Harry stood outside Malfoy Manor, looking out across the sprawling property with its manicured gardens, fountains, and even a hedge maze, the property more closely resembling a castle than an old manor house in the countryside.
Even growing up at Potter Manor, it caught him by surprise how extravagant it all looked, far surpassing any other pureblood house he had ever seen.
He knocked on the door, taking in the grounds again until he heard the door creak open.
"Harry!" Draco greeted him. "Glad you could make it."
"Hey Draco," Harry replied, seeing his friend for the first time since they got off the Hogwarts Express.
"This is my mother, Narcissa Malfoy," Draco said, formally introducing her in the proper pureblood custom.
"Hello Mrs. Malfoy," Harry replied to the elegant blonde woman. "I am Harry Potter. It is a pleasure to meet you."
Narcissa smiled warmly. "It's good to finally meet you. Come inside; dinner will be ready soon."
Harry followed them inside, noting that the inside of Malfoy Manor was decorated just as extravagantly as the outside, but it seemed to lack the warmth and the rustic charm of the Burrow, feeling more like a museum than a home.
When they arrived in the formal dining room the first thing that caught his attention was the the large walnut table dominating the room, then the tapestries and portraits along the wall depicting past Malfoys, before finally settling on Lucius Malfoy, siting at the head of the table.
He stepped forward, Lucius standing up to greet him as they shook hands firmly. "It's good to see you again, Mr. Malfoy," he greeted him.
"You as well, Mr. Potter," Lucius replied. "I thank you for accepting our invitation," he added formally.
"It's my pleasure," Harry Potter replied, observing the pureblood customs. "Draco has been a very good friend to me, and it would have been a shame to wait until September to see him again."
Lucius nodded, gesturing to the empty seats. "Shall we?"
Lucius observed Harry as they settled into their seats while the house-elves served the appetizers, understanding why his son had all but abandoned his old childhood friends Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle.
While they both came from proper pureblood families, their conversation skills were lacking, to say the least, and they had very little to offer compared to the famous and charismatic Harry Potter.
"Harry, I've been following your exploits with great interest over the past year," Lucius said, taking a bite of his scallop. "Impressive, to say the least."
"Thank you," Harry replied politely, recognizing the opening salvo of an interrogation hidden in Lucius's compliment.
"Harry, what are your plans for the rest of the summer?" Narcissa interjected casually, seeing what her husband was up to, and giving him a reproachful look.
"With everything else going on, my barrister and I are focusing on my scholarship program at the moment," Harry replied, turning to face the Malfoy matriarch, who at least seemed genuine in her question. "We've had a lot more applications than last year, but we're hoping to narrow down the candidates in the next few weeks."
"Yes," Narcissa smiled. "I remember reading about that last year. Are you still planning on offering it to three students?"
Harry nodded. "For now, but the plan is to extend it to even more students over the next few years."
"And that does not seem wasteful to you?" Lucius asked, searching for some insight into Harry's mind.
"Not at all," Harry replied, taking a bite of his appetizer. "Wayne, Sally, and Oliver have done very well this year. All three of them cracked the top ten in the student rankings."
"Interesting," Lucius replied thoughtfully. "But you must be aware there is a glass ceiling for muggleborns and half-bloods in our society. Despite their grades, it would still be an uphill battle for any of them to find a respectable job within the Ministry."
"It will be up to them where they ultimately decide to work," Harry replied, taking a bite of his scallop. "But in either case, my support for them won't end after Hogwarts."
Lucius raised a curious eyebrow. "You can't mean to support them for the rest of their lives, can you?"
"No, nothing like that," Harry replied, shaking his head. "But they have come to me with ideas about businesses they would like to start themselves, and there are also a few ideas I've had as well they would be perfect for."
"There's also a Malfoy scholarship as well," Harry continued, redirecting the conversation. "Do you plan to award it this year?" He asked.
"I'm waiting for the right candidate to emerge," Lucius replied, going into the spiel he usually did when questioned about his family scholarship.
"The Malfoy Scholarship is over five hundred years old, and quite prestigious. It isn't handed out to just anyone. Proper care must be applied in choosing a candidate that won't reflect poorly on the Malfoy name. I'm sure you understand. As I recall, it's been more than a hundred years since the last Potter scholarship has been awarded."
