On a warm July evening, Minerva McGonagall sat alone in her office, silently mulling over the letter she'd received from a student's family earlier that day. As Deputy of the school, this was quite a normal occurrence for the witch, as it was her responsibility to deal with any concerns from the parents of students. It was a job that held very little glory and often required a significant amount of time out of her busy schedule, yet it was one she was happy to perform nonetheless. It was a small price to pay for the pride she felt in contributing to raising the next generation of witches and wizards.

Although she would never admit to treating students differently based on their family, the author of this letter did carry significant political clout at the school, which caused her to take extra consideration into the proposal.

An inquiry into the possibility of removing another teacher from the school was perhaps the last thing she had expected to deal with today, and yet if she was being completely honest with herself she felt it was a long time coming.

Professor Binns had served at the school longer than any other staff member, and while his dedication to his profession was certainly admirable, he'd long since lost the ability to effectively teach a class of students.

Relieving a colleague of their duties was never something she enjoyed doing, but as a professional, she had to honour her responsibility of ensuring that students receive a quality education at the school above any loyalty she had to Binns.

Considering the build up of written complaints from parents that she'd received in recent years about the man, she felt that she had no other choice but to finally take the matter to Albus and request that arrangements be made to transition Binns out of a teaching position.

With the castle empty it didn't take her long at all to arrive at his office, and after giving the password to the golden gargoyle, Minerva stepped inside the circular staircase and knocked on the door to the Headmaster's office.

"Enter," said Dumbledore, as he looked up from the book he was reading with a smile on his face upon seeing McGonagall. "Ah Minerva, to what do I owe this pleasure. Do you have more good news for me about muggleborn students returning for the next school year."

"I'm afraid this pertains to a more sombre matter," said Minerva, as she took a seat in one of the plush armchairs in front of Dumbledore's desk.

"Oh," said Dumbledore, the smile slipping from his face, as he closed his book, and gave his Deputy his undivided attention. "Nothing too upsetting I hope."

"It's about Professor Binns," said Minerva, "or more specifically the need to replace him with more adept professional."

"Replace him?" said Dumbledore, his left eyebrow rising as he leant back in his seat. "Professor Binns has served at this school for nearly 200 years. He's become as much a part of Hogwarts as the castle itself. To relieve him of his teaching duties would be to remove the reason he has to remain in the living realm."

"That may be true but you and I both know that he's not the professional he once was," said Minerva. "His legacy at the school is astonishing, but over that timespan, he's lost touch with the world, and it's long since passed for him to step down."

"May I ask what prompted this sudden judgement?" Dumbledore asked.

"It's not sudden Albus," said Minerva. "I've received countless letters from various parents complaining about his teaching abilities. The letter I received from the Potters today was simply the straw that broke the camels back."

"The Potter's wrote to you?" said Albus, stroking his beard. This was certainly a detail worth following up on.

"Yes, they seem to think that History of Magic would be better served as a free period for independent study considering Binn's teachings have become so out-dated and irrelevant that the only purpose they serve is to re-awaken biased and bigoted opinions over long resolved events."

Despite his best efforts, Dumbledore couldn't hide the frown that crept onto his face at that comment.

"Many of history's most significant developments seem irrelevant to today's youth but that does not mean they shouldn't be pursued," said Dumbledore. "I myself believe that we have much to gain in learning from our past, and if we are unable to do so then we are destined to repeat our mistakes."

"I would agree, which is why I'm against this proposal of removing History of Magic from the curriculum, however, we can't ignore that something must be done to alter the course material in order to rejuvenate interest amongst the students," said McGonagall.

"And you believe the best course of action to do so is to remove Professor Binns?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yes," came McGonagall's instantaneous response, her tone firm and unyielding. "The man has proven time and time again to be as monotonous as a broken record and he refuses to teach anything besides goblin rebellions. If I'm being brutally honest, it's a wonder if anyone learns anything from him."

It was clear that Dumbledore didn't like that answer but he didn't deny it, so instead, he merely asked, "and don't you think the man is worthy of a second chance to adapt his methods?"

"Albus you know Binns better than I do. Can you ever recall a time when he was willing to change?"

Dumbledore had no answer to that, and it was clear that McGonagall had won the argument.

"Very well," said the Headmaster begrudgingly. "Come September I will sit in on several of Professor Binns classes, and then if needed I shall make arrangements to transition him out of a teaching position."

"Is the delay really necessary Albus?" Minerva questioned. "After all the years he's served we already know everything there is to know about Binns teaching style. Half the time he can hardly remember the names of students in his classes, and the other half he doesn't even know what he's supposed to be teaching. Waiting until September serves no purpose. To relieve him of his duties during the school year would only draw more attention to the matter than if we did so in the summer, plus it would give us time to find a replacement."

Dumbledore took a moment to mull over what she'd said but didn't argue with her reasoning, and instead when he next spoke he posed a question he already knew the answer to.

"So you've come to me in the hopes that I could persuade him to retire?"

"Yes," said Professor McGonagall, as a small sense of relief flickered across her face in response. "After his illustrious teaching career, I feel it only fair that we allow him the honour of stepping down himself."

"And who might I ask do you think would be a more suitable replacement?" Dumbledore questioned.

"Bathilda Bagshot would be my first recommendation, but I don't know if she'll accept the position considering her ailing health," said McGonagall immediately.

