The Worst News

July 1, 1997

Despite a very good night's sleep, Adrian was unpleasantly and abruptly jolted awake the next morning by something very unexpected: Angelina Johnson banging on Alicia's door, shouting at them both.

"Alicia! Pucey! GET UP! NOW! The most awful thing—!"

Adrian jerked to full consciousness in a heartbeat and looked towards the door even as he threw back the counterpane and grabbed his wand to reverse the silencing charms around the room. "Johnson?" he called out warily, clutching his wand as he stumbled out of bed.

She banged on it again. "Hurry up, wake up!" she yelled, and she sounded close to tears. "It's horrible!"

"Okay, hang on!" he yelled back, grabbing his boxers. Thank Merlin he had gathered their clothes from the sitting room before he andAlicia went to bed. "Just tell us what's wrong, Johnson!"

Alicia had pushed up a bit from her pillow and was rubbing her eyes sleepily. "What's going on? Adrian?"

"I need to come in there," Johnson cried, her voice utterly panicked by that point. "Now!"

Adrian had never heard her sound so desperate and it made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. "Give me a second!" he yelped, grabbing his jeans. "Just let me get my jeans on —!"

At the same time, Alicia used her wand to Summon a t-shirt from her closet and started to pull it over her head.

"Now, Pucey! I don't give a damnif you're wearing clothes at the moment or not! I know what a naked man looks like, for fuck's sake! This is…Godric's arse, fuck it, I'm coming in! Dumbledore's dead!"

"What?!" Alicia cried, her head popping out of the neck of the t-shirt and her hair completely mused. "What the hell do you mean, Dumbledore's dead?"

Adrian's mind had gone blank. Dumbledore? Dead? What the hell?

He just did get his jeans pulled up as Johnson burst into the room,but he didn't get them zipped or buttoned. Her face looked completely stricken, and she was holding out the morning's Daily Prophet. "Read it!" she gasped, thrusting it into his hands.

Adrian sank back onto the bed as he stared at the headline:

ALBUS DUMBLEDORE KILLED BY DEATH EATERS IN BATTLE AT HOGWARTS

"No," he whispered. "Salazar, no…"

Alicia scooted behind him to look over his shoulder. He heard her gasp in his ear as she saw the headline, too.

"No!" she cried. "How?"

Adrian shook his head, trying to make sense of it. "I don't understand… what happened?" he stammered, attempting to scan the article.

"There was a battle at Hogwarts last night," Angelina answered tearfully, nodding towards the paper. "Death Eaters broke into the school. It was Snape. Snape killed him."

Alicia gasped again; Adrian felt her nails bite into his bicep. But they didn't hurt like Angelina's statement did. He managed to focus enough to actually read the article, and his mouth dropped open as he absorbed the details.

Professor Severus Snape had killed Professor Albus Dumbledore before escaping with several other Death Eaters from Hogwarts, including Draco Malfoy. Several members of the Order of the Phoenix and a handful of students had been involved in the battle. Bill Weasley, Neville Longbottom, and Professor Filius Flitwick had all been injured. Harry Potter had somehow been involved as well; though really, that was no surprise. It would be more startling if Harry wasn't involved.

Adrian felt his world slipping out from under him. He had never liked Snape. He had never particularly trusted him, even though Snape had been his Head of House. But he'd also never imagined the man would kill Albus Dumbledore. Everyone had always wondered if Snape was really reformed or still a closet Death Eater. The way he favored his own house and some of the more prominent students had always left Adrian wary and skeptical, but he'd kept to himself so much at Hogwarts that he also hadn't necessarily concerned himself with where Snape's loyalties lay. He just knew he didn't like , he felt completely numb; his shoulders slumped and he stared at the the paper.

And Malfoy…! Damn it, Malfoy was a Death Eater…! How had he missed that over the past summer? He racked his brains, trying to remember if Malfoy had been at any of the social events he had attended, but he had no idea. He knew Malfoy and Daphne were friends, but for the life of him, he couldn't even remember if he had seen Malfoy at her party in London back in late July.

