DISCLAIMER! This Harry Potter story was written for fun. All rights belong to the wonderful lady (JK Rowling) who gave the world Harry Potter to read and enjoy. New Movie is coming in April! Hurrah! Yeah, for Fanfiction – a great place to stretch your imagination and enjoy someone else's creativity too! The is the sequel to The Potter Cartouche.
Parseltongue {Maledictus! Are you a maledictus?}
Chapter 13: Part of August 1994Cheques, Yelling, Trial, and More Yelling
SCENE CHANGE: Harry's GiftsOn Monday, 1 August, letters arrived by Royal Mail in the homes of Hermione Granger, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Colin Creevey, and Penelope Clearwater. The letters were addressed to the parents of the children and explained that a benefactor had determined that each child/underage wizard or witch was due compensation for being petrified for a time at Hogwarts during the 1992-1993 school year. A meeting at the Royal Lancaster London hotel at Hyde Park and close to a tube station was arranged for 5:00 PM on 12 August.
To verify the letter's authenticity, the sender, Theodore Tonks, attorney at law, included his phone and street address for calls to confirm the recipients would attend.
Mrs Creevey was sceptical when she spoke to Mr Tonks about ten minutes after receiving the letter. Her words sounded familiar to Ted, "Our Colin's never talked about that episode much, and the magical stuff leaves me and my husband baffled most of the time. Now our littlest ones show signs of this magic, and we don't know what to do. We can't…we can't afford to send all four kids to this school."
"My parents felt the same way, Mrs Creevey. My sisters and I attended Hogwarts, and we all came back to the real world after graduating. Magic helps us a lot in our lives, and we've got other resources to help you. But this is something that Harry Potter wants to do for Colin and the other children who were petrified."
"Harry Potter? Colin talks about Harry Potter all the time," Mrs Creevey replied. "If we can't make it, I'll call you back. Otherwise, we'll be there. I've got time to find a babysitter."
"Bring your whole family. Harry will like that, and there'll be other kids here," Ted said before ending the call.
Talking to Myron Clearwater was a bit harder as the Unspeakable wasn't available on 1 August, and on the phone, his wife admitted he would have to agree to the meeting. But once Penelope learned about the letter, she explained to her father that his mysterious work could not impact this meeting. At the breakfast table on 4 August, she argued calmly and convincingly, "I'll drag Mother there by myself if I have to! Or I'll call Bryan in Dublin and ask him to come home and take us!"
Myron glanced at his muggle-born wife, who excelled at Charms and quietly repaired works of art for the British Museum. She earned a good living while he experimented with esoteric magic in the Department of Mysteries.
"Besides, it's Harry Potter who wants to see us. That's almost like an invitation to Windsor for tea with Her Majesty to the Queen," Penelope said.
"Did you read the paragraph about not sharing the information with anyone not named in the letter about the invitation?" Clarice Clearwater asked her daughter. "There'll be no sharing this news with Mr Weasley when you meet him for lunch this Wednesday."
"Yes, Mum."
"And don't be encouraging that boy. He's just getting his feet wet at the ministry," Myron said, with the frown every father had for the boy who was stealing his daughter's heart.
"Dad, Percy's perfectly wonderful when you get him away from his family," Penelope said.
"And it's too early to think about a wedding," Myron said, noticing his wife shudder to think about the ordeal that would be their daughter's wedding with Molly Weasley as the groom's mother. Despite becoming Lady Old Weasley, Molly remained rude and spoke too loudly in every conversation.
Sighing, Penelope confessed, "Percy wants to elope to Corfu when we get married. Of course, we'll take both of you along. And my brother and his family just might be vacationing there like they do every summer, so you'd be at my wedding."
"So 5:00 PM at the Royal Lancaster London. That's a very posh spot near Hyde Park," Myron said. "Dearest, is my best muggle suit clean?"
