A week has passed since the Weasleys left Ottery St Catchpole.
Honestly, after getting used to Fred and George's constant noise, Kael still felt a little unsettled by the sudden silence.
Percy would come home occasionally, but who knows what Fudge said to him—he seemed like a different person lately, showing open hostility toward anyone connected to Dumbledore.
So Kael didn't really have much to say to him; better to use that time to figure out how to deal with the Ministry of Magic soon.
...
Soon, it was August 11th.
That afternoon, Kael was in his room flipping through the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery and the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, when he suddenly heard a knock downstairs.
Kael looked up, a little dazed.
Ever since Fred and George went to Grimmauld Place, he hadn't heard a knock at the door in ages.
Cedric maybe?
Kael wondered, getting up to glance outside the window.
"Professor Dumbledore?" Kael called out instinctively, seeing Dumbledore standing outside.
"Oh, I was wondering if you'd gone to Grimmauld Place," Dumbledore said with a smile. "Mind treating me to a cup of tea?"
"Of course, Professor. Just a moment."
A few minutes later, Kael set a cup of black tea in front of Dumbledore, grabbed a jar filled with sugar cubes from the cabinet, and a plate of butter biscuits.
"Thank you."
As Dumbledore added sugar to his tea, he said, "First, I owe you an apology, Kael. When I was explaining to others what happened on the hilltop that day, I forgot to remind them to keep it confidential.
"Somehow the news reached Fudge's ears, and now the Ministry seems to see you as an enemy."
"It's fine, Professor," Kael shook his head.
It wouldn't have stayed secret for long anyway; even he hadn't really tried to hide it, and the Ministry was bound to learn sooner or later.
And the Death Eaters knew about it too—Kael remembered several of them had links to the Ministry, so stirring up trouble for him wouldn't be hard at all.
"There's another thing." Dumbledore went on, "Tomorrow I need to attend Harry's hearing, so I might not have time to accompany you to your questioning… How about Minerva goes with you? I recall she and Ms. Hopkirk are old friends."
"No need." Kael shook his head, "It's just a simple inquiry, no need to make such a fuss. I can go myself, and besides, my dad is coming with me tomorrow."
"Minerva requested it herself," Dumbledore replied. "You're still a student, and even on holiday, professors have a duty to make sure you won't face any unfair judgment. She'll be in the Ministry's atrium tomorrow morning waiting for you—so keep an eye out."
"Alright then," Kael agreed. Having Professor McGonagall along wasn't bad; just as Dumbledore said, professors wouldn't let their students get taken advantage of.
"Did you come just for this?"
"That's the most important thing." Dumbledore took a sip of tea. "But there's something else… I suppose you've heard from Dugald, right? I'm planning, in a personal capacity, to call a meeting to share the truth with those willing to trust us—so they're not misled by false rumors."
Kael nodded, "Mr. McPhail mentioned it in his letter."
"The meeting is set for August 20th, in Hogsmeade," Dumbledore said. "If you've nothing else planned, want to come along?"
"I can attend too?" Kael asked curiously.
After all, anyone Dumbledore invited had to be famed in the Magic Realm, and he was just a fifth—oh wait, sixth-year student now. Could he really fit in there?
"No one is more suitable than you." Dumbledore seemed to read Kael's thoughts and smiled, "I actually wanted to invite you directly, but worried you might have other plans, so I thought I'd ask first."
"I'd love to take part," Kael said.
"Good, then I'll come pick you up when the time comes." Dumbledore stood. "But for now, I need to go to Little Whinging and prepare for Harry's hearing tomorrow."
"Need any help?"
"Thank you, but I'm just asking around if anyone saw anything—not too complicated, one person's enough."
Dumbledore set his teacup down. "Thanks for the tea and biscuits. I'll see you tomorrow."
With that, he Apparated away.
Now Kael was alone in the living room.
He'd wanted to chat about other stuff too—things about the Ministry and Fudge—but Dumbledore moved so fast, he'd left before Kael could say anything.
And during the conversation, Kael had already sensed it: Dumbledore seemed extra busy, almost rushed.
He didn't speak quickly, but he drank his tea in a hurry—barely two gulps and it was gone.
He never acted like that at school. For tea so sweet Kael would need black pepper to cut the taste, Dumbledore usually enjoyed it slowly, not like today, just finishing it up.
It showed he never intended to stay long from the start.
But thinking about it, it made sense. Anything to do with Voldemort was urgent; Dumbledore probably hadn't had a free moment in a month.
Still, there's no rush—he could talk more when he went to Hogsmeade in a few days.
Kael went upstairs to his room, still surprised Dumbledore actually invited him to the meeting. He'd thought Dumbledore might ask him to join the Order of Phoenix this time.
Yet Dumbledore hadn't mentioned the Order at all.
Now it seemed Dumbledore, like Mrs. Weasley, didn't want any underage young wizards in it.
That evening, Chris came home only when it was fully dark, but he looked happy, stepping inside with a noticeably lighter stride.
"No need to worry," Chris said with a smile. "I went to the Leaky Cauldron earlier, but Tom Senior told me someone had already spoken to him, and he's agreed to go to the Ministry tomorrow with Mafalda to explain things.
"You could tell Tom is just as confused by it. He told me that before all this, he'd never heard of anyone getting a warning from the Ministry just for using a charm in the Leaky Cauldron."
"That's good," Kael said. "How do I get there tomorrow, with you? Or should I wait till the scheduled time?"
"Come with me, I'll take you," Chris replied. "But we need to go a bit early; your mum needs you for something. We have to stop by the Department of Mysteries first, then head to the Office of the Prohibition of the Misuse of Magic."
"What is it? Why the Department of Mysteries?"
"Honestly, I'm not sure myself." Chris shook his head. "Before leaving work, I got a note from your mum saying to bring you over as soon as possible—that's all it said."
"But doesn't the Department of Mysteries have assignments?" Kael asked. "Can we even get in?"
"Not we, you." Chris answered.
"She'll only take you into the Department of Mysteries, and after it's done, I'll take you to the inquiry."
...