Disclaimer: I'd like to say I own Harry Potter, but I also like to say that I've never been involved in intellectual property theft, so I probably shouldn't lie.
There were many ways Cornelius Fudge could describe the day he was having. Pleasant was not one of them.
"What do you mean it's true?".
"That, sir. It is true. He confessed". Rufus did not particularly enjoy being chewed out by his boss, and now he was being chewed out by his boss's boss, in front of his boss. Getting in trouble for doing his job was not one of the reasons he pushed for this promotion.
"How the hell could this happen, and how the hell did the Prophet find out before me?", Fudge shouted at the two most powerful members of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.
"We're not exactly sure sir", Amelia Bones said. "We were continuing our interrogation when you summoned us up here, but it seems that no-one knew about Pettigrew's involvement with You-Know-Who except Bellatrix Lestrange and You-Know-Who. Seems Black figured it out though. As for the press, most of the guys were in the office when we brought him in. Someone probably got a few galleons for the story. We tried getting hold of you yesterday sir, but..."
"This isn't my fault Amelia, I earn my holidays". The Minister paced around his office. "What should we do? If we don't handle this right, we could all lose our jobs".
Rufus stepped forward. "In my opinion, we already have everything we need to bring this in front of the Wizengamot. Hell, we could probably get him convicted today, but I want more time with him. This is the first confessed Death Eater we've caught that's blabbed under Veritaserum, and we're learning valuable information on how You-Know-Who waged the war and-"
"I don't care how he waged the war Rufus. We need to show that we're tough on crime, and that we can deal with our own messes. If he's finished confessing, get him down to the courtrooms!"
"It's not that simple", Amelia interjected. "I want to know what happened at Hogwarts before my Aurors got there. I want to know how a government official ended up tied to a chair in the Hogwarts infirmary. I want to know how Harry Potter knows more about this than I do. I want to bring him in, and Dumbledore. They've both got to be hiding something".
Scrimgeour couldn't believe his ears, but before he could say something Fudge spoke up. "That's probably a good idea. Dumbledore's been telling us all year that we can't talk to the boy about Black, now we can".
"What does Black matter now? We've got a man in custody confessing to the crimes we convicted him of! Black's clearly innocent! And now you want to bring in the Chief Warlock and the Boy-Who-Lived for questioning, like common criminals? If it wasn't for them we wouldn't have caught this son of a bitch!", Rufus said, almost shouting by the end.
"Rufus! You told me yourself you walked into the room and Pettigrew was stunned and tied to the chair! Albus Dumbledore is not the law, and we cannot allow private citizens to take matters into their own hands. It is our job to discover the perpetrators of crimes and arrest them. Go do your job".
"Amelia, are you sure this is wise? I mean, what will the Prophet say?", Fudge said, having finally sat down behind his desk.
"The law is the law Minister", Amelia Bones said with a tone of finality in her voice. "I mean to enforce it".
"Harry! Wait up!"
Neville ran from the Great Hall after his friend, and even though Harry did not wait up quickly caught up with him.
"Was it too much? I wanted to say something with panache, but not have it seem rehearsed", Harry said, continuing to limp towards the Gryffindor Common Room. Madam Pomfrey would probably shout at him for putting too much strain on his leg.
"What are you talking about Harry?"
"Back there, in the hall. Were people shocked?"
"Shocked! You just told them that the Professor that's been missing for two days tried to kill you, and that you were involved in the arrest of a Ministry official. Of course they were bloody shocked! I'm bloody shocked! What happened Harry! You go through those flames, Dumbledore runs past us with a look of terror on his face, comes back five minutes later with you floating behind him looking like you've been killed! They wouldn't let me and Hermione in to see you at all, wouldn't tell us what happened, for two days! I thought you were dead!"
Harry stopped and looked at his friend.
"I thought you were dead Harry, and you come on out here like it's nothing".
The pain on his friend's face was evident, and Harry didn't know what to do.
"I'm sorry Neville".
