"Faces on a wall" - The Wolf
It was brutal. A bloodbath was the best way Rufus Edwards could describe it. The first Gryffindor v Slytherin match of the season was in full swing above and below him as he watched from the stands. He didn't really have much time for Quidditch, thought it was a waste of time that celebrated the worst elements of organised sport, revelling in it's danger and unsophistication. However, his position within his house forced him to bear witness to such 'entertainment' on a tri yearly basis. It was the only area in which he thanked the lord that the wizarding world and Hogwarts hierarchy was so biased against the Slytherin's because there was never any chance of them getting to the final, the referee almost always saw to that. Cheating by the opposition was ignored, even encouraged, whereas any gamesmanship by the Slytherin's, real or invented, was exaggeratedly punished. It meant that mercifully the games were often short and he never had to sit through a fourth punishment. However, their treatment on the Quidditch pitch was another great way to create support for Unity through his house, so suffer he did, even pretending to be every bit invested as everyone else seemed to be.
Another fight. Unsurprising to see Warrington in the thick of things again. The whole stadium up on it's feet as fists and bats flew through the air, colliding with anything in their path. Suddenly the melee dispersed or rather was thrown backwards by a flick of the referees wand. Three penalties awarded to Gryffindor despite the fact Tommy Finnegan had clearly started the whole ruckus. Zabini fuming in front of the goalpost saves the first one, before the shrill blast of the whistle as the referee demands a re-take. Fury from the Slytherin end. Why did they put themselves through it? Year in year out it is the same. Rufus had suggested previously that they should boycott the Quidditch season, an idea that had been received coolly before being rejected outright. He would broach the subject again later he thought as Slytherin had yet another perfectly reasonable goal disallowed.
"It's utter bullshit!" Melanie Gonzalez his trusted lieutenant exclaimed from beside him. A girl of immigrant Hispanic parents she hadn't been prepared for the treatment she would receive when sorted into Slytherin. A fierce attitude from her first year had seen her become one of his closest allies as she quickly decided to fight with him rather than cower away. Right now she was standing and screaming with the rest of her house, her long black hair flying all over the place in the wind and her usually pleasant features distorted in anger.
"The game, or the referee?" Rufus asked quietly. Melanie was fully aware of his indifference to the sport and chose to ignore him.
What happened next however couldn't be ignored. Rufus had drifted off again and was staring in the direction of the Gryffindor stands when it happened. A flash of red. Zabini falling through the air, smashing into the ground at high speed. An eruption of anger.
"The fuck happened?" he shouted at Melanie over the din.
"I can't fucking believe it… he… fucking Weasley, she stunned him…. He was a hundred feet in the air for God sake." she stuttered
That was enough for Rufus. Even he knew that you don't use your magic on the field, a rule that had always been respected, even at the highest point of tension between the houses. Enough was enough.
"Wand out. Let's go."
And he leapt to the front of the stand before hurdling onto the pitch. Wand drawn. The whole of Slytherin house at his back.
"It's amazing what they have achieved really," Teddy Lupin began as he led them through Leicester Square, looking around him with an expression of barely concealed wonder. "Muggles, I mean. Just look at it. You know the real reason we still abide by the Statue of Secrecy?"
"Because they'd win." Scorpius replied.
"Exactly," Lupin agreed. "If Voldemort had won his war, it would have been a short victory. They'd have beaten him within weeks, trust me."
Scorpius and Elle remained silent as Lupin weaved through the crowds before turning off into an alley. They glanced at each other, momentarily unsure of whether to follow this dangerous man into uncharted territory, before Elle shrugged at Scorpius and tailed The Wolf into the narrow walkway. Lupin got about half way down the alley before he stopped in front of a boarded up door. Turning to grin at them again, he tapped it three times with his wand. A click and the door sprang wide open.
"After you." he bowed, making a sweeping gesture with his arm.
"Where are we?" Elle asked, both her and Scorpius still rooted to the spot.
"Don't worry, there's nothing sinister going on," Lupin smiled. "I said I wanted to show you something, so here we are. If I wanted to do anything to you I could have done it in the square without even showing my face. I've even been forgiving enough to not mention the three people you have following us." he gestured to the end of the alley where a shadow quickly disappeared.
"Three?" Elle questioned looking at Scorpius.
"I presume two of them are your doing," he replied, amused. "Bit overboard don't you think? I only felt the need for one."
