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89.14% HP: A Magical Journey [Complete] / Chapter 393: Shoulda just asked

Capítulo 393: Shoulda just asked

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"Good day. . . everyone," said Dumbledore, his eyes gazing at everyone, stopping on George and the fedora-wearing bodyguard more than anyone else.

A sense of surprise came from both parties. Dumbledore― to see George West meeting the Minister of Magic and the Head of DMLE. From Amelia and her party, they preferred someone from the outside― especially Dumbledore― to know about this arrangement before it was inked and the resources were flowing. They were sure that Dumbledore wasn't going to get the meeting details, but they preferred if he had no idea at all.

"Amelia, George. . . I'm surprised to see you two together; what brought this along, if I may ask?" asked Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling.

"Mr. West and I were discussing a Ministry contract."

"And we discussed a donation from me to the Ministry for the war efforts against the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters," said Geoge out of nowhere.

Amelia, Scrimgeour, Robards, and others from the Ministry turned to George with a shock that they hid after a split moment with all the politician's skills they possessed. "Mr. West, we shouldn't talk about this with outsiders," said Scrimgeour.

"Yes, we should not," said Geoge, staring at Dumbledore. "But this is Dumbledore, the one who the Dark Lord fears and the one who defeated Grindelwald. I'm sure he would be glad to know the Ministry would be getting the aid that would allow it to resume its proper working without getting into a lengthy yet needless political conflict. These are urgent times that need urgent actions. . . don't you think so too, Dumbledore?"

". . . Yes, I think so too," said Dumbledore.

"I was sure you would," George said. "The Order of Phoenix was of great help the last time around, and even though they weren't a legitimate authority. . . a vigilante outfit. . . and had no place doing somethings they did, those brave people stepped up in the time of need for the right thing, for the just thing― what do you think of their contribution in their last war, Minister Bones?"

"Of course, I am grateful for their bravery and courage to stand for their country against evil," said the Minister, keeping a positive yet diplomatic stance on the matter

"I, too, commend their valor," said George smiling. "My contribution today is in the similar vein, help my country in the time of need― it's just that my gold is much more valuable than my wand. I'm simply trying to help. . . like others have done before me."

Dumbledore smiled positively as ever, flashing the infectious charm, and nodded along; however, the man of words with something to speak on anything and everything said nothing and seemed like he was humbly not accepting the praise. How could he. . . all his ear could hear was the subtext lingering and hidden in George's words.

"And the Ministry appreciates your generous contribution, Mr. West," said Scrimgeour.

"I'm just doing my civic duty," George said with a slight head nod. He turned to Dumbledore and addressed the man for the second time, "Dumbledore, if I remember correctly, you wanted to meet me regarding something. I have time now; we can talk now. I'm sure the Ministry has a lounge that we can borrow for a while. The one in which we just sat down, perhaps."

"Of course, take all the time you need," said Amelia.

George gazed at Dumbledore, his stone-grey eyes studying him as he stood under everyone's attention.

"It is fine; we can meet at a later date at leisure; I also have official urgent Hogwarts that I need to take care of right now before the offices close," Dumbledore said in a good-hearted tone. "From the gist of it, the discussion you just had with Amelia was a significant one and enough for today― let's leave some other work for another day."

George twisted the ring on his finger. "I don't like to leave work for tomorrow; I'm a busy man, and I prefer to finish as quickly as possible so that I can return home. . . where my family awaits me. I'm sure any office will be more than happy to accommodate Albus Dumbledore even if he's a little late. . ."

"Oh no, I can't keep people at work more than what's warranted; I don't want them cursing me in their minds as they do my work," Dumbledore chuckled.

George looked to Elliot, who leaned in to listen to some whispers. Elliot nodded, took out his wand as George approached Dumbledore, and cast a privacy spell around them. He turned to the Ministry people and smiled, "So, I hear the executive lounge in the DMLE serves some great truffle."

