Make A Wish By: Rorschach's Blot 41 *Chapter 41*: The End Is Near

Note: This is because a Swiss invasion of Canada would cause some sort of strange time dilation causing the story to be both done and still being written all at the same instant . . maybe.

The End is Near

"Thank you everyone for coming." Dumbledore's gaze swept the room. "Kingsley, why don't you start?"

"Yesterday morning, two Aurors working on a tip from one of their informants found the body of

Antonin Dolohov. It appears that the killer found him taking his bath, the killer approached and grabbed one of the victim's feet pulling it out of the tub which caused the victim's head to go underwater. The killer then placed his foot on the victim's chest to prevent the victim from raising his head to breath."

"Why are you placing so much importance on this one crime?"

"Dolohov was killed without using any magic," Kingsley licked his lips, "and there is only one person in England that I know of that has a motive to kill him and a restriction on using his magic."

"You can't suggest that Harry could have something to do with this?" Molly shrieked, "anyone could have done it, and if you're going to point the finger at Harry then why not Ron or Hermione?"

"They don't have the same Killer instinct that Harry does," Kingsley smirked.

"How dare you say that Harry is a murder," Molly's eyes flashed as she began to show signs of eruption, "I won't have you

"I'm not." Kingsley fought hard to keep calm, "what I' doing is telling you the conclusion that's being pushed by the Minister's office. They say that of all the possible suspects, the only ones that have reason to be reluctant to use magic are the children, and of all the children, Potter is the only one that has what it takes to calmly walk into a room and kill a man and then calmly walk out. They've also pointed out that Harry is missing and thus without an alibi."

"It appears that Cornelius was not being as honest as I had hoped when he promised his support." Dumbledore shook his head sadly.

"He's on his way out." Moody leered, "if he thinks something so pathetic will even go to trial."

"Explain," Dumbledore commanded.

"Tonks," Moody turned to his subordinate. "Why don't you tell them what you told me earlier today."

"Hermione and I were ambushed by a group of death eaters." Tonks began, "they had cornered us in an alley and it was looking grim. It was at that point that a small man who identified himself as the Professor asked if we needed a.s.sistance. He then took us through an unknown magical transport device that he called a portable hole. We watched from a distance as a man that said was Mr. Black killed the death eaters . . . all told, I'd say the fight was over in about three seconds."

"Dung," Moody commanded.

"It was common knowledge that there was an Auror team in the area." The filthy man said nervously, "they ordered food and the delivery people are in the pay of some people who pa.s.sed the information on."

"There you have it," Moody's leer deepened. "Black was in the area and it is very possible that he was aware of the Auror team . . . in fact, it's very likely that he chose to strike because of the Auror team. No sense wasting a training opportunity after all."

"You're right." Dumbledore gave a slow nod, "all Harry would have to do is mention the fact that Mr. Black was in the area and the case would be thrown out of court . . . but you're sure it wasn't Harry?"

"Boy has potential." Moody said with a grin, "but he's not up to this level. It'd take years to get to the point where he could sneak up on an inner circle death eater and snuff him in such a professional manner."

"Thank you," Dumbledore closed his eyes. "That is all that I wished to hear . . . does anyone else have anything to report?"

"Harry called Ron earlier today," Molly volunteered. "Ron says that they just talked about the Cannons. After that I flooed Hermione and she told me that Harry said that he's been eating enough and that he's been studying and that he's happy."

"Did he say if he was planning to come back to school?" Minerva was worried about the possibility of losing another of her favorite students.

"Hermione said that she made him promise to return," Molly said fondly. "And Ron mentioned that Harry said that he'd see him on the express."

"I'm very glad to hear that." Dumbledore reentered the conversation, "and I'd like to ask all of you not to press Harry about what he did this summer. He'll tell us in his own time, at the moment all that matters it that he is safe and planning to return."

IIIIIIIIII

"Minister," Bones spoke up as she entered the man's office. "I need to speak with you about this plan of your to frame the Potter boy again."

"How dare you suggest that I would do something like that?" The Minister's voice was outraged, "I'll have your job for this."

"And I'll have your head for doing something so stupid." Bones sneered, "do you have any idea of what you've done?"

"Potter could hae done it," the Minister pointed out. "Who else had the motive and the restriction on using magic. Plus, according to the papers the boy's infatuated with that muggle born girl that was injured by one of the dead man's spells in the Department of Mysteries."

