It seemed like everyone was avoiding Harry's gaze as he strode down the corridors to go meet with the newest problem. Somehow, someone had leaked that he and Susan had brought Cyrus Greengrass into custody. They had taken great pains to avoid having anyone spot the man or Nerys Orpington, and yet the information still leaked. Harry could think of only perhaps a dozen or so men and women who he had seen within eyesight of Cyrus Greengrass, but that didn't mean that there weren't others who had spotted the man too. Harry was angry at being caught out like this, and his attempt to retain a neutral demeanour seemed to do little to disguise his feelings.
Unlike the Auror offices, the Department of Magical Law Enforcement offices didn't have a large bullpen of cubicles for the workers to work at. Everyone had a private office, though most of them tended to be tiny things that could just barely fit a couple of chairs and a desk. That left a winding, maze-like series of corridors that made navigating the offices difficult if one wasn't already familiar with the layout.
Naturally, Daphne Greengrass didn't seem to have the slightest issue finding Harry Potter just outside of the very heart of the offices.
The former Slytherin had an undisguised look of annoyance on her face as she and Harry strode towards each other. Daphne had been in his year at Hogwarts, though they'd never interacted much beyond a few casual comments in class or in the halls. She had been widely regarded as the most beautiful witch at the school, and her beauty had only seemed to grow in the years since graduation.
Daphne was tall, just a few inches shorter than Harry himself, and had a face that looked like it had been painstakingly chiseled out of flawless marble. Her long, blond tresses framed her face beautifully and accentuated her prominent cheekbones and icy blue eyes. Despite the fact that it was currently the middle of the night, she was dressed in a fine set of bottle green dress robes that clung to her voluptuous figure wonderfully. If Harry didn't already know why she was here, he would have sworn that she was dressed up to go out on a fancy date. However, given how rare those dates word—and how notable they were in Witch Weekly—Harry knew that she was likely dressed up nicely for herself more than for anyone else's sake.
"Miss Greengrass," Harry dipped his head slightly as she approached.
Daphne marched right up to Harry and planted a hand on her hip as she glared at him. "I expect my father to be released at once, Potter," she practically spat out his name. "You have no right to hold him here."
"Actually, I do," Harry replied, unable to hide the snark from his tone. "And if you're as well informed as you appear to be, you should know that."
Daphne brushed his comment aside with a wave of her hand. "I'm aware of your 'three day holding period' policy for the crimes you are accusing my father of; however, given the fact that he is innocent of said crimes, I expected you of all people to do the honourable thing and release him."
Harry tried to get a read on the witch in front of him, but her icy demeanour didn't let a single emotion slip through. For a moment, Harry considered using Legilimency to read her mind, but he quickly discarded the idea. Many of the important pure-blood families taught their children basic mind magics, and the Greengrass family wouldn't be an exception. Even if her skills weren't particularly advanced, she'd likely be able to detect Harry's probe. If she reported that he tried to illegally read her mind, it could spell trouble for the entire investigation into Cyrus.
"Unlike you, I am of the opinion that he is not innocent of his crimes," Harry rebuked Daphne. Her glare towards him deepened. "And the Ministry will be exercising its right to hold Lord Greengrass until the holding period is up or we decide that he is no longer a suspicious person in this case."
"Are you aware of what influence my family has in the wizarding world, Potter?"
"Yes."
"Then you should know that we will be exercising everything in our power to deal with this farce of an inquisition in a manner we see fit," Daphne stated sharply. "The Minister is on tenuous ground, and if he were to be ousted, you could be sure that you'd be the next one on that list."
"You're not the first person to threaten me with something like this," Harry pointed out. "And I've weathered every storm before."
"No, I'm not," Daphne admitted. "But I'm the first person with enough power to back it up. I suggest you think on that as you decide your next actions in this case; think very carefully. You don't want to make an enemy out of the Greengrass family."
"Then your father shouldn't have chosen to work with Death Eaters," Harry snapped back, tired of Daphne's threats. "If you think for one second that I'll step aside while Bellatrix Lestrange roams free and your father helps protect her, then you're more foolish than I gave you credit for."
