Chapter 37: Investigations

Disclaimer: This is a song that never ends, the worlds don't belong to me, my friends!

Amelia sat in her office with the Daily Prophet clenched tightly in her hands, the headlines staring up at her mockingly as she held the edges of the paper tight enough that her knuckles were turning white.

"I want the leak found." Amelia snapped, throwing the paper to one side, it hitting the wall and falling straight into the bin. She looked at the people that she had summoned into the room, Auror team leaders that were part of her most trusted, that she knew would not betray her or let things slip to the media. "How did Rita Skeeter find this information?" She questioned and there was a collective shrug among the group, "Only four people knew that the item had been stolen from the lockup and even less knew about Sirius Black and the trial that he was going to be having. The number of howlers and angry letters that the Auror department had received about their releasing a mass murderer. Not to mention the additional butting in from other departments trying to tell her how to run her department. So far many had been chased off.

"Fredrickson, head down to Lockup, begin a discreet investigation as to the theft, how they got in, how they got out." She ordered the man standing on the left of the group, he nodded his head and left the room. "Shacklebot, grab some of the others and make sure Black is protected, it wouldn't surprise me if we didn't get a few potential threats before we can get him to trial." She sighed and shook her head, "Scrimgeour, you're in charge of investigating this leak, interview whoever you must but keep it quiet." She ordered and then looked at the last of the Auror Team Leaders, "Lewis, bring me Rita Skeeter." She ordered and they were all quick to leave the room. The door closed behind her and she sighed, it was not a good moment and a potential threat to the Wizarding World.

She opened her notepad and flicked through her notes. There were a few clear things that she had already learnt.

The theft had been clean, if it weren't for the fact that the incident at Hogwarts had happened, she probably wouldn't have noticed it missing in the first place. No one knew what the item was in question outside of a book. Not even the person that had handed it over to her had been certain as to what it was, but he had warned her that the Dark Lord held it in high regard. And now it was missing from the Lockup. She leant back into her chair, removing her monocle and rubbing at the bridge of her nose as she tried to think.

"They specifically went after that one item." an older voice spoke behind her and she jumped, cursing her inattention but at the same time wondering who it was that got into her office as she spun around, wand already in hand. "Forgive the unexpected intrusion but I thought it was best to be involved."

"Croaker, do you not know how to knock!" Amelia snapped, lowering her wand as she waited a moment to steady her heart. The Head of the Department of Mysteries had successfully managed to scare her.

"I assumed you'd want to keep this quiet; don't you find it interesting though, one item that only a handful of people knew was even located here. You, myself and Mr Malfoy, we can rule him out on how scared he was and how potentially damaging it was. Hidden behind a mask of calm indifference of course." Croaker said in amusement as he walked up to the chair on the opposite side of the desk and sat down, a small sigh as he did so. "I'm getting too old for this." He muttered in amusement, "How did you know to look for it when you did?" He questioned peacefully as Amelia passed him a cup to make himself a drink. "Thank you."

"After the incident of Hogwarts, did you know they've found the Chamber of Secrets now?" She asked drawing a look of surprise. "for almost a thousand years it was a secret to everyone and then I learn that it could have been solved almost fifty years ago. Just simple detective work that none at the time thought to use."

"The Aurors were kept out if I remember correctly." Croaker said scratching at his chin thinking back to the incident. "I don't remember much of it, but I do remember the person responsible or at least they believed was responsible was caught."

"The person expelled was Hagrid," a small snort of amusement from Croaker and Amelia nodded her head. "Charges as you can guess didn't hold but he did have a dangerous creature at the time which got him expelled. My predecessor at the time did not want to pressure it any more than he already had, a muggle born was dead and the attacks had stopped with the alleged criminal caught. The child forgotten about, her family had their memories modified and that was it." She said in disgust at what information she had been able to find had told her.

"And she proved pivotal to the case. Returning as a ghost and having the answer just no one bothered to ask her. Out of sight out of mind, it would have taken a little bit of time for her ghost to form and many were eager to forget it happened." Croaker commented as he paused to take a drink. "But now you have the location of it and the beast inside?"

"A Basilisk." Amelia informed and internally smirked as she saw a brief look of surprise flash across his face. It was always hard to get a reaction from the Unspeakable, they were skilled in hiding their reactions, this one bit of info was something that they had not pieced together.

"A basilisk with such a low death count, curious..."

"Because no one saw it, it was always through a secondary source until the girl got caught."

