thanks to 97531 whom I could not find to thank as a guest who gave an identity of sorts. ' integrity means nothing when you are waging a war against crazy terrorist and his band of murderous minions.' quite true.
Chapter 5
Before the Wizengamot meeting, Harry and Neville got to share a joint birthday party, still just the select group of the plotters, but made special by going for a day out to a muggle amusement park with a variety of rides. Harry enjoyed every ride, and Hermione and Neville went to look at sideshows or take more sedate rides like chair-o-planes. Sirius enjoyed rollercoasters as much as Harry did, and the Longbottoms rode a few rides just because they now could. Sirius had picked a park near the sea, so they could go and eat fish and chips on the pier. Neville proved very adept with the pier's shove ha'penny machine, and from the ten tuppenny pieces Sirius gave him to play with, amassed three pounds twenty.
"I have no idea what this is worth," said Neville, bemused.
"It's worth about two coffees from a café, or two small ice creams," said Hermione. "You ought to learn, Neville."
"He will be," said Alice.
"I never had a better birthday," said Neville. "Though having my parents is the best of all."
"I never had a better birthday either," said Harry.
.
.
Sirius, Harry, and Hermione walked into the Wizengamot chamber, followed by Frank Longbottom.
The sudden clamour was almost deafening.
Dumbledore came over.
"I'm sorry, Hermione, but you will have to go to the spectator's gallery. Only heads of houses and their proxies and heirs are permitted here."
Hermione smiled, brightly.
"Then it's just as well that I am a head of house, isn't it?" she said.
"Wha... I beg your pardon?" said Dumbledore.
"I am here as Hermione Denebola Black Dagworth-Granger, to claim my house seat for Dagworth-Granger, and announce vassalage through my mother's blood to House Black," she said.
"I... well, if magic accepts you..." said Dumbledore, numbly. "Harry, my boy, I wanted to ask you to rethink taking up headship of your house; I am happy to be your regent..."
"But, Albus, old boy, I am not happy for you to be my regent," said Harry. "And I have rethought, and decided to claim my headships of Peverell, Gaunt, and Slytherin houses as well."
"Harry! Really, Sirius is very thoughtless, pushing you into so much responsibility so soon," said Dumbledore.
"No, it's something we thought through very siriusly," said Harry with a straight face. "When I went to the DOM to hear the prophecy, we realised that if only I can deal with Voldemort, I need every advantage I can get, and that means political, monetary, and moral as well as sheer magical power. I have to say I consider you negligent in not telling me about the prophecy."
"I just wanted you to enjoy an ordinary happy childhood."
Dumbledore flew backwards as Harry's anger billowed.
He landed in an undignified heap revealing scarlet long underwear with golden snitches on it.
Harry heaved his magic under control, as other people fought the wind.
"Sonorous. My apologies, all; I recently had a dark curse-scar removed and my accidental magic has been flaring whilst I adjust to not having some 70% of my magic bound by it," said Harry, using the spell to reach all. "Albus, you cannot truly think that I had an ordinary, happy childhood when I begged and begged not to go back; so stop trying to manipulate me with words. And you condemned me to that because of the horcrux in my scar which you did not have removed, because any idiot should realise that magic that evil has an adverse effect on anyone around. You're incompetent, and if you were my magical guardian, you neglected to tell me of my place in wizarding society as well. And I'll be having a full audit of my accounts to see if you also played ducks and drakes with my inheritance. Oh, oops, Quitus." He made as if to cancel the sonorous spell, deliberately getting the wrong word for 'quietus'.
Sirius was openly grinning.
Every member of the Wizengamot had heard now the shortcomings of the headmaster. That, alone, had neatly whipped the rug out from under Dumbledore's feet with regards to his attempts to get Harry back under his control.
"Harry! Don't speak of such things!" cried Dumbledore.
"If you had spoken of such things to experts, Albus, the horcruces Voldemort made might have been gathered sooner, and Voldemort would not have been able to be resurrected with my blood last year," hissed Harry, his words still carrying. "And if it had been known, then those with their heads in the sand would not have been able to deny his return, knowing what the agency might be." He managed not to refer to such people as idiotic; they did, after all, have a working truce with Fudge. "What were you planning to do, seek them all yourself? The DOM have destroyed all but one. And if he tries to start again, he'll be even more bat-shit crazy."
Dumbledore gaped.
"I... I thought you would have to collect them to fulfill..."
"The prophecy? Do have some sense," said Sirius, scornfully. "Really, those of you who take divination too seriously have rats in the attic."
"The prophecy says it's him or me, but it doesn't say anything about me giving him a death blow; it could be me designing his downfall and sending people to arrest him," said Harry.
"And what's more, you filled my mother's head with nonsense about Neville being the backup to Harry," said Frank. "I consider you a failure as a headmaster for having failed to protect your students, and I suspect you're going senile. Neville had to ask Lord Black for help to restore our health. You did nothing."
"Now, Frank..." began Dumbledore.
"Lord Longbottom to you," said Frank, icily. "I've come to regain my seat which you've been usurping by sweet-talking my mother. I consider you an active detriment to my House."
This was one step from declaring a blood feud, and there were gasps.
"Frank... Lord Longbottom, are you sure you are entirely yourself?" said Dumbledore, solicitously. "Why, you were in the incurable mental ward but a few days ago... you should have yourself checked out by a mind-healer..."
"I've been checked over by Andi Tonks, thank you, and if you think I trust anyone who considers me incurable when Lord Black was able to find familial magic to cure Alice and me completely, you have another think coming. And with nutrient draughts and muscle strengthening draughts we are quite nearly back to normal."
"In a muggle hospital, of course, you would have undergone physiotherapy to make sure your muscles did not waste," said Hermione, brightly. "Although, alas, the muggle world cannot learn from the magical, those of us who are magic returners can help by sharing our knowledge the other way."
