Author's Note

Albus Dumbledore is for all practical purposes the nuclear deterrent of the wizarding world, in Britain at least. This nuclear deterrent is not controlled by keys and codes. Dumbledore has a mind and a will of his own. What makes him the most powerful wizard in the world? Should he choose to use the power that he holds, what would there be to stop him? To what ends would he use it?

Chapter 1 Practice, Interrupted.

The Room of Requirement vibrated as the members of Dumbledore's Army were finishing up their practice session. It seemed to be coming from the rear wall, and it was getting more intense. The plan was, as usual, for people to slip out of the Room of Requirement in twos and threes to avoid notice.

The rear wall trembled under the impact, and cracks showed in the wall under some smashing impact. A small chunk of stone fell into the room, and light came through it, followed by a familiar and hated voice.

"Inquisitorial Squad, be ready! Bombarda!" Another spell slammed into the stone wall, and the gap widened, sending a spray of rocks and stones into the room.

The DA members turned to each other in fear and confusion. "Merlin, how'd she find us?" "We've got to get out of here."

"No." The voice of Harry Potter cut across the confused babble. "I'm done running and hiding and letting this bitch torture us. Who's with me!"

There was a short astonished silence, followed by a roar of thirty voices. "Dumbledore's Army!"

One last spell smashed a hole through the stone wall large enough to admit a single person. Dolores Umbridge strutted through the entrance, wand in hand. Her smile of sadistic satisfaction barely had time to slip as she belatedly noticed the thirty wands pointed at her. The blast of massed spellfire flung her back through the hole and up against the opposite wall.

"Charge!" Harry shouted, and led the way through the hole with Hermione hard on his heels and the rest following. Malfoy and the rest of Umbridge's toadies had their wands out but were otherwise wholly unprepared for a fight, and they were outnumbered five to one into the bargain. In seconds they were stunned, petrified and bound.

Harry strode forward to stand over Umbridge, who lay dazed and semiconscious on the floor, groping blindly for her wand. She looked up at him blearily. "Mr. Potter. You cannot do this. I am …"

"I know who you are." He said in a hard hating voice. He looked down at her over his wand for a long deadly moment.

"Bombarda!" The spell hit her wand where it lay on the floor and shattered it into flinders, leaving a crater in the stone floor where it had been.

"Harry." Hermione's voice came from where she stood over Malfoy and his cronies. "What about these?"

"Destroy their wands." He replied. In a matter of seconds the normally unthinkable was done and the wands of Malfoy and the others were reduced to splinters.

Harry returned his attention to Umbridge, whose face had slipped from dazed bewilderment to terror as she found herself disarmed and at the mercy of those she had lorded it over. "Stupefy. Petrificus Totalus. Incarcerous. Mobilicorpus."

Umbridge's bound, unconscious body rose into the air. "What do we do now?" Someone asked.

Merlin knows that's a good question. Harry thought. Hermione's right again. You don't do your homework and you wind up looking stupid in class.

Hermione, as always, was the one who had the answer. "You know, Harry, Umbridge is so very fond of telling us how powerful she is and how she works directly for the Minister of Magic. I think we should take her to the Minister and have a talk about exactly what she's been doing here."

Harry's shout of "Yeah!" was about a heartbeat ahead of the rest of the DA.

They left out the front door of the Room of Requirement with the bound bodies of Umbridge and the Inquisitorial Squad floating along behind them.

"How do we get there?" Harry asked.

"Blimey, Harry. That's not even hard." said Fred - or maybe George.

"She's got a private Floo in her office right to the Minister's office." added George - or maybe Fred. "Being as how she's so bloody important and all."

"Right." Harry said. No one in the DA needed any directions to Umbridge's office. They had been there far too many times. They headed down the stairs and along the corridor toward her office.

"Mr. Potter. What are you doing here?" Harry's head whipped around as he recognized the voice and saw the tall, austere form of Minerva McGonagall. Even in that moment of shock he had time to notice that she did not seem angry or upset, merely ... curious.

Hermione said "We have made a citizen's arrest of Dolores Jane Umbridge for multiple counts of torture and assault causing bodily harm, Professor McGonagall."

"Mmmm." Professor McGonagall replied. "And these others?"

"Accessories before, during and after the fact, Professor." Hermione replied without a second's hesitation.

"Torture. That is a most serious allegation, Miss Granger." Professor McGonagall replied quietly, as if they were in a classroom. "Can you substantiate it?"

Hermione could have smiled if it were not for the circumstances. She could recite every word of the law in this. She had had very good reason to look it up. "The use of Blood Quills falls well within the ICW definition of torture, Professor, which is accepted in British wizarding law, even if there is no specific statute against them. If someone uses a new method of committing murder, it is still murder. I will note that the ICW specifically states that torture is the more heinous where the victims are children, of which we have ample evidence and witnesses."

"You make a compelling case, Miss Granger. The law does require that an arrested person be turned over to the proper authorities." Professor McGonagall replied.

Harry had had a minute to pick up on where Hermione was going with this. "That is precisely our intention, Professor. Since, as we have all been reminded many, many times, the prisoner is a senior member of the Ministry, we are going directly to Minister Fudge."

"Ah. Such a school outing should be accompanied by a teacher. I would be honoured if you would allow me to attend." Professor McGonagall replied, quietly.

"Of course." Harry replied. There was a murmur of assent from behind him. Professor McGonagall had always been respected as scrupulously fair, and she had done more than anyone else to try to stop Umbridge.

Harry was scarcely even surprised. The world had been going mad for a while, and now it had gotten there. Professor McGonagall joining an armed rebellion was just one more proof of that.