Order Only: Sam Fawcett

[alt_lupin]

Right.

So, as I'm sure you all worked out for yourselves, I found Sam Fawcett this morning. Apparently he hid out for a few days, but when MLE never showed up to search his flat, he concluded that they didn't realise he'd been on the scene of Dolores's demise. (Or toad-ification/plate-ification, as it happens.) Though when I turned up his first thought was that I was with MLE, but he calmed down quite a bit once Sirius showed up. (Or at least, he went from homicidal to ... I don't even know. An overly impressed schoolboy meeting the greatest hero of the age, perhaps. Clearly we should keep Padfoot away from his public or he'll get a swelled head.)

We brought him to the Burrow, and Frank came with Sarah, and they had a long visit this afternoon. We cautioned Sarah not to tell him anything about precisely how she got away -- no sense revealing the Institute -- or to give him any information beyond the fact that there exists somewhere a sanctuary for outlaw children where Sarah now lives.

Sam now wants to join the Order. He's been rather -- well, let me just describe the case he made for himself.

He noted that he's already proved that he's opposed to the regime, by joining the Crimson Company and by attempting to assassinate Dolores Umbridge. He also proved his willingness to maintain security (though not necessarily the capability, since I immobilised him after he tried to hex me, and took away the poison sewn into his shirt.)

He also works for the camps. He's based in the one in Exeter but the reason he travels for his job is that he's in 'inventory,' tracking numbers and training of crews in various muggle camps. In addition to being well-placed to assist us by planting or removing paperwork, he is perfectly positioned to identify muggles who have the training and background to be of the most use to us, Davidson, or any other resistance organisations running around that we can make contact with, and if we can extract them, he can simply make their records disappear.

On the downside, let me just note that he's volatile, unpredictable, violent, ruthless, and possibly untrustworthy. We suggested that we might prefer to have him as a go-between to the Crimson Company and he said that the trouble is that the CC has a tendency to kill their own members, if they're compromised enough to be a danger to the organisation. He did, however, offer straight out to put us in touch with their leader or at least their recruiter -- not the sort of information we'd want to have him offering up about us.

When we expressed concern about the information he might reveal about us, he offered to take an Unbreakable Vow on the spot.

I just ... don't know. His information and access would not be easily duplicated. He may be worth the risk.

Oh, and the Crimson Company is wasting him completely; they want him to quit his job as they don't believe muggles could be useful, regardless of their training.

Comments

[alt_frank]

nope.

I say we see if he'll be useful, but keep him at arms length. maybe give him a button and tell him he can pass on names with it, and ask him to fix some paperwork, but he's a walking risk.

hell, giving him a button might be too much.

he's desperate and angry and that makes him dangerous.

[alt_lupin]

I don't think we were exactly seeing him at his best.

He did think his sole surviving family member had been murdered by the regime, until around ten this morning, at which point he found out in short order that she was alive, he also had a brother, and they were being sheltered by a revolutionary organisation that included Sirius Black.

[alt_frank]

then we keep in touch until he's less of both.

make sure he gets letters from them or something.

but he's not getting in today.

[alt_lupin]

I'm not suggesting we swear him in today.

[alt_lupin]

Dora, you went to school with him, didn't you? He's either your year or close. Did you know him at all?

[alt_nymphadora]

Sorry. Yesterday was mad here. Every time I meant to answer, another pixie escaped the sack and turned everything upside down.

I did know him at school. Barely. The Ravenclaws didn't think much of him. Called him 'Mule', which I suppose was short for Samuel, and not in a nice, matey way.

I'm afraid we halfbloods didn't stick together--most of us were keeping our heads down--but I know he didn't have an easy time of it. I think- yes, I remember hearing that he was a decent flier and he tried out every year for the Ravenclaw side, but they never would take him. So I expect that means he has a stubborn streak, doesn't it? At the time, I just thought it was sad and a bit daft, knocking his head against the wall like that. Charlie, do you remember?

