Chapter 6: A Peaceful Day, Mostly

Thanks for all the reviews. They do tickle my muse.

This was supposed to be a three-chapter story. Darn muse. I foresee at least three more chapters. But I could be wrong. It could end in the next one or go on for more. My muse is fickle like that.

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Amelia had gone back to the infirmary and talked to Albus the night before. She didn't get any more information out of him and left him tied to the bed. He still wouldn't tell her how he knew about Ginny Weasley being controlled, or about what he knew about the diary. He was as tightlipped as ever, so he could stay under house arrest until he felt better. Then he'd see the inside of her cells. Not that she thought he'd stay there long, but it might knock that block off his shoulder a bit.

Unlike the creature hunters she had gone back to the ministry last night and did a mountain of paperwork. She had been up most of the night and slept in her office. There was a cot in back for nights just like last night. Susan, who had been evacuated with the rest of the students, had slept at Hannah's house. The Abbotts would keep her there until Amelia was not busy breaking up fights.

Now, with the newspaper articles seeing the light of day, she was concerned that riots would start. It wasn't that they were bad articles, but they did show purebloods and Albus in a bad light. Some people might take offence to that and take it out on the wrong people. So, she called all her Auror and Hit Wizards in to patrol the atrium and Diagon Alley. She wanted to make sure that they were covered completely.

"Any sign of aggression, from either side, and you arrest that person. I mean it, either side raises a wand, you take them down and put them in a cell. I don't want riots in the streets. I especially don't want one here in the ministry," she said, handing out stun grenades. These were only used in times of great unrest, to which she considered this time to be. They would stun an entire crowd of people instantly. "Don't use these unless a riot does break out. They will stun everyone within fifty feet of the drop. Make sure you are outside the blast range." They had trained with them in basic, but they had never used them in reality, so a refresher was always good.

"What if they are just defending themselves?" one Auror asked, not sure about what they were supposed to be doing. This was new territory for all of them. Many of them had studied the muggles methods of breaking up demonstrations, but those demonstrators didn't have deadly weapons on them. They couldn't ask their activists to give up their wands.

"Defend them. I expect most of the aggressors will come from outside the protesters," she confessed. "The activists have been peaceful for the most part. I expect them to remain that way."

"Yes, ma'am," the group of Aurors and Hit Wizards said, giving their version of a salute.

She started handing out something akin to polycarbonate shields that would withstand everything bar the Unforgivables. "Save your magic and use these," she ordered, showing them how to protect their face and upper body with them.

"Yes, ma'am," they said, following her instructions.

She knew there were some bigots in her ranks, but she didn't have the time or resources to weed them out. They would either do their job or show themselves today.

They all left to go to their assigned areas, each hoping it was going to be a peaceful day.

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Gethsemane was not a happy camper. There was a large nest of Acromantula in the Forbidden Forest according to the boy. If there was, someone's head was going to roll. Those monsters were not indigenous to the forest, so they had to have been brought here. That was not good. Anything could be happening to the forest with that kind of species inhabiting it. They were destructive.

"How did you know they were there?" she asked Harry Potter the next morning. He was the only student left in the school. They kept him with them just in case he was needed again. They had all spent the night at the castle so they could keep an eye out for any more animals of the dangerous kind. They slept in shifts and were all cranky and tired. It was a good thing that the only animals left in the school were some pets of the children, which had been left behind in the retreat last night, the owls and some rats in the dungeons.

Though there was one rat that she had locked up, because it kept dinging her warning radar. She knew it wasn't a regular rat, and she knew she wouldn't have time to take care of it until the spiders were taken care of.

"Come on, I'll show you," he said, turning down the hall and then heading up the stairs. He was leading them to the Astronomy Tower. "I don't sleep well at night, so I wander. Please, don't tell McGonagall, she'll take a mess of points off," he begged, causing some to chuckle. "Anyway, I come up here to look at the stars when there's no class. I sometimes see things move in the forest. If you point the telescope down there, you'll see the giant spiders," he explained, pointing to the area he knew the nest was in.

