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Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 198: The First Attack
"Merlin!..." Fleamont exclaimed the moment he saw the state of the Leaky Cauldron inside.
There were signs of destruction everywhere he looked, as well as panic and fear, when he saw all the broken glasses and plates on the floor.
The attack must have been very sudden, startling all the patrons into trying to escape.
"We believe that it began here."
Fleamont heard a familiar voice and turned to look. "Cooper, you were called as well?."
The auror nodded. "Most of the department was called. Even those who rarely leave the office were needed for this. I have never seen an attack like this on a magical settlement."
"Death count?" Fleamont asked. He couldn't see anyone else in the tavern, but the aurors had arrived before his department, so they could have already taken away everyone injured or dead.
"That's the strange thing… none." Cooper said.
"None?... not even one death?" Fleamont found that hard to believe, considering the scale of the attack.
"Twenty-six injured, all taken to St. Mungo's already. And we have at least ten people missing, but we haven't found a single one dead."
Fleamont's frown deepened. "That's a lot of people missing. Did the attackers take them?" A few missing during a situation like this was not rare, but over ten people were too much to be accidental.
"Aye, that's what the others are thinking." Cooper pointed at the door at the end. "If the situation outside is under control, you may wanna take a look at the alley."
"I will do that, thanks." Fleamont went to the brick wall that usually barred the entrance to the alley. However, it was now completely destroyed.
'It began here…' He recalled Cooper's words. 'They gained entrance through the tavern, but why?.'
Magical folk rarely used this entrance, unless they were planning on staying at the Leaky Cauldron, so it was mostly reserved for Muggleborns and their Muggle families, who came from that side.
"Oh…" Fleamont was now staring at the Diagon Alley main road. Just like in the tavern, there were many signs of destruction here.
Broken road, roofs, windows. The attackers seemed to be trying to cause as much chaos as possible by flinging dangerous spells around.
It was going to take a while to restore this place to its pristine shape.
Fleamont spotted the figure of Madam Bones, standing in front of Ollivander's shop and taking notes.
He decided to approach her, since they had known each other for many years and, as of now, she held a high position at the Auror Department, so she must know all the details about what had transpired here.
"Amelia." Fleamont called after noticing how distracted she looked.
"Fleamont…" She glanced at him and sighed. "What a disaster."
"Missing. Along with at least ten others. We are still busy getting everyone's testimony." Bones responded. "I am assuming that everything outside is under control?"
"It is now. Luckily, we were able to intervene in time, before the muggle authorities got involved and managed to contain it."
Amelia Bones nodded. "Good job. At least your department won't receive any complaints in the near future."
"This is not your fault." Fleamont could tell where her mind was going, and the guilt on her face.
"How come we didn't see this coming?" She answered with a tone of frustration. "This wasn't just some random attack led by a group of unorganized wizards. Something big is going on, and I believe this is just the beginning…"
Fleamont Potter looked around for a moment. Everyone was busy doing something, and no one was paying attention to them right now. "Amelia, there may be something you should know. I don't know if it's related to this, but…"
"Fleamont? What is going on? If you know something about these masked men, th—"
"Hold on, Amelia. Not here…" Fleamont looked around again. "Tomorrow in the late afternoon, come to the second floor of the Three Broomsticks." He said in a low tone.
Amelia didn't seem to like all this secrecy, but she trusted the man enough not to question him. "Very well. I have much to do now."
"My men and I can lend a hand if you want." Fleamont offered.
Amelia nodded. "I appreciate it. Take a look around then, and talk to the people who are still here. We haven't questioned the goblins yet. Although the bank was not attacked, they may have seen something."
"I can do that," Fleamont said, even though he was sure that the goblins were not going to cooperate with them. The creatures had always remained neutral when it came to wizardfolk conflicts. They had their own side to be in.
After parting ways with Amelia Bones, he went to speak with his team and assign them some tasks, before walking to Gringotts himself and wondering if he had made the right choice when inviting Amelia to their secret meeting.
This was going to be the first time they all got together after exchanging some letters. It had actually been Pollux Black's idea to inform Dumbledore and a few others about the potential war coming their way, and the new Dark Lord's appearance.
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