A/N: I do not own Harry Potter or anything associated with it.
SEVEN
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Near Inverness
Scotland, British Isles, Holy Empire of Britannia
October 18, 1995
The sound of the pistol being fired echoed around the four corners of the Great Hall, and for a few moments, there was no other sound that reverberated around the room but the sound of the gun having been fired.
The loud bang seemed to have drowned out the sickly sound of the heavy body of Gregory Goyle hitting the floor, and very few – if there were indeed those who did – heard the sound of a mass hitting a liquid as the earthly remains of a young student hit a pool of his own blood.
Suddenly, there was a flurry of sounds as what had happened finally registered in the minds of those who were watching. The party of the prince – having been aware of what was happening, even if only vaguely – was the first to recover. Lord Alexander turned his attention toward his chief-of-staff at the same time that the second collective within the Great Hall realized what had just happened.
Almost as quick as lightning, Headmaster Dumbledore shot to his feet, his face an enraged mask as he realized that one of the students that was supposed to be under his care had been killed – so effortlessly, if a bit messier than he is used to – in front of his eyes. His legendary wand shot to his hand at the same time that he stood, and at the same time that his Deputy Headmistress took to her own feet.
Minerva McGonagall might not like Gregory Goyle that much – and she was a supporter of the Royal Party if only just – but it was still part of her duties and responsibilities to see to the safety of the students under her care. That one of them had been killed under her watch – indeed, in front of her – galvanized her into action.
The third group to realize what had happened was one of the largest groups within the Great Hall, and the moment that they realized what had happened, they were enraged, though that was hardly surprising considering that the now dead boy was – even if they had wished otherwise – their classmate.
Almost as one, the students who occupied the Slytherin table shot to their feet, their wands already on their hands. Their Head of House – who was at the Staff table in front of the Great Hall – was just a moment or two slower than his house, but Severus Sanpe was faster than his students in aiming his wand at the direction of the Royal Party.
A curse was about to pass through the lips of the potions master as he gathered his power, but before he could do so, he suddenly had to drop his wand as the wood suddenly became impossibly hot for him to hold in his hands.
For a few moments, he thought that it had something o do with his power – after all, he was so enraged, and it had been proven that being in rage helps double the power of a magical person, and such increase is reflected upon the temperature of the wand, the more powerful a person is, the higher the temperature of the wand becomes as it is forced to take in the excess power in the form of heat – but he was forced to renew his opinion when the yelps of pain started to come from his house table.
Both the potions master and the headmaster turned their attention toward the newest source of noise within the Great Hall, and saw what was happening. Their reactions could not have been any different from each other.
The potions master sneered at the sight of his Slytherin students dropping their wands as they became too hot for their hands. Clearly, Severus was of the opinion that the righteous anger of his students at witnessing the murder of their classmate was proving a catalyst, and they are throwing power around, hence, the reason why their wands are becoming hot.
The Headmaster, however, realized what was happening at the sight of so many borderline squibs – he would not admit it in front of anyone, not even his most trusted Severus Snape who was head of Slytherin, that the snakes have the lowest average magical index in the school – dropping their wands. He may have formed the same opinion as his potions master if they are watching the Gryffindors, the Ravenclaws, or the Hufflepuffs – the last of whom have, surprisingly, the highest average magical index in the school – but not the borderline squibs.
The fact that Albus himself had to drop his legendary Elder Wand as it became hot seem to make up the mind of the Headmaster as to what was happening, and the realization of it caused the already pale Headmaster – after witnessing the murder of one of his students – to pale even further.
A huff of wind that seems to have come from nowhere blew into the Great Hall of Hogwarts, but there are those who did not feel the wind. Specifically, those who had not shot to their feet in reaction to what had happened did not feel the powerful gust that came out of nowhere. For those who had shot to their feet, however, the gust was as powerful as the winds of a category five storm – not that many of those who are actually standing up could have known what that meant.
The powerful wind caused the knees of the Headmaster to buckle as he felt the power that marinated the very essence of the mysterious wind. Still, Albus Dumbledore remained on his feet even as the students of Slytherin were – one by one – forced back to their seats, despite the fact that most of them are actually resisting, if the looks on their faces were to be of any indication.
Severus was quickly forced into his seat a few moments later, and Minerva followed at the same time that the last of the Slytherin students lost their battle with the wind and was forced back to their seats. The Headmaster retained his footing for a good twenty seconds after his Deputy was forced to submit, but eventually, even the self-declared Leader of the Light had to submit to this power.
