Author's Notes:
TRIGGER WARNING! THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS LANGUAGE AND DESCRIPTIONS INVOLVING DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, AND PANIC ATTACKS. IF YOU FEEL YOU CANNOT OR SHOULD NOT READ THOSE PORTIONS OF THE CHAPTER PLEASE SKIP TO THE FIRST POINT OF VIEW CHANGE.
Alright guys, buckle your seatbelts because this is one fucking wild ride. First off, LONGEST CHAPTER YET! WOO!
I'm sorry this is so late in the evening. We've had some crazy stuff going on here because of the coronavirus *Gasp!*. Yeah; my law school shut down for a WEEK (Yay extra spring break?) and then we're going full online classes for the remainder of the semester. I didn't realize that my class on Tuesday would be my last in person law school class ever. I'm kinda upset about it to be honest with you. But what can you do? So, I've been figuring out that mess which is why this took so long. I also had a conflict with trying to decide how to end the trial...Well, you'll see.
Dutchie: Thank you! midnitewanderer: Here's your next chapter! PS no cliffhanger :) smallwjl: I haven't decided if that's what I want to do or not yet so I'm leaving myself the opportunity if that makes sense? And, no, this will not be a Lily resurrection story. She was hit with the killing curse and will not be a character during this fic. I will not, however, rule out memories, portraits, or visits from the dead if I decide to do them. Miss Elyon: His days are definitely numbered! I'm definitely planning to see this story to fluition.
Thank you everyone! Please read and review!
Chapter Eight: A Trial
Sirius Black stared at the rotting, black wall in front of him as he continued to do his daily crunches. He was moving in an unbreakable rhythm; up down, up down, up down. His body tensed every time he moved, the repetition keeping his mind sharp and away from the dementors.
After two years in Azkaban, Sirius' feet had developed callouses where he put his feet under the bed to hold them down while he did his daily exercises. Caked with dirt and blood, he would put them in the same place every day, keeping to the strict routine that has saved him over the last two years. Wake up, relieve himself. Feet under the bed, 100 crunches. Roll over, hands on the floor, 100 push-ups. Get on his knees, stand up, grab the bar above the middle of the room, 100 pull ups. Lunch; stale bread and water. Stand in the corner and relieve himself. Sleep. Wake up, relieve himself. And so on. His days never changing; always dark, small, and cold.
Now and then someone new would be brought into the prison. Sometimes he was lucky enough to catch a glimpse, have some small portion of human interaction before the dementors walked by again. If he was really lucky the minister would come, if the person was dangerous enough to warrant such a requirement. Even more rarely, a prisoner would get a visitor. The mood in Azkaban was exceptionally dark on those days as every other prisoner lamented their lack of visitors and the dementors feasted on the excitement of the person having a visitor and the excitement felt by everyone else at the change in monotony.
Today was one of those lucky days.
Just as Sirius rolled over to conduct his daily push up regiment, the door to the ward his cell was in banged open and two dementors glided in with a wizard security guard. Sirius stood up and moved to the bars of his cell and looked out at the commotion as best as he could as the 3 people moved down the aisle, drawing closer to his cell. After over two years without a single visitor, Sirius had long stopped hoping, let alone expecting, the company to stop at his cell. Despite this, he was still curious as to who had a visitor. Most people in his ward did not receive visitors because many of them were supporters of Voldemort before his downfall but hadn't done anything severe enough to warrant the heightened security afforded to those like the Lestranges or Crouch.
While Sirius was contemplating who was the lucky prisoner to receive a visitor, the dementors and guard continued walking down the aisle before stopping at his cell; the guard snapped, "Black! Step back from the door, we're coming in!"
Sirius jumped back, his heart racing. This didn't mean—did he have visitors? Or was he completely wrong about the guards appearance and this was something much more sinister than he had anticipated? The guard slid his key into the cell door and turned it. The lock clanged as it unlocked and the door swung open and the guard stepped in, the dementors close behind.
