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Chapter 1556: A War Without Victors (VI)
Chapter 1556: A War Without Victors (VI)
Finally free from the nagging group of student relatives, Albert made his way directly to Professor McGonagall's office on the second floor of the castle. He needed the help of the professors to bring back the students who had been sent away, especially since he had already graduated from the school and his influence might not be enough to convince them to return.
Knocking gently on the half-open wooden door, Albert entered at the response from within. His gaze swept over the professors seated on the sofa, eventually landing on the person speaking with Professor McGonagall.
Percy Weasley?
Oh, of course! Kingsley wouldn't leave the mess at Hogwarts for Professor McGonagall to handle alone. Sending their old acquaintance, Percy, to the school was likely to assess what help they could provide.
As Albert stepped into the office, all conversation ceased, and everyone turned to look at him. Even Percy greeted Albert with a familiar tone, formally bringing up Kingsley's (the interim minister) desire to invite him to serve as a senior advisor to the Minister of Magic.
"That matter can wait. You all continue your discussion," Albert said with a nod to Professor McGonagall before sitting down on the sofa where the professors were resting, everyone's eyes on him.
"Would you like some hot cocoa?"
Professor Flitwick raised his cup and offered a tired smile to Albert.
"No, thank you," Albert declined honestly, having no appetite at the moment.
Seeing such a large number of dead bodies in one night would surely take away the appetite of most people. However, if they didn't force themselves to eat something, the professors might not have the energy to continue their work.
"Is the situation over there resolved?"
Professor Sprout asked in a lowered voice.
She felt apologetic for leaving those troublesome relatives to Albert, but they truly didn't have the energy to spare to deal with them.
"It should be resolved," Albert replied, briefly explaining the demands of the relatives and inquiring if any of the professors would be willing to go and bring the students back to Hogwarts.
Professor Sprout readily agreed to take on the task, thinking that it might be more appropriate for the Head of House to handle the situation, as the students who had been woken up abruptly were likely to be in a foul mood. She hoped that Albert could make time to help repair the viaduct.
After concluding their main business, the group chatted about the school's predicament.
While the overall situation was improving, several issues remained. One such problem was the repair of the castle, particularly the viaduct that had been blown up. It would likely take considerable effort from Professor Sprout to restore it to its original state.
Of course, the matter that concerned the professors the most was the disposal of the bodies. Although Professor Flitwick had cast a large-scale freezing spell on the pile of Dark Wizards' corpses to prevent them from rotting and causing a stench, it was uncertain how long the spell would last. It was imperative to deal with the bodies as soon as possible.
Many of the professors actually agreed with Albert's proposed solution, but they couldn't carry it out, at least not directly.
As such, the Ministry of Magic would post a notice in the newspaper, inviting the relatives of the deceased to collect the bodies. Any unclaimed corpses would be cremated and buried.
There was no other choice—there were simply too many enemy corpses to deal with, and they lacked the time and energy to handle them all individually.
Naturally, the bodies of their fallen comrades would be handled with care, and Professor McGonagall had already discussed this with Percy.
Perhaps the heroes wouldn't receive the treatment they deserved, but everyone knew that Kingsley had done his best.
With Voldemort dead, the chaos in the Ministry of Magic would eventually settle.
When Albert expressed his desire to speak with Kingsley, Percy readily agreed, stating that Kingsley would come to Hogwarts to deal with the aftermath once he had stabilized the situation at the Ministry. Then they would have time for a private chat.
The brief conversation was rather pleasant.
As Albert rose to leave the office, Percy hurried to catch up, and the two walked side by side through the ravaged corridor, chatting casually about the mundane happenings at the Ministry.
As Albert had expected, although Kingsley had been appointed interim minister and granted significant power, his position was still temporary. One wrong move could see him taking the fall for any number of things. The politically savvy Kingsley was clearly aware of this, which was why he was trying to enlist the support of Harry and Albert.
With their backing, he could solidify his position as the Minister of Magic, as he was relatively well-liked. However, reality often proved to be more fantastical than fiction.
"So, the captured Death Eaters are currently being held in a temporary prison, awaiting trial by the Ministry of Magic?" Albert refrained from voicing any opinions on the matter.
"Yes, is there a problem?"
Ever since Albert hadn't immediately agreed to become a senior advisor, Percy had been quietly observing him, hoping to glean some insight into his thoughts to aid Kingsley in gaining a powerful ally. He knew all too well just how crucial Albert's support was, given that he had been the one to defeat Voldemort.
"No problem at all," Albert replied calmly, giving nothing away.
However, in Percy's eyes, Albert was clearly not as indifferent as he claimed. But with Albert keeping his thoughts to himself, there was little Percy could do.
"Do you think Kingsley's handling of the Death Eaters is problematic?" Percy asked tentatively.
"Whether there's a problem or not has nothing to do with me," Albert responded enigmatically, leaving Percy perplexed.
To be honest, conversing with Albert was exhausting, but Percy thought he had identified the issue—Albert likely believed that Kingsley's handling of the Death Eaters, or rather, the aftermath, would be problematic.
