The Legacy of Merlin

Albus sat down to breakfast, feeling on top of the world. Skeeter had been a meddlesome thorn in his side for some time now. At first, it was her gossip column. It was an annoyance, but there was rarely any truth to it.

Even though it affected his reputation, he let it slide, considering her a pest, but not a serious threat as it was sometimes beneficial to have a dissenting minority that wasn't taken seriously.

The real trouble started after she wrote her article about James. Skeeter didn't know it, but she had come extremely close to exposing his hand in James's cover up as well, and as her readership and influence continued to increase, she became a much larger problem for him.

'But that all came crashing down when she flew too close to the sun,' he thought with a chortle. Giving the order he did to the Prophet's editor so long ago had saved him a lot of trouble, eliminating her as a threat overnight, and now he had conformation from all the major news outlets in Britain that they wouldn't hire her. She would have no choice but to leave Britain with her tail between her legs, along with a very painful lesson she wouldn't soon forget.

He looked out across the sea of students, all of them chattering to each other. He frowned, noticing they were far more boisterous than usual. 'What's going on?' he thought, furrowing his brows. He hadn't read anything in the Prophet that would cause this type of reaction.

"Severus," he said, turning to his side, regarding his potion's professor. "Any idea what this is about?" He asked, nodding his head towards the students.

"Who knows?" Severus said with a dismissive shrug, looking up from his breakfast. "I don't pretend to understand what goes on in their minds," he added dismissively.

Albus narrowed his eyes, seeing the newspapers the students were passing back and forth between them, along with the looks that were subtly being directed at him. "The Quibbler?" he read out loud, getting a glimpse of the paper, and wondering why Lovegood's inane ramblings had them so interested.

He rose from the teacher's table, his curiosity getting the better of him as he made his way to the closest house table, plastering a jovial smile on his face. "Excuse me young man, may I see that?" he asked, reaching for the newspaper, noticing how the young Hufflepuff's eyes widened before silently handing him the paper.

Albus's face went pale as he read the headline.

Evergreen Exposed: Pureblood Estates Stolen

By Rita Skeeter and Xeno Lovegood

He took the newspaper, making his way back to the teacher's table. "Severus, confiscate every copy of the Quibbler, and make sure the students know that it's now banned," he whispered urgently before making his way back to the office to read the article without waiting for a response from the potion's professor.

A part of him knew it would do little good to ban the Quibbler now, after a headline like that, but he needed time to get ahead of this, put the right spin on things.

He ignored the students and other professors he passed in the hallway as he went to his office, sitting down in his chair as he unfurled the paper.

Evergreen, the company you've never heard of that has secretly controlled Wizarding Britain for decades.

A number of pureblood families had their wealth effectively stolen out from under them after the war, taken and 'managed' by Evergreen. The families are given a pittance in return. Evergreen calls it interest, but it is far below market rates, and only enough to manage their family estates.

Using a complex group of shell companies and law firms, Evergreen have insulated themselves from the very purebloods they have effectively robbed. Many of the families are unaware that it is Evergreen managing their estates, what their money is invested in, or even who is collecting the exorbitant fees their family estates are billed.

This was originally investigated by Xeno Lovegood who uncovered that Evergreen, previously operating under the name Greenview managed many pureblood estates even before the start of the war. The most prominent of which are the McKinnon's, the Macmillan's, the Prewett's, the Selwyn's, the Silverwoods, and the Potters.

Yes, you've read that correctly. Even the girl-who-lived's family fortune has been stolen by Greenview, and their alleged actions only get worse from there.

When the Quibbler originally attempted to publish their findings, the rent at their printing facilities was tripled overnight, nearly shutting down the Quibbler in the process, and while some might say this is a coincidence, it is most definitely a pattern of behavior.

The next attempt to expose Evergreen for their wrongdoings was attempted by the Daily Prophet, but that article was also shut down, along with the sacking of the reporter who wrote the article, Rita Skeeter.

Any and all attempts Skeeter made to seek employment with other media outlets and expose Evergreen also met with failure, with many of those same outlets refusing to even meet with her.

