I do NOT own HP or any other characters from the story. They are entirely JK Rowling's genius and I am simply borrowing them.

Chapter Four: The DA Returns

When Harry and Tonks apparated back to Privet Drive, they found Ron and Hermione once again doing research. They looked pretty comfortable together on the couch, making Harry suspect that Ron, at least, probably wasn't accomplishing much. Still, Harry thought, leave it to Hermione to continue researching even without any sort of direction. We need a brainwave, he thought.

Bringing himself back to the present, he said, "Hi guys."

"Hey, mate," Ron replied, looking up. Hermione also looked up at Harry, but merely looked at him with one eyebrow raised.

This caused Harry to pause, and then say, "I'm sorry for the way I acted this morning, Hermione. I know you are just trying to help me…both of you. Truce?"

Hermione beamed, and then nodded. "I forgive you, Harry."

With that statement, Tonks left. "Back to the Ministry!" she said.

At that point, Harry pulled a chair up close to the couch. "I have so much to tell you two!" he began. "Hermione, I think you'll be happy when you hear one of the things Dumbledore willed me." This proved correct, for when he told her about the library, she positively glowed.

"Ooh…" she cried, "Do you have the index yet?"

"Er, well, I haven't checked," Harry replied, "The will said everything would automatically be transferred to the new owners, so I suppose it must be here somewhere."

All three of them immediately began looking around the room for anything that might be new or different. Suddenly, Ron pointed to the bookcase, where a large, carved bowl and a huge leather bound volume had appeared.

"Isn't that the pensieve you told us about?" he asked.

"Yeah, that's Dumbledore's. Now I'll be able to show you those memories. And that book must be the index!" He grabbed it from the shelf and handed it over to Hermione, who began poring over it with wide, excited eyes. Another glance around the room revealed a stand—Harry recognized it to be Fawkes'—which now stood next to Hedwig's cage. "I guess Fawkes will be around, now, too," he said. "Do I just call him?" he wondered.

"I suppose," replied Ron. "Go on."

"Fawkes?" Harry called tentatively. "Will you come?"

A burst of fire alerted them to the presence of the flaming red phoenix, which appeared on his golden stand. He gave a soft note of greeting to the trio, while Harry reached over to rub his feathers. He found Fawkes' presence comforting, almost like he was Dumbledore himself.

After a few minutes, Harry resumed his story. When he reached the part about his being named Head of the Order, both Ron and Hermione gasped, sitting up a little straighter.

While Ron said "Cool," Hermione breathed, "Wow, Harry, Dumbledore must really have trusted you!"

"Yeah, but I was pretty surprised…so was everyone in the room. Oh I didn't tell you, Ron—your parents were there! Dumbledore left them a fair bit of gold." Harry left out telling how much he himself was given, and luckily, Ron looked pleased at the prospect of a little wealth. Obviously, inheriting gold was not as offensive as being given some by well-meaning friends.

"But I haven't told you the best part yet," Harry continued. "McGonagall agreed that we should start up the DA again, but she asked us to involve more people—all sixth and seventh years except the Slytherins, for obvious reasons. Then I asked her that all members of the DA be made members of the Order. She just told me it was my decision, since I'm Head now!"

"Wicked!" said Ron, who was clearly relishing the fact that now his parents couldn't refuse to allow him in the Order.

Hermione, who looked all at once triumphant, scared, and emboldened, said, "That's great, Harry!" She went on to ask, "So when will the DA meet? Will we tell everyone about the Order right off?"

