Title: All That Glitters

Disclaimer: I don't own anything

Summary: The trial continues, Hannigan's deal with Lucius Malfoy is fulfilled, and Yaxley makes a worrisome discovery.

Not all that is gold does glitter
Not all those who wander are lost.

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Wrap-Up

The trial did not improve, nor did the audience become any less vengeful. Hannigan's smirk grew with every witness that he called, and the defense's attempts at dismissing the validity of his arguments were so poor it was a wonder anyone even bothered listening to her in the first place. Kingsley could not help it, and try as he might to convince himself that he needed to stray strong, stay hopeful, he felt the despair wrapping around him with every passing second.

It was as though a Dementor had lodged itself in his chest and would not leave him alone.

Still, despite the overwhelming emotions brought on by the ordeal, the Auror could not help but notice a few oddities about the trial. Not the least of which was the almost complete exclusion of the Malfoys from the proceedings. Lucius had been mentioned on a few occasions, but Narcissa and Draco were left behind. It did not make sense, given that his interactions with Narcissa would have been very good evidence against him. So why was Hannigan purposefully not bringing up the blonde aristocrat?

His wrists had been rubbed raw by the chains, and his head had settled into a perpetual ache as the fury in the room unleashed itself in torrents of noise. He continued to avoid looking at the crowd as much as possible, but he could not ignore their cries of hatred.

Is this what we have become, he wondered, a world that turns only on revenge and wrath?

Hannigan had called another witness to the stand.

It was Jonathon Abbott.

The wizard settled himself into the witness box and gave Hannigan a grim smile. Then he looked over at Kingsley, his expression filled with disgust, and Kingsley stared unflinchingly back at him, refusing to be intimidated.

Abbott did not even know what he was doing. The fool thought that Hannigan was on the right side, that he would finally allow vengeance against anyone who had supported Voldemort. Didn't he know better? Couldn't he look into Hannigan's eyes and see the lies reflected there?

Apparently not.

Kinglsey shook away those troubled thoughts and focused instead on what Abbott was saying. He had missed the question and the first part of the answer, although it was clear that it had been about Narcissa Malfoy.

"Yes, we arrested her," Abbott said, somewhat disdainfully.

"On what charges?"

"Conspiracy. We believed she knew the whereabouts of Snape." Abbott paused, obviously struggling with something, and then said, "We were wrong."

Kingsley leaned forward in his seat, straining against the chains to get a better look at Abbott's face. As far as he knew, Abbott had not changed his opinion about Narcissa Malfoy. As far as he knew, he still wanted her arrested and sent to Azkaban, still believed she was guilty of treason. So why was he lying about this?

"I see," Hannigan said thoughtfully. "So you arrested and interrogated an innocent woman?"

Again, Abbott paused. Then he nodded slowly, his face suffused with color. "We did."

"And when you realized you were wrong, I presume you released her?"

"Not exactly," Abbott replied. "Before we realized the error of our assumptions, Auror Shacklebolt ordered her released. It was not until later that we discovered she had never had any knowledge of Snape's whereabouts."

Kingsley closed his eyes briefly, recalling the few hours after Narcissa's arrest. He and Abbott had nearly been at each other's throats over that, and that conflict had been the final straw to tear apart their chances of working together in the future. The animosity that existed now would most likely never be set aside.

"I see," Hannigan said thoughtfully. "So the accused ordered you to release a prisoner at a time when you all believed that she was guilty?"

"Yes."

"Did he give a reason?"

"No."

"Is it possible that he knew something you did not? Is it possible that he knew that Mrs. Malfoy was not in fact guilty of these crimes?"

Again, Abbott looked over at Kingsley, his eyes glittering maliciously. "It is possible," he said in a tone that clearly conveyed his disbelief, "although doubtful. If he had such information, why would he have not shared it with the rest of the Department?"

Kingsley slanted a look at his counsel. She should have objected, should have stated that Abbott had no way of knowing exactly what Kingsley had known and that all of his opinions were conjecture and did not belong in a court of law… but she didn't. She did not even meet his gaze. Instead, she stared straight ahead, watching the proceedings with a bored gaze.

Kingsley glanced back at Abbott.

"Can you tell us what happened when Narcissa Malfoy was released from custody?"

