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Which was why Dumbledore was somewhat puzzled with the Minister's move. Even without the threat of Harry leaving Britain to attend Beauxbatons, there was little chance of this bill ever being passed. Dumbledore fancied that he had more than enough support to overrule Umbridge's bill with little to no trouble. What could Fudge mean by it? Was this a prelude to something else, or was the minister so ineffectual that he actually thought he would pass this tripe just because he wished it?
It was a problem for another time, perhaps—the rustling of parchment had largely ceased, and more than one member was now looking to him to initiate the debate.
"Thank you, Madam Umbridge," Dumbledore said, rising to his feet. "A proposal for a new law has been put before the Wizengamot. I now invite discussion on the bill before we put it to a vote."
There were a few murmurs as the members discussed the issue amongst themselves. A man stood on the far end of the chambers, motioning that he would like to speak. Dumbledore bowed affably and recognized him. "Jonas Strong has the floor."
The man bowed in response before directing his gaze across the chamber. Strong was a tall, handsome man in his middle years, and though he was normally an intelligent and somewhat moderate sort of man, he had a disturbing tendency to vote with the Pureblood block on seemingly random occasions.
"Thank you, Chief Warlock. Before we get into discussion of this… bill Madam Umbridge has put before us, I wish to discuss this issue she raised of a werewolf who attended Hogwarts. I must say that I—and many of my colleagues—were surprised to find that not only had such a dark creature attended the institution, but also that he was hired to teach one of the core courses. I would like to ask the Headmaster to account for this."
Smiling, Dumbledore rose and stood before the chamber. "I might remind Member Strong, that though werewolves are technically deemed to be dark creatures, they are only truly dangerous on one night in a lunar month, unless they are known to be an insane criminal such as Fenrir Greyback. The student in question was never a danger to the student population—he was sequestered during his night every month. Besides, as per the Hogwarts charter, I have no authority to deny anyone an education who wishes it—as I told our esteemed Minister only days ago," he nodded at Minister Fudge, who had allowed a slight frown to come over his face, "the charter is very clear on this matter."
Dumbledore glanced around the room, seeing the nods of agreement on the faces of many. This was the true measure of a politician, and Dumbledore was, at heart, a political animal. "As for the professor, the same precautions were taken during his tenure. You are all well aware of the difficulty in finding suitable professors for the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts, and having to find a replacement every year is difficult and taxing. In addition, I believe that if you were to ask the students, the majority of them would declare that the professor in question was the best teacher I have been able to find for the post in several years. If not for the outcry against his being employed at Hogwarts, I would still have him as a professor, I assure you."
Strong said nothing in response—he merely nodded and sat, seemingly considering the matter in a thoughtful manner.
"This is all very interesting," Madam Longbottom interrupted, "but I believe we had best focus on the present, rather than discussing the past."
The Longbottoms—truly ambassadors for the light, and had been for several centuries. The current matriarch was a tough, no-nonsense woman, who had stood for her family for more than thirty years since the death of her late husband. A more formidable political foe was difficult to find, though her choice of headwear was somewhat suspect…
"Your proposal, Madam Umbridge, is very… interesting." The Undersecretary's face darkened at the contemptuous way in which Lady Longbottom expressed her opinion of the bill. "But, in essence, I believe that this bill is a measure to prevent those undesirables from attending any of our educational institutions, am I correct?"
Umbridge nodded, a pleasant—and patently insincere—expression plastered upon her face.
"In that case, Undersecretary, I wonder at the wording of your proposal. In particular, you use the word 'creature' several times over in this document. However, I would like to know who would determine the definition of the word, in light of the many disparate peoples with whom we come in daily contact."
"I second Madam Longbottom's question," Dumbledore interrupted. "For example, does creature refer to any who are not human? And if so, what about those who are of mixed blood? There are those who are part goblin, giant, and some who have fairy blood, among others. How do they fall into this definition of yours?"
"An important question to be sure," Umbridge simpered. "We shall designate a committee to study the matter and come to a determination as to the precise definition."
"A committee designated by you?" Amelia Bones snapped.
"The Minister is responsible for enacting the laws passed by this body into law. He shall set up the commission to determine the exact standards of those we allow into our school system."
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