Chapter 7

Justice

It was dreary and rainy the next morning when Harry woke up. A storm had blown in sometime during the night, and the dorm room felt humid and damp because of it. Despite that though, he had slept well and woke up in a fairly good mood. Harry wasn't worried about Dumbledore sneaking up to their dorm, because a few of the Potter elves had taken two hour shifts watching the map at Potter Manor last night, and would continue to do so for every night Harry and the others were at Hogwarts. Not to mention Godric being in the common room, and Salazar in the dorm itself as the last line of defense. They knew that Dumbledore could make himself invisible with a number of charms to get past Godric and Salazar, but no one could get past the Marauder's Map. There was no way Dumbledore could get anywhere near Gryffindor tower at night, without an alarm being raised.

As Harry was getting ready for the day, Fawkes flashed into the dorm with a letter from Sirius saying that Dumbledore had been in the Headmaster's tower all night, and everything had been normal in the Slytherin common room. None of the Potter elves assigned to listen to their conversations had overheard anything suspicious about Death Eater dealings. Harry quickly scribbled a note saying that he would pass on the information to Luna, so that 'Hogwarts could give its morning briefing', and sent it off with Fawkes. Death also appeared to tell Harry that no one had used legilimency, and said that he would immediately let Luna know if it was used, and that Death himself would personally throw the offender in the dungeons, considering that it would take time for the elves to do something about it. Harry knew it was an underhanded thing to do, but he also knew that none of the students, except maybe the older Slytherins, would know how to use legilimency. Snape and McGonagall would still use it if they needed too of course, but if anyone else tried it, they would be thrown in the dungeons. It would only make the ruse of Hogwarts being sentient seem more real. Especially for the Headmaster. Harry called for Dobby, and gave him a note to give to Luna, so that she could make the announcements when she was alone, then he headed for the common room.

Halfway down the stairs, he noticed a bunch of people standing around and could hear several people shouting. He looked over the railing and saw Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Ginny, and Tom in the center of the common room having a very big and very loud shouting match.

"…you don't know anything!" Ron was shouting. "I am your brother. You should be on my side!"

"You're a blue haired, spying, thieving git!" George shouted back. "We don't even acknowledge that you are our brother anymore!"

"Stop it! All of you!" Hermione demanded. "You're upsetting Ginny!"

"It's not like she's innocent!" Fred yelled at her. "She might not be a thief, but she follows Harry around like a love sick puppy! It's creepy!"

"I do not!" Ginny screamed defensively, then looked around nervously.

"Drama, drama, drama." Angelina said with a chuckle, while shaking her head. Then she caught sight of Harry. "Hey Harry, Quidditch tryouts are this weekend. We need to find a new keeper, now that Oliver is gone. Will you tell Fred and George so that they know? I don't want to get in the middle of this." She jerking her thumb in the direction of the shouting match.

"Yeah, I'll let them know." He said.

"Thanks Harry." She smiled. "I have to go find the rest of the team." She said, and set off to make her way out of the common room.

"…shut up you freaky-eyed git!" Ron shouted to Tom. "This is a family matter, and you have no business in it! Why don't you take your bloody snake and go to the Slytherin dungeons where you belong!"

"Then tell Hermione to back out! Or are you scared to take on your brothers alone!?" Tom shouted.

"He's not alone!" Ginny screamed. "He has me!"

Tom started laughing very loudly and very obnoxiously.

"Don't you laugh at my sister!" Ron yelled. "I'll make you…"

"Good morning Salazar. I hope you had a restful evening. I am aware of the fight happening in the Gryffindor common room, and I will take care of it immediately if you wish."

Suddenly the screaming stopped, but before anyone realized it, they were only mouthing the words they were trying to say. It seems that one of the elves had cast a silencing charm on the whole lot of them.

"Now that, that has been taken care of, I have a report for you and Godric. No one has used legilimency, Albus Dumbledore has been pacing his office all morning wondering how things could have gone wrong in such a small amount of time, and the Slytherins are surprisingly behaving. Is there anything else you wish to know?"

There was a slight pause and everyone stared around the room at each other, then at the ceiling as if they would be able to see 'the voice of Hogwarts'.

"Very well then. I will be here if you need me. I hope you all have a wonderful day."

Harry grinned to himself, as everyone cleared out of the common room and headed down to the great hall for breakfast. Tom, Fred, and George were grinning and silently laughing, but that was only because the silencing charm hadn't worn off yet.

