Chapter Three
Harry and Neville arrived at Grimmauld Place to find it clear of everyone but Kreacher. Harry instructed the house-elf to prepare the largest guest room for Narcissa’s arrival as he used the enchanted mirror to contact Ron and Hermione. He gave the two a brief summary of the Will Reading, asking the two to cover for him a bit longer in case Dumbledore came looking for him. He didn’t want the headmaster to know what had happened just yet. Both Hermione and Ron were equally horrified by the werewolf clause in Sirius’ will, though they took his new arrangement with the Malfoy’s in stride. Ron did grumble a bit about having to play nice with the ferret, but he’d been saying variations of the same complaint since Harry had announced his intention to get some of the Slytherin’s on their side, so no one paid his grumbling any mind. Harry also gave Hermione what little information he had about his seats on the Wizengamot and the Board of Governors, asking her to research both positions and what responsibilities and privileges they provided him. Hermione agreed readily enough, as she was headed to the library that afternoon anyway. She did ask Harry to search the Black family library for any Dark books containing information about binding souls to objects.
The request was met with raised eyebrows from Harry and a startled noise from Neville, who nearly spilled his tea. Hermione huffed at them, rolling her eyes. “Ginny made an off-hand comment this morning that made me think of Riddle’s diary from second year. Dumbledore basically admitted to you that the diary contained a piece of Vol-Voldemort’s soul, right?”
Harry nodded and Hermione continued. “Well, we don’t know much about him, or his initial rise to power, but if he split his soul once it’s entirely possible he’s done it again at some point. I don’t know if it will lead anywhere, but it’s worth a shot. Unfortunately, all magic involving soul manipulation is considered Dark, and has long since been removed from the Hogwarts library. Considering the family penchant for Dark Arts, I figured the Black library would be a decent place to start.”
Harry shook his head. “I’ll look, but I can’t guarantee anything. Grimmauld Place isn’t the only house the Black’s owned, and it’s definitely not the only one with a library. I’m not saying it’s impossible that they would have a book like that, but it might be harder to find than you think. Worst comes to worst, I’ll have Dobby look for it.”
Hermione huffed at the mention of the free house-elf but refrained from commenting. Dobby was one of the subjects on which Harry and Hermione intensely disagreed. Several arguments and an intervention from Ron had convinced them it was better to agree to disagree and now they simply ignored the topic altogether. Ron stepped in at this point, wishing Harry and Neville luck with Draco and Narcissa, while simultaneously reminding Hermione that if they wanted to stick to her schedule they needed to leave for the library right now.
Harry had only just placed the mirror back in his pocket when Kreacher returned to inform him that the room was ready. Harry acknowledged his statement and ordered Kreacher to begin making lunch. It had been several hours since he and Neville had had breakfast, and he was certain the Malfoy’s would like something to eat once they arrived as well.
While they waited, Harry penned a quick letter to Professor McGonagall, informing her of the basics of what had occurred, leaving out the Malfoy’s all together save for a brief mention of Draco’s appearance at the reading and permission for him to return to Hogwarts with he and Neville via floo from Grimmauld Place. He knew she would have concerns about Draco’s presence at the Order’s headquarters, but he also knew she wouldn’t press the issue. She never did. The house was legally his to do with as he pleased and, while she might raise her eyebrows at him, she would never openly question him. She might go to Dumbledore with her concerns, but Harry was fairly certain he could handle the Headmaster.
Sending the letter off with one of the many owls kept at the house, Harry returned to the library to find Neville had moved from his seat at the small table to one of the chairs spread haphazardly throughout the room, a large and rather dusty book open in his lap.
“What’ve you got there Nev?”
Neville jumped, nearly losing the book. He had obviously not heard Harry enter the room. “Merlin Harry!”
Harry just shrugged. “Sorry.”
Neville sighed, chuckling to himself. “It’s alright. I was just reading about some of the deadlier plants in Britain. The library here has Herbology books you wouldn’t normally see until you were an apprentice. It’s fascinating, really.”
Harry nodded to show he was listening, trailing a hand over the spines of a few books as he surveyed the room. He silently promised himself he would go through the collection another time to see if anything in it could help them. Maybe he would bring Hermione along, and probably Luna too.
