Ensnaring The Senses

The owls arrived back with answers throughout the week. The Saturday re-Ordering meeting was a go. Severus tested both blood samples and painstakingly wrote out his observations and conclusions and vialed up his Pensieve memory of Full Moon and Remus's transformation. He was ready to state his case and risk Azkaban if things fell through.

He tapped his wand on his notes and made several copies to pass out. He hoped the Pensieve memory would be the most moving evidence he had. It was time to oust the pink clothed demon that Fudge had created.

Severus shrunk everything before he tucked them in his pockets. He felt Hermione's arms wrap around him from the back and the gentle kiss she placed on his shoulder. “Time to face the Lions.” She murmured as he turned to hold her tight.

“Let's meet the rest in Minerva's office, love.” He said as a small knock came upon the door. “Enter!” He said.

“Mum and Dad, it's Saturday, we were wondering if you wanted to have a picnic?” Cissa stood there, her friends Jamie and Davy beside her. Severus sighed.

“Sorry, Cissa. Mum and I have an important meeting. We can do it tomorrow.” He bent before the young witch and hugged her.

“Where you going?” Cissa asked.

“That is not of your concern.” Severus replied as he turned to look at Hermione; missing the look Cissa gave him.

“Narcissa Eileen Granger, that look has earned you a timeout in your common room.” Severus's eyebrow arched at Hermione's words.

“But Mum!”

“No buts young lady. Tell Jamie and Davy good bye.” Hermione said firmly. Cissa's foot stamped the floor as she huffed off to the Slytherin rooms.

“She can come out in an hour, boys.” Hermione said as the boys walked off.

“What did she do? And she's kind of old for a timeout, Hermione. ” Severus asked as the started for the gates.

“She pouted then stuck her tongue out at you, and if I hadn't used a time out it would have been 50 points from Slytherin for disrespecting a teacher.” Hermione answered as they neared the Headmistress's chambers.

“But I wasn't her teacher at that moment, I was her father.” Severus said as Hermione stopped walking, turning to look at him.

“That's why the timeout.” Hermione began walking again.

They entered the office to find Minerva, Remus, Tonks and Neville waiting. They were flooing instead of apparating because of Tonks' condition.

“I'm going to stay here at the school,” Minerva said. “I am giving Severus the authority to vote in any decisions in my name.” She tapped her wand on the Potions professor's shoulder and a pale light emitted from it to signify the proxy. Severus nodded.

“Ready?” He asked as they all grabbed the floo powder.

“Sitting room, 12 Grimmauld Place.” They stated one by one, the powder being thrown in and the green glow from the spell shining in the fireplace.

~*~

12 Grimmauld Place was the Potters' home as well as the Order's headquarters as it had been back in the time of Voldemort's rebirth. The Order wasn't as active as it had been in the past, but the members still met and investigated any suspicious Dark magic. Remus had become the Order of the Phoenix's leader when Albus Dumbledore died. The public for the most part had thought that the Order had disbanded with the demise of Voldemort and most of the Death Eaters, but the core members kept it active; always prepared for another Dark Lord. They had learned from history, and knew that evil had a way of coming back.

Right now they had an evil to face, not of a Dark Lord but of injustice.

They arrived early enough for Severus and the others to arrange the room for the meeting. Severus magically moved the furniture around so that a long table faced the chairs. He pulled his evidence from his pockets and grew them and he, Harry and Neville dragged the old Black family Pensieve from storage.

Severus had given no stated reason for this meeting, wanting the full effects of his evidence to work on their minds. He held the memory vial tightly for a moment before pouring it in the Pensieve. He was almost ready to state the Lupins' case as the rest of the available Order members arrived.

The Weasleys arrived in bunches. Severus held back his shudder as George and Fred entered with their wives, Katie and Angela. Bill arrived with Fleur, Molly with Arthur and Ron with his on again, off again fiancée, Lavender. Charlie was absent in Romania, one of the dragons in his care having just given birth. Molly held his proxy glow within her.

