Hi everyone!

Thank you for your patience with me as I work on Part III. I've got so many ideas and plans, and I'm really excited to share the first chapter. I'm hoping the next couple of chapters will be published in the next week or so!

I'm trying to keep to canon as much as possible but I have made some small tweaks to help my story flow. Hopefully you can overlook those and enjoy regardless.

Part III

Chapter 28: Different World

July 1979 (15 months later)

Sirius apparated to a street near Westminster and looked around him. Despite the darkness enveloping the city, he could still see clearly. As always, he was faced with the sight and smell of death and destruction. Anger and frustration sliced through him. He was so sick of this war.

After leaving Hogwarts, Sirius had enjoyed almost five months of travelling around America before he'd been called back to the UK by James. Voldemort had continued to gain power, and Dumbledore had created a secret society named The Order Of The Phoenix. Its purpose was to fight back against Voldemort and his army of Death Eaters, and take the risks the Ministry refused to take.

So for the last seven months, Sirius had been fighting in The Order alongside his friends. And for the last seven months, Sirius had been watching innocent muggles and fellow witches and wizards get hurt, tortured or murdered.

Yeah, he was so sick of this war.

An explosion rocked the ground beneath him and Sirius ducked to avoid getting hit by flying rubble. Another building had been set on fire. Sirius turned to face the death eater responsible and sent an attacking spell in his direction. It hit the bastard square in the chest, but didn't stop him from attacking back. Sirius duelled with the death eater until he'd disarmed and injured him. Sirius quickly bound him in rope; he knew Frank or Moody would be around somewhere. They'd be able to make an arrest.

Despite The Order being a secret society, hidden to the knowledge of the Ministry, there were still a few Ministry employees involved. Frank, Moody, and another Auror named Gregory. Plus George and Cynthia Arwin, although technically neither of them were employed by the Ministry, but George Arwin still had strong ties there. It seemed his loyalty to Dumbledore was stronger though.

Sirius fought the wave of discomfort that always arose whenever he thought about or spoke with the Arwins. It had been twelve months since he had last seen Gemma. Twelve months since they had left Hogwarts and she had headed straight off to Auror training and he had disappeared to America.

He sighed to himself. Ever since their last time together – that morning she had stepped into his dorm to tell him it was all over – things between them hadn't been the same. Their friendship had felt strained, forced, and his name hadn't once come up in any of her letters. He knew because Cynthia Arwin – Gemma's chosen person-of-contact during her training – happily read the contents of Gemma's letters out to Lily and Mary and James and Remus and everyone else in the damn Order. But there was never any mention of him. Never any questions asking what he was up to. How he was doing. Whether he was fucking ok.

Sirius clenched his fists as he ran towards the sounds of fighting. He didn't care. Gemma was living her new life and he was living his. She was cooped up in some stupid Ministry facility learning all about boring rules and regulations and he was here; standing in the streets of London trying to save the damn world.

"Sirius! Watch out!"

Sirius ducked at the sound of James's warning and dodged the spell coming his way. He twisted and blasted an attack back at his assailant, knocking the fucker off his feet. Sirius charged and kept attacking, the death eater now immobile on the ground.

"Nice work." James said, as he stepped next to him and stared at the fallen death eater on the ground. "Mine vanished, but Remus just handed one over to Moody."

"There's another just around the corner too. We're making progress tonight."

He shared a small but sad smile with James. They were making progress, but it still wasn't enough. Voldemort seemed to have death eaters in every corner of the world, and each time they stopped one, another appeared. Not only that, half the death eaters who did get hauled into The Ministry were cleared within a few days. A lack of evidence or claims of being under the Imperius curse were the usual reasons. Sirius scowled. The Ministry always seemed to have their hands tied.

A flash of movement caught Sirius's eye and he pulled James back just as a spark of purple light flew past them. He twisted and stunned the death eater, who fell backwards with a thud. Two more appeared, so Sirius and James faced off against them.

