Disclaimer: I still do not own Harry Potter.

Author's Note: Hey everyone, and thanks so much for the wonderful reviews. I'm glad you liked the last chapter.

This one will be from Amelia's point of view, because she will play an integral role in the story. Yes, she is on the job, and this chapter will explain why being at Hogwarts today is part of it. Also, I think her blame of Dumbledore is just her reacting in the moment. It's true that in canon she supports him, but she's really upset that Susan lost a good friend and that Harry, a fourteen-year-old boy, is being blamed for his death.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

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Amelia Bones was livid as she walked down the hallway. The events of the past few days rushed through her mind, tormenting her. Lord Voldemort, the darkest wizard in a century, had returned, and dread coiled in her stomach when she thought about another war.

During the first one, she'd lost her brother, her sister-in-law, and three of their children. They'd been ambushed in the middle of the night; Voldemort and several Death Eaters came to their home. The adults had fought valiantly to protect themselves and their children, but it was no use. They had all been murdered in cold blood.

The only one who had survived was little Susan, because Amelia had been taking care of her that night. Amelia liked to take each child one at a time for one evening each, to spend time with them. On that night it had been Susan's turn, and she thanked Merlin she hadn't lost her, too. The raw grief and fury that had consumed her in the days after the murder was only kept at bay because of the little treasure she was to take care of. Amelia Bones was not a rash, reckless, or vengeful woman, but she couldn't trust that she wouldn't have gone after those Death Eaters singlehandedly if not for Susan.

Raising her niece had been a blessing. When the war ended, she made the most out of her life. She knew that was what her family would have wanted, and she never forgot them. Everything she did was in their memory, from the time she woke up to the time she fell asleep.

She knew she had made many mistakes in her life, and she was desperate to redeem herself for them. Even though she hadn't gone after the Death Eaters who murdered her family and just let them be arrested naturally, there were situations where she hadn't done the right thing, and she knew it. She hadn't objected to the farces, also known as trials, that had happened after the war's conclusion. And some Death Eaters, like Sirius Black, hadn't even had a trial, and this, to Amelia, was wrong on principle.

But she hadn't fought for his right to a trial. All she knew was that he'd been standing in the street, surrounded by debris and lifeless bodies, laughing. And he hadn't stopped laughing until a Stunner hit him straight in the chest. And apparently, according to the Aurors, when he'd regained consciousness on the boat that would take him to Azkaban, the hysterical laughter had resumed. He hadn't started to weep until he was affected by the Dementors.

And all Amelia had wanted was to raise her niece in peacetime. Just put those lunatics like Black away and never let them see the light of day again, she'd thought. But if she had the chance to redo it, would she make the same decision not to fight for equal rights even for the unhinged and insane? She truly didn't know.

And now, it was starting again. Cedric Diggory, at only seventeen and in the wrong place at the wrong time, had been mercilessly struck down. Harry Potter, the boy who had saved them all from the tyrant's first reign, was saying Voldemort had returned and was about to wreak havoc, chaos, and terror on the wizarding world again. She was not usually an affectionate woman; she'd been raised not to show her emotions, but now all she wanted to do was wrap Susan up, shelter her, and keep her safe.

But Susan wouldn't want that, she knew. She would want to fight. The thought of Susan fighting and dying at the hands of the deranged Death Eaters was enough to take Amelia's breath away. How was she supposed to let Susan make her own decisions? She knew her niece was sensible, but about this she would not budge. And didn't she have just as much right to fight as everyone else? Shouldn't Amelia allow her to do the right thing? She could admit, here and now, that Susan was growing into a better woman than her aunt could ever hope to be.

As she reached Professor McGonagall's office, a renewed anger flowed through her. It was because of the staff's carelessness and negligence that all of this had come about, wasn't it? They hadn't seen Barty Crouch, Jr. had been fooling them all year. Her precious gem of a niece could have been injured or killed at any time throughout the year; a Death Eater had been in the same room, a monster suffused with pure evil. All those classes that Susan had been in, thinking she was being taught by Mad-Eye Moody ... it was enough to make her nauseated down to her very core. She'd never forget how Barty, Bellatrix, Rodolphus, and Rabastan had been caught torturing the Longbottoms until they were permanently insane, not even recognizing their own son. If Barty hadn't had a plot to see through to the end, what would he have done to her niece?

You're being unreasonable, Amelia, the woman chided herself. None of the staff are infallible, and neither is Dumbledore. You can't expect perfection from them.

Deep down, she knew the rational part of her was right. But right now, she was doing something that was rare for her - she was thinking with her heart, not her head. She couldn't help but be let down and betrayed by all of them. Susan's life hung in the balance, and her emotional well-being did, too. It was plain to see that the death of Cedric was having an awful effect on her. And the sanity of Harry Potter was also on the line. Having seen the end of the last war, she knew how far Aurors were willing to go to punish those who they suspected to be Death Eaters or Death Eater sympathizers. And many in the wizarding world, rather than facing the truth that Voldemort was back and preparing for a second war, would feel better thinking that Harry was a liar and a murderer. Those eleven years Voldemort had reigned had been terrible times, and no one wanted to go through that again.

But Amelia would rather face the truth, even if it was a truth she despised. She felt it was an insult to her family and Susan's good friend's memory not to do so. She vowed to herself that during this war, she would be a better person and do those whom she loved proud.

