Chapter 34
Meeting the Head.
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Professor Pomona Sprout wasn't entirely certain what to make of this. Immediately upon entering the great hall for lunch as the first double period of the term was done, the entirety of her first-year class of Hufflepuffs descended on her and lodged an indignant and in some cases tear-filled complaint against another professor. Granted, the man might be her least favorite human being currently alive. But even still, it is a rather unusual occurrence. In an effort to keep things from completely degenerating in front of the entire school, she motions for Professor McGonagall to follow her and the small horde of first years back to her office not too far from the door that leads to the greenhouses. As she is heading toward the doors to the great hall, however, she can't help but notice that there is also at least half of the current first-year Ravenclaw students there as well. Raising an eyebrow to McGonagall and waving her hand at what she sees, the Deputy Headmistress's response is to also wave over the Charms Professor and head of Ravenclaw house. As such the diminutive Professor Flitwick makes his way over as well, his eyes alight with curiosity as the half-goblin quickly crosses the distance. A few minutes later they are all packed into her office space to make their complaint.
Fortunately, due to her position as the Herbology Professor the personal office of Sprout is necessarily quite large to accommodate the mail packages she receives as well as the labs and experiments that she is occasionally forced to grade. Most of it is done in the greenhouses, but when students in their later years begin to play around with invasive, dominant, and fast reproducing species it is just not worth the hassle to keep them actually in the greenhouses and risk them getting into the rest of the pots there unless there is no possible way for there to be any other place to put them due to size. The three professors all get behind her desk, with McGonagall producing an additional pair of chairs for Flitwick and herself. As the one approached, Pomona starts things off.
"Now. Can you explain to me what appears to be the issue? Has there been a problem with a prefect, or the upper years?"
The babble of fifteen children immediately drowns out all else, though the three teachers are able to pick up that this is indeed another complaint being leveled at the head of Slytherin's house. One Severus Snape.
McGonagall shakes her head at the near wall of noise coming towards them.
"Quiet! Now. I gather this is an issue with your first potions class then?"
The head-nodding is more than enough to corroborate this theory. Then Dave steps forward and places the large, bowl-shaped stone device on the table, setting aside the padded wooden box he had taken it out of.
"I would guess that you all know what a Pensieve is?"
Sprout, recognizing her student by his robe's trim if nothing else, nods.
"Yes. They are quite expensive though, wherever did you get this one?"
Mindy breaks in. "It's ours. When we got the opportunity to come to Hogwarts, we wanted a way to prove it if we ran into issues with students or staff due to where we came from. So we asked to be issued one. I'm sad to say that not only has this happened, but I'll be doing self-study for potions. I will not allow that grease stain of a human being another chance to make my life miserable. Frankly, I'd rather take the failing grade if it comes to that."
All three teachers are looking on in shock at this, particularly when they start hearing affirmations from the rest of the students there that they are committed to the same course. Mindy then uses her wand to draw out the silvery strand of memory by placing it against her temple and pulling it out. A gossamer thread of truth.
McGonagall and Pomona are both still in the shock phase of their voyage of discovery when Flitwick's eyes narrow ever so slightly.
"What did he do?"
Mindy shrugs. "Nothing I didn't expect based on his reputation, honestly. But if he's willing to go this far within the first ten minutes of my first class, I'm not interested in finding out what the rest of the year would be like. Watch the memory and then I'll consider my portion of this done. He's your problem, not mine. I plan to see to it that he isn't mine by dropping the class."
Luna can't help herself and steps forward to give Mindy a one-armed hug.
"That is all of our plans. I also intend to tell my father about this. The people have a right to know that Hogwarts is employing an unapologetic bully as not just a professor but also a head of house. He publishes the Quibbler, and while our paper doesn't see the kind of distribution we might like, that doesn't stop the Daily Prophet from following up on our scoops anytime they think they can get money out of it. I believe would be more than enticing for them."
The three professors look at each other, and with a shrug, Flitwick slips a finger into the pool. Pomona and McGonagall are quick to follow suit.
They are in there for more than fifteen minutes. By ten, Dave is looking at Mindy rather confused.
"We weren't even in the room this long. What's up?"
Mindy's eyes flicker in his direction, but then immediately go back to the bowl. Though she does have a wicked smirk on her face.
"I tacked Draco's crap attempt at being all that and a box of chocolates onto the end." She shrugs. "I kinda doubt they'll be able to do anything specifically since he didn't actually attack anybody. But I wouldn't be surprised if Sprout has him on compost and fertilizer duty in class for a few months. That really was a bullshit thing he tried to pull."
