Disclaimer I do not own Harry Potter and everything recognisable belongs to J K Rowling. Also this story is inspired by 'A Shattered Prophesy' by Project Dark Overlord.

Okay, since I got so many reviews, I'm updating so soon. I hope you excuse any mistakes. This is a really long chapter, so Enjoy!

Chapter Fifty Five

James wasn't going to give up. If he and Sirius couldn't go through the main entrance then he would have to find another way. He would dig his way into the Ministry if he had to. He wasn't going to leave Harry alone at a time like this.

Remus was also standing with them. He had left the Burrow at the same time but was instructed to go to the headquarters and gather the Order members by Kingsley. The more Order Aurors present in the Ministry the better the chance that Harry wasn't going to be mistreated. The Order members would be a lot nicer to Harry than the Ministry Aurors.

"James, are you sure about this?" Sirius asked as they stood before the blank stone wall where the door was hidden that would give them access to the tunnel leading into the Ministry.

"Stop asking me that!" James snapped at him.

"It's just, no one had ever tried to get entry from here." Sirius said as he looked at the blank stone wall.

"There's a first time for everything." James replied as he gripped his wand tightly.

"Ready?" James asked.

Simultaneously, James and Sirius turned into Padfoot and Prongs. The great big shaggy dog sniffed at the wall and moved towards his right, barking softly that he had found the entrance. The golden coloured stag joined him so that both were standing before the entrance.

Remus took a deep breath and uttered the curse to reveal the door. A black door appeared and Remus let out a deep breath. He walked over to it and knocked on it with his wand six times.

At once the door swung open to give entrance. This was the tricky part. If anyone trying to get unauthorised access set foot inside this room, spells would kick in to trap them and set of the alarms. However, James had a theory that if they entered in their Animagus form, the alarms wouldn't go off. The reason behind this was that it wouldn't be the wizard's aura that would be detected but that of the animals. Sirius and Remus weren't too sure about this but they couldn't really argue with James when he was in such a state.

The shaggy black dog and the golden stag entered the room and waited for something to happen. Nothing happened. There was nothing to show that their entrance had caused any sort of disturbance.

Remus waited next to the door. He couldn't enter. He watched as the door closed softly and then melted into the stone wall, completely vanishing into the stone wall. He quickly made his way to the front of the building. He too was banned from the Ministry. He had to wait patiently to get inside.

Once inside the room, the two friends slowly and quietly made their way over to the small window that showed a steep slope leading down into the Ministry. Sirius gripped the metal bars of the window with his teeth and tore it away. Both threw themselves head first into the tunnel. They hadn't realised how steep the tunnel was. James tumbled out first, closely followed by Sirius. Once inside they changed back into their human forms.

Both Aurors stood up and waited, with thumping hearts to see if their presence had been detected. Surprisingly nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary.

"Come on." James whispered to Sirius and both men set off to find Harry.

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Harry opened the door and stepped out from the bathroom. He felt vaguely better, now that he had thrown up what little food was in his stomach. He gingerly made his way back to the bed. He sat on the edge, letting his head collapse into his hands. A trial! He was going to have a trial. What the hell was Dumbledore playing at? Harry knew that having a trial was only going to make things, if possible, worse. Half of the things Harry had done had never been brought to light. Like saving Bella from the Ministry, for example. This trial was only going to bury Harry deeper into trouble.

He sighed and ran a hand through his messy locks. He was desperate for a shower right now, but he had to settle for the 'Scourgify' spell that Moody had used to take away the blood stains from his clothes.

Harry was still wearing his muggle clothes. He looked down at his black pants and black t shirt that had seen better days. He felt vaguely concerned that this would be the last thing he would be wearing. Harry shook his head to clear his thoughts. 'Don't break down! You won't be able to go through this if you think like that!" his mind yelled at him. But Harry didn't really know how else he was supposed to think? He couldn't possibly hope to get away from Azkaban. The best case scenario was a life sentence in Azkaban, with those Dementors. Another thing bothering Harry was that in Azkaban he would be helpless to protect himself from Voldemort. He would be a waiting target and would probably be handed over to him. Harry knew that the Dementors would give in to Voldemort sooner or later.

He was brought out of his thoughts as he sensed Moody standing over him. Harry looked up at him and saw the Auror looking at him with a dismal expression.

"Time to go." he said as quietly.

Harry felt his heart hammer against his Adams apple. He slowly stood up. They walked towards the door. Before Moody opened the door he turned to Harry and took something out of his robes.

"You have to wear these." he said awkwardly.

Harry looked at the chains in Moody's hands and looked at the Auror straight in the eyes.

"The Bartra bracelet's not enough?" Harry asked icily.

Without waiting for an answer Harry held out his bandaged wrists and waited for Moody to handcuff him. Moody did and seemed to be doing everything mechanically. Harry felt heavy shackles being forced around his ankles. The chains running from his wrists to his ankles were surprisingly heavy.

Harry tried to take a step and found it to be quite difficult due to the weight of the chains weighing him down and the short chain running between his ankles. Harry glared at Moody as he opened the door and took hold of Harry's upper arm.

"Has to be done, boy." Moody said without looking at him.

Harry realised that Moody didn't have a choice in this. This was the way all criminals were brought to court. Harry tried his best to keep up with Moody, but the chains were too heavy for him to deal with and he kept tripping over his own feet. The shackles were digging into his ankles and if he tried to walk any faster, he ended up tripping. The short chain running between his shackled feet only allowed small steps to be taken.

"Moody…could you…slow down, will you!" Harry snapped as he tripped again, sending shockwaves of pain up his bruised back.

Moody did slow down, but not enough.

"We can't be late!" he grumbled as he held onto Harry tightly.

Harry was glad of Moody's tight grip, since he didn't think he would be able to move at all by himself. His whole body was aching and Harry could feel the strain his back was taking from the heavy chains.

They turned a corner and Harry groaned at the sight before him. There were Aurors everywhere. They all stood, crowded in this long corridor. Harry looked at Moody, hoping the Auror would shout out instructions to make some room, but Moody just headed towards them without any hesitation.