As for the students who were with Gregory Goyle, the fact that they were away from their seats did not spare them from the wind. In fact, the wind humbled them further as they were forced on their knees. The fact that the dead body of their classmate was still where it had fallen served as a reminder of their further humility.
Unable to provide an explanation that would satisfy him – at least to himself – as to the source of the wind that had forced them back to a position of relative helplessness, the Headmaster seethed. He turned his attention toward the royal party, and his anger intensified when he realized that not only was the Prince and his party unaffected by the wind, the look on their faces seemed to convey the fact that the prince expected the wind to come.
Suddenly, the eyes of the Headmaster widened at the implication. If the Prince was aware that the wind was coming, then it stands to reason that it was the prince who had summoned the wind in the first place. The prince, as far as Dumbledore was aware, was not magical, and though there are those who are magical amongst his party – James and Lily notwithstanding – the Headmaster was sure that none of those have summoned the wind.
That only left one logical explanation and it tied in with what the Headmaster had seen a few moments before the wind forced him to submit. Lord Alexander might not be magical, but he was of royal blood and because he was of royal blood, he has command of something far more powerful than the magic of the professors of Hogwarts – Dumbledore included – combined. The Prince had the power to invoke the oath.
As if that was not humiliating and humbling enough, a few moments later, the doors of the Great Hall burst open as muggle soldiers flooded the room, their assault rifles pointed toward the students and the professors as they formed a semi circle around their prince and his party. The grim looks on the faces of the soldiers told the Headmaster that while what they would do would cause them nightmares in the evenings to come, they would still do it in order to protect their prince.
The Headmaster tried to open his mouth and reassert his authority, but the same power that caused him to helplessness was still working its magic on him. He might be able to open his mouth, but no words came out of them no matter how hard he tried, and it took him less than five tries to realize that he was powerless and he may soon witness the massacre of his students.
Fortunately for him, Lord Alexander did not have that in mind. The Prince studied the fallen body of Gregory Goyle for a few moments before he turned his attention toward the soldiers that had flooded the room, "Stand down," he ordered in a sure voice, and though there were looks of hesitation and doubt amongst some of the soldiers, they followed the order, lowering their rifles and considerably lessening the tension within the Great Hall.
If the Headmaster had expected the Prince to turn his attention toward him after giving the command to his soldiers – to apologize for what had happened – he was sorely disappointed as the Prince turned his attention toward his chief-of-staff.
Vice Admiral Cline still held his service pistol on his hand and though the barrel was no longer smoking, the fact that it was out of its holster was a message directed toward everyone inside the Great Hall, Vice Admiral Cline is ready to use his pistol once more, and this time, he would not be alone as he is now joined by the muggle soldiers who had flooded the Great Hall.
"Stand down, Vice Admiral Cline," Lord Alexander ordered. Vice Admiral Cline did not show any external sign of having heard his commander, but the older man holstered his weapon, though he did it in such a way that it conveyed the fact that he would draw if needed, and that he does not trust anyone in the Great Hall that does not wear the flag of the Holy Empire on his shoulder.
"It seems that I owe you another lifetime, Lord James," Lord Alexander said as he extended his hand toward Lord James. The Viscount accepted the offered hand of the Prince and was helped to his feet by the man who had offered his hand, "And my Lady Emma, as well."
Lady Emma was helped to her feet by Lily. The Marchioness gave a nod of thanks to Lily before she gave Lord James a smile indicating that she agreed with what her betrothed had said, though that was hardly surprising as there had never been – not a one – instance where Lady Emma had publically disagreed with Lord Alexander.
Lord James merely inclined his head toward Lord Alexander in response to what the Prince had said, and everyone in attendance – at least those who are with the prince and are familiar with how the Prince runs his staff – knew that that was an indication that the Prince and Lord James would speak about this later. Right now, the more important thing was to take charge of the situation.
Lord Alexander turned toward Harry and said, "Take these into custody, Cadet," he ordered, using a tone of voice that conveyed to everyone in the Great Hall that Lord Alexander was not amused by what had happened.
That was hardly surprising considering what had happened, "Could you identify the spell fired from the wand by the deceased?" he asked.
"It was the killing curse, my Lord," Harry replied without hesitation, and despite the effect of the oath on a quarter of the student population – and quite a lot of the staff – there were gasps of surprises that came from the student population. Harry, however, ignored them, despite the fact that Hermione was amongst those who had been surprised, "And I think it was powerful as well."
Harry prayed that he does not have to tell his liege lord that the effect of the killing curse was directly related to the power used by the caster.
