A/N: I'm so sorry for the delay, everyone! This chapter has been ready to go since last weekend, but it's been a gong show of a week. I was being evaluated on my teaching, and instead of posting this last weekend to relax me, I decided to have a freak-out about it instead. I'm still waiting on the results, but thought I'd get this out at long last. Here's the first part of the explanation you've been waiting on. I'm posting the next chapter tomorrow to make up for the delay.

*** 8 – The Whole Story ***

As she waited for Albus to finally erase the confusion from her mind, Liz gazed at the other faces in the room. Just as she'd hoped, they were no longer focused on her, but on Albus. So now it was her turn to see them.

On the couch next to Albus sat Harry and Ginny. They were sitting in a position very similar to the one she was in with Draco. Ginny was leaning against Harry, and he was gently combing his fingers through her long red hair. They looked extremely sad, and Liz wondered if it was because of what Albus was preparing himself to reveal to her. On the far end of their couch, sat an older woman dressed in black robes. Her gray-streaked hair was pulled away from her face in a tight bun, and her stern face showed signs of tiredness around her focused eyes and thin lips.

Next to the couch was a very worn, old chair that was occupied by the tired-looking man that had told Liz her clothes had been torn when she tried to climb out of Mrs. Smythe's window. His mousy brown hair limp as it hung to his ears, and Liz could see scars on his cheeks and neck. In front of him sat a friendly yet serious looking woman, with short, spiky hair that was a vivid pink. She wore a t-shirt that said 'The Weird Sisters', and Liz wondered what it meant. The woman had her hand on her shoulder, and it was only then that Liz realized that the man sitting behind her had his hand on the same shoulder, and they were gently caressing each others' thumb.

Blaise stood off to the side of them, his arms crossed in front of his chest. He had an impassive look on his face, and Liz wondered again what had happened to him after they'd separated. A little in front of Blaise sat Poppy in another chair, her hands folded in her lap. She sat up straight as a board with a solemn expression, and looked completely on edge. Was she scared of what she was about to hear? Did she already know, or was she in the dark like Liz?

On the floor between Poppy's chair and the small couch where Liz and Draco had sat, there was another redheaded man. He looked to be only a few years older than she, but his face bore signs of much suffering. He looked extremely sad, as if he'd recently lost his best friend. She had a sneaking suspicion that he was related to Molly, Ginny and Ron, but said nothing.

Speaking of Molly, she was on a couch on Liz's other side, and was holding the hand of the man next to her tightly. Both of them wore knowing looks on their faces, but still looked worried at what was to be shared. The man on the couch had red hair as well, and Liz concluded that this must be Molly's husband, and father to Ron, Ginny and the other boy. He was sitting like Poppy, stiff and unwavering.

Ron stood behind them, next to a tall man with burly arms and a gold hoop dangling from his ear. He looked menacing, with his worried expression and crossed arms, and it seemed that Ron was trying to look the same. The two men gazed around the room, and Ron's gaze eventually came to land on Liz herself. She shot him a small, tentative smile, but it widened when he sent her one back.

On the last couch between Molly and Albus, sat a pair of twenty-somethings who were both solemn faced. The boy looked to be fairly tall and a bit gangly, with his brown hair hanging close to his ears. The girl next to him had long blonde hair, and a bit of a faraway expression on her face. They sat close together, but looked awkward. Liz wondered if maybe they were in the beginnings of a relationship, but still at the unsure stage.

"The best place for me to begin would probably be the beginning, I suppose." Albus' peculiar statement brought her from her thoughts, and she refocused on him alone. "Considering our guest has no idea why she is here, or why she was held captive in the first place, I think it would do all of us harm if I did not first explain that." This caught Liz's full attention.

"What do you know of magic?" he asked her.