"You said your scholarship students have some businesses they would like to start?" Narcissa asked, giving her husband another reproachful look over the digs he made, annoyed that he was turning the conversation to a game of one-oneupmanship.
"Yes," Harry replied with a smile. "They're considering opening a school."
"A school?" Lucius asked with an incredulous chuckle. "They can't possibly hope to compete with Hogwarts, can they? The cost alone of setting up another school of Hogwarts caliber is well beyond the means of most purebloods, let alone muggleborns and half-bloods with nothing to their names."
"Not to compete, no," Harry revealed. "And I think their idea has merit. The cost of Hogwarts is 6000 galleons per year, which is already out of the reach of many muggleborns and even half-bloods, and while the Ministry offers a free course on wand safety, its designed to prevent accidental magic rather than teach them any actual spell work."
"My barrister tells me that there is a significant gap in the market for students and parents that want something in the middle, a school where students return home at the end of each day, and doesn't overly burden their family finances."
"Hmm," Lucius said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. It wasn't an idea he'd ever considered, but something he could certainly see the value in if the numbers made sense, and without the overhead of maintaining a sprawling campus like Hogwarts, it would certainly reduce costs.
He smirked inwardly, finally seeing Potter's game. It was clever and audacious, something he could respect. Harry was playing the long game, and started far sooner than anyone suspected, other than himself of course.
The boy was buying loyalty for a pittance. After all, what was 42,000 galleons spent over seven years when you received a lifetime of loyalty and deference in return? And with no one else following his model, he had the cream of the crop all to himself.
Every idea his scholarship students came up with, every business venture, every one of their achievements would be traceable back to him, allowing him to take all the credit for himself, building both his prestige even higher.
He could even invest in those same businesses, giving them the seed money to start while taking a hefty ownership stake for himself, and they would thank him for the privilege, all while his personal vaults multiplied in value without him having to lift a finger.
Unlike what Harry was attempting now, he had of course taken the traditional pureblood route, using bribes, blackmail, and intimidation to get things done. There was always a place for that type of business strategy in the wizarding world, but there was one thing it didn't provide: loyalty.
His network of informants, the periodic bribes he had to make, the cache of blackmail material he had collected and maintained over the years — all of it was dependent on his galleons.
That was ultimately what everyone was loyal to in the end, and that loyalty could be bought by anyone willing to pay a few galleons more.
Lucius glanced at his son, who made no secret of where his loyalties lay, and it hadn't cost Potter a single galleon either. True, he had put his life on the line, savings his son's life more than once, but the point was clear.
Harry had found a new way to curry influence, power, and wealth, and with few, if any, suspecting his true intentions.
"I think it's a wonderful idea," Narcissa smiled, interrupting her husband's thoughts. "When do they plan to get started with this school of theirs? After Hogwarts? How many students do they expect to teach?"
"We're still discussing the details," Harry replied. "One of my scholarship students, Wayne, lives in an orphanage. They've been teaching the children there. I've paid for some supplies, textbooks, quills, and parchment. The plan is to teach informally during the summer, and develop a formal curriculum over the next few years to begin some time after he finishes Hogwarts."
"You're paying for all this out of your own pocket?" Narcissa asked.
Harry nodded. "It's the least I can do. Wayne, Sally, and Oliver are the ones doing the real heavy lifting by sacrificing their holidays to teach them."
"I would like to help," Narcissa said, surprising both Harry and her husband. "How about a nice round figure, let's say 5,000 galleons to start? I would imagine the children also need wands, and some proper clothes with fall coming, and winter soon after."
"…I, thank you," Harry said, taken aback by her generosity.
From his experiences in the wizarding world, there were many people that praised him for what he did, but very few who actually followed his example, and were willing to part with their galleons to help.
Narcissa smiled. "You know, you remind me a little of my sister," she said, reminiscing about her older sister. "She passed away a few years ago, but this was exactly the kind of thing she loved to do. Perhaps you can tell the children the donation was in her name?"
"Yes," Harry replied. "I'm sure they would appreciate that very much. What was her name?"