"Shacklebolt took her back to the Malfoy Manor. I accompanied him, along with several Aurors. He ordered all of us to wait outside, and took her into the Manor. He was gone for a little while. Then he came out again, and we returned to the Ministry."

"And none of the Aurors accompanied him into the Malfoy Manor?" Hannigan repeated, raising his eyebrows questioningly.

Abbott shook his head. "We protested. I wanted one of them to go, to serve as support should she try to escape. At the time, we still believed her to be a criminal, and it seemed like a foolish idea to leave her alone with the Head of Magical Law Enforcement. But he wanted to go alone."

"To escort her inside?"

"Yes."

"And he was gone for a long time?"

"No, not long. But longer than we had expected. If he was just taking her within the wards and leaving, it would have only been a few moments. He was gone long enough that we grew worried. But then he emerged from the Manor unscathed, and said that they had only exchanged words."

"Did he tell you what he spoke to Mrs. Malfoy about while he was alone in the Manor with her?"

"No."

"Did you ask?"

"Yes. He told me it was not my concern, and I had already overstepped my boundaries by ordering her arrest in the first place." Abbott glanced at the Wizengamot, his eyes flickering over all the faces that were turned towards him, before adding, "I never learned what their conversation was about."

"Interesting," Hannigan drawled, smirking.

The problem with this testimony was that Narcissa Malfoy was guilty of treason. She was in contact with Snape, she had been able to set up a meeting between Kingsley and the potions Master. Whether or not Hannigan knew any of that was still anyone's guess, but it did not make sense that anyone, least of all the person who had engineered this entire farce, would be so actively trying to keep her name clean from all accusations.

Turning to face Kingsley, Hannigan continued, "When Shacklebolt returned Mrs. Malfoy to her home, was Lucius Malfoy present?"

"Yes," Abbott answered.

Kingsley blinked, surprised. That was a complete lie. Not only did Abbott have no way of knowing the answer to that question, but Lucius Malfoy had not been present when he had brought Narcissa back to the Manor. That was part of the reason that he had been able to speak to Narcissa privately, because she had been alone.

"How do you know that, if you did not go into the Manor with them?"

"Mr. Malfoy arrived home shortly after we came to his Manor. He Apparated directly outside the front door, so we saw him enter the house."

Kingsley tried to lift a hand to run his fingers over his sweaty and dirty hair, but the chains tugged at his wrists and he gave them an abashed stare. For a moment, he had almost forgotten that he was still chained to this chair, still trapped in the courtroom, forced to endure the trial.

But things were starting to fall into place. For some reason, Abbott was lying, and he was doing it on Hannigan's instructions. For some reason, Hannigan didn't want Narcissa Malfoy accused of treason, but he didn't mind if Lucius Malfoy was dragged under. It didn't make a whole lot of sense, but it was somewhere to start.

He twisted in his seat and caught Arthur Weasley's gaze. He needed to talk to Arthur as soon as possible, although he had no idea when that would be. But someone had to look into this, someone had to figure what Hannigan was doing, and why.

Hannigan was still asking questions, still staring directly at Kingsley as he did so, still wearing that same smug smile.

"He arrived shortly after Shacklebolt entered with Mrs. Malfoy?"

"Yes."

"And he would have had time to speak to Shacklebolt, then?"

"I suppose so."

Hannigan turned back to Abbott, a smirk now fixed firmly onto his features. "One last question, Mr. Abbott," he said. "You told us that Narcissa Malfoy had been cleared of all charges. Was the same true for her husband?"

"No. Lucius Malfoy is still a person of interest. We still believe he has been in contact with Severus Snape."

When Hannigan called Narcissa Malfoy to the stand, a complete silence fell over the courtroom. Kingsley twisted sharply, his gaze flying instantly to the blonde witch as she made her way through the crowded room towards the witness stand. She glanced at him once, their eyes meeting, and her gaze was hard and cold.

Kingsley swallowed nervously, wondering what she would say. He looked away from her again, glancing instead at the Wizangamot. It seemed that they, too, were surprised by her presence, although surely Hannigan would have informed them of his intention to call her to the stand.

He snapped his attention back to Hannigan as the other wizard asked his first question.

"Mrs. Malfoy, I understand you were recently mistakenly arrested for treason by Jonathon Abbott?"

"That's right," Narcissa answered coolly, lifting an eyebrow at him.

