Before Anduin could finish speaking, Sirius cut in. "I'm talking about my house. How did it get like this after I'd only been away for a little while? Good grief, it looks even newer than when I first bought it!"
Anduin had thought Sirius was asking how he'd cooked the food, so he'd helpfully explained. Turns out he meant the house. Anduin could only say, "Come on, we're wizards. Isn't this just a matter of waving a wand?"
"Not a chance. I've seen other people use a Cleaning Spell, and it wasn't like this. Bloody hell, even the grease stains on the carpet are gone." Sirius looked around, clearly unconvinced.
"That's because they weren't very good at it. I have a special cleaning spell," Anduin said mysteriously.
After dinner, Sirius still seemed unable to recover from his shock. He wandered from the living room to the kitchen, then from the kitchen to the bathroom, touching this and inspecting that as though he'd walked into someone else's home.
Anduin finished cleaning the table and came out of the kitchen. He glanced at Sirius, thought for a moment, then said, "Sirius, there's something I need to tell you."
Sirius turned around with a cheerful grin. "Sure, what is it? I have to say, you're quite the housekeeper. You're practically a housewife, and your cooking's delicious too."
Anduin was at a loss for words at Sirius's description. He rolled his eyes. "I'm talking about something serious. I heard the Death Eaters might attack members of the Order of the Phoenix around Christmas."
Sirius immediately grew serious. "Are you sure? How does a kid studying at Hogwarts know so much?"
"You have to remember that this Hogwarts student was sorted into Slytherin," Anduin said, looking amused.
Sirius raised an eyebrow. "You mean...?"
Anduin walked over to the fireplace and sat down on the sofa beside it, gesturing for Sirius to sit too. "That's right. I heard it from an older Slytherin student named Quirke Wilkes. He said he'd heard it from an elder in his family. Do you know any Death Eaters named Wilkes?"
"Most Death Eaters' identities are kept secret. I only know a few, but I do remember this Wilkes. He was close with Snape, Avery, Mulciber, Rosier, and the others. I'd suspected him for a long time. Unfortunately, the Ministry of Magic says they need solid evidence before they can arrest them. But they all wear magical masks when they're in action, so unless they're caught in the act, there's nothing we can do," Sirius said bitterly.
"So even if you already know some of the Death Eaters' identities, you can't act against them unless they're caught in the act? Even if they walked right up to you, you still couldn't do anything?" Anduin stared at Sirius in disbelief. Had these people never heard of suspects? Couldn't they detain them for questioning? Or was some other force getting in their way?
Sirius narrowed his eyes, as if recalling something unpleasant. "That's right. Things have improved quite a bit since Millicent Bagnold took office. Before, even if someone made vile remarks or secretly tortured Muggles, they couldn't be convicted just because a Muggle identified them. There were plenty of people in the Ministry of Magic and the Wizengamot Council secretly supporting the Dark Lord."
Sirius paused, then continued, "But Millicent Bagnold has been very firm since taking office, and Dumbledore has been constantly lobbying members of the Wizengamot to support us. We have a much wider range of options now. Before, all we could do was defend ourselves. We were completely on the back foot."
"Then can't you take suspected Death Eaters away on some pretext, like 'assisting with an investigation'?" Anduin was astonished by the British Ministry of Magic's inefficiency, and marveled at how fierce the internal political struggle must be.
"We still can't do that. Some people are afraid to cross the Dark Lord, and some even support him. Besides, many Death Eaters belong to Pure-blood families, and they have complicated ties to plenty of Wizengamot members. Without hard evidence, we can't make a move," Sirius said helplessly.
"Then you need to contact the Order of the Phoenix right away and tell them to be on their guard. If we can prepare in advance, this might be an opportunity!" If they couldn't change the external circumstances, they would have to find a way to act from within. Anduin told Sirius.
Sirius stood and paced back and forth in front of the fireplace, thinking. After a while, he nodded. "You're right. I need to notify Dumbledore as soon as possible. Whether or not the Death Eaters actually show up, it's best to be prepared. But if they attack and discover we were lying in wait, they'll definitely investigate how the information leaked. That could put you in danger."
Sirius considered that, first, although he took this warning from an Underage Wizard very seriously, he couldn't be certain it was accurate. Second, if the attack really happened, the Death Eaters might investigate among themselves, and Anduin could be put at risk because he was connected to the leak.
Anduin thought it over. It was possible, but he'd actually gotten the information from Rosier, so it was unlikely anyone would suspect him. And if he really was exposed, he could always stay at Hogwarts from then on.
After thinking it through, Anduin said, "The way I got the information was discreet. It's unlikely anyone would realize it was me, so there's no need to worry too much. Besides, I'm no pushover. Have you forgotten who saved your life?"
The moment Sirius heard Anduin bring that up, he was immediately displeased. "Get this straight: if you hadn't gotten in my way, I could've taken down those two idiots just fine. The fact that you weren't hurt by the Death Eaters just means you were lucky."
With that, he went to the fire and drew his wand, casting a spell at the flames. Before long, the face of an old man appeared among the coals. It was faint, but recognizable as Dumbledore.
"What is it, Sirius? It's rare for you to contact me this way," Dumbledore's face, formed from the coals, said.
"Well, there's something I need to report..."
Sirius repeated the information Anduin had given him to Dumbledore, and shared his own suspicions as well.
"Hmm, that's very important information. Anduin, was it? I remember you. You mentioned him before, when you and Lily were talking. I didn't expect he'd be staying at your house. I'll personally host an Order of the Phoenix meeting tomorrow. Would you mind bringing Anduin along? There are some things we'll need to confirm in person," Dumbledore said.
Before you continue