Friend Since Birth

*****
Finally, a week after Ron and Arianna’s American foster family had joined them, Eir finally cleared her to leave the bed. The healer would have released her sooner, but she kept trying to get up early and Eir was apparently spiteful. Something Arianna was sure to note for the future.

Then it was a whirlwind of preparations.

One of the Hufflepuff properties, Badger’s Den, had taken no time at all to prepare, to Arianna’s and Newt’s amusement and the grumbles of the plethora of Gryffindors they were surrounded by. Apparently, Helga Hufflepuff herself had spelled the place with self-upkeep charms. It included some that she invented herself to help with the various greenhouses so the plants didn’t flourish too much and take over and to update the technology of the place as the magical world around changed. It was one of the only ones that that had plumbing and didn’t require massive fires in all the fireplaces to maintain any sort of warmth so Arianna had quickly set the few elves she had a full bond with to the property to assess it. That very morning, the elves reported it was ready. They had really only needed to do a light cleaning but the reason it had taken so long was because it was so massive.

Then they were moving in and setting up shop. Arianna barely took in the details of the place, beyond a plethora of soft golden colors, including more shades of yellow than most could name and warm, rich browns than the Gryffindors cared for. But it was cozy and didn’t feel quite as large as it looked and that was all that mattered. Even the lions could agree to that, to the Americans’ amusement.

Once all the rescues were settled into a ward with strict regiments for their nutrient and other various potions, as promised to the Goblins (though Eir grumbled about not leaving her patients and insisted on a small suite for herself so she could keep an eye on them), the rest worked to settle into the vast estate. Rooms were claimed, with Arianna sending a packet of photos to the individuals not present, with instructions to pick the room they’d like. When she got the almost immediate response, Hedwig fluffing in annoyance at the speed she’d been requested to return with and the slight singe she had to her again brown feathers, she about choked laughing at the letter that demanded specific rooms and a warning that if they’d been previously claimed, the Weasleys would be quite upset.

In true Marauder fashion, she’d neglected to respond, though she happily put the labels on the requested doors. It would only be fair to let them stew a bit in retaliation for ruffling Hedwig’s legendary calm. And for almost barbequing her with an escaped prank product intended for Molly. The letter had included a sheepish apology for that but Arianna had no doubt the owl would get her own revenge the next time she saw any of the culprits.

The report on the products themselves was quickly handed to Sirius and a visiting Remus, both of whom quickly lost their hard won composure immediately. Arianna had to hand it to the group, they were inventive. But by far her favorite was the accidental balding they’d caused. It came with art and another sheepish note detailing how they’d have to remember not to combine those ingredients accidently around anyone they did actually like. Molly’s reaction was bad enough that they were very happy Sirius had allowed them access to the study. They’d moved to Grimmauld Place around the same time and were already making good use of the space, setting it up as a temporary lab and sleep space to avoid her wrath for a while.

Harry wasn’t too happy with the news that they had to resort to hiding from their own mother, but Arianna assured him that he and Sirius would be joining them in due time and would be able to provide a distraction for the irate woman.

After all, she had to ensure he was still ‘spelled’ to her daughter and allow for certain habits he had. Not that she knew a thing about him, really.

In fact, Arianna was contemplating joining them, at least for a little while, if only to see Molly’s reaction to the changes in Harry. Arianna had only been around him for a few weeks and already she could note some significant differences.

By far the biggest change was how he carried himself. There was a calm confidence he extruded now, where before it had seemed as if a well placed snide remark would crumple him. Not that he’d been weak before, his adventures proved otherwise, but that his mental state was so overwrought that he was close to a breakdown, if not full out snap. Now, he walked into a room and commanded attention because he wanted to, not because it was a side effect of his name. He was taking to Sirius’ pureblood lessons like a duck to water. If he stubbornly maintained some of his muggle habits, all the better.

The purebloods, as Sirius liked to remind everyone, were a stuck-up, stuck in the past group of idiots that needed new blood and ideas. Traditions were wonderful, she wouldn’t deny that, but there had to be something outside of them. A society stagnated and died with no innovation or fresh blood. The Potters were going to turn Wizarding Britain on its head and maybe, just maybe, help get it back in line with the rest of the world. Even just catching up to America was going to be difficult, and the place had its own issues, not least of which was the simple young age of it. MACUSA had already had several complete turnovers in politics in a few hundred years because of issues the British ministry had taken care of in its formative years.

