Hi everyone. Thanks for the reviews for the last chapter. This one pretty much wraps up the Ministry bureaucracy and fills in a lot of holes although some loose ends may be tied up next chapter. Those who've seen or read Hellsing will recognise the reference to currency of the soul which I decided to nick. As usual I own nothing and I hope you all enjoy this chapter.
Sebastian gritted his teeth. It would be bad enough if one reaper turned up but there were two, and his least favourite duo as well. Luka groaned as she the new arrivals, it just showed that when you think things can't get any worse they can and often do.
"Sebaaaaasssss-chan!" squealed the red hired reaper as he dived at Sebastian who neatly side stepped the tackle.
"Grell Sutcliff! We are here to recover the souls of those on the to die list not to dally with demon filth," snapped William as he adjusted his glasses with his scythe.
"Oh William, do you have to be so stolid? Surely the work won't take that long?" pouted Grell as wiggled back to the bureaucrat.
"Who are you two and why are on Ministry property?" asked Madam Bones as she and Scrimgeour decided to take charge of events, the minister was still a cowering heap.
"I, madam, am William T Spears of the Management Division of the Grim Reaper Dispatch and this is Reaper Sutcliff," replied the reaper as he handed Madam Bones his business card.
Rufus Scrimgeour snorted as he looked over the latest intruders, "Grim reapers? What nonsense! There's no such thing as a grim reaper,"
"There are some things in this world, Mr Scrimgeour, that the general public is not to know about. We are one of them," replied the reaper coolly.
"Doesn't feel nice does it? Finding out people have been deceiving you and your kind for centuries," piped Luka with a smirk as she removed her hairstick, in her current form it simply didn't work.
"Quiet monster! And what exactly are you supposed to be now?" retorted Scrimgeour.
Luka chuckled, "My power levels were out of control, the ring I am currently wearing rectified that. The downside is that by uniting the 'male' and 'female' aspects of my soul to produce a far more efficient control mechanism I change my gender. Luckily though the ring has the power to change my clothing. I'm a few inches taller now so my clothes would not have fitted,"
Indeed, the new male Luka was about four inches taller and looked like a relative of Sebastian's due to her strong nose, build and ability to smirk. The clothing had adapted by becoming larger and the top now encompassed the entire torso with only the hip arch cut outs remaining.
Professor Snape leaned over to the weres, "Do any of you know who they are?" he hissed.
"Yeah, the one with the short hair is Will, or at least that's what Grell calls him. He's an uptight bureaucrat with a thirst for paperwork and protocol, he's Claude's soul brother in that respect. The other one is Grell Sutcliff. He's on the business end of the grim reaper dispatch but he's too fond of fun for the liking of his superiors. The bloke's got a crush on Sebastian and wants to have his kids," whispered Jim ignoring the glares he received from Claude.
"He wants to father children with Sebastian?" asked Professor Lupin in disbelief as Snape sat paralysed in disgust and Arthur leaned forwards to catch the conversation. The other staff members were too busy watching the Minister to pay any heed to the gossip.
"Not quite Rem," replied Mike as he inched over, burger in hand, "he wants to bear Sebastian's children. That's why he became Jack the Ripper, he hated that the prostitutes gave away the ability to have children. You see, Grell's not only gay but he wants to be a woman. Back when I was on evening shift at the Funtom bar we had a talent competition. Grell did a burlesque act. I've never done an evening shift since. I don't care that the tips were better, I don't need any more weird images in my head. That's what anime is for,"
"So grim reapers are real?" asked Professor Snape, now fully recovered.
"Yes, haven't you been paying attention?" sniped Claude, the irritating babbling was giving him a headache.
"So that is what that young man at the bar was, the one with the lawn mower," said Professor Lupin quietly.
"Yeah, that's Ronald. He's a grunt like Grell. He's usually at the bar with the reapers' secretaries," replied Timothy.
The wizards just nodded. With everything else going on this was just one more piece of odd information.
At the other end of the lobby Spears continued with the orders as if he had never been interrupted.
"You know whose souls to collect Grell now get to it rather than salivating over your unrequited love," he snapped.
"But Will, you're not doing anything," whined the red head at his superior's inaction.
"As you have clearly noticed there is a demon in our presence. I am here to make sure all souls are reaped and not snatched from our grasp," William hissed.
"Oh I can watch him for you Will! After all you're better at reaping than I," chirped the red head. He was then quickly sent scuttling by William's extending scythe.
