# # #
The rest of the day went pretty normal for a week day at Hogwarts. Classes recommenced after morning tea and progressed into late afternoon. Classes normally scheduled for first thing in the morning were, where possible, rescheduled to occur during the late afternoon.
That afternoon the four heirs had planned to retire to the own chambers to discuss the day's highlights, and to plan their talk for the next morning. It was going to be the last, and the culmination of the first two. It would give the student body, and the staff, the whole reason why the heirs have come forth; the prophecy.
However, soon after 4.00pm they received a knock on the door. Harry answered it to find an auror standing before him. Just beyond his shoulder he saw a neatly, but cheaply, dressed red headed man in his mid forties.
"Lord Slytherin," said the auror, "there's a Mister Weasley who seeks audience with you."
Harry nodded and said, "Thank you, Auror." Then, looking at Arthur, he said, "Come in, Mister Weasley."
Arthur stepped through into the owner's common room very nervously. Here was a man who was clearly afraid, both for himself and his family.
Harry gestured towards the couches and said, "Take a seat, Mister Weasley."
Arthur moved over to sit on one of the couches. He was clearly still very nervous.
Harry smiled at him and, walking back to take his own seat, called for Dobby.
*Pop* "Yes, Master Harry Potter, Sir?" asked the little elf.
"Dobby", replied Harry, "could you organise for us some tea? And, perhaps, something a little stronger for Mister Weasley here."
"Yes, Master Harry Potter, Sir!" *Pop*
Very quickly there appeared a serving of tea on the coffee table between them. Plus, a small bottle of firewhiskey and a shot glass within Arthur's reach.
After Harry made himself a cup of tea, without looking up at the clearly defeated man sitting opposite, who hadn't moved since he'd sat down, he quietly said, "Alright, Mister Weasley; you may as well say what you feel you need to say."
The other three heirs were all making their own beverages and were letting Harry, as per usual, handle it.
"My Lord," said Arthur. "After your... message... I went home to see my wife. Until I... ummm... yelled at her, and told her what she'd done wrong, she didn't understand she'd done anything wrong. She had been talking with Dumbledore, and he'd told her that four... children... had effectively... stolen Hogwarts from him. And..."
Interrupting, Harry quietly said, "Stop."
Arthur's head snapped up but immediately fell silent.
"When did she talk to Dumbledore?" Harry quietly asked.
"Last night. He floo-called her directly, apparently, from his office," replied Arthur. "It was after I went to bed after a hard day of work."
"That manipulative old bastard!" hissed Susan. "He played her! He knew how she'd react and he used it!"
Neville softly growled while Hermione gasped, "Susan!"
"What?" asked Arthur. "I... don't understand."
Looking back at Arthur, Harry called the older man's attention back to him. "Arthur... How long have you and your wife known Dumbledore?"
"Years," replied Arthur. "Decades even. He was the Headmaster here when we were both students. And he was the Headmaster well before we arrived for our first year. Why?"
"So," replied Harry, "he would know exactly how your wife would react if he made it seem like four children had stolen something from him, right?"
Arthur frowned and said, "Right. He knew how... fond... Molly was of howlers. She's sent a few of them when she's discovered the boys, especially the twins, had misbehaved."
Nodding, Harry said, "So, he knew that your wife's immediate response, when children misbehave outside of yelling distance, is to send a howler, right?"
Frowning darkly, Arthur stared back at Harry. Harry could see the man starting to put all the pieces together. Arthur's countenance quickly shifted to one of fury.
"He... he... knew!" growled Arthur. "That... that..."
"Bastard," supplied Susan.
"Susan!" exclaimed Hermione.
"That bastard!" said Arthur.
"I'm only helping the man, 'Mione!" said Susan gently.
Harry, trying to ignore the byplay between Susan and Hermione, said to Arthur, "Your wife, Molly, was used, Mister Weasley. And by a master manipulator, who is quite comfortable sacrificing people who trust him, if he thinks it gets him one step further along in his own plans."
Harry reached out and poured the man a dram of firewhiskey and held it out to him. Arthur took it and downed it in one gulp.
"Still, my Lord," said Arthur, returning the glass to the tabletop, "My wife overstepped her bounds. And I come to offer my apologies on behalf of House Weasley. And stand ready..."
Harry held up his hand in a stop gesture. Arthur stopped in mid sentence.
He said, "Have you taken steps to ensure your wife never again sends us a howler, or like?"
Nodding firmly, Arthur said, "She no longer has, and will never again, have access to howler parchment. I have... remonstrated with her concerning her actions. And she knows, now, how far over bounds she has stepped. We both..."
Again, Harry raised his hand in a stop gesture.
"Then," said Harry, "the matter is dealt with. Nothing more needs be said."
Harry looked towards the other three and received nods in agreement.
"You are willing to forgive her of her actions?" asked Arthur hopefully.
"Forgive?" asked Harry. "No. Recognise she has been suitably dealt with? Yes. While she overstepped the bounds of civility outside of her House, we accept she and her actions have been dealt with in-House. And we let the matter rest."
Arthur visibly sagged in relief. "Thank you, My Lord."
Harry leaned forward and said in a deeper, firmer tone, "However, Mister Weasley; Albus Dumbledore did this to your wife, and your House, deliberately. He knew what he was doing. And he'll try to, once again, use you and your family for his own ends if he thinks he can get away with it. It's your responsibility to not let him get away with it. Do not trust him."
With his mouth set in a grim line and firmly focussed on Harry, Arthur nodded his head once, sharply, and replied, "No, My Lord; we will not!"
Arthur left them a few minutes later.
After Arthur left the four heirs didn't leave their private common room. Instead they called a house elf and asked for a meal to be served for them there. Harry also asked one of the house elves to ask Sirius and Remus to join them. The evening meal, in Hogwarts's Great Hall would not be concluded in time for them to dine before they'd need to make their way to the Ministry. So Harry thought Sirius, at least, should be able to dine with them.
Sirius and Remus joined them about ten minutes later and they all ate together.
Something had been bothering Harry for a while about the behaviours of the other three. At the conclusion of dinner, and before they left for Gringotts, he felt now was the best time to ask. With a sigh he asked, "Okay, you three. Perhaps now you can explain to me why it is your language and mannerisms are those of people much older than eleven years old. There are times when you are the children I expect you to be, and other times where you're acting as almost clearly adults. What's going on?"
He saw Susan, Hermione and Neville all exchange glances. Now, he knew something was afoot. Sirius and Remus just looked confused. He waited out his fellow heirs.
It was Neville who broke the silence. "Errr... Harry... do you know how those cubes of yours and Merlin's gave us all the information from the lessons you'd received? All the training?"
Frowning, Harry said, "Of course..."
"Well..." continued Neville. "While those cubes were doing their... thing... While it was approximately eight hours per cube to run in real time..."
"Oh, God," moaned Harry. "What happened?"
Susan said, "We experienced, in our minds, time running at a different pace."
Hermione took it up from there. "There was a time dilation effect, similar to your physically being in the pocket reality, but only going on mentally for us."
Neville said, "The prophecy states we would all enter the Great Hall together as equals. It would not have been equal if we didn't have the same mental development as you at the time."
Harry slumped forward, having already figured out what had happened. Sirius and Remus were still confused, though.
Susan said, "While we might have been asleep for up to eight hours physically for each cube, for some of those cubes we were mentally awake for years."
"So, how old are you all... mentally?" asked Harry, his anger rising.
"The best we've been able to calculate, the same as you," replied Hermione. "Nineteen years old."
"Bloody hell!" gasped Remus, realisation dawning.
"Harry," said Susan, softly, "Merlin made his calculations very carefully and set everything out so we would be equal to you in all but magical power after the last cube had run its course."
