Chapter 2
The Order Of The Phoenix

Three years passed. 1095 Days.
Not much happened in between. I had a hard time with keeping track of everything, considering that I was both in auror training and still worked on the Patrol. (Dominus had said this was best, because this way I could get used to stress.) It is just a short time, three years, but in those days everything had changed. Nothing was as I knew it anymore.
People disappeared. Even of the Patrol. My mother became more anxious by the day, asking me to quite. But I didn't want too. Now that becoming an auror was so close by, nothing could stop me. Not even the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters. In fact, it seemed to motivate me even more. I was determined that I would be the one to stop him. That I would be the one to put an end to all this.
I told this to Mr. Dominus as well. I don't know if he took me seriously or not, but he did team me up with Alastor Moodey. We didn't have an actual job description, didn't really know what we should do. All we knew was that we had to do 'something' against 'You Know Who', and that was basically it. We were just thrown in the deep...

England as the Wizards had always known it, had changed drastically.
Their were two major groups that were each other's archenemies. Those who followed the Dark Lord and those who didn't. However, the thing that made entire England so unstable was that no one really knew who belonged with whom. Was your best friend really against He Who Must Not Be Named, or did he only say so to win your trust? And how could you be sure that your neighbour, that always disappeared around the time a Dark Mark appeared somewhere in the country, was a Death Eater?
No one knew and no one dared to ask, afraid of the consequences.
It was all rather secretive.
The best way to go, was to support Voldemort. Well, not necessarily support him, but just not question his actions. Just don't publicly announce that you think that what he's doing is wrong. And whenever asked: That man was the smartest wizard ever to be born and he was just doing what everyone had wanted to do years ago, but no one had ever managed to have the guts for it.
Whether you stood behind this statement or not, it was what kept you alive.
Besides, it was somewhat of a taboo to be against him. If you were, you were probably one of them Mudbloods, or you'd married one or something. Whatever the case, you weren't supporting the party that should be supported. The Purebloods. The one that had the most right to be Wizards and Witches because they had passed this wonderful gift from generation to generation. They were the survivors.
The Mudbloods, that just came about, were accidents. They weren't supposed to be Witches or Wizards. Why else would their parents be Muggles?
They all knew that Voldemort and his followers were killing people. They all knew that he was trying to get control over entire England and most of them even realized that it was wrong. But how could they do something about it? They didn't know who agreed with him or not, and they certainly wouldn't want to speak of their doubts to the wrong people and be the next one found under a Dark Mark.
The Ministry was doing their best to control the situation. Unfortunately, Mr. Bagnold (the current minister of magic), wasn't the best thing that had ever happened to England. He was rather indecisive and insecure.
So, when people secretly thought 'I hope this is all over soon', their sympathy went out for those who risked their life each and every day fighting the Dark Lord. Their sympathy went out to the Aurors, even to those of the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol, to Albus Dumbledore and his followers... who were doing the very things they wished they could do, if they weren't so damn scared.
One man who was considered to be one of Voldemort's worst enemies, was Alastor Moodey. He made no secret of what he thought of the Dark Lord, and was therefore shunned by most. And by the others, he was hunted.
He was an Auror, had been for many, many years and though he himself considered to be on the way back down he was still one of the best out there.
He had been fighting You Know Who from the very beginning. From when he was still alone, had no followers and seemed a minor threat in the eyes of the Ministry. They gravely miscalculated, but who could blame them? Every once in a while somebody popped up, claiming that he would take over England. Other than a few exceptions, they all failed. How could they have known that Voldemort would be one of those exceptions?
He took a deep breath and sat down on his chair. He hated himself for not stopping Voldemort earlier, now it seemed to be nearly impossible. He had too many people supporting him now.
He looked at this friend Dumbledore, who looked equally worried.
"Sometimes I wonder," Alastor said slowly, "what we're doing this for. Why we're going through all this trouble, when almost entire England doesn't seem to mind that he is here."
It remained quiet for a long time. 'Perhaps Albus silently agrees,' he thought bitterly. That would truly be something. Albus Dumbledore that gave up. If that would be so, this was a lost cause for sure.
"We are doing this because somebody needs to do it," his friend said. "Only a small part of England really agrees with him, the others just follow him because they are frightened. And they should be. As of now, we are their only hope."
Before Alastor could say anything in reply, an owl swooped in and dropped a message on his lap.

'Moodey, get here now. We need you in the office. No more excuses, if you're not here in ten minutes, you'll wish you were never born.

Sincerely,

Mr. Dominus.'

