antebellum [t. riddle]

xxi.

november 1944
tw: very brief mention of suicide

ACCUSED GRINDELWALD SPY FOUND DEAD BY SUICIDE IN HIS HOME

By Daniela Dryden, Special Correspondent

Ministry of Magic was in for a shocker when Boris Lancaster, Department of Magical Transportation official, was found dead in his home by Aurors serving an arrest warrant. The details of the warrant are still not public information, but there have been speculations that Lancaster was in league with the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald. 

Aurors Fischer and Grimsditch arrived at Lancaster's London flat at approximately 10 p.m. yesterday evening. Upon their arrival, they forced their way into his flat and found Lancaster's and his house elf dead on the sitting room floor. Aurors believe that Lancaster killed his house elf by the killing curse, used his wand to carve the emblematic phrase "FOR THE GREATER GOOD" into the wall, snapped his wand, and then slit his throat.

sicaira swallowed as her eyes darted across the newspaper. he had known they were coming to arrest him before they arrived, which meant that there were more spies within the ministry. the article didn't cite a time of death, so depending on how long his body had been there, it was also plausible that someone in macusa had gotten hold of the warrant before it was sent off to england. there was a spy somewhere in the chain of command, and she didn't know where. it was times like this where she thanked merlin that her documents on missions were signed with codes and not her name. she continued reading. 

The investigation into Lancaster's affairs will still continue on, and those who worked closely with him will be brought in for testimony and interrogation as well. His department will be thoroughly investigated for an other evidence of espionage or corruption. Because Lancasters' wand was snapped, investigators cannot have any insight into what his last or most frequent spells were.

The Auror office refused to comment on the investigation process, nor how they came about this information on Lancaster. His wife (45) and son (20) have both been taken into Ministry custody while pending interrogation. 

she turned the page of the newspaper as she stored the information in her head, along with the questions she had. how did the aurors know it was suicide and not murder? why did the ministry only send two? why snap his wand? why kill the house elf? why is his family in custody? why is there no mention that if it was suicide, the someone had to have forewarned him?

The failure of the Ministry to identify those spies in their offices has shot down the confidence of the public in their government. Many chalk this mishandling up to former Minister Hector Fawley's catastrophic attempts at ignoring the crisis altogether. Fawley's blunder allowed for domestic terrorism to fester under the surface of the Ministry, leading to mistrust from the public. 

she glanced up and made brief eye contact with dumbledore, sitting at the teachers table. he gave her something of a small celebratory nod. she looked down quickly, suddenly feeling sick. this was not something she wanted to be remembered for.

Both the Head of the Department of Transportation and the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement have declined to comment. Aurors Fischer and Grimsditchs' secretaries told Prophet reporters that they were also unavailable for comment. The Press Resources Division has announced that an upcoming press release will occur on Saturday, November-

"er, hi edwards." 

she startled and looked up from the newspaper quickly. she recovered her shock by quirking a brow at him. "hello rosier." this incendiary bullshit they called an article was not good for her anxiety, already making her paranoid of normal situations.