It was also uncovered that Greenview is the landlord of the property rented by Tom Porter, the owner of the Leaky Cauldron Pub.

Earlier last year, he was met with a substantial rent increase with very little notice, or explanation.

The increase was well in excess of similar sized properties in Diagon Alley, leading Mr. Porter to consider shutting down the pub, or moving it to a less desirable location.

For those of you unaware, the Leaky Cauldron is over 500 years old, and one of the first business to open in Diagon Alley. It is a fixture in British Society and also serves as the main entrance between the muggle and the magical world.

If not for Harry Potter's early intervention, personally covering the increased rent costs, and his later attempts to purchase the property from Evergreen, this likely would have never come to light, and a British Institution would likely have closed forever.

From a brief discussion with Mr. Potter and his barrister, even making contact with Evergreen was extremely difficult. Their business practices make it virtually impossible to determine ownership of the company, and after a great deal of effort from his barrister, Ted Tonks, he was finally able to present an above market offer that was summarily rejected by Evergreen.

It is still unknown what, if anything, Mr. Porter or The Leaky Cauldron did to draw the ire of Evergreen, but they did thankfully stop, but only after the involvement of Harry Potter, Minister Cornelius Fudge, and eventually Albus Dumbledore.

Albus Dumbledore quickly got in contact with the leadership group of Greenview, and Mr. Porter's rent was returned to its previous level, but it begs the question. How was Albus Dumbledore able to get in touch with Evergreen after the lengths they went to, to hide their identities?

An exhaustive investigation by barrister Ted Tonks, as well as a joint investigation by the Office of the Minister and the DMLE led nowhere, yet Albus Dumbledore could contact them within a matter of days.

The only conclusion one can draw from this is that Evergreen has a high level of support from within our own government, and the only person who can shed light on their activities, their identities, and most importantly their motivations is Albus Dumbledore.

We at the Quibbler formally call upon the Ministry, the DMLE, and the Wizengamot to formally investigate these accusations, bring the perpetrators to justice, and return the monies that have been stolen to all the affected families.

Considering Evergreen's past retaliatory actions, along with the inflammatory nature of this news, the Quibbler will take a hiatus until such time it is deemed safe to return, and prevent any retaliatory actions by Evergreen.

Albus put down the newspaper, rubbing his temples as he wondered how it could have all gone so wrong, so quickly. It was so much worse than he thought. Without Lovegood in Britain to print a retraction, the story would only grow.

He had no doubt that the Hogwarts rumor mill had already spread the news through the entire school, leaving him very few options on how to proceed.

He skimmed through the article again, looking for anything actionable, something that he could pin on Skeeter or Lovegood, but to his frustration he couldn't find anything, nothing libelous, nothing that couldn't be proven, but plenty of speculation, and just enough to tie him to Evergreen, and force an investigation.

Albus looked up as his fireplace flared to life.

"Albus, we need to talk," Alister said, holding up his own copy of the Quibbler.

"Come through," Albus said with a sigh.

"I assume you've read it," Alister said, holding up a copy of the Quibbler.

Albus nodded his head, holding up his own copy.

"What do you want to do about it? Track down Lovegood and Skeeter?" Alister asked.

"No," Albus shook his head. "The damage is already done," he added, the words feeling like ash in his mouth.

"Then what?" Allister demanded. "We can't let this stand."

"Calm down Allister," Albus replied. "We need to weigh our actions carefully. One misstep, and things could end very badly for all of us. If Skeeter or Lovegood don't return, or worse, turn up dead people will come out of the woodwork looking for answers."

"We should have taken care of Lovegood the moment he caused trouble the first time," Allister replied, grim faced. "Now we're paying for it."

"That would have created a whole other set of problems for us," Albus replied. "Investigations, inquiries, and let's not forget his reader base of conspiracy theorists. They would dig into his death, and who knows what else they would have found."

"How did this happen?" Allister asked, sitting down across from Albus. "Lovegood gave up the investigation. We buried the evidence. How did Skeeter find out everything?"

