Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Peter Pettigrew was currently in a cell below the wizengamot court awaiting transport to the Ministry courtroom for his trial. The past few days seemed like a bad dream. One moment he had been feeling his newest child kick to freedom and the next he was being stabbed by Sirius Black. He had lost a lot of blood and would have died if not for Galatea. He had come home, attempted to flee the country for India, but had been arrested in his own home by a team of Ministry Aurors. He shuddered as a Dementor passed by him. He wanted to go home, he wanted this all to be over, he wanted to have never met Sirius Black or James Potter and to a lesser extent Remus Lupin. He was dragged ruffly to a metal cage by a cold faced Auror and was wheeled up to face the courts.
"This trial is called to order!" said Barty Crouch tapping his desk to quiet everyone down. Peter felt better as he was away from the dementor. He looked over and saw his family, all of them, dressed in mourning clothes. He wanted to reach out to them, to call out to them, but he couldn't find his voice. This was what he had been fearing for years. He cursed himself for getting careless and for taking in Harry. He loved the boy like a son but he had brought Sirius to the house and caused all of this.
"I move for a miss trial." Said the man next to him who he assumed was his barrister. Addie held her children close, the sickly Bertie Bott cooing as he was pressed into his mother. This was what she had feared for years. Her husband was going to Azkaban for years, possibly life. She wiped a tear from her eye and saw Albus Dumbledore enter out the back room. He was chief mugwump; surely he would help.
"On what grounds?" asked Barty Crouch angry that anyone would dare speak up like that. He was used to just sending Death Eaters to Azkaban. The ones with barristers were slippery. Peter Pettigrew was going to try and slip through his grasp. Barty didn't put it past him to have bribed their way out of this crime back in Remordere.
"I have pensive evidence that he was used as a spy for Albus Dumbledore as well as veritiserum and testimony. Peter Pettigrew was used as a pawn in a terror war. Those muggles were not your citizens and were casualties. Wars have casualties people; that is a fact." Said the barrister. He looked over to the Pettigrew family and Galatea Black nodded in approval. He eyes searched the crowd for Harry and instead found her so called father if he could so be called.
"Non-sense. He betrayed the Potters to his Dark Lord!" said Barty Crouch. There was a gasp from everyone from Remordere. It was then that Peter saw his extended family, his wife's people, and some people he barely knew.
"Are you dismissing evidence, sir?" asked the barrister incredulously. He had never wanted to practice in the Ministry; even the so called good guys were openly corrupt. Now; Remordere was corrupt too but at least they had some semblance of law and order.
"He is a Death Eater." Said Barty Crouch simply as if he were stating the time. A quill could be hear scraping. Rita Skeeter had thought that the upcoming tri wizard tournament was news. This was pure gold; lies, murder, betrayal, kidnapping, and best of all the revenge. It was almost like a fantasy book.
"Say something, Dumbledore. My husband's life is on the line here." Muttered Addie as she buried her head into Beadle Bard blonde hair. Albus Dumbledore was trying so see what he could do. It was in his best interests that Peter Pettigrew was put away. He knew that it was callous but Peter had obviously gone to the dark side and poisoned Harry too. He needed to get Harry away from these people and all of this. It was a good thing that Harry was being kept asleep in the hospital wing; he didn't know what the boy would have done.
"You are being paid to save the man so save him you over paid over educated useless sack of uselessness." Muttered Galatea darkly as she stroked her son's hair. She had been up all night arranging things for Peter. She had even summoned her husband and arranged for Peter to hide in America for a few years if worse came to worst. Before, of course, keeping the line going. Dumbledore studied Galatea Black and her son. The boy wasn't completely human; that was obvious. He was part fey which meant that either they had found a fey living amongst people, unlikely, or had gone to Avalon, damn near impossible.
"This is all my fault." Said Portia. There was more arguing but she didn't pay attention. All she could see was her father in that barbed cage filthy, tired, and worried. This wasn't Harry's fault; it was hers. If she had been at home she could have done…something. It was a terrible time for everyone but she tried to at least keep up here spirits. If not for her then for her family. She tried to will this all to end; for her father to be alright. She wished that they still had that golden compass so she could ask it what to do, or the phoenix gate so she could go back in time and save him from his fate.
"It's Harry's." whispered Persephone. She hated Harry Potter with every fiber of her being. He had done this to them. He had brought Sirius Black into their home and done all of this to their perfect family. She hoped that where ever he was he was suffering.
"He didn't know." Said Portia. She didn't know why she was defending him; maybe she harbored a strange sense of loyalty to him because they had been raised together. Maybe it was because if she hated him it would be all the more difficult to get things back to the way they used to be. Or maybe it was because he was just a little bit attractive and now it was alright to think so because he wasn't really her brother.
