Bill's Bill

Chapter 9: Even a Dragon's Heart Breaks

All characters and the HP Universe belong to JK, the queen of twitter trolling. -Chefke

Grimmauld Place, Tuesday 1:00 PM

Draco followed Fleur into the living room. The petite French woman sat down elegantly in one of the high-backed cream Victorian settees. Grimmauld Place as a whole needed to be gutted and redone. The furniture was ancient and the dark velour walls were peeling to the point that they barely needed help coming down. If Walburga Black's banshee of a portrait wasn't bad enough, he was pretty sure that there was a ghoul or a poltergeist in the attic. The home needed a lot of work.

Victoire was put down for a nap while his bedraggled father had stopped in Grimmauld Place. He wasn't there for more than fifteen minutes as he was on his way to check in with his mother at Aunt Andromeda house. Draco was secretly excited to meet his aunt the night before. He always knew that his father was an only child and his mother might have well as been. She had one sister that was disowned and the other that was disowned. He wondered if his parents bought him so many gifts as a child to make up for the lack of aunts and uncles in his life. It could also have been his consistent requests for a sibling, that he now knew, his mother could not provide him with.

Andromeda had been kind and bit sassy if he was being honest. She had given him a hug upon meeting him before thrusting her grandson into Draco's arms. She then retreated to his mother and the two began to laugh at something on the wall in this house. It was good seeing his mother happy, it took years off of her face. She was smiling and laughing with her sister and Draco wondered what it would have been like if Andromeda Tonks had never been disowned. He would have shared a lifetime of birthdays and vacations with his cousin, Nymphadora. He would have been among the masses that were scandalized and then the few that were happy when she dated and married his Professor.

Andromeda had been more than happy to tell him a story or two about his deceased cousin over dinner. Surprisingly, Potter had supplied several stories about Professor Lupin and Tonks. George Weasley revered Professor Lupin. According to Ginny, Fred and George had started Weasley Wizard Wheezes based on inspiration from Potter's dad, Professor Lupin, and Sirius Black. Apparently, they were regular shit disturbers at Hogwarts. Before slipping out, Charlie Weasley swore that he heard from a seventh year that Sirius Black kissed Professor McGonagall during his last year at Hogwarts.

Draco heard from Ginny, who had heard from George that Charlie Weasley was sleeping with Tracey Davis. Draco had sent her an owl trying to wheedle the information out of her, to which she responded, 'bugger off you blonde git.' Draco had immediately owled Blaise and Theo. To Fleur's immense amusement, the three had spent over an hour gossiping through the Floo after breakfast. Blaise and Theo had thought she had already moved to Romania to be closer to her brother. Draco chastised them both for trusting gossip that came from Pansy, of all witches.

Draco had disconnected fairly quickly once Astoria came up in conversation. Blaise's mum thought Astoria would be a good match for her son but had a terrible time reaching Mr. Greengrass. Draco smirked. Astoria and Daphne had been sneaking into their father's office and tearing up marriage proposals before he read them. The Greengrass girls had invented a charm that read the contents of letters and if it pertained to either of them would send them one vibration to their wands. If it was about a marriage contract they would receive two vibrations.

The two had become masters at forgery and subterfuge. Draco had been pressuring them both to patent the charm, but they still had to worry about their father so they abstained from legally acquiring the rights to their charm. He couldn't say he blamed them.

"Fleur, did you cover hereditary blood curses when you were in Healer training?" he asked in French.

"Does this have to do with the research in Egypt that you're doing? The alchemical research from the tomb in Egypt?"

"Yeah, I'm not making headway and I'm scared I won't find anything."

"How long does she have?"

"Fifteen years if we're lucky and with no possibility of children. She wants them so badly and I-"

"There are other ways to have children Draco."

"Not for a Pureblood, Fleur. The blood magic demands a child from the union of the parents. If she can't provide an heir… if my father knew she couldn't provide an heir... he would never agree to our marriage."

Draco mumbled the last bit realizing belatedly, what information he had given up. He prayed to Merlin that Fleur's Veela half made her hearing dull. He had no such luck as Fleur's eyes perked up a bright big smile on her face.

"Marriage and children?"

"There isn't… we haven't made anything official… we were just talking… I haven't told-"

Fleur hugged him tightly. "I am so happy for you Draco! I will do what I can to help the two of you. I know several Healers that work in Fertility that I went to school with. I will owl them immediately."