Harry stopped his tirade for just a moment, and in that moment he spotted something: a crack in the neutral expression on Daphne's face as her left eye twitched ever so slightly. There was something there, something about Bellatrix's name that made Daphne react.
Did Daphne know where Bellatrix was? Was she in on this whole thing with her father? She certainly seemed well-invested in her family's affairs.
But the look was gone a split-second later, as though it had been nothing more than a trick of the light.
"Think on what I've said, Potter," Daphne said as she took a step back from him, making her cleavage jiggle wonderfully in her green dress robes. Harry did his best not to look directly at it. "I'll be awaiting your owl on when I can come collect my father."
With that, she turned on her heel and strode away from him, back the way she had come.
Letting out a breath he hadn't quite realised that he had been holding. Something more was going on here, and he was determined to figure it out. Daphne knew something about Bellatrix, and if she was the key to getting Cyrus to crack, then Harry was going to pursue this lead to its fullest. But first he needed rest. His body was already starting to flag from being up all night, and he hadn't been able to control his temper either.
Hopefully Tonks would still be at home. Sleeping with his arms around her always seemed to do him a world of good.
The fallout of the arrest of Cyrus Greengrass and Nerys Orpington was swift and harsh. Harry had barely awoken before finding himself bombarded with letters from his friends begging him not to read the Daily Prophet's latest article on him. Even Rita sent an apology letter, telling him that she had tried to get the editor to delay the article or let her write an opinion piece questioning the motives of the Greengrass and Orpington families, but she'd been shot down. Harry Potter was still a big enough selling point five years after the war's end that there was no time to waste in publishing a juicy article accusing him of all sorts of things.
Naturally, Harry ignored the letters from his friends and read the article about him over breakfast with Tonks and Teddy.
The article was a scathing attack on Harry's professionalism and personal life; no topic seemed to be untouchable. First, the article articulated that the arrest of Cyrus Greengrass and Nerys Orpington, two valued members of the Wizengamot, was an attack on the sovereignty of the democratic proceedings of the British Ministry of Magic. The generic statement about the arrest given out by a Ministry official had been torn to shreds as little more than Minister Shacklebolt's slanderous attempt to regain control over an unruly Wizengamot by shutting down two of his fiercest opponents. The article painted Harry as a puppet for the Minister's ambitions, and simultaneously as the nefarious mastermind behind the political attack.
Susan and her aunt weren't spared criticism either. While a majority of the focus of the article was on Harry himself, Amelia was charged as running a nepotistic, uncontrollable department of gung-ho witches and wizards. Susan, pointedly noted as a former Auror who, according to unnamed sources, couldn't handle the pressure of the job, was lambasted for her overreach as the leader of this investigation and also portrayed as a pawn for the Minister.
Then the article devolved into speculative ramblings over Harry and Susan's relationship and whether or not Harry was planning to take over the Bones family from the inside by seducing both the aunt and the niece simultaneously. It was quite inventive stuff, Harry had to admit, almost as good as Rita's peak. For a few moments, he forgot that he was reading what was supposed to be a serious article.
But then he read something that pushed the limits of decency.
He had called Tonks over then to read the next few paragraphs with him, and by the end of it her hair had turned blood red and it almost looked like steam was coming out of her ears. "Those bastards," she had muttered.
The article highlighted the most recent floundering werewolf rights bill in the Wizengamot and wondered if this had anything to do with Harry's sudden attack on two Wizengamot members who opposed the bill's passage. After all, the article suggested, it was well known, according to unnamed sources, that Harry had secretly fathered one Teddy Lupin with Nymphadora Tonks. The fact that Harry was so close to Tonks and Teddy after Teddy's supposed father's death was said to be proof enough that something had to be going on there.
While Harry knew that his and Tonks's relationship was unusual, he had never once tried to take Lupin's place as Teddy's father, nor was there any chance of him being Teddy's father. He could have handled those insinuations though if the article hadn't directly named Teddy. Harry wondered just how many people would know the boy's name now and remember this accusation for years to come. Even now people still brought up the libelous tales told in the Daily Prophet back when Harry was still a student, even going so far as to ask him directly about their validity. This article would follow Teddy for years, even if it was only used as a schoolyard taunt.
