Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. I just like messing with J.K. Rowling's characters.

Thanks to everyone who read and/or reviewed. And I was really shocked by how full my email inbox was from last chapter, so thank you all a million times for your support.

Warnings: Language.

Last Time: Then the group sat in silence as they waited to return to the courtroom and hear Umbridge's fate.

CHAPTER 13

Harry and the other students, as well as Madam Pomfrey were ushered back inside the courtroom to here the Wizengamot's decision. Umbridge was brought back in as well.

Fudge read from a piece of parchment, "The Wizengamot has found the defendant, Dolores Jane Umbridge, guilty of all charges. The Wizengamot has requested a thirty year sentence in Azkaban, and their request has been granted."

"WHAT?" Umbridge shrieked as the Aurors began to drag her out of the room. "Cornelius! You can't do this to me!"

"Actually, he can," Amelia Bones said with a smirk.

"Now, this court is-"

Daphne's father, Lord Andrew Greengrass, interrupted Fudge. "Actually, there is one more order of business to attend to. We, the lords of the Wizengamot, have decided to hold a vote of no confidence in regards to the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge."

"What?" Fudge sputtered. "This is preposterous!"

"Those in favor," Lord Greengrass said over Fudge's objections. Over half of the member of the Wizengamot raised their hands in support of Fudge's removal from office. "Those not in favor?" Almost as many hands went up. "Those who have chosen to abstain?" A few hands went up at this last option, namely Lord Brocklehurst, Mandy's father, and Zacharias Smith's father, Lord Zachariah Smith.

"Then it is decided," Lord Greengrass said. "Cornelius Fudge, from this moment forth, you are no longer the British Minister of Magic. So mote it be!"

There was a bright flash, and then Cornelius Fudge's reign as Minister of Magic was over. A cardboard box appeared next to the stunned man, filled with his personal possessions from his former office.

"And does the Wizengamot have a prospective candidate for Minister of Magic?" Dumbledore asked.

Harry smirked. The old man was probably wishing that the Wizengamot had no such plan. But they did.

Harry's father rose from his seat and said, "The Wizengamot officially nominates Mr. Lucius Malfoy as its candidate for Minister of Magic." Mr. Malfoy rose from his seat in the balcony and nodded in the direction of the assembled press. "We as a body believe that he has the ability and drive to carry our world forward."

As per regulations, the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, would take up the mantle of Minister of Magic for the month before elections were held to appoint a new one. They were only allowed to carry out the day-to-day tasks of the position, and they couldn't pass any new ordinances or judge any cases. This was the only snag in the plan, as the head of the D.M.L.E. was Amelia Bones.

The front-page news didn't stop with the announcement of Umbridge's sentence. Draco's father and Susan Bones' aunt made the front page two days later.

WIZARDING ELECTIONS: A NEW DIRECTION FORWARD

Mr. Lucius Malfoy is the Wizengamot's nominee for the position of Minister of Magic after the magical body ousted the former Minster of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. But standing in his way is the temporary Minister of Magic and opposition candidate, Amelia Bones.

Madam Bones is also the current head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and says that she'll bring justice back to the magical world. "People like my opposition have been able to get away with too much for too long. This has to stop. Our government needs transparency, and I will make sure that that transparent will be present should I be elected Minster of Magic."

So what has Mr. Malfoy gotten away with? After all, most say that he is an upstanding citizen with a spotless record. "I will move out world into the future. And this starts with the children. As a member of the Hogwarts Board of Governors, I have always done my best to make sure that that school is the very best for our children. Our future."

A strong endorsement for Mr. Malfoy comes from Lord Regulus Black. "I have known Lucius for a long time, both inside and outside of the political arena. And I know that he is capable of leading us into the future. We can no longer rest on what's been done, we have to move forward and do something, and I know that Lucius is capable for doing that something."

Countering Lord Black's support of Mr. Malfoy is Albus Dumbledore, the current Hogwarts headmaster, who is a staunch supporter of Madam Bones. "Amelia understands what it takes to lead our world and she is effective. She is what we need in this time of growing darkness."

The victor won't be clear until after the election on December 31. All witches and wizards who are of age and older can vote. There is a ballot on the bottom of this page that can either be mailed via owl to the Ministry of Magic or brought to your local polling station for collection. For polling stations, see the last page of this issue.

