A/N: Thanks to all those who have reviewed, followed, and favorited this story. I'm glad that people have been enjoying it. And a special thanks to Bonnie and Mainsail for beta reading this and thus improving on the original. If you have questions or concerns about what's going on, feel free to include them in a review or a PM — I'll try to answer.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, JK Rowling does.
Recommendation: This chapter's recommended fic is "Wizards Suck" by . Hermione proves to be a genuine friend by refusing to obey Dumbledore's order to keep Harry isolated after fifth year. H/Hr.
Italics: a person's thoughts.
Chapter 10 - Fight for your Rights
Monday, August 9, 1995, Morning.
"Cornelius, is this true?" Dolores Umbridge demanded as she stormed into the office of the Minister for Magic. She didn't see him grimace as she sat down across from him and waved the piece of parchment she'd brought in with her.
"Is what true, Dolores?"
"This!" she said, waving the parchment around a bit more. "I Just got this from the Department for Magical Education. It says that Dumbledore has managed to hire someone for the post of Professor for Defense Against the Dark Arts, but it doesn't say who!"
"Ah, yes," Fudge said carefully. "I got the memo earlier and had it checked out. The report is valid, and as it turns out, there is a provision that authorizes the headmaster to keep the identity of new staff a secret until the first of September. It apparently dates back to a time when people would duel over the honor of teaching at Hogwarts, and this law was created so that new professors wouldn't have to fight to keep their jobs before they even taught their first class. Naturally, the law was never rescinded."
Umbridge huffed in annoyance. "This ruins all of our plans! Even after we discredit that Potter girl, Dumbledore will still be able to plot against us, secure in his castle!"
"Really, Dolores, it's not that bad," Fudge insisted. "I'll admit that you not having the Defense post is a bit of a setback, but there's nothing saying that we can't name you Chief Inquisitor anyway. We just need to get the right directives passed through the Department of Magical Education before classes start. Then, after a week or two, you can show up at the castle and begin to weed out the traitors."
Umbridge brightened. "Why, I do believe you're right, Cornelius. I can't believe I didn't think of that myself."
Fudge smiled and nodded, happy to have reminded his subordinate why he sat behind the big desk and pulled in the big brib... er, salary. "Now tell me," he said, "is everything on track for dealing with Potter?"
"Oh, absolutely," Umbridge answered happily. "All of your allies have been notified about the correct time and place for her trial. I've got all of the charges drawn up and ready to use. I even found a few old incidents in her records that we can add in — the magic she did in the summers before and after her second year, for example."
"Lucky for us you happened to be visiting Mafalda when the reports of their use of magic came in," Fudge said. "Amelia still doesn't suspect a thing, does she?"
"Absolutely not," Umbridge assured him. "John is keeping an eye on things in the DMLE, and he assures me that the entire department is consumed with tracking down Sirius Black. They don't have time for anything else, including Amelia. She won't be able to derail our plan with annoying little loopholes or technicalities."
"Excellent," Fudge said. "And what about that other witch who's coming in with Potter — Grazer?"
"Granger," Umbridge corrected. "She's just a muggleborn, no one of any importance, but she is Potter's friend, so expelling her will make Potter feel even worse. I don't know if this muggleborn's use of magic on the same night was coincidental or if it was part of some sort of organized plot arranged by Dumbledore, but either way we'll be able to make use of it. I can't remember exactly which spells she was recorded as using, since I was paying more attention to Potter…."
"It's of no great consequence, I'm sure," Fudge said with a dismissive wave.
Umbridge nodded. "I have the official list of spells locked up in my office, so we can have them read into the records during the trial."
"Good, good," Fudge said. "Don't let me keep you, I'm sure you still have work to do to ensure that everything goes according to plan."
"Of course, Cornelius," Umbridge simpered as she rose from the chair. "I'll let you know if anything happens." With that comment, she left to return to her preparations while Fudge put his feet up on his desk and returned to reading the Quidditch scores.
Monday, August 9, 1995, Afternoon.
