The leader

Chapter 28

The Wizengamot

Severus allowed himself to be Apparated by Harry. Of course, he found the ordeal less distasteful than he had thought just minutes earlier, mostly due to the fact that he found himself relishing Harry's body pressed up against him, holding him tightly. It reminded him of last night; he began to wonder if he would ever feel those sensations again. He cursed silently; damn his own thoughts― they were betraying him and his bid to keep himself safe. Then again, had he not decided to allow himself to see where this would go?

Harry had helped him more than Dumbledore had, and even more than the Dark Lord had promised to do. He asked for nothing in return; Severus knew that, truthfully, there was nothing to give, was there? Harry didn't need him to spy or spill information on people.

"Are you alright?" Harry enquired as he set his hand on the courtroom door, staring at Severus to try to make sure this was what he wanted to do. "Have you changed your mind?" His tone was impassive, giving none of his thoughts away .

"No," Severus strongly declared. He would do this; Dumbledore had lied to him, and it had made his life harder than it need have been, back in his younger days. He would do what Dumbledore had obviously decided he wouldn't or shouldn't be allowed to do: claim the Prince inheritance. He would take the seat and title belonging to Lord Prince – him.

"Very well," Harry stated sharply. With that he flung the door open and watched everyone jump, reaching for their wands out of fear... with the obvious exception of Amelia Bones, who had been waiting for their arrival with anticipation if the twinkle in her eyes were anything to go on. The other wizards there were idiots; as if those wands could possibly hurt him. He was a vampire; he could kill every single person here without blinking... quite literally, since he didn't have to blink at all as a creature of the night. Observing the people in the room, he noted that many of them were old... over one hundred years old… he was by far the youngest person here. With the exception of Severus, he would surmise the youngest here was at least fifty years of age. He would get Brecon to do a thorough background check on them; he needed to know everything about the people he was interacting with.

"Excuse me for interrupting, but I do believe you are expecting me," Harry told them coolly as he walked in properly, his cloak obscuring him from view and giving him an even further dramatic touch. He had to respect those members that kept their cool and observed him just as closely he was watching them.

"Who are you?" Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, demanded. He was puffing up indignantly, as if this person was insulting him by taking his time before introducing himself.

Harry's green eyes glared at Fudge, loathing the way the disgusting, nauseating, cowardly wizard was talking to him. The wizard wasn't even fit to be in the same room with him; he was a traitor to the magical world, and if he didn't die before Harry took over, he would make sure that Fudge spent the rest of his days in Azkaban prison. He would not remain free when the change over happened, that much he was certain about. Fudge couldn't see his eyes, but he would be aware of the intensity of his glare.

Severus observed everything that was happening, slightly obscured by Harry – which made him grimace slightly. He had lost his towering tallness; he was still tall, just not as tall as he used to be, thanks to being de-aged. The look on Fudge's face made him want to laugh; he looked ready to pass out and pee himself at the same time. He knew how scary it was to be on the receiving end of that look; he had been once himself, caught snooping around Harry's room and reading the files he had on everyone – very thorough information at that. Brecon, if he remembered correctly, was the one who dealt with gathering information; he did one fine job.

The tense silence continued; apparently none of the Wizengamot members wanted that attention turned on themselves. Good, they were intimidated, as they should be. It looked as if they had a brain in their heads after all. He couldn't help but wonder if Harry had anyone other than Bones on his side. He wouldn't be surprised – nothing could surprise him any longer. He did wish he knew who they were. And unless it came up in a conversation some time, he knew it was extremely unlikely that he could ask and actually receive an answer.

"I do believe proper introductions should be presented don't you?" Amelia asked, standing up and nodding towards first Harry, and then Snape as she added, "And of course, let us know who your companion is." Genuine curiosity lingered in her eyes that even her monocle could not hide. She had no idea about him; did that mean she wasn't in the highest circle, along with those who knew everything? He thought not, since she was obviously not in the know about him – which meant Harry compartmentalised all information ... and Severus remembered what Rick had told him: The best duellers knew almost everything, the lower ones only so much. It was the best way to know if there was a spy and where they were in terms of the organization's hierarchy. They would also know what information had been compromised this way. Yes, he was getting more proof of how smart Harry was each day.

"Indeed; Amelia Bones, I assume?" Harry declared smoothly, not moving to shake her hand.

"I am," she said, her eyes twinkling brightly.