[alt_charlie]

Oi, yes, Mule! I haven't thought of him for years.

He came to every practise -- not just Ravenclaw's, he was at all ours, too. I think it was a little easier to be a halfblood in Gryffindor through at least the first few years, most of our lot didn't care, so he used to stick with Booth from the year before us and Berrigan from our year whenever he could.

I think it was less him knocking his head against the wall and more him trying to point out the ridiculousness -- he was more than just a decent flier, he was better than most of the Ravenclaw team. But Montgomery was the Ravenclaw captain, remember him? (For those who don't, we were all pretty sure he was compensating for being sorted Ravenclaw instead of Slytherin by being as much of a pureblood bigot as he could.)

We all would've cheered him on about it, because Montgomery was a shite captain any way you sliced it, except Mule was just such a right arse to spend any amount of time with. Took everything wrong, no matter how you'd meant it, and wouldn't listen when you tried to explain or apologise. And yeah, 'Mule' as in, 'stubborn as'.

[alt_mcgonagall]

If we do not include him, what choices have we? Obliviation? Then he returns to being desperate and angry. Death? Not the mode in which we typically function.

[alt_kingsley]

Well, we tell him the simple truth: we don't accept ANYONE at the drop of the hat. We'd be mad to do so. Surely he can see that, if he has any basic survival instincts. (And if he doesn't, we certainly don't want him).

He'd be less desperate if we gave him some hope, though. Reconnecting with his sister should help with that. And we make it clear that we want to keep the door open, and we might get to the point where we could include him. Because the assets he offers intrigue us.

You know, I wonder whether John Turner might not be just the person to talk to him. It sounds like they have a lot in common. Turner was desperate to join, too, and he was a reckless hot head. AND he worshiped Sirius, too. But we made him wait, and Frank steadied him by giving him tasks to do, and the gamble paid off: he's shaping up to be quite a fine leader now.

[alt_bill]

That's quite a good idea, Kingsley. D'ye think Turner would be willing to do it?

[alt_kingsley]

I'm sure of it. He has a taste for mentoring now, does Turner.

[alt_bill]

You're a cruel, cruel man, Remus. That description of his job is making me positively salivate. Merlin, what an asset he could be. And yet, I agree, we don't dare take him right now. Reckless, no kidding.

Bloody hell.

[alt_hermione]

The thing is that his sister and brother are living at Moddey. So he really should be able to see them sometimes, right? Even if it's in safe houses.

If he wants to see them, then he should get to now and then. Somehow.

That doesn't necessarily mean he needs to be admitted into the Order (and doing it today would have been mad, you've no way to know if he'd just go tell the Crimson Company he met Sirius!) but maybe he could help us the way that Ms Taylor sometimes helps? Just by telling us things now and then?

[alt_lupin]

Well, we promised him today that he'd see them again. And that he'd see me again, and that we'd consider his petition.

[alt_alice]

I certainly think that it's worth it to keep contact, and develop him as a source. I think he needs time to have better understanding of what would be expected of him, and we need to have a better assessment of his capabilities. Having Turner bring him along is an excellent idea.

And it's also certainly within our abilities to provide regular visits.

I'm a bit wary of this Crimson group, as they seem likely to jump to extremes rather quickly, and I'd rather have him alive and helping us than not.

Minerva, what are your thoughts?

[alt_poppy]

I mislike the Crimson Company's being part of this, too. I've stumbled across their fringes in the past, and we must take quite seriously what he says about their murdering their own if they suspect a crack in security.

The trouble is that we'd have to share him with them. We can't ask him to break his ties with them if he's to stay in this position that makes him so enticing to us. They clearly know where to find him and would eliminate him if they knew he'd dropped them.

I agree with Severus. He could perhaps be cultivated as a useful contact, but I can't see that we should risk any closer connection,

[alt_severus]

Whilst I am painfully aware of the irony: I do not think he is the sort of person whom we should recruit.

This does not mean, however, we should not make use of him — only that the information should only flow one way.