The Aurors stared at the bound form of Harry and most smirked at the sight. Harry felt his face burn with embarrassment and anger. Why were they making him go through all of this?

The Aurors moved away as Moody walked through the crowd, holding Harry. Harry's arm was starting to go numb from the tight grip but he didn't complain. He had his eyes fixed on the ground and didn't look up at anyone.

His concentration was broken suddenly when a body slammed into him. Harry was nearly knocked to the ground. One of the Aurors, a tall, blond haired man had on purposely slammed his shoulder into Harry's side. Harry clutched at his aching shoulder with his bound hands.

"Oh! Sorry, didn't quite see you there!" the Auror laughed.

Harry gasped at the pain and glared at the Auror, wishing he could break the arrogant bastard's neck.

"Open your eyes then!" barked Moody while pulling Harry away.

Harry continued to rub at his shoulder. It was throbbing with pain. Moody wished the Aurors would act their age. He knew that Harry must be in a lot of pain. The shoulder he was rubbing was the same one that had been dislocated a few hours ago and Moody himself had fixed it. However, healing wasn't exactly something Moody was good at. He knew how to fix bones, as all Aurors knew the basics of healing, but Harry needed much more complicated healing than Moody could offer. However, the situation was such that he was forced to do what he could. He had mended all of his broken bones but he couldn't do anything about the bruises. There was still some swelling around the areas that had been injured. The pain from all of Harry's injuries was still there and would only fully go away once he rested properly and took all the necessary potions.

Harry focused on walking and not his shoulder. His anger was still bubbling furiously at being treated like this. He felt better when they reached the elevator. There was no one in there except for Moody and Harry. Harry closed his eyes and leaned against the wall, letting his aching back relax a little. Moody stared at the sight, hoping that everything would be over soon, one way or another.

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James rushed to the floor where the prison holding cells were located. He searched them frantically but had no luck in finding his son. His heart raced as he searched all the cells, his mind coming up with all sorts of horrible thoughts that could explain Harry's disappearance.

Sirius was not any calmer. He was rushing around, softly calling out Harry's name. The dark cells were mostly empty except for a few wizards.

"He's not here! Where else can he be?" James asked in a panicked voice.

"We've got to find someone from the Order. They might know." Sirius offered and both men set off at once.

They literally ran into Tonks.

"Hey, watch it! James? Sirius? What are you two doing here? You're not allowed in here!" Tonks said quickly as she pulled them into a corner.

"Tonks! Do you know where Harry is? He wasn't in any of the cells! Do you where they took him?" James asked, completely ignoring her questions.

"Well, yeah, but you guys don't have to worry about that. You should get yourselves out of here. If you're spotted you could get disciplinary action against you." she continued in a worried voice.

"I don't give a shit about disciplinary action! I want to know where my son is!" James roared, making Tonks wince.

"Harry's fine. Well, he is now. I mean he's as fine as one can be when in this type of situation." Tonks stuttered over her words.

"What do you mean? He's fine now! As in he wasn't fine before? Just tell me where he is. I need to see him!" James said with a note of pleading creeping into his voice.

Tonks looked uncomfortable as she spoke.

"Well, he's with…he's under Moody's care." she finished awkwardly.

Sirius was the first one to erupt.

"He's with whom! Are you insane! Why the hell did you let that maniac anywhere near him! You know what he's like with Harry!" he yelled at the pink haired Auror.

"Well it was either Moody or Blake! And I think we all agree that Blake is ten times worse!" Tonks yelled back, now losing the grip on her anger.

"I don't think Blake would do anything that could come near to what Moody could do." Sirius said in between clenched teeth. James was still speechless. He was praying hard that Harry was still in one piece.

"Oh, I wouldn't be too sure about that. From what I heard, Moody did Harry a favour by taking him away from Blake. Apparently Blake was getting a little carried away and Harry would probably not have even survived this long if Moody hadn't forcibly taken him away from Blake!"

James and Sirius were both left staring at the female Auror. Tonks immediately regretted her words. It didn't make James's situation any better to know that his son had suffered immensely by the hands of his colleagues.

"What did he do?" he hissed at Tonks, shaking in anger.

"I…I don't really know. Moody took him away and he actually helped him. I know because I was there. I helped heal Harry." Again Tonks mentally slapped herself. She had just told James that Harry needed two Aurors to heal him. That didn't make things look any better.

Before she could say anything more, a figure appeared behind James. Both men spun around to see Dumbledore standing before them with Lily and Damien standing behind him.

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The doors to the elevator opened and the two figures stepped out. The courtroom that they were due to appear in was located at the far end. They both walked silently. Harry was sure he wasn't physically able to speak. His throat seemed to have constricted so tightly, he was sure he would have problems breathing, never mind talking.

This corridor was also crowded. However, these Aurors seemed to step aside and even though they were staring at Harry in those horrid chains, they didn't laugh or ridicule him. Harry idly wondered why. He didn't know that most of these Aurors were members of the Order. Harry kept his eyes focused on the ground before him.

He felt Mood stop abruptly. Wondering what was wrong, Harry looked up and felt his breath hitch in his chest. Standing before them and blocking their way was James Potter and Sirius Black.

Harry was rooted to the spot in sheer shock. He had been wondering where his father and Godfather were all this time, but he hadn't said anything. He had figured that they were not allowed to see him so he didn't expect to bump into them so suddenly. He couldn't look away from his father. He tried to look away but some invisible force held his gaze. James was looking at Harry as well, with barely suppressed tears. Harry felt a hot flush rise in him at the thought of how he must look in those chains.

Moody was the first to speak.

"Potter…"

"Moody, please. All I want is a few seconds to talk to Harry. Please!" James tore his gaze away from his son to look at his fellow Auror.

"We can't be late. You know that…" Moody started again but was cut off by Sirius.

"A few seconds isn't going to cause any harm! Come on, Moody."

