Disclaimer:
I solemnly swear that the literature and works of the Harry Potter Verse belong to JK Rowling, Bloomberg and Warner Bros. The only thing I own are the one-shot ideas that popped into my head and whatever OCs I would create for them. This is a work of pure fiction made solely for fun, constructive reviews will be welcomed, flames will be ignored. Any references to characters in real-life or fiction are purely coincidental. If I could make money out of my ideas, it would be nice...
Mischief Managed Damn It!
Title: Lily's Solution / Chapter 2
Posted Date: August 19 2020
Tags: Badass Lily Potter, Harry not going to Hogwarts, alternate schooling, Hogwarts standards failing, MOB Dumbledore, selective bashing / character death
"Here you go, Missus Potter." The healer dressed in muggle paramedics' clothing gave Lily a potion to deal with the side-effects of the torture curse and included a pain-relief potion to handle her muscles. "I have managed to fix up your bones and heal your wounds to stop the bleeding. You have a minor concussion from the blast and likely your hits by the dark lord but that is easily remedied. You would need to take these two potions to remove the remaining effects of the curse on you, and I would advise that you hold off on using your magic for at least 2 days."
"Thank you." Lily cursed quietly as pain shot through her body again from the movement. "Can you tell me what is going on now?"
"To a certain extent." The healer gave an apologetic smile. "We have officers canvassing the area for any Death Eaters and setting up perimeters to keep everyone in or out of the premises. Lieutenant Hawkes is currently getting teams to go through your house to retrieve anything of value for you and to catalogue the evidence. You will be heading to a safe-house in a few moments to recover properly and whatever you would need to help your son. I am sorry for your loss, Madam."
"Thank you." Lily sighed heavily as the potions went through her body, easing the cramps that came about from the torture curse. She took the moment to assess the situation she was in, and what to do afterwards.
She was currently in an ambulance that was given the 'Tardis' treatment, whereby the interior had been expanded by at least five times to accommodate multiple patients and a team of fully equipped staff to help people on the go. The staff were part of a group that Derrick brought together to help with the operation to deal with the threat of Voldemort and (to a certain extent) Dumbledore, either muggle-born, half-bloods or squibs who were either cast out of the magical world due to blood status or left the world for other reasons. From what little Lily could tell based on the limited interaction, Derrick seemed to be quite high up on the totem pole to command a fair amount of respect.
The adrenaline was only just starting to come down from her fight, making her a touch lethargic, but Lily had asked for a Pepper-up Potion to keep herself going until the night was well and truly over. She had no doubt that Dumbledore was going to send someone to Godric's Hollow or even come himself to confirm her death and likely grab Harry. The thought of Harry going to someone who worshiped the ground of Dumbledore or worse her sister was almost too much for her heart to handle, only the fact that Derrick had channelled Alastor Moody to ensure Harry's safety was enough to regain some composure. She did not know why Dumbledore would want to pull this stunt to the point of illegally suppressing their wills and gaining control of their vaults, but she was hoping that Derrick's plans were not necessary.
Turns out his paranoia was spot on, and on a side note, she now knew that one could actually listen in on the secret being given and proper map reading to bypass the Fidelius Charm without necessarily being present. With the dark lord captured, their traitorous friend arrested and god knows what else, it was just a matter of other plans to be carried out by Derrick to get her and Harry safe.
And speak of the devil, Derrick just appeared at the doors of the ambulance, looking a little tired but still sharp to deal with the situation.
"Lily." Derrick climbed into the ambulance and made his way to her. "How are you feeling?"
"Not as bad as earlier." Lily answered before wincing at the pain going down her spine again. "At least I do not feel like having electricity flowing in me anymore. I really hate that stupid torture curse."
"Let's hope that is the last time." Derrick turned to the healer. "Diagnosis?"
"She is suffering from the after-effects of the torture curse, but I have granted her the potion to reduce the trembling and ease the pain. She has exhausted a fair amount of magic fighting along with injuries from the cuts or explosions. She would need to hold off on using her magic for at least a couple of days." The healer reported to Derrick.
"I see, is she able to move around a little?" The healer gave a quick check before giving a nod.
"As long as she does not aggravate herself too much and take the potion to ease the pain, she ca move around a little, but I would prefer to bring her to the safe house for a full and proper check-up."
"Good, in that case prepare to move out." Derrick told the healer before turning back to Lily. "My team has gotten your furniture and belongings out of the house, while James's body is being tended to as we speak. We are ready to head out, do you require anything before checking up on Harry?" Before Lily could answer, static filled the interior from the radio by his belt.
[Lieutenant Hawkes, we have just detained 2 individuals claiming to know the Potters and are trying to force their way in.]
Derrick shot Lily a look before grabbing the radio and raising it to his mouth. "Identities of the two?"
[One Sirius Black and one Rubeus Hagrid. They are…] The speaker paused before continuing. [Sorry about that. Both of them are getting very rowdy and asking a few too many questions about the situation. Should we sedate them?] Something about the manner the man asked that question made Lily think that the word 'sedate' was a code word for 'permanent silencing' and made her look to Derrick for the answer.
"Negative, I will be on my way to meet them with a possible guest. Stand by." Derrick answered before replacing the radio and turning to her. "If you are mobile, maybe you can help me diffuse the situation. I do not know why Hagrid is here, but I can make an educated guess. And I really do not want Black on my case."
"Oh dear." Lily gave a wry smile. "Does the big military man slash hit-wizard fear the big black doggy?"
