AN: And we seem to be back on track. Here is your update, two weeks after the last one, and that was my original schedule. I know not all of you are happy with my schedule, but that does mean that the number of times that you're going to have to wait for a month or so are almost nonexistent. I can do once every two weeks.

Anyway, enjoy all the bickering and the sass, the dinner parties and new information about the secret wizarding world.

"The thing women have yet to learn is nobody gives you power. You just take it. "
― Roseanne Barr

or

"Power resides only where men believe it resides. [...] A shadow on the wall, yet shadows can kill. And ofttimes a very small man can cast a very large shadow."
― George R.R. Martin, A Clash of Kings

Chapter Thirteen: Earning Power

Bella held tightly to a piece of weather worn parchment as she made the trek from her bedchambers to the Great Hall. It wasn't often that she was asked to attend an event that James was not going to be at. Normally she wouldn't like having to go and socialize with the nobles without James there with her to poke fun at their silly clothes and horrendous attempts to be funny. She was glad that he wasn't going to be there today though, because today she was going with Rodolpus, and today she was going to agree to marry him in front of the king, and she couldn't see James understanding why she would make such a horrible decision.

She had made up her mind though. She was going to marry Rodolpus and enjoy her new position at court, a position that had been picked out for her not only by king Charles, but by Voldemort as well. Married to a noble, she would have more power than she currently did as the king's ward. And if Voldemort had his way, she and Rodolpus would be sitting on Camelot's thrones before too long. And while Bella didn't want that, she also assumed that if she didn't push Voldemort now, if she went along with his plan now, then later he would be more willing to listen to her, to spare James.

"Don't you look dashing?" Rodolpus was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairwell. Wearing black robes and a grin that Bella had to admit that she was partial to, he was leaned against the wall with both hands behind his back. "Though I think you could use a dash of color, my love." He withdrew his hand from behind him and with it came a pink rose.

Bella smiled and traded her parchment for the rose. "What's this?" He asked, unfolding the paper.

"It's from my sister." Bella said. "She said that we should meet you-know-who in the garden around midnight."

"You-know-who?" Rodolpus asked, looking slightly amused.

"It's better than having his name get out." She looked over her shoulder. "I swear the walls have ears."

"You're slightly paranoid." He tucked the note into his pocket and then offered her his arm. "But as the future queen-"

"I wasn't being paranoid." Bella snapped. "You can't say things like that either. One wrong step and you'll be executed for treason. You must remember that in this plan, one of us is expendable, and it's not me." He raised his brow at her, but then smiled again.

"You know, I was never upset that we were to be married. You're not like the other girls here at court are you?"

"Just keep your mouth closed if you find yourself wanting to share something you shouldn't." Bella said, looking down under guise of fixing her dress, when in reality she didn't want him to see her blushing. Gods, how this man vexed her.

They walked into the Great Hall and took their seats near the front of the table, Bella sitting on the king's left and the seat at his right left vacant. They had been some of the last to arrive and soon the king stood up and held his glass in the air.

"Welcome my friends," He said, pausing to allow people to return the sentiment. Bella felt herself tense up at the sound of his voice, once against cursing herself for not being able to follow through with her plans earlier. "As some of you may know, my son is outside the castle walls this evening restoring law and order in a town that has become known for its unholy and violent ways. When he leaves, the town shall be once again safe for people to pass through." He paused again, allowing people to praise James. Bella turned her head slightly to check Rodolpus' expression. He was playing his part well, glass in hand and a grin on his face praising the prince along with everyone else.

In fact, Rodolpus was playing his part very well. He looked almost giddy. Bella's breath got stuck in her throat.

"James has taken a small group of his very best knights, and I have faith that they alone will be enough to stop the plague that has found its way into our kingdom." More cheering. Bella looked up at the king and realized that she wasn't at all aware what was going on. Where had the king sent her brother? Was he complete thick?

She leaned over and placed a hand on Rodolpus' knee. He looked over and smiled. She tilted her head so that he would lean in. "What is it, dear?"

"My brother is going to make it back alive, yes?"

"There's no need to worry, Bella." Rodolpus said sweetly, doing nothing to calm her now knotted stomach. "You-Know-Who has no reason to kill him yet. We don't need to be making him into a martyr."

