DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything to do with Harry Potter

MAJOR apologies here. I know it's been literally forever and a half since I've updated. But you gotta go with me on this, school has been crazy and I gotta take care of that stuff first! So, as long as y'all can forgive me and keep on reading, I'll keep cranking this stuff out. Enjoy!! And like always, reviews are always fabulous!!

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Where are you?

…

Is it over?

As long as you are together, it will never be over.

I don't believe you.

See for yourself…

Loud buzzing in his ears brought Harry back to consciousness. Slowly, his vision blurred from black to moving shapes of light. He blinked several times to focus and shook his head. It ached as it pounded heavily. He cursed the pain under his breath.

What happened?

Gradually Harry was able to take notice of the rest of his body. He couldn't move it. His legs felt heavy as he tried to lift his feet. No luck. They wouldn't budge. With the little feeling he had left in his arms, he could tell they were bound behind him.

His head swam as the buzzing he heard grew louder. He couldn't tell if he was sitting or lying on the floor. He felt as if he might faint. Then he remembered what had happened. Fudge. He was in their room…with the Invisibility Cloak. He knocked them out. It really was over. Harry hung his head both in exhaustion and in defeat.

"…er….potter….Mr. Potter…."

Harry blinked again and raised his head. His vision was slowly sharpening as he tried to find where the voice was coming from. It was unfamiliar to him. Fatigue took over again and his head dropped back down. Harry shut his eyes tightly to try to stop the pounding in his head.

"Mr. Potter? Can you hear me?"

The strange voice from before called out to Harry, but he could barely grasp the words being spoken to him.

"Oh, just let him be. He can't possibly have any useful information to back-up the defendant that we can't disprove."

This voice was all too familiar and it sent a shiver up Harry's spine.

"Fudge, this is the last time I'm warning you. Please refrain from speaking out of turn. Mr. Weasly still has the floor."

Ron?

Acquiring a new will to focus himself, Harry sat up as straight as he could and blinked a few times to finally clear his vision. His heart stopped beating as he took in a sharp breath of horrified shock. He was in the Ministry Courtroom.

Rows of older wizards and witches in bright red and black robes looked down on him from their seats in a semicircular position in front of him. He could remember the Courtroom all too well. Some members of the jury glared at him with distaste. Others shifted their eyes away from his when they made contact, as if they were just as confused as he. Some weren't looking at him at all. They're attention was directed on the other side of the oval floor. Harry followed their gaze to see Draco, bound to a simple wooden chair with a very tall back. His hands were shackled behind the back of the chair and his feet were securely chained to the floor. He was staring back at the jury fiercely. Harry's heart dropped when he saw the small cuts and bruises around Draco's face.

"If I may continue, your honor…"

Harry's head snapped to the center of the oval where Percy Weasly was standing in a crisp navy blue suit. Harry's jaw set as Percy walked past him and gave him a smug look. That's when he noticed the people sitting in the witness seats over by Draco. A twinge of love and relief flickered in Harry's heart. Everyone was there; Ron, Hermione, Susan, Seamus, Dean, Neville, even Mr. and Mrs. Weasly. Ron and Hermione's eyes connected with his and they both looked at him sadly, apologies written all over their faces. Harry just nodded slightly toward them before facing forward again to see Percy approach the overly tall podium with delicate gold features etched into the corners of the mahogany wood.

Behind the podium sat an elderly man Harry had never seen before. His white hair sat lightly on the crown of his head, wisped to the side. Strands of silver turned into quick flashes of metallic color as the light caught it. Sets of wrinkles lined his face, giving him a very wise and much worn look. The stress of a long life was evident in his dull green eyes and thinly pulled lips. He put a finger to the thin gold rim of his half moon glasses and gestured permission to Percy to continue. The red head cleared his throat.

"As I mentioned before, the Malfoy family has previously shown a long tradition of manipulation, unlawful acts of bribery, and a strong taste for revenge. With the conviction of Malfoy Sr. it seems only too obvious an explanation for the motive behind his only heir seeking some 'justice'."

