“A coup?” Lily repeated. “Using reason?” The two words could not fit together in the same sentence.

“Perhaps Fudge will see what must be done, if we could all arrive to convince him.” Rufus said.

“I don’t know about Fudge, but I should say you’ve failed to convince me. No, we’ve already sent letters. You’ve spoken to his face already, Rufus! You know this better than I do. We all know how Fudge is, he won’t pick up a wand unless Voldemort himself was knocking on his door. No, he must be removed. For the greater good.” Lily said, her words hard as steel.

“Fudge is-” He tried, but she cut him off.

“An incompetent fool the death eaters didn’t care to kill! They were gone, yes, but now they are back. Fudge can do what he pleases when there are no dark wizards running loose. We must act now!” She shouted.

He flinched. “It’s worth a try, Lily. We all lost friends and family, James wasn’t-”

Her eyes glowed like molten gems. “This is about the entire wizarding community. Do you suppose we can stand by now and watch children die again, as they had in the last wizarding war? This is not about James, or anyone we lost.” She said. It’s about Harry and those that will be lost, she added in silence.

“I see that we agree on one thing, Fudge must be removed. Well? What are we waiting for?” Lily demanded.

Rufus took a breath. “We need a new minister, Lily. Hard times call for strong leaders, and without someone to guide the wizarding community during these dark times we may well strike at our shadows while the death eaters creep up behind us.”

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Lily nodded, feeling her emotions cooling. “Albus.” She said. She saw a few nods from the aurors. There was nobody better, and they all knew that.

Rufus frowned. “He rejected the position when it was last offered. Then again, even during the dark lord’s reign of terror.”

Lily gritted her teeth. “Well, there are many others. Kingsley, Minerva, you. We could send letters, maybe ask.” She suggested.

Rufus sighed. “You think too highly of everyone, don’t you see, Lily? Dumbledore fears his own power as if it were Grindenwald’s returning ghost. Nobody else here could match you-know-who either. The death eaters have escaped, and we are outnumbered four to one, if not more. Even worse, the horcruxes.” He shivered.

Lily bit her lip as the entire room seemed to drop in temperature. “If it is true that he has created one.” Which it is, she implied. “It can be found and destroyed. Albus will know more, we can consult him. If we must, we can kill him again and again for the next millenia.” She shuddered at her own words. If the few years of peace were anything to make an estimate from, there would be no wizards alive to oppose him by the end of the decade.

The room seemed to brighten with some level of hope, however vain. Lily hoped it would prove true. Merlin’s beard! She didn’t believe her own words. “We must seek him out, speak with him. If Albus refuses the position he may suggest another. The wizarding world’s fate rests within him. If he cannot find a way, nobody can.” She said.

“Why say so, Lily? I believe that there is a better candidate for minister, and many here agree.” He said. His words were careful, as if he were dancing on cracked ice.

“Do tell.” Lily said, reaching for another potion. Merlin knew she needed it.

“You.” He said.

She dropped the potion. A shatter echoed throughout the room as it exploded into a thousand pieces. The liquid stained the ground a rusty orange.

“What?” She asked, standing up.

“It was not Dumbledore who defeated him, Lily. It was you. It was not any of us who defied him thrice and lived, it was you. It is not any of us that shall raise the one to vanquish the dark lord, it is you.”

“You knew.” Her voice shook like a tree during a storm. “He told you.”

Rufus continued, ignoring her. “You are the mother of the boy who lived, Lily. You are the one who will raise the bane of the dark lord. Harry Potter, the child of prophecy. The dark lord has killed all that opposed him, but not you. You have defied him four times and even defeated him once. Who better to lead the wizarding world? Who better to organize a resistance?” He asked.

Lily’s mouth dropped open. She could not have been more shocked if lightning struck her head.

“The aurors support you, and nobody else. You are, by far, the best choice.” He raised his wand, and his roar was louder than any lion she had heard.

“We nominate Lily Potter as the minister of magic!”