The Gossamer Web

Chapter Two: Fudge's Folly

"Mankind [is] naturally divided into three sorts; one third of them are animated at the first appearance of danger, and will press forward to meet and examine it; another third are alarmed by it, but will neither advance nor retreat, till they know the nature of it, but stand to meet it. The remaining third will run or fly upon the first thought of it." -John Adams

"Hold the lift, please!" Hailey Ahlgrim called, rushing to the rapidly closing doors.

An arm wedged itself in the crevice between the doors, and they sprung back, allowing her entrance to the lift.

Looking to the owner of the arm, Hailey smiled. 'Thank you, Arnold.'

The Obliviator nodded. 'Which floor?'

'Five.' She opened her briefcase and began to rummage through it.

'Running late are you?' Arnold asked, eyeing her harried state sympathetically.

She glanced at her watch. 'Nearly. I was on the Floo with France's ambassador. He won't be able make it to the emergency session. His wife is ill.'

'Is it serious?'

Hailey laughed. 'She is a hypochondriac of the first order, so yes, in her mind I'm sure it's painful, chronic, and fatal.'

"Level five, Department of International Magical Cooperation, Incorporating the International Magical Trading Standards Body, the International Magical Office of Law, and the International Confederation of Wizards, British Seats."

The doors opened and two memos zipped in as Hailey stepped out, bidding Arnold a good day.

It was exceedingly rare for an emergency session to be called, and Hailey was quite concerned, though when she opened the double doors to the General Assembly she made certain her expression was composed.

The General Assembly was a large ellipsoidal chamber with seven tiers on one side, each housing eleven members of the Confederation, and a large lectern on the other. Behind the podium was a marble sculpture of a witch with flowing robes. In her raised right hand she held a quill and scroll, in her left hand, which rested at her side, she held her wand.

As always, Hailey was struck by the significance of Signora Diplomazia. She had always believed words and compassion were the better way, even though they worked slower than a wand. She wasn't naïve enough to think diplomacy would always work, but she thought it should be attempted whenever possible.

Hailey climbed to the second tier where her seat was denoted by a name plaque and a small flag of her country. She was the second to the last to arrive. Seconds after she had taken her seat, Greece's ambassador, Matthias Pachis, entered the chamber, brushed some crumbs off his Fustanella and sat heavily in his seat.

Albus Dumbledore was already at the lectern and, once Pachis was settled in his seat, began to speak.

'First I would like to thank you all for coming on such short notice. I have always believed in the aims of this Confederation: to solve disputes peacefully, keep our world secreted from Muggle eyes, and to further peace and justice. Diplomacy, while admirable, is not always the answer for it requires both parties to adhere to reason and honesty. There have been times in Britain's history, in the history of all the countries assembled here, where diplomacy is not a choice, and those who are able must take up arms to protect all that is cherished and held dear... such a time is upon us now.'

An outbreak of whispers and murmurs followed this pronouncement. Hailey, her throat constricted, said nothing.

'A little more than a week ago, a student of our school, Cedric Diggory, was murdered in the course of the final task of the Triwizard Tournament. The night of the event, Cornelius Fudge was summoned, though he did not believe my account of the events. I consider the truth to be generally preferable to lies, even if the truth is something frightening and terrible.

'A week ago, Voldemort regained a body and called His Death Eaters back into service. It was one of them who murdered Cedric Diggory.'

Gasps and cries of dismay resounded around the room and Hailey's hands flew to her mouth.

Wu Zhou leaned forward. 'You have evidence of this, Albus?'

The wizard nodded, and Hailey was struck with how old he suddenly appeared. 'Yes, we have an eyewitness account as well as the testimony of Bartemius Crouch, one of His servants.'

Denmark's representative, Ulrik Borgerlig, spoke. 'What are we going to do?' he asked.

Lino Guerro of Ecuador lifted his chin. 'We fight, we go after the hijo de puta!'

'You are welcome to, Guerro. I, however, will not,' said Wasi Al-Bashir slowly, his thick eyebrows furrowed.

Jacobus Arendock shook his head. 'You are being foolish, Mr. Al-Bashir. You think He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named will limit Himself to Britain?'