After a few moments, James glanced at him and somehow, Sirius knew exactly what his friend was thinking. He nodded, and James quickly ducked low for Sirius to throw the Blasting Charm over his head, hitting one death eater square in her chest. She stumbled backwards into the other, just as James flicked his wand and conjured Levicorpus. The female death eater dangled in the air by her feet, her shouts and position distracting the other death eater, so Sirius quickly threw another Blasting Charm in their direction.

As James dropped the female to the ground, both death eaters quickly disapparated, their cries of panic and confusion filling the night air. Sirius and James both started laughing.

"Every time." James said, grinning at him. Sirius just laughed. He and James had been fighting together for a long time now, and were really starting to know each other's moves. Sirius loved it. He could always predict when James was going to dive left or right, and James often knew which spell Sirius was about to cast.

"Come on." He said, grabbing James's arm and pointing towards another street. He could just make out the shadow of another death eater. "If we're quiet, we can surprise him."

James chuckled quietly. "I'm not sure we're built for quiet."

Sirius held in a laugh. No, they weren't. And a particular evening came to mind; one where they'd been out in London, riding Sirius's motorcycle. He'd purchased it almost immediately after leaving Hogwarts, and after a couple of days, he'd managed to bewitch it to fly. It had been incredible. He'd hopped on, pulled James into his sidecar and took to the skies over London. Then, for five months, Sirius had flown and ridden his motorcycle all over America.

When he'd returned to join The Order, he'd taken James out for another ride. He'd missed his best friend and they needed to let off some steam. They'd touched down near Oxford Street and had whizzed their way through the side roads, up and down alleys, over cobbled streets, the motorcycle only barely touching the ground. They'd been howling and laughing, having an absolutely incredible night, when suddenly they heard the sounds of police sirens. It turned out that muggle police operated in that area and cared greatly if someone started disturbing the peace. A few clever left and right turns had them losing the police long enough for Sirius to take to the skies again, but it had been a big risk. One that they'd promised Lily they'd never take again, even though both of them were desperate for another ride like that.

James stepped forward and Sirius followed, both of them quietly stalking the death eater in front of them. The sounds of other fighting had quietened slightly, and Sirius started to wonder if perhaps the death eaters were falling back.

A feminine shout suddenly tore through the silence, and James whipped his head around. Sirius followed his gaze and saw Lily at the end of a long road, duelling someone. James seemed to hesitate, clearly torn between staying with Sirius or going to help Lily.

A flash of red lit up the street – the death eater they'd been quietly following had discovered them, and was attacking. Sirius and James defended themselves, and threw stunning spells back in the death eaters direction.

"Shit!" James suddenly said, and Sirius followed his gaze. He was looking over at Lily again, who wasn't duelling a death eater. She was duelling Voldemort.

At that moment, another death eater stepped into their street, adding to their battle, but Sirius pushed James away anyway. "Get to her."

James looked torn as he continued to defend against the two death eaters, obviously concerned that if he went to Lily, he'd be leaving Sirius alone against two. But Sirius didn't care. Lily was fighting Voldemort. She needed James's support.

"Go, James." He pushed his friend once more, and this time James relented. "You can get married without a best man, but you can't without a bride." He added.

James took off at a run towards Lily, but shouted over his shoulder. "I can't get married without either of you. So don't bloody die!"

"I won't!" He called back, then blasted two quick, powerful spells towards the death eaters. It would take more than two of these bastards to knock him down. And he'd never miss his best friends wedding.

He grinned to himself as he thought about James's upcoming nuptials. Less than one month to go and he was so bloody excited. He liked Lily a lot, knew she was perfect for James, and couldn't wait for them to seal the deal. Plus, as best man, it was his duty to throw James an epic stag do – no pun intended – and give the best damn best-man speech around. Sirius took his duties very seriously. But first…

He duelled the two death eaters quickly and efficiently, causing them to turn tail and run off. He decided to follow, feeling good about his chances. He chuckled to himself. Maybe he should have become an Auror.

