Categories > Books > Harry Potter > Independence Day
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and other canon characters belong to JKR I'm only having some fun
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and other canon characters belong to JKR I'm only having some fun
Chapter 16 Retribution.
Snape Cottage, Spinners End.
From the outside the cottage looked perfectly ordinary, it blended with it's neighbours as it had to. Snape had inherited it from his Muggleborn father, it still hurt him that although he was the eldest male grandchild, that the Prince Manor had passed to a Pureblood half cousin. The Princes despised Halfbloods and Muggleborns even more than the Malfoys. Fortunately for him, there was an old Pureblood family called Snape, so no one in Slytherin took any notice of his surname. Lucius certainly wouldn't have named him as Draco's Godfather had he known.
Severus Snape looked round his study with a measured eye and took in the luxurious furnishings. He had planned this room meticulously using the best both the Muggle and Wizarding worlds could supply. His favourite armchair, a Lay-Z-boy recliner was to one side of the fireplace, on the other side was another recliner. He had charmed both of them to recline automatically and had replaced the Lay-Z-boy's phone with a view screen that showed him anyone approaching his front door.
The walls were lined with dark oak bookcases which were filled with books of all descriptions, some of them he had never read, they had been bought to fill space, but they weren't just any old books, they were Special Editions, First Editions and Rare Books. The books he was proudest of owning were his Potions Books, he doubted that anyone had a more extensive collection. A lot of the potions listed were lost to the modern Wizarding world, some were still spoken about in hushed tones but many others had passed beyond myth and legend.
'One day,' /he thought 'One day I'll 'reinvent' some of these and be recognised for the genius I am, all I have to do is make sure none of them are registered at the Patent Office.'/
He sat and contemplated things, he had invested well over the years, had put some money into a Potion Ingredients company, which he had then recommended to be the sole supplier to Hogwarts, but most of the money had been spent on his book collection. He had enough money put by to not have to worry about work in the immediate future, and when money did become an issue he could always 'invent' some new potion or other.
As he thought about his fall from grace, an unseen bell chimed letting him know an owl had arrived with the morning's mail. With some trepidation he approached the owl which bore the Gringotts Crest and removed the attached scroll. He looked nervously at the scroll which bore the seal of Gringotts and opened it.
Dear Mr. Snape,
(that really rankled, as he no longer taught at Hogwarts he could no longer use the honorific of Professor.)
When you took your position on the Board of the Potter Trust, you signed an oath that you would do nothing that would harm the Trust or anyone of the Potter line.
Your recent actions in firing a harmful spell at Mr. Harry Potter, means that you are in breach of this section of the contract, as such, all monies received by yourself in payment for your services to the Potter Trust are now forfeit.
Please arrange for the transfer of these funds at your earliest convenience. If this transfer is not completed within five days of you receiving this letter, your Gringotts account will be frozen and the money will be reclaimed through the Wizarding Courts.
Please note: This letter is Charmed to inform the Head of the Potter Trust when it is opened.
Griphook
Account Manager
Gringotts Bank.
As his anger overcame him, he tore the parchment to shreds and threw it into the air. He looked on in astonishment as the tiny pieces of paper landed on the table and reformed into the single page of the letter, an extra line of writing appeared on the page. 'This letter is written on guaranteed indestructible parchment, available from Flourish & Blotts and all other good outlets.'
The wail of anguish from the cottage sent the local dogs and cats scurrying for shelter and several homing pigeons flying overhead took an extra three days to reach their destinations.
Severus Snape slumped into one of the kitchen chairs and held his head in his hands, he didn't have 150,000 Galleons to hand, he couldn't even raise the money quickly enough by selling his books and shares. His liquid assets were around 50,000 Galleons, he thought of his options, and being fond of his skin decided to empty his account and disappear to mainland Europe.
D.M.L.E.
Amelia Bones lifted the pile of mail her secretary had sorted for her, the pair had established a good working relationship over the years and the post was always handed to her with the important letters on the top. What surprised her this morning was a letter with the Hogwarts Crest sitting on top of the pile, a quick scan to the signature at the bottom revealed it was from her niece, Susan.
This intrigued her, normally Susan sent her correspondence to her home, and if for any reason she did write to her at her office, it would have been placed on the bottom of the pile. Adjusting her monocle, she read the letter.
Dear Aunt Amelia,
I know I don't normally write to you at your office but I have some urgent news for you.
Yesterday at the start of the 6th year N.E.W.T. Defence Class, Professor Snape fired a silent Diffindo Curse at Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. It was only Harry's quick reflexes that saved him or Hermione from injury. Unfortunately a 3rd year Hufflepuff student who was down the corridor wasn't as lucky. Lou Costello was hit by the curse and sustained a nasty cut to his arm.
