Book I: Birth of the Order
Chapter X: Missions Accomplished
Olivander's Wand Shop: Autumn 1979...
The bell over Olivanders chimed as Marlene and Tabitha entered and Mr. Olivander came around the corner. He was an older man, with smile wrinkles around his cheeks and eyes. He was happy and relieved to see the girls enter his shop but spoke with a tone of caution. "Good Morning, ladies."
"Hello, Sir," Marlene said as she pulled down the shade on the shop window and Tabitha locked the door.
"Dear me," Mr. Olivander said and shook his head. "Based on your abundance of caution, I presume the journey here wasn't easy."
"An understatement sir," Marlene said and glanced at Tabitha who was silently looking over the the shop. Every shelf was piled high with wand boxes. Some of the more elaborate wands were displayed in glass cases while some of the training wants were crammed in vases like a pencil cup. She ran her fingers along the dusty boxes. Not an inch of storage was spared in the tiny room. Marlene seemed confused at Tabitha's fascination with the place. "Tabs, I know your family works with wands, but you make it look like you've never seen a wand shop before."
"Well, she hasn't seen this one," Mr. Olivander said with a twinkle in his eye.
"Oh," Marlene realized, "That's right. You didn't get your wand here."
"No," Tabitha finally said as she pulled out her wand. "It's been passed down in my family since our clan was started. We don't purchase our own wands until we pass this one on to the next generation."
"It's very beautiful. May I?" Mr. Olivander extended his hand and Tabitha obliged and handed her want to him. He ran his fingers over the celtic carvings that every Delaney family member had engraved.
"Well if it's so old, do you know what kind of core is in it?" Marlene asked.
"I hope you never find out," Tabitha said softly.
"Miss McKinnon," Mr. Olivander said passing Tabitha's wand back to her. "How is the Pheonix Feather doing in the 10 inch elm?"
Marlene smiled and pulled out her wand that had a celtic knot engraved on the side and held it up to him. "Doing splendidly, sir. But I'm not surprised with your craftsman."
The old man blushed but then noticed a green book in Tabitha's hand. "Ah! I see you've brought the book. Dumbledore said you'd be bringing that along to help us."
Tabitha and Marlene stared at each other in shock. How did Dumbledore now that they would have to stop and retrive the book first. "That man baffles me," Marlene said in regards to Dumbledore.
"Sir," Tabitha spoke up. "What on earth does my family history book have to do with our assignment?"
"Only you can, answer that," He said. "All Albus told me was that your great grandfather may have noted something about how wand cores can be used for finding people."
"Oh," Tabitha knew exactly the chapter and flipped to it. It was a true ancestry book, mostly consisting of birth and marriage records, but there was one section which spoke about the family business of sourcing wand cores. Tabitha ran her finger over the pages and Mr. Olivander noticed they were shaking slightly. He looked back to Marlene and saw her staring down the door like. a guard. "Is everything alright, ladies?"
"Hmm?" Tabitha looked up at him and then to Marlene. "Oh, yea. We just... we are worried we are being followed." She didn't want to worry the old man about what they had just witnessed with Regulus and Dennis. Spotting the paragraph she needed, she spun the book around and pushed it towards Mr. Olivander. "Here it is."
"Ah, well, I will say, that is why you're here. Dumbledore has requested I start assembling wands that cannot be traced so members of his army can safely move around in the shadows."
"Traced?" Marlene asked confused.
"Yes, but in all my years, I always thought the concept hadn't been mastered and we had nothing to fear. But Albus told me otherwise..."
"Because of my great-grandfather." Tabitha said. "He figured it out. It's one of the many things in this book I didn't want Dennis to read."
"Dennis?" Mr. Olivander asked in confusion. "Who is that?"
"He's not an issue any more," Tabitha mumbled. "We will just leave it at that."
"Well then, lets see here." Mr. Olivander put on his glasses and read. A few 'mhmms' and 'ah-ha's escaped his lips as he skimmed the page before saying, "It seems that someone can use a wand to track it's owner."