Dumbledore merely nodded his head as he leant back in his chair and unwrapped a lemon drop before popping the sweet into his mouth. Having grown up down the street from Bathilda Bagshot in Godric's Hollow he was very well familiar with the elderly witch and knew that she didn't have any aspirations to teach at Hogwarts.

If he was being completely honest, this was not a matter Dumbledore wanted anything to do with. He already had to find a new teacher to fill the empty DADA spot and was not looking forward to having to add this responsibility to his ever-growing list of concerns he had to address before the end of summer. In his opinion, researching all he could about Tom's Horcruxes needed to be his primary focus. However, he also knew that Minerva was not going to let this go, as she had very obviously gotten it into her head that she owed it to the students to get this done. Resolving himself to the inevitable, Dumbledore gave in to her request.

"Very well," said Dumbledore. "I will speak to Professor Binns and attempt to persuade him into retiring if you can begin putting together a list of potential candidates to replace him."

McGonagall gave a small smile of acceptance, before excusing herself from his office.

After she'd left, Dumbledore took the time to read over the letter McGonagall had brought him himself, before rising from his chair to stare out the large window of his office as he contemplated the ramifications of this development.

It may not be his primary concern at the moment but it bothered him that the Potter's would write such a letter.

This would be the second time Harry and his friends had pushed to remove a teacher from their position, and although the first time had been under vastly different circumstances, it was an unsettling trend that he could not allow to continue. He didn't want to even think about how much trouble it could potentially create for him if they next set their sights on Professor Trelawney.

He also couldn't help but wonder that the Potter's criticisms of Binns – a prominent voice opposing goblin rights – came at a time when he'd heard whispers of their family expanding their campaign for house elf rights to include advancing goblins welfare as well.

It couldn't be a coincidence that this matter was unfolding days before the summer Wizengamot session.

He didn't know what the motivation was behind this move, but Dumbledore's masterful mind was quickly putting the pieces together and coming to the realisation that the family had worked out some kind of agreement with the Goblins.

"Perhaps a visit to Gringotts is in order," said Albus to himself as he softly stroked his beard. With any luck, his contacts at the bank could provide him with some answers to his questions.

After all, as Chief Warlock, he had a responsibility to know what to expect in the coming Wizengamot session. He wasn't impeding on the family's privacy, he was simply fulfilling his duty.

With that final thought, Dumbledore went back to the book he was reading.


Harry was especially tense that Friday morning as he silently put on his equipment in the locker room. He was far from the only one behaving such a way, as there was a definitive lack of locker room shenanigans that day. Everyone was nervous because it was the last practice before Coach Mason would be announcing his final round of cuts from the roster. Harry himself felt even worse because his family couldn't be in attendance to support him, as they had to attend the summer Wizengamot meeting.

Strapping on his knee guards, Harry tried to sweep all thoughts of the Wizengamot from his mind, as the only purpose it would serve would be to distract him. His family had done everything they could to prepare their court case and to allow him to have this moment.

He allowed himself one last moment to think of his family and the sacrifices they'd made for him before Harry focused his mind on Quidditch.

This whole experience of training with the National Team still felt completely surreal to him, yet a small part of him still wasn't satisfied. He'd never expected to receive an invitation, or to make it past the first cut for that matter, and yet against all odds here he was competing with two other guys for one of two roster spots. Having come this far he wanted nothing more than to make the team and capture one of those two spots.

Only one seeker would not be invited back after today, and Harry was determined not to be that person.

Taking a deep breath to control his emotions, Harry turned to his friends Jeremy and Michael, or as he more frequently called them Jones and Adams. A couple weeks past the team had started referring to everyone by his or her last name. Harry wasn't sure what started it, but his guess was that everyone using the coach's last name instead of his first brought it on. Now that he thought about it, he couldn't remember ever hearing Mason's first name.

Shaking his head, Harry pulled on his dragon hide gloves. Even this proved to be no easy task today, however, as his fingers wouldn't stop shaking. So much so that he actually fumbled with the gloves for some time. He half expected a remark to come from one of his two friends, but they were being surprisingly silent.

He was extremely relieved both of the ex-Ravenclaws were amongst the remaining nine chasers, as he was much closer to them than any of the other players.

Today, neither Jones nor Adams was their usual boisterous selves. Harry assumed it was because they knew that four of the nine chasers would be going home after today, and the chances that both of them would make the team was unlikely. From what they'd told him before, neither had ever played on a team before without the other, and they were only interested in being on the National Team if their counterpart made it as well.

Deciding it was his turn to repay them for all the motivating words they'd provided him in the past few weeks, Harry gave both of them a smack on the arm to get their attention. He had to hit Jones twice before the big guy noticed him.

"Hey no matter what the decision is after today we should be proud of ourselves," said Harry, as he put his arms around both of them. "We came into this thing the three youngest guys in camp, and look how far we've come. Nobody expected anything from us. We were called inexperienced and unprepared by the other pros. Some even scoffed that we were invited back and insisted we should've been amongst the first cuts. We never let any of that other stuff get to us, we just went out and played with a determination to prove the doubters wrong, and that's what we have to do again today. One last flight, and don't hold anything back."

