Sorry it took so long to update, for some reason this chapter took much longer than usual to finish up.
On the plus side I have basically figured out how this year is going to end, and have thought up the skeleton for year two storyline.
On the issue of updating more frequently, life unfortunately keeps getting in the way, but the longer the wait between chapters usually means that I've put more thought into the story, because believe me I'm always thinking of new things to add in, new sub plots to develop.
Anyway enjoy the story, and as always please review!
The Chronicles of Merlin: The Return
Chapter Twelve
November 2nd, Hogwarts, the edge of the forbidden forest…
Hagrid stared at Harry in amazement. What he just witnessed he never would have believed if he hadn't seen it for himself. "I've never seen a unicorn do that before."
"It's rare," Harry admitted.
"It's a lot more than rare," Hagrid denied. It was almost like Harry was trying to down play what had just happened.
Glory wisely decided to stay quiet this time. Even she knew what happened tonight was unbelievable. The amount of magical power it took to do something like that was well beyond anything she was capable of at the moment.
"I fought the thing that was killing the unicorns," Harry said.
"Did you get a good look at it?" Hagrid asked curiously. Finding out what it was, was the first step to stopping it. "What kind of creature was it?"
"I don't know," Harry said as he remembered the fight. "It looked like some kind of wraith, but it was able to talk to me. If I had to guess I would say it was probably a wizard."
"A wizard, are you sure Harry?" Hagrid asked. "What kind of wizard would be hunting unicorns?"
"What do you mean?" Seamus asked. "Why would a wizard want unicorn blood?"
"Unicorn blood could save you if you were an inch away from death." Harry answered. "But it would only be a half life, to kill something so pure one would live a cursed life."
"Then why would anyone do it?" Lavender asked. "Why would anyone be desperate enough to do something like that?"
"There are those that would do anything for power, to get it, to keep it, and to abuse it. This wizard has been through so many magical rituals that I don't think they're even human anymore." Harry replied.
"Hagrid, are we finished?" Harry asked. "That took a lot more out of me than I thought it would."
"Sure Harry, I have to report this to Professor Dumbledore anyway." Hagrid replied. Whatever this creature was, it was obvious that it was after the Philosophers Stone.
Everyone quickly made their way back to the castle. No one wanted to be outside tonight after everything that had happened.
November 2nd, Hogwarts, the Headmaster's office…
"I've never seen anything like it before Professor," Hagrid said as he paced the office. "Why didn't anyone ever tell me about Harry?" He asked.
"Slow down Hagrid," Dumbledore said as he watched Hagrid pace. "What has happened, from the beginning if you please?"
"Harry found what was killing the unicorns," Hagrid said after taking a breath. "He said it looked like some kind of wraith, and that it was probably a wizard that used a lot of dark rituals."
"What?" Dumbledore asked his full attention now on Hagrid.
"I didn't seem him fight the wizard, or the wraith, or what ever it was, but he healed a unicorn professor. I've never seen anything like it before in my life. I could see the magic that was pouring out of him. It was incredible… I felt it." Hagrid remembered the events that had just transpired.
"How is that possible?" Dumbledore wondered. Wizards weren't just able to pour out their magic like that, and certainly shouldn't be able to heal unicorns. They were made almost entirely out of magic, much more than any adolescent wizard should possess.
"I don't know Professor." Hagrid replied. "Why didn't anyone ever tell me that Harry was Merlin incarnate?" It had been the question that he had been wondering about ever since Harry had told him.
Dumbledore sighed mentally. He had hoped that this was something that wouldn't have come up. The groundskeeper was the kind of person that trusted others easily, as Harry no doubt already knew. He would have to be careful of what he told Hagrid from now on. There was no telling how much he would tell Harry of.
"I apologize, Hagrid," Dumbledore said in a grandfatherly tone. "It must have slipped my mind." He had used that very tone with quite a few powerful and influential people, and it always produced the same result.
