Chapter Seventy - Kidnapped

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter universe belongs to JK Rowling, Scholastic, Bloomsbury, Warner Bros and some other high falutin' companies. Me, I'm just a PR professional. I don't profess to own - and would never dream of making any money off - JKR's wonderful world. However, its her sandbox and she's left the gate unlatched so we can go in and play a bit. Which, I've done.

Chapter Seventy - Kidnapped

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-==(oIo)==-

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As they made their way upstairs, Harry turned to Blaise and said, "Now that you're part of our group we're about to show you a secret. It's a big one. And we hope you'll keep it a secret, for our sakes."

Looking back at Blaise, Harry saw the boy consider that for a few moments, then glance over at a pleading Tracey. With a sigh, he turned back to Harry and said, "A secret I'm honoured to keep."

Harry nodded back and said, "Thank you."

Once they were on the seventh floor in front of the tapestry of Barnaby the Barmy and his trolls, Harry said, "Configure it as you want, Neville. This is your show."

Neville wore a look of concentration, and walked the corridor three times. Gran, Michael and Blaise stood there looking confused, but didn't say anything because the rest of the group just calmly watched.

As Neville passed where the door would appear on the third pass, it did. This time it was a single white door. Gran and the other two gasped a little in surprise.

He approached the door and opened it for everyone to follow him in.

As the last to enter, Harry quietly stepped in and firmly closed the door, locking it behind him. When he turned he could see that it was their 'common room' without the potions lab or study carousels.

At the other end, the training platform was also missing and, in its place was a linen covered table with two chairs across the other side at the side, and a chair at either end. And facing it all was a dozen matching chairs.

"What is this place?" asked Michael, in wonder.

Neville replied, "This is what we know as the Come and Go Room. It configures itself to whatever you want it to be, simply by thinking about it and walking three times along the corridor outside as you saw me do. In a slightly different configuration, we've been using it as a multi-house common room so we can all study together.

"We actually spend more time studying here than anywhere else within the castle. For this I've configured it for the signing and so people can watch. And, once we're done, we can rest on the couches and relax."

"But first," he said, taking a deep, calming breath and walking over to Hannah. "Hannah, my love, I've known you were the one for me almost from the first day we stepped into Hogwarts. It took me a couple of years to square my shoulders and gather that Gryffindor courage I'm supposed to have to ask you to be my girlfriend.

Not long ago we agreed that, on completion of our studies, we'd marry." He then drew a small ring box out of his hand and dropped to one knee. "So, Hannah Mary Abbott, would you do me the honour of becoming my betrothed?" And, holding it up and open as an offering to Hannah, waited there for her to take the ring inside.

Hannah squealed and bounced on her toes, before she nodded. "Yes! Yes! A thousand times, yes!"

Everyone else chuckled as Neville lowered the ring box and took out the ring within. He held it up as Hannah held out her left hand. He then slid the ring on and everyone saw the little flash that marked it had resized itself to fit her finger.

The other girls , in their group, were all bouncing in excitement, wanting to dash forward to look at the rings. Harry and Blaise looked at each other, quite amused.

Repeating the procedure, Hannah slid Neville's matching ring onto his ring finger, where it too flashed resizing itself.

"Excellent!" said Michael, before he turned and walked over to the table. On it he opened his business valise and extracted three sets of documents. Gran joined him in the other chair on the side, before they both gestured for Neville and Hannah to come forward. The two newly-engaged teens took seat at the ends of the table on the same side as their blood.

The others all filed into the chairs facing the table a few feet away.

Michael explained about the betrothal contract to both young teens, then he and Gran signed it as the current Heads of their Houses.

As soon as the last signatures were signed, one of the copies disappeared in a heatless flash of flame while Michael handed one to Gran. He placed his back into his business valise, while Gran folded hers lengthways and put it into an inside robe pocket.

With matching grins the four of them congratulated each other, and Michael called the others over.

Once congratulations were exchanged, and the girls ooh'ed and ahh'ed over the rings, Harry reconfigured the short table into a longer table and called an elf to prepare them all a small lunch.

Harry grinned at Neville and said, "Nev - godbrother - not even a whisper of a word to mine ears." And mock sighed.