"What happened?"

She sneered as she answered, "I was rudely interrogated by your incompetent Department of Magical Law Enforcement. When it became clear that there was no case against me and that they could not legally hold me any longer, I was released."

Her tone was bitter, angry, and there was something else in depths of her expression, some other emotion that he could not quite identify. Was it fear? Remorse? Pain?

In a flash of understanding, he realized she did not want to be on the stand. She had been placed there by someone else, forced into testifying, lying if necessary… but by whom? Hannigan? It seemed unlikely, unless somehow Hannigan had promised her something in return. Or…

Lucius? Kingsley knew, better than most, just how far Narcissa would go to protect her family. If Lucius had found a way to save them… But Hannigan had made it clear that he was targeting Lucius, leaving the elder Malfoy to take the blame for everything else… so that would mean Narcissa, now that she was on the stand, would be testifying against her own husband. And that did not make sense.

It didn't make sense at all.

"Mrs. Malfoy," Hannigan said politely, folding his arms across his chest as he strode towards her, "can you please tell us, in your own words, what happened after you were released from custody?"

Narcissa hesitated, then said softly, "Auror Shacklebolt returned me to my home. The other Aurors that accompanied us remained outside. I went in… with him."

"And then?"

Narcissa shrugged gracefully. "He apologized for my… poor treatment… at the hands of his Aurors. Then he asked me, once again, if I was sure I had no knowledge of Snape's whereabouts. I assured him that I did not, and that I would contact him immediately should that change. Then…" She stopped, trailed off with a reluctant look at Hannigan.

"Yes?" Hannigan prompted, his eyes hardening, his expression becoming fierce.

She swallowed, continued in a barely audible voice, "My husband came home. Auror Shacklebolt stated that he needed to ask my husband a few questions. Privately. I left the parlor, went up to my own room."

Kingsley's jaw dropped. That was a complete lie.

"Do you know what your husband and the accused spoke of while you were gone?"

She shook her head. "No."

Hannigan leaned forward, his manner becoming slightly more threatening. "I must remind you, Mrs. Malfoy, that you are under oath. Are you sure you do not know what your husband and the accused spoke of?"

She drew a shaky breath, composed herself. "I heard a few… phrases. They were talking about Snape. Auror Shacklebolt was trying to… he was asking my husband if he knew… where Snape was. He said he needed to get in contact with the potions Master. Right away. I know nothing else."

Hannigan nodded with a faint smile. "Thank you," he said, and his tone was dripping with fake sympathy. "I recognize how difficult it is for you to testify to something that has the potential to incriminate your husband. We appreciate and admire your… dedication… to the safety of our world, and thank you for the sacrifices you are willing to make."

And the room was filled with the sound of clapping.

Kinglsey twisted, looked around. The crowd was applauding Narcissa Malfoy, praising her supposed courage and honesty. Didn't they know she was lying? Couldn't they tell that nothing she had said was true?

Narcissa left the witness box amidst the sound of applause, and walked stiffly from the room. At the door, she paused and looked back, her eyes lingering for just a fraction of a heartbeat on Kingsley's disbelieving face. Then she turned and was gone, the door shutting firmly behind her.

"That was a very believable testimony you gave," Arthur Weasley said as he approached Narcissa outside the courtroom.

She turned and looked at him, face devoid of all emotion. "It should be believable," she said in an equally emotionless voice. "I told the truth."

The elderly redhead shook his head. "Did you?" he asked, his tone conveying his refusal to accept her words. "Kingsley is not guilty of treason. But I'm fairly certain you are. All you do is lie."

"Indeed?" Narcissa murmured. She inclined her head towards the courtroom door and added, "They do not agree with you, it would seem."

"They will," Mr. Weasley replied firmly, angrily. "Trust me, they will see your true colors in time. And we will have justice."

She stepped closer to him, her lips curving into a sardonic smile. "They will see what they want to see, Mr. Weasley. Nothing more, nothing less. Only naïvely foolish Gryffindors believe in justice. The rest of us know it is just an illusion."

"So you will betray Kingsley to save your own skin? Tell me, what did you have to offer Hannigan for him to accept the deal? Your husband?"

Narcissa clenched her hands into fists, two splotches of color appearing on her cheeks. It took her a moment to regain her composure, and then she forced herself to say in a calm tone, "I believe this conversation is done. Unless you have other baseless accusations to throw at me?"

