Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes and Whatnot

A few nights later, we were still waiting for Kreacher to return, and everybody was in a sort of anxious, nervous mood. Hermione was trying to read her book from Dumbledore, but Ron kept playing with his Deluminator, making all the lights go on and off, and I couldn’t sit still, so I paced back and forth from the fireplace to the window and stared at the figures we were sure were Death Eaters outside. They couldn’t know we were here, otherwise, they would have tried to get in.

Harry was no longer in the room, I didn’t notice when he left, but then we heard him yell “Don’t move!”

We rushed out, our wands raised to see who was there.

“Hold your fire, it’s me, Remus!” the cloaked figure shouted.

Hermione sighed “Oh thank goodness,” and she and Ron lowered their wands.

I followed, hesitantly, but Harry kept his raised.

“Show yourself!” he said.

Once we had found it to be the real Lupin and such, we took him downstairs to talk to him about what had happened since we’d left. He told us about the Death Eaters methods of finding out information, and how they were breaking into other Order member’s houses the night of the wedding.

“And are they bothering to give an excuse for torturing Harry’s whereabouts out of people?” Hermione asked.

“Well…” Lupin pulled out a copy of the Daily Prophet. “Here, you’ll know sooner or later anyway. That’s their pretext for going after you.”

The headline at the top read: Wanted for Questioning About the Death of Albus Dumbledore.

“Are you bloody serious?” I said at the same time that Ron and Hermione gave shouts of indignation.

“I’m sorry, Harry,” said Lupin.

“So Death Eaters have taken over the Daily Prophet too?” asked Hermione.

Lupin nodded.

“But don’t people realize?” I asked.

“The coup has been smooth and virtually silent,” said Lupin. “The official version of Scrimgeour’s murder is that he resigned; he has been replaced by Pius Thicknesse, who is under the Imperius Curse.”

“Why didn’t Voldemort declare himself Minister of Magic?” asked Ron.

Lupin laughed.

Then, he went on to tell us how this way, Voldemort is technically in charge, but he doesn’t have to take care of all the everyday Ministry stuff. It leaves him free to extend his power. Also, many people suspect Voldemort behind all this, but they’re too afraid to say anything out loud or rebel. Harry is supposed to be the symbol of resistance, but by making him an “enemy,” it has created doubt for people who may have backed him up. They have also started moving against Muggle-borns, rounding them up, questioning them, and punishing them if they have no trace of a wizard in their blood-line.

Lupin then asked about the mission Dumbledore left to Harry. We, of course, couldn’t tell him, but then he offered to come with us. To provide protection for the most part, and he said he wouldn’t need to know the plan. I didn’t know how we would keep our goal a secret with him around, though.

“But what about Tonks?” Hermione asked, puzzled.

“What about her?”

“Well, you’re married!” she said.

“How does she feel about you going away with us?” I asked.

“Tonks will be perfectly safe. She’ll be at her parents’ house.”

It was odd the way he said it, and why Tonks would stay hidden when she was a part of the Order.

“Remus, is everything alright…you know…between you and- “ Hermione started.

“Everything is fine, thank you.” He said, pointedly.

There was a pause, then he said, rather awkwardly, “Tonks is going to have a baby.”

“Oh, how wonderful!”

“Excellent!”

“Congratulations” we all said.

“So…do you accept my offer? Will four become five? I cannot believe Dumbledore would have disapproved, he appointed me your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, after all. And I must tell you that I believe we are facing magic many of us have never encountered or imagined.”

“Just- just to be clear,” Harry said. “You want to leave Tonks at her parent’s house and come away with us?”

“She’ll be perfectly safe there, they’ll look after her. Harry, I’m sure James would have wanted me to stick with you.”

“Well, I’m not. I’m pretty sure my father would have wanted to know why you aren’t sticking with your own kid, actually.”

Lupin went pale, and I knew this was not going to end well.

“You don’t understand” he said finally.

“Explain, then.” Said Harry.

“I made a grave mistake in marrying Tonks. I did it against my better judgment and I have regretted it very much ever since.”

I was kind of shocked at this. Sure, he thought he was too dangerous to be getting married, but to regret it very much? Regret marrying Tonks who was completely in love with him?

“I see, so you’re just going to dump her and the kid and run off with us?” Harry said.

Suddenly, Lupin jumped up, glaring.

“Don’t you understand what I’ve done to my wife and my unborn child? I should never have married her, I’ve made her an outcast! You have only ever seen me amongst the Order, or under Dumbledore’s protection at Hogwarts! You don’t know how most of the Wizarding world sees creatures like me! When they know of my affliction, they can barely talk to me!

"Don’t you see what I’ve done? Even her own family is disgusted by our marriage, what parents what their only daughter to marry a werewolf? And the child- the child- My kind don’t usually breed! It will be like me, I am convinced of it- how can I forgive myself, when I knowingly risked passing on my own condition to an innocent child? And if, by some miracle, it is not like me, then it will be better off, a hundred times so, without a father of whom it must always be ashamed!”

“Remus!” whispered Hermione. “Don’t say that- how could any child be ashamed of you?”

“Oh I don’t know, Hermione, I’d be pretty ashamed of him.” Harry said.

The rest of us sat shocked. It only escalated from there, with Harry outraged by Lupin’s lack of loyalty to his family, and Lupin’s anger at Harry for thinking he only wanted danger or glory. Lupin blasted Harry against the wall before storming out, ignoring mine and Hermione’s pleas to come back. Harry didn’t talk for a few minutes after his outburst.

Eventually, he turned around and said “I know I shouldn’t have called him a coward.”

I shook my head as Ron said “No, you shouldn’t.”

“But he’s acting like one.”

“All the same…” began Hermione.

“I know, but if it makes him go back to Tonks, it’ll be worth it, won’t it?”

We were silent after that, Harry picked up the Daily Prophet, Ron and Hermione had started their ‘secret communication’ with looks and small gestures, so I took to thinking. It's really all we'd been doing recently because while we were waiting for some sort of clue, there wasn't anything to do in the meantime. My thoughts jumped around from Lupin to the mission to Dumbledore to Hogwarts to Fred and George.

A loud crack in the kitchen jolted me from my daydreams.

Kreacher bowed low and said “Kreacher has returned with the thief Mundungus Fletcher, Master.”

Mundungus went to pull his wand, but Harry was faster, knocking it from him. Hermione caught it and Ron tackled him to the floor. He looked slightly panicked and started rambling about how he never wanted to go along in the first place, and never volunteered to die for Harry. We eventually got him to shut up long enough to ask what we wanted about the locket.

Mundungus’s response? “Why? Is it valuable?”

“You’ve still got it!” Hermione cried.

“No, he hasn’t.” said Ron.

“Of course he hasn’t.” I said

“He’s wondering whether he should have asked more money for it.”

Mundungus didn’t sell the locket though, it was taken as a bribe so as not to turn him in when he didn’t have a license to sell magical items.

“Who was this woman?” asked Harry.

“I dunno, some Ministry hag. Little woman. Bow on top of ‘er head.”

Then, he added, “Looked like a toad.”

My mouth dropped open in shock, and I saw the same expressions on the other’s faces.

And I had thought we were done with her.