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 3
Posted Date: 30 November 2021
Tags: Badass Lily Potter, Harry not going to Hogwarts, alternate schooling, Hogwarts standards failing, MOB Dumbledore, selective bashing / character death
The sounds of the wards chiming woke Augusta immediately, her wand snapping into the palm of her hand as she got up from her bed and made her way to the staircase, her eyes slightly red from the lack of sleep in an effort to keep watch for the night. Lightly shaking her head to rid of the cobwebs in her head, she resorted to using a charm to 'lightly' knock her head a bit, the suddenness helping to push away any traces of sleep. As she reached the top of the landing, her son came around the corner with his wand at hand and alert for danger, his messed-up hair and five-o'clock shadow being an indicator of the amount of sleep he had. With a nod to one another, they both began descending the staircase with thoughts racing in their heads.
When they had left their safehouse, Augusta had decided to take a detour to Gringotts to ask the goblin healers to do a thorough scan of the family and hopefully remove whatever was placed on them. It was rather disheartening to find her suspicions come true as the goblins detected the same spells she did and more, a part of her wondering how on earth were any of them able to function with the number of compulsions or memory wipes placed on them. There were also diagnostic and tracing spells done on Neville that were not from any of them, driving their paranoia upwards at the thought that the man many deemed to be a Leader of the Light was certainly more insidious than expected. Not helped when Augusta decided to check with their bank manager in hopes of distracting herself, only to get a bigger headache when informed that the headmaster had been making enquires supposedly on their name to find items in their vaults.
After four hours' worth of sorting through the bank records, potions purging and healing, and a firm recall of every item or Galleon taken from their accounts without permission, a particularly raging Augusta had returned with Frank, Alice and Neville to the manor while waiting for their secret keeper to return from wherever he was hidden, but Frank had grown worried at the lengthening period of time the man did not answer the call or come forth despite having called him at the bank. Alice decided that more backup was needed and went to contact Lily for assistance, which would arrive in the morning due to all that had been happening at her location. Lily did pass on the news of Albus attempting to make her bring him to Harry and renounce her power as Lady Potter to gain control, and currently they were in another location before they could move. To give them some time to compress the knowledge and to distract them, Augusta had to manhandle them into taking a break and got one of the house elves to look after Neville while she took the night watch to guard the manor, taking the time to consider all that she knew until she reluctantly went into Morpheus's embrace roughly a couple of hours later.
Augusta had misgivings about the whole arrangement of hiding the two families without any proper support or means of communication, not to mention how Albus was fixated on the two families to the point of obsession, constantly keeping tabs on them, controlling the path of communication, or more importantly, checking on the children in manners that were close to invasive. She did not agree with the precautions that were honestly lacking in security and open to sabotage, but she could not do much to aid them when they were losing numbers and with the supposed prophecy over their heads, the couples had no choice but to trust Albus.
At least it seemed that way, now she found out that Albus did not even give them the choice at all and evidently manipulated matters to get what he wanted, quite likely the deaths of the children so that the prophecy would be considered complete by rendering Voldemort mortal and leaving him open for whoever to kill, at least that was how she interpreted it when she managed to get Frank to tell her. Furthermore, it seemed that the man had been interfering in matters that were downright illegal; interference and falsification of wills, the attempted intrusions of vaults, compulsions on lords, and possible line theft and extinction! She knew the old man was a manipulative bastard, but this was a new low. And he dared to attack her Frank, daughter-in-law, and grandson!
If the wards were indicating Albus's arrival to try and get them out of the safety of the family wards, she was going to introduce to him the old Viking method of castration, passed down the Longbottom family for generations!
Augusta and Frank made their way to the bottom of the stairs and casted revealing spells as a precaution, even if it should not be necessary since the wards would indicate the presence of others aside from the family members, then made their way to the front door where the chiming was coming from. That at least seemed to indicate a non-aggressor as the wards would have indicated as such, but they did not let their guard down as they reached it. Frank took a peek through the scrying mirror by the cabinet before blinking.
"Huh, fancy that." Frank muttered as he looked upon the face of one Derrick Hawkes dressed in what appeared to be the muggle military uniform and waiting patiently outside with a duffer bag to be let in. As though he could sense Frank's presence, Derrick looked up to where he thought was the other end of the glass and raised an eyebrow, clearly knowing that he was now being watched.