Jones and Adams both grinned in response. Without another word the three of them each stood up, grabbed their brooms, and headed out the door onto the pitch.

Coach Mason and the other members of his staff waited for them out on the centre of the field, a single large chest at their feet.

Harry however hardly noticed this, as his attention was instead captivated by the alterations made to the playing surface.

Jones and Adams both noticed it too, as they swivelled their heads to look around them.

The usual oval-shaped stadium had somehow been expanded, and it now took on a circular shape. Instead of two sets of hoops at each end, there were three sets of hoops at equal intervals around the pitch.

When Harry looked back at the coaches, Mason's smile told him that the man was obviously pleased with their surprise.

By now other players were exiting the dressing room and coming out onto the field, each showing similar reactions to Harry, Jones, and Adams.

When they were finally all gathered at centre field Mason simply said, "today's practice will be a three-way scrimmage. I shouldn't have to tell you what's riding on your performance today, so instead, before we get started I'll just say thank you for the dedication and hard work that each of you has demonstrated in camp. Even if you don't make the team you should be proud of what you've accomplished here."

With that Mason stepped backwards and allowed his assistant coaches to begin listing off the teams.

When it was announced that neither Jones, nor Adams, nor Harry would be on the same team as one another, the three boys could only nod their heads at each other before they had to join their teammates.

Once everyone was lined up in position, the assistant coach opened the chest.

"Let the game begin," announced Mason, as the players shot into the sky.


Over a hundred kilometres away, Neville sat anxiously in his chair as he watched people crowd into the large auditorium underneath the Ministry of Magic.

Today was the long awaited day of the summer Wizengamot session, and the entire family sans Harry had come to witness the event unfolding. It went without saying that a lot rested on today's events for the family. They'd already heard back from Professor McGonagall that Professor Binns was being transitioned into retirement, so they were hopeful that if their legislation passed today then the goblins would uphold their end of the agreement.

He, Alice, Matthew, Joshua, Lily, Clarissa, Sarah, Remus, Emma, Dan, Hermione, and Susan were all seated in the upper balcony amongst the other spectators, while James, Sirius, Frank, and Amelia sat in the lower bowl with the other lords of the Wizengamot. The four of them were all dressed accordingly in the customary formal robes of the Wizengamot with their House sigil sewn onto their chest, while Neville and the other members of the family were simply dressed in black robes.

Neville could tell that everyone else in the family felt as nervous as he was. He could see that Hermione was chewing furiously on her bottom lip like she always did when she was anxious, Sarah sat as still as a statue, Dan was looking around uncomfortable, and poor Lily was as white as a ghost.

Thankfully, Neville was seated beside his mother, and when she pointed out that Lucius Malfoy was not in attendance, he immediately felt his spirits lift a little. Hopefully, without his corrupting influence, they might be able to swing some of the conservative families over to their cause.

He couldn't help but think back to Narcissa's warning that the conservative section of the Wizengamot was fractured in her husband's absence and would not likely vote in uniform, but that they could expect plenty of pushback from certain individuals.

It didn't take much more than a glance to find one of those people in the courtroom.

Dolores Umbridge was sitting in a chair next to the Minister's, and Neville couldn't resist pointing her out to Susan and making a gagging face. She looked more like a toad than a human and wore several pink bows in her hair that only enhanced her creepiness. Susan cringed when she saw the woman and immediately leant over to whisper something in Hermione's ear.

Hermione never got the opportunity to respond to whatever Susan had said, as at that moment Cornelius Fudge and Albus Dumbledore strode into the courtroom. Almost immediately the entire room went silent as everyone watched them cross the floor and climb into their seats.

As soon as he was seated, Dumbledore pointed his wand at his throat and cast a spell to enhance his voice, so that everyone could hear him.

"Today I'd like to welcome you all and thank you for attending the 488th meeting of the British Wizengamot. Mr Oxbridge if you would be so kind, could you read off the agenda for today's meeting."

In the chair below Dumbledore's, a portly looking man clambered to his feet with a fairly substantial scroll and began listing off items. First was to be the customary departmental overview of the Ministry that the Wizengamot conducted at each meeting, followed by the economic review of the previous quarter. The third was an overview of international affairs, fourth would be a speech given by an ambassador from the Nigerian Ministry of Magic, and fifth was to be a discussion about scheduling conflicts for the upcoming Quidditch World Cup. The legislative review was the sixth item on the agenda, and it would be only then that they could present their case.

It was in that moment that Neville realised why his father hated these meetings so much.

"This is going to be a long meeting," Neville groaned as he watched Fudge bang his mallet to call in each of the Ministry's Department Heads to give a report on their quarterly activities.

"Yea well at least one of us is excited," said Susan, as she jabbed her thumb at Hermione, who was sitting on the edge of her seat and practically leaning over the guardrail to get a better view.

Neville smirked and replied, "I bet you Harry's having a lot more fun than we are right about now."

"Whatever he's doing I hope he's impressing Coach Mason," said Susan. "Can you imagine all the places he'll get to visit travelling with the National team if he makes the cut?"

Unfortunately, Susan's excitement caused her to speak a little too loudly, and one of the people in front of her turned around at her and looked at her strangely.

Susan could only blush, while Hermione looked over and said, "sorry about that, we didn't mean to disturb you. My friend's just excited about her cousin Rossi's opportunity to play for the Italian Quidditch team."

