To live a life Chapter 11, a harry potter fanfic

Albus Dumbledore slammed some of his clothes in his suitcase. He really didn't want to go to the ICW conference this year, he had to be on the look out for Harry. He also had some important bills going through the Wizengamot in a few days.

He had no idea that those bills would never even be considered, they would never even get that far.

It was cold, and wet. It was very wet here. Of course, that was to be expected with being on an island covered in near constant storms and crawling with Dementors. It didn't really mean much either when the spray from the high waves was also constantly reaching up and soaking inmates through the small slits in the wall that the guards called windows.

One of these inmates, was Sirius Black.

He was currently laying in a corner furthest from the windows, curled up in his animagus form, a big, shaggy black dog.

He looked up when he heard footsteps in the hallway outside. It sounded like one of the human guards was coming. They rarely came down this way, this was maximum security, which meant the Dementors were outside these cells nearly 24/7. The human guards didn't like coming anywhere near the creatures if they didn't have to. Understandable, Sirius mused, but at the same time completely unfair.

He wasn't sure whose cell they were visiting today, but just to be safe... he changed back into a human, almost immediately he was hit with the cold and the hopelessness that he avoided by being a dog. He whimpered and resisted the temptation to turn back, if the human guards found out about his animagus form, they would add wards to his cell to keep him from changing, and then he really would go as insane as his dear cousin just two cells down.

He was shocked when Amelia Bones and a couple of Aurors stopped outside his cell along with one of the guards, who promptly opened the cell door.

"Sirius Black. It's your lucky day, we finally found where your godson has been stashed away. Imagine his surprise when he learned his godfather was sitting in prison, and never even received a trial?" Amelia said lightly.

He was tempted to ask where Snape had been all these years, but remembered that the fact that him and Severus Snape shared a godson was supposed to be a secret, known only to Moody, the goblins and the Healer that wrote up Harry's birth certificate. He didn't know if that fact had changed or not. Well, he supposed Dumbledore might know or not, who knew.

"So, does that mean I'm finally getting out of here? I think my thirty days holding is up." He tried to say just as lightly, but it came out as more of a croak.

She raised an eyebrow. "Assuming you are found innocent. Which, considering Heir Potter is demanding you be given Veritaserum, plus the complete lack of evidence against you... I would say your chances are good. Now, the Wizengamot session starts in..." She checked her watch. "Three hours. Plenty of time for you to get cleaned up and cleared medically for Veritaserum. Assuming you actually move, and don't stand there forever." She said with a raised eyebrow.

He blinked at them before he moved forward, letting the Aurors bind his hands together, not like he could try to go anywhere anyway, let alone muster up any strength for any kind of resistance.

Like he was actually going to try, he was finally getting out of here.

Severus sat in the back row of the public gallery of the courtroom used by the Wizengamot. He acknowledged Moody when the old Auror sat next to him. He knew Sharpaxe and even Griphook were here somewhere, and Harry had come in about half an hour ago with Madam Longbottom and was now waiting in the seating area set aside for the Heirs. The other Heirs of what was the Potter Alliance were sitting around him, a few were talking quietly to him, especially Daphne Greengrass. She was probably asking him questions about her father being the temporary proxy. They had told him about the situation with Sirius, so he knew that his position was temporary until Sirius was back on his feet. They just wanted to make sure Dumbledore had his manipulative butt out of it. Severus was now waiting, rather impatiently too, for the Minister to open this session.

Since Dumbledore was gone for the ICW conference, Fudge assumed his duties.

Which was both a good thing and a bad thing.

Good because the man would do as told if they worded this right and pushed him into the right corner. Bad because he normally tended to listen to the wrong people. Like that toad Umbridge.

He sat up straighter when he saw Fudge stand up and bang his gavel. "This session is now in order. As many of you know, the Chief Warlock is currently out of the country at the ICW conference. Therefore, I am taking his place for this session. Clerk, are there any Family announcements to be made before we begin with our agenda for the day?" He asked.