"Who is that?" Augusta asked without looking away.
"Derrick, the guy we told you about last night." Frank answered as he looked back to the door. "Looks like Lily sent him as our reinforcement."
"How does he know where we are?" This was a valid question since Augusta had never seen him before.
"I had invited him and Lily once to the manor during the holidays in fourth year to demonstrate the type of housing wizards and witches lived in. You were on your Wizengamot duties at the time." Frank answered.
"Is it him though?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Only one way to find out." Frank mentally lowered the wards a little to allow brief access before opening the door and pointing the wand at Derrick. "What happened in fourth year, around the middle of February? What did we or did not do in that period?"
"That is a loaded question with plenty of answers." Derrick remarked while shrugging. "Let's see... top of the list would be you FINALLY asking Alice out on a proper date to Hogsmeade. You were practically falling to bits until Lily, Sebastian and I smacked your head and dump you into the carriage with Alice, then at the village the others followed you around and accidentally dumping salamander guts on both of you, resulting in the both of you hexing the crap out of them with Lily helping for good measure since she had a bet on you guys having your first kiss on that date, and lost 5 Galleons on that. There was also the time that you were helping me deal with some of the bullies who thought the Dork Lord (Frank sniggered at that) was the next big thing and tried to bully the Hufflepuff juniors. There was the second week James Potter trying to pass the excuse that his broomstick destroyed his Transfiguration homework, which was really stupid given there was no quidditch practice or match for that period. There was also the time when Black got detention for trying to sneak into the girls' dorms, partially because I went to warn the girls in advance and they set a trap for him. He screamed really high when they hexed the bollocks out of him and removed all the leg hair slowly without the help of numbing charms." He paused with a shudder before giving a smile that got Frank on edge, not because it was that of a killer but one that reminded him of the Marauders wanting to play a prank. "That was also the month that Alice tried on that new set of clothing that Lily introduced to her that made you comment on, I quote, her nice pair of..."
"Nope!" A hand slapped itself on Derrick's mouth while Frank spluttered with a red face. "Definitely you, no need to say anymore!" Derrick merely gave an eye smile while waving his hand at Augusta with the air of one used to this.
"Frank Connors Jeremy Longbottom." The man in question winced as Augusta raised an eyebrow with the tone of a mother about to scold and perhaps spank her child, no matter how old said child was, while using his full name. "Firstly, this is your companion that you spoke of? And secondly, what did you comment on dear Alice regarding her clothes?"
"Answer to the first question, it is him, since he knows of the events and the only one who wants to tease me on that situation." Frank removed his hand and directed a glare at Derrick who merely grinned as his answer. "As for the second, it is not important. He is just being a dick." The man in question has his grin turned to a smirk as he watched Frank get scolded by Augusta for his language.
"Okay, ruin my fun, why don't you? But before we can continue, I need to ask my question." Derrick looked serious for the moment with his hand on that muggle weapon, ready to draw it out. "What happened in sixth year, October the Fifth, after breakfast?" Frank sighed at that question, not that it was hard to remember, rather it was hard to forget what happened on that day.
"Death Eaters attacked Hogsmeade, drawing a fair number of the professors to fight them. We were stuck in the castle as part of procedures to protect the students. That was when a few of the older students who were evidently spies for You-Know-Who started to attack others in different areas. Four Seven Year Slytherins, three Sixth Year Ravenclaws, one Gryffindor Fifth Year by the name of Malcom Creed." Frank started to answer with a heavy tone. "The Slytherins took over a part of the dungeons before taking anyone in the area as their hostage. The Gryffindor and Ravenclaws took over the tower and barricaded themselves before attacking anyone in sight."
"James, Sirius, Lily and I went with Professor Flitwick to deal with the Gryffindor and Ravenclaws while you dealt with the Slytherins with Slughorn as support. I know that on our end, we had three dead and two hospitalized before we could take the aggressors down. For your part," Frank looked at Derrick in the eye. "The hostages were injured but were alive, the few women taken had their clothes torn but thankfully untouched since you got there on time. The Slytherin attackers however were in a state that a few had commented that they ought to be put out of the misery with what you have done to them. Their lords called for a full Wizengamot trial and tried to send you to Azkaban or subjected to the Dementor's Kiss. You systematically torn their case down with pure logic, hard facts and Penseive evidence, not to mention pointing out that others would revolt against them. It ended with you paying a tenth of the fine that they wanted to make you pay (Which you did with a smile in an instant), while Albus tried to get you expelled for excessive force but failed because the other families of the girls you saved stood up for you and forced him to back down if he wanted to hang on to his positions."