"With Voldemort getting away with murder." Croaker finished with a nod of understanding, drawing just as much surprise from Amelia as she drew from him moments before. "You shouldn't be too surprised that I worked it out. Riddle as Voldemort was very keen to bring attention to his heritage." He commented and Amelia nodded her head, "Who was responsible this time? He had no heir as far as I know?"

"None that anyone else can confirm but we've had one student tell us the person responsible. it was Voldemort again. Throughout the possession of a student" She said continuing the game of 'who can surprise the other with the most information.'

"Possession?" Croaker asked leaning forwards.

"Complete possession, access to the magic, memories and full control." She said and watched him carefully for a reaction, at first there was curiosity then confusion and then a look of horror that vanished behind a stoic mask.

"How sure are you about that?" Croaker questioned and Amelia hesitated a moment before speaking clearly.

"One hundred percent, the student in question is not known for lying and I'm pretty sure there's more than what he told me, but nothing completely conflicted with the evidence."

"Another student, had a conversation with him long enough to learn the truth and still lived? Boy Who Lived?" Croaker asked though it was more of an observation. "Yes, I was asked to investigate him, apparently the tracer on his wand broke, with enough force to shatter the tracer observing him in the Department of Education." Croaker mused scratching his chin again as he thought. "The kid has some power attached to him."

"To survive against Voldemort there has to be something there." Amelia frowned, shifting the topics in her mind. "Any more luck in investigating the mysterious man that Pettigrew mentioned?" She had passed this off to Croaker after learning the truth, a twelve-year-old cold case, combined with a mysterious almost seer like person and she felt he would be more suitable to it.

"Nothing of value, going over a few testimonies, there is mention of a new person in the inner circle but other than having dark hair and an accent, there isn't really anything concrete to chase after." He sighed, "But there is enough to validate that someone appeared shortly before Voldemort was defeated and that he gained favour quickly."

"Great, an unaccounted-for Death Eater that managed to gain his favour, we know nothing about him and nothing about what happened other than the trap he set for Black when he was arrested. And with his trial about to start I sometimes wish I were a bit more like the corrupt members of the ministry." Amelia joked lightly.

"Oh?"

"Take a bribe and do nothing, it almost sounds peaceful, if it wasn't completely unethical and wrong." She laughed as she heard a knock on the door. Glancing away from Croaker she called out for the person on the other side to enter and looked back towards Croaker and stopped. He had disappeared from his chair, the empty cup placed to one side neatly. "I really need to learn how he does that." She muttered under her breath as the door opened and Auror Captain Lewis stuck his head into the office.

"Ma'am I've got Rita Skeeter." He said as the door was pushed open and a blonde-haired woman pushed past the Auror Captain into the room, adjusting her glasses as she looked at Amelia with a sickeningly sweet smile.

"Why Madam Bones, if I knew I could get an interview with just a salacious article I'd have written one like it a long time ago." Rita said smugly as she dropped into the chair. "To be summoned here by the Head of Law Enforcement herself, so tell me, what do you know about the break in?" She asked as a piece of parchment with a quill was quickly making notes.

Amelia looked at the parchments and with a gesture it burnt into flames. "Perhaps we should start with something simple here Rita, I want to know who your source was, I want to know how they knew about these events and I want to know who else you have contact with." Amelia said sharply and Rita smirked arrogantly.

"Madam Bones, you know as well as I that I cannot reveal my sources, they're the most important part of an investigative journalist's repertoire." She taunted as Amelia frowned at her.

"Considering the item that was stolen, I'm more concerned about the safety of the wizarding world Rita than chasing down your sources." She explained and Rita looked even more intrigued.

"Safety of the Wizarding World? Oh, now that is interesting, what dangerous artifacts are the Ministry keeping in such an unsecure location?" She asked without missing a beat.

"You know as well as I do that there were numerous dark artifacts that were confiscated and secured after the fall of You-Know-Who." Amelia continued patiently though the reporter was already beginning to grate on her nerves. "The items were being catalogued and studied and the one we were dealing with had been placed in the lockup pending an analysis and secure storage. Very few people knew about it and somehow you found out as well, so you are either involved or you're connected to someone who is. Either one I have enough suspicion to arrest you until you answer me." She threatened though her voice remained calm and polite.

"You know as well as I do that nothing would stick, I am just a reporter, the press has a right to print the truth."