Beyond the confidence and political know-how, Harry was also improving in leaps and bounds physically. With the blocks removed and the boy taking his nutrient potions and other needed potions like clockwork, he had hit a growth spurt, one long overdue if the Weasleys were to be believed. He now towered over her, to her intense embarrassment, and she was not short. Not tall enough to match their father’s genetics, but tall enough to tower over most women herself. And Harry was now tall enough to rest his chin on her head if he chose. He’d only done it once, though. She made sure of it.

And he was filling out. None of his clothing fit anymore and they made plans to visit a tailor just before heading to Grimmauld. The clothes the Dursleys had provided and he’d worn most of his life were collected by a very eager house elf that Harry seemed to know by the name of Dobby. The elf popped in with the bundle of fabric, grinning with glee, then promptly set them on fire, so Harry was forced to wander around in his ill-fitting school clothes and uniform until they managed the side trip. If the elf also returned from his jaunt to Number 4 Privat with all Harry’s possessions stored in his trunk, well, Harry may have been overenthusiastic in his thanks. The elf hadn’t complained though and Arianna’s opinion of the strange little creature rose.

Arianna sighed when everything was put on hold for the time being when the rescues started waking up.

Marlene was first, but she seemed in a state of shock. She said nothing, just grabbed the Prewetts by the hands and settled between their beds. Hours later, the pair woke simultaneously, and Arianna had to throw up a quick shield to prevent the thrown hexes from finding a target. She should have known they’d be able to cast wandlessly.

“Relax,” she soothed. “You’re in no danger.”

The twins turned to her as one and Arianna dreaded the day Fred and George did the same. It was just a bit unnerving.

“Lily?” Marlene asked, finally coming around now that the twins were awake.

Arianna took note of the odd occurrence. It seemed their bond was strong enough to keep the woman at least partially in the same state as the twins. It could be a problem when Harry and his own twins completed their bond.

“Unfortunately not,” Sirius denied, announcing his presence at the same time.

Heads were immediately pointed in his direction and Arianna felt the crackle of restrained magic. They may not have wands, but they were quite able to defend themselves if needed.

“Hi, all,” he said with his trademark smirk, obviously picking up on the same danger.

Arianna was sure he was not oblivious to the incredulous stares he got, but he chose not to comment. None of them were ignorant of the fact that, though he was much better than he’d been before the cleanse, he was still the most aged of them. Young yes, looking younger than he had even a month ago, yes, but over a decade with Dementors had left its mark, even if only his eyes and a few grey hairs in his inky strands showed just how much the time still haunted him. His goblin mind healer was doing her best, but she was not quite equipped for wizards and they were looking into finding a suitable replacement. Arianna hoped his cousin proved trustworthy, as she knew the woman’s husband was a skilled one. It would help immensely to have them both on board, since they’d have both a mind healer and a body healer who knew magicals specifically.

“Sirius?” one of the twins asked with uncertainty.

“At your service, my good Fabian,” he greeted, giving the newly woken group a little bow.

“We have a lot to tell you, but unfortunately, I have to start with the news that, while I may look a lot like my mum, she and Da didn’t make it to the end of the war,” Arianna said softly. “They died protecting my brother Harry from Voldemort himself.”

The triad exchanged horrified looks and Sirius grumbled next to her.

“That’s what you start with? Not that the war ended and we won?”

“Did we?” she asked back, voice soft.

Sirius eyed her for a moment then shrugged. “We’ll see.”

“What of our family?” the twin who’d yet to speak demanded. “What of our parents and Molly?”

Arianna winced at the mention of Molly, but chose to push aside her growing hatred for the woman and give the facts. After all, if she wasn’t around, Arianna would be deprived of a lot of amusement and a number of favorite people. Not to mention Charlie.

“I’m not sure about your parents, but Molly’s alive and still with Arthur. They have seven children. I’ve not met all of them, but I know Bill, Charlie, the twins, and Ron. Bill’s the oldest, then Charlie. There’s a brother between Charlie and the twins, but we’ve not met Percy yet. Then Ron, and finally, the only girl Ginny,” she listed.

The twins exchanged a glance before looking at her and releasing their magic. “The twins?”

