Chapter 6: Victory

Remy and Pettigrew came over to stay at the Potter place so we can all get on the train together. Moony told us he became prefect and, predictably, Padfoot and Prongs took the mickey out of him. James sobered a bit when I told him Lily had made prefect and became a bit jealous of the fact that Remus would now be spending more time with her. Sirius got an odd look on his face when I said Rose had been made a prefect as well. I don't think I want to know what that's about.

There was much muttering from everyone above them as Leo and Harry both almost hurt their necks as they turned to look at Cas, who was standing up. He waved his wand, muttered a few words, and conjured a large, metal table upon which he began to set out various old books and files that he had brought with him. He then sat on the corner of the table, looking up at the Ministry with a pleasant smile on his face.

Guess now we know what he's been up to. Leo inclined his head, recalling that his father had said he'd be researching things at the beginning of summer. They had to wait sometime for the court to settle down, which only happened when Fudge began waving his arms wildly for quiet. Leo thought he looked ridiculous.

"Very well, if you'll remove Harry Potter and Leo Black -"

"As their guardian, they have my permission to stay, Minister," Cas replied coolly. "If that is all right with you, Madam Bones?"

She looked thoughtful before nodding. Fudge looked irritated.

"Fine! If you could call your brother in, we can begin -"

"Sirius Black will not be attending this trial," Cas informed them before hefting up a rather thick book. "In accordance with pure-blood laws that have yet to be overturned or rewritten, if a pure-blood wizard is to be put on trial, they can select a proxy – which must be a family member to whom they are related by blood – to stand up for them in their stead. I've actually bookmarked the page if you'd like to read it -"

"No, I think that's quite all right, Mr. Black," Fudge replied through gritted teeth. "Am I to assume you are Sirius Black's proxy?"

"That is correct."

"Very well," Fudge grumbled, shuffling around papers before pulling one out. "Trial of the twelfth of August into offenses including thirteen counts of murder and escape from Azkaban by Sirius Orion Black, residence unknown.

"Interrogators: Cornelius Oswald Fudge, Minister of Magic; Amelia Susan Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement; Dolores Jane Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister. Court Scribe, Percy Ignatius Weasley. Proxy for the defense, Castor Perseus Black."

He glared down at Cas, who continued to smile serenely. Leo had a funny feeling things were about to go quite horribly for Fudge and that he'd be better off just announcing Sirius was innocent and letting them all go get ice cream or something.

"The charges against the accused are as follows: that he willingly escaped Azkaban prison on the night of the first of July, 1993 after being sent there for the murder of twelve Muggles and a wizard by the name of Peter Pettigrew on the morning of November first, 1981. Alongside those charges is the act of performing magic in front of many Muggles on the first of November, 1981, which is a serious breach of the International Confederation of Wizards' Statute of Secrecy. Castor Perseus Black, as proxy to Sirius Orion Black, how would you answer these charges?"

"Not guilty, obviously," he rolled his eyes. "Shall we go through them one by one?"

"That seems logical, Mr. Black," Madam Bones nodded. "How would you answer the charge of Sirius Black breaking out of Azkaban?"

"Sirius never received a trial, therefore he was never officially convicted and his sentence to Azkaban was illegal and violated his right to due process," Cas clasped his hands over his lap. "Given that he was put there illegally, his departure from Azkaban was less of a breakout and more of a stroll out of a place he was held hostage in for twelve years."

"A fair point, Mr. Black," Madam Bones inclined her head. "Would you like us to vote on the matter now or wait for the other charges?"

"I think I'd like to wait, Madam Bones," Cas smiled. "The next charge, if you please?"

"How would you answer the charge of Sirius Black murdering twelve Muggles and the wizard Peter Pettigrew?" Fudge interjected.

Cas smirked as he picked up another, even older book and held it up. Leo leaned forward slightly in excitement, hoping Fudge was about to be torn to shreds.

"Personally, I believe my brother to be innocent of murdering those Muggles but – as I was not there – I cannot give evidence for this statement -"

"So he's guilty then?" Fudge stated at once, eyes glinting maliciously.

"Don't interrupt," Cas snapped coldly.

Leo shivered slightly as the room went cold. It returned to normal a moment later as Cas's serene expression returned. Note to self: don't piss off Dad.

