Albus Potter and the Potions Master's Solution

36. O.W.L.s

Albus found it very difficult to keep up with Professor Young’s trial while spending all his free time revising. Both Quidditch and dueling were over and while Albus’s teams won neither the Quidditch Cup or the Dueling Cup, he wasn’t upset. He still had two years at Hogwarts to secure both trophies. And without Quidditch and dueling practice, Albus was able to adhere to Rose’s final week of studying revision schedule, a task which would’ve been impossible otherwise.

Cedric disappeared from the castle for a full day in order to give testimony to the Wizengamot. Albus supposed Elsie had done the same, but since he rarely saw her outside of his tutoring sessions in the library, he wasn’t sure which day she went. When he returned, Cedric refused to talk about what had happened, claiming he wasn’t allowed to disclose details. He did, however, tell Albus that Young looked awful, Azkaban apparently not agreeing with him. Albus wasn’t surprised; Azkaban under dementors would give even the most sane person a nervous breakdown.

On the night before O.W.L.s were scheduled to begin, Professor Young’s trial was the furthest from anyone’s mind. At dinner, the doors to the Great Hall opened, revealing an assortment of elderly witches and wizards, all of whom looked incredibly intelligent. Albus recognized two of them as Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick, professors his parents had had in school.

“Are those the examiners?” Rose asked anxiously as she craned her neck over the whispering crowd. “They must be! I see McGonagall and Flitwick. Mum told me they became Ministry examiners after retiring from Hogwarts.”

“Who are the others?” Albus asked.

“I don’t know,” Rose said. She reached into her bag and pulled out a piece of parchment. All the fifth years had been given identical parchment at breakfast that morning. It was their examination schedule. “Transfiguration first. Theory in the morning and practical in the afternoon.”

“I can’t remember any Transfiguration!” Matt said. He had gone very pale.

“Yes, you can,” Albus assured him, although he himself couldn’t think of a single Transfiguration spell at the moment.

“We’ve still got tonight,” Amanda reminded them. “We’ll study, go to bed early, and be ready for tomorrow. We’re going to be fine.”

Albus turned to John, who hadn’t said a word, which was very unlike him. He was staring at the examiners, who had reached the staff table and were now sitting down and beginning to eat, chatting pleasantly with the professors.

“John?” Albus asked.

“Our futures depend on them,” John whispered. “How weird is that?”

“Our futures depend on us,” Rose corrected. “All they do is mark our exams. We’re the ones who have to do the magic. So let’s go study.”

The rest of the fifth years seemed to have the same idea. The arrival of the examiners seemed to unearth a frantic desire for last minute revision amongst the fifth and seventh years, who were leaving the hall in droves. Kaden elected to remain at the Gryffindor table, not having had his fill of pudding. Albus, Rose, Matt, John, and Amanda hurried to the Marauders’ Den, where they’d left their books and notes from earlier. They decided to spend the evening there, assuming the library would be too full and the common room too loud to concentrate.

However, Albus soon found it difficult to concentrate in the quiet of the Marauders’ Den. Sighing, he set down his quill and glanced around the room at his friends. Rose sat rigid at the table, across from him, her mouth moving as she read her Arithmancy notes. Apparently she felt prepared for Transfiguration. Amanda sat next to her, resting her head on her left hand while she read her Transfiguration book. John was sprawled out on his stomach, on the floor, furiously copying Rose’s Transfiguration notes. Matt was laying on the couch reciting various Transfiguration spells.

Albus returned his gaze to his Transfiguration notes. What John had said at dinner kept replaying in his mind and he was unable to stop thinking about it. Rose had been right when she said the examiners weren’t deciding their futures, but John had had a point as well. Their futures did depend on these exams. What if Albus failed one of them and was unable to move on to N.E.W.T.s and thus unable to train as an Auror? What would he do then? He didn’t have a backup plan. Even if he redid exams the following year, he’d be behind. Suddenly Matt’s plan of just ignoring the future and concentrating on the remaining two years of Hogwarts seemed tempting.

He checked his watch. It was eight-thirty. Albus knew already that he wouldn’t be able to sleep that night. The more he thought about how much he needed a good night’s sleep, the more nervous about the exam he got.

“Anyone want a break?” Albus asked.

John rolled onto his back and sat up. “Yes, please.”

“Want to wander the castle?” Albus suggested.

John nodded. Rose, Matt, and Amanda decided not to join them, not wanting to waste a minute of time they could be revising. Albus and John left and Albus immediately felt better. The walk helped, despite the fact that he and John hardly said a word as they meandered about the castle.

Albus managed to study for another two hours after returning from his walk with John, but after that he gave up, and returned to the common room with Matt and John. They went immediately to their dormitory, where Billius and Ethan were already preparing for bed.

None of the boys spoke as they climbed into their beds and turned out the lights. The air was thick with nerves and Albus knew every one of them were thinking the same thing. What if they failed?

Albus awoke the next day surprisingly rested. Judging by the amount of tossing and turning he did, he only got a few hours’ sleep. He wasn’t the only one in his dormitory to have spent most of the night awake, either. Billius’s snoring had been strangely absent, wand light appeared from John’s bed around two in the morning, and there had been a lot of creaking of bed springs.

“Did you get any sleep?” Albus asked Matt and John as they walked to the Great Hall for breakfast.

“Not much,” John said. “I got up to study around two and must’ve fallen asleep at some point, because I woke up with my wand nearly shoved up my nose.”

“I had another nightmare,” Matt mumbled. “Woke up around four and I’ve been up ever since.”

“I doubt even Rose slept much,” John said.

Albus managed to eat a few pieces of toast before everyone was herded out of the Great Hall so that it could be prepared for the morning theory examination. The fifth years waited in the Entrance Hall, talking in small groups or furiously looking over notes. Albus noticed that Scorpius Malfoy looked paler than usual and averted his gaze when he noticed Albus watching him.

“I think Amy may have scared him off for good,” Albus commented, nodding to Scorpius.

“Good,” Matt muttered.

“I think it’s best having the theory exam before the practical,” Rose said, ignoring them. “That way the incantations will be fresh in our minds.”

“Can we not talk about the exams?” John asked. “It’s bad enough we’re going to have to do-“

The doors opened and John immediately closed his mouth. Professor McGonagall stood in the doorway, commanding authority in a way that even Professor Kendrick never seemed to manage. The crowd quieted without her saying a word.

“When you enter the hall, please find the seat with your name on it,” McGonagall began. “Do not turn over your examination until told to do so.”

McGonagall stepped aside and the first few students walked tentatively into the Great Hall. Albus, Rose, John, Matt, and Amanda joined the queue and Albus soon saw that the four long House tables had vanished. In their place stood fifty or so small desks, each containing an exam, a quill, and a pot of ink. Albus and his friends soon parted, the exams having been arranged in alphabetical order.

Albus found his seat in between Patrick Porlan of Slytherin and Olivia Price of Hufflepuff. He turned around and saw that of his friends, Amanda was closest, only two rows behind him. Rose was two seats down from her. John was in the front row, Matt in the row behind him.

“The most stringent anti-cheating charms have been placed on your examination papers,” McGonagall said once everyone had sat down. “You have two hours. You may begin now.” She waved her wand at a large hourglass sitting on the staff table. It began to release sand.

Albus flipped his paper over and read the first question. Explain the wand movement and incantation necessary for the Geminio spell. He breathed a sigh of relief. He distinctly remembered reading the answer for this question in Rose’s notes a few days ago. He scrawled down the answer and moved on to the second question.

By the time Albus finished his exam and turned his paper over, he felt much better. The exam had been tough, but he had known the answers to most of the questions. Only two or three completely stumped him, and surely he could still scrape an Exceeds Expectations after missing a few points.

Once the sand in the hourglass ran out, Professor McGonagall summoned their examination papers and they were released until the practical exam, set to begin after lunch.

“That was rather easy, don’t you think?” Rose asked as they walked upstairs to the Marauders’ Den.

“Speak for yourself,” John muttered. “I’ll be lucky if I got an Acceptable.”

“It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be,” Albus said.

“It’s the practical that will be really hard,” Matt said. “Can’t muddle through that by making stuff up and hoping it’s right.”

And with that, the group hurried off to practice as many Transfiguration spells as they could before their afternoon exam began.

Only five people were able to take their practical exam at once, since there were five examiners. Everyone else had to wait in an antechamber off of the Great Hall. John was among the first five to be taken into the Great Hall and Albus was jealous. He’d rather get it over with, but since his last name happened to fall in the middle of the alphabet, he was forced to wait. He supposed he was better off than his cousins, though, given that all their last names were Weasley. Rose looked horrified when she realized she would be one of the last one to go.

After an hour Albus was called into the hall, along with Garth Octavius, Patrick Porlan, Olivia Price, and Elizabeth Quincy. Albus was summoned by Professor McGonagall, which was both relieving and terrifying at the same time.

