A/N: Thanks to ILuvOdie, NekoPeeparific, WednesdayViola and WolfyPup for all of your words of encouragement and your patience. (And now giving me people to write for.)

Here's where the main plot of the story comes into focus and some romantic development.
I'm going to update, even if you don't review.

But it would still make me happy.

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Audrey, now fully energized from her hunt the previous night, pushed her way through the door of Grimmauld Place and into the now familiar gaunt hallway, the overwhelming smell of mold and mothballs a surprising relief to her. Clutching tightly to her shoulder was Remus, his face pallid and drawn. The overnight stay in the woods had nearly murdered him and it was almost impossible for him to walk on his own without falling over onto his face.

She guided him gently through the hall and into the adjoining entryway, leaning herself on the wall so as not to fall herself.

"Alright," she huffed, taking baby steps over to the staircase, "nearly there now. It will be hot tea and feather beds here on in for you, mister."

He merely groaned in response, his nails unintentionally digging into her shoulder.

"Oh, goodness!"

Audrey glanced up to see a distraught-looking Molly bustling over to where they were awkwardly huddled, her arms wide open, almost as if she were preparing to scoop Remus up in her arms and tote him up the stairs into bed.

"ARTHUR!" she bellowed again, reaching Remus and cupping his sweat-coated face in her hands. "Oh for Merlin's sake, we must get you into bed this very instant!"

Audrey could hear a small gurgling coming from Remus' throat, as if making to respond, but was soon extinguished by Molly once again.

"SIRIUS! ARTHUR! Get in here right now! Don't you make me call again!"

At this, both Sirius and Arthur, as well as the rest of the household hurried into the entryway to see what the commotion was all about.

Sirius, understanding instantly the problem, pulled his friend from Audrey's person and grabbed tightly onto his arm. Arthur, following suit, grabbed the opposite arm and the two managed to wrangle him up the stairs and into the nearest bedroom.

"Honestly, Audrey," said George, beaming down at her, "You didn't have to rough him up that bad."

"Next time you'd like to go out into the woods, just let us know, love." Fred finished, also smiling brightly.

"Oh stop it you two!" Molly chirped wildly, grasping onto Audrey's torso and pulling her involuntarily into the kitchen. "Now let's get you something to drink dear, you are chilled to the bone."

Audrey sat at the kitchen, sipping warm gulps of butterbeer and every once in a while, glancing up eagerly at the clock above the refrigerator.

It was mumbled to her, in between bites of sandwich, by Arthur that before the beginning of school term, Severus Snape was to make a quick visit to the Order and discuss plans of the utmost importance.

Judging by the awful things being spewed about him by the children, he wasn't the sweetest cup of tea. Still, she was hopeful.

Also scattered around the table were a few members of the Order, including the Weasleys, Sirius, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Moody, Elphias Doge and a rather sleepy Emmeline Vance.

Remus, although coherent was still secluded to his room, only being seen by Sirius, who visited every hour with a cup of peppermint tea and a few bits of nut brittle.

"…would you be willing to, Audrey?" The voice of Molly buzzed in her ear, knocking her out of her daydream.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't catch that, Molly." Audrey answered apologetically.

"I was asking if you wouldn't mind helping me tomorrow around the house with a few chores. Just rummaging the doxies out of the curtains and all of that."

Audrey looked over at Arthur, who, not being able to help her out, merely shrugged his shoulders.
Elphias gave a little chuckle and spooned a bit of pudding into his mouth and into his beard.

"For goodness sake, Molly, she's a guest, not a chambermaid."

"I had said no such thing! I merely asked the young lady if…"

Audrey cut her off before she was able to fly entirely off the handle.

"I couldn't think of anything better, Molly. I'd love to help out."

Just as Elphias opened his mouth to retort, a sharp knock resounded from the back door, making everyone gasp aloud.

"That'll be Severus." said Arthur, scooting his chair out from under the table.

As the back door was opened, the dim light of the moon outside was stifled by a rather large, hunched figure, his face obscured with wispy black hair.

The atmosphere in the room changed as soon as the shadow entered the room, making it somewhat colder, making everyone twist their feet around the legs of their chair so as not to be swept away.

