Lord and Ladies

Wizengamot

The Daily Prophet of that morning was waiting for them in the apartment Harry and his wives were allotted, quite close to the Gryffindor tower, but not too far from either Hufflepuff or Slytherin dormitories either. The main title was, "Is The Minister Bribed To Allow He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named Return To Power?"

The Potters had already heard all the information presented in the paper, yet they were sure that the article would make some waves. While not mentioning the resurrection of the Dark Lord, the article pointed at the budget cuts, especially those concerning security, the continuous lack of funds for aurors, the inadequate teachers at Hogwarts and some cover-ups – all pointing to the Minister allowing Magical Britain to become defenseless against any Dark Lord wannabe. While not directly accusing Malfoy as the one pushing this agenda, it did point at the large "donations" the minister was regularly receiving from many of the previous supporters of the dark lord, all of whom had never been interrogated under Veritaserum, yet escaped trial by claiming being under the "imperius" curse. It was also emphasized that none of that money ended in the Ministry's vaults.

Harry was glad that this time, it was all based on facts and all questions raised were fully legitimate, unlike what he had experienced before. It was a far cry from the articles published by Rita during previous years.

The teens enjoyed their new apartment. It was almost as large as the one on Diagon Alley, giving them all the privacy they wanted at times, yet allowing them to bring in some friends at other times. It even had a small library they could use while doing homework. Yet most important – it had a very wide bed in the bedroom, one giving the four of them ample space to sleep, or to engage in more entertaining activities. The girls seemed just too happy to get rid of their clothes and Harry's and then try all kind of bedtime entertainment.

They got the next Daily Prophet in the morning. It had many furious letters from readers, questioning the motives and the wisdom of the Minister, and other asking how so many Death Eaters, much too many, managed to escape justice. Nobody seemed to buy into the idea of "Imperio" as an excuse for joining the Dark Lord.

Harry glanced at the Slytherin table, noticing that Draco seemed much paler than usual and quite worried. "He probably has a reason to worry," Hermione told him. Harry nodded in agreement.

Still, as they started attending lessons, Harry almost forgot about politics, immersing himself in studies, trying to do his best to make his wives proud of him. Only Ron didn't seem to understand, as studies were the last priority on his list. "Why bother with studies when we still have the whole term before the exams?"

Actually, Harry was getting the impression that Neville was becoming a much closer and better friend than Ron. Neville joined them at doing homework and also at just rehearsing school stuff, activities that were alien to Ron. Neville was also very polite with the girls, unlike Ron, and tried to help Harry with every problem.

"Aren't you going to claim your Wizengamot position?" Neville asked that weekend.

"We're soon going to do that. We have more than the Potter seat to take."

Neville gave it some consideration and then gasped. "You're also going to claim Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin, aren't you?"

Harry smiled. "Peverell as well. It's surely going to cause some power shift within the Wizengamot."

"Six votes, along with your positions as heirs of the founders and you – The Boy Who Lived – that should cause a significant change, I'm sure."

"Will you help me, if I need help?"

Neville looked as serious as he could get. "I'm your ally, Harry. Longbottom and Potter stood together for many generations and I see no reason to change that. I'll do what I can to support you."

That was really comforting. Ron would have never been able to be as supportive, with his jealousy, his quick temper and his lack of thought. Harry was glad that Neville was becoming an even closer friend.

A few days later, they joined Dumbledore for their first Wizengamot meeting. They all took the Floo to the Ministry. Dumbledore led them to the spectators' benches. "I suggest you sit on the first row and then claim your position as soon as the meeting begins."

Dumbledore cast some spells to make them unnoticed until the time to act came. "It's better to not make your presence noticeable in advance and may also help you feel less anxious."

Soon enough, the hall was filled. Dumbledore took his position as the Chief Warlock, and once all present members were seated, he started the meeting. "I'm honored to open the first autumn meeting of the Wizengamot. Before we start with the scheduled discussions, does any member have anything to add to the agenda?" He furtively looked at Harry, urging him to act.

Harry stood up. "I, Lord Harry James Potter-Gryffyndor-Peverell, hereby request my rightful position as member of this austere body."

Susan stood up as well. "I, Lady Susan Potter-Hufflepuff, hereby request my rightful position as member of this austere body." She made sure to say the "Potter" part almost inaudibly.

She was followed by Hermione. "I, Lady Hermione Potter-Ravenclaw, hereby request my rightful position as member of this austere body." Like Susan, she also kept the "Potter" part almost silent.

Finally, Daphne stood up. "I, Lady Daphne Potter-Slytherin, hereby request my rightful position as member of this austere body." She also accentuate the "Slytherin", keeping the rest unnoticeable.

Some murmurs were heard in the Wizengamot, yet the audience seemed to burst with noise. It was quite unusual to have people request a position in the Wizengamot. Fout at once was unheard of. Dumbledore beat the podium several times to gain some silence. He then turned to the youngsters, trying to look serious, despite feeling quite happy about it. "May I see your credentials?"

