CHAPTER 17: FREEDOM FOR ONE, DEATH FOR ANOTHER

Deep in the bowels of the ministry of magic Lucius Malfoy lay alone in his dreary cell. He appeared to be asleep, but the faint sheen of perspiration on his face gave him away. He was far from asleep. In fact, he was more terrified than he had ever been in his life. His apparent physical detachment was the extreme opposite of what he was feeling inside. It was five o'clock in the morning the day of his trial but that did not bother him in the slightest. What had him in such a state or terror was the tattoo on his arm. The Dark Mark was bleeding, and that meant only one thing: his family was going to be executed. The Dark Lord was merciless; and wanted to punish him for his failure in leading his Death Eaters into the ministry to retrieve the prophecy

How typical of the Dark Lord to wait until the day he was set to trial to induce the bleeding of the mark. It was the Dark Lord's nature to make his victims feel even more worthless, knowing fully well that he was helpless to do anything in the chains that manacled him.

But he couldn't just sit here and do nothing. His wife and son were in danger. That's all that mattered. He pondered desperately on a way to escape.

Harry woke up at eight o'clock, a bit reluctant to get out of bed. He had a glorious dream about Hermione, and what he wished he could do with her. This morning was all smiles, even though his trial was today. It was the most euphoric feeling, these emotions he had for his once best friend were reciprocated back to him, and that the strange and unwelcome awkwardness between them was gone. He felt that he had the strength to even talk to Ron, which was what was holding him back in the first place. Feeling immensely better about his life, he sang (horribly off key) cheesy love songs in the shower.

Hermione happened to be walking past the bathroom wall along the corridor and laughed out loud when he heard Harry crooning in a high-pitched voice. She walked past laughing hysterically. Even so, it was the first time she ever heard Harry sing anything and she could actually feel that he was un high spirits. Her mother had a long lecture with her last night, but she wasn't as angry as she thought she would be. She just did not want things to get as out of hand as it did last night, and Hermione knew she had a point. That wasn't like her at all, but she smiled secretly as she relived it over and over in her mind last night. He was so sweet, and she was crazy about him. He could have done anything he wanted, and she doubted if she would have really told him to stop. Harry was so much more than just a mysterious quidditch player who was enamoured with her, he was a real person to her, with problems and worries and the whole package of emotional baggage. She went back into her bedroom, and got ready to accompany him to the Ministry of magic.

At nine o'clock there was a ring on the doorbell. Harry was taking a last look at the folder Mrs. Chang had prepared for him, and jumped up at the sound. He was wearing the robes Dumbledore gave him and his horntail boots. As he looked at himself in the mirror, he realised that he did look a bit older, and his hair was really getting out of control. He didn't care as his hair was never manageable anyway. Grabbing the cloak of the Order of the Phoenix, his wand and his sword, he headed downstairs.

Hermione's parents were already there, greeting the wizards that stood in the living room. He stood on top of the stairs looking down on them. Now, these were some of the best wizards in the U.K. and they were here to escort him. Albus Dumbledore, Remus Lupin, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Dedalus Diggle, Sturgis Proudmore, all dressed in high quality gear, wearing identical cloaks to the one he received last night. Dumbledore was no longer wearing his flamboyant Headmaster Robes, he now wore similar close fitting robes, and his hair was tied back into a long bunched ponytail. They looked like they meant business.

Harry stood there, a bit dumbstruck. Hermione came up beside him, and gave him an affectionate squeeze on his hand.

"Come on, let's go downstairs." Pulling him along, they greeted the other wizards.

"Ready Harry?" Remus asked. Harry gave him a single nod, and they all nodded back.

"Wait," Hermione said, calling Harry back. " Come here." He approached her hesitantly, a strange feeling building in his stomach…

Was she going to kiss him in front of everybody?

Instead of rising on tiptoe to do that, she took the cloak from his arms, and draped it around him. Smoothing out on his shoulders, she reached inside his collar and drew the medallion out on his chain and let it lay against his chest, as the others did. She buckled the cloak in the front, and smiled at him. "Now you're ready."

Her parents smiled at them, and so did the Advance Guard of the original members of the Order of The Phoenix. "Come on Harry, we better get going. We're using some Ministry Vehicles," Professor Dumbledore said. He nodded at her parents. They left the house and the Professor pulled Harry aside to have a brief word with him. "You'll travel on Sirius' motorbike, it has an excellent invisibility device. We would still be able to see you so don't worry, the original order all knew how to counter invisibility charms." He winked, and Harry could remember when Dumbledore did the same thing when he and Ron were hiding in Hagrid's hut under the invisibility cloak. He smiled back at the professor, and jumped on his motorbike. Dumbledore and the others piled into two large black SUV type vehicles and then they were off.

There were throngs of people outside the Ministry of magic, all of them wizards, young, old and everyone else in the middle. They were all crowded on the pavements and in the street, many waving banners that said 'HARRY IS INNOCENT' ' FREE HARRY POTTER'- 'HARRY FOR PRESIDENT' and some other over-the-top banners. Someone was waving a huge Gryffindor flag as the crowd anxiety escalated when they saw the two Ministry vehicles come down the road.

"He's coming!" a teenage girl shrieked form the crowd, much to the delight of her friends. Harry remained invisible between the two vehicles as they inched through the throngs of people. Harry was very much at unease at the fervour of the crowd.

