Chapter 27: Results and Romance

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"The government solution to a problem is usually as bad as the problem."
-Milton Friedman

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Exactly one week later, the day of the elections for the next Minister of Magic had come. All of the seventh-years, the only
students at Hogwarts old enough to vote, were allowed to leave the school during their lunch hour to visit the polling place
in Hogsmeade. Though it hadn't snowed in quite some time, it was still chilly outside and everyone was bundled up with hats
and scarves for the short walk.

"Isn't this exciting?" Hermione asked as she, Harry, and Ron followed a group of students out the front doors of the school.
"Voting is so important! It's our duty as citizens, and it's our way of ensuring that the governing system never gets too
powerful-"

"Yeah, yeah," Ron muttered, rolling his eyes.

"Let's hope Fudge doesn't get reelected, or it will be too powerful," Harry said quickly, distracting Hermione from Ron's 
sarcastic comment. She nodded solemnly.

"Yes... let's hope people realize what he's doing," she said quietly. Harry heard someone call his name and turned to see
Neville Longbottom hurrying towards him. 

"Hey guys," he said as he caught up. "Going to vote?"

"Yeah," Harry answered, wrapping his scarf tighter around his neck. "Are you?"

"Oh, yes," Neville said, nodding vigorously. "I wouldn't miss it for the world. We need to get Fudge out of office, otherwise
we're in big trouble."

"I'll take it you're voting for Barnett then?" Ron asked, grinning. "Or are you thinking maybe Lockhart would be a better
choice?" The group laughed. 

"Actually, I heard some girls talking about voting for Lockhart. They thought he was, er... attractive," Neville said, his
ears turning bright pink.

"Disgusting," Ron muttered, kicking a rock on the ground.

"That's just stupid," Hermione huffed. "He would be worse than Fudge, and that's definitely saying something!" The group had
finally made their way up to The Three Broomsticks, which had been temporarily converted into a polling place. 

"Wow," Ron said in a low voice as they entered. A row of booths with rich purple curtains filled one wall of the pub and most
of the tables had been pushed to the other side. Witches and wizards were voting and then heading over to get a drink. Madame
Rosmerta was rushing around to fill all of the orders.

"This is the busiest we've been in a long time," Harry heard her comment happily. A frazzled-looking older wizard approached
the group.

"You lot here to vote?" he wheezed. They nodded. "All right then, here's what you're going to do. Each of you will go into
a separate booth. You just point your wand at the candidate you want to vote for and say their name. A red check should appear
by the candidate you have chosen. After you're done, put your ballot in the box over there," he said, gesturing towards an
enormous container at the end of the row of booths. "And no cheatin' the system - if you've already voted or if you're
underage, you'll get thrown out of the booth. Quite embarrassin', so I would stop now if that's the case." He paused. "Any
questions?" No one said anything, so the man ushured each of them into a booth. 

Harry closed the purple curtain behind him and picked up one of the ballots. Pointing his wand at it, he said clearly, "Bronson
Barnett". A huge red tick appeared next to the name. That was easy, he thought. He exited the booth and headed towards
the ballot box, but was nearly thrown to the ground as the occupant of the next booth over came flying out unexpectedly.

"What did I tell ya, Mr. Malfoy?" asked the elderly wizard in charge, looking frustrated. "No voting twice! Now get out of here."
Draco Malfoy, his face flushed and his normally tame hair sticking up all over, scrambled to his feet and strode angrily out
the door. Harry dropped his ballot into the box with a laugh. He joined up with Ron and Hermione again and they left the 
building.

"That was priceless," Ron said, his eyes shining with tears of laughter. "Seeing Malfoy get thrown out of the booth on his bum...
now that's a sight I'll never forget!"

"Memorable, but not as good as the ferret incident," Hermione said laughing. Harry grinned.

"I think I'm going to go, er, pick up something in Hogsmeade... are you two going to go back?" Ron asked, finally overcoming his
laughter.

"I have to study," Hermione said immediately. "You know we have that Herbology practical exam tomorrow." Ron nodded absently.