Percy's overly sarcastic emphasis on his last word and a wide gesture of his hand toward where Draco sat caused some murmuring through the courtroom council. Draco's upper lip curled back in a suppressed snarl. Percy stared right back, undaunted.

The judge silenced the room with a slight lift of his forefinger. "And just what kind of 'justice' are you suggesting he sought out?"

Percy turned back around to face his audience, deliberately waiting a few seconds before speaking to build up the power behind his words. "The attempted murder of my brother, Ronald Weasly!"

Audible whispers flooded the courtroom. The judge ran his hand lightly over his hair and sighed. "Mr. Weasly, we have already been through this. You cannot try to convict the defendant of a new charge of murder. Please remember why he is here. He is on trial for assisted planning and possible accomplice in the murder for which his father was proven guilty of. Nothing more. Is that clear?"

A frown was barely visible forming at the corners of Percy's mouth. "Of course," he nodded, "I was merely offering it as evidence, your Honor."

"Young Mr. Weasly has already testified and denied such claims," the judge stated as he glanced down at Percy over his spectacles. Harry stared at Ron in almost disbelief. Ron just shrugged back. "I am not about to have you contradict every testimony that has been presented. If you wish to continue, I highly suggest you stay with what this trial is really about."

The threatening tone behind his words caused Percy to clamp his mouth shut for a moment or two. Harry could see the muscles working in his jaw. "Yes sir, of course" he gritted through clenched teeth.

"Now, do you have any new evidence against the defendant?"

Percy quickly opened his mouth but stopped short when the judge raised an eyebrow at him in warning. Stalling for a second, Percy finally shook his head and pivoted where he stood to sit in one of the benches behind Harry. The judge nodded in approval, then turned his head to look past Harry.

"Fudge?"

Harry and Draco both spun their heads as far as they could to the center of the room to see Fudge waddle with the utmost confidence to the star design in the very middle of the open floor.

"Cornelius Fudge, do you have any reason to believe that Mr. Draco Malfoy was an accomplice in his father's actions, and/or any evidence to support what has already been stated?"

Fudge stepped directly where he was shielding most of Draco from Harry's view. Even so, Harry could still see his love's eyes ablaze as they bore into Fudge's skull. Harry saw the edge of Fudge's mouth twitch as he forced a toothy smile up at the judge.

Bastard, Harry thought as he narrowed his eyes. Even after all the trouble Fudge had gotten into with the Ministry in the past, he knew he still had some sway with the loyal members of the jury. Fudge cleared his throat loudly.

"Your Honor, if I may be so bold, I would strongly implore you to reconsider the new charge of attempted murder. With it you will see a slew of evidence to prove–"

A swift echoing crack of the judge's hand slamming on top of his podium sent a veil of deafening silence through the room. Fudge froze, his mouth stuck open mid-sentence.

"Fudge, you have examined every aspect of every witness from every angle and side of this case for hours on end. Quite frankly, I have heard just about all I can stand of you. I will not have you turn this into your own showcase. You are dismissed from the courtroom."

Harry saw Fudge's eyes widen and bulge in disbelief. A smirk of satisfaction found its way across Harry's face. It took Fudge a few seconds of blank staring before he could compose himself. He waved his hand nervously as if to give the order a passing glance.

"Please, your Honor, I only–"

"I strongly implore you, Fudge, to leave this courtroom immediately before you find yourself in more trouble than you're worth." The judge leaned over the podium slowly towards the sweating man in the center of the room, staring at him over his glasses with a threatening glint in his eyes. "Am I understood?"

Disbelief gradually turned into disappointment as Fudge recognized his defeat. His face fell and shaped itself into a stern but respectful expression.

"Yes, your Honor" he finally strained through the tiny muscle spasms in his face.