Neville just grinned back.

_‗_

-==(oIo)==-

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As scheduled, the second task was held on 24th of February, only a week and a half after Neville and Hannah were betrothed.

This time, it was a mid morning task starting at 9.30am, with a large viewing stand sitting along the edge of the Black Lake. Harry wondered if he could even be bothered going down to watch - whatever it was - of the task.

Looking around at breakfast he noticed Hermione was not down. As an early riser, she was often one of the first of their group down for breakfast.

Harry frowned and looked to Neville, "Nev?" he asked the other boy. "Where's Hermione?"

Neville shrugged and replied, "She didn't come down to the common room, this morning, so I thought she must've beaten me down here. Now, I have no idea."

"I need to find her," said Harry. "Something's not right." He rose and headed from the Slytherin table across to the Gryffindor table.

Seeing the group of girls that made up Hermione's dorm mates, he approached them.

"Ladies," he began, getting their attention. "Did you see Hermione, this morning?"

"No," said Parvati Patil.

"She didn't come back to the dorm, last night, either," said Lavender Brown.

Parvati continued, "She received a note to see Professor McGonagall and, as far as we know, hasn't come back."

"Thank you, Ladies," said Harry turning to the head table, where he saw Professor McGonagall sitting.

He walked up to stand before the head table in front of the professor, and asked, "Professor McGonagall. The ladies of Gryffindor Fourth Year have informed me Miss Granger was summoned to your office yesterday and appears to have never returned. Where did she go after she left you?"

McGonagall turned a little white and glanced at the old man. That glance was most telling.

"Ah, Harry," said Dumbledore, "Perhaps we should take..."

"Professor McGonagall," Harry said sharply, not even glancing at the Headmaster. "Where is Miss Granger?"

"She is - assisting in the second task..." tried the professor.

That hesitation in replying was another tell.

Harry flared his magic and roared, "Where is my Protectee, Lady Hermione Jean Granger, Head of the Noble and Ancient House of Dagworth-Granger?"

Professor McGonagall blanched and looked like she was about to pass out before she turned to Dumbledore and begged, "Albus! Tell him right now!"

That also brought Neville and the others over.

Dumbledore stuttered and said, "Miss Granger is the hostage for the Durmstrang Champion in the second task. She's currently in an enchanted sleep at the bottom of the Black Lake..."

Harry glared at both Professor McGonagall and the headmaster and said, "Which one of you two - or another - is responsible for this?"

"That would be me, Mister Potter," said Dumbledore. "As Headmaster I act in loco parentis..."

"Right," said Harry interrupting and looking straight at him. "You better hope she's in very, very good health, Dumbledore; and shows no ill-effects from this. Because, if she's not - if she much as suffers from a case of the sniffles - I'm going to be very happy to throw your arse through the Veil of Death myself. You are aware - you must be, of course, since you were once Chief Warlock - that kidnapping the Head of a Noble and Ancient House is an automatic death sentence?"

Dumbledore went white and only stuttered back.

Harry spun on his feet and snapped out, "Susan; patronus your aunt, please. Inform her Lady Hermione has been kidnapped and being held as a hostage in a most dangerous environment. Daphne; please patronus your parents and inform them that their magical ward, Lady Hermione, has been kidnapped."

Turning back around, Harry glared and said with an ominous voice, "I suggest, old man, you get your arse down to the Black Lake and get her back, right now. If you don't have her back here safe, warm and dry within the next half hour I will be demanding of the Wizengamot, as her Protector, your immediate execution. That is, of course, if Lord Greengrass doesn't beat me to it. Now move!"

Dumbledore rose and walked from the room to the front doors of the castle.

Harry followed along a dozen feet behind.

Without even turning to look back, Dumbledore said, "There was really no need for that - in there - Mister Potter."

"Headmaster Dumbledore, I am currently acting in my role as Protector of Lady Hermione," said Harry. "If that has not been made perfectly clear to you; then, perhaps you may wish to claim you are mentally deficient as part of your defence. Of course, if that is your choice, I'm sure the School Board will also have no choice but to accept your resignation due to permanent ill health."

Dumbledore stiffened a little for a few moments as he walked but didn't respond.