"I've been considering the same thing," Albus replied thoughtfully. "Potter found out about Evergreen as well. He shouldn't have been able to do that."

"Dung said Potter hired someone to investigate," Allister remembered.

"Yes, someone that coincidentally died before we had a chance to speak to them," Albus said, putting the pieces together. "At the time, I dismissed it. That kind of work usually ends that way… but now I'm not so sure."

"There's an easy way to find out," Moody said, walking to the fireplace, and calling for Dung, only to stare in silence when he found the fireplace had been disconnected from the flu network.

Moody and Dumbledore shared an uneasy look. Both coming to the same conclusion, Dung had betrayed them.

"Get to Elphias," Albus ordered. "Tell him to shut everything down. Nothing can be traced back to us."

"And the estates? What about them?" Moody questioned, knowing that losing access to so many galleons would all but scuttle many of their long-term plans.

"There's going to be an inquiry," Albus replied. "And we don't know how much it's going to reveal. We simply can't take the risk. We'll just have to start over," he added, even though it pained him to admit it. They had lost this round.

Moody nodded, sighing as he went to the fireplace, both men knowing it would be decades before they regained what they'd just lost, if at all.

"And one more thing," Albus said, his voice taking a hard edge. "Find Dung by whatever means necessary. Silence him."

"It will be my pleasure," Moody said, a vicious grin on his face as he stepped through the fireplace.

***

Tom looked around his pub, noticing it was far busier than normal. It wasn't a surprise after the Quibbler came out. He had known Evergreen was his landlord, but he could have never imagined what else they were involved in.

"It's an absolute travesty!" One of his patrons shouted. "Absolutely despicable," he added, the disgust evident in his voice.

"What do you care?" His friend asked with a laugh. "We ain't purebloods. This don't affect us."

"Wake up!" he said, slapping his hand on the table. "You think Evergreen only did this to the purebloods? Bah!" He said, shaking his head. "Look what they tried to do to Tom. He ain't no pureblood either, and no one knows how many buildings they own in the alley, let alone everywhere else in the country. Who's to say they haven't done the same to the other shops?"

"He's got a point," his other friend nodded along. "And whose to say they did this with only shops? What about rented flats?"

"That ain't the half of it," another man said from the table beside them. "All these shops, they gotta make the rent somehow, don't they? That means getting rid of workers and charging more to the customers."

"I'm just glad Dumbledore's on this," another patron said, from the other side of the pub. "He got this thing sorted out for Tom. I'm sure he'll get to the bottom of this Evergreen business and get it sorted, too."

"That's tripe and you know it," the man sitting beside him said with a shake of his head. "Dumbledore hasn't done anything for us since the end of the war."

"What are you on about?" The patron asked. "O'course Dumbledore's done stuff… He's the headmaster, ain't he? He's on the Wizengamot too. Or have you forgotten?"

"Still doesn't mean he's done anything for us," he said to his friend before looking up at Tom. "When this business with your rent started, who was it that stepped up?"

"Well," Tom said, polishing a glass. "It's not that simple. I was a bit embarrassed to tell anyone about it," he admitted. "And Harry only found out by chance."

"Come on Tom," the man said with a sigh, "stop being so diplomatic. I read it all here in the Quibbler," he said, holding up his rolled-up copy of the newspaper. "It was Harry Potter that stepped up. Dumbledore only showed up after the fact."

"Look," Tom said, holding up his hands. "Don't get the wrong idea. You're not going to catch me saying a bad word about Harry. He's a good kid, with an even bigger heart. He helped me when I was down, and I'm never going to forget it, but I was here during the war too. Things got bad, real bad, and after everything Dumbledore has done, I'm inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt."

"Fat chance of that," another rowdy patron griped. "The Wizengamot is going to do what they always do. Sweep this whole thing under the rug, and only pretend to investigate. Mark my words, the Prophet is going to come out in a few days and say they couldn't find out who did this."

