A/N: We're back on a regular posting schedule again. I know I'm evil for making you wait another chapter for the trial of the century, but hey, it's my story and I can do that!
52. PreparationsIn the period of time since the trials of Umbridge and the Crouches, the wizarding world had settled down again. Sirius had met with Narcissa Malfoy two more times to ensure her interests were being properly taken care of. The Ministry had frozen Lucius' vault, however Narcissa's personal vault was still available. Lucius had ensured it was well provided for just such circumstances. She had declined Sirius' offer for assistance, wanting to wait to see what the trial results would be. She had no doubt he would be found guilty of all charges; her only uncertainty was in what would happen to him afterwards.
Sirius had been meeting with various factions of the British wizarding world. It hadn't taken him long to figure out that a pall of complacency had settled over them all in the intervening years. With war no longer an imminent threat, they had gone about their everyday lives pretty much ignoring what was happening in their world. Those members of the Wizengamot not affiliated with Malfoy had been quite happy to allow Fudge and Dumbledore to govern as they saw fit, as long as it had no major impact on themselves. Sirius was ready to light a fire under most of them to get them to realize that they got the kind of government they currently had because nobody was willing to stick their necks out for something different.
The agenda for the November Wizengamot meeting was quite short. With Barty Crouch, Senior in Azkaban, there would be no update on the TriWizard Tournament. Someone would need to be appointed prior to the ICW meeting in December as it was a subject for discussion there. Ludo Bagman would give his update on the plans for the Quidditch World Cup. There were reports from several other minor ministry departments scheduled. Anything else of any importance could wait until the December meeting.
Sirius had arranged to pick Harry up the Wednesday night before the trial to allow them some time together before the trial and had also told Minerva that he intended to keep Harry until Sunday night to give them both a chance to process the events of the day. Hermione had volunteered to make his nutrient potion for him that weekend. He'd told Harry to be sure to bring his homework with him. He'd also told Remus to keep an eye on him. Even though they knew most of what Albus had to say, there was no telling what might also come out that hadn't been discussed.
Sirius floo'd into Minerva's office shortly before dinner Wednesday night. Remus was there with Harry.
"Minerva, good to see you again, I think."
"As you, Sirius. I understand congratulations are in order."
"For what, Sirius?" asked Harry.
"I've been appointed to the Hogwarts Board of Governors," grinned Sirius.
"You what? And you kept that from me? Now I'll never be able to get away with anything!" Harry said in a huff.
The three adults all laughed, "Well, you shouldn't have anything needing to get away with, Mr. Potter," said Minerva.
"What they don't know, I won't tell," said Sirius, ruffling Harry's messy hair. "Will you be there tomorrow, Minerva?"
"Of course. I'm sure there are more than a few things that I was unaware of that will come out tomorrow. Plus, I want to make sure the doddering old fool is punished for what he did to Harry."
"And what about what he did to you and Severus and Poppy?"
"Yes, us too, but Harry is much more important."
"I'm sure Remus told you that I've asked him to escort Harry to the courtroom tomorrow. Would you also sit with him?"
"I'd be happy to. I think Severus is also considering going. I'm sure the students wouldn't mind a day without Potions as well as Defense."
"Remus will pick Harry up at Black Hall then escort him to the Ministry. Amelia is allowing them to floo directly to her office in order to avoid some of the crowd."
"Have you gotten all of your assignments for tomorrow and Friday, Harry?" asked Remus.
"Yeah. Hermione's going to take notes for me. If I need anything else I'm sure I can find it in one of the libraries."
"And you have your dress robes?" asked Sirius.
"I just shrunk my whole trunk and brought it with me to save time."
"Well, we'll see you tomorrow, Minerva."
Sirius sent Harry through the floo first with a destination of Potter Hall. He still wanted to keep the direct floo address of Black Hall private for now. As soon as Harry made it through he was almost bowled over by a small elf.
"Harry! You come to visit Dobby!"
"Yeah, for a bit at least."
Sirius came right behind him, "I asked Dobby to prepare dinner for us, then we'll go over to Black Hall for the night. We've got some things we need to do there."