"We sent off letters asking everybody to report to Hogwarts tomorrow at 10:00 a.m.," Harry replied. "Obviously, we couldn't tell them what is going on in a letter that may be intercepted, so we'll fill in the pieces tomorrow. I intend to tell them about the Order, give them a chance to weigh the options, and then decide either way. Those who decide to join us will take a vow of secrecy, and then be inducted into the Order. We'll have to have a full meeting of the Order, including the new recruits, in a few days. The first thing we'll work on at the DA meeting will be brushing up on our Patronus charms…we'll have to start sending messages that way…"

As Harry said all this, he acted and sounded so much like the commander of a real army that Ron and Hermione were somewhat in awe. They were seeing a side of Harry that had never before been fully revealed, and they felt almost comforted by it. The day wore on, and the three friends went about the business of researching and planning. Hermione made good use of the new library, while Harry continued to make plans for the DA. All the while, the remaining horcruxes flitted through his mind, but he pushed them away. Thinking of them was of no use without finding the mysterious R.A.B. and without further evaluation of the hints Harry believed must be contained in the memories Dumbledore had obtained.

The following morning, Tonks arrived once again to escort Harry, Ron, and Hermione to the castle. They left earlier than the arranged meeting time so they could meet with Professor McGonagall, set up a password, and arrange the room. Other members of the Order—Kingsley Shacklebolt, Remus Lupin, and Bill Weasley—had been sent to prearranged portkey stations to bring the others to the meeting.

When the hour came and everyone had made their way to the once again perfectly outfitted Room of Requirement, Harry moved to the front. Almost immediately, silence fell. Every one of the assembled sixth and seventh years, Gryffindors, Ravenclaws, and Hufflepuffs alike gave Harry their full attention. Harry stood there for a minute, and then began speaking.

"Most of you are probably confused as to why we are here, but before I explain, I need you all to sign this sheet (he held up a long sheet of parchment) as it goes around. Before you sign, though, understand that you are vowing secrecy about what I will soon tell you. You are committed to nothing, remember, except silence. Still, I understand that this might be uncomfortable for some of you, especially considering what happened to someone else who signed a sheet of paper and then went back on her word." He paused, looking around the room. Many people nodded in remembrance of what had happened when Marietta Edgecombe snitched on the DA. Several pairs of eyes were on Hermione, who blushed.

Harry resumed, "I understand if you'd like to leave, but now is the time you must decide." He skipped a beat, waiting for anyone to make a move towards the door. Whether it was because they were all very brave or because they were just simply curious to find out what "the Chosen One" would do next, every person remained in the room.

"Okay, I'll pass this around to sign, then," said Harry. After all had signed their names, Harry got down to the purpose of the meeting.

"Today," he began, "we have come to reform the DA—Dumbledore's Army, also known as the Defense Association. For those of you unfamiliar with this, it was a group my friends and I started in our fifth year to combat our lack of education in the Defense department. In these times, the side of good needs as many fighters as we can get, and so now the DA is more important than ever. The members of the new DA will join the members of an elite group of defense called the Order of the Phoenix. This group, under the direction of the late Professor Dumbledore, has been in existence since the first war against Lord Voldemort."

Many members of the crowd had never heard about the Order, and so were quite shocked. The few who knew, looked proud to be invited to take part.

While this news sunk in, Harry continued, "This will be extremely dangerous. Unfortunately, because the Order is so elite, and is often on the front lines of battle with Voldemort and his Death Eaters, injury is highly likely and death could be imminent. Still, I have faith in you, as does new Headmistress McGonagall, who is the one who actually asked me to include all of you. It is a noble fight, and one to which I have bound myself. Now, I'd like to see who's with me."

With his last statement made, Fred and George Weasley, some of the oldest in the room besides the Order guards and the friends they brought along, started a slow clap. This rapidly progressed into applause, as many stood and Harry's two closest friends rushed up to stand beside him. Harry looked into the faces of his friends, then out into the crowd, where he saw a familiar pair of eyes looking at him. There was Ginny, off to the side in the front row, her eyes sparkling with emotion. Harry hadn't realized how hard it would be to be in her presence again, so after a brief moment of eye contact, he had to look away. She had too many questions in her eyes.

