Hello, welcome to what will be rounding off the finale of the Discovering the Legend series. For those of you who don't know, the Discovering the Legend series covered the first four Harry Potter books and had reached through several of the chapters in the Order of the Phoenix book. After reading the chapter where Sirius falls through the veil, the Order wonder if it was some kind of lie, since Sirius was clearly not dead. But that was when they got the message from Snape that Harry was gone, that he had a fake vision from Voldemort and believed that Sirius was at the Ministry.

Terrified of what may be his future, Remus begged that Sirius stay behind, but Sirius knew what may happen to him, but was determined to go there and protect Harry. We will first be seeing the aftermath of what happened at the Ministry, mostly from Dumbledore's point of view.

Prologue: The Ending in Sight

This was his fault.

"Come on," Sirius laughed out, his voice echoing around the cavernous room, "you can do better than that!"

Why was it always his fault? Why didn't he ever learn his lesson and see the harm he was causing? Why did he do it? Why did he keep this quiet from Harry? Why didn't he warn him of what could happen?

The second jet of light hit him squarely on the chest.The laughter had not quite died from his face, when he was struck with a spell in his chest, but his eyes widened in shock. Blood splattered the floor around him as he was knocked backwards.

If he'd told Harry what Lord Voldemort could do, if he told him to expect Voldemort to try and lure him into the Department of Mysteries, then none of this ever would have happened.

The worst was hearing that cry…

"SIRIUS!" Harry yelled. "SIRIUS!"

That cry had been as a knife to his heart when he heard it. To his horror, he had seen Harry running down the stairs and towards the dias before Remus charged in and grabbed him around the chest to pull him back from Bellatrix, who was laughing with triumph.

"There's nothing you can do, Harry -" Remus gasped as he held him back.

"Get him, save him, he's only just gone through!" Harry cried out, refusing to believe it.

"- it's too late, Harry."

"We can still reach him -" Harry had cried as he struggled hard and viciously, but Remus would not let go…

"There's nothing you can do, Harry… nothing… he's gone."

That was hours ago and right now Albus Dumbledore was sitting in his office. The only sound came from the soft chirps from the baby Fawkes who was nestled in his pile of ashes. But he cried softly to his owner, who was sitting grimly at his desk, having not moved a muscle for some time.

The sun was already up and high, showing just how much time had passed since Harry left his office, but Albus remained where he was. He leaned over in his seat, occasionally adding memories to the Pensieve that sat in front of him before he would become lost in his thoughts once more.

It wasn't long before the flock of owls started to arrive him; but Albus just couldn't seem to muster up the energy to answer them. He remained in a kind of stupor for a long time until, finally, he heard another knock on the door and looked up in time to see two people walk in. Severus was there along with Alastor Moody—who was sporting large bruises and was holding up a pack of ice up against his head.

He had apparently left St. Mungo's on his own terms, or caring about any time spent trying to recover.

This wasn't anything new, Albus knew that Alastor had been coming and going from the wizarding hospital so many times over the years that they all knew him there. In fact, he even heard jokes being made that they had a special room set up just for him whenever he was dragged in.

"Alastor," he said tiredly as he sat up when he entered. "How are you?"

He had been concerned when he learned that Alastor had been attacked by Dolohov at the Ministry.

"Fine, fine," his old friend barked at him sourly as he kept the ice pack over the back of his head to where it had been healed, but still clearly sensitive. "Damn old age. Skills aren't what they used to be. Dolohov had it in for me during the First War, no surprise he tried to kill me."

"You sure you're feeling alright to leave St. Mungo's?" Albus asked in concern as he offered a chair for him, but Alastor insisted on standing.

"I'll live," he barked in annoyance. "It was that pain in the arse Nymphadora you should be concerned with."

"How is she doing?" he asked instead, knowing that despite how often he complained about her, he knew that Alastor still cared deeply about young Nymphadora Tonks. And despite how causal he was acting right now, it was clear that he wanted him to ask how she was doing. "She was hurt by Bellatrix?"

"Aye, got hit hard," he nodded. "She'll live with no serious side-effects, according to the Healers. Should be out of the hospital sometime this week. More than I can say… for some."

Albus sighed as he leaned back grimly in his chair.

Severus, who had remained silent up until that moment, was looking around the partially destroyed office and at the remains of the instruments that had been shattered and lay twinkling on the floor.

