A/N: I apologize for the long period in between updates. I am going to try and write more regularly from now on. Also, I would definitely love feedback on my writing style. Anything I can do to improve the story would be awesome.
Chapter 2: The Storm
Harry stumbled a little as he came out of the Floo and reached out to the cushy chair by the fireplace to regain his balance. Luna was already in the room staring at him with her piercing gaze. Without a word she turned and headed up the stairs. Harry knew he was supposed to follow her, being used to the oddities surrounding his friend. Sometimes he was very grateful for Luna's mannerisms, especially at a time like this. She did not waste their time with pointless formalities and led him straight to the third room at the top of the stairs. This was Luna's study.
Sitting in one of the straight wooden chairs facing the extravagant looking desk in the center of the room was a lanky, brown-haired man. His posture look tired and resigned as if something was weighing down on him. His head turned towards them as they entered the room. He stood up and greeted Harry, "It's nice to meet you Mr. Potter. I only wish the circumstances were different."
"Mr. Shaw," Harry said stiffly, shaking the man's hand, "I expect you know why I am here. Would you mind if we get straight to it?" It was phrased as a question, but Harry's tone was commanding, leaving no room for disagreement, as he gestured for Shaw to sit down. "Luna, do you have…" His words trailed off as Luna gestured to the desk.
A small vial of clear fluid was sitting on the table. It was slightly less than full, indicating that it had been used previously. "Thank you." Harry said as he reached for it. Harry waved is wand to see if Shaw had any outside forms of magic or potions affecting him. He only detected faint traces of Veritaserum left over in his system. He handed the vial to Shaw who promptly uncorked it, turned it sideways above his head and let three drops fall into his mouth. Harry took the vial as it was handed back to him and waited for it to take effect. He knew it was time to proceed when Shaw's eyes glazed over as if he was having a pleasant daydream. He pulled a small orb out of his pocket and tapped it with his wand. The sphere was made of a translucent material and had a metal strip going around the center with some text on it, "WWW Recording Sphere." He went through the standard questions first.
"What is your full name?"
"Henry David Shaw."
"What is today's date?"
"March 4, 2008."
"Where is your current residence?"
"O…" Shaw started to answer but stopped as if he was trying to remember something. 'His home must be protected by the Fidelius. Harry thought as he continued his questioning.
"Where do you work?"
"I work at Travers and Rosier Solicitors in Diagon Alley."
"Why have you come here tonight?"
"I came because I don't believe Roger Davies was guilty of the crimes he was convicted of."
"Why do you believe this?"
"I had been a few weeks into my job at Travers and Rosier when I overheard a conversation between Travers and Daphne Greengrass. She came by the office a few days before the Surrey Massacre. She seemed very agitated and immediately went past me into Travers office. I couldn't hear the whole conversation, but after about ten minutes I hear her shout, 'I want Davies taken care of!' She stormed out of the office right after that. Travers then called a closed meeting with Rosier. I wasn't able to hear anything after, but five days later after the massacre happened, and Davies was arrested, Travers was very cheerful when he came into the office."
On the outside Harry was stoic but on the inside he was relieved. This was all circumstantial and did not prove that Davies was framed at all. He sincerely hoped it remained that way. One question was really eating at him though.
"Why now? Why didn't you come forward with this eight years ago?"
"You have to understand; I had just graduated Hogwarts and received high scores on my NEWTS. I knew I wanted to go into law and I was able to find a job as ministry prosecutor. I started low level but began making a name for myself as I had won every case I worked on. This was a blessing and a curse. I knew if I continued my track record the ministry would bump me up, regardless of my status as a muggleborn, and eventually I wanted to become the head ministry attorney. Other, however, had taken notice of my talent. One day, after a court case I had won against one of their clients, Travers approached me with a job offer. I had no interest in the job, as I knew they dealt almost exclusively with dark families who were almost always guilty. I told him I had no interest in the job.