Rumour has it that Professor Snape was dismissed from his post due to this and for terrorising other students in his classes. Auror Shacklebolt has apparently been appointed as our new Defence Professor although I assume you already know this.
I'll write again soon,
Susan.
Amelia Bones removed her monocle as she did when she was contemplating things and polished it slowly as she sorted out her thoughts. She put the letter from Susan in her 'action' tray and started on the second.
Dear Director Bones,
It is with deep regret I tender my resignation from the Auror Corp. I would have worked the normal four weeks notice but the Personnel Department tell me I am due four weeks leave, therefore please find enclosed my Identification Badge and Warrant Card.
Yours sincerely,
Kingsley Shacklebolt.
The next letter had her reaching for a stress relieving potion.
Dear Director Bones,
The W.E.A. is deeply concerned with recent happenings at Hogwarts and at the request of the Board of Directors would ask you to conduct an inquiry into the recent conduct of Madame Delores Umbridge, ex-Professor Snape and Professor Dumbledore.
Yours sincerely
Professor Tofty
W.E.A.
The following one had her wishing the potion was stronger.
Report into the Conduct of Auror Shacklebolt at 12 Grimmauld Place.
As per your request we have investigated the conduct of Auror Shacklebolt during the incident where he was injured while at 12 Grimmauld Place. We interviewed all those present at this time. Our findings are as follows:
Auror Shacklebolt was at 12 Grimmauld Place in company with the organisation known as The Order of the Phoenix, he was supposed to be patrolling Hogsmeade Village at this time. His patrol partner was unaware of Auror Shacklebolt's absence as they had split up to patrol opposite ends of the village. /Auror Shacklebolt used aggressive language toward the owner of the property and drew his wand without due reason./ Auror Shacklebolt was injured by the owner of the property. The action the owner took has been deemed to be justified and within the parameters of minimal force. No magic was used by the owner of the property.
After taking these points into consideration and reviewing Auror Shacklebolt's disciplinary record, we recommend that Auror Shacklebolt is put on administrative duties with immediate effect and not allowed to return to frontline duties without an extensive period of retraining. We also recommend that Auror Shacklebolt remains in his current grade for a minimum of three years before he is considered for advancement.
Rufus Scrimgeour,
Disciplinary Panel.
The remainder of her mail was the customary interdepartmental memos flagging up areas that may be of interest, budgetary restrictions and the many other pieces of information that it was deemed necessary to the running of the Wizarding Civil Service.
She quickly briefed her secretary and asked her to set up a meeting with Dumbledore at Hogwarts and left to speak with Tofty.
Headmaster's Office, Hogwarts
Albus Dumbledore was going over the events of the previous day, he'd been forced into dismissing Snape by his Senior Staff who, in spite of his efforts to sow distrust, seemed to be working together, he couldn't understand why he was losing his grip on things.
Just at that his fireplace roared into life and a woman's head appeared. "Message for Headmaster Dumbledore from Director Bones" the head said. "Director Bones will be visiting you to talk about ex-Professor Snape at 11:00 this morning. Please ensure the following students are available. Mr. Costello and those who were with him when he was injured, Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger. She will also require to speak to the remainder of the 6th year Defence class along with Madame Pomfrey, Professors McGonagall, Sprout and Flitwick."
He recognised Amelia's secretary and replied, "I'm sorry, this is an internal matter, it is not under the jurisdiction of the D.M.L.E. please inform Madame Bones that her visit is quite unnecessary."
"I'm sorry, Professor Dumbledore, but the W.E.A. has requested that the D.M.L.E. should look into the allegations against your former Potions Professor, several other complaints have been lodged against him in the past twenty-four hours. Director Bones will be with you at eleven a.m."
As soon as the secretary's head disappeared from his fireplace, Dumbledore felt that now familiar tic starting in his left eye. He sat in the Lotus position and tried to clear his mind and calm himself down, he wasn't successful as an owl carrying the written confirmation of the investigation into Severus Snape arrived from the Board of Directors.
Revisiting the Dursleys.
Dudley Dursley was in a world of pain, his 'owner,' Razor, had been moved to an adult prison and in the following power struggle he'd tried to cash in on Razor's reputation, but none of Razor's gang would have anything to do with him, no one was willing to follow a 'ponce.'
The outcome of it all was that in a mass brawl he had been deliberately targeted and his genitals had been crushed by the many kicks and punches he had received. He had tried to get into the good books of the Warders by turning grass, but as he was incapable of subtlety, he had been overheard and had had to be held in protective custody.