"That would require you to report the truth in the first place." Amelia responded dismissively. "So, what will it be? Arrest or information?" Amelia asked with a small smirk, "of course I'm not completely cold hearted in this situation, I'm sure I can convince the head of the Noble House of Black to give you and exclusive interview after he's been medically cleared."

"You're convinced he's innocent?" Rita asked, her curiosity peaked as she leaned forwards.

"Not until after the trial, but I can assure you there will be quite the story, even if you won't be the only person writing for the trial, an interview afterwards has the potential to make your career." Amelia commented, knowing that the bait had been taken.

"I already have a career, but I suppose it would have been a nice jewel on top of the pile. So, trade for trade, information for the interview with no persecution for the information gathered."

"As long as it is not something that would pose a threat to the security of the Wizarding World, I can agree to that." Amelia said slowly and Rita just smiled.

"It was by chance more than anything," She said with a slight dismissive wave, you know as well as I do how many listening charms the... less scrupulous people in the Ministry layer in the building." Rita explained with a small nod from Amelia.

There were enough people trying to eavesdrop that it made chasing them down virtually impossible. Thankfully, they were mainly contained in public places. She frowned as she thought back to the conversations, she had been informed of the break in when she had returned from Hogwarts. She had been in the Atrium at the time. As her mind worked through this, she saw Rita smirk seeing she had picked up on her thoughts. "Now you see, I just took advantage of what was already there. No informant this time." She said smugly and Amelia frowned realising she had been played.

"And Black?" She questioned and Rita laughed like she was contending with something top secret.

"The Low Security wing of Azkaban isn't exactly the most hidden of places to keep him, inmates are released from there, certain families get to visit their relatives that are held there, and alcohol loosens lips, as well as a pretty face." Rita said smugly and Amelia resisted the urge to roll her eyes, of course it was probably a warden or someone who had heard word and then they had spoken to Rita. Perhaps more had heard the rumour and the article just confirmed it. Still, the cat was out of the bag and now they had to run with it before someone tried to have him killed, on either side of the political spectrum. "If he's innocent then this interview is going to be so much fun." She almost sounded like a kid in a candy store with the potential that she was going to have with her articles. Careers could and most likely would be broken. "If that is all Madam Bones? I'll see you at the trial." Rita said, standing up and Amelia nodded her head.

"It is always a unique experience dealing with you Rita." Amelia said diplomatically as the Reporter smirked again before departing the room. Amelia waited for the door to close before moving a couple of folders to a different location, she picked up the one at the bottom of the pile, the orders to move Sirius Black to a Ministry Holding Cell pending the trial tomorrow. Attached to it was another folder, the complete case report that had been filed when he had been arrested.

Time, location, no testimony, no confession, at least not one that any half decent defence attorney could counter. Very little to throw a man in to the deepest darkest hole of Azkaban and throw away the key.

The door to her office slammed open. Amelia looked up to see an incredibly angry Barty Crouch standing in front of her desk. Her hand which had gone to her wand, still rested on top of it. "Mr Crouch, I assume you haven't lost the ability to knock?" She asked with a faux level calm.

"Amelia, what is this I hear about Sirius Black being removed from Azkaban and receiving a trial?" Crouch snapped angrily.

"It sounds to me Barty exactly like you said, Sirius Black is being removed from Azkaban to receive a trial that he should have received twelve years ago." Amelia responded refusing to turn it into a shouting match.

"There was no need for a trial, he was caught at the scene of the crime and confessed his guilt." Crouch responded angrily.

"Yes, I read it in the case file, 'it is my fault, they're dead, they're both dead.' The man had just been blown up and launched across the street, instead of getting him medically checked out and then questioning him, you carted him off to Azkaban without so much as a question. There are still too many unanswered things about that night now that I look further into it."

"What would they be? My Aurors did their job, they caught the man, they processed the scene and the Obliviators and clean-up crew dealt with the remains of the muggles that he splattered across the street."

"What was the spell that was cast that did so much damage? Why did we only find a finger of Pettigrew? Why was that finger so cleanly severed? Where had Sirius Black been beforehand. Information that we could have used, information that could have led to the arrest of more Death Eaters." Amelia asked each question, her voice getting sharper with each point. "You are responsible for any leads that he could have brought, you are responsible if he turns out to be innocent." Amelia said, glaring at the man who had signed off on such a poor performance. "Yes, it was a time of darkness, we didn't know who to trust and this case was a pinnacle of that scenario, it also resulted in the end of that time so needed to be used as a beacon that we could rally around." She paused, waiting for a response but when none came, she continued on, her tone shifting to a slightly softer one, "I know how hard it was for you at the end of the war, you were the one who led the Aurors through it and saved many lives. What happened at the end of the war was not your fault." She said, the incident itself remaining unsaid.