Dobby had prepared all of Harry's favorites, including a huge treacle tart. Harry finally had to call it quits after the second piece. Once done, they floo'd over to Black Hall.
"Kreacher!"
An elderly elf popped into view.
"Yes, Master Sirius."
"Kreacher, this is my godson Harry Potter. You will treat him as you do me."
Kreacher bowed low, "Yes, Master Sirius. Kreacher is happy to serve the young Master. Master Harry, how may Kreacher serve you?"
"Pleased to meet you Kreacher. I don't need anything right now, but I'll let you know if I do."
"Kreacher, we're going upstairs so Harry can pick out his bedroom."
Sirius led him upstairs, stopping at the portrait of his mother. "Mother, this is my godson, Harry Potter. Harry, this is my mother, Walburga Black."
Harry bowed to the elder Black, "Madam Black, pleased to make your acquaintance."
"Heir Potter. My son has told me that he wishes for me to assist you in your training. Apparently some of what I tried to teach him sunk into his thick skull as that was a proper greeting."
"I'm not a total failure, Mother."
"That remains to be seen. However, I believe I can work with this one."
"Thank you Madam Black. I look forward to what I can learn from you." Harry bowed again to the portrait.
"Come on, Harry, let's go upstairs."
He showed Harry the rooms on the ground floor including the dining room and library. On the first floor he showed him where his room was.
"There are six other bedrooms on this floor. The Master Suite and Guest Suite have ensuite baths while the other two two-bedroom suites share bathrooms between them. On the third floor are three other two-bedroom suites with the bathrooms between them. That's where Regulus and I lived. Regulus and I each shared bathrooms with another empty room and then there is another two-bedroom guest suite. I don't know which room you would prefer. Regulus and I moved up there once we were old enough to realize we didn't want our parents to watch our every move," laughed Sirius.
"I don't really care," said Harry, a bit overwhelmed. He was going to have his own private bedroom!
"Why don't you start with the one down here with a private bath. If you decide later you want a little more privacy, you can move upstairs."
Sirius took him over to the larger room. Beside the four poster bed and wardrobe, there was also a sitting area with a sofa, two chairs and tables with a desk and bookcase in a separate alcove. There was also a large picture window with a window seat. Harry couldn't help that his jaw dropped open.
"I realize this is probably a bit more than you were expecting, but whatever you want will be fine with me. We'll get Kreacher to redecorate it for you. If there's something else you'd like, we can go to Diagon Alley and get what you want or even into Muggle London if there's something there you'd rather have."
"I really don't need this much, Sirius! I can take one of the other rooms!"
"You may not need it, but you are going to get it. So, how do you want your room to look? Gryffindor colors?"
"Well, I like the red and gold, but I get enough of that at Hogwarts."
"I know you probably spent many hours dreaming about how you would decorate a room of your own, so now is your chance."
"I've always wanted something light and airy. Light blues and yellows. Maybe a light yellow for the walls and a darker blue carpet?"
"We can do that. What about your bed furnishings?"
"Well, I'm sure we can find something that blends those two colors. I'm not against any green, just as long as it's not Slytherin green," he chuckled.
"Yeah, my room was decorated in all green and silver. I got rid of that straightaway. We'll start with that, then see what else you may want."
Sirius called Kreacher and told him what they wanted. They adjourned down to the sitting room while that was being taken care of. As soon as they sat down, a tray of tea and biscuits appeared.
"I know you are worried about tomorrow, but you've heard directly from Albus already about most of the charges. If there is something else you would like to know, let me know and I'll pass it to Amelia."
"Well, I'd still like to know who told Voldemort the prophesy."
"I would too, but I have to agree with Albus. Nothing will be gained by knowing it. It would just be another person to be angry with and I think you've had quite enough of those for a lifetime. Remus should be here about eight then the three of us will floo over to Amelia's office. If she's got any other questions to ask you about, this will give her a chance to do it. I thought you might like to go down to the Department of Mysteries to hear the prophesy yourself, so I made an appointment for half eight."
"So what happens once I hear it? Dumbledore's already told it to me."