The letter to Mr and Mrs Finch-Fletchley wasn't delivered into the wife's hand until late in the afternoon. The secretary who opened the family's mail was in the know about magic, so the letter's contents didn't shock him. A gentle inquiry with the family attorney verified Mr Tonks's credentials and his wife, another attorney practising law in London. After a call to her husband and a quick conversation with her son, Mrs Finch-Fletchley called Mr Tonks to assure him the Finch-Fletchleys would attend.
On 5 August, not having heard from the Grangers, Ted used a directory and called the dental offices of Mr and Mrs Granger. The receptionist asked the gentleman if her employers could return the call when they were not seeing patients, and of course, Ted agreed. When Ted spoke to Brian Granger just after the hour of noon, the man declared no knowledge of any such letter. He asked his wife, who grabbed the phone away from her husband and demanded to know, "Who is this? Are you that terrible Potter boy?"
"No, ma'am," Ted assured the woman. "I am Theodore Tonks, an attorney representing Mr Potter."
"Is he suing my daughter now? The ungrateful swot! Let me tell you something, Mr Theodore Tonks; we don't want anything to do with Harry Potter or your ministry of magic ever again!"
Then Mrs Granger hung up the phone. About ten minutes later, Mr Granger called back to apologise and explain that after a long family discussion following the end of the school term, the Grangers decided that Hermione would 'withdraw from Hogwarts and attend regular school while receiving magical tutoring to receive her EAGLES or whatever the name was for the exams required to maintain his daughter's right to practise magic'.
Ted confessed, "I understand the feeling perfectly, Mr Granger. My wife and I considered the same solution for our daughter when she was enrolled at Hogwarts, but fortunately, she had an excellent head of house who…well, never mind. I still urge you to bring your wife and daughter to the meeting at the Royal Lancaster London hotel at Hyde Park at 5:00 PM on the evening of 12 August. My client wants to give her a decent sum of money because she was petrified for a time in 1992."
"We'll be there," Mr Granger said. "And you say you sent a letter?"
"Yes, sir. It should have been delivered yesterday."
There wasn't anything else said at the Granger's dental offices or in the car on the way home. Once the couple were in their kitchen, and Mr Granger sorted through the day's mail, he called for their daughter to join them.
"Did you talk to Justin today?" asked Mrs Granger when their teenager joined them.
Hermione rolled her eyes and replied, "No, Mum. We're not dating."
"Not yet, but in a few years, you can be. He's very wealthy and would be a great catch for you, darling," Mrs Granger reminded her daughter. (Somewhere in England, Molly Weasley felt a shiver run up her spine with the revelation of a kindred spirit.)
"Hermione, is this all the mail that was delivered today?" Mr Granger asked.
"Yes, Daddy," his daughter replied with the tone of a bored teenage girl.
"And yesterday? Was there another letter delivered yesterday that was addressed to your mother and me?" he asked, his tone more serious. Hermione glanced at her mother, who grimaced, and Brian saw the look on his wife's face in the reflection of the refrigerator.
Mrs Granger said, "Brian, it was nothing."
"Then why are you hiding it?"
"It upset Hermione, and I decided just to throw it away," his wife explained.
"So, it's in the trash?"
"No…it's on my desk."
Brian growled loudly and demanded, "Get the letter now."
"Daddy, it's Harry Potter…he's trying to get me in trouble."
"Brian, you know Hermione is right," Mrs Granger said as she came back into the kitchen with the letter. He read the letter in silence, pointing to chairs when his wife and daughter grew anxious.
"Hermione, how did you come to be petrified?" asked her dad. "You left that out of your stories earlier in the summer."
CHANGE SCENE: Royal Lancaster London HotelBeginning at 4:30 on Friday afternoon, 12 August, the squibs operating the front desk of the Royal Lancaster London began directing the anticipated guests toward a private banquet room. A rather large family with four children arrived first and were welcomed at the door to the room by the teenage boy who seemed to be the centre of attention for the Tonks couple who'd made the arrangements for this afternoon's event. The couple were known to the staff at the Royal Lancaster London because of previous meetings they'd held at the hotel.
