Muggle London / Finsbury Park
Valentine's Day, 1980
"Let me get this straight," Remus said again as he and Sirius plodded through the gray February slush on the ground towards the nearest tube station.
"Nothing about you is ever straight," Sirius joked, and Remus paused to slap him on the arse in response before he continued walking.
"You're one to talk. Anyway, that's beside the point. We've got a full-blown war on our hands, in which people are actually dying, people we went to school with. The Order's weak as it is, and you've gone and joined a Muggle group that's opposed to a weapon that's not even actually being used?"
"Your confidence in me is astounding, Moony," Sirius drawled. "I haven't joined, and I don't plan on it. I told her I would go to one meeting—I still hardly know what this damn org is about, so at least this way I can stop just nodding along."
Remus pondered this as they stopped to wait for the next bus to Finsbury Park, which was near where Devin had said the meeting was. She and Sirius had seen each other a handful of times in the weeks between their tea date and Valentine's Day—some days they'd go one dates, but once Sirius had thoroughly concealed all his magical possessions, Devin had started coming over.
She never stayed the night, but Sirius liked having someone to share his bed with, if only for a couple of hours. Despite this, Sirius was feeling rather nervous about going to the meeting. He was glad Remus had agreed (after some cajoling) to come along, so Sirius wouldn't be the only wizard in the room.
"Alright, so you're not going to make some Muggle martyr of yourself. That's good. But it doesn't change the fact that this is actually one of the most idiotic ideas you've ever had," Remus declared.
"What, being a Muggle for a day?"
"No, getting involved with one."
"Define involved."
"You know."
"I really don't," Sirius said playfully; Remus was cute when he was flustered. "Enlighten me, Moony."
"You're…you're throwing it in, aren't you?"
"Good Godric, are you still in second year?" Sirius laughed at the phrase. "Yeah, of course I am, she and I are two attractive, consenting adults who have many things in common, one of which happens to be that we're incredible in bed. I'm being careful, don't worry, Mum."
"You'd better be; we don't need any half-blood babies crawling around Order meetings!"
Sirius laughed and shook his head.
"I just meant that I've always got my wand on me, but yeah, that too."
Remus mumbled something under his breath about where Sirius 'always had his wand,' then sighed.
"It's just risky. Not that I have anything against Muggles, but generally when you and your best mates are fighting a war you don't go spending all your free time with a bird you've just met. There are more important things."
"You sound a bit jealous, love," Sirius said. He turned to face Remus and stepped closer, so they were only about a foot apart, and cupped Remus's cheek in one hand.
"Not at all, love," Remus replied, and it was true. "I just don't think it's a good idea."
"Funny you should say that, and you haven't even met her." Sirius gave Remus a playful slap and turned to face the map of the tracks.
"I have too!"
"Come off it, you were too busy fawning over her friend to even look anyone in the eye," Sirius teased. "Dev's great, you'll see."
"Dev? Dev?! How in the name of Merlin's saggy nutsack has she already got you giving her pet names?" Remus laughed out loud.
Sirius raised one eyebrow while simultaneously trying to figure out which train to catch to get them where they needed to go. There were just so many different colored lines, it was maddening! It didn't help that being a dog when in his Animagus form meant Sirius's color vision just wasn't what it used to be.
"Which one do we—?" he asked Remus helplessly.
"That one." Remus pointed to a twisted line on the map and Sirius glanced at the clock—they were just in time. "I'm not letting this go. Dev."
"Shut it," Sirius laughed and once more stepped closer to Remus in playful confrontation. "You know who else judges Muggles they've never met?"
"Don't say it—"
"Death Eaters," said Sirius matter-of-factly. "Are you a Death Eater, Moony?"
Remus rolled his eyes with a wry smile and pushed Sirius's face away from his own.
"You bloody well know I'm not. And we're going right back to fighting them once this meeting is over."
"Merlin's beard, I've got it, alright? The Order comes first; you, and James, and Lily, and all of our friends, come first. I'm the last person you need to remind of that."
"You made it!"
Sirius heard Devin before he saw her, and had only a split second to prepare for her running leap of a hug. She threw her arms around his neck and the momentum made him stumble a bit as he hugged back.
"In the flesh," Sirius replied as they broke apart. He gave Devin a quick kiss and then turned to Remus. "I don't think you two have officially met," Sirius said.
"As I recall you made yourself quite scarce at the bar," Devin said cheerfully, and Remus laughed and extended his hand. "Devin."
"Remus. Nice place," he commented, looking around, and Sirius got the feeling he was the only one who caught Remus's sarcasm.