The Clerk stood up. "Yes, Minister. We have received notice of the Lord Greengrass of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass has been appointed proxy for the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter until further notice." He said, and the room burst into whispers. The Light side of the room looked angry, except for those of the Potter Alliance, they had received notice prior to this, even if the Potter Alliance technically no longer existed, at least not until they made up their minds and the Alliance was put back together again. And the Clerk stating that this was until further notice made it known that this was temporary, that there might be a change in the future.

Severus smirked when he saw the Light's reactions. Dumbledore had been voting the Potter seats as Light for years, after all. Even though the Potter seats were to be strictly neutral. They just carried too much influence. Moody raised an eyebrow at the move, but he didn't say anything.

"Order! You will be silent and show the proper decorum of your stations. Thank you, Clerk, continue." Fudge said, although he too was shocked. What had happened? Did Potter and Dumbledore have a falling out? Or did Potter just decide it was time to move his family seats back where they belonged? Or did something else happen?

The Clerk cleared his throat. "Lord Greengrass, do you accept the duties and responsibilities of sitting proxy to the House Potter?"

Lord Greengrass stood up and raised in wand in front of him. "I, Lord Daniel Greengrass of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass, do accept the duties and responsibilities of the House Potter in the all political affairs, and pledge to uphold my duties honorably and responsibly." He said. The seat with the Potter crest on it glowed silver and gold for a moment before it faded, magic accepting his oath.

He sat down and the Clerk continued on, reading the next announcement and wincing. Not this again. He didn't even have to read the request, it was always the same. "Account Manager Sharpaxe again asks that the Potter Wills be read." He said blankly, staring ahead and waiting for the explosion. He was not disappointed. Moody sat up straighter in his seat, this was what he was here for. To hear the Wills being read, and determine for himself whether or not Snape told the truth.

After five minutes of sitting and listening to the Lords and Lady's of the Wizengamot shout and yell all kinds of insults against the goblins and yell about how they had to respect Dumbledore's and Harry Potter's wishes that it be left alone, Severus saw Harry catch Daniel's eye and nod. Daniel nodded back and stood, yelling over the crowd. "The House Potter agrees with this request!" He had to repeat himself several more times until he had everybodies attention, before he went on. "The House Potter agrees with this request, in fact, it was Heir Potter who requested for his account manager to come and try this again." He said firmly.

Minister Fudge scoffed. "We've all been told for years that Heir Potter wanted nothing to do with it, 'let the past lie' he said! Why would he suddenly change his mind now?"

"We've been hearing that out of Dumbledore's mouth, with no guarantee that Heir Potter actually spoke those words beyond Dumbledore's say-so. I propose we hear this directly out of Heir Potter's mouth this time." Daniel said. He turned towards the Heir's and beckoned for someone to come down. "Harry?"

The crowd started to whisper, whispers that only grew louder as people caught sight of Harry making his way down towards the floor, the whispers grew louder yet when Sharpaxe and Griphook both appeared and joined him, although they stood off to the side while Harry took the center of the room.

Harry stood there for a moment and gathered himself before he spoke. When he did, he spoke softly, "I was... surprised when two weeks ago, an elf named Mipsy appeared in my bedroom, and started spouting off stuff about being the Head Elf for the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter. Naturally, my first question was, what is the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter." The crowd gasped. What did he mean? Severus smirked. Moody narrowed his eye again. "As such, she apparently decided to take me to Sharpaxe, where I learned that my family holds seats on this body." He gestured towards the Lords and Lady's. "You see, I grew up Muggle. With no idea magic existed or that I was a wizard until Rubeus Hagrid brought me my school letter on my eleventh birthday. I had no idea of my status as either Heir Potter, or even the 'Boy-Who-Lived'." He said this was so much contempt that nobody was left in any doubt of just what he thought of that title. They were just shocked at what they had just heard. Their savior grew up not knowing his heritage?

"I don't know what Professor Dumbledore has told you, but I never laid eyes on the man until the opening feast at Hogwarts this past year. I certainly never told him any such rubbish about wanting to leave the past in the past." He said, and his voice took on a sharper tone. "Two weeks ago, I learned that my parents left a will, and I learned that I had a godfather, but because nobody here will allow a trusted friend and associate of the House Potter to do his job and see to it that the last wishes of the former Lord and Lady Potter, my parents, are carried out, my godfather is currently sitting in prison. But I will get to that later. For now, I am demanding that my parents wills be read. Now." He said with his eyes narrowed and a sharp tone to his voice.