As the light slowly hit his face, Audrey could make out first and foremost a rather large hooked nose smack-dab in the middle of his face. His coal black eyes hit her instantly though, as if searching for no one else in the room but her.

"Welcome Severus." Arthur smiled, politely grabbing his hand in his own. "Sit down, will you?"

He didn't walk but seemed to float over to the table, the scowl on his lips clouding her mind. There was something hidden about this man, she could sniff it out.

He had an odour about him, not necessarily bad, but different, something definitely new.

"Anything to drink for you?" Arthur mumbled, showing him to the vacant chair opposite Audrey.

"No, thank you."
It was the first time she had ever heard him speak. It had a haunting tune about it, droll and monotone, but also almost musical.

Arthur set himself back down and clasped his hands together on the table, taking a deep breath.

"Alright," he began, "Everyone, you know Severus."

They all nodded in silent agreement. 'Maybe the children were right,' she thought, 'maybe he is as awful as they say.'

"Audrey, this is Severus Snape. He is working undercover for the Order, in the service of Lord Voldemort himself. He is employed at Hogwarts where he watches constantly over Harry and delivers vital information to Dumbledore."

"Severus, this is Audrey, our newest addition to the Order. She is a fighter in every right and isn't afraid to get her hands dirty for us."
At this, Audrey lifted her upper lips to expose her fangs to Severus. It didn't seem to affect him in the least.

"Now Severus," Kingsley piped in, "you initiated this meeting as you said you had an ability to get more information out of You-Know-Who. Would you care to share it with us? After all, we aren't here to get chummy."

Severus glanced down at his sleeve and tugged gently on a loose piece of string, twirling it in between his fingers. His eyes shot back up to Kingsley.

"Shacklebot, you really mustn't mumble, it doesn't become you at all. Now, if you don't mind I'd like to tell you why I'm here."

Audrey let out an accidental laugh. As if stung, Severus' eyes shot up to her freezing her cold. He looked at her as if her hair were on fire. It's as if he had never heard a laugh before and was unaware of the sound that had bellowed from her.

"I have been in discussion with the Dark Lord and it has come to my attention he is preparing to recruit some elements of force to work for him."

He kept his eyes on Audrey as if she was the only member of the Order.

"This list includes various beasts which will provide a great asset to this war. He is already searching the mountainsides throughout the continent for giants willing to ally themselves with him and already has a few werewolves ready to do his bidding."

The air in the room seemed to disappear completely, leaving them all wide-eyed, with mouths agape.

"Dumbledore has alerted me of the new addition to the Order as well as Ms. Belmont's circumstances as a vampire in our community…"

"NO!" Sirius shot out, startling several people and causing Moody to spill his mead.

"I know what you are up to, Snape and I'll tell you, the answer is no! She is absolutely too young to be forced to act her way under his power. I will not have it!"

Severus hesitated a moment, composing his words carefully, the black opal eyes beginning to sear with impatience.
"I assure you Sirius that Ms. Belmont is by far older than anyone residing in this room and is more than capable of making her own decisions. She will be a vital asset to Dumbledore AND the Order and will work her way up in the eyes of Voldemort."

At this Arthur chimed in: "How is she expected to join up with Voldemort? I'm sure there isn't an open house for this kind of thing."

"I will recommend Ms. Belmont to the Dark Lord and take her to him myself. He will then examine her, test her for her loyalty and place her amongst the others willing to fight."

The entire time, Audrey sat motionless, looking down at her hands to avoid Severus' gaze, slowly hearing her future being decided for her.

"What do you think, Audrey?" Arthur asked, for the first time asking her opinion on the matter.

She looked up to the faces around her. Mrs. Weasley's lower lip was trembling and Moody's magical eye had begun to spin counterclockwise, making a tiny whirring noise as it did so.

Finally, Audrey spoke.

"I joined the Order to be the most help I could possibly be in this time of need. I believe doing this is what I can do best to assist you against Voldemort. And if that means sacrificing my loyalty to him, so be it."

It was hurriedly decided that the next morning, Audrey was to journey to Spinner's End to the home of Severus in order to initiate the next step in their plan.
They had only a limited amount of time before Severus was required back at Hogwarts and time was of the essence.