The man seemed to accept that readily enough and turned back in his seat without a complaint, causing Susan and Neville to shoot Hermione a grateful look.

"Don't thank me, just pay attention," said Hermione, as she turned back to watch the procession.

To their credit Neville and Susan both tried to heed her advice, but an hour later, and only onto the second item of the agenda, they were both extremely bored.

On several occasions Alice or Hermione had to shush one of the two of them, and neither Susan nor Neville would remain quiet for long until Alice told them that they best try and learn something from this meeting, otherwise they'd be attending many more to prepare them for when they had to occupy their families seat.

The next three and a half hours were painstakingly boring, but finally, after the Wizengamot had finished discussing all other items on the agenda it was time for what they were waiting for.

When Dumbledore opened the floor for the legislative review, Neville immediately sat up straighter in his seat.

Of everyone seated in the lower bowl, James was the only one to climb to his feet, and Dumbledore smiled when he noticed him.

"I take it this is about the amendments you promised to make to your S.P.H.E.R.E campaign after the last vote you called for?" asked Dumbledore, a gentle smile on his face.

"Yes your Chief Warlock," said James. "The council should be happy to note that myself and my compatriots have revised and altered our proposal in accordance with any complaints we received. We've added in some new provisions for sentient beings, but we've also outlined regulations, and conditions that will be enforced in order to ensure positive behaviour. I'd like to add that wizards have much to benefit from in this proposal."

"Very well," said Dumbledore, "if you would provide the exact wording to Mr Oxbridge, we can begin the reading and discussion of your proposed bill, and then vote on whether or not it shall become law."

Sitting down, James cast a spell on the sheet of paper that was sitting in front of him, causing it to reappear on the desk in front of Mr Oxbridge. The portly man stood up and began to read the contents of the paper.

Neville tried to watch the members of the Wizengamot carefully as he did so to try and gauge their reaction. He could see that Dolores Umbridge and a few others were visibly against the bill, but for the most part, the reaction was lukewarm.

Or it was until Mr Oxbridge announced that this new bill not only focused on the welfare of house elves but called for amendments to Article C-31 and 32 of the Sentient Being Act to enhance the living conditions and rights of goblins.

Then all around the auditorium lords and ladies were jumping to their feet, as everyone began shouting over each other. Neville didn't see which one was the first culprit, but from a glance, it looked like as many lords were arguing in support of the bill as against it.

"I guess that's as good a reaction as we could've hoped for," whispered Susan to his left.

Neville could only nod his head in agreement. They'd all known that the reaction to their bill was going to be fairly chaotic, but this wasn't what Neville had expected.

Could they have known about the proposal beforehand, thought Neville. He knew that the family had spoken with several potential allies ahead of time to gauge their reaction, but he didn't think they'd won over so many already. Either we misjudged the public reaction or James and Sirius had spoken to a lot more families than Neville had been told.

He looked over at his mother, and then at Lily. Neither of them looked at him yet on their faces he could see the same look of apprehension as if they didn't like what they were seeing and were trying to figure out how many more supporters they needed to win.

Not wanting to believe they were keeping secrets from him, Neville turned back to watch the procession below. Fudge was banging his mallet furiously in an attempt to restore order, but that was only accomplished once Dumbledore recast the amplification charm on his throat and had to call for order.

"Well, at least things got a little more interesting," said Susan behind him.

"Yea," said Neville in agreement lamely.


When Harry didn't catch the golden snitch that day, he was almost sure his time with the National Team was over.

He forgot all about the things he did correctly in the scrimmage, like breaking up the oppositions chaser formations, dodging Bludgers, distracting a keeper to allow his team to score an easy goal, or even leading the other two seekers on a wild goose chase at one point in the match.

None of that seemed to matter in comparison to failing to catch the flickering, golden ball. Without it, he was almost sure that he would be the final seeker cut from training camp.

Surprisingly, he felt at peace with the thought. He knew he should be disappointed that things didn't work out, but for some reason, he couldn't find it in him to be upset.

He'd hoped to put on the performance of his life in this game; as he knew the only way to make Mason take him was to leave him no other choice. Unfortunately, things just hadn't worked out, as even though he'd tried every trick he knew, the snitch had avoided him, choosing instead to pop up right in front of Lynch.

Harry wasn't bitter though. He'd surpassed any expectations he or anyone else had of himself, and for that alone, he could hold his head high.

Another reason to smile was the performance his friends put on. Both Jones and Adams played magnificently, scoring more goals and holding on to the Quaffle for longer than any other chaser. Harry thought that despite their inexperience, they both had better than a fighting chance of making the team.

After Mason called them all together to say a few last words, the team was dismissed and allowed to head back to the changing rooms. Almost immediately, Jones and Adams both sought out Harry and fell into stride with him.

"You played a hell of a game up there," said Adams.

"Look who's talking," grinned Harry. Jones titled his head back and laughed.

Adams gave Jones a hard shove, and in an instant, both young men were wrestling on the ground.

Harry could only laugh as he walked back towards the dressing room. He didn't know if he'd make the National Team, but this whole experience had given him a new appreciation for Quidditch, and he was starting to think about making a profession out of it when he was older.


An hour later, and the debate was still raging inside the Wizengamot hall underneath the Ministry of Magic.

