Hi! Long time, no see, I know hehe. So... A LOT has happened recently that contributed to how late this chapter is. First of all, I moved out of my abusive family's home and I had to deal with finding a place to live along with juggling a job and staying a full-time high school student. Dealing with the aftermath of 18 years of trauma hasn't made anything easier. Add on a giant pile of writer's block just to make things all the sweeter XD. Also, when I started this fic, I was the same age as the characters, just 14 years old and I didn't post it for several years after that. Now that I'm 18, writing these characters makes me extremely uncomfortable. When I was 14, it seemed perfectly ok and natural to write them and I had no problems with it but I'm older now and it makes me super uncomfortable, especially the smutty stuff. Don't get me wrong, I love this fic. It's my baby and I'm super attached to it. I will continue this fic! It's been a WIP of mine for 4 years now and I want to see it through to the end. With that in mind, there won't be any more smut scenes with this fic for a LONG while, at least until the characters are of legal age AND I don't feel uncomfortable doing so. If you want smut, there are plenty of smutty stories elsewhere, and there are several I have written with CONSENTING ADULTS. Of course at the age I was when I started writing this, I was not the best writer; I was young, inexperienced, and honestly, I didn't know that much about the world to see that what I was writing was potentially not ok. But I'm older, I've been writing a lot longer, and I know shit about the world I wish I could unlearn. But here we are. This fic shall be continued, just SFW. Thank you for sticking with me all these years, and I hope you'll stick around for many more. (Hopefully, this fic won't take THAT long tho XD)

Chapter 16

"Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday dear Draco,

Happy birthday to you."

There was a small cheer and applause as Draco blew out the candles. Everyone was crammed into the kitchen of Grimmauld Place. They had been bustling around the place all day, baking, decorating, and wrapping. Molly, Ron, and Ginny had done the baking while Sirius, Fred, and George had decorated. Remus and Hermione were on wrapping duty. Harry's job was to keep Draco distracted and away from everything. Now they were all crowded around the table to celebrate. Tonks had dropped by a few minutes before they started to join the party. Of course, Mr. Weasley was at work.

Molly squeezed in between Fred and Ron to give Draco the knife to cut the cake. "Thank you, Mrs. Weasley," Draco said.

"Now now, you know it's Molly to you, dear. You're family," she said fondly, patting his cheek. Draco sliced everyone a piece of cake. The room was filled with chatter as everyone ate, and Harry took Draco's hand on the table, squeezing it with a smile.

"Happy birthday," he said quietly. Draco gave him a quick kiss on the cheek with a smile. After everyone finished their slice of cake, the plates were cleared and everyone brought out the presents they got him. Draco blushed.

"You really didn't need to get me anything," he said.

"Nonsense!" Mrs. Weasley declared, placing her present on the table in front of him. He opened the wrappings carefully to reveal an emerald green scarf.

"Thank you," Draco said with a grin. He opened the other gifts, receiving a book on potions from Remus and Sirius, a self-inking quill from Hermione, a box of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes from Fred and George, and a viciously orange Chudley Cannons shirt as a joke from Ron. When he had pulled it out of the box, Harry almost fell out of his chair laughing. He insisted that Draco wore it and the poor Veela sulkily complied, changing in their room and walking back downstairs only to be greeted by hoots and hollers.

Harry was the last to give him a present. He had to run up to their room and take it out of his trunk where he hid it under all the garbage where Draco would never think to look. When he returned to the kitchen and handed Draco the small, messily wrapped box, Draco was still wearing the orange t-shirt, but it now said The Chudley Cannons SUCK. The last word had been written on by Ginny, if the Muggle marker in her hand was anything to go by.

"Where did you even get a marker like that?" Harry asked as Draco peeled away the wrappings of his gift.

"I have a Muggleborn friend who gave it to me. She had a whole bag of them, all different colors!" Harry grinned lopsidedly and turned back to Draco, who was now opening the small box that was inside the paper.