"Colin! Welcome," said the boy holding the door while the Creevey family made their way inside the banquet room. They were followed shortly by man and wife with four more children, the eldest a teenage girl with three younger children guided by the parents. Before they were inside the room, an older woman and her grandson joined them with hugs and handshakes all around.
Andromeda Tonks felt out-of-sorts with the noise in the banquet room after only ten minutes. The Creevey and Abbot children certainly played together well under the watchful eyes of the eldest Abbot daughter and Neville Longbottom. Ted kept Harry with him, talking with Mr and Mrs Creevey about the award of money. She watched the children closely, seeing the Creevey children with their black hair laughing and chasing after the red-headed Abbots. Then Mr and Mrs Clearwater and their teenage daughter arrived, and Andromeda was pulled into the adult conversations. Just before 5:00 PM, the Finch-Fletchleys arrived, and Justin shook hands and greeted Harry as enthusiastically as Colin had.
"Once the Grangers arrive, we can get started," Ted announced.
At 5:15, Harry frowned after a whispered conversation with Justin and cleared his throat before saying, "Mr Tonks, perhaps we should begin. There's a lot of information to cover and a great supper waiting for everyone."
Nodding, Ted called the adults close. Neville and Hannah stayed with the youngest children – two Creevey and three Abbot youngsters – while the two oldest Creevey boys joined their parents for the presentation.
Ted introduced Harry Potter to the assembled parents before introducing Lady Longbottom, Mr and Mrs Samuel Abbot, and finally himself and his wife. Then he introduced the three couples and their children to each other.
"This gathering is at Mr Potter's request because he wants to give money to your children who were petrified by the basilisk in Hogwarts School two years ago. The creature was huge and worth a great deal of money."
After more details were shared, Ted called on Samuel Abbot to share news concerning sales of the basilisk parts that could be used for potion ingredients.
"With the help of the goblins, sales have begun with a lot of interest," Abbot reported. "The goblins project we'll clear about three million galleons or fifteen million pounds when we're finished."
"And Mr Potter wants to give away a quarter-million pounds without any conditions?" asked Mr Finch-Fletchley. "I find that hard to believe! Is he afraid of being sued by us?"
Ted stopped the presentation and detailed for Mr Finch-Fletchley the names of the ministry officials and school officials responsible for the situation at Hogwarts in that year. "And you are as aware as I am that Magical Britain won't pay any attention to your protests or any lawsuits."
Then he waved a hand at Harry and continued, "Mr Potter was a student who put himself in danger to remove the danger from the school. He was twelve…almost thirteen years old at the time."
Mr Finch-Fletchley frowned and added, "I find this hard to believe, like so many of the stories that Justin comes home and tells."
Justin blushed with embarrassment, but Harry only said, "Mr Finch-Fletchley, I understand. My relatives hate magic and any story I tried to tell them. But because there's magic, I can show you the memory of the battle with the basilisk. Justin, you can watch it too."
"Can I see it, Harry?" asked Colin.
Ted set up the Pensieve (Andromeda forbade house-elves to be visible this evening to protect the statute of secrecy). He took Mr Finch-Fletchley, Justin, Mr Creevey, Colin, Dennis, and Mr Clearwater into the memory.
Mrs Clearwater, Penelope, Mrs Creevey and Harry waited quietly while Lady Longbottom and Mrs Finch-Fletchley spoke of manners and dishes to serve at dinner and discovered they both loved the same vintages of wine and champagnes. When a head appeared inside the door, Andromeda quickly stepped outside. There were loud voices a moment later, and the door opened for the arrival of the Granger family, only one hour late.
Harry's first thought was, 'Maybe the Grangers are always late, like the Weasleys.'
Then Mrs Granger began a loud argument with Andromeda Tonks that reminded Harry of Molly Weasley, and he smirked, 'Maybe Hermione and Ron can get together after they're grown. It would be just like Mr and Mrs Weasley if she dyed her hair red.'
