Chapter Text
James leaned against the bar, swirling the watery contents of his glass. He adjusted the Extendable Ear that wound itself around the arm of his glasses. The mission wasn’t the most exciting, but they can’t all be duels and chases. Though this was mostly recon, retrieving the package was still important.
“005, what is your status?” Remus’s voice came through the Extendable clearly as he nonchalantly sipped his drink and scanned the room. Sirius had just sat down at the poker table.
“Target in sight,” he murmured.
“Another drink, sir?” the bartender asked.
“Yes, another martini…but use something better than Ogden’s this time, please,” James said to the bartender.
“Very good sir.” The bartender waved his wand at the bottles, which came flying down from the shelf.
James went back to leaning. He watched Sirius closely, waiting for the signal.
They were at the Casino Sorciere, an establishment that catered to both magical and Muggle folk and was home of a particularly elite poker table. He and Sirius had been tasked with appropriating a certain briefcase that their intel said would contain the whereabouts of a particularly enigmatic and shadowy figure, Fenrir Greyback. James hoped their information was correct; he and Sirius had been tracking Greyback on and off for years. It would be a relief to them and the entire Magical Intelligence Corps to finally find him.
Sirius looked at his cards. A decent hand, all things considered. He still didn’t completely understand the Muggle pass time, but over the years had picked up enough that he would be allowed to sit in a high stakes game without suspicion. He supposed he looked the part too, with his sleek Muggle suit and his hair neatly tied back in a ponytail at his neck. In his line of work, it was important to be able to easily slip in and out of situations without drawing the wrong sort of attention.
The woman across from him was his target, Alecto Carrow. She was said to be close to Greyback and to have the information they were looking for. Her hair was done in an elegant updo and she perched daintily on the edge of her seat. Her eyes flicked toward Sirius as she received her cards. When she’d sat down at the table, she’d secured a briefcase between her feet. Sirius was sure that was where the information they needed was currently located Luckily, Remus had made them a case that could easily be Transfigured to match this or any briefcase and be used as a replacement when he switched them. He just had to figure out how he was going to do it.
She bit her lip as she looked at her cards, a subtle enough tell. Sirius put down two cards and received two new ones. Excellent. Alecto was watching him, a hungry glint in her eye as she showed her hand. Two aces. Another player folded, and then it was his turn. He showed his cards with a full house and won the hand. Glancing up and finding James still at his post, Sirius asked for new cards.
As the dealer doled them out, Sirius felt a tap on the shoulder. “Mr. Black?”
“Yes?”
“I was asked to deliver a message,” the man who worked in the casino said. Sirius looked around surreptitiously and cast a nonverbal Muffliato spell.
“Very well. What is it?” Sirius asked.
“The moon is waxing.” If the man thought the message odd, he didn’t betray his skepticism.
Sirius nodded. Remus was getting impatient back at command. He sometimes forgot that being in the field wasn’t always quick or straight forward.
“Please tell Mr. Potter that the full moon will happen when it’s expected,” Sirius said. The man nodded and walked away. Alecto watched this exchange with interest though Sirius knew she didn’t hear them.
When Sirius was sure he had Alecto’s attention, he left the poker table and made his way to the opposite side of the bar from James. Their eyes met for a split second and James gave an almost imperceptible nod.
“Mr. Black is it?” Alecto asked, coming up next to him.
“It is, Ms…”
“Carrow,” she said, offering her hand.
“Charmed, I’m sure,” Sirius said, making a show of kissing her hand. “Would you care for a drink?”
“A glass of champagne will do.”
Sirius signaled for the bartender and ordered, “A glass of champagne and a martini. Shaken, not stirred.” He turned his attention to Alecto, who perched on a bar stool, which increased her height so they were almost eye to eye.
“There’s something familiar about you, Mr. Black.”
“Is there? I don’t believe we’ve met before,” Sirius said easily, lounging against the bar, his expression smooth and blank. He felt the magic mirror in his trouser pocket vibrate and then James came hurrying toward them.
“Oh, Mr. Black. I am happy to have found you.”
“Why, James old boy. It’s good to see you.” Sirius said as the bartender passed them their drinks. “How have you been?”
“Excellent, excellent. Let me show you new pictures of Harry…” he said, reaching into his pocket. He tripped and leaned against the back of Alecto’s chair. “I beg your pardon, ma’am.”
“Do watch yourself Mr-”
“Potter.” James righted himself and straightened his suit jacket. He’d also kicked the briefcase she’d been carrying to Sirius and replaced it with a decoy as he stood up. “So sorry. One too many, perhaps.”
She narrowed her eyes a little at them, as Sirius sipped his drink and James fumbled in his pocket and pulled out a picture. “My, Harry’s grown up,” Sirius said, handing him back the picture.