Vernon on the other hand was in a world of bliss, the taunting of Tonks and Hestia Jones had driven him right over the edge. The final straw had been when Tonks had appeared as a floating head while morphed to look like Harry.
As Vernon screeched "FREEEEAAAAK, THE FREAKS HERE, THE FREAKS HERES, LOOK, LOOK, THE FREAKS HERE, THE FREAKS HERE, THE FREAKS HERES, THE FREAKS HERE." An already overstrained blood vessel in his brain burst. The resultant brain damage left drooling as the only thing he could do without any assistance.
Petunia had given up on Little Whinging, she had sold the house and moved to live with Marge, who took her in out of pity (and the large sum of money she paid for rent.) Her perfect life was ruined, she spent her day helping clean out the dogs and drinking gin. Her 'pretty' dresses had been replaced by work clothes and the local people thought she was Marge's live-in lover. The truth was the opposite, the two women could hardly stand to be in the same house let alone the same room as each other.
W.E.A. Professor Tofty's Office.
Professor Tofty welcomed his old friend Amelia Bones into his office and gestured to one of the armchair's circling a coffee table. With a wave of his wand, a selection of cakes and biscuits and two cups of tea appeared on the table.
"Orange Peko alright for you?" he asked
"That's fine, anything's better than the Earl Grey Dumbledore serves." She replied, "Now talking of Dumbledore, what's going on?"
"Well a Mr. Costello, filed a complaint against Severus Snape with the Board of Directors. From what we can gather, his son was hit by a badly aimed spell fired through an open classroom door. While that is a concern, our main problem is that if the spell had hit it's intended target the results could have been fatal. The fact that Dumbledore dismissed Snape before the Board could investigate is giving us great cause for concern, normal practice would have been to suspend him pending an investigation by the Board."
"I'll take Aurors Tonks and Jones with me, both are young enough to relate easier to the student age group. Now I have information for you, ex-Auror Shacklebolt has been hired to replace Snape, he was recently in front of a disciplinary panel due to an alleged misuse of power. If he hadn't resigned, he was due to be removed from frontline duties. I'm not sure if he's the right person to be teaching."
"So you wouldn't have recommended him then?" asked Tofty.
"Certainly not, he has an attitude problem and sails too close to the edge, he has had more complaints against him than any other Auror in the past ten years. That and he's a part of Dumbledore's not so secret organisation."
"Fine, deal with the Snape situation first, if you can get any more evidence against Umbridge, please do so, leave Shacklebolt for the time being, if what you say about him is true, he'll trip himself up."
Amelia returned to her office and contacted Scrimgeour. "Rufus, you're in charge for the time being, in an emergency contact me at Hogwarts, I'll have Aurors Tonks and Jones with me. Put a watch on Severus Snape, he's under investigation for an alleged assault at Hogwarts, the details are in the file on my desk."
Main Gates Hogwarts
Amelia Bones, with her Auror escort were met at the School Gate by Hagrid. As per his instructions from Dumbledore he led them up to the school. But as we all know Hagrid isn't exactly the most discreet person on the planet and he supplied them with the latest gossip.
"They say Snape was trying to kill Harry Potter yesterday, he's always had it in for Harry and his friends, always picking on anyone who wasn't a Slytherin, especially Gryffindors, why he even accused Harry of helping Sirius Black escape when Harry was locked in the Infirmary. That Umbridge was a nasty piece of work too, had Aurors fire stunners at Professor McGonagall when she objected to them trying to arrest me."
The three women tuned out most of Hagrid's ramblings, only taking notice when he said anything of consequence. The thing that Amelia took most notice of was.
"Now Harry Potter, what a great kid, I took him to his Aunt's house that night, Dumbledore's orders. Sirius wanted to take him as he was his Godfather, but Dumbledore said Harry was to go to his Aunt. Don't reckon Sirius would have chased Pettigrew if he'd had Harry to care for."
Headmaster's Office
Dumbledore sucked on a lemon drop as he watched the group walk up from the gates, once they had entered the front door the portraits kept him informed of their progress through the school. He'd met with his Professors and Madame Pomfrey and informed them of the investigation, he asked them to do what was best for the school and hoped that his hint would be taken, oh how wrong he was.
The Interviews.
The first people interviewed were the Professors and Madame Pomfrey, Madame Pomfrey testified about the injury to Mr. Costello and how lucky he was to have sustained such a light injury. Professor McGonagall gave testimony about how she'd been confronted by an angry delegation of 6th years complaining about how Professor Snape had attacked a student without warning and had tried to belittle Harry and Hermione in front of the whole class.
"Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger made no complaint?" asked Hestia.
"No, it's sad to say but experience would have taught him that it was useless to complain against Professor Snape"
"Why is that?" asked Tonks.