Suddenly, Mrs Granger's voice fell silent, though her mouth kept moving. Andromeda had her wand in her hand and spoke quietly about proper manners or their lack in the Granger family. Hermione fussed about the use of magic against her muggle mother. Attorney Andromeda reminded the girl that her mother knew about magic and was likely to violate the statute of secrecy if she continued to yell. Harry smirked as he decided he'd tell this tale to Bloodhook and enhance the reputation of Great Evil Tonks.
Mr Granger forcefully ordered his daughter to remain silent and turned to his wife. Behind a privacy bubble provided by Andromeda, the couple argued while the attorney and the other adults watched them unimpressed.
Hermione spotted Justin, Colin, and Dennis with four adult men with their fingers stuck inside a Pensieve. She hurried over to Harry and said, "What's going on, Harry? There's too much magic being used here! The ministry will send the Aurors and expel everyone!"
With his proper pureblood face in place, Harry replied, "Good evening, Miss Granger. Might I introduce you to Lady Longbottom, Mrs Clearwater, Mrs Creevey, and Mrs Finch-Fletchley?"
Hermione barely glanced at the four women to say, "Hello. And I met Justin's Mum earlier this summer."
"Now stop this magic! I'm not going to get in trouble again because of you!" she demanded.
"Hermione, come here, dear," her mother called out. Giving Harry a look that promised more words would be directed at him shortly, Hermione returned to her mother's side, and the woman and her daughter left the room. Mr Granger and Andromeda stepped from the room for a moment, but then the two of them returned without Mrs Granger or Hermione.
Andromeda escorted Mr Granger to Harry and made the introduction. Then she allowed Harry to repeat the introductions of the ladies present. Mr Granger acknowledged each woman and echoed, having met Mrs Finch-Fletchley earlier in the summer.
"We are waiting while the gentlemen view the memory of Harry slaying the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets," Andromeda informed Mr Granger.
His face betraying his pique, Mr Granger commented, "We are always late for every meeting. It doesn't matter what we plan or I insist, Mrs Granger always makes us late."
Harry said, "Maybe later, you can dive in and see the memory."
Andromeda frowned and said, "I'd prefer Ted not sit through it twice in one night."
Mr Granger asked, "So it's exciting? Like Star Wars?"
Mrs Creevey, the only person with a reference for Star Wars, said, "Lord, I hope not."
The visit to the Pensieve finally ended; Mr Clearwater and Mr Finch-Fletchley walked directly to the bar for a drink. Mr Creevey made sure his sons and Justin were well before he came to his wife to hug her and then visit the bar. Colin walked up to Harry, hugged him, and asked, "How did you survive?"
Justin and Dennis refused to talk much about what they'd seen but promised their mothers they were okay. Ted hugged his wife and exchanged a few words before stepping closer to greet Mr Granger and escort the man to the bar where they also had a drink.
Playing hostess, Andromeda summoned the maître d' to prep the buffet. Lady Longbottom found the table laid out with multiple muggle foods interesting, and when seated with her plate, she thought the food was exceptionally well prepared. She was also pleased to watch her grandson and Miss Abbot help the younger children with Colin and Chris Creevey. It did not take long for everyone to be seated, and ample food and friendly conversation filled the air.
Mr Finch-Fletchley could not summon his appetite, so he had a second drink and watched his son converse with their host and the other teenagers. Mrs Finch-Fletchley and Lady Longbottom again compared notes while Mrs Creevey and Mrs Clearwater bonded over their children's antics. Penelope sat with Harry and the other teens after helping the small children with their food. The teenagers talked about Hogwarts and Penelope's plans for the future.
"Are you still dating Percy?" asked Harry, seated beside Penelope.
The former head girl wore her pureblood mask when she revealed she was dating Percy Weasley exclusively. Harry grinned and said, "Percy was great at Hogwarts last year with his Patronus chasing Dementors and standing up for Gryffindor when McGonagall lost…well when she lost focus."
After a moment of embarrassed silence, Harry revealed, "He helped me with lots of information last year. Where did he end up working?"
"Unofficially, he's the Undersecretary for Minister Diggory. The minister plans to make the title official after the first of the year," Penelope revealed.
"That's great!" Harry replied. "Once this mess with the cheques is settled, I'll send him an owl with congratulations."