Meanwhile Professor Dumbledore moved towards the Minister in a stately fashion. As head of the Wizengamot he had to keep his finger on the pulse on the Ministry. It was clear he had been lax of late but at least he wasn't alone in his ignorance; Amelia Bones was just as much in the dark as he was if not more so.
"Cornelius, I am most disappointed at what I have just heard. I have always had your confidence, why have you shown your lack of faith now?" the elderly wizard asked, if he had indeed lost the Minister's confidence he needed to know now so he could rectify the problem before Voldemort's return.
The minister sighed, the problem that had begun all those years ago... no, all those decades ago seemed to be worsening rather than being wrapped up. He was out of his depth, just as he had been at the start only now the chickens had come home to roost and he was facing the consequences of his actions.
"I am sorry Albus. This all began years before I was even in the Ministry and when I was informed things had already gone from a simple case of Obliviation to a scandal that would implicate former Ministry employees in consorting with the Dark Arts. I could not involve you Albus as you were the head of the Wizengamot, so I turned the job over to Scrimgeour. I honestly believed we had the matter settled until a few months ago when that creature regained its memories," said Fudge sadly as he fiddled with his bowler hat.
Luka smirked as her ears rotated forwards, "Now your dream at manipulating Sebastian and I for your own ends has turned into a nightmare,"
The headmaster ignored Luka's sniping and turned to Madam Bones, "Amelia, I believe that we must hold an emergency of the Wizengamot to get to the bottom of the matter,"
"I agree professor, today has been a most disgraceful day for the Ministry," nodded the head of the Magical Law Enforcement.
XXX
A couple of hours later a full hearing of the Wizengamot was convened, the members shaken by the news that they would be investigating some of their own. Professor Dumbledore had given up his seat as chair to Madam Bones as he was a little too involved, he had been unwittingly been Luka's jailer after all.
"Esteemed witches and wizards of the Wizengamot, we are here today to investigate today's attack and the events that led up to it," announced Bones.
In the audience stands sat Luka, Sebastian, the wraiths, weres and the Hogwarts staff. As Ciel was also privy to how the convoluted story began he was also in attendance. Also, during the interlude various members of the past and present Ministries had been ordered to court. To Luka's surprise her old friends had also been recovered from St Mungo's along with their keepers.
"We will begin this in chronological order. Our first witness is Ciel Phantomhive of Funtom Company, formerly Lord Ciel Phantomhive," said Madam Bones as the 'teenage boy' made his way to the chair in front of the Wizengamot.
The assembled mages didn't bother to hide their suspicion of the young demon. If it were not for the expensive black suit and eye patch he would have looked quite ordinary.
"Would you state your name for the court?" asked Bones respectfully.
"Ciel Phnatomhive," he replied blandly, why repeat it? He had already been announced but he supposed that protocol had to be maintained no matter how repetitive it was.
"Your age?"
"One hundred and thirty eight,"
At this murmurs rippled through the court. Sitting to one side in her obnoxiously pink and fluffy was Delores Umbridge.
"Ahem," she coughed, "I don't think we heard you correctly boy, what did you say?"
"One hundred and thirty eight,"
"But that is not possible, you are just a child," she retorted.
"No I am not," replied the young demon with gritted teeth as he removed his eye patch and his irises changed colour, "I am a demon,"
Ciel smirked as the witch paled and recoiled only to be stopped mid reverse by her high backed chair. Humans were such fragile things.
"How did you come to know Sebastian Michaelis, one of the main attackers at today's incident?" asked Madam Bone.
"I made a Faustian contract with him late in the December of 1885. Years later I became a demon and he continued to oversee my development as he was still contracted to me,"
"How did Mr Michaelis come into contact with the Ministry?"
"He undertook a secondary contract in the early nineteen twenties to an Unspeakable called Humphrey Mitchell, a Muggleborn on the lower rungs of the Ministry ladder,"
"A secondary contract?"
"The contract between Sebastian and I can never be fulfilled so once I had fledged into a demon proper I allowed him to hunt and form secondary contracts. In those contracts he served a temporary master but I was always the highest authority where Sebastian was concerned. However I had granted his freedom long ago so I rarely had need to issue orders,"
"Did you know at the time what the contract with Mr Mitchell entailed?"
"No, I just knew that Sebastian had established a new contract. When he ceased to keep in contact I just thought we were naturally drifting apart," replied Ciel and for the first time his eyes betrayed a shadow of emotion, a hint of regret.