Like Gemma.

Sirius shoved that stupid thought out of his mind as he raced after the two of them, winding down various streets and lanes. He didn't need Gemma Arwin clouding his mind. He didn't need the memory of their friendship distracting him, reminding him that they hadn't spoken in too damn long. He didn't need the knowledge that he'd be seeing her soon enough, if not before James and Lily's wedding then definitely at the wedding. And he certainly didn't need the many, many images that always popped into his head of her naked, laid out in front of him like a feast for him to devour.

No. He'd moved on from her. He'd slept with other women while he'd been travelling and they'd all been… good? Different? He sighed. They had been good, he'd had a nice time and had enjoyed their company, but there was always something missing. And he hated thinking too hard about what that something was.

A sudden blast to his right had him concentrating on the fight in front of him again. He shook himself and focused on the two death eaters he'd been chasing, who were now joined by a third. He steadied himself. He could do this. He could take on three.

After a few challenging but exhilarating minutes, three became four, then four became five. Sirius swore to himself. Five was a stretch. Spotting a small bin just in front of the five death eaters, Sirius pointed his wand at it. "Bombarda!" He shouted, blowing up the bin and creating a needed distraction.

Without hanging around, Sirius turned down an alley and ran as fast as he could, diving behind a large industrial bin. He crouched on the ground, breathing hard and forcing his mind to think up a plan. His friends didn't seem to be nearby, and he could hear the footsteps and chatter of the five death eaters, all intent on finding him. He clutched his wand tight and took a couple of deep breaths. He could do this. He now had the element of surprise on his side and if he aimed correctly he could stun a couple of them in quick succession.

He took another deep breath. In a few moments he would move. One… Two…

A sudden blur of black whooshed past him as one of the death eaters flew threw the air and crashed into the wall in front of him with a sickening thud. A moment later, another appeared, flying and crashing in much the same way. Merlin's Beard.

Sounds of a duel echoed around the alley and Sirius peeked out from behind the bin. He immediately pulled back when a third death eater came flying towards him, landing in a heap at his feet. The death eater stirred, so Sirius quickly stunned the guy, then looked back out into the alley.

The last two death eaters were blocking his view, duelling with someone Sirius couldn't see. He got ready to join the fight though, just as both death eaters disapparated out of the alley. But not before his mystery saviour cast the Reductor curse. A bright orange light filled the space, startling the disapparating death eaters into splinching themselves. Sirius held back a laugh as he looked down at the various limbs and appendages left on the ground. No doubt the Ministry will have fun cleaning that up.

Checking behind him for the other three death eaters – all still out cold – Sirius stepped out from behind the bin and finally looked up at whoever had just saved his arse. He froze.

Dressed in tight black jeans, a form fitting black top that hugged every familiar curve, wavy blonde hair that was chopped far shorter than he'd ever seen it, and stunning bright blue eyes that stared back at him in shock, Sirius took in the sight of the one person he had been desperate to see again but had dreaded seeing again.

"Gemma." He breathed, his voice sounding strained. Fuck she was beautiful. A year hadn't changed a damn thing; she was still the sexiest woman alive and Sirius's cock reacted instantly. Despite being with other women, he'd always had to work a little to get his body to engage. But with Gemma, he just had to look at her.

"Sirius. Hi." She sounded surprised to see him. She looked it too. He smiled to himself; he always enjoyed surprising her.

"You're back." An obvious comment, but he couldn't stop himself. He hadn't expected her to be back for another couple of weeks, just before James and Lily's wedding. That was what Cynthia had said, and what Frank had said about Alice. So why was Gemma here, now?

"Yeah. I arrived home about half an hour ago. Then I got called straight here." She glanced around as if checking for threats, then turned back to him. "What are you doing here? It's dangerous."

