Chapter 2: The Witness

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

Will squinted against his throbbing headache. Though it had been almost an hour since the incident in Privet Drive, the pain wasn't subsiding. Ahead of him lay the deserted streets of Diagon Alley. Will guessed that it was around 3 in the morning. Dim white lights floated aside the path, lighting the wet cobble stones and casting a ghostly shadow against the dark store windows lining the path. There was however, one exception.

Golden light flickered through the upper windows of Ollivander's wand shop. Will approached the shop's heavy wooden door and watched curiously as lights flashed through the windows. They looked like fireworks – red, gold and even dark violet at times. The post outside showed that Olivander's store would be open at 8:00 and upon checking his pocket watch, Will decided to wait the five hours until opening time. He allowed his heavy knapsack to thud to the floor and settled himself in a nook between the stairs and the heavy wooden door of the store. Slowly Will's head began to nod, his eyes gradually drifted closed, and he surrendered himself to a weary sleep.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

"You're kidding me!"

"No, I'm afraid not, sir."

"A joke – that's what this is right? Just a joke?"

"Minister?"

"Albus Dumbledore put you up to this didn't he, Kingsley? He told you lay a good one on poor old pathetic Cornelius Fudge. He came right up to you and ordered you to make a bloody fool of the Minister of Magic, didn't he?!"

"No, you're-"

"This is some kind of test isn't it? It's another test to see how competent I am at this job?"

"With all due respect-"

"If you respected me, you won't be contradicting me! If you respected me, you'd have given me a straight answer without making me ask you over and over again! DUMBLEDORE IS BEHIND THIS ISN'T HE?!" roared Cornelius Fudge, his night robes billowing angrily as he whirled to face the fireplace.

Fudge's angry shriek echoed hollowly in the dark, overly ornate bedroom. From his view point in the fireplace, Kinsley could see the even sheen of sweat layering the Minister's red face and hear the uneven hitch in his breathing. Fudge, who up until his final outburst had been furiously pacing in circles around the fireplace, looked every bit like a toddler who had just unleashed a violent tantrum.

"With all due respect, Minster," Kinsley repeated stiffly, "You are mistaken. Headmaster Dumbledore wouldn't have had the time to craft such a powerful spell because most of his energy and attention is diverted to the running Hogwarts."

As he spoke, Kinsley watched the Minister closely through the flames. After a moment, he saw the wild, insanity leave Fudge's eyes. Comprehension filled Fudge's face, and he allowed his shoulders to sag. Turning around he moved slowly to an open liquor cabinet in the far corner of his room. Fudge took out a small glass and poured himself a shot of crimson colored currant rum.

"Who is out on site right now?" asked Fudge, with his back to the fireplace.

The voice that filled the room was now a chillingly calm parody of the Minister's enraged countenance moments before. It was all Kinsley could do to ignore the icy prickling which crept slowly down his neck as he recited the names, ranks and specialties of the Aurors at the Potter house. Fudge, oblivious to Kinsley's uneasiness, downed his glass of alcohol in one swift gulp. He poured himself another as he asked the next question.

"Do you know what caused the flare?"

"No, sir."

"You're telling me that out of seven fully trained Aurors, four of whom have been working for the Ministry for over twenty-five years and three of whom specialize in Forensic Spellology, no one has any idea what just happened?" growled Fudge dangerously as he downing another shot.

"We were only on site five minutes before I apparated back to the Ministry building to contact you. So far we have theories, but no conclusive evidence or leads."

"You said there was a witness – Potter's cousin. You will personally bring him to the ministry and question him with nothing less than Veritaserum."

"But Minister, the use of magic or substances with magical properties on Muggles is strictly prohibited by the Ministry. If word gets out-"

"But it won't get out will it. Incompetence is not something I can stomach, Shacklebolt. Go back to the Potter house. I want answers before dawn."

"Yes, sir."

