Remember, this is AU, so some things might not be as you remembered.

181)

Mr. Nott suddenly appeared on scene with several other wizards, all of them appearing out of nowhere. There were two wizards waving their wands around the area. Tom noticed that the muggles in the surrounding area that had been gawking and panicking at a little boy's death went suddenly slack, and, after a few moments of just nothing from them, they all started to move, continuing on with their business, as if they never saw anything. Not one of them even looked in the direction of the wizards.

The other wizards that had appeared advanced upon the hooded man with their wands outdrawn. One man flicked his wand and the hood went down, but it was too far away for Tom to see his features.

182)

What he could see was an orange beard and a bald head. The man suddenly dropped to the ground, a red colored spell having been shot at him. Two of the men grabbed the fallen wizard and disappeared. Mr. Nott did as well, until one by one, the rest of the wizards disappeared off the street. What Tom wasn't expecting was for Mr. Nott to Apparate into his room.

"Gather your things, you need to leave. It's not safe for you here!" Tom merely looked at his school trunk, which he had always kept packed and locked so the other children wouldn't go snooping.

183)

A crack suddenly was heard outside of his door, and Professor Dumbledore's voice was heard talking to Mrs. Cole. "Let's go!" Mr. Nott exclaimed, and he grabbed Tom's arm, the handle of his trunk grasped tightly with his other hand. "Hold on!" The was the sensation of being squeezed through a tiny tube, and their surroundings suddenly changed to what looked like an office. Owls were flying above their heads, carrying letters and scrolls in their beaks and tied to their legs.

"Sir, what happened?" Tom asked. Mr. Nott let him got and quickly went to his desk to write a quick letter. He spoke while he wrote.

184)

"It appears that my nephew had been tricked by a follower of Grindewald, an on the rise Dark Wizard. This man, Malko, had an unhealthy obsession with recruiting young boys and was interested in your budding power. Roger must have given him information he didn't like, but we won't know until we interrogate him." He finished his letter, rolled it up, and snatched an owl from the air. "Right now, we need to find you a temporary home until we can find you a foster family." He tied the letter to the owl's leg, and it took off into the air.

185)

"I sent a letter off to a good friend of mine. Him and his wife are very well off and are capable of supporting more than just their own child. Until we do find a place for you, however, you are welcome to stay here, at the ministry. I'm sure we have a spare room we can transfigure for you."

"Do you think I can just stay here for a while? I promise I won't get in your way," Tom asked. Mr. Nott hesitated.

"Alright. But only until we find another family for you," the man replied.

186)

A tawny eagle soared through the open door and landed gracefully on Mr. Nott's desk, the man frowning when it scratched at the wood impatiently. He took the scroll from its leg, and almost seemed surprised when it didn't immediately fly off. Opening the scroll, his eyes read quickly. Coming upon the bottom of it, his eyebrows disappeared into his hairline, and Tom was more than curious to find out what caused this reaction. Mr. Nott quickly raised his wand and Tom could feel a magical ward go up around the office.

187)

It seemed just in time, too, because there was suddenly a flash of red light against the ward, and a loud squawk suddenly erupted outside Mr. Nott's office. Tom could see, through the doorway, a phoenix laying disheveled on the floor. Mr. Nott quickly shut his door before the phoenix could gain its bearings. Tom slowly turned to the Ministry department head. He had been in Professor Dumbledore's office enough to become familiar with that bird.

"Sir, what does Dumbledore want with me?" he asked the older man. Mr. Nott, unfortunately, had no answer for him.

188)

"From what I know of the Professor, I will be attempting to keep him away from you for the remainder of the summer, for what it's worth," Mr. Nott said as he quickly wrote down a reply and sent it away with the eagle who had been busying itself with preening itself on his desk.

"Thank you, Sir," Tom replied dutifully. There was suddenly a knock on the door and Mr. Nott nodded at Tom to answer it. He did, and came face to face with a man that looked to be the father of someone he knew.

189)

"Pollux, it's good to see you again," Mr. Nott greeted as the man stepped into the office. Tom could see the phoenix sitting on the floor out in the hallway, patiently waiting as if the ward keeping it out would eventually go away.

"Theodore, it has been a while," Pollux greeted. Mr. Nott turned to Tom.

"Tom, this is Pollux Black, an old schoolmate of mine. His family is an Ancient and Noble one, and can easily take you in, if you agree to it."

"Are you related to Cygnus and Orion?" he asked.

190)

"Cygnus is my son, Orion my nephew. They've talked highly of you, Tom," Pollux replied as he looked at the boy, as if sizing him up. "I would like to extend my hospitality to you for the remainder of the summer, until school starts. You will be welcome during the holidays, should another family not be found for you," he offered. Tom smiled politely at him.

"I would love to spend time with your family, Sir," Tom replied. His smile faltered, however. Both Mr. Nott and Pollux noticed.

"Is something the matter Tom?" Mr. Nott asked.

"Sir, I have plans for the last two weeks of summer with another friend. I would only be bothering your family for a week at the most," Tom replied.