Inside was a Snitch. Draco looked at him questioningly. "Well, seeing as how you've never caught one before, I wanted to let you see what it's like to hold one." Draco glared at Harry, shoving his shoulder lightly and huffing. Now Harry was fully laughing, along with Ron, Ginny, and the twins. Hermione rolled her eyes in fond exasperation.

"Potter, just you wait until the first Slytherin v. Gryffindor game. I'll be handing your arse to you on a silver platter." Harry snorted.

"Sure, sure. And I'm the Queen of England." Draco scowled and Harry and Ron burst out into more laughter. Draco huffed and crossed his arms as Harry and Ron slowly calmed down.

"You're asking for it, Potter. Don't think that just because we're dating that I'm going to go easy on you."

"Oh, were you taking it easy on me before when you couldn't catch the snitch before me to save your life?" Harry teased. Draco indignantly turned his back to Harry.

"That's it, I'm not talking to you anymore. Here I thought you loved me. I thought we had something," Draco sulked. Remus nudged Sirius with his elbow.

"It seems he's almost as big of a drama queen as you are," he said in a mock whisper, loud enough for everyone to hear.

Sirius flipped his hair dramatically. "It's genetic."

Harry hooked his chin over Draco's shoulder and wrapped his arms around his chest. "Come on, don't pout." He pressed a kiss to Draco's cheek, and Draco reluctantly turned around and dropped his dramatic antics.

"I can't believe you're so cruel to me on my birthday!" Draco groused as he wrapped Harry in his arms and pulled him close. After all the dramatics were finished, everyone started chattering amongst themselves. There was going to be an Order meeting in a few hours, so Ginny, George, and Fred slipped out to work on their plan to listen in while Mrs. Weasley's attention was elsewhere. Draco still had his arms wrapped around Harry as they talked with Ron and Hermione about who the next DADA teacher might be.

"I heard that if Dumbledore can't find a replacement teacher by the next school year, the Ministry will appoint one," Hermione pitched in. Ron grimaced.

"What a disaster that would be…" He muttered.

A thoughtful expression drifted over Hermione's face for a moment before she changed the subject. "Harry, have you heard anything about your upcoming hearing?" she asked.

Harry shook his head. "Not recently. Ron's dad said that he was going to check in on things for me today." Draco squeezed Harry a little tighter and discretely rubbed his nose against his unruly hair, breathing in his scent. Harry squeezed his hand reassuringly.

"Is Draco going with you to the hearing?"

"No," Harry said just as Draco growled out a "Yes." Harry turned his head to look at Draco. "You're not coming. I can handle this myself and you'll end up overreacting and causing a scene." Draco scowled and pulled Harry so close to him he was almost in the taller boy's lap. "Draco," Harry sighed wearily.

"I don't want you going alone," Draco protested.

"I'll be fine. It's not like I'm going to get attacked in the middle of the courtroom."

"You don't know that for certain…" Harry sighed again and rolled his eyes.

"You worry too much." Harry relaxed against Draco's chest, feeling the tension slip out of his Veela's muscles as he did so. He knew that putting up a fight against Draco's need for physical contact would only end in Draco's stress rising and his chances of winning the argument dropping significantly.

"Our letters from Hogwarts should be arriving soon," Hermione said, changing the subject yet again. Ron groaned.

"Don't remind me. I've been enjoying sleeping in in the mornings."

"Don't get used to it, we'll be continuing cleaning the house tomorrow and your mum plans on waking everyone up early to get an earlier start," Hermione said primly. Ron groaned again and plopped his head onto the table in defeat.

True to her word, Mrs. Weasley woke everyone up early the next morning. Harry and Draco headed down to the kitchen after dressing to eat and found Mr. Weasley at the table drinking a cup of coffee and munching on some toast. "Ah! Harry, I need to speak with you," he said, completely ignoring Draco's presence. Harry and Draco sat down and Harry turned his attention to Mr. Weasley.

"What is it?"
"I spoke to a friend of mine on the Wizengamot and found out your hearing has been scheduled for next week on Monday. They were going to send you an owl but I offered to hand-deliver you the notice." He passed Harry an unopened envelope with the Ministry insignia on the wax seal.