A grim mask was suddenly over the face of Lord Alexander. The prince turned toward his fiancée and seemed to regard her with concerned eyes. Lady Emma merely smiled back toward the man that she would someday marry – her liege lord among other things – to indicate that she was fine, but from the look that Lord Alexander was giving her, it was obvious that he is not going to take only her word for it. Harry realized that Lord Alexander would subject her fiancé to an intense examination tonight.
"My Lord," the voice of one of Lord Alexander's senior staff member cut through the uncomfortable silence that had descended across the Great Hall after the announcement of Harry that a killing curse had been fired toward the back of a high ranking noble of the Holy Empire.
Both Lord Alexander and Harry turned their attention toward the speaker and saw the bespectacled and relatively young face of Rear Admiral Daniel William 'Ash' Ashford, the chief military advisor of Lord Alexander.
"My Lord," Rear Admiral Ashford repeated, "This is an assassination attempt, I urge you to take control of the school and take the would-be assassins into custody."
"I agree, My Lord," Vice Admiral Cline added, speaking for the first time since he had shot and killed Gregory Goyle, "The fact that the deceased attempted to confront us with this group tells me that this is a conspiracy and in addition to the suggestions of Rear Admiral Ashford, I suggest that you order the formation of an investigative committee to look for further conspirators, if, indeed, they exist," and as he said that, the gaze of the Vice Admiral turned toward the staff table where the staff cringed at the insinuation that the Vice Admiral was providing.
The Headmaster would have howled in outrage at the suggestions of Rear Admiral Ashford, but the suggestions of Vice Admiral Cline left him wanting to jump from his seat and challenge the man to a duel. Unfortunately for him, he might have mustered enough rage to actually stand once more, he does not have enough to actually overpower his oath. The gale that had forced him to submit returned in full force and the Headmaster was once more forced to resume his seat as the pressure mounted beyond what he could resist.
"We shall see," Lord Alexander promised. Harry noted that even as he said that to reply to the suggestions of his subordinates, he had not taken his eyes off of Lady Emma. The concern was still there despite the unspoken assurances that the Marchioness was giving him.
The Prince walked slowly – his every gait displaying every measure of the power that he held at that moment as everyone in the room was forced to turn their attention toward him – toward his fiancé. The look of neutrality on the face of Lady Emma caused concern for many of those who was inside the Hall as they realized at that moment that their ultimate fates depend upon this woman whom the man who had invoked the Oath against them was walking toward.
They might never have met the Marchioness before, but those who realize the power that she has over Lord Alexander are now praying that she would be merciful toward them.
"Are you alright?" the Prince asked, the concern on his face evident, and as both Harry and Hermione watched the Prince and the look on his face, both – unknowingly and unconsciously – had the exact same thought, 'I wish he/she would someday look at me like that'.
For her reply, the Marchioness smiled at her prince, "Yes," she replied simply, but the reaction to her reply was anything but simple. The assembled faculty and the very few students who are aware of the reason behind their sudden incapacity held their bated breath, for the simple answer of the Marchioness – completely devoid of anything that those assembled could use – did nothing to either lower or increase their fear of what Lord Alexander might do next.
Seemingly unaware of the tension in the hall – unlikely given the way that the Prince was raised – Lord Alexander focused his gaze upon Lady Emma for close to two minutes. Harry knew from personal experience that having Lord Alexander stare at a person for just two seconds could cause any person to fidget or even to turn away their attention from him, but Lady Emma kept her gaze upon the man that she would someday marry.
After a seemingly long time, Lord Alexander removed his gaze from his fiancé. Vice Admiral Cline and Rear Admiral Ashford did not have look of irritations on their faces when Lord Alexander turned his attention toward them, though Harry knew that that was mostly because both men knew that the Prince would do what he had done even before the Prince had done it. The two men had served Lord Alexander for a considerable time and both are aware of how the Prince does things.
"This certainly was unexpected," Lord Alexander said, and though the intended recipient of the words that came out of the mouth of the Prince were four people – Vice Admiral Cline, Rear Admiral Ashford, Headmaster Dumbledore, and Harry – everyone in the hall cringed at the voice of the Prince. To them, it felt as if the man who is widely acknowledged as one of the most powerful men in the Holy Empire – though only a few inside the Hall knew that for certain – was about to invoke the most dreaded article in the Oath.
Matters were not helped when instead of turning his attention toward the Headmaster to come to some kind of solution, Lord Alexander instead turned his attention toward the kneeling attackers in front of him.
