Tempus Magia
Part Four
Chapter 40: The Orb
Hermione Granger made a grave error during the final battle that resulted in Remus' death. Working as an unspeakable she spends two years working on a spell using powder from time turners to go back to Remus's greatest hour of need. What if Remus's greatest time of need wasn't in *this* war?
The door banged open and warded itself sealed behind the Head Auror. "Now, who wants to tell me the bloody fuck why the Unknowns just showed up?"
Saul winced at the volume. Leaning over, he pulled a vial of pain relief potion from his second drawer and downed it in one swallow. "I expected a lot of things in my time as director of the Department of Mysteries. I have to admit, I never thought I would be meeting the source of the code -3104."
Kingsley laughed without humor. "Why do I feel like Voldemort is about to be resurrected?"
Saul thought of Hermione and her trip to the past and wondered just how messy this was about to get. He should probably bring up Sirius and the Veil at some point. Gawain had worked with Sirius before he went to Azkaban. He was even one of the few voices who had spoken out against Sirius's arrest. Kingsley and Sirius were in the Order together and had bonded over their Auror occupation and what a hardass Moody was. Harry would have to be told about the progress with Luna, as well.
Saul's head spun.
Merlin, when was he going to visit Auggie? He also wanted to visit Hogwarts and speak to Minerva about Hermione. He had suspected for many years that the Scottish witch knew about Hermione Peverell and Hermione Granger. It would be a good idea to have someone else know what was going on, in case he got held up with the Unknowns. While he was in Hogwarts, if he happened to pass by the Ravenclaw tower, well who would notice?
"You're unusually quiet, Auggie," Gawain observed. Kingsley had finished already finished his tea and was refilling his cup.
"I have a lot on mind," he replied simply and honestly. It was probably the most honesty anyone would be getting out of him for a while. Finding out Hermione was a time traveler had been the first secret he ever kept from Auggie. Discreetly helping her, had brought an entire slew of secrets along with it.
Keeping it from Auggie had started out as his own personal revenge. Auggie had kept such a massive secret from him and it had destroyed both of their lives. The deeper Saul got, the more he realized that he couldn't tell Auggie. If, for some reason, Auggie did manage to get out of that hell-hole he wasn't going to have him sent back because of Saul's meddling. Dumbledore had wholeheartedly agreed.
"Is this about what's going on in the Chamber of Death or those two Ravenclaws you met with today?" asked Kingsley. His eyes were twinkling, much like Albus Dumbledore's did when he thought he was about to uncover one of your secrets or you offered him a muggle sweet. Saul and Albus had made a game of finding the most exotic and odd sweets and sending them to one another. He still had a drawer full of Japanese sponge candies that had never made it to him before he died.
Saul ran his hands through his hair, nervously. If the wrong secret came out he would be joining Auggie in Azkaban. When Unspeakables went to Azkaban they were silenced for the duration of their imprisonment. In the old times, their tongue was cut out. Now, they wore a necklace with a crystal imbued with enough magic to knock out an Auror squad. Auggie wore it before the second Wizarding War whenever he wasn't meeting with him.
Now, the Ministry was 'enlightened' and didn't believe in torturing their inmates with total silence. Auggie had charms on him that prevented him from speaking about anything that referenced to his work as an Unspeakable.
"Saul?" Kingsley set his tea down and the two wizards were leaning forward in concern.
"I'm sorry. I'm exhausted." Saul paused to allow himself a moment to compose himself properly. "I met with my directors on Tuesday to go over their departmental updates, new policies, and the incident with Hermione. One of the Unknown came to the meeting. He sat in the back until we broached an interesting … the topic of conversation. He was quite vexed by the subject entirely. We spoke after the departmental meeting and now I am unsure if it was external factors or the people involved."
"You're being vague," Gawain muttered. Saul took a deep breath. It would be easier to just tell them rather than beat around the bush for twenty minutes, that Saul did not have in his itinerary tonight.
"I apologize. It's a habit. We have been making contact with Sirius Black through the Veil."
Kingsley's teacup shattered in his hands. "What?"
Gawain's eyes were ablaze, "Why weren't we informed?"