'I know He will not,' Al-Bashir said, 'but he will not be concerned with poor Sudan.'

Jacobus frowned. '"Strength Through Unity", that is my country's motto and I wholeheartedly believe it. Britain is in peril, I remember the days of You-Know-Who's first reign. Are we just going to leave her to her fate?'

Ingrid Bergfalk stood, her finely-tailored robes rustling with the movement. She was tall and slender, with long blonde hair, cunning eyes and cold smiles that never reached her eyes. Hailey had long despised her and the feeling was entirely mutual. 'Your phrasing is both exaggerated and melodramatic, Arendock,' she said, her voice cool, with a hint of a German accent. 'You speak as if not assisting Britain would be akin to murder. You forget that you need to be concerned with the affairs of your own country; Britain survived perfectly intact after the last...unpleasantness with the Dark Lord, I see no reason why that would change now, especially with such a powerful wizard as Albus Dumbledore involved.' The last words were accompanied with a slight nod and twist of the lips.

'The Order of the Phoenix,' Hailey said, 'what of them? Have they reformed as well?' While the Order of the Phoenix was indeed a 'secret' society, that is, that no one knew who the actual members were, it was widely known that Albus was the head.

'Yes, the Order of the Phoenix has been resurrected and is-'

The door burst open then, and Cornelius Fudge hurried inside, a wizard with red hair and horned-rimmed spectacles on his heels.

Fudge's eyes took in the sight of Albus at the lectern, the worried, shocked, frightened, and supercilious (only Ingrid Bergfalk fit this description) members of the Confederation and put the two together.

Swelling like a blowfish, the Minister advanced, pointing his pudgy finger at Albus. 'No, Dumbledore! I told you- I won't have you spreading those- those lies and unfounded speculation!'

'Doesn't sound unfounded to me,' Lino Guerro snapped.

'Why didn't you say anything?'

'How could you keep this a secret?'

'Er du vansinnig? Eller bara en idioten?'

Fudge stared at the rising tide of protestors with wide eyes. It occurred to Hailey then that Fudge had not truly realized how unpopular he was with the Confederation. Though the general populace liked Fudge, those who were acquainted with him, or indeed knew anyone who was, most emphatically did not.

'Now, now see here, Dumbledore,' Fudge had taken off his hat and was twisting it nervously in his hands, 'I've always stood by you, even though many of your decisions have been...' He was unable to pinpoint the correct word and pressed on. 'But no more!' Fudge cried, brandishing his hat. 'You broke the oath you took when you became a Mugwump of this Confederation and that is to tell the truth! In breach of that oath you are hereby sacked from the International Confederation of Wizards! You-'

Hailey was not the only one to leap to her feet at Fudge's declaration. Emiliano Adessi muttered a few Italian epithets under his breath before switching to English, 'Of all the-!' and an outraged Minister Oblansk cried, 'Vhat? You think vhat is the answer?'

'Minister Fudge,' Hailey tried her utmost to sound calm, 'if you wish to remove Albus for perjury there must first be an inquiry, you cannot-'

'Do not tell me what I can or cannot do, Ahlgrim!' He turned to the aide at his side and hissed a few words in his ear. The young man nodded and left the room.

She had never seen Fudge act in this manner before, and for a moment was quite at a loss as to what to say. Crossing her arms, she quietly replied, 'I am merely reminding you of what the law says.' [Author ID1: at Sat Mar 22 11:43:00 2008 ]

Her answer only served to catapult his rage to new heights. 'Say another word, Ahlgrim, and I'll have you thrown off the Confederation as well!'

'On what grounds?' she demanded.

Fudge flustered for a minute, before stammering, 'I-I am sure I would be able find something!'

Lawrence Ware rose to his feet, his burned hands gripping his cane tightly. 'Listen to yourself, Minister, you are speaking madness!'

'Silence! Ahlgrim, I order you to stand down!'

Hailey crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the Minister in response.

'Stand down, Ahlgrim, unless you wish to be sacked from this Confederation!'

She gritted her teeth, but stood her ground. She had spent more than ten years in the Ministry... never had she imagined her political career would end in such a manner, but it would be unconscionable for her to stand aside.