"Do you have any idea of what happened today besides that murder?" Amelia was incredulous, "Mr. Black incapacitated and removed some dementors in Diagon alley. You're trying to frame Harry Potter for a crime that was committed by Mr. Black . . . don't you think that might annoy him? Don't you know what happens to people that annoy Mr. Black"

"It was all my a.s.sistant's idea," Fudge stammered. "I'll have him fired for this."

"Do you think I'm stupid enough to fall for that?" Bones asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I was hoping," Fudge replied with surprising candor. "Back me up on this one and you can have anything you desire. Money, power, anything."

"You can't honestly think that you can bribe me?" Bones started chuckling.

"If I can't bribe you then I'll have you arrested," Fudge said confidently.

"You think my own people would arrest me on your say so?" Amelia shook her head, "Minister . . . I'm gonna have to ask you to resign."

"And why should I do that?"

"Because if you don't then I'm going to have to place you under arrest for endangering every man, woman, and child in the United Kingdom. I think we both know what happens to people that anger Mr. Black, I shudder to think what might happen to the country if we don't get rid of you."

"What?" Fudge paled, "you've got to protect me."

"I'm giving you one more chance to resign before I place you under arrest, we've already determined that you were the only one behind this latest plot to frame Harry Potter . . . don't make this harder on yourself than it has to be." Bones pulled out her wand, "so what's it going to be Fudge?"

"Get out of my office," Fudge screamed. "Just get out."

"Minister," Amelia said with a grin. "I'm placing you under arrest for reckless endangerment and ma.s.sive corruption."

"But I can't go to prison," Fudge whined. "They use guys like me for currency in there."

"No they use guys like you as . . . well yeah, currency." Bones shrugged, "on the other hand Black might kill you."

"What if I'm out of the government?" Fudge asked hopefully, "do you think he'd leave me alone?"

"Stranger things have happened," Amelia made a mental note to buy a Pensieve to record this conversation.

"Why can't you protect me from him?" Fudge stammered, "I order you to protect me after I resign."

"After you resign then we'll have no reason to protect you," Amelia reminded the Minister.

"So then maybe Mr. Black will have no reason to kill me," Fudge said quickly. "Of course, I can resign and be safe and then I can become a high priced consultant to the government."

"Or you can go to prison in three seconds if you don't come to a decision," Amelia said impatiently.

"I'll resign," Fudge threw up his hands. "I'll do what you want."

"I thought you might see reason." Amelia pointed at the door, "we'll have someone pack your things and send them over . . . there are two Aurors waiting outside to escort you out of the building."

"This isn't over." Fudge promised on his way out of the room.

IIIIIIIIII

Harry and his friends woke early the next morning and had a meeting over breakfast to discuss what was going to happen next.

"So . . . why are we going to Sweden?" The Professor asked with an odd look on his face.

"Broom race," Harry answered. "I've wanted to compete since I read about it."

"Isn't that the one that ends with fewer people that it starts with?" Henchgirl asked in a worried tone of voice.

"It goes through a dragon sanctuary," Harry shrugged.

"Oh . . . have fun then." The Professor nodded, "and try not to get killed."

"Yeah," Henchgirl agreed. "That would be bad."

"I'll be alright," Harry said with a grin. "Not to brag, but I'm probably one of the better broom riders in England and the best in Hogwarts. With any luck I'll do ok, I'm just happy to have a chance to try it."

"Do you have a broom to use?" The Professor asked quickly.

"I was planning to use the one that I got from the Mechanic in Australia . . . why?"

"Because I think that this might be the best time to tell you about our latest inventions," the Professor revealed.

"And the first one is an improved broom," Henchgirl added. "The Mechanic has decided that he would rather not leave the Outback but he has agreed to work with us."

"Together we've managed to improve on his older design . . . Henchgirl, bring it out."

"Here it is," Henchgirl pulled a large metal pole out from under the table. "It's faster, more maneuverable, and it has numerous comfort and heating charms."

"Why doesn't it have bristles?" Harry examined the pole carefully.

"Because it doesn't need bristles," the Professor explained.

"Add some before the race," Harry smirked.

"Why would we add them?" Henchgirl scratched her chin, "it's more efficient without them."

"There will be representatives from several of the broom companies at the race." Harry grinned, "and some of the racers will be sponsored by the broom companies."

"And you do not wish them to steal our design," the Professor understood. "Brilliant."

"I try," Harry said modestly. "What else have you got?"

"This coat," Henchgirl replied as she pulled out a large coat. "You mentioned that you needed an improved invisibility cloak and we've managed to make one, try it on."

"Ok," Harry put the coat on. "Nothing is happening."

"That is one of the improvements," the Professor explained. "It will change itself to match your outfit."

"Great." Harry grinned, "what else?"