Moody looked at Harry and then back at James. He inhaled deeply before giving him a nod. He let go of Harry and moved a few steps away. He was still near Harry, so there was no chance of any attempted escape.

James looked gratefully at him before looking back at Harry. He stepped closer to him and looked at Harry's pain filled emerald eyes.

Harry suddenly had the strongest urge to embrace his father. He felt ashamed but at the same time wanted nothing more than to hide in his father's arms. He knew that if it wasn't for these chains, he would have done so.

James looked at the chains wanting nothing more than to rip them away from Harry. He studied his son's face and at once saw the purple bruise on his cheek. With a trembling hand he touched Harry cheek softly. Harry looked away not able to look at his father in the eyes.

"Harry…" James said quietly. His throat was tight with emotion. He wanted to say so many things to him, but he knew he had very little time. He remembered the words Dumbledore had spoken to him only moments ago. Brushing away the heart breaking emotions James spoke quickly to Harry.

"Harry, look I know you think there's not much point to this trial but…but just trust me okay. Whatever happens in there, whatever Dumbledore says and does, just agree with him. Okay! Please, Harry. Don't correct him or volunteer any information. Just go with whatever Dumbledore says." James said quickly.

"But…" Harry was cut off by James.

"Please, Harry! Just do this, for me, for Lily and Damien! Just agree with Dumbledore. No matter how wrong he is! Just agree with him. Don't fight him!" James begged.

Harry felt he had no other choice. He reluctantly nodded his head, feeling anxious over the bizarre orders his father was giving him.

Moody appeared instantly. He held onto Harry's arm again, albeit more gently now.

"Sorry, Potter, but we have to go now." he led Harry away without any hesitation. Harry looked behind him and saw that his dad and Godfather were being ushered out of the corridor by the other Aurors.

Feeling worse than ever Harry trudged along with Moody. They stopped before a set of black doors. Harry felt his heart hammer against his chest. He looked at the brass sign hanging over the doors. 'Courtroom 10'

Harry tried to slow down his breathing. This was it. His life was going to be over very soon. He looked nervously behind him. The corridor was now empty. There was just Moody and himself standing in the long corridor.

Without saying anything to him, Moody pushed open the doors and led Harry into the courtroom.

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Harry tried not to look around him. The large dungeon that they had entered was packed full with people. They were all seated along the numerous benches surrounding the entire dungeon. Harry heard the hush spread through the crowd as he entered. The sound of chains clinking and banging together, as he walked, seemed to echo around them. Harry saw the chair placed in the middle of the floor. He felt sick when he eyed the heavy chains dangling from the arms and legs of the chair.

Moody marched him up to the middle of the room. He waved his wand and at once the chains bounding Harry disappeared. Harry's relief was short lived as he was lowered into that horrid chair. Harry felt himself hold his breath as the chains sprang to life and wrapped themselves tightly over his arms and legs. They started at his wrists and travelled up to his elbows. The chains bound his legs to the legs of the chair, again starting at his ankles and travelling up to his knees.

The chains cut into his skin, aggravating the bruises on his arms and legs. Harry forced himself to show no pain, he clenched his teeth and tried to ignore the ache going through his bruised body. He couldn't really avoid the people sitting before him now, as he was forced to look at them. He saw a few familiar faces in the crowd. He recognised the red haired man as Arthur Weasley, Ron's dad. There was another red haired man who Harry assumed was one of Ron's brothers. There were many Order Aurors present, including Kingsley Shacklebolt and the pink haired Auror, Tonks.

Harry was surprised to see Sirius and Remus sitting among the Aurors. He didn't think they would be allowed to come to the trial. He then spotted his dad and sitting next to him, with tears shinning in her eyes, was his mum. Harry looked away from her quickly. He couldn't deal with this. It was too much. They shouldn't have come. It was going to be awful for them to see him get the Kiss.

Harry looked around discreetly. He couldn't see Dumbledore anywhere. Harry felt his stomach flip as he noticed Neville sitting on the bench just above the front row. He was staring at Harry, his gaze never wavering. Harry looked at the three people sitting in the front row.

The Minister for Magic was sitting alongside a large, rather intimidating looking woman and a dark haired wizard whose names Harry didn't know.

The room was silent as the Minister cleared his throat.

"Now, that the accused is here. We are about to begin." He eyed Harry ruthlessly before speaking and Harry felt the familiar dislike build strongly inside him.

"Harry James Potter. You are brought before the Wizengamot today for crimes which you have committed against the Wizarding world. These crimes include the casting of the Unforgivables. You have committed a total of seventeen murders and have participated in numerous raids, resulting in more deaths and destruction. Do you deny these accusations?"

Harry looked at Fudge as he answered. His voice rang out clear and strong, for which Harry was grateful.

"No"

Fudge seemed to smirk as he continued with the hearing.

"The trial shall commence and acting as the Interrogators are myself, Cornelius Oswald Fudge, Minister for Magic, Amelia Susan Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and Julian Reid, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister. The witness of the defence is Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore."

Harry looked behind him as he saw Dumbledore appear. He just seemed to appear out of thin air as the Minister said his name. Harry wondered how he had just appeared next to him. He was certain he couldn't have apparated into the building.

Harry felt every gaze directed at Dumbledore. The former Headmaster of Hogwarts however seemed to ignore everyone as he inclined his head as Fudge finished his introductions. Harry caught his father's eye and again saw James sending pleading looks at him. Harry still hated Dumbledore for his manipulating ways and his hunger to win this war. For Harry, Dumbledore was just as power hungry as Voldemort. They just happened to be on the opposite sides. However, Harry mentally told himself to listen to his father. All he had to do was keep his mouth shut. That couldn't be so hard, could it?

"I think that the first thing that should be explained is indeed this trial. The accused has verbally agreed to the charges placed on him. Why is it that you insisted a trial, Dumbledore?" Fudge asked with an unmistakable scowl on his face.

Dumbledore however looked like he either couldn't see the scowl or he didn't care. He walked a few steps over to where Harry was sitting.

