A/N: Sorry about the wait. Thank you for all of your comments, they're always helpful when writing the story! Enjoy~
"The charges against the accused are as follows: Attacking the former Defense Against the Dark Arts professor and current Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, Darcy Anne Umbridge, attacking Narcissa Kalandrianna Black, attacking Mary Johanna McDonald, and murdering Head Girl Dolores Jane Umbridge."
Severus didn't blink once as Minister Tennison read off the charges against him. There were only a twenty or so other people sitting around the man; if they decided to take this hearing to trial, there would be hundreds more. To Severus' left, his friends fidgeted anxiously in their seats, waiting to see what would become of him. Severus couldn't bring himself to look at them. He was innocent, they all knew that, but it was going to be difficult proving the truth.
As usual, Dumbledore was nowhere in sight. After all, he must have more important things to do than wasting time trying to save a student from a life in prison. . .or worse.
Severus did not like it in here. It was dark and cold, thanks to the duo of Dementors floating near the exits. He didn't really think they were necessary, but he didn't mention this.
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see his friends shivering. Damn it, why did they have to come? They were only suffering more for his sake, which made him feel worse than he already did. Still, he wasn't sure if he would have been able to face this hearing alone. . .
"You are Severus Tobias Snape of number seven, Spinner's End, Bradford, Yorkshire?" Tennison glanced down at Severus with a disdainful look on his face.
Severus nodded. "Yes sir."
"What say you of these charges, Mr. Snape?"
"I didn't do it—" Severus said quickly, hoping to have some time to explain, but the Minister interrupted him.
"Of course you didn't," he said, smiling condescendingly. "So who did do it?"
"Pettigrew," he answered automatically. "Peter Pettigrew. He opened the Chamber of Secrets."
Half of the Wizengamot burst into laughter at this.
"The Chamber of Secrets?" Tennison chuckled. "This is not a game, boy, do not confuse fantasy with reality."
"But it's real!" Severus shouted. He glared hatefully at Umbridge, who was sitting directly to the Minister's right. "She knows too! She saw the message written on the wall at the beginning of the year!"
The entire Wizengamot fell silent and turned to look at Darcy.
Unfazed, she merely smiled lazily down at Severus. "Indeed. It was you who wrote it, if I remember correctly. Forgive me, but weren't you writing it in blood?"
The adults murmured amongst themselves darkly. Darcy sat back, comfortable with the fact that she was still in complete control of the situation.
"I found the writing," Severus answered with forced calmness. "But I didn't write it myself. James was there—" he motioned to James, to nervously got to his feet and waved, "—he can prove it wasn't—"
"Enough! These are serious accusations, Snape. We have already interrogated Pettigrew by Albus Dumbledore's request and he knows nothing of the incident."
Severus fell back into his chair, too stunned for words. How did Pettigrew possibly manage to evade the Ministry? Severus had seen the boy in class numerous times throughout first year; based on his observations, the boy had to be one of the worst wizards he'd ever seen. Was the mediocrity all an act? Or did he have someone else on his side. . .?
"But I was there. . .in the Chamber with Pettigrew. . .Lily was there too!"
The members of the Wizengamot did not look convinced.
"Really?" Tennison asked suspiciously, following Severus' gaze to where Lily sat. After several seconds of strained silence, he said, "Stand up girl."
Terrified, Lily immediately did as she was told.
"State your full name."
"Lily Rose Evans," she squeaked, avoiding Severus' gaze.
"Miss Evans, do you agree with Mr. Snape's statement that you were also present in the Chamber of Secrets on the third of June?"
Lily licked her lips and darted a frightened glance toward Severus. "Well sir. . .I-yes, I was there. Peter dragged me through the entrance and Severus followed a little while after."
"Do you know this as a fact, or has it been previously disclosed to you?" Tennison asked sharply.
Lily released a deep breath and her shoulders sagged, knowing it was no use to try and lie to the Minister of Magic himself. "No sir. . .I-I don't remember much from that night. . .Peter tampered with some of my memories—"
"LIES!" Darcy bellowed. "Minister, the girl clearly cannot serve as a reliable witness, given the circumstances. She could easily be lying to cover up for her little friend."
"I am not!" Lily replied hotly, though she had to admit the woman had a valid point. Apart from what Severus had told her about that night, she didn't know anything. She didn't remember Peter taking her into the Chamber, nor did she remember any sort of attack. . .still, she believed Severus nonetheless.
