bookpower Chapter 32: The Wizengamot
Chapter 32: The Wizengamot
A/N: Here's the new Chapter! Which also means the next four chapters are up on my Patreon for early access as well as the chance to vote on the direction of the story!
Fudge crumples like a wet tissue but that doesn't mean they're in the clear.
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He’s half-expecting to be attacked on their way to the Wizengamot. Not that there are that many opportunities. They go via Floo straight from the safehouse to the Ministry of Magic’s Atrium, but while one might assume that nobody would be foolish enough to attack them there, Harry isn’t so ignorant. He’s well aware that the Ministry’s security is exceedingly lacking in many ways.
However, as on edge as he is while Kingsley, Hestia, and Tonks all escort him through the atrium and over to the Wizengamot’s meeting chambers, no attack ever comes. Harry can’t help but frown at that, wondering just what Amelia’s opposition is planning. It was entirely possible that the DMLE Director was so on top of things that word of his location and security detail had never leaked.
On the other hand, if that were the case, then staking out his route to the Wizengamot and attacking then would have been the best opportunity anyone who wanted to silence him would have had. The fact that no one tried… well, it was interesting to say the least.
Then again, maybe Harry was overestimating their current enemies. After all, this technically wasn’t a fight against the Dark Lord or his Death Eaters. Voldemort wasn’t in a position to do anything right now anyways, and his Death Eaters, while making fools of themselves, were likely to have little interest in Fudge’s fuck-ups and Sirius Black’s innocence.
At the end of the day, their enemies were corrupt and incompetent government bureaucrats, not Pureblood Supremacist Dark Wizards. Though the two could sometimes be one in the same, in this case they actually weren’t.
Harry snorts, imagining for a moment Dolores Umbridge in all pink walking up and trying to curse him for her precious ‘Minister’. He wouldn’t have put it past the toad of a woman, and frankly he would have relished the opportunity to exercise his right to self-defense against the bitch. But no. There was no sign of Umbridge or anyone else who might have been willing to do Fudge’s bidding.
Instead, the trip to the Wizengamot passes without issue and after a short period of time waiting to be called upon, Harry finds himself entering the large chamber and being escorted to the middle of the room. He remembers being brought here before, of course. In the original timeline, the earliest moment that he’d been presented to the Wizengamot had been at the beginning of his Fifth Year, after he’d been forced to defend himself and Dudley from Dementors.
But that was just the first of many visits to this… august body. Some of those visits, he’d been called to task just like that first time. Some of them, he’d even been among the Wizengamot itself. That had been later on, when he’d tried far too late to take on his ancestral seats and use what political power they offered him to convince the Wizarding World of the threat they were facing.
… He failed them, having spurned all influence and politics up to that point, to not just his detriment, but the detriment of the entire world. Afterwards, his last time in front of the Wizengamot had been when he’d been called to account for his ‘terrorist activities’. Needless to say, that meeting had not gone well. He hoped this one would go better.
“Now calling a key witness, Harry James Potter, Heir to House Potter, to the stand.”
At the very least, he wasn’t being restrained this time. Harry stands in the center of the chamber but he does so unfettered, gazing around at the multitude of wizards and witches surrounding him. Lords and Ladies every one, with most of them being ancient and decrepit in a way that almost makes Harry want to curl his lip in a sneer.
He fights back the urge though. Voldemort had done a decent job of killing his parents’ generation off back during the Dark Lord’s first rise. The members of the Wizengamot who were left were those who had either sided with Lord Voldemort or had not spoken out against him and stayed locked behind the safety and security of their wards, craven cowards that they were.
Of course, there’s also Dumbledore. The Wizengamot’s Chief Warlock is currently presiding over this whole affair from the look of things. He’s the one who had introduced Harry to the chamber, and as Harry stands there waiting to be questioned, Dumbledore gives him a soft smile with a twinkle in his eye.
Recognizing the attempt at Legilimency for what it is, Harry considers whether to meet the old wizard’s eyes or not for a moment, knowing he’ll be able to block Dumbledore’s intrusion either way. Instead, he ultimately decides to play the lost innocent little lamb for a little longer, avoiding Albus’ gaze and
“I must cast doubt upon young Mister Potter’s words.”
Harry raises an eyebrow as Lucius Malfoy finally speaks up. He’d clocked the Malfoy Lord earlier, but with Fudge out on his ass, he hadn’t been sure what Lucius would do. It would seem this was what Lord Malfoy had been waiting for… a chance to save his son’s godfather.
“As many here should be aware, my heir is in the same year as young Mister Potter at Hogwarts. Draco has spoken in depth about the enmity between Hogwarts’ Potion Professor and the Boy-Who-Lived. I am not convinced that Mister Potter can give an unbiased opinion on this subject.”
Amelia scoffs at that, immediately firing back.
“You’ve all seen Lord Black’s memories of last year and specifically of the night in question. Severus Snape knew that Sirius Black was innocent. And yet, he whispered lies into Fudge’s ears all the same. Are we supposed to ignore the attempt on a Wizard Lord’s life?”
Lucius rolls his eyes.
“My cousin Lord Black was unjustly locked up in Azkaban Prison for nearly a decade and a half. This, at least, is not in doubt. But I must confess, I worry about his mental state after such a long imprisonment… and by extension, the veracity of his memories. The injustice done against my cousin is already in the process of being righted. This… pursuit of an upstanding Professor of Hogwarts feels like the start of a witch hunt.”
Oh wow, Lucius went there. Judging by the murmurings of the other members of the Wizengamot and the narrowed eyes of Amelia, he might have scored some points against her as well. Harry found himself at a crossroads. Did he try and help? Or did he let Amelia handle it? Maybe he should signal to Amelia, as his other persona, to let it rest?
Snape was honestly small fry, and technically not on Voldemort’s side. As much of a piece of scum as the Potions Professor was, Harry didn’t really care what happened to him so long as he stayed in his lane. Frankly, he doubted Sirius cared either.
At this point, it felt more like Amelia was trying to nail the actual culprit to the wall in pursuit of justice more than political points. And that was brave and righteous of her, truly it was… but if it hurt her chances of becoming the next Minister of Magic, was it really worth it? Harry considers his options in silence for a long moment… and then makes his choice.
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The Patreon Vote:
[ ] Insert himself into the conversation to try and help Amelia out - 17%
[X] Stand back and let her present her case, she's the professional - 67%
[ ] Get her a secret message in his other persona to have her back off - 16%
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