"Why should we listen to Sharpaxe? He's a goblin!" Somebody demanded to know.

Harry was honestly confused, and he showed it all over his face. "So? Your point?"

"My po- He's not human!"

"Yeah...? Your point?" Harry was really confused by now. What were they trying to get at?

"My point is, he's a beast, he's not intelligent enough for this."

Moody and Severus both pinched the bridge of their nose, muttering, "Idiot/Dunderhead."

Harry stood there and blinked at them for a moment, he was so confused and it showed. "So... let me get this straight. You let them handle and control the entirety of the Wizarding world's finances, a job that requires trust that they won't rob you blind or make bad decisions, a job that requires extensive knowledge of business, finance, and who knows what else, and you are going to sit there and tell me that they are unintelligent? How does that even make sense?" He glanced at Sharpaxe and Griphook, who both shrugged.

"Don't look at me, the human mind is the one thing I don't understand, and I've been working with the Potter family for 150 years. Your clan is all crazy." Sharpaxe said, shaking his head.

"Truth." Moody muttered. "I was friends with Charlus, and then trained James. Both took reckless to insanity sometimes."

"You do realize, that if they weren't intelligent, the wizarding world would have been in a major economic crisis years ago, right? I was reading one of my family journals last night, until the goblins took control of the wizarding banking system, the economy was pretty much destroyed, right? Because Wizards were in charge of it." Harry said, raising an eyebrow at the person who spoke up against the goblins.

Griphook coughed. "Heir Potter, we are getting off track here."

"Right, sorry. I just really don't understand how wizards can be so disrespectful to the race they have in charge of their money." He shrugged. "My parents wills?" He prompted.

"Well, I mean- All is favor of unsealing the Potter Wills and reading them?" The Minister finally asked after sputtering for a minute.

Daniel immediately put forth the Potter and Greengrass votes in favor of reading the wills, which basically meant that unless every single other Lord in the Hall voted against, they already won the vote. Severus caught the eye of his own proxy and nodded. The Prince seats immediately showed up on the board as in favor. Quickly followed by all the Potter Alliance, and most of the other neutral and Light families. Severus and the goblins smirked. All these years of trying and failing to get them to allow the wills be read, and all it took was getting Harry in front of them.

"Very well." Fudge said, sounding grumpy. "Somebody send someone down to the records room and..."

Griphook cut him off, "Actually Minister, Lord and Lady Potter left a copy of their wills in their personal vaults, just in case something like this were to happen. We have those copies here, with us." He said, as Sharpaxe held up the envelope with both the Potter and Gringotts seals on them. "I swear, on my honor as the Prince of the Goblin nation, that these have only been opened once, and have not been altered in any way." Griphook said. "Madam Bones, if you will?" He asked.

He ignored Harry's gaping at him when he declared himself to be the Goblin Prince.

Amelia smiled at him and came down. She took the envelope and opened it, clearing her throat and starting to read:

The Last Will and Testament of Lord James Charlus Potter

I, Lord James Charlus Potter, declare this to be my last will and testament on this date, August 22, 1981, all others before this date are to be considered null and void.

Before anything else is said, the Secret-Keeper for myself and my family is Peter Pettigrew. Sirius Black was a decoy, he was the obvious choice, so we decided to switch at the last moment. If this will is being read, then it is because I and my wife are dead and Peter Pettigrew betrayed us. Now, onto business.

If my wife, Lily survives me, she is naturally given full custody of my son and Heir, Harold James Potter, as well as full control of the Family vaults and seats until our son is of age and ready to take responsibility himself. In the event that neither I nor my Lily survive to raise our Harry, the following people are to be given custody of my son and Heir:

Sirius Orion Black- Harry's godfather and Blood-adopted father, with my full blessing

Frank and Alice Longbottom- Alice is Harry's godmother and both are close family friends

Remus Lupin- A close family friend

Andromeda and Theodore Tonks- distant cousins and family friends

Amelia Bones- Family friend

Any other member of the Potter political Alliance.

