and the sun will rise [cas]

[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

26 January 2026

Two weeks had passed since Harry had made his grand declaration to the remaining factions of the Order of the Phoenix, reuniting them. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, the Order would burn brighter than ever before. Together, they would be able to fight off the impending darkness, the power of friendship, hope and love outshining corruption and hatred that leaked into society from all sides. Harry had watched from afar when Heliopath and Ouroboros had gone about their business, though neither was quite as strong as a united front. The decision to bring all of them back together, to make allies out of potential threats, had not been taken lightly. But Harry knew it was the right choice.

Harry had sent a message to Cas at Borgin and Burkes for him to meet at his pub this evening. Harry was keen to hear about any intelligence that Cas had collected, and also wanted to share his ideas in terms of a hierarchical structure for the organisational structure. Harry didn't want the Order to turn into a full time job, and considering almost every single member was a grown, responsible adult. Harry had been reluctant to bring the students that had been recruited under the tutelage of the factions under his wing, especially as the Order hadn't allowed underage wizards previously. However, he couldn't very well just kick them out. Perhaps Cas would have an idea of how he should approach that particular topic.

The hours swept by quickly as Harry maintained the calm and relaxed atmosphere in the pub, hearing tales of travellers far and wide. Soon, the moon rose and the clock chimed eight pm, when Harry had invited Cas. He glanced towards the door, checking to see if Cas had snuck in without his notice. Nothing yet. He would surely be here soon, as Cas wasn't known to be late.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

26 January 2026

Cas was known to play the long game. He had an unparalleled amount of patience compared to most wizards, and he knew that the best results often came from mastering the art of waiting. Waiting for your enemy to grow impatient or sloppy, waiting for the wind to turn your way before charting your course. He had spent months carefully setting up his board. Arranging additional safe houses to prepare for the worst case scenario, organizing the heist to recover the magic dampener from the Ministry, and then recruiting the team to find a way to make it work again. Separately, he had also begun to prepare his moves for what would be his crowning moment in all his time with underground movements. Bringing back the Order of the Phoenix.

It was a tall order, and one that he had spent months agonizing over the impossibility. But communication with Harry and Claire, not to mention the subtlety of his actions within Ouroboros to prepare the group for a reconciliation, had eventually yielded the results he had been searching for. As if there could have been any other outcome – Cas knew how to get what he wanted. Ouroboros and Heliopath had each become weaker without the other – Ouroboros needed Heliopath’s ability for quick and decisive action, while Heliopath needed Ouroboros’s expertise and ability to devise elaborate but careful plans. They were stronger together, and for the first time in over a year Cas had begun to believe that all hope wasn’t lost in the fight against the Purifiers. Claire was a complicated topic for him, and as a result one he spent much time mentally avoiding, but she had ultimately been correct. They’d always been on the same side.

After so much time waiting, now it was time to act. Harry’s speech to Ouroboros and Heliopath had started the long-overdue process of healing, but there was still work to do. The factions had been apart for over a year, and there were problems to consider – members that had been recruited after the split, the lack of trust that might still exist among the more established members. They needed a new hierarchy, one that reflected everything that had changed. But Cas couldn’t deny that things would be easier now. With his rather unique background, the fight to set the stage for the Order’s reunification had been ten times more difficult. There were members who distrusted him, who didn’t believe in all the sacrifices he had made to be here. Never mind them – if they couldn’t trust Cas, they would trust the Chosen One.

Harry’s message had instructed him to be at his pub by eight, and Cas was known for being punctual. He checked the Dial Back on his wrist, which had the added bonus of also acting as a watch, as opened the door to the pub (while keeping a tight grip on the seemingly-empty briefcase he always carried with him). Scanning the room, he caught sight of the man he had come to meet and Cas moved purposefully to join him. He didn’t speak right away, instead nodding slightly and setting his briefcase down by his feet. For most people, Harry Potter was an exciting story of dangerous times. For Cas, he had always been an enigma. He couldn’t fathom what had motivated the man to approach him, all those years ago, about the Order of the Phoenix. But if there was anything he knew, it was how to keep a secret. Cas glanced around the room to scan for potential eavesdroppers. “Good crowd tonight,” he said casually, eyes still carefully scanning the small collection of witches and wizards that had come to Godric’s Hollow.

