A/N: Fair warning, my lovely readers. This may be a difficult chapter for some, but I promise, I don't let anything too* bad happen to Norah.
44
TENSION met Norah almost immediately Lupin and Tonks escorted her back to the front stoop of Headquarters. She flinched and bit down on her bottom lip as her eyes landed on Ollie's hunched-over figure, currently sitting on the top step of Grimmauld Place's stoop alongside Sirius. Both men's heads whiplashed sharply upright and turned in the direction of the familiar loud noise of the group Apparating that always sounded like a Muggle car backfiring.
Ollie opened his mouth to angrily retort, about to ask Norah what in the bloody hell she had been thinking, wandering off alone without telling anyone where she was going, much less why she had decided to attack Tonks plain as daylight in the middle of the street.
Why she was closing off her mind and keeping secrets, though his face drained of color as he caught sight of the dried tear tracts running down Norah's face as she was supported by both Lupin and Tonks, her gait uneven and almost limp, looking like she could barely walk, much less stand up on her own.
"Merlin's Beard," he moaned, his tongue feeling thick in his mouth as he gave his new girlfriend a once-over and assessed the bruises littering her collarbone and around her neck that were bruises that were evidently finger markings.
A hot rage boiled in the pit of his stomach at the thought of someone hurting his girlfriend. He didn't know who he was angrier with at this moment: whoever had done this to her, or himself for not being there to protect Norah.
His heart leaped up into his throat as he looked at her, thinking his eyes had to be playing some cruel trick on him.
"What…?" he murmured in a shaking, faint whisper as he bolted down off his perch of the stoop and ran to take Norah from Lupin, winding one arm around her waist, draping her right arm over his shoulder to support Norah.
Sensing Ollie's growing, mounting panic as his pale blue eyes flashed deadly and dangerous, Tonks spoke up, hoping to diffuse some of the tension and supplicate him.
"She—she was attacked, Ollie. By…someone," she stammered, heat creeping to her cheeks as her voice broke.
But Ollie barely heard Tonks's words, having eyes and ears only for his girlfriend, who looked like Death.
"What happened? Wh—where did you go, Norah? What did this person do to you? What exactly…h-happened?" Ollie stumbled over his words for perhaps the first time in his life.
A dozen burning questions arose in his reeling mind, and not without a measure of anxiety coupled to go with them.
He didn't give his queries a voice, as much as he burned for Norah to answer them.
All he could do was hold her quietly and let the waves of sadness flow through the wolf as Norah's face crumpled and her head rested against his broad chest. Hesitantly, Ollie wrapped his arms around her violently trembling form, not giving a damn if the others watched and it was revealed they were a couple in the Order.
"Norah?" he whispered hesitantly, his voice hushed.
Norah raised his head at the sound of her partner's hoarse voice, and the look on her face physically pained him.
Her blue eyes were red and glassy, tears streaking down ashen cheeks. She'd been crying for a while now and showed no signs of stopping her tears anytime soon. Slowly, he eased his arm tighter around her waist, pulling her closer.
"A—are you hurt?" he asked, fearing for the worst. Norah shook her head but did not verbally answer him.
As he watched his new girlfriend struggle to reign in her emotions over whatever had happened to her, he tried to think of something to say to Norah and found himself at a loss for words. He wracked his brain for something—anything—he could think of that would help set her mind at ease, but he was entirely too distracted.
The only thing he knew for certain was that someone he cared for was falling apart in front of him, and he had no clue how to help her.
But his voice trailed off and he fell silent as Remus shot him a slightly admonishing look and shook his head no.
"Wait until we get inside. We need to have a talk with Dumbledore. He's here?" Lupin asked, his tone clipped and hard as he looked towards the entryway and then to Sirius.
If Padfoot was at all surprised by the curtness and uncharacteristically stern undertone of Moony's voice, Sirius gave no indication. The handsome dark-haired former prisoner of Azkaban offered a slight incline of his head and motioned to the front door of his parents' ancestral home.
"Inside. In the living room parlor, though he requests that only he and Miss Jameson and Ollie speak right now."
For a moment, the group stood in nervous silence, though Ollie noticed out of the corner of his gaze that his new girlfriend was really starting to sweat bullets right now as a sheen of perspiration started along the edge of her brow.
But before Ollie could say something, which would have been to thank Sirius before taking Norah inside per Dumbledore's demand to speak with them, Norah's legs buckled. She was weak from whatever had happened to her and unused to standing, it seemed, for extended periods of time, or perhaps she was not able to.
Ollie tried to tighten his grip around her, but Norah almost violently shirked out of the Legilimens' ironclad grasp, leaving him wounded and more hurt than anything else the blonde could have done.
"I—I need to—to go, I—I can't stay here anymore, I—I'm putting you all in danger," she gasped in a breathless, meek sounding voice that tugged at the group's heartstrings, all except, Ollie noticed, for Sirius, who was frowning at her.
