Grindelwald's Burden (Books 1-7)

128. Magic Is Might

Ah, Mafalda!" said Umbridge, looking at Hermione. "Travers sent you, did he?"

"Y-yes." squeaked Hermione.

"Good, you'll do perfectly well." Umbridge spoke to the wizard in black and gold. "That's that problem solved, Minister, if Mafalda can be spared for record-keeping we shall be able to start straightaway." She consulted her clipboard. "Ten people today and one of them the wife of a Ministry employee! Tut, tut ...even here, in the heart of the Ministry!" She stepped into the lift beside Hermione, as did the two wizards who had been listening to Umbridge's conversation with the Minister. "We'll go straight down, Mafalda, you'll find everything you need in the courtroom. Good morning, Albert, John aren't you both getting out?"

"Yes, of course." said Harry in Runcorn's deep voice.

"Be sure to give those Muggle-borns the justice that's needed." Y/n said in John's voice though he hated every word of it.

"That is what I aim to do John." Umbridge said sounding pleased.

Y/n and Harry stepped out of the lift. The golden grilles clanged shut behind him. Glancing over his shoulder, Y/n saw Hermione's anxious face sinking back out of sight, a tall wizard on either side of her, Umbridge's velvet hair-bow level with her shoulder.

"What brings you both up here, Runcorn, Smith?" asked the new Minister of Magic. His long black hair and beard were streaked with silver, and a great overhanging forehead shadowed his glinting eyes, putting Harry in mind of a crab looking out from beneath a rock.

"We need a quick word with." Harry hesitated for a fraction of a second. "Arthur Weasley. Someone said he was up on level one."

"Ah." said Pius Thicknesse. "Has he been caught having contact with one of the Undesirables?"

"No." said Y/n crossing his arms. "Not yet at least..."

"Ah, well. It's only a matter of time." said Thicknesse. "If you ask me, the blood traitors are as bad as the Mudbloods. Good day, Runcorn, Smith."

"Good day, Minister." Both said as they watched Thicknesse march away along the thickly carpeted corridor. The moment the Minister had passed out of sight, Harry tugged the Invisibility Cloak out from under his heavy black cloak, and threw it over himself and Y/n, Both set off along the corridor in the opposite direction.

Panic pulsed in the pit of Harry's stomach. As he passed gleaming wooden door after gleaming wooden door, each bearing a small plaque with the owner's name and occupation upon it, the might of the Ministry, its complexity, its impenetrability, seemed to force itself upon him so that the plan he had been carefully concocting with Ron, Y/n and Hermione over the past four weeks seemed laughably childish. They had concentrated all their efforts on getting inside without being detected. They had not given a moment's thought to what they would do if they were forced to separate. Now Hermione was stuck in court proceedings, which would undoubtedly last hours, Ron was struggling to do magic that Harry was sure was beyond him, a woman's liberty possibly depending on the outcome...

His thoughts were interrupted by a hand coming to a rest on his shoulder, He turned his head to see Y/n still in his disguise looking at him. Y/n nodded ahead and Harry turned to see a frowning wizard who was murmuring instructions to a quill that floated in front of them, scribbling on a trail of parchment. The two moved together so he could pass by them without noticing them and when he did Harry let out a sigh.

"I am worried about them both as well you know." Y/n began and Harry looked at him again. "But they entrusted us to complete this task, so let us hurry to finish it."

Harry nodded and together they set off along the corridor again now paying attention to the names on the doors.

Halfway along the next corridor they emerged into a wide, open space where a dozen witches and wizards sat in rows at small desks not unlike school desks, though much more highly polished and free from graffiti. Harry and Y/n paused to watch them, for the effect was quite mesmerizing. They were all waving and twiddling their wands in unison, and squares of colored paper were flying in every direction like little pink kites. After a few seconds, Y/n realized that there was a rhythm to the proceedings, that the papers all formed the same pattern, and after a few more seconds he realized that what he was watching was the creation of pamphlets, that the paper squares were pages, which, when assembled, folded, and magicked into place, fell into neat stacks beside each witch or wizard.