"Whew," Harry said once the clapping died down. "Thank you for your support. If everyone is ready, we can begin taking the oath of membership, individually. As we do this, your name will be written on the roll of the Order, where it will remain until you are either slain or you betray us."

At this point, Harry was interrupted by the raised hand of one brave Hufflepuff. Harry gave the girl his attention, and she asked, "Excuse me, I don't mean to be rude, but I was just noticing that there isn't a single Slytherin here. I was wondering why they weren't included in this—the nice ones, anyway."

This question caused many in the room to look at the girl skeptically. A few pointed at her, whispering behind their hands to their neighbors. But Harry, ignoring the muttering, looked at her with interest.

"You know," he said, "it is funny that you should ask that question. Considering the times, the Sorting hat has been quite right in saying that the houses of Hogwarts need to unite to have any hope of victory. I don't have much hope for any in my class, but if there is an honest Slytherin in the sixth or seventh years whom you think might like to join our side, I would be quite interested to hear their names. I might be able to make arrangements to meet with others; find out where they stand, you know."

"There are a couple of nice ones in our class," the girl said, looking at her fellow sixth years for support. "Connor and Langdon are even nice to us Hufflepuffs, when the other Slytherins aren't around." Several of the Hufflepuffs nodded in agreement, and even Ginny and Colin Creevey seemed to affirm it.

"All right," conceded Harry, "if that's true, I'll see what I can do about contacting them after the meeting. Right now, if everyone's ready, I'd like to get started. Are there any more questions?"

Seeing none, he called the first person forward to give the oath. As each person swore to uphold the Order and to keep its secrets vigilantly, a burst of pure white light erupted from their wand tip, writing their name in illuminated letters onto a scroll at the front of the room.

After the last person had been written on the roll, Harry himself stood up to take his oath as leader.

"I, Harry James Potter, do hereby swear my loyalty to the Order of the Phoenix and the cause of good. I promise to uphold the light, and to do all I can to see the powers of darkness defeated."

As his name glowed on the scroll, Fawkes burst in. He dove at the parchment, appearing to devour it in fire. For a moment, the bird was distinguishable among the flames, but in the next second he and the parchment dissolved into fire.

After the room returned to normal, Harry made one more announcement. "I think that is enough for one day, but I'd like you all to return in two days' time. Please be prepared to start some intense training, which will include learning to communicate with Patronuses. If you have learned the charm already and are of age, go ahead and practice so you'll be ready to move on to the next step. We will need the help of the experienced to teach the others. Now, your escorts, who are older members of the Order, will portkey you to your destinations.

When Harry, Ron, and Hermione were back at Privet Drive awhile later, conversation began flowing.

"So Harry," said Ron, "what are you going to do about the Slytherins?" He chortled a little, obviously thinking that asking Slytherins to join the DA was about as smart as petting a cobra.

"Ron, don't laugh!" cried Hermione, "Harry was right to remind us of the Sorting Hat! We probably should have invited some of the Slytherins to join us…"

Harry thought a moment, and then said, "Actually, Ron, I was thinking of putting you on this assignment."

At this statement, Ron looked both confused and a little amused at the thought that Harry would give him an assignment. But then, he thought, I guess that's what Hermione and I are here for. "Oh?" he asked aloud.

"Yes," replied Harry. "I was hoping to maybe have you get in touch with the two Slytherins that Hufflepuff girl mentioned. I mean, seriously, how would it look for me to go scouting out some Slytherins? Even if these two are good guys, their people are bound to notice if we seek them out."

"You think it will be better for me, a blood traitor, to do it?" asked Ron doubtfully.

"Well, some better than me, anyway. Would you think about it?"

"Oh, Ron, do!" urged Hermione.

"Of course I'll try, mate. What could come of asking the Slytherins if they'd like to turn to the side of good?" Then he muttered, "I mean, You-Know-Who, V-Voldemort, could just come after us, blast our brains out…"

"Great, I'm glad you'll try." Harry said, smiling.