"Like a personal portkey?"
"Exactly, Mrs. McKinnon. If You-Know-Who got his hands on one of your wands, he would be able to use it to find you."
"Well, almost," Tabitha added. "If you read a bit more you see that someone has to know the core of that wand, find the same ingredient and wrap the wand in it. It's basically a way of bringing the magic outside the wand so you can manipulate it to lead you to it's owner."
"So," Marlene picked up her wand. "If someone had a Phoenix tail feather and my wand, they could combine both and just pop up next to me? Wherever I am?"
"Exactly."
"I mean that's great if someone every lost their family and needed to find them but horrible in war times," Marlene said.
"Well that is probably why my great-grandfather never published this. He would have discovered all this about the time Grindlewald was starting a global war. Can you imagine if that man knew about this? And now Voldemort could have found out if Dennis had gotten this book to him."
"Well that is where I come in," Mr. Olivander said cheerily. His sweet nature and positive tone was much needed on a night like this. "I plan on making wands without cores, that cannot be traced."
"How is that not just a stick?" Marlene asked. "I mean, doesn't the core make the wand magical."
"I'm surprised, Miss McKinnon. You come from one of the oldest Wizarding families. Your name has been alive since the days of the Druids. Magic is all around us. The Druids learned to become one with the earth so that Magic could then be found within them. Many of them used spells without the help of wands. Over the years, as magic grew more powerful, they learned they needed to channel it in some way. The very first Druid Wizard to use an object to channel his magic was Merlin. All he had to do was pick up a staff from the ground. Not all people found staffs easy to travel with though, so... "Voila!" He waved his hand towards the shelves. "The wand was born."
"Well what was the first wand ever made then?" Marlene asked
"Many have been lost to time, as once their owners passed away, the wands become nothing but wood and returned to the earth. It wasn't until our ancestors decided to combine the magic of nature and the magic within us and construct wands with powerful cores, that the lives of wands were extended and they became magical beings all on their own."
"Won't wands without cores be less powerful then?" Tabitha asked.
"That's entirely up to the person wielding it, Miss Delaney.
Meanwhile at The Ministry of Magic...
"Hurry! Hurry!" Peter said as he closed the door behind him and ran to help Sirius and Remus destroy the records.
"Where is Mrs. Bones?" Remus asked, worried for his father's old friend.
"She left after letting you in."
"Good," He said. "I don't want her getting mixed up in this."
"Who is coming, Wormtail?" Sirius asked as he took armfulls of papers and tossed them into the flames while the rest flew around them from Remus speeding up his spell.
"That's just the thing. It looked like Barty Crouch."
"What's that old man doing here this late?" Remus groaned annoyed.
"No, not senior! Barty from school. That Ravenclaw that always hung out with your brother, Sirius."
"Well what is that nerdy creep doing here at all?" Sirius snapped as they heard the footsteps getting closer. "Hurry, Mooney."
Remus flicked his wand at the fireplace and said "ingorgio," and the flames grew larger to swallow the animagi records faster. The last page slipped into the flames and burned to a crisp as they heard the door lock turn. Peter squealed nervously and changed to his rat before hiding in the shadows. Remus looked at Sirius, "You better do the same."
"But Moony..."
"Do it!" He snapped and Sirius changed to Padfoot. The black dog blended into the shadows and he tucked himself under the desk. Remus had just finished putting out the flames and pocketing his wand with the door opened.
Barty Crouch Jr. was a slim young man with features like a Sleepy Hollow character. His eyes always darted from place to place as if skeptical of every shadow. He inhaled sharply as if sniffing out the room as he entered. Barty had always given the boys the creeps in school. His sour expression never left his face and he always seemed to stare at you as if he knew what you were thinking. The thing young man stepped into the office and looked around, seeing Remus standing upright in the dark room. "One of the night watchmen said he'd seen some suspicious characters walking around this area. I never thought it would be a former Prefect though."
"Hello, Barty," was all Remus responded while maintaining a cool composure.