Harry put down his copy of the Daily Prophet. "I don't know Draco. It looks like Bones is going to put up a fight."

"I didn't expect anything less," Draco replied. "But my father will win. Just wait and see."

Harry and his friends, along with almost all of Slytherin wore buttons that read: 'A Vote for Malfoy is a Vote for the Future'.

"Good thing we don't have any classes with Bones," Daphne said, glancing at the Hufflepuff table. Susan turned around and glared at Draco before talking heatedly to Hannah.

"She does look rather annoyed, doesn't she," Theo said. He was about to say more, but Ginny came up from behind him and pecked him on the cheek.

"You don't happen to have any more of those buttons, do you Draco? Fred, George, and I would each like one."

"Of course I do." Draco reached into his bag and pulled out three of the campaign buttons.

"Ginny, are you sure?" Theo asked with his voice full of concern. "You could get into a lot of trouble. The rest of your house..."

"The rest of my house should get their heads out of their arses."

Blaise said, "I heard that the only reason why McLaggen's not getting any flack for backing Mr. Malfoy is because his father declared thier family neutral, so it doesn't matter who they support. But you Ginny, you're a Weasley. Your family will be furious."

Ginny put her hands on her hips. "So what if they are? I don't care."

"Ginny, you don't know what you're getting yourself into. This is more than just siding with your friends. This is siding against your family. And not just behind their back, but in front of everyone. Everyone's going to know what side you're on, and not many people are going to like it," Theo said.

"So be it." Ginny snatched one of the buttons from Draco's hand and pinned it proudly to the front of her robes. "I'll see you later, Theo." Another kiss on the cheek and she was heading back to the Gryffindor table with the other two buttons in hand.

The hall fell silent when people noticed Fred, George, and Ginny's new accessories.

"You've got to be bloody kidding me! You're Weasleys! What the hell are you doing?" Ron reached across the table to snatch the button off Ginny but a well-timed Bat Bogey Hex slammed him in the face.

The professors were too shocked to do anything, but the volume in the Great Hall gradually returned to normal and Seamus managed to undo Ginny's hex. Ron stormed out of the Great Hall, followed by his lackey.

Theo pulled out a piece of parchment and scribbled a quick message on it. "Read it and pass it down," he said to Jessica, who was sitting next to him.

The parchment moved among all of the upper year Slytherins until it reached the end of the table, where Montague burned it.

Ginny quickly noticed that Theo was finding a way to accompany her to breakfast every morning and back to Gryffindor tower every night after dinner. And when Theo wasn't there, an older Slytherin was there to watch her back.

And it was a good thing too. More than once, Ginny was almost the victim of a nasty hex in the corridors. The only reason why people didn't target the twins was because they knew that the twins would just prank them in revenge.

As November turned into December, the tension in the castle didn't let up. Especially because there was now a solid dividing line between those supporting Amelia Bones and those supporting Lucius Malfoy. And the professors, and even some of the older students, realized that this would probably be the two sides of the war once it arrived.

All of Slytherin was supporting Draco, and so was most of Ravenclaw. Susan had most of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff behind her aunt. The key word was most.

The first signs of a divide in the house of the badgers happened at breakfast one morning. Harry didn't hear much of what happened, but he did see Hannah storming out of the hall, away from the Hufflepuff table and her best friend.

Then the rumors started.

Pansy, always on top of the Hogwarts rumor mill, brought them the semi-official news by dinnertime. "So apparently, Hannah was torn because Susan's her best friend, but she wants to agree with the Wizengamot, since they got rid of Umbridge. People are saying that Susan told Hannah that she didn't understand politics because she was a halfblood."

"Harsh," Daphne said. "I'm guessing she didn't think before she spoke?"

"It seems like it, since she's been moping all day," Blaise commented.

"So I'm guessing Abbott's chosen a side?"

"Yeah, I have Malfoy," Hannah said, coming up from behind them. "I'll take one of those buttons, please."

"Good to have you aboard," Draco said. He fished one of the campaign buttons out of his bag and passed it to Hannah. The blonde girl pinned it just underneath the Hufflepuff crest on the front of her robes. She then went to the Hufflepuff table, where she sat alone at the very end.