With a small 'Pop!' Kinsley's head winked out of the fire, leaving Cornelius Fudge alone once again in his darkened bedroom. Withdrawing his head from the low fireplace, Kinsley felt his muscles ache uncomfortably as he slowly stood up. Uncaring about the mess he would make on his office floor, he began to dust the ashes from the fireplace off the front of his robes. The physical motion gave him a moment to find his focus. At the doorway, Nymphadora Tonks stood quietly waiting for Kinsley to acknowledge her. She didn't have to wait long.

"You know, as a general rule, it's impolite to eavesdrop." Kinsley spoke with his back still facing Tonks. Tension was like a visible color upon him. "Why aren't you at Privet, Tonks?"

"It's freezing out there," Tonks replied, her hair comically turning cyan for effect. "I came back for a warmer cloak, else more than just my hair would've turned blue."

"In my office." The statement could easily have been a question.

"Well, you know how it is for a freshman Auror," Tonks said, watching Kinsley carefully, "Everything seems a little uncertain if your supervisor leaves you without warning. Sometimes the mind tricks you into believing things that aren't real."

"Certainly you weren't that lost with me gone only for a few minutes," Kinsley said, amused.

Tonks waited for a better response, but none came. Any other night, Tonks would have continued the banter, but tonight was different. She tried another tactic. "So did Fudge fudge the issue in Privet?"

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know, maybe the dementors?"

Kinsley's hand stopped dusting the ashes from his clothing. The silence stretched, and Tonks knew without asking that her question had been dismissed. She thumped her fist on Kingsley desk in protest. "That's it? That's all I'm going to get? Kingsley, am I valued member of this team or not?"

Just as she thought he'd give her an answer, the moment was broken as he moved again – this time for the cloak hanging off the back of his chair. Kingsley reached over and handed Tonks his spare cloak. "Here, take this. It'll keep you warm outside."

Tonks narrowed her eyes. She stepped away from his outstretched hand. Turning on heel, she exited his office without looking back.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

Will awoke to find two disturbingly silver eyes staring at him intently and at eye level through the doorway. Will's eyes widened and he jumped slightly in surprise, nearly slipping off the stone step he had been resting on.

"I had been wondering which rabbit-hole you would pick for shelter." The voice came belonged to the man with the silver eyes. "By the way you walked down the path a few hours ago, it was though you were searching for something. I wonder why you'd pick my shop to stop in so early in the morning."

"Sorry, sir. I didn't mean to fall asleep on your doorstep. I only wanted to wait until you opened shop for the morning. Are you Mr. Ollivander?"

"That's my name. I don't open for a couple of hours and I suggest if you're needing a place to sleep, don't solicit one here. Go to the Leaky Cauldron, it's down the road to your left. You can return when the sun is up." Ollivander made to close the door, but Will quickly stood and put his hand against it.

"I didn't come to buy a wand, Mr. Ollivander. I wanted to speak with you about the new wand you are experimenting with."

"There are always new wands with which I am creating. I am a wand crafter by profession. You'll have to do better than that to get into this shop before hours, boy," Ollivander laughed.

Will frowned at the word 'boy', but he persisted. "I know why this particular wand isn't working."

"And why is that?" Ollivander said, deciding to humor Will.

"It's the wood. You cannot use oak as a sheath for something as ancient as the silver leaf."

Before Will could blink, long fingers forced their way around Will's shirt collar and tightened. "How do you know of the leaf?" hissed Ollivander, all humor gone from his voice.

"Rowan. The sheath needs to be carved from a branch of rowan," said Will steadily.

Ollivander's silver eyes looked beyond Will's shoulder, left and right, scanning the misty road and alleyway for people. Then quickly, he pulled Will inside the shop and closed the door with a deep thud. Ollivander brandished his wand in front of Will like a dagger. "I was warned someone would come for the leaf. I was told to watch for the Watcher, but I did not expect to my stalker to be a mere boy."

"I came only to give you advice and it was freely given. And," Will continued pointedly, "If I had wanted to harm you, I would not have waited for you to approach me first."

