CHAPTER TWELVE: POLITICKING
Department of Magical Law Enforcement
Ministry of Magic, London
4 November 1991
Five more invoices stacked themselves on Amelia Bones' desk as she tried to rub out an impending headache.
A troll.
How did Albus Dumbledore allowed a troll to get into Hogwarts? The castle was supposed to have numerous enchantments in place to stop dangerous creatures from entering the building, yet the incident report indicated that the beast had waltzed on in. Dumbledore was an outstanding wizard - he was a Grand Sorcerer of both Alchemy and Transfiguration, for Merlin's sake. The Dumbledore of her Hogwarts days had been a benevolent grandfatherly figure and a powerful mage. She had met him briefly at her brother's funeral a decade ago, and he hadn't seemed to have changed one bit.
Amelia sighed, gently massaging her temples. It was difficult enough to deal with the troll situation as the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, but it was even worse as a parent. Susan had been in the same room as the troll. Susan, her niece, the last of House Bones. The only thing she had left of Adam and Katherine…
Amelia shook her head to clear it, forcefully turning her mind back to the incident report. Somehow, only the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor had been injured, and it had been a minor injury at that.
Lucky, that's what they were, Amelia thought. There were so many ways it could have gone terribly wrong…
A knock sounded at her door, and Amelia groaned. The last thing she needed was yet another interruption, and if it was another one of Scrimgeour's trainees complaining he was too much of a hard arse, she was going to lose her bloody mind.
"Come in!" Amelia said, false cheer infusing her voice.
"Regent Bones."
Relief filled her. "Lord Moon," Amelia greeted.
"Is now a bad time?" the blonde aristocrat asked.
"It's… it's a time, August," Amelia finished lamely. "I'm inundated with paperwork, I'm behind on Wizengamot affairs." She shrugged."The usual."
August propped himself on the doorframe. "Anything interesting?"
"The Samhain troll affair at Hogwarts. The Prophet is going to have a field day once the story gets out."
"That cannot be a fun issue to resolve."
"It's really not. I have an absurd amount of forms to fill out, parental complaints to answer, and an owl to send to the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Apparently Quirrell - this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor - is insisting the troll shouldn't be euthanized even though the damn thing nearly ripped his arm off. I'd say he's a cracked idiot if Susan didn't say he was a decent professor. Has a bit of a stutter, but he teaches well. Susan says she's learning loads, so I'm happy enough.
"At any rate, I'm sure you didn't come here to hear me whine about my job and talk about Susan. What's going on?"
"Lord Gaunt."
Amelia groaned. "Another bill?"
"Naturally."
"What did he and his sycophants write this time?"
August shrugged gracefully. "It's actually not so bad, at least where House Moon is concerned. Lord Gaunt wishes to add religious education classes to Hogwarts' course offerings as well as give students days off on High Holidays. He also wants to remove all of the Headmaster's muggle-friendly holiday terminology from the school. For Merlin's sake, my daughter sent me an owl asking why they were celebrating Halloween. Halloween, for the gods' sake! Absolutely zero regard for the children's heritage, in my opinion."
Amelia frowned. "The double terminology isn't so bad. It certainly helps the muggleborn and muggle-raised children feel more at home and ease them into the Wizarding world."
"Yes, but at what cost?" August argued. "Should we risk losing our heritage in order to make some children feel more comfortable?"
"Well - "
"There you have it."
"The bill is certainly a lot tamer than Lord Gaunt's usual fare," Amelia allowed. "Who's sponsoring it?"
"In addition to Gaunt, Lords Malfoy, Nott, and Yaxley."
"So, in other words, the usual suspects."
"Yes."
"What about signatories?"
"Lords Avery, Burke, Carrow, Fawley, Parkinson and Selwyn."
Amelia frowned. "Lord Rowle?"
"Too much of an idiot to make a decision."
"And Lord Urquhart?"
"Waffling. I think he'll vote for it. I might vote for it. All in all, it's not a bad bill."
"Really? You'd support Lord Gaunt of all people?"
"I'm not opposed to this particular bill. It's not as if I'm suddenly throwing my lot in with him."
Amelia drummed her fingers. "I don't think I'll vote for it."
"I didn't say you had to."