Sirius backed up to the wall of his cell, the cold, wet stone pressing into the palms of his hands. He could feel the sweat dripping down his forehead as his body heated up from the rapid beating of his heart.
The guard pointed his wand towards Sirius and said, "Come with us, please. You have visitors."
Sirius stared at the guard for a moment, his mind racing. Then he opened his mouth and tried to speak. It took him a moment before any sound came out. His voice was raspy and cracked, but he could speak. "Visitors?" he croaked.
"Yes, visitors. A Mr. Remus Lupin and a Mr. James Potter," replied the guard.
Sirius paled, "James—Remus?"
"Yes. Now, please come with us."
Unsure, Sirius stayed pressed against the damp wall for a moment, thinking about everything that was going on. Finally, after a long while, Sirius took a step, and then another, and another towards the guard and dementors. He was hesitant and crouched, unsure of whether this was some joke or if his mind was playing tricks on him again. Finally, Sirius reached the guard who allowed Sirius to pass him before following, his wand pointed steadily at Sirius' back as they walked out of the cell and down the hall.
As they stepped out of the cell block Sirius' eyes darted around, he was overwhelmed by the new sights and smells that assaulted his senses. It was brighter here; small slits in the wall allowed the light from the sun to peek through the gloom in this area. Sirius did his best to try to get a glimpse of the outside world through these arrow holes while he walked by to no avail. He turned back now and then to take a peek at the guard moving him along the corridor.
The guard wasn't paying him much mind as they walked; where would he run off to, anyway? There was only one exit and it was at the end of the hall in the direction they were going. What lay beyond, Sirius couldn't remember. Everything from being brought in to Azkaban was a blur to this day; it was confusing and full of anger and fear. Anger at Remus for not coming to his defense. Anger at Dumbledore for just letting him walk out even though Dumbledore knew he was innocent. Anger at himself for not being there for James and Lily. Fear for what was to come. His fear of fear—of the dementors and what they were capable of.
Sirius was lost in thought as they reached the locked door at the end of the corridor, as the guard unlocked the door and escorted Sirius through it. He continued to be lost in thought until he found himself sitting at a table in an empty and dark room. He glanced around, taking in his surroundings. His was the only table occupying the cramped room. The walls were bare, dark, and dirty but lacked the wetness that his cell contained. There were only two exits in this room. One was the door that he had just come through, the other led to some location unknown to Sirius. It was from the door that they entered.
"Padfoot!" yelled the man with the messy black hair.
"Sirius," breathed the man with the golden-brown hair.
Both men rushed to the table and sat across from Sirius, reaching out to him, their eyes pleading as they took in his appearance. Sirius simply stared at them, his eyes blank, his mind racing and contused.
James and Remus exchanged a worried glance before looking back at Sirius. They forced him to sit down, his limbs had stopped responding to him as soon as he walked into the room.
Sirius didn't understand. They hadn't visited him for over two years. Why now? What did they want? Sirius looked from James to Remus, his eyes darting around as his heart rate increased. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest; it felt like it may burst out. It made him need to breathe faster. He began gasping for breath while he sat there, fear gripping his chest as his lungs burned and his eyes watered. Sirius gripped the front of his shirt with his hands willing air to get into his lungs.
James and Remus jumped up from their chairs and rushed to Sirius' side.
"Sirius, what's wrong? Are you ok?" James yelled.
Sirius shook his head as he gasped for breath.
"James I think he's having a panic attack!" Remus said to James before turning to Sirius, "Sirius, everything is ok. Just breathe normally and calm down. We're not here with any bad news! We just want to explain ourselves and tell you what's going on." Remus began rubbing Sirius' back, trying to get him to calm down.
Sirius felt the pressure in his chest lessen as he tried to calm his breathing down, tears pouring down his face. James grabbed Sirius' hand and put his other hand on Sirius' shoulder, hoping that would calm his friend down.
Over the next half an hour James and Remus helped Sirius calm down and, eventually, his breathing evened out and the tightness in his chest dissipated. Finally, they were all able to sit at the table together to talk.