"The Prophet maybe," another patron said. "But I'd wager the Quibbler would have a thing or two to say about that. Now that Skeeter is working for them, maybe we'll actually find out what's really goin' on."

"I'll tell you what I'm going to do," another patron said, now spitting mad. "I'm going to cancel my subscription to the Prophet! It's packed full of nothing but lies and pointless gossip anyway. They fired Skeeter and dragged her name through the mud. What does that tell you? They're in on this whole thing with 'em!"

"Yeah!" another patron said, standing up as well. "Me too!"

Their actions were quickly picked up by the other patrons as their anger continued to grow.

***

Andre Egwu senior sat in a conference room alongside the rest of the Daily Prophet Board. It had only been a couple of days since the Quibbler's bombshell article came out, and the effects were devastating. They had already lost 25% of their subscribers, and it didn't look like the bleeding was going to stop anytime soon.

They all looked at each other, feeling lost. They had never faced a crisis like this before in the history of the newspaper. The Prophet was essentially a money printing machine that rarely, if ever, required their intervention.

"How could you let this happen?" Andre senior said, exasperated as he looked at Cuffe for answers.

"It's not my fault," Barnabas said, holding up his hands. "I was just following the rules," he added, feeling a growing sense of satisfaction now that the Board had to deal with the repercussions for once.

"What?" another member of the board asked, confused. "What rules?"

"You didn't know?" Barnabas said, looking around the table in surprise.

"Alright," Andre said, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Start from the beginning Cuffe. What rules are you talking about?"

"It's been a standing rule even before I became editor," Barnabas explained. "If a reporter for the Prophet mentions Evergreen, they're to be fired immediately."

"On whose authority?" An angry board member demanded. "You certainly didn't hear that from any of us!"

"No," Barnabas agreed. "It came directly from the majority owner."

"That's not how it works, as you well know!" The same board member yelled. "The ownership group has elected us to make those decisions! You overstepped your authority by cutting us out!"

"Look," Barnabas replied. "We're just splitting hairs at this point. The owner gave the order directly because they own enough shares in the Prophet to push the decision through, regardless of what you have to say."

"Be that as it may, you still had a duty to inform us of this new rule," Andre replied.

"Not exactly," Barnabas said, pulling out a sheet of parchment. "This is a written directive from the owner to not inform you of the new rule unless specifically asked, and it states here," he said, tapping his index finger on the middle paragraph, "that if I inform you of the rule of my own accord, then I'll lose my job."

"Do you at least know who this owner is?" Andre asked, feeling a headache coming on.

"No," Barnabas said, shaking his head. "The person I spoke to showed all the proper documentation showing they were acting on behalf of the owner."

"Evergreen," Andre said for the benefit of the rest of the board. "He's talking about Evergreen. They co-opted the fortunes of the pureblood families and used it to take control of the Prophet."

"That still leaves the question of what we're supposed to do now," another board member said. "The public thinks we're in bed with Evergreen, and after this, we know it isn't just speculation."

"Have you received any other letters from this owner?" Andre asked.

"No," Barnabas shook his head. "And before you ask, I don't have a way to reach them either."

"We're projected to lose another 25 to 30% of our readers by the end of the week," Andre said, realizing it would be a dead end to look into Evergreen. "We need options."

"What about re-hiring Skeeter?" another board member asked. "There's obviously going to be an inquiry. We can have her cover it and the readers will have to come back then."

"She already took a job with the Quibbler," Barnabas pointed out.

"So what?" Another board member asked dismissively. "Lovegood doesn't even have two knuts to rub together. How long can he even afford to pay Skeeter's salary?" He asked, getting nods of approval from the rest of the board. "We can even sweeten the deal for her. A 10% raise will have her back before the end of the day," he added confidently.

"That may have worked a year or two ago," Barnabas said, speaking up. "But it's not going to work now."

"And why is that?" The same board member asked snidely.

"Because she has integrity now," Barnabas said, no longer able to hide his disdain for the rampant censorship and back room dealings that came part in parcel with the Prophet. "You can't just throw money at her, and expect her to dance to your tune. She's going to seek out the truth, wherever it leads her," he said, staring down the board, a hint of pride in his voice as he finally stood up to them.

