Chapter 27

"Then it would be best not to tell him," Harry said. "If you're not one hundred percent sure they can be entrusted with this information, it would be best to keep them ignorant." A frown marred Harry's face. It would be hard to come up with a plan if it was just the two of them. They would need more allies.

"I'll see what I can do about gaining potential allies," Harry started. "In the meantime, it may be prudent to try and convince Minister Fudge to increase the funding for the auror corps. As I understand it, ever since he was elected as Minister, the funds for the DMLE have been cut down to a third of what they once were."

"You would be right," Madam Bones grimaced. "Under the suggestion of Lucius Malfoy, Fudge has been cutting funds to the DMLE using the pretense that since the war is over, there is no longer any need for such a large task force."

Harry's lips thinned a bit. Even during a time when there wasn't a war going on, a force like the aurors was still very much needed. From Harry's understanding the auror forces acted as a double for both army and police. Without a large task force capable of policing the entirety of Britain, it left the country vulnerable towards everything from your pick pockets to murderers. And that was saying nothing about having them to protect England against a potential invasion from another country.

"Do you think Lucius Malfoy knows You-Know-Who is alive?"

Blinking at almost the same time, Harry and Madam Bones turned their heads to look at Susan, who let out a slight 'eep!' at suddenly finding herself the center of attention.

"That is a very good question," Harry smiled while Madam Bones looked at her niece in pride. Susan flushed at the praise. "But to answer it, no, I don't think Malfoy knows about Voldemort's continued existence. If he did, the dark lord would have been resurrected by now. All Lucius would have needed to do was inform Fudge of the Stone being placed at Hogwarts and 'convince' him that it was not safe to keep the Stone in a school full of children. After that it would only be a matter of getting his hands on the Stone for his master and giving it to him."

"Harry's right," Madam Bones added thoughtfully. "Secrecy is currently the Dark Lord's best weapon right now. That means he has to remain in hiding from everybody, including his followers. At least until he gains enough strength to let everyone know he's still alive, especially since some of his followers may not like to know he's still around. Lucius Malfoy has always been a man who does what's best for Lucius Malfoy, and as much he may deny it to the Dark Lord if he were asked, he has enjoyed living a life of supreme luxury since his master's demise."

"How hard do you think it will be to increase the DMLE's funding in order to expand the auror forces?" asked Harry, causing Madam Bones to grimace.

"Very," the interim head of the Bones family sighed. "The problem is Lucius Malfoy currently has all the cards. He's either bribed or blackmailed most of the Ministry into his pocket. Just about everyone owes him something, which is why he managed to get so powerful despite not being from the wealthier of families like the Zabini's or the Ashfords. The only people he can't bribe or blackmail are the light families, and they're firmly in Dumbledore's pocket."

"Dmbledore hates violence," Madam Bones continued. "I can't rightly blame him for that. He fought in two wars against two separate Dark Lords. But those wars gave him an aversion to violence and fighting. I doubt he would be willing to have his people help us try to increase funding in order to prepare for war."

"And so we're back to square one," Harry sighed, his thoughts turning to his headmaster. He was not sure what to think about the man. On the one hand, he had placed the Philosopher's Stone in a school with children. On the other, he was very powerful and no one could deny he was wise. Would a man like him really not help them increase funding for their auror corps in order to protect Britain from Voldemort?

"What about the neutral faction?" asked Susan, speaking up once again. Harry and Madam Bones glanced over at her, causing the red head's face to turn as red as her hair, but she still pressed onwards. "They're not working for either side, right? Couldn't you get them to help?"

"We could," Madam Bones said at a questioning glance from Harry. "However, convincing them to band together is an issue in and of itself. The problem with the neutral families, aside from the fact that they like to stay out of most political affairs that don't adversely affect them, is that they're very divided. The neutrals have a number of separate factions within themselves, and none of those factions are very fond of each other. This makes it hard for them to agree on anything, which is why they've never had much power within the Wizengamot, despite making up nearly sixty-five percent of the governing body."

"But if we could get them on our side it would prove incredibly beneficial," Harry rubbed his chin for a moment, then cast a smile at Susan. "That's a very good idea, Sue."

Susan flushed.

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