The Power of the Potters ✔

Part 13: "Familia super omnia"

There was a resounding, surprised silence in the dimly lit hallway.

"That kid has mettle." One of the Ministry guards murmured as Ms. Granger stormed off away from the, now, restricted Hospital Wing.

Dumbledore found himself stunned by the girl's actions and more than unable to agree with the Auror - Daniel Saphus, Ravenclaw Class of '87. A budding Charms Master, if I remember correctly... He was rarely wrong.

He swallowed his anger. He was more than a bit annoyed with the situation in his school over the two weeks following the Battle of Azkaban. Although he never showed more than his usual eccentric and professional congeniality, his fury burned deep.

He was not used to being challenged in his own territory. Now, multiple Olde Families were making inquiries into the day-to-day activities of the school and using their family members still within the school as spies. Aurors were guarding sections of the school, inspecting every dusty corner of his school for Death Eaters and reporting to all and sundry about Hogwarts affairs, all under the auspices of protecting the children.

Even the school children felt emboldened enough to physically assault me, he grumbled mentally. How the times have changed.

Of course, Ms. Granger was not the only one ready to strike him simply because he insisted that Madame Pomfrey place young Harry in a potion-induced coma. After he insisted on no visitation under any circumstances, the Potters had declared an all-out media war on Dumbledore.

The sudden appearance of image-damaging exposes in numerous regional and international newspapers was definitely not coincidental. Each chronicled the darkest secrets of Dumbledore's history: his past with Grindelwald, his manipulations within the international and national governments, and every single incident that occurred during his tenure as Headmaster. They had even revealed the fact that he had perfect vision and only used his half-moon glasses to see through walls, doors, and enchantments within the school.

That had caused many parents to protest for their children's privacy. He received so many Howlers the days following that particular article that he had to put up an owl redirecting ward and have the house elves continually check the room where his mail was being redirected to.

Fears of an escalation led to Minister Longbottom stationing more Aurors being inside and outside the school after several futile attempts to have Dumbledore to turn over Mr. Potter to the Potters before they ended up declaring war on the Ministry.

Lady Regnant Potter had already all but declared her intentions in an open letter to the Wizengamot.

The only thing keeping the Potters from bringing Magical Britain to its knees is Tom's desperate, guerrilla warfare on the muggle population. At least Tom is rumored to be severely injured at the moment.

He felt a familiar headache blooming as he contemplated this new, multiplayer battlefield so dissimilar to the one-front war of the last Blood War. And Ms. Granger has a rather heavy hand.

His two-weeks-old headache had begun with a panicked floo call from Poppy. St Mungo's policy for any current or recently graduated students taken to their hospital was to ask Madame Pomfrey about their medical records before they began with their healing treatment. This time, the hospital asked for the records of one Lord Henry James Potter.

Lords and Ladies were not to be healed without familial consent, and Poppy was only brought in thereafter if the family so requested. The typical policy would be to inform the Lord's Lady, but since Lord Potter was not married they skipped that step.