Underestimated

Underestimated

A/N: Another chapter!!!!…Hope you enjoy! I don’t own anything but the plot!

Summary: It’s dangerous to underestimate some one, deadly if you keep doing it. Harry has learned how dark the light side can be and now Harry is pissed. Dark Harry.

Pairings: Yep!!! Harry & Blaise - Like you couldn’t guess that from the whole, “Oh, yeah, Blaise Zabini is a girl in this story.”


Last Chapter: “Those that stood who were present included Harry, Lucius and Draco Malfoy, Manuel and Blaise Zabini, Amelia Bones, Rufus Scrimgeour, a reluctant Albus Dumbledore, and Mr. Tomlinson, the lawyer who saw to the signing of the pact. The applause and accolades swirling around the room lasted for over 20 minutes until, seeing Albus start for the podium, Harry gracefully stood up on a chair, casting ‘Sonorus’, he spoke, “Minister Fudge, I believe it’s time to continue this great celebration, do you not agree?”

“You are absolutely correct my young friend! Let the festivities commence!” shouted Fudge, enjoying being in the limelight. Harry, Lucius and Blaise shared a satisfied bit of glee at the undoubtedly sour pinch that instantly crossed Albus Dumbledore’s face at being cut off from his would be speech.

Deciding it was time to enjoy the evening once again, Harry slid his hand into Blaise’s and leaning very close he asked, “Lilta o nin?”

With a slight squeeze to Harry’s hand, she smiled and answered, “O er le.”

Chapter 4: Overthrow in the Making

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“If I could have everyone’s attention please, we will begin. Please everyone, quiet….Thank you. Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen of the Wizengamot. I now open this session of the Wizengamot: dated August 3, 1997. As the bylaws of our esteemed body require, I open the floor to any who have new business to present?” stated Albus Dumbledore, Chief Warlock of the body.

Almost three hours later, after a few new laws and appeals were presented, either to be passed or vetoed; the Chief Warlock stood and said, “If that is all the new business, we may now move on to…..”

“Excuse me, Dumbledore” interrupted the second in command of the Wizengamot, Manuel Zabini, “but I do not believe we are through with new business as of yet. I would like to propose a vote to bring back the Hereditary Sect of our great establishment. The Wizengamot of old, as I am sure most of you all know, was made up of three Sects; Administrative, Elective, and Hereditary. It wasn’t all that long ago that we operated within the original guides of the Wizengamot, and by doing so once again, will allow all voices to be heard in our society, which of course is the way things were always meant to be.

“I know what some of you must be thinking…that by reorganizing the establishment, you will be ousted from your current positions. This is simply not the case. If you remember, almost thirty years ago, Mr. Dumbledore made a motion to suspend the Hereditary Sect based on the fact that so few were able, at that time, to claim their seats within the Wizengamot.

“The Amendment, which is called “The Temporary Overhaul of the Sects”, was passed, and the few heirs that “lost” their seats were given ones within the Administrative Sect, while also being granted honorary positions within the Ministry to allow such a proposal to go through.

“Recently, I have been inundated with requests from many who belong in the Hereditary Sect that they be allowed their rightful place here once again. By allowing those few mentioned earlier to rejoin their proper Sect, we will in reality be opening up more positions within the Administrative Sect, thereby allowing more of our brethren to be involved.

“As the bylaws allow, the Hereditary Sect has 25 seats within in it, the Administrative, another 25, and the Elective has 35. There are currently four seats in the Administrative Sect being held by rightful members of the Hereditary Sect, and as the elections for the Elective Sect will occur in November of this year, all 35 seats there are up for grabs. I have heard from no less than 18 persons who should hold a Hereditary seat that they wish to reclaim what is theirs as soon as possible. This is the perfect time to reorganize and bring this esteemed body back to what the founders of our great system intended.

“Another reason the Sect’s should be restored, is that during this thirty year “Temporary Overhaul” we have been in a nearly endless war, until just a few days ago. I would also like to point out that only three other times in our history has the system in which the Wizengamot operates been temporarily altered, and each time, there has been a war. That alone should tell us something.

“Now that we have restored peace, let us restore the Wizengamot too. On top of restoring the Sects, we should also pass a law that from hence forth prohibits the altering of this establishment again…lest we never learn from the past.