"Go?" Ollie growled in a low and dangerous voice, feeling something ugly shift within his chest, starting to feel increasingly frustrated by the lack of answers, Norah's lack of attention being paid to the precarious situation at hand, and the fact that she had shrunk away from him just now. "Norah! Focus!" he demanded, grabbing onto Norah's upper arms, and shaking her slightly, not hard enough to hurt, but hopefully enough to visibly convey just how much she had scared him just now, and Lupin and Tonks, too. "You can barely stand up! You can't even walk! You're not going anywhere," he snarled through clenched teeth as his teeth started chattering. "What happened to you? Who did this? Are you alright? Was it that—that bastard Rookwood? Was it him or someone else? I need you to tell me the truth, Norah."
Norah visibly flinched as she tugged weakly at her arms. Ollie winced as he realized he was perhaps being harsher with his girlfriend than he would have liked to be, but he needed the truth from her on what had happened.
If a Death Eater attacked Jameson, they'd need to deal with the issue quickly and as a group. They didn't have time to be scared or confused. Ollie knew the Order needed to sort this out before it escalated into a much bigger problem.
Maybe Norah was scared, even traumatized from whatever unspoken ordeal she'd faced, but she had to answer his questions. She had to keep the group informed of any dangers that presented a threat to their organization.
They couldn't afford to wait on her nerves to settle. Observant to every change in the werewolf, Ollie's grip on Norah's waist tightened as he lifted Norah into his arms, resting her head on his shoulder, not caring what they thought of the unexpected intimacy of the gesture right now.
The quick burrowing of the man's forehead against the werewolf's forehead did not escape Sirius's attentive eye, and neither did the look of worry and concern on Ollie's face.
"You're weak," Sirius exclaimed. "We should get you inside, you need to sit down. I'll ask Kreacher to make you some tea." He motioned for Ollie to follow him and led the way up the front stoop of Grimmauld Place, with Tonks and Lupin trailing close behind them both every step of the way.
"Only if Kreacher puts…poison in it," Norah exclaimed weakly, her weak attempt at a joke not missed on Ollie, who stiffened and shot Norah a withering look at her for her poor attempt at making light of her condition as Sirius swiftly led the way to the living room parlor of his parents' house, stepping back to allow Ollie space to enter the room.
Sirius hung back and watched, studying Ollie's every move.
He could tell by the man's movements, how gentle and graceful he was with the wolf, that he cared for her, though if he were being honest with himself, he wasn't sure he fully trusted Jameson or her abrupt arrival and induction into the Order, if anyone could pry the truth from Norah Jameson, it was Albus Dumbledore himself.
"Don't talk like that, Norah," Ollie snapped. "Shut up, I don't want to hear that kind of talk coming from you again, Jameson, you're going to be just fine, do you understand me?" he hissed through clenched teeth.
His temper was already threatening to implode to the surface as he gingerly rested her in the black leather armchair closest to the fireplace, which thankfully, a lighted fire had been conjured in the hearth by Albus, saving Ollie from having to do it himself.
"You'll be…wishing I was dead after…the truth…"
The truth. Her words chilled his insides.
Ollie froze for a moment, his face draining of color, the blood pounding in his eardrums.
He shook his head to clear it, stifling a growl that threatened to escape in his throat. He got a better grip on Norah's forearm as he settled the young blonde witch into the armchair.
Ollie let out a growl of frustration at hearing his girlfriend's words.
"Please don't say that. Just shut up…"
She shook with something that might have been a pained and agonized laugh, though it was hard for him to tell.
Ollie wasn't given a chance to follow up on her disturbing behavior as Professor Dumbledore spoke up, his expression as grim as a graveyard, his tone solemn as he turned to face the pair of Order partners and new lovers, the edges of his beard twitching.
The man remained unmoved, his hands folded neatly in front of his middle, and unsmiling.
"Miss Jameson. Mr. Brennan. Please, Mr. Brennan, if you would kindly sit alongside your partner, I think, given the more recent incidences that have come to my attention, there are a few things that must be made quite clear to me."
Ollie nodded. "Y—yes, sir," he stammered slightly.
Though for the moment, he preferred to stand, he was not about to disobey a direct order from perhaps the one wizard and warlock that the Dark Lord himself feared the most.
Dumbledore did not speak again until Ollie gave a curt wave of his wand and watched in solemn silence as the third spare armchair soared its way across the living room parlor gracefully and plunked itself neatly in front of the fire, within inches of Norah's own chair so he could be close by and continue to hold her hand if she needed moral support.
"P—Professor Dumbledore, sir, I—" Norah squeaked in a breathless-sounding voice, cutting herself off as her gaze wandered upon hearing the sound of shuffling little feet and audible grumblings under the creature's breath.
The trio watched in only minor slight amusement as Kreacher stumbled into the living room, accompanied closely by Sirius, who kept a watchful and vigilant eye on the ornery house-elf, who was balancing a heavily laden tea tray laden with three cups of hot herbal tea, Chamomile by the smell of it, coupled with a few delectable-looking chocolate chip cookies that Mrs. Weasley seemed to have just baked.
