Cornelius Fudge stared at the row of bodies covered by white cloths, a sour expression twisting his face. Hogwarts was the premier magic school in Britain, one of the best in Europe. For a malicious and heinous attack like this—with the victims being students from influential families—to occur right on its doorstep was a political nightmare.
In the deepest, most pragmatic corner of his mind, Fudge almost wished the incident had happened inside the castle. That way, the Ministry of Magic's responsibility would be minimized. As it stood, the Ministry bore the brunt of the failure, with Hogwarts taking a secondary role. This would be a significant stain on his political career.
Just then, he saw Dumbledore and Snape approaching from the direction of the castle. Fudge quickly smoothed the scowl from his face and hurried to meet them. "Dumbledore, you're here. This dreadful business… what did the surviving student say?"
"Barrett is resting in the hospital wing. He is seriously injured," Dumbledore said, his voice grave. "It seems this was a private gathering he and the others arranged. They had the misfortune of encountering a group of dark wizards lingering in the area. A conflict occurred, which tragically escalated. According to Barrett, the other wizards have fled, but he was able to provide a description of them. The specific information is on this parchment."
Fudge's eyes lit up as he took the offered scroll. A heinous crime was a major problem, but solving it quickly—capturing the culprits and guiding the media narrative—could mitigate the damage. With the right spin, his political career might emerge unscathed.
Even without Legilimency, Dumbledore could guess the Minister's thoughts. He didn't care. As long as Fudge didn't stray from the general path of justice, his political maneuvering was his own affair. Besides, Dumbledore hadn't told him the entire story.
Earlier, after informing Fudge of the attack, he had questioned Barrett about the details. The boy hadn't hidden much, admitting that he and Dicky's admiration for Voldemort had led them to seek out this group of dark wizards. It was during this clandestine meeting that the conflict had erupted.
Given that the matter involved Voldemort-worship, and seeking to protect Barrett from further scrutiny, Dumbledore had omitted that crucial detail from his report to Fudge. When it came to protecting his students, Dumbledore was quite competent—even if some of those students didn't particularly need it.
The Aurors under Fudge's command searched the forest in teams, but Malo and his men had been meticulous. The cleanup was flawless; there were no clues to be found. This was part of the plan. With no other evidence, the Ministry would be forced to rely solely on Barrett's testimony. This would inevitably lead them down the path Sean had laid out, culminating in the "discovery" of the two dark wizards designated as sacrificial pawns. When cornered, those two would resist fiercely, resulting in either their deaths in the ensuing fight or their "suicides," thus closing the case neatly.
As Dumbledore and Fudge discussed the investigation, Snape, who held nothing but contempt for political bureaucrats, broke away to inspect the scene himself. The fact that he was a former Death Eater was no secret to the Aurors present. Most of them kept a wide berth, and Snape, with his characteristic disdain, was happy to ignore them in turn.
He walked toward the bodies, intending only a cursory glance. He was a Potions Master, not a forensic pathologist, and he had no interest in studying corpses that had been mangled by dark magic and fire.
But as he was about to turn away, two Ministry employees began levitating one of the bodies. One of them, weary from the grim task, lost his grip on the charm. The body spun in the air, dislodging the white sheet that covered it. For a brief, sickening moment, the corpse was exposed—a sight that Snape happened to catch just as he was looking away.
He had been inwardly mocking the Ministry officials for having the brains of trolls, but as his gaze shifted, he saw the wound on the dead student's neck. His expression flickered, a barely perceptible change. He did not step forward to examine it. Instead, he lowered his eyelids slightly, turned, and walked back to Dumbledore's side as if he had seen nothing at all.
Dumbledore had just finished his conversation with Fudge and was preparing to return to the castle. Four students had died. Even if it hadn't happened on school grounds, Hogwarts still bore a certain responsibility, and there were difficult arrangements to be made.
Snape said nothing, following Dumbledore back in silence. Under the formidable shield of his Occlumency, his thoughts were his own. Even Dumbledore would have struggled to divine the suspicion that had just taken root in his mind.
They parted ways at the castle entrance as usual. Snape returned to the dungeons, but instead of going to his office, he went directly to the storeroom behind his classroom. He opened a cabinet in the far corner, searched through its contents, and found it: his old, tattered Potions textbook from his school days.
He examined it carefully. A thin layer of dust coated the cover, undisturbed. It did not look as if it had been touched in years. He brushed the dust away, tucked the book into the deep pocket of his robes, and muttered to himself, his voice a low whisper in the silent storeroom.
"It doesn't look like anyone has been through it. Then my spell hasn't been circulated… So, what I saw just now… was it a hallucination?"
He paused, considering other possibilities.
"Or perhaps it was some other dark magic, which, combined with the burned flesh, merely resembled it… I must be overthinking things."
He shook his head slightly, as if to clear it.
"But this book can't stay here anymore. I only put it in the cabinet during my last cleaning. I need to find a new, more secure place for it this time."
[Chapter Complete]
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