The article finished off with a generic statement from the Greengrass and Orpington families. Daphne Greengrass called for her father's immediate release and a formal apology from the Ministry while Rhys Orpington was more direct in calling out the Ministry, claiming that this was another falsehood just like his 'sham of a trial' had been years ago when he had been placed in Azkaban for two months for muggle hunting.
Harry knew that this wasn't something that he could just let stand. Daphne had landed her first blow and it was a personal one. Three days was all Harry had to figure out a way to get some charges to stick to Cyrus and Nerys, otherwise they'd be let off free and Bellatrix would slip out of his grasp once again.
That was why he organised a meeting with Susan, Tonks, and Rita over lunch—albeit with Rita in her animagus form, simply listening in on the conversation since he was unsure how Susan would feel dealing with one of the most vile members of the press at the moment.
The moment Harry had arrived at Le Bistrognome, Eloise had pulled him into a tight hug.
"That article is all 'ogwash," she loudly declared, making sure that every customer in the restaurant overheard her. Fourteen of the fifteen tables inside of the restaurant were packed with witches and wizards, and every single one of them seemed to be politely avoiding looking directly at Harry, Tonks, and Susan as they were led to a private booth by the kitchen. "Rhys Orpington," she practically spat the name out with revulsion, "is a monster who deserves to still be in Azkaban. There's no doubt in my mind that 'is niece doesn't fall far from the apple."
"From the tree," Tonks corrected helpfully.
"Precisely," Eloise nodded. "Now, sit and eat and forget your troubles. I'll be back soon with some food."
"Err, we haven't even ordered yet," Susan pointed out, but Eloise was already bustling into the kitchen, barking out orders.
Harry waved off her concern. "Don't worry about it. She'll bring out a bunch of small dishes for us to share, I'm sure."
Susan smiled lightly. "Good. Our last meal here was so delicious."
After a night of restful sleep, Susan looked reinvigorated and energized. Her red hair was tied up in a loose ponytail and she was wearing freshly laundered hit witch robes. The most obvious change was in her face, which was now full of life without those dark circles under her eyes.
Harry subtly cast half a dozen privacy charms under the table with his wand in order to ensure that no one watching them could hear or see anything that they were truly discussing.
"Daphne Greengrass was the one behind the article," Harry explained to Susan. "When she visited the offices this morning, she promised retribution if we didn't release her father right away."
"Not surprising," Susan sighed. "The Greengrass family has been in a very powerful political position ever since Voldemort's defeat, and they have the political capital to spare to drum up some support to try to get Cyrus released early."
"The Wizengamot sure will be a shitshow today," Tonks groaned as she dropped her head into her hands. "I've been stuck on guard duty there the last two weeks and it's already so damn tense. I can't imagine what Shackbolt will be going through today."
"Forget about Shacklebolt," Susan said to Tonks. "Focus on us. Harry told me everything, and if you two go down because of this investigation, then you won't be able to oust Dawlish."
Tonks groaned again. "All of this subterfuge is too much." She glanced over at Harry. "I can't believe I let you talk me into going along with your mad plan."
"Well, we're in it together now," Harry pointed out. "And if we want to take down Dawlish, we need to deal with Cyrus first. Boderick Boyle hasn't given us anything, and Amelia's sweep of The White Wyvern hasn't turned up anything either. There's got to be something between what we saw that night, the mysterious woman that fled the pub, and the Augurey feather that will give us a clue."
Eloise briefly interrupted the chat as she delivered several small plates of various canapes, onion and cheese tarts, scallops, and tapenade with crusty French bread. The trio thanked her and started eating the delicious food and thinking over all of the information they'd collected thus far.
"The Augurey feather didn't have anything suspicious on it," Susan mentioned after a minute. "I analyzed it myself."
"We could investigate if anyone bought or imported an Augurey from Ireland," Tonks suggested. "Local shops would have records of sales, and the Ministry would have records of the importation of magical beasts."
