Harry and Hermione were eating breakfast side by side in the great hall. Curiously, Hedwig was sitting on Harry's shoulder, watching the humans while she nibbled on the occasional piece of bacon. Hermione pulled a large tome on PureBlood traditions out of her bag just as the post began to arrive.
Naturally, everyone took notice of the distinctive red letter of a Howler attached to the equally recognizable Weasley owl, Errol. It managed to drop the letter onto the platter of pain-au-chocolates in front of Harry before flying away, bumping into at least four beams on its exit.
Fred and George had worried expressions, Ron and Ginny both looked like Christmas had come early. Harry picked the letter up calmly and opened it.
The voice of Molly Weasley burst from the letter. "HARRY POTTER HOW C..."
Harry cast a charm on the howler, duplicated it, and sealed the original into a large envelope he had previously charmed. He tied the envelope, along with a letter, onto Hedwig and sent her off.
The Weasleys (except Ron) had looks of awe on their faces as Hedwig flew off. Harry ignored them all and turned his attention to the incoming wave of post owls descending on him and Hermione.
o0O0o
Arthur strode into his office and sat down behind his desk. The raid planned for later in the day put a smile on his face. They were raiding the home of a squib by the name of Miss A. Figg for not filing her floo connection with the ministry. He wasn't looking forward to the raid itself, but rather he was looking forward to going through an almost entirely non-magical home.
"Maybe she'll explain this elekticity to me?" he muttered before taking a sip of his morning tea.
His musing was interrupted by the arrival of Hedwig, who plopped down onto his desk and gave a greeting hoot. Arthur unwrapped the letter and larger envelope from Hedwig's leg and watched as she promptly flew away. He opened the letter first
Mr Weasley
I am sorry to have to write to you again so soon, but this is a matter that cannot wait. Inside the larger envelope, you will find a howler sent to me by your wife. I was able to freeze it shortly after it began howling, however, it will resume when you open the package.
Ron, also, has made several attempts to verbally attack and belittle myself, my wife, and my friends. Often a teacher has stepped in and silenced him so he doesn't do say something he will come to regret.
Sadly, as I am Regent-Lord Black, I cannot allow these slights on myself, my family and my allies to continue. I do still hold yourself and the twins in high regard (and Charlie seemed nice when I met him) and wanted to give you an opportunity to sort this before it escalates to a duel, or worse, a feud
On a side note, I plan on collecting the carcass of the basilisk soon and giving a share of the spoils to the victims, including your daughter. I hope these will be enough to cover the cost of her therapy sessions, assuming they are still ongoing. I know I would still be in therapy if I had been possessed by Voldemort for a whole year.
Kind regards,
Harry Potter
Arthur gulped nervously. 'Why haven't we got Ginny therapy? She has been acting distantly since she came back from Hogwarts.' He cast a privacy ward and opened the other package.
"..OULD YOU DO THIS US? RON HAS BEEN NOTHING BUT THE BEST OF FRIENDS TO YOU SINCE YOU CAME INTO OUR WORLD ALONE. HE EVEN HELPED PULL THE BARS OF YOUR WINDOWS! AND HOW DO YOU REPAY HIM? YOU GO AND STEAL THE GIRL YOU KNEW HE CLAIMED! I AM ASHAMED OF YOU AND THE WAY YOU HAVE BEHAVED! WE WILL BE HAVING WORDS WHEN WE NEXT MEET!"
The Howler pivoted slightly, as if addressing a different person.
"AND YOU, HERMIONE, HOW COULD YOU GO AND DO THIS? HARRY DESERVES A PUREBLOOD WIFE FROM A LIGHT FAMILY TO SERVE HIM AND GIVE HIM STONG HEIRS, SOMEONE LIKE GINNY. YOU SHOULD BE THANKING THE MAKER A PUREBLOOD LIKE RONALD EVEN CONSIDERED YOU WORTHY TO BE HIS WIFE, YOU DON'T DESERVE TO HOG HARRY! YOU ALSO KNOW GINNY HAS BEEN AFTER HARRY FOREVER! HOW DARE YOU GO BEHIND HER BACK! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE HER FRIEND! YOU ARE NOT WELCOME AT THE BURROW ANY LONGER!"
Arthur had gone pale. He conjured a glass tube and slipped the memory of the howler inside. Taking the memory and the letter from Harry with him, he informed his secretary there was a family emergency and left the ministry quickly.
o0O0o
Hermione stepped gracefully out of the floo and caught Harry before he fell over.
