25 - Curiosity and the Cat

Minerva McGonagall was not an easy woman to shock, but when she left the Headmaster's office, her head was spinning. She had never known Albus to stoop to such a level. And why would he try to stand in the way of the marriage, anyway?

It made no sense!

Minerva liked the side of the Beauxbatons Champion that she'd seen since that dreadful Task, and wholeheartedly approved of their relationship given the circumstances. She was bringing out a playful side in Potter that hadn't been there before, and it was a breath of fresh air. He was more confident, too, as his recent interactions with Albus were showing, and she could only see it as a good thing.

Her curiosity over the situation was burning within. The only valid point that Albus made – and it was a major one, to be sure – was the issue of the Dursleys. She had railed against those awful people for years, and she had no doubt that they would be fully capable of leaving the girl to her fate. So how had they managed to get permission?

"Would one of you mind telling me what is going on?" she asked in a hushed tone as they made their way down the corridor.

Sebastian Delacour was an intimidating man when he wanted to be, but the glance he gave her at the question was more speculative than anything. Before he could say anything, though, Harry spoke up, sounding inordinately tired and angry. And it was no wonder if this was what he was dealing with.

"Will you fill her in please, sir?" he requested quietly of his father-in-law. "I don't think I can handle it right now."

Fleur wrapped her arms around him from behind and squeezed him gently. It was another thing she had done for him: Minerva had seen his reactions to physical contact, and been disturbed by them, but didn't know what it meant or how to fix it. But this young lady had somehow broken through that barrier, and she suspected it was more important than she knew.

Sebastian moved forward to where Harry had stopped, and exchanged a concerned look with his daughter before leaning down to look him in the eye. "I will, 'Arry," he said gently. "May I tell 'er? As your 'ead of 'ouse she should know, but I won't if you strongly object."

Minerva's brow furrowed at the vague question, her curiosity piqued, but she remained silent. Harry turned and met her gaze with one of startling intensity, searching for something nameless, before he finally turned back to Sebastian and wordlessly nodded. Sebastian then placed a hand on his shoulder – which he actually accepted, to Minerva's shock – and squeezed gently as his gaze shifted to his daughter. "Take care of 'im, chérie," he urged.

"You know zat I will, Papa," she returned softly. And then she whispered something to Fawkes, and all three vanished in a puff of flame. Even though she'd seen Fawkes do that many times over the years, it was still an impressive sight.

"I suggest you make arrangements for your classes, Madame," said Sebastian seriously. "This will take some time."

Minerva was not about to pass up the opportunity. She quickly agreed to meet him at Chateau Delacour and ran to talk to Filius; the spritely Charms professor was a good friend, and would not betray her trust, even to Dumbledore. Her classes settled, she then flooed out to her destination. She arrived in the entryway of the Chateau to find Madame Delacour waiting for her.

"Bonjour, Professor McGonagall," she greeted with a concerned frown.

"Please, call me Minerva," said McGonagall. She wanted to smile at the kind woman, but she couldn't bring herself to do so given the serious nature of the situation.

"Zen Arienne and Sebastian will do," offered Arienne as she beckoned for Minerva to follow. "Sebastian 'as just arrived, and 'e is getting what 'e needs to show you."

"Show me?"

"Oui, it will take some time," she sighed. "Zis is a very complicated situation."

Minerva frowned as she followed the woman through the halls of the enormous castle. She had guessed that they had something on the Dursleys, but this sounded like it was far more than that. She wanted to know so she could help her favorite student (not that she would ever admit that she had a favorite student), but she was beginning to suspect that she had stepped into something big.

Arienne led her to a comfortable living room and set about making tea. Sebastian returned with a pensieve of all things while she was preparing it, and he smiled at her, but it did not reach his eyes. She could see the strain on his features – the strain of someone who knew something terrible, and was revisiting it in his memories.

