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Padma was sitting in the office of her opposite number in Lima, going over the details of the last time she had seen Hermione Granger. Hermione had been reported missing when she failed to check out of her hotel and her luggage was still in the room. As she sat with Inspector Santiago, of the Magical Services in Peru, her phone buzzed on the desk, lighting up with the picture of Hermione, and showing her number as the caller.
She grabbed the phone off the desk and answered it in a panic. “Mione babe, where are you? Are you safe? I am worried sick about you.”
She heard her friends voice reply, “I am safe Padi, I was rescued by an old friend. I was kidnapped by Pansy Parkinson, and Theodore Knott.”
“I didn’t realise those two were still alive.” Padma replied.
“They aren’t Padi. I have texted you the address of the house where they were holding Luna and I. They did not survive the rescue, and I think they are both marked Death Eaters.”
“This old friend, is it the one I want to talk to.”
“It is Harry, and he is willing to meet you, to talk, on neutral ground. If you are interested.”
“I am, just to clear all these cases, if nothing else. Is he OK? Is he well Hermione? I know you still worry about him.”
“He is physically fine Padi, but I am worried about the state of his mind, he has been alone far too long.”
“Well, he has you again now, doesn’t he?”
“I don’t know about that, it has been a very long time apart, and we are both different people.”
Padma snorted in response, “You try to convince yourself about that girl, we believe you, honest.” She snarked back at her friend. “I have your things from the hotel, let me know where you are and I will meet you when you are ready.”
“Thanks Padi, you’re the best. I will send you a note when I get back to the city.”
“Where are you?”
“Harry’s place, in the Andes. It’s rather nice.”
“Can I visit? I could talk to him there, I am not really interested in attempting to arrest him or any nonsense, I really want the evidence he has access to, maybe we can start to clean house a little?”
Padma heard faint voices, “Harry says he will send Luna to fetch you, just you. She will meet you at your Hotel this evening, seven oclock. Is that OK.”
“Brilliant. See you then.” She placed the phone on the table and the IMS buzzed, she forwarded the address to the locals, telling them it was the kidnap scene, but the hostages had already been rescued. She leaned back in her chair and blew out a long breath. Finally, she would get to interview Harry about all the deaths. She scoffed quietly, all the executions, she wondered who was next on his list, Padma was under no illusions, the Ministry wanted him arrested, because most of them were terrified of him coming for them.
Padma sat at a table in the corner of the Hotel bar, she had a drink in front of her, but she was watching the door, waiting. Luna bounced in a few minutes before she was due and walked straight over to where she was sitting. Padma didn’t notice that everyone on the room froze in place as Luna walked over.
“Hi Padma, ready to go?” she asked brightly, Padma stood and Luna took her hand, “Let’s go then.” In an eyeblink they were in a courtyard of a building somewhere else. Padma looked around slowly, sat at a table in the corner, were Hermione, Harry, and a man she didn’t recognise. Harry stood and pulling a chair out, beckoned her over to join them, Luna skipped past her and sat at the side of Hermione.
She walked steadily over to the chair, Harry Potter was regarded by her department as the most dangerous person on the planet, and extreme caution was advised to anyone whoever sighted him. She took the chair as Hermione reached out and took her hand, “It’s fine Padma, no-one is going to hurt anyone here.” She reassured her friend.
A glass appeared on the table in front of her, and Hermione poured some chilled rosé into it for her. “Welcome to the Hostel Santa Maria, somewhere in the Andes,” she mock saluted her with her own glass.
“You want to talk to me Padma?”
She looked at Harry, he looked extremely fit and in excellent physical condition, but his eyes made him look old, she understood what Hermione had meant. “I do Harry. I would like to ask you about the deaths of a large number of high profile people, who all, committed suicide, having left confessions of their crimes.”
“If it was suicide, why do you want to talk to me?”
“They were all marked Death Eaters, except Dumbledore. He was supposedly dead already. His cleaner found him.”
“So why are you asking me about these deaths?”
“Because of two people in the world with a strong motive to kill all of these people, you are the one that no-one has seen or heard of for nearly a decade, and our girl here has rock solid alibis for most of the deaths. She wasn’t a suspect, you are, a person of interest, in the cases.”