"As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted," Cas continued, holding up the book once more. "Since I cannot give a first hand account of what happened that day, I must instead argue from the perspective that my brother killed those Muggles." He paused briefly, eyes glinting as he tapped the cover of the book. "Back around the time when Muggles were burning wizards, witches, and innocents at the stake, the pure-blood community created a number of heinous, outrageous laws in response – most of which have since been abolished. One such law pertains to the murder of a Muggle."

He flipped open his book to a bookmarked page.

"'As Muggles can in no way, shape, or form equate to us – indeed they are no more than beasts in the way they behave – ending the life of one of these creatures is punishable by – at maximum – one year in Azkaban'," he closed the book with a snap. "Horrendous, I know, but you'd be quite surprised to find out that that law is still in effect. Given this fact, Sirius Black would have earned – at most – one year in Azkaban prison for each Muggle killed. Time – for those of you who can count – that he served fully before his departure.

"Once more, I have everything needed to prove my statement accurate, Madam Bones -"

"And again, that won't be necessary," Fudge snapped. "What about Peter Pettigrew? You have yet to mention his murder at the hands of your brother."

"Oh, there's a rather simple explanation for that really," Cas replied in a calm tone. "Peter Pettigrew isn't dead."

Given that he had personally seen his father turn Pettigrew into a human popsicle, Leo had to say that statement was fairly inaccurate. The members of the Wizengamont didn't seem to believe him either. The derisive snorts and sneers didn't seem to bother Cas, however, as he merely looked upon them all with mild amusement.

"And where," Fudge said loudly over everyone, "is your evidence, Mr. Black? Got Pettigrew in your back pocket, have you?"

There were a few laughs and Cas's smile broadened.

"Front of my robes, actually," he replied, reaching into his front pocket.

He pulled an object from his robes, set it on the ground, and tapped it with his wand. Everyone jumped in shock to see Pettigrew standing there, completely frozen in ice with a terrified expression on his face.

"Given how much he's aged, I think it's reasonable to assume that he was not in his twenties when he was frozen, now is it? Therefore, one can assume that Pettigrew did not, in fact, die on the first of November, 1981. I caught him two months ago before he could escape again," Cas continued, ignoring the murmurs around him.

Fudge seemed to be grasping at straws now.

"But - but Sirius Black still attempted to murder him -"

"Again, another simple explanation for that," Cas stated, walking over to Pettigrew. He grabbed the man's left arm – the ice dissolving around his hand as he did so – rolled down his sleeve, and lifted it up so everyone could see -

"The Dark Mark," Cas said simply over the gasps. "Pettigrew is a Death Eater. He was passing information onto Voldemort. He was Lily and James Potter's Secret-Keeper. He betrayed them. And he framed Sirius for all of it." He paused for a moment. "The Potters were our family – James was like a brother and Lily a sister – losing them... it broke Sirius's heart... he reacted rashly – recklessly – because of it. If someone was responsible for killing your sibling – your family – wouldn't you want revenge? Wouldn't you want to go after them?

"I stated earlier that I did not believe that my brother killed those Muggles – and that is because Pettigrew did it. He killed them. He caused the explosion and used it as a chance to escape, letting poor Sirius take the fall. That is my answer to the final charge: the use of magic in front of Muggles. Pettigrew did it, not Sirius."

He blinked at Madam Bones innocently.

"Does that cover all the charges, Madam Bones?"

"Yes, I believe it does, Mr. Black," she replied faintly, trying to recover from her shock. "Would you like us to vote now, or were you planning on taking someone else out of your pocket?"

"No, I think I'm done for the moment," he chuckled, sitting back on the corner of the table. "Unless anyone has further questions, I'm ready."

She nodded and the entire Wizengamot fell into urgent, whispered conversations. Leo closed his eyes and crossed his fingers in his lap, silently hoping Sirius would be found innocent. His heart, which seemed to have swollen to an unnatural size, was thumping loudly under his ribs. His swollen heart was now constricting his air passages, and he was finding it hard to breathe until he felt a hand grip his own and he relaxed slightly, using Sirius's exercises.

"Those in favor of clearing Sirius Black of all charges?" said Madam Bones's booming voice.

Leo didn't want to look, he couldn't take it if Sirius lost.

"And those in favor of conviction?"