"Kreacher is told nasty werewolf almost fainted. Oh, but if the rumors are true, what sweet, sweet bliss! Why does they bring the nasty dog back to poor Mistress Black's house? She makes the place stink of wet dog with her filth and what's even worse, Master Brennan ruts with this dog like a bitch in heat! Is much better for the dog if she were to have rotted in Knockturn Alley and left there like a stray. No one asks poor Kreacher what he thinks. You ask Kreacher, Kreacher thinks the dog should be drowned like the animal it is!" he snapped, slamming the little tray of tea and cookies down on a small side table that Dumbledore conjured with a rap of his wand and shooting a scathing look at Norah.
Ollie's face drained of color as he plunged his hand into his jeans pocket for his wand, looking like he'd very much like to kill the house-elf where it stood for daring to utter such odious insults to his girlfriend, but before he could yell at him, Kreacher flinched, his ears drooping, as Sirius's startled shout rent the air as Sirius lingered in the doorway.
"KREACHER!" Sirius roared at the top of his lungs, seemingly not in the mood for the house-elf's attitude now. "That's enough out of you, you wretch! Away with you, rat!"
Kreacher's ears perked up at the insult as its beady eyes narrowed. The house-elf looked as though he had a dozen and one cutting insults for his master, each one more scathing than the next, but must have thought better of it, for he dutifully bowed his head.
"Yes, Master. Of course. Kreacher does what Master wishes, and if Master Black wishes for poor Kreacher to leave, he is duty-bound to do so, sir," Kreacher replied coldly and shuffled out of the living room without another word.
Norah swallowed thickly down past the lump in her throat as her blue eyes wandered up to meet Sirius's glower.
At first, a sense of an eerie familiar hopefulness washed over the werewolf at the sight of the older wizard whom Norah hoped to one day perhaps consider a friend, considering the man was a cousin to Nymphadora. But then she caught sight of the steel cut of Sirius Black's angular jaw, and the darkness in his narrowed grey eyes, flashing like steel.
Norah quickly got the impression that Tonks's cousin would like nothing better than to send one of the Unforgiveable Curses straight to her chest and end her life.
She knew she couldn't blame the man. Almost as if sensing his Order member's animosity directed towards the adopted daughter of Fenrir Greyback, Professor Dumbledore slowly turned his head, without ever taking his piercing gaze from Norah, peering at her over the rim of his silver half-moon spectacles, spoke to his trusted comrade.
"Would you excuse us, please, Sirius?" Albus asked airily, his words more of a command posed than a question.
Sirius stiffened as he leaned against the doorpost for support, though upon seeing the somber expression in the Headmaster's eyes, he allowed himself to relax a little bit.
"Of course, Albus," he murmured, almost too rigidly.
"You may take your leave now. I wish to speak to Miss Jameson and Mr. Brennan alone. I will speak with you at our meeting in another few hours, but until then, I require a moment alone with these two," Dumbledore bid to Sirius.
Sirius nodded, though he wasn't looking at all pleased with this arrangement, and backed out of the doorway. He spun on the heels of his dragonhide boots, his head the last part of him to turn away.
Norah couldn't help but notice how the dark-haired man's posture squared as he strode through the open doorframe. She also saw the scowling, vengeful look that flitted across Sirius's handsome but rugged features as he threw her a menacing look over his shoulder. She swallowed down hard.
Norah knew she'd find no ally or friend in Sirius Black, not anymore, if ever at all. It wasn't exactly a secret among the rest of the Order that he didn't fully trust her, and it had nothing to do with her condition as a werewolf.
But Norah couldn't blame him.
She squirmed against the backrest of the leather armchair, feeling Ollie's grip tighten in her hand as the man noticed her discomfort.
"Miss Jameson, please allow me," Professor Dumbledore murmured courteously, waving his wand, and allowing one of the teacups on a saucer to float delicately towards Norah. "Perhaps a good spot of tea will do just the trick to calm your nerves. I don't know what happened to you this afternoon, but it's evident it's left you in a great deal of distress, both physically and mentally, and I think it's time your partner and I learned the honest truth from you, dear," he said somberly as Norah gingerly reached out with a shaking hand and took the slightly chipped teacup.
Norah peered down into the teacup. It held a scarlet-colored liquid with a tangy, bitter smell.
Not at all appetizing in the least, and definitely did not look like any Chamomile that she recognized. Norah scrunched her nose in disgust and pulled a face as she sniffed it but didn't immediately drink.
"Wh—what is this?" Norah asked, looking to Ollie and Albus for confirmation. She sincerely hoped Sirius's little wretch of a house-elf hadn't laced it with poison or something as equally bad that would make her regret this.
Ollie shot her a pointed look out of the corner of his gaze, though his attention was fixed on the liquid in the cup.
Don't drink it, Norah, he silently warned. You've no idea what's in this stuff. Kreacher could have tampered with it, slipped something into your drink for all we know, sweetheart. Don't drink it.
Norah visibly startled at Ollie's term of endearment for her, the ghost of a tiny smile flitting across her lips hearing him call her a sweetheart. No man had ever called her that before. She silently tried to thank him with her eyes.
Though Professor Dumbledore was quick to pull them out of their unspoken moment, his voice quite solemn.