Sirius bristled slightly at the comment. He knew it was dangerous. He'd been fighting like this for seven months. "I know. I'm fighting back. I'm helping."

She gave him a quick smile and raised her eyebrows at him. "You were hiding behind a bin."

Sirius knew she wasn't being nasty, but still he hated the implication of her words. "I was catching my breath and coming up with a plan." He explained. "I had it under control."

Gemma chuckled and Sirius bristled again. "Ok." She said. He could tell she was simply placating him. She looked around again. "You should head home, Sirius. I'm sorry, I know you're trying to help but this is Ministry business."

Sirius glared at her. "Trying to help? I am helping, Gemma. I've been helping for the last seven months."

Gemma sighed slightly. "Maybe, but…"

He cut her off. "There's no maybe about it. What are you saying? That I'm not wanted because I'm not part of the Ministry. That because I'm not an Auror like you I should just head home and sit tight?"

Gemma frowned at him. "Sirius, I don't mean anything horrible by it, but I have to follow protocol. Civilians aren't allowed to get involved in Ministry business. We're being attacked and Aurors are the best people to stop it."

Sirius reacted, unable to hold in his frustration any longer. "Really?" He threw his arms wide. "Well where the fuck have all the Aurors been for the last seven months? Because I haven't seen many of them. But I've been here…" He jabbed his finger into his chest. "…fighting death eater after death eater, fighting Voldemort, watching innocent people get killed in front of me. I've been here, trying to save so many fucking lives while you've been sat in a room learning about protocols. Screw your damn protocols. I'm staying. I don't walk away from things."

Sirius paused, breathing hard, and realised he was talking about far more than the war. Shit. He didn't need her knowing how much her walking away had affected him. Especially as he was still convincing himself he was over it.

He stared at Gemma's startled face, his body exhausted from the physical fight, his mind tired from pushing her away and his heart aching because even though in this very moment he hated Gemma Arwin, he still wanted to haul her to him, hold her tight and never let her go. And that thought terrified him.

When he spoke again, he was calmer. "This is my choice, Gemma. I don't care what your protocol says, I'm not stopping. You're just going to have to get used to seeing me around."

Because no way in hell was he giving up The Order. Gemma may have chosen the Ministry, but she'd learn soon enough that she was on the slower side of the track. And he wasn't going to wait around for her to catch up.

Gemma stared at Sirius's back as he walked away from her. Shock and pain sliced through her, suppressing the anger that bubbled under the surface. What had just happened? She hadn't seen Sirius for twelve months and their first interaction had been him having a go at her. And for what? For doing her job?

She had arrived home from training just half an hour ago and had been immediately sent to the Westminster area to deal with an attack from Voldemort. She shouldn't have been surprised – after all, her training had been cut short by three weeks because the Ministry so desperately needed the additional Aurors – but still, she had hoped for a little bit of time before she officially started her new job. She hadn't even had a chance to properly see her parents yet. One quick, surprised hug from her mum was all she had gotten.

So, she'd apparated straight to Westminster and within seconds she'd found five death eaters looking the other way. She'd put her new skills to good use and was pretty happy with the outcome. Three to arrest, and the other two splinched and therefore wounded somewhere. They'd have to contact the Ministry if they wanted their body parts back.

But then Sirius had stepped out from behind that bin and everything had come crashing down around her. He'd looked incredible – handsome, strong, powerful – and her insides had turned to jelly. She hated that. She hated that with one smouldering look, Sirius had stripped down every single wall she had built over the last year. Months of telling herself that Sirius wasn't worth it. Months of telling herself that she didn't need him. Months of telling herself that she was fine on her own. It had all come crashing down.

Because she still fucking loved him.

Gemma sighed and rubbed her eyes. She needed to focus on her job. It was her first day, and looking at the mess in front of her, she'd have a lot of paperwork to complete and not a lot of time to complete it. She couldn't spend anymore of her time thinking about Sirius.

