Silver Blood
Chapter 1: The Task
The first thing Harry noticed when he reached the bottom of the stairs, was how well-dressed the Ministry members were. Long satin robes with a slight glimmer to them, reaching the floor was worn on the wizards. They looked so…powerful, just wearing the robes. Besides that a couple of them had robes with layers, one thick long layer reaching the floor and another inside of the robe itself, which was slightly shorter. Harry felt awkward just wearing a long dark green robe that shimmered slightly as well, but then again, he wasn't a part of the Ministry so he didn't have to worry.
Sirius had been greeting them, to a couple of them it seemed like he knew them personally. There were five of them, currently standing there, but Harry overheard parts of the conversation.
"…so glad you could come," Sirius smiled, as Harry stood in the doorway, half hidden by shadows.
"Yes, we were sorry that the other few couldn't attend, they went off on a…very important meeting on the spur of the moment," the older-looking wizard said. He wore spectacles like Dumbledore and had a beard, much shorter than Dumbledore's, but his hair was gray not white. He also appeared to have creases under his eyes and above his cheekbones. He was at least ten years older than Dumbledore, to Harry.
Sirius gave them a stern look, "A meeting? I take it something went wrong at the Ministry then?"
Another member quickly waved his hand, interrupting the older man. "Now, now, we'll get into discussions later. Firstly, we would love to be introduced to your Godson. We've never had the chance to formally acquaint ourselves with him."
"All right, please sit down and I'll go get hi— "
Sirius stopped as he spotted Harry standing in the doorway.
"Harry, there you are. Come in so I can introduce you."
The members of the Ministry all turned and stared at Harry as he walked in, some of them looking pleased and the others just awed.
"Hi," Harry said nervously.
The older man smiled down at him, "Now Harry Potter, don't be nervous around us. We're not here to interrogate you."
Harry felt a bit more relaxed at his comment, along with his smile, but still felt like there was something they weren't telling them. He had a feeling they wanted him for something, if not interrogation, then what?
He followed the men as Sirius led them into the Dining Room, next to the other side of the kitchen. It was a large glass table and could at least sit ten people. Mainly it was for, like this, times when many guests, or important guests came over. Usually Harry and Sirius would eat together wherever they pleased. Last night they had eaten together in Sirius' room, as the house cleaned itself, and just talked about everything not related to school…or Voldemort.
They all sat around the table, Harry making sure he sat next to Sirius.
"Would you all like something to drink?" Sirius asked, as he pulled out his wand.
"Oh, yes, that would be nice," the youngest man spoke up. "Perhaps some tea, if you would."
Sirius nodded and conjured up a spell to bring the tea over. He knew they'd ask for that, since it was a Ministry favorite, which is why he had bought at least five different flavors. The tea floated to the middle of the table and cups went around to each of them, including Harry.
"Poor what you'd prefer," Sirius smiled.
They all took their own preference of tea and poured hot water from their wands, which Harry gaped at in awe.
"Should we get to discussing why you all came," Sirius voiced, as soon as they were all satisfied.
"Oh yes, but first we must introduce ourselves to young Potter," another wizard said.
The youngest wizard smiled and turned to Harry. "You may call me Dorlein."
The next wizard nodded, his voice a bit deeper, "I'm McMevlan."
"Strategus."
"Phratt."
"And I'm Wenstone," the older man said.
Harry nodded, a bit overwhelmed. He guessed that giving their last names was a Ministry rule. Sirius beamed at him, knowing that Harry was most likely confused.
"Well, let's get started shall we," Dorlein said.
Sirius folded his arms and Harry busied himself with his tea. The other wizards suddenly looked more grave and serious as they turned their attention to each other. The youngest wizard (Dorlein) stirred his tea and finally looked up at Sirius.
"I'm sure you both have heard about the latest…incident at the Ministry concerning former Minister Cornelius Fudge?"
Harry felt a sickening feeling growing in his stomach. He was referring to when they found him in Voldemort's "chamber". Sirius nodded, glancing at Harry and noticed he was a shade paler.
"Yes, we know," he answered finally.
Wenstone nodded solemnly, "Well…we did catch him and put him in his own cell, it's heavily guarded by charms not that he could break through them even with his wand. The point is that he's acting strange, insulting every Ministry member who walks by or watches him and even threatens them sometimes."
Sirius' eyes narrowed. He had no idea what the wizard was getting at, but it didn't sound good. Harry glanced at Sirius giving him a strange look that told him he was worried as well.
"Go on," Sirius said, watching them shift uncomfortably from his gaze.
