Previously…
iPierre bowed to the visitors. "I am pleased with your gifts; you are both welcome here and will be treated with utmost care and kindness." The two teachers returned the bow. "I wish you a pleasant visit; I will speak with you at length tomorrow evening." His eyes suddenly flared red. "However, should you or your companion make it necessary for me to see your faces before that designated time, you will quickly learn to regret it um' amie/u." With that simple, yet highly effective warning, he swept from the room.
Brethany breathed out a quiet sigh of relief. "Well, that went well. He was surprisingly mellow tonight." She cast a questioning glance to the Enforcer. "Braidhen, was it just me, or was Pierre acting…giddy?" Severus' eyebrows went up in disbelief, but the blond beside him only chuckled.
"His mate recently returned to him," the Celtic vampire explained simply. Brethany laughed in understanding.
"Ah…so he's getting some." She spoke blithely. They both ignored Snape's growing frustration with ease. "I really should have guessed." The two exchanged amused smiles./i
And Now…
"You are ready?" the Headmaster asked the DADA teacher. The two were in the kitchen at Grimmauld Place, awaiting an Order meeting.
Brethany breathed in deeply, closing her eyes for a moment in order to calm her thoughts. "Yes," she responded quietly, opening her eyes to look at Dumbledore. The old man nodded, his eyes twinkling.
"Then I will go inform the rest of the Order. When we are ready for you, Severus will fetch you." And with that, Brethany was left alone in the room to stare blankly at the wall.
"New Order member, eh?" a young man poked his head into the kitchen. Brethany grinned at the sight of familiar red hair. Another Weasley, obviously.
"I'm George," the young man introduced himself, reaching for a pitcher of pumpkin juice.
"And I'm Fred," another boy popped in, immediately rummaging through the ice box. "I'm the smart one; he's the pretty one," he gestured. His brother nodded in agreement.
Brethany surveyed the identical young men with a grin. "It's good you each find your place so easily. Tell me, how often do you switch places with each other?" She watched with interest as the twins exchanged grins and moved to stand next to each other.
"You must be that teacher Ginny keeps talking about," one of them, possibly Fred, waved a cup of juice at her. "Lewis, wasn't it?"
Said teacher grinned. "Only if whatever she had to say was good." The two young men grinned widely. "And you must be the Weasley twins I've heard so much about. You two are, what, eighteen? And already running your own shop, aren't you? Harry's shown me some of your stuff. Brilliant stuff, too."
"A teacher likes our prank stuff?" They were delighted. "Gred, my man," the twin on the left slung his arm over his brother's shoulder. "Yes, Forge?" the other answered, mirroring the gesture. "We have ourselves here a real, genuine, trouble-maker," one informed the other. "Well, we should definitely assist the lady, don't you think, Forge?" They grinned at each other. "Definitely, Gred." They shook hands in agreement, then turned to the laughing young woman.
"You two are almost as bad as my brothers, the twins in my family," she informed them, then sobered. "Are you two in the Order?"
They exchanged glances, then shook their heads. "We're being inducted tonight, along with you, I would guess." Brethany grinned, but was interrupted before she could reply.
"Ms. Lewis, Messrs. Weasley," Snape stood glowering in the doorway, his dark eyes stern. "The Order is ready for you, if you are quite finishing with your chat?" Brethany nodded, tossed a quick smile to the two boys, then followed the Potions Master through the door, the Weasley twins striding behind.
They were led into a large drawing room that had been fashioned into a sort of war room, with maps of Great Britain hung about on the walls and pictures of known Death Eaters laying about along with written reports, some dark artifacts, as well as a Sneakoscope and a Foe Glass laid rather conspicuously on the large center table. The DADA teacher gave the items a wry grin of amusement.
"Think those are funny, do you?" a gruff voice growled from behind them. Brethany turned to see the famed figure of Alastor Moody, Wizarding Britain's best known Auror, eyeballing her intently. "Those things have helped catch many a dark witch or wizard, you know." He glared at her suspiciously, as though expecting her approach to set the items off.
"Really?" Brethany sneered slightly. "I assume you mean they detect a person who's 'gone dark', rather than a person who uses Dark Magic?" Moody stared at her oddly, his magical eye whirring to examine her up and down.
"I s 'pose so," the old retired Auror admitted gruffly. "Why? You do Dark Magic?" Several people around them scoffed at the idea, but Brethany only grinned crookedly.
