Sub Rosa

A/N as always, thanks to my wonderful beta, Kate and to all my reviewers. You keep me going through a stroy that has gotten larger than I ever imagined it would be.


Chapter 56 – The Order of the Phoenix

Kathryn sat in the kitchen at 12 Grimmauld Place explaining the mirror system to the Order of the Phoenix. It was a cozy room; sr thr the only truly pleasant place in the house, with stone floors, a roaring hearth and a long wooden table.

She was a trifle nervous giving her report. Madam Chanel would not approve her joining the Order, so she was the only non-member there.

Also, ‘Mad-Eye’ Moody’s spinning eye was disconcerting. She had heard of him, of course; every Auror had, but the reality of the eye shifting about, staring at everything, combined with the occasional booming pronouncement was rather alarming.

Nymphadora Tonks was bored by the proceedings and kept changing her hair color as Kathryn talked. Kingsley Shacklebolt sat stiffly at attention, listening with gratifying intensity but with an off-putting frown. Tali and Lupin cuddled during the meeting and Severus glared at all and sundry.

Molly and Arthur Weasley, whom Kathryn had liked right away, were asking a dozen questions, rather than letting her get through her speech. Molly also kept shoving more food onto people’s plates, like a plump, redheaded version of Lady Freddy.

The rest of the Order were equally eccentric and distracting. They were either overly intent in their scrutiny or chattering or inattentive. It was not what she had expected and it certainly wasn’t what she was used to.

Briefings at the MSA were professional and efficient. There was the presentation period and then the Q&A period and everyone was calm and respectful. Kathryn plowed ahead through the chatter with dogged determination.

“Once the mirrors are placed and the charm is activated, there will need to be round-the-clock monitoring of the master mirror. It will have to be taken in shifts, obviously, and it will tie down part of your man-power, but it is a necessary expenditure.” She concluded. Looking at the others she wondered if anyone but Shacklebolt had actually paid attention. “Any questions?”

There were none. Everybody continued in their various discussions and Shacklebolt simply shook his head. Kathryn sighed and then slammed her plate down on the table with a loud shattering noise. The Order jumped as the room became silent and all eyes turned towards her.

“I asked if there were any questions about this system that has been put together to keep more people from being slaughtered.” She ground out, anger tightly leashed.

The chatterers had the grace to look shame-faced and Moody grinned at her.

“Place the mirror, say the charm and then constant vigilance!” Moody recapped for those who hadn’t been paying attention. The Order nodded and Kathryn repaired the dish with flashing eyes.

“You will all be given a tiny charm to carry about you that will grow warm when the mirrors are activated. When you feel it heat up, check your own mirrors for further instruction.” She continued in a stern voice. “I hope you take the reality more seriously than you did my explanation.” She added with her fury reined in hard.

Severus was watching her with amusement and she gathered that the lack of attentiveness had also irritated him in the past. The others ranged from looking offended to looking abashed.

“We do things differently here in England.” Miss Tonks shrugged at her, unrepentantly.

“Yes, I had noticed. In America we fight the Dark Wizards, not each other.” Her voice was so icy cold that she suspected her breath would cause frostbite. Moody was grinning even harder now, apparently he approved of her. Oh frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!

“I apologize for our rudeness, Agent Leblanc.” Shacklebolt put the emphasis on her title and Miss Tonks subsided, her angry retort dying on her lips. Kathryn took a deep br and and nodded to him.

“Apology accepted.” She sat, turning the floor over to the next speaker.

The meeting continued in a more orderly fashion after her tongue-lashing and Kathryn wished that Albus had been present. She had a suspicion that his calm demeanor and authority kept this disparate group in line far more than any innate discipline they might have had. She considered asking Madam Chanel to send a training cadre to whip the Order into shape, but figured it was none of her damn business how Albus chose to run the group.

Several hours later, after the meeting had broken up, Kathryn sat in the kitchen with Severus, Arthur, Molly, Tonks, Lupin, Moody and Tali. The other members of the Order had excused themselves and returned to their ordinary lives.

