Fickle Fate: Chapter 37

Hello all! I am back! For those who might be curious, I too thought that the evil quill Umbridge had Harry use was called a Blood Quill. However, instead of simply writing that, I decided to do a quick Google search. According to fandom wiki, the quill is simply called a "Black Quill" or the "Black Punishment Quill." Personally, I prefer calling it a "blood quill" but for once I decided to try and be canonically accurate. Please enjoy this chapter!

**Also, fair warning, I am not a strategist by any stretch of the imagination. As such, please be kind when reading this chapter.

Warnings: Angst.

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter I wouldn't have to apply for so many scholarships to get through school.

Please enjoy!

The Plan

Albus roared in frustration and threw a trinket from his desk across the room. Two of the painted Headmaster's hanging on the wall ducked as the projectile smashed right between their faces. They glared at Dumbledore as they straightened themselves back up. The old man ignored them and slumped down into his seat.

He leaned over his desk and glared at the map that lay open on it. When he had taken it from Harry's trunk and finally figured out how to activate it, he scoured every inch of it. Albus was surprised that it even showed ghosts floating about the school. However, it seemed to him a good sign. If the map could show the dead surely it could show the location of a piece of living soul. Yet the blasted map showed nothing! He knew the Horcrux had to be in the school yet he couldn't find the damned thing.

The old man had spent the past six hours trying to find an alternate entrance to the Chamber of Secrets assuming if Tom hid it anywhere it would be there. However, that proved to be a pointless venture. He had been able to blast the bathroom entrance open, but without Parseltongue he couldn't open the main chamber. As the Headmaster he should know the school inside and out, however Salazar Slytherin had been determined to keep everyone but his ancestors from his private quarters. Now here he was, only a week before school reconvened and a Horcrux still somewhere in the castle. That morning he had also been informed that the Board would be sending a representative to observe the school twice a week to ensure everything was going well. He just knew that it would be Lucius Malfoy coming, and the Death Eater would be using the opportunity to find the Horcrux for his master.

To take his mind off of the failure for a moment, Dumbledore summoned the school registry. He scanned through the first years that would be arriving and made note of any Muggleborns and children from prominent families. In his mind these children were categorized into "easy to manipulate" and "make friends with the parents and milk them for gold or political clout". It was a time honored tradition of his and it calmed him down some. As he finished up with the incoming first years, a thought struck him and he flipped to the sixth years.

Dumbledore stared at the page for a long time, trying to wrap his head around what he was seeing. Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy would all be returning for their sixth year at Hogwarts. The Headmaster was immediately set on edge. Sending the students back to the school he ran seemed completely counter to what any sane person would do. Granted the Dark Lord would never be considered sane under any definition, yet, Voldemort was still a strategist. Such a move would not be frivolous.

The minutes ticked by as Dumbledore's mind became engrossed with the new puzzle. Even as he pondered, plans were being laid for the coming school year, and they weren't in his favor.

Tom let out a deep breath, slow and controlled. His eyes were closed and it took all of his willpower not to pinch the bridge of his nose…or curse someone. When he finally opened his eyes and spoke, he sounded calmer though he still seethed inside.

"Unfortunately, a part of me vaguely remembers such an occurrence. At some point during the height of my madness I must have seen it in Harry's mind. Or perhaps I sensed it through our connection." Tom stood and looked out of his office window and onto the grounds of the Lestrange Manor. He saw Harry (with Nagini wrapped around his feet), his friends, and the eldest Weasley boys talking and laughing. Harry suddenly tensed and looked up at the Manor. The boy spotted him in the window and gave him a nod in acknowledgement before turning back to his conversation. After a moment, Tom turned back to the occupants in his office. "Either way, at least something positive came from such an occurrence. Severus, you say that McGonagall is willing to aid us and get the rest of the staff on our side?"

The Potions Master inclined his head.

"In a manner of speaking, My Lord. It is more that Minerva would rather Dumbledore be taken down and the students protected than she is on our side. Though she feels it comes with great risk, she understands the importance of making everything as legal as possible. She is certain she can convince the rest of the staff at Hogwarts. Once she has them on board they will do all they can to keep the Headmaster from harming the students until we can take him out with the Ministry and officially end the war."

"What about, Umbridge," Rodolphus growled. The others in the room (Lucius, Sirius, Rabastan and Remus) nodded in agreement.