"Quite often, actually," she admitted blithely. "It's good for a DADA teacher to have a well rounded education in the Dark Arts. Makes it easier to teach Defense if I can give them something real to defend iagainst/i, wouldn't you agree?"
"Oh, certainly, she can't mean that," a red-haired woman, surely the Weasley matriarch, spoke up, the nervous laughter in her voice dying away as Brethany turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Oh, I am a practitioner of the Dark Arts," the DADA teacher informed the other woman firmly. "I have been since I was twelve."
"Twelve?!"
"Certainly," Brethany nodded. "My father made sure that all his children knew how to use Dark Magic as well as Light under most imaginable circumstances. He's an Auror, you see, and there've been many a criminal has attacked my family because of his status, so we had to know how to protect ourselves." She turned back to the grizzled old Auror. "So, the Foe Glass is unlikely to suddenly show me on the surface, and the Sneakoscope, well, that thing is about as reliable as my own two eyes in discovering hidden plotters." She grinned. "For instance, I could have the twins here approach the Sneakoscope and it would likely go right off. They're plotting, the two of them." All gazes turned to the two young men, whose eyes went wide at the sudden attention. They did indeed suddenly look remarkable self-conscious.
"Now, I wouldn't say that they're spies or intruders," Brethany laughed. "But they're definitely suspicious, especially with all those little things they're hiding in their pockets." The twins clutched at their pockets in sudden guilt; their accuser laughed merrily. "Come on, you two, I'm just kidding." She dropped the grin and stared at them. "But you leave those joke items in the pockets until after the meeting is over or you'll be in big trouble with me." Amusement rippled through the rest of the group as the twins nodded vigorously in acquiescence.
"Now that you have successfully made your presence known," Dumbledore spoke up, his eyes twinkling merrily, "Perhaps we could officially introduce you?" Brethany grinned, and inclined her head. "If we could all be seated?" There was a small din as everyone was seated.
"As I am certain we are all aware, this is Brethany Lewis, the current DADA teacher at Hogwarts." Dozens of eyes focused on the young woman in blatant curiosity.
"You're the one who's friends with that French vampire master?" an older man spoke up eagerly. "Caused quite the stir in the Ministry when we caught wind of that."
Brethany had to grin at the thought. The trip to the vampire colony had proven imost/i beneficial. Pierre had stated quite firmly that he and his would remain solidly neutral so long as Voldemort left them well alone. Should they be attacked, however, thousands of years of collective experience would be brought to bear against the dark lord.
"She, along with Messrs. Weasley will be inducted into the Order tonight if they pass the test." Brethany's head turned sharply toward the Headmaster. There had been no mention of a test!
"Bugger," the twins muttered behind her.
"Severus, you have the Veritaserum?" Dumbledore questioned the Potions Master. The dark man nodded and brought forth a small vial. "I do believe the twins should go first." Said twins exchanged wry looks, but sat down in the offered chairs. "Gentlemen, I'm sure you know how this goes?" the Headmaster smiled, eyes twinkling.
Brethany watched with interest as the Truth Serum was administered to both boys.
"What are your names?" the questioning began.
"Frederick Weasley."
"George Weasley."
And so the questioning continued for a few minutes, verifying their identities, loyalties, and so forth. The questioning was not overly invasive, although Molly Weasley did manage to get the whereabouts of several household items from them, much to the onlookers' amusement. Finally, the twins were administered the antidote, and it was Brethany's turn to feel herself drift away under the effects of the Truth potion.
"What is your name?"
"Brethany Jessica Lewis."
"What is your occupation?"
"I am a self-employed wandcrafter, and am employed as the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts."
"A wandcrafter, eh?" Moody grinned. "That could be useful." He focused a whirling eye on the young woman. "Have you ever practiced the Dark Arts?"
"Yes," Brethany answered easily, inwardly rolling her eyes.
"Come, come, Alastor, she already told us that," Albus chided gently. The ancient auror grumbled slightly, but continued.
"Have you ever used the Dark Arts to kill?"
Brethany mentally winced. "Yes." There was a huge stir at that.
"What and who did you kill using the Dark Arts?"
"I killed four rabbits, two turtles, six snakes, and three mice. I killed Travis Merley, Adam Jenkins, and Judith MacFarley." Brethany closed her eyes as she spoke, unwilling to watch their expressions as the room descended into chaos.