Except… why had he gotten so mad at her? She was only doing her job. And surely he knew that he shouldn't have been out, getting involved in the war. Unless, maybe he was just passing… maybe he was just defending himself…?

Gemma sighed again. No, she didn't think that was it. He mentioned something about seven months. Had he been fighting like this for seven months? What had happened to him travelling?

Focus, Gemma. Focus! She scolded herself and concentrated on her job. She had a million questions about Sirius but she wasn't going to get the answers anytime soon. It had taken all of her strength not to ask her mum about him, and her mum had never voluntarily shared any information. Gemma had assumed that was because he was still travelling. Frank had written to Alice early on to say Sirius was in America, but no more was ever mentioned.

Gemma glanced over her shoulder as she heard the sounds of a duel happening nearby. She needed to help. Which meant she needed to wrap this mess up quickly.

Raising her wand in the air, Gemma shot white sparks into the sky. The Auror Clean Up team would be at her current location in moments to take the death eaters in to custody ahead of a trial and deal with anything else that needed cleaning up – like splinched body parts. Gemma waited patiently until she heard a familiar voice behind her.

"Nice work, Arwin." Ben Knight, a Cleaner team lead said as he approached her and looked at the bodies on the ground. He shot her a big grin that always made her smile. "First day and you're already making arrests. Impressive."

Gemma smiled back. "Thanks. They were focused elsewhere, so I got lucky."

He chuckled. "Just admit you're a badass a be done with it."

She laughed too. "Fine. I'm a badass."

"That's my girl."

Gemma shifted uncomfortably at the endearment as he stepped forward and assessed the splinched body parts. Ben Knight had been part of her training where they learned about the clean up procedure. He'd been a fun and engaging teacher – a far cry from some of the Aurors and other department leads they'd been learning from – and after his sessions he always stayed behind to chat with them. Gemma and Alice had made fast friends with Ben, but lately things between them seemed to change. He was flirting with Gemma now, and hinting at wanting more than friendship with her. Gemma wasn't sure.

"Ok, I think I can handle this." Ben said as he stood up and kicked the leg of one of the fallen death eaters. "I'll call in some help, but you can head off."

Gemma sighed in relief. She wanted to get going and join the fight she could hear nearby. "Great, thanks."

"No problem. Catch a few more bad guys and you'll beat Moody's record."

Gemma laughed. "If I do, it'll be a miracle." Moody had arrested eleven death eaters in one night once. Gemma wasn't likely to hit that number.

"If you don't, you owe me dinner." Ben suddenly said, a cheeky smile on his face.

Gemma gave him a small noncommittal smile. She did like Ben, but she wasn't sure she liked him like that. And after seeing Sirius…

"Maybe." She simply said, before turning and running towards the rest of the fight.

Six hours later, Gemma stepped back through her front door. She was exhausted. The fight had only continued for another hour or two, but then she'd been forced to head into the Ministry and complete the paperwork on the three death eaters she'd arrested and the two she had splinched.

She hated paperwork. But it was part of the job.

"Gemma?" Her mums face suddenly appeared through the living room door and Gemma turned to her.

"Mum, what are you doing up? It's four AM."

"I was waiting for you, darling. I wanted to see how you were." Cynthia Arwin stepped into the hall and headed towards the kitchen. "How was your first night?"

Gemma sighed and followed her mum. "Good. I arrested three. Splinched two, so whoever they are, they'll need to contact the Ministry to get their bodies back."

"Very successful then." Cynthia said as she boiled the kettle and grabbed a couple of mugs. "Tea?"

"Coffee please." Her mum raised her eyebrows in surprise, so Gemma explained. "If I go to sleep now I'll only get two hours before I need to be up again. I'd rather push through and just crash tomorrow night." Gemma knew her body; she'd feel far worse if she only got two hours sleep.

