AN: Well, this has taken a long time and many of you might've thought that the story was abandoned. It isn't and I have no intention to do so.
This chapter is a result of the positive review the reader "skywiseskychan" left me yesterday. It was the first review concerning this story for more than half a year, and gave me the motivation to sit down and go over what I'd written so far.
I edited and added a few hundred words here and there, then decided that diving back into "A witch's shards" was more important than to finish the infamous court scene in one chapter. Here is the result, have fun with it!
Part 2
Holidays from Justice
Chapter 3
Hermione's throat felt as dry as the Kalahari dessert, and she was forced to swallow repeatedly before she could present the statement she had worked on in the back of her head for the last minutes.
Finally, she fixed Madame Bones, who she thought to be the most sympathetic to her, in her gaze, and started to speak.
„I'm not guilty of any of the crimes I'm accused of." she stated simply and with as much conviction and firmness as she could muster.
Madam Bones' eyes widened a tiny fraction, maybe in surprise, but before any other reaction – especially from Umbridge – was forthcoming, Hermione hurried on, determined to have her say now that the barrage of accusations was finally over.
„The only count I'm technically responsible for is number four" she declared, letting the fury she felt about the treatment of her parents infuse her voice with steel. „But I submit to the court that my so called 'resistance to ministry personal' and „use of wild magic" was actually an excess of emergency assistance, provoked by the absolutely unjustified treatment my parents suffered at the hands of this court itself."
A shocked silence descended on the room, and Hermione noticed an angry vertical frown line forming on Madame Bones' forehead.
Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to accuse the woman's underlings of wrongdoing if she wanted to impress her?
The court's astonishment hadn't quite worn off in the second Hermione had taken to come to that insight, and she resumed her defense without hesitation.
„I don't know how it was done, by whom or even why, but considering what has happened to me, I've come to the conclusion that I was framed by a malevol..."
Her statement was cut off abruptly, and though her lips were still forming the last words of the sentence, she couldn't hear a sound of what she was saying.
Confused, Hermione looked away from Madame Bones and saw that Umbridge, who had heaved her body out of her chair, was pointing a wand in her direction. Her face was red as a tomato, the features scrunched up in mindless fury, and there was actually a pulsing vein emerging on her left temple.
„This is more than enough!" the Presiding Interrogator shouted furiously, spittle flying from her mouth.
„Not only does the accused mock this court with ridiculously false claims of innocence, but she dares to shift the blame for her crimes on our law enforcement officers!"
Umbridge was shaking with rage and the small analytical part of Hermione's mind which wasn't quivering in fear asked itself how such an unstable and crass person could rise to the position of Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic.
The blustering toad took a deep breath and visibly calmed herself before she addressed her fellow judges in her usual simpering tone.
„Amelia, Mafalda, please excuse my temper, I can't bear it when our brave hit wizards and the reasonable laws and edicts they protect are scorned."
The two witches nodded, reluctantly in the case of Madame Bones. Umbridge turned her bulging eyes back to Hermione and a sneer formed on her wide mouth.
„As Presiding Interrogator of this court of justice, I motion that the accused shall be muted for the rest of the proceedings, except for times in which the court has questions for her. Her contempt of the justice system and the judges appointed to determine her fate is obvious and intolerable."
„I second the motion." Mrs. Hopkirk declared, piercing Hermione with an angry glare.
Hermione's directed a pleading gaze to Madame Bones, who looked as if she had swallowed something vile and was forcing herself not to throw up. „Silencing a defendant in juvenille court seems excessive to me." she informed the other women curtly. „I vote against it."
„The court has decided two to one to silence the unruly defendant" Umbridge stated in satisfaction.
"We will now begin to assess the overwhelming evidence against Ms. Granger."
She nodded her fat head eagerly, as if she couldn't wait to see Hermione humbled.
„We call Senior Hitwizard Selwyn of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement into the stand."
Hermione heard the doors of the courtroom open behind her and heavy steps started to approach the interrogators' bench rapidly, until she could glimpse the intimidating silhouette of her captor from the corner of her eyes.