“Our bylaws, in which all our government operates, should never be allowed to be out of balance. I do understand that as we prosper and progress, there are times in which new laws need to be brought forth or that old laws need to updated to fit our current times; however, that is not reason to alter the bylaws that detail the very way in which we, as a governing body, should operate as a whole. Changing the bylaws does nothing but alter the balance that was established to allow all our society to have a voice in the government in which they live under.

“Once again, I ask you to think about the past, to think about the unrest and war that inevitably follows when our foundation is left unbalanced and therefore, unchecked. Your support on this matter is greatly needed. Thank you.”

When he was finished, almost two-thirds of the body were applauding Manuel’s proposal, but there were a few who would not go down without a fight.

Once the body was again calm, Dumbledore stood and began what he hoped would be a very convincing argument, as each speaker was only allowed one chance to explain their position prior to being voted on. “Ladies and Gentlemen, I believe we need to rethink Mr. Zabini’s proposal. On the surface, it sounds like an amazing idea; however, we are not quite out of the woods just yet. Tomorrow is the day that Mr. Riddle will enact the final stage of the “Peace Pact” by bonding to our beloved Ronald Weasley, the true savior of our world.

“This would seem like the end, but may I remind you that if anything should happen to Mr. Weasley during the next 6 months, Mr. Riddle would then be allowed to pick a new consort, thereby the contract would be incomplete until he expired the next 6 month grace period. Knowing the Dark Lord like I do, he very well could keep our world in limbo for a very long time by simply never allowing the “Peace Pact” to complete.

“It is this issue that warrants leaving the Wizengamot as is…for now. Until the “Peace Pact” is complete, the war will never truly be over. To change something so drastically right now could spell disaster later on, when in my heart I truly believe that this peace is not going to last long. Such an upheaval could lead to the Dark side gaining footing within our establishment, spelling chaos if they should win.

“As our voting record shows, the way things stand now, we have an advantage over the Dark Lord because the vast majority of the voting body now is truly for the Light and Right side of this war. Maintaining the status quo is the only sensible thing to do right now. Thank you.” and with this statement, Dumbledore sat back and internally smirked as many seemed to be rethinking the idea.

Not letting one of his brethren be out done by the likes of a senile old man, Lucius stood next to give his insight to this matter. “Esteemed members, I am saddened. I am saddened to witness such underhanded tactics being used by our Chief Warlock to try and sway you away from our traditions…away from our responsibilities to the Wizarding World.

“Mr. Dumbledore would have you believe that peace is never to be had and the only people who hold a hereditary seat are all Dark supporters. Mr. Potter, Ms. Zabini, Mr. Longbottom, and Mr. Bill Weasley, to name just few, are all heirs to the Wizengamot… are we to believe what Mr. Dumbledore has stated? That if we let the Hereditary Sect reconvene, we are doing nothing but destroying our world. If we all believe that these fine, upstanding young adults will join us to only destroy us, what are we saying about the youth in our world?

“I was there during the “Peace Pact” negotiations along with Manuel, the Minister, and many others, including Mr. Potter who is one of the petitioners for a hereditary seat, as Mr. Dumbledore is quite aware. The newspapers have, for two days straight, gone on and on about the “split” between Mr. Potter and Mr. Dumbledore…does it not make you wonder if this isn’t the true motivation behind ostracizing the Wizengamot’s bylaws.

“In argument to the theories presented to you about the supposed never ending war, I can, with great certainty say, Mr. Potter would no more allow the Dark Lord to wage war once again than he would allow our extinction as a whole. Mr. Potter has fought tirelessly from the age of one and half to bring peace to our world; do you honestly think he would allow anyone the chance to destroy it now?

“I would also like to remind you all that Mr. Dumbledore signed the “Peace Pact”, a pact he helped develop from inception. If he was truly worried about the war starting up again, why did he agree to the terms within the “Peace Pact” and sign it into effect? As stated before, I was there for the final negotiations and signing of this agreement, as well as our esteemed Minister and Mr. Zabini, who can both attest to what I am telling you…I can quite factually state that nothing in the original document was changed that day with the exception of WHO the Dark Lord would be taking as his consort.

