Disclaimer- If I owned Harry Potter, I would not be here. Trust me.
Chapter 1- Letters from Dumbledore
Outskirts of London: 11:30 PM
Running. Escaping. Safety. That was all she could think of as she scampered through the wet streets of London. The icy rain felt like dozens of sharp needles puncturing her skin every time it hit. She ran quickly into an empty alleyway. Her once bushy hair was now a darker auburn and matted to her head, dripping onto her already soaked shirt. She breathed heavily, listening for the sound of footsteps over the roar of the rain as it hit the pavement.
She pulled out her wand. "Lumos," she whispered almost incoherently and proceeded to gaze around her temporary shelter. The place was littered with garbage and trash cans. A narrow flight of stairs led to a door on the second floor of a building. She took her attention to the opening of the alleyway, straining to see if he was still following her.
A bolt of lightning illuminated the sky, allowing a figure at the end of the alleyway to be seen through the darkness. Her breath came short and trembling as she slowly inched away, praying not to be heard.
Once she turned a corner, she started sprinting again, looking back over her shoulder to see if they were still following her. Mud was sticking to her shoes, making a sloshing sound with every step she took. At last, a black figure emerged from the alley she had just been standing in. Her eyes widened in shock and she started sprinting down the dimly lit street.
Finally, with one last shuddering breath, she fell to the ground, exhausted. She couldn't run any more tonight. She would have to fight them off. Reaching for her wand in the back pocket of her soaked jeans, she found it was missing. Looking down the street, a faint triangle of light was casting a faint glow over the ground surrounding it. Her wand.
The sound of footsteps echoed down the drenched street, walking toward her body, now lying lifelessly on the ground. A smirk crossed the man's face as he reached her. Towering over her limp form, he reached down to pick her up off the ground, knowing that she wasn't dead.
As if in a last desperate attempt for escape, her eyes flew open and she made a mad dash down the street with all the energy she could muster. He didn't bother to run after her. It would be useless.
She was halfway down the street now, quickly loosing more energy then she could spare. Her pace started to slow as a loud cry of "IMMOBILUS!" rang through the cold night air. She froze and fell to the ground.
The footsteps came closer now. They were all that she could focus on. They soon stopped and she became dizzy. The world was spinning now; in large circles around her while she laid still on the cold ground. She let out a shuddering sigh of defeat as the man lifted her body and she fell into darkness.
Order Headquarters: Midnight
Ron's head shot up from where it had been laying on his desk. A slight amount of drool was on his forearm from his nap. He wiped it off and looked around the room for the source of his waking. A loud thump resounded across the room as he looked over to the window. A large brown owl was perched on the ledge, obviously angry at being in the harsh storm for so long.
"Bloody hell. Another letter from Dumbledore?" he grumbled, standing from his desk chair and walking over to the window to let the owl in.
He jerked it open, paint cracking off the old frame as he did so. The drenched bronze owl raced inside and perched itself on the back of his wooden chair, dripping down onto the leather covering at the bottom. It stuck its leg out for him to take the letter it was carrying. Ron yawned and stretched as he closed the window and walked over, running a hand through his crimson hair in the process.
Taking the parchment from the owl, he opened the damp papers, hoping for good news. Unfortunately, luck wasn't on his side tonight.
Mr. Weasley, He noticed the hand immediately. It was from Dumbledore. This couldn't be good. He read on.
We will be arriving with Mr. Potter and a few others at the headquarters shortly. I cannot tell you anything here lest this is intercepted by the enemy. Everything will be explained once we have arrived.
Albus Dumbledore
He looked at the paper with a confused face, reading it over several times until the realization hit him. His eyes widened and his face paled. A sour taste came from his throat as he leaned over and retched into a nearby trash can. He unsteadily took out the liner and with a flick of his wand it was outside in the garbage bin.
Silence flowed over the room with the exception of the occasional hoots of the owl and the crackling of the fire. He unsteadily walked over and stumbled onto one of the chairs sitting in front of the hearth, letter still clutched tightly in his fist.
