The Project | Sirius Black x reader | ✔

1979

The start of a new year was filled with busy schedules and too many appointments on your agenda. The two you held most at heart were the wedding of Lily and James early in the year, and the graduation of Regulus later on in June. 

You had little time to daydream about future events, as your present life was all over the place. Trial after trial, you were further exposed to the horrors of this war as you rose in rank in the Wizengamot, being high enough in the hierarchy to witness the most gruesome cases the high court had to deal with. 

Problems didn't end there, as tensions started rising in the secretive Order of the Phoenix. It was to the extent where Dumbledore had requested you- as someone he trusted and was aligned with the justice of the ministry- to oversee some of the meetings from the shadows to scout out suspicions with your keen eye.

That's how you found yourself at 12 Grimmauld Place a lot more often than you had initially thought. The internal struggles of the Order were starting to create openings for enemies to exploit, and Dumbledore entrusted you with the role to mitigate them. 

Well, after almost a decade of fighting the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters, it is no surprise that tensions would rise, you thought, silently swinging your leg from the cupboard you were sitting on. 

Sirius sneakily stopped next to you and leaned on the wall with crossed arms. You glanced at him but didn't receive eye contact back. He often refrained from his usual clinginess and show of affection towards you whenever you found yourself in Order-related business. "You know I'm not happy with you being here, (y/n)." 

"And you know that I'll be here regardless of how displeased you are," you sighed and shook your head. "We've been over this before: the Order needs a trusted outsider to monitor with little bias. Dumbledore himself requested I be here." 

"That's why I'm not interfering," he grumbled. "I just want to keep you safe. And I don't think this is safe for you."

"Now you understand how I feel," you said, bringing your knee up to your chest. "...I admit I've never had as much unwavering confidence and motivation as the rest of you when it came to the Order. It scared me; It still does. But if I can help diminish the risks you face as a member by taking this role, I won't back down even if you begged me to."

He looked up at you with a conflicted stare before letting out a sigh and leaning off the wall. "You're a stubborn person."

"You like that about me." You leaned your head to the side with a small smirk.

"...Yeah, I really do."

Before your conversation could continue, the door of the room opened, and in came barging a large agitated crowd of members of the Order. Within the hoard of people, there were segregations of smaller groups, and animosity and unease hung heavily in the room.

"You're a lycanthrope, are you not? It's not uncommon for those like you to ally with him," someone exclaimed, pointing at Remus accusingly.

"You've overstepped a boundary, I suggest you take back what foul words you've said and do it swiftly," Marco stepped in front of Remus, his hazel eyes glowing like those of an enraged predator as he had the most menacing scowl you had seen on his handsome face.

"What about the Longbottoms? They've come face to face with the Dark Lord on two occasions and have left with their lives intact!"

"But with how many injuries, may I remind you!" Marlene McKinnon retorted. "If anything, Frank and Alice are one of the Order's most loyal and useful members! Accusing them of their encounters with the enemy is ridiculous! Wouldn't that mean you suspect James and Lily as well?!"

Sirius also meddled in the conflict at the mention of his close friends' names, which did nothing but add fuel to the fire. You stared at the scene unfold, watching accusing fingers pointing at members and wands prepared to be taken out of their place.

"Can you all not see that this will lead to your own undoing?!" you exclaimed, tired of being a bystander to the accusations within the Order. You hopped off the cupboard and walked through the crowd of members, looking over your shoulder once you had put enough distance between you and the crowd. "If you're all so keen on accusing each other, let's just prove it."

Walking down the dark main hall of Grimmauld Place, you beckoned for the Order to follow you to the largest room of the house, where you stood in the middle as they waited at the door. Taking out your wand, you took a deep breath before stating the incantation, "Protego Diabolica."

"(Y/n)..." Lily gasped as black flames sprouted from the tip of your wand. "What... what're you doing?! That's a dark charm!"

You swished your wand in a circular motion, causing the flames to engulf the ground around you in a ring of fire. This was the last resort you had in mind. Dire times called for dire actions, and if you had to use forms of dark magic and look anti-heroic for the good of the Order, then you would.

"You wanted to prove each other's loyalties, did you not? I'm only taking matters into my own hands; that is the role that was asked of me," you declared. "If you're not an enemy of the Order of the Phoenix and the Ministry of Magic, this fire will do you no harm."

Murmurs of disbelief filled the air beyond the room you had taken over, with people looking at you with eyes of terror and shock. A single figure pushed themselves past the crowd and strode towards the dark flames with confidence. 

Sirius locked eyes with you as he stepped into the fire, not even flinching with hesitation when he crossed. You could see the amount of loyalty and trust he had towards you to walk through the spell without a second thought.

"Anyone else?" you exclaimed with a raised eyebrow.

Marco was the next to step up, followed by Lily, Remus, James, and Peter. More and more members of the Order began to cross the dark fire, all of them reaching the inner circle unharmed. No one remained on the other side, and an awkward silence settled within the crowd.

You dispelled Protego Diabolica and walked to the front of the group. "It might not be my place to say this as I am not an official member of the Order of the Phoenix... but this organization is built on the trust that all of you share a common goal. This was exactly what the enemy wanted: to plant seeds of doubt within us so we'd turn against each other and destroy ourselves from the inside. It is crucial that we absolutely do not let that happen, for our sake and the sake of the wizarding world."

"It's like you said, (y/n). Doubting rather than trusting each other will lead to nowhere but our own demise," Marco added. "The war is reaching its peak. We must be stronger than ever within the Order. Trust others with your life as they trust you with theirs."

I think my job here is done, for now, you let out a sigh as the room was cleared. Sirius headed towards you and placed his hand on your shoulder, softly squeezing it reassuringly. You gave him a soft smile before rubbing your temples.

"I must head back to the Ministry, I'm afraid my other duties call," you said, leaning in to whisper, "...Take care of yourself. I know that Protego Diabolica makes no mistakes, but I have a feeling that we're missing something important; that something's going to happen... call it an instinct, if you may. But just... be careful."

☆☆☆

1979? What a shitty year it'll be.

(Y/n) should've waited one more year, and she might've caught Peter lol. 

Dark times await the wizarding world... I'm checking my timeline notes and I want to escape from them because I miss the comfort of Hogwarts years but at the same time I can't wait because I'm so good at emotional damage.

Enjoy the wait y'all <3

-Camille