"Can never be too careful." Elle stated.
"You're not wrong Eleonora," Lupin chuckled. "Now, please enter."
Elle looked at Scorpius before making the leap, walking through the door. A strange sensation of floating greeted her fleetingly before disappearing as she found herself in a gleaming white box room, completely empty except for a clear glass desk in the centre with a pristine woman sat behind it, looking at her with a barely disguised expression of distaste.
"Um… hello?" she ventured before she was saved by both Lupin and Scorpius appearing by her side. The woman looked scathingly at Lupin who merely laughed.
"Of course. Excuse me." he apologised before waving his wand. His rags disappeared to be replaced by a cleanly pressed and expensive looking business suit. The woman nodded.
"Good afternoon sir," she greeted in a robotic voice. "Would you like to go down?"
"Please Christine." Lupin winked. The woman rolled her eyes and suddenly, with a jolt, Elle realised that the floor was moving. They were descending down into darkness, the woman quickly disappearing from sight, soon becoming a speck above them as the blackness took over.
"What the fuck Lupin!" Elle shouted.
"Relax," she heard him soothe through the dark. "Almost there".
And with a thud, they were no longer moving. They were standing in impenetrable darkness, she couldn't see her hand in front of her face.
She heard what sounded like a clap and suddenly blinding light pierced through every shred of the room.
"Welcome to the Wizarding National Portrait Gallery."
Elle blinked several times before recovering her sight. She looked around her and saw that they were in a narrow room, bright white like the one upstairs. But the walls were adorned with picture frames, portraits of witches and wizards stretching as far in both directions as the eye could see.
"Impressive," Scorpius ventured from beside her. "How far are we underground?"
"Only a mile or so," Lupin answered. "We are actually directly underneath the muggle National Portrait Gallery."
"How come I've never heard of this place?" Scorpius asked.
"Few have," Lupin replied. "In fact most have forgotten it's existence. But here lies a portrait of almost every witch and wizard of note for the last thousand years."
"And why are we here?" Elle spoke up.
"We won't be overheard here. And I've always had a little flair for dramatics. Come on, there's a few that might interest you."
They followed him as he stepped off the platform and walked over towards a keypad on a plinth.
"Come closer." he beckoned as he entered a number and suddenly they were moving again, flying past hundreds and hundreds of paintings in the blink of an eye before coming to an abrupt stop.
"The Second Wizarding War." a tinned voice sounded.
"Next time, fucking warn me Lupin." Elle raged feeling dizzy and disorientated.
Once she had recovered she raised her head to find herself looking into familiar grey eyes. Only it wasn't Scorpius. A portrait of a young Draco Malfoy adorned the wall in front of them. He gazed upon them, looking at once regal but also almost childlike in his posture and expression of false indifference. Elle glanced at Scorpius who was looking at his father with a guarded air. He didn't want to reveal anything in front of Lupin, she deduced. Was this his game then? Was Lupin trying to throw them off balance? Of all the paintings he could have shown, this was the first.
"They don't move." Scorpius observed. It was an obvious observation, but Elle realised he was right. She hadn't noticed. None of the portraits were moving an inch.
"No," Lupin asserted. "It always struck me as odd, all those people in a frame moving and talking, a mere echo of their real lives, their personalities. I much prefer this. A confirmation if you will."
"A conformation of what?" Elle asked.
"That they're really dead." he answered simply, his expression darkening briefly.
They were silent for a minute before Scorpius broke it.
"My father's alive," he said baldly. "So why is he here? He's not dead."
"No he's not," Lupin said. "But that version of him is." he finished, gesturing towards the portrait.
The portrait was Draco Malfoy as a Death Eater, Elle realised. She looked around her and saw other faces she recognised, Death Eaters that would never be forgotten sneering down at her. However, the unease she felt with them paled in comparison as her eye caught two portraits on the other side of the room. She walked over to them slowly. The first one showed a young child of only about ten, already handsome and arrogant, poised and composed. She read the gold plaque underneath.
'Tom Marvolo Riddle. 31st December 1927 - 1st September 1938'.
And to the right was what he'd become, disfigured, snake like features, red slits for eyes and hatred poring from every inch of the canvas.
'Lord Voldemort. 1st September 1938 - 2nd May 1998'.