"Since it is about you and Voldemort is no longer with us physically, you have the option to destroy it afterwards."
"So if old Moldyshorts ever comes back, he can't ever find out the rest? Brilliant!"
"Exactly. Now, I think it's about time you go to bed young man. It's going to be a busy and stressful day tomorrow. Do you think you'll be able to sleep?"
"I think so."
"Well, if you do have problems, don't hesitate to wake me up. We'll get out your parents' portrait and tell stories until you fall asleep."
"Can we do that anyway?"
"Yeah, pup, we can."
Harry pulled out his trunk and resized it then pulled out the portrait of his parents. They took turns telling him about their life up until Harry was born until he fell asleep against Sirius. Sirius quietly picked him up and took him upstairs. The boy was still too light for a thirteen year old.
OoOoOoOoOo
November 25th was a bit blustery in London. Although Sirius wasn't usually an early riser, today he made sure to be up before Harry. He knocked on Harry's door then went in and woke the sleepy teenager up.
"Time to get up, pup. Why don't you come downstairs and eat first before getting dressed. Then you won't worry about getting your dress robes dirty."
Harry rolled over and looked at Sirius with tired eyes, "Already?"
"Yes, already. Anything special you want for breakfast?"
"Waffles?"
"Fine, but you're eating something else besides loading up on waffles. No telling what time we'll get done today."
Sirius went downstairs to let Kreacher know what to prepare, then sat down with the Daily Prophet to see what the latest nonsense they were publishing. Someone needed to give them an example of what professional journalism is. Remus arrived just as Harry stumbled downstairs. It didn't take long for breakfast to appear. Besides Harry's requested waffles, Kreacher had made eggs and sausages as well as a fruit cup. The smell of the food woke Harry up further and he began to dig into the meal. Sirius looked at him fondly, seeing the boy finally able to eat a teenager-sized breakfast. Once done, they both went upstairs to change.
When Harry came back downstairs in his dress robes, he took one look at Sirius and burst out laughing.
"What's so funny?"
"Those purple robes! They look like something Dumbledore would wear!"
"These are not purple, I'll have you know. They are plum! And you've seen them before!" he said, laughing with his godson. "They do look a bit ridiculous, don't they? Now, we're going to floo to Amelia's office. The destination is 'Minister for Magic's office' and the password is 'Black'. Do you think you can manage it?"
"Yeah. I think I've finally got this flooing thing down. Now if I could just manage to not land in a heap on the other end."
"The trick is to start walking just before you land," said Remus.
While Harry didn't land in a heap, he still wasn't quite as graceful as Sirius was when he came out of the floo. Sirius quickly cleaned the soot off of them both before turning to Amelia's assistant, "Good morning, Emily. You're here bright and early."
"Good morning to you, too, Lord Black. Harry, it's good to see you again as well. Mr. Lupin."
"Thank you, Ma'am."
"Minister Bones just arrived. Your escort from the Department of Mysteries should be here any time now."
"Thank you. We'll just wait over there for them to get here." Sirius directed Harry to a sofa. Harry was getting familiar with the Minister's office after being in it a few times now. Promptly at half eight, a wizard with their face obscured came into the office and walked over to them.
"Lord Black, Mr. Potter, if you'd just follow me." He then led them to the lifts and down to the Department of Mysteries.
Harry leaned over and asked Sirius, "Why is he covered up like that?"
"They call themselves Unspeakables because they are not allowed to tell anyone what they do in their jobs. Other than a few senior members, people who work in the Department of Mysteries always say they work elsewhere in the Ministry."
The lift took the four of them down into the very depths of the Ministry. The Unspeakable led them down a plain black corridor to a single door. Once they walked through it, they found themselves in a circular room with a dozen or so doors. Their escort waved his wand and a door lit up in blue.
"Follow me, please. And don't touch anything." They were led through other doors and passageways until they found themselves in a room with row upon row of shelves with scores of crystal balls of various sizes resting on them. They finally came to a stop at shelf number 97. The Unspeakable pointed his wand at one particular crystal ball. Written below it was a legend, S.P.T. to A.P.W.B.D. Dark Lord and (?) Harry Potter.