"What are you doing here Lupin. It's almost 3 o'clock in the bloody morning," he asked agitated.
"Can a boy not pay respects to his father's old office?"
"Not at this hour." He stepped in and closed the door behind him. "What are you really doing here and where are the others?"
"What others?"
"The watchman said he saw you with two others. I assume you all are up to mischeif as usual."
"Oh come on, Barty. Don't tell me you're still a tattle-tail like you were in school. I know you've only just graduated but still... time to grow up," Remus said smugly.
"Don'y push me, Lupin. I have reason to be here. You don't."
"What reason is that?"
"My father is a ministry official. I keep his position in the evening when we can't be here."
"So they are letting a child just out of school run things?" He caught a bit of sweat on Barty's brown and realized the heat from the fireplace had filled the space. "Warm are we? Why not roll up your sleeves and cool off?"
When he said this, Barty looked at Remus with a dark stare. "You accusing me of something, Lupin?"
"I'm just wondering if you're still hanging out with Regulus Black."
Barty just smirked. "I may see him from time-to-time."
"Seen him recently?"
"Hmm," Barty tapped his chin teasingly to act as though he was deep in thought. "I don't really remember the last time I saw him. Next time I talk with him though, I'll be sure to say hello." Remus didn't reply but just blankly stared. He looked at Remus and chuckled, "I know what you're suggesting, Prefect. You can't prove anything. My family has more power here than anyone else. Your family reputation at the ministry ends with your quitter father. I could have you arrested for trespassing you know."
"And then add my list to the undesirables in tomorrow's prophet?" Remus snaps. "I happen to know your old friend Severus Snape is one now, but I didn't see his name listed today. Same with Malfoy."
"Why are you telling me this. They're old classmates. We hardly speak anymore."
"You're a ministry official now, you say. It's your job to report it to the Prophet."
"So it is..." Barty glared at Remus and then finally realized what he was implying and just laughed. "I see. So if their names don't appear in the Prophet you'll be left to beleive that I'm protecting my old friends, right? Or that I must be a... what did you call them... a Death Eater, myself?"
"Well done, you really are a Ravenclaw," Remus said, tucking his hands in his pockets, his heart racing.
"You don't think there is a chance that I could go share your findings with the Prophet and someone in their office is the corrupt one that refuses to print it?"
"I guess that's possible too. It's hot in here. Why don't you roll up your sleeves and cool off, Barty."
"Listen half-blood," Barty said taking a dark tone. "You are treading very close to accusing a Ministry Official of Treason, but for the sake of our old school days, I'll let it slide this once. "Collect your friends wherever they are, and get out."
"Gladly."
"And I better not see you in here again, Lupin. Because I run these halls now. Don't forget that."
Barty spun on his heel and stormed out. Sirius was the first to emerge, scratching his neck as he did so like a dog. "Are you mad!? If he really is a Death Eater he could have killed you."
"No, I remember Barty. He's a title seeker. It always bugged him that I got Prefect and he never did. He won't do anything to expose himself, including making a big fuss about us being here."
"But, Remus," Peter said as he changed back to himself, bumping his head on the table on the way up. "Ouch. But Remus, you've just accused him of being a Death Eater. So now if he isn't one, he's could get you in trouble with the Ministry and if he is one then he can get you in Trouble with Voldemort."
"I know, I know. But I had to put him on the defense. I couldn't have him asking me more questions why I was here."
"What makes you so sure he even is a Death Eater, Remus?" Peter asked.
"Just a gut feeling. His mother is closely related to the Lestrange family and they are batty for Voldemort."
"Yea," Sirius added. "It's Bellatrix's husband that Brainwashed Regulus, I'm sure of it. And I'm sure he will be the first to hear about our being here from Barty if he is Death Eater."
"And even if he isn't, Albus said to be careful who we trust at the Ministry." Remus said. "Let's get out of here though, before he changes his mind and comes back."
Remus opened the door and looked out. The coast was clear and he waived the others ahead. They made their ways up the halls but couldn't ignore the feeling that their exist from the Ministry was too easy.