They think I'm sort of celebrity…

It was mob of teenaged girls mostly, but that was the worst kind, sort of like at a boy-band concert. They tried to get close to the vehicles but ministry officials were trying their best to keep them at bay. When they arrived around the other side of the building at the main entrance to the Ministry of magic ( it was an abandoned display similar to that of St. Mungo's) the vehicles stopped and every one craned their neck to see who came out. Remus, Hermione and Shacklebolt climbed out of the first black SUV and Dumbledore and the others came out of the rear vehicle.

"It's time," Harry said softly, mentally preparing himself for his trial. He parked the bike on the pavement, and got off. A few seconds later, he seemingly materialized out of thin air as he stepped away from it. Everyone was still looking at the two black vehicles, waiting for him to appear. Soon enough, someone spotted him.

"THERE HE IS!' pointing at him. There was a cheer from the crowd, but Harry did not stay outside long enough to be a target. Dumbledore and the others quickly hustled him through the large glass display. He emerged through the glass first and was now inside the main hall where he and Malfoy fought. There were people waiting in large numbers here as well, and a lot of magical cameras began to flash at him. Albus Dumbledore and Remus Lupin came through next, flanked by Shacklebolt and Diddle. Soon all the members of the Advance Guard and Hermione were inside the building. Dumbledore eyed the crowd majestically, and the cameras stopped flashing and everyone went quiet.

Harry, who was nearly as tall as Dumbledore and the others, nodded at them, and the whole group marched down through the crowd. Dumbledore and Shacklebolt flanked Harry, Remus bringing up the rear. The crowd parted without any more instructions, these were the most powerful wizards around, and everybody present knew that. They all stared unbelievably at Harry, who also bore the Medallion of Courage around his neck and the black cloak that identified him as one with the Order. He spotted some of his mates at school, and nodded to them, making his way down the long hall.

"How fucking cool is that?" Fred asked Lee Jordan, as Harry walked past them, smiling at the Weasley family.

"Yeah. Looks like Harry is the Man now," he replied, mouth slightly open in awe. There were similar remarks from other Hogwarts students, even from the Slytherins who came out to see the spectacle. Harry spotted Cantonma, Hortone, and some of the other quidditch players from the U-20 squad. Rebecca and Amy also waved at him, and he smiled back in return. The walk felt like it took ages, as everyone was staring at him. The only real sound other than murmurs from the crowd was the marching of their footsteps on the polished floor. Harry presented his wand and the velvet-wrapped sword to the guard at the security entrance to the main elevator, signed for his items, took a deep breath to calm himself, then stepped inside.

They all made their way down the route to the old dungeon that was now used as Courtroom Ten. On the steps down to the further levels he paused briefly, hearing some familiar voices coming up the corridor. He could almost hear them but it was too faint to distinguish words.

"Shhh… I think I hear them coming!" Neville Longbottom said.

"Neville, calm down, we're here only to testify against those crazy fuckers, we're innocent, remember?" Ron said testily.

"Oh, yeah, sorry…"

"Neville's only nervous, you don't have to be so bitchy about it!" Ginny Weasley said. She still had a soft spot for Neville, and Ron was behaving like a jackass. He had been that way since they came back from visiting Harry by Hermione's house. Ron gave her a stony look, but said nothing.

Harry was getting the jitters of old, this staircase reminded him so much of the last time he came down here, looking for his Godfather. They trudged down the stairs, the adults coming behind them. Hermione sensed the unease in him, and gave him a quick kiss on the lips in a reassuring gesture. He looked across to her, and gave her a half-hearted smile They did not know that they were in full view of Ron and the others.

"That sneaky, self righteous, backstabbing…" Ron was incensed, and angrily strode to confront Harry and Hermione.

Ginny caught on and held him back whispering fiercely, "Ron , NO!"

He shrugged her off with ease and marched right up to them. Hermione realized what had him so pissed and let go of Harry's hand, wanting to placate Ron's temper. Harry, who was not really in a focused state of mind, did not realize what was happening until Ron was up in his face. Harry straightened and stepped back.

"I trusted you!" he snarled. "I knew this would've happened! Just couldn't leave it be huh? Have to have everything for yourself? What is this you're wearing, you think you're so cool and shit now?" Harry stood there, too shocked to speak. "Well here is what I think of you, and your fucking trial-" Ron hit Harry as hard as he could in the face, and Ginny and Hermione yelled in protest. Harry's face snapped to the right and he staggered, putting a hand up on the wall to stop from falling down.

No one moved for a second, it was deathly quiet. "Ron! You don't understand! We wanted to tell-" Her hair suddenly crackled intensely and Ron's neatly combed hair stood on end. Everyone else was also feeling the tremendous magical energy charging through the air. The Advance Guard felt it as well, and quickened their steps down the long stairwell. They froze at the base of the stairs, amazed at what was happening right before their eyes.

Harry straightened up slowly, his eyes glowing dangerously. His hair was alive, and the torches in the hall suddenly died out, putting everyone in complete darkness except for the eerie blue glow from Harry's eyes. The air around him was rippling as waves of uncontrolled magic emanated from him.

"..Fuck.." Ron said, inching back.