Saul sighed. "Neither of you were informed because of your reactions. Things in the Department of Mysteries often take decades, if not centuries to unfold. Both of you had personal relationships with Sirius. While his removal from the Veil of Death is a priority-"
"Removal?" Kingsley was healing his finger. "Why would you need to remove him from the Veil?"
Saul leaned into his drawer and summoned the documents that Solomon had dropped off earlier. Like most of his reports, there were traces of crumbs from his wife's bakery on the pages. Honestly though, if Auggie could bake half as well as Amariah Sutton, his papers would all likely have crumbs on it as well.
He pushed the file across the table. Kingsley snatched it up. Gawain always preferred oral presentations and then paperwork to back up what he was told for later, so Saul summarized it for him.
"The Veil is an actual archway to death. All those of magical origin have to pass through it in order to pass on. Based on Harry's memories, Sirius was struck with a stunning curse not a killing curse."
Kingsley's eyes widened as they rose from the parchment in front of him. "I was there. Bellatrix was using nonverbals. The spell that hit him was red. The light was red, not green. How the hell did I not realize this until now?"
Saul waved his concerns away impatiently. "Harry realized it and spoke to Hermione. She, in turn, spoke to me. We've been working together for a half a year after the war. Solomon believes that Sirius is stopping anyone from moving on."
Gawain paled. "Are you telling me that no one has passed through the Veil since June of 1996?"
"Essentially," Saul replied waiting for the shoe to drop.
"So," Gawain continued slowly. "Technically anyone who died after June of 1996 has not passed on and can, hypothetically, be brought back to life via necromancy?"
Kingsley's usual dark skin turn a sickly shade of grey.
"Yes, and that is why this project is only available to a handful of people. We are getting close to finishing the project. We contracted Luna Lovegood, Teddie Barrett believes she is a true seer, to retrieve Sirius."
Gawain snorted. "What is she going to do throw tea leaves and crystal balls at him until he moves on?"
"No. Since she's made contact with him we've been able to ferry certain souls on. Ones that died closely after Sirius became trapped in the Veil. Sirius himself didn't just 'move on' because he thinks he's still fighting to protect Harry."
"It's been five years," breathed Kingsley in shock. It had been a shock for Saul as well. Imagine dueling for five years to save your godson from Death Eaters. It was horrifying but also incredibly moving at the determination of Harry's godfather.
"Harry is his godson. It's already been proven that Sirius would die for him. Five years is nothing to him, he spent thirteen in Azkaban beating himself up for switching the secret keepers and from what I remember Albus had suggested it in passing originally."
"Is he aware that he is stuck?"
"He is now, Luna says he was stuck in a loop. He said he realized something was wrong because he couldn't find his smokes and he wasn't getting drunk off of the Firewhiskey in his robes."
Like he had done when Luna had told him, the wizards in the room burst out laughing.
"Typical Sirius," Gawain chuckled as he wiped tears from his shining hazel eyes. "Finds out he's dead because he can't drink and smoke."
"Yes, well I'm told that now that he realizes he's stuck, we're on a clock. According to the department head, the realization has started a chain of events that we're concerned could lead to his actual death within the veil. Currently, he doesn't seem to be hungry or need to do any of the physical things he should but Solomon is still very concerned. His educated opinion is that because he is self-aware, his body is draining itself fighting to stay alive."
This sobered up Gawain and Kingsley instantly. Kingsley leaned forward, Saul's age-old friend gone and the current Minister of Magic fully present. "What can we do?"
"Right now, I think the Unknowns presence is a blessing. Hermione, Harry, Luna, Teddie, and Solomon's employees have been meeting with other Ministries. So far, we haven't found anything that might help. Solomon came across something with the code -3104 on it last week. I had written to the Citadel the same day. Originally, I assumed that was why Radomir was here."
"Radomir?" Kingsley's eyebrows rose in shock. Kingsley was Sacred twenty-eight. He knew all of the Pureblood practices, even if he didn't parade it around like a git. Certain names belonged in certain families, Radomir was a name of house Slytherin and a famous one at that.