Harry stepped forward, showing his Potter ring, his Peverell ring and the Gryffindor one, and each of the ladies presented her ring as well. Dumbledore acknowledgedeach rings with a grave nod.

"Very well, you may join the Wizengamot. Each of the ladies has one vote, while Lord Potter has three."

The minister couldn't sit quietly any longer. "That's preposterous! They're just children! This meeting is for adults!"

Dumbledore turned his grandfatherly face at him, talking as if the minister was a small child who needed education. "Can a child wear a Lord or Lady ring?"

"Of course not. Only the rightful Lord or Lady can wear them," came the expected answer.

"Would you like to verify for yourself that these rings are genuine?" He made it sound as if he was offended that the minister didn't trust him with that obvious task.

"No, but they are still just children!"

"The ministry has approved their marriages and their emancipation. Are you doubting your own administration?" A bit of humor was evident in his voice.

"Of course not. If they are really emancipated, then they may claim their seats. The ministry appointed representative will vacate these seats for them."

"Thank you, Minister." Harry thought that he heard a slight sarcasm in Dumbledore's tone, but he wasn't sure.

Six ministry officials left their seats. Dumbledore motioned the teens to sit in the vacated positions. As soon as they took their seats, Dumbledore read the agenda for the day. It was all mundane stuff, with nothing even remotely connected to fighting dark wizards or better enforcing the laws.

"Does anybody want to comment on this, to add any subjects?"

Somebody that none of the teens recognized stood up. "I wonder why none of these subjects reflects the concerns of the public, as they are clearly expressed in the Prophet. I suggest to add an item, preceding all other discussions, about the way the Ministry is preparing to combat any Dark Lord, should one arise."

Harry lifted his hand, "I second that."

Soon enough, about half the Wizengamot joined in adding that item as the first. The minister had no choice but to stand and try to make the best impression despite his lack of action.

"I've given this subject a lot of thought during the summer and I intend to appoint a committee to check the best way to tackle the problem. You must be aware of the limits imposed on us by the budget, that was approved before the current interest in security started, which only gives minimal funds to the auror division, barely enough to keep the current staff." Harry thought that the minister couldn't even convince himself of his sincerity.

"I'm sure some of the donors, who give money for the ministry so willingly, can help raise some funds for the protection of our citizens. Perhaps Mr. Malfoy and such others would like to help this important cause." Harry didn't know who said that, but it was certainly not someone from a dark family.

"And I don't think we need to wait for a committee to finish discussing the matter. Dark Lords don't wait for bureaucracy in order to act and neither should we," another voice said.

This was clearly not going as the Minister wanted it to go, yet even the Lords of the dark families didn't dare oppose what seemed to be an honest request for better security.

The teens spent the whole day there. It seemed that their six votes helped other light or "gray" members become more confident, as many ideas were discussed and many resolutions taken for the benefit of the people, most of them against the expressed position of the minister.

By the end of the day, it was Daphne who had a suggestion, as previously agreed. "With all due respect, how can we trust the ministry to fight dark lords if some of its employees support those same dark lords. We should purge the ministry of such employees, whose loyalty is not to the people. I suggest that each employee take an unbreakable vow not to knowingly support any dark lord in any form – by giving money, information or his wand, among other things. Failing to take the vow will result in immediate loss of the position at the ministry and the person should definitely be taken for interrogation under veritaserum as well."

Some of the wizengamot members paled. Not surprisingly, most were from dark families. They could not openly oppose this logical suggestion, though. Some tried to use procedural reasons to delay it.

"It seems like an exaggeration, Wouldn't a simple declaration, signed by the employee, suffice?" one asked.

"Would you agree to such a signed parchment instead of a vow when your own life is concerned?" Daphne retorted.

"It must be carefully phrased, or it may cripple the ministry, disallowing some legitimate actions as well," another commented.

"We should let the DMLE's experts tighten the phrasing, then," Hermione said.

The suggestion passed the vote, with most Lords of dark families not raising their hands neither for the suggestion nor against it. The decision was passed to the DMLE to act on.

Dumbledore stood up, to close the meeting, when Harry had another suggestion. "As the supreme governing body, I think it should be fair if all members of the Wizengamot take the same vow publicly, maybe even before the employees are requested to do so. We can't ask others to do things we're not ready to do ourselves."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled with mirth. This was going much better than he expected, yet he put the suggestion to vote.

Once again it passed with no objections, although almost a third of the lords abstained.

It was a tired and happy group that returned to Hogwarts, way after dinner was over. The Potters were brought a full dinner to their apartment, though, and they all went to bed soon after. Despite the high mood, they were too tired to do much. They cuddled in a heap and fell asleep. Harry only had time to wonder what the next day would bring, before sleep took him away.