Cornelius Fudge was many things: corrupt, greedy, conniving, cowardly, and stubborn. However, there have been times when Fudge showed some level of intelligence and political savvy, and it was these moments that allowed him to climb the Wizengamot ladder until he became the Minister of Magic. The small man was currently sitting in his office, sweating like a pig due to this uncommonly hot August, glaring down at the Daily Prophet article that had comments from Dumbledore urging caution against an unknown threat that just so happens to be behind the mysterious disappearances across the country. The old coot knew Fudge would stop all mention of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named from being in the paper, so he carefully omitted any specifics, but that did nothing from people asking questions and, as a result, Fudge was stressed beyond words.
"It would seem we have to persuade the editors of the Prophet not to publish any comments from Albus at all, until he finally relents from his bout of madness.", Fudge said.
"I told you before Cornelius, that foolish old man is trying to undermine you at every turn and making you look bad. Action has to be taken and examples have to be made, of Dumbledore and of the Potter boy.", said a shrill female voice.
"Yes, I had hoped these two would give into to reason, but alas, they still insist on spouting nonsense of dead men coming back to life. Well, no more of this. After his little speech of the supposed return of You-Know-Who at the ICW, the other Ministers have confirmed for me that he will be stripped of his title of Supreme Mugwump after they thankfully believed me that the old man has gone senile. Now, after these latest comments and my influence, I'll finally have the support needed to strip him of his duties as Chief Warlock for the Wizengamot and his Order of Merlin. I can't do anything yet about him being Headmaster of Hogwarts, but I have plans in place, although you might not be a fan of my idea, given your distaste for children.", he said.
The woman nodded and said, "And what of the Potter Half-Blood?"
Fudge took on a curious expression, "I don't know, I can continue to discredit him, but I can't take any real action against him, barring any illegal activity on his part."
The small woman in pink just smiled darkly, "No need to worry about him, Cornelius. I do believe I have an idea about how to solve that little problem."
It had only been two days since coming back from vacation and Harry was already bored out of his mind with nothing to do as he already finished his summer homework and his wives were all at work, forcing him to spend these last few weeks of summer in mental dullness. On the plus side though, the Dursley's were the laughingstock of the neighborhood due to Tonks' pranks and continued to leave him in peace. "Until now, apparently.", he thought annoyed.
Harry was sitting calmly in the local park, practicing his Occlumency, when he saw Dudley and his gang of hoodlums approach him. Vernon and Petunia had told Dudley not to anger Harry further all summer, but it seems that Dudley couldn't cope with no longer being top dog of the house and decided to do something about it. The fat teenager knew confronting Harry in private was suicide due to the fact he could now use magic freely; however, he knew that he was still forbidden from using magic in the presence of non-magical people, which is why he chose to confront Harry now with his buddies in a public place.
"Hey Big D. Beat up another ten-year old?", Harry mocked.
Dudley grinned, "This one deserved it, smartarse thought he could get out of coughing up all his money to me."
Harry smirked, "Probably thought you couldn't count past ten."
Dudley and his goons sneered, "Come on, Dud. The prick is asking for it."
Harry shook his head and stood up, finally letting Dudley realize the physical changes his cousin had undergone over the summer. Gone was the skinny and short teenager, now replaced with a young man who looked mid-twenties with a thin beard and unruly hair and stood at six feet with defined muscles. Dudley shook his head, even if the loser got stronger, he's outnumbered five to one. "He just needs one more little push.", he thought maliciously.
He looked at Harry and said, "Big talk coming from a guy who cries at night, asking for his mum. Where's your mum now, Potter? Is she dead?"
Harry's eyes narrowed and starting marching towards Dudley, intending to start a fight, when all of a sudden, the clear blue sky suddenly darkened as thunder and lightning began to roar. All thoughts of a fight were now lost on both sides and the other kids began to run in fear.
Dudley looked at Harry, "W-what are you doing?"
Harry ignored him and thought, "This chill, and sense of dread, I've felt this before but only from…Fuck."
Harry grabbed Dudley's shirt, looked him in the eye and said, "Dudley, run the hell back home…NOW!"