Under no circumstances is my son and Heir to go anywhere near my wife's sister and her husband. They hate magic with everything they have and are not suitable to raise any child, let alone a magical one.

Albus Dumbledore is also not to have anything whatsoever to do with the placement of my son and Heir. He is not under any circumstances to have any amount of control over the Potter seats, the Family Vaults, or the Potter businesses.

There is a vault set up, solely for the use of the guardian of my Son. It is setup to allow 200 Galleons to be withdrawn a month, the money is to go towards the care and well-being of my son. Should the money not be used as such, the guardian in question will face charges of embezzlement. I ask that the goblins be given leave to deal with it, in the following ways. Half of their monetary value will be seized and added to the Potter fortune as repayment. Any and all properties they own will also be seized and added to the Potter holdings. After that, the goblins have my permission to do with them what they will.

To my son, I leave everything with the exception of the following:

To Peter Pettigrew, I leave the wish that when you are caught, you will be thrown in a cell, and the key thrown into the North Sea. I also leave the information to make sure the cell you are placed in has anti-animagus wards to ensure you don't escape, you little rat.

To Sirius Black, you have full custody of my son and Heir should anything happen to Lily, I also leave you 1,000,000 Galleons, seeing as neither of us know whether or not your Grandfather listened to your mother and actually disowned you. You are also welcome to use any of the main Potter properties whenever you need them.

To Remus Lupin, I leave you the job of teaching my son all he needs to know, as well as 2,000,000 Galleons from my personal vault. Don't object, just take it. You also, are welcome to use any of the main Potter properties whenever you have need of them.

To Severus Snape, I leave my sincerest apologies for everything we ever did in school. Look after my and Lily's son when you get a chance. I am also leaving you a 5% share in Potter Farms and Apothecary. I'm sure you will find use for all the potions ingredients raised there.

To Frank Longbottom, I leave you with the task of teaching Harry how to fight. The world is dangerous, teach him how to survive in it. It is mine and Lily's hope that Harry and Neville grow up remaining as close as they are now.

Harry, I am sorry, that I never got to see you grow up. But it is my sincerest wish that you are there, listening to this, because that means that you are alive. Of course, I also wish that you weren't reading this, because that would also mean that I would still be alive, therefore this wouldn't be necessary. Learn all you can about our family, Harry. For our family has a strong, rich history. Don't let Sirius teach you too many bad habits.

Witnessed by: Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore

Griphook, Prince of the Goblin Nation

Sharpaxe, Senior Accounts Manager to the Potter Family

The hall was dead silent. Peter Pettigrew was the Secret Keeper? Not Sirius Black? And Dumbledore knew about it, since he was witness to the will. He also knew he was prohibited from having any kind of influence over Harry, yet all these years... he claimed that he was raising Harry somewhere secret and safe. All these years, he was sitting proxy for the Potter seats. He said it was what James wanted. But here, James clearly said he was not to have any kind of control. What was going on here?

"That didn't mention you being godfather or being a possible guardian." Moody observed.

"It does, we just asked Amelia not to read that part, not with so many Dumbledore supporters and Death Eater's in the room. It's too dangerous, for both me and Harry, for that kind of information to be public." Severus replied.

"And Sirius really wasn't the Secret-Keeper... I knew something was off when I was following him." Moody muttered, slightly bitter that one of his greatest students was currently in Azkaban, and he never lifted a finger to do anything to stop it happening.

"Heir Potter, where did you grow up?" Minister Fudge asked.

"With my Muggle Aunt and Uncle. The ones that dad clearly said in his will that I was not to go anywhere near." Harry answered somewhat absently, staring at the parchment in Amelia's hands almost longingly. A few people shifted angrily.

She noticed and smiled at him before she glanced up at Severus. She had deliberately left the part out about Harry having two godfathers. This was too public a place, and there were several Death Eaters on the Wizengamot that managed to escape prison by waving a bit of money at the right people. She would let Harry read it for himself later, with the parts she left out.

The Last Will and Testament of Lady Lily Elaine Potter nee Evans

I, Lady Lily Elaine Potter nee Evans, declare this to be my last will and testament on this date, August 22, 1981, all others before this date are to be considered null and void.