"Damn it!" snarled Harry, leaping to his feet and beginning to stomp around the room. Yelling, he snarled, "If I'd known they were going to have that effect upon you... locking you within your minds for such long periods of time... I would never have gone along with allowing you the cubes!"
"And that's exactly why we didn't tell you!" snapped Susan right back. "We knew what was happening after the first cube. It was our decision to continue them!"
"Harry," called Hermione, softly, "we know you care for and love us. We know you are trying to protect us. We know you don't want any harm to come to us, and will go on protecting us. But, this was our choice; not yours. And we made it, together."
"She's right, Pup," said his godfather in almost awe. "It was their choice to make. And I, for one, fully support them in it."
Harry just grumbled and stomped back to his seat before collapsing into it.
# # #
Starting to run late for the Wizengamot meeting, the four changed into their finest 'civilian' garb robes. They then used the Floo in the owner's common room to floo to Diagon Alley. Sirius was heading direct to the Wizengamot. Harry had already contacted Blockrig and had the goblin ask on his behalf to be ready to remove all the blocks on the magics of the rings.
After being taken directly to Director Ragnock's office, the four heirs entered.
*Welcome, Lord Slytherin, Lord Gryffindor, Lady Ravenclaw and Lady Hufflepuff. I hope I find you fresh from success in dealing suitably with your enemies and building your wealth,* said the Director.
Harry, as unofficial spokesperson for the four, replied, *And we hope you successfully dealt with your enemies long ago and their gold is earning you even greater wealth while it sits in your vaults.*
The old goblin grinned and said, in English, "I like that one. I hope you don't mind me using it from time to time."
Harry chuckled and said, "Not at all, friend Director. I was rather pleased with it myself."
Ragnock said, "I believe you wish for me to remove the blocks on the rings? I take it something has happened to require it?"
Susan replied, "Yes, sir. Lady Hogwarts, the magical sentient that is the castle at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, was not prepared to allow us to wait the year before announcing us. She forced us to go through the ritual where we took the reins of the school to ourselves. It was announced in front of the entire school, so we can no longer keep it a secret."
As Susan was talking the old goblin had climbed down from his high chair and walked around his desk. He stood before them.
"Plus," said Harry, "the Wizengamot has called a special session for this evening. As Lady Hogwarts has already... outed... us, it seems prudent to attend that body before they attempt to block us from our rightful inheritance. The four of us will be attending this evening's session. And they're all about to receive one hell of a shock."
Ragnock said, "It sounds as if this evening's session will make the front page of the Daily Prophet in tomorrow morning's paper. I wish I could attend."
Neville grinned, "We will think of you, there, as if in spirit."
Ragnock smiled and nodded. "To the business at hand. Please hold out your right hands so I may remove the blocks."
Harry's had already had the block removed on his Potter and Black rings, so it was only the Slytherin ring he needed unblocked. It took Ragnock only a moment to allow it free.
He moved on to Hermione, who stood next in line. Again, it was only a moment to allow it free.
Next was Susan. Hers took a little longer because Ragnock had to remove the blocks on both her Bones ring and then the Hufflepuff ring.
And, finally, Neville. Ragnock released the bindings on both the Longbottom and the Gryffindor rings.
"I wonder what they're witnessing in the Ministry office that deals with the register of who has what ring," mused Harry. "They must have monitoring Charms going off left, right and centre."
Neville chuckled and said, "I bet there are Ministry officials scurrying about like ants!"
Susan said, "Six rings of major Houses being donned. All within the space of half a minute, and less than a half hour shy of a special session of the Wizengamot. I do not envy them."
Harry looked at Ragnock and said, "Director Ragnock; we, the four heirs, thank you very much for the service you have performed for us... and for you and your people's discretion this past couple of months."
Ragnock said, "The pleasure is mine. We, the goblin people, believe you four will perform great service to goblin kin during your time on this plane of existence. I am thankful I will live to see it."
Standing up straighter he said, *May your enemies, at this moment, be trembling in fear you may soon notice them. And may your vaults require expanding from the amount of gold soon to fill them to overflowing.*
Glancing at Harry, Neville asked, "May I?"
Harry grinned and gestured him to go for it.
*May you soon have no enemies left, and their gold find its way into your vaults,* the boy intoned. "I hope that was right."
"That was very well done, young Lord," Ragnock congratulated Neville. "You will find it comes easier with practice."
Looking at all of them, he said, "If you'll excuse me, I have important business I need to conclude."
The four heirs left the bank and headed back to the nearest floo to go to the Ministry.
# # #
With about twenty minutes to go before the special session of the Wizengamot, the four heirs arrived in the main atrium of the Ministry. There, they met Sirius. All five were dressed in their finest robes. All five had their family House crests embroidered above the right breast. What wasn't showing was the four crests for the four Houses of Hogwarts. They had them hidden under strong charms.
All five passed through security and made their way to the Wizengamot chambers. The plan was for Harry and Sirius to join the other, already recognised, members of the Wizengamot in the members' antechamber. The other three were to wait, sitting in the visitors' gallery, just in from the stairs.
They had no trouble finding seats, as there were not many people outside of the Ministry and the Wizengamot who knew the full details of what had transpired over the last two days at Hogwarts. And it was, after all, a special session. However, there were at least two journalists from the Daily Prophet attending, and they thought another person was a journalist from one of the International papers. Someone had clearly tipped them off.
It was probably the Minister, thought Harry. He'd invite journalists to a trip to the toilet, if he thought it'd gain him positive press.
In the members' antechamber, Sirius gave Harry a nudge to indicate Dumbledore was there, across the other side of the room. He was talking in close with the Minister and a couple of his strongest supporters. Harry indicated to Sirius to lean in close.
"Let's try and keep out of his sight, for now," he said in a near-whisper. "He clearly does not realise his position as Castellan of Hogwarts no longer requires, or allows, him to sit on the Wizengamot now the four heirs have returned. Or he just doesn't care. We can use it to discredit him further."
Sirius nodded and led the way to the side of the room as close to a line directly behind Dumbledore as they could.
Augusta entered a little while later. And, on seeing the two of them off to the side of the room, headed over to them. "Amelia is not long behind me," she said.
Harry said quietly to her, "We four had the rings unbound not long ago. I don't know how many of the members know of it yet, but they most certainly will soon. The other three are currently sitting in the visitors' gallery."
Augusta nodded and said, "I know. I saw them as I came in and Neville told me what you had to do. However, until he presents himself, I'm still his Regent for Longbottom. I step down as he assumes his seat. Then, when he calls on me to be his proxy, we switch back. Susan and 'Melia will be doing the same."
Sirius said, "Maybe I should call Saint Mungo's and ask for a medi-witch, or two, to be brought here on standby to deal with the collective apoplexy that's sure to occur."
Even Augusta smiled at that one.
While Sirius was complaining to Augusta how Harry had forced him to become a Slytherin, Amelia entered the room and came over. "Well," she said, "The Office of Inheritance is currently in a right kafuffle. It seems six new heirs suddenly took up their Head of House rings about half an hour ago, and they only know who two of them are; Susan and Neville. They contacted me in my office and asked if I knew what was going on."
Augusta asked, "And what did you tell them?"
"That it was family business and they should keep their bloody noses out of it," she replied with a grin. "They can find out, like everybody else, and wait for the time when they... finally... present themselves to the Wizengamot to take their seats."
"'Melia!" gasped Augusta. "What a typically political shenanigans thing to do!"
Amelia snorted and said with a grin, "I don't know whether to be pleased or offended by that remark."
Augusta replied in an aside, "Well, I am a political animal myself, you know."
The light gong sound that summoned the Wizengamot to chambers softly chimed through the room. And the assembled members slowly made their way through the doors to take their seats. Harry, Sirius, Augusta and Amelia hung back a little to let Dumbledore proceed through. They weren't sure if he'd seen them or not.
