Chapter Twenty One
"Why the hell didn't anybody wake me up for the fight?" Moody asked as he stomped into the Hospital Wing. "Death Eaters show up on our doorstep, and not a single one of you thinks of old Mad-Eye? Why the hell is everyone so quiet?"
"It's Albus," McGonagall said as she glanced at the curtained off area. "He's… He's…"
"He's dying," Remus said from where sat, his head hung low.
"What?" Moody asked, surprised. "How?"
"An acidic rotting curse," Flitwick said. "Albus and I were dueling Rodolphus LeStrange."
"Please tell me you killed the bastard," Moody growled.
"No," said James as he walked into the Hospital Wing along with Lily, who was practically glued to his side. "Him, Bellatrix, and Snape are all chained up in an empty classroom in the dungeon. I have Hagrid watching the door."
"You left them alive?" Moody asked.
"I did," said James. "Well, mostly."
James was still feeling ill for what he had done to Snape in a fit of blind rage.
Moody turned and started to leave.
"Where are you going?" asked Remus.
"To remedy the situation," said Moody.
"Alastor, no," McGonagall said as both James and Remus moved to stop him.
"No what?" Moody barked. "They're fucking Death Eaters. One of them has all but killed one of the greatest wizards that has ever lived. I'm not going to stand by and watch as they just chuck them back into Azkaban when they should have been tossed through the veil to begin with. And that brings up another question. Just how the hell did they get out of Azkaban?"
"We don't know," said James. "Sirius went to the Ministry to find out."
OoOoOoOoOoO
To say that the Department of Magical Law Enforcement was in chaos would be an understatement. Aurors were popping in and out from the emergency apparation area, some alone and others with recaptured prisoners.
"Merlin's fucking nut sack!" Amelia shouted as she stormed out of her office. "Does anybody have a report on how the fuck these arseholes escaped?"
"We're still trying to find that out," Kingsley Shacklebolt said as he dragged a bound prisoner past her and towards the quickly filling up holding cells.
"What about the team I sent to the prison?" she asked.
"They just sent word," John Dawlish said from his desk. "They've got the entry way, guard station and quarters in their control. The rest of the prison is still under control of the inmates."
"What about the aurors on duty there?" Amelia asked.
"Dead," Dawlish said. "All of them but one dead."
"And the one?" she asked.
"Missing," he said.
"Who?" she asked.
"Cadet Tonks," he said.
Amelia nodded and internally let out a sigh of relief. If not for the patronus message from the young witch, they probably still wouldn't know about the mass breakout. Especially since the warning system that should have alerted her department had failed for some reason She just hopped that they could get her out of there safely.
"Amelia," someone said, and she turned to see Sirius Black walking towards her.
"Black, now is not the time," she said as she turned to head back into her office.
"I think it is," Sirius said. "We've got a huge problem."
"If it's about the mass breakout, obviously we know," she said, gesturing around the very busy office.
"Mass breakout?" asked Sirius. "We thought it was just the three of them."
"Three of them?" asked Amelia.
"Rodolphus and Bellatrix LeStrange and Severus Snape," said Sirius. "They attacked Hogsmeade."
"Hogsmeade?" asked Amelia. "I was told that it was just some kids pulling a prank. That's why I only sent a couple of aurors."
"I hate to break it to you, but those aurors didn't make it," said Sirius. "Not to mention some of the villagers and students were killed as well."
"Fuck," Amelia said as she turned and punched the wall, hurting her hand in the process. "Is there any good news today?"
"We captured them," Sirius said.
"Don't bullshite me Sirius," Amelia said.
"No bullshite," said Sirius. "All three of them are chained up in the school."
Amelia practically collapsed into a nearby chair as she breathed out a sigh of relief. The LeStrange's were two of the most dangerous prisoners in all of Azkaban. She remembered hearing stories about how they had killed a half dozen inmates on their first day being locked up with their bare hands, just to show everyone that they could.
"Where is she?" Fudge demanded as he walked into the DMLE along with his Under Secretary, Delores Umbridge. "Madam Bones, where are you?"
