Ninja Wizard V: Order of the Phoenix 04
By David4
Disclaimer: All of Harry Potter characters belong to JK Rowling with the exception of 'Nicky' and 'Daito Souta'. This story is a complete fiction.
Author Notes: These marks [ ] indicate Japanese spoken. Thanks to all who have taken the time to read and to all of those who are following the series.
Ninja Wizard V: Order of the Phoenix 04
"Battle and the Trial of Harry Potter"
Harry flew over the countryside in is Falcon form listening to ZZ Top in his earpiece. Nicky's retrieving his 'assets' from the spooks had been used to purchase communications equipment and other things that had been properly hardened against magic thanks to Sirius and Remus' efforts. He was currently riding the air currents about a quarter mile up, his sharp Falcon eyesight keeping track of his current target. Nicky's efforts had turned up some serious intel on a potential attack against a tiny magical village consisting of at least six families. Harry was using his Falcon form to do some recon to get an idea of how the place was laid out and how best to defend it. The village didn't appear on any kind of map anywhere despite Nicky's best efforts to find it. Sirius was the one who found it when he 'popped' into the office to supposedly do some paperwork. He provided Nicky with the coordinates and he located the spot through Google Earth (it's a great program if you want to locate anything on Earth) and Harry had gone out there with Sirius in the van. Sirius applied a new spell on Harry's Falcon vision that enabled everybody back at the Doghouse to see what Harry the Falcon saw while flying.
"Hey mate, that's a bloody useful spell," Nicky's voice came through the earpiece. "You got to be about a half mile up?"
Since Harry couldn't use human speech in his bird form he simply nodded his head for yes.
"Looks like you're literally on top of them," Nicky said. "I'm recording everything so you can look at things later."
Harry nodded again as he glided down to a branch deep inside a tree so he could get a closer look at things. He moved his head slowly to the left and then to the right. He took off again and landed in another tree and did the same thing once more. Harry did that a few times and then Remus came through the earpiece.
"Okay Harry, I think we got enough. Come on back," he said.
Harry stretched out his wings and took off, gliding down close to the main road and caught an updraft. It took him back up to the half mile mark and he made use of the air currents getting back to Sirius. He flew through the side door of the van and landed on the pile of blankets as Sirius closed the side door. He took his place up at the driver's wheel and drove off as Harry transformed back into himself.
"Gonna take a nap," he announced. "This did take a bit out of me."
Harry closed his eyes and was gone before anyone could respond. Sirius turned his attention back to the road in front of him.
"He did good, Sirius. He's earned his rest," Remus said. "See you guys later."
Sirius nodded. "I'm just wondering why the hell way out here. Why not Hogsmeade? Why not the alley? Is this to be a training run for the DE's?"
"I've been asking myself that question too," Hermione's voice spoke up. "According to my research on the DE's in the first war, they went after the big stuff."
"Not to mention the important families," Remus said.
"I'm thinking training run," George spoke up. "He's got some new people and needs to break them in and see who's got guts for this kind of thing."
"I have to agree with you George," Sirius said as he got on the highway. "So we come back later tonight and stake the place out and see who shows up to lead them. We grab the leader and take out the rest of the trash."
"I like that idea," Remus stated. "We do need to look at what we have thanks to Harry's efforts and come up with a plan."
"The one plan I've got is to storm Malfoy Mansion and burn the place down with Malfoy and the bloody wanker inside of it," Sirius growled.
"All in good time, my brother. All in good time," Remus said.
Nicky giggled at that moment. "I could break into the defense ministry and call up an airstrike on them."
"That's too easy, Nicky. I wanna blow them to hell myself," Sirius stated.
"Well, I could get them to send us a case of explosives or a couple of shoulder fired rocket launchers. Pretty please?" Nicky pleaded.
Sirius sighed. "I'll consider it. In the meantime we need to alert people and see if we can get some people for tonight. We'll be home within the hour."
"We're on it," Remus said. "Doghouse out."
Sirius pulled the earpiece from his right ear and dropped it into his shirt pocket and leaned back in the driver's seat. He glanced in the rear view mirror to check on Harry before stepping on the gas.
1900 hours, and everyone that was to be there was there. The plans had been laid and now it was just a waiting game.
"North side clear," Sirius said.
"South clear," Harry said.