"Right... Well, Harry you want to come?" he asked. Harry shrugged.

"Sure, why not."

"How about you, Neville?" Ron asked.

"I'll come," he said quietly.

"Okay, then we'll catch you later, Hermione!" Ron said, waving to her as the group split. Ron led the way down the cobbled path
that wound itself through the middle of the town.

"So what exactly do you have to pick up?" Harry asked curiously. Ron frowned.

"Well, it's nearly February... I was thinking a Valentine's Day present wouldn't be a bad idea. I don't know when we're going
to get a chance to come back out here, since they've been having all those problems with attacks." Harry nodded in agreement.

"That's a great idea, Ron." Harry turned to Neville. "Sorry if you feel left out, Nev," he said regretfully, feeling bad that
their mate didn't have anyone to buy a Valentine's gift for. Neville smiled, his ears turning red, as he stared at the ground.

"Actually, I was thinking of asking someone out... Might be a good idea for me too," he mumbled quietly.

"Who is it?" Ron asked. Neville just shrugged and continued to stare downwards.

"This looks interesting," Harry commented, looking into a store window featuring models wearing flashy jewelry. Ron shook his
head.

"Nah, jewelry, that's the easy way out... That's what I got Hermione for Christmas, too. I have to think of something creative."
Harry chuckled.

"Good luck with that, mate."

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At breakfast the next morning, Hermione's eyes were focused on the windows at all times. Finally, Ron asked her what was wrong.

"I'm waiting for The Daily Prophet so I will know who won the election!" she said huffily. "Honestly Ron, don't you want to
know what the outcome was?" He shrugged.

"I guess I kinda forgot about it," he admitted. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"You have the shortest attention span in the world, Ronald Weasley-" She was interrupted by the flapping noise that the owls
made as they entered the room. A gray bird swooped down to Hermione's seat. 

"Who won?" Harry asked anxiously, peering across the table. Hermione hurriedly threw some money at the bird before snatching
up the paper.

"Noooo," Hermione moaned, covering her eyes.

"Is it Fudge?" Ron asked, grimacing. Hermione shook her head and held up the newspaper. Lockhart elected new Minister,
the headline read. Harry pulled the paper away from Hermione, feeling as though he was in shock. He stared at the photo of
Lockhart on the front page, waving and flashing a shiny smile. Gilderoy Lockhart beat Cornelius Fudge and Bronson Barnett
in the race for Minister of Magic yesterday, the article read. Lockhart will be formerly sworn in as Minister in exactly four weeks-

"How could this happen?" Ron asked incredulously. "How?

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The Herbology exam didn't go so well for Harry. He spent the next hour - Charms - doodling on some spare parchment. He couldn't
believe that the election had turned out that way, but he tried to put it out of his mind. Instead, he focused on the upcoming
weekend - which happened to be the 14th of February.

He, Ron, and Neville had all found presents for their respective female companions for Valentine's Day, but for some reason
it didn't feel like enough. He constantly felt guilty about what he was planning on doing to Rachel, and had to think of some
way to make it up to her. He sighed to himself. I wish I was one of those romantic guys, then I wouldn't have problems with
things like this. He continued to scribble on the paper and an idea began to form in his mind. The Valentine's Day feast
in the Great Hall was always nice, but it was crowded and just like any other meal. What if we had our own feast? he
wondered.

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"I think it's about time we had that meeting," Hermione said suddenly as the trio sat in the library studying. Harry sighed;
he had been putting this off as long as possible.

"Let's make a list of people to invite," he said unenthusiastically.

"How many do we need?" Ron asked, glancing to make sure that Madam Pince hadn't noticed their whispered conversation yet.

"I'm thinking at least ten, maybe more," Hermione answered. "I'll write them down... Okay, so we've got Harry, me, and Ron,
that's three..."

"Ginny, Neville, Dean, Seamus," Ron said, holding up fingers. "That's seven."

"What about Luna?" Harry asked. Hermione nodded.

"I think we should have her. That's eight. Do we need more?"

"Might as well ask Parvati and Lavendar," Harry said. "And maybe Padma Patil too, she seems pretty smart."