Her mum didn't look convinced. "Hmm. Ok. Well don't tire yourself out too much. Your father used to do that all the time. He'd work and work and work and never sleep, then one day he was so exhausted he started putting books in the oven. Silly man. I used to tell him…"

Gemma zoned out as her mum continued berating her dad. She'd heard these stories before. She knew her dad was a workaholic.

Suddenly her mum started coughing and Gemma looked up. "Mum, are you ok?" Gemma rushed to grab a glass from the cupboard and filled it with water, but her mum waved her away.

"I'm fine. Just a silly cough. I've had it for months."

"Months? Mum, that doesn't sound healthy." And it really didn't. The cough had been deep, as if coming from her mums chest.

"You sound like your father. Honestly, I'm fine. The healers at St Mungo's have looked at me and they don't think it's anything to worry about. Some muggle illness that often clears itself up."

Gemma frowned. She didn't like the sound of this at all, especially as her mum was being far too vague. Gemma decided she'd question her dad about it when she saw him.

Her mum suddenly changed the topic. "Did you see anyone else out tonight?"

Gemma frowned as she picked up her coffee and returned to her seat; what a strange question to ask. Did her mum somehow know about her run in with Sirius? "What do you mean?"

Cynthia shrugged slightly. "I just mean… your friends. Did you see any of your friends out tonight?"

Gemma frowned harder. "Why would my friends be out tonight? Besides Alice, of course."

Her mum hesitated for just a moment. "There's something I need to tell you, which I haven't been able to write in my letters because I know the Ministry monitor our conversations." Gemma knew this too. They wanted to make sure their recruits weren't sharing critical information, so while Gemma didn't like it, she understood and accepted it. She stared at her mum, willing her to continue. Cynthia sighed. "The Ministry has good intentions. Mostly. But they are… restricted in the things they can do. You're new to this world, Gemma, but even when I was an Auror, there were certain risks we couldn't take. Certain rules we had to follow. Unfortunately, things have only gotten more restrictive."

Gemma waited for her mum to continue, confused over where the conversation was going. Was her mum no longer happy that Gemma had decided to become an Auror and work for the Ministry?

"In the last few years, there have been some significant attacks; Waterloo, St Mungo's, Hogsmeade." Gemma nodded. She was more than familiar with the Hogsmeade attack. "In each instance, we believe more could have been done to either slow the attack or even prevent it from happening in the first place."

"We?"

Cynthia smiled. "Your father and I, plus Dumbledore."

"Ok." Gemma still had no idea where this was going, but she stayed quiet and let her mum continue.

"After Hogsmeade, Dumbledore pressed the Ministry for the information they had on the attack. He wanted to know the names of the Aurors who were watching the suspected death eaters at the time. He wanted to know how it had come down to a group of school children…" Cynthia reached over and grabbed Gemma's hand. "…you, and your friends… to save the day, and not the Ministry. He was furious. His students were at risk. One died. It was unacceptable, and unfortunately the Ministry didn't have any answers. The Aurors had been doing what they could at the time, but they'd all been pulled off that particular task to work on another, and it meant the attack at Hogsmeade was a complete surprise to everyone."

Gemma fought the wave of disappointment that washed over her. All her life she had wanted to be an Auror, believing it would result in her truly making a difference. In her truly being able to help people.

"Don't look so sad, darling." Her mum suddenly said. "I'm not trying to dash your dreams, I just want you to know the truth. Being an Auror is an incredible job, and I'm so proud of you, but it won't be easy. You work for our government, which means you won't always get to do what you want to do. Or what you think is right. That's the hardest part, I'm afraid."

Gemma nodded. "I've learnt a lot in the last year, mostly that there are a lot of rules to follow. It's just disappointing to hear that the Ministry removed Aurors from watching suspected death eaters and it led to that attack."