"This military man slash hit-wizard wants to hunt more bad guys instead of dealing with the mutt." Derrick answered with a straight face and a minor glare at the healer who was stifling his mouth to contain the laughter at their interaction. "Best to get this over with." Lily nodded and slowly got up, wincing from the pain going through her spine. In response, the healer brought forth the wheelchair and set her down in it while ignoring her protests. Derrick smirked at the pout she made, being reminded of the time she was under Madam Pomfrey's care while he gripped the handles and pushed her out by the ramp provided.
They did not take too long to get to the tent where Lily could hear arguments getting louder even with the drapes closed. Derrick paused at the entrance to look at her in the eye with a serious expression. "Lily, this might sound weird and cruel, but for the duration of this conversation, it might be best to pretend that James is currently fighting for his life in the ICU." Lily raised an eyebrow at him, drawing upon her years of experience with him to know that he was going somewhere with that statement risking her temper.
"I might understand Sirius Black being here considering as the decoy and Harry's godfather, he should have access to this location to get him to safety even if he does not know that Harry was nowhere near here. The problem is Hagrid, whom if I understand correctly does not know your location. That begs the question on how he knows where you are and why now."
"You believe that Hagrid was sent here by Dumbledore to collect Harry." Lily stated as a point of fact rather than a question.
"I do not mean offense to him, but Hagrid is gullible to the point that he would believe Dumbledore would conjure up rainbows from his beard if possible. Add in his loyalty to him, and you would have someone who would do whatever it takes to follow his orders. You being here alive and well might help to some extent but there is a small possibility that the old man could have told him to ignore you and grab Harry at whatever expense, or try to pull some law to force you to hand over Harry. I do not know about Black but he might not be in the best of mind with the stress. For now, I am focusing on getting Black cleared to ensure he does not get shafted by Dumbledore and ensuring Hagrid gets the message that you are the one to take care of Harry. If Black is on our side, the better." Derrick answered while checking his watch. "I have already alerted Crouch to arrive with his batch of Veritaserum, with any luck we can clear the air on this whole mess, make sure Sirius Black has the all clear and finalize your extraction."
"And if Dumbledore comes before that?" Lily asked knowing the tenacity of the old wizard.
"He is going to have a very unpleasant surprise." Derrick took a deep breath to steady himself before pulling back the flaps to enter, holding it to the side for her to enter.
"Lily!" The woman turned to find Sirius Black bound to a chair in one corner of the enlarged tent, with Rubeus Hagrid in a similar state at the other corner. Between them were ten men dressed in a style that Lily likened to people working in off-the-books black ops clothing, with the whole dark military slags, ski masks and automatic rifles in their arms with the addition of wand holsters. The weapons were equally split and pointed at the two individuals with clear intent to shoot if they tried to be aggressive. "Thank goodness you are safe! What happened to your legs! Where is Prongs and Prongs-let, and what the hell is going on here?!"
"Lily?" The half-giant blinked at her in surprise, looking almost comical in the manner he was bound to a chair looking a touch small for one his size. "You are alive? But Dumbledore said that you and James are dead." Lily held up a hand to get both of them to hold their words.
"First off, Sirius I am fine and Harry is safe, he was never around here to begin with. We got him elsewhere before this evening as we had suspected something was going to happen." Lily took a deep breath to steady herself. "James is currently undergoing surgery, he got hit by some of You-Know-Who's nastier curses. The healers are attempting to save him but it is touch and go." Sirius looked stricken at the news before growling.
"Peter, it has to be him! He is the only one who knows about the secret, he is the one who brought You-Know-Who here! I am going to kill him!"
"What are you rumbling about? You are the traitor Black!" Hagrid bellowed at Sirius with the soldiers raising their weapons and aiming them at the half-giant's head. "You are the Secret Keeper who led You-Know-Who to them, you tried to kill them! Dumbledore said so!"
"I am not the Secret-Keeper, Peter is the one! We switched the roles so that people would come after me instead! Dumbledore knows this, he cast the charm for us!" Black yelled back. "I can prove it once I have Peter's neck in my hands!"
"You need not do such a thing, Black." Derrick stepped forward to address the man, the soldiers taking a few steps back to let him through. "We currently have Peter Pettigrew in our custody, but we do need some confirmation from both sides." The sounds of static drew his hand to the radio and directed it to his ears, the message silent to all but him. Derrick spoke something to the handset before replacing it in the holster. "In fact, we are going to clear the air right now."
As though it was coordinated, the flaps of the tent were pulled back to let in Bartemius "Barty" Crouch Senior, Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, and Amelia Susan Bones along with two other Aurors. All of them stopped at the sight of the two bounded in the chairs and the soldiers taking point. Crouch merely gave a quick glance before setting his eyes on Derrick with a raised eyebrow.
"Quite the reception, Mister Hawkes. What is the occasion?" Derrick waved a hand to Lily who immediately informed them of the evening's events, including the bit that Derrick had captured Voldemort and placed in a secured location and leaving out the bit of possible conspiracies and James being dead to keep matters going. The Aurors, Sirius and Hagrid looked at Derrick with shock and disbelief with the exception of Alastor Moody who looked proud at his accomplishment. Crouch nodded at both the statement and him before turning to Sirius, his eyes narrowing at the young man in question. Derrick knew this was risky considering how Crouch had a vendetta against plenty of the darker-aligned Houses and that he did not trust Black as much as he did with James Potter despite serving as one of the Aurors under his command. During the few conversations they have, Crouch had often commented that he was expecting the other shoe to drop when it came to Sirius Black, how his family would always hurt the Magical World like Bellatrix Lestrange.
Hopefully this would help to lower suspicions.
"I think I can understand why you wanted me to bring the items. You wish to have it on record to ensure no discrepancies." Crouch stated it as a point of fact.