"Let's have the meeting tonight," Hermione said firmly.

"Tonight?!" Ron and Harry exclaimed together. 

"Yes. Room of Requirements at 7 p.m. Now Ron, you let these people know-" She tore off a third of the list. "-Harry, these
are yours, and I'll tell these ones. Sound good?" Harry nodded mutely.

At 7:00 that night, the group assembled in the Room of Requirements, which was perfectly suited to the meeting with several
rows of chairs and a podium at the front of the room. Hermione stood at the podium and motioned for Harry to join her as 
their fellow students slowly filtered into the room. After they were seated and had become quiet, Hermione began to talk.

"Thank you all for coming," she began. "You have been invited here to participate in something that will be direct combat
against Dark forces. It will be very dangerous, and it will most likely be in violation of the Ministry's laws and expectations
of us. If you are not comfortable with this, please leave now." She paused, but no one moved. The group looked at her with
determined expressions on their faces.

"After the results of that election, I don't care if we listen to the Ministry or not," Padma said quietly. Hermione nodded.

"My thoughts exactly. So, here's the plan. Well, Harry is... he's..."

"I can explain it, Hermione," Harry said, stepping up onto the podium. "You see, before I was born, there was a prophecy..."
Harry explained the entire story. "What we are trying to do is make it come true. A series of other prophecies-" He glanced
fleetingly at Hermione "-have led us to believe that now is the best time to strike. We are going to lure Voldemort into the 
Department of Mysteries, into a certain room which contains a device known as the Veil of Death, and make sure that he enters
this Veil. After this is complete, he will be dead and the prophecies will be complete." He noticed several members of the
audience looking very pale. Dean raised his hand.

"How exactly do you plan on getting him to show up there?" he asked.

"A very good question, and we've already got it completely covered," Hermione answered. "We can discuss that later; it's too
risky right now."

Well, that's it, Harry thought to himself miserably. Now Rachel is officially part of the plan. He glanced around
the room, trying to think of something - anything - to get his mind off of the situation. Suddenly, something in his brain
clicked. The perfect idea for Valentine's Day...

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A few days later, a nervous-looking Ron walked into his and Harry's bedroom. Harry was trying desperately to get his hair to
lie flat, but - as usual - it wasn't working in the least. He sighed and noticed that Ron had come in.

"How's everything look?" he asked eagerly. Ron nodded, looking thoughtful.

"I'd say it's pretty good. I just hope they like it," he said, shaking his head. 

"They better," Harry said heavily. "We've been working on it forever." They heard a knock on the door and opened it to see
Neville Longbottom standing outside. He looked extremely nervous and unlike his normal self in his navy blue dress robes.

"Hey Neville, you never did tell us who this mystery girl is," Ron said smiling as he adjusted his tie in the mirror. Neville
gulped.

"Er... well... itsyoursister," he mumbled, blushing.

"What?" Harry asked. "Say it a little bit slower this time."

"It's Ginny," he said quietly. 

"Really?" Ron asked, looking surprised. "I thought she was still with Dean."

"They broke up three weeks ago," Neville squeaked in an embarrassed voice.

"It's nearly time," Harry said, clapping Ron on the back. "Are we ready?" The group made their way outside, where they found
Hermione and Ginny waiting in the Heads' Common Room. Hermione was dressed in a beautiful red muggle dress, and Ginny was
wearing maroon-colored dress robes. "Let's go downstairs and get Rachel," Harry suggested. Rachel was standing just outside
the entrance to the Gryffindor Common Room, her pink robes fitting her perfectly. The group walked through the hallways, following
Ron's lead.

"So where exactly are we going?" Hermione asked. "We had better not be leaving school grounds, or we'll all be in trouble-"

"We're not, Mione, stop worrying," Ron said as he rolled his eyes. "Here we are." He stopped in front of the entrance to the
Room of Requirements and walked back and forth in front of the door three times. The handle turned a gold color and the door
itself became a dark mahogany. "Ready?" he asked, smiling. He opened the door and escorted Hermione inside.

