23

The weight on her shoulders and the heat in front of her were so real that Petunia stood stupidly where she was, unable to react at all. She knew how red she must have been.

Perhaps it was a bit out of place, she was desperately telling herself with what little sense she had left. This is not a... A hug that she should have blushed in response to, a sign of gratitude, of trust, of seeking reassurance -- instead of just standing there, she should have reached up and patted him on the back, told him it was going to be okay, offered him some support and encouragement from friends...

But she couldn't help herself. She was red from ear to neck, frightened, and patted him with a trembling hand. Her voice wobbled as she spoke, trying to sound normal.

"It'll be all right." 'she whispered, feeling unusually short of words.' Well, that... My mother says that being in a bad mood can also affect patients, so you have to be positive when visiting patients, and I'm sure your father would have wanted the same."

"I think so, too." Eli buried his head in her shoulder, gave two low chuckles, and said very softly, "If only he'd really told me that right away."

Petunia felt that she might have said something wrong, but this time she didn't feel embarrassed, for all she felt was the sadness in Eli's voice. Not knowing what to say next, she turned to her sister for help.

Lily was staring at them both, startled. She had been schoolmates with Eli for a year and a half, and had known him to be a very agreeable man, but one who had always been gentlemanly about social distancing. She had never seen anyone so close to him as James, who knew him so well that he could put his arm round his neck without hesitation.

And he did it on his own initiative. Lily, her eyes wide, looked from her sister to Eli, vacillating between what she seemed to have discovered and what she must have overthought.

Before she had finished hesitating, Eli had let go of Petunia and stood upright again. He smiled apologetically at Petunia and called back to Lily. "I'm sorry, I'm a little out of place... My dad got hurt so suddenly, it's probably been a little hard for me to process. I'm sorry. Let me show you up. The ward is empty now, and I feel a little uneasy."

He was still gentle and calm, proper and proper, and did not really seem to need comforting. Both Evans sisters felt in their hearts that this was only right, but as they followed him upstairs they felt a vague sense of regret, a sense that perhaps it might not have been all bad if he had not been so considerate.

In the ward, Mr. Smith slept quietly and did not respond to anyone who came in. Penny and Lily followed Eli softly in, and Lily asked curiously, "Where's your mother, Eli? Is she all right?"

"She's gone to the Ministry of Magic, which is required to register a Death Eater attack on our home, especially as we live in a Muggle community, and there are matters of secrecy law to deal with." Eli said simply.

"Death Eaters? "Asked the Evans sisters, Petunia confused, Lily frightened.

"Your house has been attacked by Death Eaters!" "Said Lily incredulously, her face going white." Oh my God, they're attacking Muggles -- this is terrible!"

There was so much more to be said. Eli shook his head and said nothing more. He went to the bed in silence and checked on his father -- everything was fine, his breathing was quiet, his brow was calm, but he was still awake.

Lily frowned suspiciously.

"Why didn't they send someone to the ward to investigate?" 'she asked, puzzled.' People's families have just been attacked in a terrible way, and there's no one in the wards except their teenage sons who are on holiday... The Ministry should have been more considerate of your family."

"This was mild in a Death Eater attack. No one was killed and no irreversible permanent damage was done. The healers say the Death Eaters were a little bit forgiving of their relatives." Eli explained to her. "Death Eater attacks usually kill people. This is the big deal. You're lucky you didn't.

"They're the Ministry of Magic! It's the wizarding government!" "Said Lily, startled and uncomprehending." It's their responsibility to catch the Predators! There's nothing to be thankful for about not being killed -- they should have arrested all those Death Eaters!"

"It's always like that, isn't it? "Those who are defined as evil are free to kill and burn, and those who fancy themselves just are subject to all sorts of conditions. Perhaps an Avada Kedavra was fired during the battle. Ministry Aurors will have to remember not to shoot a Death Eater by mistake during the capture. Given time to think, they've probably decided who the Death Eaters will kill with their next spell."

His voice was still calm, but Petunia looked at him -- she could not tell by the negative irony in it, and it made her very worried.

"Eli? She whispered to him, her eyes full of worry. Eli turned his face to meet her gaze, and they looked at each other for a moment, Eli lowering his head and pulling the deliberate indifference from his face.