George spoke up. "Road clear."
A snapping sound alerted Harry. "Just me, folks. Too early for them to show up at this gig. Me, I'd come a callin' round eleven or so when folks are just to bed," Nicky said.
"That's why we're here now," Remus said.
"Gives us time to lay out our tricks," Fred stated. "These black suits work great, Harry."
Harry sighed. [The Weasley Twins ninja. There goes the noble and ancient art of ninjitsu.]
[Not so, Harry-san. There are many in the history of ninjitsu that have done it proud having not been trained in the noble art,] a ninja spoke up.
Another one spoke up. [Yes, and I can name a few in my line.]
[I bet you can,] the first ninja came back.
Harry sighed. [The gods give me strength.]
A third ninja spoke up. [Let's keep it down out there.]
Harry closed his eyes and huddled up to the large rocks he was hiding in and slipped into meditation. For the next four hours he meandered through his mental landscape, relaxing on the grounds of the castle he had built in his mind until his keeper of the grounds approached him.
[The enemy approaches my lord,] he announced.
Harry snapped to just as Nicky made the announcement. "Vehicle coming in at seven, approaching from the east, looks like a van."
"DE's in a van?" Remus queried. "That doesn't make any sense."
Sirius popped up next to Harry and used his night vision to scan the horizon. "No it doesn't, unless they're trying to throw people off the track."
Harry considered that for a moment. "I'd do that if I was going to attack. This is quite a distance for them to come for an attack."
"I got a bad feeling about this boss," Nicky said. "I'm zooming in on them and it looks like a wreck to me. Either them, or it's a set up."
Harry wasn't sure how Nicky got that information and decided to ask later. "Okay. Everybody ready. If DE's, we take them down. If something else, we disappear."
Everybody agreed and then went silent. Harry listened hard for the van and then a moment later he could. It slowed down and then stopped.
"Target vehicle stopped," Nicky reported. "No action."
A soft pop was heard, and then a few more.
"Several targets," Remus whispered.
Harry nodded. "Everybody go."
Harry moved as he gave the go command and caught three DE's in the middle of casting something. They went down without a whimper.
"Got four in the sticky stuff," Fred reported.
Seven down in two minutes. Harry heard sounds off to his right and turned to see a ninja engaging three targets. The three targets went down fast. Ten DE's down.
"Took down the van," Sirius whispered into Harry's ear. "Three of them in there."
Thirteen DE's. One ran past Harry with his robe on fire with Remus giving chase. Another one ran straight into Harry and Harry grabbed onto him and suplexed him face first into the rocky ground.
"Never knew watching those wrestling shows would come in handy," Harry said.
He turned to his right as another DE came out of the darkness. Both yanked their wands at the same time and fired. Harry was just a bit faster on the draw and his target went down. Harry cast incarcerous on them and tied them up. He floated them to a prearranged spot where the other captured DE's were. He left them there and went off to look for others. He did find three of them inside a house with the terrified family in front of them.
"Mind if I join the party?" Harry asked them as the three DE's turned around.
One charged forward and the fight was on. Harry kicked out straight and his right foot caught the charging DE in the stomach. One went down as two and three began to react. As those two turned to confront Harry the father grabbed his little son while mother grabbed her daughter and the two of them scrambled out of the way as Harry charged forward, initiating palm strikes to the center of their chests, driving them back and causing them to gasp for air. One got back up and attempted to grab Harry from the back. Harry back flipped over the first one and then charged forward, shoving him into the other two and making all three crash down onto the couch. Harry bounced backwards and then introduced his right foot to their faces, knocking them off the couch and onto the floor. Then he practiced his goalie's kick on the first one, driving him into the other two and knocking him out. The third one on the floor, covered by the second one, drew his wand, shoved the second one out of the way, and attacked, only to find that Harry had disappeared. Harry had anticipated the move and jumped up into the air and was now coming down on top of number three, his left foot making contact with the right wrist and breaking it while his right foot landed on the left shoulder, breaking it completely. The third one used the moment to go for his only to have it yanked out of his hand, losing it to Remus as he entered the house to see Harry in potential trouble. Harry spun and introduced the toe of his right foot to the bottom of the third man's chin, driving him backwards and into the wall where he got knocked out.
"Nice moves Mr. Falcon," Remus grinned.