As they arrived at the edge of the lake, Dumbledore said, "You do realise, if I have Miss Granger removed from the lake, it will upset the programming of the task? Word, of course, will get out that the task has had to be delayed because of your actions."

"Well, since we'll have a wide audience waiting in the stands you've erected, I'll keep them entertained with the tale of just why the task's been delayed while they're waiting. I will, of course, mention that - besides the fact she's Head of a Noble and Ancient House - Miss Granger is an underaged witch, and you failed to seek permission from her guardians before you took her," growled Harry. "Of course, I'll make special mention to the mothers who'll be in those stands you had plenty of time in which to seek that permission but decided the oh, so great, self-appointed, Leader of the Light - Albus Fucking Dumbledore - clearly believes he doesn't need to give a flying toss about something as inconvenient as the law!

"In other words, Albus; the little threat you just made just got flung back into your face in full measure," snarled Harry, staring at the side of the old man's head as the Headmaster would not look at him. "Because, you see; what you fail to understand is, unlike you, I place my responsibilities above my reputation; and not the other way around. That's what a real Leader of the Light would do. Now stop trying to delay matters and get me my naffing Protectee!"

Dumbledore conjured himself one of the little boats normally used to bring the First Years across the lake. He then set it to power a little quicker than normal across the water.

While Harry stood on the bank waiting; Cygnus, Isabel, Amelia and a half dozen aurors turned up. From the directions they approached, Amelia and the aurors had clearly run from the gates while Cygnus had run from the castle - after first running from the gates. Even Isabel was appearing a little puffed.

"Where is the old fool," growled Cygnus, before Amelia could ask.

Harry just pointed out into the middle of the lake.

Out in the middle, it appeared Dumbledore was leaning over the side of the boat and talking to someone. They watched as a few minutes later what had to be Hermione was plucked from the water and levitated into the boat. From where they stood they could see Dumbledore pass his wand over her and conjured a blanket to wrap around her.

Finally, the boat was slowly on its way back.

Watching them come, Harry growled, "Naff this!" He drew in his magic and aimed his wand out at the boat and incanted, "Accio boat!" And continued to pump magic into the cast.

The little boat quickly picked up speed and came slicing across the water at least double the speed it headed out. Dumbledore, in front, appeared to be hanging on for dear life.

When the boat was about twenty feet out, Harry cancelled the Charm and allowed the boat to slow and drift in up onto the beach where it firmly grounded.

Quickly, Cygnus moved forward and lifted Hermione out of the back of the boat, placing her on her feet on the bank.

Cygnus said, "Miss Granger, you're freezing!" He looked up at the aurors and asked, "Is one of you a healer?"

One of the aurors stepped forward and said, "I am," before he come all the way down to the bank and cast over Hermione. He stood up and said, "We need to get her to the infirmary. She's half-frozen!" And began casting warming charms on her.

Harry snarled and called, "Petey!"

The little elf popped in a moment later. "Yes, Mas..."

"Petey!" interrupted Harry. He pointed to Hermione and the auror and said, "Emergency transport. I need you take these two to the infirmary up in the castle right now."

"Yes, Master Harry," snapped the elf before he zipped forward, grabbed onto both of them, and disappeared with a loud crack.

Turning to Dumbledore, Harry snarked, "You know - if you'd stopped to think, Headmaster - you would have portkeyed her directly to the infirmary from the boat while you were still out in the middle of the lake!"

Dumbledore looked started for a moment before he sighed and ducked his head. "You are, of course, correct Ha - Mister Potter."

Harry just shook his head in frustration at the old fool before turning to Cygnus. "I take it, Lord Greengrass, as Lady Hermione's magical guardian you did not grant permission for her to be taken and placed as a hostage at the bottom of the lake?"

"I did not!" he glared at Dumbledore.

Turning to Aunt Amelia he then said, "Well, there you have it, Madam Bones. Albus Dumbledore kidnapped the Head of a Noble and Ancient House for the purpose of using her as a hostage. He then placed her in a dangerous environment in an enchanted sleep state where she was supposed to await rescue by a student from Durmstrang.