It seemed to Neville as if the most productive thing that had been achieved that afternoon on the issue was that at one point Dumbledore had silenced the critics long enough so that James had been able to read out the full provisions of the bill.

Unsurprisingly, the discussion was entirely focused on goblins, as house elves were all but forgotten.

The debate seemed to be going pretty well for them, but there were still some concerns that needed to be addressed, and several lords appeared to remain unconvinced.

"Giving goblins the freedom to operate outside the bank is madness," announced Tiberius Ogden. "It's not easy getting the cat back into the bag once it's out, and goblins are ambitious creatures of their own."

"Showing such weak judgement could give the goblins the opening they need to rise up and rebel once again," agreed Griselda Marchbanks.

"With the regulations that we plan to enforce, the goblins will be given no such opportunity," said James. "This bill seeks only to improve their life, it does not give them the ability to harm us."

"They shall not be allowed to carry wands or weapons," Frank reiterated. "Any goblin caught behaving disorderly shall be tried by a court of law. The first offence is a fine of 500 galleons, and the second offence shall see the goblin stripped of privileges and condemned back to the Underworld."

Neville could see from the murmurings amongst the lords of the Wizengamot that many of them seemed to like these provisions. However, he dared not let himself build up hope.

"You speak only of physical threats," said Henry Parkinson. "What if the goblins use their wealth to start purchasing shares in our businesses? If they're as smart as you say they are, they could use your property ownership clause to infiltrate and take over our economy. Then before you know it witches and wizards will be out of jobs and we'll be dependent on them."

"One of the conditions in our bill is that goblins are not allowed to purchase majority shares in any wizard operated business," said Amelia Bones. "If they wish to open businesses of their own, they may do so by purchasing grants from the Ministry. However, as a precaution to prevent an influx of goblins producers looking to sell their goods and services, there will be a limit as to how many grants the Ministry shall sell."

"And just what are these limits," asked Dumbledore, who had somehow managed not to give away which side of the debate he fell on, as well as keeping order in the court.

"Fifty grants in the first year Chief Warlock," answered Frank Longbottom. "With no more than one per goblin, five per industry."

"Each of these grants will sell at a significant price," added James, "and the revenue generated will be used to compensate industry owners that may feel threatened by the rival business."

"And as a further provision, no goblin-owned business will be allowed to expand beyond five employees so as to prevent them from out-producing their wizarding counterparts," added Sirius.

Several members seemed to like that and began whispering amongst themselves.

"Goblins are creatures," said Dolores Umbridge in a sickly sweet voice that could hardly be heard across the hall. Fudge actually had to bang his mallet beside her to get everyone to quiet down so they could hear what she was saying. Dolores simply smiled at Fudge in thanks before rising to her feet and saying in a prim voice, "goblins don't belong in public, and they certainly don't belong in this chamber. Surely our time could be better spent discussing other matters?"

"Goblins are sentient beings," corrected Christopher Abbott. "They are intelligent beings capable of the same capacity as mankind. What right do we have to deny them the most basic of freedoms that we enjoy every day?"

"We have every right," said Dolores, her tone thick with contempt. "We're the ones in charge because we put down their rebellions. You creature lovers want to change that, but the good lords of the Wizengamot are not so easily fooled."

"In case you've forgotten Ms Umbridge," said Sirius. "We already interact with those 'creatures' as you call them every day. It's no wonder we have an entire Department of the Ministry dedicated to keeping the goodwill between us – they only hold all of our gold."

Neville could only smile at Sirius's brilliant tactical move to bring the discussion back to gold. Learning that passing this bill would generate huge profits for the Ministry and the average wizard had been the only argument that had shut the conservative's up, and won over substantial support to their side.

There were more murmurings amongst the lords this time and Neville saw several of the nodding their heads at one another.

Much of the discussion that afternoon had been about gold. There were several lords and ladies who remained aloof and pretended not to be interested in the prospects of money, but for each one of them, there were three or four who were.

When Neville had seen the reaction to James announcement of the expected revenue for bringing the goblins into the economy would generate in the first year, Neville had allowed himself to believe that the odds might be in their favour.

Of course, there were those who were sceptical of what they were being told, but Amelia was able to do a great job of explaining the economics.

After that, they had only to deal with the stingiest of conservatives, and that was whom they were currently facing opposition from.

Dolores Umbridge was the worst of those people. The longer the issue dragged out the more her disdain showed on her face. She became more vocal in trying to lobby votes to oppose the bill, yet it was clear even to Neville that she was struggling in that regard.

Not for the first time that day Neville couldn't help but wonder how much differently the session would be processing if Malfoy had been in attendance.

The discussion continued for another half an hour before Nigel MacMillan leapt to his feet and announced, "I say it's time we put the matter to a vote."

"Seconded," said Vince McCormick before anyone could object.

When the majority of the chamber agreed with the decision to vote Neville had to consciously remind himself to breathe. It's finally going to happen, he thought.

Time seemed to pass in slow motion as he watched Dumbledore rise to his feet and announce, "all those against the passing of the bill."

Nearly thirty lords and ladies stood immediately and raised their wands in the air to cast their vote, but after that, only a few stragglers stood and cast their vote.

That's not enough, thought Neville, not believing what he was seeing.