"Great," Amelia groaned. "Just what I need, another pain in my ass."
"There you are," Fudge said as he pushed his way past Sirius and stood in front of her. "What in the devil is happening? I'm getting reports of a Death Eater attack in Hogsmeade. Rumors of dementors showing up all over the place. And now as I walked in here, I find out that there has been a mass break out from Azkaban."
Fudge then noticed Sirius standing there.
"Black," he said. "This is your doing, isn't it? I knew we shouldn't have pardoned you. You helped them all escape, didn't you? Confess now, and I promise the courts will go easy on you."
Sirius had a look of disbelief on his face as he looked at Amelia and asked, "Is he usually this stupid, or did he take special pills this morning?"
"How dare you," Umbridge said as she got right up in Sirius' face, which is to say, she stood a good foot shorter than him and gave him a shove with her rotund girth. "That is the Minister for Magic you are talking about. You will show him the respect he deserves."
"And you are?" Sirius asked.
"I am Del…" she started to say when Sirius cut her off.
"It doesn't matter who you are," he said, turning his back to her and looking at Amelia, who he could tell was trying her hardest not to burst out laughing. "Anyways, as I was saying before we were so annoyingly interrupted. We have the three Death Eaters captured and locked up at Hogwarts. So when you can spare a few aurors, I'm sure everyone there would appreciate them coming by and collecting the garbage."
"Once Kingsley is done locking up the escaped prisoner he caught, I'll send him and a few others by to collect them in the hour," Amelia said.
"I'll be going as well," Fudge said.
"Minister, I don't think that's a good idea," Amelia said.
"Well, I think it's a brilliant idea Cornelius," Umbridge said. "We'll bring the press along as well, so we can get some pictures into the Daily Prophet right away. Show everyone that you have the situation under control, and that there is nothing to fear."
"Marvelous idea," Fudge said with a smile. He could already see his approval rating jumping up at least ten points from this. Not to mention that being there as three escaped Death Eaters are recaptured could easily help him in his re-election. "Amelia, I expect you to have your aurors waiting for us in the Atrium so we can all head to Hogwarts together."
"Fine," Amelia said in an almost growl. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have escaped prisoners on the lose and a prison to take back."
"About that," Umbridge said. "How exactly did this happen? Isn't it the responsibility of the DMLE to ensure the prison is secure?"
"It is," Amelia said.
"And as the head of the DMLE, how could you allow this to happen?" Umbridge asked.
"I didn't allow this to happen," Amelia said in a firm tone. "And how dare you accuse me of such a thing. Someone shut down the wards and released the hold on the dementors. When I find out who it was, if they are still alive, I swear on my magic that I will personally toss them through the veil."
"That all depends," Umbridge said.
"Depends on what?" asked Amelia.
"On whether or not you still are employed by the Ministry when those responsible are caught," Umbridge said.
"Now, now," Fudge said with a nervous little chuckle. "Let's not do anything rash now. Amelia, I can assure you that right now, we have no plans to dismiss you over this, nor do we blame you for what happened. But please, do find the ones responsible as quickly as possible. The sooner we can put this behind us, the better."
Fudge and Umbridge turned and left the DMLE, leaving Sirius and Amelia standing there.
"He really is an arse, isn't he?" Sirius said.
"You have no idea," said Amelia.
OoOoOoOoOoO
Draco Malfoy sat huddled in the corner of his cell as he listened to the sounds of the escaped inmates getting closer and silently thanking whoever had decided that the squib section of the prison should have doors on each cell. That door was the only thing keeping him safe from the screaming and insane prisoners who were calling out for the blood and flesh of those they came across.
Of course, that door could only protect him if it remained closed and locked. A lock that was a simple touch rune just outside the door. The same touch rune that one of the insane inmates just triggered, unlocking and opening Draco's cell door.
The last Malfoy on the planet let out a whimper as a group of the insane inmates slowly entered his cell.
"Mmmmmm, just the way I like my meat," one of the inmates said. "Young and tender."
Draco closed his eyes as they advanced on him. His last thoughts as the makeshift knife cut into his flesh was to curse the day he had ever met Harry Potter.