"'Ere you are, Minerva," offered Arienne, handing her a cup. "Do not be alarmed, zere is a mild Calming Draught in ze tea. You will need it."

"I am not going to like this, am I?" she wondered.

"No, you are not," inserted Sebastian seriously.

Minerva studied him as he sat down across from her. There was a glimmer of anger in his eyes, undoubtedly left over from the confrontation just past, but there was also something else: sadness. In his eyes was a deep sympathetic pain, and she had no doubt that it was aimed at Harry.

He allowed her scrutiny without comment, and gave her a few moments before speaking.

"Before we begin," he said softly, "I would like to ask you a question, if I may?" She nodded her assent. "'As 'Arry recently shown any notable improvements in your class?"

Minerva blinked. "Yes," she admitted. "In the last few weeks, he's been performing beyond even Miss Granger, and she was at the top of the class. I have yet to determine what changed beyond your daughter's presence in his life."

Sebastian sighed. "Alas, Fleur 'as nothing to do with it," he replied. "The reason 'e did poorly in the past is much less pleasant, I am afraid. You see, Minerva, 'e was deliberately 'olding back. 'E is doing well now because one of our 'ouse rules is that 'e will do 'is best in school."

Minerva paled at the implications. The improvements had started roughly a month ago – they were so sudden and drastic that she knew almost exactly when – but why would Harry be following Delacour house rules? That didn't make much sense, unless...

"What are we talking about here?" she asked faintly.

Sebastian did not answer immediately, instead rifling through a stack of documents and pulling out what appeared to be a Muggle file folder. He held it in his hands as he spoke, painting the picture of the last month. And as she listened, horror began to creep in at where the conversation was going.

"I am a cautious man, Minerva," he began heavily. "When the issue came up with Fleur, I investigated 'Arry thoroughly before approaching 'im, and what I found disturbed me greatly. Did you know that there 'ave been no Social Services visits to the Dursleys, either by Wizards or Muggles?"

Minerva frowned deeply. "But there should have been," she said. "He's an orphan, and it's required for that type of placement, at least for the first five years."

"Correct," nodded Sebastian, "but nevertheless, there were no inspections, and when I found nothing in the Wizarding records, I turned to the Muggles, and came across this." He handed the folder to her and explained, "It contains 'Arry's medical records for the period of time before 'e attended 'ogwarts."

Minerva's breath caught as she stared at the folder. It was huge! She wasted no time in opening it, suddenly feeling a desperate need to know what was inside. And as she read entry after entry, the color slowly drained from her cheeks. It was absolutely, utterly appalling! And Minerva was angry: there was no longer any doubt in her mind about whether or not Harry was receiving proper care from the Dursleys.

"I told Albus," she hissed. "I told him they were the worst sort of Muggles!"

"And therein lies the problem, Minerva," said Sebastian heavily. "Even a few of those documents would be enough to 'ave the Muggles looking into the situation in that 'ouse, but no one ever did. I believe that Albus was well aware of what was going on, and that 'e was interfering to maintain the situation."

Minerva stared blankly at him, unable to believe her ears. "You have proof of this?" she whispered faintly.

"No," said Sebastian. "That is just speculation, but I 'ave proof of other issues. But let us get back to my investigation."

Minerva nodded absently and took a sip of her tea, letting the calming potion do its job. She really was going to need it! "Yes, let's," she agreed.

"I decided after investigating that measures may be needed to protect 'is best interests," he admitted. "I 'ad several contingencies planned, and ended up using one of the most drastic after meeting those cochon. Our first trip into the Pensieve will be that memory so you can see exactly what I 'ave done and why."

Minerva wasn't sure what she should think when he mentioned 'contingencies' – in certain circles, especially high government ones, that word had some very negative connotations – but she could not stop her curiosity. Harry was her student, and it was her job to protect him. She had to know.

And so she closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, and then nodded and reached forward to dip her hand into the bowl, already well familiar with the device.