“I am suspected of making people commit suicide, based on the fact, you didn’t know where I was, and I don’t like Death Eaters, and you hold me responsible.”
“Aren’t you?”
“Do you care?”
“Personally, no. Professionally, the head count is over sixty, and that would make you a mass murderer, one of the more prolific ones.”
“Well, Padma, I have not killed any of them.”
“Can you prove that?”
“No more than you could prove I did, I can however introduce you to the deity that brought judgement down on them, if you want me to. I should caution you, it is not a meeting for the faint of heart, and you will be judged, so if you have any great sins in your closet, you should avoid this meeting.”
“You sound as if you are talking about a god, Harry.”
“I am talking about Death herself, Padma. I am the last of the Peverell line. The three brothers from the tale in Beedle’s book. I descend from Ignotus. I united the three Hallows, my cloak, Dumbledore’s wand, The stone in the Gaunt ring. I was given a choice, work for Death herself, as a reaper, or pass on. I didn’t have anything to live for at the time, and I so nearly chose to move on, and join my family. She tasked me with ridding the world with the last taint of Voldemort’s soul, each Dark Mark contains a tiny fraction. Only then will she allow me to rest.”
Harry picked up his glass and drank a little. “Tracking down fragments of one soul, in a planet of billions, is beyond even her powers. So we had to follow leads, and when the last two Death Eaters kidnapped the two people on the planet I still care about, I paid them a visit. I do not kill, Anubis takes them if they fail judgement. Death herself sent her dogs for Albus. He was worse than the Death Eaters, he was angry, that his schemes failed, he resented me surviving, after his attempts to have me die at the hands of Voldemort, I stood in the way of yet more fame and fortune. His fame, my fortune, or at least my family’s”
“If you want to know the truth, I can introduce you to death, if you are a good person, you will be able to return, but I don’t actually kill people, I find those that are already dead and have not moved on.” He sat back and looked at the woman.
“is there no middle ground, I am not afraid, I have done nothing that would warrant my soul being cast down, but I am not sure I wish to visit that realm.”
“Wise words, I can give you the memories, of those condemned, but they would most likely cause you greater distress.”
“You have the memories of the acts these people committed?”
“I do, they were in all cases guilty of multiple crimes against all that is good. For example, Draco Malfoy, took part in a ritual to boost his magical power by sacrificing a pure spirit, in English, a virgin witch. He killed Sally-Anne Perks in the summer of 1992, and absorbed her magic. That was the intended fate of both Luna and Hermione when they were captured, strangely Draco’s abuse of Luna, saved her life.”
“What saved Hermione?”
“Leave a girl some secrets Padma.” She snarked, laughing, “I am a muggleborn, the idea of ‘keeping myself pure’ for my husband is ludicrous, I no longer qualified for the ritual, by the time I was captured.” Padma gave her a ‘look’. “None of your business. It was a long time ago, and I did love him at the time.”
“Is there anything you can share with me, that will not destroy my sanity?”
“I can promise you that we are almost ready to clean up the British Magical Society, and whilst you and your family are safe, a few people you know will be judged, the mighty shall fall.”
“You sound as if you are about to bring the government down.”
“Not me, Hecate, Athena, whichever names you prefer, the old gods are going to clean house, and since I work for the very oldest of them, I will be, shall we say doing some light dusting.”
“Only you could describe wholesale slaughter as dusting.”
“There will not be that many deaths, most will simply lose their magic, only those who have seriously misused it will die.”
“Like who?”
“Spoilers sweetie. Spoilers.”
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Hermione walked out onto the balcony overlooking the valley. They were miles from any settlement, and the night sky was awash with stars. The milky way bright and full in the crisp clear blackness, it looked like a river winding its way along the Andes. She sat in one of the comfortable chairs at the small table.
“It is very beautiful here Harry, I can see why you find it restful.”
“There is a very old saying Hermione, ‘no rest for the wicked’ and although I do not kill directly, the number of souls I have sent down is heavy.”
“I can imagine. Rather actually I cannot imagine. It is not healthy for you Harry, to be alone like this. I miss you, I tried to convince myself I did not. I tried to pick myself up and move on. I looked for you. The whole summer I searched everywhere I could think of, everywhere you might go. Even after the Malfoy’s. I didn’t want Ronald. Something was pushing me towards him, I worried about being potioned by him or his family, it ended any friendship with the Weasleys.”