"Pleasure to meet you," he told her, before his eyes switched to scan across everyone else still watching him, frozen in place in their seats. "I heard something about you taking away my fortune if I did not show up at the Ministry," Harry said icily.

Some cringed, some flinched, and some found the floor to be massively fascinating. However, a good few were eyeing him curiously, not affected his voice or words. Harry didn't expect them all to be cowed by his presence, so he wasn't overly bothered by that. Some purebloods had been raised to never display their emotions from the age of three or four years of age. He suspected that those were the ones in the Dark Lord's camp, either that or they held themselves neutral. He could see they were trying to figure out who he was, trying to see his face, or discover some indication of who he was by the clothes he wore. Not that they would, he wasn't stupid enough to advertise who he was... but after today it would not matter.

"Since when does the Ministry dictate what private citizens could do with their lives and fortunes? You are aware of the massive scandal something of this magnitude could create?" Harry sneered; oh he was going to enjoy this. He could also sense that Severus was as well.

"Who are you?" Fudge cut in, managing to muster up a little respect in his voice and not down right antagonise this unknown wizard. He had no idea who he was, so it was best to tread lightly; perhaps he could have some uses.

Harry's lip curled, he didn't need to read Fudge's mind know what was going on in that head of his. If he thought he would be using him, he had another think coming. Plus when they found out he was a vampire, he surmised they would either back away in disgust or pretend to give a shit. He didn't care either way, but everything would work better with the magical world on his side. There was no way he was going to insult Kai in death by stating it was his fault, since he had given his full consent to be changed. "Harry Potter; I'd say it's a pleasure, but it isn't," Harry told them harshly, thinking that he'd end up poking someone's eye out if he lied. 'Pinocchio-wise', he thought sardonically.

Then the whispers started immediately after, getting steadily higher in pitch as the Wizengamot's members stood up, all shocked to the core. They couldn't believe it; he had been missing since he was eleven years old. Most wouldn't admit it, but they'd all assumed he was dead ― that something had happened to him. Yet here he was standing in front of them, speaking harshly to their Minister of magic, of all things. Many were indignant that he would be so curt; quite a few were hiding smirks, as if it was their greatest wish to see Fudge brought down.

Harry turned to Severus. "What makes them think they have the right?" he hissed, green eyes flashing in fury at the whispered suggestions going around the room. They were suggesting he should not have a wand since he did not finish his magical education... or so they were assuming. It took all his willpower to stop himself from flinging them all into the wall and draining them dry for their expectations.

"They think it's their Merlin-given right to have a say in everything to do with you, after the attack on your parents," Severus said honestly, having no fear of mentioning the Potters since Harry didn't seem to react to their deaths at all. He had been furious at Peter Pettigrew, yes, but not in the way that was emotional; he'd been more pissed off that Pettigrew had betrayed someone, not particularly at the fact he'd betrayed his parents. Severus was quite annoyed and worried himself. It was the law; they could remove Harry's wand ― not that it would deter Harry the slightest since he could do Wandless magic ― but were they idiots? They knew Harry was their last hope for destroying Voldemort; many were whispering they now had a chance of the war ending after all.

Bearing his teeth in irritation, he turned back around and removed the cloak that was concealing his face and body. A choked rasp left Fudge's throat, as he caught sight of him. The others' reactions were varied, including drooling, gaping, gasping, horror, disgust, badly concealed lust, and appreciation. Now that was better, thought Harry, all their noise would have given him a headache ... if he'd been capable of getting them.

"Now that I have your attention, I, Lord Harry James Potter, being sound of mind, last of the Potter line, Black heir, Lord of the Gryffindor line… and last but by no means least, Lord to the Slytherin line, wish to take my seats among this 'honoured' body," Harry said smoothly, stepping forward. Everyone immediately began to move their chairs, giving the 'Potter' area a wide berth as the chair Albus Dumbledore usually used began glowing brightly before them. Instead of just one coat of arms, there were four insignias magically imbued in the back of his seat.

Stepping forward, his stalk confident and satisfied, he took his seat, smirking sardonically at them all. He wasn't what they were expecting, not hard to believe since they had thought him dead, if their shocked, glazed eyes were anything to go by. They were still so shocked that they hadn't even spared a glance at Severus, who was still standing there. Harry hated that he was here, having to reveal himself to all these people. It could have been worse, he consoled himself somewhat bitterly, Dumbledore could have been there; he might as well make the most of it. His people didn't like his being here either, for they couldn't protect him in the Ministry. Although he had contemplated bringing them in, he'd nixed the idea; he wanted people to underestimate him.

