A/N Hello there again, obviously it's been a while since my last update but joining the Army has a way of sucking up ones time. Now I want to state a couple of things about this chapter, it touch's on a couple of sensitive subjects and I shall make no apologizes for the views expressed in here, obviously they don't represent anyone important so don't worry. I would also like to warn you dear reader that while I've done my best to find any grammar errors, I spent five hours last night pounding out this chapter and thus am very groggy at this moment. I will obviously do my best to fix any errors I come across after I've got a couple hours of proper sleep in me. As to the question of the pairings of this fic, they will be very many different pairings as you will see in upcoming chapters, but I will say definitely now that Harry is straight, this is and will never be a slash fic. I also want to ask you to bear with me, I realize that it seems like this might be dragging out but I specifically wrote this chapter with the intent of getting the rest of the world setup. The next chapter will have Harry at Hogwarts and shall reveal the first of clues about the mysterious powers of the Sorcerer's Stone. Anyway sorry for the long authors notes, remember that while reviews are appreciated, they are not required. So enjoy, and R/R if you could.

Chapter 6

Wizengamot

Surprised.

That is the term that Harry would best you to describe the greeting at the entrance to the Ministry of Magic, there were large crowds of random people, reporters, security guards, etc. It was like they were awaiting stars on some type of red carpet.

Harry had phoned ahead to rent a wide stretch limousine to arrive in, he hoped there was not some special procedure that he needed to adhere to. He had barely enough time to review the information on the three important topics the Wizengamot would be reviewing today.

What topics to.

Harry considered himself lucky in the respect that he was going to be able to vote on two of the most important pieces of legislation to come through the British Ministry of Magic in a long time. Each of these issues had enough controversy to inspire a feeding frenzy separately; together they would only make his reappearance into the Wizarding World bigger then before.

When the limo started finally rolling to a stop, Harry gently caressed the exquisite material that made up his robe, his finger eventually landed on the symbol of his family. He traced the outline of it quietly, before taking one last second to school his features stoically.

With a deep breath he quietly stepped out of the door that seemed to magically open only a few seconds before he touched it. Flashes of light completely engulfed Harry's vision as screaming reporters began trying to push through the security guards at the gate.

"Lord Potter a question…"

"Where have you been all this time…?"

"Will you respect a witches right to choose…."

"Have you been saved…?"

"Will you be attending Hogwarts…?"

"Lord Potter has a wife been named..."

Harry's only response was to wave politely, he was escorted to the phone booth entrance of the MOM by Auror's who were dressed in their ceremonial white robes, the symbol of the Ministry embedded on the backs of their robes.

He was met by a short cute brunette; she was about four inches smaller then him, dressed in a purplish robe.

"Lord Potter, I'm Eva and I've been selected by the Minister to help you incase you have any questions."

"That would be lovely Miss…" Eva waved him off with a shy smile.

"You can call me Eva Lord Potter." Harry nodded, he had planned to dismiss any help that the Minister provided but perhaps he could use this do his advantage.

"Then I insist in private you call me Harry, now let us head off into the direction of the chambers." Eva nodded but was a little surprised when Harry offered an arm, (something he almost instantly regretted) she embarrassingly took it and they both started off after a procession of other Wizengamot council members.

"I'm not sure if you know this or not Lord Potter, but strictly speaking you were suppose to arrive along with the other senior members of the Wizengamot." Harry feigned surprised, in reality he was completely aware of that fact, and had planned it intentionally so he didn't arrive with them.

"Oh well, I do hope the Minister won't mind." Eva shook her head promptly; they were fast approaching the official announcer.

"The Minister told me personally to convey his deep felt appreciation for your attendance, the wisdom of your family has long been missed inside these hallowed chambers." Harry feigned delight and smiled widely.

"I shall have to thank the Minister on his excellent choice for a guide." Eva blushed and stuttered thanks. They casually parted ways as Harry stepped up to the Ministry announcer whose booming voice echoed throughout the Wizengamot chambers.

"Announcing his lordship Lord Harry James Potter, Last Scion of the House of Potter, Tamer of the Black Phoenix, Defier of the Crown, and Senior Lord of the Wizengamot." Harry was completely in the dark about what some of those titles meant.

What the hell is a defier of the crown?

He didn't have a chance to muse on the issue as he walked down the isle and toward the highest benches; the room itself was an extraordinarily large stone dungeon. Thousands of candles floated around the room illuminating the occupants.

There were of course the 170 members of the Wizengamot made up of minor families whose titles were all inherited directly from their ancestors. The five most powerful families of the British wizarding world sat upon the center and highest benches in the chamber.

The Malfoy's, Blacks, Changs, Dumbledore's, and of course the Potters. Each family was among the top of Wizarding Britain, but who actually was the strongest was a matter of continuing debate, and conflict. Harry knew that his family was probably the least strongest out of all these respective members, and he had a feeling that they sensed this weakness.

Representing the Malfoy's was one Lucius Malfoy, his beautifully cut robes and handsome aristocratic features were worn with an aura of aristocratic arrogance. Tow Min Chang was a short elderly man of 5'6 with strong Asian features who looked like a favored grandfather, but any image of weakness was immediately dispelled by his piercing azure gaze which was aimed directly at Harry.

Albus Dumbledore was dressed in long flowing lilac robes, he sat with a calm cool composed manner and a soft pleasant smile on his face. The quintessential grandfather figure, he resonated an aura of trust and calmness.

Harry wasn't fooled for a second.

Underneath that carefully projected exterior was a razor sharp mind, and in that deceptively frail body was arguably the most powerful wizard of this century. Harry had to only look at Dumbledore to realize that he was someone to respect, and be wary about.