"I have heard about that incident. Did they not get reduced sentences?" Augusta recalled the trial that she was unable to attend due to her monthly check-ups at the hospital.
"They had their sentences reduced to two years in low security cells thanks to bribes from their lords, and then they got released a couple of months later on grounds of good behaviour. There was a great racket back in school when that bit of news was released." Frank paused to look at Derrick. "Funny thing happened within that week, 2 days after their releases and 1 day before returning to Hogwarts; they all ended up dead under mysterious circumstances with injuries that no one could replicate. Again, the purebloods and Albus tried to accuse you for 'conspiracy of murder' but failed since you had a clear alibi in each of their incidents with witnesses and your magical signature did not match, there was no evidence that you had contracted anyone to attack them, and each of them clearly died in different manners. Rather convenient though, considering how you were working on something that involved doubles, concepts of time travel, and one of the spells you created for the Aurors at Crouch's request had similarities with Langston's death at the alley." Derrick merely gave a smile that seemed almost serene in a manner which sent chills down Augusta's spine. It seemed she finally understood what Frank meant of the young man being a cross between Alastor Moody and Bartemius Crouch; he was certainly ruthless if it was done around his sixth year without anyone able to point the finger at him.
"Correct answer, although I will also point out that I can neither confirm nor deny that accusation, since as you pointed out, I have clear alibis in all those instances. May I have permission to enter your home?" Frank pointed to Derrick's duffel bag.
"Oh this?" Derrick pulled open the zip to reveal what appeared to an entire arsenal in the enlarged space, along with some odd bottles filled with powder or liquid. "Sometime to help with the defences."
"Do you honestly believe that the war wards are not enough?" Augusta asked with a touch of annoyance that this young man underestimated the power of the manor wards.
"I rather believe in overkill. Better to be prepared and not need it, than to be in a situation that needs an item that could have been prepared beforehand." Derrick zipped it up and lifted it off the ground. "As Alastor would say, constant vigilance." Augusta let out a humph at that statement, that would be something the crazy Auror would say. With that, the two Longbottoms went back in and to the side to allow Derrick inside.
"Hmm, this corridor would make a decent choke point." Derrick mused as he looked about. "A little open by the staircase, but that could be remedied with a bit of Transfiguration to the furniture. Might want to consider booby-trapping the living room."
"You are definitely channelling Mad-Eye." Frank shook his head at the soldier's muttering.
"I will prefer getting your family out of Britain and trick those Death Eaters into attacking a totally different spot, but I guess that you would not be leaving this spot anytime soon." Derrick went to the living room to look at the layout. "With that in mind, I would make this area a choke point until we can get you to safety."
"What do you need then?" Frank asked while Augusta looked on to see what Derrick would do. The soldier looked about with a hum, pausing at the sight of the potted plant by the corridor, before a smirk started appearing on his face.
"Do you have any dragon dung, or anything with high amounts of ammonium nitrate?" The two hosts blinked at that odd query.
What did he need that for?
~ooOOoo~
The truth was such a beautiful and perilous thing to know.
Barty Crouch looked nothing like his usual stiff self as he leaned back into the chair he was sitting on. His usually clean and crisp robes were ruffled with wrinkles, and his tie was removed and thrown at the nearby chair haphazardly. His eyes, normally bright and hard with conviction, were now bloodshot and dulled with a sorrow that threatened to swallow him whole and staring at the tumbler that was half-filled with Odgen's Fire-Whiskey, and the document detailing the interrogation of Peter Pettigrew next to it, the name of his son seemingly glaring at him with mockery. Next to that was a Dictation Interrogation document and Pensieve Memories of an interrogation that wanted to drag his soul and his dear Victoria into the abyss of despair.
The interrogation of his own son, someone who became a Death Eater.
