Following Dumbledore's death, the heart had very much been ripped out of The Order. The festive season was depressing and was barely celebrated. The Weasleys especially weren't in the festive spirit as both Arthur and Percy had been seriously hurt in the attack at the Ministry party. With both Arthur and Percy in serious condition in hospital, and fighting for their lives, Molly had written to their eldest children, Bill and Charlie and the pair were both expected home as soon as they could square it with their respective jobs.
With so much to think about over the holidays, it wasn't until a few days before the term was due to start again that any attention was turned to Harry, Ron and Ginny returning to Hogwarts. Even though Dumbledore had been removed before Christmas, everyone had believed it was only temporary and he would be back. But now he was gone, and not only that but Kingsley was also dead. That did of course leave the other Professors who had allegiances with The Order, but there was a question as to how safe it would be for the trio to return to school.
"I want to go back," Harry insisted as a meeting was held to determine their course of action.
Even Molly had made it to the meeting, leaving her vigil at the hospital as Fred and George were watching Arthur and Percy and had promised to get in touch if anything changed with either of them.
"But it might not be safe, Harry," Sirius insisted. "Snape is in charge, and we don't know who he's got to replace Kingsley. He could well be another Death Eater."
"It is," McGonagall announced sombrely as she entered the kitchen in time to hear Sirius's words.
"Who?" Molly gasped, clutching at the back of the chairs Ron and Ginny were sitting on.
"It's not good news," McGonagall said with a sigh as she slumped into an empty chair beside Remus. "Firstly, Defence against the Dark Arts, is simply becoming Dark Arts. The change is being implemented from the Ministry and the official word is that you can't learn to defend yourself from the Dark Arts, if you don't understand them in the first place."
"Utter tosh," Remus snorted. "You don't need to learn dark curses to save yourself from them."
"But that's not what's he's wanting to do, is it?" Sirius snorted. "He doesn't want to help people defend themselves, he's wanting them to be seduced by the darkness. He's trying to build himself a young army of witches and wizards."
"Not on my watch he won't," McGonagall hissed. "As long as I'm at Hogwarts, I will strive to make sure the students don't give in to the darkness."
"They'll probably get rid of you and the rest of the staff soon enough," Sirius predicted despondently.
"It hasn't happened yet, and I will fight any attempt to remove me from my post," McGonagall insisted.
"But what about the new Professor?" Molly questioned. "How dangerous are they? Will it be safe to send Ron, Ginny and Harry back?"
"That is your call Molly, but it's not good news," McGonagall said with a shake of her head. "In fact it's a downright outrage. How they could even think of allowing her into a school is beyond me."
"Who?" Remus pressed, eager to find out who was taking over the job he'd once held and had loved so dearly.
"Bellatrix Lestrange."
"No," Molly cried, swaying on her feet at the thought of Bellatrix getting anywhere hear her children.
"What the hell?" Sirius exploded. "Surely even he isn't that demented. For Merlin's sake, she virtually killed Frank and Alice."
"They can't expect her to teach Neville," Molly gasped. "That poor boy."
"I called in on Augusta on my way here and alerted her to the appointment," McGonagall said. "Neville won't be returning to Hogwarts."
"Nor are Ron and Ginny," Molly said determinedly. "I'm sorry," she said when Ron opened his mouth to protest. "This is a step too far. I won't have my children anywhere near that woman. It's not safe."
"It's not," Sirius agreed, focusing on Harry. "I know it's not what you wanted, Harry, but I really think you should stay at home."
"But it's like they're driving us away," Harry muttered.
"Better to be driven away than killed," Remus said gently. "It's for the best, Harry. And I doubt you'll be the only people staying away."
"I predict that Hogwarts is about to have the largest drop in numbers it's ever seen," McGonagall said. "That won't help You-Know-Who. People will ask questions. And the more questions that are asked, the harder he's going to find it keeping up his Mr Nice Guy act. I know Albus planned on getting him to drop his act, and I think it's what we need to focus on. We need to gather support by getting people to see the monster hiding underneath the charming exterior."