"I think it's best to leave me alone now." "He sighed, raising his hand and pinching himself between the eyes." I know the Ministry's doing the right thing -- I'm just being angry."

"It happens." Someone at the door said, "We can't ask second-graders to remain 100 percent objective and calm after a loved one has been attacked. That would be too much."

The sound made Eli do a double take. He turned and looked toward the door. Lily followed the sound and saw the man standing in the doorway, startled as well.

'Professor Dumbledore! She was surprised to learn the identity of the visitor.

Penny, who had been out of the picture, was suddenly hit, and she gasped, now the most horrified person in the room. She stepped back hastily and staggered a little behind her sister, trying to hide herself completely behind her and pretend that she was not in the room at the moment.

It was Dumbledore. A strange feeling filled her heart, as if she wanted to shrink into a speck of dust, but also to open her mouth so that everyone could hear her and reveal herself. She might have longed for a mature, serious conversation with Dumbledore, but she was actually unable to utter a word now, as if her vocal cords had suddenly been taken away.

Dumbledore turned and closed the door behind them and walked over to them. He reached Mr. Smith's bedside and bent over him, his long, crooked nose almost touching Mr. Smith's sleeping face.

"How is my father, Professor?" Eli looked at him intently, waiting earnestly for his answer.

'I can't be any better than the healer at St Mungo's, Eli,' he said. "Said Dumbledore gently. His wand hand passed faintly over Mr. Smith's face, and everyone could see that Mr. Smith's slightly furrowed brow had quietly loosened and seemed to be sleeping more peacefully.

"But I'm glad I can tell you that Hobbert should be waking up soon." "He smiled, straightening up and looking at Eli." His body's repairing itself, and it's not easy, but it came in time, and I think it's all right. When the body is severely damaged, the soul, in order to protect itself, often falls into a deep sleep, or what Muggles call a coma. When the soul feels that the body can bear it, it should wake up. This is a proof of human life."

Good, Eli nodded reassuringly. Although the healers at St Mungo's also said that Mr Smith had not been left with incurable injuries, their claims were far less convincing than those of the headmaster of Hogwarts.

"That's great." "Thank you," he said sincerely, with a sigh of relief and at last a genuine smile. "I'm so relieved to hear that -- sorry you had to worry about my family."

"I'm the one who owes you an apology, Eli." "There was a meeting between the Ministry of Magic and the Wizengamot to discuss matters relating to the Death Eaters, and it was with some difficulty that I was unable to visit in time, which must have made it even more difficult for you to calm down."

"No, I didn't..." Eli was on the point of denying it without thinking, but then he paused and, after a few seconds of silence, said only, "I don't blame you."

He paused again, then decided to change the subject at once. He asked, "What was the outcome of the discussion? Has the Ministry decided to take a harsher approach to Death Eaters? Like relaxing the nature of the spells you use in catching the Dead?"

"Ah, that's a long story." "I think it would be a good idea for us to talk it over later - I suppose you would like to take your friends along too?"

"May I? Eli asked, somewhat surprised, looking back at the Evans sisters in the corner.

"Certainly, and I am sure both the Miss Evans have some curiosity and apprehension in their minds." Dumbledore nodded approvingly, also looking at the two sisters. "Friends are everyone's strongest support, and I do not think that most things need to be kept secret from friends, whether it is Lily as a wizard. Miss Evans, it's still Petunia as a Muggle. They are wonderful friends, Miss Evans."

"You... Do you know me?" 'said Petunia in surprise. Her shock overcame her nervousness and she was even able to speak, though with a little tremolo. 'she asked slowly, watching carefully for Dumbledore's reaction.

"Of course, Petunia in the first corner bedroom on the second floor of the Evans house in Cokeworth. Miss Evans. ' "Your letter, which I keep in my office, is a reminder of the courage Hogwarts has sadly missed. But I must say that even if you had not been at Hogwarts you would still have been as good as you were, there is no doubt about that."

Petunia's face was red, and again she could not speak -- this time from shyness. She stood behind Lily, smiled bravely at Dumbledore, and bowed her head quickly.

Dumbledore said he wanted to talk, but of course the others were more than happy to. When Mrs. Smith returned to the ward, Dumbledore explained the request to her, and she agreed at once, not asking her children where they were going next, completely relieved by Dumbledore.