"Yes, his name Radomir Slytherin. He didn't confirm his parentage outright but I believe he is the youngest son of Salazar Slytherin himself and the very first Head of the Department of Mysteries."
Gawain's eyes were wide. "How could you be sure? It could have easily-"
"The Office recognized him," Saul replied firmly.
Silence engulfed the room as it sunk in. In the silence, Beatrice's teapot refilled all of their drinks. Saul summoned the small pastry puffs and put one on everyone's saucer.
"What did he want?" Gawain asked as Kingsley took a bite of pastry, getting a bit of confectioners sugar on his chin. The contrast of the sugar was stark against Kingsley's skin.
"Based on our private conversation? They're recruiting and I'm an ideal candidate." Kingsley choked on the pastry.
"What?" Kingsley choked out as Gawain slammed on Kingsley's back.
"He wouldn't go into the specifics but it sounded like he was married to another Knight. She betrayed them to Voldemort."
Kingsley gulped down his tea while Gawain resettled into his seat.
"Thank you, Gawain," he turned to Saul. "That would explain why they were missing for so long."
"They should still be held accountable," Gawain added sternly. Kingsley opened his mouth to argue but Saul cut in.
"No one is saying that they shouldn't, Gawain. Seeing as she escaped, I think that is their primary focus right now."
"She escaped?"
"Yes, according to Radomir the others are on their way here. Radomir came ahead of time to warn me."
"Warn you?"
"The decision is final and while usually, an Unknown is allowed to bring their significant other…"
"You won't be because Auggie is in Azkaban." Kingsley finished.
Gawain, who had hated Auggie long before he was outed as a Death Eater drummed his thumbs on the desk. "What if we expedited his parole?"
"Thank you, Gawain. I haven't said yes to anything, firstly. Secondly, I have Charlotte and Orion to think about. And thirdly, Radomir mentioned that because he was found guilty of a crime he would not be able to follow me to their Citadel. I did some research earlier today on the very limited information we have on their induction and recruitment of knights. Auggie would never be able to join or know any of their secrets even if it pertained to me."
"So, you're going to turn them down?"
Saul shrugged. "I'm not sure. I need to hear them out at least. What if they need another member to take down their rogue member? We can't just allow someone that powerful and immortal to gallivant around the countryside. The knight could easily bring back Voldemort. I've fought in two wars because of that wizard. I've watched families torn apart and children slaughtered in their beds. I'm not going to sit back and let some maniac start another one."
Kingsley nodded. "No one is saying that you would but I'm sure there are other candidates. Did Radomir mention anyone else?"
"No, he didn't. He said they generally only induct those who have proven they are of sound mind, body, and will. They generally look to Unspeakables who have served as Aurors for that role."
Gawain leaned back in his chair, his finger tapping thoughtfully on his lips. "Osborne Hufflepuff. Yes, definitely Osborne Hufflepuff."
Kingsley exchanged an amused look with Saul. Few knew it, based on his brusque manners but Gawain was actually brilliant. The bold Gryffindor possessed an eidetic memory, a gift he kept to himself. The rumor was that Gawain had a hat stall during his first year because the sorting hat wanted him to be in Ravenclaw. Being the stubborn Gryffindor he was, he was sorted into his chosen house of scarlet and gold.
Gawain flicked his wrist, opening the door. A second flick summoned something that was whizzing fast towards them. They didn't have to wait long, as two scrolls came zooming into the room. Opening them, he poured over them muttering to himself. Occasionally, he double-checked things on the second parchment before returning to the first one again.
Saul joined Kinglsey in sipping tea and eating a pastry while they waited. The next half an hour consisted of Gawain muttering to himself and summoning more fragile looking-books. Every once and awhile he would get frustrated and summon parchments that had long been put under safety charms to protect itself from the ravages of time. Saul was beginning to wonder what he was doing when he noted the date on one of the books.
"Phineus, definitely Phineus. Marcus, no. Not Marcus, maybe Sophia? Who is the fifth? The fifth..."
Saul caught Kingsley's eye, "Is he-?"
"I think so," Kingsley sat up watching his old colleague carefully. "Gawain, what do you have for us?"