“It was Dumbledore, when we found Snape, he led us to Dumbledore. Sirius can read a persons past when he is the Grimm. He looked at Dumbledore’s actions, he cast a confundus on you, just to make you go off with Ron. Petty, spiteful act of an old man that could not accept being anywhere but the centre of attention.”
“How long have you known?”
“We reaped Dumbledore about four months ago.”
“You didn’t reach out to me?”
“I was not allowed, I still had my task to finish. To balance the scales for being allowed back. I am free of that burden now, but I carry the guilt. Harry Potter aged almost eighteen loved you like the Moon loves the Earth. I am a broken remnant of him, and whilst I cannot bear the thought of anyone harming you, I am not sure I can love anyone, let alone love you as you deserve.”
“I want to try Harry. I want you back in my life. My life is also empty. If we do not at least try, then Albus Dumbledore will sit roasting in hell, knowing he robbed you of your happiness, do you want him to succeed.”
“No. He single handedly destroyed our lives, and our society. With one simple spell, he took victory, and turned it into defeat. What should have been the start of a new era, was lost in the bitter taste of betrayal.”
“I didn’t betray you Harry. If you had stayed five minutes, Ron blew up in typical fashion, and my mind rejected Albus’s compulsion spell, I could not believe I chose him over you. I would have grabbed you, dragged you to a bedroom somewhere and then Australia, for my parents and a long, long holiday.”
“I am sorry for that Hermione. I was truly, epically, broken to see you with that man. I could not stay, I wanted you to be happy, and I was still programmed to put everyone else’s needs before my own. I expected, I feared that you would leave me, and my fears came true.”
Hermione rose and pushing Harry’s shoulders back into the chair, settled across his lap. She ran her hands through his hair, “You don’t wear glasses anymore?”
“I no longer need them, a gift from the gods, my body is fully healed, no scars, no longer stunted.”
“Padma did say you had a body that looked like a god, I think she was thinking a little less about the deities, a little more about the bedroom.” She continued to stroke his hair gazing into his eyes that seemed brighter in the starlight than earlier. Gently Hermione closed the distance and placed a soft kiss on his mouth. “Come back to me Harry, please. Let me in?”
As she sat back she watched a single tear run down his cheek. “I don’t know how Hermione.” You look like a dream silhouetted against the stars, and I know I love you, but I don’t know how to feel anything anymore.”
“Then let me help you, let me remind you of what you have been missing. You are not going to leap off across the world to escape me this time. She kissed him again, holding his face in her hand, her own tears wetting her face. “If you have finished your task, can the gods not give you this grace?”
“They never give anything without a price, Hermione. There is always a cost, a sacrifice.”
“What would your happiness cost, I will pay the price?”
“Do not make that offer, please, what if the price is your happiness, we gain nothing.”
Leaning her head on his, forehead to forehead, “There must be something we can offer, some task we can undertake, together, I can feel you in my heart, in my magic. This is not me wondering about an old flame, wanting to rekindle some lost feelings. This is what my life means, if we both passed on right here and now, and I got to be with you for eternity, I think I would accept the deal.”
“Your life thread has a long way to run yet, Hermione. The Fates would chase me across the universe if I took you across the veil.”
“How long is your thread?”
“I am not allowed to see my own fate.”
“Am I?”
“MY CHILD.” A figure in the shadows spoke. “I AGREE WITH YOUR SENTIMENTS. MY CHAMPION HAS FINALLY CLEANSED THIS WORLD OF THE TAINT OF TOM RIDDLE, HIS SERVICE TO ME IS COMPLETE.” The figure laid a hand on his head, Hermione expected to see a skeletal hand, but it was a well manicured and dainty woman’s hand. “I RESTORE YOU, Magere Hein BE ONCE MORE HARRY JAMES POTTER, LOVE YOUR SOULMATE. THE OTHER GODS HAVE INDEED A TASK OF YOU BOTH. THEY WILL TELL YOU WHEN.” The Hand withdrew, and Hermione took the cue to kiss Harry once more. He responded in kind, the kissing became more passionate and she pulled Harry’s shirt off running her hands up his solid muscular chest.