"What was that all about?" Harry asked, catching up with Neville on the staircase.

Neville laughed. "Ron started in on Fred and George as soon as they came down from their dorm. He was screaming at them, and demanding to know why they were on your side verses his. Hermione and Ginny jumped in with their insults and accusations, so Tom joined in to even up the odds a bit."

"Thick headed git." Harry laughed shaking his head, as Ron brushed by him scowling.

They made their way into the great hall and it seemed like several Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs had stopped some of the Gryffindors, and were trying to find about the fight. Professor McGonagall was standing at the end of the house table with her hands on her hips, a scowl on her face, and listing to some third years tell her what had happened. She waved them away, and turned to face the rest of the house.

"All of the Weasleys, Miss Granger, and Mr. Ringo will come see me in my office directly after breakfast!" She called out in a stern voice. "Is that understood?"

They all nodded their heads in understanding, and settled down to eat. Dumbledore came into the great hall scowling, but sat down at the head table. Umbridge was glaring at Harry, as if she knew he had something to do with it, but he just looked away and laughed. This was certainly going to be an interesting year.

In Ottery St. Catchpole, Arthur Weasley had just finished eating what he knew would be the last breakfast he'd have to share with his greedy wife. He smiled to himself as he unfolded the paper and sipped his coffee. He knew the goblins wouldn't waste anytime getting here today. Bill had said that they were chomping at the bit to come and arrest Molly.

As for Molly herself, she was just as tense as she had been since news of the thefts got out. Yesterday had been a bad day, because Arthur was not speaking to her. She realized he had lied and that he had seen Fred and George a lot more than he claimed, and she had called him out on it. He ignored her though, and had told her he didn't care about her feelings. It was then she knew, that they had known all along.

Molly had just finished putting away the last frying pan when they heard a knock at the door. Then the door was blown off its hinges with such force, it nearly slammed into Arthur as he went to open it.

Two Aurors, Madam Bones, Bill, and three goblins marched into the house, with apologies toward Arthur, but he just grinned and called for Molly.

"There is someone to see you dear." He called out a bit too happily.

As soon as Molly came to the door, she paled instantly. "No, no, you can't! Bill please!" She cried.

"Sorry Mum. You committed a crime, and a cold blooded one at that." He said with an air of indifference. "I'm not going to help you. I'm only here because I wanted to see you get what you deserve."

"Molly Weasley," Griphook began. "You are here by under arrest for the theft of 800,000 galleons from the Gringotts vault of Harry James Potter. You will be convicted in front of the Wizengamot and sentenced to Azkaban for a total of three months. Please take her into custody." He said, with a toothy grin.

"NO! NO! Dumbledore promised! He said it was ok! Please, you have to…"

"Dumbledore has problems of his own." Madam Bones said, disarming Molly and handing the captured wand to Tonks. "And he will hopefully be in prison soon."

"NO! Please! Arthur! Please!"

"Sorry." Arthur said with a grin. "You deserve what you get. I don't know what Dumbledore said, but I assure you he won't help you either. I have no use for this house anymore, so when you get out of Azkaban, you can have it. However, I won't be here, because we will be divorced. You can live here with your spying thief of a son, and your over obsessive daughter. Bill and I will be living somewhere else, and Percy wants nothing to do with you, as does Charlie. Hope it was worth it!" He said brightly.

"I HATE YOU!" Molly screamed, as tears ran down her face. "I HATE YOU!"

"The feeling is mutual." Arthur laughed.

She started struggling to get free, but Tonks put a full-body bind curse on her and Molly fell face first onto the floor. They picked her up, and apparated her to the Ministry. Bill told his father that he had to go back with the goblins, because there was still a lot to do, but Arthur understood and said he would see Bill later at Potter Manor.

Arthur sat back down at the kitchen table with a lighthearted happiness. He calmly sipped his coffee and read his paper without a care in the world.

"McGonagall gave us a warning, and said that if it happened again that we would be placed in detention." Tom whispered to Harry and Neville, as they sat in their first class that morning. "She also said…"

"Potter! Ringo! Longbottom!" Snape shouted.

"Yes sir!" They said together, with their heads snapping up in unison.

"I'm sure whatever Professor McGonagall said can be told after class." He said, with a smug smile as he looked at Tom.