She fell onto the front porch of a very familiar house, where Sebastian was just knocking on the door. The Durlseys' initial reaction to his news did not surprise her in the least – they were awful people – but what happened after that simply blew her mind. How could they?

They had simply signed him away, and from the way Sebastian had been talking to them, they thought they were signing his death warrant. It was horrifying! She was white with rage by the time she exited the Pensieve, and had to close her eyes and forcibly reign in her temper.

Sebastian watched her impassively, allowing her the time she needed.

"As you can see," he continued after a while, "they are, as you say, the worst sort of Muggles. Mind you, they are now being 'eld over for trial. I recorded that memory with a Muggle device, and with the assistance of MI-5 we were able to charge them with conspiracy to commit murder."

"Good!" she spat.

"Unfortunately it does not end there, Minerva," said Sebastian quietly. "Not by a long shot. As 'Arry is nominally in your care, I want you to know the true extent of 'ow 'e was treated. But I will warn you, zis is 'ighly disturbing."

Minerva lost what little color she had left when she realized the implications of this offer. Was he saying what she thought he was saying? Child abuse of a physical nature was almost unheard of in Wizarding society. It happened on extremely rare occasion, but not like with the Muggles. Magical blood was so rare that even the Darkest of Wizards valued their children!

But then Sebastian motioned her into the Pensieve, and she learned the truth about Harry Potter.

Horrified, she watched the same memory that Sebastian had once shown Molly Weasley, and as horrifying as that memory was – and as sick as it made her feel – it explained so much that it was almost painful. How had she not seen this? Everything from his aversion to touch, to the way he sometimes flinched away from loud or angry voices... It all made sick, horrifying sense.

And yet he was such a sweet and unassuming young man. How could anyone have treated him that way? How had Harry even survived it? It was no wonder the boy didn't want to be involved in this discussion. She could not even imagine how he must feel about it all.

"I apologize for the distress this brings you," said Sebastian quietly, drawing her out of her inner turmoil. "But I imagine 'is personality makes more sense to you now."

Minerva nodded faintly. "Yes," she whispered. "Oh, Merlin! What have we done to him?"

"You 'ave done nothing wrong, Minerva," said Arienne sadly. "Albus 'ad everyone fooled."

Minerva swallowed thickly and nodded her thanks to Arienne, and then took another large swig of tea and allowed it to do its job. It was the only thing keeping her sane at the moment. She wanted to scream and rage, but what good would it do? Only that subtle Calming Draught kept her sensate enough to manage.

"Unfortunately, that was but one of the memories I took from the Dursleys," sighed Sebastian after a while, leaning back on the couch. "There are many more where that came from. Too many. It will take many years for 'im to recover from this, if it is even possible. Fleur 'as done well with 'im so far, but 'e is far from 'ealed."

Sebastian paused then and rubbed his face for a moment. "I could not leave 'im there," he said in a quiet, pain-filled voice. "And 'Arry, 'e 'as been so good about the 'ole thing. 'E 'as never once complained about anything. I honestly do not understand 'ow that boy 'as survived this long."

Arienne sighed and leaned forward, and Minerva was startled to see a tear rolling down her cheek, never realizing that her own cheeks were just as wet. The revelation had moved her deeply, and she didn't yet know what to do about it. She couldn't think clearly enough to make that leap just yet.

Arienne spoke in a near whisper, her pain equal to her husband's.

"Fleur accidentally terrified him on zeir wedding night, Minerva," she admitted distantly. "She said zat 'Arry did not even know 'is own body! She did not want to pressure 'im, but zey 'ad no choice because of ze debt. She 'ad to explain everyzing to 'im 'erself."

Arienne shook her head in sudden exhaustion, and Sebastian reached out to put a gentle hand on her back as she continued. "I will nevair know 'ow she earned zat much trust from 'im," she said faintly. "'E trusts 'er with all zat 'e is from what we 'ave seen. I don't zink 'e even realizes it."

