Severus motioned to Minerva as he ushered Harry into the private room where Dumbledore had taken Fudge. The woman caught on immediately, taking up guard position at the door to prevent Lucius Malfoy from following them. It had not escaped Severus' notice how Lucius had stared at Harry - he wasn't about to allow the man anywhere near Harry.
While Fudge and Madam Bones took the seats Dumbledore offered to them, Molly Weasley lit the fire in the enormous fireplace. Severus watched as his sister was reunited with her husband. A quick grasp of hands, an exchange of glances were all they allowed themselves, but Severus could see the emotion behind the greeting all the same. Diana had truly feared that she would not see Alrik again; her relief was plain on her face.
The rest of the Weasleys crowded into the room along with Hermione Granger and several members of the Hogwart's staff. Harry was subjected to an enormous hug from Hagrid, which amused everyone. Even the Auror Stark smirked in amusement as Harry patted the half-giant on the back and tried to assure him he was fine while preventing his lungs from being crushed by the man's embrace. Minerva waited until everyone was in the room before entering and pulling the door firmly closed behind her. Severus sensed several privacy wards going up - no doubt to keep information from getting out to the members of the press that might have remained behind unobtrusively.
Surprisingly, it was Harry who started the conversation, turning unexpectedly on the Minister after Hagrid had released him. "One hundred and fifty years ago, the Ministry came to the Winter Lands, opened the Well of Despair and began collecting Dementors for Azkaban. Why was the Well left opened? Why was the Winter Land's request for aid ignored?"
A quick judge of the expressions in the room clued Severus into the fact that very few people here had any idea what Harry was talking about. Dumbledore himself looked surprised and glanced over at Percy Weasley who was frowning deeply and searching through a rather large pile of papers he'd been carrying with him.
Fudge on the other hand just scoffed at Harry's words. "Because we knew there was no immediate threat."
Alrik leaped to his feet at that, despite the restraining hand Diana placed on his arm. "No threat! We were overrun by Dementors!"
Fudge just sneered at the man and shook his head. "Don't be ridiculous! There was an Environmental Impact Study done. The Winter Lands were determined to be able to support a population of 500 Dementors before there would be any threat to the human inhabitants. One Dementors for every 200 square miles of land is no threat to a Wizarding population."
They all stared incredulously at Fudge at such a statement.
It was Hagrid who corrected him. "'Course that's makin' the 'sumption they stay on their bit o' land, innit?"
Alrik glared at Fudge. "Did it occur to anyone in the Ministry that they'd hunt together in a pack and go to where their natural food source is? They feed on souls - they went to where the humans were. What were we supposed to do, stay locked inside our Keeps night and day?"
But still Fudge waved off the protest as if it were meaningless. "They didn't need to go after humans. They had an adequate food source away from the human population."
Severus, along with the others in the room, had no idea what he might have meant by an adequate food source. As far as he knew Dementors only fed on human souls - but he could see by a look of shock in Harry's eyes that he understood what the man had said.
"You mean the Wyrms?" The boy looked sickened by the realization and Severus wished now he had taken the time to ask Harry what he had said to the Wyrms to make them back away from the fight. At the time, he hadn't cared beyond the fact that the battle was over. He couldn't help remembering now how the Wyrms had turned as one and bowed to the boy in respect. "How can you blithely sacrifice Dragons like that? I thought Dragons were a protected species?" He glanced at Charlie Weasley as if for confirmation. But the Minister cut in before Charlie could answer.
"They are not Dragons!" the Minister stamped his foot. "They're animals. Under the Magical Creature Classification Act they are listed as animals, nothing more."
But Harry shook his head. "They're intelligent creatures capable of speech. To call them a food source for Dementors you must have been aware of the fact that they had souls. What's more, they know they have souls, and fear losing them just like humans do. Furthermore they are capable of compassion - of forgiveness. They attacked us when we fought the Dementors, but when I explained that we had imprisoned the Dementors and sealed the Well, they abandoned their attack and returned home."
Fudge froze at that, his eyes widening. "What do you mean you imprisoned the Dementors and sealed the Well?"
"They were killing people," Harry informed him. "Devouring their souls. Men, women and children! What else did you think we would do?"