"Thank you Ciel Phantomhive, you may step down," said Madam Bones as she motioned the former earl's dismissal, "ladies and gentlemen, the records show that from nineteen twenty one to nineteen twenty nine Mr Humphrey Mitchell worked in the Department of Mysteries. However he died in his last year of employment and none of his work notes remain. The gap in that knowledge can be quickly plugged by our next witness; Samuel Peterson. Another Department of Mysteries employee from that era,"
At that summons a decrepit wizard shuffled forwards towards the chair, even with the aid of a cane his limbs shook with effort. However his magic seemed fairly intact as just before he sat down he conjured a large scarlet cushion onto the chair. Only then did he sit down with the utmost care.
"Your name sir?" asked Madam Bones once he had gotten comfortable.
"Samuel Peterson and I am one hundred and twelve years old," croaked the wizard as he squinted through his long, white eyebrows at his inquisitor.
"You were Mr Mitchell's colleague in the Department of Mysteries?"
"Yes, a charming young man, but ambitious," the old wizard paused for a moment, "we joined up at the same time, Humphrey and I. However it soon became apparent that he was destined for greater things and we saw less and less of one another as he went up the ranks. It was a great pity he died, he was about to become head of the department,"
"Did you know that he formed a Faustian contract?"
"No, we Unspeakables don't talk much, not even to each other. The only thing I knew was that our division was working on finding more uses for magical creatures,"
Madam Bones along with others in the Wizengamot seemed to wince at the unsavoury nature of the research but the questioning rolled on. Unfortunately neither Peterson nor any of the Ministry witnesses that followed could add anything. Just the same old story of a man shooting from obscurity only to die on the eve of his grand promotion. That was when Sebastian took the stand.
"Your name?" asked Madam Bones as the crimson eyed demon regally lowered himself into the chair.
"For now my name is Sebastian Michaelis," he purred in reply.
"Your age?"
Sebastian smirked, "Now it isn't polite for someone as young as you to ask that of their elders. Just let it suffice that I am older than the entire Wizengamot put together,"
Some members of the aforementioned association gasped in surprise at being in the presence of such an ancient creature whilst others just decided that it was just one more extremely odd piece of information they would have to deal with and decided to just go with the flow.
"How did you come to know Humphrey Mitchell?"
"As my master said I formed a secondary contract with him, he wanted more power in the Ministry and I wanted his soul,"
"What did you want his soul for?" asked an adventurous witch from the back row, hardly anyone knew about demonic contracts and this was a too good an opportunity to miss.
"I wished to eat it. After the unsuccessful contract with my master I had consumed few souls of a decent calibre. I was starving and my palette grew ever more weary. It was then that I was summoned. Humphrey was an ambitious man, devious and ruthless too. I knew I could nurture him into a nice meal,"
"Nurture?" asked Madam Bones incredulously.
"Yes, nurture. Few human souls are fit for immediate consumption. They may be alright for a quick snack but they cannot compare to a sumptuously prepared meal. To a human it is the difference between a worm ridden apple and an apple pie with custard. However this apple turned out to be all worm. He utilised the contract as a straight jacket. Oh yes, the dates of our contract and his sudden rise are no coincidence, he rose so high solely on the tide of my labour only to cheat me through death. I was left in the deepest of the Ministry holding cells, it was decades before I saw day light again,"
"How did he trap a powerful demon such as yourself?"
"He ordered me to remain in the cell until my meal was brought to me, under ordinary circumstances his death would have freed me and I would have been able to claim his soul. However he had had the good fortune to find more information on demons and he had laid spells to trap me in that dungeon until his last order was fulfilled,"
"What sort of enchantments did he use?" asked an elderly wizard hoarsely.
"Do you honestly expect me to tell you?" asked Sebastian in response.
The old wizard snorted.
"How can we know you are telling the truth?" barked another from the back benches.
"Unlike you humans I do not lie," replied Sebastian with a smirk that dripped derision.
"Please continue with your testimony Mr Michaelis," said Madam Bones before someone else could interrupt.
"Of course madam. Four years ago, in the middle of summer, my meal was delivered to me. A young woman by the name of Luka Reginold had run afoul of you organisation. However as she was not an ordinary prisoner and her captivity was to be kept quiet so she was placed in my cell. When I went through the Ministry records the next day I found no mention of myself so it was only by happy coincidence that we met,"
"Was she originally like she is now?" asked Madam Bones as she gestured to the winged creature waiting for her turn to speak.