Harry nervously slid his finger under the wax to break the seal and pulled out the heavy parchment.

Dear Mr. Potter,

You are expected to arrive at the Ministry on the twelfth of June in courtroom ten at exactly 10 o'clock for the hearing to decide the matter of your continued enrollment in Hogwarts and the discussion of the accusations at hand.

With best wishes,
Yours sincerely,
Mafalda Hopkirk
Improper Use of Magic Office
Ministry of Magic

Draco read over his shoulder, his chin just barely grazing his shirt. "I'm coming with you," he insisted again. Harry shook his head.

"No, you're not. I can't have you going crazy in the middle of my hearing," Harry insisted. "I'll be fine, I promise."

Draco opened his mouth to protest again when Mr. Weasley interrupted. "It would be best if you didn't go," he said. "The Wizengamot is very strict when it comes to extra people in the courtrooms and you're not a witness." Draco sighed resignedly. Harry allowed himself to be pulled closer and relaxed into the arm that wrapped around his shoulders.

The arrival of Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Fred, and George lightened the energy of the kitchen. Molly walked in behind them. "Remus is waking Sirius right now, they'll be down in a minute and we can start breakfast." Harry noticed for the first time that there was a titanic amount of food on the counters and stove, placed under heating charms to keep them warm. A minute or so later, Remus walked into the kitchen, followed by Sirius, who looked like one of the living dead. There were bags under his eyes and he was paler and more drawn than as per usual. He carried the air with him of someone who was more than just tired.

When you live in Azkaban for twelve years, intense nightmares are to be expected...

Molly levitated the food to the table and removed the heating charms, then summoned a stack of plates from the cupboard. Everyone found a seat and dug in. A few minutes of silent eating later, Harry passed Hermione the letter from the ministry so she and Ron could read it. "That's a little less than a week from today. Are you ready for it? You're going to need a good defense. Of course, it wasn't your fault, but they might not see it that way, seeing what's been in the papers lately..." Harry shrugged.

"I haven't really thought about it."

"You really need to. You need to be able to defend yourself," Hermione chastised.

Sirius looked up from the cup of coffee he was staring at and asked, "Are you talking about your hearing? Do you know when it is?"

Harry nodded. "About a week from today."

"I'll come with you if you want. I can transform into a dog and no one would suspect a thing."

"Sirius, do you really believe that the ministry won't question a giant black dog wandering into the ministry with Harry? I'm almost certain they won't allow it anyways, not to mention the fact that there might be enchantments in place to keep Animagus in their human form," Remus said dryly.

"That's ridiculous. The ministry is filled with incompetent bastards who can't use their heads to save their lives. There's no way they'd be smart enough to use enchantments like that."

Remus sighed deeply, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You're not going. I'll tie you up if I have to."

"Oh kinky," Sirius joked weakly, ignoring the siriusness of the situation. (Yes, I made a pun. Sue me.) Remus flicked Sirius's ear.

"Knock it off, people are trying to eat."

"Sirius, it would be a terrible idea for you to go," Molly started. "You still have a bounty on your head, you'd be putting Harry in danger if you're discovered."

"I'd never do anything to put Harry in danger!" Sirius protested, viciously stabbing a potato on his plate.

"Sirius, I just want to go in alone. It's bad enough that all this happened, I need to do this myself." Sirius turned to Harry, looked at him silently for a moment, then nodded.

"Alright, kiddo. If you want to go in alone I'll respect that."

"Thank you," Harry said simply, continuing with his breakfast. The table was silent for the rest of the meal as coffee was drunk and food was eaten.

After everyone was finished and everything was cleaned up, they all split into groups to tackle the various rooms on the third floor.

The cleaning process was going slowly, but it took Harry's mind off the hearing and didn't allow time for Draco to keep insisting on coming to the hearing with him. By lunch, everyone was exhausted. They had managed to get two rooms cleared of junk and Dark objects. Remus pondered aloud to Sirius about renovating the place and selling it after they cleared his name and all the stuff with You-Know-Who was said and done. Sirius didn't care either way.

