At ten-fifteen, Kingsley stood and called the room to attention. "Finish your dinner, ladies and gentlemen. In fifteen minutes we depart. Remember to take different routes in groups of six, and arrive at the gates by eleven. From there, stick together; never let yourself get caught alone down a dark hallway. We work our way through the building section by section; the cleanup should be done by morning.
"As our good friend Alastor Moody would say, were he here this evening: CONSTANT VIGILANCE."
---
With this proclamation, conversation across the various tables came to a close, giving way to tearful embraces, final goodbyes, or resolute expressions of readiness. The majority of the former two came from the Weasley family's table, as both parents and their children and friends exchanged affirmations of love and promises to watch each others' backs in the upcoming battle. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley shared one final kiss, as did Tonks and Lupin (to the latter's surprise, but quick acceptance).
James simply looked on, and turned to shake Kingsley's hand. "Good luck tonight. It was good to work with you, however short our time was." Given that he was still unaccustomed to the oddities of the magical world, the next part took some consideration, but James found it came easily: "I hope we can work together in the future, Kingsley. You've got a well-organized force."
Kingsley nodded, firmly shaking his Muggle guest's hand. "It is my fondest wish that this force will give us a future, James. You'll be a valuable asset and a dear friend."
Bond thanked Kingsley for his Order's hospitality; turning and crossing the room, he tapped Mr. Weasley on the shoulder. The wizard turned around, smiling when he saw his greeter. "James! All set for tonight?"
"As ready as I'll ever be. No hard feelings about the interrogation?" Bond quipped apologetically, referring to the first time he had encountered magic (and pinned Weasley to the wall in an outburst of paranoia).
Weasley looked confused for a moment, and then remembered, with a laugh (albeit a nervous one). "Don't you worry about that - it was only a misunderstanding, after all - of course, I wouldn't make a habit of it-"
"James."
This, Bond discovered, was Mrs. Weasley, looking for the first time like she didn't want to kill him. Instead, she had tears in her eyes. "I...well, if our lives are in danger, and the last thing I said to someone was that I didn't trust them..." Mrs. Weasley stammered in a repentant tone. Finally, she broke down and threw her arms around an extremely shocked James Bond, sobbing into the shoulder of his tuxedo. Bond awkwardly embraced her, not sure how to respond to this sudden change of heart.
"ALL THIS TIME YOU'VE ONLY WANTED TO HELP, AND HERE I AM, ALL BUT ACCUSING YOU OF BEING A DEATH EATER, AND IF YOU DIED-"
"Mum! Easy on the Muggle, Dad'll be jealous!" Fred called over the noise.
Mrs. Weasley quieted down then, patting Bond on the back and pulling away. Halfway through this motion, though, she whispered a final warning:
"But if any of my family dies on your watch, I'll feed you to the Nobodies."
---
Upon leaving the Factory Room at 10:30, James Bond and the Order of the Phoenix found the evening of November 4th dark, cloudy, and foreboding. The stars were completely obscured by the clouds, symptoms of the brewing of a late autumn storm. Another storm was brewing, as well - a hurricane of opposing forces, the Order of the Phoenix the warm front to the Palace of Westminster's cold front, the unsuspecting city obliviously going about its business. The streets were relatively clear that evening, making their job all the easier.
The assembled Order numbered thirty; thirty wizards and witches (and one Muggle) of highly variable ages and walks of life, but united in their goal for the evening: the elimination of the wizarding world's greatest tyrant, and a defiant stand against his otherworldly allies. This was their world, their home, and nobody, wizard or Muggle, human or no, would take it from them.
They split into five groups, James taking the most direct route, down Charing Cross Road, with Kingsley, Tonks, Lupin, and the Weasley twins, Fred and George. They made no eye contact with the other groups, which would take detours down Monmouth Street, Shaftesbury Avenue, and other roads to mitigate the damage of discovery. Conversation was limited among Bond's group, save for Fred and George, who were miming something indecipherable with their hands; they seemed to be practicing some kind of synchronized movement, but any clue as to what it was totally escaped Bond. Halfway to the Palace they caught him staring; they simply winked at him, hinting that Bond would know soon enough.
At last the Palace of Westminster was in sight, its jagged gables and towers shredding the air around it and creating an imposing silhouette against the sky over the Thames river, a clear destination for the Order. Bond's group reached the gates first, crossing the street and congregating around a nearby bus stop to blend in.
"Here we are," stated Kingsley. "The Palace of Westminster."
"The Palace of Westminster!" repeated Fred in mock awe.
"Palace of Eastminster is to your right," muttered George, earning him an elbow to the ribs from Fred.
The other groups arrived within the next five minutes, one after the other, maintaining a staggered formation to keep up a low profile (Ron's gawking at the Muggle traffic lights notwithstanding). Around eleven, once they had all arrived, Kingsley cleared his throat and spoke as Big Ben tolled the hour behind him.
"Right, then - through the gates in twos or threes, with ten seconds or so separating each entrance. V's unlocked them for us, and guarantees safe passage. Be inconspicuous - the last thing we need is a mass arrest for trespassing. Bond and I will go first; I'll cloak the entrance from the inside to make things easier."