Both Harry and Hermione watched in silence as Lord Alexander regarded the Slytherin students in front of him. Hermione knew that it was an incredibly humbling experience for the five students who are still alive and kneeling in front of the Duke, for these five students, she knew from bitter experience, are the worst of the blood bigots. That they found themselves kneeling in front of a man that they profess to be inferior to them must have hurt not only their knees but also their pride.
"What should I do with you?" Lord Alexander mused as he stared at his attackers, completely unaware that behind him, the Headmaster was struggling to get to his feet in order to make his opinion know, though in this endeavor, he was not even the slightest bit successful.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Near Inverness
Scotland, British Isles, Holy Empire of Britannia
October 18, 1995
Potions Master Severus Snape could hardly believe his eyes as he watched the Headmaster slump into his office before falling into his rather impressive – and if Severus would be forced to admit, comfortable, since he had sat there before – chair behind his even more impressive ornate desk.
The potions master was well aware that the Headmaster had just came from a meeting between himself and the prince in order to discuss what they would do with the Slytherin students who were caught in the act of trying to assassinate the prince. Severus had kicked and screamed in order to be allowed into the meeting – arguing that as the Head of House of Slytherin, he should be there to represent the interest of his students – until the chief-of-staff of Lord Alexander pointed out that since Severus is the Head of House, any punishment that should be given to the attackers should also be given to the Head of House.
The Potions Master might be a former Death Eater and a member of the pureblood supremacy movement, but he was also a half-blood, and more importantly, he has an innate sixth sense when it comes to evading responsibility and covering his ass. That was exactly what he did with the situation, and despite the fact that he really wanted nothing more but to be in the meeting, his sense of self-protection kicked in and he made himself wait in the office of the Headmaster.
Judging from the tired look on the face of the Headmaster, Severus realized that he should count himself lucky that he was not included in that meeting, and he involuntarily shuddered as he imagined exactly what happened that caused the Headmaster to look haggard. Of course, he truly would not count himself out of the fire until the Headmaster could confirm that he is not going to be included in the aftermath of the failed attempt.
A brief movement of the finger of the Headmaster caught Severus by surprise, and the man actually cringed even if it was obvious that whatever spell it was that the Headmaster had invoked was not meant for him. A glass shot out from the cabinet of the Headmaster at the same time that an unopened bottle of firewhiskey appeared on the desk of the man who was considered as one of the most powerful – if not the most powerful – man in the whole of the magical world.
Without saying anything, the Headmaster poured himself a shot glass full of the foul smelling liquid and the Headmaster – displaying constitution absent from a muggle his age, considering that all muggles would be dead by the time they reach his age – not only managed to empty the glass in one gulp, he managed to keep the liquid in without throwing up.
"Headmaster?" Severus asked cautiously. The Potions Master was not even sure of the Headmaster could actually see him as he sat in front of the old man who looked as if he wanted to do nothing more but to drown himself in drink.
For a few moments, the Headmaster showed no sign that he had even heard his potions master, but since Severus was not going to try again – he figured that once is more than enough – the Headmaster finally turned his attention toward the one of the men that he had directly saved during the war.
Fighting back the urge to pour himself another drink, Albus turned his attention toward Severus and indicated that the potions master should be the first one to start with a questioning look on his face.
Severus disliked being the first one to start, but he figured that in this case, there was no choice, though he did subconsciously note that he would be in very, very hot water if he starts this conversation in the wrong way.
Ultimately, however, Severus knew that he had no choice but to begin the conversation in such a way that even the potions master knew would land him in hot water, "So," the potions master began, "How did it go?"
Albus Dumbledore actually cringed at just being reminded of what had happened, and a worried Severus Snape realized that that meant that the meeting had not gone well for the Headmaster. For a brief few moments, the potions master wondered if he could still escape from the Office of the Headmaster and from Hogwarts, but as he continued to sit at his seat and wait for the Headmaster to reply, the potions master realized that for now, Hogwarts was the best place for him.
Severus had no illusions regarding his safety out there. He might not be hunted by his former comrades – he had somehow convinced them that he had turned spy at the instructions of their Dark Lord – but the fact remains that his former students would like to hunt him down, and there is no telling what the Prince had told the Headmaster regarding the situation and circumstance of one Severus Snape, not, at least, if he were to flee the school.
Finally, the Headmaster returned to the present. Aware of the most pressing concern of the man that was now seated in front of him, the Headmaster decided to address the unasked question of his potions master first. In any case, Albus knew that if he were to answer the unasked question of Severus first, the potions master would be more susceptible to some suggestions, especially if the Headmaster would play his words right.
