Chapter XV
Who let the shit hit the fan?
Arcturus chuckled as he settled into his seat. He felt rather proud of himself for rendering so many Lords and Ladies in a stupor. Nobody had expected his return, and he liked driving a wrench in people's agendas. Of course, he didn't seem to be the only one. One glance to his right revealed Andromeda.
His granddaughter was seated elegantly on the House of Potter seat, the crest dangling from her neck presenting her to be the scion of the House. He was mystified to know what made Kinsley pick Andromeda. The woman held no close alliance with the House of Potter, no close relations. It was a curious and a bold choice that would no doubt alienate some Potter family allies, well those foolish enough to do so. The Potter family was a powerful one. Notoriously neutral until the war against the Dark Lord begun. Now a member of the House of Black was the scion of the House of Potter and there would be questions.
"Lord Black, how very — surprising to find you here." His granddaughter spoke, pulling him from his thoughts to focus upon her.
"Surprised to find me here, my dear Andromeda? I doubt anybody expected you to be sitting as scion for the House of Potter," he remarked while allowing his eyes to dance upon the other occupants in the hall. "It appears as though some people look displeased with your appointment."
One look around the hall showed just how true that statement was. Many of the lighter houses looked very unhappy about Andromeda's presence on the Potter seat. She was a member of the Black Family, re-instated by himself before his chosen seclusion. The Black Family was a dark family; he would not deny but some lighter families believed that Dark instantly meant evil.
"Fools," she remarked, clearly unaffected by their stares. "Allies of House of Potter will either stand by the choice. If they chose to leave the alliance of the House of Potter, it would be their own choice to make and the Heir to the Potter Family will not make moves to stop them. Although there is perhaps one alliance that — the heir would like to keep."
Here Andromeda sent a look towards the current Scone of the Longbottom Family. Augusta Longbottom looked every part the intimidating woman Andromeda recognized. Perched upon her chair like a hawk, eyes narrowed. When those eyes settled on Andromeda they narrowed further before swinging sharply back to the preceding.
"House Potter and House Longbottom have long since held close ties," Arcturus remarked while addressing a look towards Augusta Longbottom.
In the heir room, as it was so well labelled, the audience witnessing the wizengamot session was a mixture of emotions. Narcissa's murmured acknowledgement of Arcturus Black had set off whispers amongst the darker families while the grey families looked very intrigued. Yet the light-sided families were more curious about why Andromeda Tonks was seated for the Potter House.
"If they had picked a scion, why isn't Heir Potter present." an aged voiced remarked causing Kinsley to turn to her right ever so slightly.
The man who spoke was the man who was accompanying Neville. She could only guess that that man was Neville's uncle Algie. Turning her attention to Neville, she spotted the confusion on his face.
Andromeda's return to the Black Family had been highlighted news when it happened - or so she was told by her Aunt Cassie. All houses knew about Andromeda's return as well as the acceptance of her daughter and husband in the pureblooded house of Black.
Kinsley knew that many would not understand why a known member of the House of Black was chosen to represent the House of Potter inside the wizengamot. However, she did not need to explain her choices to anybody. Nobody would even get the chance to question it either as Harry Potter was going to disappear before the start of the year.
A plan was already in motion, organized by the goblins and her mother with a bit of input from herself.
Shifting her attention from the Longbottoms, she focused on the Malfoys. Narcissa Malfoy and Draco Malfoy held the closest ties to the Black Family — in terms of bloody. Narcissa a Black from birth and her son half Black, half Malfoy. She knew Draco long enough to know he believed his father's words that he would gain the title of Lord Black upon Arcturus' death but her arrival now debunked that.
From her seat, she could see the confusion on Draco's face and the surprise on Narcissa' face before a mask of stone fell into place shielding her expressions from view. Still, her focus did not linger upon the transparent wall. Icy eyes shifted towards her, meeting her mint eyes with calculated interest.
It seemed she was one of the few that was able to look past the shock of the Lord Black's return and take note of the change in the order of seats. At one time the Lord Black would sit squarely on the Dark side of the hall, now the man was proudly seated in the neutral/grey section of the hall right beside the Potter family seat. It would be something others took note of later in the session.
