Looking into Tver's resolute eyes, Mrs. Weasley felt herself wavering more and more.
As a mother, she knew perfectly well where George and Fred's talents and interests lay, and she also knew the two of them would never enjoy a conventional, by-the-book job.
But having lived through the last Wizarding War, and now facing the prospect of another, all she wanted was for her children to live safe, steady lives.
Then again, if she couldn't let her children live happily, wouldn't that also be her failure as a mother?
"I just want them to be a little more grounded. At the very least, I want them to be able to stand firm in this turbulent wizarding world. After all, none of us knows what the future holds. If Arthur and I…"
Mrs. Weasley spoke with sorrow written across her face, her mind drifting to the many companions who had died since the Order of the Phoenix was founded.
"Do you really think we'd be unwilling to look after George and the others?"
Lupin leaned against the kitchen doorway with a teacup in hand, a faint smile on his pale, weary face as he spoke to Mrs. Weasley.
Snape stood behind him without expression, half his body swallowed by shadow.
"I don't know anything about that, and I don't want to. But I imagine you'd rather not find anything odd added to your potions."
Lupin quickly stepped aside, revealing Snape, along with Bill Weasley and Mundungus behind him.
"Father and Tonks seem to be on a mission, so they can't make it over for now," Bill explained, then followed the others and sat down across from Tver.
"That's all right. I'll tell them what was discussed at the meeting."
Mrs. Weasley skillfully passed out plates as she spoke.
"Oh, darlings, your breakfast is here. They need to discuss something, so take it upstairs and eat in your rooms."
She stuffed several breakfast baskets into Harry and the others' hands. They had been trying to sneak in and say hello to Tver.
But under Mrs. Weasley's watchful gaze, they could only wave at him before being chased out of the kitchen, Hermione included.
"Tver, I don't think you've met Mundungus yet?" Lupin said, introducing him.
"Mundungus Fletch."
Across the long table, Mundungus stood up respectfully and extended his rough right hand to Tver.
He was a short, stocky man with a scruffy beard. More than his unremarkable face, it was his short bowlegs that left the deepest impression on Tver.
He might have been the sort of wizard who liked stealing and dealing in shady things, but the fact that he had stood on the Order of the Phoenix's side in both wars made him a rare kind of ally.
So Tver shook his hand amiably.
"Tver Fawley, Hogwarts' Professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts."
"I know. Those kids all admire you. The respect in their voices is impossible to hide, unlike when they talk about other professors…"
Mundungus suddenly felt a chill at his neck and glanced around in confusion at the others, who were eating breakfast while whispering among themselves.
"No need to rush breakfast. Since Snape and Tver are both here, why don't we get the meeting started while we have the chance?" Lupin suggested.
"Exactly," Snape said, unusually taking the initiative to speak. "I'm not like certain other professors, after all. I don't have endless free time to waste playing games with students."
Tver, struck by this completely unprovoked attack, could only set down his knife and fork in resignation. Before he could fire back, Lupin hurriedly cut in.
"I'll start with the Werewolves."
"In Britain, the Werewolves have either been thrown into Azkaban or are focused on their work. There's no sign that You-Know-Who has recruited any Werewolves…"
"But Dumbledore said the Dementors in Azkaban could defect at any moment. Those prisoners can practically be counted as a new batch of Death Eaters," Sirius said helplessly.
As the resident expert, he knew very well just how insane the people in Azkaban were.
The Dementors didn't just drain them until they were listless. They also made it almost impossible for them to maintain normal logic and clear thought.
Simply put, they either became timid and shrinking, or complete lunatics.
So after Azkaban's special brand of "re-education," compared with the Death Eaters Lucius had led last time, who had still retained some measure of reason, this new group would be far more troublesome than most people imagined.
"It doesn't matter. The Ministry will end up on our side anyway, and those criminals have been in Azkaban so long that their minds and strength have already been worn down badly."
Tver spoke with an easy expression, and just like that, the heavy atmosphere in the kitchen lightened considerably.
"Looks like you're not entirely useless after all…" Snape said with a curl of his lip.
"Still, everyone, don't forget there's another group of Death Eaters outside, and they've been acting very strangely lately," Mundungus said cautiously.
"In the past, those pure-blood families would occasionally sell little odds and ends to outsiders. They weren't always worth much, but it never really stopped."
"But ever since the Quidditch World Cup, I haven't heard of a single pure-blood family needing to sell anything from their homes."
"In fact, according to a few of my old mates, they've been gathering in secret from time to time, like they're discussing something."
"That sounds more like Professor Snape's field. Care to share your discoveries?" Sirius said, turning to Snape with obvious sarcasm.
Snape shot him a vicious glare, but soon had no choice except to answer.
"Nothing. They seem to have realized I was probing for information, so they haven't told me anything."
"Still, unlike some idle little pet who does nothing all day, I did notice that they seem to have found a way to make money…"
"Ahem, the Malfoys have some ties to my family, so I've been doing business with them. Lupin knows about it," Tver said quickly.
Lupin nodded.
Business at the Werewolf Plantation and the Potions Lab was booming. No one knew exactly where the final products were being funneled, but the enormous daily profits were beyond dispute.
"You're doing business with them?" Sirius looked displeased at once.
"Why didn't you bring us in, no, that's not the point. What if they turn around, sell you out, and go back to You-Know-Who?"
"It's about利益, Sirius," Lupin said objectively. "They may not be truly loyal to You-Know-Who. What drives them is profit, along with fear of his power."
"If we can offer them benefits, along with the protection of Dumbledore and Tver, they may not refuse to join us. And even if they don't, we can at least keep them from being so completely devoted to You-Know-Who."
"Exactly. You-Know-Who certainly isn't going to take them into business with him."
Mundungus applauded enthusiastically, clearly hoping Tver would take notice of him.
Sirius wasn't stupid. After thinking it over for a moment, he understood the significance of what Tver had been doing.
"Then from the look of it, with Tver around, things really are looking up."
He broke into a delighted grin.
"All we have to do is drag You-Know-Who out, kill him, and won't the world be peaceful again?"
"But the problem is, no one knows where You-Know-Who is right now," Bill said at just the right moment.
"No. I think I may have guessed…"
Snape suddenly spoke, his cold gaze turning toward Tver, who was trying to make himself less noticeable.
"Professor Fawley is so capable. I'm sure he wouldn't mind helping me, would he?"
Tver: "..."