# # #
As he entered the chamber, Harry could see Dumbledore in the Castellan of Hogwarts seat. He was talking closely with the person sitting alongside him. Harry thought the man was either completely oblivious, or was deliberately ignoring him. But, he really didn't care which.
As the final members took their seats, Lady Marchbanks cleared her throat and said, "The Wizengamot has been summoned to discuss the news we're hearing coming out of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The session was requested by Lord Malfoy, who has been... apparently officially... informed the entire School Board of Governors has been dismissed. Lord Malfoy."
Lucius Malfoy rose and, drawing a folded sheet of parchment from one of the pockets of his robe, said, "I have received correspondence from Hogwarts informing me the owners," he sneered, "of Hogwarts no longer require a School Board of Governors. And that the Board has been... and I quote here... 'become obsolete and no longer required. As such, the entire membership of the Board is dismissed'."
Harry, Sirius, Augusta and Amelia all knew the letter said a great deal more than that. More tellingly, it covered how the Board had failed in its most solemn duty of protecting the children who formed the majority of the student body, from physical and mental harm. If it wasn't for how much Dumbledore had risked the lives of children in his care, the four heirs would have been content to leave the School Board alone, and just treat it as a 'toothless tiger'.
Malfoy continued, "This is outrageous! Hogwarts is owned by the Ministry, and has been for hundreds of years. For someone to come along and claim ownership of what belongs to the people of magical Britain should see them sent to Azkaban at the minimum!"
Sirius stood and said, "Point of Order, Lady Marchbanks!"
Malfoy looked as if he'd been slapped. He'd not expected to be called on a point of order over what he thought were simple and obvious introductory remarks.
"You have a point of order, Lord Black?" asked Lady Marchbanks.
"Yes, Lady Marchbanks. Lord Malfoy, the canny political mind he is, has apparently accepted as fact the following two points: one, that Hogwarts is owned by the Ministry; and two, that the owners cannot dismiss the School Board if it sees fit. Perhaps he should first present the evidence of the Ministry owning Hogwarts, and how the Board cannot be dismissed by the owners, first. Before, he claims otherwise."
Lady Marchbanks frowned and replied, "Those are both valid points, Lord Black." Turning to Malfoy, she asked, "Well, Lord Malfoy? Do you have that proof with you?"
Malfoy had already recovered his aplomb by the time the old matron turned her gaze back upon him. "Lady Marchbanks," he scoffed, "it appears Lord Black may still be suffering from his stay in Azkaban. I have much sympathy for him for the mental stress he must have been suffering, and bear the man no ill will. But everyone knows Hogwarts is owned by the Ministry."
Augusta stood and said, "Really? I, too, wonder if the Ministry really does own Hogwarts. I have recently been... educated... by a very intelligent young man, who told me I should never accept anything on face value, just because someone tells me it's true. I should investigate matters and discover the truth for myself. Perhaps, we can ask one of the Wizengamot support people to go and collect the ownership and the land title papers for us, so we may see for ourselves." And sat down again.
"Really, Madam Longbottom," scoffed Malfoy, yet again. "It's well known that the Ministry owns Hogwarts."
"Nevertheless," said Lady Marchbanks, "if the Ministry does own Hogwarts, or doesn't, it will be made clear once the papers arrive from the Ministry office that records ownership of property." She sent one of the support personnel scurrying off to gather the supposed documents.
"In the meantime..." she continued, before being interrupted by the Sergeant at Arms Auror over near the doors leading outside.
"Madam Acting Chief Witch!" he called.
Looking across the chamber at the Sergeant, she asked, "Yes?"
"Madam Acting Chief Witch, I have a new Lord who seeks recognition!"
Startled, she called, "Send him forward."
Neville, having already descended the stairs, strode forward into the middle of the chamber with his head held high. He said, "Lord Neville Longbottom, Head of House Longbottom, Madam Acting Chief Witch. I come to take my rightful place on the Wizengamot."
Looking a little surprised, she looked at Augusta and said, "Gus?... Sorry, Madam Longbottom? Young Neville has been emancipated?"
Augusta stood and said, "Yes, Lady Marchbanks, he has. I relinquish the seat of Longbottom to the rightful Lord Longbottom." And she stepped down from the Wizengamot seats. As she passed Neville, she gave him a quick peck on the cheek. He blushed, but said, "Thank you, Grandmother."
Augusta moved to the visitors' gallery and sat with Hermione as Susan was down talking to the Sergeant.
"Madam Acting Chief Witch!" he called again.
"Yes?" Lady Marchbanks called again.
"Madam Acting Chief Witch, I have a new Lady who seeks recognition!"
She sighed and said, "Send her forward!"
Susan marched into the centre of the floor of the chamber and said, "Lady Susan Charity Bones, Head of House Bones, Madam Acting Chief Witch. I come to take my rightful place on the Wizengamot."
No longer really surprised Lady Marchbanks looked at Amelia, "And I suppose young Susan has been emancipated, as well?"
Susan stood and said, "Yes, Lady Marchbanks, she has."
Lady Marchbanks sighed and said, "Very well, Lady Bones, come forward and take your seat."
As Amelia did not sit in the Bones seat, as she sat in the seat for the Head of the DMLE, she didn't have to relinquish. Susan sat in the vacant Bones seat.
It was during this that the support staffer returned to the Wizengamot chamber. He spoke quietly to Lady Marchbanks. After he'd said a few words to her, she reeled back with a look of surprise. "Really?" she asked.
The support staffer solemnly nodded.
"Very well," she said. He then moved off from the Wizengamot seats back down onto the floor to resume his normal place.
Turning to Lord Malfoy, she said, "Lord Malfoy. The Ministry regrets to inform the Wizengamot that it does not own Hogwarts. In fact, Hogwarts is owned in perpetuity by the heirs of the four founders. That includes the school, the castle, the land on which it sits, the land on which the town of Hogsmeade sits, the railway station and the lands for quite the many miles around."
Lucius Malfoy shot to his feet and exclaimed, "What?"
He was joined by a great number of voices of members of the Wizengamot all calling to be heard.
Malfoy remained on his feet while Lady Marchbanks called for silence. Eventually, she had to use the Sonorus Charm to be heard. "Silence!" she called in her strident voice.
It, finally, got through to the members and they quieted down very quickly.
Lady Marchbanks glared at the few remaining pockets of noise before turning back to Malfoy. "As for the second part of Lord Black's point of order," she went on, "under the charter of the school, which predates even the existence of the Wizengamot, the owners of Hogwarts only answer directly to the Kings and Queens of England and Scotland. As those two kingdoms are now united under one monarch, it means the owners only answer to the Queen of Britain!"
Again, there was pandemonium in the chamber. Again, members were clamouring to be heard. Harry, Neville, Susan, Sirius and Amelia were about the only ones who were calm. But, because they were, they were barely even noticed.
Harry gestured for Neville and Susan to join him down on the floor and to be quiet about it. He rose and 'slunk' down off the Wizengamot seats. No one noticed the three of them moving.
Dumbledore was also not clamouring. He was frowning and it was apparent he was not happy. He had seen the three heirs step down to the floor.
Harry called Hermione down to join them. They were then standing together near the doors leading back out to the public area of the Ministry.
The three journalists in the visitors' gallery all had dicta-quills running flat out. They were also, themselves, writing upon parchment.
After Lady Marchbanks had to again use the Sonorus Charm to gain silence in the chamber she, once more called on Malfoy, "Lord Malfoy, as the two parts of the points of order are proven, please refrain your remarks from including those errors of fact. You may continue."
No one had noticed that Harry, Neville and Susan had left their seats. Nor, that Hermione had joined them.