Harry sighed. "Why thank you Mr. Mooney."
Harry grabbed two of them by the feet and dragged them out while Remus grabbed the first one. They laid them out on the ground by the other captured ones.
"Sirius has the leader in the van," George reported as he approached the group.
Harry nodded. "Good. We can strip these clowns and check them for intel and then move out."
Both of the Weasley twins grinned. Harry wondered just what they were up to now. He turned and headed for the van. The battle was over. The cleanup was all that was left. The twins showed up at the van a few minutes later with a small cloth bag. They handed them over and then nodded at the leader who was firmly tied up and silenced. Remus nodded to Harry. Harry nodded back. He knew what had to be done now and truth be told he wasn't quite comfortable with it, but it had to be done. Questions needed to be asked, and information retrieved. He turned away and walked away from the van as Sirius and one of the ninjas climbed into the van. Remus took control of the hidden van and drove them all back to the Doghouse. They needed to deposit memories into the pensive for full review in the morning. Harry was hoping to find more information from the battle they just had. From there they would be able to work their way up the food chain and get to the Idiot-That-Must-Be-Named. Harry dozed off in the van on the way home.
Harry sighed as he viewed the photo on the front page of the Daily Prophet the next morning. It showed the group of naked DE's sitting on the ground, their faces painted to look like clowns.
"You guys really had to do that," Harry looked over the paper and the grinning Weasley Twins. "Molly's gonna see this and she's gonna know where you were last night."
"We got our backs covered," Fred grinned. "No worries."
George popped up in the kitchen. "Best we move on to Longbottom's place just in case Mummy calls there looking for us."
"Right you are," Fred grinned. "See ya."
Both of them popped out and Harry sighed. Remus was the next to arrive in the kitchen. He drew a cup of coffee and joined Harry at the table.
"Got word from my order contact that old man Dumbles was breathing fire last night when he popped out there and saw the scene. By then it was far too late to stop the photographer from taking pictures or the residents from telling Skeeter their stories. That's a really nice picture by the way," Remus grinned. "Wish I had thought of that."
Sirius stumbled into the kitchen on his way to the coffee pot. He barked in laughter when he saw the front page picture. "Bet Voldy loved that one."
Harry had to smile at the thought. "I'm sure he did. Be fun to find out. Get anything useful from our friend last night?"
Sirius nodded. "It was a training run for the newbies. The Great Idiot is recruiting, and doing a great job of it thanks to the jerk off Fudge. He also says the Great Idiot is now after something buried deep inside the Ministry. What it is he doesn't know."
"Let's keep looking for information on that," Harry said. "If we can use that as a way to expose the Great Idiot to the public so much the better. Otherwise we keep looking for a way to get him to show his ugly face to the public."
"Send him a box of Weasley prank material?" Sirius grinned.
Harry shook his head. "Too tame."
"A mock up of the Daily Prophet showing him in handcuffs on his way to Azkaban?" Remus suggested as he got more coffee.
"Interesting idea," Harry said. "Not just yet though."
Sirius sat down at the table as Nicky showed up. "I'm sure we can think of something good."
Nicky grinned and giggled.
Voldemort's Lair, Malfoy Mansion
People scattered as Voldemort blew his top. He threw crucio in every direction as he went in every direction but the right way. Wormtail backed up into a corner scared senseless.
"Who was the idiot responsible for this?" he screamed.
Wormtail wasn't about to respond to that because he knew it was Voldemort who gave the orders to the team leader to go raid the village in order to see what the newbies were capable of doing. He wasn't about to commit suicide by giving Voldemort a target of opportunity for his anger.
"Where is that man?" Voldemort. "I want him in front of me right now!"
One of the DE's, scared out of his mind, stepped out of hiding. "I can go look for him at his house, Master. I know some of his friends, I can ask questions discretely."
Voldemort turned to look at the man. "Please do," he said, his voice now reasonably soft, a slight smile on his face. "Come to me when you know the answers."
The man bowed, still shaking with fear. "Yes master."
He backed up slowly while watching Voldemort to make sure he wasn't gonna get zapped, and then ran off while he had the chance. Voldemort turned to the rest of the DE's.
"Get out."