“Until this part of the contract was changed, no one on the Light side had any problems with the terms and conditions set within. You may be asking yourselves why this was an important factor to the Light side…let me tell you why. The person whom the contract originally stated was none other than our Savior, Mr. Harry Potter. We have all heard the horror stories about Mr. Potter’s upbringing and the many rumors about his trying years at Hogwarts thus far; so I ask, why would a group of people who claim to cherish and love this young man be so willing to cast him away so easily.

“I have my own theories, but I will not speculate here. I will leave it to you to question this further on your own, to use your intelligence to seek out the TRUE answers to why Mr. Potter’s whole life thus far has been filled with strife and turmoil. But I am straying from my point…until Mr. Ron Weasley was added to the contract as the chosen consort; all was well in Mr. Dumbledore’s eyes.

“I ask you all this. What is Mr. Dumbledore’s real motivation behind not restoring the bylaws and Sects of old? Is it a personal vendetta against Mr. Potter, who he seeks to punish by going against what was demanded of him. Is it possibly that Mr. Dumbledore does not wish to honor our establishment as he should being the Chief Warlock? Could it be he feels his position as Chief Warlock is challenged by allowing another third of our body back into the fold? Again, what is the motivation for his tactics? How can he open our sessions, quoting the bylaws, but not hold up those very bylaws he claims guide our very existence.

“As Chief Warlock, he has sworn to not only uphold the bylaws and traditions set forth by our founders, but to ensure that we all do. I have but one last question…is he doing his job by opposing our founders directly? The answer is very simple…No, he is not. I believe Mr. Dumbledore is using his influence here to enact revenge on a young man who dared to say NO to him. I also believe Mr. Dumbledore is used to having his way within our government and does not like the fact that we, as a united body, have the intellect and influence to now threaten his unchecked ruling as of late.

“Think about all these factors before you allow him to sway you with his ill begotten woes of war once again. On a last note, I would like to tell you that I wholeheartedly agree with Mr. Zabini and second the motion to henceforth make a new law that would no longer allow our bylaws to be circumvented. Thank you.”

For nearly twenty minutes many heated debates and/or quite discussions could be seen and heard all around the room as votes tried to be won by both sides of the debate. When the murmur seemed to have quieted, Amelia Bones, being the Vote Administrator for the Wizengamot, stood and tap her wand on her voting stone and said, “I believe it is time to vote on the proposals put before us, if there are no further arguments to be had? Do I have a motion for the vote?”

“I motion to open the vote.” stated Tiberius Ogden, one of the elder members.

“I second the motion.” stated the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge.

“Then let us commence the voting.” Amelia began.

“All those in favor of restoring the Sects to the Wizengamot please vote now,” after those were counted, she continued, “All those opposed?”

Shock! That was the only word that would describe what Dumbledore was feeling when he saw all the votes for restoring the Sects. Then, as fast as the shock hit, anger began to take over, leaking outward, drawing many within the assembly to take notice of the not so happy Chief Warlock; some actually appalled by the look of utter loathing that shown on Dumbledore’s face as he looked at all his non supporters, especially, Manuel, Lucius, and Cornelius.

“Now, all those in favor of a new law that would no longer allow changes to be made to the bylaws of the Wizengamot?” a pause for tallying, then Amelia continued, “All those opposed?”

Again, the reactions from Dumbledore were noticed, this time by the many and not just a few.

“The vote has been tallied. The Sects will be restored and the law will be sent to our law wizards for finalizing. Mr. Zabini, when do you propose we assemble next to induct our newest members?” asked Amelia.

Standing to address the assembly, Manuel began, “Madam Bones, I believe we could have all the heirs notified within the week; therefore, I would ask that we meet again on August 15th to conduct the restoration of the Sects. If our law wizards have finished the language for the new law by then, I also propose we vote to approve the wording and to instill it into our books. Thank you.”

“I object, Madam Bones.” exclaimed the Chief Warlock. Then continuing, he said, “If I am going to be forced into restoring the Sects, we should wait until the November elections are over at the very earliest, or at least until the 6 month grace period has expired for Mr. Riddle. At least this would ensure the completion of my peace treaty.”