"You stupid boy!" Fudge shouted, seeming for a moment to forget there was anyone else there. Severus stiffened, reaching for his wand as he feared Fudge might attack Harry in his rage. "Do you have any idea what you have done?"
But Severus was not about to allow Harry to be attacked for this - not for something that needed to be done, something that should have been done by the Ministry. "What are you talking about?"
"We need those Dementors!" Fudge turned his rather wild gaze on Dumbledore as if seeking some help there. "You-Know-Who is gathering an army. You know this, Albus. We need those Dementors to fight."
Dumbledore just shook his head, his blue eyes hard behind his glasses. "I've warned you before, Cornelius. Dementors are Dark Creatures. They will not side with the Ministry. If Voldemort calls them, they will go where he commands." The majority of the people in the room flinched as the Dark Lord was named, and Fudge drew back in horror.
"They've been working for the Ministry for one hundred and fifty years," the Minister insisted. "We have no reason to believe they will turn on us. You have no proof of this Albus."
But Harry was neither swayed nor frightened, and his eyes were burning with anger. "And the fact that they've been killing people in the Winter Lands doesn't bother you?"
"We have no evidence of that," Fudge informed him, his face pale.
It was Alrik who laughed incredulously. "No evidence! What about all the formal requests for aid we've filed with the Ministry, year after year! Were they just ignored?"
Fudge gave the man a condescending sneer. "They were all received and voted on by the Wizengamut. I assure you my administration does not ignore requests. Everything was managed quite legally."
Both Dumbledore and Madam Bones looked alarmed at that, glancing at each other in bewilderment. "What in Merlin's name are you talking about, Minister Fudge?" Madam Bones demanded. "I remember no such request."
Dumbledore nodded in agreement. "I've served on the Wizengamut for seventy five years. I saw no such request for aid either."
Surprisingly it was Percy Weasley who spoke up then, holding up several large packs of paper and scrolls. "Actually, sir, I have the paperwork right here of the most recent petition from the Winter Lands. After it went through the Translation Department, it was voted on by the Wizengamut."
"Translated?" Alrik asked in bewilderment as he crossed the room swiftly to Percy's side and took hold of the paperwork. He began leafing through the pages, his eyes widening in shock. "This is written in Old English!"
Percy nodded in agreement. "All the requests are written in Old English - few members of the Wizengamut understand it, so it is first translated which causes a bit of a delay."
But Alrik looked outraged. "None of our requests are written in Old English! I wrote many of them myself - in modern English! This isn't even my handwriting!"
Dumbledore came forward and took the papers from the fuming Viking, quickly scanning through the documents. Madam Bones peered over his shoulder at the writing. "This isn't a request for aid," Dumbledore announced. "What was voted on was the continuing status of a Protected Wildlife Preserve."
"Wildlife Preserve?" Alrik looked horrified and Severus had to sympathize with the man, horrified himself.
"So what - the Dementors are a protected species?" Severus demanded of the Minister. "And humans and Wyrms are their natural food source?"
"Who could do this?" Alrik demanded. "How could this happen?"
"Come now," Fudge cut in, looking calm once again. "I'm certain nothing sinister is at play. But mistakes happen when documents are poorly translated."
"There was nothing to translate!" Alrik shouted at him. "I told you, we did not write anything in Old English!"
"So you say," Fudge just shrugged.
Harry's voice caught them all off guard, for it was low and angry and filled with a quiet rage that permeated the room. "You knew this was not right. You knew exactly what was going on and you did nothing to stop it!"
Fudge turned on the boy. "What I know is that you are attempting to interfere in matters you know nothing about. And we at the Ministry do not take kidnapping - false or otherwise - lightly!"
"And I do not take the murder of innocent men, women and children lightly!" Harry snarled and like so often happened with Harry grew angry, his power raced through the room and all the furniture in the place began shaking violently, occupied or not. Fudge backed away from Harry in alarm, fear flashing across his face.
"Stark!" he shouted out as if to command the Auror to protect him. But Connor Stark was no more foolish than anyone else in the room; he backed away from Harry and raised both his hands as if to show he had no wand drawn.