"It is a very special brew of Alastor Moody's, Miss Jameson. It won't be the most delectable thing you've ever tasted, but if you consent, it's been spiked with just a smidge of Veritaserum, hence I'm sure the appetizing odor your senses have detected," he added, the faint hint of a twinkle appearing in his bright blue orbs behind his glasses' lenses.
"O-oh," Norah stammered, not sure what else to say, though Dumbledore continued, not giving her a chance to speak further.
"I can assure though it does not taste particularly enjoyable, it is quite harmless. Think of it as it will help us come to terms with what has been ailing you. You have been distracted and distant from your colleagues here in the Order as of late, Miss Jameson, and I would quite like to discover why that is. The circumstances surrounding your arrival here were most…ah, unusual…." But he hesitated and did not complete his thought.
Norah nodded slowly in understanding. She peeked down into her teacup and hesitated. She didn't like to drink things without knowing what exactly went into them. On more than one occasion, Father had threatened to poison her in times past for daring to speak out against their way of life. And as Ollie had just said in their shared impossible mental telepathy, Kreacher could have tampered with it, somehow. But a stronger part of her doubted that, as well.
He wouldn't dare, would he? Not with Albus here.
With great trepidation, Norah lifted the cup to her lips and drank. The tea was hot, scalding, almost burning her taste buds and the lining of her esophagus as it went down her throat. Norah immediately started to cough and turned her head sharply to the side. It left a bitter, lingering taste of old leaves and grass cuttings on her tongue as she coughed.
"Must it…must it be this bitter, Albus?" she gasped. Norah was already halfway through her cup when she decided she couldn't take it anymore. The bitter taste of grass thickened her tongue and only made her want to drink water.
The grey wizard now seated in the third armchair in front of the two of them nodded and smiled with a soft nod.
She took another sip unwillingly, cringing as the disgusting liquid sloshed past her throat as she let out a moan. "Albus, is this really necessary?" she heard Ollie's sharp tone, sounding less than pleased with the arrangement.
"I am sorry for the discomfort, Miss Jameson," Professor Dumbledore pronounced in an almost apologetic tone, though Norah detected the faint trace of annoyance in the man's voice. "It could perhaps, help to think of your newfound friends and…partners, here in the Order and draw strength from that. After all, my lady, as a werewolf, you've survived harsher things than a weeny cup of tea," Dumbledore stated calmly, almost matter-of-factly, but cold.
He did have a point, Norah sighed. Norah closed her eyes for a moment, strangely wishing Wes were on her other side. Having Ollie here was enough, but she wanted to see her best friend. If only Wes was here by her side, with her boyfriend and her best friend, then she'd have strength enough to tell them the truth, but Wes was gone somewhere.
Norah flinched, thinking the last time she'd seen the other werewolf was at Jack Brennan's funeral. She'd not heard a word from the man since. She hoped nothing had happened to him. She opened her eyes to find Dumbledore still eyeing her cautiously, almost as if on guard.
Caught unaware in her wistful fantasy of having two men in her life that she cared for, Norah awkwardly cleared her throat, noticing both Ollie and Dumbledore eyeing her wearily, as if not sure what to think.
"I—I will finish it, Professor, sir, I promise. It's—it's the bitterness," she stammered, her cheeks flushing with color as she awkwardly traced the line of her neck. "The Veritaserum. It thickens my throat. I would prefer not to drink it at once," Norah explained, setting her cup on the saucer, and gingerly placing it on the table next to her chair.
It seemed to take several seconds before Professor Dumbledore was convinced by her words.
Though she thought she saw a momentary flash of distrust in his pale blue orbs.
"Yes. Please do, my dear. Now. If you would quite like to begin your recanting of events…?"
He folded his arms together and patiently waited for Norah to collect her thoughts.
She glanced down at her shaking hands, which were resting in her lap, and fought against the urge to cry as bitter tears stung in her eyelids.
"Please, you may begin whenever you feel you are ready," Dumbledore offered kindly as he peered at her over his nose, a rather intrigued expression on his weathered face. "However, since I can sense that you are nervous in my company, of which I can assure you, dear lady, you need not be, then I shall as you a question, and when you are ready, answer it. You are aware of how the truth serum works?"
Norah frowned for a moment, furrowing her brows as she stared into the roaring fire in the hearth, not wanting to look Ollie in the eyes. But she felt his piercing stare burning a scalding hole in the back of her head, though she supposed that could have just been the blood rushing to her cheeks.
"Fair enough, I suppose, but I—" she started to say, though the Order of the Phoenix's founder cut her off before she could finish her statement, eager to get started.
Dumbledore leaned back in his seat, giving the petite blonde werewolf a long, hard, contemplating look. She kept both her limbs huddled together and repeatedly glanced over her shoulder towards the door, looking like she wished for nothing more than another hole in the ground to open up and swallow her whole, though both Miss Jameson tried to attempt without obvious notice.
It was apparent her nervousness stemmed from whatever had happened to her.
Yet, despite the young witch's nervous and quite frankly, suspicious, and questionable behavior, Albus knew that unless he and Ollie made significant progress diplomatically, they would discover nothing of the wolf's origins for themselves or where she had originally come from.