"Harry," Hermione said very cautiously, "listen to me, you have to control yourself, calm down…Ron is your friend.." she said fearfully, also inching backwards. She could see that there was some inner struggle going on with Harry. Just when she thought he would seriously lose it and murder them all, he closed his eyes for a second, the power receded, and everyone's hair fell back into its neutral state. After an almost unbearable lull, he opened them, and thankfully his eyes were back to normal. He gingerly touched his bruised cheek, but otherwise did not react. Ron was still backing away, clearly regretting what he had just done to his best mate. Everyone was dead quiet, even the Advance Guard felt that immense surge of energy and were perplexed with what to do next. Harry's face seemed to be set in stone. He strode down the corridor but Ron stood where we was, making Harry skirt around him.

Harry brushed past him, then stopped in Ron's blind spot, just behind and to the right of him.

"Don't do that again," he said quietly.

He continued, opened the door, and went into the atrium. Dumbledore and the other wizards gave each other looks, and made their way down the hall as well.

"Come on, let's get this over with." Remus said to the youngsters, all of them still momentarily rooted to the spot. Luna seemed to be the only one taking it in stride and simply turned and followed Harry through the door.

Lucius Malfoy had just finished unlacing his right boot when he heard the keys to his cell door rattle. Quickly hiding the cord in his sleeves, he allowed himself to be taken out of the cell, shuffling along in his manacles. His prison garments were dark grey coveralls, with three metal buttons the only fasteners down the front. His guard did not notice the middle one was missing.

Harry emerged from the hallway door, trying to keep himself in check. If he didn't spend the last few days training to control his new power he feared that he would have done something terrible, something that he could not have possibly forgiven himself for. He closed his eyes for a second, trying to get his nerves and emotions back in order. Ron's actions were not unfounded, he guessed he sort of deserved that, but what if he could not have channelled the energy down before he lashed out? He was a danger to his friends, and he couldn't bear the thought of hurting them, especially Ginny and Hermione. So caught up in his own thoughts he did not even notice the person walking alongside him stride for stride, eyes boring into his face. He stopped and turned to face him.

"Malfoy."

"Potter."

They stood there for what seemed like ages, Malfoy wearing all dark blue robes, Harry in a dark green and black cloak. They stared at each other, Harry's tanned face and dark hair a distinct contrast to Malfoy's blonde hair and pale skin. Draco's eyes glowed red, and Harry's began to also glow dangerously, each daring the other to make the first move.

"Harry, Draco, control yourselves! This is not another of your quidditch matches!" Dumbledore said in a serious tone, snapping them out of their stare-down. Malfoy gave Harry his classic sneer, and Harry smiled dangerously back. They turned away from each other and Malfoy made his way to his visitor's seat in the upper tiers while Harry went the other direction to where Mrs. Chang and Cho sat in the lower tier, at the witness' section. They rose from behind the desk and greeted him.

"Hello Harry! What was that just now? Is he a friend from school? " Mrs. Chang asked him, smiling.

"That's Lucius Malfoy's son," he answered curtly.

"Oh," she said, realizing the situation.

He turned to her daughter. "Cho," he nodded in greeting, smiling a little to soften his stony expression. She greeted him with a light hug, whispering in his ear, "I missed you," and released him. His eyebrows rose in mild surprise, but he didn't say anything. Hermione saw their little interchange from a distance and bristled slightly. Harry took his seat between them, and began talking softly with Mrs Chang. Hermione and the others sat in the row behind them. She went in first, so was the furthest from Ron, who filed in last. Luna and Ginny sat directly behind Harry, who was looking over some document intently.

Neville was the first person to open up about that scene between Ron and him. He leant forward across Luna and whispered to Harry, "What the hell was that back there?"

"Not now, Neville," Harry whispered back to him. Cho overheard the exchange and gave Harry an inquisitive look. Harry looked at her and shook his head, clear indicative that he wasn't feeling to talk about it at the moment. The day that had started off so great had taken a turn for the worst.

"This place is so creepy, why did they have to take us down here?" Neville said.

"Who knows?" Ginny said.

"Harry does," Luna said matter-of-factly. Everyone nearby, including Harry himself, turned to look at her, baffled. They then fixed their stare on Harry. He may have been caught off guard, but the weird fact is that he did in fact know the reason. But how on earth did Luna jump to that conclusion? Their eyes touched, but Luna just smiled her strange smile.

"Well? Do you know?" Cho asked him.

"This is where they tried the last caught death eaters, Bellatrix Lestrange, Crouch junior: Moody impersonator and some other psychos," he said. At that moment, a door high up in the atrium opened and a goup of people emerged. It was beginning, the Wizengamot was ready. He looked around, hoping to catch Dumbledore's eye in the tiers behind him. Dumbledore gave him a reassuring nod, and Harry gulped, the nerves flooding back in full force.

"Court session of the 27 July is now in order: The Public against the followers of Voldemort."

Everyone went quiet, the mention of his name in such a manner underlined the seriousness of the situation.

"Bailiff, bring forth the accused," the speaker boomed. The bailiff disappeared into a door, and returned leading a line of wizards chained to each other. Their eyes were blindfolded, their demeanour defiant.

"The accused here have the option to revoke their original plea of guilty to allegiance to Voldemort and present some form of defence. Will any here do so now?"

No one said anything.

"Very well. The court will favour lenience to those who offer truthful information as to the whereabouts of the Dark Lord or any useful information about any of his cohorts and spies."

Silence.

