'Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

Warning: Language, adult situations

Chapter 54 – In Ashes

Kate awoke in surroundings that were at once strange and familiar. The familiar came from the deep "Gryffindor burgundy" of the bed curtains and the comforter that clearly said Hogwarts. The strange – although pleasantly so – was the obvious presence of another person under that comforter, another person in whose arms she was firmly held. Kate turned her head and immediately encountered a mass of soft, dark waves, resting on her shoulder. Warm breath blew against her neck at regular intervals as Sirius slept on. Kate dropped a gentle kiss in his hair and closed her eyes, initially intending to sleep for awhile longer. Once she did so, however, memories of the night before flooded her mind. She leaned her cheek against Sirius' head and let them play on, basking in the warmth, tenderness and passion threaded through each and every one. I never believed it would be like that; I never believed anything would or could feel like that. Kate smiled. Even the little bit of experimentation they had done had not prepared her for last night. And it wasn't just the physical intensity they had experienced; equally stirring was the depth of emotion threaded through every aspect of the act itself. After dozing a bit, they had awakened and made love again and it had been sweeter, more tender than before. Kate sighed and snuggled even closer to the wizard beside her.

"Alright, love?" Sirius' low voice reached her ear.

"Mmm," Kate murmured, kissing his temple. "Go back to sleep."

"'time is it?" he asked, rising up on one elbow to squint over at the clock on the bed table.

Kate turned. "Half-three. It's early yet."

Sirius nodded, leaning down to kiss her tenderly. "Good morning."

"Good morning." Kate smiled and reached up to cup his cheek in her hand, then settled on her side, her position a mirror image of his.

"Hmm," Sirius observed. "It would appear that we're finished sleeping." He leaned forward and traced a finger along the line of Kate's collarbone, over her shoulder and down her arm. "Am I to hope for a return to more … interesting activities instead?"

Kate shivered at his touch and leaned toward him to kiss his lips softly. "I was hoping that perhaps we could talk for a bit."

"You want to talk about Remus." Sirius sat up and pushed himself back against the headboard then patted the space next to him. "Come up here, then."

Once Kate had settled next to him, Sirius looked over at her. "Sorry, can't focus if you're sitting there like that." He leaned over the side of the bed to the floor and came up with her t-shirt.

Kate pulled it over her head with a smile and kissed his cheek before settling back against his side again. "Better now?"

"Better for conversing, anyway," he conceded. "So … Remus."

"Are you certain? I mean, I said that I was hoping that we could talk, but I completely understand if you can't face it yet," Kate responded. "Really…"

Sirius caught her hand and held it in both of his. "I won't lie, Katie; it hurts to know that it's well and truly over – that we're no longer friends. That said, though, I can't live here for the next two years. I have to face it and figure out what to do now. I can't very well do that if I can't even talk about it all, can I?"

Kate shook her head. "No. No, you can't."

"No, I can't. Anyway, I knew when you came back here last night that we'd be having this chat at some point; might as well get it out of the way now."

Kate leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Earlier, when I was in the dormitory …"

"…yelling at Remus," Sirius interjected, nudging her with his shoulder.

Kate pushed back. "I wasn't … oh, alright – 'yelling at Remus'. But it was on your behalf, you know."

Sirius squeezed her fingers gently. "I do know that, Katie-girl – and I love you for taking up for me. Go on – when you were in the dormitory…," Sirius prompted.

"Near the end, Remus asked me to tell him where you were. He said that there was something that you misunderstood and he wanted to clear it up. He seemed – I don't know – less cold than he's been. He was upset when I wouldn't tell him anything. I told him that he'd already pointed out enough of what he thought were your shortcomings and I wouldn't let him face you with anything else." Kate paused and looked over at Sirius. "But now I wonder if perhaps he was intending to try to make things right."

Sirius shook his head. "You weren't in the library tonight, Katie. You didn't see his face; you didn't hear the things he said to me. Believe me, there's no way Remus Lupin is interested in making things right. I'm a Black, after all and he's been waiting for me to revert to form for five years. Now that I have, he's washed his hands of me – and if there's one thing I've learned about Remus, it's that once he's made up his mind, he doesn't change it."

