A/N: I'm back, sorry the delay with this one, got pretty busy at work but I really wanted to get this up before I head overseas for a couple of weeks. A little shorter than usual, but this was a good place to end it, otherwise it would have been twice as long as usual and the wait would have been even longer.

Thanks for all my reviews, and for reading, you guys are awesome!

Enjoy!

xBx


Chapter 12: Trials and Tribulations

Monday morning found Hermione back in the Ministry, dressed rather more formerly than usual, making her way down to the courtrooms on level nine.

The trial had been expeditiously scheduled for 9.30am, in the hopes that proceedings could get well underway before the Daily Prophet picked up the full force of the story. Of course this hope was completely irrational, and Hermione's face once again graced the cover of Monday morning's edition under the headline: "Gryffindor Princess lured to the Dark Side: From the Golden Trio to the Despicable Three". The scandal had a full double-page spread, complete with pictures, entirely devoted to it.

Draco had tried to keep it from her; he had luckily been the one to intercept the owl that morning, and tried to feign his interest in the sports section over breakfast with the intention of hogging it so long that Hermione wouldn't have time to read it. Hermione saw right through his ploy, however, and summoned the paper from under his nose, determined to know the worst before she faced the public.

"I don't know what I'm more frustrated with," Hermione said after quickly reading through the scoop. "The fact that they seem to think you have masterfully manipulated me and pulled me over to the dark side; that you, Richard and I are working together, in an anti-golden trio scenario; or that all this has completely overshadowed our engagement! Listen," she said, reading directly from the article:

"'The Muggle, Richard Alden, was arrested at Miss Granger's family home in Yorkshire, during celebrations of her recent engagement with Draco Malfoy'. That's it!" She exclaimed, finally looking up. "That's all they have to say about the engagement! Not only has that bastard cost me my job, he's overshadowed my engagement!"

"Your engagement?" Draco asked with a smirk, and Hermione narrowed her eyes, though coloured ever so slightly.

"I meant our," she amended.

"Mmm hmmm. Our engagement will have its fair share of column inches, I am sure. But you know what the press are like: Drama, scandal, and misery sells a lot better that the happily ever after. But once this trial is over, 'happy ever after' is all they are going to be able to print."

Hermione couldn't help but smile at that. Draco vanished the paper from out of her hands so she wouldn't give it another moments thought, and they finished their breakfast in relative calm. Draco had taken the day off so that he could be by Hermione's side the entire day.

Hermione would be giving her defence this morning, and while she was confident in telling the truth, Draco could tell she was nervous especially about the inevitable interrogation she knew she would be getting from the Wizengamot.

Regardless, Hermione maintained her stubbornness of doing everything herself and refused any legal counsel.

At nine o'clock, therefore, Hermione was walking through the atrium, her head held high and with Draco by her side, ignoring the stares and whispers with dignity.

The courtroom was set up the same as in any other trial: at the centre of the room were two of the usual chained chairs – one of which Hermione would occupy, the other no doubt reserved for Richard.

Hermione took her seat, trying not to be perturbed by the jangling chains, which mercifully refrained from binding her. Draco took a seat as close to her as was physically possible considering the layout, and giving Hermione a sense of support that she could feel across their small distance.

Harry and Ron joined Draco not long after; Harry briefly stepping up to Hermione to whisper: "Don't worry. All of this is just formality. Ron and I have talked the case through with Wizengamot representatives; it's a pretty clear cut case, but they need to be seen to be doing the right thing."

Hermione smiled at the reassurance; "I understand, thanks."

The Wizengamot filed in efficiently at 9:30am exactly. With a word from Kingsley Shacklebolt, who would be overseeing proceedings, the side door was opened and Richard was escorted into the chamber. Hermione was happy to see him looking incredibly uncomfortable and almost scared, though looking miserable and hopeless at the time; he was flanked by a Ministry official on one side, a dementor on the other, which explained Richard's pale and drawn demeanour.

A chill spread through the room, sending a collective shiver around everyone gathered. The infuriatingly smug look that usually graced Richard's face was replaced with a haunted expression, which only dimly registered fear when he was pushed into the seat and the chains rattled ominously.

There was a brief flicker of confusion when the demntor was ordered to wait outside the room, a confusion that intensified when the side door was opened for a moment to let the dementor pass, and then closed once more. Being a Muggle, Richard was unable to see the creature that was the cause of his despair.