The grandfather clock in the hall chimed, dragging Harry out of his thoughts and reminding him it was about time to meet up with the Malfoys. Shaking his head, Harry cleared his throat and gestures to the library’s fireplace. “I’m going to go pick up Draco and his mum.”
Neville nodded, putting the book away. “Want me to come with?”
Harry shook his head. “No, we shouldn’t be long. Just, make sure Kreacher hasn’t destroyed the dining room to spite me or something.”
“Sure.” Neville laughed. “Don’t get into it with Draco and cause a scene or anything.”
Harry snorted, throwing the floo powder into the fireplace and calling out for the Leaky Cauldron, rather than dignifying Neville’s statement with a response. It only took a moment after stumbling out of the floo (Harry managed not to fall this time but it was a near thing) to find Draco and his mum. The two were seated in a corner, doing their best to remain unnoticed by the other patrons. Harry walked towards them slowly, making sure to catch Narcissa’s eye as he approached so he wouldn’t startle them. She took notice of him, straightening in her seat, lightly tapping Draco’s hand to let him know that Harry had arrived.
It was only as Harry reached the table that he noticed something was off. It took him a moment to realize he could sense a glamour over Narcissa’s right eye. His own glamour, the one he used to hide the scars from that night in the graveyard, itched in sympathy and he had to violently squash the urge to demand to know what had happened. Instead, he plastered on a smile, offering his hand to help Narcissa out of her seat, ignoring Draco’s scowl. “I hope you didn’t have too much trouble getting everything in order. I’m sorry this is all such short notice.”
Draco scoffed, which Harry just barely resisted rolling his eyes at, but Narcissa simply smiled politely, taking Harry’s hand as she rose out of her seat. “Not at all Lord Potter. Besides, it’s not as if you knew of any of this beforehand either. If anything, I should be apologizing to you for putting you out.”
Harry linked his arm with Narcissa’s, smiling awkwardly as he shook his head. “Not at all. It’s really no trouble. And call me Harry, please. I’m still not comfortable with all of this Lord nonsense.”
As Harry tossed some floo powder into the fireplace, nodding to Tom behind the bar who nodded back before pretending he hadn’t seen anything, Draco sneered. “Saint Potter, isn’t it? No one believes your little humility act you…”
His statement was cut off by Narcissa grabbing hold of his ear and twisting. “That will be enough from you.”
Harry called out the address, avoiding eye contact with the Malfoys, the interaction between mother and son making him more than a little uncomfortable. He gestured for Narcissa to step through the floo first, and she did so gracefully, her son a half-step behind her. Harry followed them both, landing somewhat gracefully back in the library of Grimmauld Place. Narcissa had frozen in the center of the room, slowly taking in her surroundings. Draco had put a hand on his mother’s arm, asking if she was alright.
“This is the first time I have stepped foot in my Aunt’s house since I married Lucius. I never thought I would see it again.”
Harry shrugged, nervously running a hand through his hair. “It’s kind of a mess. I mean, we’ve cleaned it the best we can but it still needs some work.”
“We?” She turned to look at Harry, eyebrow raised in question.
“Yeah, um, the Order uses the house as its headquarters. You don’t need to worry though,” Harry rushed to reassure both her and Draco, “the only other person here right now is Neville. Well, and Kreacher the house-elf. Professor McGonagall knows you’re here as part of Sirius’ will but she doesn’t know the details and she can let everyone else know not to bother you.”
“Like that’s really going to make a difference Potter!” Draco spat, rounding on Harry. “You’ve brought my mother into the lion’s den! No one in your precious order is going to ignore the fact that the wife of a high-ranking Death Eater is living in their headquarters! You’ve as good as sentenced her to death!”
As Draco was ranting, Neville had entered the room. Taking quick stock in the situation and deciding it would be a good idea for Harry and Draco to…talk, he quietly approached Lady Malfoy, gesturing for her to follow him, whispering that he would show her to her room and that Kreacher had prepared a late lunch for all of them. The two quietly left the room without Harry or Draco realizing it.