Those two words motivated people and they got out of there, including Wormtail. Even when he was acting so calmly people never knew just what he might do. He scared them badly, and some of them were reconsidering their decision to join him. Voldemort sighed and turned back to the table and his comfortable chair. He looked up to see the silent form before him.
"Lucius, my old friend, do come forth. I trust you have better news for me," Voldemort said.
The figure bowed and then came out of the shadows. He gestured to a chair and Voldemort nodded.
"It is confirmed, my lord. The thing you seek is locked away deep inside the Department of Mysteries, carefully guarded. My contact tells me it cannot be reached by my hand or any other but only by it concerns. Only Harry Potter, you, the Dumbledork, Trelawney can touch it. Trelawney is a drunken lush carefully guarded in her tower on the grounds of Hogwarts. The Dumbledork is far too smart and wily to allow himself to be caught in a trap. You cannot get in, the place is very well guarded. Harry Potter is the only way in, if he can be carefully manipulated," Lucius stated.
Voldemort nodded. "It is unfortunate that my connection to the boy has been broken. I cannot access his mind to plant the things I wish him to see. There needs to be a way to do this."
"There is always a way, my lord, if one plots, plans, and schemes hard enough," Lucius smiled.
Voldemort smiled, lifting a finger. "So very true, my friend. So very true. I leave this in your very capable hands."
Lucius bowed as he stood. "Thank you my lord."
He walked out past Severus Snape as he entered the room. Both men nodded to each other before continuing on. Severus bowed to Voldemort.
"My lord," he said formally as he presented Voldemort with a goblet of potion. "I believe this last one shall finish what I have started, returning you to your former self."
"Thank you Severus. You have done well," Voldemort took up the goblet and drank from it.
He set it down and closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair as he felt the potion take hold and work within him. Voldemort smiled as he opened his eyes after a moment. "Yes, you have done well."
Severus Snape bowed. "You are welcome, my lord. Very soon the world shall know of your glorious power and bow to you."
Voldemort smiled as he nodded.
Somewhere in England…
Harry dodged incoming spell fire from a very pissed off DE as Harry had popped in unexpectedly in response to the magical detector alerting him to DE activity. As he had been the only one in residence at the Doghouse with Nicky, he had gone out to stop the DE attack and discovered at least five DE's attacking a Wizarding family. Harry bounced off the wall and came back at the DE and hit him with a left while introducing his right foot to the face of another DE. The family had gone for cover in a corner in the kitchen with mother covering them and the father doing his best to assist Harry. Harry noticed the man was doing fairly well with his casting keeping at least three of them at bay while Harry tangled with the two that insisted on trying to take him out. Harry flipped past the two of them and did a reverse spin in mid air, grabbing the back of their heads and slamming them down onto the table. Those two slid off the table, their lights temporary turned off. One of the three came after Harry in an effort to avenge his friends. Harry rolled forward on the table and used both feet to kick him backwards right into the bottom of a frying pan wielded by the little girl. That one went down with a goofy look on his face. The other two decided it was time to leave so they fired a chain of spells around the place forcing people to dive for cover. Those two managed to grab the three who were now napping on the floor and apparated out, leaving Harry with the family and a messy kitchen.
"Thank you sir," the father said after he checked on his family. "I owe you our lives."
Harry nodded. "No thanks necessary, sir. Just doing what I can to stop them. I suggest learning as many defense spells as you can if they do come back and come up with a plan to protect your family. I'm sorry about the kitchen."
The man nodded. "I can fix that. My family is much more important."
Harry turned his head at the sound of pops from the front yard. "I must go."
Harry disappeared after activating the portkey function on his Family ring and apparating back to the Doghouse. He came out of the arrival room to find Remus and Nicky there.
"Five of them, and they got out before I could grab one," Harry said.
Remus frowned at that. "A raid in the middle of the day? They're getting brave."
"I know, and that's what worries me," Harry sighed as he replaced his ninja suit with shorts and a t shirt magically. "That magical detector works great. I was able to get there before the DE's could do any serious damage."
"Sirius is at the office," Remus said as he headed into the kitchen. "He's sniffing round trying to find out when they might call you."
"That kind of worries me too," Harry admitted. "I do have complete faith in Gring and I know he'll beat them down when the time comes."
Harry leaned into the refrigerator for a cold ice tea and opened it. "Have you heard from anybody else yet? Anything from our friends?"