“Nice to see you again, Mr. Potter,” McGonagall said, giving him a small smile. “To start, please turn this porcupine into a pin cushion.”

Albus took a deep breath and pointed his wand at the porcupine, which was trying to escape, muttered the incantation, and the porcupine immediately turned into a rather ugly pin cushion.

“Don’t worry, no points are awarded for fashion,” McGonagall said as she scrawled something on her clipboard. “Excellent work. Now please add some sort of pattern to this tea cup. It does not matter what pattern you choose, so long as it is consistent.”

Albus nodded and turned his wand to the plain white teacup sitting in front of him. He jabbed at it with his wand and a few minutes later it was covered in an odd assortment of different sized and colored polka dots. McGonagall examined it and wrote something else on the clipboard. As she did so, Albus wondered whether he lost points of the inconsistency of the polka dots.

“And lastly, please vanish this vase,” McGonagall said, gesturing to the large, purple vase wrapped in a pink ribbon on the table.

Albus pointed his wand at the vase, said the incantation, and it vanished, leaving the pink ribbon behind.

McGonagall smiled. “Very good, Potter. Exit through the-“

She was cut off by a loud bang. Albus jumped and turned to see a very large cloud of smoke engulfing Professor Flitwick and Garth Octavius. Flames were shooting up from the desk. McGonagall rose and hurried over to their table, where Flitwick was dousing his robes with water from his wand while Garth stood staring at the table, looking utterly confused.

Albus got up and crept closer, figuring no one would notice. When he got within a few feet he saw that Garth’s vase had caught fire. McGongall had put it out with water from her own wand.

“You can leave, Potter,” she said. “Right through the regular doors.”

Albus left, feeling much better about his own practical exam now that he’d seen Garth set fire to Flitwick. Whether he lost points on his tea cup or not, he definitely did better than Garth.

***

As the week progressed Albus and his friends fell into a daily routine. They sat their theory exams in the morning, studied for an hour, ate lunch, sat their practical exams, studied for another few hours, ate dinner, and spent the evening studying until bed. Albus, John, and Amanda often took breaks in the evenings to play Exploding Snap or go for walks around the castle, but Rose and Matt usually remained in the Marauders’ Den, their faces buried in books.

Rose had developed the annoying habit of discussing every examination question at length following the exams. Nobody, not even Amanda, wanted to join her. Albus tended to ignore her, nodding and mumbling ‘uh-huh’ every so often without actually listening. Matt, on the other hand, had essentially stopped talking. When he did speak, it was to ask Rose a question about some obscure piece of magic. Albus suspected he wasn’t sleeping much, since he looked nearly as exhausted as he did around the full moon and since Albus had heard him having nightmares almost every night.

By the time the weekend arrived Albus wanted to do nothing except sleep, but exams were only half over and he knew he’d have to spend the weekend studying. As if wanting to mock the students, the weather had decided to cooperate, with sunny skies and warm temperatures on both Saturday and Sunday.

Regular school exams were set to begin on Monday, meaning Kaden was now forced to give up his gloating over Albus and the others and revise alongside them. He did convince them to give up the Marauders’ Den on Sunday in favor of studying next to the lake. Albus was very happy to oblige; the fresh air somehow made studying more bearable.

“Jupiter has too many moons,” John announced, setting down his notes. He picked up a large rock and tossed it into the lake. “How do they expect us to memorize the names of all of them?”

“I don’t think they expect us to know all of them,” Albus said. He certainly hadn’t memorized the names of all 67 moons. “But if they ask for a list of 20 or so, you should know enough to give an answer.”

“I know them all,” Matt said, without looking up from his Astronomy book.

“That’s because you know an insane amount of Astronomy,” John said. “The rest of us aren’t capable of memorizing the names of a hundred moons.”

“Sixty-seven,” Matt corrected. “Rose probably knows them all.”

“I don’t,” Rose said, looking up from her notes. “That’s why you should go into Astronomy research.”

“I don’t want to talk about that,” Matt muttered. “I’ve told you that.”

“I know, but you’d be good at it, and surely somewhere would hire you. You’re smart, and you’re going to get an O on your Astronomy O.W.L. and your Astronomy N.E.W.T. It’s not going to matter that you-“

“Leave it alone, Rose,” Matt interrupted.

“But-“

“I said, leave it alone!” Matt said. He sighed and got up. “I’m going back inside. I’ll see you at dinner.”

“Nice, Rose,” John said once Matt was out of ear shot.

“I just wish he’d realize he’s got a better chance than he thinks,” Rose said.

“You know it’s not only about that,” Albus pointed out. “And exam time isn’t the best time to bring it up.”

“There’s never a good time,” Rose said. “And the next two years will go by faster than you think.”

***

The following day was the day of their Astronomy exam. The theory was scheduled for the morning, like usual, but the practical wouldn’t take place until ten at night, on the Astronomy tower. Albus felt fairly confident about Astronomy as he walked to breakfast with Matt and John, knowing he would pass, but probably not do as well as Matt. Astronomy didn’t worry him since he wouldn’t need to continue with it the following year.

When Albus entered the Great Hall a few minutes later he noticed everyone, even the teachers and examiners, were talking in hushed whispers. Copies of the Prophet were exchanging hands, the eyes of their readers wide. Albus hurried to the Gryffindor table, where Rose and Amanda were whispering with each other, their heads bent low over their own copy of the Prophet.

“What happened?” Albus asked as he sat down next to Rose. Matt and John sat down across from them, only John bothering to fill his plate with food.

“The Wizengamot reached a verdict late last night,” Rose said quietly, handing Albus the paper.

Albus took the paper and saw that, once again, Professor Young’s face filled the front page. This was a newer picture, taken at his trial, and he looked gaunt and haunted, just like Cedric had described. But the headline hit Albus worse than the picture.

ELLIOT YOUNG CONVICTED BY WIZENGAMOT

The Wizengamot emerged from its three-day sequestration late Sunday
night in order to deliver the verdict on Elliot Young. Young, former
Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts School of
Witchcraft and Wizardry, was charged with the murder of Michael
Sheldon, 41, of Hogsmeade, Scotland. Former Head of the Auror
Department, Harry Potter, took over Young’s teaching responsibilities
for the remainder of term.

Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, Tiberius McLaggen, delivered a
guilty verdict at eleven-fifteen Sunday night. ‘On the charge of murder
we find the defendant guilty,’ McLaggen said to Young and his team of
solicitors. Minister Laurentis was present and spoke to Daily Prophet
correspondents afterward. ‘This trial and verdict speak highly of our
justice system. I applaud the Auror Department, under Head Auror
Robert Johnson, for conducting this investigation efficiently. The
trial moved swiftly, allowing a murderer to be removed from
society quickly.’

Young will be sentenced today, and is expected to receive a sentence
of 30 years to life in Azkaban. Investigations by the Auror Department
will continue in order to see if there is any connection between
Sheldon’s murder and the murder of Quidditch Player Thomas Cousins.

Albus set the paper down, his hands shaking. How could the Wizengamot have convicted him after Cedric’s testimony? How could Laurentis be so smug in the decision?

“They’re all in Laurentis’s pocket,” Albus said.

“And Laurentis only wanted him convicted because otherwise it’ll show that her Auror Department is pathetic,” Rose added.

“Can he appeal?” Matt asked.

Rose snorted. “He could, but what would be the point? As long as Laurentis is around, he’s got no chance.”

“Unless the Aurors find who really did it,” Albus pointed out. “My dad and yours will figure it out.”

“They’re under Johnson’s control and therefore Laurentis’s!” Rose reminded him. “They’ll have a hard time getting around them.”

“Rose, since when do our dads play by the rules when justice is involved?” Albus asked. “Remember all the rules they broke while in Hogwarts?”

“Those were school rules, Al,” Rose said wistfully. “These are Ministry regulations and laws.”

“Yeah, and look what happened to my dad when he disobeyed the Australian Ministry,” Matt said as he read the article. “This is mad, though.”

“I guess we’ll be getting a new Defense teacher next year,” Amanda said. “Unless you think your dad will stay, Albus?”

“Probably not,” Albus said. “Only if Kendrick can’t find anyone else.”

“Young would’ve been sacked anyway,” Matt reminded them. “But I suppose getting sacked is a better alternative to Azkaban.”

The food vanished from the golden plates before Albus had a chance to eat anything, but he wasn’t hungry. Only John had eaten anything. Professor Kendrick asked everyone to leave the room without saying a word about Young’s conviction.

Kaden left for his first exam while the rest of the group waited for the Great Hall to be prepared for their Astronomy theory exam. The fifth years were very subdued as they waited, and then as they filed into the hall and waited for instructions. Albus noticed that Professor McGonagall looked upset as she repeated the usual instructions, leading Albus to believe that she didn’t believe Young was guilty.

