Paris
"Who's that?" Claudia asked when she got home and saw Sirius balancing atop a stool, putting up a poster of a half-naked singer on the wall above his piano.
"Freddie Mercury." Sirius hopped down and grinned at Claudia. "His voice is just- I wish I could sing like that."
Claudia watched him with a faint smile on her face. There was no way he would betray the Order. Never. He would never betray her.
"Are you sure his voice is the reason why he's hanging on our wall with his top off?" she asked with a chuckle.
"It's mostly his voice," Sirius smirked, but when Claudia did not laugh with him, he mumbled: "Why the long face?" And went to give his girlfriend a kiss.
"I'm going to Paris," she mumbled, deciding to keep to herself that it was Remus that was on her mind.
"A romantic weekend in Paris? Can I come?"
Claudia sighed. "It going to be more like a week. And I don't think it's going to be especially romantic since I'm going with Moody."
"Sounds like a fun way to spend your birthday," Sirius grimaced.
"Shit, I forgot-"
"At least you're going to be safe."
"Look, I rather not go either-" she froze, suddenly realising she had been here before, when she was sent to Glasgow when Sirius needed her after Regulus' death. She swallowed dry and continued. "I much rather stay here, help you sort your- things. But I have to go for a lead on a case. I'll take the notebook with me."
"You shouldn't. What if someone-"
"I don't care. I'm not going without it."
"Alright."
Before Claudia knew it, it was Thursday evening, and she was packing to go. Sirius was lying stretched out on the bed, watching her.
"How do I know what to pack?" she sighed. "I have no idea where Moody's going to drag me."
"It's Moody, right?"
"Yeah. And?"
"He's unlikely going to come equipped for a state banquet."
"That's reassuring… Formal robes are out then."
"Do you even have any?"
"Not really… "
"Hey-" Sirius glanced at his watch. "I have an idea. Let's get out of here."
"Where? I have to pack…"
"Come on," Sirius smirked. "You have like two outfits. How hard can this be." He jumped up from bed, grabbed Claudia's hand and dragged her out of the flat. "Ready?" he mumbled as they were out in the street.
"Ready for what?"
But before Sirius answered, the world swirled around Claudia and they landed hard on their feet in front of James' and Lily's house. Sirius nudged his girlfriend through the door.
"Are they expecting-" But just as these words left Claudia's lips, she turned and saw James, Lily, and Alice all grinning at her from the middle of the Potters' living room. And they were not alone. Everyone was there. Gideon, Remus, Oscar, Ewan, Peter, even Marlene. And Fabian!
"Happy Birthday!" they all shouted.
Claudia turned to Sirius and whispered in his ear. "You did this?"
"Was never going to leave it to Moody to make sure you got to celebrate your twenty-first."
Alice shoved a muggle beer into Claudia's hand. "Glad you're still alive," she said with a sad smile. "Feels like I haven't seen you in ages."
"Sorry for not being around," Claudia replied, clutching to her friend. "I got bit carried away at work."
Alice shook her head at Sirius. "You have one job! One!"
"Moody made me follow Bagnold around for a month," Sirius shrugged. "What was I supposed to do?"
"Tell me you aren't around, so I can make sure she eats!" Alice exclaimed.
"Oi, both of you!" Claudia interrupted them with a giggle. "I'm still here."
They all laughed and eventually Sirius left to speak to someone else and the two girls were left alone.
"How are you, really?" Claudia whispered and sipped her beer.
Alice sighed. "Bored out of my mind…"
"Frank told me about your Floo troubles-"
All signs of happiness vanished from Alice's face. "It's so scary, you know. Suddenly having Neville and having to think about what they would do to him… I always thought my mum was overreacting, but I get it now. It's only natural to panic when you can lose so much."
"How is she?"
"Not good. But Gideon is still coming with some potions, and they seem to be working a little. And having Neville is good for her." Alice glanced at her watch. "Speaking of. I need to get going, he will need another feed soon."
Claudia grabbed Alice in her arms. "Please be careful. And I promise to come visit the moment I'm back from Paris."
"I'll hold you to that."
Claudia walked Alice out, and when she came back inside the house, she nearly bumped into Fabian.
"Sorry-" she mumbled awkwardly.
"Happy birthday," Fabian said and flashed her an equally awkward smile. "Good of Sirius to invite me."
"It's nice to see you."
Fabian cleared his throat after a rather long silence, he finally spoke. "Oscar told me Fionnula is now in Azkaban."
"Bagnold's doing apparently."
"Still can't write about it though. She's still trying hush up what really happened."
"I'm sure you'll find something else to write about…" Claudia took a long sip of her beer to find some words to make this conversation a little less painful. She had not spoken to Fabian in ages, and had completely forgotten how to act around him in a way that was natural. "What have you been working on?"
"This and that. Mostly grim war stuff. But I've also been writing some short fiction stories."
"Can I read them?"
Fabian went bright red at that question. "Maybe later. Some of them are quite soppy, and personal-" he stuttered, clearly lost for words. "I wouldn't want you to think I've lost my edge..."
But before Claudia could ask him what was so personal about these stories, Oscar emerged.
"I think Marlene's been flirting with me," he said and looked over his shoulder, totally oblivious to the strange conversation he had just interrupted.
Fabian spoke, looking instantly more comfortable. "You think everyone is always flirting with you."
"You know she dated Sirius, right?" Claudia mumbled in her colleague's direction.
"So?" Oscar shrugged.
Claudia stared at him. How could he not be getting this? "Never mind… I'm sure she was flirting with you."
"You hate her!" Oscar smirked.