Draco was quiet at lunch and Harry kept glancing at him with concern. Eventually, he grabbed Draco's hand and they quietly slipped away while everyone else was preoccupied with their own conversations. Harry led them to their room. They sat on the bed. "Alright, what's wrong?"

"I'm just worried. I don't like the idea of you going to the hearing by yourself, but I understand you have to do it alone. It doesn't change the fact that I'm going to be worrying the entire time you're gone."

Harry took his hand again and squeezed it. "Everything's going to be fine. I'll be back before you know it, and you won't have to worry once I'm back." Draco sighed and pulled Harry into his arms, unfolding his wings and wrapping them both in a cocoon of warmth and feathers. He laid back so they were reclining on the bed with Harry laying on his chest. Harry stroked the feathers lightly as Draco held him possessively. Harry tried his best to keep patient, understanding that their bond was new and Draco would be this overprotective and needy for at least a few years. He secretly enjoyed the affection, but he didn't like being the source of Draco's worry, especially when it seemed to be affecting him in such a strong, negative manner.

After a few moments, Harry looked at the clock on the nightstand and pulled himself from Draco's arms. "We should go back downstairs before someone realizes we're gone. Let's go."

Draco sighed heavily, dramatically throwing his arm over his eyes. "You'll be the death of me, Harry Potter." Harry took Draco's hands and hauled him to his feet.

"I sure hope the hell not."

The next week came quickly, and faster than anyone could blink, the hearing was upon them. The constant restoration of the Grimmauld Place had kept Draco far too occupied and tired to overthink letting Harry go to his hearing alone, which Harry was forever grateful for despite being constantly exhausted himself.

Now they were sitting in the kitchen and Draco was holding Harry as though his life depended on it. And in a way, it did.

Molly was filling up their plates with as much food as she could and Harry managed to free one of his arms from Draco's grasp so he could eat. Draco's eyes were gleaming dangerously and everyone was keeping a polite distance. Harry nudged Draco with his newly freed elbow and urged him to eat.

Of course, the Veela did so at his Mate's request.

Mr. Weasley was distractedly fiddling with a strange hunk of Muggle machinery that looked as if it was once inside a wind-up children's' toy. In between his fiddling, he took hasty bites of toast and jam. "Mr. Weasley, what's that for?" Harry asked curiously.

"There were several cases where these things were enchanted to move on their own without being wound up and sold to children at a fair in Devon. I'm working on figuring out how they did it so I can finish the paperwork today at the office."

"Was anyone hurt?" Harry inquired further.

"No, but they did have to obliviate a few Muggles and confiscate the items. The whole case falls into a grey area, where the Muggles were exposed to magic but didn't know that it was magic. The potential of them figuring it out was too great for the Ministry to just leave it, even if it was a minor spell and it put no one in harm's way." Harry nodded along as he talked, watching him further fiddle with the toy that was barren of its plastic shell. "You'll be coming with me to the Ministry, by the way. I go in about an hour and a half before your hearing starts so you can stay with me in the office until it's time to go in."

"Okay." Harry glanced at Draco, expecting him to start another argument, but he stayed silent, simply curling his arm a little tighter around Harry. Harry squeezed his hand in silent response.

Tonks walked into the kitchen and plopped down in a chair across from Harry, followed by Sirius and Remus. "Did you sleep alright?" Tonks asked through a yawn.

"Yeah, as well as I could…" Harry responded.

"Do you know who'll be questioning you?" she asked, reaching for a piece of toast from a platter on the table.

"Amelia Bones, she's on my floor, Head of the Department of Law Enforcement." Mr. Weasley chimed in.

"Amelia Bones is a good one. She's fair, she'll hear you out," Tonks assured Harry.

"Just remember to stick to the facts," Sirius added, taking a hefty swig of coffee from a mug. "Don't lose your temper and be polite."

"The law is on your side," Remus said quietly. "Underage wizards can use magic to defend themselves. You were in the right. Don't let them make you think otherwise."