"Look, Sirius, we don't have much time anymore to discuss everything but we're going to come back again, we promise," James said.
Sirius looked from Remus to James before croaking, "What's going on? Why are you here?"
"Sirius, you're getting a trial. James was in a coma for over two years due to the injuries he sustained from Voldemort, but once he woke up we went into the ministry and he was able to turn over all of his memories regarding you, him and Lily, and Peter and the secret keeper change. Scrimgeour wanted to release you immediately but Fudge is refusing to admit he was wrong. So, Scrimgeour was able to get you a trial where we can present this evidence to the Wizengamot and argue your innocence for your immediate release."
Sirius simply stared at Remus and James, his mouth open, "What do you mean a trial?"
"You're getting a trial. We can't guarantee that you'll get released after but it's better than nothing," James explained.
"When is it?" Sirius asked.
"In three days; Tuesday," Remus responded.
"Three…three days?!" Sirius said as loudly as his underused vocal cords allowed him to.
"Yes. We're sorry we couldn't get it sooner."
"Three days?"
"That's what we said, Padfoot," replied James.
"Three days," Sirius said again. Then he jumped up and hugged Remus and James saying, "Thank you," over and over again to the both of them.
It was during this exchange that the door to the room was opened by the guard again who said, "I'm sorry to interrupt but your time is up. Black needs to get back to his cell. You're welcome to come visit him again tomorrow."
Remus and James nodded at the guard before turning back to Sirius. Remus said, "We'll be back tomorrow and then every day until your trial. We promise."
Sirius nodded and hugged his best friends, "Thank you, thank you."
Remus and James hugged Sirius back before leaving him in the room and the guard entered. The security guard escorted Sirius back to his cell and locked him back in as Sirius looked as far down the block as he could, wishing it was tomorrow already.
~ID~
James and Remus apparated back into Hogsmeade village after leaving Sirius at Azkaban. They appeared at the front of the gates to Hogwarts with the sun shining down on them on the brisk December afternoon. It had yet to snow in Hogsmeade but there was a chill in the air and the smell of a storm; winter was here and the snow was coming.
The two men walked through the gates of Hogwarts and up towards the school. The walk was quiet and empty as most students had gone home for the holidays and those that stayed were in their common rooms enjoying the warmth of the fires and time off from their school work.
James and Remus walked through the entrance way of Hogwarts castle and up the marble staircase. The walked through the castle until they found the transfiguration wing which housed Professor McGonagall's office. James knocked sharply on her office door and heard someone say, "Come in," before he opened the door and entered the room.
The sight before James was both comical and heartwarming. Professor McGonagall was sitting in an armchair beside the fireplace in her office which was lit with glowing red and orange flames. In her lap lay a small boy with jet black hair who was deeply asleep. The floor around them was covered in the boy's toys; books, blocks, action figures, Gobstones, and muggle race cars were scattered all around. Two cups of tea, mostly empty, sat on the table in the room and a tin of biscuits, mostly eaten, accompanied the cups.
"Well, isn't this a sight? It looks like you two had too much fun here," James said, smiling.
Minerva looked up from the book she was reading and looked at James, a hand on Harry's head, as she spoke, "I hope he had fun. He insisted on playing with every toy you brought him with. He has quite the imagination for a child his age, I should say. And he was exceedingly polite to me and ate his lunch without any complaint. Though, I'm not sure who would complain when they got to have a peanut butter and fluff sandwich for lunch."
"Well it sounds like you two had quite the day. How long as he been asleep?" Remus asked.
Minerva looked down at Harry for a moment while she contemplated her answer, "I would say, maybe an hour? He drank his tea and sat with me to read a book and he was asleep in minutes."
"I suppose it's time to get him home, then. Thank you again for watching him Minerva. You wouldn't be able to watch him again for a few hours over the next three days, would you? We promised Sirius we would visit him each day leading up to his trial. Augusta said she would watch Harry the day of the trial if you wanted to be able to attend," James said.
