บท 7: Chapter 7
Gryffindor Dorms:
4th year Boys' room
In the room bustling with boys discussing the happenings in the great hall,
Two boys were sitting huddled together, they were one of the few closest friends of Potter,
"What do you make of this?" asked Frank
Indeed Frank was asking about what had occurred in the morning, once James Potter had left there was absolute pandemonium as people rushed towards Owlery to inform their family of the breaking news, by now half the Europe would have known about the tragedy.
Frank was a Longbottom a longtime ally of Potters, he was very worried about the next steps of James.
"Whatever he decides he will have my full support, as friends we can only make sure to support him" responded Sirius,
Frank sighed and looked deep into Sirius's eyes trying to make out any deceit in his eyes, satisfied with what he found he sighed and looked away
"What do you make of Damien?" asked Frank hesitantly, for he was afraid of the reaction Sirius would show,
It was a known secret among the social circles that Sirius was more Potter than Black, it was always joked as Charles Potter had two sons one his birth son and another his son in love which was Sirius. The fact that he was standing upright without collapsing indicated his nerves of steel and cautioned on what type of enemy he could be.
There was a flash of coldness in his eyes as he looked contemplating, he slowly explained
"Something is going on, he was too well informed"
"And him saying Charles Potter had an accident, definitely something fishy is going on"
Frank snorted
"Charles Potter having an accident?"
"That guy was a literal nightmare for his enemies, he was a mage for Merlin's sake"
"How would anyone believe he would have an accident"
Sirius and Frank sat in contemplation, as the doors to the room closed as the remaining boys left.
Frank stood up
"We need to let James know about Damien"
"Let us go find him, do you have any idea where-"
Sirius raised his indicating for him to stop
Sirius lifted his head and called out
"James"
There was a silence for a few seconds, as a body materialized causing both Sirius and Frank to jump in surprise, Frank was surprised because he never expected James to be so sneaky.
Sirius was surprised because he expected James to be using his cloak and not the Disillusionment charm which surprisingly was very good showing James' skill level in Charms had increased in a matter of few days.
"I never knew you were Adept in Charms as well" Frank quipped to lighten the mood
James smiled mysteriously
True, he could have tried explaining that he had increased his level just this morning, but with the option of his system, it would not be long before Charms crossed this level as well. So it is better to act mysterious and let others draw their conclusions.
The room fell into silence
Sirius hesitatingly said,
"James, after you left I observed others and I found a few suspects not just in Slytherin"
"I think the ones who could be behind this are-"
James immediately stopped Sirius
James smiled and said,
"Sirius hold on, I do not want to know"
Frank immediately bristled
"James, I understand you are a peaceful person, but you should at least know who has caused this to your family. It is fine if you don't take action, but it's good to know your enemies well so that it does not repeat and you can protect your family. "
"Your father would have burned the world if something had happened to you, I understand your situation and your inclinations as well but ignorance is not bliss, it's better to know."
James was patient during the tirade, allowing Frank to speak his mind, he turned towards Sirius seeing him not speaking asked
"Sirius, do you also agree with Frank?"
Sirius had a wry smile on his face
"No brother, I know you, you would not do this without reasons. I will wait for your reasons"
James smiled, true Sirius was one of the few people who knew him, he felt blessed to have him as a brother.
James' face lost expression and his eyes turned cold, it was scary how his face changed from amiable to scary in a matter of seconds,
"My father was a Mage, he dealt with Grindelwald and his forces in his teens"
"When Grindelwald was rampaging across Europe, my father was massacring Grindelwald forces"
"My father was strong, he was scary, he was decisive"
"Yet he was KILLED!!!" near the end James was shouting in anger
"Oh, I am not arrogant to assume no one could have defeated my father, sure he could be killed as many mages ganging up on him would kill him"
"But the fact he died so silently, if he was on his last legs he could have released cursed fire or much other dangerous magic, which could have alerted Magical Britain"
"But no he died without this, so what does it signify?"
"He never got a chance! the only way he should have been incapacitated without a chance to fight back is if he was caught by surprise"
Sirius was contemplating as he asked James
"What are you suspecting?"
James was fuming as he put forth his suspicions
"It was an inside Job"
Frank and Sirius were stumped.
Of all the things they expected this was never even close to their analysis, Frank gained a certain appreciation towards James. It opened his eyes towards the actual character of James.
To date, he always assumed James was someone born to become a healer and had no anger in his bones, but this was an eye-opener for him.
James continued,
"I have my list of suspects, but I don't want to know now. We will have a discussion once the rest of the rituals are over."
"During my father's funeral, I could be met with a lot of his colleagues and friends"
"Knowing something will cause a change in my behaviour, even if I control standing next to my father's killer will cause my feelings to be exposed. I will be scrutinized a lot that day, I don't want to tip anyone off"
Frank interjected,
"If you suspect, this is an inside job, without knowing exactly who it is, your suspicion of all will not make you any friends among the allies."