Harry took a deep breath to calm his temper, counting to ten in his head. Gong off on Malfoy was not going to help the situation. “One, it’s not my Order, it’s Dumbledore’s. Two, the will ignore her presence because I’ll tell them too. The house is mine now and if the Order wants to keep using it then they bloody well will do what I say or they can find another headquarter.” Draco opened his mouth to respond, no doubt with some witty and cutting barb, but Harry pressed on before he could speak. “Thirdly, the arrangement is only temporary. Nothing has been decided as of yet, but I plan on taking the next Hogsmeade weekend to visit the other properties my godfather left me. Depending on the conditions they are in, I plan to have your mother move into one of them, preferably one of the properties in the country, or outside of Britain, where it will be safer for her. It will take time to set up the arrangements though, so until all of that can be done, she will stay here.”
Draco was stunned into silence by Harry’s response, only able to stare wide-eyed at his arch-nemesis. Harry sighed, running his fingers through his hair in frustration. “Look Ma-Draco. I know we don’t get along. Opposite houses, opposite sides of the war, and we haven’t really got anything in common. But right now, none of that really matters. I don’t care what you think of me,” That was a lie and Harry knew it. For reasons he couldn’t explain, reasons he didn’t want to explain, Draco’s opinion of him had always mattered more than it should have. “but the Vow has made your mother my responsibility, and my promise to her has made you my responsibility too. Call it Gryffindor sentimentality, but I’m not one for going back on my word. Circumstances have forced us onto the same side, whether we like it or not, and now we just have to do what we can with what we have.”
He would never admit to Draco that he had wanted the blonde on his side.
“If you recall, Potter, I never swore any vow. What makes you think I won’t take every bit of information you’ve given me straight to my father?”
Harry snorted. “Well, for one, if that was your plan you wouldn’t have just told me about it. That, and, if you did, you wouldn’t see your mother again. Not until the war is over at least.”
Face contorting in anger, Draco stepped towards Harry, grabbing his robes. “Potter I swear to Merlin if you hurt my mother…”
Harry grabbed Draco’s wrist, pulling the blonde’s hand free of his robes and shoving him backwards, pinning him against the bookshelf. “Shut up and think for once Draco! If you passed on information to your father you would be a Death Eater. If you used any information you learned through your mother, even indirectly, the Vow would interpret that to mean she was helping you and would kill her. I’d have to keep you away from her to keep her alive! Otherwise she would pay for your actions.”
The two were standing uncomfortably close by this point, barely a few centimeters between them. Draco averted his eyes, unwilling to stare Harry in the face. The movement seemed to jar Harry, calling attention to their position, and causing him to take a couple of steps back, releasing Draco’s wrist. An awkward silence filled the room for a few moments, neither boy quite sure where to go from there, but it was thankfully broken by Kreacher’s appearance.
“Kreacher is to be telling the filthy half-blood that the blood traitor and Lady Black be waiting to be having lunch.” Kreacher announced, trailing off into barely concealed mumblings of displeasure.
Harry rolled his eyes and dismissed the house-elf with a wave of his hand. “We’ll be right there. You can begin serving Neville and Lady Malfoy.”
Kreacher disappeared with a disgruntled pop and Harry turned back to Draco. “I’ve told Professor McGonagall that you will be flooing back to Hogwarts with me and Neville. We’ll come through her office, so you won’t have to deal with the dorms. Ron and Hermione know about the clause in the will and that your mother swore the Unbreakable Vow, but they don’t know what the exact terms of the Vow are. I don’t plan to tell anyone else about it who doesn’t already know. You’re free to tell whoever you like, of course, but something tells me this isn’t something you want to go public.” Draco nodded, just barely, but it was enough of an acknowledgement for Harry. “We can discuss what exactly this will mean in terms of our interactions at school later. For now, we should head to the dining room. I get the feeling your mother isn’t the type of person who should be kept waiting.”
Harry left the library without looking back, knowing Draco had no real choice but to follow. A part of him felt guilty. He could only imagine what the day’s events must have been like for the Slytherin, and he was self-aware enough to know he probably wouldn’t have reacted all that differently had he been in Draco’s shoes. If anything, he would have been worse. It didn’t help that a part of him was glad for the turn of events. Having Draco on his side, however reluctantly, would only increase the DA’s chances of gaining Slytherin cooperation. Of course, Draco would have to be told of his plans, and there was no guarantee he would agree to recruit others, but maybe Narcissa could persuade him. She wasn’t a true follower of Voldemort, had openly admitted to not holding to his ideals. Maybe, if he brought the idea to her, she could convince Draco that it would be to his benefit to aid the DA.