“Fred and George, pranksters extraordinaire!” she said with a flourish, startling herself when the pair themselves popped into the room and gave a grand bow.

“Why thank you, dear sister!” they cried in unison.

The stinging hex she sent towards them was quickly deflected, their grins not even dimming as they snickered.

“You should know better than to startle me!” she said hotly, pointedly ignoring Sirius as he cackled.

“You should know better than to provide such a perfect opening!” they teased back, still in synced Twinspeak.

“Menaces, the two of you,” she grumbled. “Absolute menaces. I can’t wait to unleash you on the idiots.”

“We are at your service, milady!” they chorused, giving another exaggerated bow. Then turned to the trio still sitting silently on their beds, magic raised again and watching the byplay avidly. “Fred and George Weasley, pleased to make your acquaintance,” they greeted, thrusting their hands out at the other set of twins and practically lighting the room with how bright their smiles were. “Your heirs,” they added.

Fabian and Gideon exchanged a startled glance before shrugging, releasing the magic again, and crossing arms to shake the offered hands, causing the Weasley twins to snicker.

They agreed to hold off on getting the full story of the missing years until everyone was awake, as no one wanted to have to explain the long list multiple times and each person had to be added to the Fidelius before a word could be said. The Prewett Lords had quirked eyebrows at the mention of a Fidelius but said nothing. Marlene pushed to spend time with the Potters, eager to see how her best friend’s kids had turned out. She was more of a mischief maker than either of them, and it suddenly made perfect sense to Arianna how she’d ended up matched to the Prewetts. With seven master pranksters around and now awake, it was a wonder they were able to get anything done.

Then Romulus woke up and it just got worse. Remus’ brother had been taken when they were children, a fact neither was too happy about. Digging into their memories with the assistance of the goblin mind healer allowed them to see Romulus being secreted away in the night, but obscured who had done so. He’d spent the next ten years with no memories of his family and no idea he had a twin. When he’d come into his inheritance, he’d remembered his elder twin and had tried to track him down. Only to be stunned before he could even get out of the little town he’d grown up in. In the States.

Graves was furious that a wizard had been smuggled into his jurisdiction and held without consent for over a decade only to be smuggled back out. Arianna had a feeling he’d be looking into the matter when he returned, even if he was retired from MACUSA. And he’d be checking into the enrollment process for Ilvermorny, where Romulus had studied.

It also begged the question of why Romulus had remembered at their shared birthday, but Remus had remained oblivious until the test at Gringotts. When Eir visited to check on them, and Arianna posed the question, she simply said the potions had severely affected him and the lycanthropy hadn’t helped. Romulus had benefited from the distance, as it meant whoever was responsible for drugging Remus, ie Dumbledore, hadn’t had as easy access to Romulus and had missed a few doses of the booster to the potions and memory charms. With Remus’ cleanse and his brother right there, his memories of their short, shared childhood years should return with time.

Now that both were awake and remembered the other, though, it didn’t really matter that Remus couldn’t remember Romulus exactly or that they’d spent decades apart. And Remus, it turned out, came by his prankster tendencies naturally. A trait shared by the mundane twins and much to the amusement of everyone else.

Arianna just requested that all pranks perpetrated at the Den were not targeted at anyone but the witches and wizards present. And under no circumstance was Snape or Regulus to be pranked. When someone slipped up and ended up turning the house elves blue for an hour, the wrath she rained down on them necessitated the entire group to institute the rule of absolutely no pranks in the main Den. They left that for the workshop quickly set up and temporary workshop at Grimmauld.

*****
Bill sighed as he sank into a chair in Ragnok’s office. Normally, he’d refrain from showing such exhaustion in front of the head goblin, his boss’s boss’s boss type situation, but the work he and Charlie had done to assess and integrate the new wards Arianna had unconsciously created into something the goblins could work with was beyond tiring. Granted, he had a feeling not even Merlin himself would be able to get through them now if the goblins didn’t want him to, but he was still tired.

While they were powerful, the real issue had been the sheer complexity of it. Since Arianna did it in dragon form, instinctually, she wasn’t able to provide any insight into how they worked. And it had taken them this long to even begin to list all the things they protected against.

The goblins were thrilled that they now had a ward around the branch to keep anyone Polyjuiced and any other form of concealment magicals used out. Anyone with the intent to steal in any form was also banned and apparently, they were now a sanctuary for any creature seeking shelter from hunters.