Nobody recognized him, thought Severus, staring at them through hooded black eyes. He wasn't sure how he felt about that, but he definitely didn't like the way a few of them were staring at him― as if he was a piece of delectable meat that they wanted to eat. He knew what he looked like, or well… at least he thought he had… he'd never considered himself attractive, so having people staring at him with desire was something new… and felt very wrong. To make matters worse, he could swear Harry was glaring holes into those that were staring at him, as if he was hoping he could spontaneously fry their brains. Surely that was a sign this wasn't a temporary assignation? Then again, Harry seemed inordinately possessive of everything he considered his. It certainly made his stomach clench; whether it would be a good thing or a bad thing, he couldn't tell.

Now was not the time to be thinking about this, though, he had to claim his seat, and from what Harry'd said… Amelia Bones was up to something ― something Harry wanted approved and pushed through.

"May I introduce to you the Lord of the Prince estate," Harry said, gesturing towards Severus seeing as he wasn't about to talk. He seemed lost in thought to Harry, or extremely tongue tied, which was unlikely; either way, he wanted to get the show on the road just in case anyone contacted Dumbledore. Not that it seemed as if anyone had gotten in touch with the old wizard; he couldn't risk surprises. He knew Dumbledore had a few close friends within the Wizengamot ―a wizard called Doge was one of them― but hopefully they were at the Order meetings with the old fool.

"Prince? What tomfoolery is this?" a white-haired wizard demanded, glancing between both of them. "That line has ended."

"Eileen Prince gave birth to a son, a son that went by his father's name… I'm sure you'll all recognize it… Severus Snape," Harry revealed. His face was impassive, but he thoroughly enjoyed knocking everyone five ways to Sunday.

"Impossible! Severus Snape is…" the same wizard spoke as the rest spluttered incoherently.

"Thirty-nine years old?" Severus put in before an argument could begin. "This can be settled very simply, can it not?" His sneer was evident even without needing to look at his face.

"Of course," Amelia said, standing up. "Please," she added, letting him know to continue.

"I, Lord Severus Tobias Snape," Severus grimaced, he hated his bloody name, hated the fact he was named after his abusive father. Unfortunately, his mother had adhered to the strict traditions the purebloods liked to observe: the first-born male was always given the father's first name as a middle name. "...Hereby claim my seat within this 'honoured' body, and take up the mantel of Lord Prince." It was the moment of truth, showing whether Harry was right… but considering everything else he was right and truthful about… Severus realized it would be fine.

Another chair appeared, surprisingly next to his; it must work alphabetically, Harry realized as he looked around and found the two empty seats on the other side of the chamber. He would bet they were Dumbledore's and Doge's; he wasn't familiar with their coat of arms, but he didn't need to be to know he was right. Severus moved towards the chair that had materialized to Harry's right and gave it a wary look, but did indeed sit down. Magic enveloped him, welcoming him to the Wizengamot; it was official. As of now, Severus Snape would no longer be known by that name here; no, he was Lord Severus Prince. In fact if he wanted to, he could go by that title exclusively; judging by the grimace on his face when he'd mentioned his name, there was a distinct possibility that it was something Severus would want.

When they noticed that his claim had been acknowledged by Magic, they quieted down, unable to formulate words of dissent. The old wizard who had called their intentions into question, calling it 'tomfoolery', had sunk down further into his seat. You could see his mind reeling, and could predictably read his questions: 'How was it possible? What had happened? Why now? Why with Harry Potter? How were they connected?'... of course, none of those questions would be answered; they were under no legal obligation to answer any such questions. He wondered who it was, and vowed to find out as soon as he could. Brecon was going to be extremely busy for the next few days, that was for certain. "Where are our cups? Is this how you usually run things?!" Harry demanded, not that he would be drinking from his, he just wanted his presence felt. Each wizard and witch there had a chalice intricately engraved with their names, and a large pitcher of water was in the middle of the assemblage.

"WEASLEY! GO!" Fudge shouted, drawing attention to the young wizard sitting with paper and quill writing down everything that happened during the meeting. Percy jumped as if the wizard had lit his backside on fire and raced out of there as if it was a race against time before his arse was consumed by the flames.

