Author's Note - Well, I had hoped to get this posted earlier in the week and maybe have another post for you, but things never tend to work out like we wish, do they? I've had my first break this week, which was a good one. A friend and I went up to NYC and just on the off chance, stopped by the Broadhurst theater and actually got tickets to see Equus. Couldn't believe the luck. Daniel and Richard Griffith's performances were absolutely amazing. I highly recommend seeing it if you can. We were in nosebleed and could still see wonderfully. There are no bad seats and we paid about 60 at the box office, so not too bad at all. Parents, I do however recommend that you check out the play before taking your child. I had seen Equus as an undergrad production in college and either I didn't properly remember the play or they edited it since it was a college production in the US Biblebelt. I'd have had to be living in an icecap not to know that it had some nudity, but the themes of the play are not for kids either. I'd say if it were a movie, definately R, maybe higher, so use your head. There were some kids going in with their parents that I thought were too young, but I'm not a parent, so I just recommend you preview it.

You will no longer have to wade through my replies to reviews as I've been shown how to respond directly. My thanks for your wading through them thus far. Also, anonymous reviewers should now be able to review if they wish.

The end of this is admittedly awkward, but I wouldn't get it right no matter how I worked at it, so I finally conceded defeat and am posting as it. Ok, enough of that, on with story...


Chapter 4 - The Order of the Phoenix (Part 2)

The door to the kitchen thumped again and even through the crowd, the two Marauders could spot bright pink enter the room.

"Is someone wearing a puffskein hat?" Sirius quirked an eyebrow.

The crowd parted and Sirius's question was answered as a young woman with a heart-shaped face and spiked pink hair made her way directly towards them, a queer grin on her face.

"Wotcher, cousin Sirius."

"Who are you?" Sirius asked, tilting his head.

"I'm crushed," she crossed her arms over her purple Weird Sister's t-shirt before scrunching her face. Her hair suddenly turned blue and curly.

"Nymphadora!" Sirius gasped, "I don't believe it!" He held his arms wide and swooped the young woman into a bear hug.

"Mum always said she couldn't believe you'd done what they said," her voice was muffled against Sirius's shoulder, "I remember how furious she was when you didn't get a trial."

"Well, that's in the past I suppose. How is your mum?" He asked, stepping back to look at his baby cousin.

"Oh, same as ever. She has her club, her painting, and Dad, so she's happy," the woman smiled fondly before glancing curiously at Remus.

"Oh, sorry," Sirius shook his head, "I just can't believe it's you. You were just a kid the last time I saw you. Remus, this is my cousin Andromeda's daughter Nymphadora Tonks…it is still Tonks?" he asked, scanning her finger for a ring.

"It's only Tonks," the woman shuddered, her hair turning green, "What possessed my bloody mother to name me Nymphadora is beyond me."

"I think it's a beautiful name," Remus smiled.

"Call me by it and I'll hex you," she glared, "I go by Tonks, thanks." She said, holding her hand out.

"Remus Lupin," Remus shook her hand.

"Remus Lupin," she repeated slowly, still shaking his hand, "Where have I heard…"

"I probably mentioned him to you when you were little," Sirius said quickly, "Him and James Potter. We were all best mates at school."

"Yes, the infamous Marauder's," a voice slipped coolly up from behind Lupin.

"Snape," Sirius acknowledged the Potion's Master flatly.

"Black," he returned, "and Lupin," he glanced at the both of them distastefully.

"Severus," Remus nodded politely, "Good to see you here."

"I'm sure you know the feeling is not mutual. And Miss Tonks," his gaze slipped to the young woman, "I heard you became an auror."

"That's right, er, Professor," she said, shifting from foot to foot.

"They must have lowered the standards seeing as you were never able to manage to put one foot in front of the other without inspecting the floor or keep a single emotion from changing your hair ridiculous colors," he sneered.

Nymphadora's hair flashed to red

"Really, Severus, that's uncalled for," Remus rebuked when Tonks's sputtering failed to become fully formed words.

