[HP] The Order of the Phoenix Family

This is the worst possible situation.

It wasn't the worst, although the lives of other people present were uncertain, Muggle casualties were kept to a minimum thanks to everyone's efforts, the children were at school, and Dumbledore must have taken care of the follow-up and protected the remaining members.

However, none of these can bring any change to the situation they are facing - "they" refers to the seven people in the cage, namely Sirius Black, Remus Lupine, Alastor Moody, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Severus Snape, Nymphadora Tonks and Bill Weasley.

About ten hours ago, the Order of the Phoenix was attacked during a meeting.The original protection spell and loyalty spell at the headquarters are indeed enough to protect this place from being found by wrong people, but they are not enough to resist truly insane acts, such as blowing up the houses in the entire area indiscriminately in a very short period of time.God knows how the Ministry of Magic is going to fake memories for Muggles this time, maybe a gas explosion or a localized tornado.

Such a large-scale operation is very risky. If it is not confirmed that Black's ancestral home is of great value, Voldemort will not take this approach at this stage.In other words, the Death Eaters knew that Black's ancestral home had become the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, and that during the time of the incident, the members were gathering for a meeting on the security of the castle (Potter) after Dumbledore was forced to leave Hogwarts. So apparently someone leaked inside information.After the people in the cage woke up one after another, they also discussed this, but catching the ghost was not their top priority. After all, being betrayed by someone was meaningless to the dead.

Presumably to add to the sense of urgency, there is also a clock on the wall showing that it is past midnight.They tried everything, all the gadgets that hadn't been confiscated, and none of them got out.Everyone's eyes turned to the six vials left by the Death Eaters. The deep purple luster from the glass showed that they contained deadly poison.Everyone had tried so hard to pretend they didn't exist, but now, admitting it or not, they were growing desperate.

"Enough," Moody announced first, grabbing a bottle into his hand.They had already established that the bottles had to be opened by six people holding one and pushing at the same time, and probably had to be drunk by six people at the same time, so no one stopped him. "It's not too late to identify the surviving candidate first, and then find another way—in my opinion, there is no other way. Is there anyone who recommends himself to be that person?"

"Do you really think that Voldemort will let the other one go after six people drink the poison?" Tonks objected immediately, "He's just teasing us."

"I agree." Remus also said, "Instead of trusting him, it's better to trust that other people will try to get us out. Don't give up, Mad-Eye."

"Dumbledore will organize a rescue," Kingsley said in his deep, reliable voice.

"And catch up with more people?" Sirius questioned, "I bet, no matter where this is, there must be a net outside. Saving us is not worth the candle."

"They can claim we're alive anyway, and entice others to come to the rescue," Beer pointed out. "That's why we have to stay alive as long as possible, and at least be helpful."

Sirius didn't take it seriously, "We're in a cage, and it won't take much effort to blow up the whole place when the others are about to succeed."

"The seven people here will be killed before the poison is finished at dawn. At least in this they must be telling the truth." The hollow eye sockets looked very ferocious, "Poison killing or curse killing is death, at least six deaths are better than seven deaths."

"I have no objection." Sirius shrugged, and grimaced in pain because the injured shoulder blade was involved, "The deadline for taking the medicine is before dawn, since we can't even reach an agreement on whether to discuss this, we have to Leave a few hours to argue."

"You're talking about the time when we figured out how to escape together!" said Tonks angrily.

"Face it, Nymphadora," Sirius said, ignoring his niece's protests, "there are three Aurors held here, two of whom are recognized as good hands, plus a professional spellbreaker and a black man." An expert in magic. If you can't find a way to get out of this broken cage without using a wand after spending eight hours in this situation, I think it's basically safe to assume that way doesn't exist at all."

"Actually, I'm inclined that the Dark Lord will keep his promise." Snape said for the first time since waking up, and the others were somewhat taken aback, "As Tonks said, he was laughing at us, and in his style, He should want to continue to appreciate the results of this matter and blackmail Dumbledore with the last person. And he only said that he would allow that person to live, and did not promise to let him go."

