Hello, welcome to the 12th chapter of 'Like a Lightning Bolt'.
Ok, please stop asking about the test results from St Mungo's, they will be addressed when they are actually completed, rather than being analysed.
Also, I am saying this now. In future people don't get trials, trials take place offstage, criminal trials are annoying to write. Also, in this trial, first names are given for some but not all. Mostly if I had to make a first name up for them I didn't.
Also, yes, this trial does not work the way most people do it, or even the way Harry's went in canon, this is to show a difference between a Wizengamot session and a Wizengamot trial. Later there will be brief instances of Wizengamot sessions and I don't want reviews saying they aren't going how this trial went.
Now, onto the chapter.
"Speech"
'Thoughts'
"Spells"
Book Names
Disclaimer: See previous chapters.
Chapter 12
Arriving in the Ministry of Magic, Harry once again found himself bent over trying to recover from being Side-Along Apparated, thankfully, he recovered faster this time due to his body already being exposed to the feeling of that form of Magical transport. Unlike in Diagon Alley, Sirius and Remus began moving while pulling Harry along, not allowing him to fully recover.
"Come on Harry, walk it off this time, you need to be seen as strong and in control for this." Sirius said, his tone being the same tone he was used to from his interactions with Blaise, Daphne, and Tracey.
"There will be people in there who knew that Peter was a Death Eater the entire time, these will be the people who will attempt to ruin your testimony, this is their first chance to try and embarrass and defame you in a public forum Harry, and most of them will not pass it up." Remus added, his own tone being stern, but without the regal undertone of Sirius' and the Slytherin's.
Stepping into stride with the two after they let him go, Harry did his best to make himself seem confident, keeping his back straight, holding his chin high, and walking with sure steps. As they entered the atrium, Harry noticed that most eyes were turned towards them, Harry realizing that both he and Sirius's first major appearance at the Ministry since Sirius was acquitted would cause quite a stir among the general populace. Judging by the number of reporters taking pictures of the trio, Harry figured someone had tipped the press off to the two of them being witnesses in the trial against Pettigrew due to the number of cameras flashing around them.
"Nod at those who say your name, smile slightly for the press, not enough to show emotion, just enough to show them that you are human, not a blank slate. Otherwise, just keep walking, they know they can't impede us." Sirius stated so Harry and Remus could hear him, his confident tone reassuring the other two. The three continued to walk, when having their wands scanned at the station, Harry found that due to his Heir status and Sirius' Lord status, the two were allowed to keep their wands, while Remus had to surrender his.
They then moved on, entering the area which housed the elevators to the various floors of the Ministry. The room itself seemed quite busy, with all but one of the elevators having a large queue before it. Before Harry even had a chance to get his bearings within the room Sirius was already moving toward the elevator which only had an Auror guard.
"Hello, I am Lord Black, witness in the case against Peter Pettigrew. With me are Heir Potter, also witness, and Remus Lupin, a guest of mine who may also be called for evidence if it is needed." In response to what Sirius had said, the Auror tapped his wand against the parchment he held, before he nodded and moved aside, allowing the group into the elevator.
As the elevator doors closed, Sirius visible relaxed, his posture slipping and a small sigh escaping his lips. Seeing this, Remus and Harry followed, taking the opportunity of the elevator ride to stretch the stiff muscles that had formed from keeping their stiff postures as they walked.
"You all right Harry, that wasn't too much?" Sirius asked, worry visible in his eyes.
"I'm good, Daphne, Tracey, and Blaise made sure I could do that. Something about 'not embarrassing your lineage with a funny walk'." Harry's reply caused Sirius to snort in amusement, remembering his mother telling him the exact same thing when he was little.
"I hope you're ready for this, both of you. This is our chance to make sure that little rat pays for what he did. This is not revenge, this is justice that we seek today." Remus's statement was met with nods of agreement from Harry and Sirius. The three began readjusting their postures when they felt the elevator slow down.
Upon the elevator opening, the three stepped out, looking just as noble as they had for the cameras of the press. After going through another Auror checkpoint, most likely to prevent the press from sneaking into the trial, they were taken to an antechamber meant for witnesses of the prosecution. The antechamber was rather bare, other than the enchanted wall which allowed for those in the antechamber to watch the trial itself.
