Last Time:
As they continued talking they never noticed a cloaked wizard walk passed the shop window with ingredients for a variety of potions including the Poly juice potion ...
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Tom listened excitedly as Julian explained every detail of what happened in that meeting. "So ... he hurt that girl from my memory and many others? Is he in prison?"
"Yep! In a few days we should hear something about what will happen to him." Julian said as they got ready for dinner.
Brian frowned as he turned the stove off and removed the pot of chili, "If half of the cases that Cornelius wanted solved are connected to Dumbledore then I see only one possible end to this." He said solemnly.
'Good. It serves him right for what he did to my human.' Tanzanite hissed as he coiled up on Julian's head.
Tom's face fell as the realization of what the occamy meant hit him, "Right ..."
"Yes." Brian said quickly despite not knowing the occamy's exact words. "A truly cruel man will hopefully never hurt anyone again. His crimes got him there and your memory stopped him." He said firmly making sure the young wizard didn't start blaming himself for the death of a person, especially a man like that. "Of course, this isn't something I want you guys to worry about. Remember, you guys have classes."
Tom mentally pushed the morbid subject aside, "Professor Kathy said she wanted me to practice levitation while using water so we'll be at the fountain for after school practice."
Brian smiled, "She told me you were doing quite well."
Tom blushed sheepishly, "If you don't count nearly cracking my own head open with a book. Moving to water might be more advanced, but it'll be safer too."
"I can meet you there if you want." Julian offered as he passed out the plates and bowls. "Draco has a swim meet and I was going to meet him anyway."
"Sure, but no laughing if I get drenched." Tom chuckled.
"No laughing." Julian said seriously. "Only pictures." He said with a grin.
Tom gaped, "You wouldn't!"
Brian chuckled, "Time to eat, you two!"
Everything seemed fine after today's madness. Tom and Julian slept peacefully thinking Dumbledore was in a wizard prison. However, when they woke up they heard Brian talking to someone in the floo ...
"It's just a bad feeling. Can you go check?" Brian asked as he motioned for the young wizards to eat breakfast.
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Cornelius was feeling immensely relieved when he watched the cell door close on Dumbledore. This was a huge victory that brought justice for so many. At least, that's what he thought until he received a floo call.
"Brian? Is something wrong?" Cornelius asked when he recognized the person in the embers.
"I don't know for sure ... it's something about Dumbledore." The ember face of Brian said.
"I personally made sure he was locked up." Cornelius said as he went through a mental checklist to see if it was possible that he missed something.
"It's just a feeling. Could you go check?" Brian asked.
There was something about Brian's tone that made Cornelius worry, "Ok. It won't hurt anything to go see. Oh, why didn't you call my cell?"
"I have a feeling you'll need as much battery as possible." Brian said ominously.
That comment set Cornelius on edge, "I see ... I'll call you back in a few minutes." He said and he left the floo.
With two Aurors going with him he went to Azkaban. The chill from the dementors floating around the foreboding castle would make anyone turn back, but they readied their wands and went in. Their footsteps echoed through the halls as they walked past numerous prison cells. Finally they stopped at the one farthest back.
"Dumbledore." Cornelius said, but the lump on the cell floor didn't move. There was, however, an odd flicker of light on the walls. "Dumbledore?" The minister frowned as something gurgled. "You, come with me. You cover us and keep him from trying anything." Cornelius ordered the two Aurors.
When the cell door was swung open Cornelius slowly walked in with one Auror following behind. With their wands at the ready they slowly stepped closer. It was only when a dementor flew by the cell the lump moved. It was a shiver that seemed very weak and was followed by a pained whine. Thankfully, Cornelius shook off the chilly and depressing side effects of the dementors just in time to notice that the pained whine didn't sound human.
"Cover me." The minister whispered to the Auror behind him before kneeling down on the stone floor and leaned over Dumbledore's now shivering form. With a gentle tug on the robes the body rolled over revealing Dumbledore's face. "Shit! Help me carry it out of here!" He exclaimed as he cast a reversal spell at the form. The Auror closest to the minister hesitated until he saw what the other Auror couldn't.
The Auror guarding the cell door looked baffled, "What? Why? Isn't he-Oh!" Finally he saw the barely breathing reason being gently lifted by the two wizards. It wasn't Dumbles or even human, but a very weak Phoenix. "I'll run ahead to get the door!"
Moments later the trio ran into the ministry and chose the first desk to gently place the poor magical bird. The person who worked at the desk was annoyed, but only for a moment. After seeing that the creature was in agony she offered her robes as a cushion.