"I don't hate her," Claudia tried to defend herself.
"What Claudia means," Fabian said with a laugh. "Is that the Order isn't the biggest dating pool. I'm sure there was nothing more to it."
Oscar scoffed and leaned towards Claudia's ear. "It's an especially small dating pool once you rule out the people either you or Black shagged."
Claudia punched his arm. "Shut up."
Fabian shifted on his feet, obviously uncomfortable. "I'll leave you to it. Wanted to grab Gideon for a moment anyway."
Claudia watched him leave, wondering why this was suddenly so hard. Then, she turned to Oscar. "Has he dated anyone since-" she stopped abruptly. She realised she had not spoken to anyone about her relationship with Fabian since they broke up.
But Oscar understood. "No." He shook his head and drained his firewhiskey. "I think he found you harder to get over than he thought he would…"
"What?"
"Come on," Oscar smirked. "Even you aren't that thick. You must know!"
"I don't know. What am I supposed to know?"
"Forget I said anything." He drunk some more whiskey. "I'm drunk. I meant he hasn't found anyone, because there are like three eligible girls in the Order, and he doesn't fancy any of them."
"Right-"
Oscar finished his drink. "Got to go." Then he hesitated for a second. "Don't tell him I said anything. He'd kill me."
But between the music, seeing all her friends, and Sirius being at his most affectionate self, she had soon forgotten about Oscar's words. But because a six o'clock portkey was no joke, Claudia and Sirius soon had to leave the party behind and go home.
"Remus been avoiding me all night," Claudia mumbled as she stuffed her last remaining clothes into the bag. She stopped and slowly turned to look at Sirius. "Surprised you actually invited him," she added.
"I had to invite him; he'd know something was up if I didn't."
"He came to talk to me at work the other day. To warn me."
"Warn you about what?"
"You."
Sirius scoffed. "Doesn't mean anything. He'd have to do it even if it was him."
Claudia nodded. That was probably true. That was what she would have done if she was Voldemort's spy.
Sirius interrupted her train of thought. "Did you tell him I thought it was him?"
"No. But I think he knows anyway."
"Of course he does. Anyway.. Do you have everything you need?"
The sudden change of topic was clear. Sirius did not want to discuss Remus anymore, and Claudia did not have the heart to force him.
Just as she was getting ready to go to sleep, Sirius added a wrapped package into her bag. "Promise not to open until your actual birthday."
"What is it?"
"A surprise." With those words, Sirius jumped into bed. He slid his hand under Claudia's t-shirt. "Exactly how tired are you?" he whispered.
Claudia took a deep breath, ignoring his advances for a second. "Should I be going tomorrow? I worry that-"
"I promise I won't have a break down, alright? I'm much stronger that I was then."
"But-"
"You've made me so much stronger," he mumbled and kissed her.
She laughed. "You'd say anything right now to get me into bed."
"I would," Sirius chuckled. "But I actually mean this. You're the reason why I want to be better. Why I want to win this war." With those words, he kissed Claudia again.
"It's the same for me. I feel so- I don't know-" Her search for the right word got interrupted when Sirius kissed her neck. "So untethered. I feel untethered without you." She sunk her fingers into Sirius' hair and wished with all her power he would just rip her clothes off and make love to her.
She was not sure whether it was Legilimency working, or they were so in sync, but her t-shirt was lying on the floor within seconds and soon were the rest of their clothes.
They fell asleep soon after making love, and the bliss was only interrupted by a very loud alarm forcing Claudia to face the reality of her early departure. She showered, got dressed, kissed the still sleeping Sirius good-bye and set off for the Ministry.
Moody was already waiting at the international Portkey departure point and glanced at his watch when Claudia arrived.
"I thought you weren't coming," he hissed.
But Claudia was too distracted to come up with a reply. Moody's usual eye patch was gone, and he was sporting a new electric-blue artificial eye. "New eye?" Claudia asked instead.
"Dumbledore helped me made it. It can see through all kinds of enchantments."
"Useful," Claudia said absentmindedly, still unable to take her eyes of it.
"Enough chit chat," Moody said and threw Claudia something small. "Take one of the medallions. You know how to use it?"
"Yeah. Done it before." It was not hard. Just type in a message and it would come out in the Auror Office operations room.
"Great. Let's get ready for the portkey to leave."
The Ministry portkey took them straight to a small room with a single lightbulb hanging from the ceiling, a single bed and a sink.
"What's this place?" Claudia looked around with a frown. Even at first sight, the layer of dust and grease was visible all over this place.
"A guest house."
"The one the Ministry uses?" Claudia asked sceptically. She could not quite see her father staying here when he visited Paris.
"No," Moody replied shortly. "They would've put us in a fancy hotel somewhere. And we would've been sitting ducks. I picked this place. Redirected the portkey myself just before it left."
"One figures," Claudia mumbled under her breath.
But Moody did not hear her. "There is another bed through that curtain over there. You put your stuff there and we should go."
"Where to?"
"To see the woman Minchum visited. See if she's ready to talk."
Claudia just about had the time to throw her bag on the squeaky, rusting metal bed before Moody made her leave. They walked rapidly through the cobbled streets sticking like two sore thumbs. Claudia was far from the picture of an elegant lady that she felt the Parisian streets deserved, and Moody was… Well, Moody was wearing his new blue eye, a long coat and his wooden leg would alert anyone within three miles he was coming.
After a couple of hours of walking, they finally got to the Paris' red light district and located the address Moody was given by the Department of International Magical Cooperation. The building housing the brothel was grand. Ornate masonry framed every window, and the door was embellished with golden ornaments. Even from the outside, Claudia could see that the curtains were made from expensive brocade. This was not a cheap place.