Albus turned his exam over once McGonagall tapped the hourglass with her wand. He read the first question and attempted to push all thoughts of Professor Young from his mind.

37. In the Shrieking Shack

Albus’s final exam, Charms, took place on Thursday. As he walked out of the Great Hall after his practical portion, he felt a huge weight lifted from his shoulders. Exams were over. Term was over. While he was still at Hogwarts, summer had begun, and he was free until September. There was no greater feeling in the world.

John and Amanda had to sit their Divination exam on Friday and Kaden still had one more end of term exam, and therefore Albus spent Friday with Rose and Matt, wandering the corridors and the grounds discussing their summer plans and Professor Young’s sentence to Azkaban. They visited Hagrid, who was delighted to see them and offered rock cakes for lunch, all of which sat on his table, uneaten.

When they returned to the castle for dinner they found John, Amanda, and Kaden all in good spirits at the Gryffindor table. The rest of the Gryffindors, as well as the other Houses, were talking cheerfully about the end of exams and the upcoming summer. Albus felt happier than he’d felt in two weeks as he sat down at the Gryffindor table. He glanced up at the staff table and saw that all the professors and examiners were smiling and laughing. Even Professor Burke, who had been very subdued since his return, looked better. Still gaunt and shaky, with his cane leaning against the table, he smiled as he spoke with Professor Longbottom.

“…And I definitely bombed the practical portion,” John said, rattling on about his Divination exam as he shoved potatoes into his mouth. “Made up something about a really cloudy day since all I saw in the crystal ball was a bunch of smoke. But I don’t think the examiner believed me.”

“Probably because it’s sunny,” Rose said, smirking.

“I think McGonagall may have passed me just because she’s fed up with Divination,” Amanda said, laughing. “Her lips were so thin the whole time I read her tea leaves that I thought they’d disappear. Told her she’d live as long as Dumbledore.”

“I overheard Parker Wayland telling Olivia Price that he predicted his examiner’s untimely death in his tea leaves,” Matt said. “Bet he fails.”

Albus laughed. “Well, at least you can drop it now.”

“I couldn’t be happier,” John said, grinning. “Anyone else notice that food tastes so much better now that exams are over?”

Kaden nodded his head fervently. “After seeing the lot of you, I’m dreading my O.W.L.s.”

“As you should,” John said. “Anyway, we should have a proper celebration of the end of exams tonight. What do you think the chances are of sneaking into Hogsmeade and not getting caught?”

“Pretty good,” Albus said. “I’ll keep an eye on the Map as we go and we’ll have the Cloak.”

It was a sign of the extreme elation of the end of exams that Rose didn’t say a word about the boys sneaking into Hogsmeade. She simply smiled, poured herself another glass of pumpkin juice, and asked them to get her a few bars of Honeyduke’s chocolate.

“When do they send out results?” Amanda asked.

“Not until July,” Albus answered, remembering James receiving his results nearly a year ago. “So we’ll have a few weeks of blissful ignorance.”

“And then we get to pick our N.E.W.T. classes?” Amanda said.

Rose nodded. “Longbottom will fix our schedules on the first day of sixth year. Every teacher lets you into their N.E.W.T. classes with Exceeds Expectations or higher, and a few take Acceptable.”

The only exam Albus thought he may have failed was History of Magic. He may have gotten an Acceptable in Astronomy and Ancient Runes, but he was confident he got at least an Exceeds Expectations in the rest. He may have even scraped an Outstanding in Defense and Care of Magical Creatures.

The boys decided to wait until later on in the evening to sneak into Hogsmeade, when the corridors would be emptier. In the time being, they played a few rowdy games of Exploding Snap in the Marauders’ Den with Rose and Amanda. Rose was scheduled for the early prefect patrol and Albus decided twenty minutes after she left would be a good time to begin their journey to Hogsmeade.

“We can’t all go,” Albus said as he pulled the Map and Cloak out of his bag. “Three of us would be a tight squeeze under the Cloak and four would be impossible. I think it ought to just be two of us to be on the safe side.”

“So, you and one of us,” John said. “I’ll go, unless one of you really want to.”

Matt and Kaden shook their heads, the latter looking slightly disappointed.

“There will be other times,” Albus said. “We’ve got two years left. And Kaden, you’ve got three.”

Albus spread the Map out on the table and all four boys peered at it. Albus first checked the Hogwarts map, checking for professors, Filch, Peeves, and prefects. The path to the one-eyed witch was clear, the only slight problem being Peeves, who was lurking just one corridor away. But Peeves didn’t know Albus possessed the Cloak and it was unlikely he would notice them.

“Excellent,” John said, grinning. “I can almost taste the butterbeer. You know, if we go to the Hog’s Head, I bet I could get us some firewhisky.”

“No,” Albus said. “That’d be stupid.”

Albus switched the Map to the Hogsmeade part, his eyes narrowing on Honeyduke’s and its surrounding area. A few dots milled around both in and out of the shop, but Albus didn’t recognize any of them. He checked Neville’s house next, and was happy to see his dot inside, along with Hannah’s and little Lucy’s.

Matt let out a loud gasp and Albus turned to look at him. He had gone white as Nearly-Headless Nick, his eyes wide as he stared at the map.

“What is it?” Albus asked, following Matt’s gaze. He saw what was wrong before Matt managed to speak it. There was a dot, one lone dot, inside the Shrieking Shack. It was labeled Stuart Boone, a name Albus had never heard of in his life.

“Is it…is it a mistake?” Matt asked, his voice barely a whisper.

“It can’t be,” Albus said, still staring at the dot, which wasn’t moving. “The map doesn’t lie. Do you think it’s the same bloke who was living there, months ago?”

“But he hasn’t been there since January, has he?” John asked, looking to Matt for confirmation. “Have you seen any signs of anyone being there?”

“N-no,” Matt said, his voice shaking. “No one’s been there when I’ve been there. But…the rest of the month…who knows?”

“What do we do?” Amanda asked. She was looking nervously from Matt to Albus and back again. Albus couldn’t blame her. Matt looked on the verge of panicking.

“It’s not the full moon, and you won’t transform there until September,” John pointed out. “So there’s no chance of-“

“That’s not the point,” Matt interrupted, finally looking away from the Map. “The Shrieking Shack is mine. It has been ever since I came to Hogwarts and it will be until I leave. I have to have it. I have to have somewhere I can go…during the full moon…where I know no one else will be. Otherwise…” His voice trailed off, but Albus knew what he was thinking. Without knowing that the Shrieking Shack was his, truly his, he wasn’t comfortable with it being his transformation place.

“Then we’ll go tell Professor Kendrick,” John said. “He’ll sort it out.”

“Like he did last time?” Matt said. “No. Albus, give me the Cloak.”

Matt, still pale and shaky, looked determined, his hand held out in front of him, waiting for Albus to grant him the one object that could help him do what he was so obviously about to do.

“You can’t mean-“ John began.

“I have to go see who it is,” Matt said, his hand still held out for the Cloak. “I have to, no I need to know. It’s the only way-“

“But he could be dangerous!” John reasoned.

“You sound like Rose,” Matt said.

“And you sound like an idiot!” John said. “Someone was possibly murdered in the Shrieking Shack a few months ago! And right after that someone was found living there. Don’t you think there’s a chance they’re the same person? And you want to go confront this bloke, who is probably the same bloke? That’s stupid.”

“You don’t understand,” Matt said quietly. He turned to Albus. “Come on, Al, please give me the Cloak. I’m going whether you give it to me or not, but I’d much rather go with it.”

“Fine,” Albus said. “But I’m going with you.”

“Albus!” John exclaimed. “You can’t be serious!”

Albus sighed. John had good points, but so did Matt, and Albus couldn’t deny the fact that he was curious, incredibly curious, to find out if this was possibly the same man who murdered Michael Sheldon. It would undoubtedly be dangerous, but when it came down to it, Albus could not let Matt go on his own, and he knew Matt would go.

“I can’t let him go on his own,” Albus said. He turned to Matt. “You’re a terrible dueler. I’m going with you.”

Matt looked slightly relieved, but clearly didn’t want to admit it. “Fine. Can we just get going? Before he leaves?”

“Wouldn’t that be a good thing?” John asked.

“What about you?” Matt asked, looking at John, Kaden, and Amanda. “Coming?”

“Yes,” John said immediately. “It may be a stupid plan, but I can’t let the two of you go on your own.”

“I’m staying here,” Amanda said. “And if you lot aren’t back before curfew, I’m telling Professor Kendrick.”

“I’m in,” Kaden said, with very little enthusiasm.

“Good,” Matt said. “Now let’s go.”

Albus didn’t bother throwing the Cloak over them as they hurried through the castle. It wasn’t curfew, so it wasn’t against the rules for the boys to be wandering the corridors. He only hoped they didn’t run into Rose, who would surely wonder why they weren’t using the passageway in the one-eyed witch and why they looked so frightened.