"There is that, and also tonight's events have other parties involved that may want to capitalize on the matter." Derrick flicked his eyes and tilted his head lightly in the direction of Hagrid to give the indication. Crouch nodded and turned to the Aurors with him.
"Alastor, Anderson. Both of you help to conduct this interrogation with Black. Bones, you and Carter do the same with Pettigrew. I want every scrap of information you can get, even where they take a dump if you must." Crouch ordered the Aurors.
"Carl, please direct them to Pettigrew. Get Philip and his team to oversee the interrogation. Ensure Pettigrew is restrained and stable enough for the potion. If there are others found during the interrogation, make sure they are secured in case our guests wish to conduct the interview on the field." Derrick ordered the soldier at the entrance who saluted and proceeded to take the two Aurors in question to the man. Turning to Lily, he pointed a finger to the entrance to talk to her in private. With a quick push of her wheelchair and a flick of the finger, Derrick brought up a silencing ward.
"Lily, this could take a while. Depending on how things go, I would suggest you contact Alice and Frank about the situation." Derrick told her as he gave her a slip of paper while glancing at the Aurors preparing and the two 'guests' looking at them trying to listen in on their conversation. "Here is my permission slip. I will get one of my crew to take you to the communication tent for you to use any means to get them on the call. If you have something specific, I can get one of the others to bring you your belongings."
"Can I tell Alice about James?" Lily gripped his hand holding the paper. In response, Derrick knelt to her level while placing his other hand on hers gently, his eyes looking at hers directly.
"You may tell Alice the truth if need be as long as the communication is secured. As much details as possible in the shortest time, we do need to get Harry out quickly." Lily took another deep breath to gather herself from the situation and nodded before being assisted by Derrick's appointed soldier to leave the tent, pausing the soldier to give Derrick a tired smile and nod. Derrick directed one of his own and brought the ward down in time for the Aurors to finish setting up the quill and about to administer the Veritaserum to Sirius Black.
"Everything okay on your end?" Crouch asked, having noted the interaction while keeping focused on the proceedings.
"Just a lot of craziness." Derrick let out a tired sigh. "I so need a drink after this night." The Aurors all nodded as one at this statement, knowing the night was still young in the sense of dangers. With a motion of Crouch's hand, the Dicta-Quill hovered in the air and prepared to write the statements. Looking about him, Crouch directed a hard glare at Sirius Black before opening his mouth.
"This is an on-site interrogation of one Sirius Orion Black regarding the events of the attack on the Potter Family at Godric's Hollow, October 31st 1981. The interrogator performing…"
~ooOOoo~
"Okay, we will do that. Hope to see you soon." Alice placed the communication mirror down on the table from which she was talking with Lily and leaned back in her seat, letting out a sigh of relief and sadness. Dumbledore may have insisted that the two mothers not have communication with each other, but they both agreed that it was a bad idea, with Lily providing the means to do so. Alice took a few seconds to ask the security questions and a random incident to make sure it was Lily before talking to her. The news she got was not what she had expected to say the least.
"Was that good news from Lily?" Frank asked as he was walked in with his mother who had just popped in for a visit to ensure their safety.
"Mostly, with some bad." Alice sat back up and looked at them in the eye. "You-Know-Who showed up at the Potter's safehouse in Godric's Hollow along with Pettigrew who was apparently one of the spies leaking information to the other side. He was also the Secret Keeper for them."
"Oh goodness!" Augusta gripped her cane tightly as she processed that. "Are they all right?"
"Lily made it out alive. James... He got killed by You-Know-Who while buying time for Lily to get away." Alice paused to grab Frank who looked ready to faint from the news. Ensuring he was in his seat with a glass of water provided by their elf, Alice continued with her news. "Lily and James had concocted a plan in the event their location got compromised either through capture or sabotage. They were to ambush the dark lord at the safehouse while Harry is placed somewhere else for safety. It was a good thing they did so as the ambush got out of hand to say the least."
"I see." Augusta let out a heavy sigh, feeling in her bones how another young member of a well-known family dying before her. "I sensed there is more to this than that."
"Indeed." Alice nodded with a grim expression. "It appears our fears on Albus are coming true. If you recalled our last conversation, Lily had noted the odd compulsions on the both of them, and went to the goblins to undergo a cleansing ritual that saw many potions pushed out of their bodies and charms removed. Then just a few minutes after the attack before she called me, Hagrid appeared at the safehouse and clearly surprised to find her alive. Currently Lily is spreading the idea that James is alive but fighting for his life with healers trying to save him."
"Hang on, Hagrid?" Frank raised a hand to stop her. "How would he know where they are, and for that matter, why him?"
"Lily believes that Hagrid may be there on Albus's orders to claim Harry from the wreckage, hence his surprise to find Lily alive because he was told specifically that James and Lily were dead. Lily had also found monitoring spells on Harry that she definitely did not place on him, and with what she had warned me about their orb-wills being tempered, it was clear that Albus wished to take control of Harry and by extension the estate." Alice paused as Augusta growled at the statement, not surprised by her words considering the battle-axe did not trust the old wizard much on certain matters and felt that he was too meddling. "Lily is planning to leave soon but wanted us to check ourselves, our orb-wills and to increase our own defences as the ones provided by Albus seemed to have been compromised."
'Whether by outsiders or by his intent.' Those words were not necessarily added considering whom they were talking to. Augusta seemed ready to drag the two to get them cleansed before heading to Albus to give her a piece of her mind. Only the bit on Neville needing protection stayed her hand, at least on the latter and for the time being. She did however take out her wand and began casting spells at the two to check for any spells that were placed on them.
"We might need to check Neville as well if Harry has the monitoring charms." Frank recovered from the news and got his wits together. "Any ideas on our protections?"