"So that is what came of Percy Weasley," Harry muttered so softly that only Severus could hope to hear. Bill might be part of his group, but that didn't mean he knew what happened to the rest of the family, with the obvious exception of Ginny Weasley. Bill didn't like talking about them, due to the fact they had changed towards him when he became a werewolf. Harry had found Bill, taken him in, given him a reason to live and restored his confidence in himself.

"The idiot is too big for his own boots, but he has the smarts; he might get somewhere someday. He's got more ambition than his entire family put together. He hasn't been the same since his sister died; I think his parents blamed him, since he was the eldest of their children at Hogwarts," Severus confessed. "When that happened, he just buried himself further in his books, as if he could hope to make the real world fade into obscurity. His loyalty is definitely to the Ministry, first and foremost."

"One has to wonder why," Harry quipped, his lip curling at the thought of anyone liking the Ministry as it was now: filled with deceit, backstabbers, traitors, and cowards who wouldn't understand fighting for a cause, never mind doing it themselves. Not that the magical world was the only bad one, the Muggle one was just as bad, all due to some man's bid to stay in power.

"Most people need something to cling to; since he does not have his family… I'm assuming this was the only thing left for him to hold on to. I know what happens to people who feel like they are drowning, without purpose or a road to travel down," Severus admitted, his tone bitter.

"Live and learn," Harry said bluntly. He wasn't going to give him sympathy; what's done was done; there was simply no point in dwelling on it. If he had clung to Kai he wouldn't be where he was now; he had let him go, grieved and done something he knew Kai would have wanted ... and would have been been proud off. It wasn't in his nature to console anyone, and he very much doubted Severus wanted sympathy or pity of any kind.

Severus' lips quirked in bitter, surprised acknowledgement. "Indeed."

"Mr. Potter… where did you finish your education?" Fudge persisted. He did not like the fact that Harry's presence here had disrupted this meeting so much... and he was quite frankly intimidated that the boy would and could take his job from him ― vampire or not.

"Excuse me? How did you just address me?" Harry coldly demanded, the temperature in the room going down five notches.

"L-lord Potter," Fudge amended, going alarmingly red in the face, especially at the disapproval he could feel on everyone's faces.

"Not that it's truly any of your business, but I was home schooled," Harry stated sharply.

"Is that true?" Severus whispered, his lips barely moving.

Harry turned to the side to face him. "Yes," he told him.

"You did take your exams, didn't you?" he then asked cautiously.

"What do you take me for? Of course I did. As soon as I was emancipated, I did both exams in Gringotts at the age of thirteen." Harry confessed wryly.

"You took your N.E.W.T's at thirteen?" Severus whispered, impressed.

"Indeed," Harry revealed smugly; he had been a vampire by then. The sound of running feet had both him and Severus looking at the door to see Percy Weasley run back in, out of breath, carrying two goblets with him; he placed them beside Harry and Severus before he took his seat again. The red-head sighed in relief, evidently exhausted by his quick run. "It helps when one can retain all the knowledge they read."

Severus smirked fully, finally having gotten one of his answers. So, Harry had been a vampire by the time he was thirteen; that was good to know. It must have happened sometime after the summer after his first year at Hogwarts… that left a small, twelve, maybe thirteen or fourteen months' window in which he was turned. It depended on whether it had happened before his twelfth birthday, and of course how long it had been until his thirteenth birthday. From what had been learned at the Dursleys', Harry had left suddenly a few days after returning to the household. This was something he was beginning to understand, due to the small hints Harry was dropping. Still, it would be easier to pull teeth individually than get any information from him. For some reason he was more open with Severus than he had been just a few days ago. Snape tried to be concerned about that but he couldn't be... not when it was getting him his much desired answers.

"Would you prefer something more to your taste?" a dumpy wizard asked, Despite having a head of white hair, this individual still managed to have a black moustache. His false bravado drained away in the face of the intense dislike coming his way from the vampire. He wasn't used to vampires being in the Wizengamot, there hadn't been any since he had become a member. There hadn't been any for at least three or four generations.

"Not from you," Harry sneered, making no attempt at covering his disgust the way the other had done. There wouldn't be anyone in this room who could possibly have been fooled by the barely concealed consternation in his voice.

