Disclaimer: Anything familiar to JKR's books probably comes from there and is hers not mine. Also, Harry Potter, Hogwarts, the Wizarding World, and anything else that has to do with it belongs to the lovely JK Rowling, not me. I'm just playing in her sandbox and building my own Hogwarts in it.
Chapter Seven
Harry closed the book he had finally finished reading with a quiet "snap." There were three more weeks of summer, and he had been reading that four-hundred or so page book for at least three weeks, Sirius assigning various chapters to read thoroughly every few days.
Draco, slumped at his own desk in the study that had been modified for their use, appeared to be perhaps fifteen pages from the end of the book. Theo, on the other hand, still had half of the final chapter to complete while Neville was just starting the last chapter. Harry knew Neville's speed at reading this wasn't because he was a slow reader, like many thought when they watched him, but because he read slower so that he absorbed the material better, even if it did take him longer.
Pushing away his book, Harry leaned his chair on only the back two legs as he stretched, his muscles and joints a bit sore after being in the same position for so long. No one else reacted to his actions, but Harry knew they had all noted them and knew he had finally finished. After five years of working together on homework, they all knew how the other three boys worked.
Placing his chair back on all of its legs, Harry reached out to pull the sheet of parchment he had found on his desk just a few hours ago. Sirius had taken to writing out his instructions and leaving them for the boys rather than actually acting like a teacher all the time, only showing himself when their reading was done and they were going to discuss what they had learned.
Once finished with the book, you may go relax around the house doing whatever until all four of you are done. The charm that will be placed on you as you leave the room will make a buzzing for your ears alone when the last boy finishes, which is your cue to return to this room for further instructions.
Harry couldn't help but grin as he placed the parchment back on the desk, cleaned up the notes he had actually taken while reading, put the books he had used on the small bookshelf above his desk, and headed out of the room. The others turned to look at him as he left, and Harry just grinned and waved before closing the door behind him.
He had at least a full hour before Neville was done, if not more, which meant Harry could go find a snack before seeing what Tracey was up to. Maybe they could plan a few pranks for later that day, possibly bringing Euan in on them…
…
Settling down on one of the two couches in "The Wizengamot Study," as they had taken to calling it, Harry sighed. It was time to find out what Sirius wanted them to do with the knowledge they had gained from reading that book on how to write and amend laws for so many hours, and hopefully it would be something they could enjoy at least a little.
"So, you've all completed the reading for today," Sirius said as he walked in the door, not even completely through it before he began. "Now it's time to see how well you learned your lessons. The four of you are going to be working together to create a new law that you would present to the Wizengamot. It can be on anything you want, silly or serious, a new law to replace one in existence – I don't really care. Just make a law, and I want you all to present it at dinner tonight, so I'd get working."
Sirius left before any of the boys could say a word, and Harry knew that the pranks he, Tracey, and Euan were going to pull that evening after dinner would be the perfect revenge for this. His will for revenge grew even larger when he heard the door lock, obviously with a spell that they wouldn't be able to undo.
"Please tell me you're already thinking of revenge," Theo practically begged as they all turned to face one another. Harry nodded slightly, his eyes hard.
"Let's talk about this later," Draco declared before Theo could ask him about it. "We've got just over three hours to write a law for the Wizengamot."
"What can we even write it about?" Neville asked as he twisted his hands nervously. He was a great speaker, but he did not enjoy being put on the spot like this when it came to Sirius and their lessons.
"Well…" Harry began slowly, and the others all turned to him hopefully. "I have been thinking about ideas for possible werewolf laws – you know, for Remus…"
"Tell us one or two so that we can try to use one of them," Draco said in a rush, already pulling out his Journal and pencil to write it all down.
…
"I believe our four Wizengamot students have something they would like to present," Sirius commented lightly after the meal was finished, but before anyone left the table. He gestured to Harry, who glared at him. "Boys?"
All four boys stood, Neville holding a small scroll in his hands. They had already discussed what they were going to do as the law hadn't taken them as long as they feared, though making it just right was a pain in the arse.