She briskly knocked on Minerva's door. The woman answered it, and immediately, Amelia could see the stress on her. Her hair, which was always known to be in a very proper bun, was not as neat as normal; the bun was there, but there were stray hairs coming out of it. Her eyes were very tired; obviously she hadn't been sleeping well. Her face, which was normally neutral, was more frazzled than usual. "Amelia?" she asked, instantly recognizing the woman in the doorway. "What are you doing here?"

"The Ministry sent me," said Amelia. This was indeed true; Fudge himself had sent her to the school to grill the staff. But she knew she would have come anyway, even if she hadn't been sent. Her niece needed her, after all - the tearstained letter that she had received by owl told her as much.

Minerva's face went blank. "I will summon all the staff members currently present, and send them to the staff room," she said tonelessly. "We will convene in there."

"Very well," said Amelia, adopting the same tone. This was nasty business; it was honestly the last thing she wanted to do. She was desperate to return to the Hufflepuff common room and comfort a grief-stricken and traumatized Susan.

Several minutes later, the seats in the staff room were almost full. Amelia grew impatient - why weren't they all there? Severus Snape, whom she had heard was very punctual about these sorts of things, was not there. But seconds later, a feeling of suspicion wormed its way into her mind. "Where is Severus?" she asked, dreading the answer.

Minerva's lips pursed, but there was a deep worry in her eyes. "That, we do not know, Amelia," she said quietly. "You know his role in the last war."

"He went back, and he hasn't been seen since," said Amelia. It was a statement, not a question.

None of the staff denied it, and that was a confirmation in itself. The concern in the room was palpable, and the tension was so thick it could have been cut with a knife.

"How is Alastor?" was Amelia's next question. Last she'd heard, the man was recovering in the part of the hospital wing that was reserved for staff. He'd had a rough time of it - Poppy Pomfrey had worked a miracle by saving his life.

"Poppy tells us he will wake up soon," Filius Flitwick said. "It's abominable what's happened to him."

"Yes, it is," Amelia stated, unable to hide the note of accusation in her voice.

"We are so sorry," Pomona Sprout said, and of all the staff in the room, Amelia could see she was the most affected. There were circles under her eyes, and her face was pale. Sympathy entered Amelia's heart when she looked at her - she'd lost one of her students, her family.

"I know," Amelia said, her eyes directly on Pomona's. "I am very saddened to hear about Cedric."

"Amelia, we are devastated," Minerva said, and Amelia knew she meant it with every fiber of her being. "And Mr. Potter ... there is not a moment that goes by that we don't regret everything that has happened. We have been extremely negligent in our duties as staff members."

"We have," agreed Flitwick, his face full of sadness. "And Cedric has paid the ultimate price. As for Harry, I fear that things will be rather bleak for him for a long time."

Amelia knew she had to ask this next question - Fudge had demanded it of her. But she knew she had to tread carefully. The balance of keeping her job and protecting someone who she thought was innocent was like being between a rock and a hard place. "Do you know where Mr. Potter is?" she asked softly. "Where is he, currently?"

"When I tell you I don't know, I'm being truthful," Flitwick said at once.

Minerva nodded. "All we know is that he's safe."

"We're still trying to figure out who sent the Aurors after him," said Sprout, her tone laced with anger.

Amelia could sense that Flitwick and Sprout were being honest, but there was a glint in Minerva's eyes that told her there was something extra she wasn't saying. Don't pursue it any further, Amelia thought. What she did believe was that no one knew exactly where Potter had been taken for safety. If she told Cornelius this, she couldn't be accused of covering for him.

"Is Albus still being questioned?" asked Professor Vector. "Is he all right?"

"Yes, he is being questioned as we speak," said Amelia curtly. "He was placed in a holding cell yesterday, and the questioning started this morning. I will update you when I know more information."

None of the staff said anything to this. They all wore poker faces, absorbing what they'd been told.

"I must say," said Sprout after a long silence, "that I am very proud of your niece. She and Hannah showed true loyalty to Mr. Potter by coming to us yesterday." She then proceeded to tell Amelia all about Jeff's petition. She was surprised Susan hadn't brought it up this morning, but then again, there was so much else going on. Plus, Harry was gone. There was no more reason for the petition to even be an issue; it was now a moot point.

Amelia's heart flooded with pride, strength, and love as she heard the story. "You have done a very good job raising her," said Minerva sincerely.

"Thank you," said Amelia. She looked long and hard at the grieving and exhausted staff members, and realized that her initial feelings of anger and blame had receded. To be perfectly honest, they had started to do so the moment she laid eyes on them all. Her fear for Susan was still burning like acid through her insides, but in order to protect her, she would need the support of her teachers. Casting blame, accusing them of not doing their jobs properly, was not the way to go about it. Her rational side, which she'd always relied upon in order to get through tough situations, had not failed her.

"Amelia," said Sprout softly. "Susan needs you. Go and spend some quality time with her."

Amelia gave the woman a small smile. "I must admit, the Minister sent me here to grill you all," she confessed. "I am to give a detailed report when I return."

"What you're not saying is as obvious to us as what you are," said Flitwick, a small smile on his own face. "You don't want to."

"The Minister is not himself," Amelia said, this being the understatement of the century. "I can't in good conscience do what he has ordered me to. I have the information I need."

"And knowing you, you'll attempt to keep things under control there," said Minerva knowingly.

"Please keep us posted as to what is going on there," said Sinistra, inserting herself into the conversation.

"I will do what I can," Amelia promised, standing and pushing in her chair.

"Look after Susan," said Sprout quietly. "She's not taking this at all well. But neither are the rest of us," she added, looking close to tears.

"Don't worry," Amelia said softly as she opened the door and walked out of the staff room. "I will."