"Shall we?" Moody said and stepped into the road to cross the street towards the door of the brothel.
"Boss," Claudia whispered and dragged him back on the pavement. "I'm sorry, but I don't think it's the sort of establishment where you can dress like you dress and not be chucked out on the kerb.
"Charming as ever."
"I'll go in, pretend I'm looking for a cousin or something. See what I can get out of her."
To Claudia's surprise, Moody agreed to her proposition, and – armed with the name of the girl she was looking for - she crossed the road alone. Even before she let go of the doorbell, a rather overdressed middle-aged woman opened the door.
"Es-tu la nouvelle fille?" she barked in French.
Overwhelmed by the smell of this women's perfume, Claudia took a few second to compose her response. No, she was not the new girl. "Non. Je cherche ma cousine. Elle travaille ici."
"Votre cousine?" The women demanded to know exactly which 'cousin' Claudia was looking for.
"Annette."
The Frenchwoman's eyes travelled from Claudia's face, to her worn boots and back. "T'es un flic?"
That question, asking if Claudia was a cop, made the young auror wonder momentarily whether she should have dressed up for this. But rather than denying it, she forced a smile and spoke. "Est-ce que j'ai l'air d'un flic?"
She must not have looked like a cop to the French woman either, because the door suddenly flung wide open. "Deuxième étage. Chambre deux."
"Merci," Claudia said and made her way to the second floor as instructed. It was not hard to find Room Two in the long, dimly-lit corridor. What took longer, was waiting for Anette to open the door.
"Qui es-tu?" Anette hissed when she finally opened the door to her room.
Claudia was tired of speaking French, so tried her luck. "Parles-tu anglais?" To her big relief, Annette nodded, and Claudia continued. There was no point beating around the bush. "A man visited you last year. He was English. Kind of weird. His name was Herald."
Annette said nothing. There was neither an acknowledgement, nor a denial. She kept studying Claudia's face, which made the auror think she knew something useful.
"I believe he was set up," Claudia continued. "I need to know who arranged for him to see you."
"Who are you?" Annette finally spoke in perfect English, bearing just a slight hint of a French accent.
Claudia sighed. It would have been so easy just to use Legilimency on her. But if they had any hope of getting information that would stand up at the Wizengamot, they had to do it by the book. Claudia yet again remembered Le Carré and his spy stories. "I work for the government."
Annette's eyes narrowed. "Which government?"
"Does that matter?"
"Not particularly. What's in it for me?"
"Do you want money?" It was not unusual for aurors to pay their informants, at least in England. And Claudia did not see a reason why it should be any different just because she was in France.
"Wouldn't hurt," Anette paused to think. "Three hundred franks."
"A hundred", Claudia presented her counteroffer.
Eventually, they settled on one hundred and fifty, and Annette finally divulged what she knew. "You're looking for Vlad. He was the one who arranged it all."
"Who's Vlad?"
"Hard to describe him." Annette scratched her head for a minute. "He looks Russian but sounds English. And much like your friend Harold, wears very weird clothes."
That was all Anette could tell her. Claudia thanked her, handed over the franks and disappeared out of there as fast as she could. It would not take long for Annette and the woman who let her through the door to compare notes and realise how inconsistent Claudia's story was.
She found Moody stood on the pavement, only a few yards from where she left him. He was staring into a window of an empty café-bar that looked like a prime spot for a romantic date. "I don't like it here," he mumbled when Claudia joined him. "Everything is too swanky."
"We're looking for a wizard that looks Russian but sounds English."
"What are you talking about?"
"That's all I got," Claudia shrugged.
Moody scratched his head right behind his ear. "I recon it's worth trying to ask around the French ministry."
"Where is it?"
"Close to the centre," Moody said. "Just south of the river."
"So we have to track all the way back?" Claudia said, somewhat tired from all the walking on the hard cobblestones.
Moody did not reply to her, and just set off south. With a sigh, Claudia followed him. Every time she tried to start a conversation, he shushed her, so they walked for nearly an hour in silence before finally making it to a little square just south of the river. Once they were right in the middle of it, Moody finally stopped and coughed. The roots of the surrounding trees rose up to engulf them and then, without warning, they began to descend into the ground, right into the Ministry's atrium.
It was very different from the British Ministry - brighter, airier, and more decorative. But Claudia did not get much time to appreciate her surroundings, before Moody darted towards the reception and she had to follow him. After much wrangling, Moody finally convinced the receptionist to send for the French official who help them organise the trip.
"No," the official huffed when she finally made it to the atrium. "I 'ad enough of zis. Too many questions."
"We have a new lead," Claudia tried to aid the situation. "It will only take five minutes."
The official folded her arms across her chest. "What is it now?"
"We're looking for a –" Claudia took a deep breath, fully aware how embarrassing this was. "A man that looks Russian but sounds English."
"Do you realise 'ow ridiculous zis is?" The Frenchwoman scoffed. "'ow am I supposed to-" she froze mid-sentence and then her eyes darted from Claudia to Moody and back. "Maybe…"
"What is it?" Moody barked.
"It could be Igor."
"Igor who?" Moody's voice was now so loud, people started to turn their heads.
"Igor Karkarov. "
Claudia jumped in before Moody combusted. "Can you tell us more?"
"You 'ave to speak to our Eastern European team. I cannot divulge zat kind of information."
Moody took a few steps towards the corridor that led further down to the Ministry, but the official stepped in front of him and so did the receptionist. "You need an appointment. They might have an opening on Monday," the receptionist hissed.