She released Draco and scurried off to the owlery. Draco would have followed her, had he not been avoiding the room. After dinner, the night before George pulled him aside and asked if he could post a letter for him. Draco obliged after getting directions to the owlery within Grimmauld Place. He hurried up the stairs with the urgent letter and opened the door to the room. He was halfway into the room when he heard the first snarl. He turned to see yellow beady eyes and a long vicious beak snapping at him.

His arm itched and he felt the phantom pain of when the bloody beast of chicken turned savage on him. He whimpered and backed up until he hit the wall. The hippogryph stood slowly, rocking on its forelegs and then hind legs until it stood proud and tall. Much much taller than Draco. When it took its first step towards him, Draco's hand began to grip the doorknob frantically. He had somehow moved to the corner of the door. His back was rubbing painfully into the hinges of the door, but that point was inconsequential compared to the vicious animal stalking towards him. He desperately tried to remember what the bloody oaf was rattling off to the class but his fear clouded over any words the giant had stuttered.

"IMMOBULUS" Draco sagged against the corner of the door as an infuriated Ginny Weasley burst into the room with an equally agitated Potter at her heels. Potter rushed forward and calmed the confused hippogriff as Ginny looked around the room, her hand still on the doorknob.

"Malfoy?" she called. "Shit Harry, I think Beaky ate-"

"Still alive Weaselette," he gasped from behind the door. Ginny yanked the door closed behind her effectively locking the four of them in the room. The other three occupants in the room turned to face him. Ginny was rambling in the background but Draco couldn't hear her. His grey stormy eyes were locked onto deep cold amber ones.

"Ummm… Ginny. They're fighting for dominance. Draco, you need to show Buckbeak respect."

"Respect?" he scoffed sounding more confident than he felt. "That bloody chicken tried to eat me!"

Buckbeak stomped his feet angrily. Shit. Shit Shit.

"Bow Draco, be submissive and Beaky will back off," Potter shouted over the sound of stomping hooves hitting the floor. Draco could hear feet pounding up the stairs and shouting. Primarily the shouts were anger filled and directed at George.

Draco's eyes strained as he fought the urge to blink. The hippogryph bleated and shook his head.

"Bow Draco." murmured Ginny. Draco eyes were still locked with the animal as he took one incredibly stupid step forward. The hippogriff stopped stomping and turned his head curiously at him. Draco was surprised to find intelligence behind the angry eyes. An intelligence that prompted Draco to take another step forward. Without losing their locked gaze Draco bowed but only a half bow.

Buckbeak looked at him considering his options. Draco watched the pony of a chicken contemplate until he finally bowed, only half, in return. Draco lifted his palm like he remembered Potter had and waited for Buckbeak to come to him. He did.

His nose was oddly cold and he smelled of dead ferrets. The irony was not lost on Draco and after a moment of gentle petting, Buckbeak retreated to his nest of dead animal bones.

"c'est incroyable," Fleur whispered from the doorway. A sheepish looking George stood directly behind her.

Draco wondered if anyone had fed Buckbeak today. He called one of his house elves to fetch him a hamper of foods that a hippogriff would like to eat. He had a relationship with a bloody monster chicken to upkeep.

Minister of Magic's Entertaining Office, Tuesday 1:00 PM

Bill fidgeted in his plush seat. They had all adjourned to Kingsley's entertaining office for lunch sans Hermione. They had to use his private elevator, as well as his office because someone had leaked Bill's presence to the press. The regular room they would have taken their lunch break in was covered in overzealous cameramen and shouting reporters. As soon as Hermione heard the voices she had them detoured immediately to Kingsley's office.

When they emerged from the elevator and into Kingsley's outer office, Pamela's desk was covered in several small mountains of signature red howler envelopes. The piles were so high they spilled off of her desk and onto piles on the floor. Pamela herself was notably absent. Harry offered to go get lunch as the press were less likely to attack him and give him space if he requested it. Harry also suggested getting takeaway in muggle London since he was less likely to meet anyone in the Wizarding community.

Bill slumped into one of Kingsley's lounge chairs in his 'entertaining' en-suite. He was thinking of Fleur and Victoire. He missed Victoire's sticky little fingers and her shrill voice when she didn't get what she wanted. He would give the good half of his face to be able to be hugged by Fleur now. She always knew how to calm him. It was one of the many things he loved about her.