A few days later I received a frantic phone call from my mother telling me to come over. I could hear her crying but she refused to tell me what was wrong. I apparated over right away. Rosier was standing in the living room with his wand pointed at my father. My father had a kitchen knife pressed against my mother's neck and had a glazed look in his eyes. I started to bring up my wand but Rosier told me to put it on the ground or he would kill my mother. I had no choice and placed my wand in the center of the room. He then released the spell and petrified me and my parents. He then transfigured my dad into a glass vase and carried him over me. He held my father above his head as he stood a foot away from me. He stared into my eyes as he released the vase and it shattered into several hundred pieces which he promptly vanished.
He then cast a spell on my mother that made her glow blood red for a second. 'That is a very obscure tracking charm that works through almost every ward in existence.' He told me, as if he was just a student answering a question in class. He then looked at me and said, 'You're hired. Be there tomorrow at 9 am.'
From that moment on Travers and Rosier effectively owned me. Anything I did that was disagreeable was met with threats toward my mother. I knew that if I had come forward then she would have been killed. Ever since that day I have had tremendous guilt but I did not want to do anything to threaten my mother's life. My mother died three days ago. I've decided to take the chance to do everything I can to make sure Travers and Rosier pay for everything they have done."
"Are there any other crimes that the two have committed?"
"There are several, and I plan to tell you about all of them, but it would take several hours. If I am right in my suspicions, then they orchestrated the Surrey Massacre, which would be the biggest crime I have witnessed from them."
"Do you know the current or future whereabouts of Travers or Rosier?"
"I know they will be working a court case today at 9 am in ministry courtroom ten. They do not know my mother is dead, so they are none the wiser that their leverage is lost. Can I be there when you take them in?"
Harry could see the veritaserum was wearing off as Shaw began saying things unrelated to the questions asked. Harry sat there for a few moments and processed everything he had heard. Travers and Rosier, it seems were continuing their dark activities behind the scenes and, apparently had been doing so for years. Harry was glad that they finally had clear evidence against them. They were scarily clever, unlike their sons, and had not taken the mark. Because of their knowledge of the ministry law they were able to easily fight any and all accusations made against them following the Battle of Hogwarts and they were not charged with any crimes. The information Shaw presented alluded to many crimes that the two had committed since he started working for them and, frankly, it gave Harry an ominous sense of foreboding.
"You can be there, but you will be under dillusionment so they aren't tipped off." Stated Harry, a game plan for their arrest was already forming in his head. He checked his watch.
7:30 AM, just enough time to get a team together. He got up from his chair and motioned for Shaw to follow him. He started to walk out of the office.
"Luna." He nodded to here as he left. He continued talking to Shaw and he walked down the stairs. "After their arrest we are going to ask you some more questions. You've already had two doses of truth serum today we won't dose you further. Besides, as you indicated, you have no motive for lying to us about their crimes so we will likely just ask you to make an affidavit detailing all of the crimes you are aware of. You will likely have to appear in court several times. I trust you are agreeable to all of this? Ministry of Magic!" He intoned as he threw Floo powder into the fireplace.
"Yes, of course." Shaw replied.
"Good." Harry said. He stepped through the fireplace.
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"Thank you everyone, please be seated." Hermione Granger spoke firmly. "We will now be hearing case 5782 regarding the…" She was interrupted as a Harry walked in, a small group of aurors in tow. Each of the aurors went to their positions with two on each exit and two stationed on either side of the accused. It appeared as though they were there to take the defendant back into custody. Travers and Rosier were both sitting to the left of the defendant watching Harry curiously.
Harry went up to Hermione unflinching under her intense stare, silently questioning why he was interrupting a very simple court procedure. He handed her two sheets of parchment as he whispered something in her ear. She looked as him in surprise and got a satisfied gleam in her eye.
"This hearing is to be postponed to a later date chosen by the court."
"Objection! Your honor, may we approach the bench?" Travers exclaimed. He had everything he needed to prove his client innocent and did not want to wait another two weeks to do so. Hermione motioned for them to approach.