"Minister, the Phoenix isn't turning to ash. What should we do?" One worried Auror asked.
Cornelius sighed and pulled out a cellphone, "I wanted to ease everyone into this technology, but this is an emergency." He muttered as he dialed the number for the sanctuary that the basilisk was sent to. While ignoring the baffled looks at the odd device he spoke to the person who answered. "I have an injured Phoenix-"
"Is the Phoenix not changing over normally? How was it injured?" The person asked.
"She was found after dementors have been feeding off her for ... a few hours at least. The feathers are falling off and turning black instead of burning." Cornelius said as he watched a rotting feather hit the ground.
"I'm tracing your location now! A team will appear in a moment so please put your phone next to the Phoenix and have everyone step back!" The clearly concerned operator said.
Everyone in the room was, of course, baffled, but they listened to their minister. Imagine their shock when Cornelius put the thing down, backed away and four people in blue jackets appeared. There really shouldn't be a way to simply portkey into the ministry so that alone was a shock.
The curvy dark skinned woman of the team immediately spotted the mythical bird, "Get the nest out fast!" She ordered before looking out at the ministry workers just standing there. "In this condition he might not survive the transport. If this darling is going to make it I need everyone to clear your minds and think of anything positive thoughts-"
"Why should we listen to you?" One Auror asked, not liking that this person was trying to order them around.
Cornelius groaned, "These people are from the Mythical Wildlife Sanctuary in Australia. They work with the same sanctuary that handled the basilisk. Now listen." He said and he noticed that the other rescuers had released charmed blades of grass, the grass was weaving itself under the injured Phoenix and soon it formed a nest. They then cast a dome-like spell on the bird. The entire thing looked like a giant nest with an egg nestled in the center.
The woman, who was apparently named Alex according to her name tag, gave a brisk nod, but instead of saying anything she shot a spell into the air. Images of kittens nursing, puppies playing and many other heartwarming things started floating around the room. Just as everyone was taking in the adorable images of a baby dragon trying to walk, the 'egg' in the nest started to glow.
"Very good ... his heartbeat is getting stronger." Alex said as her team paid close attention to the other designs that appeared on the slightly see through 'shell'. "A Phoenix has a deep, passionate and fiery will to live. It's so powerful that it keeps these beautiful birds coming back, but dementors do the exact opposite. Picture your happiest memory and truly feel it deep in your soul! Lend him that love." Her strong passionate voice boomed as she gently reached in the egg-like dome to gently stroke the feathers on the neck.
As the other ministry workers all realized this was actually very serious they all looked into their hearts. One by one the power from those positive vibes seemed to make the 'egg' glow brighter. Finally, everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they heard the bird gave a slightly stronger caw. Fawkes wasn't strong enough to do much more than lift his head slightly, but his singing meant so much.
"He's stable enough to travel now. We'll keep you updated." Alex said as she and her teammates touched the rim of the nest.
"Thank you." Cornelius said cheerfully, but the second the rescuers left with the weak Phoenix he became quite serious. "Not a word about this leaves this room. As for why, I'm afraid to say that Dumbledore escaped." He saw the looks on all the Aurors and ministry workers' faces. "I know this is not good news, but this is why we need to act as calmly as possible. At this point he could be in hiding or even utilizing a Poly Judie potion. I want everyone, no matter their department, to stand in front of everyone and make a vow saying that you are you."
Every single ministry worker in every department was called in. Even those who had that day off were flooed in and to make sure everything was secure the floo network was temporarily shut down. All non ministry workers were asked to go to Gringotts to file any reports and none of the workers were allowed to leave. It took the rest of the day, but considering the circumstances it was wise.
Cornelius sighed in relief when every ministry worker was cleared, "The news of this escape must stay quiet. Mainly because of the chance that he will depend on Poly juice. Dumbledore has been proven capable of murder. He won't have a problem kidnapping someone and hiding them somewhere to take their place effectively. Everyone activate your badges. The first code word will be ..." Cornelius pondered a moment and smiled sadly. "Phoenix. I doubt anyone here will forget that.
It was a decision everyone could agree on. With determination in everyone's eyes all badges were raised in the air. Once the badges glow it will buzz once a day and they must use a finger to write the password down to prove they are still themselves. If the password isn't given or a wrong one is used it will stop as if the correct thing was done, but in reality it has already alerted the other Aurors on stand by.
"Now let's lure Dumbledore out. I have a thought, but I need to inform someone first. For now, return to what you were doing. Act normal, but be on alert. You will get updates through your badges." Cornelius said and once the floo network was restarted he went to his office ...
