Nurmengard

Sommer was looking around his office, trying to ignore the cold dread that was building in the pit of his stomach. He tried to stare at a fixed point on the door opposite his desk, when that failed he tried to stare into space. Most of all he tried not to stare at the clock standing on one side of his desk. Despite his efforts he couldn't help but steal a quick glance: 6.29PM. Any moment now the Chancellor for Magic was going to arrive, sit down in front his desk and dismiss him.

He thought back to happier times. In his younger days Sommer had been an auror, the best in northern Europe. It was a tense time in that part of the world; Grindelwald had been defeated and imprisoned ten years previously but everywhere was abuzz with rumours of a conspiracy. Grindelwald's remaining followers, it was said, were hiding themselves in prominent positions; preparing a coup that would end in their master's release and rise to power. Others talked of the conpirators plans to break into Nurmengard and force their former leader to reveal the location of powerful artefacts. There was even talk of the conspirators being allied with a clan of Norwegian vampires!

As one of the more junior aurors at the time, Sommer had shown remarkable zeal and uncanny magical skill; within a year he had found and rounded up several of Grindenwald's more powerful former allies in a series of spectacular duels. Still recovering from severe injuries, he insisted on conducting most of their interrogations personally and, again, with a skill that belied his age, worked his way steadily to the truth.

The so called 'conspiracy' was a myth, given greater weight than it deserved by a nervous public. Those whom Sommer had tracked down were indeed still involved in the dark arts, but each indepentently of the other. It seemed that there was little room for co-operation between the old comrades when all wanted to be the new master.

Suddenly, Sommer became something like a celebrity. Too physically drained to continue in his present position, he was discharged from the Aurorkorps with full honors. There was a public ceremony. People cheered their throats raw. "Where were you ten years ago?" someone roared good naturedly. "At school!" he replied. Sommer was still only twenty six years old.

With his new found status and encyclopedic knowledge of the magical arts it wasn't hard for him to fulfill his next ambition. For the next fifteen years he tought charms, and later potions, at the prestigious Durmstrang Institute of Sorcery. The world of academia proved kind also; during this time he published several very well received papers on multi-lingual spell casting, among other things.

Then came a great surprise. Summoned outside his classroom during a potions lessen Sommer was surprised to find himself standing in front of Klaus Eisenhut, the Chancellor for Magic. The prison of Nurmengard needed a new warden. That warden, if the Chancellor got his way, was to be Sommer. He couldn't believe what he was hearing, but at the same time knew his answer already: yes. This would be his finest achievment. He had apprehended some of the most powerful dark wizards of recent times as an auror and educated thousands of young minds as a school master. Now here was a chance to combine those two skills to one spectacular end: the rehabilitation of dark wizards.

The new warden's sucess was surprising, even for a man like Sommer. Through his methods several inmates came to express regret for their actions. One of them, Daniel Timm, was even deemed fit for release. This was extremely significant. People sent to wizard prisons for serious offences were usually expected to live out their lives there. Sommer again found himself a celebrity, praised for his academic, yet kind, method of prisoner treatment.

The sucess was never repeated however, and although nothing ever went wrong at Nurmengard, the now customary zeal with which Sommer attacked every challange had begun to fade. He sank into routine.

Sommer snapped back to the present. It was no good to dwell on past glories, it just made what was to come infinitely worse. He looked across the office to where Vuori, the assistant warden, was standing, his eyes fixed on the ground. He never could tell what Vuori was thinking, or read his expression. Neither could anyone else though, and that was what had made him so useful over the years. He had been a loyal companion.

There was a knock on the door and Fadnes, the night clerk, appeared. "Chancellor Eisenhut to see you sir". Eisenhut entered. He was tall, portly and stern looking, dressed in dark robes from head to toe. He did not sit down, choosing to pace the up and down the office instead.

"Hello Otto. You know why I am here". "Yes", replied Sommer with an air of resignation.

"Why? Why this farce? How on Earth could you have hoped to hide this from me?"

"I was never going to hide it, I was..."

"Lord Voldemort broke into our prison, performed a killing curse and now Grindelwald is missing! Explain!"

"If I may..." began Vuori, "Voldemort broke into the tower holding Grindelwald and was heard to use a killing curse upon him. In the rush to get to the scene several guards claim to have also heard a summoning spell uttered. By the time the guards managed to reach the cell there was no trace of the prisoner. He was assumed to have been obliterated until much later, when the guard who was nearest to Grindelwald's cell noticed his own wand missing. A search of the immediate area turned up no trace of it. We then came to the conclusion that the prisoner was not killed, but freed, and that he and his accomplice attempted to make it look as though he had perished."

Vuori went on, "Chancellor I assure you, if we had known straight away that this was an escape we would have informed you immediately. As it stands we thought it was merely a matter of cleaning up Voldemort's mess".

"Thats all well and good Mr. Vuori" replied the Chancellor "but regardless, I should have been informed of any breach as soon as possible. It doesn't matter what the reality of the situation was, what matters is how it looks and I have to be honest gentlemen, to the outside eye this would look like a very shoddy cover up on the part of some desperate officials."

Vuori had no reply, Sommer knew what was coming now.

"I'm sorry Otto, but it's the end of you. Effective immediately you are dismissed as warden of Nurmengard."

Sommer nodded.

The Chancellor did not utter another word, but turned his back on the pair and went on his way. Sommer was still silent, staring into space.

"I'm sorry sir", said Vuori after a minutes silence. Sommer did not reply. He stood up, walked around his desk to where Vuori was standing and laid a hand on his shoulder. It seemed to the assistant warden as though his master had aged twenty years in the space of just a few minutes, his former vitality now completely spent. A few seconds passed before Sommer, head bowed, spoke again. "You've been nothing short of excellent Esa. These past few years it feels like you have hardly left my side". He looked up now, tears were running thick and fast down his face. "I will miss you".

Otto Sommer shuffled to the door and left his office for the last time, looking bent, broken and older than ever.

"It has been a pleasure sir" said Vuori to the empty office.