"Haven't they passed legislation yet to keep your kind from being in decent company?" Snape barely spared him a glance before pushing through further into the kitchen, "Lovely home, Black, I'm particularly fond of the serpant fixtures," he parted over his shoulder.

"What's that entrail expelling hex again, Moony?" Sirius growled.

"What is his problem!?" Tonks finally managed indignantly.

Remus sighed, pushing his bangs out of his eyes "Severus is Severus. He's a valuable member of the Order, but his personality could use a makeover."

"What's he got against you two?"

"He was in the same year as us at school," Sirius said, "Wormy little weirdo with greasy hair and dark arts streaming out of his nose."

"Translation, Sirius, James, and Severus had a loathing for each other at first sight," Remus said, sipping his tea. "James hated anything to do with the Dark Arts and Severus probably knew more dark magic than many in the student body."

"And the git was bloody proud of being a Slytherin," Sirius grumbled.

"Hence Sirius's dislike," Remus said aside, "And then when the two of them doused him with lavender powder in our first potions class, well it all went downhill from there."

"But you must admit he smelled better." Sirius said. Remus merely inclined his head.

"So what's he got against you?" Tonks asked.

"A far more reasonable issue seeing as I almost bit him…twice," Remus said, taking a sip of his tea and watching Tonks's face.

She appeared puzzled for a moment before her eyes widened, "Remus Lupin! You're the werewolf Dumbledore hired to teach Defense last year."

"Guilty, I'm afraid," Remus said, extending his hand to her.

Tonks stared at it a moment before taking it, shaking it oddly, turning it this way and that, examining it before leaning forward and staring intently at his face.

"Jeez, Tonks, do you need a magnifying glass?" Sirius snickered.

Tonks immediately flushed and dropped Remus's hand, "Sorry, I've just never met a werewolf before."

"You never know. You might have. No pentagram," he said flatly, showing her his palm, "No sharpened canines or pointed ears…"

"Definitely no heightened sexual aggressiveness," Sirius snorted.

Remus glared at him, "The only way to tell a werewolf from a human is seeing them transform or noticing that they're sick around the full moon."

Tonks flushed, "I didn't mean to be rude," she said. "They teach werewolves in Academy, of course, but given what you've just said, it seems they haven't taught me properly."

"And what Academy would that be?" Sirius asked.

"Auror Academy. Professor Snape was right about that," Tonks smiled proudly, "Junior of course, not long out of training, but fully qualified."

"Andromeda and Ted must be proud." Sirius smiled.

"I hope they are," Tonks began, but they were distracted by a sudden quietness in the room as Dumbledore entered.

The elder wizard looked around for a moment, smiling, "I see that everyone has arrived. If we could all take our seats, there is much to go over. Sirius," his twinkling blue eyes found him in the crowd, "if you could show Masters Weasley and Miss Weasley to a place where they can wait comfortably?"

Sirius herded the younger redheads out to a loud chorus of "That's not fair!" and "But I want to stay!" as the rest of the members took their seat. When Sirius returned, he took a seat beside Remus near the head of the table to Dumbledore's right.

"Well, first, I must welcome you all to the Order of the Phoenix. Some of you are here for the first time. The rest of you return after many years. I can say that it is wonderful to see all of your faces, though I very much regret the circumstances. To get right to the heart of the matter, we gather here today because Lord Voldemort has returned." Dumbledore paused a moment as most of the witches and wizards shuddered, "I am sure that all of you have either read or heard of the events of the final task of the Triwizard tournament, but as there have been many versions circulating, I ask for your patience as I tell you the true version.

"Harry Potter and Cedric Diggory took hold of the Triward Cup at the same moment to claim a united victory for Hogwarts. The cup had been turned into a portkey by a dark wizard that infiltrated Hogwarts by means of polyjuice potion disguised as the auror Alastor Moody."

At the end of the table, a much thinner and paler Moody grunted.

"They were taken to a graveyard in Little Hangleton. Cedric Diggory was killed immediately by Peter Pettigrew."

Remus and Sirius both shifted, their faces grim.