"They aren't baseless," Mr. Weasley retorted. "Just wait, Mrs. Malfoy. You will pay for this someday."

"Is that a threat?"

He shrugged. "Take it any way you'd like."

"Good day, Mr. Weasley." She turned and walked down the hallway, her heels clicking against the stone floor and echoing in the silence. She did not need to look back to know that Arthur Weasley was watching her, his eyes burning into her back as he followed her progress towards the elevators.

She drew a long breath, pausing before the elevators, and closed her eyes.

"Forgive me, Lucius," she whispered.

When Hannigan pushed open the door to his office, he was surprised to see Yaxley pacing restlessly back and forth across the floor.

"What are you doing here?" Hannigan hissed, closing the door firmly behind him. "What if someone had been with me? I can't take the risk of being seen with you, not yet."

"We have bigger problems to worry about," Yaxley retorted, looking worried.

"Yeah, we do," Hannigan agreed. "You were supposed to contact me before the trial started. I haven't heard anything from you or Runcorn. Where have you been?"

"Runcorn's missing," Yaxley snapped, shaking his head. "There was a break in at the house in France. I was only gone for a few hours, and now…"

"You think Runcorn is in trouble?" Hannigan demanded. "But… how did anyone find you? You said that house would be safe. You said no one would know anything about it."

"No one should have known," Yaxley defended himself. "My uncle hadn't used it in years." He sank into the chair across from the desk, staring hard at the now nervous Hannigan. "But someone found it and broke in."

"How? Don't you have decent wards?" Hannigan snapped. He took a breath, and shook his head, hoping to clear his befuddled mind. "Maybe it wasn't anything. Maybe he just went out… for a walk or something."

"Don't be an idiot," Yaxley growled. "Of course he didn't just leave. We made a deal, I was leaving to get some food, some supplies, and a newspaper. He wouldn't have walked out, not with so much riding on this. Besides, the place was… there were signs of a fight. Magic still lingering in the air, some of the rooms disturbed, the stairs destroyed. It's not… he did not leave willingly."

"But who? How? Why?" Hannigan stammered, flustered. The rush of success he had felt from the trial was fading now, and fading fast. Now, and sense of unease settled over him, too many pieces up in the air, too many factors he couldn't control.

"How is the trial going?" Yaxley asked, running his hand over the smooth surface of the desk.

"Good. We're taking a break now, it will resume in an hour. Shacklebolt will be found guilty before the day is over, I can promise you that."

Yaxley nodded vaguely, and asked, "And the Malfoys? This trial is supposed to set them up as well."

Hannigan shifted, and said, "Yes. That's going well, also." He wasn't quite ready to reveal the deal he had made with Lucius Malfoy, or the circumstances behind it. The fact that he had been forced to give in to blackmail still rankled, and he had no doubt that neither Runcorn or Yaxley would be pleased with what he had done, with the fact that Narcissa Malfoy would walk away from the trial without a scratch on her reputation.

In fact, she'd walk away a hero.

He hadn't expected that turn of events when he had convinced Lucius Malfoy to put this plan into action. He didn't know what Lucius had said to Narcissa to make her agree with it, to convince her to take the witness stand and lie to the Wizengamot, but she had done it. And she'd done it well. And if that meant that she and her son would rise in the ranks of society once more and resume their places as leaders of the wizading world… well, as long as he still ended up with the Ministry under his control, he could not complain.

On the other hand, none of this would matter if something had happened to Runcorn.

"Was Potter at the trial?" Yaxley asked finally.

"No," Hannigan said, shaking his head. "Neither were the Granger girl or that Weasley sidekick." After a very pointed silence, he asked worriedly, "Do you think…?"

"It's possible. It sounds like something Potter would do. Although how he even knew where to look for us…"

"Or how he got past the wards," Hannigan interjected forcefully. "Shacklebolt and Snape only got past the wards around your manor because you let them. You wanted them to come. I presume you didn't want Potter to attack you at your home is France?" he asked sarcastically. "Or were you really just that careless?"

Yaxley flushed at the accusation and replied, "Of course we weren't foolish enough to leave the place so unguarded." He did not elaborate, but he had a pretty good idea of why the wards would have been so lax. If Runcorn had seen it was Potter at the gates, he would have lowered the wards enough to allow the Boy Who Lived access. He was far too convinced of his own abilities, and could not have turned away from the chance to get rid of Potter and his annoying sidekicks.