Still… he should have guessed, shouldn't he? Brutus MacNair and Julian Rookwood had taken their fathers' places as Death Eaters. Adrian should have connected the dots — he should have realized that if Voldemort demanded those two sons take their fathers' places, that Voldemort had very likely requested the same of other Death Eaters' sons. Malfoy's father was still in Azkaban for his role in the Battle at the Department of Mysteries. Damn it, how had Adrian not realized Draco was a Death Eater, too? Did that mean Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, and Theodore Nott were also Death Eaters?

"Pucey, are you okay?" Johnson asked. Her voice sounded far away.

"Goddamnit," he whispered, his fists clenching on the paper.

Alicia's arms went around his shoulders and she buried her face into the back of his neck as she started to cry.

Blindly, he reached up and grasped one of her hands. "I never trusted that son of a bitch —! I never even likedhim; he was a typical Slytherin just like all the others! And I hated Malfoy, too!"

Angelina looked miserable. "Honestly? I don't think anyone trusted Snape except Dumbledore."

"It's more than that, though." Adrian closed his eyes and squeezed Alicia's hand to ground himself. "You don't understand. Last summer, I realized Julian Rookwood and Brutus MacNair had taken their fathers' places as Death Eaters. Their fathers were involved in the Battle at the Ministry last June. So was Draco's father. I should have realized… I should have guessed!" He released Alicia's hand and punched his fist against the mattress in his anger. "Damn it, why didn't I realize?I should have! I should have told Dumbledore! I should have analyzed the situation better; I could have prevented —!"

"Stop it!" Alicia cried angrily, tightening her hold around his shoulders. "Adrian! This is notyour fault! Do you hear me? This is not your fault!"

"Alicia's right," Angelina said sharply, before he could argue. "No one could have guessed Snape would kill Dumbledore! And even if you had realized that Draco was a Death Eater, what good would it have done?"

Adrian looked up at her hopelessly. "If I had realized, I could have told Dumbledore! He could have expelled Draco —!"

Angelina glared at him. "At what risk? He would have needed proof, and that would have risked compromising you! Dumbledore's been trying to protect you, Pucey! He doesn't wantthe other Slytherins to realize you're working againstthem and You-Know-Who just yet! If you had realized Draco was a Death Eater and told Dumbledore, then my guess is that Dumbledore probably wouldn't have acted anyways, in an effort to protect you!"

"Angelina's right," Alicia insisted. "And as a matter of fact, this past year, Harry himself suspected Draco was a Death Eater. Katie wrote to tell us back in April what Harry's thoughts were. And I'm absolutely sure Harry told Professor Dumbledore of his suspicions."

Angelina nodded. "Which means, for whatever reason, Dumbledore didn't act on the information. So you can't blame yourself for this, Pucey."

Adrian wasn't sure if they were right or not, but he desperately hoped they were. He hated the idea that he could have possibly prevented this…

"But still," Alicia said sadly, looking up at Angelina, her tears dotting Adrian's shoulder. "What are we going to do now? Without Dumbledore, You-Know-Who will take over everything—!"

"There's still the Order," Angelina reminded her.

Something inside of Adrian tautened. He was still an invisible member of the Order. He needed to reach out to Kingsley and Remus, right away. And he needed to go to his parents.

"I need to visit my parents," he said quietly, handing the paper back to Johnson. "I'm sure they'll see the paper, and I'll need to find out what they intend to do next."

"Will they make you leave the Order?" Alicia asked, her voice trembling slightly.

He shook his head. "I doubt that, but we need to regroup. With Dumbledore dead… It's like you said. We don't know what's going to happen next."

Angelina looked down at the paper miserably. "I need to get to Holyhead. Jones won't cancel practice, no matter what happened. She'll give me hell if I'm late."

Adrian rose and turned to Alicia. "I'll take you to the Healer Institute before I go to my parents. You have classes."

Her shoulders were hunched and tears were still running down her cheeks. "I don't know if I can today."

"You have to," he said, reaching out and tucking her hair behind her ear before offering her his hand. "Come on, love. You can do this. You're a Gryffindor."