Through the wall they were able to see that quite a large number of the Wizengamot members had already arrived, with the large clock present over the main entrance ticking down closer to the beginning of the trial. With ten minutes until the trial began, Madame Bones walked into the antechamber and walked over to the three.
"Lord Black, Heir Potter, Mr Lupin, it's good to see you have all arrived on time." She began, as she nodded in approval at their clothing choice for the trial.
"Madame Bones, it would reflect quite poorly on us as witnesses to have arrived after the trial had begun." Sirius bowed to Madame Bones, with Harry and Remus following suite shortly after.
"Now, the trial will began with the reading of the charges being brought against Pettigrew by myself to the Wizengamot, after that, he will be brought in and I will repeat the charges to him. This allows for the Wizengamot to watch his reaction to the charges independent of their own, he will then have the chance to plead guilty or not guilty, regardless the trial will still commence," She paused, watching the three before her to make sure they understood before she continued, "After that, we will call in Lord Black and then Mr Lupin to provide testimony for the events that took place prior to Lord Black's incarceration. After that we will bring in Heir Potter to detail the events that led to the capture of Peter."
"If he pleads guilty the trial still continues?" Harry asked.
"Yes, in accordance with an act put through the Wizengamot in 1946, after the fall of the Dark Lord Grindelwald, in order to prevent criminals from merely pleading guilty in order to seem repentant of their crimes for lesser sentences, the testimony of witnesses still goes through, this allows the court to get more than just the guilty parties story."
"As Harry's legal guardian may I please look over the list of questions that the court will be asking him? I want to make sure there are no questions that are inappropriate being asked." Sirius' stern tone let Madame Bones know that he was not joking.
"Of course," Madame Bones handed a piece of parchment she had been holding in her hand to Sirius, "I already assumed as much. In accordance with the laws of questioning minors, any question asked of you that is not on this list can be ignored if you so choose with no repercussions to you or your testimony."
Looking over the parchment, Sirius nodded, not seeing anything out of place or inappropriate. Showing the list to Harry, who then also confirmed that there was no question in the list he felt uncomfortable answering, after which Madame Bones took the list back from them.
"Now, while there should not be any other questions, some members of the Wizengamot may ask a question of you to clarify something you have said for them, or if they do not follow any reasoning you give for your actions."
"I understand Madame, and on behalf of House Potter I thank you for your assistance in providing justice against the one who betrayed my parents." Harry bowed deeply this time, standing back straight in time to catch the slight glimmer of a smile as it left Madame Bones' face.
"Well, if the three of you will excuse me, I must go and address the court." With a slight curtsey Madame Bones turned and left the room, the three watching through the enchanted wall as she took her place in the prosecutor's seat.
The three watched as Dumbledore, in his position as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, called the court to order, before nodding his head towards Madame Bones so as the trial could begin.
"Members of the Wizengamot, today, as I am sure many of you know, you have been gathered for the judgement of Peter Pettigrew. Peter Pettigrew was believed to have been dead for over the past decade, and we as a body had made the decision to posthumously award him an Order of Merlin award, which has now in light of information acquired through a separate investigation been revoked." The court had barely reacted to this string of information, other than the occasional nod from some members.
"Mr Pettigrew is being charged with being a Death Eater, a criminal offence under the act passed in 1975. He is charged with betrayal of a lethal nature, due to his status as the real Potter Secret Keeper. He is also being charged with several other charges, all of which can be found within the files before each of you, that he performed in his duties as a loyal Death Eater during the war."
"Excuse me Madame Bones," Augusta Longbottom began, "If it was not known that Mr Pettigrew was a Death Eater during the war, how are you laying charges against him for his actions during so?" Several people within the Wizengamot appeared to be curious as well.
"The charges have been laid against him by his own admittance. In accordance with my investigative right, Mr Pettigrew was given a dose of Veritaserum and interrogated as to why he had been faking his death for the past decade. Upon revealing he had been a Death Eater, I began asking questions along that line until he had gone through his entire time as a Death Eater."
"Thank you for settling that Madame." Augusta nodded towards Amelia as she retook her seat.
"Is there no more questions from the court?" When nobody asked any questions, Madame Bones nodded her head, "Auror Shacklebolt please bring in the defendant."