"I think that the right for a fair trial is every wizard and witches right. Therefore Mr Potter should have this chance as well."

Fudge seemed to swell with annoyance as he completely ignored Dumbledore's words.

"The first of the charges," he read from a parchment before him.

"Harry James Potter, you have been charged with Seventeen counts of murder. How do you plead to these charges?" Fudge asked.

Harry waited for a few seconds. When it seemed clear that Dumbledore wasn't going to answer for him, Harry spoke in an emotionless voice.

"Guilty"

There was nothing else he could say. He had in fact committed these killings. He couldn't lie outright when he had no proof. The murmuring of the crowd surrounding him only made him feel more annoyed with the whole situation.

"Right, well, now that that's settled, we'll move on to the raids…" Fudge was cut off as Dumbledore moved forward.

"I don't think we have quite finished with the first charge." he said in a calm voice.

Fudge looked at the two people sitting next to him.

"Yes we have, the accused has pleaded Guilty to these charges. What do you wish to add?" he asked in a controlled voice.

"Minister, you asked a simple question to which Mr Potter gave a very simple answer. However this case is more complicated…" Dumbledore was cut off as the Minister lost his patience.

"Complicated! There is nothing complicated about this! He has admitted to committing these murders! What are you trying to suggest, that he didn't do this?"

"Of course not. Mr Potter is indeed quite correct in answering Guilty to these crimes. My point is that these murders themselves should be investigated a little closely." Dumbledore answered in his calm voice.

Harry felt sick as his pounding headache worsened and wished that the two men stopped playing games. He had answered the question. Why was Dumbledore arguing?

"The Wizengamot does not have the time to look closely at every single crime this boy had committed! We have to move on." Fudge retorted.

"It would only take a moment or two to make my point, if you would answer one question, Minister?" Dumbledore answered.

"Ask your question!" he answered, thoroughly annoyed.

Dumbledore inclined his head and looked at the Minister calmly.

"Out of the seventeen murders, how many of the victims were Death Eaters?" he asked simply.

There was a hushed silence that fell over the room.

"What difference does that make?" asked a thoroughly annoyed Minister.

"It makes all the difference. Now, Minister how many of these victims were loyal followers of Voldemort?"

A sharp intake of breath was heard as most people gasped at the name. Harry managed to stop himself from rolling his eyes. They were all so pathetic, afraid of a name.

"I don't have the necessary documents with me." Fudge answered as he glared at Dumbledore.

"Of course, with this trial happening so fast it isn't possible to gather all the information. I do apologise. However, you will forgive me if I present my first set of evidence." Dumbledore held up his hand and at once a file appeared in his hand.

Opening the file, Dumbledore reported the findings.

"According to this extract taken from Mr Potter's official criminal record, out of the seventeen victims, fifteen were Death Eaters."

Harry was staring at Dumbledore, wondering what the point was to all of this.

"How does that change anything? They were still humans! This boy had no right to kill them!" Fudge snapped.

"Forgive me, Minister but according to this, you had given the orders for these very men to be killed upon capture." Dumbledore held up another document and it instantly disappeared and reappeared in front of the Minister.

Amelia Bones reached over and took the parchment and studied it closely. The parchment was a list of the fifteen Death Eaters and next to their names were the dates that the Minister had announced the order to kill them upon capture.

"As you can see from this, these Death Eaters were condemned to death by this very Ministry. They were men with atrocious crimes to their names. They were greatly feared by the wizarding community, hence your orders to kill them at sight. You had even agreed to give out rewards to any Auror who could take down these highly dangerous men."

Fudge looked horrified.

"How…where did you get this information from?" he demanded.

"That is of no importance. The fact remains that these men, all fifteen of them were condemned to death by yourself. What I would like to point out is that on one hand you were quite content to have these men killed and even offered a reward to the Auror who managed to complete this task. On the other hand you are willing to punish the one who did in fact destroy these men. I was just wondering how you could justify that"

The look on Fudge's face was priceless. He was opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water. He couldn't find any words to shout out. Amelia Bones took over.

"It is the job of an Auror to capture or in some cases kill anyone who poses a threat to our world. Mr Potter is not an Auror. He is not even of age yet. Therefore he can't be treated the same as an Auror. He didn't kill these men because they were at threat to the wizarding world. He killed hem for his own personal agenda." She finished.

"You are quite right Madame Bones, however, Mr Potter may not have killed these men for the same reasons, but I think it is highly unjustified that one man gets rewarded for a deed that another gets punished for. These men were not a part of our society. They were endangering our people. If Mr Potter got rid of them, for whatever reason, he still did the wizarding world a favour. He should not be punished for killing these Death Eaters"

Harry sat with his fists clenched tightly. He tried to block out the last few words Dumbledore said. What gave them the right to decide who should be punished for whose death? He kept repeating the words James had spoken to him. He had to keep his mouth shut, don't argue with Dumbledore.

Amelia Bones made a note on her parchment and after a few whispered words with Julian Reid and Fudge she addressed Dumbledore.

"The second charge against Mr Potter is participation in violent raids which disrupted peace and endangered lives. Mr Potter, how do you plead?"

Harry felt his mouth go dry. He had never participated in any raid. He always worked alone. The only time he was with other Death Eaters was when he went to the Longbottom's house and the attack on Hogwarts Express. He paused before answering.

"Not Guilty except for one occasion." he answered clearly.

Fudge seemed to be still recovering form Dumbledore's words so Amelia Bones answered.

"Please explain yourself." she simply ordered.

Harry didn't care if Dumbledore was going to say anything or not. He went ahead to explain.

"I have never participated in any raid that has happened. The only raid I was a part off was the Hogwarts Express incident."

At the mention of Hogwarts Express, a ripple of shouts went through the crowd. Harry knew that many people present here had children who were probably on the express at the time of the raid.

"That is the only occasion you were involved in a raid?" Madame Bones asked.

"Yes" Harry answered.