"What if he does? What if he thinks all of this over and decides to give you another go at an explanation? What will you do?"

Sirius didn't answer her right away, instead sitting quietly, rubbing his thumb over Kate's knuckles as he organized his thoughts. Finally, "First of all, I can't believe that's going to happen. I can't let myself believe that's going to happen." He paused again. "And, truth be told, Katie, there's a part of me that's sick of explaining things. At some point, someone has to say, 'enough'. I've now said everything I can think of to say to Remus and it hasn't made one bloody bit of difference to him. If he came to me and said that he was willing to listen to me again, I wouldn't have anything new to tell him about that night. Maybe it's time for me to be the one to say, 'enough'." He looked at her, his expression sad. "What I did to Remus was a terrible betrayal of his trust and our friendship. I know that. Even though it wasn't intentional, it was thoughtless and, in the end, it was still a betrayal. Despite all of that, and even though all of this was my fault, I can't keep crawling back to Remus, begging him to be my friend. I've done that, too. I feel like I keep repeating myself – with him, with you. I just wish I could make you all understand."

Kate heard the frustration begin to creep into his tone. "I do understand and I'm not suggesting that you continue to pursue a resolution – particularly in light of what he said to you tonight. I agree with you: there should be an expiration date on your penance. In the beginning, you spent all of your time trying to catch up with Remus so you could explain yourself. Last night, you finally caught up with him and it was the worst of all possible scenarios you'd imagined. As a result, you've reached the conclusion that your friendship isn't salvageable. All I'm saying is that I might not have been in the library tonight for your confrontation, but you were not in your dorm room when I spoke with Remus, either. You didn't see his face when he asked about you." Kate reached over and turned his face gently until he was looking at her. "He's had time to process all that happened tonight. Based on what I saw, I think there's a strong chance that whatever you said tonight has finally got through to him."

"I don't know, Kate. I'd love to believe that you're right, but I just can't." Sirius saw her take a breath and placed a finger against her lips to silence her. "I can't. But I'm also not going to be responsible for driving us all apart. I mean, I know that I caused the problem, but Jamie and I are ok now and I'm sure Peter will come around, if only because James has. If Remus lets it happen, I can still be part of the general group without there being friction or people feeling that they have to take sides. I hate this, Katie – and I'll hate playing that kind of game for the next two years, but I'm realistic enough to know that it's all I'm going to get from Remus – if I even get that. But I promise you: if Remus comes looking for me and he wants to talk, I'll listen to what he has to say. That's as far as I'll go, though. I'm done with apologizing and begging to be forgiven. Enough. Ok?"

"Ok." Kate leaned forward and kissed his lips. "People who love you would never ask you to beg," she said, looking into his eyes. "Never. And I love you very much."

"I love you," Sirius whispered, releasing her hand and slipping his arm around her waist. Pulling her with him, he wriggled his way deeper under the covers. "And if we're finished with this conversation, I intend to show you just how much."

Kate entwined her fingers in his hair and smiled. "Actions do speak louder than words, you know."

XXXXXXXX

Several hours later, freshly showered and ravenously hungry, Kate and Sirius made their way into the Great Hall for breakfast. Somewhat to Sirius' relief, Lily and James were the only others present, although the knowing smirks soon made the young wizard regret his timing.

"Sleep well?" James asked, pointedly looking at his watch.

Sirius refused to rise to the bait. "Quite well, thanks. It's amazing how much rest can be had without your insufferable snoring, Jamie. Really, Lils, don't you find it enormously off-putting?"

Lily smiled. "Actually, no; I don't hear …" her hand paused halfway to the cream pitcher and she closed her eyes. Damn! "That is to say … I mean – oh, do shut up, Sirius!"

Her three companions burst out laughing and Lily found that she couldn't help but join in. "Alright, fine. Now that you've cheekily pointed out our respective sleeping arrangements, let's push on to other topics, shall we?"

"Gladly," Kate interjected, helping herself to a cheese and mushroom omelet.