“So what’s the plan once we get there?” John asked as they neared the oak front doors.

“I don’t know,” Matt muttered.

John didn’t question him further. He, Albus, and Kaden followed Matt out onto the grounds and it struck Albus that this was the first time Matt had been the leader of their pack. Usually it was Albus who spearheaded these types of adventures. But Albus had to admit, if it weren’t for Matt’s desire to immediately rush to the Shrieking Shack, he would’ve owled his dad before doing anything.

They reached the edge of the Whomping Willow’s reach and Matt pulled his wand out of his robes. He waved it to release the wards and froze the tree with a nearby branch. Without looking to see if Albus, John, and Kaden were following, he slid into the tunnel. Albus went next, followed by John and Kaden.

Once in the tunnel Albus lit his wand. It was just as dirty and creepy as it had been the last time he’d been in it. But with four wands, the place was decently lit.

Matt, who suddenly seemed more nervous than before, turned to the other boys, his wand shaking in his hand. He was the only one of the four who didn’t need to stoop over, the top of his hair just barely skimming the ceiling. Even Kaden, who stood in the tunnel with ease as a first year, was now hunched over.

“We can still go back,” Albus pointed out.

“No,” Matt said, his voice surprisingly forceful. “Just check the Map.”

Albus pulled the Map out of his robes and pointed his wand at the Hogsmeade section. Stuart Boone was still there. “He’s there.”

“Then let’s go,” Matt said, turning to begin the long journey.

No one spoke on the way to the Shack. Instead they walked single file, Matt in the front, followed by Albus, John, and Kaden, the latter three bent low under the ceiling. The walk seemed to be fast and slow at the same time, the group arriving at the door to the Shack far sooner than Albus would’ve liked. Matt reached out for the knob.

“Wait,” Albus said, pulling the Cloak out of his bag. “Distinguish your wands.”

The tunnel went dark as all four boys distinguished their wands. Albus threw the Cloak over all four of them, and they squeezed together so that only their feet showed. He assumed the Shack would be as dark as the tunnel, since it was supposed to be abandoned and Stuart Boone would not want to draw attention to himself.

Matt pushed the door open and they shuffled inside. The downstairs looked abandoned and Albus wished the Map would show him exactly where in the Shack Stuart Boone was. They walked further into the room, Albus, John, and Kaden following Matt. He led them throughout the room, the tiny bathroom, and the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Matt stopped and walked out from under the Cloak. He carefully opened the cupboard door and looked inside. Albus looked as well, but his night vision was not good enough to notice anything.

“Three cans of beans,” Matt whispered, returning to the safety of the Cloak. “And a loaf of bread.”

“Do you think it was here the last full moon?” John asked.

“I don’t know,” Matt said. “I don’t want to think about-“

Matt, who had been leading them out of the kitchen, froze, causing Albus to walk into him.

“What?” Kaden asked.

“Shh!” Matt said. “I heard something upstairs.”

Albus strained his ears and heard the faintest creaking, as if someone was pacing around the bedroom.

“This is it,” Matt whispered. “Come on.”

They walked slowly through the living room and up the creaking stairs. Albus was sure Stuart Boone would notice them walking up the stairs and hoped he would be in the dark, and therefore unable to see their feet sticking out of the bottom of the Cloak.

A faint light glowed from the crack under the door of the only bedroom. The boys stopped on the landing and waited for Matt to decide what to do. Pushing the door open would reveal their presence, despite the fact that they were invisible. But they hadn’t come just to spy on Stuart Boone; they’d come to confront him.

Matt walked forward, pulling the Cloak up and over his head as he went. Albus let out a gasp and made to grab the back of his robes, but Matt took another step forward, drew his wand, and turned around to look at the other three.

“Stay behind me,” he whispered. “Draw your wands. And stay under that Cloak.”

Albus didn’t have the faintest idea what Matt’s plan was, but he seemed certain, so he led John and Kaden forward, following Matt to the partially closed door.

Matt pushed the door open and it creaked loudly, as Matt probably knew it would. He held his wand shakily in front of him and crept into the room. Albus, John, and Kaden followed, their footsteps creaking on floorboards Matt must’ve known to skip.

A man stood at the far end of the room, almost completely bald, but with a very bushy beard that Albus could see despite the fact that he was facing away from them. His robes were plain and seemed to swim on his lanky frame. He turned around slowly and Albus had to stifle his gasp when he recognized who it was.

The man was Professor Young.

Albus looked at the Map for verification. There were five dots inside the Shrieking Shack labeled Albus Potter, Matthew Eckerton, John Brickston, Kaden Dursley, and Stuart Boone. None were labeled Elliot Young.

“Professor Young?” Matt said, lowering his wand slightly.

“Expelliarmus!” Professor Young shouted.

Matt’s wand flew through the air, but Young made no move to catch it. It clattered on the floor and Young lowered his own wand as he strode closer to Matt.

Albus suddenly understood Matt’s plan. Without saying a word to John and Kaden, both of whom still stared slack-jawed at Young, he pointed his wand at the man and whispered, “Expelliarmus.”

Professor Young, caught off-guard, jumped in surprise as his wand soared through the air toward Matt, who was unarmed. Matt caught it, pointed it at the bed and shouted, “Accio wand!” Matt’s own wand zoomed back into his hand and he stowed Young’s wand in his robes.

Albus yanked the Cloak off himself, John, and Kaden and stuffed it into his robes, his wand still pointed at Young, who was now the only unarmed wizard in the room. He seemed to have realized this was now backing away.

“Professor Young?” Kaden asked. “But…but…you’re supposed to be in Azkaban!”

“That isn’t Professor Young,” Albus said, staring at the man who looked to be Young’s twin. “The Map does not lie. This man is Stuart Boone.”

The man screwed up his face in anguish and grabbed his beard with both hands. He released it and stared at the boys. “I am not Stuart Boone! I am Elliot Young, professor at Hogwarts!”

“You aren’t,” Albus said, no longer nervous now that Stuart Boone could no longer defend himself. “Elliot Young is no longer a professor at Hogwarts. He is sitting in Azkaban for a murder he didn’t commit. But I think you know that.”

“I’m not!” Boone shouted again. “I am Elliot Young, professor at Hogwarts! Now get out of the way.”

“No,” Albus said as Boone hurried forward.

John reached back and slammed the door shut, never moving his wand from its position pointed at Boone’s chest.

“Get out of the way!” Boone said. “My name is Elliot Young…my name is Elliot Young…” But as he repeated his mantra, his face began to contort and grey hair began to sprout from his bald head. He shrunk considerably until he was two inches shorter than Albus, his robes now humorously too large. The grey hair finished growing in until it was close to chin-length, and the beard shot back up into his face until it was a mere shadow. His true face was lined and his eyes were tired, with purple bags beneath them. He had the unkempt look of someone on the run, who hadn’t had a decent meal in months.

Albus exchanged glances with Matt, sure that he had reached the same conclusion. Stuart Boone, for whatever reasons, had used Polyjuice Potion to become Professor Young. That was why Elsie saw him in Hogsmeade, fleeing from the scene of the crime, while Cedric sat detention for the real Professor Young. That was why the Aurors found Professor Young’s DNA at the scene.

“Move!” Boone said. “I need to get-“

“More Polyjuice?” Albus supplied. “What’s the point? We know you aren’t Professor Young. You’re Stuart Boone.”

Boone flinched at the sound of his name, something that confused Albus. Who was this man? And why had he kept insisting he was Professor Young? What was so bad about his own identity that he would rather assume the identity of a convicted murderer, even if that man hadn’t actually murdered?

“Who are you?” Matt asked, his face still ghostly white. “Why are you here?”

“I could ask you the same question,” Boone said, clearly giving up on his quest of retrieving more Polyjuice. “Not to mention how you knew my real name when I appeared to be your Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.”

“You aren’t in a position to ask questions,” Albus said forcefully. “We’ve got your wand.”

Boone sighed and shook his head. He walked away from the boys and collapsed into an armchair that looked ready to fall apart. He put his head in his hands, rubbed his face, and then looked up, his face etched with pain.

Albus, more confused than ever, followed Matt as he walked toward Boone. John and Kaden remained on either side of the door, as if they were a pair of mismatched bodyguards.

“Do any of you know what it is like?” Boone began. “What it is like to be hated by society for something that you cannot control? To be forced to scrounge for a living, unable to work, because people believe the worst of you as soon as they find out what you are? To be denied the thing that would help you be normal, just because you do not have the means to procure it?”

Albus glanced at Matt, who stood frozen, staring at Boone. Matt was shaking even worse and Albus knew why. Stuart Boone had just described the life of a lycanthrope who had no one on their side. He had said, in three sentences, what Matt feared the most when he left Hogwarts in two short years.