"Andromeda," Narcissa replied.
"Andromeda?" Harry asked, his eyebrows burrowing as he made the connection. "As in Andromeda Tonks?"
"Yes," Narcissa replied, this time surprised herself. "How did you know that?"
"Her husband is my barrister, Ted Tonks," Harry replied.
Lucius raised an eyebrow at that. He had met the man on multiple occasions but had never realized the connection, dismissing him as either a half-blood or muggleborn.
"Then you must know my niece as well," Narcissa replied, her eyes lighting up.
"Nymphadora," Harry replied. "Although she prefers to go by Tonks."
"Nymphadora," Narcissa repeated with a warm chuckle, "I didn't think Andy would keep with the family tradition after…"
Harry looked at Narcissa curiously. "I'm a little confused," he admitted. "Why don't you know about your niece?"
Narcissa let out a sigh as she picked at her food, her tone turning somber. "Our parents were very… traditional. They didn't believe in the mixing of the blood, so when Andromeda married him in secret, they removed her from the family, along with any children she would have in the future, then forbade my brothers and sisters from contacting her."
"After they both passed, so much time had already gone by… I felt it would do more harm than good to reach out."
Harry nodded sympathetically. "I'm sorry to hear that, and for your loss," he said as they lapsed into silence.
Lucius cleared his throat, filling the silence as he attempted to get the conversation back on track, sending his wife a perturbed look. "I've been reading about your exploits in the Quibbler, Harry. The things you're able to do, both at Hogwarts, and the Ministry, remarkable, and if half of what Draco says about you is true, we can expect great things from you in the future as well."
Harry regarded the Malfoy patriarch as he continued to subtly interrogate him, complimenting him in the hopes that he would spill some of his secrets, but after what he went through with Andre, it was easy to spot the signs.
"Thank you," he replied, not taking the bait. "I'm glad to see that you got out of the Ministry after the attack. Were you injured? I didn't see you in the fighting."
"No, I was fortunate," Lucius said, hiding his smile at Harry's deflection and subtle dig, clearly returning the favor after his earlier comment about the Potter scholarship, impressed again by the boy.
Despite the rumors of his home life, the boy had clearly picked up the subtle intricacies and verbal sparring of pureblood banter, something his own son was still inadequate in.
"It was ghastly," Narcissa said, shaking her head. "So many people hurt, and killed. If not for you, Harry, who knows what could have happened to Lucius?"
"The way they left as well," Lucius added, trying again to gain some insight into what the boy knew. "The wards were examined after the attack, and not one of them had been tampered with. To think those brutes can bypass any wards they choose to whenever they please."
"It looked a lot like the portal from the school," Draco said, speaking up for the first time.
Harry nodded, agreeing with Draco. "It seems that way, but I don't understand how someone like Greyback learned how to do it."
"Someone's helping him," Draco replied.
"For what purpose, Draco?" Lucius asked. "What could anyone hope to gain by overthrowing the Wizengamot, and replacing it with a pack of werewolves?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Draco asked. "Whoever's helping them, they want chaos. They want panic, riots, and death."
Harry looked at Draco, considering his words carefully. All this time he had been trying to find the purpose behind the madness, the goal the Unspeakables were trying to achieve, looking for patterns, but finding nothing.
A chill went down his spine as he considered the very real possibility Draco was right. The Unspeakables wanted the Wizengamot and the Ministry by extension overthrown, and they didn't care what it was replaced by, and what would become of the people in the aftermath of Greyback's attacks.
"Why?" he asked, wanting Draco to expand on his idea.
"I'm not sure," Draco replied, shaking his head. "It's just a theory."
"Well, it's the best one I've heard so far," Harry replied. "You're good at this stuff, Draco, seeing through the noise. What do you think? What do they get out of all this chaos?"
Draco thought carefully, putting himself in the shoes of the people helping the werewolves, thinking about what there was to gain by overthrowing the Wizengamot. "Greyback won't be able to form a government, not for long at any rate, not while he's ruling by fear," he said, thinking out loud.