"Minerva made a rather brilliant point in that regard," Snape explained. "Umbridge made the mistake of using the black quill on Neville Longbottom, seeing as he was part of the DA. Minerva plans to mention it to Augusta at her earliest convenience." Lucius and the others smirked.

"Old Augusta will tear her to pieces. I'd pay to see that," the blond commented. Rabastan was pleased like the rest of them but still felt off about the whole plan.

"My Lord…" he started and then hesitated. Not all of them were used to Voldemort being sane yet and still worried about Crucios. "I…would you consider sending one of us in with the children? We could go Polyjuiced as another student." Tom shook his head.

"While I understand your concern, Rabastan, that would likely make things worse for them. Harry informed me he believes Dumbledore has his Map. The Headmaster could easily see that you are not actually a student and use that as a perfect excuse to attack." When the Lestrange brother reluctantly nodded his head, Tom continued. "However, I do have a plan to guarantee further protection." His followers looked to him eagerly.

Tom held up his family ring, the one he had removed his soul shard from. Then with a wave of his wand he made five copies, one for himself and everyone else present. He would make two more for Remus and Sirius later. The Dark Lord passed the rings to his followers and kept one for himself and the original to give to Harry.

"I have seeped the original ring in protection spells and emergency communication charms and will be giving it to Harry. In fact I got the idea from Ms. Granger. She spoke with me about the little defense club she and the boys had started this past year. Apparently, she created fake galleons to inform members of when the next secret meeting would be taking place. These rings will work in a similar fashion, but they will also help you locate Harry should he be in trouble. Ms. Granger will be making another fake galleon for Draco, cut off all of the fake galleons aside from theirs and use those to communicate with each other. I fear all of the children returning with distinct rings would make Dumbledore suspicious. Perhaps it makes me paranoid, but I imagine him spreading a rumor amongst the students that the rings are similar to the Dark Mark." Tom could see the tension releasing from his followers' shoulders as they now held a tangible way to keep tabs on the children.

"My Lord, once the children have located the final…inanimate horcrux, and you have reunited with that piece of your soul, what shall be done," Rodolphus asked. At that point a house elf popped in with tea. Tom answered his follower as he scooped some sugar into his cup.

"I already have the plan in motion. Sirius Black, now as a free man, is reclaiming his seats in the Wizengamot. Once he is reinstated and the council has had their first meeting without a hitch, he will begin spreading rumors of a new lord. By the second meeting, Lord Slytherin will be reclaiming his seats on the Wizengamot." It took his followers a few moments to catch on to what their Lord meant. However, once they did, it was bright smiles all around. Tom smirked right back. "I will be introduced as Thomas Marvolo Riddle, last heir of Slytherin and as such, the rightful Lord Slytherin. I've been digging through ancient scrolls and family trees for weeks now." Before his followers could get too excited, he continued. "Also, as Harry's rightful guardian, Sirius can take the Potter seats by proxy, removing another handful of seats from Dumbledore's clutches. Though Harry is not biologically James Potter's son, the Ministry has James Potter listed as father on his birth certificate."

Severus felt an odd clench in his chest as the Dark Lord said that. It suddenly reminded him that even though he and Harry were moving closer to acknowledging each other as father and son out loud, Harry wasn't legally his unless Severus claimed him in accordance with the law. The Potions Master wasn't sure if he was ready for that, and he wasn't sure if Harry would even want that. Tom cast him a slightly sympathetic look before continuing his explanation.

"Finally, I also found that there is a living heir of Gryffindor. Harry Potter." There Severus's mouth fell open.

"But…how? Neither Lily nor I have any ties to the Gryffindor line." Tom nodded his head.

"You are correct. Neither of you do. However, James Potter did. According to Lupin, Lily asked James Potter to be Harry's godfather. I had Bill Weasley check with the goblins. Though Dumbledore didn't approve, they did the spell anyway. James Potter claimed Harry as his godson. Since James was the last of the Potter line, before his death he also made Harry his heir. Together these claims legally and magically make Harry the only living heir to the Potter seats and the Gryffindor seats, no matter that his birth certificate is false and despite being biologically Lily's and Severus's child. Dumbledore has been claiming the Gryffindor and Slytherin seats under his power as the Headmaster of Hogwarts. Now the rightful heirs have been found, he has no rights to them once myself and Sirius as Harry's proxy claim them. First, we will take the seats, subsequently the Wizengamot, and then, the Ministry. Once that is complete, removing him from Hogwarts will be no great struggle at all. We will take over the Wizarding World legally." Tom gave his followers a superior smile and was honestly quite pleased with himself. However, a small voice in the back of his head reminded him of all the terrible mistakes he had made to get to this point.

