Chapter 33
CASSIUS MALFOY
Cassius remembers little from the time he was taken away from the ground, and quickly afterwards he was put to sleep by the dear matron, as she mended all his broken bones. And there were quite a few of them, but magic made healing such injuries a lot easier and so as he woke up again, he was exhausted, yet his bones were mended.
After a lengthy talking to, the matron finally took pity on him and allowed him to meet his friends, and so the three girls all rushed in to meet him as he simply lay there.
"Damn! I thought Potter was a menace, but you are an entirely different breed." Tracey was the first to chime in as he chuckled.
"Don't encourage him," Daphne admonished her friend, slapping her shoulder as Hermione began her own tirade.
"What the hell ere you thinking!" and she was loud and screeching like a cat as she began.
"It was one match, and you were throwing yourself at players like an idiot! You could have snapped your neck!" he exclaimed, raising a finger in intervention.
"But I didn't," and that was not the right answer, and what followed afterwards was five minutes of screaming and chiding to which he was forced to listen. Until Daphne finally came to her rescue.
"Well, I think this is enough," she said, placing a soothing hand on a tomato-faced Hermione's shoulder.
"I think he gets the point," she added as Hermione's eyes narrowed.
"Do you!" she threatened as Cassius nodded.
"Yes, so much so that I plan to quit Quidditch after today." his words shocked them all.
"What! You are quitting!" and he nodded, and it was one reason he had pushed himself as much as he had.
"We are not going to have the tournament next year, and the year after that, we will have OWLS. This is it for me." The reactions from Tracey and Hermione were completely opposite.
"Good," the brow- haired girl agreed with his decision as Tracey shook her head.
"No. You could go pro, you know. I've heard that there's a student from Durmstrang who's even participating in the World Cup this year. You could be England's Krum!" and he doubted that, but he shrugged.
"I don't think so," he disagreed with her.
"And what do you mean we won't have the tournament next year?" she suddenly added as the three of them turned to face him.
"Yeah, the Quidditch Tournament will be cancelled next year because of another even..."
"That is enough!" before he could say more, the matron returned as she clapped her hands.
"Time's up. You all need to get back to your dorms. Mr Malfoy here needs his rest," and they nodded as they turned to face him.
"You are not quitting!" Tracey declared, as Hermione voiced the opposite.
"You are," and he chuckled as the both glared at one another, as Daphne rolled her eyes.
"Do you need anything?" she asked, and just as he was about to shake his head, he stopped.
"The Runes book," he replied as she raised a brow.
"I won't be able to sleep on this bed, so why not get some work done while I rest?" he added as she nodded.
"I will have Clearwater bring it to you," and that would work, as the three of them said their goodbyes, as the matron came up and passed him a vial.
"Now take that and try to rest. You will need to be careful with your movements for a few days, but you will be fine afterward," and that would be fine.
"Could I get a slip to get me out of a few assignments?" he asked her, and she stopped for a second and looked straight at his face, her words failing her for a moment before she shook her head.
'He resembled them both...' she whispered as she nodded.
"Three only," and that would work.
"Good," and so he chugged down the vial as she put out the lamps.
"I will come and check on you in the morning...."
0000
AMELIA BONES
The deal had been struck, and Amelia had gotten her hands on a rather incriminating and troubling piece of information. One that could help her mend her image and gather some momentum for herself heading into the decisive election.
She had few allies in her campaign against Fudge, and there were few she trusted more than the person sitting infront of her.
Kingsley Shacklebolt was one of the most decorated and capable aurors in the DMLE and was poised to one day replace her. He was young still and had the zeal and aspiration to make their society better.
He was a pure-blood who understood the intricacies of their politics and traditions and always provided her with sage advice and counsel.
"Is this legitimate?" he asked, visibly shaken after hearing the troubling news.
"It comes from a trusted source." At least she thought so, and at her words, the Auror captain leaned back as he began to rub his chin.
"This could change everything," and it could if it was proven to be true.
"I would never have thought that Barty would do such a thing," but according to her benefactor, he had.
"But he is an ally," and he was. Barty was a good wizard, one who had stood up against the Dark Lord in the darkest of times, yet that did not make his actions any less criminal.
"He is, but his son was a death eater—one of the worst followers of You-Know-Who. You and I both know what he was accused of," Kingsley said, and his lips thinned at the mention of Barty Crouch Jr.'s crimes.
"The Longbottoms," he added, and just like her own family, the Longbottoms had paid a steep price for standing against the Dar Lord. And while her family had been killed, Alice and Frank Longbottom had endured a fate worse than death.
"I do not plan on prosecuting Barty himself, but I will put his son back in Azkaban." Then, there was the added advantage of being able to question him again, where she could confirm the veracity of Peter Pettigrew's allegations against Lucius Malfoy.
It would help her give a solid reason justifying the halting of the proceedings against the man, even though she did not wish to. But if this was to be the cost of change, she shall pay it.