Ollivander cast Will a look of suspicion, but slowly, he lowered his wand. "What's your name?"

"I'm Will."

"No, your family name."

"Haven't got one. Sorry," Will added when Ollivander shot him another distrustful look. The tension and silence lasted until finally, Will's stomach let out a very loud grumble. Will grabbed his middle with an embarrassed laugh. Ollivander's expression lightened slightly at the sound. In a business that sold wands primarily to eleven-year olds, Ollivander found it difficult to condemn a boy only a few years older. He turned towards a table to his right and gestured at a chair.

"Sit. I will bring some bread from the kitchen. Don't touch anything," Ollivander added with a warning glare.

Will sat down gratefully, "Thank you."

Ollivander snorted and headed out of the room in silence. Will waited until he was out of sight before moving towards the towering shelves laden with wands. Near the back of one of the shelves, Will found the long, narrow box containing hollowed pieces of wands. He knew the base wand had to be there and he quickly found what he was looking for. The sheath had the rough, homogeneous shape every base wand was carved into, but Will noticed that unlike the other sheathes, the outer wood was heavier, aged and richly colored. The wood hummed warmly when Will picked it up.

"I said not to touch anything."

Will stiffened then turned around, "Sorry. I was just curious-"

"Get out," Ollivander snapped, giving Will an infuriated look.

Ollivander snatched the hollow piece of wood from Will's fingers and brandished a wand in his the other hand. Will bent down to pick up his bag then slowly backed away to the entrance of the store. The door swung opened on its own accord and Will barely had enough time to step onto the stairs before the door slammed back into place. Having no where else to really go, Will sat down on the cold stairs and rested his head on the pillows of his arms.

"That could have gone better," Will muttered to himself, "I'm really getting sloppy."

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

Dudley woke feeling more refreshed than he had in weeks. It was a strange waking. He didn't remember falling asleep or for that matter, opening his eyes while his mind regained consciousness. He didn't completely comprehend where he was or what had happened, but he knew for sure something wasn't right, not even the noise. He heard the frustration in the voices around him before he heard the words. It was an argument.

"-- otherwise, the Ministry can't let him just walk out unquestioned. He's our only witness, and for all we know he could have done it."

"You think he's capable of such a thing?"

"Can't rule anything out yet, Weasley. At any rate, you are out of line coming here. I have no idea how you knew to come, but this does not concern you."

"He's a Muggle boy! What kind of magic do you think he can cast?"

"Weasley, go home! Those were illegal charms you placed on the Potter house and you're not even supposed to be here."

"I told you why I placed them – I wanted to make sure that George, Fred and Ron didn't do any more mischief around here. But that doesn't matter! You keep the boy in a cell for questioning and if word gets out… Rita Skeeter will have a field day, and this is a PR disaster just waiting to happen."

Dudley wondered for a moment who they were talking about. From the corner of his eye, he could see the heavy purple cloak and made out the dim outline of red hair from the man named Weasley. Had he been paying more attention, Dudley would have noticed that his neck and head were firmly frozen into a paralyzed stasis. The thing that caught his eye the most, however, was the hand gripping a stick which looked suspiciously like a wand. A wizard. Dudley's eyes widened and an irrational panic flooded his mind.

"The press can say what ever they want. We cannot jeopardize our position by allowing him to go out of our jurisdiction,"

"Exactly whose position are you talking about, Kingsley?" hissed Arthur Weasley.

Someone near Dudley's started clapping deliberately and both men broke their conversation. From the corner of his eye, he saw a dark figure in a heavy black cloak smirking at them with unreserved mirth. "The Deputy Head of Investigations for the Ministry of Magic and the Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office bickering like boys on the playground," he smirked, "Brilliant."

"Snape."

"Oh, don't stop on my account. I enjoy watching grown men making complete fools of themselves," Snape made a slight sweeping gesture with his hand, "Feel free to continue."

"What are you doing here?" asked Arthur.

