They had initially planned to spend a quiet Christmas Eve at the manor, just the three of them, but at Mrs Weasley's implacable insistence they finally agreed to join the others at the Burrow for supper.
Remus was there, but he was the only member of the Order present. Evey decided to sit beside him.
"We didn't get a chance to talk since I got back," she said. "Tony told me you worked hard on getting information regarding my situation, despite the obvious danger to yourself. He says you were infiltrating a pack?" That was what Mrs Weasley had told them, but they didn't know whose pack or why, for that matter. What were they hoping to achieve? The werewolves were unlikely to help their cause, whether or not they belonged to Greyback. Society had been hard on them; it always had been. She hadn't needed Jabbar or Croyd to tell her that. At least hunting and killing them was illegal now – in most countries.
According to Scabior, the werewolves of Great Britain were divided in three categories, each roughly equivalent in numbers. There was Greyback's pack, largest and foremost in the British Isles, and possibly in Europe; there were the werewolves who belonged to other, smaller packs (of which there were about forty, scattered across the country); and finally, there were the lone wolves, who were not affiliated to any pack and lived a solitary existence, for the most part.
The lone wolves, or rogues, as pack wolves called them, were unlikely to take part in the present conflict unless they were to gain something from it. Voldemort, of course, knew that very well and had acted on it during the First War. It had been one of Walden's first tasks to recruit them. It was only a matter of time before Voldemort started recruiting them this time around, if he hadn't done so already. He would promise to allow them to live as they wished, without constraint. It had worked the first time, so there was no hoping they would turn him down now. They were like mercenaries, keeping to themselves in times of peace but selling themselves to the highest bidder in a crisis. Of course, there were some who were different, like Remus, who thought of the bigger picture. A few had even abandoned their packs to ensure their families' safety. After being cloistered at Asgard for so long, that last part didn't make much sense, she had to admit. Pack members always looked out for each other and for their families, although having children was not exactly a common occurrence among werewolves – for good reason, since the odds of giving birth to a healthy child were down to 50%.
The werewolves who belonged in other packs were not likely to act unless they were compelled to do it. They preferred to keep to themselves; they helped each other out and made do with what they had but rarely involved themselves in affairs that did not directly affect them. They would turn down Voldemort for as long as they dared, but Greyback might be enough to convince them to join the dark wizard's ranks. They hated Greyback, true, but they feared him more than they despised him. And if an Alpha decided to go over, his pack would follow.
And of course the Order had little to offer to either of those categories. They couldn't keep them safe from Voldemort or Greyback, and they could make no promise for a better treatment in the future.
"I was trying to recruit them," Remus admitted with a sigh. "Being accepted by the pack alone took me weeks, however. They still don't trust me, for the most part. I've been away too long." He smiled sourly. "I was hoping to join Greyback's pack, to tell you the truth. He was the one who turned me, so I thought he might be more compliant. But no one would let me know where he is, or how to find him. They hate him, you know. But they are also terrified of him, even the pack leaders."
"Which is probably why they hate him," Evey pointed out. She already knew all that. Greyback had been quite frustrated with these other Alphas who, according to him, wouldn't submit to him because they were too prideful, and that was why the wizarding world refused to grant them any right, because they were not united. He often threatened to take over their packs, but had never followed through with his threats.
Remus nodded gravely. "He could be a true leader, if he wanted to," he murmured. "I hate him for what he did to me, you understand, but in spite of that… he could shake things up, if he bothered to do it properly. If he sought the people's respect, not their fear; if he tried to communicate, instead of sending messages via the trail of bodies he leaves in his wake…"
"Yeah, that's exactly what I told him and his pack." To no avail, but she had.
"It's too late now, of course," Remus went on sadly. "He should have done that from the beginning. His alliance with Voldemort during the First War destroyed any chance of ending the werewolves' stigma, and his continued loyalty to the wrong side is making it worse, even now. He has likely doomed us all." He shook his head. "You are too young to know what it was like during the war, and in the years that followed. When Voldemort was brought down by Harry, we celebrated for weeks, but that is only the part people want to remember. There was a long period of paranoia, of general distrust as the remaining Death Eaters were hunted down. And since Greyback had so publicly declared his support for Voldemort, and because his pack was so large, the rest of the world lumped all the werewolves together. What little betterment we'd earned for ourselves before the war was annulled, as if it had never existed at all. We were back to where we were in the Middle Ages, or near enough."
"That must be what prompted Belby to create the Wolfsbane," Evey said. "To allay the general backlash following Greyback's treason."
"Indeed. Belby's grandfather was a werewolf, you see. I believe he was assaulted in the aftermath of the war, and badly injured, because his attackers employed silver." He exhaled deeply. "Unfortunately, for all that it is quite effective, the potion is too difficult to brew, and too expensive by far. Few werewolves were given proper education, almost none can keep a steady job, and most live in poverty." He shrugged. "The introduction of the Wolfsbane helped, I suppose. A little. What we need now is for it to be made easily and cheaply available to all." He let out a bitter chuckle. "I don't see that happening any time soon."