As Audrey pushed herself up the steps to her bedroom, long after everyone else had gone to sleep, she suddenly felt herself ricocheting off of some sizable object.

Two arms shot out of the darkness and steadied her. Searching around in the blackness, she soon spotted two soft eyes peering back at her.

"Remus, you should be in bed!" she whispered, trying to guide him back to his room.

"No, I'm alright. I needed to see you."

"Now is not the time."

"Please."

She loosened her grip on his arms and nodded slowly.

"Come with me."

Noiselessly, they tiptoed through the house like two spirits, haunting the hallways.

He led her up to the top landing and into a tiny attic room, stripped of furniture and wallpaper. All that caught her eye was a large window sat squarely in the middle of the opposite wall.

She looked up at him, utterly confused, but he only shot her a small grin.

Opening the window carefully, he pushed himself through and onto the other side.

"Remus! What on Earth are you doing?!" she gasped, trying to pull him back by his trousers.

"It's alright. Come on."

Taking a deep breath, she hopped through the window and landed on a ledge on the side of the house which led to the roof of the building.

It was a large, barren, sun bleached spot which was centered around several chimney stacks, giving it a sense of isolation.

Looking down onto the city below, she felt as if she was a million feet up, gliding high on a broomstick with Remus. The thought of it made her dizzy and clutched onto his jacket to steady herself.

After a few moments, the nausea subsided and she was able to take in the beauty of it all.

"It's magnificent, Remus." she mused, gazing up at the stars above her.

"You don't have to do this." he murmured, loosening his grip on her. "You don't have to fight for us. We can handle it well enough without you endangering yourself."

"Yes I do. It is the most important thing to me now. It's what keeps me going, knowing that instead of wasting away, of becoming something I don't know, I am helping people who I care for more than anything, that I'm using my burden for good."

"You will never be alone, Audrey. You know that."

"But I am scared, Remus." she whispered, closing her eyes. "And I haven't been truly frightened for a long time."

He gently brushed the loose strands of hair that had fallen across her cheek and tucked them back behind her ear. "You've never been scared. You were always fearless."

She choked out a nervous laugh. "It's hard to reveal your emotions when you've seen as much as I have, but on the inside I'm just a little girl, trembling against the wind."

As if on cue, a sharp gust of air swept its way over the sky and twisted its arms around Audrey, making her pull her jacket tighter around her.

"Are you cold?" Remus asked. Removing his outer coat he quickly draped it over her shoulders before she had time to protest.

"I'm always cold." she mumbled.

They stood silently side by side, glancing out over the city, the moonbeams striking the tiny buildings below them, making them sparkle like forgotten jewels wedged in the sand.

"You know," Audrey finally began, "if it were appropriate, I'd say this whole scene is awfully romantic."

She looked up at Remus sheepishly. He looked sober and tired, the fresh scratches adorning his cheeks and the heavy bags dangling precariously under his eyes.

But his eyes, glowing brilliant blue in the moonlight gave him a ghostly presence, piercing into her, her breath catching in her throat.

His voice was barely above a whisper: "Why don't you say it then."

Not breaking contact with his eyes, she floated into his arms, the heavy coat he offered her already pushed off of her and fallen to the ground.

"This is awfully romantic." she breathed, inching her lips closer to his, tucking in her fangs so as not to deliver any ill-timed bites.

Suddenly, a fiery anger pulsed from him, grabbing her shoulders hard and pulling her away.

"We can't do this!" he barked, tears streaming down his cheeks. "I won't let it happen again! I refuse! I…"
Remus broke off, searching into her haunted eyes, now drowning themselves in tears.

The kiss was slow and unhurried. It was seventeen years worth of wanting and finally being granted the one thing that each knew would make their lives worth living for.

Their tongues swept delicately across each other, refusing to let them speak the words that had kept them apart. The fear that had frozen their hearts earlier was now being chipped away by the overwhelming sensation of ecstasy. Their bodies melded together, getting as close to each other as they possibly could.

By the time Remus, weary-eyed and draped in his own dirtied jacket, awoke to the sun smiling its way onto the horizon, the light drops of dew making his hair shimmer.

As he climbed back down into the house, an overwhelming emptiness overtook him.

She was already gone.