"Yes sir." They said, and they began reading about the properties and usage of calming droughts.

Ron, Hermione, and Tom had been a few minutes late to potions class that morning, but Snape hadn't said anything because he had heard McGonagall call them to her office. Potions class, as it had always been, was a double class with the Slytherins and Harry, Tom, and Neville were being glared at from across the room by nearly all of them, and Hermione and Ron. Harry didn't care though, he was at a table with Tom, Neville, Seamus, and Dean. Ron and Hermione were at the front of the room, and everyone else was in their usual places.

"Anyway," Tom said, using the hissing of the cauldron to mask the Parseltongue. "McGonagall said that we are lucky that Gryffindor didn't have any points yet because she would have taken 20 from each of us. She didn't have time to say anything else though, because Dumbledore came bursting into her office looking panicky."

"That would have hurt our chances right out of the gate for the house cup if she had taken points, but I wonder what dear old Albus…"

"And if you think I can't tell the difference between the hissing of a cauldron and snake language, you're mistaken." Snape said with a warning tone.

"Don't let Salazar hear you call it 'snake language', because you'll have to sit through a two hour long rant about why it shouldn't be referred as such." Tom said in a mock serious tone, as the rest of the table snorted.

"Fine. Parseltongue then." Snape said impatiently, as he glared at the boys. "I am assuming you all have read the assigned text?" He asked, swooping over to their table in that familiar bat like way of his.

"Yes sir." They chorused.

"Then tell me Mr. Ringo, since you are the newest addition to our class, what is the purpose for the lavender flowers?"

"The lavender plant is well known in both the wizarding and muggle worlds for being soothing and calming to the senses. Muggles plant it outside their homes to achieve a relaxing and calming atmosphere, and people in both worlds drink it in their tea. We, the wizarding world, use it for a variety of medicinal potions. It is the main ingredient for the calming draught simply because it does what the name implies. It calms people down."

"Hmm, it seems Miss Granger has competition for the head know-it-all spot, but unlike her, your answer was not repeated verbatim from a textbook. Very good Mr. Ringo. Take five points for Gryffindor."

If jaw dropping had a sound, Harry was pretty sure it would have echoed throughout the classroom. Snape never awards points to Gryffindor, but Harry knew it had more to do with the fact that Tom was who he was, not to mention it let Snape fall back on one of his favorite past times, Hermione hating.

Harry snuck a glance at Hermione, who was red faced and scowling, and grinned. Hermione however, was not to be outdone and her hand shot up in the air.

"Yes, Miss Granger." Snape said with a sigh of annoyance, without even turning around to look at her.

"One could debate the fact that there are many plants that have calming and soothing qualities." She said. "Furthermore…"

"But this is not a debate class Miss Granger." Snape said sharply, cutting her off. "This is potions. If you have a factual statement about potions I would be happy to tear it to pieces for you." He said smoothly, turning around to glare at her. "Mr. Ringo's answer was not only correct, but well thought out. As I said before, it wasn't copied out of a textbook." He sneered.

Hermione's face turned beet red, and she scowled at the group of boys who were trying not to laugh. The Slytherins didn't know whether to scowl or laugh, and Crabbe and Goyle looked like they were having a rough time deciding. Harry was pretty sure their brains were about to explode.

The rest of the class passed without incident though, and Harry was amazed at how easy potions were now that he and Snape were on friendlier terms. Even Neville looked more relaxed. He had been to Potter Manor a lot this past summer, and had also worked on his potions skills. He didn't even flinch when Snape swooped over to peer in his cauldron, and even smiled at Snape when he nodded his head in approval at the correctly brewed potion. It was clear to all that something about the greasy headed potions master had changed.

Professor Dumbledore stood nervously outside of Cedric Diggory's charms class waiting for the bell to signal the end of class. He had clearly seen the supposed dead boy at breakfast this morning, and he couldn't believe his eyes. The Cedric was sitting at the Hufflepuff table eating, laughing, and talking as if it was normal for dead people to come back to life!

Albus got up from the head table, and hurried to see Minerva. She was busy with the Weasleys, Granger, and that new boy, but this was urgent and needed to be addressed immediately. He had questioned her thoroughly, but she claimed that he had always been alive. He had argued of course, and reminded her that the end of last year Harry had returned with Cedric's dead body. He had even comforted his parents!