Amelia glanced at the two men under the privacy dome, wondering what they were talking about. If she knew, she would want to scrub the information out of her mind because it would mean saying goodbye to the opportunity that had presented itself today. . . and she didn't want to get that slip away even if she had to pay the price later.

"What are you trying to do, Dumbledore?" said George, all the etiquette slipping away. "I have been waiting for you to approach for long, but I haven't even seen a glimpse of your shadow. Is this some play of yours to make me sweat?"

"I don't understand. . ."

"Don't handle me, Dumbledore. If you want to deal with me, then do it directly, don't go blackmailing my grandson. . . but maybe getting to my grandson is all you're capable of." George glared at Dumbledore before breathing out deeply. He set his shirt sleeves under his suit sleeves before saying, "No matter. I would make sure my grandson gets out scot-free even without you."

"Was that what today with Amelia was about?"

"Do you think I need to do this to get my way? I don't. This country owes me more than enough already. I'm doing this so the megalomaniac is erased from the face of the Earth, and I can have my grandson back home. He has idiotically left home because of that threat of yours and refuses to return home," George sighed, "the sooner this ends, the sooner I can have my grandson in front of me. . . . If anything to happens to my grandson, then pray to everything divine because I will make the lives of you and everyone you're involved a living hell. I don't care if the Order of Phoenix is made up of Aurors and Hit Wizard and think their fellow colleagues won't prosecute them because of some brotherhood code― I will become the Kingmaker in this country and put whoever can get me what I want on the Minister chair. Don't force my hand by going public with what you know, Dumbledore, because if you do, I will take away the one thing you love so much."

"And what that might be?"

"Many might not like you up there, but I don't mind you in the castle, Dumbledore― so don't make me change that, for I can make that happen. I know you love the Headmaster chair more than anything in this world, so consider yourself warned― cross me, and you'll never see the inside of the castle as Headmaster or Professor or anything."

For decades, Dumbledore had been up in the test polls for Minister of Magic during elections, but for decades, the candidate who could essentially hold the chair in perpetuity had refused to run in the election. It could've meant that Dumbledore wasn't interested in politics, but he was an active member of the Light Faction and the Chief Warlock of Wizengamot. After that, the most likely reason one could consider that was that he hadn't run for Minister of Magic because that would mean giving up his seat as the Headmaster of Hogwarts.

"I can see where he got that bite of his," muttered Dumbledore, staring at George.

"What?" asked George.

"Nothing. I noticed that you didn't pull out of our Hogwarts deal. I notice your people are still there in the village."

"Don't for one second think that's because of you," said George. "I have other reasons for my people in Hogsmeade."

"Is that reason called the Daphne Greengrass? You've people stalking the place in case Quinn comes to meet her."

George fixed Dumbledore a stoney look. It was true; he was hoping that Quinn would visit Daphne or he would visit Astoria Greengrass for treatment. The previous plan had been capturing him. . . but after the incident with Limax, George considered talking and persuasion the first choice before using force.

The conversation was over. George was done as he stepped out of the dome and towards the fireplace with his companions following him.

"What was that about?" asked Kingsley to Dumbledore.

Dumbledore's eyes followed George until he was gone, and the fire settled down in the fireplace. "That was when you get hasty and don't consider all the cards dealt," said Dumbledore. He looked to the Ministry company and muttered, "I suppose this is the best I can get out of this situation. What did George offer?"

"It makes me think if I had a wish, I would wish to be reborn as a West. We could really do something with what we're getting."

Dumbledore sighed. He wasn't sure how to feel about it. Even though George had said he didn't need to do this, it was clear that he was the reason it happened. And while he directly didn't get what he wanted, the DMLE got a war chest.

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Quinn sat on a bench inside Bristol Temple Meads railway station. Hundreds of people walked past him every minute while he sat there with a newspaper in his hand, doing the crossword. "You're here," he said.

Lucius Malfoy, sitting behind him on the joined bench, turned his head towards Quinn and asked, "Do we have to do this here?" he asked, looking disgusted at his clothes. "We could've met anywhere, in a forest― why here?"