But Hannigan did not need to know that. Hannigan still believed that they were doing everything possible to leave Potter out of this plan. The wizard was naïve enough to trust them when they said they would not cause any unnecessary harm to the boy hero.

But none of this explained how they had been found. Potter did not have the information necessary to learn this sort of thing, nor did he have the contacts to find it. The old manor had not been used in ages, and it was inconceivable that anyone who had not known his uncle in the past would have been able to locate the place.

On a whim, he asked, "The Malfoys… were all three of them at the trial?"

"No. Narcissa Malfoy, but not her husband or her son." Hannigan ran a hand through his hair and muttered, "If Potter has Runcorn, if he brings him here…"

"I know," Yaxley snapped. "We just have to make sure that doesn't happen."

"How?"

Yaxley considered this for a moment, then said, "Potter's brave, but still an idiot when it comes to basic sense. He'll want to rush right back to the Ministry, make sure he can help his poor, unfortunate, wrongly-accused Kingsley Shacklebolt. He won't plan it out, he'll just come here. If we intercept him before he makes it to the courtroom…"

"Can you do that?" Hannigan asked.

"Yes," Yaxley said, rising to his feet. "You just make sure Shacklebolt, Snape, and the Malfoys all get what's coming to them. I'll deal with Potter."

"He can't be hurt in any way," Hannigan ordered as Yaxley walked past him and towards the door. "Just stun him, erase his memory of this, modify it if you can… but that's all. I don't want any more deaths."

"Fine," Yaxley said under his breath as he walked out the door.

Hannigan wasn't entirely sure if he could trust the other man to keep his word, but he could not waste time worrying about that right now. He had a trial to finish.

"How did it go?" Lucius Malfoy asked as he downed another shot of whisky.

Narcissa wrinkled her nose at the smell of stale alcohol that lingered in the air. "You're drinking," she said.

He put down the glass and turned towards her. "I gave away my life today, Narcissa," he said fiercely, even though his words were slurred slightly by the alcohol. "I think I have a right to drink."

"Drinking is one thing," Narcissa replied, taking the glass away from him and placing it on the side table by the entrance to the parlor. "Getting drunk is entirely different. And unbecoming."

"So is going mad in Azkaban. Did you testify?"

"Yes," Narcissa answered shortly, coolly.

"And?" Lucius prompted.

"And I was brilliant," she answered in an icy tone. "The audience in the courtroom applauded me as I left. I'm a hero, and Draco and I will be safe." She turned away from him. "You gave away your life today, Lucius. I sold my soul."

"You did what you had to do to keep our son safe," Lucius answered.

She looked towards the window. "I did not have the stomach to stay for the rest of the trial. I do not know what will happen now. I had hoped…" She trailed off and did not finish the statement, but a look of resignation appeared briefly in her eyes.

"You had hoped that your darling sister would help you," Lucius snorted. "You place far too much trust in her. Andromeda is many things, but she has long since stopped being one of us."

She whirled to face him, eyes flashing. "And what are we, Lucius? Are we also a family? I find it hard to believe that. I gave my husband to Azkaban today. I let you convince me to…" Again, she stopped, tears pricking at her eyes. "How could you ask me to do this?"

"What other choice did we have?" Lucius questioned softly, coming to her side. "It was the only deal I could make with Hannigan. It will keep you safe."

"At what cost?" she whispered. "What is the point of safety, when I have lost my family? Not even Andie will help me now."

"You have not lost your family. You still have Draco. Our son. And now he is entirely yours, Cissy. You are the one who must keep him safe. I've done all I can for both of you."

Narcissa reached up and ran her fingers lightly along the side of his face. "Lucius…" she started.

He cut her off, catching her hand in his own. "I imagine the Aurors will be here to arrest me any minute. Hannigan will not want to wait."

She nodded, a sob caught in her throat, and they both heard the sound of footsteps walking up the pathway towards the front door of their Manor. They had come.

"Goodbye, Cissy," Lucius said, and walked past her towards the front door, towards the Aurors who he knew would take him to Azkaban.

In the silence left behind him, Narcissa watched her husband walk away from her, and felt her heart break.