This is also a Harry-centric chapter! No worries, we'll have Kurt in the next chapter!
The speech at the bottom was mostly written by me, with some statements taken from the speech given by the French Minister of Justice.
Edited by the lovely Sharon!
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters.
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It was around evening when Harry was finally let go. Draco had made it a point to take Harry shopping for clothes that actually fit him and were suitable to wear in public. Harry let Draco use him as a dress-up doll as long as it didn't make him look like an idiot. He walked to the edge of Diagon Alley and Disapparated to Grimmauld Place, where he kept all his shopping bags, before he left for Godric's Hollow.
The last time Harry had come here was right before he had told Hermione and Ron about him being gay. After the Resurrection Stone, Harry knew that his parents did keep an eye on him from up above. He walked towards their graves, remembering a time when he had to search for them along with Hermione.
Harry reached it in about five minutes, looking at the additions next to it. Sirius was to one side of his Mum and Dad while Remus and Tonks were on the other. However, one more addition which he definitely wasn't expecting was flowers on their graves. He didn't know anyone who was visiting that day.
The flowers looked familiar, but Harry forced it out of his mind and concentrated on summoning his own wreath of flowers. The first time after the War, he decided to go to a florist and get an arrangement done, however Mrs. Weasley had told him that summoning flowers wasn't an insult, as the flowers conveyed your inner thoughts perfectly.
His usual arrangement flowed out of his wand, as he directed it to all five of them. He just stood there for a few minutes, as he looked at the comparatively new gravestones. They had "Mischief managed" carved onto Sirius' headstone. Andromeda was in charge of Remus' and Tonks' stones. As he looked at them, his eyes went again to the white flowers under his own, and it struck him. Those were the exact same flowers Hermione had summoned when they had travelled here for the first time.
He was thoroughly confused. At this point, he wanted to confront Hermione and hope she had gotten her head out of her arse so that they could get over her feelings already. She was a logical person, and her logic should have ruled her beliefs. He didn't want to cry over an opinion for the rest of his life. He gave a flying kiss to the five and Disapparated again, this time to Hogsmeade.
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Harry walked into HoneyDukes. He evidently had read the timing wrong or had spent too much time at Godric's Hollow, seeing how the place was packed. Everyone seemed to be enjoying their tenth flagon of Butterbeer. Harry fondly observed the ruckus, then bent down to catch the serving plate almost dropped by Madame Rosmerta. Seamus immediately cheered out, "And that is how you make an entrance. It's Harry Potter!"
Everyone raised their glass, cheering, "Harry Potter!"
Harry gave a side-look to Rosmerta and asked, "Did you put anything in their Butterbeer?"
Rosmerta laughed gaily as she said, "No love, that's FireBeer. The Weasley twins created the perfect method to mix the two and still make it tasty to drink, before, well…"
Harry patted her on the shoulder, hoping she wouldn't burst into tears and walked ahead, only to shout out as most of his Quidditch Team carried him up.
Harry shouted, "Hey, I don't want to fall! You drunk idiots, put me down!"
The drunk Gryffindors took it literally and dropped him. It hurt badly and as he rubbed his behind, a hand appeared in front of him to help him up. Harry took it without asking, but as he stood, realized the hand was soft. He looked up to see it was Hermione.
It was like the heavens were giving him the opportunity, as he asked, "How have you been?"
Hermione tucked a piece of flyaway hair behind her ear as she replied, "Been better. You?"
Maybe he wanted a rise out of her, maybe he wanted to see how she would react as he said, "Happily in a relationship with the cutest guy you have ever seen."
She didn't have a disgusted look, but a sad smile on her face as she replied, "That's very nice to hear. Is he American or someone from here?"
It was awkward and nice to make small talk with his once-best friend, he thought as a very drunk Ron came up to them and put his hands around their shoulders.
"THIS IS THE BEST NIGHT EVER! JUST LIKE OLD TIMES!"
Harry thought a Cheer Charm had been cast on them as the rest of the bar raised their flasks and cheered, "JUST LIKE OLD TIMES!"
Ron then continued, "C'mon, let's go sit at our table. Loony Luna and Neville are kissing, while Ginny and Dean are keeping score on how long they can go without breathing."
Somehow, Harry felt happy, and it felt like old times as he and Hermione gave each other an understanding smile and they helped Ron to their table.
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The next morning, Harry woke up with Ron draped up on top of him, Seamus at his feet, Neville and Luna on top of each other, and Hermione on the bean bag. He saw the time and knew he had to get ready for the speech. He jumped through the fireplace to the Weasley Kitchen where Mrs. Weasley was cooking and kissed her on the cheek.
She hit him with the spatula and scolded, "You didn't brush your teeth, did you? Go, you stink!"
He bashfully smiled and asked, "Can you make the Hangover Remedy for the lunatics crashed at Grimmauld Place? There aren't many, so you don't have to make a lot. I didn't drink because I knew I had to be sober for today, but…"
She gave him an understanding nod and shooed him off. He rushed to take a bath as he ran through his speech again. He was messing up the last part, and even though he would carry flashcards, he wanted everyone to know that it was a true speech from his heart and not just a diplomatic, politically correct speech.
About two hours later, he was standing on the dais, about a thousand people in front of him. He was a bit nervous, but he reminded himself that he was doing this for Teddy and all the other kids like him out there. He looked to his left, where Hermione and Ron were sitting with Percy, Penelope and many others. They gave him an encouraging smile, and he started:
Good morning, I'm Harry Potter. I am sure you know the topic of discussion here, but I would like to say a few words on how I feel about this.
We have been living in a state of fear for far too long. For more than twenty years, just the name of a maniac made everyone gasp and hold their breath. People preferred to dig a hole in the ground and hide their faces in it than face the truth. However, that time is over. Voldemort is dead. It is time to make new changes, changes that will reflect a new Great Britain.
Werewolves have always been something that were shunned by people. Even if the person was bitten against their will, and had taken precautions to prevent hurting people, they were treated like pariahs. With examples like Greyback, I could understand your plight. But with examples like Remus Lupin, the most revered Defence against the Dark Arts teacher in the last twenty years, I cannot support it.
Progeny should not have to pay for their ancestors' mistakes. For anyone who has been bitten by a werewolf, I want everyone to tell them that they are at home in our society. That we support them and we recognize their contradictions, talents, shortcomings, qualities and fragility. Regardless of our ancestry, each one of us is unique. That is the strength of our world. It is the basis of our relationship to the Wizarding World.
And so I beg you to reconsider your judgmental thoughts, to support such people when they are innocent. To think over your words before you harm a person emotionally. To not pass Government rules wherein a person who is also a Werewolf or a child of a Werewolf is banned to their rights as a Human Being. Thank you, and Good day.
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Let me know what you think!
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