12-13

Chapter 12 A Like-Minded Gathering

August 1, 1989

It had taken three such meetings to get the die-hard Dumbledore fans sorted out from the rest. This was the last meeting of the summer and most of the kids would be going back to the non-magical school. Percy and the Weasley twins would be in Hogwarts this year; Percy had started two years ago, the twins will be starting this year. It was the only day they could get everyone together.

James was looking into have their boys sign up for summer tutoring so they didn't fall too far behind in the non-magical studies. He encouraged the other parents to do the same. He figured that those that couldn't afford it could join his kids at the manor. He had no problem with that. He was unsure if he should offer it to Molly and Arthur. He would have to think about it. Just because those families didn't agree with them, didn't mean they were banning them from participating in the activities already in progress, just the new ones. It would all depend on how their children reacted in Hogwarts.

Right now they were working on plans to keep everyone together. This meeting was the start of that and they only had to keep this from six families; the Weasleys, the Bones, the Dunbars, the Jamesons, the Jacksons and the Finnigans. If they did it right then those six would never know anything was amiss.

It was around 3 p.m. and all the adults were in the formal dining room, since it was the largest, and the kids were playing outside. It was the slow time for most of their jobs, so many could get off work early since it was Tuesday. They would have met on Saturday, but too many of them had weekend plans that could not be broken.

Seated around the table were the Davis', the Brocklehursts, the Abbotts, the Mcfays, the Boots, the Corners, the Godfreys, the Greengrasses, the Hopkins, the Jones', the Longbottoms, the Patils, and the Lovegoods. Snacks and drinks were provided and everyone settled.

"So," James said, standing and clapping his hands together, as he looked around the table, "glad you could make it. You all remember Sirius and Remus, right? They don't have any kids in the group, but they know what's going on. Everyone okay with them being here?" he asked, while his two best mates nodded their heads at everyone. Well Sirius took a bow, but then he nodded his head.

"I've no problem if they think they can help," Aric Davis said. He knew that the more people the better. He wanted to protect his daughter anyway he could. Judging from her goals in life she would be one of the few half-bloods in Slytherin. It was a good thing she was learning how to protect herself. She told him all about what they did here, and he was happy to help that along.

Nods were seen all around the table as everyone stated they had no issues with the two men.

"Good, let's get started then. Well, what Lily and I were thinking is to teach the kids further in their Occlumency. We've taught them the basic, but wanted your permission before going further, since we would have to enter their minds to test it. Occlumency, for those that don't know, is a way to shield one's mind from intruders, who use the Legilimency Spell, which reads memories. Most everyone needs a wand to do this, but I know Dumbledore takes peeks at the student's minds to keep the trouble makers down, and he simply looks into your eyes. He used it on us, Marauders, all the time when a prank went off," he said as he winked at Sirius and Remus. "Good thing we already knew how to protect ourselves. Too bad that traitor didn't or we would have gotten away with everything. Oh, well," he said with a shrug and got back on topic. "It's in the school charter that the headmaster, or mistress, can do this, if they are able. The only time they can't is when there hasn't been any trouble. I, for one, don't think Dumbledore abuses it, but I want to be on the safe side. That and we have no idea who else can, though Lily thinks Snape," he held back a sneer, "can, but she isn't sure."

The rest of the parents looked around the table at each other; they hadn't known that Dumbledore could read their minds. Some who had had problems in school now realized why they had never gotten away with lying. Well, if it would protect their children from his manipulations they would come up with a way to teach them. They whispered for a few minutes then James drew there attention back to him with a clearing of his throat.

"Dumbledore wants to split up our family, and I wouldn't put it past him to take a peek if he felt it for the best. If he feels it would further his efforts in breaking up this group, well…" James left that hanging and let them make of it what they will. "Anyway, it shouldn't be too hard for the kids to learn since we've been having all the Mutineers do an hour meditation every day after school. Right now we have them learning to clear their mind. All they need to do now is put up some barriers. Anyone have any ideas? We know the basics," he said, pointing at Lily, Remus and Sirius, "but if you know something that has worked for you that you think might help we are all for hearing it," he finished and sat down to let people know he was done. His picked up his cup and grimaced when he sipped cold tea.

"I think I might have a few suggestions," said Wren Corner stated clearly, making everyone look his way. "I've been looking things up on the Internet and researched guided meditations. I wanted to make sure that Michael was getting the best out of it. There are a few that try and organized the mind and from what I know about Occlumency that would be a good start. I think we can put it together and get the kids to have a pretty strong barrier before they get to Hogwarts. If you have a pen and paper then I can write stuff down as we talk about it," he said, thinking of all the things he had studied. Once a Ravenclaw always a Ravenclaw. The Internet was a godsend to his busy brain.