Malfoy, having had almost the entirety of his opening remarks rendered useless, took a few moments to gather his thoughts. He stood and said, "Madam Longbottom made an excellent point when she asked for proof. So, I now ask for proof that these supposed owners are who they say they are. Even if the heirs of the founders of Hogwarts are supposed to be able to dismiss the School Board, there is no proof that these people who claim to be the owners really are the owners. The lines of the heirs died out centuries ago. How are they supposed to be the heirs if the lines died out? Let them prove themselves, I say.
"Even if they manage to prove themselves, the people of magical Britain have the right to ensure their children are taught in a safe and happy environment. The Wizengamot must act to order the Ministry to appoint overseers of the school to check on the well-being of the children within Hogwarts. The only reason this must not have been included in the original charter was because, as Lady Marchbanks said, the charter predates the existence of the Wizengamot and Ministry. If these two bodies existed when the charter was first drafted, I say they would have included provision for the two bodies to oversee the school."
Gathering himself for a moment... a political move, if Harry had ever seen one... Malfoy said, "I call on this body to reconstitute the School Board of Governors with its original membershipand demand these so-called owners to both accept them and prove their ownership!" He sat down looking for all the world as if he was indignant with righteousness.
The four heirs then walked together back into the centre of the chamber, they stood just behind the witness chair, where it was bolted to the floor in the middle of the room. They might not have been noticed leaving, but they were definitely noticed returning.
Lady Marchbanks asked, "Lords Potter and Longbottom, Lady Bones... and 'friend'? Why are you standing down there?"
"Because, Lady Marchbanks," replied Harry. "We four are the owners of Hogwarts. And we're not happy."
Susan said, "We are here to, both prove our right to sack the Governors, and give you the truth as to why the entire Board of Governors was sacked, in the first place."
"First, though," said Neville, holding his right hand palm down and forward, displaying his Head of House ring for Gryffindor. "I am Neville Francis Longbottom, the Earl of Gryffindor, Lord Gryffindor, heir of Godric Gryffindor and Head of the Most Noble and Most Ancient House of Gryffindor. The ring I wear on my finger proves this. If you question my claim you are welcome to come down and try and remove it from my finger."
Susan then held out her right hand in the same fashion as Neville and said the same thing for Hufflepuff, as did Hermione and, finally, Harry.
Susan said, "Lord Malfoy asked that the four heirs of Hogwarts prove their ownership and right to sack the School Board. We four, as the heirs of the four founders, are the owners of Hogwarts. I trust, at this time, he is satisfied as to our credentials?"
Lucius Malfoy, as stunned as everyone else by what had just transpired, replied, "Errr... Yes." Gathering himself and his thoughts for a moment, he then stood again and said, "But... you're only children! And you have still not proven you can stop us from ensuring a school board is in place to protect the safety of..."
Harry interrupted him before he could regain his cadence. "Lord Malfoy!" he overrode the brought Malfoy to a sudden stop. "You were in the process of misleading the Wizengamot as to the truth of why the School Board was, rightfully, fired! You were fired because you proved yourselves to be incompetent! You were fired because you failed in the very act for which you are attempting to claim you should be reinstated; the safety of the children attending the school. Either, inform the Wizengamot of the entirety of the dismissal letter you received... which clearly lays out your negligence... or sit your butt down!"
"Lord Potter!" exclaimed Lady Marchbanks at the same time as Malfoy snapped, "How dare you!"
"How dare you speak to me that way!" blustered Lord Malfoy with all the pomposity and bombast he could muster.
"Lady Marchbanks," said Harry with a small bow. "I apologise for causing you distress. But this will be done."
"First, though," he continued. He turned to look directly at Dumbledore. "Albus Dumbledore, as the four lords and ladies of Hogwarts are back in residence, the position of Castellan for Hogwarts is no longer required. We thank you for your service to this day. We now require you to step down!"
Dumbledore glared back. However, he rose and, with as much dignity as he could muster, stepped down from the Wizengamot seats, crossed the floor and ascended the stairs to the visitors' gallery. There, he merely glared back with hate filled eyes at Harry. That caused a great deal of mumbling coming from the assembled members.
Susan, speaking aloud to the entire chamber, said, "The School Board was fired and dismissed because it failed to meet even the bare minimum of its supposed charter; protecting the children. When the four of us entered Hogwarts on the night of the 1st of September, Lady Hogwarts, the very castle itself, demanded of us to immediately take our rightful positions as the four heirs. It did so, because it was fearful for the safety of the children."
The entire Wizengamot sat silent. Harry thought complete shock had finally settled in.
Susan continued. "That very night we were alerted by the castle as to the possession of a professor, Professor Quirinus Quirrell, by part of the soul of he you know as Voldemort. We were further alerted to there being no less than five dangerous dark artefacts within the castle. We were alerted to there being a Cerberus locked, by a simple key lock, behind a door in a passage on the third floor of the castle. We were alerted to there being a giant Devil's Snare behind and below a trapdoor, without a lock at all, through which a student could have fallen. We were alerted to there being a giant nest of acromantulans, with at least one of their number being the size of a small horse, not more than two miles from the front doors of the castle within the Forbidden Forest and on school grounds!"
There were gasps of shock and alarm coming from members of the Wizengamot as Susan continued to list the many risks.
Hermione took it up from there. "All of this can be verified through Madam Bones. It was she, and her aurors, we immediately summoned, as was proper. And, who were saddled with the task of ridding the school of those risks. A major job upon which they spent many hours that very night for the castle, and the next day for the Forbidden Forest, completing. Lady Hogwarts had repeatedly tried to warn the headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, through the wards and the Sorting Hat of the multiple risks to the children. However, he ignored her every attempt. She could not even take the matter to the School Board, by using the Sorting Hat to do her talking for her, because not one member of the School Board had even bothered to attend the school over the past many years so they could hear her alarm.
"It was the responsibility of the School Board of Governors to ensure the safety of the children within the school. Clearly, they utterly failed! We four, the rightful heirs of the founders and owners of Hogwarts, sacked the bloody lot of them for their incompetence and negligence. If the Wizengamot attempts to reinstate even one of their number, then we will consider the Wizengamot itself in collusion to cause harm to the students, and guilty of the crime of conspiracy to commit child abuse!"
Near pandemonium broke out within the Wizengamot.
When the room was once more quieted down, Harry, looking directly at Lord Malfoy, said, "Now, Lord Malfoy... you were saying?"
The meeting was closed very quickly after that with the apologies of the Wizengamot. The four heirs immediately left the chamber. With Sirius, Amelia and Augusta running interference for them from the press and other members, they floo'ed directly back to Hogwarts. Sirius, Amelia and Augusta joined them shortly afterwards.
# # #
Back in the owner's common room, the seven of them gathered.
"Damn, you four!" said Sirius as they were all collapsing onto the couches and divans. "You didn't believe in holding back, did you?"
Hermione called for a house elf, who then brought back for them tea and hot chocolates with a large serving plate of cut sandwiches.
"No," replied Harry. "If we held back one iota, members such as Malfoy would have exploited it. Better to slap them down hard now, than later."
Neville said, "They need to get past the fact we're children. They need to understand that, just because we're children, they can't attempt to silence us. If we give them the opportunity to do that, then they're going to try and ride roughshod over us forever claiming we're only children and we should let the adults get on with running magical Britain. No, tonight might have been politically brutal, but was necessary. Political dominance, Merlin-style."
Hermione said, "Now we need to prepare a media release for the Daily Prophet and other periodicals and get it sent to them as soon as possible. The quicker we give the Daily Prophet and other media organisations our side of what happened, the less chance they have of printing hearsay and untruths."
Harry went into his private apartments and brought back with him parchment and a pen. He didn't believe in using quills when they weren't required.
"Okay," he said. "Where do we start?"