“My son,” James said to Alecto.
Alecto stood up, affronted. “You seem to have spilled my drink,” she said pointedly.
“I am so sorry, please let me -” James began, picking up some napkins off of the bar.
“No thank you, Mr. Potter,” Alecto said haughtily, pulling away and heading for the ladies’ room.
Once she was out of the way, James tapped the briefcase with his wand, shrinking it and he and Sirius walked as unobtrusively as possible to the exit. Once outside, they apparated back to headquarters.
“Took you long enough,” said a voice as they made their way from the apparition point to the office. Remus was waiting for them in the bullpen, which was deserted except for him.
“Nice to see you too, Moony,” James said, cuffing him in the shoulder.
“You have the package?” Remus asked, holding out his hand for the Extendable. James unwound the flesh colored string from his glasses and handed it to him.
“Of course.” James took the shrunken briefcase out of his pocket and handed it to Remus.
“Don’t give it to me…the Chief wants to see you,” Remus said. He turned his attention to Sirius, his expression softening as he looked him over. “Alright?”
Sirius grinned at him. “Never better.” He unwound the Extendable Ear from his own ear and gave it back to Remus.”You?”
“Just dandy,” Remus said, somewhat sarcastically. Sirius didn’t exactly blame him. It was late on a Friday night and they’d all had to work instead of starting the weekend when everyone else did. But that was part of the job and they’d all signed up for it.
“The Chief’s in her office?” Sirius asked.
“Yup.”
Sirius followed James as they stopped at the open door. She was facing away from them as she said, “So it went smoothly then?”
“Yes. We have the package,” Sirius said, gesturing toward James.
The Chief turned around and watched them cooly. “How did it go in the field?”
“Smoothly, no distractions,” Sirius responded, waiting for their debrief to be over. He was tired. Even recon missions took a good deal of discipline and adrenaline.
“Good. Dismissed.” They turned to go. “Oh and Sirius?”
“Yes?”
“Join us for dinner on Sunday?” Just like that, the Chief was gone and Lily Evans-Potter was back among them.
“Is Harry coming home?” Sirius asked, dropping his professional mask and grinning at the mention of his godson.
“Yes. he’ll be happy to see you.”
“Coming home, Lil?” James asked, slipping behind her desk and leaning against it. She raised an eyebrow and didn’t comment on appearances. Surely, they were the only ones in the office at this hour.
“Let me finish one thing,” she said, turning back to her magically enhanced computer monitor. Remus’s proteges, Fred and George Weasley, had a knack for making Muggle electronics run on magic.
“I’ll wait with you.”
Sirius left the Potters and went back to find Remus. “We can go,” he said. Remus nodded and turned his own computer off.
They left together like they did most nights, heading home to their shared apartment. James had shared it too before he and Lily got married as did their other friend Peter, who’d gotten reassigned to a different office.
So now it was the two of them. They’d tried taking on other roommates to fill the empty bedroom but none had stayed too long. It was easier this way, anyway. Since they both had top clearance at MIC, they didn’t have to hide what they did at home, like many of the other agents did.
Once at home, Sirius changed out of his suit and hung it carefully in his closet along with other suits and robes that missions might call for. He came back out to the living room dressed in a white t-shirt and joggers. Remus was already on the sofa and offered him a bottle of beer. Sirius took it gratefully and sipped it as Remus waved his wand at the television set that Fred and George had rigged for them.
“You seem beat,” Remus observed.
“I am a bit,” Sirius allowed. “It wasn’t a hard mission though. Not a lot of action. But it’s still…you know, good to be home.” He clinked Remus’s beer bottle and they settled in to watch tv.
A little bit later, Sirius had fallen asleep on the sofa and Remus covered him with a blanket, took their empty beer bottles to the kitchen and went to bed.
***
He was running out of time, Greyback thought as Alecto Carrow related the details of her night. The briefcase she returned with was identical to the one she’d retrieved from its hiding spot yesterday but was filled with scraps of paper. Greyback was furious that the MIC agents had outsmarted him again.The MIC, with their agents and intelligence, was onto him. If he was going to make a move, he had to strike now .
He was nothing if not a patient being. But he was done waiting. He’d bided his time for years while those fools talked about werewolf solidarity and reform and never acted. Werewolves were continually marginalized in their society and they needed a voice, his voice. The werewolves needed him to rise up and fight back against the prejudices of wizarding society. But first, he had to organize the different packs, which would be no easy task. He had to convince them that he had what it took to bend the likes of the Ministry to his will and have the werewolves take their rightful place at the top of the food chain.