She winced and a couple of more tears leaked out down her cheeks, but she also pushed the comforter aside, took his hand, slid out of bed, and stumbled into his arms.

"I'll lock up when I leave," Angelina muttered, looking away from the two of them as she turned for the door. "And I'll Apparate to the twins' place before I go to Wales. To make sure they know about this, too. And Lee."

"Good idea," Adrian replied. "And I'll pick Alicia up at five when her classes end."

"No!" Alicia pushed back to look up at him. "You can't take me to the Healer Institute or pick me up! No one is supposed to know about us —!"

"Alicia, love, I hate to tell you this, but quite a few people know about us." He smiled weakly at her.

"No. You don't understand." She shook her head. "Courtney Vanhausen! She's in the Healer program! If she sees you with me… she could tell any number of other Slytherins! Gemma and Nigel probably won't say anything to anyone about us dancing at Bess's wedding, but Courtney may notbe that considerate if she sees you dropping me off or picking me up at the Healer Institute —"

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Alright, how about this? I'll Disillusion myself and take you. And then this afternoon, I'll do the same thing. We'll wait for Vanhausen to leave, and then I'll grasp your arm. I'll whisper a password in your ear so you'll know it's me."

Adrian could tell Alicia did not like the idea, but she swallowed and nodded. "Alright. When you whisper to me, tell me what color my knickers were last night, so I'll know for certain it's you."

Angelina barked out a laugh as she turned to leave. "Merlin's arse, Alicia! Dumbledore's dead, and the secret password you come up with for Pucey is what color were my knickers last night? Godric's fucking balls, I'll see you both later. Preferably clothed, although it is always nice to see Pucey's chest, even if he's yours, 'Licia."

Adrian turned pink as he abruptly remembered he wasn't wearing a shirt and his jeans were still undone. Alicia merely rolled her eyes. They heard the kitchen door lock behind Angelina, and as soon as Adrian did up his jeans, he headed for the kitchen to replace all of the wards while Alicia got dressed.

As soon as Alicia was safely inside the Healer Institute for her morning classes, he Apparated to Pucey Villa. To his surprise, his mother met him in the entry hall with her wand ready, her back straight, and a steely look in her eyes that very much unnerved him. He'd never seen that look on her face before.

"What is your brother's nickname for you?" she demanded coldly.

At that, however, Adrian rolled his eyes. "Ade. How did he even come up with that?"

She exhaled and lowered her wand. "He was seven, mon fils. I suppose it was easier for him to say."

Adrian stepped forward and hugged her. "Mum, what are we going to do?" he whispered.

She rubbed his back and sighed. "I don't know, darling. Your father and I were just as shocked as you were, I imagine. How did you find out?"

"Angelina was up before us, because she had to Apparate to Holyhead by eight, and she saw the Prophet first." He drew back and gazed down at her sadly. "She barged in on us, actually. Barely got my jeans on. She was nearly hysterical. Mind, I wasn't much better when I read the article. It felt like my whole body went numb. I just sat there, staring at the paper…"

"I know what you mean," she said. With that, she turned and headed down the hall. Adrian followed her into the family parlor, and as they entered, she ranted furiously, "I've never, evertrusted Snape. And I was right, wasn't I?" She waved her wand to pour a cup for Adrian.

"There is little we can do about it now," Alexander reminded her quietly. He was sitting at the table with his own cup of tea and a copy of that morning'sDaily Prophet. "At the moment, we need to decide if we want to place a Fidelius Charm around the house, or wait a bit longer. I believe we should probably wait a bit, and see what happens first. If we place it now, the Dark Lord will know we are avoiding him again. That will make things much harder."

Alania sat down and snapped, "It's just like the first war. Trying to decide when was the right time to leave… not knowing if we should wait or escape…and then you getting tortured because that piece of trash snuck past my wards —!"

"Alania." This time, Alexander's voice was sharp and commanding; a tone Adrian rarely heard his father use, and especially towards his mother.

Alexander glanced once towards Adrian before looking back at Alania, and it suddenly occurred to Adrian that he had absolutely no idea what his mother was talking about. At Alexander's tone, his mother had abruptly stopped talking. She had crossed her arms and her mouth was turned down in her anger, but she also looked slightly guilty. Adrian knew his parents had fled to France in the first war, but he had never heard that his father had been tortured before they left. He frowned between his them.