"Yes I had hoped to be able to attend Sirius' trial. I've been saying for ages that he couldn't have done what he was charged with. If I know Sirius Black, and I like to think I know him as well as your parents did, James, he would never betray his friends. I sometimes wonder if he should have been a Hufflepuff with loyalty like his. But, yes, I can watch Harry again while you visit Sirius. How was he?"
The smile on James' face vanished while he recounted their visit to Minerva, "As you can tell, he wasn't great. He's innocent but Azkaban has already taken its toll on Sirius."
Minerva paled, "It certainly sounds that way. Do you think he stands a chance of being found 'not guilty' without finding Pettigrew?"
"I hope so," James replied as he began picking up Harry's toys and putting them in the bags they had brought them to Hogwarts in.
Minerva shifted Harry on her lap so that he was mostly sitting up when James walked over to collect him. James lifted Harry into his arms and thanked Minerva again for her help before stepping into the fireplace and flooing home.
~ID~
James and Remus kept their promise to Sirius and had indeed visited him every day leading up to his trial while Harry spent time with Minerva at Hogwarts. He was having a wonderful time exploring the castle with the professor. She had shown him many of the secret passage ways and trick stairs throughout the castle and he had nothing but good things to say about his time with Minerva.
James and Harry had woken up the morning of Sirius' trial and gotten ready. James had put on the dress robes he had purchased in Diagon Alley and Harry had put on jeans and a sweatshirt. Both had stopped at Augusta's house where James left Harry for the day so he could play with Neville for the day. The boys had seemed to hit it off when Harry first arrived with Neville taking Harry to his room so they could play with a muggle toy called Legos. Legos had become quite popular amongst the wizarding community for children because they were cheap and colorful and the children seemed to like them.
From the Longbottom Estate James had apparated to the Ministry to take his seat on the Wizengamot for Sirius' trial. The rest of the Wizengamot members trickled in slowly over the next hour while James waited patiently. Augusta's husband, Wilson Longbottom, rushed into the chambers shortly before the meeting was called to order, giving James a smile and a nod as he took the seat next to James.
James looked across the room to where observers of the trial were seated and caught the eyes of Remus and Minerva who were sitting together in the front row. James gave them a reassuring smile as Dumbledore called the meeting to order.
"Welcome, welcome to another meeting of the Wizengamot. Today we have been gathered for a special type of meeting. Typically the members of the Magical Law Enforcement Office oversee the trials of the accused witches and wizards of Brittan, but today we have been requested as an impartial jury of the accused's peers.
"Today we will witness a trial that should have occurred two years ago. However, a trial is better late than never. Today we will witness the evidence presented against and in favor of the innocence or guilt of Lord Sirius Black."
Among the Wizengamot members were gasps of horror and incredulity upon hearing that today's meeting was for a trial for Sirius Black. There were many mutterings and whispers as people began talking amongst themselves. As the volume level rose, Dumbledore quieted the room so he could continue.
"Yes, Lord Sirius Black. Though I am sure some of you already have an opinion regarding Lord Black's guilt or innocence, we cannot allow these preconceptions to cloud our judgments of a man who may be innocent! Instead, we must hear the evidence presented and render an appropriate verdict.
"Now, the dementors will escort Lord Black into the chamber for his trial. Because he is considered a low threat the dementors will not remain in the room with us. They shall stay outside the door incase we need them. Now, we shall begin. Can the accused please enter the chamber?" Dumbledore asked as he concluded his speech.
The doors to the chamber opened revealing Sirius' emaciated form. He looked so small from so far away James had trouble believing that it was actually Sirius.
James watched as the dementors escorted Sirius to the center of the chamber and had him sit in the lone chair before exiting again. Dumbledore waived his wand and the chains on the chair began winding themselves around Sirius' wrists, binding him to the seat. Once the chains stopped moving Sirius looked up at Dumbledore.
"Well now, I think that we're all set, aren't we?" Dumbledore began, "Lord Sirius Black, Marques of Lothian, you had been charged and imprisoned for the offense of being a follower of Lord Voldemort during his reign of terror and for giving out the confidential location of the Potter family which ultimately led to the murder of Lily Potter. How do you plead to those charges?"