It was Dumbledore who moved forward and confronted Harry, placing one strong hand on the boy's armored shoulder, his blue eyes intent on the boy's face. "Harry," he said softly and just like that the furniture stilled as if something had reached out and pulled Harry's power back into check.
Dumbledore turned a stern gaze on Fudge. "Cornelius," he stated, catching the man's full attention by the anger in his own voice - Dumbledore was so rarely angered. "Did you know about this? Did you know what was going on?"
Fudge shook his head wildly. "Albus, of course not! I'm just doing my job! Doing what is expected of me."
"And that's all you care about, isn't it?" Harry demanded. "Your job. You care nothing about the people you are supposed to lead and protect. You care nothing about the lives that have been lost. All you care about is getting re-elected."
Fudge glared at Harry. "Mr. Potter, I will not have-"
"You will not have anything from me, Minister!" Harry interrupted him and Severus found himself tensing nervously, hearing the finality in Harry's voice, and understanding that whatever the boy declared now would hold all of them to a binding path. The Gryffindor did not realize how much power he wielded.
"No support, no vote!" Harry continued, and his words pretty much confirmed that Dumbledore, Severus, Sirius Black, Flitwick and McGonagall, all of whom held numerous votes would not be backing Fudge either - Madam Bones of course had always been the man's rival and things just improved drastically for her. Severus guessed that the Winter Lands as well, who among the various Lords had numerous votes, would not lend their votes to Fudge either. But once again his brother-in-law surprised him, going one step further.
"You will having nothing from the Winter Lands as well," Alrik informed him. "As of this moment we transfer our Protectorate status to Mr. Potter."
Severus found himself sinking down into a chair, which Bill Weasley shoved toward him unobtrusively while Fudge sputtered in shock.
"You can't do that!" the Minister protested. "Mr. Potter is not a nation! He can not hold a Protectorate!"
Severus could tell by the look on Harry's face that he had no idea what had just happened, but Severus understood the nuances of Viking law well enough to guess at what Alrik was about to say. "Not three hours ago every lord in the Winter Lands swore an oath of fealty to Mr. Potter. By Winter Land law that gives him the status of king, and more than capable of holding a Protectorate. If you want anything from the Winter Lands - our crops, the armor we make for your Auror Corp, the ore we mine for Wizarding Steel, the countless Potion ingredients we supply to your Hospitals - you will have to re-negotiate. As of this moment, all treaties between the Winter Lands and Britain are null and void."
Fudge looked shocked, which Severus guessed was about how everyone else in the room was feeling, himself included. "You can't do this!" the Minister protested again. He turned toward Dumbledore. "Albus?"
Dumbledore just shook his head. "I'm afraid he can, Cornelius."
"But that is the same as declaring war against Britain!" Fudge exclaimed, staring at Alrik in disbelief.
Alrik just shrugged and smirked at the man, seeming to be enjoying his discomfort. "Oh, I hardly think we have anything to worry about when it comes to war with Britain. As you said you have another war to worry about first. You can not afford to battle against us and the Dark Lord."
"And if You-Know-Who chooses to attack the Winter Lands, what will you do without the Ministry's protection?" Fudge demanded.
"The Ministry has already proven, quite effectively, that they have no intention of protecting us; quite the contrary, they will sacrifice us to protect themselves," Alrik replied coldly. "I do not know if the Dark Lord can be defeated. But I do know that if he can, it will not be done by the Ministry, but by Harry Potter and those who stand with him."
Furious, Fudge turned toward Stark, pointing a finger imperiously at Alrik. "Stark, you will arr-"
"I hope you're not about to order me to arrest a foreign dignitary, Minister Fudge," Stark cut in quickly. "Which if I understand the law correctly is what Lord Brand just became a few moments ago." He looked to Dumbledore for confirmation and received an amused nod. "So you see," he shrugged. "Without a formal declaration of war against the Winter Lands, that would be an illegal arrest order."
"Well, then I formally-" Fudge began only to be cut off by Dumbledore.
"You can not formally declare war without full ratification by the Wizengamut, which I assure you, you will not get."