"For that bit, Lily managed to get help from Croaker and an old friend." Alice smirked at the news she had gotten. "She got some crazy ideas from Derrick."
"Croaker and Derrick?" Frank blinked before wincing. "Okay, now I am not surprised that Lily got away from You-Know-Who. If anything, I almost pity the bastard for going up against them. Those two are nothing but sadistic when it comes to protecting people."
"Who is this Derrick?" Augusta asked curiously as she noted the compulsions on Frank with building anger.
"A muggle-born Ravenclaw in our batch. Derrick Hawkes is one of the few that Lily associates on a daily basis outside of the usual groups, and is someone that you do not want to be on his bad side." Frank started explaining to his mother. "Imagine a younger Alastor Moody with a touch of Barty Crouch Senior's ruthlessness and Croaker's craziness, with a training regime to give senior Aurors a headache and with enough arsenal from both magical and muggle to fight an army on his own. That is the general idea for him."
"He is the hit-wizard who has been hunting down Death Eaters for the past few months and gift-wrapping a few for Crouch and Moody." Alice explained further to Augusta who now had an expression of acknowledgement as she nodded.
"I have heard of someone acting as a liaison for the muggle government going to the trouble of handing over particular Death Eaters to Barty with their written confessions with Veritaserum, Pensieve memories and a list of possible associates." Augusta finished with her work and stood up straight as she considered their description of the acquaintance. "Barty and Alastor often commented on the individual like he was their son or the equivalent. Albus though wants him prosecuted for attacking the Death Eaters."
"I think they would like that very much." Frank chuckled lightly. "Alastor gets along with Derrick due to their shared ideas on 'Constant Vigilance' and how Derrick took down a few Death Eaters early on during our time in school with a few homemade explosives. Barty on the other hand likes to talk to him regarding security and politics between the two sides of Britain, and how he hopes to bring him under his wing. Albus does not appreciate Derrick's philosophy of dealing with enemies, which is stupid considering the number of people dropping to the ground on our side." Frank paused with a thoughtful look. "Lily called Derrick some name that evidently the muggle-borns would know when we were in school. A MacGyver?"
"Angus MacGyver, after a character from a muggle show that likes to come up with crazy ideas using everyday items to get out of situations." Alice answered the expressions on their faces. "Lily showed me a few episodes of that show, and I got hooked on it."
"I see." Augusta shook her head at whatever lunacy was going on. "Never mind all of that, what is more important right now is getting you two cleansed of potions and compulsions, and checking on Neville while I am at that."
"How bad?" Augusta handed the parchment to them, before grabbing the fire-whisky and pouring herself a big shot to consume in one big gulp, uncaring of the flame that was coming out of her nostrils. That alone clued the couple that she was in a very bad mood from the results she had found. They leaned together to read the parchment, and in a few moments, Alice's hair started repeating the same manner as Lily's just a few months ago.
"That bloody goat wanking son of a bitch!"
"Eloquent as always." Frank winced at both the volume and her choice of words, unknowingly doing the same thing as Derrick at the reaction. Alice on the other hand was growling with the parchment getting crumbled in her shaking hands. That old wizard really was trying to get them killed with the type of spells on them, and given what Lily had told her, there was a high chance that Dumbledore would try to get his hands-on Neville since Lily had already secreted Harry elsewhere and was going to hide herself in the process.
"You two will return with me to Longbottom Hall." Augusta turned to them with fire in her eyes. "I will be turning the war wards up to their maximum lethality. No one will be allowed to get in without my express permission, and even if someone tries to breech them, there are still the old tunnels leading out to the hillside. Get your secret keeper over here while I prepare the house. With what you have told me, chances are good that your keeper is now in bigger danger."
"Okay, let's get to it." Alice hung back briefly to get the communication mirror while Frank went with his mother to collect their belongings. Both of them were mentally berating themselves for letting themselves get influenced by Albus to select another person to be their secret keeper instead of Augusta, and were both hoping that the situation could be salvaged before matters got too far to be stopped.
~ooOOoo~
"Well, this is a cluster-fuck." Those were the first words that came out of Alastor's mouth as Derrick, Crouch and the Auror sat down on the chairs provided in the tent while being served coffee (Alastor refused on grounds of it being tempered. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!) The other Auror named Anderson had apparated back to the DMLE along with Amelia and Carter to get the records written out and prepare for the future trials that would come from Pettigrew's testimony. Said person was still in the custody of Derrick and his men since they have stronger protections and more importantly, no sympathizers to Voldemort.
Sirius Black was cleared of all suspicions of being a traitor who brought Voldemort to the Potters; Crouch was nothing if thorough despite his bias, and Alastor demonstrated his paranoia while questioning Sirius, with Anderson acting as the third unaffiliated party who threw in the odd question that some would dismiss until later in life. They covered any and all they could think of, proving beyond doubt that Sirius was a decoy chosen to cover Peter Pettigrew, who was the real Secret Keeper who had betrayed that trust to Voldemort, and that Dumbledore knew very well about it.
Hagrid had listened to the interrogation and was clearly torn between the truth being spoken and his loyalty to Dumbledore. It probably did not help hearing how the old man had known about the identity of the keeper and kept it silent, and assumed that Lily and James were dead (they were only half right but they did not need to know it yet) and thus sent him to grab Harry. From the half-giant's interrogation, Derrick and Lily who had finished her call with Alice, heard what the old man had told him to do and where to bring him. The moment Lily heard that Dumbledore had planned to bring Harry to Petunia against her expressed wishes, Lily figuratively exploded on the half-giant.