"No, she was nearly a perfectly ordinary human and she wasn't in particularly good condition when we met. When she was thrown into my domain she was beaten and drugged. I am ashamed to say that even with those advantages my condition was so frail that I could not prey upon her. That, and her soul beckoned to me, like her immediate predecessor she had the seeds of ambition and when she awoke I realised she was already with the sweet taints of hatred and vengeance. So I took the best course of action, I concocted another secondary contract and we made our escape,"
"You created a new contract so quickly? Also, how did you leave without Mr Mitchell's soul?" asked Madam Bones as she frowned.
"Mitchell's orders were only that I would have to be wait to be fed, he never stated the what or how. I fed first off Luka and then from some guards. In the former case I fed off her blood when we sealed the contract, after all blood is the currency of the soul and it was either that or suck out her soul, nibble off a section and reinsert the remains. However the humans that happens to always end up a bit off. With that snack dealing with the last contract I destroyed the confines in which Luka and I had been placed. The first guard took a little bit more of the edge off my hunger, it was only after a few dozen that I was really sated. That was how nearly the entire staff of the Department of Mysteries met their end, with the Obliviation squads falling shortly after along with the Aurors and Hit Wizards who were foolish enough to get in our way,"
"Was that all you did that day? You mentioned perusing Ministry records earlier,"
"Luka and I destroyed any records of our incarceration and I made sure I got rid of any demon lore books. Unfortunately, it appeared we weren't completely successful. After ten months had passed Aurors and Hit Wizards came after us, we dispatched all of them of course until Luka was brought down by her collar. I surmised wizards in the Ministry had found one record we overlooked and Luka was brought to heel that way,"
"Why didn't you help? She was still your contractor,"
"Actually the contract had been fulfilled by then but instead of devouring her soul I decided to keep her as a servant. That way she can still entertain me and since she still holds the contract she is still mine,"
"So you own her?" asked the inquisitor as mumblings concerning the gall of a demon to own people rippled through the gallery.
"Yes, right down to the last hair on her head. The only positions she has are those I give her and her freedoms are only those that I have deigned to allow,"
Pushing her distaste of the demon's arrangement with Reginold Bones continued her line of questioning, "But if she is indeed your property why did you not free her from the Ministry?"
"I was forbidden to by my master in a manner of speaking, nor was I allowed to call for aid on her behalf. I had to watch as the Ministry enchantments made her your puppet. Only when she remembered who she was and willingly returned to my side could I being to take action,"
"What do you mean 'remembered who she was'?"
"She had been obliviated and forced to assume the form of a child. It was during that time that she worked on the behalf of your department going where no one else would go,"
"How do you know this?"
"Just because I could not help does not mean I didn't watch,"
"Quite so, what lead directly to today's events?"
"After Luka had regained her memories we met and began to discuss our plans. I knew she was planting bombs in the Ministry. Once she was infected with lycanthropy and the Ministry began to vivisect her with renewed vigour I knew the time of action would soon be at hand. When they tortured her last night she detonated the bombs and I finally managed to get permission to act. I sent my 'friends' to Hogwarts whilst I came to the Ministry. The rest you saw yourself,"
"Yes, thank you," replied Bones as she recalled the day's gory events, "you may step down Mr Michealis. I now call Luka Reginold to the stand,"
Luka strode towards the witness chair. Just before she was about to sit she transfigured the chair into a stool, sitting in a chair when you had wings was a little difficult.
"State your name and age for the court,"
"Luka Reginold, twenty five years of age,"
"How did you come into contact with the Ministry of Magic?"
"It was four years ago, I was on a summer trip with my university caving club in Snowdonia. We decided to go for a hike in the evening as it wasn't raining for once and we saw something we shouldn't have," replied Luka as her eyes darkened with the memory.
"What did you see?"