Remus sighed. "Not yet. I whispered things to my order contact and I haven't heard anything from him. Phineas Black chatted up his painting friends at the ministry and they haven't told him anything yet."
"That's not good," Harry said. "Wonder what's up?"
Remus reached for the pot of coffee and poured himself a cup. "I'm sure we will find out before long."
"Oh joy," Harry groaned.
Remus grinned and headed for the living room and back to what he had been working on. Harry was sure the other shoe would hit the floor before long and when it did, it wouldn't be fun.
The other shoe did hit the floor precisely at seven in the morning three days later. Harry jumped at the pounding on his bedroom door at Potter House. The door flew open and Remus raced in.
"Harry!" he yelled. "Get your butt up! Phineas just informed me that your trial starts in an hour in one of the major courtrooms at the ministry! He thinks they're trying to pull a nasty on you!"
Harry bounced out of bed. "Call Gring and let him know right now. I gotta get dressed!"
Harry raced through the shower and got into a dark blue suit with a powder blue shirt, a peach colored tie, and black dress boots. He raced down the stairs and into the come and go room as Dobby called it. He made sure he had his school wand with him and not the Potter wand. He flooed out and into the atrium at the ministry, taking a few seconds to wipe the soot off his suit. He checked the directory and located the courtroom he was supposed to go to and ran for the elevator. It slid backwards a few feet and then dropped downwards fast. Harry worked to calm his nerves and by the time the elevator stopped he was ready for combat. Just before he reached the doors Gring popped up behind him. The goblin was pissed and Harry knew it.
"They have us right where we want them my friend," Harry said softly. "No mercy."
The goblin smiled, showing his very sharp pointy teeth. "As if I was going to give them any."
Harry smiled. "Just like we planned, by the nines."
Gring giggled and Harry knew he was going to win. He pulled open the door and both of them walked in. The place was rather impressive. Vaulted ceiling, the room was huge and done completely in grey. Wood chairs, wood table, a high pulpit overlooking the floor. Harry nodded as he walked in. He noted the people sitting there all in red, Fudge up in the pulpit looking down at him.
"My complements to the interior decorator," Harry grinned.
Fudge growled and Gring set his bulging leather briefcase down on the defense table.
"So nice of you to join us," Fudge said.
"It's my pleasure," Harry said, "considering I got your most gracious invitation barely an hour ago. I do believe it's proper procedure to notify all parties involved at least a week in advance."
"We would have, Mr. Potter, but you are a person most difficult to communicate with," Fudge sniffed with distain.
Wow. Fudge certainly had a creepy crawly up his arse. Harry wondered if the Idiot-Who-Must-Be-Named got his hooks into him through somebody. He observed a slight smile on Umbridge's face and got his answer to that question. He turned his attention to Fudge.
"Now that the accused is present, this trial can begin. Court scribe Percival Weasley will now read the charges," Fudge stated.
Harry turned his attention to Percy. From the way he looked it was obvious that Percy had changed drastically. He now wore a three piece suit, brand new glasses, new hairstyle, and a look of contempt on his face completed his new look. Percy had gone over to the ministry.
"The charges against the accused are as follows," Percy began in his official voice, making Harry wonder if the ministry taught him how to speak in an official manner, "that on the date and time in question, did knowingly and deliberately, in front of a muggle, and in full awareness of the illegality of his actions, produce a Patronus Charm, in an muggle-inhabited area, an offense under paragraph C of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery 1875 and also under section thirteen of the International Confederation of Wizard's Statute of Secrecy."
Harry was impressed that Percy got all of that out in one breath. Percy sat down and took up his pen, ready to take notes on what had been said.
"Very impressive," Gring began, standing up and coming round to the front of the table. "So to make all of that short, Harry violated two rules while saving the life of Daniel Granger."
Fudge leaned forward. "He did."
"Perhaps we should examine the fact closely," Gring said, turning to Harry. "According to Harry, he was on his way to dinner at the Grange's house when he observed the dementors attacking Mr. Granger, and went to stop the attack."
"How did he know what they were?" Fudge demanded.
Gring turned to Harry and nodded. Harry stood up and faced the jury.
"I've encountered them at least twice already," he stated.
"You have?" a witch with a monocle in the front row asked. "Please tell us about it."