But Hannah and Susan's relationship wasn't the only one to crumble under the stress of the election. It quickly became clear that Ron wasn't speaking to his siblings or Dean, and all of the students with a father on the Wizengamot had decided to side with their family.

Even the train ride to London was quiet. Less sparks flashed in the corridors and not nearly as many people were joking and laughing. Probably because the war was coming. More and more disappearances had filled the newspaper every day, and people were past nervous. They were getting scared.

When the Hogwarts Express pulled into King's Cross, parents hustled their children off the train and hurried home. Theo barely had time to say goodbye to Ginny before the Weasley matriarch rushed her away.

But Harry and his friends had nothing to worry about. After all, they had chosen the right side. They went to their respective homes to drop off their luggage and then they traveled to the Dark Lord's headquarters.

"Good to see all of you," Voldemort said smoothly.

Harry glanced over at Neville. After all, he hadn't seen him in three months. Neville had lost all traces of the baby fat in his cheeks and his eyes had hardened. He had been training with Rabastan Lestrange, after all.

The Dark Lord continued saying, "Draco, I see that your father is highly favored to win the election. Congratulations. Now, what is the news from Hogwarts? Who is most likely to be on our side?"

"All of Slytherin supports you, of course. Most of the Ravenclaws have sided with us, but a lot of them have declared themselves neutral," Harry reported. "They don't want to be involved in any fighting. From Hufflepuff, Hannah Abbott is at least neutral, but we may be able to give her a shove in the right direction. That's it from our year, but some of the older students can probably be swayed. From Gryffindor, there's Ginny, Fred, and George. Dean Thomas is currently neutral, but he'll probably side with us as well."

"Excellent. Rabastan and a few others are working on a plan to attack the Order of the Phoenix headquarters. They are still using the Weasley's shack, correct?"

Theo nodded in the affirmative. "Ginny hasn't mentioned them moving, so they're most likely still there."

"Good. We plan to attack right before the end of the school year. At the same time, we'll capture Snape and make him an example for all who decide to defy me."

"Will we be allowed to participate?" Blaise asked.

"Of course. At that time, I'll introduce the seven of you as my apprentices. Your identities will remain secret, though."

Instead of training that day, they went over the initial plans for attacking the Burrow, which would involve dismantling the wards that Dumbledore had set up. In addition, the Dark Lord instructed Theo to have Ginny to send out letters to her two oldest brothers in an attempt to get them on the their side.

Over the course of the holiday, Harry and his friends had daily training with Voldemort to perfect their uses of the Unforgiveable Curses. But they also sat down with Lucius and Remus to go over their studies and discuss political strategy. After all, three of them would have seats on the Wizengamot after their parents died.

But one night at dinner with the Malfoys, Remus made an announcement that rocked Harry's world.

"I'll be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts next term," Remus said.

Draco's fork slipped out of his fingers and clattered against his plate. The Malfoy heir quickly collected himself and his utensil and asked, "When was this decided?"

"Last week. It's been in the works for months now," Mr. Malfoy said. "It took a significant effort to convince the other members of the Board of Governors that someone with Remus' condition wouldn't be a threat to the students. Remus will be using the Shrieking Shack every full moon, and Snape will be brewing the Wolfsbane Potion."

"Let's hope we don't kill each other," Remus muttered.

Harry knew that Snape and James Potter's group of friends hadn't gotten along well during their school years. Well, that was an understatement. They had loathed each other. And it must have taken a lot of for Remus to even consider returning to Hogwarts.

"It'll be fine," Harry assured Remus. "You've gotten past those stupid grudges."

"It's more than a stupid grudge, Harry," Remus said quietly. "I'll tell you before you leave. This is something you should know."

The rest of the evening was rather quiet, although Harry and Draco were both elated that they would have a decent teacher for a change.

Before Harry left, Remus had him come to his study. "There's more than a stupid childhood rivalry between Snape and me," he started. "You see, Harry, I almost killed him."

Harry started. He hadn't expected that. "How?"

"Our sixth year, Sirius was drunk after a Quidditch party one night and he told Snape where to go on the next full moon. Snape listened to him and encountered a fully-grown werewolf. The only reason why Snape didn't die was because James was there, in his animagus form, to stop me."

"So that's why Snape hates you? Because you're a werewolf?"

"No, he's not bigoted like Umbridge. Snape hates the fact that someone had to step in and save him. That he wasn't strong enough to fend me off on his own. James Potter took his pride and I almost took his life."