HARRY JAMES POTTER

[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

The pub had a constant trickle of business, for which Harry was eternally grateful. He knew that many of the wizards ventured out this was simply because of his name and the history attached to it. For once, Harry wasn't upset by it. He would leverage his fame and his name if it meant success for this pub and a stable life for his family. It was much better to be known for something so far in the past and to be talked about for something that made him happy than to have whispers wondering if he was truly good or evil.

Speaking of whispers deciding if one was truly good or evil, Cas sauntered into the pub as the clock struck eight. "Evening, Cas," said Harry with a crooked grin as the younger wizard nodded his greeting to him, before ceding that there was a good crowd in the pub tonight. Harry glanced around, and nodded. "Been steady. Shall we go upstairs?" asked Harry, removing his glasses and wiping them on his shirt before replacing them on the bridge of his nose. He shot a look over to the bartenders for the evening, who knew not to disturb him in the upper room unless it was incredibly urgent. They nodded back their confirmation. They would be fine without him.

"Drink?" asked Harry of Cas, grabbing himself a bottle of sparkling water from the refrigerator. He then led the way upstairs and into the upper room. The room was protected by a number of enchantments and worked excellently as a meeting space for witches and wizards alike. The muggle members of his staff knew the room existed, but not the full extent. Harry pulled out a chair at the long, oak table and sat down, gesturing for Cas to do the same. He pointed his wand at the door to lock it behind them, and his eyes swept the rest of the room to see if anything was out of place. It was not.

"How have you been getting on. You okay?" asked Harry in a paternal tone. He trusted Cas implicitly, but he often had quite a difficult role to play in society. Harry knew that no one would be able to do the work this collector did, and Harry didn't want to make the mistake of overlooking his mental health for the sake of the Order.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

Satisfied that there were no Purifiers lurking by the bar, Cas turned his attention back to Harry. He angled himself so his back was towards the bar, where the majority of tonight’s patrons had gathered. The movement went against his usual instincts, since Cas preferred to keep all potential risks within his line of sight. But tonight, he would prefer to keep his anonymity intact. Despite the fact that it had been decades since the events that had made Harry Potter famous, the man still received attention wherever he went. Moreover, he could instantly command any room he walked into. For someone like Cas, that association could be dangerous. And so, he knew how to naturally angle himself away from the crowd so the dim light couldn’t catch his face. To that same effect, he only nodded his head slightly as Harry suggested moving upstairs. Their usual spot would be much more secure, and the two men would be free to speak. Cas stooped to pick up his briefcase and follow Harry. Once they were safely upstairs, Cas shrugged off his cloak, eyes lingering on Harry’s choice of sparkling water. “If you have something stronger,” Cas suggested in response to his question. He wasn’t a heavy drinker by any means, but anything to take the edge off the last two weeks would be welcome.

They sat at the table and Cas busied himself with his briefcase. They’d done this enough times over the last months that it had become a routine. Still, Cas shrugged uncomfortably at Harry’s question. It was exactly the sort of thing Parvati always asked him whenever the two had met to discuss Ouroboros business, and it was exactly the sort of concern that seemed out-of-place in his life. He took risks for the organization, played a delicate balancing game between pureblood society and the Order. Doubtlessly someday it would get him killed, so why bother thinking of the inevitable? All he could do was take every precaution now to protect his identity and ensure his downfall didn’t trigger a domino reaction.

“Busy,” he responded simply, choosing to ignore the personal dimension of the question. He withdrew his wand to undo his briefcase’s protective spells then pulled out his double set of ledgers, turning them around so Harry could flip through them at his own pace. “Unfortunately the dampener still isn’t functional, and the store has been taking more of my time lately. Business is up, and it has become increasingly difficult to track the movements of dangerous artifacts without an idea of who to watch. Any number of these could feasibly be used in an attack.” It was the unfortunate conclusion he had reached about Ouroboros and Heliopath’s previous strategies. Neither provided the organizations any idea of who exactly belonged to the Purifiers, or how they were organized. All this time they had been too reactive, and as a result were no closer to eliminating the Purifiers than they had been at the beginning. Cas had wanted to pick Harry’s brain about this for months. They had important things to discuss, naturally – how the future Order of the Phoenix should look. But it was also time to develop a more proactive policy in identifying and eliminating dangerous members of the Purifiers. And this was where Cas could be useful.