Neville said, "The four heirs of Hogwarts tonight... last night... addressed the Wizengamot."
Susan said, "Given the dangers... given the publicly acknowledged dangers... that existed for the students of Hogwarts, it was clear their sacking and dismissal of the entire School Board of Governors was proven to be the wisest course of action."
Harry said, "As such dangers were clearly evident, questions must be asked of the Headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, and the membership of the now sacked School Board, why the dangers were allowed to remain."
Neville said, "With the return of the rightful owners, we hope the quality of education at Hogwarts will soon see great improvement... No, that's not it."
Hermione said, "Now that the true owners of Hogwarts have affirmed their ownership. We expect great things from them. The quality of education at the school has been lacking for a long time... for a great many years..."
Susan said, "...and the... breath of fresh air they will bring... is a... welcome change."
"That's it," said Neville.
Harry said, "Albus Dumbledore, already under a cloud... a dark cloud... for his actions relating to Harry Potter... Uugh!... The-Boy-Who-Lived... and awaiting trial for criminal actions relating to same, must be questioned as to why he allowed... no, we covered that... must now be concerned further charges will be brought against him for... no... will be brought against him."
Hermione asked, "What about quotes attributed to us?"
Neville said, "I'd rather not. What if we were to remain all mysterious like? The four heirs, after making their presence felt in the Wizengamot, retired back to Hogwarts where we trust they are working hard... for the betterment of children... of our children."
Harry nodded and said, "I think I'm with Neville on this one. We can also give a publicly candid interview to the media here, in our private apartments at a later time. But, for now, I'm a little sick of being a 'media celebrity'."
Hermione said, "I'll do it. I'm the complete unknown. Lady Ravenclaw gave a short statement where she said, Us four... no... The four heirs understood and accepted they had a great deal of work to do and were, for the time being, dedicated to getting it done. She hinted they may soon sit down with this media organisation and give an in-depth candid interview."
Susan said, "I think we have it. Get it down on parchment and we can have it sent."
The three adults sat in silence as the four heirs drafted the words of their media release. When Susan finished, Augusta said, "Merlin, you four got that done fast! And, you're sending it to the Prophet?"
"Yes, Gran," replied Neville. "If we don't feed the maw of the media what we want them to report, then someone else, such as Malfoy, will. By us getting our version out there first the media will probably cover it the way we want them to. As Hermione gave them a quote they're sure to include what's in the release. The mundane world's politicals have been doing this for centuries."
Harry, after he finished redrafting the release onto a second parchment, called a house elf and handed him the two envelopes containing the releases. He told the elf, "Take these to the owleryand have each sent by owl." The elf popped away. One was sent direct to the Daily Prophet and the other was sent to the wizarding world's version of Associated Press.
He said, "Welcome to the world of being a media celebrity, 'Mione." And grinned.
She blew him a raspberry.
Later in the evening, after the adults had departed, Harry was working on some rune and charms-based work. When asked about it, he said it was just a personal project. He didn't know the other three had already been alerted by Myrrdin as to Harry's... predilection... towards pranking. They, too, had been designing their own. And they intended to strike first, after the prank Harry pulled one on his godfather the previous night.
Tomorrow, one of them would make their first foray against him. They knew he wouldn't expect it so soon on the heels of that night's Wizengamot hearing.
# # #
The next morning Harry woke and made his way out to the heirs' common room. He hung around waiting for the others to arise. But, by almost 8.00am, none of the others had put in an appearance. He tried knocking on Neville's door. When there was no answer, he opened it and walked in. No Neville.
He moved onto the rooms of the two girls but only knocked, not willing to walk into the room of a young lady. No answer on either door. He could only assume they had all risen early and gone down to breakfast together. 'Strange,' he thought. A little confused, Harry headed down to breakfast.
As he walked in through the tall, large double doors the music started. It was mundane music and took him a little while to figure out what it was. He was sure he'd heard it before.
Then the singing started. That drew his eyes to the dais, where sat the Sorting Hat on its stool. It was singing!
"On the day I was born, the nurses all gathered 'round"
"And they gazed in wide wonder, at the joy they had found"
'Ah!' thought Harry. 'George Thoroughgood and The Destroyers. 1982. It isn't hard to figure out to just whom the song is aimed. Yours truly.'
"The head nurse spoke up, and she said, 'Leave this one alone'"
"She could tell right away, that I was bad to the bone"
Harry conjured a set of high priced sunglasses and donned them. He turned the collar of his cowl up and strutted into the Hall. 'Time to turn this prank back on the "pranker",' thought Harry.
Harry started to sing along to the Hat's rendition as he strutted up the Hall between the Hufflepuff and Gryffindor tables.
"Bad to the bone"
"Bad to the bone"
"B-B-B-B-Bad to the bone"
"B-B-B-B-Bad"
"B-B-B-B-Bad"
"Bad to the bone"
Before he reached the head of the table he could see Hermione with a knowing grin plastered on her face watching him. 'Pranker: identified,' he thought.
"I broke a thousand hearts, before I met you"
He reached the head of the four tables and, pushing a Hufflepuff female Firstie aside, sat down at the end of the line of benches and sang to Susan. She chose to ignore him.
"I'll break a thousand more, baby, before I am through"
He turned to the Firstie and sang the next two lines.
"I wanna be yours, pretty baby, yours and yours alone"
"I'm here to tell ya, honey, that I'm bad to the bone"
The Firstie, and the one next to her, sighed and giggled.
He then rose and moved across to the Gryffindor table squeezing between two Second Year females
"Bad to the bone"
"B-B-B-Bad"
"B-B-B-Bad"
"B-B-B-Bad"
"Bad to the bone"
He was up and moved towards the head table moving around the Hat as he did.
"I make a rich woman beg, I'll make a good woman steal"
He stopped in front of Professor McGonagalland sang
"I'll make an old woman blush, and make a young woman squeal"
"I wanna be yours, pretty baby, yours and yours alone"
She blushed, harrumphed and decided to also ignore him.
"I'm here to tell ya honey, that I'm bad to the bone"
Then it was down between the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs.
"B-B-B-B-Bad"
"B-B-B-B-Bad"
Before, finally, heading for his own seat.
"B-B-B-B-Bad"
"Bad to the bone"
He plonked himself down just as the last line and music rang out. The Hat, and its stool, disappeared again.
There was smattering of applause from students, especially the mundane raised.
Harry removed his sunglasses, stood, and said, "Thank you, thank you. I'm here all year!" And bowed a few times in various directions across the Hall.
That earned him a few chuckles and a catcall or two. He could see Hermione give him a wry look. She knew he'd bested her on that one. And he could see she was aware he knew it was her. He gave her a courtly bow.
His revenge would have to be carefully planned. He couldn't retaliate too quickly. She'd be expecting that. 'No,' he thought. 'Best to lull her into a false sense of security.' He'd go after someone else, first. He'd even try to see if he could have it blamed on someone else. But, who to target as the 'Prankee' and the blamed 'Pranker'.
He answered a few questions from some of the First and Second Year Slytherins. But, his mind was elsewhere. He wanted to read the Daily Prophet to see what it printed concerning last night's actions.
Miss Greengrass asked, "So, My Lord; what is today's topic on?"
He had to hand it to the girl. She was doing her best to get a foot up on the rest of the student body by trying to collect information in advance. He thought she'd bear watching over the coming years. She was demonstrating all the hallmarks of a canny political mind.
"Now, that would be telling, Miss Greengrass," he replied with a smile. "I'm afraid you're going to have to wait and enjoy the suspense."
"No hints at all, My Lord?" she asked.
Harry grinned even more and replied, "Nope! Sorry." Before stuffing a piece of marmalade toast into his mouth.