"But the other werewolves," Evey said, "they're not allied with Voldemort, are they? The ones from the pack you joined, for example."
"Not yet, but Death Eaters are pressuring them on one side, and Greyback on the other. It won't be long until Benjamin gives in. If he doesn't, they'll just kill him and set someone in his stead. One of the rogues, most likely. I received recent tidings that recruiting among their ranks is going well. I don't know why Voldemort even bothers with the smaller packs. He already has half the werewolves of England with him, at the very least."
"Greyback's pack is not exactly at his disposal, though. That's what I've been told, anyway." Scabior said Greyback never sent any of his wolves to do Voldemort's bidding, and wouldn't, unless they volunteered.
Remus didn't say anything for a minute. He appeared to be considering. "He likes to give his subordinates the illusion of free will," he said eventually. "But make no mistake," he went on earnestly, leaning forward in his chair. "They are being misled. He's using them to get what he wants, although exactly what that is I have only the vaguest idea. He plans in the long run, but in the end they are mere pawns." He scowled faintly. "Did he tell you anything that might help the Order? I'll understand if you'd rather not discuss what happened when you were there, but any scrap of information you might have gleaned could be useful."
She thought it over for a moment then glanced at Tony. He was looking at them, obviously listening in on their conversation. Should she tell Remus what she knew about Greyback? The Wolves had not made her promise not to reveal their existence, but it seemed implied. How much should she share with the Order? Tony shook his head slightly, as if he'd read her mind. Exposing the Wolves would almost certainly lead to discovering the Ancients. And what was worse, they would find out about her.
Could the Order be trusted with that knowledge? She had no reason to doubt Remus, or any of the others for that matter, but she was reluctant to betray the ones who had rescued her. Besides, what advantage would that piece of information yield? Knowing that Greyback was immortal and nigh-on invincible was of little relevance to the conflict at hand, as were her own abilities. It was on Voldemort that they should be focusing. She would take care of Greyback herself, somehow.
"He never discussed his alliance with Voldemort or anything even remotely connected to his plans." That was entirely true and, in fact, she didn't think that Greyback had much insight regarding the dark wizard's intentions. He wasn't a Death Eater, after all. No matter how highly Greyback thought of himself, Voldemort only considered him as a tool, and an inferior, expendable one at that. Of course, Voldemort had no idea what he really had in Greyback, otherwise he would have him locked up and kept under constant watch. He would want to find a way to transfer, extract or contract Greyback's immortality somehow. It was a wonder that Voldemort hadn't realised something was off about the werewolf when he had first captured him, all these years ago. Croyd said they'd done all sorts of experiments on him. How had they not understood that he was more than he appeared?
"Evey…" Remus began hesitantly. He paused to clear his throat. "If you need to talk about what happened, I–"
"I don't," she assured him. "There's nothing to tell. Really." She probably sounded too vehement. She tried to slow her speech. "He didn't do anything to me."
He looked confused. "I just don't get it. Why did he take you? Is it related to what happened last year? He recognised you, and–" He frowned. "But why take you? Why not kill you? Is it possible that he or Voldemort had something in mind for you? But what could it be?" He chuckled weakly. "I mean, you are a gifted young witch, Evey, but you are not the only one, and you're Muggle-born besides. Why you?"
Her choice was now between an outright lie or the honest truth. If she remained vague, he would know she was hiding something, and if she lied… Could he tell when people lied? Scabior had explained that a werewolf's senses remained sharper even in human form if he didn't take Wolfsbane for a long period of time, but Croyd had added later that it was only true of the wolves who had been turned by Greyback himself. Jabbar and he, for example, did not share that particularity with Greyback's second. Evey assumed it was because of the Wolf blood.
She looked toward Tony again, then turned to Walden, who sat next to her. He hadn't said anything, but he had been listening, she was certain.
"The Order ought to know," he whispered. "What's the point of keeping it secret?" he asked Tony. He was speaking very softly; she could barely catch his words, but that wouldn't matter to Antonin.
"Keeping what a secret?" Remus asked. His tone was cool. Well, apparently he did benefit from a keener sense of hearing, at least.
Evey shifted in her seat to face him again. His face had hardened, and he looked angry. "We'll tell you everything if you include us in the Order's meetings," she told him on a whim. That sounded a lot like blackmail, but what the hell. She was bluffing, in any case. Mrs Weasley could easily explain everything, but Remus didn't know that. It was worth a try.
He was silent for a long time, so long that she just shrugged and turned back to her husband.
"There will be a meeting after the holidays," Remus let on eventually. "I'll talk to Dumbledore."