"Don't tell me you're sorry! Tell me what happened!"
"You can't tell anyone, Dumbledore made me promise to keep it a secret", Harry whispered, leaning in closer to his friend. Neville nodded, and Harry continued. "Quirrell had been helping Voldemort. He was behind the flames, trying to get the Stone. He couldn't though, because of the protections the Headmaster put in place, so he had me try and get it. Somehow, the Stone ended up in my pocket, then Quirrell took his turban off and Voldemort was sticking out the back of his head. He was possessing Quirrell. I tried to run, but they attacked me, broke my leg and tried to choke me. For some reason Quirrell couldn't touch me, his skin burnt, so I jumped on him and choked him. I, killed him. Then Dumbledore was there, and I woke up in the Hospital wing. I managed to blackmail him into getting Pettigrew to come visit, then I managed to reveal he was a Death Eater by holding him hostage".
Neville stared blankly at Harry for a couple of seconds, before he said "You're not normal Harry, your life isn't normal".
"True, but if it was then you wouldn't have anywhere near as much fun".
Harry continued off towards the tower, leaving Neville standing in the corridor. He shook his head. "He's bloody right", he muttered before chasing after his friend.
Harry got to the tower and discovered Hermione sitting waiting for him. After ten minutes of hugging, scolding, a little crying and more scolding they headed to Transfiguration. Harry had asked Madam Pomfrey if his leg would be better in time for the final Quidditch game of the season the following day, and she told him that she'd only give him the all clear if he could get through a day of classes. Despite having sat the Transfiguration exam, Professor McGonagall was not going to let them waste their time, and started discussing the work she was going to have them do over the summer.
Ten minutes into the class, she was interrupted.
"I really must protest Amelia", was heard from outside the classroom, along with a large amount of footsteps. The door to the classroom opened, and Harry turned to see the Headmaster enter along with Rufus Scrimgeour, one of the Aurors from the day before and a middle-aged woman Harry recognised from a picture in a past edition of the Daily Prophet as Amelia Bones.
"Hello Auntie!", Susan Bones shouted from across the class.
The elder Bones said "Not now Susan" at the same time as Professor McGonagall asked "What's the meaning of this?".
Locking eyes with Harry, the head of the DMLE said "Mr Potter, we just have some questions for you about what happened yesterday. Would you mind coming with us?"
Harry looked across to the Headmaster, who seemed quite angry. "I'd have thought you'd have got everything you needed from his confession".
"We haven't". She pointed at the door. "Please".
"I'd rather not".
"Come on Harry, it's better to play nice", Scrimgeour said, looking about as pleased with the situation as Dumbledore did.
The whole class was watching in silence as Harry came to a realisation. He looked Madam Bones in the eye.
"I think I'd like to see what happens if I don't".
Amelia sighed. "Harry Potter. You are under arrest for the kidnapping of a government official, for the assault of a government official and for aiding and abetting the fugitive Sirius Black. You do not have to say anything but anything you do say will be taken down and may be given in evidence".
The room broke out into pandemonium. Neville and Hermione both jumped up and started shouting at the Aurors. Some of the other students started shouting and screaming amongst themselves. McGonagall marched to the front of the room and started berating Amelia Bones along with Dumbledore.
Harry turned, and packed his book and notes into his bag. Picking it up, he tapped Hermione on the shoulder. "Look after this will you?", he said and thrust the bag into her arms. Walking away, over to Scrimgeour, he flicked his wand into his hand and then flipped it around, handing it hilt first to the Chief Auror. "Be gentle gov'nur", he said in a mock London accent as Rufus took it and placed it in a pocket on the inside of his coat, and Harry presented his wrists to the older man. "I am wounded so".
Harry wasn't sitting in the small room long before Scrimgeour and Bones entered, both looking pretty angry. Amelia sat down and unrolled some parchment, placing it on the desk that separated her from Harry. She removed a quill from her pocket, gave it a tap with her wand and placed it tip down on the parchment where it stood upright.