Neville's wife Luna arrived with quill and parchment in hand as Order secretary. She worked as a reporter for the Quibbler, and was quite famous for her exposes. Draco arrived and sat down by the Potters. Shacklebolt and Moody were the last to arrive, sliding into the back row. Hermione touched Severus's back lightly in encouragement before sitting by the Lupins.

Severus held the werewolf decree in his hand. He waved his wand and each member held a copy in their hands. He was ready.

“I would like to thank you all for coming at short notice.” He nodded at Arthur. “I want you all to read the words on the decree I have just passed out.”

Werewolf Regulations
By order of the Department of Magical Beings,
1.Werewolves must register before the next full moon after being bitten.
2.Anyone being bitten by a werewolf, even if the werewolf was in his human form shall be treated as a werewolf, no exceptions.
3.All Werewolves must petition the Administrator before getting a job, marrying or having children. Any Werewolf or their partner will be detained if these rules are not followed.
4.Werewolves must be contained in an approved room on the full moon regardless of Wolfsbane potion usage.
5.Any marriage between a Werewolf and a Metamorphmagus will be monitored, and if a pregnancy occurs it will terminated or the child will be studied for abnormalities and the parents and any others knowingly aiding in a pregnancy will be detained.
Signed by~~
Administrator Dolores Umbridge, Head of the Magical Beings Department
Minister Arthur Weasley, Minister of Magic, UK

“I never signed this!” Arthur said as he sprang from his chair, looking first at his oldest son then to his old friend Remus, “There would be no way I would enact just idiotic rules.”

“Arthur, it's your signature. The forgery spell proves it's not faked.” Severus said.

“But, but..” Arthur sputtered for a moment. His mind reeling from the shock. “How could I?”

“Arthur, you are out of the Ministry a lot doing various searches, it was probably slipped in with other parchments.” Severus said as Arthur sat down.

“Who would have done that? Umbridge?”

“Who is her assistant?”

“Percy.” Arthur sighed. “He brought me a load of documents to sign a few years ago. I never even looked at them, just signed them because we were close to getting Nott and Goyle captured.”

“Why would she enact all these obviously bigoted rules? The Wolfsbane potion law was put through just before she took office, abolishing a lot of what she re-acted?” One of the Weasley twins asked.

“She was demoted when your father took office, and she took it out on those in the Order.” Severus looked at Bill. “Even though you show no werewolf tendencies how are you treated, Bill?”

“Once a month a ministry official arrives at my house to make sure I am shackled into a room. My job opportunities evaporated to simple no skill positions. Fleur and I decided not to have children because we didn't want them to have the werewolf stigma.” Severus watched as Fleur's arms wrapped around her husband.

Murmurs of disbelief went through the room “Bill's not a werewolf!” Molly's word rang out. “Why weren't we told of all this?”

Bill shrugged his shoulders. “Bill iz a proud wizard.” Fleur said. “'E wouldn't complain.” Her finger ran softly down the only evidence of Bill's bite, the scar down his cheek. “I supported 'is decision not to worry youz.”

“But werewolves are bitten! Not born!” Neville said, outraged.

“That's the point of this meeting. All of these orders are wrong.” Severus said. “I can understand mistakingly signing these orders, Arthur. But don't you have checks on your Department Heads? Shacklebolt you are the Deputy Minister, don't you even look to see what that old hag is up to?”

Severus magically passed out the blood findings from both vials of Remus's blood. “In Remus's case, he is a werewolf, but a treated one. His blood tests from when he first started treatment with the old Wolfsbane and the tests from the new Wolfsbane potion I created show a marked difference in his blood. He has very little left from Grayback's bite in him. And when he is forced to change, he is sentient and not dangerous!”

“Why do you say 'forced to change?'” Harry asked, holding his small daughter in his lap.

“The atrocities of the 'approved containment room' are held in this Pensieve. Enter now.” Severus asked as Remus bowed his head.