Bella took a deep breath and sat back up. James had walked into a trap, but he was going to make it out alive. She was working for the people who were planning something horrible for James' fate. Rodolpus said that they weren't going to kill him just yet, but the way he was smiling, the way his voice had changed when he said 'yet.' The king was a horrible man and he deserved to die for the crimes that he had committed, but James…

She made her decision right then. She would help her brother escape this unscathed, she would do everything in her power to make sure that nothing happened to him. He was just as much a victim of Charles's cruelty as she was, and she wasn't going to let anyone hurt him.

"Just follow the plan." Rodolpus said. "You agreed to the plan, remember?"

Another deep breath.

What had she done?

oOoOo

"You can't send them back to camp!" Dory shouted once Remus and Lance had walked out the door. She had one hand in her hair and the other on the hilt of her sword. "You can't treat them like that!"

"Especially Remus." Sirius agreed, taking a seat and picking up Dory's abandon mug of mead. "He's your best mate for God's sake."

"He's my servant." James corrected. Sirius scoffed into the mug.

"Why'd ya' kick Remus out?" Arden asked, his cheeks more than a bit flushed.

"I don't need anyone questioning my authority. I am your prince, and you all need to trust that I made the decision to send them back to camp to keep the rest of us safe." James snapped, crossing his arms over his chest. He was addressing a room full of drunk men and an angry Dory, he wasn't going to win any points in being reasonable, that didn't stop him from trying though. "We need to be united while in this town. For all we know, we're all in danger."

"Sending Remus and Lance away doesn't make us safer. Or united. It makes us the opposite of that. We're now two men down," Dory snapped, falling back onto her stool. She snatched her mug out of Sirius's hands and took a large swig. "Lance is our best swordsmen and Remus… Well I for one wouldn't bet against him."

"Ya' know something 'bout Remus we don't?" Arden tried to laugh, but one look from Sirius and he pressed his lips together. "Sorry. Just tryin' to lighten the mood."

"YOU SNAKE BASTARD!"

James' party turned to see Tom, the owner of the tavern, come bellowing down the staircase that James, Remus and Sirius had just come from. He was holding a man by the scruff of his collar and dragging him along after him. "How many times do I have to tell you that I don't want you lurking about in my pub?"

"I'm sorry!" The man was trying to apologize but Tom kept shouting over him.

"Third time this week!"

"James, is that…" Sirius trailed off, sitting up straighter.

"Wait," James called out to Tom, but the man didn't seem to hear him.

"Get out of my pub!" Tom yelled, tossing him out the door. "And stay out!"

"That was the kid from earlier." Arden muttered, making the connection himself. "Dolohov's servant. What's he doing here? I thought he was sent back to Dolohov's manor."

"James." Sirius and James exchanged a brief look and then both took off towards the door at once.

"What's gotten into you two?" Arden called after them, getting up to follow.

"You lot stay here." James said, halting Dory and Arden in their tracks.

"What's going on, James?"

"Just stay here!"

James and Sirius made it outside and immediately drew their swords. "Which way did he go?" Sirius asked, scanning the surrounding area. It was dark, and a thick forest was nearby on the right of the tavern. If the man had gone in the woods, there was almost no possibility of finding him at this hour.

"I didn't see!" James bit back. "I was trying to get them to stay put."

"You don't think he heard, do you?"

"I have no idea what he was doing upstairs, but I'd like to find out."

"There's no trace of him anywhere." Sirius was now checking the ground for footprints. "His tracks head four steps to the right and then disappear."

"That's not possible."

"Why was he in the pub?" Sirius asked, putting his sword back in its sheath. He ran his hands through his hair, shaking his head. "People can't find out about Remus, James. I know you're pissed that he didn't tell you sooner, but we can't let anything happen to him."

James didn't say anything.

"He's my mate too." Sirius tried again. "And you know that if the situation was reversed, you would have kept it from him."

"No." James shouted, pointing a finger at Sirius. "You don't get to do that. I wouldn't have kept it from him-"

"Like hell you wouldn't have!" Sirius laughed, managing to sound both angry and amused. "Your father has made a habit of chopping off people's heads if they smell like a bloody warlock! Remus is supposed to believe that you'd be completely okay with him- being the way he is- when your dad has been brainwashing you your entire life?"

"He should have trusted me!"

"He's trusting you now, and look how you're rewarding that trust!" Sirius looked around and noticed a few people peeking their heads out of the tavern to see who was causing the noise. "Now let's get back inside before we freeze to death."

