Orsa Novus

The war is over. Harry Potter, narrowly escaping the Dark Lord's spell due to Ginny Weasley, has gone into hiding. No one is safe. Voldemort has come into power, forcing all resistance to go underground. Rebel forces have been captured and forced into the castle that was once Hogwarts. Now only a select few can save the world from the hands of the Dark Lord.


Prologue: The Return

The wind blew fiercely against the windows of a rickety old house, forcing the shutters to bang against it loudly. It was perhaps a good thing that it was rather isolated from people. The night air was chill, intensified by the harsh wind. It was then that a figure appeared just outside the house with a small 'pop'. He drew his cloak around him, attempting to shield himself. He tapped the lock with a long, thin stick before turning the doorknob and stepping inside, forcing the door shut behind him.

Remus Lupin pulled his hood off and shrugged off his cloak just in time to see an elderly witch and wizard hurrying his way. Molly Weasley smiled, her almost panicked nature disappearing entirely as she noticed who it was.

"Remus, thank heavens," she breathed, pulling him into a tight hug. "You gave us all a start, I'll have you know."

"You must forgive me, Molly," the younger man pleaded as he was forced into the embrace, though he could not keep the smile off his face. "I thought it best to stay as long as I could. We need as much information as we can get."

"Yes, yes, very true, dear," Mrs. Weasley said, nodding vigorously. "It would have been lovely of you to send an owl."

"I couldn't risk that," Remus told her, almost sternly, his brows wrinkled into a frown. "I wish I could have, but it may have endangered everyone here."

"He does have a point, dear," Arthur Weasley piped up, placing a hand on his wife's shoulder. "More danger than we're already in would not be to our best interests."

"Yes, of course. You're right," Mrs. Weasley nodded, agreeing, though halfheartedly. "Would you like a spot of tea? I've just made some." Without waiting for an answer, she hurried off, leaving Remus with her husband.

"Arthur, how are things here?" Remus asked as Mrs. Weasley disappeared around the corner.

"Same as they were when you left, Remus," he stated, sadly. "No new information. Yet, we haven't lost anyone else either, so in a way it's been a bit of a relief."

"I suppose, I must say, I will be able to rest much easier with Voldemort gone," Remus admitted, ignoring as Mr. Weasley cringed at the mention of the Dark Lord's name. "Until that time comes, we should all be on our guard. How is dear Andromeda?"

"Still rather upset," Mr. Weasley admitted, glancing back toward the sitting room with a small sigh. "The poor woman is rather distraught, despite all of our efforts to assure her that Nymphadora will be all right."

"She knows as well as we all do that nobody can possibly know what is to befall her daughter," Remus glanced back as well and frowned. If Sirius were with her, he would certainly know what to do. Remus could distinctly remember a crisis before, though, admittedly never something of such a weight.

"Ah, yes, very true indeed," Mr. Weasley nodded and shook his head. He then glanced around, as if checking for eavesdroppers before clapping Remus on the shoulder, hunching over to speak to him softly. "So, ah… what did you find out?"

"Another former Order member has been killed," Remus told him sadly, biting his lip. "They're dropping off like flies, Arthur. We need to find the rest before the Death Eaters do.

"But how many are left, Remus?" Mr. Weasley asked, though, the way his voice shook, it was easy to tell that he was almost afraid of the answer.

"Only a handful," Remus told him with another sad sigh. "We need to find Horace Slughorn. He's done a masterful job of hiding himself, but I'm not entirely sure as to how long he can keep it up. There are a few other professors who I know are still out there. We must find them as well."

"Indeed," Mr. Weasley agreed, standing up straight as Mrs. Weasley reentered the room with a tea tray.

"Come along, you two," she said, beckoning for them to follow her into the sitting room. "We all could use the company here."

"Ah, yes. I think a good talk is something we all need," Remus grinned, quite happily following Mrs. Weasley toward the couch where there was yet one open spot. Mr. Weasley took a large armchair. Remus took the spot next to a woman about five years his senior. Her dark brown hair was a wreck and her usual upright appearance was now something more of haggard, her face red from continuous crying. To her right was Molly's second eldest son, Charlie Weasley. He was patting her gently on the head and speaking to her softly, however he glanced up as Remus sat down on the couch. Andromeda glanced up as well and sat up, wiping her face and forcing herself to smile at the man who sat down.

"Oh, Remus. You're here," she declared, trying to tell herself more than him. He simply nodded to her statement and gave her a sad smile. "It's nice to see you."

"And you as well, Andromeda," he told her, running a gentle hand through her hair. He decided to restrain himself from asking how she was, as it was plain to see that she was not well, though she would most likely pretend it. After a few moments silence, Andromeda turned away from the younger man to stare at the fire in the fireplace, though seemingly appreciative of him deciding not to ask how she felt. Remus turned toward Charlie then and gave him a slight smile. "Charlie, it's certainly been a while."

"It certainly has," Charlie admitted, reaching a hand out to Remus, who took it in his own and shook it. "How did things go?"

"They went all right, in my opinion," Remus told him, smiling slightly. "Could have gone better, but it's the best we can do now."

"Anything is excellent, at this point," Charlie pointed out, his smile quickly changing into a thoughtful frown. "Mum, when's Harry getting here?" Remus turned quickly to Mrs. Weasley. The news of Harry's coming was certainly new to him. Mrs. Weasley turned a deep shade of scarlet as all eyes moved to her.

"Bill is bringing him in a week, once we know things are safe here and we get the wards set up securely." Remus nodded and rested back against the couch, deep in thought. Harry Potter would be returning to them. Perhaps this would mark a new beginning for all.

End Prologue

Please review. Since this fic has been the only thing on my mind for quite a while, a new chapter should be out soon.