A.N./Disclaimer: Most of the characters and the original plot belong to J.K. Rowling. I do not own them. Neither am I profiting from this nor do I plan to commercialize it. I am writing for fun.
A.N.: Thank you for all the follows, favorites and reviews.
Chapter 12
Over the next one and a half months, Harry and his friends had gotten into a flow. Everything seemed to be going well in the beginning. The group of five had been meeting up daily at the Tower after their classes, before dinner. They spent their weekends there too. But things can't always sail smoothly for one Harry James Potter, especially when a barmy old codger couldn't stop meddling. A week after Hermione's birthday, Harry had received summons from the dear old headmaster.
Their aunt Minnie had told them how the barmy old coot had been disappointed that the Board of Governors had decided to clean out the Room of Lost Things. He did pretend to be relieved when he came to know that the proceeds from the sale of those things would bolster the Hogwarts' vaults. However, he still felt violated that he couldn't personally go through those things. He probably could have stashed most of it away for himself. After all, he did have to pay the Weasley trio, and his vaults weren't as full as the Potters'.
Harry wasn't quite sure why he had been summoned by the ever-interfering headmaster. He recalled the past few weeks since the start of the term to see if he had done something that stood out like a sore thumb. Putting his confusion aside, he stood in front of the gargoyle that guarded the headmaster's office. Though Minerva had offered to go with him, he had instead asked her to let him go alone. He asked her to join them ten minutes later. When Minerva had questioned his reasoning, he said that the headmaster wouldn't speak about what he really wanted to if she was present with him. She accepted his stance and let him go alone. The gargoyle bowed to Harry and stepped aside. Harry ascended the stairs and knocked at the door.
"Come in", came the headmaster's voice. Harry stepped in and closed the door behind him. "Ah, good evening, Harry. How have you been?"
"Mr. Potter or Heir Potter", deadpanned Harry.
"Er-what?", replied a perplexed Dumbledore.
Harry commented, "I recall asking you to treat me as any other student and addressing me as such. Since you're no longer my magical guardian, I don't want you to address me by my first name. If, however, you do carry on with it, I am afraid I might have to trouble the Board of Governors and address you by your first name, headmaster."
Dumbledore stared at him. Though he outwardly maintained his calm, grandfatherly persona, his insides were seething with anger. Oh, this little dipshit thinks he can order me around. A few months with that wretched Sirius Black and he thinks he owns me now. Dumbledore replied, "Forgive me for my slight, Mr. Potter. I had gotten habituated to calling you by your first name. It will take a while, but I assure you I will try my best and not repeat it."
Harry nodded and replied, "Apology accepted, professor. Back to your question, I have been well."
Dumbledore motioned Harry to a seat which he promptly took. He asked, "So, Mr. Potter, how was your summer? I hope I am not infringing your privacy. I am just curious to know what it was like with your godfather."
Harry replied, "I had the best summer ever. Thank you for asking." That's all you're going to get from me, fool.
Dumbledore asked, "I am happy for you, Mr. Potter. Did anything exciting happen?" Tell me, Mr. Potter, what have you been up to. What have you learned? I hope nothing of my plans for the Greater Good. I am so inclined to use legilimency on you but then again, if you detect it like you did before with Severus, you will come for my head. Can't allow that to happen now, can we?
Harry deadpanned again, "I had the best summer ever. Thank you for asking."
Dumbledore, realizing that he wasn't going to get anything out of the boy, asked his next question. "How have you been finding this term?"
Harry replied, "It is going well. I am thoroughly enjoying my Runes and Arithmancy classes. They seem to be a lot of fun."
"Ah, yes", replied Dumbledore, "I quite remember taking them when I was a student. I was thoroughly intrigued by them too." Harry just smiled and nodded. Dumbledore then said, "I see you've been spending quite a lot of time inside the library, Mr. Potter. Though I am pleased that you are taking your studies a little more seriously, it pains my old heart that you aren't enjoying your childhood."
Harry stared at the headmaster in disbelief. Did the redhead prat rat me out to the old coot?
Harry heard Adrian's voice in his head, 'That he did, my Lord. Mr. Weasley was here a couple of days ago. He said that you had been acting quite strange and spending a lot of time in the library with Heiresses Dagworth-Granger, Bones and Lovegood, and Heir Longbottom.'
Harry quickly thanked the ancient hat and replied to the headmaster, "Professor, as much as I would like to enjoy my childhood, I can't. For some reason that I know not, I have a Dark Lord hell bent on killing me. If I don't study all that I can, how am I going to protect myself? I will need everything and more just to survive."
Dumbledore looked remorse and thought, No matter how much you study, you will have to die, my dear boy. Oh well, nothing to feel sad about. Just need to make sure that I manipulate, er.. no, guide you to your destiny. All for the greater good, of course. "Of course, Mr. Potter", replied Albus. "However, I would still suggest that you spend some time with your friends, enjoying the bliss of being a child."
Before Harry could reply, there was another knock on the door. Minerva walked in after Dumbledore had given the permission to enter. Dumbledore said, "Ah, yes, Professor McGonagall, I was wondering what took you so long. Please have a seat. I was just getting started with Mr. Potter."
Minerva nodded and took a seat beside Harry. The professors and Harry discussed about Harry's term till date and if he had been feeling any effects due to the exposure to the dementor. After about ten minutes, Harry and Minerva left the headmaster's office.
Retreating to the Tower, where his friends were anxiously waiting for him, Harry had told them about the conversation with Dumbledore before Minerva's arrival, including what Adrian had said. That day onwards, Harry and his friends had decided to meet at the Tower on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and the weekends. They didn't want the redhead running off to the old codger again. This seemed to work fine the group. It also avoided any further summons from the headmaster.
Quidditch practices had begun in October. This led to a new schedule being made to meet up at the Tower. Neville and Hermione joined Harry at the quidditch pitch if the weather was agreeable. The weather only got harsher as November approached. The Gryffindor team's practice sessions had been conducted keeping the traditional first match against Slytherin in mind.
The day of their last practice session had been brutal. The winds had picked up speed and the rain had worsened. As the final practice session was ending, Oliver Wood, the Gryffindor quidditch captain was called by Madam Hooch. He looked angry when he returned after a few minutes. His team saw his angry face and immediately came to him.
Wood said, "I had just been to see Madam Hooch and Flint. We won't be playing Slytherin this weekend. We are playing Hufflepuff instead."
"Why?", chorused his team.
"Well, apparently, their Seeker's arm is still injured", replied Wood, gritting his teeth. "But it's obvious why they're doing this. They don't want to play in this weather. It will damage their chances."
Harry replied, "There's nothing wrong with Malfoy's arm."
"We can't prove it", said Wood. "Besides, Flint had a note from some healer at St. Mungo's. Madam Hooch believes it to be enough of an evidence and that there is no foul play." Wood sighed and continued, "Now, the issue is that we have been practicing all these moves assuming that we're playing Slytherin. Instead, we are now playing Hufflepuff, and their style is quite different. They've got a new captain and Seeker, Cedric Diggory. He has put in a strong side. He's an excellent Seeker. This is going to be a tough game. We cannot relax!"
Fred, looking slightly alarmed, tried to calm down his captain. He said, "Oliver, calm down! We are taking Hufflepuff seriously. Getting worked up about it isn't going to help."
The day of the match dawned upon them. The wind had reached howling point and the rain came down harder than ever. Harry, who had already showered and changed, was sitting in the common room, centering his magical core. He had been up earlier than usual today. The noise of the storm was even louder in the common room. Harry knew the match would go on regardless of the harsh conditions; Quidditch matches weren't called off for trifles such as thunderstorms. Nevertheless, he was starting to feel very apprehensive. Wood had pointed out Cedric Diggory to him in the corridor; Diggory was a fifth-year and a lot bigger than Harry. Seekers were usually light and speedy, but Diggory's weight would be an advantage in this weather because he was less likely to be blown off course.