Lily called for Tilly and asked for some notebooks and pencils. Tilly popped back in with the requested items and looked around the table to see if everyone had what they needed and seeing that they did popped back out. The redheaded woman walked around the table and put the items in the middle of the table so everyone who wanted one could grab it. She went back to her seat with her own writing utensils.

Wren took a pencil and notebook and started jotting down his idea. Xenophilius and Pandora Lovegood both grabbed a notebook each to do the same. The rest took the notebooks and pencils, but didn't write anything down. They would wait to hear everyone else's idea's before they wrote anything.

"Oh, before I forget we have these two way mirrors," James said, fishing in his pocket and then holding up what looked like a square hand mirror. "They basically work like a cellphone. A cellphone is phone that can be carried around in your pocket so you are never without them. It's pretty new so I'm not surprised you don't know about them," he added at all the confused looks. "But they gave us ideas on how to improve what we already had. With these mirrors the kids will be able to talk to you and each other no matter what house they are sorted in. We'll be giving them to every family in the Mutineers, we just wanted to give these to you guys tonight and show you the security feature that won't be on the other mirrors."

Sirius and Remus picked up a small box each and started handing out the mirrors to the parents, one for each parent and kid.

The werewolf took up the explanation as he went back to his seat. "We used these mirrors when we had detention back in the day. They didn't have all the nifty features they have now, so I think you'll like these better."

"Yeah, we almost got caught— a lot," Sirius grumbled as he put the last mirror down. Then grumbled all the way back to his chair and slouched down.

"Ignore him," his sandy-haired friend said. "Now, if you tap the fourth rune on the back that will silence the call. It is a modified Muffliato. There's a notice-me-not charm on the mirror itself, only those who know about the mirror will see them. There is another notice-me-not on the security rune, that way the other parents and children will not see it. I would strongly caution the kids not to use them in the hallways unless it is an emergency. If the staff finds out that the kids have these mirrors they might wind up on the ban-list and we don't want that," he said taking a breath. "We're going to add a pocket to inside the boys' robes with a Disillusionment Charm. We suggest you do the same for you kids. The mirrors also have an Unbreakable Charm."

Most everyone was picking up the mirrors and examining them. "How does it work?" Sarita Patil wanted to know.

"If you look on the back you will see some runes," Sirius said, perking up now that it was his turn. He grabbed a mirror and flipped it around and showing everyone the four runes on the back. "The first one is to keep the mirror in normal mode. The second to keep it in silence mode. They should use this in class and in the Great Hall, it will make it so if someone calls no one will hear a name called out. Don't worry; the third rune is to see if anyone called while in silence mode. The fourth one is to put it in to security mode. That is the one that will muffle the mirror, it is only on these mirrors, and can't be seen by anyone who doesn't have the same type," he explained, pointing to each rune.

"How are the kids supposed to use them in school and not get caught?" came a question from down the table.

"The kids can duck into an empty classroom between classes to check to see if anyone needs anything. The fourth rune will be what they would use when they are in bed or something," the dogman answered. He was about to put the mirror down when he got a thought, he shook his head and snickered as he said, "Now I know we can tell them not to use them in detention, but I also know that that didn't work for us. So you all can do the parent thing and tell them what you will."

"Like Remus said, ignore him," James chuckled, even though he knew his friend was speaking the truth. "Now, if they want to talk to someone, they only have to say that person's name into the mirror and wait for them to answer. We're still working on a way that they can talk to more than one person at a time."

"Here let me show you," Remus said, picking up a mirror he tapped the first rune. "Grace Davis," he said into the mirror.

The mirrors in front of Grace whispered her name so she picked one up. She could see Remus's name in the mirror. "Ummm, what do I do to answer it?" she asked as she bit her lip.

"Just say the name that shows up in the mirror," the wolfman explained gently.

"Remus Lupin," she said tentatively, holding the glass object like it would break.

"Hi, Grace," Remus said as he waved at her from the mirror. "Okay, now tap the fourth rune."

She did as bid and suddenly no one saw the mirror nor could they hear the conversation. They saw Grace make a motion with her finger and heard Remus say. "To end the calls just say 'done'."

"Done," Grace said and the mirror went blank. "Ohh, this will come in handy. We can always talk to our little girl," she said, getting excited. She hated the thought that her baby would be going away for almost ten months out of the year. Now, she could talk to her nightly.

There were excited whispers around the table as everyone not writing picked up a mirror to look at them. Some trying them out by calling someone at the table. They played around with them for about ten minutes.

"Right," said Wren, getting everyone's attention. "I've got a few things to add for the Occlumency. I think the Lovegoods do too. What I've researched on the Internet tells that an impenetrable bubble would be best to use for a shield. It is said they would be harder to break through because they flex. If we add this into the meditation the kids to each night then that should, in theory, give them a good shield before they go to school."

"Sounds good so far," Lily agreed. "What else have you three written?"