Then she saw Professor Dumbledore shake his head. It was barely perceptible; Hailey was most likely the only one who spotted it. The Headmaster shook his head again, telling her to sit down.

Hailey took her seat and Fudge positively glowed with satisfaction. Not wanting to look as if Fudge had scored any sort of victory over her she said, 'As you say... Professor Dumbledore.'

Fudge's eyes flashed and he whirled on Albus, who held up his hands in a placating manner. 'She is only obeying your directive, Cornelius.'

The double doors opened then and the young man reentered along with two Aurors, both of whom looked very serious.

Fudge motioned them over. 'Williamson, Dawlish, escort Dumbledore off of the Ministry premises.'

Both of them looked at Fudge in shock, but after a moment of hesitation seized Dumbledore by the arms and took him out of the room.

'And furthermore,' Fudge continued, his voice rising with every word, 'any Ministry of Magic employee who is discovered spreading lies about the so-called rebirth of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named or Dumbledore's band of vigilantes will be sacked!'

Eelis Laukkanen jumped to his feet, hands clenched. 'And what of us? You forget, Minister, we are not under your country's jurisdiction!'

'If any of you so much as breathe a word about this, you will be thrown off the Confederation and we will embargo all of your country's imports- you do not want to make me your enemy, Mr. Laukkanen!'

And with that parting threat, the Minister for Magic left the Grand Assembly Room.

Lino Guerro drew his wand and made to head after Fudge but was halted by Mr. Torres who grabbed his arm and began speaking to him rapidly in Spanish.

All around her, the debate flew fast and furious, but Hailey was unable to pay it much heed. She raised a trembling hand up to her face and pushed a lock of hair out of her eyes.

'You did the right thing, Hailey,' Lawrence said, laying a burned hand on her shoulder.

She shook her head. 'No,' she said hollowly, 'no I did the cowardly thing.'

'I was watching Dumbledore, he wanted you to sit down.' He squeezed her shoulder. 'I am truly sorry.'

For a moment, she tried to work out what he meant, then it hit her. Voldemort.

'I-I have to go,' she said shakily, gathering her things and climbing to her feet.

'I know,' he said simply; there was such understanding and compassion in his eyes that it pained her to look at them. She embraced him, and then made her way to the door.

Amidst the bedlam Hailey thought Lawrence was the only one to notice her departure, then she saw Ingrid Bergfalk watching her with an icy smile.

Hailey glared, then opened the door and slipped out.

Once in the corridor, her steps quickened until she broke out into a run. She bypassed the lifts and yanked open the door leading to the stairs, climbing them two at a time till she reached the eighth floor.

She stepped into the Atrium, her eyes scanning for Dumbledore. Finally she spotted his silver hair near the Visitor's Entrance and dashed over. 'Dawlish, Williamson, stop!' she commanded, trying to sound authoritative, which was made difficult as she was attempting to catch her breath at the same time.

The two Aurors halted and turned, though they still kept a hold on Albus.

'Please, I need to speak to Professor Dumbledore for a minute.'

'Now, listen here,' Dawlish said, his voice gruff, 'we've got orders- straight from the Minister himself- to escort-'

'Come on, John,' the other Auror said, 'she needs just a moment-'

Seeing that the grey-haired wizard appeared unconvinced, Hailey reached into her bag and pulled out a silver W, her badge denoting her as a member of the Wizengamot.

'Very well,' Dawlish muttered, releasing Albus and stepping a few meters away; Williamson followed suit.

'Did you lose your post?' Albus asked.

'No... Albus, what were you thinking?' she cried, throwing her hands up into the air. 'The Confederation needed to be informed, I am not disputing that, but to do it in such a brazen manner! Why didn't you simply send us all owls? Now Fudge is threatening to sack any one who mentions... Him or the Order of the Phoenix-'

'Is that so?' Albus interrupted, looking quite pleased.

'Yes, why are you-' She stopped as she realized what he was playing at. If there was any way to guarantee the 'rumors' of Voldemort's rebirth would continue to spread it was by outlawing them to be spoken. 'You sly codger! That was brilliant- but I was almost sacked, I should have been sacked! Why did you tell me to sit down?' she demanded.