Walking into the dining room Harry nodded at Neville and Narcissa, choosing to sit across from the other Gryffindor so that Draco could sit across from his mother. Neville gave him a questioning look, silently asking about the conversation in the library, and Harry shook his head, signaling that he would explain what had happened later.
Lunch was a quiet affair, filled with small talk. Narcissa politely inquired about all of their classes, offering Neville a few tips to help him in potions and commending Harry for standing up to Umbridge, who she freely admitted to despising. When the topic of Draco’s place on the inquisitorial squad came up, she gave him such a look of maternal disappointment that for a moment Harry thought the blonde would sink through his chair.
“Dolores Umbridge is a petty, small-minded, rat of a woman. I am ashamed to admit she was a Slytherin. Like most of the political fools in the ministry these days, she refuses to accept that there is a conflict happening at all. Self-preservation is one thing. Wishing to secure one’s position in times of change is understandable. Lording one’s authority over a bunch of children in order to secure and validate one’s own power is nothing short of cowardly. It’s the kind of behavior I would expect from a muggle, not a so-called Pureblood, and certainly not a Slytherin.” She never came right out and said it, but the reprimand was clear. She did not approve of Draco’s involvement in Umbridge’s regime. As a pureblood and a Slytherin, such crass behavior should be beneath him.
Harry got the feeling Draco would be quitting the inquisitorial squad as soon as physically possibly. Further proof that Draco Malfoy was undoubtedly his mother’s son, and that the best way to get him to do something would be through her.
Lunch finished without further incident and the Malfoy’s retreated upstairs to unpack Narcissa’s belongings and store Draco’s. They had only just left when the owl Harry had sent out earlier returned. Professor McGonagall had agreed to open the floo in her office so the three boys could return to the school. She didn’t question Draco’s inclusion in the request, but Harry was certain she would inquire about it when he saw her in person.
Returning to the library, Harry filled Neville in on the basics of his conversation with Draco, and his idea of getting Narcissa to convince Draco to work with them. In turn, Neville filled Harry in on his conversation with Narcissa while Harry and Draco had been in the library.
“Honestly, she’s a lot nicer than I expected. I get the feeling she still thins Purebloods are better than other witches and wizards, but she doesn’t necessarily want to see all the Half-bloods and Muggleborns wiped out.” Neville shook his head, staring over Harry’s shoulder with a far-off look in his eyes. “She apologized for what happened to my parents.” He shook his head, focusing back on Harry. “Apparently, she isn’t very fond of her sister. She felt the need to apologize on Bellatrix’s behalf. I feel like everything I’ve ever known is a lie.”
Harry couldn’t help but chuckle at the incredulity in Neville’s voice.
A moment later Narcissa and Draco returned to the library. Harry almost asked how they could possibly be done already, but stopped in time to not make a fool out of himself. Magic, right.
“Professor McGonagall sent a reply. Her floo is open, so we should probably head back. We’ve been gone all day, and I’ve still got homework to do.” Even as he said it, the strangeness of the statement hit him. He was a newly emancipated adult, a Lord, the wealthy owner of multiple properties and a position in the government. He was also a fifteen-year-old student. Really, could his life get any weirder?
Draco said goodbye to his mother as Neville readied the floo, and a moment later they were back at Hogwarts. The three of them arrived in McGonagall’s office. She was waiting for them, seated at her desk grading papers. She looked up briefly at their arrival before returning to her marking. “I trust any and all legal matters have been appropriately handled?”
“Yes Professor.” Harry answered.
“Then I suggest you enjoy what is left of your weekend gentlemen. I will see you in class tomorrow.”
“Have a nice evening Professor.” Harry and Neville called in unison as they left McGonagall’s office, Draco trailing behind them in confusion.
“Why didn’t she question us?” He asked as they stepped into the hallway. The two Gryffindors shrugged.
“McGonagall isn’t the type to pry into student affairs. We were gone on a personal matter so she doesn’t view it as any of her business.” Neville explained.