"Mum and Dad agreed with the letter not to say anything about this Percy until the check had cleared. And my dad wants to talk to Percy about not telling his Mum about this."
Uncomfortable, Harry nodded and said, "I'm going to give money for Miss Weasley to get some help with healers, but I don't want anything to do with Ron or his mum."
"What happened to Hermione and her mother?" Penelope asked Harry.
"I don't know. Mrs Tonks and Mr Granger took them back to the lobby, I guess," Harry replied.
Justin frowned and said, "Let me go ask. I became friends with Hermione last year at school."
The boy spoke to Mr Granger and came back to explain, "Mr Granger sent them to the room reserved by Harry's lawyers for people to cool off if they got angry."
Harry snorted and drew Lady Longbottom's attention for a moment before he apologised and said, "Mrs Granger and Hermione can get a large tea while they wait for Mr Granger to collect them."
Once the meal was over, Harry presented cheques for £50,000 to Colin, Justin, and Mr Granger for Hermione. Then he gave a cheque for ʛ10,000 to Penelope. Ted required the signature of each teenager and both parents on a nondisclosure form before the meeting ended just before 8:00 PM. While Harry said farewell to the Creevey children and promised to sit with the boys on the Hogwarts Express, Lady Longbottom spoke to Mr and Mrs Creevey about the new classes offered at Hogwarts in her position as deputy headmistress in the coming year. Neville and Hannah helped the youngest Creevey children and Abbots prepare to leave while Justin spoke to Harry.
"The cheque wasn't necessary, Harry," Justin said. "I have lots of money."
"Me too, Finch," Harry said with a smile. "I wanted to share some of the money with the folks hurt by the basilisk and Hogwarts not doing anything to help."
"What about Miss Weasley?" Justin asked.
"The attorneys will take care of that without me around," Harry said. "Mrs Weasley is very loud all the time."
"Like Mrs Granger?"
"Yeah…who knew Hermione's mum was part banshee?" Harry asked. Then he asked, "Looking forward to school this year?"
"Well…I've made other plans?" his friend replied sadly.
"Really? What are you going to do?" Harry asked with the surprise evident in his voice.
"After last year…the deaths and the bigots…I'm leaving Hogwarts and doing private tutoring for magic while going back to a real school. I've always kept up my course work and can get into Eaton just a year behind where I would have been otherwise."
Harry took a deep breath and offered to shake Justin's hand. "I'll miss you in Runes! But I understand. School's going to be better, but there's still more to change."
Grasping his friend's hand, Justin explained, "My parents don't want me to lose out on my education. Hogwarts isn't what it was advertised."
Nodding, Harry added, "But it will be someday."
"And Hermione's going to drop out too. I don't know the name of her new school, but she's going to go back to the real world and get magic tutors too."
Harry watched Justin leave with his parents while the Abbot and Creevey families finally left as well. Mr Clearwater stopped and invited Harry to visit the Department of Mysteries someday. "Ask for Unspeakable 42."
"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," Harry replied while he and Andromeda waited with Lady Longbottom and Neville for Ted to return.
"Hannah's not coming back this year," Neville explained when Harry explained about Justin and Hermione not returning to Hogwarts. "She's got a new sister, and she wants to help her mum with everything."
"They need a house-elf," Lady Longbottom remarked casually, and Harry made a note to ask Dobby about any house-elves that needed a family. Andromeda asked Harry several questions about the Creevey brothers and their ancestry. Finally, Ted returned, his face red and his mouth firm.
"Is everything signed, sealed and delivered," Lady Longbottom asked.
Ted nodded his head and said, "Only after more yelling by Mrs Granger. That woman had the nerve to suggest that Hermione deserved more of a share because she figured out the monster was a basilisk."
"But mother and daughter both signed the nondisclosure form?" asked Andromeda.
"Yes. The daughter tried to sign using the wrong name – Hermione Jean Granger – rather than Hermione Jane, and she was angry when I reminded her that magic would still tie her to the requirements of the form because magic was about intent."
