The next morning Harry was surprised to see Daphne still asleep in the hospital bed with him. Despite what he had said the night before, he really did think that Madam Pomfrey would come and make her leave at some point during the night. Harry tried not to move too much so that he wouldn't wake his girlfriend, but he could sense that she was slowly waking up as well. A few minutes later Madam Pomfrey walked through the door and Harry felt a slight moment of panic worrying about what she would say about Daphne still being there, but then he realized she had probably checked on him at least once during the night and would have already known.

"Good morning, Mr Potter. I need you to take this potion and then you are free to go." the nurse said softly, but the sound was enough to wake Daphne.

"What's going on?" she asked groggily before sitting up in the bed and rubbing her eyes a little. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw Madam Pomfrey looking at them. "Madam Pomfrey! I swear this isn't what you think!" But the older witch just laughed at Daphne's reaction.

"You mean you didn't just spend the night in bed with your boyfriend?" Pomfrey asked with a playful smile.

"Well yes, but-"

"Daphne." Harry interrupted. "It's OK She would have kicked you out if she was really worried about it."

"True. But don't either of you think I am making a habit of it." Madam Pomfrey replied. "And I would prefer it if you, Mr Potter, would try and quit your habit of ending up in my care so frequently."

"I'll try." Harry answered, knowing that with his luck he would just be glad to stay out of the infirmary for the few days remaining in the school year. Madam Pomfrey seemed to sense this as well but just shrugged and handed him the potion she had mentioned. Harry looked at it curiously before deciding it was another pain potion and then downed the entire potion in one great swallow. It, like most potions he had been forced to take in this room, tasted horrible. "So that's it?"

"It is. You can go now, have a good day you two." Madam Pomfrey said before walking away to continue her morning routine. Harry rolled out of bed and stretched a little. He felt much better than he had last night, and his energy seemed to have mostly returned to him. All things considered, he felt better than anyone who had been hit with any two Unforgivables the day before had any right to feel.

"So what are you going to do today?" Daphne asked from the bed.

"Fudge's hearing will be broadcast on the wireless starting in a few hours and I was thinking we could listen to it." Harry suggested. "It should be very entertaining."

"Good idea." Daphne agreed. "Funny how no one knows how much you had to do with it."

"I think I prefer it that way." Harry replied. "I need to go get cleaned up, but can you meet me in front of the kitchens in about a half hour?"

"I guess so." Daphne answered. "Why?"

"I was thinking we could pick up some food and then I could take you somewhere special." Harry said with a mischievous smile on his face. "Just be sure to wear some clothes you don't mind getting dirty."

"What are you planning?" Daphne asked suspiciously.

"You'll see, just trust me." Harry said. Daphne eventually shrugged and agreed, knowing that Harry would be stubborn and not tell her what he had planned. After a kiss good-bye they went their separate ways to get ready for the day. Harry did not spend much time in the Gryffindor tower that morning and neither of them stopped by the Great Hall and as a result they both failed to notice that Hermione was no where to be found.

About an hour later Harry and Daphne finally were able to leave the kitchens. As soon as Dobby discovered that Harry was there the little elf had insisted that they sit and allow him to serve them a full breakfast. It wasn't what Harry had in mind, but he found it difficult to say no and disappoint the devoted elf. The moment Harry started eating he knew would have to thank Dobby for insisting because his hunger came back with a vengeance. He realized he had not eaten since lunch the previous day and afterward had a very strenuous day. Dobby was quite pleased to see Master Harry enjoying his food so much and was happy to keep bringing more of it. Eventually Harry could eat no more and the couple left, after many promises to Dobby that they would return.

"So will you tell me where we're going now?" Daphne asked.

"The second floor." Harry answered, still obviously enjoying not telling his girlfriend everything. Daphne sighed in frustration, but by now her curiosity had gotten the better of her and she followed Harry anyway. It was not until they reached a girl's bathroom on the second floor that she realized what they were doing.

"Harry!" Daphne said loudly, "Why are you taking me to the Chamber of Secrets?"