"It will boost your standings," the dark-skinned man agreed, and indeed. The move could help her sway the Grey faction in her favor.
"It would make you seem impartial, one who is committed to the cause of reform rather than revenge." the latter part had harmed her chances, but this one case could help her turn the tides.
"Yes, and then there is the fact that this is the right thing to do," but that mattered little in politics.
"So, we are doing the raid," and she nodded.
"Yes, we are. You, me, and Tonks should be enough," for she did not wish to involve more people in the case, lest things do not turn out the way they wanted to.
"Using a small team is a good idea. But-" and the man raised a brow as he made a small gesture, for there was still one major hiccup in her plan.
"The warrant," she spoke, as Kingsley nodded.
"You could try to take it to the Ministe..." and she did not even let him finish, as she shook her head, took off her glasses, and rubbed her eyes.
"No. I am not going to let Fudge spin this. We cannot involve him," and that meant the only other person who could sign off on the warrant was the Chief Warlock, Dumbledore.
"Then there is but one person who can help you." She did not wish to deal with Albus, for after what had happened with her brother, she could never truly bring herself to trust the man.
She groaned, yet in the end the choice was simple. She needed to take this to Albus.
"Dealing with him is such a hassle," she complained as Kingsley shrugged.
"If you say so, but that is the only viable option." And despite his looks and demeanor, Albus Dumbledore was a seasoned politician. If she were to take this to him, the man would definitely ask for something in return.
But dealing with him was much better than letting Cornelius stay on as Minister.
"I will get it signed. You make the preparations for the raid. Call on Tonks and prepare the wards and all other necessary items. We cannot mess this up," she said as she put on her glasses.
"I will be ready," he said.
"We do this tonight so we can make an announcement tomorrow. We have wasted enough time as it is," and so he stood up and, with a final nod, walked out of her office as she groaned and picked up a pen and began to scribble away.
To Albus Dumbledore,....
0000
HARRY POTTER
The Quidditch fever from yesterday had yet to come down despite the passing of the night. Even now as him and Ron groggily walked into the Great Hall, they could still hear people whispering about the match.
And it was a good match. The best Harry had seen yet in his time at Hogwarts.
He was no different to them either, and both he and Ron had spent hours debating over the tricks used by the Ravenclaw team. And the Ravencalws played the game in an entirely different manner, which had aroused his interest.
He had written to Sirius about the match as well, and Sirius had promised him a Great Surprise related to Quidditch this summer.
As him and Ron plopped down, they turned towards the Slytherin table, which was clearly sulking at the loss they had experienced.
"Serves them right! Those pricks," Ron added as a tray of toast and pumpkin juice appeared in front of them as they began to pile their breakfast onto their plates.
"Did you see Hermione?" Ron asked as Harry shook his head.
"No, they said she woke up and left early," Ron replied, nodding as Harry's eyes quickly scanned the Slytherin and Ravenclaw tables to search for the familiar faces of Hermione's new friends.
And given their absence, it was easy to guess where she was.
"She is meeting up with them today." Ron's shoulders sagged with relief because studying under her scrutinizing gaze was not easy.
"That's a relief," he said, and Harry somewhat agreed with him, even though he would never mouth it in the open like that.
"I dreamt about the match all night. I still cannot believe we got to witness such a game," Ron added, and though he would not admit it, he had had a similar dream where he had been the one facing Draco.
But alas! It was just a dream.
"A shame that he said he will be resigning from the team," and his head snapped towards Ron at those words.
"Who?" he asked as he bit into his toast. Sirius had asked him to gain at least ten pounds of weight before the start of the summer, and Harry was determined to keep his word with his godfather.
"Cassius," Ron answered, much to his dismay.
"Why?" he asked, and he shrugged.
"I don't know. I just heard Hermione mention it yesterday. It's such a shame though, he could have been England's answer to Krum if he just stuck with it," and he knew of Viktor Krum as well, and Ron's fascination with Bulgarian seeker.
"But why would anyone give up Quidditch?" And it did not make sense to him at all, as the owls began to fly in through the windows, carrying the daily paper.
And the number of people getting it had skyrocketed this year for some reason, and the papers began to drop, as the owls swooped through the skies.
"I don't know.But that is what Hermione said," and suddenly the Hall began to buzz, as he heard several gasps and shrieks, making him frown. His copy of the Daily Prophet fell in front of them as well.
"What's happened now?" Ron groaned as he looked around him, as Harry slowly reached for the paper and untied it, and there was a massive headline on the front page, adorned with the familiar face of the Head of the DMLE.
~DMLE RAIDS CROUCH RESIDENCE! RECAPTURES BARTY CROCH JR!!~
by Reeta Skeeter
~HEAD OF THE DMLE PROMISES ACCOUNTABILITY AND FAIRNESS FOR ALL AS SHE RAIDS ONE OF HER OWN ALLIES!~
by Baranabas Cuffe
"What the hell has been going on this year!"
0000
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