"Only the people whom a prophesy is about may remove them from this hall. If you will pick that up, Mr. Potter, and bring it with you, I will show you where you may view it."
Harry did as he was told and picked up the orb then followed the man back down the way they had come, or at least it looked that way to Harry. At the end of the hallway was a door. He opened it up and motioned them inside. "I will wait here until you are through. Take your time."
"How do I make it start?"
"Just touch your wand to it. It will begin playing. Tap your wand on it again to stop it." The man stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him. Inside the room was a table and several chairs. Harry set the ball on the table and sat down in one while Sirius and Remus took one on either side of him.
"Well, I guess we should listen to it, pup. I know Albus told us, but I think we need to be sure that's exactly what it says and Remus hasn't heard it all."
Harry tapped his wand on the surface and a strange female voice began to recount the prophesy. Once it began to repeat itself, Harry tapped it again.
"Well that was no surprise," said Sirius."
"In this case, I'm glad it isn't. Everything else he comes up with seems to be a surprise. So what do I do now that I've heard it?"
Remus asked, "It really could have been Neville as well then?"
"Yes," said Sirius. "But once Voldemort marked him, there was no doubt it was Harry. So, what do you want to do with it, pup?"
"Smash it to bits! I wish this had never happened," Harry said, his voice rising, "I wish nobody else had heard it and gone off to tell a madman about it! I wish Voldemort had never gone after my parents, then I could have grown up with them and you and you'd have never gone to Azkaban!"
Sirius could feel the magic building up in the room and knew he had to get Harry back under control. He reached over and pulled him into a hug, "I wish it hadn't either, pup, but it did and we need to pick up and go on."
They stayed that way for several minutes, giving them both a chance to accept that there was nothing they could change about what had happened. Finally, Sirius went to the door and asked the Unspeakable to come in.
Harry asked, "So what do I do with it now? Just put it back on the shelf?"
"You may. If you believe the prophesy has been fulfilled, then you may destroy it."
Harry looked at Sirius, "Well, I think it has. I was born at the right time. He did mark me with this scar and the other item. And he is gone. Well at least as gone as we can make him. Plus, if we destroy it, there's no chance that if he did come back he'd come after the thing. OK, so if I want to destroy it, what do I do? Just drop it on the floor?"
"Some find satisfaction in doing just that, however, a simpler way to do it is to place your wand on it and cast Evanesco on it. That will remove it from this world. Some people have done a bit of both. As some orbs are harder than others, dropping it on the floor sometimes does nothing other than put a chip in it. You can place your wand on it and cast Reducto, then cast Evanesco to be truly sure it is destroyed."
"And the Ministry won't come after me for underage magic?"
"No. Magic done in this department is blocked from being tracked by any other department."
"Wicked!" Harry placed his wand on the globe and reduced it to minute pieces of glass, then cleaned it up in another swish. All traces of the prophesy were now gone, other than the ones in the minds of those who had heard it. Once completed, the three allowed the Unspeakable to lead them out of the Department and back to the lifts. They offered their thanks to him for his troubles and returned to the Minister's office. Amelia asked to see them briefly to inquire about any changes, then had Emily escort them to the private chamber by the courtroom.
Remus said, "I got an owl before I left from Arthur. He asked if he could join Harry in support. He said he would meet us outside the courtroom. I thought that would be a good thing to have another person with us. Minerva also said she would meet us outside the courtroom. Perhaps I should get them so we can walk in as a group?"
"I think the more the merrier. The more united a front we present, the better it will be," said Sirius. He wanted to make sure that Harry was protected from the crowds, especially the members of the press, before they all went into the room together.
Remus came back with a small crowd. Not only were Minerva and Arthur there, but so was Severus. Everyone directly affected by Albus' actions was there with the exception of Poppy.
"Poppy wanted to come, but couldn't leave the hospital wing. There was a small outbreak of dragon pox in the Hufflepuff dorm, so she's got four of them in quarantine at the moment," said Minerva.