"There's something down there I am going to need." Harry explained as he walked over the sinks in the middle of the room. Luckily for them, Myrtle had chosen to haunt another bathroom that day and they were able to avoid the somewhat annoying ghost. Daphne had heard Harry's story about his experience during their second year but he had never showed her the Chamber of Secrets before. To the best of her knowledge, no one had been back there since Harry killed the basilisk and saved Ginny Weasley. She watched with a great amount of interest as Harry hissed something in Parseltongue to the faucet and the sinks began to move, revealing a passageway. Harry hissed again and stairs formed leading down into the Chamber of Secrets.

"Do you still want to come?" Harry asked from the top of the stairs.

"Of course." Daphne answered and walked down the stairs in front of him as if to prove she wasn't afraid. Harry laughed and followed her down into the dark tunnels. When they were both safely at the bottom Harry looked around, trying to remember which way he had went two years before.

"Well, the smell hasn't improved." Harry said as he looked around, eliciting a small laugh from Daphne. "We'll go that way." Harry finally said, pointing towards one of several similar looking tunnels.

"Are you sure?" Daphne asked.

"These tunnels are all sort of connected. This leads the right way and if we're lucky we will be able to avoid the cave in." Harry responded. Daphne decided to trust his judgment on this one since she had no idea where she was going anyway. For the next fifteen minutes they walked through the tunnels occasionally turning and entering a new passage. Eventually Daphne had no idea which way they were headed and suspected Harry didn't either.

"Harry you better not have gotten us lost down here." she said with a bit of worry evident in her voice.

"We're almost there, I promise." Harry answered, although it did little to relieve his girlfriend. Daphne was surprised when a few minutes later they the grand hall of the Chamber of Secrets. The huge corpse of the basilisk lay where it had fallen and still looked as if it had died only minutes before instead of two years ago. When Daphne saw the giant beast she wrapped an arm around Harry's waste and wondered how being back was effecting him.

"I can't believe you faced that thing when you were only twelve years old." Daphne said.

"I got lucky, and I had help." Harry replied. "I owe my life to Fawkes, if he hadn't shown up I wouldn't have had the Sword of Gryffindor and the basilisk venom would have killed me."

"Need I remind you that near death experiences are not necessary to end the year?" Daphne asked jokingly. "Although I guess you've already gotten that out of the way for this year."

"I'll do my best next year." Harry answered. He then led her towards the fallen basilisk and began inspecting it curiously. "Why hasn't it started rotting? It's been here a long time."

"Magical animals are different" Daphne reminded him. "And this basilisk was over a thousand years old to begin with. Can you imagine how much this thing must be worth? It's amazing."

"Really? I hadn't thought of it." Harry said truthfully.

"Basilisks are rare and most of their parts are useful for something. One this size could bring in hundreds of thousands of galleons, easily." Daphne said as Harry nodded. "I guess you came down here for something from the basilisk. What?"

"The venom." Harry replied. He then walked over to the animal's head and picked up a large fang that had broken off and was covered with blood and venom. Harry was very careful handling the dangerous item and slowly placed it into a box he had brought with him to store it. "The diary contained a piece of Voldemort's soul, and I got very lucky that there just happened to be one of the few things that could destroy a Horcrux handy when I faced him that day. I plan on destroying all of them as soon as possible, and I'll need this to do it."

"How hard will it be for you to get to them?"

"Some will be harder than others." Harry answered. "One of them will be gone by tonight, but there are others that I still don't know how I will get to. Like Hufflepuff's Cup in Bellatrix Lestrange's vault at Gringott's. I really hope I can find a way to get to it without having to break in."

"Especially considering no one's ever been able to do that."

"Voldemort did." Harry corrected her. "Although he didn't get anything. I guess I've got everything I need here."

"What about the rest?" Daphne said. "Remember, you and Voldemort are the only two that can get down here. If you don't use it he might. Plus you can spend the money on something nice for me."

