With Dumbledore now 'properly' hidden within the Department of Mysteries, with even the knowledge he was there by those who knew protected from being discovered and with the Aurors now unable to locate him, together with classes back up and running at Hogwarts and things moving apace, events of note began to taper off.
The Unspeakables were slowly dragging out of Dumbledore all the information the man had previously locked away in his mind by using the Truth Chair, small doses of Veritaserum in his food and the occasional Legilimency attack; just to ensure he knew that avoiding answering a question would lead to a massive headache and the truth coming out anyway. Their other method was also deceiving him into believing he was now with them for weeks, when it was days; then months, when it was weeks.
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―==(oIo)==―
ˇ
At Hogwarts, the rest of the Heirs had been brought in to 'help' Harry train for the Second Task and were just as enthusiastic about it. They even made a mad game out of it. Two on one, became three on one, became three on two, four on two, five on two.
Of course, it started with Harry doing almost all of the dodging until Tracey was brought in. Then he dragged in Neville to help him, which brought in both Susan and Hannah.
It helped that the obstacles were there the first time Neville was brought in, or the poor boy would have ended up looking like a polka-dot clown from all the coloured dots. They'd promised not to use stinging hexes on him until he managed to get used to it, but once he did there were as many yelps of sudden pain from the sandy-haired boy as there was from Harry.
Once the others discovered why Harry had first started this form of 'training' the others wanted to see him summon the broom, too.
While they were still in their training clothes and working in the gym, they stepped out, waited for Harry to change it and stepped back in again.
When he demonstrated the summoning charm on a broom that was just there and waiting, Harry was easily able to avoid getting skewered. He thought it was travelling as slow as a turtle and couldn't figure out why he was almost skewered with it the first time he tried this.
Wanting to summon something a second time, he simply cast, "Accio!" before he realised there was nothing there, thought of Hermione finding another broom and accidentally summoned her from the other end and into the pool about twenty feet in from where she was standing.
When she popped up she was spluttering and bellowed, "Harrison James Potter!"
As he was standing there part horrified, part amazed and part amused he'd accidentally yanked his betrothed into the pool, he suddenly felt himself yanked a good ten feet forward into the pool, too.
He had no idea she had her wand in her hand, but neither did she until she silently cast the same charm right back at him.
It was less than thirty seconds before all seven of them were in the pool either laughing or yelling at one another.
What none of them knew was, when the Abbott girl was making a dash for the door to escape and got tagged by a summoning charm from Susan into the pool, both the charm and the girl just missed the stationed and disillusioned auror who was watching them, self-silenced and laughing her head off.
_‗_
―==(oIo)==―
ˇ
Unknown to the seven students, Harry's auror detail had never gone away. Since he'd returned to the school it had dropped to only one following him everywhere except within the Lords' Quarters. However, they were always there and always disillusioned and silenced at all other times.
They had also taken to following the seven into the Room of Requirement and were both stunned and gleeful the seven of them were working hard to get fit. They thought the colourball 'battles' were brilliant and had already sent off reports of it to the 'higher ups'. However, it took quite a bit of concentration on their part not to get hit by a wayward cast at those times.
The only time since Harry had re-entered the school a specifically tailing auror had made themselves known was during the confrontation with the Malfoy boy. However, that particular auror was not on the PPD - the Potter Protection Detail. He was one assigned to the castle and was later told that, when disillusioned in future, not cause himself to be seen. They did not want Lord Potter to know there were disillusioned aurors about more than he suspected.
When Nott had made his play on the aborted Hogsmeade weekend, the following auror was about to step in when Potter made his charge and made the point moot.
He was also the one who provided a pensieve memory of the event, which meant no one else's was asked for or required.
On that same day, a few hours later and when the Lord Nott had stormed into her office and demanded 'the Potter brat' be arrested and thrown in Azkaban, Madam Bones calmly told him she had only the hour earlier reviewed a certified pensieve memory of the event and would do no such thing.
"Lord Potter will not be charged, Lord Nott," she calmly stated. "However, your Heir most certainly will be. He and his two friends set up and laid in wait an ambush. It was clearly premeditated and Lord Potter only injured your precious Heir after he and his two friends injured Miss Granger and Miss Greengrass."
Before Nott could arc up again, she gave him a firm and very direct look and said, "Your Heir attacked and injured the magical ward of Lord Sirius Black of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, who also happens to be the Lady Presumptive, through betrothal, of the Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter; and, further, also injured the Heiress Presumptive of the Noble and Ancient House of Greengrass, who happens to be the concubine of Lord Potter. I have asked Lords Potter, Black and Greengrass to let me handle dealing with your grandson. However, if you interfere in both my handling of the situation and the rightful charging of the boy, I will inform them all that you have decided to interfere.
"If I have to do that then you can expect those three to come after you. And, need I remind you, two of them are of the Seven. You'd best ensure your affairs are in order and your Will properly filed and ready before you do."
She gave that a moment to sink in as the man turned almost pasty white before she asked, "Now, Lord Nott, are you interfering with my investigation?"
Nott stood there for a moment, before he spun about and fled. He'd call it, 'tactically retreated' or similar, but Amelia knew the man was wanting out of her office and away as quickly as he could; so, he fled.
As she heard him bark at one of her aurors to get out of his way as he practically ran out through the auror bullpen, she gave a snort of amusement and thought to herself, 'Potter might cause me some heartburn with making us look like idiots; but, his getting Fudge and his pet toad out of my hair so I can get on with my job, more than made up for it.'
Once Theodore Nott was revived from getting his testicles 'fixed', as was the Cowley boy's also damaged testicles, but not to the same amount, she was in the hospital informing them both they were being charged. Both were also moved, at that time, down to the DMLE-secure ward on her direct orders. McGruder was currently cooling his heels in one of her holding cells.
Nott had blustered and said, "My Lord will have me free in no time; you'll see!" he smugly said.
"He's already been in to see me," she smirked right back. "As far as he's concerned, you're mine. You went up against one of the Seven; one who is of and the person who reactivated and heads the Potter-Longbottom Alliance. But, not only that, you injured the magical ward of another of the Seven and the Heir Presumptive of a third Noble House. I might consider your Lord to be an idiot, at times; but, he's not that big an idiot.
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