"Remus sleeping in this morning, is he?" Sirius asked casually, noting the vacant chair normally occupied by the young werewolf.

"He was gone when I woke up," James replied. "I suspect he's off somewhere, mulling things over. Going to have another chat with him?"

Sirius shook his head. "As I was saying to Katie last night, I've said everything I have to say; I've run out of words to make him listen. I'm not chasing him around anymore, begging forgiveness; I know now that I've no chance of being granted absolution."

"You're going to let your friendship die?" Lily asked, her voice holding a mixture of surprise and regret.

"Remus has no interest in being my friend – something he made most plain last night in the library. I've come to the conclusion that since I'm responsible for all of what's happened, I can hardly force Remus to forgive me, much less resume our friendship. I can't keep running after him; it's demeaning to both of us and serves no purpose. I won't make it difficult for everyone else, though. I told Kate that if Remus goes along with it, I'll hang around with everyone still. It'll keep up appearances, which will reduce the distraction Dumbledore seems to think it caused last term; that can't hurt my case any. Otherwise, it's over, Jamie; I've done all I can – probably too much. Just let it go."

"Ok, mate. I hate it, but … ok," James nodded then turned his attention back to his plate.

"Where is Dumbledore this morning?" Kate asked after a few moments. Sirius put his hand on her knee and gave it a slight squeeze in thanks before withdrawing it again.

"He received an owl shortly after we arrived and he just hurried away," Lily replied, shrugging.

"Something to do with the Ministry, no doubt," James added, pouring himself a second cup of tea.

"And how did you come to that conclusion, Mr. Potter?" Lily asked, annoyed that she might have missed something.

"Ministry owl; Ministry seal on the parchment," James ticked off the reasons on his fingers. "Ergo – Ministry business."

"Wonder if it has anything to do with those rumors your Dad's been hearing about," Sirius looked at his friend.

"We could Floo the house in Brighton and ask him." James was already on his feet, Sirius hot on his heels. Lily and Kate looked at each other and rose, as well.

XXXXXXXX

Ten minutes later, the quartet was kneeling in front of the Gryffindor Common Room fire, talking to Margaret Potter as her head floated above the flames.

"Your father was called to the Ministry about an hour ago, James," she was saying, her expression curious. "Why did you want to speak with him? Did you forget something?"

James shook his head. "No, Mum. I've got everything. I just wanted to speak with Dad. I'll catch up with him later, then. Did he say when he'd be back?"

"He wasn't certain, darling. Why don't you call again later tonight? I'm sure he'll have been long back by then and you can have your chat," Margaret smiled reassuringly at her son.

"Well, that's it, then," James said after his mother ended the call. "Whatever got Dumbledore up to London this morning must also have involved Dad."

"You can't be certain of that, James," Lily said. "It could be a coincidence, after all. Dumbledore could have been called by the Minister on something to do with the Wizengamot, after all."

"Lily's right, James," Kate added. "Your father could have been called in on something completely different."

Sirius sat down on the sofa. "I don't know. For some reason, I think the two are related."

"Well, whatever it is, we won't know anything until you call your father later tonight," Lily reasoned. "In the meantime, I think we should go into London, as planned. It will take our minds off everything."

James and Sirius exchanged a meaningful look. "Yeah, great idea, Lils," Sirius said slowly, his eyes never leaving James' face. "Let's head to Diagon Alley. A little shopping, maybe grab some ice cream at Fortesque's and the time will pass faster."

The girls had totally missed the unspoken exchange between the two wizards. "Lily, let's stop in at Madam Malkin's while we're there. I want to see if they have …" Kate's voice trailed off as she and Lily moved toward the staircase leading to the girls' dormitory.

"Oi, where are you going? I thought we were heading to London," James called.

"I need to get my purse," Lily called over her shoulder. "For the love of Merlin, we're not scheduled to leave for another half hour yet; we won't be gone long!"

Sirius watched the girls up the stone staircase then turned back to his friend. "Are you thinking of paying your father a visit at the Ministry, by any chance?"