Prickle used one of the telescopes and aimed it to where he was pointing and started cussing like a sailor. "There must be thousands of them down there. Whose bright idea was that?" she said, trying to control her anger.

"My bets on Hagrid," Harry said with a laugh. Then he realized what he said and tried to cover for his friend. "I mean, I'm sure he didn't mean anything. He just likes big creatures. He's a big softy is all," he said in a hurry.

"I'll bet," Gethsemane said, having had many reports about Hagrid and his pets over the years. Dumbledore always stepped in and took care of them, or so he said. Now, she was seeing just how he took care of them. Bastard. "We need some flame spells and more people," she said, going down the stairs.

"Can I ask a question?" Harry asked as they descended. It had been bugging him since last night.

"Sure, ask away?" Gethsemane said, nodding her head in his direction.

"Why didn't you use a rooster with the basilisk?" he asked, not remembering hearing a cock's crow.

"We all did," she corrected his assumption. "That snake was just too big and too old for them to work. All it did was disorient it. They did weaken it, but it still got Samuel and Otto," she said with a grimace. She didn't like losing men. The damn birds had done nothing to the damn snake but confuse it. "I tell you, that old snake put up quite a fight, but we got it in the end. It'll bring the department quite a bit of money too."

"Oh, I didn't see you bring any down," Harry said, scratching his head in confusion. "What do you mean money?" he asked as an afterthought.

"Basilisk parts are rare, so they are pretty expensive. We won't sell the venom, that'll go to the Unspeakables and some other places. However, the meat and other parts are still worth quite a bit. As for the roosters, they were tucked in our robes, so they didn't make a fuss. There's extended pockets on the inside, see," she said, showing one of the pockets by putting her whole arm inside.

"Oh, okay," the preteen said, wondering if they'd charm his robe the same way so he could sneak some food in. "You can put live things in there?"

"If you know how, you can," she assured him.

"Can you put one of those in my robes?" he asked, excited at the prospect.

"Sure, I'll do you one, kid. Hold your robe open," Gethsemane said, poking her wand at his inner pocket. She did the spell and he grinned as he stuck his arm in the hole. It disappeared.

"That's great," he said, all but bouncing up and down.

"Amelia wants you to stay with us for a few more hours, then she's going to come and take you home," Gethsemane said, ruffling his hair. She was straightening her robe, so she didn't notice the grimace when she said 'home'.

"Lovely," Harry said, leaning his head forward so they couldn't see how upset he was. He really didn't want to go back to the Dursleys, but he didn't see where he had a choice. At least Dudley would still be in school. "Won't the school be open after you get rid of the spiders? I mean, Hagrid takes care of Fluffy, so you don't have to worry about him," he added, looking around so he didn't have to meet anyone's eyes.

"Who or what is Fluffy?" the creature hunter asked, pinching the bridge of her nose. She just knew there was something else.

"Hagrid's three headed dog," Harry answered like he thought everyone knew that. Which after last year he probably did. "Dumbledore knows about him. He borrowed him to use to guard the Philosopher's Stone," he explained, hoping he hadn't gotten Hagrid in more trouble.

"I'm going to kill him," Gethsemane said under her breath. She whipped out her wand and cast the Patronus and sent a message to Amelia to come back to Hogwarts.

"Is Hagrid in trouble?" Harry asked, very concerned for his friend.

"Hagrid is over sixty years old. He doesn't need you to look out for him. Besides, he has Dumbledore to help him," the older lady said, patting the preteen on the head. She knew how lovable Hagrid was to the children. He was little more than an overgrown child himself, which is why she was blaming Dumbledore.

"I'm sorry," Harry said in a little voice. He got like that when adults were mad around him.

"You did nothing wrong," she said, laying a hand on his shoulder, and giving it a squeeze. "I need to go back to the ministry and get more people. You stay here with Rodgers and he'll keep an eye on you," she said, waving the big man over and nodding to Harry.

