Thrown Back: Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Dorea Potter swished her wand, attaching copies of the latest Daily Reflection to the last two owls. Watching the fly through the window with a smile on her face, James and Sirius heaved tired sighs and collapsed into chairs around the kitchen table.

“Finally,” James muttered.

“Oh, it’s not that much work,” Dorea said, patting his shoulder and taking a seat herself.

“Why isn’t Harry here to help?” he whined. “This was all his idea.”

“He was needed at the Wolf’s Den,” Charlus replied, animating the coffee pot with a jab of his wand. “The Ministry is transferring over the Werewolves to be cured.”

“Crouch didn’t give him any problems, did he?” Dorea asked.

Charlus snorted, “He couldn’t even if he wanted to,” he said. “Bagnold relieved him of his duties until he’s been questioned by the Wizengamot. Speaking of which, I’ll have to leave soon. I want to get a feel for the room before the meeting starts.”

“Do you think you can get the votes to remove him permanently?” Dorea asked.

“I sure of it,” he nodded. “I believe you’ve rather successfully sunk his career.”

“He sank his own career the minute his incompetence put my family in danger,” she said. “I just hope David replaces him.”

“Mmh. His work with Harry gives him a solid chance, but I know a few people are eyeing the position.”

“Charlus, we need him there,” Dora said firmly.

He raised his hands placating just as a House Elf popped in and set breakfast on the table.

“I’ll do everything I can,” he told her.

Satisfied, Dorea nodded her head and dug into her eggs.

“What are your plans for the day?” Charlus asked.

“I have a few interviews for the paper,” she said. “I need at least two to send them out in the morning, and I’d like to hire a reporter, if I can find one.”

“Finally,” James sighed.

Smiling, Charlus turned to him.

“And you?” he asked.

“We were thinking about going to Diagon,” James said, glancing at Sirius, who nodded.

“We should stop by Fortescue’s,” Sirius said. “I want to chat up that new waitress he hired.”

“Isn’t that his granddaughter?” Charlus asked.

Sirius shrugged and quickly finished his plate. As the empty plates were levitated to the sink, he and James got to their feet and headed for the Floo.

“You two behave,” Dorea called as James reached for the vase atop the hearth.

“We will,” the boys called back in unison.

They vanished through the Floo, and the green flames had barely a moment to settle back to their normal orange glow before they flared back to life.

“Potter!”

Charlus shared a look with his wife, and she smirked.

“I believe that’s for me,” Dorea said.

She headed for the living room, and Charlus got up to follow at a distance. As he folded his arms over his chest and leaned back against the wall, Dorea sat on the couch and smiled.

“Ah, good morning, Barnabus,” she said.

“What the hell is this!?” Barnabus demanded furiously and held a copy of the Daily Reflection in front of his face.

The headline read;

Cuffe Frequents Knockturn Alley Brothel

“We had a deal!” he shouted, flinging the paper aside.

“What deal?” Dorea asked calmly.

“I got you your presses, and you wouldn’t print this!” he yelled furiously.

“Really? When did I agree to that?” she asked.

Barnabus opened and closed his mouth, floundering for a response while Dorea sat back, crossed her legs, and smirked.

“It was implied,” he growled.

“Was it?” Dorea asked. “Perhaps you should have made that clear.”

“You’ve destroyed my career!” Barnabus shouted.

“Oh, calm down. We both know you have enough dirt on the owner to keep your job,” she said. “This will just give the Daily Reflection a boost in readership to put us on a more equal footing. Really, I don’t know why you’re so upset about this Barnabus. It’s only business. Remember?”

The man fumed silently for several long seconds before suddenly pulling his head back. The emerald flames died down and reverted to their typical orange and yellow glow.

“You know he’s going to try and get back at you for this,” Charlus warned.

“Oh, I know,” Dorea smiled. “I look forward to it. This is the most fun I’ve had in years!”

Chuckling, Charlus checked his watch.

“I should get going,” he said. “I’ll mirror you at lunch and let you know how things are going.”

“Good luck.”

Dorea stood and kissed him goodbye a moment before he Flooed to the Ministry.

~

Charlus entered courtroom seven half an hour before the Wizengamot meeting was set to begin. Only a few other members were present. Gazing around the room, he spotted William Prewett, an older wizard who, despite his advanced age and white hair, managed to maintain a boyish look. Making his way over, he smiled in greeting and took a seat on the bench next to him.

“Good morning, William,” Charlus said.

“Morning Charlus,” William smiled and patted the copy of the Daily Reflection that sat next to him on the bench. “I see you and Dorea have been busy.”