"Then so be it. I will ask you individually if you change your plea of guilty to the Charges of Murder, Attempted Murder, Wounding with Malicious intent, Sabotage, Assault, Kidnapping, and betrayal to the Wizarding community by aiding and abetting a known menace to society. Do you plead guilty to all charges Prisoner 1?"

"YES! Our master would honour us and free-" he was cut off by the bailiff who incanted "Silencio!" His mouth kept moving before he realized no sound was coming from his mouth.

"Ahem. Prisoner 2?"

"Aye."

"Prisoner 3?"

"I am proud to serve the Dark Lord."

And so it went, up until the last prisoner, the leader of the attack squad in the Department of Mysteries, Lucius Malfoy. He paused, gathering his nerve.

"Draco! You have to warn your mother! YOU BOTH ARE IN MORTAL DA-"

"Silencio!" He frantically tried to shout out again, wheezing against the muting spell.

"The court has heard the pleas of the accused, and there will be no retrial nor leniency from this institution. GUILTY AS CHARGED! The prisoners would be taken to Azkaban, and will be sentenced to death on a date yet to be set by the Veil of The Unknown." There was a loud intake of air as everyone else in the courtroom gasped. "Case is dismissed!" There was a loud bang of the mallet hitting the block. It was over in less than twenty minutes. Everyone was shocked; they did not expect them to be sentenced to death, and with such swift judgement. No one knew what happened when someone passed through that evil archway, but they knew that there was absolutely no return. Harry alone smiled, and watched with a sick joy as the prisoners were led back into the doorway at the side of the atrium.

"Jeez, that was fast. What did they need us here for anyway?" Ron asked aloud.

"If any of them had denied the charges against them, we would have needed a full witness account from you lot, and the Order of The Phoenix." Mrs. Chang answered him.

"Oh," Ron replied.

"Court would next be in session in one hour: The Ministry of Magic vs Harry Potter." The Judge got up from his place on high and went into another room, followed by a few other wizards. Ron yawned deliberately, stretching his arms high.

"I'm getting out of here, this place is depressing," Ron said.

"Ron! You'll be back right?" Hermione asked him in a worried voice. He glared at her but said nothing. Turning his back on them he stormed out of the courthouse.

Harry turned and called out to him, "Ron!" He paused midstride, but ignored him and kept on walking. Harry watched him leave, then pounded his fist on the table in frustration, making everyone jump. He caught Hermione's eye, but she lowered them in guilt. He knew now that it would never be the same between the three of them, and that the fleeting moments of happiness he had through last night and this morning were now a thing of the past. Ginny was absorbing the whole situation, and was genuinely concerned that her brother may never be the same again. Harry ran his hands through his dark hair and dug the heels of his hands into his eyes, trying to rub out the mess he made for himself.

"Fuck it all."

During the hour period the atrium slowly filled to capacity, unknown to Harry who had other things on his mind. He was half-listening to his lawyer discuss some final aspects of the case, his mind completely somewhere else. How could he have done that to Ron? He felt like a piece of shit, especially because Ron told him he had a huge crush on Hermione. In his eyes, I must be a real thief, sliding a blade deep in his back. That's how I would have felt in his position.

He felt like kicking himself, a weird feeling of guilt creeping into him. Now that was a scary thought. Feeling guilt at his court trial could never be a good sign.

After the hour passed and Ron failed to return to his seat he definitely knew that he had severely betrayed his trust, and that Ron didn't give a shit any more about him. He watched with mild interest as Mrs. Chang got to work on the jury, presenting an ironclad defence. She wrapped up smoothly, and it was now the Ministry's representative to begin the questioning. Feeling as depressed as the days right after this whole fucked-up incident in the ministry, he barely responded when the Judge called him up to the stand.

"Mr. Harry James Potter, you are a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Correct?" the opposing lawyer asked him.

"Yes."

"For the record, what year are you in and how old are you now?" Harry couldn't even remember the man's name.

"I'm in year 5 and I'm fifteen years of age." There was a slight reaction from the full courthouse seats.

"I see. Even despite your relative inexperience in matters of combating the dark arts you maintain that you decided that you could take five of your fellow students, charge into the Department of mysteries to face He-Who-must-not-be-named to rescue Sirius Black, a known criminal on the lam?"

"Sirius was innocent!" Harry hissed.

"Whatever. The fact of the matter is that you illegally broke into the Department of Mysteries, destroyed invaluable prophecies, took underage wizards into great danger, and inflicted the Cruciatus curse onto an assailant. Am I correct?"

Harry remembered the notes Mrs. Chang gave him.

"No. I did not 'break into' the department of mysteries. No lock neither door was broken, and we came through the visitors' entrance, clearly stating our intentions. There was no crime in that." The crowd cheered, and Harry knew that he won that particular round. Mr. Koclan gave him a furious look and pressed on, trying to gain the upper hand.

"Very well, but can you explain the damage you caused to the valuables in the Department of Mysteries?"

"When there are Death Eaters threatening to kill you at point blank range you will do anything to protect your friends, including creating diversions."

"Ahh, but if you did not bring them there then you would not have found yourself in that situation," Mr. Koclan countered. Harry smiled, he was also prepared for this question.

"They came out of their own free will, I even tried to persuade them not to come. I did not force or mislead them to follow me, they are here, and will also verify my statements. Maybe you would prefer if none of us were there. The death eaters may be out killing some more innocent people right this very instant, instead of being sent to Azkaban today. Let it be known that five Hogwarts students can face Voldemort's elite inner circle, emerge victorious, and stand proud of their achievements."