Harry’s hands worked up inside her top, caressing the skin across her back, until one of his large hands cupped her breast and sent a shiver of anticipation through her very soul. “Take me to your bed Harry, make us one again.” He didn’t move, the world flickered and they were sat on silken sheet, He flipped her over and her clothes were gone, as were his. He caressed her. He devoured her, he impaled her.
Hermione could not remember any of the details, just that she had spent time in her own personal heaven, basking in ecstasy, beyond anything she had ever experienced, she was laid curled around the side of the man she would be with until the end of time. She knew this with a certainty that should worry her. She saw his life thread, it twisted around her own. It had no end. They were one now, bonded, joined. They were finally what they should have become.
________________________________________________________ᓚᘏᗢ
Several days, perhaps weeks later, they walked into the courtyard, sitting eating breakfast, Luna was chatting with a very alive and solid looking Sirius Black. On her lap, Luna had a small rodent, with rabbit like features and small crooked antlers. She beamed up at the pair.
“Hullo, you two. I see things are better between you now. I can see the blessing laid heavy on your souls, you have pleased the gods. They even gave Sirius his youth back.”
They sat at the table and Harry poured them both a drink from the coffee pot on the table.
“That animal Luna, is that?”
“It is a Crumple Horned Snorkack. Or a Jackalope, I like Snorkack.” She smiled as she stroked the small creature. I call him Eric.”
“Eric?”
“Well, I was going to call him Harry, but Sirius said you were more like a bunny, over the last few days.”
Hermione snorted, “I am not complaining Luna, we have a few missing years to catch up on.”
Sirius laughed, a normal chuckling laugh.
“You needn’t laugh Padfoot, you still prefer doggy style. I like to go on top personally, Doing both at the same time is quite tricky.” She said in her usual daydream voice. “I need to say thank you Harry, you removed my fears and nightmares. I have my life back.” Harry looked from one to the other, and laughed himself.
“I am glad you have both found a little happiness.”
“Oh, his happiness is quite a decent size Harry, it’s not little.” Luna replied. Harry noticed Hermione’s shoulders moving in rhythm as she silently laughed into her hand. He glanced at Sirius, who grinned and shrugged.
“Whatever Luna, I am happy for you, both.” She smiled back, and he swore she glowed a little.
Later that day Hermione wrote a long letter to her department head, and emailed it away to her, explaining her reasons for resigning, and wishing everyone well. Half an hour later her phone buzzed with a text message, her boss offered her a year’s sabbatical, but wanted her to stay in touch. She agreed. She enjoyed the work, and who knew what a difference a year might make.
They spent a month together, leaving the Hostel for the Beach Front Villa on Sirius’s family Island near Fiji for the last two weeks. Luna and Sirius had gone off together to North America in search of one of Luna’s lost animals. One evening the pair of them tanned and relaxed, cuddled in a Hammock watching the sun dip towards the sea. Hermione was stretched on Harry’s side, enjoying the heat of its setting rays listening to the sound of his breathing and the steady beat of his heart. She was happy, finally at peace. Her eyelids were heavy and she was on the boundary between sleep and wakefulness.
Hermione was not sure if she was still awake, or dreaming, but two beautiful women walked up the beach to the hammock. “Are you rested child?” the blonde of the pair asked. Hermione realised both women were glowing softly in the evening light.
“I am, I am happy. Finally I am in love, and loved.”
“It is as it should be, as it was written.” The brunette replied. “We have a task for you both.”
“Oh, Hecate.”
“Harry James, don’t be rude.” Hermione remonstrated.
He laughed, “No, this is Hecate, and Demeter. Or Freya and Freyr, or Heka and Renenutet, or Morrigan and Brigid. These are the old gods that set our paths originally. Dumbledore ruined their plans.”
“He is hunted every night by Diana and her Hounds, your Harbinger joins them in his dreams. We are most pleased that our Dogstar is with my priestess, in this we see a bright future.” The blonde answered.