It was with mild amusement that Derrick noted how every other men and himself in the tent took a few steps back as the half-giant who towered over everyone got cowed by a young woman who was in a wheelchair as she lit into him for trying to take her son away without bothering to get his facts straight and just blindly following Dumbledore without question. No matter if one is a hardened soldier, the head of the DMLE, or a paranoid Auror, no men would dare to take on a woman who was this high strung from a fight. It was a good seven minutes of scolding and biting remarks until Lily let up, and Hagrid looked like he wanted to just curl up on the ground and weep from the words issued. Sirius Black looked ready to crap his pants, the Aurors wanted to run away in terror, his men wanted to barricade themselves with whatever arsenal they have.
As for him, Derrick felt so glad that it was not targeted at him, and oddly enough, he felt a touch turned on at the sight of her going on like that.
Hagrid had departed after that, while Sirius stayed with Lily, partially enforced by Derrick to make sure she was safe and had someone familiar around her, something that nearly came to blows since Sirius wanted to see James without knowing that he was already deceased. Derrick had to grab the man's collar, pulled him down and stated clearly and in a deadly tone that Lily and Harry needed him more than ever and if he tried to leave without letting anyone know or bothering to protect Lily, Derrick would make sure he stays put in a cell.
Now Lily was making arrangements to get Harry with Sirius and a few of Derrick's men to assist with the extraction. Time was key and Derrick had a bad feeling that things was going to get worse if they dally too long.
"That is putting it lightly, Alastor." Crouch rubbed his eyes while accepting the coffee provided. His eyes glanced over to the copies of the interrogation performed on Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew, a big frown appearing on his face. "This is going to be a mess and a half." He then took a big gulp of the coffee, ignoring the scalding heat down his throat. "This is going to kill his mother." He muttered softly likely for his own ears, but the other two heard him.
"Apologies to you sir. I don't know the feeling since I am not a father, but I would think it is not something any should experience." Derrick gave his condolence with Alastor nodding in tandem. During the interrogation of Peter Pettigrew, he threw out names of all who had taken up the mark, one of whom was a shock to the Aurors and an unpleasant surprise to the father in question. Crouch looked at the two with thinning lips before shaking his head with a sigh.
"I appreciate the concern, but the moment he took up the mark, he ceased being my son." Crouch took another gulp of the drink. "One thing I will at least make sure is to pump him with Veritaserum to understand why."
"Might as well do the same for every one of those murdering bastards." Alastor stated as a matter of fact with Derrick nodding to give his approval. "We already have Peter Pettigrew interviewed; we need to get the rest so that we can clear out the mess."
"I am reluctant to suggest this, but have this situation as an example to push for Veritaserum to be used for all the Death Eaters and perhaps future trials." Derrick voiced out his opinion. "As bigoted as it sounds, sound out the idea that Voldemort" - Derrick barely managed to restrain rolling his eyes at their flinching of the name; he had already told them that with the wards and heavy-duty silencing charms along with the special taboo-lifting charms applied to the entire area, they could afford to say his name out loud for convenience - "has attacked a pure-blood family with the intent to end a family line. Point out the bit about him being hypocritical by going against what he preaches on saving pure-bloods along with his crimes. I do have something to help out with that if need be."
"Speaking about the Dark Lord, what are you doing with him?" Alastor turned to him, both eyes set on him.
"He is currently enjoying his hospitality in Tartarus Hel, a prison built to house some of the worst dark wizards around." Derrick answered as he sipped his drink. "Unlike Azkaban, we do not rely on the Dementors. We have a mixed force of wizards and squibs, all trained in the muggle military. At the same time, our prison utilizes the latest technology for security, a new branch of magic and a touch of old school methods to ensure that anyone even thinking of breaking in or escaping will be having a big headache. Add in the fact it is in a secret location that has been charmed to stop us from telling anyone, and it is pretty well defended."
"Will that be enough?" Crouch's question brought a snort from Derrick.
"There is no such thing as a perfect prison, no matter what people claim. It just means no one has yet to discover a way to break in or out of it. Azkaban may have Dementors, but it has been proven with Voldemort that with the right incentive, the Dementors could turn on you. Tartarus Hel utilizes different methods to ensure the prisoners stay there and have their movements tracked while maintaining some humanity, and in the event of a prison breakout, there are contingencies to stop them from leaving, even if it means gassing the entire facility."
"Gassing?" Crouch blinked.
"I believe the lad means to unleash a gas or an aerosol draught to either knock the prisoners out, or make the prison a giant graveyard." Alastor answered while nodding in approval at the precautions. It was as cruel and arguably inhumane as it was ruthlessly efficient if one had to ensure the worst of the worst do not leave. Crouch tilted his head before nodding his own head at the method.
"But for Voldemort's case, there is the added issue of him claiming to have achieved immortality." Derrick continued while the two Aurors choked on their drinks at the words. "He was very confident that he would outlast all of us to get Britain under his thumb. For any other wizard, I would just dismiss such a claim, but with him, there is a good possibility that he has done such a thing."
"So, what do you have up on your board of plans?" Alastor raised an eyebrow. "I highly doubt you could hope to throw him into a cell and forget the key."
"Considering how Voldemort boasted about it, I can deduce a few methods of him gaining immortality. Given his mindset, he would go for the biggest safeguards around." Derrick swirled his drink before continuing. "A part of me is hoping that he is just bluffing, because if he were to go for those types, it just proves how depraved humanity can become given the right incentive."
"You can't stop bastards like him from sprouting, no matter how much one tries." Alastor commented as he drank from his flask. "Least we can do is to ensure the next bastard does not get ideas to be even worse."
"I suppose so." Derrick sighed.
"Now for a question not really related to this." Alastor placed his flask down on the desk. "When will you release the news of James Potter's death?" Derrick managed to maintain his expression while glancing at Crouch who raised an eyebrow at him.
