The Secrets of the Past
Chapter Two: Late Night Vote
On the same night, several parties gathered together at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Professor McGonagall, Professor Severus Snape, Arabella Figg, Mundungus Fletcher, and Corky Bluntter all sat around a round table that sat in the middle of the Great Hall. The four long house tables had been placed against the walls, which gave the room a very eerie and dark feeling about it. There were only a few candles lit that cast gigantic shadows against the walls. All of the parties had been called by Professor Dumbledore to discuss the crucial crisis that now lie before them.
"Well what do you expect Remus? Voldemort will come after Harry one way or another." said Sirius.
"I know Sirius! But do you really think Harry should leave the Dursleys?" asked Remus. "I mean he's been safe there for almost fourteen years now. None of Voldemort's Death Eaters know where the Dursleys live."
"Yes but sooner or later they will find out. Voldemort knows that Lily was muggle-born and that she has a sister. It's only a matter of time before the Death Eaters find them. And when that happens…." said Sirius as he trailed off. "I made a promise to both Prongs and Lily, that if anything ever happened to them that I would take care of Harry."
"Humph. And look at the wonderful job you have already done. What with you being in prison and all." said Snape sarcastically.
Sirius gave him a loathing stare. A rage of anger started to build up in him. Underneath the table he was flexing his hands uncontrollably, and wanted to jump across the table and ring Severus slimy neck. The only thing that contained him was Remus, who was sitting next to him and was giving him looks that Sirius read that this was neither the time nor the place to start a fight.
"Like I said before, Molly and I would be more than happy to take Harry in until the start of the new school year." said Arthur Weasley.
"Thank you again Arthur, but what happens when he and the rest of the students come back to school?" asked Remus. "There are a ton of threats from all of Voldemort's supporters and they all say that he's going to come after all the wizardry schools. I know Dumbledore is great, but no wizard can be able to protect an entire school of children from an army of Death Eaters."
"Remus is right. We need some sort of help from the Ministry." said Arabella.
"Oh, I wish Dumbledore would get here soon with the news." said Corky. "If we don't get help soon, then it's definitely going to be difficult to defeat You-Know-Who."
As conversations broke out among the group, the hall doors opened and emerging from the darkness of the pitch-black corridor was Professor Albus Dumbledore. He walked over to the table, which was now silent.
"What it is Albus? What news from the Ministry?" asked Professor McGonagall.
"Not good I'm afraid." said Dumbledore. He sat down in the empty seat between Professor McGonagall and Sirius Black. His light blue eyes didn't seem to sparkle as much as they usually do behind his half-moon spectacles. The expression on his face looked as if he had a million things on his mind, which showed in the aging lines around his face.
"Cornelius and the rest of the Ministry won't listen. They are still convinced that what happened at the Tri-Wizard Tournament wasn't caused by Voldemort. They refuse to believe that he has come back into power." said Dumbledore.
"So is that it? We're on our own?" asked Arabella.
"Not necessarily, Arabella. There are still a few members that are unsure of what to believe yet. But we can worry about them a little bit later. Right now I would like to address the new threats made on the school and the students." said Dumbledore who was now starting to look like his normal self.
"That is what we were just getting to when you walked in, headmaster." said Snape.
"Ah, well then I just came in in the nick of time, then." said Dumbledore.
"With all due respect Professor, I think that we should close the school until this crisis is over with." said Mundungus.
"That is out of the question! If we close the school, then that will surely send a wave of terror throughout the country." said Professor McGonagall.
"I agree. If we close the school, then that will give Voldemort more ammunition against us. Most of the parents believe that the only place their children will be safe is here at Hogwarts." said Corky.
"Well what are we suppose to do then, hmm? If You-Know-Who is going to pick up where he left off, then he's going to go after all the schools. And the first one to be hit will be Hogwarts!" said Mundungus.
"Now wait a minute Mund. We can't assume that yet. We don't know for sure what Voldemort is going to do." said Sirius.
With that said, the group broke out into several arguments. Tempers were beginning to rise until Professor Dumbledore raised his hand to silence the parties before him.
"Calm down everyone. Calm down. We are not going to close the school, nor delay its opening. We will open Hogwarts as scheduled. But we will enforce new rules on the students that Minerva, some of the other staff members, and I have made up." said Dumbledore.
"What sort of rules Albus?" asked Mr. Weasley.
"Just a few little things. Minerva would you care to read some of them?" asked the headmaster.
"Certainly. We'll ask that all students return to there houses by nine o'clock each night. Also we'll have them traveling in groups of three or more when they are walking through the grounds, and that no student is allowed to be outside after sunset." said Professor McGonagall.
