Disclaimer: We don't own Harry Potter. Anything you recognize from the books belongs to J.K. Rowling and the other companies involved with Harry Potter. The Tenshi are based off real people-so please don't steal. Thank you!

A/N: Ko-chan got the idea for the title from the movie: The Truth About Charlie. Just wanted to point that out.

The Truth About the Tenshi

As the group dragged into the Great Hall, the worried students grew expectantly quiet. Many were curiously glancing at Riley, Robin, and Nicole. The students joined their tables while the adults, and Padfoot, walked to the front of the Hall.

Dumbledore remained standing as Remus and Padfoot joined the other professors at the Head Table. "I know that you are all very worried. But, let me assure you, nothing will happen to you while I am here." The anger in his voice was almost imperceptible.

"Today, we were attacked by Dementors," he continued, "and luckily they were defeated by three girls, who risked their own lives to protect us. But as a precaution against further trouble and glory-seeking moments," He paused and looked at Nicole, Riley, Harry, and Ron. "Nobody will be allowed outside without a teacher present. You will be escorted to and from the greenhouses and to and from the Quidditch pitch for practices and games.

"Furthermore, for tonight I will be posting teachers as guards around the castle. Anyone caught out of their dormitories will immediately be sent home. Prefects, please lead your housemates back quickly and quietly." Murmurs ran through the Hall after he finished his speech. "You are dismissed. Mr. Potter, Miss Devon, Miss Eversly, and Miss Goodfellow, please follow Ms. Lange to my office and wait for me there."

Dumbledore then turned to the professors. Presumably, he was giving them their assignments. Ron sadly registered the glint of fear and lack of confidence in their eyes. However, as Dumbledore spoke they seemed to become more at ease. With the exception of Snape, who always looked like a slimy git, no matter the situation.

Ms. Lange reached them and said, "Dumbledore wishes to speak with you in private and if you could tell Miss Goodfellow please. Ron and Hermione are to escort the students to their dorm and remain there."

"Why do they get to go? I helped them." Ron spat out.

Ms. Lange looked at him. "I don't know why, but Dumbledore wants you to get the students to their dorm. I wouldn't argue with him."

"Ron, we'll tell you everything as soon as we get back, alright." Harry offered.

Ron sighed and nodded. "Alright. It's not like I have much of a choice."

Riley waved Robin over. He waved to Harry and then watched as they began to follow Ms. Lange. He focused on Nicole and found himself wishing he could be walking next to her. She turned around and waved at Ron, before exiting the Hall. He sighed, then turned around and helped Hermione get the students to Gryffindor.

They didn't have to wait long before Dumbledore joined them. The wait was long enough, though, to give Riley a chance to become preoccupied with her thoughts as usual. She couldn't understand what had happened. She'd had everything under control, and then… 'Ugh,' she thought impatiently. What was happening to her?

Everyone waited expectantly as Dumbledore sat. Riley could see the worry in his eyes and the intense hatred. She knew that this stemmed from his veracity towards protecting this school and its students. Someone—Voldemort—had attacked his school, and Dumbledore was livid.

"Let's start with explanations before we get into questions. Girls," Dumbledore said as he looked at the Tenshi.

"For our part, at least," Robin began indicating herself and Nicole. "We don't really have much to say." Nicole nodded. "Nicole felt the Dementors presence and told us about. After Riley spotted them, we followed her. We told my teammates to head back to the castle and were surrounded. Riley summoned our wands and her broom. After she left we tried to fell as many Dementors as possible, but there were too many." Riley heard Robin's unspoken thought, 'And then came the memories.'

Dumbledore looked at Riley. She shrugged and began, "Well, it's like Robin said. Nic felt them, and I saw them appear behind the Slytherin team. Without even thinking, I suppose," she threw Nicole, who had snorted at this inaccurate comment, a withering glance before continuing. "I went to help them. After dealing with Malfoy, who is really upset that I tackled him, never mind that I saved his miserable life, we were surrounded. Like Robin said, I summoned their wands and my broom. I really need to get a new wand, by the way," Riley added. "Robin had noticed that Sirius, Ron, Harry, and Hermione were in trouble, so I went to help them. Then, I heard Nicole scream, so I went back to them."

At this point, Riley felt herself hesitate. She didn't want to even think about what would have happened to her friends if she had arrived a moment later. "They were in pretty bad shape. I plowed over the Dementors nearest them." A thoughtful look crossed her face. "Then, I heard a Dementor say that I was the one their master had sent them for."

She paused to note the reactions. For the most part, they were as she expected. Suspicion registered on Sirius' and Remus' faces, concern and surprise on Adrienne's, Nicole's and Robin's, and nothing on Dumbledore's. The one that caught her by surprise was Harry's. He wore a look of triumph and understanding.

She noted it and continued. "Well, I knew that if they were after me, the only way to help Robin, Nicole, and everyone else was to get them to follow me. So, I took off. I was praying that I had most, if not all, of them following me and just ran. Once I entered the Forbidden Forest, though, my mind draws a blank. The next thing I remember was Professor Lupin reviving me. What is it Harry?"