"Not guilty. On all charges."
Dumbledore nodded, smiling, "What evidence do you have to offer towards your innocence of these crimes?"
Sirius looked up at James and said, "I have the testimony and memories of my best friend, James Potter. I am also willing to undergo Veritaserum, if necessary, and provide my own memories to show that they correlate with James'."
"It's a good thing that I brought my pensive along with me today, isn't it?" asked Dumbledore as he pointed his wand toward the other side of the room. From a box against the wall floated out a large, round, stone bowl which gently flew across the room and settled itself on the podium in front of Dumbledore.
Dumbledore turned to Scrimgeour and asked, "May I have Lord Potter's memories, Rufus? I believe they were left in your possession, were they not?"
Scrimgeour nodded at Dumbledore before handing him two glass phials full of a silvery liquid. Dumbledore accepted them and tipped the contents of the first phial into the basin and swirled the liquid.
Dumbledore turned to address the Wizengamot, "I am going to use a series of charms that will allow us to view a projection of the memory from the pensive. I have put the first phial into the basin which is said to contain James Potter's memory of the night he and Lily Potter decided to make Sirius their secret keeper."
Dumbledore turned back to the basin and conducted several complicated wand movements over the bowl and then in the air. Suddenly, a projection of James, Lily, and Sirius were displayed on the bare wall where the door stood.
Sirius looked at James and Lily, confusion written on his face, "What do you mean you need to go into hiding? Why would You-Know-Who be after you two? You've only just graduated Hogwarts, you haven't even seen battle yet."
James and Lily exchanged a meaningful glance before James said, "It's…complicated, Padfoot. But the fact of the matter is that Dumbledore told us that he wants us and Harry dead. And if Voldemort wants us dead, he'll never stop hunting us; the only thing we can do is go into hiding until someone can defeat him."
"But why does he want you dead? And how exactly are you going to go into hiding?" Sirius asked.
Lily poured herself a cup of tea from the kettle on the table between them before saying, "Dumbledore and Flitwick have perfected a spell that they believe will make our house completely unplottable except to one person. That person will be the only one who knows where our house is. I mean, I could be standing in my house after the charm was performed but I wouldn't know where I was or that it was my house. and this one person would then have the ability to tell others where we are; and if they don't tell someone they can never find us no matter how hard they look."
Sirius paled. He shoved a biscuit in his mouth to give himself an excuse to think for a moment, this was an extremely complicated spell that sounded like it would work but there was still a flaw in the plan, "So, only one person would have the ability to tell anyone, including you, where your own house is? So you could just hide in it forever?"
"Basically, yes. And Lily could perform the charm," James answered.
Sirius thought for a moment, "Ok, but, if you picked the wrong person, wouldn't you just be handing yourselves over to You-Know-Who on a silver platter? We all know there's a rat amongst us but we don't know who it is. Who would you even pick? Why not one of you?"
"The occupants, meaning the people to whom the spell is being performed for, cannot be the secret keeper," Lily answered.
James looked at Lily again before saying, "We were hoping you would be our secret keeper. There isn't anyone else in the world I trust more than you; you're my brother. Always have been, always will be."
Sirius looked at James, his mouth slightly open. He could feel tears welling at the back of his throat, "I would be honored."
James clapped his hands as Lily smiled, "Then it's all set! We can perform the charm tonight."
James and Lily made to stand but Sirius signaled for them to sit down again. He looked at both of them before saying, "I'm honored, James, Lily, I really am. But I think that I'm the too obvious choice. Everyone will know you chose me. I will be the first person You-Know-Who hunts down and tortures for your whereabouts. Isn't there anyone else you could use? Someone less…obvious?"
James frowned as Lily sat her cup of tea down slowly; they exchanged a worried glance with one another before Lily spoke, "We hadn't really thought about that. I'm not sure if there is anyone else that we would trust with this task as much as we trust you," Lily looked at James, "Maybe Remus?" she looked back at Sirius, "We had opted not to ask Remus because we were worried about his furry problem causing issues with the spell. We were worried that if something happened and he was dealing with that that we wouldn't be able to get help because they wouldn't be able to find us."