"It has a modified version of the fidelious charm that has a parasitic effect on your magical reserves," Henchgirl explained. "When you activate it, you disappear and cannot be detected by any known magical effects or abilities."

"You're not actually invisible," the Professor added. "You just can't be seen or detected by any magical or technological effect."

"Great," Harry put his new coat on. "I'm really impressed by this."

"We're not finished yet," the Professor said quickly. "We haven't told you what it's made out of."

"What's it made out of?" Harry played along.

"Remember those dementors you shot chocolate at?" Henchgirl asked innocently, "well we found a use for the cloaks."

"And some Thestral hair we found laying around." The Professor nodded, "not to mention the . . ."

"Wait," Harry interrupted. "Thestrals have hair?"

"Yes they do," the Professor replied. "As I was saying, it also has Tebo hair, acromantula silk, Murltap . . . that thing that grows out of it's back."

"Some hairs from the Nundu," Henchgirl added. "Pogrebin skin, quintaped hair, a redcap's cap, Veela hair."

"And we might have used a lethifold to make some of it." The Professor added quickly, "we made the b.u.t.tons out of dragon teeth."

"Wow," Harry's voice was a bit shrill. "Why did you use so many things . . . and where the h.e.l.l did you get all that?"

"We wanted to see if we could do it, it was incredibly difficult to make everything work together." The Professor replied. "And since Henchgirl had most of it just lying around her potions lab . . ."

"I've been piecing a lot of this together while we were traveling," Henchgirl answered quickly before Harry could turn to her. "You'd be surprised at how lucky I was. Every time I walked in to a store it seemed they were having a sale on something . . . several times they gave me these things for free as part of my or as a prize."

"Oh really?" Harry sighed, "I'll tell you about that later. How were you able to get it all made so quickly?"

"The tailor and leather worker, that husband and wife team that we picked up in India that decided to stay on the island."

"I know who they are," Harry nodded.

"They helped us make it," the Professor finished. "They were very skilled."

"Thank you . . . does the fact that you used all these strange things to make it give it any more power?"

"Oh yes, in the coat's natural form it has a similar effect to being around a dementor. People will feel cold, and a bit hopeless . . . we believe that the last part might be from one of the other ingredients." The Professor shuddered, "it is also very spell resistant. We're not exactly sure about all the powers . . . do be a good sport and tell us about them when you discover them."

"Sure thing," Harry agreed. "So . . . should we get down to the ground so I can register for the race and so that you two can find good spots?"

"Ok," the Professor said.

"Yah," Henchgirl agreed.

The three friends ported down and reappeared in front of the sign in table for what was probably the most dangerous race in the wizarding world and the only race that went through a dragon preserve.

"Here for the race?" The official behind the counter asked in a neutral tone of voice.

"Yes," Harry replied.

"Contestant or Observer?"

"Contestant," Harry answered.

"Alright," the man pulled out a stack of forms. "Fill out these forms and seal them in this envalope."

"Don't you want to know my name?" Harry glanced over the forms.

"No," the official shook his head. "It's easier if I don't know your names, if you die that form will be sent to your next of kin along with a letter of condolence."

"What if I win?"

"If you win then the guy on stage will ask your name before he hands you the trophy," the man said slowly. "Here's your number . . . good luck."

"Thirteen?" Harry blinked, "well . . . I guess I'll have to make my own luck."

"Have fun," the Professor called out.

"We'll see you at the end," Henchgirl added.

Harry walked over to join the group of contestants and soon found himself talking to another man.

"So what's your strategy?" The man asked quickly.

"I'm just going to fly." Harry shrugged. "You?"

"I'm gonna fly in the middle," the man answered quickly. "I've seen this race before, the dragons eat the first few people and then fly up to pick off the stragglers . . . the middle, that's my place. I'm gonna survive this thing just you watch."

"That's nice . . . I just have to . . . go . . . over here not." Harry walked away from the strange man.

"h.e.l.lo," a woman wearing a s.h.i.+rt emblazoned with the Nimbus logo walked up to Harry. "Are you here with one of the companies?"

"Not really," Harry chewed his lip. "I suppose I could be if I want to though."

"Oh?" The woman seemed to be confused by Harry's answer, "I'm here with Nimbus . . . finest brooms on the market. What are you using?"

"Something a few of my friends cobbled together," Harry replied. "I used to use a two thousand, I loved that broom till it suffered some misfortune."

"If you liked the two thousand then you'll love our newest model," the woman gestured towards her broom. "It has all the things you loved about our old brooms and a few things we've added for this new season . . . listen to my acceptance speech and I'll tell all about it."