"Then you can't do what he said." Tonks objected again, "It's better to die than to live in Voldemort's hands!"

"But as long as you survive, there is hope of being rescued." Remus said, Tonks gave him a betrayed stare, and angrily ripped away the hair stuck to his forehead by the wound.

"Just for once, I'm going to say that I can trust Snape's assessment of his dear master," Sirius said, and Snape rolled his eyes, "So it's a vote?"

"I propose Tonks," said Moody dryly, who must have thought it through before he spoke.

"What?!" Tonks yelled.

"Actually, I don't care who it is." Sirius found a relatively comfortable position and leaned against the side of the cage to relieve the pressure on the injured side. "If I have to vote, I'll vote for Snape."

These words caused a dramatic silence. Eleven gazes were solidly cast on the fugitive, especially the one named by him, and they were about to burn him to ashes.

"Live on the shoulders of other people, and at the hands of Voldemort? Of those present, I want only one person to enjoy this treatment." He squinted at Snape with undisguised hatred and malice, " And his function is the most special, isn't it? Our most precious Mr. Spy."

Snape tensed his muscles and moved his legs, as if he wanted to care if he had to drink the potion with six of them, jump over and strangle his long-time enemy first.But realizing that no one objected immediately, and that one or two even avoided his gaze with a thoughtful look, all the blood disappeared from the double agent's face.

"Since I'm here, it means that my identity has been exposed." He said coldly, "My life is no longer valuable to the Order of the Phoenix."

"I can't see it." Sirius responded with a cruel tone, "And even so, I have nothing to complain about. The use of promoting you is just to convince other people."

"Inciting everyone to waste their lives to save a Death Eater, very good, Potter will be proud of you." Snape gritted his teeth, clutching the nearest railing tightly, his knuckles turning white.

"I swear." Remus said before Sirius launched the next round of attacks, "If you keep arguing, I'll just grab a bottle and swallow it to see if the poison will work."

"But Sirius' argument is not unreasonable," said Moody. "The interests of the Order of the Phoenix are the highest priority, and if having Snape among us is a test for Voldemort, he will be irrevocably hurt when he leaves." least likely to be harmed.”

"Do you want to change your ticket, Mad-Eye?" Sirius turned to the old Auror.

Snape looked beyond angry.

"What, now you're suddenly going to trust me?" he growled. "What about all the doubts about me not being truly repentant? The accusations that I've been double-handed? Or—" The Potions Professor's voice trembled strangely. For a moment, "—what kind of insurance do you take this as, thinking that if I carry six lives on my back, I will definitely be loyal to the Order of the Phoenix? A real Death Eater doesn't care about the lives of six traitors!"

"You're saying these things to prove your innocence." Tonks pointed out, flinching when Snape glared at him, "It's what it is, you don't look like you don't care at all."

"If you think you can't act if you're lurking in the Order of the Phoenix, then you're stupider than I thought." Snape snapped.

Sirius laughed, "This is really amazing acting."

"I vote for Tonks." Bill interrupted the quarrel, and Tonks made a shrill voice, "She's the youngest of us, and she's an only child. Her parents shouldn't lose her—"

"What about Arthur and Molly?" Tonks asked fiercely. "Your siblings? And your French girlfriend? What would they do without you?"

"—and she's always cheerful and upbeat, no matter the time, including now." Bill's facial muscles twitched as she threw out those people, but he insisted on finishing his point, "If you have no choice , I hope she survives among us."

"Fart!" Tonks screamed. "This is nonsense! Why, have you all given up? Letting Voldemort lead you by the nose, playing a one-of-seven game? Bah!"

The cage was already cramped, and they managed to stay out of each other, and Tonks jumped up in a fit of rage, only to hit his head.Lupine hurriedly reached out to help, and was almost hit by her elbow in the face.The young Auror struggled for a while, and calmed down a little considering Remus's injured rib.

