Thanks, reviewers, especially cecelle for taking the time to give me such a thorough and thoughtful review. Keep reading!

"So how's the summer been?"

"Oh…fine. Fine, I suppose. Considering."

"Considering what?"

"Everything."

"Yes, well. It'll get better, Hermione. It really will. Just don't you worry, and try to keep Harry from…from dwelling on things, and from trying to take responsibility for everything."

"Of course."

"And don't worry."

"Right."

Don't worry, coming from the man who looked more tired and ill than ever, who seemed never to stop worrying? Lupin seemed to read her thoughts, as usual, and gave a little smile. "I mean it, Hermione."

"I know." They should talk about something else – the mood had been pretty grim ever since Lulu had disappeared to practise her flute. "Is there no chance you'll come back to teach at Hogwarts, then? You know you've become a bit of a legend."

He grinned boyishly. "Really?"

"Oh yes. Every first-year hears the story about Neville and the Boggart."

The smile broadened. "I doubt Professor Snape will ever forgive me."

That had cheered him up. Good.

"I loved teaching," he continued pensively, "and of course it gave me an excuse to get hold of some Dark Creatures. Third-years don't really need to see real Kappas and Red-Caps, but it makes it all a bit more interesting."

"For who?"

"Well…me." He chuckled. "Self-interest all the way!"

Hermione smiled back at him. Lupin had been a fantastic teacher, the best they had ever had, and the enthusiasm that made him bring real Dark Creatures to class was exactly what had made him so good. Self-interest, indeed! The man was damn near selfless.

"Lupin!" barked the fireplace. No. Obviously the fireplace didn't bark, Snape barked. Snape was in the fireplace. It therefore seemed, momentarily, as if the fireplace barked. Finite. Except that the barking Snape had now stopped barking, and was glaring at her while she sat for some reason explaining to herself that her Potions Master was not a fireplace. Which she already knew. She was going mad, obviously, and she had better work out why he was looking at her like that or else insanity would be the least of her worries, which was in itself a worry as she couldn't think of anything more frightening than losing her mind. Except the wrath of Snape. Snape had obviously found Arthur, and the two of them plus Lupin now looked ready to begin important discussions. Important Order discussions. Which were private. Ah. Goddit.

"I'll be off then," said Hermione breezily, and hopped off her chair and out of the room as fast as she possibly could. Closing the door she smiled winningly at them all: angry Snape, relieved Arthur and a highly amused Lupin. Perhaps she should go back to bed; obviously today she was not the sharpest claw on the Hungarian Horntail.

Leaving the kitchen, though, she walked straight into Percy.

"Oops, sorry, Hermione."

"It's fine. Are you looking for something?"

"Some papers, I've left them somewhere and…what? Why are you looking at me like…they're not Order papers! I wouldn't leave important stuff lying around, you know! I…what? What are you laughing at?"

"Sorry, Percy…it's just not like you to lose stuff. Good to find out you are fallible after all!"

"Of course I'm fallible," he said stiffly. "That much should be obvious after last year." With that, he stalked off upstairs, leaving Hermione gobsmacked and remembering, too late, that Percy had never had much of a sense of humour. She dithered a moment then followed him.

"Percy?" She tapped gently on the door and, hearing some sort of sound from within, pushed it open and entered.

"Hermione. Hi. I'm sorry I snapped - I'm such an idiot sometimes."

"Aren't we all? Look, do you need a hand finding this stuff?"

"It wasn't important. Thanks anyway, though."

"No problem." There was a short silence, and Hermione took the opportunity to have a look around her. Percy's room was more of an office than a bedroom, with papers and files stacked on shelves around each wall; lists and memos pinned up in any available space or just levitating in the air; and a huge, immaculate desk covered with neat piles of paper, quills, and – wow! – a small Pensieve.

"Percy, what do you do in here?"

"Hermione," came the pompous reply, "considering that I have just begun to atone for my grievous misjudgements of last year, do you really think it would be wise of me to start spilling out the secrets of the Order?"

Hermione was immediately abashed and began to apologise, when she noticed the beginnings of a grin forming at the corners of his mouth.

"Percy!"