Dave can't help it and is laughing when the teachers make it back out of the memory.
McGonagall looks more frustrated than anything else, as while having the proof is nice this isn't exactly the first time that complaints have come forward against that particular professor. Given his backing by the Headmaster, she doesn't really expect this to accomplish much either.
Pomona comes out looking mad but also concerned for her new student.
Flitwick just looks mad.
"I am sorry you had to experience that, Miss McReady. Both instances of abuse were inexcusable, though for whatever it may be worth I commend you on your handling of it. Now if you will excuse me, I find that myself and possibly my wand are needed elsewhere just this second."
McGonagall quickly steps around the desk to halt him and then draws her wand. There is a slight pop, as though a speaker was having issues. After that, it becomes blatantly obvious that the two are having an argument. A loud one, as the Charms Professor doesn't look to be taking no for an answer without a fight.
Sprout steps around the desk and stands in front of the offended party.
"May I see your hands, please?"
Mindy looks at her confused. "My hands? Why?"
Her head of house shakes her head, smiling sadly.
"While I don't have any problem with the way you handled either of those situations, I would like to ensure that you didn't manage to do any kind of damage to your hand when you ripped the rail off on the train."
She pauses her speaking as she examines her student's hands. Seeing no damage, she looks quizzically at Mindy.
"How? How did you manage to do that without doing yourself grievous harm, those rails are magically reinforced. Like everything else on the express."
Mindy offers an apologetic half-shrug.
"Dave and I practice martial arts. It's a type of muggle fighting that uses your body or simple weapons to defend yourself." Then she smirks. "Well, I practice martial arts. Dave mostly practices martial lumbering around like an ambulatory punching bag, but he is getting better."
Dave rolls his eyes, and Luna can't help the slight giggle that escapes her.
Sprout has never seen a punching bag, but she can imagine what the young girl is talking about.
You two do this to each other?"
Mindy, seeing an opportunity to have a ready explanation for any strange abrasions or bruises she might have, leaps on the possibility like a starving man on a foot-long meatball sub. She responds while smiling widely.
"Oh yes, all the time! You have to practice to get better, after all. It can sometimes involve a bruise or two, so we wanted to make sure it wasn't against the school rules before we continued our training. Though, given the damage bludgers can do I'm not sure why I worried about it. In order to deny us our training for safety reasons you'd probably have to shut down Quidditch." She shrugs as she takes back her hands. "Either that or admit that the school is unbelievably hypocritical, anyway."
Sprout frowns at this. She isn't fond of being boxed into a corner verbally like that.
"I think I will need to observe this training of yours before I will allow it." Then she looks around at the rest of the students and rubs her temples. "Given what you all witnessed, I can understand your wanting to self-study. Unfortunately, I don't believe the provision exists for that particularly in a class that can be as volatile as this one. Until I can get with the headmaster and sort something out, I am going to give my first years a pass on Potions." She turns to the students with blue trim as opposed to her own yellow. "You Ravenclaws will have to speak with your own head of house, but I will ensure that he knows that he will need to stop by your common room this evening." She looks over at Flitwick and McGonagall, who are still having a heated debate about something or other from behind some kind of privacy charm. "Now may not be the best time to ask him about it. In any case, none of this will excuse any of you from your next class, and you've only another half hour to eat something and make it there. I would hurry, were I you."
Dave goes to collect the Pensieve, carefully dumping the memory into one of the many glass vials that come with the set they purchased.
"Mr. Lizewski? If you could leave that here, I may need the evidence to show the headmaster."
Dave just shakes his head.
"Sorry Professor, no can do. It's a pretty expensive item that we are responsible for, I'll need to put it away. But if you need to use it again, let me know. Happy to help." He smiles cheerfully at her as he places it back in its padded box.
Sprout isn't thrilled about this either, but she also knows that the school board would laugh themselves silly if she ended up having to ask them for the Galleons to replace such an expensive device. She frowns, but nods.
"Very well. I will let you know when we have need of it to prove the truth of things to the headmaster." She leans in close to the three of them, as Luna has not yet left the room either. Unlike the rest of the students who, having been reminded, are now practically sprinting towards the food.
"I won't pretend to understand why the paper printed what it did about you two, their ability to take a bad situation and make it worse by monetizing it to the detriment of the victims is sadly legendary here. Even more, I can't imagine what the circumstances must have felt like firsthand. But if you need someone to talk to or to be your advocate about such things, either myself or Madam Pomfrey, the school's matron, would be your best choice. Now be off with you. You'll need your strength for Herbology later. We are repotting the school's dittany today, and while the plant itself is reasonably tame, the bags of fertilizer are quite heavy." She offers an encouraging smile. "You'll be best off eating something before we get started."