Before anything else is said, the Secret-Keeper for myself and my family is Peter Pettigrew. Sirius Black was a decoy, he was the obvious choice, so we decided to switch at the last moment. If this will is being read, then it is because I and my husband are dead and Peter Pettigrew betrayed us. Now, onto business.

If my husband, James, survives me, he is naturally given full custody of our son, Harold James Potter, as well as the warning that Harry better grow up to be a responsible young man, and knows how to behave himself. In the event that neither I nor my James survive to raise our Harry, the following people are to be given custody of my son:

Sirius Orion Black- Harry's godfather and Blood-adopted father, with my full blessing

Frank and Alice Longbottom- Alice is Harry's godmother and both are close family friends

Remus Lupin- A close family friend

Andromeda and Theodore Tonks- distant cousins and family friends

Amelia Bones- Family friend

Any other member of the Potter political Alliance.

Under no circumstances is my son to go anywhere near my sister and her husband. He is not to even know they exist. They hate magic with everything they have and are not suitable to raise any child, let alone a magical one.

Albus Dumbledore is also to not have anything whatsoever to do with the placement of my son and Heir. He is not under any circumstances to have any amount of control over anything Potter, HE IS TO STAY AWAY FROM MY SON. I don't care what Trelawny says.

To my son, I leave everything with the exception of the following:

To Sirius Black, you have full custody of my son should anything happen to James, I also leave you with a warning that Harry better not turn into as big a prankster as you. While I can appreciate a good prank, sometimes you and James went a little overboard. There were even a few times where you crossed a line and it was no longer a harmless prank. I expect you to be more responsible than that with my son.

To Remus Lupin, I leave you the job of teaching my son all he needs to know, as well as 2,000,000 Galleons from my own personal vault. Don't object, just take it. I also give you free reign of some of my private collection of charms books.

To Severus Snape, I leave my deepest regrets of everything I said back in fifth year. I shouldn't have let that one incident end our friendship like that. That friendship was the most important thing to both of us, and I just tossed it aside because of one word said in a moment of anger and humiliation. I am also leaving you with my research journal. It has everything I have managed to find and all my theories on making the Wolfsbane safer and easier on Werewolves. I think I'm close to a breakthrough!

To Alice Longbottom, I will leave you the task of making sure Harry grows up respectful, and knowing the finer etiquette that the men in his life won't be able to teach him. You are in charge of keeping Sirius in line. I am also leaving you free reign of the dresses in my personal vault.

Harry, I am sorry, that I never got to see you grow up. But it is my sincerest wish that you are there, listening to this, because that means that you are alive. Of course, I also wish that you weren't reading this, because that would also mean that I would still be alive, therefore this wouldn't be necessary. Learn all you can, Harry. Study hard. Listen to Remus, he will make sure you grow up responsible. Kidding, James and Sirius are responsible, when they want to be. I am so sorry, that I can't be there.

Witnessed by: Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore

Griphook, Prince of the Goblin Nation

Sharpaxe, Senior Accounts Manager to the Potter Family

Once more, Amelia left out a few parts relating to Severus. Again, there were too many people. Too many of them former Death Eaters, too many of them in Dumbledore's pocket. Not to mention the press. She could almost guarantee that the full contents of these wills would be plastered all over the front page tomorrow. Vultures.

There was actually another part that she didn't read about Severus. The 'real part', the part that wasn't safe to read in the company of so many of Dumbledore's people and Death Eaters. This part read, 'To Severus Snape, I am grateful that you were stubborn enough not to let me toss our friendship aside. It is my hope that you take my research and help people. Take care of my son, I know this might be difficult considering your position, but I know you will find a way and do the best you can. Try not to fight with Sirius too much, as much as I know the two of you enjoy it. Take care of yourself Sev.'

Sharpaxe came forward and laid a hand on Harry's arm when he stood there for a moment with his head bowed, for the moment, they just waited for somebody to finally ask the question. What about Sirius Black? If he wasn't the Secret-Keeper...

Finally, it was asked.