"June 5th, 11am. Interrogation of Harry James Potter by Amelia Bones and Rufus Scrimgeour". As she spoke, the quill moved across the parchment scrawling down on the parchment what was said. She took Harry's knife from her pocket and placed it on the table. "Do you recognise this?"
Harry sat in silence.
"Professor Dumbledore told us that you used this knife to hold Peter Pettigrew hostage when he came to visit you two days ago. Is that true?"
Harry looked around the room.
"That's kidnapping, and assault, Harry. Both serious crimes. You'd do well to cooperate with us".
Harry didn't say a word.
"He may have been a Death Eater, and may have been responsible for the deaths of your family, but at the time he was still a Government official and what you did was not the right way to do things Harry. If you suspect someone of committing a crime, you inform the authorities. You don't put a knife to someone's throat".
The silence continued.
"If you don't answer my questions I can't help you".
Harry started looking at his fingernails.
"Fine. Where is Sirius Black?".
Harry looked up into Amelia's eyes, and a small grin appeared on his face.
"I think you know exactly where he is, and how he's evading capture".
Harry shrugged his eyebrows, looked around the room for a second, and finally said "Am I free to go yet?"
"Free to go? Oh no. I want some answers Harry".
"It's just I was wondering how you thought this was going to go. You get Pettigrew up in front of the Wizengamot, and we hear about all the nasty things he's done. The people who are dead because of him. Maybe we'll even get to hear about some other nasty Death Eaters, maybe even some who are sitting up on those big benches. We will hear about how he torched my grandparents home, how he served my parents up on a platter to Voldemort. Then when he's been sentenced, given life in Azkaban probably, maybe the kiss, you'll bring me up. We'll hear about how Harry Potter uncovered the truth about nasty Peter Pettigrew. How he struggled against the odds to bring justice to the man who destroyed his family. I don't think even the nasty Death Eaters who are sitting on those big benches are going to vote me guilty. So I was asking if you are ready to let me go now, or after you become a laughing stock Madam Bones. I'd advise you to do it now".
Throughout Harry's tirade Amelia sat and stared at him. When he finished, she continued. "Where is Sirius Black?"
"No matter what charges you come up with to try and scare me, I'm not going to tell you a thing about my godfather. Don't think I don't know that this is what it's all about".
"Where is Sirius Black?". This time it was almost a shout.
"I'd be more worried about begging him for forgiveness than finding him right now"
"Beg for forgiveness?", she said getting to her feet. "Two Aurors dead in India. One who'll never walk again after confronting you in Cambodia. Sirius Black may not have been a criminal when you left on your little jaunt around the world, but he is one now. So I'll ask again, where is Sirius Black".
"You'll have to forgive me, but you lost my sympathy when you lot stopped caring if we were brought back in chains or in body bags. 1000 Galleons alive, 500 dead was it? I'll save you the time. Even if I knew where to find Sirius, I wouldn't tell you a damn thing. Now, either charge me and throw me in a cell, or let me go".
Amelia opened her mouth to continue shouting at the boy, but the hand on her shoulder stopped her. She turned to look at Rufus, who shook his head at her, before she stormed out of the room.
Scrimgeour picked up the parchment and quill, put them in his pockets and went to follow his boss out the door when he stopped. "I used to be on the team that looked for you. I was on site when we confronted you in Lagos, and then again in Mumbai. I don't know if you remember Lagos, I think you would have been three years old then. We tried to corner the pair of you in the market of the magical district, and Black managed to hold us off long enough to get outside the anti-Apparition ward we'd set up and flee. I remember thinking at the time, why was he only using stunners? Didn't understand it. Mumbai started the same, cornered you in your hotel room, you managed to get out. Led us on a merry chase through the streets, Indians never let us back because of their obliviator bill, but again he was just using stunners. Until one of us clipped you with a cutter. I saw the blood, knew it was a bad one. And I saw him just, change. He went berserk. Two ended up dead, one of em blown to bits. Six more, including me, in the hospital. She'll never forgive him, not for being a cop-killer, but me, I understood. I thought he was a Death Eater & I thought he was a kidnapper, but I never doubted for a second that he loved you. That he'd do anything for you. I thought to myself, if that was me and my son had been hurt like that, I'd have done the same thing. Guess I'm just trying to say, sorry about all this. Bones is good, but she hates your godfather. She hates the fact that he's probably going to come home to the Ministry tripping over themselves to acquit him and a sizeable compensation package. I think she saw this as the last chance to catch him, to make having to go tell those families that their father wasn't coming home worth it".
