Die to Live

Chapter Eleven

By Mell8

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"The Dark Mark tattooed on his arm is evidence enough of Malfoy's allegiance with Voldemort and the Death Eaters. It clearly shows that he supports their dark cause. It would not be safe or wise to let this Death Eater go free." The old wizard finished his speech and took his seat along the wall of the Wizengamot. He was an old Auror who had retired from duty after the battle had been won against Voldemort. The man spent his time ensuring that all Death Eaters were sent to Azkaban and he was relentless against both Draco Malfoy and Blaise Zabini.

The members of the court nodded their heads. Most considered it to be a foregone conclusion that both boys, who were chained to the chairs in the center of the room, would be in Azkaban by the end of the night.

"Yes, he has the Dark Mark on his arm but it was unwillingly placed there." Another man stood up from his seat against the wall and stood in front of the Wizengamot. "Lucius Malfoy, known Death Eater and manipulator, had a fondness for forcing people to do what he wanted. Draco Malfoy was forced to enter the ranks of the Death Eaters because his father tied the boy up, dragged him, kicking and screaming, to where Voldemort waited, and held out the boy's arm while the mark was placed." The wizard pulled out a huge sheaf of parchment from his briefcase. "I hold in my hand six confessions of Death Eaters in Azkaban whom, while under the influence of veritaserum, testified that the situation I have just described is completely true. Draco Malfoy never wanted to become a Death Eater and as such, should not be sent to Azkaban." The wizard sat down again satisfied that he had safely shocked the court by proving his client's unwilling excursion into the ranks of the Death Eaters. Narcissa Malfoy would be proud that she had hired him.

"But we must not forget Dumbledore's murder!" The Aurors' wizard stood with a flourish. "We have heard, in a testimony from Harry Potter himself, about Draco Malfoy's various attempts on the late, great Headmaster Dumbledore and about the fateful night when Draco Malfoy cornered Dumbledore on a high tower top and allowed the Death Eater Severus Snape to kill the Headmaster. Is that not proof of Malfoy's involvement with the Death Eaters?" The man returned to his seat with a satisfied smirk on his face.

"That is true, but unfortunately you have neglected to mention a very important piece of Mr. Potter's testimony." He pulled out another piece of paper and held it in front of his square nose. "I quote from Mr. Potter's testimony in the words of Albus Dumbledore and Draco Malfoy, '"My dear boy, let us have no more pretense about that. If you were going to kill me, you would have done it when you first disarmed me, you would not have stopped for this pleasant chat about ways and means."

"I haven't got any options!" said Malfoy, and he was suddenly white as Dumbledore. "I've got to do it! He'll kill me! He'll kill my whole family!"

"I appreciate the difficulty of your position," said Dumbledore. "Why else do you think I have not confronted you before now? Because I knew that you would have been murdered if Lord Voldemort realized that I suspected you." Malfoy winced at the sound of the name. "I did not dare speak to you of the mission with which I knew you had been entrusted, in case he used Legilimency against you," continued Dumbledore. "But now at last we can speak plainly to each other…. No harm has been done; you have hurt nobody, though you are very lucky that your unintentional victims survived…. I can help you, Draco."

"No, you can't," said Malfoy, his wand hand shaking very badly indeed. "Nobody can. He told me to do it or he'll kill me, I've got no choice."

"He cannot kill you if you are already dead."' "

The man put the parchment aside and pulled out another one. "I have a confession signed by Draco Malfoy while under the powers of veritaserum that agree with the passage I have read from Mr. Potter's testimony. Additionally Albus Dumbledore's last line ' he cannot kill you if you are already dead' brings me to my next point. Not very long after Dumbledore's death Draco Malfoy did appear to have died at the hands of one of the members of the Order of the Phoenix. Ginevera Weasley carried out Dumbledore's last order. She took Draco Malfoy away from his tormentors, the Death Eaters, and brought him somewhere where the boy would not be forced into any more Death Eater activities."

The wizard pulled out even more paper and passed this bundle to the Head of the Wizengamot and quickly hid his delight when he saw the Auror in charge of putting the Death Eaters behind bars shift uncomfortably in his seat. "This is a series of statements proving Ginevra Weasley's motive to be freeing Mr. Malfoy from the evil clutches of Voldemort. Draco Malfoy, Blaise Zabini, Ginevera Weasley, Fred Weasley, George Weasley, and Lee Jordan made these statements. Also, I have statements by two house elves, one Dobby and Winky, who both work in the kitchen at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, proving the strong comradeship of Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Zabini with Miss Weasley. Plus I give you accounts from many towns people who remember when the three teens first moved into their town and how destitute and anxious all three were."

"Is there any more information to be brought in front of the Wizengamot proving the guilt or innocence of one Draco Malfoy?" The head of the court stood from his seat and looked around the room and then at the blond chained to his seat on the main floor. When no one answered him the man nodded. "Very well. The Wizengamot will deliberate this matter. Court is adjourned until the decision has been made.

III

"Mr. Blaise Zabini is closely associated with the Death Eaters. He openly supports Draco Malfoy and his family has always been allied with the Dark Arts." The old Auror stood and slowly made his opening statements against Blaise Zabini. He knew that his argument against the boy was weak. The only strikes on Zabini's record were two detentions while in Hogwarts due to not handing in his homework. There was nothing to truly prove the boy's guilt. All the Auror could do was make generalizations that could not be based on hard fact with the hopes that the Wizengamot would take his side.

The wizard hired by Lady Malfoy stood up and threw a smirk over towards the old Auror. It was clear that he had already won this case.

III

"Bring in Ginevera Weasley!" the Head of the Wizengamot called. The doors in the back of the room opened with a loud groan and Ginny was brought in surrounded by two Aurors. A chair appeared between the chained Draco and Blaise and Ginny sank into it slowly. She was nervous, to say the least, and was horribly worried that something she said or did would send her boy's back to prison.

"The evidence for this case has already been presented," the Head of the Wizengamot began. "Miss Weasley, do you have any words that need to be brought to the attention of the Wizengamot?"

Ginny nodded and stood up. "All I have to say is that I love these boys." She wiped away a tear and placed one hand on Draco's shoulder and another on Blaise's. "I would give my life for them and I know that they would equally give their lives for me and for each other with out second thoughts. Everything I did, the planning and action of our deaths and subsequent hiding in the Muggle world, I did it to save their lives and I would do it again in a heartbeat. I gave up my family and friends, my life and my dreams of becoming someone important in this world, to save them. Anyone who knew me knows that I would never throw in my lot so strongly unless I wholeheartedly believed in the cause. I believe in these boys, and I ask that the sentence given to them be given to me because it would be less painful for me to be in Azkaban, knowing that they are only a few cells away from me, than it would be for me to be free while they are so far away." Ginny was crying openly now and the whole court watched as both Malfoy and Zabini struggled against their chains until they were free enough to move their heads. Both boys rubbed their cheeks against the hand on their shoulder. Ginny smiled through her tears at the boys before the Aurors flanked her again and led the redhead out of the room.

As the doors closed behind her the Wizengamot stood and left the room for more comfortable quarters where they could discuss and sentence all three teens.

In another room on the other side of the Ministry of Magic Ronald Weasley began to plan.