"Because no Death Eater would come looking in a non-magical railway station," said Quinn, though the real reason was that he wanted to hold a secret meeting in a busy railway station. "You got something for me?"

"Something big is coming up soon. We haven't done something this big since the last war."

"Oh, a big attack, tell me more."

"Not a big attack― big attacks. We are going to attack Ministry Officials who have been creating problems. . ."

"A series of assassinations; that's bold."

"Not a series of assassinations. . . they're going to be done on the same day," said Lucius, and Quinn's brows rose. "The aim is to create as much chaos as possible in the Ministry."

"How is this going to happen?"

". . . I don't know."

"What? You're Lucius Malfoy; how can you not know?"

"That's the problem; no one knows the entire operation except the operation lead," said Lucius. "We are assigned the targets, and two weeks from Thursday, we will go after them. I was able to get the names, but not how or when they are going to happen during the day. The different teams are not allowed to discuss their plans."

"Why is this happening?"

"Because of Rivers Lock, you know him," said Lucius, and he was right; Quinn knew him. "He made it so that no one other team knows. Novellus Accionites operated that way apparently."

Quinn closed his crossword and pursed his lips.

This was going to be a problem.

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Quinn West - MC - Okay, let's think about it; I can always clone myself. . . that's easy enough. . . yeah, super easy.

George West - GrandMC - I'm embedded in this country.

Albus Dumbledore - Headmaster - I should've just asked.

FictionOnlyReader - Author - Do you guys know how to insect-proof a room? The monsoon season is approaching in my college city, and I'm not from a place where we get a lot of insects during the rain.

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next chapter

Capítulo 394: Finding Her

If you want to read ahead, you can check out my Patreón @

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The link is also in the synopsis.

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"We shouldn't be doing this," Hermione gazed around the streets of Hogsmeade, looking at every person, window, and rooftop with suspicion and worry. "This is too dangerous, and we can get in trouble."

"Don't be spoilsport," said Ron with a bag of Mangey's mouth-firecrackers in his hand. He popped some in and kept his mouth open for miniature firecrackers to burst out. "We aren't going to get in trouble if we don't get caught; it's as easy as that."

Hermione removed her worried eye from the surroundings and glared at Ron. "I'm not worried about getting caught by the professors, that is—" She stopped with a surprised eek when an arm snaked around her waist. She turned her eyes to find Harry looking at her with a comical-surprised look.

Harry fake-gasped, "Hermione Granger, not worrying about getting caught by professors? Who are you, and what did you do to my girlfriend?" he smirked.

Hermione rolled her eyes, "This is not a joke! What if—" she looked around before dipping her head to whisper "— a Death Eater sees you and tries to kidnap you. . . What if they call others and others get hurt!" The more she spoke, the more panicky she got. "I really feel we should return to the castle now; it's not worth the risk."

She was stopped when another arm went around and above her shoulder from the other side. "Cool down; you're worrying too much," said Ivy Potter with a smile that Hermione had only started to see return recently. "No one will know it is us because how can they? We don't look anything like us."

Hermione pressed her lips into a white line. It was true; they didn't look anything like their original appearance. Harry and Ivy were barred from visiting the village during Hogsmeade weekend because of security concerns and all the things that could go wrong if they were outside Hogwarts without protection. So when the plan to sneak out to Hogwarts was made, she had, of course, denied it immediately. But then Ivy had suggested the solution of changing their appearances to some random magazine models they had looked up in an old issue of Witches Weekly so that no one would know who they actually were. They even made sure not to wear their Hogwarts robes in case someone got suspicious because of their house trims.

"But what if someone realizes that it is magic," Hermione rebuked. They didn't have hair for a Polyjuice, so she and Ivy had to work off the magazine clippings and create a replication through Transfiguration.

"Our magic is good enough so that no one would know if they didn't know what exactly to look for. I adore how worried you're getting for us, but shake it away— who knows, this might be our last Hogsmeade weekend," said Ivy.