It wasn't until late Monday that Jasmine and Hermione were able to successfully call Dobby and Winky. The two elves had returned to Britain earlier in the day, but they were tired and didn't think it appropriate to appear before their mistresses until they were actually called. When they were called, though, they were thrilled beyond the ability of words to convey… which was probably why the two elves also produced copious tears and wailing, too.
After they had calmed down a bit but before Hermione could ask how things had gone, she noticed the elves abruptly blink and stare intently at their mistresses for a moment. Then she saw Dobby lean over and whisper to the other elf, "Dobby be thinking that they be knowing." Winky immediately nodded vigorously, sending her ears flapping all over the place.
"What are we knowing?" Hermione said with a frown.
Dobby's eyes widened as he stammered, "You, uh... she and…."
"Winky?" Jasmine asked expectantly, but the little elf just whimpered and started pulling on her ears. Suddenly it dawned on Hermione what the problem was.
Jasmine clearly wasn't far behind her. "Did everyone know about this bond but us?" she asked irritably. Seeing that the elves were still struggling, she added, "Though I guess we should tell them and put them out of their misery, huh?"
Speaking in unison, they announced, "Jasmine Potter and Hermione Granger share a soul bond." Almost immediately the two elves sagged in relief, finally able to talk openly about the bond they'd long seen developing between their mistresses. Apparently it was a great honor for elves to serve a soul-bonded couple, and this was why they'd grown in stature and power when they themselves had bonded to the witches.
Eventually, Jasmine and Hermione were able to ask their elves how their lessons had gone and what they thought of their muggle teacher.
"Oh, the great Xandy Man be knowing so much about beasties and monsters!" Dobby said enthusiastically.
Winky nodded in agreement. "He be teaching us so much about slaying and carving up magical beasties."
"Killing, too?" Hermione asked disbelievingly.
"Oh, yes," Dobby answered, "Mr. Xandy Man be saying that to harvest a beastie, we must be knowing all about the beastie's biology — innards and outards — and he be teaching us all that by teaching us how best to be slaying them."
"That sounds… creepy," Jasmine said slowly. "Probably effective, but oh so creepy."
"Did you have fun, at least?" Hermione asked. "He didn't work you all the time, did he?"
"Oh, no," Dobby responded. "Mr. Xandy Man be teaching us how to listen to… Country Music."
"The music of pain!" Winky added with wide-eyed sincerity.
Hermione simply sat there, open-mouthed, while Jasmine put her hand over her face in consternation. "I'm going to put my foot down right now," the green-eyed witch said sternly. "If I hear either of you singing about pickup trucks or how your dog died, I'm giving you clothes. Got it?" Both elves nodded fearfully.
Hermione tsked. "She's just kidding about the clothes," she assured them quickly, shooting a reproachful look at her girlfriend. At Jasmine's baleful expression, she amended, "Probably. I think. ...Best not to find out, though, right? Sooo, moving on… do you two think you'll be able to harvest the basilisk?"
When both elves said they could, she continued, "Good, we have a few things we'd like you to do, if you're willing. First, this house needs to be cleaned up - but secretly. Mrs. Weasley wouldn't approve of you helping her kids, I don't think. How easy is it for you to travel back and forth between here and Hogwarts?
"It be... a long way to go," Dobby said hesitantly. "We be stronger than most elves, but the long trip be taking a lot out of us."
"How about you switch every other night?" Jasmine suggested.
"We can be doing that!" Winky replied.
"OK, then," Jasmine said, "if you can, one of you spend an hour or two here every night when everyone's asleep. Make gradual improvements, alright? And don't let anyone see you, especially Sirius' house elf, Kreacher — we're not entirely sure how reliable he is."
When both elves nodded, she went on, "Next is the Chamber of Secrets. Can you get down there on your own?" The elves shook their heads, which caused Jasmine to sigh. "OK, I'll take you there after we return. Once you go down, your priorities will be to clear out the cave-in that Lockhart caused, clean up a little, assess the condition of the basilisk, then find out if there is some other way in and out. If I have to get you in and then get you out all the time, it'll get complicated. Alright?"