"What do you mean?" he asked tersely. "Dad was tortured before you fled? You never told me that."

His mother closed her eyes, inhaled, and exhaled. "It's nothing, Adrian. Never mind."

"No!" Adrian said angrily, turning to face her. "It's not nothing. You just said Dad was tortured, and I gather by his reaction that I wasn't supposed to know about this, so now I definitely want to know! What the hell actually happened when you left back then?"

His parents exchanged a resigned look before his mother complained, "We may as well tell him, Alex. He's nineteen, the world is at war again, and there's no taking back what I said."

There was a long pause, before his father said stiffly, "A Death Eater by the name of Dominic Travers showed up here on the day we were scheduled to leave for France. He got through the barriers we had erected at the time, and followed me into the stillroom that morning. He caught me unawares."

"How did you escape without getting killed? Especially if he was torturing you?"

Alexander glanced back at Alania and said, "I'll let you tell him the rest. I was unconscious, and it's your story anyways. I'll let you decide how much he needs to know."

Adrian's head swiveled back to his mother and he glared at her. "Well?"

She was gripping her left upper arm with her right hand so tightly that her knuckles had turned white and her fingers were digging into her flesh. Shortly, she said, "I never meant for you to find out about this, Adrian."

"And like I said — it's too late for that," Adrian retorted. "You already let it slip. What happened?"

She frownedat him. "We were waiting for Albus to arrive with a portkey, and your father wanted to check the stillroom one last time. That was when one of the elves told me that Dominic Travers had entered the grounds and was torturing your father. I first got your brother to safety; Atticus was only six, and he was absolutely terrified. I turned one of my bracelets into a portkey, and as soon as he and Bromley were transported to Gassin, I went to find your father. I dueled Dominic Travers myself." Her face was hard; there was a glint in her eyes that Adrian had never seen before until that day, when he had entered the house and she asked him a security question with her wand pointed at him.

"You dueled a Death Eater?" he asked,surprised. And then something else hit him — something slightly more important — and he blurted, "Bloody hell, Mum! You were pregnant! With me!And you dueled a Death Eater?!What if you had gone into labor?!"

She shrugged one shoulder and looked at him coolly. "Now you know why I didn't want to tell you. I did notgo into labor, thankfully; probably because you're so calm. Most of the time, anyways. But yes, I dueled a Death Eater while I was pregnant with you. Actually," she added, and she suddenly gave him a strange, twisted smile, "that's why I've always thought you were so good at Defense Against the Dark Arts, dear. You and I, Adrian, we killed a Death Eater together before you were even born."

"Alania." Alexander sounded exasperated. "Adrian did no such thing. He was simply in your womb at the time.Youfought and killed Dominic Travers—"

In a haughty voice, she replied, "I fought and killed him, yes, but I was not alone. Adrian was with me."

"So…" Adrian asked, ignoring his father and staring at his mother instead, "you killed Travers to save Dad?"

His mother arched an eyebrow. "I did. And, if you must know, I would do it again. Without question."

He didn't doubt that. Instead, he asked, "How did you kill him?"

She laughed humorlessly. "How? Does it matter?"

"It matters to me." Adrian frowned. He was actually rather surprised that he wasn't as shocked as his parents had expected him to be, but in truth, this wasn't nearly as shocking as Dumbledore's death. Snape killing Dumbledore was horrifying. His mother killing a random Death Eater to protect her family and save her husband? No, if he was being honest, that seemed very much her type of grand, dramatic, eccentric, protective style. Regardless, he added, "I mean, there's a difference between knocking a man into a stone wall and the impact killing him, versus a Killing Curse, isn't there?"