A goblin who was waiting for them addressed them"Regent-Lord Black, Mrs Potter, welcome to Gringotts. If you would follow me please..."
Less than a minute later they were ushered into Griphooks office. Harry balled his right hand into a fist and placed it over his heart. "Master Goblin, may the flow of your gold be matched only by the blood of your enemies."
Griphook was caught completely unawares by the goblin greeting. After a moment he returned the gesture. "Regent-Lord Black, Mrs Potter, please be seated."
"Please, Master Goblin, Harry and Hermione is fine."
Griphook smiled. "In which case, call me Griphook. What can Gringotts do for you?"
"Firstly, I need to cast Bellatrix Lestrange out of the Black family, and offer Andromeda Tonks and her daughter the chance to be restored to their former position."
Griphook began writing down instructions. "I will have the paperwork sent to you tomorrow morning. What else."
"I would like to organize for my house in Godric's Hollow to be repaired and put under the strongest wards available, including the Fidilius, with myself as the secret keeper."
Griphook smiled again. "That will be quite expensive, it will cost you several thousand galleons."
Harry returned the grin, careful not to show his teeth. "I'm not worried about the cost, which brings me onto the third reason I'm here. Just over a year ago, I killed a basilisk in the chamber of secrets, I would like to hire Gringotts to recover and sell the corpse."
Griphooks eyes grew wide. "Was this basilisk fully grown?"
"It was roughly a thousand years old and looked to be at least forty feet."
Griphooks eyes glazed over at the thought of the commission he would earn. Eventually, he snapped out of it. "You wish to sell the whole beast?"
Harry shook his head. "No, I want the skin to be cured and placed in my vault, along with the skeleton and the venom. I understand the flesh is a goblin delicacy, so I am willing to sell it to Gringotts at a fair price, otherwise, I'm sure it can be construed as a Boy-who-lived souvenier and sold that way. The rest, to my knowledge, can be used as potion ingredients, I want to keep ten percent and the rest can be sold."
Griphook was writing furiously. "Gringotts will happily accept your terms, when can we come and collect the beast?"
"Anytime after twelve tomorrow would be fine."
"We will be there at quarter past, if there is nothing else I must begin preparations." He stood and placed his fist on his heart. "May your enemies tremble at the mention of your name."
Harry and Hermione both returned the gesture before turning and leaving the bank.
o0O0o
Amelia Bones sat in her office nursing a cup of tea, debating whether to upgrade it to a nice single-malt whisky. The investigation into the Quidditch World Cup was going nowhere and the Minister and the Wizengamot wanted results. Before she could make a decision, her secretary popped her head in.
"Madam Bones, Regent-Lord Black is here to see you, if you're free."
She waved her free hand weakly. "Send him in, send him in."
Amelia took a moment to put her business face on and quickly downed her tea. The door clicked open and Harry Potter entered.
"Thank you for seeing me on such short notice, Madam Bones."
"Of course, Regent-Lord, how is your new wife?"
"She is fine, in fact, she is in the Department of Magical Transport currently, registering our new floos. And please, call me Harry."
Amelia gave him an inquisitive look, thankfully her monocle had a sticking charm and didn't fall off her face. "Very well Harry. What can I do for you today?"
"I want to know why a member of my house is not only being hunted, but has a kiss-on-sight order hanging over his head when he has never been charged or tried."
"Surely you don't mean Sirius Black!"
Harry smiled. "Yes, Madam Bones, I do. Sirius was never charged or given a trial. The only crime he is guilty of is being an unregistered animagus. So I want to know why such extreme measures are being used against an innocent man."
"Innocent? You know Sirius Black is responsible for your parents' deaths, don't you?"
"No, Madam, he wasn't. As I tried to explain to the Minister last year, Peter Pettigrew, who is also an unregistered animagus, was the real secret keeper."
"How can you be so sure?"
"As I explained to the Minister, I, along with my Wife, Ronald Weasly and Remus Lupin confronted Sirius at the shrieking shack. He explained that he was, in fact, innocent and broke out of Azkaban not to kill me, but to protect me from Pettigrew, who was disguised as Ron's rat Scabbers. He even managed to capture Pettigrew, who confessed and only escaped due to Professor Lupin's unfortunate condition."
Amelia almost sneered, whether at the ridiculous tale or the idea of an innocent man spending so long in Azkaban she wasn't sure. "Are you telling me you've seen Peter Pettigrew in the flesh?"
Harry nodded. "Yes, Maam, minus his finger, which he cut off himself to frame Sirius. As I said, my Wife, Ronald Weasley and Remus Lupin can all collaborate my story and I would be willing to undergo Veritaserum or give you a memory for a Pensieve."