"You'll need to ask our esteemed Headmaster about that." Replied McGonagall.
None of the investigators missed the sarcastic emphasis the Professor put on the word esteemed. They all found it interesting, in the past Minerva McGonagall would have said nothing derogatory about Dumbledore.
Professor Flitwick told about his two students who had been so intimidated by Snape they had fainted, he also mentioned about Colin's accident in class.
Harry and Hermione were interviewed separately, both of them surprised the Aurors by casting silencing spells on the portrait in the room and the door. When Hermione did it they knew why, but they had questioned Harry about it.
His reply was, "I don't trust Dumbledore"
Harry told them of how they had walked into the Defence class with about five minutes to spare when he had sensed something wrong, he described watching as the spell flew toward himself and Hermione as he pushed her and rolled himself out of the way. He told them of going down the corridor and finding the injured student and of how he had sent him and his friends to the infirmary.
Other than the premonition of the attack, Hermione's story differed very little, the only detail she added was Zabini's attempted interference in the duel between Nott and Harry and the punishment handed out to Neville for snapping Zabini's wand.
After all the interviews had been finished, Amelia and Hestia made their way back to Dumbledore's office to tell him the bad news. Tonks meantime had made her way to the gates of the school to send a message to Scrimgeour to put out an arrest warrant for Severus Snape.
Dumbledore was not a happy teddy bear, his attempt to prevent Severus getting into serious trouble had failed. Although his place on the Wizengamot was fairly secure, he could still be in difficulty with the Board, some of them were very unhappy with the events over the past few years, and had indicated to him privately that they weren't happy he had been reinstated after the Umbridge fiasco.
He'd be even more unhappy the following day when four letters of resignation from the Order of the Phoenix landed on his desk. Aurors Tonks and Jones had spoken to their boss about their membership, their original reasons for joining, and their growing disquiet with being with an organisation who's leader seemed to want to bend the Laws they were being paid to uphold.
The other two letters were from Remus Lupin and Professor McGonagall respectively, both quoting a conflict of interest between their wish to see Voldemort defeated and the way The Order was being operated. Neither mentioned it but the main reason for them resigning was Dumbledore's attempted theft of Harry's inheritance from Sirius.
Back at Spinners End
Severus Snape clutched at his arm as his Dark Mark flared into the pain that meant only one thing, a summons from his true Master. Quickly gathering his Death Eater uniform from a hidden closet he went through the motions of making multiple Apparations until he finally reached Malfoy Manor, the current hideout of Voldemort.
The Auror trailing him kept a discreet distance and when he saw where he was heading, Disapparated back to the D.M.L.E. to report in. As he made his report an urgent message arrived from Tonks upgrading Snape's status from 'watch' to 'apprehend on sight,' a capture team was formed and returned to keep a watch on Snape's cottage, no Auror was foolhardy enough to walk into Malfoy Manor, even when they knew the owner was safely incarcerated in Azkaban.
Malfoy Manor
Snape did a discreet headcount when he walked into the meeting room in Malfoy Manor, he knew it didn't hold a candle to the Prince Manor, but it outshone his cottage. A flurry of house-elves served drinks under the command of the command of the former mistress of the house and disappeared back to wherever they hid.
The Dark Lord was sitting in a stylised throne, it was like something from a Muggle comic book, all dark wood carved with skulls and snakes and grotesques, it may have frightened the feeble-minded but in reality Snape found it rather camp, right up to when his Master spoke.
"Severus, what new developments from Hogwarts? Is the brat more skilled than he was? Share the news please." Hissed Voldemort.
"Well, My Lord, he and Dumbledore are at odds, there has been a falling out and he no longer trusts the old fool. He has taken up with the Mudblood Granger. I tried to goad him, but he remains calm, his Occlumency skills remain pathetic. He is fast on his feet but no more skilled than the average 6th year student. Zabini and Nott should be able to deal with him quite easily."
"And you Severus? How will you deal with him when you have been forced from the school, don't forget there are students who willingly follow and keep their Master informed."
"It was a set up, My Lord, Dumbledore was forced to make me resign, but I'll get him on the first Hogsmeade weekend, no one will suspect me."
"Very good Severus, now before you go /'Crucio' /do not lie to me again, you are pathetic, you let your petty jealousy of a dead man cloud your judgement again. If you fail me again, you will die, now get back to your pathetic life."
As he Apparated to the front door of his cottage something warned him that not all was right, but before he could react he was Stunned, disarmed, incarcerated with ropes, Stunned again and had a set of anti-Apparation manacles fitted to his wrists. When he regained consciousness he realised that he was in a cell at the D.M.L.E. life was rapidly turning to crap.