The crowd let loose a great cheer and the Atrium was full of shouts of 'Harry! Harry!' Padma, her twin sister, Alicia and Katie led the chorus of chanting much to the embarrassment of Mr. Koclan. Three quarters of Hogwart's students had filed in during the hour break, all in support of Harry. A huge Gryffindor flag bobbed up and down as it travelled the whole semi-circumference of the Atrium as Dennis Creevy was running around the tiers as a mascot. Mr. Koclan turned purple in the face and could not be heard over the tremendous uproar.

"ORDER IN THE COURT, ORDER IN THE COURT!" The judge shouted, banging with his mallet, but the noise ascended even higher. Harry rose from the chair in the witness box and raised his arms, motioning for silence. The noise dissipated and it was once again quiet.

"YOU TELL 'EM HARRY! " Fred Weasley shouted, heard very clearly in the silence. A good few of the crowd had a laugh again at Mr. Koclan's expense. Harry spotted the twins in the crowd and patted his fist on his chest in a gesture of camaraderie. Mr. Koclan suddenly came up and leant over the box, all up in Harry's face.

"What about the Cruciatus curse? Where's your excuse for that? Do you think you could worm your way out of this? Do you think that the wizengamot would simply smooth things over and you would walk Scot free? This court ha-"

"OBJECTION YOUR HONOUR! This man is ranting at my client!" Mrs. Chang interrupted.

"Oh SHUT U-" Koclan started but was cut off by the judge.

"Thank you, Mr. Koclan, you may step down."

"But-b-bu-" he stammered.

"I said, that is ENOUGH!" the judge roared. Koclan hastily made his retreat.

"This case is a farce if you asked me. This young man should be commended, but it is not my decision that counts. We would allow the jury to contemplate the facts and make a verdict. Mr Potter, you may re-join your representative at your table." Harry smiled, and returned to his seat. He shook hands with Mrs Chang, who was sure they had it in the bag.

"You have a tremendous amount of respect from your friends at school," she said. "It really made an impression on the jury, I'm sure."

Harry smiled up at the crowd, it did seem that he had a lot of friends at school, but right now he would have given anything to see one particular face. He and the Changs chatted quietly as they waited upon the jury to return with a verdict. They did not have to wait long, after only fifteen minutes they filed back into the Atrium and their spokesman, Mr. Amos Diggory, stood up. He handed the bailiff the piece of parchment who in turn handed it over to the judge. The whole atrium waited with baited breath, including Harry himself. Cho looked across at him, and took his hand into hers, squeezing reassuringly. He looked across at her, but did not remove his hand.

"On the Charge of Endangering five underage wizards the jury's verdict is… Not Guilty." There was a round of applause throughout the atrium.

"On the Charge of Destroying invaluable items from the Department of mysteries we find the accused… Guilty as Charged." The applause faded and there were murmurs around the crowd.

"On the Charge of the use of an Unforgivable curse on another human being, the jury has taken in all the circumstances and declared that Lestrange cannot be considered in the same context due to her barbaric actions against the Longbottoms..."

There was an audible draw of air as the crowd sucked in their breath…

"….NOT Guilty."

There was a deafening round of applause, and the cheers from all the Hogwarts students drowning out any other sound through the courtroom.

"Order Order!" the judge shouted, finally getting a response after a couple minutes of rambunctious cheering. It got relatively quiet once again and the judge spoke again. "The penalty imposed by this Court of law is that Mr. Potter will be fined Two thousand galleons to be paid in full no later than the 31st of December. Case Dismissed!" He declared, rapping his mallet once again, smiling at Harry. There was once again a whoop of applause and cheering from the crowd returned in full force.

Harry beamed. He took a deep breath, and exhaled through his lips. It was all over. He rose and hugged Maureen Chang warmly, telling her he owed her his life. He turned and hugged Cho as well. She pressed against him, and he was sort of flustered that Cho was so obvious in front of Hermione.

"Sunday is going to be great, just wait and see," she told him, grinning.

Harry grinned back at her and went to row behind him, shaking hands with Neville and clapping him on the shoulder, and giving each of the girls a hug. Luna hugged him last, and she pressed her lips at the pulse in Harry's neck, and grabbed his ass; unseen under the cloak. No one saw her kiss him, but Harry reddened visibly. She let go of him, and gave him a saucy wink. Harry's eyes widened, but he said nothing. He had to smile at her, there was no other way to put it- Luna was simply outrageous. The trial was over, and he was more or less pretty unscathed. Two thousand galleons was a paltry sum compared to the combined fortune of the Blacks and his personal wealth he inherited from his parents. He turned around in a slow circle, amazed at the amount of familiar faces he recognised inside the courtroom. His heart filled with a huge surge of euphoria that so many from his school finally, after five years, believed in him. Some of them came filing down the aisles began to find their friends across the room and mingle. It felt like one huge social gathering now as everyone's spirits were high.

The Judge stepped down from the high tier where he was seated, and came down to talk to Harry. He was a large black man with a shaved baldhead and a greying beard. He shook his hand and introduced himself as Judge Samson Della Rosa.

"I knew somehow you could pull through. I was James and Sirius' instructor at Hogwarts in Advanced Defence against the Dark arts and they were both exceptional."

"You were?" Harry asked, already wanting to ask many questions.