Minerva had calmly, though very impatiently, reminded him that Cedric had been questioned by the Ministry about what happened that night, and that it had been in The Daily Prophet this past summer. Albus claimed that he had been too busy trying to find Harry, so he hadn't had time to read the papers, but Minerva had kept insisting that he was wrong. He had to get to the bottom of this, and talk to the boy himself.

"Ah Cedric! I was wondering if I might have a moment of your time. I won't keep you long." Dumbledore said, as the class filed out of the room.

"Sure Professor, what can I do for you?" Cedric asked.

"Well, I was wondering about how you feel. I didn't get a chance to talk to you after the third task last year."

Cedric looked at him confused. "I feel fine sir. I don't remember what happened in the graveyard, but I remember being awarded the Triwizard cup. I was even questioned about it by the Ministry."

"But you were dead Cedric. Don't you remember?" Dumbledore asked, sounding a bit panicky.

"Uh, no sir. I'm sorry. I wasn't dead. I was just knocked out."

"No, no. That can't be. I remember clearly. You were dead!" He cried.

"Umm, no, I wasn't. Can I go now? I have to get to my next class." Cedric said, backing away slightly.

"I remember. Harry came back saying you were dead! Look at me boy." Dumbledore said desperately, taking him by the shoulders and looking right into Cedric's eyes.

Albus didn't get a chance to gleam any information though, because he suddenly let out a very loud yelp, and disappeared from view.

Cedric looked around in confusion, and saw all of the shocked faces of everyone standing around in the corridor.

"I think Dumbledore is losing it." He said shaking his head.

Harry was in a very good mood. They had been reviewing the summoning charm for their O.W.L.s during charms class, but Seamus had somehow gotten the incantation confused with the cheering charm, and hit Harry with it. Thankfully it wasn't too bad to where he had to be led out of the room, but he had however, startled several people when he suddenly burst out laughing. Seamus had admitted his mistake to a very amused Professor Flitwick.

Harry and the others had just gotten out of charms and were on their way to lunch, when 'Hogwarts' began to speak.

"Now that class has let out, it is my duty to inform Professor Minerva McGonagall that Headmaster Albus Dumbledore is now residing in the dungeons. He attempted legilimency on a student. He has been given a chamber pot, but his wand has been taken away, and will be tended to by a house elf, so there is no need to have any contact with him. Unless of course, you desire to speak with him. As Deputy Headmistress it is your responsibility to temporarily take over his duties while he is incapacitated. I didn't want to interrupt classes with this announcement. I hope you all have a good day. Thank you."

Harry, Tom, and Neville burst out laughing at this news, and immediately ran to the great hall. Fred and George were nearly in tears when they reached the Gryffindor table, and Professor McGonagall was at the head table shaking her head in disbelief. Snape was nowhere to be seen, but Harry imagined that he was in his office laughing his arse off.

"I wonder who it was." Tom asked, as he helped himself to a couple of sandwiches.

"Cedric Diggory." Fred sputtered. "We were in the charms N.E.W.T. class with him and Dumbledore was waiting for Cedric when he got out." He explained. Then he repeated the whole story to the others.

"He just yelped and disappeared." George laughed.

"I imagine Godric and Salazar are having a good laugh over this as well." Neville said, nearly spilling his pumpkin juice because he was laughing so hard.

"I don't think this day can get any better." Harry said with a laugh. "It's too bad the cheering charm is starting to wear off now, because that would just make this whole thing even better."

"Ah Harry, don't get to ahead of yourself." Neville warned. "We still have Umbridge this afternoon."

"Yeah, but not even Umbridge and her horrible blood quills can ruin this day." He grinned.

Harry was still in a good mood by the time Defense class came around. It was the last class for the day, and he couldn't wait to get back to the common room and talk with Salazar and Godric about the Dumbledore situation. The whole school had heard what happened with Cedric by now, and it was whispered throughout Hogwarts that Dumbledore was chained to the wall in the dungeons, and that Filch was torturing him. This of course was not true, but Harry couldn't be bothered by trying to squash the rumors. At least they weren't whispering about him this time.

As they walked into the classroom, Harry noticed that it looked the same as last time, and he was pretty sure her office would have those ugly cats on the wall as well. That didn't detour his good mood though, because this time would be different.

Umbridge was standing at the front of the room in her frilly pink robes, and was smiling that wicked sweet smile that she always had. It made Harry nauseous just to look at her.

