The Summer of the Phoenix

Chapter 28

The kitchen was buzzing with excitement when Sirius and Albus Dumbledore arrived there. The Aurors' little group was the centre of attention. Surrounded by the rest of the Order, who were bombarding him with questions, Kingsley Shacklebolt was making himself very unpopular by insisting that they wait until the meeting had officially started. He looked rather relieved when Dumbledore entered at last.

"Good evening," Dumbledore greeted them in his calm voice that nonetheless carried across the room.

The group of witches and wizards broke apart and settled down around the large table, but the excited murmuring did not subside.

"Dear friends," Dumbledore, at the head of the table, opened the meeting. "I have called you together again because the Order of the Phoenix needs your help, and urgently. Things are beginning to move." His eyes travelled over the assembled Order, and one by one, they fell silent.

Sirius had taken the last free chair, between Bill Weasley and Sturgis Podmore, and looked around for his friends. Kingsley Shacklebolt was standing next to Dumbledore, still clutching his briefcase. Moody had settled down at Shacklebolt's side, his bowler hat sitting on the table in front of him. Tonks was a few seats further down the row, and next to her, at the far end of the table, Sirius finally found Remus Lupin. Sirius tried to catch his eye, but Lupin wasn't looking anywhere, only gazing unfocusedly at the table in front of him, his lean face as pale and drawn as Tonks's had been the day before. Tonks herself seemed much more awake. She gave Sirius a quick smile when their eyes met.

"The reason why the Order needs your help," Dumbledore was saying, "is that Voldemort - " a shudder went around the room at the name " - appears to be preparing his first strike. Unfortunately, we don't yet know exactly what action he will take, and when. But we know where he will strike. It will be at the Ministry of Magic."

Those that hadn't heard of this before gasped in surprise. Only Mundungus Fletcher, sitting in a corner wrapped in his cloak, gave a very satisfied grunt. "Serves 'em right."

Dumbledore held up his hand. "A strike at the Ministry is a strike at the heart of the entire wizarding community," he said firmly, "no matter who holds the office of Minister at the moment, and no matter how much we might disagree with the Ministry's current position regarding Voldemort's return, Mundungus. We cannot allow this to happen."

"You Know Who is going to attack the Ministry of Magic?" Elphias Doge asked disbelievingly. "Wouldn't that be a bit rash? Premature?"

"It would," Dumbledore said. "I do not expect a concerted attack. When I said that he will strike, I was not talking about open war. No, Voldemort's plans are aimed at what Cornelius Fudge would, if he was referring to any action of mine, call 'interference'." Dumbledore's ancient face darkened. "He is trying, through his agents, to gain control over Fudge's decisions concerning a particular subject."

"Which subject?" Dedalus Diggle prompted politely.

"The reform of the organizational structure of the Ministry Departments," Dumbledore replied mysteriously. All of his audience, except Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape, frowned at these words.

"And that's the urgent danger that we have to avert?" Elphias Doge said dismissively. "A mere change in the organizational structure of the Ministry Departments?"

"If you would kindly let me finish, Elphias," Dumbledore said with a bite of impatience in his voice, "I would explain to you the danger I see in this. Now, the reform of the organizational structure of the Ministry Departments is a topic that has seen much discussion in the recent years, never with any tangible result of course, as is usually the case with discussions of this kind. The Minister has apparently reopened the debate now. But this time, things have taken two unusual turns. For one, this time the discussion includes the special status of the Department of Mysteries, which has not been questioned, as far as I know or remember, since it was established over a century ago."

"What special status exactly?" Hestia Jones asked curiously.

Dumbledore invited Kingsley Shacklebolt to speak.

"The work of the Department of Mysteries is kept an absolute secret from anyone outside it," the Auror explained. "The Department employees are not allowed to talk about it, nor do they. They never publish the results of their research, nor inform anyone what they're researching on. In consequence, the Department is not answerable to the rest of the Ministry. Magical Law Enforcement is not allowed to exercise any control over it. Even the Minister himself has no say in what kind of work is done there. His powers are restricted to appointing the Department's employees, and other formalities."

"And that's what the Minister wants changed in his reform?" Dedalus Diggle asked.

"But that's weird," Bill Weasley said, shaking his head. "You'd think it was a good idea, to know what they're up to, in case it's something dangerous, or illegal, or simply a waste of Ministry money."