"I'm assuming that Potter was here?" he asked knowingly.

Albus merely nodded before looking back down into the bowl of swirling memories.

"I'm guessing that he did this?" Severus asked silkily.

"Correct," Albus answered, his voice hoarse from not using it for a while.

"Looks like someone lost his temper with you," Alastor added as he looked down at the broken pieces as well with interest. "Well, it was only going to be a matter of time. I'd like to say I told you so but…?"

"There is no need, I know," Albus sighed before he pulled out his wand and, barely paying attention to anything else around him, he waved it once, causing the broken instruments to repair themselves and fly back to their usual places.

"Where's the boy now?" Alastor asked as he watched a lunascope jump back up onto the newly repaired table.

"He left earlier," Albus sighed. "Probably heading down to the Hospital Wing to check on his friends."

He glanced up at the portrait of Dilys, who nodded at the silent question, having been keeping an eye on the students who were brought in.

"The Longbottom boy will be staying until tomorrow," she informed them. "Poor thing had been tortured and Madam Pomfrey insisted on it. Lovegood suffered a concussion so she's sleeping it off, and the Weasley girl has already been released. She got off lucky with just a broken ankle."

"Good," Albus said, truly grateful for that. "And Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger?"

"May be there for a while," she answered back. "They received the worst of it. Nothing that Madam Pomfrey can't cure though. They should be out before the school year ends."

"Glad to hear it," Albus nodded before looking to Severus and asked, "And what does Voldemort think of all this?"

Severus was quiet for a moment before he sighed.

"The Dark Lord is angry," he said softly. "Angry that the Wizarding World is now fully aware that he has returned. But more than anything he is furious that the prophecy had been smashed and no one heard what it said."

"Good riddance if you ask me," Alastor stated as he limped over to the desk and pulled out his wand to conjurer up a glass of water. He pulled his magical eye out of his head, which Albus saw still had blood smeared on it, before dropping it with a plunking sound. "Now we don't need to worry about him getting his pasty white hands on it. Normally, I'd say that it all worked out… but…?"

What else happened that night hung in the air, leaving it suddenly feeling colder than ever before. Albus didn't look up at him as he kept his eyes focused on his pensieve, knowing what they were talking about.

"Is it true?" Severus asked softly. "Is Black truly dead?"

The careful mask that Severus worked so hard to keep did not slip so it was impossible to tell how he felt about any of this.

"I… don't know," Albus confessed. "Everyone seemed to think so because of the book but…?"

"Not how it happened in the book though," Alastor informed them. "Apparently he fell through the veil because he was too busy taunting Bellatrix. He was serious this time around but he was still struck by a curse. Who can say if he'll live or not?"

"So he is still alive?" Albus asked quietly, still not looking up.

"For now," Alastor admitted gruffly. "Had a hole blown right through him by that mad cousin of his. If he had been standing a hair to the right when he fell back, he would have gone through that veil. However, his arm came in contact with that blasted curtain."

Albus frowned at that, knowing what it meant.

There was still much that the Department of Mysteries did not know about the Veil. It was a manifestation of the barrier between the land of the living and the land of the dead. Usually when one fell through it, it was a one-way trip. It is impossible for others to pull whoever passes through out without passing through and dying themselves, and it was already too late for those passing through to be saved, as they were already dead. In the past a curious, if not fool-hardy Unspeakable had wondered what would happen if he stuck just a limb through the veil, while the rest of him remained in the living world.

That man had lost his leg in the process.

"Sirius has lost his arm?" he asked grimly at that.

"Aye," Alastor answered. "That, added to the hole in his chest that Bellatrix gave him, he lost most of his blood. It's a wonder that he didn't die immediately. Don't know what's gonna happen next to him. But it doesn't look hopeful. Most have already written him off as a goner. But I guess we managed to give him a fighting chance, no matter how slim. What I want to know is how did that book predict this?"

"Apparently," Severus explained, "There is a chapter in that last book that foretold everything that happened in the last day or so. How is that even possible? How could a book be able to predict everything that happened? When I contacted them at Grimmauld Place, they weren't surprised to hear that Potter and his little friends went to the Ministry."

"That's what I've been wondering about," Alastor said, and to Albus's surprise, he pulled out the fifth book that they had all been reading for the last couple of weeks from a bag that he wore at his side.