Minerva swallowed thickly, as equally horrified by that revelation as the others. Harry had never had a single person to turn to! And as she looked back over the years, she could not agree with Arienne: she had done something wrong. She had ignored all the signs, and had not offered him the kind of guidance that he so desperately had needed.

She could not help but wonder how it was that Harry had managed for this long without having someone to teach him the things he needed to know, let alone how to tell right from wrong.

Minerva scarcely noticed the tears that were now flowing freely down her cheeks. He had essentially been tortured for almost his entire life. And then, on top of it all, Albus let Severus run roughshod over him. It was absolutely appalling, and if not for the tea, she might have run from the room.

"Merlin!" she whispered again. "Why would Albus allow this to happen?"

"'E did not allow it to 'appen, Minerva," said Sebastian heavily. "I think 'e made it 'appen."

Minerva's gaze snapped back to him and her eyes went wide. "What?" she breathed.

Sebastian leaned forward again, and the anger returned to his eyes as he met her gaze directly. "'Arry was unaware of 'is inheritance," he explained. "Albus kept all but the smallest vault from 'im. I already suspected something was wrong there, and then the goblins approached 'im on a visit to the bank. An audit showed that Albus 'as embezzled over eighty million Galleons from the Potter Estate that we know about so far, funding an organization called the Order of the Phoenix."

Her eyes went impossibly wide upon hearing this, and a blazing anger welled up within her. "HE'S STEALING FROM HARRY TO FUND THE ORDER?!" she roared, completely incensed by this new information.

"Yes," frowned Sebastian, his eyes narrowing. "Do you know what this Order is?"

She closed her eyes for a long moment to contain her anger before answering. "It was established in the last war," she explained, "for the purpose of fighting You-Know-Who. It hasn't been active in a long time, but Albus was the leader."

The Delacours exchanged a troubled look. "There is an active prophecy in the Department of Mysteries regarding 'Arry," noted Sebastian. "We 'ave not yet accessed it, and I 'esitate to do so. Prophecy is perilous, and I believe that is the trap that Albus 'as fallen into. I believe 'e knows what it says."

Minerva was wide-eyed at this revelation. "It's active, you say?" she whispered.

"Yes, why?" frowned Sebastian.

"Because that's why You-Know-Who went after the Potters," she said absently, staring off into space. "It wasn't well known at the time, and I believed it fulfilled when he failed to kill Harry, but if it's still active..."

"...then that is why Albus is so interested in 'Arry Potter," finished Sebastian, though he didn't look the slightest bit surprised.

Silence fell, and Minerva did her best to process what she knew. It was a lot to take in, and it was horrifying. Albus had purposely kept Harry in a supremely abusive home so he could be tortured for some reason, and had stolen massive amounts of money from his family estate. And kept him in the dark the whole time.

It was appalling. She did not have the words.

"But why try to stop the marriage?" she wondered aloud. "That doesn't make any sense. I can understand keeping him with those people if he was trying to keep his inheritance for the Order, but the marriage?"

"Control, Minerva," said Arienne quietly. "Wiz Fleur in ze picture, 'Arry will never be loyal solely to Albus."

"Everything is about control," agreed Sebastian. "'Arry was so desperate to be free of the Dursleys that 'e would trust anyone who came along, and that man was Dumbledore. But Albus made a crucial mistake in not recognizing the life debt before I found out about it. I intend to unravel the entire thing, and I will take 'im down. 'E is a criminal now, Minerva, nothing more."

Minerva stared blankly at a nearby wall for a long while, her mind nearly buckling under the weight the knowledge she now possessed. She had absolutely no reason to doubt the Dealcours; not only was Sebastian internationally respected, but Harry was no fool. He might get himself into situations, but he always got himself out again – and he had made no effort whatsoever to do so in this instance.

Which meant that Harry trusted them completely.