Wren looked down at what he had jotted down. "Well, we also might want to add organizing one's mind in there. That helped me a lot, being a Ravenclaw I have a lot of useless knowledge cluttering up my brain, so I used it to clear my head. I have to tell you it helps that racing mind go to sleep."

Others agreed with him on that.

"Who has the softest voice? One that is strong yet comforting. The sites I went to say that that is the best kind of voice to use. If we make up a script and have that person read it. We can use a recording spell on a crystal and play it for the kids every night," Lily asked as she looked around the room. She had done her own research, but wanted everyone's input on how this was to be done.

The adults gathered were looking thoughtful. They knew that the easy answer was Pandora, but she was a bit flighty and they worried that she might be hard-pressed into keeping the script.

"Well," Xenophilius said in a careful tone, tapping his finger to his chin, "can it be a child? The best voice I know among us is Luna's. The only problem I see with that is keeping her on script," he said with a soft smile for his quirky little girl. Not that he had room to talk, but Luna was usually in a world of her own, much like her mother. He shared a look with his lovely wife who just smiled at him.

"Yes, your daughter's voice will be best, but I think in order for this to work we will need a stronger, more adult voice. Maybe Pandora can to it. Her voice is almost as dreamy as Luna's. And I think she will stay on script," Rachelle Brocklehurst said, making a note in her pad. "If she could put a little more softness in her voice I think that it would be perfect."

Everyone conceded the point, say what you will about the Lovegoods they had relaxing voices.

"I would be happy to help keep the Wrackspruts from infecting the children," Pandora said in her smoky voice, looking at everyone with her large blue-grey eyes.

Many people shook their head in amusement; they were quite used to Pandora by now. Being supportive friends they were they all had subscriptions to the Quibbler.

"Are you sure, Pandora? I mean, can you stick to the script?" Lily questioned, voicing everyone's concern.

"Oh, don't fret so; I am sure I can put the children in a meditative state. If you write up what you want me to say then I'll follow it. We," pointing to herself and her husband, "also think that we should add creatures outside and inside the bubble. The children can pick what creature they think will best keep people out. We could say something along the lines of 'Now that you have your bubble, think of the scariest creature you can and have them patrol your mind' or something like that."

Lily gave a slight smile. "That would be lovely Pandora. I'm sure you'll do well," she said sincerely. She loved the Lovegoods, but sometimes their creatures would grate on her scholar like mind. When she first heard of the Nargles and Wrackspruts she looked everywhere for information on them, but other than the family's magazine there was nothing. Now, when they were mentioned it took all the patience that she had not to snap that there was no such thing. Shaking her head over those thoughts she got back into the discussion over the meditation. The adults talked about this for about forty-five minutes and they came up with a workable script.

"Now all we need is a quiet room with some soft music in the background," Dee Boot said after they had a workable script. "I've heard that that is the best type of situation for recording these types of meditations. Do you have a room that is quiet? A music room will work, does the manor have one?" she asked Lily.

Lily thought for a moment, the house was pretty big, but she wanted to make sure that no outside noise was heard and that the room had good acoustics. She looked at James with an arched eyebrow; after all he grew up here.

James thought about it and decided that the room on the top floor in the back would be a good place. It had been a music room before. His mom used it so she wouldn't be disturbed by James when she practiced. The music room was moved to the first floor after his parents died. Both the boys like to play a large variety of instruments. Not that they were very good, but they had fun. "I've got a room in mind, but how are we going to get the music to play there. There is no wireless up there for some strange reason the stations don't come in right."

"Well," Hollis Mcfay said, "you can always record the music to a crystal and then play it back while Pandora records her part."

"That's a great idea. Not sure why I didn't think of it," Lily said, shaking her head. "Recording charms won't work in the game room so we are going to have to find a wireless and see if they have a classical station or soft natural music to record. Why don't I do that while you guys talk about the defensive spells we want to teach the kids," she said as she got up from the table.

"Okay, Lil's we will write it all down so you know what we decided," James said as he warmed his tea and took a sip. He grabbed one of the small cakes and pushed it in his mouth, and then took up one of the pads and started talking to the other parents. They all put their heads together and made up a plan. It would be two years before the kids went to Hogwarts, but they wanted them to be prepared.

After an hour of talking, they decide on: Expelliarmus, whichcauses whatever the enemy's holding to fly away. Petrificus Totalus this is a temporary bind for the victim. Protego is a shield that protects the caster. Stupefy knocks the opponent out. Finite cancels most other spells. Muffliato a spell Snape invented that muffles sound so people can't hear you. The Jelly-leg Curse, whichcauses the victims legs to be jelly like. These would be great additions to the few spells the kids already knew.

