CHAPTER FOURTEEN: CORNELIUS FUDGE
McGonagall winced at the Chapter title.
"Cornelius Fudge." She read.
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"A great deal providing you count the forest." Dumbledore answered.
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Ron winced again at the comparison between his brother and Voldemort. Even if said brother WAS a two-faced Ministry loving prat.
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The other teachers glared at Snape knowing that the teacher was the reason.
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"Good one!" the twins chorused as Molly glared at her sons.
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"How in the world did you find time for that?" Sirius asked. "Not even Lily was that crazy."
"You'll see next book." Dumbledore answered for her.
"You mean…THAT'S going to be in there?" Harry asked nervously.
"It is a vital part of the story, how Sirius managed to escape when he was cornered at Hogwarts." Dumbledore explained.
"You know, I always wondered that myself." Tonks said to Sirius.
"You'll see next book." Sirius said.
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"Should have taken Muggle Studies. That would have been an easy grade." Harry muttered.
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"What happened?" Molly asked.
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"What on earth?" Sprout gasped.
Ginny looked ashamed.
"Nothing was badly damaged." Harry assured them.
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"Nothing was badly damaged?" Hermione repeated skeptically.
"Nothing IMPORTANT was badly damaged." He corrected.
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Arthur turned to his daughter.
"It's explained later." Harry stated before any questions could be asked.
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"Good. A game to keep our minds off things." Sirius said.
The teachers and the students frowned. Ginny looked near tears.
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"Not another attack!" Tonks groaned.
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"Too true." Fred said.
"Fred. Something has just occurred to me." George said. "This was the day of the match against Hufflepuff."
"Wasn't that also the day…" Fred recalled.
"So there IS another attack?" Sirius asked.
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"You got out in time right?" Remus asked Hermione remembering that she had gone to the library.
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"That doesn't sound promising." Charlie said.
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"You were attacked, weren't you?" Bill asked Hermione.
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"A double?" Tonks asked. "Aurors never hear any of the good stuff."
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"Why?" Sirius asked.
"I had figured out what the creature in the chamber was and I figured it was safest to use a mirror to look around corners." Hermione said.
"You know, I never did ask what it was like." Ron said.
He got cuffed upside the head by Hermione.
McGonagall read figuring that the sooner this book was over, the better.
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Ginny winced.
"He was a Slytherin Ginny." Harry reminded her.
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"That wasn't why" Ginny said stunned that Tom had attacked her brother's girlfriend. Even if it was the Prat.
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"We wouldn't have allowed that." Molly said.
Harry decided to remain quiet. After all, he had been Riddle's target the entire time. And with him possessing Ginny…
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"I should have known" McGonagall sighed before continuing.
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"Not to mention your looks, Quidditch skills, and your talent for trouble." Remus said. "Just to name a few."
"I think it means materialistic possession." Hermione said. "But I see where you're going Professor."
Remus rolled his eyes at the title.
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"I don't recall hearing anything suspicious." Snape stated.
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"Figures." Snape muttered.
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"Foul stupid git." Ron muttered.
"That is your father's boss." Hermione scolded.
"The boy has a point though." Moody agreed with Ron pointing to a discarded Daily Prophet.
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"Ministry should have acted on Attack Number 1" Ginny muttered thinking how that might have scared her earlier into telling someone like Harry about the trance.
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"You're mad at Fudge." Sirius stated to Dumbledore.
"I felt that Cornelius' methods were extreme." Dumbledore stated.
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"Doing your duty would be having aurors patrolling the school." Tonks said.
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"I THOUGHT I heard Hagrid there a few months before I escaped." Sirius said.
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"Who could that be?" Remus asked.
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"What's HE doing there?" Arthur asked.
"Nothing good." Harry said.
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"Blackmail." Moody said. "Blackmail and Bribery is how Malfoy works."
"As the muggle saying goes, 'you're preaching to the choir.'" Arthur said clinching his fists.
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"This was your genius plan to begin with so don't even try to sound like you care, which you didn't" Harry muttered under his breath so that only Sirius and Remus could hear.
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"I wonder how much longer that'll last." Bill stated.
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"NO!" Remus, Sirius, Bill, and Charlie exclaimed as they hadn't been aware of this when it happened.
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"You have no idea how grateful I am to that." Harry said to Dumbledore.
"Do I WANT to know?" Sirius asked his godson.
"Probably not, but you'll learn later." Harry said.
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"Did you know we were there?" Ron asked.
"I suspected when I saw some disorientation in that corner." Dumbledore answered.
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"I bet Ron LOVED hearing that." Charlie laughed.
"Shut up." Ron pouted.
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"I guess to someone who doesn't know that there's someone else in the house, it would sound rather farfetched." Flitwick mused.
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"How much more do we have?" Sirius asked. "Because this story seems to be getting worse by the chapter."
"Only four more." McGonagall answered.
"I'll read next." Ron said not sure if he'd be able to handle reading about what happened in the Chamber.
He took the book and turned to the next chapter and made a face at the title.
"Figures I'd get this one." He stated sounding VERY displeased.
"Do you want me to read?" Sirius asked.
"Nah. I might as well get it over with." Ron said.
"What's wrong with the chapter?" Molly asked nervously.
"Aragog." Ron said.
Harry choked on his laughter.
"Shut up!" Ron told his so-called friend.
"Sorry." Harry apologized. "Just…it figures you'd get the chapter about the spiders."
"Don't worry Ron." Ginny teased trying to get some humor in the air. "I'm sure Hermione will hold your hand during the scary parts."
Harry, Fred, and George laughed.
"Okay. Pick on Ron time is over." Ron declared as he opened the book blushing bright red.