He walked out the door, and Harry didn't know whether he should be feeling bad or not.
"How can you be so blasé about the whole thing? You were arrested during class!"
"They let me go didn't they?"
Harry and Hermione were sitting in the stands watching the final Quidditch match of the season, arguing. Harry was bitter because his short-lived incarceration meant Madam Pomfrey refused to give him the all clear to play in the game, and angry because part of him agreed with her. His leg still hurt, and all the walking he'd had to do to get to and from the Ministry had aggravated his injury. He was angry at Madam Bones for being so petty, but could also understand her position.
Hermione was just angry about Harry's continuing habit of getting into trouble.
His housemates seemed to be a little annoyed at him for getting arrested, but their ire was directed more towards the memory of Professor Quirrell. When Harry had told his team-mates that he wouldn't be able to play, Oliver had ranted and raved for five minutes about Quirrell clearly not being satisfied with ruining his Defence OWL and having to destroy his chance for the Quidditch Cup too.
So Harry was watching his team-mates on the field of battle getting flattened by the Ravenclaws, whilst arguing with one of his best friends about how he should be annoyed about getting arrested for reasons other than having to miss a Quidditch match.
"Even McGonagall was angry Harry, she even took points off Susan for chatting in class when it wasn't even her talking. It was Eloise and Sally!"
"I think as long as Hufflepuff lost the points it doesn't matter that much Hermione".
"It's the principle".
From over in the Teacher's stands, unaware that she was currently their topic of conversation, McGonagall was observing the two Gryffindors argument and considering the boy that seemed to evade assumptions.
The evening before, Dumbledore had summoned her and the other Heads of Houses into his office to explain everything. Harry's arrest had made it quite essential, as the rumours flying around the school were distracting every single class.
As she heard of the events the boy had took centre stage in over the past few days, her attitude had swung from angry, to shocked, to saddened, to aggrieved. Her dismissal of the boy's warning had almost resulted in his death and she was furious with herself. The entire year the boy had been getting into trouble, and he was many things but a liar he had never been. The room had been silent throughout Dumbledore's story, but when he told them that the charges the boy had been arrested for were correct, it erupted.
"I told you! I told you all he was a menace!", Sprout yelled.
"Albus, please tell me he didn't threaten to hurt Pettigrew", McGonagall said desperately. She did not want her colleague to be right, did not want to have to remove James and Lily's boy from the school.
"He did what he had to", Albus said. "I disagree with how he did it, but I understand it".
"Don't tell me you're buying this dragon dung in the papers about Black being innocent Albus", Pomona almost screamed. "The man's a killer".
"Buy it? Pomona, Pettigrew confessed in front of me. He had the Dark Mark on his arm. He told us that he had committed the crimes that Black was convicted of, under Auror grade Veritaserum. I believe that Sirius was framed ten years ago, and as the only person who could exonerate him was the real criminal, fled for his and his godsons safety. I believe it completely".
"You can't be serious. There was evidence back then, evidence you gave".
"That is something I will have on my conscience for the rest of my days. That I inadvertently helped destroy the life and reputation of a man I had considered a friend is one of my greatest mistakes. I could not have known any better, but it still weighs on me", Albus said, the sadness in his tone completely genuine.
"But, Potter is a menace".