"Greyback, he could have also attacked at anytime, but he didn't. He chose his attack when you were in front of the Wizengamot, Harry. He had to know that made what he wanted to achieve that much more difficult, more dangerous for his pack, and himself."
"You're saying that he may not have been the one to open the portal at all," Harry said, seeing where Draco was going. "It was being opened for him, but not at a time of his choosing."
Draco nodded. "And if that's true, it means they wanted your attention, Harry. No," he said, furrowing his brows as he corrected himself. "Reading about the attack in the newspaper would have been enough to do that…"
"I think they're testing you, Harry," he said shrewdly.
Lucius sat in amazement as his son pieced together what had happened, unable to refute his conclusions as he saw a side of his son he had never seen before, and likely the very reason Harry had recruited Draco in the first place.
It reminded him of his own youth, when he also met a charismatic and powerful wizard. One with ambition, promises of power, and influence — everything that a young pureblood lord would crave as he sought to make his mark on the world.
He hadn't seen the madness then, falling too deeply and too quickly into the Dark Lord's twisted ideology and rhetoric.
While he had never cared much for muggleborns, or even most half bloods, seeing them for much of his life as a servant class, just above the status of house-elves, he had still listened to the stories of them robbing them of their culture, slowly overtaking the magical world as they out bread the purebloods, taking jobs as Aurors, and slowly changing their very laws to suit them, and hinder the very society purebloods created to give them everything they had.
He had been convinced to fight in what he thought was an ideological war, when it was anything but. Purebloods had never been in danger of losing anything to the muggleborns then or now, not with the stranglehold he and his fellow purebloods had on the Wizengamot, the place where the power in the wizarding world truly resided.
The muggleborns were simply a tool, a resource to be cultivated and used. With time, and proper breeding through the generations, after the exceptional ones accepted the superiority of the pureblood culture and traditions, they would eventually join minor pureblood families themselves, and become part of the establishment.
The Dark Lord had simply been a man who saw where the wind was blowing and struck at the right time to further his own goals, using the young pureblood lords who didn't know any better to amass power for himself.
Time would tell what Harry Potter would grow up to be, but from the way he spoke to his son, it didn't seem like he was looking for followers, not in the traditional sense at least. He valued his son's ability to think for himself and trusted his instincts too much for that.
"Testing, for what?" Harry asked, furrowing his brows.
Draco shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows? If whatever they're after requires siding with Greyback, it could be for just about anything."
"And that's only half the problem," Harry replied, relaying the story of what happened when the werewolf Task Force came to the burrow.
"Why only seven members?" Draco asked, thinking out loud. "I mean… It's not enough to do anything worthwhile, not enough to take on even a single werewolf."
"You are not wrong, my son," Lucius replied, curious to hear his son's analysis. "With both Dumbledore and Fudge gone, it's created a power vacuum. Ogden and Scrimgeour have attempted to fill their roles, but their grip on power is shaky at best, and hangs by little more than a thread at the moment."
"The Aurors are not prepared to face the threat this new breed of werewolf presents; few are," he said, looking at Harry meaningfully this time.
"They expect me to do it for them," Harry agreed.
"And the task force is just a show for the public, to give the appearance that the Ministry and Wizengamot are doing something so that they don't lose face with the public," Draco said, figuring out the rest.
"That still doesn't explain why they went after me, though," Harry pointed out.
"As I said," Lucius replied. "We are in a moment of chaos, and without a steady hand to guide us, errors in judgment and incompetence will follow," he said, considering the new avenues opened to him in the chaos.
"It's getting late," Narcissa said softly, not liking the direction the conversation was taking, and her husband's part in it. "Draco, why don't you show Harry to his room?" she suggested.
***
"Harry?" Draco asked as they walked up the stairs. "I know it's late, but there's someone I'd like to introduce you to."
"Introduce me to?" Harry asked curiously, wondering why they weren't at dinner with them.
"Yeah," Draco replied. "It should just take a minute."
"Sure," Harry replied, following Draco into his room.
"Dobby," Draco called out, waiting patiently for the Malfoy family house-elf to appear.
Harry's eyes widened, immediately recognizing the name, but he said nothing, assuming that Dobby could have been a common house elf name, or just a coincidence.