He held his breath, now was the moment of truth.

"Fine, Sirius Orion Black is cleared of all charges and an official pardon shall be granted to him by the Ministry of Magic," Fudge's irritated voice finally spoke out.

"YES!" Leo shouted, jumping from his seat, his eyes shooting open.

There were a few chuckles from the members of the Wizengamont that he ignored in favor of turning and hugging Harry tightly, both of them laughing breathlessly. He turned to bring his father into it but noticed that he was currently standing in front of the bench, hands in his pockets as he spoke rapidly to Madam Bones. She seemed vaguely amused by whatever he was saying and made several responses that had the man looking at her with interest.

After a minute, Fudge came over, throwing a piece of parchment at him before stomping away angrily. Cas and Madam Bones watched him for a moment before they exchanged a few more words and departed with a nod to each other. Cas stopped briefly to shrink Pettigrew again and place him in his pocket before heading over to the table to collect his things. Before he could get very far, however, Leo and Harry both rushed toward him and embraced him in a tight hug, almost knocking him over.

"That was brilliant, Dad!" Leo exclaimed.

"Yeah," Harry nodded in agreement. "You got us off and set Sirius free -"

"Well, my philosophy has always been go big or go home so... I went big," Cas chuckled, hugging them both back briefly before pushing them away. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to pack up my things so we can get the hell out of here. Merlin, I hate the Ministry..."

He rolled his eyes as Harry and Leo laughed, watching as he packed away his belongings back into his bag and vanished the table. They exited the courtroom quickly, and Leo found it easier to breathe now that he was out of that room. They made their way up to the ninth-level corridor where they stopped suddenly, and Leo could see why.

Cornelius Fudge was standing a few feet away from them, talking quietly to a tall man with sleek blond hair and a pointed, pale face. The second man turned at the sound of their footsteps. He broke off in mid-conversation, his cold grey eyes narrowed and fixed upon their faces. It was Lucius Malfoy, Draco's father. He exchanged a few words with Fudge before approaching them. Leo felt pressure on his shoulder and glanced up to see his father gripping both him and Harry tightly.

"Castor Black, I hear congratulations are in order for... well, it's quite a long list, from what I'm told," Lucius said coolly.

"Some of us tend to succeed in our goals better than others," Cas replied smoothly. "I intend to make sure all three of my boys succeed in everything they do. And I'll fight anyone that tries to stop them."

Lucius seemed to relax slightly, relief flashing briefly in his eyes. Leo thought he knew what was going on. His father was telling Lucius that Draco was safe and well-protected. The man inclined his head.

"An admirable goal, Black," Lucius drawled. "Now, I must take my leave. I have business to discuss with the Minister."

Leo distinctly heard the gentle clinking of what sounded like a full pocket of gold as the man turned and left. He was about to comment on it when his father gave a subtle shake of his head and they moved on to wait in front of the lift. The lift arrived; it was empty except for a flock of what looked like paper airplanes that flapped around Cas's head as he pressed the button for the Atrium and the doors clanged shut; he waved them away irritably. The doors slid open and they stepped out into the now almost deserted Atrium. Eric the security man was hidden behind his Daily Prophet again.

They bid farewell to him before heading back up the lift toward the surface. On the way up, Cas asked them not to tell Sirius about his trial. He wanted to surprise him. Leo and Harry exchanged a look before grinning broadly and nodding. The look on his face would be priceless.

"I knew it!" yelled Ron, punching the air. "You two always get away with stuff!"

"They were bound to clear you," said Hermione, who had looked positively faint with anxiety when Leo and Harry had entered the kitchen and was now holding a shaking hand over her eyes. "There was no case against you, none at all..."

"Everyone seems quite relieved, though, considering they all knew we'd get off," said Harry, smiling.

"Think they were more worried about me than you, Harry," Leo chuckled. "All those pending assault charges – quite frankly, I'm surprised they weren't brought up -"

"Probably because Castor ended it before Fudge could," Draco said thoughtfully. "I imagine you wouldn't have gone free otherwise, Black."

Mrs. Weasley was wiping her face on her apron, and Fred, George, and Ginny were doing a kind of war dance to a chant that went "He got off, he got off, he got off —"

"That's enough, settle down," Cas said in a calm voice, though everyone could tell he didn't really care. "Listen, Siri, Lucius Malfoy was at the Ministry —"

"What?" said Sirius sharply as Draco turned his head around.