“I thought not,” Boone said, a wry smile on his face, somehow not noticing how much his words had hit Matt. “I will explain everything…the Polyjuice…why I am here…but first, first you must try to understand, and I know it is difficult, what my life is like. My name is Stuart Boone, and I am a werewolf.”

38. Stuart Boone

Albus stared from Matt to Boone and back again. Without a word, Matt walked over to the bed, sat down, and put his head between his legs, his wand abandoned next to him. If Boone was surprised by this, he didn’t show it. Instead, he merely waited until Matt lifted his head back up and was paying attention once more. Albus stepped closer to Matt, lifting his wand higher, despite the ache in his arm. Matt did not get up from his spot on the bed.

“I was bitten after my seventh year at Hogwarts,” Boone began. “I graduated the top of my class, poised to enter the Ministry, and excited as well. My parents had died during my second year, so I had nobody. But that didn’t matter, because I was on the fast track for success, until I made the mistake of waltzing through a forest during a full moon. I am afraid I had that horrible belief of youth that nothing bad could happen to me. I was mistaken. I’ll spare the details, but after that, my Ministry career was over. My life spiraled out of control and I was soon living from full moon to full moon, stealing food when I could, sleeping in abandoned shacks and houses.”

“How old are you?” Matt asked, his voice cracking.

“Twenty-six,” Boone said.

Matt’s eyes widened. “But…but…”

“The grey hair? The wrinkles?” Boone said. “Results of living on the streets, and of awful transformations.”

“What about Wolfsbane?” Albus said.

“Can’t afford it,” Boone said, shrugging. “Simple as that.”

“But none of that explains why you’re pretending to be Professor Young,” Albus said.

“I’m getting there,” Boone said. “I told no one of my status as a lycanthrope, but everyone speculated on why Stuart Boone, the orphan who was going places, suddenly deserted his job at the Ministry and began living on the streets. Every menial job I applied for I was denied, due to my lycanthropy.”

Matt stared at Boone with such fear it was like he saw himself in twelve years, and Albus wished he could reassure him that he would never become Boone, without revealing that he was a werewolf as well.

“I then came up with an idea,” Boone continued. “I could not apply for jobs with my own identity, but I could pretend to be others. I tried it without Polyjuice twice, but I was recognized both times. I then attempted while Polyjuiced as a completely different person, and I secured a job. It didn’t last long, as I constantly missed work due to transformations, but it was a job, and I knew I could do it again.

“That was eight years ago, and since then I have assumed thirteen identities, Professor Young being the most recent. However, due to recent circumstances, I will have to find someone new. Pity, really.”

“But don’t people recognize the people you become?” John asked, still standing by the door.

Boone laughed. “I don’t use their names. I make up names. I never pick anyone particularly famous. Could you imagine if I became Harry Potter and waltzed into a shop to ask for a job? Although, you look an awful lot like Harry Potter.” Boone nodded to Albus.

“I’m his son,” Albus said.

Boone’s eyes widened and he suddenly looked nervous, as if he never should’ve started speaking in the first place. He stood up and began pacing the room, his eyes moving from Albus to the door and back again, as if he expected a team of Aurors to swoop in at any moment.

“Wait,” Kaden said loudly. “If you can brew Polyjuice, couldn’t you brew Wolfsbane? Wolfsbane isn’t that much harder.”

“Potions was my one difficulty in school. I do not brew my own Polyjuice. I purchase it.”

“Then why can’t you just buy Wolfsbane?” Kaden asked loudly.

Boone let out a short laugh. “Wolfsbane is easily ten times as expensive as Polyjuice and while it would make transformations easier, it wouldn’t help me in the job market. Polyjuice enables me to work, which enables me to buy more Polyjuice.”

“Illegally,” Albus muttered, an idea suddenly dawning on him. “Where do you buy it from?”

“An apothecary. I will not reveal which one.”

“It was you,” Albus said, his heart beating fast. “You’re the one we saw in Knockturn Alley last summer, not Professor Young. You were there buying Polyjuice.”

“Yes, that was me,” Boone said, furrowing his brow. “Clearly I was convincing.”

“But why did you pick this Shack?” Matt asked, his voice shaky. “Of all places, why this one?”

“I would’ve thought that obvious,” Boone said, gesturing to the room. “This place has been abandoned for decades. I would’ve moved in sooner if I’d been able to break through the enchantments. Awfully protected, for an abandoned house. And I am very curious as to why the four of you are so interested in it.”

“Never mind that,” Matt said. “How did you get in?”

“Tunneled in,” Boone said. “Took me weeks to do it, and I wound up in the closet downstairs. Had to work by night, you see. And then, after the Aurors completed their investigation, my tunnel was filled in. I had it covered with loose boards, but they still found it. Had to make a new one.”

“What about full moons?” Albus asked, knowing that Boone was never in the Shack during full moons. Matt would’ve encountered him.

“I Apparate to a forest a long way from here. I do not wish to endanger students or the residents of Hogsmeade.”

Albus looked at Matt. That explained why Matt hadn’t realized anyone was living in the Shack for so long.

“How long have you been here?” Albus asked.

“Almost a year. I moved in right before I began assuming Professor Young’s identity. Obtaining hairs was always easy. Young spends almost every evening in the Hog’s Head and after a few drinks, it’s easy enough to take hair while concealed in a robe and cloak. Nothing’s ever seen as suspicious in the Hog’s Head.”

“But why,” John began, finally walking away from the door, his wand still held high. “Why did you murder Michael Sheldon?”

Albus’s stomach dropped. He had been purposely avoiding that question, for fear it would send Stuart Boone into a murderous rage and yank a knife out of his robes in order to slice all of their throats, as he had done with Michael Sheldon and probably Thomas Cousins. Albus hadn’t known how he would bring it up, but the way John had done it was tactless.

“What?” Boone exclaimed, his face paling. “I never! Why would you think- I never murdered anyone! Never! I go through great lengths to avoid…I never, ever put anyone at risk!” He turned from the boys and strode to the window, resting his hands on the sill.

Albus was inclined to believe him. He had been honest with them so far, and while Albus certainly didn’t trust him on whole, his instincts were telling him Boone never murdered Michael Sheldon. Albus’s instincts, much like his father’s, were often right. His mannerisms were all off for a murderer faced with what he did.

“But you ran away from the scene!” John pointed out. “Elsie Willinson saw you!”

“She did,” Boone confirmed as he turned back around to face them. “She saw me running from the Shack. I needed to leave, before someone discovered me. Unfortunately the girl saw me. I would’ve Disapparated from the Shack, but for some reason it’s got anti-Apparition spells on it.” Boone took a deep breath.

“Likely story,” John said. “Why should we believe you?”

Boone sighed and shook his head. He held up his hands, which were covered by the too-long robes. Without a word, he lifted his arms and shook the robe sleeves down, revealing two mangled-looking hands, the fingers curled into the palms. He uncurled his fingers slowly, and as he did so, he winced with pain, unable to completely uncurl them.

“I can barely hold a wand,” Boone said quietly, “let alone a knife. And the dexterity required to force a man to the ground and slice his throat…it would be simply impossible.”

“Then why run?” John asked.

“Manus contracta.… What happened?” Matt asked simultaneously.

“Very astute. Years of transformations without proper medical care,” Boone said, ignoring John. “The transformations…they affect everyone differently. My bones simply do not fit back together the way they are supposed to when I transform. The condition is called manus contracta.”

Matt turned in horror to Albus and then back to Boone, but he didn’t say a word. Suddenly Albus felt that despite Matt’s issues with Wolfsbane, he was better off than Boone.

“I am deeply sorry that my fleeing the Shack is what cast suspicions on the real Professor Young. I assumed he would have an alibi-“

“He did,” Albus said, glaring at Boone. He might be innocent, but it was his fault Young was in Azkaban. “The Wizengamot chose not to believe it, due to the DNA they found laying around.”

Boone paled even further. “The hairs…I dropped them a few months ago after tripping over a tree root. What are the chances…found the body in the same spot…”

“Wait,” Matt said. “You were in the Shack when the murder took place? And then you ran to Disapparate?”

Boone nodded. “A coward’s choice. But you must understand, if I, a werewolf, were found at the scene of a murder, I would’ve been the number one suspect without any investigation. The prejudice…no one would’ve seen past what I am.”

“But your hands,” John said. “It wouldn’t be possible for you-“

Boone let out a harsh laugh. “You don’t think they’d find a way around that? Look what they’ve done to Professor Young. He’s sitting in Azkaban for a murder he didn’t commit, despite having an alibi and a respectable job. What do you think they would’ve done if they caught an unemployed werewolf who steals people’s identities in order to secure menial jobs? I had to flee. I had no choice.”

Matt looked very uncomfortable. He averted his gaze and stared at the floor. “But that means Sheldon wasn’t murdered here, in the Shack.”