"Sit down, Miss Evans," Tennison gestured for her to sit, which she immediately did, grateful to be out of the spotlight once more. "Mr. Snape," he turned to Severus now, "If what Miss Evans says is true, then what happened to her memory of these events?"
"Pettigrew hit her with something. A curse I don't recognize. Once she was unconscious, he called the basilisk on me."
"A basilisk?" the Wizengamot members cried out incredulously.
The Minister still looked skeptical. "Are you sure of this?"
"Well obviously I wasn't about to turn around and get a good look at it," Severus retorted. James and Sirius sniggered quietly until Lily jabbed them in the ribs. "But it had to be a basilisk. He used some weird hissing noise to call it— it must have been Parseltongue— and that would explain all of the Petrified bodies. You already checked my wand; you know I didn't use any Unforgiveable Curses this year. Dolores was killed by the basilisk."
Severus panted after he finished his long-winded explanation of what he was certain had happened. He had been preparing these arguments for weeks, but somehow, they seemed weaker now that he was actually standing before the Wizengamot. He looked up at the Minister, desperate to find some sign of hope on his face.
"A very fitting story," Tennison replied at last. "How do we know that you are not a Parselmouth yourself? Miss Evans did claim that you followed her and Pettigrew through the entrance sometime after they had gone through. . .how did you open the entrance?"
Severus eyes widened. This man was much too clever. Nothing slipped past him.
Just tell the truth, Severus reminded himself. They won't find you guilty if you just tell the truth….
"I mimicked Pettigrew," he replied weakly. "That's how I got through."
"So you can speak Parseltongue?"
"Anyone can!" James said suddenly as he got to his feet.
Oh Merlin James, not now, Severus thought as he closed his eyes and listened to his friend's furious rant.
"It's just a bunch of crazy hissing. . .look! I can speak it too! Hiss hissy hiss hissy. . ."
"Mr. Potter, sit down or I will order the Dementors to escort you out," Tennison cut across him harshly. James immediately threw himself back onto the bench in between Lily and Remus, terrified at the prospect of the Dementors touching him.
"I mimicked it. I didn't actually comprehend what I was saying," Severus said quietly.
The Minister looked doubtful of this.
"So how did you manage to escape alive, Mr. Snape?" he asked in a slightly exasperated tone. "If Pettigrew really did set the basilisk on you, then why aren't you dead?"
Severus gulped. He had been hoping they would stay away from this question, but now it was unavoidable. "I fought it."
"Fought it?" some of the members of the Wizengamot began laughing again. "What spell could possibly hold off a basilisk?"
"Um. . .Sectumsempra."
"I don't recognize that spell," Tennison said at once. "Is it Dark Magic?"
Severus shook his head, knowing he would be in much more trouble if the Ministry realized just how much Dark Magic he actually knew. The last thing he needed was them finding more reasons to throw him in Azkaban. . .
"No sir."
"How does it work?"
"It. . .it stops things. Like. . .like a Freezing Charm. . ."
"Do not lie, Mr. Snape. It is common knowledge that few forms of magic can stop such creatures. If you do not wish to explain to me how this Sectumsempra spell works and you swear that it is not Dark Magic, then perhaps you wouldn't mind performing it for us."
"What?" Severus croaked. He couldn't do that, and it wasn't like he had a wand anyway. . .
"What does Sectumsempra do to its victim?" Tennison demanded, more aggressive this time. "How does it work? Did you invent it yourself?"
Severus nodded, unsure of what else to say. He couldn't bear to perform it on anyone in here, especially if it would have the same effect on them as it did the basilisk. If he concentrated hard enough, he could still recall the scent of the basilisk's blood falling on him like raindrops. . .
"It cut the basilisk. . .I think. Its blood landed on me—"
"We don't know if he's telling the truth—" Darcy shrieked, only to be interrupted by a quieter voice:
"The boy speaks the truth."
"Dumbledore?" Tennison asked, clearly astonished by his sudden presence. He hadn't been invited to this hearing, nor had he been allowed in during the proceedings, yet he had come inside anyway.
Severus and his friends stared at the older wizard as he made his way to the centre of the grand room; as always, he looked calm and was rather pleased by the Wizengamot's reaction to his entrance.
He pulled out his wand and out of thin air, a vial of bright red blood appeared. He sent the little container zooming up to the Minister for inspection.
"I have taken the liberty of examining the contents myself, as well as asking four of your best magical creature inspectors as to which creature this blood belongs to. All studies have confirmed this is the blood of a basilisk. This was the same blood I found on young Mr. Snape's robes upon his exit from the Chamber of Secrets on the third of June. The boy is telling the truth."