"Yes, we do," Harry said, his voice a growl. "You see, Sirius here decided to give us just over three hours to write a law after we finished reading the book on how to do it. No warning whatsoever." Almost everyone at the table turned to give Sirius either hard looks or looks of disbelief, and his smug expression suddenly disappeared as he realized Harry had turned the tables on him with just one sentence.
"Sirius, how could you?" Daniella Davis exclaimed.
"Not even you had to do that, Sirius!" Remus reminded his friend. "I remember the day you wrote me a letter about that lesson, and it was at least two weeks after you finished that book."
Harry was trying not to snicker as he watched the others tear into Sirius, though what Remus said made it a lot easier not to as he was upset with Sirius. He had probably assigned the work just to see the four of them fail at it for a laugh. Well, they would show him. Harry nodded slightly in Neville's direction, and Neville cleared his throat loudly to get everyone's attention.
"Now that we've gotten to enjoy your tearing into Sirius like that, we'd like to present our proposal for a law," Neville said formally, obviously trying hard not to grin at not only his first few words but also the shocked looks on everyone's faces, even Sirius's.
"I didn't expect you to actually finish it!" Sirius exclaimed so quietly that Harry just heard him. He decided to call his godfather on that little detail after Neville was done.
"We decided quite quickly that we were going to rewrite the laws about werewolves," Neville continued, looking straight at Remus as he said it before opening the scroll in his hands. "Our law states that, because werewolves are only dangerous one day a month, they are not to be considered Dark except on the night of a full moon. In addition, because there is, indeed, a potion that can help werewolves not only control their wolf forms but also makes the transformation less painful, said potion, known as the Wolfsbane Potion, will be offered free of cost for all registered werewolves.
"Also, assistance to create safe rooms so that, if there is a problem with aforementioned potion, the werewolf living at the residence will not be a danger to anyone else, all of this free of cost. Werewolves will also be allowed jobs so long as they do not go to work the day before, of, or after the full moon."
As each addition was made to their law, Harry saw Remus's eyes begin to tear up more and more. He knew his father's friend was completely moved by what they were writing, all for him.
"However, if a werewolf on the Wolfsbane Potion purposely tries to hurt another human being – or bites another – without provocation as it's known that even those who took the mentioned potion can be overcome by the wolf if given enough reason, then said werewolf will be punished. Said werewolf will also be required to transform in a Ministry werewolf site.
"All werewolves are required to take the Wolfsbane Potion, and any who are caught without having taken it without a legitimate reason will be fined fifty Galleons, with the amount rising by twenty-five Galleons for each offense. Those with a legitimate reason will be excused, though those who get by without will be few as there are few legitimate reasons for not taking the Wolfsbane Potion as it is to be provided for free for any afflicted by this curse."
Neville finally finished, and Harry offered his friend a proud grin before looking around the room. Almost everyone was shocked by the law they had written up, and they didn't even know it was only a rough draft of what would most likely be the first and largest law in a series of werewolf laws. They had already outlined ideas for many more additions to it in the amount of time they had been working on this, and all four of them knew that this was something they were actually going to propose to the Wizengamot when the time came for them to join the body.
Looking at Remus again, Harry saw he had given up on the fight against his tears, allowing them to fall down his face. Sirius appeared to be close to tears, most likely because he knew how much this would mean to his best friend, and he had a hand on Remus's shoulder. Samuel, Daniel, and Amelia all looked as if this was something they, themselves, would support in the Wizengamot.
The reactions of his friends, though, weren't what he was expecting. They were all in a state of shock, it appeared, unable to find something to say or do, just looking at the four Wizengamot students in disbelief. It was as if they hadn't expected him and the other three to be able to learn so much in so little time, most likely because they hadn't realized just how much they learned in the six or so hours almost every day they spent in that study.
Finally, though, Tracey nodded at Harry with a small smile on her face that was then focused on the other three, and Harry knew that she thought they had done well. Everyone else then began to come out of their various trances, Remus wiping away his tears as he looked at the four boys.
"I – I don't know what to say," Remus finally said softly, turning from them to look at the table.
"Well, I do," Daniel Greengrass declared. "You four wrote a fantastic law for werewolves!"