That one had been learned the hard way when a small jarvey had dashed in a previously non-existent door into the lobby, practically begging for shelter and squeaking in terror when a wizard had stormed through the bank doors. Only the goblins denying any knowledge of a jarvey had gotten the wizard to leave. Well, that and the sharp spears pointed at him when he refused to leave without a thorough search.

Bill hoped to be assigned to the team designated to fully study and test the wards so the goblins would be able to replicate some of the protections.

“I see the wards are proving a worth adversary,” Ragnok said with an amused chuckle as he entered his office, startling Bill out his mild doze. Bill was just about to apologize when Ragnok waved at him dismissively. “Fear not, Curse Breaker Weasley,” he soothed. “Your manager has given his report already and I am well aware how draining working on the dragon wards are for all involved. That you were on time to our meeting, early even, and not immediately asleep after your shift says much for your abilities.”
Bill blushed a little but nodded and stood to offer a proper bow.

“My thanks, Chief Ragnok,” he said.

“Sit, Curse Breaker Weasley,” the goblin ordered as he rounded his desk.

“May I ask why I was called in?” Bill hesitated to ask. Goblins, after all, suffered no fools, but he really didn’t know. He assumed, since the Potters had requested he be recalled to England, that he’d be reassigned to something of theirs, but he could easily be returned to Egypt.

“First, I would like to inform you that your siblings have returned to your parents’ home briefly before being relocated to an undisclosed location that may belong to the Lord Black.”

Bill smirked at the round-a-bout way of telling him that his brothers, and most likely the two Potters, had left the bank while also reassuring him that they’d not be at the Burrow long before heading to Sirius’ house.

“My thanks for the information,” Bill acknowledged.

“With that in mind, the healing ward previously occupied by our Lady Aiaia and her guests is now vacant as she volunteered to house all involved, including those still sleeping. Therefore, the hall itself now needs to be assessed. As with the wards on the branch itself, the wards around the room have been affected by the dragon.”

Bill blinked in surprise.

“Sir?” he finally said, still trying to figure out how to phrase it without simply begging for the assignment.

“I am reassigning you to London for the foreseeable future,” Ragnok said simply. “You will work with your brother Charlie when he returns from Romania to assess both the healing hall, which we will be simply assigning to Lady Aiaia’s permanent use, and the bank’s wards. We feel you both are least likely to be adversely affected by any protective elements in the wards and the knowledge Dragon Handler Weasley has from his work may prove invaluable. We will reach out to his superiors in a few weeks’ time to add to the illusion that he is actually taking the vacation he has requested. Should any other assignments come to our attention during your work, you may be temporarily pulled to work on it, but your primary work will be the wards.”

Bill couldn’t help the smile that broke over his face.

*****
Sirius eventually made a list of everything they still needed to do before Harry and the others went back to Hogwarts, starting with a much-delayed trip to Diagon Alley. Or maybe to a muggle shop. Since Arianna couldn’t exactly show her face in Diagon yet, with how distinctively she looked like Lily, she would either need to wear a glamour again and risk someone recognizing the magic, or shop where no self-respecting magical would shop. Or at least no self-respecting pureblood. The pompous asshats. Sirius saw no reason not to take advantage of the advances the muggles had made in fashions and manufacturing. It didn’t mean he felt they shouldn’t go to an actual tailor and spend a good chunk of converted galleons on expensive and Lady worthy clothes. If anything, they would be better quality than what wizards produced, with the exception of some of the purely magical fabric sources, like acromantula silk.

They still needed to get wands for everyone. The Prewetts would just need to pick up theirs from their vaults, like Sirius had, but Marlene, Romulus, Arianna, Fred, George, and Ron needed new ones, as theirs were either destroyed like Arianna’s or not exact matches like the Weasleys. They had an appointment at Gringotts to meet with the wandmakers Ragnok had summoned. It had taken a while only because Gregorovitch had been on a pre-scheduled ingredients trip and been unavailable until now. Sirius had a feeling bringing at least six customers to the wandmakers would more than compensate them for the personal trip cut short.

