A Life to be Loved

~ Chapter 41 ~

-Lilith-
I took a sip from the cup in front of me, feeling the hard stares from the rest of the Order. Only my father seemed to be looking away from me, but he had always been content with ignoring my presence. No one dared to begin the meeting, but I caught many mouths opening and closing, not saying a word. My fingers fidgeted under the table, the only thing that gave away my nerves. The Weasleys' seemed even more worried, and they often checked the door anxiously. Waiting for Fred and George, no doubt.

I was two seats away from my father, who was at the head of the table. A seat was between us, caught in the middle. Across from me, Snape perched on his chair, sneering at everyone around him. Tonks was forced next to him, sending sharp glares at the wizard. A seat away from Snape was Arthur Weasley, who was exchanging glances with his wife, who was settled next to him. Lupin occupied the other end of the table, his head buried in a newspaper. My side of the table was empty, as if none of them wished to interact with me.

Mr. Weasley cleared his throat. "I'm sorry for my children's tardiness. I'm sure they will be on time next meeting." An apologetic smile was plastered on his face, which seemed to convince the rest of the table into thinking that he was actually sorry.

"Well, kids will be kids, right, Arthur?" Lupin chuckled, patting his friend's back. His words seemed to ease the tension in the room, and the faces that were once blank, revealing nothing, were now warm and full of light. I smiled along with them, chuckling at the terrible jokes and gasping at the boring news.

Finally, after almost an hour of small-talk, the Weasley twins had strolled through the door, laughing and teasing the adults as if they weren't an hour late. Mentally, I let out a sigh of relief. Tricking any of the other Weasleys into coming with me would be fruitless.

"Boys." Arthur Weasley's thundering voice sounded. "What time is it?"

The twins glanced at the floor, muttering something along the lines of "sorry" and "we'll be on time next meeting".

Their mother nodded in acceptance, and the twins took their seats. George to the left of me, and Fred on the other side.

"Well, now we can start the meeting." My father stood, smiling warmly at the table. My heart clenched, and I felt myself wishing that he would look at me like that. "As you all are wondering why my dear daughter is here, we will start with that." He motioned for me to speak, sitting back down.

I cleared my throat, recalling the words that Mattheo had recited."I was recruited by the Slytherins to join him. They sent me on evil missions, forcing me to do their dirty work. I was told one night to meet with the Dark Lord himself, and he personally released me." I took a shuddering breath, appearing to mentally prepare myself to explain the horrors I had witnessed.

"Oh, that's enough, dear. You don't need to tell us anything you don't want to." Molly Weasley's kindly voice interrupted me as I was about to continue.

I nodded, as if I was thanking her for saving me from reliving those memories. She smiled warmly, and the rest of the table sent me gazes full of pity.

"Well, now to the next order of business: stopping the Dark Lord's army from infiltrating Hogwarts." Sirius stood again, trying to turn the attention away from me. The rest of the table nodded grimly, making it clear that they had spoken about this many times.

"Well, since we have a Hogwarts student who will actually work," Mrs. Weasley glared pointedly at the twins. "We can give you tasks that will be completed."

I nodded, making sure they thought that I truly meant everything I said. "Of course, Mrs. Weasley."

Lupin cleared his throat from behind the newspaper that he was combing through. The headlines shouted at me, trying to coax me into reading the articles that accompanied them.

"Anything to declare, Remus?" Snape drawled from his seat across from me.

Lupin met the professor's gaze, scowling at the smirk written on the man's face. I could hear the two twins fail at concealing their laughter, but a tight glare from their mother concluded the outburst.

"Yes, Serverus, I do." Lupin hissed, putting his paper down to meet the gaze of Sirius. "The Daily Prophet states that He Who Must Not Be Named will strike at the next task in the Triwizard Tournament. Have you observed last task? The one with the dragon?" His attention slid to me, and I shook my head.

"No, I have been occupied with meetings during that one and the day they chose the people." I explained, not wanting to inform them of my disinterest in the Tournament.

Lupin nodded, believing the information. "Interesting. I'll have you attend it, just to make sure Harry and the other two are safe." He spoke softly, as if he was weighing each and every word. "Of course, we can send someone else to watch over it if you do not wish for us to..." He glanced at the Weasleys, his eyes unreadable.

"No, of course I'll attend." I smiled. I could feel the tension in the room soften, showing how anxious they were for Potter's safety.

"Well, since that is out of the way, we can eat!" Mr. Weasley laughed, pushing the sprawled papers away from him.

"I'll get the food!" Mrs. Weasley hurried away, the twins following close behind. The table erupted into chatter, the sound almost hiding the doorbell's ding.

I stood before the others could, hurrying to open the door, which revealed Kingsley Shacklebolt and Mundungus Fletcher. I gave them a curt nod, which they returned, before walking in and tossing their coats into the arms of Kreacher. The House-Elf bowed, before making his way to the closet. The jackets were hung magically, and Kreacher sent me a soft smile, making my heart break.

"You should get back to the meeting, dear Lilith. I'm sure they'll be missing you." He waved, before snapping his fingers, sending himself back to the cupboard.

I waved, taking a deep breath. My feet carried me to the dining hall, where I sat and waited, plotting the kidnapping.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Hey guys! I know, I'm amazing! I posted two chapters in the same month! You may all clap.

...

I SAID CLAP!

Better. Anyway, I hope you have a great day, and I'll see you all soon!

Love ya!

xxx

This chapter has not been proof read.