"Master called?" Dobby asked, appearing with a soft pop.
Harry's jaw dropped open as he stared at the house-elf dressed in a ratty pillowcase. The resemblance was uncanny. He looked just like Darby, a younger version of him.
"…Dobby?" Harry whispered.
Dobby stared curiously at master Draco's friend. He knew who he was, having seen his picture in the newspapers multiple times, but couldn't think of a reason Master Draco would tell him who he was.
"…Sir knows Dobby?" He said, his brows furrowed, trying to understand what he was missing.
"No," Harry shook his head. "Not directly, at least. Tell me… your father, was his name Darby?"
Now it was Dobby's turn to look at Harry in surprise. Not once in his life had he ever said his father's name out loud, not to anyone, even the other house-elves.
He was a good elf, and good elves didn't talk about their families. The only ones that mattered were the witches and wizards they bonded to.
He looked to Master Draco, not sure if he should answer, or if he was even allowed to, wondering if he was about to be punished.
"It's alright," Draco said softly. "Tell him."
"Yes," Dobby replied, his curiosity piqued. "How does Sir know this?"
Harry moved to stand in front of Dobby, dropping to one knee so that he could look the house-elf in the eye. "I knew your father. He was the house-elf for my family."
Dobby stared at the boy in front of him, not sure what to make of him. He had never been spoken to like this, like he was an equal, much less had a wizard look him in the eye when they spoke to him.
"No," Harry shook his head, correcting himself as Dobby remained silent. "He was more than that. He was my family. For a long time, he was the only one that ever cared for me."
"…He was a good elf?" Dobby asked, hoping desperately that this wasn't a cruel joke from Master Draco, that he hadn't changed back to the version of himself before he went to Hogwarts.
Harry felt his eyes well up with tears as he looked at Dobby, understanding what he was really asking, and searching for the right words, asking himself how he could convey everything that Darby meant to him.
"…He was the best elf," he finally replied.
Dobby nodded, trying to keep his emotions in check, reminding himself that this was not how proper elves were supposed to act. They were stoic; they were obedient — everything that had been drilled into him since his birth.
He looked at the boy in front of him, seeing the same emotions reflected in his eyes that he felt warring inside of him, searching for a way out.
It felt practically blasphemous to even think this way, but he felt a deep kinship with the boy wizard, a connection that went well beyond anything he ever felt for the family he was bonded to after all these years, and before he knew it, he felt the tears welling up in his eyes as well.
Harry, unable to stand the distance, reached out, wrapping his arms tightly around Dobby, hugging him close, feeling the same kinship, one that superseded their respective races, feeling as if he'd found a brother in that moment.
Dobby stiffened as the boy, Harry, hugged him, another first for him as this kind of physical contact was frowned upon, but at the same time, he couldn't pull away.
He knew he was being a bad elf, that Master Draco was watching, that he would be punished for this, if not by him, then certainly by Master Lucius, but he didn't care.
Harry pulled back. "Sorry," he mumbled. "I know… I know you don't… that isn't what house-elves do," he said, remembering what Darby had told him.
Dobby continued to stare, never believing a wizard could apologize to a house-elf.
Harry stood up awkwardly, looking at Draco. "You never told me…"
"I didn't want to get your hopes up," Draco explained. "In case I was wrong."
Harry nodded. "Yeah, I guess I can see your point. What now?" he asked, staring back at Dobby.
"Honestly? I don't know," Draco admitted. "I didn't think that far ahead. Dobby doesn't belong to me; he belongs to my family. I can't just…"
"I know," Harry replied, understanding the rules as well. Dobby was bonded to the Malfoy family, and the only one who could sever that bond was the head of the family, Lucius Malfoy, but things like that were rarely, if ever, done.
After a lifetime serving the Malfoy family, Dobby knew too much about them, secrets he was bound to keep as a Malfoy house-elf, but if sold to another family he could be ordered to share all of them.
"Your father, Darby, he told me about you once," Harry revealed, returning his attention to Dobby. "He said that family is different for house-elves, and that even though you don't see each other, there's still a connection between you."
Dobby nodded. "Yes, sir, Dobby felt it when he passed."