Sirius frowned and rubbed his chin, that made for quite the conundrum, "I can see why that could be a problem," he thought for a moment, "What about Peter?"
James frowned, confused, "Peter? Sirius, if he were tortured by Voldemort you can bet your sweet ass that he would give our location away in a heartbeat. That man's pain tolerance is smaller than zero. Do you really think he would be the best choice?"
"I think he makes the perfect choice," Sirius responded, "Who in their right mind would choose someone as weak as Peter to keep a secret this important? We can put him into hiding as well and add an extra layer of protection for you guys. We could put Hagrid and Moody in charge of guarding him. Moody would have the firepower and Hagrid the strength. And I would go into hiding as well; that would make everyone think that you've chosen me and throw them off of Peter's trail, thereby keeping you safe."
James looked at Lily and said, "It makes a lot of sense, Lils. I say we do it. what do you think?"
Lily frowned, "I don't know, Jamie. There's been something off about Peter lately. Are we sure that we can trust him? I know he's your friend and all—"
"He's one of my best friends. I trust him with my life. No. I trust him with you and Harry's lives as well as my own," James looked at Sirius, "We'll use Peter. Can you bring him tonight with you? We'll do it tonight and then you can take him into hiding."
Sirius nodded as Lily looked at James, concern on her beautiful face.
The memory froze and ended; Dumbledore turned back to the members of the Wizengamot who had begun to speak amongst themselves again. James could hear statements like, "There's no way that's real!" and "How stupid could they have been?" and "What has the ministry done." From more incredulous members.
"Silence everyone, silence," Dumbledore called to the assembly, "We still have one more memory to view today. And I believe that we should give Lord Black the opportunity to speak in his defense as well before we render a verdict."
There was some more general muttering amongst the crowd as Dumbledore turned back around and tipped the second phial into the pensive and conducted the same movements over the basin before saying, "I believe this second memory is of the charm being performed, is it not, Lord Potter?"
James nodded and said, "Aye, it should be, Sir."
"Excellent," Dumbledore replied with a smile, his eyes twinkling in the light, as he pointed his wand at the new projection.
A new memory had formed on the wall. This time it contained four people: Sirius, James, Lily, and Peter all sitting in the cozy living room of the cottage at Godric's Hollow.
James looked back and forth from Peter and Sirius, a look of concern on his face as Peter held his hands to his mouth, "Please, Pete," James begged, "We need your help with this. Sirius is right; we can't choose him, he's too obvious. You're the least obvious choice and it—the plan makes the most sense."
Peter shook his head, refusing to meet James' or Sirius' eyes, "I can't, I'm not strong enough or brave enough. What if he comes and finds me? I'll never survive."
Sirius turned Peter towards him and gripped his shoulders, shaking him a little in the process, "Peter. You were put in Gryffindor for a reason. You are brave and you are strong. You might need some help but we're going to provide that for you. All you need to do is keep the secret, keep them safe. We know you can do that. You're the only person for the job!"
Peter looked at Lily, his eyes pleading.
Lily looked away, crossing her arms over her chest before leaving the room. James watched her walk away before looking back at Peter, "Pete, please. We need to do this tonight, before he finds out where we are," he put his hands on Peter's shoulders where Sirius' had previously been, "Will you help us?"
Peter looked James in the eyes for a few seconds and then slowly nodded, tears filling his small, watery eyes.
James embraced Peter and then clapped him on the back, "Thank you Peter, thank you! I'll never be able to repay you for this," he said as he raced across the room to the door Lily had exited out of, "Lils, come back! Pete said he'll help us."
Lily returned a moment later carrying a small baby with a tuft of black hair. The baby was asleep in Lily's arms.
"What do I need to do?" Peter asked Lily.
"Stand there while I perform the spell. You know our address?" she asked.
Peter nodded, "239 Arthur Circle, Godric's Hollow, Scotland."