“Why? How would Snape handle something like this?” Harry asked, genuinely curious.
“He wouldn’t have asked for personal details, but he still would have wanted to know exactly why we were gone and where we had been. Even more so if a Slytherin returned with a student from another House.”
“Huh.” Harry shrugged again. “McGonagall’s not really that involved, I guess. She makes it clear that her office is open if we need her, but she’s almost never in the dorms, and she doesn’t really pay all that much attention to what we get up to outside of classes and quidditch, at least, as long as we aren’t actively breaking the rules.”
Draco shook his head, utterly bewildered. “I can’t imagine having a Head of House who isn’t actively invested in their students.” He walked away muttering about ‘bloody Gryffindors’.
“To each their own, I guess. I’m heading to the library, gonna meet up with Ron and Hermione.” Harry told Neville. The other boy nodded and gesture in the direction of the tower.
“I’m headed to the dorms. I’ll see you at dinner?”
“Yeah.”
They parted ways and Harry made his way to the library as quickly as possible. He found Ron and Hermione seated at a table in a corner, far away from any other students. They were sitting side-by-side, the table in front of them covered with books. Hermione was diligently taking notes, flipping through tree different books at the same time, cross-referencing her material. Ron was leaning back in his chair, chewing on a sugar quill as he skimmed through one book, the slightly glazed look in his eyes suggesting he was nearing the end of his rope. Strategist he might be, but research had never been Ron’s area of expertise, and likely never would be. That honor fell to Hermione, for which both Harry and Ron were eternally grateful.
Harry rapped his knuckles against the edge of a bookcase as he approached the table to get their attention, the last thing he wanted to do was startle Hermione. Ron got up to greet Harry, throwing an arm around his friend’s shoulders. “How’d it go with Malfoy mate?”
“All right.” Harry shrugged, unwilling to broach the subject in the public space of the library, no matter how isolated they were. “Tell you about it later.” Ron nodded in understanding, dropping the subject for the time being.
Hermione acknowledged him with a smile before immediately launching into an explanation of everything they had managed to discover in the few hours that Harry had been away.
“So, I looked into your legal rights as a member of the Wizengamot and the Board first, as they seemed to be the more pressing issue.” Harry and Ron exchanged a look as they sat down, Ron returning to his seat by Hermione and Harry sitting across from her. Hermione pulled a parchment out of the growing pile on the table and passed it to Harry. “As a member of the Wizengamot and an emancipated adult you have access to the Potter Seat. Each Seat is allotted a certain number of votes. The number of votes per Seat varies based on several factors. Some Seats belong to wizarding families, while others belong to individuals. As far as individual Seats go, Purebloods have more votes than Half-bloods or Muggleborns. When it comes to family Seats, older families have more votes than younger families, and families that belong to the Court of Merlin have more votes than families that don’t. The Potter family is one of the oldest wizarding families in Britain and belongs to the Court of Merlin. As the Lord of the family and the Seat holder, you have one of the higher number of votes in the Wizengamot, your one vote counting as One Hundred and Twenty-Nine votes, if my calculations are correct. Of course, once you official inherit the Black Lordship, that number will practically double.”
“You’re kidding.” Harry could only stare at Hermione in shock.
“Nope. It’s not a majority of course, the Wizengamot is designed so no one Seat holds enough votes that the rest of the Seats would be unable to overrule them, but it is a large enough number that you could sway most of the rulings in your favor. Particularly because the individual Seats and Seats belonging to lesser families tend to form alliances with Seats like the Potters or Blacks. They would back your votes with their own, tilting the balance even more in your favor, in return for advocating certain issues that are significant to them.”
“Blimey.” Ron shook his head in disbelief, mind already racing with the ramifications of what they had just learned. He’d known from Hermione’s reaction when she had uncovered the information that it would be a big deal, but her sure hadn’t expected that!
“Now that’s not to say you would already have those alliances. Some people who were allied with your grandfather, Henry Potter, the last one to hold the seat, might continue to ally with you out of respect for your family, but you’re still going to have to do a lot of networking if you want a significant number of them on your side, which you should.” Hermione pointed out, sifting through the books on the table.
It took Harry a moment to speak, and when he did, all he could get out was, “My…grandfather?”