"That wasn't a law," Sirius disagreed, shaking his head slightly, his voice a bit tight with emotion. "It's multiple laws in one presentation. How did you come up with it so fast and write it so well?"
Harry didn't even react when the three boys on either side of him pointed in his direction, having expected it the moment the question was asked. When the others had heard how well thought out his ideas were, they quickly began writing down his ideas and copying them to a single sheet of parchment, which was now their outline for ideas about werewolf laws. With the large number of basic ideas on the paper, it didn't take long for the four of them together to add in the smaller details for this one law, which was the start point for the rest.
"Of course," Sirius said, shaking his head.
"I was already thinking about ideas for how to make the lives of werewolves better because of Remus," Harry admitted, his gaze above the heads of everyone else so that he could keep his face blank. "When you gave us the assignment, I just told Theo, Neville, and Draco, and this law was born."
"I think I want to see what else you three did in those three hours, now," Amelia announced after a few moments of silence, "because it seems to me you probably did more than anyone could have expected you to do in so little time. If you four can write laws as good as this one, I might just give the job to the four of you to fix the laws once you've finished at Hogwarts."
"I thought that was already the plan," Draco mused, turning to Harry, Theo, and Neville. They all shared amused looks, especially when they saw the surprise on the faces of the adults in the room.
"Why did you think we've been working so hard at this?" Theo asked, and Harry had to snort, earning him a glare. Harry knew that everyone realized Theo had a point with that as he hated to study or do work most of the time and only did it when nagged, but here he was, doing the reading and assignments with only a few basic complaints, more to ease the tension and make the others laugh than anything.
"We've be working so hard because we already decided that the four of us would lead a reform once in the Wizengamot," Neville added.
"The next generation will follow me, with what I've been doing at Hogwarts, which means anyone who accepts a seat on the Wizengamot in the next few years – which is actually quite a number of people – will want to help me," Harry said. "With the help of those who also do not like many of the laws at the moment, such as those in this room, we'll have a good number of votes."
"Add in Harry's fame and the obvious example of what our laws have allowed to happen in the form of Voldemort, and we'll have quite a backing," Draco finished with a slight grin.
"You've really thought this through," Susan commented as the adults seemed unable to say anything. "Are you willing to have help?"
"Of course!" Neville said, looking relieved at the offer. Harry knew exactly what he felt as it wasn't easy thinking of ideas and details for laws, not even with four of them. The more who wanted the help, the more that would get done.
"Well, then, why don't you four go get what you used to prepare this law here, and tomorrow all who want to help can join you in the study to work on making this one more formal as well as generating a few more new laws?" Sirius suggested, his composure back.
"Sure," Harry said with a shrug, gesturing for the others to follow him. Before he left the room, though, he caught Tracey's eyes, and she nodded slightly to show that she understood to have Euan set off the prank on Sirius.
Just as the four boys reached the study, they heard Sirius yell, "HARRY!" and burst out laughing.
…
Two-and-a-half weeks before school was set to begin again, Harry could tell that the adults were feeling quite anxious and worried.
Lord Voldemort had yet to attack again after the one on Euan's village. Euan was just as nervous as the adults were, training as much as he could, reading the Daily Prophet each morning, and asking Samuel how the two different Auror Forces were doing during their daily practices. Everyone could tell that he was afraid of the Aurors not being prepared for an attack when it came, and his actions became even more nervous with each passing day without an attack.
Amelia and Samuel were spending quite a few hours at the Ministry, working not only on preparing the Aurors, but also on deciding what to do with the Death Eaters being held in Azkaban under goblin protection. They both came home wanting dinner and bed most nights, the weekends the only days they weren't completely exhausted as Harry, Tracey, and Susan made them promise to only go in for six or seven hours on Saturday and Sunday rather than their more normal nine to eleven hours.
Sirius was pranking Remus more and more, actually going far enough for the werewolf to request that Harry and Tracey prank the dog Animagus until he agreed to calm down. Samantha and Daniella were seen reading quite a bit more than usual, usually books on Defensive and Offensive Magic from the library while Daniel and Remus joined the teenagers on runs out on the grounds each morning.