Without hesitation, she answered disparagingly, "No. There is no difference at all, if you're trying to kill someone to protect those you care about. I cast Avada Kedavra, Adrian. But you must remember… Travers tortured your father into unconsciousness. He had every intention of murdering your father in front of me, and he tried to kill me in the duel, too. So really, I was only returning the favor. The Giraudon family motto is —"

Adrian repeated it automatically. "Protégez votre famille et votre patrimoine." How many times had he seen it on her family's crest?Protect your family and your heritage…

Her face relaxed and she smiled at him when he spoke in French. In a gentler voice, she said, "I was protecting my family, mon fils. I do not regret that. I will neverregret protecting my family. And I will always do whatever I can to protect all of you. Even if it means killing someone. Travers was a piece of filth; I would kill him again and again if I had to relive that day. Actually, to tell you the truth, I'd probably kill him even faster."

At that, his father smiled slightly. "All of that was why, when you were born, Adrian, I gave your mother the ring she wears on her right hand. It is symbolic of her desire to protect her family at whatever cost. When Atticus was born, I gave her two emerald bracelets; a representation of the two of us, both Slytherins, starting our family… But your birth was very different. I disagree with her on one point," he added, frowning at his wife. "I do notthink you helped her kill Dominic Travers; you were only an infant in her womb, after all. But I won't deny that you were certainly present at the time. A mother can be very protective when she's pregnant, and your mother certainly was."

Adrian's gaze flickered to the ring in question, which sparkled on her right middle finger. He'd always thought that ring was unusual. The only time he'd asked about it, when he'd been about ten years old, she'd merely said it was the gift his father had given her when he was born. It was an oblong, emerald-cut, bright red ruby flanked by thin, dark green emerald baguettes on each side, and he'd always — always— wondered why she had a ruby ring. Rubies were symbolic of Gryffindor House, not Slytherin, and it had seemed strange that Alania Pucey would have a ruby ring even if it had emeralds on it, too.

Alania let out an amused breath. "Red isn'tusually my color, but I must admit, I do love this ring," she said fondly. "It always reminds me of what I am capable of."

Alexander smiled at her. "More importantly, it symbolizes your bravery and courage. Qualities of Gryffindor, but sometimes present in a Slytherin, too."

And suddenly, Alania's comment from two weeks earlier about how protective Adrian was — the knowing lookshe'd given Adrian when he'd said he would do his best to protect Alicia — it suddenly made sense. He had been with Alania the whole time she had protected her family before fleeing to Gassin in 1977. She believed some of her powers had transferred to him that day, even if his father didn't. But maybe they had. Adrian was certainlytalented in Defense; there was no denying that. And maybe he was just as protective as his mother was.

She was watching him closely. He wasn't sure what his expression was, but she gave him a sad smile. "Are you scared of me now, Adrian? Your mother is far fiercer than you thought. I told you last year, mon fils:if my men fight against the Dark Lord, so will I. Do not underestimate me, darling."

He chuckled softly. "I would never underestimate you. I just… I can see why you never told me, before," he admitted. "But I don't think any differently of you, if that's what you want to know. It's a lot to take in, but I rather admire you for protecting all of us like that."

"I'm glad you don't think differently of me," she said, and she looked slightly relieved.

"It actually made me think of something the Sorting Hat told me when I was eleven," Adrian admitted. "It took longer to sort me than others in my year, and it told me I would do well in any of the houses. But it said I would do quite well in Gryffindor because I was fearless and reckless. I didn't believe it then, but now I recognize those things in myself. I know where I got those qualities from and why it told me that."

His mother laughed brightly. "Did you really almost choose Gryffindor, mon fils?"

He grinned. "I almost did."

"Merlin! I don't know what I would have done with you if you had chosen Gryffindor!"

"Well, it doesn't matter, because I didn't choose Gryffindor. And really, it was a long time before I understood what the Sorting Hat meant. I grasped part of it in my fifth-year, the first time I was partnered with Alicia to patrol, actually. The Bloody Baron said something to us that made me stop and think about the Sorting Hat's words differently. And now I understand even more."

His father cleared his throat. "Fascinating as this is, we should return to the original conversation."

Alania sighed. "We should. Albus is dead and the Dark Lord will almost certainly take over, now. Harry Potter is still alive, but for how much longer? And can he really defeat the Dark Lord? That remains to be seen. You, darling," she added, frowning at Adrian, "must be very careful. You've chosen a half-blood —"

Adrian grit out, "Alicia, Mum. Her name is Alicia."