"I had managed to convince His Grace that you had nothing to do with the incident," Dumbledore said, though the glare that he gave his potions master told Severus that despite the words that had came out of the mouth of the Headmaster, the Headmaster was of the opinion that Severus had something to do with it.
Of course, Albus knew that Severus had nothing to do with the incident, but he had to insinuate that he – the Headmaster – had pulled the ass of his potions master from the fire. It would make Severus more susceptible to suggestions, and not for the first time since he had met Severus – as a young child, after all, Albus was already Headmaster when Severus entered Hogwarts – how a powerful mind like that of Severus could be easy to manipulate, but with a mental shake of his head, the Headmaster told himself that was a good thing since it allowed him to manipulate the potions master to do his bidding.
"Your words tell me that the prince was not that convinced," Severus noted dryly.
'Yes,' Albus thought to himself, 'Lord Alexander was most adamant that Severus had something to do with the attempt, though it is obvious that the prince was more angry not at the attempt against him, but against the Lady Emma.'
Albus did not even bother to say anything, he merely nodded, but that was enough and as if to emphasize that fact, Severus actually slumped in his seat in response to the action of the Headmaster.
"What should we do, sir?" Severus asked, his voice hopeful, and unknown to Severus, the desperation in his words caused a smile to form on the face of the Headmaster. Albus knew that he has Severus exactly where he wanted the young man, specifically; Severus was now ready to do the bidding of the Headmaster.
"What do you think should we do?" the Headmaster asked, and for a few moments, the older man who already had a plan in his head did nothing but stare at Severus, impatiently waiting for the man to come up with the same solution that the Headmaster had already concluded on his own.
Albus supposed that he could make the direct suggestion, but – unaware of the power behind the Oath until that moment that he actually experienced it – he was unwilling to even risk even a collateral attack on it. it was far better to let Severus voice the conclusion on his own, partly because it would galvanize Severus better than if the Headmaster would directly suggest it, and partly as a test to see just how powerful the Oath could be.
"We could circumvent the Oath," Severus said a few moments later. Albus stared at his potions master for a few moments, waiting for the Oath to kick in, but when Severus remained breathing after five seconds, the Headmaster was convinced that the Oath was not going to kill them.
'Perhaps the earlier assessment of Severus was correct,' the Headmaster thought to himself, 'It is a two way street, and the recent actions of the Prince was a severance, but how did he manage to invoke it even after the death of Mr. Goyle?'
The body of Gregory Goyle would not be released to his parents as was custom. Instead, invoking the Oath, Lord Alexander had ordered that the body of the young boy whom the Prince had labeled as a traitor would be hanged from the tower of Hogwarts, a punishment fit for those who had tried to attack a member of the Royal Family and one that had long since been outlawed in the muggle world. Apparently, it was still enforceable in the magical world.
"Could you find a way to break it without the consequences?" Albus asked a few moments later. Severus looked ready to reply, but before the potions master could push one word out of his mouth, the Headmaster of Hogwarts intervened, "You must have felt the power behind the Oath, Severus, it made us both return to our seats even if we are fighting against it."
The uncomfortable look on the face of the potions master confirmed for the Headmaster that Severus did not find the fact that he had been overpowered – by a muggle, no less – amusing. The man looked ready to tear Lord Alexander and his party limb from limb, but Severus is smart enough to know that he could never do that, Oath or no Oath. The bodyguards of Lord Alexander looked deadly enough, as the classmates of Mr. Goyle would attest.
Those same students – whom the Prince had labeled as conspirators – are all under arrest pending investigation. The Prince was willing to accept the explanation of the Headmaster that there is still a chance that the students had no idea that their classmate was going to fire a killing curse – and yes, the Prince was well aware that that was the spell fired, even if no one amongst Hogwarts staff or students had told him – at him and his fiancé. Lord Alexander, however, demanded an investigation, and it was an investigation that the Headmaster could not deny the Prince.
Fortunately, the ones doing the investigation would be the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. The Headmaster does not have enough friends in that department, but it was a compromise that he and the prince agreed upon, since the prince had initially wanted the investigation to be handled by his Chief-of-Staff – Vice Admiral Cline, the very man who had done the shooting and had demanded the take-over – and that would have been disastrous as the Headmaster had no friends in that body.
"There should be a way around it, Headmaster," Severus assured his superior. The sneer on the face of the potions master told the Headmaster that Severus has something more to add – no doubt a derision of the muggles – but the potions master held himself, probably realizing that the muggles are now appearing to be the one who was underestimated by the magicals instead of the other way around as was always claimed by their historians.