"I appreciate you all coming to support Harry as well as for yourselves. There will be a few items of Wizengamot business to be conducted before the trials begin. I think they will have Fudge's first since it's much quicker than Albus'. If you'd rather not sit through that, I'm sure you can stay here."
Just then Emily stuck her head in, "Lord Black, if your party would like to enter now, we have a reserved section for them. It's well away from the press section. There are representatives from the international press here as well, so that section is more crowded than normal."
"Lead on, Emily."
When they entered, there were just a few members of the Wizengamot milling around. They looked at the group entering, then went back to their conversation. They were shown to the same section Harry had sat in when he came for Pettigrew's trial. Harry sat on the front row with Remus on his right and Minerva on his left. Arthur and Severus sat behind them. Anyone even thinking about talking to them had to suffer the glare of the Potions Master. Gerald entered at that moment and joined the other men behind Harry. Madam Longbottom did come over to speak to Harry.
"Good morning, Heir Potter."
Harry stood and replied, "Good morning, Madam Longbottom. I hope your day is going well."
"Fair enough. I'm sorry you have to go through this unpleasantness but hopefully it will be all done with when it's over."
"Thank you Ma'am. I hope so too."
Nobody else came over to speak with Harry. Most everyone nodded to the group when they entered the chamber. The Wizengamot members assumed their seats a bit earlier than usual due to the large crowd gathered. At fifteen minutes prior to the hour, the members of the press were allowed in and directed to a cordoned off section by the doors. Once settled, the doors were opened and members of the wizarding public were ushered in. Everyone seemed to be staring at Harry, but he just tried to ignore it. Remus and Minerva had been distracting him asking about classes and Quidditch. Finally just before the clock struck ten, Tiberius Ogden and Amelia Bones walked in and took their places. On the stroke of ten, Lord Ogden banged his gavel and called the meeting to order.
There were no new notices to be published so they got right down to the business at hand. Ludo Bagman gave his update on the Quidditch World Cup. They had located an appropriate location, however there were several Muggles in the area that they would need to deal with when the time came. The Department of Magical Transportation was surveying the site to identify points for apparition and portkeys. Likely campsites had also been identified. Ticket sales would begin on June 1st. After a couple of other minor reports, the real business of today's Wizengamot meeting began. Cornelius Fudge was the first to be brought in. Once again, Amelia was serving as prosecutor in this and Dumbledore's case.
Fudge was brought in and the two charges against him were read. The first being the illegal incarceration of Sirius Black and the second was the illegal incarceration of Rubeus Hagrid. Once the Veritaserum was administered, Amelia began her questioning.
"At the time of the incident with Sirius Black, what was your position?"
"I was the Junior Minister to the Director of the Department of Magical Catastrophes."
"Did you sign the order to send Sirius Black to Azkaban?"
"Yes."
"Can you tell us why you did it?"
"I was the first person on the scene after the disaster. I witnessed Sirius Black pointing his wand toward where the street had been blown up and yelling 'It's all my fault' over and over again. When the Aurors arrived, they asked me to come with them. We brought Black to the Ministry holding cells. Barty Crouch, Senior met us in the detention center. As we were completing the paperwork, Albus Dumbledore arrived. He said that since Black was accused of mass murder, the Ministry holding cells weren't strong enough to contain him as well as some of You Know Who's followers might try to break him out so he should be sent to Azkaban immediately. Barty pulled out the paperwork and completed it, then had Dumbledore sign it. Then he said we needed a third signature so they asked me to sign it and I did."
"Did you ever question the validity of the order?"
"No. I had no cause to. I assumed Crouch and Dumbledore knew what they were talking about."
"Did you ever go back and ensure that Sirius Black received a trial?"
"No. I was sure Barty had taken care of that."
"Until the acquittal of Sirius Black in August, did you ever check to be sure everyone in Azkaban were there properly?"
"No."
"Let's turn our attention to the incarceration of Rubeus Hagrid. What prompted you to send him to Azkaban?"
"Dumbledore had been in contact with me when the first students were petrified and the writing on the walls about the Chamber of Secrets being opened. I was a sixth year student the first time it had been opened and a student was killed. Hagrid had been blamed for one of his pets causing her death and he was expelled and his wand snapped. He was the only link between both events. Until we could resuscitate the students who had been petrified and ensure no others were harmed, it was the most prudent move at the time."