"Oh wow... this is gorgeous," Hermione said breathlessly.

"It's beautiful," Ginny agreed, glancing around the room. 

"Did you three do all of this?" Rachel asked. Harry nodded, smiling.

"You like it?" he asked. 

"Of course!" Rachel squealed, wrapping her arms around Harry. "Wow, this is just... amazing!" There were three tables, each
surrounded by a red velvet curtain for privacy, a glowing candle on each table, and three roaring fireplaces. The room was
decorated all in red and white, from the chairs and tablecloths down to the carpeting. 

"This one's ours," Ron said, taking Hermione by the hand and leading her towards the table at the end of the room. Harry and
Rachel sat at the one in the middle.

"I can't believe you did this," Rachel said, still smiling, as they sat down. She jumped a little bit when she heard a popping
noise beside her and giggled as she saw Dobby appear.

"Hello Miss Rachel, Mr. Harry," Dobby squeaked. "I is your waiter tonight. What is you wanting for your dinner?"

"Oh.. er... what are our choices?" Rachel asked, feeling overwhelmed.

"Whatever you is wanting, Miss," Dobby said, bowing deeply. Rachel paused for a moment.

"Coconut shrimp," she said decisively. Harry smiled.

"I'll take steak and kidney pie," he announced. Dobby nodded and disappeared with another pop.

"Wow, what service!" Rachel said jokingly. Harry could hear Ron laughing loudly over something so he mumbled a silencing spell
in the curtain's direction. Rachel reached across the table and took Harry's hand in her own.

"I know this year has been tough, and I just want to say thank you for sticking by me," she said quietly. "You're wonderful,
Harry Potter." Over the flickering candle, Harry smiled back at her even though his stomach was squirming with guilt.

"So're you," he said simply. Dobby reappeared with another pop.

"Here is your wine, Mister and Miss," he said with another bow. "Your food will be ready soon." He disappeared again.

"Wow, wine... this is a fancy dinner!" Rachel said with a giggle. Harry popped the cork after several tries and it nearly
shot across the room.

"Oops," he muttered, blushing. Rachel laughed. The food came and they were silent for a few minutes as they began to eat.
They eventually began to chat about the results of the election. 

"It's really quite sad... He's not going to be able to do anything," Rachel said with a sigh.

"Yeah I know," Harry replied, taking a bite. "But nothing we can do about it now." She looked up at him.

"Harry, can I ask you a question?" Rachel said seriously. He nodded. "Well, I've been thinking about your prophecy... I mean,
do you know what's going to happen? Or are you just going to wait until the next time You-Know-Who shows up?"

"There's no other way," Harry lied. "I'm just going to have to wait and see what happens." Rachel nodded, focusing her attention
on her plate.

"Rach... there's something I'm going to do, and it's kind of dangerous, and I want you to know about it," Harry began, feeling
his heart begin to beat faster. He could feel the perspiration on his forehead. You can't lie to her, she loves you, said a
voice in his head. You have to lie to her - it's the only way, said a second voice. "I've been researching the Veil of Death...
you know, the thing that Sirius Black, my godfather, fell through. Well, when someone falls through it, it doesn't guarantee
that they're dead. I think I may have figured out a way to get him back-"

"Oh Harry," Rachel said with a look of sympathy mixed with sadness on her face. "Sweetheart, he's gone, please just give up-"

"No," Harry answered, swallowing. "You see... I have to do this. I have to try."

"When are you doing this?" she asked in a hushed voice.

"On April 27. I'm going at midnight," he replied, feeling the horrible guilt again. Rachel nodded sadly.

"Please be careful, Harry. I understand and I know how much this means to you, but please be careful."

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Okay, so that was a LONG and important chapter. Hope everyone's still enjoying the story! I'm so excited about all of my new
readers. Thanks guys!!!

I still will take people for my update list if you would like to be added; just e-mail me at Adela2785@yahoo.com or tell me
your e-mail address in a review. I'm still trying to finish this story before about May 5, but it's going to be quite a challenge. 
Like I said before, after that you will all have to wait until June for an update because I will be without access to a computer =(

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