"It is starting." Came a soft rumble from Kingsley turning Kinsley's focus upon the gathered Lords and Ladies away from Narcissa's gaze.
With Dumbledore still stuck in the International Wizard Council, the speaker moved to the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, especially because of the nature of the trials taking place.
Amelia Bones rose smoothly from her chair and stepped forward, catching the hall's attention.
"Today we are gathered for the trials of individuals found to have broken several laws against the British Ministry of Magic and the people of Magical Britain, some of those laws are as follows. Espionage, terrorism, hate crime, aiding and abetting the escape of a prisoner, using the unforgivable curses, and others. They will all stand before you, their words validated by veritaserum as agreed upon by our laws." The speech ran clear through the crowd, sending some in uneasy fidgeting while others gave nods of agreement. "The first to be tried is Mafalda Hopkirk. She is here on the grounds of hate crime, espionage, and other charges. Bring in the accused."
With that, they all turned and watched as a set of very tall double doors opened and five people walked in. Four of those people were aurors, dressed in official auror garb that consisted of dark red robes, black slacks, black boots and black belts around their waist. In the centre of the diamond formation was the prisoner.
Mafalda Hopkirk looked tired and broken, dressed in a grey robe she was led in with the manacles upon her ankles and wrists. Without much trouble, she took a seat on the chair in the middle of the room. Her chains connecting to the floor, preventing her from escaping. With that, the four aurors dispersed. Two stood guard on either side of her, while the others stepped back towards the doors and stood on guard.
It wasn't long before a court-appointed healer scurried across the court floor, vial in hand. Without struggle, Hopkirk's head was pulled back and drops from the vial gently poured into her open mouth. Done with his task, the healer returned to his post, waiting for the others to be pulled into the court.
With the potion administered the questioning began.
"State your name for the record," Amelia ordered calmly, voice void of all emotions just as her eyes were empty as well.
"Mafalda Angelina Hopkirk." came the monotonous reply that had a shiver running up Kinsley's spine.
She did not like this potion, how it made you spill every secret you held close to your heart. Its use was regulated, however, it was still a potion and anybody with enough skill could brew it. Yet she pushed those thoughts out of her head. She didn't need to think about that right now and focused on the questions being asked.
"Date of Birth," "March 23rd, 1984."
"Hogwarts House?" "Hufflepuff"
Verification questions done, Amelia turned to the real questions that the court wanted to be answered.
"You have been accused of hate crimes, describe to the courts what you have done to earn this criminal charge," Amelia ordered, a frigidly to her voice that wasn't there before.
"I expelled students who performed magic out of school," Mafalda stated simply earning some murmurs around the hall. Yet that wasn't the end as she was urged to continue. "Muggle-borns to be specific, they were easy targets. Nobody would defend them, nobody to tell them what was happening was wrong. I didn't always do it, had to make it look as small as possible, but every so often I would send a letter informing the muggle born that because they used magic they were officially expelled from Hogwarts and that their wand would be broken. A ministry official would be dispatched at that point, the wand broken and memories erased. Any evidence of magic would be cleaned out of the muggle-borns life."
Its reaction was instant. The moment the woman began telling the wizengamot of just what she did those in the lighter houses swiftly began to show their anger and objection. Grey families showed their displeasure, holding in their temper better than the light families, yet from her position, Kinsley spotted some of the darker families nodding along with the woman's words, almost agreeing with what she was doing. She took note of those houses and filtered them into the list of unwanted.
Sadly it wasn't over. Hopkirk continued to talk, telling the lords and ladies of the wizengamot how she would turn a blind eye to her college's involvement — Albert Runcorn. The man was often the one who would be sent to snap the muggle-borns wands, erase their memories, but sometimes — sometimes that wasn't all he did. Hopkirk spoke of how she would read of sudden suicides in families of Muggle-borns who had been expelled.
This brought a worried whisper to the hall, but the questioning didn't stop. She spoke about how her actions were supported by Dolores Umbridge, how the woman would steer things away from Mafalda if they got too close. It was all being revealed to the courts and many were unhappy with what they were learning.