"Good afternoon class. I'm Professor Umbridge, and I am your new Defense Professor."

"Yeah, because I thought we were in charms." Draco whispered loudly.

"There is no need for sarcasm Mr.…?"

"Malfoy." Draco answered proudly.

She smiled brightly at him. "Yes, I know your father quite well. He works closely with the Ministry, and has contributed to numerous charitable causes, and had supported some very important changes to certain laws."

Neville made a retching noise, but quickly covered it up with a cough. Umbridge glanced at him sharply, then to Harry, but chose to ignore it. Harry and Tom kept their faces calm, but grinned at Neville when she looked away.

"In this class I will be teaching you theory, and there will be no need for your wands. It has come to the Ministry's attention that the subjects and spells that have been performed in this class are not acceptable, so we want to give you a safe environment for you to learn in."

"What about our O. ?" Lavender asked. "We need to perform practical magic for them."

"By the time we are done you will be able to perform them just fine." Umbridge answered in a mockingly sweet voice.

"But what about defending ourselves?" Harry asked. Wow talk about Deja Vu! He thought.

"And why do you feel the need to defend yourself Mr. Potter?" She asked sharply.

"Voldyshorts." Tom cut in, with a slight grin. "It's no secret that Voldyshorts is back."

She blinked at him a few times. "I'm sorry?"

"Voldyshorts." Tom repeated. Then he rolled his eyes. "Voldemort."

"Don't say his name!" She snapped, but then she smiled again. "Mr. Ringo, why do you think You-Know-Who is going to attack you?"

"I don't think Voldyshorts is going to attack me." He said, and Harry, Neville, and even Draco snickered. "Harry has put him in his place a few times, but it wouldn't hurt for the rest of us to have the upper hand against him, just in case." He said.

"First of all Mr. Ringo, I don't think you should call You-Know-Who that name. It might anger him if he hears it." She said, which caused them to nearly laugh out loud. "Second, whether or not Mr. Potter has 'put him in place' or not doesn't matter. He is not going to attack a school full of children."

"But how do you know? Voldemort…"

"Don't say…"

"I'll bloody well call him whatever I want to." Tom said coldly. "Voldemort, Voldyshorts, Tom Riddle, it matters not. Point is…"

"I will not be talked to like that in my class Mr. Ringo." She snapped.

"Then teach us how to properly defend ourselves against the dark arts, and I won't have to." He said raising out of his seat a little. "If someone were to perform Fiendfyer, how would one stop it? Or if Voldyshorts were to come in here and…"

"Enough!" Umbridge shouted. "Sit down Mr. Ringo, or I will be forced to give you detention."

"Why because…"

"Detention!"

Tom looked at her coldly. "Fine, but I don't think you are qualified to teach this subject."

"I am fully qualified to teach…"

"Oh really?" Tom asked, raising his wand.

"Expelliarmus!" She cried, and Tom's wand fell to the floor with a clatter.

He glared at her, opened his mouth, and out of it erupted a large flaming snake. Umbridge screamed, stumbled backwards, and tried to dispel it, but it was no use. The snake bobbed over her head in a threatening manner, and it was only when Tom dispelled it himself that it disappeared.

"If I had wanted to, I could have hurt you, but seeing as you couldn't even get rid of the bloody thing tells me you are not qualified to teach this class!" He yelled. "What if I had been aiming to harm someone? Would they know the proper incantation to dispel it? No, they wouldn't have."

"That was dark magic!" She screamed. "That was Fiendfyer! I'll have you expelled if you try that again!"

"It was NOT dark magic, or Fiendfyer you idiot woman!" He roared. "It was a simple fire spell charmed to look like a snake, but the fact that you can't tell the difference solidifies the fact you are not qualified to teach this class!"

"Detention!" Umbridge screamed again. "One week's worth!"

"I think Salazar is right." Harry said calmly. "Hogwarts has gone downhill."

"Indeed." Tom said, sitting back down.

"Do wah, do wah, D.A. D.A. Do wah, do wah, D.A. D.A." Neville sang with a grin, and Harry and Tom snorted.

"Maybe Salazar will volunteer to teach." Harry suggested.

"Salazar himself should teach this class." Neville said. "He'd do a lot better than her, and he's a painting for Merlin's sake!" He cried, jerking his thumb in Umbridge's direction.

