The Marauders: Year Five #Wattys2017

The State of Things

The State of Things

The Marauders were not the only ones who were left broken after the incidents that occurred. In fact, the state of things were quite terrible overall.

Alastor Moody was still in St. Mungo's over a week later, his leg giving him phantom pains that left him crying out in the night and cursing any and all who tried to heal him. They had to take his wand away and strap his wrists to the bed to keep him from lashing out, and though Dumbledore spent a good deal of time there talking him down, Albus could not stay for extended periods as he was needed for other reasons as well. One of which had been to sneak the Prewett brothers out of St. Mungo's and back to Hogwarts before the Ministry could reapprehend Fabian Prewett, whose charges were not dropped simply because the Minister who had accused him had turned out to be a fraud.

Nobody knew where the real Harold Minchum was. They'd searched houses of every known and suspected Death Eater and turned up with nothing to show for it. The Minister was simply missing, hidden as well as the Dark Lord himself, and until they found him the entire Wizarding World was subjected to the heady power being wielded by the interim Minister for Magic.

In the absence of the real Minister and of Alastor Moody, who had previously been named by Minchum to be the next in line to take control of the Ministry in the event of some catastrophic event like this, the interim Minister for Magic title fell upon the shoulders of Bartemius Crouch Sr., whose hatred for Death Eaters made him eager to uphold the changes that the fake Minchum had installed. Dementors remained in place at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, as well as in Hogsmeade, the Ministry, and other important Wizarding locations that were vulnerable to attacks from the Dark Lord. He also upheld the current warrants for arrest against the Scamanders, and, upon learning Fabian Prewett had left the care of St. Mungo's without consent in the dead of night, Bartemius Crouch issued a new warrant for his arrest, as well as that of his brother, Gideon, who was now suspected of assisting in the escape.

The only good that had come from the whole thing, it seemed, was the rescue of Lucy Minchum, for which James Potter still needed to be properly thanked, but then of course even the rescue was tinged by the loss of Maryrose Jenkins, who was assumed dead by everyone except James Potter himself and Regulus Black, who refused to accept she could've been killed, even as time marched on without any word from Kreacher about the girl's location. But Lucy, at least, had been returned home - or as close to home as she could without her grandfather. She'd been set into the care of distant relatives until such a time as the Minister could be found.

But who knew how long it would take to find him?

Dumbledore sat in his office a week after the incident, the snows falling across the grounds of Hogwarts. He stared out the window at the dark forms of dementors, sweeping the air outside the dome of protective charms he'd set over the castle, their cloake dark against the swirling snow clouds. Dumbledore rubbed his forehead.

There came a knock upon the door. "Come in," Albus called, though he was in no mood for visitors.

It was Pomfrey who entered, carrying a tray of vials and a small sack hung from her wrist. "I've the things that Mr. Scamander has requested," she informed Dumbledore.

Dumbledore waved her on and she went to the suitcase, which lay on an old steamer trunk from Dumbledore's younger years, and she knocked upon the top of the case - three short raps, followed by a pause, and then two more longer knocks. This was the signal it was safe to open the case, and after a pause, the case lid opened up and Newt Scamander rose up from within, looking about the office. His eyes lit upon Pomfrey, "Ah - yes - thank you P-poppy," he stammered as she handed him the sack and the vials. "Most - most appreciated."