Trial and Tribulations
DISCLAMER~ All recognizable Characters are property of JKR. I'm just playing with them for a bit.
A/N~ This idea started out as a dream and my muse took it and ran with it. I'd like to thank LadyLanera and Daughter of Ares for letting me use them as a sounding board and listening to me whine about my Muse's sick sense of humor.
Narcissa Malfoy sat in silent horror as she listened to the Wizengamot's verdict, silent tears streaming down her face. She thought her family was finally going to be free when the Dark Lord fell, but their freedom lasted only a week. After all the funerals, after all the parties and celebrations, the Aurors came for her and her family like a pack of hungry wolves. The Manor was seized and searched for evidence to use as proof of their crimes before being burnt to the ground, the family forced to watch. They were thrown into Azkaban without even being told what they were being charged with, sitting there for a month before the trial.
The trial was nothing but a mockery, a way to point the finger at someone from Voldemorts camp and appease the masses. Lucius was the first to be charged. Most of his so called crimes were exaggerated seeing as how no one was willing to stand as witness to prove his innocence. Lucius, the love of her life and father of their only child, was sentenced to a Dementor's Kiss. The Ministry didn't even have the decency to remove Lucius from the courtroom, having the vile creature dole out its justice in front of her and a terrified Draco.
When the Minister called Draco forward, Narcissa prayed his fate wasn't to follow his father's. Her heart sank as the Minister read off the list of charges, the list nearly as outrageous as Lucius'. She struggled against her bonds as every member of the Wizengamot found the seventeen-year-old guilty of crimes that included the attempted murder of Dumbledore, attempted takeover of Hogwarts in his sixth year, and the death of Vincent Crabbe during the Final Battle.
Not able to stay silent any longer, Narcissa pleaded with the Court. "He's just a boy! He is no more guilty of those crimes then I am!"
"Madam Malfoy, I advise you to stay silent or you will be forced to do so!" sneered the Minister.
"Surely there is someone here that can testify to my son's innocence?" Narcissa glanced at the crowed gathered in the court. Every set of eyes she met turned away in disgust.
"Madam, you were warned." The Minister nodded to the Auror that stood guard over Narcissa, and she was silenced with a simple flick of a wand.
Narcissa sank to her knees as Draco's punishment was read to be the same as his father's. She silently screamed for her child as he turned to look at her with utter fear in his eyes. 'I am so sorry, Draco.' she whispered silently. 'I love you, my Dragon.'
"I love you too, Mum," Draco replied before turning away from his mother to meet his fate.
Narcissa closed her eyes, unable to watch her only son lose his soul. How cruel was fate to lead her to believe that his soul was saved the day the Dark Lord fell, only to have it ripped from him like bandage off a festering wound. She barely heard the Minister call her name repeatedly as her grief surrounded her like a thick blanket. Lucius she could have learned to live without in time, but not her son...her Dragon.
She was jolted back to reality as two Aurors literally picked her off the floor and dragged her to stand in front of the Minister. Refusing to look up at the man who took away her whole world, Narcissa kept her head bowed.
"Narcissa Malfoy, you have been charged with harboring known escaped convicts as well as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. You are also charged with being an accessory to the kidnapping of Luna Lovegood and the wandmaker, Garrick Ollivander. As well, you are being charged with having witnessed the murder of Charity Burbage and failing to report it to the proper authorities," the Minister read the charges from a scroll of parchment in front of him.
The Minister continued, "The Wizengamot has sworn testimony from a witness to the events at the Manor that you were acting under duress. The same witness has also sworn by Veritaserum and Pensieve Memory that you openly lied to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named in order to keep him alive."
At those words, Narcissa raised her head, confusion replacing defeat in her eyes. She once again scanned the crowd of spectators, looking for that familiar bespeckled face, but he was not there.
"Due to Mister Potter's testimony," the Minister announced, "the Wizengamot have come to the agreement that you are to be cleared of the Kidnapping and Harboring Fugitives charges."
Narcissa shook her head. This couldn't be happening.
"As for the last charge against you, we have found you guilty. You will be stripped of all remaining wealth and possessions gained from your marriage to Lucius Malfoy. You will not be allowed to obtain, nor use a wand for a period of ten years. You will be escorted back to a holding cell where you will be formally released into the custody of a Ministry-appointed home until you can find lodgings of you own." With those words, the Minister dismissed the courtroom and the two Aurors who guarded her and led Narcissa back to the holding cell to wait.
A/N~ I have nothing against the Malfoy Family, but My Muse felt like torturing me emotionally while writing this. It wouldn't shut the hell up until I put this down on paper. *Glares at Muse.* I also left the ending open in case I want to add to this in the future.