Chương 43: The Ministry's Cover-Up
After the events in Hogsmeade, Harry expected his professors and the Aurors to question him later that day. However the interrogation, as he thought of it, did not come when he expected. Instead he simply received a note asking him not to mention the dead Dementor except to his closest friends, a request that came directly from the Minstry of Magic The Ministry was worried what would happen if the knowledge that the guards of Azkaban were vulnerable became widely known.
Harry laughed at the idea that they could keep that information a secret, too many people had seen the corpse of the Dementor for it to be kept quiet now. The foolish idea seemed to him like something Fudge would try. It really was useless, especially since Draco Malfoy was one of the witnesses. It was all but guaranteed that Lucius Malfoy already knew what had happened, and if there was anyone who didn't need to get that information it was him.
Harry did not have to wait long to see Fudge's plan fail. The next day the Daily Prophet published a detailed account of his encounter with the Dementors. The shocking part was that the article was fairly accurate in reporting what happened, although Rita Skeeter's speculation about its significence was skewed (as always) against him. Harry thought she might note that the four students he and Daphne had rescued were the children of Death Eaters but she left that part out, no doubt due to Lucius Malfoy's wealth and political power. Additionally, Skeeter had given him a new title: Lord of the Dementors. According to her, the Dementors had pledged their loyalty to him after seeing one of their own fall in battle.
What most interested Harry was the question of where Rita Skeeter was getting her information. Although most of the time she was just making up lies, on some occasions she knew things she should not have known unless she had been there. Harry suspected that she may have an invisibility cloak much like his and was using it to spy on people. Cloaks like that were good but he did have one advantage on them: the Marauder's Map. Harry knew he would have to consult the map from now on anytime he wanted to be sure he was alone. He wasn't sure what he would do if he did find Skeeter hiding on the school grounds. Although it was against the rules for her to come to Hogwarts uninvited she did not seem to be a threat in the way Barty Crouch Jr had been, so dueling her was probably out of the question. Besides, killing her would likely cement his reputation as a future dark lord.
Reactions to the article at Hogwarts seemed to be mostly overshadowed by the news that Durmstrang would be leaving after the second task, which would be held as scheduled the following weekend. Rumors abounded that the Durmstrang Headmaster had been kidnapped or murdered and his body thrown to the bottom of the lake. The professors were mostly unable to stop the rumors because even they did not know where Igor Karkaroff was. Even Professor Snape had no proof that the man had not been abducted or killed, he and most of his possessions had just vanished late Thursday evening. A sense of unease was growing amongst the residents of the castle as they all could tell something strange was going on, but none of them could determine what exactly it was.
...
The following day Harry was eating lunch and describing his encounter with the Dementors to Neville when Professor McGonagall walked up to the Gryffindor table to ask Harry to accompany her to the Transfiguration classroom for a meeting with the Headmaster.
"Sorry Neville, I guess I've got to go. I'll tell you the rest later." Harry said as he stood up from the table and popped the last part of his sandwich in his mouth.
"No big deal, Harry. Like you said the Prophet got most of right anyway." Neville answered with a shrug.
"Follow me, Mr Potter." Professor McGonagall commanded once Harry had gotten his things together. Harry gave Neville a wave good-bye and started walking with his head of house out of the Great Hall and towards the Transfiguration classroom. As they walked Harry wondered what they were expecting of him and hoped they wouldn't be too mad at him when he admitted that he wasn't quite sure how he had killed the Dementor. Once they reached the classroom Professor McGonagall motioned him inside before closing the door behind them. Waiting inside were Professor Flitwick, Professor Dumbledore, and to Harry's surprise Alastor Moody. He was looking much healthier now than when Harry had seen him last.
"Good to see you again Professor Moody." Harry said, smiling at the former Auror.
"You know I was never your Professor, Potter." Moody responded with a grin. "Although I will be, starting tomorrow."