"Sorry, couldn't resist." He smiled sheepishly, but there was a glint in his eye that reminded her uncomfortably of Fred and George.

"So you do have a sense of humour."

"It's not very well-developed, Hermione. I wouldn't test it."

She snorted. "I'll bear that in mind. So is this all top-secret?"

"Nah. Admin, PR, Ministry liaison stuff. That's pretty much what I do. It's not massively exciting, and it's not that important, but I am good at it."

"I bet you are. Why PR, though? Spin is more a Ministry thing, isn't it…"

"It isn't spin. It's just controlled release of information. We wouldn't want to keep everything we're doing secret. Of course we tell people when we've caught Death Eaters, or when we think they might be planning something – or we tell the Prophet, anyway, and they print it. We don't want them ferreting about for rumours because we never give them anything. Or, just to spite us, printing stuff that we needed kept quiet. I know it doesn't sound terribly glamorous, but you have to have a professional relationship with the press, or else you're sunk. The Prophet guides public opinion totally."

"Don't I know it. Isn't this a bit…manipulative, though?"

"Perhaps. But, Hermione, everything the Order does is pretty above-board. We're not creating a smokescreen to prevent our own interests. Afterwards, when this is over, then we can tell the world exactly how we did it, if the world cares. But we're doing covert stuff now, that's the whole point of the Order – it's just basic common sense to keep the information secret."

"Yeah, ok. And you're in charge of all of this?"

"Pretty much. But the Ministry people help out, Lulu does, and the rest of the Order. Bill's quite good if I have to lie to the Ministry."

Hermione raised her eyebrows.

"To stop them interfering! And for security – we still don't know who to trust there."

"O….kay."

"I don't just do this, you know. I do the proper stuff as well. Fighting and all that."

Hermione hid a smile. Boys were all the same.

"I know, Percy. But why are you based here, with all the Order paperwork? Is it safe?"

He smiled confidently. "It's very safe. You just try to pick something up."

Hermione reached up to the nearest shelf, but stopped before actually touching it. "If I get blown up, or squirted with Bubotuber pus…"

"It's perfectly safe."

"You just said that."

"Safe for you, I mean."

She shrugged, and put her hand through a file.

Through a file?

There was nothing there. She could see everything still, but feel only thin air. Was it some sort of magical hologram? It was pretty impressive, whatever it was. Hermione ransacked her brain for an explanation but none was forthcoming.

"Ok Percy, I give in. How's it done?"

He smiled smugly. "It isn't really there. Everything you see is an optical illusion."

"Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight. Very clever, but…"

"What's the point?"

"What's the point."

"Well, you see…" He reached up to the same file and picked it up. Hermione looked at it, and at him, in confusion.

"So now it is there."

"Yup."

"Are you going to explain?"

He smirked. "It's kind of like a Portkey enchantment, but inverted and subverted and generally scrambled. All of this stuff is actually safe at Grimmauld Place, but if an Order member touches the hologram of an item the real thing is immediately summoned."

"Clever."

"I think so."

"Whose idea?"

"The twins', weirdly enough. They came up with the concept, Professor McGonagall and I set it up."

"Well, it's pretty amazing, Percy. Someday I'll get you to explain to me exactly how it works."

"Gladly."

"Just…"

"What?"

"Wouldn't it be a lot easier just for you to be at Grimmauld Place?"

She could almost see the shutters bang down inside his head, and knew immediately that the answer to that question did include secret Order information, which Percy was certainly not about to let slip. Quite right too, she reminded herself. The less people in on a secret, the safer it is. She only wished she wasn't so curious…

"It's very safe here, you know, Hermione. Moody himself has approved the security wards, and Charlie's even fixed it so suspicious owls can't fly anywhere near! We can floo out, but the network has been fixed so that the only access in is via Grimmauld Place, which is pretty near perfectly secured."

"Thorough," Hermione nodded. "Should have known." He hadn't answered her question, of course, but he had dodged it very neatly and given her some interesting information, for which she was grateful. "Thanks, Percy."

"Any time." They shared a smile of mutual understanding, and Hermione left him to his work. He seemed to be very good at it.