The rain drove sideways into the buildings, and the pop of Adam Apparating into his usual alley behind Saint Mungo’s went unnoticed in the howling storm. The Healer ran to the door as the rain pummelled his robe with dark spots. Once inside, Adam wiped the water off his face and ran a hand through his thick, blonde locks to shake out some of the moisture.
Ignoring the lobby witch, seated at her desk as usual, Adam approached the two people sitting in the rickety lobby chairs. Both Madame Thackery and Auror Robards stood up. “You do like to call early,” Adam commented as he pulled out his pocket watch. “It’s only six fifteen in the morning. When you said ‘today,’ I assumed you meant later in the day.”
“We have business to attend to,” Thackery replied as she surveyed Adam with her typical icy gaze. Today, she wore a set of royal blue robes embroidered with silver flowers and golden daggers around the collar, the edges of the sleeves, and the middle of her robe, starting at top of her high collar and descending down the middle, across her stomach, until they met the embroidery on the bottom of the robe.
‘Well, I can appreciate the fact that people are busy,’ Adam thought as he motioned the two Ministry officials to follow him upstairs. They went up the main stairs and not the dingy, back staircase Adam usually took up to his floor. However, he didn’t feel it necessary to look up at the quizzical portraits that greeted the three of them.
When they got to the fourth floor, Adam led them through the set of double doors, over which the golden plague ‘Morticia Gregel Ward’ served witness. Adam led them to his office and opened the door with a tap of his wand.
Thacker wrinkled her nose as she took several steps around the room. “This place seems a bit lacking for an office. Do they pay you well enough?”
‘Ah, she’s in a splendid mood. Maybe it’ll help scare some well needed common sense into my patient.’ Adam smirked as he opened up the cupboard and took out the file. He handed Thackery the physical form he filled out a couple days ago. Thackery looked over the form before handing it to Robards.
“I guess his condition hasn’t changed much since we brought him here?” Robards asked.
Thackery snorted. “His condition should be dead and unconscious. Come now, Venturini, I brought the Veritaserum. Let’s do this properly.”
Adam looked at Robards, who seemed busy studying the meagre room. In a monotone voice, he said, “That chair should not be in the corner. Move it out.” Venturini moved the chair to the center of the room, but Robards placed it a bit closer to the wall.
“When I perform the interrogation, neither of you are to interrupt. I want Venturini to be by the door, and Madame Thackery, please stand in the opposing corner. I only want his hands bound, by the way. No more measures are needed,” Robards snapped off his conditions. Venturini only nodded in reply.
“What if he tries “ ”
Robards raised a hand to cut Thackery off. “This is not my first interrogation. It may be a bit difficult since I cannot use Legilimency to guarantee the results are completely valid, but that should not prove too much of a problem.”
“I’ll bring him in,” Adam said as he left the room. Before he went to the patient’s room, he walked down to call on Barnes. He wrapped on her office door, and she answered it. When she saw Adam, she let out a deep sigh.
“I’m coming. I’m coming,” she said in a weary voice. Both Healers proceeded down the hallway. As Adam was about to draw back the first curtain, Barnes said, “You should really bring Emery back. I don’t like being around him.”
“I told you, if you like Nissel that much, take him yourself.”
“I have an assistant,” Barnes replied curtly.
Adam flung aside the final curtain. This time, he lit his wand and stuck it in the man’s face. The patient rubbed his sleepy eyes and pulled away. ‘Ah, not today,’ Adam thought as he waited for Barnes to step inside of the bubble. When she did, he yanked the patient out of bed.
“You have guests,” Adam announced in an overly cheery voice as they left the bed chamber. “I believe they brought you a present, too.”
The man remained silent. Adam chuckled and walked beside the man so his patient could see the grin plastered across Adam’s face. “Come now, these are the first visitors you’ve had! Don’t be so upset. I’m sure they’ll want to chat you up.”
Adam opened the door to the office and walked the patient over to the lone chair. He plunked him down and bound up his hands, exactly as Robards asked, before walking over and taking his post beside the closed door.
The man looked between his three accusers. ‘Let the show begin. What secrets can you keep while under Veritaserum? Even you, my favourite anomaly, won’t be able to fool us now.’