James smiled and nodded. "Yeah, and that brilliant girlfriend of yours just presented us with the perfect opportunity. While they're busy in Madam Malkin's place, we can slip away for a bit and see what we can learn. Shouldn't take long; you know how they are when they get inside that place."

"What about Remus?" Sirius asked. "Wasn't he included in this trip as well?"

"Yeah," James confirmed. "He knows we're leaving around 11 and it's half-ten now. I reckon he'll be along shortly." James stopped, unsure of how to continue. He decided to just get on with it. "You know, we haven't had a chance to talk about what happened between the two of you last night."

"We spoke at breakfast and besides, Remus must have filled you in," Sirius replied.

"Yeah, but I want to make sure you're ok."

"Thanks, Jamie," Sirius said, gratefully. "Look, you know what happened, and you've probably figured out that I've been better. It will be ok, though."

"You know, Kate really gave Remus the rough side of her tongue, I can tell you that," James commented, smiling. "You've met your match with that one."

Sirius nodded. "That I have." He looked away then back again. "I love her, Jamie and I'm not going to do anything to bollix it up this time."

"Well, mate, good news: I think you've already done just about everything you could to bollix it up with Kate," James grinned, ducking as the pillow that Sirius threw at his head sailed past him toward the portrait hole.

"New form of greeting?"

James turned toward the direction of the hoarse voice and was hit softly in the face with the upholstered pillow. "Oi, Remus; totally unnecessary, mate!"

Remus glanced in Sirius' direction and their eyes met for a moment before he turned back to James. Sirius was surprised to see what he thought might be a momentary flicker of uncertainty in the werewolf's eyes. Are you worried I might have turned James against you, Remus? Come now, no matter how badly things have gone between us, you must know I'd never do that!

"Still on for London, Remus?" James' voice brought Sirius out of his own thoughts.

"Yes, actually; there's a new bookstore I'd like to investigate, if there's time," came the reply that could have been tinged with a small bit of relief.

"Should be. Listen, mate: Dumbledore's been called up to London unexpectedly. A Ministry Owl arrived earlier this morning and he just up and left during breakfast. You remember I told you what my dad said about the MLE getting reports of odd happenings, right? Well, I checked in at the house and Mum said Dad had been called to the Ministry this morning, too. We think," James looked over at Sirius, "they're connected."

Remus nodded. "Could be. So, you're planning a visit to your father's office while we're in London, yes?"

James nodded. "You in?"

"Absolutely. But James, you realize that he might not be able – or willing – to say much to us if there is some truth to the rumors he's been hearing," Remus sat next to James on the sofa.

"Yeah, but I've been around him long enough to be able to tell when he's holding something back, so either way, we'll get confirmation."

Sirius spoke up. "And let's not forget that if your father and Dumbledore are together, that's a fair confirmation by itself."

"Let alone anything else that we might see or overhear while we're there," Remus put in, keeping his focus on James. "What did the girls have to say?"

"They don't know what we're up to," James confessed, his voice a bit sheepish. "You know they wouldn't be too happy with us haring off to the Ministry without them – and I think that the three of us are enough of a crowd to be bursting in on Dad, don't you?"

"They'll be all caught up shopping to notice that we've gone and we'll be back long before they do," Sirius added.

"Let's hope, anyway," James rose. "The last thing I need is Lily hexing me; things have been going so well lately, too. Ah…there you are!" This last said in a louder, more cheerful tone that caused Lily to narrow her eyes suspiciously.

"Didn't I tell you we'd …oh, never mind! Hello, Remus; coming along to London with us?"

"Lily; yes, I am," Remus smiled at the redhead, his face becoming slightly less relaxed as he turned to Kate. "Good morning, Kate," he said quietly.

"Remus," Kate replied, slipping her hand into Sirius' and standing slightly in front of him. Her voice lacked the warmth she always had when speaking with Remus, but he could detect none of the anger of the previous evening. Although, standing with Sirius, she's the image of a lioness protecting her cub, he thought to himself with a pang of sadness. Lost them both, I have. He sighed softly.