Mr. Weasley guided Harry through the bustling halls of the Ministry as Harry quietly recalled saying goodbye to Draco before walking out the door at breakfast.

Draco hugged him tightly once more, whispering, "I'm sorry for being such a nuisance about this. I know you'll be okay. I hope you can forgive me for acting like this the past few weeks…" Harry had hugged him back just as tightly.

"There's nothing to forgive. It's not your fault, you can't help it. I understand. I just want you to feel comfortable and not have to worry about me all the time."

Draco huffed a small laugh. "I don't think I'll ever not worry…" Harry smiled and pressed a small kiss to his cheek.

"We'll get there. I know it."

"This is the floor my office is on," Mr. Weasley said, pulling Harry from his thoughts. Harry followed him off of the elevator that seemed more like a death-trap than a mode of transportation. They walked down a winding hallway and ducked into a small room filled with Muggle knick-knacks. The walls were plastered with pictures of the Weasley family, newspaper cutouts, and what appeared to be still pictures from Muggle magazines. Mr. Weasely found a small stool for Harry to sit in before taking his place at his overcrowded desk. Harry inquired about the paper airplanes flying about the place and Mr. Weasley briefly explained interdepartmental memos and the disaster that owls were indoors.

Roughly fifteen minutes later, Harry was mildly shocked when none other than Albus Dumbledore ducked his head through the small doorway of Mr. Weasley's office. "Professor!" He exclaimed in surprise. Mr. Weasley looked up from his papers.

"Well hello! What brings you to my small part of the office?" Mr. Weasley greeted merrily, a twinge of confusion on his face.

"It appears Harry's hearing was moved to an earlier time, and he is now about to be late for it…" Dumbledore stated in a calm voice. Harry jumped to his feet.

"Why did they change it without telling me?!" he demanded.

"There's no time to explain, we must hurry if we're to be even relatively punctual." Dumbledore guided Harry swiftly through the halls of the Ministry, in the direction of the courtroom. Harry had to almost jog to keep up with Dumbledore's swift strides, but before he knew it, he was at the door of the courtroom. Dumbledore grabbed his shoulder before he could walk in.

"Remember Harry, they have no evidence proving you did anything wrong. Don't speak out of turn, and keep your temper about you. Don't give them any reason to think badly of you." Without another word, he released Harry's shoulder and opened the door in front of them, ushering Harry in.

The room was circular, with a single chair in the center of the room facing several levels of tiered chairs already filled with members of the Wizengamot. Dumbledore pointed him towards the chair before disappearing off to the side, and Harry hesitantly sat in the chair. A man standing at a podium in the epicenter of the tiered chairs cleared his throat and spoke. "Harry James Potter, do you realize that you are seven minutes late to this hearing?"

"Yes, but-" He was cut off as Dumbledore walked in front of Harry, addressing the man.

"It seems that Mr. Potter was not informed of the time change promptly and adequately. Luckily, I happened to be at the Ministry two hours in advance of the hearing for personal reasons and overheard from a close friend of mine that the time of his hearing was changed. So I took the liberty of informing him myself." The man in the chair glared at Dumbledore as though he wanted to burn a hole in him with his eyes. It suddenly dawned on Harry that the man was the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. Harry remembered the few times he had encountered the man in person and was slightly shocked at his extreme change in personality from the last time they had met.

"Alright, let us begin. The interrogators today: Cornelius Oswald Fudge, Minister of Magic, Amelia Susan Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and Dolores Jane Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the minister. Court Scribe, Percy Ignatius Weasley-" Harry jolted and he quickly scanned the room for the red hair of Percy. The Weasley in question sat in a chair off to the side, holding a quill and frantically scribbling on a lengthy piece of parchment.

"Witness for the defense, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore," Dumbledore added calmly from his spot next to Harry. "You wouldn't mind if I sat down, would you?" He conjured a squashy looking chair and took a seat without waiting for a response. The members of the Wizengamot had a mixed response, some waving a polite hello while others glared at him with disdain, and a few looked at him with mild fear.