She made another note and whispered something to Julian. The Undersecretary wrote something on his parchment as well. Harry wasn't sure if he was imagining it or not, but Madame Bones seemed to look at Harry with an almost gentle look. Her voice still boomed across the room when she spoke and her body was held very stiffly. She seemed very intimidating, yet whenever she looked at Harry, she had a soft look in her eyes. He was probably imagining it all.

"I wish to present my first witness to explain the situation at the Hogwarts Express." Dumbledore said.

Madame Bones nodded her head and Dumbledore said in a clear voice.

"My first witness, please enter."

Harry strained to look at the door to his left. He was wondering who would come before the Wizengamot to give evidence. Harry nearly cried out when he saw the dark haired boy appear at the door. He whipped around to look at his parents in horror. How could they let him do this?

Damien came inside, looking nervously around him. His eyes focused on Harry and he barely restrained himself from running over to him. Instead he walked over to the small stand that had been conjured by Dumbledore. Damien stood on the slightly raised platform and forced himself to look away from Harry.

"Please state your full name for the Wizengamot." Dumbledore said gently.

"Damien Jack Potter." came the reply.

"What can you tell you about the incident on the Hogwarts Express earlier this year?" Dumbledore asked.

Damien took a deep breath and launched into his story. He told them that Harry had sent a private message to him, he refused to say how, that he and all the other students were to remain on the train. He told the courtroom full of people that Harry had assured them that the attack was not meant for the students. As long as everyone remained on the train, none of them would get hurt.

"This is ludicrous!" erupted the Minister when Damien had finished.

"This…this boy is the accused brother! He's obviously going to try and save him! We can't take his word for it! He's underage!"

"I'm sure that Mr Damien Potter doesn't mind sharing his memory of the incident with us." Dumbledore answered.

Harry was having a nervous breakdown. Why was Dumbledore putting Damien through this? It wasn't fair for Damien to have his private memories broadcasted like this.

Fudge was still insisting that Damien was underage and couldn't give evidence to prove that Harry wanted to protect the students.

"He may be underage, but I'm not!" a voice rang out.

Harry looked up to see Sirius standing up. He walked down towards the platform that Damien was standing in. He stood next to Damien and gave the younger boy a reassuring smile.

"I was there at the Hogwarts Express and was injured in battle. At seeing me injured, Damien foolishly ran out from the train to try and help me. Harry saved Damien's life. He moved him out of the way of a killing curse. I remember him clearly telling the Death Eaters that he had instructed them to only stun any students that may come in their way. He escorted Damien back onto the train and even locked the door so that no student could leave."

Madame Bones once again took notes on her parchment while Fudge looked on the verge of bursting with anger. Harry was staring at Sirius. The dark haired Auror had failed to mention how he was injured in battle. That it was in fact Harry who had placed him under the Cruicatus curse after breaking his leg. He dropped his gaze from Sirius and felt the pang of guilt surge through him. Why were all these people trying to help him when he had done nothing but cause them all pain?

Julian spoke up for the first time in the Hearing.

"While your testimony is appreciated, I'm afraid that we can't accept it. You are related to the accused and according to Decree number four hundred and seventeen, any person related to the accused can not give testimony due to the likelihood of misinterpretation of events."

Sirius opened his mouth to argue but was silenced by Dumbledore.

"If that is the case then I will have to present my second evidence piece. I was hoping not to use this but it seems we have no other choice."

Dumbledore took out a vial with swirling white mist from his robes. Harry was eyeing it suspiciously. Whose memory was it that Dumbledore was about to show?

"For security reasons the person whose memory we are about to witness can not be named as it would endanger them. I have already had the memory tested to detect any forgery. Here is the report to say that it had not been tampered with." with that, Dumbledore sent another report up to the front desk. Again Madame Bones picked it up, looked through it and then gave Dumbledore a nod so that he could go on.

Dumbledore dipped his wand into the white mist and pulled it out. He sent it flying towards the stone wall. At once it burst into a cloud of colours and slowly the picture cleared to show the Hogwarts Express stationed and surrounded by Death eaters. All of the men where hidden behind their white masks except for one. Harry could see himself standing just a few feet away from the train. As everyone watched, the image of Harry turned around to look at the Death eaters. His emerald eyes flashing dangerously.

"Remember my orders; no one goes into the train. If a student comes out of the train, you merely stun them, understand. If any of you kill a student, I will kill you in return."

The memory faded away after these words. Harry was trying to remember who the Death Eaters were that were with him on that day. It was definitely a Death Eater who gave this memory as they were the only ones to hear his orders. He never got a chance to think about it as Dumbledore had proceeded with the trial.

"I trust that this should now settle this matter. Mr Potter may have been with the other Death Eaters that day and he did duel with the Aurors, but he also made sure that no student was injured. He actually kept the other Death Eaters away from the children. Without Mr Potter being there, the Death Eaters would certainly have attacked the train, killing the defenceless children trapped inside. Again, Mr Potter acted out of his accord, for his own reasons, but he helped the wizarding world nevertheless."

Sirius and Damien both left the stand after that and Harry saw Damien sit down next to Sirius and Remus. Dumbledore continued to give evidence that Harry had in fact helped the wizarding world time and time again. He brought Poppy Pomfrey to the witness stand and let her explain how Harry had saved her two children from dying in the fire that the Death Eaters had started.

Harry saw the horrified expression overtake Poppy's features as she saw the Harry. He could tell from her expression that she wanted nothing more than to run over and embrace him. But like Damien, she too controlled herself and stood stiffly on the platform. After giving her testimony, she left and went to sit on the benches, near James and Lily.

Harry felt his head spin, he couldn't tell what Dumbledore was going to do next. He felt his heart leap out of his chest again as Dumbledore presented his third witness. The door opened and a red haired girl came inside. Harry closed his eyes and tried to take shaky breaths. What the hell was Ginny going here? Didn't they realise how much risk they were taking. If they got given Vertiserum to verify their testimonies, they would be in deep trouble. The truth about how they had helped Harry in the Horcruxes search could land all four teens in Azkaban.