"I'll just grab my jacket," Remus said. "Be right back."

After Remus had disappeared up the stairs, Sirius leaned down toward Kate. "Are you alright?"

Kate turned to look at him, her expression confused. "Of course; why?"

"You look as if you're prepared for battle on my behalf," Sirius smiled. "And I think Remus more than got the point."

Kate felt herself flush. "I didn't realize what I was doing and I didn't mean to make him uncomfortable – not that he doesn't deserve it, mind."

James chuckled. "I think it's probably a continuation of last night's ticking off. You did send him off with rather a lot to chew on."

Footsteps on the staircase spared Kate the need to reply as Remus entered the Common Room carrying his jacket. Kate looked hard at his expression to see if he could have overheard any of their conversation but Remus appeared to be his usual, placid self. Shaking off her paranoia, Kate walked with the group through the portrait hole and down the staircase to the entrance doors.

XXXXXXXX

On the walk to Hogsmeade – and the Floo connection at The Three Broomsticks – the five friends limited their conversation to neutral topics: O.W.L scores, the new bookshop on Diagon Alley and, as always, the professional Quidditch world. Remus generally stayed with Lily or James, but as the individuals shuffled back and forth between conversations, he eventually found himself trailing James, Lily and Sirius – and walking alongside Kate. The young witch found herself becoming more uncomfortable by the minute; she hated conflict and, even though her loyalties were clearly with Sirius, Kate knew that even he was going to try to resume some semblance of normalcy with the werewolf, as well. Even if it was only on a superficial level, the next two years would be unbearable without the resumption of some type of truce between them.

They walked in silence for awhile, looking anywhere but at each other until Kate could stand it no longer.

"This reminds me of my first trip to Hogsmeade last year," she said quietly.

Remus took a tentative step closer to her. "Our first date. I remember it well."

Kate smiled. "Our only date. Dorcas, after all, would have objected quite strongly I think."

"Hmm; I suspect she might have at that."

They walked along behind the others for a bit before Remus spoke again. "Kate, about last night; I …"

"How did you happen to hear about this new book shop?" Kate didn't want to have that conversation – not here, possibly not ever.

Remus, however, would not be deterred. "Kate, please – if you don't want to talk, then could you please just listen?"

Kate shook her head. "I'm not on your side in this. You've hurt Sirius and I …"

Remus carefully put a hand on her arm. "I know where your loyalties lie but surely, just listening to what I have to say won't compromise them. Will it?"

Kate looked ahead to the trio of friends quite a bit ahead of them now. Lily had looked behind her once or twice, but had kept James and Sirius engaged in conversation. Kate wondered abstractly whether or not Lily was purposefully keeping the other two distracted to permit Remus time to speak with her.

"Kate?"

"I'm so angry with you," she said finally. "I'm angry about what happened between you and Sirius. I'm angry because of how much pain he's in because of it. And I'm angry because it isn't just Sirius who's lost you; I've lost you, too." Kate paused, feeling her emotions rise and unwilling to allow him to see anymore than she'd already shown to him.

"I know," Remus responded, sadly. "There is just so much more to all of this than I suspect you know."

"I could easily say the same thing to you. How much of what Sirius said did you actually listen to last night?" Kate asked curiously.

"Not much in the beginning," Remus admitted. "You're not the only person who's been angry, after all."

Kate nodded. "I'd be less than honest with you – and myself – if I said you didn't have a right to be angry with him for what he did. But, Remus, to refuse to forgive him? Ever? To allow that one moment of idiocy – significant as it was – to undo five years of loyalty and caring and friendship? That just doesn't seem fair to me. It feels like you're stubbornly carrying a grudge to punish Sirius for what he did."

He nodded. "I know. As I said, this is much bigger than it appears on its surface."

"For him, too, you know." Kate glanced ahead and confirmed that the others were still deep in conversation. "I'm curious about something. If I had told you where to find Sirius last night, would you have sought him out?"

Remus nodded. "I would have done, yes."

"Why?"