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They don't get any further information about things until dinner, and then all it consists of is Professor Sprout coming around to hand Mindy a note with an encouraging smile.
As soon as she walks away, Mindy opens it up. Dave looks over curiously between bites of what he is hoping is beef stew. While he is reasonably sure that's what it is, Hagrid being the groundskeeper and unofficial game warden makes any meal with meat in it a little suspicious in his eyes.
"What's it say?"
Mindy snorts and drops her voice down to something that nobody but Dave and Luna can hear.
"Apparently I have a meeting with her and the Headmaster tonight after dinner. It doesn't say you have to come, but it doesn't say you can't either. Plus, she wants me to bring the Pensieve and the memory. I guess he doesn't bother to tell his employees that he has one."
Dave nods. "Doesn't surprise me. I would guess that if you are a man that believes redemption can be for anybody, having easy access to condemnation laying around wouldn't be something that he would be hugely interested in showing off." Then he considers. "Then again, it may just be his private property too, rather than the schools. I'm not sure I'd want a whole school's worth of teachers and students thinking it was okay to screw around with my personal stuff either. Especially when a lot of the time, that particular item would be likely to be full of something as personal as a Pensieve usually is."
Mindy frowns. "Yeah, that makes sense I guess." She glares up at the professor's table. "Knowing what we do, it's pretty easy to think the worst of the old coot, but I guess you're right. Some of the crap he does makes sense I guess."
Dave does some kind of half shrug, half nod thing.
"Honestly, I'd imagine most of the stuff he does actually makes sense. My guess is that it's just easier for us to condemn the guy because we have access to a hell of a lot of information that he doesn't. I watched the same movies you did, and I mostly saw him doing the best he could with what he had and knew at the time. Not saying he couldn't have done better or that he didn't make some ridiculously huge mistakes, particularly when it comes to not telling people things that they should probably freaking know. But I don't think any of them were malicious."
Mindy shakes her head as she gets up.
"Road to hell, Dave. Road to hell."
He nods. "Pretty much."
When they are done eating and start to make their way to the Hufflepuff dorms so they can pretend to retrieve the Pensieve that is in actuality in Dave's inventory, Luna surprises them by getting up to follow them. Mindy gives her a look.
"This isn't likely to be a barrel of laughs, Luna. Are you sure you want in on it?"
She shrugs. "Want doesn't really enter into it. You are my family and unless you tell me you don't want me there, I'll be setting up a registered self-writing quill I was given for Christmas last year so we can send a record of the meeting to my father. He is responsible for you, after all. He should know that there is a professor trying to humiliate you like this. We can send him a copy of the memory in class as well as this meeting too, while we are about it. The more he has to work with, the more authentic and scathing the article that he'll likely be writing about this will be."
Mindy laughs under her breath.
"You're a little bloodthirsty about this aren't you?"
The waif of a blonde just shrugs.
"I've never had siblings before. But I'd like to think that any I had would do the same for me." She wrinkles her nose. "Besides, I am already established as being connected to you. If he is still working here when you two leave, I'll probably end up having to change schools to have any peace. If possible, I'd like to avoid that." She smiles. "I am rather enjoying Hufflepuff. I don't want to risk something like the experience I could have had in Ravenclaw if I can help it."
Once in the common room, Dave 'retrieves' the Pensieve from his inventory, while Luna goes to her dorm and collects the quill. A few minutes later, they are approaching Professor sprout at the professor's table. She gives the trio a bit of an odd look. Mindy answers her unspoken query.
"Dave was in the same article, and Luna is our sister after the Lovegood's reached out to help us. Besides, Dave and I are both responsible for the Pensieve and Luna wants to have a third party witness things in case something goes wonky."
The professor's eyes widen a touch.
"Wonky?"
Dave smirks.
"In case Professor Snape tries to break the Pensieve or something rather than take his lumps."
Sprout looks at the two and while she appears to really want to deny that possibility, in the end, she can't make herself do it.
"Very well then. We'll be the last ones there, as I understand it Professor McGonagall will be there in her role as the Deputy Head, and Flitwick wouldn't be denied when he heard about the meeting."
Then she mutters under her breath, just loud enough for them to hear and obviously intentionally so. "Never seen the man so infuriated. Snape had best mind his manners, or he may well end up in a duel that I don't believe he has any chance of surviving much less winning."
In short order, they are brought to the headmaster's office. Easily getting past the gargoyle-like guardian of the staircase, which answers to the word 'Gobstoppers' by hopping out of the way for them.
