Baptism of the  Phoenix

Chapter 2: Dumbledore's Double

Sirius at once recognised this room. He knew immediately that this was no ordinary dream, but a memory.

He had been seated at that round, polished table more times than he cared to remember. He had descended those stone steps; he could recall to whom each of those spindle-legged chairs belonged.

This was the meeting place of the Order of the Phoenix; a splendid underground chamber that was a far cry from his own bleak kitchen.

The room was not empty of life.

He could see himself sitting at the table, a roll of parchment in hand.

This, he realised, was his own recollection of the Orders first meeting…

It was a beautiful summer night. The sun had almost set, but its orange rays still illuminated the pink and azure sky. A slight breeze swept over the cliff tops causing the sea below to ripple in the glittering light.

Sirius trekked along the rocky cliff-path, barely noticing the beautiful scene around him, he was lost in concentration. Eyes fixed upon the ground beneath him, he counted each footstep meticulously.

……Three hundred and forty six…..Three hundred and forty seven…..

It must be around here somewhere…

He could still see the faint outline of Hogwarts Castle far off in the distance, and in the opposite direction he could just make out the outskirts of Hogsmeade.

…Yes definitely half-way between the two, just as he remembered…

Dropping to his knees he began to search the stone-covered path for some sign that he was in the right place. Carefully he turned over each rock; each tiny, little pebble until he found what he had been looking for. There shining upon the ground, half obscured by gravel and grit, lay a small, phoenix feather made from pure gold.

Sirius pulled a tattered slip of parchment from his robes and smoothed it upon the ground before uttering the spell that would hopefully gain him entrance to the secret cabin below.

What the words were he could no longer remember. Dumbledore had said that would happen. Once uttered the spell would die and would never be recalled or spoken again.

Sirius did not have time to wonder whether Dumbledore's Memory Charm had worked or not. As soon as the password's final syllable had passed his lips a blinding streak of golden light shot up from the ground, enveloping him in its glimmering rays. It was as though the sun had just burst through the ground below.

Whether the ground had actually swallowed him up, or whether he had simply Apparated to another place, Sirius did not know. The bright, hot light prevented him from seeing anything around him until it finally died and he found himself sitting in what appeared to be someone's dining room.

The room was strangely ornate for a secret underground hide-away. The furniture was delicate and expensive looking, the walls were panelled and covered in paintings.

~What was this room used for?~

~Who owned this strange cabin?~

Sitting down at the table Sirius began to re-read Dumbledore's cryptic letter. The paper was slightly charred on the spot on which Sirius had laid the golden phoenix but the words remained untouched.

~ Sirius~

I must keep this note brief, I hope it will be of meaning to you. You will remember, I trust, the location of the Horder's Cave you happened upon in your youth. To gain entrance you must find a symbol of significance, of which I cannot detail, and utter the spell we once spoke of. I will meet you inside the cave at sundown.

~Albus~

Sirius had often heard of the legend of the Horder's Cave, a mythical underground den built by smugglers in the sixteenth century. During his second year at Hogwarts he had tried to find the location of the cave on many occasions, but had given up in favour of searching for the Chamber of Secrets, a much more exciting prospect. It was only in his final year that he stumbled upon the cave's entranceway, by this time Voldemort was strong and the discovery of an old cave was the least of Dumbledore's worries. The Headmaster confirmed himself to be Secret Keeper to the Horder's Cave, but assured Sirius that it was nothing more than an empty cavity in the ground used for storing personal items.

Looking around the room Sirius felt rather disheartened, Dumbledore had been telling the truth. There really was nothing interesting about this old room, just a few sticks of furniture and an assortment of gaudy pictures.

But why did Dumbledore want to meet here?

Sirius felt rather hopeful that Dumbledore might have formulated some sort of plan to rise against the Dark Lord, but the Head's reluctance to act in the past suggested that this was merely going to be another 'Keep yourself out of danger' lecture.

Preparing himself for yet another tongue lashing from his old friend, Sirius began to pace the room, rehearsing his retaliation in his head.

…'I was not probing Lucius Malfoy about his involvement with the Death Eaters, I was merely making conversation at Sunday lunch'….

~Bloody Malfoy, bleating to the Minister, it's not a crime to take an interest in your cousin-in-law's hobbies…even if they do involve muggle torture~

'Oh do behave! You'll wear a hole in my bloody flooring!'

Sirius stopped pacing and spun around to see who had spoken.

He had been so lost in thought that he had not noticed the stranger enter the room through what appeared to be a door disguised as a wall panel.

'What? Who…?'

'Who am I, dear boy? Who are you?'

 

The stranger approached Sirius with caution, an inquisitive glint in his bright blue eyes.

Sirius was taken aback by the sudden apparition of the stranger. Something about the man seemed vaguely familiar, although Sirius was sure that he had never met him before. He was a tall, thin man with short, pale hair and a pointed beard that came almost to his waist. He had an ivory complexion and a strangely crooked nose, his eyes shone brightly from behind golden spectacles.

Surveying the man with apprehension Sirius replied, 'I was asked to come here by Albus Dumbledore.'

'Oh Albie,' the man sighed as he waved his hand dismissively. 'Never comes to call unless he wants something that one. I didn't ask why you were here though did I?' The stranger said firmly although his voice was rather high pitched. 'The question was who are you?'

'Sirius,' Sirius replied, 'Sirius Black.'