"I know. I just could never support someone like Lord Gaunt, no matter what he proposed."
August nodded. "Understandable. Now, Lord Selwyn and I are working on a new bill on muggleborns to run against the one Lord Nott proposed last session. Do you want in?"
"Depends on how hard-line your stance is. You know where I stand on the muggleborn issue."
August chuckled lightly. "Amelia, do I look like the sort of wizard who would rip muggleborns from their homes? No. What Samuel and I am proposing is similar to systems already in place on the Continent to aid not only muggleborns, but halfbloods and purebloods as well. We're proposing the creation of wizarding primary schools - commuter, of course - to help integrate students better from a young age, starting, say, around seven or eight. It will help muggle-raised students assimilate better to wizarding culture. Russia has already implemented this, and they are close to surpassing us in OWL and NEWT scores!"
"That actually sounds fairly reasonable," Amelia said, feeling surprised. The Traditionalists usually took a far harsher stance towards muggleborns. Perhaps they were turning over a new leaf. "What sort of classes would be taught? It's not as if the children can get their wands early…"
"Samuel and I were just discussing that. It turns out there is plenty of material. History of Magic, for one," he said, ticking it off on his fingers, "with at least two years of Hogwarts-level History of Magic under their belts by the time they start school, students can take the OWL in third year, opening their fourth and fifth year schedule up for more electives. Then there's also Herbology, which can be taught at any age; Pre-Potions, which is being piloted in France right now; Wizarding Culture, for muggleborn and halfblood students; Astronomy; Maths; and Runic Scripts, which essentially is a low-level, introductory course on runic magic."
"I might be interested," Amelia said slowly. "I'd like to see course syllabi and your funding scheme."
"Excellent. Should I send you an owl with a draft?"
"Certainly. I'll let you know if I have any amendments."
"Thank you. Good day, Amelia."
"Good day."
Amelia glanced at her mountain of paperwork then rested her head in her hands, headache surging into full force. By Merlin, why does everything have to be so terribly tedious?
Offices of the Daily Prophet
Diagon Alley, London
6 November 1991
Cursing loudly, Rita tossed aside another piece of useless drivel. It was exactly the thing she didn't need, especially since her search for information on Thomas Gaunt had taken a sharp turn for the worse. The man was slipperier than Lucius Malfoy at his best, and Rita was well and truly stumped. She'd been so eager to pursue the family tree lead, but she only found another dead end.
Over the past one hundred years, the Gaunt family tree had narrowed down to one sickly branch. In 1880, Brutus Gaunt married his first cousin Ioni. Their first child, Maia, had died at age two. They had two other children, though, Lolita, born in 1885, and Marvolo, born in 1886. Marvolo then married his own sister to keep the line "pure," and went on to have three children: Marcella, Morfin, and Merope. Of those three, Marcella died as an infant, and Merope was a squib. Morfin never married, and died in Azkaban after murdering a family of muggles.
This left Rita with a conundrum. Only Morfin or Merope could have carried on the Gaunt line unless there was another secret child Rita didn't know about. Morfin had no children to Rita's knowledge (although bastards weren't out of the picture) and Merope had a kid with some muggle, a boy named Tom Riddle. Riddle had been an outstanding student at Hogwarts, but he ended up working at Borgin and Burkes following graduation. Several years later, he disappeared, and was presumed dead. It was possible Tom was Thomas, but highly unlikely. If Tom Riddle was still alive, he would be approaching his seventies, while Thomas Gaunt appeared to be scarcely forty…perhaps Tom Riddle had a child...
"Uh, Ms. Skeeter?"
Rita jumped, then quickly composed herself. "What do you want?" she snapped. "Can't you see I'm busy?"
The latest intern - Bibble, or something - shuffled his feet nervously. "Uh, the Editor-in-Chief wanted you to review the latest set of articles…"
Rita sighed. "Put them on my desk. No! Don't walk over here, you bumbling idiot! I'm working with classified information. Levitate them! And get me coffee once you've done it!"
Bibble - or was it Bumple? - beat a hasty exit, and Rita leaned back in her chair.
Why am I surrounded by idiots?
The universe did not answer (not that Rita was expecting it to), and she pulled out her Acidic Orange Korrecting Kwill. Thank Merlin for small pleasures.
