First half of the Prisoner of Azkaban
1993 Fall term
31st July 1993
Dear GG
I am in a bit of a pickle. You see, I made some very bad life choices about a dozen years back that needed me to go into hiding. It involved betrayal and a couple of deaths. I have found myself a really comfy gig as a family's pet rat. Regular meals, a warm pillow, and the occasional stint in Hogwarts Transfiguration class with one of the boys. Now I hear that the guy I framed and got sent to Azkaban in my place has escaped from that hellhole. He is definitely out for my blood. Help!
Wormtail
Summer 1993
Dear Worm
If I knew where you are hiding, I will write a note to a certain escapee with recommendations on how you should be dealt with. Ever read The Divine Comedy by some Italian Muggle named Dante? There is a special circle in Hell for folks like you. And were you sleeping with their little boys, you creep? I do have some lovely curses I can recommend to your friend from Azkaban.
GG
6th August 1993
Dear GG
We are in a bit of a pickle. You see, we were charged with looking out for a certain special youngster in Little Whinging on orders of the Chief Warlock. He has been having a rough time of it with relatives staying over. Now we hear that the lad has run away from home. Dumbledore will have us transfigured into hedgehogs. We cannot find the lad anywhere!
Figgy
Summer 1993
Dear Figgy
Good for the lad! About time he flies the coop. A boy needs to have the space to explore, see the bigger world. Join a gang of felons and thumb his nose up at the law. Go kiss a few girls (or boys). Have a life-threatening adventure or two. Leave him alone and he'll come home, hopefully.
Highly amused
GG
1st September 1993
Dear GG
I have landed a job as Hogwarts teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts. I hear it is cursed and I am not expected to last the year. Yes, I am desperate. The headmaster has kindly arranged to cover the costs of my monthly Wolfsbane Potion and have it brewed in-house by the resident Potions Master. Incidentally, this is the same bloke I almost savaged one full moon night back in our school days. Do you think he still bears a grudge? I mean, my friends were quite mean to him as the idiotic prats we were back then. Perhaps I should take your earlier advice and move to the States, but if I am teaching in Hogwarts, I will have a chance to meet my friend's son. I have not seen the lad since he was a few months old. I would have taken in the boy after his parents were killed but being a werewolf weighs against my bid for guardianship.
Moony
Fall 1993
Dear Moony
Beware of headmasters bearing gifts. With the curse, I suppose you might find yourself poisoned by your former victim or set up to savage another unsuspecting student. You might find yourself put down like a rabid dog by Christmas. Your friend's kid is going to be like any other kid his age, unless he has gone obscurial or turned werewolf. My advice to you will be to ditch that job post haste and move to the States or Russia, whichever rocks your boat.
You have been warned.
GG
15th September 1993
Dear Gellert
My DADA teacher is getting cold feet thanks to the curse. Boy looks like he is going to bolt for the Forbidden Forest anytime. My Potions Master has also reported that Remus seems to be terrified he was about to be poisoned via Wolfsbane and is gravely offended. Severus takes great pride in the standards of his potions. Then there is that business with Sirius having escaped from Azkaban and dementors floating about the place. The dementors are a far graver hazard than any escapee to the students. If I am right about Black, he would be halfway to Africa by now. The house-elves and Poppy have requested for additional chocolate thanks to the students having run-ins with our dementors. Someone claimed Harry almost got his soul sucked out in the Hogwarts Express were it not for the timely intervention of our latest DADA tutor.
Our previous Care of Magical Creatures master has retired. I thought of calling in Newt, but he and his wife had too many awkward questions about Potter, so I put Hagrid down for the lessons instead. I vetted the lessons to ensure no dragons, or the like will be involved. Before we know it, we have a Hippogriff attack on a student on the second day of class and angry letters coming from concerned parents.
Albus
Fall 1993
Dear Albus
Ah, the trials of academic life. At least you are not being bored out of your mind by the monotony of four stone walls. About the DADA tutor – did you just hire a werewolf? I do hope your students do not take it into their minds to aim for extra credit by producing a thesis on How to Kill a Werewolf – Muggle Myth vs Truth. That would be very awkward for everyone involved. It is on you if your DADA and Potions masters end up killing each other as I am sensing major bad blood between them. Do you have a truce between them? No? Hope you enjoy the drama. Dementors… which idiot allowed dementors to be assigned to guard a school? You do realize these creatures have a taste for souls, the younger the better. One would expect some of your students to be reduced to husks of their former selves even if they did manage to keep their souls mostly intact. Brr…
The issue with your escapee is easily resolved by turning over the bloke he is after. Ask your pet werewolf how he spent those full moon nights back in school. You might be surprised. Better still, have all your students bring mousers to school this term for extra credit. Get the caretaker to stock up on the rat traps and rat poison. Seriously, you need to relook at someone's trial. There must have been a mistake. He did have one before he got tossed into Azkaban, right? I am impressed he survived as long as he did. If his appeal fails, you are welcome make use of some of the spare cells here to hold him for the remainder of his sentence. I am dying for company. No one deserves dementors. I might like this Sirius Black chap.