Harry started. Riley almost smiled realizing that people often took for granted how perceptive she was. "It's just that part about them wanting you. That's why I tried to get to you," he seemed to be explaining himself to Sirius and Dumbledore more than her. "Robin told me that Trelawney told her to 'Watch out for the Star.' Hermione figured out that that meant you, Riley. And, that's what I was trying to warn you about. I didn't know what would happen, of course. But, I knew it was something to do with you."

Sirius finally spoke. "Warning or no, you should not have followed her. Both Professor Dumbledore and I explicitly told you to get back to the castle. You put yourself in danger by disobeying. In fact, you all acted very foolishly today," he ranted looking at the Tenshi as well. Harry turned pink and hung his head.

"I agree," Remus said picking up his friend's argument. He pointedly looked at Riley. "What in the world possessed you to think that you could take on that many Dementors by yourself? You were wandless, on foot, and headed into the Forbidden Forest."

"Don't think for one minute that I don't understand what your implying, Professor Lupin. I did not act the way I did out of some insane desire to be a hero," she could feel that her voice had grown disrespectfully cold, but didn't bother to check it. "My friends were hurting and the Dementors wanted me. It's as simple as that. I did what I had to do."

Harry gasped and the adults seemed to even be in shock, except Dumbledore who never easily showed emotion. Robin caught Riley's eye and told her, 'Watch it, Riley. We don't need to start a fight.' Riley tried to communicate that she would check her anger but would not back down to their suspicious bullying.

After a moment, Dumbledore spoke. "I'm sure that anyone here would have done the same. However, there are a few questions that we must address. First, how did the Dementors arrive at Hogwarts? Surely, they could not have apparated. Second, what happened to Riley in the Forest? Third, why does Voldemort want Riley?"

Everyone let these digest. Riley had been struggling with those very questions since she awoke. After two hours of heated discussion. They reached no decisions. Riley got the feeling that the Order suspected that this incident was somehow connected to the duel, but not even Riley could figure out how. She was hoping that they hadn't figured out about the power of the three, but couldn't understand how that was connected with this attack. Did Voldemort know about the power of the three? It seemed harmless enough.

Dumbledore finally dismissed them with the announcement that they would indeed be granted a place in the Order. Harry, Riley noticed, was surprised that this extended to him as well. Upon questioning, Dumbledore merely stated that anyone who had faced Voldemort and/or his followers on five separate occasions could not be denied, no matter his age. Dumbledore cautioned them against revealing any information about the Order to even their closest friends, but knew that Ron and Hermione would soon know everything. For that reason, he extended an offer to them as well.

Riley paid no attention to the others as she stumbled to the Gryffindor common room. She was so exhausted that she collapsed on a couch before ever making it up to her bed.

The next day Harry was wandering around the halls, taking his time to get back to Gryffindor Tower. He was thinking about Riley and the other Tenshi. Since the incident on the Quidditch field, Robin and Nicole had been quiet and hardly ever smiled. Riley, though not depressed like her friends, seemed preoccupied and was beginning to lose focus.

When he heard footsteps coming up from behind him, he darted into a classroom. It was late, and he was supposed to be in the common room by now. The door opened behind him, and he dove underneath the teacher's desk.

"Would Veristrium work?" Sirius asked.

"I don't know. It might. I've never known it to reveal people's fears before. But, I suppose if we ask them about their fears, it might work. We might as well give it a try." Remus replied.

"You know we could slip it in their Pumpkin Juice at breakfast." Sirius suggested.

"Not in public. We don't want to embarrass them, and there are some things that the other children mustn't find out," Remus sighed.

"Well, we could at least have fun with them. I mean that snide Riley could use a lesson or two in humility," Sirius growled bitterly. Harry fought the urge to speak up.

"Have fun? You are so childish sometimes, Padfoot. What would you want to ask?" Remus mused jokingly. "Who they have crushes on? For one thing, we're adults now. For another, it's completely obvious, therefore a waste of time. Nicole and Ron are head over heals for each other. Your little Harry likes Riley, but there's something about her that's so distant, shut off even. Hm... we should use it to find out why she's so cold. That could be worth it."

Sirius let out a laugh. "The Tenshi under the influence of truth serum could be interesting. We could finally find out their weakness, strengths, fears, and intentions."

"Come on, Padfoot. Let's be realistic. We need to come up with a serious plan to find out more about the girls." Remus said.

"That was a Sirius plan," Sirius joked. "You have to admit that it would be fun, though." Remus nodded and the two shared a laugh with before Sirius transformed.

Harry crawled out from the table, his eyes wide. "Veristrium? Maybe that could help them overcome their fears!" Happy with himself, Harry ran out of the room and up to Gryffindor Tower. Once there, he found Ron. "Ron, we can help them."

"Who? What? Why?" Ron mocked his friend's excitement.

"I was on my way up here, and I heard Remus and Sirius talking about using Truth Serum on the Tenshi to find out their fears. They decided not to do it, but I think it really could help them."