"It's alright professor," Hagrid said, feeling bad for questioning his trust in the headmaster. He should have known that the Headmaster never would have done something like that on purpose.
"Was there anything else?" Dumbledore asked, wondering what else could have happened.
"There was Professor," Hagrid remembered. "The unicorn that Harry saved willingly gave some of its blood to Harry."
"Blood of a unicorn, freely given?" Dumbledore asked. Was such a thing even possible?
"Thank you Hagrid," Dumbledore dismissed him as he leaned back in his chair, and waited for the half giant to leave.
Dumbledore knew now that he had to get control of Harry now more than ever. He was becoming dangerous, to him, and to all of his plans. There was no telling what the boy would get into next.
Harry's influence among the students was also increasing. He was a far cry from the timid little Hufflepuff from the previous year. He could not be allowed to continue as he was.
Perhaps this was the best time to send that letter to Minister Fudge, he thought as he pulled out a quill and piece of parchment.
Minster Fudge,
It has come to my attention that Harry, the reincarnation of Merlin is without a guardian. This can not be allowed to continue. He must be trained in the ways of wizarding culture, and can not be allowed to sway to the dark side.
He will one day hold a position of great power and influence not just among British wizards, but also other wizards around the world.
I respectfully request that Harry be placed under my guardianship, as a Dumbledore, so that he may learn to become a productive member of society.
Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, Supreme Mugwump, Oder of Merlin 1st class.
Finishing the letter Dumbledore summoned a school owl and sent it off to the Minister. If everything went according to plan the boy would be under his control by the end of the week.
November 3rd, Hogwarts, the Great Hall…
Harry yawned as he sat down to breakfast. He was still feeling tired from the battle with the dark wizard, and transferring his magic to the unicorn to save it.
"Quit it Harry, you're making me yawn too." Ron said with his own yawn.
"Why are you so tired anyway?" Draco asked. "I thought that you were a morning person."
"Was it the detention you had last night? I still don't think that was fair." Hermione asked.
"I used a lot more of my magic than I thought that I would have to last night." Harry said as he took a bite of his eggs.
"What do you mean?" Draco asked. "It was just a detention, how much magic could you have used?"
"That's kind of a long story, one we really don't have time for now. How about we meet in the room of requirement after classed?" Harry offered.
"Then can you teach us occlumency?" Hermione asked. Ever since Harry had mentioned it she couldn't wait until Harry would teach them.
"Yeah mate," Ron agreed. It had been bothering him ever since he found out that Snape could read his thoughts any time he wanted.
"I guess it's a good a time as any," Harry agreed. "It isn't going to be easy though," he warned. "If I'm going to be teaching you occlumency, there are actually quite a few other things that we might as well work on."
Hermione was almost as giddy as she heard what Harry had to say. She knew for a fact that what Harry was going to teach them was much more advanced than what they were learning now.
"What kind of things?" Draco asked curiously. He was just as excited as Ron and Hermione.
"You'll see after classes," Harry promised. "Come on Draco, we're going to be late for transfiguration if we don't leave now."
The four friends split up as they all headed to their classes. Hermione and Ron to Potions, while Harry and Draco headed to transfiguration.
November 3rd, Hogwarts, Potions classroom…
Ron and Hermione sat in potions, doing their best to stay out of Snape's way. The last thing they wanted was for him to be going through their heads, or docking points from their respective houses.
Snape unfortunately had other ideas. He knew for a fact that the best way to find out what was going on was to search the mind of Harry's friends.
Snape knew that blasted boy Harry couldn't harm him. Cauterizing his mind magic? It was totally unheard of, and even if it was possible he knew that the headmaster could protect him.
He knew that this was the best time to search Weasley, and Granger's minds. It was only a mater of time before Harry instructed them in the art of occlumency. For the moment he could enter both of their minds undetected.
Snape quickly entered Hermione's mind, searching for any memories about Harry, or about anything he had told her. He was annoyed to find that there really wasn't as much information as he had thought.