"Did Dumbledore tell you that it couldn't have been Hagrid?"
"Yes, but he always protected the man so I didn't think his judgment was sound in this matter."
"Did you investigate the incident any further after Hagrid was sent to Azkaban?"
"No. I knew Dumbledore would let me know if there were any further occurrences."
"Did you sign his release once it was determined he was innocent?"
"No. Dumbledore fire called me and said the mystery of the Chamber had been solved and everyone had recovered. Then he said he'd already sent an owl to Azkaban with release papers."
"Was Dumbledore authorized to release prisoners from Azkaban?"
"In his position as Chief Warlock he did have the authority to release prisoners if an investigation proved they were innocent."
"So in his position, he could have also freed Sirius Black once an investigation had proven his innocence or guilt?"
"Yes."
"I have no further questions. Lord Cornfoot, do you have any questions for Mr. Fudge?"
"I have none."
Once again, the chambers were cleared for the Wizengamot vote. Harry and his party were allowed out first, then the remaining guests. As it was approximately half eleven, Lord Ogden indicated they would reconvene no earlier than one to allow time for lunch before the start of the Dumbledore trial. Since Sirius was abstaining from the vote, he also joined Harry. Emily arranged a light lunch for the group. Severus moved over to a side table and brought out some marking to keep him busy, while the others chatted amicably. Gerald hadn't talked to Harry since he'd gone back to Hogwarts so he took the opportunity while he had it.
"So, Harry, apparently that basilisk was just as large as you said it was. The venom alone will make you a very rich young man and won't hurt Gringotts' till either."
"I kept telling everyone it was huge. So does anyone know how much money we're talking about?"
Severus heard that part of the conversation, "Mr. Potter, you have no idea how much that snake is worth?"
"No sir. I just know they're really rare."
"Did you notice the Goblins are selling the venom in cups?"
"Yes, sir. I thought that was really small too."
"Based on the small amount of venom currently available, one cup will probably bring in 1,000 galleons if not more."
Harry's eyes grew wide. The adults looked at his expression and all began to laugh heartily.
"Yes, Harry, between what you will get for the venom as well as the other items, you will probably double your net worth if not more," said Gerald.
"All that for a big snake?"
"Pup, that's more than just a big snake! Didn't Darmok tell you it was the first sighting in over 400 years? And who knows how long that thing has been living down there. I'll take you to the auction just so you can see for yourself. Oh, and while I'm thinking of it, Minerva, do you know where the room is that Dumbledore stored all of Harry's correspondence over the years?"
"No, but there are more than a few places in the castle I haven't visited in a long while."
"He said we could just ask for Pappy and he'd take us to it."
"Whenever you would like to see it, let me know and I'll have Pappy take us all there."
All too soon the lunch hour was over and they were escorted back into the courtroom. Once everyone had assembled, Lord Ogden called the meeting back to order. Fudge was escorted back into the courtroom where the verdict was read.
"Cornelius Oswald Fudge, we find you guilty of all charges and sentence you to thirteen years in minimum security in Azkaban prison. We order you to pay restitution in the amount of 60,000 galleons to Sirius Black and an additional 5,000 galleons to Rubeus Hagrid. We order the Ministry of Magic to pay restitution to Mr. Hagrid in the amount of 5,000 galleons. This sentence is to be carried out immediately."
Once Fudge was led from the room, Sirius asked to be heard.
"Lord Ogden, Acting Minister Bones, members of the Wizengamot. As Rubeus Hagrid was erroneously accused of opening the Chamber of Secrets resulting in the death of one student during his Hogwarts days and the petrification of others, I submit that his wand rights be returned to him immediately and he be reinstated as a wizard in good standing. I'm sure Headmistress McGonagall will see to his further education in its use."
Sirius' request was quickly seconded and a vote taken. The measure passed and Hagrid's wand rights were restored. There was a huge smile on Harry's face with that move as well as a small smile upon Minerva McGonagall's.