"He got off, he got off, he got off —"

"Yes, we saw him talking to Fudge on level nine, then they went up to Fudge's office together. Think that was a pretense for finding out about Draco – must've known we'd be there," Cas responded before looking at the pale blonde. "I told him you were safe and sound, and he seemed relieved."

Draco nodded gratefully, relief shining in his own eyes.

"He got off, he got off, he got off —"

"That's enough — Fred — George — Ginny!" said Mrs. Weasley, as Mr. Weasley left the kitchen. "Harry, Leo, come and sit down, have some lunch..."

Leo ran over to sit between his uncle and Remus, staring at his father expectantly. Cas merely sipped his tea as Ron dished out mashed potatoes onto everyone's plates while talking with Harry and Hermione about the trial. Leo grew antsier as the minutes ticked by and Cas continued to remain quiet, Remus and Sirius were looking at him worriedly as they passed around the roast chicken.

"HE GOT OFF, HE GOT OFF, HE GOT OFF —"

"SHUT UP!" roared Mrs. Weasley.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Cas lowered his cup.

"Ah, yes, I almost forgot," he said, reaching into the inside pocket of his jacket. "Picked you something up at the Ministry, Siri. Thought you might like it."

"What, another article from The Quibbler?" he snorted, barely glancing at the parchment as he took it. "The last one was pretty... funny..."

He trailed off, staring at the paper with his mouth slightly open. His fork slipped from his grasp, clattering onto his plate and gaining the attention of everyone at the table. Leo and Harry exchanged gleeful looks from across the table as Cas nonchalantly sipped his tea. Remus leaned over to read what was on the paper, and his mouth too fell open in shock.

"Cas... is this – is this what I think it is?" Sirius finally croaked.

"Well, if you think it's a full pardon from the Ministry that officially exonerates you and means you're a free man," Cas replied slowly. "Then yes, yes it is."

Everyone was quiet and still for a moment. Then, suddenly, Sirius flew across the table, scattering everything in his path as he tackled his brother to the ground in a rib-breaking hug. Cas was laughing louder and more jovially than Leo had ever heard him, and everyone eventually joined in. After everything he's been through, he deserved this. Leo smiled to himself as Cas told the tale of how he had secured Sirius's freedom. With Dad here, maybe we can really change things now.

Sirius wasn't able to leave the house until the Daily Prophet came out two days later, announcing that he was innocent of the crimes he had been accused of fourteen years ago. Cas advised that they wait another day to let the news spread a bit more and so, it wasn't until the fifteenth that Sirius was able to stroll down Diagon Alley in his human form and not have to worry about getting arrested. Many people came up to him, insisting that they had known all along that he was innocent. At least until Leo remarked that they weren't exactly outspoken about it before.

Sirius seemed amused by the whole thing and was quite pleased that he was able to take his nephew and godson out for something as simple as ice cream – Draco had elected to go to the Den, wanting to practice flying a bit more. He tried to buy them all sorts of things, which the boys refused saying that they were just glad to have Sirius there with them. He tried to take them out almost every day after that, spending as much time out of the house as he could and enjoying every moment of it.

They spent their weekends at the Den either in their Animagus forms or practicing Quidditch. Leo spent almost every moment as Aslan, knowing he wouldn't get much chance to do so when they got to Hogwarts. His form was a lot more noticeable than Harry's or Draco's, after all. Despite this knowledge, Leo felt this was the greatest summer of his life. Unfortunately, like all good things, summer came to an end.

On the very last day of the holidays, Leo and Draco were playing Muggle poker as Harry was sweeping up Hedwig's owl droppings – Apollo had adamantly refused to come to Grimmauld if he couldn't fly out whenever he wanted and so remained at the Den - from the top of the wardrobe when Ron entered their bedroom carrying four envelopes.

"Booklists have arrived," he said, throwing each of the envelopes to their recipients. "About time, I thought they'd forgotten, they usually come much earlier than this..."

Draco cursed as Leo won yet another hand before they both opened their letters. It contained two pieces of parchment, one the usual reminder that term started on the first of September, the other telling him which books he would need for the coming year. He glanced up to see if Draco had gotten the same before stopping and staring at the shiny, green, prefect badge in the boy's hand. He grinned broadly at his friend.