"But-" Moody stuttered. "Monday? We are here now!"
But no amount of negotiations, begging or shouting made the receptionist relent, and it did not take long before Moody left in a huff under the watchful eye of the Ministry's security, mumbling something about unhelpful French prats, and worse…
They gobbled up dinner in some bistro on their way back from the French Ministry, and went to bed without uttering another word. The weekend was just as awkward. They mostly sat in silence in their crappy guesthouse room, or tried to fix the barely-functioning shower. They tried playing wizard chess once, but it turned out neither of them had the patience for it.
On Sunday evening, Moody had disappeared somewhere, and Claudia could finally open her present from Sirius in peace. It was not big, just fitting into the palms of both of her hands, and it was wrapped in a simple brown paper and tied with a thin rope. She tugged on it to reveal a box. Once that was opened, there was another box with a long wire and a pair of earmuffs sticking out of it. But Claudia did not have to remain puzzled for long, as there was a short note in Sirius' handwriting.
"Put the headphones over your ears and press the button with the triangle on it."
Claudia did as she was told, and a soft melody flooded her ears. What an invention by the muggles! She did not know the song. But few verses in, and she knew why it was currently playing in her ears.
"Making love with you;
Has left me peaceful, warm, and tired;
What more could I ask;
There's nothing left to be desired."
She left the music on and rummaged through her bag to find the notebook that she brought with her against her better judgement.
"What an awesome present! Thank you."
"Happy birthday! What song are you listening to?"
Claudia's hand hovered over the parchment of her notebook, while she listened some more.
"Sometimes, all I need is the air that I breathe;
And to love you;
All I need is the air that I breathe;
Yes, to love you."
She smiled to herself and began to write.
"Still the first one – about how you need nothing but me and air."
"Too cheesy?"
"It's cute."
And the music just kept coming. All the songs that meant something to them were on that tape. Blackbird – the tape she gave him for his seventeenth birthday, Crazy Little Thing Called Love. Then, the pace of the music picked up even more:
"You've got your mother in a whirl;
She's not sure if you're a boy or a girl;
Hey babe, your hair's alright;
Hey babe, let's go out tonight;
You like me, and I like it all;
We like dancing and we look divine."
Claudia could not help but chuckle when she heard this. She definitely got her mother in a whirl, making her doubt whether she was boy on a girl. But her joy was short-lived-
A shadow made her jump and tear off her headphones.
But it was just Moody, not an assassin, towering over her bed…
"What's that?" he mumbled with a frown. Maybe she should not have been quite so relieved it was him. He was sure to have a problem with this.
Claudia gestured for her boss to sit down on the bed and put the headphones over his head. "Do you like it?" she asked after a few seconds.
"Not something I'd normally listen to. What is it?"
"No idea, Sirius picked it."
Moody said nothing, just kept staring at her with his bright blue eye until Claudia felt the need to briefly look away. She swallowed dry, dying to ask him what he really thought about Sirius. But before she could say anything-
"I got you something." Moody took out a small box from his coat pocket and handed it to Claudia. "Happy Birthday."
"How do you even know it's my birthday?"
"The boys cornered me before we left. Made me promise I buy you cake. Couldn't find any cake…"
Claudia reached for the box, but as she opened to reveal some dainty macarons, her notebook fell off her knees and onto the bed, right in front of Moody. She tried to tuck it under the pillow, but her boss spotted it first.
He frowned. "You shouldn't have that."
"I know."
"Magic like this is unreliable… And you don't know who is at the other end. Who you can trust."
There was the opening to ask the question that had been bugging her for ages! "Do you think Sirius is the mole?" she whispered. "Do you suspect him?"
"I suspect everyone. He was on one of the missions that went bad, but-" He paused. "I said enough."
"Please…"
"But he wasn't on all of them."
Claudia could not help but smile a little-
"He's important to you, isn't he?" Moody spoke again.
Claudia sighed. "He's all I've got… I don't know what I would do if I lost-" she stopped abruptly, suddenly realising who she was talking to about a loss of a loved one. Even in the decaying light, Moody looked crushed. She could not hold the secret in any longer. "Boss… I know."
"Know what?"
"We did not mean to overhear at the funeral. But we did and- and we know about Aiden and his mum-she trailed off."
Moody stared at her, and it felt like hours had passed before he finally spoke again. "Who is we?"
"Oscar, Ewan and I. We were talking next door. Ewan was being a bitch and needed a talking to." A shadow crossed Moody's face. "No, no." Claudia sought to clarify before Moody lost his temper again. "Ewan wasn't a bitch about Aidan or the funeral. He was-" she took a deep breath. "Oscar and I got drunk the night Aidan died and did something dumb. Ewan knew and didn't take it well-" She looked at Moody and he seemed none wiser about what was going on. "Fine… We slept together. Please don't fire me. I know what happened to Tracey- But this is different. Everything is fine. We're mates. Like nothing ever happened…"
Eventually, Claudia managed to stop rambling.
You could cut the silence in the room with a knife.
Finally, Moody's lips parted slightly as if he was going to speak, and Claudia braced herself for the biggest bollocking of her life.
But instead-
"Thank you," he mumbled.
"Thank you for what?"
"For not telling anyone. For not making a big deal out of it," he said, almost softly.
"I'm really sorry though," she whispered, her nerves settled again. "I can't imagine what it's been like for you."
Moody sighed and grabbed a macaron. "I wish I told him the truth. He was the only son I'll ever have..."