James smiled
"If I can suspect it as an inside job so can others"
"As long as my behaviour is not critical to just a few, I will pass scrutiny"
Both Frank and Sirius were astounded again by the level of detail.
"Observe for the next few days, keep observing. Not even a single blade of grass should move without you knowing"
"I want full information the next time I see you"
"I will go check with Mccgonagal, I expect my mother to visit anytime soon. If I have received the news so would she."
James having informed his friends turned and packed his belongings and started moving towards the Head of the house.
==== Staff room =====
In another part of Hogwarts, there was an important meeting taking place. Generally, this meeting room is used before the exams and teachers are relaxed on the other days with nothing much to work on. But due to the magnitude of the news an emergency meeting was scheduled by McGonagall as the Headmaster had rushed to the crime scene.
Considering the magnitude of the event, this meeting was very important.
Along with Deputy Headmistress, Horace Slughorn a portly wizard who looked to be in his sixties, a diminutive professor who looked more like a Goblin with sparse human features who was the head of the house of Ravenclaw and a duelling master along with a portly witch who happened to be the Head of the House of Hufflepuff was seated as well.
"Dreadful news, simply dreadful dear Minerva" mumbled Horace
Minerva sniffled, she was part of Charles's generation. She was a very close friend of Charles Potter, as such she had a soft spot for James Potter. The news was equally devastating to her as well.
"Poor child" whispered Pamona,
"Truly unlucky, last time a Potter Lord had fallen when Charles was studying here, now the history has repeated" Filius whispered
Horace looked up at the Ravenclaw professor sharply
"Do you expect James to follow his father?" Horace asked with Trepidation, as he was afraid of the repeat of the blood bath that occurred last time a Potter Lord had fallen. Oh, he had no part in this crime, but his student and their families were part of Death Eaters, and this looked like it had their hand in it, if James started on revenge he would destroy a lot of things he had built.
Minerva composed herself and snorted
"Of course not, how could you ask this question now Horace? He is a sweet child"
Chastitised, Horace thought for a minute and heaved a sigh of relief.
Yes, James was a sweet child, even if he decided on revenge, he was nowhere like Charles who was a Warlock by the time he had reached 4th Year and was close to becoming a mage when he left school to rush towards war. Charles was one of the few who had reached Mastery in Charms and DADA during his NEWTS, while James was just a Wizard yet, and other than his skill in Transfiguration the rest of the skills were nothing to be proud of.
Sure, at max James would try to enforce justice with the help of Aurors, but in the current climate, Aurors would not be willing to rock the boat for a brat and widow.
Dorea was black and she could exact revenge but was not a Potter by birth and she had married a Potter while the Lords may respect her they would not be willing to follow her as she was born Black and not a Potter. She may act alone, but the damage she could exact would be less without the support of others. Knowing her, she would have realised how dangerous the situation is for her and her son, so she would be mindful of her moves, so she would be very careful and move with much caution.
Horace was not a death eater, he never supported the Pureblood movement. But the revenge would start a blood bath in Hogwarts would cause him trouble, he was acquainted with a lot of the people who made up the current day Death Eaters, and he owed and was owed a lot of favours, and he had cultivated them for the past 30 years.
The current political climate was not yet irreparable, there was a balance in the world however fragile.
An avenger would cause everything he built around to crumble, the death of many death eaters would destroy the fragile peace and the Dark Lord would become more cautious he knew for sure he would be on Tom's hit list as he knew one of Tom's core secrets, his favours would be useless if the person owing it to him died. The comfortable retirement he had spent building the last decades would become difficult.
No, he didn't want James to turn towards revenge, his life was on the line.
He would make sure to monitor the boy.
Minerva started assigning tasks, she needed to make sure there were no riots in Hogwarts. It was just a few more days before the school would be closed for summer vacation.
She had received a floo call from Dorea, that she would be coming to Hogwarts to pick James up. She needed to make sure everything went smoothly in the next few days.
Charles was truly a larger-than-life figure, his death could have unknown repercussions, and she would need to prepare for it.
Albus before he left for ministry had left her few instructions.
Minerva instructed Horace specifically to make sure his students wouldn't cross the line in the coming days and dispersed the meeting to prepare for the arrival of the widowed Potter.
Gryffindor Dorms:
4th year Boys' room
Once James had left them with instructions and moved towards the Head of the House room, Sirius and Frank were left standing alone in the dorm.
Frank was the first to break the silence by laughing hysterically, Sirius looked out bewildered.
Frank continued laughing for a few minutes before he came to a stop.
He turned towards Sirus
"Oh Sirius, how has James fooled the world with his acting, never had I suspected James to be anything other than a peace-loving fool like our Headmaster"
"He is much more dangerous than Lord Potter, he fooled me well"
"Son of Dragon will always be a Dragon"
"None of us knew him, not me, not my father and not anyone, but surprisingly looks like you knew this side of Potter well"
Sirius quirked his lips,
"Oh, I knew this side of him. But I never expected him to be so aggressive. I expected him to play it cautious, take it slow and play his revenge when anyone least expects it"
"After all that's how he executes his pranks"
"That was you guys?" Frank was surprised
Of course, Frank had the right to be surprised because some of the pranks executed were far more sophisticated and complex.