“What do you mean if you are forced into restoring the Sects, and YOUR peace treaty? The Wizengamot has spoken, Mr. Dumbledore, and as a united body, we will all be involved in the changes, not just you.” she stated testily. Turning back to the assembly, she asked, “Are there any further objections to Mr. Zabini’s proposal for reconvening on August 15th? No, good, we will next meet on August 15th. Mr. Dumbledore, if you would now proceed with this session, it is getting rather late in the day.” finished a somewhat annoyed Madam Bones.

Dumbledore once again stood to address the assembly, and with absolutely no twinkle in sight, he began, “Very well, Madam Bones, but I would just like to add one last comment as Chief Warlock in regards to your decisions today…I believe what has happen here today to be the gravest of mistakes. Mark my words, you will all come to regret this day very soon. Now, if that is all the new business for today, we may now move on to…”

As the meeting was winding down, Lucius once again stood to add one more statement to the minutes, “Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like it duly noted that I personally feel threatened by the Chief Warlock’s last comment about regretting our decision. Adding to this, I would like to put forth a motion to have Mr. Dumbledore’s actions watched and scrutinized very closely until the “Peace Pact” is finalized. Throughout today’s proceedings he has made mention of this war continuing over and over again…its as if he wants it to go on for some unknown reason. I can, of course only speak for myself, but I am left feeling very uncomfortable with his actions today and believe he should be kept in check.”

“Now see here! I am Chief Warlock of this government and I take personal offense to your accusations. According to the bylaws, no on make bring forth new business after that section of our meeting has been closed. There will be no new motions for today!” said a furious Chief Warlock.

“Excuse me, Mr. Dumbledore, but you are mistaken in your assumptions. The bylaws actually state that no new business from non-members may be entered after the section is closed, but as a member of this body, Mr. Malfoy may make a motion at any time prior to the adjournment by the Chief Warlock. On that note, I would like to second Mr. Malfoy’s motion and would like to add that I, too, feel disheartened by your actions today Mr. Dumbledore, not to mention appalled that you do not know the actual bylaws as Chief Warlock of this assembly. Do I have a second to the motion?” retorted Amelia Bones hotly.

No sooner did Amelia finish than another of the elders, Griselda Marchbanks stood to second the motion. Faster than Albus could fathom, the assembly had voted and he was now going to be kept in check, much to his annoyance, only adding to the fury that boiled within. When the meeting was adjourned, as many of the group gathered in small huddles to discuss today’s proceedings or to socialize, Dumbledore was seen leaving the chamber in a manner that showed all present just how angry he was. All in all, it left many feeling grateful they had voted to have their Chief watched very closely.

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About two hours later, after the applause over how the Wizengamot proceedings had gone and after the laughter had died down over Dumbledore’s subsequent reactions, Tom Riddle, a.k.a. Lord Voldemort stood, “Manuel, Lucius…you have outdone yourselves today. Not only did you get the votes we need to re-install the Sects, but you also planted many seeds of discourse in regards to our “beloved” headmaster. Once the Wizengamot meets on August 15th, we will need to further this discord and loosen Dumbledore’s hold even further on our world. Any suggestions?”

“Will you be joining the Hereditary Sect now that you are free to do so as a restored member of society, My Lord?” asked Narcissa somewhat off handedly, who had a look that showed how deep in thought she was, the spark of a new idea clearly seen by all.

“I have not yet decided, Narcissa. Why?” replied Tom.

Narcissa moved more to the edge of her seat and now having the attention of the entire group began, “Well, as I see it, we have two options available to us. The first would be for you to retake you rightful seat in the Wizengamot. This would allow you the wherewithal to help bring about some of the changes we have been fighting for all these years. You would obviously have several members who would side with your views and as long as the changes were subtle, many are smart enough to see the good that would be brought forth by your visionary ideas and vote accordingly.

“Having said that, there would also be many who would oppose any changes just because you are who you are; not to mention some of our past tactics will unfortunately be to fresh in the memories of some to allow them to sway their votes in our favor. This leads me to our second option. As the bylaws allow, more than one hereditary seat can be held by the same person or the same family, so long as they have a true claim to that seat.