Harry sighed. "The first time was on the train in my second year. I was sitting in my compartment when the train stopped. The air turned freezing cold, the windows frosted over, and my girlfriend Hermione got very cold so I gave her my cloak in an effort to keep her warm. The door to my compartment opened up and I saw a skeleton hand appear on the door frame and push the door open. That scared me, as I had never encountered them before. It appeared in the doorway looking at us."
"What did they look like?" the witch asked.
Harry shivered from the memory. "Tall bleached white skeleton wearing a black cloak."
"What did it do?" she asked.
Harry took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "It glided in, and I felt so cold, like the warmth had been sucked out of me. That damn thing forced me to remember the night… the night my mother died."
The jury gasped and Fudge shivered.
"I don't remember much after that. I woke up on the seat of my compartment and Professor Lupin was giving me chocolate to help me recover. Hermione was in a bad way so I fed her a bit of chocolate as well. Once the train got to Hogsmeade, a group of the guys and me helped all that was affected into carts," Harry closed his eyes and the memories came back. "Second time was during a Quidditch match. A bunch of them came after me while I was chasing the Snitch. They affected me so much that I lost conscience and fell off my broom. Everybody in Ravenclaw saved me from going splat."
Fudge was going pale and people shivered. Harry went to sit down.
"The reason they were on the train and at Hogwarts, Ladies and Lords, was because of the panic at the Ministry when Sirius Black checked out of Azkaban," Gring informed the jury as he reached out for Harry's hand and grasped it. "That's how Mr. Potter knew who and what they were. The Patronus Charm is the only known defense against the Dementors, and one that needs to be taught to all in the event that the Dementors attack innocents in our world and the muggle world. But the question in my mind right now is, how did they know Mr. Potter was going to be there? Was it by chance that they encountered him, or did someone knowing he was going to be in that area inform the dementors and offer them the opportunity to harm Mr. Potter?"
Harry raised his head as he realized where Gring was going with this.
"Mr. Granger's being in the immediate area was accidental. His death could be blamed on Mr. Potter if he should fail to properly defend himself and Mr. Granger. However, Mr. Potter took it upon himself to search for a way to defend himself from them and found the Patronus Charm and learned it as his goal was to protect all others before his own life. The fight took place inside the tunnel underneath the path. There was absolutely no way anyone could have seen anything. I've been at the location to see for myself. One would have to enter the tunnel to see anything. The only reason Mr. Granger saw the dementor was because the dementor appeared to him prior to attempting the kiss. The weather was extremely hot that day. There were no people in the park at that moment," Gring stated. "Mr. Potter did exactly what he had to do and did it. If he had not, he would be right now answering to Mrs. Granger, Hermione Granger, his family the Potters and the Yamadas, and to himself for failing to save Mr. Granger from them. That is something that is most difficult to live with, knowing that you failed to save lives when you should have."
"Be as it may, he still violated the law," Fudge snapped.
"Really? You are going to keep harping on that? Very well then," Gring said, reaching for a stack of papers. "Miss Granger was kind enough to do some research for me and came up with a number of cases in which underaged witches and wizards used magic to save lives. By my count I hold some fifty cases that she was able to locate, and in each incident, the inquiry came directly from DMLE, found in the Hogwarts Library, in history of Magic books, and each one was not charged or convicted for the offenses you attempt to use against Mr. Potter, some minor, some very major, and most in between. In several of those cases they saved the Magical world from irreparable harm. I would be happy to share these cases with you Ladies and Lords."
"The boy must be punished!" Fudge thundered.
Gring had turned his back to Fudge to place the papers back on the desk. Harry saw the feral grin on the goblin's face and knew he was about to deliver the death blow.
"Excuse me? Did you just call Mr. Potter boy?" Gring growled as he turned around.
Fudge looked down at Harry with a look of superiority. "I did. So what of it!"
"Need I remind you sir, that Lord Harrison James Potter has been Emancipated per the will of his late parents, the Lady Lily and the Lord James Potter, to which you agreed to, and signed off on, to which I am in possession of the document that you sir, did indeed signed. Lord Harrison James Potter is, by all rights, a legally emancipated minor, with all the rights of an adult and very capable of carrying out his affairs to which I am his solicitor of record and advisor on all matters of interest to him. You sir, and this court, do owe him an apology for having dragged his good name through this farce of a trial and having caused him mental and physical anguish at having been forced to recall memories that have caused him pain in remembering the fate that befell his mother!" Gring snarled, making an effort not to climb the pulpit that Fudge was standing in and getting into the man's face.