Amelia coughed suddenly. Whether she was trying to suppress her amusement or trying to smooth over the tense silence, one did not know. Amelia made sure her hair was fully up, a nervous habit she had, as she stood up. Her action silenced the room immediately as they all waited respectfully for her to speak. Like it or not, everyone held a great deal of respect for Amelia Bones, she was quite powerful, and one of the fairest witches of her time.

"I have a new proposal to put forth, and would like to see it pushed through as soon as possible; I thereby request a nay or aye decision before we leave here tonight," Amelia said firmly. At those words everyone sat up straighter, realizing that this wasn't just another everyday proposal, it was something serious, and those were interesting.

"What proposal?" Cornelius asked, his tone cautious. He had people whispering in his ear every five minutes, telling him what to do, what to pass and what not to, so he would have to take his time with this one, especially considering that a decision had to be made tonight. The last time that had happened, he'd caught it on all sides, despite the fact it had been out of his hands. The 'aye's' had won the votes by over half, evidently; the majority always ruled within this room.

"I propose we move the Death Eaters to a more secure facility, one that is kept under the Fidelius Charm," Amelia said, standing there patiently as everyone burst into conversation. This was quite loud, since this room hosted fifty wizards and witches, and that was without Dumbledore and Doge. "QUIET!" she yelled after she'd given them more than enough time to converse with the people next to them.

"You must understand that Voldemort will make another successful attempt to get to his Death Eaters; it is inevitable," Amelia firmly said. "We must make headway; we must take steps to prevent him from reclaiming them once more. He's already done it once; we've already lost good people bringing them in, and we must not let him beat us again. Do not do it for us, do it for the Aurors who have lost their lives, and their families." Sympathy bled into Amelia's voice; she understood what it was to lose family. She had lost nearly all of hers in one vicious swoop.

"This is money we cannot afford; to build another facility, to have it magically secured? It is money better spent elsewhere," Cornelius objected, not willing to part with so much money.

"Elsewhere on what?" Harry asked, speaking up. "From what I have gathered, you've done nothing to prevent Voldemort returning or stop the Death Eaters… you all denied his existence. If this keeps up, he will kill all the wizards and witches on the British Isles, and spread his war onto other countries' doorsteps. He will not be satisfied with just Scotland and England. He almost claimed the magical world once, but he failed at the expense of my family… if this continues, nothing will stop him. If you do not take the necessary steps... well, let's just put it bluntly: I shall do nothing to aid in the ending of this war."

That certainly had everyone shutting up. They might not like his attitude or the fact he was a vampire... but they couldn't deny that they felt like they needed him. They wanted a hero, someone to defeat the bad guy and bring peace to the magical world ― as long as the hero wasn't themselves, of course.

"Stop relying on someone else; get off your backsides and do something before we fall into the Dark Lord's grasp with no chance of breaking free, short of being killed. Believe me, you do not want to see a world run by the Dark Lord. If you think you've seen the worst of him ― you are seriously deluded. Imagine going about your business and an associate of the Dark Lords does not like how you are dressed and decides to use the Cruciatus curse on you…or a relative and you were entirely at their mercy, unable to do a damn thing without being cursed with the killing curse. Of course, it wouldn't be you that would receive the worst of it; no, it would be your families, your daughters, sons, grandchildren, great-grandchildren. Entire families wiped out, just because the Dark Lord felt like it. Listen to reason before you are burdened with regrets. The Dark Lord is but one man… but with his Death Eaters he truly is unstoppable," Severus told them harshly, forcing them to face reality. No doubt Dumbledore made them think it was alright, that things would improve, but not him. He would get through to them if it was the last thing he did.

"This includes stopping the prejudice against creatures: werewolves, vampires, goblins, centaurs even; if it doesn't stop they are just ripe for the picking when it comes to Voldemort gaining their allegiance. He will tell them the lies they want to hear: that they would have freedom, jobs, a life… one without people flinching in fear at the very sight of them. Do you understand what that means to them? Even for the possibility of just getting a job… you might as well just shove them at Voldemort. Whether you like it or not they are powerful. Powerful enough to do enough damage to the magical world so that it will never recover," Harry declared, watching every single person there shifting guiltily. He didn't need to wonder why; Dumbledore was the reason, as he restricted ever further what 'creatures' could or couldn't do. He'd left them practically nothing; Dumbledore was preventing them from getting a job, a life, a partner, children… a future, and even a place to stay. He wouldn't be succeeding; Harry would make sure that anyone who needed it had help. "This gets changed, very soon, or I will not be held responsible for turning my back ― I hope that is understood?" he added, but it mattered little whether they agreed or not, sooner or later he would have his way.

