Chapter 032

"I'm also facing charges for not protecting students, as I'm required to do as a professor, from the dangers and treatment they faced or underwent," he continued, "To that end... I have learned that young Miss Lovegood of my own House - or, what was my House as I do not believe I'll ever have the honour of being the Head of it again - has been horribly mistreated by, especially, her own housemates. That ends right now.

"One thousand points from Ravenclaw for the bullying behaviour of the entire House!" he firmly declared.

That caused the House, as a whole, to gasp in shock. The same surprised gasps were coming from many others. Those blue gems that had somewhat filled the Ravenclaw House point counter immediately emptied out, leaving it completely bereft of points.

"Any and all things that have been taken without authorisation from Miss Lovegood - and, indeed, any other student - are to be returned by no later than 8.00am tomorrow morning. If Miss Lovegood does not report to me that all... all... of her personal possessions have been returned to her, then the DMLE will begin their own investigations. This is the decision of the current Acting Headmistress and Director of the DMLE, Madam Director Amelia Bones.

"Once that happens I have been informed the thieves will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Anyone then caught having stolen anything from anyone will be immediately suspended. If they are then found guilty of thievery, they will also be immediately expelled on the spot. They will not be permitted to return to Hogwarts - ever. You have been warned."

Then, without allowing the matter to be discussed, he called for the house elves to serve the meal.

Hearing the professor specifically ask the house elves to serve, Harry wondered, 'How long will it be until―'

"What did he mean by 'house elves'?" Hermione suddenly asked.

Harry mentally groaned and berated himself for tempting fate, like that. He already had to calm his best friend down once when she learned both Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil were put through an interrogation by the aurors into what they thought they were doing making demands of her at wand point to provide information about him.

After being taken away for a period of time, both young witches returned to the Gryffindor tower shaken and in tears. Both then warned their housemates that questioning either Harry or Hermione about anything would be at their peril. The aurors did not lie.

_‗_

―==(oIo)==―

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That evening, though she and Tonks were not able to get through all the memories Harry supplied her, Amelia believed she already had enough evidence to call for the trials of all of the individuals arrested. And, using her authority as Director of the DMLE, put out the official call for an emergency sitting of the Wizengamot in judicial, trial, form. It was for one of the few reasons she could put out the official call.

It was from those memories, especially the first ones, where she figured out just how Harry had made it look like the pensieve memories were interactive. They weren't, of course; he'd just set up the memories to appear as if they were.

'Clever boy!' she thought, with a smirk. "That was a nice bit of 'theatre'."

Of course, having now arrested the sitting Minister of Magic and outlining the charges he would face, she had to include that information in the call. She knew, though, that the call would only come as a shock to a small minority of the sitting members, as she doubted there would be many who had not actually been at the task to see it for themselves, had not already heard the news either directly off the WWN or through other means - such as personal spies within the Ministry, including her own department.

A clear example of that was when, during a short break when Amelia and Tonks stopped to take stock, the Minister's dumpy little 'pet' Undersecretary, Dolores Umbridge, barged into her office. Before Amelia could even begin to ask her what she wanted the little woman began making demands and issuing threats. She demanded the immediate dropping of all charges and the immediate release of 'Cornelius', or those aurors who had 'overstepped the bounds of their authority' would soon be 'taking his place in that cell'.

Amelia heard out her first lengthy demand before she decided to ignore her, turned to look at her now open door and barked out, "Will someone please get in here and get this bitch out of my office?"

While Umbridge gaped back, utterly stunned that someone publicly spoke of her like that in her presence, it took a few moments before an auror finally, though tentatively, stepped through her door. It was Senior Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt.

Before Shacklebolt even got a chance to ask a question, Amelia fired an order at him. "Shack; get that..." she said, indicating Umbridge with a short 'point' of her chin, "... the Hell out of my office! If she so much as makes a single sound before you throw her arse out the door, you are to immediately throw said arse into a cell and charge her with deliberate interference of a DMLE investigation!"

"Yes, Ma'am!" Shacklebolt snapped back before marching the couple of steps to Umbridge, gripping her wand arm tightly with his off hand and forcibly dragging her from the office.

Umbridge, still too stunned to adversely react, was dragged out of the office without uttering another sound. She did not return.

_‗_

―==(oIo)==―

ˇ

Also released that day, but in the early evening, was Cornelius Fudge. He was given the same warnings about trying to flee the country and ordered to go home and remain there until he was called for trial. He was under house arrest.

Mentally beaten he did not try to argue against it. Instead, he did as he was told and went directly home; using the auror's floo in the auror bullpen once given leave to do so. He had no desire to go out into the 'public' areas of the Ministry building, just yet.

He'd just flooed into the welcoming parlour at the Minister's Official Residence - one of the major perks of the job - when he was confronted by Umbridge, who was apparently waiting for him.

"Oh, Cornelius!" she simpered, waddling towards him with her hands fluttering about. "I tried to beg that horrid Bones woman to release you―"

At first, Fudge was shocked to find the woman there. But, as she spoke, he began to lose his temper. Interrupting her, he barked,"Why are you in my home?"

Stuttering to a shuddering halt Umbridge gaped at him. "But, Cornelius!"

"How dare you let yourself in without my permission! Get out!" He roared, "Get out of my home!"

With only a long second of hesitation, due to the shock her 'beloved' Minister yelled at her, she finally hurried around him to the fireplace while giving him a wide berth. A quick dash of floo powder, a last look of surprise back at a still furious Fudge, and she was away.

Almost as soon as she was gone, Fudge appeared to almost deflate on the spot.

He knew he really shouldn't have yelled at her like that, but her standing in his home uninvited really annoyed him. It was as if she really didn't care about his privacy.

He stood ruminating on that for a few seconds longer before he went to the ward book and scratched her name off the list of those automatically permitted through the wards.

Before then putting the book away he decided to clean the entire book out of allowed witches and wizards. And removed quite a few other names, including Lucius Malfoy and Albus Dumbledore.

No one would be automatically allowed through, except for himself. He had no idea that, by doing so, he'd just saved his own life.

Once he returned the ward book to its secret niche he then returned to his desk, drew forth a fresh sheet of parchment, quill and ink, sighed and began to write his resignation from the office of Minister of Magic. It was either that, or wait a mere day or two before he'd be tossed out of the job. He had no doubt of that.

As soon as he finished writing the resignation letter and sending it to his own - now 'ex' - office staff, he ordered the Ministerial Residence elves to begin packing his personal effects and moving them to his secret 'bolt hole' escape home on the Isle of Mann.

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