The last member of the panel was the very young Lord Orion Silence Black; he was the same age as Harry and the leader of the most powerful Black clan. Short stylishly cut black hair, and strong extremely handsome features made Harry feel a bit humbled.

His youthful appearance was offset by the piercingly gray eyes that betrayed a cunning intelligence and a calmed assurance rarely found in one so young.

Every one of those eyes was trained on Lord Harry James Potter, they were judging, analyzing, and dismissing him just as quickly. Each one of them had their own respective agendas, and now they were carefully wondering if Harry would be an easily swayed pawn to their plots.

He idly wondered what conclusions they would draw.

The average member of the Wizengamot if he looked at Harry would most likely be unimpressed, a very striking looking young man know doubt with his ruggedly handsome good looks and piercing emerald eyes, he might send a few hearts a flutter and maybe inspire some lustful thoughts but those were a common enough thing.

He didn't hold himself with the grace of a powerful Lord; he seemed a tad out of place and was doing a horrible job of covering it up. No, the newest Lord Potter was not inspiring the fear and awe that usually went along with the name.

Harry couldn't have wished for a better thought.

He calmly strolled up and took his seat at the end of the platform near Orion Black and waited quietly as the mandatory applause ended. Harry smiled and waved as the crowd began to settle down; he turned and listened as Minister Fudge began to speak.

"Honored guests and members of the Wizengamot, welcome to this years beginning session of the British Isle Wizengamot." There was another mandatory five minute clapping period before he continued.

"I would like to extend our warmest greetings to Lord Harry James Potter, and thank him for once again bringing the wisdom of his respective family to these distinguished proceedings." Clapping, Harry was beginning to learn took up a fair amount of time for these formal occasions.

"I will now turn over the floor to the Chief Elder, Lord Tiberius Ogden." An ancient wizard dressed in a simple gray robe, his long white hair was tied into an equally long ponytail and his features were deeply weathered.

"Thank you Minister Fudge, I call upon Gina Wenzel McKinney to present her grievance to the Wizengamot." Harry watched as an average sized woman with long crimson curls and a bland face stepped forward, she was dressed in a conservative brown robe. She seemed nervous to Harry, but was making a decent attempt at not being intimidated.

"My name is Gina McKinney, I'm the director of the British Isle Magical Orphanage association and for those who don't know, our non-profit group runs a string of several orphanages throughout Britain and we are responsible for all magical orphans in the British Isles." Harry was well versed with her compliant; it was basically a budget issue.

"We draw most of our funding from the Ministry itself, and I'm sorry to say that the money allotted by the Ministry this year is simply not enough to cover the expenses for the over thirteen-hundred orphans were take care of." Some outraged hushed tones from the Ministry side of the benches, but generally the room remained quiet.

"Are you accusing the Ministry of Magic of short changing innocent orphans Miss. McKinney?" Fudge tone was neutral, but there was the briefest hint of hostility in his words. Yes Gina McKinney would not be intimidated.

"No Minister, I simply think that perhaps a bureaucratic oversight might have contributed to the Ministries decision, we simply can't afford to provide a decent upbringing for these children on the stipend the Ministry has provided." Muttering in the background began to increase somewhat, and Fudge appeared to be growing more angry.

"So now you are accusing the Ministry of making idiotic mistakes, I can assure you madam that while I sympathize with the plight of innocent orphans, we simply don't have the money to make sure they are allowed to buy every toy their little hearts wish." Harry noticed a few nodded agreements in the background but he continued to keep silent.

"Toy's Minister Fudge is not what the Ministries money is being spent on, why basic medical services for a month will completely take ¼ of our yearly budget!" Her voice jumped a notch, but Fudge seemed to be unmoved by her plight.

"Then perhaps running to St. Mungo's every time a child coughs isn't a good idea, the fact remains is that this year's budget has been decided and it would be quite impossible to change this late in the year." Shoulders gradually slumping, Gina McKinney looked around to other members of the Wizengamot for support; Lucius Malfoy was the first to speak.

"If your association is in such dire need, then perhaps seeking more loans from Gringott's would be in your best interests?" His tone was light and neutral but Harry didn't have a doubt that if such a thing happened, Gringott's would gladly slipped Lucius Malfoy a generous finder's fee.

"Lord Malfoy with all due respect, we already have taken loans from Gringott's for the past four years to cover our growing expenses and we are looking at having a couple of our orphanages foreclosed upon." With a soft shake of his aristocratic head, Lucius Malfoy shrugged his shoulders dramatically.

"Then perhaps you might have to loose a couple of your properties, it might promote some fiscal responsibility on your part." Miss. McKinney handled the insult with surprising grace; she remained defiant in what appeared to becoming a hopeless situation.

None of the other Wizengamot members had anything to say, and Harry decided he might as well step in before he lost his chance.

"To forestall the closing of your orphanages Miss. McKinney, and to properly cover this years budget may I ask how much money you would need?" Surprise ran through the crowd of families as they regarded Harry, Dumbledore in particular was watching Harry with rapt attention.

"Lord Potter the total amount needed would tally up to about 235,000 galleons, but I fail to see how that is pertinent at this point." Harry made a show of concentrating hard, he held the Wizengamot in breathless silence for a few seconds before speaking.

"I think we all can agree that we should be looking out for what's best for the orphans, so I shall personally donate the 235,000 galleons from my families own personal funds and spare the Ministry the expense of having to fix an obvious unintended budget mistake." Silence descended upon the hall for the first time in minutes, Harry had just delivered the first stroke of what he hoped would be a useful delaying action. He had not only just earned himself a fair amount of good PR by willing to bear the burden of helping innocent orphans; he had also just taken a direct shot at the Ministry itself.

Lord Potter the fop was beginning to show his true colors.