"I suppose you're right." Harry laughed. "But doesn't it technically belong to Hogwarts?"

"You killed it." Daphne pointed out. "I'd say that gives you a decent claim to it. Besides, they'd never be able to get it without your help."

"OK, I'm convinced. But you're going to have to help me find a way to get it out of here." Harry replied. Daphne nodded in agreement. "Let's get out of here, I don't want to miss Fudge looking like an idiot." Together the two of them left the Chamber of Secrets and the basilisk behind. The trip out was a little shorter than the trip in had been since they both had a better idea of where they were heading. Fortunately. they were able to make it out in time to not miss any of Cornelius Fudge's hearing.

Harry and Daphne were far from alone in wanting to listen to what would hopefully turn out to be the downfall of Cornelius Fudge. The event had major implications for politics in the wizarding world and was being broadcast internationally. Some where even speculating that it could equal the amount of listeners that tuned in for last year's record breaking Quidditch World Cup. Even in Hogwarts students crowded around radios to listen, an event that left many muggleborns wondering why no one had yet created a magical equivalent to television.

The Ministry of Magic itself was crowded like never before. Thousands of witches and wizards showed up hoping to be able to find an open seat in the Great Hall of the Wizengamot which had been expanded to its maximum capacity. Unfortunately for most of them, the empty seats rapidly filled up leaving them to try and find somewhere else to listen in. The Wizengamot itself consisted of one hundred witches and wizards and the Chief Warlock who at this time was none other than Albus Dumbledore. All of the members of the Wizengamot were purebloods, although not all of them agreed with the pureblood bigotry associated with Voldemort and his followers. Almost all of them were additionally from old and wealthy families. As a result the main legislative and judicial body of wizarding Britain tended to be quite conservative in its outlook compared with the rest of the population. Change generally came slow, if it happened at all.

Fifteen minutes before the hearing was set to begin the main doors to Great Hall of the Wizengamot were closed and the spectators were told to take their seats. As the minutes passed the anticipation in the crowd became palpable. Conversations died off as the time drew near and the room was nearly quiet when a series of bells rang indicating the start of the session. A old wizard in elaborate robes walked to the center of the room and began speaking in a very loud voice so that all could hear him.

"This meeting of the Wizengamot is now in session!"

As soon as he had said that the members of the Wizengamot walked into the room from two doors at the back. They were arranged so that the most senior members were closer to the front. In the middle and in front of all of them was an ornate desk where Chief Warlock Albus Dumbledore sat in order to control the meeting.

"The Wizengamot thanks all of you for your attendance." Dumbledore began. "First on the itinerary is-"

"I demand to be heard!" a loud voice called. The audience turned to look at Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge who was standing up towards the front of the audience flanked by his supporters.

"Minister Fudge we will hear from you momentarily, but we do have other business to attend to before that." Dumbledore assured him.

"It is my right as Minister of Magic to be heard and I demand you give me that opportunity." Fudge said, hoping to show that he was in control of the proceedings.

"Very well." Dumbledore sighed. "The Wizengamot recognized Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge." Fudge grinned triumphantly as made his way down to the raised podium at the center of the room. Once there he laid out a few notes and then turned to face the audience instead of Wizengamot. Such a move was highly irregular and everyone recognized it as another of Fudge's power plays.

"Witches and wizards of the Wizengamot and of Great Britain as whole, I stand before you a man innocent of all accusations that have been leveled against me by that foul tabloid the Daily Prophet." Fudge began. "My political enemies have spread rumors and lies about me for their own gain. But you, the good people of this great land, know that I am an honest wizard who has worked to create a brighter future for all of us. There is still work to be done, that we all know, and I am the man to do it.

"Now, as am sure you are by now aware there are some amongst us who have begun spreading rumors that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has returned. LIES! You-Know-Who is dead and can never return. The reason for these ridiculous accusations is that certain people, who sit in this very room but I shall not name, believe that their chances of assuming my position as Minister of Magic will improve if they can fool the public into believing the Dark Lord has returned. Do not be fooled by their lies!