By the time the potion dissipated from the woman's system, the questioning was complete, and she was left pale, shaking and terrified of what was to come. The sentencing was final and simple, for her crimes she was sentenced to Azkaban.
There was a moment where silence reigned through the hall. The darker families happy with what had been done by the woman kept their mouths shut while the lighter families were disgusted by what had been done by a woman in a position of seemingly none existent power.
However, the silence was broken as her mother called for the next accused — Albert Runcorn. Head held high, he too was dressed in the prison garb of grey robes and lead in by aurors. As he settled into the chair his stare stayed level, even as the chains connected him to the ground, preventing his escape. Even with the chains, however, he gave some struggle, yet it gave little results as the potion was administered and the questioning began.
Like before, questions were asked to validate his identity and if the potion was working before they fell into the sordid details of just why the man before them had been taken into custody.
"You worked with Mafalda Hopkirk, "removing" muggle-borns from our society, what did you do to help in their removal and why did you help?" Amelia questioned and although it looked like he would fight it, Runcorn fell apart in a moment.
"Mudbloods are the diseases of our world. They will destroy us all, stealing our gold, our jobs, our magic. They are the reason squibs exist, they stole their magic, leaving our kind weak and broken. I helped Hopkirk because I was purging our world of the disease that had infiltrated our walls and that was widely accepted by blubbering fools who did not see the danger we saw." He spewed before continuing, explaining just what he did to those Muggle-borns. "I wanted to show them that they didn't belong in our world, that they didn't deserve to be part of it because they were little thieves that stole the precious gift of magic away from those who should have had it. I would go to their homes, first snap their wands before teaching them their place."
"And how would you teach them their place?" Amelia urged, face a stone mask even as others looked ill by the man's speech.
"I punished them with magic. First by breaking their spirit before breaking their minds."
"Is that what you did to Matilda Dupree?" Amelia snarled causing some whispers to fill the hall. "Matilda Dupree, age 14 years old. According to Mafalda Hopkirk's folder on the subject, the teen performed a shield charm. That day you were dispatched to snap her wand. I looked into the matter and found that three days after her wand was snapped, Matilda was found hanging from her staircase bannister having hung herself. A muggle medical examination of the girl found that she had been sexually assaulted, her body beaten and left bruised with multiple cuts across her body."
Amelia's revelation seemed to have an effect like none other upon the hall as house lords and ladies rose to their feet in uproar. Even inside the 'heir room' the objection over these actions was staggering. Women looked pale, many clutching at their children in some sort of way. For her own part, Kinsley felt her hand being squeezed by her aunt and returned the action to assure to the woman that she was okay.
"Reports from the area told of a girl who seemed to be walking around like a zombie, constantly in a haze. Friends and family were concerned but didn't know what to do. They couldn't have known that Matilda had been obliviated so badly that her entire memory was in shambles, that she couldn't tell right from left. Her family couldn't see the spell damage or even knew about it because they had been obliviated as well. Any trace of magic had been removed and Matilda Dupree was swept under the floor! Albert Runcorn, you raped 14-year-old Matilda Dupree. You tortured her and caused her death!"
"Monster!"
"Good riddance!"
"Through the veil!"
"She was a child! You monster!"
The cries of anger that washed upon the hall were hard to stop, and Kinsley couldn't blame them. The man sitting in the centre of the large hall was indeed a monster, worse even — in her mind — than her own uncle who was awaiting trial in the muggle world.
"I have aurors shifting through reports, and they've found other cases like this, but not all of them are dead, some pushed on, growing stronger, others grew weaker and fell into depression, drugs, prostitution, all because of your actions! You've caused the destruction of countless lives. Most recently, however, we have found a case that we were able to help." Here the lords and ladies fell silent, taken in by the shred of hope brought in by the Head of the DMLE.
"According to records, a young girl, having just completed her first year at Hogwarts last year was expelled for the use of a hover charm. According to our sensors, the hover charm wasn't even cast in front of a muggle. Mafalda Hopkirk sent out the expulsion notice and you moved in. You wiped her memory, but you didn't touch her, you didn't have a chance to. We were able to find her and find something else that might come as a shock to you." Here Amelia paused and looked around the hall at the lords and ladies of the house before her eyes fell upon the darker side of the wizengamot.