They figured that these would be easy to learn and within the children's magical ability. They'd tell the children to use them only if absolutely necessary. Other than that go and get a teacher, walk away or anything but get into a fight. They wanted the children to stay under the radar. They were hoping that Occlumency and this guided meditation would keep the hot-heads from getting into too much trouble.

Lily came back with a good recording on a crystal. She played if for everyone to see if they agreed. They did. Pandora was then shown by a house elf which room to go to for her part. She came back forty minutes later and played her crystal for everyone and they decided that it would work well. James called Tilly and had her go to Diagon Alley and get enough crystals for all the kids so they could record it for them.

Fresh tea was brought in and everyone got comfortable. Some got up and chatted to other parents while they waited. They were all really excited to be working together on a project that would hopefully protect their children.

Tilly came back ten minutes later. Pandora went back to the room and recorded the extra crystals and handed them out when she came back. This took another thirty minutes. The meeting broke up around 8 p.m. and the parents grabbed their kids, who had long since retired to the game room, and went home.

Hphphp

"So," Harry said as he finished up his meal, "how did it go?" The boys had regaled them with their play for the day. They were sitting in the informal dining room and eating a nice dinner of chicken and potatoes. He pushed his plate away and drank the last of his juice. They kept the heavy talk for after the meal. It was late enough that no one wanted afters, and decided they would head to bed.

The twins now had separate rooms, since the bond was a strong as it was going to get. Which was good, since Sally still visited them at night, but now they could talk to her individually and tell her how they felt about things that were private. Like Harry's feeling for Daphne, he was confused, just a few weeks ago he thought girls were icky, now he thought she was cute, hence his muddled state before bed. His brother would just take the Mickey, and his mum would coo, so he was glad he could talk to Sally. Even twins needed someone else to share with.

"It went very well. Thank you for asking," his father said. "We got everyone to agree to not tell anyone. And we've have a small list of spells we'll be teaching all you kids on the weekends, when the other families won't be here. It's too bad that the other parents aren't backing us," James said with a small sigh as he finished his chicken and hummed at the delightful taste. "Go wash up and we'll tell you what we got for you guys. Think of it as a late birthday present."

"Okay, Dad," the boys said as they ran out of the room and up the stairs.

"Quit running," Lily called on reflex.

"Sorry, Mum," they stated, but didn't slow down.

"One of these days one of them is going to fall," she snarled at her tea like it was the liquids fault that boys didn't listen.

"Don't worry, sweetheart, when that day comes you can say, 'I told you so'," James said as he patted her shoulder. She just glared at him for his effort. "Come on, Lily-flower, let's go tuck our boys' in." he stood and took her elbow and escorted her out of the room.

The couple went up the stairs and met the boys outside the bathroom, while they walked to the bedrooms James explained to Harry, "We have a crystal that'll guide you into meditation before you go to sleep at night. It should help you create Occlumency shields and organize your mind better than it already is. We suggest that if you don't know the Muffliato then you learn it for your dorm room." He watched as Lily took Gary to his room to set up the crystal and tell him the same thing.

"We already know it, Dad, but thanks for thinking about us," Harry said with a small smirk and a nudge to his side.

"Brat, get into bed and let me set this up," James said as he put the crystal on the night stand and tucked his oldest into bed. "Good night, son," he said as he kissed him on the head. He tapped the crystal with his wand and soft music started to play. Just before he closed the door he heard Pandora's dreamy voice. He met Lily in the hall and put his arm around her and started for their bedroom. "Let's go to sleep, sweetheart. It's been a long night."

"Hmmm, let's," Lily mumbled into his shoulder as she stumbled tiredly to their room. With that the Potters settled for the night.

The boys listened to that dreamy voice telling them how to shield their mind and making suggestions on how to protect it. They slept well and Sally looked down on Harry first, and then she floated through the wall and watched Gary. She was just happy they were happy and she would do everything in her power to keep them that way.

Chapter 13 The Kids Talk

August 7, 1989

It had been a week and everyone in the pro-security group, as they called themselves, gathered to see how the crystals were working. While the parents were again in the formal dining room chatting, while the kids were gathered outside. The adults and the kids that were pro-Dumbledore were not invited that day. They still met with them afterschool since they didn't want to ostracize them, they just didn't tell them about the crystals or spells.

The gang was playing in the back yard to the Potter Manor. It was huge; with sprawling greens that seemed to go on for miles, though the kids were only allowed to go the first set of wind-break trees. The trees were starting to turn, but the grass was still very green. Some of the children were flying their brooms, for those so inclined. The others were running in the tree line. After playing a rounding game of hide-and-go-seek, which was more fun with brooms, the kids gathered in a circle.

"That was great, it is so nice to play outside, too bad we'll be going back to school soon. Not that I don't like school, but I'll miss these fun days" Harry said as they all flopped down on the ground, dropping their broom next to them and all hot and sweating from flying around.