"I will trust you with it, then, Severus," the Headmaster said. He pretended to be bothered by the assurance of his potions master for a few moments – just enough to present doubt to the course of action – before he gave that answer.
The truth was, Albus really had no idea if there was a way around the Oath. He could only hope that Severus could find it, but as smart and intelligent as the sour-faced potions master is, he is nowhere near as smart and as intelligent as the Headmaster. Albus, however, would rather not risk his life and limb trying to break an Oath that he could not be sure could not harm him.
For all the confidence of the Headmaster and the potions master that a way exists, the Headmaster just was not willing to take anything up to chance.
Aboard HMS Iron Duke, Britannian Grand Fleet Flagship, Black Lake
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Near Inverness
Scotland, British Isles, Holy Empire of Britannia
October 18, 1995
The conference room aboard the two hundred fifty seven meter long battleship was actually just the wardroom. At times when it was not used for conferences, the officers hang out in this place to pass time, and as if to emphasize that fact, this wardroom was actually nothing but a library.
There are, however, seats inside the room and a whiteboard used for times like these, when the ward doubles as a conference room.
Lord Alexander was seated beside Lady Emma – as was usual – near the front of the room. He would usually use his flag quarters to meet with his closest advisors, but the size of this meeting – more than a dozen people are present – precluded that option. His quarters could hold him and Lady Emma at night and could be used to meet with six – even seven people – at the same time, but there was no way it could fit a dozen.
At some unspoken and unseen signal, Lady Emma began the meeting, unusual for those who had never attended meetings like this before since Lady Emma projects an image of being submissive and always in agreement with her fiancée, "You were harsher than you ought to be," she said, surprising Brigadier General Arnott and his deputy – both of whom are attending a meeting like this for the first time – with her accusatory tone. In fact, the deputy of Brigadier General Arnott looked ready to take offense.
The lack of response from Lord Alexander – not to mention the looks of amusement in the face of the other regular attendees in Lord Alexander's personal meetings – convinced both the general and his deputy that this was normal occurrence in meetings like this.
"Such is the punishment for traitors," Lord Alexander replied with an easy smile and a tone that suggested that it was – for the Prince – an off-handed comment. He looked at Lady Emma before he added, "It was not my fault that they refuse to follow our world into the twentieth and beyond, they are the ones who should have repealed that law, goodness knows, my great-grandfather would have allowed it."
Lord Alexander's great-grandfather – the father of the current Empress Elizabeth – was Emperor Edward I who reigned from 1940 to 1970. He was the one who had first banned the penalty of death within the Empire, a trend that was followed by almost all nations around the world who would not be beaten in such publicity by the Holy Empire. Nowadays, the only offense punishable by death in the Holy Empire – at least, in the non-magical world – is a successful assassination of a member of the immediate Royal Family.
For a few moments, Lady Emma did not say anything, her silence a beacon for everyone else in the room and preventing them from voicing their opinions. After a few moments, Lady Emma gave a nod toward her fiancé, an action that indicated that while the argument over this particular matter is now over, she was still against his decision. Whether or not the two of them would speak about this at a later venue, however, is a matter left between the two of them.
Lord Alexander acknowledged the concession of his fiancée before he turned his attention toward the commander of the ground forces in the area," General," Lord Alexander began, "I trust that the deployment is going off as planned and without a hitch," an amused smile graced the face of Lord Alexander before the prince amended his words, "or at least, not as much hitch as to cause serious problems."
The nod of Brigadier General Arnott answered the question of Lord Alexander, the words that came out of his mouth clarified the answer, "We have been at the receiving end of some angry stares since we arrived here, Sir," the general said, "but so far, no one had been foolish enough to try anything against the men," he grumbled lowly, an indication that he was angry, before he added, "At least, not before tonight."
Lord Alexander actually laughed, "What happened tonight was well within parameters," the prince admitted. He stared at the general and his subordinate and added, "We suspected that someone is going to do something like this, and we had already taken appropriate precautions," his eyes turned dark, however, before he added, "I was, however, not informed that my Lady Emma may be in danger," and the threat that laced his voice actually made the general and his deputy – both seasoned combat veterans – cringe in their seats.
Lady Emma placed her hand on the shoulder of her would-be husband, and that was all that was needed in order to calm Lord Alexander.
"Where's Cadet Potter?" Lord Alexander asked.
"He and his cadets are seconded to tonight's guards, sir," Rear Admiral Ashford replied easily, "I took the liberty to get him out of the way for this meeting."