"Good," Lily said, "James can you take Harry? I need my arms free to perform the charm."
James took Harry from Lily, kissing him gently on the head before placing Harry with his head on James' shoulder and James' hand on his bum. James gently rocked back and forth on his feet while Lily twirled and sliced her wand through the air as she recited a complicated incantation. Suddenly, there was a shimmer in the air and James, Lily, and Sirius looked around the room, confused.
"It must have worked," Sirius said, "I have no idea where I am."
Lily nodded, "We'll remain this way until Peter tells us the address or he writes it on a piece of parchment for us to read. Peter, where are we?"
"239 Arthur Circle, Godric's Hollow, Scotland," Peter replied quickly, shocking himself with his own knowledge and immediate response.
All three people immediately relaxed, a look of recognition on their faces as soon as the words left Peter's mouth.
"Thank you, Peter. Thank you," James said again, clasping his hand on Peter's shoulder, "You've saved all three of us. We can never repay you."
"Please, James, you don't owe me anything," Peter said quietly, avoiding eye contact.
"Yes, we do. And you, Sirius, for giving us this idea."
"It was no trouble," Sirius said, "But I need to get Pete to Moody so he can set up a perimeter and safety spells around Pete's house until we can find him a hiding location. Let's get going Peter. We'll see you guys soon."
Lily smiled, "Yes! Sunday for dinner; all three of you, mind. I'm making pasta."
The memory on the wall faded away as more people spoke this time, many of them raising their voices in outrage. Some people towards the ministry, others towards James and Sirius for showing such, "obviously faked memories." James scowled at this; these people had no idea what a faked memory looked like would be his guess and they wouldn't be able to pick a fake from a true memory in any case.
"Silence again! You will all have a say when we take our vote shortly. But first," Dumbledore turned towards Sirius who was still seated in the middle of the room, "I believe that Lord Black deserves to speak in his defense regarding these memories."
Sirius nodded at Dumbledore before speaking, "I just want to say that those memories you saw are exactly how I remember both instances. I have lived every day with the regret of convincing James and Lily to choose Peter over myself as secret keeper. I take full responsibility for that mistake—ultimately it is my fault that Lily died. If I hadn't basically forced them to choose Peter, she would probably still be alive and we wouldn't be here right now. But, at the end of the day, I couldn't have given away James and Lily's location to You-Know-Who because it wasn't my information to give. Even if I led You-Know-Who to Peter's location, I never would have made it past the protection that I told James needed to be set up. Moody and Hagrid had so many protective enchantments and creatures in place that I doubt even You-Know-Who could have gotten passed without exhausting himself or depleting necessary resources.
"Because I couldn't have told You-Know-Who where James and Lily were hiding and I couldn't have led him to Peter, I can't be guilty of any of the crimes I've been charged.
"But, also, I don't and never have had a dark mark. I feel like that alone should be sufficient evidence to show that I wasn't, nor am, a death eater."
Dumbledore turned back to the members of the Wizengamot and asked, "Does any member wish to speak before we vote?"
James spoke first, "I would, Albus," Dumbledore nodded and then James stood to address the members, "I gave those memories to Scrimgeour after I was released from St. Mungos. What you saw today is a true and accurate representation of what I remember from that day. I do not believe that Sirius Black was capable of giving away our location nor would he have ever been able to lead Voldemort to Peter's location. The only logical explanation here is that Peter is the culprit. If he wasn't, then where is he? No one has seen Peter Pettigrew since the war ended so suddenly two years ago. He's been in hiding because he's afraid of being caught! By which side? I don't know. I'm sure people who followed Voldemort believe that he is the reason for Voldemort's downfall. Whereas if people from our side found him, we would want to know what exactly happened that night, wouldn't we?
"If Sirius was truly guilty and had led You-Know-Who to Peter, he would have stepped forward to prove Sirius' guilt long ago, if he was still alive. And if he were dead…well, someone would have found his body by now, wouldn't they have?" James sat back down in his seat and looked across the way to where Remus and Minerva were sitting. Both of them gave him reassuring looks and smiles.