Harry was soon joined by Hermione and Neville. They went over their morning routine, centering their magical cores. After a while, they headed down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Harry and his friends had just started with their breakfast when the rest of the team walked in. Wood still looked a bit nervous. The entire team was trying to calm him down when Harry heard a familiar voice.
"What's wrong with him?" Harry looked up and saw Sirius wearing what looked like his Gryffindor quidditch robes. "He looks like he's seen a ghost."
"Wood is just a bit nervous about the match, Lord Black", replied Fred.
"Nervous about the match? Is Slytherin that good?", asked a bemused Sirius.
"Oh right, I forgot to tell you", replied Harry. "We aren't playing Slytherin. Apparently, Malfoy has a severely injured arm. We are playing Hufflepuff instead. They've got a new Seeker and captain."
"When did that happen?", asked Sirius. "I mean, when were you informed about the change in the schedule?"
"A couple of days ago, Lord Black", replied Wood. "We had done all our practice with the game against Slytherin in mind. During the last practice session, we were told of the change."
"And when did Mr. Malfoy get injured?", asked Sirius.
"On the first day of the term", replied Hermione.
"Didn't look that serious, to be honest", added Neville.
"He's obviously faking it", added Harry.
"They had a note from some healer at St. Mungo's confirming the seriousness of injury", added Wood. "We couldn't even prove that the injury was a fake."
"Yes, we believe they do not want to play in such conditions", added Fred.
"Might hamper their chances", added George.
"Well, since that is done", replied Sirius, "you have no choice but to play Hufflepuff today. However, I think I might know a way to stick it up to the Slytherins. I will have to check a couple of things first. I will get back to you, Mr. Wood, was it?"
Wood nodded and replied, "Yes, Lord Black. Thank you."
Sirius sat down with Harry, Hermione, and Neville. They told him about the incident in their first COMC class and Malfoy's acting ever since. "If I am right about dear old Lucy, he will try to get Cornelius to act on it. He will use it against Dumbledore and the current Board. I will have to ask Amelia to keep someone on the look-out at the ministry. I want to be here when he tries to stir things up", finished Sirius.
"Are my parents coming, Sirius?", asked Hermione.
"They wanted to", replied Sirius, "but refrained from doing so because of the harsh weather."
Hermione nodded in understanding and asked, "Who else is coming then?"
Sirius replied, "I think Amy will be here. Ted and Dora will also be coming. I think that's about it. Andi, the Grangers, Augusta and Xeno preferred to sit this one out due to the weather."
"Makes sense", replied Neville. The group of four were indulged in an idle chatter when Ted, Dora, Amelia, Susan, and Luna joined them. As they began to leave, they all wished Harry a good luck.
Such was the popularity of Quidditch that the whole school turned out to watch the match as usual, but they ran down the lawns towards the Quidditch pitch, heads bowed against the ferocious wind, umbrellas being whipped out of their hands as they went. Just before he entered the changing room, Harry saw Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle laughing and pointing at him from under an enormous umbrella on their way to the stadium.
The team changed into their scarlet robes and waited for Wood's usual pre-match pep talk, but it didn't come. He tried to speak several times, made an odd gulping noise, then shook his head hopelessly and beckoned them to follow him.
The wind was so strong that they staggered sideways as they walked out onto the pitch. If the crowd was cheering, they couldn't hear it over the fresh rolls of thunder. Rain splattered over the goggles each of them was wearing. Harry wondered how he was going to see the Snitch in this weather.
The Hufflepuffs were approaching from the opposite side of the pitch, wearing canary-yellow robes. The captains walked up to each other and shook hands; Diggory smiled at Wood but Wood now looked as though he had lockjaw and merely nodded. Harry saw Madam Hooch's mouth form the words, "Mount your brooms." He pulled his right foot out of the mud with a squelch and swung it over his Nimbus Two Thousand. Madam Hooch put her whistle to her lips and gave it a blast that sounded shrill and distant – they were off.
Harry rose fast, but his Nimbus was swerving slightly with the wind. He held it as steady as he could and turned, squinting into the rain. Within five minutes Harry was soaked to his skin and frozen, hardly able to see his team-mates, let alone the tiny Snitch. He flew backwards and forwards across the pitch, past blurred red and yellow shapes, with no idea of what was happening in the rest of the game. He couldn't hear the commentary over the wind. The crowd was hidden beneath a sea of cloaks and battered umbrellas.
Twice Harry came very close to being unseated by a Bludger; his vision was so clouded by the rain on his goggles he hadn't seen them coming. He lost track of time. It was getting harder and harder to hold his broom straight. The sky was getting darker, as though night had decided to come early. Twice Harry nearly hit another player, without knowing whether it was a teammate or opponent; everyone was now so wet, and the rain so thick, he could hardly tell them apart.
Madam Hooch blew her whistle. Harry saw Wood signaling him to the ground. It was a time out. Harry was informed that they were fifty points up. Harry quickly performed a wandless Impervius and a warming charm. Harry could now see clearly. The game resumed and thus began the desperate search of the Snitch. There was another clap of thunder, followed immediately by forked lightning. This was getting more and more dangerous. Harry needed to get the Snitch quickly.
Harry looked wildly around. Cedric Diggory was pelting up the pitch, and a tiny speck of gold was shimmering in the rain-filled air between them. With a jolt of panic, Harry threw himself flat to the broom handle and zoomed towards the Snitch.
"Come on!", he growled at his Nimbus, as the rain whipped his face. "Faster!"
But something odd was happening. An eerie silence was falling across the stadium. The wind, though as strong as ever, was forgetting to roar. It was as though someone had turned off the sound, as though Harry had gone suddenly deaf – what was going on? And then a horribly familiar wave of cold swept over him, inside him, just as he became aware of something moving on the pitch below.
Harry immediately knew that there were dementors below. He just concentrated on the Snitch in front of him. Suddenly, his vision was blocked. And he heard his mother's scream again. Numbing, swirling white mist was filling Harry's brain. That was when he realized that a dementor had got to him. Harry could feel his grip on his Nimbus loosen. All he could think was, 'Help, Lumiere, Godric, Rowena! Someone!'
Sirius watched the incident filled with horror. There were so many dementors. The professors, Ted, Amelia, Dora, and he kept on producing one patronus after the other. He was concerned about his son. He looked at Hermione and Neville, both glued to their spots. And suddenly there was a flash of thunder. Sirius saw a figure start to fall.
"HARRRRYYYYYYYY!", shrieked Hermione and Neville together. However, before anyone could react there was another flash. This time Sirius saw a huge dragon appear out of nowhere. The dragon positioned itself under Harry, and caught him and his broom on its back, and then landed slowly on the pitch. The dementors had now started to disappear, courtesy of the patroni and the huge dragon. The dragon's wings and tail-wing were covered with flames. The dragon roared with all its might. The roar was filled with pain and sorrow. Realization now dawned upon Sirius. Sirius thought, This can't be good and sprinted towards the dragon. The dragon roared again. Harry's extended family ran to the pitch as well.
Cedric had caught the Snitch, the game had been concluded; however, none of the two team members could approach the roaring dragon and the young Potter. As Sirius reached towards the dragon, he bowed down. The rest of Harry's friends and teammates did the same.
The dragon bowed his head and smelled Sirius. Satisfied that the puny human in front of him wouldn't hurt his friend, Lumiere slid Harry and his broom down on to the floor. Rowena appeared in a flash of icy-blue flames and started to sing a comforting song to calm everyone down. Sirius feebly whispered, "Tony, Dobby, Star!"
The three elves appeared at an instant. They saw their Master Harry lying unconscious and panicked. Sirius said, "Tony, take him to the Hospital Wing. Dobby, please alert Madam Pomfrey that Harry was exposed to the dementors and that Healer Tonks will be assisting her. Star, can you please go and bring Andi to the Hospital Wing? Tell her it's an emergency."
The three elves bowed and disappeared. So did Harry. Sirius continued, "I am traveling to the Hospital Wing on Harry's broom." He turned to Lumiere and said, "Thank you. You have helped save my son." Lumiere rubbed his snout against Sirius's chest. He turned around and took flight and disappeared in a flash. Godric also joined Rowena. Sirius added, "I am heading to the Hospital Wing. I will see you guys there." He mounted on the broom and zoomed towards the Hospital Wing.
