'Professor Watson committed a murder?'
Harry blinked his green eyes rapidly, unable to hide the shock and rising anger that burned in them like bright green fire.
He would never be so naïve as to believe that Professor Watson's hands hadn't been stained with blood over the years. But that blood, Harry was absolutely certain, all belonged to those heinous dark wizards who had chosen their path of cruelty and destruction.
Professor Watson would never harm the innocent!
Dumbledore, by contrast, showed a thoughtful expression rather than instant outrage or denial. His fingers stroked the beard beneath his chin, his blue eyes grew distant as his mind began working through the information.
From just that single statement about the murder accusation, he sensed something deeply amiss. However, he didn't rush to question Amelia aggressively or demand instant clarification. Instead, maintaining his composure and grace, he inquired politely,
"Then, what are the specific reasons that Bryan has been deemed a suspect? Surely MACUSA didn't arrest someone of his stature and reputation without what they considered compelling evidence?"
Anger clouded Amelia's thoughts, making her temples pound and her vision narrow with frustrated fury. The injustice of it all made it nearly impossible for her to explain the whole complicated affair with proper articulation and chronological order. Her thoughts were a jumbled mess of outrage and concern.
She forced herself to take a deep breath and focus on the most important points, the core facts that had led to this disaster.
"The murdered wizard: Santiago Columbus belonged to the MACUSA Wand Permit Office," She began. "Based on preliminary surveying and forensic investigation of the crime scene, the Aurors determined he died from exposure to Fiendfyre. The curse consumed him almost completely, leaving very little physical evidence behind."
She paused, her hands clenching into fists at her sides.
"And Bryan's wands, both of them which had been officially sealed and stored in that very office, have gone missing! They weren't in their protected storage location.
When Bryan first entered the country through immigration, the head of the Security Department, Trask Graves, made a judgment call. He considered Bryan a potentially dangerous individual, so he refused to issue him a wand permit. His wands were confiscated at the border as a security measure."
Harry's mouth opened immediately, indignation flooding through him. He wanted to demand loudly what possible grounds this Graves person had to determine Professor Watson was dangerous.
Professor Watson had clearly heroically saved nearly a hundred thousand wizards on the night of the Quidditch World Cup final when those Dark Wizards attacked!
But catching a glimpse of the solemnity on Professor Dumbledore's face, Harry sensibly bit back his protest and remained silent.
"Just because of that?"
Professor McGonagall's sharp voice cut through the office silence, showing her considerable anger with every pronounced tone.
"Just because of these circumstantial coincidences, they detained Bryan Watson? Forgive me for being blunt, madam, but is your Security Department perhaps operating with... inadequate consideration of due process and proper investigative procedure? Are they perhaps too hasty in exercising their authority?"
She drew herself up to her full height which wasn't particularly impressive physically but seemed to fill the room with her fury.
"A wizard dying from Fiendfyre proves what, exactly? That someone skilled in advanced dark magic committed the crime which narrows it down to hundreds or thousands of possibilities across the Wizarding world!
As for Bryan's wands being stolen from supposedly secure storage... Are they seriously suspecting that Bryan committed murder simply to retrieve his own property?"
Professor McGonagall's voice rose with each sentence, her control slipping as her indignation rose.
"This is absolutely ridiculous! Why don't they suspect that some dark wizards, specifically coveting Bryan's power, took this opportunity to steal his wands for their own purposes? Why don't they consider that enemies of Bryan's might have orchestrated this entire incident to frame him?"
She took a sharp breath, her chest heaving.
"If you ask me, Bryan is completely the victim here. Your Ministry failed in its basic duty to safeguard his property properly, causing him to suffer a significant loss, and yet based purely on speculation, without any reliable evidence at all that would stand up to proper scrutiny, they're imprisoning one of the most respected wizards in the international community. This is completely—"
Professor McGonagall's chest heaved violently as she searched for a word strong enough to convey her outrage.
"Completely outrageous! An absolute disgrace to magical law enforcement!"
"Even the foolish Fudge wouldn't do something like this," Ron muttered quietly to Harry, though not quite quietly enough to be completely inaudible. "At least, I don't think he would. Maybe he would. Never mind."