Gawain threw his hands up in frustration. "The names of three of the others. I can't find the fifth anywhere. Radomir, we know already. Sophia Ravenclaw left the Ministry during her tenure as liaison to the Department of Mysteries and DMLE. There is no death date recorded in the Ministry and the family tapestries never updated her date of death. Godric Gryffindor was once recorded saying that though he did not get along with Salazar, there was hope for the future since their sons worked closely together. He mentioned his son Phineas, who has no recorded death date either in the conversation that followed.
"I cross-checked all of his children and the only one that would have crossed paths with Godric's children is Radomir and Phineas. Phineas worked with the Wizengamot but had worked as an Auror for a short period of time. Until Remus Lupin broke the records in the seventies, Phineas held the highest NEWT scores in Gryffindor house."
"So, he's the intelligent one."
"Not necessarily. In a diary of Rowena Ravenclaw, she mentions her granddaughter, Sophia had gone undercover to work for the Ministry. She expresses her wishes to see her but knowing that she cannot because her service is 'as long as her devotion is to her people.' Seeing as Sophia's father was murdered by muggles, I would assume she meant the Knighthood."
"Death date?" Kingsley asked excitedly.
"None, listed. Whoever, the first Knight was I believe he predated the Ministry. Their very symbol and suspected fortress predate the Ministry and I think the organization was originally founded by Merlin after Morgana's capture."
Saul's eyes brightened. "I must be more tired than I thought. Radomir mentioned a 'first knight.' He said his name was Alistair and that he was in charge of recruitment."
Gawain nodded. "Stands to reason that Radomir was recruited by this Alistair. Radomir inducted Phineas and then at some point Sophia joined."
"He spoke of the Knight who betrayed them in the female form. The question is which Lestrange, did she betray her brothers in arms for? Radomir mentioned he was a wizard. So, was it Rabastan or Rodolphus?"
Saul thought back to their conversation. "I think he may also try to contact Harry Potter. He was displaying a lot of interest in Harry, much more than typically warranted. He also knew that he was the last of the Peverell line and the master of death."
Both wizards straightened in alarm. "Why-"
"Should we be Flooing Harry and warning him? What if Radomir was the one who betrayed the other Knights?" Gawain cut in before Kingsley could finish.
Saul shook his head, "The wards in my office would not have allowed him in. After… after Auggie, I adjusted the wards to never allow oath breakers entry. It's a precaution to keep our most sacred things hidden. Oathbreakers are not allowed in the archives, as well. Hence, the reason Dolores Umbridge had so many problems and errors in her work."
"I thought she was just an imbecile," Gawain muttered hatefully.
"Imbecile, no. Cunning, conniving, and a liar, yes. She lied on her Ministry application about being a Pureblood. I received her complaint back when I was just an Unspeakable. I did some research because Auggie is related to the Selwyns and he had never mentioned her before. It took a while, but apparently, she's a half-blood. Her mother was a muggle named, Ellen Cracknell."
Kingsley rose an eyebrow in shock. "You're sure?" Saul nodded. "Why did you never mention this before?"
Saul sighed. Secrets had a way of not staying secrets for long. "When I confronted her about it she blackmailed me with outing me as… erm… with Auggie. Anyway, I filed it as an unsolvable case but stuck it to the recurring file list. It should have resurfaced at least three times at this point. I have no idea, how she managed to keep it silent."
Gawain chuckled, while Kinglsey leaned back in his chair. "No offense, Saul-"
"The entire Ministry knew the two of you were a couple." Gawain finished. "Like down to the file witches. I know because one of them asked me if I worked with you and if I thought you and Auggie were just simply adorable , too."
"I mean, you literally shared the same address for years and neither of you went out with witches unless it was a friend or a family member. Also, Auggie talked non-stop about everything you did. The first time you made that egg thing, he talked about it like you invented the Wizengamot to anyone who would listen and to everyone who wouldn't."
Saul stuttered in confusion. They had been so careful. Wizards and Witches were terribly prejudiced and neither of them wanted to lose their careers because of each other.
