"Headmaster, I believe Mr. Hart should remain in the Hospital Wing for a few more days!"
Madam Pomfrey insisted, looking rather alarmed.
"While I can confirm his physical condition is largely stable, observing him for another three to five days would be the safest course. Otherwise, if any unexpected complications arise..."
"That's a very reasonable assessment, Poppy!"
Professor Albus Dumbledore replied gently.
"However, Mr. Hart has other matters to attend to... You must understand, these are extraordinary times."
"Very well..." Madam Pomfrey muttered. "His health should be the top priority..."
However, she didn't insist further and allowed Dumbledore to lead Jon Hart out of the Hospital Wing.
...
"Thank you, Professor!"
Jon said gratefully as they walked through the Hogwarts corridors.
Honestly, being confined to the Hospital Wing these past few days had been unbearably dull. In a way, Hogwarts' head of medics, Madam Pomfrey, was simply too conscientious.
That said, she had also completely healed Jon's earlier injuries, restoring him to full vitality.
"You're welcome. Come with me!"
Since it was early morning, the corridors were still largely empty. Dumbledore led Jon into an unused classroom.
"Take a look at this," Dumbledore said solemnly once they were seated.
He handed Jon a newspaper—today's The Daily Prophet. The ink was still fresh, clearly printed not long ago.
Jon lowered his gaze, and his expression immediately grew grave. The front-page headline read—
"Death Eaters Demand Prisoner Exchange from the Ministry of Magic!"
"An anonymous Death Eater, a devoted follower and adherent of You-Know-Who, issued a warning to this newspaper last night... They claim to hold eleven employees of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures within their custody. These individuals are: Dirk Cresswell, Amos Diggory, Cuthbert Mortridge..."
Below the article were more than a dozen attached portraits. The wizards in the images were tightly bound with ropes, their faces filled with despair and helplessness. Jon immediately recognized Cedric's father, Mr. Diggory, as well as Mr. Mortridge—who was wearing a woman's dress.
"The Death Eaters wish the Ministry of Magic not to disappoint their employees. They have resolved to use these eleven Ministry employees to exchange for eleven Death Eaters imprisoned by the Ministry—including Bellatrix Lestrange, Lucius Malfoy, Antonin Dolohov...
"At 8:00 a.m. this morning, the Death Eaters will release one employee and allow them to return to the Ministry of Magic. At the same time, they demand that Azkaban release one of the Death Eaters listed above within half an hour and return his wand. If the Ministry complies, the Death Eaters will release another employee within the following half hour. If the Ministry fails to comply, the Death Eaters will kill one of the employees and dump his body on a Muggle street..."
Wait… eight o'clock this morning!
Jon's expression stiffened. He hurriedly glanced down at his watch. It was already 7:15 a.m., meaning there were only forty-five minutes left until the so-called "hostage exchange."
...
"How is this possible?"
Jon muttered.
"Why would The Daily Prophet publish something like this?"
As far as Jon remembered, The Daily Prophet had always been the Ministry of Magic's mouthpiece.
The Death Eaters hadn't yet seized control of the Ministry—so how could the paper be helping them spread such a message?
"This wasn't the intended headline," Dumbledore said gravely. "Barnabas Cuffe, the editor-in-chief of The Daily Prophet, personally assured me of that. But early this morning, the newspaper offices were attacked. The assailants were very careful and didn't cause much disturbance. They merely altered the front-page headline and then mailed out all the papers..."
"By the time they realized it, the owls had already carried the papers across Britain?" Jon asked quietly.
"Exactly," Dumbledore nodded. "By now, every wizard in Britain who reads the morning paper should already know about this."
"Then… what is the Ministry's stance on the matter?" Jon asked cautiously.
"Scrimgeour advocates a firm rejection of the Death Eaters' demands," Albus Dumbledore said slowly. "But Amelia disagrees. She believes the safety of Ministry personnel should take priority. Most of the Ministry's senior officials lean toward Amelia's position."
Jon nodded silently.
The reason was obvious. If the matter hadn't been made public, the Ministry could have rejected the Death Eaters' demands outright—even at the cost of those innocent employees.
But now that everything was exposed, allowing more than ten employees to be executed would deal a devastating blow to the Ministry's reputation and could even trigger widespread fear within its own ranks.
Moreover, with such a limited window to respond, the Ministry had little chance of devising an effective countermeasure.
Jon frowned deeply and pondered for a long while, but still couldn't think of any useful solution.
In the end, he could only look to Dumbledore for guidance.
"Is there anything we should do, Professor?"
"To be honest, I haven't come up with a good solution either," Dumbledore said, shaking his head. "However, Amelia promised me that she's already sent people to negotiate with Tom. She'll try to release as few Death Eaters as possible..."
"Alright..." Jon sighed, feeling somewhat helpless.
After the victory at the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, the advantage held by the Ministry of Magic and the Order of the Phoenix seemed to be slowly slipping away, while the Death Eaters' strength was rising at a visible pace.
The situation was steadily deteriorating.
...
"Of course, this is only one matter, and you don't need to worry too much about it," Dumbledore added after a pause. "Amelia and I will do everything we can to handle it properly. There is another matter..."
"Hmm?"
Jon looked at Dumbledore, slightly puzzled.
"I mentioned before that Diana was taken away by Scrimgeour and the Aurors," Dumbledore said calmly. "Now, Miss Greengrass is alone in the old house..."
"So I suggest you go see her now and offer her some comfort," Dumbledore said with a smile. "Of course, that's merely a small personal suggestion from me."