This is the last of the pre-written chapters, I hope to get the next one written soon.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and other canon characters belong to JKR I'm only having some fun
Chapter 16 Retribution.
Snape Cottage, Spinners End.
From the outside the cottage looked perfectly ordinary, it blended with it's neighbours as it had to. Snape had inherited it from his Muggleborn father, it still hurt him that although he was the eldest male grandchild, that the Prince Manor had passed to a Pureblood half cousin. The Princes despised Halfbloods and Muggleborns even more than the Malfoys. Fortunately for him, there was an old Pureblood family called Snape, so no one in Slytherin took any notice of his surname. Lucius certainly wouldn't have named him as Draco's Godfather had he known.
Severus Snape looked round his study with a measured eye and took in the luxurious furnishings. He had planned this room meticulously using the best both the Muggle and Wizarding worlds could supply. His favourite armchair, a Lay-Z-boy recliner was to one side of the fireplace, on the other side was another recliner. He had charmed both of them to recline automatically and had replaced the Lay-Z-boy's phone with a view screen that showed him anyone approaching his front door.
The walls were lined with dark oak bookcases which were filled with books of all descriptions, some of them he had never read, they had been bought to fill space, but they weren't just any old books, they were Special Editions, First Editions and Rare Books. The books he was proudest of owning were his Potions Books, he doubted that anyone had a more extensive collection. A lot of the potions listed were lost to the modern Wizarding world, some were still spoken about in hushed tones but many others had passed beyond myth and legend.
'One day,' /he thought 'One day I'll 'reinvent' some of these and be recognised for the genius I am, all I have to do is make sure none of them are registered at the Patent Office.'/
He sat and contemplated things, he had invested well over the years, had put some money into a Potion Ingredients company, which he had then recommended to be the sole supplier to Hogwarts, but most of the money had been spent on his book collection. He had enough money put by to not have to worry about work in the immediate future, and when money did become an issue he could always 'invent' some new potion or other.
As he thought about his fall from grace, an unseen bell chimed letting him know an owl had arrived with the morning's mail. With some trepidation he approached the owl which bore the Gringotts Crest and removed the attached scroll. He looked nervously at the scroll which bore the seal of Gringotts and opened it.
Dear Mr. Snape,
(that really rankled, as he no longer taught at Hogwarts he could no longer use the honorific of Professor.)
When you took your position on the Board of the Potter Trust, you signed an oath that you would do nothing that would harm the Trust or anyone of the Potter line.
Your recent actions in firing a harmful spell at Mr. Harry Potter, means that you are in breach of this section of the contract, as such, all monies received by yourself in payment for your services to the Potter Trust are now forfeit.
Please arrange for the transfer of these funds at your earliest convenience. If this transfer is not completed within five days of you receiving this letter, your Gringotts account will be frozen and the money will be reclaimed through the Wizarding Courts.
Please note: This letter is Charmed to inform the Head of the Potter Trust when it is opened.
Griphook
Account Manager
Gringotts Bank.
As his anger overcame him, he tore the parchment to shreds and threw it into the air. He looked on in astonishment as the tiny pieces of paper landed on the table and reformed into the single page of the letter, an extra line of writing appeared on the page. 'This letter is written on guaranteed indestructible parchment, available from Flourish & Blotts and all other good outlets.'
The wail of anguish from the cottage sent the local dogs and cats scurrying for shelter and several homing pigeons flying overhead took an extra three days to reach their destinations.
Severus Snape slumped into one of the kitchen chairs and held his head in his hands, he didn't have 150,000 Galleons to hand, he couldn't even raise the money quickly enough by selling his books and shares. His liquid assets were around 50,000 Galleons, he thought of his options, and being fond of his skin decided to empty his account and disappear to mainland Europe.
D.M.L.E.
Amelia Bones lifted the pile of mail her secretary had sorted for her, the pair had established a good working relationship over the years and the post was always handed to her with the important letters on the top. What surprised her this morning was a letter with the Hogwarts Crest sitting on top of the pile, a quick scan to the signature at the bottom revealed it was from her niece, Susan.
This intrigued her, normally Susan sent her correspondence to her home, and if for any reason she did write to her at her office, it would have been placed on the bottom of the pile. Adjusting her monocle, she read the letter.
Dear Aunt Amelia,
I know I don't normally write to you at your office but I have some urgent news for you.
Yesterday at the start of the 6th year N.E.W.T. Defence Class, Professor Snape fired a silent Diffindo Curse at Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. It was only Harry's quick reflexes that saved him or Hermione from injury. Unfortunately a 3rd year Hufflepuff student who was down the corridor wasn't as lucky. Lou Costello was hit by the curse and sustained a nasty cut to his arm.