For a moment the air seemed to sizzle with confusion, even inside the 'heir room' people were confused until Cassiopeia's eyes grew a fraction wider before a chuckle left her lips.
"Oh now this is amusing," she whispered, catching many's attention, yet she did not disclose her thoughts simply waved their attention back to the transparent wall.
"This first year was brought to St-Mungo's and from there, her memories were unblocked. She was also treated for various other items such as abuse at the hands of the foster family that had taken her in, however, a parental test was put through, and we found a match." Amelia declared before producing a document. "Felicity Barrow was found to be the daughter of Felix Rosier and Amanda Barrow, a muggle — well to a certain extent. Amanda Barrow was the child of Vidette Lestrange, a squib cast from the Lestrange Family. Felix Rossier was found dead eleven years ago ending the Rosier line — at least we thought it did. Gringotts has officially taken claim of this information and presented Felicity Rosier as the new Heir apparent of The Most Ancient and Noble House of Rosier."
It was like a volcano, thought Kinsley as she watched the entire hall erupt in a blast of shouts, objections and questions yet Amelia was not done and raised her hand.
"She has also been made the heir apparent of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Lestrange."
The volume doubled. There was just no other word for it and Kinsley couldn't help but feel bad for the little — soon to be — twelve-year-old girl. She was going to be thrown into a world that had tried to destroy her life, not only that, but she was being thrown into the darker side of the rift. The Lestrange and Rosier families were both notable dark families, although like her mother had stated, the Rosier family was thought to be extinct while the Lestrange family was all inside Azkaban while the Head of the family died a year ago.
"It still leaves her an orphan." She whispered to Cassiopeia gave a hum of agreement.
"The Ancient House of Malfoy would like to take responsibility for The Heir Apparent of the Lestrange and Rosier House." Lucius Malfoy declared causing some whispers.
"The Ancient House of Burke would like to take responsibility for the Heir Apparent of the Lestrange and Rosier House." Lord Burke was a strong looking man with a thick beard and blue eyes. He was seated in the neutral section of the wizengamot yet leaned more towards the dark side.
Biting her lip, Kinsley didn't know what to do. That little girl's life was basically thrown into the darkness if she went to the Malfoys. She didn't know the Burkes as well as she'd hoped at this point. That little girl had been through too much just to be brought down again, she couldn't let that happen. She had the power to help an orphan of war and this was her chance to make a difference.
Gently reaching over, she tapped the ring upon her finger and watched with everybody else as Andromeda Tonks stood, sending the hall into silence.
"The Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter would like to take responsibility for the Heir apparent of the Lestrange and Rosier House. Little Felicity has been through more than anybody could ask of her. She deserves to know that she isn't alone in this world, to know that somebody is out there that cares for her."
One look at her mother's faces told Kinsley that she'd be getting a severe talking to the moment they arrived home, however, she didn't care. This little girl needed a family, just like she had, and she wasn't going to allow her to fall into the wrong hands. She didn't care that she herself was only about to turn thirteen, she needed to help.
Thankfully it seemed as though she wasn't gonig to be alone standing as her Great-Grandfather stepped up to the plate.
"The Most Ancient and Noble House of Black supports the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter's petition for custody of Felicity Rosier," Arcturus spoke, sending the hall into a whisper, yet he wasn't the only one.
"The Noble House of Weasley also supports the petition." The current Lord Weasley declared.
"The Ancient House of Travers also supports the petition." Lord Travers murmured across the hall.
"The Most Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass also support's the petition." Lord Greengrass declared.
"4 supports for the petition have been noted. Two from Most Ancient and Noble Houses, one from a Noble house and one from an Ancient house." Amelia began doing her best to shield her emotions. "I approve the petition for House of Potter. Felicity Rosier will reside with the House of Potter. At this time I also call a thirty-minute recess."
As the Lords and Ladies of the houses rose and to leave the hall. Kinsley rested back against her seat. Others around her fell into a whisper, yet Cassiopeia did not allow her time to rest fully.
