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HP462- Departure
🕑 Added 2025-07-06 21:27:00 +0000 UTCDaphne and Tracey were already on their feet, brushing off soot and chalk dust. Astoria shot Dumbledore a faintly amused look as she swung her satchel over one shoulder. Susan pushed her chair back with a quiet scrape, rising alongside Hermione and Luna. None of them spoke to the Headmaster.
“See you later, Kingsley. Aunty,” Harry said with a nod, giving Amelia and Shacklebolt a casual wave.
As his group followed him out with Tonks, ready to return to Hogwarts, Nigel’s spoke in Harry’s mind.
“Was it wise, Harry? To confront him at this stage?”
Harry smirked faintly as they crossed the Ministry’s Portkey Station. “Wise? Perhaps not. Necessary? Absolutely.”
When the group returned to Hogwarts, McGonagall stood stiffly by Dumbledore’s old desk, her brows were already furrowed, as she turned on them.
“Mr Potter!” she barked. “Would you care to explain why you and this lot decided to break out of the castle without permission? You know very well it is forbidden to access the Headmaster’s room without a permit!”
Harry greeted casually. “Evening, Professor. I suppose we could explain... but it would take longer than you would like, and I am fairly certain your tea is gone cold already.”
McGonagall’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “This is not a matter for your jokes, Potter. The wards detected unauthorised departures. I want a full account of what you were doing."
Harry stepped up to the desk and placed a folded parchment neatly in front of McGonagall. “You might want to read this before we start with the scolding, Professor,” he said politely.
McGonagall’s brow furrowed as she snatched up the parchment. Her sharp eyes darted over the text, and with each line, the colour drained from her face.
“H-he… you!” she stammered, staring up at Harry, her usual composure cracking.
“Yes, ma’am,” Harry said smoothly. “Him. Ministry breach. We were summoned under emergency protocol.”
“Tell me what happened!” McGonagall demanded, as she dropped into the chair.
For the next half-hour, they went through it all in order. From the moment the Metal Card burned against Harry’s leg, to their quick departure from Hogwarts, every detail of the Ministry breach was laid out. He explained how the group had trained for such emergencies for months...how Amelia had issued the protocol authorising the floo, and why they’d been summoned instead of waiting for adult reinforcements.
Daphne filled in details about the defensive arrays they’d prepared in the Department of Mysteries. Tracey noted how the decoys had been deployed in the Hall of Prophecy to mislead Voldemort. Susan and Hermione described how they managed the containment of Dementors in the corridors.
How Voldemort had ploughed through multiple layered traps. He didn’t downplay the duel either. He described how Voldemort had arrived alone but later summoned thousands of Dementors warped to his will. How the group held their ground, Patronuses flashing across the Hall while Harry traded curses with the Dark Lord.
When he reached the part where Dumbledore arrived, breaking the Ministry’s portkey lock and giving Voldemort the gap to slip away, McGonagall’s lips thinned, but she didn’t interrupt. She read through the parchment again, eyes darting across Amelia Bones’s sharp handwriting as Harry explained how the Ministry’s wards failed under the phoenix flash. The others backed him up without hesitation.
By the time they finished, the room had gone quiet. McGonagall sat still, fingers pressed to her temples, staring at the parchment like it might explain how a group of students had held off the Dark Lord himself.
McGonagall’s voice cracked slightly as she spoke, though she tried to keep it firm. “Return to your common rooms, please.”
Harry gave her a nod. “Of course, Professor. Good evening."
Turning on his heel, he strode out, his group falling in behind.
“That could’ve gone better,” Tracey muttered under her breath.
“Could’ve gone worse,” Daphne countered lightly, though her voice carried a touch of irritation.
Harry smirked faintly. Although their main target had slipped through, he now had the full prophecy. More importantly, he confirmed what Nicholas had warned him about all along... Dumbledore wasn’t just trying to guide events, he outright given Voldemort the chance to run. That settled it. Harry wasn’t about to gamble his life for anyone’s “greater good.” If Voldemort wanted a final act, Harry would write the script himself.
A week later, the year wrapped up with the Leaving Feast. Dumbledore, who’d been conspicuously absent for most of the year, finally put in an appearance on the last day. He didn’t do much... just sat in his usual chair at the center of the table, offering a faint smile now and then as if to remind people he was still alive and hadn’t vanished off to join Merlin in the great beyond.
Not that most students cared. With Voldemort back and school's credibility shot to pieces, the usual scramble for the Hogwarts Express had turned into something else entirely. Parents weren’t keen on sending their children onto the train again... not when half of them believed Death Eaters would happily derail it halfway to London.
By late afternoon, clusters of families were spilling across the courtyard, snatching up sons and daughters.
“Don’t suppose we’ll get a quiet summer, will we?” Tracey said, glancing Harry’s way.
Harry raised an eyebrow. “Quiet? With Astoria about? Not a chance.”
Astoria stuck her tongue out. “I’m very well-behaved, thank you.”
Harry shook his head, amused. “Behave for at least a week. I will check in before the Ministry sends someone to scold you.”
The crowd around them thinned as more families collected their children. One by one, Harry’s friends drifted forward to say their goodbyes. Susan hugged him quickly before stepping back to join Hannah, both of them waving as they crossed the ward line.
“Try not to get into too much trouble over the summer, Harry,” Susan said, though her tone was teasing.
“No promises,” Harry replied.
Neville clasped his shoulder briefly. “Write if anything comes up.”
Harry gave a nod. “You too.”
Astoria stepped up last, hands on her hips, looking every bit like an annoyed little sister. “You’d better not disappear all summer,” she said. “You still owe me that trip to Flourish and Blotts.”
“I haven’t forgotten,” Harry said, crouching slightly so they were eye to eye. “Behave yourself, or I’ll send Tracey to keep an eye on you.”
Astoria’s nose wrinkled in mock disgust. “She’s worse than you.”
“Hey,” Tracey said from behind them, “I heard that.”
Harry straightened with a small grin. “Go on, imp. Off with you.”
Astoria huffed but hugged him tightly before darting off to where her parents were waiting.
Daphne lingered a moment longer, adjusting the strap of her bag. “I will see you soon,” she said quietly.
Harry met her gaze and nodded once. “You will.”
She smiled faintly before stepping back to join her sister.
When the last of the group had crossed the wards, Harry turned to Hermione, who was waiting with her own bag in hand. “Ready?”
She nodded. “Let’s go before my parents start worrying.”
They walked a short distance away from the crowd. Harry checked the wards, then took her arm. A sharp crack later, they appeared outside a neat brick house on a quiet Muggle street.
Hermione’s shoulders loosened as she spotted her parents waiting near the door. She turned back to Harry with a small smile. “Thanks for dropping me off.”
“Anytime,” Harry said.
“Try not to antagonise the entire Ministry while I’m gone,” she added, arching an eyebrow.
Harry smirked. “Where’s the fun in that?”
She shook her head but couldn’t hide her grin. “Goodbye, Harry.”
“See you, Granger.”
Hermione jogged up the path as her parents waved. Harry gave them a polite nod before Disapparating with another crack, vanishing from the quiet street.