"Yep. Your father, James; was excellent at improvisation and tactics while Sirius was the best duellist I have ever seen. I heard you excelled this year in Defence Against the dark arts, did anyone ever tell you that the only other Englishman to have done that was Black? It seems you're right on track in following their footsteps. Your mother and father would be proud. Good work, son."

"Thank you, sir," Harry replied, thankful that another snippet of his parents' mysterious past was piecing itself back together. He looked about at the crowds, not sure what to do next. He guessed it was time to leave. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a guy dressed in a heavy fur coat talking to Hermione. It was hard to tell who it was, as the white fur that puffed around the collar blocking his profile. The thick dark brown material and the trimmings were reminiscent of those snow cloaks of old Viking days. Curious, he went over to them. He happened to overhear a last piece of the conversation.

"So vhat have you beed doing for the schummer?" he had a heavy accent and a voice he found familiar.

"Well me and Harry have been hanging out mostly," Hermione answered him. She looked over his shoulder and saw him approach. " Oh there he is, hey Harry, come here!"

The mysterious stranger turned around and recognition dawned on Harry's face. It was Viktor Krum. Surprised to find him here he smiled and shook his hand, Viktor smiling in return. There was a blinding flash of a camera and Colin Creevy seemingly materialized out of nowhere, taking the money shot of him and Krum shaking hands. The both of them were a bit stunned, blinking rapidly to quell the stars and spots swimming in front of them.

"Harry, Viktor here said that when he heard about the case he decided to come to England for a holiday before the game, and also to come and wish you good luck. He only got in today from all the paperwork he had to go through, so he came straight here. " Hermione explained.

"Hello, 'Arry. Vit has been a while since last ve spoke, no?"

"Yeah," he replied, remembering the last time he saw him he had stunned him senseless in the triwizard maze. "How are things?"

"Things var good. Ve sport reporters var only wanting me to compare us, but I am not to judge and crit- is it criticize the word? My English vis getting better, but not purvect."

"Hey, once you get the message across, it's OK by me."

"Vell, yes, but I am going to start Auror school here, I got a full scholarship at some Lion- somevhing. So my English needs vork.. But the match with Cannons vere very good. I saw it on vomnicular recording. I will be honoured to play against you and your England team, it will be a good game."

Harry smiled, that was praise indeed. "Allright. You're on!" They began walking down to the exit, Harry's close friends crowding around him, Hermione, Luna, Neville as they all made their way out to the exit. There was a bit of pileup at the door, this courtroom never held so much people and the stairway in the passage beyond was narrow. So they all congregated and chatted amongst themselves and their schoolmates who made it down as the crowd trickled out a few at a time. A lot of them came and congratulated Harry, and even one of the younger students actually brought a piece of parchment for Viktor and Harry to sign. Harry was reluctant.

"You better get accustomed to vit," smiling good-naturedly. He really wasn't so bad, Harry thought, maybe Ron did not like him just because Hermione did. His face soured as he signed the piece of parchment, imagining how Ron felt towards him now. He had to find him, and resolve this conflict.

How he was going to do that, he did not know.

Lucius Malfoy was in the back of a prisoner transport vehicle, being carried away with Dolohov, Crabbe, and Macnair. They were all chained to each other, and then chained to the vehicle itself. The other three were trying to keep a brave face, but Malfoy knew that they were scared shitless inside. The ministry had devised some sort of Magic draining device, and had them imprisoned under its influence in their cells. The guards knew this, and felt perfectly secure. Little did they know that when he was a young boy, he used to sneak away form his strict parents and spend time with an old recluse, who was once what those Muggles would call a 'magician'. Curious as a little boy, he used to spy on him until the old man invited him in. He learned some muggle tricks, and found them highly amusing as a youth. He hasn't thought about those days since, and would have a very slim chance of this working.

After a few hours of driving, the guard stationed in the back with them was losing vigilance. Lucius Malfoy waited patiently, needing the exact moment. Clasping his hands between his knees, he unloosed his tied bootlaces from inside his sleeve, and slipped it through the metal button he had torn off his shirt. Not making any sudden movements, he lowered the makeshift pendulum until it fell between his ankles. Catching the mild curiosity of the guard, he began to swing it slowly between his legs. The guard's eyes followed it left to right, then shot up to his face, realizing what was happening. Malfoy eyes penetrated his, he was a specialist at mind control and the Imperius curse, and his stare had a potency behind it, even though his magic was temporarily drained. The guard stared fixedly at him, his gaze somehow a bit unfocused. Malfoy lifted his makeshift hypnotist pendulum, swinging it slowly in front of his eyes, murmuring softly. The guard was fighting the hypnotism, his eye twitching. Malfoy was sweating, his low mumbling voice drawing the guard in to a stupor.

Suddenly the guard snapped out of it and dug in his robes for his wand. Malfoy's eyes hardened, and he flicked out his tool, and it whipped around the guard's beefy neck. He instinctively groped the cord strangling him, but Malfoy was fast. With a mighty yank, Malfoy whipped his arms back and the large button he spent all night sharpening sliced the jugular vein and adam's apple like a scalpel whipping around his neck. With a disgusting gurgle, the guard fell, trying to keep the blood spurting from his neck under his hands. Blood sprayed in a long line against the back door of the vehicle as Malfoy whipped back his weapon and swung it again, the deadly pendant arcing straight and true into the already bloody neck of the poor man. It stuck into his neck with a sickening "shlick" and the guard seized up, blood gushing from the new wound. His eyes rolled up into his head and he convulsed and quivered on the ground. Seconds later, his struggles faded, and he was dead.