In an attempt to distract himself, he tried to engage Charlie in conversation. However, his younger brother was just as distracted as the elder. After Bill spouted a false fact about Welsh Green migration patterns and Charlie simply nodded in response he became concerned. Charlie's eyes were glued to the bar against the wall.

"You know you can grab a Fire Whiskey if you want. I'm sure Kings won't mind." Bill motioned at the fire whiskey. Maybe he just needed to take the edge off? George snorted.

"I don't think it's the fire whiskey on his mind." George chuckled as Charlie's face turned a deep red. The more red it turned the harder he laughed. Bill sat up. Charlie never blushed. He caught him with his pants down in the lavatory having a wank and he just winked and continued.

"Nothing to add, Charliekinns?" George batted his eyelashes in an exaggerated pose of a woman. Charlie spluttered in response.

"Anyone want to fill me in?" Bill eyed George and Charlie. Charlie folded his arms and glared at George who was now making obscene sex gestures. Charlie swatted at him angrily which set him off into his rumbling laughter.

"There's nothing to-"

"Charlie shagged the Healer that saved Mum once on the bar and once on the coffee table. He was so loud that Kings and the Head Auror heard him." George said between hysterical laughter. Bill promptly removed his feet from the coffee table where they had been propped. He cast an immediate scourgify on every surface around him, which only made George laughter harder. Bill rolled his eyes and muttered something about, "Trace already did that."

"Only twice? You're getting slow in your old age, Charlie." Charlie scoffed at Bill's remark.

"You're older than me, brother." Bill paused thoughtfully.

"Are we though? Brothers I mean?" Charlie looked at his brother like he had grown an extra head.

"Don't be daft, you wanker. You're our brother and I don't care if you're not a product Mum and Dad shagging. Honestly, it makes us all talking about your birth situation less disturbing. Wait, why are we talking about mum and dad shagging? Let's talk about something else, anything else. Unicorns! Hagrid's hairy ballsack!" They all groaned in disgust at a mental image none of them needed. Charlie sank into the empty space beside him and put an arm around his shoulder. George followed suit.

"So Charlie, don't like the idea of Mum and dad shagging? You know how they always wake up a bit late Sunday mornings and then we get a massive brunch because dad is starving…." George was smirking as both of his brothers began to shout their protests. They were still shouting and had begun throwing friendly hexes when Harry returned with the food. He was completely bewildered at what he was assured was totally normal Weasley behavior.

They had pretty much finished eating when Hermione finally returned from wherever it was she went with Ron in tow. Bill didn't ask, he felt the less he knew the better. Also, he had a slight headache and Hermione talked a ton. Ron had given him a hug and several bits of chocolate. Of his siblings, Ron was the most like his mum. He was kind, nurturing and when he finally did snap he turned into a bloody banshee.

"So Travers is switching tactics. He originally was trying to prove you were a death eater in the war with Flint's testimony but now that he is out of the picture he needs a new line of defense. My worry is he'll bring in a new panel of witnesses. Contrary to popular belief, I don't have an unending line of knowledge on everyone who works for the Ministry." she supplied after she finished her rice.

"What backup proof do you think he has?" asked Ron through a mouthful of pasta. Hermione used her forefinger to close his mouth and continued speaking.

"Well, that Victoire angle definitely shook up the Wizengamot. They may request her to be brought in and examined." Shouts of protests filled the room immediately. Hermione waved her hands in exasperation.

"Obviously I'm not suggesting we do it or allow them to. I'm just letting you know their thought process. It's actually illegal to force a child under ten to testify especially against a parent. Also, we would need parental consent for her to testify and we could just have Bill and Fleur deny that request. It won't look good, even though there is a valid concern for not traumatizing children under the age of ten with Ministry court officials."

"What else does he have?" Bill asked.

"He is probably going to try and discredit my witnesses even though I prepped them for it and then he will try and prove that you are Lucius Malfoy's son. I spoke to your father and given the social climate, we cannot let that happen. People are still terrified that Voldemort is going to come back a third time. Having it confirmed that one of the biggest families that fought for the light has a son with a Death Eater is going to start a mass panic. Not only does Kingsley want it kept quiet but so does the Aurory and the majority of the Wizengamot."

"So why are we having this bloody trial then?" muttered Charlie.

