The magical press attended the ceremony in full force. Harry Potter was to receive an Order of Merlin, First Class, for his services and the defeat of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. The people running the Ministry thought this would be a good thing to smooth over relations with Mr. Potter, and count on his help with rebuilding after the war against Voldemort.

They awaited Harry's arrival and some of them wondered if he would turn up. Harry turned up at the last possible moment and the presenter made his way to the stage.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to welcome a young man who has earned an Order of Merlin, First Class, for his fights against the force of darkness," the presenter said. "Put your hands together for the Boy-Who-Lived-Once-Again, Harry Potter."

Harry made his way to the stage. He wore an expression on his face where no one could tell what he was thinking. He edged closer towards the stage and stared out. His eyes shifted over all of the members of the press.

"So, the Ministry of Magic has decided to give me an Order of Merlin, First Class," Harry said. "I suppose I should be honored to receive a reward from the Ministry. We've always had the best relations, haven't we?"

Those who knew Harry Potter well tensed up. Others listened in, as if thinking his speech was genuine.

"Mr. Potter, if you would please, move forward and accept your Order of Merlin," the present said.

Harry took the medal in his hand and considered it for a second. He dangled it between her fingers.

"Seven years," Harry said. "Seven years since I rejoined this world. I've had adventures so outlandish people would think they were the works of fiction. I've fought Basiliks, Dragons, and Dementors during my entire time at Hogwarts. I've defeated the most feared Dark Lord in Europe many times. And just last month, I defeated Lord Voldemort."

The people, despite the fact the Dark Lord had turned into ash, winced at the name.

"You've given me a reward," Harry said. "Look at it, this award epitomizes everything the Ministry of Magic and the British Magical Community is all about."

Harry moved in closer so everyone can hear him.

"I should accept the Order of Merlin," Harry said. "So many great wizards and witches have held this over the year. Albus Dumbledore, the beloved hero, my old pal, he held an Order of Merlin, didn't he?"

Everyone cheered at the mention of Albus Dumbledore's name.

"Horace Slughorn, a long serving Potions master, he held this prestigious honor as well," Harry said. "And let's not forget about the four Hogwarts founders, who were the first to be gifted the Order, posthumously."

Harry took a second to consider his actions.

"Let's talk about some other men who have been honored by this award," Harry said. "Peter Pettigrew….remember him? A great man, who was seen to be a hero by many for years….only he wasn't….was he?"

The atmosphere grew extremely tense at Harry's words.

"Then, there's Cornelius Fudge, he received an Order of Merlin, Third Class, didn't he?" Harry asked. "He spent an entire year refusing to investigate claims the very Dark Lord known as Voldemort had returned. And his refusal to believe caused the deaths of many men, women, and children."

Everyone realized this took an ugly turn.

"Gilderoy Lockhart received an Order of Merlin, for things he never really did, only he claimed to do so," Harry said. "And someone must have believed him, or something."

"Thank you, Mr. Potter…"

"I'm not done giving my speech yet," Harry said. "The point is, I take a look at the Order of Merlin and the past winners of this honor….some of them deserved. A great many of them did not….I could have walked into the Ministry and bought this award just as easily as any of you could have, if you had enough gold! So save your knuts, because you too could get an Order of Merlin for the right price!"

The crowd grew restless and there was some tense muttering.

"Seven years, do you really think I'm stupid to forget all of the times you people demonized me?" Harry asked. "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. But if I keep forgiving you, then I've exceeded fool."

Harry gained some momentum and kept speaking.

"You said I was a dark wizard, you said I was deranged, a liar, a thief, a scoundrel, and everything else in the book, you had a manhunt for me, and the Ministry did nothing to stop Voldemort from taking over," Harry said. "Maybe you can sleep at night thinking about how many deaths some of you were responsible for, which really speaks a lot for the type of people you are!"

Some of the people shifted and looked rather guilty.

"And here, I see some of the same problems who are still at the Ministry."

Harry's eyes fell upon the foul face of one Dolores Umbridge, who had managed to wiggle out of Azkaban again by claiming she was just following orders of the Ministry. Anyone who knew Umbridge doubted anyone had to hold a wand to her head to be completely foul.

"The saddest thing is, I see some people out there with potential," Harry said. "It's a pity it will never be realized if they anchor themselves to this world."

The Aurors started to walk in. Harry moved back.

"You expected a child to do what you were incapable of," Harry said. "Well, guess what, I did it, no thanks to anyone at the Ministry. I took out Voldemort for you, and you hypocrites still can't hear his name without soiling your trousers!"

Harry took a deep breath and the Aurors froze in place before they could silence Harry.

"You expect me to kiss up to the Ministry because they gave me an award," Harry said. "Guess what, you can kiss my arse!"

The award dangled from between his fingers.

"The most amusing thing about all of this is the award," Harry said. "Order of Merlin…..very few of you would understand why."

He decided to enlighten them on the reasons why it was interesting.

"If Merlin was alive today, he would be branded and shunned by the Ministry as a dark wizard," Harry said. "He wasn't exactly the paragon of light either. He did what he had to do and he was unapologetic about it. So this award amuses me."

Harry could tell the natives became restless.

"Here's what I think of your award."

Harry spat on the medal and dropped it down off of the stage. It landed in the mud with a plop. A blink of an eye later, Harry Potter disappeared from the Wizarding World, never to be seen again.

Needless to say, no one who had been there that evening would forget his exit.

The End.