"Yes, ma'am," Rodgers said, taking up his position next to the seemingly depressed kid.

"I'll be back. If Madam Bones gets here before me, Harry, tell her about Fluffy, okay?" she said, gathering her equipment and getting ready to go back to the ministry. She would be the only one leaving. The rest would be gearing up to do battle with the giant spiders.

"Yes, ma'am," Harry said, his tone despondent.

"Don't worry, your friend, Hagrid, is not in trouble," she finally said, hoping to put the smile back on his face.

It worked and he did smile, and it was bright. "Thanks," he said, nodding to her.

"I won't say the same about your headmaster, but Hagrid is a special case," she stated, knowingly.

"I guess," Harry said, not sure if that was an insult against Hagrid or not.

"I'll be back soon."

"Bye."

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Thomas had written his letter to the editor, as had many others. They wanted their grievances heard outside the ministry. Maybe if more knew how they were treated, they might get some support by the voters. That was kind of important. The government was run by those voted in, and if they didn't have representation then all they were doing was for nothing. They needed backers, and he hated to say it, but those backers needed to be rich and influential. Perhaps Potter, or the Greengrasses. People like them.

This was day five of the protest and the bigoted purebloods still couldn't find their own files and things. The paper airplanes that use to fly around the building with messages were much fewer. Whereas there used to be hundreds, there were now dozens. There were files and folders piling up everywhere, and meetings weren't getting scheduled.

The whole place had come to a screeching halt and there was nothing the bosses could do about it. So, they complained to the minister, who bitched about it to his 'friends', who made plans to deal with the upstarts. All this complaining didn't fix anything, and the members of the Wizengamot were considering hearing the protesters out and seeing if they could come to an agreement. It had worked for the goblins after all.

Many of the bosses still came to the activists and asked where such and such file was. They were told to bugger off, or other such niceties. If they could not support the cause they didn't deserve the help. Those bosses left with bugs in their ears, and no more the wiser as to how to operate their department.

Not every one of the demonstrators wanted a higher paying job, but they were all muggleborn, or low-paid half-bloods. Those that were happy with their jobs, like Jackie, just thought it was time to take a stand with their peers. Those that wanted higher paying jobs, were in it for the win. They were the loudest and the most active. They stopped people to listen to them. They wrote to the editor. They tried to get people to back them and their cause.

"Okay, everyone, that article Skeeter wrote might have been good for us, but… we might see the bigoted purebloods again," Thomas said, holding up his hands to get silence. "I want you to do the same as last time. Take refuge behind the statue, cast shields, and don't fire off any offensive spells. Defense only." He wanted to make that perfectly clear.

"And if they fire off Unforgivables?" someone asked, quite peeved that they were supposed to hide.

"If they shoot to kill, then return the favor," Thomas said, then held up his hands and said, "However, even in self-defense, the Unforgivables are still a lifetime in prison. If you use them, I can't help you." The warning was clear. Do the crime, do the time.

It was then that the squad of Aurors showed up. The protestors got their signs ready and were settling for a day of marching and shouting. Hopefully it would be a peaceful day.

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The creature hunters were in the Forbidden Forest hunting the Acromantula. They were fifty strong, having borrowed some from Gringotts and the Unspeakables. Flaming spells were being used to kill the giant spiders. And they were working well. They were circling the nest on brooms and driving them forward. They were concentrating on the medium sized spiders and moving the younger ones further in the middle.

The centaurs were helping from a distance. Only they weren't being selective. They were killing any that they could target. They had long ago told Hagrid that if they ever got the chance, they would kill every last one they could. It was not their fault the giant didn't listen.

Off to the side, with McGonagall patting his back, was Hagrid. He was crying up a storm and was very angry that it had come to this. "Why couldn't they have just relocated them?" he asked the deputy headmistress.

"I don't know," she said, still patting his back. "I believe someone said that they were untamable. That their sire, Aragon, had let them run too wild," she said, repeating what she had heard. She wasn't completely sure; she had only heard snatches of conversation. She had hoped to give him some reasoning though.