She leveled him with a look. "I know her name, dear, and I adore her. But she is still a half-blood, and we are in very dangerous times."

"I know all of that, you don't need to keep reminding me. It makes it all the more imperative that I help protect her."

"And do not forget, Death Eaters have been funneling money into St. Mungo's, the Ministry, the Wireless Network, and the Daily Prophet. Very soon, that will start bearing fruit," she went on sharply. "Despite Straun and I serving on the St. Mungo's Board, something tells me that Cecil Vanhausen will start cracking down on things soon enough."

"Half-bloods haven't been under attack, though. It's muggle-borns the Dark Lord and the Death Eaters despise —"

"You mark my words, Adrian." His mother's face darkened. "I would be stunned if they don't shift to include half-bloods in the future, unless Harry Potter defeats the Dark Lord soon. I will do what I can in my position for St. Mungo's, but it likely won't not be enough. And Straun and I do not want to be removed from the board, either — we need to know what's going on."

Adrian felt slightly sick at the idea that half-bloods could be targeted, or the fact that Alicia was at the Healer Institute and St. Mungo's, both of which could possibly fall to Death Eaters. All he said was, "I agree, you need to remain on the board."

His father met his eyes. "Have you heard from any members in the Order?"

"Not yet. I need to send a Patronus to Remus Lupin. Kingsley Shacklebolt knows of my involvement, as well."

His mother said, "And you should also check in with Kenneth." Then, out of bloody well nowhere, she added, "I like him, Adrian. He's a nice young man."

Adrian rolled his eyes. He supposed he had gotten used to Towler's presence in his life over the past year. Perhaps they were more than acquaintances now, but he still wasn't sure he wanted to call Towler a friend. That seemed a bit too much.

His mother smirked at him and almost chuckled. "Adrian, dear, stop fighting it. You and Kenneth arefriends."

"I would not go that far," Adrian muttered. "We're only working together for the greater good."

"Yes, well, sometimes that forges the strongest friendships. I wouldn't be the first bit surprised if Kenneth is your best mate by the end of this war."

"Royle is Towler's best mate," Adrian said through gritted teeth, as he experienced a slight blip of jealousy and anger towards Gilbert, even though Alicia had assured him that she and Gilbert were only friends and she was not remotely interested in Gil romantically. "Not me."

"You can have more than one best mate, you know." His mother smiled and leaned her elbows on the table. "But enough. Go contact Remus and Kingsley; see what the Order is doing, and let us know. And let them know that you have access to a stock of potions, should the need arise."

Adrian nodded. "Yes, ma'am."

Adrian went to his bedroom and sent a Patronus to Remus first. He did not have to wait long for a reply; Remus asked to meet him at the folly in the Lake District where they had met before. Adrian sent a Patronus back, requesting to meet that very afternoon, as he felt it was imperative to protect Alicia and see her home from the Healer Institute at five. Remus agreed.

The muggle who owned the property was traveling again, so there was no one on the grounds to recognize them. Adrian kept his wand ready as he paced within the tiny space of the folly, and when Remus Apparated ten feet from him, Adrian whipped around and pointed his wand at his old professor with a steady hand.

"The safehouse you took me to in April as an example — where was it?" he demanded.

"Eastern Ireland," Remus answered. He was pointing his own wand at Adrian. "What did you plan to do when you graduated Hogwarts, but couldn't?"

"I wanted to be an Auror."

Remus exhaled and lowered his wand. "I wish I could say well met, Adrian, but I can't." His voice was bitter and angry. He sat down on the edge of the folly and leaned his forearms against his thighs.

Adrian sat down next to him and asked quietly, "What on earth happened?"

"Dumbledore asked for extra protection around the school last night. We knew he was going somewhere, doing something important for the war effort. But we weren't prepared for Death Eaters entering the school. Draco Malfoy spent all year repairing a broken vanishing cabinet. The matching cabinet was in Borgin and Burkes. That was how the Death Eaters got into the school."