Blaise Zabini said, "I wrote my father about what you said yesterday about He... about Riddle. I received an owl back from him, this morning." He unfolded a small piece of parchment and, looking at what was written upon it, said, "He said, 'It's about time someone used some brains and spoke about his... Voldemort's... origins'." Before refolding the parchment and sticking it in his pocket. "But, he doesn't know if telling children was the best way to do it."
"Why not?" asked Harry. "It should now be an integral part of the 'History of Magic' syllabus, anyway."
Thinking a bit, he went on to say, "And that reminds me. I need to do something about Binns. It's about time I moved that ghost on... 'to his next great adventure'. And replace him with someone who was more up-to-date."
Millicent Bulstrode, another First Year, asked, "How'll you get rid of Binns? I've heard it's been tried before and failed."
Harry replied, "There's an old non-magical saying, 'There's more than one way to skin a cat'. It implies there's more than one way to solve a problem. So, Miss Bulstrode, if given the problem, how would you go about solving it?"
Millicent thought hard and replied, "Exorcism is the normal way. But that's been tried; as has appealing to him to leave. He simply ignores the attempts."
Harry nodded and asked, "Now think outside of those solutions. Can you come up with an answer by coming at the problem from a different direction?"
Again, she thought hard. "Move the class to a different room... or move the times the class is taught."
Harry sat back, impressed. "Very good, Miss Bulstrode, five points," he said with a smile. "The solution, as you deduced, is not to try so much to remove Binns from his classroom; but to remove the class from the classroom. I believe the classroom next door to the normal one is vacant, and hasn't been used in many years. Moving the time of the class, however, may prove somewhat problematic at the moment as the timetables have already been set. Next year we can definitely look at moving the times the class is run, if moving classrooms doesn't work.
"Binns is locked into a routine. He knows where his classroom is, and he knows the times he needs to be there and what year he's supposed to be teaching each time. It hasn't varied for many a year. If we can't move him on, we'll just let him teach to an empty classroom, for now."
Thinking a bit, Harry said, "First, though, I'll need to talk to the others and Professor Lupin."
For the first time, Gregory Goyle spoke up. Draco gave him a look as if the boy had stabbed him in the back. He said a little shyly, "I've been reading your book. Did those mugg... errr... those... mundane relatives of yours, really do all those horrid things?"
Harry looked the boy straight in the eye and quietly said, "Yeah, they did. They felt magicals were 'freaks'. It's the same sort of mentality that makes magicals think of non-magicals and mundane-borns as beneath them. That sort of attitude springs from many different sources. In the case of the Dursleys it was because they feared magicals as having power they did not. And, it's the same thinking that led to the Salem Witch Trials in the United States in the early eighteen hundreds.
"People don't like to be afraid. And, when they're afraid, their fear can manifest as hatred. They hate that which makes them feel afraid, just for making them feel afraid. Was it my fault they were afraid? Of course not. But it didn't stop them from hating me for it."
Draco piped up and said, "But, that's just silly!"
Harry replied, "Yes, it is. But it's also very common. And it's how one person can manipulate others. All you need to do is give a suitably large number of people something to be afraid of. Then, make them afraid of it to the point the hatred develops. Then tell them you know how to get rid of that which they now hate. And they will follow you. Bad guys have been doing it for millennia." Harry shrugged and then said, "Supposed good guys have been doing it, too." Harry could see young Greengrass understood the hidden message he also conveyed with what he said.
The owls then delivered the mail. And Harry had his first look at that morning's Daily Prophet. He found what he was looking for on the front page as the lead story.
WIZENGAMOT SHOCK
Last night's special meeting of the Wizengamot, called at the request of Lord Malfoy, concerned letters each member of the School Board of Hogwarts received from people alleging to be the owners of the school, reports political reporter Bartholomew Cavendish.
Lord Malfoy was demanding the Wizengamot force the reinstatement of the Board. However, demands by Lord Black to produce proof the Ministry owned Hogwarts, or even had the authority to reinstate the board, were met by the shock that the Ministry does not own Hogwarts at all. Hogwarts is owned in perpetuity by the heirs of the four founders.
When he asked for proof the alleged owners truly were the heirs, four eleven year old children shocked the entire chamber. Standing on the floor before the Wizengamot they displayed their Heads of House rings on their right hands. They are: Neville Francis Longbottom, Lord Gryffindor; Harry James Potter, The-Boy-Who-Lived, Lord Slytherin; Susan Charity Bones, Lady Hufflepuff; and Hermione Jean Granger, Lady Ravenclaw.
Lord Longbottom and Lady Bones had only a few minutes earlier claimed their Lordships for the Head of their respective family Houses.
The four heirs clarified they had summoned the aurors on the night of 1st September to the castle to rid the school of dangers to the students. They claimed the aurors removed five dark arts artefacts, a Cerberus, a Devil's Snare, and a Professor who was possessed by the spirit of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. These were all in the castle with the student body, our children.
This was all later confirmed by Madam Amelia Bones, Head of the DMLE, who oversaw the removal of these dangers. Madam Bones further confirmed that a team of her aurors returned to the school the next day to remove an infestation of dark creatures from the Forbidden Forest, some of which was a very large nest of acromantulans.
The four heirs claim, given the publicly acknowledged dangers that existed for the students of Hogwarts, it was clear the sacking and dismissal of the entire School Board of Governors was proven to be the wisest course of action.
As such dangers were clearly evident, questions must be asked of the Headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, and the membership of the now sacked School Board, why the dangers were allowed to remain until the four heirs acted. Albus Dumbledore, already under a dark cloud for his actions relating to Harry Potter, and awaiting trial for criminal actions relating to same, must now be concerned further charges will be brought against him.
Now that the true owners of Hogwarts have affirmed their ownership, we expect great things from them. The quality of education at the school has been lacking for a great many years and the breath of fresh air they will bring is a welcome change.
Lady Ravenclaw gave a short statement where she said, 'The four heirs understood and accepted they had a great deal of work to do and were, for the time being, dedicated to getting it done.' She hinted they may soon sit down with the Daily Prophet and give an in-depth candid interview.
Acting Chief Witch, Lady Griselda Marchbanks, when asked what she thought of the shocks that had occurred that night, said she supported the decision of the four heirs to sack the Board, and did not believe a replacement Board was necessary. 'Clearly, these four young witches and wizards are working hard to take care of rectifying wrongs within the school. I believe they should be left alone to do it,' she said.
Lord Malfoy was not available for comment.
Harry chuckled and looked up to see Sirius looking back at him with a big grin on his face. Harry waved his copy of the Daily Prophet at him. Sirius nodded.
# # #
As breakfast was winding down, Dumbledore sent Professor Snape over to Harry to tell him the Headmaster wanted to see him, again, in his office. Harry, again, took his godfather with him.
As he entered the old man's office Harry could see Snape was there yet again. And Dumbledore was also frowning because Harry, again, had brought Sirius, as his House Counsellor, with him. Both already had their wands drawn as they walked in.
Dumbledore said, "Thank you for bringing Harry to see me, Professor Black. I can take it from here."
Harry burst out laughing. "You just can't give up, can you, Albus? You're either rudely obstinate, senile or incapable of learning from your mistakes. I just can't be stuffed figuring out which one it is!"
Professor Snape lurched forward and snarled, "You're still an arrogant git, Potter. Just liii..."
Sirius hit him with a stupefy spell from behind Harry's back. Professor Snape, who had his eyes on Harry, didn't see it coming. He collapsed onto the floor.
Dumbledore shot back in his chair as far as it could go. "Professor Black, please! There's no need for this!"
Sirius calmly replied, "Then don't have him here when you call Lord Slytherin to come and see you. And this will be the last time, by the way. That he comes to see you, that is."
Dumbledore, ignoring Sirius's response, turned to Harry and said, "And, it's Headmaster Dumbledore, Harry."
