Looks like they'll have to come up with some other excuse.
"Sounds like I don't need to do anything," Cohen said.
Kingsley seemed to relax—maybe Dumbledore had warned him one too many times, making him think Cohen would impulsively try to get back at Fudge.
"You don't need to do anything. Sometimes doing nothing is the best move," Kingsley said. "No need to worry. With Dumbledore and us around, they can't frame you—and with Dumbledore's backing, Barty's rise to power is practically a done deal."
That's the kind of responsibility you'd expect from the good guys.
Cohen had full confidence in Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix. It was clear Dumbledore didn't want him to go down a violent path just because of Fudge's idiocy.
Unfortunately, Cohen was already plenty violent. Whether Fudge kept digging his own grave or not wouldn't change Cohen's decision to blow up the Ministry.
You can't build something new without breaking the old. It was all for the sake of getting a Norton into the Minister's seat—so what needed to be destroyed would be destroyed, and what needed to be done would be done.
After Kingsley left, Cohen barely stepped back into the living room before Harry and Ron pounced on him with questions. Hermione tried to play it cool, but her subtle lean-in and perked-up ears gave her away.
"Cohen, what did Kingsley say? Something about the Order?" Ron asked eagerly. "Is it about You-Know-Who?"
"Nope," Cohen said, shaking his head.
"It's not about a vacation, is it?" Harry pressed, dying to know.
"It's about me staying here until school starts," Cohen said. "The Ministry's trying to pin the Dementor jailbreak on me. Dumbledore wants me to lie low so they don't get a chance to frame me."
"That's outrageous!" Harry said, incredulous. "You didn't do anything!"
Harry already had a low opinion of the Ministry because of Fudge's refusal to acknowledge Voldemort's return. This blatant attempt to pin the blame on Cohen only made him angrier.
"They need a scapegoat to take the heat off the political fallout from such a major breakout," Hermione said, looking worried. "Dumbledore's right, Cohen—you need to be careful…"
"A half-Dementor luring the Dementors out of Azkaban…" Ron mused. "It sounds believable…"
"That's what makes this frame-up so dangerous," Hermione said. "I can't even think of how you'd clear your name if they pull it off…"
"But wait," Ron said, a spark of inspiration hitting him. "Azkaban's gone now—"
"It's not about going to prison, Ron," Hermione said with a sigh. "It's about Cohen's identity. The wizarding world would turn against him. Imagine if we didn't know Cohen and suddenly heard about someone with Dementor, Basilisk, and a bunch of other dangerous creature bloodlines living among us…"
Ron fell silent.
"So the Ministry wants everyone to treat Cohen like they treat Voldemort?" Harry said, fuming. "What's the point of forcing a good person to turn bad?"
"Because they know if the sky falls, someone taller will hold it up," Cohen said sharply. "If it comes to that, and I don't want to be locked up without a fight, it won't be Aurors coming for me—it'll be Dumbledore."
"Professor Dumbledore would never!" Harry said immediately.
"Harry…" Hermione hesitated, looking like she wanted to say something but held back.
She knew, deep down, that Dumbledore probably would—if Cohen ever became an enemy of the wizarding world. Even without knowing about Dumbledore's past with Grindelwald or his old obsessions, she understood.
"Dumbledore would, and I bet you would too, Harry," Cohen said calmly. "For the greater good, sometimes sacrifices are necessary."
Dumbledore's old philosophy made sense, but if Cohen himself was the "sacrifice," he wasn't about to go quietly.
If it came to that, Cohen would have to sacrifice this rabble for his own greater good…
The more they oppose me, the more it proves I'm right.
"Cohen, we wouldn't," Hermione said firmly. "If people are prejudiced, we'll fight to change their minds. If they attack you for it, we'll do everything we can to fight back. If the Ministry can smear a good person like this, we can play the same game against them."
"Hermione's right, Cohen," Harry said resolutely. "I'd rather die than betray a friend."
"Same here," Ron nodded.
It was touching—sounded like something the hero squad would say before facing the final boss.
"Sounds like something a dog-person would say," Cohen said, raising an eyebrow.
"Sirius would lose it if he heard that nickname," Harry said with a sigh. "Didn't you say you'd stop using it?"
"I said I wouldn't use it to his face," Cohen said innocently. "But anyway, until things get completely out of hand, Dumbledore's still on our side."
And if Cohen ever decided to go full Dark Lord, Rose and Edward would definitely not approve…
So maybe he'd aim a bit lower—take over the Ministry and build a Dementor empire instead.
Life at Grimmauld Place wasn't exactly boring, just a little dull.
Cohen didn't see the appeal of Quidditch, especially when it was just a few people batting a ball around in the air like some kind of aerial ping-pong.
And the old Black family books Hermione kept dragging him to read were a snooze. Most of the spellbooks had mysteriously vanished (Cohen suspected Mundungus had swiped them), leaving only history and magical theory books.
The only books Cohen was remotely interested in—dark magic texts—were locked away deep in the library with multiple enchantments by Sirius to keep Harry and the others from sneaking a peek.
Breaking the locks wouldn't be hard, but it'd stir up trouble.
So, after two days of hanging around, Cohen slipped out.
With his suitcase there, he left a decoy puppet to pretend he was busy tending to newborn dragon hatchlings inside. That gave him the perfect cover to sneak off to meet Voldemort.
As luck would have it—
After Apparating several times to finally reach Malfoy Manor and join the "evil organization" to discuss nefarious plans, Cohen ran into someone very familiar—and it was a bit awkward.