OoOoOoOoOoO
Tonks slowly made her way through the halls of the prison, doing her best to avoid the roaming packs of prisoners who had decided that instead of fleeing for freedom to turn it into their own personal lawless playground.
While sneaking around, she had seen some truly disturbing and disgusting sights. Prisoners beating on each other, raping each other, and a few that had been driven completely mad from their years here had resorted to cannibalism.
Tonks wasn't religious, but after seeing that, she had prayed that she would make it out of there alive.
"Clear," someone said.
"Clear," a second voice said.
"No way," Tonks whispered to herself. She peeked around a corner and saw one of the most beautiful sights she had ever seen.
Aurors wearing commando robes.
"Don't fire," she practically shouted as she rushed out to meet them.
"Hold it right there," one of the aurors said. "Hands in the air."
Tonks stopped moving and raising her hands above her head.
"I'm cadet auror Nymphadora Tonks," Tonks said. "I was stationed here when all hell broke lose."
"Parker?" one of the aurors said and a second auror pulled out a small roll of parchment, which he looked over.
"There's a Tonks on the list," Parker said. "Says she's a metamorph."
"Right," said Tonks. "That's me. Watch."
Tonks then changer her hair color and length before she then made her nose grow a foot long.
"Okay then," the lead auror said as he relaxed his stance a bit, the others with him following suit.
Tonks lowered her hands and slowly walked over to them as she breathed a sigh of relief and returned her nose to its normal length and made her hair short and giving it the bubblegum pink color that she preferred.
"Harold Hargrove," the lead auror said.
"You guys are a sight for sore eyes," said Tonks.
"I bet," said Harold. "Can you tell us what happened here?"
"I don't know for sure," said Tonks. "I went to the loo and just as I was finishing up, I felt the wards fall. When I went back to the guard station, I saw someone dressed in a black hooded cloak with a bloody dagger in hand. I didn't know how many was with this person, and when I started to hear the inmates starting to run around and shouting, I ran to find a place to hide."
"Smart thinking," Harold said. "First rule when you're in a situation like this is to stay alive. As I understand, you're the one who sent out the patronus message about the break out. If you had tried to play the hero and gotten killed, we'd all probably still be in the dark about this."
"How bad is it out there?" Tonks asked.
"Bad," said Harold. "But nothing that we won't be able to deal with. Seems like most of the prisoners decided to remain here. The ones that left, only a small handful are actually causing problems. The rest are running and hiding, probably going to try and slip out of the country. The real issue is going to be the dementors. They're scattered all over the country. But right now, that isn't something you should worry about."
"Why not?" asked Tonks.
"On top of retaking this prison, we have orders to get any surviving aurors out of here, so…" Harold said as he pulled a small rubber duck out of his pocket and handed it to Tonks.
"Portus," he said as he tapped it with his wand, portkeying Tonks back to the DMLE.
"Alright team," Harold said as he turned to address the aurors with him. "Time to clean house."
OoOoOoOoOoO
Cornelius Fudge walked with a purpose as he led the group of aurors and reporters up the dirt road towards Hogwarts. He had on his best politicians face as he prepared to have his picture taken for the Daily Prophet when the Death Eaters were taken into custody by the aurors. He also wanted to get his picture taken with James Potter, who he had heard played a key role in stopping the Death Eaters. If that didn't get his approval rating up, nothing would, as the Potter's were still the talk of the town.
The only downside to this moment was that his Under Secretary couldn't be with him. However, she had said she had a personal emergency to deal with, and what kind of man would he be if he didn't allow her to take care of it.
"Minister Fudge," Karkaroff said as he stormed up to the man as he approached the castle. "You have much to answer for. Three of my students were killed today."
"Igor," Fudge said nervously as he noticed the reporters taking notes as they listened. "My deepest and sincere apologies for the loss of those under your care. I promise you, those responsible today will be met with swift justice by our courts."
"Phah," Karkaroff scoffed. "Your courts are nothing but a joke."
"You'd know that best, wouldn't you Igor," Moody said as he stepped out from inside the castle. "It wasn't that long ago that you played the court system in order to free yourself after being caught as a Death Eater."