He wasn't the only to have the same realisation. Beside him, Susan and Hermione were bouncing in their seats, and Alice suddenly reached over and began squeezing him so tight Neville lost his breath.

When Dumbledore announced, "all those in favour of passing the bill," nearly eighty people stood and cast their vote.

Fudge looked sour at the decision, but it was nothing compared to Dolores beside him. Her face was almost the colour of her plum robes, and she was seething openly at James, Frank, Sirius, and Amelia.

However, the Minister paid her no mind, as he fulfilled his duty and declared the bill law.

Lily was the first one to climb to her feet and begin clapping, and the next thing Neville knew it looked like everyone was doing it.

There was the occasional person in the lower or upper bowl that remained seated, but nearly everyone was on their feet cheering.

Neville even saw James and Sirius do a chest bump, while Amelia and Frank high-fived and hugged each other.

The whole scene seemed absolutely serene to Neville. He could hardly believe they'd accomplished it.

All the time and effort they'd put in had paid off. They'd upheld their end of the bargain, now it was time to see if the goblins could uphold theirs.


The sunset that evening was quite beautiful. Lines of red, pink, and orange blanketed the sky, but Dumbledore had little time to admire them as he hurried about his business.

He wanted to get to Gringotts bank to speak with one of his associates before they locked their doors for the evening.

I should've come yesterday, thought Dumbledore, as he cursed his lack of judgement. Trying to research the mystery of Tom's Horcruxes was taking up nearly all of his time as of late, but he reasoned that there was no cause of greater importance. Except for maybe figuring out what kind of deal the Potters struck with the goblins, thought the wizened old man.

Seeing the look of jubilation on their faces in the Wizengamot chamber, Dumbledore knew there was something significant riding on the success of that bill. For some reason, he had a very bad feeling about what that could be.

Picking up his pace, Albus Dumbledore hurried down the cobblestone steps of Diagon Alley. He was wearing one of his favourite pairs of midnight blue robes, and he hadn't made any efforts to conceal himself, but for once he wasn't concerned about anyone recognising him.

When he got to the steps of the bank, Dumbledore saw two goblins standing guard at the door. They tightened their grip on their spears and grunted at his approach, but the door remained open and they did not bar his way for which Dumbledore was grateful.

Unsurprisingly for the late hour, the atrium of the bank was nearly empty when he stepped inside. Good, fewer witnesses, thought Dumbledore.

Without hesitation, Dumbledore strode up to the nearest teller and kindly requested to make a withdrawal from his account.

The goblin asked him for his key, with Dumbledore produced with a flourish, along with a note, which he handed over to the goblin to read.

The goblin read over the note quickly before crumpling it into his fist and summoning a Goblin to take the wizard down to the vaults.

Dumbledore was pleased to see that the Griphook was the goblin summoned. Looks like he got my message I sent ahead to warn of my arrival, thought Dumbledore.

Dumbledore paid the goblin no mind as they walked along the atrium to the back of the bank where the carts were stationed. He didn't want to arouse any suspicion of the connection he had with this particular goblin.

Griphook had served his family since the Grindelwald war, and Dumbledore had paid him well for the information he'd provided him about the activities of certain individuals at the bank. Thanks to him, Dumbledore had been able to prepare court cases on several suspected death eaters for imprisonment after Voldemort's defeat, but Fudge had thwarted his efforts and declared most of them innocent. Today, however, he wasn't interested in suspected death eaters. He wanted to hear what Griphook had to report on the Potters.

Once they were sufficiently below ground so that no one could overhear them, Griphook started talking. Judging from the grin the goblin had been wearing since they'd gotten into the cart, Dumbledore had high hopes that he had the information he wanted.

"The Potters have been seen at the bank frequently in the last few weeks, but they aren't visiting their account manager like you'd expect," said the goblin proudly.

"Who have they been visiting," asked Dumbledore, leaning forward slightly on the bench.

"They've seen the Goblin High Council twice, and it's been told that they met with King Ragnok privately another three times," said Griphook.

"Do you know why," asked Dumbledore, as he rubbed his face. He always found it slightly tiring talking to the goblin as he had a tendency to tell him only what he asked. He suspected it was because Griphook felt obligated only to reveal as much information as he felt Dumbledore's gold was worth.

Sure enough, Griphooks next words confirmed his guess.

"I do but it's going to cost you extra. This secret's worth more than what you pay me."

Sighing, Dumbledore reached into his back pocket and produced a bag of galleons, before handing it over to the goblin. Griphook felt the weight of the bag in his hand, opened it to examine if the coins were real, and then stuffed it inside one of his pockets.

"The Potters struck a deal with the King. They agreed to champion goblin interests if Ragnok could have an ancient goblin ritual performed on their son."

Dumbledore's eyes went wide at that statement, and the unsettling feeling in his stomach rose greatly in intensity. Please don't be what I think that is.

"What kind of ritual," he whispered, his voice shaky and fearful.

"A ritual that hasn't been used for over two centuries. It's supposed to pull the soul right out of a body," answered Griphook.

Dumbledore merely blinked in response to those words, as all the colour drained from his face. Inside his head, a hundred thoughts were racing through his brain. They mean to pull the Horcrux out of him. They mustn't do this; the prophecy says only Harry or Tom can destroy them. I have to stop them. They could ruin everything!

