Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any references that might have been made in this chapter... Gosh darnit!

Magnolia Crescent

Chapter Fifty

A Staff Meeting

Lupin shook his head, watching the last of the students from the forest disappearing back into the castle. "Honestly, they have no tact," he muttered, watching out the window just a little longer. He was leaning on the brick wall framing a window in the headmaster's office.

"Brom always did bring trouble and it seems he's pushing his own agenda. It was bad enough with four troublemakers and now we have a whole class of them," Dumbledore chuckled. "Poor Severus will have grey hair before the end of the semester." Together they watched as a fox rushed through the school doors, bringing up the tail end of students.

"I do believe that is five who can now transform. That took forever."

"Less than a year by my count," Dumbledore said, slowly walking back towards his desk. "Not bad overall. Lemon drop?" he offered while Lupin stepped away from the window and approached the desk as well.

"I am just a bit worried," he said. Dumbledore glanced up at him with a smile. He motioned with his hand and Lupin continued. "I've been looking into a few things and I noticed that there was a coincidence that lines up rather unpleasantly."

"Sounds dire," he admitted, unwrapping the aforementioned candy.

"Severus has brought that some of his potion ingredients have gone missing. He's blaming Harry, but the idea is hardly believable." Dumbledore snorted slightly but Lupin ignored it and kept talking. "But Sirius, on the other hand, I did catch him going over a potions list and I found that Polyjuice seemed to be a very likely potion that could have been made. With some extra for some kind of cover since I have seen Sirius with them, but it gets worse."

"Riveting," Dumbledore said. "I understand your concern, but I know what Sirius is up to. He has made it very clear. And I can't say that I blame him, even if I wish he wouldn't. But Sirius is not being impersonated, of that I'm sure. He would simply be too obvious of a target."

"So then, what exactly is he doing?" Lupin asked.

"I am not in the habit of sharing secrets. You'll have to ask him yourself. In the meantime, try and delay Mr. Filch – I've got a feeling he suspects that we have students out of bed," Dumbledore said.

"Right, well, just so long as you know," he replied before turning towards the door. He headed down the stairs and into the hall, glancing at the torches as he went. Lupin pulled a thoughtful face, thinking that he had heard footsteps echoing down the corridor. Glancing around the corner, he saw a familiar face and gripped at his robes. He smoothly coved his sudden surge of paranoia as nothing more than a simple desire to adjust his clothing.

"Constant vigilance," Mad-Eye Moody grumbled, giving Lupin a rough smile, if it could even be called that. "I heard Potter's group has managed to win their round of your dueling tournament. You and Black must be thrilled that all of your hard work is starting to pay off. I have to admit I was worried Dumbledore was going to let the boy get by with the bare basics."

"I am just teaching the curriculum. It's Harry's friend who are winning since he himself is not allowed to enter," he admitted.

"Ah," Moody said, though his voice held little humor. "Don't tell me Black is using you to deliver all of his paperwork?" He was watching the nearby gargoyle now.

"Just bringing something to his attention that he already knew about," Lupin replied. The auror stared at him with concern.

"Something I should know about?" he asked, voice giving off a bit of concern.

"Nothing, it's just that Sirius is up to something and I am still worried. He went missing for a little while and this situation is concerning," Lupin responded. He was honestly beginning to feel like he was the only one trying to do something about all of the troubling breaches in security.

"Yes, I have been looking that over; Dumbledore and I have a corner where fireplaces that aren't marked can't be protected against. So, we have been looking into spells and charms to catch these fireplaces when they pop up. The trouble is, with all of these people using them, it's making it rather difficult."

"I understand," Lupin admitted. He felt his chest swell a bit, knowing that two of the best wizards were actively working on figuring out what happened.

"That's the trouble with Albus – he's always cloaked in secrets and it does him credit. But it does little to inspire those whose lives hang on his plans," Moody admitted. "I have been making the rounds; so far, things appear to have settled down. If that's a good or a bad thing is a matter of opinion." Moody began walking away and Lupin quickly fell in stride.

"The ministry must be upset with us," he replied. Moody grunted. They continued to walk in silence while Lupin glanced out of the windows to see the crescent moon hovering over the lake, it's light reflecting off of the still water.