Later at Olivander's...
Mr. Olivander and the girls had finished combing the chapter of Tabitha's book regarding wand tracking so that Mr. Olivander would know exactly how to proceed in making wands that could not be traced. It was almost 5 in the morning and Tabitha was starting to fall asleep stitting up in her chair. Marlene wasn't far behind as she stifled another yawn. She glanced at her watch and sat up straight. "Blimey, we need to go or Dumbledore will send a search party."
"No worries. I have what I need to begin. I'll have these wands ready for Albus soon so you all can practice."
"Sir, Marlene said. "These wands are going to help so many families like mine who are being targeted by Voldemort. Everyone is afraid to use their wands for fear the Ministry corrupted and tracing them so that Voldemort can force more pure blood families to 'join or die'. Now finding out they don't have to use their wands, they just have to let them fall into the wrong hands? These wands will help them. They won't have to hide. They can be with their families."
"Speaking from experience, I see." He smiled gently.
"Yes." She nodded sadly. "I've not seen any of my family in months. Things became hard after Dad passed away last year."
"Yes, I heard about that. Terrible accident," Mr. Olivander said. "I'm so very sorry. Atticus was a wonderful man."
"Thank you , sir. Family gatherings got difficult. Things with Ireland got bad in the muggle world and now everything happening in the Wizarding World. Everyone just decided we couldn't lose anyone else and that we were safer apart for now. I haven't even written my brother since July. But these wands you're talking about," Marlene looked back to him, shaking off any sign of grief. "These will help families stay together without fear."
"Yes they will," Mr. Olivander smiled and pat her on the shoulder gently. "May I give you some advice, Marlene?"
"Of course, sir."
"It's ok, to miss for your father. You can let yourself grieve."
Marlene just shook her head. "I'd rather just focus on the task at hand. I can shed my tears after this war is over." She reached over and started flipping the pages of Tabitha's family book but Mr. Olivander scooped it up and shut it. "Sorry," Marlene said. "I wasn't trying to pry."
"Oh, I know you're curious. But if grief is something you'd rather avoid, the Delaney family history is probably something you'd rather not read about." He slunk off his desk chair and walked around the workbench to Tabitha who had fallen asleep now. He pat her on the shoulder and she jumped awake startled. "What time is it?" She asked. "Time for you to be on your way," Mr. Olivander said handing her book over to her.
"Mr. Olivander is going to get started on those wands for us. We have them soon to practice with," Marlene said putting her brown leather jacket back on and passing Tabitha's green coat to her. Both were still covered in the dirt of the Paris street that Dennis had died upon only hours earlier.
"Thank you, sir." Tabitha glanced down at her wand in the pocket of her coat. "Mr. Olivander. As this wand used to belong to my father when he was my age... do you suppose it would be able to track him?"
"No," He shook his head. "That wands owner is you now, Miss Delaney. But are your parents not at their Estate in Ireland?"
"No sir," she said solemnly. "They've gone into hiding."
"Hmmm. You know," he got a twinkle in his eye. "I'm sure there is someone in your little group of friends that is going through something similar that can help you through that, Miss Delaney." He looked at Marlene who felt her vulnerability being challenged and didn't like the feeling of it. She whisked her way to the door and unlocked it. Checking outside she saw the streets were will pretty empty. "Now is our chance, Tabitha, before the store owners start to open up." She looked back to Mr. Olivander and said, "Good bye sir."
"Good-bye, Miss McKinnon. I do hope you take my advice."
Spinner's End...
Severus Snape was at his home in Spinners End when he awoke to a pounding on the door. He jumped up and looked around his kitchen which he'd transformed into an apothecary. He'd fallen asleep beside the fireplace that had a cauldron going. Quickly he grabbed his wand from the table and slunk his way towards the door where the knocking continued. He leaned his pale ear to it and listened. "Who is it?"
"Snape let me in!" Regulus whispered harshly.