"I'm sure both your auror healer and Madam Pomfrey are quite concerned regarding her core body temperature. When someone's core body temperature drops to a certain point - it's called hypothermia, by the way - they die. And the temperature of the water in that lake is way below the minimum threshold at which death becomes likely, if not inevitable.

"That then leads into the question of whether or not there are two other unwilling and or underaged hostages still sitting at the bottom of the lake - for the other two champions - and facing the same risk of hypothermia on their way to being dead."

Aunt Amelia turned and glared at Dumbledore. "Is this true, Albus?"

"Now, Amelia," stuttered Dumbledore, "I assure you..."

"Get them out!" she screeched at him. "Now!"

Dumbledore sighed while Cygnus turned to Amelia and said, "I want him charged. And I want an immediate trial. In the meantime, we're going up to the castle to check on our ward."

Amelia gave a nod to Cygnus without taking her eyes off Dumbledore.

As he, Cygnus and Isabel walked away, Harry heard Amelia say, "Enlarge that boat; then, you three accompany this old fool back out onto the lake to retrieve those other two hostages - And portkey them directly to the infirmary. Dumbledore can make them inside the grounds of Hogwarts.

"And when you return directly back to here, Dumbledore. And you will return directly back here on that boat..."

By then the three were out of hearing range for Harry to listen any further.

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-==(oIo)==-

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Once they reached the infirmary they found Hermione in bed with Madam Pomfrey clucking over her; and the auror healer muttering imprecations at a certain old fool of a man. Harry, Cygnus and Isabel held back until the medi-witch left.

Once she did, Cygnus and Isabel then walked up one side while Harry walked up the other.

"How are you feeling, my dear?" asked Isabel.

"Like I'm still a little cold, and it's really hot in here," replied Hermione. She then frowned and said, "I don't know what happened. One moment I was walking in to Professor McGonagall's classroom. And, the next thing I know, I'm being levitated out of the water out in the middle of Black Lake."

"So, you didn't give your permission to be out there, then?" asked Cygnus.

"No," she replied. "I received a note that said Professor McGonagall wanted to see me in her classroom; so I headed directly there. I think someone hit me with a spell from behind, as I walked in."

"So, McGonagall was in on it," said Harry. "That makes it a conspiracy; and her guilty of aiding and abetting in a kidnapping as an accomplice."

Cygnus looked like he was about to say something when Madam Pomfrey returned. Harry backed away from the side of the bed to let the medi-witch in closer and waited.

When she'd finished a second set of scans, Madam Pomfrey said, "Well, your core temperature has risen back to where I'm happy for you to sit up. However, for the rest of the day, you're to refrain from going outside into the cold. I don't want you to leave here until I'm sure your temperature will not, once more, fall."

"Yes, Madam Pom..." Hermione began to reply, when there was an incoming portkey and three others arrived in the middle of the floor.

There was an auror with a wet and bedraggled Miss Cho Chang and a similar wet and bedraggled small girl in Beauxbatons robes with white blonde hair. The second looked to be about eight or nine years old. The little girl was crying and both she and Miss Cho were shivering a little.

Cygnus and Madam Pomfrey attended them in a flash, with her and the auror healer casting multiple drying charms on the pair of them.

As soon as they appeared dry enough, both were placed onto beds alongside Hermione. Madam Pomfrey attended the small Beauxbatons girl first, as she appeared the most distressed.

Madam Pomfrey was running her diagnostics when she gasped and said, "She's part Veela! And Albus had her at the bottom of the lake?"

"Damn, that idiot!" snarled Cygnus.

The medi-witch appeared to be muttering imprecations under her breath as she worked. She then started urging the young girl to drink a couple of different potions.

Once she'd had the small girl drink a couple she moved over to Miss Cho, who was already being worked on by the auror healer, and ran the same diagnostics; also muttering under her breath.

Looking at the auror that brought the pair of them, Cygnus asked, "Where's the old fool now?"

"On his way back to the bank in the boat," replied the auror. "Madam Bones wants a word with him. I'm to stay here with the - hostages." Clearly, he knew who was meant by 'old fool'.