I was surprised as all of you when it was discovered that Peter Pettigrew was still alive, but do not assume that this means Sirius Black is innocent! For all we know they both could have conspired to hand the Potters over to You-Know-Who. Furthermore, the accusations that I hid evidence to keep Black in jail are groundless. That fact will made clear here today. All I ask is that you question what the Wizengamot tells you. Do not forget they have their own agendas! Thank you."

With that Minister Fudge retook his seat while those that supported him applauded as loudly as they could. At best his supporters made up a quarter of the audience and it was clear that he was going to have a difficult time convincing them. Dumbledore allowed their applause to go on for a few moments before banging his gavel on the desk to quiet them.

"The first item on our agenda is one that I regret to say is not on your schedules because it was added just this morning." Dumbledore said as the crowd began to whisper wondering what it could be. "Aurors, if you would be so kind as to bring in the accused we shall begin."

A door on the side of the room opened and group of ten Aurors walked in surrounding a man in prison clothes and chains in his hands and feet. The audience gasped in shock as they realized who it was that had been brought in.

"Peter Pettigrew, you are accused of being a Death Eater and two counts of murder. How do you plead?" Dumbledore asked from the center of the room.

"Chief Warlock!" a member of the Wizengamot interrupted. She was a short, fat woman who looked rather like a toad.

"Yes, Madam Umbridge?" Dumbledore responded.

"This is highly irregular!" Umbridge protested. "I move that the trial of Peter Pettigrew be pushed back to a later date so that he has time to prepare his defense. He was, after all, only captured last night."

"I second that motion!" another member of the Wizengamot shouted.

"Very well." Dumbledore said. "The motion has been forwarded and seconded. Members of the Wizengamot, all those in favor of postponing the trial of Peter Pettigrew please raise your hands." Quite a few people raised their hands, but it was less than a third of them. "All opposed to postponing said trial?" The rest of the Wizengamot, a clear majority, raised their hands to this. "The opposed have it. The trial of Peter Pettigrew will continue as planned. Now, Mr Pettigrew... How do you plead to the charges?"

"Innocent!" Wormtail yelled at once. "I was placed under the Imperius curse and was not responsible for my actions."

"We shall see." Dumbledore responded skeptically. "Aurors, administer Veritaserum to the accused." At this Wormtail began to panic, knowing that he would have no chance of being found innocent if he were questioned under the powerful truth serum. He struggled against the Aurors, an action that only made him look more guilty, but in the end was unable to stop them from dosing him with Veritaserum. The potion had a calming effect on him and he slumped back in his chair awaiting questions from the Wizengamot.

"What is your name?" Dumbledore asked.

"Peter Pettigrew. But some call me Wormtail." the Death Eater answered.

"Was Sirius Black the Potter's secret keeper in October of 1981?"

"No, I was." Wormtail responded. His admission created quite a commotion in the audience and Dumbledore was forced to use his gavel to quiet them once again.

"Has Sirius Black ever been a Death Eater?"

"No, he was always loyal to James."

"Did you reveal the location of the Potter's residence to Voldemort?" Dumbledore asked. As one the audience seemed to lean forward in anticipation of the response.

"Yes."

"Are you a Death Eater?"

"Yes."

"Is Voldemort alive?"

"Yes."

Not even Dumbledore could easily contain the chaos that followed. Members of the Wizengamot and audience all began shouting at each other, some in fright from what they heard, some in disbelief, and some secretly in anger because their master's return had been announced before he was ready for it to be. Aurors were forced to remove some members of the audience that could not control themselves and in the end it took more than ten minutes for calm to return to the room so that the questioning could continue.

"How did Voldemort return?" Dumbledore asked. The audience, and most members of the Wizengamot, shuddered at the mention of the Dark Lord's name even more than they had minutes before when they believed him dead.

"Last night I performed a dark ritual to restore him to his body. That is why we kidnapped Harry Potter." Wormtail explained.