HARRY JAMES POTTER

[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

Harry offered Cas a drink, and he took him up on the offer for something stronger after eyeing Harry's more modest choice. It had become somewhat a habit so he didn't spiral out of control - so much alcohol was at his fingertips, he had to be careful to keep his head on his shoulders. With the vast, infinite task of ridding the wizarding world of the Purifier threat, it was easy to become susceptible to vices. Harry paused for a second before grabbing a bottle of high quality vodka and two glasses. Just in case he changed his mind. He led Cas up the stairs as he had done so many times before, a routine forming between the unlikely duo.

Cas' response was somewhat expected, considering his generally closed off nature. Harry eyed him critically, but didn't press further. He knew it would get him nowhere. Certainly, he'd been much more hot headed at Cas' age. Cas placed a pair of ledgers in front of Harry and he straightened his glasses, peering over the words. Harry chewed on the inside of his cheek as Cas relayed his information. "Glad that business is going well. Keeps us under the radar," said Harry slowly. "Do we have any leads on who has been spending more time perusing the shop? Have you noticed any frequent customers who may seem dodgy?" asked Harry thoughtfully. "Perhaps we should start from the beginning, track down who we already know to have involvement with Elaine and her purifiers," said Harry, summoning a blank piece of parchment and a quill. He scrawled Elaine's name on the top of the page. "They're likely to be covert, but they have to communicate somehow. If we find the missing links and find the ways that information passes, we might be able to get somebody in there," said Harry. "We know that Elaine is the spearhead of this organisation. If she's smart, she will have separate arms, but what would those factions be focused on? We know they definitely have experts with explosives. They caused ... well, they caused the Quidditch incident," said Harry, his voice thickening at the memory of his late best friend. He cleared his throat and powered on. "She would definitely have her protection... perhaps that protection is the way to crack the mystery?"

Harry glanced at the briefcase, and remembered the magical dampening device. Perhaps he was a bit slow, but he still wasn't entirely certain what the point of the device was. "The Purifiers wanted this? I wonder where they would have used it... Hogwarts? Doubtful, it's much too secure and magical to have a real impact. Azkaban wasn't inherently magical, so it worked... what do you think, Cas? And now we are protecting it, or do we have plans to use it ourselves?"

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

Cas gave a low hum of acknowledgment at Harry’s observation that good business meant the Order was flying under the radar in Knockturn Alley. That much was true – Cas liked to keep a low profile. As far as pureblood society was concerned, the Karkaroff family was nothing out of the ordinary. They’d lost much of their standing after the war, what with the involvement of Cas’s father and uncle with Voldemort and his doomed crusade. But they’d spent the time since proving their worth – noble pedigree, good social standing, loyalty to the cause, and all those other anachronistic ideals that purebloods continued to cling to. Cas in particular had sacrificed a good portion of his life to making the Karkaroff name worth something in the right circles, making the right sorts of associations and leaving his dream career to establish himself in the right sort of dark corner of society.

So yes, there could be absolutely no chance that anybody would think to search Knockturn Alley for the Order’s influence. Cas had carved out years of his life to ensure that. He idly turned the page of one of his ledgers, although his eyes only skimmed the entries. He didn’t need to look more closely – Cas knew every artifact that passed through his store, and its curse, and who he had sold it to. “Unfortunately, all of my frequent customers fit that description,” he responded dryly as Harry began to wonder out-loud about his clientele. Still, he hesitated. One encounter had been sticking in his mind since the week it had happened, and Cas slowly slid the business card out of his pocket to examine it – although that too was unnecessary since he had spent so much time poring over it that he had its scarce contents memorized.

