"we learn to live with the pain, mosaic broken hearts"

*

"Minister, this is out of the question."

Cornelius Fudge shook his head. "Minerva, you have to understand that certain precautions must be taken-"

"Absolutely not!" She said shrilly. "This is a school, not a prison! How are we supposed to foster a learning environment with dementors swooping around the school!"

Dumbledore remained silent, his eyes still on the Pensieve. Snape, however, focused on the wanted poster that the Minister had brought. His ex-classmate was hardly recognizable now: Azkaban had wasted the handsome youth. He couldn't say he felt sorry. Not when Lily was dead and the world in shambles.

The last light of dusk fell through the window of the headmaster's office. Fawkes cawed gently from his perch, adding to the noise of the argument.

"I would have to agree with the Minister, Minerva," Severus murmured, finally looking up. "Black's a criminal. The school needs some form of protection from the likes of him."

McGonagall threw her hands in the air. "I know exactly what he is! We all do! We've all seen what he's capable of, but using dementors is unheard of!"

"So is escape from Azkaban," Dumbledore said quietly. He swirled a memory around in the Pensieve with his wand, then looked up. "Minister, I understand your desire to increase our school's security, and I wholeheartedly agree with it, but dementors seem rather... frivolous."

"Frivolous?" Fudge stopped pacing long enough to give Dumbledore a bewildered look. "How do you mean? They'll keep Hogwarts safe from Black. He won't be able to get past them. Your students won't be in danger."

"He's gotten past them before, Cornelius. Who's to say he cannot do it again? You place a great deal of trust in a line of defense that has proven faulty."

Dumbledore placed the tip of his wand to his temple and muttered an incantation, causing a silvery wisp to flutter down into the golden basin. A crowded court room began to materialize, but he abandoned the memory before it could fully take form. For the moment, he just wanted to remove it from his mind.

"Faulty? Faulty?" Fudge spluttered, looking at Dumbledore like he'd grown another head. "Dumbledore, if you have a better idea, believe me, I am more than open to suggestions!"

The headmaster sighed. "Aurors. I believe Black's capture twelve years ago was the combined effort of Alastor Moody, Kingsley Shacklebolt, and Alice Longbottom, all of whom were not dementors. Now, employing the Aurors would give us some semblance of protection while not disrupting our lives with the distracting presence of dementors."

Fudge ran a hand down his face, wrinkled with worry, and began to pace again. "I understand your concerns and I do sympathize with them. I hate he creatures as much as you do. However, I have to insist on the dementors as an added precaution. Sirius Black is a deranged murderer with a mission, and he must be treated as such."

McGonagall sat in her chair, silently fuming as these decisions formed around her. She personally had no desire to be around dementors, but her thoughts didn't dwell on herself. No, she thought of her students, all of which would be subjected to a year of subdued spirits, and of Eva, who she was afraid would be hanging on by a thread as it was.

The Minister seemed to read her thoughts. An uncomfortable look crossed his features.

"While I'm here, I would like to bring up a delicate issue concerning one of your professors."

The atmosphere of the office completely changed. Severus sat up a bit straighter and leaned forward. McGonagall pursed her lips, carefully concealing her fire. For the first time, a dangerous look entered Dumbledore's eye.

"Do tell," Dumbledore said. He drummed his long fingers on the desktop.

"From the very beginning, hiring someone like Eva Black was a controversial choice at best."

"Taylor, Minister," Severus interrupted, his monotonous voice somehow piercing through the conversation. "She has made that abundantly clear."

"Yes. Yes, she has done quite a bit to dissociate herself from Black. However, her past cannot be overlooked in a time like this. Do not forget that she married into a house full of Pureblood supremacists, many of which became Death Eaters, including her husband and brother-in-law, as well as many of her cousins by marriage."

McGonagall sat perfectly still, her dark eyes glazing over as a memory resurfaced.

The curtains kept the moonlight out, but the office of Minerva McGonagall's office was pleasantly lit by a roaring fire, perfect for the upcoming Christmas holiday. She occupied an armchair in the far corner, reviewing Quidditch strategies devised by Mitchell McKinnon. The young man truly was a brilliant player, and she had no doubts that his future would be bright.