"This is not a place that celebrates our kind," Lupin said as he came and stood beside her. "The bad and the good, they can all be found here. But I come because it reminds me that things are not black and white. There is no such thing as pure evil, just like there is no such thing as pure good. There's a story behind everyone, reasons however valid or invalid, but still reasons. Tom Riddle died on the 1st of September 1938 because that was the beginning of his other life. His life with magic. Before then he was an orphaned child, left alone in the world, barely cared for and without any sense of love or belonging. There's your reasons."
They all lapsed into silence again as they looked upon the paintings in front of them. After about five minutes, Elle heard Lupin curse under his breath. She turned to him and watched as he reached into his inside pocket, produced a vial of a purple liquid, unscrewed the top and quickly threw it down his throat, wincing as he swallowed.
"Sorry," he muttered sheepishly. "Although I was lucky enough to bypass the full werewolf gene, I did inherit some characteristics."
"Basically, you're a bit mental." Elle smirked.
Lupin laughed loudly.
"Well put, yes. Without the potion I'm prone to the occasional rage outburst and the like. But you already knew that."
"Yes, we knew it wasn't just a nickname." Scorpius cut in.
"Adelaide said." Lupin replied before wandering down the hall, coming to a stop in front of another portrait about 100 metres past the previous ones they had looked at and on the other side of the room.
Elle knew instantly that they were looking at Teddy Lupin's parents. The woman had the same heart shaped face as him and the man had a similar rugged appearance. She looked across at Lupin, who's face showed no emotion.
"This is my parents," he confirmed simply. "They died in the Battle of Hogwarts. Lestrange and Dolohov apparently. They're just over there, faces on a wall. That doesn't really annoy me though. I'm not consumed by revenge or any of that shit. Things happen and you deal with them, you move on. No use in living in the past."
"Your mother was beautiful." Elle ventured after a while before silence descended again. But again, it was Lupin who broke it first.
"But I get angry though sometimes," he confessed. "You know, they left me alone in this world. They left me. And I've always been an outsider, even with the Potter's and the Weasley's. They took me in, raised me with love, but I was always apart from them somehow. Maybe it's because of that that I can see what they've become, how distorted they really are. Whenever I get angry now, I remember what my parents died for. And I know that this isn't it. This isn't the world that they died for. And that's why I did what I did. That's why I betrayed those who raised me, passed on secrets to the Unity group, and that's why when I got found out I ran away to join them. That's why I've done what I've done…."
He trailed off and Elle saw a hint regret and sadness in his eyes before it was replaced by steel.
"Anyway," Lupin forced a smile. "Let's discuss the real reason I invited you here."
"It was us who reached out to you," Scorpius said sharply. "Not the other way round."
"Oh come on Scorpius, you think you have the upper hand in this?" Lupin grinned, confidence shining through. "You're smart enough to know that I'm only here because I want something. Luckily for you, this will be a mutually beneficial something."
"What do you want from us?" Elle asked warily.
Teddy Lupin laughed and smiled jovially at the both of them.
"I want you to break into the Ministry of Magic of course."
It was brutal. A bloodbath was the only way Rufus Edwards could describe it as he ducked another jet of light aimed in his direction. Utter chaos. The whole of Gryffindor and Slytherin house had stormed the pitch, the Slytherin's in anger, the Gryffindor's in defence. He shot another stunner in the direction of Hugo Weasley, missing by an inch as he ducked and weaved through the crowds. In some cases, wands had been forgotten, he saw Warrington swooping through the air, beater bat in hand, bringing it down upon any opposition. Those without the advantage of brooms, duelled and scrapped on the ground. Utter chaos. He saw Melanie go down, paralysed by Rose Weasley. Anger engulfed him once more. How could he have been so delusional to think that non aggression tactics could work in this castle? He charged towards Weasley, his wand forgotten, only to be shoulder charged my an unknown assailiant and fall to the ground himself. It was lucky in a sense as just as he was about to raise himself, he felt the ground shudder as hundreds of bodies were thrown to the floor stunned, the figure of Professor McGonagall in the middle of the pitch, wand raised and a look of fury etched on her aged face.
"THAT IS ENOUGH!" she roared and silenced descended. Never had any of the students, or probably the staff, seen such an imposing sight.
"NEVER, NEVER, IN ALL MY YEARS HAVE I SEEN SUCH A DISGRACE! YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED!"