A part of his mind had prayed that Peter Pettigrew was wrong, that the traitor may have tried to cast the blame on others as an attempt to be granted a lesser sentence or even to mess with their morale by casting doubt on others. He still held on to the hope when he returned home with his guards disillusioned and a bottle of truth serum in his pocket to ensure the truth was what he got. Barty had to suppress the urge to sigh in relief that his wife was not around when the guards had to break cover and apprehend his son when he got violent. The relief was soon replaced with horror as the young man had his sleeves removed to reveal the ugly tattoo that adorned his left arm, and then spewing out his darkest secrets almost eagerly even under the truth serum, talking how he enjoyed attacking others during his time at Hogwarts and how he had aided in leaking information for the Dark Lord to ambush the Aurors during some of their raids, even partaking in the 'Dark Revels' that was supposed to be the initiation to earn the Dark Mark and join the ranks of the Death Eaters, an initiation that was rumored to be a demonstration of the depravity of mankind at its absolute worst. Junior even crooned at the possibility of attending his first raid as a marked Death Eater in the coming hours to prove that he could serve the Dark Lord and stand by his side.
Hearing his son bragging of this and trying to reconcile with his own memories, Barty could not help the question coming out of his mouth after all of that:
"Why did you do all of this?"
That started yet another tirade about how his father kept pushing him aside for his work, always demanding for better results, always thinking that he was not able to meet his unreasonable expectations, and what was the most damning to Junior: always comparing him, his own flesh-and-blood, to Derrick Hawkes, a 'lowly mudblood' as he put it. Junior could not stand hearing his father talking about Derrick in such a proud tone everything he did something great, or how the young man could be a great Auror with a great future in his path. Even as the truth serum wore off, Junior admitted with glee that part of his conditions to take the Dark Mark was the opportunity to go after anyone that Derrick cared for so that he could make him suffer before killing him himself, to prove that he was better than Derrick.
Barty was understandably distraught to the point that he immediately stunned his son after the interrogation, placed him under lock and key, swore his two guards into secrecy while ensuring they kept watch over Junior, before locking himself in his home office to try and understand all that was going on. One of the major points of the interrogation revealed that Severus Snape knew about his son, and that meant the bloody wizard known as Albus Dumbledore would likely have some inkling of the situation since he was the newest staff member of Hogwarts, there was absolutely no way that man could not be the spy for the old wizard. And that only made what Derrick and Alastor talked about earlier a likely possibility to happen: Dumbledore wanting to use the information to blackmail him into letting his spy go. Even as he was dealing with the knowledge of his world going to dust, one of the Aurors had told him that Dumbledore was attempting to call him, most likely to plead lenience on behalf of his spy in exchange of keeping his silence regarding his son. It was no secret that Barty had plans to take up the seat of the Minister after Bagnold, and this possible scandal would devastate his chances and ruin his family unless he followed whatever that blasted man wanted.
But Barty was past caring about the position, he was thinking more on how to relay the news to Victoria. For all he had done, Barty knew that Junior genuinely loved his mother and tried to keep the nasty happenings away from her, and Victoria would be heart-broken at the news. Barty looked at the candle burning to the stump, before making a decision that many would likely balk if they knew the man. With a nod, Barty grabbed the tumbler to drain the drink, grabbed his wand and made his way out of the room.
It would seem like a coward's way out or a dirty trick to do, but this could help everyone in the long run. At least that was what Barty kept telling himself with tears running down his face as he went to the room that his son... NO! The Death Eater, was being imprisoned.
He had made his bed, now he had to see it through.
~ooOOoo~
"Sirius Orion Black!" Lily glared with her hands on her hips and a growl issuing from her mouth as she looked at the man who was currently bound by ropes on a chair, an impressive feat considering she was still wheel-bound and slightly looking up at his taller frame. A few meters away, her son was sleeping peacefully away under a silencing charm while the house elf and two female soldiers looking after him watched on with raised eyebrows and slightly amused smiles, and the male soldiers doing their absolute best to be away from her. "You will hold still and listen, damn it!"
"But Lily, James is dead and that rat is the cause of it!" Sirius whined as he tried to untie the bounds on him. "I need to get that rat!"
"And we have told you many times for the past ten minutes, that Pettigrew is currently behind bars with guards watching him, his magic restricted to nothing and multiple wards keeping track on him and disabling all forms of apparation and port-keys." Lily spoke with the tone that all women in the world would use when dealing with thick-headed males. "Derrick even went to the trouble of grabbing a few Kneazles and owls from the pet shop to patrol the corridor with invisible mouse traps laid out the entire area in case he manages to change into his rat-form."