"Because we can't just ignore a summons from a Ministry solicitor, Charlie. That was how the government worked at the end of the first war and look what happened. Actual Death Eaters were let free while innocent people, like Sirius Black, were sent to Azkaban without a trial. Even though we know that Bill is a… well a good guy we still have to go through the proper channels and everything else that it entails."

The room went silent as everyone digested Hermione's information and the massive amounts of food they had just consumed. Weasley's had matching appetites to go with their tempers. It stayed quiet until George broke the silence.

"Where were you all this time?"

"Your mother is beginning to regain her memories slowly with Lucius Malfoy's help. I checked in on her and when I left she was re-experiencing some of her brother's death. She wasn't able to hold onto the memory, though. She forgot about it a half hour later, only to re-remember it. To Mr. Malfoy's credit, he has been edging her along the timeline and helping her with her collective memory. If he really was her… you know… it can't be easy for him to relive... that and definitely not that many times.

Also, I went to check in on your dad in his office. He is still under an armed guard but he sends his love and says you should all behave. His exact words were not to do anything Percy wouldn't do or something like that..." all the Weasley boys in the room present groaned.

"So basically we have to sit on our arses and look like we have a Cleansweep shoved so far-" Charlie was cut off by Harry choking on his lo mein. After Hermione was one hundred percent sure that Harry's takeaway wasn't going to kill him she went over their line up for their defense. She was mostly quoting a bunch of laws that the many had used to keep their family affairs private and out of the laws hands. Hermione was also employing Seamus Finnigan to research what had caused the explosion. Apparently, he had a natural gift for pyrotechnics.

"It was probably a toy from Mum's house. Fleur rushed over that morning and forgot Victoire's toy bag." Bill tried to remember specific details about the morning but he was coming up blank. It had just been a regular hectic morning.

"Can you make a list of everything she likes to play with at the Burrow that she doesn't have at home?" Hermione handed him a quill and parchment and he scribbled down everything he could think of. Hermione read it over and rolled her eyes.

"Rubber ducks? Really? You know they're just a common bath toy. I've told your father this-" Ron kissed Hermione's full on the mouth, effectively stopping her tirade about his father's muggle hoarding problem. She spluttered in shock as the brothers roared with laughter at her scarlet face. Hermione wasn't one for public affection, she was shy to the point that the Weasley family had to be informed the two were dating. Charlie was momentarily distracted by their scuffle from his dutiful staring at the liquor cabinet.

"Hermione, the man needs a hobby. Let him have his hobby." she threw her hands in the air in exasperation. Bill chuckled at her response.

"It's really not that bad Hermione." Charlie patted her shoulder sympathetically as Bill swiped some leftover chips from Charlie's plate.

"HEY!"

"Actually Charlie, I was wondering if you could sit out for the next portion of the hearing." The room that had been filled with small pockets of chatter that included Pam, who had finally resurfaced, and Harry debating Quidditch, went silent.

"Why the bloody fucking hell would I sit my brother's trial out?" Bill could see his brother attempting to tamper his temper.

"Because your ex is going on the stand first and I don't want to put you in an awkward position when she gets cross-examined by Travers."

"I can act like an adult Hermione," he shot back hotly.

"I'm not saying that you can't, Charlie. I'm just-"

"This is my brother, there is no chance in hell-"

"If it was Ron or Harry I would have already jumped over the stands and strangled all of those miserable bastards and enlisted Ginny to hex the living daylights out of Travers," Hermione said calmly. Charlie went quiet.

"You don't have to do anything Charlie." Bill looked at Hermione pleadingly. As much as he hated to admit it, he needed his brother at his side. Charlie kept him calm and clear-headed.

"Fine, it is Bill's case, but at least think about Charlie."

"I'll be as quiet as a mouse. You won't even know I'm there." Charlie swore. They finished up their lunch while Hermione finished their plans for the afternoon. Pamela insisted on cleaning up after them and sent them all down with a bag of freshly baked mint drop biscuits for each of them.

Wizengamot Chambers, Tuesday 2:05 PM

"ARE YOU LOT BLOODY BARMY?" Charlie roared. Bill had given up trying to talk sense into his brother. They were all enraged but Charlie was being a bit overaggressive. Travers had somehow found out that not only was Hermione using Gabriella Torren but she was also Charlie's ex. Hermione was distraught and Bill couldn't figure out how Travers had attained either of those bits of information. The cross-examination had been brutal. Travers basically made Auror Torren look like a lovesick ex, looking to get back with Charlie by falsely testifying for his brother. The fact that she was in charge of Auror Flint during the scuffle in Saint Mungos didn't help the situation.