"Mr. Potter was then witness to the rebirth of Lord Voldemort by means of such ancient magic that I speculate that it took him many years to discover how to accomplish it properly."

"Are you certain the boy can be believed?" Moody grunted.

"Are you calling my godson a liar?" Sirius growled.

"Well he is much like his father," Snape sneered.

"Enough," Dumbledore put his hand up, stalling Sirius's retort, but not wiping the murderous glare from his face, "Mr. Potter has never lied to me. There have been times when he has chosen not to confide in me, but that does not make me doubt his story." He paused a moment, meeting each pair of eyes in turn before continuing, "Our purpose here is direct, but by no means simple. We are here to fight Lord Voldemort and to bring about his permanent downfall."

"But how is that possible." Molly Weasley spoke, "If he couldn't be killed before, how can we hope to ever defeat him."

"There is a way to defeat him. I have my beliefs on how he managed to survive, but I am not ready to discuss that until I have more information. For tonight, I wish to discuss two ongoing tasks that we will all need to undertake. First, there is the security of Mr. Potter. While measures have been taken to insure he is safe while staying with his relatives, Mr. Potter has shown himself capable of being persuaded to do things out of bounds if he feels that it is for the greater good."

"Meaning he breaks the rules as he sees fit," Snape growled.

"No, Severus, what I mean is that if he believes that he is helping, he will go to any means or lengths to try. Therefore, I ask that we all take turns keeping watch over the Dursley house to see that he remains there and that nothing suspicious occurs."

There were murmurs of agreement, and so Dumbledore continued, "The second task is to safeguard something that if it were to fall into Voldemort's hands could mean his permanent victory. Many years ago, a prophecy was made on how Lord Voldemort could be defeated. He would give anything, do anything, to hear this prophecy. Therefore we must see to it that he doesn't. The recording is in the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic."

"But, why not just tell the Department of Magical Law Enforcement," one member asked, "They could see it moved to a secure location."

"I fear that there are few within the Ministry that would believe that it is necessary and even fewer that we could trust to accomplish the task." Dumbledore said sadly. "Those of you that work at the Ministry are going to find your lives becoming increasingly more difficult. Cornelius refuses to accept the truth and is beginning a campaign to see to it that the public believes nothing that either I or Harry says. Anyone seen to side with us will find themselves at risk. I ask you all to consider this carefully. If any of you feel that you cannot continue as members of the Order, come to me. Are there any questions?" Looks were exchanged, but no one spoke.

"Very well then, before assignments for duties are made, it is essential that everyone here is able to conjure a patronus. They will be our primary means of communication. Who here is able to cast a corporeal patronus?"

There was a hand from every member of the old Order, and not a single one from the new members.

"Very well then. We are very fortunate to have among our ranks one who has accomplished the unheard of task of teaching a thirteen year old to cast a full patronus. Therefore, I have complete faith that each of your will accomplish it much quicker under his tutelage. Remus Lupin is a Master of Defense Against the Dark Arts, apprenticed under the formidable Master Gyan Varen."

"Gyan Varen hasn't taken apprentices in fifty years," Kingsley Shacklebolt frowned.

"He has taken one," Albus corrected him. "Remus will be in charge of training. For those of you who need to learn the Patronus Charm, meet…" he looked at Remus questioning.

"Tomorrow night at nine in the dining room." Remus said quietly, staring at his hands.

"Nine in the dining room," Albus nodded, "All of you here are also aware of Sirius Black's innocence." All eyes now turned to the chair beside Remus, "Kingsley is in charge of the Ministry search for you, Sirius. If you could be so kind, Kingsley, as to get in a credible tip as to Sirius's whereabouts very far from London?"

"It should not be a problem," Kingsley nodded.

"Excellent," Albus smiled, "Sirius is in charge of headquarters. If there is something you need, see him. This is also his childhood home that he has graciously offered for our use. I trust everyone will respect the property, but as it has been unused for quite some time, I know that Sirius and Remus both would appreciate any help that any of you could give to make the space more comfortable. There may come a time when many of us are keeping quarters here and it would be nice if the house were a bit less…"

"Morbid," Sirius grumbled. The group laughed nervously, glancing about.