A rapid tapping against the frosted window drew her out of her reverie, and she hastened to examine the source. The noise came from a brown barn owl, one she recognized as belonging to the Potter household. Confused, she let the animal in and untied the letter on its leg.

The parchment itself was folded poorly, uneven and crumpled. She recognized the handwriting at once, having graded many essays with "J.P.+L.E." doodled in the margins. Slowly, she sank into the chair again to read.

Minnie,

Sirius ran away from home tonight. He's finally had it with his family, I reckon. I dunno the whole story, he showed up barely conscious. I'm not going to lie, he looks pretty bad, but my mum's cleaning him up now. Just thought someone at Hogwarts should know, and I know you look out for him more than you let on.

See you next term.
-James Potter

The transfiguration professor's heart did a summersault. How many times had that boy sat across from her desk, doing everything in his power to stave off a breakdown that was all too inevitable? Sirius was many things, but a Black was not one of them. An odd feeling welled up inside of her, one she wasn't quite sure if she should be feeling in a moment like this.

It was pride.

McGonagall's heart ached. Ever since his fifth year and the day with a purple bruise on his cheekbone that he refused to explain, she'd elected to a closer eye on him. At least he'd escaped, and he'd had the sense to seek refuge at the Potters. They were good people. Besides, the boy's real family always came running when one of their own was hurting.

Twelve years had passed since the night when many lives were destroyed, and she still couldn't believe that he betrayed them all.

"Minister, I can vouch for Professor Taylor," Dumbledore said, fixing him with a stern gaze under his half-moon glasses. "Trust me when I say she has absolutely no connection to the Dark Arts or Voldemort." Snape remained still, but Fudge and McGonagall jumped.

"I believe you, Dumbledore - don't think I don't. She's a bright young lady. Very sharp, very capable. But there are some at the Ministry who question her... allegiances."

McGonagall's eyebrows arched so high that they looked like twin mountaintops. "Her allegiances? Have you seen the scar on her arm?"

"Not to You-Know-Who, Minerva." Fudge looked uncomfortable. "To Black."

Silence cloaked the room like a thick fog.

"Up until now, he's been locked up, of course. But now, with him on the loose, there's no knowing what she may or may not do. The Board of Directors is wary about her being here at all this year. They are prepared to fund an extended leave of absence for Eva Bl-Taylor until we inevitably recapture Black. It will be safer for all of the students this way - Potter included."

McGonagall stood up suddenly, her chair screeching against the stone floor. "How dare you? To even suggest that she would be a danger to our school is preposterous! And to drag the Potter boy into this? She loves him like the son she never had! I will not allow you to take this away from her! Black took everything else!"

"Minister, Professor Taylor has done nothing but good at Hogwarts." Severus stared down at his clasped hands. While they weren't exactly friends, the two had bonded over the last three years. She'd never shamed him or shown him anything but kindness. Perhaps it was time to pay that kindness back. Besides, he couldn't bear the thought of the Board of Directors tossing out an actually good teacher and replacing her with another buffoon like Gilderoy Lockhart. She'd been a loyal ally in withstanding his idiocy. "Your accusations against her are unfounded."

"I might also add, Cornelius," Dumbledore said, a faint smirk growing underneath his beard, "if you were to expel her, even temporarily, you will certainly be facing backlash, especially from students and parents."

The Minister looked back and forth between the three teachers. Apprehension enhanced the premature wrinkles on his round face. Finally, he threw his hands up into the air in surrender.

"It seems like I've been outvoted. Rest assured that if something goes wrong, if she really is in league with Black and You-Know-Who, you have all vouched for a criminal and will be treated accordingly. I'll send the dementors tonight so they can be here for tomorrow's start of term." Fudge carefully slid a few pages into his briefcase and closed it with a click. Offering a hand to Dumbledore, he added, "perhaps it's best for her to be here, away from everyone in her past. Fewer memories, fewer people to remind her of Black. Especially Lupin. When I told him about his old war pal's escape, he looked ready to murder. I think some space could be good for them both."

Dumbledore shook his hand, chuckling a bit to himself. "Do you, Cornelius?"

"What is it you're laughing at?"

The headmaster laughed again. "I don't think you're going to appreciate my next hire."

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