It had been a month since he was sent to Azkaban by the aurors. You still couldn't wholly swallow the fact that you had betrayed him, and made the decision to do so right after he stayed with you for the first time, throughout the entire night and morning. He even said he loved you.
What you had done to him felt so insidious after he had at last opened up to you the night before and reciprocated your feelings.
You had crushed your own heart and mind. You didn't even believe that Loki belonged in Azkaban. After everything you had been through with him, you could never see him as a villain. No matter how much the aurors wanted you to see him as one. To you, he was a victim.
After that night, you no longer even saw him as your enemy. He was purely just misguided and you had failed to help him see that in time. It had grown too late and The Monarchy had to be stopped before they could enact any world-changing decrees.
Within a month, The Ministry was able to renovate and reestablish itself in The Wizarding World. After you revealed to them The Monarchy's plans, Scrimgeour and the aurors were able to arrest many of their highest-ranking officials. Although they had no way to prove that Loki and his closest followers were death eaters, they were able to seize evidence of bribery and intended treason to convict them.
When the Daily Prophet released this bombshell, The Monarchy was seen for what it really was, a corrupt and authoritarian governing body. Massive amounts of people quit their jobs there and transferred back to their old jobs at The Ministry. And then The Ministry was finally able to return to normal, and this time for the better.
You tried your best to move on without Loki. Just like you promised yourself that you would after he was gone. You returned to your old office, where the black roses he gave you were still sitting on the windowsill. They were crumpled and most of the petals had fallen off and onto the floor. You couldn't even be bothered to pick it up and throw it out.
Scrimgeour and Josiah welcomed you back into The Ministry with open arms. You weren't surprised. Your old job at the Department of Mysteries was the only thing you asked for in exchange for everything you had done for them. They even forgave you for all of the lies you told them in the past to protect Loki.
You did it. Just like Loki did everything he said he would and rose to the top of The Wizarding World, you did what you told yourself you would. You were able to return to your normal life. It didn't feel like an accomplishment though. But it didn't feel like a mistake either.
You tried your best not to think about him anymore. You immersed yourself in your job and helped Scrimgeour and Josiah get The Ministry back together in any way that you could. Josiah had been so kind and patient with you. He could tell you were having an inner dilemma with yourself after everything. You had a feeling that he liked you, but you and him both knew that you couldn't reciprocate anything after everything with Loki.
There were two things that you couldn't take your mind off of though. Jane and Thor had completely disappeared. Jane was nowhere to be found and when you questioned Scrimgeour about it, he didn't know anything either. It was so strange, it's almost as if she had ceased to exist. Above all, Morpheus Malfoy was still out there and Scrimgeour was fixed on finding him, so this whole death eater thing could be over once and for all.
When you had gathered up the courage to do it, you headed over to Hogwarts with Scrimgeour and Josiah to return the destroyed relics that you had managed to retrieve. Dumbledore was extremely appreciative and he promised to work on restoring Ravenclaw's Diadem and the Hufflepuff Cup to the best of his ability. Scrimgeour also returned the locket you had first taken from Loki (which turned out to be the Slytherin relic) and Marvolo Gaunt's ring, which you had to pry off of Loki's petrified body.
The three of you planned to leave altogether when Dumbledore asked you to stay behind, as he had something to talk to you about. You weren't sure what it was. You had never been to the headmaster's office before.
You sat down in his office with him, staring down at his desk, which had an assortment of different trinkets on it. There was his wand and a cloak, and the ring you had returned to him, strangely gathered together.
"Y/N. Thank you for your dedication to The Ministry. It has saved a lot of people, especially us, here at Hogwarts," Dumbledore congratulated you.
"Hogwarts is under your protection. How did I save anyone here?"
Did he mean you saved people in general because Riddle was no longer alive?
"Let me show you something," Dumbledore said, walking towards an ornately decorated gold and glass fixture on the wall. He opened it up. It was a pensieve.
He took an orb from the hidden shelf behind it and held it up towards you. "A prophecy foretold by Sybill Trelawney. Take a look." He used his wand to reach into the orb and then dropped the prophecy into the water.
You took a step into the pensieve and looked into it.
You'd seen this prophecy before, in The Minister of Magic's office. It was the one that Loki had broken by accident. But this time, the prophecy was more detailed and played out as a memory. It told the story of a boy named Harry Potter whose destiny it was to vanquish the dark lord, Voldemort.
You pushed your head out of the pensieve and stared up at Dumbledore, shocked and confused. "What was that? I don't think I completely understand."
"It's a different future. A future that was prevented because of you. Due to your actions these past few months, you prevented the Second Wizarding War and all the events leading up to it."
"What? How could I have done that?"
"You tell me, Y/N. Whatever decisions you made, it saved more people than we may ever know. Students at Hogwarts, aurors, muggles, myself even."
"You?"
Dumbledore nodded and you and him both returned to your seats at his desk.