"Well, dusty was the word I was going to use, but as you wish." He smiled, "And finally one other member of the Order already has an assigned task, Master of Potions and Hogwarts Professor Severus Snape functioned as a spy for the Order during the first war. He has been able to assume this task once more. It is a dangerous duty and one that no one else has been able to accomplish. No one is to interfere with Severus." He paused, meeting each set of eyes at the table, "Severus is always operating with my approval and therefore anything that he does should be seen as sanctioned by me personally."

Albus smiled again, "Very well, if there is nothing else, this meeting is closed. I would invite you to get to know each other. Feel free to drop by any time, I should assume, Sirius?"

"Just don't use the bloody knocker." He sighed.

"Ah yes," Dumbledore glanced at the door, "you owled me about the portrait of Madame Black. Neither of you has had success in removing it?"

At the shakes of Remus and Sirius's heads, the old wizard stood, moving out into the corridor. He stood in front of the curtained portrait, pulling the black cloth aside.

"Get your filthy muggle-loving hands off my frame!" The portrait spat.

"Ah, Madame Black, how do you do?" Dumbledore inclined his head to her.

"Don't give me that self-righteous tone," Mrs. Black crossed her arms, "If it wasn't for you, my eldest might have turned out properly."

Dumbledore turned his head to look at the man in question, "I think your son was turned out quite admirably."

"Blood treacherous shame…"

"Madame Black," Dumbledore interjected before she got warmed up, "Might I inquire how we can move your frame to a more suitable location."

"Hmph, my frame can only be moved by a pure-blood who wishes to honor the portrait," her eyes swept across the gathering doubtfully.

"Well," Sirius sighed, "we're f…" Remus swiftly covered his friend's mouth.

"Ah well," Dumbledore shrugged, letting the covering fall back over the portrait, "I suppose we can just look upon her as a very unique warning system. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming. We will meet again in one week's time for those who will not being coming tomorrow night."

The crowd dispersed, with most of them headed immediately for the door. Remus smiled, seeing Sirius talking animatedly with his cousin, whose wild gestures threatened to knock a few passersby into unconsciousness.

"Headmaster," Molly Weasley approached Dumbledore.

"Molly, it is high time that you called me Albus," Dumbledore smiled warmly.

"Well, that will take some getting used to. Arthur and I were talking and we'd like to volunteer to help get headquarters cleaned up."

"I had a feeling that you might," Dumbledore grinned, "Both Sirius and Remus have said that they will be glad to have your help."

"Oh, they're both staying here, are they?" Molly said awkwardly.

"Yes," Dumbledore nodded, "I'm sure they can have some rooms ready for your family," he looked towards Remus who was standing aside.

Remus nodded, "Shouldn't be a problem. How many rooms?" He asked politely.

"One or two at first will be fine," Arthur said, "We don't want to be a bother."

"No bother at all," Remus waved him off, "One for you and Mrs. Weasley, one for Fred and George, one for Ginny, and one for Ron and Harry when he comes," Remus looked at Dumdledore hopefully.

"Yes, when can Harry come?" Sirius came up from behind Remus, having overheard the last of the conversation.

"I couldn't say," Dumbledore said, "The longer we can keep him on Privet Drive, the better off he'll be."

"He belongs here," Sirius grumbled, "He's miserable at his aunt and uncle's."

"I am aware that he is unhappy there, but he is safe and that is what is important."

"To you, maybe," Sirius growled.

"We will discuss this at a later time," Dumbledore said definitively before turning back to the Weasley's, "I have however, received an owl from Hermione Granger expressing her wish to be of assistance. I was thinking that she might join us here to assist with the cleaning."

Molly nodded, "She's a lovely girl and she would be good help. It would be nice company for Ginny as well."

"Very well then, I shall have her meet you all here tomorrow." Dumbledore smiled, "Remus, Sirius, we shall leave you in peace for a bit longer."

Dumbledore and the Weasley's said their goodbyes, leaving the two men in a silent house.