Thackery pulled a small vial from her robe pocket and handed it to Robards, who untwisted the lid. As Robards approached the patient, the man said, “You really don’t need to do this. There’s nothing I can really tell you. I swear. It’s not going to make sense.”
“Let us be the judge of that,” Robards murmured. “Open your mouth, or I will do so for you.”
The patient complied. Robards added his three drops of potion before he took several steps back from the patient. Then, the Auror took his wand, lit it, and pointed the light into the patient’s eyes. The Auror took several moments to examine the man before asking, “Do you know where you are?”
“I’m at Saint Mungo’s, in Healer Venturini’s office.”
Adam took his eyes off the interrogation for a moment to shoot a glance at Thackery. ‘She better keep her mouth shut. I swear, if that woman ruins this . . . if I can’t talk, neither can she.’ Adam crossed his arms as he waited for Robards to ask another question.
“Do you know who I am?”
“Auror Robards.”
“Tell me how long you’ve been here.”
“About ten days, I would say. I might be off by a day or two.”
Robards paused paced in front of the patient. “How old are you?”
“I’m unsure. Healer Venturini thinks I may be in my mid-thirties.”
“Tell me about being sentenced to Azkaban. When did it happen.”
“I was never sentenced to Azkaban.”
‘Ahh. Now it gets interesting. This is what I suspected all along.’ Adam watched the patient’s face, which seemed to have taken on the slightly dazed appearance common of a person under the affects of Veritaserum.
Robards stopped his pacing and cast a long, unblinking glance at the patient. He pointed his wand into the patient’s face again, and seemingly satisfied with what he saw, he withdrew it. “Alright, let me read you some names. Tell me what know about these people. Let us start with Madame Thackery and myself. How long have you known us?”
“I first saw you in the holding cell.”
Venturini heard Thackery move, and his gaze left the patient. ‘Well, I can see that surprised her. That’s right . . . he should have known her, being that they’re related. I do enjoy when I’m about to be proven correct.’
“Do you know the Lestranges? Tell me about your relationship to them.”
“I don’t believe I know them. The name sounds familiar. Do they work at the Ministry?”
Once again, Robards paused and knelt down to examine the patient. He pulled up the patient’s eyelids, and shown the light into his eyes while feeling his wrist with his other hand. Once again, seemingly satisfied, Robards pulled his wand away and stood up. “Very well. Tell me about your relationship to Harry Potter.”
“We were friends I suppose. I never harmed him, if that’s what this is about. He helped me out on more than one occasion.”
“Is that what you believe?” Robards asked in an even voice. Adam shot a sideways glance at Thackery, who seemed to bristle with indignation at this answer. ‘Now I can see what they teach those Aurors. Robards is more clam than I would have been. Of course, there is some benefit to getting an emotional reaction.’
“I’m not lying to you. I can’t. I want to tell you everything you ask me.”
Robards paced back and forth for a moment before he asked, “Tell me about Alastor Moody.”
“He taught at Hogwarts. I didn’t know him well, but he was a good professor.”
Adam kept his eyes trained upon the patient. “Tell me your name,” Robards asked as he knelt down and pointed his wand in the patient’s face.
“I can’t tell you.”
“Have you had a memory charm performed upon you?”
“No. I have not. I cannot tell you my name, though. Please don’t make me try. I told you, I can’t tell you much. It comes with the deal, I suppose.”
“What deal?”
The patient remained silent before blurting out, “I made one! That’s all. I swear. I hardly know the terms myself.”
‘Now, this is nice. A deal, huh? What type of deal? If he can’t even tell us under Veritaserum . . . what does that mean?’
Robards put his wand away but remained kneeling in front of the man. “Tell me about the Crouches. Specifically, how did you know Mr. Crouch and his son?”
“Mr. Crouch worked at the Ministry. Everyone knew him. He used to be the Head of Magical Law Enforcement. I met him several times, but I don’t know much about him. I was told he was always very involved with his work. He’s dead now. I didn’t know he had a son.”
“It’s clearly not working!” Thackery blurted out and strode forward. “This is preposterous, Robards! It can’t be “ ”
“Madame,” Robards snapped as he spun around to stop the advance of the woman, “please desist. I am almost finished with the interrogation. He seems to be most certainly under the affects of Veritaserum.”