Bill had been momentarily distracted by his own thoughts and lost hold of Charlie's robes. His brother scrambled out of his reach in an attempt to physically strangle the pompous little wizard. George helped Bill in his struggle to regain their out-of-control brother. Hermione swooped over and placed herself right in front of Charlie.

"You need to pull yourself together, Charlie. You are making this much much worse than it already it is." Hermione hissed. Charlie yanked his shoulders away from his brothers and sat with a huff.

"As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted, Auror Torren when was the last time you had sexual relations with Mr. Weasley-"

"ENOUGH! Travers, this is completely uncalled for!" Ms. Macmillan face was red, whether it was because of the sensitive nature of the questioning or the number of times she scolded Travers was unclear. She had returned from lunch looking relatively calm. Travers had returned from lunch looking positively giddy. Auror Torren raised a tentative hand towards the Wizengamot member.

"If you want to ask about my service record, I am more than happy to provide it. However, I have always been faithful to the Ministry, the true Ministry, even during a time when most of the Ministry was under Voldemort's thumb." she ignored the gasps around the room at the Dark Lord's name. "I have nothing to hide and you are more than welcome to look into my service record or speak to my supervisor."

"And who might that be?" Travers was scribbling something down on his parchment.

"Head Auror Ian Proudfoot." at Gabriella's response Travers stopped his writing immediately.

"Are you saying that you were in charge during the attack on Saint Mungos?" Travers pressed.

"I was sent to Saint Mungos to assess an assault situation. There was never any order to arrest anyone, neither did I. The paperwork will confirm this. I restrained my Aurors when it became clear that they were aggressively pursuing a patient. We were summoned for a simple dispute call. There was never any mention of Aurors being at the center of the dispute or the Weasley family name. I would have recused myself prior to being called in had that been the case. Again all of this is in the official report that I filed the day of the incident."

"Yes, but at what point when you arrived at the hospital did you order the Aurors to attack-" Travers was cut off by a severely incensed Ms. Macmillan.

"Mr. Travers I thought you made it very clear that the Aurors were not responsible for the 'attack' and that you believe it was a coordinated attack by the Weasley family?" Ms. Macmillan intoned.

"Yes, but if Ms. Torren is the one who coordinated such an attack-" Hermione stood abruptly.

"Auror Torren don't answer any further questions." Hermione turned towards the Wizengamot. "I am going to ask the witches and wizards of the Wizengamot to dismiss this line of questioning. Mr. Travers is clearly grasping at straws and trying to besmirch the honorable reputation of one of the Ministry's finest Aurors in order to further his case. It is not only despicable but also a proverbial witch hunt in order for Mr. Travers to win his case."

After a bit of chattering from the Wizengamot and a lot of turning and moving from the residents, Ms. Macmillan called Hermione and Travers in front of her. They were murmuring quietly and Hermione was waving her hands around. Ms. Macmillan slammed her gavel down to silence the Wizengamot members behind her.

"Auror Torren, I thank you for your testimony. I also apologize on behalf of the Wizengamot for the personal nature of some of these questions. Please be aware that there will be no inquiry into your service record and we commend you for your exemplary job at keeping calm and level-headed during the Saint Mungos incident." Gabriella stood tall and nodded her head at the Wizengamot.

"Ma'am." As was her way, she left the room with little fanfare.

Bill watched her leave, trying to understand how things had gone downhill so quickly. The Wizengamot had been in better spirits when they filed back in from their lunch break. While the testimony of the little old witch wasn't good for their side of the case the Wizengamot seemed to be much more at ease with full bellies. They had wrongly assumed that Travers was happy because the Wizengamot took the elderly woman's testimony seriously and that it did not reflect well on Bill.

Charlie had noted the good change of the Wizengamot's mood when George motioned to the gleeful face of Travers reflected that of someone who knew something. It dampened their spirits considerably, anything that made Travers that happy wasn't good for them. George and Charlie were sent from the courtroom while testimonies were given from different Healers and Aurors. Charlie was sent to a small adjoining room where he could see what was going on but was not physically in the room.