"Well…someone needs to get control of him, you know?" the old wizard continued more slowly. "And we think that it would be best if…if it was by someone he might fear…"
The silence was incredibly uncomfortable. Harry felt like he wanted to curl into a ball and just forget any of them were there. Sirius' eyebrow twitched, but other than that his face was calm.
"You want Harry to go."
It was more of a comment than a question, something Sirius had no doubt been thinking the whole time. The wizards glanced at each other nervously and the youngest one finally nodded.
"Yes, we think he could keep the Minister under control until we find a more…suitable place for him," Dorlein stated, not hiding the pause in his sentence.
"You mean Azkaban?" Sirius asked, his tone slightly bitter. Harry knew Sirius still hated that place even more than he did Snape. They had spent time talking to one another about their lives. The only reason Sirius didn't go crazy was that he felt a need, an obligation to protect Harry and pay Wormtail back for everything he did. Wormtail was in Azkaban, at least as far as they knew. Sirius was always worried he could change into a rat and scurry away through some crack in the cell wall. Harry really could care less what happened to him. He didn't care if Peter had to live the rest of his life as a rat, that's what he was. And without Voldemort, there was no one he could run to for support.
Harry told Sirius how horrible the Dursleys were, avoiding any details. After that Sirius had asked Harry if he still wanted to live with him and Harry had immediately said yes. There was no doubt in his mind he wanted Sirius to care for him. Their bond had tightened after the many attempts Voldemort gave at trying to kidnap and kill Harry. Sirius had been by his side, teaching him spells and curses, protecting him all the while. Now, after all the troubles through about four years of avoiding Dementors, the Ministry and Voldemort, these Ministry wizards wanted Harry to go deep in the depths of the Ministry to confront a man who was slightly unstable. Besides the fact that Fudge had never really liked Harry, Sirius was beginning to become the overprotective father.
Sirius smiled calmly, although Harry was the only one to see the anger flooding his eyes.
"If you please, I would like time to talk to my Godson, and possibly Dumbledore to get any extra information."
Dorlein blinked, "Of course, Sirius."
Sirius smiled, the smile forcefully stretched, "Thank you. I'll contact you gentleman later. I was planning on having a conversation with Dumbledore today anyway."
The wizards nodded and got up to make their departure. Harry walked with them to the door. Each one took turns in shaking Harry's hand. Once they left Harry turned to Sirius.
"Is Dumbledore coming?" Harry asked, afraid to disturb the silence in case Sirius was mad.
"Not exactly. Remus is coming for dinner, but I might just send an owl to Dumbledore to invite him as well. We need to talk.
XXXXX
"No, no and NO! I will not have my Godson in any position where he might be in danger!"
Sirius' shouting echoed from downstairs, seeping into Harry's room. They had been down there for at least an hour. Remus came by and they had an usually tense dinner while Sirius avoided the whole issue. Finally Dumbledore had stopped by and Harry had been happy to see him, until Sirius sent him to his room. For the past hour all there had been was yelling, mostly from Sirius. Apparently, from what Harry gathered, or heard rather, was that Dumbledore knew the Ministry had been holding Fudge in a cell and that he had been causing trouble. Sirius automatically assumed Dumbledore would know right off the bat that they would be coming to see Harry.
Harry paused as the voices became too soft. Silently, he slipped from the comfort of his bed, forgetting about the essay in Transfiguration that he had to write, and instead seated himself beside his door, cracking it open just a little. He could hear the sound of dishes clattering from downstairs. Either Sirius had forgotten he could use magic, or his anger was affecting the charm he used for washing dishes.
"….Sirius, you're over reacting," Remus' smooth, calm voice floated to Harry's ear. "Even if Dumbledore knew that, it wasn't as if he'd know the outcome. This is about Harry anyway, isn't it? It should be his choice— "
"His choice!" Sirius hissed, slamming his hand against the table, or what Harry figured was some hard surface. "I'm his Godfather now, his legal guardian! I'm allowed to make decisions for him, especially ones concerning his life! He has been through hell and back, Remus! Dumbledore, even you know this! He has had to face Voldemort countless times, each time becoming worse that I actually thought we would lose him the last time! I'm not risking his life because the Ministry can't even handle one prisoner! I won't!"
Harry could tell they wouldn't get very far with it. Sirius usually wasn't strict at all with the privileges he gave Harry, but when it concerned Voldemort, Snape, or any dangerous encounters the decision was always up to Sirius. And usually once he decided there was no arguing with him. Harry, of course, didn't mind the extra protection he got from his Godfather, in fact, he loved it. But sometimes he thought Sirius could get a little carried away. After all, Harry had faced Voldemort alone at least three or four times before Sirius could do anything at all to help him. If Harry could survive Voldemort's plans and attacks he could survive just keeping Fudge in check. It wasn't like Fudge had any strong powers at all, he wasn't a threat to Harry, just a menace.
