Pre Edit Count – 2,344 Words

Song I listened to for this chapter: Undertow (feat. The Fray & Esthero) by Timbaland

Previously:

“Lily, I am so sorry. I will get to the bottom of this as soon as I can. I will get Harry to a safe place. I shudder on the thought of what he has gone through. I will right it all.”

With that Bella nods and is soon gone from the latest place she called home.  Time to take up her title and the duties to make sure everything is right.

Next:

Soon Bella is using the floo to enter the Ministry of Magic in England. She has already received the confirmation that her lands are under her control and even visited Gringotts to have them sign the documents that gave her the rights to her own vaults as well as the Potter’s as she was Harry’s guardian. It saves her some future trouble.

She only waits a second before Sheila appears beside her. “Ready?”

Bella nods and quickly explaining where she had just come from, Sheila also nods, saying, “Great idea. That will save us some time. How are you going to deal with Harry’s guardians now?”

Bella gives her a look. “I will go and cast an Ectoplasmic Reconstruction spell. I found one when working with the vampires. It works well in letting the caster see the past but it works best in a stationary object, like a house. Too many spells or even a strong magnet will mess with the spell.”

Sheila nods. “You know he has been there a long time?”

Bella nods as they make their ways to the head of the Ministry of Magic’s office. “It may take a while, but anyone touching me can witness it with me. I can cast it only once so I will announce it.”

They soon arrive at the secretary’s desk and Sheila announces, “Sheila Heinz and Lady Isabella Swan here for our meeting with the Minister.”

The lady’s eyes grew large and she swallows. “Um, the Minister wishes to have proof of Lady Swan’s, umm, survival?”

Bella chuckles. “Stalling for time, is he? Well, I happen to have a letter from Gringotts that proves I am who I say I am. Surely you are not going to try to deny their statement?” She hands over one of the letters she received from the manager at Gringotts. She thought the goblin had smiled when he gave it to her, but then, who can truly tell with them?

The lady’s hand shakes as she takes the paper. With no other way to delay the imposing figures in front of her, she nods her head, then walks in to give the proof.

Soon the ladies are both grinning as they can hear the shouts in the office. The lady quickly exits and tells them nervously, “The minister is ready to see you.”

Without even a nod, both ladies are moving through the doors to stand before the man who wishes he had more power than he really has.

He is standing as they walk in, his hands outstretched as he proclaims, “Lady Isabella! So nice to see you! I had no idea you were still in the land of the living!”

Bella’s voice is cold as she corrects him, “Lady Swan.”

He stops and blinks. “I-I’m sorry?”

Informing him with the air of a true noble, “It is Lady Swan. I have never given you permission to use my informal address.”

The man sputters and Bella is smiling on the inside; however, she waits for the man to regain himself. It is more fun to knock them down when they think they are in control. She plans for not only Harry to be in her guardianship but for Sirius to be free. Enough of all the other stuff. She has work to do and these are only the first steps in many to find out how the world is going to hell so fast!

Cornelius Fudge is trying to delay as requested by Dumbledore but is quickly realizing that the noblewoman in front of him is not going to allow it. He swallows nervously, seeing with his own eyes the proof of the lady’s curse. The fact that she is one of two individuals that survived it is one for the books. It is not even an Unforgivable Curse, though only because no one knows the words to make it known as one.

He sighs. “How may I help you, Lady Swan? I can see from the letter that you have reclaimed your lands and that there is nothing further wrong. I am not sure why you needed to see me?” He gives it one last chance.

Rolling her eyes, Sheila tells him, “There are a couple of issues, as in who had the right to send Lady Swan to the vampires and be under their control for a decade as well as hiding her away there. The papers came from this office. Then, she will also be giving testimony that Sirius has been framed. Finally, she will be taking her godson to be under her guardianship, as it should have been from the beginning.”

Fudge’s eyes widen. “No!   He cannot be removed from the care of a family member!” All the plans will go to waste!

Bella snorts. “Not only can I do this but I also qualify as his cousin. This is just us being nice and informing you, not asking for your permission. You have no power in this matter. Now. I have left word with the aurors and they should be waiting for us to show proof that Sirius was NEVER to be their secret keeper.”

Fudge actually wrings his hands. Plans are crashing all around him. He had been given orders and he got to keep his job as long as he followed them. But this?? This will be the death of him!

Bella folds her arms and gives him a look. She is dressed in black, since for her, this is the first time she has heard of the deaths of her only remaining family but for Harry. She is mourning her sister’s death.

When the man makes no move to open his door, she shakes her head at him and soon is opening the door to the aurors that will take her testimony.

When they walk in, one of them holding a pensieve. Bella soon has her wand out to remove the memories for them to watch.

When Fudge goes to protest, Tonks tells him with exasperation, “Everyone knows Lady Swan cannot have anything removed from her mind without her doing it herself. It is why she is a secret keeper for so many.”

Fudge protests, “Then why was she not a secret keeper for the Potters?”

Bella laughs. “Because I was the secret keeper for so many. Even then, I offered to be theirs, even when I told them the game plan for choosing one. I disappeared before they made the choice. So we will never know. Now. Stop stalling and get yourself over here. Yet again, I find myself needing to remind you that I am only allowing you the courtesy of this. Otherwise, I will leave and you can find out through the normal routes.”