By the time Madam Bones walked in with a 'de-wanded' Dumbledore, the two aurors had taken statements from Hermione and Chang. The young Beauxbatons girl only replied in rapid-fire near-hysterical French and was too upset for Harry and Cygnus, who both knew conversational French, to get much information out of her. Though, Harry's French pronunciation wasn't that good, he could make himself understood if he spoke slowly.

One of the aurors had already left to go to the Beauxbatons carriage to collect Madame Maxime.

While they were waiting, Harry thought to ask the girl direct questions.

"Quel est votre nom, votre petit chéri?" (What is your name, little darling?)

"Gabrielle Delacour" (Gabrielle Delacour)

"Comment êtes-vous parent avec Fleur Delacour?" (How are you related to Fleur Delacour?)

"Elle est ma soeur" (She is my sister)

"Lentement maintenant - afin que nous puissions vous comprendre - ce qui est la dernière chose dont te souviens avant de vous réveilliez pour être tiré hors de l'eau?" (Slowly now - so that we can understand you - what's the last thing you remember before you woke up being pulled from the water?)

"Directrice Maxime. Elle m'a appelé dans son bureau. Je venais juste quand tout est devenu noir." (Headmistress Maxime. She called me to her office. I had just walked in when everything went black.)

Cygnus frowned and asked, "Êtes-vous apparenté à Jean-Paul Delacour, le Ministre de la Magie en France?" (Are you related to Jean-Paul Delacour, the Minister for Magic in France?)

"Oui. Il est mon père." (Yes. He is my father)

Cygnus threw his hands in the air and half-snarled, "Oh, this is just getting better and better!"

"Cygnus. What's wrong?" asked Aunt Amelia.

"Not only has that old fool kidnapped three underaged witches for this bloody event - not only is one of them the Head of a Noble and Ancient House - this young lady here," pointing at young Miss Delacour, "is the daughter of the French Minister for Magic!"

Dumbledore appeared to be in genuine shock where he quietly stood.

"Oh, Merlin!" moaned Aunt Amelia, ducking her head and putting her hand to her face.

Dropping her hand, Aunt Amelia turned and glared at Dumbledore. "You bloody self-righteous fool! If anything had happened to the young lady, we might well have found ourselves at war with France!"

Stuttering Dumbledore said, "I assure you, Amelia; they were all perfectly safe..."

"They most certainly were not, Albus!" snarled Madam Pomfrey, from where she was working on Miss Cho. "While they would not have drowned due to the enchanted sleep you placed them in; you did nothing about the cold. Another couple of hours, at most, and all three would be dead from hypothermia. In Miss Delacour's case, she would have perished far sooner, as she's part-Veela!"

"So - again - the great and powerful Albus flippin' Dumbledore - blinded by his own so-called brilliance - utterly stuffed it up," growled Harry. "And this time, you did it acting in your authority as Headmaster."

"I suggest," cut in Cygnus, "that after Madam Bones has finished with you, you go and pack your office, Dumbledore. Your position as Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry will not survive this debacle. The pity is, you're probably going to take Minerva McGonagall and Madam Maxime with you. No; your biggest concern in your own best interests should be whether or not you get to live long enough to even bother with 'retiring' as Headmaster."

When Madam Maxime entered she was immediately asked whether or not she had anything to do with the young Delacour girl being at the bottom of the lake.

"Oui, I know what the task is and what it will entail," she replied. "Dumbly-dorr 'as promised me 'e would make sure she was per-fectly safe."

"And you had permission from her father for her to be held as a hostage at the bottom of the lake?" asked Aunt Amelia.

"Non. I am 'er - 'ow you say - guardian - while she eez at school," the very tall woman proudly stood straighter.

"Then, answer this, Madam - Are you at your school, right now?" asked Aunt Amelia. "Is young Miss Delacour at your school, right now?"

"Errr - oui - I belief so," frowned the tall woman.

"You are wrong, Madam," said Aunt Amelia.

"Through international agreement, you were at your school while you were in your carriage. The moment you took Miss Delacour out of your carriage you entered Magical Britain. You kidnapped the daughter of the French Minister of Magic, transported her across International boundaries by taking her outside of your carriage, and handed her over to Albus Dumbledore," Aunt Amelia said in a very direct and cold voice. "In so doing you have created an international incident that may have resulted in there existing a state of war between France and Britain."