Ron glanced at the Riley and Nicole. They had tucked themselves into a dark corner and were not speaking. "Help them face the Dementors? Count me in. Alright, get your cloak. We'll get the potion tonight, and give it to them tomorrow after dinner."

It didn't take them long before they were down in the Potions classroom. Harry assumed that Snape would notice it was missing. He couldn't know, though, who had taken it. Harry slipped the Veristrium into his cloak and smiled a Ron. 'This will work,' he thought.

The next night in the Great Hall they set their plan in motion. They quickly noticed a glitch—Robin. How could the get the serum into her drink with her sitting at the Slytherin table. Luckily, Robin solved the problem for them. She walked up to the table to greet her friends and placed her cup beside Riley's. Harry smiled.

According to the Potions book, Veristrium took effect after a few minutes and wore off shortly there after. Harry nodded to Ron, who proceeded to "trip". With the girls distracted, Harry discretely poured some of the serum into their drinks.

"We need to talk after supper. Robin, you need to be there as well. We need to talk to you about Order stuff," Harry lied. He hoped that Nicole wouldn't notice.

The girls studied him for a minute and nodded. "Okay. Where should we meet you?"

"How about we meet in the Prefect bathroom? No one goes in there at night," Ron suggested. The girls nodded and finished eating.

Snape scowled. He had just checked his personal cupboard and found that his truth serum was missing. His face darkened as he realized who could have stolen it.

"Professor Dumbledore, Potter has stolen my supply of Veristrium." He said at dinner.

Remus looked up. He noticed Harry and Ron leave the Great Hall, followed by the Tenshi. "What makes you think Harry did it?"

"If not for the fact he's stolen from me before," Snape sneered. "I would have no idea."

Dumbledore sighed. "Remus, would you and your dog please get Harry and bring him here?"

Remus stood up and exited the Great Hall, followed by Padfoot. Once away from prying eyes, Sirius transformed. "You don't think they heard us, do you?"

Remus sighed. "What else could have happened?" In their hurry, they did not realize that Snape had followed.

When they reached the bathroom, Riley wasted no time. "What do you two want?"

Harry smiled. She never skirted an issue. "We want to help you," he replied earnestly.

"What?" Robin demanded. Harry decided to take his chances. He nodded at Ron.

"What are you scared of Nicole?" Ron asked.

"I'm scared of my foster father. I'm afraid of what he did to me and that he'll find a way to do it again."

"What did he do to you Nicole?" Ron almost didn't want to hear the answer.

Her voice wavered, but she answered. "I came home one night. I was nine years old. It was midnight, and I was coming back from being with one of my friends. My foster father, my second one, was still up, which was unusual. He was drunk. When he saw me, he slapped me. Then," Nicole paused, "he raped me. I couldn't move at all. Then, I saw myself running out of the house an hour later, clothes torn and crying." There was an uneasy silence. No one knew how to react.

"Nicole," Ron asked gently, "Is that what you saw when the Dementor grabbed you?" She nodded and began to sob. Ron reached out and wrapped his arms around her.

"No more," Riley demanded. Harry was sad to see the tears in her eyes. "What do you think you're doing?"

Harry ignored her and faced Robin. "What are you scared of Robin?"

"I'm afraid that Nicole and Riley will die and leave me alone," Robin replied. "I don't want them to leave me alone."

"Why?" He prodded.

"Because, they died before and left me alone. That's what I saw today. We were fighting, and they died. I was the only one who survived. I was alone." Robin had tears in her eyes, too.

As Harry turned to Riley, she shook her head. "Stop," she quietly begged.

"Riley, what about you? What are you scared of?"

Riley seemed to fight it, but replied after a few moments. "I'm scared of being used…of…" she stopped. Harry was afraid that the serum was too weak. He almost missed her whispered reply. "…of…killing my friends." Everyone turned to face Riley. Robin's and Nicole's eyes were as wide as saucers. Harry felt that his were as well.

"What did you see the other day?" He pressed.

Riley shook her head furiously, but the words tumbled out anyway. "Hotep. He betrayed me. I loved him. He used me. I killed them. I killed them. The power of the three. He used me. Never again. No more love. No memories. Never again. I killed them." Riley was sobbing and suddenly fainted.

Harry rushed to her side. She was breathing. The serum seemed to be wearing off. Robin and Nicole looked sullen, but as if a weight had been lifted. Harry looked at Riley. Could what she said be true? "Ennervate," he commanded. Riley eyes opened.

"I said no, Harry. Don't ask anymore questions. Our fears are personal. Robin and Nicole have been through enough. I don't want to have to go through it too," Riley looked furious. She stood quickly. "What happened? Why was I lying on the ground?"

Harry could just stare. He noticed the others doing the same.

Remus and Sirius stood outside the door listening to every word that was spoken. They had cast a spell that would amplify the voices.

"My God," Remus said. "We're too late."

"What does that mean?" Sirius asked in disbelief. Neither man could believe their ears. Riley could not remember what she had just said. It was as if the memory self-destructed. And, Nicole and Robin, well, it was no wonder they were terrified.

In the shadows, Snape turned to leave. His black robes billowed behind him. He had not made a sound.