Amelia began massaging her forehead and wishing she had had that whisky. After a minute of thought, she reached a decision. "If, as you say, Sirius was never given a trial, I will try and get the kiss-on-sight order lifted, but Cornelius will be hard to convince."
"If you can convince him to give Sirius a fair trial, I would be happy to have him accompany me to the chamber of secrets tomorrow. I am going down to collect the basilisk I slew in my second year."
Amelia couldn't help but give Harry an appraising look. "So you really killed a basilisk? My niece Susan told me the stories, of course, but I assumed they were just unsubstantiated rumours."
Harry frowned for a moment. "Sadly, they weren't, I've got the scars to prove it."
"Very well, Harry, what time shall I tell him to be there?"
"Quater past twelve, and you are, of course, welcome too. Thank you for your time, Madam Bones."
"You're welcome Harry, good day."
o0O0o
Half an hour later Cornelius Fudge was interrupted from his afternoon doze by an irate Amelia Bones.
"Aaah!... Madam Bones, what a surprise, you interrupted my nap, er, I mean paperwork! Yes, that!"
"Not now Cornelius, I just had a very interesting visit from Regent-Lord Black."
"Oh?"
"Yes, he wanted to know why an innocent member of his house has a kiss-on-sight order signed against him."
"He thinks Sirius Black is innocent! That's preposterous!"
"He claims that not only was Sirius never given a trial, but that he has seen Peter Pettigrew in the flesh and heard his confession. He has provided three witnesses to back up this story and has offered to undergo Veritaserum testing or a memory review in a Pensieve."
"And what would you have me do, Amelia? Just declare him innocent? It would make us both into a laughing stock!"
Amelia shook her head at the backwards priorities of the Minister. "All he is asking for is a fair trial for Sirius, which was originally denied him by Bartemius Crouch. He has even offered you the opportunity to be present for the extraction of the basilisk he killed."
Fudge smiled at the thought of getting his picture in the paper with the-boy-who-lived. "Will there be press there?"
Amelia rolled her eyes. "I don't know, I'm sure you can invite some."
Knowing an opportunity when he saw one, Fudge was quick to agree. "Very well, I will revoke the kiss-on-sight order, what time am I to be at Hogwarts?"
"Quater past twelve, tomorrow."
"Good, good. Now, if you will excuse me. I need to get back to my nap, er, paperwork."
o0O0o
Arthur Weasley paced nervously. He was walking around one of the smaller conference rooms at Gringotts. Seated around the table were four of his sons, Fred, George, Percy and Charlie, and his daughter Ginny. His eldest son burst into the room.
"Sorry, Dad, I came as fast as I could, international Portkeys can be a horror. What's the emergency?"
Arthur sat at the head of the table with a sign and gestured for Bill to sit.
"I've called you all here to discuss the behaviour of your mother and youngest brother."
They looked at each other nervously. He pulled the letter Harry had written before Christmas and handed it to Bill, who read it before handing it to Charlie, then to Percy, Fred, George and Ginny. Each looked agitated at their youngest brother's behaviour.
Next, he passed around the letter he had received from Harry that morning. Bill and Charlie both looked grim, Percy went white with fear and Fred, George and Ginny began planning how to deal with their wayward brother.
Lastly, he pulled out a Pensieve and slipped the memory of the Howler in. When they had exited the memory the twins and Ginny looked murderous.
"She can't ban Hermione from the burrow..." asked one twin.
"...can she?" finished the other.
Percy displayed an odd mix of fear and anger. "Don't they realize what their actions could do to our Family? We would be lucky if Regent-Lord Black only decided to Duel them. A Feud could ruin us! I would be out of a job within the week! Dad and Bill would follow quickly! I've worked too hard to be stifled by my own mother's stupidity!"
Arthur nodded sadly. "I know, which is why I have called this meeting. If needs be I will summon the whole Weasley clan and have a family trial, but I wanted your opinions first."
Bill look at all of his siblings before addressing his dad again. "I think I speak for all of us when I say we are behind you in whatever you choose to do. We already owe Harry so much, he saved Ginny from the chamber, and he is still giving us more."
The other's all murmured their agreement.
Arthur's heart sank, he was half hoping one of his children would talk him out of it. "Fred, George. Tell Regent-Lord Black I am taking steps to ensure this doesn't happen again, I will summon the whole family together for a week today."
Ginny and the twins left to be escorted back to Hogwarts, and the rest returned to the Burrow.