Rumour has it that Professor Snape was dismissed from his post due to this and for terrorising other students in his classes. Auror Shacklebolt has apparently been appointed as our new Defence Professor although I assume you already know this.
I'll write again soon,
Susan.
Amelia Bones removed her monocle as she did when she was contemplating things and polished it slowly as she sorted out her thoughts. She put the letter from Susan in her 'action' tray and started on the second.
Dear Director Bones,
It is with deep regret I tender my resignation from the Auror Corp. I would have worked the normal four weeks notice but the Personnel Department tell me I am due four weeks leave, therefore please find enclosed my Identification Badge and Warrant Card.
Yours sincerely,
Kingsley Shacklebolt.
The next letter had her reaching for a stress relieving potion.
Dear Director Bones,
The W.E.A. is deeply concerned with recent happenings at Hogwarts and at the request of the Board of Directors would ask you to conduct an inquiry into the recent conduct of Madame Delores Umbridge, ex-Professor Snape and Professor Dumbledore.
Yours sincerely
Professor Tofty
W.E.A.
The following one had her wishing the potion was stronger.
Report into the Conduct of Auror Shacklebolt at 12 Grimmauld Place.
As per your request we have investigated the conduct of Auror Shacklebolt during the incident where he was injured while at 12 Grimmauld Place. We interviewed all those present at this time. Our findings are as follows:
Auror Shacklebolt was at 12 Grimmauld Place in company with the organisation known as The Order of the Phoenix, he was supposed to be patrolling Hogsmeade Village at this time. His patrol partner was unaware of Auror Shacklebolt's absence as they had split up to patrol opposite ends of the village. /Auror Shacklebolt used aggressive language toward the owner of the property and drew his wand without due reason./ Auror Shacklebolt was injured by the owner of the property. The action the owner took has been deemed to be justified and within the parameters of minimal force. No magic was used by the owner of the property.
After taking these points into consideration and reviewing Auror Shacklebolt's disciplinary record, we recommend that Auror Shacklebolt is put on administrative duties with immediate effect and not allowed to return to frontline duties without an extensive period of retraining. We also recommend that Auror Shacklebolt remains in his current grade for a minimum of three years before he is considered for advancement.
Rufus Scrimgeour,
Disciplinary Panel.
The remainder of her mail was the customary interdepartmental memos flagging up areas that may be of interest, budgetary restrictions and the many other pieces of information that it was deemed necessary to the running of the Wizarding Civil Service.
She quickly briefed her secretary and asked her to set up a meeting with Dumbledore at Hogwarts and left to speak with Tofty.
Headmaster's Office, Hogwarts
Albus Dumbledore was going over the events of the previous day, he'd been forced into dismissing Snape by his Senior Staff who, in spite of his efforts to sow distrust, seemed to be working together, he couldn't understand why he was losing his grip on things.
Just at that his fireplace roared into life and a woman's head appeared. "Message for Headmaster Dumbledore from Director Bones" the head said. "Director Bones will be visiting you to talk about ex-Professor Snape at 11:00 this morning. Please ensure the following students are available. Mr. Costello and those who were with him when he was injured, Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger. She will also require to speak to the remainder of the 6th year Defence class along with Madame Pomfrey, Professors McGonagall, Sprout and Flitwick."
He recognised Amelia's secretary and replied, "I'm sorry, this is an internal matter, it is not under the jurisdiction of the D.M.L.E. please inform Madame Bones that her visit is quite unnecessary."
"I'm sorry, Professor Dumbledore, but the W.E.A. has requested that the D.M.L.E. should look into the allegations against your former Potions Professor, several other complaints have been lodged against him in the past twenty-four hours. Director Bones will be with you at eleven a.m."
As soon as the secretary's head disappeared from his fireplace, Dumbledore felt that now familiar tic starting in his left eye. He sat in the Lotus position and tried to clear his mind and calm himself down, he wasn't successful as an owl carrying the written confirmation of the investigation into Severus Snape arrived from the Board of Directors.
Revisiting the Dursleys.
Dudley Dursley was in a world of pain, his 'owner,' Razor, had been moved to an adult prison and in the following power struggle he'd tried to cash in on Razor's reputation, but none of Razor's gang would have anything to do with him, no one was willing to follow a 'ponce.'
The outcome of it all was that in a mass brawl he had been deliberately targeted and his genitals had been crushed by the many kicks and punches he had received. He had tried to get into the good books of the Warders by turning grass, but as he was incapable of subtlety, he had been overheard and had had to be held in protective custody.
Vernon on the other hand was in a world of bliss, the taunting of Tonks and Hestia Jones had driven him right over the edge. The final straw had been when Tonks had appeared as a floating head while morphed to look like Harry.