Even if she was sent here for the sole purpose of being a spy for Lord Voldemort's ranks, they had to learn the truth.
"If you could please state your full name, dear," he spoke up in a solemn tone, noticing how Brennan's hand squeezed a fraction of an inch tighter around the girl's wrist.
"Norah Elisabeth Jameson, Professor Dumbledore."
"And where do you hail from? Your parents, their names?" Professor Dumbledore prodded, hoping his tone did not sound too accusatory, though it was hard enough not to become suspicious as his greying brows rose in alarm so high up onto his lined forehead that they almost disappeared into his hairline as he witnessed the girl's face pale in shock.
Norah inhaled deeply and let out her breath slowly. Suddenly, she felt sick as her stomach gave a sharp, shooting pang.
The time had come to tell not only Ollie but Dumbledore as well of her true parentage and her purpose for coming here.
How could she find the words to divulge such knowledge to her new boyfriend and the man who'd given her this opportunity, her orders from her father notwithstanding?
But the small dosage of Veritaserum compelled Norah to tell the truth. She could not lie even if she wanted to at this moment.
She trudged on, reluctantly so. Norah bit down on her bottom lip and hung her head in shame.
"F—Fenrir Greyback and Rena Lestrange, Albus. We…used to live in a small safe house on the outskirts of Wales, but our Pack now lives in the Wolves' Woods, though your kind calls it the Forest of Dean," Norah explained, feeling hollow at finally speaking those words, yet an eerie sense of relief as well, feeling as though a weighted burden were lifted on her shoulders.
But how Ollie would take the news, she didn't know. She cringed, turning her attention to Ollie.
Ollie stared at Norah, his head feeling like it was spinning. The entire world of the simplistic living room parlor rolled in and out in waves beneath his feet. He was grateful he was already sitting down, or his legs might have given out beneath him.
Surely, he'd heard his girlfriend wrong.
Greyback was...her father?!
"What?" he spluttered, his tongue feeling thick in his mouth. "What did you say, Norah?" He spoke through a mouth that had suddenly gone bone dry, his tongue now rendered heavy and useless in his mouth.
His blue eyes were flashing, burning wildly, as he searched for understanding.
By the look on Norah's face, Ollie could tell he hadn't misunderstood.
He dipped into her mind, searching for any shred that she was lying to him, that this was a cruel prank, but it wasn't. Norah swallowed past the lump in her throat.
"I…I wanted to tell you when the time was right," she whispered, a hint of compassion laced throughout her tone.
Professor Dumbledore nodded in understanding, the edges of his beard twitching as he leaned forward in his chair.
"And what," he began speaking slowly and cautiously, "was your original intentions for wanting to join the Order, my dear?" He glanced sideways out of the corner of his peripherals and seeing Norah Jameson's new boyfriend start to shake. "I take it that it simply wasn't for the sole purpose of your partner's company, which I've been told by Miss Tonks is quite exquisite once you look past your inability to control your temper, Mr. Brennan," Dumbledore said off-handedly.
Sensing Ollie's growing temper and hesitation, it did not take Norah long to launch into an abbreviated version of events that had happened to her thus far, starting with the real reason that Greyback had sent her here, out for blood for the loss of his brother, her uncle Bryce, and Father's plan.
She told the men everything and left out no detail, no matter how minuscule, ending with Rookwood's second attempt at an assault on her not even fifteen minutes ago in Knockturn Alley and ending with the warning that she believed a group of her father's comrades and some under Voldemort's command were intending to attack Lupin and Tonks's wedding.
By the time she was finished, Norah could barely look at either Ollie or Dumbledore, hanging her head. Her entire body shook in fear and trepidation.
"I—I understand if you won't forgive me for what I've done," she gasped. Her voice was mostly calm, though her pale blue eyes were glistening with shiny tears that flowed down her cheeks. She stared at an empty spot on the wall behind Ollie's head but still could not bring herself to look him in the eyes. "I kept this a secret from you because it's dangerous for us. But I—I know it was a mistake to keep this from you, and I'm so…I'm so sorry…" she choked out in a pitiful sob.
Ollie looked at Norah without really seeing his girlfriend, the shock of Norah's revelation still ringing in his ears as his eyes, wide with confusion, searched Dumbledore's, whose expression remained quite solemn.
He struggled to comprehend the entirety of the circumstances that swirled around in his exhausted mind until finally, the Legilimens thought he finally realized what it all meant.
The woman with who he'd entered into a relationship had never really cared for him, if what she was saying was true, and the heartless monster now sitting beside him had betrayed not only his trust and affection but Lupin and Tonks's as well.
Still reeling, Ollie looked up, his eyes not truly seeing. "Why did you come here?" he answered in a low vicious snarl, grinding his teeth together in annoyance. "Did…did our partnership, does that mean nothing to you?"
"No, Ollie, th—that is not true!" Norah retorted sharply, her voice warbling as her head whiplashed sharply upward upon hearing the hurt undertones in Ollie's voice. "I—I care about you, more than I care about myself!" she whispered in a shaking voice as her hand reached for his.