Harry stopped as he heard talking again. Sighing in annoyance, he turned on his knees and crawled out of his room, hiding in the shadows until he reached the bottom of the stairs. He paused and listened, waiting for the voices to pick up before he dared to peek.
He heard Remus' exasperated sigh. "Sirius, I care for him too, we all do. Dumbledore was the one who watched Harry's back during his hardships with Voldemort, you know this."
Harry slowly peeked one eye around the corner. Dumbledore was sitting down across from Remus in a comfortable seat on the couch. He had a cup of tea sitting beside him, as did Remus. Sirius, however, was standing up. At the moment he was rubbing his temple with one hand, obviously thinking. Dumbledore seemed to have that strange gleam in his eye.
"Sirius, I know this is difficult. Harry and you have had barely enough time to adjust together as it is. I normally wouldn't put Harry in this sort of situation myself, without knowing he had a greater chance of getting through it, but the Ministry is having real difficulty. No one wants to guard him because they're all afraid he will carry out his threats," Dumbledore explained, his face grave and tired. "Not to mention that Lord Voldemort was there previously, although asleep, but still just as frightening to many."
Remus took a sip of his tea and nodded as the Headmaster continually looked at the back of Sirius' head, as if expecting him to turn around. Harry watched profoundly, waiting for something to happen.
"He's right, Sirius. No one wants to guard Fudge anymore because of his threats. Because of Harry's survival with Voldemort they figure he won't be intimidated by him."
Sirius made a sound of annoyance and took in a deep breath. He put both hands over his face and stayed like that for a minute. Finally, he turned around.
"I don't see what this will accomplish. How do we know the Ministry will find a place for him fast enough? Harry shouldn't have to take anything Fudge says, especially for hours."
"I've
already talked with the Ministry," Dumbledore answered, "They
guarantee that there will be a safe place for him before a couple
hours pass."
"A couple hours?
My
Godson has to watch the maniac and hear horrible insults and threats
coming from his foul mouth for an hour?! It's bad enough he had the
whole lot of Death Eaters coming after him, he doesn't need to hear
any more threats!" Sirius raised his voice in anger. "Why don't
they just send him to Azkaban now?"
"It's not as easy as it seems," Remus said, looking just as dark as the other two. "There are no openings in Azkaban right now because of all the Death Eaters taking up the cells. It was hard enough for the Ministry to convince even half of the Dementors to work for them again and guard the place. The other half has run into hiding. They've been doing all they can after Voldemort's rise and fall to keep control of everything, Sirius. There's not much more they can do. If Harry can just keep Fudge under control for a little while, even if it means knocking the man out for a couple hours with one of his advanced spells, then so be it. Just one more favor to the community Sirius, that's all they ask."
Sirius glared at him darkly, his eyes narrowing, "I can't believe you're agreeing with this Remus! He's already famous all over again for defeating Voldemort and surviving the killing curse a second time! I sometimes can't get to sleep because people are always trying to find their way to my house, especially that annoying woman, what's her name?"
"Rita Skeeter," Dumbledore answered without hesitation. Harry inwardly smiled. He remembered all the hard times she had given both Harry, Ron and Hermione. After Hermione's convincing solution to shut her up, she finally caved in and started annoying other people. That is until Harry had stumbled back, barely alive, and had yet another lightning bolt scar to prove his heroicness. Harry hadn't wanted to be famous, yet the attention was always given to him. He wanted a peaceful life with Sirius after finally ridding Voldemort from power, but a quiet life was hardly what he got.
Sirius started pacing the room in front of them. "You know what I'm trying to say. Harry has gotten enough recognition, he doesn't have to prove anything else to the world."
"It isn't to prove himself, it's to help society," Remus argued, apparently agreeing fully with Dumbledore this time. "I have faith in him Sirius, I even had faith knowing Voldemort was after him. And he survived, without Lily. It's time you see that he's not a child, he's grown up faster than anyone in Hogwarts, even you and me, Sirius. He's strong and powerful, just like James, but he has a special invincibility towards the curse."
"It's not strong!" Sirius shouted suddenly, making Harry jump slightly, almost giving away his position in the dark corner.
"He's not totally invincible! You saw what it did to him! He was barely alive when he came back to us, I thought he'd be dead for sure. The curse took everything out of him and nearly killed him, the only thing that sustained him was the energy from the medicine he was given in the Hospital Wing," Sirius looked as if he was about to crack. He had wanted Harry to have a quiet, and normal life too. At least as normal as it could get. Instead, reporters were coming by so often to see the famous Harry Potter and get an interview with Sirius and him. Not to mention the Creeveys. Colin and his brother wanted at least ten autographs, Harry actually managed to give them each a couple because he was so sick of them popping up in his face with cameras. Dumbledore had to finally place a charm on their house to reporters got lost and couldn't find it.