They had been so careful, hadn't they?
Saul looked at the clock, it was well past ten.
"As nice as it is chatting with you gentlemen about terrorist groups, the unending drama that is Sirius Black, and Secret Knight societies I have a prior arrangement."
Kingsley snorted.
"Considering, I escort you to Azkaban and Kingsley signs off on it," Gawain chortled. "I can safely say that it's more of a date than an arrangement."
Saul waved off the two chuckling wizards. "Regardless, I would like to head out. Is there anything else we need to cover?"
Kingsley shook his head, "No, although I speak for Gawain and myself when I say we want to be present when all of the Knights make it to London."
"I have a feeling that we're all going to know once they're here." Saul stood and began putting away his things for the day.
Gawain nodded in agreement, sending all of his research back to its proper place. Kingsley straightened his robes and cleaning the tea set before sending the set back to the shelf where it was always shelved.
"I'm going to head over to the Potters," Kingsley announced. I'd like to give Harry a heads up about the Radomir, without explaining the Unknowns to him. I also want to ask him about Sirius."
"Sure," he warned. "Just make sure to take precautions. Ginny and Ron are not cleared."
"Understood," he replied seriously. "Goodnight, Saul."
Gawain nodded to Kingsley and followed him out of the office. "I'll wait for you in the hall, Saul."
"Thank you, Gawain."
Saul finished sealing all of his drawers and warding his office. Only once the door was fully closed and Gawain was sitting on Mary's desk, did Saul open a hidden compartment in the center of his desk.
It slid open revealing a black leather bag. Within the bag was a clear orb with multi-colored sands swirling angrily at their entrapment. Saul ran a shaking hand over the object. "Has she left, yet?" he murmured.
As if they were sentient, and after working with these sands for over a decade he was very sure that they were, a single strand of gold sand separated itself from the rest. The other sands split in half like the fabled red sea in a rush to get away from the strand-like it was diseased. In a way, it was.
Saul felt his magic emanating accusingly from the strand. It knew that he was doing something he shouldn't, but it also helped him when he was confused and hid his research for him. So, was what he was doing so wrong in the first place?
He couldn't count how many times he went into his office to research the time sands and spent hours in there only to come out and find no time had passed at all. There were other times when he would be looking through the archives and find little bits of sand floating around books that he would never have thought to have used. Each book brought him closer to his goal. No, the sands wanted him to help Hermione. Hermione needed to go back. She was a catalyst for many things. Peter feeling left out and betraying the Potters? Maybe. She was definitely the reason for the destruction of the packs and thank Merlin for that.
The thing was, that every time someone used a time-turner the Ministry was alerted. Every time Hermione used her time turner for her classes in the third year, the Ministry had been notified. Well, the Department of Mysteries anyway. When she and Harry rescued Sirius Black they had been notified as well. Auggie had told him years ago that Sirius Black was innocent, not that anyone believed him. Even Dumbledore refused to believe it. It had caused a row that had Dumbledore refusing to speak to him for over a month.
It was the day after Sirius escaped that Albus came to visit him in the Ministry. He was concerned that Hermione and Harry's trip would show up on the Time Log. They sat with tea and middle eastern Halva taffy while Albus repeated Sirius's story to him. Saul offered one of Auggie's homes up north for Sirius to stay in until it was safe for him to return to London. When Albus finally managed to wheedle an answer out of how Saul managed to cloak their visit, he was flabbergasted.
Saul still wasn't sure what was more insulting that Albus didn't think he was capable of magic that strong or that he was astonished that the sands had picked him specifically. When Albus picked up the orb they remained stagnant and lifeless, like they had for his predecessor.
By hiding his research into cloaking Hermione's departure, the sand was enabling his aid of the young witch. Did that make what he was doing fine? No. Did it make him sleep better at night? Most definitely.
He noted Gawain's impatience through the door. Extended a hand over the orb, he allowed his magic to merge and then sink into the crystal. He could feel her confusion followed by confidence. She was scared when she…
Yes, she had left and only just. He exhaled two decades worth of relief.