„Dear cousin, it is a pleasure to see you healthy and in good spirits after you had to deal with such a dangerous criminal as the accused." Umbgridge simpered in greeting.
Selvyn stayed mute, but gave a polite nod, acknowledging the Presiding Interrogator.
His demure reaction seemed to confuse Umbridge for a moment, but she realized quickly that her words, while establishing her family connection to the ancient Selwyn pureblood line to everyone in the room, were rather improper for a court of law.
Turning her head to the scribe, she spat out a crisp „Delete the last sentence!" and went on more formally.
„The court of Interrogaters acknowledges Senior Hitwizard Selvyn as a witness. He is personally known to all of us, the information on his identity can be added to the record post factum."
The other judges signaled their acquiescence and Hermione wondered again about the arbitrariness of the proceedings.
Being silenced for defending herself and seeing Umbridge boasting with her pure blood „credentials" was dreadful, but it helped her to realize that she wasn't just facing one biased judge, but a kangaroo court.
If the trial ended as it had started, she would be lucky if McGonagall was able to keep her out of Azkaban. The mere thought send shivers of fear through her whole body and she had to force back tears of despair.
She clenched her teeth and managed to seal of her tear ducts. Umbridge's blustering provoked a cynical thought to pierce the fog of misery in her mind.
„And this is the „just and reasonable" justice system the ministry boasts about in their orientation booklets for muggleborns. Preposterous!"
„Hitwizard Selwyn, could you please describe to this court how you discovered the crimes of the defendant?" the Presiding Interrogator queried the witness pleasantly.
Selvyn stood up straighter and clasped his hands behind his back, exactly as he had done when he had paced in front of Hermione a few hours previously.
„Of course, your honor. At twelve minutes past two in the morning of August 23rd, the set of dark magic detection runes coupled to the output map of the countrywide systemic charm commonly known as „The Trace" alarmed the on duty officer in the Improper Use of Magic Office to a developing situation in the vicinity of number twelve, Essex Villas, Kensington, London."
He paused and took a deep breath, as if he was fortifying himself for the next outrageous part, a very professional display of playing the court, at least in Hermione's estimation.
„Due to the extreme danger posed by the use of dark magic by an underage witch in a muggle neighborhood, he alarmed the hitwizard squad on call."
He shook his head as if he still couldn't believe the severity of her so called „crime".
„Directly after being alarmed, I personally enchanted a portkey, took my partner hitwizard Jugson with me, and left for the crime scene. Entering the premises of the Granger home, we encountered fierce resistance by the muggle" - Selvyn's disparaging tone when uttering the word indicated his disdain for non- magical people very clearly - „Charles Granger, and had to stun him on the spot. I left Jugson behind to deal with the muggle Miriam Granger and entered the room of the accused."
Selvyn attempted to make another of his rather theatrical pauses, but this time Madame Bones stepped in to hasten the statement along.
„What did you find there, Mr Selvyn?" she asked harshly, obviously displeased by his tactics. „And remember" she admonished him „that this is not the stage of the Circe Coliseum."
„Of course, your honor" Selvyn agreed smoothly.
„As I was saying, I entered Ms. Grangers bedroom. She was standing in the shadows in a threatening posture, besides a pentacle obviously used for dark purposes. I acted according to standard procedure and eliminated any possible danger to my person by stunning the perpetrator."
Fury exploded through Hermione as the so called „officer of the law" distorted the truth in such a incriminatory way, but her grimaces and the wild shaking of her head were ignored by the three interrogators.
„After incapacitating Mrs. Granger, Hitwizard Jugson joined me in securing the room and searching for evidence. In addition to the pentacle and the defendant's wand, we found a book with the title "Breaking the bonds", laying opened on the accused's desk. I recognized it as an item listed in the DMLE's Executive Censorship Decree on Dark Literature."
„Do you have knowledge of the content of this book?" Interrogator Hopkirk asked grimly.