Claudia could feel the tears forcing themselves into her eyes. "You still have Oscar and Ewan." She smiled and tried to wipe them away. "And me. You must know we all love you. In my case, more than I love my father."
"I don't know what I've done in my life to deserve you three." Moody attempted a smile, but Claudia could see the pain in his face. He patted Claudia's shin and slowly lifted himself to standing. "Good night, Claudia."
"Good night, boss." She watched him hobble through the curtain towards his own bed, and turn-
"Just don't wear that thing outside-" he pointed at her new musical contraption "–it's going to get you killed."
Claudia put her headphones back on, tugged into the macarons, and picked up her notebook again. A message from Sirius shone brightly on the page-
"Everything alright?"
"Just Moody."
"What did you get told off for this time?"
"Nothing. He's actually alright, you know. I can't even imagine working for anyone else." She suddenly cringed. "I might have just implied he's like a dad to me."
"Have you been drinking?"
Claudia chortled. "No. But I should go to bed."
Her teeth aching from the unspeakable number of macarons she ate, Claudia fell asleep listening to yet more music.
"Carry on, my wayward son;
There'll be peace when you are done;
Lay your weary head to rest;
Don't you cry, don't you cry no more."
She smiled just before she fell asleep. Sirius better put that on that tape for himself.
Claudia polished up the rest of her macarons for breakfast and, with a promise she would meet Moody at the French Ministry at two o'clock sharp, she followed his directions to Hôpital Flamel. She found it, and Emmanuel's ward with relative ease and was told to wait by his office while he finished off with a patient. She could barely contain her excitement at the possibility of soon having a new lead in the Anderson case.
Then the door to Emmanuel's office opened-
"Claudia! Is that really-?" he exclaimed and looked around. "What- Why?"
"I was in the neighbourhood," she said with a fleeting smile, watching her old friend's eyes move much like those of a terrified rabbit.
"Your letter. I was going to reply-" he stuttered.
"Don't panic. I just want to talk."
"I can't," Emmanuel said and shook his head. "I don't know anything."
"Emmanuel, please. Just five minutes."
He hesitated for a few seconds before letting out a long sigh. "Fine, come to my office."
She followed him to an office, which was significantly nicer than the one Claudia occupied in the Auror Office. Bright light streamed through the tall windows, making the wooden panelling glow. The furniture was all ornate, and very unlike the battered chairs she had to sit on back in London.
"Very fancy," she said softly, hoping to put Emmanuel at ease.
Emmanuel gave her an awkward smile. "Leaving St Mungo's was the best decision I've ever made. Have a secretary and everything."
They set down on a pair of indigo armchairs, and Emmanuel called his secretary and asked for two cups of coffee. "I haven't seen you since-" he began once she left.
"Since Hogwarts."
"Has it really been that long?"
"Three years…"
"You still look the same…" Emmanuel trailed off and waited until his secretary came back with two cups of coffee on a delicate silver tray. They sat in silence as she placed it on the table in front of them. "Merci beacoup," Emmanuel mumbled as she left.
Claudia noticed his hand shook when he picked up his cup.
"Emmanuel, please," she whispered. She waited long enough to talk to him. She was done with chit chat. "I need to know what happened to that official you treated."
"They would know it was me-" he replied, looking away.
Claudia sighed. "Look, I know it's scary. But you have no idea how bad it got back home. Ever since the election, people are getting murdered in broad daylight. I lost a friend just shopping for shoes."
Emmanuel stood up and started to pace his office, saying nothing.
So, Claudia continued. "We've lost so many aurors, and it's just getting worse. We need every piece of information we can get our hands on to stop them. That's why I'm here."
The healer stopped pacing, reached into his desk and took out a bottle. "Cognac?"
Claudia nodded. "I need your help," she whispered as she watched him pour out a couple of glasses. He downed one immediately and gave himself a refill.
Then, Emmanuel sat back into his armchair, and passed Claudia her glass.
"Buckling was under orders from Crouch to restore the witness' memory. Whatever the cost. But it was too much. He kept getting worse."
Claudia's eyes narrowed "Did Inkwood know?" If that weasel lied to her, she thought… He would pay.
"No. He would never agree to it. I don't even want to imagine what he would do if he found out. He hates the Ministry."
Push Buckling under the train perhaps, Claudia thought but kept that to herself. "Did Buckling manage to get anything useful out of the witness?"
"I don't know," Emmanuel mumbled staring into his glass. When Claudia said nothing, he briefly looked up at her before finishing his second glass of cognac. "I really don't know."
Claudia downed her own drink. It was strong. "I'll let you get back to work, then…" she said with a sigh. It wasn't much but it was still something. Something she could go and throw at in Inkwood's face.
"It was good to see you, Claudia!" Emmanuel said perhaps a little too enthusiastically as he jumped to his feet. "Maybe we could meet up when I'm in London!"
"Invite Julius too?" Claudia smirked.
"Are you still with-" Emmanuel trailed off.
"Yeah, still with Sirius."
"Then maybe not," Emmanuel attempted a faint smile.
"Was good to see you," Claudia mumbled. But just as she was opening the door, she heard Emmanuel whisper-
"We extracted his entire memory just before he died. Buckling took it. That really is everything I know. I didn't see what was in it, and don't even know if it's at all useable."
Claudia turned to look at her old classmate. He was never the bravest or the one to stick his neck out, so this must have taken a lot out of him. There was little point yelling at him for keeping this to himself for so long. "Thank you," she said, restraining her urge to complain.
"Stay safe!"
