Order

Chapter Nine

As Thanksgiving approached Erin spent most of the time in the kitchen, coming up with a good mix of traditional Thanksgiving food and British dishes. She finally found a good mix of both and two days before Thanksgiving she started her cooking, with pies and bread. It was nearing elven O'clock on the night before Thanksgiving, Sirius walked into room, rolling his eyes.

“Are you still at it?”

“I'm nearly done.”

“You've been at it for hours.... give it up already... what are you cooking, a feast?”

“Yes” she smiled, broadly. Sirius rolled his eyes again and came up next to her to see she was stewing something in a pot.

“What’s this?”

“Beef stew” she answered, putting the lid on the pot.

Muggle cooking doesn't look that hard... I mean, all you do is put ingredients in right? It’s just like using your wand.”

“Yes, but we tend not to like blackened food” she smirked up at him.

“Alright, I'm not the best cook... you could show me a few things though, couldn't you?” Sirius asked, picking up and spoon and taking the lib off the stew, breathing in deeply.

“If you'd like to learn, I'd love to.”

He smiled over to her, after taking a spoon full of stew.

“I think I'd better... you are a brilliant cook, after all.”

Thanksgiving Day came and Erin spent the whole day cooking. Sirius helping; he wasn’t as useless as she first thought he would be, he was actually quite eager to learn to cook the muggle way, he helped crack the eggs in various things and helped get the turkey ready; all while telling her about his mother who would most likely blow her lid if she were alive to see him. The guests arrived at six, right on time, sadly Arthur and Molly Weasley couldn’t come, Remus; who was first to arrive informed her of this.

“Arthur says he’d love to come, but Bill is bringing over his new girlfriend and Molly is making Shepard’s pie.”

“That’s alright, at least you came” Erin smiled at him, as he took a seat at the table, which had been done up so that there was a white, lace, table cloth and a vase full of flowers in the middle. The last guest to arrive was Tonks, she pushed her way in the middle of Kingsley and Remus, smiling.

“Sorry, I’m late, just got off” she told them, Erin didn’t say a word, she didn’t think Sirius was serious about inviting her; he obviously knew Erin didn’t like her, but Erin would let it go, it was a holiday after all. She served them all as Sirius proudly told them of how he stuffed the turkey like a muggle, some looked utterly sickened by the story and some looked rather bored. Once they were all sitting Erin told them they all had to say what they were thankful for, this was a tradition in her house after all.

“I’m thankful for the Order and Dumbledore who doesn’t think bad of me because of….well, you know” smiled Remus, there had been a lot of ‘Thankful for’s’ and there were only two left now; Sirius and Erin.

“I’m thankful for Remus…. The Order, Dumbledore…and Harry” Sirius smiled. “Oh, and Erin, it was bloody hell without you around...the house is a lot cleaner now too.”

Erin smiled at Sirius, partly in thanks, thinking that was sweet to say, and partly because she didn’t know what to say herself.

“I’m thankful for…. The whole Order, I kind’ve like being here, and I’m thankful for Remus for teaching me some magic…it’s about time I used it.”

She heard someone clear their throat and she looked over to see Sirius looking at her board; he obviously felt that if he was thankful for her then she should be thankful for him as well.

“Oh, yes, and I’m thankful for Sirius too.”

“Very nice” Sirius grinned. “Let’s eat.”

The dinner didn’t take as long as she thought it would have, mostly because most of the Order members ate fast then went on their way. Now all that were left were; Erin, Sirius, Remus and Tonks. Sirius was on his third slice of apple pie and the others were drinking tea, talking happily. The newest conversation was about Hogwarts.

“What house do you think I’d be in, Remus? Erin asked, Remus pondered this for awhile, obviously thinking hard.

“Oh, Gryffindor, by far” said Sirius, putting down his fork.

“I think maybe more along the lines of Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw, actually” said Remus.

“Eh, Gryffindor is the best.”

“I was in Hufflepuff” Tonks chimed in. Erin nodded, she wondered what was the difference, what made one house better than the other. “I used to make my head of house so mad…”

“Why?” Erin asked.

“I used to sneak out at night.”

“Oh, we used to sneak out too” Sirius smirked.

“I’d always get caught though.”

“We never got caught” Sirius smirked wider.

“Oh, we got caught our fair share of times, Sirius” Remus spoke up.

“Did you get into trouble?” Erin asked, she had been told by Sirius that he and James would be in detection’s every other day.

“Oh, never Mr. Perfect here, but me and James did, all the time.”

You have to have detention at least one time in your seven years…it’s almost the rules, I got plenty” Tonks smiled, Erin was jealous, she’d never even seen Hogwarts; maybe a few picture’s in Sirius’ old Hogwarts A History book, but still, she bet it was better in person.

