Chapter 3: Some Dire News

Thanks for reading and reviewing.

I added a bit to the last two chapters. I have no idea where my head is, but it is not where it needs to be. I added the invisibility cloak in the first chapter, no need to reread. And just beefed up the second chapter, again no need to reread.

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The Patronus was a cute little otter, and it opened its mouth and said,

Mr. Potter, I am glad to hear that you are okay. We will receive you when you come. I am sad to say that many are dead, but there are some that are alive. Please, message us back when you have a chance.

The voice was that of Professor Flitwick's. It was squeaky and soft. It sounded delighted to hear from him, all things considered.

"I guess that means that he's the highest-ranking professor alive," said Harry, not sure how he felt about that. He really didn't know the professor that well. He liked him as a teacher, but didn't know him as a person. He seemed cheerful enough, but was he ready to be in charge of Hogwarts?

"I guess so. I wonder if that means that McGonagall is dead," said Sirius, rubbing his goatee in thought. He was going over what he knew of the current ranking of the teachers in Hogwarts. He didn't know it that well. He knew Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, and then that was it. He knew Umbridge was up there, but that was only this year. He didn't know where she fell in the hierarchy.

"Probably," said Harry as he too went over what he knew of the pecking order. "That's too bad. I guess that means Dumbledore is dead too, like you said." He mourned a bit over that. He had already grieved some, but it really hadn't caught up with him yet. There were just so many dead. It was going to hit him hard soon.

"I didn't think he'd make it through it. He was rather old, and it was a very bad virus. McGonagall too, now that I think about it," Sirius said, getting a thoughtful look on his face.

"Still, I thought he would. He was a tough old man," the teenager said, rubbing the tears from his eyes. This was not the time to cry. He needed to be strong. There was too much to do. He was still getting over the fact that the Weasleys had not answered his letter. Were they dead? Or were they trying to find a place to stay? Would they come here? Was it too much to hope that the whole family survived?

"Let's stick to the plan and wait here for a couple days, see if anybody shows up. Can you send a patronus to Remus?" the dogman asked, hoping his friend would have made it, but not really thinking he had. Remus would have been here by now if he was alive. The werewolf would have come here second thing. He would have gone to Tonks first. He was sure of it.

"Sure." With that Harry sent a Patronus off to Remus and Tonks. He added Tonks at the request of Sirius. The dogman figured that if one was there, the other would be close by.

Sirius and Harry set about sorting through all the canned goods that they had appropriated. They really wanted to get things sorted through, putting the dates in line. All the stuff that was going to go off soon in the front and all the bad stuff that was going to hold off in the back. It was quite tedious work as they had got a lot of items. They had hit over 100 houses, after all.

"I know we got quite a bit, but once we hit Hogwarts this is going to go quite fast. There's going to be a lot of mouths to feed," Harry said as he put some of the creamed corn with the rest of the like. They were sorting like with like, and it was monotonous.

"Hogwarts has its own food source," said Sirius, looking at a can of carrots like they would bite him. He tossed them with the rest and picked up some mushed peas, checked the date and sorted it.

"I was wondering about that," said Harry, grabbing the next can and sorting it. "How do they feed themselves?" On and on it went with the cans.

"Well, they have a garden patch, and I think there's a farm in Hogsmeade that supplies the meat," his godfather stated, thinking about what he knew of the food chain at the school. He remembered trying to prank it as a teen, but it was well guarded.

"Oh", said Harry.

"And as you saw, some of the house elves made it through the virus, so they have their own workforce, so we don't have to worry about that." Not that Harry would have to worry about it anyway. That was the teachers' concern.

Harry pondered on that for a moment. He was concerned about the other creatures and nonhumans. "I wonder if any of the other nonhuman magicals made it through too. I mean like the goblins and such. I wonder if they were affected," he said, putting his thoughts to words.

"Well, from what I've seen all the animals were affected," Sirius said, noting that they had seen many dead house cats and dogs. "So, I'm going to assume they were too. If not, we're in big trouble." His brow furrowed with worry at his thoughts. He was envisioning some real issues that would pop up if the goblins came through unscathed.

"How do you mean?" Harry asked, tilting his head. He didn't understand how they could be in more trouble than they were already.

"The goblins have been looking to rebel for years. They will use this as a means of opportunity," was the answer.