"It can only be beneficial," said Frank.
"Let us swear in those claiming... and reclaiming their seats," said Fudge, hurriedly. "Chief Warlock, are you capable of resuming your duty in this, or did you feel a need to retire for a temporary chief warlock to be voted in?"
"I am perfectly capable of resuming my duties," said Dumbledore. "Harry's emotions get the better of him at times."
"That's true of all of us," said Fudge, who was willing to swear that Harry had not forgotten to turn off his sonorous spell, to leak information the old fool refused to share. He was warming to Harry, largely because the boy was happy to take on Dumbledore as much as... Lord Thingy.
And Harry winked at him as he flicked his wand to whisper, 'quietus.'
There was some shock as Hermione was sworn in, declaring herself 'pureblood.'
"Now, Hermione, we both know you are muggleborn," said Dumbledore, twinkling, and wagging a finger.
"Then one of us knows wrongly," said Hermione. "I have read the laws. The magical child of two squibs of recognised family is considered pureblood. My father is a squib of the line Dagworth-Granger, and my mother is a squib of the line Black. And I suspect many other so-called muggleborn will turn out to have similar heritance. And it's Lady Dagworth-Granger, please. The title coming from my Black inheritance, whence I am Black heir secondary."
"I see. Very well," said Dumbledore, in a fine old temper. Hermione claimed her seat and was washed with light as magic accepted her.
Dumbledore was virtually apoplectic by the time Harry had finished, the wash of light over him as he proclaimed each seat, and that he was Black heir primary. Lucius had leaped up and made a strangled protest, but Sirius was there, agreeing, having taken up his own seat as Lord Black. Frank reaffirmed his position, and the Wizengamot was in session.
With Harry's revelations, and Sirius making a speech praising Minister Fudge for his prompt efforts to put right a wrong of the previous administration, Dumbledore did not even try to raise the question of quashing Harry's emancipation.
Next on the list was Harry's and Hermione's declaration that they gave their proxy votes to Andromeda Tonks.
"The Potter-Longbottom alliance is renewed, and now includes Black and the Black vassal house, Dagworth-Granger," said Harry. "Heir Primary Longbottom and I will be meeting with the other heirs primary of former allies to sound out a continuation of their places in the alliance."
"Any other business?" asked Dumbledore.
"I have some," said Lucius. "I have, in my vault, a concubinage agreement with House Dagworth-Granger, and I would like to activate it."
"I'm not sure that I wish to accept Draco Malfoy as my concubine," said Hermione.
"You'd be the concubine... my dear," said Lucius. "Either to Draco or to myself."
"I think you will find that my vassalage to the family Black prohibits that," said Hermione.
"I can't see how," said Lucius.
"Well, Lord Black has introduced the rule that a Black bows to no-one, and precludes marriage into a family tied to vassalage to any other individual, especially those branded like cattle," said Hermione, sweetly. "That would also cover any underage offspring of a branded individual, on the grounds that the child of a slave is a slave. Since the dark mark can be used to call, or to punish, this would be tantamount to marrying a bonded house elf, and as I deplore the enslavement of any being, I have to agree with my overlord that to place anyone of Black blood in the position of being the spouse and hence parent of a slave is unacceptable."
"I am not a slave!" cried Lucius.
"Then you will be willing to bare your left arm and swear on your life and magic that you are not, and never have been a marked member of Tommy Riddle's herd?" said Hermione.
Lucius was furious. The terms 'cattle' and 'herd' were particularly offensive.
Hermione had intended them that way.
Lucius could not make the oath; it would cost him his magic and his life.
Sirius rose.
"Although this concubinage agreement is invalid, I believe I should like to be given it in order to destroy it," he said. "I will be adding a rule that no Black will ever be a concubine."
"Destroy a good bargaining chip? You have to be insane to think I would give it up so easily, Black," spat Lucius.
Sirius smiled.
"Well, then, perhaps we can agree that you will hand it over, and in exchange, I will not immediately order your divorce from my cousin for failing to fulfil the betrothal requirements."
"What do you mean?" snapped Lucius.
"The agreement was that you were to give Narcissa at least two children, subjecting her to no more than six pregnancies, and in the event that she was unable to bear a child to term to have a magical surrogate into which to implant any fertilised eggs using external means of fertilisation."
"Sirius, that must be dark magic!" cried Dumbledore.
Hermione rose.
"You accuse muggles of dark magic?" she said, amused. "Muggles call this 'in vitro fertilisation' and have been using it successfully for almost twenty years in humans, and longer for husbandry. It is a simple mechanical procedure."
"Really? That's interesting," said Sirius. "I wonder if muggle fertility techniques would help some of our problems with having children, it is worrying that couples rarely have more than one child these days."
"Yes, though I should think magical techniques would make it more effective; less pain for the female in removal of an egg, and the ability to use a stasis field rather than freezing genetic material," said Hermione. "But perhaps I can do a paper on it when I have left school."
"I will get you the concubinage agreement," said Lucius. "We have not given up hope of a second child yet." He gave Sirius a murderous glare.
Sirius smiled limpidly at him.
From Ausar The Vile, a small OMAKE on chapter 3:
'He had had several howlers from Molly, who had also complained that Sirius Black had paid Bill Weasley to add new wards to The Burrow, and had made her look foolish in the eyes of her eldest son.'
Convo:
"That won't be necessary, Bill! We don't need some ward for The Burrow! It's already safe for years. No need to add anymore unnecessary, expensive stuff. "
Bill looked at his mum like she's on double dose of Pepper-Up Potion mixed with Babbling Beverage. "Mum, if you're thinking like that and disparaging the needs to be safer, I wondered how I and the others turned out okay and sane. Probably from dad's line."