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Chapter 9: The Ministry Meeting
The staircase seemed to go on forever, twisting and spiraling in every direction. Harry couldn't believe the length. He thought that the Hogwarts staircases were treacherous, but now he realized that they were footstools compared to these. Hermione walked in awe as well; confused by the shear physics of it all. She could have sworn that the Ministry of Magic was only three or four stories, but they must have climbed ten or twenty flights.
Finally the staircase ended, leading to a set of mahogany doors. Behind the doors was a vast boardroom. In the center of the room was a table rivaling that of the house tables in the Great Hall. At least one hundred seats bordered the table, about twenty-five of them filled. At the far end of the table sat the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. Several other people were scattered around.
Harry scanned over the room, most of the faces unfamiliar to him. The Ministry members seemed stern, smiles non-existent. Harry suddenly felt his heart drop. What if they didn't let Sirius free, even with the evidence? Fudge stood up. "Take a seat. We will begin momentarily." Harry, Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore, Sirius, and Peter, still bound with rope, sat down at the end of the large table.
"Well, you say that you have proof that Mr. Black has been innocent all theses years. Explain," said Fudge.
"Well," started Dumbledore. "We have the real culprit of the killing those many years ago."
"Oh, you do. Enlighten us, Professor."
"Seated next to Sirius is none other than Peter Pettigrew."
"Dumbledore, I was not born yesterday. Everyone knows that Peter Pettigrew died in the incident. And you expect me to believe that this man sitting before us is he. I am already doubting your case."
Ron suddenly stood up. "It is him! He was my rat! It is him! He never died!"
"Mr. Weasley, would you please take a seat!" scolded Fudge. "What do you mean he was a rat?"
"If I may, Sir, I would like to explain," said Harry. "You see, Pettigrew is an unregistered Animagus. The day of the murders, he slipped away as a rat, leaving one of his fingers behind and making him appear to have been killed. He continued to stay in rat form and became Ron's pet without him ever knowing until the other year. Ever since he has been assisting Voldemort. He was the one that killed all of those people and left Sirius at the scene to be caught. Sirius was trying to stop him from getting away after revealing my parents' location to Voldemort!"
"A convincing argument Harry, but a story is not evidence. I need proof to support your wild claims."
"The evidence is in my very pocket," stated Dumbledore. All heads turned to him. From within his robes, he pulled out a small vial. "I have here some Veritaserum. This will be enough evidence once we feed it to Peter."
"Before you give that potion to him I must advise that it be tested to prove a true truth potion. I hope you are not offended but I don't want to find that you are playing tricks, Dumbledore."
"Test it as you wish." A wizard approached Dumbledore to get the Veritaserum. He left through another door. There were no more discussions. They sat in silence waiting for the potion to come back. Minutes passed. This was it. Once the potion was used on Pettigrew, Sirius would be proven innocent and would finally be free.
More time passed. Harry was becoming anxious. What if there was something wrong with the potion? Would they dismiss the case and drag Sirius back off to Azkaban? Finally the man came back. "It is a real Veritaserum. It may be used," he announced.
"Very well. Feed him the potion and I will ask the questions," said Fudge. As the potion drained down Peter's throat, the Minister traveled to the other end of the table where Harry and company were settled. "What is your name?"
"Peter. Peter Pettigrew." The board members began to speak to each other in small whispers.
"Did you kill all of those people back after Voldemort lost his power?"
"Yes."
"Are you an unregistered Animagus?"
"Yes. I become a rat."
"Did you work for He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named?"
"Yes, and I still do."
"Was Sirius Black at all responsible for the murders?"
"No, I killed those people. He was trying to get me after I gave Lily and James Potter's location."
"To the Dark Lord?"
"Yes."
"I see. I guess that you are telling the truth Dumbledore. Mr. Black is innocent after all. Sirius?"
"Yes, Sir?" he responded eagerly.
"You are free. Live your life. I am sorry for the mistake we made. However, you will be watched for the next year. I have to do this for the safety of the people. Mr. Pettigrew will be spending the rest of his life in Azkaban where he belongs."
"Thank you!" he said excitedly. Smiles crossed everyone's faces.
"Come everyone. I have a portkey back to my office. We have much to discuss." Dumbledore pulled out a watch. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Sirius grabbed on to it. In a matter of seconds, they were being pulled in a wild vortex. Dumbledore's office materialized before them. Everyone took a seat. "Well, I think we should all pat our selves on the back for that. Now, I would like to tell you some exciting news. Sirius has asked to be your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."
Harry, Hermione, and Ron grinned. "Really?" asked Hermione. "That would be so great!"
"Second, I would like to discuss summer plans. Now, Sirius, as I am sure, will be buying a home soon. And I am sure that Harry would love to live with him. I trust Sirius will be able to protect Harry better than anyone else could. But first, we have to seek permission from the Dursleys."
Harry was ecstatic. "Yes! I get to live with Sirius!"
"Harry, you will only live with him is the Dursleys have nothing against it."
"Like I said, I get to live with Sirius!" Everyone laughed at this. Harry's life was starting to look up. He was going to leave the Dursleys forever. His Godfather was free and would be living with him, plus being his DADA teacher. Nothing could possibly go wrong.
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Note from American Jen:
I'm sorry for three things:
#1- it took a long time to get this chapter out… I feel bad but I couldn't do anything with it due to a killer school project
#2- the chapter is short… I know… I just couldn't get a good transition for another part so it has to wait for the next chapter… the next chapters will be much longer and more fluff is DEFINETELY PROMISED for the next chapter.
#3- No reviewer thank you stuff this chapter but will be in the next…sorry but time is limited… I had to get this chapter out ASAP
Thanks anyway for reading and thanks to all that reviewed.
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