"Why was he in there?" James asked again, running a hand through his hair. "Was he following us?"

"We know he's working for Dolohov," Sirius shrugged. "I think we should assume he was. And that he heard everything we said upstairs."

"They know that they've lost the element of surprise." James muttered, putting his sword away. "They're going to be desperate."

"They're going to go to Remus." Sirius snapped. "Because you've just ostracized him and they think he could be a weapon."

"You don't think he would-"

"If you suggest that Remus would do anything that put our lives in danger, I'm going to break your jaw."

"You can't speak to-"

"Oh come off it, James." Sirius muttered, walking back over to the table and taking a seat next to Dory. James watched them whisper back and forth for a few moments before Dory excused herself and went up to her room.

He wasn't sure what had given Sirius the impression that he could treat James as an equal instead of the future king of Camelot, but with everything else that was going on tonight, James had about had it. They were making him out to be the bad guy and that wasn't fair. James was the one who was finding out that everyone close to him was lying to him, first his sister, then his father and now Remus. He had every right to be angry with them, especially Remus, who had spent nearly every day with James for the last six months and taken it upon himself to tell James the truth about everyone except himself.

James clenched his fists at his sides and stalked off to the bar. "I'd like some firewhiskey." He said, his jaw set.

"Sorry, lad." The barmaid said with a shrug. "I don't like givin' hard liquor to angry men."

"I'm the prince." James said through his teeth.

"Well then I won't refuse you," She gave him a small smile and took out a glass bottle from under the counter. "But I still don't recommend that you take it. I'd be more than happy to offer you so-"

"I don't need your advice." He snapped, snatching the glass away as soon as she'd poured it.

"Pity." She sighed. "Saw my cousin with you and I figured you were different than they were saying."

"What?" James' head snapped in her direction. "What are you talking about?"

"Nothing, sir."

"Don't- Don't do that." James put his hands up. "Just tell me what you meant."

"Dory's my cousin." She said with yet another sigh. "My names Emmaline Vance. Dory's always been a real stickler when it came to who she held in her company, so I saw her with you and figured the things they were saying couldn't be true."

"What are they saying?" James asked, quickly getting frustrated with this older woman. "And who's saying it?"

"Oh I'd rather not repeat some of the things they're saying." She said, grabbing a rag and wiping down the counter to James' left. "S'not lady like. And I suppose everyone's saying something. You're not a very popular man round these parts, sir."

"I haven't done anything." It was now James' turn to sigh, leaning against his arm and taking a swig of his firewhiskey. All the fight seemed to drain out of him and he was suddenly aware of how exhausted he was. It really had been a long day.

"That's not always a good thing, lad." She patted his arm gingerly and gave him a sympathetic look. "I think our kingdom could use a bit of change."

"You wouldn't happen to know what they're planning on doing to me, do you?"

"The town?" Emmaline asked. She shook her head and shrugged. "Don't know the specifics, but it's not going to be pretty."

"They're not going to hurt anyone, though. Right?"

"I hope not, lad. You don't have many men with you."

"I sent two of them off."

"Why'd you do that?" Emmaline put her hands on her hips and James swore that she was the closest thing to a mother he had ever had, and he'd only been talking to her for a few minutes.

"I had to! I can't trust them."

"Why not?" Her eyes were narrowed now.

"They lied to me. Well, Remus lied to me. Lance just won't take off his helmet, says that I wouldn't let him be a knight if he took it off, which probably means that I shouldn't let him be a knight with it on either."

"What did Remus lie about?" She asked as though she knew exactly who Remus was. "Did he have a good reason for doing it?"

"Is there ever a good reason to lie?" James countered.

"The good Lord tells us that lying is a sin." Emmaline nodded. "But I think the reason he forgives all is so that he doesn't have to make any exceptions. Some lies are necessary, and no one would be doing any good to fault you for them."

"Are you really going to make them sleep in the woods again?" James was instantly on guard again when he heard Sirius's voice behind him. He took another drink of firewhiskey and watched Emmaline get another drink ready.

"I think it will do both of them some good." James muttered. Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Didn't think I'd be seeing you again." She said, handing the drink to Sirius. "And especially not in uniform."

"'Lo, Emma." Sirius winked at her. "I had a long time to think about the conversation you and I had, and I decided to clean up my act."