"Brilliant!" he said in a low whisper, clapping Draco's shoulder.

Draco replied with a weak smile.

"Only two new ones," Harry said aloud, reading his list. "The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 5, by Miranda Goshawk and Defensive Magical Theory, by Wilbert Slinkhard."

Crack.

Fred and George Apparated right beside Leo and Draco. They were so used to them doing this by now that they didn't even blink.

"We were just wondering who assigned the Slinkhard book," said Fred conversationally.

"Because it means Dumbledore's found a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," said George.

"Unfortunate, given three out of four of them sucked bollocks," Leo rolled his eyes before flopping back on the floor. "Doubt this one'll be any better."

"We overheard Mum and Dad talking on the Extendable Ears a few weeks back," Fred told them, "and from what they were saying, Dumbledore was having real trouble finding anyone to do the job this year."

"Not surprising, is it, when you look at what's happened to the last four?" said George.

"One quit, one dead, one in a coma, and one locked in a trunk for nine months," said Harry, counting them off on his fingers. "Yeah, I see what you mean."

"The hilarious part is that I'm directly responsible for two of those and partially at fault for the other two," Leo chuckled.

"Think they'd stick around longer if we just ditched you, Leo?" Fred joked.

"Meh, probably," Leo replied before grinning widely. "I'll tell you what though if the new Professor is awful, I'm going to do everything I can to run them out of school. Didn't cause nearly as much mischief last year, and I need to make up for it -"

"That's the spirit!" George laughed, putting Leo in a headlock and ruffling his hair. He stopped when he saw Draco holding his badge. "Oi, Fred, look! Draco's got a prefect badge!"

"Has he now?" Fred looked over curiously. "Well, I suppose it's better than some git like Zabini getting it. Who d'you think got it from Gryffindor? No one in their right mind would make Leo prefect -"

"Yeah, that would be a horrible idea," Leo laughed. "Maybe Harry or Ron -"

"Speaking of, what's up with you, Ron?" asked Fred.

Ron did not answer. Leo looked around. Ron was standing very still with his mouth slightly open, gaping at his letter from Hogwarts.

"What's the matter?" said Fred impatiently, moving around Ron to look over his shoulder at the parchment.

Fred's mouth fell open too.

"Prefect?" he said, staring incredulously at the letter. "Prefect?"

George leapt forward, seized the envelope in Ron's other hand, and turned it upside down. Leo saw something scarlet and gold fall into George's palm. Well, that's most likely a horrible idea. He frowned, already knowing that Ron would be too lazy to commit to any prefect duties.

"No way," said George in a hushed voice.

"There's been a mistake," said Fred, snatching the letter out of Ron's grasp and holding it up to the light as though checking for a watermark. "No one in their right mind would make Ron a prefect..."

The twins' heads turned in unison and both of them stared at Harry.

"We thought you were a cert!" said Fred in a tone that suggested Harry had tricked them in some way.

"We thought Dumbledore was bound to pick you!" said George indignantly.

"Please, Harry's almost as big a trouble-maker as I am," Leo rolled his eyes.

"Yeah," said Fred slowly. "Yeah, you've caused too much trouble, mate. Well, at least one of you's got their priorities right."

He strode over to Harry and clapped him on the back while giving Ron a scathing look.

"Prefect... ickle Ronnie the prefect..."

"Oh, Mum's going to be revolting," groaned George, thrusting the prefect badge back at Ron as though it might contaminate him.

"You know, you two could stand to be more supportive," Leo stated, shuffling his cards. "Prefects aren't all bad. Remus turned out fine and Draco causes just as much trouble as we do. He's just better about not getting caught."

Fred and George exchanged a look before grumbling in reluctant agreement and settling on the floor beside the two blondes. Meanwhile, Ron, who still had not said a word, took the badge, stared at it for a moment, and then held it out to Harry as though asking mutely for confirmation that it was genuine. Harry took it. The door banged open. Hermione came tearing into the room, her cheeks flushed and her hair flying. There was an envelope in her hand.

"Did you — did you get —?"

She spotted the badge in Harry's hand and let out a shriek. Leo clapped his hands over his ears and put his head down. Draco patted his shoulder sympathetically as Harry refrained from grabbing his own ears.

