0746 Treatment Plan

Under Bryan's intervention, the dark witch Jasna Rosier had been detained and thrown into the prison of Azkaban. Yet despite the significance of this capture and the circumstances surrounding it, Bryan hadn't breathed a single word about her current situation to Dumbledore, nor had he made any mention of the 'gift' he had left behind for Grindelwald.

To be honest, Bryan himself was uncertain whether Grindelwald could understand the veiled information he had conveyed through his actions. Beyond that question, he was equally uncertain about whether Grindelwald would truly leave Nurmengard prison.

Perhaps most troubling was in this all, Bryan wasn't even sure that what he was doing was morally right or strategically good in the long term.

His reason for acting in such an indirect and secretive manner actually came from a deep-seated and persistently nagging sense of insecurity.

The future was like an uncharted ocean, uncertain and confusing in its vast possibilities and hidden dangers. Bryan had enough wisdom and experience to understand that what he would need to face in the coming years was definitely not limited to just Voldemort who, according to prophecy and probability, would 'eventually be defeated' through the combined efforts of the light.

If the legendary Merlin and the four founders of Hogwarts had indeed laid plans concerning him a full thousand years in advance, then surely Herpo the Foul was an even more formidable ordeal. That ancient dark wizard, who existed somewhere in the shadow, constantly coveting and scheming to claim the light of their world, was certainly no easy opponent to face or defeat.

In this current era, with its fractured magical communities and deep-seated mistrust between various factions, there were far too few wizards who had the power to potentially become allies with him.

"Tell me about Neville's parents," Dumbledore said, his voice breaking the heavy silence that had settled over the hospital room.

Dumbledore's resilience and ability to sort his emotions exceeded Bryan's expectations. By the time Bryan had returned to his chair with his prepared teacup, Dumbledore had already managed to regain his composure, though his voice still carried a hoarse tone.

"You intend to treat Alice and Frank Longbottom in the same manner that you treated this unfortunate Muggle, don't you?" Dumbledore said furrowing his brow as he considered the consequences of such an approach, "But the problem with applying this method to their situation is that Augusta Longbottom and young Neville will almost certainly never accept the idea of Alice and Frank becoming completely different people from who they originally were."

"There are two potentially insurmountable difficulties with this approach," Bryan replied thoughtfully, also setting aside some of his own worries. His fingertip began rubbing the rim of his teacup.

"As we discussed in detail at the beginning of our conversation, from a purely ethical standpoint, completely erasing all of a person's memories is basically equal to erasing their personality and sense of self. And the complete disappearance of personality can indeed be defined as a form of death."

Bryan paused, allowing the weight of his words to settle before continuing with his analysis. "Neville's parents' current situation is somewhat more favorable than this Mr. Pastore's circumstances. Alice and Frank are being provided with excellent care at St. Mungo's, attended by healers who ensure their physical needs are met and their condition remains stable.

Even if we choose not to attempt any form of intervention or treatment, they can realistically continue to live for several more years, perhaps even decades, in their current state. Because of this relative stability, I find myself unable to unilaterally make the decision about whether to attempt treating them."

Dumbledore's expression grew thoughtful as he pondered over Bryan's words.

This was indeed a problem of extraordinary complexity.

"And the second difficulty you mentioned?"

"As you pointed out, Headmaster Dumbledore, I cannot and will not attempt to transform Neville's parents into completely different people with entirely foreign personalities," Bryan explained, his voice taking on a deeper tone.

"Therefore, after the initial phase of clearing their damaged memories and removing the traumatic imprints left by the Cruciatus Curse, my idea is to collect all the intact memories about the original Alice and Frank from most people who knew them well throughout their lives."

Bryan's explanation grew more detailed as he warmed to this subject.

"For example, we would need to gather memories from Mrs. Augusta Longbottom, from all the professors who taught them during their years at Hogwarts, including yourself, from former members of the Order of the Phoenix, from their friends, colleagues, and anyone else who had meaningful interactions with them during their lives."

Bryan paused in his detailed explanation, his gaze meeting Dumbledore's eyes as he continued with the most crucial aspect of his proposal.

"Finally, I would compile and synthesize all these collected memories together into a complete pot of their personalities, experiences, and relationships, then carefully re-instill this reconstructed identity into Neville's parents.

This complex matter would certainly require you to take the lead in coordination and implementation, Headmaster Dumbledore. Mrs. Longbottom isn't familiar with me personally, and given the sensitive nature of what we're proposing, she would never trust me with something like this."

Dumbledore finally grasped fully about Bryan's concerns. This approach could hardly be called conventional treatment in any meaningful sense of the word; instead, it would constitute nothing less than 're-producing' or 're-creating' Frank and Alice Longbottom from the fragments of memory.

The soul would still be the same soul, the body still the same body. However, the process would involve completely erasing the original, damaged mind and reconstructing their personalities from external sources—a method that was almost fantastical in its ambition and scope, yet held genuine possibility of success based on the evidence they had witnessed.

After all, they already had a successful example of such memory reconstruction lying peacefully in the hospital bed right beside them.

The greatest philosophical and ethical difficulty with this approach was: if the procedure succeeded, how would anyone regard the newly 'born' Frank and Alice Longbottom? Would they still be considered the same people they had originally been?

For a moment, even Dumbledore felt bewildered.

"I must say, Bryan—" Dumbledore began after a period of intense pondering. He shook his head slowly, not in rejection but in amazement at the audacity and brilliance of the concept. "This is an astonishingly brilliant and innovative idea. If we were to work together on implementing this approach, I believe the chances of achieving success would be very high indeed."

