Disclaimer: In no way do I own or claim to own Harry Potter. That is the original work of JKR and I'm not stupid enough to attempt to steal it.
The Enlightenment
"Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves." - William Pitt
Chapter 2: A Meeting
A cloaked figure appeared in the shadows at the end of the row of buildings. A small pop accompanied it. The figure strode down the walk, taking large steps, until reaching the place between buildings eleven and thirteen. To anyone watching, it would seem as if the figure had disappeared into thin air, the same way as it had appeared.To the figure, however, the number twelve building was where it disappeared.
The figure quietly made its way through the entrance way and into the kitchen. Once there, it drew the hood down, revealing a stern looking woman, her mouth set in a thin line, her black hair pulled back into a tight bun. The others in the room greeted her with nods or softly spoken words, and she nodded back while taking a seat at the head of the table.
"Shacklebolt, Tonks, you both said you've made a discovery concerning Snape," Minerva McGonagall said, her tone just asstern as her look. "You may start off the Order meeting."
"Yes," Shacklebolt said grimly in response to her first statement. "Two days ago, a Muggle woman tried to break into Snape's house on Spinner's End. Aurors have been stationed there, just in case Snape was stupid enough to try to go back, so she was caught quickly enough." He took out a picture of the woman and set it on the table. Some of the people in the room craned their necks to see it. "Her name is Alexandra Medley and goes by Lexi. Age thirty-six, born October 31, 1960."
"Why was she trying to break in?" Remus Lupin asked in a soft voice.
"I'm getting to that," Shacklebolt said.
"She was a childhood friend of Snape's," Tonks continued the report. "She told us their fathers were friends, but made no further explanation. She has last seen Snape on August 31, 1977, almost exactly twenty years ago.
"We did some background research on her. Her mother, maiden name Elizabeth Leeds, was put in a mental hospital December 24th, 1975. Up until her commitment, Elizabeth had had no job and no income other than that from her husband, Liam Medley. Before she married, she had a job at a bank, which is no longer in business. Her parents had been very high in society but they disowned their daughter about a year before she married and apparently they never met their granddaughter."
"Liam Medley, however, has a more intriguing story," Shacklebolt said. "We have found no information on his parents, so it's possible he illegally changed his name or some such thing, and he worked as a lawyer. Not a very active one, mind you, but rather good and expensive. He was arrested no less than three times for crimes tied to drinking, but by all appearances cleaned up his act after he was married. He died March 18th, 1996."
"What does this have to do with anything?" Mundungus Fletcher asked irritably.
"We have a record of all the times he's had to pay a hospital bill after Lexi Medley was born," Tonks said, ignoring him. She placed a manila envelope on the table. "Most of it is for bruises, broken bones, cuts, and once for something unknown, but quite expensive. Almost every time the patient was Lexi."
"That's terrible," Molly Weasley gasped.
"So the kid was beaten by her father. What does that have to do with Snape?" Mad-Eye Moody demanded.
"Yes, what does this have to do with Snape?" McGonagall asked, after reading through the medical record and staring at the picture. The picture seemed to spark an interest in the witch, but she passed it along without making a comment.
"We're getting to that," Tonks said. "Medley was in the hospital himself on September 1st, 1977 from stab wounds. He had been found in his home in a pool of his own blood and immediately given medical care. He survived, but just barely. He was found by Tobias Snape, Severus Snape's father."
"The night before, when she had seen Snape, was the last time there's a record of anyone having seen her or known her whereabouts. Until now," Shacklebolt said.
"I still don't understand what this has to do with Snape," Lupin said.
"Of course not," Shacklebolt said, shaking his head. "But there's something strange about it. She told us she found Snape's address in a phone book, but he's not listed. Medley knows about Hogwarts and knew Dumbledore was headmaster." He ignored the flinching as he mentioned Dumbledore. "She knows about magic, about Aurors, about Occlumency and Legilimency, she's even read a few of our history books."
"Medley knows of Voldemort, and though she didn't know of his return, she had not been surprised when she heard of it. She was obviously afraid when we mentioned him, but refused to elaborate," Tonks said.
"So a Muggle knows a lot about our world, and she knows, or knew, Snape," Lupin muttered, staring at the picture. His brow furrowed and he scratched his chin.
"Do you think there's any way she can help us find Snape?" Moody growled.
"We're still questioning her, but there's a possibility," Shacklebolt said.