That threw Harry for a loop. He didn't want to think about that. "Do you mean they'll rebel against us?" was the shocked question.

"In a heartbeat," Sirius said. He'd grown up on horror stories about the goblins rebelling and how it was always just around the corner.

"That's not good."

"Not in the least."

"What are we going to do?"

Sirius shrugged and said, "Let them. We have no choice. We're down to 22% of our population. We were outnumbered to begin with." He looked around the room like there was something there that would explain it better. There wasn't, so he looked back at Harry. "The only reason they won in the first place is because we were better than they were. Now that they might have the numbers against us, there's no way we could win. Especially now, that we're divided with us against the Death Eaters." He shrugged his shoulder again and gave Harry a defeated look.

"This is not a good situation to be in," his godson said, narrowing his eyes. He didn't like the defeated look on his godfather. He needed Sirius to be strong and the man was giving up before he even started.

"I agree," Sirius said, with a sigh.

Suddenly a wolf Patronus came through the wall. It was Tonks's.

Remus has gone feral. Dad didn't make it. I'm making my way to you. I'll be there soon.

"Shite," Sirius said with anger in his tone. All his hopes of being reunited with his friend were dashed.

"Damn, I'm sorry to hear that, Sirius," Harry said to his godfather, knowing that that was the last of his friends.

"Well, it was too much to hope that all of my friends would have made it through. I would have rather he died," was the remorse answer. This was not good news. If Remus was feral, he might come here and put them in danger.

"Still, I know he was one of your last friends from school," Harry said, putting his hand on his godfather's arm. He didn't know Remus well, and the thought that the man had turned feral was scary.

"He was my last friend. I know nobody else. At least Tonks got away. She's one of the last relatives I know that knows that I'm innocent. I wonder if her mother made it. Andi is good people," Sirius said, brightening a bit. Tonks and Andi would make a good addition to their group.

"Well, if she did, then she could invite her to come with us too," Harry said, hoping that having family around would make Sirius happier, and get his head in the game.

"Send off a Patronus and tell Tonks to have her mother come with her," his godfather demanded politely. He was still upset over Remus and wondered if all the werewolves went feral. Probably. If someone as gentle as Remus did, it was a guarantee that they all did.

"All right, Sirius." And Harry proceeded to do just that.

"Thanks, Harry. you're a good kid," Sirius said, pulling him into a hug. He was getting close to his last nerve. He was glad Harry and Tonks were still alive. He hoped Andi was too.

"Of course."

And the two of them continued to sort through all the goods. Dobby popped in and started helping them and soon enough with magic they had it all sorted. Canned goods to one side. Frozen goods into one bag, refrigerated stuff in another bag, pre-made items in another. It took the better part of the day, but they had it all sorted out.

Tonks and her mother showed up around mid-afternoon. They would have been there sooner, but they decided to gather everything they needed to survive. They weren't going back to their home. They were alone. Everybody else had died or were as good as dead to them. They both looked like they had been in a fight. Their clothes were askew, and their hair was in disarray. Tonks sported some scratches on her arms, and one down her face.

"Andi, it's good to see you," said Sirius, hugging his cousin. She looked like she had been crying. "I'm sorry it had to be under such circumstances," he added, looking at her face showing his sympathy.

"Sirius, you're looking good for a man who's on the run," said Andi, proper as always. She did return the hug though.

"Yeah, well, I've had a good couple of years hiding out in this house," he said, releasing her and standing back and looking at her. "There's been nothing to do but eat and take care of myself."

"Nymphadora tells me that you've been hiding here and being nothing but a vagabond. At least you've been staying out of trouble," Andromeda said, straightening her blouse, she put down her bag and looked around the kitchen. She seemed to approve of all the food that they had yet to put away.

"I haven't had any choice in the matter," said Sirius. "Come here, Tonks," he said, giving her a hug.

Tonks came up to him and she was crying. Her dad was dead, and her boyfriend was feral. She wrapped Sirius in a tight hug and just bawled her eyes out.

Andromeda was holding it together by the skin of her teeth. She was a pureblood. She would not cry in front of other people.