“No, no, no,” Boone said quickly. “I would’ve noticed if he was murdered here. I do not know where the murder took place.”

“So you know what you’ve got to do now, don’t you? You may have thought you didn’t have a choice then, but you’ve got one now,” Albus asked, crossing his arms over his chest, glaring at Boone.

Boone’s face filled with fear. He stared back at Albus, as if pleading with him not to continue.

“You have to tell the Aurors what you did,” Albus said, ignoring the pained look on Boone’s face. “The man whose identity you stole is sitting in Azkaban, under the care of dementors, because of you, for a murder neither of you committed. Doesn’t that bother you?”

“You cannot understand,” Boone pleaded, shaking his robes over his hands once more. “You, the son of Harry Potter, without any knowledge of the horrors I’ve been through. I wouldn’t expect you to. It is not a simple matter of waltzing into the Ministry and confessing what I’ve done. They will release Young, but at what cost to me? They’ll frame me instead, the Minister will pressure the Aurors and the Wizengamot, just as she did with Professor Young. They need a scapegoat, someone to blame in order to cover up their own ineptitude. That person will become me.”

“How can you stand it?” Albus exclaimed. “Knowing you put an innocent man in jail?”

“I am innocent as well,” Boone said. “Even if I confess to what I’ve done, and I’ve done a lot that toes the line of legality-“

“Toes?” John interrupted. “I think you’ve done more than just toe the line.”

“Fine,” Boone muttered. “But I never committed murder, and I never, ever will. I cannot rot in Azkaban for something I never did. Until one of you have been through what I’ve been through, you cannot understand the position I am in, how the Ministry sees me, and what that means-“

“I understand!” Matt shouted, jumping off the bed.

Albus stared at him, his mouth open in shock. Matt was standing in front of Boone, his chest heaving, his eyes filled with tears of frustration. Albus turned to John and Kaden, who looked as surprised as Albus felt. Was Matt about to reveal to Boone that he, too, was a werewolf?

“I understand!” Matt repeated. “And I would never, ever do what you’ve done. I would never steal other people’s identities and buy illegal Polyjuice in order to get a job I could only keep for a month or two. I would never let someone sit in Azkaban due to my own stupidity and cowardice. Never, ever!”

Boone let out another harsh laugh. “You have friends, family most likely, who love you and support you. That much is obvious, given the three friends you brought with you tonight. You go to Hogwarts, for God’s sake! We may have the same disease, but you and I are nowhere near the same. You have access to Wolfsbane. Do not stand there and compare us.”

Albus now understood. Boone somehow already knew that Matt was a werewolf, and Matt knew that he had figured it out as well.

“You know nothing!” Matt shouted. “Nothing! You don’t know that before I came here my dad lost his job because of what I am. You don’t know that my whole family uprooted their lives to make mine better. Wolfsbane doesn’t work for me. I’ve gone through the painful transformation since I was five. That’s over ten years. Longer than you have.”

Boone looked like he’d been hit in the stomach with a Bludger. He stared at Matt, a strange combination of mingled awe and guilt on his face.

“Wait,” Kaden said loudly. “How the bloody hell did this bloke know about Matt?”

“I had a hunch, from the moment I saw him,” Boone said wryly. “His eyes. The eyes are a dead giveaway for those with blue eyes. Not many people know about or think about the eyes, however. I’m lucky mine are brown. And I’ve met enough werewolves over the years to recognize the sickly look.” He turned from Kaden to Matt. “Your reactions to everything I’ve said confirmed it.”

Matt looked uncomfortable. “What happened to you isn’t an excuse for not doing the right thing now.”

“You’re a Gryffindor, aren’t you?” Boone asked.

“Yes. What does that have to do with anything?” Matt said.

“You seriously think you’d turn yourself in if you were in my shoes?” Boone said. “Think about it. Think long and hard.”

The room was silent for several minutes. Matt stared at Boone, never averting his gaze. Albus was surprised; he’d never seen Matt so confrontational, so courageous, so much like a stereotypical Gryffindor.

“Yes, I do,” Matt answered. “What you’re doing…it isn’t right.”

“Gryffindor,” Boone said simply. “Brave to the point of stupidity, brave even when it means risking your own life and livelihood.”

“And I suppose you were a Slytherin?” Matt asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Such contempt,” Boone said. “But yes, I was. We’re not all evil. What I’m doing, it isn’t evil. It’s self-preservation. You have to understand that. You, of all the people in this room, surely understand that.”

“I do,” Matt said quietly. “But that doesn’t make it right, and I always try to do the right thing.”

“Then we’ll agree to disagree,” Boone said simply. “I just have one question. Why did you come here tonight?”

Albus was immensely relieved Boone didn’t ask how they knew he was there. He wouldn’t mention the Map, but he couldn’t come up with a plausible alternative answer either.

“The Shack is mine,” Matt said, stepping closer to Boone. “You can’t live here. It doesn’t belong to you-“

“It doesn’t belong to anyone,” Boone interrupted.

“It belongs to Hogwarts, and while I’m there, it’s mine,” Matt said.

Boone furrowed his brow. “But why would you need a-“ He cut himself off, realization dawning on his face. “Oh. This Shack…is where you transform.”

Matt nodded. “You can’t live here.”

To Albus’s surprise, Boone smiled. “If I leave, will you agree not to mention what has happened here tonight?”

Albus held his breath as he watched Matt and Boone. He knew that this was Matt’s battle, that whatever Matt decided would be the only decision. Albus, John, and Kaden would respect it, whether they agreed with it or not, because suddenly, more than just Young’s incarceration was at stake. Matt’s emotional state for his next two years of Hogwarts was also at stake.

“No,” Matt said quietly.

Boone’s mouth fell open and he shut it quickly, shaking his head. “Excuse me?”

“I said no,” Matt said. “I won’t keep your secret.”

“Then we’re done here,” Boone said. He stepped closer to Matt, so that they were only a foot apart. “If I could have my wand.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” Matt said, the tip of his wand only inches away from Boone’s chest. “Or didn’t you hear the noise downstairs?”

“Amanda,” Albus whispered, remembering what he told Amanda before they left. He hadn’t realized enough time had passed for them to miss curfew.

The smile vanished from Boone’s face and was replaced by a look of utter panic. He turned to look at the window, and for a few seconds Albus thought he was contemplating jumping from it in order to escape. But he must’ve realized doing so would be stupid without a wand, as he’d definitely break a leg, and he froze in place instead.

The door flew open, causing Kaden, who was still standing next to it, to jump and run across the room to the bed. Albus’s dad and Uncle Ron stood in the doorway, taking in the scene with their wands raised. Head Auror Johnson, Albus was happy to see, was not there.

“Albus!” Harry shouted as he rushed into the room.

“Dad,” Albus said as his father joined him at his side.

“Who’s this?” Ron asked, gesturing to Boone with his wand.

Boone had sunken to the floor and was now quivering in his too-large robes. Both Aurors seemed utterly perplexed by the scene. Albus, Matt, John, and Kaden all still with wands, pointed at the cowering figure of a strange, unarmed man.

“He’s the reason Professor Young was framed for murder,” Albus said, and launched into an explanation of how he and the other boys had come across Boone, and everything Boone had told them since.

Boone remained on the floor, shaking more and more as Albus continued. Albus attempted to ignore him, but he began to sob partway through and Albus found he felt sorry for him, something Albus attempted to push out of his mind but somehow couldn’t. Still, he made it through the whole story, answering every question his father posed.

Matt had resumed his seat on the bed, seemingly unable to take his eyes off the sobbing Boone. His own shaking had subsided somewhat, but he was still pale and had lowered his wand. Kaden sat next to him, a look of disgust on his face. John remained close to the door, still vigilant as he pointed his wand at Boone.

“Get up,” Ron said, staring down at Boone once Albus finished. Boone struggled to his feet and Ron took hold of his arm.

Harry, meanwhile, searched the wardrobe and retrieved a cauldron of Polyjuice and a vial of short, black hairs. Albus felt sure they would match Professor Young.

Ron conjured a pair of handcuffs and shoved Boone against the wall. “You’re under arrest,” he said as he put the cuffs on, “for identity theft.” Ron read Boone his rights and Boone continued sobbing.

“B-but you d-don’t understand!” Boone shouted. “It was my only choice! I h-had no ch-choice!”

“Take him in,” Harry said. “I’ll take the boys back to the castle.”

Ron nodded and directed Boone out of the room, following behind him with one arm on Boone’s cuffed hands and the other gripping his wand tightly.

The room was silent after Ron and Boone left. The boys remained rooted in their spots as Harry stood vigil in the doorway, waiting for the sound of Ron and Boone leaving the Shack. There was a loud crack, and Albus knew his uncle must’ve lifted the anti-Apparition wards temporarily.