'Well, Sirius Sirius Black, my name is Aberforth Dumbledore; I only use my first name once.'

The man shook Sirius' hand although Sirius barely responded…

~Dumbledore?~

Aberforth evidently read his new acquaintance's puzzled expression.

'Darling old Albus hasn't mentioned me I gather, hardly surprising.'

Sirius sat down, joined by Aberforth who rearranged his robes and gently took his seat with great elegance. After airily sighing and straightening his cloak the younger Dumbledore quickly abandoned his nonchalant façade and pointedly fixed his eyes upon Sirius's.

'I'm his brother you know,' his voice came almost nastily, 'The black sheep, the forgotten sibling…Of course I am Albus's only remaining sibling, my fault I must admit. But then, the other two were always frightful bores…and my potions always were a hazard….'

Aberforth seemed to drift off into his own little world of thought for a moment or two before asking, 'So you're part of his little 'Save The World Campaign' are you?'

Sirius, whose mind was still lingering on the 'my potions always were a hazard' revelation, replied 'Huh?'

'Oh you know,' Aberforth rolled his eyes dramatically, 'the "Voldemort Killing Machine". Poor old Tom, still, if the rest of them look as drippy as you I don't think he'll have much to worry about.'

Deciding that Aberforth Dumbledore was the kind of man that really ought to be locked in an underground cave for the safety of the general public, Sirius stood up to leave.

'I don't know what is going on here, who Tom is, or what the hell you are talking about,' he said testily, 'Perhaps I'll call back later, I've got important things to do at home.'

Aberforth seemed highly amused by Sirius's rudeness, but replied evenly, 'Albus will not be pleased if you miss this meeting, you may as well wait for the others to arrive.'

'Others?'

Aberforth gave an annoyingly high pitched giggle and looked at Sirius scathingly,

'You don't think my brother would form an army with just one dim-witted soldier do you? No, I assure you, your fellow numbskulls will be along shortly.'

Before Sirius could retaliate a bright flash of golden light erupted in the corner of the room and Albus Dumbledore appeared as if from nowhere and descended the stone staircase.

'I see you have met my brother,' the older Dumbledore mused, 'Step this way Sirius.'

Albus Dumbledore crossed the room without further comment and walked through a doorway which lead into what appeared to be a living room.

The room was much larger than the other and was filled with various mismatched chairs and settees, all of which were arranged to face an empty space in the middle of the floor.

Dumbledore stood in the centre of the room and gestured that Sirius should sit down before he began to speak.

'I understand that you may be slightly confused as to why I have never mentioned the existence of my younger brother.'

Sirius thought for a second, recalling the peculiar man in the adjoining room and vaguely declared, 'No, no I totally understand.'

Dumbledore smiled slightly and shrugged his shoulders, 'I thought you might. I would rather not speak about Aberforth's seclusion however; I would prefer discuss the meaning of your visit.'

Sirius was sure that he would much rather find out about Dumbledore's abstract younger brother but he nodded politely anyway.

'This,' Dumbledore began, 'is the new headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix.'

~Order of the Phoenix?~

Sirius opened his mouth to voice his confusion but Dumbledore held up a silencing palm.

'It is time Sirius,' he said simply. 'Time to take action.'

~Action? Against Voldemort? But he said we couldn't. He said the Ministry could deal with it…Why the sudden change?~

'I am going to do what I should have done years ago. I am going to form an army here tonight. We are going to fight against Voldemort, Sirius.'

'What?' Sirius asked stupidly as he rubbed his eyes, seriously considering that he could be dreaming.

Somewhere beyond the panelled room a loud crashing sound could be heard, followed by the sarcastic squeals of Aberforth Dumbledore ('Oh more guests, it must be my birthday! Really there is no need to throw yourselves down the stairs for my benefit')

Frowning, the older Dumbledore scratched his beard and said quietly, 'More early arrivals.'

Fixing his gaze upon Sirius, Dumbledore raised his eyebrows, pure anxiety shone vividly from behind his half moon spectacles. 'It is time, it seems, to put my plan into action. It is time to do what I should have done long ago.'

Sirius felt rather put-out by the new arrivals, he had so much to ask Dumbledore but it seemed his time alone with him had just run out.

'Why now?' he blurted out hurriedly, determined to have his questions answered.

Shaking his head, Dumbledore replied, 'I will explain all in front of the others Sirius, please be patient.'

'Who are the others?' Sirius went on, not to be deterred.

'Friends, or so I like to think.' Dumbledore smiled at Sirius and winked. 'But failing that, some of the finest witches and wizards alive today, all of whom have my complete trust. Now if you don't mind, we have work to do.'

Dumbledore crossed the room with long, confident strides and disappeared through the doorway, back into the dining room.

Sirius surveyed his old Headmaster with a great degree of pride.

Finally Dumbledore had granted him the power he had long craved.

This was the moment he had long awaited

The moment that signified the end of Lord Voldemort.

Finally, chapter two is up and running! So, just picking up with Sirius's dream this chapter. I've not gone too in-depth with Sirius's thoughts etc in this chapter, as it is a dream sequence but next chapter is going to be based around a conversation he has with Remus so that will hopefully be a bit more interesting (but don't bank on it!) Thanks for reading and big thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter! Please come back to find out what happened in the Orders first meeting…and what happened to Aberforth Dumbledore.