No alarms had gone off. He had successfully done what even the creator of the orb, Eloise Mintumble hadn't been able to do. The head of the Department of Mysteries had gone back during her last year of tenure with the orb because the orb had been in the head of the Department of Mysteries care since 1402. Realizing that she was predestined to create the orb to monitor time travel and bring it back, she did, forfeiting her life in the process.
She had tried to cloak her trip but when she returned her office was filled with Aurors and colleagues, who watched her die from a four-hundred-year-old wound she received during her trip back. It was terrifying and had halted all of the time travel for some time. Several stories were embellished and published to dissuade anyone from attempting time travel again.
It had worked until Professor McGonagall requested a time-turner so her prize student could take extra classes. Saul smiled at the sheer level of swottiness Hermione had achieved at the age of thirteen.
Slipping the orb back into the cloth it came from, he replaced it inside the drawer. Warding it, he left an empty parchment and quill on top of it. He smoothed down his robes and made to walk towards the door. Each step brought him closer to Auggie and what he was sure was going to be a massive row.
"You ready?" he asked Gawain when the door was shut behind him.
"Yup, you sure took your time," he smirked. "Primping were you?"
Saul chuckled and ran his hands through his untidy hair. "Clearly."
The two walked towards the lifts and chatted about work and Gawain's push for more transparency between departments. Saul countered him with his own department's lack of mental health counselors and support system.
"I swear, sometimes it's like Mad-Eye is still running the place!"
Gawain shrugged. "I was his prodigal student."
"I thought James Potter was?"
"Well, after James died."
"Wasn't Sirius-"
"You're a right arse Saul Croaker, you know that right?" Gawain said bitterly.
Saul chuckled.
"If it makes you feel better, I'm pretty sure Mad-Eye just had a crush on poor ole Sirius." Gawain laughed as they stepped into the lift and they made for the DMLE.
"Rumor has it he was in love with a witch in Hogwarts and she died in their seventh year. I think it was during the last months of the Grindelwald mess."
"Grindelwald made it into Hogwarts?" Saul gasped. As an Unspeakable, it still amazed him how much new information one could get on a daily basis.
"Yeah, Albus was off fighting somewhere and left the school under Minerva's care. I believe Aberforth chased him off but not before he took a large group of seventh and sixth-year students with him. They collapsed the Quidditch Pitch to cover their escape. Moody's girl was in the wrong place at the wrong time. There's a plaque with the six students names on each of the stands. Pretty sure the witch was a Black."
"Wasn't Moody a Half-Blood?"
Gawain tipped his hat. "And that's why it was never publicized. He had a pretty public meltdown. His father was a muggle and the Blacks were scandalized when they found out she was planning on running away with him."
Saul closed his eyes and leaned against the railing. "At least he's with her now."
Gawain cocked an eyebrow. "Do you not remember the conversation we just had about Solomon's department?"
Saul's eyes flew open. "Bugger."
"Yes, that was my sentiments exactly," Gawain said as he opened his office. His office was marginally larger than Saul's primarily because of the line of emergency Floos on the right wall. Each Floo was capable of transported fifty Aurors in one transit. The 'Floo Line' was a brilliant invention created by Augusta Longbottom. In her prime, Augusta Longbottom had been an unstoppable force of creativity. It was only when she settled down and married her life went to the shitter. Word was that she's been bitter ever since she gave up her professional life for a family one.
Gawain tossed some powder into the dark blue fireplace with runes of death, betrayal, and imprisonment around the entryway. "Azkaban!" he shouted. A head popped through.
"Warden? Mister Saul Croaker for his appointment with Augustus Rookwood."
"He's two hours late, Head Auror," grumbled the elderly wizard.
"Yes, the Minister held us the three of us in a meeting. It seems he will be going on official business this week. Give them as much time as they need."
"Of course sir," The Warden said quickly as he backed away to allow Saul through.
"That should buy you all of ten extra minutes," muttered Gawain.
"Thanks, Gawain, I appreciate it."
"I'll keep the Floo open for when you return. If you need to get a pint after, I've got the night off."
"I'll consider it."
The day's events swirled around his head and after taking a deep breath, he stepped into the Floo.