"No, you will not," Madam Bones agreed. She seemed torn by both shock and amusement by the events unfolding in front of her. "My goodness, Cornelius, I do believe you are the first Minister in centuries to have lost a Protectorate of Britain. The press will have a field day with this!"
Fudge just stared in shock as Madam Bones turned to Dumbledore and smiled rather smugly. "You must excuse me, Albus. I feel it is my civic duty to inform the public about what has taken place tonight. I believe the Press Corp is down in Hogsmeade as we speak."
"I understand completely," Dumbledore assured her, his blue eyes twinkling brightly. Madam Bones headed straight toward the door, a surprising spring in her step.
"But, but, but! Wait!" Fudge cried in panic, and when she did not stop, he raced after her, disappearing through the door.
"Well, on that note," Stark announced. "I think I'll gather my Aurors together and get back to my real job. " He nodded respectfully to Dumbledore. "Albus."
"Good evening to you, Auror Stark," Albus smiled.
The man paused before leaving, giving Harry a quick smile. "Mr. Potter, as always it's been a pleasure." And then he too exited the room, closing the door behind him.
Dead silence followed his departure until finally, in a baffled voice, Harry asked, "What just happened here?"
Laughter followed his words as the tension broke. "You just got promoted, mate!" one of the Weasley twins informed him. The other chimed in immediately," Good show there, Harry!"
Harry however looked horrified as he turned his gaze toward Alrik. "You weren't serious about the whole king thing!"
"Relax, Harry," Dumbledore placed a hand on Harry's shoulder. "It's not as bad as it sounds."
When Harry started to look a bit pale, Charlie shoved a chair forward and the boy sank down into it. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Alrik just laughed. "We've been a self-governing nation for centuries, Harry. This changes nothing."
"Then the title is completely honorary," Remus asked, attempting to confirm what they were all thinking. Severus however knew there was more to it than that.
Alrik sighed. "Not exactly. We are a warrior nation. If Harry summons us, we will come and fight for him. But there is no demand of rulership or government. We will continue on as we always have."
"And what if Voldemort attacks you?" Harry asked in shock. "Swords and armor are all well and fine against Grendlings, but they are no match for an army of Death Eaters. I can not protect you alone, and I have no resources to call upon!"
For a moment there was silence in the room as everyone stared at the boy sitting before them, clad like a young prince in glittering armor, head bowed as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders. And perhaps it was, Severus thought, as it was brought home to him once again that what anyone else might see as a privilege to be exploited, Harry instead saw as a duty - perhaps even a sacred duty that he was terrified of failing.
Alrik sighed and smiled gently, moving to kneel on one knee at Harry side. "Harry, my father and I discussed this with the other Winter Land lords last night. We all knew the risks."
Harry looked up then, his green eyes wide with worry. "You planned this then?"
"No," Alrik shook his head. "But we discussed the possibility if our worse fears were confirmed and the Ministry had abandoned us. But they have done more than abandoned us, they have betrayed us Harry, in the worst possible way. We knew the risks in this action, but I do not think it is a great one. There are only two things in our land that could be of any interest to the Dark Lord - Dementors and raw ore for Wizarding Steel. The Dementors are now gone thanks to you, and if he comes for our ore, we will destroy our mines and retreated into the mountains. It would be far more trouble than its worth. It would be far easier for his Death Eaters to purchase finished weapons from other sources."
His words seem to calm Harry somewhat, though the haunted look did not truly leave the boy's eyes. Alrik clapped him lightly on the shoulder and stood to face Dumbledore.
"I should return to my father and inform him what has taken place, sir," he said respectfully.
Dumbledore nodded and pulled a small pouch from one of the inner pockets of his dark blue robes. "This might make the trip a bit easier."
Alrik opened the pouch and poured out a large quantity of what looked to be Butterbeer bottle caps into his hand. He looked at Dumbledore in confusion.
The old wizard just stroked his long white beard and shrugged. "Portkeys," he explained. "They'll take you directly to gates of Bifrost Hall."
Alarmed, Alrik looked at the large number of bottle caps, calculating how many people could be transported with that many portkeys.
"Well," Albus shrugged innocently. "We weren't certain what had happened to Harry. We thought Severus and the others might need a bit of help. I was about to gather the Order."