Claudia just about made it to the French Ministry for two o'clock because she kept forgetting where she was going. Her mind kept swirling with what Emmanuel had told her. She was sure Inkwood knew something about those memories. The moment she was back in London, she was going to force this secret out of him. One way or the other…
The second encounter with the French Ministry of Magic proved nearly as frustrating as the first one. It took forever before the receptionist established their credentials, and no one would show them where the offices of the Eastern European team were. But eventually, they found them and obtained some useful information.
Igor Karkarov was the son of the former Russian ambassador to Britain. He spent his late school years in Hogwarts, which explained the English accent. After graduating Hogwarts, he began working at the Embassy too, but then got stripped off his diplomatic status. The French officials did not quite know why he lost his diplomatic status, or what he did now. He travelled regularly between England and France, and had a rather swanky apartment in the centre of Paris, that certainly did not come cheap. They suspected him of all manner of illegal activity - smuggling, soliciting, gambling – but nothing ever stuck.
Armed with a suspicion that there was more to Karkarov's illegal activities and his Parisian address, Moody and Claudia set off to stake out his apartment. His routine seemed exhausting – a date with a different woman every night, drinking in bars until the early hour of the morning, and a countless visitors during the day, one shadier than the next. After three days of taking turns watching him day and night, Karkarov's routine finally broke.
It was just as Moody came to relieve Claudia from her duties, and they both saw him walk out of the apartment, wearing a hat and a huge pair of sunglasses that covered most of his face. He walked swiftly through the windy streets, until he arrived at a derelict building. The aurors watched him go in, only to be followed by half a dozen people also dressed like they did not want to be noticed.
"Let's find a back entrance," Moody mumbled and they scuttered towards the back of the building. They climbed up a ladder to an attic and found a hole in the floor that was just big enough for Claudia to see what was going on down in the main hall.
"Do you want to have a look down here?" she whispered at Moody as quietly as she could.
But Moody shook his head and pointed at his new eye. "I can see through the floor," he mouthed and sat down on a large crate. It certainly looked more comfortable than the position Claudia was now, sprawling on the floor like a frog run over by a car.
What they saw only confirmed their suspicion.
"The Dark Lord had asked me to pass his sincere thanks for everything we have done to date," Karkarov began to half a dozen assembled witches and wizards. "He's particularly please with how easily we deposed that disgusting creature who used to call himself the Minister of Magic."
There was a round of nodding and murmur of approval. Claudia could not help but smile. It had been a long time since she felt like her work was on the right track.
"What new orders does he have for us?" someone asked Karkarov.
"Recruit more. Blackmail them, curse them. Whatever it takes. We need near-control of the French Ministry when the British government falls. The Dark Lord cannot afford an international reaction, let alone an intervention."
Claudia exchanged a look with Moody. So, this is what it was all about. Preparing the ground for the demise of the British government.
"Anything more specific?" asked another of the figures surrounding Karkarov.
"I am returning to London tomorrow to get new instructions… That reminds me. That artefact that the Dark Lord wanted. Do we have it?"
"Tomorrow morning," someone replied in a heavy French accent.
"Not good enough," Karkarov barked. "I'm getting on a boat in Dover at ten."
"I'll have it by then," the French Death Eater said with a bow. "I'll meet you at the port.
"You better," Karkarov hissed. "That's all for today. Dismissed."
"Should we arrest him?" Claudia whispered.
"He'd be tried here," Moody mumbled. "We need to get on that boat tomorrow and grab him the moment we're on the UK soil."
They waited for everyone to leave, snuck out of the derelict hall and made their way to Dover the same night, taking turns sleeping on a bench just outside the port. In the morning, Claudia went to buy them a couple of tickets for the Dover ferry, and they waited for Karkarov to show up. And he did, just in time to get on the boat.
Claudia and Moody were the last to board. Moody had covered his magical eye with an eye patch, and they queued up for ticket and passport control. Claudia got through just fine, but the border official did not like the look of Moody. Before the border official could call for reinforcements, however, Moody reached into his pocket and mumbled something.
In an instant, the mannerism of the border guard changed. He sat up straighter and passed Moody his passport back with a vacant expression in his eyes. Soon enough, Moody – wearing a rather large scowl on his face – joined Claudia.
"Could've used some help there," he grumbled.
"I don't really know how to cast Imperio," Claudia replied in a whisper.
Moody growled and pushed past her to go find a seat, somewhere out of Karkarov's sight but close enough to the stairs leading to the deck where Karkarov disappeared to, so they could cut off his escape route.
"How did you qualify as an auror if you don't know how to cast Imperio?" Moody grumbled the moment he cast some charms around where they were sitting, presumably to make sure they were neither seen nor overheard.
"Didn't have any exams, remember? Barely got any lessons this year."
Moody sighed. "Do you see that fly over there?" He pointed his wand at it. "Like with all the other unforgiveable curses, the intent is key. You need to want to control this person, be willing to completely strip them off their will. No doubt allowed."
Claudia nodded and took out her own wand. The fact Moody was brandishing his made her pretty sure the enchantment made them invisible to all the other passengers.
"Imperio," Moody said boring his eyes into the fly, which had immediately started to act erratically. It flew right in between Moody and Claudia before coming to a dead stop, and then began flying in a perfect square. "Your turn," Moody said and lowered his wand. The fly darted towards the window, attempting to break free.
Claudia pointed her own wand at the insect. "Imperio."
Within three of four tries, she was able to perform the same manoeuvre as Moody.
"It's not hard," she said as she let the fly get away.
"It's harder on humans," Moody explained. "But not by much."
Claudia looked around to survey the other passengers. Maybe some-
"Don't even think about it," Moody hissed. "I'm not letting you practice on clueless muggles."