"Griphook," said Dumbledore in a tone that conveyed just how scared he was in that moment. "I need you to tell me when they're performing that ritual."

"About now I suspect," answered Griphook casually, either not noticing or ignoring the look of fear on the wizards face. "The Potter family and all the others arrived at the bank about 30 min ago to meet with Ragnok. As of when we left, they hadn't yet returned to the atrium."

"Do you know where they might be," asked Dumbledore.

"Depends," said Griphook. "They could still be in the King's office, but if they are performing the ritual, then they'd probably be in the medical hall."

"I need you to take me to the medical hall then," said Dumbledore at once.

"I need more gold then," said Griphook in response.

This time Dumbledore took out two sacks from his back pocket and handed them to the goblin, who proceeded to check them the same way as the one before.

"Okay but for this to work we're going to have to get past the guards," said Griphook as he turned back to the controls of the cart.

"And do you have a plan," Dumbledore asked.

"I do," growled Griphook, as he unsheathed his dagger from his belt.

"So long as it doesn't involve killing, I'll go along with it," said Dumbledore.

"You wizards take the fun out of everything."


On one of the beds in the medicine hall underneath Gringotts, Harry lay watching as the goblins prepared everything for the ritual. He was feeling extremely nervous about undergoing the procedure, but his family was all around him whispering comforting words, and Harry was determined to be brave. He would do what needed to be done.

When one of the surgical goblins produced a special blade and requested him to stick out his arm, Harry did not hesitate. The goblin proceeded to slit his palm and rub his blood into the knife.

Harry and his family watched transfixed, as the blood seemed to be absorbed into the metal. It even changed slightly from the original metallic colour so that afterwards it glowed red slightly when the light struck it.

Harry wanted to ask what they were doing, but the goblins had refused to answer any questions about the sacred ritual, so he knew it was pointless. When they turned their focus back to the bubbling cauldron, Harry turned his towards his family.

Lily was sitting in a chair beside his head, holding his right hand, and the rest of the family was gathered around her. They were all looking as fearful as he felt, and many of them had tears in their eyes.

They kept whispering things like, "it's going to be alright," or "you're braver than I am Harry," or even, "we love you."

Harry was finding it hard to maintain his composure around them, but he was glad they were there with him. He would've been terrified of the thought of doing this alone.

On his left side, the goblins had dipped the blade with Harry's blood into a simmering potion.

He had no clue as to what the contents of the potion were, but he could tell that his mother and Hermione were watching their movements like a hawk, trying to figure out what they were brewing.

Harry preferred not to watch the goblins brewing, but when he heard them bringing a squealing piglet into the room, he couldn't help but look.

The goblins proceeded to toss the piglet into the cauldron and cook him alive.

The noise it made was something terrible, and Harry along with everyone else in the family had to cringe and look away.

At that moment, the doors flung open again and none other but Albus Dumbledore rushed into the room, shouting for them to stop.

The family could only stare at him in disbelief wondering what the hell he was doing there, but the goblins were not so dumbfounded.

"How did you get in here?" demanded one of them.

"Guards!" shouted another. "We have an intruder!"

"Please, I mean you no harm," said Dumbledore, taking a step towards them only to stop at the sight of the blades that the goblins produced.

"State your purpose then," growled the goblin Harry believed to be in charge of the procedure. "Before we have you detained and imprisoned."

"I mean to warn them," said Dumbledore, seemingly unaffected by the threat. "You can't go through with this. You have to listen to me. This procedure will fail and, Harry along with any chance we have at winning the war will perish."

Lily was the first one to react. She was on her feet in an instant, her wand in her hand and a cold glare fixed on her face. "You've got some nerve coming here and telling us what to do. You wouldn't even tell us what the scar was in the first place when you knew, so why should we trust you now."

"Lily please, I was only concerned for the boy's well-being. I thought you might endanger him by acting the way you have if I told you. Keeping it a secret was for the greater good. If nothing can be done about it until Tom removes it, I thought it would be easier for Harry to live if he didn't know."

Lily looked about ready to curse the old man for that answer, and Harry saw that several of the other members of his family had now drawn their wands.

"Please I implore you to see reason," said Dumbledore.

"I'm afraid as of the moment old man we aren't putting a lot of weight on your sentiments," growled James.

"Remember the words of the prophecy," said Dumbledore. "Either must die at the hand of the other. Only Tom can destroy what lives inside Harry's scar."

"So you would have him continue on until some day when that dark tosser can cast another killing curse at him," accused Sirius.

Dumbledore made no answer, save from tightening his lips in a frown. He tried to turn and look at Harry, but Frank and Remus stepped in front of him to block his view.

For a moment nobody spoke, even the goblins didn't move. The tension in the room was so palpable you could cut through it with a knife.

"Get out," said Lily in a low menacing voice.

Dumbledore made no response, but Lily didn't seem to need one. Her temper had clearly boiled over.

"Harry is my child, not yours, and you have absolutely no right to tell us what to do. You should know that I don't give a damn about your greater good in comparison to the welfare of my children. You think I'm about to let you control my son's life just because he's the key to winning this stupid war. Well, I'll tell you something Albus Dumbledore, you and your utilitarian views are no longer welcome in this family, and if you don't leave this moment we will be forced to make you."