Rita immersed herself in slashing idiotic subtitles and correcting comma splices. Her colleagues were fools, for certain, but at least her job granted her a generous paycheck and the ability to snag the most newsworthy articles for herself.
Rita skimmed through the titles. Most of it was boring rubbish she could barely lower herself to edit, let alone read. Honestly, who cared about cauldron bottom thickness? On the other hand…Rita rubbed her hands together in anticipation.
TROLL AT HOGWARTS
by Cassidy Higgins
Rita grinned. This was exactly what she was looking for.
On Samhain, nothing other than a mountain troll found its way into Hogwarts, according to a recently released report from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Luckily, no one was seriously injured during the incident, and a detachment from the Auror corps is currently working with the Headmaster to determine how a troll managed to breach the school's defenses.
Rita pursed her lips. Cassidy was a nice witch, sure, but she had no idea how to write a good news story. It was quite fine by Rita, though. After a quick re-write and a bit of blackmail, Rita was front-page news.
TROLLS AND TERROR AT HOGWARTS: HAS DUMBLEDORE LOST HIS TOUCH?
by Rita Skeeter
On Samhain night, none other than a mountain troll found its way into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. Yes, dear readers, you read that correctly. According to an official report released only yesterday by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, the class XXXX creature was found roaming the halls of Hogwarts before attempting to break into the Great Hall. Defense Against the Dark Arts professor Quirinus Quirrell saved the day with his quick thinking, saving numerous students from the beast. Quirrell was the only individual to suffer an injury.
While we must applaud Quirrell for his feat, the incident brings up an incredibly important question: how did a mountain troll manage to breach Hogwarts' defenses? Did Albus Dumbledore let the troll in on purpose, or was it an unintentional accident? Dumbledore himself was not on scene when the troll attacked students in the Great Hall. In fact, he was leading a squad of professors to battle the creature. Did he intentionally leave the students unarmed? What is Dumbledore's plan?
At this very moment, Aurors have been dispatched to Hogwarts to investigate the situation. We can only hope this was an innocent mistake and not the start of something far more sinister…
Rita gave her work a onceover. It was perfection, and worthy of the front page if she dared to say so herself. Setting it into the complete pile, Rita moved on to the next piece.
LORDS GAUNT AND MALFOY INTRODUCE CONTROVERSIAL NEW BILL
by Kikis Trecus
Lord Thomas Gaunt, along with Lord Lucius Malfoy, who recently took over the Malfoy lordship from his father Abraxas, has introduced yet another controversial bill. The Religion and Culture Affirmation Act (RaCAA) is aimed at preserving our unique wizarding culture.
"With the influx of muggle-raised individuals, more and more wizards are finding it difficult to stay true to their culture," Lord Gaunt told the Daily Prophet. "In particular, students at Hogwarts struggle to maintain their traditions. Last Samhain, for example, students had mandatory classes in addition to a Halloween feast, leaving little time for students and their families to celebrate. Clearly, this situation is a direct threat to our culture and traditions. I hope that [RaCAA] will help mitigate the issue, resulting in the best world for our children."
Lord Thaddeus Nott and Lord Austin Yaxley are co-sponsoring the bill with Lords Gaunt and Malfoy.
The bill currently is drawing support across the House of Lords with Blood Purists, Conservative Traditionalists, and some Moderate Traditionalists signing on as signatories. The Modernist party continues to oppose the bill, advocating instead for a blend of cultures.
In fact, in the House of Commons, halfblood Timothy Malone (Modernist, Londonderry) has introduced a rival bill which actively encourages the mix of cultures. Chief Warlock Albus Dumbledore has publicly backed Representative Malone, marking one of his few political stands.
BILL continued on page 9.
To read more on the Chief Warlock's past political moves, turn to WARLOCK on page 10.
Rita cracked her knuckles. So Gaunt liked controversy, eh? Controversy was an old friend. It was something she could work with.
Rita stretched her back. Dumbledore was a real treat as well. Rita was convinced the old man was out for his own skin, and his own skin alone. Seizing her DictaQuill, Rita smiled.
It was time to make some news.
A/N: An especially large thanks goes out to my betas for this chapter - it was very difficult to write! I hope you all enjoyed it.