She smoothly rose to her feet and motioned for her to do the same. With quick strides, they left the room and were swiftly met by her mother who looked as though she was struggling to hold her tongue, not far from her stood her great-grandfather and Andromeda, both of whom gave their nods.
Without a word from anybody, she was led into a room not far from the 'heir room' and the door was locked with multiple wards being thrown up to stop people from hearing and listening in.
"What the bloody hell do you think you're doing Kinsley!" Amelia erupted the moment it was safe to speak. "Taking in a child into the Potter Family! You yourself are a child!"
"Amelia settle yourself," Cassiopeia hurried to jump in.
"I will not settle down! My daughter has just put herself in further danger. She has accepted a charge into the Potter family without even thinking this through!"
"I have thought it through!" Kinsley erupted, at last, eyes narrowed as her magic flared to life with her anger. "Did you really want a twelve-year-old girl to walk straight into the Malfoy Family's hands? Did you think they were going to willingly appoint her to the House of Black! No offence Grandfather, but, the House of Black does not have a great reputation at the moment, especially with my father avoiding capture."
"A point taken," Arcturus agreed while nodding his head towards her.
"I chose to take her because her only other choice was the two houses that held dark alliances. The Malfoy's are Death Eaters, the Burkes might be neutral, however, they are affiliated with Borgin and Burke a store that is notorious for its dark association. That little girl deserved a chance."
"And how are you going to raise a child when you yourself are a child?" Amelia hissed.
"News flash, I basically raised myself since I was little, but that wasn't the plan thank you very much. I can, however, be an older sibling, especially with the new alliance between the House of Black and the House of Potter." She snapped back.
"She's also not alone Amelia. We might not be part of the wizengamot as a family, however, the Tonks' are ready to support in any form."
"Just as we are," Arcturus declared while motioning towards himself and Cassiopeia. "Our allies are many, we have a vast family. The House of Weasley held its support and surprisingly House Greengrass. She isn't alone, and she did the one thing others wanted. To remove the Rosier and Lestrange houses from the clutches of Death Eater Families."
"I might be going on thirteen mum, but I'm not a little child. I'm mentally older and have seen more than an adult has. I understand my responsibilities, but I just couldn't let that little girl's future be destroyed."
"What is done, is done, Amelia. The Bones House didn't voice any objection to the petition. It's been appointed and cannot be reversed." Cassiopeia declared before giving her a niece a side glance. "We are better served not to fight each other, but to help a little girl that needed and still needs it. We have a responsibility to help this child and Kinsley."
For a moment Amelia didn't speak, her gaze remained on her daughter's stubborn expression. She took in her protective stance, the way her eyes glowed with determination.
Looking away, she gave a nod, not trusting herself to speak before she pulled down the wards and walked out of the room, leaving everybody behind.
For her own part, Kinsley felt her shoulders droop. She knew this would be hard, having parents, but she didn't think that her first few months with her mother would land her with the woman's displeasure to the point where she looked disappointed. It hurt a little, to think her mother didn't think her capable of helping somebody, but she had to push those thoughts aside.
"I need to speak with Gringotts in terms of Felicity Rosier." She whispered to the other adults in the room. "But right now I just want a moment to be alone,"
With that, she hurried from the room leaving the rest of the crew behind and in silence until Arcturus drew a sigh.
"Those two are far too similar for that relationship to be a peaceful one."
Author note:
Alright, a bit of a spin on things with this chapter. I don't know how readers will react and this actually wasn't planned until I wrote this chapter and got to that point.
What are your thoughts concerning this turn of events and for all the amazing reviewers and those reading the story, keep at it. I love hearing from you guys and you're views on certain aspects of the story. Many reviews actually remind me of little tidbits of information that have been syphoned off into the back of my mind.
Ps. Somebody asked me about feathers in Kinsley's hair. Yes, the feathers are still in her hair. Sort of selfish of me because I've loved the feather extensions however never got the chance to get any.
So onto another note. I've been a bit distracted as of late concerning my writing because I'm planning something big - big in my world at least. I've booked a trip to London in September for two weeks and am super excited about the entire thing so I've been sort of obsessing over things for that trip which has distracted me lol.
well anyway cheers everybody and hope you like the chapter!