Truth be told, it kind of made Harry feel a little guilty, especially after Sirius was such a good sport about it all the time. He'd been starting to feel almost like Dudley, picking on someone who wouldn't fight back, but he hadn't felt like he could stop тАУ not when his da and Remus and a bunch of the other professors found it funny. He grabbed a chocolate frog and munched it contentedly.
He'd been pretty sure Auntie Min was getting fed up though, and he'd hoped that if she found out he was working with spells in her area without her supervision, she'd go spare. Well, she had, and now thanks to her, he was off the hook, and, far from being upset with him, his da and godfathers were handing out frogs. Harry shrugged. Yeah, adults were weird, but they did come in handy.
###
It was only a few weeks later that Harry's birthday occurred, and as promised, he and Neville had a double celebration. Neville's gran was so excited to learn that he had not only made friends at Hogwarts but was also interested in such Wizardly activities as flying, that she turned the birthdays into a two day extravaganza including both a full day at Featherbee's and a sleepover at their manor, complete with magical fireworks.
The only awkwardness came when Augusta flatly refused to link Malfoy Manor to her home's floo, even temporarily. Ever since the attack on Neville's parents, she had ensured that her home was more heavily warded than Gringott's, and she wasn't about to allow a known Death Eater like Lucius Malfoy to have access to it тАУ no matter how fleeting. It meant that the children had to meet at Featherbee's, then travel to Longbottom Manor via Hogwarts, but it was easy enough to excuse that by having the children's overnight bags sent there, rather than accompanying them to the flying arena. Of course, a simple shrinking spell would have prevented any inconvenience, but none of the children seemed to think of that.
In the end, the children had a wonderful time, and even Draco had to admit that Neville's gran had gone all out. Harry had been floored by what a real, no-holds-barred, wizarding birthday party could be like, and Neville was quietly proud of bringing such enjoyment to his friends.
After the party, Harry departed to spend a week at the Burrow, though Snape reminded him that he was only a floo call away, and if he got into trouble, he could expect to return to Hogwarts immediately. Harry had mentally rolled his eyes, but had contented himself with merely promising to be very, very good, a sentiment which Auntie Molly resoundingly echoed. "Of course, he'll be fine, Severus! Don't worry so!"
Snape had huffed indignantly. Why did all these interfering witches insist that he was an overanxious parent? He was merely threatening the little beggar into good behavior. Then Harry had given him a last quick hug and departed for the Burrow, leaving Snape with some blissful, child-free time.
Much as he wished he could spend it brewing, he still had to finalize the details of next term with Filius, and such arrangements took more time than he had anticipated. Meetings always seemed to spawn more meetings, and at the end of the day it was hard to remember what, if anything, had actually been accomplished. Still, Dumbledore seemed reasonably confident that everything was well in hand, so Snape supposed he didn't have to worry too much.
Albus and Minerva had already begun their hunt, interviewing Slughorn repeatedly and doing quite a bit of research to boot. Snape decided that this was a good time тАУ before the students returned тАУ to get Lucius started on his assignment. Accordingly, he contacted the blond and flooed to Malfoy Manor to discuss the matter in depth.
When he arrived, he was relieved to learn that Narcissa had taken Draco to visit some of their relatives in France and Luxembourg, so he need not worry about being overheard.
"How is that elf working out for you, Severus?" Lucius drawled lazily, splashing some fire whisky into a tumbler.
"Fine," Snape replied shortly. "I see you managed to find your summer robes after all."
Malfoy smirked. "It gave Narcissa an excuse to go shopping. So тАУ to what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"
"You'll recall I had mentioned an assignment?"
Lucius' expression grew wary. "YesтАж"
"I'm here to explain what I want you to do. It's quite simple, really."
Lucius' countenance didn't change. "Yes?"
"Overthrow the government."
Lucius blinked, opened his mouth, closed it, and gulped the fire whisky. "Did you just say тАУ"
"Overthrow the government. Fudge's government, to be precise. I want that idiot ousted."
"But I helped install him," Lucius protested.
Snape nodded. "Precisely. So it should be all the more simple for you to remove him."
"Can I ask why?" Lucius asked cautiously.
Snape regarded his own, untouched, glass. "You need not know all the reasons, but you can know that he threatened the boy."
"Potter?" At Snape's nod, Malfoy stroked his jaw. "And so you're removing him тАж Very good, Severus. I see you do think ahead."
Snape put down his tumbler and turned towards the floo. "I prefer to think of it as consolidating my power base, Lucius, but you may term it what you will. I expect Fudge to be gone within the next few months тАУ how you achieve it is your own affair."
"And whom do you expect to replace him?" Lucius called after him. "Am I expected to arrange that as well?"
"No," Snape called over his shoulder, leaving behind a very contemplative pureblood.
TBCтАж
*Chapter 55*: Chapter 55
A fortnight passed with no word from Lucius, and Snape was beginning to get annoyed. In the meantime, Dumbledore and McGonagall had begun to make progress learning about Tom Riddle's quest to create horcruxes, though they still participated in several school-related meetings a week. At one of those, Dumbledore held up a parchment scroll and frowned at it.
"Filius, Severus тАУ during the term you will have to be alert for requests such as this one," he advised. "It will take someтАж diplomacyтАж to refuse without causing lasting insult." He looked rather pointedly at Snape, then turned to Flitwick. "Perhaps as the, ah, more senior person, Filius, you should be the one to handle these matters."
Snape rolled his eyes. If having a trollish personality ensured he had less paperwork, that was hardly incentive to turn over a new leaf.
"What is it, Albus?" Filius squeaked, looking interested as he accepted the scroll.
"The Minister has requested permission to use Hogwarts' grounds for a press conference. The castle is of course a site of some renown in the Wizarding world, and we frequently are owled for permission to hold weddings, fundraisers, and various other events here. Normally, during the summer I am a bit more receptive to such requests, but given Cornelius' behavior this past termтАж"
Snape's mind had been busily working. "What exactly does the letter say?"
Flitwick scanned it. "It appears that Minister Fudge is planning a major announcement тАУ likely something about his plans to seek yet another term тАУ and he wants to speak here, by the lake, with the castle in the background. He writes with his usual diffidence," the small wizard said drily, "that since his announcement will have ramifications for all British wizards and witches, his advisors have suggested that he should make it at a place of great historic significance." Flitwick shook his head at Fudge's arrogance. "I assume Stonehenge was booked."