He’d recognized one of the agents when he’d probed Alecto’s memories; he’d seen him numerous times over the years. The haughty, dark haired one. Greyback had to hand it to him though, he did know when to turn on the charm. Remus Lupin worked in the same office as that agent. Greyack even allowed the agents to walk away with the briefcase earlier this evening, as if he’d unknowingly let something like that out of his sight.
The MIC always underestimated him.
But Remus Lupin had the in with the agency. He knew their secrets. He had their respect. And he was also a werewolf. Remus Lupin could be the key to finally making his plans reality.
But first, he had to persuade him to help. It probably wouldn’t be an easy feat. Remus was too loyal to the MIC, especially the agents that were at the Casino tonight. They’d never let him out of their sight if they knew he wanted to speak to Remus.
He’d also heard that Remus spoke out about werewolf rights and advocacy. That was a bit touchy feely for Greyback, but if Lupin could appear to be civilized, he could too.
He’d probably have to capture Lupin in order to speak to him properly. Yes, that seemed like the most prudent course of action.
***
On Sunday, at eighteen hundred hours, Sirius and Remus presented themselves at the Potters’ door. The door burst open and there was thirteen year old Harry, sweaty and red faced. He grinned at them.
“Look at you, kid,” Sirius said, pulling him in for a one-armed hug.
“Dad and I were playing Quidditch out back. Want to join?” he asked, looking at Sirius hopefully. “Hi Moony,” he said distractedly.
“Maybe it’s Moony that wants to play,” Sirius said, nudging Remus’s shoulder with his own.
“No thanks,” Remus said with a snort. “Remember what happened last time? It’s good to see you, Harry.”
After saying hello to Lily, Sirius followed Harry out to the yard where he found James already in the air on his state of the art racing broom. The MIC actually provided them with brooms, but the Quidditch player in James always scoffed at their lack of speed and aerodynamics.
Remus found Lily in the kitchen, poking at a pot with a wooden spoon. She had her hair loose and was wearing jeans and a t-shirt. It was sometimes hard to reconcile their sleek Chief with this woman, whom Remus had known since their first day at Hogwarts.
“Alright, Lil?” Remus asked, kissing her offered cheek.
“Of course. I’m glad you and Sirius could come. It’s been a while since we did this.” They saw each other almost everyday at work but their days off didn’t always coincide and with Harry at Hogwarts most of the year, they didn’t all get to spend a lot of time together.
“You’re right, it has,” Remus agreed. Lily brandished the wooden spoon at him and he tasted the stew she was making. “Delicious.”
“It better be…I’ve been trying to master this recipe forever. It’s James’ favorite.”
“It’s an Effie recipe?” Remus asked.
“Yup. I can run our department, but apparently my chickpea stew leaves a lot to be desired,” she said with a laugh.
“How’s Harry getting on?” Remus asked, waving his wand at the cabinet and directing five glasses to the dining room table.
“Great. Still gets in trouble all the time. I wonder where he gets that from?” Lily said with a fond smile. She leaned her head conspiratorially. “He’s also getting curious about our jobs, but we’ve been trying to redirect as much as possible.”
Remus knew she and James worried about that a lot. Would they ever be able to tell Harry the truth about what they did? Remus didn’t know. In that moment, he was grateful he didn’t have his own kid to keep this secret from.
Lily called everyone in about a half hour later. James, Harry and Sirius trooped in noisily.
“You cheated, Padfoot. You were supposed to be on my team,” Harry said, accusingly.
Sirius shrugged. “All’s fair in love and Quidditch, kid.”
“That’s not the way the saying goes.”
“Says who?” Sirius asked, grinning wickedly.
Remus rolled his eyes. “Which one of you is the teenager?”
Lily tried to hide a snort behind a cough and James burst out laughing. “He has you there, Padfoot,” James pointed out, filling each glass with water.
“Water? Prongs, have you gone soft?” Sirius asked incredulously.
“Sorry, I didn’t realize the great Sirius Black required a martini at every meal,” James drawled. Sirius opened his mouth for a second, then closed it when James shook his head slightly. Martinis were something they drank in their spy life, and they couldn’t make any references to that in front of Harry. Sirius desisted with a grumble, accepting the glass of water. Harry was watching them curiously.
“Why can’t Sirius have a martini if he wants one?” Harry asked, bemused.
“It’s alright, Harry… I don’t really want one. You know I have to give your dad a hard time,” Sirius said smoothly.
“But-”
“So how was the last Quidditch match? Who did Gryffindor beat this time?” Remus asked,
“Oh, we flattened Ravenclaw…you should have seen it,” Harry said excitedly. Sirius mouthed ‘thank you’ across the table at Remus, having effectively distracted Harry.
Later, Lily pressed containers of leftover stew on them as they got ready to leave. “I know neither of you cook so it’ll be good for a meal or two.”