As they got to the small divider separating them Travers began speaking, "Your honor, we have delayed this case twice already. What possible… Hey! What are you doing!?" He exclaimed as Harry finished putting magic restricting cuffs around his wrists.
Auror Creevey was doing the same with Rosier. Neither Rosier nor Travers had a chance to react.
"Phillip Travers and Terrance Rosier you are both under arrest for murder and obstruction of justice. You will be questioned by veritaserum pursuant to the Major Crimes Act of 1999. You may have a solicitor present. If you cannot afford one, one may be provided for you." Harry recited.
Travers and Rosier both had looks of shock on their faces as they were led away.
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Travers twitched uncomfortably in his chair. The room was dark, with only the tiniest bit of light filtering in through the window on the door. He shifted again in his chair, feeling unbalanced. His arms were shackled to the table with magic resistant cuffs. His chair had one leg shorter than the rest, forcing him to lean away from the table, straining his wrists against the cold, hard metal. The air was really hot and sticky. He knew this was all done on purpose to put him on edge. He ignored the discomfort and placed an expressionless mask on his face.
The door opened roughly with a bang. Harry Potter walked confidently into the room. He placed a recording sphere on the table and tapped it with his wand. He did not bother scanning Travers before roughly tilting his head back and forcing four drops of veritaserum down his throat. All prisoners were scanned for any outside magical influence during processing.
"This is Head Auror Potter, identification code:…" Travers notice that Potter's voice sounded muffled as he stated his code, "Interrogating murder suspect Phillip Travers."
"What is your name?"
"Phillip Matthew Travers"
"What is today's date?"
"March 4, 2008"
"Where is your current residence?"
"2 Nimbus Lane, Hogsmeade"
"Where were you the morning of September 5, 2000?"
"I was at a breakfast meeting the whole morning with a client."
"Did you meet with Daphne Greengrass that morning?"
"No, I did not."
Harry narrowed his eyes at Travers. Had Shaw been telling the truth about that morning? How were they giving conflicting stories when they were both under veritaserum? Harry's eyes lit up as he figured it out.
"Please note that the suspect has given contradictory testimony to previous veritaserum testimony. This is cause for use of Legilimency according to the Major Crimes Act of 1999."
Harry forced Travers eyes forward and said a spell to keep them open. He entered his mind and encountered nothing but blackness. It was all consuming, every direction he went there was just nothing. He tried to feel around with his magic and felt nothing. He pulled out of his mind. He was not skilled enough to get anything from whatever the hell that was.
"Suspect has very strong Occlumency. Veritaserum is ineffective. I will consult a more skilled Legilimens to retrieve suspect's memories."
Harry turned the recorder off and headed out of the room. He went to the neighboring interrogation room and knocked on the door. A woman of 28 stepped out. She had auburn hair and fierce brown eyes. Her posture presented her as someone not to be fucked with, much like her aunt.
They had been partners right out of training for 9 years before his recent promotion to Head Auror. They worked very well together and had become a formidable team. She was easily the most deadly fighter of their training class and though he surpassed her skills once they started working real cases, he still had to train hard and often to remain better than her. Their competiveness with each other led to them becoming the most skilled aurors on the force by 2005. They had also become close friends. With Ron leaving the force to play keeper for the Cannons, Hermione's enormous, self-created workload, and Ginny's busy schedule with the Harpies followed by the Quibbler, it was nice to have someone to talk to about the day to day stresses of the job. It also helped that partners on the force developed a large bond of trust due to the life threatening situations they were put in together. He and Ginny had actually named her Albus's godmother.
"Susan, did you get anything out of Rosier?" Harry asked his previous partner.
"No, I used the veritaserum but his story was contradicting the testimony you heard, so I used Legilimency. There was absolutely nothing in his head! No obvious defenses or anything; just blackness. I've never seen anything like it." Susan replied.
"Yeah, my guy was the same. I'm going to ask Hermione for help. She probably knows something about this form of Occlumency." Harry stated.
