Part 8.
More and more people came up with ideas, and soon everyone was quibbling over which ones were the best ideas to follow up on.
"That's ridiculous. More energy should be put into finding him than defending against him."
"What good is finding him if we can't protect ourselves against him?"
"Hear, hear. We should be trying to delay him, to inhibit his plans."
"We need to know what those are first!"
"That's what I said, but did anyone listen?"
"I still think we need to get someone on the inside."
"That's so silly, you'll just get more people killed!"
In silence Harry listened to their arguments, feeling more disgusted with every passing moment. Finally, unable to take it anymore her spoke up. "You don't understand, do you?" Harry said, addresssing everyone in a quiet voice, forcing them to stop bickering and shouting at each other so that they could hear him. "This is what Voldemort..."
"Of all people, you should know better than to say his name!" One wizard snapped.
"Of all people I believe I am the one with the most right to speak it, sir." Harry replied, his voice still calm. "Since he has risen, I have been in his presence twice. I have thwarted his plans to rise three times. I have called him by name, duelled with him, and defied him. Voldemort and his Death Eaters have taken from me people who can never be replaced, as I'm sure he has done to others. Now if you would let me finish, I was going to say that Voldemort aims to cause dissention and mistrust. By acting like this you're playing directly into his hands."
"Well spoken." Professor Said laid her hand on his shoulder and stood up. "The Order of the Light of Ra pledges it's alliance to the fight against Voldemort."
"You cannot pledge..." One wizard began.
"I am the Head of the Order, weilder of the Sun Bracelet, and the Sceptre of Ra. The Order is in my hands to pledge. It's members agree with my decisions and supports my authority to make them."
"I too, pledge my support to the fight against Voldemort." Dumbledore said.
Not wanting to say anything out loud, Harry looked at Dumbledore, then at Fawkes the Phoenix, silently asking if the Order of the Phoenix was included in his pledge.
Dumbledore shook his head, almost imperceptibly. Harry nodded.
"What about you, Harry?" Fudge asked. "Will you pledge your alliance?"
"I didn't think my alliance would be of any importance to you, Minister. I'm still underage."
"On the contrary, Harry!" Someone cried. "Give us something to fight for, someone to look to!"
"You already have something to fight for, your families and friends. No one needs to look to me, I can't offer you anything but a vison of the pain of the future if you fail again." His voice was tinged with grief and sorrow. "I can offer you nothing but pain and anguish, which for some still has not faded. Look to Dumbledore if you will, but do not look to me."
"So you won't help then?" Fudge asked
"There is little I can do, but I will give you my support, whatever it's worth, if nothing more." Harry looked down at the rug on the floor.
Once more everyone was silent, the only sound to penetrate was a soft knock on the door.
"Enter." Dumbledore called out.
"Good day Professor, sir." Dobby said meekly. "Professor McGonagall told Dobby that Harry Potter was with you. Messages have come for him, one is marked as urgent."
"Thank you Dobby." Professor Dumbledore said to him. "Harry is right here."
Dobby scuttled over to Harry, passing a slip of parchment, and then his snowy owl Hedwig over to him.
Harry untied the message from her leg, then stroked her feather's gently. "Well done, have a nice rest now." He said to her. "Dobby, do you mind taking Hedwig back to the Owlery from me?"
"It is done Harry Potter, sir. Dobby will take her now."
Harry's brow furrowed as he read the letter Hedwig had brought him. It was from Lupin.
"Trouble Harry?" Fudge asked, using a fatherly tone.
"Nothing I can't handle." Harry replied, opening the folded slip of parchment. At once he recognised Angelina's flowing script, reading the note carefully.
Harry,
Quiddich practice this afternoon at four.
Angelina
Beneath that another message was printed in small, neat letters.
Harry,
Ron and I have copied all our notes from transfiguration for you, and we've also explained to Professor Flitwick where you are.
Hermione and Ron.
Harry tucked both letters into one of the pockets in his robes. "What were we discussing?"
"Support against Voldemort." Dumbledore reminded him.
"I vote that everyone signs a contract, pledging their alliance to our cause." Madam Bones said.
"We know that some of the Death Eaters, like Bellatrix Lestrange have returned to You Know Who's service. We need to work out who is supporting him." Fudge announced.