No-one could move as she continued her tirade. The spell was too strong. But Rufus didn't listen to her. McGonagall was the headmistress, had always been the fairest of the teachers, be she was still to blame for all this, he thought. She could, she should have done more to prevent this. It was always going to happen. Maybe she realised, as she seemed to deflate in front of them and her voice now came across defeated.
"The Quidditch season is cancelled. The teams will be disbanded."
At least some good had come out of this.
"Gryffindor's up!" she commanded. "Your head of house will escort you back to your common room."
Then the Hufflepuff's, then the Ravenclaw's. Slytherin's left till last again.
"Now Slytherin's. Go!"
Elle looked at Lupin for a moment before bursting out laughing.
"Yeah ok," she spat, laughter dying down. "Time to go Scorpius."
"I think you might be right." Scorpius agreed, but neither of them made a move to leave, something that Lupin picked up on.
"You need to work more on your bluffing skills," he laughed. "Ok. Let me explain the situation to you.."
"Don't fucking patronise me Lupin," Scorpius threatened. "You have no idea what we can do to you. We can make your life a living….."
"ENOUGH!" Lupin shouted, his demeanour changing from friendly to dangerous in an instant. "You think I don't know you Scorpius? You may have been able to put the fear of God into Adelaide but you're in a different league now. I'm not some drug dealer. I'm not some thief that you can threaten. I've seen things and done things that you could only dream of!"
Scorpius backed up a few paces, Elle following. For as good as they were, they knew that this was a fight they couldn't win. They could duel him, and probably win, but all that would result in was a death sentence. One thing about Unity, they looked after their own. And The Wolf was their prize asset. Talisman.
"Now, leave if you want to," Lupin continued. "If you don't want what you came for then by all means go right ahead. But if you have any sense, you will hear me out.
Elle looked at Scorpius and he held her gaze. They had to stay. She knew that and it was what she was trying to convey to him with her eyes. She knew that he knew it too, but she was worried his ego would get in the way. That fear proved unfounded as he nodded at her.
"Say what you have to say." Elle directed towards Lupin.
"Right decision," Lupin smiled, going back to his easygoing and alarmingly cheerful attitude as quickly as he had shifted from it.
"Okay then," he began. "Firstly, I know why you wanted to meet with me. Some of it's factual, some educated guesswork. You were, like Adelaide, presented with a dossier showing some of your more illegal dealings. And, like Adelaide you don't know where it's come from or who is behind it or what the repercussions are. So you've come to me because you think I'm your best shot at finding out whether it's coming from the Auror department. Correct?"
"So far so good." Elle muttered.
"Don't be like that Eleonora," Lupin laughed. "You have to admit it wasn't the most subtle approach. Although due to the time constraints and delicacy of the issue, it is probably the only thing you could of done so fair enough."
"Seeing as you think you know everything, shall we cut to the chase?" Scorpius said emotionlessly.
"Of course. One question though, what were you going to offer me in return for giving up my source?" Lupin queried.
"Money." Elle said simply.
"Well then, I would have disappointed you on two counts. Firstly, I have no interest in or need for money. The Unity group has a substantial amount of benefactors both publicly and secretly. Secondly, I have no source inside the department. No-one does."
"You're lying." Elle accused, but she knew he wasn't and could feel Scorpius deflate next to her.
"But… Joanne Joyce…" Scorpius began.
"Joanne Joyce?" Lupin questioned, leaping on Malfoys slip up, realisation dawning. "Of course, that's why you were so sure. You thought that we'd got her off the murder charge."
It had been an obvious conclusion to draw when Scorpius had held up the paper a few weeks ago. Slytherins didn't get found innocent. Not unless they had friends in the movement. It had seemed so perfect. If Unity had got Joyce off, then Lupin would have had to have been involved. An ex Auror? They had been so sure that he'd used his contacts.
"If you didn't then who did?" Elle wondered, annoyed that they had been wrong. "Unity's the only group with the power to challenge the Ministry. How the hell did a Slytherin get off a charge when she had been made to seem so guilty?"
"If it makes you feel better, we have no idea how she did it either," Lupin said looking slightly troubled. "She won't talk to anyone. We even sent Mickey Bricks in….."
"Well, if he can't get answers, then no-one can." Scorpius sighed. Mickey Bricks was the best con artist in the wizarding world and could normally extract information out of anyone through layers of manipulation.
"Precisely," Lupin responded. "However, all is not lost for you. There is still a way and as far as I can tell, I'm still your best shot of getting the information you need."