You just did not speak about a person's family like that.

"When will the trial be held?" Crouch questioned slowly.

"The next Wizengamot meeting the relevant people to witness the trial have been invited." She finished and Barty looked ready to make a comment, but she put her hand up to stop him. "Enough, I am in the middle of an investigation, I have a trial to prepare for and I have to deal with the political fallout of it. If you want to complain about the actions of my department and myself then you know where you have to go with that." Amelia dismissed. Barty Crouch glared and spun around, storming out of the room. The door slammed shut behind him and she shook her head.

The drama had only just begun.

HPCVHPCVHPCV

Harry awoke early, the rest of the people in his dorm still sleeping as he quickly grabbed his clothes moving out the door and straight in the bathroom.

He had to be up early this morning to be taken out of the school and to the Ministry, the trial was scheduled to start at 9:30 and with all the hassle of getting into the building, getting registered as a guest and getting to the court room he would be leaving in about half an hour. Dumbledore would be taking him, the Headmaster would normally be overseeing the case but due to his involvement in the case in the past was recusing himself due to conflict of interest and in his own words, miscarriages of justice due to an overwhelming workload during a time of crisis.

Dumbledore had explained to him that the biggest problem Madam Bones had with trying the case was finding someone impartial enough to oversee it. The usual suspects, Dumbledore, herself and Madam Longbottom all had reasons to step back from it. Madam Bones because she was the lead investigator for the current investigation and Madam Longbottom because of the actions of Sirius's cousin Bellatrix though Dumbledore had not told her what had happened to cause such, it did not take much to work out. Surprising a few people, Lucius Malfoy had apparently volunteered, claiming that he had no such bias because they were in opposite Social Circles, they had barely interacted, and he had been cleared of his actions during the war. Though he was quickly refused with a polite reminder that his wife was a Black and that alone was cause enough for a conflict of interest. In the end, Tiberius Ogden had been selected, a neutral that had avoided the conflict relatively unscathed and was held in high regard by both sides as being noble and fair albeit sometimes a bit blunt.

Of course, the fact he was the main supplier of the most popular alcohol in the Magical UK was left unsaid. Harry knew that even Dumbledore kept a few bottles for those extremely trying days which had become more and more frequent in recent years.

He turned the tap off for the shower, stepping out and grabbing his towel as he allowed himself to think on the situation.

Sirius Black was his Godfather, by pretty much any legal right in the Wizarding World he would have the ability to remove him from the Dursleys, he would also be able to have some measure of control over his life and Harry didn't know how he felt about it. He did not know the man; he didn't know the beliefs that he followed outside of what he had heard and even then, he had heard so little about him. How much control would he want? How would he react after being locked away for twelve years in prison?

He finished drying himself off and started pulling on his clothes. He closed his eyes, letting his mind mull over the question as images started to appear in the back of his head.

It had freaked him out the first time it had happened, shortly after they had returned from investigating the corridor in his first year, he had been puzzling over the scenario for days and as he closed his eyes on one session of thinking, images had flashed to the front of his mind, images of himself and others entering the corridor to investigate. Sometimes they ended badly, others ended with barely a problem at all.

"The doorways are always there." Harry muttered to himself as the first appeared, a Sirius that looked worn out and barely able to keep going, there was never any sound to these images he saw but he could see clearly enough, a Sirius Black that never had the chance to be free, who broke out to chase the man down and spent the last bit of his life on the run. More and more of those kinds of images and they kept ending the same, abruptly and sadly for both Sirius and himself. The main thing that Harry took from it though was the important part. Sirius cared for him, in nearly everything he saw, his Godfather did what he could to be there for him. Although there were times that he failed and times he could be overbearing, he was there for him when Harry needed.

He threw his towel in the wash basket and exited the room, adjusting his glasses and fiddling with his robes, the normal school ones had been left behind, these were more formal, like the Dress Robes he had worn to the ball but a simple black and as he had never worn them, the collar was proving to be annoying to him. Checking his watch, he saw that he had about twenty minutes to get food and then meet Dumbledore in the Entrance Hall to leave. He dropped down into a seat next to someone he did not expect to see, Luna Lovegood already sat there, Quibbler in hand as she munched on a piece of toast. "Good Morning Luna," He greeted politely. "what are you doing up so early?" He asked, it was a Saturday, no classes in session, he did not expect to see anyone up before he departed.