Hermione had started her career as a ministry prosecutor. She was actually the one who had written the Major Crimes Act of 1999. She designed it to prevent criminals from having the opportunity to buy themselves out of court hearings. She had also discovered, through her copious research, that veritaserum could be fooled if a person's occlumency was good enough. Her research into the mind arts led her to becoming familiar with several Unspeakables. They quickly recognized her intelligence and recruited her into their ranks. Of course, not even Ron had any idea what she did there for 7 years. Only the Minister and the Department of Mysteries were privy to that information. Apparently it had been pretty impressive because Minister Shacklebolt did not hesitate to appoint her as head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement in 2006 once the previous head, Robert Williamson, stepped down.
Harry knocked on Hermione's door.
"Come in." He heard her muffled voice call.
"Hey Hermione, you like my surprise this morning?" Harry grinned cheekily.
Hermione glared at him and gave a contemptuous snort, "I'm still not sure if I want to forgive you for that. You really couldn't have let me know beforehand?"
"Yeah, but I thought you'd enjoy the interruption to a day full of boring court cases." Harry replied flippantly.
"You may find them boring, but I rather enjoy them. And don't be flippant with me. I'll have you know that I am still your boss and could have you removed in a second." Hermione replied with a grin.
"You know you would be bored out of your mind if you did that." Harry's demeanor then turned more serious. "We need your help with the suspects. They have some sort of Occlumency I've never seen before. Their minds are completely blank. There was absolutely nothing except blackness, even when I felt around with my magic. Do you know how to break through this kind of 'shield'?"
Hermione looked very alarmed. "How…" She was speechless.
"So you know about it?" Harry asked.
'"I invented that style of Occlumency when I was recruited by the Unspeakables. If they know how to do that, we have a much more serious problem to deal with. We have a leak!" Hermione exclaimed.
Harry's eyes widened. This was troubling and as he thought about the information he was given a question appeared in his mind.
"Wait, so do you know how to get into their minds if they are using that form?"
"Yes, but I don't see how… Oh! I am such an idiot! Thank you Harry. Sometimes I lose my common sense with all of the stuff I keep up here." Hermione calmed down and became focused again.
"Alright, take me to them"
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Harry watched as Hermione locked eyes with Travers. Travers face was remarkably blank, as if he were trying to do his best mannequin impersonation. Hermione had steely determination in her eyes as she searched for the memories they needed. Harry saw a brief glimmer of accomplishment in her eyes and assumed she had done it. Her face quickly paled and she frowned. He face grew whiter and whiter until eventually she broke her gaze and looked at him, watery eyed.
"Oh Harry…" She reached her hand out and wrapped him in a bone-breaking hug. "I am so sorry… but you have to see this." She gave out a resigned sigh as she released him and put her wand to her head. She pulled out several silvery threads and placed them in the silvery liquid of the pensieve on the table.
She then masked her face of any emotion and spoke to the woman standing outside the door.
"Auror Bones, I need you to come with me down to the Department of Mysteries. We are arresting Unspeakable Fears."
They both walked of at a brisk pace.
Harry looked back to the pensieve, dreading what he had to see in it. The ominous sense of foreboding came back full force, making his stomach turn. He gripped both sides of the bowl, placed his face in, and started falling.
He landed in a very comfortable looking conference room. He saw Travers sitting at the head of the table, going through some case files. Suddenly the door slammed open and one Daphne Greengrass stormed in the room.
"What can I do for you today, Lady Greengrass?" Travers asked his client.
"Mr. Travers, I have a problem I need your assistance fixing." She spoke through gritted teeth, still obviously enraged. "That scumbag filth needs to be taught a lesson he will never forget. Of all the bloody things…" She finally calmed down enough to put her words together properly. "Roger Davies, my ex-boyfriend, cheated on me. Not just with anyone though. No! He slept with my bloody sister! And that's not even the worst part! He effing got my sister PREGNANT! Now she can't fulfill the contract with the Malfoy family. We were this close to gaining all of that influence and they both go screw it all up!"