Then Lucius Malfoy stood up. He said, "Dumbledore, I would also like to speak. I would like to speak towards this man's guilt," Dumbledore nodded and Malfoy continued, "We have seen two memories that show that Lord and Lady Potter did decide to choose someone other than Black as their secret keeper, this is true. However, we have seen no actual evidence that Black didn't, in fact, lead the Dark Lord to Peter's house. Black claims that he would have never made it passed the defenses set up but we have seen no proof of this story.
"Further, Lord Potter has claimed that because we haven't seen Peter since the war ended that he must be in hiding because we would have found a body if he were dead or, if he were alive, he would have come forward to prove Black's guilt. This argument also lacks logic. There have been more than one case where the Dark Lord has killed someone and a body was never discovered. Take Black's own brother, Regulus Black. It is well known that when he backed out of being a death eater, the Dark Lord killed him but Regulus' body was never recovered yet he is still presumed dead. This could be the case with Pettigrew.
"The evidence presented today is circumstantial and I submit that it is insufficient to prove the innocence of Sirius Black," Malfoy finished and sat back down in his seat.
James stood back up again and responded to Malfoy's argument, "What Lord Malfoy says is true; the evidence presented today is circumstantial. However, I believe that it's enough to show a reasonable doubt towards Sirius' guilt. I think that it is enough to cause you, the members of the Wizengamot, to question whether he is truly guilty or if he is innocent. And I submit that if you have any question in your mind as to Sirius' innocence or guilt, that you find him innocent. Thank you."
Dumbledore looked around the room as a general murmur arose again; he simply held his hand up and the room quieted down again so he could speak, "Is there anyone else who wishes to speak today? No? Well, then I believe it is time to put this to a vote. Those that believe Lord Black is innocent of the charge of being a death eater, please raise your wands."
James thrust his wand in the air before looking around at the other members of the Wizengamot. He saw several people raised their wands and more putting them in the air. Slowly, one by one, about half the members had raised their wands. But was it enough? Sirius needed a majority.
"And those in favor of guilty?"
Again, more wands went into the air including Malfoy, Bulstrode, and Parkinson; their wands were raised the highest out of all the members. Again, it looked like it was about half.
James sat motionless as Dumbledore wrote the numbers down on a piece of parchment before he spoke again, "And those that find Lord Black innocent of the crime of leading Lord Voldemort to Potter Cottage on October 31, 1981?"
This time more than half of the members raised their wands. To James, it looked like nearly seventy-five percent of the members had raised their wands into the air. His heart sored. Sirius stood a good chance at being found not guilty!
Dumbledore counted and then spoke again, "And those that find him guilty?"
Again, several wands went into the air as Dumbledore counted them and recorded the number. Once he was done, Dumbledore looked up at the crowd and then turned back to Sirius. "Lord Black. Today we have witnessed evidence regarding you guilt or innocence of the crimes held against you. We heard your testimony and argument from members of the Wizengamot. We held a vote regarding your guilt or innocence. In order for a vote to succeed, there must be a majority of the members voting one way. Today we have 153 members present with 7 members absent.
"In the charge of leading Lord Voldemort to Potter Cottage thereby causing the murder of Lily Potter to occur, the Wizengamot has found you innocent with a total of 132 votes for innocent and 21 votes for guilty.
"In the charge of being a death eater, a follower of Lord Voldemort, 78 people, a majority vote this evening, found you to be innocent. On behalf of the Ministry of Magic, the Wizengamot voids all charges against you, Lord Sirius Black, and hereby expunges your record. You shall be taken back to Azkaban where you will be released forthwith and have your belongings returned to you immediately upon your release."
James couldn't help but to let out a yell of excitement at these words. He could see Remus and Minerva hugging and crying and Sirius staring ahead, dumfounded by the turn of events, tears pouring down his cheeks.
Sirius would be coming home. Sirius would be back where he belonged, a free and innocent man. But that begs the question of where is Peter and what happened to him? It seemed to James that this would be their next mission.
End Notes:
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