Harry nodded at the last one to speak, “Hermione, allow me to introduce two of the Goddesses of our world, they have many names each, in different languages and cultures. This dazzlingly beautiful lady is Hecate, the Goddess of all things magical, she is in many ways my mother. The equally lovely lady with her is Brigid, the Goddess of spring and rebirth, she is your magical mother, they imbued us each with a little of their power and set us on the earth to fix the rot in the magical world.”
Hermione remembered that flattering gods and goddesses was expected, she smiled at Harry’s easy way with the pair, “I am honoured by your presence, it is my greatest wish to please you both.”
Brigid laughed, a deep rich laugh. “You said she was a fast learner young Thanatos. We thank you for your respect Hermione, named for the daughter of Helen, herself a demi-god. We shall call you Athena, after the goddess of wisdom, our sister. She may be flattered enough to guide you from time to time.”
Hermione looked at Harry and mouthed ‘Thanatos?’ he smiled, “They call me Thanatos, he is the Greek name for the Grim Reaper, it is my eventual destiny,” She smiled and curled into his side more.
“Children, it is time to clean up my house, you must start in your home country, you must clean out the rot at it’s core. You will know what to do.” The two ladies glowed ever brighter and when the light faded away, they were alone, and it was dark.
“Lets go inside,” Harry said softly, “I suspect this is the last night of our honeymoon.”
Sliding to her feet, she waited for Harry and walked up the beach holding his hand, “If this is our honeymoon, did I sleep through the wedding?”
“No, sorry, just a figure of speech. Our job would be easier as a married couple. Will you marry me, Miss Granger?”
“I will Mister Potter, but I want my parents at my wedding.”
“No worries.” He replied in a bad Australian accent, “we are almost in Oz anyway. I want Sirius and Luna there. Anyone else?”
“I should let Padma know. No one else leaps to mind.”
“Sorted. We can pop over to see your folks in the morning then.”
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It took a month to make the arrangements, a legal requirement in Australia. Harry and Hermione married with her father walking her down the aisle. Sirius stood at Harry’s side as his best man, and Luna was Hermione’s maid of honour. Padma attended as a guest, and cried her eyes out when they took their vows. It was a normal mundane civil ceremony, performed by the local celebrant, a muggleborn like Hermione, who was delighted to act on their behalf.
“Did you two not want the full magical ceremony?” she asked as people mingled later in the afternoon,
“Hermione shook her head, “We are considered married by Hecate herself, a ceremony will add nothing to that, and it will just complicate things.”
The celebrant looked a little sceptical at the comment, but let it slide and as the last act she had agreed to proposed a toast to the bride and groom, as Harry Stood Holding Hermione in his arms. As the group toasted the ‘Bride and Groom’ the couple were surrounded in streamers of light of all colours, and a number of the elder gods appeared in a circle around them.
In a voice that sounded almost like a bell chiming, “Let all those here know, this marriage is blessed by Hecate,” the gathered ladies spoke in turn, “Demetor,” “Athena,” “Aphrodite,” “Persephone,” the last figure stood in swirling shadows, “You have my blessing my Champion, live long and be fruitful,” with that they shimmered out of existence.
The celebrant looked on with an open mouth and held her glass out for a refill. “Who was that last one? The goth?”
“She was Death. Not really a God, but as inevitable.”
“My Champion?”
“I am her Reaper, or I will be when my time on earth is done.” The woman took a large pull on her drink and nodded, ‘defo one for the record books, I just married the grim reaper, seems like a nice bloke.’ Placing her now empty glass on a table, she slipped away from the party.
They travelled back to the UK, and returned to Grimmauld Place, which Hermione still owned, heavily redecorated and much cleaned. Kreacher had passed on some years before and Winky had gone with Andromeda in order to look after Teddy. Luna and Sirius joined them once more and they forced the building to accept their ownership. Luna made visits to Gringotts and the Ministry to check what the status on them both was. Not surprisingly, Sirius was officially deceased, whilst Harry was missing, although no longer a ‘person of interest’ in the various suspicious deaths. Their Wizengamot seats still existed, but lay unclaimed.
Their bank vaults were existing, untouched and would be accessible once they visited a bank branch, be it in London, Peru or Timbuktu.
“Do Gringotts have a branch in Timbuktu?” Hermione asked
No one knew.