Godric came towards Hermione. Hermione, realizing that Godric wanted to help her get to Hospital Wing, extended her hand. Neville followed her example and extended his hand as well. The two students and the thunderbird disappeared. Rowena followed suit with Luna and Susan. Amelia, Dora, and Ted had stayed back to help the professors with the students.
Minerva turned to the two quidditch teams and said, "Please proceed to your changing rooms at the earliest. As soon as you are done changing, please return to the castle. Two professors will stay behind as chaperones." The two teams chorused their acceptance and headed to the changing rooms.
November 6, 1993
Hospital Wing
When Sirius arrived, he saw that Harry's four friends had already arrived. So had Andi, who was now assisting Madam Pomfrey in performing scans and diagnosis. Tony had popped in and taken Harry's broom away. Star popped in and said, "Miss Hermione, Miss Susan, Miss Luna and Master Neville, I have brought you a pair of dried clothes and a towel each. Please dry yourself up and change. Else, you may fall sick."
The kids looked like they were about to object. Sirius added, "I will wait here for you to get back. Once you're here, I will dry myself and change as well." The kids nodded and headed to nearby washrooms to change. They returned after a few minutes. Sirius went and changed as well.
After performing their scans and noting down their diagnosis, Andi said, "Harry will be fine. He is unconscious and magically exhausted, though I cannot figure why he is magically exhausted."
Sirius replied, "Probably because I think he called for the Great Potter dragon." Andi stared at him, shocked. Sirius and the kids recounted the incident after Andi asked for more details. The kids were all confused. Why would calling for a dragon exhaust Harry magically?
Hermione couldn't resist and asked, "What does that have to do with Harry's magical exhaustion? He called for the Great Potter dragon, but how was his magic used?"
Sirius seemed to phrase his answer in his head before he asked, "What do you know about family magic totems and beings?"
"Not much really", replied Hermione.
Sirius looked at the other kids expecting some answer but none of them replied. Sirius continued, "You see, these family magic totems and beings do not exist in this physical realm. Think about it, the Most Ancient and Most Noble houses have been around for at least three thousand years. It is almost impossible that you'd find these beings to exist for such a long period of time in this realm. They exist in a magical realm. A realm where they neither die nor age. They just accumulate family magic and try to protect it. Emphasis on try because what you just saw is not something that happens very often.
"For the beings to show up in the physical realm, a huge amount of magical energy needs to be sent into the magical realm. The creatures and the totems exist as pure magic in the magical realm. The magic that is sent from this realm to the magical realm is used not only to summon the familial magic but also preserve the balance which may be hampered due to summoning of the magical being. When they return to the magical realm, the totems and beings can't be summoned for a few days because they lose a lot of magic by visiting the physical realm, which then needs to be made up. Most of the times, when the familial magic links return to the magical realm, they make use of the magic that was used to summon them into the physical realm.
"Most of the families have a family magic totem or being. Among us, the Potters have the Elder Dragon, the Peverells have the thestral, the Blacks have the adler, the Boneses have the wommel, the Longbottoms have the mistwolf, the Lovegoods have the pooxim, the Dagworth-Grangers have the hippogriff, and the Emryses have the chimaera. All of them exist in the magical realm and can be summoned to the physical realm. However, it requires a great deal of magical power and can cause magical exhaustion."
"Is that the reason why Harry's and my parents couldn't summon them?", asked Neville.
"I think so, yes", replied Sirius. "For a single wizard or a witch, it is difficult to summon them. In fact, to summon them, you will need wild magic around you. That too in abundance. And even then, you may pass out due to exhaustion. James and Lily, and Frank and Alice, weren't at places where you'd say that there is wild magic in abundance."
"The ley lines helped Harry in summoning the dragon", concluded Susan.
Luna, though, had one question bugging her. "We know that there is a lot of wild magic around Hogwarts due to the ley lines. In fact, it is one of the most magical locations. Why did Harry pass out then?"
"That's something I want to know too", said Hermione. "We know that Harry is powerful. You've said it multiple times before. Then why did Harry pass out? Isn't summoning the magical totems risky then?"
Sirius seemed lost in thought when Andi answered the question. "Yes, Harry is powerful. In fact, in all my years, I haven't seen a baby as powerful as Harry was at his birth. You're also right about Hogwarts being one of the most magical places. But before I get to my answer, how do you think the magical totems realize that they are being summoned by one of their own? One just cannot use wild magic, can they?"
Hermione seemed to think a bit before blurting out, "The wild magic needs to be manipulated by our magical core. That is the only way to verify our familial magic."
"Right you are, Hermione", said Andi. "Now, imagine the wild magic outside is like a water tank. It may hold huge reserves but the volume of water you can draw in a given period of time also depends on the tap. If you were to apply the same logic here, the wild magic is abundant; however, the amount Harry can use depends on his ability to use the wild magic for his magical core. Right now, I would say he is probably at thirty percent. Meaning, the amount of wild magic he can draw from the wild magic will triple over time. That doesn't mean he can hold more than the capacity of his magical core; however, he will be able to replenish it faster. To do that, he will need to keep on practicing to center his core. So must you kids."
"I agree with Andi", added Sirius. "It will also be a huge help in the inevitable war against Riddle."
"True, Sirius", said Augusta. Everyone but Sirius was surprised by her. She added, "Oh, I've been here for a while. Right before Sirius put up his privacy spells."
The doors to the Hospital Wing opened and in walked Amelia, Ted, and Dora. Andi updated them about Harry's condition. According to Andi, Harry would be awake sometime the next day; however, he would still need to avoid using spells that would need too much magical power.
The doors opened again to let in Dumbledore who was followed by the professors. He was surprised to see Andi at first but refrained from making a comment about it. Better not irate them, he thought. He asked, "How is Mr. Potter doing?"
Madam Pomfrey replied, "Mr. Potter is exhausted magically. He will be awake tomorrow after a good rest; however, he must not do anything that requires too much magic for a few days."
Dumbledore nodded and said, "Thank you, Poppy." He turned and looked at the concerned people around Harry's bed and said, "I am going to have a word with the Minister. Given how the dementors seemed to have endangered the students, it would be a wise decision to remove them from around Hogwarts."
"And how are you going to ensure that he follows your advice, Chief Warlock Dumbledore?", asked Sirius with a cold and calculating look, as if he was planning to ruin Fudge's life.
Dumbledore stared at Sirius' face, especially those grey eyes. The eyes were filled with righteous rage, though he knew not whom it was targeted to. The same expression he had seen oh so many times on Arcturus Black. Dumbledore hesitantly replied, "I don't think it is wise to discuss it in front of the young students, Lord Black."
"They are my son's friends, Chief Warlock. They want assurances that those filthy creatures would be gone come tomorrow", said Sirius. "So, you either tell me how and guarantee their removal or come Monday, there wouldn't be a Minister."
Dumbledore paled at Sirius' cold proclamation; however, he seemed to formulate an answer, "Minister Fudge owes me a favor or two. I will get in touch with him right away. Besides, as much as you might hate it, young Har-Mr. Potter is deemed a savior of the wizarding world. When Minister Fudge comes to know that his decision might have endangered a student body including Mr. Potter, he will have to overturn his decision. Or at least, move the dementors a bit further away from the castle and that they should not enter the wards"
Sirius just nodded his head. Augusta added, "And you can let the Minister know that if he does not do anything about it, the Hogwarts Board of Governors would be calling for an emergency Wizengamot session to discuss a suitable action."
The headmaster nodded his head and said, "I will let him know, Madam Longbottom."
Sirius asked, "What are you going to tell the school about the Potter dragon?"
Dumbledore asked a question in return, "What do you want me to tell them, Lord Black? I am assuming everyone in this room knows how, why, and where it came from. What do you want me to tell the rest of the students?"
"Yes, though it was a bout of accidental magic. Tell them that you saved him. That it was a manifestation of your magic", replied Sirius.