Harry had already known that this was something that he and the headmaster would attempt. Therefore he didn't tell them anything of importance, or what Snape and the Headmaster didn't already know.
Snape pulled out of Hermione's mind, and entered Ron's hoping to find a little more information. It was unlikely, but worth the attempt.
As Snape searched through Ron mind he hit pay dirt. Ron Weasley knew where the meeting place was, where Harry would be teaching them, and more importantly how to get there. Granger only had a vague idea, nowhere near enough information to find this 'room of requirement.' The idiot girl must not have being paying attention when the Weasley brat had led them there the first time so her memories were naturally clouded.
Snape could not wait to tell the headmaster what was going on. He could just imagine the ancient knowledge that Harry would impart.
Hermione and Ron could tell immediately what Snape was doing. The most annoying part of it however was the fact that he thought they didn't even know what he was doing.
Now that they knew that such a thing was possible, they could see the signs easily. Snape was looking at them, one after the other. His eyes were locked on them, and he didn't move an inch, or even say a word.
Hermione held back a shiver of disgust as Snape locked his eyes on her. Snape had violated Ron's mind, and had done the same to her, even though she couldn't feel it.
Ron was having much the same feelings. He wanted so much to run up to the vile man, and knock him out. He could not wait until he could fight back against him.
November 3rd, Hogwarts, Transfiguration classroom…
The transfiguration class was well on its way as a realization struck Harry. All of the teachers were handpicked by Professor Dumbledore. This meant that all of the Professors were loyal to Dumbledore. He would be surprised if they would even listen to anything against him.
"Draco we have a problem," Harry whispered to Draco.
"What is it Harry?" Draco asked.
"I just realized something. If Headmaster Dumbledore, and Professor Snape can't be trusted then how do we know who else can be trusted?" Harry asked.
Draco's eyes widened at the implication. He knew just as well as Harry that Headmaster Dumbledore had hand picked the entire teaching staff.
"Harry, Mr. Malfoy, perhaps you could show the rest of the class how to transfigure you quills into birds?" Professor McGonagall asked. She noticed them whispering, instead of paying attention to her lecture.
"Of course Professor," Harry said as he pulled out his wand and effortlessly transfigured his quill into a dove that gracefully flew around the room before settling on Harry's finger.
Professor McGonagall was surprised by what she saw. The bird was obviously no ordinary dove. It was easily twice the size of a normal dove, and its wings were trimmed with blue.
"…Very well done Harry" McGonagall said as got over her shock, "how about you Mr. Malfoy?" She asked, hoping to catch at least one of them for not paying attention.
Draco repeated the process, putting a little more effort into it than Harry had and was able to produce a robin. It flew around the room in a similar fashion as the dove before settling on the desk in front of them.
Professor McGonagall was surprised that Draco was able to transfigure a quill into a bird as well, something that the rest of the class had been working diligently towards with very little success.
The bird was not as special as the Dove that Harry had transfigure, but it was still a very advanced piece of magic, made even more impressive by the fact that this was the first time that she had seen either of them attempt the transfiguration.
"Very well 15 points each," Professor McGonagall said. She knew at the moment that the house points didn't seem to mean very much to the students anymore. Glory seemed to have regained control of herself however. She was no longer docking points unnecessarily from the other houses, except for Hufflepuff, and seemed to have stopped awarding Gryffindor points unnecessarily… for the moment.
"You may cancel the transfigurations," Professor McGonagall instructed them as she started to walk off.
"Finite-" Draco began to say before Harry grabbed his arm stopping him. "Harry what-"
"Don't Draco," Harry said as he released his arm.
"What is the problem Harry?" McGonagall asked, as she wondered what the problem was.
"You can't turn it back into a quill Draco." Harry replied. "That's the same as killing it."
"Harry in a few days the magic will wear off, and those birds will turn back into quills anyway." McGonagall reminded him. "They were never alive to begin with."