Lord Alexander nodded, though he pretended not to see the scowls on the face of the only two civilians in the room with him, Lord James and Lady Lily Potter. The Prince supposed that he could understand their indignation; after all, the cadet is their son and had been given an important mission. His absence here despite the fact that their discussion would soon have something to do with the mission that he was given was telling.
"Lady Potter," Lord Alexander said as he turned his attention toward Lily. The Countess of Lisbourne turned to regard her liege lord just in time to watch as Lord Alexander said, "I had been informed that you had spoken with one of the students of the school."
Lily nodded, "I had, Your Grace," Lily replied nonchalantly. For a few moments, there was silence as no one spoke, apparently, Lily was not going to say anything unless asked a direct question, but Lord Alexander was also not going to ask a direct question. Finally, Lily broke the silence – no doubt influenced by the fact that her husband had nudged her numerous times – and said, "My son had nothing but praise for Hermione Granger and I thought I should check her out," she smiled before she inclined her head toward Rear Admiral Granger, but the adjutant of Lord Alexander kept his piece despite the fact that Lily was asking him to say something.
"I intend to ask Your Grace to offer her a chance to prove her loyalty to the Empire," Lily continued after he stared at Rear Admiral Granger for a few moments. The uncle of Hermione was supposed to be the one doing this, since the girl is his niece, "Toward the end that she be allowed to move to the mainland in order to continue her education there."
Lord Alexander smiled, "Hermione Granger had always been at the lit, Lady Lily," the Prince admitted, he nodded toward his adjutant – an action that confirmed to Lily that Rear Admiral Granger had already done this before, and from the way that the things are looking, he had been granted this wish – before he continued, "Pending the approval of her father, Hermione would be allowed to attend universities at the mainland of her choice, but..," and here, he looked toward Lily, "I suspect that your interaction with the young lady had made permission from her father a moot and academic point."
Lily had the good graces to blush, but did not say anything. Lord Alexander merely smiled at her before he shook his head and said, toward Rear Admiral Granger, "Would you speak with your brother for me?" he asked.
Rear Admiral Granger did not even hesitate, "Of course, Your Grace," he replied, he paused for a few moments, but instead of returning his attention toward Lord Alexander, he turned it toward Vice Admiral Cline.
The Chief of Staff noted the fact that Rear Admiral Granger was looking at him, but Vice Admiral Cline did not turn his attention toward his subordinate, instead, he kept his attention forward, toward Lord Alexander, and he said, "Your Grace, I think we should discuss our next move regarding the school."
Lord Alexander turned to regard his chief-of-staff for a few moments. The two men stared at each other, neither blinking, but just as Vice Admiral Cline was about to say something, Lord Alexander suddenly said, "I know what you are going to suggest, Kevin."
Vice Admiral Cline was taken aback by a few moments, but proving that he was well qualified to be the chief-of-staff to Lord Alexander when he stared back at his superior officer. Everyone in attendance knew that the only one who could actually last at a staring match with the Prince, however, was Lady Emma, and in this, they were proven correct when a few moments later, Vice Admiral Cline averted his gaze from Lord Alexander.
"We are not here to assert Imperial control over the school, we are merely here to remind them to whom they owe their loyalty to," Lord Alexander began. He turned his attention away from his chief-of-staff and focused it toward the rest of the people in attendance, "Toward that end, we are to find a way to remove those that are harming our relationship with the magical world from this school, and other positions of power," he focused his attention toward Vice Admiral Cline and asked, "Who are these people?"
Vice Admiral Cline stiffened in response, "Sir," he began. Like Lord Alexander, he had read the reports that had been forwarded by Imperial Intelligence, and like his liege lord, Vice Admiral Cline was well aware that the information within are classified. Not everyone in the room have the necessary security classification to actually know who is on that list.
Lord Alexander raised his hand and motioned for his chief-of-staff to not continue anymore. He turned to regard everyone in the room before he refocused his gaze at Vice Admiral Cline and said, "We have enemies amongst the ranks of the staff of this school, and we have enemies amongst the rank and file of the students of this school, but that does not mean that everyone in this school is an enemy," he shook his head for emphasis and added, "The fact that the niece of Rear Admiral Granger is here should have been enough indication, Vice Admiral Cline."
"Sir," Vice Admiral Cline replied.
Lord Alexander, however, was not yet done admonishing his chief-of-staff, "If we do as you suggest and take over this school, we would be turning those everyone into enemies, and not even the presence of 'C' Brigade, indeed, not even the presence of 22nd Infantry Division and our battleship division, would be enough to contain the insurrection that would surely follow once news hit the rest of their world," he shook his head and added, "I agree that we need to reassert our control over this world, but we must do it in such a way that the civilians, those students and some of the staff, would welcome – rather than disdain – us."