Alrik turned to stare at Severus in shock. "You weren't kidding about the army of angry wizards?"
Severus just shook his head at his brother-in-law.
"Albus," Remus cut in. "What about Sirius? The Press will be crawling all over this place when they learn what happened tonight."
"You're right of course," Albus nodded and gave Alrik a piercing stare. "Perhaps you would be kind enough to take Sirius with you when you return to the Winter Lands - if only for a few weeks at least."
"Of course," Alrik agreed. "My father granted him asylum already. And after the events of tonight, he is essentially a free man within our borders. He may stay as long as necessary. Truthfully, we'll welcome someone of his strength to help us get things back to normal." He glanced at Remus and nodded assuringly at him. "I'll collect him when I leave."
"As for the rest of you," Dumbledore announced. "We should get Harry, Ron, Ginny and Hermione in bed - they have classes tomorrow. Severus if you would escort Harry down to your rooms, and perhaps the twins can take Ron, Ginny and Hermione up to Gryffindor Tower. I would appreciate if the rest of you help me clear out any remaining visitors from the castle."
As Severus stood to escort Harry back to their rooms, he caught the nod from Albus and understood that all of them would be meeting afterward to speak further on this matter. No doubt Albus was dying to know what had transpired in the Winter Lands to make its lords swear an oath of fealty to a boy they had just kidnapped.
Severus ushered Harry out of the room and down toward the dungeons of Hogwarts, moving into Slytherin territory. The young man was silent, and there was a gray cast to his face that Severus did not like. He guessed that at last the boy had reached the end of his strength - or at least the limit of his ability to deal with the chaos of his life. Severus could only hope that this would be the end of surprises for a while. He wasn't certain how much more he could take. Truthfully he felt like locking Harry in their quarters and forbidding him to leave - at least for a year or so.
They reached their portrait and Severus quietly murmured the password. Harry stepped into the room with a strange sigh of relief as if he too might like to remain there and not come out.
The boy crossed to the fireplace, sinking down onto one of the couches. The metal scales of his armor clinked together as he sat.
"Let me help you with your armor," Severus offered. Harry made no protest as Severus knelt in front of him and began undoing his belt. He sat passively by while Severus removed the armor he and Black had clad him in earlier that day, first the shin guards, then the arm bracers.
"Stand," he ordered, and the young man obediently rose to his feet, raising his arms. Severus caught the hem of the mail shirt and pulled it smoothly upward and over his head, carefully lifting it off his body. Though the armor was nearly weightless, it still pressed against the body in strange ways, and the padding beneath showed signs of wear. Severus couldn't help wondering if the body beneath would be bruised as well - he did not know if Harry had been struck during the battle that day.
"Are you injured at all?" he asked, worried suddenly.
But Harry shook his head. "A few bruises. I'm fine. I think I'd just like to sleep."
"Take a hot bath before you do," Severus advised. "I'm going to go help Albus clear out the castle. I'll return later. Do not let anyone into the room. If you need something, summon that blasted house elf that is so fond of you."
Harry just nodded and proceeded toward the bedroom door, and Severus found himself watching him in concern. He was closed off and quiet - a state that was unnatural to a Gryffindor. And Severus was not the sort of person who knew how to deal with emotional upheaval. Perhaps Remus would have been a better person to tend to him just now, though Severus was loathed to admit such a thing.
He waited until the door to the bedroom had closed before he summoned the house elf himself. The strange little creature, who seemed to be clad in a brand new Weasley sweater bearing a large blue 'D' on the front, appeared instantly in front of him. Severus tossed the shirt of armor to the creature. "Clean that and the rest of it," he ordered the elf. "And remain in this room. Harry is in taking a bath. I expect you to guard him and bring him anything he asks for. There were a lot of strangers in the castle tonight, and I do not want any of them getting in here and disturbing the boy. Do you understand?"
The elf's eyes grew wide, his ears perking forward. "Dobby understands, Professor Snape. Dobby will be protecting Harry Potter with his very life!"
"See that you do!" Snape ordered, and then strode toward the door. The sooner he finished with Dumbledore and the rest of the Order, the sooner he could return.