„Yes, it supplies a sufficiently depraved individual with all steps necessary to complete the highly illegal "Ruptis Vinculis" ritual, which is used to redact an underage witch or wizard from the matrix of the „Trace" charm. That knowledge includes, in addition to the ritual itself, several incantations needed to temporarily block the „Trace" while the ritual is performed. The defendant must've botched those initial incantations."
Slevyn turned slightly in Hermiones's direction and gave her a disparaging look while he continued his explanation.
„The potential for catastrophic results represented by "Ruptis Vinculis" has been shown by none other than its inventor, Gellert Grindelwald, who started to torture and murder people as soon as he freed himself from the Trace in 1898, after his expulsion from Durmstrang. He had just turned sixteen at the time, if I remember correctly."
The court was silent for a moment while the judges leaned back in their chairs and seemed to reflect on the hazard an underage dark witch outside the Trace matrix could pose to the Statute of Secrecy.
After a minute had passed, Hermione started to fidget uneasily in her iron chair. The oppressive silence and the troubled expressions of the Interrogators, especially Madame Bones', were worrying her.
Umbridge ended the moment with one of her trademark throat clearings and thanked Selvyn with ridiculous effusiveness for his „Dedication to the safety of all law abiding witches and wizards."
She was swelling with the importance of her own words once again, but went on with the trial eventually, after she had uttered half a dozen more simpering sentences of nothingness.
„As the next witness, the court calls..."
A very severe, downright frightening „Harumppf!" interrupted Umbridge, and in reaction, every eye in the room focused on Deputy Headmistress McGonagall.
„It looks as if she has decided to finally honor her role as my advocate" Hermione thought with a mix of relief and annoyance.
„If imitating the toad womans spleen to spite her is the right way to start my defense is another question though."
The Presiding Interrogator clearly understood McGonagall's message, because her face flushed once again and her heavy bosom heaved in visible agitation.
„What is the meaning of this, Ms. McGonagall?" she asked in faked confusion, retributing the professors taunt by ostensibly forgetting her titles.
„I would like to remind the court that the defense counsel is entitled to cross examine witnesses." McGonagall stated flatly.
„But whatever for? Senior Hit Wizard Selvyn has described the situation he found in the Granger home in great detail. I don't understand why anyone would want to stop him from returning to his pressing duties."
„Regardless, I insist on my rights as Ms. Granger's counsel." the professor declared and took a few quick steps towards Umbridge's thronelike bench.
Her demeanor wasn't threatening per se, but her straight pose and flinty eyed gaze signaled that no one – not even the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic – was well advised to trifle with her.
Umbridge turned to her assessors and raised her eyebrows, inviting them to comment, but both of them declined to come to her defense. She deflated slightly and gave the Deputy Headmistress a sour look.
„Very well Ms. McGonagall, you might proceed to question Senior Hit Wizard Selvyn."
The professor faced the gaunt man, who appeared rattled by the sudden turn of the proceedings.
McGonagall's whole posture changed, reminding Hermione of a cat ready to bounce on her prey.
„Mr. Selvyn," she began calmly „you told us that you secured the book „Breaking the bonds" in Ms. Grangers' bedroom. Could I take a look at it?"
Judging by Selvyns expression, the question came very much out of left field for him, but he rallied quickly and pulled a small package out of his cloak's inner pocket. A quick spell later, he had enlarged and opened it with a complex set of wand motions.
To Hermione's inexperienced eye, the thing looked like a bizarre cross between a medieval strongbox and a modern filing cabinet. It served its purpose though, because a second later, Selvyn held out a thin book to McGonagall, who accepted it gingerly and handled it as if it could snap at her.
„And it might just do that" Hermione mused, momentarily distracted from the scene by memories of the cursed books she'd seen in the restricted section of the Hogwarts library.
The professor opened the book cautiously, but started to thumb through it quickly when only a few dust motes emanated from it. She stopped moments later, obviously finding what she was looking for, and started to scan the text intensely.