"If you put it like that, you're quite right," Dumbledore agreed. "But there is more behind this matter than meets the eye. I don't believe it's a coincidence that the Ministry is being prompted into changing the status of the Department of Mysteries at just this time."

"Who is prompting them?" Dedalus Diggle asked, picking up Dumbledore's cautious wording.

"That is the second unusual turn the affair has taken," Dumbledore replied. "It doesn't seem to have been Fudge's own idea, or that of his Heads of Department. Fudge has apparently been in consultation with an independent advisor, and that is what worries me."

"An independent advisor?" Diggle wondered. "But that in itself is surely not out of order? You yourself, Albus - "

"I know that I myself have been consulted by the Minister on earlier occasions. And yes, that is, in itself, a normal and perfectly acceptable procedure. But you will agree with me that it is no longer perfectly acceptable, and definitely ceases to be a mere coincidence, when the independent advisor is Lucius Malfoy."

A murmur went around the room.

"I see that the name alone is enough to make you all suspicious," Dumbledore observed, "and rightly so. This name is the key to what, or rather who, is behind this whole affair, harmless and coincidental it might otherwise appear. It was Lucius Malfoy who prompted Fudge to take a critical look at the status of the Department of Mysteries. It is Lucius Malfoy who is urging him to bring the Department under full Ministry control, and make its secrets accessible. And it is not hard to guess who is, directly or indirectly, pulling the strings behind the scenes. Lucius Malfoy is no more than a puppet."

There was a heavy silence.

"How do you know?" Sturgis Podmore finally asked. Several heads nodded to echo the question.

Dumbledore sighed. "I have had it confirmed from both sides. And for the moment, I'm afraid this information must suffice."

More than one person shifted uneasily in their seats at these words.

"I know this is a very unsatisfying answer," Dumbledore admitted. "I must ask you not to interpret it as a sign of mistrust of any of you. But I cannot risk compromising my sources, the matter is far too delicate. I would certainly not ask you for your help and support in a rather dangerous mission if I wasn't completely sure that the effort was necessary." Almost apologetically, he looked to his left at the Aurors and Remus Lupin. Kingsley Shacklebolt nodded thoughtfully. Lupin was still staring into space. Sirius wasn't sure he was even listening.

"But what does - what does You Know Who want with the Department of Mysteries?" Hestia asked timidly. "What's in there that he's interested in?"

Dumbledore made no answer.

"But you do know, don't you?" Moody demanded, frowning.

"There are many things in the Department of Mysteries, Alastor," Dumbledore said rather sharply, "few of which I would like to see Voldemort lay his hands on."

Moody almost shrank back from this sudden change of tone. "I just thought that we might make a better job of it if we knew what we were guarding," he muttered.

"Guarding?" Sturgis Podmore asked curiously. "So that's what you've been doing?"

"What we've been doing," Moody grumbled irritably, "is sitting under an Invisibility Cloak outside the door to the Department of Mysteries guarding we have no idea what. And that's what we want you all to help us with."

"Alastor!" Minerva McGonagall seemed rather scandalized at Moody's tone.

"What?" he asked, looking at her with raised eyebrows. "I'm only telling the truth."

"But we can't guard something if we don't know what it is," Hestia Jones pointed out shyly.

"Exactly my point," Moody grunted.

Albus Dumbledore raised his hand again, and sighed. "Please," he called, "let's discuss this one thing after another. Yes, I have asked Alastor Moody here, and Remus Lupin, and the three Ministry employees of our circle, to keep watch at the Department of Mysteries these past few days, and that is what Arthur Weasley is doing as we speak. I believe that there is an imminent danger that Voldemort's agents might try to break into the Department to lay their hands on - on something in there. The Ministry is doing nothing to prevent this. On the contrary, Cornelius Fudge is determined to walk open eyed into the trap Voldemort, through Lucius Malfoy, is setting for him. It falls to us to stop them. Some of us have sacrificed a lot of time and sleep over the last days in order to do just that. But they are not enough. We need the help of everyone who can give it."

"But what is it they're after?" Bill Weasley insisted.

Dumbledore gave him a long and thoughtful look, clearly struggling with himself how much he should tell them. "Knowledge," he said finally.

"Knowledge?"

"Knowledge," Dumbledore confirmed. "Knowledge, in the hands of the wrong person, can be a powerful and terrible weapon. It can be used to manipulate the ignorant, to scare the timid, and to discourage the brave. Voldemort seeks this kind of knowledge. A knowledge that he hopes will provide him with what he needs to overcome the last obstacles on his road to victory."

