B.Q. Book Two: Black Princess Ascendant

Chapter 8: Never Trust a Politician

Disclaimer: Was Merlin said to have been a Slytherin, even though the legends about King Arthur and Camelot are set a full five hundred years before Hogwarts was supposedly built? If so, I don't own the Harry Potter franchise; it belongs to J.K. Rowling, Scholastic Press, Warner Bros., and whoever else she sold the rights to.
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"Just remember, all you need to do is walk inside, curtsey, say your piece, and then come up to our box. Don't worry about making any long speeches or—"

"Sirius, we've gone through the process of my Introduction every day for the past week. I think I understand what I'm supposed to do by now." The girl's purple eyes rolled in exasperation inside the shadows of the hood she wore. "I think you're more worried about this than I am."

Sirius nodded at that statement, though his hands did not stop their nervous rubbing. "Yes, I am, because I know how important this is. Today is when you make your first impression on the Wizengamot; how the Houses see you is going to affect all the interactions you have with them from this point forward. Excuse me if I want to make sure everything goes smoothly."

A frightening smile appeared on Jen's face. "Don't worry, Sirius. I'll make an impression, certainly, and I doubt it will be a bad one."

"What are you talking about?" he asked suspiciously. A bell chimed before he could get her to answer, and so he merely shot her a warning look before hurrying out of the small dressing room into a corridor. Slipping into the crowd streaming deeper into the complex, he allowed himself to be practically carried to the Wizengamot Chamber.

Even after a year as a member of the legislative and judicial body, the layout of the room never failed to impress him. Built into a natural valley between three hills, the amphitheater was partitioned into nearly a hundred cubicles, each eight feet to a side with walls rising to waist-height. Short banners decorated with the Houses' crests were draped over the walls of the boxes that faced the stage in the middle of the room. The domed roof was transparent, giving the chamber the feel of an outdoor arena; legend was that Rowena Ravenclaw had used this building as a proof of concept before casting the same spell on the ceiling of the Great Hall in Hogwarts.

Quickly climbing one of the nine flights of stairs leading all the way to the back row, Sirius's eyes naturally sought the spires that could just barely be seen between two of the hills. The building was close to an old castle, and though he had never found any proof supporting the claim, it was said to be the ruins of the once-great Camelot.

That qualification made, however, he understood why it was such a common belief. The Wizengamot had grown from the ruins of the Wizard's Council, an assembly of wizards and witches founded by Merlin himself that was meant to advise King Arthur about any and all magical threats and enforce his royal decrees on the wizarding populace. As the king and Merlin both grew older, the next head of the Council – whose name had been lost to the mists of time – swayed the body away from their duties to the king in favor of giving their support to Mordred, Arthur's bastard son by his half-sister Morgan le Fay. The young man was Arthur's only child and therefore the heir to the throne, and being a wizard himself, the Council was more than willing to support one of their own in his attempt at claiming the crown a few years early. When the battle between the two men and their armies was over, both leaders dead at the other's hand, the Council pulled away from Muggle concerns entirely and devoted all its time to governing the British magicals.

Of course, the quick change in tune was not enough to quell Merlin's wrath as he slew fully half of the members and forever changed the name of his former position to Chief Warlock. Chief Oath-breaker.

Sirius slipped into House Black's box to find several sheets of parchment, along with a quill and inkwell, already laid out on the low desk. He felt no concern over the preparations, even though he had had no hand in it; house-elves bonded to the Ministry placed the supplies shortly before the Wizengamot's bimonthly meetings, and each booth was inspected by the four Aurors now standing at attention on the edge of the stage. Only after all magic, malignant and benign, had been removed would the leader of the detail signal the members to enter the chamber.