"Lord Potter while that is certainly a noble gesture, I wouldn't want you to be mislead by this woman, her association was provided with more then adequate funds and this petition is nothing more then a gesture to try and extract more money for god knows what." Harry shook his head and waved the Minister off.

"This is truly no problem Minister, I know that mistakes happen and I'm more the willing to bear the burden for helping these orphans, seeing as this should satisfy Miss. McKinney's petition I suggest we move onto the next order of businesses?" Unable to find a proper response to that, Fudge simply nodded bleakly and motioned Tiberius Ogden to move on.

New appraising and suspicious looks were sent in Harry's direction, he had deliberately lured them into believing him a fool and now they were unsure of how to judge him at all.

Just as Harry had hoped.

"Ahem, the next order of businesses before the Wizengamot is a vote on the Werewolf Housing and Job restriction act; I shall now turn the floor over to Minister Fudge." Minister Fudge took a moment to look solemnly over the assembled members of the Wizengamot.

"Honored members of the Wizengamot, over the past five months werewolf attacks have been on the rise and the public demands action, so a team of Ministry specialists working with my office have been crafting a law to that will help fully address a growing werewolf threat." Harry was starting to wonder if there was one politician in the entirety of Wizarding Brittan who grasps the idea of "getting to the point".

"So I present this bill, and hope that you shall cast a vote in favor of protecting the wizarding public." Harry said nothing as he was busy mulling over his pre-decided position, he doubted he had enough swing to strike the issue down but perhaps there was a way.

"The floor recognizes Lord Lucius Augustus Malfoy." Lucius didn't seem a bit fazed to find himself under the gazes of everyone in the Wizengamot.

"I would like to applaud Minister Fudge for taking steps to correct a problem that has long plagued the wizarding world, to long have we ignored the threat that werewolves pose to the general public, it's time that we know who is a werewolf and where they live, it's time we stop coddling these people and take action to protect the greater wizarding public." His speech, his tone of voice, was all flawless and many of the Wizengamot were entranced.

"So I would likely to fully endorse this bill, and hope that the wisdom is prevailed among you others to do the same." A loud enthusiastic clapping followed as Malfoy sat down, the perfect arrogant aristocrat.

"The Floor recognizes Lord Tow Min Chang." The short elderly leader of the House of Chang stood up, his gaze quickly quieting any residual clapping.

"Circumstances will force me to abstain from this vote, as I've not had the proper amount of time to fully study the issue and I beg the Wizengamot's forgiveness in this matter." He bowed briefly, and then calmly retook his seat.

"The floor recognizes Lord Orion Silence Black." Harry watched young grey eyed lord of House Black stand smoothly up.

"I must also abstain myself from this vote, I beg the Wizengamot's forgiveness in this matter." He quietly sat down, and waited.

"The floor recognizes Lord Harry James Potter." Harry met each of their stares with a stoic mask and an icy emerald gaze.

"I have a number of questions I'd like to pose to Minister Fudge, and perhaps bring to light some issues I believe haven't been thought of." Anxiousness seemed to spread through the assembled members of the lower families, what other trick was Harry about pull?

"By all means Lord Potter, please state your fears so I that might do my best to ease them." A small dig, Harry hoped that by the time he was done, it would be just another line in the official transcript.

"It states in the clauses of this bill that all werewolves shall be hereby excluded from working in a densely populated muggle areas, I was wondering Minister what industry will be soaking up the jobs that this bill is going to leave vacant?" Fudge simply nodded gravely, this was a question he had obviously been expecting.

"While we admit initially might cause some job loss problems, we fully believe that the economy of wizarding Britain will be able to quickly absorb these… individuals back into the fold relatively quickly." Harry nodded.

"Wouldn't some of these individuals whose job is teacher, healer, or any number of high ranking jobs be reduced to taking jobs in menial labor?" Fudge said nothing for a few seconds before allowing his well worn political smile to resurface.

"Perhaps, but the safety of the wizarding public is what is paramount don't you agree Lord Potter?" Harry smiled faintly.

"While agreeing with the Minister, I would like to remind him that he's answering questions and therefore not asking them." Amused expressions swept through the Wizengamot, Fudge himself said nothing but just kept smiling. His eyes though betrayed this anger.

"Now, I would like to ask if the Ministry is prepared to fight the wars that will inevitability arise if this bill is passed?" Silenced reigned throughout the Wizengamot, Fudge was blinking rapidly and seem to be wondering if he had heard Harry right.

"Would you please tell us Lord Potter, how a war might come if this bill is passed?" Fudge seemed to be thinking that Harry might have just fallen into a hole, but the smoothness of Harry's reply was too coordinated for that.

"Article seven of this bill states that all werewolves in Wizarding Britain would be subject to registering themselves at the Ministry, unfortunately this would directly contradict article fifty-five of the Werewolf Pack Autonomy treaty of 1879, the article in question promises that any clan werewolf will not be subject to mandatory Ministry registration, and it should be noted the clause has a two hundred year old expiration date." The silence was palpable; Harry rather enjoyed watching the Minister disoriented for a few seconds before his finally honed political reflexes kicked in.

"Obviously the Ministry doesn't wish a war with the werewolf clans, nor do we wish to break such a… established treaty, and so I shall be scrapping that part of the bill in question." Harry smiled, he knew that representatives from the more powerful werewolf clans were in the audience, and he had just scored some points with all of them.

"I commend you on so quickly acknowledging the Ministries mistake, now I must ask you about these… statistics you have presented the Wizengamot." Fudge smiled tightly, and urged Harry to continue.