"Taffy," Gary called the unofficial Mutineer elf, "Can we get some juice and biscuits?" he asked her when she popped it.

"Of course, Master Gary," the tiny being said and with a snap of her long fingers, there was glasses and plates in front of everyone.

"Thanks, Taffy," came the chorus response from everyone. They all took up the drinks and treats and started to relax on the warm grass.

"So," the older twin said after they all settled, "how are the crystals working for you guys? I know I wake up calmer and I'm starting to think straighter. Since we don't know anyone who knows Legilimency we can't really test our bubbles."

"Mummy's voice is very soothing, she keeps the Helographs away with just her talking," Luna said in her dreamy, vacant voice, so much like her mothers, her wide grey eyes wandered around the group. "I've added so many interesting creatures in my mind. I'm sure that the Wrackspruts will not be making my mind cloudy, and the added bonus of keeping the Helographs and Nargles away. They all affect your mind you know. I've felt ever so much calmer and my mind is much clearer. I feel that all of you will benefit from these crystals." She looked into the sky and watched things that only she could see.

"Okay, Luna, what's a Helograph?" Harry took the bait, making a few people groan, but to him her explanations were so much fun.

"A Helograph is a tiny creature that, looks like a silver crab, it crawls into your bed at night and whispers facts in your ear making you think too hard to go to sleep. Usually, I drink a cup of nettle tea before bed to keep them away, but this is so much better and I don't have use the loo quite as often," the blonde explained with a great deal of seriousness. She truly believed every word she spoke.

Many of the kids smiled at the eccentric girl. They had long gotten use to her. She was one of the ones that most everyone vowed to protect in Hogwarts. They knew that her quirkiness would cause people to hate her. They already protected her in the non-magical school, where the kids said some pretty hateful things to the little blonde. Sometimes it was a good thing that it was out on the playground when there were no teachers about, because then the older Mutineers could use small bits of magic to make the bullies back off, simple stuff like tripping jinxes.

Ellie Godfrey and Astoria Greengrass were her must fierce protectors since they were in her class. The two girls tried to get Luna to stand up for herself, but she would just wave it off and say it was not the bullies' fault, that they were infected with some bizarre creature or other. They did finally get her to dress more appropriate for the school and less like a flower child. That went a long why in making the snarky girls back off.

The Patil twins squealed at her dreamy expression and hugged her tight. "You are so cute," they said as one and then settled back down.

"I like the line that tells us to treat everyone the same, well suggest, I should say," Padma said with a thoughtful expression, bringing the subject back to the crystals. She took a sip from her glass and held it in her hands while she continued, "I think it is a good idea to have that in our subconscious. We're going to run into some pretty snobbish children. If we keep our cool then we might not make enemies," she looked around and bit her lip. "I know our parents are worried that we will be separated when we get to Hogwarts, but we are very tightly knitted and I'm sure that we won't, at least I hope. I mean, I'm a bit concerned too, but with the organizing of my mind, well I think we will stand up to pretty much anything," she said, keeping her arm around Luna. She was almost positive this quirky girl would be in Ravenclaw, because for all her vacantness, this was one smart young lady. Luna was top of the class, and if they were in the same house she'd watch out for her.

"It was a little weird at first, but after a few nights I got used to it," Terry Boot said with a shrug, throwing a small rock in the air while he talked. When you have a mind that was always thinking it was hard to concentrate on meditation. He was one of the few that didn't pick up on the afternoon meditation very well. It took him months just to clear his mind, but he persevered and now was meditating with the best. When he found out that it would help him remember things better and that it would help him think more clearly it got easier. "Luna's right, her mum's voice is very soothing. I've never fallen asleep so fast and slept so well. I also like the part that helps organize the mind. I've got a library set up and I'm working through all the crap that is in my head. I didn't realize I had so much useless information in there."

"Well," Gary said with a small smirk, like he was going to share a great secret, "Padfoot gave me a bit if information that I think will help a lot of us in the long run. Not only is this setting us up for being great Occlumens, butit is also giving us a path to become Animagus." Gasps were heard around the group and everyone broke out in exciting whispers. "But," he said, holding up his hands, "he did warn me that not everyone can do this. So we need to decide if we want to, because some of us will be left out and I don't want to alienate anyone. The last thing we need is to have jealousy in our group." He looked around to see how that bit of knowledge went down. There were thoughtful faces everywhere as the gang assimilated the info and weighed the pros and cons.

"Yeah," Hannah Abbott said sadly, her blonde hair falling in her face as she leaned a little forward to pick morosely at the grass around her. "I already feel bad that Susan isn't part of this particular group, she is my best friend. If we decide to become Animagus then we need to bring the rest of the Mutineers in on it and decide as a full group." Her friendship with Susan was strained. She knew that her best friend wanted to be part of the group that didn't support Dumbledore, but she couldn't go against her aunt.

