Evening found Oleandra, Lupin and Sirius sitting around the dinner table in the kitchen, while the Gryffindor Trio held their usual secret meeting upstairs in Sirius's old bedroom, plotting their next moves.
"I still can't get over how old you look," said Sirius, squinting at Lupin's face. "You're old, Moony."
Things weren't going the way Lupin had hoped. Despite the Gryffindor Trio's gratitude for the news that he brought from the outside world— grim and depressing though it was— they still refused to tell him anything about the secret mission Dumbledore had left them. So, he'd turned to his old friend, Sirius… but he hadn't been much more forthcoming.
"I'm not that old," sighed Lupin. "And I daresay you used to look a tad scragglier than I did, before you inexplicably found your youth again."
Oleandra rolled her eyes.
Perhaps it had been a mistake to steal the last twenty years of Sirius's life— though giving them to Greyback had certainly not been one. Teenage Sirius was unbearably standoffish and rebellious, for no apparent reason at all. Perhaps if he'd at least kept his older looks, he wouldn't have been so eager to help thrust his godson straight into the heart of danger…
"And I told you, I swore to Harry that I wouldn't tell anyone about his secrets," said Sirius obstinately. "You should know better than anyone that I don't betray my friends."
Lupin glanced in Oleandra's direction, as if asking for her help. There was a flicker of resentment in his eyes— part of the reason Harry had refused to involve him was that his wife was pregnant, implying his place was at her side, not at Harry's.
"There has to be some way we can help those three," said Oleandra. "We wouldn't need to know your secret mission or even put ourselves in danger. We just want to help."
It was the truth.
Oleandra did genuinely want to help… help Harry help her get Dumbledore's inheritance, that is. She was dying to know what such a legendary, era-defining wizard could possibly have left her— although, if it turned out to be the Elder Wand, she'd definitely have herself a little cry.
"Well," said Sirius, chewing his lip, "since there's definitely going to be a lot of sneaking around, I suppose we could use an Invisibility Cloak. Or two."
Oleandra's heart lurched. What was that supposed to mean?
"Would you happen to know if old Mad-Eye managed to get hold of any more Invisibility Cloaks, Dora?" Lupin asked, turning to her. "I remember he liked to keep secret stashes all over the place, so maybe you could search his hidey-holes, if you know where they are?"
Before his death— which Oleandra was only just learning about— Mad-Eye Moody had been a rather paranoid fellow, trusting no one. Like some sort of doomsday prepper, he'd hidden all sorts of supplies across Britain. Since Tonks had trained under him, Lupin was under the impression she might know one or two of his secret hiding places.
"'Fraid not," said Oleandra, shrugging.
Oleandra bit her lip.
She desperately wanted to ask why they didn't want to use Harry's Invisibility Cloak, but she wasn't sure if Tonks even knew he had one. At the same time, given Tonks's close relationship with two of Harry's parents' old friends, there was a very good chance she might know… so in the end, Oleandra decided to bite the bullet and just ask outright.
"Doesn't Harry already have one?" Oleandra asked pointedly. "Or has it already lost its effectiveness?"
To Oleandra's relief, neither Sirius nor Lupin batted an eyelid at her question.
"James had his for years, and I've never known it to lose its magic," said Sirius ruefully. "But Harry's managed to lose the Potter family heirloom to that blond git, what was his name, again…? Right, Draco Malfoy."
"You've got to be kidding me," Oleandra blurted out.
At the thought of Loki prancing around her in Draco's body, taunting her with the location of the Deathly Hallows through strange games, she felt sick. And he'd had Harry's cloak on him all this time!? She could have just attacked him there and then with Mai's help!
Oleandra felt a headache coming on.
She needed to kill her sister to win the Elder Wand's allegiance, and she also needed to kill Draco to rid herself of Loki and grab the Invisibility Cloak; both targets lay deep in enemy territory, so, by comparison, retrieving Dumbledore's inheritance from the Ministry of Magic suddenly did not seem so difficult.
"Hogwarts…" Oleandra muttered to herself.
Come to think of it, wouldn't Daphne and Draco be required to return to Hogwarts in September, under the new laws the Ministry had passed concerning school-aged wizards?
Voldemort doubtless considered Hogwarts crucial to his plans going forwards, as the school was the cradle that raised each new generation of witches and wizards. That meant he would likely station his most loyal followers there to help spread and secure his authority. Furthermore, Hogwarts was the safest place in the world, so he might well send Daphne there, if only to protect one of his Horcruxes…
Oleandra's decision was made.
Remaining here at 12 Grimmauld Place with the Gryffindor Trio no longer served any purpose—they could keep their little secrets to themselves, for all she cared.
Now that she knew who owned the final Hallow, she had no choice but to reveal herself to You-Know-Who's new order and return to Hogwarts, where both of her targets awaited her, which meant she had less than a month left to obtain Dumbledore's inheritance… through either legitimate or illegitimate means.
Oleandra excused herself from the table, leaving Lupin to catch Sirius up on what had happened in the last twenty years, and returned to her room. Retrieving a quill and a pot of ink from her pouch, she began to pen a letter at her desk.
I realise now I'm just getting in everyone's way.
Going to lie low for a bit— don't try to find me.
Sorry.
—Tonks
And so, Oleandra brushed her fingers over the runes tattooed along her arm, murmuring their names one by one. The creak of wooden doors opening echoed through the air, followed by a bright flash of white light.
Oleandra took a deep breath, then stepped into the light and vanished.
"Did you knock something over?" Hermione called a few seconds later, knocking on the door. "Do you need help cleaning up? …Tonks?"