The memory of his discussion with Arthur Weasley several weeks ago flooded into Harry's mind. "I think Amos Diggory still works there," he said to the group.
Susan grimaced. Like Harry, she too had an awkward relationship with Amos given her family's closeness with his and the fact that she had been in Hufflepuff with his son, Cedric. "I don't know if he'd be the best to ask about this."
Neither did Harry, to be honest, but Rita had been investigating why Dawlish had been harassing Amos lately, so maybe she would have a better idea as to what Amos's mental state was at the moment. "I'll ask around and get back to you all about it," Harry said.
"Then I'll go investigate the local shops," Tonks replied.
"Well, that leaves you two with something to do," Susan said. "Any ideas about what I can do?"
"Besides dealing with the press?" Tonks snorted.
"Honestly, that might not be a bad plan," Harry pointed out. "We're bound to be dealing with the fallout of the article sooner rather than later. If nothing has come up from the investigation at The White Wyvern, you could deal with the inevitable pressure from the press and the Wizengamot. You could also try to see if you could find out who that mysterious woman was. It definitely wasn't Bellatrix, so we know that someone else is involved."
Susan nodded, though she seemed a little discouraged at the lack of a straightforward path for herself. "Alright," she replied glumly before rolling her eyes and giving Harry a mock glare. "Of course you'd make me deal with the press."
"Hey," Harry raised his hands up in surrender. "I've been dealing with them all my life. I figured I'd let you get some practice in," he joked.
They all returned to eating, but the peace didn't last long before chaos erupted in the restaurant as an owl swooped in through the front door and soared overhead of all of the tables.
"Get that owl out of here!" Eloise shouted from the kitchen, sending her two waiters into a tizzy as they rushed out with their wands.
The dark grey owl deftly evaded the first stunning spell and dove down to drop an envelope at the perfect angle so that it landed right in Harry's lap. Then, with its letter delivered, it turned tail and flew back out of the restaurant.
"I'd ask that you have your post delivered elsewhere, 'arry," Eloise huffed as she came out of the kitchen with another tray of dishes for them to eat. "It's hard enough keeping this place under control as is."
"Sorry," Harry frowned. He had an owl-redirect charm placed on himself so that all letters addressed to him would be delivered either to his home or his office depending on the sender. He wasn't quite sure how this owl had managed to circumvent that unless it was manually directed to come to Le Bistrognome. He waved his wand over the letter, checking for any obvious traps, poisons, or other dangers. He didn't find any.
"Who's it from?" Tonks asked, peering down at the letter in his lap.
The green wax seal told Harry all he needed to know. "Greengrass," he answered as he cracked open the envelope and pulled out the letter. He quickly scanned the contents before setting the letter back down with a pensive look on his face.
"Well?" Susan prompted him.
"It's from Daphne Greengrass," he explained. "She's invited me over for tea to apologize for her behaviour."
Tonks and Susan shared a look. "Well, that's good, isn't it?" Tonks said cautiously.
Susan nodded emphatically. "It could give you a chance to investigate Greengrass Manor. Subtly!" She added quickly at the end.
"Yeah," Harry replied absentmindedly as he mentally replayed his early morning conversation with Daphne. She had seemed so furious and confident then; why was she willing to apologize so soon? It felt wrong.
"Harry?" Susan prompted as she leaned in closer to him. "Is everything alright?"
"I don't know," Harry frowned. His mind was still stuck on that one moment from the conversation this morning. The one where he mentioned Bellatrix. He shook the thought from his head and looked over at the two women. "Daphne reacted oddly to me saying Bellatrix's name this morning. I can't help but shake the feeling that she's involved in this whole mess somehow."
"I don't think so," Susan responded sadly.
"Why not?" Tonks asked, looking as confused as Harry felt as to why Susan shut him down so quickly.
Susan glanced around the room. "Well, something happened the year you left Hogwarts."
"Something with Daphne and Bellatrix?" Harry asked.
Susan shook her head. "No, not with Daphne. With Tracey Davis."
A/N: Hey, thanks for reading! If you are interested in reading more or supporting me, check out at p atreon .com(slash) ashox