"So except for coming here for a couple of hours every night," Hermione clarified, "spend your time doing what you want."
The two elves hugged their witches, switching back and forth several times before finally popping out.
Tuesday, August 10, 1995, Morning.
Since they now had multiple reasons to talk to the portrait of Elladora Black, Jasmine and Hermione decided to deal with it first thing in the morning. Sirius and Fleur promised to cover for them and run interference if necessary.
"Uh, hi?" Jasmine said hesitantly after Sirius had shut them in.
"Hello, dears," the kind-looking woman in the portrait frame said as she gazed serenely at the two witches. "I've heard ever so much about the two of you, and I must say that I've been hoping to meet you... well, in more of a social way, that is, but Sirius informed me that you'd need to talk to me on a professional level."
"You've heard about us?" Hermione asked, sticking close to Jasmine.
The portrait of Elladora nodded. "I can't give you any details, of course, but Sirius needed to talk about some of the experiences that have hurt him, and as part of that we talked about a lot of different things in his life, good and bad." She smiled warmly. "You two, naturally, were among the good."
Both witches looked pleased at hearing that.
"Why don't you two sit down and tell me what's on your minds," the portrait said while gesturing to two chairs that had been arranged facing the wall.
"Did Sirius tell you anything?" Jasmine asked as she unconsciously shifted her chair slightly closer to Hermione's before sitting down.
"No," Elladora answered, "and I told him not to. I didn't want to prejudice my responses by hearing anything in advance through him. Whatever I learn will depend entirely on what you choose to tell me. And it will remain confidential, of course."
"Can a portrait take a magical oath to keep secrets?" Hermione asked, curious.
"No, dear, I'm afraid not," Elladora said. "Oaths and other bonds attach to a person's magic, which requires the presence of a soul. The same is true with a lot of magic — for example, I know this house is hidden by the Fidelius charm, but I can't be given the secret, nor can I talk to others outside the house about it. Right after I'm told the location, I'll forget it — I'll know that I was told something important, but I won't be able to remember what it was. Just as the secret is hidden in the secret keeper's soul, it must be communicated to another soul to be shared.
"Portraits can, however, be ordered by the head of the house to keep secrets," she went on, "and that's what Sirius has done. He's ordered me to keep everything learned in these sessions confidential, even if he or a future head of house orders me differently. The only exception would be if I learned something that made me think you were in imminent danger of harming yourselves or someone else."
Both girls looked relieved. When they continued to sit in silence, however, Elladora prompted, "So, why don't you start at the beginning, dears? I find that usually works best."
"I… uh, we… killed people a few days ago," Hermione said hesitantly, and Elladora's eyebrows rose. "We were both attacked in our homes — Jasmine by dementors and me by Death Eaters. After Jasmine drove off the dementors, she sensed I was in trouble and apparated to my home, even though she'd never been there."
At that point Elladora would have had to sit down in shock had she not gotten hints from Walburga earlier that there was something unusual about these two… something even beyond what had been obvious to her when they came in. "I killed, uh, five or six of them. Jasmine killed... how many, Jas?"
Jasmine kept staring down at her hands in her lap when she said, "At least four. Maybe more, but I don't know if the two that apparated away lived or not." Hermione reached out and gave Jasmine's arm a quick squeeze.
"And how do you two feel about that?" Elladora asked. "I'm sensing that you're rather upset? Guilty?"
"I do feel guilty," Hermione said, "but not about killing them."
"Oh?"
"No," Hermione said determinedly. "They were going to rape, torture, and kill me and my parents. I don't feel guilty for doing what I had to in order to protect us all. I don't like that I had to do it, and I really hate that I have to fight and kill for my right to simply exist, but I don't feel guilty about it."
"Then...?" Elladora prodded.
Hermione sighed. "I feel guilty that I don't feel guilty. I mean, only a monster doesn't feel guilty about killing people, right?"
"What do you think, Jasmine?" Elladora asked.
