Chapter Thirty Eight – Reactions
"You can't be serious!?!" Sirius Black raged. "They killed Remus! They're nothing more than murderers!"
"Calm down Sirius," Dumbledore said in a patient voice. They had returned to Order's headquarters. "Your anger is more than justified. What happened was a tragedy. But they meant no malice. Their intent was to capture known Death Eaters."
"That doesn't matter!" Sirius shouted. "How can you even think of working with them? They're muggles. What can they do?"
"The fact that they could penetrate the Order's headquarters and capture you should be proof enough that they are not ordinary muggles," Dumbledore replied. He waved his hand around the room. The pictures were subdued. Making barely any noise. Even the picture of Sirius' mother was strangely quiet. "We cannot keep them from this fight Sirius. They've already captured Malfoy, Pettigrew and three others. They are committed to eliminating Voldemort."
"They killed Remus!"
"A mistake for which they show genuine remorse," Dumbledore replied. "They are not the enemy Sirius. Voldemort is the enemy. And we need every ally we can find if we are to defeat him and protect Harry," Dumbledore deliberately invoked Black's protective instincts towards his godson.
"These people don't get near Harry," Sirius said in menacing tones.
"They don't need to get near Harry," at least not yet Dumbledore thought. "But we need their help if we are to destroy Voldemort. As I said, what happened should be proof enough they have power. Voldemort is unprepared to face that kind of power."
"You're not," Sirius said. "You and your friend Sinclair knew that muggles possessed magic. Knew they could attack us like this. You did nothing to prepare us. Your manipulative little games got Remus killed."
Dumbledore sighed, "I am truly sorry. Edgar and I let past disagreements get in the way of our duty to protect our people. Don't let the same happen to you Sirius. Think about Harry. You know the kind of power Voldemort wields. You know how badly he wants Harry dead. These people can help us stop Voldemort and protect Harry."
Sirius' face was a mask of fury. He took a slow deep breath. "You are not going to give me a choice about this are you?"
"No," Dumbledore said. "The stakes are too high."
"You keep them away from Harry," Sirius said through clenched teeth. "I'll be watching them. And you. They do one thing that threatens Harry and I will kill them all myself."
"You will control yourself Sirius," Dumbledore said.
"For now," Sirius replied. This is not over, he thought.
"So what's the big deal about the pictures not moving?" Agent Grayden asked his partner.
"I told you," Jennifer Sinclair answered. "The pictures in my world are alive in a way. They move around and talk to us."
"Which always struck me as a little creepy," Grayden said. "But the pictures weren't moving at the Black house."
"And that's wrong," Jennifer said. "I've never encountered anything that makes the pictures still. There are no spells that can do it that I've heard of."
"Why didn't we notice this when we were testing the crystals at your Grandfather's estate?" Grayden asked.
"Grandfather doesn't keep any pictures on the walls," Jennifer replied. "The only pictures in the house are kept in a few albums," Jennifer smiled. "Grandfather use to pull one out every once and awhile, sit me down and tell me stories about my father growing up, how he met my mother. Those were only times I ever saw him really smile after they were killed," she shook off the memories. "But the point is we wouldn't have noticed because there were no pictures to look at."
"And why is that? I mean everybody puts a least one picture on the wall." Grayden said.
"I learned at a very young age not to question my Grandfather's eccentricities," Jennifer answered.
"I guess we go and talk to Talerie and your Grandfather," Grayden said. "Maybe they can give us some answers."
"It seems your suspicions were correct Dawn," Giles said. "There is something behind this Riddle."
"'Something' doesn't give me a clear starting point to figure out what it is," Dawn replied. Giles noticed that their were still bags under her eyes, but she seemed far better rested then she had the previous night.
"It's pretty clear they left a lot out of their story," Willow said.
The three were Giles' office. They had spent the morning reviewing what Dumbledore and Sinclair told Willow the night before.
"You were rather forceful," Giles said. "I told you be more diplomatic."
"Diplomatic would have taken too long," Willow replied. "Now we've got the information and we have a much better idea just what these two are capable of."
Giles shook his head, "Next time at least warn people you plan on doing something like that. Sophia called this morning."
Willow winced. "Sorry," she said meekly.
"Good to see you back at the office," Eric said.
"We do have work to do," Faye said. "And I am the team leader. I need to check on my girls."
"Are you at least feeling better?" Eric asked.
"No," came the reply. "But your little 'pep' talk reminded me that I can't just walk away. Feel free to pat yourself on the back for a job well done. I'm back," she started to walk past Eric.
"Every time you think you're out they just pull you back in," Eric said.
Faye turned back. "What?"
"You know, Godfather part III," Eric replied.
"That movie sucked," Faye said.
"I didn't think it was that bad," Eric smiled back.
"That's because you have no taste," Faye said. "My god, because of some silly little dispute over money Coppola chose to replace Robert Duvall with Zorro the Gay Blade. That's all that needs to be said on that subject. And don't think pointing out your poor taste in movies is going to cheer me up. I need to check on my girls. I'll talk to you later."
Eric watched her walk down the hall shaking her head. She was still tense and angry with herself. But she was willing to insult his taste in movies. That was usually a good sign. He really didn't think Godfather part III was all that bad.