"Silence!" Dumbledore's command brought things back to order. "The questioning will continue." Silence fell. "Alastor, continue."
"Why did you kill them?"
"I killed the animals while learning certain Dark spells; they were practice targets. I killed Travis Merley in self-defense when he attacked my family. I killed Adam Jenkins because I lost control of my magic during my magical inheritance." The young woman visibly flinched, even under the influence of the Vertitaserum. Snape and Dumbledore exchanged glances, obviously recognizing the story. "I killed Judith MacFarley because she requested it; she was dying of a magical disease and would have suffered excruciating torture before finally succumbing." Brethany's body began to tremble slightly.
"Have you ever used the Dark Arts to further the Dark Lord's cause?" Moody hastened the questioning on.
"No, not intentionally." The auror frowned slightly at the ambiguous answer, but continued.
"Have you ever used Light Magics to further the Dark Lord's cause?"
She repeated the previous answer.
"Are you in any way loyal to the Dark Lord's cause?"
"I agree with some minor points that purebloods add to Voldemort's rhetoric."
"What points do you agree with?"
"I agree that muggles should not be permitted knowledge of the existence of the Wizarding World until they are ready for it. I agree that Muggleborn wizards and witches should not be allowed to attend magic school alongside of pure- and half-bloods without first receiving some form of integration into the Wizarding World. I agree that the Dark Arts should not be the pariah that it is. I agree that the current Wizarding government in Britain is not as it should be and requires change." There were several chuckles at the last point; Fudge and his politics were not well liked by the Order.
"Are you coming to join this Order of the Phoenix with any subversive or fraudulent intent?"
"No."
Moody looked over at the Headmaster. "I'm satisfied. Give 'er the antidote." Severus instantly moved to administer the potion.
Brethany kept her eyes closed for a long moment, closing all her emotions inside shields, then looked up at Dumbledore. "I really wish you would have warned me about this, Albus. I might have prepared," she spoke mildly, belying the stony look in her eyes.
"I am afraid that is rather the point, my dear," Dumbledore offered, his gaze only slightly apologetic. "You understand our need to ensure that no one can infiltrate the Order, I'm sure." The twinkle in his eyes froze to a sharp crystal.
"Yes, of course," she murmured, reigning in all her outrage. Feeling slightly foolish for her indignation, Brethany pulled her chair up to the table.
"Now that we have taken care of that business," Dumbledore began, "I would like to officially welcome Fred and George Weasley and Brethany Lewis to the Order of the Phoenix." There was a small round of applause. "As Brethany is not aware of much of the background of our group, I would like for everyone to introduce him or herself and tell his part in the Order." He smiled. "I suppose I shall start: I am Albus Dumbledore, head of this Order and liaison to the Wizarding government of Britain and Europe."
"Pshaw, as though that's all you contribute," a voice piped up from the opposite side of the table. Amusement rippled around the room. He gestured to Mad-Eye.
"Alastor Moody," the old man grumbled. "Auror, pulled out of retirement; general reconnaissance, security, and strategy." He grinned fiercely. "And the best damn dueler we've got in here, besides Albus, Filius, and Snape."
The introductions continued around the table, and Brethany carefully catalogued each face, name, and description in her mind to be examined later. It was interesting hearing the roles each played in the group, especially…
"Severus Snape: Potions Master, strategist, Legilimens, and spy." Eyes all around the room watched for Brethany's reaction.
"Spy?" the young woman asked quietly, eyes hooded. Severus gave a short nod. "So, you are a Death Eater." It was not a question. Another short nod. "Hm." Brethany seemed to consider it for a moment, then nodded. "Thank you, Severus. I'm certain that's an exceedingly difficult role to play, not to mention dangerous. I am grateful you would take such a position." The two considered each other carefully, faces blank. The entire room was silent, conscious of the undercurrents between the two colleagues.
"I suppose it's my turn," Brethany finally spoke brightly. "Brethany Lewis, wandmaker, Legilimens, and well versed in both the Dark Arts and defense thereof; liaison to the American Aurors and the British vampires," there was a stir at this, "And," she paused, "To the American Unspeakables." Everyone froze in their seats, staring at her in shock. Unable to help herself, Brethany grinned and said, "Pleasure to meet you all." Chaos instantly broke out.
Word Count: 2455