"I went back to Grimmauld Place to grab it," he answered as he set it on the desk next to the glass that contained his magical eye. "Wanted to make sure that we didn't leave that lying around. I made sure to toss the first four books into the fire on my way here."

"You destroyed them?" Albus asked in surprise.

"Can't risk anyone getting their hands on them," he said in annoyance. "Besides, we already read them. This one… however…?"

They all looked at the blue cover once again.

"It told us everything that happened while it was happening," Alastor said to him. "If we had read it a little faster and got to actually reading the book without so many darned interruptions, we might have learned what was going to happen before it did."

"It would appear so," Albus said softly as he traced his fingers over the hardback cover and lost himself in his darkening thoughts once more. So deep were his thoughts that he didn't even realize that Severus and Alastor were arguing with each other… at least at first.

"Don't you blame me for this," Severus hissed at Alastor. "It's the boy who jumped to the conclusion that he had to go and save his godfather, who obviously can't save himself."

"And who was the one who stopped giving him Occulmency lessons even though he knew full well what could happen?" Alastor asked with his gash of a mouth curling into a smile. Severus flushed at this and looked sharply away.

"It seems clear to me that it was useless to try and teach Potter," he snarled back.

"Enough, the both of you," Albus said wearily, wishing that they would leave and just leave him alone for the moment. He did not wish to see anyone right now, instead he was wishing for some peace and quiet before he would be forced to meet with Fudge later on.

He rubbed his tired eyes before he looked up, trying to put his mind to work as he asked Severus, "What else is happening inside the school, right now?"

"Everything has quieted down," Severus answered silkily. "Umbridge is missing right now, I'm looking into what might have happened to her, but I think she may be lost inside the forest."

"Can we just leave her in there?" Alastor asked lightly. "It's not like anyone would miss her or anything."

Albus had to fight the impulse to laugh. Unfortunately, he also knew that it could cause them problems from the Ministry if something had happened to her… though he did feel a surge of eagerness to let Umbridge pay for all the harm she had brought to his students over this last year.

"I shall go out and look for her," he promised as he ran an exhausted hand over his old face. "I suspect we should be expecting officials from the Ministry here soon enough—perhaps even Fudge himself. Keep an eye out for them if they do arrive, Severus. If they ask where I am, inform them that I will be bringing Umbridge back to the castle, but I expect her to be removed as soon as possible."

Severus nodded as Albus added, "Has Hagrid returned yet? And Minerva? How is she?"

He still felt a surge of anger inside him when he had learned what happened to the two of them while he had been away from the castle, and hoped that they would be back as soon as possible. Hogwarts needed them and it wasn't the same without them there.

"I sent word to Hagrid as per your orders," Severus answered with a nod. "And I learned where he's been getting all those injuries all year as well. Apparently, he brought home one of the giants and had been keeping him in the forest."

Albus and Alastor both looked up at him in amazement.

"What?" Alastor demanded. "Is he barking mad? He's finally lost it."

"From what he said, apparently it's his younger… half-brother," Severus informed them both. "And he was worried about him, so he brought him back when he returned from meeting with the giants last summer."

It took a few moments for this news to wash over Albus who blinked and wondered if he was just dreaming right now. This was a little too much to take in.

"And where is this… brother of his?" he asked, still trying to grasp what he just learned.

"In the forest," Severus answered before going on in a tone that clearly suggested that he was wondering if they would think he was making this up. "And Hagrid had been trying to keep him tied up while he was trying to teach him… English."

Albus wasn't sure if he should laugh or cry at this. Alastor compromised by swearing at the top of his lungs at what he really thought of Hagrid doing something so insane.

"This explains much," Albus said once Alastor paused to take a breath. "I had been concerned for Hagrid with his many injuries and why he was so late in returning to the castle. But, now that we know, I think that it would be best that we move our new—guest from the forest. I believe that he may be feeling a little more comfortable up in the mountain areas instead."

"What? You're gonna let him keep him?" Alastor barked, much like how someone would criticize him for allowing a wayward child to keep a pet that followed him home.

"Well, I'm afraid it's not like we can send him back where he came from at this point," Albus said, making a note to have a word with Hagrid about this matter when he next saw him. He could understand why Hagrid felt the need to bring him here, but keeping him tied up in the forest wasn't going to be helping anyone.

"I'll take care of this," he promised with Alastor raised his eyebrows at him. "And Minerva? Have you learned of how she is doing?"