But before she could grasp it, he violently wrenched his hand out of hers and turned away, ducking his head, and allowing a lock of his black bangs to fall in front of his eyes like a curtain, effectively shielding whatever expression her boyfriend currently wore out of her line of sight. She blinked back tears.
This was not exactly a promising sign, Norah knew it.
"Then why did you…why did you let me kiss you? You…you marked me! Did none of that mean anything?!" Ollie shouted, his face paling in anger, his shoulders practically heaving with fury as his fingertips traced along with the tips of the two tiny pinpricks, the only evidence Norah had sunk her fangs into his neck and had marked him as her mate for life.
As he desperately searched her face for the truth, the dawning look of shock and heartbreak in her eyes was more than enough. His stomach coiled and his teeth gnashed together in anger as he fought against the surging hurt in his veins.
Norah was watching Ollie through red-rimmed, tear-stained eyes, cracked at the edges, trying to gauge his reaction.
"I—I don't want to deny how I feel anymore," she whispered, swallowing down hard as she met his gaze. "Sir? May we…may we have a moment a—alone, please, sir?" Norah squeaked in a breathless voice, turning to Dumbledore.
Dumbledore must have already sensed Norah's intentions, for he calmly rose from his armchair, wincing at the stiffness in his joints as he did so, waving his wand so that their teacups vanished.
Ollie's own cup of tea remained cold and untouched. He shot it a disappointed look, though made the tea vanish as well.
Professor Dumbledore turned on his heels to go, though not before peering over his shoulder and shooting Ollie a rather pointed look that none of them knew quite what to think of.
"It would have been better for you if you were to drink it, Mr. Brennan. Yours was laced with just a tad of a Calming Draught, but I can see now that not even the smallest dosage of such a potion will quell your anger."
Albus shook his head and sighed as if in disappointment.
Ollie merely grunted in response, not looking at the Headmaster. He had eyes solely for his girlfriend. Were they even that anymore?
Had none of this mattered to her at all?
Professor Dumbledore's brilliant blue eyes had lost some of their sparkling sheens as he looked at the son of Death Eater Jack Brennan and regarded Ollie somberly.
"Do not be so quick to doll out judgment, Mr. Brennan, you will find that doing so in your typical reactionary methods will only bring you heartache and strife," he cautioned, lingering in the open doorway as he waved his wand, revealing Tonks and Lupin standing on the other end of the doorway, that they'd been listening in to the conversation this whole time.
Their faces were aghast in a psychological disturbance at the news that Norah was revealed to be the adopted daughter of Fenrir Greyback.
Lupin especially looked like he wanted to be sick.
The skin of his brow was pulled taut over his browbone and his complexion had paled and turned an interesting shade of green, whereas Tonks was merely looking heartbroken for them both, but especially for Ollie.
She knew how much Norah was coming to mean to the man. He'd made such progress too, and something like this was sure to set him back a long way, and then all her efforts were for nothing.
"What of Norah, sir? What will happen to her?" Lupin asked, finally breaking the awkward silence that now hung between the group, though Ollie was unable to peel his gaze away from Norah.
It was Professor Dumbledore who spoke with abject disappointment, while Ollie fought to try to summon the ability to speak through his rage as he clamored for understanding, thinking the two of them needed to discuss this, in private, away from listening ears.
Ollie shot Tonks a filthy look that made her squirm in embarrassment, her cheeks red at having been caught trying to eavesdrop, but Albus spoke up before he could open his mouth to retort.
"You swore an oath of fealty and loyalty to the Order of the Phoenix, Miss Jameson," Dumbledore admonished.
Norah froze, shivering under the judging gaze of perhaps the one wizard that Voldemort feared above all else.
She shakily rose to her feet, as did Ollie, and Norah nervously stood in front of the fireplace, biting down on her bottom lip hard enough that she began to taste her blood.
Her long fingernails dug into the skin of her palms as Dumbledore continued to address her, his expression was grim.
"You have forsaken your oath and betrayed your comrades, your friends, and even your own partner. Had you perhaps come to us sooner, we could have helped you."
Dumbledore shook his head, recollecting Miss Jameson's words of how she'd divulged that Rookwood had let it slip Death Eaters intended to attack Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks' wedding in approximately two weeks.
Albus grunted once as he eyed the blonde witch disapprovingly. He was loathed to admit this next part to himself, but Sirius had been right to suspect this one right from the start. He shook his head again, thinking of Ollie.
"You put this man's life in jeopardy, Miss Jameson, and you have lied by omission to your fellow colleagues and the rest of us here among the Order," he snapped, his blue eyes narrowing with disappointment as he gave a curt wave of his arm towards Ollie.
The poor man had been rendered numb with shock, his mind still looking like he didn't comprehend at all.
"There are no words that you could offer in your defense," Dumbledore said grimly, his expression quite grave.
Norah felt the strength in her knees give out, forcing herself to shoot out an arm to grope for the back of the chair.
Her knuckles went bone-white with the effort to steady herself. Slick tears poured from her lids as several painful punishments of which the Order founder could enact flashed through her mind.