"I know. But the reason I'm telling you all this is because something good has come out of it. About eight months ago, Dumbledore created a small, secret society." Gemma stared up at her mum. A what? "He's called it The Order Of The Phoenix, and your father and I are both members. As are all of your friends, plus a few others like your old teacher, McGonagall, and also other Aurors like Frank Longbottom, Alastar Moody and Henry Gregory."

"My friends? As in Lily and Mary and…"

Her mum was nodding. "Yes, Lily and James, Mary, Remus, Peter and Sirius. And I imagine Frank is telling Alice all about it right now too."

Gemma was still confused. "So what does it mean, to be part of the Order? What are my friends all doing?"

Cynthia gave her a small but sad smile. "They're fighting. They're a part of the war as much as any Auror, but they're doing it secretly. Dumbledore knows the Ministry will react badly if they hear that he's created his own society, but he had no choice. Voldemort is getting stronger everyday, and we need people to fight back. Really fight back. To take risks, to follow death eaters, to anticipate where and when the next attack might be, because Merlin's Beard, Gemma, we've already lost so much. Too much. The Ministry are trying, but their hands get tied so quickly. The Order doesn't have any rules except to keep itself a secret."

Gemma's head was spinning. Her friends were part of a secret group. A group formed by Dumbledore to battle against Voldemort. Lily and Mary and James and Remus and Peter… and Sirius. Shit. That must have been why he had been at Westminster, fighting. That must have been what he meant when he said he'd been fighting for seven months with no Auror around. Merlin's Beard, she'd told him to go home! No wonder he'd been so pissed at her.

"I saw Sirius tonight." She said. "But no one else. We talked but he didn't say anything about The Order. Then I went off and worked alongside Alice, Frank and Moody. They didn't say anything either."

"Dumbledore has strict rules in place over who can say what. Only I'm allowed to share this secret with you, just as only Frank can share with Alice. We're also the only two who can bring you to the Order's Headquarters."

"You have Headquarters?" Gemma asked, slightly amazed. This sounded like a serious operation.

"We do. It's an old house Gregory owns. It's run down but in a good, hidden location. We meet once a week."

"When is the next meeting?"

"Tomorrow night. Will you join us? Dumbledore is keen to have you as a member, but he knows he is asking a lot of you. You'll need to keep The Order a secret; the Ministry cannot know."

Gemma didn't hesitate. "Of course I'll join. And of course I'll keep it a secret. I trust Dumbledore. I trust you and dad, too. And all my friends." Gemma took another breath as it all sank in. "If so many good people are turning to a secret society, the Ministry really must be failing."

Cynthia sighed and reached for Gemma's hand again. "The Ministry is doing everything they can within the confines they have. Don't worry, you've still made the right choice to become an Auror. You can do so much more as a Ministry employee than most of us outside of it can, but you'll also face challenges. You'll be getting the best of both worlds. Speak to Frank, Moody or Gregory tomorrow evening. You'll feel better once you know how they handle it all."

Gemma nodded. "I will do." She looked down at her cold forgotten cup of coffee. "I can't believe how quickly everything has changed. One minute I'm a brand new Auror, making arrests but drowning in paperwork, and now I'm also part of a secret society where I'll be fighting alongside my friends. I haven't even had a chance to write to any of them, to say I'm home."

"You'll see them tomorrow night. It will be a lovely surprise for them. I bet Sirius was happy to see you. You two used to get on quite well, didn't you?"

Gemma held back a humourless laugh. They more than got on well at one point, but things between them had drastically changed. And clearly she'd gone and made it a million times worse. Gemma looked up at her mum and shrugged. "We didn't really have much time to talk. But it was nice seeing him again." She decided to change the subject. "I can't wait to see Lily and James. I'm so excited for them. I can't wait to see Lily's ring!"

"Oh it's beautiful!" Cynthia gushed. "Lily was so sad that she couldn't celebrate her engagement with you and Alice, but Mary did a good job of spoiling her. And speaking of celebrations, we were all so happy to hear about Alice and Frank."

