 as the man who stepped aside and allowed Voldemort a second chance to
destroy the world we have tried to rebuild!"
"Insane," whispered Fudge, still backing away. "Mad . . ."
And then there was silence. Madam Pomfrey was standing frozen at the foot of
Harry's bed, her hands over her mouth. Mrs.Weasley was still standing over Harry,
her hand on his shoulder to prevent him from rising. Bill, Ron, and Hermione were
staring at Fudge.
"If your determination to shut your eyes will carry you as far as this, Cornelius,"
said Dumbledore, "we have reached a parting of the ways. You must act as you
see fit. And I - I shall act as I see fit."
Dumbledore's voice carried no hint of a threat; it sounded like a mere statement,
but Fudge bristled as though Dumbledore were advancing upon him with a wand.
458
"Now, see here, Dumbledore," he said, waving a threatening finger. "I've given
you free rein, always. I've had a lot of respect for you. I might not have agreed
with some of your decisions, but I've kept quiet. There aren't many who'd have let
you hire werewolves, or keep Hagrid, or decide what to teach your students
without reference to the Ministry. But if you're going to work against me -"
"The only one against whom I intend to work," said Dumbledore, "is Lord
Voldemort. If you are against him, then we remain, Cornelius, on the same side."
It seemed Fudge could think of no answer to this. He rocked backward and
forward on his small feet for a moment and spun his bowler hat in his hands.
Finally, he said, with a hint of a plea in his voice, "He can't be back, Dumbledore,
he just can't be ..."
Snape strode forward, past Dumbledore, pulling up the left sleeve of his robes as
he went. He stuck out his forearm and showed it to Fudge, who recoiled.
"There," said Snape harshly. "There. The Dark Mark. It is not as clear as it was an
hour or so ago, when it burned black, but you can still see it. Every Death Eater
had the sign burned into him by the Dark Lord. It was a means of distinguishing
one another, and his means of summoning us to him. When he touched the Mark
of any Death Eater, we were to Disapparate, and Apparate, instantly, at his side.
This Mark has been growing clearer all year. Karkaroff s too. Why do you think
Karkaroff fled tonight? We both felt the Mark burn. We both knew he had
returned. Karkaroff fears the Dark Lord's vengeance. He betrayed too many of his
fellow Death Eaters to be sure of a welcome back into the fold."
Fudge stepped back from Snape too. He was shaking his head. He did not seem to
have taken in a word Snape had said. He stared, apparently repelled by the ugly
mark on Snape's arm, then looked up at Dumbledore and whispered, "I don't know
what you and your staff are playing at, Dumbledore, but I have heard enough. I
have no more to add. I will be in touch with you tomorrow, Dumbledore, to
discuss the running of this school. I must return to the Ministry."
He had almost reached the door when he paused. He turned around, strode back
down the dormitory, and stopped at Harry's bed.
"Your winnings," he said shortly, taking a large bag of gold out of his pocket and
dropping it onto Harrys bedside table. "One thousand Galleons. There should have
been a presentation ceremony, but under the circumstances .. ."
He crammed his bowler hat onto his head and walked out of the room, slamming
the door behind him. The moment he had disappeared, Dumbledore turned to look
at the group around Harry's bed.
"There is work to be done," he said. "Molly... am I right in thinking that I can
count on you and Arthur?"
"Of course you can," said Mrs. Weasley. She was white to the lips, but she looked
459
resolute. "We know what Fudge is. It's Arthur's fondness for Muggles that has
held him back at the Ministry all these years. Fudge thinks he lacks proper
wizarding pride."
"Then I need to send a message to Arthur," said Dumbledore. "All those that we
can persuade of the truth must be notified immediately, and he is well placed to
contact those at the Ministry who are not as shortsighted as Cornelius."
"I'll go to Dad," said Bill, standing up. "I'll go now."
"Excellent," said Dumbledore. "Tell him what has happened. Tell him I will be in
direct contact with him shortly. He will need to be discreet, however. If Fudge
thinks I am interfering at the Ministry -"
"Leave it to me," said Bill.
He clapped a hand on Harry's shoulder, kissed his mother on the cheek, pulled on
his cloak, and strode quickly from the room.
"Minerva," said Dumbledore, turning to Professor McGonagall, "I want to see
Hagrid in my office as soon as possible. Also - if she will consent to come -
Madame Maxime."
Professor McGonagall nodded and left without a word.
"Poppy," Dumbledore said to Madam Pomfrey, "would you be very kind and go
down to Professor Moodys office, where I think you will find a house-elf called
Winky in considerable distress? Do what you can for her, and take her back to the
kitchens. I think Dobby will look after her for us."