For a few moments, there was silence as each and every person in the room digested the information that Lord Alexander had just given them.
It was James, Viscount of Lisbourne, who broke the silence but the words out of his mouth are exactly the words that everyone else in the room was thinking about, "He's going to try to find a way to break the Oath," the count said in a tone of finality. Lord Alexander turned his attention toward his subordinate and James added, "If there is one thing that the old man does not like, its something having more power than him – or anything actually."
Lord Alexander turned to Rear Admiral Ashford and at the sight of his commander looking at him, the military advisor reported, "Lord James may be onto something here, sir," he conceded, "People like the Headmaster are never happy when someone more powerful than them makes their presence known."
"His Grace is power," Brigadier General Arnott said, injecting himself into the conversation. He actually looked indignant at the insinuation that the Headmaster is offended at the thought that Lord Alexander is more powerful.
"We mean in terms of magical power, general," Lily replied, before she pointedly ignored the fact that the general was staring at her with a murderous expression written on his face. She turned her attention toward Rear Admiral Ashford and asked, "Do you know of a way around it?"
Lily knew that of all the people inside the room, Rear Admiral Ashford has the highest intelligence score. It was not surprising that the man graduated first in his class from every school that he had attended, including one of the highest grades in the Naval Postgraduate School in Rhode Island with two degrees that he attained at the same time.
"There are several ways that we – as in the non-magical side of the treaty – could break the Oath," he explained, "but for their side, I see two, maybe three, ways that they could get out of it, one being far superior to the other two, but would result to consequences to whoever it is that is breaking the Oath."
"A direct challenge to the Oath?" Lord Alexander asked, and when Rear Admiral Ashford nodded, the Prince asked, "What are the chances of that happening?"
"Practically zero, Admiral," Rear Admiral Ashford replied. He paused before he explained his reasoning, "The Headmaster might be delusional, but he is not stupid, and I do not think anyone that he would set to find a way to break the Oath – I do not see him being the one who would be doing this personally – would not be as well," he shook his head for emphasis before he added, "the Headmaster could not afford to leave this in the hands of someone who would be stupid enough to directly challenge the Oath."
"Every one of his closest and smartest allies were with us in the Great Hall," James said a few moments later, "there are those who are more powerful, magically and politically, but power does not necessarily equate to intelligence, especially one that I think would be required in order to break the Oath without consequences."
Silence descended between those who are in the meeting once more, but it was a silence that was not going to last long, as Lord Alexander asked another direct question, "Practically zero is not the same as zero, Rear Admiral Ashford," he observed, "Could we discount the fact that someone might actually be stupid enough to do exactly that? A direct challenge?"
The silence that descended inside the room spoke volumes, and finally, Rear Admiral Ashford was forced to reply, "I honestly do not know, Admiral," he replied, "but human nature and self-preservation should stop any direct challenge," he paused before he added, "We all saw what happened when the Oath was invoked his evening."
Heads nodded around the room as everyone acknowledged that. Everyone inside was aware of the Oath – or at least, they are now even if they had not been when they first saw it this evening – but none of them had any idea that it would do what it had done this evening. In theory, anyone who would pose a direct challenge to the Oath would be subdued the same way that the entire student and staff population of Hogwarts – with the exemption of Hermione who was with Harry – was subdued this evening.
"Then our worry would be the subtle way that our enemies in the castle would break the Oath," Lord Alexander concluded, and at the look on the face of Lady Emma, he quickly added, "That we have enemies in the castle is a foregone conclusion, Love,"
Lady Emma was forced to concede that what her fiancé had said was true, and she politely inclined her head toward his direction in supplication, though the look on his face told Lord Alexander that she still does not like it.
"It will happen, gentlemen, ladies," Lord Alexander said, and though it was meant for everyone, the next words out of his mouth were directed toward Brigadier General Arnott, "That Oath is not meant to stop rebellion from the magical world, it was meant to warn us of its impending approach so that we may prepare for it. Our ancestors wished to subdue the magical world as well, but the circumstances of that time forced us to abandon it," the smile on his face was vicious and predatory as he added, "The situation today is changed. We have no enemy powerful – or stupid – enough to try to challenge us directly, Europe is at peace, as are the Americas and Asia while in Africa, our interest remains guarded by our alliance with the Middle-East Federation and the South African Union, nothing is preventing us from launching our offensive against the magical world."