"I did no such thing," Karkaroff said. "I was an innocent man in the wrong place at the wrong time is all. Besides, I aided your Ministry when I gave them the names of those I knew were Death Eaters."
"And then fled the country to hide from those that you didn't name," said Moody. "Tell me, since you've come for the tournament, have you been sleeping with your wand under your pillow."
"Gentlemen," Fudge said as he chuckled nervously. "This isn't the time to be bringing up past squabbles. Alastor, if you would kindly show us to where the escaped prisoners are being held."
"Yeah, about that," said Moody. "They're dead."
"What?" Fudge practically shouted in shock. "How?"
"I did it," Moody said with a grin that was twisted by his scared face.
"You what?" Fudge asked as the reporters furiously wrote this all down and the photographer took a picture.
"I killed them," Moody said. "Cutting curse. Sliced their heads clean off. Of course, everyone else inside is furious with me for it. But what can I say. They deserved far worse."
"You had no right," Fudge said as he pointed at the man.
"Actually, I do," said Moody. He then pulled out a crumpled up sheet of parchment from inside his coat. "As you can see here, during the war when Bagnold was Minister, she gave the aurors special permission to do whatever was necessary to stop any Death Eater. Not many chose to do so, but me… Well, I have no problem putting down a rabid dog. And since the order was never repealed, I kept mine, just incase I ever needed it. And what do you know, today I did."
Fudge practically ripped the parchment from Moody's hand and read it over, trying to find something on there that stated that it was invalid. Unfortunately, his predecessor hadn't bothered with such a thing, making what the former auror had done completely legal.
"Very well then," Fudge said in a defeated tone as he handed the parchment back. "However, I would prefer it if in the future you consult with me before taking such actions."
"I promise nothing," Moody said with another grin before he took a sip from his flask as he walked away.
Fudge then turned to the aurors and said, "Your services are no longer needed here."
"Obviously," said Kingsley. Then he and the rest of the aurors turned and headed for the gates so they could apparate back to the Ministry and get back to hunting the escaped prisoners.
"Minister," one of the reporters said. "Are you condoning the actions Alastor Moody has taken today?"
"Condone?" said Fudge. "My word, no. I believe in a fair and just system. And despite the fact that the three who had been executed were in fact Death Eaters and had been witnessed to have taken lives today, they still deserved to be tried before the court for their actions before such sentencing takes place. However, I cannot punish former auror Alastor Moody for his actions, as former Minister Bagnold sadly forgot to write into her orders a stipulation that such actions would end after the war. Something I do plan to rectify just as soon as I get back to my office. Now if you shall excuse me, I wish to check on the state of the students and staff of this fine learning establishment."
Fudge turned and quickly walked into the castle, leaving the reporters outside and unattended.
"So, what now?" one of them asked.
"I don't know about you," another reporter said, "but since we're here, I'm getting quotes from students who were in Hogsmeade."
"But hasn't Dumbledore banned the press from the school?" another reporter asked.
"Which is why I plan to act quickly before I'm tossed out on my rear," the second reporter said as he rushed off to find someone willing to talk.
OoOoOoOoOoO
Voldemort sat in his chair as he stared into the fire burning in the hearth in front of him.
"What news do you bring me?" he asked as someone wearing a hooded black cloak walked in.
They kneeled down in front of the frail dark wizard and removed their hood.
"I bring good news my lord," Umbridge said. "The Ministry is in chaos. The escaped prisoners and the dementors are causing a panic."
"You have done me well," Voldemort said.
"Unfortunately, I must also report some bad news," Umbridge said.
"Oh?" asked Voldemort as his small hand toyed with his wand.
"Bellatrix and Rodolphus LeStrange as well as Severus Snape were recaptured after they attacked Hogsmeade," Umbridge said. "However, I have it on good authority that many were killed, and even heard rumor that Albus Dumbledore was gravely injured."
"I see," Voldemort said. "Their recapture matters not. Once I return to power, I will free them once again. And as for Dumbledore… Remind me to pay a visit to his grave after I take over. I would like to pay my respects."