“Not too busy,” Charlus chuckled. “Just a little pet project of Dorea’s.”

“Well, she’s caused quite the stir,” William said amusedly. “A lot of our members are quite upset this kind of information is being made public.”

“I imagine they are,” Charlus smirked.

“And this Harry fellow,” William continued. “Are you sure he isn’t one of yours? He seems to possess your family’s knack for finding trouble.”

“A long-lost relation,” Charlus replied. “And I dare say Harry far exceeds any other Potter when it comes to finding trouble. Ironically, he’s one of the few that doesn’t go looking for it.”

“Good morning, gentlemen,” Francine Abbot said, taking a seat behind and above them.

“Good morning, Franny,” William smiled.

“I couldn’t help but overhear you talking about Harry,” she said. “Will he be joining us today?”

“I expect not,” Charlus answered. “The Ministry is transferring the Werewolves to the Wolf’s Den for treatment today.”

“Ah, pity,” Francine sighed. “He always livens this place up.”

“I don’t think we’ll need him for that today,” William grinned, holding up the morning paper.

Blinking at the headline, Francine took it and read the first few lines.

“Oh my.”

~

“This is outrageous!” Marius Travers shouted, waving a copy of the Daily Reflection before the assembly. “It’s libel! We cannot allow these baseless accusations to be published! I motion that we force Dorea Potter to make a full, public retraction of these insidious claims!”

Numerous witches and wizards around him clapped and cheered as Travers retook his seat. Dumbledore banged his gavel on the podium several times before order was restored.

“Your impassioned defense of your fellow witches and wizards is commendable,” he said. “However, before we move the motion to the floor for discussion, perhaps we should hear from the DMLE.”

David Bones stood and cleared his throat.

“Thank you, Chief Warlock,” he began. “While I haven’t specifically looked at the accusations leveled at Mr. Cuffe, the Minister did task me with examining similar accusations made about Mr. Crouch. After speaking with Mrs. Potter, we found credible evidence of their validity. Mrs. Potter is in possession of the detailed records of Ms. Avery’s brothel. This coincides with a reported break-in at the same business. Mrs. Potter claims these records were given to her by an anonymous source. After careful investigation, we found no evidence that she was in any way involved in their theft. At this point, we believe a disgruntled employee is the most likely culprit.”

“Thank you, David,” Dumbledore nodded. “Now, does anyone wish to present evidence that Mrs. Potter obtained these records through illegal means?”

Several members of the Pureblood faction grumbled but remained in their seats.

“Since no evidence has been presented, we will table the motion until such a time that it can be, or the accusations can be proven false,” he said, banging his gavel. “Now, if there are no other delays, let’s get to the purpose of this meeting. Mr. Crouch, would you please take a seat?”

In the visitor’s gallery, Bartimus Crouch stood, smoothed out his suit, and walked to the center of the room, where a simple wooden chair and a long wooden table sat. Placing a black leather briefcase on the table, he sat, his back ramrod straight, and folded his hands.

“Very well, Tiberius, would you like to start us off?” Dumbledore asked.

Knowing he wouldn’t be called until much later, Charlus sat back and watched the proceedings carefully. A part of him almost felt bad for Crouch as the man’s every decision was examined in detail. But that sympathy quickly died away when he remembered how he stalled the implementation of Harry’s mirrors, which nearly cost him and his family’s lives. It became clear through Crouch’s answers, at least to him, that the man was far more of a politician than anyone gave him credit for. He was far more interested in protecting the status quo than he was in saving lives and improving their world.

After four hours, they took a break for lunch. Charlus found Francine, David, Jonas Longbottom, Damien Greengrass, and William Prewett and invited them to lunch. He originally intended to take them to the Three Broomsticks, but upon seeing the crowd of other Wizengamot members gathered there, they went to the Hog’s Head instead.

Nodding to Aberforth as they entered the dark, dingy pub, Charlus approached the bar while the others claimed a large booth at the back.

“Don’t usually get your kind ‘round here,” Aberforth said, setting his dirty cleaning rag aside and leaving his hands on the bar. “Whaddya want?”

“A bottle of mead and six orders of your lunch special,” Charlus said.

With a grunt, Aberforth turned around and plucked a grimy, dust-covered, dark green bottle of mead off of the shelf and set it on the counter. Reaching under the bar, he grabbed six goblets by the stems and set them next to it.

“Twelve Sickles,” he said.

Charlus tossed a Galleon on the counter, and Aberforth put it in the till without even bothering to offer him change.

“Stew’ll be out in a minute.”