"Wasting my time. What does it look like?"

"I asked him to come," interrupted Kingsley before Arthur could retort, "Snape, did you bring it?"

Dudley watched as from within the dark folds of his cloak, the man named Snape withdrew a small glass vial filled with colorless liquid and held it between his thumb and forefinger. "I trust you know how to administer it," said Snape. "Three drop dosage and refrain from use if the subject is exerting himself."

"You're giving a Muggle boy Veritaserum," Arthur said distantly, disbelievingly. "The depths you have fallen, Kingsley." Without another word, he turned and left Dudley's field of vision. Dudley heard a familiar 'BANG!' and knew that the wizard had gone.

Still, however, it was becoming harder and harder for Dudley to focus. The thought of two wizards, both with wands at the ready, made Dudley anxious. It was feeling which doubled at the knowledge that he was completely helpless. What would they do to him next? As the man named Kingsley knelt next to his head, Dudley desperately tried in vain to turn away. Kingsley tapped his wand to Dudley's arm and Dudley felt a spark of warmth. Over head he heard a smooth, sardonic voice offer commentary.

"It's easier to pour the potion in his mouth if he's immobilized," said Snape.

"I need you to double check something first."

Dudley felt the warmth spread down his arm, across his body and to his fingertips. In a matter of moments, he could feel his legs and a slight tingling in his muscles as if his body was waking from sleep. But it was only a partial wakening. While Dudley could now feel slightly the environment around him, he still could not move. The wizards were still there and the irrational panic remained. As the cold paralysis was driven away, Dudley felt his heart beating faster. His eyes flicked freely from one wizard's face to the next, and his palms becoming slick with sweat.

"Well, Snape. Is he fit for the potion?"

Cool fingers slipped over Dudley's wrist and held firm when he tried to flinch away. Seconds ticked away and Dudley's heart hammered in his chest.

"No."

"I thought so too," a rustle of clothing and Kingsley stood up from his kneeling position, "He needs to kept in custody until the Veritaserum can be used, and as uninformed Arthur may have been, he is right. The boy cannot be held in the Ministry building – the press would see to that."

"Dumbledore only asked me to come here to deliver the Veritaserum you asked for. Everything else is your problem."

Snape made to leave, but Kingsley caught his shoulder. "Take him to Hogwarts."

"You're joking."

"The Ministry will be free of questions from the press and if someone's looking for him, he will be one child in hundreds. Not withstanding, Hogwarts is one of the safest places in the wizarding world," Kingsley spoke quickly, "Dumbledore would agree with me."

"Who will look after him?"

Kingsley shrugged, "Give him to Hagrid. Put him in an empty tower. Find a spare cell in the dungeon. Anything as long as he's protected until we get answers. Will you take him?"

Snape looked as if he would rather do anything except deal with Dudley, but grudgingly he flicked his wand at Dudley's body. Dudley felt a sharp tug and everything went dark

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

Author's Note:

There's something amazing when even after 2 years of dormancy, people keep reading and reviewing this story. Thank you to all your wonderful comments! My humble apologies to those of you who have asked for faster writing, but with school and work, it's difficult to keep up with everything. Just so you all know though, this story is far from abandoned and I've still have some territory to explore with Will's journey and character. To questions about Will's age: I haven't pinpointed an exactly how old he is, but then again, Will is one of those characters who can work both as a young person and as an Old One. In my head, he's an adult with teenage tendencies. It's been a nice challenge defining the two sides of Will. Please forgive the slight OOCness because I still am hashing out the details of Will's character.

Some of you have been asking if Bran or Harry will be showing up anytime soon. I would like to work in Bran somehow, but as for Harry... I'm not so sure. Truth be told, I'm paranoid about writing 2 'good guys' beacuse I'm afriad they will both blend into one character. Until I work up the nerve, I don't think I will write about Harry directly. But we'll see as how it goes. So! If you have the time, please tell me what you think about the story so far. I'd love to hear more from you all. Thank you again for reading!