Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, and I do not own Harry Potter. I make no money from the writing of this fan fiction.
A/N: Yes, I am aware that in the UK a solicitor and a lawyer have different functions and responsibilities, however, for the purposes of the story, they are very similar in what they can do while representing their clients
Chapter Nine
Azkaban Prison, North Sea
Sirius Black looked up when he heard a human guard approach. He thought the guard was coming to do a round of cell checks and leave, as they usually did, but the guard stopped outside his cell.
"You have a visitor, Black. Come over here so I can put these cuffs on you, and no sudden moves."
Slowly, Sirius walked to the bars and put his hands, one above the other, between two of the bars. He stood still as the guard placed the magic suppressing cuffs on his wrists, and then drew his hands back into the cell.
"Take one step back."
He stepped back as ordered, and the guard opened the cell, and then took one of his arms to pull him into the corridor. Sirius wondered who had come to see him. He tried, but couldn't remember ever having a visitor before. The guard led him down several staircases and through several corridors, before stopping at a room with a closed door. Opening the door, he led Sirius inside.
Glancing around, he saw a table with two chairs, one of them occupied. Sirius gingerly took the other chair, sitting down. The look on his face was one of resigned acceptance.
"No touching anything but the table, Black."
As Sirius nodded in understanding, he focused on his visitor. The visitor held up one finger, the universal signal for 'wait a moment', and turned to the guard.
"I'll be erecting a one way silencing charm. You won't be able to hear us, but we'll be able to hear you."
The guard waved his hand as if to say 'go ahead', and the charm was cast.
"Now then, allow me to introduce myself, Mr. Black. My name is Brian Greengrass, and I'm a solicitor. Lord Arcturus Black hired me to represent you."
"Grandfather is still alive then?"
"Yes he is. And last I saw him he was in relatively good health. Mr. Black, to give me a more complete picture, so I can more adequately represent you, can you tell me what you remember about when you were brought here?"
"Well, a few weeks before Halloween in 1981, I was visiting my friends James and Lily Potter, and their son, who is my godson Harry. We had been talking about what was happening in the war, and James said that Albus Dumbledore wanted them and the Longbottoms to go under a Fidelius charm and hide. James wanted me to be their Secret Keeper. I agreed at first, but maybe a week or so before Halloween, I spoke to them again, and suggested the Secret Keeper be changed, since as James' best friend I was the obvious choice."
"Albus Dumbledore wanted both the Potters and the Longbottoms to go under a Fidelius? Did James say why?"
"James said something about a prophecy, but I don't know what it was; only that Dumbledore wanted them to hide."
"I see. Please go on."
"James and Lily called Albus Dumbledore to where they were, and said they wanted a different Secret Keeper, since I was an obvious choice. Dumbledore suggested we ask another school friend by the name of Peter Pettigrew. He was in our circle of friends, but we weren't as close to Peter as James and I were. So he'd be a less obvious person for Secret Keeper if Death Eaters or even old Voldy found out the Potters and Longbottoms were in hiding. After James and Lily agreed, Dumbledore brought Peter to where we all were and recast the Fidelius, transferring the Secret from me to Peter Pettigrew. And then on Halloween, James and Lily were killed. Since Peter had told me the Secret directly after the transfer, I was able to go to where they had been hiding. The house was a wreck, so I started checking to see if I could find any of them. James was at the bottom of the stairs, and Lily on the floor of the nursery next to Harry's crib. Both were dead, but Harry was still alive, although he had a bad cut on his forehead. I tried to heal it, but I've always been pants at Healing spells. Since Peter had been Secret Keeper, I knew he had to have told old Voldy or one of his Death Eaters, because when I went to check on Peter earlier that day, only an hour or two before James and Lily died, I couldn't find him."
"Just a moment Mr. Black, I want to make sure I understand you correctly. You're saying that Albus Dumbledore cast the Fidelius both times? He knew you weren't Secret Keeper for the Potters?"
"Yes, but Dumbledore said Peter was the best option if I wasn't Secret Keeper. We didn't think to ask our other school friend Remus Lupin; Dumbledore always had him out spying where he could with the werewolf packs, so we weren't sure if he could be trusted with it."
"And what happened after you found the Potters?"
"I was trying to calm Harry down, cuddling him close and rubbing his back. I was able to bring him out of the house, and Hagrid showed up."
"I'm sorry, but who is Hagrid?"
"Rubeus Hagrid. He works at Hogwarts. I'm sorry but I can't remember what he does there exactly other than help Professor Kettleburn sometimes."
"So Hagrid shows up. What happened then?"