"Please, Professor," she spluttered. "I—I beg you for your mercy, please!" Norah cried, sniffling and coughing as her relentless tears almost threatened to make her sick all over the floor.
Hearing the desperation in the young werewolf's voice, feeling Lupin and Tonks nudge alongside him as the pair stepped into the room gave Dumbledore pause to consider the consequences he could inflict on the woman.
Then he decided to relinquish his authority to the one who had been most gravely injured by the witch's lack of judgment by not coming to Dumbledore for help regarding her situation with Fenrir Greyback and his Pack sooner.
"That, my dear, is not my decision to make, I am afraid," Albus answered coldly. He raised his blue eyes towards Ollie, as Norah's trembling grew more violent with the realization. "Mr. Brennan, it is your life who is now the most at risk and was put into grave peril by this werewolf's actions, or rather, should I say, her lack of actions," he stated plainly, all semblances of warmth in his tone now vanquished. "You shall decide Miss Jameson's fate, Oliver."
Remus's hand instinctively went to the handle of his own wand, ready to defend the younger wolf at his first opportunity. Ever mindful of feigned courtesies, he spoke up and cautiously stepped forward, hoping to diffuse the worst of the tension that lingered between the two lovers.
"Ollie, please don't do anything rash," Lupin warned. "I—I'm sure there's another explanation for all of this…"
Ollie's scathing and scornful look remained fixated on Norah now kneeling on her knees in front of Dumbledore.
Lupin and Tonks stiffened and fell silent as they stood alongside the old warlock, waiting for Ollie to pronounce an appropriate sentence on the woman who'd changed his life.
Ollie drew in a shaking breath and finally turned to look at Norah, his body starting to feel unbearably hot as beads of sweat trickled down the sides of his temples. Ollie felt his jaw tighten in anger as he took a step away from her.
He could taste the acidic bile that crept up his throat from the lining of his stomach and filled his mouth with a bitter taste, though he forced himself to swallow it down. As he looked at Norah, whose head was lowered, he felt as though his heart had stopped as the blood (what little was left of it) drained from his already pallid, sicky complexion.
The skin stretched around his burn scar as the edge of his mouth turned down into a truly twisted grimace.
He felt something ugly rise within himself as his heart felt as though it had shattered into a million pieces as his lungs heaved for the burning air around them that felt cold.
So, Norah didn't feel anything for him, after all. It had been nothing more than a fool's hope that he had chased. He ought to have known better. Father had been right, damn the man.
No woman, even a werewolf, would ever dare to love a bastard and an accursed wretch like he was.
As Ollie's mind thought of the young witch's betrayal towards not just him, but Lupin, Tonks, and the rest of the Order, his nostrils flared in agitation. His mind felt as if a stone were coursing through it rather than blood. The memory of saving her life under the streetlight from Rookwood, being struck by the wolf's natural beauty, to becoming her partner, to summoning up the courage enough to ask her on a date, feeling her lips move in sync with his in a kiss, loving her…
His memories of Norah Jameson, once sunny and bright, the only ray of sunshine in his otherwise shitty life, now felt as if they had been Transfigured into something horribly grotesque and truly vile, memories he wished he could extract and put into Dumbledore's Pensive, away.
Ollie purposefully kept his gaze away from Norah, as she shakily rose to her feet, refusing the offer of Remus's hand as the older man moved forward to help the witch up.
"Ollie," came Norah's desperate, pleading tone, though her voice cracked and broke as she blinked back her tears, swallowing a lump in her throat. "Just…just give me a chance to let me explain," Norah begged through her tears.
But Jack Brennan's son refused to look the adopted daughter of Fenrir Greyback in her pleading pale blue eyes.
Ollie felt confident if he made eye contact with the young witch who'd stolen his heart before he'd even known it was gone, then he might just vomit. Disgust was the only emotion surging through his veins at this exact moment.
With himself, with the monster he'd always known himself to be. Ollie flinched as he allowed the pads of his fingertips to ghost along his burn mark underneath his eye.
With her. He'd cared for Norah, even…even loved her, though his twisted psyche hadn't allowed him to say it, she'd kissed him, she'd marked him as her mate, and now…
Now, this. It was all too much for him to bear. The time they had spent together as partners rendered worthless.
Norah had never cared for him, not as he'd hoped, and it had all been nothing but a vicious, cruel lie on her part? It would have been kinder if Greyback's brother, Bryce, had just raised his wand and ended his life there in the Department of Mysteries. Kinder to just kill him then and end this.
But since the wolf hadn't, Ollie would be the monster that he'd always known himself to be, filled with a horrible bitterness and rage that he couldn't begin to control.
"Explain what, Jameson?" he barked in a rough, unrefined voice that made him flinch. "You don't need to explain anything to me, werewolf, I've heard more than enough!"
Poor Norah's face, if it was at all possible, paled a shade further until her entire face was rendered ashen.
"N—no, Ollie, th—that is not true! I—I wanted to tell you, Ollie, I—I tried!" she stammered, her voice cracking.