"Never failed to amaze me with your efficiency Lucius," Doholov smiled at him.

"Thank you." Lucius said in his smug voice. Now was not the time to glorify each other, he had to get to the manor. His tattoo was searing into his skin, Voldemort was going to strike soon. The chains that kept them restrained to their seats needed to be unlocked, but unfortunately none of them were in reach of the guard. Coiling up his deadly weapon, he began trying to fish in the keys that was hooked onto the guard's belt.

Draco Malfoy was at home, drowning himself with his father's best collection of liquor. He felt numb inside after the trial. It was only a dream… he tried to convince himself. He sat in the dark bareback, sweating alcohol and the cold sweat of knowing that just hours ago- his father was sentenced to a doom worse than death. There would be no funeral, no physical remainder of his presence. He would just be another mystery in the depths of Azkaban. His mother still did not know and he refused to tell her as he could not bear to admit it himself. The room was utterly destroyed; his wrath at that fucking orphan was beyond measure. If only there weren't so many people as witnesses he was sure he could have taken him. That fire spell he used at the Ministry was only a third level Infernus curse and he was postive it was just a fluke.

He let out a grunt of rage and frustration and flung the two-hundred-galleon bottle of wine at the wall. Before it crashed against the wall his eyes flared red and he idly muttered something under his breath. The bottle burst into flames, exploding in a bright fireball, showering him in fragments of burning glass. It bounced off his skin, not leaving a scratch. It was a sick pleasure to feel the sting of the glass as it stuck into his skin and repelled out, his level one fire- resistance spitting back out the burning shards of glass. He spent many hours experimenting with different intensities of fire to see where the threshold ended. His mother was beginning to think him possessed, burning himself over and over. He laughed out loud; she was fucking useless now, too incoherent to eat her own food. If she only knew the number of women his father had rutted with behind her back maybe she wont be so pathetic, pining away for his return.

"Accio!" he said pointing his wand. Another bottle of wine came flying towards him, but a shape emerged from the shadows and the bottle was split by a flash of steel. A pair of colourless eyes glowed menacingly from the corner; the gleam of a blade could be fairly seen in the darkness.

"Who's there?" Draco demanded, tensing.

"Good Evening Master Malfoy." A high cold voice said from behind him. That voice sent shivers down his spine, the dark aura oozing from that being swamping him. He turned around in the chair, and a cloaked figure stood there, the shadows of his hood hiding his face except the pale skin of his chin.

"Allow to me to introduce myself. I am Lord Voldemort."

Draco froze, he didn't need an introduction, he definitely knew who this was, and now he knew why his father tried to warn him. He had heard the desperation in his father's voice, but at the time he just ignored it as a dying man's last words to his son. It was humiliating, he should have at least gone to death with a shred of dignity. But now, knowing that before he was executed his father tried his best to warn them, he felt a tremendous surge of respect for the man. He backed up slowly, putting a few feet between Voldemort and himself.

"Your father was a failure. I will show you firsthand the consequences of disappointing me." He approached Draco, lifting his wand almost lazily. He paused, and turned his head slightly, sensing something. "Remarkable."

"Draco, get up to your mother. Get the fuck out of here. Don't look back." Lucius Malfoy said, emerging behind Voldemort.

"Impressive. I failed to give you the credit you deserve, El Sar del Imperius. I sense a new found strength in you. No matter, you are nothing but a worm. "

"Cut the speeches! Avada Kedavre! " Malfoy screamed, his voice deep, growling like a demon. The whole room flashed green, blinding Draco at the base of the steps. He felt as if life itself was leaving him, so powerful was the strength of his father's incantation.

"Mmmmhmm. That was an excellent effort. Shame that your imprisonment has halved your potency, which at full potential, still could not kill a mosquito that sucked my blood. Pathetic. Disbowelarium intrisiar al finite!"

Lucius screamed as his stomach exploded, and his intestines burst out of his stomach. Just as it felt as if his life had disappeared and the pain would be over, the spell reversed on itself and everything went back into him, his stomach sealed once again. The pain was so livid, the Cruciatus curse was nothing in comparison. Blood leaked out of his eyes and ears, and he coughed up blood uncontrollably. The tremendous shock to his system caused his heat to beat erratically and Lucius keeled over, clutching his chest. Draco was rooted to the spot, too horrified to move.

"…Run..protect her…" Lucius breathed, clutching the wand he took from the prison guard. He tried to get up, Voldemort laughing softly.

"Yes, run boy. I will maybe let myself and the Hunter have a little fun with her after we deal with this... filth."

Lucius vomited blood in every other breath, but still managed to get to his feet. He swayed, the pain coursing through him, and he fell down again with a loud thud. Putting his free hand inside his robes, he clutched the pendulum. Voldemort laughed softly at him. " I have been working on some new spells, and you should be honoured that you are the first one to be the recipient of the first Demenhencia curse, my very own creation!" Voldemort brought his hands together in a half clap, congratulating himself. "You will be the one in the history books to be credited with being its first victim."

The room suddenly became deathly cold, and the shadows became all-encompassing.

"SYAR ALKI US DEMENHENCIOUS!" A pale light shone out from Voldemort's hooded face shone. Slowly, a Dementor materialised in front of his father.