"We will not have to build a property, or even ward it, with the obvious exception of the Fidelius Charm," Amelia said, bringing the conversation back to the original topic. "I have vetted a few places that could be donated to me for this cause…if this proposal is pushed through. The sites are extremely secure, not well known, and with not a soul in a ten mile radius." She refrained from mentioning that it was Harry who planned on donating the property. Not that they would know that, since it was listed under the name of Darnell Raven Thorn, which was an alias of Harry's. "Here are the proposals for you to look at," she added passing out the paperwork and letting everyone look at it while she reclaimed her seat.

"These are well thought out; I see you plan on using the Dementors as well as House-Elves as guards, instead of Wizards," one particular member commented.

"Yes, it will be easier and leaves more resources for us to use, with the war reaching new heights," Amelia replied.

"And what about Azkaban?" Fudge commented with scorn; he did not like this idea at all.

"What about it? It can be used again once the war is over― hopefully with us winning against the dark," Amelia told him firmly. "If not…well, it will no longer be a concern of ours." The thought filled her with despair, but there wouldn't be much she could do if it happened.

"How will this be more secure than Azkaban?" a concerned, frizzy haired witch asked, speaking from the other side of the room.

"If you look the next page, you'll see that the wards would literally prevent them from being able to get out of their cells, never mind escape the premises. Inside their cells will be everything they would need: a shower, bed, a table which their food would be placed on magically, and enough room to move around," Amelia explained. "With the Fidelius Charm, nobody can get to them to undo the wards ― thus making it one of the most secure prisons we could ever have."

"And how do you suggest we explain this to the Dementor Lord?" Fudge enquired, irritated that everyone seemed to be in favour of the idea.

"They will be there before the charm is cast, putting them under it, thus they will have no problem going back and forth ― not that they will be leaving there," Amelia added curtly. Evidently Fudge didn't like this idea.

"Dumbledore will not like this; he should be here for this meeting," Fudge said.

"His vote is but one; if we find ourselves with ties, then we shall call another meeting," she told him firmly. "Now, shall we see how the votes go so we can get on to other matters, or shall we come around to it afterwards?"

"I suggest we get this over with," Severus smoothly stated. He could see everyone leaning towards yes, and he didn't want Fudge bringing Dumbledore into it too much in case they actually began to doubt their first instinctive decision. Even when he wasn't there, the old man could still get into people's heads, and it made him disgusted. When would they stop revering him? He was a disgrace to Wizardkind, a manipulative wizard who hid behind a mask of geniality. In his opinion, Dumbledore was worse than the Dark Lord had ever been.

"I agree with the decision to go ahead with the new prison; it will prevent another break-out. If another one happens, it might just overwhelm the Auror forces and lead to Voldemort taking over," Harry said. This was the moment of truth, whether they would side with him.

"I second the motion," Severus said smoothly; he was rather enjoying the new power of Lord Prince. Although it was for most part boring, he now had a vote on how the magical world should be run. He could stop Dumbledore's plans, talk them out of siding with him… and if there was one thing he was good at, it was making a very sound argument.

"All those that agree, raise your hand," Amelia said, her heart pounding like a drum. This was it, whether she had succeeded or not. Then slowly hands began to rise. For a brief moment she feared that half the people in the room wouldn't agree to the plan, then another few raised their hands, and then a few more... only then did she let out a relieved sigh.

"With thirty three votes, the aye's have it; the plan will be put into motion!" Amelia called, shifting more paperwork.

Harry smirked wickedly. Success, was all he could think. But Severus wasn't smirking, he was staring at the door, straining as if he was trying to hear something. Harry cocked his head to the side and did the same thing; there was something causing an unusual amount of fear within the Ministry. Heartbeats were shooting through the roof, and if he wasn't mistaken, one was coming towards the room.

"Yes, well, with that over, let's get on to other matters," Fudge said, disgruntled. He wasn't sure how he could explain this away, but with the motion being approved, there was absolutely nothing he could do anyway. "W…" he stopped as someone burst into the room.

"You-Know-Who is in the Department of Mysteries!" the wizard cried, his face ashen, his wand tightly held in its grasp.

R&R please :)