Ginny stood defiantly, ignoring the sharp looks and gasps from her brother Percy. Her dad was looking at her with surprise, shock and worry. She didn't care though. She was going to do anything to help Harry. She told the shocked Wizengamot how Harry had saved her life from the Death Eaters that day the attack happened in Hogsmeade.

By the time Ginny sat down next to Damien and Remus, the entire room was buzzing with excited whispers. It turned out that the Dark Prince wasn't so dark after all.

Harry chanced a look at the Minister. His ears were a bright red and Harry was sure that there was steam coming out from his ears. He sat, clenching his teeth and looking at the notes before him, furiously. He seemed to have forgotten the other two Wizengamot officials sitting next to him. He kept on barking out harsh questions, which Dumbledore seemed to answer with ease and an eerie calmness.

"Regardless of the accidental kindness that the accused may have shown, he still has cast numerous Unforgivables. That itself is a life sentence in Azkaban. It can't be overlooked!" Fudge said, a triumphant look on his flustered face.

Harry looked at Dumbledore, despite himself he was curious as to how Dumbledore was going to talk his way out of this one. Harry was certain that no one would even notice if he was here or not. The furious battle was between Fudge and Dumbledore alone.

"The casting of the Unforgivables is a difficult subject, but again, Minister I would have to argue that the one rule should be for all. If your Aurors can cast unauthorised Unforgivables and be excused, then I can't see the justification for others to be punished."

Fudge was trying to speak, but no sound was coming form him. He took a few deep breaths and hissed at Dumbledore.

"How dare you accuse my Aurors of such a thing? I have never heard of such an occasion where my Aurors have carried out any unauthorised curses!"

"My apologises Minister, but if you give three drops of Vertiserum to each and every Auror sitting here, you will be surprised to how many admit to casting unauthorised Unforgivables." Dumbledore answered. He swept the surrounding Aurors with his gaze and stopped purposefully on Blake, who seemed to squirm under Dumbledore's stern look. Harry looked at him as well and had to push down his hatred for Blake. He had been hit with the Crucio curse but had thankfully passed out before suffering.

"And in any case…" Dumbledore continued.

"…you will see in Mr Potter's personal file that he has never used an Unforgivables on any Auror in any duels that may have taken place. The killing curse that he has used, like I explained already, was for the Death Eaters that he killed."

Harry looked directly at Sirius. He had used the Crucio curse on Sirius. Dumbledore was either lying to save Harry or he had not been notified by Sirius. His Godfather was looking at Harry with deep emotions shinning in his eyes. Sirius had kept quiet about what happened to him. He had been treated in hospital for his broken leg, but that was all. He never told anyone that he was hit with the Crucio curse. Only Damien knew what had happened between Harry and Sirius that day. Harry had to look away as guilt took a hold of him once more.

"So what is it that you are trying to suggest, Dumbledore?" Madame Bones asked in her loud voice.

"That Mr Potter here, is actually not a follower of the You-Know-Who? That he in fact is someone who tried to help others while he was known as the Dark Prince?" she finished with a quizzical look on her broad face.

"I am only trying to bring out the truth of Mr Potters actions. You may interpret it as you like." Dumbledore answered, a twinkle reappearing in is eyes.

Harry had to bite down hard on his tongue to stop himself from screaming at Dumbledore. He was painting Harry as some sort of undercover spy, saviour of the wizarding world! Harry had helped these people only because they were innocents. That was all that there was to it. He didn't want to be the bloody saviour of the world!

Fudge looked up from his parchment and looked at Dumbledore, a weird sort of smile covered his face, making Harry recoil in his chair.

"Okay, Dumbledore. You've put up a good show. You've tried to twist everything this boy has done to make him look good. But even you can't explain this crime. Fifteen victims were Death Eaters, I admit we can't punish Mr Potter for their deaths since we wanted them dead in the first place, I'll give you that. But explain the other two victims. The horrific torture and murder of Frank and Alice Longbottom!"

Harry felt his stomach twist in knots. He knew this was coming but he still couldn't prepare himself.

"Frank and Alice were not Death Eaters! They were good people who were tortured and brutally murdered in their on home by this boy! If nothing else, I think this crime should be enough to sentence him to the Kiss." Fudge ended. There was an uproar as many Aurors cheered at the Minister's words.

Harry couldn't help but look at Neville who was staring at Harry with hatred so pure it made Harry wish he could disappear. Harry's mind was in a panic. He had two choices here. If he told them the truth about Frank and Alice, he could save himself from the Kiss. He would probably still get a life sentence but he would be saved from the Kiss. The other choice was to stay quiet and not tell them anything.

Harry thought hard about what he would say to explain why he didn't kill the Longbottoms. How would he prove it? They would never believe in his memories. They would want proof and Harry couldn't give that to them, he had no idea where Frank and Alice were. They were in America that was all he knew. The other thing was that Harry still felt an overwhelming need to protect them. Harry could see Voldemort's spies sitting in the back benches, watching him closely. They would rush back to inform him. Then Voldemort would track down and kill the Longbottoms. Harry thought about Nigel. The child wasn't even two years old yet! No, Harry couldn't do that. He would not be responsible for the death of a child, especially not Nigel. He would have to keep his mouth shut. He was going to go to Azkaban in any case. Maybe it was better he got the Kiss. That way Voldemort could never get to him again.

"I understand the severity of this charge, but I would also like to point out that till this day, the Longbottoms death has been somewhat of a mystery. I would like to question the only person who can provide any answers. Mr Harry Potter." Dumbledore looked at Harry who in turn was staring at him with a shocked expression.

"We don't need any answers! It's enough to know that he killed them. I don't think we need any details." Fudge retorted quickly.

"I think the details are very important. Frank and Alice were a part of our community. I think we have every right to know how they died." Dumbledore answered.

Reluctantly, Fudge waved his hand to gesture that he could question Harry. Dumbledore turned to look at Harry, his blue eyes boring into Harry's emerald ones. Harry tried to get his heart to stop thumping so hard.