"I, uh... well, I guess I feel basically the same way," she said after a moment's hesitation. "I mean, I'd have killed far more if they'd been there, doing the same things. I wouldn't have hesitated. But does that make me a monster, too? I have nightmares many nights and don't sleep well, thinking about what I did."
Elladora smiled sympathetically. "No, my dear. Monsters don't have nightmares about their actions," she said gently. "What you're feeling is not at all unusual — many aurors and others involved in violence have reactions similar to yours. They dislike what they've done, but they don't feel guilty because they know that what they did was necessary. Some, however, have trouble with their lack of guilt: they've been taught that violence and killing are wrong, so expect to feel bad about having gone against deeply-ingrained norms and morals. Does that sound about right?"
Jasmine looked troubled. "When I used those spells, I didn't spare a moment's thought for choosing less damaging options — I immediately cast whatever I thought would put those Death Eaters down hard and fast. When I think about that now, though… I wonder if maybe I've forgotten how to be moral or something."
Elladora nodded. "What you have to come to terms with is that for pretty much every moral value, there are circumstances where it doesn't apply. In extreme circumstances, normal rules have a habit of breaking down, and in order to survive, we need to be flexible enough to accept that. Our values and morals exist to serve us — to help us create and maintain social order. We don't exist to serve them."
Hermione spoke up then. "That's basically what I had to deal with when I first started learning how to cast harmful spells. I always knew that there are people who accept the responsibility for using violence to protect the rest of us, but I hadn't thought much about what that meant until I was faced with the choice of becoming such a person myself."
"And I guess this was just the next step, wasn't it?" Jasmine asked. "I'll admit that I accepted the idea that I'd end up having to hurt others much sooner than you did, Hermione, but I never thought much about killing. Even after I realized that I had killed Quirrell in first year, I didn't think about it too much because Dumbledore said he was as good as dead as soon as he allowed himself to become possessed." She paused, then added softly, "This is different, though."
They continued to talk about it for some time, both girls trying to come to terms with questions for which there were no easy answers. Finally Elladora said, "I hope this has helped somewhat — you do seem to understand the issues intellectually. That doesn't mean that you'll instantly feel better, of course. It takes time for such insights to completely sink in and become a part of ourselves. What's more, if you truly are decent, good people at heart, you'll always be a bit bothered by having to use violence. Your conscience niggling at you over such things is proof that you still have a conscience, so don't lament that."
For the first time, both Jasmine and Hermione smiled a little.
"The nightmares should pass with time," Elladora continued. "Talking about the details of what you did may help them to pass more quickly."
"The last time I was in a serious fight," Jasmine said, "one of my professors had me explain what I did in order to use that as a teaching tool. We spent time analyzing all of my decisions so I could understand what I could have done better. Looking back, I think that helped me process it all, and my nightmares from that night stopped pretty soon after that."
Elladora smiled. "That's an excellent idea! Talking about your experiences that way creates emotional distance much more quickly — events become an academic problem to solve rather than an emotional trauma. There are a couple of portraits in this house who had extensive dueling experience. I'd be willing to do a session with you while they are in the room, and then have them walk you through your experiences like your professor did. Does that sound like something you'd be interested in?"
"Yes, I think it's worth doing," Jasmine replied. "Even if it doesn't help us get over the nightmares faster, I'd like to think that it will help us improve for the next time — and unfortunately, there will probably be a next time."
Hermione agreed. "Can we wait and do it tomorrow, though? This has already been kind of draining, and I — we — have a lot of things to think about."
"Of course, my dear," Elladora said warmly. "I'll arrange to have the others brought in... tomorrow morning? I recommend that you two take the rest of the day and just relax together. You need to regain some equilibrium."
The two witches thanked the portrait and left, each deep in thought about the things that had been said.
Elladora stared at the closed door for a good long while before softly saying to herself, "If anything, Walburga greatly understated how interesting those two witches are."
Wednesday, August 11, 1995, Morning.