"Lady Greengrass, I cannot help you with this problem as it does not involve a legal matter." He started. Daphne became enraged at his words but was interrupted before she could start in on him. "Just like I cannot tell you that Roger Davies can be ruined, for a price"
She paused and gave him a satisfied smirk, "Good, name your price. I want Davies taken care of!"
The scene in front of Harry blurred out and shifted. He paled as he realized where he was. He was on Magnolia Crescent. He knew what was about to happen. Travers was next to him with a bound and silenced Roger Davies next to him. He then did something Harry did not expect. Instead of casting the Imperious, which is what Harry figured would happen, Travers looked into Davies eyes. The scenery shifted and suddenly he was standing in an open space with several orbs surrounding him. He looked into one of the orbs and saw himself dancing with Fleur Delacour. He was in Davies mind! He looked around and spotted Travers concentrating his attention on a large orb in the center of the space. It was easily a hundred times the size of any of the other orbs. Harry, familiar with a similar structure he had seen in his own mind knew that it was Davies consciousness. Harry realized what was about to happen.
"Oh my god… He possessed him." Just as Harry said this they were pulled from Davies mind and back onto Magnolia Crescent. Harry then saw Rosier apparate in next to Travers unconscious body. He unbound and un-silenced Davies who stood up and gave Rosier an order.
"Hide my body somewhere safe until Davies is convicted." Rosier nodded and apparated away with the body. Davies body then proceeded to the nearest house. Harry paled as he heard screaming come from the house, but forced himself to follow Davies body and watch. He was only able to stomach it because he had seen the aftermath and knew what was about to happen. Davies had been force to see himself do unspeakable, inhumane things to other people as he was trapped in his body. The least Harry could do was watch. Once Travers was done with this family he moved on to the next. Aurors arrived on the scene, but it didn't matter. Davies body ran from the Aurors from house to house, even murdering some Aurors who got in his way, leaving a trail of dismembered bodies and blood in his wake. He was finally brought down when Harry fired a sectumsempra at his left leg, removing it completely.
Harry watched himself arresting Davies and felt sick. He removed himself from the memory and contained himself just long enough to get outside the door of the interrogation room. He emptied his stomach onto the floor. After muttering a quick cleaning spell he rushed to his desk and pulled out a closed letter from the rubbish bin.
Auror H. Potter
Ministry of Magic
Department of Magical Law Enforcement
Harry rubbed his thumb over the return address
Roger Davies
Azkaban
Cell 23
He forced his trembling hands to open the letter.
Dear Auror Potter,
I have given up trying to get you to believe me; hell I don't even believe myself. Maybe I actually did do it. I probably suffered a mental break. I swear to Merlin though, it did not feel like it was me doing those unspeakable things. The dementors constantly remind me of the atrocities I committed. I used to be so sure that I was under someone else's influence, but now, I think it was me. Every minute of every hour of every day I see what I did. I deserve this. I don't even know why I am writing to you anymore. I think this will be my last letter. For what it's worth, I will never forgive myself for what happened that day.
Sincerely,
Roger Davies
Why? Why had he never read any of his letters? Would it have really hurt him to open one goddamn letter from the man whose life he had destroyed? He immediately went to the apparition point on the top floor of the ministry. With a quiet pop, he disappeared.
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Azkaban was an enormous black tower with three faces. This tower stood impressively tall, looming over the island below. The sea surrounding the island was perpetually encased in a thick mist that never seemed to fade. Harry arrived at the apparition point and walked determinedly to the entrance. The guard let him through and had another guard escort him to the warden's office.
Harry didn't bother with any formalities, "Roger Davies is innocent, I need you to sign him over to my custody so I can take him to the ministry while we wait for it to officially clear." His tone brokered no room for objections.
"Alright Auror Potter, let me get the release form… Alright, sign and date here please." He took the form back. "I'll escort you to his cell."