Kingsley disappeared into a door that was on the opposite side of the main chamber, Sirius quickly explaining to Harry that it was the defendant's antechamber for them and their witnesses. After only a few minutes Shacklebolt reappeared, followed by Pettgirew, who was encased in chains, flanked by two other Aurors with a final Auror following behind Pettigrew. The four Aurors walked Peter over to the defendant's chair, upon seating him in it the shackles around the chair leapt up and bound themselves to Peter's arms.
"Auror grade suppression chains," Sirius commented, noticing Harry's confused look, "The ones he came in with, they are designed to keep known Animagi from being able to transform, they keep the magic of their victim from being able to spread properly throughout their body, as is necessary for the transformation." Harry nodded in understanding at the end of Sirius' explanation.
"Mr Pettigrew," Madame Bones' voice drew Harry's attention back to the main chamber, "You are charged with being a Death Eater, betrayal of a lethal nature, as well as several other crimes you have already admitted to under Veritaserum. How do you plead?"
"G-guilty." Pettigrew croaked out.
"The prosecution calls it's first witness for the day, with a second witness being available to back up his testimony if the court so pleases. The prosecution calls Lord Black to the floor." At the calling of his name, Sirius walked out of the antechamber, sitting in the chair designated by Madame Bones.
"Lord Black, can you please describe the events that led to the betrayal of the Potter's by Peter Pettigrew."
"During the war with Voldemort, James, Lily, Peter, Remus, and myself were all helping out in the fight as best we could, prior to the birth of Harry, we received information that suggested that James and Lily were being targeted by Voldemort for some reason. Around six months after Harry was born, we also caught wind that one of us was a spy. In order to prevent this, James and Lily went under the Fidelius charm. James wished for me to be the Secret Keeper, however, I believed I was the obvious choice, so I proposed that we have Peter be the Secret Keeper, while we, suggest, without ever confirming, that I was the Secret Keeper."
"What do you mean when you say 'suggest' Lord Black?" Amos Diggory inquired.
"Well, we essentially made a show of me using a piece of paper provided by Pettigrew with the address on it to reveal the secret to Remus and Dumbledore in the Leaky Cauldron, I then incinerated the paper. By doing so, not only did every patron there who was able to piece together what we were talking about believe that the Secret Keeper was me, but so did our closest friend and the Chief Warlock himself."
"And the two of them weren't able to notice that it was Peter's handwriting, not your own on the note?" Amos asked.
"I had written out the original note on a piece of parchment, Peter than used a type of thin muggle notepad paper that Lily was fond of using to trace my handwriting for the note. At the time, it was a genius idea, in hindsight, a large mess could have been avoided had we not done as we did." With Sirius answering his questions, Amos returned to his seat.
"Please continue Lord Black." Madame Bones prompted.
"Right, we never heard anything to suggest that the spy was Peter, in fact, at the time, the clues we were getting suggested it was Remus who had been the spy. Come that Halloween, we were, unfortunately, alienating our friend in order to keep any information from leaking. That night, I was on my way over, I had just finished dinner with the woman I was seeing at the time, and about ten minutes away, I suddenly felt as if the Fidelius was no longer in place. So, I picked up the speed on my bike, arriving there-"
"Bike? Lord Black." Lord Greengrass asked.
"Ah, yes, I had a muggle motorbike enchanted to be capable of flight. It was checked by three separate Charms Masters, an Arithmancy Master, and an Ancient Runes Master. It was also recorded on my official file that I possessed it," Lord Greengrass retook his seat when his question was answered, "Arriving there I saw that the front door had been blown in, and a massive hole was where Harry's nursery was meant to be. Upon entering the house I found the body of my best friend lying at the foot of the stairs, his wand was sitting on the table in the lounge room. I had no time to stop and grieve though because that's when I heard Harry crying. I raced up the stairs and the first thing I saw when I walked in the nursery was Lily, slumped against Harry's crib, where she had fallen, while Harry was crying because his mother wasn't moving when he pulled on her hair." Everyone in the court room was able to see the tears sliding down Sirius' face as he remembered the scene he was describing.
"Lord Black if you need a moment we can have Mr Lupin come and give testimony on his side of your testimony." Madame Bones offered.
