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[alt_mcgonagall]

 By now you have no doubt heard about the Hogwarts situation- I was not even informed until this morning. "We didn't wish to worry you, Minerva, with your health so delicate of late." Am fighting to learn more, but no one seems to be at their Floo. Composing Howlers, but how much can they ever do?

Any information that can be uncovered will help me: to be seen as having "little birds" that give me information will only help my reputation, with the Inner Circle. But I must be careful to cast this as anger at La Umbridge's impinging on my territory, not sympathy to traitors.

Oh, if I had my mouth, I would bite!

Comments

[alt_lupin]

Minerva.

Life is unpredictable.

Don't take this the wrong way, but -- check the book today. Please. As Alice asked you to, over a week ago Tell us if there are any new names.

[alt_mcgonagall]

New names:

Joseph Samuel
Catherine Quirk
Colin Neilson-Crisp
Adriaan Deklerk
Farhana Rahman
Stella Dodds
Martin Kimber-Lane
Bartemius Peploe

I do not take it the wrong way. There is no other way I could possibly perceive the situation than the way you are implying it might be. Apologies can not

[alt_alice]

Bill, could you and Nick get to work on the paperwork for these right away?

Thank you, Minerva.

[alt_bill]

Yes, of course.

(Don't we have another kid at the Sanctuary with the last name of Peploe?)

[alt_alice]

Yes.

Trixie. Formally Bellatrix. I seem to recall her parents were a bit difficult.

[alt_poppy]

Bellatrix.

And now Bartemius?

They cannot be serious.

[alt_frank]

that's a bloody understatement.

[alt_mcgonagall]

Bellatrix.

I recall the to-do.

[alt_alice]

Minerva;

If you can, I'd like to know more about the source of this. Is it a political move by Umbridge? Was there any actual "treason" at work here? What was so damning?

Is Auror Crouch in her pocket?

Will all the children's private messages be put to similar levels of scrutiny?

I suppose this is one moment to be more than a little grateful for the method created by the twins -- the Juniors won't be caught in this particular trap -- but I can imagine there'll be more than a few students and parents in a panic over this, and Merlin knows they'd have to keep it to themselves.

[alt_mcgonagall]

Well, I have spent most of the day attempting to get to the bottom of it, and I have sussed the matter out as well as ever I will be able to, I imagine.

No actual "treason," only a scapegoat, as Severus has said in his report a few journal-entries up. I do not know Crouch's angle, but it surely is comprised by a combination of vicious power-enjoyment and simple scheming. Dolores is a cunning toad who, it seems, is well able to offer others what they most desire, and to offer excellent little slippery lies to assist in salving one's conscience.

The private messages, I fear, are no longer even nominally private. We must be careful. Fortunately, I do not think that Dolores is interested in making meals of messages more than a few months back—even Death Eaters have little indiscretions from the early days of the journal project, and it would be most impolitic to make her cohort too uncomfortable.

The larger issue is that I am certain, now, that the hammer is going to fall upon me. I have been absent too long, and while the castle runs itself well enough, Dolores has been eating my power-base away from the inside out. I believe that she will make an attempt to take over the Headmistress' position very soon.

I do not believe the castle will accept her as the Head—but nevertheless, we have the true and the false Books to think of. I believe the best course of action will be to hide or destroy the false Book upon my leaving the castle; the Governors have checked the Book recently, and so it might buy us a few precious months. In best circumstances, they might not even flip backwards—luckily, a new page started this month—and so we might eke a few more months yet out of it, until they realise that there are many more Mudbloods than the year before.

I am putting my affairs in order here, so as to be ready to leave as soon as the axe falls. Fortunately, I have been very moderate in obvious treasons within the Headmistress' quarters; even if the castle decides it prefers a sociopath to a sot, she will not find enough to entirely roust me from power. And I believe that the Board of Governors will recognize their mistake with her quickly enough—if I am careful, and do not return to my old ways, I believe I might be able to effect a triumphal return to the castle, eventually.

[alt_frank]

didn't know it had got as bad as all that.

be careful, min.

[alt_alice]

Goodness.

If that's the way the potion's brewing, we must prepare as best as we can.

Hiding the book might be preferable, if you think the castle would help you. It's a risk, but it would take a long time to create another book that would pass inspection. Should time be a factor, however, please put your safety first. I'd rather you destroy it than expose yourself.

And as Frank said, please be careful.

[alt_mcgonagall]

I may be able to take the false book with me, if it comes to that. It is not as carefully warded as the real one is, and I can Transfigure it and pack it as some innocuous bric-a-brac.