(27 : WISELY AND SLOW . . .
THEY STUMBLE THAT RUN FAST)

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     TWO WEEKS INTO THE TERM, Juliet was on edge after she received an invitation to meet with Dumbledore. The last time she visited his office had resulted in her being engaged to a Death Eater, so she supposed whatever he wanted couldn't be worse than that. Still, she took the long route.

     "Fizzing whiz—" started Juliet, looking at the imposing gargoyle with indifference.

     Before she could finish reciting the password, the gargoyle stepped aside. Four Gryffindors — the usual suspects, of course — ambled out, an excited buzz clouding the group. Although, there was also an underlying sense of apprehension that none of boys were prepared to address.

Finding it strange that the four of them would be leaving Dumbledore's office as she was arriving, Juliet frowned. "Ja–Potter," she caught herself in time, "do I even want to know how you managed to get sent to the Headmaster's Office when it's only the second week back?"

"Hey! Don't give him all the credit," objected Sirius.

Juliet opened her mouth again, but her frown only deepened when she saw three more Gryffindors leaving the office. It was Lily and two girls that were vaguely familiar to Juliet because of the Quidditch Final. Like the boys, there was an uncharacteristic nervous energy to their movements.

The redhead furrowed her brow. "Let me guess, Dumbledore has finally cracked and inducted all of you into his Gryffindor cult because I've had this conspiracy for a while now th—"

Lily stepped forward, flashing her a small smile. "We had a . . . group meeting of sorts."

"Because that doesn't sound suspicious at all," deadpanned Juliet, turning to James for an explanation. When he promptly averted his eyes, Juliet cleared her throat and added, "Well, I have meeting with Dumbledore myself and I wouldn't want to keep him waiting."

Juliet really didn't care if she kept him waiting. However, nobody opposed her departure, so she brushed past the group without another word. James reached out to touch her hand, but she shook him off.

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     "Come in, Miss Fawley."

"Professor," she curtly acknowledged, taking the seat opposite him. "Is it a burning day for Fawkes?"

     Whilst Juliet didn't take Care of Magical Creatures anymore, she had earned an 'Exceed Expectations' on her O.W.L exam and read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them more than once. Not to mention she was once taught most magical basics by a stern governess. Although her family never cared much for knowledge, they cared for having a well-rounded daughter that would be highly desired and envied. If only they knew that same daughter was now regularly snogging a blood traitor.

Often, her home curriculum was more biased than the one available at Hogwarts. Juliet was taught that the Goblin Rebellions were atrocious acts of insubordination considering wizards were the superior species, that werewolves were bloodthirsty monsters that would snatch children out of their beds if they didn't eat their vegetables and much more that Juliet was slowly beginning to realise was wrong. Phoenixes, however, were rather straightforward — they would burn and be reborn from their ashes. And the only explanation for Fawkes looking like a half-plucked turkey was his approaching fiery death.

     "Indeed," confirmed Dumbledore. "Fascinating creatures, phoenixes. They find strength in the very thing that was meant to destroy them — there is something almost poetic about it, wouldn't you agree?"

     Never one for skirting around a topic or thinly-veiled life metaphors, Juliet sighed. "Why am I here, sir?"

     "Always one to cut to the chase, Miss Fawley. I myself have found it is better to move wisely and slow if we do not hope to stumble," the old man advised, speaking like the two were close friends. "But, I shall concede for both our sakes. As I expressed to Mr Potter and his friends before you arrived, we are facing dark and difficult times right now. It is my belief that — in such times — we must fight, we must fight not because it easy but because it is right." His pale blue eyes held no delusions of what awaited them in the years ahead and remained fixed on the student in front of him. "That is why I have spent the last three years establishing an organisation that will oppose Voldemort and his Death Eaters. The Order of the Phoenix."

Juliet froze, recalling that Voldemort knew about the group. "No. My answer is no."

Upon hearing her immediate refusal, Dumbledore appeared amused. "I have yet to ask you anything."

"But you were going to," she whispered. "You asked James, haven't you? And Sirius and Lily and all the others. You have asked children to become soldiers."