Andromeda snorted, and Lady Longbottom turned to Harry and said, "Well, now I see where the bad influences on you originate."
SCENE CHANGE: A Trial at LastAfter much yelling in the Wizengamot about the superiority of wizards, the Ministry for Magic apologised for any insults delivered to King Ragnok. Normal business operations resumed, and the economy of Magical Britain recovered. Several muggle-born wizards who had returned to the real world were invited to study the situation. They concluded that the Wizengamot would continue to rise and fall unless sound business practices were implemented. The purebloods grumbled about wasted money and threw the report away though Minister Diggory and his new undersecretary, Percival Weasley, talked about the information in some depth on several occasions.
Several other confidential reports crossed Diggory's desk in early August. DMLE Director Bones and Head Auror Rufus Scrimgeour worked quietly and diligently with the Aurors to track every known Death Eater who had escaped the 1981 arrests that put Barty Crouch, Jr. and the Lestrange family in Azkaban. With the revelation of the origins of Tom Riddle, there had been an immediate flurry of his followers fleeing the country.
A second, quieter exodus of purebloods also occurred with Greg Avery, Thomas Mulciber, Alecto Carrow, Amycus Carrow, Antonin Dolohov, and Walden MacNair vanishing along with their families and much of the wealth from their vaults. Governments in Europe tracked any and every Death Eater who crossed their borders – many of the second group of runners had kept moving until they reached the Middle East and South America, where magical governments were pretty lax with all matters except protecting their sovereignty.
The Unspeakables made the unusual move of informing Director Bones that one of their number, Augustus Rookwood, proved to be a marked Death Eater and died due to violating a new oath required to support Her Majesty's government of Great Britain. By the second week of August, Severus Snape was the only other known Death Eater who had not fled from the kingdom – and he was still in Spain working the Guild of Potion Masters in Cordoba, revising ancient potion recipes that required basilisk venom and other parts of the creature.
An unknown player remained in Fenrir Greyback the werewolf. He had never been marked but freely joined in the Death Eater attacks. His pack was smaller now as hunters had taken several werewolves in recent years for the potency their body parts gave to potions used in parts of Africa, India, and Southeast Asia. (Britain had the largest population of feral werewolves, and the ministry authorised hunts in return for only ten galleons per hunter). The latest upgrades provided by Gringotts to the wards surrounding magical residences were stronger than Greyback's magical abilities without the help of a powerful wizard such as Tom Riddle.
'If Dumbledore had revealed the Dark Lord's origins early in the war, he'd never have gathered as many followers or kept the ones he had,' Diggory realised. 'I can't lay all my problems at Dumbledore's feet, but he certainly is to blame for many of them.'
Amos walked from his office to the Wizengamot chamber with Percy following along with the necessary forms to authorise the veil of death as the form of execution for a prisoner convicted of a terrible crime. (With the extermination of Dementors during the spring by Fawkes the Phoenix and Potter's Patronus, orders for execution by Dementor's kiss were worthless).
Today the Wizengamot would conduct the trial of Peter Pettigrew – the supposed hero believed to have been killed by the black-hearted Sirius Black. Entering the well of the chamber, Diggory found the gallery packed with spectators, but seats filled by the voting members were sparse – the departure of the Death Eaters from Britain meant fewer votes for all bills.
'Thank Merlin; Dumbledore isn't here to preside over a Wizengamot dominated by light and neutral families. He'd get his terrible laws passed left, right and centre to restrict all kinds of magical spells,' Amos thought.
In the gallery, Diggory saw Heir Potter seated next to Heir Longbottom and Lady Longbottom. Lord Abbot was present, as was Lord Old Weasley seated next to his grandfather, Lord Weasley. The minister noticed the two wizards argued behind a privacy bubble, but elderly Lady Weasley and her grandson's wife, Molly Weasley, argued about some betrothal or other in the gallery. With the Weasleys as neighbours for almost twenty-five years, Amos had come to believe Molly brought some banshee blood into that family. A newspaper reporter sat nearby to the witches as they argued, and the story would be reported in the Daily Prophet or Witch Weekly within a day or two.