"…Draco run!" he feebly pointed his wand. "Expect- exp- eee…….uhhhhh…"

He could not do it. With his last fleeting thought, he swung the deadly pendulum into Voldemort's face. It lodged himself into his cheek and Voldemort laughed at the intense pain.

"Excellent, excellent. Your determination is far beyond the others. You managed to wound me. I knew there was a reason I favoured you. You will die knowing that your family will die swiftly, as a token of my appreciation." The dementor swooped down on Lucius Malfoy, and Draco screamed as the life force was sucked out of his father.

He ran up the stairs, tears running down his face. His mother was slowly donning on a dark black cloak, her hands trembling. Draco looked at her in bewilderment. She was wearing a form fitting black outfit and gloves made of giant skin. She opened a hidden panel in her cupboard, and took out what looked to be a silver medallion. Draping it over her head, she then took out a gold halo with a large crystal in the front and put it on her head. He couldn't believe it. The same woman who he was so callously calling worthless- his own mother- was the epitome of a witch warrior, something he would have never guessed she had in her. Fully geared to duel, his mother looked at him directly, her eyes more alive than he has ever seen before.

"Draco, no matter what, you are to escape. I will duel against the Dark Lord." Her voice quavered, but there was a steely determination in her voice. Draco was shocked at her sudden bravery, but he angrily shook his head.

"I am not a coward. We will avenge him together," He vowed.

Footsteps echoed up the stairs,one by one, a final countdown. To what, Draco was not sure, but if it was to be the last time he set foot on this earth, he will go down fighting. A drop of sweat ran down his nose. He was definitely taking his time. Everything around Draco seemed to be magnified a thousand fold, the smell of his sweat, the breathing of his mother rasping in his ears. He stood at the ready, as the door opened casually, the hooded figure silhouetted the doorway. Narcissa Malfoy wasted no time and attacked immediately.

"Lumos Jansius!" she screamed and a bright light flooded the room. Bringing her palms together, she locked her fingers and fell to her knees. Her wand hovered in front of her, spinning slowly like the second hand of a clock. Draco shielded his eyes as bright, ethereal wings began to form around her shoulders, their luminance casting everything into a pale glow.

"Siliencio ! Expelliarmus!"

Voldemort, slightly stunned by the intense Holy Light, was immediately muted and disarmed.

"RESUSCITARIUS AVADA KEDAVRE!" An immense ball of magic exploded; the Divine killing spell landing directly in his face. The room pulsed blue and ethereal white for a full minute as tears ran down her face. Voldemort vanished, his cloak crumpling into a heap. Draco dropped his arms from shielding his eyes from the intense light, staring at the pile of robes on the floor.
"Draco.." his mother wheezed, calling him. She was still on her knees, but her head hung limply forward. He ran over to her, and put his arm around her shoulders, holding her up.

"MOTHER!" She opened her eyes weakly and dropped her wand, the Halo falling off her head.

"You, you, must, find the boy who lived. Give these artefacts to him-…"

Draco waited for more, but none came. Those were her last words. She died right there in his arms, her eyes still open. Draco's eyes watered, and he solemnly closed her eyes. He bowed his head in silent tears; crying over his mother. Suddenly, he felt a rush of cold air blast into him, and he turned around to see a naked man materializing out of the essence of the robes on the floor.

"Very, very impressive. That was an extremely advanced form of Sacrificial Holy Magic; too bad your mother wasted her life in a futile effort." He scoffed at the touching sight. "Didn't you know?" His robes swirled up once again , and Lord Voldermort pulled the hood back over his brow. "I am immortal," he laughed easily. "The weak will die, Malfoy. There is neither good nor evil- there is only power.

Draco's eyes flared a Demonic read and he spun around, facing him. His magic spiked with his rage, and he prepared a powerful fifth level summon. "You fucking bastard! I'll KILL YOU! INCENDIO AR METEORAMUS!" From the stratosphere a huge ball of fire surged through the sky, whistling ferociously as it sliced through the air like a missile. It crashed into the roof, demolishing the entire house except for the corner of the master bedroom where he and his mother were- crushing everything, including Voldemort, pummelling him down to the floor below.

From the outside, it appeared as if only a wall and a piece of the first floor remained, a lone standing defiance against the Dark Lord Voldemort. Draco breathed hard, looking at the carnage not even fifteen feet from him, flames burning everything that his father had built, the huge boulder smouldering thirty feet below ground level. Crawling on the unsteady lip of flooring, he looked down at the huge gaping hole in the floor.

No...it can't be… is he really immortal!

Voldemort was there, standing tall amidst the flames on top of the meteorite, unscathed. He clapped in congratulation, laughing like a maniac.

"EXCELLENT! I HAVE FOUND A NEW APPRENTICE ! HUNTER, CAPTURE THE BOY! HE TRULY IS A DECENDENT OF MY OLD FRIEND NIKOLAI ! THIS IS FANTASTIC!" he stood there with his glowing red snake eyes, his wand and cloak disintegrating in flames as he spoke.

Draco could hear the fire sirens in the distance and the sounds of screams from the neighbours. It wasn't possible. Feeling almost dead inside, he ignored them as he went back to his mother's life less form and pocketed the Halo. He picked her up in his arms, and bowed his head as streams of tears ran down his face.

He disapparated with her body, leaving the house to be swallowed by the flames.