"You see only what your prejudices tell you to see Pomona!", Flitwick shouted as he got to his feet. "If you could actually see through the cloud of suspicion that you've placed around the boy you could have realised this months ago! Harry has shown me a desire to help others, intrinsic loyalty to his friends, and a complete rejection in the belief of supremacy of blood. He may be quick to anger and prone to violence, but I could see he had a good heart since the first day I met him. He is not what you believe him to be!".
Minerva looked over at her colleague, who was passionately defending one of her charges, and wished she too could have seen past her prejudices and noticed this too. Filius was right, Harry had only ever tried to help.
She had thought about this ever since then. How could she have missed all the signs? Maybe the shock of seeing him standing over the corpse of a Mountain troll made her skip over the fact he was only there to save a girl whom before he was not friendly with in the slightest. Maybe the shock of seeing him threatening a fellow student made her gloss over his reasons for doing so.
No longer. She would regain his respect. At the beginning of the year she'd promised herself that she was going to try and get him to trust her, to come over to the light. Now she promised herself that she was going to try and be deserving of his trust.
Two days later, on a bright Monday morning, Harry waited patiently in the Great Hall for the teachers to start arriving for Breakfast. The hall was empty, with him being the sole occupant at that moment. Sitting on the Gryffindor benches, as close to the teachers table as he could be, he ate his meal in complete silence.
Professor Flitwick entered the hall and saw Harry sitting alone, completely unsurprised. He could deduce the boys reasons quite easily.
"Excuse me, Professor". Harry had ran straight to Flitwick's space on the table, and was there before his Charms Professor could even sit down. "Do you know if I'm going to be allowed to go to the trial?".
"I believe so Harry. It would only be right. The Headmaster will take you with him".
Harry burst out in a smile. "Fantastic", and he turned to leave, but Flitwick stopped him.
"Harry, I just wanted to say, I'm happy for you. What you did took great courage, but don't be afraid to seek help in the future. If you had told me, I would have listened".
The smile on Harry's face faded. "Thank you. Don't take this the wrong way sir, I do like you, but how can I ever be sure? I mean, my parents trusted Pettigrew. He was their best friend for ten years. They trusted him with their lives, and he broke that trust. If they couldn't trust their best friend with their lives, how could I trust anyone else to help avenge their death".
He walked away, out of the hall, leaving his Professor wondering how to get through to the boy who only truly trusted one person in the world.
Harry entered through the atrium of the Ministry this time, walking alongside the Headmaster, ignoring the flashes of photography and the questions from a blond haired reporter.
"Mr Dumbledore, how were you involved in the arrest of Mr Pettigrew? How was Mr Potter involved? Will Mr Potter be called as a witness today? Mr Potter, what sentence will you be pushing for? Does this revelation throw the Ministry's reputation to uphold the law into doubt?"
The pair entered the lifts, and as the reporter went to join them Dumbledore closed the doors in front of her. "We seem to be quite full here Miss Skeeter, why don't you get the next one?".
They lowered down through the floor, and as Skeeter faded out of sight the Headmaster said "The best thing you can do with reporters Harry is ignore them. The Prophet has a habit of interpreting your words quite oddly in order to create the most elaborate story possible".
"Will I have to speak? I know they decided not to follow on those charges, but-"
"No, this is an open and shut case. A transcript of Pettigrew's confession will be sitting in front of each member, they'll read it and then we'll bring him in to give him a chance to plead. We'll then each vote, he will almost certainly be found guilty and then he will be sent off to Azkaban where he will spend the remainder of his days. We might even be back at school in time for lunch".
They continued the rest of the way to the courtroom in silence. Harry didn't know why, but he wasn't as confident as the Headmaster about everything. Maybe it was growing up with bad things happening all the time, always having to watch round every corner, but this was something so monumentally good he couldn't help but think it was about to all go wrong.
They weren't the first ones into the room. Harry looked and saw that there was about fifty people sitting in the audience and there was not much space left, and the benches that held the members of the Wizengamot were nearly full too. "Harry, could you sit down over there please? Can you stay put until I come and collect you too? You will be alright on your own for a short while?"