"Really?" She said, sounding as though she knew he was full of it.

"Nah, made some friends and I needed to get myself a paying job so that I could stick around. Since fighting's what I'm good at, I figured I should stick with it."

"So you made friends with the prince?" She asked, nodding at James. "How did you manage that?"

"Didn't." He shrugged. "Befriended his servant actually. James here threw him out a little while ago so him and I aren't really on good terms at the moment."

"That skinny bloke or the man who wouldn't take off his helmet?"

"The skinny one. He's afraid of horses as well."

"Well," Emma shrugged. "You could have had worse luck I suppose." Sirius laughed.

"I suppose I could have." He then cast a furtive look at James and pressed on. "Remus is a good mate though, always looking out for his friends even when they don't want him to. Just the other month he pulled me off the side of the road while I was pissed drunk and let me sleep in his home. The floor of course, but that was in case I got sick I think. And now I live with him permanently. Don't know if he knows that yet, but I'm sure he's worked it out. He's a smart bloke."

"Why'd you go and send him off then? Just because he lied to you?" Emma asked James with a hand on her hip, not bothering to even comment on anything Sirius had said.

"It's complicated." James sighed. "You wouldn't understand."

"Course not. I'm just an over-the-hill barmaid with no personal experience with relationships at all. What was I thinking asking you about your troubles?" She huffed at him and then pulled another rag out from under the counter, tossing the dirty one somewhere behind her.

"I didn't mean to imply that you were unhelpful-"

"Of course not." Emma said. "You're a good lad, just a bit self-centered."

"I am the prince," James shook his head. "Does nobody know that?"

"Here in the Hollows you've got to earn people's respect with your actions," Emma said looking at James with her head tilted down. "Not with your title. A lot of folks round here have learned that lesson the hard way, and I'd hate for you to follow in their footsteps."

"They're going to freeze out there, mate." Sirius said, putting a hand on James' shoulder. "It's even colder than it was yesterday, and we had three times as many people to keep the fire going last night."

"Fine!" James snapped. "You can go and fetch them if you'd like. Just let them know that my generosity doesn't stem from forgiveness. I still want both of them to stay clear of me for the duration of the trip."

"Sound perfectly reasonable." Sirius muttered, downing the rest of his drink and then jumping out of the stool. "I'll see you in the morning then." James watched him walk over to the table where Arden was now sitting alone, nursing a Butterbeer, grab his cloak and then head out the door.

He looked back at Emma and did not appreciate the look that she was sticking him with. "What I'm doing is entirely necessary." He said, knuckles whitening as he gripped his glass.

"If that were true, you wouldn't feel so rotten, dear."

oOoOo

Severus hadn't always served the Dolohov's. In fact, there had been a time where he had employed servants of his own. He had been able to walk the streets of his hometown with his head held high, his clothes neatly pressed, his collar stiff and pristine. This had all changed when his father had found out that he had magic. Everything went from peachy keen to a nightmare before Severus had a chance to properly breathe.

His mother had tried to stick up for him, but she hadn't tried hard enough and his father had won in the end, taking away everything that Severus had had, leaving him without so much as a copper coin.

Severus had come to Godric's Hollow hoping to start new in a place where he should have been accepted. It had been rumored that Godric's Hollow, or the Hollow's as it was locally known, was a place where one could practice magic without fear of consequence, for the lawmen had magic, as did the governor of the land. They kept all those who asked for protection safe within their borders, keeping the king ignorant and the people in surrounding villages at bay.

He should not be serving under someone like Antonin Dolohov.

He pulled his thin knit scarf closer to his face and let out a hot breath on his hands. It was fiercely cold out tonight. The clear sky allowing for the moonlight to bounce off the snow, making it seem earlier than it was.

Severus had recently found himself in quite the interesting situation. For the first time since he came to this town, he had a fighting chance.

The future king's servant boy had magic.

If he kept his head down and played his cards right, he could use this information to better his position, he just knew it. He only had to be smart about it and wait for the opportune moment.

"Where have you been?" He had been walking past the Rookwood's slightly more than modest home and just his luck, Augustus' youngest son was sitting on the fence that surrounded the property. Severus had the feeling that he had been waiting for Severus, as there were not many reasons anyone would willingly be out in this cold.

"None of your business, Rook." Severus muttered, pulling his scarf tighter still.