"No, I can go on. I lifted Harry out of his crib, I wiped the blood off of his forehead with my sleeve. As I turned to leave I noticed the empty black cloak and robes in the corner, as I didn't know what they were I paid them no heed, figuring that maybe James had left them there, Harry liked to hide in our cloaks when he could get a hold of them," Sirius let out a small barking laugh, and Harry noticed that even though both he and Remus were crying, they both had a smile on their faces as they remembered times when Harry had done as Sirius described, "I began walking down the stairs, with the intention of leaving the house and going to the person who I trusted the most at the time, the woman I had just been having dinner with. As I exited the house I nearly barrelled into Rubeus Hagrid, Dumbledore having sent him when he felt the same thing I did. Hagrid said Dumbledore asked him to come and see what had happened, when I told him that only Harry survived, he offered to take him to Dumbledore to look after. I agreed, and told Hagrid to take my bike to get back to Hogwarts. After he took off, I stopped and thought, and, realizing that Peter had to of given up the address, I first went to the safe house he had been staying at."
"A safe house?" Asked Madame Bones.
"Yes, James had used his family's fortune to purchase all of us apartments in the muggle world, that way if we needed to hide, like Peter did, nobody would be able to find them. When I got there, I found nothing, no sign of forced entry, nothing to symbolise that he had been taken by force. That's when I found the piece of parchment on the table. It was a eulogy, stating how James and Lily had been such good friends, how Harry had died before he was ever able to grow into a man. That was all the proof I needed, he hadn't been broken, he had betrayed us. I saw red, and, without wasting a moment, I transformed into my Animagus form and began hunting him down. I cornered him in a muggle neighbourhood, but before I could say anything, he began screaming about how I betrayed them, drawing the muggles from their houses. Before I could say anything, he cast a spell at the ground, causing a large explosion as he blew up a muggle gas pipeline. As I recovered from the blast, I saw him cut off his finger, smile at me, and transform, disappearing into the now wide open sewer as a rat. I broke at the time, and began rambling, then, there was only blackness, when I came to, I was in Azkaban."
"Speaking of Azkaban, I have been informed that you broke out with the intention of catching Pettigrew, my question, is how did you know where to find him?" Minister Fudge leant forward as he asked, as opposed to others, who stood.
"You let me know where he was Minister." Sirius replied.
"I did? How?"
"The copy of the Daily Prophet you gave me, the one with the Weasley family's picture on it. I knew that rat anywhere, and the second I saw him, I remembered how one of the guards had taunted me, letting me know Harry was alive and in Gryffindor. I then knew that Peter was with Harry, after all, I had no doubt in my mind that the Weasley boy that was holding Peter in the picture was a Gryffindor. The rest of the information about that is available in the transcript of my interrogation which Madame Bones can provide."
"Any other questions for Lord Black?" When nobody spoke, Madame Bones motioned for Sirius to re-enter the antechamber, "Calling our second witness, Mr Lupin, to provide a backing testimony to Lord Black's." Remus walked out after Sirius came into the room, walking straight to the seat that Sirius had just occupied.
"Mr Lupin, are you able to verify the facts that were provided about the events leading up to the betrayal of the Potters?" Madame Bones asked.
"Of course, as Sirius had said, we caught wind that James and Lily were being targeted, they then went into hiding when we caught wind that there was a spy among us. I, naturally, knew it wasn't myself, so, I suspected Peter, as Sirius would have given his life to protect any of us. When Sirius showed us the slip of paper with the Cottage's address on it I instantly believed he was the Secret Keeper. When I felt the wards go down I panicked, by the time I was able to get any information on the situation, Sirius was in prison, James and Lily were dead, Harry was gone, and Peter was meant to be dead. With the entire world I had known crashing down around me, I fled England, began doing odd jobs around France for a few years, before I returned to England, were I did the same."
"Thank you Mr Lupin, that's all the information we needed from you." Madame Bones gestured for Remus to head back into the room, "And the final testimony for the prosecution is from one Heir Potter, can you please come into the main chamber." Harry walked out, and just as Sirius and Remus before him, sat in the chair, "Heir Potter, can you please describe the events that led to you revealing Mr Pettigrew in the Great Hall of Hogwarts?"