"Damn," he cursed. "I really need to go, I'm sorry, Albus."
Albus just smiled, "that's fine, my friend. Don't forget about the meeting this evening."
Alastor nodded but before he disapparated he gave his old friend a warning look, "don't do anything rash. Wait until I get back before... well... you know."
"You have my word," Albus said solemnly and watched with a frown as Alastor disapparated, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

Sam was feeling like he was in Seventh Heaven. He had passed all his tests and his three years of training were over, he would finally become what he had worked so hard! An Auror!
"You're one lucky bastard," Mark said to him, feeling somewhat jealous. He'd probably be stuck here forever. 'But then again,' he reminded himself, 'I didn't want it as bad as Sam.' And he should be happy for his friend.
Sam grinned while he put all of his belongings in a big carton box. Yes, he was. Who would have known! A boy who left Hogwarts with mediocre grades now belonged to England's finest and most smartest of wizards. He was sure that the upcoming years would be a lot more interesting than the last eight years.
And he was right... though afterwards, he probably wished he had just remained working at the MLEP. How more simple life had been then. How less complicated, and better.
Now, however, it all seemed brilliant and great. It seemed like God was finally doing him a favor.
"I heard it doesn't pay much, though," Mark couldn't stop himself from saying.
Sam shrugged, "no one working on the Patrol ever became a millionaire."
Mark sighed. Though he didn't want to admit it, he was going to miss Sam, a lot. Now he was left with that damned Elmer and the oldies. 'Good Lord,' he suddenly thought, shocked, 'Now I have no one to dump the crappy assignments on!'
That would mean that he would have to do it! This was not fair!
Sam, seeing his friend's mood change and guessing the reason, grinned even wider. That would teach him for being lazy those past few years. "Yes, Mark," he said, patting his friend on the back. "You may actually have to work now."
Mark gasped.

Alastor glared at the young boy.
It almost seemed like he was trying to fry poor Sam with his gaze by just staring long enough. He suddenly understood why Alastor was such a well respected auror. If he'd been a bad guy and had to face that man in a duel, he would have run as fast as he could, hoping that the man wouldn't follow.
No, Moodey wasn't happy. Not even close. He was pissed and he was going to kill Dominus. After he was done torturing him, that was. It was worse enough when Dominus had told him that he would yet again be teamed up with someone else, under the motto that they needed every help they could get.
But teaming him up with a toddler! That was just a downright insult. Not to mention - and this was what infuriated him the most - was that this was Smith's boy. This horrible, stinking excuse of a wizard before him was the offspring of the man he hated the most (outside of You Know Who, that was).
"So," he said slowly, staring at the boy.
Sam managed a smile, hoping to lift the atmosphere a little. Unfortunately, this only worked backwards. Alastor's expression became even harder and he crossed his arms, "so an attitude too, heh?"
Sam was a little taken aback by this. Last time he checked, smiling was considered to be friendly, not arrogant. He frowned and mirrored the old man's stance. He tried hard to think of something witty to say, but couldn't come up with anything so instead he decided to just glare at the man before him in a threatening matter. Hoping that this would somewhat intimidate him.
Unfortunately Alastor seemed unaffected by it.
"Let's get one thing straight, boy," he said gruffly. "I did not want a partner and don't need one either, I'm only doing this 'cause I'm ordered to do so. Don't bother me when I'm working, and don't try to put in any of your own ideas either. I'm not interested in them. Just do what you think you need to do, just keep your nose out of my investigation."
A long silence settled in between them as Alastor let his words sink in.
Sam blinked a few times in confusion, failing to find a suitable reply and repeating Alastor's words in his head to make sure he hadn't misunderstood him. He finally decided that he hadn't. 'Who the Hell does he think he is?' he thought angrily as he looked at him. No wonder his father despised him so much.
He cleared his throat. "If I'm not mistaken, Moodey," he said icily, "this is our investigation, not yours, we were both assigned to do the same thing."
Alastor couldn't help but feeling somewhat impressed by this. He hadn't expected for Sam to stand up to him like this, he didn't look tough enough.
"And considering we are partners," Sam continued, "I am forced to bother you when you're working and I have no choice but to put in some of my own ideas as well. If this is too much for you to handle, you can take your complaints to Mr. Dominus."
He'd hit something there, though he wasn't sure what.
Alastor clenched his fists and then, without saying another word, turned around and left. Yes, Dominus was going to die. He was sure of it now. He would die a very slow, painful and horrible death.