A few pops could be heard outside his office door followed by a loud knock. He looked at the oak door, with wide eyes and a large lump in his throat. "C-come in…" he called uneasily, his voice cracking slightly.
He heard the quiet sound of the doorknob turning and looked back into the fire. A soft squeak could be heard as the door was slowly pushed open revealing several Order members, some of which he had not seen in quite some time.
Leaky Cauldron: Midnight
Harry awoke to several loud thumps at his window. He blinked several times and gazed around at a blurry image of the dark room at the Bloody Cauldron. Putting on his glasses, he sat up from his bed and looked around again. With a flick of his wand, all of the candles in the room were alight, illuminating the whole room. He stood up and walked to the window, a hand running through his even messier hair.
He pushed roughly on the glass and the window unwillingly opened allowing the owl along with sheets of water to enter. He slammed the window shut, probably waking the visitors in the neighboring rooms, and looked down in annoyance at his now soaked night clothes. He walked over to the owl perched on the headboard of his bed, sighing and rubbing the back of his neck in exasperation.
He reached up and patted the owl on its head, thankful that Hedwig wasn't there at the moment. Taking the letter from the owl, he fed it one of Hedwig's treats and let it rest in her empty cage before going out again. He fell back onto his unmade bed, holding the damp letter with both hands in front of his face. He flipped the envelope over looking for an address. There was none, though a quick Harry Potter was scrawled messily on the front. 'Dumbledore,' Harry thought instantly and ripped the letter open.
Mr. Potter,
We will need to meet with you at the Order headquarters at 12:30 AM. Please apparate to outside Mr. Ronald Weasley's office at that time. There is something we need to discuss that I cannot put in this letter for the usual reasons. I advise you to be there, it is excessively important.
Albus Dumbledore
Harry looked at the letter in utter confusion. He hadn't been to an official Order meeting for years. Why would they need him now? He racked his brain for any reasons but came up blank. Shaking his head slightly to clear his mind, he glanced at the old clock hanging above the fireplace.
12:27.
His eyes widened as he jumped up from the bed and ran over to the closet, tripping over a mangled rug on the way there. Several profanities could be heard from under his breath as he stood from the floor. Rushing to the open closet once more, he threw on a pair of jeans and a random shirt, not caring about his looks at the moment. He was late for an order meeting, and that would definitely not go over too well with the others. He looked over at the clock again.
12:29.
He let out a sigh of relief, and thanked the Lord that he wasn't late. For all he knew, Snape or McGonagall would be there, and they were insane about punctuality. With one last look at the clock (12:30) he apparated to the hallway just outside his friend's office.
A few other loud popping noises could be heard from beside him and he turned to stare directly into the familiar faces of many former and current Hogwarts professors, along with several Order members whom he had met several years before. Tonks, Mad-Eye Moody, Lupin, Snape, McGonagall, and, of course Dumbledore all stood in random places around him. He smiled at all of the familiarity of it all, glad he could be back with people he knew.
Lupin was as old and tired as ever. Gray hair had taken the place of the former light brown that he was used to. Wrinkles had formed on his forehead and the corners of his mouth from worry. His eyes, which once held hope and happiness, were now dull and sorrowful. Harry was slightly surprised to see his old friend fairing so badly. He smiled weakly at him anyway, looking on to everyone else's nearly unchanged features.
The only thing that was common between all of them was the worry that seemed to take over their eyes at the moment. Letting his smile falter, he turned toward the oak door and knocked, waiting for the call to come in.
"C-come in!" he heard Ron's voice crack through the door. He turned the knob and pushed it open, staring into the sullen face of his friend.
Harry glanced around the room, suddenly extremely confused. Had everyone known what was going on except him? Looking at the concerned and worn out faces of his comrades. "What's going on anyway?" he asked curiously, earning sympathetic looks from everyone in the room.
A/N- Okay, so that's the first chapter, hope you liked it. Make sure to review and tell me if you want more or not!
Lindley