"What's this nonsense about Peter Pettigrew being the Secret-Keeper? Didn't Sirius Black confess to that charge?" Somebody called.

"Good question. I guess it's a good thing I have his trial transcripts in my hand, then isn't it?" Amelia said, giving the Wills to Harry.

"Your hands are empty." Augusta helpfully pointed out.

"Oh, I guess there are. Thank you for pointing that out, Augusta. I guess that means there are no trial transcripts. Which would only mean that there was never any trial." Amelia said with a shrug.

The room was dead silent. "How can he not have received a trial? It is the law that EVERYONE receive a trial, no matter the circumstances or the charges." Lord Abbot said.

Amelia shrugged. "All I found when I looked was for a court order signed by Bartimus Crouch, former Minister Bagnold, and Chief Warlock Dumbledore for Sirius Black to go straight to Azkaban." She answered. There was an outcry. The contents of the Potter wills had just thrown everything they thought they knew about Sirius Black into doubt. If he really wasn't the Secret-Keeper, then was he really one of Voldemort's?

Moody was shaking in rage, how dare those three send one of HIS students to Azkaban without even a mockery of a trial? Even Crouch Jr. got that much!

"Well, this won't do. He has been sitting in Azkaban for the past ten years. These wills have thrown our knowledge of his guilt into doubt, we must give him his trial so that all doubts can be laid to rest." Lord Selwyn stood up from his side of the room. None of the Dark side wanted Sirius freed, most of them knew he was innocent after all. But, they also didn't know whether or not he had truly been disowned. Narcissa Malfoy had been voting the Black seats all these years as the only Black either not dead, imprisoned, or disowned. If Sirius were to be freed, and it were discovered that he was the Black Lord... the Dark would lose fourteen votes. But at the same time... if it was proven that Sirius was innocent... this would only serve to drag Dumbledore through the mud.

And that was worth it to lose the Black votes.

"Now see here, we can't just...' Fudge sputtered. "Even if he wasn't the Secret-Keeper, he still murdered all those Muggles plus Peter Pettigrew." He said firmly. A few people nodded in agreement.

Amelia held up hand. "How do we know that without a trial? I found no record of anybody even casting Priori Incantantum on his wand. As for Pettigrew being killed. If you were to look at the pictures of the crime scene again, you would notice that all the Muggle's bodies are scattered from the explosion. Yet, ALL that was found of Pettigrew was a single finger. Not even blood was found. The Potter's wills just stated that any cell Pettigrew was placed in should be under anti-animagus wards. And then, both James and Lily Potter called him a rat. How do we know it was not him that killed those people, and then escaped as a rat?" She asked. Again, the hall was completely silent.

"I propose that we get his wand out of evidence. And cast Priori Incantantum, determine the truth of the matter." Lord Abbot said.

"Already done." Amelia said as she motioned to one of her Aurors off to the side. Everyone was now wondering just how much of this entire conversation, from the moment Harry stepped onto the floor, was planned.

Dawlish stepped forward and presented a sealed evidence box. This seal was charmed so it could only be opened by the Director of the DMLE. She opened it, "This is Sirius Black's wand. Priori Incantantum." She said as she held her wand tip to Sirius's. Sure enough, exactly as Severus, Sharpaxe, Griphook, and Amelia expected, all that appeared was Lumos, the bubble spell, a Healing spell along with the infant-friendly form of Tergio, and the Auror homing and tracking spells.

There were no blasting hexes, no cutting curses, nothing that even suggested Sirius Black was the one to blow up the street. Everyone was silent again.

"I move that we give Sirius Black a trial and come to the truth of this matter. Merely sitting here and talking will not help us." Daniel stood up again and said.

Fudge looked around and sighed. His reputation was going to be ruined if he did, ruined if he didn't. He had to find some way of bringing this around, especially with the press here. This could not end well for his image. "Very well, then. We will schedule a trial date for..."

"Pardon me, Minister, but I have retrieved Sirius Black from Azkaban." Amelia said, gesturing to another Auror off to the side. "Bring him up." He nodded and left quickly.

"Now, see here, Amelia. This isn't a court date, this is a normally scheduled Wizengamot meeting, to go over legal policy. You can't just drag up prisoners whenever you feel like." Fudge protested.