Gemma smiled. While in training, Alice and Frank had decided to get married, so they did so that very day. It had been a quick but beautiful ceremony in one of the rooms at the facility, and Gemma had been one of the witnesses alongside another recruit. It had been perfect.

"It was a lovely ceremony. No bells or whistles, just the two of them. It was perfect. Alice was over the moon."

"Yes, Frank surprised us all with the news during one of our Order meetings. Luckily he'd told Lily and Mary beforehand otherwise I think Mary would have clawed his eyes out."

Gemma laughed. That sounded like Mary, missing out on her friends wedding. A realisation hit her. "Wait, so Mary is part of The Order too? Mary is… fighting?"

Cynthia nodded, but then shook her head. "She's part of The Order, but she doesn't fight. The Order has different roles, and having someone at St Mungo's is incredibly helpful. She's able to provide information on whether any new cases coming in seem suspicious or linked to any others, whether we can find patterns in injuries, for example. It's also useful having a Healer on the team for when we do go out and fight. She's brought her lovely boyfriend, Stephen, into the group as well. Dumbledore met with him and has cleared him as trustworthy."

Gemma nodded. "I'm glad Mary's involved. What about you, mum? Are you fighting?"

Cynthia shook her head hard. "No dear. I will if I absolutely have to, but my role is much more admin based. I'm responsible for the flow of information, and making sure any documents we get our hands on are kept safe." Cynthia smiled. "It's a boring job that none of you young ones would be interested in."

Gemma laughed. "True." Her mind wandered back to her evening at her desk after the fight. "I think I've already done enough paperwork to last me a lifetime."

Cynthia laughed. "I'm afraid that's only the beginning, darling." She laughed again, this time the laugh turning quickly into another bad cough. Gemma stood up and moved around the counter, rubbing her mums back as she kept coughing.

Gemma quickly grabbed the glass of water from the side. "Here." Her mum took the glass and had a few sips, the coughs slowly abating. "You ok, mum?"

She nodded. "I'm ok." Her voice sounded strained. "It comes and goes."

"Maybe you should head up to bed. Get some rest." Gemma was definitely going to speak to her dad about this cough, and maybe Mary and Stephen. Make sure the healer who had cleared her mum hadn't missed anything.

Cynthia nodded. "I will do. You're staying up?"

"Yeah. I'll just chill in the living room. Catch up on some TV."

"Ok, darling." Her mum pulled her in for a hug and kissed her cheek. "I'm so pleased you're home, and I'm so proud of you. I love you, Gemma."

Gemma's heart swelled. "I love you too, mum."

"And I love your new hair!"

Gemma smiled as her mum headed out of the kitchen and up the stairs. She brought her hand to her head and ran her fingers through her shortened hair. It had been an impulsive decision, just a few days ago. After she qualified, Gemma had felt different. She'd felt taller, stronger, more powerful. She had wanted to do something that represented the new her, and a fun new haircut had been a great idea.

Gemma slowly wandered into the living room and put on the TV, immediately finding an old romantic film. She shrugged and threw herself down on the sofa, hoping to get lost in the drama. But her mind kept wandering to everything she had seen and heard since her return home. Her new job, and the joy of taking down death eaters compared with the boredom of paperwork. The Order, and how she would fit that into her life, as well as knowing her friends had all already been involved for the last eight months. And of course, Sirius.

Gemma closed her eyes. Seeing Sirius again hadn't exactly been as she'd imagined for all those months. She always pictured two scenarios, depending on what mood she was in.

One, she'd see him and feel absolutely nothing between them except friendship. Then they'd go back to how things had been before; fun, easy, no heartache.

Or two… she'd see him and he'd immediately sweep her off her feet, tell her he loved her and that he'd never let her walk away from him again.

Gemma shook her head. Neither of those things had happened and neither of them ever would. It was clear she had returned to a very different world to the one she had left, and she had no idea how to navigate it.

But she would damn well try.