"But he is my brother in blood, not that dome-head Ravenclaw!" Sirius continued to struggle in his seat. "What would he know?" Lily bit back the retort at the edge of her tongue and took a deep breath to calm herself, wishing that she had a headache cure at the moment.
It was roughly an hour after Dumbledore's sudden appearance at Godric's Hollow that Derrick got the crew to pack up and go to their respective areas for whatever instructions given. For her part, she was placed in a vehicle to be transported to a temporary safe-house where she used the cover to be tested again for spells and to retrieve Harry from his hiding spot, after which they continued on to the actual safe-house in another vehicle, because Derrick insisted on constant vigilance to make sure that there were no trackers following her. A precaution that became necessary when one of her guides reported in that their distraction convoy had to stop with the soldiers moving to arrest a few wizards and witches supposedly demanding where Lily and Harry were.
She could almost hear Alastor Moody yelling in joy at Derrick's paranoia.
Lily decided to take a well-deserved rest to clear her head and to watch over Harry before breaking the news of James's Death to Sirius in the morning. Derrick had to leave before dawn to look for Frank Longbottom when Alice had asked for assistance, but Lily found herself wishing he stuck around when she told Sirius the truth about James after breakfast. That started a scramble that lasted a while before her guard overpowered the man, stunned and bound him to the chair, ensuring his wand was removed and placed on a table well away from him. Lily almost got shoved over her wheelchair if not for the timely intervention from one of the soldiers who had gotten her away from the commotion and stayed with her until the situation was done. Lily let out a sigh at the reminder, it was now approaching mid-day and already she was feeling the need for a good cup of whiskey or some headache potion for the incoming migraine.
Just perfect~
Lily knew that Sirius was loyal to James since they first met on the Hogwarts Express back in their first year, hence making him the primary choice to be Harry's godfather. She also knew he was an impulsive man-child that would go off the rails at any implied slight and tend to let emotions run the course before getting his head set straight, but this was a little too much, considering that they had already told him a few times that Peter was caught, yet Sirius acted like he needed to go after him to avenge James and abandon Harry while disparaging her and Derrick's actions to save them. It was as though he had been spelled to drop everything else and…
Wait a minute.
"Lily, let me go!" Sirius got cowed by Lily who had wheeled up next to him and looked him in the eye. After a moment, Lily turned to her guard who was still present when they came to the safe-house.
"Excuse me, could you help check him for spells?" The guard snapped to attention and came to her side quickly, taking out his wand and began scanning Sirius.
"What are you doing?" Sirius tried to move only to be silenced and frozen from the guard's spells. It took a few more strokes for his body to start glowing a variety of colors which drew a frown from the guard. A few more seconds, the guard turned to her with a gesture to check her as well. With a raised eyebrow, Lily gave her consent and was rewarded with a light green glow and an expression of relief from the guard. The guard quickly moved her to the entrance where the others were before moving back to Sirius and casting a variety of spells that made the glowing brighter before the sounds of glass breaking filled the room and Sirius slumped in his chair, shaking his head as though he had swallowed a bottle of Fire-whisky. The guard gave a few more waves of the wand before frowning again, then he went to the table where Sirius's wand was laying on to test that, making it glow a bright orange with trails of red that were reaching out to Sirius.
"What is wrong with him?" Lily wanted to move but the closest female soldier kept a firm grip on the wheelchair as they watched the proceedings. "Was he charmed?"
"Time delayed compulsion charms, skin-activated memory charms, emotional control charms and a blood-based curse that would activate a few seconds after a word or name is mentioned." The guard answered. "This was cleverly hidden on his wand and linked by blood along with suppression aura charms, so we did not notice it even with our earlier tests. From what I can tell, this set of spells would only activate when the words 'Pettigrew', 'Potter' and variations of 'dead', 'die' or 'death' are mentioned in the same sentence." He waved his wand a bit more until a loud snap was heard and Sirius's wand glowed a sky blue before dispersing. "That should do it. If he had grabbed the wand before I removed them, he would have gone under again and be harder to remove those spells from."
"Oh... did someone get the name of the Hippogriff that hit me?" Sirius winced as he asked shaking his head before pausing at the ropes binding him. "Wait, why am I tied up in the chair again?"
"What do you remember?" The guard turned to him with his gun pointed at the face and a stern expression. Sirius blanched as he went cross-eyed on the barrel almost touching his nose.