"Don't these numbers only show specific attacks for exclusive parts of the country, and if you look at the total amount of attacks over the past five to ten years, isn't the number in total on the decline?" Fudge took a few seconds to shuffle some papers in his hand, and then was forced to answer the question, less he look more then idiot then he already did.

"I suppose that you could interpret the figures that way, but I still think that the attacks are far too high for us to ignore." Said Fudge with a sudden rush of conviction, the response clapping was limited to only the most starch supporters of the Ministry.

"Aren't we running the risk of increasing these attacks by causing a sudden flood of jobless werewolves?" Fudge seemed unprepared for this question, and shuffled his hands for a few seconds.

"There are no statistics to back up that assumption, and I'm fully confident that our economy will quickly be able to absorb any flood of workers into the market." Harry was surprised by the supporting clapping; he had underestimated just how much support this bill had. He was beginning to doubt that he could muster enough support to completely kill this bill; he might have to settle for gutting it instead.

"Minister frankly I'm more concerned with this then you seem to be, therefore I would like to submit an amendment to this bill, a special exclusion for all werewolves who have held their jobs for more then one year and have no record of violence with the Department of Magical Law Enforcement." Fudge said nothing, and soon Tiberius Ogden began to speak.

"An official amendment has been suggested for the Werewolf Housing and Job Restriction act, all in favor?" Harry watched as Dumbledore raised his wand in support, and he was followed by more then ninety-five members of the Wizengamot.

"The amendment has passed, and the bill will become law." It was less then Harry had hoped for, but enough of a blow to the Ministers prestige to satisfy Harry.

"The final bill to be presented to the Wizengamot today is the Magical Abortion Act, the law is brought by Lady Devaro and Madam Bones." Harry felt his own jaw set as he watched a woman dressed in long flowing purple robes step forward, she was in her late thirties, with long black hair tied into a bun, pretty but pale features that were dimmed somewhat by her harsh demeanor and deep navy blue eyes.

She was Lady Devaro, the most fanatical supporter of witch's feminist issues in the entirety of Wizarding Britain, and also one of the most dangerous political figures in the realm today. She was supported by a coalition of miner families, and had extracted promises of support from the Minister for the first recognized abortion law in the wizarding Britain.

"Honored members of the Wizengamot, I come before you to correct a grave social injustice that continues to be perpetrated throughout wizarding Britain, the reproduction rights of witches everywhere are being constantly ignored with the refusal to allow the relatively simple procedure of aborting an unborn fetus." Her tone was fierce, crisp, and sharp, Harry resented her from the word go.

"Wizarding countries throughout the world are poised to pass similar laws, it's time to bring the Wizarding World out of the barbarian age and acknowledge the rights of witches that have long been oppressed, and so I urge you all to pass the bill with due haste and thank you ahead of time for your wisdom." There was fierce clapping in the stands, and Harry let out a sigh. He had spent the most time researching his arguments for this issue, and it was time to see if they would work or not.

"The floor recognizes Lord Lucius Augustus Malfoy." Harry looked on at Malfoy coldly; he expected the ex-deatheater to fully support the bill in exchange for the considerable political capital that Lady Devaro could provide in the future.

"Lady Devaro, I've noticed in this bill a certain lack of respect for the rights of the unborn child's father, would you please clarify as to how much power a father has in such decisions?" Harry was surprised; it almost sound like Malfoy was opposed to the bill.

"The fetus has no rights Lord Malfoy, and neither should any man have the right to infringe upon the reproductive of witches." A distinct sneer lined Malfoy's face.

"Indeed Lady Devaro, I believe I've heard enough." Harry's mind quickly whirled as he analyzed this unexpected possible ally, while the thought of allying himself with Malfoy was distasteful. Harry knew that such alliances would become a common practice and he might as well bite the bullet.

"The floor recognizes Lord Tow Min Chang." Harry had been surprised when he learned of the elder Chang's support of the bill; to get the vote of such a traditionally conservative family must be costing Lady Devaro a pretty penny.

"I would like to commend Lady Devaro for her commendable crusade for witch's rights, and hope that everyone here will lend their support to this historic bill." More fierce clapping for the supporters of the bill, no challenges seemed to be forthcoming. Lady Devaro had the support of a major family, the Ministry, and a number of minor families. It seemed like the bill was poised to pass as easily as everyone thought it would.

Of course Harry hadn't spoken yet.

"The floor shall recognize Lord Harry James Potter." Harry took a deep breath, and stared squarely into the eyes of Lady Devaro herself.

"Lady Devaro do you know the latest surveys from independent sources, and the Ministry itself say about unwanted pregnancies?" Lady quirked an eyebrow, and shook her head.

"They show that unwanted pregnancies among the wizarding population are about 12, this covers all ages in fact." Lady Devaro said nothing, but the hard look at Harry indicated she was beginning to sense more of a protest for this law then she had originally thought possible.

"Being as the numbers are so small, is it really advisable for us to condone a practice that would help erode the high responsibility that our citizens generally seem to show in these matters?" Few words were exchanged in the general seating, no one had expected any type of resistance to the bill and they were eager to see what would come of it.

"Your own numbers Lord Potter indicate that twelve percent of these pregnancies are unwanted and thus there needs to be options open to help our civilians, and I don't condone with your assessment that abortion would promote any less responsibility, but it would offer witches the right that they truly deserve." Harry smiled coldly.

"What about the rights of an unborn child, medical research clearly show that magical growth in an unborn child begins days after conception." Lady Devaro stiffened; her eyes were beginning to darken with anger.

"That so called research is a matter of debate; a fetus is not truly alive and thus is not subject to the same considerations as other beings." Harry felt his own ire begin to rise, but he knew that if he lost his temper, his entire argument would be for naught.