“I did have one odd visit, a little over a week ago. She stops by often without buying anything, which in itself can be meaningful. In my experience, window shoppers tend to be searching for inspiration. I’ve been meaning to speak to Cade about it.” There were any number of Ministry workers in the Order that Cas could have turned to for some investigative work, but he had been raised with a distaste for the Ministry and had never quite grown out of it. No, in this scenario he preferred to collaborate with someone who had the right skillset and whose work he was already familiar with. That was Cas’s style – having the right job title mattered less to him than a shared history where Cas could be assured of their competence because he’d already seen it. And a journalist was most certainly right for a job like investigating whatever it was about Emmanuelle Picquery that had left a bad taste in his mouth. Still, he turned the business card over so Harry could look it over for himself.

He shrugged noncommittedly at Harry’s guesses about how the Purifiers communicated and organized themselves. “Magical means of communication have always been difficult to intercept. I wonder if it wouldn’t be more worth our time to determine what sort of information or expertise the Purifiers have access to. They must have people in the Ministry. Maybe also in St. Mungo’s or the black market.” Cas tapped his fingers on the table as he considered the wizarding world’s most well-known institutions. He’d long wondered exactly how embedded the Purifiers were in the social fabric of wizarding life. He was certain that studying past Purifier attacks – at Hogwarts, towards the general public, Azkaban, among others – must be able to provide some sort of indication as to where the Purifiers felt confident, where they knew they could operate without outside interference. Maybe even an indication of where their members worked or how they chose their targets. But Harry had a point as well about the Quidditch match and the Purifiers’ penchant for explosives.

Cas refrained from commenting on the Quidditch match, mostly because the catch in Harry’s voice betrayed his emotional connection to the topic and that was an area outside of Cas’s comfort zone. Instead he focused again on Purifier connections. After the reunification with Heliopath, he had been presented with much more information than he’d known before, and he vocalized some of it now. “Each of their attacks tells us something about their resources. Explosives, more than once. Dragons, from the attack on Hogsmeade. Knowledge about the magic dampener in Azkaban. I know someone who specializes in animal smuggling, so he might know more about attempts to source dragons or their eggs in the last year. Azkaban…might suggest leaks from within the Ministry, or Purifiers within Law Enforcement.” He knew less about that, so he moved on instead to address Harry’s questions about the magic dampener. It was a challenge, one he and Jasper had been trying to crack for some time now. Cas gave a light shrug. “It’s still broken. Jasper and I have been learning everything we can to try and fix it. But they must have their own artifact experts. People who would know what to do with the dampener, or who had plans for it. It’s hard to tell if Heliopath destroying the dampener disrupted any of their plans, or if the prisoners were the original target all along. Our information suggests some inmates knew it was going to happen, although I haven’t heard of any successful attempts to confirm that. All we have are rumors.”

HARRY JAMES POTTER

[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

Harry chewed thoughtfully over Cas's words. He wasn't sure if it was a stroke of luck that had brought the unlikely duo together, but Harry had supported and been supported by the young Karkaroff years before any hint of the Purifiers existed. Harry trusted Cas completely, despite his innate distaste for his extended family members. He found Cas to be far less cowardly than his late uncle, something he valued above all else. He wondered mildly if Cas would have bene in Gryffindor had he attended Hogwarts. The prospect was not unlikely. With his expertise as a Curse Breaker, then as a purveyor of dark magic goods, he was increasingly useful to Harry and the Order at large. But Harry feared that this quality would be the exact thing that would get Cas hurt.

Cas mentioned an odd visit, and Harry glanced down at the table thoughtfully. "Anything in particular about this one visit that sticks out from the rest?" asked Harry. There had to be something, otherwise Cas wouldn't have mentioned it. "Some of the artefacts you have in your arsenal... well, I'm sure many of them are more dangerous than the others," said Harry, peering over the ledgers once more. "For example, has anyone been looking at this set of cursed earrings?" asked Harry, reminded irresistibly of the necklace that Katie Bell had touched with a bare fragment of her hand that had been purchased from Cas's shop before he'd owned it. Harry wished these things weren't on the market, but he knew Cas had to keep up appearances. And people who bought many of the objects within his store would either be back water blood purists, well to do purebloods and both could potentially fall into the category of Purifier. Cas made a relevant point about not being able to intercept magical communication, which Harry noted mentally.