As it turned out, the CND met in a large empty room on the bottom floor of an apartment building. It was lit with several bare bulbs and half of one wall was wasn't a wall at all, just a sheet of thick industrial plastic dividing it from the rest of the first floor. According to Devin, the building was set for renovation, but until the construction actually got underway it was theirs to use as they pleased.
"Thanks," Devin replied. "And thanks for coming, by the way. We've got a few minutes before we start; come meet the rest of us!"
Devin led Sirius and Remus towards a group of people on the far side of the room; they were busying themselves with setting up rows folding chairs in front of a collapsible card table and Devin quickly marched up and brought a few of her friends over.
"Sirius, this is Talia and Gibs, Talia and Gibs, meet Sirius and Remus."
"Wotcher," the one called Gibs greeted them. He was a young man with long, stringy blonde hair that stuck out from under a large newsboy cap. This in combination with his baggy clothing and freckles gave him the overall look of a scarecrow. Eighteen and still waiting on a growth spurt, he was at least a head and half shorter than Sirius. "Gibson Grant-Hughes, but don't waste your breath saying all that. Gibs is fine! Dev, has Mr. E shown yet?"
"Should be down any second," Devin said, glancing up the staircase that led to the rest of the apartment building, where Sirius assumed the man in question must live.
"He's our coordinator," Talia explained to Remus and Sirius, "I'm secretary. Talia Dorsey," she said, and brushed her long braids off her shoulder as she shook hands with both newcomers. Sirius noticed she had a stunning floral tattoo peeking out from underneath the neckline of her sweater, and the pale pink and green ink accents stood out against her dark skin. "So you're the one Devin's always talking about," she said, giving Sirius an appraising look-see.
"Always, huh?" he teased Devin, who's cheeks had turned pink.
"I see new faces!" boomed a voice from the top of the staircase and Sirius turned with the others. Descending the staircase was a man in his fifties, with an unkempt gray beard and ragtag, pilled clothing to match. His face was wrought with laugh lines and the skin around his eyes crinkled merrily as he jauntily came down the last few steps and landed with a bit of a bounce in his step. "And who might you two be? I see you've met some of my cohorts; how did you hear about us?"
Devin smiled fondly, laying a hand on the older man's shoulder. "Boys, this is—"
The man clapped loudly and Remus jumped.
"Enoch Sturgess, at your service! I answer to many names, but feel free to address me as—"
"Mr. E," Sirius said, "Devin's told me all about you; she invited us here. Sirius Black," he introduced himself, and Mr. E shook his hand with gusto.
"Remus," said Remus when prompted, though he wasn't as keen to give out his full name.
"Ah, of the Greek legend, brother of Romulus, founder of Rome? Of course, of course," said Mr. E as he enthusiastically shook Remus's hand, rather, his whole arm. "It's a pleasure. Shall we?"
The group filed into the meeting room and took their seats; more members of the group had arrived in the last ten minutes and with now nearly forty-five people inside, the room felt quite hot. Devin found some free seats towards the middle, and a moment later Etienne joined them and took the empty seat next to Remus, who was sitting one row in front of them and who suddenly looked much more excited to be there.
"It's nice to see you again," said Etienne quietly as the meeting began. Remus nodded and Sirius could practically hear Remus's voice in his head saying 'not a fucking word.'
Mr. E sat at the table in the front of the room along with Talia, Gibs, and a blonde girl Devin hadn't introduced. After Mr. E's opening remarks, the girl got up and handed a wicker basket to the first person in the first row, who put a couple of bills in it and passed it down. It started to make the rounds quickly, and Mr. E looked a bit chagrined at the lack of contribution.
"I'll assume this is because you've all spent too much on your sweethearts today," Mr. E chuckled. "I, for one, spent this lovely holiday with my carpet slippers and the Wonder Years, if anyone was curious."
There was a ripple of laughter in the crowd, and then Mr. E dove into various housekeeping details, which was Sirius's cue to tune out.
"That's Claire," Devin suddenly whispered, nodding towards the blonde who had her beady blue eyes fixed on the basket, "Our treasurer. When we re-elect the board, I'm going for her position—she 'lost' a week's worth of donations last month. Speaking of which!" Devin leaned forward to take the basket from Etienne. She dropped a fiver in and handed it to Sirius, looking at him almost expectantly.
"Right," he said, digging in his pockets. There were still a few coins there—change from his and Devin's most recent date, a quick round of drinks back at the Handy Sip—and he pulled them out and tossed the lot on top of the small pile of bills.
"Blimey, what's that?" Devin whispered, reaching into the basket. Sirius's heart plummeted when he saw her reaching for a Galleon—it must have been in his pocket, mixed up with the Muggle coins!
"Nothing," he said quickly, snatching the large gold token before she could. "A good luck charm, I got it traveling," he made up on the spot.