Once the dementor had left its effects began to wear off, and Richard began to truly take in his surroundings. Hermione was watching him intently, wondering what was going through his head. How much of the Ministry had he gotten to see? Did he even know where he was? How was he coping with all this? Or had a dementor been ever present without his knowledge, effectively numbing every sense and feeling in him except despair?

Richard was looking taking in the Wizengamot, a look severe confusion mingled with mild disgust, and then finally he turned his gaze upon Hermione. His look of disgusted confusion intensified as he took in her wizarding robes.

"What the hell are you people wearing?" He whispered loudly.

Hermione looked at him with contempt before turning to face the Wizengamot, in front of whom Kingsley was still standing ready to call the proceedings to an official order.

"The Wizengamot is brought together today to hear the case against Mr Richard Alden of Kensington Park Gardens, Notting Hill, London, who is brought here on charges of multiple thefts of Magical creatures for personal gain and profit.

"For such crimes to be committed by a Muggle, a serious breach of the Statute of Secrecy has occurred; it is the intention of this hearing to determine the cause of this breach, which is why the Wizangamot has called Miss Hermione Jean Granger, of Cadogan Place, Knightsbridge, London."

Kingsley looked directly at Richard: "You are Mr Richard Alden of Notting Hill, and a Muggle - that is to say, a person with no magical blood or heritage?"

"Yes," Richard said slowly, with slight contempt, as though the question was stupid.

Hermione rolled her eyes as Kingsley then looked directly at her: "You are Miss Hermione Granger of Knightsbridge, are you not?"

"I am"

"With the accused present, the trial will now commence."

Kingsley retook his seat and a senior member of the Wizangamot stood forward to take over the questioning, beginning with Hermione.

"Miss Granger, how long have you known Mr Alden?"

"Many years, since I was about five or six, I think. His father and my father were old friends and have often done business together in the past."

"Would you say you were close?"

"Somewhat," Hermione shrugged. "Growing up we were in and out of each other's houses. But naturally we drifted apart when I started Hogwarts – I would only see him two weeks in the summer at most."

"But you became close once more, didn't you? There was even an engagement at one point?"

"Rumoured engagement," Hermione emphasised, ignoring Richard's quiet scoff of indignation. "Never official."

"But you were in a relationship with him at one point?"

"Briefly," Hermione admitted with a sigh. "It's complicated, I guess."

"Tell us, from the beginning, of your relationship with Richard Alden."

Hermione nodded, took a deep breath and began her narrative, starting from the summer she received her Hogwarts letter. She detailed every summer since then, all the time she and Richard had spent together. She told of everything from their brief fling that ended with her leaving to fight in the war, her unexpected return and the situation she had found herself in, right up until the fallout over a year ago when she had publically rejected his proposals and he finally admitted that he knew her secrets.

All the while she narrated, she was questioned on certain key moments:

"When you were told of your magical abilities, and your place at Hogwarts, whom did you tell?"

"No one," Hermione assured her with confidence. "A Ministry representative called at my house to explain the situation to my parents and me. It was impressed upon me from the very beginning that I could not divulge anything about the Wizarding world to anyone other than my parents – to do so would be breaking the law."

"So you never breathed a word to Mr Alden?"

Hermione shook her head, "No."

"Not even when you were saying what you thought was a final goodbye to him?"

"No: To do so then would have put him in even more danger than he already was. I kept my secret, not knowing that he already knew." Hermione then went onto to describe in detail the argument during which Richard confessed his knowledge, and told the room all that Richard had told her about how he had come to learn the truth.

A few times Richard had tried to interrupt, and each time Hermione had glared at him as he was told: "You'll get your turn, Mr Alden."

Hermione continued her narration, with the occasional question, going over her limited interactions with Richard over the past eighteen months. They broke for lunch at 12.30pm; instead of eating in the atrium, Hermione hid out in Harry's office with him, Ron and Draco.

"How do you think it's going so far?' Draco asked Harry, but it was Hermione who answered. She laughed, tossed her half eaten sandwich into the take-out container and reached for her drink.

"It's not going anywhere, yet," she pointed out. "So far, the reporters have had a nice insight into my private life in the Muggle world, that's about it."