With a nod, Harry responded. "That's true. We know what they have done in the past, which links them to specialists. People who are interested in explosives, people who have ties to dragons... Charlie Weasley isn't involved anymore though... oh, but your sister's friend, Astrid I believe her name is? Isn't she a dragonologist? She could do some digging. Could you put her in contact with your animal smuggler?" Harry paused wondering if he should mention the plans he had started to create revolving around Cas's sister. But it didn't feel right. Ana was perfectly poised to act as the mole between the Order and the Purifiers - and that conversation was one to be had between the two siblings. "Claire and Ana are well poised within the ministry to suss out any links. I'll leave that order of business to Claire though," said Harry, pouring himself a small measure of the vodka even though he'd promised himself not to.

Harry asked about the dampener, and was miffed to find it still wasn't fixed. It could protect so many people, and they could feel safe having events again. "That's a shame. But I suppose better broken than in the hands of the Purifiers. Imagine what they could do with that sort of power," said Harry with a low whistle. He arched a brow at Cas's next statement. "The inmates knew? That would definitely confirm ministry involvement on the Purifier side. And we'd have a place to start. Azkaban guards, and those who are in charge there. Bianca is head of Magical Law Enforcement? Do you know much about her?" asked Harry smoothly, taking a sip of the vodka and wincing at the burn.

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

Cas reflected deeply on what had raised his hackles about Emmanuelle Picquery. Her purchase hadn’t been anything special, and in fact he had followed his usual procedure in selling to a first-time customer. It hadn’t taken him long to determine what exactly she liked, and well – Cas could guarantee that if he didn’t stock what someone liked, it was easy enough to acquire. No, the purchase was routine. The conversation had been more revealing. “She has a deeper understanding of curses than most,” he finally said, choosing each word carefully. While he had ruminated for some time about Emmanuelle’s visit before going to meet Harry, the nature of his dual life meant that it was the first time Cas was voicing these suspicions out-loud. And as suspicious as he was of Emmanuelle, he couldn’t deny there was also some respect for her knowledge of the craft. “The level of expertise I witnessed suggests to me that she doesn’t limit herself to simply using cursed items, but creating them as well. That creativity makes her…dangerous.” The other truth that had been eating away at Cas was the uncanny sensation of being…recognized. Not his identity, nor any of the covert work he conducted for the Order. No, it had simply been a conversation between two individuals that possessed a shared love for the magic behind the artifacts. A mutual desire to understand the magic of enchanting, the Dark Arts that were so misunderstood by most of society – as opposed to most wizards’ ruthless pragmatism in determining how such magic could be used. Cas had always held a deep interest in pushing the boundaries of magic – and he truly believed there were few, if any, true barriers. Emmanuelle had seemed to share that belief. But he kept that thought to himself.

“Hm,” he said neutrally at the thought of creating a connection between Astrid and one of his sources in the animal smuggling industry. Cas was…an incredibly possessive person. He kept his secrets close to his chest, and he was loathe to share anything with anyone until it became absolutely necessary. These connections he had cultivated with Bjorn and his crew weren’t cheap and weren’t based on something as shallow as exchanged gold. No, there was a personal element to every piece of business Cas conducted, and Cas found the thought of sharing with others…foul. But Harry was right – the Purifiers clearly had access to specialists. Their attacks were well-planned, and clearly well-researched. It would be foolish to ignore such an obvious lead to follow simply because of his own tendencies toward secrecy. The Order had challenged him in so many ways already… “I can,” he finally relented. And Astrid was a more palatable solution than most, if only because she also had that Durmstrang connection and was clearly well-loved by Ana. That was a point in her favor. “The dragon attack seems to have faded from the public’s mind, but it’s still a solid lead. Where were the dragons sourced from, how were they transported and cared for before the attack? Someone connected to the Purifiers must have made a mistake in concealing their role. We just need to find them.” As usual, he spoke about even living things the way he might his merchandise -- it was a deeply ingrained habit as a businessman.