Harry nodded, and as Dumbledore headed to take his seat in the centre of the Wizengamot bench, Harry took his own seat. He looked around at the people that were here to see this. There were two women crying in the front row, one who looked to be around sixty and the other Harry guessed as being in her mid-thirties. They were holding on to each other for comfort. No-one else seemed sad, everyone else seemed angry. Talking amongst themselves, but the tone of the mutterings conveyed impatience, disbelief, horror. Sitting at the back of the audience, in the corner of the room, Harry managed to avoid being noticed which suited him well. He didn't want to talk to anyone. He wouldn't know what to say.
He looked over at the members of the Wizengamot. Sirius had never taught him about the intricacies of the Wizengamot, so Harry had read about it the day prior to prepare himself. On one side sat the Ministry seats, where each head of Department had one seat. One stood out, wearing a robe that completely disguised him. Harry suspected this to be the head of the Department of Mysteries. On the other side sat the hereditary seats, where the head of the old houses sat. He'd discovered that the Potter and Black families had seats, but they'd been empty since his grandfather and Sirius's grandfather has passed away respectively. There was one more empty seat on this side, the Gambol seat, but as the last Gambol had died recently without an heir the Wizengamot was currently in the process of reassigning the seat to another family. There had always been fifteen seats held by the old families, and families had died out before. Emrys, Gryffindor, Slytherin, Peverell, all ancient houses that died off and had their seats replaced.
Harry looked at the people sitting on this bench, and thought to himself that he'd never seen so many old people in one place. The youngest member had to be at least sixty, with most looking like they were on death's door. A woman Harry recognised from the paper as Griselda Marchbanks looked as though she was going to keel over at any time.
Dumbledore sat in the middle of the two benches, in a place reserved for the Chief Warlock. Harry read that this grand title meant that he was in charge of maintaining order in the chamber, and starting proceedings. The Dumbledore's were not one of the old families, and the Headmaster was currently the only member of the body with a seat due to him possessing a First Class Order of Merlin. Historically, if someone was recognised with that honour they were given a seat at the Wizengamot and Dumbledore was the only holder of that honour who was still alive.
While Harry had been thinking, the room had filled up and proceedings looked ready to begin. The Minister took his seat, and then Dumbledore stood up and spoke, his voice magically amplified. "I call this session of the Wizengamot, on this day the seventh of June in the nineteen hundredth and ninety second year, to order".
The room fell to silence quickly.
"We are hear to pass judgement in the case of Peter Pettigrew. Let us begin. Madam Bones, will you present the Ministry's case".
Amelia stood up from the seat she was entitled to as head of the DMLE, and began to speak. "Peter Pettigrew is charged with committing the murder of Charlus Potter & Dorea Potter, the murder and torture of at this time 4 unknown muggles, to being an accessory to the murder of James Potter & Lily Potter, to being an accessory to the murder and torture of Marlene McKinnon, Edgar Bones, Catherine Bones, Sophia Bones and Thomas Bones, and to being an accessory to the attempted murder of Harry Potter. Whilst in custody, Peter Pettigrew confessed to all these crimes. The details are in the cases resting in front of you".
While she spoke, the room was silent except for the sobs of the two women at the front. Harry could hear Amelia's voice harden as she went through the list of charges, and falter slightly at the names of her niece and nephew. It wasn't fair. He shouldn't have to fight against people who are on the same side as him. Bones should be thankful that her family is getting justice, but she was fighting against Sirius instead.
As the members of the Wizengamot read the papers in front of them, the mutterings in the room started again. Harry tried to tune it out, tried to read the faces of the people who would be passing judgement, making a decision that would affect his life incredibly.
They all came to an end, and after exchanging glances with the other members Dumbledore stood and announced to the room, "Bring in the accused!".