Hermione handed him the book he had been looking for, open to a portrait of a middle-aged man, about Arthur Weasely’s age. The man wore a pair of metal, wire-rimmed spectacles, closer to the ones Dumbledore used than the glasses Harry had seen his father wear in the few photographs he had of his parents. Black hair peppered with gray, cut short and still managing to look unkempt, warm brown eyes and a smile with an edge of mischief to it that had Harry wondering if James Potter had gotten his sense of humor from his father. The portrait nodded at him, unable to do much more, as it only showed him from the neck up.
“Lord Henry Harold Potter, Twenty-Fifth head of the Potter family. He and his wife were killed by Death Eaters in January of the year your parents graduated from Hogwarts. I can’t say for certain, you would have to ask Remus, but I think you were named after him.”
Hermione placed a hand on his arm to comfort him. Harry looked up at her and gave her a small smile, letting her know he appreciated the gesture. “Who was his wife?” He asked. The book was a record of former Wizengamot members, so it only held his grandfather’s portrait and a small article about his time as a member.
“Estrella Ciara Potter nee Longbottom.”
Harry’s head shot up. “Longbottom?” He and Ron asked in unison.
Hermione nodded. “Yes. I traced the family tree a bit, it’s fascinating really. Actually Harry, you’re technically related to the Weasely’s and the Black’s as well.” She dug around for another parchment, this one containing a family tree.
“Mr. Weasely’s mother Cedrella was born a Black, and was disowned for marrying Ron’s grandfather Septimus. Cedrella had two sisters, Callidora and Charis. Callidora married Harfang Longbottom and they had two children, a son, and a daughter. Their son, Eadbert Longbottom, married Augusta Fawley, and the two had a son, Frank who is Neville’s father. Their daughter Estrella, married Henry Potter and had a son as well, James. This means that your dad and Neville’s dad were cousins, and they were second cousins to Arthur Weasely. This makes you and Neville second cousins, and makes Ron your third cousin, along with all his siblings. It also makes you distantly related to Sirius and to Draco, as your great-grandmother was born a Black.”
Ron and Harry turned to look at each other, and after a moment Ron grinned and slapped Harry on the back. “See, I told you that you were practically family, this just proves it!”
Harry could only grin in response, to overwhelmed to speak. Losing Sirius had been like losing the last tie to his parents and his father’s family. Sure, he still had Remus, but they had never been as close as he had been to his godfather. Learning that he was related to the Weasely’s, even distantly, and to Neville, that he had blood relatives out there who weren’t the Dursley’s, was amazing.
Hermione rolled her eyes at Ron, but she was smiling. She knew how important family was to Harry and was happy that she could help him find what was left of his. After moment, however, she interrupted the two boys, or rather, she interrupted Ron, who had started to talk about his family’s potential reaction to the news.
“We still have more information to go over, you know. The sooner we tell Harry what all we discovered, the sooner the two of you can finish your homework,” both Harry and Ron had the grace to look sheepish in the face of Hermione’s glare, “and the sooner we can get to dinner.”
“Right, sorry ‘mione.” Harry apologized, straightening in his seat. “What else did you find?”
“Well, continuing with the Wizengamot, even though you are emancipated and officially recognized as a Lord, you can’t personally take your Seat because you are still a student. You can attend sessions that occur over holidays or summer break, and emergency sessions, but for any of the regularly schedule meetings that occur during the school year you need to appoint a representative. Essentially, the representative is required to inform you of the subject of the meeting a week in advance and they vote the way you tell them too. They are your voice in your absence and can’t make any decisions on behalf of the Potter Seat without your approval.
Now, we have no idea how any of the adults are going to react when your emancipation is revealed, so I’ve compiled a list of current Wizengamot members for you to choose from, all of whom align with your political opinions. By law, you must announce a representative by the next Wizengamot meeting. Currently, the next meeting is in two weeks, but I wouldn’t put it past them to call an emergency meeting and for either Dumbledore or Fudge to try and appoint someone for you. Both would assume you would be ignorant of everything and would probably try to take advantage.” She handed Harry another parchment containing four names, with a list of the person’s political affiliations and previous voting habits beneath each name. Harry tucked it into the book with his grandfather’s portrait, promising to look it over tonight after he finished his homework and had dinner.