"Apparently we have different ideas of when life does begin, and aren't these so called pending abortion legislations facing stiff opposition in every respective Ministry that it's being introduced in, not to mention the abortion law is currently in America is being reviewed by the American Ministry of Magic's Supreme Court?" Lady Devaro took a few seconds to compose her reply, and in a stiff tone responded.

"I will grant you that there is some opposition to this legislation, but we have high hopes that the wisdom of these foreign Ministries shall be influenced by the bills passing here today." Supportive clapping broke out in the stands, but it seemed weaker somehow, more hesitant.

"I don't recall it being the job of this Wizengamot to set precedents for foreign governments." Lady Devaro's pale face colored lightly.

"Setting an example for the world to see is hardly something to be afraid of M'lord." Harry arched an eyebrow.

"You've had your just to state your opinions Lady Devaro, so kindly refrain from future statements that don't directly relate to questions that you've been asked." She was beginning to shake with anger, but nodded curtly in acknowledgment

"In this bill as Lord Malfoy so keenly pointed out, there is a severe lack of representation for the fathers of the unborn child, would you care to explain?" Harry carefully schooled his face to present a confused look, and this seemed to only infuriate Lady Devaro more.

"The father of the fetus is not the one who must bear the burden of carrying a child to term, nor is the subjected to the extreme emotional stress that is inflicted." Harry nodded in agreement.

"Yet it does take two people to create a child, and while acknowledging that there are some instances where pregnancy could result from rape, aren't the current contraceptive methods more then effective to prevent the majority of unwanted pregnancies?" Lady Devaro sniffed with distain.

"Perhaps, but there are instances where a rape victim can't reach a hospital to have a contraceptive spell administered and sometimes parents themselves won't consent." Harry nodded his head in agreement.

"Aren't contraceptive spells taught to all first year students at Hogwarts, quite frankly Lady Devaro I find this bill ethically distasteful and also very useless as the ability to prevent unwanted pregnancies can simply be achieved with a wave of a wand." Lady Devaro was now visibly shaking with anger, and her voice amply betrayed that anger.

"I find it surprising Lord Potter that you would take such position, if your mother was here with us today I'm sure she would gravely disappointed to see her son disgracing her memory this way." She snapped the statement without any real realization of what she was saying, but the fact remained that she did say it. The entire Wizengamot went silent, and Harry's emerald stare became chillier then an artic wind.

"My mother was killed by a useless coward Lady Devaro, so I shall not ever have the pleasure of knowing if what you say is true or not, but you will refrain from mentioning my mother in these proceedings and never again tack her honored name to such a despicable idea." His tone was perfectly controlled, but there was steel in his voice that silenced the entire Wizengamot itself for a number of seconds.

"Lady Devaro, you shall refrain from making anymore such statements in this Wizengamot, and furthermore I would like to extend apologizes to Lord Potter, who I can assure that no disrespect was meant for the memory of his parents." Tiberius Ogden's voice was calm and neutral but even Harry could vaguely detect a hint of anger under his otherwise composed features.

"Now are there any motions in regard to this bill?" Harry's wand went up so fast that it beat anyone else in the entire room.

"I would propose that this bill be thrown out in its entirety, and the entire issue be set aside until next year session of the Wizengamot." Harry's voice was still icy, and his anger was plainly visible to anyone who looked at him.

"Since this bill has the status of being a potential majoring wizarding law, I shall point to the senior members of the Wizengamot and they shall cast their votes before a general vote is taken." Tiberius Ogden pointed his wand at Harry first.

"I vote to throw out the bill, and raise the subject at a later Wizengamot meeting." Tiberius nodded, and pointed next to Tow Min Chang.

"I hereby vote that the bill become law immediately." He pointed to Orion Black next.

"I vote to throw out the bill, and raise the subject at a later Wizengamot meeting." He pointed to Dumbledore next.

"I abstain." It wasn't a surprise to Harry, but it still did anger him, Malfoy was last.

"I vote to throw out the bill, and raise the subject at a later Wizengamot meeting." Tiberius nodded, and then directed his wand to growingly nervous Minister Fudge.

"I vote that the bill become law immediately." Tiberius nodded.

"All those in favor of throwing out the bill?" Harry watched with rapt attention as dozens of wands were instantly raised in the air, the supporters of all three of the major families and a number of small independent families voted in support of throwing out the bill.

It was almost a hundred and twenty votes to throw out the bill, and Harry couldn't help but feel vindicated.

"The majority has voted, and the Magical Abortion Law bill is hereby thrown out." Numerous conversations erupted all over the Wizengamot, reporters were scribbling furiously on their pads and in the center of it all was Lady Devaro herself. A mix of disbelief and anger fighting for dominance on her face.

"THIS IS AN OUTRAGE, A TRAVISTY FOR WITCHES RIGHTS EVERYWHERE AND I SHALL NOT STAND FOR IT!" Her screams echoed throughout the hall, and were immediately drowned out by loud bangs from the wand of Tiberius Ogden.

"The Wizengamot has spoken, and you will control yourself Lady Devaro or I shall have you removed." All traces of calm were gone and his voice cracked like a whip, Lady Devaro remained defiant though.

"I shall not be silenced, how dare this panel of men dare presume to force their misogynistic ideals on witches everywhere." Her further ranting were cut off, as a dozen white robed Auror's appeared out of nowhere and swiftly grabbed her arms, disappearing with a pop just as quickly.

"This meeting will come to order and there will be silence, I declare the Wizengamot officially over and order all members to vacate the grounds immediately." With one loud final bang, the various members of the Wizengamot began to filter out of the chamber, tongues aching to start spreading the news of the spectacle they had just witnessed.

All in all Harry thought things went better then expected.