Remus exhaled sharply then walked a few steps ahead of Kate and turned to face her. "Sirius believes that I've never trusted him completely. He thinks that I've been waiting for him to revert to the Black family standard of behavior. Neither of those things is true. In the beginning, I was blind with anger and hurt and I said things that in a more rational frame of mind, I would not have said."

Kate nodded. "So, you did listen to him last night."

"Yes, although some of what he said didn't really sink in until much later," Remus' voice was laced with regret.

"Remus, Sirius loves you. Indeed, in many ways, I think you mean more to him even than James does. He's apologized and has begged you to forgive him. If you want to talk about atypical behavior, that's as good an example of it as any: Blacks don't apologize and they certainly don't beg anyone for anything. You've said some incredibly cruel things to him in return, so he believes that there's nothing more he can do or say to prove his contrition or to try to make it up to you. If you've had some sort of epiphany as a result of your confrontation with Sirius, you're going to have to be the one to approach him with it. He's resolved to try to remain in this little group of ours for the next two years – short of seeing it break up as a result, that is. Sirius is resigned to taking whatever role you permit him to have. Humility – another trait not known to apply to Blacks. I'll give you this much – it's not a trait that's been known to that particular Black either – until now, that is. Remus, I'm not sure if you know this or not, but Sirius has been disowned by the Blacks. He had a confrontation with his mother when he first returned to London and it turned very ugly. He left home that night and, to be frank, I'm not certain how he managed to make it to my house, but he did. She used the Cruciatus on him, Remus then burned his name from the family Tapestry. The reason he's here is that Walburga has been trying to reach him; Dumbledore thinks it's safest for him here and we all agreed to come along to keep him company." Kate paused, noting the alarm on Remus' face as his gaze snapped from Kate to the figure of his former friend, far ahead of them now on the path to town.

"I had no idea," he whispered and when he turned to look back at Kate, something in his eyes had changed. The coldness that had taken residence there with the Prank was now gone.

"Remus, I don't know if you intend to try to speak with Sirius again," Kate said softly. "But if what you have to say will hurt him or make him feel any more guilt over what's happened between you, you will have me to deal with; make no mistake about that."

"We should all have a friend so willing to fight for us; so willing to protect us," Remus said gently.

The faint noise of someone yelling caused both to turn toward Hogsmeade where they saw James and Sirius waving and calling to get their attention. Kate waved back before looking over at Remus and inclining her head in the direction of their friends.

"You do," she replied. "Despite what he did last term. He's proved it to you again and again since the day you met. He had a five-minute fuck-up, Remus – without the 5-year lead-in you think he had. He's lost in all of this, too. Sirius lost his best friend and, in your place, he's gained a lifetime of guilt and shame. I'm begging you to think about all of that this time." Kate's eyes filled as she spoke.

"I already have," said the werewolf, blinking rapidly to clear his own vision before he looked down at the young witch.

"And?" Kate asked quietly.

James and Sirius strode up to the two, James' expression frankly curious, Sirius' guarded.

With a glance in Kate's direction, Remus stepped toward them.

"Sirius, may I have a word?"

Sirius' eyebrows rose and he stared at Remus silently as he tried to come up with something coherent to say. Seeing his friend's discomfiture, James stepped in.

"Perhaps you two could have a sit down later, yeah? I'd like to see if we could get to London before … before everything shuts down." James looked at Remus' slightly crestfallen expression. "Hate to ask, but …"

Sirius pulled himself together, sparing the barest of looks at James before meeting Remus' eye. "No, James; that's fine … Remus and I can …"

Remus nodded. "… later; of course. Let's get moving before it's too late, then."

With a quick nod, James turned and retraced his steps toward the town, Sirius following a moment later.

"Thank you," Kate said quietly as the two began to walk quickly along the path. "I'm not quite sure what those two are in such a hurry for; London doesn't exactly shut down for tea…"

"Kate, just a moment," Remus reached over and briefly touched her arm. She stopped and looked over at him. "I'm very sorry that the things I've said and done have caused you pain, as well. I hope that you can forgive me. I should very much hate to lose your friendship."