"But you just-" she tried to defend herself, remembering earlier. "The border guard!"
"That was last resort."
Claudia crashed back into her seat, avoiding Moody's eye contact. But the silence soon became too awkward, so she had to find something else to talk about. "Shouldn't we watch him?" she asked.
"I can see him just fine," Moody smirked and pointed towards his eye patch. "Been watching him the whole time."
"Alright," Claudia sighed and picked up her backpack. "Need the bathroom."
In fact, she just wanted to stretch her legs and get away from Moody's judgmental gaze. And maybe to write a message to Sirius in the notebook hidden in the depth of her bag. She walked up to the top deck of the boat and peeked round the corner to make sure the coast was clear. But it was not-
Karkarov was leaning against a pillar, hiding from the other passengers, staring intently at the white cliff that were just about visible on the horizon. He was clutching his wand.
"Fuck," Claudia hissed to herself. It suddenly struck her. He was going to apparate the moment that boat was close enough to the shore and they would never see him again. She gripped her wand and pointed it at Karkarov. "Stupefy," she whispered and run towards him, just in time to catch him before his body hit the deck.
She looked around. Moody was nowhere to be seen, there were too many muggles. It was only a matter of time before someone saw them and called the muggle security. She grabbed her wand once more, and apparated both of them to the shore.
Luckily, there were no muggles around, so she dragged Karkarov's still listless body into the bushes and reached into her pocket for her Auror Office medallion.
Within minutes, Adebayo, Oscar and Ewan materialised out of thin air right in front of them.
"Where is Moody?" Adebayo asked.
"Still on the boat. I had to get this one-" she casually pointed towards the bushes "-out of there, otherwise he would have disappeared."
"And who's that?"
"Igor Karkarov. He was the one who set up Minchum. Also happens to be a Death Eater."
They apparated the still stunned Karkarov back to the Ministry, and threw him into one of the interrogation rooms."
"Should we wait for Moody?" Claudia asked.
"We better," Oscar smirked. "He's going to kill you for leaving him on the boat like a mug. I rather not join you in the land of the dead because we started the interrogation without him."
Claudia used the time they spent waiting for Moody to hide in the toilets to write a quick message to Sirius.
"Got back safely. Need to stay here for an interrogation but I see you tonight."
"I have to go on a mission. But should be back at night."
"I'll wait up."
"I'd like to see you try."
Claudia chuckled and shoved the notebook back into her bag.
Moody did not come long after she got back to their office.
"We need to start a search-" he barked but stopped abruptly when he saw Claudia grimacing at him. "What the fuck are you doing here? Where is Karkarov?"
"In the interrogation room," Claudia replied in the least smug tone she could muster. "He's waiting for you."
"Why did you do that?" Moody roared. "Disappear like that?"
"Look, boss," Claudia said with a wild gesture. "He was going to apparate off that boat, and we would never see him again. I just had to grab him and get him to the shore. There was no time to go get you, I swear."
"Fine," he huffed. "Let's go interrogate that bastard." But before Claudia could move, Moody put his arm across her path and stopped her from leaving the room. "I know you want to be in the room."
"I do," Claudia said with a frown, feeling rather apprehensive about what was coming.
"But if he's in any way linked to your father, I cannot have you there, I'm sorry-"
"But-"
"You can watch it from the viewing room."
"Fine."
So Claudia sat in the viewing room like an idiot again watching as Moody and Adebayo interrogated Karkarov.
"Talk to us about Annette," Moody started.
Karkarov seemed a little surprised. "Annette?"
"Specifically, about Annette and our former Minister of Magic," Adebayo pitched in.
"I don't know what you are talking about."
Claudia was not sure whether it was a gut feeling, or her natural Legilimency abilities, but she could sense Karkarov's mind turning at million miles per hour. She also sensed surprise, like he was not expecting to be asked questions about Annette.
"Why did you set up the Minister to be seen there?"
Karkarov looked around. "I got paid by some Ministry folks to arrange a visit for the Minister to the finest of establishments. I didn't think that was illegal, and they paid well."
"Who asked you to do this?"
"Forgot his name," Karkarov said but his voice trembled a little. "Look, if someone wanted to entrap the Minister, it was him, not me."
"Who?" Moody barked.
Karkarov closed his eyes. "It will come to me…" he paused and rubbed his temples. After a good half a minute, he opened his eyes again and looked right into Moody's eye. "Frederick Avery."
Claudia jumped from her chair and stared through the one-way glass. Did he really just say that? Did he really just admit that Claudia's father set the whole thing up?
"Did he also ask you to arrange for the French press to see the Minister there?"
"No!" Karkarov exclaimed. "That was just a coincidence."
Moody stood up. "I'll be right back."
"Where are you going?" Karkarov mumbled.
Claudia was fully expecting Moody to yell that it was none of Karkarov's business where he went, but instead, he leaned over the table and spoke in a menacing hiss. "I'm going to go find Mr Avery to see what he has to say about all this." Moody then straightened his back and slowly walked to the door.
Karkarov went pale. "Wait!" He took a deep breath. "He's a snake. He's going to lie. He asked me to call the press. It wasn't my idea, I swear. Once I read the papers, that he was running for Minister, I realised that he just wanted the Minister to resign so clear the path…"
Moody growled and left the room anyway. But he did not go to find Mr Avery, he went straight to the viewing room where Claudia, Oscar and Ewan were watching the whole thing. Soon, Adebayo joined them too.
"Do you think it's possible he doesn't know Avery is also a Death Eater?" Claudia hurled out.