"What kind of knowledge is that?" Tonks asked uncomfortably.

Dumbledore exchanged a look with Minerva McGonagall. She looked very sceptical, but made no move to keep him from continuing.

"An ancient kind," Dumbledore said. "The kind of knowledge only a true Seer would be able to reveal."

"A Seer?" whispered Hestia Jones.

"Yes," confirmed Dumbledore. "I know the art of Divination is not nowadays universally acknowledged as a serious branch of magic, or a reliable way of achieving knowledge of our future. I myself am in much doubt about the reliability of most techniques of Divination. But most witches and wizards still place high credibility on the prophecies of a true Seer. The Department of Mysteries, among many other things, serves as an archive of these prophecies. There is a room in there in which they are stored, thousands and thousands of them. It is one of these prophecies that Voldemort is after: the one that was made about him. And he will know how to turn it into a weapon against those that oppose him."

"But it doesn't say - it doesn't say that he's - invincible?" Hestia Jones asked in a very small voice.

"No," Dumbledore assured her.

"How do you know that?" Elphias Doge demanded.

"Because I know what the prophecy says," Dumbledore replied calmly. "I was the one it was made to, many years ago."

Another whisper went around the room.

"But what does it say then?" Tonks insisted.

Dumbledore sighed again. "You must understand," he said, looking around at their expectant faces, "that it is imperative that all our efforts be directed at keeping this a secret. I'm sorry I can't tell you more, but we would be playing right into Voldemort's hands if we spread the knowledge of it, even among ourselves. Remember that there are ways to make a witch or wizard tell a secret against their will."

"Look, if this prophecy," Elphias Doge said it as if the word left a bad taste in his mouth, "if it doesn't say that You Know Who is invincible, then why are you so worried about him hearing it? How could he use it as a weapon, if it doesn't predict his victory?"

"Because Voldemort is not the only person the prophecy speaks of," Dumbledore explained. "And it is for the sake of the safety of this other person, most of all, that it must remain a secret. We must not even disclose the very existence of this prophecy to anyone outside our circle. Not to anyone." He looked around at them very gravely, and his eyes rested on Sirius rather longer than on all the others.

"What are we to do then?" Bill Weasley asked with a sigh.

"I believe Voldemort hopes that his agents will manage to enter the Department and learn the content of the prophecy, and then return to report it to him. The archived prophecies are heavily protected, visibly and invisibly. Even to touch them is dangerous. But there are ways to overcome these obstacles. We must not let it come to that. Keep any of Voldemort's agents from entering the Department at all, and the prophecy will be quite safe."

"How are we supposed to do that?" asked Sturgis Podmore.

Kingsley Shacklebolt took a roll of parchment from his briefcase, and spread it out on the table. "Here is a plan of level nine of the Ministry of Magic," he explained. "Level nine contains the courtrooms - here." He pointed at them with his wand, and the word "courtroom" appeared in several places. "This corridor leads from the lifts to the entrance of the Department of Mysteries - that is the door here." He indicated a door close to the right edge of the parchment. The map didn't show anything beyond it.

"So nobody knows what's behind there?" Elphias Doge asked, leaning across the table to get a better look.

"I'm afraid not," said Kingsley, giving Dumbledore an apologetic look. "I've been hunting high and low for a plan of the Department. There's nothing to be found. Even the blueprints of the Ministry buildings they keep at Magical Maintenance stop at this door. Everything concerning the Department of Mysteries is gone. If anything ever existed."

"The structure of the Department is highly complicated," Minerva McGonagall said evenly, "and it keeps changing. It contains several rooms with many doors that are linked with each other, but these links shift. It might be possible to get in, but it won't be easy to get out again. And it certainly wouldn't be easy to make a reliable map of it."

"How do you know that?" Elphias Doge asked, looking very impressed.

"The Ministry may have hidden or lost their records of the structure of the Department of Mysteries long ago, Elphias," Minerva McGonagall replied, "but the Hogwarts library hasn't."

"In any case," Dumbledore continued, "I hope that none of us will actually have to enter the Department itself. In fact, I strongly urge you not to, unless you absolutely must. The Unspeakables devote their studies to the fundamental questions and secrets of the human existence, and that involves dangerous experiments, and not only thought experiments. So if you must enter it, take good care to stay away from the objects in there. Don't touch anything. It might be fatal, even if it looks perfectly harmless."

More than one person in the room gave a little shudder at his last words.

