Those doors, in fact, swung open for the last time that evening as the last of the snake whisperers sneaked into the hall and made his way to the round table beside Rufus, one of the oldest members of the council. The door slammed shut of its own accord, and the sound of it stunned the council into silence for several minutes. Then another crack, and before anyone had a chance to see where it had come from, Albus appeared from behind the table and made his way to the meeting. He flicked his wand, and the rain stopped, and the candles fell from their floating position and landed in the centre of the table.