Achk! How can I be so cruel?! I know, it's terrible. I can't help it. I'd like to apologize to Professor McGonagall for killing her off… and to Rufus Scrimgeour and Fleur and Sturgis and Mad-Eye and… have I murdered anyone else? Pettigrew, but I'm not exactly sorry for that one…. Also, I've realized that I've switched back and forth between calling the man in question "Remus" and calling him "Lupin." In my head, I call him Remus, but Harry calls him Lupin, so it gets mixed up. I'm sticking with Lupin now, mostly to keep it in character. I've also noticed that sometimes the bold/italics/underlined portions don't always carry over when you upload a document. So if something should have italics and doesn't, it's not my fault. Thus why half of my A/Ns haven't been underlined… Anywho, enjoy. The terror is escalating…

Chapter 41

The Great Schism

"We have to decide on another leader. Otherwise we're all going to fall apart. That's why asked you here today, so that we could take a vote."

They were back in the meeting room of the Order. Lupin's voice was strained, as though he were trying hard to keep the emotion out of it. Others were less reserved; Mrs. Weasley, who sat two seats to Harry's left, was sobbing openly, and her husband, though patting her comfortingly on the back, had red eyes. Some wept, some just gazed straight ahead with blank stares. The Order would never be the same.

"I don't think we should have a leader," said another voice. It was Charlie, playing the antagonist once more. "It'd be better if we all had equal say in everything."

"We do have an equal say in everything," Lupin said patiently. "A leader just organizes it so that the Order doesn't descend into chaos."

"How do you know that a leader won't become corrupted?" he demanded. "Someone who has this many people at his command… power corrupts, Remus. You know that."

"Not necessarily," Lupin said, leaning forward. "Both Dumbledore and Minerva managed to retain control of the Order without turning tyrannical."

"And both of them ended up dead," Charlie snarled. "We can't afford another blow like that."

"In joining the Order, you all knew—"

"Does anyone else agree with me?" Charlie interrupted angrily, standing abruptly. "I say that first we take a vote on whether or not we should have a leader. If you're with me, then raise your hand."

Twenty or so hands shot into the air. Charlie looked triumphantly around the room. "See? I'm not the only one."

"Charlie, sit down," Lupin said, his voice deceptively calm. "You're out of your mind."

Charlie let out a laugh. "Look!" he shouted. "Look at him, he's trying to control me even now! He's brainwashed the lot of you into thinking that he's more powerful than anyone, that he should lead the Order!"

"Charlie!" Mr. Weasley said sharply, "What in Merlin's name has gotten into you? Sit down."

"Don't you try to order me around," Charlie snarled. "I'm not a kid anymore, Dad, I can make my own decisions."

"You're free to make your own decisions, but you're not free to drag others down with you."

Charlie balked. "Me? I'm not forcing anyone to do anything. You, on the other hand—" he pointed at his father and at Lupin—"are trying to make me be quiet so I don't ruin your tyrannical regime."

"Please, Charlie, we're not trying to take away your opinion, we're just trying to get you to calm down, for heaven's sake. You're overreacting."

"I have every right to overreact," he hissed. "Four of our number have died in the last nine months—"

"And more will die if we continue to fight like this," Lupin interrupted. "Please, Charlie, can we talk about this rationally?"

"—and it's time we stopped sitting by and letting You-Know-Who kill us off," he continued, ignoring Lupin. "If we elect a leader, we single one of us out as better than the rest. Not only does that make that person a target for You-Know-Who, but it also generates jealousy and resentment among us, a division that, in light of what has happened, would destroy the Order."

"You're destroying the Order." This time it was Sirius, who stood and faced Charlie. "You're the one causing division and fighting."

"Shut up," Charlie snapped. "You don't know anything about this. You've been dead for the last year and a half.

Sirius' hand jerked, but Lupin held him back. "Calm down," he whispered, pulling him back to his chair.

"I'm only presenting another point of view," Charlie continued. "A point of view, it seems, that many of us agree with."

"You're being hotheaded." Bill stood up and crossed to his brother. "What in Merlin's name has gotten into you?" he whispered, putting his hands on Charlie's shoulders. "You've changed."

Charlie jerked away. "I call for a vote," he said quietly. "Raise your hand if you're with me."

Harry's eyes flew away from the two brothers in the middle and gazed around the room. A little less than half of the witches and wizards present raised their hands. Charlie looked around as well and started towards the door. "If you're not with me," he whispered, glaring at Bill, "then you're against me."

He stalked out, and most of the people who had raised their hands followed.

"Wait!" Lupin shouted hoarsely. "If you leave, you're creating a greater schism among us than the election of a leader could ever have created. If we split, Voldemort will destroy us. He'll crush us!"

But no one turned back.

When the door was shut, Lupin sank into a chair and put his head in his hands. Only half of their number was left. The rest sat in stunned silence, looking from one to the other in apprehension and amazement.

"Well," Lupin said quietly after a moment, "we have a decision facing us. Do we do as Charlie wanted and not elect a leader?"

"No," said Tonks vehemently. She stood, crossed to him, and took his hand. "Look what happened as soon as McGonagall died and left us without someone guiding us. We can't afford for this to happen again."

"We can't afford it happening the first time," Sirius said grimly. "We have no hope. Not when there are only thirty of us."

"Let's vote, then," Mr. Weasley interjected. "We have to start somewhere. Nominations, anyone?"

"Remus," said about seven people in unison, Harry included.

"Tonks," said Sirius. The nominee in question shot him an angry glance that said very clearly, Absolutely not.

"Arthur," quipped Elphias Doge.

There was a moment of silence, then Mr. Weasley said, "Anyone else?" When no one spoke, he let out a sigh. "Very well then, all who want me, raise your hands."

Six hands went up.

"Tonks?"

Sirius raised his hand, grinning slightly, and more than one person—including Tonks—snorted.

"Remus?"

The remaining twenty-two hands shot into the air. A landslide majority.

"Very well, then," Mr.Weasley said, smiling, "Remus, you're on."

Lupin looked slightly dazed, but he recovered himself quickly. He stood up, looked around the room, and started to cry. "This is a crushing blow," he whispered. "Minerva's dead. Charlie's led half of the Order away to who knows where. Voldemort's attacked Hogwarts, and now it will probably close. There's hardly any hope for our cause.

He gazed around the room. "But we can do it. If we stay united, if we don't let this happen again, if we work to spread the truth, we can do it." A sad smile flickered across his lips. "And if not, at least we'll go down fighting to the death.

"For now, all we can do is wait. We can't attack Voldemort until we know where he is." He looked straight at Harry. "But when that happens, we will come out into the open. Until then, we need to recruit more to build up what we've lost. We have to get the Ministry on our side. I believe we need to somehow incriminate the Minister of Magic."

"We had this argument last time," Elphias Doge said wearily, "and we voted against doing so."

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," Lupin said shortly. "If there are any objections, voice them now."

No one spoke. "Then someone's going to have to accuse him of being one of Voldemort's minions," Lupin said. "I can't do it; no one'll listen to me."

"I will," said Harry, raising his hand. "He already hates me as it is, and I can't really make him angrier at me. I'll send in a letter to the Ministry."

"Are you sure, Harry?" Lupin asked concernedly.

"Yes."

Harry was sure. The attack the previous night had at first pummeled him with an overpowering sense of grief, but that had changed with the rising sun. Now his veins pumped with a fiery anger, a rage and fury that he could not find a way to sate. Accusing the Minister of Magic of being a Death Eater provided a small outlet for his wrath.

"Alright then," Lupin said gravely, "we're done here."