She reached out her left arm as she made a motion as if to grab her boyfriend's arm, though she faltered in her decision when Ollie violently shirked away from Norah's tender touch.
Her head felt like it was swimming. A horrible, black static swam before her vision as the Legilimens purposefully looked away from Norah and turned his back to the witch.
She shouldn't have come here. She felt like she was going to pass out. All Norah could hear was the resounding throbbing of her own heart against its cage in her breast and taste the salt of the tears relentlessly running down her face.
When Ollie spoke, his tone was curt and clipped, bordering on the verge of sounding downright furious.
"I would like to speak to my partner if I could be granted that. Alone and in private, please. And after that, I don't give a damn what happens to her, as long as she doesn't come near me again and stays the hell away from me and my friends," he emphasized through gritted teeth as he turned at the waist, still not looking towards Norah, instead of looking at Lupin, Tonks, and Professor Dumbledore.
There was nothing Ollie could see done to this witch that would compensate his need to avenge the wrongs imparted on him, Lupin, Tonks, and the rest of the Order.
Professor Dumbledore ignored the gasps of surprise that Lupin and Tonks collectively gave out as he nodded, giving thought to the fate of werewolf Norah Jameson.
"My dear young lady." He spoke curtly and directed his words to the young blonde witch standing, in tears, in front of her now-ex-boyfriend, Dumbledore thought sadly. "As you have turned your back on your vows to my Order, it is with painful regret that I must dismiss you from your service. I must ask you to relinquish your duties as a fully-fledged Order member," he told her, and returned his attention to Lupin and Tonks, though he looked at Tonks. "Since you have become on relatively good terms with Miss Jameson, Miss Tonks, kindly see to it she is escorted off the premises and returned to her own home as soon as their conversation is concluded, I can trust you to see it through?" Albus instructed Tonks firmly.
Tonks looked like she wanted to protest, though a slight shake of Lupin's head convinced her otherwise.
The Auror blinked back tears of her own and nodded mutely. It seemed to take her a minute or two to find her voice.
"Y-yes, Dumbledore, o-of course," Tonks whispered in a hushed voice as she lowered her head in reverence and shame.
Dumbledore returned the nod, satisfied with Tonks' cooperation, and turned back to Norah and continued addressing the young werewolf. "You are to leave Headquarters within the hour," he commanded coldly, watching as she flinched. "Take only what you brought with you when you arrived, and do not expect any assistance from anyone here, Norah," Albus warned, his expression making it quite clear that his dealings with Norah were over the second he left the room.
Norah swallowed hard, eyeing the others wearily. Lupin and Tonks were looking numb and shellshocked, too stunned to appropriately jump to Norah's defense. Not that she expected either one of them after what they'd overheard.
"Will we…will Tonks and I be allowed to Apparate?" Norah almost whispered, looking towards Ollie for confirmation.
Ollie sneered, his lips twitching. "No," he growled in a low voice that Norah could only describe as a vicious growl. "You had no problem with putting my life and my friends' lives in danger. You lied to me, to everyone else. Let the entire Order see what you are. A traitor. Tonks will walk you to the end of the street when you and I are finished talking," he proclaimed, almost—almost –enjoying the thought of the werewolf's mortification at the pain she had put all of them through.
He could tell by the way Norah's shocked eyes raced between himself and Tonks, that she'd not thought Ollie to be so cruel to her. But he was a monster.
So let him behave like one then.
"Now if the rest of you would kindly get out," Ollie growled, raising his wand towards the door threateningly. "I still wish to speak to my partner alone. Tonks, wait outside."
Norah lifted her chin to force her gaze to meet Tonks's, just as the Auror allowed Lupin to place a firm hand on her shoulder and firmly guide her towards the door, but not before Tonks peeked back over her shoulder hesitantly at the werewolf, unsure of whether to leave her friend alone with Ollie and his growing infamous and fearsome temper.
Norah shot Tonks a pained smile that felt forced, considering her new situation, and tilted her head as a sign to show both Lupin and Tonks that she would be alright.
Not seeming satisfied one bit, but seeing no other choice, Tonks reluctantly let the door close quietly behind her as Lupin and Professor Dumbledore followed suit, the door creaking shut, leaving Norah again alone with Ollie.
Realizing that her partner still had not spoken, Norah turned her attention back towards the Legilimens, only to find that he was refusing to look at her, instead, he continued staring into the fire, unblinking, like he was in the midst of thought.
Norah swallowed as she wracked her brain for something to say. She knew judging by the murderous in the man's piercing blue eyes that he'd quite like to strangle her.
But Norah knew she had to at least try to get him to see the truth. That she really did care for him. And…loved him. She shivered with gritted teeth at that little revelation.
Whether or not he would listen, was another matter entirely…
But Norah could tell one thing: that this was not going to be an easy conversation to be had. But she had to try. Her life and his depended on her trying to reach Ollie.
She owed him her very life.
Ouch. Well, I always knew Ollie would take it poorly, but hopefully, Norah can instill some belief in her partner. Coming up, Nollie shares a tense moment as Norah tries one more time to get her partner to see reason.