While Elladora Black was having her second session with Jasmine and Hermione in a sealed room at Grimmauld Place, Amelia Bones was in a sealed room in the Ministry of Magic meeting with her two chief lieutenants. She kept these meetings infrequent so as not to draw undue attention, but events in the Ministry were moving quickly, and she needed the counsel of these two people.
"Alright, we don't have a lot of time for this, so tell me the status of the two new investigations," Amelia said without preamble.
"I had trusted people go over the scene at the Grangers'," Moira said. "I've also personally reviewed the interview done by Moody and Shacklebolt of the two underaged witches involved. And... well, it's rather hard to believe." After reciting the litany of carnage they'd found at the scene, she concluded, "That's a total of ten deaths on site, plus two more who apparated away — after being hit with a massive fireball, so who knows if they lived or not."
Rufus whistled, more than a little impressed. "And all of that was done by those two girls," Amelia asked disbelievingly. "No other assistance?"
"Correct," Moira answered. "And no truly dark spells, either, though a couple were rather borderline. For example, one Death Eater was hit by a strong bone-shattering curse that pulverized all the bones in his midsection. He didn't die instantly, but he didn't last very long, either. We found a hand and part of a forearm, still grasping a wand, that had been severed by a slightly dark cutting curse."
"Anything that would create legal trouble for them?" Amelia asked.
Moira shook her head. "No illegal spells were used by them — that was verified when their wands were checked during the interview. However, several of the spells were quite a bit darker than fifteen-year-old witches are expected to be able to cast. So if — hypothetically speaking, of course — a corrupt Minister had inappropriate influence over a corrupt newspaper, they'd be able to slant stories about the incident in a way that would make the two witches look like the twin second comings of Morgana Le Fay."
Amelia gave a rueful smile, wishing that Moira's little joke hadn't hit so close to the mark. "Unfortunately, I don't think we'll be able to keep all of those details quiet. Is that it?"
"Actually, that's not the most important bit of information," Moira said. "Only two of the dead Death Eaters were on file as having been followers of You-Know-Who back in the 1970s: Crabbe and Goyle. They got off after claiming to be under the Imperius Curse. The rest... well, they were too young to have been involved at the time. That wand that was still in the grasp of a severed hand? It's registered as belonging to one Draco Malfoy, which matches the testimony of both witches that young Draco was there, casting a Cruciatus curse on Miss Granger when he had his hand severed by Miss Potter."
"So you're saying that eight were marked more recently?" Amelia asked intently, the implications clear. "Alright, so now we have another bit of evidence that You-Know-Who is back. Fudge won't accept it, but others might. Unfortunately, I'm sure Fudge won't authorize us to search the homes of those who were killed, not even Crabbe and Goyle, so we'll have to pursue those leads quietly. You're next, Rufus."
"Right, it was definitely dementors that attacked Potter's house," Rufus said. "What's more, based on the evidence Moody brought in, it really does look like Potter killed them both. Well, that or two dementors just happened to spontaneously die and mostly disintegrate outside the same house on the same evening, and coincidentally right after Potter's patronus drove them out."
Moira snorted. "That's actually less believable than her patronus killing them — especially after seeing what she did in the Granger house."
Rufus nodded. "I've only been able to do a little bit of digging here at the Ministry, but I haven't been able to find any evidence of who might have sent them — if, in fact, they were sent by someone here."
"Oh, they were," Amelia said. "There's no way that two rogue dementors just happened to stumble on that house out of all of the houses in muggle Britain." She sighed. "I doubt you'll find anything, though — I'm sure that whoever sent them covered their tracks well."
A moment later Amelia asked, as if merely to satisfy idle curiosity, "Have either of you heard about a hearing for those girls for illegal underage magic?"
"Of course not," Moira said with a frown. "There's no reason for one. It was clear self-defense."
"Sure," Amelia agreed, "but that's only been proven by investigations that we've had to run off the books. Susan got a letter the other day from Miss Granger, who said that she and Miss Potter received expulsion letters. From us. It was only due to Dumbledore's personal efforts that the immediate expulsion was rescinded and a hearing granted." Her voice grew hard. "For some reason, though, my office hasn't been officially notified — even though the people who send those letters work under me."