Dudley nodded fearfully and ran off back home, forcing Harry to run the opposite way to an abandoned underpass as it started to pour rain. Harry pulled out a spare wand that Tonks had given him for emergencies until he could replace his old one, it was not anything special or powerful, but it would hopefully get the job done. The walls began icing over and his breath became visible, only confirming what Harry already feared was happening. Suddenly, two massive, cloaked figures burst out of the shadows, intent on lunging at Harry.
"Yep, fucking Dementors. Brilliant.", he mentally cursed.
Raising his wand, Harry shouted "Expecto Patronum!"
The light flickered from his wand for a second, but nothing else happened, causing Harry to panic slightly, and allowing the dementors to tackle him to ground and begin draining his feelings of happiness. Harry felt powerless for a second, before reaching for his wand and tried to think of a new memory powerful enough for the Patronus, since the old one wasn't working for some reason. He thought back to the day when he and the girls got married and what it felt like to full connect with them magically and finally understand what it felt like to be truly loved.
Summoning all of his remaining strength, Harry screamed "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"
A massive light emitted from his wand and the two dementors were pushed back, allowing Harry to get up and be slightly shocked by what he saw. Instead of his usual Patronus, which took the shape of a stag like his dad's did, what was before him was a lion that stood tall and continued to attack the dementors until they finally retreated. Harry broke out his shock and cancelled the spell, as he stood up and began making his way back to the Dursley's.
"My Patronus changed, maybe that's why the memory of my parents I usually use didn't work. Does that mean what I value most in my heart has changed? Yeah, I guess it has. If being with the girls has taught me anything, it's that caring about what could have happened is not as important as what's important to me now.", he said to himself.
It was nighttime when Harry finally made back to Privet Drive, and he ignored his relatives stuffing their faces, instead grabbing some food for himself, and heading to his room. He finally let out a sigh at this turn of events, already knowing that either those dementors were either sent by Voldemort or the Ministry decided to attack him. Tonks had told him that Fudge has spent all summer launching a smear campaign against him and Dumbledore, using all his influence over the media and politics, but he didn't think Fudge would actually attack him. Unless this was someone else in the Ministry who wanted him silenced, one way or another. Harry was brought out of his thoughts when he heard pecking at the window and turned to see an owl, holding a letter. He opened the window and took the letter and sat down to read, while the owl took off.
Dear, Mr. Potter
It has come to the attention of the Ministry, that at approximately 5:46 pm this evening, you preformed the Patronus Charm in a heavily populated Muggle area. As a clear violation of underage sorcery, you are hereby expelled from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Hope you are well,
Mafalda Hopkirk
The letter was then burned to ash in Harry's hand as he attempted to calm himself, lest he burn down the whole house. Harry may have not enjoyed going back to Hogwarts this year without the girls, especially with Voldemort back, and wasting his time in class with people he hated; however, he still enjoyed learning more about magic. Also, without taking his OWL's, there's a good chance his days of being able to freely use magic were at an end. He was fuming for so long that the emotional and physical fatigue of the day finally caught up with and he collapsed on his bed.
A few hours later, he woke up to strange sounds and voices coming from the hallway and someone was trying to get into his room. Harry got up and grabbed his wand, ready to fight when the door busted open, and a light was blinding Harry until he them talk.
"Well, Potter, I'm glad at least someone always has their wand at the ready. Constant Vigilance people! Is it really so hard?", exclaimed a familiar voice.
"Oh, I'm always vigilant, Mad-Eye. I'm eyeing the incredibly handsome piece of meat in front of me like a hawk.", said a female voice Harry knew all too well.
"God's sake, Tonks.", groaned the male voice again.
Harry finally adjusted his eyes and realized who was there, "Tonks? Professor Moody? What are you doing here?"
Moody grunted, "Rescuing you, of course. Get packed, we leave in ten. Tonks, help him."
The secret couple was left alone in the room and immediately embraced, as Tonks was trying to squeeze the life out of him. Eventually, she let go and spoke up.
"Honestly, I can't leave you alone for blasted minute, can I!?", she whispered loudly.
Harry chuckled, "Hey, now. I had everything handled. Not my fault I'm a trouble magnet."
Tonks just shook her head, "I suppose I knew what I was getting into when I married you."
Harry smiled proudly, but then realized something, "I don't understand, the letter said I've been expelled from Hogwarts."