"Which is easier said that done," Ron snorted. "We tried that with Hermione, but she was too good."
"No-one can keep up an act like that forever," Sirius said. "Sooner or later they'll slip up, and we owe it to Dumbledore and Kingsley to be there when they do. But to do that, we all need to be safe. And you will not be safe if you go back to Hogwarts. Please say you'll stay at home, Harry."
"I'll stay at home," Harry muttered reluctantly. He wasn't a course of action he wanted to take, but he could see why it was necessary, and if he was being completely honest, he was pleased that he wouldn't have to see Hermione again and he was certainly pleased that he wouldn't have to be taught by the madwoman that was Bellatrix Lestrange.
"So that's settled," Molly said with a relieved sigh. "No-one is going back to Hogwarts."
Exchanging disappointed looks, Harry and Ron nodded their agreement. They just hoped that by staying at home they weren't going to be excluded from the action. They were both determined to fight, and they both wanted to be there when they finally brought down Voldemort and Hermione.
"I can arrange for some work to be delivered," McGonagall offered. "I know it's not the same, but it would keep the children up to date until a solution is found."
"I suppose it would keep the three of you out of trouble," Molly mused.
"What? Doing work no-one is going to mark?" Ron scoffed. "How is that going to help us defeat You-Know-Who and his monster of a daughter. We should be learning to fight."
"Maybe Ron does have a point," Sirius suggested with a thoughtful nod. "Right at this moment in time a traditional education isn't going to aid them. But a practical one will. I say we focus on ensuring they have the best chance of survival when it comes down to a battle."
"That sounds as if it could be dangerous," Molly said with a worried frown.
"This is war, Molly, it is dangerous," Remus said gently. "Sirius and Ron are right, they need to be prepared. We all do. If Hogwarts is teaching Dark Arts, and having them taught by one of the darkest witches our country has ever seen, I say we need to take precautions. When it comes to the crunch, who knows how many people will fight with the dark. The last thing we want is to be underprepared."
"Fine," Molly conceded with a sigh. "Just be careful. It's one thing to prepare for a fight you don't have a choice but to take part in, but another to go looking for one. My husband and one of my sons are already hurt and might not survive, I don't want to lose anyone else."
"No-one is looking for trouble," Remus assured Molly. "We're merely preparing for the inevitable."
"Maybe you should reach out to Augusta and Neville," McGonagall suggested. "And I could let you know which other students don't return to Hogwarts. Just because they've chosen not to return to school, it doesn't mean they're not still part of our world."
"Yeah, we could build our own army," Harry said enthusiastically. "We can call it Dumbledore's Army. We'll fight in his name."
"Enough of the talk about armies," Molly scolded as Ron expressed his support for Harry's idea. "Learn how to defend yourselves by all means, but do not go looking for trouble. I have to get back to St Mungo's, but if I hear one more word about armies I will put an end to this and I will be making sure the three of you spend your days locked up in the library doing written work."
After making sure they knew that dinner was in the oven, Molly swept out of Order Headquarters to return to St Mungo's to sit with her husband and son. At the same time, McGonagall left, promising to keep them up to date on any further news from Hogwarts.
Left alone talk quickly shifted back to the idea of forming an army, but while Sirius was enthusiastic, Remus was more cautious and agreed with Molly that they shouldn't be looking for trouble. As a heated debate between the wizards began to simmer around the kitchen table, Ginny started to sort the dinner. It was only as she placed the food on the table that voices were lowered and normality was resorted. That was until the front doorbell rang and everyone froze in surprise.
"Who the hell can that be?" Sirius wondered as he and Remus got to their feet and drew their wands.
"One of the other Order members?" Ginny suggested.
"Only someone from the Order could find the house, but they all just enter without knocking," Sirius mused as the doorbell sounded again.
"You might find out who it is if you actually go and answer the door," Harry suggested.
"I guess so," Sirius murmured as he exited the kitchen, Remus on his heels.