As Vernon screeched "FREEEEAAAAK, THE FREAKS HERE, THE FREAKS HERES, LOOK, LOOK, THE FREAKS HERE, THE FREAKS HERE, THE FREAKS HERES, THE FREAKS HERE." An already overstrained blood vessel in his brain burst. The resultant brain damage left drooling as the only thing he could do without any assistance.
Petunia had given up on Little Whinging, she had sold the house and moved to live with Marge, who took her in out of pity (and the large sum of money she paid for rent.) Her perfect life was ruined, she spent her day helping clean out the dogs and drinking gin. Her 'pretty' dresses had been replaced by work clothes and the local people thought she was Marge's live-in lover. The truth was the opposite, the two women could hardly stand to be in the same house let alone the same room as each other.
W.E.A. Professor Tofty's Office.
Professor Tofty welcomed his old friend Amelia Bones into his office and gestured to one of the armchair's circling a coffee table. With a wave of his wand, a selection of cakes and biscuits and two cups of tea appeared on the table.
"Orange Peko alright for you?" he asked
"That's fine, anything's better than the Earl Grey Dumbledore serves." She replied, "Now talking of Dumbledore, what's going on?"
"Well a Mr. Costello, filed a complaint against Severus Snape with the Board of Directors. From what we can gather, his son was hit by a badly aimed spell fired through an open classroom door. While that is a concern, our main problem is that if the spell had hit it's intended target the results could have been fatal. The fact that Dumbledore dismissed Snape before the Board could investigate is giving us great cause for concern, normal practice would have been to suspend him pending an investigation by the Board."
"I'll take Aurors Tonks and Jones with me, both are young enough to relate easier to the student age group. Now I have information for you, ex-Auror Shacklebolt has been hired to replace Snape, he was recently in front of a disciplinary panel due to an alleged misuse of power. If he hadn't resigned, he was due to be removed from frontline duties. I'm not sure if he's the right person to be teaching."
"So you wouldn't have recommended him then?" asked Tofty.
"Certainly not, he has an attitude problem and sails too close to the edge, he has had more complaints against him than any other Auror in the past ten years. That and he's a part of Dumbledore's not so secret organisation."
"Fine, deal with the Snape situation first, if you can get any more evidence against Umbridge, please do so, leave Shacklebolt for the time being, if what you say about him is true, he'll trip himself up."
Amelia returned to her office and contacted Scrimgeour. "Rufus, you're in charge for the time being, in an emergency contact me at Hogwarts, I'll have Aurors Tonks and Jones with me. Put a watch on Severus Snape, he's under investigation for an alleged assault at Hogwarts, the details are in the file on my desk."
Main Gates Hogwarts
Amelia Bones, with her Auror escort were met at the School Gate by Hagrid. As per his instructions from Dumbledore he led them up to the school. But as we all know Hagrid isn't exactly the most discreet person on the planet and he supplied them with the latest gossip.
"They say Snape was trying to kill Harry Potter yesterday, he's always had it in for Harry and his friends, always picking on anyone who wasn't a Slytherin, especially Gryffindors, why he even accused Harry of helping Sirius Black escape when Harry was locked in the Infirmary. That Umbridge was a nasty piece of work too, had Aurors fire stunners at Professor McGonagall when she objected to them trying to arrest me."
The three women tuned out most of Hagrid's ramblings, only taking notice when he said anything of consequence. The thing that Amelia took most notice of was.
"Now Harry Potter, what a great kid, I took him to his Aunt's house that night, Dumbledore's orders. Sirius wanted to take him as he was his Godfather, but Dumbledore said Harry was to go to his Aunt. Don't reckon Sirius would have chased Pettigrew if he'd had Harry to care for."
Headmaster's Office
Dumbledore sucked on a lemon drop as he watched the group walk up from the gates, once they had entered the front door the portraits kept him informed of their progress through the school. He'd met with his Professors and Madame Pomfrey and informed them of the investigation, he asked them to do what was best for the school and hoped that his hint would be taken, oh how wrong he was.
The Interviews.
The first people interviewed were the Professors and Madame Pomfrey, Madame Pomfrey testified about the injury to Mr. Costello and how lucky he was to have sustained such a light injury. Professor McGonagall gave testimony about how she'd been confronted by an angry delegation of 6th years complaining about how Professor Snape had attacked a student without warning and had tried to belittle Harry and Hermione in front of the whole class.
"Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger made no complaint?" asked Hestia.
"No, it's sad to say but experience would have taught him that it was useless to complain against Professor Snape"
"Why is that?" asked Tonks.
"You'll need to ask our esteemed Headmaster about that." Replied McGonagall.