The two girls had had a talk and Hannah remember how Susan figured out right quick that most of the gang was meeting on weekends without the others. She said she understood that the Headmaster was playing games with the Potters and that family couldn't take the chance of someone telling him their secrets. They had already been betrayed once, so she understood their caution. However, she was just as sad as Hannah that there were now secrets between them. It had been a sad conversation and both girls cried a bit, but it also made them resolve to keep being friends despite this setback.

"I know," Harry said with a small frown, breaking her out of her thoughts. He gave her a small understanding smile and continued, "I feel bad that not everyone is here too. We've all been together for a long time and it is a shame that their parents don't feel the same way ours do, making us split like this. Maybe we can talk to the other kids after we get to Hogwarts and see if we can bring them in without their guardian's knowledge," he said not really holding out hope for Ron and Percy, but he have a good feeling about the Weasley twins and Ginny. The latter having gotten over her crush on the Boy-Who-Lived, even if she was still shy around them.

"That might work," Hannah said, perking up. "Our conversation yesterday makes me believe that that could happen. I mean, she doesn't want to go against her auntie, but doesn't like what Dumbledore is trying to do to you two. She thinks it's wrong. She said that the only reason her auntie is part of the supporters is because he would find out anyway. I think they will both come around soon," she finished, going back over her talks with Susan. Now that she had the support of the gang, well she wasn't as morose.

"I just hope," Megan Jones said with a happy wishful smile, "that we can all still be friends even if they don't come around. I like everyone in this group and I don't like keeping secrets. Maybe we can get the adults to make a different meditation crystal for the pro-Dumbledore people. She could even add a line in theirs like, 'trust your friends' or 'careful who you trust' or something, we can ask the adults. That way they won't feel left out and I know that some of the hot-heads would benefit from them."

"That would have to be worded carefully, because it could be taken as a form of the Imperious. I mean, you could rewire someone's way of thinking. If it were more of a suggestion or a nugget of insight, I think it would be okay," Luna said, making everyone look at her with a bit of awe.

"Right, we'll make sure that the adults understand that too," Harry said, with a quick nod of his head. He wondered if the adults thought of that.

"I wouldn't hold up to much hope for some of those families," Michael Corner reflected sadly as he fiddled with the biscuit in his hand, making it crumble on to his lap. "Some of the kids are too much into sports and not big on learning. They might not want to use the crystals, since it is all about organizing the mind and creating a bubble. It might be too much work for them." He swiped his hands on his pants to rid them of crumbs and continued, "Besides, even with the crystals most the die-hard Dumbledore fans won't be swayed." He held out his hands when the protest started. "I'm not saying we stop being friends with them, after all they are part of the Mutineers. I'm just saying don't hold out hope that they will come to our way of thinking. Everyone here knows that Ron Weasley is a die-hard Gryffindor and that when we're sorted he will more than likely not talk to anyone not sorted into that House. He's also not known to keep his opinion to himself. I don't think he will be part of our group after the first week of school."

"Yeah," Wayne Hopkins said, nodding in agreement. "He'll probably take Finnigan with him. Those two are tighter with each other than they are anyone else in the Mutineers." He smiled fondly and shook his head. "It must be all the sports they bonded over. Poor Ron never knew muggles had so many games. I'm surprised his head didn't explode when he found out about football. I'm like competition as much the next guy, but those two are fanatics. Nice blokes though, I'd hate to lose them." There were sad nods around the group.

"It would have been unrealistic of us to think that we could keep everyone together," Daphne Greengrass said knowingly. She had been on the hateful end of some of Ron's biting comments. "I know we were all hoping that we could, but honestly we knew that wouldn't happen." She glanced slyly at Harry, knowing that he held hope that everyone would rejoin the group.

"Well," Tracey Davis added with a bright smile, trying to cheer everyone up, "even if they pull away from the gang that doesn't mean we still can't be friends with them," she reiterated, wanting to stress that point. Then she got a thoughtful frown. "Now that we have the mirrors we can still organize a way to meet. I think we need to talk to the adults about better security on those. I mean the Muffliato spell is great, but it just shows that you are hiding something. That and I know they are giving them to the others. What if they tell the Headmaster?"

"Yeah," Mandy Brocklehurst said in agreement, "if we are going to try and hide our activities from Dumbledore and the staff than we don't want anyone telling them about our group. Using the mirrors might tip them off. We'll need a way to keep the adults from talking as well."

The group talked about ways to get this accomplished and finally decided to take it to the adults. Smart as they were, they just didn't know enough. The gang got up and wiped off the grass and crumbs from their clothes. Harry and Gary cleaned the mess with a wave of their hands. All the dishes were sent to the kitchen and the food was banished. Then the gang started towards the house to talk to the parents.