His mind wasn't set to it, not at all.
He found himself constantly rethinking the events of this afternoon, even though right now much more important things were discussed. There were several men seated in the small office of professor Dumbledore - who would take over the position of Headmaster next year - all with grim and solemn expressions on their face. All of them were slightly anxious, wondering who was listening along and if everyone in this room was indeed their ally.
Frank Longbottom spoke first. "I think we all agree that this can not go any longer."
Everyone murmured their agreements.
Frank was a colleague of Alastor and he had personally asked him to come to this meeting, knowing very well what Frank thought of You Know Who. He'd brought his wife, Alice, along as well.
"What then," he asked, "do you suggest that we should do?"
"Good question, Alastor!" Albus replied for him, a twinkle in his eye. "I have thought long and hard on this myself and I think I have found the answer for it, though I need your support in it."
He let all of this sink in for a moment.
"I trust, when I say this, that everyone in this room is against Voldemort."
A slight shudder ran through the room. Though the fear of the Dark Lord's name was not as great as it would be later on, people already didn't like the sound of his name and instead preferred to call him 'You Know Who' and 'He Who Must Not Be Named'.
"Of course," Dorcas Meadows chimed in. She worked at the Department of International Magical Cooperation, she had been greatly worried when she'd heard the news that Voldemort had reached the giants and had somehow persuaded them to come to England. Something which had caused great havoc at her department because they had spent weeks in trying to find out whether this was illegal or not and whether this fell under the control of the Department of Regulation & Control of Magical Creatures. (they had not wanted to step on anyone's toes and giants were known for their tempers. They did not know whether they disliked to be called 'Magical Creatures' or not)
Despite of all the trouble it had caused in the Ministry, it had also scared Dorcas somewhat, because she knew that this was a great victory on Voldemort's part and she found that he had already too much of an influence over everyone as it was. She had contacted Dumbledore - considering he was the only one she really trusted and Bagnold would have probably shrugged his shoulders to the whole ordeal - and he had invited her to the meeting this evening.
When everyone had more or less acknowledged this statement, Albus continued.
"We have relied on the strength of the Ministry long enough," he said, "I think it is time we try something for ourselves. It is time for us to take a stand."
Alastor smiled, already knowing of his friend's plan and wondering how everyone here would reply to it.
"Let us do what Voldemort has all these years done to us. Let us spread insecurity amongst his followers, let us try to stop their plans. And eventually, try to stop Voldemort all together."
Sturgis frowned, not really sure if he wanted to be involved in this. Yes, he did not like Voldemort, but trying to stop him all together? That meant great, great risks. That meant his life would be at stake!
"This means," Albus said, giving Sturgis Podmore an amused look, "that we indeed have to risk our lives, but we have to do something. We can not just let this go on, as Frank said a few moments ago. Let us unite and fight him and his followers."
"But there are so few of us," Dorcas protested. There were about ten people in the room, and ten weren't nearly enough to even track down and fight one of that damned Death Eaters.
"There are more, who could not make it tonight," Alastor grunted. "And more will join once the word gets out, I am sure of it."
Frank and Alice exchanged looks.
"Well," Alice said eventually, in a light tone, "I don't see why this is any different from my usual daily routine."
Alastor smiled at her, she was one of the only female Aurors at the office, and a damn good one at that. He was glad to have her here with them. Frank grinned and nodded, "indeed."
After that, everyone in the room agreed.
"There will be a time," Albus said, with a smile on his face. "That this day will be remembered as the day that the Order of the Phoenix was founded!"

I never knew of the existence of the Order. At least, not the first few years. After a while I heard of it, during the time that I was undercover. Death Eaters loathed them. Which is logical, of course, considering they were each other's worst enemies.
They weren't entirely sure of who was in the Order and who wasn't, but of some they did know. And they usually hunted them down and tried to kill them. I confronted Alastor about it, a few months afterwards, and he told me the entire story. Of how it came to be. Albus had been succesfully fighting against Grindelwald for many, many years and in this time he had formed a group of friends whom he trusted greatly.
Among them were Sturgis Podmore, Dorcas Meadows, Caradoc Dearborn, Elphias Doge and Alastor himself, of course. When the Dark Lord was rising, they contacted each other once more and stayed in touch afterwards, waiting for when a right time would come to join forces again and fight him.
This happened on the 13th of November, 1972. They came together, along with some friends, and formed the Order of the Phoenix.
Though Alastor told me about everyone that was in the Order, including names and backgrounds, I never gave this away to anyone - despite what people may think. Even when things started spinning out of control I did not. I have done inexcusable things, these past few years, but never have I played through any information given to me by Moodey or any of his friends.

A/N: Thanks to both Ruschen, Moon Archer and Miss Sera for reviewing :).
As for Professor McGonnagal: Perhaps things are a little unclear at the moment, and I agree with you that my writing isn't the best but I am improving as I go. You will understand more of the story as time goes by. As for the people who were introduced and their significance to the story, well, this is Sam's story. This is how the world once was to him, before he messed up and lost it all. It is important to know him, to understand him, before we reach the end of the story.
I tried to put a bit less dialogue in this one. Apparently, my texts are always a bit dialogue-heavy. In the future this will change (I hope), right now, just bear with me.
When Future Sam is talking, text is written in italics, and in a seperate paragrahp. Hope this is all clear to everyone.

I know the update is long overdue and I know it is a short chapter. But I'll promise I'll update more regularly in the future. It was just that I had to do some more research for this chapter, concerning whom worked where and who joined the Order and who didn't etcetera, etcetera. I've also revised a great deal of the first chapter. (meaning the actual first chapter, not the prologue.)
Anyways, I kind of decided that Sirius, James, Lily and Remus would join later on. So you won't see them for the next couple of chapters but they will definitely make an appearance later on.