“What I am suggesting in this option is that we allow Harry to hold not only his seat, but yours as well, as he is your only nephew and at this point, your heir. Adding to the fact that he also sits for the Black family, as Siruis’ sole heir, that would allow him three votes at all times. Then to add to our leverage, we should allow Draco and Blaise to stand in for our families while Lucius and Manuel continue to hold their Administrative seats as they do not hold honorary posts within the Ministry, but real positions.

“This could be a temporary setup until such a time that your dubious reputation is replaced by one that is held in high regards. This of course would only be accomplished by you going out into our world and slowly building this up until you are seen as a person who truly wants a better society for us all…a kind of behind the scenes approach.

“Once this is accomplished, which of course in reality could take a few years, you could then take your seat and become a more direct authority within the Wizengamot and Ministry. By slowly inundating all the key players into the Wizengamot and Ministry, we would then be able to change our world as we have tried so long to do.”

At this, Harry stood up and began to pace while voicing his thoughts to this idea, “A kill them with kindness approach…I like it. We already have approximately 14 votes firmly in our camp, not including Lucius and Manuel, add to that our seven votes, we will then have 21. That’s just shy of a third of the votes, and I feel, as the Boy-Who-Lived, I could easily sway more votes to our side…might as well take advantage of my status in our society and put it to work for us.

“Over the coming year, we could begin to implement some of the less dramatic changes while you, Tom, are busy rebuilding your reputation. This would have a two fold affect, as I see it. I would be seen within the Wizengamot as a thoughtful and concerned member, which would not be a false sentiment, and also begin to replace the views that I am just the Boy-Who-Lived with one that shows I am a young man who wants to improve our world.

“As Tom begins to strengthen his base, we could then let out that we are related and that after many months of building our relationship, I was able to show you the errors of your ways, so to speak. As a person who is hailed as a ‘Savior’ all the time, this should be more than plausible to the public at large, thereby solidifying the public’s views about my status in our world. The only real drawback I can see to this is the fact that you basically have a slave as your consort. We will need to think long and hard on this point, some how twisting it to our advantage if at all possible. I do have some random ideas on this, but I will keep silent until I have thought them through, but we all need to be thinking about how to work this for us in the future.

“I also feel that once we let out a few more facts regarding my past, as well as some of the other things to have happened of late regarding Blaise and I, we will be able to further turn the tides against Dumbledore. Once the wizarding world is shown the true man they have trusted all these years, it should make it easier for Tom to be seen in a better light. As a matter of fact, we may be able to some how lay partial blame for Tom’s consort at Dumbledore’s feet…he did after all approve the union by signing the ‘Peace Pact’.

“Tom, I think the second option is more ideal at the moment…I don’t think it prudent to our objectives for you to take your Hereditary seat just yet, as this could actually hinder us more than help, as Narcissa stated before. Too much negative sentiment still lingers around you at the current time, but we will work as quickly as possible to change that in the near future. Our first objective should be the continued destruction of Dumbledore, ultimately leading to his ruined reputation and his removal from any position of power…including his rule over Hogwarts.

“This is why Draco, Blaise, and I returning to Hogwarts will be necessary. I know that technically we are through with school, but only those of us in this room know that. As far as the world is concerned, we are all entering our seventh year, and that’s the way we should keep it. From inside, we can begin to undermine Dumbledore’s authority on the student body as a whole. We need to have at least few allies in each house to do this, so Blaise and Draco, we need to start immediately on this point. I pretty sure Neville, Dean and Pavarti can be relied upon from Gryffindor, but do you have any idea on who can be swayed from the other houses immediately?”

Draco smirked at this and stated, “I have a few allies in Ravenclaw and one in Hufflepuff already and gaining a few more should be relatively easy. What about you Blaise?”

“I don’t know many outside of our house, but Susan Bones along with Padma and Pavarti have always been seen as friends from before Hogwarts. With the way you portrayed Amelia Bones today, I don’t think Susan is going to be ‘enchanted’ with the Headmaster and it shouldn’t be too hard to sway them to our side, or at the very least, not have them opposing our every move from here on out. Since Harry feels Pavarti can be counted on, I think Padma can be too.” finished Blaise.