"Yeah, it's moving pretty slow," Harry agreed. "The wizengamot needed context: They need to understand your history with Richard to better understand his motive."

"Right," Hermione nodded. "I'm guessing that part will come after lunch?"

"I've got to ask," Draco said suddenly. "Where have you been keeping Richard? How did you bring him here?"

"We brought him straight down to the Ministry as soon as we arrested him," Ron said. "Put a sleeping spell on him so we could apparate with him a little easier. Brought him through the visitor's entrance – he was starting to come too at that point, but then he saw people disappearing into the fireplaces, and I think he passed out."

Hermione laughed at that. "So, he's been here the whole time?" she asked.

"Yep, down in one of the holding cells near the courtrooms," Harry explained. "He hasn't seen anything except that room, and there's been a dementor stationed outside it the entire time. So he's been pretty subdued."

"Poor guy," Hermione sighed. "After all these years imagining the wondrous possibilities of our world, he finally gets a chance to catch a glimpse of it. And he's too subdued to notice. I'd feel bad for him, if he wasn't such an arsehole."

The afternoons proceedings were focused on the case: Hermione talked through her involvement in the investigation, how she pieced together the clues and figured out they were hunting a serial thief. The first lot of witnesses were called forward, including her boss, and others who had worked on the case. Mid way through the afternoon there was a fifteen minute recess, after which it was finally Richard's turn to be questioned.

After a few hours away from a dementor, Richard had managed to regain some of his usual obnoxiousness, and at first was pedantic with his answers as well as rude.

"Mr Alden, when did you first gain knowledge of the Magical world?"

"Hasn't Lady Hermione the Golden Girl already answered that question?"

The chains of his chair began to rattle ominously, and the entire Wizengamot glared at him.

"Answer the question, Mr Alden. You were very eager to defend yourself early; now is your chance, I suggest you take it before we coax the truth through alternative means," the interrogator asked with a hint of menace in her voice. The chains on Richards chair rattled threateningly again and Richard eyed them with slight alarm and answered the question in detail.

"Do these men have names?" He was asked when he finished.

"Of course, doesn't everyone?" Once more the chains rattled, and Richard hastily gave the names asked of him. He then went on to detail the conception of his plan, and the help he received from his father's associates throughout the whole. He confirmed Hermione's suspicions about stealing her textbook –

"I'd like that back, by the way," Hermione said directly to Richard, before she could stop herself. The chains on her chair remained still despite her interruption, and the interrogator nodded at her.

"Of course," she assured Hermione. "Law enforcement cleared Mr Alden's home of any evidence, including the textbook, we will make sure it is returned to you. Continue please, Mr Alden," She added, returning her gaze to Richard who was now looking mildly annoyed.

"How come she's allowed to interrupt without being threatened by the chains?" The chains on Richard's chair rattled once more and the interrogator repeated her request for him to continue, which he promptly did.

Richard continued his narrative, detailing every theft up until his arrest, answering the occasional question. With every pedantic response, the chains on his chair continued to rattle. Hermione glanced around the room, convinced that someone was having a little bit of fun at Richard's expense, as she was certain this wasn't the normal chair behaviour. At first she thought it was a member of the Wizengamot, but then she noticed Draco watching Richard with a self-satisfied and amused smirk, his wand resting surreptitiously on his thigh; Hermione kept looking at him until she caught his eye. Eventually Draco looked at her; Hermione raised an eyebrow and Draco grinned. Hermione tried not to laugh, but it was proving difficult as now Draco was now making the chains rattle even when Richard was silent, simply because he knew it was amusing her.

By the time the Wizengamot had finished questioning Richard it was past six o'clock. Kingsley called proceedings to a halt. With the interrogations complete, the Wizengamot would reconvene in the morning to discuss their verdict. In the meantime, someone would be sent to bring in Richard's associates to corroborate his story. The court was adjourned, and Richard led off to spend another night in his cell; Hermione left with Draco, Harry, and Ron, looking forward to a good meal and a glass of wine, before facing tomorrow's verdict.


A/N: Next chapter will see what finally happens to Richard. I'm about to head overseas for 10 days with work, so I'll be taking that time off from writing, but once I get back I'll be straight back into it. We're getting to the tail end of the story now, so not many chapters left to go and I pretty much know how I want each one to go, so they Shouldn't be too hard to write.

Thanks for reading, let me know what you thought. :)

xBx