"I knew it!" she said excitedly, brandishing her letter. "Me too, Harry, me too!"

"No," said Harry quickly, pushing the badge back into Ron's hand. "It's Ron, not me."

"It — what?"

"Ron's prefect, not me," Harry said.

"Ron?" said Hermione, her jaw dropping. "But... are you sure? I mean —"

She turned red as Ron looked around at her with a defiant expression on his face.

"It's my name on the letter," he said.

"I..." said Hermione, looking thoroughly bewildered. "I... well... wow! Well done, Ron! That's really —"

"Unexpected," said George, nodding.

"Insane," Leo added, sitting up.

"I thought you told us to be nice?" Fred frowned. "Why do you get to be rude?"

"Because I'm not his brother."

"Fair enough."

The door behind her opened a little wider and Mrs. Weasley backed into the room carrying a pile of freshly laundered robes.

"Ginny said the booklists had come at last," she said, glancing around at all the envelopes as she made her way over to the bed and started sorting the robes into four piles. "If you give them to me, Sirius and I'll take them over to Diagon Alley this afternoon and get your books while you're packing. Ron, I'll have to get you more pajamas, these are at least six inches too short, I can't believe how fast you're growing... what color would you like?"

"Get him red and gold to match his badge," said George, smirking.

"Match his what?" said Mrs. Weasley absently, rolling up a pair of maroon socks and placing them on Ron's pile.

"His badge," said Fred, with the air of getting the worst over quickly. "His lovely shiny new prefect's badge."

Fred's words took a moment to penetrate Mrs. Weasley's preoccupation about pajamas.

"His... but... Ron, you're not...?"

Ron held up his badge. Mrs. Weasley let out a shriek just like Hermione's. Leo covered his ears and put his head down again.

"I don't believe it! I don't believe it! Oh, Ron, how wonderful! A prefect! That's everyone in the family!"

"What are Fred and I, next-door neighbors?" said George indignantly, as his mother flung her arms around her youngest son.

"I'd ask if you want my dad to adopt you, but you're both already of age," Leo grinned, sitting up once more. "Be a part of the prefect-less family."

"That sounds brilliant, honestly," Fred sighed dreamily.

"I'm a prefect, remember?" Draco glowered at them.

"Don't worry, we won't hold it against you," George clapped him on the shoulder bracingly.

"- You've got to have a reward for this!" Mrs. Weasley was saying fondly. "How about a nice new set of dress robes?"

"We've already bought him some," said Fred sourly, who looked as though he sincerely regretted this generosity.

"Or a new cauldron, Charlie's old one's rusting through, or a new rat, you always liked Scabbers —"

Leo privately felt that any new rats wouldn't last very long with him around. He wasn't very fond of them after having to deal with Pettigrew.

"Mum," said Ron hopefully, "can I have a new broom?"

Mrs. Weasley's face fell slightly; broomsticks were expensive.

"Not a really good one!" Ron hastened to add. "Just — just a new one for a change..."

Mrs. Weasley hesitated, then smiled.

"Of course you can... Well, I'd better get going if I've got a broom to buy too. I'll see you all later... Little Ronnie, a prefect! And don't forget to pack your trunks... A prefect... Oh, I'm all of a dither!"

She gave Ron yet another kiss on the cheek, sniffed loudly, and bustled from the room. Fred and George exchanged looks.

"You don't mind if we don't kiss you, do you, Ron?" said Fred in a falsely anxious voice.

"We could curtsy if you like," said George.

"I could compose a lovely ballad," Leo added.

"Oh, shut up," said Ron, scowling at them.

"Or what?" said Fred, an evil grin spreading across his face. "Going to put us in detention?"

"I'd love to see him try," sniggered George.

"Hate to see the teacher who gets stuck with me – I plan on being very extra this year," Leo tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Think I might try and break the record for most detentions."

"We're going to have to watch our step, you lot," said Fred, pretending to tremble, "with these new prefects on our case..."

"Yeah, it looks like our law-breaking days are finally over," said George, shaking his head.

And with another loud crack, the twins Disapparated.

"Those two!" said Hermione furiously, staring up at the ceiling, through which they could now hear Fred and George roaring with laughter in the room upstairs. "Don't pay any attention to them, Ron, they're only jealous!"