After several more fundamentals were added to this plan, Tom finished the conversation with, “I think we should definitely run with Narcissa’s second idea. It seems to be the one we are all leaning towards anyway. Tomorrow, at the bonding, I will be sure to be a perfect gentleman to Ron, even going as far as to be somewhat sympathetic to his plight. With all the dignitaries coming, this should at least help us eventually on this point of contention. Now, I will take my leave as I do have more preparations to make for the ceremony tomorrow, not to mention a few more threats to issue to Mr. Weasley should he not perform as expected…although I believe I have just the potion to ensure he cooperate.”

They all laughed at this as the majority headed to the dining hall within Malfoy Manor to enjoy a celebratory feast over the accomplishments of the day.

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“Harry, you do remember that we must return home for about a week before school starts again…you must continue your training.” stated Blaise, as both she and Harry enjoyed a quiet night in front of the fire.

“I know Blaise. When do you think we should go?” mumbled Harry, due to the fact that he was nuzzling into Blaise‘s neck, making her giggle somewhat.

Enjoying her man’s ministrations, Blaise softly said, “Stop teasing my neck like that, Harry…unless you plan on doing something else soon.”

Feathering kisses from her shoulder to just behind her ear, he emphasized each word spoken with a kiss, “That’s…precisely…what…I was…planning…my lovely…and… talented…and…wonderful…and…”

Feeling herself fall even deeper into the passion brewing between them, she uttered one last coherent thought before all words were lost to her, “Okay, okay…you make a very good argument for your case, Mr. Potter. But tomorrow, we talk business.”

Pulling back to look at Blaise, Harry smiled that smile intended just for her and stated, “Deal. Now, how can I convince the woman I love that she has way too many articles of clothing on for what I have planned? Maybe I should help you get more comfortable…after all, with a body like yours it’s a crime to keep it concealed from me. Maybe that will be my first order of business when I join the Wizengamot…a new law banning you from wearing anything at all.”

With a chuckle, she added, “You would like that, wouldn’t you? But, my love, knowing you the way I do, I don’t think you would like it much if someone was to stare at my body while we were out in public? I know how possessive you can be with what is yours.”

“Your right…I would rightly have to kill said person or persons to protect your honor. Okay, the law will have to be amended to stipulate you are to be without clothing when in my presence alone. Yes, that should work. What do you think, should we vote on it now?” Harry asked, all the while undoing the fastenings on her top, letting his fingers linger over all the newly exposed skin.

Breathing harder, Blaise tried to answer as coherently as possible, “Yes…I think…that’s a wonderful law…and I vote…yes to all…your…proposals….Mr. Potter.”

Now beginning to kiss his way across her body, Harry’s last reply to this was, “I thought you would. Since the law has passed, its time to enact it.”

With that, Harry proceeded to make sure Blaise’s clothing was lost for the evening, stripping his also as they progressed. It was a beautiful night as the two young lovers reaffirmed their feelings by making love over and over until the very early morning hours. When all was said and done, Harry had showed Blaise time and time again just how much he loved this “new law”. Blaise could only agree.

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There you go. I know it’s a long time in coming, but I honestly find very little time to write anymore. I do try, but most days, ideas for my stories are lacking as I am usually too tired at night to write. I have an extremely demanding job that gets me up at 5am everyday, so as you can imagine, by 8:30 at night when my kids go to bed, I am not very far behind them. Unfortunately, the weekends are usually spent doing household stuff, and as we are beginning to remodel our house, that doesn’t leave me a lot of time. I will continue both my stories till they are complete, just bare with me.

Right now this story is the one I seem to be getting inspiration for…so if you have any ideas for “The Phoenix” story, I would greatly appreciate the help. I may not use all your ideas, but anything to jump start that engine again is great. The way I see it, there are only a few chapters left till that one is complete…part of the problem is I think I killed off Dumbledore too soon in that story…now I’m stuck; not to mention, some of you took real offence to the threesome, and now I’m not sure what relationship(s) to pursue there.

Anyway, these are just a few of my dilemmas, but I will muddle through till I get these done. I’m hoping that on Friday afternoons, which I usually do not work and my husband is not home to take me away for more remodeling work, I can dedicate to writing more. This will hopefully mean I can post more often. For example, I took two Fridays to write this chapter, posting it today after I reviewed it.

Thanks for hanging in there!!!!!!