"Rest assured, your friends are under no obligation to accept the invitation. That being said, they are all of legal age and will not be sent on any missions until they graduate from Hogwarts," explained Dumbledore. "And, in truth, I had no plans to recruit you for the Order of the Phoenix. I have always known what your answer would be and respect your precarious position given some of your . . . familial connections. However, I do have a proposition for you, Juliet."

     In response, she raised an eyebrow.

     "It is to my understanding that you will be attending a wedding at Malfoy Manor over the holidays. I have reason to believe that an item of great importance is located within the building and should you retrieve it," he paused, "then you will be an ally to the Order of the Phoenix and indefinitely be put under their protection."

     The redhead cocked her head. "Isn't it rather underhanded of a headmaster to bribe a student?"

     "Help will always been given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it." He lowered his half-moon spectacles to rest on the bridge of his nose. "Are you asking for help, Miss Fawley?"

     Like expected, Juliet said nothing.

     Dumbledore nodded, solemn. "Perhaps I should rephrase," he suggested. "If you were to help my cause, you would earn the protection of it. It would be two adults exchanging favours."

     In disbelief, she thought Dumbledore would have made a great Slytherin.

     "And what is stopping me from going to You-Know-Who with this information?" quizzed the girl. "Do not play me for a fool, professor. I am not asking you to show your hand, but I am certain that you know more than you let on."

     "I have faith in your heart, if nothing else," he stated knowingly. It felt like she had James Potter's name across her forehead because it was unfathomable she would betray him and the headmaster knew it.

     Leaning back into her chair, Juliet closed her eyes. "And what exactly is it that you want me to retrieve?"

     "A diary."

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Following her meeting with Dumbledore, Juliet arranged to meet with James in the kitchens after curfew. Perched on top of a table, she swung her legs back and forth whilst James chatted to one of the house elves about bringing them some food.

"What did you want to talk about?" James wondered, sipping his pumpkin juice.

"Well, let's see. I heard The Hobgoblins are going on tour next year, our new DADA teacher is rumoured to be having an affair with Dirk Cresswell and — oh — you're apparently part of an illicit organisation that is aiming to fight one of the darkest wizards in modern history."

James almost choked on his drink. "What?"

The redhead jumped down from the table and shrugged. "Dumbledore told me."

     "Does that mean you're —"

"It means nothing," she quickly interjected. "I don't want to fight in this war, James. You know that."

James brushed some hair out of her eyes. "I was hoping you'd change your mind."

"And I was hoping you'd change yours," she rebutted, knowing all too well that — no matter how much she disliked the idea of James fighting — she couldn't and wouldn't ever want to stop him. "But . . . Dumbledore asked me to do something — something dangerous. I told him I had to think about it more, but I don't trust him, James. He wouldn't tell me why it was so important that I do this thing. I — I don't want to rehash the argument we had last year because I know you trust him, so pretend for a second, yeah?" Juliet hesitated. "Would you really go into a battle blind? I feel like I'm missing something and he won't tell me what."

     "Forget about Dumbledore for a second," prompted James. "Do you trust me?"

     "I do," she answered softly.

     He cupped her cheek with one hand. "Good because I trust you," returned James. "And I trust that you'll reach the right decision in the end because you always do. With or without my help."

     Her heart skipped a beat. "How can you be so sure? I barely trust myself."

     "Because you you did it before," he reminded her. "In Hogsmeade."

     Overcome with gratitude, Juliet leaned in and kissed James. Gently and tenderly. He had given her all the reassurance she needed and she knew what to do.

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A.N: I'm so excited for Seventh Year, like you don't understand how many low key crazy things I have planned. And the Order is now into play! Obviously Dumbledore doesn't want them on missions yet, but they've been inducted all the same. And Juliet has her first mission...ish? Also, hello, this book now has a beautiful cover. I hope it didn't confuse anyone. I really love it.

Question, what's your favourite magical creature? I love vampires, it's a real issue if I'm honest. Spike, Stefan, Kol, you name it. But we don't see much of them in HP so I think I'd go with a niffler in HP.