"The Lestranges, Lucius Malfoy, Peter Pettigrew, Macnair, Nott, Avery, Goyle, Crabbe, Jugson, Rabastan, Dolohov, Rookwood, Mulcibar." Harry's voice was oddly detatched. When he blinked it seemed as though he was surprised everyone was looking at him.
"You knew all of this, and you didn't tell anyone?" Fudge stared at him.
"You only just asked." Harry said, still sounding detached.
"Lucius Malfoy." One of the wizard's breathed, shaking his head. "I never did trust him."
"So many in the Ministry." Madam Bones exclaimed.
As she spoke Harry winced, clapping his hand over his scar as pain seared his head.
At once Professor Said was leaning over him, placing one of her own hands on his forehead. The pain dissipated with her touch and was replaced with a feeling of... almost relaxation.
"Harry, are you all right?" Dumbledore looked on, expressionless.
"He's angry." Harry said flatly. "He keeps trying to break down my shields, get inside my head again."
"You mean that you can..." One of the witches began.
"When Voldemort is angry, happy, or killing people, Harry can feel it." Dumbledore said quietly. "It has been so for a long time."
"Is there anything we can do?" One of the wizards asked him. "Anything at all?"
"Professor," Harry turned to Dumbledore. "Do you know if my aunt and uncle are all right?"
"They are being monitored carefully, as is your cousin." Dumbledore answered. ""Don't worry about them."
"Then there isn't anything you can do for me... except, Sirius Black. He wasn't a murderer. Pettigrew faked his own death." Harry began.
"How?" A tall, fair haired wizard asked.
"Pettigrew is an unregistered Animagus, I told you before. He transforms into a rat. Wormtail cut off his finger, caused the explosion that killed all of those Muggles, then fled making it look like Sirius had killed him. Sirius was thrown into Azkaban, without trial."
"Merlin's beard!" Madam Bones exclaimed.
"I still don't understand." The fair haired wizard admitted.
"I want his name cleared. When my parents took me and went into hiding, they used the Fidelius Charm. At the last moment Sirius persuaded my dad to use Peter as their Secret Keeper. Sirius was planning to go into hiding once my parents and I were safe. After Voldemort killed them, Sirius knew that Peter had given up my parent's hiding place. He as good as killed my parents. I won't ever know why Sirius went after him. Maybe he wanted revenge, my dad was his best friend after all. Maybe he just wanted to know why Peter did it."
"So you want us to clear a convicted criminal?" Fudge asked.
"Sirius was never convicted." Professor Said spoke up. "I appealed against Crouch's decision for years Minister. An attack like that wasn't in Sirius's nature, but even you pushed my appeals to the side."
"You knew Sirius Black, Jaina?" Madam Bones asked.
"We were at Hogwarts together. Sirius and I introduced Lily and James." She explained, a strange, sad look in her eyes.
Harry knew that look all too well. He saw it every time he looked in the mirror, the raw grief and anguish that only came with losing loved ones.
In an attempt to comfort her Harry reached out and squeezed her hand, an unspoken bond between them.
Long into the afternoon plans were discussed, decisions made.
Finally Harry found a way to excuse himself. "Professor Dumbledore? May I be excused? I have Quiddich practice this afternoon."
"You play Quiddich?" The tall, fair haired wizard asked.
"Harry is Gryffindor's seeker. He has been since his first year." Dumbledore said, smiling at Harry, his eyes twinkling.
"Just like James." The wizard said. "I remember watching him fly when we were at Hogwarts. He was a few years above me."
"By his fifth year all the girls wanted to be with him, and all the boys wanted to be him." Another witch said, her voice slightly dreamy. "He was a very good player."
"You've been very patient." Madam Bones smiled at him. "Have fun at practice."
"Thank you for your time Harry." Dumbledore said. "You can go, but please, don't tell anybody about what has gone on in this meeting."
Harry nodded. "Yes Professor." Then he turned to face everyone else. "It was nice to meet everyone, I wish it could have been under better circumstances."
As he left the room he heard several of the group talking about him.
"He's so polite, even after all he's been though."
"Dumbledore, that's a boy to praised. So courteous, you don't often see that anymore."
"We are very proud of Harry." He heard Dumbledore say. "He tries very hard not to let all of this affect him too much."