Harry saw Sally waving to him out of the corner of his eye and started to slow down. He bent down to give the illusion that something was wrong with his shoe.

"I heard what you guys were talking about," Sally said when the rest of the group was far enough ahead. "I'll tell your mum a spell that will make it so no one will see you use the mirrors, since the other mirrors don't have the security features I don't need to do anything about that. However, I am going to add to the spell so that if anyone leaves the group they won't be able to tell anyone. They will simple explain that the Mutineers are just a study group with no mischievous inclinations. I know your folks and uncles want to market the mirrors, so I can't take that knowledge from them, but I can modify what they know about the rest."

"That would be great," Harry whispered so he wouldn't be heard, retying he shoe and getting up. "If you can do that it would help a lot. We'll still have to talk to the parents though, since no one knows about you. Maybe, after everyone goes home, you can join us in the game room and explain it to the adults. We'll say that Mum can't share it because is Potter family magic," he said thoughtfully, scratching his head. He glanced at the gang that was getting further away. He bent over and fiddled with his laces.

"Yeah," Sally agreed with a cute nod of her head. "Get the family together after everyone leaves and I'll join you," And she gave a small wave and disappeared with a smirk.

"Gary, don't say anything, but Sally said she can help with keeping everything a secret," Harry projected to his twin. "We're gonna meet with the parents after everyone leaves. Try and get Padfoot and Moony's attention and tell them to stay. I'll talk to Mum and Dad."

"Okay, Harry," Gary sent back. "I'll do that, thanks for the update."

By this time Harry had caught up with the group. "What happened? Why did you fall back?" Mandy questioned.

"Oh, ummm" Harry said, with a small stutter. He hated lying to his friends, but Sally was a secret that must be kept. "Well, my shoe came off," he said quickly and with a bright smile, pointing at the offending shoe. "I to stop and fix it, I think I fiddled with the laces when we were talking. Bad habit of mine," he said, willing himself to just shut up.

"Oh, okay," she said with a shrug.

The kids made it to the house and were making their way to the dining room where they knew the parents were. They were quietly talking among themselves discussing ways to bring up their worries without sounding like whiney little kids. As they got to the dining room each kid broke off and went to their respective parents. Hugs and greeting were given and chairs were conjured for the kids to sit. The table expanded by itself, having been spelled that way. Juice and treats appeared up and down the middle, and everyone got settled.

"What's up with you guys?" James said, giving Gary a one armed hug. "Why so serious?" he asked as he noted their faces. They all looked like they had a deep discussion and were stumped as to where to go next. Well, he was more than happy to help them along, and he was sure everyone here at the table felt the same.

"Did something happen?" Lily said, taking Harry by the face and giving him a once over. When she saw that he was fine, she turned her sights to the rest and her eyes roamed over clothing and faces to see if there were any injuries. "No one is hurt are they?" she asked, causing all the parents to examine their children.

"No," Gary said, batting his dad's hand away. "No one is hurt. We just have a few concerns we wanted to talk to you guys about." He sat back in his chair to get away from his dad's inquiring hands.

"Well that's a relief," Rachelle Brocklehurst said, when she finished looking Mandy over. "So, what's up? You kids look like someone took your puppy."

"Well, we were talking about how if we can't bring the other kids into the group, they might tell Dumbledore about us. That might cause strict rules on mirror use, and the Headmaster might find a way to ban them, if he thought we were against him. Then we wouldn't be able to talk to you guys while we were at school," Padma said, settling on her chair next to her dad. She moved the chair closer and leaned on to him.

"We were also talking about how some of the other kids will probably not be part of the Mutineers after first year. Some of them have pretty radical ideas, and we haven't been able to dissuade them," Parvati took up the narration as she cuddled with her mother.

"Yeah," Hannah said sadly, thinking of losing part of the group as she leaned her head on her mum's shoulder. "It makes us sad that we may lose one or two of our friends. But as Daphne pointed out it was unrealistic of us to think we would all stand together. That and we don't want a repeat of what happen to the Marauders," she looked bashfully at Sirius, James and Remus. "No offence. It is said to learn from history though, so it doesn't repeat."

The story of Peter's betrayal was one of the moral tales that the adults told the kids. They wanted to make sure that they looked for the signs of someone pulling away. The Marauders missed all those signs and let a good friend turn bad. They partially blamed themselves for not being a good friend. Not completely, since Peter was an adult when he strayed, but still…

The three men smiled fondly at the shy girl. "None taken," Remus said with a sad look in his eye as he remembered the good time the Marauders had in school. "You're right to think of that. If we had taken history seriously and learned from it, we would have caught on to Peter much sooner. Smart thinking you guys." He reached over and messed up Harry's hair.

"That's actually good thinking," Wren said proudly, glad all the lesson these kids were getting on logical thinking was paying off. "What else has you guys so concerned?"