Fudge swallows but he knows she is right. She is only here for him, so that she can get the answers from him; otherwise, she is in the right to go to each department and ask the same questions. They will have no choice but to give her the answers she is wanting. So he nods and moves beside the rest as Bella puts the memory in there for them to see.

Bella is looking at Lily and James. “I know you guys have your reasons but I cannot stress enough the importance of keeping your secret keeper to yourself until the last minute!”

James sighs, his fingers on the bridge of his nose. “Do you really think Sirius would give us up?”

Standing across from the two Potters, Bella shakes her head. “He would die before giving up the information. Any of them would and I will do the same. But he is obvious and you have already told another!”

Lily looks up from Harry and asks, “Why is this a problem?”

Rolling her eyes, Bella tells them, “The idea of a secret keeper is to hide you from everyone. If everyone knows who that is, then the secret keeper will be hunted if the information is wanted badly enough. There is not enough time to train him to have his mental shields strong enough. There is only one other man that I even know close to my natural shield. Unless Harry himself there inherited the shield.”

Pacing, James asks, “So what you are protesting is that someone knows who the secret keeper is.”

Bella nods, watching him.

Thinking it over, he sighs, then calls Sirius.

When he gets there, they explain to him the issue and he has no problem not being the secret keeper, but spreading the rumors he will be the one.

He grins at James. “It will be fun to lead them on a chase. I will do my part as long as you promise to do as Bella has said. With that, I am out of here. If I hear no more, then I can tell no more.”

With that he leaves and Lily, Bella and James talk about it some more. She extracts a vow made upon their magic from them both that they will stick with the plan.   James even mentions that if it all goes bad, Bella may be the only one to clear Sirius.

Kingsley nods. “Good enough. I will have him released immediately.”

Fudge feebly protests, “But they may have changed their minds.”

Both of the aurors look at Fudge. “And have their magic removed for breaking such a promise? No. We already know they had their magic when they were confronted with He Who Shall Not Be Named.”

Tonks leaves with a disgusted look at Fudge and the other auror has the same look as he leaves, after giving Lady Swan a respectful bow along with Tonks.

Fudge is about to come unglued, everything is falling apart. Then he hears Dumbledore’s voice outside the room and he breathes a sigh of relief.

Dumbledore walks into the room and Fudge silently cheers when Lady Swan gives him a look. Then he is stopped by Dumbledore’s respectful bow. “Lady Swan.”

She nods her head. “Headmaster Dumbledore.”

He chuckles. “I see that even after being sent to the states that you have not lost one iota of your presence, my dear.”

Sheila chuckles. “Not one bit. The other children had no idea what to do with her.”

Dumbledore’s eyes light upon Fudge and he stares hard at him. He then asks Bella, “Did you receive my letter?”

Looking at him innocently. “Why yes I did. Though I wonder how you knew I was alive when the Headmistress of my school didn’t know.”

He smiles. “It was a fond hope and knowledge of my ex-student. We truly need a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher if you wish to take the position. The current teacher is… lacking I am finding.”

Bella looks at him, but she and Sheila had already talked about this to the point that Sheila had the memory removed to protect Bella and her plans.

“I am prepared to take the position once I get my house in order, Headmaster Dumbledore. I still have some errands to take care of.”

Dumbledore frowns. “I hope one of them is not moving poor Harry from his current home?”

Lifting an eyebrow, she says, “Actually, yes it is. I am his legal guardian. I appreciate your help in placing him but I will take that role now. You cannot deny that I have the abilities to do so, now can you?”

It was a challenge and every single person in the room knows it. Bella is a gifted Adept. The only reason she is not in the Order of Merlin or any other is because she refuses. She stands only upon her role as the Lady of the Swans and a member of the Order of Avalon. She has been given the Order of Merlin, 1^st Class, but she has turned it down each time.

She is so powerful that she managed to turn a curse that no one knew about it that she was hit with the first time with, to a minor version. Though many think that the curse is now a blessing, Bella maintains that it is indeed a curse.

Voldemort had tried to gain the curse as she did and when it would never work, he tried to lure Bella to his side to have her give him it. That didn’t work either and she is just as much hated as the Potters.

Dumbledore tries one last time. “There is a blessing on him…” he begins.

Bella nods. “And I qualify under it. I am a living relative of his. I disowned Lily’s sister when she married that idiot who wanted my title under the hogwash that I couldn’t understand how to handle my duties. I also, once I take my position, will be in the unique position to look over him better while he is in Hogwarts. In fact, the spell would be more powerful with me there with him at all times, won’t it, Dumbledore?” She stares hard at him.

He slowly nods his head. “Yes, I believe you to be right, my dear Lady. Well then, I will expect you at your time.” He bows to her and the minister. “Lady Bella, Headmistress Heinz and Minister Fudge, I thank you for your time.”

He leaves and Bella watches him, her mind whirling. She turns back to the Minister, and says, “Now that the reason for your stalling has left, I expect that my request of who sent me on that mission be forwarded to me immediately. I am calling some witnesses as I retrieve my godson’s belongings from his current residence.”

With that, she leaves, her friend behind her and leaving Fudge to collapse on the couch behind him. He has no doubt that he will only have a matter of weeks, if not days, before he gets a recall notice. How could it go so wrong so quickly?

Final count: 2,380

Fairfarren~