Umbridge looked on with visible impatience, and when a minute had passed, she opened her wide mouth to interrupt.
McGonagall chose that exact moment to close the book with a resounding clap that echoed through the court room, leaving the Senior Undersecretary sitting there with her mouth hanging wide open.
„Just like a toad ready to catch a fly." Hermione reflected with dry gallows humor.
She sobered quickly when the professor used the attention she had garnered to explain herself.
„As some of you may know, I was one of those who fought You-Know-Who and his death eaters in the last war." she started, getting an affirming nod from Madame Bones in reply.
„In the course of my duty, I was confronted with the aftermath of several dark arts rituals, and I learned a thing or two about them, especially how to identify those who had sullied themselves by performing such deplorable acts."
„Where is she going with this?" was the question that flitted through Hermione's mind, but obviously not only through hers, because everyone in the courtroom listened tensely, a mixture of confusion and disquiet on their features.
„I asked Mr. Selvyn to show me the book because I suspected – correctly - that the „Ruptus Vinculus" ritual is one of those requiring a blood sacrifice by the person who uses it. Consequently ..." McGonagall smiled slightly as she delivered her punchline „... I would like to know if the Hit Wizard Office has performed an Asher- Reversion on Ms. Granger, to ensure she was the actual culprit."
Selvyn was clearly taken off guard by this demand.
„Well, you see professor..." he shot a quick gaze at Umbridge, as is he was hoping to get help from her, but for once Umbridge ignored her cousin's prompt. Instead she leaned forward frowning in what was probably slightly confused interest.
Maybe she'd never heard of a so called „Asher- Reversion. If so, it would be one of the very few things she had in common with one Hermione Granger.
„... it didn't even occur to me that there was any need for excessive forensic work."
His words had gained surety while he spoke, and he continued in the „actors" voice he'd used before.
„After all, we caught Ms. Granger in the act and secured evidence," he pointed towards the book still in McGonagall's hands „which proved to us beyond any reasonable doubt that she was the guilty party."
The Professor nodded along to his words, smiling wryly.
"I'm sure you liquidated every doubt you might've had with the utmost diligence." she declared smoothly, with a nearly undetectable hint of irony.
"Nonetheless, you don't know Ms. Granger as I do as her teacher and head of house. In my estimation, it's utterly out of character for her to even contemplate using the dark arts, not to speak of actually doing so."
She stood up straighter when she delivered the last line of her declaration of trust:
"I'm convinced that Ms. Granger is correct in her assessment that she was framed by persons unknown."
McGonagall swiveled her head around like a lioness searching for pray, a fierce stare in her flinty eyes, challenging everyone present to call her expertise as a teacher and judge of her pupils into question.
Hermione felt her heart swell inside her chest as she heard McGonagall's words of confidence and support. Finally, her Professor had ended the incomprehensible distance she's shown so far, coming out as a formidable character witness in her own right.
"The evidence speaks to the contrary." Selvyn persisted, but it was obvious from the looks Madame Bones and Mafalda Hopkirk exchanged that the Professor's words had had at least some impact with them.
Only Umbridge appeared totally unimpressed, but that wasn't surprising if one considered her behavior thus far.
Professor McGonagall took a few steps towards the court's bench, once again a confident defender of one of her own Gryffindors.
"I move that this court has Ms. Granger examined with the standard dark art detection spells, foremost the Asher- Reversion." she demanded in the strict classroom voice that was extremely familiar and reassuring to Hermione.
"In my view, this is the only avenue open to us to exclude any doubt about Ms. Granger's guilt. In the interest of a fair and just treatment, Ms. Granger must be extended the same privilege as every other defendant, that is, she has to be presumed innocent until proven guilty."
Madame Bones agreed with this sentiment, judging by her barely detectable nod of approval.
Presiding Interrogator Umbridge gave McGonagall a dark look that openly expressed her hostility to the Deputy Headmistress in general and her newest motion in particular.
"I don't see why this court should bother with superfluous and time consuming wand- work." She stated in a bored tone.
