Minerva walked up the stairs and turned the corner. There he was. Albus Dumbledore. The man who ‘won’ the war. At the cost of her children. Her sons and daughters.
Marlene Mckinnon.
Dorcas Meadows.
James Potter.
Lily Evans.
Peter Pettigrew.
All dead because of a man who recruited her children into a war that they weren’t even alive to see the beginning of. The same children that had spent 7 years under her care, supposedly under his care. Yet not 5 years later all are dead. Forever children. Forever young, and full of adolescent joy, leaving behind friends and family. A 1-year-old son. The loves of their lives. All because of a man who persuaded and manipulated them into joining a war they should have had nothing to do with.
The same man who left Sirius Black to rot in Azkaban for life. The same man who left Remus Lupin and Mary Macdonald by themselves with none of their friends or lovers. The same man right in front of her.
‘Minerva! How wonderful it is to see you.’
‘Is it true? Are James and Lily truly dead?’
‘Yes my dear.’
‘How?’
‘Sirius Black gave their location to Voldemort.’ he said calmly, as if they weren’t discussing the deaths and betrayals of their students.
‘But he wouldn’t do that. You know how those boys are. They are inseparable, none of them would do anything like this. Not them.’
‘We don’t know anything, Minerva. War changes people.’
‘But he wouldn’t. I know that. I may not know much but I know that Sirius would never betray the Potters- he practically was one. You are responsible for all of it. You’re the one who made them join a war they should have been far away from.’
‘Minerv-’
‘No. You know as well as I do that Sirius isn’t the traitor, so you are going to use your influence and power to get him a trial and to make sure that he returns home.’
‘You know I can’t do that.’
‘You can’t or you won’t?’
He faltered. They both knew the answer:
‘I-I won’t.’
‘I KNEW IT! YOU WON’T HELP- JUST BECAUSE OF YOUR OWN SELFISH REASONS!’
Albus stepped forward, ‘Minerva, I need you to trust me, this is for the good of the world as we know it.’
‘The good of the world as we know it? The good of the world as we know it? I put my faith in you, we all did, and this is what you do to them- throw them under the bus when they have no use to you anymore. I wonder- would you do the same to me?’
‘You have been my one of my closest-’
‘But would you do the same to me?’
‘If it came down to it, I would-‘
‘Sacrifice me for the “greater good”?’
‘It’s the outcome that matters. No matter what.’
She stepped back towards the doorway.
‘So that’s a yes then.’ Minerva breathed out. ‘I’m going to get that poor boy out of where ever you have dumped him, because Merlin knows that it’s probably not where his parents would want him to be and then I’m going to get Sirius free, because I just can’t believe he’d throw it all away, all the difficulties and challenges of his upbringing and how he left. The abuse he went through at their hands. He wouldn’t go back to them. They probably wouldn’t accept him back. You can do or say nothing to change my mind, I am going to help my children and you can’t stop me. So, you can either help me or you can stand out of my way.’
Albus scoffed and raised his wand ‘I’m sorry it came to this my friend, but I can’t let you do that.’
She looked at him confused. ‘Wha-‘
‘Obliviate.’