Letting that sink in for a moment while Madam Maxime appeared to be in shock, Aunt Amelia then said, "Madam Olympe Maxime, you are hereby under arrest for the kidnapping of Miss Gabrielle Delacour." Turning to one of the nearest aurors she said, "Put her in magical suppression cuffs and escort her to the holding cells at the DMLE. Use the floo in here. I'll deal with her later."

"Yes, Ma'am," said one of the aurors who reached into his robes and withdrew a set of the suppression handcuffs.

The tall woman stood shocked and stuttered, "But, Dumbly-dorr. 'e promised me she would be safe!"

"She was not, Madam. Dumbledore was wrong. As you claim to be her guardian, it was your responsibility to ensure she was," replied Aunt Amelia. "Take her away."

Looking to another auror, she said, "Go get Professor McGonagall and bring her here," as Madam Maxime was floo'ed out through the infirmary fireplace.

"Amelia, please see reason," pleaded Dumbledore. "The task requires the use of hostages, and they have to be people the champions would miss the most if they died."

"You're making that determination off the clue you put in the golden eggs, aren't you?" asked Harry.

"Yes, Harry," replied Dumbledore, falsely pleased someone understood.

"No, Albus," snarked Harry right back. "You could have used anyone, or anything.

"Your clue is, 'Come seek us where our voices sound; we cannot sing above the ground. And while you're searching, ponder this: we've taken what you'll sorely miss. An hour long you'll have to look; and to recover what we took. But past an hour - the prospect's black; too late, it's gone, it wont come back'.

"'It', Albus; not 'who' - You could have used anything," sighed Harry. "If it was meant to be a person then your clue would have been this, 'Come seek us where our voices sound; we cannot sing above the ground. And while you're searching, ponder this: we've taken who you'll sorely miss. An hour long you'll have to look; and to recover who we took. But past an hour - the prospect's black; too late, they're gone, they wont come back'.

"You see? It still works and rhymes," said Harry. "By using the term 'it' you've completely misrepresented what was taken.

"Of course, your next issue is how the bloody hell you could believe Mister Krum would miss Lady Hermione. She agreed to go to the Yule Ball with Mister Krum as a favour to the boy so he wouldn't be hounded by fangirls. Something Lady Hermione certainly is not. 'We've taken what you'll surely miss'? I think not.

"On top of that point, you - again - didn't think it through. You could have simply brought the girls in here in their enchanted sleep states and left them here until after the task commenced. In the lake you could have used - one - adults who have volunteered and taken polyjuice to appear like the girls; two - or been placed under a powerful glamour; three - a life-sized statue or mannequin of each of the girls; four - instead of people, an object, such as their favourite Quidditch broom; and five - well, you get the point. And those are just off the top of my head thought up on the spur of the moment.

"There was no reason, whatsoever, for you to place these three young ladies in danger when there were so many other options open to you. So, you cannot use that as an excuse."

"Well, Albus," smirked Aunt Amelia. "It seems Lord Potter has both shot down your argument and given you a few methods by which you could have had your so-called hostages without placing these young ladies at risk."

Dumbledore hung his head in apparent shame and said, "Yes, Amelia; he has. They're all good ideas I did not consider."

"The problem now, though," Harry continued, looking at Aunt Amelia, "is there are three champions who are supposed to start their second task at 9.30am, and there are no hostages for them to rescue. I suggest waiting for Professor McGonagall to get here, get her to conjure up three life-sized mannequins of and dressed as the three young ladies here, and get them down to the lake and into the water.

"Of course, unless there's anyone else around who can speak mermish, you'll need to take the old fool with you to speak to the merfolk to get them to place the mannequins where these three ladies were, before Dumbledore was forced to retrieve them.

"Next. As you've taken Madam Maxime away for questioning, and will probably take Dumbledore as well, as soon as he's liaised with the merfolk to take the mannequins, you'll also need to replace both of them with new judges for the task."

"Third, Madam Bones; you might want to consider contacting Monsieur Delacour and informing him of the location and condition of his daughter, Mademoiselle Gabrielle Delacour, before he fears the worst. Even if it's only a small thing, it may stave off international sanctions at the very least."