“I can cook,” Sirius said, incredulously.
“When was the last time you cooked?” Lily asked coolly, waving her wand at the dishes in the sink.
She had him there. “It’s been a while. But you know, work has been busy,” Sirius said with a wink.
“And I expect to see you at 800 hours sharp,” she said as they went outside to apparate home.
“We’ll be there, Chief,” Sirius said with a mock salute. “Or at least I will. You know this one likes a lie in.”
Remus rolled his eyes. “I’m leaving without you,” he said and disapparated.
Sirius followed suit after kissing Lily on the cheek and thanking them for dinner.
***
While Sirius and James were in a briefing meeting with Lily and her boss, Senior Director Alastor Moody, Remus made his way to the lab. He barely stepped in the door when he heard a small explosion.
“Ha! That one was better,” one of the red haired twins exclaimed. Fred, Remus observed after a moment.
“No way. You’re going to actually blow up the agent that uses that, genius,” George said.
“Hmm, you’re right. Maybe it needs more work,” Fred mused thoughtfully. “Good morning, Remus.”
“Good morning. Have you made any progress with the prototype?” Remus asked. The twins had been tasked with channeling a confringo blasting spell into an object that could be thrown like a Muggle style grenade. Remus did not ask questions as to why this was needed but he made sure to keep an eye on the twins as they tested different ideas.
“Good morning, Remus,” said George, as he made a note in his journal. “We’ve made the explosion more targeted but if an agent is carrying it, it will probably detonate.”
“Gonna keep working on it,” Fred said, affably.
Remus nodded as he flipped his computer monitors on and felt the hum of magic whirring to life.
“There’s a message from the Chief, Remus,” Fred said, handing him a piece of parchment with Lily’s immaculate script on it.
Remus scanned it. One of his contacts had gotten some potion ingredients they needed and he needed to go to the address listed to pick it up. All very simple.
When he left to run the errand, he lit a cigarette once he was outside the range of the MIC wards. Remus didn’t always smoke, but sometimes he just needed a cigarette. He inhaled deeply and blew the smoke out in a languid puff. As he did, he could feel the back of his neck prickle, like someone was watching him.
Sure enough, when he turned around, he found he had company. This man was shorter and broader than he, with curious yellow eyes and long fingernails. Despite his rather odd appearance, he was well appointed in a pair of khakis, a white oxford shirt and a black sport jacket.
“Hello, Remus,” the man said, whipping out his wand, lightning fast. “I’m Fenrir Greyback.”
***
“Don’t take your eyes off your opponent, Pads!” James jeered as he landed a punch to Sirius’s shoulder. Sirius shook it off and came back at him, landing a hit of his own.
After the meeting, they went to the boxing ring to practice sparring a bit. While they, of course, had magic at their disposal, there were some instances where there were spells that made wizards unable to use their magic for whatever or reason. So they trained in both magical and muggle combat.
Besides, it was a good way to blow off some steam after a rather frustrating meeting the bosses. While they completed the mission by retrieving the package, the contents of the briefcase proved mostly un-useful. They were written in code, so they had to call in Frank Longbottom, the best codebreaker they had, to try to decipher the meaning of the documents.
“James? Sirius?” they heard seemingly from a distance, since they were so focused on reading the others’ moves.
James surfaced first, pulling his attention away from Sirius, but suffered a blow to the chest before Sirius realized he’d stopped.
They saw Lily standing outside the boxing ring looking worried. “What’s wrong?” Sirius asked, immediately walking over her.
“Have either of you seen Remus?” she asked, sounding worried.
“Not since this morning,” Sirius said. He’d left Remus at his desk as he’d gone into the same meeting the other two were in.
“He hasn’t come back from that errand yet. Fred and George said he left two hours ago. It wasn’t supposed to take that long.”
James furrowed his brow. “Have you check the security feeds?” One of their wards was designed to record the goings on outside the building and the recordings trickled into a basin much like a pensieve, allowing any of the security guards to review them.
“Hagrid is checking now. He’s supposed to send me an update as soon as he can,” Lily said. Sirius could see she was trying to stay calm and have faith in her most trusted security guard. He put his arm around her shoulders, while James wiped his face and joined them.
“Remus wouldn’t just run off. I’m sure he’s fine,” Sirius said.
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Hagrid came lumbering into the gym. “You should see this, Chief,” he said.
“Let’s go to my office,” Lily said at once, leading the men briskly down the hall.
Once in the privacy of her office, Hagrid placed the basin on the table and Lily leaned over and looked in. She drew back in alarm.
Sirius and James exchanged worried glances. “What’s wrong?” James asked.
Lily’s face went pale. She swallowed and looked back and forth between them. “Greyback has him.”