Liz was taken aback. Everyone's attention was on her again, and she didn't like it one bit. "Magic?" she asked. "Like witches, and spells and things like that?" Albus nodded and smiled encouragingly. Liz shrugged her shoulders before continuing. "Not much, to be honest. I studied them in school for a project once, but that's all. There have been a number of movies made about them, but I'm not really into that sort of thing."

"Not movie magic, my dear. I'm asking about real magic."

"There's no such thing as magic."

Her statement caused the entire room to react. Ginny and the pink-haired woman looked ready to cry; The man standing next to Ron uncrossed his arms and glared at her; the woman next to Ginny and Harry on the couch sprung to her feet and began pacing behind the couch.

Liz looked up at Draco, a panicked look on her face. He gazed at her calmly, took his arm from the back of the couch, and rubbed her back soothingly. Despite his comforting movements, Liz could see a definite sadness in his eyes at her words. She caught sympathetic looks from Harry, Ron and Blaise as she brought her gaze back to Albus. He was solemn-faced, but she could see a slight twinkle in his bright eyes.

"My dear, I don't mean to contradict you, but there is such a thing. And it's such a wondrous thing."

Liz looked at him blankly, and watched with wide eyes as he drew a long piece of wood from his robes. He waved it gently, and pointed it at the table covered in food as he spoke.

"Wingardium Leviosa."

Liz's eyes widened even more as the table slowly lifted itself off the ground. She gasped audibly and brought her hand to her mouth in disbelief. She was barely aware of Draco's hand still caressing her back, but it kept her in her seat. As the table settled itself back on the ground, her eyes whipped back to Albus.

"How did you do that?" she demanded.

His eyes twinkled as he replied with one simple word. "Magic."

Liz opened her mouth to argue with him, but he was too quick for her. "My dear, I'm sad to say that you have been gravely misinformed. Magic has been around for thousands of years, and along with it, witches and wizards.

"Many years ago, a wizard named Tom Riddle came to my school for the first time."

"School?" Liz interrupted. She knew that he had asked her not to interrupt, but she couldn't help herself.

"Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. One of the finest magical institutions in the world," Albus replied softly, before continuing with his tale. "A very powerful young man, Tom Riddle later came to be known by the wizarding world as Lord Voldemort. He was the most feared man in the magical world.

"Years after Voldemort came to power, a prophecy was made. It was in that prophecy that it was revealed that a boy born at the end of July, to parents who had thwarted his efforts three times, would be the one to stop him eventually. It was said that he would be marked by the Dark Lord as his equal, and that neither could live until the other perished. Simply speaking, one of them would have to kill the other in order to continue in life.

"Voldemort heard an incomplete version of this prophecy, and set out to kill the boy he felt posed the most threat to him. He set out to kill Harry Potter." Liz's eyes whirled from Albus to settle on the sad green eyes of the only Harry she knew. He cast her a soft glance, and nodded swiftly. "Yes my dear, that is Harry Potter who sits before you. Obviously Voldemort's plan to kill him failed that night. He marked him, but it wasn't until many years later that the true end of the prophecy came. Harry and Voldemort were in a treacherous battle, but in the end it was Harry who emerged alive and victorious.

"But there were many who were damaged by this long-lasting war, both wizards and muggles alike."

"Muggles?" Liz asked, looking around the room.

"Non-magic folk," Draco whispered to her, his arm still around her shoulders. She sat up a little straighter at his explanation, pulling herself away from him, but allowing his hand to take hers once again.

"Many of the muggles realized what had truly gone on, and were terrified of it. It was then that a group of them decided to – what is the phrase, again – take matters into their own hands. They combined forces with the few dark wizards that were left. These people – scientists, I believe they're called – convinced the dark wizards that they were trying to rid the world of the poorer forms of magic. They began with the squibs."

Liz once again looked to Draco. "People of magical heritage who have no power."