"She's still in St. Mungo's," Alastor answered instead. "She might be there for the rest of the school year. But she's a tough, old girl. She won't die that easily."

"I see," he nodded, a little surprised, but glad to hear that she was doing much better. He dismissed Severus, promising to go and search for the forest for Umbridge. Alastor decided to stick around here in case any officials showed up while he was away, just so that he could yell at them for being such idiots.

Albus left everything in their hands before he went wandering off, heading straight for the stairs. Already news had gotten out about how Umbridge was now sacked and that he had returned as the Headmaster. He passed by the students, who were going over the newspapers that were probably already telling the world everything that happened at the Ministry last night.

As soon as they saw him, they gasped and quickly began talking to their friends that he was back and that the news must be true. More than a few students let out cries of joy at the thought of Umbridge no longer being Headmistress.

It was startling how much could change for someone in just one night.

Albus did his best not to think about that and how that how much had happened. He barely paid any attention to what was happening around him as he strode towards the front doors. He soon found himself wandering across the grounds, heading straight towards the forest. The bright, sunny sky with hardly a cloud and the warm breeze seemed to mock how he was feeling however.

He couldn't get that image out of his mind. The expression on Harry's face when he revealed to him the truth of the prophecy. The betrayal in those green eyes would haunt him for his remaining days…

He strode into the Forbidden Forest, glad for a chance to get his mind cleared of everything that happened in the last 24 hours. Walking through the trees, noting how quiet they seemed at this time, going deeper and deeper until he eventually came onto a clearing where he saw Umbridge huddled by a tree shivering and scared but seemingly unharmed in her horrid pink robes.

She seemed to be alone.

As soon as he took a step towards her however, he immediately heard the sound of hooves approaching, he stopped as a shadowy shape appeared on the path in front of him – a horses' body with a man's torso. He stepped forward, and at once the dark form of the centaur named Bane appeared from the shadows… glaring at him and stomping his hooves in rage.

"Good afternoon, Bane," he responded respectfully. The other centaurs behind Bane all came from the shade of the trees as well and observed him as one would when something interesting was on display. Bane on the other hand glared fiercely at him—as if daring him to make the wrong move.

"What are you doing here, human?" Bane snarled at him.

Albus, who had taken his wand out and lit it to find his way through the dark forest, put it back into his pocket as he held up his hands to show that he wasn't here to cause trouble.

"Bane I did not come here for a fight, as you obviously seem ready for," Albus responded politely and quietly, showing them that he had no means to fight or defend himself. "I merely came to bring Dolores Umbridge out of your forest before anyone else gets hurt."

"You will not, human. She is to be punished for what she dared to do," Bane responded, pawing the ground in an irritated way. "She dared to threaten us with her wand. And that's not counting the horrid insults she used!"

Albus nodded and said, "Yes, I am sure she did. But with your permission, I will take her with me and out of your forest. I assure you that she won't be able to insult you any longer should you allow me to do so."

"And let her escape punishment?" Ronan asked, coming from behind Bane.

"Greetings to you as well, Ronan. However, I must inform you that she is from the Ministry," Albus replied, keeping his voice light and friendly, knowing that arguing with them would only make things worse. He had to calmly explain that letting her go was in their better interest…

"Isn't it bad enough that you charmed that traitor Firenze into revealing our secrets to your students, but you want to order us what to do in our own home?" Bane barked suddenly.

Albus held his arms up once again as he calmly tried to explain, "I know that you were most against my offer to Firenze. But know that I did not mean to cause any harm to you or insult your herd. But times are becoming dark for us all, and it is my hope that by being able to stand by all magical creatures, we can stand against the encroaching darkness. If you doubt anything else, know that Firenze simply wishes for peace. That has not changed."

The centaurs all continued looking at him, as if wondering if he was speaking the truth or not.

"I take it you are not going to leave here without her?" Bane demanded while he threw a look of loathing over at Umbridge, who was still huddled up into a tight ball at the foot of the tree.

"Believe me, I dislike her as much as all of you do," Albus informed them truthfully. "She has done nothing but torture my students all year. I would love nothing more than to see her pay for the cruelty that she has shown to others. Yet, I fear that it may cause unnecessary trouble for you all as well. The paperwork alone would be a nightmare and I'm afraid that I cannot guarantee that they leave you alone should any harm come to her."

