eat…" Sirius sent Molly into the dining room to wait with the few other guests while he led her children upstairs to their rooms. Ginny was given her own room as were the twins and Ron. After letting them put away their trunks, he pointed out the bathroom between the twins' and Ginny's rooms. Sirius also pointed out a fourth bedroom with the door shut to explain that other guests were there. He knocked on the door to announce dinner before heading back downstairs.
The twins faced their siblings in the hall and leaned against the landings railing.
Ginny grimaced at their surroundings as she said, "Well isn't this just a cheery place."
Ron's stomach growled loudly. "Snark later. Food now."
In the Dining Room
The Weasley children entered the dining room and arranged themselves around the other adults in the room. Sirius and their former Professor Lupin were talking animatedly at the corner of the table. Their mother was setting dishes on the table. A witch sat quietly staring at the door and tapping foot as her hair cycled through multiple colors.
The twins got her attention in the manner only they can. "Well, Forge…"
"Isn't that…"
"It is."
"Miss Tonks! Pleasure to see you again," they said in unison.
The witch in question rolled her eyes. "Nice to see you to, boys. You tell your older brother, I'm not yet sorry about our little spat in seventh year."
Ginny's face split into a wide grin. "That was you? Man, Charlie couldn't sit right for a week! How'd you do it?"
Tonks reclined in her chair and smiled slyly but before she could speak Mrs. Weasley put a firm hand on her shoulder. "Tonks, dear. Let's not go about corrupting anymore of my children."
"Aw… Mum!" she shouted as the door opened.
Mrs. Weasley glared but didn't say anything as the door swung open and two blonde men walked in. "Wotcher, Al! Ed!"
One was wearing a dress shirt tucked into slacks. He had short hair. The other man could only have been his long haired brother. He was wearing a tank top tucked into his slacks with a long brown coat over it. The thing that drew the attention of the teenagers was the metal hand at the bottom of the right sleeve. Upon seeing the faces focusing on him the man withdrew gloves from his pocket and put them on. "What?" asked the man. He drew the coat around him tighter. "It's not polite to stare you know."
END OF CHAPTER FOUR
END NOTE: That was chapter four. Not my best work but necessary for the continuation of my plot. Favorite, review, or fight sharks in the ocean. I don't know, I'm not a marine biologist. Anyway, next chapter will be up next week.
In the meantime, have a good week.
-Rising Robin