Not to mention, it was too easily verified simply by talking to the boy. No, they were on the level, and that meant that a man who she had greatly respected until now had somehow strayed from the Light. For what Light Wizard would ever even consider subjecting a child to that torture?

It was no longer surprising that Fawkes left him for Harry and Fleur. Albus was incredibly angry about that, but by Merlin, he deserved it!

"What do I do?" she asked finally, trying desperately to pull herself back together.

"Nothing at this time," advised Sebastian. "This 'as to be 'andled carefully, and Severus Snape is the first step. We 'ave to show a pattern, and get Albus out of 'is positions of power. Otherwise we will be impotent to stop 'im and I will be forced to bring 'Arry to France permanently, Prophecy be damned. 'E already spoke with Madame Maxime when Dumbledore threatened to expel 'im, and 'as 'er approval to transfer if 'e wishes."

"WHAT?" yelped Minerva. "When did Albus threaten to expel him?!"

"Yesterday," smirked Arienne. "Ze memory is worth watching. 'Arry 'andled it quite well."

Sebastian chuckled in genuine amusement. "I didn't think 'e 'ad it in 'im, but it was quite masterful," he smirked.

Minerva snorted in morbid amusement. "Perhaps in a moment," she nodded. "I think I would like to see that. First, though, are you absolutely certain that your guardianship will hold up?"

"Positive," nodded Sebastian. "It was signed with a blood quill, and sealed by magic. It cannot be undone. And for the record, I did offer 'im the chance to select someone else, and 'e declined."

Minerva wasn't surprised by this; they had done something truly remarkable for him, and it was no surprise that he would be grateful. "I think you'll be good for him," she decided, "and I'm certain that Fleur is. I've never seen him so relaxed and happy."

Sebastian smiled. "They are a wonderful match," he agreed. "Fleur 'as 'ad that obnoxious attitude of 'ers ever since 'er allure started causing 'er problems, and this is the first time she 'as willingly dropped it for someone. I don't think it is going to change; she likes who she really is, and 'e allows 'er to show it."

"And she sees 'im only for 'oo 'e is, not for 'is fame," smiled Arienne. "One of very few who do, I think."

"I only know of one other," agreed Minerva. "To be honest, I thought he would end up with Miss Granger."

Sebastian laughed. "Fleur talked to 'er about that," he admitted. "She thinks of 'im as a brother, Minerva. It would never work."

Minerva wasn't sure she agreed with that sentiment — and from the look on Arienne's face, neither was she convinced. It wasn't worth pursuing, however; there were weightier matters afoot. Sitting back, she took a moment to reflect on the conversation so far.

She was going to have to blow off some serious steam before she saw Albus again, but she thought she could handle it. He had gone 'round the twist, and now it was time to change allegiance. It saddened her that it took a French Wizard to notice the problem, but at least it was noticed.

"I'll do whatever I can to help him," she decided. "So tell me how I can help, and I will do it."

"For now, just keep an eye out for him," said Sebastian. "I am doing a lot of digging to figure out 'ow to discredit Albus irreversibly. I almost wish he 'ad taken the marriage to court, because I could 'ave gutted 'im. 'Arry would never 'ave forgiven me, though, since it would mean letting 'is past out."

"Yes, that would certainly do it, wouldn't it?" mused Minerva.

"We will find something," promised Sebastian. "The theft is almost good enough on its own, so we should not need too much more." Then he switched to a quieter tone. "And please do not attempt to discuss 'is past with 'im unless 'e approaches you, Minerva," he warned softly. "It will only do 'arm. We 'ave already made arrangements for someone to 'elp 'im over the summer."

Minerva nodded her agreement. While she would like to at least apologize to him, she could see where it needed to wait. Based on their comments, she was guessing that his new wife was aware of all of this, so she would have to do for right now. That was probably the one advantage to their age difference: she had some additional life experience, and that would help him greatly.

Now all she had to do was figure out how she was going to respond to Dumbledore the next time she saw him.