"If we take only the evidence presented by Senior Hitwizard Selwyn into account, it is very clear that the defendant is the actual perpetrator of the crimes she stands accused of."
The fat woman turned to her co- judges for another round of intense whispering, but this time her proposed course of action was visibly not to their liking. The voices of the three witches grew sharper and loud enough for Hermione to snap up some snippets of the conversation.
"I have an appointment with the Minister…" Umbridge declared self- importantly, but her attempt to use her time schedule as a purely procedural justification caused open irritation in her fellow judges.
Madame Bones was shaking her head and even Mrs. Hopkirk seemed bothered by Umbridge's words.
The discussion continued for a minute, and Hermione got the impression that a rift started to form between the members of the court that hadn't been there before.
"… there are standard procedures, correct?" Mrs. Hopkirk asked hopefully.
The other two Interrogators were evidently divided on the question which standards were applying here though, going by the rising tempers they displayed to the whole courtroom.
After a lot of seesawing, the head of the DMLE had enough.
"It's our duty to actually impose justice!" she exclaimed angrily.
"Not at the cost of bowing to every unreasonable demand a desperate defense might devise!" Umbridge shot back, pumping herself up as if her bulk alone could decide the heated discussion in her favor.
Mrs. Hopkirk intervened between the two squabbling Ministry functionaries by clapping her hands together, and declared with a decisiveness she hadn't shown until now that she had an idea for a compromise.
After another moment of debate and Bonese's obvious acquiescence with whatever agreement the Chief of the Improper Use of Magic Office had proposed, Umbridge gave her two Assessors a look as if she had been forced to swallow a toad of her own size.
The Undersecretary glared down on McGonagall with an expression that spoke volumes about her personal enmity for the Professor.
"This court has, after painstaking" – she stressed the first part of the word in a transparent attempt to needle the other judges – "debate come to the conclusion, that it is prudent to administer a "Prior Incantato" inspection to the defendant's wand."
Hermione released a breath she hadn't known she was holding in. This was fantastic news for her case. She'd read about the "Prior Incantato" spell, it showed the last magic that was performed with a wand.
The young witch's heart started to beat faster in anticipation, and she had only Umbridge's "Silencio" spell to thank for not bursting out with some embarrassing exclamation of relieve.
McGonagall showed that she too was satisfied with this development by smiling down on her shackled student.
"The court would be obliged to Senior Hitwizard Selvyn if he could perform the examination." Umbridge pontificated.
She held up Hermione's wand in her chubby right hand.
The beloved vine wood and dragon heart rod had obviously lain on the desk before the fat judge the whole time, hidden from view.
"I'll be free again soon." Hermione thought fiercely, hope and a burning urge to hit back swirling inside her head.
She would get Harry and Ron on her case, and they wouldn't rest until they'd found the guilty party or parties, and brought them to justice.
"Oh Merlin, what will mom and dad make of the wizarding world when all this nasty business is over?" a cautioning consideration pierced through her emotional upheaval and thirst for redress.
Well, she had to wait, see and wing it, as she'd done for the last two years. Her attention returned to the here and now when Selvyn walked up to the bench, robes billowing.
He accepted her wand from Umbridge with his left hand, holding his own ready to cast in the right.
The man looked supremely unconcerned with the turn of events, and that may've troubled Hermione, if she hadn't been utterly fixated on her wand.
As always, it would come through for her and prove her innocent, overthrowing whatever plot had been engineered to harm her. She felt assured by its mere presence, even if its familiar weight wasn't in her own hand.
Selvyn held the vine wood wand in front of him so that everyone in the room had a good look of it.
He opened his mouth for the first syllable of the spell and began the rather complex wand movements, when he was stopped by a resounding "Crash!" from the entrance.
The door was flung open wide and everyone who wasn't bound to their chair jumped in surprise, then turned towards the disturbance in shock.
"Hermione!" a very familiar and loved voice cried out, echoing through the room.
The Boy who Lived had arrived to save her once again.