Even those most powerful of the lords were quick to exit the chambers, there were rumors to spread, plans to make, and revenge to be plotted. Harry himself was swamped the second he stepped into the hallway, dozens of people were eager to shake his hand, to compliment him, to offer him invitations, gifts, and businesses propositions.

It took Harry nearly a half-hour to work himself back to the entrance of the Ministry, but by then the events of what had transpired in the Wizengamot had been widely circulated. Reporters surged against the magical barriers, and not even the glares from the highly professional, and highly deadly white robed Auror's was enough to quell the crowd.

Harry simply smiled and waved as he headed down the carpet to his car, it was only when he got to the end of the carpet did he realize that his ride was no where in sight. His hackles were instantly raised, and his eyes scanned the crowd for any sign of danger, Harry didn't knew who would be foolish enough to break the ancient pacts that ensured everyone's protection at Wizengamot meetings, but for what other reason could his car not be here?

The answer was a mid-eighteen century carriage; it was made from some highly polished dark wood and pulled by a dozen magnificent white Arabian stallions. The carriage slowed to a halt directly in front of Harry, and the door slowly slid open to reveal the handsome face of Lord Orion Black.

"It seems that your ride is not available Lord Potter, perhaps I might offer you a ride so that we might get a chance to get better acquainted?" His tone was light, friendly, and completely without the slightest trace of threat or hostility.

Harry was instantly suspicious, but one look at the every growing crowd he knew that his options were running low.

"Do you swear that all members and servants of your house shall abide by the terms of the Neutrality Pact of 1934?" It was the quickest thing Harry could do to ensure that Orion wouldn't simply drag him off and have him killed, once agreed to the pact a was magical contract and thus enforceable on pain of death.

"Why of course, I promise that for the next twenty-four hours I shall observe the rules of the pact." Harry felt a slight tingle down his spine, and he knew that now Orion was bound by his very own magic. Harry reluctantly stepped into the carriage, and sat down in a seat made of the highest quality leather.

"I'm glad that you decided to accept my offer Lord Potter, I feel there are things we must discuss." Harry arched an eyebrow; he knew his invoking of the neutrality pact had been a sign of weakness. It indicated that he didn't trust enough in his own power to remain safe, and thus had to call upon something was only very rarely used.

It was like bleeding near a school of sharks.

"I must say that your performance was really quite impressive today, I dare to say that I've never seen Lady Devaro so… flustered before." Harry took a moment to consider this young lord in front of him, he didn't know much about Orion but he did know that while the same age as Harry, he had to defend his position as leader of the House of Black from many competitors seemingly from the cradle.

It was a sign of his strength.

"I'm quite sure that Lady Devaro shall recover soon enough, she's very crafty that way." Orion nodded in agreement as he poured himself a small glass of summer wine.

"Yes, I doubt we have seen the last of her or this issue on magical abortion either." He took a small sip of his wine, his gaze never straying from Harry for a second. His was completely relaxed, he was in his territory and they both knew it.

"Lord Black shall we cut to the chase, you didn't bring me here to discuss Lady Devaro." A small flash of amusement, and then he nodded.

"Of course Lord Potter, it's recently come to my attention that your family is in possession of some docks in the northern coast of England, and I would like to make an offer to… purchase the docks from you." Harry felt his blood begin to run cold as he realized the true intent of this meeting.

It was a shakedown.

"Perhaps you would like to tell me where you acquired such information?" It was a futile gesture, obviously Orion had some connections at Gringott's and it seems that Harry's information was up for bid.

"Oh here or there, the fact remains is that I think it will be in your best interests to sell this property to me." Harry took a moment to compose his features, his face was expressionless but his emerald gaze was chilly.

"I'm afraid Lord Black that the properties in question, are not for sale." Orion's mouth quirked into a smile, and his eyes flashed with amusement.

"I can see how you might think that, but I really must advise you that it would be in your best interests to simply sell me the property." Harry arched an eyebrow.

"Is that a threat Lord Black?" Amusement vanished from his eyes, and was replaced by a chilly grey stare.

"Consider it sound business advice Lord Potter." Harry let a small smile slip onto his own face.

"Since you are so keen on dispensing advice Lord Black, I shall impart a little of my own, it would be a fools errant to think that my House is coming from a position of weakness, and I would further say that if any "unfortunate" accidents were to occur to said property, the response would be very… unpleasant." Orion let a small smile slip this face.

"I shall consider your advice Lord Potter, and ask where may I drop you off?" The trip itself had been relatively short, and Harry doubted they were very far from the Ministry.

"The entrance to the Ministry will be fine, my car awaits me." Orion nodded politely, and the carriage suddenly lurched ahead.

It was one of the most awkward silences in Harry's life, and when they arrived Harry didn't even bother to say a proper goodbye, a breach of his usual matters but he didn't particularly care at this point. A whole new avenue of problems had just opened, and for once Harry was at a lost for what to do.

As soon as he stepped down though, the carriage was gone in a flash.

It really wasn't surprising that she was the first thing he would see.

Standing barely 5'4, she was a dark skinned young woman with long black hair, striking facial features and dark brown eyes. She must have been of mixed blood Harry was sure, and he idly wondered why she was dressed in a muggle woman's business suit in the wizarding world, the suit did little to hide her impressive… figure and if not for the intelligence so plain in those eyes, Harry might have considered her a high priced whore.

… and she was now making a line directly towards Harry.

He was vaguely aware that his car had just pulled up, but Harry had to admit that was intrigued with this woman who was coming over to see him. She finally stopped a short distance from him, and met Harry's gaze squarely, as if daring him to let his eyes drift toward… other areas.

"Lord Potter I presume, my name is Lana Silverstone and I would be grateful for a few moments of your time." Harry contemplated her a second, before speaking.