"Then Snape should get over it," Harry said.

"Yes, he should. After that incident, Dumbledore made him promise to keep the nature of my condition a secret. And the fact that James was an animagi, as it was technically illegal."

"Do you think I could become an animagus?"

"Harry, you know that you have to wait. But since McGonagall seems to favor you, you may be able to convince her to start your instruction in it next year."

"Alright. Goodnight, Remus."

"Goodnight, Harry."

Towards the end of December, everyone was on edge because of the election. Harry, Daphne, Theo, Blaise, and Pansy gathered at Draco's house. They were hosting a large gathering in their ballroom full of their supporters. The press was there, waiting for news of a decision. Either the party would turn into a celebration of a victory, or Draco's father would have to send Amelia Bones his congratulations.

They waited, and waited, and waited.

Finally, a reported from the Daily Prophet jumped up and said, "The news is in! Malfoy's won! It was a thirty-one vote margin!"

Streamers and balloons fell from the ceiling as everyone began to applaud and whistle. Once things quieted down, Lucius stepped up to deliver his acceptance speech.

As his father spoke, Draco nudged Harry. "Minister Malfoy has a nice ring to, huh?"

After the holidays, it was time to return to Hogwarts. Harry and Daphne had to patrol the train for part of the journey, but afterwards, they were with their friends. Ginny joined them in their compartment as well, curled up next to Theo.

"The holidays were tough for her," Blaise whispered in explanation. "Her family's becoming less and less excepting of Theo by the day. Ron's convinced them that Theo's using Ginny. Her parents won't even listen to her anymore."

Ginny looked up and said, "Ron's an asshole."

"I know," Harry said.

"But you should watch out for him," Ginny said. "Really. Dumbledore's been teaching him spells and stuff like that. He's actually relatively good at dueling. And Hermione's been helping him with his schoolwork."

Fred said, "More like-"

"-writing it for him," George finished.

"But we can't do anything about it. No one's going to believe it, though. Granger's a prefect and a perfect student. Not even Snape will believe that."

"We'll figure something out. The less we have to deal with them the better."

In the Great Hall on the first night back, Dumbledore made a short speech at the end of the feast. "Welcome back to Hogwarts. I hope everyone's holiday was festive and restful. But now I have an announcement to make. As you all know, due to the unfortunate circumstances earlier in the year, we were without a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. But now we have a replacement. Please welcome Mr. Remus Lupin."

Harry and his friends applauded the loudest for their new teacher.

It was quickly apparent that almost everyone liked Professor Lupin. He was dynamic, interesting, and people were actually learning something. Not to mention that he was just as fair as McGonagall and Flitwick, if not more so.

The fifth and seventh years got massive amounts of work the moment classes resumed, as they had to begin looking towards their O.W.L.'s and N.E.W.T.'s.

But luckily for Harry, he had Quidditch to relieve his stress. Warrington was driving them hard, as they were behind Gryffindor in terms of points and games, and it looked like it would be Slytherin versus Gryffindor in the final match.

On a dreary February day, Harry noticed an announcement in the common room that made him smile. The poster read:

DUELING CLUB

Open to 3rd Years and Up

Hosted by Professors Lupin, Flitwick, and Snape

Wednesday and Friday after Classes

It was nice to have something to look forward to other than Quidditch. But Harry had an inkling that the Dueling Club was more to train the other students to fight a war versus teaching them a new hobby. And it was probably Dumbledore's idea.

It would be amusing to see Ron or Finnegan try to duel someone, but then again, Dumbledore had been teaching Ron a few things, so the redhead probably had something up his sleeve.

The first day of the Dueling Club, Harry and his friends arrived to the Great Hall to see that the wooden tables and benches had been moved aside, and a dueling platform had been set up in the middle of the room. Remus, Flitwick, and Snape were waiting for them, and Dumbledore and a few other professors had shown up to watch.

"Welcome to the first meeting of the Dueling Club," Remus said, once everyone was assembled. There were about forty students present, and each of the houses was represented. "Are there any questions before we begin?"

"Will we learn any spells?" a short fourth year asked.

"Yes, you will, Miss Branstone," Flitwick responded.

A Ravenclaw asked, "Do we get to practice against each other?"