"A Welsh green, not that we knew the name at the time of course we just knew that we had seen a dragon. After the walk we returned to the cottage we had rented for the week. It was in the evening that we had the knock on the door, I have no idea how they found us, we hadn't told anyone about what we had seen. They said they were reporters and they wanted to know everything we saw. Naturally we were suspicious, we thought someone had been spying on us. Henry," Luka gestured to the dark haired man on the left of the huddled group, "he told them that we had nothing to say and that they should leave or we would call the police. They took their wands out and I just managed to push Henry out of the way as a hex was sent. Surprisingly it had little effect, it was supposed to erase my memories yet I retained them. The Obliviator was so surprised he remained still as I punched him. Unfortunately my actions led them to believe I was a witch who had breached the Statute of Secrecy so the Obliviators opened fire on my friends and I with no restraint. That is how my friends came to lose their minds, a dozen obliviations too many. I, on the other hand, was rendered unconscious, my last waking moments were spent seeing my friends jibber and claw at their own faces whilst the wizards continued to fire on them. I woke up in a Ministry holding cell with Sebastian. In the darkness I first thought that I was alone but then I heard the rustling of cloth and two scarlet eyes peering from the shadows. Naturally I was scared, but then we got talking and I began to understand what was going on as well as Sebastian's situation. Later that night I was dragged from the cell by magic, the contract had yet to be formed as I was still rather cautious, and I was taken to the Department of Law Enforcement for questioning by that man," Luka pointed at Scrimgeour, "through Legilemency he found out that I was not a witch but a Muggle, one which could resist magic. So I was then bundled off to the Department of Mysteries like an unwanted parcel. It was during the experiments there that I first saw Fudge, if it wasn't for the deference shown to him by my tormentors I would have just thought him a lowly bureaucrat. All he did was stand there nervously, fiddling with his hideously bright bowler hat and being of neither use nor ornament,"
"What sort of experiments were carried out?" enquired Madam Bones in a concerned voice.
"Ones which would give them an idea of my abilities. They fired hexes and curses to see how powerful I was as well as redoing the obliviation to see if my resistance was temporary. They then decided to see if I had healing powers, what possessed them to make that leap eludes me, so they decided to cut me to see if the skin would re-grow faster than normal. After they were done they threw me back in the cell with promises that they would resume in the morrow. I made sure they never had the chance. Sebastian and I sealed our contract, I exchanged my soul for the power to destroy the Ministry. In time I evolved into what you see here, although I am usually in female form,"
"What happened then? How did you escape from the Ministry?"
"Once Sebastian had fed on my blood we waited for the guards to arrive to collect me. As soon as he opened the door Sebastian was upon him, his soul was ripped out and devoured before his corpse hit the floor. We then made our way to the Department of Mysteries, as it was early we met no one until we got there. Once we had arrived Sebastian killed them all but a few. I grabbed one of the blunt instruments off the wall and bludgeoned a couple of wizards, though without magic I couldn't kill that many. After we laid waste to the staff we set about burning all the documents we could find on my incarceration and demon lore, as I read the papers I learned that my friends had been deemed beyond repair and were now confined to hospital beds. I did not see the point of risking my life as well as Sebastian's to rescue a set of empty husks so we made our escape. Once away life continued as normal with my university studies with the added extra of Sebastian tutoring me in magic and combat. Every now and again we would encounter Aurors sent by Scrimgeour and the Minister. Luckily they were just scouts so they never found out where I lived. We lived quite happily until Aurors descended on us en masse, it seemed we weren't as thorough as we had thought and as I was unconscious for some of the experiments I never realised that they had placed the collar in my neck. Sebastian was recalled by his superiors and despite my best efforts I was eventually captured. Once at the Ministry I was studied once more, the Unspeakables were curious about my magical core and of course Scrimgeour remembered me. It was his brilliant idea that I should be made into a Ministry slave. After numerous mind destroying curses were applied I was finally obliviated and transfigured into a ten year old child. My 'foster parents' were two Aurors Jacob and Rose Pearson whose colleagues I had earlier killed during the last fight. Fortunately though, during my first year at Hogwarts I recovered my memories and I later met with Sebastian. I have been fighting to regain my true form ever since and I succeeded earlier this morning," Luka concluded.
"Why was the whole ruse of you being a child used? It seems rather inefficient,"
"They couldn't kill me due to my contract so they thought they would use me instead. Surprisingly it was Fudge who wanted me to go to school rather than being the marionette Scrimgeour desired. Fudge believed that I could be recreated as normal, upstanding citizen if I was brainwashed with obliviation and state education,"
"How did you regain your memories?"
"It began in a skating accident where I hit my head, when I was unconscious I had nightmares about what happened when the Oblivators came for my friends and I but of course I didn't know the meaning back then. When I served my detention with Professor Snape for the accident he said that he knew I could see thestrals. After that and a few other incidents the professor started giving me potions to aid memory recall but whilst I could remember snatches of my past life the potions made me sick. Unfortunately before I could regain my memories in a controlled situation my handlers found that Professor Snape had been digging in Ministry records and cursed him with a restraining order and Compulsion curse to make him take action if he knew anyone was about to find what he had been looking for. When I was at my handlers' home I heard them discussing what they had done, once I had returned to Hogwarts I went to the professor's office as soon as possible. I told him that I was going to go to Dumbledore so he could have the curses removed. It was then that he was forced to Obliviate me, ironically it was that spell which unlocked all of memories,"
"Earlier you said you were a Ministry employee and Mr Michaelis alluded to it as well, what exactly did you do?"