"Then maybe we go another direction," another board member spoke up belligerently. "The mob is looking for a scapegoat, someone to blame. What about you?" He asked vindictively, staring down Cuffe.

"Why don't I save you the trouble?" Barnabas asked, standing up. "And do what I should have done years ago. I quit! This isn't a newspaper anymore. It's a front for you all to accept bribes from the highest bidder to tell the stories they want told," he said, banging his hand on the desk for emphasis. "Congratulations! It's finally caught up with you!"

"Alright, alright, let's all calm down," Andre said, trying to get some control of the situation. "None of this is going to solve our problems," he added, knowing that losing Cuffe on top of losing Skeeter would only make things worse for them.

"I should have walked out with her," Barnabas said, shaking his head, berating himself for not doing it then. "The wife's been on me to retire for years. Good luck," he said, walking out the door without a backwards glance.

The board could only watch in silence as the former editor of the Prophet walked out the door, then stare at each other, looking for answers.

"…We need to do something to stop the bleeding," Andre finally spoke up.

"I still think our best option is to re-hire Skeeter," the same board member repeated. "If she doesn't accept the higher salary, we can cut her in for a percentage of the profits, the same for Cuffe."

"No," Andre said, resolutely. "That isn't going to work. Skeeter is gone off somewhere with Lovegood. We can't afford to wait for her to come back."

"Then what do we do?" Another board member asked.

"The only thing we can do, start reporting on Evergreen," Andre replied. "If the majority owner turns up, they can clean up this mess."

***

Harry sat with Ron and Hermione in the Great Hall for breakfast. It had been three days since the news broke about Evergreen, and Dumbledore's potential involvement.

"It's crazy," Ron said, shaking his head. "They're even protesting outside the school now. Everybody wants answers."

Harry looked up at the teacher's table, noting the headmaster's chair was still empty. No one had seen since the article in the Quibbler came out. "I doubt the Wizengamot will hold out much longer. They'll have to launch an inquiry soon."

"I can't believe I'm saying this," Hermione said, thinking about how she had previously dismissed the Quibbler as a joke. "But I wish the Quibbler wasn't on hiatus. The only one we can count on to tell the truth is Rita Skeeter."

Ron nodded along. "It's hard to believe she just wrote the gossip column a year ago."

Their conversation was cut short by the morning owls flying in, delivering their packages.

"You're still paying for a subscription?" Ron questioned, seeing the copy of the Prophet land in front of Hermione.

"I'm waiting for the Quibbler to publish again before I cancel it," Hermione explained, unfurling the newspaper

Harry looked over Hermione's shoulder, surprised by the headline.

Wizengamot Calls for Public Inquiry into Evergreen

By Winkus Oddpick

In a surprising move, the Wizengamot has called for a public inquiry into the company Evergreen, which has been accused of multiple illegal activities, most noteworthy the theft of pureblood fortunes.

Professor Albus Dumbledore is expected to present himself to answer the Wizengamot's questions, and acting in the place of Chief Warlock will be Tiberius Ogden.

The Inquiry will be scheduled for March 20th….

Harry glanced at Egwu on the other side of the room.

"What is it?" Hermione asked, curiously.

Harry tapped on the date for the inquiry. "We know when the ritual is going to be."

"That's great!" Ron replied, not realizing the problem.

"No," Harry shook his head. "It's not. It's going to happen on the same day as the inquiry. Dumbledore will be out of the castle."

Regardless of how he felt about the headmaster, he knew he was a powerful wizard, and without him at Hogwarts, their already impossible task just got that much harder.

"We'll try to talk to him again," Hermione suggested. "But it makes perfect sense. I don't know why I didn't think of it before."

"Think of what?" Harry asked.

"It's the spring equinox," Hermione explained. "Magical energies are naturally stronger then. If we just explain everything to him, along with the significance of the date, he'll have to believe us."