Harry snapped right back, "It's Lord Slytherin, Lord Potter or Mister Potter, you stupid old fart! If you can't be respectful enough to use my proper names, don't whine and complain when I don't use yours!"
"Harry!" exclaimed Dumbledore.
"Albus!" mock-exclaimed Harry in response. "Now, am I here as a student, as part owner of Hogwarts, as a member of the Wizengamot, or on some form of business relating to my family? Think hard, old man. If you don't answer the freakin' question as it has been put to you, then I turn around and walk out the door. From that time forward it will be I who will be summoning you!"
"I... I... wanted to ask if... you touched my wand yesterday morning," the old man stammered.
Harry glared at him and said, "Good day, Albus! Don't forget you are required to be in the Great Hall at 9.00am. You'd best immediately write it down, considering how poor your memory is of late. You're going to find the subject of this talk even more enlightening than yesterday's." Harry then turned on his heel and strode out, while Sirius watched his back as he went. Dumbledore tried to call him back but he and Sirius just ignored him.
Out in the passage outside the Headmaster's office, Sirius asked, "Just how much longer are you prepared to put up with him?"
Harry replied, "No later than either this afternoon or tomorrow morning. I want him in the Great Hall for the lecture we're about to give. Then I know that he knows that I know... what he was attempting to do. I want him fully aware he's not going to be able to control me, and that I know he can't do a damned thing to try and control me, as I know the full prophecy. I believe in the maxim, 'Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.' But he's outlasted even my patience."
Just before 9.00am, Harry met with the other heirs to go over what they were preparing to do. While they were doing so the house elves finalised reconfiguring the Great Hall back into the lecture theatre they wanted.
At 9.00am the four of them were back on the dais. This time Harry had already prepared each of three blackboards with the text of the prophecy. The first one had just the first two lines, the second one had the first four, and the third had the full prophecy as the four heirs, Sirius and Remus knew it. But the boards were all facing the other way, for now.
"Okay, folks," said Harry. "This is the last of these morning lectures, for the time being. And this one is also the main reason for the first two."
That had a few people murmuring among themselves.
"This talk is all about a particular prophecy." As he said it, Harry kept a close eye on Dumbledore.
As soon as he said the word 'prophecy' the old man started with shock. Then he shot to his feet. "Harry!" he exclaimed. "You can't!"
Hermione stated, "Sit down, Headmaster! Or you will, again, be restrained."
"Nooo!" the Headmaster blurted. "No one must know!"
Neville raised his wand but Dumbledore saw it and stuttered, "Wait! No!" But Harry could see the old fool was trying to bide his time to ready his wand.
Harry thought, 'Lady Hogwarts, bind him and silence him again.' And Dumbledore was slammed back into his seat, rebound and silenced again.
Harry sighed, looked over at Professor McGonagall, and said, "Deputy Headmistress McGonagall. At the completion of this talk, the position of Headmistress of Hogwarts will be offered to you on a permanent basis. Please use this time to consider the offer. I also ask that, as the position will be permanent, you also consider stepping down from your position as House Counsellor for Gryffindor."
Professor McGonagallnodded. But Harry could see the woman was quite pleased and feeling nothing but ire towards Dumbledore, anyway.
Turning to Neville, he said, "Yes, Lord Gryffindor; I know we'll be having words about that later."
Neville nodded back, gravely.
"Now," said Harry, turning back to their audience, "we were talking about a particular prophecy. We'll reveal this in three parts."
Susan stepped up to the first board and said, "This first part is known by a few people. And they've known it for ten years. They were, at the time, Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, and Tom Riddle... Plus, possibly a few more of his followers."
The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...
Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies.
A few students muttered among themselves.
Hermione said, "Dumbledore heard this from Professor Sybill Trelawney, when he was interviewing her for the post as Divination Professor. After talking with her for a while, he was about to thank her for her time but not offer her the position. However, when she started her prophecy, Dumbledore hesitated."
"At this point, too, just after the second line," said Neville, "Dumbledore heard a noise outside. He leapt up to investigate but, not finding anything, returned to his seat to hear the rest of it. The person outside was Severus Snape. Remember, this was before he became a Professor, here, at Hogwarts. Professor Snape, as a Death Eater, took what he heard directly to his so-called master, Tom Riddle. So, Riddle now knew the first two lines."
Harry took it up from there. "Both Dumbledore and Riddle believed the second line to be the most... informing. And both also figured the prophecy related to either of two people, Lord Gryffindor and me. It's the reason why both of our parents were attacked very closely to the 31st of October 1981."
Susan said, "Then there comes the part only Dumbledore knew, because Death Eater Snape had already fled, and Sybill Trelawney didn't remember, because of her prophecy trance."
Having already moved to the end of the second blackboard, Neville turned it around.
The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...
Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies.
And the Dark Lord will mark him as equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not...
And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives.
Harry said, "'And the Dark Lord will mark him as equal'..." and lifted his fringe out of the way to show his scar.
That created quite a stir in the crowd.
Hermione said, "So, now Dumbledore is absolutely positive he knows who it is to which the prophecy relates. He's now positive it's Riddle versus Harry Potter time in magical Britain. And that Harry Potter must kill Tom Riddle, or that Tom Riddle will kill Harry Potter. But, is he right?"
Neville spoke up. "The trouble with this whole concept is that this..." he said, gesturing at the middle board, "is not the entire prophecy. Dumbledore suspected he hadn't heard all of it, but he wasn't sure. That's why he hired Professor Trelawney to the position of Divination Professor. It had nothing to do with her ability to teach. It was only so she'd be close by if she ever dropped back into her trance and completed it. In other words, Dumbledore was using Hogwarts's teaching funds to fund his keeping a supposed Seer close at hand."
Susan said, "Dumbledore was both wrong and right. He was wrong to keep what he'd heard to himself. He's no trained interpreter of prophecies. Interpreting prophecy is the bailiwick of trained members of the Unspeakables. However, he didn't take it to them, as he bloody well should have. He was also wrong in what the prophecy meant.
Hermione said, "Albus Dumbledore is no trained expert in prophecies. He's no more skilled at it than you. So, since he decided to decipher it himself, we think you should do the same. Let's look at the first line, shall we?"
Susan said, "First line 'The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...' Okay, what are the problems here? I'll start. 'The Dark Lord' what is that supposed to mean? In the past one hundred years there's already been at least two, and those are the ones here and in Europe that we know of - Grindelwald and Riddle. There's no date, there's no location, there's nothing. However, Dumbledore... knew... it must have been referring to Riddle. Why leap to that conclusion? Was it simply because the prophecy was heard while Riddle was running amok? It could even be talking about a Dark Lord that hasn't even shown him- or herself yet.
"And what about the word 'approaches'. Maybe its not a reference to time, but to distance. 'The one' is coming to Britain from a long distance away and is trekking to get here. That would mean they were 'approaching', wouldn't it?"
Neville said, "'Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies.' Well, this one's really interesting. 'Born to those who have thrice defied him'. It sounds pretty cut and dried, doesn't it? So, it will be a boy or girl child, at this point. And the biological parents will have defied this Dark Lord character... who still has not been identified... on three separate occasions. But, 'defied' can mean anything. It can be as simple as Dark Lord asked them for a favour, and they said 'No'. Then he said, 'Awww... go on' and they said 'No' again. Then he said, 'Pretty please?' and they said 'No' a third time. Dark Lord has now been thrice defied."
There was some murmurings from the collective student body. And not a few looks towards Dumbledore.
Hermione said, "It also doesn't mean they only defied him, either; or that they only defied him three times. They could have given in to him on other occasions. They could even be marked Death Eaters, if it really does refer to Riddle, by the time their child was born."