"I agree", added Amelia. "Everyone knows about your magical prowess. Nobody will question it."
"Very well", replied Albus. "I must take my leave, then. If you plan on spending the night in the castle, Professor McGonagall can arrange for accommodation. Good day." The headmaster gave a small smile, nodded to them, and left with all the professors but McGonagall.
As Minerva was about to speak, the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff quidditch teams walked in along with Ron and Ginny Weasley. Wood asked, "How is Harry, Lord Black?"
"He is magically exhausted, Mr. Wood", replied Sirius. "Healer Tonks said that he needs a good rest. He should be up tomorrow. There are no injuries."
"Where did the big dragon come from?", asked Ron.
Sirius looked at their faces. Each of them was eagerly waiting for an answer. Sirius sighed and replied, "That is something for Headmaster Dumbledore to say." Though Ron didn't seem satisfied by the answer, he knew better than asking further questions.
Poppy Pomfrey, who had been pretty quiet until now, said, "This is a Hospital Wing, not a place to hold a get together. Mr. Potter is fine. You can see him tomorrow when he is up." As she was shooing the quidditch teams and the redheads away, Sirius nodded to the other four kids who seemed to instantly understand what the signal meant. They left with the other students to avoid any questions, especially from the two youngest Weasleys.
The adults and the house-elves came up with a schedule so that at least a pair of a human and a house-elf was always beside Harry. Sirius wanted to be the one beside Harry at night. After finalizing a schedule, they let Pomfrey know. She accepted the schedule readily with the only condition that whenever Harry woke up, Andi and she were to be called for, right away. The adults all agreed. They left the Hospital Wing as a group. Augusta and Star had stayed behind to look after Harry.
Headmaster's Office
Dumbledore entered his office and headed straight for the fireplace connected to the Floo network. He threw a fistful of floo powder and called for Cornelius' residence. Fudge responded to his call within a minute. Dumbledore said, "Good afternoon, Cornelius. May I have a word with you?"
Fudge, surprised to be receiving a call on the weekend, replied, "Ah, Albus. What can I help you with? Can it not wait till Monday?"
"I am afraid not, Cornelius", replied Albus. "It is a matter of grave importance, especially to your office. May I step through?"
Fudge needed no further reasons. Being the consummate politician that he was, anything that was important to his office far outweighed his weekend pleasures. He immediately invited to Albus to step through.
Albus arrived at Fudge's residence and cleaned the soot off his robes. He cleared his throat and said, "Cornelius, I must ask you to instruct the dementors to not enter Hogwarts' wards. I think it would be better if you withdraw them or at least ask them to move a bit further from the castle wards."
The minister looked flabbergasted. He thought, Why in the name of Merlin's saggy balls would I want to do that? Has the old fool finally lost his grasp on sanity? He asked the headmaster, "What happened, Albus? Why do you want me to withdraw the dementors? Pettigrew is still at large. I thought we agreed to have them centered around Hogwarts to protect the students from Pettigrew. If I call them off, what would the public think? I can't be seen doing nothing."
"I know", replied Albus. "However, there is now a new complication. You see, we had the first quidditch game of the season. Lord Black, Madam Bones, Mr. Tonks and Junior Auror Tonks were also present among the spectators. More than hundred dementors entered the quidditch pitch. The mentioned spectators along with my staff and I were able to drive the dementors away. None but one student was in close proximity of the dementors. The student was Harry Potter. He is currently unconscious in the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey said he will be up tomorrow and will probably be back to his natural health within a week.
"Now, Lord Black, Madam Bones and Madam Longbottom have already intimidated that if nothing has been done about the dementor situation by tomorrow, they will be calling for an emergency session of the Wizengamot to address the issue. I quite understand that you don't want to be seen doing nothing regarding the escape of Peter Pettigrew; however, I don't think you should take this lightly either.
"I am also quite sure that the students would be informing their parents and guardians about the incident that had occurred today. Should you not act swiftly, and the Board of Governors bring it up in front of the Wizengamot, your chances of re-election will take a hit. In fact, now that I think about it, they can even move for your dismissal right away and succeed with it."
"How?", was all the foolish minister could ask. Seeing Dumbledore's puzzled look, he asked, "They can't do that, can they? Their alliance might be the biggest alliance, but how can they get the majority required to remove a sitting minister from his office?"
Dumbledore replied, "If it was any other case, it would have been difficult. Assuming they get all the Potter-Longbottom-Bones alliance members to agree, along with the allies of House of Black, they just form the majority to influence a decision; however, the majority is still not the required two-thirds majority to remove a sitting minister."
Dumbledore paused for a moment. Cornelius had a smug expression at Dumbledore's revelation. Dumbledore was not so sure Cornelius would still be smirking after his next words. "But like I said, in any other situation, it would be difficult. In this situation, the dementors entered a quidditch stadium filled with school students, who I am quite sure would have written to their parents and guardians. These guardians and parents would vote with the Board of Governors.
"I like you as a minister, Cornelius. In fact, you would get good press for instructing the dementors to avoid entering the castle wards. All you have to do is hold a press conference and tell them that you are worried about the ill-effects of the dementors on the students, who will be the future citizens of the nation. This way you would also endear yourselves to the parents and the student body at Hogwarts."
Cornelius thought about it for a moment. He wasn't being asked to remove the dementors completely. Rather, he was being asked to move them a bit further from the castle. He could do that. Especially because he was going to get good press for it. Never would the Wizarding Britain have thought they would get a minister as good and compassionate as me, thought Fudge. He said, "That sounds good, Albus. Thank you for your advice. Is there anything else I can help you with?"
"Yes, just one more thing", replied Albus. "As Mr. Potter was falling from the sky, and there were a hundred dementors on the pitch, I had to create a magical manifestation of an elder dragon to prevent Mr. Potter from hitting the ground and to drive the dementors away. The students had all seen the dragon and would have let their parents know. I don't want people questioning why a dragon had appeared in the castle grounds under your leadership of the nation."
"Very well, Albus", replied Cornelius. "I will make sure to mention that. Now if there's nothing else, I've got a press conference to hold and a statement to plan. Good day."
"Good day, Minister Fudge", replied Albus.
Both of them had a smirk on their faces and the same thought, The fool just gave me a perfect weapon to appear in good light in front of the people. He might be more useful than I thought.
Albus had returned to his office and sat at his desk, sucking on a lemon drop. He recounted the last few hours in his head. Harry Potter had somehow performed a great magical feat before passing out due to exhaustion. He was not quite sure how to react to it. On one hand, he thought the boy was getting more powerful and it endangered his plan of sacrificing the boy. On the other hand, he thought it was a bout of accidental magic. This theory was backed up by two proofs, or so he thought. First, the boy had passed out, instantly. Secondly, he hadn't heard from Goldhorn about Harry's visit to Gringotts. All the bindings that he had placed on his core could only be removed at Gringotts. Dumbledore had bribed, er, requested Goldhorn, his choice for Potters account manager, to inform him as soon as Harry went to Gringotts. Since Goldhorn hadn't told him of anything other than Harry meeting for his parents' wills, he was sure Harry still had those bindings, though he had lost the trackers when he had lost Harry's illegal guardianship.
Well, no matter, he would think about it later. Whatever the case, he was going to get another good publicity out of it. Many more students and parents would be enthralled by him and his legacy, just like he wanted. He had to share the limelight with Cornelius, but that fool could be used time and time again. He could do that. The minister now owed another favor to the popular headmaster, which was another positive.
I am Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, the Leader of the Light and not to be forgotten, the strongest wizard since Merlin. Nobody and nothing are as important as me and the Greater Good, thought Dumbledore. He popped another of his lemon drops into his mouth. Oops, my bad. These lemon drops are surely important. Ah, delicious.