Amelia's anger was obvious, and the other two wisely remained silent. "Alright," she continued brusquely, "I'll need you to wrap this up by Thursday so I will have everything for the hearing on Friday. Someone is setting those two witches up to take a fall, and I want to be there to ruin their day."
"Oh, and one more thing," she said as the other two got up to leave. "Have you been keeping Shacklebolt, Tonks, and Moody informed about this?"
"No, not beyond the evidence they brought in personally," Moira answered "The same is true with the people I had go back to investigate. We know you want this kept quiet, so we don't chat about it. And all the documents and evidence are sealed up tight."
"Good," Amelia said. "I want you to keep those three out of the loop on this. And on anything else sensitive, too."
"Why?" Rufus asked, his brow furrowing. "They're all good people. Trustworthy, too. I'm certain they aren't reporting to Fudge, nor do their sympathies lie with Death Eaters."
"No, but I suspect that their sympathies lie with Dumbledore," Amelia said, "possibly even up to the point of reporting to him. I should have seen it when the events surrounding those two were first brought to me, but I missed it. Dumbledore may be on our side in a lot of ways, but I don't want confidential DMLE information leaking out to anyone — not even him. Got it?"
Wednesday, August 11, 1995, Evening.
"You kids will have to leave the kitchen early, I'm afraid," Mrs. Weasley said as she used her wand to clear away the dinner dishes and birthday cake from Ginny's abbreviated birthday party. "There's an Order meeting starting shortly."
"Order of the Phoenix?" Hermione asked, and Mrs. Weasley nodded.
"That reminds me," Jasmine said, "I keep meaning to ask: what's going on with Voldemort, his Death Eaters, and the Order, anyway? What's he doing? What are you doing? What exactly is happening?"
"That's not your concern," Mrs. Weasley said briskly. "You're just children, and this is something adult witches and wizards have to handle."
Both younger witches narrowed their eyes at being treated so dismissively. Jasmine turned to her godfather and fixed him with an intent look. "Sirius? Will you tell me what's going on?"
"Absolutely not!" Mrs. Weasley shouted from across the kitchen. "He has no business telling you such things, either."
"Quite the contrary, Mrs. Weasley," Jasmine said sharply. "Sirius is my godfather, and as such he's the only person here with the legal or moral authority to decide what I should and should not know." Because she was looking at Mrs. Weasley, she missed how Sirius sat up a bit straighter at hearing her so openly assert his guardianship.
"It would be irresponsible to tell you such things," the older witch argued. "You're far too young!"
Normally Jasmine liked Molly Weasley, but honestly, this was getting to be too much. Time for a reality check, she thought grimly. With deceptive casualness, she asked, "Mrs. Weasley, how many Death Eaters have you killed this month?"
Into the shocked silence that followed, Jasmine continued, "By my count, I'm up to four. How 'bout you, Hermione?"
Without missing a beat, Hermione replied in the same tone, "Five, I think. Though we sort of got that last one together. You also chased off those Dementors, too."
Jasmine snapped her fingers. "You're right — can't forget the Dementors!"
Mrs. Weasley, who had been gaping like a fish up to this point, finally found her voice. "You can't possibly be so... so cavalier about killing people like that!" she spluttered, aghast.
"Of course I'm not," Jasmine retorted, her face turning bleak. "And I have the nightmares to prove it. My point, in case it wasn't obvious, is that no matter how old we may be, we're already in this up to our necks. We have been since we were firsties, unfortunately. They're not going to stop coming for us just because you've decided that we're too young to be involved."
"Keeping us ignorant isn't going to keep us safe," Hermione insisted. "We're not saying that we deserve to know absolutely everything that everyone is doing — that would be silly. But arguing that it's for our own good that we be kept completely ignorant is just as silly. If there's one thing that's certain, it's that we'll be in danger again in the future, and we won't be able to protect ourselves if we don't at least have some idea of what's going on."
