Amelia Bones pushed the door open and stepped into the investigation room. As soon as she placed the first step inside, the darkened space brightened, revealing the inside. It was a simple, small room with a chair and a table in the middle and a large two-way mirror next to the door. She walked up to the chair and took her seat as she gazed at the empty flask kept on the table.
Veritaserum, the colorless liquid that it previously contained, was administered to the other person present in the room. On the other end of the table, facing Amelia, was an iron cage.
Inside it was Rubeus Hagrid, the half-giant.
"Rubeus Hagrid," she called. "For the record, state your full name and occupation."
Amelia knew that Veritaserum was not foolproof, just like other kinds of magic, but it did work best upon the unsuspecting, the vulnerable, and those insufficiently skilled. And right now, Hagrid was not in the right state of mind.
Hagrid lifted his head, his dull and swollen eyes meeting hers.
There was the obvious hint of him crying a lot from the state his eyes were in. "Rubeus Hagrid. Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts School o' Witchcraft and Wizardry."
Outside the room, Rufus and other Aurors were listening to the investigation and taking notes of every question and answer. Normally, it was Rufus who was responsible for these types of interrogations, but since Madam Bones had been injured in the event of Azkaban, she has been personally taking part in everything that could be related to the case.
"Good. Now, let's start from the beginning. How did Grawp come to reside in the Forbidden Forest?"
Hagrid hesitated, but the Veritaserum compelled him to answer. "I found 'im... in the giant colony durin' one o' me trips with Olympe Maxime. He was bein' tormented by other giants... left out and beaten 'cause he was smaller. I couldn't leave 'im there, Madam Bones. He's my brother."
Amelia's expression flickered for a brief moment. She glanced at the two-way mirror, her eyes narrowing slightly as she knew her colleagues were also disbelieving beyond the glass.
"Did you just say you went to the mountains where the giants are?" she asked, fishing for more answers. "What were you doing there with Madam Maxime? What was the reason behind this trip?"
Hagrid shifted uneasily in the little space available in the cage. "We went to negotiate with the giants, try to bring 'em on our side in the fight against You-Know-Who."
"Enough with this nonsense," Amelia snapped.
"During the trial of Harry Potter, it has already been proven that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is not back. All I see here is you and Albus Dumbledore spreading baseless fear to disrupt the Ministry's efforts to maintain peace and order!"
Hagrid's face flushed, his large hands gripping the bars of his cage tightly. "It ain't nonsense!" he shouted, his emotion taking over. "Yeh're blind if yeh think he ain't back! He's gatherin' his forces! That's why we went to the giants... to stop him from takin' 'em first!"
Amelia's eyes narrowed dangerously. "And in your so-called effort to stop a threat that does not exist, you have endangered innocent lives. A young boy is dead, Mr. Hagrid... a life cut short because of your recklessness. Do not attempt to justify your actions with imaginary enemies."
Amelia did not let him take a breath under the weight of her words and followed up with another question.
"And do tell me, Hagrid, what other things you did to fight this imaginary enemy of yours, and who else apart from you and Dumbledore is taking part in this?"
"We're... we're all searchin' fer Harry Potter," Hagrid was forced to answer.
Amelia's eyes narrowed as she pressed on. "Who is we? Name every individual involved in this so-called search."
Hagrid attempted to fight the potion but failed.
"The Order... we're part o' the Order... The Weasleys... Remus Lupin..." His voice faltered, his massive chest heaving as he visibly struggled to stop himself from speaking further.
"HAGRID, you are responsible for the murder of Justin Finch-Fletchley," Amelia shouted. "Answer me! Who else is in the Order? Who else is assisting Albus Dumbledore in this foolish attempt?"
Finally, the Veritaserum overpowered him, and the words spilled out against his will.
"Sirius Black..."
The room went deathly silent.
On the other side of the two-way mirror, Rufus Scrimgeour and the other Aurors were shocked.
"Sirius Black," Amelia repeated the name in disbelief, "You're telling me that Albus Dumbledore's so-called Order is working with an escaped convict?"
Hagrid tried to speak, but Amelia cut him off with an upraised hand.
"No more lies, Hagrid," she said coldly. "We have been lenient, but this revelation changes everything. By associating with Sirius Black, you and your Order have crossed a line. You are not just guilty of endangering lives; you are now accomplices to a known fugitive."
Inwardly, Amelia was satisfied. This was going exactly as planned.
Her Lord, Voldemort, was going to be pleased.
...
.
.
In Yorkshire, near a cottage, two Aurors suddenly apparated.
After confirming that there was no one around, they got to the cottage and gave a slight knock on the door. It did not take long before they heard noise from inside, indicating someone was moving toward the door.
"Good evening, gentlemen." The door creaked slightly, and the person from inside spoke.
"Mr Remus Lupin, we are Aurors from the Ministry. Due to a case that is currently ongoing, your presence at the Department of Magical Law is required immediately."
Lupin was surprised at such a statement. What type of case needed him?
Another thing that he was worried about was whether the two wizards in front of him were indeed Aurors from the Ministry or Death Eaters that had escaped from Azkaban. Upon request, the two Aurors provided enough proof that they were indeed real, and so Lupin went with them to the Ministry office.
At the same time, at Ottery St Catchpole, another two Aurors were standing in front of the Burrow, informing Molly Weasley that her presence was needed at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. As for Arthur Weasley, he was already present at the Ministry office and was asked to come to level 2.