"Yes, yes. Moving on: the charges. Do you, Harry James Potter, acknowledge that you did indeed cast a Patronus Charm in a Muggle inhabited area, in the presence of a Muggle? Which violates the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Wizardry, which you have previously received a written warning for?"

"Yes, but-"

"And you are, in fact, Harry James Potter of Number Four Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey?" Fudge continued before Harry could speak.

"Yes, but-"

"And you did receive an official warning three years ago for using illegal magic from the Ministry, correct?" Harry mentally reminded himself too keep his cool and not lose his temper.

Yes-"

"And you still conjured the Patronus, knowing it was illegal?" Fudge continued without pause.

How was he supposed to defend himself if he wasn't even allowed to speak more than one word at a time?!

"Yes, but wait-"

"Was it a fully-fledged Patronus?" Amelia Bones cut in.

"Yes," Harry said, "There were-"

"A corporeal Patronus?" She asked in amazement.

"A what?"

"The Patronus had a definite form. More than vapor or smoke…"

"Yes, it's a stag. It's always a stag." Harry confirmed. He was desperately trying to remain calm and not lose his temper but it was becoming difficult. There were gasps and mutters in the crowd.

"So you mean to say you've cast a corporeal Patronus before now?"

"Yes, I've been able to for over a year..."

"And you are only fifteen years old?"

"Yes. I-"

"And you learned this at school?"

"Yes, Professor Lupin taught me because of-"

"Very impressive," Amelia Bones commented. "A true Patronus at such a young age… Impressive indeed."

"This is not a question of how impressive the magic was!" Fudge cut in, his tone gaining anger as he spoke. "The fact that he did as such knowingly in front of a Muggle makes this situation all the worse!"

There were several murmurs of agreement from the crowd and Harry finally burst out, "I did it because of the dementors!" before he was interrupted again.

The silence that almost instantly engulfed the room was somehow worse than all the muttering and interruptions… "What do you mean? Dementors? In a Muggle village?"

"They went after my cousin and me in an alleyway. I had to cast the Patronus to save both of us," Harry continued, happy that he was finally being listened to, but also becoming quite nervous at the response of the crowd.

Fudge finally spoke up, a wicked grin bringing up the corners of his thin lips. "Well, isn't that a convenient cover-up. Muggles can't see dementors, so there wouldn't have been any witnesses to confirm your story, we'd have to take your word for it…"

"Actually, there was one more witness to this event, someone who can see dementors," Dumbledore cut in. Fudge's smile fell.

"Well, who is it? Where are they?" Fudge demanded.

"She's right outside the door. If you wouldn't mind I can fetch her-"

"No! Weasley, go get the witness," Fudge interrupted. Percy dropped his quill and hastily went to open the door.

None other than Mrs. Figg walked in, wearing her carpet slippers and still carrying her bag that always rattled with cat food. She looked nervously around the room as she approached the place where Dumbledore and Harry were sitting. Dumbledore stood and offered her his chair, conjuring himself another with the wave of his hand.

"Full name," Fudge demanded the minute she sat.

"Arabella Doreen Figg," she stated, the waver in her voice clear.

"Who are you?"

"I live in Little Whinging, close to where Harry Potter lives."

"We have no records of any witches or wizards living in that area," Amelia Bones stated, looking at Mrs. Figg critically.

"That's because I'm a Squibb. You wouldn't have any records of me," Mrs. Figg said, matter-of-factly.

"And Squibbs are able to see dementors?" Fudge asked.

"Yes, we can!"

"How convenient," Fudge muttered, eyeing Dumbledore. "Why were you in the area of the unlawful magic at the time?"

"I was buying cat food from the corner shop, and on my way home, I spotted something in the alleyway. I saw two dementors going at what looked to be two boys."

"Can you describe them?" Amelia Bones asked.

"Well, one was rather skinny while the other one was bigger-"

"Not the boys, the dementors!" Fudge interrupted.

"Oh, right. They were big. and they were wearing cloaks." Harry internally groaned. She was describing them as if she had been shown a still life photo of the dementor and asked to describe it. They weren't going to believe her!