"We've heard enough!" a member of the Wizengamot said loudly. He was from one of the darker families believed to have connections to Voldemort during the first war and some watching were smart enough to see he had likely had other reasons for wanting to end the questioning. "Let us decide his guilt or innocence now. I vote guilty."

"I agree. Guilty." another member of the Wizengamot replied. He was from a light family but was outraged from what he had heard so far. Between the groups that wanted to shut Pettigrew up and those that would like nothing more than to have him receive the Dementor's kiss right that moment they had a majority and were able to call for a verdict to be decided at once.

"All those in favor of finding the defendant guilty?" Dumbledore asked, to which every hand in the Wizengamot was raised. Even those that supported Voldemort knew it was foolish to fight this. "All in favor of finding the defendant innocent?" No hands were raised this time. "Peter Pettigrew, you have been found guilty. You will be taken to Azkaban where you will await sentencing. Your crimes require a life sentence and this court will reconvene in one week to decide whether or not you will face the Dementor's kiss. Aurors, take him away."

Peter was lead out of the hall. He was no longer trying to escape, he was just crying uncontrollably although no one felt any pity for him. Once he was gone discussion in the hall turned towards what they should now do about Sirius Black.

"He is obviously innocent!" one witch said.

"We can't know that! Perhaps Pettigrew just didn't know Black was a Death Eater." one of Fudge's cronies responded. A shouting match followed and neither side seemed to be winning. Many people still felt that Black was guilty of some crimes even if he didn't betray the Potters, the image they had in their heads of 'Sirius Black the criminal' was just too strong to overcome.

"Order!" Dumbledore said loudly as he banged his gavel down. "Will the Wizengamot agree to give Sirius Black the trial he clearly deserves at the nearest opportunity?"

The Wizengamot debated this for a few minutes but finally agreed that if Sirius Black was captured he would be brought before them and given a fair trial.

"...Those in favor have the clear majority." Dumbledore announced after their vote. "Black will receive a trial as soon as possible. Now, onto our-"

"How about right now?" a voice called from the audience, interrupting Dumbledore. The man who had spoken wearing a dark cloak that covered most of his face. He wore glasses and a hat making it hard to determine what he looked like. But when the man removed his disguise it was obvious all who it was.

"Sirius Black!" Minister Fudge yelled from his spot in the audience. "Aurors, arrest him at once!" The crowd meanwhile was gasping in surprise at this unexpected turn of events. Few of them noticed the twinkle in Chief Warlock Dumbledore's eyes at that moment, as if he had something to do with this...

"I don't think so, Fudge." Sirius yelled back. "I was just promised a chance to clear my name 'as soon as possible'. That would be now." Fudge looked furious, but there was nothing he could do about it. Without being called, Sirius walked down and took a seat at the podium in the center of the room and awaited the questions from the Wizengamot. The Wizengamot mostly looked at him in shock while Sirius simply smiled and waited for them to proceed.

"Aurors, please administer Veritaserum to Mr Black." Dumbledore finally said. The Aurors approached and this time the person they were trying to give the truth serum to did not fight against them but instead took it willingly. When the dose was given Sirius took on the calm look that those given Veritaserum often do.

"What is your name?" Dumbledore asked to confirm the identity of the man in front of them.

"Sirius Black."

"Were you the Potter's secret keeper?"

"No." Sirius answered. "We decided that I was too obvious of a choice."

"Who was the secret keeper?" Dumbledore asked, although he and everyone else already knew the answer.

"Peter Pettigrew."

"Are you now, or were you ever a supporter of Voldemort?"

"No. Never." Sirius answered.

"Were you responsible for the deaths of a dozen muggles on the day it was believed that Peter Pettigrew had died?"

"No. Peter did that."

"Wizards and witches of the Wizengamot, have you any further questions before we reach a decision?" Dumbledore asked. Meanwhile Fudge's supporter's were panicking, they could see no way for them to keep their key ally in power. But they were reluctant to stop trying.

"I do." Madam Umbridge said as she rose from her seat. "Sirius Black, are you guilty of any other crimes the Wizengamot should know about?"