"That doesn't change the fact that they're alive now. If I had transfigured a quill into you Professor would you not want those few days, no matter how fleeting they were?" Harry asked trying to get his point across.
"That level of transfiguration is impossible Harry," McGonagall said more gently. She could see how much this meant to him. "The amount of magic necessary would be enormous."
"Impossibility is the creation of those that have tried and were unsuccessful." Harry replied, knowing that he was going off topic.
"Those that dwell on the impossible forget to be thankful for the things that are possible." McGonagall replied. She had no idea that Harry was so astute.
"We would not have attained the possible if we had not constantly reached out for the impossible." Harry answered back.
"…True." McGonagall conceded. "Very well, you may wait for the magic to wear off."
"Thank you Professor." Harry said with a smile. "Go," Harry instructed the birds. "Enjoy this life."
The two birds chirped happily as they flew around Harry and Draco a couple of times before flying out the open window.
"Wouldn't it have been better not to transfigure them at all?" Blaze Zabini asked. "That way they wouldn't have to die?" She asked now that she really thought about it.
"Blaze you were born, not in the way those birds were born today but born all the same, and you will cease to exist, just as they will some day. Would you really choose not to exist to save yourself from death?" Harry asked.
Blaze glanced at him as thought about what he said. She could see why Draco thought so highly of him.
November 3rd, the Ministry of Magic, Minister Fudge's office…
Minister Fudge had just finished reading the letter he had received from Headmaster Dumbledore.
As always what the headmaster said was true. The boy was quite popular, and there was no doubt in his mind that he would become ever more influential as time went by.
Those that the boy was seen to associate with would also see a dramatic rise in their own influence, and careers.
So the question was, would the boy be the tool of the headmaster or the ministry?
Fudge imagined all the influence he would gain if Harry was a ward of the ministry. He could just imagine it. Harry would become the poster boy for the ministry. If he had control of Harry he could do no wrong in the eyes of the ministry. His loyalty to the people would be beyond question.
Thinking about Dumbledore's letter, he couldn't help but laugh. The idea that he would give control to quite possibly the most influential person in wizarding history was ridiculous.
Albus Dumbledore,
I have received your petition to for guardianship of Harry, and upon careful consideration I must reject your request.
Harry is far too important to be taken care of by the headmaster of a school. He will require a specialized education that the ministry can only provide.
Rest assured that Harry will be brought up to be a productive member of society, under careful supervision as a ward of the ministry.
As of this moment I will consider the matter closed, good day Albus.
Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, Order of Merlin 2nd Class.
Cornelius smiled as he thought about the reaction the letter would have upon the meddling headmaster.
As he attached the letter to a ministry owl he wished he could see the look on the headmaster's face as he read the letter.
That would teach the headmaster to mind his own business. It was about time that someone put him in his place, to think that a mere headmaster could be more powerful than the minister of Magic.
November 3rd, Hogwarts, the Gryffindor Common Room…
Glory smiled. Ron Weasley had just left the common room, and Ginny Weasley was in the dorms. They where the last people she wanted to hear what she had to talk to Lavender and Seamus about.
"Ok, he's gone," Glory said when she saw the portrait close. "We have to figure out what's going on. Whatever that thing was in the forest, I know it has something to do with what's going on with the three headed dog in the third floor corridor."
"It does seem a little weird that all of this stuff is happening at once. It can't just be a coincidence." Lavender agreed.
"Wait a minute," Seamus realized with a start. "There is a giant three headed dog in the third floor corridor of the school."
"Yes Seamus, we already know that." Glory said, not realizing what Seamus was saying. "Now what-"
"Don't you get it?" Seamus exclaimed. "There's only one person that could have gotten a three headed dog inside of Hogwarts. It had to have been Hagrid, the grounds keeper."
"Of course," Glory realized, nearly smacking herself for not realizing something so obvious. "Hagrid has to know something else about what was going on."
The trio quickly left the common room to Hagrid's hut, hoping that he would be there.