"Can you describe what you felt in the moment?" Fudge continued, another doubtful smirk growing on his face.

Mrs. Figg's face fell, as though she were reminded of something so sad it was almost painful to remember. "Everything was cold. Like the sun had gone out. And this was a summer's night, mind you. This was a cold that was unnatural, it sunk into my very bones. And it felt as though all the happiness had been sucked out of the world. I started to remember… such dreadful things…" her voice faded and a single tear trickled down her cheek before she came back to herself and quickly wiped it away.

Amelia Bones had a confident look on her face upon hearing this and asked, "What did the dementors do?"

Mrs. Figg spoke again, her voice stronger. "They went after the boys. One of them fell, it was Harry. He was trying to fend them off. He could only make a silvery vapor the first few times before he was able to conjure the stag. He sent it after the dementors and they flew away. One of the dementors got close to touching the other boy before Harry managed to form the stag."

"And that's all you saw?" Fudge asked. Mrs. Figg nodded. "Very well, you may go." Mrs. Figg stood from the chair and left, waving to Harry and Dumbledore on her way out. "Not a very convincing witness," Fudge chortled when she was gone.

"Oh, I disagree. She described the effects of a dementor attack spot-on. And I don't see why she would say they were there if they weren't."

"But dementors? Just wandering into a Muggle village and happening upon a wizard? It's so unlikely it's nearly impossible!" Fudge argued.

"I find it completely possible…" All eyes turned to Dumbledore at this bold claim.

"Oh, yes? And how is that?" Fudge demanded.

"I simply mean that anyone could have ordered the dementors to that location, targeting Mr. Potter here…" Dumbledore continued. "Especially Lord Voldemort…" There were several gasps from the crowd, and more muttering and murmurs ensued.

"Preposterous! I demand you stop these heinous claims at once!" Fudge exclaimed angrily. His face had grown rather red, and his hands shook from how hard he was gripping the sides of the podium.

"How can I when we all know it to be true? Someone must have ordered the dementors there, and he returned this last spring. Who else could have done it?" Dumbledore continued.

A witch who looked rather toad-like stood from her seat beside Fudge and cleared her voice with a hem-hem, drawing everyone's attention. "If I may, the Ministry controls the dementors. Implying that they were sent anywhere to harm Mr. Potter here would be accusing the Ministry of doing as such… You couldn't have meant that, correct?" Her beady eyes locked on Dumbledore for her entire speech, her girlish voice grating on Harry's nerves like nails on a chalkboard. He instantly despised the woman…

"No, of course not, Madame Umbridge. I was simply hinting that perhaps the Ministry doesn't have as tight of a fist over the dementors as they would like to believe." Dumbledore placated. His eyes were sharp on her and his voice was cool, a subtle change from his demeanor a few moments before.

The witch grimaced at his response and sat, clearly caged by his answer and unable to continue the route of accusations she had planned.

"Back to the topic at hand!" Amelia Bones exclaimed. "There is little to no evidence that Mr. Potter here is at fault of anything other than having outstanding skill and prowess at advanced level spellcasting," she stated, eyeing him with a glint of mischief and pride in her eyes. "The witness brought before us stated facts that cannot be disproven, and the prosecution has no evidence stating that any magic was used outside of self-defense. All those in favor of Mr. Potter's continued enrollment at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, raise a hand." Harry looked around the room at the hands in the air, his heart thumping in his chest heavily. He couldn't tell whether he had the majority vote or not, it seemed like a split vote.

"All those in favor of Mr. Potter's expulsion from Hogwarts and the immediate snapping of his wand, raise your hand," Fudge continued after the first set of hands were counted. Harry again couldn't tell whether he had won the majority in his favor or not…

After a pregnant pause of counting, Amelia Bones was handed a scrap of parchment with the vote count scribbled on it hastily by Percy. "The majority of us voted for Mr. Potter to continue his enrollment at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," she said, a smile of accomplishment twitching the corner of her mouth. Harry sucked in an elated breath and let out a relieved sigh. Joy bubbled in his chest as the weight of his stress and worry was lifted from his shoulders.

