Fudge had barely exited when Kanna entered The Three Broomsticks, carrying two bags of sweets.
"So the person you were meeting this time was the Minister of Magic?" she asked, her tone incredulous.
"Yes," Kyle replied with a grin. "Fudge came to talk me out of school. Apparently, he wants me to become the next Minister of Magic right now."
At first, Kanna's heart sank in alarm, but as Kyle continued, she realized he was teasing. Her worry turned to irritation as she threw a bag of mixed beans at him. "Then just go ahead, Mr. Youngest Minister," she said sarcastically.
Kyle caught the bag with a laugh. "No, I actually turned him down. Being the Minister of Magic sounds incredibly dull. It's more work than being a fifth-year student, and not even a little fun."
"As if you'd ever actually become Minister," Kanna retorted, rolling her eyes.
"Alright, fine, I couldn't," Kyle conceded with a shrug. "But Professor Dumbledore could."
"What?" Kanna blinked, startled. "Professor Dumbledore is running for Minister of Magic?"
"Not really," Kyle clarified. "But we needed to make Fudge feel a bit threatened, didn't we? Just enough to keep him from constantly trying to undermine us."
Kyle began explaining the plan he and Dumbledore had devised.
"You're trying to make Fudge think that Professor Dumbledore is plotting against him?" Kanna asked, frowning as she absorbed the explanation. "But if that's the case, he'll probably become even more aggressive. Professor Snape once told me that Fudge is obsessed with power—he values his position as Minister above everything else. There's no way he'd let Dumbledore take it away from him."
"Don't worry," Kyle said, waving off her concern. "No one is actually going to take it from him. Like I said, it's just an illusion—something to make him feel like he has to act. Our real goal is to get the Ministry of Magic to help deal with You-Know-Who's return. The Ministry is a powerful force, and we can't afford for them to keep pretending nothing's happening just because Fudge is scared or doesn't want to deal with the responsibility."
"That's true," Kanna admitted with a nod. She'd seen the Ministry's stubbornness firsthand. Over the summer, The Daily Prophet had repeatedly claimed that You-Know-Who had not returned, dismissing Dumbledore's warnings as paranoia. By the second month, she'd stopped reading the paper altogether.
"So you lied to Fudge and told him Ministers could serve consecutive terms during wartime?" she asked.
"No, that part's true," Kyle corrected. "Take Hector Fawley, for example. He was supposed to finish his term, but when the war with Grindelwald started, he stayed in office for fifteen years. The only reason he was forced out was that he never took Grindelwald's threat seriously. That incompetence cost him his position."
"Grindelwald..." Kanna murmured, trying to recall the name. It sounded familiar, though she couldn't quite place it.
"He was the Dark Lord before You-Know-Who," Kyle explained. "He caused chaos across Europe and even reached North America. But in the end, Professor Dumbledore defeated him."
"Oh," Kanna said, nodding thoughtfully. "But wasn't the Ministry of Magic also replaced twice during the time You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters were active?"
"Yes," Kyle replied. "But that was because those Ministers were completely incompetent. If they'd been even halfway capable of managing the situation, they could have stayed in power indefinitely."
"Got it," Kanna said, though she seemed deep in thought. She hadn't paid much attention to the details of past Ministry changes before.
By now, The Three Broomsticks was bustling with activity. The tables were filling up quickly, and groups of students stood around looking for available seats.
It wasn't long before a group of sixth-year Hufflepuffs noticed Kyle and Kanna sitting at their large corner table. With only two of them there, the table had plenty of room for more. The newcomers approached hesitantly, gesturing toward the empty seats.
"Let's go back," Kanna suggested.
The pub was too crowded now, and continuing their discussion risked someone overhearing them—a situation that could become problematic if sensitive information got out.
"Okay," Kyle agreed.
They stood, nodded goodbye to their classmates who had joined the table, and exited The Three Broomsticks.
The road back to the castle was quiet, the crisp air filled only with the faint sounds of the village in the distance. It wasn't even noon yet, so the path was nearly deserted, leaving just the two of them to continue their conversation.
"What do you think the Minister will do?" Kanna asked. "Do you think he'll believe what you told him?"
"I'm not sure," Kyle admitted, shaking his head. "But I doubt he'll believe it outright. More likely, he'll focus on targeting Professor Dumbledore first."
"Aren't you worried he might twist your words, put them in the newspaper, and tell everyone that the supposed resurrection of You-Know-Who is just a conspiracy by Dumbledore to seize power?"
Kyle smiled and shook his head. "Not at all. Fudge has been paranoid about Dumbledore trying to take his position since the day he became Minister. Deep down, he knows that in terms of popularity and ability, he's no match for Dumbledore."
"So no matter what, he can't let this rumor spread. Conspiracy or no conspiracy, if Dumbledore actually wanted to be Minister, there'd be countless people ready to support him without a second thought. Fudge isn't going to stir up trouble for himself like that."
"And here's the most critical part—if Fudge has any plans for re-election, he'll want to keep this under wraps. Instead, he'll work behind the scenes to undermine Dumbledore directly."
Kanna nodded thoughtfully as they neared the gates of Hogwarts. Then, an idea struck her.
"What if Fudge doesn't want to run for re-election?" she asked. "What if he really lets you go public, using the newspaper to prove that You-Know-Who hasn't returned and that Professor Dumbledore is lying?"
Kyle chuckled and shrugged. "Then I'd be in a pretty awkward position. But honestly, the chances of that happening are so slim that if Fudge actually did it, I'd be impressed."
"But if it did happen... wouldn't you be standing against Professor Dumbledore?" Kanna pressed, her concern evident. "If you side with them, no one will believe that You-Know-Who has returned. And wouldn't Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Professor Sprout... wouldn't they misunderstand your intentions?"
"That won't happen," Kyle replied confidently, his gaze lifting to the winged warthogs perched on the gates of Hogwarts. "If it came to that, I'd just use the Memory Charm again."
"Use the Memory Charm again?" Kanna asked, confused. "Did you just use it recently?"
"Not just now," Kyle clarified. "But I used it once when I was in detention with Umbridge. It worked pretty well..."
Kanna frowned, curiosity bubbling, but before she could ask further, they passed through the school gates and followed the familiar path leading up to the castle.