Down at the edge of the gallery sat Andromeda and Ted Tonks, watched carefully as Amelia Bones and Rufus Scrimgeour prepared to deliver their evidence. With everyone present, Grand Warlock Greengrass called the court into session, and he announced the trial of Peter Pettigrew. The prisoner was charged with being a Death Eater, betraying James and Lily Potter, falsely accusing Sirius Black of murder, and causing the deaths of a dozen muggles in November 1981.
Aurors Proudfoot and Vance escorted the prisoner into the chamber as everyone stared at the man wrapped in chains with a special medallion around his neck to prevent any attempt to change into his now infamous form as a rat.
"Please…no!" Peter moaned as the Aurors forced him into the witness chair, where more chains wrapped around his torso, arms, and legs, confining him to the chair. Proudfoot and Vance took up positions behind the prisoner, their wands out and watching everyone.
CHANGE SCENE: DMLE Offices Before Trial
After a long conversation with Vance about her relationship with Dumbledore in the past as a member of his Order of the Phoenix, Bones and Scrimgeour explained to Emmeline Vance that her comportment and behaviour at the trial of Peter Pettigrew would determine her future with the DMLE.
"He will approach you, ask about the plans for the trial and ask for your help, but you must refuse him," Scrimgeour said. "Dumbledore will be determined to make a point with the trial."
"He is a great man," Vance insisted. "All Britain has listened and followed him for decades."
Amelia chose that moment to enter the conversation, "Yes, Dumbledore was a great wizard, and he did great things for Britain. But he has grown old, and he is out of touch with current events in the world."
"He'll try and convince you to arrange for Peter to escape," suggested Scrimgeour.
Vance insisted, "He wouldn't do that! Pettigrew's crimes are terrible!"
"But Dumbledore preaches forgiveness and endless second chances," Bones replied.
CHANGE SCENE: Back to Court
As Scrimgeour rose to begin his presentation of evidence, Albus Dumbledore attempted to enter through the door for members of the Wizengamot. Aurors blocked his approach, and with loud protests, he was forced to climb the stairs to the gallery. There wasn't a seat for the elderly wizard with the large crowd present until one of the newspaper reporters gave up his seat, leaving Dumbledore beside the star reporter for the Daily Prophet.
From that point, the trial proceeded with the presentation of the state's case, Peter's testimony under the truth potion again, with the same questions Amelia asked weeks ago in Gringotts. But Scrimgeour also asked, "Was Sirius Black ever the secret keeper for the Potters?"
"No," replied Peter. "I was the secret-keeper."
"Who cast the spell that made you the secret-keeper?"
"Albus Dumbledore."
"Was Sirius Black ever a Death Eater?"
"No," replied Peter.
Dumbledore sat perfectly still and tried not to draw attention to himself, though someone took photos of the headmaster's face with a magical camera. Scrimgeour wrapped up his case and called for the members to vote for guilt or innocence. When the unanimous guilty vote was announced, Peter wailed before being placed under a silence spell. Predictably, Dumbledore rose and pleaded for mercy for Pettigrew, but the headmaster's star had fallen so low that the audience in the gallery booed him. With the death sentence, the Aurors escorted the prisoner to the Department of Mysteries, where he was thrown through the veil without delay or ceremony.
The following morning's Daily Prophet carried two pictures on the front page – one of Peter Pettigrew's being led to the DoM for his execution, and the second of Dumbledore when he was revealed to have known all along Sirius Black was innocent of any crime.
SCENE CHANGE: Tonks versus WeasleyUsually, Ted Tonks regretted being an attorney only a few times a year, and today was one of them. He'd arranged to meet with Lord Old Weasley at his office in the ministry to introduce the idea to the wizard that an anonymous benefactor wanted to provide payment for treatment of his daughter's exposure to the dark magic of Lord Voldemort's Horcrux.
Arthur was pleased with the idea of getting funds to pay for mind-healing treatments for their daughter – Molly had used too much of the funds they'd received earlier in the year on robes and jewellery for them to afford the extensive treatments Ginny needed.