Molly and Tonks were chatting about household spells, Lupin and Tali sat with their heads together simply smiling at each other, while Arthur, Moody, Severus and Kathryn discussed the upswing in Muggle attacks.

“He is tryio fro frighten Fudge into changing the laws to exclude muggle-borns. He thinks that Fudge can be persuaded to do it ‘for their own protection’.” Severus intoned and Moody nodded in understanding.

“Fudge has the moral fiber of a jellyfish. He’ll go with whatever the prevailing wind of opinion is. He might change the laws if public opinion looked like it was swinging that way.” Moody’s gruff voice was abrupt and hard, but Kathryn felt she had more in common with the half-crippled, grizzled old veteran than she did with the two women in the room. Molly’s cheerful maternal air was alien to Kathryn.

Her own cool aristocratic mother had not prepared her for the smothering attentions of Molly Weasley.

Tonks was just too young and inexperienced for Kathryn to feel anything other than a cautious interest. She had dealt with far too many gung-ho rookies to trust her competence. The girl’s natural clumsiness and broad cockney accent did nothing to alleviate Kathryn’s concerns. The Metamorphmagus thing was useful and in four or five years when the girl was a more seasoned veteran, Kathryn thought that she might do quite well, if she survived that long.

“Fudge is the least of our concerns right now. Look, we can’t control what he’s going to do. What we need to concentrate on is reducing casualties and destroying you-know-who.” Arthur stated with a calm strength that Kathryn found interesting in his stocky, unprepossessing form.

Arthur was, despite his strange obsession with muggle inventions, a good agent. He thought ahead and kept his objectives clear in his mind. The little things didn’t distract him - well unless they had a plug attached.

“I agree.” Severus nodded. The two werewere the complete antithesis of each other. Severus was a long streak of darkness and Arthur was a round glowing ball of light. Yet, of the people sitting at the table, they weost ost alike in determination and commitment. Moody was almost too intensely determined. His paranoia, though justifiable, was likely to blind him to simpler solutions.

“So after we place the mirrors, what then?” Arthur was asking Severus with an open trustfulness that made Kathryn like him even more. The distrust and hostility of most of the Order towards Severus had fueled her anger towards them.

“We need to know where Voldemort is making his permanent base.” Kathryn commented with a friendly smile at Arthur. The others all nodded; even Molly and Tonks stopped their conversation long enough to agree. So, Kathryn thought, they are listening.

“I suspect my last meeting with him took place there, but I couldn’t find an open window to gauge the location from.” Severus’ tone held a note of frustration.

“You need a GPS locator that works in a magical environment.” Kathryn muttered.

“A what?” Arthur leaned forward and the others turned their gazes on her in interest.

“It’s a muggle invention. The device sends a signal to orbiting satellites and gets a reading on your coordinates back.” They looked at her blankly. “It tells you where you are anywhere in the world.” She simplified and they all nodded in sudden understanding.

“There must be arm orm or spell for that.” Molly pursed her lips in thought.

“Well, there is the ‘point north’ spell. Maybe we could find a way to modify it?” Arthur put in cautiously.

“Could we have it point to London, so we would know the direction?” Tonks asked.

“Yes, but we still wouldn’t know the distance.” Severus countered with a frown.

“We’re doing this backwards.” Kathryn smiled suddenly. “Severu you you dropped a tracking charm behind a couch pillow, we could home in on it, follow the charm and find the location that way.”

“Only if the place isn’t unplottable, which it most likely is.” Moody pointed out and they all deflated. “And if Voldemort found it there, Snape’s life wouldn’t be worth a brass Knut.” Kathryn nodded and sighed.

“I need to get a window open, so that I can see where the hotel is.” Severus grumbled, arms crossed and leg bouncing in frustration.

“Then you will have to wait ‘til the next time you are summoned.” Moody dismissed the whole question with a shrug.

No one was happy with that solution, but there was nothing else to do.