All but Tonks and Remus stood by the Pensieve, and as one the rest stuck their finger into the swirling memory and observed Remus's last full moon. They watched in silence as Remus and Severus met up with Percy then entered the small white room. They gasped as they saw Remus undress and get shackled to the wall, the uncovered window looming over his humiliated form. The transformation and Severus walking up to Remus with no fear held them in awe.

“I didn't know is not a good enough excuse.” Arthur uttered quietly. “This is all my fault.”

“Changes are needed before it's too late. You have to oust Umbridge and get these decrees revoked soon, or a lot of us face detainment.” Severus said. “Remus, Tonks, Hermione and I are up to the wand in number five of Umbridge's little powerplay.”

The silence was deafening as all eyes turned to Tonks. Remus stood up, his hand clasped tightly in hers as he said, “What should be a joyous announcement is not, Tonks and I are expecting.” Tonks' other hand went protectively over her stomach, rubbing it in a small circle.

Severus went to sit by Hermione as he let everything settle into their minds.

Arthur had never felt such pain in his life. He had failed his own son, blaming Fleur for the fact that they had never given them grandchildren. The Weasleys had always held a small distaste for the French witch, even though she had always stood by Bill. Bill had recognized this and held back a lot from his family.

“Youz can't change ze past,” Fleur was the first to speak. “But ze future iz still unwritten.”

“This is what we will do.” Arthur looked up, a determined look on his face. “Umbridge will be gone, facing charges for her lack of humane treatment. The room alone is cause enough. I will probably be forced to step down for my lack of awareness.” He sighed. “There is a lot to change, but it will be done.” He stated as he gathered up Severus's work. “I will need the Pensieve memory for evidence,” He picked up the vial and tucked Severus's memory back into it. “Percy will have to face charges also for his duplicity. My own son....” His words trailed off.

“Percy has always been a prat, Dad. Always following rules, whether good or bad ones.” Ron said.

“Nothing will be said about the Lupins' baby until Umbridge is gone.” Arthur said as Shacklebolt and Moody stood by him. “I must contact the Wizengamot and get the charges in place before it gets to her ears.”

The three of them disapparated to the Ministry.


~*~


Dolores looked around her sitting room as she sipped her cup of tea daintily, a finger crooked just so as the cup was brought to her lips. She hadn't been happy when she had been demoted to what she thought of as an insignificant position until she realized just who she could affect.

She had always blamed the Order of the Phoenix and Albus Dumbledore for the fiasco that Voldemort's rebirth had caused of her life. She'd been shuffled through the Ministry because she had supported Fudge against them. Scrimgeour had been little help with head butting in the Order's business either. His removal had placed her low in the Ministry and a former Order member had replaced him, Arthur Weasley.

But the fact that Weasley's own son had been bitten had not escaped her. She had added rule number two just for him. Than that Order leader that replaced Dumbledore upon his death had petitioned to marry, a Metamorphmagus no less. She enjoyed adding rule number five for him. She knew a slip up would eventually occur, werewolves were animals after all. She had smirked as she plotted, using the Minister's own son to trick him into signing the decrees into law.

Dolores ran a hand down her bright pink jumper as she went to answer the door as a sharp rap came upon it. She checked her hair to make sure each lock was in place in the foyer mirror before she opened the door to greet her guests.

“Why hello Minister Weasley,” She said flustered. “Deputy Minister Shacklebolt and Head Auror Moody. Come in, just having a spot of tea. Join me?”

“Not at this time, Umbridge. By the authority of the Wizengamot you are hereby under arrest for crimes of humanity against the Wizardry World. You are to be placed into Azkaban until your trial.” Moody announced as he magically bound her and Shacklebolt took her wand.

“What?” She blustered out repeatedly. “Take your hands off me! That's my wand!”

“I would advise you to seek out council, madam.” Arthur said as they disapparated to Azkaban.

Severus, Hermione, Remus, Harry and Bill stood at the entrance of Azkaban as the witch was brought in.

Mischief Managed, Harry thought as the screaming witch passed him with her grim faced escorts.