Tonks nodded, "Yeah, but Dumble's has persuaded the Ministry to suspend your expulsion, pending a hearing that takes place one week from now."
Harry's eyes widened, "Well, if that old coot is going to finally help out with something, now would be the ideal time."
Tonks giggled, "Yeah, but come on, we need to get you packed. We're going to the Order's headquarters; you'll stay there until going back to school. Fleur and Penny have been worried sick since we found out what happened, but none of us could come here without raising suspicions."
Harry nodded and was excited to be with his wives again as the two began packing, it was rather quick thanks to Harry having virtually no items of his own. He let out Hedwig and told her to find him like she usually does. The two made it downstairs and saw Moody waiting for them, with a few people he didn't know, but assumed they were Order members.
"Your relatives are taking a nice long nap and we explained that you would be coming with us and expect you back next summer.", said Moody, noticing that Tonks sneered at that last part.
Harry nodded, and the group headed out and Tonks handed him his Firebolt after shrinking his trunk, realizing that the rest of the group also had brooms. Moody told them to stay in formation while flying, but Tonks and Harry made it out to be a little competition, with both of them racing towards their destination while avoiding buildings, cars, birds, and even a boat. Thank God they had the disillusionment charm placed on all of them.
The two landed before the others and Harry smiled, "Was that your idea of Date Night?"
Tonks grinned, "Yep, nothing gets me going like outflying my famous seeker husband."
Harry playfully rolled his eyes as he noticed the others had finally landed and finally took in his surroundings. To Harry, the street appeared to be just as ordinary as any other street in London, making him feel a little confused as to why they chose this place as headquarters. However, he did feel a little pull on his magic, as if something was trying to welcome him home. Moody then went up to him and handed him a note to read.
The Headquarters for the Order of the Pheonix is at #12 Grimmauld Place, London, England
Just as Harry finished the note, it burst into flames, leading Harry to realize the now revealed location was in fact the Black family townhouse the goblins had told him about. He wanted to scoff at Dumbledore using his property for his own gains but held back due to seeing the appeal of hiding in such a well-hidden location. They walked inside and Harry suddenly realized that all the stories he heard about the Black family are true if their house is anything to go by. The walls were as dark and dreary as the atmosphere in the house, cobwebs were everywhere, and he couldn't shake the feeling that there was dark magic somewhere in the house. Moody pushed him forward to what appeared to be a meeting room where he heard familiar voices.
He walked in and was immediately more relaxed and happier at seeing all the familiar faces. He smiled brightly at seeing both Sirius and Remus, both looking much healthier than the last time he saw either of them. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley looked well, as well as the twins and Ginny, but Ron and Hermione seemed very conflicted in seeing him again, then again, he wasn't thrilled himself. He turned to see his other wife Fleur, who looked relived to see him, sitting next to whom he knew by photographs as Bill Weasley, and he seemed awfully close to Fleur. Harry though scanned the room and saw only strangers; he was looking for a particular person in the room and he found his answer when he was tackled to the ground by a golden missile.
"Harry! Thank God you're alright!", said Penny.
Harry just groaned and chuckled at his wife, "I'm okay goldilocks, but I think you busted a rib."
As they got up and composed themselves, they noticed Sirius snickering to himself quietly, while Molly, Ginny, and Hermione all had frowns on their faces. Mr. Weasley apparently also noticed and coughed to blow the awkward atmosphere.
"Are you alright, Harry? You gave us quite the turn.", he asked.
"I knew he'd be alright. He's my Godson, after all. Look at him, he's definitely grown.", Sirius exclaimed.
"It's good to see you Sirius, I've missed you. A lot has changed recently.", Harry said somberly.
Sirius nodded, "It's good to see you too, pup. The meeting is over, and all the members not living here have just gone. Let's sit down and eat, eh?"
Harry nodded and sat down next to Sirius, who was at one end of the table, and had Penny sit next to him and across from Fleur and Penny. The Weasley's sat down on the other end and the remaining Order members sat in between. They talked and laughed for nearly half-an-hour, until Arthur brought up the fact that his upcoming trial was to be before the entire Wizengamot, which apparently was almost unheard of since the trials of the Death Eaters over a decade ago.
Harry nodded, "This is because of the smear campaign Fudge has started against me, right?"
