Chapter 337: Dumbledore's Madhouse
Scrimgeour's face darkened.
"No. What nonsense are you spouting?" he snapped at once.
"Do not try to change the subject. You have learned Fiendfyre, a Dark curse, and you can cast it smoothly and control it so precisely. Clearly, you practise it often," he went on coldly. "Now, at the slightest disagreement, you turn Dark magic on Ministry Aurors. What next? At this rate, you will be a full‑fledged Dark wizard before you even graduate."
A few Aurors nodded despite themselves.
Dudley's actions had looked far too much like those of a Dark wizard. What they least wanted to admit was that, in truth, they had just lost to him.
If this had been a real battle, many of them might already be dead.
Of course, if they had been facing an acknowledged Dark wizard, they would never have been so careless. It was their own underestimation that had allowed Dudley to pen them all in with Fiendfyre in an instant.
"A Dark wizard? Please," Dudley said with a cold laugh. "If I really were a Dark wizard, there would not even be bodies left of you."
"Minister, you saw that!" Scrimgeour said loudly. "This boy is a Dark wizard in the making. I propose we take him to the Ministry for a thorough interrogation. There has to be some plot behind him."
Fudge's expression had grown noticeably darker.
Dudley had been treated unfairly, yes, but his attitude towards the Ministry was outrageous. To attack Aurors so openly, here of all places… in a few years, when his power grew even further, would he still see the Ministry as anything at all?
A wizard like that was dangerous.
"In these circumstances, I do think it necessary to bring Dudley to the Ministry for questioning..." Fudge said after a moment's thought.
"I do not believe that is a wise idea," Dumbledore said at once.
"Albus," Fudge said, surprised. He had not expected Dumbledore to contradict him, and a flicker of displeasure passed through his eyes.
"With respect, Minister, Dudley has done nothing wrong. All of this stems from Rufus's recklessness," Dumbledore said, glancing briefly at Dudley.
"Dumbledore, you are only the Headmaster of Hogwarts. You have no authority to give orders to the Ministry," Scrimgeour barked.
"I am indeed only a Headmaster," Dumbledore said mildly. "But I am also Dudley's Headmaster. When he suffers injustice at your hands, you must answer for it. As for what he did afterwards..."
He paused there and looked deeply at Dudley.
"I will provide you with a reasonable explanation," he finished, then turned his blue eyes on Fudge.
"Minister, I must ask you to trust me."
"...Very well," Fudge said at last, though his expression was sour.
Dumbledore's firm defence of Dudley left him feeling his authority as Minister was being challenged.
Yet he could not afford to fall out with Dumbledore now. Whether it was the matter of Sirius Black or Grindelwald, he still needed the cooperation of this powerful wizard.
"Minister..." Scrimgeour said, face ugly, anger breaking through.
"Enough. That is all for now," Fudge cut in, his own tone icing over. "Rufus, you need to work on that temper of yours."
Dumbledore refusing to heed him was one thing. For Scrimgeour, his subordinate, to be snapping at him as well was quite another. It infuriated Fudge.
"Finish checking the area. See if Grindelwald left any trace. And as for..." He glanced at Dudley.
"Forget it. The rest of you, back to the Ministry."
"Dumbledore, you had better keep a closer eye on your students," he added, then turned on the spot and Disapparated without waiting for the Headmaster.
Scrimgeour's face was almost black. He slammed a fist into the table beside him and shattered it.
Dumbledore ignored his anger and walked straight over to Dudley.
"Is there anything else you wish to say to me?" he asked, blue eyes studying Dudley over the rims of his half‑moon glasses.
Dudley considered for a moment.
In light of how Dumbledore had stood up for him just now, he decided to share a little more.
"Grindelwald was hurt," he said. "He tried to prophesy about someone he should not have and suffered a backlash."
"And Scrimgeour may be carrying something on him that can influence people's judgment. Watch him closely."
Dumbledore looked at him in silence for a long second, then nodded.
"One last question," he said. "If I had not arrived in time, what would you have done?"
The situation had been genuinely dire. Dudley's Fiendfyre had ringed the room; the slightest provocation might have led to horrific casualties among the Aurors.
On top of that, Dudley had used a special method to block Apparition. Even Dumbledore had needed effort to break it. He knew very well the Aurors could not have managed it. If the cursed fire had gone wild, most of them would never have walked out.
Dudley met his gaze.
"I knew you would arrive in time, Professor," he said calmly.
Dumbledore's pupils tightened a fraction.
He drew in a long breath, then raised a hand and patted Dudley's shoulder.
"If anything happens in the future, you may contact me directly," he said.
As he spoke, a phoenix feather appeared between his fingers. He handed it to Dudley.
"Thank you. I will," Dudley said, taking it with a nod.
Dumbledore gave him one last look, then turned away to comfort Harry and Hermione.
Dudley watched him go.
He was sure Dumbledore had caught his unspoken meaning.
In truth, he had not answered the question at all. Dumbledore had asked what he would have done if the Headmaster had not arrived in time. Dudley's reply had simply been that he knew Dumbledore would arrive – neatly stepping around the hypothetical.
Which meant that, had Dumbledore genuinely failed to get there, Dudley would very likely have torn things completely open with the Ministry.
Even so, Dumbledore had no choice but to protect him now.
He understood all too well that Dudley himself – and the powers standing behind him – might well prove more troublesome than Grindelwald.
The last thing he wanted was for Dudley to become his enemy. In that scenario, he would have almost no chance of victory.
The two of them had reached a kind of tacit understanding, each aware of the other's thoughts, neither piercing the veil.
As for the phoenix feather, it was Dumbledore's insurance. A precaution against the worst‑case future he could see on the horizon.