Pamela had come to sit next to Bill so he wouldn't be alone. Bill was surprised to find her funny and sweet. She had nicknames for every single Wizengamot member from Lord Cookoo face to Lady of the Exploding Hat Vulture. Her mirth and joyous mood kept Bill thoroughly distracted until it was time for the Weasley testimonies. When it was announced that they were summoning Harry Potter and Ron Weasley from the Auror department, she gripped his hand and smiled encouragingly at him.

Ron had been summoned first to give his testimonies and Pensieve memories from Saint Mungos. The Wizengamot usually didn't request Pensieve memories, however because of the Auror's destruction in the wizarding hospital the Wizengamot was taking every precaution. Hermione and Travers did not ask questions from these witnesses, however, the Wizengamot did.

His youngest brother squeezed Bill's shoulder on his way out and whispered his love. Harry followed with the same process smiling at Bill encouragingly. They were both sent back to the Auror department to review for an upcoming exam. One that Bill was sure they wouldn't be studying for.

Afterward, George was called in and told to give his statement. He did, stoically and almost without any jokes or fanfare. That was until Travers was trying to prove that the siblings hadn't been together, in an effort to corroborate his theory on their coordinated attack on the hospital. It was only when Travers had asked specifically what Ginny's attire was when she came to the hospital that he had responded with, "Dunno, but I bet Harry knows seeing as she came from his bed."

Hermione had blushed and practically begged for the comment to be removed from the record, which Ms. Macmillan eagerly complied. After getting his laughs in, George was dismissed and sent to sit next to Bill in silence. Pamela wished them luck and headed back to her office, giving each of them a chocolate frog as she left.

Finally, Charlie had given his testimony and everything went smoothly. Well, not the part where he admitted to threatening and Auror and sending Dragons after him, but the rest went pretty well. Then Hermione called in several other Aurors, the last one being Auror Torren.

The door had barely closed behind Auror Torren when Travers held one finger up. Ms. Macmillan nodded her head in approval at the solicitor. Hermione sat up immediately alert.

"Mr. Weasley." All three boys looked up at Ms. Macmillan. "No, the…" she sighed. "Charlie Weasley. Please come to the stand. Mr. Travers has some further questions for you."

Bill squeezed his brother's hand in a show of support. "Try and be keep calm. Think of dragons or something, but maybe not setting them on people."

Charlie walked up to the chair and sat ungracefully in it.

"State your name for the record, Mr. Charlie Weasley." Ms. Macmillan ordered.

"Mr. Charlie Weasley," he responded sarcastically. Hermione buried her head in her arms, whatever good behavior they had been getting from Charlie had apparently expired. George covered his laugh with a cough. The temporary head of the Wizengamot rolled her eyes at Charlie's response and waved her hand at Travers to continue. His beady eyes lit up with glee and Bill, not for the first time that day, began to worry.

"Mr. Weasley. What is your occupation?"

"I'm a Dragon Tamer."

"It's a tough job, I hear." Charlie looked the man up and down and Bill groaned when his eyes lingered in disgust on Traver's rather enlarged belly.

"You would think so, see it requires a bit of… physical exercise." George laughed. The Wizengamot was littered with a spattering of suspiciously timed coughs that rang through their esteemed members, as well as two Aurors stationed at the door. Travers face reddened before he scribbled more things down in his parchment.

"Romanians are known for being looser than the British, are they not?"

"I'm not seeing the question. If you're asking how they like their tea? They don't. They work hard and rarely relax."

"That sounds stressful, Mr. Weasley."

"Yes well not everyone has the advantage of sitting in robes behind a desk half their life. Some people work and break bones every day."

"Have you broken bones in your line of work Mr. Weasley?"

"I'm a Dragon Tamer. Do some research and then ask me that again."

"Well, it stands to reason that when one works hard they… what's the expression…" Travers pretended to think for a moment. Hermione's head snapped up her face was pale. "Ahh yes... when works hard they play hard as well. Is that the case with you Mr. Weasley?"

"I don't even know what that means."

"You wouldn't. It's a muggle saying. It's a reference to intercourse and I am curious as to why Senior Auror Torren refused to disclose the nature of your break up. One is to wonder if you're hard-play was too hard for the seasoned Auror and if she has medical records at Saint Mungos to corroborate my theory."

Charlie's face went very still and Bill was waiting for an outburst, hell the entire courtroom was sitting on the edge. Every Auror had drawn their wands discreetly and Hermione was teetering so close to the edge of her seat, George stretched a hand to steady her.