"Can I have a look?" Devin asked as she passed the basket down the row.
"That'd be bad luck," Sirius fibbed, and quickly shoved the Galleon back into his jacket, his heart racing. "Only the person whose charm it is can hold it."
"Okay, Jumpy," Devin snickered and let the matter drop. Sirius breathed a sigh of relief and tried to focus on what Mr. E was saying.
"As I hope you're all aware of by now, the next missile transport is scheduled for February the 28th," he announced. "I'm pleased to announced that a certain 'John Doe' in the police force who shares our sentiments has let me in on the approximate time of delivery, so there will be no need to dally by the roadside all day, although if you're so inclined, dally away! Two missiles will be transported via route eleven east at approximately two o'clock on the morning of the 28th—officials think this timing will dissuade us from heckling them, but they are mistaken."
"I'd like at least ten volunteers to join up with Cruise Watch that night; make sure the officials don't get any missiles through easily," Mr. E continued, and he beamed as he saw a response before he'd even fully finished his sentence.
Devin, Etienne, and nearly twenty other members of the group had volunteered, and Sirius had to admire their gumption. He was especially proud that Devin was so willing to actually take action, and not just associate with those who did. He could think of a few Order members who would do well to take a leaf out of Devin's book, which, now that Sirius had thought it, was a rather sobering realization.
"Hey," Sirius leaned forward and whispered to Etienne. "What's Cruise Watch?"
Etienne turned in his chair so he could address both Sirius and Remus at the same time.
"Some of us like to, em, get in the way," he said with a mischievous gleam in his eyes. "We try to stop the missiles getting where they need to go. You wondered about our 'egregious protest,'" he said mischievously. "Le voilá." He raised his eyebrows with a smirk and motioned towards all the raised hands in the room.
Sirius grinned and leaned back in his chair. He loved magic, but the thought of all the good old-fashioned rabble-rousing it seemed like Devin and her friends got up to was enticing. He exchanged a look with Devin, who smiled back and lay her hand on Sirius's thigh, squeezing gently. He put his hand atop hers, and for a moment he forgot all about the galleon in his pocket, and the wand at his side.
As the meeting ended, Devin made the rounds and gathered up her closest friends for a post-CND trip to the bar. Sirius and Remus were waiting with Talia and Etienne when who should appear at Remus's elbow but Mr. E, his hands full of flyers.
"Can a man bother two new recruits to take a handful?" he asked, handing Sirius and Remus each their own stack of posters before they could answer. "Slap them up anywhere."
"Sure," said Sirius. "Interesting meeting, by the way."
"Interesting enough to get you to come again? We can always use new members," Mr. E said with an eager twinkle in his eye.
"We'll see," Remus cut in before Sirius could say anything binding. He didn't like Mr. E calling them recruits one bit.
"And your names, again?" Mr. E asked. "Forgive me, my mind's a bit full at the moment." Sirius and Remus re-introduced themselves and Mr. E tapped his temple. "Now they're in there," he chuckled, then pointed at the flyers again. "Remember—anywhere."
"Ready?" asked Devin. She'd returned with a few others.
Sirius nodded. "Remus and I told a few of our lot to meet us there, too. The more the merrier, eh?"
A murmur of assent rippled around the circle, and Devin slipped her hand into Sirius's once they stepped outside into the cold night air. The pub they'd decided on was just two blocks down the street, but Sirius lost track of how many couples they passed on the way—just in case one needed a reminder it was Valentine's Day, he thought in amusement. Behind him and Devin, Remus was walking with Talia and Gibs, trying his best to assimilate and act like he didn't feel like a kelpie out of water walking through Muggle London.
"How long have you two been members?" he asked them.
"Four months," said Gibs proudly.
"Almost two years," Talia answered. "But I've been for the cause since before I even knew there were others who thought the same way I did. Eddie showed me the way, right mate?" she spoke over her shoulder to a lanky young man, who nodded and jogged to catch up with Talia.
"Carrow," he identified himself. "Eddie Carrow."
"Carrow?!" Sirius and Remus yelped at the same time, Sirius having overheard the conversation. They looked at each other, both thinking the same thing. Amycus and Alecto Carrow were two of the most wanted Death Eaters known to the Order and the Ministry.
"Yep," said Eddie warily. "That's my name, don't wear it out."
"We know a few Carrows," Remus said, trying to mask his apprehension. "Where're you from?"
"I was born in Jamaica, actually," he said. "My whole family's from Ewarton. Most are still there, it's just me and mum who moved here last year."
Hearing that was a relief; the Carrows Sirius and Remus knew were from Northumberland and had famously lived there for centuries, but Sirius remained on edge and squeezed Devin's hand subconsciously.