Sirius nodded and finally joined the conversation. "They're right, Molly." She looked like she was going to try arguing again, but Sirius interrupted her, "No, they shouldn't know everything, but they aren't asking for that — which actually shows a bit of maturity. You cannot deny that this affects them, possibly more than it affects any of us, as a matter of fact. And as Jasmine's godfather, I believe that she at least should get some basic information about what's going on."
Emma and Lindsey traded a look, then Lindsey said, "We agree with you, Sirius. We understand the need to keep some information in as few hands as possible, but not everything. If you don't get information into the hands of trustworthy people who can use it, you condemn them to making poor decisions. So we agree to Hermione hearing whatever you think is appropriate for Jasmine." He reached out and put a hand on his daughter's shoulder. "After all, given how much they're together, whatever happens to one will likely impact the other." Jasmine and Hermione leaned almost imperceptibly closer to one another, and neither noticed the slightly sad, uncertain expressions on the faces of Hermione's parents.
Mrs. Weasley looked around at the faces arrayed against her and finally slumped a little in defeat. "Maybe you do have a point," she conceded, a hint of the terrible fear she must have felt creeping into her voice. Then she shook herself and straightened. "But just because you let those two hear about such things doesn't mean I'll subject my own children to the same." She turned to the side of the table that seemed to have been designated the "Ginger Seating Area" and announced, "All of you, upstairs."
"But Mum," Ron whinged, "I'm just as old as they are!"
"Yeah," chimed in the twins simultaneously. "And we're of age!"
"But none of you are members of the Order," their mother retorted, "So all of you, leave. Now!" Her shrill voice brooked no argument, so they all trudged out of the kitchen, muttering under their breath.
Once they were gone, Sirius began, "So, do you have any specific questions?"
"Just, well, what do we know about what Voldemort's been doing since the graveyard?" Jasmine asked.
"As far as we can tell, not much," Sirius said. "Some recruitment of new followers, which is hardly surprising, and very recently he started looking for... well, something that he thinks will help him. Something he didn't have in the last war."
"A weapon?" Emma asked.
"Sirius..." Mrs. Weasley said warningly before her husband put a calming hand on her arm.
Sirius held up a hand to the ginger witch and said, "That's not something I can give you greater details about. I'm not sure if it can truly be called a weapon in the normal sense, but maybe that label isn't too far off, either. Regardless, he didn't even start looking for it until recently. Or maybe he only recently started doing things that we could notice. Before that, though, he didn't seem to be doing much of anything for quite some time."
"What about you and this 'Order' group?" Lindsey asked. "What are you doing to fight him?"
"We're doing two things, primarily," Sirius answered. "First is keeping an eye on what the enemy is doing. Second is recruiting our own members and allies."
There was a long pause.
"That's it?" Hermione asked incredulously.
"What else do you think we can do?" Mrs. Weasley asked, not expecting the younger witch to have any serious suggestions.
"What about his resources?" Lindsey pointed out. "Any political or military campaign needs resources — finances, weapons, medical supplies, that sort of thing. Can you do anything about that? Reduce what he has? Reduce what he can get in the future? That's in addition to stockpiling your own resources: money, potions, potion ingredients, weapons, armor, etc."
"Then there's the question of political and popular support," Emma added. "If you can undermine support for his goals and tactics, you'll make it harder for him to act. Is there anything that can be done there? A public relations campaign against him, his followers, and his ideas?"
"Not just political support here at home," Lindsey noted, "but also abroad. Have you talked to any contacts abroad to get support, resources, intelligence, or anything else? Maybe just to ensure he is not recruiting abroad?"
"And of course training," Jasmine said. "People fought Death Eaters last time, right?" When Sirius nodded, Jasmine continued, "Then you can be sure there will be fighting this time. That means people need to train. Even just a bit of extra practice will help, though the more, the better. People need to practice spells they know and maybe learn a few new ones."
