Chapter 4

Nearly all in the room, except for Tom and Harry, got to their feet and pulled out their wands. Cornelius Fudge's mouth was hanging open, he had no idea what to do. The Dark Lord was here, and Potter was on his side. They would all surely be dead within moments.

"Now, now Minister, that twig of yours is hardly necessary, the same goes for the rest of you." Lord Voldemort stated, using magic to don his typical Dark Lord wardrobe. He pulled out his own wand and threw it across the room. "As you can now see, I am unarmed."

Harry did the same with his wand. "We are both unarmed. We only want the wizarding world to know the truth."

"A…and what exactly is the truth, Harry?" Rita asked bravely, her quill and notebook going wild.

Harry sighed and began with a simple statement. "Voldemort is innocent."

Fudge's face turned several shades of puce. "Innocent! The man's killed….."

"The man you speak of was framed. Don't you find it odd that Dumbledore is the first to every scene of attack, with the Dark Mark hanging proudly over his own head?" Voldemort pointed out. "Every time, he's the first one there, with no scene of either I or my followers. "And if your precious Dumbledore is so good, with only the best intentions for the wizarding world in mind, how could he leave what was supposed to be your only hope, Mr. Potter, in an abusive household? A household where he constantly came close to death, because he was afraid to protect himself with magic that would land him expelled?"

Amelia Bones gasped. "You mean, Harry was….beaten?"

"Impossible, we would have known if something like that was happening." Fudge said, so sure of himself that it hurt. "Dumbledore assured us he always had someone watching him."

Harry gave Tom a look that said "These people sure are slow on the uptake aren't they?"

Tom simply scoffed. "Dumbledore assured you. Mr. Potter, why don't you show them that scar in the small of your back?"

Harry nodded and removed his shirt and turned around. He knew that they were convinced when several swear words hit his ears, and the sound of Skeeter's quill moving at an even faster pace.

"But….but…why would….Albus leave you in such a terrible place, dear?" Bones asked.

"Because he really wanted me dead. He'd heard a prophecy from Professor Trelawney, before I was born, that said that if I died, so would Voldemort. However, it seems he misinterpreted it. Every word spoken in the damn thing was metaphorical. I will vanquish the Dark Lord, I'll vanquish the myth that Tom Riddle is evil."

"I don't understand." Cornelius blurted out. "If this Riddle is indeed innocent, than why does Dumbledore want him dead?"

Tom shook his head. He always hoped he could get out of telling this long story, he was getting sick of repeating himself. But it seemed as though he had no choice. "Because I found out what he was really after." He began before launching into the long, pain filled explanation.

When he had finished, he could tell that they believed him. Even Fudge believed him. In truth he had never REALLY trusted Dumbledore. The man had always seemed a little too perfect.

"But….what about that incident at the World Cup finals, two years ago, with those Death Eater?"

Voldemort gave the minister a look. "They were drunk, what did you expect them to do, sing Christmas carols perhaps, or maybe recite Shakespeare."

One by one, each of the listeners looked to one another. Rita could hardly contain her excitement. What a front page this would make.

"So Harry, what exactly did you want ME here for?" She asked. "Surely not to print this, with your abuse and everything?" She knew that he could easily turn her in for being an unregistered animagus if she did anything contrary to what he wanted.

Harry nodded. "Actually I do. Every word, especially the parts about Dumbledore, and the abuse. Let them know just what a mistake they've made in blaming Voldemort for Dumbledore's wrongs and for believing the man incapable of such things."

The woman nodded. "I will be sure to tear the old bat apart with this article."

Soon after, their meeting was concluded and each person returned to their normal lives.

The next morning……

"Harry Potter Reveals Truth About Hogwarts Headmaster, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named Innocent"

AN: Yes, I leave it there for all of you fine people to read. Hope you all enjoy the update. Adios amigos. Sayonara. Au Revoire.