Snape opened the door only a crack to see that it was really Regulus. The boy looked so fragile and panicked. "Well?"
"I just killed Forrestor."
Snape's eyes darted around to make sure he was alone. He reached out and grabbed Regulus by the collar then yanked him into his flat, closed the door and locked it. "What do you mean you-"
"I did as Bellatrix said and went with him to Paris to find Delaney, and she and McKinnon showed up. I waited outside while Forrestor went in. We had them cornered."
"And?"
"And I used the killing curse. It hit him."
"Sit down, Reg." Snape sighed and went removed his cauldron to put a kettle on instead.
"I don't feel much like tea-"
"I said, Sit!" He snapped.
Regulus reluctantly plopped into the chair Snape had been sleeping in. He loosened his tie around his neck but it wasn't cooperating so he pratically ripped it from his neck. Snape returned after about two minutes looking somber. He set the tea in front of Regulus on the small table and sat on the adjacent sofa. He looked at the clock on the wall and noticed the time. "Where have you been all this time?"
"Wandering around, Paris. Without Dennis help it took me hours to get back here with different transportation options and pathways."
"Why didn't you use the powers from your dark mark to get here faster? Are you afraid of it all of a sudden?" He watched Regulus' expression shift carefully. "Don't overthink it Regulus. You lost today. You won't lose again soon. I'm not suggesting you always resort to something like the killing curse, I don't like Delaney but I don't wish her dead. How she managed to avoid that curse though-"
"I didn't aim at her, Sev." He admitted and looked up from his tea. Snape went silent and just stared at him emotionless. "I aimed at Dennis." Snape still stayed silent and allowed Regulus to expand. "He just kept nagging me. He treated me like a child, they all did. When he told me to aim and do it... I just did as he said."
"You're sure you didn't do it to save them from Dennis? Had he really decided to kill them?"
"He had given them their chance. Death was the only option for them."
"So? Did you do it because you wanted to defeat Dennis? Or were you trying to help the girls?"
Regulus thought over it and looked back at his tea. "I don't know. That's why I came here."
"Don't doubt yourself. Voldemort will sniff that out a mile away."
"But surely our cause is more than just killing people?"
"You can still respect the value of life and believe in our cause. Our goal isn't to kill everyone, it's to-"
"To what?" Regulus looked up. "Do you really even know?"
"To bring balance and keep power in the hands of those who can control it best." Regulus just shook his head unsure and Snape leaned back in his seat and crossed his legs. "Where is Forrestor now?"
"Probably still laying there. The bin collectors will find him soon."
"No. We will go back and collect his body and get rid of... it. Then you report back to Bellatrix and tell her Dennis never showed up and the girls got a way as a result of it."
"Bella can see right through my lies. She knows my tells."
"Then I'll tell her."
"And Dennis' brother?"
"Just stay away from him. He's teamed up with Fenrir lately so I don't want you facing both of them on your own. You stay close to me in the feild and stay close to Lucious at home. Got it?"
"Yes."
Snape stood up and buttons his vest. "Here." He snatched a coat from his coatrack and tossed it to him. "Try to warm up and stop shaking so much. We will hurry and have you back at Malfoy's before sunup."
"Sev?"
"..."
"What would you have done? Would you have killed Delaney? Or would you have stood by while she was killed? Or McKinnon?"
Snape just thought about it and didn't answer. He grabbed his own coat and said, "Lets go. We don't have a lot of time."
The Autumn sun finally rose and shined into the windows of Hogwarts School. James and Lily had said their goodnights to Dumbledore and Scamander before returning to the Room of Requirement which was suddenly filled with cots and the softest pillows that Dumbledore had been looking for earlier. Sirius, Remus and Peter had arrived about half past 3 am and fallen asleep instantly save for Remus who battled insomnia the week leading up to the full moon. James potter stirred in his cot and woke up seeing Remus sitting on the edge of his bed. "Now what's our moony sulking about today?" He whispered.
"They aren't back yet - Marlene and Tabs."