"They are just babies," the half-giant cried, taking out his tablecloth sized handkerchief and wiping his eyes. He blew his nose loudly and closed his eyes to what he felt was carnage. "How did they even know they were there?" he asked, looking around as if the culprit were nearby.

"I told them," Harry said as he neared them. He came up slowly as if thinking he was about to be hit for his part in this. "I'm sorry. I didn't know they'd do this," he said, scuffing his feet in the dirt. "I tried to talk them out of it, but I'm just a kid," he added, looking up at his friend between his bangs.

"Mr. Potter, what are you still doing here? I thought the students had all gone home," McGonagall asked, not sure how she missed the fact that one was still present in the castle. No one had told her there was one missing from the headcount. She was going to have to talk to her prefects when they got back.

"They," Harry said, pointing to the creature hunters, "wanted me to stick around in case they needed a parselmouth again." He was still side-eyeing Hagrid, trying to gage the big man's mood. He didn't seem too upset at Harry, but it was hard to tell, he was so sad over what was happening.

"You need to return to your family," she insisted, knowing that is what Albus would say.

"I will, when they don't need me anymore. I am the only parselmouth around, you know," he added, smiling proudly. For too long he had felt evil being one, now he was right proud of the fact.

"Madam Bones is on her way to take him back," Prickle said, coming up to the group. She ignored the glare she was getting from Hagrid. "We're done here. We've culled them down to a reasonable size and can now relocate the rest. The ones left are the youngest and the eldest. they can go to a farm and be used for their silk. You, Hagrid, will get a cut of the profit," she explained, hoping that appeased the man a bit.

"I don't want a profit, I want my friends back," the giant of a man said, and stormed away. He was wiping his face off and angrily swiping his tears. There was no way money would ever make this okay.

"I don't think he's going to be happy for a while yet," Harry said, still not sure if his first friend was mad at him or not.

"He'll get over it," McGonagall said, knowing Hagrid was quick to anger, but it blew away fast. "Come, Mr. Potter, let's get you packed," she said, making a motion for him to follow her.

"Did you need me anymore?" he asked Prickle, desperately hoping she did.

"No, I think we've found all the parsel openings there are. If we do need you again Bones will know where you are," she said, seeing his reluctance in going and wondering about that. Most kids wanted to go home. She'd have to mention it to Amelia when she saw her.

"Alright," Harry said, turning and following his professor.

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Amelia was taking Harry Potter home to his aunt's house in Surrey. She didn't like the vibes she was getting off the boy and Gethsemane said that he acted peculiarly when she said she was done with him. "Mr. Potter, is there anything you want to tell me before we get there," she asked from her seat next to him on the Knight Bus. She was going to talk to him about Fluffy when they got to his home, where he might be more comfortable.

"Don't do any magic," Harry said, turning to look at her. "They don't like magic," he added, his eyes showed he was worried for her safety.

"I think I can hold my own against your family," she said, raising an eyebrow, which made the monocle fall.

"Relatives," he corrected, then turned back to looking out the windows, even though there was little to see with the bus going so fast. Soon it was time for them to disembark, and they did.

"Which house is yours?" Amelia asked, putting an encouraging hand on his shoulder.

"Number four," he said, going to the front door. He knocked and waited for his aunt to answer. His uncle would be at work right now.

"Yes… oh, it's you. Not dead then. Pity," she said, taking no notice of the woman with her nephew.

"I beg your pardon," Amelia said, guiding Harry behind her and brandishing her wand. "Did you just tell your nephew you had hoped he had died?" she asked, completely flabbergasted.

"That is none of your concern," Petunia said, making to grab Harry and drag him in the house. "Get inside, you foolish boy. You can lock your things up before Vernon gets home. I don't want to hear a peep out of you," she said, still trying to take the boy's arm, but he kept evading her grasp.

"I am the Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement," Amelia said, keeping Harry behind her and pushing Petunia's arm away. "I can place you under arrest for abuse, so I suggest you stop immediately," she demanded, taking out her badge and shoving it in the woman's face.