"I don't know." Tom said thoughtfully. "Godric might fight him for it."

"Twenty galleons says Godric wins the fight." Harry grinned.

"Yeah, he has his sword!" Neville laughed, and Tom grinned at him.

Umbridge's eye flicked back and forth between the boys, and she became even angrier. "Detention! All of you! For one week!" She screeched.

"Why? We aren't doing anything wrong." Neville said calmly.

"You are disrupting my class!"

"We aren't learning anything anyway."

"Truer words have never been spoken Harry." Tom said with a nod.

By this time Umbridge was fuming. Everyone else in the class was looking from them, back to Umbridge with wide eyes. A few of the Slytherins were laughing though, and it diverted Umbridge's attention from Harry, Tom, and Neville.

"You three!" She cried, pointing to Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle. "Why are you laughing!?"

"Because it's funny." Crabbe said, before Draco could shut him up.

Umbridge clinched her fists tightly, and began scribbling something down on a piece of parchment. "Minerva is busy with class right now, but I think Severus is free." She said with a wicked grin aimed at the Gryffindors. "All six of you are to report him this instant."

She thrust the paper at Tom, and demanded that all six of them leave the class at once. Tom, Harry, and Neville made a big production of grumbling about 'the greasy Slytherin potions bat', before stomping out of class. When they reached the hallway though, they broke down into laughter.

"You owe me five galleons Harry." Neville said cheerfully, as he walked backwards down the hall. "It took her more than five minutes to crack."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Harry grinned.

"I don't know if Severus is going to be happy that she cracked so soon, or if he's going to be angry because she didn't crack sooner." Tom laughed.

"Wait, that was planned?" Draco asked with surprise.

"Yeah." They chorused.

"My Lord, let us help you. We know you all are trying to get rid of Dumbledore for some reason, but we can help."

Tom sighed. "Draco, don't call me that. Especially not here. It's just Tom. I hate being called everything else. I always have." He said stopping to look at him. "As for your offer, I don't know. We will have to talk about it. I will let you know one way or the other."

"Yes, My…sir."

Tom sighed again. "Just Tom." He said, shaking his head.

They made their way to the dungeons without an incident, and when they got to Snape's office door, Tom knocked loudly. Snape threw the door open, but was startled to see Draco and the others with them.

"They got thrown out for laughing." Tom said with a grin.

Snape rolled his eyes, and beckoned them inside, taking the note from Tom as he passed by.

"For a week?" Snape asked.

"Yeah, but it was worth it." Harry laughed. "You should have seen her face. It was all blotchy, red, and it just made her look even more like a toad."

A slight smile twitched at the corner of his mouth, but he didn't say anything.

"Have you seen Dumbledore?" Neville asked with a laugh. "Rumor has it that he is chained up."

"No, but I think Minerva has. Who did he try to use legilimency on anyway?"

"Cedric Diggory." Harry said with a grin, and this time Snape did laugh.

"I can only imagine why." He said sputtering, but then he turned to Draco and the others. "You may all go to the common room. You're not in trouble with me, and she only gave them detention. Don't speak of this to anyone though." He said with warning.

"Yes sir." They said as they shuffled out, but Draco stopped in the doorway. "We can and will help. I hope you let us." He said. Then he closed it tightly behind him.

Snape looked at Tom. "I think that might be wise." He said, after casting the Muffliato Charm.

"Do you really think so?" Tom asked, and Snape nodded.

"But there is the fact that Draco is a slimy git. We have to look at the fact that he might be trying to gain information, or simply want to sabotage our plan." Harry said.

"Sabotage no, gain information yes." Snape said. "I know for a fact he was instructed by Lucius to get on your good side." He said looking at Tom.

"Well as long as he keeps his nose clean he will stay on it." Tom said with a shrug. "However, they might just come in handy. What does Lucius want to know?"

"Why you've changed. He's willing to follow you anywhere. The others though, are getting restless. Well the ones that are left. Madam Bones has done a good job tracking them all down and putting them in Azkaban."

Tom laughed. "So I've read. The papers are doing a good job of reporting the trials." He said with a grin, but then his face became serious. "Do you think Lucius is really loyal?"

"Now that you have returned, yes I do." Snape said with a definite nod.

"Yeah, but Malfoy Sr. is an arrogant, bigoted, cruel, and evil little man." Neville protested. "Would he be willing to play by our rules?"