The teens, however, didn't change by much except to up their training to be more intensive, swimming less and dueling one another more and more. Teaching Euan and pranking with Euan and Tracey were among the few times Harry actually calmed down from his work in the basement or the Wizengamot Study. More laws than any of the teens were willing to admit to had been written for werewolves, each given to Remus upon their completion for his opinion on them, sometimes getting tweaked after he had his say.
Tension was running high in Marauder Manor – that Harry knew for sure – and he had a feeling the rest of Britain's Wizarding world wasn't much better.
…
A knock sounded on Amelia's office door before it opened to reveal Arthur Weasley, exactly on time, just as she had requested.
"You called, Minister?" he said, his voice curious. Amelia just smiled slightly and gestured to the chair across from her, and Arthur closed the door behind him before taking a seat.
"Yes, I did, and call me Amelia when we're in my office, Arthur," she replied. "We've known each other for many years, and my change in position doesn't change that at all."
"Of course, Amelia," Arthur said, and Amelia saw he relaxed slightly. "What do you need from me?"
"You have two children still at Hogwarts, correct?" Amelia asked, already knowing the answer as she knew at least one of the children well, though Arthur wasn't to know that.
"Yes," Arthur agreed. "Ron will be a sixth year and Ginny a fifth."
"Susan has mentioned them both," Amelia commented. "She's good friends with Ginny and friendly with Ron, I've been told. It's quite unfortunate that they haven't had the chance to see one another this summer."
"I have to agree," Arthur sighed, "but with everything that's going on and –"
"And the Order of the Phoenix, you just can't chance letting them leave Headquarters, no?" Amelia finished before Arthur could even continue. She saw that Arthur looked completely shocked and quickly interpreted that look to be that Dumbledore had withheld information yet again. "Dumbledore didn't inform you that I know quite a bit about the Order including its members and most, if not all, of what you've done since Voldemort returned?"
"No, he hasn't, but I'll be sure to mention it to the others," Arthur muttered under his breath in annoyance. "If you know about the Order already, why am I here?"
"As I was going to say, Susan is friends with your two children and would love to see them before school," Amelia continued, following the plan she and the other adults had come up with after seeing how Harry had been acting over the summer compared to during Christmas, a few of the teenagers helping. He had been slowly drawing in on himself when not with anyone else.
"When she goes to Diagon Alley in three days, I'm going to be assigning a good number of Aurors from the Second Force to be at the Alley, some of them always staying with her. One of those with her will be Auror Tonks from the First Force as I want her to be in charge there. I'm offering to have Ron and Ginny go with Susan to do their school shopping."
Amelia saw that Arthur was a bit surprised by the offer, but he also had a bit of a resigned look on his face. Before he even opened his mouth to speak, Amelia knew what he was going to say, though she let him say it.
"I'd be fine with it, but Molly…" Arthur trailed off.
"My only request would be that no one besides Auror Tonks from the Order is permitted to be in the Alley, and trust me, every Auror in the second Force can recognize an Order member on sight in seconds," Amelia stated, not lying at all. Plus, Samuel, Tracey, and Harry had worked together the week before when plans were made for this trip to make a Map of Diagon Alley, one for each Auror Force as well as Marauder Manor. They would know immediately if an Order member was at the Alley. They didn't want anyone from the Order there so that they wouldn't be able to report Harry's presence, nor who he was with.
"Molly won't like that at all, nor will Dumbledore," Arthur said cautiously.
"Please, assure your wife that we're sending the best fighters we have from the Second Force, and I'll deal with Dumbledore if you send him to me," Amelia stated. "My niece would like to see her friends without the possibility of someone reporting to Dumbledore being there."
"But Tonks –" Arthur began, only to have Amelia cut him off.
"Knows that, as an Auror, there are things she is forbidden to say to anyone on the threat of losing her job, this assignment being one of them," Amelia said forcefully. "If you can convince your wife, Dumbledore will be dealt with."
"Why don't you trust Albus?" Arthur asked after a moment or three. "He's trying to help us win the war against You-Know-Who."