“Thank you,” Charlus replied politely.

Grabbing the bottle of mead, he levitated the goblets with a flick of his wand and walked over to the table the others had chosen. Francine wrinkled her nose at the dirty bottle when he set it on the table and cleaned it with a wave of her wand.

“Why have you dragged us here, exactly?” she asked.

“For a bit of privacy,” Charlus said, popping the cork and serving the mead. “I wanted to get your thoughts on the inquiry.”

“Crouch is far more politically oriented than I thought,” she shrugged. “He always fashioned himself as a man who put law and order above everything else, but clearly that isn’t the case. And here I thought he was just being stubborn.”

“It surprised me, too,” Damien said, his dark eyes gazing deep into his goblet thoughtfully. “Can’t say I’m too surprised about the brothel, though. His wife has been ill for some time. I wouldn’t even be surprised to learn that she knew of it. Still, it doesn’t help his image with the public.”

“It also calls into question his decision to pull patrols from Knockturn Alley,” Jonas added. “He may very well have done it to allocate more Aurors where he thought they could be more useful, but there will always be the question of, did he do it to protect his own interests?”

Charlus opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted when Aberforth arrived with their lunch. Without a word, the frowning man placed six sloppily filled bowls of stew on the table and then tossed a handful of spoons next to them.

“Let me know if yeh want anythin’ else,” he grumbled.

As he walked back to his bar, they passed around the bowl and spoons, only to discover he’d only given them five.

“Oh, that man,” Francine growled. “I swear he does things like that on purpose.”

Drawing her wand, she conjured herself a spoon and prodded the stew suspiciously.

“Is that beef?” she asked.

“I think it’s goat,” William said, shoveling a spoonful into his mouth. “Mmh, still can’t tell, but it’s not bad.”

“Do you think we have enough to get Crouch removed?” Charlus asked.

“I think so,” Damien nodded. “Do you really think that’s the best move right now? I agree he’s not the best for the position, but You-Know-Who will attempt to exploit any opening we give him.”

“Can we afford to keep him in place if he costs us the war for political gain?” Charlus countered.

“We’ll need to canvas the rest of the Wizengamot to make sure we have the votes to get David into office before we attempt to oust Crouch,” Francine waned. “It would help if we had Harry’s support. His opinion holds a lot of sway.”

“I’d rather not get him involved if it can be avoided,” Charlus said. “I think it’s time we took some of the weight from his shoulders. Besides, I think I have another way to get the necessary votes.”

He paused and glanced at David hesitantly.

“Dorea has all of the records from Avery’s brothel. A truly shocking number of Wizengamot members frequented that establishment.”

Damien blinked and quirked an eyebrow.

“Charlus Potter, are you actually suggesting blackmail?” he asked amusedly.

“Believe me, it wasn’t my suggestion,” Charlus said quickly. “It was Dorea’s, and while I detest the idea of sinking to that level, she’s persuaded me it might be necessary.”

“You think the situation is that serious?” William asked, gazing at him with intense blue eyes.

“I do,” Charlus nodded. “We need someone reliable in the DMLE that will put the people first, and we need to get the Ministry on a war footing. Harry’s convinced this will get a lot worse, and I agree with him.”

“You’re surprisingly quiet, David,” Francine noted. “I thought you would have revolted against the idea by now.”

“Normally, I would,” he said, draining his goblet and reaching for the bottle to pour himself a refill. “But what I’ve seen recently has really changed my outlook. You-Know-Who is openly attacking our most prominent families, people are still disappearing without a trace, and we’re losing Aurors almost as fast as we can replace them. If we don’t do something to swing the momentum soon, we could lose everything.”

“Is the situation really that dire?” Francine asked worriedly.

David nodded, “I’m afraid it is. The only reason our losses haven’t been worse is because of Harry.”

“Which is why we need to do everything we can to help him,” Charlus said. “Will you help me?”

They all lapsed into silence and shared a long look.

“I’m in,” Damien said.

“You can count on the Prewetts,” William added.

David, Francine, and Jonas nodded. Charlus let out a sigh of relief and smiled.

~

Harry stepped out of the golden elevator and jogged down the hallway to courtroom seven. Pausing outside the door, he took a moment to catch his breath and straighten his robes before pushing the door open and slipping inside. Despite his effort to go unseen, everyone paused and turned to look at him as the door thudded closed behind him.

“Er, sorry I’m late,” he said.

“Quite alright, my boy,” Dumbledore smiled. “I trust the Werewolves didn’t give you any trouble.”