Remus shook his head and closed his eyes for a second. "Sirius, he's as invincible as anyone in this world can get. He's more powerful than Voldemort, more powerful than you and I, and certainly could handle someone like Fudge without a challenge. He doesn't listen to snide remarks, or else he would've had fights with the Slytherins every day. He's a strong boy. That's just another reason to have him be the one to do it. He can survive anything. And Fudge doesn't even have his wand, he's locked in a cell surrounded by magical charms. All Harry has to do is watch him and make sure he doesn't try anything until the Ministry members get back to take him away."
Sirius finally collapsed on a chair, shaking his head. He knew Remus was right, but he still didn't want to take any risks. What would happen if Fudge got loose? Or what if Harry got hurt by his threats or remarks? A number of things could happen that Sirius didn't want to think about, but he also knew that Harry was more powerful than any wizard, besides Dumbledore (and maybe Merlin) and he could take care of himself. He just wanted Harry to be happy and not under any stress. The world had already depended on him and now with the downfall of the Dark Lord there was no reason to have to drag Harry into unnecessary situations.
Dumbledore was silent through the argument of the two, but didn't seem to have any objections to either of them. Instead he lifted up his cup of tea and smiled.
"Maybe we should speak with Harry and see what he thinks."
Harry looked startled at the sound of his name. Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling even more than before. Could he have known Harry was there the whole time? Harry shook his head. Dumbledore was powerful, but not psychic.
"Fine, I'll agree on that," Sirius retorted finally. He got up and walked into the middle of the kitchen. "Harry! Harry, come down here!" He shouted.
Being since Harry was only meters away he had to cover his ears. Slowly, he backed up to the stairs and walked down them quickly, entering the room. He wasn't sure if Dumbledore's calm look was because he had been expecting him there, or just because he was used to surprises. Sirius turned and forced a smile as Harry stepped into view.
"What is it, Sirius?" Harry asked, not trying to sound like he didn't expect what was going on.
Sirius sighed and walked over to him, shortening the distance between them. "Harry, we need to talk. It's about the offer the Ministry has for you."
Harry nodded, sensing Sirius still wasn't going along with it. He followed Sirius into the living room and sat down beside him. Dumbledore beamed at him and took a small sip of his tea, all the while remaining silent. Remus grinned at him and nodded. Sirius turned to him and frowned.
"Harry," he said, waiting for Harry to look him in the eye. "The Ministry wants you to go there and guard Fudge's cell. Apparently, he's too much trouble for them and everyone else is afraid to watch him. It'll only be for a couple of hours until they find room to put him somewhere."
Harry nodded, not surprised at all and didn't even try to hide it. He wasn't totally ignorant to what was going on, even without overhearing their conversation.
"Why are they afraid of Fudge?"
Sirius' frown deepened.
"He insults them and threatens them," Remus replied, staring at Harry intently. "The Ministry just gets a little uncomfortable, what with the only recent defeat of the Dark Lord. It is possible Fudge has gone insane, which is why he acts unstable and very disturbing."
Harry nodded, glad Remus didn't try and hide the truth from him. That was the one trait he found most approving of him. Though Sirius lacked that, Harry didn't mind it one bit. He had never really had a childhood growing up so it was all a new experience for him.
"All I have to do is watch him?" Harry asked, glancing towards Dumbledore.
In return Dumbledore nodded, "Yes, Harry, that's all you have to do. Until the Ministry arrives."
It was silent before Harry nodded. A couple hours wasn't too bad, and all he had to do was sit outside the cell and make sure he didn't escape, which was most unlikely in the first place. He could even bring his homework to work on, which would help him ignore any comments thrown at him.
"I'll do it," Harry answered, not sure if he really meant it or was just doing it because he felt obligated. Sure the world had depended on him before, and it was hard to get used to anything else, but he felt like he had a certain duty. If everyone else was afraid why not do a simple chore. It was better than facing Voldemort any day.
Sirius looked grim, but didn't respond right away. He looked at Harry, not tearing his eyes from him to make sure he wasn't lying. Finally he moved his hand to grasp Harry's tightly.
"Are you sure you're up to it? You can say no," he said.
Harry smiled and nodded reassuringly, "I'm sure, Sirius. I can handle this."
Sirius' eyes dimmed in disappointment, but nodded and squeezed Harry's hand even tighter. He stood up and looked towards Dumbledore and Remus.
"I guess it's final. Let them know Harry will be there."
TO BE CONTINUED…