As he turned away from Harry, he stopped momentarily to face Draco. "This isn't over" Harry heard him mutter to the chained blonde. Two attendants came forward to escort the overweight wizard out of the room. Before he started to walk away, Fudge sent one last glare Harry's way. Despite not knowing what kind of damage Fudge had done while he was unconscious, Harry lifted his chin in silent victory. The man was gone for good.

The judge massaged his temple with two fingers as he carefully removed his spectacles.

"This concludes the questioning portion of the trial. We will now hear the defendant's last plea and final words. Will the officers please unchain the two wizards before me?"

A sudden exchange of whispers and opinions on what had taken place rippled through the wizards and witches of the courtroom. The sea of red and black robes of the jury swayed as the members turned to each other to quietly discuss. This continued as Harry heard a click of metal behind the chair he was bound to. Like a stone, his arms fell to his sides awaiting the blood to be allowed back through. His feet were soon free but he felt far too weak to stand. He slumped in his seat and watched Draco being let free. His gaze never left the floor.

"Will all witnesses and viewers please exit the courtroom for the final plea?"

Ron and Seamus appeared swiftly at Harry's side to help him to his feet, wrapping one of his arms around each of their necks. They supported him through the center of the room quickly as they joined the others. Harry's body pricked painfully as the blood flowed once again to his extremities.

"Wait," he mumbled, using his voice for the first time that day. "Draco…"

"Sorry, mate." Ron replied in a hushed tone. "Don't have time for any lengthy goodbyes right now."

Goodbyes?

Harry tried to twist his head around to see Draco but he only met the faces of Susan and Dean. They hurried him out the large oak and metal doors to a row of benches against the wall of the outside of the courtroom. Neville helped set Harry down carefully on the first bench to the left of the door as Ron took a spot next to him. Hermione plopped down hard next to Ron with an anxious sigh. Susan, Neville, Dean and Seamus stood in a semi-circle around Harry, fidgeting and swaying back and forth in anticipation. Mr. and Mrs. Weasly stood off to the side on the right side of the doors. Percy stood with them, but did not utter a word.

Harry tried to listen against the door to hear anything being said, but it was quiet enough to be soundproof. He sighed and turned back towards his friends.

"What happened? What did I miss?" he asked hoarsely, coughing a few times.

"Doesn' look good, mate." Seamus answered back. Susan smacked his arm and glared at him.

"No, Seamus is right." Hermione said quietly. "Harry should know."

"Know what?" he questioned, his eyebrows drawn in worry. Hermione sighed as her head dropped slightly.

"You know as well as I do that Fudge is very good at manipulation, Harry. He timed it almost perfectly so, just as Draco was coming to, he jumped on him with question after question. Draco was so delirious from all that had happened he couldn't answer most of the questions straight. He fumbled. And the jury bought it. He managed to make Draco look even worse than the Daily Prophet described."

Harry exhaled a short, quick breath and shook his head. "But he questioned you guys, didn't he? That must have helped a little bit, didn't it?" His eyes shifted from one friend to another, each refusing to meet Harry's pleading stare.

"You have to understand, Harry," Hermione continued, "Fudge is an expert at this. He's been doing interrogations like this for a very long time. Everyone started out well, but somehow he managed to twist our words around to only prove his side."

Harry dropped his head into his hands. He felt Ron's hand lightly on his back.

"We tried, mate. Really, we did."

Tears began to form under Harry's closed eyelids which only frustrated and annoyed him.

"So, what, they don't want anything from me? Don't I count in any of this? Why can't I speak for Draco's side?"

Hermione bit her lip and leaned towards him. "I'm afraid that was Fudge's doing. He convinced the majority of the jury to not count your testimony because of your relationship with Draco. He said it would be 'far too biased for a case of this importance'."

Harry clenched his fists as his hatred toward Fudge boiled to a level he didn't know existed.

"So what are we supposed to do now?" he growled. Hermione shrugged her shoulders sadly.

"Just wait."

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I proooomise that the last few chapters will be uploaded much much quicker than this one was! Thanks for sticking with me, guys!!