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Draco's eyebrow twitched in annoyance when he noticed Julian, who was sitting on a chair near the edge of the pool, was watching Tom, "He's cute." He muttered in irritation when he looked at Tom and even when Tom screwed up the simple water trick it didn't help. If anything the more soaked Tom got the more irritated Draco got and it might've been because Julian kept looking at Tom. Draco felt better when Julian went back to reading something for his own homework.
"Draco, you're next!"
"Right!" Draco said, only barely noticing that the teacher spoke at all. The Malfoy stepped into the water. The teacher created a whirlpool and Draco focused his magic to push against the current, but he noticed out of the corner of his eye that Julian was watching Tom again!
With great concentration Draco sent an undercurrent under the water. It traveled down the large circular indoor pool and into one of the smaller 'tide pools' sprouting off of the main circle that had a waterfall pouring into it from the ceiling. Tom didn't even see it coming and immediately got swept into the edge of the pool. Not that it did much because Kathy immediately caught him, but Draco felt better anyway.
"Careful, Draco. You caused an undercurrent." The swimming club instructor warned. He noticed it, but didn't think it was deliberate.
"Yes, Professor Cane." Draco said innocently as the tall, lean and bald professor waved at Kathy making sure they didn't need help.
A minute later Professor Cane canceled the Whirlpool, "Ok, that's it for today. Be sure to meditate and have a great day!" He said as he guided the other students to the floo on the other side of the room.
'That was sneaky.' Sasha said through the mental link as she watched Draco get out of the pool.
As the other members of the swimming club were picked up and taken home by their parents Draco went over to join Julian, "So what are you doing?"
"Don't pick on Tom. You shouldn't be jealous, Draco." Julian said quietly so Kathy couldn't hear. As Draco gaped at that blunt response Julian looked at the tiny occamy reading his book. "Hey, Tanzanite. Could you go up and see if dad is coming?"
'Of course, my human. Don't let these feisty humans fight until I get back.' Tanzanite hissed before following the water up into the ceiling. Yes, the water went up and fed the fountain in front of the school.
Sasha snorted, 'Perhaps not that sneaky.'
Kathy looked over at the two boys as Tom rested, "Draco, are your parents coming soon?"
Draco snapped back to his senses, "Yes. Dad said he might be late, but mom should be here soon."
"Ok. I'll watch him, Marlin!" Kathy called over to the swim instructor who made sure the other kids were safely picked up.
"Got it! Behave, you guys." The swim instructor said and left just as Tanzanite zipped back down and out of the waterfall.
With Kathy helping Tom, Draco looked at Julian, "Why do you think it was-"
"I can see auras, remember? I saw everything." Julian muttered.
"I knew you could-" Draco's eyes widened. He's known about Julian's ability to see auras, but what that really meant didn't really click before. "Were you able to see-"
"Yes. To be fair I never brought it up because I figured you knew I could see love too." Julian said with a light blush. "We can talk more about that later. Now please leave Tom alone. We had an odd morning."
Tanzanite huffed a little flame at Draco, 'Silly human thinking he can trick my human.' The occamy flew up and perched on Julian's head. 'Your dad is speaking to someone through the phone. Could be the sneaky leader.'
Draco, who was very eager to change the subject, immediately noticed the frown on Julian's lips, "What's wrong?"
Julian sighed, "Dad had a bad feeling this morning and he was floo calling the minister this morning. We're worried something happened with Dumbledore ... Tanzanite just told me that dad is talking to the minister right now."
"Oh." Draco said, not sure what else he could say.
Kathy got a call and her phone floated to her, "Ok. That's Brian. it's a good spot to end today so go rest, Tom." She said and got out of the pool before she answered the phone. "Hey, Brian, perfect timin- ... that is not good news. Yes, Draco is here ... ok." She said and hung up. "There's an emergency. He'll be here in a minute to pick you all up." Kathy said as she waved a hand over the tiny duffel bag hanging on the keychain hanging from her blue one piece bathing suit. Instantly her wet bathing suit turned into dry clothes.
"I should change then." He commented before popping a similar tiny duffle bag keychain attached to the band of his swim trunks and using a spell to make it larger. The bag was opened revealing dry clothes, which he spelled on his body to replace the wet trunks.
Julian smiled, "Want some help?" He asked knowing Tom couldn't use either of those spells yet.
"Yeah, thanks." Tom said and once Julian tapped his keychain he was covered in warm dry clothes.
Before Draco could even consider being annoyed by the cute exchange Brian arrived and he did not look happy ...