That night, Dumbledore had asked the students to stay back in the Great Hall after dinner for an announcement. After the students were all fed and filled, Dumbledore stood and said, "Good evening, dear students. I can see you're all terrified of today's events. First of all, let me assure you that Mr. Potter is currently exhausted. Our resident mediwitch, Madam Pomfrey, will be looking after Mr. Potter, who should be up tomorrow. I know there might be questions regarding the elder dragon that appeared out of nowhere. You see, when Mr. Potter started to fall, I had to act on instinct. I created a magical manifestation of dragon that would not only save Mr. Potter but also drive away the dementors. The dragon was not there to harm any of you.
"On a further note, I had a conversation with Minister Fudge. He has assured me that the dementors will no longer enter the Hogwarts' wards. He has issued an order to withdraw the dementors a little farther away from the castle wards. He would be making a statement that would be on tomorrow's Daily Prophet. Though the dementors are being moved away, I urge you to maintain caution, and report the appropriate authority if you find anything strange. Peter Pettigrew is still at large, and nobody knows what he might be up to." Dumbledore looked around and saw the faces looked less terrified than before. He added, "That will be all for tonight. You may head to your dormitories now. Good night."
November 7, 1993
Hospital Wing
12:45 P.M.
Harry slowly stirred in his bed and made a grunting noise. Ted and Tony, who were attending Harry saw him stir. Ted called out for Madam Pomfrey while Tony left to fetch Andi and inform the other house-elves to fetch the rest of the extended family.
Madam Pomfrey came rushing to Harry's bed. She performed a few scans and noted her observations. She asked, "Mr. Potter, how are you feeling?"
"Thirsty", squeaked Harry. Ted handed him a glass of water which Harry emptied in an instant.
Tony and Andi appeared. Andi joined the castle's Mistress of Pain and went over her observations. Poppy requested Andi to redo the scans just for a confirmation, to which Andi gladly obliged. Andi gave a warm smile and said, "You seem to be doing a lot better than expected."
Harry smiled and nodded. Sirius, Dora, and Amelia walked in, closely followed by Harry's friends. They darted straight towards Harry and grabbed him in a group hug. Star also appeared with Augusta. Remus and Minerva were the last to arrive. Poppy said, "I will leave you all to it, though I must advice putting up privacy charms." She left the group and returned to her office. Amelia placed numerous privacy charms around the group.
Sirius asked, "How are you feeling, pup?"
Harry saw the look of concern on everyone's faces and was overwhelmed by their concern for him. He smiled sheepishly and replied, "I feel a bit tired and hungry. Other than that, I am fine. I feel lucky."
"What do you mean, pup?", asked Padfoot.
"This isn't my first time in the Hospital Wing", replied Harry. "Every time I have ended up here, I've never had anyone fuss over me besides Hermione. I feel lucky that I am cared for."
Everybody was speechless. Sirius stepped forward and had Harry in an embrace.
"We are all here for you now, Harry", replied Amelia. "That's what family is for." Everyone nodded at Amelia's statement. Minerva conjured chairs for all of them, though the kids sat on the bed on either sides of Harry and near his legs.
Harry asked, "So what happened? I remember climbing up to catch the snitch. I felt cold and depressed all of a sudden. I realized that the dementors had probably come in. I pushed harder towards the snitch and then I saw a dementor right in front of me. I heard my mother's scream again and then I remember falling. That's all I remember."
"Yeah, there were more than hundred dementors who had invaded the pitch", replied Amelia.
"More than a hundred?", asked a shocked Harry. "What happened then?"
"That is something we want to ask you", replied Sirius. "There was an elder dragon …"
"Oh, Lumiere came!", exclaimed Harry.
Sirius questioned him, "His name is Lumiere?"
While Andi said, "So you did call him!"
"Yes, his name is Lumiere", replied Harry. "As for summoning him, I didn't know if I would be successful. I was falling and I let go of my magic and interacted with wild magic. My last thought was a cry for help to Lumiere, Godric and Rowena."
"That explains why you passed out with exhaustion", replied Andi. She turned to the rest and said, "As he did not know how much magic would be required to summon Lumiere, he used his entire magical core. Thanks to him, Harry didn't have any injuries nor were any other students harmed."
Augusta nodded and added, "Yes, and the minister has also issued orders to withdraw the dementors a little away from the castle."
"Though, we are pretty sure he just wanted to be painted in good light in the press", said Ted.
Sirius said, "We had asked Dumbledore to take the credit for the appearance of the dragon. We told him it was a bout of accidental magic. Do you have any issues with it, Harry?"
"No", replied Harry. "I don't want any more attention."
Susan said from beside Harry, "The current chatter in the Hufflepuff dormitory is that Diggory offered Wood for a rematch citing that Harry would have caught the Snitch if not for the dementors. Though Wood refused straight away, Diggory had asked him to sleep over it and inform by Monday."
Everyone looked relieved for change in topic. Neville added, "I overheard the Gryffindor team talking at our table this morning. Seems like Wood is going to refuse any offers for a rematch."
Harry added, "He should. I had not caught the Snitch. Diggory did. He won it fair and square." The mood was a bit lightened, and the group were now chatting idly.
Harry was discharged from the Hospital Wing the next day before breakfast. As he sat down at the Hufflepuff table with Susan, Luna, Hermione and Neville, members of the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff quidditch teams walked up to him and checked on him. Ron and Ginny were perplexed why Harry would abandon the Gryffindor table and sit with Puffs when Hermione replied, "Susan is Harry's godsister, so is Luna. From now on, we will be sitting at one of the three house tables, depending on where we wish to. You both are welcome to join."
Sirius Black was not a fan of keeping up appearances with one Ronald Bilius Weasley, nor was Richard Granger. He did not want his son to face any more betrayal than he already had. As much as he wanted to break his son's 'friendship' with the youngest Weasleys, he knew that breaking a friendship without an appropriate blow up will alert Dumbledore of something being afoot.
Richard on the other hand had more issues. True, any friend being a spy and ratting them out, should rot in the hottest regions of Hell; however, what enraged him more was that it was the same redhead who had bullied and mocked his dear princess. He too agreed with Sirius; the friendship had to go. The only question was how?
Suddenly, Sirius seemed to recall a conversation between his pup and the redhead spy. A conversation about a quidditch broom. He asked Crofty, one of the house-elves at Lily's Keep, to fetch him a catalog on Firebolt brooms. In the meantime, he relayed his plan to the dentist, "I remember overhearing a conversation regarding Firebolt brooms. They are state-of-the-art quidditch and racing brooms, and they are quite expensive. Weasley was coaxing Harry to buy one who had no interest in buying. Part of that comes down to the fact that the broom Harry is currently using was his second gift after the demise of his parents. The other being that he has a good broom and probably did not want to make Weasley feel bad. You see, Weasley was getting his own new broom. Though it was just a Cleansweep, it was still brand new. If Harry had gotten a Firebolt, Weasley could have interpreted as Harry stealing his proverbial 'thunder'."
Richard asked, "Where are you going with this, Sirius?"
Sirius replied, "I haven't gotten Harry a gift for years. I mean, I did get one for this birthday, but I missed out on eleven years of it. So, I was thinking, maybe I should get him a Firebolt broom. You've seen the lad fly. Firebolt is supposed to be faster and better to control. If I remember correctly, I had read that you can get one custom made based on the user's height and weight. Apparently, it will affect the efficiency of the broom. Anyway, it will also serve a second purpose. If Weasley lashes out at Harry for getting a new broom, that should be enough of a reason to not hang around the redhead. What do you think?"
Richard replied, "I think that it is a brilliant idea. Are we going to tell the kids?"
Sirius thought and replied, "I want it to be a surprise for Harry; however, we will tell them that should the redhead try to pick a fight or throw accusations, they can stop keeping up appearances." Richard happily agreed to it.
Crofty returned with the catalog. Sirius quickly noted down the required details. He asked Crofty to get Harry's recent medical records from Andi so that he could get Harry's height and weight. Once he had received the height and weight, he filled out the required form and sent it with an owl.
November 19, 1993
Great Hall
7:45 A.M.