"I escaped Azkaban, which I assume is a crime." Sirius responded. "And I am an unregistered animagus. That is all." Umbridge sat down unhappily, clearly she had been hoping for something worse with which she could then attack him with.

"In that case you will be required to register with the Ministry of Magic and pay a fine." Dumbledore instructed him. "There is, in fact, no law against escaping from Azkaban because it was not believed to be possible. If the Wizengamot is ready, we shall now vote on the matter. Those who find the defendant guilty of murder, please raise your hand." No one raised their hand, not even the staunchest ally of Fudge. "Those who find him innocent?" Once again everyone raised their hand, although some did so reluctantly.

"Sirius Black, you have been found innocent. You have our deepest apologies for what has been done to you and are now free to go." Dumbledore said with a poorly concealed smile. Sirius, who was just getting over the effects of the Veritaserum, jumped out of his seat gave a victorious shout. The audience began to applaud the now free man and Sirius, ever the showman, leapt on top of the nearest table and took an exaggerated bow. Once again it took several minutes and many more bangs from Dumbledore's gavel before they were ready to proceed.

"Our last issue of the day concerns the inquiry into whether or not Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge was aware of Sirius Black's innocence before he was imprisoned." Dumbledore began. "The Wizengamot welcomes Minister Fudge and thanks him for his attendance. Minister, I believe you had an opening statement?" Fudge slowly made his way down to the podium again. Once there he began to look over his notes but quickly realized the rest of the day's revelations had rendered them useless. For an uncomfortably long period of time Fudge merely stood there silently as the crowd waited for him to begin.

"Thank you, Chief Warlock and the rest of the Wizengamot for this opportunity to vindicate myself." Fudge began. "I must once again state that I am innocent of all charges. If their is any evidence that suggests otherwise I would like to see it as well to determine what kind of trickery it is. I wish to also add that with the return of You-Know-Who, now is not the time to be making drastic changes in our political system. I will strongly oppose the Dark Lord and all those who support him, you have my word on that!" What Fudge seemed to not understand is that the audience remembered him denying that Voldemort had returned earlier in the day and that his word wasn't worth very much. Fudge's statement appeared to be over because he left the podium after that and sat down.

"Does the Wizengamot have any witnesses it wishes to call in the matter?" Dumbledore asked. As the Chief Warlock asked his question Fudge began to smile as if there was something he knew that no one else did.

"Yes, Chief Warlock." Amelia Bones, director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and member of the Wizengamot answered. "We call former Auror Wesley Harris." A few moments later a middle aged wizard walked into the room and towards the podium. As he did Minister Fudge jumped out of his seat as if he wished to object to something but in the end said nothing and sat back down looking very unhappy. His eyes darted up towards the Wizengamot and he began glaring angrily, but it was unclear who he was looking at.

"Mr Harris, I believe you have a memory you wish to share with us?" Dumbledore asked politely.

"Yes, sir." Harris answered. "I actually have two."

"The one concerning Sirius Black first if you don't mind." Dumbledore replied. Harris nodded and a modified pensieve was brought to him. It would allow the memory to be projected for everyone to see. Harris carefully drew the memory out and placed it in the pensieve. Moments later the memory began playing and it showed exactly what the Daily Prophet had reported it did. Fudge and Crouch Sr both knew that Sirius Black was innocent and conspired to send him to Azkaban anyway in order to protect their own political careers. When the short memory ended the crowd began to boo and jeer loudly at the Minister of Magic, who had the decency to lower his head a little in shame at his actions.

"Silence!" Dumbledore called out, ordering the audience to control themselves. "The second memory, please." Harris nodded and pulled out another memory which he carefully placed in the pensieve. Unlike the last time, no one knew what to expect from this memory as it began to play.