"It was kind of obvious to say the least." Crouch shrugged. "If it was you doing the explanation, I would probably have believed it. Lady Potter is a good story teller, but lying under pressure and pain is not her strong point. Hence why I wanted Moody to conduct the interrogation with Black as people would likely believe him more with his paranoia, while getting Bones to do the same with Pettigrew ensures that she can be believed along with not checking on you. Furthermore, there was a body bag I saw on the way in and judging from the remains of the front pouch and your action of keeping Black with Lily, there was a good chance it was James Potter."
"And if I know your method kid, you wanted to keep Lily and Harry safe, hence the cover-up." Alastor took over while looking at Derrick. "I recognized your traps and Lily's story checks out. You did that based on Hagrid's appearance."
Derrick let out a heavy sigh while scratching his hair, mentally grimacing at the grit in his hair. He figured of the people in the tent, these two would be able to identify the flaws well enough. "I am not sure how much I am allowed to tell you due to the oddities. Lily had told me about the situation of her family and the Longbottoms going into hiding because of Voldemort coming after them." Derrick looked at the both of them in eye grimly. "I can say that Dumbledore has a very unusual interest to get the two families 'protected' by isolating them from contact and to keep a firm grip on whatever information they could get without letting them leave the country. Based on the information granted, Dumbledore is fixated on the children of the two families."
"What does Dumbledore want from the kids?" Crouch frowned at the oddity of the words.
"Again, I am not sure what to tell you. Lily could tell you two more." Derrick paused before nonchalantly adding "Or perhaps a certain Unspeakable Boss man could give you a clue?" Judging from the smirks from both, they got the message. "In any case, Dumbledore has evidently tried to gained control of the Potter estate with… questionable means and is looking to Harry as a possible pawn, which is why Lily is trying to spread the story of James being alive long enough to get the both of them out of the country. I am not too certain if the same could be said about the Longbottoms, but I do know that certain artefacts belonging to them have gone missing around the time they went into hiding, curiously that was when Dumbledore was dealing with the Potters."
"Damn it, Albus." Alastor took another swig of his flask only to get annoyed at the lack of liquid left in it. With a shake of his head and a flick of his wand, Alastor checked the coffee before consuming it, ignoring the minor glare from the other soldier guarding them, much to Derrick's private amusement. "I might know enough about the possible reason for placing them in isolation, but the bit on getting to their sons and their estates, that is a first."
"Indeed." Crouch looked at Derrick in the eye and asked in a serious tone. "I may not be a fan of Albus myself, but you do realize that such an accusation would be very dangerous to a man like Albus Dumbledore, and you would need like a crap-ton worth of evidence to prove it."
"Well then…."
'THUMP!' The cups jingled and warbled as a thick folder of papers hit the table with Derrick smirking lightly. "Good thing I come prepared with the first folder. Moody has his constant vigilance, I have mine." The two Aurors blinked at the thickness of the folder matching the height of the cups provided before looking to each other.
"I am too old for this shit." Alastor announced before grabbing the drink and gulping the entire lot. Crouch merely introduced his hand to his face.
[BZZT! Lieutenant Hawkes, we have a situation at the perimeter entrance.] The radio at Derrick's hip blared, startling the two Aurors and prompting Alastor to bring out his wand. Derrick grabbed the radio and brought it to his mouth. "What is the matter?"
[We have an intruder at the entrance trying to stop Lady Potter and Sirius Black from leaving. It's… Well, a man who looks like Gandalf with serious colour blindness and questionable dress sense.] That got all the men in the tent looking at each other with blank faces.
"Dumbledore?" Derrick quirked an eyebrow.
"Dumbledore." Crouch and Alastor answered at the same time.
"On my way. Make sure he does not use his wand." Derrick got up, grabbed the folder, shrunk it to his pocket and made his way out quickly of the tent, followed shortly by Crouch and Alastor. "Something tells me that you guys might get some of your questions answered soon if Dumbledore pushes Lily's buttons. Try to act natural as though she had already told us about them or something." The two guests nodded as they followed him to the entrance, not that they needed directions considering the sounds of altercation were close by and getting louder towards their arrival.
"Lily, you must listen to reason."
"Me listen to reason? That is rich coming from you who is ignoring everything I have been saying and trying to blame the wrong people!"
"Bet you did not like how I am here huh, you bloody goat? Hoping that I get arrested for playing decoy!"
"Please my boy, I am just…"
"What is going on here?" Derrick announced their arrival as the trio came across Lily and Sirius Black getting accosted by Albus Dumbledore with the soldiers keeping them apart and aiming their weapons at the two males of the group. The old wizard was as usual wearing robes with eye-watering colours and seemed to be trying to get close to Lily only to be stopped by the soldier he had assigned for her protection. The old wizard frowned at his arrival before getting surprised at the added appearance of Alastor Moody and Barty Crouch, both of whom were looking at him with narrowed eyes.
"Mister Hawkes." Dumbledore straightened himself while directing an expression that Derrick had dubbed the 'Furious Grandfather Disappointed in You' at him. "What is the meaning of this? Why are all these people here?"
"Not that it is any of your business, but this is an operation to deal with Voldemort and his Death Eaters." Derrick answered while keeping his eye on the old man's eyebrows to prevent mind reading. "We have managed to capture the Dark Wizard Lord Voldemort and one of his spies, Peter Pettigrew, while eliminating a couple of other Death Eaters in the vicinity. The two of them are now in custody and awaiting their trials, courtesy of her Royal Majesty."
"How is that possible?" The wizard turned to Lily with narrowed eyes. "Lily, you told him the location?!"