More and more people came up with ideas, and soon everyone was quibbling over which ones were the best ideas to follow up on.
"That's ridiculous. More energy should be put into finding him than defending against him."
"What good is finding him if we can't protect ourselves against him?"
"Hear, hear. We should be trying to delay him, to inhibit his plans."
"We need to know what those are first!"
"That's what I said, but did anyone listen?"
"I still think we need to get someone on the inside."
"That's so silly, you'll just get more people killed!"
In silence Harry listened to their arguments, feeling more disgusted with every passing moment. Finally, unable to take it anymore her spoke up. "You don't understand, do you?" Harry said, addresssing everyone in a quiet voice, forcing them to stop bickering and shouting at each other so that they could hear him. "This is what Voldemort..."
"Of all people, you should know better than to say his name!" One wizard snapped.
"Of all people I believe I am the one with the most right to speak it, sir." Harry replied, his voice still calm. "Since he has risen, I have been in his presence twice. I have thwarted his plans to rise three times. I have called him by name, duelled with him, and defied him. Voldemort and his Death Eaters have taken from me people who can never be replaced, as I'm sure he has done to others. Now if you would let me finish, I was going to say that Voldemort aims to cause dissention and mistrust. By acting like this you're playing directly into his hands."
"Well spoken." Professor Said laid her hand on his shoulder and stood up. "The Order of the Light of Ra pledges it's alliance to the fight against Voldemort."
"You cannot pledge..." One wizard began.
"I am the Head of the Order, weilder of the Sun Bracelet, and the Sceptre of Ra. The Order is in my hands to pledge. It's members agree with my decisions and supports my authority to make them."
"I too, pledge my support to the fight against Voldemort." Dumbledore said.
Not wanting to say anything out loud, Harry looked at Dumbledore, then at Fawkes the Phoenix, silently asking if the Order of the Phoenix was included in his pledge.
Dumbledore shook his head, almost imperceptibly. Harry nodded.
"What about you, Harry?" Fudge asked. "Will you pledge your alliance?"
"I didn't think my alliance would be of any importance to you, Minister. I'm still underage."
"On the contrary, Harry!" Someone cried. "Give us something to fight for, someone to look to!"
"You already have something to fight for, your families and friends. No one needs to look to me, I can't offer you anything but a vison of the pain of the future if you fail again." His voice was tinged with grief and sorrow. "I can offer you nothing but pain and anguish, which for some still has not faded. Look to Dumbledore if you will, but do not look to me."
"So you won't help then?" Fudge asked
"There is little I can do, but I will give you my support, whatever it's worth, if nothing more." Harry looked down at the rug on the floor.
Once more everyone was silent, the only sound to penetrate was a soft knock on the door.
"Enter." Dumbledore called out.
"Good day Professor, sir." Dobby said meekly. "Professor McGonagall told Dobby that Harry Potter was with you. Messages have come for him, one is marked as urgent."
"Thank you Dobby." Professor Dumbledore said to him. "Harry is right here."
Dobby scuttled over to Harry, passing a slip of parchment, and then his snowy owl Hedwig over to him.
Harry untied the message from her leg, then stroked her feather's gently. "Well done, have a nice rest now." He said to her. "Dobby, do you mind taking Hedwig back to the Owlery from me?"
"It is done Harry Potter, sir. Dobby will take her now."
Harry's brow furrowed as he read the letter Hedwig had brought him. It was from Lupin.
"Trouble Harry?" Fudge asked, using a fatherly tone.
"Nothing I can't handle." Harry replied, opening the folded slip of parchment. At once he recognised Angelina's flowing script, reading the note carefully.
Harry,
Quiddich practice this afternoon at four.
Angelina
Beneath that another message was printed in small, neat letters.
Harry,
Ron and I have copied all our notes from transfiguration for you, and we've also explained to Professor Flitwick where you are.
Hermione and Ron.
Harry tucked both letters into one of the pockets in his robes. "What were we discussing?"
"Support against Voldemort." Dumbledore reminded him.
"I vote that everyone signs a contract, pledging their alliance to our cause." Madam Bones said.
"We know that some of the Death Eaters, like Bellatrix Lestrange have returned to You Know Who's service. We need to work out who is supporting him." Fudge announced.