"I don't think Dolohov would like that answer much. He's been looking for you." The boy was just barely twelve, but almost as tall as Severus; a fact that he emphasized by jumping down from the fence and taking a few steps forward.

Severus had to resist the urge to roll his eyes. Not only at the poor attempt at intimidation, but he knew that Dolohov had not been looking for him because Dolohov was still back in the brothel with that wench of his.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you, Snake!" Severus let go of his scarf and spun around.

"Do not speak to me like that." His hand was at the ready, positioned as though he were holding an invisible sphere. "You know what I'm capable of." This was the only good thing about living in Hollow's; even if he was someone's servant, he was allowed to use his magic and that almost made up for everything else. Almost.

"You're not going to pull anything with the prince and his girls here." Despite his words, the Rookwood boy shrunk, taking a few steps back from Severus as well.

"What I'm not going to do is let you act like an insulant swine simply because the prince came to clean up the town. As far as I'm concerned, he can stay for as long as he'd like and take as many of you as he'd like." He lowered his hand and turned back around.

"Is that what Dolohov is planning?" The boys asked quietly, sounding for the first time, openly frightened. "Is he going to purify the town?"

"Don't concern yourself with things you don't understand, Rook." Severus sneered. He had been doing that lately, inferring more than he should. Everything always went smoother when Severus didn't talk to anyone. He shoved his fists into his pockets and continued towards the Dolohov Manor.

As far as he was concerned, the town needed a good pruning. There were too many people who were apathetic when it came to standing up for their right to be who they were born as. People with magic were forced to hide in the shadows of the forest, or live like muggles. It wasn't fair and it wasn't going to stand. Severus hated Dolohov, but he stood behind him on this, he stuck around for this reason. He knew that Antonin Dolohov was a horrible man, but he also knew that he would make sure that magic became legal one way or another, and that was something that Severus was going to fight for no matter what the cost.

oOoOo

Bella's footsteps echoed around the courtyard as she made her way to the far right corner, ducking under an abandoned street cart to reach the gate that would take her to the gardens. It had been a long time since she had been to the gardens, and when she pushed open the gate, the familiar floral scent didn't hit her in the face as it always had. Instead she was forced to squint her eyes as she was greeted instead by the moonlight bouncing around the mounds of snow where the flowers once grew.

"You're late." Someone muttered from behind her. She turned, expecting to see Rodolpus, but was surprised to see Voldemort standing behind her.

"The king wouldn't shut up." Bella shrugged, trying not to let him rattle her. There was something about this man that made her feel uncomfortable in her own skin. The way he looked at her… it unnerved her. "Dinner ran a bit long."

"I wasn't asking for an explanation, merely voicing an observation."

The gate creaked and this time it was Rodolpus.

"And your betrothed is even later." Voldemort drawled, looking bored. Rodolpus puffed out his chest and pushed back his hair.

"I do apologize," He said, bowing his head. "I assumed that Lady Bellatrix would wait for me."

"I wait for no one." Bella snapped, turning to glare at Rodolpus.

"See?" Rodolpus said, his arrogance managing to shine through even his newly humbled exterior. "She's being difficult."

"Stop acting like a child. The only thing you proved by calling this meeting is that you are incapable of handling simple tasks."

"You set up this meeting?" Bella asked, more than a bit surprised.

"You needed to have some sense talked into you, and since you clearly weren't going to listen to me-"

"Hush." Voldemort took a step away from the garden wall. "I will reiterate this plan only once. The two of you are to take this vial," He withdrew a small glass vial from within his cloak and handed it to Bella. "You are to empty its contents onto anything that the king is going to ingest. After that, you make yourselves scares and act surprised when he falls ill… and just as shocked when he dies. I don't understand why you needed me to intervene. Did I ask you to do something out of your depth? Were you unable to-"

"Please, my lord-"

"Do not interrupt me." Voldemort said, his eyes shut. "Rodolpus, you would do well to remember that your part in this plan is entirely replaceable… almost arbitrary when I stop and think about it. Do not make me stop and think about it again."

"Yes, my lord."

"I'm sorry," Bella sighed, putting a hand on her hip, knowing that she, was not so replaceable. "But why are you going by Lord Voldemort? Who gave you that title? Why does he seem frightened of you?"

"Power is not given, dear. Power is seized." He started to walk away from them.