Harry said, "Now we come to the interesting part. It's why both mine and Neville's parents went into hiding in 1980. Both of us were due to be born at the end of July that year. So Dumbledore, not knowing anyone else who was due to have a child at that time, illogically assumed the 'one' had to be the child of the Potters or the Longbottoms. Setting aside the fact that there were approximately ten thousand children born towards the end of July in 1980 in Britain, alone, let alone the rest of the world, it's also an assumption the seventh month is July.
"For example, I bet few of you know that 'Sept' is a Latin derivative for 'seven'. And, when a fire is dying, it leaves glowing embers. Seven and dying; sept and ember. September. Now you need to add another ten thousand children from Britain alone that could conceivably be the 'one' ordained in prophecy. Another example: The school year starts on 1st September each year. The seventh month of the school year is April. Add yet another ten thousand children. The Chinese New Year is in mid-February, which makes the seventh month a split between mid-August and mid-September. The Financial Year runs from 1st July until 30th June. That makes the seventh month January. I could go on and on. I expect you folks to see how many more differing dates you can call the so-called seventh month."
Hermione said, "'And the Dark Lord will mark him as equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not...' Now we're getting down to, as non-magicals say, 'the brass tacks'. There are only one set of people Riddle deliberately marked; his Death Eaters. Harry Potter was marked accidentally when he received that scar on his forehead. But a mark can be more than just physical, it can also be a mental mark. Someone rendered permanently mentally changed is also considered 'marked'."
Harry said, "So Neville was also marked. When a small group of Riddle's Death Eaters attacked the Longbottoms, they tortured them to the point of causing their minds to 'snap'. That meant Neville Longbottom's parents became unable to raise him; and he was raised by his grandmother. And, that, of course, meant Neville's experience of life was altered. Through his actions Riddle mentally marked Neville Longbottom."
Neville said, "'but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not'. The only thing really cleared up here is that the child will be a boy... 'He'. And what of this 'power' he's supposed to have? If we knew what it was, then the chances are, so would Riddle... or Grindelwald... or whoever. Then it wouldn't be a power he knew not, would it?" He shrugged.
Susan said, "Next line; 'And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives'. What sort of nonsense is that? How can one cause the death of the other if one can't live while the other one does. It means the one born second must cause the first ones death at the moment of their birth, otherwise they'll both be alive at the same time. That line is nonsensical."
Harry said, "But it also causes something else to happen. It would mean, if it really was me and Riddle, that we are both immortal if we decide not to try to kill each other. To be more blunt about it, Riddle cannot be killed unless I'm the one doing the killing; and I cannot be killed unless it's Riddle who's doing the killing.
"So, if Riddle were to agree not to try and kill me, and I do the same for him, we're immortal. And it also means that if anyone else tries to kill me, then they'll fail. How good is that?"
Susan said, "However, Dumbledore was right about one thing. There was more to the prophecy that he hadn't heard. But, he was never going to hear it from Professor Trelawney. Her moment as a channel for that prophecy was over. The person who was supposed to have received the entire prophecy, did so."
Harry had moved to the final blackboard and was ready to turn it. As Susan finished and stepped out of the way, Harry said, "And this is it in its entirety..." And he spun the board around.
The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...
Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies.
And the Dark Lord will mark him as equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not...
And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives.
Before two hands of full turnings shall pass...
The one with the power will come forth from whence he has been lost.
He shall be joined by loyalty...
He shall be joined by wit...
He shall be joined by resolve.
The four are rejoined!
They shall defeat evil and restore order to magical kind.
Harry looked at Dumbledore, who was sitting with a look of shock on his face. "Now, Albus," he said. "If you're going to behave yourself, we'll release you."
Dumbledore didn't mouth a word. He just sat there staring at the final blackboard as if he hadn't heard a thing.
Harry told the castle to release him and remove the silencing charm placed on him. The magical bindings released, but Dumbledore didn't move.
Ignoring Dumbledore, Neville said to the staff and students, "As Lord Slytherin said, this is the prophecy in its entirety. Its eleven lines long. A great deal more than the four that Albus Dumbledore knew it to be. And, if he had bothered to discover the rest of the prophecy, or taken it to people who actually knew what they were doing in deciphering it, he may have learned a hell of a lot more."
Hermione said, "So, we'll go through this part quickly as it's pretty easy to figure it out.
"Before two hands of full turnings shall pass...
"A full turning is a year. Therefore, it's ten years, or more properly, just short of ten years.
"The one with the power will come forth from whence he has been lost.
"Not particularly clear. But it does become so, later.
"He shall be joined by loyalty...
"That's Hufflepuff
"He shall be joined by wit...
"That's Ravenclaw
"He shall be joined by resolve.
"That's Gryffindor
"The four are rejoined!
"Which means 'He' is Slytherin. He is the one who 'comes forth from whence he has been lost'. He is 'the one' of prophecy.
"They shall defeat evil and restore order to magical kind.
"'They shall...' Not might; not could; not possibly will; shall!
"And where has he been lost?" she went on. "Dumbledore illegally kidnapped Harry Potter to go and live with an abusive non-magical family, the Dursleys, for nine and three-quarter years before Harry ran out of the Dursley residence. 'Will come forth'; Harry headed for, and entered, Diagon Alley, where he was quickly identified. As such and until that moment, he was 'lost' to the magical world."
Susan said, "Albus Dumbledore wanted to control what he believed the prophecy to be, and to whom it applied. To do that he decided he had to have complete control over Harry Potter's life. He used Rubeus Hagrid to kidnap Harry Potter from his rightful guardian, Sirius Black. It was why, when he knew Lord Black to be innocent of the crime that had him sent to Azkaban, he kept silent when he knew the truth."
Neville said, "It was why he had the Potter Will sealed, because it identified to whom the infant Harry Potter was to be taken; who would then raise him. It was why he was intercepting all of Harry Potter's mail. It was why he had himself declared Harry Potter's magical guardian, when he knew damned well he had no such right. It was why he attempted, in the Wizengamot, only a few days after Harry became aware of his true heritage, to have Harry stripped of his emancipated minor status and his Potter Lordship."
Hermione said, "It was why, just yesterday morning, he attempted to use Legilimency on Harry up in his office. And, it was why, over the past ten years, he has mind raped four members of staff here, at Hogwarts, and used both Legilimency and the Obliviate Curse upon them!"
Looking Dumbledore directly in the eye, Neville said quite firmly, "And, in case you are so feeble-minded, so oblivious of reality, so self-delusional... that you do not understand what this all means... Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, for the crimes of multiple counts of mind-rape and attempted mind-rape of a child, defrauding the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry through paying people staff wages just to have them close by even though they may have been ill-suited to the roles to which you hired them, for conspiracy to commit child abuse, for conspiracy to cover up child abuse, for abuse of authority as Headmaster, for intentionally failing to provide safe haven at Hogwarts... and probably a great deal more I can't be bothered thinking of, at the moment... you are fired! Your employment as Headmaster, and as a staff member of Hogwarts, is terminated!"
Susan said, "Mister Dumbledore, you have thirty minutes in which to vacate Hogwarts lands, and that includes Hogsmeade, or you will be forcibly evicted. Do not attempt to take that which is not rightfully yours as you leave. Adding the charge of theft to those mounting against you, while it seems to be a bit of a waste of time, we will still do!" Glancing up, she said, "Lady Hogwarts, dump the ex-Headmaster of Hogwarts in the Headmaster's office, so he can pack his personal effects! In exactly thirty minutes, if he hasn't already left on his own accord, he is to be dumped outside the front gates."
Dumbledore disappeared from the Hall.
Hermione turned to Professors McGonagalland Flitwick and said, "Headmistress McGonagall; Deputy Headmaster Flitwick; congratulations to you both. Consider your positions permanent, as of this moment."