"What if they just Apparate straight past us?" Bill asked. "We might never know they're there."

"That is a good question," Dumbledore replied, "but fortunately not one that we have to worry about. The Department of Mysteries, unlike the rest of the Ministry of Magic, is Apparation-proof. The fabric of it is much older than the floors above, and it has always been protected in this way. I'm not sure, but it might even be the highly sophisticated type of Apparation-proofing that makes it impossible to Apparate and Disapparate within the protected space. The same spell as the one that protects Hogwarts."

Sirius suddenly realised Dumbledore had just provided the answer that all the books in his father's library had failed to give him, but he was hardly given the time to appreciate it.

"So you want us to stand guard outside the door?" Elphias Doge asked.

"Exactly," Kingsley Shacklebolt took over again. "The corridor, as you can see, is wide enough for that. Position yourselves here, under Alastor Moody's Invisibility Cloak." He indicated the spot. "Stay out of anyone's way, make no noise, don't fall asleep, and watch out for any unauthorised person trying to enter the Department."

"What do we do if anyone does?" asked Bill.

"Put them out of action. Stun them, hex them, do whatever it takes to stop them. Then raise an alarm. If it happens during office hours, immediately try to contact me, or Tonks here, or Arthur Weasley. If you can't, make sure someone else finds them. But be careful not to be seen. Get out of there as soon as you can be sure that the Ministry is taking care of the matter. Then alert the rest of the Order straight away. The Hogwarts headmaster's portrait in the atrium can be trusted with messages."

"What about the Department employees, then?" Elphias Doge asked. "We can't keep them from coming and going as they like. What if one of them is in league with You Know Who, and retrieves the prophecy for him?"

"I deem that very unlikely," said Dumbledore. "The Unspeakables take no interest in anything other than their work. They are bound by their oath of secrecy, and they abide by it very strictly."

"Unless they're called Algernon Rookwood," Moody growled.

"Algernon Rookwood is in Azkaban," Minerva McGonagall said calmly.

"For the time being."

"For the rest of his life, Alastor."

"So this is what the Order needs your help for," Dumbledore concluded. "I know this is asking much. It will take up a lot of our time and energy, while we must not neglect our other tasks. I know very well that we are not many, and that not every one of us is suited to this new task, for various reasons." He glanced at Sirius as if expecting him to object, but Sirius made a point of staring straight ahead, pretending he wasn't listening.

"Those of you who are considering to volunteer," Dumbledore continued gravely, "let me warn you that this is a highly dangerous undertaking. You will need to be very much alert for six hours in a row, and at the same time, very quiet and unobtrusive. The risk of discovery is greater during the day shifts, while the risk of an attack is greater at night. But by day and night alike, you must be prepared to take both risks. If you are discovered by the Ministry, run for it. The consequences would be far too serious if you were caught. My means of intervening on anyone's behalf would unfortunately be very limited. In fact, I'm afraid that none of us will be able to do much at all in that case. I would even have to ask you to refuse to speak in your own defence, to protect the Order and our mission. So make sure you place your life and your freedom above your duties when it comes to it. Don't stay and act the hero."

"What would happen if the Ministry discovered us?" Sturgis Podmore asked anxiously.

"Your presence would be considered a criminal offence, I'm afraid," Dumbledore said in the same grave tone, "unless you can come up with a very good excuse for being there, but unless you're a Ministry employee you shouldn't rely on that. You would be trespassing on Ministry property, and that is severely punishable under wizarding laws. If you could give us an idea of the consequences, Dedalus - "

"Oh." Dedalus Diggle gave a little start. "Yes. Trespassing on Ministry property. A minimum sentence of six months in Azkaban, I'm afraid. Considerably more if you have any previous criminal convictions."

Elphias Doge gave a very short, indignant laugh. "Certainly, Dedalus," he said in a rather affronted tone, "you're not suggesting that anyone of us has a criminal record?"

There was an awkward pause. Sirius could feel a dozen pairs of eyes on him, and he suddenly hated their embarrassed silence, their polite pity, how they all pretended to understand, how they all pretended to sympathize, when they had no idea what it really felt like.

"Eh!" Mundungus Fletcher in his corner grumbled suddenly. "That's nothin' to be ashamed of!"

All heads turned towards him.

"You will find that the vast majority of the wizarding community disagrees with you on that, Fletcher," Severus Snape said coldly.

Sirius couldn't help himself. "Listen to him, Mundungus," he called across the room, "because he knows."