The professor's passionate accusations left Amelia feeling deeply embarrassed, her cheeks burning with shame despite knowing she personally had no responsibility for the Security Department's decisions.
But she had nothing to say in defense of her colleagues' actions. In this particular matter, the Security Department's hasty conclusions and prejudicial assumptions made her feel deeply ashamed to be associated with them as well.
She stood there silently, unable to meet Professor McGonagall's fierce gaze, feeling like a student being scolded for her house's poor behavior.
Dumbledore, meanwhile, seemed calm and composed. He raised one hand in a gentle gesture it.
"Your name, my dear?" He asked Amelia kindly. "I don't believe we were properly introduced in all the urgency."
"Amelia Depp, sir," She replied, grateful for the momentary amnesty from Professor McGonagall's fury.
"Then, Amelia," Dumbledore continued with that same gentle courtesy, "were you personally present when Bryan was arrested? Did you witness the actual confrontation?"
After receiving an affirmative reply through Amelia's nod, he asked again.
"Did Bryan not try to defend himself against these accusations? Did he not present any evidence or arguments to prove that when the murder occurred, he couldn't possibly have been at the scene?"
"No—I mean, yes, but he didn't..." Amelia shook her head, struggling to explain behavior that still confused her.
"He did ask the Aurors directly why he was being arrested. But after they explained about the Fiendfyre and the missing wands, after that initial question... he simply agreed to go with them. He returned voluntarily to his hotel to remain under house arrest."
Professor McGonagall, whose face had been flushed with anger just moments ago, immediately frowned at this information with visible puzzlement.
Meanwhile, Hermione, who had been the first to stand up in shock at the initial news, also blinked rapidly in obvious confusion.
Everyone gathered in this circular office was close to Bryan in various capacities and familiar with his distinctive style of conduct.
No one present would believe for even a moment that Bryan would be intimidated or frightened by a group of Aurors, regardless of how many of them there were or how aggressively they presented themselves.
And when facing such a visibly flawed arrest warrant, one which even they, hearing about it secondhand could immediately pick out a stack of logical problems with, it was impossible to imagine that Bryan would be rendered speechless by it.
He should have demolished their case in minutes.
There must be something else going on here. Some factor they weren't seeing.
"Albus—"
Professor McGonagall looked toward Dumbledore and called out softly, her voice carrying an unspoken question: What do you think is really happening here?
"I cannot make an accurate judgment at present, Minerva," Dumbledore admitted with honesty. His blue eyes gazed steadily at Amelia.
"Unless I can obtain significantly more information about the circumstances surrounding these events."
"Of course, there's no problem, Professor Dumbledore," Amelia immediately responded, straightening up.
She grasped Dumbledore's meaning instantly and seized the opportunity to be genuinely useful. "I can tell you everything I know. Whatever might help you understand what's really happening."
And so, a lengthy and detailed recounting began.
Amelia started from when she first met Bryan and Remus at the Immigration Office, describing everything she had experienced with them, every situation they faced...
She told them everything in minute detail. Everything, that is, except for those matters she temporarily didn't want to reveal and couldn't reveal without permission like the personal matters related to her familial connection with Bryan.
As she narrated this complex tale, the portraits of former Headmasters and Headmistresses on the walls began whispering among themselves again with interest and speculation. Meanwhile, the several living people in the office besides Amelia and Dumbledore himself gradually showed expressions of rising astonishment.
Bryan hadn't been away from Hogwarts for very long at all, barely more than ten days, a fortnight at most. Yet unexpectedly, in this remarkably short span of time, Bryan had already accumulated many remarkable and dangerous experiences in the American wizarding world.
He'd prevented a Nundu attack, uncovered a vampire conspiracy, participated in high-level political negotiations, and somehow gotten himself accused of murder.
"I believe there's a definite conspiracy at work here, Albus!"
Half an hour later, after the parched Amelia had finally finished recounting everything she could remember, her throat turned dry and her voice grew hoarse, Professor McGonagall immediately looked toward Dumbledore with fierce conviction.
"Perhaps it's the vampire's accomplices seeking revenge! Taking Bryan's wands was their way of striking back at him for disrupting their plans. They killed this poor guy to frame Bryan, to restrain him by having him arrested!"