They walked into the Wizengamot chamber just before the doors were closed for the Yule Solstice session of 2010, and took seats in the visitors gallery. Chief Warlock Dominic Greengrass was presiding. As was tradition he called upon the floor to ask if anyone was being presented to the ‘gamot.
Harry stood and walked down to the podium in the centre of the room. “Harry James Potter, I hereby claim my place as the Head of the House of Potter.” He lifted his hand, deliberately not bothering with a wand, “I Harry James Potter swear by Lady Magic that I shall serve the interests of our Nation honestly, justly and without favour.” He flared his magic and the Potter House crest appeared in front of him.
Greengrass banged his gavel a couple of times to quell the muttering. “The Wizengamot recognises and accepts the right of Lord Potter to take his seat. Do you have any words for the assembled?”
“I would like to announce my recent marriage to Lady Hermione Jean Potter, and I would ask that anyone using our House votes in proxy now surrender them back to the house. As well as the House of Potter, this shall include the House of Peverell, and Gryffindor. By right of Conquest I further claim, Slytherin, Dumbledore, Prince, Parkinson, Bulstrode, Goyle, Rowle, Rawlings, Yaxley, Gaunt, Malfoy, McNair, Flint, Nott, McDonald, Crouch, Rosier, and Lestrange. I again thank anyone acting upon these proxies, and I shall take control of them once more.” He Walked up to his House seat, followed by Hermione who sat quietly alongside him as pandemonium exploded across the room.
Eventually the room settled, Amos Diggory, the incumbent Minister of Magic stood, “By what right do you claim over half the votes in this chamber? This is preposterous.”
Hermione answered. “Firstly, Minister, the claims were made, and the magic of the court accepted them as just, do you wish us to summons Hecate for her judgement? Secondly the law is specific, when one house declares itself at war with another, to the victor, go the spoils, the losing House is subjugated by the victor, as are all the allies of the losing House. Lord Potter defeated Tom Marvolo Riddle in single combat. All of his houses and all of his allies and supporters’ houses are therefore subject to the word of Lord Potter. Be thankful Mister Greengrass that you remained neutral.”
The court clerk was looking through the statute book and nodded to Percy Weasley who was the Senior Undersecretary. In Percy’s favour, he was smiling with amusement. He whispered to the Minister, who sat down again. Sirius walked down to the front, and was noticed for the first time.
“Good Morning my Lords and Ladies, I Sirius Orion Black hereby claim my place as the Head of the House of Black.” He lifted his hand, again deliberately not bothering with a wand, “I Sirius Orion Black swear by Lady Magic that I shall serve the interests of our Nation honestly, justly and without favour.” He flared his magic and the Black House crest appeared in front of him. The room sat in stoney silence. “If I may, I should point out that I was thrown through the veil back in 1996, and I only recently returned to this plane of existence, along with Lord Potter we have been busy attending to our sponsors business.”
“Who is this mysterious sponsor?” Diggory was beyond annoyed.
“She is called many names, Amos. Shinigami, Nebethuet, Kanisurra, Morana, Mania, Maman Brigitte, Mort, we would simply call her Death. She is inevitable, and unavoidable. The self styled darks lords Voldemort, and Dumbledore angered her, and her fellow gods, we were tasked with correcting that part of the world.”
“Dumbledore was not dark.”
“The very gods themselves would disagree, and I am but a mere, well, I am no longer a mortal, but I serve the gods.”
“What is your Purpose here? Lord Black.” Hermione looked up, she recognised the voice, Neville Longbottom, sat in the House seat. She smiled, he looked tall and healthy.
“Our purpose is very simple Lord Longbottom. This assembly has been judged corrupt and beyond redemption by the gods. We are tasked with cleaning house, and you will find we have the gods in our corner.”
The house erupted in talk and shouts, the chief warlock let fly a cannon blast to restore order.
Sirus folded his arms. “I propose a motion of no confidence in the Minister for Magic.”
“Seconded.” Neville beat Hermione to the punch, she smiled at him as he caught her eye.
The Chief Warlock sat in a daze, Percy stood. “All those in favour.”
Harry raised his wand and the vote counter in front of the warlock spun over to show a vote of 42 in favour. It turned green as there were only sixty votes in the hall.