The doors opened, and everyone else in the room got to their feet in order to get a better look. Accompanied by an Auror on either side, Pettigrew was restrained by chains on his hands and feet. He took slow plodding steps forward, looking distraught. He got to the chair in the centre of the room, was forced into it by the Aurors and then locked into place. The room was aloud with talk now, and Dumbledore had to once again resort to magical amplification. "Quiet! Quiet! Peter Pettigrew, do you understand the charges with which you are accused?"
He didn't look up. "Yes".
"How do you plead?".
"Guilty".
The room once again erupted into noise. People were hurling abuse at him, the two women in the front row were screaming in anguish, and Harry sat in shock. He was going to jail. Sirius would be free.
"Quiet! If the audience cannot remain quiet then they will be thrown out! Quiet! Mr Pettigrew, do you have anything to say in defence of your actions?".
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, but I didn't have a choice. He was going to win, I could see it, we didn't stand a chance against him. I didn't want to die. If I hadn't joined with him, I would have been killed. I'm sorry". He turned around. "Jennifer, Mother, I love you both. Please forgive me".
Suddenly, Harry realised who the two women in the front row had to be. The ring Wormtail was wearing sprang into view. The two women were Mrs Pettigrew, elder and younger. His mother and his wife. He didn't know he had a wife.
"The Wizengamot will now vote"
Each member then raised their wand, and a light flashed on the end of their wands. All the lights were red, except for two which were white.
"Two abstentions, nineteen say guilty. Peter Pettigrew, you are found guilty of all charges against you. What sentence does the Ministry recommend?"
Amelia Bones stood again. "Mr Pettigrew has been charged with a multitude of heinous crimes. However, in comparison to some offenders from the period his charges seem slight. Also, his service to the Ministry over the last ten years should be taken into account. Therefore we recommend a life sentence in Azkaban with the possibility of parole in twenty years".
"Does the Wizengamot accept the recommendation?".
All the Wizengamot raised their wands again, and with the exception of two who coloured theirs white all the lights turned green.
"The Wizengamot accepts. Peter Pettigrew, I sentence you to life imprisonment in Azkaban. We will revisit your case in twenty years to see whether you have appropriately atoned for your crimes. Your actions cut short the lives of many wonderful people. I hope you spend your time considering the damage you have done to our society. Take him away".
The room watched as Pettigrew was unlocked from the chair and dragged away by the two Aurors who accompanied him in. As he was being dragged, his eyes never left his wife's. He was shouting, professing his love whilst she was being held back by another in Auror's robes. Eventually, she left the room along with Pettigrew's mother, both distraught.
"Any other business?", Dumbledore said.
"What about Sirius Black?", a man in the audience shouted out, and many others in the room shouted out their agreement.
"Quiet! I agree that today's events bring questions to light about the conviction of Sirius Black ten years ago. What is the Ministry's recommendation?"
Amelia Bones went to stand, but Fudge beat her to it. "The Ministry is committed to upholding justice for all it's citizens and we recognise that justice may not have been done in the case of Sirius Black. As this new evidence has come to light, we recommend a retrial in the case of Sirius Black. We urge that he turn himself in to the Ministry so that we may proceed in uncovering the truth in as complete a manner as possible".
The man in the audience who shouted out earlier stood up. "How about we get on with it right now?", he shouted as he brought his wand to his face. The short blond hair on his head lengthened and darkened, stubble erupted across his jaw, & his nose sharpened. He threw his arms out and shouted, "This is me, turning myself in!".
Harry got to his feet. "Sirius!"
A/N: Let it never be said that I dislike a cliffhanger!
I made some small changes from canon to the way the Wizengamot operates in this, mainly based on logistics on my assumption of population size. I've actually sat down and worked out who each and every member is, along with some thoughts on staffing levels inside the ministry as well. It's probably not very interesting, but when I'm done with this whole story I'll put it up somewhere. I mainly think on how a country with a population of around 5000 is economically viable, especially when it looks like around half of them work for the government. Oh well.