"He lived a long life," Harry continued. "And… I guess I want you to know. When he passed, he wasn't alone. I was with him. He was happy."
"Dobby felt this too," Dobby replied. "His last years… They were his happiest."
Draco stared between Dobby and Harry, feeling like he was intruding on a private moment, but more than that, he felt a sense of shame at how he used to treat Dobby, and the rest of the Malfoy house-elves.
He was raised to believe they were simple servants, not capable of complex thoughts, but was quickly realizing they felt things just as deeply as witches and wizards, perhaps even more so. They were just better at hiding it, but from what he saw now it was clear who Dobby would choose to serve, given the opportunity.
He didn't know how, but he would convince his father to release Dobby from his service to their family.
***
Harry looked around the guest room he had slept in as he got ready for the day, having spent much of the night telling Dobby stories about his father, and Dobby sharing what he felt from his father during those times.
Speaking to Dobby, he could see how deep the familial bond went between house-elves, and how without ever laying eyes on each other, they could still care for each other so much.
He stepped out of the guest room, walking down the winding staircase as he made his way to the dining room, finding the Malfoy family already there waiting for him, all of them with serious expresions on their faces.
"Is there something wrong?" He asked, looking between them, confused.
Draco stood up, handing Harry the latest edition of the Prophet. "Harry, you'd better take a look at this."
Harry unfurled the newspaper, seeing his face on the front page.
Harry Potter Attacks Werewolf Task Force
By Betty Braithwaite
While following a lead, the Werewolf Task Force happened upon Harry Potter in a residence near the area they were investigating. As per procedure, they requested to search the residence and question the occupants about any strange or suspicious events they may have witnessed.
As many readers can attest, this is a routine occurrence meant to ensure the safety of all witches and wizards in Britain, and has been carried out multiple times without incident.
Multiple members of the Task Force, whose names have been retracted to ensure their safety, confirm that Harry Potter was asked politely, and multiple times, to comply with the search, and that no accusations were being made against him or any of the occupants of the house. The search was to ensure not only their safety, but everyone in Britain's as well.
At this point, it is alleged that Harry Potter became belligerent, questioning the authority of the task force, demanding sensitive information about their investigation, which of course the task force is not at liberty to divulge, especially during an active investigation.
After multiple threats and further unfounded accusations, the Task Force eventually calmed down the other occupants of the residence enough that they allowed the search.
While half the Task Force conducted the search, the other half questioned the residents about anything suspicious they may have seen, something Harry Potter again took issue with as he quickly became combative and belligerent, eventually leading to his attack on the Werewolf Task Force.
The Task Force, not expecting things to devolve so quickly, and having no desire to harm any of the residents, made the choice to surrender rather than risk anyone's lives in a prolonged conflict, and left with minor injuries.
During my interview the Task Force was quick to state they have nothing but respect for Harry Potter, his many achievements, and the sacrifices he's made in service of the wizarding world, and regret any part they may have played in this regrettable course of events.
It, however, bears mentioning that this is not the first questionable incident that Harry Potter has been at the center of in recent days.
During the battle at the Ministry, multiple witnesses confirmed he performed an as-of-yet unknown magical attack in which his eyes appeared to sprout black flames, and a dark shroud surrounded his body.
This was enough to even give Greyback pause as he and his pack quickly retreated after his magical display that some in hushed tones have called dark magic.
While it is too early to draw any firm conclusions about the nature of this magic, three things are certainly clear:
We must keep a vigilant eye on Harry Potter and his actions going forward. He must be made to answer for his violent actions against the Task Force, and the specific nature of the magic he used against Greyback.
Our offices reached out to the head of the DMLE, Amelia Bones, for comment, and if an arrest was imminent, but she was unavailable for comment before the printing of this article.
Harry put down the newspaper with a sigh, knowing this account could have only come from one man, Harkwell, and Egwu had of course jumped at the opportunity to discredit him to the public.
The most frustrating part was that Ted would have a difficult time forcing a retraction. The article just skirted the line, technically telling the truth, but without the context to give the reader a clear picture of what actually happened, and alleging things without outright stating it as fact.