Adrian swore under his breath and tilted his head back to look up at the weak sun. "Fuck."

"Well put," Remus agreed darkly.

"And Snape actually killed him?" Adrian asked hollowly.

"Yes." At that,Remus's face became hard and Adrian could see the anger in his gold-flecked eyes. "Harry saw the whole thing. He chased after Snape, but he couldn't stop him from escaping. And Harry won't tell us what he was doing with Dumbledore. We know they were together, but Harry just keeps saying that Dumbledore swore him to secrecy."

Adrian wasn't sure what to say about that. He could understand the need for secrecy, especially if it concerned Potter and Dumbledore trying to bring Voldemort down, but he could also see that it was maddening for Remus not to know what was going on. It seemed Dumbledore sworeeveryoneto some kind of secrecy.

However, all he said was, "So… what now?"

"Dumbledore's funeral will be held in a couple of days, I expect. Hogwarts is holding the students until then, in case any wish to attend. I'm sure the details will be in the Prophet. The Order will regroup and continue fighting where we can. Alastor Moody, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Arthur Weasley, and myself will likely take the lead in Dumbledore's place. We were the most senior members." Remus sounded tired.

Adrian nodded. "If you need me, please let me know."

"At some point, we may need you to fight. We lost two damned good fighters back in April in the battle at Little Helga near Hartford. I also plan to let Arthur and Molly Weasley know of your involvement, but I will specifically ask them not to breathe a word to any of their children. I doubt Fred and George would understand." Seeing Adrian's worried expression, Remus added, "Dumbledore is dead,Adrian. If I tell Arthur and Molly, that's two more people who know you are helping us, and who can vouch for you if something were to happen. I don't want anyone to attack you unnecessarily. Some people hold strong prejudices against those who were in Slytherin House. Especially now. Snape's actions will have unexpected repercussions."

Adrian grimaced, but nodded. That unfortunately made sense.

Remus went on, "For now, we'll just have to wait and see what happens. I have no idea how Voldemort will move next. I suspect, at the very least, he will attempt to infiltratethe Ministry. Rufus Scrimgreour will do all he can to prevent that."

Adrian said quietly, "Mum and Straun MacMillan sit on the board for St. Mungo's. They want to try and stay there as long as possible, but they know the chairmanis a supporter of blood purity, and he doesn't like either of them. His name is Cecil Vanhausen."

Remus frowned thoughtfully. "Is Straun MacMillan any relation to Ernie?"

"He's Ernie's father. And my brother is engaged to Straun's niece, Bridget MacMillan."

"Cecil Vanhausen must be Courtney Vanhausen's father," Remus said tensely.

"He is. Kenneth and I discovered that the Death Eaters have been paying him off for months. Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about it."

"I remember." Remus looked disgusted. "I can't say I'm surprised, but it does make things difficult."

Adrian hesitated, then added, "My parents would like to keep this as secret as possible, but my father has been brewing potions to help the Order. Wound-Cleaning, Blood-Replenishing, Antidote to Common Poisons… just in case."

Remus stared at him. "Are you serious?"

Adrian nodded.

The older man let out a long sigh. "Well, that's good to know. I'll let Alastor, Kinglsey and Arthur know too, but no one else. Please tell your parents that it is very much appreciated. We had little way of obtaining those types of Potions, and Snape was the only serious potioneer in the Order. He never brewed anything for the Order's use, though. If we need to stock the safehouses, can you get the potions there?"

"I can."

"Good. I'll make a list of the ones that would be most needed at each safehouse and I'll reach out to you as soon as I know more. In the meantime, keep a low profile, Adrian."

Adrian nodded again. "I will."

Author's Notes:

1. It's been a while since I wrote this chapter, but the French surname Giraudon's family motto is, from what I remember when I googled, "Protect your family and your heritage" - which I thought was very fitting.

2. This chapter spawned an outtake of Alania's duel with Travers, her conversation with Dumbledore afterwards, and exactly what happened that day in 1977... but I wrote it from the prospective of Alania telling Alicia much later, ca. 2004, so I haven't posted it yet as it contains additional spoilers for the story.