As the days passed, the group fell back into the same rhythm. They met up at the Tower on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and the weekends. The remaining days they were in plain sight in front of their redhead spy. Harry's meeting with Dumbledore along with Ragnok's revelation regarding the marriage contracts gave the group a little idea about the reason behind the payments received by the three Weasleys. Though they now despised the redhead, they were still having to keep up appearances. At least till the walking food decomposer lashed out at Harry or any of the other four.
Harry walked into the Great Hall with his friends. The classes had been cancelled for the day because the Board of Governors were going to have a meeting with the students, grouped by year of study from 10:00 A.M.. They saw Sirius, Augusta and Amelia sitting at the Ravenclaw table and joined them. Seeing Sirius' mischievous glint in his eyes, Harry was sure something else was about to go down. The group were bring brought up to speed about the secondary reason behind their visit. They had to pause in between when Wood walked in as Harry handed him a note that Sirius had given.
Mr. Wood,
If you recall our conversation regarding the rescheduled match, I had told you there might be a way to stick it up to the Slytherins.
I had learnt from my son that the injury to their Seeker's arm was caused on the first day of the term. The match was scheduled to be held after 2 months. According to Section 3 (injuries), Subsection 3.12 (rescheduling), Inter-House Quidditch Cup Rules, given that they had known about the injury a month prior to the scheduled match date, they should have requested for a rescheduling before two weeks, at the least. The fact that they did not request one by October 16, 1993, meant either of the two:
The Slytherin team had someone else playing in that position.
The injured player was fit to play.
Requesting for a reschedule after October 16, 1993 for the match on November 6, 1993 due to an injury that occurred on September 2, 1993, shouldn't have been allowed. Instead, the Slytherin team should have been forced to play.
This raised another question. How could Madam Hooch overlook the rules? The answer is she did not. I was investigating regarding the same incident for another matter that you will witness during today's breakfast service. I found out that the note submitted by the Slytherin captain was modified. Madam Hooch doesn't know yet, though she will during the breakfast service events.
Due to the violation of rules, you can petition Madam Hooch to declare that the Slytherin forfeited the match. Gryffindors will be declared winners by default with a score of 250-0.
Wait for my signal during the events.
Sirius Orion Black.
Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Black.
Wood read the note twice and had a feral grin. He looked towards the Black patriarch at the Ravenclaw table and nodded.
Twenty minutes later, Cornelius Fudge, Lucius Malfoy, a toad-faced woman in a hideous pink cardigan and a tall, muscular man. The muscular man had a large cutting axe with him. Everyone in the Great Hall stopped eating at once and were staring at the people who had just entered.
Albus Dumbledore said from his seat, "Minister Fudge, good morning. To what do we owe this pleasure?"
"I come here with grave concern, Albus", replied Fudge. "And to provide justice to one very wronged student."
It didn't take long for the staff and the students to put two and two together. Over the past couple of months, Draco had been insufferable with his 'deadly injury'. And here was his father, Lucius Malfoy, walking in with the minister, an ugly, toad-faced woman, and a brutal looking man with an axe. The fact that Draco and his goons were smirking was more than enough to confirm their suspicions. This seemed like a big, juicy gossip. Obviously, the entire school was now interested.
"Whatever do you mean, Minister Fudge?", asked Dumbledore in his calm, grandfatherly voice.
"I am talking about the attack on young Mr. Malfoy, Albus", replied Fudge. "He was attacked and seriously injured by a hippogriff, that too in a class. Why wasn't any action taken against this?" The minister's entourage had a devious smirk on their faces.
Sirius who had expected this decided to help the headmaster out. Well, that was why the Board was at the school anyway. Not that the headmaster or the staff knew anything about it. They had received a mail late into the previous night regarding a student meeting and cancellation for classes today. The staff had put up notices in the common rooms. He rose from his seat and walked to the center of the hall. Every pair of eyes followed him in silence. He said, "Minister Fudge, I am pretty sure you know who I am. First and foremost, I want you to introduce yourself and everyone with you along with the capacity in which they are present here."
The minister and his entourage stared at him in bafflement. Sirius, looking at their confused expressions, added, "I am Lord Sirius Orion Black. I am here as the member on the Board of Governors, holding votes for the seats belonging to Houses of Black, Potter, Peverell, Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. That's how I want you to introduce yourself and everyone with you. Trust me, we will get to your concerns and grievances, but after the introductions. Each of these students have a right to know. We don't want any complains about partiality and corruption, do we Minister Fudge?"
Cornelius shook his head like a cartoon and replied, "N-No, Lord Black. Of course not. I am Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic." He pointed towards the woman in pink and said, "This is Madam Dolores Jane Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister." Indicating Lucius, he said, "This is Lord Lucius Abraxas Malfoy, father of the victim, Heir Draco Lucius Malfoy and a former member of the Board of Governors." Finally motioning to the muscular guy, he said, "And finally, Walden Macnair. He is the executioner for the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures."
Sirius replied, "I am afraid you've got your introductions mixed up, Minister. It is Mr. Lucius Abraxas Malfoy. His family line hasn't achieved the status of a Lord yet. As for his former membership on the Board, it was illegal. He was illegally using the seat of House of Black. Something either you missed out on or my dear cousin deemed it unnecessary to inform you." Lucius sneered at Sirius' comment, though Sirius did not pay any attention. He continued, "Why do you have an executioner inside the castle grounds without a warrant, Minister?"
Fudge was now worried. When he had agreed to Lucius' request, though with a lot of gold as compensation, he did not know that any of the Board members would be here. At least it was just Lord Black. If the other two witches had been here, he would have demanded more gold from the Malfoy patriarch. This wasn't how he had envisioned the visit to Hogwarts unfold.
The toad-faced woman watched the Lord Black accuse her minister. Dolores Umbridge loved her minister. She was used to doing his dirty work for him, not that he knew all of it. She loved seeing him happy, and a happy minister meant her wishes to torture more mudbloods, half-bloods and creatures were readily approved by him. Seeing the minister quiet after Lord Black's remark wasn't something the toad liked. So, she did what she was known to do. She opened her garb to spew more useless filth, "Minister just told that about the attack on the noble and young Mr. Mal.."
Sirius glared at the stupid woman and cut her off, "I don't recall directing the question to you."
The pink toad was shocked. In all her time during her time at the ministry, nobody had dared interrupt her tirade and lived happily. She had a reputation to keep. "I am the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister. I can talk on behalf of him and the Ministry."
Sirius stared at the woman in disgust and replied, "Really? Do you eat for him? Sleep for him? Do all his daily deeds for him?" Everyone in the hall started to snigger at Sirius' remark.
The bitch in pink was getting purple with rage. "I AM THE SENIOR UNDERSECRETARY TO THE MINISTER AND YOU WILL TREAT ME WITH RESPECT."
No sooner had the words left from her mouth than she regretted it. Sirius replied in a cold, dangerous voice, "And I am Lord of one of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Houses. Do not forget who you are talking to, sprat. One more disrespectful remark and I will end youyou're your family line with a blood feud, and nobody will bat an eyelid." Sirius turned to the minister and added, "Minister Fudge, I ask you again what your business here at Hogwarts is and why do you have an executioner on school grounds without the express permission of the Board of Governors?"
Minister had watched pure, unadulterated rage in the wizard's eyes when he had threatened his pet toad. To avoid his wrath, the minister faltered, "Lord Black, Mr. Lucius Malfoy alerted me about an incident that had occurred in one of the classes. His son, Mr. Draco Malfoy had been severely injured by a hippogriff."
Sirius called out, "Mr. Draco Malfoy, please stand up." The blonde Slytherin stood up, looking smug. Sirius looked at Draco and asked, "Is that true, Mr. Malfoy?"
The blond brat nodded and replied, "It is, Lord Black. I was attacked by a hippogriff in Professor Hagrid's COMC class."
Sirius questioned, "When did it happen?"
"In Professor Hagrid's class", replied the blond.
"You've already mentioned that. When was the class, Mr. Malfoy? What was the date?", asked Sirius.
"It was..", mumbled Draco.
"Come again", replied Sirius. "We can't hear you."
"September 2, 1993, my Lord", said Draco.