Upon opening the door, they can see that in addition to Dumbledore and the professors they were expecting is also Snape, of course.
Dumbledore smiles cordially. "Thank you for coming so quickly." Then he looks confused. "Miss Lovegood. What brings you to my office?"
She looks up from where she has sat down cross-legged on the floor near the door, setting up her quill.
"Merely being here for my siblings, professor, in their time of need."
He glances down at what she is doing. "That is a self-writing quill I believe."
She nods. "You believe correctly. It was a gift from my father. He owns his own newspaper you know. It's certified and now..." She smiles as the quill starts doing what it is meant to do. "It is set up and ready to go. You may begin."
The Headmaster blinks in disbelief and then speaks once again.
"Miss Lovegood, considering the subject matter, I am not sure I should allow you to stay at all, and I am almost positive that your siblings would not wish to have the topics discussed in your father's paper."
Mindy speaks up then.
"If you are talking about the way we were found in Diagon alley, that has already been in a paper. Not too worried about it. And if you are talking about what happened this morning, you might as well let her stay. I intend to mail a copy of the memory to him anyway. He is the one responsible for us. As Luna said earlier, if there are teachers here bullying eleven-year-olds, he has a right to know."
The headmaster still doesn't look thrilled about this, but he nods and decides to drop it.
"Very well, though I would ask that before anything is published, you show it to me. I would prefer that the good name of the school wasn't besmirched by these events."
Luna's whimsical tone rings like a happy little bell from where she is still sitting on the floor.
"The only way this could reflect badly on the school or your leadership would be if you were made aware of a serious problem and then either chose not to address it or did so poorly." She looks up, her eyes wide. "Or at least, that would be my assumption. I can only imagine that your experience could tell you something different." Then she looks thoughtful. "Though, I can't imagine what experience could tell you that getting rid of a singularly unprofessional bully could possibly be a thing to balk from."
Snape finds himself standing, bristling in anger, with his wand half drawn. Many things happen all at once.
First, Dumbledore speaks, demanding that he sit and calm himself.
Second, Flitwick draws his wand from where he is standing towards the back of the room and adopts a duelers stance. One eyebrow raised, as if in challenge.
Third, Professor Sprout takes a step back to place herself between Snape and Luna. She also draws her wand, but not being a former dueling champion like Flitwick is or an only moderately repentant Death eater like Snape, her draw is slow enough that it would have likely been inconsequential if things had proceeded.
Fourth, McGonagall scowls mightily enough that doing so may well have imparted the 'scared shit-less' status effect on the man.
Lastly, or perhaps more accurately during the same time frame and legitimately more towards the beginning of such, there is a loud 'THUNK' sound as Mindy's rope dagger enters the window frame two inches from the man's left eye with enough force to split the wood and shatter the window. The entire room startles at the sound and then quiets to something that would allow a person to hear a mouse fart. The almost lazy way she flicks her wrist, catches the dagger on its return, and slowly begins winding the rope seems to be the sign people needed to breathe again.
"If I even think you are threatening my sister again, it will cost you a kidney."
Dave sighs and turns to Dumbledore while he sets up the Pensieve on the man's desk.
"Sir? She's not kidding. If you want to keep your potions professor out of the infirmary tonight, it might be worth it to either collect the man's wand or send him out of the room. She takes family really seriously. But anyway, here's the memory." He pours it back into the bowl. "Have a look."
The headmaster gives McGonagall a look, seemingly to verify that she was going to be able to keep things under wraps for the duration. At her nod, he enters the memory. Once he is doing so, Flitwick's voice is heard. Though it must be clarified that his wand is still out, he is still facing Snape, and he has adopted an unreadable expression.
"Rather impressive, Miss McReady. I haven't seen one of those since my dueling days. One of my ambidextrous Asian opponents was known to create one early in duels he expected were going to be a challenge as a way to get around the one wand rule. I assume this is the real weapon, rather than a conjured one?"
She nods. "Yeah. Like I told Professor Sprout, Dave and I are very into martial arts. Been doing it for ages."
His eyes flicker her way. "And magical dueling too, I assume. I can't think of any other reason a child your age would have mastered a wandless repair charm such as we saw in the second memory."
Snape's eyes narrow. "Wandless magic and the strength and expertise to do that with a knife at twenty feet? Just what are you?"
Mindy's smile could scare the maggots off of roadkill. Beyond the smile though, she doesn't bother to respond. Instead, it is Flitwick that answers, his tone somewhere between condescending and maybe even a little excited. Though it doesn't take a genius to tell which part of that is aimed at which party.