"Well who did you take it from then?" She asked, now crossing her arms. While she was glad that this man had suddenly appeared and decided to help her achieve the goals that she needed a smidgen of help with, that didn't give him all the power he seemed to be claiming. "You can't take something from nothing. If you already have power, who did you take it from?"

"Bella…" Rodolpus hissed, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her back towards him. "Shut. Up."

"Rodolpus," Voldemort said quietly, turning only his head as he spoke. "Be sure you teach your betrothed some manners."

"Of course, my lord." Rodolpus said, not looking nearly as smug as Bella was sure he would later.

"You see what I did there, Bella?" Voldemort asked, now walking away from her again. The moon shown full before him and he appeared to be walking into it. "I just made you powerless. Giving me more power, and you none. Have your task completed by the fortnight, or there will be consequences."

Bella and Rodolpus stood quietly as they watched him leave, and Bella wouldn't admit it, but she was impressed when she saw Voldemort spin around on his heel and disappear.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Rodolpus yelled, pulling her around to face him, stopping her when their faces were merely inches from one another. "Why would you speak to him like that? Do you have any idea who he is?"

"Get your hands off of me." Bella ripped her arm out of his grasp and took a few steps back. "And no, I do not know who he is. He showed up in my bedchambers one day and now you're calling him the Dark Lord. I've never seen you even pretend to be frightened of anyone, why are you shaken by him?"

"You don't know what he's capable of."

"Well enlighten me."

Rodolpus sighed and shook his head. "He was imprisoned. There's this place where they keep people like him, people who practice the darkest of magic. People that they can't kill by mortal means. It's called Azkaban, guarded by the darkest creatures that our world has to offer."

"I've never heard of Azkaban." Bella said skeptically.

"That's because you've been the king's pet for the last six years." Rodolpus spat. "And he doesn't know about it. The people in the woods built the prison-"

"What people in the woods?"

"They call themselves The Order of some such nonsense. They locked Voldemort up because he didn't want to hide in the woods any longer and he's willing to do what needs to be done to protect people with magic. People like you."

"If he's trying to help us-"

"He has this pet snake," Rodolpus shuddered slightly. "I've heard that he can talk to it. And the spells he knows- He can turn a man's insides to liquid, set his bones on fire while he still draws breath- He fought his way out of the prison with nothing but his magic." He paused and Bella found herself trying to imagine this. A large stone building, hidden in the middle of the woods, and Voldemort blowing apart the wall with a burst of red light. "The people in the woods, these Order people, they tried to fight him back with their own magic, but they were no match for him. He overpowered two dozen guards. He killed all of them, Bella."

"I can barely light a flame with my magic." She muttered quietly, pinching at the hem of her gown. "The Dark Lord." She said this almost reverently now, because quite suddenly it didn't seem nearly as ridiculous. "Why does he want us to be king and queen?"

"He's hand picking all the kingdom's rulers. They're all going to be people that will produce magical heirs."

"Do you have-"

"No. I've tried to learn, that's where I was these last few months, but I do not have the gift."

"Tell me more about the Order."

"They're a group of witches and wizards living in the woods and hiding from the rest of the world. They practice magic, but they fear the king and would rather hide their entire lives than fight for what's right. They are weak and spineless." He spit on the ground. "Think they can tell the Dark Lord what to do, well they've got another thing coming. Just wait and see what he's got planned for Godric's Hollow."

"Is that were James is?" Rodolpus nodded and Bella started chewing the inside of her cheek. "I think it's time to retire to my room for the night."

"Yes of course. I'll see you in the morning."

"Of course." She echoed. Her legs started taking her towards the castle and then to her room, which was lucky because he mind was too busy thinking over everything that she had learned today. Azkaban, The Order, Voldemort's escape… how could she have not known about a wizarding prison? Or a group of magical people living somewhere in the woods?

She rubbed her thumb over the small vial that Voldemort had handed to her and wondered how long it would take for the contents to finish the job.

Where she had been nervous and unsure before, she was now slightly excited at the prospect of whatever Voldemort had planned. A world with magical people in control was not something that she had ever envisioned before, not something that she could have envisioned when the only thing happening to people with magic in Camelot, was a quiet beheading.

It wasn't until she had changed into her night things, crawled into bed and turned off her lamp that she remembered that James was currently in Godric's Hollow, a town that apparently was thriving with people just like her. She felt a sharp pain in her chest but then shook her head and nestled further into her bed.