"I did not tell him, but it is a good thing I got his help, considering that it was thanks to him and his crew that we survived and You-Know-Who is getting karma introduced to him." Lily growled. "Not to mention getting proof that Peter was the traitor among our group. No thanks to you."
"Where is Harry? We must get him to safety." Dumbledore brushed it aside, making Derrick, Alastor and Crouch narrowed their eyes at his words and change of topic. "And why did those men have to be killed? They could have been brought back to the light and be redeemed."
"Those men have tried to take hostages when they realized the master was gone and they could not leave the area." Derrick answered while keeping an eye on Sirius who looked ready to tear into Dumbledore. "Considering there were innocents involved, it was an easy choice to eliminate them. As for Harry, why on earth would you want to know about him?"
"Because he is The-Boy-Who-Lived, and he must be hidden to keep him safe. I suggest you give him to me and I will deliver him to a muggle family to grow up without fame, so he cannot be influenced by it…" Dumbledore started talking only to be interrupted by an incredulous Derrick who clearly had enough of the bullshit sprouted by the old man.
"What the fuck are you talking about? Boy who lived? The kid was nowhere near Godric's Hollow when Voldemort showed up," Derrick stepped forward with a glare that could be felt even from behind his shades. "The plan was made such that Voldemort would get ambushed while the kid is safe in a secret location under strong protections."
Dumbledore blinked in confusion and his glasses stopped twinkling, "What do you mean he wasn't here, my charms on…"
"You mean the charms James and I removed from Harry and placed on his toy bear? I knew you have something to do with them considering I did not recognize the spells on him. As to where he is, he has been spending the past few days at my friend's home, safe from Voldemort and quite evidently yourself." Lily suddenly launched from her wheelchair and delivered the mother of all slaps at Dumbledore which caught him on his left cheek, causing his glasses to go flying, "You think I'd allow you to take him to my sister's house? I don't bloody think so, you wrinkly old fart!"
"Lily, you know that…"
"That is Lady Lily Potter, of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter!" Sirius Black demanded sharply, displaying the teachings and mannerisms of a pure-blood. "You have best answer the question properly, Albus Dumbledore." That clearly rankled the old wizard, and Derrick subtly placed a hand on his sidearm as he watched the old wizard's arm twitched to where his wand would be.
"What do you mean by that?" Dumbledore then gasped as Lily raised a hand with a certain ring on her finger.
"James Potter had taken up his ring as Lord Potter, with Lily becoming Lady Potter. This means she now wields the same level of power as James to demand satisfaction." Derrick spoke while mentally enjoying the look on Dumbledore's face. "You know, it is funny. James and Lily were checking on some matters while getting their respective positions, and then they found out about their orb-wills being held back by a hand-written will that gave directions and instructions contrary to their wishes. A good thing they went to check, they got that forgery removed. Last I heard, the goblins are not happy and they intended to demonstrate their dissatisfaction to the person who had dared to lie and attempt to steal from their clients and the bank itself." Derrick then let out a blood thirsty smirk. "You wouldn't happen to know about that, do you? After all, you were a key witness to their wills and the one who executed the Fidelius Charm."
Dumbledore gulped before turning to Lily, making an effort to ignore Derrick and the others staring at him "Lily, it was for the Greater Good for James to not take up the position as head of house. I understand this is a trialling time what with James being injured, but you should not need to burden yourself with that power. Your family must be kept safe, not wandering about the ministry where they could become a target. Voldemort is not dead and Harry must be kept safe. Now I suggest we grab James and Harry, then get you all to come with me, and I'll hide you in a new location…"
"Wow, he is really thick." One of the soldiers muttered deliberately loud while another twisted his head to cough, notably with the word 'bullshit' evident in between. The other soldiers managed to maintain some form of decorum even if it was clear that they were struggling to smirk.
"Dumbledore, you have overstepped your boundaries for this night." Lily growled not unlike a tiger, her hair beginning to stand up from the static of her building magic. "You insist on keeping your secrets until we forced them out of you, you try to override our orb-wills and then attempt to kidnap my son. What the fuck are you planning to do to him, make him an idol for your precious prophecy?!"
"Lily, I would prefer to have this conversation in private." Dumbledore glanced at all the soldiers and more importantly at Crouch and Alastor. Lily was not going to have that.
"A little late to do that since you are doing this in the open. Derrick already knows about the prophecy that got us and the Longbottoms into hiding, and it is his ideas that had helped to capture Voldemort and one of his spies in one night, while yours seems intent to get us killed and take control of Harry!" Lily screamed at him with spit coming out in her rage, "and it is a good thing James and I have listened to him since you have a bloody fixation on my Harry! For all I know, either you wanted us all dead, or you wanted Harry to live just enough before getting himself killed in a fight with Voldemort."
"Indeed." Crouch spoke for the first time with hard eyes on Dumbledore. "Mister Hawkes has already informed me on some aspects of this operation, and he made sure to relay the important bits that apparently you did not bother to inform anyone, vital information that could have helped end this war faster. This conversation just confirmed a few things that I was not certain of in the beginning." He turned to Derrick in a manner that spoke of snubbing Dumbledore. "I understand that the parliament from the muggle government is open to aiding us?"