"This has such a hard time for all of us, Remus, especially for you and Sirius. I told you once that you'd become my best friend – outside of Sirius, of course – and I meant it," Kate replied quietly. "Despite everything that's happened and all the anger and coldness that's come between us all, I don't think many people are as lucky as I've been to have a friend like you."

"Oi! Remus! Kate!" James' impatient voice rang out.

Kate shook her head and grabbed Remus' hand, giving him a tug. "Come on; before he hexes us!"

XXXXXXXX

James, Remus and Sirius left Lily and Kate at Madam Malkin's shop, claiming a need to spend considerable time between several different Quidditch supply shops. In truth, the girls were relieved not to have them lolling about the shop, particularly with things still unresolved between Sirius and Remus. Lily and Kate waved them along and told them they would meet them at Fortescue's a couple of hours later. This gave the young witches ample time to indulge themselves in shops that held no interest for their male companions.

Making their way to the visitor's entrance to the Ministry of Magic – cleverly disguised as a red telephone box on a small street round the back of the Ministry – the three wizards began to feel a surge of disquiet. James had not considered the repercussions that his visit might provoke from his father or his headmaster. As they squeezed into the small space and began to descend below street level, the reality of their quest began to sink in.

"Ah, well," James muttered as they approached the Security Desk, "at least Dumbledore can't take house points from us or give us detention during the holiday."

The three surrendered their wands, accepted individual receipts and provided the reason for their trip as a 'visit with the head of the MLE'. The Security Wizard looked the three over dubiously for a moment, then thrust his chin in the direction of the lifts. "Fourth floor," he growled and the younger wizards made haste to remove themselves.

Fortunately for them, the lifts were not busy and the car in which they found themselves was empty save for a wizard whose nose was inexplicably located – upside down - in the middle of his forehead. His expression was thunderous and he muttered several comments that the boys were sure contained references to his wife's cooking and the fact that if she could cook as well as she could hex, he wouldn't be able to fit into his office. Thankfully, when the lift stopped on the third floor, the man left and the boys gave in to a short huff of laughter before reaching their own floor and sobering once again as they stepped into the hallway.

Harold Potter's office was located at the end of a long corridor and was guarded by his Administrative Witch, Miss Phoebe Broadbent. The witch had been Hal's assistant for many years and had recently celebrated her 95th birthday. She was a tiny witch, with silver/white hair braided and pulled into a tight bun. Despite her size, Miss Broadbent was a force to be reckoned with when it came to restricting access to the Director of the MLE. Fiercely protective of Hal, it was very beneficial to James that her loyalty extended to members of his family as well.

"Good afternoon, Miss Broadbent," James said politely. "Is my father in?"

The elderly witch's bright green eyes turned up at the corners as she greeted the younger Potter warmly.

"Hello to you, Master Potter," she said, looking over the top of her pince-nez at Remus and Sirius, standing slightly behind James. "And you've brought friends, as well. Ah, but your timing is not the best; your father is in an important meeting and I cannot disturb him."

James smiled. "Of course; I know how busy he is – even when he's on holiday, duty calls, eh? Do you think we might take a seat and wait for him for a bit? Only, we've just come in for the afternoon and I'd hate to miss the chance to say hello."

Phoebe glanced at the closed set of mahogany doors behind her. "Well, I've no idea how much longer he will be, of course …"

She was interrupted by the sound of a door sliding along deep carpeting and turned to see not Harold Potter, but Albus Dumbledore stepping through into the reception area.

"Ah, Harold, I see that you have some visitors," the Headmaster said, smiling at the three wizards who had jumped up from their chairs when he appeared.

Hal looked at his son and his two friends curiously. "Hello, Remus; we missed you this summer." Remus smiled while his two companions shuffled a bit nervously. "I can't think why you've come all this way to see me, however."

"Well, Dad – what it is …"

"Mr. Potter, we were in London shopping and thought we'd …" Sirius took up the explanation.

Dumbledore held up one hand. "Perhaps we should adjourn to your office once again, Hal – if only to prevent these fine young gentlemen from spinning too outrageous a tale for our benefit."