Rodolpus had promised that James would make it out with his life. Whatever happened to him would be the fault of his father, or his own prideful ways.

And maybe it was because she wasn't sure that James would still love her if he knew what she was, or maybe it was because of her excitement about Voldemort's future, but she found herself almost entirely unconcerned about what James was about to go through.

oOoOo

Remus was livid. Or maybe he was terrified. More than likely, he was some uncomfortable combination of the two with anger slightly in the lead.

He wanted to pace back and forth, relieve some of his angry energy but it was too damn cold to leave the campfire. So he settled for angrily warming his hands over the flames while Marlene attempted to sleep and he could honestly say that he was the angriest that he'd ever been.

He didn't like keeping secrets. He hated it. He hated having to lie to James every day, having to sneak around and make up reason for why things were done too quickly, and why things didn't make a mess when they should have. He had magic, and he used magic a lot. Maybe he could have told James sooner than he did, but James shouldn't be reacting like this. Of all the scenarios that Remus had played out in his head, James getting angry because Remus didn't tell him, was not one that he had thought of.

Marlene shifted, helmet off and to the side, and Remus figured that sleep had finally come. The glow of the fire reflected off the long blonde hair that had pooled on the ground. Remus sighed again and shook his head.

He now had the 'Lancelot' secret as well. If he didn't tell James and then he was to find out that Remus knew… He was sure that he would get fired and banished in the same sentence. But he couldn't tell him. It wasn't his secret to tell firstly, and secondly he really liked Marlene. He wasn't sure what James would do if he found out the truth about her, but he wasn't going to put anyone's livelihood in jeopardy of being turned upside down simply because James didn't like it when Remus kept secrets from him.

"Remus? Lance?" Remus turned his head in the direction of the voice, and squinted into the dark. "Is that you?" Remus sighed when he recognized the voice as Sirius's.

"Who else would be camping in the middle of the woods on a night like this?" Remus asked, standing up and stretching out his arms. He had been crouched close to the fire for a few hours now, he hadn't realized how stiff he was.

"Thieves and murders." Sirius said, stepping closer to the fire. Remus stepped between the sleeping figure on the ground and Sirius.

"Turn around for a moment."

"He trusts you?"

"It was more a, 'I'll keep your secret if you keep mine' kind of thing."

"Right, because Dory and Lance know about you." Sirius crossed his arms but turned around. "So is he deformed or something?"

Remus chuckled a bit as he knelt down to wake the sleeping knight. "Well, I can tell you that Lance doesn't look like you'd expect."

"What does that mean?" Sirius scoffed. "He's got a third eye doesn't he?"

"Lance?" Remus shook the knight's shoulder. "Lance, Sirius is here."

"What?"

"Good, morning sunshine." Sirius said.

"Sirius is here." Lance sat upright and started looking around, rather alarmed. "I told him to turn around. He didn't see anything." Remus said gently, reaching out and grabbing Lance's helmet. "Here you go."

"Thanks." Marlene coughed a bit and then put the helmet on. "What are you doing out here, Sirius? Did James kick you out as well?"

Sirius spun around, looking over her closely, as though he might be able to tell what it was she was hiding simply because the helmet had been off only a few seconds ago. When he found nothing different about the knight he sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Nah, he came really close, but James actually sent me out here to get the two of you. He realized that he was being a bloody prick and decided that he didn't want you to freeze to death."

"How kind of him."

"What made him change his mind?" Lance asked, ignoring Remus's bitter remark.

"He talked to Emma, the barmaid, and was told that he over reacted. Also, he realized that he doesn't really want to be alienating his friends when a good portion of the town is after his blood."

"What?" Lance asked. "What do you mean they're after his blood? Is he mad? Why are we out here then? Why aren't we with him? Did he know that when he sent us off? We should go back to-"

"Slow down, Lance." Sirius laughed. "James knows he's in trouble, but we can't just leave. He wants to prove that he's not going to be his father when he takes the throne."

"I think keeping him alive is a bit more important."

"Not really. Charles has made a lot of enemies over the years. The sooner these enemies realized that James isn't his father, the sooner James can get rid of these enemies and then there will be less people after James' head." Sirius shrugged. "We've already talked through this."

"And how would we know that?" Remus muttered.

"Well you were there for the first part of the conversation." Sirius nudged Remus with his elbow.