"We had plans to learn self-defense to help give us a chance if we were attacked," Emma said, "but we'd only just had a couple of lessons before the actual attack happened — and even then, it happened so fast that I don't think we would have been able to do much even if we'd had a year of lessons. The reality of a magical attack is much different from the theory, especially for muggles who have never seen anything like it. I'd like to think that giving witches and wizards a few lessons on how to deal with such attacks might help them.
"What about protection for people?" Hermione asked. "I'm sure ours won't be the last home attacked, so maybe it would be a good idea to have safe houses? Maybe stocked with food and potions? How about protective clothing? Emergency portkeys? Lessons about how to protect a home? This is much like a safe house, but you can't bring everyone here."
Molly, Arthur, and Sirius all looked at each other in surprise. Apparently no one had yet made such suggestions, and in retrospect, it all seemed so obvious.
It was then that members of the Order started coming in, so the non-members gave up their seats and headed for other rooms in the house. More than one heard Hermione mutter "stupid wizards" under her breath as she left and wondered what that was all about.
After the Order meeting, which Sirius described as being a complete waste of time, he met Jasmine and Hermione in the library in order to test their Occlumency skills. Fleur joined them because she wanted Sirius to test her as well, since she hadn't had a chance to work on those skills with a non-veela.
After several minutes of staring intently into the eyes of each of the two younger witches, he officially declared them to be "not bad" given how long they'd been working on it. He was actually surprised that they were as good as they were, especially since they hadn't been able to do anything but solo work since the beginning of July.
When it came time to test Fleur, he was even more impressed. "I think you might be better than me," he admitted a bit ruefully. "That makes me even happier that you'll be at Hogwarts this coming year, because it means that these two will have someone on hand to help them with this skill."
"Zank you," Fleur replied. "Occlumency is very important among the veela because ze more mental control we have, ze better we are able to control our allure, too."
"Ah, that explains why I never feel anything around you," Sirius said. "Here I was thinking that I was simply incredibly impressive, despite my time in prison."
Fleur smiled mischievously at him but didn't say anything. After a few moments, Sirius began licking his lips. "Is it, uh, getting hot in here?" he asked as he pulled at his collar. Then he grinned at Fleur and leaned forward, trying to take her hand in his own.
Fleur pulled back and sat up straight, then Sirius abruptly shook his head and seemed to come back to himself as a sheepish expression appeared on his face.
"Uh, if you'll excuse me, I, uh, I think I'll go to bed now," Sirius muttered as he stood and quickly walked out of the library, trying to ignore the giggling witches behind him.
Thursday, August 12, 1995, Late Night.
Albus Dumbledore yawned as he gathered together the last of the parchment he'd been studying. He didn't know exactly what Cornelius had planned for the next day, but he knew it couldn't be good, and he'd been working to prepare himself as best he could for any eventuality — taking a lot of time away from other tasks that desperately needed his attention, too. Yet it was imperative that the hearing for Miss Potter and Miss Granger arrive at a favorable result.
As bad as Cornelius' denialism had been so far, crippling the Girl Who Lived by taking her wand and magic would be an unmitigated disaster. If the decision at the hearing went against them, he knew he could call in Fawkes to save the two witches, but such an act would cause events to spiral completely out of control. He, too, would become a wanted fugitive, and they'd all have to go into hiding or leave Britain entirely. And not just the three of them, but many of those even remotely connected to them, like the Weasley family.
That would give Cornelius unchecked power over both the Ministry and Hogwarts, which would be just as good as handing them over to Tom, Dumbledore mused. He wouldn't even have to act openly — he would simply use one or more of his followers to influence Cornelius, who would then do whatever he was told.
No, there are no good outcomes that would result from a decision against the girls, he concluded. Yet despite the law being completely on their side, victory isn't assured, especially since I have no direct witnesses whose testimony would be accepted. I'll have to rely on my powers of persuasion more than even I'm comfortable with. Perhaps I should have done something to replace Cornelius sooner, he thought, but I never gave much thought to how his pliability would be used so effectively against me like this.
Dumbledore yawned once again as he looked around, checking one last time to make sure there was nothing he'd missed. At least I'll get a couple of hours sleep before I have to head to the Ministry….