"Do you think adding to the security would help?" he finally asked when they reached a spilt in the corridor that required them to head separate ways. Moody paused when he approached Lupin and clapped him on the back.

"Yes and no. Adding more people will just make it easier to impersonate others and the added traffic would just make it easier for people to slip in. If I had my way, we would have kicked a damn good amount of the Ministry's stooges out of here. Just to be safe," he said, patting Lupin on the back one more time. He gave a wink and strode off down the hall.

Lupin scratched at the back of his head, taking a deep breath before heading to his own personal room in order to catch up on some much needed sleep.

"Lupin, up and at 'em! We've got a staff meeting to get to," Sirius shouted. Lupin cracked his eyes open, feeling as if he had just fallen asleep in bed when Sirius's booming voice had cut through the fog of sleep. He sat up, scratching at his head and glanced towards his friend.

"Nice choice in jimjams," Sirius commented, causing Lupin to frown at his sleep wear.

"I am not part of the staff," he finally replied, tempted to lay back down and go back to sleep.

"Brom was talking with Dumbledore and a full staff meeting was called," Sirius retorted.

"Sounds bad," he replied, getting up while Sirius headed for the door.

"It does, but knowing Brom, I doubt it will be anything too terrible," he said, closing the door behind him. He leaned against the wall, waiting for his old friend. Lupin left the room and they walked through the corridor at a brisk pace.

"So, any luck?" Sirius asked and Lupin shook his head. "Pity, I would have loved to take my attacker on in a straight fight. And worse, whoever is behind this now has the map."

"Agreed, we should have put a better lock on it," Lupin replied. "Any idea on what Brom is about? It wouldn't surprise me if Brom is going to be voicing the people's complaints about this."

"Perhaps. I am just thankful that Harry finally figured out the next part of the tournament. Do you know if he has figured out how to get around it?" Sirius inquired.

"Well, we did teach him the Bubble Head charm; he should be able to get through it without too much trouble. And besides, even if he fails, he can keep moving," Lupin replied.

"If he is even half of James' son, he wouldn't give up if half of the school was in his way," Sirius quipped, grinning.

"I am thankful that is the max and I'm sure the other half of the school would agree," Lupin said. "I have to admit, I'm not too surprised that he ended up with the one who would say no to him."

"True, I have to admit that I am a bit saddened. Hogwarts would have been a lot more interesting if Harry took to the other half as well as his father."

"I for one am thankful. The last thing I want to do is find out that you are giving him the talk," Lupin said, shuddering.

"True, though I have to admit that teasing him has been rather fun. I even offered to teach him the protection spell," Sirius commented.

"What? Oh," Lupin breathed, realizing what spell Sirius was talking about. "Of all the spells, Sirius. You could have taught him the one to fend off love potions. You know, we really should have a class for that," he mused.

"Well, women have their ways and men have their own," Sirius said wryly. "Still, all for the best, it still seems odd thinking of him as James and Lily's son.

"To be honest, you're not the only one having trouble differentiating the two. And why, why is the floor wet? Did Miss Myrtle flood the bathroom again?" Lupin asked, looking at the floor with a frown.

"Wrong floor, old man," Sirius chuckled. "Moaning Myrtle is one floor up."

"Damn you Gryffindor scum!" a voice shouted while Fred and George rushed by. Leo raced after them, dripping in water from head to toe. "I shall have vengeance! The great house of Slytherin shall not stand to be outdone by two trolls who think they are pranksters! You have started a war and I shall finish it!" Leo declared, just a touch to hammy.

"I'll get the supplies!" Alec cried as he and Dante came to a halt beside Leo. The three of them looked like drowned rats, fuming over being the objects of a Weasley prank.

"Hello, Professor," Leo said, seeming to just notice Sirius and Lupin. He motioned to his friends and the three of them stalked down the corridor, shoes squelching as they went.

"You should stop them," Lupin noted, watching them all pull out their wands and begin to whisper conspiratorially.

"I really should, but I think this place is about to get a lot more interesting," he replied. "Let's get moving, we have already dilly-dallied long enough." He pulled out his wand and gave it flick, causing the water on the floor to disappear in a swirl down what might have been an invisible drain.