"Slander," Lucius said darkly, furious that the Prophet had printed the article without the approval of the Wizengamot. "What does that fool Egwu hope to accomplish with this tripe?" He demanded.
"He blames me for his son's death," Harry revealed, telling them about his meeting with Egwu at the Prophet.
Lucius sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Well, that at least explains the article about the attack on the Ministry, but what do you plan to do to address this, Harry?" He asked.
"I don't know," Harry admitted, going over the details of their confrontation at the Burrow in his mind, comparing it to the article.
"I'll have to speak with my Ted; he'll know what to do," Harry replied finally.
"You'd better," Lucius replied. "If you allow Egwu to control the narrative for much longer, you'll be the villain before the month is out."
***
Rufus walked briskly down the hallway to Ogden's office, having just received a summons from the Chief Warlock.
He knew it couldn't be good; a summons first thing in the morning never was, but had no idea what it could be.
After Ogden's secretary waved him through, he pushed open the door and stepped into the chief warlock's office. "You asked to see me?"
"Scrimgeour," Ogden said flatly, throwing down his copy of the Daily Prophet on his desk. "Explain to me why you thought it was a good idea to send the task force after Harry Potter, and better yet, why you thought it was a good idea to talk about it with the Prophet!"
Rufus's face visibly paled as he read the headline. "What… no, I."
"So you're telling me the Werewolf Task Force has gone rogue?" Ogden said, now livid. "This was your bloody idea! You said you would handle this!"
Rufus sighed, "I am handling it, sir. I found out what happened a few days ago."
"Explain," Ogden demanded.
"Harkwell, he's the one I hired to lead the task force," Rufus explained. "He wasn't the right man for the job, obviously. I see that now, but the task force is still a good idea. I was going to sack him; I just needed to secure a replacement first."
"A replacement?" Ogden asked skeptically. "Who?"
"Mad-Eye Moody," Rufus replied. "He had a good reputation during the war and took down a lot of dark wizards. I sent him a letter. I'm just waiting for a response before I sack Harkwell."
Ogden sighed mentally. Mad-Eye was not an option. He was Dumbledore's man through and through, and the last thing he needed was the old codger getting a foothold within the Ministry or the Wizengamot. Getting rid of him the first time had been a minor miracle, one he wasn't sure he could pull off a second time, especially while dealing with a werewolf uprising.
"Who told this… Harkwell to go to the Prophet with all this?" he demanded.
"No one," Rufus replied bitterly at the thought of cleaning up another one of his former mentor's messes.
"Get him here now," Ogden demanded.
Rufus nodded, going to the fireplace and calling Harkwell.
"Rufus," Harkwell smiled, a satisfied expression on his face. "I was expecting your call."
"I'm with the Chief Warlock," Rufus said in an icy voice. "Step through. We have something to discuss with you."
Harkwell's smile never left his face as he stepped through, surprising both Rufus and Ogden when Andre Egwu stepped through behind him.
"What the hell is this?" Rufus demanded, looking between Harkwell and Egwu, still furious with the owner of the Prophet for sabotaging the interview he'd lined up for Harry.
"Oh, nothing much," Harkwell said, the smug expression firmly affixed to his face. "Any meeting I have with you, I'll be discussing with the Prophet going forward, and since I was already with Mr. Egwu, I thought this would just save time to bring him along."
"What?" Rufus demanded in disbelief before quickly recovering, recognizing his career was on the line. "You deliberately went behind my back and leaked your blunder to the Prophet; are you insane?" He demanded, shaking his head in disbelief.
"After our last meeting, you didn't leave me much choice," Harkwell shot back.
"And you thought this was the solution?" Rufus demanded.
"I went to Egwu because he understands," Harkwell replied. "And the plan worked perfectly."
"Plan? What plan?" Rufus asked, now more confused than ever, and still reeling from Harwell's betrayal.
"The article perfectly illustrated the problem the task force is having," Egwu said, stepping in. "They don't have the manpower to do the job effectively, anyone can see that."
"This gives us the perfect reason to go through with my original plan," Harkwell said, picking up where Egwu left off. "I have a team of twenty ready to go. I just need your authorization, chief warlock," he said, turning his attention to Ogden.