Newt Scamander – I imagine the students would love his magical case of critters. Then Mrs Scamander can weigh in on the discipline side of things, lest her hubby decides riding Kelpies in the lake is good fun for the students. A pity you decided to go with the half-giant. They are not known for their brains and any twelve-year-old could outwit them. So you can expect your new Creatures master to be bullied by the pint-sized terrors you house in Hogwarts. Be kind to dumb beasts, including giants.
Sincerely yours,
Gellert
15th October 1993
Dear GG
We think we are losing our minds thanks to this year's schoolwork, or our friend has mastered some high-level spell that allows her to appear in multiple places at once. You see, our friend has signed up for almost all the subjects offered this year, including electives. She is driving us crazy with her studying and schedule. We see she has Arithmancy and Potions at the same time, which is bonkers as she cannot possibly attend both. Somehow it does not seem to faze Hermione.
The weird thing is that we saw her in the third-floor corridor from the fifth floor, and five minutes later, she is in the Potions class with us. There is no way she can get there that quickly. We cannot Apparate in Hogwarts even if we have a license. Moreover, Apparition is a messy thing if you get it wrong, that's why we must wait until we are of age to even try for the license. I have seen Splinching happen to my brother Charlie before. It is not pretty.
So how did she do it? I tried to ask her, but she is acting all cagey. Is it some dark spell, or does she have an identical twin like my brothers Fred and George?
Puzzled Weasley
Fall 1993
Dear Weasley
Secret passages and doorways. Clearly your friend has discovered a few shortcuts that are probably cursed with a Secretkeeping Charm to keep her from telling you about them. You lot are in Hogwarts, right?
GG
Fall 1993
Dear Albus
Did you just by any chance entrust a magical artefact known as Time-turner to a young witch not remotely of age in the name of academic pursuits? You reckless old coot! Do you know how messed-up things can get with folks skipping through time like there is no tomorrow? Even I did not meddle with time magicks.
Annoyed
Gellert
10th November 1993
Dear Gellert
Rest assured everything is under control. The student in question is the brightest witch in a generation. Moreover, there is a limit on how far back she can go with the Ministry approved device – not more than a few hours. She has also been briefed on the responsibilities and importance of not messing with events in the past. I trust her judgement.
My current concern is that the fugitive Black seems to be able to slip in and out of Hogwarts with ease. He has attacked the Fat Lady's portrait trying to gain access to the Gryffindor's common room. I believe his target is Harry. This is most worrisome. The presence of the dementors has forced a Quidditch match to be called off after the creatures attacked a Seeker – Harry again. Lad fell off his broom and almost died. He needed to spend the night in the Hospital Wing. I dropped by to find the lad rushing his DADA essay set by the Potions Master who stood in for my DADA tutor the day after the last full moon. Did I mention my DADA tutor this year is a werewolf? The topic set is how to identify a werewolf.
I really should have a word with Snape over his choice of topic, though I suppose that is also within the accepted syllabus. Feeling a headache coming on
Albus Dumbledore
Winter 1993
Dear Albus
Under control? As if! As I recall, we were both hailed as the smartest wizards of our generation in Hogwarts and Durmstrang respectively. Look where we have ended up after a series of dubious life-choices. You could have joined my quest for world domination, or at the very least talked me into setting up an educational institute for magical kids or discovered some wonder cure for all ills. Instead, you are stuck babysitting pesky teens and doing an awful job of it, while I am stuck in prison cell. Now you have a little girl loose with a Time-turner. I wonder how much damage one can pack into those few permitted hours.
I suppose prolonged Dementor-exposure has a detrimental effect on one's sanity. Might you consider that rather than your Golden Boy, the fugitive is after his dorm mates? Two-legged, four-legged, feathered, scaled – whatever. Or he might be just longing for bit of nostalgic warmth given that Hogwarts is in the cold Scottish Highlands. Maybe have the elves set up a cosy armchair by the fire and a cuppa of hot cocoa with his name on it. Mustn't forget the gingerbread cookies too.
The way things are forming up, I will not be surprised if you lost more students along the way. Do be careful of the presents – no better way for someone to sneak in a curse under the guise of Christmassy goodwill. Your Potions and DADA Masters remind me of ourselves back in the 1920-30s. All those sly digs and trying to get each other's attention. Are you sure the pair aren't a couple?
Crack out the mistletoe and see what happens with the pair over the season when you seat them next to each other. Maybe they might come clean and declare their feelings for each other, or they might have a duel to the death in the Great Hall. Whatever happens, it will liven up your Christmas dinner.
Merry Yuletide
Gellert Grindelwald
P.S. Please remind Auntie to send me gingerbread for Christmas. Have not heard from her for a bit. NO fruitcakes.
Author's Notes:
Grindelwald has a very dim view of traitors like Pettigrew. He has his own code and limits. Messing about with time is a line he is not willing to cross, more so if it seems to involve something as petty as attending classes. Snape and Lupin will make one very unlikely couple given their background and history. Grindelwald is just winding Albus up.