"This disgusts me, you're all thinking about it," she yelled, panting, her cheeks flushed with excitement, "Let me tell you—Bill will be missed the most; Sirius spent 12 years in prison for nothing , finally had the opportunity to wash away the grievances, absolutely not deserved to die here—"

"Death is better than being locked up in an old house." Sirius muttered.

"—Alastor has retired. He has made so many contributions to the wizarding world and suffered so many injuries. He shouldn't be involved in these things at all—"

Moody can only roll his eyes with the remaining real eyes, which is far less dramatic than rolling with magic eyes.

"—Kingsley is the most promising person here. He may become the Minister of Magic in the future, and he will do ten thousand times better than that bastard Fudge! Snape is a teacher at Hogwarts. What will the students do if he dies? ?”

"I'm sure they won't mind." Snape sneered. "Me neither."

"And Remus—" Tonks turned to the werewolf, grabbed his hand firmly, his eyes sparkling with tears, "he's the best, gentlest, strongest man I've ever met, There is nothing more unfair than such a person must die." Remus lowered his head to avoid her sight, trying to break free, "Isn't Voldemort dividing people into different levels, that's what we object to? We can't do that , to vote like some people don't deserve to live as much as others. We're going to fight and die together if we're unlucky!"

"Nobody said we're not going to fight after the vote, it's just a last resort," Bill said.

Tonks looked as if he had a deep hatred for him, "Isn't voting to determine who will drink the poison before dawn? I call it giving up the fight! And you can't vote to decide who wants to live!"

"Everyone here wants to live, and no one deserves to die." Remus finally pulled his hand away, and with the other he felt where Tonks had strangled, "but if there's no other choice— —”

"That's not an option at all in my opinion!"

"You can reserve your opinion and refuse to vote, Tonks." Kingsley smoothed things over. "The same goes for everyone else. You can choose not to participate, but you must also allow those who want at least one person to have a chance to survive to express their opinions."

"Why don't we just draw lots." Sirius suggested, "I'll tear a few pieces of cloth from my robe and hold them in my hands for you to draw, and leave the last one to me. The person who gets the longest one will live, so There is no question of who deserves to live more, so I won't get a headache from being quarreled."

Remus gave him an "Are you entitled to say anything about that?" look, and Sirius ignored him.

"And what if the guy who gets the long strip doesn't want to?" Bill asked.

"If you all agree to draw lots, the others can work together to catch the violators and knock them unconscious." Sirius replied, "At worst, I'll tear some clothes and tie them up."

"I'm not going to take part in the lottery," Moody said first. "It's just a matter of deciding which of the six of you survives."

"Come on, Mad-Eye," Sirius said angrily, "act like you're guaranteed to win the lottery."

"I've lived long enough, and the probability of one in seven is too much." Moody said coldly, "And those dogs took my eyes and prosthetics, and the rest of me is an incapacitated person." Waste, all six of you have more hope of being rescued than me."

"It's five, and I won't participate in any stupid lottery." Snape unsurprisingly refused to cooperate with Sirius' opinion, "Also, I propose Shacklebolt."

"I'm flattered." Kingsley blinked in surprise.

"He's the one with the most resources at the Ministry of Magic among us, and it would be more beneficial to force him to cooperate than to kill him," Snape said flatly, "and he can take it and live."

Kingsley was obviously disgusted by this assertion, but Tonks just shut his mouth unconvinced, and he didn't want to cause any more disputes, so he just nodded.

"Then it's two votes for Tonks, one for Snape and one for me, and both Tonks and I disagree with the vote itself. Even if Remus voted for Tonks, there would be no I won't agree to force her to accept it as a majority opinion." Kingsley said, and Tonks gave him a grateful glance, "Remus, do you still have to vote now?"

"I..." Remus moved away from Tonks, swallowing, "I vote for Tonks. The reason is the same as Bill."

This time Tonks didn't protest, she crawled up to Kingsley without a word, kicked Sirius and Bill's legs roughly along the way, then crossed her arms and turned Remus over to avoid it.