“Let’s go,” Harry said quietly.

This time Harry led the group through the tunnel back to the Hogwarts grounds, followed by John, Kaden, Matt, and finally, Albus, who brought up the rear. None of them spoke as they walked, the only noises being the crunching of branches beneath them and Matt’s hitched breathing. As he walked, Albus was overcome by the awe of what they’d just done. They’d discovered evidence that would free Professor Young from his wrongful imprisonment. If Albus had been able to do that as a fifth year, what would he then be able to do as an Unspeakable? He found it strange to think about.

39. Free

After returning to the castle, Harry led the boys to the hospital wing, despite the fact that none of them were actually injured. Albus wasn’t sure if this was out of habit (this was their fifth year of getting into some sort of trouble at the end of term) or because the hospital wing was simply a good place to talk as it was one of the few places in the castle where they wouldn’t be overheard. The hospital wing was dark and quiet when they entered, causing Albus to wonder just how late it was. Harry lit lamps with his wand after shutting the doors behind them, and Albus glanced at his watch. It was just past eleven, hardly late at all; Albus had a feeling the Gryffindors were still awake, celebrating the end of exams.

Matt immediately sat down on the closest bed, breathing heavily. He seemed unable to stop shaking. Albus sat down next to him. “Are you all right?” he asked.

Matt nodded. “I’m…trying…not to…panic. But that…was insane.”

“You were brilliant,” Albus said, still in awe. “The way you shouted at Boone like that.”

“I don’t know what…came over me,” Matt said, his voice cracking. “Boone…he could’ve killed all of us.”

“He didn’t have a wand. Your plan for disarming him was fantastic,” Albus said, grinning. “Lulling him into a false sense of security, bloody brilliant.”

The door to Madam Pomfrey’s study and living quarters burst open, revealing the nurse in a maroon dressing gown, her hair in curlers. Her eyes widened when she saw Harry and the boys, and she threw her hands up into the air as she rushed forward.

“And I honestly thought you’d make it through the year without something happening, again!” she exclaimed. “Night before term ends…what was it this time?”

“They’re fine,” Harry assured her. “They held their own quite well. The man they confronted was cowering on the ground by the time Ron and I arrived.” It was impossible to miss the pride in his voice.

Madam Pomfrey narrowed her eyes as she bent over Matt and put her hand on his forehead. “I’ll be the judge of that, Potter.”

“All we had to do was disarm him,” John said. “It was all Albus and Matt. We didn’t duel him or anything.”

Madam Pomfrey turned away from Matt to look at John, her lips as thin as McGonagall’s often were. “Can’t you stay out of trouble? Who was this man you confronted, anyway?”

Albus turned to Matt, wondering if he wished to explain this time, but he didn’t look like he was in a fit state to do so. Albus took a deep breath and repeated what he’d told his dad earlier. By the end, Madam Pomfrey had gone as white as a ghost and had her right hand pressed against her chest.

“My God,” she whispered. “Matt, why on earth didn’t you come to me? I would’ve looked into it!”

“I had- I had to do it myself,” Matt mumbled.

Madam Pomfrey clucked her tongue, but didn’t reply. She strode over to her potions cupboard and returned with two goblets. She set them on the bedside table.

“What does this mean for Professor Young?” the nurse asked, looking at Harry.

“The verdict will most likely be overturned, after we question Stuart Boone. Whether or not Boone answers our questions or not, the fact that we found Polyjuice and Young’s hair in the Shack will cast enough doubt upon Young’s conviction, especially given it provides a logical explanation as to why my nephew and Elsie Willinson both saw Young that day.”

“Good,” Madam Pomfrey said. “I never thought him capable of murder.”

“What will happen to Young?” Albus asked.

Harry sat down on Albus’s other side. “I don’t know. I do not think he will return to the castle. It may take a few days for him to be released, but he will be released. However, no one will look at him the same again. With time, hopefully, he will be able to settle into a quiet life, but it’s too soon to tell.”

“What about Boone?” Matt asked quietly. “He said…he said he had gone into the Ministry, and then…”

“He had,” Harry answered. “He was in training to become an Auror, actually. I met him a few times prior to his encounter with the werewolf.”

“And he just, lost everything?” Matt said. “The Ministry just dropped him?”

“Do not take his words to heart, Matt,” Harry said sharply. “Boone told you his side, and I am sure he warped the story in order to gain pity. It is true he was dropped from the Auror Academy; the Auror Academy does not accept werewolves due to the physical requirements of training and then working as an Auror. It would be incredibly difficult for a werewolf to cope. Then there is the issue of long missions, and how the full moon fits in.”

Matt nodded, looking upset.

“But that does not mean he couldn’t have transferred departments,” Harry continued. “It would’ve been difficult, don’t get me wrong, but possible. No, he would not have had the life of glory he believed he was entitled to, but he would’ve had a better life than the life he condemned himself to. Stuart Boone, while he did not have family any longer, had friends, friends who were utterly confused when Stuart disappeared. He could have gone to them for help, but he preferred to believe they would’ve ditched him and ditch them himself, rather than take the risk.”

“The Ministry really would’ve kept him?” Matt asked. “They hire werewolves?”

Harry sighed. “If Boone had been a werewolf prior to his going into the Ministry, I am not sure he would’ve been hired by a single department. It is up to the Head of the department in question. But everyone in the Ministry knew Boone. He was intelligent and logical. Rose’s mum was particularly fond of him. Someone would’ve taken him in.”

“Oh.” Matt sounded disappointed. “So there isn’t much chance I’d be-“

“I don’t want to get your hopes up,” Harry said quietly. “Until the laws change-“

“I have hardly a chance at all,” Matt finished. “I get it.”

“I need to get to the Ministry,” Harry said, as he stood up. “Al, I’ll see you tomorrow for Bradley and Mark’s graduation. Good night.”

“Good night, Dad,” Albus said, giving his dad a quick hug.

Madam Pomfrey shut the door after Harry left and returned to the bed where Albus and Matt were sitting. She picked up the potions on the bedside table.

“Albus, John, Kaden, the three of you are fine. You can return to Gryffindor, and please do not do anything stupid in your last sixteen hours in the castle.” She turned to Matt, her gaze softening. “Matt, you’re staying here tonight. I have your regular potion, as well as dreamless sleep. You may return tomorrow for breakfast.”

Matt either knew not to argue with the nurse, or didn’t want to, for he took both the potions without comment, and laid down as soon as Albus stood up.

Albus, John, and Kaden said goodbye to Matt and left the hospital wing for Gryffindor tower. Albus felt incredibly light as they walked, as if Young’s wrongful imprisonment had been a weight pressing down on his chest. But now, Young would be freed and O.W.L.s were over. All he had left to do was look forward to summer.

***

Despite Albus, John, and Kaden only giving the full details of what happened in the Shrieking Shack to Rose and Amanda, the entire school knew it was the three of them, along with Matt, who discovered Stuart Boone and found the evidence that would release Professor Young. The following morning’s article in the Prophet did not name the boys, but somehow word got out.

“It wasn’t hard to figure out, Al,” James said when Albus asked him about it at breakfast. James handed Albus a copy of the Prophet. “You and your friends get involved with stuff like this every single year. And you were mysteriously missing from the end of exams party in the common room last night, showing up after midnight.”

“You could’ve been killed,” Rose said, shaking her head. She had thoroughly berated them after they returned to the common room, but apparently her disgust had not been diminished by a good night’s sleep.

“But we weren’t,” John said, shrugging.

“You never wanted to go in the first place,” Rose said. “I never thought you’d be the voice of reason. But then you went anyway.”

“Matt was going either way. We couldn’t just let him go alone.”

Albus tuned out their argument and turned to the article in the paper.

NEW EVIDENCE IN MURDER CASE; YOUNG TO BE RELEASED

Evidence procured late last night has cast doubt upon the
verdict given by the Wizengamot of Elliot Young, former
Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts School
of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The guilty verdict, read less than
a week ago, is now being overturned. Young is expected to be
released from Azkaban Prison later today.

Four Hogwarts students (names withheld due to their age)
were found in the Shrieking Shack in Hogsmeade, Scotland
last night, after confronting Stuart Boone, 26. For a brief
biography of Boone, see page eleven. It is unclear why the
students ventured to the Shrieking Shack. Boone, a former
Trainee Auror, was arrested for identity theft and trespassing.
Upon later questioning at the Ministry, Boone confessed to
using Polyjuice Potion to turn into Elliot Young for the past
ten months, as well as squatting in the Shrieking Shack.

‘It wasn’t Young who was seen running from the Shack
after Michael Sheldon was murdered in December,’ Head
Auror Johnson said to reporters after the confession. ‘That
was Boone.’

Aurors declined to comment on whether Boone is now a suspect
in Michael Sheldon’s murder case.