“A couple objected, but they’re being treated,” Harry said, taking a seat next to Charlus.

“Excellent,” Dumbledore said happily. “We were just about to take a vote of no-confidence on Mr. Crouch, but I believe we can spare a few minutes if you would like to ask him some questions.”

“I don’t think that will be necessary,” Harry said, waving away the offer.

“Very well, then all those in favor, please raise your wands.”

Harry raised his and was shocked when most of the room did as well. He’d expected Crouch’s supporters to put up a much bigger fight.

“All those opposed,” Dumbledore called.

A smattering of wands were raised, and Crouch’s shoulders slumped in defeat.

“The motion is passed,” Dumbledore said, banging his gavel. “Mr. Crouch, the Ministry thanks you for your service, but you have been removed from your position as Head of the DMLE. Minister, when would you like to schedule a meeting to confirm a replacement?”

“Tomorrow morning,” Bagnold said decisively. “This needs to be settled quickly.”

“Very well,” Dumbledore nodded. “Then we shall reconvene tomorrow morning at nine am sharp.”

Harry blinked, nonplused, as he hammered his gavel, and the room began to empty.

“That… went much easier than I thought it would,” he said.

Chuckling, Charlus clapped him on the shoulder.

“The questioning went better than we thought it would,” he smiled. “Why don’t you come over for dinner tonight, and I can tell you all about it. The girls are invited too, of course.”

“Thanks,” Harry said, standing and allowing himself to be guided back to the elevator. “Dealing with those Werewolves was exhausting.”

“I can imagine,” Charlus chuckled.

They rode up to the Atrium in companionable silence and made their way to the Floo. A quick trip later, and they were standing in the living room of Potter Manor. Harry was muttering to himself about getting Transportation Mirrors installed at the Ministry as soon as possible when he spotted two oddly familiar blondes sitting on the couch in front of him.

“You’re back sooner than I expected,” Dorea said. “We were just finishing up. This is Xenophillius Lovegood and Pandora Moody. They applied for the job listing I posted.”

“Hello,” Charlus said, shaking their hands.

Harry shook Xeno’s hand, but when he turned to Pandora, she gripped his hand tightly and stared at him with her large blue eyes. She looked so much like Luna that it caused a hitch in his breath.

“Do you know you have quite a lot of Wrackspurts?” Pandora asked, tilting her head to the side.

Harry smiled brightly as Dorea and Charlus glanced between them curiously, and Xeno nibbled on a biscuit obliviously.

“Wrackspurts?” Dorea asked.

“They’re-” Pandora began.

“Invisible creatures that float through your ears and make your brain go fuzzy,” Harry finished, smiling widely.

“Exactly!” Pandora said brightly. “I’ve never met someone with as many as you. Are you trying to attract them?”

“No,” Harry laughed. “They’re just naturally attracted to me, I guess. Been trying to get rid of them for years.”

Pandora hummed and leaned to the side to stare into his ear.

“Have you tried standing on your head while reading the runic alphabet backwards?” she asked.

“Can’t say that I have,” Harry said. “I’ll be sure to give it a try.”

Charlus and Dorea shared a bewildered glance.

“Well, it was lovely meeting you two,” Dorea said. “I’ll be sure to owl you as soon as I’ve made a decision.”

“Oh, wonderful,” Pandora smiled, releasing Harry’s earlobe. “Come Xeno, we should start thinking of story ideas.”

“Certainly,” Xeno said, finishing his tea and getting to his feet. “Perhaps we could write an article on the Rotfang Conspiracy?”

Harry grinned as he watched them say goodbye to Dorea and vanish through the Floo.

“Well, they seemed… interesting,” Charlus said.

“That’s one way of putting it,” Dorea said, turning to Harry. “Did you know them?”

“I’ve met Xeno a couple of times, and I went to school with their daughter, Luna,” Harry replied. “Are you going to hire them?”

“Do you think I should?” she asked, watching him carefully. “If I’m honest, they seem a bit… odd.”

“Oh, they are,” Harry grinned. “But that’s what makes them great. Ever since I came to the magical world, there hasn’t been a thing I’ve loved that wasn’t half mad.”

“He’s got a point,” Charlus chuckled.

“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to give them a shot,” Dorea sighed. “I don’t know if they’ll want to stick around that long anyway. Xeno seemed more interested in Magizoology, and Pandora said she wanted to work with experimental Charms, but she got rejected by the Unspeakables.”

Harry hummed to himself. Maybe he could add experimental Charms to the list of research they did at the Wolf’s Den. Even if it wasn’t profitable, it would be worth it to save Luna’s mother.