When it was time to sign the papers, Arthur went to the atrium, used the floo and brought his wife from their home to his office. However, when Molly walked through the office door, the tenor of the conversation changed completely. After Ted explained the part about the benefactor remaining anonymous for the third time, Lady Old Weasley assumed that she would be given the information she wanted if she yelled louder. And when Molly realised that the money could only be paid to the healers and would not be placed into the family's vault at Gringotts, she threatened to sue the anonymous benefactor as soon as the recalcitrant attorney revealed the wizard's name.
Mr Tonks remained silent, unwilling to attempt further arguments with the witch. If they signed the contract (not a nondisclosure agreement but a contract), they would be bound to the confidentiality of the deal and could only use the money for the treatment of their daughter's mind. Ted wondered if the state of Lady Old Weasley's mental health wouldn't send her to Saint Mungo's Janus Thackery ward soon.
'Maybe the girl's brain isn't just damaged by the Horcrux? It could be inherited, and the child's been dealt an impossible hand in life.'
"It's Dumbledore, isn't it!" Molly shouted. "He's trying to reward us for believing in him all these months. And he has to remain anonymous so that other attorney doesn't take this money too…Arthur, we need to give some of this money back to Dumbledore."
"We can't, dear. It's only going to the healers for Ginny," her husband said.
"But when the healers say there's nothing wrong with Ginny, they'll have to refund the money to us, and we can buy more…spend it how we want."
"Lord and Lady Old Weasley, I urge you to read this contract and ask any questions before you sign it," Ted said.
Molly asked, "We get the money if we sign?"
"The money goes to pay for Miss Ginevra Weasley's treatment at Saint Mungo's with mind healers," Ted replied.
"But Ginny's fine! She doesn't need any treatments! We're trying to arrange a betrothal, and she needs new robes for Hogwarts!" shouted Molly.
The door to Arthur's office opened, and Madam Bones stood there, a scowl on her face, as she demanded, "Arthur, did you set a banshee loose in the ministry this afternoon? Everyone in the department can hear the banshee's voice demanding someone's name."
The head of the entire department stared at Molly Weasley while asking the question that was lost on the witch and her husband. Arthur tried to deflect Amelia's attention, saying, "Director…we were talking with Mr Tonks."
"The man's trying to keep us from getting some money from Dumbledore!" declared Molly pointing at Ted, who had fallen silent the moment a third party appeared.
"Dumbledore's money? Who says Dumbledore has any money?" asked Amelia, stepping into the room. "If Ted Tonks thought that Albus Dumbledore had money, he'd never help that wizard hide it."
Rising from his chair, Ted waved his wand and the document he'd offered to Lord and Lady Old Weasley to sign disintegrated into dust. "Lord Old Weasley, the offer to pay for your daughter's mind treatments is at this moment rescinded. My client will be very disappointed."
Amelia kept her pureblood face in place as Ted bowed his head to her as he passed, heading toward the Atrium to floo away from the banshee screaming once again. Then the director of the DMLE focused her attention on the couple and demanded an explanation of why anyone might think their daughter required treatment by a mind healer. There were more shouts, not all from Molly for once, and the department of children's services became involved in concise order.
A healer was dispatched to the Burrow to talk with young Miss Weasley in her father's presence. At the same time, Lady Old Weasley was questioned about the insulting conditions Mr Tonks attempted to impose on the couple. (Amelia wanted Molly distracted while the evaluation occurred).
A private court order was issued that evening, making the Department of Children's Services responsible for Miss Weasley's treatments. Amelia coordinated the communications with Ted Tonks and got the forms in her office. Lady Longbottom was Deputy Headmistress at Hogwarts, and the Director of Children's Services signed the papers. The healers would meet with Ginevra at Hogwarts beginning 2 September and continue weekly meetings with the young witch for the entire year.
When informed by Ted about the situation, Harry shook his head and promised himself to keep the Weasley siblings at arm's length again in the coming school year.