"Ha!" chortled Snape.
"Is there a problem Severus?" asked Dumbledore.
"No headmaster. But do you really believe that some of the students will actually follow these rules? I mean you know that some have a reputation for breaking rules and wandering around the grounds at night. They seem to like to go off and get into all sorts of trouble, but who can really blame them when you look at who they are related to and associate with." said Snape as he glared over at where Remus and Sirius were seated, with a look of loath on his face.
The feeling was mutual for both of them. The look on Snape's face caused Sirius to jump up from his seat, but Remus grabbed him by the shoulder and forced his friend back into his seat. They both knew what he was getting at with that comment.
"If you are implying that my godson is some sort of problem child, then you had better think again, Snape." growled Sirius who was now starting to grind his teeth.
"I didn't say a word about Potter." said Snape who was trying to sound innocent. "I merely stated it as a fact among all the students. But now that you mentioned it, Potter does seem to like to get into sticky situations doesn't he? Just like another Potter I once knew and his gang of friends. If you ask for my opinion, I think that Harry Potter shouldn't come back to Hogwarts. I'm mean after all, he is the main reason why the Dark Lord is threatening to come after this school." said Snape
At that moment, Sirius couldn't contain his anger any more. He leaped to his feet, knocking over his chair and grabbing Remus's wand that was sticking out of his pocket. He pointed the wand directly at Snape's heart.
"HOW DARE YOU! HARRY WILL NOT BE SHUNNED LIKE SOMEONE WHO HAS THE PLAGUE! IT'S NOT HIS FAULT THAT VOLDEMORT IS AFTER HIM!" yelled Sirius.
"That's enough! Both of you!" said Dumbledore in a slightly raised and more harsh tone of voice. "Sirius, please sit back down." He complied with Dumbledore's request.
"Sorry, professor." he said in a low voice.
"Now, Severus like a stated before. I will not have any student removed from this school and that includes Harry. But I did have an idea as to how to ensure that if some student or students do manage to get out, that they will not be harmed."
"How?" asked Remus, Arthur Weasley, Arabella, and Corky at the same time.
"By bringing in a new teacher. One who is trained in the Dark Arts and has dealt with Voldemort before ." said Dumbledore.
"That's a wonderful plan Albus, except where are you going to find such a person?" asked Arabella.
" Yeah, all the wizards who did stand up against You-Know-Who are all…well…dead." said Mundungus.
"Not all of them, Mund. There is one person in particular who knows exactly how to deal with this type of situation and how to protect everyone at the school in case I am unable to." said Dumbledore.
"Well that great, but why didn't this wizard stop You-Know-Who the last time he was in power?" asked Corky.
"Yes, who is this wizard that you speak of, Albus?" asked Mr. Weasley.
"The reason why this person didn't stop him the last time is because she wasn't strong enough back then. Plus who had a lot to deal with back then." said Dumbledore.
"She?" asked Professor McGonagall.
"Yes Minerva, the person I speak of is a witch." stated Dumbledore.
When he said that a look of panic came across Remus, Snape, and Sirius's faces. The only one person that came to mind with that description was that of one from all of their past. Someone who they all thought would never hear from or of again.
"Whoa, wait a minute, Professor. You can't be talking about who I think your talking about. Are you?" asked Snape.
"Yeah, y…you can't bring her into this Dumbledore. The last time she faced Voldemort she nearly died!" said Sirius.
"Besides she gave up her powers a long time ago." said Remus.
"She did?" asked Sirius who looked at his friend with a sense of surprise in his voice and in his eyes. Remus nodded in response to his friend's question.
"Yes, I am well aware of that Remus, but she is our best chance at defeating Voldemort." said Dumbledore.
"Are you really sure you want her to come back?" asked Sirius.
"Yes, I'm sure Sirius. I mean of all the wizards in the world, I was sure you would be supportive in this idea. After all, she was and is still a very powerful and clever witch. But do you have any reason as to why I shouldn't be? ." asked Dumbledore.
"Well…no, not…not really. I mean, yes she is qualified, more than qualified…but…" said Sirius as he strayed away.
"But what?" asked Dumbledore curiously.
"But do you really want her to go through all that again? I mean, do you think she can handle him again?" asked Sirius unsurely.
"She will be able to handle it, that I am sure of Padfoot. I have my complete faith in her." said Dumbledore.
"I don't believe this! This is a very bad idea Dumbledore. Bringing her back into our world, My God! You might as well just…" said Snape as he was interrupted by Sirius.