Percy, ever astute, had already considered a possible scenario.
Similar situations had occurred after the last Wizarding War.
Although many Death Eaters had been captured and imprisoned, a significant number had escaped unscathed by using the Killing Curse as a shield.
Perhaps Albert believed that Kingsley's actions would allow a large number of dark wizards to escape legal punishment, and this matter was likely to cause problems?
What kind of problems could arise?
Percy felt that the biggest issue was Albert's dissatisfaction, but that clearly wasn't the answer.
"I hate riddles," Percy muttered.
"When will Kingsley come to Hogwarts?" Albert asked suddenly.
"Probably tomorrow morning."
Percy thought it was necessary for Kingsley to make time to meet with Albert, and the sooner the better.
Before Percy left, he added, "Kingsley is currently the best candidate for the position of Minister of Magic. Don't you agree?"
"Perhaps," Albert replied.
After bidding Percy farewell, Albert turned to walk in the other direction, having just promised Professor Sprout that he would fix the viaduct.
Just then, hurried footsteps could be heard from around the corner of the corridor, and both of them stopped in their tracks as they saw Hermione rushing towards them. "I finally found you."
"What's the matter?" Albert asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I have to go," Hermione said.
Percy bid Hermione goodbye and then turned to leave.
"About Harry and Ginny..." Hermione looked at Percy's departing back and lowered her voice. "Mrs. Weasley already knows, and both Mr. and Mrs. Weasley are taking it very hard."
"Because of Ginny's age?"
"Yes, they feel she's too young and not even an adult yet. They think it's inappropriate for her to marry Harry now."
The fact that Ginny was pregnant with Harry's child before she came of age had dealt a heavy blow to the Weasley couple.
This made Hermione feel extremely guilty, as she had been the one who encouraged Ginny to get pregnant with Harry's child.
"You didn't do anything wrong. At least Harry is still alive," Albert said comfortingly.
"So, what do we do now?"
Hermione looked at Albert expectantly, hoping for a good solution.
"How did Mr. and Mrs. Weasley find out about this?" Albert asked suddenly. "Did Harry and Ginny come clean to them directly?"
"It seems that Mrs. Weasley overheard Fred and George talking about it and that's how she found out about Ginny's pregnancy." As she spoke, Hermione frowned, as she also found this matter a bit too coincidental.
Could Fred and George have been that careless?
Or did those two deliberately let the Weasley couple know about it?
"They obviously did it on purpose. After all, the Weasley couple would have found out sooner or later, and telling them now might not be a bad choice." Albert shared his thoughts on the matter.
The war had finally come to an end, and everyone was just putting on a strong front to deal with the aftermath. Bringing this matter to light now, while everyone was still reeling from the war, might actually be a good opportunity.
At worst, it would just be one more mess to clean up, if it could even be considered one.
Things had already unfolded this way.
Regardless of how Mr. and Mrs. Weasley felt about it, they would have to accept it.
Moreover, this wasn't Harry and Ginny's fault, and Harry had ultimately survived.
It was a happy ending for all.
"You should go find Sirius now and tell him the whole story. I'm sure Sirius will help them convince the Weasley couple." Albert reached out and stopped Hermione, who was about to go find Sirius. "Also, remember to remind Sirius why Harry and Ginny did what they did. That's important."
"See you later, and wait for my good news."
Watching Hermione hurry away, Albert shook his head.
After Albert had completely repaired the viaduct with the Repair Spell and seen the relatives leave with their children, who had been scared pale by the pile of bodies outside, the matter with Harry was also resolved.
Sirius went to talk to the Weasley couple, and this matter was mainly about trying to save Harry's life through "love."
As it turned out, Harry, who had been hit by the Avada Kedavra curse, did indeed come back to life.
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had no choice but to swallow their words and quietly help Harry and Ginny clean up the mess.
As for Sirius, he was more than happy to help with Harry's wedding preparations, and he didn't mind at all that Ginny was not yet an adult.
"See, I told you this would be the quickest way," Fred proudly announced to Albert that they had resolved the issue and asked if Albert could let Harry settle down in his village.
"That's not a problem," Albert readily agreed. "However, when it comes to building the village, Harry will also have to pitch in."
"That's definitely not a problem."
"But with only a few months left, can we get the house built in time?"
"Mom plans to have them marry soon. She doesn't want Ginny to be showing when she marries Harry; it would be too embarrassing for her."
"It should be fine." Albert seemed to think of something and said to Fred and George, "The Death Eaters seemed to have destroyed a Muggle village last night and used the residents to create the army of Inferi that attacked Hogwarts."
"I heard from Moody that they were probably going to transport the Inferi to that village and burn them, disguising it as a fire accident," Fred and George replied, clearly also well-informed.
"We'll need Muggle money to buy the materials for building the houses, so I need you two to come with me to that village and take the Muggle money."
"Is that really okay?"
Hermione, who had been eavesdropping nearby, couldn't help but speak up.
"It's better than letting those pounds be burned in the fire. We might as well put them to use, and it's like getting compensation for the villagers. Consider it payment for our services."
Albert had obviously done this before.
(End of Chapter)
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