But before Moody could respond, Oscar jumped in. "I don't know… I heard that Voldemort is very good at organising the Death Eaters. You only know a few in the network, in case people crack."
"He wouldn't have given him up this easily if he thought he was a Death Eater…" Adebayo mused to nods from everyone else.
"What do we do now? We have no hard proof… Just his confession and I'm not sure how reliable of a witness he's going to be in front of the Wizengamot." Ewan changed the subject.
"If we leave him in the Ministry holding cells, they'll have to charge him and put the Avery confession on the record…" Adebayo replied.
"And he'll be dead by morning," Moody finally opened his mouth.
Adebayo scratched his chin. "The Order could keep him under lock and key? Unofficially?"
"Wouldn't that be illegal?" Ewan asked.
"Not if he believes it's for his own safety…" Moody said and turned more directly to Adebayo. "Talk him into it."
Adebayo went back to the interrogation room and scared the life out of Karkarov until he agreed they could protect him. He was transferred to one of the Order safe houses within the hour.
For a brief moment, Claudia found herself alone with Moody.
"Should we tell the others what I'm really up to?" she whispered.
"Not yet. It's for their own safety."
"Alright." Claudia could not help but smile. "It finally feels like we are getting somewhere."
"I bloody well hope so," Moody replied and patted her on the back. "Now go get some rest. You've done well."
"Thanks, boss."
Claudia apparated home to find the flat was still empty. But after a week in a squalid Parisian guesthouse, it felt like paradise. It had a familiar smell, shower that worked and clean clothes. That was most, if not all, of what Claudia needed in that moment.
She did try to stay awake and wait for Sirius, she really did. She remembered reading a book on the sofa, trying to keep her eyes open-
"Welcome home," she heard a soft whisper in her ear as her eyes peeled open. When they did, she saw her boyfriend's face grinning at her.
"Hey-" She hung her arms around Sirius' neck and kissed him. Now, she truly had everything she needed.
"Have you eaten? I'll find something in the fridge. I'm absolutely starving."
"I had lunch…" she mumbled but she could not quite remember. "I think."
"You promised you'd eat, Claude" he said and brushed her hair. "Let me get you something."
Sirius returned from the kitchen with a leftover roast chicken and some bread, and Claudia was just about awake enough at this point to sit up and eat a little bit.
"How has it been here?" she mumbled with her mouth full.
Sirius shrugged. "Same old. Feels like we're always three steps behind." He chewed on some chicken. "Oh, and our flat is now an Order field hospital. Had to keep couple people here overnight to get them patched up."
"Is St Mungo no longer safe?"
"Dumbledore didn't want to risk it for light injuries." Sirius reached for Claudia's hand, brought it to his lips and planted a soft kiss across her fingers. "How was Paris?"
"It was great. I got a new lead on the Anderson murder, and we caught the guy who set up the Minister. And he confessed my father put him up to it!" She was beaming. "How lucky were we?"
"You going to move against your father?" Sirius said and a slight shadow crossed his face.
Claudia shook her head. "Not yet. We need a lot more. We don't think this Karkarov guy knows my father is a Death Eater, and it could be explained away as being done on the request of the Minister. It wouldn't stick on its own."
"Makes sense."
Claudia tried and failed to supress a huge yawn. "Yeah, it does." She dropped her head on Sirius' shoulder. "But it's good anyway. I was getting a bit frustrated with it all."
She could hear Sirius chortle and mumble: "Couldn't tell." But she did not have the energy to tell him off. The warmth of Sirius' embrace and the smell of his cologne was putting her to sleep.
"Anything new about Remus?" she just about managed to mumble.
"No. Haven't spoken to him."
Claudia sighed and finally gave up the fight against her sleepiness.
In the morning, she was the one to get up to make coffee. But as she walked back to the bed with two cups in her hands, she noticed a huge pile of papers on the dining table. They were tied together with a plum-coloured ribbon and bearing the Wizengamot crest. "What are these?" she asked, running her fingers over the crest.
"Papers for next month's session of the Wizengamot."
"I can see that. But why are they in our living room?"
"Because I have to go."
Claudia turned on her heel like a weathervane. "What?"
Sirius was now sitting up in bed, grinning. "I won the tribunal while you were away. Got the title, the money, and the seat on the Wizengamot."
"What?"
"You know that the oldest families get a seat, right? Well, it's mine!"
"I know," she said with a slight eye roll. Of course, she knew! "But- this is different. Real. And well… You are you!"
"Thank you for the vote of confidence!"
"No, it's just..." Claudia crossed the flat, put down the coffee on the bedside table and jumped into bed. She could not help but laugh. "It's weird for me. I've been conditioned to find all that–" she gestured towards the Wizengamot papers "–attractive. And I rebelled, and now." She bit her lip and grinned.
"Now what? You're going to dump me?"
"No," she whispered and run her fingers across Sirius' chest. "My childhood conditioning is taking over."
"Oh, so you like me rich and powerful," Sirius laughed and slid his arms under Claudia's t-shirt. "Should I put on my Wizengamot robes?"
"Shut up," Claudia giggled and kissed him. "Knowing you've got a seat is enough for me."
Without warning, Sirius spun Claudia around and pinned her onto the bed. "You can take the girl out of Slytherin…" he whispered and planted a kiss on her collar bone. "But you can never take the Slytherin out of the girl."
But Claudia no longer cared about coming up with a cheeky response, all she could focus on was how to take Sirius' underwear off, while he held her wrists firmly behind her head. It turned out it was not that hard… Not if he wanted it as much as she did.