This surprised some of the people present that he knew and, after looking at his wives discreetly, Sirius said, "That's right Harry. Fudge is using everything, including his influence over the Daily Prophet, to smear anyone who claims the Dark Lord has returned; specifically, you and Albus."
"Fudge is really that stupid?", he asked.
Remus spoke up, "The Minister thinks Dumbledore is after his job."
Harry scoffed, "The man really isn't right in the head if he thinks that's the case."
Remus nodded, "Exactly the point, Harry. Fudge isn't in his right mind; he's been twisted and warped by fear. Fear makes people do stupid things, Harry. When Voldemort first rose to power, he almost destroyed everything we hold dear. And Fudge will do absolutely anything to avoid facing that terrifying truth."
Sirius took over, "We think that Voldemort wants to build up his army again. Fourteen years ago, he had huge numbers at his command, and not just dark wizards and witches, but all manner of dark creatures as well. Or even creatures, who have been slighted by wizard kind in the past. He's been recruiting heavily, and we've been attempting to do the same. However, gathering followers isn't the only thing he's interested in."
"Sirius", Moody said in a warning tone.
Sirius, however, continued on, "We believe Voldemort may be after something. Something he didn't have last time."
Harry raised an eyebrow, "You mean like…a weapon?"
Molly cut off Sirius' reply, "That's enough, he's just a boy. You say much more, and you might as well induct him in the order straight away."
Harry, however, was over being treated like a boy, "Good, I want to join. If Voldemort's raising an army, then I want to fight. For the last four years, I've done nothing but be reactionary. I want to be proactive this time and make sure that snake fucker does not hurt my loved ones again."
His three wives smiled at the declaration, causing some to narrow their eyes at them in suspicion. The tense atmosphere was eventually broken, and they ate the rest of dinner enjoying each other's company. Molly tried to make Harry room with Ron, but he refused, and Ron (surprisingly) agreed against his mother, stating it wasn't the best idea and making Molly and Arthur frown. Sirius told him he had a room prepared on the third floor, which was reserved for real family like him, anyway. The girls followed him up to his room when no one was looking and they settled on the bed, each of them hugging Harry tightly while he told them of his dementor fight.
"That's quite the experience, mon amour. Are you really, okay?", asked Fleur.
Harry nodded, "Yeah, nothing I haven't been through before. What was Sirius trying to tell me about before Molly cut him off?"
Tonks said, "The Order, or rather Dumbledore, believes that Voldemort is after something hidden away in the Department of Mysteries, hidden deep within the Ministry. The old man won't tell us what it is, though."
Harry tilted his head, "Department of Mysteries?"
Penny chimed in, "A secret section of the Ministry of Magic where some of the most peculiar, or dangerous, artifacts ever found in Magical Britain reside. I tried asking around since I've been there, but everyone either doesn't know anything, or seems afraid to talk about it."
He nodded, "How is everything else going for you all?"
"Everything at Gringotts has been pretty excellent since I started, and my mentor Bill has been great. Although, he has been trying to get closer to me, more subtlety than others, but still. Don't worry, I already explained I'm not interested.", Fleur said.
Harry wanted to say something, but Penny interrupted, "My job at the Ministry wasn't exactly what I was hoping for. Fudge's Undersecretary, who is one Dark Mark shy away from being a Death Eater, stuck my muggleborn self in the Hall of Records doing grunt work. The good news is that I was able to hide away your lordship status and our marriage certificates. They're only copies anyway, the originals are all still at Gringotts."
Harry frowned slightly before turning to Tonks, who said, "Nothing major to report, other than Bones is going to rip Fudge a new one for cutting our budget by 15%."
Harry nodded, "Well, I'm just ready to end this day. You guys want to stay?"
They looked at each other and nodded, and Penny said, "We'll have to slip out before anyone else wakes up, but I think we could use a night of staying together."
They all got ready for bed and laid down, Harry being in the center with Fleur on the right, Tonks on the left, and Penny on top of him. The girls eventually nodded off, leaving Harry to think about just how much the odds were against him, even more so than ever. But, as he looked down at the sleeping forms of his loves, he realized he was willing to do anything to make a future for them where they live normal lives. He would no longer sacrifice himself for others, he had already done that, but would now live for a better tomorrow with them and for the world.