DISCLAIMER: See
A/N: This chapter has been somewhat greatly edited to sound as in character as possible.
CHAPTER 6: DISCUSSIONS WITH DUMBLEDORE
Quod re maiore valet, valeat in minore. What is valid in a greater matter would be valid in a lesser one. –Cicero, Topica (23)
Harry dashed downstairs and to the door. Standing there, in a
perfectly
normal-looking Muggle traveling cloak, was
Albus Dumbledore. He walked inside, but as
soon as the door
was shut, his cloak changed suddenly into a magnificently embroidered
set of
wizard's robes, a sky blue inlaid with gold. The Dursleys
gaped at the sudden transformation, but the old wizard chuckled. "Don't
worry," he reassured the Muggle trio,
"Simple
enchantment to blend into non-Magical environments. Anyway, Harry,"
Dumbledore turned to the raven-haired youth, "You wanted me to discuss
something with you and your relatives. However, there is something I
think I
should discuss with you first."
"Yes sir." At this, the Dursleys got the
hint and departed to the kitchen.
Frowning and without a the twinkle in his eyes, Dumbledore told Harry,
"The last time Professor Snape came back
from
spying on Voldemort, he told me about your
skirmish
with Bellatrix Lestrange
in
the Atrium in the Ministry of Magic. Even though the curse you used was
illegal, I cannot deny that you were under intense pressure and having
just
witnessed the death of the closest thing you consider to a parent."
After Harry looked sufficiently guilty and remorseful, Dumbledore
continued, "This
is serious indeed Harry. You remember in your Occlumency
lessons with Snape that when you're angry,
it is
easier to break into your mind?"
"Yes, why?"
"Using any of the Unforgivable Curses is illegal, not just because of
how
it affects the victims, but because of how it affects the user as well.
The
more a wizard or witch uses them, it opens their mind to evil, little
by
little, and through repeated use, they become more sadistic and start
to want
to use it more. Constant use of them is like abusing contraband Muggle drugs, Harry: It's addictive and
dangerous to your
health. Those three curses affect both caster and victim.
"However," Dumbledore continued, "When Voldemort
briefly possessed you last year, it was also because
of your constant anger, and the Cruciatus
Curse you
cast contributed a little to that too. Between your ordeal and my
mistake in
withholding all this information from you last year, I won't hand out
any
consequences to you, and I know you'll follow through on your promise
never to
use any of those curses again. I'll also explain the Cruciatus
Curse incident to Fudge and my friends at the Ministry, so charges
won't be
brought up against you."
"Thank you, sir," Harry responded, "The part about the curses
becoming addictive was something the fake Moody never covered with us
in my
fourth year. Now that you mention it, Bellatrix
Lestrange did look rather sadistic and
half-insane,
especially when she was torturing Neville."
Dumbledore nodded and said, "Now that we have resolved that, it's time
we
discussed Umbridge's offenses with your
relatives,
since the dementors were summoned by her."
With that, mentor and student went to the table where the Dursleys
were already sitting. They had just seated themselves when there was a
burst of
flames, and Fawkes the phoenix appeared,
with a
letter in its beak. The Dursleys gave a
yell of
fright, but Fawkes simply sat himself on
Dumbledore's
shoulder.
"Hello, Fawkes," Harry said. Fawkes trilled a whistle as a greeting after
giving
Dumbledore the letter. Dumbledore read it and said to Harry, "Professor
McGonagall is also coming, as she wants to collect evidence." After
saying
this, he got up and moved towards the window, and a moment later, Harry
saw
why.
A tabby cat was standing on the windowsill, looking in. Dumbledore opened it conventionally, and the cat landed on the floor, from where it looked at the Dursleys for a moment.
Suddenly, Mr. Dursley looked nervous and frightened. "Wait a minute," he said with something like fear on his face while looking at the cat. "You- that day- years ago- outside the house- the day before- he came here..." and now he pointed at Harry, who looked confused. (1)
The cat looked at him the whole time, unblinkingly, while Dumbledore watched with that twinkle in his eyes. A moment later, Professor McGonagall stood where the cat had been, which made Mr. Dursley jump in surprise. McGonagall stood there, a look of slight distaste on her face at Harry's relatives; even without her wand out, she exuded her aura of authority and intolerance that helped keep countless Hogwarts students in line over the years.
"I can assure you, Mr. Dursley," she said evenly, "That I would have rather have done other, more productive things that day than watch your family while waiting for your nephew to show up."
Harry instantly deduced that they were talking about the day nearly fifteen years ago when he was left in the Dursleys' care. He could also see her face soften when she looked at him. Harry knew that McGonagall had a soft spot under her hard exterior, which he had seen proof of a few times over the years. He also now supposed that she felt horrible at not being able to help him the previous year.
After McGonagall conjured an ordinary chair for herself and sat down, Dumbledore took out a folder and got down to business. "Needless to say, Harry, I was quite disappointed when I found out about all that Ms. Umbridge had done."
"Somehow, Albus," McGonagall said, taking out what looked like a camera, "I don't think 'disappointed' quite covered your mood. You looked about ready to tear the castle in half, which even Peeves couldn't have done by himself."