"It wasn't just me, professor. All of the decisions I made were because of someone else. Otherwise, if it weren't for him, I would have never gotten myself involved in all of this."
"Who was this? Was this the first wizard the aurors apprehended? The monarch?"
"Yes. Loki Laufeyson. He claimed to have gone to Hogwarts, you weren't his professor?"
"I had never heard of him before he became the head of The Monarchy."
"I wonder where he went to school then..."
Dumbledore just smiled at you.
All of a sudden, a large, red bird flew into his office and landed on a perch in front of him.
"Professor? Is that the phoenix that saved me at the Shrieking Shack?!"
Dumbledore nodded.
"How did you know I needed help?"
"You must have shown me true loyalty all this time, fighting against the death eaters. Nothing but that would have sent Fawkes and the sorting hat to you," Dumbledore responded.
"Thank you, professor. I would've died if it weren't for Fawkes." You thought to ask about the dagger as well, but you shrugged it off for now. He'd probably answer with some mysterious response again.
"Thank you Y/N. However, unfortunately, we aren't done. I heard Morpheus is starting to build up a following again, which means he must know something we don't."
"What do you mean? Like he might have another of Riddle's horcruxes we don't know about?"
"From what I remember, Riddle and Malfoy were very close when they were here at Hogwarts together. He might still be attempting to bring Riddle back. We must remain vigilant."
You brought up a topic you thought might be relevant. "Myrtle told me about Hogwarts and The Ministry covering up her death. Is this true?"
Dumbledore nodded. "It is. Dippet was headmaster at the time as you may know, and The Ministry was doing whatever it could to hide any news of misconduct or failure because The Monarchy's power was growing too fast."
"Do you think Riddle created a horcrux before he even knew how to make one? Myrtle told me he failed, but what if he didn't?"
"That is entirely possible. Morpheus should have it, if it does exist. Riddle must have instructed him to keep it a secret."
You nodded. "I'll make sure to let Scrimgeour know."
"Yes. Please make sure to do that. Although, Scrimgeour and I had quite a bit of a disagreement earlier on the dementors hanging around the school."
Scrimgeour still wanted them here because of Morpheus, so that information about him having a possible horcrux would only solidify his decision even more.
"Professor, I have one more question. When I was here before, did you know of the prophecy then, that it wouldn't come true? Is that what you meant by meaning that I could save more than one person?" You asked.
"I don't recall."
Oh. You guessed that he didn't remember. Sheesh, did this man have memory loss or something? Or was he purposely being vague?
"Uh. Never mind then. That's okay. I guess I'll get going now."
You got up from your seat and headed towards the rotating, spiral staircase.
Dumbledore got up as well to wave goodbye. Fawkes bowed his head at you.
"Remember Y/N. Love can redeem and save people."
So he must have remembered what he said that day. Or did he just say that to everyone when they greeted him goodbye? How strange. Maybe he didn't tell you the whole truth, as it could affect the choices you make in future.
Most importantly, did he want you to see Loki again?
Another week passed by, with no new discoveries or uncoverings about Morpheus. Scrimgeour and the aurors were working as hard as they could to find him. You, on other hand, were getting overwhelmed. You took a step back from all of their crime fighting and just focused on your organisation duties.
It was getting harder than before to not think of him. Dumbledore's words still had a strong effect on you. Why would he say that to you on the way out of his office?
You knew that there had to be something else he was alluding for you to do, and it had to do with Loki. So, you made a plan. You were going to visit him at Azkaban.
You thought it might be appropriate for you to stop by the Odinson Estate to let Thor know, but when you got there, it was just a large, empty estate. No Thor, no Odin, no Frigga. It's like there had never even been any person there in the first place.
You searched Loki's flat. All you found was that weird, glowing blue cube in his drawer and the red rose he had given you. Still fresh as ever, laying on the ground. You took both of them and shoved them into your bag, trying to ignore your growing emotions. You placed it next to your basilisk fang which you now felt the need to always keep with you.
This was similar to Jane's sudden disappearance. You needed answers.
You headed towards Azkaban. Luckily, because you were still considered a high-ranking Ministry official, you were permitted to visit. You had to take a long ship ride to get there amidst stormy seas and a dark sky. The captain of the ship mentioned you were the only person visiting for today.
The horde of dementors on the outside of the prison gave you such a sick, depressing feeling you almost asked the captain to turn back so you could return home.
There were some wizard guards there, but only a few. It was mainly dementors guarding the towering, triangular building. You had to climb up a long, winding staircase to finally get to Loki's cell.
You had to admit you were more nervous than you'd been in your life. You weren't sure how he was doing. Would he hate you for what you did or would he have come to terms with it by now?
You took careful steps to get to his cell, holding your hands in tight fists against your legs until you rounded the corner. It was grey, dirty, and dark in there.
You tried your best to stay strong once you made eye contact with him.
"Y/N? Is that you?" He asked.
His hair was ragged, his clothes torn, and he was sitting against the wall in a sluggish posture. He looked like hell. And you were the reason why.