Order Only: Charles Kass

[alt_sirius]

Well, we're back from delivering Charles Kass - or rather, Dora just delivered him and got back with all her limbs in place.

Which is nearly more than we can say for her at the beginning of the encounter.

All right, there, Dora? You want to tell them your newest foolproof method of gaining trust, or shall I?

Comments

[alt_nymphadora]

You can laugh. You weren't the one nearly cut in two by that knife.


Of course, you also weren't the one on her arse on the floor after her best evasive move, so you're perfectly right to laugh.

I must have looked the idiot.

[alt_sirius]

I think that's what saved us both, actually!

Mind you, Kass had a point. We'd let them down when the first Charles was born. Not for lack of trying.

Doesn't quite forgive him coming after you - but Bill, Kingsley, listen to why he came at her: He said that in the last few months especially, there've been loads of rumours flying round about wizards stealing babies to cook them into potions. And since they lost their first son to that accursed epidemic ('my' plague - Circe, if we can't come up with another name for that charming invention of the Death Eaters'), he probably had every reason to suspect that's why we'd come.

Still. Nick, whatever we can arrange for them, we ought to do it. We did fail them and Mrs Kass was right to hold it against us.

[alt_lupin]

Makes me wonder if there are Dark Wizards using muggle babies for something horrifying, or if it's just a rumour.

[alt_sirius]

Right.

Wouldn't put it past them.


Hang on, that device Harry destroyed. But that was for wizard children, wasn't it? I mean to say, that's why they were planning to use it on Arista Selwyn.

[alt_sally_anne]

If it worked on muggle children they wouldn't have conspired with Umbridge to arrange to expel half-bloods. They could get muggle children really easily.

[alt_sirius]

Right - that's what I mean. That device was for children but it was for magical children. So if they really are looking for muggle babies, it must be for some fresh malevolence.

[alt_nymphadora]

Actually, it was magical babies Kass said that bloke was looking for. Definitely magical, though what the man apparently called them was 'uncanny' and 'strange'.

You were talking to her while he was telling me how many people he'd heard the stories from.

[alt_sally_anne]

Do you know how long ago someone was there looking? I mean was it before Harry wrecked the device or was it more recently?

[alt_nymphadora]

Two or three months ago, he said. So about the same time. Could have been before, maybe.

[alt_sally_anne]

Well that's good.

Because if it was last week, that would mean they rebuilt it, wouldn't it.

[alt_nymphadora]

It wasn't last week.

But it is terrible not knowing how long it might take them to rebuild. I think we do have to assume they will. Better to be wrong in that direction than hope they won't be able to put it together again and then discover they have done.

It means we can't afford to miss any children, though. And we can't be late in reaching them.

[alt_lupin]

Nick's turned up parents for Mikhail and Mayuko, yes? So we can fetch them as soon as we have the papers for their camps.

Any luck tracing the one in New London? And what ARE we going to do about the Irish baby -- any word from Moody?

[alt_sirius]

Yes, and what's more is that Mikhail turns out to be little Will's brother.

I think Dora and I will try for him together - no knife fights, either. They'll remember me.

[alt_bill]

I'm touching base with one of my forgers this afternoon about that parchmentwork; you'll have it very soon.

No luck or leads on the New London baby yet, but Nick'll keep working on it.

I haven't heard from Moody myself.

[alt_hermione]

Yes.

I think we have to consider the possibility that they look for muggleborns without the book.

[alt_hermione]

But Sirius, you were there to retrieve a magical baby. Maybe whoever is looking for babies in the camps is looking for magical babies, too.

I mean, do all the Death Eaters and everyone at the Ministry know for sure that the book's the place to find out if there are muggleborns still being born.

Or maybe they do know and they haven't let on that the book's not reliable anymore.

[alt_sally_anne]

Yeah, I mean you lot have got ALL the muggleborn babies in the last five years. Isn't that making them at all suspicious, that there aren't ANY being born?

[alt_sirius]

Malfoy's the one who generally looks at the book and according to Minerva, he's never asked.

[alt_sally_anne]

It's Mr Strangeweale who wanted half-bloods.

Do Mr Malfoy and Mr Strangeweale even get on? They certainly don't seem to be close.

[alt_draco]

For the record, my father doesn't like Strangeweale, and he had nothing to do with that device.

[alt_sirius]

Right.

Cheers, then.

[alt_nymphadora]

I expect they have reasons for thinking they've succeeded in preventing magical births in the muggle camps.

Only, they must be using charms or potions or something to try to prevent that. Experimenting with various things, I'd think. And if they are, then they'd be likely to think that the lack of muggleborn children is a sign that whatever they've been doing works.

I don't know any of that for sure, mind you, but it's my guess.

[alt_sally_anne]

I mean realistically speaking, there's not much the muggles could do to stop them.

Private message to Sirius

[alt_lupin]

I'm so glad we let in the teenagers.

They bring such youthful optimism to our conversations, don't you think? Always a ray of sunshine.

Re: Private message to Sirius

[alt_sirius]

At least they're contributing.

And I'll bet they still have the energy at the end of the night to complain about clothes, music and affairs of the heart.

Re: Private message to Sirius

[alt_lupin]

Youthful energy is wasted on the young.

You and me, we'd APPRECIATE having that energy, if we had it.

Re: Private message to Sirius

[alt_sirius]

Speak for yourself, old man. I have plenty of energy.

And if you come to bed I can prove it.

Re: Private message to Sirius

[alt_lupin]

I'm a bit worried Dora will be cross if we leave her as the sole representative of the elder generation while all the teenagers lecture us on what we're doing wrong.

Re: Private message to Sirius

[alt_lupin]

I suppose we could chance it, though.