The Sufferer & The Witness
Chapter 10: The Plan Goes Astray
I woke up – a very, very bad idea. My head pounded, my vision was blurry, and each breath hurt. On the bright side I must still be alive, as I didn't remember my life flashing before my eyes. I'm in no hurry to revisit that …
"Mr. Potter, how are you feeling?" This must be the school nurse given her uniform and the fact she had a wand in one hand and three vials of various colored potions in the other.
"I've been better …" My voice came out as a ragged whisper and I suddenly felt very drained. She carefully put my glasses on so I could see before continuing.
"Yes, I daresay I would agree with that. Mine is a professional assessment of course," she smirked. Apparently that was her allotted one tender moment as the smirk vanished and she began taking out the stoppers on those vials, launching into a discussion on each one as she drained them into my mouth. "To help remedy that I need you to take these three potions. The first one is for your pain … the second one is a blood replenishment … and the third is to help speed the knitting of your bones ..." I nearly wretched all over the bed upon swallowing the third one, "… which unfortunately doesn't taste the best." She reinstalled the stoppers in each vial and got up to leave. "Oh, and I'll be letting the headmaster and Professor Snape know you are awake; they will probably want to talk."
Albus arrived as quickly as he could after hearing Minerva's message, braced for the worst. Unfortunately it was worse than he imagined. The troll had cornered a student – a young student, who couldn't protect themselves with magic. Somehow the student killed the troll using … a battle-axe?!? ... but not before succumbing as well. There hadn't been a death at Hogwarts since the Chamber of Secrets, but now the headmaster would have to contact families and try to manage the board; this was turning out to be a dreadful day indeed.
"Have you checked on the identity of the student yet, Minerva?"
"No Albus," she whispered, emotions even cracking through her short reply.
With a sigh the headmaster started forward, "Very well …" As he approached the lump of bloodied robes, he noticed the dark hair … then noticed the round glasses on the floor a few feet away … something is familiar about the boy … With a gasp the headmaster put it all together – the student was Harry Potter!
It wasn't supposed to be this way. He was supposed to face the Dark Lord, with hopefully enough knowledge to stay alive. Albus had done everything he could to keep the boy away from the wizarding world until he could be under his control – to keep him safe, he had justified. Now, under his watch, in his school, he died by the hands of a mountain troll. Perhaps there's a way to save him; it was the only thing the headmaster could cling to. "Fawkes!" he pleaded.
Harry Potter was alive. Definitely worse for the wear and still unconscious, but alive nonetheless. Albus pondered his actions up to this point, and his plans for the boy in the future. Was this truly the greater good? He stared out the window of his office, unfocused, pondering his plan and his notions of what Harry Potter could do for the wizarding world.
Snape and McGonagall exchanged worried glances. They arrived several minutes earlier for what promised to be a spirited discussion on their weekly topic – one Harry Potter. But so far no words had been spoken; well, at least not out loud. Clearly there were several conversations going on mentally. "Albus?" Minerva quietly prodded.
Shaking out of his haze, the headmaster sharply turned to observe his two colleagues. "Ah yes, pardon an old man's musings. It has been an eventful week, I'm afraid."
"At least the boy is still alive," Minerva said softly, imploring the headmaster to take a seat and relax a bit. Snape made a small disapproving noise though, earning a glare from McGonagall and a suddenly-focused look from the headmaster.
Feeling the need to elaborate, Snape spoke carefully. "He is, and that is … good, I suppose. But look at how he did it. He did not use magic, he used force. He was extremely fortunate he wasn't killed immediately, let alone the magic you and Poppy had to do in order to keep him in this world."
"True, Severus, although we must keep in mind he is a first year. Without the knowledge to inflict any real harm on the troll, and having to face his first magical danger alone and at unfortunate odds, Harry did quite well." Albus was starting to talk himself into his earlier plans. "I think in a more controlled environment we could see what his true magical capabilities are."
McGonagall looked outraged. "Albus, you cannot be serious! He is a boy, not a soldier or a test subject! Prophecy or not, we cannot willingly subject him to dangerous situations just to understand how he responds and what resources he will use. It's against everything we adhere to as educators and authority figures for these children!"
For his part, Snape didn't really care about the higher 'moral code' McGonagall was alluding to. However, there was one comment that seemed to make everything click in place. "He couldn't have planned … he wouldn't risk … would he?"
"Headmaster? There are a few things I can't help but wonder ..." Snape felt taking a more subtle approach was for the best, as he knew he was treading on dangerous ground. "I have all these pieces in my mind I'm trying to fit, and I wonder if there is actually a common thread among them. When Quirrell announced the troll had escaped, you asked me to check the third floor to ensure the stone was safe. I felt this was reasonable because of the security put in place to protect it. I recall having conversations about how basic all the safeguards seemed, given the importance of the treasure. Now I hear discussions regarding Potter and a controlled environment to test his capabilities …" He let these pieces of information dangle a bit, knowing that if he released the bludgers, McGonagall would go after them with a bat.
Looking scandalized, she did just that. "Albus! Are you … are you saying …" She was so apoplectic even getting the words out was a challenge. "You planned to have the stone potentially stolen just so you could test Harry's skill? You are intentionally putting students at risk based on how you interpret a prophecy?"
Albus at least had the decency to look abashed, even if he wasn't deterred yet. However, he now had to tread carefully – and figure out a way to get back at Severus for teasing out his plans. "Minerva, I assure you I have the boy's best interests in mind." This statement was met by a slightly raised eyebrow from Severus and a snort of derision from Minerva. "We must see what he can do in difficult situations; it wouldn't do to have his first stressful situation be when he's staring down the Dark Lord. This is as close to a classroom-like setting we can provide to help prepare him for what lies ahead."
Unfortunately for the headmaster's sake, this just incensed McGonagall even further. "Absolutely not! Albus, your machinations are legendary and I know this is the mere starting point for them. You will tell us what you have planned and we will decide together on how to proceed. I know you are trying to do the right thing, but there has to be other methods – more humane methods!"
The headmaster was momentarily shocked by the demands, then steeled his expressions and stood up to tower over the two teachers. He was the headmaster, the Supreme Mugwump, the leader of the Wizengamot, and all that other rot. His plans, while complex, were the right path and these two teachers shouldn't be questioning it. A quick blur flashed through his mind, showing him instances where he was actually wrong, and led innocent people to unfortunate ends. He slumped back down in his chair, barely mustering the energy to give one last pouting glance at his two friends. Swinging around in his chair to look at Fawkes' perch he slowly exhaled. "Perhaps you are right …"
Again Albus stared off into space for quite a while, pondering his next decision. Trust … how much trust should he put in these two colleagues – no, friends – regarding the tangled web of facts, conjecture, and plans that tie the Dark Lord and Harry? Is it really a matter of trust or just security? Is he really trying to do what is right, or what is easy, by keeping these machinations to himself?
With a start, Albus whirled around back to the teachers, momentarily startling them. "Perhaps an unbreakable vow is in order …"
Snape sat in stunned silence. He hadn't heard the whole thing before? "Do you know what this 'power he knows not' is?" he blurted out before he could hold it back.
"I have my suspicions. I believe that power is … love."
Snape stared back incredulously while McGonagall just looked back quizzically, confusion etched on her features. A few beats passed before the silence was broken by Poppy Pomphrey's voice, "Headmaster, he's awake now."