Jumping to their feet, Harry, Ron and Ginny crowded in the kitchen door and watched as Sirius and Remus approached the front door. When the door swung open two tall redheads came into view and Ginny squealed with excitement as she pushed past Harry and Ron and raced towards the front door.
"Bill, Charlie," she cried, rushing past Sirius and Remus and launching herself into Bill's arms.
"Hey little sis," Charlie chuckled, ruffling Ginny's hair as she clung onto Bill.
"I take it you two are Bill and Charlie Weasley," Remus remarked.
"Yeah, sorry about the entrance," Bill laughed as Ginny finally untangled herself from around his waist.
"When no-one was at The Burrow, we headed to St Mungo's," Charlie explained. "The twins were there, and when Mum turned up she told us where to find you."
"Ah, I gave her the address to pass on when she said you were coming," Sirius said. With Dumbledore's passing he'd become secret keeper for the Order, and only he could invite new people into headquarters.
"Thanks for that," Bill said. "We appreciate it."
"The more the merrier," Remus replied. "Ginny, is there enough food for your brothers?"
"I can make it stretch," Ginny said with a grin as she ran back towards the kitchen.
While Ginny resorted the food, to include meals for her two eldest brothers, Bill and Charlie greeted Ron and Harry and made formal introductions with Sirius and Remus. While they ate, the pair talked about their lives and work abroad, but once the meal was over, talk turned to the situation in Wizarding Britain.
"Maybe we should have come home earlier," Bill sighed. "But Mum was so insistent that nothing much had changed, and we would be kicking our heels over here."
"She would have been right," Remus said. "We've had the odd attack over the last few months, but no real action. The attack on the Christmas party was pretty unexpected."
"But it got him what he wanted," Charlie remarked. "Control. Is he really Minister of Magic?"
"He is," Remus said with a sad nod of his head. "The entire thing is a farce. As is this act he's got going on. He's playing at being reasonable, but we all know it won't last. He's going to snap again, and when he does, we need to be ready for him."
"Well, you've got two more to aid you," Bill said. "Charlie and I are here for the duration."
"That's great," Ginny gushed, beaming at her brothers.
"And how do things stand with Hermione?" Charlie asked. "I still can't believe she's his daughter."
"Yeah, the girl we met at The World Cup was so lovely," Bill added. "It's hard to believe it was all an act."
"Believe it," Ron muttered darkly. "She's a traitorous bitch, and not to be under-estimated. Last term she ran a hate campaign against Harry and I, and got Dumbledore the sack."
"A hate campaign?" Bill frowned. "That doesn't sound good. Is it even safe for you to be going back to Hogwarts without Dumbledore?"
"Actually, we're not going back," Harry said. "It was decided shortly before you arrived. With Dumbledore gone and Snape in charge, it's not safe. Not to mention Bellatrix Lestrange as the new Dark Arts Professor."
"Bellatrix Lestrange?" Charlie questioned. "Isn't she a Death Eater?"
"Yep, but apparently she was wrongfully convicted," Ron sneered.
"A lot of previous convictions have been overturned by the new administration," Remus said, quickly explaining how a criminal like Bellatrix wasn't just free, but able to teach at Hogwarts.
"I hate to say it, but we can't really argue that fair trials were given to those accused of being Death Eaters," Sirius pointed out. "That accusation was hurled at me, and I went to Azkaban without a trial."
"But you were innocent," Harry argued. "Bellatrix Lestrange is not innocent."
"I never said she was, I'm merely pointing out that they're right about trials," Sirius said. "As for whose convictions are overturned, that'll clearly be made based on who still serves him. Anyone like Bellatrix, who is still loyal, will never see the inside of Azkaban again."
"Well, not until we win and lock them all back up," Remus added confidently. "And we will win. Light always triumphs over darkness in the end."
"Let's hope that's true," Sirius muttered as the others shared Remus's faith that they would ultimately prevail and quash the darkness that was rising in their world and threatening to take over.