"She's trained, is what she is. I've spent some time in the orient, and she hasn't done anything I haven't seen before from people that weren't much bigger than she is. At her age and in my own way I was probably about the same degree of lethal." He smiles in appreciation. "Though I'll admit I never did pick up hand to hand combat as one of my skills. For what I would assume are obvious reasons. Still, the only unusual thing here is the degree of dedication it must have taken her to get this strong and skilled at this age."
Sprout looks at Dave and her curiously.
"And Mr. Lizewski? Is he as skilled as you?"
Dave laughs. "Oh, hell no." He stops laughing and moderates his tone a bit. "I mean, no. I'm not."
Mindy shrugs as she finishes her slow winding of the rope. "He is a lot stronger and tougher than I am though." She smirks at Snape. "Not somebody that you'd want to piss off for no reason, that's for sure."
The man's face becomes an emotionless mask as they all wait for Dumbledore to return. When he does, somehow he looks another fifty years older as he turns to stare sadly at his potions professor.
"Severus, when you chose to say what you did? Did it even occur to you the likely reason they would have been found naked in a corner of Diagon? What they could have gone through that would have preceded it?"
The man reddens but doesn't capitulate. "Headmaster, all I did was repeat an article in the paper. Anyone could have read the thing."
Sprout looks something beyond disgusted as she turns to Albus.
"The man won't admit he might have been wrong even now! Albus, I will not force my students to put up with his attempts at wit any longer. I've had complaints for years of his bullying and favoritism for his house and now we finally have the proof, even if the favoritism happens to be his godson. It's patently obvious to everyone but you that he doesn't want the job. If he means that much to you then give him a good reference if you like. But you have got to get rid of the man. He may be a master brewer but he is an abysmal teacher and a terrible example for the children."
Flitwick just nods. "Seconded."
McGonagall shakes her head in thought for nearly ten seconds. But finally, she nods.
"I have to agree Albus. There are scores of competent master brewers out there that would love his job and would treat the children far better. I won't demand my house go to him either. If you can't find anyone better, I have Horace's current floo address if you don't. Given the number of prominent children we have attending right now from old, well-established families? It is a given he would be thrilled to return."
Albus shakes his head, then turns to his potions master.
"I am sorry, Severus. But they are correct, this was a step too far. To rub the nose of a first-year in something so horrendous? I really can't. I just can't." he stops, rubbing his eyes for a moment, looking like when it is all over he is likely to go cry in the tub or something. "I'll have the elves pack your quarters and move it to one of the guest rooms for now, to give you some time to decide what you are going to do. But I'll expect you to be gone from the castle by the end of the month and you are not to have any interaction with the students while you are here. I'll have your meals brought to your room for the duration. If you like, I can make some calls to people I know in potions research. I can't make promises, but I can try."
Snape is almost unnaturally still for a few seconds, and then he storms out of the room. Glaring at Mindy as he goes. Albus then looks back to Mindy and Dave.
"For whatever part I may have played, being the man that hired him? I am truly sorry. I believed at the time that he was genuinely trying to turn over a new leaf. I still do. But it is obvious now that this is not an environment that is healthy for him to be trying to better himself, to put away old mistakes and come through it better as I had hoped." Then he sighs. "I'll make the announcement at breakfast tomorrow. For now, if you could all be about your business, it would appear that I have a window to fix and then a number of floo calls to make, more than likely."
When they are all back down into the corridor below, Flitwick turns to the two of them. "Professor Sprout told me about your request to continue your training. I'll admit I was skeptical at first, but given what I've just seen, combined with your actions on the train? I'll sponsor your martial club myself if you like. I can usually be found in my classroom between the end of the last class of the day and the start of dinner, either grading papers or simply being available should a student have any questions or concerns. With the chairs and tables stacked off to the side, would there be enough room there for you to practice?"
Mindy beams a smile at the half-goblin. "Yes, and thank you Professor! That should work fantastically!"
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Author's Note:
One crap teacher down, one to go.
For anybody that is surprised, because Dumbledore in fan fiction will generally move the heavens and the earth to keep Snape there come hell or high water? I am kind of under the impression myself that while he doesn't like it, he can at least understand why Snape would treat Harry so badly and had convinced himself that it was an isolated problem with a singular student with whom he had a history. Still despicable, no doubt. And keeping the man in the face of it was a terrible call. But finding out that the complaints and rumors were true, as well as the reality that Snape had been lying to him for years when the complaints were brought up? Plus far too many witnesses for anything subtle to have a hope of sweeping things under the rug to give him one more chance?
I could see him doing this. Moreover, I don't really see him having a choice.
Thanks for reading!