"Exactly. They used them to see if they could find the source of a wizard's magic. They then moved on to the muggleborns. But before the dark wizards knew what had happened, the scientists turned on them. They had gotten their use out of them, and decided to turn the experiment on them. No one knows what happened to them, but there have been confirmed sightings of them in the muggle world, looking completely dazed and confused. Some have been brought to the Ministry of Magic for questioning, but nothing has come of it. It's like they don't remember who they are, and that they can do magic.

"We believe that this is the reason that they held you and everyone else over time. This has been happening for nearly a decade now. We believe that they are trying to eliminate magic from the world, in order to avoid another war like the one we had.

"It is for this reason that several witches and wizards were sent into hiding. These people are too important to the wizarding world to be caught. Some of them, unfortunately, were taken against their will, and without anyone else knowing."

"Isn't that similar to what these people are doing?" Liz asked, feeling anger rise in her. She couldn't figure out why she was so angry, but she did feel Draco's hand gripping hers tighter than ever. She looked over at him, and saw his jaw set and rigid. His eyes flared with anger, and she suddenly knew that it wasn't her own rage she was feeling, but his.

"It is, in a way. Many of the people that the Ministry approached went along with the idea quietly. But there were some that wanted to stay, rightfully knowing that they could defend themselves. The problem was that the new Minister of Magic felt that he knew better. So he ordered everyone of magical importance to be swept up, and have their memories modified."

"What?" Liz asked, dumbfounded.

"They removed their memories up to a certain point, and then implanted new memories that would keep them safe. Many of these witches and wizards have no idea what happened to them. Most of them don't even remember the fact that they have magical powers."

"How could they do that though? If these people were as powerful as you say they were, wouldn't they have fought back?" Liz was indignant at the idea.

"Of course they would have. But the Ministry officials that took them did so at a moment of weakness. Many people were taken while they slept, and their memories were erased before they even knew what was happening.

"The Ministry assured everyone that these people were safe, and that they would always have someone watching out for them, even in their new environments. But, as was to be expected, the families of these wizards and witches were furious. They rebelled against the Ministry, and the Minister himself was forced to resign. Since then, the wizarding world has elected a new Minister. This man has been trying for the last five years to locate all those witches and wizards who were forcibly taken by the Ministry."

"How has he been able to look for them?" Liz asked, feeling hope coming back to her soul.

"The former Minister kept a list of the names of the wizards and witches that were taken into the Ministry's protective custody. He has since sent the Aurors around the globe to find them."

"Aurors?" Another question directed at Draco, who seemed to have been able to rein in his anger.

"Dark wizard catchers," was his quick reply.

Albus spoke once more. "The new Minister has also been using the connections and skills of the Order of the Phoenix to aid in the search." Liz looked confused again, and Albus remembered her earlier reaction to the name. "The Order of the Phoenix was a society that I myself set up during Voldemort's first rise to power. All members are sworn to secrecy, more for safety reasons than any others, but all are truly remarkable wizards and witches who have shown great strength in the face of evil."

"So if this is the headquarters for the Order, does that mean that you're all a part of it?" Liz had been wondering this during his explanation.

"Quite right, my dear." Albus smiled encouragingly, and Liz felt a small swell of pride at her intellect. "In fact, the Minister himself is a member, and in this room right now. But first, I'd like to introduce you to all of our members, as they all have a reason to be here with us tonight. For your official introduction to myself, I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, among other things." He seemed to take no pride in this mere formality, and decided to move on.

Liz's eyes swept the room as Albus pointed to each member in turn. "You already know Mr. Harry Potter, and this is his wife Ginny. Ginny was the youngest person ever to be inducted into the Order, when she was a mere sixteen years of age." As he indicated to the woman next to them on the couch, she gave a curt nod, but Liz could see great affection in her eyes. "This is Minerva McGonagall, professor of Transfiguration, Head of Gryffindor House, and Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"What's Transfiguration?" Liz inquired. She caught the sad look that Professor McGonagall gave Albus, but her attention was drawn to Draco yet again.