"This won't be like before, where I was stuck babysitting a bunch of wet behind the ears Aurors that just graduated. I'm talking about actual veterans who have seen real combat, who fought and won against Death Eaters."
"Absolutely not," Rufus said, shaking his head, seeing what Harkwell was up to. "You are done, Harkwell. I should have sacked you days ago."
"Hold on," Ogden said, raising his hand, intrigued by the idea, sending a glare to Rufus when he protested, silencing him.
He couldn't say it out loud, but Scrimgeour's plan to bring in Mad-Eye was a non-starter. What Harkwell said had possibilities, though. A larger task force could actually accomplish something, instead of just giving the appearance they were.
The private meetings he had with other Wizengamot members also came to the same conclusion. They simply didn't have an Auror force large enough to face down the threat Greyback presented, and most of the Aurors they had lacked the training and experience to get up to speed in a reasonable period of time.
"Go on," he said to Harkwell, encouraged. "What's your plan?"
"No more of this going door-to-door shit," Harkwell replied. "I want to lean on the people that know these werewolves, the people that employ them. The way they all went to ground overnight means they're coordinating. We just have to find the weak link, and we can break this thing wide open."
"I was lucky to escape with my life when they attacked the Ministry," Ogden said. "If they are working together, how do you plan to stop them with just twenty aurors?"
"I'm not saying they're not dangerous," Harkwell explained. "But that was a surprise attack. It happened all the time during the war, on both sides, because it worked. When we find where they're hold up, we're going to do the same, show up in force and take them down before they know what hit them."
Ogden leaned back in his chair, liking Harkwell's ideas more and more.
"What about you?" Rufus asked, glaring at Egwu. "All your attack articles against Harry Potter — what is that supposed to accomplish, other than turning the public against us?"
"I'm doing you a favor," Egwu replied, already expecting such a response from the Minister. "Think about it," he said, more for Ogden's benefit than to appease Scrimgeour. "The Potter boy is the most popular wizard in Britain, and he's not a member of the Wizengamot, he doesn't report to the Ministry, he isn't even employed by the DMLE."
"He has absolutely no oversight, and can do whatever he pleases. That's a disaster waiting to happen," he said, playing to Ogden's fears about being overthrown. "What happens when he turns on us? With all the people on his side now, we all know how that's going to go."
"And what's your big idea?" Rufus demanded.
"Let me continue doing what I'm doing. We're gaining traction with the public," Egwu insisted. "We got a bump in readership after the last article. That means people are seeing the truth about Potter."
"The truth about Potter?" Rufus demanded incredulously. "The only truth I see is that he's the only one who can actually fight, and win against these werewolves. Chief Warlock, we can't risk turning Harry Potter against us, especially not with everything that's at stake."
"He has a point," Ogden agreed, not happy about the increasing soft power Harry seemed to wield, but also unwilling to risk alienating him entirely.
"Exactly," Rufus continued. "And the Prophet isn't the only newspaper in town. It's only a matter of time before the Quibbler puts out its own article."
"Let them," Egwu countered. "They'll have to report based on the same facts we used, and even if they print pictures, it will show they attacked the Aurors first, and the public will have to draw their own conclusions."
".. Alright," Ogden said. "You can try it," he said to Harkwell. "But from now on, you report directly to me."
"What?!" Rufus demanded incensed, looking between Harkwell and Ogden. "You can't be serious. This was my idea, and you're cutting me out?!"
"That's politics, Scrimgeour," Harkwell said, not even bothering to hide his smirk.
Rufus glared at his former mentor before turning on his heel and storming out, none of them noticing his eyes flashing yellow as he left.
***
Hi! Thanks for reading :) I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of book 2. As you can probably guess from the tile of this arc Harry is gearing up for another big adventure as the ramifications from the battle of Hogwarts continue to ripple out throughout the wizarding world.
Please take the time to review and let me know what you think of the story.
If you would like to support me and my writing, please consider visiting https://taplink.cc/jumpin for all the stories I'm currently working on and early access to chapters 10, 11, 12, and 13 of Legacy of Shadows along with some character portraits for Merlin, Morgan and Nimue, and an audio versions of the chapters.