Moody opened the door and stalked into Director Foxe's office, stopping almost immediately to stare at the disorganized condition of the office. It was strewn with half-filled boxes and rubbish bins. It appeared that Director Foxe was moving out. The man himself stood next to his window, looking down into the atrium at the crowd surrounding Minister Black.
"Andrew?" Moody asked.
Foxe turned and smiled at Moody. "You've caught me."
"What is going on? Have you been fired?" Moody demanded, wondering whether perhaps Minister Black had already chosen to take a dramatic change of course in policy.
"No," admitted Andrew. "I guess you could call it being voluntarily reassigned."
"Why does Minister Black want you gone?" Moody asked suspiciously.
Andrew rummaged around in his desk and pulled out a bottle of butterbeer. "Want one?"
"No, but thanks," Moody said, waving his hand as he watched Director Foxe open the bottle and take a swig before sitting down. Moody himself shifted some of Foxe's possessions to create space on a chair before also taking a seat. "What is Minister Black's motivation?"
Andrew didn't look at Moody for several moments, but under the auror's intense gaze, he finally broke. "Minister Black had a meeting with all of the department heads this morning," he admitted slowly. "He didn't say it outright, but it would appear that things are about to become rough for Magical Law Enforcement. I didn't sign up for such a grueling job, as it were. I explained to Minister Black that I didn't think I could continue in my present position. He kindly offered to make me ambassador to the United States Department of Magic."
"What do you mean?" Moody asked, feeling vague stirrings of nervousness.
"I mean, Alastor, that I chickened out," Andrew said with a self-deprecating smile. "I'm not prepared to lead our department through a war."
Moody's eyes widened as he physically betrayed the surprise he was feeling. "A war? But Minister Black just declared that his goal was to maintain stability!"
Andrew Foxe laughed merrily. "But that is his goal-or rather, it is Orion Black's goal. Orion is a long-term planner, Alastor. For one reason or another, Orion fears for the future of our world. He has orchestrated his brother's rise to power as his first step in safeguarding us from the threat he sees. I don't know what the threat is, Alastor, but I do know that within the hour, Minister Black will be signing executive orders to increase the size of the Auror Corps and to divert much of the Ministry budget to defense funding."
"But, why?" Moody demanded. "What is the motivation?"
Andrew Foxe shrugged. "I don't know, and I can't say I care. I'll be in America shortly. Now," he said as he stood up, "you'll have to excuse me. Davian Prewitt will be here shortly to take the reins of the department."
Moody also stood. He shook Director Foxe's hand. "We'll miss you," Moody said.
"Thanks, Alastor," Andrew said. "There are two last things I have for you." He held up a thick envelope for Alastor. "A promotion and information about Harry Ashworth."
Excited as Moody was about the promotion, he was curious about why Director Foxe would give him information on Ashworth. "What about Ashworth?"
"Minister Black signed certain documents this morning. He has essentially granted Harry Ashworth a British identity. He tried to be sneaky about it, but you can't get that sort of thing past me. It would appear that Ashworth is closely connected to the Black family after all-a spy as it were. I don't know what he has been assigned to do, however. There's not much at Hogwarts other than your friend Professor Dumbledore, and I don't think he's involved in any way, for or against, the Blacks.
"Thank you," Moody said as he took the envelope, feeling slightly bemused.
"Don't mention it-literally," Andrew Foxe said.
.....
"Davian Prewitt? How extraordinary," Dumbledore commented, leaning back and popping a lemon drop in his mouth. "I did not expect him to be appointed to such a position. On the other hand, though, I did not really expect Andrew Foxe to be removed from the DMLE."
"I can't fault Minister Black for appointing Director Prewitt," Moody admitted reluctantly. "Prewitt is bold, and it is clear that his interests are for the common good. Other than the fact that he's never been employed by the DMLE, he is the perfect candidate-almost too perfect. At least, too perfect to be appointed by a Black. I would have expected Romulus Malfoy or Vincent MacNair. Perhaps even Barty Crouch. Merlin knows he's wanted in for ages."
Dumbledore sucked on his lemon drop thoughtfully. "Perhaps this threat Orion allegedly sees is serious enough that the Blacks are putting aside some of their normal family politics. On the other hand, it may be that the Blacks and Malfoys are not in cahoots after all."
"Why do you say that?" Moody asked, casually waving off Dumbledore's offer of the lemon drop bowl.
"There was an incident over the weekend," Dumbledore explained. "Young Mr. Malfoy and the brothers Lestrange, among others, attempted to harm Bellatrix Black in the Forbidden Forest. I only learned of the incident after young Bellatrix sought aid from Professor Ashworth who in turn notified Orion Black. By the time Orion arrived in my office, the culprits in question had fled from Hogwarts. Orion probably isn't very appreciative of Romulus's son trying to hurt his niece."
Moody narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Ashworth, again."
"Indeed," Dumbledore acknowledged. "It is very clear now that Ashworth is functioning with and on behalf of the Black patriarchs."
"If he's an agent of the Blacks, why was it that Malfoy was the one to twist your arm to hire Ashworth to substitute for Slughorn?"
"An interesting question," Dumbledore said. "I don't know the answer."
Moody nodded thoughtfully. "As it happens, Andrew Foxe mentioned Harry Ashworth today."
"Oh?"
Moody withdrew several sheets of parchment from a pocket inside of his robes and held them out for Dumbledore. "Early this morning, Minister Black took the liberty to issue Mr. Ashworth identity documents-the sort of identity documents Mr. Ashworth should already possess.
Dumbledore accepted the papers and examined them. "How very curious," he said slowly.
"Sketchy is what it is," Moody grumbled.
"And yet we have no evidence that Harry Ashworth has committed or plans to commit serious crimes, Alastor," Dumbledore said. "My observations lead me to believe that he is a very reasonable young man."
"You're too trusting, Albus," Moody accused.
"That's my choice," Dumbledore retorted.
Moody watched quietly as Dumbledore finished looking over the notes Andrew Foxe had provided concerning Harry Ashworth. Upon completing this task, Dumbledore leaned back and closed his eyes. Accustomed to seeing Dumbledore think like this in moments of decision, Moody continued to wait.
Finally Dumbledore opened his eyes and leaned forward, looking at Alastor over the eyes of his half-moon spectacles. "The rising rate of crime, the incident at Hogwarts this past weekend, and the dramatic change in the Ministry lead me to believe that something very serious is happening behind the scenes. I think we need to start seeking out like-minded individuals. Perhaps as our numbers grow, we will be able to come to a greater understanding of what is happening and then do something about it."
"I know a few people," Moody volunteered.
"Good," said Dumbledore. "See if you can talk to them discreetly. I don't necessarily believe that Minister Black is on the side of wrong, but I think it would be best if we operated independently from him-at least for now."
"What about Ashworth?" Moody asked.
"Leave Ashworth to me," Dumbledore directed.
....
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