Dumbledore could only stare at Lily for some time, before taking a deep breath and saying, "I'm really sorry about this."

His wand was out in a flash and Dumbledore began casting spells at a lightening quick pace.

The parents had all reacted quickly, but Dumbledore's flash bang charm had nonetheless disoriented all of them. Frank and Remus, being the first in Dumbledore's line of sight, were the first to fall as they were hit by two petrifying charms.

They both collapsed like statues overtop of Harry's bed, crushing his legs. Harry howled in pain and had to use wandless magic to lift them off of him. He didn't dare revive them until his senses recovered.

In the meantime, Dumbledore had already taken care of the goblins by petrifying them and binding them in ropes, but Amelia, James, Sirius, Alice, and Lily, had all recovered and were now returning spell fire.

Dumbledore conjured a brick wall to block their attacks and sent the debris flying back at them.

James raised his own shield, and the rest of the adults continued hurling spells at the Headmaster.

Squinting, Harry could see Neville, Hermione and Susan climbing to their feet on the right side of his bed. Neville and Susan looked to be helping the younger children, while Hermione revived Frank and Sirius.

The two men wasted no time at all before re-joining the fight, and when they did Hermione turned her attention to Harry.

"Are you alright?"

"My left leg," Harry answered wincing. "Frank fell on it, I think it might be broken."

Hermione frowned and scurried around the bed. When she got to his right side, she positioned herself so she stood at the head of the bed so she could still see Dumbledore out of the corner of her right eye. She didn't expect the man to launch a spell at her, but she hadn't been expecting him to start casting at all in the first place, so she wanted to be safe rather than sorry.

Pulling up the blanket to peer at his leg, Hermione could see that it was bent at an odd angle.

"Do you want me to try and fix it now or wait for someone else to do it later," she asked, looking over to where Dumbledore was still trying to hold back the onslaught from the adults.

"I trust you," was all Harry said.

Hermione took a deep breath and focused before casting. It wasn't easy with all the noise and shouting going on throughout the hall, but she was delighted to see the bone bend back into place.

When she turned around, she could see that Dumbledore was clearly losing, and being pressed by the parents back towards the door.

"Harry," said Hermione, as she shook him a little to get his attention and pointed at the fight behind her.

Harry looked and saw for himself. Each of the adults was pressing in on Dumbledore, working together expertly. James and Frank were casting shields or conjuring objects to defend against any spells Dumbledore got off, while Remus and Sirius were coating the floor underneath Dumbledore's feet in what looked like some sort of slippery substance. The old man was having a very hard time keeping his footing and fending off the spells of the three woman, and sure enough, it wasn't much longer before Amelia connected with the first spell to actually hit Dumbledore. It was nothing major, just a leg-locker curse, but in the split second it took him to reverse it, Lily hit him in the face with a stunner, and then Alice bound him in chains.

With Dumbledore dealt with, Frank went to free the goblins from their restraints.

They were none too happy about being attacked, and one of them immediately left to summon more guards to escort Dumbledore down to a holding cell.

When he returned, the goblin that was in charge of the operation turned to Harry and asked if he still wanted to go through with the procedure.

Harry needed only to look at the faces of his family to know his answer. They had done so much for him to allow this to happen, that Harry was determined not to let fear stop him.

After that, things seemed to settle down. The goblins turned their focus back to the potion, and the family once again gathered around Harry's bed to give him words of comfort.

Harry took turns hugging each one of them while they waited.

It wasn't long before the lead goblin announced that they were ready to begin.

Despite promising to be brave, Harry couldn't help but ask how painful this was going to be.

The closest goblin to him merely looked at him and grunted.

Harry got a better idea as for what he was in for when the goblins strapped him to the bed. At this time, the family began getting very worried, and Harry actually had to console his sisters that he would be all right.

When the goblins brought the cauldron over to his bedside, the lead goblin asked Harry if he was ready.

"Do it," was his reply, before Harry could stop to second-guess himself.

The goblin nodded and retrieved the knife from his associates. Harry got a good look at the blade this time. After sitting in the potion for nearly twenty minutes, it was almost clear in colour yet Harry could still see shines of red in it. The hilt was decorated in gemstones, the most notable of which was a ruby the size of his eye at the very bottom.

Very carefully the goblin pressed the blade to Harry's scar and pushed forward. He felt a stab of pain and cringed but it was nothing like he'd expected. The blade seemed almost to dissolve into his body as the goblin pushed it forward, much like he'd seen his blood do earlier on the blade.

Being careful not to move his head, he looked over with his eyes at his family. They were all watching him through teary eyes.

When the goblin had pushed the dagger into the hilt, he turned back to his associate who handed him what was left of the body of the pig.

Trying hard not to think about what was about to happen, Harry closed his eyes and did his best to ignore the smell.

He didn't see the looks of fear on his family faces; he didn't see the revolting sight of the pig. He only heard the goblin say that they were beginning the extraction process.

Then all he knew was a mind-splitting pain, and the sounds of his family's screams.


AN: Well there you have it. Sorry, this chapter took forever. I've been very busy but I promise not to take three months to upload the next instalment. Big thanks to everyone for sticking with the story despite my absence. Can't believe I have over 300,000 views, over 700 followers, over 500 favourites, and close to 500 reviews. You guys are awesome. Thanks so much!