"We'll have to find him first," Harry pointed out. "No one's so much as seen him since the Quibbler article came out."

"There's still time," Ron pointed out. "We have about a month left."

"The Aurors are going to be at the inquiry," Harry said, pointing out the cunning of the Alumni's plan. "They'll be there to provide security because the inquiry will be open to the public."

"I'll write a letter to the Minister," Harry said. "He's probably figured it out as well. Maybe there's some strings he can pull to move up the date," he added, even though he didn't have much hope of it working.

***

"Hello Lord Niven, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Albus asked irritably, looking up from his desk, feeling exhausted from dealing with the challenges of the last few days.

"Professor Dumbledore," Lord Niven acknowledged, holding up a sheet of parchment. "This is a formal summons from the Wizengamot regarding the Evergreen matter. You will be required to present yourself on March 20th to address our questions."

"I'm aware," Albus said flatly, holding up a copy of the Prophet. "I'm still Chief Warlock, am I not? Why wasn't I informed of this before it was sent to the press?"

Lord Niven sat down in the chair across from the Headmaster. "That's the other matter I wanted to bring to your attention. An emergency session of the Wizengamot was called last night. Until this matter with Evergreen is resolved, and your name cleared, you're suspended effective immediately," he finished, placing a second sheet of parchment on the Headmaster's desk.

"Really?" Albus asked, his left eye twitching as he tapped down his anger at both the messenger, along with his own allies for not informing him beforehand. "I'm more than happy to speak with my colleagues, but a public inquiry is unnecessary. I'm sure we can get this resolved quietly."

"Due to the incendiary nature of the accusations, we feel that a public inquiry is required," Lord Niven said firmly. "There are riots in the streets, even protests here at Hogwarts. The public is demanding answers."

Albus bit his cheek to stop from laying into the man. Niven had only been on the Wizengamot for a few short years, and was dictating terms to him, Albus Dumbledore. He wanted to rage at the man, remind him he had been off fighting dark lords since Nevin had been in diapers.

"What the public wants isn't always what's good for them," Albus replied, keeping his growing anger in check. "This is a sensitive matter that will be best handled in a private setting. Do we understand each other?"

"I think you misunderstand Headmaster," Lord Niven replied. "This isn't a discussion. It has already been voted on and decided by the Wizengamot. You will present yourself for questioning, or face the consequences. That is the only understanding that is required."

Albus's nostrils flared as he imagined reaching across the table, and choking the life out of the smug man across from him. "I hope you enjoy your time on the Wizengamot Lord Niven," he said, his eyes boring into the younger man. "It will be brief. Now leave my office."

Lord Niven smirked, knowing that he'd gotten under the skin of the old man. He had little to fear from him. Perhaps ten or fifteen years ago, he was a force to be reckoned with, but not now. He was all bark and no bite, clinging desperately to past glories just to remain relevant.

'After we free Celestia, he'll simply be a footnote in history,' Niven thought confidently as he stood up, using the fireplace to leave without a backwards glance.

Albus glared at the fireplace for a long moment, still fuming, before calling Moody again.

"Albus," Moody said, as he saw his friend. "I was just speaking to Elphias… What's happened?" He asked, seeing the angry look on Albus's face.

"Good, you're both there," Albus said, still seething. "Step through."

"I haven't found Dung yet, if that's what you're asking about," Alister started. "The cockroach is surprisingly good at hiding when he wants to."

"No, it isn't that," Albus replied. "Lord Niven just came into my office."

"Lord who?" Alister said, furrowing his brows.

"No one important," Albus dismissed, darkly. "Just an up jumped pureblood that recently joined the Wizengamot and has a few too many delusions about how things really work."

"What did he want?" Elphias asked.

"He gave me this," Albus said, tossing the parchments to him. "He came to inform me of the inquiry, and that I'm required to speak."

Elphias scanned through the documents before looking up. "It won't lead anywhere," he promised. "I'm almost finished winding down Evergreen. There'll be nothing there for them to find."