"I can't believe he's feral," said Tonks, her voice muffled by Sirius's clothes. "He flipped so quickly. We were eating dinner, and he started coughing. He was fine one minute and the next he was a snarling mess. He attacked Dad. That's how he died, Remus killed him," she wailed, seeing the scene in her mind. "I tried to fight him off, but he was too strong. Mum and I finally chased him away. We didn't know what to do. We warded the house against werewolves, he's been sniffing around for the last two days. Sirius, it's been a nightmare."

"Dear Merlin, I can't believe it," said Sirius. "The virus must have taken all that was human from him," he speculated. That was all he could think of what must have happened. "Why didn't you come here?" he asked, wondering why she didn't run.

"I wasn't thinking," she confessed.

"I get that. I didn't think to contact you either. Then again, I can't do the Patronus," he said, giving a throaty chuckle.

"We were going to get married," she said, tears running down her face. She laughed a little. It was a wet laugh that tinged on hysteria. "Did I tell you? He didn't know it yet, but we were going to," she cried into his shoulder.

"I'm sure you would have found a way to convince him," he said. He knew Tonks would have got the man to marry her. She was deeply in love with the werewolf. That was until he killed her father. Sirius didn't think there was any coming back from that.

"Nymphadora, pull yourself together," said Andromeda, trying not to be heartless. She didn't like the fact that an older man was chasing after her baby. Now that the werewolf had gone wolf and killed her husband, there was no way in hell that was going to happen.

"Come on, Andi, can't you see the girl is heartbroken?" said Sirius, upset over everything that was happening. Remus was his dearest friend and now he might be the one to put him down. If Remus came here to hurt them, Sirius would be the one to kill him. That was not something he wanted to do. He was going to have to put up some anti-werewolf wards.

"This is the end of the world, Sirius," Andi snapped, at her wits end. She had been through a lot in the last few days, she didn't have the demeanor to coddle anyone. "We need to pull it together. Now is not the time for a mental breakdown."

"Bugger you and your pureblood upbringing," Tonks said, but she did wipe her eyes and pull herself together. She did know that there were things that needed to be done. She could have her breakdown at night like a proper pureblood, for all that she was a half-blood.

"Well, now that we know that you two are alive, we need to know if others are too," said Harry now that he knew that the emotional stuff was over. He didn't know these people. He had only met Tonks once, and he'd never met Andromeda. "We know there are some alive at Hogwarts."

"I don't know anybody well enough for you to send messages to them. We can just simply wait and see if anybody shows up for a week and then we can all go to Hogwarts," said Sirius, trying to think of anyone that they could message. Maybe Moody, but he was sure that old goat was dead too. He was old and gimpy. If he survived it would be a miracle.

"That sounds like a very good plan. I can send a Patronus or two out," said Tonks, pulling her wand. She would send them to her coworkers and boss.

"Why don't you do that, and I'll get you and Andy set up in a room. There's a house elf, but it's not Kreacher. He did not survive the virus," Sirius said, grabbing a bag and heading to the stairs.

Harry took one of Tonks's and followed Sirius. Both Andi and Tonks grabbed the rest and did the same.

"Good, that decrepit old house elf needed to die anyway," Tonks said, she hated the way that old elf talked to her.

"Nymphadora, what a thing to say," chastised her mother. She taught her daughter better than that. House elves were not to be talked about like that. They were living, sentient beings and were to be respected.

"What? You never heard the way that elf talked to me. Always going on about half-bloods this, mudbloods that. It was despicable the way that elf talked," Tonks said, making mimicking motions with her hands and face. She even morphed her nose to look like Kreacher's.

"Still, that's no way to talk about the dead," Andi said, looking at her daughter with some distaste.

"You would say the same thing if you ever heard the way that elf talked, Mrs. Tonks," Harry said, coming to Tonks's defense. "Kreacher was a vile elf. He was left on his own for far too long. He was an evil, evil creature." He too was glad that that elf was dead.

"You didn't know, Andi. Leave it alone. I would have killed that elf myself if I was that type of person," Sirius said, leading the way up the stairs. They were on the third floor now.

"Very well, I will drop it," said Andi, following along and pursing her lips. She didn't like it, but they were right. She hadn't known the elf.

"Come on, let's get you two settled," said Sirius, stopping at a door on the third floor.

With that, he got Andromeda and Nymphadora settled into two rooms. They then went back to the kitchen and the four of them sat around and ate some of the premade meals that he and Harry had picked up from the houses. Dobby was excited to have two more people to wait on.