Something had to be done about his fugitive status still. Arianna wanted to call for a trial, but she wouldn’t be able to without some reasonable excuse for thinking Sirius was innocent and why she’d been looking into the situation. Saying she was concerned about her business partners’ younger friend’s godfather was a bit of a mouthful and a stretch, even in pureblood circles. If his meeting with Andromeda went well, he might be able to convince her to inquire about his trial. If not, he’d have to start all over. Since Remus couldn’t call for a trial and many of the people he’d call friend were dead, it would take a miracle if Andy didn’t help him.

His brother also hadn’t woken yet and it was starting to concern him. The goblins assured him it was because he’d been under different magicks and he was pregnant, but Sirius couldn’t help worrying. To find out Reg had gone against Voldemort himself, had turned his back on his family’s wishes and against the darkest wizard in a generation, with no backup and with his own brother thinking the worst of him was causing a lot of emotional trips for Sirius. He felt so guilty for writing his brother off as an enemy, for leaving without taking him along when he knew how his parents could be. He even started to wonder if Regulus had taken the mark willingly and he was beginning to suspect he hadn’t. Which started to make him wonder about Snape…

Another thing he had to deal with. Snape was proving quite a tenacious attachment to Reg’s side and Sirius honestly couldn’t fault him. He still hated the ponse but his own guilt about the prank he’d pulled in their sixth year was beginning to grow the more he saw Snape act around Reg’s sleeping form. The potion master was attentive, protective, and downright nasty to anyone to even so much as jostled the boy. Sirius had never seen him like that, and he was starting to re-evaluate his own actions. Now that the potions were cleared and he could be assured of his own mind once more, he had to admit he’d been a right git. Now he just had to figure out if he could swallow his pride enough to apologize. He’d probably never like Snape, there was too much history and bad habits, but perhaps they could come to a truce for Regulus’ sake. And he would be such a boon to their plans, if they could convince him to help. So far, they’d been dealing with him by casting a silencing charm around the pair of black-haired men every time they needed to talk about anything, really.

What he really wasn’t looking forward to, though, was the move to Grimmauld Place. The time away from Molly’s screeching was very welcome and he was getting the chance to reconnect to his godlings, something he was loath to give up. But as he’d explained to the young Weasleys, they had to keep up appearances. He’d been explaining away his continued absence as a search for allies among foreign contacts he’d made as an Auror years ago or as a travel companion for Remus, who was still ‘searching’ for wolf packs to join the cause. It was a flimsy excuse even for him. So, he’d at least have to go back at some point. He’d also have to make sure no one was doing damage to the house. Ragnok had already reported a number of items appearing in the Recall that Sirius knew for a fact had been in the various rooms, but a quick discussion with the twins revealed that Molly was going on a ‘cleaning’ spree, throwing anything and everything dark out of the place while he was gone. Between that and Fletcher’s sticky fingers, he was mildly concerned he’d return to an empty house. Was it wrong that he was hoping his mother’s portrait was giving them hell?

So, he needed to return, and Harry would need to join him. As much as he’d love to leave the lad here, where he had access to his sister and a number of protective adults, up to and including a group that had combated Grindelwald himself and triumphed, he was selfish in wanting at least one of his Prongslets with him. He knew the plan was to retrieve him from the Dursleys just after his birthday, but he’d be damned if he allowed Harry back to that house, even to maintain the ruse. They’d just have to make up some excuse for why Harry wasn’t there.

Sirius groaned as he looked at his list. So few things, in the grand scheme of things, but so much work to implement even one of them. Then one of them decided to present itself in the form of a looming figure reading over his shoulder.

“Why on earth would you need to speak with me, Black?” Severus sneered, glaring down at Sirius and his scrawled list with contempt twisting his features.

“So many options to respond to that,” Sirius muttered. “Adult or me?”

“I’d go with adult, Pads,” Arianna said airily as she wrestled with the Prewetts in the large study. The furniture was pushed to the sides of the room to allow some space and Sirius had commandeered a desk to work from while still being on hand to assist if needed. “Who knows when he’ll drag himself away from Uncle Reggie again!”

Sirius smirked when Fabian managed to get her in a headlock, only to have himself flipped onto his back, landing with a thump on the floor. Even cushion charms wouldn’t stop that from hurting. She may have suggested the tussle as a way for all of them to get out some aggression without hexing certain Headmasters or Death Eaters, but it was still amusing to watch her wipe the floor with them all. She was in surprising shape for a woman who spent so much time in a coma and so little time alive before that. She was, after all, only twenty-two.