"It's a type of magic that wizards do. You take an object, and transform it into another. Like, turning an animal into a goblet."

Liz nodded in understanding, and Albus continued. "Next we have Remus Lupin, our resident werewolf, former professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts, and original member of the Order of the Phoenix. On the floor in front of him is his lovely wife Nymphadora –"

"DON'T call me Nymphadora!" she hissed, her hair turning from the vivid pink to an angry red.

"– Who prefers to go by her former last name of Tonks." Albus offered a smile to the woman on the floor, and her hair calmed itself back to its original shade of pink. "Tonks works for the Ministry of Magic as an Auror. She has been searching for the missing witches and wizards since before the new Minister came into power." He moved his gaze to the next person in the room. "I believe you already know Blaise Zabini. Blaise has been a spy for the Order of the Phoenix since before graduating from Hogwarts. He is our primary contact on this whole scientist project, due to his father's former links to the Dark Side." Blaise's eyes darkened at the mention of his father, but it passed fairly quickly. Liz sent him a smile. No matter who his father was, she still owed him her life.

"You already know Poppy Pomfrey, who is the Head Healer at Hogwarts. In Muggle terms, she is the on-site doctor. On the floor next to her is George Weasley, another member of the Order, and former student at Hogwarts." George gave Liz a mischievous smile and a wink, and Liz had a feeling that he'd be the life of the party here at Headquarters.

"On the couch with you is Mr. Draco Malfoy, who was the first son of a Death Eater to join our ranks, shortly after he turned seventeen," Albus indicated to the serious man currently clutching Liz's hand.

"Death Eater?" Liz inquired.

Draco graced her with a small smile. "Dark Wizards who sided with Voldemort when he was alive and in power."

"Next we have Molly and Arthur Weasley, parents to several members of the Order, not all of which could be with us tonight as they are off on business. And behind them is their youngest son Ron, who I believe you have already met." All three of the redheads that Albus had introduced smiled warmly at Liz. "And on the couch next to them are two other new members to the Order, and former students at Hogwarts, Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood." The two young people on the couch nodded and smiled at her. "Neville's parents were part of the original Order, and both very talented Aurors. Both he and Luna have helped the Order on several occasions before officially joining.

Albus then rose from his seat, and walked over to the large man with the gold hoop earring. "And this is Kingsley Shacklebolt, the current Minister of Magic."

The man nodded to her, and Liz smiled back in greeting. Something still wasn't adding up in her head though, despite Albus' clear explanations. "There's one thing I don't understand though. What does all this have to do with me? Why did they keep me at that facility, and why was I brought here?"

Everyone in the room shared an uncomfortable look, and no one seemed overly keen to answer her query. It was Draco who took point, turning in his seat to fully face her.

"There's no easy way to tell you this, so I'm just going to say it," he said, watching sadly as fear entered her eyes. He took her hand and squeezed it as he gathered the strength to say what needed to be said. "You were kept there and brought here because you're not just an ordinary woman. You're one of the witches that was taken into the Ministry's protective custody."

Liz stared at him, her mouth open in shock. After a moment, she came to her senses and shook her head vehemently. "No, you must be mistaken. I've never had any special powers. I'm lucky if I can get my brain to function in the morning. I'm a simple girl who wants to be a teacher, and has studied music for years to do so! I can't be a witch! You've got the wrong girl!" Liz's voice had grown steadily more high-pitched as she argued with what he said. She was suddenly very frightened being in a room with all these people. What were they going to do to her?

Draco squeezed her hand again, and it took everything in her not to yank it from his grasp. Terrified, she gazed into his silver eyes, which were begging her to see the truth of what he was saying.

"You're not who you think you are. The Ministry planted 24 years worth of memories into you, and did the same to the people around you."

"If I'm not who I think I am, then who am I?" she demanded.

It was Harry who answered her. "Your name is Hermione Granger, and you're my best friend."