"I can change the ticket." Sirius grinned while rubbing the kicked place, "This will make it four to three, and we can do it."

"Are you going to try?" Tonks' hair exploded an angry bright red and hissed menacingly like a feline, and there was no doubt that she was not easy to deal with.

"You have already voted, and you cannot change it." Kingsley said firmly, "Next, we will continue to work together to find a way to break the cage before dawn."

Moody grunted impatiently, but didn't really object, and neither did anyone else.Tonks was the first to start gathering magic power into his hands again, trying to summon the wand into his hands with the Flying Charm, but it was as unsuccessful as before.So do other approaches they take.

When the clock struck four o'clock in the morning, the accident happened.

Kingsley leaped forward, locked the young colleague's neck like lightning, and pressed the blood veins with his fingers precisely.Tonks was caught off guard, and within a few seconds he rolled his eyes and passed out.Everyone except Moody stared, watching as Kingsley confirmed that Tonks's hair had returned to dark brown from unconsciousness, and then let her go to check her breathing and his own bleeding arm.The female Auror didn't struggle blindly. The moment she was attacked, she deformed her nails, cut several deep cuts on Kingsley's arm, and almost hit his eyes.

"Still the same, Shacklebolt," Moody muttered, tearing his own sleeve into strips, moving over to tie the knot around Tonks' wrist expertly.

"I vote for Tonks." Kingsley said unnecessarily as he tied himself up to stop the bleeding, "four to three, but she won't accept it anyway. The space here is too small, and it's impossible for several people to rush forward to subdue her." How can it work?"

"So you pretended to be with her. Sure enough, Jiang is old and hot. I almost believed it." Sirius shook his head and said, "If she survives, she will tear you apart."

"If I was still conscious at that time, I would have resisted." The dark-skinned man said a cold joke calmly, "Severus, do you agree to leave the opportunity to Tonks?"

"It's the same for everyone," Snape said curtly, having resumed his indifferent posture.

"Thank you," Remus said to Kingsley, with a strange tremor in his voice that no one else heard.

"Now you're the luckiest of us." Sirius poked Remus, who held his ribs and smiled wryly.

"It is a great honor to be with you at last," said the werewolf.

"Me too," Kingsley said.

"Cut the bullshit," Moody said.

"I hope my parents won't be too angry with me." Bill whispered, the situation was settled, and fear inevitably appeared on his young face after all, "I hope they're all right."

"They're sure to be fine, and you'll be their proudest son," Sirius said. "I'm different. My mother will beat me up with a frying pan in hell. I'm a little scared to think about it." gone."

"You're not going anywhere with them," Remus said firmly. "We'll see James and Lily together. James must miss you."

"They just want to see you—are we going to go on like this?" Sirius stroked his unkempt hair to cover up the little emotion he had just shown, and glanced at the clock, "It's six o'clock, isn't it?"

"Almost," said Moody.

"If you don't speak freely now, when will you be?" Remus said, calling out the name of the one who had been silent all this time, "Severus—"

"Leave me alone," said Snape sullenly. "I'd rather not be dragged into your touching little theater before I die."

"Just wanted to say we all trust you."

"Don't take me, I'm just looking at Dumbledore's face." Sirius broke the stage.

"The Order of the Phoenix was established under the auspices of Dumbledore, and most people trust each other only because of Dumbledore's face." Remus emphasized, "You are as important to us as any companion." it's the same."

"Shut up, werewolf."

"Is this an apology?" Remus asked deliberately, forcing Snape to finally stare at him.

"Are you freaked out?"

"I have always thanked you for the wolfsbane potion you prepared for me that year."

"I'm sure you're just as grateful to me for letting everyone know what you really are," Snape said through gritted teeth.

"You might as well name the child James, Peter is fine, anyway, don't use my name." Sirius teased, "Before Dora can't hear you, you big furball who is always on the go."

"No normal person would name their child Sirius," Remus said mercilessly.