They had little issues making their way up to the headmaster's office. As the heavy oak door closed behind them, they quickly realized that they had been the last ones to arrive.

"So, what did I miss?" Sirius asked, rubbing his hands together.

"The time," Snape retorted roughly.

"Well, you see, I was thinking of implementing the Valentine's Day card exchange once more," Brom said, getting straight down to business. The rest of the staff looked at him like he had lost his mind.

"You must be joking," Snape drawled, eyes narrowing.

"Not really; it's a good thing that my students are used to it. Besides, I think it would be a good thing to get the students worked up about something that isn't a staff kidnapping," he added and Dumbledore nodded.

"An excellent suggestion – one that I believe should be implemented. Anything in mind?" he asked.

"Dandy, another Lockhart," someone whispered. Sirius shook his head in amusement while they went on to talk about a dance for the older students and trading candy as a ways for younger students as they couldn't visit Hogsmeade.

"It seems you gave this some thought," Dumbledore said.

"Sadly, in my line of working, keeping things light helps out. I find these events help the student body out as well as the teachers. And all things considered, I believe the whole of Hogwarts could use some lightening," Brom replied.

"I've got a feeling Harry would disagree. Another dance and I feel that we will have to fish out of the lake," Sirius quipped jovially, smiling.

"Hmph," Snape grunted. Sirius, much to his credit, ignored him.

"Professor Black, if you would be so kind as to remain professional," McGonagall chastised. Sirius clamped his mouth shut, nodding his head. "Will there be anything the staff need to worry about?" she asked.

"Not necessarily. It's mainly just details that Dumbledore and I will have to work out," Brom answered.

"I suppose you should alert the students of a second dance and the other opportunities the Day of Love will present," the headmaster replied with a chuckle.

"If I may be so bold, has there been anything to say that, perhaps, Professor Black's assailant has been identified?" Snape inquired.

"Sadly, we have no suspects as of right now. And if there is nothin else, I ask that you return to your duties," Dumbledore said after a moment. Everyone stood and headed for the door after having been dismissed. Sirius lingered, watching Brom pull up a chair and talk some more with Dumbledore.

"I never realized it until now just how hard it can be to trust him when one is open to other options," Sirius said, eyes flickering towards Brom for the briefest second before exiting the office as well. Dumbledore watched the door close behind him.

"So," Brom said and the headmaster glanced at him with a raised eyebrow. "Want to see my new toy?"

"What are you talking about?" he asked, noticing that his portraits were pretending to be asleep. Brom smiled, reaching under his shirt to pull out a sheet of parchment. He unfolded it and gave it a slight tap with his wand. It flattened out while a stream of ink ran around the edges and created a frame. "You didn't," Dumbledore breathed, glancing between the parchment and Brom.

"Indeed," he replied, grinning. "What do you want to see?"

"All of it – it's been so long since I have seen any at all," he admitted. Brom was wide-eyed for a moment before he patted Dumbledore on the back.

"You poor thing, my condolence," he offered then said, "How about a whole session? One long go at it?" His voice was confident.

"Do you really have to ask?" he replied, offering a grin of his own. Brom stood, taking off his cloak and tapped it lightly. It transformed into a chair while the parchment floated into the air, the black ink pouring into the frame before white streaks began to filter in.

Dum, da da da dum, weeee, ooooh. The music echoed around the office while Dumbledore retrieved some freshly popped popcorn from his desk drawer. They watched together as words filled in on the frame to read "An Unearthly Child."

The lights in the room dimmed, the enchanted parchment giving off a soft glow as characters began to appear on the magical screen.

"I haven't seen this one in forever. I am so excited," Dumbledore said gleefully, leaning back in his chair to enjoy an old episode of Doctor Who.

And here you guys thought that Dumbledore and Brom were going to get up to something bad... Nah, they're just going to catch up on a BBC classic.

Also, I apologize for the lengthy delay. I've spent the last couple months finishing up school and preparing to move. Now that everything is taken care of, perhaps I can get on top of these chapters a bit better?

~LE