Hermione pulled a large book, the biggest so far, from the bottom of a pike, causing the ones on top of it to fall. Ron barely managed to catch them before they hit the floor, overexaggerating their weight and making Hermione laugh, even as she thanked him. She dropped the book on the table with a muffled thump and opened it to somewhere roughly in the middle.
“The Board of Governors is a bit different. The Board is made entirely of the heads of the families belonging to the Court of Merlin. They have a voting system as well, but it’s a bit different. It’s divided into a sort of hierarchy. Ten of the members only have one vote each. These are half of the ‘Lesser’ Families that Neville mentioned yesterday, the ones with the least political or economic influence. The other half of the ‘Lesser’ Families, the ones who have managed to work their way up the ladder in terms of wealth or influence, have two votes each. The last seven are the ‘Greater’ Families and they each have three votes. The Potters are considered one of the Seven Greater Families, along with the Blacks, Malfoys, Longbottoms, Abbott, Parkinson, and Greengrass.
Again, alliances are important. Eventually, you will have both the Potter and Black votes, which will give you a major edge. Until then, you need to get as many on your side as possible. Currently three of the Seven are known Death Eater families, one is inactive, and the other three counting yourself are known light supporters. It’s a pretty even split, so tie breakers and the voting trend depends on the twenty lesser families. Right now, most of them are either Death Eaters, or neutrals. Most Pureblood families are either supporters or neutrals. If you can get the neutrals on your side it will give you an edge over the known Death Eaters.”
“What does that mean for the school though?” Harry asked, furrowing his brow as he tried to follow Hermione’s speech. “I mean, what does the Board actually do?”
“Well, you have a say in what subjects are taught. You also, and this is my favorite part,” She pointed to a specific paragraph on the page, “you can petition for a vote to have a teacher fired or hired.”
“Wait, what?”
She nodded enthusiastically. “Technically, the Headmaster or Headmistress has full control over the staff. They decide who to hire and who to fire. Fudge was able to get Umbridge in place because he went to the Board. He cited all of the incidents with Voldemort” Hermione was so into her explanation that she didn’t notice she hadn’t stumbled over the name, but Harry did and it made him smile, “as proof that Dumbledore was incompetent in terms of selecting D.A.D.A Professors. He convinced the Board members that their children would be better off with Umbridge on staff. As a member, if you can prove that a teacher abused or endangered the students, you can call for an emergency meeting of the Board. They would hold a trial, essentially, with the evidence against her being presented and Umbridge being given the chance to defend herself. The best part is, the ministry cannot interfere. The Board was set up as a separate entity outside of the Ministry’s authority, so Fudge has no power.”
“But most of the members are Slytherin families, right?” Ron asked. “Why would they get rid of her for bullying some of the students?”
“Because, unlike Professor Snape who openly favors Slytherins, Umbridge doesn’t discriminate. She abuses the students equally, no matter what house they’re in. If their views don’t align with that of the Ministry, and they are open about it, then they are a target. I guarantee most of those Slytherin and Death Eater parents wouldn’t be too happy to learn their children are getting the same treatment as the rest of us.”
Harry was quiet for a moment, working through everything he had just learned. It was a lot of information and he wasn’t sure how to handle it. Eventually, he shook his head and tried to focus again. “How would I call an emergency meeting like that?”
“You can’t just yet. After your emancipation has been announced you will have to attend one of the regularly scheduled monthly Board meetings. The last meeting was on Wednesday, so the next one won’t be for another four weeks. The Headmaster is required to inform you of the time, date, and location of the meeting and you will be excused from any classes if the meeting takes place during school hours. After that first meeting, you can request a meeting to present your case for why the Board should review Umbridge’s position. A motion will be made, and if they decide you have a compelling enough case, then the emergency meeting will be called. I don’t know all of the details of how it works, most of the Board’s procedures aren’t public knowledge.”
“Great, more time in class with the pink hippogriff. Ow!”
Hermione smacked Ron on the head with a rolled-up parchment. “Ronald!”
“What? It’s true.”
“It’s an insult to hippogriffs. Personally, I think troll would be a better description.”
Ron nearly choked on air, not having expected that response from Hermione. Harry, however, knew better and just laughed. “Besides Ron, this way we have more time to get proof against her so she can’t lie her way out of it during the trial.” He pointed out.