Cygnus snorted and said, "Not only has young Harry laid out a lot of ways you could have handled the situation, Albus; he's also spotted the next few problems and provided solutions to dealing with them."

When Professor McGonagall entered, she was at first shocked to see the three girls on the beds. She was instructed by Madam Bones to create three life-like and sized mannequins of the three girls so that they could act as hostages down at the bottom of the lake.

When she heard that, it was clear she was surprised and relieved before she glared at Dumbledore. Her unspoken question was clear; 'Why didn't you think of that, Albus?'

Three blankets were dumped on the floor and McGonagall looked at each of the three girls as she quickly transfigured the blankets into life-like and sized mannequins of them.

"They'll last, at least, three hours," she said. "That's plenty of time before the task is well and truly completed."

"Good," said Aunt Amelia before she looked at two of her aurors. "Take these under invisibility charms, and Dumbledore, back down to the boat and out onto the lake. Once they're taken under by the merfolk, all three of you are to come back here."

The two aurors led Dumbledore and three now invisible and levitated mannequins back out before Aunt Amelia turned to Professor McGonagall and said, "Now, Minerva; Miss Granger has informed us she was given a note directing her to visit you in your office, last night. I'd now like to hear your side of the story."

The Professor first - hesitatingly - began to tell of what the Headmaster had instructed her to do. Of how she railed and ranted back. And of how she finally, reluctantly, complied.

She told of the note being sent. Of how she waited in her classroom at her desk while Dumbledore stood just inside the door under a Notice-Me-Not Charm. And how Dumbledore stunned her and caught her before she would be hurt falling to the floor.

Then, she told of how Dumbledore placed a Notice-Me-Not Charm on the girl before levitating her out the door and off to the infirmary.

Next, she described Miss Cho being called in the same manner with the same effect.

When she finished her tale, Aunt Amelia sighed and said, "Minerva, you are aware, are you not, that Miss Granger's magical guardian is Lord Greengrass?"

"I am," she replied.

"You are aware, are you not, that she is a Protectee of the House of Potter?"

"I am."

"And, you are aware, are you not, that Miss Granger is the Head of a Noble and Ancient House?"

The professor hesitated a moment before she took a deep breath and said, "I am."

With another sigh, Aunt Amelia said, "Then - it gives me no pleasure in doing this, but this is a major crime - Madam Minerva McGonagall, you are under arrest for aiding and abetting in the kidnapping of the Head of a Noble and Ancient House, Lady Hermione Granger, and for aiding and abetting in the kidnapping of a minor witch, Miss Cho Chang."

Hermione burst into tears. Isabel moved in to comfort her.

As the Professor went white and looked to be about to faint, Aunt Amelia turned to one of her aurors and said, cuff her with anti-animagus cuffs, take her and place her in a holding cell at the DMLE for further and official questioning."

She then turned back to look at the professor, who stood there with her eyes closed and her hands before her as she was being handcuffed, and said, "Bloody hell, Minerva. I hope you survive this - I really do. And, I hope you'll learn from this that your hero, Albus Dumbledore, is a bloody idiot. Take her away."

As she was escorted to the fireplace and floo'ed away, Harry looked at Aunt Amelia and said, "With both the Headmaster and Deputy Headmistress now in custody, the security of the school is compromised. Someone - hint, hint - needs to appoint an Acting Headmaster or Headmistress."

Aunt Amelia glared at Harry while he just smiled back and Cygnus snorted in amusement.

"Alright, Mister Smarty Pants," she snidely growled at him. "You've figured it all out so far. What does that clever little mind of yours suggest we do?"

"You have three options, really," replied Harry. "Your first is to appoint either Professor Flitwick or Sprout as Head, and the other as Deputy. They are, after all, the two Heads of Houses with the most seniority. Your second is to floo call the current Head of the School Board, those responsible for the hiring and firing of senior staff, and dump it in their lap. And, your third is to ignore it and hope nothing goes wrong until an emergency meeting of the entire School Board is convened and they decide.

"And, then there's still the matter of two missing judges needed before the task starts at 9.30."

Aunt Amelia, closed her eyes, groaned and said, "And I was having such a wonderfully quiet morning..."

_‗_

-==(oIo)==-

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