Amos sat shell shocked. Sirius had not finished. “I propose a motion to disband this chamber, and create an elected body to represent all magical creatures, Wizard, witch, elf, goblin, or centaur.”
“Seconded.” Hermione spoke.
“Which house do you speak for Lady Potter?” Percy asked grinning from ear to ear.
“Dagworth Granger. By conquest Shafir, Brown and by life debt Bones, Patil and Weasley.”
Percy was openly laughing now. “May we have all in favour.”
Harry voted and the counter showed 42, Hermione added six, and Sirius four. 52 votes cast. Neville raised his wand as did Luna, 54. Percy stifled his laughter. “I declare as of this date, the Wizengamot disbanded. Lords, Ladies, thank you for attending, the business is concluded. There shall not be another meeting. I leave the creation of the new assembly, to the Earl of Gryffindor.” He laughed openly, “Our Once and Future King.”
Harry looked at Sirius and nodded, to Hermione, he quietly asked, “ready.” She returned the nod.
He stood, the first curse flew across the room and Harry simply caught the green light in his outstretched hand. With a look he sent the caster down, four more wizards met the same fate either from Harry or Sirius. From a nearby seat Dolores Umbridge cast her best shot at Hermione, who side stepped the curse and replied with a blasting hex that removed the top half of her body, spraying the court behind her in red.
The remaining wizards pointing wands found they could not cast. “Those of you who had not yet sent a deadly curse to me or mine, but had the intention, have paid with the loss of your magic. Welcome to the mundane world, I hope you enjoy the experience. Those of this assembly that cast a lethal curse paid with their lives, Lord Black, did not jest. We act on behalf of the Lady Magic, and her will is absolute in these matters. Those few of you that served this assembly with honour, please stand to be elected, your people need good advocates. Those of you who sought to profit by perverting the course of the law, retire. If you attempt to interfere, you will forfeit everything.” He held his hand out and with Hermione on his arm, he walked to the doors. Sirius and Luna fell in step and they left the room.
“Harry, Hermione, Luna.” Neville was striding through the throng. “Bloody Hell. You know how to make an entrance.” He wrapped his arms around Harry, then Hermione and Luna in turn. “You look well. I assume you have a plan to sort out the Ministry, now you have basically become King?”
“We have a plan, We need a decent man for Minister, I was hoping Shack might be interested, but if he isn’t, how are you fixed Neville.”
“No.” his eyes bulged. “No, no , no ,no. Not me. I am a gardener, a Hogwarts Professor, I do not want the job.”
“That never stopped people putting me in charge if I remember correctly?”
“Harry, in a fight , you are the leader. This is politics, it’s a fight with letters and numbers, I am out of my depth. Ask Shack, he has been campaigning in the margins, he still has the fight, and I think he will be your man.”
“Neville Longbottom, where is the man who stood at our side,” Hermione asked with a wide grin.
“I am here Hermione, but this is not a fight I understand. They will campaign to undermine you, they will come at you in every way they can, but since Harry caught an Avada in his hand, I don’t imagine you are too worried about that?”
No Neville, we just need to wait for the inevitable arrest attempt before Amos realises he is out of office and then, how about a drink somewhere?”
Percy walked up to the group, “Lord Potter, Lady Potter,” he nodded in turn, “thank you, my father will choke on his drink when I relate the events of today. Dare I ask if you actually have a plan for what to do next?”
Hermione reached into her bag and pulled out a thick lever arch file, handing it to Percy, she then pulled out three more as thick. “Outline constitution, Electoral boundaries, Voting rights and allocations, Bill of Human rights, amended to include all magical beings, and the classification of the same. Notably Werewolves and Goblins have equal rights.” She smiled, “There is more, but that will get your department started.” She smiled, “It’s good to see you Percy, how is the family?”
“They are all very well Hermione. It is good to see you both. Everyone will be delighted to hear of your wedding, well except Ron, but at least when I was outcast, I was spying for the Order, I had an excuse. He is just a prat.” He turned to leave and then paused, “If you can, pop over to the Burrow, mum and dad would be made up to see you both.” With a nod he headed off into the building carrying the volumes he had been handed.
“Drink?”
“Doubles.” Hermione replied.