"If Dumbledore thinks she can get the job done, then she can do it." said Sirius.
"Knowing her she'll stop at nothing to protect the students. Heck, she might just go and end Voldemort's reign once and for all." said Remus.
"That's what I'm afraid of." thought Sirius.
"For heaven's sake who are you all talking about!?" asked Arabella.
"She was one of the top aurors back when Voldemort was first in power. She helped save the lives of thousands and stopped a number of Voldemort's supporters. She was one of a few people who stood up to Voldemort himself, and her name is… Miranda Starmenter." said Dumbledore.
"Miranda?!" Are you sure that is a wise choice Albus?" asked Professor McGonagall.
"You can't be serious Albus? Miranda? Come on now. Let's be reasonable. You'd have better luck wishing for Merlin to come back to life and help stop You-Know-Who." said Corky
"Yeah, I mean they say that the girl isn't all right up there, if you know what I mean." said Mund.
"She isn't crazy!" said Sirius as he shot up from his seat yet again. "She was…just…upset."
"UPSET?! Upset? The woman practically…" said Mund, but was stopped by Dumbledore who raised his hand again.
"That's enough of that Mund. We are all perfectly well aware of what happen, but that's in the past." said Dumbledore. "Now if I'm not mistaken we are now in the present and we are in a situation that Ms. Starmenter could possibly help with. So…are there any solid objections as to why we should not ask her? Then we shall put it to a vote then. All those in favor of not having this plan put into action raise their hand." Professor Snape, Mund, and Corky raised their hands, although two of the three didn't seem so sure into their decision. "All those in favor on going with this plan?" asked Dumbledore. With that, Professor McGonagall, Remus, Arthur Weasley, and Arabella raised their hands. Everyone then looked to Sirius who hadn't voted yet. He was staring down at the floor, with a look on his face as if he was trying to think up of another solution, but none seemed to come up. Finally, he raised his head, closed his eyes, and slowly raised his hand in favor of going on with this plan.
"Well then, it's settled." said Dumbledore.
"Um, Albus? How are you going to find her? I mean know one has seen the girl for years." said Arthur Weasley.
"My sources say that she is living in France as a muggle. So then, I shall leave tonight for France and tell her of our situation." said Dumbledore. He and the rest of the table rose out of their seats and began to walk toward the door. Mundungus, Arabella, and Corky were discussing in whispers of what each of them thought of their new plan. Professor McGonagall and Arthur Weasley were finalizing some plans they were talking about before the meeting, while Snape and Sirius gave each other loathing stares of pure hatred that were broken when Remus forced Sirius to the door.
As the two Marauders reached the Great Hall's doors, they noticed that Dumbledore had already reached the main doors to the school. Sirius started to feel like his stomach had dropped to the floor. He turned to Remus who nodded, and the two of them started to run toward the main entrance.
"Professor, wait!" called Sirius.
As they reached the front doors, Dumbledore turned with his eyes now filled with the same twinkle that always seemed to be there.
"Yes, what is it Moony, Padfoot?" asked Dumbledore.
"We wanted to wish you a safe journey, professor." said Remus.
"And that if you need any help or if you run into trouble, to send an owl to us." added Sirius.
"That's very thoughtful. Now is there a message you would like me to give Ms. Starmenter?"
Remus and Sirius both looked at each other with questionable expressions on their faces.
"Well you could tell her that…that…that.." said Remus.
"You can tell her that we would really like for her to come back. And that if she can't come for herself, then come for Harry's sake." said Sirius.
"Very well then. I shall see you in a few days." said Dumbledore. When he reached the bottom of the stone staircase, he climbed into one of the horseless carriages and was off to Hogsmeade to start his long journey. Sirius and Remus both stood out side the front doors and watched as the headmaster made his way down the slope to the schools main gate. Then, after Dumbledore was out of their sight, Remus turned to his friend.
"What happens if she does come?" he asked.
"Well if…when she comes, then we might have a real chance at ending this once and for all." said Sirius.
"How do you think Harry's going to react when he sees her?" asked Moony.
"He'll probably be thrilled, once he finds out who she is." stated Sirius as he started to descend from the school.
"And you?" asked Remus.
Sirius's head then jolted up at Remus with a surprise look upon his face.
"I…I…don't know."
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A/N- Thank you to all who review. I hope you enjoy the story so far as much as I enjoy writing it. Hey keep the reviews coming people, they are a lot of help. Thanks again to Kel for helping me out with the ideas.
Disclaimer- I am not repeat NOT J.K. Rowling. I merely borrowed her characters and invented a few of my own. I own nothing except my ideas and characters.