"The Lestranges, Lucius Malfoy, Peter Pettigrew, Macnair, Nott, Avery, Goyle, Crabbe, Jugson, Rabastan, Dolohov, Rookwood, Mulcibar." Harry's voice was oddly detatched. When he blinked it seemed as though he was surprised everyone was looking at him.
"You knew all of this, and you didn't tell anyone?" Fudge stared at him.
"You only just asked." Harry said, still sounding detached.
"Lucius Malfoy." One of the wizard's breathed, shaking his head. "I never did trust him."
"So many in the Ministry." Madam Bones exclaimed.
As she spoke Harry winced, clapping his hand over his scar as pain seared his head.
At once Professor Said was leaning over him, placing one of her own hands on his forehead. The pain dissipated with her touch and was replaced with a feeling of... almost relaxation.
"Harry, are you all right?" Dumbledore looked on, expressionless.
"He's angry." Harry said flatly. "He keeps trying to break down my shields, get inside my head again."
"You mean that you can..." One of the witches began.
"When Voldemort is angry, happy, or killing people, Harry can feel it." Dumbledore said quietly. "It has been so for a long time."
"Is there anything we can do?" One of the wizards asked him. "Anything at all?"
"Professor," Harry turned to Dumbledore. "Do you know if my aunt and uncle are all right?"
"They are being monitored carefully, as is your cousin." Dumbledore answered. ""Don't worry about them."
"Then there isn't anything you can do for me... except, Sirius Black. He wasn't a murderer. Pettigrew faked his own death." Harry began.
"How?" A tall, fair haired wizard asked.
"Pettigrew is an unregistered Animagus, I told you before. He transforms into a rat. Wormtail cut off his finger, caused the explosion that killed all of those Muggles, then fled making it look like Sirius had killed him. Sirius was thrown into Azkaban, without trial."
"Merlin's beard!" Madam Bones exclaimed.
"I still don't understand." The fair haired wizard admitted.
"I want his name cleared. When my parents took me and went into hiding, they used the Fidelius Charm. At the last moment Sirius persuaded my dad to use Peter as their Secret Keeper. Sirius was planning to go into hiding once my parents and I were safe. After Voldemort killed them, Sirius knew that Peter had given up my parent's hiding place. He as good as killed my parents. I won't ever know why Sirius went after him. Maybe he wanted revenge, my dad was his best friend after all. Maybe he just wanted to know why Peter did it."
"So you want us to clear a convicted criminal?" Fudge asked.
"Sirius was never convicted." Professor Said spoke up. "I appealed against Crouch's decision for years Minister. An attack like that wasn't in Sirius's nature, but even you pushed my appeals to the side."
"You knew Sirius Black, Jaina?" Madam Bones asked.
"We were at Hogwarts together. Sirius and I introduced Lily and James." She explained, a strange, sad look in her eyes.
Harry knew that look all too well. He saw it every time he looked in the mirror, the raw grief and anguish that only came with losing loved ones.
In an attempt to comfort her Harry reached out and squeezed her hand, an unspoken bond between them.
Long into the afternoon plans were discussed, decisions made.
Finally Harry found a way to excuse himself. "Professor Dumbledore? May I be excused? I have Quiddich practice this afternoon."
"You play Quiddich?" The tall, fair haired wizard asked.
"Harry is Gryffindor's seeker. He has been since his first year." Dumbledore said, smiling at Harry, his eyes twinkling.
"Just like James." The wizard said. "I remember watching him fly when we were at Hogwarts. He was a few years above me."
"By his fifth year all the girls wanted to be with him, and all the boys wanted to be him." Another witch said, her voice slightly dreamy. "He was a very good player."
"You've been very patient." Madam Bones smiled at him. "Have fun at practice."
"Thank you for your time Harry." Dumbledore said. "You can go, but please, don't tell anybody about what has gone on in this meeting."
Harry nodded. "Yes Professor." Then he turned to face everyone else. "It was nice to meet everyone, I wish it could have been under better circumstances."
As he left the room he heard several of the group talking about him.
"He's so polite, even after all he's been though."
"Dumbledore, that's a boy to praised. So courteous, you don't often see that anymore."
"We are very proud of Harry." He heard Dumbledore say. "He tries very hard not to let all of this affect him too much."