"No," Albus shook his head, getting an idea. "The public is looking for a scapegoat. Let's give them one," he said, a smirk on his face. "Have a few accounts opened in Dung's name, have them backdated, let's say, ten years or so. Then layer the deposits, make it nice round number, let's say 250,000 galleons."

"That could work," Elphias said, catching onto the plan. "I doubt the Wizengamot would look too deeply if we practically gift wrap this for them. It won't come cheap though. My contacts at Gringott's are going to want a cut."

"It doesn't matter," Albus dismissed. "Use the Potter vaults to do it if you have to."

Alister chuckled darkly, imagining the look on Potter's face when he found out. Making him believe that the person he hired to find Evergreen was the one that was robbing him blind in the first place.

"Do what you can to find Dung," Albus said, looking at Moody. "It would be better if he wasn't around to answer the Wizengamot's questions."

***

Cornelius put down his copy of the Prophet with a sigh. It had been an interesting few days, to say the least. Rita's article had caught him by surprise, and the letters he'd sent to her afterward had returned unopened. Wherever she was, it had a powerful ward, one strong enough to even confuse Ministry owls.

Given the situation she found herself in, he couldn't blame her, knowing very well there were elements within the Wizengamot that wanted her silenced permanently.

Over the last few hours, he noticed a few counter protests had started against her, but they were small, and not taken seriously by the public. His experience told him it was more than that. The Alumni were clearly trying to spread out the Aurors, and work them to exhaustion.

At this point, he wasn't sure he could even count on the twenty Aurors that Bones said she could get him. The Alumni had clearly taken advantage of the situation, making him wish he had been more upfront with Rita so they could coordinate things better.

Harry's letter had said much the same, with protests at Hogwarts as well, and it would only get worse the closer they got to the ritual.

***

James sat in his living room, a smirk on his face as he read the latest edition of the Daily Prophet, 'couldn't have happened to a nicer guy,' he thought with a savage smile, as he got one step closer to reclaiming his family fortune.

"I just wish I could be there to see him squirm," he thought out loud, reading through the article a second time.

"Don't celebrate too soon," Lily advised. "I doubt this is the first time Dumbledore came this close to being exposed."

"Maybe," James acknowledged, "but I think most of the damage is already done. His reputation is tarnished, and even if he's able to get away with it, the accusations aren't going to be easy for him to shake off."

Lily nodded, unable to find any holes in her husband's logic, but still had an uneasy feeling about all this.

"It'll be ok," James said, seeing the distressed look on her face. "Skeeter's article exposed everything. He's got nothing to gain by coming after us now."

"I hope you're right, James," Lily replied pensively.

James was about to reply when he saw the fireplace flare to life, and Dung's face appear.

"I need your help," Dung said, looking worried. "Let me come through."

"What is it?" James asked, curiously.

"There isn't time. Let me through!" Dung said in a hushed whisper.

"Alright, alright," James relented. "Come in."

Dung nodded gratefully as he clamored through the fireplace, landing on the floor with a heavy thud.

"Dung? What happened?" Lily asked, seeing the obvious fright in the man's eyes.

"Dumbledore," Dung replied, getting back to his feet. "He's after me."

James's first instinct was to ask Dung why that was his problem, and send him on his way, but thought better of it, remembering how much his short-sightedness had cost him in the past, and how problematic having Dung as an enemy would be.

"Start from the beginning," James said. "Why is Dumbledore after you? I thought that was all worked out."

"I think he figured it out after Skeeter's article," Dung replied. "Moody's after me. He ransacked my house and has been asking around about me. I only missed him at the Hog's head by chance!"

"So what do you expect me to do about it?" James asked curiously.

"I need a place to hide," Dung confessed. "He won't think to look for me here."

"…I don't know about that, Dung," James said, shaking his head. The last thing he wanted was another 'visit' from Moody, and finding Dung here would only make things worse.

"No," Dung replied. "You don't understand. Dumbledore, he doesn't just kill for the sake of killing. He has a plan, and I think I'm part of it."