Adam strode forward and put his hand on Thackery’s forearm. She shook him off. “Venturini, this is ridiculous! What you think “ ”
“At least I am thinking,” Adam spat. Thackery’s jaw clamped shut as if were welded together. Adam sneered. “Let’s go back to our corners, shall we? Robards needs to finish this.”
Adam returned his gaze to the patient, who seemed dazed by the incident. His gaze looked unfocused, as if the confrontation had left him wondering who he should address. ‘Finish this damned thing, Robards, so I can rid of Thackery. I knew she would try something. Gods, why are the law enforcement officials always such a bloody pain in the arse to work with?’
Robards pulled out his wand and examined the patient again before he asked, in the same, level voice, “Tell me the crimes of which you are convicted.”
“I told you, I haven’t been convicted of anything,” the patient huffed. “Please don’t keep asking me that because I will just keep telling you that I haven’t done anything.”
“Murder? Torture? Kid-napping?” Robards rattled off the words. “What do those words mean to you?”
“I would say that I have no experience with kid-napping, you are torturing me right now, and I have been murdered.”
Robards folded his arms and looked back at Venturini. “I believe it is over,” Robards replied in the same monotone voice. “Healer Venturini, the three of us should have a word outside.”
‘I couldn’t agree more. There certainly will be a lot to talk about,’ Adam though as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. Robards and Thackery stepped outside first, and then Adam locked the door behind them. In the hallway, Thackery immediately spat, “Unbelievable!”
“Not so much, actually,” Adam snapped back at her. “I’ve known how strange this was from the beginning. I believe you’re the only one surprised by this interrogation. I don’t believe it was a total waste of time, though, because he did tell us things I hadn’t heard before now.”
“That was rubbish! We can’t use any of that! It’s clear there is a memory charm at work here,” Thackery protested Adam’s claims. “Robards, what was he thinking?”
Both Adam and Thackery looked at the Auror, who folded his hands together and continued to stare off into space and meet neither of their gazes. “I think,” Robards replied slowly, “that the Veritaserum was certainly working, but since I could not use Legilimency on him, I cannot confirm if a memory charm is indeed at work.”
“It has to be a memory charm,” Thackery snapped. “What else could be at play here? We just need to keep him from using Occulmency to confirm the charm is there.”
“I don’t believe that is an option,” Robards turned to speak to Thackery. “I have encountered many skilled Occulmens, but he would be the best I have ever interrogated. I can’t even get hold of a fractured thought. Even the best Occulmens will let go of stray thoughts, and you can always feel the texture of someone’s mind. Trying to read his thoughts was like touching a lead wall. I could get nothing out of him.”
Thackery pursed her lips shut. ‘I guess it is a bit of a blow to hear that your Head Auror can’t even read someone’s mind. It sounds like much more than him simply failing to read his thoughts, though. Somehow, he is completely hiding his entre identity . . . even the very texture of his mind.’
“Robards, what else did you make of the interrogation?” Adam asked. The Auror turned his attention on the Healer.
“I would say it was the oddest one I have yet performed. Someone who is confounded or under a powerful memory charm may give false testimony under Veritaserum, but his almost . . . physical inability to tell us anything is something I have not witnessed. What do you make of it?”
Adam could not keep the grin of satisfaction from his face. “I would like to have him continue to stay in my Ward. There are two possible situations for why that body is walking around. The first situation, the original spirit is back in it again, is so impossible it’s absurd. That would contradict everything we know about Dementors and how they operate. The second situation is that we’re dealing with possession of another sort.”
“What would you say possesses him?” Robards asked.
“This is preposterous,” Thackery huffed, and both men turned to stare at her. “What makes the difference what is inside that body? That criminal is all everyone is going to see. He needs to go back to Azkaban.”
“Why? I believe someone else is in that body. There is a bit of a . . . moral duty to not throw someone in prison without a trial, is there not? I mean, I thought you people at the Ministry were all about trials these days?” Adam quipped.
Thackery crossed her arms and drew herself up to her full height. “Venturini, you are clearly over-stepping your bounds. Feel fortunate that you are not sitting in a cell.”
“I’m sure, if you had it your way, I would be.”
“You most certainly would be.”