Sirius asked Draco, "Why did you not inform any of the professors or the Board?"
Draco was silent. Sirius asked again. Draco replied, "I thought Professor Hagrid would have informed the corresponding authority and didn't mention anything."
Sirius enquired, "When did you inform your father about it?"
Draco, not knowing where the line of questioning was leading to, replied instantly, "The same night itself, my Lord. I was able to send home a letter with the help of my friends."
Sirius turned to Lucius and smiled but before he could say anything, Fudge asked, "Forgive me, my Lord, but what is this with the line of questioning?"
"I will get to it, Minister Fudge", replied Sirius. "There are a few things I want to clear." He turned to Lucius and asked, "Mr. Lucius Malfoy, why did you not bring this to the Board?"
"Like my son, I was also expecting the Board and the school to act without my intervention", lied Lucius.
Sirius questioned further, "When did you inform the Minister?"
Lucius was a better Slytherin. At least, better than his son. He knew that his blasted cousin had put him in a quandary. If the Malfoy patriarch said the truth that he had recently informed the Minister, they could be questioned why he had not informed the Minister sooner given his well-known friendly status. On the other hand, if he lied saying that the Minister had been informed earlier, it could backfire with questions regarding the delay in response, and he was not sure if the foolish minister could save his ass. He decided he would go with the truth and play the 'expected the Board to act' card. He replied, "I informed Minister Fudge three weeks ago, my Lord."
True to Lucius' expectations, Sirius asked, "Why not earlier given your friendship with the Minister?"
Lucius smirked as he replied, "Like I said, I was expecting the Board and the school to act without my intervention. I thought they were more responsible, but alas."
Sirius ignored Lucius' remark for now and turned his attention to the Minister, "If you were informed about it three weeks ago, why did you delay in approaching the Board?"
Cornelius somehow mustered up a reply, "My Lord, there were three reasons. First, I believed in the Board's sense of fair judgment and thought that they would handle the situation. The second reason was that I was caught up at the ministry due the dementor invasion into the quidditch game." He gulped and added, "And finally, I wanted to investigate before accusing." This was a blatant lie.
Sirius was amused, "Oh? And what were your results, Minister? Don't worry, I just want to know."
"That Mr. Draco Malfoy is a victim who was gravely injured due to no fault of his own", replied Fudge.
"And what were your intentions today?", asked Sirius turning to Lucius.
"Execution of the hippogriff, compensation of 10,000 galleons to House of Malfoy and sacking of the unfit and undeserving professor", sneered Lucius.
"What is the evidence of your son's injury?", questioned Sirius.
"Besides his arm in the sling?", asked Lucius. Sirius nodded and Lucius added. "There was a note of treatment from St. Mungo's that has already been turned in to Madam Hooch by my son."
Sirius received the note from Madam Hooch and examined it. He called out, "Madam Bones, Madam Longbottom. Please assist me with this." The two formidable witches rose from the Ravenclaw table and joined the Marauder. He showed them the note and pointed to something, after which Augusta retrieved a file from her handbag. She turned the pages and stopped at one. They compared both the notes. Amelia scanned the note received from Madam Hooch and Augusta had a slight smirk.
Sirius continued, "I am sorry, Mr. Malfoy and Minister Fudge, but there will be no execution, compensation or sacking tonight or any time soon."
"What!", exclaimed Lucius.
"Surely you aren't going to let the culprit walkaway?", asked the Minister.
"Oh, obviously not", replied Sirius. "The culprit is going to be punished."
The minister and his entourage were confused. What in the name of Morgana's tits was going on? Lord Black had just said that there wouldn't be any execution, compensation or sacking but the culprit would still be punished. How was that going to happen? Were they missing something?
Amelia seeing their confusion said, "Minister Fudge, the Board of Governors also investigated into the matter. We have memories of all the students except Mr. Malfoy and his friends from the class." Each and every memory was played on a projector pensieve that was brought in by a well-dressed Potter elf. After the memories were played, Amelia added, "As you can see, Mr. Malfoy was not paying attention in Professor Hagrid's class. Rather, he was busy entertaining his friends. Had he listened to Professor Hagrid's instructions, he would have known better than approaching Buckbeak in the brash and disrespectful manner that he did.
"Furthermore, I have three medical records here with me. One from Madam Pomfrey, the resident mediwitch and two from St. Mungo's from the same healer, one of which has been magically modified and was turned in to Madam Hooch. Madam Pomfrey's observation made on September 2, 1993 notes that Mr. Malfoy has a surface scratch that can be healed within a couple of days. The observation made by the healer at St. Mungo's was on October 31, 1993. It stated that your son was completely fine, and his arm had healed. Were you present with your son at St. Mungo's, Mr. Malfoy?"
Lucius stared at his son, who was now cowering with fear. As much as he did not want to throw his son under the bus, he couldn't take the blame. After all, he had an image to maintain. Besides, he was sure the blithering idiot of a minister was going to ask for more gold. The pompous fool of a son had to learn to be a sneaky Slytherin. He replied, "No, Madam Bones. He had apparently gone along with Mr. Flint." He turned to the Board of Governors and added, "I apologize for my interruption, respected Board of Governors. It seems my son was not honest with me. Rest assured, my son and I will soon be having a lengthy conversation." Draco shivered at his father's remark.
The minister also apologized profusely. The pink toad wanted to say something but the glare that she was receiving from Sirius changed her mind. Augusta had been chosen to deal the final blow. "Minister Fudge, I hope this will be the last time you interfere in the matters of Hogwarts. Hogwarts and her Board predate the Ministry and the Wizengamot. As such, your jurisdiction ends at the entry of the castle wards. If you have a concern, you can alert us; however, you can not execute or arrest anyone for an incident occurring inside the castle wards without the permission of the Board of Governors.
"Now that I think about it, the Board of Governors demands the Ministry pay a sum of 40,000 galleons to one Professor Rubeus Hagrid for his illegal arrest and incarceration during the last school year. House of Malfoy is required to pay an amount of 10,000 galleons for slander against Professor Hagrid. Madam Bones, the Head of DMLE had investigated and found out that Rubeus Hagrid was NOT the one who had opened the Chamber of Secrets all those years ago. The Ministry of Magic will also reinstate Professor Hagrid's rights to a wand, which was falsely revoked many years ago. The Ministry will also provide a compensation amounting to 100,000 galleons.
"To sum it all up, the Ministry will pay Professor Hagrid a sum of 140,000 galleons and reinstate his wand rights. House of Malfoy will pay 10,000 galleons. These must be done by Monday, November 22, 1993. Should any of the demands not be fulfilled, this Board will press charges against the Ministry and the House of Malfoy at a Wizengamot session. The charges will also include illegal entry of an executioner into the castle wards with an intent to cause harm to a protected creature of the castle. We might also press charges against you for interfering in a matter of Hogwarts without the explicit expression of the Board."
"Now see here, Madam Longbottom", replied an exasperated Fudge, "I am the Minister of Magic. You can't …"
"I know who you are", replied Augusta. "I am the Chairperson of the Board of Governors and you're currently inside Hogwarts. You illegally arrested Professor Hagrid last year. Mr. Malfoy here attempted to slander and discredit the professor inside Hogwarts. You might not be responsible for Professor Hagrid when he was a student here, but the Ministry of then did. As the current Minister, you will have to right their wrong." Umbridge tried opening her mouth but was immediately cut off by Augusta, "Please do not attempt at any verbal onslaught, Madam Umbridge, lest you might have to face the same fate as House of Malfoy, or worse." Umbridge shut her mouth.
Cornelius nodded his head and said, "I must reluctantly agree. I will get it done, Madam Longbottom." Lucius just glared at the matriarch from his side.
Sirius turned to Wood and nodded. Wood rose from his seat and said, "Excuse me, Madam Hooch. I would like to petition on behalf of my team."
Madam Hooch rose from her seat and replied, "What can I do for you, Mr. Wood?"