"That is a very good question Neville." Tom said pointedly. Then he turned to Snape. "What do you think Severus? Would he be willing to give up the bigotry? I don't care if he's arrogant, that is just how he is, but the torture and humiliation of muggles, muggle-borns, and half-bloods will have to stop. And by torture I mean support of certain laws in the Ministry, and such things like that. The only reason I have not turned him in is because he has always showed reluctance in killing and physically harming someone. He would always let others do that, particularly Bellatrix."

"If we bring in Malfoy and the others, I have certain things that I don't want to get out. First is the whole dying and coming back to life thing. Second, no mention of Potter Manor, and third our secrets as far as Luna being Hogwarts, Death being on our side, and things like that." Harry said. "Maybe it's the way he has treated Mr. Weasley all these years, and the way he tried to hurt Ginny, but I don't trust him. I may not like Ginny, but you have to look at the fact that she was only 11 at the time that happened."

"That is true." Neville said.

"If he really wants to help us," Harry went on. "He can start by using his influence to change things for the better for muggle-borns and half-bloods. I'm not saying he has to make Draco marry a muggle, but this crap has to stop. Pure-bloods do not own the wizarding world."

"He's right." Tom said, looking at Snape. "If he is willing to let go of his bigotry and hatred, then I say we let him take on that role. We will handle Dumbledore, Lucius can handle the other stuff."

"I will speak to him about it." Snape said. "I admit he may not like it, but he is willing to do almost anything to stay in your good graces."

"Assure Lucius that this will indeed accomplish that." Tom said. "As for Malfoy Jr. and company, I will think on it and see if we have a spot for him. Whether it's spying, keeping Ron and Hermione occupied and out of the way, or simply as a back up plan. Albus is not a stupid man. He will eventually figure out what's going on. He may not recognize me, but he will suspect something is familiar about me, and we have to be ready when that happens. We may end up having to bring Slytherin House onboard."

"As much as I hate to admit it, but you're right." Neville sighed. "We may need to use them. We have already done a fair job at planting the 'Dumbledore is evil' seed, but we may need them to spread it around even more."

"Yeah, but do we really want the Slytherins to know that it was Dumbledore controlling you all along? Won't that upset them?" Harry asked, looking at Tom.

Tom shook his head. "No. Some of them already knew, but the more fanatical ones didn't, and they are the ones in Azkaban. Lucius is one of them that knows. Albus had his reasons for making me create and use the Death Eaters, and that was to scare everyone and make them afraid of me so he could swoop in and save the day, but I had my own purpose. Protection from Albus himself. Lucius, Crabbe, and Goyle know this. That's why I told him you had helped me more than they had, when we first saw him in Diagon Alley." Tom said. Then he turned to Snape. "I never told you because at the end of the war, you turned to him. I hope you are not mad about that Severus, and I hope you can forgive me for not trusting you with that information."

"I can." He nodded. "It makes sense to protect yourself. We were all running around doing that man's bidding. None of us knew which way was up."

"But the Death eaters still followed you." Harry pointed out. "Why would they do that if they knew the truth? That doesn't make sense to me."

"Because I am powerful Harry, and I can teach them things they wouldn't otherwise know about. I got really deep into the Dark Arts to see if there was a way to harness them for protection. I found out things most have not even thought of. Dumbledore may have used me to get fame and glory, but I learned how to harness the Dark Arts, and it made me powerful because of it." Tom said. "The Death Eaters loyalty to me goes much deeper than the 'we just want to scare and kill people' thing."

"I can understand that." Neville said with a nod. "Look at it this way Harry, they know more about who can be trusted, and who can't as far as the Death Eaters and Slytherin House goes. I say we let them handle that. It is only the first day of school. So much has happened already, and we still have all year to go. If it even gets done this year. We don't know how long it's going to take, to take Dumbledore down. He might be out of the way for the next few days, but that isn't going to last either. We need all the help we can get. Dumbledore might be a barmy old codger, but as Tom said, he's not stupid, and he is very powerful even without the Elder Wand."

Harry had to admit that Neville was right. He was still hesitant, but he agreed to let Tom and Snape deal with the Death Eaters and Slytherin House. On the surface, Dumbledore might seem like one man, but they didn't know how far dear old Albus was willing to go to protect himself. Who knows what kind of things he's learned in his lifetime. After all, the man was 115 years old.