"During my time under the thumb of the Ministry I was sent to retrieve fugitive mages. I was quite accomplished in that task as someone who appears to be ten year old isn't seen as a threat and I had more than enough power. After I was done I was obliviated so my new naive personality would have no memory of it,"
"In your own words can you describe the events leading up to this morning?"
"After being made a lycanthrope I was taken back to the Department of Mysteries for further experimentation. This time it was centred on my regenerative ability. They removed bones and tissue samples along with increasing quantities of blood. Due to the amount of damage I was in a lot of pain and as I was continuing with my studies at Hogwarts I swiftly became underweight and exhausted. On the day of the full moon I finally collapsed but the 'assessment' of my condition by my handlers, Daniels of the Werewolf Capture Unit, McNair from the Comittee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures and Diggory from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures was carried out regardless in one of Hogwarts' towers that had been warded specially for the occasion. Professor Snape was sent to keep an eye on the proceeding but as he was under a Compulsion Curse he was of no actual use. They tried to torment me into changing but as I am not your garden variety werewolf I managed to resist. When Dumbledore and other Hogwarts staff burst in I made my escape. As I ran through the grounds to the Forbidden Forest I felt the change recede. I had heard the Unspeakables crow about using the collar to control the wolf within but I had just thought that it was self-congratulating gossip. In addition the collar's punishment settings had been activated by my escape and my mind was being torn apart my Mind Crushers and Breakers. Through the haze of physical and mental pain I managed to pull my mobile phone from my cloak and detonate the explosives I had concealed in the Ministry. At the time I thought it was my last chance for vengeance, though luckily things turned out differently,"
"How did you plant explosives in the Ministry?"
"My handlers brought me here often and they only ever checked for magical weapons and devices. They made it all too easy for me to plant Muggle explosives throughout the Department of Mysteries,"
"What did you use?"
"TNT"
"Thank you Miss Reginold, you may step down. I now call Healer Pierce,"
It took little questioning on Bones' part to get Pierce to give all the information the court required. He gave a thorough, though slightly emotional, description of his charges' conditions. To be blunt, they were barely any better than vegetables. Their minds were damaged to the point where memories and delusions were shattered and interwoven in an incoherent stream. Unlike the Lockhart case not even shreds of the personalities remained. If they did not move or jibber they could quite easily be mistaken for Dementor victims. The only possible cause as far as Healer Pierce was concerned was the repeated use of uncontrolled obliviation and numerous other hexes and curses. After the patients had been paraded around for the court's appraisal the healer was allowed to stand down, and he did so after an angry tirade concerning the Ministry which he had once admired. He was removed for contempt of court despite wide spread support for his opinions. There were few amongst the Wizengamot who were not shocked at what they were hearing.
Continuing the hearing Madam Bones called for the next witness, "Rufus Scrimgeour!"
As the man strode to the chair with self assurance Amelia Bones cut straight to the chase, they all knew who he was and it was highly unlikely that this inquiry would be made public knowledge.
"Why were the Obliviators so heavy handed?"
"They are trained to squash any resistance by Muggles," Scrimgeour answered calmly.
Bones snorted, "They are trained to deal with Muggles with restraint not the reckless abandon that clearly occurred,"
"They should have not resisted," replied Scrimgeour with no sign of remorse.
Amelia Bones paused a moment to allow his callous words to sink in before continuing.
"How did they resist?"
"They attempted to forcibly remove the Obliviators from the house in which they were staying. Reginold admits to the violence they were faced with when they were merely attempting to carry out their duty. In addition Reginold fought the obliviation. If she had not done so the Obliviators would not have perceived the more forceful spells to be necessary. The entire situation was avoidable, the Muggles brought their fate upon themselves,"
At this there were discernable murmurs amongst the body of the Wizengamot, especially amongst the more Muggle friendly members. Scrimgeour was certainly doing himself no favours.
"What happened when you detained Reginold in the Ministry?"
"It was thought to be a witch who had broken the Statute of Secrecy so it was brought in for questioning, however we found it to be a Muggle that could resist magic. Naturally creatures such as that specimen could become quite a problem if they became more prolific. We have fought for centuries to remain a secret from the Muggles, we weren't about to let that secrecy be threatened. In the evening it was thrown into one of the deepest Ministry cells, at the time we didn't know the demon resided there as well,"
"Why was she thrown into the deepest cells?"