Amelia cocked her head. "Technically, Minister, we can only legally hold a prisoner without trial for a maximum of thirty days. Something that Sirius himself reminded me of, just this morning when I went to get him. He has been there, without trial for almost eleven years now. Can he even still be considered a prisoner? I could, just declare him a free man here and now, and be done with the matter. However, I have been asked that he does receive a trial, that way there are no more lingering doubts. Like there are still lingering doubts about gentlemen sitting here in this very room who bought their way out of a trial." A few people shifted angrily at her near-accusation. But since she didn't outright accuse anyone, saying anything would only draw attention.

"He could very well lie, during this, he is of a Most Ancient and Noble House, with the status of whether or not he was actually disowned still up in the air all these years later. He has nobody to request..."

"Actually, Minister. I think you will find that, as Sirius Black's blood-adopted son, as well as being his godson and a member of House Black through his grandmother Dorea Potter nee Black, Heir Potter has the legal authority to request a trial with use of Veritaserum." Griphook broke in smoothly.

"Which is exactly what I am doing." Harry said softly, still staring at Fudge, daring him to protest THAT.

"And, Gringotts never received notice of Sirius Black being disowned by Arcturus Black, we did receive notice from one Walburga Black, however since the then Head of House never filed notice... Sirius Black is the Lord of House Black."

Fudge visibly deflated. "If you are calling for Veritaserum as his Heir, then you need to have questions prepared for us to ask."

Harry nodded and pulled said questions out of his pouch, handing them off to Amelia. Then he turned to go back to his seat just as they brought Sirius in. Sirius stopped walking and stared at him for a moment, drinking in the sight of his precious godson, well, son. But... he wasn't sure just how much Harry knew yet. He didn't want to move too fast and scare him off. He didn't know if Harry wasn't already living with a good family, and happy where he was.

He continued moving when he was prodded in the back by Kingsley Shacklebolt. Sirius remembered Shack was only a few more years ahead of James and Sirius in the Auror department, at least, until Sirius and James both joined the Hit-Wizards.

He watched intently as Harry finally turned and headed back up to his seat in the Heir section. Only then did he tune into what the Minister was saying. He noted absently that Dumbledore wasn't here. Somebody really planned this well, that meddling old coot would have only made this even more difficult. He and James only joined the Order to keep an eye on Remus and Lily. Lily joined because she didn't want to sit back and do nothing, so when Dumbledore came recruiting, her and James signed up. Remus only joined, because, as much as the Lupin family didn't like Dumbledore for practically stealing John Lupin's job and reputation, he still felt indebted to Dumbledore for allowing him into Hogwarts.

"... following charges. Membership in a criminal organization known as the Death Eaters, unknown criminal acts as a Death Eater, betraying the Potters to You-Know-Who resulting in the indirect murder of James and Lily Potter and the attempted murder of Harry Potter, and murder of twelve Muggles and one wizard by the name of Peter Pettigrew. How do you plead to these charges?" Fudge asked him. How on earth did this man come to be Minister?

"Not guilty, to any of it." Sirius croaked.

"Very well. Administer the Veritaserum. Clerk, you are in charge of the question list provided by Heir Potter-Black." Sirius nearly glowed at hearing Harry's title. Heir Potter-BLACK. That meant Harry did know he was blood-adopted. Now, if he could just determine whether Harry would ever want to live with him...

He tilted his head back to make it easier on Shacklebolt to give him the required three drops. Hoping that there was nothing in those questions to get the wrong people in trouble. He didn't think it would be a problem, after all, Harry provided the list, and Sharpaxe was here, so Harry would have had help.

"Name?" The Clerk asked once he saw Sirius's eyes glaze over, a sign the potion was working.

"Sirius Orion Black." Sirius said dully.

"Former occupation?"

"Hit-Wizard." Sirius answered. If it wasn't for the fact that people tend to lose all emotion and enter a trance-like state when under Veritaserum, the witnesses to this impromptu trial would have thought he sounded almost smug. As it was, a few people gasped. They were supposed to be the elite. The Clerk actually gulped. He always found the Hit-Wizard squad's to be... just a little intimidating.