"Acceptance speech?" Harry asked dumbly.

"I'm gonna win this thing," the girl smiled. "Just you watch."

"I . . ."

"Racers to your marks," the announcer's call interrupted Harry's reply.

"Good luck," Harry spoke as they both ran towards the starting line.

"On your marks . . . get set . . .Go," the announcer shouted.

Harry kicked off and immediately speed to the front of the pack. Risking a quick look to his rear, Harry's eyes bulged. There were a dozen dragons gaining on him and one was taking a deep breath in preparation to roast the-boy-who-lived.

Dodging to the left, Harry avoided the jet of flame and a dodge to the right avoided the next.

Harry risked another look back and winced when he noticed that several more dragons had joined the chase.

"I must be pulling every d.a.m.n dragon in the area," Harry cursed to himself.

A jet of flame ruined Harry's muttering, this one so close that it singed the several hairs and ruined several of the twigs that the Professor had duct taped to the end of his new broom.

Taking a deep breath, Harry jerked the front of the broom and shot up towards the sun hoping that the dragons would loose him in the glare.

"That didn't work," Harry rolled to one side to avoid the nearest dragon's lunge. "Let's try the other way."

Without missing a beat, Harry threw his broom into a steep dive and shot towards the ground. Closer and closer he came to certain death till at the last minute, Harry pulled out and shot towards the finish line one meter above the ground.

Risking one last glance over his shoulder, Harry watched in amazement as several of the dragons plowed into the ground and as several more crashed into each other in their attempts to avoid the fate of suffered by the other dragons.

"d.a.m.n," Harry said in astonishment as he crossed the finish line and into glory. "That's not something you see every day."

The crowd went wild when Harry stepped off his broom and he was quickly surrounded by several event organisers and well wishers.

"Congratulations," one of the officials shouted to drown out the din of the crowd.

"Thanks," Harry shouted back.

"Come this way so that we can award you the trophy for first place and the others for surviving." The man added, gesturing towards a large raised platform.

Harry and the other contestants gathered on the stage to receive their awards.

"Ladies and gentlemen," an elderly man stood behind the podium and addressed the crowd. "We have witnessed something special tonight, never before in the history of this race have we had so few fatalities. The cause for this is our newest winner, the man who attracted the attention of nearly every dragon in the area and then incapacitated with a textbook perfect Wronsky Defensive Feint . . . another first in this compet.i.tion. Come over here sir and accept your award."

"Thank you." Harry accepted that large trophy.

"Are you representing any company?" The old man asked, "or are you here on your own?"

"I suppose that you could say that I'm here with Black Ink," Harry's words stunned the crowd.

"And your name sir?" The old man asked slowly.

The crowd froze to hear Harry's reply.

"Oh . . . sorry about that, my name." Harry looked over the crowd, "is Mr. Black."

"Mr. Black?" The old man stammered.

"Yup Mr. Black," Harry agreed. "Do you need me for anything else or can I be going?"

"You can go." The old man licked his lips, "thank you for honoring this event with your presence."

"I've been wanting to come for awhile now," Harry said with a grin. "But I haven't been able to get here for a while . . . have a good day." Harry hopped off the podium and to his two friends, "shall we be going then?"

"I don't have anything that I need to do here," the Professor nodded. "Henchgirl?"

"Nope," Henchgirl shook her head."Let's go."

The three friends appeared back on the Zeppelin and Henchgirl immediately grabbed Harry's hand and pulled him aside.

"Yes?" Harry asked.

"It won't take long," Henchgirl a.s.sured her friend. "We've got more things to show you but that can wait till later . . . I was wondering . . . would you like to be stronger?"

"I suppose that could be useful."

"Yeah," Henchgirl replied. "But it'll be kinda gross."

"What did you have in mind?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I picked up some Re'em blood while we were traveling through the far east." Henchgirl bit her lower lip. "As you may know, drinking it will give you great strength."

"What's the catch?"

"Re'em blood is extremely rare. I was lucky to get the amount that I did, until recently I've been using it for some of my experiments with the Doctor." Henchgirl took a deep breath, "we've determined that we have a surplus and that we can continue our experiments and still give some of it to you."

"Great," Harry nodded. "What's the catch."

"We don't know how it will effect you," Henchgirl replied. "The Doctor says that she thinks that it will do one of two things. It will either make you even stronger then you became when you became part werewolf and part vampire."

"Or?"

"Or it won't do much to you," Henchgirl answered. "Neither of us thinks that it will harm you in any way."

"Ok," Harry nodded. "I'll try it."