"Very - very well," said Madam Pomfrey, looking startled, and she too left.
Dumbledore made sure that the door was closed, and that Madam Pomfrey's
footsteps had died away, before he spoke again.
"And now," he said, "it is time for two of our number to recognize each other for
what they are. Sirius ... if you could resume your usual form."
The great black dog looked up at Dumbledore, then, in an instant, turned back into
a man.
Mrs. Weasley screamed and leapt back from the bed.
"Sirius Black!" she shrieked, pointing at him.
"Mum, shut up!" Ron yelled. "It's okay!"
Snape had not yelled or jumped backward, but the look on his face was one of
mingled fury and horror.
"Him!" he snarled, staring at Sirius, whose face showed equal dislike. "What is he
460
doing here?"
"He is here at my invitation," said Dumbledore, looking between them, "as are
you, Severus. I trust you both. It is time for you to lay aside your old differences
and trust each other."
Harry thought Dumbledore was asking for a near miracle. Sirius and Snape were
eyeing each other with the utmost loathing.
"I will settle, in the short term," said Dumbledore, with a bite of impatience in his
voice, "for a lack of open hostility. You will shake hands. You are on the same
side now. Time is short, and unless the few of us who know the truth do not stand
united, there is no hope
for any us.
Very slowly - but still glaring at each other as though each wished the other
nothing but ill - Sirius and Snape moved toward each other and shook hands. They
let go extremely quickly.
"That will do to be going on with," said Dumbledore, stepping between them once
more. "Now I have work for each of you. Fudge's attitude, though not unexpected,
changes everything. Sirius, I need you to set off at once. You are to alert Remus
Lupin, Arabella Figg, Mundungus Fletcher - the old crowd. Lie low at Lupin's for
a while; I will contact you there."
"But -" said Harry.
He wanted Sirius to stay. He did not want to have to say goodbye again so quickly.
"You'll see me very soon. Harry," said Sirius, turning to him. "I promise you. But I
must do what I can, you understand, don't you?"
"Yeah," said Harry. "Yeah . . . of course I do."
Sirius grasped his hand briefly, nodded to Dumbledore, transformed again into the
black dog, and ran the length of the room to the door, whose handle he turned with
a paw. Then he was gone.
"Severus," said Dumbledore, turning to Snape, "you know what I must ask you to
do. If you are ready . . . if you are prepared ..."
"I am," said Snape.
He looked slightly paler than usual, and his cold, black eyes glittered strangely.
"Then good luck," said Dumbledore, and he watched, with a trace of apprehension
on his face, as Snape swept wordlessly after Sirius.
It was several minutes before Dumbledore spoke again.
461
"I must go downstairs," he said finally. "I must see the Diggorys. Harry - take the
rest of your potion. I will see all of you later."
Harry slumped back against his pillows as Dumbledore disappeared. Hermione,
Ron, and Mrs. Weasley were all looking at him. None of them spoke for a very
long time.
"You've got to take the rest of your potion. Harry," Mrs. Weasley said at last. Her
hand nudged the sack of gold on his bedside cabinet as she reached for the bottle
and the goblet. "You have a good long sleep. Try and think about something else
for a while . . . think about what you're going to buy with your winnings!"
"I don't want that gold," said Harry in an expressionless voice. "You have it.
Anyone can have it. I shouldn't have won it. It should've been Cedric's."
The thing against which he had been fighting on and off ever since he had come
out of the maze was threatening to overpower him. He could feel a burning,
prickling feeling in the inner corners of his eyes. He blinked and stared up at the
ceiling.
"It wasn't your fault. Harry," Mrs. Weasley whispered.
"I told him to take the cup with me," said Harry.
Now the burning feeling was in his throat too. He wished Ron would look away.
Mrs. Weasley set the potion down on the bedside cabinet, bent down, and put her
arms around Harry. He had no memory of ever being hugged like this, as though
by a mother. The full weight of everything he had seen that night seemed to fall in
upon him as Mrs. Weasley held him to her. His mother s face, his father's voice,
the sight of Cedric, dead on the ground all started spinning in his head until he
could hardly bear it, until he was screwing up his face against the howl of misery
fighting to get out of him.
There was a loud slamming noise, and Mrs. Weasley and Harry broke apart.
Hermione was standing by the window. She was holding something tight in her
hand.
"Sorry," she whispered.
"Your potion, Harry," said Mrs. Weasley quickly, wiping her eyes on the back of
her hand.
Harry drank it in one gulp. The effect was instantaneous.