James sat up and fetch his glasses from beside him. He pulled them on and surveyed the two empty cots across the room. "They'll be back soon."
"We ran into Barty at the Ministry."
"I know. You all told us when you got back earlier-"
"No," Remus clenched his hands together anxious. "I mean, our mission didn't go as planned. Who's to say their's did? What if someone caught them or... or worse."
"Mate. They were going to Olivander's. That old man's shop is hardly threatening."
"Neither was my dad's office, but trouble still found us."
'"Right." James thought quickly to change the subject. "Was it hard to see your old man's desk after all this time?"
"It was harder to see Edna Bones. She's so old now. But it's only been 10 years, less even, since he quit. Time just flies."
"There isn't much of it, that's for sure. That's why Lily and I talked while we were waiting on everyone else." He paused and look down at the cot between them that they had been speaking over. Sirius was in it sleeping soundly and Remus nodded to confirm he was asleep before James continued. "She wants to get married in November."
"Really? Wow, that's fast."
"She said she refuses to go into a war without me being her next of kin. If something happens to one of us-"
"Let's not suggest anything like that until the girls are back safely."
"Right." James nodded and continued. "Anyway she wants to know if November 9th will be alright with you. We could just have a few friends come to my Parent's estate. That where we were thinking of relocation our little faction here anyway, since we can't stay here every night with School in session."
"Why does she want to check the date with me?" Remus asked confused.
"Well the moon is the 4th so that is out, you'll be too cranky the rest of that weekend and we always need about a week to get our strength back up after a moon. Your wolf is getting bloody strong, mate."
"You're not serious," Remus said flatly. "Your planning your wedding around me?"
"Around everyone. We also can't do the 3rd or any date around it because Sirius here will gripe about how it's too close to his Birthday. We can't do any month after December because Lily's sister will be too pregnant to get to the wedding and October is too soon. December is out because Lily doesn't want to distract from Christmas-" He noticed his friend finally grinning. "What?"
"You're a kind person, James. You know that?"
"Well, I don't know about that but... thanks mate. And hey! November is still a little over a month away. Gives you enough time to find a date to the wedding."
"James-"
"You said it yourself, Remus. There isn't a lot of time." Just then the door cracked open. Both of them jumped up from their cots and waited carefully. Finally they both sighed in relief as Tabitha's face looked around the corner followed by Marlene's and the Bloody Baron's ghost who had escorted them up the halls. Both girls took a moment to take in the scene of the room they'd never seen before they bid goodnight to the ghost and tip toed over to the boys. "About time," James said.
"You're safe," Remus added but stopped seeing the dirt on their faces. "What happened to you?"
"Tabitha ran into an old boyfriend," Marlene whispered.
"An old what?" Remus raised an eyebrow.
"No! No," She rested a hand on his arm them quickly pulled it away. It doesn't matter who he was. We ran into Regulus and a Death Eater named, Dennis and barely escaped with our lives."
"What?" James looked them over. "We should get Pomphrey."
"We are fine, Potter." Marlene reassured him. "Just bloody tired. We will explain it all in the morning."
"You know that's in 10 minutes, right?" He said bluntly but Remus walked the girls to their beds. "Here. You two take these bunks. Sleep as late as you need to. We will make sure Peter and Sirius don't take all the breakfast."
"Thanks, Rem." Tabitha said softly.
"I'm glad you two are ok." He handed them both blankets and they smiled at him softly before piling into their beds and falling asleep.
"Like I said mate," James whispered from behind him as he saw Remus caring for them. "Not plenty of time."
"With whom?" Remus said then looked at Tabitha asleep beside him. "What are you suggesting?"
"Nothing." He looked confused. "I mean nothing about either of them. Just that life is unpredictable."
"Oh, right." He rubbed his neck the walked back to his bunk. "I think I'll try to get some shuteye too."
"Ok then," James said with a suspicious grin. "Goodnight Moony."
"Night, Prongs."
Up Next: We travel to the childhood home of James Potter and jump ahead a couple weeks...