“Oh yeah.”
“Have you found anything more about Voldemort?” Harry asked, turning the conversation serious once more.
Hermione shook her head. “Just his school records. I went off the name from the Diary, Tom Riddle was a student from 1938-1945. Dumbledore was the Transfiguration Professor back then, under Headmaster Dippet. He was a Slytherin and there’s no family listed for him, so he was probably an orphan. I couldn’t find the surname Riddle on any wizarding family registries, but not all of the wizarding families in the UK are listed here in the Hogwarts library, so it’s possible I just haven’t found it yet.”
“Or maybe he’s a Half-blood or a Muggleborn.” Ron sarcastically suggested. Both Harry and Hermione snorted.
“Maybe. I won’t rule it out but it would be unlikely. Other than the record that he attended Hogwarts, I haven’t found anything else about him.”
Just then, a clock chimed from somewhere in the library, signaling there was only an hour before dinner. The trio stood up, gathering up the books Hermione wanted to take back to the dorm with her. Only after they had left the library and were almost back at the tower did Harry speak again. He broke into a lull in the conversation between Ron and Hermione over Ron’s tendencies to procrastinate.
“The next Hogsmeade weekend I plan on visiting the properties Sirius left me. If you still want to look for those books you talked about earlier, you guys should come with me. Luna too, probably. She’s really good at finding obscure bits of knowledge.”
“Sure mate.” Ron agreed readily. Hermione’s eye twitched slightly at the mention of Luna, she liked the Ravenclaw but had a hard time handling Luna’s unique personality, but she also agreed.
“Would anyone else be going with us?” She asked.
“Probably Neville. And Malfoy. Tell you more about why later.” The two nodded, Ron giving the password to the Fat Lady and the three of them stepped inside. Hermione headed up to her dorm to put away her books and the boys headed up to theirs. Ron grabbed his homework and headed back down to the common rooms, while Harry changed out of his nice clothes back into his school uniform and robes. That done, he also grabbed what was left of his homework and headed to the common room.
A study group of sorts had formed in front of the fireplace. Hermione was helping Ron, Seamus, and Dean with their homework. Neville and Ginny were sitting with the group, Neville working on homework and Ginny reading a quidditch magazine. Harry joined the group, finishing his potions essay, and reading the chapter for his next charms class. Eventually the group broke for dinner, all of them heading down to the Great Hall.
As they headed to the Gryffindor table, Harry caught sight of Draco sitting at the Slytherin table. He was sitting separated from the other Slytherins, though Harry was pretty sure it was by choice, as Draco’s friends seemed to be concerned for him. Well, as concerned as any Slytherin was willing to appear in public. As he was staring, Draco looked up, catching his eye. Sneering, the blonde immediately turned away. Harry sighed, unwilling to put in the energy to be upset by Draco’s behavior. Starting tomorrow they’d be spending a lot more time together and Harry had the feeling he’d need all the energy and patience he could get to deal with Draco’s dramatics.
Dinner was relaxing compared to the busy day. The topics of conversation remained firmly in the range of fun and inane. It gave Harry a chance to relax and unwind a bit. The trend continued when they headed back to the dorms. He stayed in the common room, watching Neville and Ron battle it out over chess, the two fairly matched. Hermione and Ginny chatted about everything from classes to boys as Ginny painted Hermione’s nails with a new color she’d gotten, a shimmering maroon. Harry had chuckled when Ginny first showed it to Hermione, because she had suggested the color with a pointed look at her brother and a wink at Hermione, flustering the bookworm. After everything that had happened with Krum the year before, the only one who didn’t realize Hermione had a thing for Ron, was Ron.
Without realizing it Harry began to drift off on the couch in front of the fire. He was jostled awake a little while later by Ron, suggesting they head to bed. Harry started, remembering he was supposed to have filled them in on everything with Draco and Narcissa, but Ron assured him he could tell them tomorrow, and that Neville had filled them in on the basics.
Leaning on the redhead, Harry made his way up to his room, collapsing in bed, only just remembering to remove his glasses. Within moments he had drifted off again. For the first time since Sirius’ death Harry slept peacefully through the night.