Order Only

[alt_hydra]

All right. I saw Rachel's post. What you don't know is that before she killed Mafalda Hopkirk, my mother killed my grandmother's long-time lover, Pascoal. She was trying to find out if he'd ever stolen her hair, and apparently he thought about it, once, because someone made him an offer, and that alone was enough to get him killed.

Aunt Narcissa called me over to the Manor to tell me all of this, and to go call on Nanella. She was terrified of what my mother would do next. They spoke in the journals earlier and Mummy made it sound as if she might go after me next. She said I was a traitor and a failure as a council witch, and she made it clear that she was suspicious of Aunt Narcissa, too.

Trust me when I say that I'm quite certain my mother has no evidence that I'm a traitor. This has more to do with what happened when we went in front of Voldemort than anything else. She has to turn me into her enemy to make sense of what's happened.

My mother can't legilimise me, either, so there's no danger there. She can, however, legilimise Aunt Narcissa, who can occlude but won't be able to withstand my mother's style of interrogation.

In short, Narcissa strongly suspects that I'm involved with the Order now, and she's hoping that I'll confirm it. I've not done so just yet. She wants to cast Fidelius on the manor and keep me here with her, to protect me. Which is unnecessary, honestly, but I do think we need to act in order to keep her out of my mother's range, and Fidelius may be the best and only way to do that. It would also give us another safe house.

I don't want to act without your input.

Comments

[alt_sirius]

Do you think your mother would torture you in order to secure a confession?

[alt_sirius]

I mean, this is Bella, nothing's beyond her. But do you really think you're safe from her coercion as you say?

[alt_alice]

Not to mention that Bellatrix will be furious if Narcissa leaves, and if you don't, you will be in the direct line of fire, as it were.

[alt_hydra]

No one really is.

But apparently she tortured my father and left him alive (and he's having a baby with another woman, remember), and she didn't directly go after either Narcissa or me when she could have done. She went after Pascoal and Mafalda, probably because they aren't people who Voldemort himself would miss.

She can't really do anything that bad to me without possibly angering him further than she already has.

Private Message to Hydra

[alt_alice]

That is a cold comfort.

You know best the different pressures you'd face from your mother and from Voldemort by staying out in the open -- and it seems a rather precarious balancing act.

You have an opportunity to come in, if you wish to.

[alt_alice]

How certain is she of your affiliation?

This puts Rachel indirectly in harm's way as well -- seeing as how we have insurance in the form of Lucius, there is less harm in bringing her in than having her stay out.

What on earth will she say to others, though? Will she just disappear, and leave it at that? Is she prepared to cut off all communication with Crouch and Dolohov?

[alt_rachel]

I'm certainly in harm's way if Bellatrix legilimises her, successfully, so I'd favor Fidelius as a solution here. Can Narcissa cast it, or does she need someone from the Order to come do it?

[alt_hydra]

She already cast Fidelius on Blackmoor Park, just to protect my Grandmother. She's planning to publicly announce that she was forced to use Fidelius because my mother has gone mad and is killing members of the family with no good reason.

[alt_alice]

And you are reasonably assured that were you to confirm your membership, she would keep that particular secret secure, yes?

[alt_hydra]

We still have Lucius as insurance, as you said. And considering she did all this to protect me, more or less, I don't know why she'd decide not to later.

[alt_sirius]

How soon do you have to agree? I mean to say, you'd probably better get back with a yes or no, but it sounds like we may as well.

In for a knut, in for a Galleon, hey?

Private message to Padfoot

[alt_lupin]

I bet you a galleon that by midsummer she's asked us to swear her into the Order. (Narcissa will ask, I mean.)

Re: Private message to Padfoot

[alt_sirius]

I'll take that bet.

If anyone ever told us we'd be harbouring the entire Malfoy family ....

Merlin, our bedfellows in this war keep getting stranger and stranger.

[alt_lupin]

If you tell her you're in the Order, that only gives her new information about one person -- you. Do you feel safe with her knowing?

We could pull her out and send her to Saltash, but that might actually attract rather more attention than a Fidelius Charm would.

[alt_alice]

Great minds, love.

Agreed, the Fidelius would make more logical sense as her acting independently -- especially as she's done the same to her own mother.

[alt_alice]

Draco, have you any immediate concerns?

[alt_sirius]

If she does claim publicly that she cast the Fidelius to protect herself from Bella, and she's willing to continue posting as a 'loyal' subject from within the Manor ....

We'd probably have to keep someone there with her, or remind her that we still have Lucius if she gives up any additional information about us.

But if Hydra's the Secret Keeper then at least we'd be safe in that respect. Narcissa could tell people about that and it won't make any difference. As long as no one else who is still under cover is seen by her, it might be all right.

I'm interested in Draco's opinion.

[alt_rachel]

I'll say this much. After what happened to Mafalda, I don't think there's anyone in MLE who wouldn't believe she was telling the truth about wanting to protect herself from Bellatrix.

[alt_hydra]

People will probably think that she is Nanella's secret keeper (she is), and that Nanella is hers.

The only people who know that I was at Narcissa's today is Dolohov and Barty.

Which - they will probably suspect that I'm her secret keeper and not Nanella. But I'm sure that they won't want Narcissa to have to face Bellatrix.

[alt_lupin]

I think you should tell her, and let her cast the Fidelius with you as her Secret Keeper. And the understanding that Order members turning up at the Manor should be extended every possible courtesy.

[alt_alice]

Agreed.

[alt_draco]

I want my mother safe, obviously. Which could be done at Saltash, but if my mother's planning to publicly out Bellatrix as the maniac that she is, why not let her do so behind the safety of Fidelius? Mother has a much better reputation and is more well-liked than her sister, that's for sure.

[alt_alice]

I see no issues with proceeding, then, Hydra.

[alt_hydra]

Alright. And thank you.

[alt_hydra]

It's done now. She knows I'm in the Order. For the time being I don't think we should reveal the identities of anyone else who's not currently a wanted fugitive, just to be safe.

[alt_alice]

If you'll state the location formally over the journals, that would do.

And Draco, you can feel free to visit whenever you'd like, of course.

[alt_hydra]

Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire, England.