Glory, Seamus, and Lavender were panting as they banged on the door to Hagrid's hut. They had run the entire way there.
"What are you doing out here?" Hagrid asked as he opened the door and looked down at the students. It was odd to have visitors at this time of night.
"We… have… to talk… to you… Hagrid," Glory wheezed as she tried to catch her breath.
"Alright, you better come inside then. We wouldn't want you to catch a cold, would we?" He asked as he moved out of the door way to let the students inside.
After the trio had a chance to catch their breath they sat around the fire, and began to talk about why they came.
"Hagrid, we know that there's a giant three headed dog in the third floor corridor." Glory stated.
"You know about Fluffy?" Hagrid asked before he could stop himself.
"Wait a minute, you named a giant three headed dog… FLUFFY?" Lavender asked incredulously.
"What? I think that Fluffy is a perfectly good name for a dog," Hagrid said, feeling indignant.
"So you do know about the dog," Glory pointed out. "Why is it up there in the first place? What is it guarding?" Glory demanded.
"Oh no," Hagrid said as he realized what he had done. "I'm not talking about this anymore." He said as he got to his feet and started to usher the students out.
"Come on Hagrid," Seamus implored. "You have to tell us something."
"No, that's between Albus Dumbledore and Nicholas Flamel." Hagrid said as he opened the door to his hut.
"So there's a Nicholas Flamel involved in this somehow," Seamus said as Hagrid ushered them outside.
"Oh no, I certainly shouldn't have told you that," Hagrid said feeling annoyed with himself that he had allowed that much to slip as he closed the door.
November 3rd, Hogwarts, the Room of Requirements…
"So what are you going to be teaching us Harry?" Hermione asked.
"Well a lot of things actually. Now that I've had a chance to think about it, if I'm going to teach you occlumency, then I might as well teach you legemency as well. You'll have a better understanding of how to protect your mind if you know how it's going to be attacked.
I also know a few things about increasing your magical power as well that you should probably know as well." Harry said thoughtfully.
"So when do we get started?" Ron asked excitedly.
"Right now," Harry answered. "There are three pillars to true power. The first is mind, the second is magic, and the last is body." Harry lectured.
Controlling one is not easy, two is challenging, three is extremely difficult, and all of that's child's play in comparison to keeping all three in perfect harmony." Harry explained.
"What do we do first?" Hermione asked eagerly.
"Well, the first thing we need to do is get in better physical shape." Harry explained.
"Why does that matter?" Draco wondered. "Wouldn't it be easier just to train magic?" Draco honestly wondered. As far as he knew that was always the way it was done.
"It's important because they are all connected. Your mind, your magic and your body, they all need each other to work properly." Harry explained. He knew it was difficult concept to grasp, but in time they would all understand.
"Draco, Ron I want you to run a few laps," Harry said as a running track appeared before them.
"What about Hermione?" Ron asked, wondering why Hermione didn't have to exercise.
"Some of what I'm going to teach you varies from person to person. I have to do the same for the both of you soon as well." Harry said.
Ron grumbled a little but soon joined Draco on the track.
"Ok Hermione let's get started," Harry said as he sat down cross legged on the floor, motioning for Hermione to join him.
When Hermione sat down Harry took both of Hermione's hands and looked into Hermione's eyes.
Hermione stared back into Harry's eyes, wondering what was going to happen. "What are we-" Hermione began to say before the world around her suddenly disappeared.
She wasn't sitting anymore. She was just standing in a beautiful forest. She had never seen anything like it before.
"Where are we Harry?" Hermione asked as she looked around in wonder.
"We are inside my mind Hermione, or more accurately a representation of my mind. I thought that you would have a better understanding of what we were going to be doing if you could see my mind." Harry explained.
"I didn't think it would be like this," Hermione asked in wonderment. "Will my mind be like this as well?"