"My schedule is rather tight at the moment, but if you would join me for a short ride then I might have some time to spare." Lana regarded Harry skeptically for a second before nodding swiftly and moving ahead inside the limousine, followed closely by Harry. They sat on opposite ends of the back seat, and each seemed to spend a few seconds gathering their faculties.

"I've come Lord Potter, to offer my services to your House." Harry arched an eyebrow, and casually pulled a can of Coke out of the mini-refrigerator.

"What… services may those be Miss. Silverstone." Her gaze became chilly for a second, and Harry wondered if he might have offended her.

"It seems to me that you are in need of a solicitor Lord Potter, and I would like the job." Harry blinked, this was mighty convenient.

"Indeed, and what about my solicitor at Gringott's?" She waved her hand dismissively.

"I think it's safe to say that you've learned that any representation provided by Gringott's is actively doing your family enormous harm." Harry knew this was true, he just wondered how this woman knew it.

"I'm not a believer in coincidence Miss. Silverstone, and I find the fact you suddenly popping up to offer your services at such a… critical time for me just a little suspect." Confusion for the first time flashed across her face.

"What exactly do you mean Lord Potter?" Harry said nothing, her sudden appearance after only minutes when he had just learned that Gringott's had furthered compromised his family was just too… planned for his liking.

"While I appreciate the offer Miss. Silverstone, I think I shall drop you off at the next available corner." For the first time Harry noticed her cool demeanor cracked a bit, and she looked to be a pit panicked.

"Lord Potter I can honestly tell you that while some circumstances may seem… convenient for you, I've been planning to see you for several weeks now and any coincidences are simply what they appear to be, coincidences." Maybe it was the genuine panic in her eyes, or the soft pleading in her voice but Harry took a second to reconsider his position.

"Even if what you say is true, what qualities would make you a good solicitor to me, and how do I know that any proof you provide is not simply a fake?" Seemingly spurred by his possible change of heart, she quickly produced a folder and handed it over.

"Inside you'll find degrees from Cambridge, Oxford, and Harvard, I'm sure if you called each college that they could confirm my credentials." Harry quickly thumbed through the various diplomas; it was becoming evident that either she was a very big fraud or one of the most brilliant people Harry had ever met.

"This still doesn't answer why I would risk signing an untested independent solicitor, when there are far more experienced firms available at the touch of a button." A hard determined look formed on her features, and her voice was almost downright fierce.

"Because I'm an independent solicitor I don't have pre-existing loyalties to any other clients, because I'd be willing to serve you exclusively, and because I'm damn good." She radiated confidence, but Harry needed more then assured bravado.

"Would you be willing to pledge a magical contract on your very blood to serve my house until your dying day?" He didn't truly intend for her to take him seriously, but she firmly nodded anyway to his surprise.

"I've always known that if I was to serve a high family that I would be required to take such an oath." This caused Harry to pause, if she really was a plant by some other family to help bring him down it didn't make any sense she consent to a bonding ritual in blood. Bonding with ones blood was the strongest known magical pact that could be pledged, and failure to live up to the promise invoked would cause instant death.

So if she was a plant, why risk death?

"You'd be willing to take the blood oath?" While she seemed a bit scared, the determined look in here eyes gave Harry all the answers he needed.

"Extend your hand." Her delicate hand was instantly raised into the air, and Harry took it into his own. Her skin was surprisingly soft, but she didn't wince once as he brought his wand across her palm opening up a cut the length of her hand.

"Do you swear to serve the Lord of the House of Potter till your death, to protect him in all ways and to never take an action that would bring harm to the family in any way?" Throat to dry, she simply nodded.

"Then by my birthright as the Lord of House Potter, I bind you to your promise through the very essence that runs through your body, and vow pain of death if you shall ever betray the words you have spoken this day." Warmth spread throughout the tips of Harry's fingers, and the wound on her palm quickly mended itself.

"Very well then, you are now my solicitor and bonded by blood to serve my family until your death," Lana nodded, and then smiled a bit.

"It's my honor to serve." Harry smiled in response.

"I've got some very urgent orders for you, and I'm rather tired so I shall make this quick." Out of now where she pulled a pen, and a notepad so fast that Harry couldn't help but admire her speed.

"I want you to run a full audit of my family's entire financial history for the past twenty-years, I want you to arrange security evaluations on all my families' properties, and businesses interests in Britain, and I want you to get into contact with a security company to find out what security packages and personal they can offer me." Lana wrote furiously on the pad of paper, and Harry felt his head reluctantly lean back as the tiredness of the day's activities were beginning to creep up on him.

"What type of security personal will you be looking for?" Even while his mind was beginning to shut down, Harry had a profile specifically picked out.

"Must be a witch or wizard with prior military or law enforcement experience, and they must be willing to commit blood oaths as you did to my house." He heard her furious scratching, and inwardly wished she'd hurry up.

"Those types of qualifications could be… hard to come by." Harry simply shrugged.

"It's what I want, I don't want some part time security hack or mercenary, either they are loyal to me or I don't hire them." A little more scratching and then one more questioning look sent his way.

"When do you want this all done?" Harry cracked on eye to regard her for a second before shutting it again.

"I want the audit, the evaluations, and recommendations done in exactly one week of today and I want the recruitment process to continue as ever long possible till I'm satisfied." He could feel her apprehension even with his eyes closed.

'That could be… expensive." Harry waved his hand.

"Till hell with the cost, just do what you have to and remember that security is paramount." Some more scratching and then silence.

"I shall drop you of at the next corner, and in exactly one week I will send a car to meet you at the same spot, if you can pull this off then I promise the job is permanently yours." With that the car slowly rolled to a stop, and she exited without a word.

Harry failed to notice, as he had already fallen asleep.