"Well," Astoria said turning to Mr. Corner. "We were also thinking that you guys could make up some crystals for the rest of the group. Just because they're pro-Dumbledore doesn't mean they should be left out of this. It's not something Dumbledore can control anyway. Just leave out the Occlumency bit and concentrate on the organizing their mind and keeping control bits. And someone suggested adding a phrase in there about trusting friends. That way if we can talk them around, they won't be far behind us." There was a nodding of heads among the children showing they all felt that way.

"That is actually a good idea," Frank Longbottom said. "We could even look into marketing those crystals and the mirror, and set up a vault for future use. If you guys are sure that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is going to come back we'll need funds. War is not cheap and it almost wiped out many families funds just to stay out of it. We lost a bit of fortune in the last conflict and that was mostly with warding. Can you imagine having to pay for troops…?"

"Frank, not now," Alice said, looking pointedly at her son, whose face was scrunched up in thought.

"The marketing and war fund is a wonderful idea, Frank," Xenophilius said with a beaming smile. "Pandora will be more than happy to help. Won't you, my dear?" he asked as he turned to his wife and daughter.

Both female Lovegoods looked vacantly at the far wall and then smiles burst from their lips at the same time. They shared a knowing look and turned those big grey-blue eyes to the people watching them.

"Yes, I think it will be a lovely idea," Pandora said dreamily, Luna nodding at her side. "If Lily and James don't mind, I think we can set it up for me to record next weekend. That will give us some time to work on a script or two. We might want to make more of these crystals to cover many different things, but for now ones for the other children will be beneficial to the rest of the group."

"Oh, wait," Harry said hurriedly, "Luna brought up a good point. You'll need to make sure that everything is suggestive and not demanding. No one wants to be accused of trying to control the populace. I mean, that might wind you in jail," he said, biting his lip in worry.

"Don't worry, son, we've already thought of that. But thanks for the warning," James said with a smile as he reached over and messed up his oldest hair. He got hit for his efforts, but that was okay.

As the adults and kids began to discuss what they would need to do to keep their secrets, Gary made his way over to his dogfather and wolf uncle. "Hey you guys might want to stick around after everyone leaves," he whispered with a wink. "We're gonna talk to our friend," he said softly and then went back to his chair and started talking with his mum.

The two men nodded to his back, and then joined the rest of the group's discussion. The talk continued for about forty minutes, it was decided that they would all think of ways to up the security and parted for their homes in a flurry of hugs and good-byes.

The Potters and the rest of the Maunders went to the game room to talk more. They had just settled on the couches and chairs when Sally joined them. She told them what she had explained to Harry and the discussed until they finally agreed on how to pull it off, which was the original idea of saying it was Potter family magic. The rest of the night was spent in laughter and games until it was time for bed.

"I'm glad you brought all that up to us," Lily said as the kissed Gary on the head after tucking him in. "it does my heart good to know that you kids think of others. It means that all the stories we told you over the years have done some good." She fussed with the blanket trying to pull it up to his chin.

"Mum, stop," Gary protested with a blush. "I'm getting to old for you to be tucking me in. That and you know Sally will be here in a few minutes for lessons so you are just wasting your time."

Lily frowned at the reminder that Sally was still giving the boys lessons, but they had talked about it before and they all agreed that she would continue. "You will never be too old in my eyes," the red head mother stated as many mothers before her had. "Besides it gives me comfort. Will you really deny me that?" she said with a puppy dog face.

"You are too old to use that face," he whined, trying to stay firm in his resolve not to be tucked in. When those big green eyes got bigger and shinier, he deflated. "Fine, but only until we get to Hogwarts by then I'll be much too old to be babied," he relented as he gave the smug woman a hug and snuggled down into his blankets.

Lily smirked and mused up his hair. She gave him another kiss and said, "Don't forget your crystal after Sally leaves."

"Like Sally would let me," Gary grumbled to himself. "I will, Mum, good night," he said as she was leaving the room.

"Good night, sweetheart, don't let Sally work you too hard," she ordered as she walked out the door. She met her husband in the hall. "Did Harry give you a hard time too?"

"Yeah," James said sheepishly. "I'm pretty sure they set us up. I know when I was this age I felt the same way. My parents didn't let me get away with it either." He smiled sadly remembering the fond times.

"Do you want to go to bed or go back down into the game room and watch a movie?" Lily asked.

"Well, I was hoping for some one on one time with my lovely wife. So why don't we go and see what treasures are to be found in the bedroom," he suggested as he snagged his wife around the waist, he kissed her full on the lips and ignored the 'get a room' that came in stereo from the adjoining doorways. He chuckled and said, "Sounds like a good plan to me, shall we?" he asked as he started down the hall.

"Yes, lets," she purred, and then giggled at the 'ewww' that came from her boys and they went off to enjoy the evening.