"well said."

"I'm done anyway, so go ahead, Severus."

When the two old friends continued to quarrel, Snape was full of anger, his sallow face turned pale and blue, and he was not sure how to answer what Lupin said just now, and then Kingsley also spoke.

"You are one of us, there is no doubt about that."

"There's no need for you to be merciful to me," Snape growled. "Don't think I don't know what you all think of me, and you'll feel more noble when you die by telling these lies?"

"No one cares, Snape." Sirius took the time to reply, "You are a member of the Order of the Phoenix and you are a greasy old bastard. Since Dumbledore thinks you have been reformed, in your It’s all about proving that you’re not as good as before. Don’t think of yourself as special.”

"As the dog that follows Potter's ass, you can really tell what not to take yourself too special," said Snape viciously.

Just as Sirius was about to have an attack, he pressed back, turned his head and ignored him, "Okay, I want to be the one who behaves the worst when I die, no one will take it from you."

"I made these poisons." Snape said to himself. "It's part of my job to make potions for the Dark Lord. I know someone will use them to kill someone, and one of them is myself." No surprises either."

"Then do you know what it smells like?" Bill said, giving the professor an innocent look, "just curious."

"Do you think people who have tasted it can still be here?" Snape said, offended, but replied, "I think it's bitter, like most poisons."

"That's unfortunate."

Sirius suddenly hissed with his fingers to his lips, ordering everyone to be quiet.Snape subconsciously frowned, saw what Sirius was signaling, and fell silent again.

Alastor Mad-Eye Moody, occupying a corner of the cage, fell asleep unbelievably in the midst of the chatter and the shadow of death approaching as the clock turned.He tilted his head, his chest rose and fell evenly, the bottle of medicine he took earlier was resting on his stomach, and the air flow through his broken nose made a slight snoring sound.This retired Auror known for his nervousness is often reported to have blown up the walls of his house or the trash can outside his door in the middle of the night. No one knows when the last time he slept so peacefully.

"I wish I had a camera," Sirius said in a breathy voice, "or ink. It's not every day that you have the opportunity to draw on the old mad-eyed face."

"This is probably the only situation where he can sleep well." Kingsley also said in a breathy voice, seeming quite emotional.

"Let him sleep for a while," Bill said.

However, they miscalculated. After a few minutes of silence, the old Auror opened his eyes abruptly. The first thing he did was to look at the clock, and then sniffed.

"Are you finished talking?" he said in his usual gruff tone. "I thought you could argue until it was dark next time."

"You have worked hard for so long." Bill said on behalf of everyone, "Thank you for everything you have done for the wizarding world."

Moody accepted it very happily, which may have something to do with the fact that he has been forced to accept a large number of commendations, "There is nothing to be thankful for. Everyone here has done their part to resist Voldemort and protect the innocent , we should face the last moment with pride."

"You should have stayed in the Auror's office as spokesman," Kingsley said narrowly.

They bantered with each other for a while, as if at an afternoon tea party, and Mollie was about to leave the kitchen with a snack.Snape interrupted abruptly: "It wasn't the worst possible outcome for me. I always thought I would die alone. These poisons work quickly, and I can assure you there won't be much pain."

"That's fine," Bill replied.

This time, even his arch-rival didn't say a single extra comment, because the time had passed to 58:[-], and it was the end.

"Shall I leave a few words for Dora?" Sirius asked, as Remus made Tonks lie down more comfortably.

"She's an Auror, she knows that," Moody said.

Kingsley stretched his arms to reach five medicine bottles, and each time he distributed them to someone, he shook the other person's hand firmly.His palms are broad and warm, the kind most suitable for holding.

"She'll make it through," Remus said, brushing a strand of hair from the girl's cheek, staring for a moment before taking his own bottle of medicine.

They worked together, and the bottle was opened, and the bitter breath escaped into the air.

"To the dawn!" Sirius raised his arm first.

In the next second, others responded to him.

"To the dawn."