The Battle for Harry’s Soul

Cornelius was in full minister mode now, his righteous anger shared by every adult in the hall. "This is a school, having anything inside it that would cause any student a 'most painful death' is criminal. I want that corridor stripped bare, all traps and items removed. This school is then going to be searched from top to bottom as never before. The safety of these children rests on our shoulders and if some people appear to have forgotten, or chose to disregard that, I promise I will ensure student care will no longer be their responsibility." The minister was staring directly at Dumbledore as he said this and there was no room for ambiguity in his words, Albus Dumbledore was finished at Hogwarts.

To set a trap for a dark wizard inside a school was disgraceful, to then employ that dark wizard to teach students was as unforgivable as any curse.

"Minerva, I want these children to spend the night inside this hall, there will be a strong auror presence here all night to ensure their safety. The children shall be returning home tomorrow, until this situation is resolved to my satisfaction they will remain there. As of this moment Hogwarts is closed!" This drew gasps from the hall but the minister was showing a powerful side to him most didn't know he possessed.

"We have one body lying on the floor that died in front of all these children. Both Potters had to be carried out of here and we also have a student so badly injured that he's being transferred directly to St Mungo's. Hogwarts is not a safe environment and will remain closed until it is. The headmaster has a trial on Monday that has just taken on even more importance. The ministry is putting its house in order, it's long past time for Hogwarts to received the same treatment."

The hall was disturbed by Ron Weasley being floated past the doors on a stretcher, the twins zoomed to their brother's side. Ron was unconscious and swathed in bandages, Fred and George only had a few seconds to see him as Madam Pomfrey wanted to get to the hospital right away.

Dumbledore had sat there unmoving since the Potters left, he might have been made from stone for all the reaction he showed to what was happening around him. He was having an internal discussion with himself as the spirit's words had shattered his universe. They had consigned him to not only ignominy, but to spend the rest of his life in Azkaban!

As a final resort, Albus intended to reveal the presence of Voldemort's horcruxes, explaining how the evil wizard had used them to survive. The magical world would then throw themselves at his feet and beg him to destroy these abominations, the name of Albus Dumbledore would once again be revered. They wouldn't be able to lock him up since they needed him.

The revelation from Tom that they were gone and he wouldn't be back heralded the destruction of one Albus Dumbledore. There were two questions that it was imperative he find the answers to before he was arrested. As far as he was aware, the only other person with any knowledge of horcruxes was Horace. How could it be possible they were not only discovered, but destroyed without him knowing?

The second question was, if anything more puzzling and even more urgent he find the answer to. How can the horcruxes be destroyed when there was one inside Harry Potter's head? Neither can live while the other survives, Harry Potter had to die before the dark lord could be banished forever.

Albus just received a bigger jolt than that time he'd peed up against an electrified fence. Honestly, using electricity to ensure a few sheep didn't stray, muggles were indeed strange.

Now he understood what was going on here, all the pieces fell into place. He should have known there was no way an eleven year old boy could have outsmarted Albus Dumbledore!

He came out of his self-imposed stupor to see the minister, Minerva and Amelia staring directly at him. Albus knew he didn't have a moment to lose so acted immediately.

"Cornelius, things here are not what they seem and we must act at once to rectify the situation."

"Dumbledore, that's the first thing you've said I've agreed with in months!"

Albus missed the sarcasm, too focused on his own brilliance. He also completely ignored the little voice inside his head saying he was ill and should see Poppy before someone got hurt. "I'm glad you see it too Cornelius, the dark lord must be stopped immediately!"

Every pair of eyes except Dumbledore's turned as one to stare at the dead body lying underneath the sheet, all wondering how you could stop a person more permanently than killing them.

Dumbledore was almost condescending in his tone, "Oh don't be confused by that shell lying there. If I say so myself, tonight we witnessed the most brilliant plan, quite masterfully executed by the dark lord and his accomplice." The headmaster was now the recipient of stares previously reserved for evil wizards with dark lords growing out the back of their heads.

"I should have spotted it sooner, they instantly began recruiting followers even before they set foot in the castle. They also made sure to stay as far away from me as possible. That is no more than a discarded husk lying there, the real Voldemort left here in Hagrid's arms and he must be stopped at once!"

Neville was not only on his feet but in Dumbledore's face, well as much as their height discrepancies would allow. "You stupid old man, Voldemort killed his parents! Harry would die before he would help that animal."

Dumbledore's next statement saw the tears and screams returning to Hogwarts. "Harry Potter is already dead, that was Lord Voldemort who left Hogwarts tonight."

Susan left her aunt's side for the first time since she'd arrived tonight, the fury expressed her voice was shocking to her guardian. "Aunt Amelia, if you don't do something about this old nutter, then we will!"

The once shy little girl was enraged and stood there with her wand drawn, ready to do battle for her friends. A quick glance around ensured Amelia she wasn't the only one.

Albus was unconcerned, "Children, Lord Voldemort has been fooling people for decades, he's a master of the art. Harry Potter had a piece of Voldemort's soul lodged in his head, the lad has to die before the dark lord can be banished for good. That piece of soul has somehow taken control of the boy's body. The spirit saying its anchors were all gone was nothing more than an elaborate hoax to throw me off the scent while Voldemort works in the background. That's what Harry's been doing, making changes and recruiting faithful followers." If he expected the entire hall to concede 'Dumbledore, you're so right! Thanks for explaining that to us' the headmaster was going to be bitterly disappointed.

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