"Hey!" Harry chipped in, "Let me tell you, this is in no way the last time we are doing this. I'm here till June, and I will be in Hogsmeade every time the weekend opens up."

Hermione tried to resist one more time, "But still. . ."

"How about we go look at some stationary," said Ivy, "that should calm you right down, and it will take your mind off this when you see all the new inventory they have."

Hermione rolled her eyes and softly shoved Ivy away, making her giggle. Maybe Ivy was right; perhaps she was overthinking it— her magic was good, it would hold up. "Should we go to Scrivenshaft then?" she asked— the thought of new inventory did make her feel a rush of excitement.

"Not Scrivenshaft," Ivy's smile ran away faster than a squirrel.

Hermione knocked herself internally, and she could feel Harry's arm tighten around her waist, telling her that it was indeed a landmine that she should've sidestepped. She knew that Ivy had a fight with Quinn, and her mood hadn't been good ever since then— her temper had only improved around the time they had begun planning for today.

"Tomes & Quills is better; we should go there," said Ivy, pulling her towards the street that led to the store.

But then they heard a voice that made them come to a skidding stop. "I would like to object to that statement," said the familiar voice. They turned to see him standing in the middle of the street, smiling at them pleasantly.

"Scrivenshaft is the best stationery and printing solutions store there is in Hogsmeade. . . nay the country. . . nay the world," said Quinn. He was dressed in a suit made up of a grey blazer and tan pants; he seemed absolutely spotless in how he dressed— not how one would expect someone who had run away from home.

He slightly narrowed his eyes and examined them over. "Let me take a guess," one by one, Quinn looked at them, "HG, Ron, Boy twin. . . Girl twin."

"Sorry, I don't know—" Hermoine said, trying to defend, but that went down the drain immediately.

"How did you know?!" exclaimed Ron, his jaw-dropping, letting the firecrackers whistle out.

"Idiot!" "Ron!" "Moron."

Quinn smiled, "Thank you for confirming, Ronald. As for how I knew? I know every Hogwarts student who was there last year. You clearly aren't new first years, and I don't know any now-seventh year who looks like you four. . . it was an easy guess."

"How did you know we'll be in the village today?" asked Harry, his tone full of distrust.

"I didn't." Quinn looked to Ivy, "Can we talk. . . somewhere private?"

Harry stepped forward, but Ivy pulled him back. She whispered something into his ear; Harry looked like he wanted to protest, but a look from Ivy, he clicked his tongue and turned away.

"You go ahead; I'll find," said Ivy.

"Are you sure?" asked Hermione. "You don't have to. . ."

Ivy didn't reply and followed Quinn as they entered an alley and disappeared into another street.

"Should we go after them?" asked Ron.

"I don't think he's going to hurt her," said Hermione, though she was tempted to go after them. She turned to Harry to see what he thought, but he just passed by her wordlessly, heading towards where Ivy and Quinn had left.

"Harry, wait!"

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- (Scene Break) -

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"What do you want?" Ivy asked scathingly.

"I want to talk."

Ivy stopped in the middle of the street and stood there with crossed arms. "Well, I don't want to," she said testily.

Quinn stopped and rolled his eyes for a moment before turning to Ivy. "Yes, you do, or else you wouldn't have followed me here. Now let's go," he took her arm and pulled her along. Ivy tried to resist, but Quinn tugged her along anyway.

"Let me go!" she protested.

Quinn looked around to survey the surroundings. He entered the door nearest to him and pulled Ivy in. It was a shop full of odd trinkets with an odd scent permeating from the floor's wood. There was a long counter that stretched from one side of the shop to another, and an old man sat behind it, wiping a glass bowl with a washcloth.

"Ernie, is the back room free?" Quinn asked as Ivy studied the shop with suspicion.

"It is," said the old man with a shaky voice.

"Thank you, Ernie."

They walked to the store's back room, which was filled with boxes. Quinn walked to a wall, and like they didn't exist, they passed through the boxes.

"What— the wall," yelled Ivy.