As easy as it usually was to keep his calculations for the Order impersonal, Cas pointedly fixed his gaze on his untouched drink as Harry mentioned Claire. It was difficult to think about her, and Cas forced his mind away from the thought – it was complicated, so complicated, and he didn’t like the way they’d left things after their last argument. Instead he thought about a much safer topic – the dampener he had yet to successfully repair. “A magic dampener has its uses,” Cas agreed, “and eventually we will discover those.” He spoke unambiguously because – well, he knew his artifacts. Somehow he would get that dampener running again. And as they began to discuss what the inmates may or may not have known about the breakout – information Cas had only received after the reunification between Ouroboros and Heliopath – he considered the topic with a certain dispassionate distance. It was too easy to veer into his personal connection to the escape, so instead he shrugged casually as Harry asked his opinion about the new Head of Magical Law Enforcement. He was vaguely familiar with Bianca Rivera, but really he didn’t bother much with Ministry people – they were all the same irritating flavor of brash and thoughtless. “Aurors lack subtlety. They enter every unknown with their wands out and the expectation it will end in a fight. Most even prefer it that way.” Cas stretched slightly in his seat, rolling his shoulders as he spoke casually, clinically. “They fail to see the benefit of restraint – and that will always decide the outcome for them. Why would Rivera be any different?” It didn’t mean she wouldn’t be useful in determining how embedded the Purifiers were in the Ministry. But he didn’t need to know anything more about Rivera – he knew her type. “There’s no doubt that the Purifiers are involved with the Ministry. But it will be difficult to investigate the extent without risking the reveal of our own involvement. It would be better if the Purifiers, and the general public, believe us to be inactive. Or disbanded completely.”

HARRY JAMES POTTER

[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

Harry took a heavy breath, looking up towards the ceiling as if it would give him strength. Not only was this woman that Cas described dangerous enough to use dark magical objects, but she seemed capable of creating them. Harry knew Cas wasn't a craftsman, only an identifier. And yet, dread swept through him at the thought of someone with the knowledge and capacity to create cursed objects. The pair mulled over the connection Cas had made, and Harry wondered what was going through Cas' mind. This must be so difficult for him, putting his career and life at risk. But it was worth it. Or so Harry hoped.

The Order needed someone to investigate the dragon attacks and smuggling ring deeper now that they had reunited. Harry didn't know Ms Abrahamsson personally, but had gone through background details on each and every member of the various factions before reuniting the Order. Her name popped up in his mind as a magizoologist - and Harry suspected that with her relationship to Ana (as Cas had explained, the only reason Astrid had joined was due to loyalty to her friend and self interest), perhaps Cas would be able to suffer through long brainstorming sessions with her. Harry knew better than most that working with people you disliked, even towards a common goal, could reap serious reprocussions.

"There's a dragon reserve near Hogsmeade now, isn't there?" asked Harry, pushing onwards. "But we should investigate the reserves we know of. Snowdonia, MacFusty's, and Magizoo Island for one," Harry mused, thinking aloud. "And I think it might be good that the dragon attacks have faded from the public. The Purifiers won't suspect that we're using that lead," he added with a smirk.

Their perusal of plans veered into Ministry territory, which Harry regarded with a certain distaste. Even with the broken dampener and the bungled escape, the pair agreed that there had to be some sort of Ministry involvement. They would have to investigate - and Harry mentioned the new head of Magical Law Enforcement. "Good thing she was never an auror," Harry replied with a chuckle.

Harry sat back in his chair, eyeing Cas critically. "Secrets and lies. That's how Dumbledore always operated. Only giving a modicum of the truth. And while he was brilliant and a mastermind, how many people were hurt because of that?" asked Harry, tilting his head slightly. "Would it not be better - for the public and for us - to give a boost of morale? If I know one thing, it's that Elaine knows the Order will not stop fighting until the Purifiers are dispelled. That with, or without me, the Order will fight and keep fighting, if only to keep their evil at bay. While we don't have to shout about who is in the Order - subterfuge is key here - why does the existence of the Order itself have to remain secret?"

