Chapter 7 The End is The Beginning

Harry and Sirius were led from the Wizengamot chamber to a small room, obviously some sort of lounge set aside for the members. Harry was trying to get his mind around a very stressful day when the door burst open. He barely caught Hermione as she wrapped him in a huge hug, laughing and crying and asking questions all at the same time.

That hug was joined by Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Ron and, surprisingly, Charlie. They pulled Sirius into the outer ring of the scrum.

Harry finally just rubbed Hermione's back, saying "It's okay, Hermione, breathe, just breathe."

A tearful snicker followed by a final squeeze, and Hermione let him go, at which point everyone started to talk at once, stopped, and then burst out laughing.

Excuse me, Lord Potter?" A boy was standing in the doorway. He was close to Harry's age, maybe a year or two younger. The boy was nicely dressed in a suit and tie.

"Grandma asked me to come get you. If you could follow me?" he asked.

Harry walked over, stuck out his hand and said, "It's just Harry."

The boy smiled. "William." he said, taking Harry's hand, and shaking it.

They moved through several rooms and a short hall, with the Weasleys and Sirius following.

"So...you're the prince, right?" Harry asked, trying desperately to sound off-handed.

"And you're a Lord. It's just a title, you can call me William in private. In public your 'Lord Potter' and I'm 'Prince William' or 'Your Grace.' Grandma is always "Your Majesty' or 'Your Grace.' I suspect she'll loosen up around you pretty quick, she likes you; thinks you've got spirit." William said.

He stopped in front of a doorway that had two of the Royal Wizard Guards standing outside.

Harry got a closer look at their uniforms. They were different than the Palace Guards. They wore white pants, red and black jackets with gold accents, and a red sash with a gold tassel. A wand holster hung under the arm on one side of the sash, a sword from the other. The guards saluted as William approached.

"Announce us, please." he said.

One of the guards knocked, then opened the door. "His highness, Prince William, Lord Black, Lord Potter, and company, Your Grace."

William led them into another lounge, this one substantially larger than the one they had come from.

"Thank you, William." the Prince of Wales said, as William moved to his father's side.

Her Majesty, Her consort, and Lord Churchill had all been talking. Now they spied Harry and turned.

"Lord Potter, good. Her Majesty has one other thing for you. First, who are your friends?" Winston asked.

Harry bowed, as Sirius had showed him while they were in the Tower. Those etiquette lessons were coming in handy!

"Your Majesty, your Grace, you know Lord Black, of course. Next to him are Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, my friend Ron's parents. They have helped look after me during the summers. Their son Charles, who currently works at a dragon preserve in Romania. And finally, my best friends, Miss Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. I probably would have dies last summer without their assistance."

Everyone bowed or curtsied as Harry named them, although Hermione looked close to tears again when Harry named her his best friend.

William looked both surprised and intrigued by Hermione.

Her majesty spoke. "Thank you all for the care and assistance you provided to Lord Potter. We are most pleased by your efforts.

Lord Potter, the organization Lord Churchill heads was formed, in part, because of you and what your parents accomplished that terrible night. While the public still cannot know about your society, the Crown does, and MI6 will be watching.

"Because we have been watching, it is my sad duty to inform you that I find your guardians, both magical and mundane, to be wholly inadequate. Therefore, I am ordering that all your guardians, magical or mundane, are hereby renounced , effective immediately. They will face full investigations as to how many charges may be levied against them for the apparent abuse and neglect of Lord Potter. Furthermore, we have decided to make Lord Potter a ward of our court until such time as we can find you new guardians."

To say that Harry was stunned was an understatement. The grin he was now wearing let everyone know how he felt about Her Majesty's decision. Did this mean he didn't have to go back to Durz-kaban next year? Who was going to...

"Lord Black, we received reports about your actions while imprisoned in the Tower. You behaved responsibly, and stood Lord Potter in good stead. Would you be willing to accept temporary guardianship of Lord Potter until such time as the Crown can find him a more suitable guardian?"

Sirius moved to stand next to Harry, and said in a voice thick with emotion, "Nothing would make me happier, Your Majesty."

Molly started to say something, but Arthur's slight shake of the head stopped her.

"Excellent. Lord Churchill, we believe Lord Potter would benefit from a tutor and batman."

Churchill nodded, agreeing.

"Lord Potter, Lord Black, Winston will be our go-between." Then she smiled, and this time it was the smile of both a grandmother and a queen well pleased.

"We understand you and your friends need to return to Hogwarts soon, Harry. However, we will be expecting to see you over the holidays, and for Boxing Day. Perhaps you could bring a guest for the Yule dance?" she said, eyes twinkling as she dismissed them with a wave.

As the Queen turned to go, Winston took Harry and Sirius aside to fill out some paperwork and get their signatures.

Hermione's mind was working things out. She sighed, supremely happy for her friend, but still worried. There were some people who were not going to like this at all.

*Extra*Albus Dumbledore resigns as Sirius Black goes free!*Extra*

By Rita Skeeter

In a stunning turn of events, the muggle Queen has freed Sirius Black. She then sacked Albus Dumbledore from his position as Head of the Wizengamot today. Citing too many responsibilities, which caused grievous mistakes, The Queen said she had no choice in the matter. She then named Lady Longbottom as temporary Head of the Wizengamot until elections can be called. Her knowledge of Lady Longbottom led to questions as to who is providing the muggle Queen with enough information to make informed decisions in and about our world.

Albus Dumbledore said, "I'm disappointed of course, however, I will abide by her wishes in this matter."

"That the greatest wizard of our time would bow before the wishes of a muggle, even a Queen, speaks volumes. Perhaps Dumbledore retiring is a good idea. That he would leave a Lord to languish in Azkaban for more than a decade; well it's a crime. He had a duty to Lord Black. How many others have been falsely accused? I intend to call for a full investigation," said Wizengamot member and Lord Lucius Malfoy.

Meanwhile, what happened to the "Boy Who Lived" Harry Potter? His charges were summarily dismissed, and he received a fine of one galleon for striking a please-man, the muggle equivalent of an Auror. The Queen then reaffirmed Lord Potter's Knighthood and Dukedom in Somerley. If that wasn't enough, gentle readers, she appointed him member of a muggle heraldic order for "exemplary acts of bravery in defense of the realm." What these acts were is not currently known, although rumors have circulated about his time at Hogwarts since his first year.

That the Potters were ennobled is not news, ladies and gentlemen. But when a boy is knighted before the age of majority, and further, the boy is "The Boy Who Lived," well, the wizarding public has a right to know. What has Harry Potter been doing?

We demand a full investigation to see if Lord Potter's actions have been in any way criminal.

Albus Dumbledore sat at his desk furiously thinking. His plans for young Harry were in jeopardy. Not to mention that his hold on Great Britain's wizard population had been weakened. Not broken, just... weakened.

From his desk at Hogwarts, Albus commanded the loyalty of almost 2000 paintings as Headmaster. These paintings usually had one to four other paintings they could move to, giving him a listening and intelligence service to rival East Germany's Stasi.

But first, getting Potter back to Hogwarts was key. Harry had classes on Monday, and was already a week behind. He was going to have to practice patience a little longer, then, with Potter here, his plan could go forward.

Dumbledore would have blanched if he had known that Voldemort was thinking the same thing.

A part of this chapter came from Quoth the Raven, Nevermore

by GenkaiFan. She said it better than I ever could.

Thanks to all who commented, and to Filodea, who stepped up to beta/ proofread this wretched wreck of a tale.

Should I continue gentle reader? If I do it will be a second story arc, my tale here is done. Let me know what you think.

Woodville