"Yes, but then I was kicked out of the tavern-"

"Can we be angry with James when his life isn't in danger?" Lance asked, walking over to his horse and jumping on it.

"Sounds good to me." Sirius said, also walking over to the horses.

"How did you get your horse here without my noticing?"

"There are a lot of reasons that you're not a knight, Remus." Sirius sighed. "Your complete lack of awareness is most of them." Lance laughed and then road off ahead of Remus and Sirius.

"James didn't actually say any of that."

"What?"

"He didn't realize he was wrong or anything, he was just annoyed with me telling him that he was being a git and that the two of you were going to freeze out here."

"Why did you tell us-"

"Because James is in a lot of trouble and I don't want Lance to be upset with him when we're going to have to try very hard to get James out of here unscathed." Sirius shifted in his saddle and Remus narrowed his brow. "You remember that servant of Dolohov's?" Remus nodded. "He was eavesdropping on our conversation. We're not sure how much he heard."

Remus felt his stomach drop and his breath became shallow. "He heard us?"

"We don't know for certain, but… We're assuming he knows everything we talked about."

"Perfect." Remus took a deep, shaky breath. "Well, there's nothing that can be done about that right now. Let's just get back to the tavern."

oOoOo

When the three of them reached town again, they tied their horses up at the stables and re-entered the tavern.

"We're closing up, boys." Emmaline said, wiping down a table near the back door. "Tom is having me kick everyone out." Remus hadn't realized how late it was before.

"We're just heading upstairs, Emma." Sirius said, winking at the older woman.

"Alright, tell your friends to keep it down."

"Yes ma'am."

James had woken up Amos, Fabian and Gideon and they were all seated on the floor, a lantern between them. Arden, who had not gone to bed, was still eating. He was now working through his second chicken of the night and James had made him switch from mead to water when Emmaline had told him that the town was indeed planning something.

"We're back." Sirius said, sweeping his arms out in unnecessary grandeur. "They hadn't frozen all the way, though Lance and I did have to peel Remus off the ground. His arse might fall off yet. We're not in the clear." Lance looked around the room and when he didn't see Dory, he excused himself and went back into the hall.

"Add some wood to the fire, Remus." James ordered, not turning at all to meet Remus's gaze.

"I've got it." Sirius said, seeing the look on Remus's face and wanting to keep the peace.

"I told Re-"

"What does it matter who puts what on the fire?" Arden asked, still not sure what James was angry about, but did not want another fight to break out.

"James is trying to make a power move." Dory said, entering the room with Lance. "Is there a reason I wasn't woken with the rest of your guard?"

"Well, you not being a member of the guard could have something to do with it." Amos said. Dory opened her mouth to shout at him most likely, but Sirius was faster.

"Let's just focus on the problem at hand. We have a town full of people who hate James, the prat who we're all charged with protecting, and we have no idea what they're going to do." Sirius said, picking up a couple of logs and tossing them on the flames. The fire spit and eagerly wrapped itself around the new wood.

"That scrawny man has to be involved somehow." Arden nodded, taking another large bite of his chicken. Sirius reached out and took a chunk of meat for himself and nodded at Arden's statement.

"What scrawny man?" Lance asked, taking a seat on the floor, Dory followed in suit and then put her hand on Lance's knee. He in turn put a hand on top of hers. "The one who was with Dolohov?"

James looked up at Remus, "He overheard some sensitive information."

"When?" Fabian asked, letting out a large yawn. Gideon jabbed him in the gut, and Fabian sat up straighter, shaking his head.

"When James, Sirius and I were talking in the stairwell." Remus said, refusing to break eye contact with James.

"Well, what is it? What do they know?" Amos asked.

Remus held his breath as he saw James look away, and open his mouth. "He heard us talking about my father. He knows that he is ill." Remus let out a sigh of relief and closed his eyes.

"That's what you were talking about?" Arden laughed. "What the hell did you kick Remus and Lance out for?"

"That's none of your business." James sighed, pushing his glasses up his face and rubbing his eyes. "Look, we need to create a plan."

"We have no idea what they're planning." Amos said. "How are we supposed to make a plan when we know only one of the variables?"

"I didn't say that it was going to be easy." James muttered. "But just because it's difficult doesn't mean we should all just call it quits and go to sleep."

"Alright, what's the plan then?"

AN: Reviews are too cool for school.