And so they did. Bond and Kingsley checked their surroundings to make sure no one was watching, then slipped silently through the palace gates, which were indeed unlocked. As Bond moved to close the gate behind him, Kingsley motioned for him to stop. "I'm casting a spell to make it appear closed on the street side. Some things even V can't do."
"Though what I can do nevertheless remains invaluable."
The voice came from nearby; Bond whirled around, searching for its source. After a moment, he found a dagger stuck in a nearby tree. Taking this to be a sign, he looked up. Sure enough, V was perched on one of the thicker branches, his smiling mask the only part of him that stood out in the blackness of the palace grounds.
"I took the liberty of disabling the cameras and motion sensor alarms, as well. We wouldn't want a large armed force to get the wrong idea, as large armed forces are wont to do."
"How long have you been up there?" demanded Bond, slightly miffed at having been so easily caught off guard.
"As long as I needed to be. It looks like your little friends have arrived, so the necessity has passed." V leaped out of the tree, silently sailing ten feet through the air and descending on the neatly trimmed grass below. "Good evening, Kingsley," he said, straightening from his landing.
Kingsley finished casting the spell, and turned to V, greeting him with a polite nod as more Order members filed through the gates behind him. "Wonderful of you to join us, V. I trust the past week or so has been productive?"
James fixed V with an appraising gaze, searching for anything in his voice (for lack of facial expressions) that would betray ill intent. But V remained cool and collected as ever: "My dear Kingsley, I make a point of living my days productively. Did you know that an exquisite chandelier hangs in the Central Lobby? I spent the morning weakening it; you never know when you might require the aid of...benevolent architecture."
Kingsley chuckled, motioning for V and Bond to stand at his sides. "You've been exceedingly useful to our cause, V. I can't thank you enough."
As the last of the Order entered the grounds, and Kingsley instructed them on their formations and strategy, V silently added: "As have you to mine."
The motley crew of secret agent, masked man, and Order made their way up the path to the entrance unmolested by Muggle police, Death Eaters, or Nobodies. "The police have been conveniently called away - something about a robbery on Baker Street." Bond wondered if V had had a hand in this; it unnerved him that there was no way to tell. V's explanation didn't include the Nobodies or Death Eaters, which also struck Bond as odd. As the group approached the entrance, he kept a hand in his tuxedo, the feel of his pistol in its pocket a reminder that the situation would never be beyond his control.
V moved to the head of the party, reaching the massive, ornately carved door first. "I unlocked this one too. I'll slip in first to cover your entrance. If they try anything, they'll have five inches of steel to answer to." V held up two daggers in a V shape for emphasis. As he opened the door and vanished inside, Bond distinctly heard Hermione mutter "Honestly!"
The door opened wider; V motioned them through one by one, directing them to various positions within the entrance hall. Bond was one of the first to enter, and took up a post behind a pillar close to the doors. He drew his gun, keeping it ready and watching for any sign of enemy movement. A great hall stretched out before them, flanked by smaller corridors, all leading into darkness unlit by any of the wall fixtures. Bond wondered momentarily whether it was normal procedure to leave the lights off, or whether the darkness came from some greater source.
The sound of the doors closing drew Bond's attention to the entrance. V stood between the pillars flanking the door, looking left and right. "Is all our company assembled?" he asked in a loud whisper. Affirmatives came back from the hidden Order, tensed for any ambush.
V nodded, his mask smiling mockingly at them all. "Good."
Then he ran, straight for the great hall on the opposite side from the doors. "Seal the exits!" he shouted, and immediately Bond knew they had been tricked. He stepped out from behind the pillar to take aim, but leaped back to dodge jets of red light that erupted from the side corridors and the main hall. He looked around wildly, and saw the windows and main doors wrapped in thick, ethereal chains glowing a dull violet. Spells from the Order flew in all directions - half at V, the other half flying haphazardly down the darkened hallways, none making any discernibly useful impact.
V simply stood in place, the jets of multicolored light bouncing off of him and taking chunks out of the walls and statues. He threw off his tattered, spell-damaged cloak, revealing body armor with mirrored surfaces. All around him, shadowy figures in black cloaks and emotionless silver masks advanced through the hallways, closing in on the Order and forcing them to the center of the room. None of them fired a shot, only blocking anything cast at them. As Bond turned his back, quickly stashed his gun in his pocket, and retreated with the rest of the Order, he guessed that these were the Death Eaters he had heard so much about.
"Good show, gentlemen. No attacking quite yet - they should all be alive for this." V's proclamation was met with cries of "Traitor!" and "Double-crosser!" and various other exclamations of shock and anger. As the Death Eaters closed in, cutting off any escape route, V laughed - a derisive, condescending sound that echoed off the high walls and was multiplied tenfold, driving home the reality the Order's humiliating misstep.
After ten seconds of that, V quieted down, drawing one of his daggers and spinning it in his hand as he paced back and forth in front of his captives. His voice echoed again, a Shakespearean taunt filling the ears of all present:
"O most pernicious woman!
O villain, villain, smiling, damnèd villain!
My tables—meet it is I set it down
That one may smile, and smile, and be a villain—
At least I am sure it may be so in Denmark."