They were all surprised when he slumped in his seat, defeated. The blood had drained from his face to the point that his barely visible freckles were suddenly stark on his face. Charlie's usually tanned face reflected that of a man who had his heart broken that had never fully healed. Bill had to grip the edge of his seat to stop himself from running to his little brother and holding him close.

"When Gabby and I first met she wasn't an Auror yet. She was doing her last bit of training to become an Auror. We met in Romania. She was assisting in a crime unit that was trying to discover who was stealing baby hatchlings and selling them on the Black market. We actually managed to get one Norwegian Ridgeback back via an anonymous buyer in the UK. When the ring was dismantled… there was no reason for her to stay. She loves her job as an Auror and there wasn't work for her in Romania.

She's a great Auror and she wouldn't let anything or anyone stand in her way. Especially when rumors of You Know Who started surfacing, she wanted to be home on the front lines. I didn't want to leave my dragons and she didn't want to leave the UK, where her career was. I asked her to stay… she chose… she didn't choose me. She chose you people. She chose the Ministry because that was what she was born to do. She was born to protect people."

Charlie's voice broke towards the end of his speech. Bill knew it didn't end well, but he didn't know that Charlie was still… traumatized by the entire affair. His refusal at any long-term relationship was suddenly extremely clear. Their family had always been under the impression that he didn't care about lifelong commitments and that the only lifelong thing he ever wanted was to be with his dragons. Bill wondered idly what his future plans with Tracey Davis were if there were any.

"Is that all Mr. Weasley?" Travers sneered. He clearly wasn't as affected as the rest of the room was. Charlie just shrugged his shoulders in response.

"So your testimony is not only conveniently shining a positive light on Auror Torrens but on yourself as well." Charlie shrugged his shoulders again. Bill scanned the crowd in the Wizengamot and was pleased to see mostly sympathetic faces.

"So you are not going to include the fact that not only was she unfaithful to you, but Senior Auror Torren cheated on you with someone who was discovered to be a follower of You Know Who during the War? In addition to the fact that her father-" Charlie's eyes lit up in unbridled fury.

"We were both pissed on Firewhiskey and other things that night and we both made mistakes. Throwing an engagement ring at her face probably wasn't one of my wisest ideas and I'll bet she'll agree that shacking up with the first bloke she met at the pub wasn't the best of her ideas either. I doubt she even knew his name at the time.

If you bothered to look at her service record you will see that she was the one who captured him and tossed him into a cell, shortly before the battle of Hogwarts. She was part of a specialized task force that was working within the Ministry to capture Death Eaters or people under the Imperius. She arranged the task force and she is primarily the reason we captured as many Death Eater's as we did."

"That may be, however her birth father-"

"Is a matter of sealed record and unless you have permission from the Minister of Magic himself finishing that sentence will earn you a stay in Azkaban." Charlie retorted. All eyes turned to Kingsley who had his wrist on his chin looking at the solicitor with rising alarm.

"My dear members of the Wizengamot. I must apologize, for I need you to excuse Mr. Travers and I. It seems the two of us need to have a discussion as to how exactly he obtained information that I was not even privy to until I became Minister of Magic. Prior to becoming Minister, I was Head Auror, and Gabriella worked for me for many years. As such I know the woman intimately."

"Minister, you were aware of their relationship?" Travers was genuinely surprised. "You were aware that the accused had a relationship with one of his witnesses?"

Murmuring broke out amongst the Wizengamot members. They were looking at Kingsley with distrust. Kingsley was eyeing Mister Travers with something close to annoyance that was cleverly covered with a look of intrigue. The Minister of Magic held up his hand and the room fell silent.

"Yes. So much so, that I advised Auror Torren against going back to Romania and abandoning her career to patch things up with Mr. Weasley."

Charlie looked at the Minister with thinly veiled fury. "It was a long time ago Charlie. Let it go."

"Minister, is this information about Auror Torren's father something that could change the outcome of the case?" Ms. Macmillan asked sternly. She was trying to change the direction of the conversation and it worked. Everyone was distracted by the reason that they were going on break.

"Not in the slightest, however, given Auror Torren's personal request was approved by the last four Ministers, including myself, I request this discussion cease immediately. As well as a break while Mr. Travers and I adjourn to my office."

I really didn't think I was going to get this chapter out. I just moved (temporarily) for the summer and I'm zonked. Then I remembered how much annapsarudaki loves this fic so I pushed on! Anna, this chapter is for you! -Chefke