"More than that." Derrick took out a slip of paper that bore a particular of arms which made the muggle-borns in the group straightened themselves up and Lily to softly gasp in recognition. "This is a Royal Decree written out by Her Majesty in accordance to the treaty that was written out in the late seventeen hundred. In effect, she is granting you cart blanche to apprehend and interrogate Death Eaters with truth serum. She understands that plenty of them are high up in society with deep pockets and big connections, and knowing that you wish to end this war quickly, she has this written out to ensure you can do so without interference." The fact that Derrick emphasized the last word while flicking an eye at Dumbledore spoke greatly of whom he felt was the biggest factor for the duration of this war. "All she asks is that anyone you arrest must be granted a trial, be given the truth serum, and be asked a series of questions. Those who are guilty of crimes like rape and murder are to be eliminated. No exceptions." The smiles on Crouch and Alastor could be described as predatory like sharks or wolves that had scented blood, while the paling face of Dumbledore made it looked like he wanted to bend over and suffer a heart attack.
Was it bad that Derrick wanted that to happen at the moment?
"You cannot just arrest anyone you want!" Dumbledore said and then added, "Besides they need to be shown the light, and turned back from the dark. It's for the Greater Good." It certainly said something about him that everyone around him collectively rolled their eyes outwardly or inwardly at the statement.
"You're a god damn idiot!" Derrick said as he listened to this man talk, "One doesn't 'play nice' with terrorists. You put them down hard if they resist, or incarcerate them for life if they surrender. That much the mundane, first-generations and even the Squibs you guys throw out understand them perfectly."
"But… How can they be led back to the light if we do that?" Dumbledore blurted out, angry at the man who was once a student of his establishment disrespecting him all the way.
"Like I said before, you're an idiot. You worry so much for the attackers, yet care so little for the victims. Now, I don't think you're needed here," Derrick said as he turned to Sirius and Lily. "Right then, time is wasting. We have best to get you out of here to our safe-house, from which you can gather Harry."
"Perhaps I can come along?" Dumbledore tried to step forward only for the soldiers to get between him and Lily.
"Sir, you have been told multiple times that you are trespassing and harassing the lieutenant's guests." The soldier closest to Dumbledore gripped his gun tighter while answering him slowly. "You do not have authorization to come here and do whatever you want. And you have disrespected our officer. This is your final warning." For added effect, the men around them cocked their weapons and aimed at Dumbledore as one.
Dumbledore frowned before turning to Lily, "Voldemort cannot be killed, he has done several rituals to prolong his life."
"We know that already. Derrick has already captured him and has ideas on what was done to prolong his lifespan." Lily replied in a very deadpan tone, something that made Sirius having an unsuccessful attempt to contain his smirk. "Considering his track record, I say that he has a good chance at getting that knowledge. Now, please leave, Dumbledore. You're no longer welcome on any property owned by the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter, as of this day." Dumbledore clearly wanted to say something but her ring shone brightly to signify magic agreeing with her decision while the soldiers all took one step forward with the weapons still pointed at him.
"Very well, Lily. I will leave you alone for now. Clearly the stress is getting to you, I will return when your mind has calmed down." Dumbledore declared in the disappointed grandfather tone before twisting and apparating away. Sirius let out a sigh and opened his mouth when Derrick held up a hand to keep him quiet.
"Men, Charms Check." Derrick pulled out his wand and cast a spell that produced a mist settling on him, making his body glow a light green. The other soldiers did the same to themselves while Derrick turned to Lily. "I need to check for tracking charms, so hold on." Sirius started before palming his face, muttering that he should have thought of that. Derrick did the charm and frowned as Lily glowed a dull orange along with parts of the wheelchair and Sirius's coat.
"I thought he gave up too quickly." Derrick removed the charms before pulling out an amulet and handing it to her. The sound of glass breaking appeared briefly when she touched it before the amulet glowed green. "There, done. You do the same, Black."
"Good idea, Hawkes. Constant Vigilance!" Alastor yelled out his favourite phrase as he cleared himself of tracking and listening charms.
"Indeed." Crouch looked at the Royal Decree in his hand before turning to Derrick. "I will push for the trials and follow your idea about getting the Veritaserum on those Death Eaters. You might need to get young Harry Potter out of the country considering how desperate Albus is pushing for him."
"I will be delivering Lily and Black to the safe-house, from there they can collect Harry." Derrick nodded before frowning and leaning forward to speak quietly. "Barty, this might be an odd idea, but regarding that particular name in the list we talked of earlier, best to get him out of the way as soon as possible. If we got the names from Pettigrew, chances are good that Dumbledore knows them as well from his spies. And considering the idea of getting those Death Eaters out for good…"
"You think he might try blackmailing me?" Crouch gripped the document a little tighter. Derrick nodded in tandem with Alastor. Crouch sighed heavily before looking back at him. "You might have a point; I should get it over with before Albus tries something to forestall us."
"I will be with him, Hawkes. Best to help the lass get the boy out." Alastor placed a hand heavily on Derrick's shoulder. "If you can get a message to the Longbottoms, tell them to stay hidden until granted the all clear." Derrick nodded in reply and watched at the two Aurors went out of the entrance and apparated back to the Ministry. He then turned to face Lily and Sirius.
"You two go and grab a bite. My men are finishing up, we will move together to the safe-house, and then we grab Harry." Derrick pointed to Sirius. "I need you to check through some of the items from the house, there might be something that Dumbledore may have wanted to grab when he came. Anything that could have been used to avoid this attack, make a list." Sirius hesitated before moving towards Godric's Hollow accompanied by two of Derrick's soldiers. Derrick paused to lean towards Lily. "Lily, when we get to the safe-house, you might need to break the news to Black on James's situation. Whether it is when you get to the safe-house or after getting Harry. I would leave it to you."
"I know." Lily seemed to slump in her wheelchair. "I just do not know if I can handle this long enough."
"Hang on for Harry then. We grab him and get out. Barty and his Aurors should be able to get those Death Eaters into cells and hopefully Dumbledore off our tails." Derrick placed a hand on her shoulder briefly before straightening up. "Let's get moving."