"Seems advisable, Albus; right this way, boys," Hal smiled at them all as he stepped aside to let them pass. As he passed his father, however, James couldn't help but note the sadness in his eyes – and the fact that his smile did not quite reach them.

Seated around the polished conference table at the far side of the room, Dumbledore folded his hands upon the gleaming surface and looked at Hal. "May I?"

"Of course."

"James, your father has told me of the incidents you – and Sirius - experienced in Brighton with Lucius Malfoy and a group of his friends. Some of your cousins – and their associates were also summering at the beach, I understand," the Headmaster began.

James nodded. "It wasn't pleasant."

"There's an understatement," Sirius interjected.

"I need to take you into our confidence," Dumbledore continued. "The MLE has been receiving disturbing reports of Muggle-baiting for some time now. It has slowly been escalating over the past several months and there are rumors of a new 'Dark wizard' on the rise. Regrettably, the escalation appears to have resulted in the disappearance of a Muggle-born witch and her parents from their home in Woodingdean." He paused, noting the stunned expressions on the three young faces before him. "A young Hufflepuff witch from your year – Anastasia Rivers."

"I know her," Sirius said softly. "She was in Care of Magical Creatures with us – third year."

"Was she the blonde who used to trail around, making calf eyes at you?" James asked, looking off into space and trying to remember exactly whom Dumbledore meant.

"It wasn't that bad, Jamie," Sirius admonished. "She was just looking to fit in somewhere. She's a nice girl."

"Do you have any idea where they might be?" Remus wanted to know.

Hal looked directly at the three students. "I took a team over there this morning. There were signs of a struggle, but we didn't find anyone there. No one can remember seeing anything out of the ordinary. Most of the neighbors were a bit fuzzy around the edges when we spoke with them."

"Obliviated," Sirius guessed and Hal nodded approvingly.

"So it would appear," he replied. "There was a crude figure painted on the door – a skull with some rune symbols beneath it, but all magical imprints had been wiped from the site."

"So what are you going to do now?" Sirius asked, looking between Dumbledore and Hal. "To find them, I mean."

"We've got a team of Aurors working with Scotland Yard and we're really doing everything we can, Sirius," Hal replied.

"What's Scotland got to do with this?" Sirius asked and James chuckled.

"Muggle police," James answered.

Sirius flushed. "Right."

Remus spoke up. "Do you have any idea who this 'Dark wizard' might be, Sir?" The question was directed to Dumbledore, who glanced at Hal.

"Regrettably, no," Hal responded.

"Dark magic has a deep, seductive power that appeals to those who hold themselves above the rest of our world. Their vanity and thirst for power and prestige compels them to follow a road that is best left untraveled. Someone has embraced the Dark and is – apparently – attempting to gain power over others; this happens from time to time. I am personally acquainted with the last wizard who tried. We must work to ensure that these people – this person – are not successful," Dumbledore said.

"Will we be successful?" Remus asked.

"Good always rises above the Dark, Remus," Dumbledore allowed his gaze to slide over to Sirius before returning to Remus. "Always."

The Headmaster rose. "Gentlemen, I believe you have plans in other parts of London this afternoon?"

The three young wizards nodded and rose as well. "Lily and Kate are shopping at Madam Malkin's," Sirius said. "We should probably get back before they come looking for us."

"Believe me when I tell you that it is best not to neglect them," Hal walked them to the door of the office. "They do have their ways of making us wish we did not."

Remus, Sirius and James walked out into the reception area to bid goodbye to Phoebe. James turned back to speak to his Dad before they left and saw him very deep in conversation with Dumbledore once again. Hal interrupted himself long enough to walk over and hug his son and waved them into the lift once again.

After re-claiming their wands, the three wizards walked out into the street and began the walk back to meet with Kate and Lily. As they approached Madam Malkin's shop, Sirius leaned over Remus to speak with James.

"Jamie, do you think you can entertain the girls for a bit?"

James looked confused for a moment, and then his face cleared. "Yeah, sure mate."

Sirius nodded his gratitude, then turned to Remus. "Want to have that conversation now?"