"Mr Potter. Would you like to share the events that took place with the Frank and Alice Longbottom the night you and several other Death Eaters attacked their home?" he asked.

Harry looked at Dumbledore carefully before answering.

"No" he answered simply.

Dumbledore didn't look affected by Harry's abrupt answer.

"Mr Potter, either you can offer the answers yourself or we will have to administer Vertiserum." Julian spoke up from behind Dumbledore.

Harry ignored him. He had already accepted his fate. He was going to Azkaban. He was getting the Kiss. What was the point of all of this? Harry decided he had enough with this game.

"Mr Potter, the night you went to the Longbottoms residence. What intentions did you go with?" Dumbledore asked.

Harry looked up at the old wizard, hate filling him from inside.

"To kill them." Harry answered emotionlessly.

He caught the look on his father's face and tried to ignore the hurt that he saw.

"Which one did you kill first?"

The question threw Harry. He gasped at the question, a reaction which was echoed all around him as the withes and wizards looked at Dumbledore with shock. What a thing to ask?

"What?" Harry asked stunned.

"I asked, which one did you kill first?" Dumbledore asked again.

"I really don't think this sort of question is appropriate. We have a family member of the Longbottoms sitting here!" Fudge shouted as he gestured towards Neville.

"I assure you, Minister, the question is very appropriate. Mr Potter please answer my question." Dumbledore asked sternly this time.

"I…I, um…" Harry didn't know what to say. His numbed mind was trying frantically to decide.

"It isn't a hard question, Mr Potter. Which one did you kill first? Was it Frank or was it Alice!" Dumbledore asked, raising his voice for the first time during the trial.

Harry looked at Dumbledore, trying to figure out why he was asking such a question. When he saw Dumbledore about to open his mouth to ask him again, Harry just blurted out the first thing that came to his mind.

"ALICE! I…I killed Alice, first" Harry said, trying to get his hands to stop shaking. He knew that if he hadn't detected Nigel's presence, Alice would have been the first to be killed.

"Alice Longbottom. You killed Alice Longbottom and then what did you do? You proceeded to kill Frank Longbottom after you had killed his wife before his eyes. You killed both of them with the killing curse?" Dumbledore confirmed.

Harry felt weak and just wanted this whole thing to end.

"Yes" he answered tiredly.

Dumbledore stood up to his full height. He kept his eyes on Harry as he raised his wand and conjured another file. He opened it and started to read out loud.

"As we appeared at the scene, a horrifying sight greeted us. We could see the Longbottoms house being engulfed in flames that wouldn't react to our extinguish spells. We knew that Frank Longbottom and his wife, Alice Longbottom were still inside as all of us could hear their anguished screams coming from inside."

Dumbledore stopped reading and looked at Harry again. Harry felt like his heart had missed several beats. He stared at Dumbledore. 'He tricked me!' he thought to himself. His whole body was drenched in cold sweat as he realised that Dumbledore knew the truth about the Longbottoms, that Harry had not killed them.

"This is an extract of the eye witness report from the Aurors, when they reached the Longbottoms house that night." Another flick and that report also was lying in front of the Minister.

Fudge however completely ignored the report. He was too busy staring at Harry. Every eye was now on the raven haired teen as he sat, chained to the chair, shaking with nerves.

"Would you care to explain how two people you had killed using the killing curse were still able to scream hours later?" Dumbledore asked as he leant towards Harry.

Harry bit his bottom lip, in an attempt to calm himself. He turned his emerald eyes towards Dumbledore. The fire that was present in those eyes had been replaced with a desperate plead.

"Please, don't do this." Harry whispered to Dumbledore. All of Harry's attempts at keeping the Longbottoms safe would be ruined if Dumbledore revealed the truth.

"I have to, Harry." Dumbledore whispered back.

"Would someone explain what is going on? What happened to the Longbottoms?" Fudge asked with his temper rising again.

Dumbledore stood up and looked at Harry, but the raven haired teen just shook his head and hung his head. He wasn't going to tell them anything.

"I would like to present my last witnesses. The only ones who can explain this to you." Dumbledore said he called out for his last witnesses to step forward.

Harry slowly looked at the door as it opened, praying hard that it wasn't who he feared. He let out a strangled sob as Frank and Alice walked through the doors into the courtroom.

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The entire courtroom was silent. They all were staring hard at the two people who had been thought to be dead for the last three years or so, standing in front of them, wearing bemused expressions.

"It…it can't be!" Fudge exclaimed all of a sudden. He pointed at the two people and started shouting out instructions to the Aurors to arrest them.

"Oh calm down, Minister! It's really us. Don't be so paranoid." Frank shouted, shocking the Minister into sitting back down.

Even James, Sirius and Remus were staring hard at them. They knew that Frank and Alice were alive but were not expecting them to walk in on the trial. They were supposed to be abroad. That's what Dumbledore had told them.

However, their reaction was nothing compared to Neville's. The shocked boy sat looking at his supposed dead parents in stunned silence. His brown eyes lingered at his mother's face for a moment before snapping to his father. They looked at him and smiled sadly.

Harry looked away from them, eyes closed, hoping all of this was a horrible dream. The Longbottoms had put themselves and Nigel in terrible danger. They were going to be hunted by Voldemort forever now.

The courtroom settled down after Frank and Alice were given Vertiserum to confirm their true identities. They stood on the platform, looking at Fudge as they re-told the story of how they managed to escape death. Alice looked over to the defeated looking boy, sitting in chains before explaining that it was her pregnancy that had saved them. That Harry wasn't able to hurt her or Frank because there was an innocent life relying on them.

The revelation that the Longbottoms have another child rippled through the shocked crowd and at once whispers and murmurs started. This was turning out to be one of the most memorable trials ever held.

Frank and Alice told the courtroom everything about their life as muggles, how the strange boy 'Alex' helped them raise money in the fight clubs, and came often to see them and generally became friends with them.

Dumbledore took over and explained that until recently, the Longbottoms were under powerful memory charms, so that was why they couldn't return back to the wizarding world. Dumbledore explained that he saw them by chance and told them the truth. After restoring their memory, they had to stay hidden until Harry was caught, otherwise it would pose a danger to their lives as well as Harry's.