"I don't think they are," said Ron doubtfully, also looking up at the ceiling. "They've always said only prats become prefects... Still," he added on a happier note, "they've never had new brooms! I wish I could go with Mum and choose... She'll never be able to afford a Nimbus, but there's the new Cleansweep out, that'd be great... Yeah, I think I'll go and tell her I like the Cleansweep, just so she knows..."

"I'm going to announce to Sirius that I'm not a prefect – he'll be so proud," Leo grinned as he rose to his feet after Ron left. "Think I'll ask Dad about this Slinkhard book while I'm at it -"

He grabbed his list and ran out of the room, moving at a quieter pace as he went down the stairs and made his way to the drawing room. The three Marauders were gathered together on the floor, their heads perking up as Leo entered and closed the door behind him. He walked further into the room, tilting his head to the side as he noticed they had several dark-looking books and half-written pages of parchment surrounding them. Must be researching the Horcruxes. He shrugged, sitting between Remus and his father and handing the latter his booklist.

"Got our lists. Great news, I'm not the new Gryffindor prefect."

Sirius and Remus both laughed as Cas read the list thoughtfully.

"You've caused more trouble than James and Sirius combined," Remus chuckled. "Didn't think you'd even have a remote chance at becoming prefect."

"Oh, stop, you're making me blush."

"That's my favorite nephew," Sirius grinned, ruffling Leo's hair. "Think this calls for a celebration. Trip to Diagon Alley for some ice cream, maybe?"

"Yeah, maybe get something for Draco too," Leo added. "He made Slytherin prefect."

"Really now?" Sirius replied, and Leo was pleased to hear he didn't sound disdainful. "Should probably get him something... we missed his birthday, now that I think of it... what d'you say, Cas?"

"Sounds brilliant, Siri," Cas smiled widely before frowning at the list in his hands. "This Slinkhard book, however, not so much."

"Why, what's wrong with it?" Leo frowned.

"Well... it's heavily theory-based, for one. Very against using any sort of aggressive measures to defend yourself for another... All in all, it's the worst possible book they could've assigned with Voldemort lurking in the shadows trying to play 'got your nose'," Cas finally said.

The other three chuckled at the last comment.

"So, what, you think someone pro-Ministry and anti-Dumbles is our new teacher?" Leo eventually managed to ask.

"I think it more likely that it's someone from the Ministry itself," Cas sighed, running a hand through his hair. "They wrote an educational decree just yesterday that allows them to appoint a new teacher if the headmaster can't find one."

"Can they even do that?" Sirius asked incredulously.

"What, interfere at Hogwarts?" Cas clarified, receiving nods from everyone else. "Well, if they couldn't before, you can bet your arse they've made it legal to do so now."

He turned to look at Leo.

"I know asking you to stay out of trouble is useless, but will you at least promise to inform me if things get too bad?"

"How bad are you expecting things to get?" Leo raised an eyebrow.

"Very," Cas replied darkly.

Down in the basement that night Mrs. Weasley had hung a white banner over the heavily laden dinner table, which read: Congratulations Ron, Draco, and Hermione — new prefects. She looked in a better mood than Leo had seen her all holiday.

"I thought we'd have a little party, not a sit-down dinner," she told Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Draco, and Ginny as they entered the room. "Your father and Bill are on their way, Ron, I've sent them both owls and they're thrilled," she added, beaming.

Fred rolled his eyes.

Leo gave a small wave at everyone before returning to his conversation with his father, Sirius, and Remus, about what sort of pranks would serve him best this year with a Ministry teacher running amok. Tonks and Kingsley Shacklebolt sat a few seats down, listening in on their conversation with traces of amusement on their faces. Moody clunked in not long after.

"Oh, Alastor, I am glad you're here," said Mrs. Weasley brightly, as Mad-Eye shrugged off his traveling cloak. "We've been wanting to ask you for ages — could you have a look in the writing desk in the drawing room and tell us what's inside it? We haven't wanted to open it just in case it's something really nasty."

"No problem, Molly..."

Moody's electric-blue eye swiveled upward and stared fixedly through the ceiling of the kitchen.

"Drawing room..." he growled, as the pupil contracted. "Desk in the corner? Yeah, I see it... Yeah, it's a boggart... Want me to go up and get rid of it, Molly?"