The walk to cell 23 was the longest walk Harry had ever taken in his life. Even longer then when he went to give himself up to Voldemort. Not a word was exchanged the whole way. The tension in the air was palpable. As they approached the cell guards sent their patroni to send the dementors away from the area. There was a disgusting smell in the air as they approached. The warden stopped in front of the cell and started to undo the lock and opened the door when he paused. He looked uncertainly back at Harry.
"Auror Potter, I believe Davies is dead." Harry stiffened and peered into the cell. Sure enough Davies emaciated one legged body was slumped in a corner of his cell. His face was blue and it looked like several weeks' worth of rotting food lying in a pile by the door.
A glazed look came over Harry and he turned and left towards the entrance of the prison.
"Auror Potter!" exclaimed the warden.
Harry ignored him.
Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.
Harry went to the apparition point and, with a loud crack, he was gone.
He arrived back at the ministry and headed for his office. He started in on the pile of paperwork on the side of it.
Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.(1)
Harry looked up and noticed the time. Five o'clock; he was supposed to leave work at five o' clock. He finished the last of the paperwork for Travers' and Rosier's arrest and stood up. He walked up to the apparition point. He apparated home.
The house was empty. Ginny must be at work. She works until midnight.
Where are the kids? George and Angelina's, right.
He went to the fridge. He pulled out onions, tomatoes, garlic. He then went to the cabinet and pulled out tomato paste, salt, pepper, oregano, and pasta, making sure to get enough for two people. He would leave some for Ginny when she got home. That would be nice.
He mixed and chopped the ingredients together in a bowl as he boiled the water on the stove. His mind started to wander back to the sight of…
Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.
He placed the pasta in the water and dropped the ingredients in the other pan he had put out for the sauce.
He finished the pasta and made himself a plate. He placed the other in the fridge and left a note on the door.
He went back to the counter and stared at his plate for a while.
He slowly picked his way through the meal until the plate was clean.
Telecast. The game was on. He should watch.
He went to the living room and pressed a button on the spherical disk on the table. A 3D image of the Puddlemere vs Ballycastle emerged. The game received several different angles through strategically placed Omnioculars in the stadium. These were combined to create the 3D display in front of him.
"And Wood makes an amazing save on that attempt! What an athlete! You know, Lee, Wood is currently 3 saves away from having the all-time largest amount of career saves in the league at 6,012 saves. It has truly been a remarkable show from him…"
Harry glued his eyes on the game. He intensely watched every play, every catch, every dive, every feint, and every block that occurred during the game.
A small crack broke his concentration. Ginny was home. He should go to her.
He went into the kitchen.
"Hi, Love." He spoke softly as he gave her a peck on the lips.
"Hi, honey, shouldn't you be asleep?"
"Watching the game. I left some pasta in the fridge."
She pulled it out and heated it with her wand.
She then went to where he was standing and reached for his hands.
"How did today go?" she asked concerned.
"Davies is innocent," He blurted out, "and…" He fell quiet.
Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.
Ginny immediately embraced him and tried to comfort him.
"Harry, it is not your fault." She firmly stated. Say something.
"I know, I'm fine" he replied stiffly as he wrapped his arms around her.
Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.
"I'm heading to bed." Ginny gave him a concerned look as he walked out of the room.
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Ginny shifted in her sleep and opened her eyes.
Where was Harry?
She looked around the room and didn't see anything. She got up and walked down the stairs.
She saw the top of Harry's frame sitting on the couch staring at the fireplace. She ventured further into the room until she could see him completely.
He looked awful. There were dark bags under his eyes. His posture was slouched and defeated. There was a haunted, dead look in his eyes. On the table was a half empty bottle of Firewhiskey. There was no shot glass. He turned his head mechanically toward her. He whispered three words.
"I killed him."
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A/N: (1) Is a reference to a scrubs fanfic I read called My Son by RunWonderlandRun. It is a wonderful fic which every scrubs fan should read.