"He told me that Dumbledore had ordered him to collect Harry and bring him to Hogwarts. By that time, I was furious with Peter and wanted to beat the living daylights out of him, so I told Hagrid to keep Harry safe, and to tell Dumbledore I would come to get Harry in a day or so, after I had found Peter. I thought at Hogwarts that maybe Madam Pomfrey, their Mediwitch, would be able to heal the cut on Harry's head a bit better. I found Peter after a few hours, and he shouted in the middle of the street that I betrayed James and Lily. Before I could get any closer, he cut off a finger, blew up the street behind him, and ran down a sewer."
"I'm sorry, but you need to explain that last bit. How was he able to run down a sewer if the street had been blown up?"
"He's an animagus, a common garden rat. The street was in pieces, but the sewer was still there. I was hysterical, and started crying and laughing at the same time I think. Aurors found me and took me to a holding cell. Next thing I remember, I'm being taken to a boat to be brought here."
"So you don't remember anything about your trial?"
"What trial? I never saw anything but the holding cells in the Ministry before being brought here. I don't even know what I was brought here for, Mr. Greengrass."
"I see. Mr. Black, I will promise you that I will do everything I can to find justice for you and hopefully get you out of here. Keep in mind, this won't happen overnight, but I will be doing everything possible to get it done. In the meantime, I don't want you to answer anyone's questions unless I'm there; not even to tell the warden the color of the sky outside if he should ask. Understand?"
"I understand. Mr. Greengrass, will you answer a question for me? What's today's date? It's easy to lose track of time when the same things happen every day."
"Today is July 20th, 1989."
"Harry turns nine in a little over a week and a half. Thank you."
"I'll need to put a copy of this interview in your case file at my office. Do I have permission to share anything about your case with your grandfather? He asked for weekly progress reports, but nothing specific to the case."
"Mr. Greengrass, my grandfather is one of the few people in my family who never thought everything I did was wrong. You can give him generalities, but nothing specific. It might help his peace of mind."
"Thank you, Mr. Black. I'll get everything you've told me organized as soon as I'm back in the office. Remember; answer no questions unless I'm there."
Sirius nodded in understanding, and Brian stood up, and then took down the silencing charm. He watched as Sirius was led from the room, and then left the room himself. After checking in with the warden to let him know his visit was concluded, he left the prison. He thought back to something Kyle had said, and it seemed even truer now.
Somehow, everything always seemed to lead back to Albus Dumbledore. The only question Brian had was, why?
OOO
Black Moor, Home of Arcturus Black
Lord Arcturus Black watched as his new houseguest sat down at the table for brunch. With everything that had happened to him the day before, Arcturus suspected the child was exhausted, so let his house elves know that instead of breakfast, they were to make a brunch for later in the day than normal, in case the boy overslept. He hadn't been wrong, and young Harry Potter had woken only an hour or so before.
Seeing the way the boy crouched down over his food, Arcturus spoke up.
"Mr. Potter, please sit up straight. No one here will remove your plate from you until asked. There is no need to behave as though it will be taken from you by leaning so far forward over it."
"I'm sorry, sir," Harry mumbled, looking down.
"Is that something that happened when you lived with your aunt and uncle? Your food would be taken away?" Arcturus asked, alarmed and concerned at once.
"Yes sir. I was only allowed to have what was left when my aunt and uncle, and my cousin Dudley finished eating, and if Dudley decided he was still hungry, he would take away my plate. I learned to sneak little bits of food when I was cooking, or I wouldn't get much to eat."
"First Mr. Potter that should never have happened. You have just as much right to eat a meal as anyone else, and should not have been made to go hungry because your cousin decided to be greedy. Second, you are no longer in the house of your aunt and uncle, so you never need to worry that you will be denied food to eat here. The most I would do is denying you dessert for misbehaving; I would never deny you food. And finally, if you feel you need to apologize to me for something, I want you to look me in the eye when you do so. It takes someone very strong to be able to admit they were wrong and ask forgiveness. In this instance however, you apologized when there was no need to do so. You were reacting in a way you had been used to reacting, or out of habit. Habits can be broken, so I want you to try to break the habit of curling or hunching over your plate at a meal. It does your posture no good when you do that. So, one of your rules is, you will always sit up straight at the table. Understood?"
"Yes sir."
"Good, now please finish eating. We still need to have someone measure you to ensure that any clothing bought or made for you fits properly, and that will happen after brunch."
With a small smile, Harry continued eating, happy to find out that Lord Black wasn't mad he was so hungry. Lord Black didn't scream at him the way Uncle Vernon always did, either. He looked over at the way Lord Black was sitting, and tried to copy it. He moved his napkin to his lap from where it had been under his elbow, and tried to sit up straighter. Lord Black was trying to show him the right way to do things, so Harry would do his best to learn.
Hiding a smile behind his cup of tea, Arcturus watched the way young Mr. Potter tried to emulate what he himself was doing, although he didn't always get it right. He at least was trying, and any progress was a good thing. It would take time to help him unlearn what his aunt and uncle had taught him through neglect, but Arcturus was willing to take that time.