The memory showed Harris, looking almost identical to what he now did, sitting in a nondescript office. He appeared to be confused as to why he was there. Minutes later the door to the office opened and a short woman dressed entirely in pink walked in. The crowd gasped in surprise when they realized it was Delores Umbridge, the very same supporter of Minister Fudge and member of the Wizengamot who had already spoken out several times in today's session. The toad-like woman walked towards Harris as he looked up at her with a surprised look on his face.

"Who're you? Where's my guard?" Harris asked.

"Oh, that doesn't matter." Umbridge replied. "I'm here to talk about your filthy lies about Minister Fudge."

"They aren't lies." Harris insisted.

"Of course they are." Umbridge said. "You know, lying is a very bad thing. Bad for those who do it, and for their families."

"You bitch!" Harris shouted angrily, "How dare you threaten my family!"

"I don't remember ever threatening your family." Umbridge replied. "I am sure they will be just fine once we reach an agreement here today."

"What do you want?" Harris asked, still obviously seething in rage.

"To never hear from you again. You must not repeat those terrible lies about the Minister." Umbridge said haughtily. "There may even be some financial benefit, assuming you refuse to speak before the Wizengamot. But not until after."

"Fine." Harris answered. "Just leave me and my family alone."

"Excellent!" Umbridge responded. "Don't forget what you promised here, I won't." With that Umbridge left the room and the memory ended. The Wizengamot was left in an uproar with members yelling at Umbridge for her crimes while she professed her innocence. Aurors were forced to surround her for her own protection, although many of them were also hoping to be able to incarcerate her.

"Aurors, please take Madam Umbridge in to custody on charges of witness intimidation." Dumbledore said sadly. "We will schedule the trial itself at a later date. Now, back to the matter of Minister Fudge. Some of you have spoken out in favor of also arresting him, but I do not have the authority to arrest a sitting Minister of Magic."

"I call for a vote to remove Minister Fudge!" Elphias Doge, an old friend of Dumbledore and long time member of the Wizengamot, yelled. Several other shouted out their agreement towards the idea.

"The removal of the Minister of Magic would require a two thirds majority. Does the Wizengamot wish to proceed?" Dumbledore reminded them. Their approval was unmistakable. "In that case the vote will be cast. Minister Fudge, do you have anything to say before we vote?"

"I... uh... I was completely unaware of Madam Umbridge's actions and my next act as Minister of Magic will be to fire her from her position within the Ministry!" Fudge offered, but even he knew it was not enough.

"I'm sure." Dumbledore answered skeptically, causing many in the audience to laugh. "All those in favor of removing Cornelius Fudge from his position as Minister of Magic?" This time the vote was very close since they needed a two thirds majority. Fudge had many dark families and his own group of hangers on supporting him and the outcome was very uncertain. A count began to see how many had voted to remove Fudge and in the end the number was written down on a piece of parchment and handed to Chief Warlock Dumbledore.

"Those who support removing Minister Fudge have amassed sixty eight votes, which is more than the required majority." Dumbledore announced. Fudge, who had been standing in anticipation of the announcement, dropped back in his chair in disappointment. "Cornelius Fudge, you are hereby stripped of the title Minister of Magic. As required in our laws, this body will reconvene in one week to vote on a new Minister of Magic. That concludes today's scheduled items. Is there anything else before we adjourn?"

"Yes!" an older witch said as she stood up. "Aurors, now that he is no longer Minister of Magic I ask that you arrest Cornelius Fudge."

The aurors looked towards Dumbledore for confirmation and he nodded slightly. Fudge barely reacted as the Aurors approached him lifted him out of his chair. The shock of the moment was so powerful that even when his wand was taken from him Fudge did not say anything. It was a sight that those in attendance would never forget.

"If that is all, this session of the Wizengamot is ended." Dumbledore announced. Immediately the crowd, no longer required to keep quiet, began discussing the days events much like witches and wizards everywhere were also doing. It would go down as one of the most strange and eventful days in the history of the Wizengamot. Dumbledore, who had secretly orchestrated most of it, left the room with a large smile and twinkle in his eye. His first action once free of his duties as Chief Warlock was to find and congratulate Sirius Black.