"Swallow this first." Henchgirl handed Harry a small metallic orb, "it'll make you scentless and it will also help you control your new strength. Without it, there's the danger that you'd turn me to paste if you decided to hug me."

"How does it work?" Harry grabbed the ball and swallowed it.

"It will break up into tiny peaces in your stomach. The tiny pieces will move to different places of your body and will do their thing in those areas." Henchgirl answered.

"Thanks." Harry took a deep breath, "the blood?"

"Here," Henchgirl handed over a small vial. "It'd probably be best to just down the whole thing as fast as you can."

"Well," Harry removed the cork. "Here we go." Harry closed his eyes and tipped the vial into his mouth, letting the blood drain down his throat.

"How was it?" Henchgirl winced at the sight.

"Better then I expected." Harry's fangs elongated. "It seems that my vampire part really liked it, my fangs have come out . . . they've never done that before."

"You go get some sleep," Henchgirl commanded. "I'm gonna go floo the doctor.

Harry went back to the cabin and remembering the shopkeeper's advice, paused before the mirror and deactivated the magical effect that concealed his face.

Harry gasped in shock as he took in his new look. Where before his Hair had been solid black, it was now peppered with bits of white . . . a side effect accepting the Yuki-Onna's gift. His face was tan and lined. A few new scars appeared on his hands and arms but the biggest difference was his eyes. Where before they had s.h.i.+ned with life, now they were different. Harry gave up after several minutes of trying to figure out what made them different from before and decided to try out the Harry bracelet.

Upon activating the bracelet, Harry shrunk an inch and paled a bit. His muscles lost the definition that he had built up over the summer and his eyes began s.h.i.+ning again. After a minute or two of examining himself, Harry removed the bracelet and went to his bed for a bit of well deserved sleep.

IIIIIIIIII

Death of a Fool

by Laetus Lovegood

Former Minister Cornelius Fudge was found dead in his home of an apparent suicide. Investigates say that it appears the Minister threw himself down his stairs several times and then chose to end it all by drinking three quarts of an acidic substance. Ex-Minister Fudge's most recent project was, as you may remember attempting to frame Harry Potter for a crime that was probably committed by Mr. Black. This paper has very little to add but we would like to note how odd it is that so many people that annoy the mysterious Mr. Black end up committing suicide . . .

AN: There has been some confusion, the only people that know that Harry and Mr. Black are one in the same are: The first Shopkeeper, Harry, The Twins, Henchgirl, and The Professor. No one else knows and the twins are in possession of badges that will protect their minds. Some people have said that Harry should have built things up more before telling the twins, he would have if he had known about his reputation as Mr. Black. Think of it like this, he was a guy in a costume that went to visit his buddies and to screw with their heads and he found out that his costume was real. Harry looks different because he's spent a lot of time outside, become part werewolf, become part vampire, absorbed part of a Yuki-Onna's essence, and many more things. Next chapter, Harry returns to Hogwarts. Thank Moi for the part where Fudge waffles between his fear of Prison and his fear of being killed by Mr. Black.

Omake by aprun

"So, you thought you could all infiltrate my death eaters and give away our plans. I see the true cause of our failures!"

All of the spies in Voldemort's group gave a big gulp and in desperation, Phil the death eater yelled out, "WE'LL GO AFTER MR. BLACK!"

A collective "WHAT!" resounded in the dark chambers and Voldemort gave a cruel smirk.

"Of course. WORMTAIL! GET ANOTHER PORTKEY!" The nearly crippled Wormtail hobbled away to the portkey shop.

"And no special safety measures old man! We just want any portkey to this location!" Wormtail handed the man the location of where Mr. Black was last seen and waited impatiently for the portkey to be done.

Meanwhile, the shop owner thought of why they would want a deficient portkey, unless they wanted the death eaters to be killed, unless they were just really poor, unless they were actually spies, unless…. The old man shook his head and made his decision. He handed the worm tail the portkey and wormtail apparated away.

"3…2…1!" Wormtail cackled as he watched the predictably dead traitors port away to their deaths. For once, he wouldn't be hurt in any way in an attempt to kill Mr. Black. For once he wouldn't….Wormtail yelped as one of the remaining spies 'accidentally' cast a tonsil removing spell.

Meanwhile, the traitors arrived at the circus. While wandless, they still had money on them and spent an enjoyable day.

"You know, maybe Voldemort isn't such a bad guy since he sent us here instead of killing-" the man immediately began to choke on the popcorn he was eating. The others started to babble incoherently to air they supposed was Mr. Black after saving their friend. "WE LOVE YOU MR. BLACK!"