It is unclear why Boone was living in the Shrieking Shack. The
Shack is owned by Hogwarts, although it has been abandoned
since it was built in the early 1970s. No one is sure of why it was
built, and current headmaster Fabius Kendrick attributes it to
former headmaster Albus Dumbledore’s eccentricities.

‘On behalf of the Auror Department, the Wizengamot, and the
entire Ministry, I offer my sincerest apologies to Elliot Young,’
Minister Laurentis said early this morning. ‘The investigation
of both the Hogsmeade and Knockturn Alley murders will
continue until justice is served.’

“Is that the article about last night?”

Albus set down the article and turned to see Matt sitting down next to him, looking much better than he had the previous night. “Yes,” Albus said, handing it to him.

“They didn’t name us,” Matt said after he read it. “So why is it that everyone was staring at me as I walked down here?”

“Because James figured it out,” Albus said. “I don’t mind. We got Young out of Azkaban, and that’s a good thing.”

“It says Boone confessed,” Matt said in awe. “I didn’t think he would.”

“What you said to him must’ve sunk in,” Albus said, shrugging. “None of the rest of us could’ve done that. You’re the one who wanted to go down there and confront him, you came up with the plan to disarm him-“

“Which we didn’t really need,” Matt interrupted. “His hands are so messed up a first year could’ve disarmed him.”

“But you didn’t know that going in,” Albus said. “And you were the one who convinced him to confess. That was all you. You’re the one who freed Young.”

“I suppose…” Matt said, his cheeks turning red.

“There’s no supposing,” Albus said adamantly. “If it weren’t for you wanting to go confront Boone, Young would still be in Azkaban. That took courage.”

“Or stupidity,” Matt said as he buttered a few slices of toast.

“It wasn’t stupid!” Albus said, groaning. “It-“ But he cut himself off when he saw Matt grinning.

“Gryffindor courage,” Matt said. “It’s got just an ounce of stupidity, but everything always works out. Look at your dad.”

Albus laughed. “Good point.”

***

The rest of the day went by fast. After breakfast the boys hurried back to their dormitories to pack, having saved the task to the last minute as usual. Billius and Ethan pressed Albus, Matt, and John for details about their trip to the Shrieking Shack and they obliged, to a point. They left out Matt’s discussion about lycanthropy with Boone, telling Billius and Ethan instead that they didn’t know what convinced Boone to confess.

Albus and Rose attended yet another Hogwarts graduation while Kaden visited Professor Burke for the last time before summer, and the rest of the group wandered around the grounds. Albus didn’t pay much attention to the speeches, instead thinking about what would happen to Stuart Boone. Albus sincerely hoped that Boone wouldn’t be framed for Sheldon’s murder. If the Ministry wasn’t half as corrupt as Albus suspected it to be, there was no possible way the Wizengamot could convict him. But then again, Albus had thought the same about Young, who had an ironclad alibi.

They boarded the Hogwarts Express in the early afternoon and John secured a compartment for them, after kicking out two second years who were attempting to duel each other. Rose reprimanded them and sent them on their way, looking the other way about the fact that John had ejected them from the compartment.

“How is Professor Burke?” Rose asked Kaden as the train sped out of Hogsmeade and into the countryside.

Kaden shrugged. “No worse, but no better. His hands shake so much he can hardly pour ingredients into a cauldron, let alone chop and slice things. He broke down and hired an assistant for the summer. He wanted me to do it, but my house isn’t hooked up to the Floo Network, so I couldn’t say yes.”

“It’ll be nice to have a break, though, won’t it?” Rose asked.

Kaden looked as if he wanted nothing more than to spend the summer brewing potions with his hero. “He told me next year is going to be his last year teaching, unless he comes up with a cure. He’ll be too ill to teach after next year.”

“It’s just so awful,” Rose whispered.

“Exploding Snap?” John asked after a few minutes of silence. “Or something? Anything to take our minds off Burke. It’s depressing. He’s a brewing genius. He’ll find a cure.”

“Sometimes there just isn’t a cure to find,” Matt said quietly, staring out the window.

“Are you still thinking about Boone?” Albus asked as he reached into his trunk and pulled out a pack of Exploding Snap cards. He handed them to John.

Matt nodded. “I read that biography of him in the Prophet. He had everything, and then it was gone. He might be a coward, but still…it was like looking into my own future.”

“Your future will not be like that,” Albus said. “You heard what my dad said. Boone may not have chosen to become a werewolf, but everything that happened after that, those were his choices. He chose to abandon his friends. He chose to abandon his career.”

“Because he was afraid!” Matt said, turning away from the window to look at his friends. “And what he said about understanding…about not being able to understand unless you’ve been there, he was right about that. I understand where he’s coming from. I understand the fear. I get it because I live it. I’m terrified…bloody terrified about what will happen when I leave Hogwarts.”

Albus hated that there was nothing he or Rose or anyone could do to take away that fear. “But the difference is you won’t be alone. You’ll have us, and your parents, and Amy, and even my parents! You know they’d do anything to help you.”

“That stupid law won’t be around forever,” Amanda said.

“Boone is a coward,” Albus said. “That’s the biggest difference between you and him. The Sorting Hat put you in Gryffindor for a reason, and you proved it last night. You proved it when you came to Hogwarts, despite everything that had happened in Australia. You might be an awful dueler, but you’ve got more courage than half the Gryffindors at Hogwarts.”

“None of it means you’re weak,” Rose said quietly. “Not the anxiety, not the PTSD, none of it. It just means you’ve been through more than most adults, and that you got through it.”

Matt nodded, but didn’t reply.

“Come on,” John said as he started dealing cards. “Exploding Snap. Let’s celebrate. We’re N.E.W.T. students now! We’ll have so much free time next year.”

Rose laughed. “Seriously? That free time is for doing all the homework. If you thought they piled it on this year you haven’t seen anything yet.”

“Rose is right,” Albus agreed. “None of my cousins have ever come home after sixth year bragging about all the free time they have.”

John sighed. “Still, we’ll get to Apparate next year.”

“Jealous,” Kaden said. “You lot get to Apparate and I’ll have to do O.W.L.s.”

Albus grinned. “Just wait. We’re going to get our revenge for all your gloating.”

“And the year after next I’ll gloat while you study for your N.E.W.T.s. It’s a vicious circle.”

“We’re getting ahead of ourselves,” John said. “We’ve got to figure out summer first.”

“Everyone should come to my house,” Albus said as he tossed a card into the middle of their circle.

“Sure,” Matt said, adding a card to the pile. “My parents are dragging me to Australia at beginning of July until right before the July full moon, but I can visit after.”

“I’ll stay as long as your parents will let me,” John said. “Gemma is going to be unbearable this summer. She’s starting Hogwarts in September.”

“So are Samantha and Lindy,” Albus said. “Georgia, Bradley, and Cedric’s little sisters.”

“And Bethany,” Kaden said. “If she’s a witch, that is. I think she probably is, since last summer she blew up the TV when her favorite program wasn’t on. Aunt Marge ran from the house. I thought she might never come back, but I don’t have that kind of luck.”

Albus laughed. “Gryffindor won’t know what hit it. Samantha and Lindy are quite the pranksters. They switch places all the time at their Muggle school. It drives their teachers mad.”

“I wish I had a twin,” Kaden said, carefully placing his card on top of Matt’s. The cards exploded, covering his face in ash. Groaning, he pulled out his wand and siphoned the ash off his face while John repaired the cards.

The group played Exploding Snap until Albus and Rose had to leave to patrol the corridor. When they returned, John and Kaden were deep in a whispered conversation (most likely about pranks for the following year), Amanda was curled up with a book, and Matt was asleep, his head leaning against the window.

Albus sat down next to Matt and stared out the window, watching the scenery go by. It was hard to believe that fifth year was over, that it had been nearly a year since he received his prefect’s badge, and nearly a year since he made Gryffindor’s dueling team. So much had changed since then, but so much had stayed the same. John had discovered he could buckle down and study if he decided to. Kaden further explored his passion, brewing, and was now even more determined to make it a reality. Yet, both of them still focused most of their attention on brewing. Rose and Amanda still wanted to change the world, but both narrowed that down into specific careers. Matt had discovered his underlying bravery, yet still fought against the affects of his lycanthropy every day. And what about Albus, himself? A year ago he hadn’t known what he wanted to do for a career, but the one he picked didn’t seem all that different from what he did now. He would solve mysteries and help others at the same time. But he knew he had changed as well. At the beginning of the year, he never would’ve thought he would step into his role as a prefect, and assume the authority that had been thrust upon him, but he had done just that after the Hogsmeade Murder. Sometimes, Albus thought, change was good.

As Albus gazed around the compartment he smiled. Things may have changed, but the most important thing had stayed the same. He and his friends were as close as they’d been in first year, if not closer. They were there for each other, and always would be, for the rest of their lives.