"This is where we come to your fucking ridiculous request I suppose." Elle sneered.
"Just hear me out," Lupin said holding both hands up. "On the Wednesday before Christmas, the Unity group will hold a protest in Diagon Alley. This will be the biggest of its kind. At half past one, a law enforcement patrolmen will attack the crowd with stunning spells…"
"A plant, I presume?"
"Of course," Lupin continued. "Therefore at two o'clock, as the situation escalates, and it will, the Ministry will dispatch all available personal and will be as free of Law Enforcement and Aurors as it will ever be…."
"And that's where we, the possible wanted felons by the same Auror department, break in." Elle stated dryly.
"Listen, I can get you the blueprints, the security rotas, a list of all the protective spells and how to disable them. I can give you a way in and a way out. And I can give you the team that did the Belgrade job last summer."
"You did that?" Elle asked in amazement. The Belgrade bank robbery had already become a legend in their circles.
"I may or may not have been present." Lupin smirked.
"I thought you had no interest in money."
"Often money is the least valuable thing in a bank vault." he replied enigmatically.
"If you're such a crack shot, then why get us to do this. Just do it yourself." Elle said.
"I'm needed elsewhere," Lupin replied. "And more importantly, he wants to see what you can do."
So they'd caught his attention. They'd probably been naive to think they could fly under his radar. The exploits and talents if Scorpius Malfoy couldn't be kept secret for long.
"Who is he?" Scorpius asked. "La Volpe?"
"He's the best man I've ever known," Lupin replied simply. "They'll come a time Scorpius when your arrogance will get the best of you, and you'll start to believe what you already suspect to be true. That you're the greatest of a generation. But this man…..this man is so much more than you can ever be."
"Someone's got a crush." Elle muttered.
"Whatever," Scorpius dismissed Lupin, now was not the time. "What does Unity need from the Ministry?"
"You do not need to know that," Lupin replied, wheeling away from them to look at a portrait of Severus Snape. "We will give you the file numbers and you will find them, duplicate them and give them to us. No trace and no questioned asked. In return you get access to all the Auror departments files. Not only can you retrieve the information you need, but I imagine people of your disposition could have a field day with what is contained in that room."
Elle looked at Scorpius again, and she instantly knew that he was going to agree to the proposal. Not because he was an open book, but because she was going to agree as well. She didn't like it, she didn't trust Lupin, she didn't have a suicide wish. But as Lupin had said earlier, they were on limited time. Still, they were going to do this their way.
"We'll think about it." she directed towards Lupin, pushing Scorpius onto the plinth and pressing the exit key.
"You have until Friday. Send your answer through Rufus Edwards!" Lupin called to them as they moved away, his laughter quickly disappearing behind them as they sped off.
They didn't speak as they emerged into the sunlight and moved towards the earlier agreed upon apparition point. They were both lost in their own thoughts and also possibly afraid to say what they were going to do out loud. They were going to break into the most technologically and magically advanced building on the planet on the orders of somebody they had met that day, a known traitor and liar. For people who had always calculated the odds so methodically, this was ridiculous. But they had no choice.
They apparated into Hogsmeade, mechanically casting disillusionment charms and beginning the walk back towards the castle. As they reached the gates, Elle was brought out of her dreaded sense of foreboding by Scorpius.
"Is that… is that smoke?" he asked.
It was. They tore through the gates, pelting up towards the castle. Suddenly, as they reached open ground they were stopped in their tracks by the sight in front of them. Both gazed in shock at the open wasteland in front of them. Elle looked around and scooped up a piece of metal from the floor, before dropping it in shock at the heat emitting from it. A large round, circular hoop. Where the Quidditch stadium had once loomed was now just ash and dust.
"Now Slytherin's. Go!"
As his house dusted themselves off and trudged away up towards the castle, Rufus stopped and looked back at the deserted stadium. He didn't know why, but he knew he had to make a statement now. He had to do something. To shock them. These people. Shock them all.
"Incendio" he whispered, and the main stand was engulfed in twenty foot high flames. His house all turned round and watched, defiance written all over their faces, flames dancing in their eyes And McGonagall? She looked back and forth between the disgraced house of Slytherin and the arena that had come to symbolise Gryffindor's supposed superiority before sighing and taking off, back towards her office, letting it all burn. Defeated. Rufus could only grin. Burnt to the ground.