"I don't care, it's still his fault." Said Persephone adjusting her black parasol to better keep the light off of her. Her magic had usually protected her but now because of the stress it was wavering. She wanted her mother if only to bring some sort of stability to her life.
"Quite the both of you, I'm trying to listen." Said Addie angrily. Portia and Persephone both shut up without protest. Now Crouch was letting the evidence in. This was looking up but Addie knew how bad the courts were here. This would be smeared beyond recognition in their news media but Addie didn't care about that. Let these common bumpkins read what they wanted. Reputation meant nothing out here and no one she knew bothered with that gossip rag known as the Daily Prophet. The evidence was presented and more arguing happened. Addie bit her nails through her glove. Dumbledore had power why wasn't he at least saying that Peter was a spy for him. And where was Harry? She didn't know how to feel about him. On one hand he was the boy she had raised as another son but on the other hand he had brought this upon them. He was reckless like his real father. Everyone was dismissed for a brief recess but Addie and her family stayed.
"I love you." Mouthed Peter towards Addie. Addie cried a little and her children tried to make her feel better. They were at a loss of what to do and the younger ones didn't even know what was going on. Daddy was in a cage and some funny people were arguing. They wanted Daddy to come out and play with them. Beadle was old enough to know that Peter was in big trouble for some reason and tried to explain it to Priscilla who at four just wanted to go home with her family.
"Until my dying day." Mouthed Addie back. Bertie Bott was hungry and attempted to latch on to Addie but she didn't notice. She waited with bated breath for the trial to commence. This was the worst sort of torture for her bear. It was 1981 all over again. More arguing and then Barty rose for the verdict.
"We find the defendant guilty…" started Barty. Addie screamed and dropped Bertie to the ground. The entire family began to either sob of threaten his life. Timothy and Beadle brandished children's wands at him and screamed unintelligible words. Sparks flew and Barty tried to bring order to the courts.
"You are a vulture! You are a profiteer of death!" screamed Portia in an animalistic voice. Peter wanted to go and comfort them but he was trapped. This had to be worse than anything the Ministry of Magic could throw at him. He watched his family break down and suffer.
"When you are old you can tell your children and grandchildren how you watched your entire world crumble to pieces on the word of one man." Muttered Peter towards his oldest daughter. He remembered the day she was born. She little hand wrapped itself around his finger and she opened her pale blue eyes before wailing. It actually sounded a lot like that.
"As for the sentence we sentence that the sum of two million galleons be paid to the Potter estate for the loss of Lily and James." Said Barty Crouch. It tore him up to do it but legally he had blundered it all up. Sirius Black hadn't got a trial and the statute of limitation had run out on the killing of muggles.
"Thank God!" yelled Addie at the top of her lungs. Most people looked at her like she was crazy. Two million galleons was nothing to sneeze at. Addie didn't care about the money, as long as people drank tea there would always be more money, she was just happy to have the love of her life back.
"A further million Galleons will be paid to the house of Black as well as the transference of the guardianship of Harry Potter." Said Barty Crouch. Sirius whopped for joy and Galatea got up. She took Timothy with her and this silenced the entire room. They hadn't noticed her son before; they were too busy watching the spectacle unfold before them. Galatea crossed the room and stood in front of her father.
"Father." Said Galatea simply. Sirius was struck dumb as he saw his now grown daughter. He had seen her briefly and hadn't even realized who he was looking at. She had his hair and nose as well as height. This was undeniably his child. He stared at the creature next to her attempting to hide behind her dress.
"G-Gretchen." Said Sirius embarrassed that he couldn't even remember her name. He had been too busy having his happy memories taken from in Azkaban and then he had focused all of his mental energy on revenge. He knew that her name started with a G though. He was proud of that.
"Galatea." Said Galatea crossly. She didn't know why she had come over there. Anger? Jealousy? Curiosity? Whatever it was it also made her take her son as well.
"Timothy but you can call me Tim or Timmy." Said Timothy extending his hand to be polite. Mother was always very cross when he was impolite. He was a bit offended when the man didn't shake it but then Timothy decided that maybe they didn't shake hands where the man was from. He shook Sirius' limp hand and then went back behind his mother; dress.
"So uh…what brings you over here?" asked Sirius as people began to leave. This wasn't the grand confrontation they had wanted so they went on with their lives.
"I have custody of Harry Potter, I have the money, and you will live off the goodness of my heart. You will live somewhere but not with me or Harry. You will also not contest this. Good day." And then Galatea left with her young son in tow. Timothy decided that this Sirius wasn't someone to like. They avoided some reporter and made their way home to look into where Harry Potter was being kept.