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

While Harry ruminated over the question of dragon reserves, Cas’s mind naturally wandered to ponder the magic dampener. He had only recently returned from his trip to America, a visit that had been extraordinarily similar to his usual ones abroad for Borgin and Burke’s. He had walked away with many of his questions answered, only to be replaced by new and more complex ones. The magic dampener was American in origin, Scourer to be more exact. And he had managed to get his hands on a witch hunter object that, although it had proved to be an evolved design, still held the same kind of magic. With it, Cas was certain he could make the magic dampener function again, and potentially even learn the secret of how to make more. But it raised so many questions about the fundamental nature of magic itself – questions deep in theory that were unlike anything Cas had confronted as a cursebreaker. He could only imagine what the Purifiers might have been able to do with the device.

He returned to the conversation as Harry mused out-loud about the public’s attention span. “Probably for the best,” Cas agreed. “The timing of the dragon attack, attempted theft of the magic dampener, and Azkaban breakout is very curious. They are all incredibly distinct from each other, but happened around the same time. It makes me wonder how the Purifiers organize themselves.” He left the thought at that, although sat in silence for a minute as his brain turned over the thought. There were too many unknowns to do much more than guess, so Cas turned instead to his drink and finally took a measured sip. He contemplated the drink, still in silence, although looked up in interest as Harry began to speak about Dumbledore. Despite the number of years they had known each other, and worked closely together, Cas had never heard many descriptions from that time. Parvati and Harry occasionally shared details, although most members of the Order seemed reluctant to bring up the subject around Cas or any of the purebloods he had recruited. He supposed he couldn’t blame them.

It was a shame, because Cas had only ever been exposed to the pureblood narrative before his work with the Order. He had been very, very young when Voldemort had been defeated, and being both a child and outside of Britain – Cas didn’t have distinct memories of events, only a vague recollection of how celebratory and then somber the mood had been. He remembered more clearly the way the community had murmured about his uncle’s betrayal and subsequent murder, and he would never be able to forget the circumstances surrounding his father’s arrest and very public trial. It was difficult to maintain a blank expression as Harry spoke about the danger of secrets and lies, and questioned whether it wouldn’t be better to make the Order public. His mouth flattened into a hard line of disapproval, and Cas shook his head slightly in disagreement. “Secrets protect us,” he countered flatly, “and any degree of public scrutiny will inevitably put our members in danger. One needs only to study what happened to the former Death Eaters.” He didn’t mention his uncle or father by name, but Cas couldn’t stop his fingers from drumming nervously on the table. Harry had always been in the spotlight. He had never known anything else, so it was no wonder that he suggested something like this now. But secrets were Cas’s lifeblood, and lies protected him. He used it as armor against the pureblood community, against mainstream wizarding society, even against his own sister to shield the full extent of the monster he was. He couldn’t imagine any reality where even a single layer of those secrets could fall away. So instead he asked, “What could the Order accomplish publicly that it cannot from the shadows? Wouldn’t a better strategy be to let the enemy believe we’re weak, misgauge our capabilities? That will allow us to strike much harder than they would expect, when the time comes.”

HARRY JAMES POTTER

[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

Utilising the lead that the Purifiers had laid, Harry suspected that they could garner more information on Purifier movements and organisational efforts. They had to be well organised - how else could they have managed these feats? Harry knew they were up against a strong and fearsome enemy, one that was not to be underestimated. Despite Elaine’s youth, she had proven herself as a ruthless and cunning leader. Many more would be swayed to her cause, putting magic folk first. The pair let the conversation lie for a moment, Cas pondering over his drink while Harry gazed, unseeing out the window.

Secrets and lies, lattices of guesswork. The same had been true through his and Dumbledore’s investigation into Voldemort. Elaine claimed that she was different from the man, but how different was she? ”Do you reckon horcruxes are at play?” asked Harry after a long moment. ”There’s obviously a keen interest from the purifier side on magical artefacts. And Elaine has walked away unscathed more than would be strictly down to good luck,” he mused, rubbing a hand over his chin in thought. He then voiced something that Cas vehemently disagreed with. Harry met the younger man’s gaze.