"We arrived to the safe-house to collect Prongslet while going about in a very convoluted manner. We had to undergo a lot of checks before we crashed for the night since the distraction convoy got stopped by people trying to find us. Then Lily told me something after breakfast..." Sirius frowned as he struggled to recall what happened. "That's odd, my memory seemed to be flickering. What happened to me that I forget and needed to be tied up?
"You were berserk upon news of the late James Potter's death and nearly knocked Missus Potter down to the ground." The soldier answered in a flat tone. "We were forced to subdue you to make you hear reason, and it was approaching the point where I would have to shoot you until Lady Potter got the idea you were spelled." Sirius's eyes went wide at the bit on James's death and then he went pale as the soldier lightly tapped a finger on the assault rifle.
"We were not going to shoot him, you silly man!" Lily smacked a hand on his shoulder while delivering her glare. "Do not say it that way."
"... Yes, Madam." The soldier answered in what might passed for a meek voice, especially when coupled with the manner he took a step back. Lily gave a firm nod before directing a glare at Sirius who immediately stopped snickering at the man's reaction.
"Do not think you are off the hook. You should have checked yourself properly, you are supposed to be a bloody Auror specializing in finding these curses! And even if you have been spelled to go after Pettigrew, you should not just drop everything to do so, including leaving Harry behind! I know that the godfather ritual would have granted you the strength to fight the compulsion at least, so that means you did not care much for Harry." Lily ranted at him who was looking very small at that point. "I am starting to rethink the whole godfather ritual was a mistake with you as the choice." Behind her, the females in the room nodded their heads while the male soldiers winced at both the bite of her words and the heat behind said words. This was definitely going to be bad!
"Lily..." Sirius sounded broken at her words.
"You do recall how I actually wanted someone else to be the godfather for Harry?" Lily did not relent in her words. "I was not convinced about having one of the Marauders be Harry's godparent but James kept insisting that you would always look after Harry, and for a while it seemed to be a good thing, but the ritual is meant to enforce the protection of said child and does so in many ways, including fighting against compulsions and memory blocks. The only times it may fail are when the godparent views someone else more important, which seems to tell me you cared a lot more for James than your own godson." The male soldiers winced again at the sight of the Black heir slumping in the chair. Then Lily sighed tiredly, all the rage leaving her in that one breath.
"Sirius, I get that you are distraught. And I should not have said that, we are all emotional right now." Lily apologized in a soft tone "But you need to think rationally. Harry needs us more than ever, and I can't do this alone. Derrick is helping as much as he can, but Harry needs his godfather." The man remained quiet as she talked, making a few soldiers wonder if her earlier rant had broken the man's resolve to live. Only the sounds of sobbing let them know that he was still alive.
"I am sorry, Lily. I should have been more careful." Sirius let out a shuddering breath as tears went down his face. "But James..."
"I know." Lily wheeled her chair forward to place a hand on his shoulder. "I too wish that James was still alive, but we can't get what we want. Harry is alive, and right now he needs all of our help. I do not why Dumbledore wants to obsess himself over the prophecy made by a sherry-driven drunk, but the level of interest and levels of control are making me very wary. That man even attempted to create a marriage contract to set him with Ginevra Weasley, and she is what, barely hitting 3 months after birth?" She shook her head. "I want to get Harry out of here, preferably out of the country. There are places that even Dumbledore will have issues getting into, and depending on the situation, I might have Harry in another school." That got Sirius's attention as he looked up with wide eyes.
"But we have gone to Hogwarts, it is practically tradition for all families in Britain!" Sirius spoke, but Lily shook her head again.
"True, most British would go to Hogwarts, but there are cases where people may go abroad for other schools, the school board cannot stop that, and even Dumbledore cannot interfere with it unless he does something with the ICW to force people back into their home countries, which would only backfire on his reputation. I have applied for dual citizenships for us, even if James did not want to do so. If I have to, I can revoke the British citizenship to save Harry." Lily narrowed her eyes on the Black Heir. "The question I should now be asking, do I have your cooperation to help? Because I will be frank with you, I will not be sending Harry to Hogwarts while Dumbledore is the headmaster. I will get Harry to safety, with or without your help. So, what will it be?"
Before Sirius could answer that judgement, a commotion from outside drew their attention to the door where a soldier burst into the room with his radio in hand.
"Lieutenant Hawkes just radioed in a situation. The Longbottoms are being attacked!"