'Hailey, I know you are a strong woman, no one who knows you would accuse you of not sticking to your principles, but I could not allow you to throw your career away in such a manner. Now, more than ever, we need to ensure that people such as you who know the truth of Voldemort's return are in the Ministry.'

Hailey could see the sense in such a statement. Now, with Albus no longer in the Ministry it was more important than ever for those who weren't in Fudge's pocket to stay with the Ministry, but... 'You made me take the coward's way out!' she accused, thinking of the ridicule she would face for backing down from Fudge's ultimatum.

'No, I prevented you from taking the easy way out.'

She blinked. 'The easy way out?' she repeated incredulously. 'It would have cost me my career!'

Albus surveyed her seriously over his half-moon spectacles. 'At times it is takes more strength, more courage to withstand injustice, to quietly strive against such forces than to sacrifice oneself in a grand, dramatic display of martyrdom.'

'I suppose; you are correct, as always.' Hailey crossed her arms as if in defense of a sudden chill and turned her head away. 'I should tell my father about Vol- about what happened. It would be best if he heard it from me.' She quickly embraced the Headmaster, stepped away and Disapparated.

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Hailey knew her father would take the news of Voldemort's recrudescence especially hard.

The beginning of Voldemort's first uprising was marked by deaths and disappearances, and, as a result, many suspected all Voldemort was capable of was breaking in and murdering the poor residents like a common burglar. Terrible yes, but far from the catastrophe Albus and others were prophesying was imminent. The Ministry assured the uneasy public the number of Death Eaters was greatly exaggerated and Voldemort would soon be apprehended by Aurors.

Then, on the bright wintry morning of December 23^rd 1970, everything changed.

Children were disembarking the Hogwarts Express at Platform 9 ¾ and were being reunited with their families when Death Eaters struck. Hailey lost her mother in what became known as the King's Cross Massacre, a terrible blow from which her father never truly recovered.

She worried her lip, forcibly dragging her mind to the present. She stood in front of the door leading to her father's study, but was greatly reluctant to enter. Sighing softly, Hailey opened the door.

Radulph Ahlgrim's study was in its usual state of disarray. Open tomes and parchments were scattered across the desk as well the odd gadget and gizmo. Her father was standing before a long chalk board full of Arithmatic equations.

'...five, five... the number of action and restlessness... no matter what variables I change the answer remains the same...' he muttered to himself, 'but what does she have to do with it all?'

Hailey cleared her throat delicately to announce her presence.

Her father turned around, his frown of consternation relaxing into a smile. He took his pipe out of his mouth. 'Hailey,' he said warmly, striding forward to embrace her.

She dropped her briefcase and threw her arms around him, holding him tightly, as she wished she was once again a little girl and her father held the power to fix all that was wrong in her world. But that was years ago, she was grown up now and had to play that part.

Pulling away, Hailey deftly wiped her eyes and tried to force a smile on her face.

Radulph's smile faded and his eyes grew solemn. 'What is wrong?'

Hailey swallowed and looked away, her eyes tracing the patterns on the worn carpet.

'What is wrong?' he repeated, grabbing her hands and holding them tightly. 'Hailey?'

'It's about Mum,' she whispered, raising her eyes to meet his.

Her father took a shaky breath and Hailey dove on.

'I know you've been hearing the rumours- about trouble that's been brewing throughout all of Britain. With the Dark Mark appearing at the World Cup-'

He looked at her sharply, dread pooling in his eyes. 'No...'

'-the disappearance of Bertha Jorkins and Barty Crouch-'

'Oh God...'

Hailey threw her arms around his neck and held him as tightly as she could. 'Oh, Daddy, I'm so sorry, it happened-it happened,' her lips trembled and her rapid delivery failed, 'He's back.'

The tears came for both of them as he wrapped his arms around her.

They stood that way for quite some time, simply letting each other grieve. Voldemort had taken so much from them; her father lost the one he loved most, while she lost her mother, as well as her childhood. She was seven when her mother was killed, so her recollections of her mother were vague at best; though she remembered her mother's death with horrifying clarity. Since that point, her father had lived in the same fear that possessed all of Britain: the fear that someone else in the family was next. When she had turned eleven, her father sent her to Beauxbatons in France, and he was not the only one.