"That's great news!" Harry answered excitedly. "I was getting a bit tired of having Snape teach Potions and Defense Against the Dark Arts." Dumbledore chuckled at Harry's admission while Moody just nodded in agreement. Moody never really trusted Severus Snape, despite Dumbledore's assurances of the man's loyalty. He accepted that Snape had truly turned his back on Lord Voldemort, but a man who could turn on one master could easily turn on another.
"Harry, I have brought my pensieve with me in the hopes that you might allow us to view your memory from yesterday. Would that be acceptable?" Harry nodded and placed his wand on his forehead as he concentrated on the memory he wanted to share. As he slowly pulled the tip of his wand away from his head he was rewarded with the sight of a small silver strand, exactly what he had hoped to see. He placed the strand into the pensieve and waited for his professors to join him. All five people in the room placed their heads over the stone bowl and were instantly drawn into the memory.
Overall, Harry was much happier with his performance yesterday than he had been about his duel with Barty Crouch Jr. Once again he watched as his Patronus grew as he tried to put more power behind it. This time though he noticed that the larger than normal stag almost did break apart. As it grew parts of it bulged and strained as if it were on the verge of popping like some strange balloon. It was not until he looked at Daphne that the form solidified and shrank, becoming more dense in the process. His professors must have found that part particularly funny because when Harry looked at them to judge their reaction they were all either smiling or laughing softly, though Harry had no idea why they were reacting in that way. They all watched in fascination as the stag attacked the Dementor and instead of just driving it off was able to kill it. The memory ended just as he saw his past self send sparks into the air to signal for help.
"Well done, Harry." Professor Flitwick commented once they had exited the pensieve. "And I take it you were the one who taught Ms Greengrass the charm? Excellent!"
"I must say that I am perplexed as to how you were able to accomplish this." Professor Dumbledore admitted. "Many wizards, myself included, can increase the size of our Patronuses but doing so causes them to break apart. You were somehow able to keep yours intact, do you have any idea how that was done?"
"Yes, Professor. I think I figured it out, with Hermione's help that is." Harry explained. "I sort of figured out for myself that they way Professor Lupin taught me the charm wasn't the best way to do it. What memory you focus on isn't important, you have to make yourself feel a positive emotion. The spell works in two parts: your magic creates the mist that actually drives the Dementors away but your emotion contains and shapes the mist. Hermione compared the mist that the spell creates to a gas and the Patronus itself to the vessel that you put the gas into. If you try and force a lot of gas into a weak container then the container will break or leak, but she says that if you have a really strong container and you force a bunch of gas into it you can force the gas to change into a liquid. It didn't make sense to me, but she said she got the idea from muggle chemistry. She thinks that's what I did, except we were using magic and not gas."
"Interesting… I never would have thought to use muggle science to describe magic. Bright girl, Ms Granger, I still think she should have been a Ravenclaw." Professor Flitwick said with a small laugh. "Your method is a bit different from the accepted practice, although it clearly does seem to have an advantage."
"Do you think you could do it again?" Professor Moody asked.
"Maybe." Harry answered after thinking about it for a moment. "I wasn't even really sure what I was doing when it happened the first time."
"Please go ahead and try, Mr Potter." Professor McGonagall suggested.
"OK." Harry took a step away from the professors and began attempting to remember and feel the emotions he had been experiencing when he had cast his last Patronus. His thoughts drifted back to when he had seen Daphne proudly using the spell he had taught her and he focused on that memory. Her eyes had been wide open and he could see that there were still traces of fear in them. Her blonde hair was gently blowing in the cold wind and her mouth was set in a happy but determined grin. Harry thought then, like he had previously, that somehow she was more beautiful then than he had ever seen her. Even compared to what she had looked like at the Yule Ball. Feeling that the time was right, Harry shouted "Expecto Patronum!" and watched as his ghostly stag appeared. He continued pouring power into the spell, happy to see that the Patronus was not expanding nor did there appear to be any of the white mist leaking or dissipating.
....
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