The rest of the Wizengamot seemed too stunned to speak. Even the Minister was at a loss for words as he sniffed the liquid and poked his wand in the vial.
Severus' heart pounded as Dumbledore glanced back at him with a wink. Was the blood going to be enough to prove his innocence? Judging by the look on Darcy's face, it wasn't, so Severus could only hope Dumbledore had a few more tricks up his sleeve. . .
"So what if it was a basilisk? Where is the proof we need that it was not Snape controlling the beast?" Darcy spat, her face purple with rage.
"Darcy, while I feel tremendously guilty for allowing a student to die in my school during my time as headmaster, I beg for you to stop going about this so irrationally. Blaming an innocent boy will not bring your daughter back."
The entire hall fell silent from Dumbledore's words. They cut like ice through the air, sending shivers down Severus' spine that had nothing to do with the Dementors.
"He murdered her," Darcy said stonily, refusing to give in, even to Dumbledore. "We have all the evidence that suggests—"
"Aside from the fact that Mr. Snape and Mr. Lupin were in my office at the time, Narcissa Black has confirmed that her attacker was not Mr. Snape—"
"But—"
"—Furthermore, as Mary McDonald's memories have clearly shown the Wizengamot already, Mr. Snape was not present in the bathroom at the time of Dolores Umbridge's murder."
"But he used the basilisk!" Darcy wailed. "He's already admitted to using Parseltongue once; he must have killed her using the basilisk!"
"Might I remind you, Mr. Snape was very nearly killed by the basilisk himself on the third of June?" Dumbledore asked calmly.
"It must have turned on him," Darcy screamed hysterically, refusing to give in to the idea that Severus Snape may not be her daughter's murderer after all. "He. . .and the girl! They must have been plotting together!"
Dumbledore smiled serenely up at her. She was only making herself look worse by losing her temper.
"To what point and purpose, Darcy? Surely you must know the historical usages of basilisks— thus making Miss Evans' involvement quite impractical— and while I must commend you on your quick-witted replies, you are sorely mistaken in blaming Mr. Snape for these crimes. You have yet to provide me solid evidence to the contrary," he added with a wry smile.
"He was there!" she spluttered, "He was the first one to find her! He must have done it!"
Again, Dumbledore's smile remained unchanging. "Ah. Yet another dilemma. You see, if I was to drop dead in front of you, Darcy, with nobody else around, would they accuse someone such as yourself for murdering me? I should think not.
"Mr. Snape obviously was not controlling the basilisk, and since the only explanation for Dolores' death was that she unfortunately made the fatal eye contact with the monster, I think it's safe to say Mr. Snape is innocent.
"As for the basilisk, it will be tracked and killed as soon as possible. Thus, I think we have nothing more to discuss."
Darcy's face was pinker than her robes. Severus had never seen her look angrier, except for that day when she nearly killed him after they all stumbled onto Dolores' dead body. That had been frightening, but he had had McGonagall to protect him. Now, Dumbledore was his saviour.
Severus' innocence was pretty clear to the rest of the Wizengamot by now; it was more of a question of whether Darcy or Dumbledore would win the argument.
"So," she said thickly, still breathing hard. "You know what this means, Dumbledore?"
"My forced resignation, I believe?" Dumbledore asked pleasantly. "Are we discussing that now, are we?"
Sweating profusely, Darcy nodded triumphantly. She might have had to drop the charges against the boy, but Dumbledore's fate was still up in the air. . .
"The school's governors have already signed the forms," she smiled wickedly, holding up a stack of a dozen or so pieces of formal-looking parchment. "The Ministry has also complied. You are no longer the headmaster at Hogwarts, Dumbledore."
The members of Wizengamot looked around at each other as though each of them were having second thoughts about Dumbledore's resignation.
"I will go quietly," Dumbledore said after several moments of silence, "If you will allow me one small request."
Darcy's screeching laughter echoed along the halls. "A request? What small request could you possibly want?"
Severus watched Dumbledore's lips twitch slightly, as though he were enjoying his own private joke. He couldn't believe Dumbledore would give in so easily. . .what could he possibly have planned?
"I want to choose the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor."
A/N: This chapter was a little more difficult to write than usual...as you might be able to see, I followed the hearing process as described in OotP. I'm not exactly a lawyer, so forgive any legal errors I made (even if this is just fiction). I would have spent more time on the hearing, but I think it'll be better if we just get along with the story...
As always, reviews are extremely helpful and appreciated :)