"It can be. This is the way that I choose to perceive my mind, my body, and my magic. It will take time but if you want to you can achieve it as well." Harry explained
"Come on, let's go see your mind," Harry said as they suddenly left Harry's mind and appeared in Hermione's.
"How did you do that Harry?" Hermione asked, wondering how they suddenly left Harry's mind.
"It is a form of legemency, since you have no defenses anyone with even the smallest amount of skill can enter your mind without you knowing about them." Harry reminded her. The mind arts had quickly become one of the most important things that he had to teach his friends.
"How long will it be before I can protect myself?" Hermione asked. She knew that she could trust Harry, but the headmaster and Snape were a completely different matter.
"I'm not really sure." Harry said as they entered Hermione's mind. "The one thing that you have to remember is that this is your mind. In here the only power others have is that which you give them."
"My mind doesn't look like yours," Hermione said in disappointment as she looked around. It was nowhere near the forest of Harry's mind. There were a few shrubs, some patches of grass, and a few trees that looked like they had been twisted by the wind. It looked almost like a waste land.
"This is what your mind, body, and magic are now. It is what any witch or wizard's mind would look like."
"What do we do first?" Hermione asked. She certainly could not leave things the way they were.
"First I want you to picture a fire, a fire that consumes everything here." Harry asked.
"What?" Hermione asked. "How's that going to fix anything?"
"Do not worry it won't hurt us. This is all just an interface that your mind created. It will be much faster and easier to start again rather than expend the energy to fix everything." Harry explained.
Hermione nodded, trusting Harry's advice. She envisioned a fire that slowly consumed the area, finally burning down all of the gnarled shrubs, and patches of grass.
"Ok Hermione," Harry said as the fire finally burned out. "Now I want you to imagine a cleansing rain, washing over the ground."
Hermione created the rain and watched as it washed away what was left of the dead plants.
"Don't stop the rain, Hermione." Harry said when it looked like Hermione was about to stop. "Allow the water to collect until it forms a lake."
Hermione sighed tiredly as the lake finally formed. This had taken much more out of her than she had thought it would.
"Now comes the best part," Harry said as he stood beside Hermione, "watch."
Hermione watched as grass slowly started to grow filling the Spartan area. The forest that she had started was nowhere near as lush as Harry's was but it was a start.
"That lake is a representation of your magic, the forest is a representation of your body, and the walls you will build around the forest will be a representation of your mind," Harry explained.
"This is amazing Harry," Hermione exclaimed. "Does everyone that learns to occlumency and legemency know how to do this?"
"No," Harry said shaking his head. "From what I was able to learn from Snape's mind he considers himself a master occlumence, and all he has are his mind shields. He has no concept of an interface to control his shields, or even thought to link his body, magic, and mind."
It was strange. Linking the mind, body, and magic together was almost second nature to Harry. It was how it had always been done, but modern wizards did not even seem to have a concept of this, and those that even knew of the mind arts were few and far between.
November 3rd, Hogwarts, Outside of the room of requirements…
Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape stood outside of the room of requirements. They had arrived a few minutes after Harry, Ron, Draco and Hermione had arrived.
"So this is where Harry trains his inner circle?" Dumbledore asked. He wondered what Harry could be teaching the other students.
"Yes headmaster, I'm sure of it." Snape said implicitly. "The Weasley boy has no mind shields to speak of, and neither does the know-it-all Granger."
"I see that you haven't taken Harry's warning to heart." Dumbledore observed. It was true that his plans to gain control of Harry were already well under way, but if Serverus continued the way he was he would have to tip his hand earlier than he liked.
"It is nothing to worry about." Snape said arrogantly. "The boy was just bluffing. No one has that kind of power. I could easily put him in his place. Merlin incarnate or not he is still just a child."
"Shall we go then?" Dumbledore asked as he disillusioned himself and Snape. He was initially surprised that anyone else even knew of this place. He had discovered it purely by accident in his youth, but lost interest soon after he realized that he could not take anything with him out of the room of requirements.