Harry understood that the letter he got from John and Fiona was fake. They had never left to go to America. They had been taken away by Dumbledore. Harry kept his face down and clenched his fisted together, not wanting to look at anyone anymore. He just wanted it all to end.

However, Dumbledore wasn't quite finished yet. Frank and Alice remained standing in the stands, as Dumbledore told the shocked Wizengamot that Harry was the reason Voldemort was now able to be defeated. The truth about the destroyed Horcruxes had reached the Ministry but was not released to public knowledge yet. The Ministry wanted to be absolutely sure before making such a statement.

Dumbledore didn't have to fight this as Hermione's comment about Harry destroying the Horcruxes was already being investigated. Dumbledore held up a large file that had confirmations that the six objects stolen had been destroyed as their magical essence could not be detected. Harry listened numbly as Dumbledore showed another memory of Harry destroying the Slytherin Pendant. Harry didn't even look at the memory, but heard his own voice as it shouted out, 'Tell him, I'm through! I'm not his puppet anymore'

He heard the sharp intake of breath and the gasps as everyone saw Harry's eyes turn black in the memory and the pendant being blasted into smithereens.

Dumbledore stood in the middle of the floor, sweeping the room with his blue eyes.

"I have shown you every piece of evidence I had, to show you the truth about this boy that sits before you. Yes, he committed murder, yes he stayed with Voldemort for the last fifteen years. But at the same time, this boy has saved many lives. He went against the people that brought him up to help the innocent. He risked his own life numerous times to help the innocent. A few people sitting in this room would not be here if it wasn't for him." He looked pointedly at Frank and Alice before looking at Ginny, Damien and Poppy Pomfrey.

"I have also tried to bring to light the recent struggle this boy has gone through. He has destroyed many of the Horcruxes that made Voldemort invincible. The Ministry had one Horcrux that it destroyed but Harry destroyed the rest." Harry snapped his head up at this. What Horcrux had the Ministry destroyed?

With a jolt, Harry realised that Dumbledore was referring to the Black family ring that Bella had. Dumbledore probably didn't inform anyone that it went missing. Sirius had probably not told anyone that Harry had helped Bella, so that's why that charge wasn't mentioned. Dumbledore probably figured out that Harry had come to the Ministry to get Bella and the Horcrux. He had lied to the Ministry saying that he had destroyed the ring to save Harry.

"If today, Voldemort is brought down, it is only because of Mr Harry Potter. This war is now not far from being over and the peace that the wizarding world will get after the fall of Voldemort is all due to this boy."

Harry had to clench his teeth tight again to stop himself from saying anything. He was not the wizarding world's savour! He didn't do this to save anyone. He did this to get revenge on Voldemort!

"I leave the decision to you." Dumbledore finished and went to stand next to Frank and Alice.

For the first few minutes there was silence. The three people sitting in the front row seemed to be deep in conversation. Harry wearily looked up, ready to accept the punishment for life sentence in Azkaban. Dumbledore had saved him from the Kiss that much Harry knew, but he was still going to spend the rest of this life in Azkaban.

At long last the three officials faced Harry. Fudge was looking very red in the face. He spoke in a loud voice.

"All those in favour of the life sentence in Azkaban for the accused."

Fudge raised his hand and looked around the courtroom. There were many hands in the air. Harry noticed Blake's hand shooting in the air at once. However, Madame Bones and Julian Reid didn't have their hands in the air. They sat silently as Fudge counted the hands in favour of sending Harry to Azkaban.

"All those in favour of clearing Mr Potter from all charges." Madame Bones said. Her hand along with Julian's raised into the air.

Harry's heart seemed to have stopped as he took in the raised hands. His parents, Damien, Ginny, his godfather and Remus had obviously shot their hands in the air but it seemed the majority of the Aurors had raised their hands as well. Harry noticed that Neville had not raised his hand at either announcement.

Fudge looked around in horror. He didn't say anything as the number was totalled up. Madame Bones took over and stood up.

"Mr Potter. The verdict is clear. You have been cleared of all charges. You're free to go." she added with a small smile.

At once the chains binding him slid away from him with a bang. Harry stayed where he was though. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. Was that right? He was cleared of all charges! He didn't even hear the sound of rushing feet. He sat in his chair, taking deep breaths to clear his frazzled mind. He was free! He didn't have to run from anyone anymore.

Harry only realised what was happening when he felt two strong hands grab him around the arms and he was pulled fiercely from the chair. He felt himself being embraced tightly and Harry knew that it was his dad who had pulled him so enthusiastically from the chair. He could feel the tears fall on his neck as his father whispered comforting words in his ear.

Harry wrapped his arms around his father and hugged him as well for the first time in sixteen years. He was suddenly pulled out of his father's warm embrace and found himself being pulled into the embrace of his mum. For some reason this broke Harry. He let go of the weakening grip he had on his emotions and let his tears fall as his mum cried and hugged him and kissed him over and over again. Harry couldn't even talk, his throat was constricted with emotions.

He was finally released from his mum's embrace and found someone slamming into his chest. Harry groaned a little as his torso was covered in bruises. Damien was too engrossed in his own emotions to notice Harry's groan.

Harry didn't know how long he was standing there, surrounded by his parents and his brother. He noticed Sirius and Remus standing next to James, smiling at him, with tears in their eyes as well. It was clear that no one had expected this verdict. It was either the Kiss or life sentence. But Dumbledore had somehow done it. He had managed to save Harry.

Harry looked around for the wizard and that was when he realised that the courtroom was empty except for them. Even Frank and Alice were gone.

"Come on Harry, let's get out of here." James said softly as he wrapped an arm around him. Harry gave him a grateful look and all of them headed for the door. It had been long trial and they all need time to recover.

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Phew! I think I need time to recover! LOL. Please let me know what you think!

P.S. Amelia Bones and her actions will be explianed in the next chappie.