Grinning, he turned to Dumbeldore to thank him, but was shocked to see the old man was already gone from the room. His grin faltered and he followed the crowd leaving their chairs to the door. Several people came over and patted him on the back with words of congratulations before he made it to the door. Mr. Weasley was waiting outside for him. "How'd it go?" He asked the minute Harry was in view.

"I'm not expelled!" Harry said excitedly, another grin already forming.

"Great! I just knew Amelia would hear you out! She's a good one, rare in this place…" Harry nodded and followed Mr. Weasley back to his office. "Molly is going to come and pick you up here in a moment or so, Dumbledore stopped by and told me the hearing was over so I sent a quick message over to her. She should be here any minute now." As if on cue, Mrs. Weasley entered the small office.

"Harry dear, how did it go?" she asked as she pulled Harry into a tight hug.

"I'm not expelled."

"That's wonderful! I heard that Dumbledore was there to defend you! A good man, he is! And Amelia Bones, she's always fair. Oh, I'm just so happy for you!" she went on, continuing to hug Harry tightly and sway slightly back and forth. Mrs. Weasley's hugs were the best… Well, second best, right behind Draco's hugs…

Mrs. Weasley cooked a huge dinner to celebrate Harry's lack-of-expulsion that night. When Harry and Mrs. Weasley had walked through the door of Grimmauld Place after leaving the Ministry, Harry wasn't surprised to find himself with an armful of Draco the minute he stepped inside.

"For a second there, I was worried, but then I felt how happy you were," he whispered into Harry's hair. Mrs. Weasley skirted around them, heading towards the kitchen to give the boys a moment of privacy.

"Why were you worried?" Harry asked. He guided Draco towards their room so they could talk in private.

"Because I felt how angry and scared you were at the beginning of everything…" They made it up the staircase unscathed despite Draco still holding Harry in a tight hug the whole way. When they were in the room and Harry closed the door, Draco instantly unfurled his wings and wrapped Harry in the usual cocoon of feathers. Draco walked them over to the bed and they collapsed into a pile of limbs on top of the covers. "I was worried…" Draco murmured against Harry's hair.

"I know. But I told you everything would be okay, didn't I?" Harry reminded him.

"You did." Draco felt his heart rate slow now that he was reunited with his Mate. He wouldn't admit it aloud, but he was just as excited for his instincts and the bond to settle as Harry was. It was frustrating having his body and mind act up against his will whenever Harry was out of his sight for even a moment. The whole time Harry had been gone, he had to stay locked in their room so he didn't overreact and hurt anyone in the house by accident. He had told everyone after Harry had left that he didn't feel well and that he was going to lay down so that no one would question his absence. He was getting better at separation, but when Harry's emotional turmoil was running high, it made it that much harder to keep himself under control.

"Were you okay while I was gone?" Harry asked. He sounded sleepy as Draco gently pet his hair.

"I was as well as I could have been, given the situation…" Draco stated without elaboration. Harry nuzzled his nose against Draco's neck playfully, bringing a smile to the Veela's lips.

"We should go back downstairs in a while." Harry murmured. "Make sure they know we haven't died…" Draco snorted.

"I doubt they'll think we've died."

"In this house? With all the Dark things in it? Not to mention the creatures infesting every nook and cranny…" Harry retorted.

"I suppose you have a point. But I'm not leaving this room until I get sufficient cuddles to sustain me until after dinner." It was Harry's turn to snort at Draco's usual dramatics. He lifted his head and dropped a kiss onto Draco's nose before resting his head once again on the Veela's chest.

Yes, I know it's short. Like I said at the beginning of the chapter, life has been really busy. I started this chapter forever ago and just started again after a lengthy break. Just within the past few days, I was exposed to COVID-19 and now I'm on precautionary quarantine for 12 more days now. Fun. I'm high risk because of my health problems, which has me scared… Please leave a comment telling me what you think about this chapter! I need some positivity right now…

Love Always, Nat!