None of the investigators missed the sarcastic emphasis the Professor put on the word esteemed. They all found it interesting, in the past Minerva McGonagall would have said nothing derogatory about Dumbledore.
Professor Flitwick told about his two students who had been so intimidated by Snape they had fainted, he also mentioned about Colin's accident in class.
Harry and Hermione were interviewed separately, both of them surprised the Aurors by casting silencing spells on the portrait in the room and the door. When Hermione did it they knew why, but they had questioned Harry about it.
His reply was, "I don't trust Dumbledore"
Harry told them of how they had walked into the Defence class with about five minutes to spare when he had sensed something wrong, he described watching as the spell flew toward himself and Hermione as he pushed her and rolled himself out of the way. He told them of going down the corridor and finding the injured student and of how he had sent him and his friends to the infirmary.
Other than the premonition of the attack, Hermione's story differed very little, the only detail she added was Zabini's attempted interference in the duel between Nott and Harry and the punishment handed out to Neville for snapping Zabini's wand.
After all the interviews had been finished, Amelia and Hestia made their way back to Dumbledore's office to tell him the bad news. Tonks meantime had made her way to the gates of the school to send a message to Scrimgeour to put out an arrest warrant for Severus Snape.
Dumbledore was not a happy teddy bear, his attempt to prevent Severus getting into serious trouble had failed. Although his place on the Wizengamot was fairly secure, he could still be in difficulty with the Board, some of them were very unhappy with the events over the past few years, and had indicated to him privately that they weren't happy he had been reinstated after the Umbridge fiasco.
He'd be even more unhappy the following day when four letters of resignation from the Order of the Phoenix landed on his desk. Aurors Tonks and Jones had spoken to their boss about their membership, their original reasons for joining, and their growing disquiet with being with an organisation who's leader seemed to want to bend the Laws they were being paid to uphold.
The other two letters were from Remus Lupin and Professor McGonagall respectively, both quoting a conflict of interest between their wish to see Voldemort defeated and the way The Order was being operated. Neither mentioned it but the main reason for them resigning was Dumbledore's attempted theft of Harry's inheritance from Sirius.
Back at Spinners End
Severus Snape clutched at his arm as his Dark Mark flared into the pain that meant only one thing, a summons from his true Master. Quickly gathering his Death Eater uniform from a hidden closet he went through the motions of making multiple Apparations until he finally reached Malfoy Manor, the current hideout of Voldemort.
The Auror trailing him kept a discreet distance and when he saw where he was heading, Disapparated back to the D.M.L.E. to report in. As he made his report an urgent message arrived from Tonks upgrading Snape's status from 'watch' to 'apprehend on sight,' a capture team was formed and returned to keep a watch on Snape's cottage, no Auror was foolhardy enough to walk into Malfoy Manor, even when they knew the owner was safely incarcerated in Azkaban.
Malfoy Manor
Snape did a discreet headcount when he walked into the meeting room in Malfoy Manor, he knew it didn't hold a candle to the Prince Manor, but it outshone his cottage. A flurry of house-elves served drinks under the command of the command of the former mistress of the house and disappeared back to wherever they hid.
The Dark Lord was sitting in a stylised throne, it was like something from a Muggle comic book, all dark wood carved with skulls and snakes and grotesques, it may have frightened the feeble-minded but in reality Snape found it rather camp, right up to when his Master spoke.
"Severus, what new developments from Hogwarts? Is the brat more skilled than he was? Share the news please." Hissed Voldemort.
"Well, My Lord, he and Dumbledore are at odds, there has been a falling out and he no longer trusts the old fool. He has taken up with the Mudblood Granger. I tried to goad him, but he remains calm, his Occlumency skills remain pathetic. He is fast on his feet but no more skilled than the average 6th year student. Zabini and Nott should be able to deal with him quite easily."
"And you Severus? How will you deal with him when you have been forced from the school, don't forget there are students who willingly follow and keep their Master informed."
"It was a set up, My Lord, Dumbledore was forced to make me resign, but I'll get him on the first Hogsmeade weekend, no one will suspect me."
"Very good Severus, now before you go /'Crucio' /do not lie to me again, you are pathetic, you let your petty jealousy of a dead man cloud your judgement again. If you fail me again, you will die, now get back to your pathetic life."
As he Apparated to the front door of his cottage something warned him that not all was right, but before he could react he was Stunned, disarmed, incarcerated with ropes, Stunned again and had a set of anti-Apparation manacles fitted to his wrists. When he regained consciousness he realised that he was in a cell at the D.M.L.E. life was rapidly turning to crap.
This is the last of the pre-written chapters, I hope to get the next one written soon.
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