"What are your plans going forward?" asked Andromeda, picking at an unknown casserole. It had chicken and noodles with some carrots. There was a white sauce. It was good, but not something she would have cooked.

Sirius took a bite, chewed and swallowed. He took a drink of butterbeer and then said, "Like I said, we're going to go to Hogwarts after about a week and make plans from there. Harry wants to go to the continent and make a community there. He thinks there's going to be more people there." He smiled at his godson with pride.

"He's probably right," Andi said, thinking about it. "There's a higher concentration of people on the continent." She dabbed at her lips with a napkin.

"That will be away from the Death Eaters," said Tonks, wanting to be away from England. Remus would be here, and she wanted to get away from here.

"There's still going to be a lot of bad people there and the Death Eaters might follow us over there," Sirius warned. He wasn't going to be delusional. The Death Eaters were going to go where Harry went. He was the boy of prophecy.

"I doubt it," Tonks said, not following Sirius's thoughts. "They're going to want to keep England for themselves."

"Not if what you say is true and the goblins take over," Harry said, thinking all the magicals would run if that happened.

"What's this?" asked Andi, looking at Harry.

Harry looked at all the adults who were looking at him. Sirius gave him a nod, so he said, "Sirius says that the goblins are going to rebel."

"He's probably right," said Andi. She had grown up with the same stories that Sirius had. She had no illusions that the goblins would let this opportunity pass up.

"They've been waiting to do it for years," said Tonks, nodding in agreement. As an Auror she had heard horror tales that they would be fighting wars with the goblins at any moment.

"That's if the virus didn't affect them," said Sirius, pragmatically. "There's still a chance that they were cut in numbers as well."

"That's probably true too. If the virus affected them as bad, if not worse than it did us, then they might not take over," Harry said, though he didn't wish it to be true, in a way he did. They didn't need another war right now.

"I guess we're going to have to go and see," said Sirius with a sigh. He really didn't want to. He had enough to do. Well, not really, but he still didn't want the responsibility. It wasn't his job.

"I think we should wait and figure out what's going on with us before we figure out what's going on with them. Leave that up to the ministry. It is kind of their job," said Tonks, wrinkling her nose. She didn't like the thought of letting someone like Fudge taking on that kind of responsibility, but it was his job. That was if he was still alive. If the man wasn't cowering in fear somewhere. For all they knew the man had fled.

"Too right on that," said Sirius, glad that was taken out of his hands. "Not that they ever bloody do their job anyway," he mumbled under his breath. They never did anything for him at any rate.

"You do realize I work for the government, right?" asked Tonks, quirking an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah, but you don't like it," he said with a smirk.

"I happen to love my job as an Auror," she protested.

"Ah, but you don't like working for the government," he rebutted, knowing she hated Fudge and Umbridge. She had talked about them often enough at the meetings. She had rambled about how they were ruining the community. Hopefully they were dead, and they didn't have to deal with it at all.

"Yeah, you're right on that. Fudge is a right idiot," she agreed, nodding her head.

"For all you know, the poor man could be dead. I wish you would not speak ill of people until you know whether they're alive or dead," Andromeda said primly. She wasn't quite the bitch she was coming off as, but she had just been through so much the last few days, that she wasn't up to company.

"With all due respect, Mrs. Tonks, just because somebody is alive or dead does not make them less of an idiot," said Harry. He never got the whole don't speak ill of the dead thing. If you were stupid as a person alive, you were still stupid dead. That fact did not change when you died.

"Harry!" said Sirius with a choked laughter.

"What? I said with all due respect," Harry said like he hadn't said anything wrong, which to him, he hadn't in his eyes.

"Still, that's no way to talk to my cousin," he said, though there was no heat behind it. He really didn't feel it was up to him to chastise Harry. The boy was grown enough to know right from wrong.

"Whatever."

With that, the conversation went back to what they were going to do after they went to Hogwarts. Which basically boiled down to making plans on going to the continent, which was pinned on how many people were left alive there. Harry just let the conversation flow around him. He had plans, but they were new in the making. He needed to know what they were going to do, then he'd tell them what he was going to do. Hopefully, they'll mesh.

He had a stray thought as he ate his casserole. 'Did Snape make it?'