"Who's meeting us?" Devin asked him, and Sirius snapped out of his thoughts of Amycus and Alecto and what he'd do to them if they ever crossed paths. As fate would have it, he didn't need to answer; as he and the posse rounded the corner, he spotted James, Lily, Peter, Marlene McKinnon, and Benjy Fenwick, coming at the bar from the opposite direction.
Peter was the only one of the five not coupled up, but he waved jovially as Sirius and Remus approached.
"Alright, Pete?" Sirius grinned as he hugged Peter quickly, then James and Lily at the same time. "Marls, Benjy, nice to see you two out and about!"
Eager to get out of the cold, Sirius decided introductions could be made on everyone's own time once they were all seated with drinks in hand. Under the scrutinizing eye of the head bartender, James, Sirius and Etienne moved three tables together so that everyone could sit together. Sirius longed to levitate the heavy tables, but doing so in front of so many Muggles, even if he did it discreetly, would be enough to get him a Ministry hearing. Disorganized though the wizarding government was thanks to the war, they still always managed to find time to prosecute wizards for even the smallest offenses, while the real tyrants in the community somehow continued to wreak havoc undetected.
The night danced on in pleasant company; everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves almost uncomfortably well considering the two friend groups were only just mingling for the first time. James was laughing out loud with Gibs and Talia, while Eddie and Peter were locked in a hearty debate about which football team had the best odds of winning the next World Cup. Marlene and Benjy remained in their own little love-struck world, but had made sure to speak with everyone first. They'd been together nearly six months now, which Sirius felt was a tad long for the honeymoon phase, but happiness could be hard to come by these days, so no one was about to squash theirs.
As for Remus, he had warmed to Devin and her friends over the course of the evening and was currently going shot for shot with Etienne—both of them complaining that they were painfully single.
"It's not even a real holiday," Remus slurred, brandishing an empty shot glass at thin air. "Valentine's, my ass."
"Aucun doute là-dessus!" Etienne agreed, nodding. The drunker he got, the more he spoke French, so when Etienne flagged down the bartender for another round, Remus had absolutely no qualms about it.
Sirius chuckled as he watched them clink glasses and drink, and made a mental note to make sure Remus had someone to make sure he got home safely.
"You know, I think I'm going to take a leaf out their book," Devin said, cocking her head towards Etienne and Remus. "Want anything?"
"All set, love, thanks," Sirius replied, and after standing on her toes to give Sirius a quick peck, Devin squeezed past James and Gibs to order another beer.
In her absence, Sirius turned to face Lily. She was leaning against the bar with a sort of strained smile on her face as she surveyed their whole group laughing, joking, and getting to know one another.
"Sickle for your thoughts?" Sirius said softly, and Lily seemed to snap out of a daze. "You look…troubled," he said after a moment's pause.
"I'm fine," said Lily with what she hoped was a convincing smile. "Really, I'm having fun! Fit as a phoenix…what are you doing?"
Sirius was tilting his head back and forth, squinting at Lily with his face scrunched in concentration.
"Just checking," he said, then stood up on his toes to look down at Lily for a second. "Yep. Looks like bullshit from every angle. What's up, Evans? You're not drinking, so either you've gone full Muggle and have to drive somewhere, or like I said, you're troubled."
"You know me too well," Lily admitted, then lowered her voice. "It's just—everyone's getting on so well. Wizards, witches, Muggles—we've got 'em all represented here, all blood statuses, everything, and the world hasn't stopped turning. No one's been hurt, no one's less of a person for being here…it just makes this war that much worse, knowing it's only because Voldemort's a dickbag that we're fighting it."
Sirius let out a barklike laugh. "'Voldemort's a dickbag,' Merlin, put that on my grave stone."
"Oh! Don't say that!" Lily laughed, swatting Sirius in the chest.
"Voldemort is a dickbag. The baggiest of dicks, and you can quote me on that. And yeah, he's gotten us into this mess, but it's up to us to get everyone out of it. Which we're going to," he said fiercely, looking Lily straight in the eye. He saw a flicker of some close relative of fear drift across her eyes.
"He's really out there."
"Yes, he is."
"And we're the ones fighting him, while the Ministry's gone and made a home for its head somewhere deep in its arse."
"You're turning phrases like flapjacks tonight," Sirius commented. "But, also yes."
Lily sighed and shook her head dolefully at Sirius, who smiled sympathetically back.
"The world's gone mental, hasn't it?" She asked.
They both knew there was only one possible answer.
Please let me know what you think; I hope you're liking this fic so far! CHAPTER 5: A GOOD OLD-FASHIONED MARAUDERS BIRTHDAY PARTY is coming soon!
- C