“But, Gryffindor is better by far” Sirius went on. “Everyone wants to be in Gryffindor…unless you’re a purest and want to be in Slytherin.”

“I liked being in Hufflepuff, their just as good as Gryffindors” said Tonks, looking slightly offended.

“Hufflepuffs are the left overs” Sirius stated, sitting back far in his chair.

“Sirius!” Tonks nearly yelled.

“It’s true, we got the brave, Slytherin got the purest, Ravenclaw the smartest…what’re Hufflepuffs? The left overs.”

“That’s not true; Hufflepuffs have qualities from each house… well, maybe not Slytherin, and they are very loyal.”

Sirius shrugged with a smirk, balancing his chair on its two back lags. “Still think Gryffindor’s are the best… you don’t see Harry in Hufflepuff do you?”

Tonks huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Oh, here we go” mumbled Remus, standing up and walking around the table, getting another cup of tea. Erin hurried and did the same, just to see what he meant by this.

“What did you mean ‘oh here we go’?”

“Were going to end up having hours debate on whose house was better… neither will agree and soon one will leave angry.”

“What does it matter whose house is better?” Erin asked “What makes them so different?”

“It really doesn’t matter… but people do tend to be bias to their own houses, even I have done it.”

“You think Gryffindore is better too?” Erin asked him,

“Oh, of course, but I wouldn’t tell a Hufflepuff that” Remus smiled and turned, she did the same to see Sirius and Tonks in a deep and heated decision about Hogwarts houses.

“I’m on duty tonight… I have to go” Tonks said, a bit harshly.

“By all means, Hufflepuff” Sirius spat, standing up and fallowing her out of the kitchen.

“Why does everyone argue with each other?” Erin then asked, sighing. “Me and Tonks have argued, you and Sirius…. You and I… I’ve never fought with Sirius, which is kind of surprising, but still.”

Remus shrugged slightly. “I haven’t the foggiest idea, I guess its pride, getting to close with someone, spending too much time with them; it could be a number of things, really.”

“I spend every day with Sirius…” Erin trailed off.

“Yes, I know” Remus nodded, sipping more tea. “I’m sure your time will come when you see Sirius do something and you can’t let it go…. Or he will get mad over something; it’s only natural to argue.”

“I hope it won’t be over something stupid like Hogwarts houses.”

“Well” said Remus. “If you were ever to go to Hogwarts, which house would you want to be in?”

Gryffindor” she smiled.

“Then you will never argue with Sirius over Hogwarts houses.”

They sat in silence for a few minutes, her mind the traveled to other things, mostly Remus; she wondered what he was like in his years at Hogwarts, she thought he was probably just as he is now, just younger. She then wondered how in the world he managed to go to school and be a werewolf all at the same time.

“How did you manage the werewolf thing at Hogwarts?” she then asked, he looked up at her, he wasn’t surprised like other times, he had become used to her asking these types of things.

“Dumbledore, he thought I should go to school just like everyone else, I didn’t think it would be possible, but he did” Remus smiled, more to himself. “He planted the tree, the Whomping Willow and its covering a tunnel to the Shrieking Shack, and that’s where I went to change, since I can’t be around humans when I do.”

“What will happen if you are?”

I could kill them, I could kill my best friend and have no feeling while doing it, or I could just bite them, then he or she would become a werewolf too.”

Erin just stared at him for a few seconds. “What if you bit someone while not in werewolf form?”

“Why would I do that?” he asked, chuckling a bit.

“Well, I don’t know… but say you did…”

“They wouldn’t become a werewolf, no… it’s only when I am and bite someone.”

“Have you ever bitten anyone?”

“No, of course not… I stay far away from any human contact.”

Just then Sirius came back in; he didn’t look angry, he was smirking proudly and took his seat once more. Taking another piece of pie.

“Did you and Tonks sort it all out?” Remus asked him.

“Yes, in the end, she agrees that Gyrffindor’s are braver and above the rest.”

“I don’t think she did…” Erin trailed off, watching Sirius almost sallow the pie whole.

“No, but she thinks Remus is all those things” Sirius smirked. Erin felt that deep pain of jealously and annoyance in the pit of her stomach again, Remus however just looked down at the table. Once Sirius was done eating he once again sat back in his chair. “You’re a fantastic cook, Erin, you should write a book.”

“Yes, how to cook muggle” Erin smirked at him, he laughed slightly, looking to full to do much else.

“Well, I guess I should be going too” then stated Remus. “I have a bit of work to get done.”

“For Dumbledore?” Erin asked.

“Naturally” Remus smiled.