Harry did his best to give the jury his best sad puppy dog eyes look. Fudge had gone absolute pale, nearly as white as he possibly get. The witch with the monocle in the front row stood up in the ensuing silence and turned on Fudge.
"You…" she began but failed to finish the sentence. "All those in favor of dropping charges, show hands."
Nearly everybody in the room raised their hands except for a few. Harry's guess about Voldemort's supporters voting against him had been spot on.
Fudge turned to Harry and pointed to the door. "Get out," he snarled in a barely controlled rage.
Harry stood up and bowed. As he did so, he glanced at Umbridge and there was a slight smile on her face. Harry had no doubt that Fudge had just played into her hands. He shivered at the thought of those claws closing in around the Fudge jewels and then squeezing hard. Harry helped Gring pack up and both of them left casually. That battle was over.
Both of them shared a victory drink in Ragnock's office, toasting their success. Harry thanked Gring and promised him a bonus for a job well done. Harry then port keyed back to the Doghouse, finding everybody there. Harry grinned.
"Somebody please order up a six pack of pizza as I am going to show a home movie right now," Harry announced. "You're gonna love it."
Sirius grinned as he raced out to the van while chairs were moved around to face the blank wall where Harry would project his memories of the trial. He got the pensive and took his time in gathering up his memory of the day and deposited it into the bowl. Harry got an ice cold Guinness from the refrigerator and took center seat. Sirius arrived with the pizzas and everyone took what they wanted. Once everyone settled down Harry started the playback. At one point Hermione grabbed Harry's right arm as his memory from the train was shown. The others turned a bit pale but said nothing as the movie rolled on. The last bit with Gring stalking Fudge and dressing him down had all of them cheering. Harry smiled as he got a hug from Hermione. The twins started a victory dance with Nicky jumping in a few seconds later. Sirius and Remus were grinning at each other and Harry wondered just what kind of payback they were planning. Harry turned to the gathering once people settled down.
"So, any idea just how much longer Fudge will stay in office after that?" Harry asked.
Fred had to laugh at that. "Not much longer. You and Gring made him look like an idiot in front of all of those people and he's likely to not forget that anytime soon. Once we find a way to get the Great Idiot to reveal himself he's done for."
"Did any of you see Umbridge?" Harry asked.
Hermione frowned at that. "I don't like her, Harry. Something about her just sets me on edge. I have a feeling we're going to see her some time soon."
"My feeling on her is that she's in somebody's pocket and that she doesn't like being there. She wants power, and I'm willing to bet she plans to sweep Fudge out of the way and take over. I think we need to add her to the major baddie list," Harry said.
Everybody agreed to that and her picture on the wall moved from the minor baddie list to the major baddie list in a spot by herself. Words appeared by her name and Nicky read them off as he was the closest to her picture.
"Possible supporter of the Great Idiot, out for herself, capable of anything including murder and blackmail, schemer, con artist, gets others to do her dirty work, possible connection in the dementor attack against Harry, and whatever else," Nicky read out loud. "This is one creepy bitch."
People laughed at that one. Harry grinned as he checked his watch. It was nearly one in the afternoon.
"Don't know about you folks, but I'm gonna have a go in the training room and then go cool off in the pool. Anybody want in?" Harry asked.
"I've been having a go in there myself," Nicky announced.
Harry blinked at that. "You have? But you don't have magic."
"I know I don't, but that's a moot point. I've been using fighting sticks and knives. Made some real interesting discoveries, too. Since that bleedin' crazy bit me I've discovered me body has changed some," Nicky started.
"Faster, eyesight improved, hearing improved, capable of popping claws out of the tips of your fingers, stronger than normal," Hermione theorized.
"Yeah! All of that," he said. "So I been workin' on them weights and in the fightin' room and feeling good about it. Mind if I join the party?"
"Sure," Harry said, now interested in what Nicky was capable of.
Nicky just smiled as he left the room. Harry went up to his room to change out of his suit and into something more appropriate for the exercise. He went down to find Nicky in jeans, a t shirt, steel toe construction boots, a pair of fighting sticks tucked into the back of his belt, and a pair of large knives strapped to each leg.