"Due to the recent revelations", started Oliver, "I can't help but notice that the Slytherin Seeker, Mr. Malfoy, was actually injured on September 2, 1993, which was two months before the scheduled match date, November 6, 1993. According to Section 3 (injuries), Subsection 3.12 (rescheduling), Inter-House Quidditch Cup Rules, given that they had known about the injury a month prior to the scheduled match date, they should have requested for a rescheduling before two weeks, at the least. The fact that they did not request one by October 16, 1993, meant either of the two: one, the Slytherin team had someone else playing in that position, or two, their Seeker was fit to play.
"They had requested for rescheduling after the sixteenth of October, which wouldn't have been allowed if they did not have a valid reason. The reason in question was the note from St. Mungo's which Madam Bones, the Head of DMLE, just stated was magically modified. To conclude, due to the violation of rules and rescheduling without a valid reason, we request that the match be declared forfeited by the Slytherin house. As per the rules of forfeit, we, Gryffindors should be declared winners by default with a score of 250-0."
Madam Hooch had heard Madam Bones' comment that the note had been modified. She could feel the entire hall was staring at her. It had been more than a hundred years since the last forfeit had occurred. The Gryffindor captain had made a valid point; however, she didn't feel the punishment was enough. The Slytherin captain and the Seeker had tried to manipulate by producing a fake note. She made up her mind and said, "Due to the new evidence and Mr. Wood's petition, I declare Gryffindors as winners by default by a margin of 250-0." There was a loud cheer among the Gryffindors. Some of the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws cheered too. Madam Hooch held up her hand to calm them down and added, "However, I feel that Mr. Flint and Mr. Malfoy tried to cheat the spirit of sportsmanship and manipulated the rules. Keeping these things in mind, I hereby suspend Mr. Fling and Mr. Malfoy from this season's quidditch championship." Madam Hooch sat down after finishing her verdict.
There was a louder cheer this time. All the three houses were cheering at the fair judgement. The Slytherins were grumbling and staring at the blond ponce. Snape was glaring daggers at his godson. So was Lucius. He was furious with his offspring. He couldn't imagine how he had ended up with such an idiot for an heir. The worst part was he had been embarrassed in front of the minister, his pet toad, and his Death Eater friend. Then there were the 10,000 galleons he would have to pay to the sodding oaf because his son had not been honest with him. That was besides the gold he would have to pay the foolish minister to keep him in his pockets. What does a man have to do to get a clever child? He was so mad that he turned around and left the Hall. The three fools he had brought with him followed him closely. The Board of Governors joined the staff at the staff table.
The cheers and chatters were slowly dying when a huge eagle-owl entered the Great Hall carrying a large package. The owl headed straight towards the Ravenclaw table where Harry and his friends were seated and landed in front of Harry. Besides the package, the owl had two letters. All of them were addressed to Harry. He untied them from the owl and provided the bird with some pieces of bacon and water. The letters and the packages were numbered one through three. Harry did not see Ron join them from the Gryffindor table as he opened the letter numbered one.
Dear Lord Potter,
This is to certify that the accompanying package and letter have been checked for curses, traps, portkeys, and any other nefarious magic. None was found. The package is safe.
May your gold overflow and your enemies crumble.
Ragnok, the Twelfth,
Senior Account Manager, Gringotts.
Harry passed the note to Hermione who read and placed it in her robes. She displayed one with her index finger to her friends. When Harry proceeded to open the second letter, Neville, Luna, and Susan understood the contents of the first letter. Over the summer, the five of them had agreed to route their mails and packages through Gringotts for checking of curses, traps, portkeys, and any sort of nefarious magic. Every time they received any mail from someone not in their extended family, it was rerouted through the goblins and the packages were then numbered to signify the order to be opened in. Mail or package numbered one was always a certification from Gringotts. Harry opened the second letter and found a note and catalog of sorts. He unfolded the note and read,
Dear Heir Potter,
I am David Marcus Bloodworth of Noble House of Bloodworth. I run Firebolt Brooms Inc.. I am sure you have wondered why you owned the majority shares in the company despite the company only being a few months old. I have the answer to that. Let me tell you a small story.
In the year of 1975, I was a third-year Gryffindor. I had tried out for the quidditch team and made it through as a Seeker. Your father, Late Lord James Charlus Potter was my captain. During one of our intense practice sessions, your father observed that my broom wasn't fast enough. It was going faster than it was supposed to go but it still wasn't enough. He was a quidditch fanatic and wanted to win the quidditch cup badly. He went out of his way and purchased the latest broom in the market. You see, my family may be old, but it did not have enough money. He told me, "You have skills, Bloodworth. You were going faster on your old broom than it could go. I am sure you will do better with this new one." And we did. We won the cup.
However, the next year, the broom was going faster than before. Your father keenly observed this and approached me. He questioned about my broom's speed. You see, I had been learning about broom enchantments. I carried out my experiments on my old broom and then used them on my new broom when they were successful. I told this to your father, who was amazed. He told me that if I showed the same enthusiasm by the time I graduate, he would have a surprise for me. I was happy with his encouragement, though I did not expect anything.
Right on the day of my graduation, I received a letter from James with a cheque for a million galleons and a signed contract. He told me that I could start a broom company of my own using the gold. The contract just had two conditions. I was supposed to finish my masteries in broom manufacturing, enchantments, and business for which he had provided 10,000 galleons separately and that the company must hit the market latest by the year 1994. I readily agreed. I knew that James was going to get a share of 51% but it did not matter to me. He was providing me with the funds for my masteries and setting up the company. It was a dream come true. I mourned your father's death. He was a senior I respected. In fact, the name of the company is in his memory. Your father had named his broom 'Firebolt'.
Recently, when another of my teammates, Lord Black, your godfather, sent in an order for a custom-made Firebolt for you, I was baffled. With your latest investment, you own 70% of the company. I got in touch with the goblin in-charge of your accounts and came to know that you had taken over your investments, but Sirius had not had a chance to go over them. Apparently, he gives you full freedom in that area, just like your family rules stipulate.
I let Sirius know that I cannot in good conscience charge him for a broom to be gifted to you. He wanted to make up for all the birthdays he had not been able to gift you. So, this is what we decided. I would let him pay for the standard Seeker's broom, but the company would like to provide the owner with a custom-made Seeker's broom (based on your height and weight provided by Sirius, and some engravings, courtesy of your account manager) and professional Seeker gear. I hear Hogwarts has not seen a Seeker as brilliant as you in more than a century. Not to mention, you are the youngest Seeker in over a century. Your father would be so proud of you.
Our company is one of the sponsors of the Quidditch World Cup. I will provide you with 30 VIP box passes to the World Cup final. As you are the owner of the company, you will have to be present. Please inform this to Sirius and other friends and family you wish to bring along. Do not worry, I have passes for my family, friends, and other officials of the company.
I look forward to seeing you at the World Cup finals, Heir Harry James Potter.
Regards,
David Marcus Bloodworth.
Harry was touched by the letter. He had never wondered about the investment, but he was genuinely happy now. David Marcus Bloodworth sounded like a nice and humble wizard. He folded the letter and passed it to Hermione. As he looked up, he saw Ron eyeing the package in front of him. He was sure most of them had already guessed that it was a broom. A package that long and in the shape of a broom? Obviously, it was a broom. You'd have to be stupid to think otherwise, thought Harry.
Harry looked towards the staff table and saw Sirius smiling like a goon. Harry returned a smile and mouther a silent 'Thanks'. He turned to the package in front of him and started to unpack it. That was the cue. Ron couldn't hold back any longer and started tearing the packaging like an uncouth barbarian. As the last shredding of the packaging was removed, in front of Harry lay the most beautiful broom he had ever seen and a bag tired to the broom handle. Harry guessed the bag contained the Seeker gear. He looked at the engraving on the side facing him. 'Harry James Potter' was engraved in a small but elegant handwriting. Below his name was the Potter dragon and the Potter motto. He turned the broom and saw the other side bore the name 'Firebolt' and the Peverell thestral. He was moved by the thoughtfulness of the engravings.
Harry was brought out of his muse by a certain redhead, "Bloody hell, Harry! You just had to go and do it!"