Snape and Dumbledore silently entered the room of requirements, careful not to make any noise. It was pointless however, because they found that the room was empty.
"Of course," Dumbledore realized, after thinking it over for a moment. "The room of requirement provides the user with anything they could ask for, in this case Harry asked for a private room without any interruptions. The only way we could enter the room with Harry's requirements is by creating a brand new room for us."
"This doesn't bother you?" Snake asked, feeling incredibly put out. All his work had been for nothing.
"No Serverus, I have my own plans in place." Dumbledore said confidently. "I should have Harry under my thumb very soon."
"You have a plan?" Snape asked, wondering what it could be. He was loathed to admit it, but Harry was nobody's fool, and was very rarely taken by surprise.
"I have arranged to take custody of Harry." Dumbledore explained his plan. "As his guardian he will have to do as I say, and I will also gain control of his finances, as well as be able to choose the courses he takes at Hogwarts."
"What stops Harry from simply leaving?" Snape wondered. "No one still knows how he is able to travel the way he does, or even how to stop him from doing it."
"Harry will not leave his friends," Dumbledore said confidently.
"How can you be sure?" Snape asked curiously.
"It is his greatest weakness, his inability to see the bigger picture. He would never even dream of leaving his friends behind, regardless of the possible gains." Dumbledore said smugly. Now that he knew how Harry thought it would be child's play to keep him under his thumb.
"What would stop him from simply taking his friends with him?" Snape asked, playing devil's advocate.
"Quite simple my boy." Dumbledore said, happy that his plan were coming together. "As headmaster of this school I would impress upon him the needs for a proper education to become a functional member of society, and if his friends were still to leave with him their wands would be snapped, and they will be forbidden to perform magic."
"Quite right," Snape agreed. He doubted it would stop Harry from performing magic, but his friends definitely showed no aptitude for wand less magic.
November 3rd, Hogwarts, the headmaster's office…
He headmaster sat in his chair with a smile of anticipation on his face. He knew that he would be receiving the letter from Cornelius Fudge at any moment. No doubt to applaud his act of generosity and of course to get the paper work started for his new charge.
As if in answer to Albus's plans a ministry owl swooped in through the open window with a letter tied to its leg.
"Right on time Fudge,"Dumbledore mused as he opened the letter and sent the ministry owl on its way.
As he read the letter the smile on his face quickly dropped, his face getting red as his mood rapidly turned to anger.
Dumbledore shot to his feet, seething as he crumpled up the letter and threw it into the fireplace.
"That impudent little weasel! How dare he? That fool thinks he can order me around?" Dumbledore paced his office. "Considers the matter closed does he? That fool would not even be where he is now if it were not for me! It is time that idiot learned the price for interfering with my plans."
Dumbledore pulled out another sheet of parchment as he started a new letter.
Collective chairs of the wizengamot,
Cornelius Fudge has overstepped his bounds as minister of magic in his decision to remove Merlin incarnate from Hogwarts, which I fear is a grave mistake.
I am calling an emergency meeting of the wizengamot to put an immediate halt to the unjustified actions of minister Fudge.
We have held our tongues for far too long about the goings on of Fudge and it is time to put his fanaticism to an end.
Hogwarts is obviously the best place for Harry, as it has been for countless generations of wizards.
I ask you to overturn this obvious and transparent attempt to take advantage of Harry, at the earliest possible trial date.
Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, Supreme Mugwump, Oder of Merlin 1st class.
As Albus finished the letter and sent it off with Fawkes he smiled. He had been meaning to put the minister back in place, and now he could kill two birds with one stone.
He was sure that wizengamot would award him custody of Harry, especially since he knew that the trial date would be far too soon for Fudge to mount any kind of political moves himself.
What Dumbledore failed to realize or dismissed entirely however was that the earliest that the wizengamot was able to convene would be three days, and the press was notified immediately after a trial date was set. These announcements were usually buried towards the back of the Daly Prophet, and were largely ignored by the wizarding population.
To Be Continued…