"I'm getting an early start on hunting for the Nargles that are infesting the school." She said as she finished her mouthful of food.

"Oh? I thought they would have been gone by now, all the mistletoe has long since been cleared away."

"The mistletoe was just a way for them to get in you see, after that... they have plenty of people to cling on to." She replied politely as she turned a page of the Quibbler. "They like to steal and hide things, it'd be hard for them to do that if they only did it near mistletoe, everyone would discover the truth almost instantly." Luna explained and Harry frowned as he saw that there was something Luna was missing.

Her necklace of Butterbeer corks was missing.

"Did they take your necklace Luna?" Harry asked quietly and she shrugged.

"I'm sure it will turn up eventually, nothing ever stays missing for long." She said though a little bit of cheer in her voice had disappeared.

"If it hasn't returned by the time I'm back, I'll help you look for it." He offered and she beamed at him.

"You're going to the trial today." She stated and Harry nodded his head. "My father has sent a reporter to it." She said, "there's going to be a lot there for it, everything they thought they knew has changed, people are going to be scared." She warned and as she put her drink back down, she looked at Harry, "And then things change." She said almost dreamily and then seemed to snap back to her food.

"What?" Harry muttered, stunned by the action.

"Hmm?" She asked, pausing before she took a bite of her toast.

"Nothing, it's okay." He replied quietly, returning his attention back to his breakfast. The two sitting in amicable silence, but it had to come to an end. Checking his watch, he saw the time was coming and he had to depart, with a wave he stood up, dusting off a few crumbs that had fallen on to his robe and made his way to the Great Hall. Dumbledore and Elizabeth were already there, as was Professor McGonagall. He looked at the Head of Gryffindor in confusion.

"I have been asked to come along in case I am needed." She explained the puzzled look, "Miss DeWitt is coming along to make sure none of the reporters or other witnesses to the trial hassle you."

"As you both have a unique ability to get into and out of trouble." Dumbledore added with a small smile, "it would be best to keep you together."

"Unless of course us staying together magnifies our ability to get into trouble." Elizabeth deadpanned.

"indeed," Dumbledore said with a small chuckle, "but we must be off." He said as the giant entrance doors to the school opened to allow them out. "Normally we'd take the Floo from my office. However, the Network is undergoing some scheduled maintenance and the grates they have available are limited."

"You would think they would delay it with the trial happening today." McGonagall spoke up and Elizabeth chuckled.

"They most likely kept it in place because of the trial." She said drawing a confused look from Harry. "Everyone wants to see it, everyone wants to know, it is most likely going to be a security nightmare for them to deal with. So, if you can control the flow of people into it then you can secure the area at least slightly easier." Elizabeth explained more to Harry than McGonagall, getting a small nod of approval from Dumbledore.

"I will not lie; I did have something to do with them keeping the maintenance scheduled for today." Dumbledore said with a small smile, "for exactly that reason in fact, the budget cuts to the Auror Department have left them heavily understaffed at the moment. So, I hinted that they should narrow the avenues of entrance to allow them to better secure the Ministry."

"Is there that much of a threat?" Harry asked and Dumbledore nodded his head.

"Alas there is, people are scared, scared of someone they believe to be guilty of murder is being brought out of Azkaban, scared that their government may have been responsible in locking an innocent man away in over a decade. Fear can very quickly turn into anger and with that, the potential for danger increases." He explained as they came to the gates of the grounds, already open for them. "Now, Minerva, if you would take Elizabeth with you and I will take Harry." He said getting a nod from his Deputy. "I will warn you both now, Side along apparation isn't the most comfortable experience."

Now all that was left, was the bedlam of the courtroom.

TBC

Well, I didn't get to the Trial of the Century, but things just have a habit of evolving on their own. The Amelia section at the beginning was meant to be a lot shorter and then it just grew on its own and by the end of it I delayed the trial to the next chapter and wrote a small Harry and Luna section to add into it.

Still, next chapter I promise will be the trial.

Thanks for all the reviews, the favourites and the notifications. I may not say it much, but they are all very much appreciated and I'm happy to chat about things when people ask questions… with limits on the spoilers of course :P