That week before Harry went to Hogwarts was probably the most nerve wracking one he had for some time, he was waiting for Lana's report with great eagerness but unfortunately his patience's were getting thinner everyday. He knew that he had given her an enormous amount of work to do, but he couldn't help still resent that it took so long to do.

He used training to keep himself occupied, and spent some time studying the docks in the north that Orion Black had been so interested in "acquiring". They were indeed a rather major source of income for him legally, and the healthy smuggling trade that also went on there was adding a constant stream of untraceable money to his accounts.

All in all it wasn't really hard to see why Orion wanted the docks.

What did worry Harry was that Orion was comfortable enough to so brazenly threaten Harry, there was something desperately wrong and the closer the day came for his meeting with Lana, the more his fears began to increase. This of course was why he was sitting at his dinner room table so bloody annoyed.

The car ride couldn't have taken that long?

Even as he finished the thought he saw the door open, and watched as Lana Silverstone strolled in dressed in a muggle business suit and looking stunning as the first time he had seen her. For someone who had to walk up a very long trail, she looked surprising clean.

"Please take a seat Miss. Silverstone, and give me your full report." While definitely very abrupt and very rude, Lana seemed to sense Harry's need for information and sat down quickly.

"I'm sorry to report Lord Potter that your suspicions haven been proven true, your families finances are a matter of grave concern." Harry closed his eyes for a few seconds, and then reopened them without a word.

"It seems that it has been almost twenty-two years since any significant changes were made to your families investments, thus for a very long time your family has been pumping money into dozens of otherwise useless investments and this has been costing your family very deeply." Harry said nothing, but motioned for her to continue.

"It also appears that a Gringott's solicitor by the name of Raghock has been skimming money from your family's accounts for at least fifteen years, I estimate that he has gotten away with almost 1.5 million galleons." Harry felt a cold seething anger begin to spread through his system, but he motioned for her to continue.

"It also appears that Gringott's has been passing information about your families weakened condition around, and it's possible that every major lord knows of this weakness." This of course was beginning to explain Orion's motivations, and why he felt so confident on shaking Harry down.

"In total Lord Potter, your family has gone from a net worth of 2.4 billion galleons twenty years ago, to about seven hundred fifty million galleons today." Harry couldn't help but feel a bit numb, what exactly has dad been doing for so many years?

"This makes your family the most financially weakest out of the top five family's in Britain." Harry nodded, and motioned for her to continue.

"Two independent companies conducted audits of the security of your businesses as ordered, the results clearly show that security in every one of your families businesses is very vulnerable to attack and hasn't been addressed in a little over twenty-years." Harry took a moment to analyze this new problem.

"So you're telling me that any family with a decent enough mercenary force could destroy all of my businesses in Britain?" Lana simply nodded.

"Do you have anything to report on the guard search?" She nodded.

"So far I've managed to come up with about six applicants who might fit the profile you described, I intend to meet these individuals and see if they will qualify." More applicants then he expected, he nodded.

"Very good, and now what are your recommendations for stopping the drainage of my family's money?" Lana quickly dug out a piece of paper and slit it over to Harry.

"This will order the termination all of your investments that have been consistently loosing money for five years; this will stop the drainage of your accounts and leave you with two million a month in direct profits." Harry took her offered pen and signed off on the document.

"I also have two proposals here for updating the security of your businesses, one is from Dempinshire and Associates, and one is from the Lockwood Mede Corporation." Harry took each proposal and carefully began to scan them.

Dempinshire and Associates advised a complete revitalization of all the wards on all of his assets, offered to contract security directly from their security division. Their proposed security people would include Ex- Aurors, trained trolls, vampires, and other number of magical creatures. Each of these security people would of course still be directly employed be Dempinshire and Associates and such answerable only to them.

Harry was not very thrilled with that proposal.

Lockwood Mede proposed a complete array of new wards for all his businesses, they offered to install the latest in muggle security technology that included but not limited to a state of the art camera system, thermal imaging, and a plethora of other detection systems. The final piece of their offer was a proposal to assist Harry in finding security people who would be willing to pledge their direct allegiance to his House and thus only be answerable to him. All security people subject to Harry's pre-approval.

Harry definitely preferred this offer.

"Sign a contract with Lockwood Mede, I'm aware that it will be more expensive but I'm afraid that time is of the essence." Lara nodded.

"One final thing, to ensure that I can keep in secure contact with you at Hogwarts, I've arranged for a special item to be made." She reached into her bag, and pulled a slim simple looking laptop.

"I've had this laptop specifically created to work at Hogwarts, all you can do on it is to simply e-mail but it will allow us to remain in constant contact with each other." Harry took the laptop, and had to admit of the usefulness such an item could provide.

"I will say that I'm amazed with your performance Miss. Silverstone, and I wish for you to continue being my solicitor from now on." A brief smile lit on her face but it vanished just as quickly.

"Thank you very much Lord Potter, I must be off if I'm going to get these contracts off." Harry nodded and bid her goodbye.

It was finally time for him to begin his own journey, at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardy,

Next Chapter: Harry goes to Hogwarts!

Post Edit: Some minor grammar fixes courtesy of a couple helpful reviewers, I would also like to take this quick note to address a statement a reviewer had, I would have assumed Harry asking what credentials she possessed, and the reasons why she would make a good solicitor as enough evidence that he was considering, and as for the desperate comment. She's still a very young inexperienced woman, and does desperately require this job for reasons that will come to light soon enough. As for Lady Devaro seeming... obsessed, all I can say is that she is a passionate woman who went into the meeting under the assumption the bill would pass with flying colors. Anyone might get flustered if they had their plans suddenly derailed, any who thanks for your reviews.