"No, no, I'll do it myself later," beamed Mrs. Weasley. "You have your drink. We're having a little bit of a celebration, actually..." She gestured at the scarlet banner. "Fourth prefect in the family!" she said fondly, ruffling Ron's hair.

"Prefect, eh?" growled Moody, his normal eye on Ron and his magical eye swiveling around to gaze into the side of his head.

"Well, congratulations," said Moody, still glaring at Ron with his normal eye, "authority figures always attract trouble, but I suppose Dumbledore thinks you can withstand most major jinxes or he wouldn't have appointed you..."

Leo snorted at this pronouncement, knowing this was not at all the case for Ron. Bill and Mr. Weasley arrived moments later. Mrs. Weasley was in such a good mood she did not even complain that they had brought Mundungus with them too; he was wearing a long overcoat that seemed oddly lumpy in unlikely places and declined the offer to remove it and put it with Moody's traveling cloak.

"Well, I think a toast is in order," said Mr. Weasley, when everyone had a drink. He raised his goblet. "To Draco, Ron, and Hermione, the new prefects!"

Ron and Hermione beamed as everyone drank to them and then applauded. Even Draco seemed pleased, a marked difference from his usually serious expression.

"I was never a prefect myself," said Tonks brightly from behind Harry and Leo as everybody moved toward the table to help themselves to food. Her hair was tomato-red and waist-length today; she looked like Ginny's older sister. "My Head of House said I lacked certain necessary qualities."

"Like what?" said Ginny, who was choosing a baked potato.

"Like the ability to behave myself," said Tonks.

Leo and Remus caught each other's eye and laughed. Leo had said the same thing about Sirius in his third year. Hermione looked as though she did not know whether to smile or not and compromised by taking an extra-large gulp of butterbeer and choking on it.

"What about you or Castor, Sirius?" Ginny asked, thumping Hermione on the back.

Sirius, who was between Leo and Cas, let out his usual bark-like laugh.

"No one would have made me a prefect, I spent too much time in detention with James. Lupin was the good boy, he got the badge."

"I think Dumbledore might have hoped that I would be able to exercise some control over my best friends," said Remus. "I need scarcely say that I failed dismally."

"And the idea that I would ever try to stop Sirius from doing what he wants is laughable at best," Cas remarked. "Not to mention I told Dumbles the year prior that he could stick that badge where the sun doesn't shine -"

"That's right," Sirius nodded slowly. "He was trying to get back into your good graces at the end of the year, wasn't he?"

"Why?" Leo frowned, looking at his father. "What did he do?"

"Well, for once, it was mostly me this time," Cas stabbed a potato. "I was very rebellious that year – running away from home with Siri, getting a tattoo, teaching three people to become illegal Animagi – and Dumbledore and I were sort of at war with each other. He wanted to control me and I despise authority figures so... it escalated. Went a bit too far sometimes. Someone got hurt, and we called a truce. Dumbles tried to make amends by offering the badge, but I had no interest in it. I'm not self-loathing enough to become an authority figure."

"Gee, thanks, Cas," Remus replied, drinking his butterbeer.

"Oh, relax, Remy," Cas rolled his eyes. "I was always fine with you. We're best mates, after all. Trusted you enough to name you godfather, didn't I?"

"Yeah, I suppose so," the man grinned broadly in response.

"Best decision you could've ever made," Leo added. "Moonbeam is the best godfather ever." He paused, frowning. "Who's my godmother? Is she cool like Moony? Is she a vampire? Part dragon?"

"She's McGonagall," Cas answered smoothly, raising an eyebrow when Leo gaped at him. "I thought she would've told you after giving you my letter in your first year -"

"That was her?" Leo asked incredulously. "If she was my legal guardian, why didn't she ever – wait. Let me guess: Dumbledore."

"Puppetmaster himself," Cas nodded. "He wanted to be at your hearing, but I told him not to come. Didn't want to risk him pushing his 'Voldy is alive' agenda while you two were in trouble. There's a time and place for everything, but that was neither the time nor the place."

"Well, suppose it's good that he didn't come," Sirius remarked. "Who knows if I would've been set free otherwise."

Leo couldn't help but think that Dumbles wouldn't have done anything to help the man since it would mean surrendering control over him. Puppetmaster indeed...