After Thackery’s threat, Adam continued to meet her bitter gaze. In a silky voice, he said, “To prove my cooperatively with you, I want to make a compromise. I’ll let Auror Robards make the final decision on what to do with the man.”
Thackery snorted. “You would have done that anyway. That is no compromise.”
“I will pay you my entire salary of galleons for you to never be involved in this case again. Is that a better deal?”
Robards spoke before the situation deteriorated into a further squabbling match between the grinning Healer and the livid Head of Magical Law Enforcement. “I will certainly take my time to review the case,” Robards replied. Thackery turned to him, her eyebrows seeming to arch up to her hairline.
“What qualms do you have making this decision now?” Thackery suggested.
Robards sighed. “I need time to think about this case. For the moment, here is how I see it; we have someone sitting in that room that is either under a heavy memory charm or possessed by Merlin knows what. The Morticia Gregel Ward has seen both cases of possession and severe mental disability before, so this seems the likely place for him to stay. Healer Venturini seems to be containing the case well on his Ward, and as the patient seems under control, I would say this Ward is a suitable place at the moment.”
Thackery wrinkled her entire face like she swallowed an entire lemon whole. Venturini found himself unable to stop smirking at he turned to Thackery. “I heard Azkaban is a bit crowded these days, too.”
“Send me your salary whenever you please.”
With those words, Thackery turned and strode down the hallway. Robards and Adam both watched her retreat. Robards sighed and redirected his attention back to Adam. “I suggest you not continue to dig your own grave or, more accurately, reserve your own cell by arguing with Thackery.”
Adam only shrugged. “I’ve tangled with worse.”
“Yes, well . . . I must be going,” Robards replied. As he turned to leave, he told Adam, “By the way, I am monitoring this case. My judgment today is based upon what we currently perceive to be true and may be subject to change.”
“Of course,” Adam said as Robards bid him good bye before he disappeared through the double doors. Adam sighed as he rocked back and forth on his feet. ‘What to do . . . what to do. I still feel like I don’t have much leeway with this case. I have to figure out a strategy “ and fast “ before I lose what ground I’ve gained today.’
Adam turned and went back into his office. He dug the antidote for Veritaserum from his cupboard and poured a couple of drops into the patient’s mouth. He pointed his wand into the man’s eyes, and when the pupils returned to their normal size, Adam undid the chair bindings.
Without a word, he escorted the man back to his bed. All the while, Adam kept a firm grasp on his upper arm. They passed beyond the grey curtain, and once the man was in bed, Healer Barnes disappeared from the room. Adam stood at the foot of his bed, his hands clasped behind his back.
“That was a decent bit of Occulmency,” Adam commented in a cheery voice.
The patient turned away from Adam and stared out the window. “I don’t know Occulmency. Now, please, just go away. You got your interrogation.”
“Hmm, it’s not the one I would have conducted,” Adam commented. The man snapped his head around to stare at Adam again. Adam continued to speak in the same peppy voice. “You see, I’m not labouring under the assumption you’re some kind of criminal. I’m working under a different set of premises all together. From the very beginning, I knew you would be interesting, but I never -- ”
“Could you do me a favour and please leave? I just had the Head Auror interrogating me with Veritaserum. I’m done today.”
‘Well, I guess that is understandable, but it’s a damn shame. I suppose my little threat to send him straight to Azkaban hasn’t exactly earned me he undying affection. I can’t help it that he simply does not seem to care if I know anything about him. Once again, that little passive aggressive streak is shining through. He’s not going to extra lengths to please any of us because . . .
Adam chuckled as he stared down at the man. “Sure. You’re breakfast will be right in,” Adam said as he nodded and left the room.
‘Brilliant! Why didn’t I see it before? Susan Bones should have tipped me off right away. Isolating him in that damned bed was a terrible idea, but now, I have a bit more freedom to do some creative interrogation.
By the time Adam reached his office again, he was beaming. He went into the room and sat down on the same chair where the interrogation had taken place moments ago. ‘I don’t know what possessed him to run off that day, but his reaction to Nissel was also telling. He seemed very keen to take the blame for what Nissel did. I can’t ask him anything directly because he will not, or is unable to, tell me what I want to know. He definitely has some sympathies, and I just need to manipulate them to get answers.’
‘A little creativity. That’s all it’ll take.’