Chapter 184 – The Summit (1)
In the headmaster’s office, Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk, his glasses resting on an open letter while he was pinching the ridge of his nose. Luckily, he was alone, nobody witnessing his grimace as the paintings of old headmasters were yet to be put back to their hanging spots. As with everything else, every painting was thoroughly investigated, looking for remaining hidden traps and providing Dumbledore with a place where he could be alone with his thoughts.
"You little bastard." he grunted, muttering under his beard, unable to decide whether he was scolding Conrad, Quincy, or Grindelwald for this plan.
At first, he received a private letter from Flamel and Zevron, the new Headmaster of Durmstrang, congratulating him on restoring peace and suggesting they should meet officially to tell every wizard and witch that peace is finally restored amongst a wizarding kind. Yet, before he could answer, both the Daily Prophet and that busybody Quibbler published their big ’scoop’ about it, saying there are rumors of the return of the Triumvirate—meaning the glory of the three schools...
"It is your doing, isn’t it?" He mumbled, thinking of his old friend, linking him with Durmstrang and with the news of what happened there.
He was also put in a spot because his connection with Flamel has been little to none since returning to Great Britain. Were they still allies? He couldn’t tell, not after they came to an agreement with Durmstrang. They were supposed to be their guards, the school that protects his back and deals with Durmstrang. Instead, they settled. He no longer knew what to believe, mainly because Flamel was old. If anyone, he could be the one alone who would be able to outplay him, something he was always mindful and afraid of.
There was no way to get out of this, not with how everything stood at the moment. He already knew that his supporters would, at best, land ministry positions but not become the Prime Minister. He could work with that... He could work with him if Neville became the new head of the Ministry. Yet, he stepped back for Minerva’s sake, which made Dumbledore confident that all would be well in the future. Yet, as soon as one worry of his was dispelled, another reared its head right after.
"Hmph! Sure! Let’s play it rough then." He scoffed, put his glass up, summoned an automatic, enhanced quill, and began to pen his answers simultaneously.
He began writing multiple letters at once to regain control over the events. A pair would head out, going to the other two headmasters and inviting them to Hogwarts. Then, there were letters going to Minerva and the muggle-born youngster, Hermione Granger. When those invitations were finished, new ones began to be written, aimed at the Anguine household and, lastly, a dozen or so for the press.
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