Dumbledore paused, his expression growing more serious as he continued, "But there is a principle we must not ignore or avoid, regardless of our good intentions or the potential benefits of our actions. Neither you nor I are the people with the moral or legal right to make this decision. Only Augusta Longbottom, and Neville as their son, have that right."

"My suggestion," Bryan replied, shaking his head with a mixture of understanding and gentle disagreement, "is that you can certainly discuss about it with Mrs. Longbottom. However, as for Neville—there's no need to put that child's mind to yet another emotional ordeal by burdening him with such complex and painful decisions."

Dumbledore carefully interlaced his fingers, his posture becoming still and thoughtful. He remained in this silence for several minutes. When he finally spoke, his decision was principled, though perhaps not totally practical.

"I agree with your viewpoint regarding Neville's emotional wellbeing, Bryan, and I appreciate your desire to protect him from further trauma. However, you and I equally lack the right to make that decision on his behalf, regardless of our good intentions.

The question of whether Mr. Longbottom needs to be fully informed about the true nature of any proposed treatment for his parents is itself a decision that requires consultation with Augusta. Our role is limited to offering our advice and expertise; the ultimate choices must remain with the family."

Bryan shook his head. Working with Dumbledore always presented these kinds of challenging moral dilemmas. The headmaster's views and suggestions were always so ethically 'perfect' and morally undisputable that you couldn't find meaningful fault with them from a philosophical standpoint.

Yet they undoubtedly carried an air of being somewhat 'idealistic' and 'indecisive' when it came to making the hard choices that real-world situations often needed.

Tap, tap, tap— The sharp tap tap sound broke through their philosophical discussion.

An owl was huddled in the small window high on the wall outside the ward as it urgently tapped its beak against the glass Bryan only glanced once, and the light in his eyes immediately intensified. Without hesitation, he left his seat and quickly walked to the window, standing on his toes to reach the latch and allow the exhausted messenger to enter the warm room.

The moment Bryan saw and recognized the style of the envelope clutched in the owl's claws the entire aura surrounding him suddenly grew heavy.

"What's wrong, Bryan? What's happened?" Dumbledore asked with immediate concern, his voice turning sharp with alertness.

The change in Bryan's demeanor and magical aura was too obvious. Dumbledore, who had been thinking how to approach Augusta Longbottom to get her agreement to Bryan's treatment plan, immediately came to full attention. He also stood up from his chair, and his eyes focused on Bryan with an expression of solemn concern.

But Bryan didn't immediately answer the urgent question. Instead, his fingers moved as he opened the letter.

The text written on the parchment wasn't long—it took only about ten seconds for Bryan to absorb and process all the words. However, he read the message several times. Throughout this process, his expression remained as deep and unreadable as still water. Finally, after the tense silence, he released a quiet sigh.

"I need to leave for a while, Headmaster Dumbledore, as for the matter of Mrs. Longbottom and the—"

"I'll go speak with Augusta personally," Dumbledore interrupted in a decisive tone. "If she agrees to consider this treatment plan, then I'll contact all the people who knew Alice and Frank throughout their lives as soon as possible, requesting that they voluntarily provide their most vivid and meaningful memories of the couple. Bryan—"

Dumbledore's voice took on a note of concern as he looked at Bryan, who seemed to be struggling with poor spirits and stress after reading the letter. "If you need any help?"

"Oh, it's nothing too serious," Bryan replied, stuffing the letter into his robes' inner pocket. He managed to produce what he hoped was a convincing smile as he continued, "If circumstances allow and things proceed more quickly than anticipated, perhaps I'll be able to return by tomorrow morning to continue our discussions."

Click—

Bryan turned the handle of the ward door, and immediately Sirius who had been waiting somewhat drowsily in the corridor outside, leaning against the opposite wall with his arms crossed, immediately perked up with energy and attention.

"How did it go in there?" Sirius asked with excitement, pushing himself away from the wall and moving closer to Bryan. "Has that Muggle's recovery been confirmed? Can the method you used to restore his sanity be successfully applied to Alice and Frank's situation?"

The healers who had been waiting patiently in the corridor throughout Bryan and Dumbledore's private discussion also refused to disperse or return to their regular duties. Instead, they crowded around Bryan with expressions of intense curiosity and excitement.

"Could you please tell us exactly how you accomplished this remarkable feat, Mr. Watson!" one of the senior healers exclaimed. "We've been studying the patient's condition, and the transformation is simply unprecedented!"

"This is a miracle, Mr. Watson!" another healer chimed in, her eyes were bright with admiration. "You've successfully restored the sanity and cognitive function of a Muggle who had been mentally shattered by the Cruciatus Curse. This type of magical damage has been considered a completely unsolvable problem throughout the wizarding world for centuries!"

"Please, say a few words about your methods, Mr. Watson!" a third healer pressed urgently. "Tell us about your innovative approach, where your inspiration came from, what theoretical frameworks you used!!"

"Oh, don't be stingy with the details, Bryan!" Dilys Derwent, the headmistress in the portrait on the opposite wall, also waved her arms. "I'd very much like to hear about your techniques and theories as well!"

"I'm very sorry to disappoint everyone's curiosity," Bryan replied with an apologetic smile. "The treatment of this Muggle patient was merely a bold experimental approach. Whether this technique can be safely extended to other patients with similar conditions still requires long rigorous verification through proper clinical trials.

The process isn't convenient to disclose publicly at this time, both for patient confidentiality reasons and because premature disclosure could lead to dangerous attempts at replication without proper understanding of the risks involved."

Having given this explanation that managed to be both truthful and tactfully evasive, Bryan caught Dumbledore's worried gaze through the open doorway. Under that concerned gaze, he quickly gave a reassuring look and subtle nod to the clearly bewildered Sirius and the equally confused Tonks. Then, without further explanation or delay, he strode away down the corridor.

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