"I wouldn't put it quite that way, Minerva," Dumbledore said evenly, eyes no longer twinkling. "Anyway, at least a dozen other students were subjected to that awful quill of hers. Harry, may I please see your hand?" (2)
Harry held it out for Dumbledore to see, and McGonagall looked queasy for a moment before taking a picture of it with her camera for photographic evidence, while the Dursleys looked repulsed, part of it being they didn't understand all of it. "If I had known she made you use that in detentions," McGonagall said, now looking livid as she put the camera away, "I would have definitely put a stop to that. Why didn't you come to me?"
"Because Umbridge would have passed
another
decree saying that anyone who complained about her would get fired."
Suddenly, McGonagall looked stern. "Next time, Potter, please come to
me,
no matter what. Being your head of House, it's my job to protect you,
not the
other way around."
"Hopefully, there won't be a next time for this."
"Now that we have evidence," the Headmaster continued as McGonagall
put her camera away, "it's time we got rid of the quill-induced
scar." Fawkes stuck his head out over
Harry's
hand, and a couple of pearly tears feel onto his hand. Relief spread
over his
hand, and the scars disappeared. The Dursleys
gasped.
"
"Fawkes!" Dumbledore exclaimed, although he
sounded more amused than angry. The phoenix landed on Harry's shoulder
with a
sort of "Who, me?" look on its face, and gave a whistle that sounded,
to Harry at least, something like a laugh.
"Reparo!" Dumbledore muttered, and the table was as good as new. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia half-rose from their seats, but they thought better, and sat back down, because in addition to Harry's professors, they didn't want to mess with a magical bird whose droppings had the same basic properties as Napalm. (3)
"So," Dumbledore went on, with a grin on his face and that twinkle
in his eye, "Since Umbridge was never
popular
with the staff other than Filch the caretaker, they want to witness her
downfall as well. Apart from being a key witness when her trial date is
arranged, we need you to write down these atrocities for yourself on
parchment
that has been bewitched so that you can't write lies onto it," he
finished, taking out a small roll of parchment, a quill (which was
normal,
thankfully), and a bottle of ink.
"How ironic, since she made me write 'I must not tell lies,'" Harry
said, taking the wizard stationary from him. He wrote down every thing Umbridge put him in detention for, as well as
her other
actions against him and some of the staff members.
"I just remembered, because one time, I was saying how Malfoy
got injured because he provoked Buckbeak
in Hagrid's class, and she gave me
detention for that too. Do
you think we can clear his name too?"
"I'm sure we will be able to, Harry," Dumbledore responded. "Hagrid will really like that."
"Also," Harry continued, "The only other student I know of who
was subjected to the quill was Lee Jordan. You have him on the list of Umbridge's victims, don't you?"
"Yes, he is included," answered the Headmaster. "We will visit
him and those other students the same we have with you."
"I'm just glad something can be done about her after having to put up with her for ten months," Harry said, sounding slightly disgusted now.
"You would be surprised how much scheming went on in staff room while Umbridge and Filch weren't around, Potter," said McGonagall with a look on her face that Harry couldn't quite untangle, but he had a shrewd feeling that he knew what she was talking about.
"What, you mean like loosening chandeliers for when she walked by?"
McGongall looked shocked for a moment while Harry grinned like the cat that ate the canary. "I heard you whisper to Peeves, 'It unscrews the other way.' Don't worry; I won't spread it around, but seeing you conspire with the school's poltergeist like that..." He shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I can't get that memory out of my head any time soon." (4)
McGonagall composed herself while Dumbledore's eyes danced with
amusement.
"Yes, well, now that we've got enough against her, we can leave it here
for today." He turned to the Dursleys.
"Since your son was nearly subjected to the Dementor's
Kiss, I'll make sure you get seats at her trial, as well as adequate
transportation."
"I believe it is time for Professor McGonagall and me to depart," Dumbledore continued, turning back to Harry. He nodded and bade them farewell. McGonagall stood up and Vanished her chair, nodding and getting ready to leave. As she transformed and leapt back out the window, Dumbledore added, "Lupin will meet with you on Saturday, so you can go to the twins' Grand Opening. I will be there as well, not just to make sure nothing goes wrong, but also since I have been running out of candy names to use for my office password." With an eccentric grin, he finished, "Take care, Harry." With that, Fawkes launched himself from Harry's shoulder to Dumbledore, as the elderly wizard grasped the phoenix's tail, both headmaster and bird disappeared in a flash of flames.
(End of Chapter 6.)
A/N: All in all, I think this went much better than the original version of this chapter, where Dumbledore and all four Heads of Houses came along.
(1) Think back to the first chapter of the first book. I always wondered how Vernon Dursley would have reacted if he knew that cat was one of Harry's professors...
(2) Of all the writers of 6th year fics, I'm one of few who punish Umbridge for what she did, and I seem to be the only author who actually does anything to heal those nasty scars. Anyone else notice this?
Also, I'd like to point out right now that while making students use that wicked quill was one of Umbridge's worst atrocities, I try to mention that as little as possible, because I can't stand what happened. It's been more than a year since OotP came out, and I still can't figure out why Rowling would do that to her own hero. Just reading that part makes my stomach turn, and just imagining it makes me want to retch. Anyone wonder whether or not they'll thankfully leave this out when the fifth movie comes out?
(3) Is this funny or what?
(4) McGonagall whispering to
Peeves, "It unscrews the other way." Hahaha,
I'm sorry, but that scene cracks me up every time I read it!