He pulled away and collapsed into his favorite armchair. He carded his fingers through his dark grey hair before putting his face in his hands. 'Start from the beginning.'

Hailey did so, telling him of Dumbledore's emergency meeting, his announcement, Fudge's rage, Albus losing his position, the Confederation's panic and the Minister's ultimatum. '...and then, I came here.'

Her father said nothing throughout her whole tale; rather he remained still, his eyes staring unblinkingly at the carpet. Suddenly, he stood and moved to the fireplace, bracing himself against the mantle with the hand not holding his pipe. 'You should go back to the office; I expect you will be quite busy, especially now Albus is no longer part of the Confederation,' he said evenly.

Hailey hesitated, not certain whether or not to leave her father alone.

'Go, Hailey.'

She went over to him, kissed him on the cheek and stepped out of the study. When she looked back, his gaze was fixed on the family photograph hanging above the mantle.

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Stepping back into the Ministry, Hailey found it to be exactly as she had left it. She knew she was being ridiculous, but so much had changed in the course of the morning it was hard to believe that anything could remain as it was before. Yet the same witches and wizards milled about the Atrium, the brightly colored memos flew overhead and the symbols on the bewitched ceiling moved in their usual rhythm. She picked up her briefcase and slowly turned in a circle, taking in all the mundane sights that were so dear to her, realizing that in the great scheme of things, in the face of the great conflict they would soon face, it actually meant very little.

Hailey made her way to the queue in front of the lift, lost in her ruminations which carried her all the way to her office on the second floor. She opened the door to her office and was immediately set upon by her assistant, Clark Brown.

'Miss Ahlgrim! Have you heard? It's- It's-' Words failed him and he threw his hands up into the air. 'I never imagined this would happen!'

She dropped her briefcase onto her desk and turned to face Clark. As she held the role of both an Elder on the Wizengamot and a Mugwump on the International Confederation of Wizards she was given an aide, Clark Brown, a stout balding wizard with brown hair and a knack for remembering the most inconsequential details. Though "aide" was a term she used reluctantly as he was much more than that: Clark was her sounding board, her advisor, her confidante.

She sighed heavily. 'I know. I heard about it this morning. I could scarcely believe it either.'

'It's brilliant! I never thought we'd be so fortunate!'

Her face must be white as a sheet, she was certain of that. 'I'm sorry, Clark, my mind was elsewhere. What is brilliant?'

He took a deep breath. 'You remember the remark Orrell Taggart made a fortnight ago, at Wimple's retirement party?'

'Vaguely. He said he could not recall hearing of one of the organizations receiving funding from the Ministry, correct?

Clark nodded. 'The Society for Education and Enlightenment Regarding the Sight, or S.E.E.R.S., except that it doesn't exist.'

Her forehead scrunched together in confusion. 'Pardon?'

'The organization doesn't exist,' Clark repeated slowly, a smile spreading across his face. 'Orrell got in touch with an investigator, and she was able to find three other such vaporous organizations created by Minister Fudge that still manage, by some clerical error I'm sure, to receive funds from the Ministry.'

'And Fudge managed to orchestrate this? I would never imagine he had the guile to do such a thing!'

'Oh, he had help, of that I don't doubt, Miss Ahlgrim, but he nevertheless committed the crime and...'

Hailey knew her lips were twisted into a rather vindictive smile, but she could not keep her pleasure from being visible. 'And according to the Magus Carta, Fudge is no longer the Minister for Magic.'

'A just cause for celebration, I think.' Clark pulled out a bottle of champagne from his desk and tapped it with his wand. 'Frigus.' He popped off the cork of the now chilled bottle, conjured and filled two glasses, and handed one to her. 'Will you say a toast, Miss Ahlgrim?'

The fleeting sense of happiness she felt at the news of Fudge's imminent departure evaporated, leaving a painful hollowness in its wake. Tears prickled at the corner of her eyes and she bowed her head, her brown hair falling forward. Never had the future appeared so uncertain, or so greatly resembled a boggart lurking in a dark cupboard, waiting to take shape.