The theory had a certain logic to it, and Professor McGonagall's expression showed she considered it quite probable.
"We all agree that Bryan would never harm an innocent life just to retrieve his wands, no matter how valuable they might be," Dumbledore said, nodding slightly in acknowledgment of McGonagall's reasoning. "Moreover, based on all these events Amelia has told us about, I also don't believe that under the current circumstances, Bryan has any pressing, urgent need to use his own specific wands."
He paused, his expression growing more thoughtful.
"A wizard of Bryan's ability can work magic with any wand, though perhaps less efficiently. And he has friends like Remus who would lend him a wand without question. No, the risk-reward calculation doesn't support the murder theory at all."
"But how should we help him?" Amelia interjected anxiously, leaning forward in her chair with desperate urgency.
"If they can't catch the real culprit then Bryan will remain under surveillance indefinitely. And Graves..."
She hesitated, then plunged forward. "Graves has significant prejudices against powerful foreign wizards like Bryan. He—!"
Dumbledore raised one hand in a calming gesture, gently stopping Amelia from continuing down this anxious path. The urgency and personal worry that Amelia was displaying caused a flicker of curiosity to pass through his eyes.
Then he too rose from his office chair.
"Based on my long experience and understanding of Bryan's character and capabilities, Amelia—"
Having heard everything, Dumbledore had unexpectedly become even calmer rather than more agitated. He said gently.
"Generally speaking, he would never allow himself to remain in such an apparently unfavorable position without good reason. He's far too clever and far too powerful to be simply trapped. Unless..." He paused meaningfully. "Unless being monitored and restricted actually fits into his own plans somehow. Unless he has a purpose, we cannot yet determine."
"What could Bryan possibly be planning, Albus?" Professor McGonagall pressed, her frustration at not understanding evident in her voice. "What benefit could there be to being under house arrest, suspected of murder?"
"I'm afraid I cannot make an accurate judgment about his specific intentions, Minerva," Dumbledore said with a small smile. "But I believe very strongly that Bryan can protect his own safety adequately, even without a wand in his hand."
Dumbledore came around from behind his desk, and under everyone's attentive, expectant gaze, strode with surprising quickness to where Fawkes perched on his golden branch beside the office window.
"Of course, despite my confidence in Bryan's abilities, we do need to remain appropriately vigilant," He continued, reaching up to gently stroke the phoenix's feathers. "If Bryan truly needs help, if the situation becomes more dangerous than he anticipated, someone should be able to assist him quickly. So..."
He looked apologetically at his faithful companion.
"I apologize for the inconvenience, Fawkes, but I need you to fetch someone for me."
Fawkes blinked his beautiful eyes several times in what might have been nod or slight protest at being turned into a messenger service. Then, he disappeared in a burst of flame that left golden sparks drifting slowly down to the floor.
"Mr... Er... Professor Dumbledore—"
Amelia stumbled over how to properly address him, then pushed forward past her uncertainty.
She understood Dumbledore's meaning clearly enough. He believed Bryan had some plan in motion, some strategy that required him to appear detained and helpless, which was why Bryan was willing to stay at the hotel under surveillance.
And now Dumbledore was preparing to send someone back to America with her, someone who could find an opportunity to secretly meet with Bryan and inquire about the true situation, to offer help if needed.
But there was a practical problem with this plan.
"If you want to send someone back to New York with me to make contact with Bryan..." She hesitated, then pushed forward. "You know, wizards entering the United States need to obtain official approval from MACUSA. There are entry protocols, documentation requirements, customs inspections. We might not have that much time to arrange proper authorization, and attempting to enter without it would be—"
"Oh, please don't worry about such matters," Dumbledore interrupted with a pleasant smile.
"I believe the person I've summoned has wide experience with traveling discreetly across international borders. He has proven methods for hiding himself well enough to avoid official detection by customs and immigration authorities."
Hermione's brow twitched slightly with sudden understanding, and she instinctively turned to look toward Harry with an expression that said she knew exactly who Dumbledore meant.
In the next second, as if summoned by her realization, dazzling flames appeared once more in Dumbledore's office.
The fire swirled and condensed, and from its bright heart emerged Sirius with a solemn, almost grim expression.
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