"You have no jurisdiction over me. I am not magical," the vile woman said snidely. She knew her rights. At least she thought she did.

"Oh, you think so, do you? Very well then. Petunia Dursley, you are under arrest for child abuse," she said, then gave the woman her rights in the muggle world as well as the wizarding world as she dragged her out of the house and cuffed her right there on the lawn. "When your husband gets home, someone will be here to arrest him as well."

The neighbors were all coming out of their house and watching the Dursley wife get arrested by a cop that didn't have a car, or a uniform. They figured she must be a detective and that there must have been an investigation. Oh, the tongues were going to wag tonight.

With that Amelia dragged her down the street in front of everyone and into an alley, where she apparated the three of them to the nearest police station she knew about. Hopefully, they were close enough to book this woman. There she used her credentials to have the woman charged and placed into a cell.

"Her husband will be home…" she said, trailing off and looking at Harry, who was in a state of shock.

"Oh, um, around five," he said, still looking like he had been hit with a fish. He couldn't believe that Madam Bones arrested his aunt in front of the entire neighborhood. It was just too funny, and amazing.

"Around five," Amelia said to the booking officer.

"Don't you want the collar?" the man asked, taking Petunia's fingerprints, and giving her a wipe to clean her fingers.

"No, it really isn't my jurisdiction, which is why I brought her here," Bones said, giving a brief report on what she heard and saw.

"We never wanted the little freak to begin with," Petunia spat, glaring at Harry like it was his fault she was such a bitch. "I should have drown you like Marge told me too," she hissed as she was cuffed and led away. "Don't ever come back. Do you hear me, you freak? Never darken our doorstep." With those words, a blood ward fell, unbeknownst to anyone.

"No doubt there was abuse going on there," the officer said, looking at Harry with some pity. The kid did look scrawny and underfed. "Where are you off to then? Do you have any other relatives?" the officer asked, hoping that he did. He hated it when they went into the system.

"I'll take Harry with me. I have an answering service you can call if you need him for anything. I check in once a week, but I'll check more often until this is resolved," she said, giving him the number to the person who took muggle phone calls for her. It was one of the muggleborn Aurors, who had not gone on strike. She paid him for each call. Not that she got many, but she did do work in the muggle world when cases bled over.

"We'll be in touch," the man said, taking the papers and putting them in a folder that had Petunia's name and arrest number on it. Petunia Dursley now had an arrest record. She'd never live that down.

"Come on, Harry, let's get you home," Amelia said, taking his arm and leading him to the outside. She went down an alley and disapparated to her home. She led him to the living room where she used the floo to call Susan home. "Now, Harry, tell me about Fluffy," she said, hoping to break him out of his funk.

"Shite," Harry said, knowing he'd have to tell her, but hoping it didn't get Hagrid into more trouble. With a deep breath, he told her all about his first year's adventure with the Philosopher's Stone.

Susan arrived as he was talking and sat fascinated with his tale. It wasn't anything she had heard. She was a bit wary when he said that Voldemort was sticking on the back of Professor Quirrell's head. She looked to her aunt in hopes that Harry was lying, and she'd call him on it. But her aunt was writing it all down.

"Did you tell anyone?" Amelia asked when Harry had finished.

"No, Dumbledore already knew," Harry answered like it was obvious.

"Next time something like this happens, contact me. Either by saying something to Susan or sending me an owl. If you ever learn the Patronus, you can send a message that way. It's the safest," she instructed, hoping the boy obeyed.

"Yes, ma'am," Harry said, glad that at least one adult listened to him. "Am I to stay here until school starts?" he asked, looking around the well-appointed room.

"Yes," Amelia said, getting up and waving the children to follow her. She showed Harry where he'd be sleeping and then where they ate. She introduced him to their house elf, which got him to tell her about Dobby, and how he had gotten Harry in trouble over the summer.

She sighed; did it ever end with this kid?