"Because I don't agree with his methods," Amelia said blandly. "He kidnapped Harry Potter when the boy was about to be sent to a safe house under the Fidelius, not allowing him to leave and forcing the teen to find his own means of escaping what he felt was a prison." Arthur began to protest, but Amelia stopped him before he could, both knowing he couldn't deny it. "Dumbledore is also trying to fight the Dark Lord with a quill rather than a wand. This war won't be won without fighting and death and loss, but he won't accept this. I won't work with him."
"Very well," Arthur sighed, accepting that Amelia had her own opinions that were quite true, even if Amelia knew he still stood with Dumbledore. "I'll speak to Molly and try to convince her to let Ron and Ginny go with Susan in three days' time to Diagon Alley. You'll get my response tomorrow."
"Thank you, Arthur," Amelia said with a smile. "I truly do hope they can come as I have a feeling they miss being with friends just as much as Susan misses seeing them both."
Arthur nodded sadly before standing and leaving the office. Now all Amelia could do was hope that he managed to convince his wife that their children needed some freedom away from her and the Order.
…
The evening two days before their trip to Diagon Alley, Harry couldn't help but let out a cheer after threading the piece of leather through the final pendant in the shape of the Hogwarts crest. There were now enough for every single student at Hogwarts from the new first years to the seventh years, each with a leather cord and Portkey.
"Finally," he sighed, collapsing sideways onto the couch he had been sitting on, only to have his head lifted so that Tracey could sit there, his head placed in her lap.
On other couches, Harry could hear the others begin to fall back against the couch, some mimicking him in falling to the side. The teens had just spent hours stringing the cords through the pendants after checking that the Portkeys were active with a spell. Yes, it was worth it for sure, but Merlin, it was exhausting!
"Good work, you lot," Samuel commented as he took in the boxes of necklaces on either side of the table they had been working around, just throwing the pendants into the boxes when done with each. "Tomorrow I'll send most of both Forces out to deliver them and the notes you wrote, also informing families that Sunday is a good day to go shopping for supplies if they haven't already gone as security will be increased."
Harry heard murmurs of acknowledgement from his friends, making one himself with his eyes closed. He could tell he wasn't the only one on the edge of sleep, which wasn't much of a surprise, though Harry said nothing of it.
No, all he wanted to do was rest, knowing that tomorrow he would truly appreciate the fact that they were done for another reason than the chance to rest.
…
At nine in the morning on a Saturday, Aurors reported in for work. Most were given a list of five or six homes along with a small box with however many pendants that number of households would need. By ten in the morning, every Auror assigned to the job was ready to leave and given the go ahead, knowing they had to pretend to be looking for protections around the homes as well as handing these out.
All around the UK Aurors appeared on doorsteps of various homes, unnoticed by any due to charms placed on them. Doors were opened by parents and sometimes children or teens. Pendants with notes attached to them were passed over to those attending Hogwarts after they were called to the door.
The usual words spoken were: "This is for you, and if you don't know what it is or how to use it, everything you need to know is in the note. Please keep the fact that we're giving you this to yourselves as, if You-Know-Who finds out, they won't be effective. By the way Ma'am/Sir, tomorrow would be an excellent day to visit Diagon Alley as Minister Bones is upping security there tomorrow, if you and your child(ren) have yet to get their supplies for the year."
The only exceptions to this were those families of first years, where the Aurors sometimes were asked to explain more to the child, or the Muggle parents had questions about Hogwarts or the Wizarding world in general, also curious as to why their child(ren) needed such an object.
Still, by noon, everyone attending Hogwarts except for a select few had pendants. Those who didn't were those staying at either Marauder Manor or Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, for those students would be getting them the next morning when they went off to Diagon Alley.
The Wizarding world's children had a way to safety, now, and those who knew of it felt much safer for it.
Sort of a mixed chapter, I guess you could say. Some Ministry, some Marauder Manor, and some mentions of the Order through the meeting with Arthur. Obviously the summer is leaning toward its end (I believe 9 is the final chapter), and the school year will begin soon enough. That's about all I have to say, so until Wednesday… if I survive the beginning of the second semester of school and the beginning of English, American History, and the true AP portions of AP Chemistry and Calculus. Oh joy…
Posted: 1/22/12