"Let's party, mate!" he exclaimed and then stepped into the fighting arena. A lookalike of Greyback shimmered into view. Harry blinked. Nicky had been fighting that?
"Here kitty here kitty," Nicky whistled at Greyback and the image roared and charged.
Nicky grinned and charged. "Goongala!"
"He's been binge watching the turtles again," Sirius sighed as the twins rolled on the floor.
They watched as Nicky danced around Greyback and sliced him up with his knives. Harry wondered just who had been training him. A ninja popped up next to Harry.
[He has improved greatly Harry-san,] he said.
Harry turned to him. [You have been training him, Kaito?]
Kaito had come over from the Hidden Village Harry had grown up in offering his assistance. His disability slowed him down quite a bit, his right knee having taken a bullet in one of those one in a million freak accidents during a mission. He had offered to train anyone in Harry's group who wanted to improve their fighting skills and he had been working with everybody, including Neville, who had really taken to the training.
[Yes. His werewolf traits make him a natural. However, he wishes to defend the Doghouse should it ever come under attack as he believes his skill with the computers comes first,] Kaito said.
[He's a good man,] Harry stated.
Nicky's approach to fighting was rather wild, as he didn't conform to the 'normal' fighting styles. He just used whatever came to mind and it seemed to work. As Harry watched, several DE's popped up and Harry took that as his cue to charge in. Neville was next, and then a moment later the Weasley twins jumped in there and it became a wild free for all melee.
Later in the early evening when everyone had gone home Harry took Hermione back to Potter House with him for a bit of quiet time. They were sitting in front of the fireplace, Hermione snuggled in close to him and Lionel Ritchie was singing a love song on the stereo. It was moments like this that made Harry happy, moments like this that the world outside simply faded away and it was just them. There were so many plans that Harry wanted to share with Hermione for their future together. He knew that there would be no future until the Voldemort issue was settled. Harry pushed that thought away back into the filing cabinet it came from and closed the drawer. He didn't want to think about that right now. The only thing on his mind at the moment was just to be with Hermione, to hold her hand, to feel her right next to him. He could feel his heart swell up with love for her. Eric Clapton came up with 'Running on Faith' on the stereo and it fit what he was feeling at the moment. He couldn't help but sing the words right along with Clapton. This would be a moment that he'd remember for the rest of his life, and it would keep him going during the darker moments of his life. The song ended and the magic of the moment faded. The grandfather clock in the hall began to chime, going nine bells. Harry sighed.
"I didn't want this moment to end yet," he said softly.
Hermione squeezed his hand. "Neither did I, love. There will be many more moments like this, you know that."
"I know, and I look forward to each one," Harry sighed.
He stood up and offered her his hand. She took it and he pulled her to her feet. He didn't want to let go just yet. They headed to the come and go room. Harry stood there in the doorway and held her as they kissed goodnight. She smiled as she stepped inside and then a moment later she was gone. Harry stood there for a time as he tried to make sense of his feelings.
"Did I ever tell you of the girl I once had a crush on?" Constantine asked Harry as he shimmered into view.
Harry turned to face him. "No, you haven't."
Constantine smiled at the memory. "She had long black hair, green eyes, and she looked like a princess. She was the first I ever kissed. Did things to me deep down inside that I never thought possible. We had been friends for a long time prior to that. Way back them it was possible for a man your age to marry."
"Fifteen year old kids could marry?" Harry asked.
Constantine nodded. "Yes. My cousin got married when he was barely fifteen. I took Lucy to the dance that night and I had planned on asking her if I could start courting her. Never did as the Potter House fell under attack. I rushed home to defend the house, the women and other children. I managed to keep the house from being overrun until Daddy arrived. I died in Lucy's arms."
"I'm sorry you lost the chance to love," Harry said.
Constantine looked at Harry with a serious look on his face. "Don't you lose your chance to love her."
Harry nodded. "Never."
Constantine turned and faded away as he walked into the dark house. Harry went into the study and sat at his desk to think about things.
"Harry! You're needed!" Phineas Black shouted from his frame. "Attack in progress!"
Harry growled and slammed his fist on the desk. "Bloody wankers!"
Next Episode: The Noble and Ancient House of Black