"Alright, maybe we can give you a few galleons, help you get out of the country," James suggested. "It'll only be until after the inquiry. You should be able to hide out until then."

"That's not going to work," Dung shook his head. "Dumbledore has contacts, and not just in Britain. Anywhere else I'll stick out like a sore thumb, and he'll find me even quicker."

"James," Lily suggested. "Maybe we should let him stay in the basement, just until after the inquiry. It's only a few weeks."

"Alright," James relented. "Does anyone know you're here?" He asked Dung.

"No," Dung shook his head. "I couldn't risk telling anyone I know."

"It seems like you know Dumbledore better than we ever did. What do you think his plan is?" James questioned.

"He's going to want to save his reputation, and hang onto as many of his positions as he can," Dung replied. "With the public turned against him, I don't know exactly what he's gonna do to change that, but he's got a plan, and he doesn't want anyone around that can contradict his story."

James and Lily exchanged a worried look, wondering just how far Dumbledore would go to save himself.

***

Chairman Gringott sat in his office, looking thoughtfully at his copy of Skeeter's article in the Quibbler, alongside today's copy of the Prophet, thinking about his meeting with Harry Potter. 'Definitely not a coincidence,' he thought, looking at the date of the inquiry.

He sighed, leaning back in his chair as he reconsidered his position for the hundredth time. There was enough bad blood between his kind, and the humans, and he knew aiding them wouldn't go over well with his people, but he sensed an opportunity.

He tapped a button on his desk, speaking to his secretary. "Call for Griphook," he ordered.

A few minutes later, Griphook walked in. "You asked for me, Chairman?"

"Yes, close the door," the Chairman ordered. "Now take a look at these," he said, tossing the two newspapers to his subordinate. "What do you make of them?"

"I've read them already, sir," Griphook said, placing them back on the desk. "I think Harry Potter is telling the truth, if that's what you're asking."

Gringott nodded his head. "I'm inclined to believe him as well, but that's not what I'm asking. What would be the fallout from committing the nation to helping him?"

Griphook sighed, "It's difficult to say, sir. On the face of it, this would be a violation of the treaty, and as you know, the penalties for that are steep."

"Do you think they would enforce it? Considering what Harry Potter believes will happen?" Gringott asked.

"Yes," Griphook replied without hesitation. "Their government, its… more complex than ours. It makes them more susceptible to corruption, so yes, there will be elements within the human government that will take advantage."

Gringott sighed again, having come to the same conclusion as well. "Do you think it's worth the risk?" He said, asking the question he had been wrestling with over the last few days.

"Honestly sir? I don't know," Griphook replied. "There are quite a few ways this could end badly for our people, whether or not we help them, but I trust your leadership, sir, so does the rest of the nation. Whatever you decide, we're with you."

Gringott leaned back in his chair as he stared out the window, deep in thought. "We're certainly living in interesting times."

***

Hi! Thanks for reading I hope you enjoyed the new chapter. Its one i've been excited to post for a while. What did you think about the fallout of Rita's latest article? Albus's fall is a long term storyline, and has been building for some time. At the start of Harry's first year he was at the absolute height of his power and influence, and the start of his fall was a self inflicted wound, when he went after Tom. That brought Greenview to light, and started the ball rolling. It also serves to further the storyline about the Wizengamot, and general corruption that permeates the wizarding world.

I hope you like what I have planned for him as the story progresses. I don't want to spoil it, but Albus isn't going to go quietly.

They year end conflict with the study group and the Alumni is going to be coming up soon too, and there will be long term ramifications from that as well.

***

If you can, please take the time to review, let me know what's working, what's not. It helps a lot with figuring out what I need to adjust or change to improve the story.

If you would like to support me and my writing, please consider visiting https://taplink.cc/jumpin for all the stories I'm currently working on and early access to chapters 61, 62, 63 and 64 of Legacy of Merlin, along with some character portraits for Merlin, Morgan and Nimue, and an audio versions of the chapters, along with all the other stories I'm working on.

Thank you to all my supporters, and for everyone that reviewed. I really appreciate it.

Jumpin