"If its existence was allowed to be public knowledge there would be a panic. For the barrier between wizard and Muggle to be found to be so thin... it would be distressing for the public,"
"What occurred with regards to the Unspeakables?"
"They merely attempted to ascertain the exact extent of its powers using whatever methods necessary,"
"Including torture?"
"It was necessary, it was hardly cooperative,"
"What about the collar?"
"That was a curiosity found in the depths of the Department of Mysteries, luckily it came with a manual although it was all written in the most ancient runes and incomplete. From what we could gather it could be used to control magical power so we set it in the beast's neck. That turned to be a wise decision. After the pair escaped we sent Aurors and Hit Wizards after them, none returned. Eventually we managed to decipher all the manual had to offer and we found a method of draining the creature's energy in combat, the demon's absence was an added boon that made it easier to capture the beast. It was then utilized for the good of the Ministry and magical community in the capture of fugitive Dark wizards. Minister Fudge wanted it domesticated, I initially resisted this move but the possibility of it joining the Auror programme once fully integrated into our society was tempting so I relented. It was used until it regained its memories. From then on it became a damage control matter, we successfully kept it shackled until this morning,"
"Were you aware of what they were going to do with an already weakened werewolf?"
"I had a vague idea. It is a unique werewolf so I ordered all concerned to learn all they could,"
"Using whatever methods were deemed necessary at the time I suppose?"
"Yes, I don't know why you're trying to make a moral debate out of this Bones. It's a Dark creature, we're entitled to learn all we can so we can protect ourselves,"
Bones shook her head, Scrimgeour was evidently beyond redemption.
"That will be all. Next, Cornelius Fudge,"
The nervous bureaucrat gave pretty much the same version of events only with a greater emphasis on the possibility of public panic if such a creature was revealed and Muggles could indeed become witches and wizards, it undermined their fundamental beliefs. Then came Amos Diggory and McNair. Diggory gave a choked account of recent events and he had to dab his eyes with his handerkerchief as he told the court about the torture session of a seemingly innocent girl and his cowardly inaction. McNair on the other hand was unrepentant and held the same view as Scrimgeour. It was just a Dark creature, it was nothing more than a curiosity to be used for a wizard's entertainment. After the executioner came the staff of Hogwarts. Professor Snape explained how he had come to know the 'girl' Luka Pearson and in time discover her true nature. Professors Lupin and McGonagall added to the minor details whilst Madam Pomfrey listed the ailments that Luka had suffered both as part of a normal school child's life and at the hands of the Ministry. The weres were then called to account for their actions although they paid special attention to make sure their Dark creature status a secret as Scrimgeour hadn't divulged his observations. At the end Professor Dumbledore was called to the stand to answer the question of exactly how this had happened under his very nose. Knowing that his staff would tell the court his reasons if he did not he admitted to the stress of the first year that Luka attended and the fact that he had willingly turned a blind eye in the second until the teachers present at the hearing had forced him to do otherwise.
After the last witness was heard the court sent them out so deliberations could begin. In the corridor outside they all waited to hear the decision, some with more arrogance than others. Once a lengthy period of time had elapsed they were recalled.
Madam Bones stood at the podium surveying the assembly. There had been much discussion in the Wizengamot chamber. Some strongly upheld Muggle rights and believed that the Ministry officials should be punished to the full extent of the law. Others agreed with the Minister and Scrimgeour in that it was just a Dark creature to be studied at leisure. At this others pointed out that Luka was a monster of the Minstry's making. And so the debate had swung back and forth before the learned mages reached a decision.
"Cornelius Fudge, Rufus Scrimgeour, Walden McNair, Amos Diggory and Luka Reginold step forwards," Madam Bones said sternly, once they had complied she began to hand out the judgements of the court, "Cornelius, you are fortunate that you occupy such a high office and it would cause too much public interest if you were removed or if you were to suddenly resign and we are all keen to keep this stain on the Ministry secret. Therefore, you will be on probation for the rest of your tenure at the Ministry. You will be removed at the first sign of incompetence or other personal failings. Furthermore you will increase your official visits to Azkaban. It is only fair that you should spend more time in a place where you have sent innocent people,"
The Minister nodded as he clutched his bowler, he knew that any word on his part would only worsen his fate and 'official visits' to Azkaban were enough.