"Yes," Remus said, "but of course, there will be rules. We don't want anyone to get hurt. If that's it, we'll begin. We'll start with the proper etiquette that must be observed in a official duel. Professor Snape and I will demonstrate while Professor Flitwick explains."

"This should be entertaining," Harry whispered to Draco. "Let's hope that Remus kicks his arse."

"First, the duelist must stand on opposite sides of the platform." Remus and Snape did so, and glared at each other across the distance. "Now they will take three steps towards each other and bow, and then turn and return to their place."

Once Remus and Snape had done so and had returned to their original places, Flitwick continued, "Now, both duelists will adopt the proper stance: wand at the ready and knees bent. Once the official brings their wand down, the duel begins."

Flitwick brought his wand down and Snape and Remus jumped into action. They weren't trying to maim each other, as there were too many witnesses, but they trying to do as much damage to each other as they could.

"Stupefy!"

"Petrificus totalus!"

"Locomotor mortis!"

"Diffindo!"

The light from combatants spells flashed back and forth as they shielded, dodged, and returned fire.

"The duel ends when the official's wand sounds," Flitwick managed to shout over the duel, and a loud bang erupted from his wand. Remus and Snape stopped instantly and glared at each other. Clearly, childhood hatred didn't disappear so easily.

Remus ignored Snape and said, "Everyone find a partner from a different house."

Harry and his friends looked around the room in order to find someone decent to pair up with. Ginny appeared next to them and tugged Theo away.

Harry ended up with Dean, Draco faced off against Susan, Blaise paired up with Lisa Turpin, Pansy ended up with Hermione, and Daphne was against Ron.

Once each pair was evenly spaced around the dueling platform, Remus said, "We'll be starting with a shield charm. The incantation is 'protego' and the wand movement is a sharp swish outward. Take turns trying it."

The sound of students repeating the incantation echoed around the hall.

Once the majority had some vague idea of what they were doing, Remus had them practice the Disarming Charm and the Body-Bind Curse.

After the students had practiced for a while, Flitwick called out, "Miss Parkinson and Miss Granger seem to have fine grasp on the spells. Why don't you two come demonstrate?"

"Of course, Professor," Pansy said with a flip of her shiny hair.

Hermione followed Pansy up to the dueling platform.

"Remember the proper etiquette," Flitwick said to them.

Theo moved next to Harry and said, "This should be interesting. Granger has almost no wand skills, other than the work we do in class. Pansy can crush her."

"Oh, she will," Draco said.

Flitwick said, "Feel free to use the spells we discussed today and anything else that you have in your repertoire. Nothing dangerous though. The duel will end when one of you has possession of the other's wand." He then brought his wand down and the mock duel began. Except that Pansy wasn't playing. "Petrificus totalus!"

Hermione ducked to the side and said, "Expelliarmus!"

"Avis!" Small birds flew in Hermione's direction and began to peck at her. While Hermione was distracted, Pansy pointed her wand towards Hermione and said, "Densaugeo." Hermione's two front teeth began to slowly longer and longer. "Furnunculus." Boils erupted all over Hermione's skin.

At this point, everyone watched, fascinated as Pansy toyed with Hermione.

"Expelliarmus!"

Hermione's wand flipped gracefully through the air and landed in Pansy's outstretched hand. Flitwick's wand sounded, announcing the end of the duel.

"I believe that that's enough for today," Remus said. "Congratulations, Miss Parkinson. Mr. Thomas, can you please escort Miss Granger to the hospital wing? Everyone else, you're dismissed."

Pansy hopped down from the dueling platform to rejoin her friends as they left the hall.

"That was brilliant," Draco told her. "I knew Granger couldn't duel. She knows nothing outside of those books of hers."

Meanwhile, Snape was heading to Dumbledore's office to inform him about the dueling club.

"How did things go, Severus?"

"It's clear that Black and his little band of friends are more powerful than they should be. The spells we taught weren't very difficult, but they probably learned them as second or third years. And Parkinson is a surprising formidable duelist. She limited herself to basic spells, but the way she combined them...Albus, let's just hope that we don't see them on the battlefield."

"Well of course not, Severus. They'd be in terrible danger."

"No, it would be terrible for us to have to try and face them."

While Dumbledore and his spy spoke, Voldemort was plotting spy's demise.

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