He briefly questioned whether it had anything to do with the dragon beneath her skin but turned to Snape before he could follow the rabbit any farther down the hole. He was determined to get better at keeping his attention on the task at hand. It was easier since his cleanse, but it would still take work.

“I needed to talk to you, Severus,” he began, smiling softly when Snape startled at his honest and respectful tone and use of his given name, “because I need to apologize. I was a right ponse to you and I would never have forgiven myself if my actions in our sixth year had caused you to either get bitten or killed. I’ve treated you horribly the entire time I’ve known you, and I just want you to understand how sorry I am.”

Sirius watched with some amusement as Snape stared at him, mouth agape and a calculating look in his eyes. He was tempted to allow the man access to his mind to prove himself, but he was not lowering his mental shield for anyone, let alone Snape. It had taken far too much to rebuild them and he was beyond tired of people messing with his thoughts, even to confirm the accuracy of his words.

“Know that this apology comes with no conditions, no requirements. I’d be apologizing even if you didn’t know Regulus. You never deserved what we did to you and I shouldn’t have let my own pain and anger get the better of me. We were bullies.”

“Am I dead?” a soft voice called from the door. “Because I’m fairly sure my git of a brother would only apologize if I was dead.”

Sirius was on his feet and at his brother’s side before anyone else could register the words. Regulus was leaning heavily on the doorframe, but awake, and Sirius slipped under his arm to help him to a nearby chair. It took conscious effort to ignore the dark mark coloring Reggie’s pale arm even as it shone in the light streaming in from the summer sun.

“You’re not, but you gave it quite a go,” Arianna chirped, undeterred from her trouncing of Gideon now. Fabian was sprawled in a nearby chair himself, panting and head lulled back to stare at the ceiling.

“She’s a right menace,” the man grumbled.

“Who is she?” Regulus asked, watching the fight with interest.

“Lily’s daughter,” Snape answered before Sirius could. When Sirius quirked an eyebrow at him, Snape just rolled his and explained. “Contrary to your twisted memories, Black, I am not stupid. She is a carbon copy of her mother and I, at least, recall Lily having another child. Dumbledore is incapable of wiping my memories of her.”

That had Arianna’s attention and she landed with a thump as Gideon took full advantage of her distraction to take the upper hand.

“Fuck, Ari, sorry about that!” Gideon cried, scrambling to her side even as she huffed laughter. The sudden stop had knocked the wind out of her, but if she was laughing, she was fine.

“Never apologize for winning,” she said after a moment. “The Death Eaters won’t, and you shouldn’t either. Without wands, you need to be able to hold your own in a brawl and I can take a little beating. You’ll see why soon.”

Sirius shook his head at her…. She had yet to reveal to anyone her Animagus form that wasn’t already aware and yet she kept dropping subtle hints. He suspected Newt at least had an idea it was a magical being, but Sirius doubted he’d made the leap to dragon yet.

“You’re right,” Regulus muttered, shifting uncomfortably under the sudden stares.

“Regulus!” Arianna cried happily, bouncing up off the mat and scampering over. Sirius had to intercept her before she got too close, though. Snape was glaring at her, wand out and posture screaming protective.

“Please to meet you, milady,” Regulus said with overexaggerated airs.

“Oh good, you’re just as much of a sarcastic little shit as Pads here,” Arianna said with a chuckle, not fighting Sirius’ arms around her. “That makes things easier.”

Sirius burst out laughing at the look on his brother’s face. It would seem Regulus couldn’t decide on being offended or amused.

“I still don’t get why we’re allowing Death Eaters in on this,” Fabian grumbled, ignoring the warning look his brother sent him.

“Non-negotiable,” Sirius growled, releasing Arianna to stand with Snape between the Prewetts and Regulus.

“Perhaps it’s time for some explanations,” Arianna offered, glancing between the two groups.

The tension was suddenly thick and it didn’t matter that the two Prewett lords were covered in sweat and wandless while the pair of men in black were an imposing sight. Sirius and Snape would gladly hex the other two in an instant if either made a move to the young man behind them. A young man that was eyeing them in wonder and mounting concern.

“I’m definitely dead,” Regulus muttered. “No way the two of you would be on the same side otherwise…”

Arianna’s loud laughter garnered the attention of the rest of Badger’s Den.