Dumbledore did not take the three of them far; they walked up and down the Curse-Damage corridor on the fifth floor of St Mungo's. The whole corridor was in a hurry, their faces completely unsmiling, and there was a constant air of tension and depression.

"The Ministry's attitude towards the Death Eaters is changing," said Harry. "They had been more inclined to think of the Death Eaters as the embodiment of a radical bloodlust -- the participants, most of whom were of great family and social standing, who had always fought to maintain their detachment, and this seemed no different. This is what most people have always believed, and they insist on deluding themselves with this embellished illusion, indulging in a wishful dream of peace."

"What made these people change their minds and finally open their eyes to the world?" 'said Eli, unable to resist a little sarcasm.' What, did someone burst into the Ministry and give them all a whack in the head? Then I must say he did a good job."

"Because we paid some terrible price." "Said Dumbledore quietly." Perhaps, as you say, the so-called price of justice."

Eli snapped his mouth shut and fell silent. The two girls leaned fearfully closer to each other. This was the first time they had ever had a conversation like this, and it was far more difficult for students whose lives were dominated by schoolwork and friendship to get a sense of these things.

"Look this way." Dumbledore pointed them toward the nameplate in the room in front of them, which read, "Sander Bruce, Cruciatus Curse Damage."

"He's an Auror at the Ministry of Magic. He's just finished his training last year. He's twenty-one, of course. "He was left alone three months ago in the hunt for Death predators -- his Imperius Cursed colleague tricked him into doing so, and there he was tortured by half a dozen Death Eaters, with a total of nineteen detectable Crucius Charms on his body."

Lily screamed, and Petunia clasped her hands to her mouth, muffling the scream to her lips and turning pale.

'Nineteen times! 'said Lily, aghast.' Is he -- is he alive? '

"Alive." "But the torture so severe that it has permanently broken his will, his soul is irreversibly damaged, he is so insane that he will never be able to leave St Mungo's."

Eli opened his mouth, then closed it. But at last he couldn't help himself, and said gloomily, "My father's had two Cruciatus Curses, and I already thought it couldn't get any worse... I'm sorry, professor, I didn't really appreciate the gravity of the situation."

"You're the last person who should be apologizing, Eli. It's Voldemort and his Death-eaters who should be apologizing." Dumbledore looked serious. He raised his hand and pointed it towards the whole row of rooms ahead of them.

'The Spell Damage section on St Mungo's Fifth Floor used to be primarily populated by victims of spell accidents, but now it's almost exclusively populated by victims of unforgivable curses. There were wizards and Muggles among them -- Muggle hospitals didn't know what kind of injuries they had suffered, and their common diagnosis was that the patient had been electrocuted. So the Muggle victims will remain at St Mungo's, where therapists will do their best to help them suffer less. It was the accumulation of these gory examples that finally shattered the wishful thinking of some people, and made them realize, in hindview, that they were in the middle of a brutal war, circumstances that no one could optimistically imagine a peaceful solution."

"The Volt... Voldemort, and the Death Eaters, why are they attacking Muggles?" "Said Petunia, shocked and frightened, unable to stop looking at Dumbledore, who, even though he had been a source of considerable disappointment and embarrassment to her, she had found on their first meeting a man who could provide a sense of security and trustworthiness.

"They see Muggles and opponents alike as playthings to be humiliated at will." Dumbledore said quietly, his blue eyes looking at her through half-moon spectacles, and she caught her breath.

"Magic is a wonderful gift, but not all people use it for good. The more powerful people decide to do evil, the more evil they do. That's one of the reasons I regret not being able to make an exception to admit non-magical children to Hogwarts -- life in the wizarding world is much harder than you would expect if you don't have magic yourself, especially under these circumstances."

"How can this be! 'stammered Petunia, shocked and frightened.' But the wizards I know... I mean, like Eli... He's very friendly! He's not evil! I think I was prejudiced, and I apologize very seriously..."

"That's what separates us from those people." "In any case, we would not point our wands at innocent people, would we, Eli?"

Eli didn't hesitate.

"Of course." "I would never do that," he said. "I have the ability to know right from wrong. I would never betray my soul."

"I think so." Dumbledore smiled gently. "We will not agree with Voldemort and the Death Eaters, we will stop and fight what they do... It's what we're meant to do, and because of who we are, the way is here."