He let them look at each other and silently think it all over. He could tell that they deeply wanted to punish her for whatever it was that she said or did to them. Yet, he also knew that centaurs were not cruel or evil creatures—preferred to be left alone. Despite what some like Umbridge would think… they were gentle and deep beings with a distain for needless violence. But with how they had been treated by humans in the past… he could not blame them for their frustration.

He waited there patiently as they quietly talked among themselves. Finally, after a few minutes of discussion, they seemed to decide that they would leave the matter to him.

"Very well," Ronan said deeply but very seriously as well. "We shall allow you to take her with you. On the condition that she will never be allowed to set foot in our forest again. The stars foretell that she will grow even crueler than she is right now."

"I pray not," Albus answered with a polite bow. "But I swear, as long as I am alive, she will not set foot in here or bother any of you ever again. Thank you all for your kindness."

One by one, the centaurs left him, retreating back into the cover of the trees. Bane staying a fragment of a second longer as he gave him a sharp look—before he left with a swish of his tail. Albus waited until he was sure that they had left before he walked over and pulled Umbridge up. He then forced her to walk with him; and without another look back, they went through the forest and back in the direction of the castle.

"H-h-halfbreeds," she stuttered out once she realized that he was here, and she began shaking from head to foot as she glared at him. "Handled b-by such b-b-beasts! And you had some nerve to c-come back here! Y-you will be arrested as soon as I contact the Ministry!"

"Those halfbreeds spared you," Albus said coldly, refusing to look at her. "That is what we call mercy. None of that would have happened anyway if you hadn't been so foolish to insult them in the first place. And I am here to inform you that I have just been pardoned and now I'm now allowed to return to the castle as Headmaster."

"Preposterous!" she cried out, refusing to believe any of that.

"You will soon see," he answered harshly. "I will allow you to rest up in the Hospital Wing. But once you have recovered, you will leave. You are no longer Headmistress, High Inquisitor, or even the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Not that my students have learned anything from you this year. Your degrees have already been removed and yes, you are fired.

She glared at him, but perhaps she feared that he would leave her behind if she argued and she stayed surprisingly silent. He led her out of the forest, supporting her as he took her up to the Hospital Wing, and left her in Madam Pomfrey's care. Harry was there already with his five friends. They didn't notice him at first, but he didn't stay long enough for them to realize he was there. Luna was sitting up in bed with a turban of bandages around her head, but she was already reading the latest issue of The Quibbler. Neville was pale, but looked whole and heathy just like Ginny Weasley, whose ankle had already been taken care of.

As for Harry, his back was to the door as he watched over his two best friends, who were both sleeping.

Perhaps it was cowardliness, but Albus did not want to stay. He had also guessed that he may be the last person that Harry may wish to see at the moment; so once he passed Umbridge over to Madam Pomfrey, he returned back to his office.

Alastor was still there, and he was flipping through the book when he entered the room. When Albus asked him if he would rather have something else to do, he was given a surprising answer. Alastor was very interested as he turned the pages to the last chapter they had read before receiving the message from Severus to go to the Ministry.

"Quite impressive they were," he admitted as he turned the page. "A bit inexperienced, but six teenagers didn't do half a bad job against a dozen odd Death Eaters. They were able to hold their own until we showed up anyway and none of them were killed. You should read that chapter when you get the chance."

"Why are you going through that now?" Albus asked tiredly as he began looking at some of the countless letters from the Ministry that were already piled up on his desk. He was determined to do whatever it took to avoid Alastor's gaze—so much so that he was willing to stoop to looking through mail. But he was also burning with curiosity at what else the book had to say as well.

"There's only three more chapters left," Alastor said as he skimmed ahead. "You think that they hold more information?"

Albus did not answer as he thought that all over. Truthfully, he feared what they would read next.

"I'm not above finding out," Alastor said as he took a seat at last and turned the page to the next chapter. "Interesting," he added when he saw the black-and-white image to see Dumbledore standing there with his wand drawn, facing off against the black robed figure he knew to be Voldemort. He, too, had his wand drawn, and was even holding up a large shield as he battled with the old man.

And it was a sign of just how interested he was in this information that he was reading it out loud to him. the same man who had refused to read almost any of the chapters the entire time that they went over them.

"Chapter Thirty: The Only One He Ever Feared," he read out, as if curious to see how Dumbledore would respond to it.