”Do they? Or do they just create more problems?” asked Harry, taking a sip of his drink. ”Death Eaters walked among the public for years, unquestioned. Pulling the strings. Manipulating. We could give hope,” he added. ”The Purifiers are able to gain followers because of what they believe. Of the lies that they feed to the public. We would certainly be putting our members at risk… but what if the benefits outweigh the cost? The Order isn’t just some vigilante group. It’s hope for peace.”

Sighing heavily, Harry contemplated Cas’ statement. ”The issue is, we’re counting on the Purifiers knowing that we’ve splintered. How did they know that in the first place? Who is to say they won’t know soon, if they don’t already, that we’ve come back together?”

Casimir Elias Karkaroff

[Casimir Elias Karkaroff]

The mention of horcruxes shook Cas from his stupor, and he gave Harry a thoughtful look as he considered it. Harry had a point that the other side seemed keenly interested in magical artifacts – the magic dampener was a forefront example, and hadn’t it been in his store for unusual and powerful artifacts that his suspicions had first been raised about Emmanuelle? It was certainly a possibility that the Purifiers had turned to this extremity of Dark magic as a means to survive, if only because they had proven early on that they held no sanctity for human life – magical or otherwise – and that they were willing to resort to extreme measures to accomplish their goals. Still… “It’s possible,” he acknowledged, hands returning to fidget with his wand. “Certainly a possibility we can’t eliminate at this stage. But my instincts tell me otherwise. Horcruxes were…his playbook. The Purifiers seem to be avoiding repeating old patterns.” There was a telling pause as he had struggled to choose how to refer to Lord Voldemort. He couldn’t say the name out-loud, having had that form of disrespect beaten out of him young. But saying the ‘Dark Lord’ – using the term the pureblood community preferred – also felt inherently wrong. It left him in an awkward position.

At any rate, he suspected Harry wouldn’t mention his hesitation, if only because the man seemed to understand the sacrifice that purebloods were making to join the Order better than anyone else. So instead, Cas shot Harry an unconvinced look as the legend argued why secrets were so wrong, how damaging they could be. Still, Cas couldn’t ignore the extreme repulsion he felt at the thought of revealing any part of the work they did. How much extra danger he would be put in, the added precautions and paranoia purebloods would have to adopt to remain undetected. “Perhaps it is easier to decide that there were no consequences when you are not the subject of their distrust. I can assure you, it's difficult to be accepted when people hate you for who your family was. It leaves very few options for purebloods except to stay in the only community that would accept them. Continue the same legacy that created this divide. That’s why the Purifiers can gain followers now.” Cas didn’t speak about his own life very often – his difficult upbringing, the agonizing journey that had resulted in him rejecting his family and choosing his own path (in secret, of course). He faced dire consequences if his involvement with the Order ever became public.

“At any rate,” Cas began as he cleared his throat slightly to ward off the demons that had begun to settle in his thoughts again, “Making private feuds public forces people to choose sides. That’s where you will lose the purebloods, again. And, unless Ministry policy has changed in the last few months, they do view the Order as a vigilante group, as much as the Purifiers. Arrest on sight, isn’t it?” Ministry workers were another group that faced a difficult situation, although in a much different way than purebloods. Their job was to uphold the law, but they chose to break it by joining the Order. He was sure each one had their own reasons – fighting for the good in this world, seeking power or principles. Either way, he was sure there would be resistance from their ranks as well to go public. He shrugged slightly at Harry’s question about the Purifiers and what they would or wouldn’t know about the Order. “I can ask during Sunday tea,” he said dryly, taking another sip of his drink and setting it down lightly. He had no doubt he interacted with Purifiers, members or sympathizers, on the regular – considering his choice of employment and the circles he ran in. Still, the problem they faced, at the end of the day, was that there was no feasible way to know what the Purifiers were doing. Their policy was reactive, and in this sense the Purifiers had an advantage when pushing their agenda.

HARRY JAMES POTTER