"Right, well, onto the prepared questions. Are you a Death Eater?"

"Never." Sirius said, some emotion bleeding through his 'trance'. A few people murmured, but Fudge banged his gavel once. During the questioning, only the Clerk was allowed to speak, until they got to the end, then the Family representative who provided the question list, in this case Harry, would be permitted to ask his question.

"Were you the Potter's Secret-Keeper?"

"No, Peter Pettigrew was."

"Who cast the Fidelius Charm, over the Potter's house in Godric's Hollow."

"Albus Dumbledore."

"Describe what happened that Halloween night when James and Lily Potter were murdered."

"I went to go check on Peter, and bring him his food for the week, but when I got to his hideout, he wasn't there. There was no sign of a struggle though, so I figured something was wrong. I started to get a bad feeling when I looked in his bedroom and saw most of his clothes gone. So, I went to go check on James and Lily, see if they knew anything. When I got there though... part of the roof was caved in, it was the section right over the nursery, where Harry would have been considering it was past his bed-time. I ran in, and tripped. I tripped over James body." His emotions were really starting to bleed through the Veritaserum now. "I ran upstairs, yelling for Lily, but she didn't answer. I went to the nursery, hoping I wasn't going to see what I thought I was going to see. She was there, dead, with Harry sitting in his crib crying. His head was covered in blood, so I healed him as best as I could. I didn't have time to think about James and Lily, I had to take care of Harry." By now most of the women in the courtroom were crying, and there was a faint disturbance as Hedwig flew in, sensing her wizard's distress.

"I was leaving the house with Harry, to bring him to the goblin Healers, I figured it was safer there than at St. Mungoes with all the Death Eaters crawling around still. I was stopped by the door by Hagrid, he told me to give Harry to him, he would take him to safety, I don't know why I handed him over, but the next thing I knew, I was giving my godson and adopted son to Hagrid and tossing him the keys to my motorcycle, before I took off after Peter Pettigrew. He was the only one who could have told Voldemort where James and Lily were." He said. He had a slightly befuddled expression on his face. Severus looked like one of life's mysteries had now been solved.

"And when you found Peter Pettigrew, you killed him and those Muggles?"

"I didn't kill those Muggles, and Peter isn't dead." Sirius scowled. "When I caught up to him, he started yelling for the whole street to hear, that I killed James and Lily, asking me how could I. Then, I underestimated him. Peter has never been strong, magically. He caught me so off guard with his accusations, that I didn't have time to react when he pulled his wand, and sent a blasting hex into the street behind him. He must have hit a gas line or something, because the next thing I knew, the street was exploding and he was cutting off his finger before transforming into the rat that he is and disappearing down the sewers."

"Peter Pettigrew is an animagus? Were any of the rest of you?"

"Yes, he's a rat. We all were. I'm a dog, and James was a stag."

"Why did you not register?"

"Because it was a war. It was safest to keep that kind of ability a secret. As well as a massive advantage, something our enemies wouldn't know about, so they wouldn't bother trying to defend or watch for it." Everyone nodded, that made sense. Up in the his seat, Harry was feverishly searching his photo-album for a picture of him, Ron, and Hermione that had Scabbers in it. Finally, he found it.

"I have no further questions. Heir Potter, have you thought of a follow-up?" He asked, turning to the Heir section only to see Harry hurrying down the steps with a photo-album in his hand, looking a strange mix between triumphant and disturbed.

"Yes, is this, what Peter Pettigrew looks like as a rat?" He asked, holding out his album for the Auror to take and show the picture to Sirius. He wasn't allowed near the prisoner. The Auror took it, and barely glanced at the picture of what was clearly Harry and his friends before holding the book in front of Sirius, who studied it for a moment, easily finding the rat in the picture.

"Yes, that's him alright." The man growled.

Harry nodded and took his book back, now appearing creeped out. "Heir Potter?" The Clerk asked.

"That picture, was of me, Ronald Weasley, and Hermione Granger last year. With the addition of Ron's pet rat, Scabbers. A rat that is missing his toe, and Sirius just confirmed him to be Peter Pettigrew in his animagus form."