"Rufus Scrimgeour, you have corrupted the good name of the Department for Magical Law Enforcement. For this you will be sent to Azkaban for a year, once released you will be an Auror in name only and on probation. Walden McNair, you are here by sentenced to ten years in Azkaban for the complicit torture of Luka Reginold. Amos Diggory, you are clearly a coward of the most contemptible order, but, at no point did you desire any part in this and that has to be taken into account. You are therefore free to go but your wages will be docked for the next year," Bones paused a moment before addressing Luka, "Luka Reginold, as your master is regrettably beyond our powers only you will be sentenced. Whilst there can be no doubt that the actions of the Ministry drove you to extremes to defend yourself you cannot go unpunished. The deaths of the Aurors involved in your numerous skirmishes and those that have died and been injured today must be avenged. Therefore you are to be taken into custody by the Ministry, but you will not be sent to Azkaban,"
As Luka and Sebastian both raised their eyebrows Bones turned to Professor Dumbledore.
"Do you still wish to aid in the rehabilitation of Luka Reginold?"
The elderly wizard nodded.
"In that case Miss Reginold will return to Hogwarts to complete her education. I for one do not wish to see such a powerful witch educated solely by a demon. The arrangements will be mainly at your discretion headmaster, our condition is that she be roomed with a member of staff who can control her. If you attempt to evade this punishment the court will have no choice but to go after your family and bring you to heel that way. Also, Miss Reginold you are hereby given the collar manual, independent staff have yet to have a look at it but we hope that you will find the method of removal. Court dismissed,"
As they left the Wizengamot chamber Luka rounded on Sebastian.
"And exactly what are you smiling about? No one got executed and I'm stuck with a bunch of kids!" she hissed.
Sebastian ceased chuckling from behind his gloved hand, "Firstly, the lack of executions means that we can kill them all again at our leisure. I also agree with the Wizengamot in that it would do you good to learn other forms of magic and I like seeing you squirm,"
"Git,"
"Hey Reggie! Do you reckon you'll have to wear a school girl outfit?" chirped Timothy cheekily.
"Shut it Timothy," retorted Luka who was now taking her power ring off and reverting to her usual human form.
"Sebastian, why did you insinuate that it was I who was keeping you from Luka?" asked Ciel with a slight scowl.
"I did not want those humans to learn any more about demon society than they already know," Sebastian replied calmly as he began to flick through the ancient and clearly decaying collar manual.
"Sebastian aren't you worried that now they all know of you that you could be recaptured?" Mike enquired.
"No," Sebastian chuckled, "their kind only has power over me if I enter a contract with one of them and I'm never doing that again,"
Mike just nodded and decided to go along with it.
Meanwhile the Hogwarts staff were deep in conversation. Much to his satisfaction Professor Snape managed to have the 'roommate duty' passed onto Professor Lupin. The last thing he needed was someone disturbing the hard earned peace of his quarters, not to mention he didn't want to find scented candles everywhere and make up in the bathroom, the tell tale signs of a female encampment.
"Now the question is; what do we do with her Minerva? It would be a little sad for someone her age to be put back into second year as a student," said Professor Dumbledore.
"Perhaps she would be best off as a student teacher. She could be included in the regular classes and Charity always gets the flu this time of year so she could use an assistant," replied Professor McGonagall.
"Yes, that would probably be best. Though we'll have to discuss it with Luka herself," said the headmaster as he looked behind him at the woman in question.
The discussion went well, Luka accepted the decision and was clearly relieved to be a student teacher rather than just a pupil. Sebastian however wasn't happy with the living arrangements. Not only would she be with a male but a werewolf at that, she would reek of dog when she came into work. After being reminded of the Wizengamot's decision and the consequences of not following the instructions Sebastian relented if only for the moment. Once that was cleared up the conversation turned back to the collar.
"Unfortunately that section of the text, if it ever existed in the first place, has long since rotted away," said Sebastian.
"You cannot have read that already," squawked Professor Snape incredulously.
"Of course I have," smiled Sebastian, "if a member of the esteemed Funtomhive Company could not accomplish so simple a task where ever would we be?"
Professor Snape pursed his lips and decided to remain silent for the smile on the demon's face was far from friendly.
"How can you tell that the Ministry hasn't just removed those pieces?" asked Mike as he moved over to examine the tome.
"All the edges are worn fairly evenly with no less damaged patches to suggest that something was laid over them to protect them. In addition there are no tears and if magic had been used to cover up signs of alteration I would be able to detect it," replied Sebastian.
"So what happens now? How do I get rid of this thing?" asked Luka as she touched the cold metal.
Sebastian looked to Ciel with a smirk.
Ciel groaned, "Fantastic... we'll have to see him,"