Anyone would be very surprised to learn the culprits were 4th year students.
The pranks done were so complex many suspected the pranksters were at least expert level in charms, and the most astonishing thing was no one was ever able to tell who the culprits were.
"Yes"
Sirius was very proud of this.
There was a reason no one knew who it was, as they made sure to erase their traces.
James had very interesting ideas, and while his power was lacking he made up with his ideas. He was very skilled in chaining his spells along with potions to get the desired effect, he made sure to use these ideas not just in pranks, and he was very difficult to duel as well, in one of their duels James had made use of Charms and Transfiguration to win over Sirius who had entered Warlock level back then.
Unknown to Sirius, James had transfigured air around him to form a small pocket of Hydrogen and timed an incendio spell causing a terrifying explosion and defeating him. His combination spells had scared the hell out of Sirius, as the resulting explosion was equivalent to a spell cast by an expert in elemental magic, Since then James made sure not to use his chained spells unless fighting death.
However, Sirius knew that while James had stopped using it in their duels, he was practising it on his own. Sirius shuddered to think of how devious James could be with his methods.
Frank hesitated and sighed,
"Yes even though he has intent, even if he can play devious tricks, he would be fighting against top warlocks and mages of this country. With his current strength, he will be devoured"
Sirius too agreed with this, as he knew one of the main weaknesses of James was his current core strength when wizards and witches his age were already at peak wizard level or even entered Warlock level.
He made it not much of an issue in school with his skill, but in the real world fraught with danger any weakness would be completely exploited.
Crossing to the warlock level was not that difficult, any wizard could do it. Many purebloods made sure to use the needed rituals or natural treasures to pass a chasm between the Wizard level and the Warlock level.
However, crossing to the Mage level was a completely different matter.
Both Sirius and Frank had crossed over to Warlock level quite a few months back while there was no such sign of James crossing over.
Becoming a warlock was a quantitative change, the number of spells that could be thrown around increased by a large margin. If before you could throw 20 spells, after becoming an entry-level warlock you can shell out more than 100 spells and a seasoned peak-level warlock could throw more than 500 spells. Though it differs based on the type of spell. These statistics were for basic spells like Stupefy and other spells up to the Adept level.
This is a drastic increase when in a fight, and the possibility of casting one more spell would make a big difference in the wizard's life and death.
Minerva McGonagall Office:
11:00 AM
Minerva was seated at her desk awaiting for the guest to arrive, right at 11:00 AM fireplace lit up, and out stepped a stunningly beautiful woman, with long black flowing hair piercing eyes and delicate features. She had aristocratic bearing and carried herself with grace and elegance.
This was Dorea Potter nee' Black, she was of the same generation as Minerva and she had aged very well.
"Minerva, I have come to pick up James"
Dorea came right to the point, as she skipped the pleasantries,
"Dorea, welcome. I am very sorry to hear what happened to Charles, he would be severely missed. I have sent someone to pick up James"
Minerva replied,
Dorea gave a noncommital shrug,
At that moment there was a tap on the door, asking for permission to enter
Minerva obliged and James carried his luggage and entered in,
"Mother, Professor" James acknowledged his mother and his professor
Minerva turned towards James and asked
"How are you holding up James"
James had a sad smile on his face and replied back
"I am doing ok professor, it was quite a surprise for me, never imagined I would hear such news. I was just a few days away from going home for summer break. It pains me, professor"
Minerva had an understanding look on her face and asked,
"Is there anything I can help you with James"
James replied
"Thanks for your concerned words professor, I don't need any help. Perhaps send my assignments with Sirius"
"Your father is not dead for one day, you are asking to send assignments? Are you not worried about how he died, is he just that to you? Are you not going to exact vengeance? Are you just going to let it go" came the angry voice of Dorea
"Mother, father has passed on. He wouldn't want you to waste your life in search of vengeance"
"Father was a known figure, I believe in the Justice system of ministry, Aurors would make sure to catch the culprits. Let's not stoop to the level of the culprits"
James consoled his mother
Minerva seemed relieved to hear that, hearing the sense in voice of James and not aggression had relieved her. Albus had asked her to sound out James for joining the Light faction and Order of Phoenix as well.
The fact that James could think rationally even when his mother was flaming his anger spoke the character of her mild-mannered student.
Dorea looked disappointed with his words, she had a sad smile on her face and she kept quiet.
"We have many places to be, pick the floor powder and floo to the Ministry. We would need to get Charles's body released"
James bode farewell to the professor, stepped up holding the floo and called out Ministry, and vanished in flames in front of Dorea and Minerva.
Dorea turned towards Minerva
"Please don't try pulling my naive son into your gang, please consider it as a favour requested by a friend"
Minerva sighed and said
"Dorea you understand your situation better than me, is there any better faction than us for you?"
Dorea looked at Minerva in contemplation and turned around and flooed out to Ministry.
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