There are some people who are never around when you need them most, but once you've fought through everything and solved all the problems on your own, they suddenly show up, just in time to claim the spoils of victory.
In the wizarding world, those people are often known by one name, the Ministry of Magic.
The strongest fortresses are often brought down from within. And yes, that holds true even in the world of wizards.
When Allen deliberately inflicted a serious injury on the powerful vampire, the massive explosion that followed tore through the supposedly impenetrable defenses of the laboratory, leaving it riddled with gaps.
The unexpected blast unsettled the people waiting outside. Yet even with their concerns, they began dismantling the defensive wards with renewed determination.
As the magical defenses were breached, the wizards, who had originally come just to provide support, suddenly found themselves assuming a new role: explorers.
Their intrusion marked the official failure of the mission that had been meant for the near-graduates to complete, though to be fair, the students had already failed.
Due to the vampire attack, three students lost their lives, those who resisted the vampires' offer to turn and fought back with everything they had.
Of the surviving wizards, some were captured and controlled. The rest scattered and hid throughout the castle, thanks to the vampires focusing all their efforts on hunting down Allen, those survivors were given precious time to conceal themselves.
When the Ministry of Magic finally arrived, all of the surviving students were rescued, while the vampires were swiftly hunted down. Except for a few who escaped, the rest were annihilated on the spot.
And just like that, the Ministry swooped in, took the credit, and walked off with the MVP award, after doing none of the hard work.
Of course, that's not how it was officially portrayed. At least, not if you go by the newspapers. According to them, the story went like this:
"...According to this publication's sources, during a collaborative exploration between Hogwarts and Ilvermorny students, who had been engaging in friendly exchanges, the group was ambushed and kidnapped by a vile faction of vampires. These despicable creatures cruelly murdered three hostages in an attempt to force the others to undergo the horrifying ritual of becoming vampires themselves. Yet even under such pressure, our brave young wizards refused to yield. Their courage and resolve..."
"...Thankfully, our heroic Aurors arrived just in time. With the assistance of professors from both schools, they broke through the vampires' defenses and successfully rescued the hostages, eliminating the core of the vampire threat. All thanks to the fearless leadership of our beloved Minister of Magic..."
Allen casually tossed the newspaper onto his bench, it was winter, and while the stone castle was sturdy, the stone furniture was cold.
Judging from the overall atmosphere, everyone seemed to be in decent spirits, even though a Slytherin student had died.
The student's relatives even traveled to the castle after hearing the news. But strangely, the uncle of the deceased didn't seem the least bit sad. In fact, when he left, he had a smile on his face, genuine or not, it looked like one.
That student had been Norris, the one who'd traded with Allen. Perhaps his family did grieve in private, but it seemed their sorrow was soothed by the unexpected "compensation" they received from the Ministry, Allen knew just how many valuables had been hidden in that lab. If he hadn't been so focused on taking down the vampire, he definitely wouldn't have passed up the chance to loot the place himself.
Since the Ministry sent in the most wizards, they naturally walked away with the biggest haul. In fact, they even gave Allen a "trauma relief payment", a measly 100 Galleons, but considering it came from the notoriously stingy Ministry of Magic, that was something.
Of course, Allen didn't tell them he had secretly grabbed some rare tomes and important experimental journals. The journals he'd casually pocketed while pretending to search for materials. Judging by the Ministry's satisfaction with the outcome, they clearly believed the freelance wizards they hired for support had ended up with nothing, and that was just fine with Allen.
••┈┈┈┈┈༓┈┈┈┈┈•••
When Allen and the others returned to school, they were greeted with a grand welcome feast. Having just said goodbye to the MACUSA, they were now met by the British Ministry.
There's an old saying: "Heavenly treasures go to those destined for them." While there may be no such saying in the West, the general principle still holds.
Of course, "those destined for them" really just means "whoever has the biggest fists makes the rules."
So, after the MACUSA left with high hopes and packed bags, Ilvermorny and the British Ministry teamed up and came knocking.
Like, "Hey mate, we're feeling a bit sour, mind sharing a few dumplings?"
Following the universal law of "truth is determined by wand range," the alliance of the two ministries quickly declared ownership of everything the Americans had tried to claim.
In other words, by the time Allen and the others got back, the MACUSA had gone from euphoria to bitter disappointment. But Allen had no intention of refunding them anything.
Thanks to their outstanding performance, Allen and Annie were both granted automatic O-level N.E.W.T. scores, bypassing two full exams entirely. This made them the envy of the entire school, though Allen had no way of explaining exactly how he'd earned the reward.
What was he supposed to say? "Oh, I punched my way to success?"
Life back at school felt like paradise compared to the chaos of the mission, except for one minor issue.
Once again, Hogwarts had lost another Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.
Yes. Again.
The warm and friendly professor was fired.
The reason? He got involved in a fight.
Now, fighting might not sound like a fireable offense. Even professors lose their tempers, and a little scuffle isn't unusual.
But this wasn't just any fight.
The professor had taken on, and beaten up, a whole gang of wizards.
Just like in Ilvermorny, the tension at Hogwarts was thick. Even if Hogwarts students weren't trying to stir trouble, the ones from Ilvermorny were born troublemakers.
One day, when students from both schools had arranged to settle things with a brawl, the professor happened to walk by, slightly tipsy, and slapped all the students involved into submission.
Hogwarts didn't mind too much. But Ilvermorny's side sent in their own professor to intervene, and after a brief, failed attempt at diplomacy, a duel broke out.
And just like that, it was over.
According to the students who'd been bound by magic during the fight, their professor fought like a one-man army, single-handedly knocking out everyone until there were none left.
An entire Ilvermorny student group, wiped out by one drunken professor.
Even Dumbledore couldn't cover for that.
Yes, it was technically "self-defense", but taking down an entire visiting school's delegation was definitely overkill.
And so, Dumbledore once again found himself searching for yet another Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.
••┈┈┈┈┈༓┈┈┈┈┈•••
As the calm days rolled on, the end of the school year approached. For the first time in decades, perhaps the last, the House Cup was awarded to Hufflepuff. Their Quidditch points had been too high to ignore.
On the train ride home, Allen said his goodbyes to Annie and all the friends he'd made, everything seemed peaceful.
But beneath that calm surface… dark currents were stirring.
••┈┈┈┈┈༓┈┈┈┈┈•••
A/N: Next arc….