"This is sounds like the makings of a great plan, My Lord," Severus said once he got over his initial shock. "However, Dumbledore will surely recognize your name and try to convince others that you are the Dark Lord." Tom conceded Snape's point.

"He will, but should he attempt to discredit me he will have no leg to stand on and no ear willing to listen. I have Bill and Charlie Weasley on the task of bringing me all the information they can from the goblins on Dumbledore's illegal activity. When they have gathered enough it will all land on the desks of Aurors we can trust and in the hands of everyone's favorite blonde reporter. Lucius and Sirius will simultaneously destroy Minister Fudge's reputation, which shouldn't be too hard. When he inevitably resigns, we will put forth the best candidate for the empty position." When he received confirmation that his Inner Circle were following his plan he revealed the most important part. "The key here, Gentlemen, is that I will not be the one we promote as the Minister for Magic. We will promote Amelia Bones."

That certainly threw his followers through a loop. They had not been expecting that and yet…they were by and large relieved. She was a much more just witch than any before in the seat of Minister and was hardly a Dumbledore fanatic. After a few moments of silence to allow everyone to absorb the plan, Lucius spoke.

"We will have to make sure that Dumbledore doesn't get to her. If he catches wind of our plans to promote her then he could have her assassinated or put under the Imperius curse. Not to mention he has both Kingsley and Mad Eye Moony on his side. There have been whispers of those two recruiting Aurors and intimidating people in the Ministry that even suggest that Dumbledore might be wrong." Severus's eye twitched as he suddenly remembered the cut and bruise on Harry's cheek when he was first dropped off at Malfoy Manor.

He had had his suspicions as to the injury's origins and his son had confided in him not long ago and confirmed it. Kingsley Shacklebolt was of an intimidating stature and for a man that size to use his strength against a young boy…it made Severus quiver with rage.

"Yes, those two are going to be a problem." Tom's voice brought Snape out of his musings. "Rabastan, your task is to infiltrate the Aurors and determine which need to go. Do not determine this based on their side in the war. We can't give Dumbledore any leverage. Find the good ones, Light or Dark, and make sure they stay. Find a way to cut the bad ones from the bunch. Rodolphus, work with Bill and Charlie Weasley. Find out what you can on Shacklebolt and Mad Eye and ensure they are out of the equation. I don't want those wild cards involved should this come down to a fight."

"Lucius, you know your duties to distract Albus from the children and to use your connections to bring down Fudge in the Ministry and Dumbledore in the Wizengamot." The Malfoy Lord nodded his head in understanding.

"As for you, Severus, I'm afraid I am assigning you the most difficult task." Severus inclined his head and furrowed his brows.

"My Lord?" Tom rubbed his left temple to try and ease the tension building there.

"While I have been planning all of this and trying to regain my soul and sanity, I have been neglecting my other followers, the Outer Circle. I will be holding a general assembly meeting this evening to explain our new direction. I will need your skills as a Legillimens to help me determine who will truly fall in line…and who needs to be disposed of." Severus shuddered inside, knowing he would be physically, mentally and magically drained by the end.

"Yes, My Lord," he finally answered. "And…how shall the dissenters be disposed of?" Tom grimaced.

"I won't have them killed. I cannot say that we are turning to legal means of winning the war and then murder those who disagree. However, we cannot simply let them run free to tell the world anything they know. I need you to brew the tongue binding potion. If they truly refuse to follow this new course of action they will be sent to Azkaban so they won't interfere or harm anyone, but they cannot be able to speak of what they hear tonight at the meeting." That potion took a lot of time to brew and Severus suddenly understood why the Dark Lord wanted this meeting to occur so early. All Snape could think of was that he'd have to warn Harry that he probably won't be conscious for the next day or so, he'd be so exhausted.

"Yes, My Lord."

Well, I hope that didn't seem too tropey! To be perfectly honest, I had to go back and read this a few times myself to keep it all straight. Time to see if it actually works as they head back to Hogwarts and into the lions den (so to speak)!

Please review!