But they passed through the wall. It was an illusion that opened up to a narrow tunnel with a single MLE on the top, walls that barely had any paint or plaster on them, revealing the red bricks that had turned a dirty brown with time. At the other end of the tunnel sat a red door at the end. Inside the room, on the other hand, was nothing like the tunnel. The room was furnished to the inch with decor that made it seem like it was a luxury hotel.

"What is this place?" asked Ivy, stunned at the place.

"Hogsmeade is a village, and like any other village, it has places that only local knows. Locals and those who know what to look for. This place is a spot where people can hold meetings with privacy." He turned to Ivy and said, "So, let's have that meeting."

"What is there to talk about? You said it all the last time, or maybe you didn't— who knows what you're hiding."

Quinn sat down on a comfy leather chair and motioned Ivy to the chair in front of him. "For one, I don't plan to hold the Horcrux hostage. I never did. I want Voldemort dead as much as anyone does," he said. "It was merely a timed threat against Dumbledore. I have my security now."

"What if you didn't have the security?" Ivy asked, not taking the seat. "What then? Keep the Horcrux; maybe join Voldemort while you're at it."

Quin's brow furrowed for a moment, and his smile weakened the same. He sighed and lightly shrugged, "In that case. . . then I would've walked into the Aurors Office and revealed the Invisible Vigilante's identity in front of the entire Auror force. That way, my grandfather wouldn't have needed to deal with Dumbledore. It would've probably jeopardized my future in this country. . . grandfather would've tried to undo that and most probably succeeded, but I wouldn't be walking around as freely as I'm right now— I'm already fending off grandfather's attempt to bring me; I don't want the Ministry behind me as well."

"Like that would've mattered; they haven't been able to catch you until now."

"No, they haven't, but they could do much better with my face. Not only would I have Aurors looking for me with a renewed vigor— people hate rich folks— but I also would have the non-magical authorities after me. . . I don't like that many eyes on me." He was sure that in this scenario, his grandfather would've used the Ministry and, in turn, non-magical intelligence agencies as extra man-force. "It was crucial for me that Dumbledore stayed quiet. Moreover, I don't appreciate my family getting threatened."

"So, you're saying you did nothing wrong?"

"I did you wrong and your family. And I deeply apologize for it. It was wrong for me to keep what I knew, what I did, hidden. I know my justifying my actions won't be helpful here, but I had reasons to do so. I'm aware I sound like Dumbledore right now," said Quinn. He pointed to the chair, "Would you please take a seat, or would you prefer for me to stand up."

Ivy eyed the chair, then Quinn, before conceding her stubbornness to keep standing to take the chair opposite Quinn.

"I missed you," said Quinn. "I tried to reach out to you, sent you letters, but you never replied. You even stopped picking up my calls on the mirrors."

"I didn't read them," said Ivy, a little less angry than before.

Quinn looked down at his hands in his lap. There was a silence in the room. As the silence persisted, Ivy's anger started to slip, replaced with a worry at Quinn's demeanor. The only time she had seen him quiet was when he was working with magic, but other than that, he always had a way of striking up conversations— the silence now was unnerving for her.

"Quinn?"

He raised his head, and even though there was a smile on his face, it sent all the wrong signals to her. If she had been worried at Quinn's silence before, she was genuinely concerned now.

"I. . ."

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Quinn West - MC - I know places, and I know people.

Ivy Potter - Much Anger - Quinn?

FictionOnlyReader - Author - I just wrote the first chapter last conflict of AMJ. AMJ has successfully entered the last leg of its journey. It's expected to end Early or Mid July (I can say it with confidence this time). It'll followed by the Epilogue Volume, which will end by the last days of July.

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If you have any ideas regarding the magic you want to see in this fiction or want to offer some ideas regarding the progression. Move onto the DISCORD Server and blast those ideas.

The link is in the synopsis!


PENSAMENTOS DOS CRIADORES
FictionOnlyReader FictionOnlyReader

Just like always,

Review, comment, add to the library, and share this fic.

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