"Ladies and Gentlemen, Lords and Ladies of the Wizengamot. We call to order this, the 2nd session of the New Order Ministry. We have spent years fighting for this and now here we stand. Our enemies have been laid low and the threat against our nation is no more. The Family is dead and hence today we stand in judgement of the final living member."

The Chief Warlock of the New Order stood at the podium. Following this announcement, the roll was taken. While there were several 'new' lords and ladies, many names called were merely reinstated from previous generations. For the first time in decades, each seat in the chamber was filled and both the visitors' gallery and the press box were packed.

Today would be a momentous day. The last time the full Wizengamot had met was shortly after the Second Blood War. That was 1999. From there, a new 'Dark Lord' had risen to claim power and abuse all that was the wizarding world. Today was the Summer Solstice of 2151.

152 years was a long time.

There were names not present, which had filled the rolls in years prior. Several names had died out following the Blood Wars. Others were gone because of the Family. The world would bear scars from the Dark One for many years, but this trial was about healing. The Chief Warlock's gavel banged a rhythm, echoing through the chamber.

"Bring forth the accused. Let it be noted she is the final living member of the group known as The Family and she stands trial for their actions as a whole. She is recognized as the wife of the Dark One himself and as such deserves not to have her name spoken. Consequently, as a subversive to the British Wizarding world and the world as a whole, all titles previously granted to her are henceforth renounced pending the decisions of this court. Henceforth, she shall be referred to as 'The Prisoner.' Out of respect for those members present who were detrimentally affected by the Family, the prisoner shall only enter to provide her own defense. She has denied the assistance of a court solicitor. Prosecution, your opening statement please?"

A tall thin man with thinning hair rose from his position beside a Walrus of a man with a goatee and bald head.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the court…"

The case laid out by the prosecution spoke of many things. Deception, torture, blackmail, and death seemed to be the focus, attributing all actions to the family. While there was a focus on the destruction wrought by the Dark One, the rest of the Family was far from clean. The prisoner's own actions left many feeling sick to their stomachs.

"The prosecution rests, honorable members of this August body."

Even before the Chief Warlock's gavel fell, everyone knew what was coming next. The tension, which filled the air, became oppressive with the Chief Warlock's words.

"As the prosecution has presented their case, now it is the defense's turn. The prisoner has denied the use of a court appointed solicitor and shall stand in her own defense."

There was a great deal of noise and even people over heard muttering about how no prosecutor would stand to defend a member of the Family any way.

Then the doors to the court opened.

The crowd mixed between cheering and booing as she entered following the introduction. She was a stately woman. Years of practice and posturing had left her able to carry herself quite well, no matter how much age had caught up with her. She strode to the podium with a purpose. Her steel grey hair flowed down to her shoulders. It still appeared soft and flowing.

This moment had been quite some time in coming. She had lost her husband just days before and now she stood on the precipice of her own demise. Once, she had held the land with an iron fist alongside her family. Today, she was here to defend her husband's honor. It took nearly half an hour before the crowd quieted enough to hear her words.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the newly reestablished Wizengamot. I stand before you today awaiting your judgement upon my life. I see faces before me who I once called friends. I see faces who learned sitting upon my knee once upon a time. I see enemies who have tried to take down my family and myself far too often. Yet not one of you can look me in the eye.

"I find this moment to be the history of myself and my family. You call us monsters and I will not deny that as your own government has done. We were far from perfect and willingly acknowledged this, unlike this New Order you follow.

"As such, I will be pleading guilty and take whatever punishment the court deems fit for one such as I."

A very strange mix of reactions met her words. The Chief Warlock, sitting beside certain reinstated lords were trying to hide their grins seeing the last of the Family throw herself at the mercy of this court. Others seemed oddly off put by her statements. The press box was going crazy, attempting to discern what exactly she meant by her statements. The visitor's gallery was filled with both approving and terrified looks.

"But first, as is my right, I shall defend the family."

Here boos erupted. Again, the grins were in place by certain members of the body. It took several more minutes before the crowd noise dimmed enough for her to continue.

"Indeed I shall. I watched your benevolent government send over 100 men to slaughter my 171-year-old husband before turning their wands on myself. I have watched them vilify my family for years now, all on the pretense of fighting for the good of the wizarding world. Well, I shall go quietly to my grave, but before then I shall speak of my husband, my loves, my family. The ones you claim to be so evil.

"I shall tell about how Dark Lords rise and why people follow them. I shall inform you of when, where, and why we refer to them as dark lords.

"Everyone knows the Dark One. He stood amongst you, walked where you have walked. He lived a life, just as all of you have. And everyone seems to believe they know his life. You have read about his early days at Hogwarts. You know about his time in the War. You have seen descriptions of his rise to power. You have heard all about his fall from grace and the growth of the Dark One."

Here a smirk grew on the elder woman's face.

"Still, it stands, not one of you know the truth. And according to your own rules and regulations, each and every one of you shall sit till my tale is told, hearing of the growth and change of the Dark one.

"You shall hear when, how, and why people fell in love with Harry Potter."

The Chamber erupted once more as the hated name was spoken aloud.

AN: I am taking a slight step back from my stories over the summer. I will update and complete them, I promise, but between work, school, family, and more, I don't have much time. That said, I have the first few chapters of this story written, so I will post it and soon come back to the other! Thank you for reading!