"I wonder if there's more to Snape than we thought…if maybe he had something to do with Liam Medley's attack…" Charlie Weasley said thoughtfully.
"Or if he had anything to do with Lexi disappearing," Tonks continued the thought. "Yes, we had wondered about that. As it turns out, Snape hasn't seen his father since the day he left for Hogwarts for his seventh year."
"But why would Medley suddenly be going to see him now?" McGonagall questioned, voicing the thought on everyone else's mind.
"We don't know," Shacklebolt said with a shake of his head. He ran a hand over his face and tugged absently at his earring.
"Interesting…" she muttered, then shook her head. "Try to find out more, if you can. Remus, how are the werewolves?"
"Not so good," Lupin said. "Many are ready to join Voldemort. A lot of them know they won't be any better off with their rights and such with him, though there are some with that delusion, but they want revenge for past wrongdoings. Fenrir Greyback hasn't been helping matters, showing up once in a while and stirring up even more trouble. However, I think I've made some progress. Annora Artaxer is definitely against Voldemort and has been trying to help me, and we have a few reluctant supporters. But even Annora has her trying times. She doesn't want to create too much of a rift between herself and the others, for fear of being an outcast in every society, so progress is slow."
"And what about Martin Boyko? What has he been up to lately?"
"Unfortunately, we can be quite sure he's not willing to help us a second time around."
There were a few moments of silence, and then McGonagall rubbed her eyes and looked to other members of the Order for news.
"There have been a few issues in the Department of Mysteries," Aulis Boyle said. He was a handsome man, very reserved, but willing to help their cause. His eyes were a peculiar brown, very light, his hair blonde and well kempt. He had high, defined cheekbones, a long nose, and thin lips. He stood near 6'1" and was lean, so much so that he could pass for exceedingly thin. He was an Unspeakable, and usually quite quiet and soft-spoken by nature.
"It's been hell ever since the whole fiasco a year ago, but since Dumbledore's death there's been talk of shutting the place down to avoid Dark wizards breaking in again." Aulis didn't look particularly phased by this, but those who were friendly with him knew well enough that he was anxious about the whole thing.
"You can't tell us any more? Who wants to shut it down, who wants to keep it open?" Moody asked.
Aulis shook his head. "I'm afraid not. Even telling you what I just did is probably grounds for me to be fired and my memory erased."
"Damn Unspeakable…" someone muttered, but was ignored.
"Molly, how has Harry been doing?" McGonagall asked.
"Oh, dear," Molly said, wringing her hands. "He's very…I'm not sure if angry is the right word. He's been irritable and frustrated the whole week he's been at the Burrow. The three of them have been holed up in Ron's room, doing who-knows what. It's almost as bad as Fred and George, the thumps and shouts I hear coming from there."
"Do you have any idea what they may be doing?" Dedalus Diggle said.
"What they're always doing. Trying to figure out how to get rid of You-Know-Who," Arthur said.
"Have they made any progress?" Moody growled.
"Why? So we can question them about what they know and act on it?" Maurus Doyle demanded in an annoyed tone. Maurus was an old man with graying brown hair, a wrinkled face, brown eyes that bulged slightly, and a rather large stomach. He was always irritable and many didn't like him, but he was extremely helpful with gathering information. He did, after all, work for the Daily Prophet.
"Why else would I care if they made any progress?" Moody snarled.
"They're what? Sixteen? Seventeen? And you want to rely on them for information? You're hypocrites, the lot of you. Telling those kids not to get involved then asking them what they know," Doyle scoffed.
"Anything necessaryto win the war."
The two men glared at each other, similar looks of loathing on their faces.
"Now is not the time to argue," Aulis said quietly.
"It's Snape's argument all over again," Bill murmured to Charlie, who nodded.
"I think this meeting is over," McGonagall said, lookingirritably at the two men. They turned away, Moody disappearing through the kitchen doorway, Doyle going to the fireplace and using the Floo.
"We'll meet again as scheduled. Until then, everyone," McGonagall said. Quietly, everyone got their things together and left in two's and three's, speaking softly to each other.
McGonagall drew her hood over her head again and exited the building, mind churning. She needed to figure things out, get new information, and soon.
A/N: Constructive criticism is very welcome. Please, if you see any way in which this can be improved, don't hesitate to inform me. However, I ask that you do it in a helpful manner, and that you don't just say, "This is terrible." Thank you!