"Well, at the end of the last school year I-"
"Heir Potter, Madame Bones asked you to describe the events leading up to the revealing of Peter Pettigrew, not what happened last school year." Lucius Malfoy's crisp tone echoed from his position.
"Exactly, I was asked to describe the events that led to it, which began at the end of last school year. As I was saying, Professor McGonagall and I had sat down and organised a change in my electives, at the end of the following conversation, she gave me a book written by the Marauders, also known as James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew. In it they had created an amalgamation of the notes taken by them in all of their school years, tales of the pranks they pulled, spells they invented, and the most relevant to this court, descriptions and diagrams of their Animagus forms. Late in the summer, after the incident I had with a burst of accidental magic-"
"Accidental magic? At your age Heir Potter?" Lord Abbot asked, his and several other's curiosity visible on their faces.
"Ah yes, Madame Pomfrey was having some friends at St Mungos look into a difference in my medical scans she thinks may have caused it. Anyway, after that I ran from my previous guardian's home, where I bumped into what I now know, and at the time only suspected, was Sirius, due to having read the section with their diagrams the night before. I had accidentally summoned the Knight Bus, and while on board, the conductor, Steve Shunpick or something, I was distracted at the time, told me the story of Sirius killing Peter and betraying my family. I was told he had broken out to kill me, this had made me want to look into everything more, as Sirius had just had the opportunity to kill me. When I made it to Hogwarts, I had sat down and studied the chapter about Animagus' and had begun practicing the reversal spell in order to be able to force Sirius into his human form the next time I saw him to get answers."
"It didn't occur to you to tell the authorities he was an Animagus?" Asked Madam Bones.
"No, at the time there was a kiss on sight order on him from the Dementors, I wasn't going to risk the life of what could have been an innocent man."
"That's fair, carry on."
"Anyway, I sat down for dinner on the night and out of the corner of my eye I saw Ron Weasley feeding his pet rat Scabbers. At that point I had gotten comfortable and opened the book, having been on the page with the diagrams, everything clicked into place. You see, earlier in the summer I had gone to the pet store with my friend Hermione, while there a boy bought a rat as a practice pet, and he was told they don't live for long. When I asked what kind of state a near twelve year old rat would be, I was told it would be dead. Scabbers had a toe missing and all that was found of Peter was a finger. I decided to try the spell on Scabbers, thinking that if he changed back, then I had caught a dead man. Upon casting the spell, Scabbers began turning back into Peter Pettigrew. Before Peter was able to react, my friend Neville Longbottom fired off a Body Bind, trapping Peter where he was. By the time the reversal effect had worn off and he was able to transform back again, the Professors had already begun surrounding him. From there Madame Bones and the Aurors were called and then I was escorted with my friends for questioning."
"Thank you Heir Potter, you covered all of the questions that your guardian approved of, you can go back to the antechamber now." Harry nodded to Madame Bones as he walked over to the antechamber door.
"Members of the Wizengamot you have heard the testimony of the prosecution's three witnesses. Mr Pettigrew, do you wish to provide testimony?"
"N-no" Peter once again croaked, his voice hoarse.
"Members of the Wizengamot, the defence wishes to provide no testimony, you will now submit your votes as to his punishment."
The sound of many quills scratching away at parchment was heard, as the Wizengamot members each voted on how they believed Peter should be punished. After about ten minutes, Dumbledore began sorting through the votes, writing down his own record of each before handing it to the scribe to note down. After he had worked up the average punishment as voted by the Wizengamot, he rose.
"Peter Pettigrew, this court finds you guilty on all accounts. Your punishment will be 75 years in Azkaban prison, in the maximum security ward." In reaction to Dumbledore's announcement, Peter shuddered, knowing what kind of people are kept there. As Peter was taken away by the Aurors who brought him in, Madame Bones came into the antechamber.
"Justice has been served, the three of you did wonderfully." Amelia smiled at them all, the stiffness gone from both her posture and tone.
"Thank you Amelia, Harry, come on, we can go wait in the hall." Remus began guiding Harry out, who chucked a thank you and goodbye of his own behind him on the way out.
"I meant what I said in there Amelia, you were the person I was going to run to. With Harry, then, with Pettigrew when I caught him. Both times they were taken out of my hands. If you are willing to try it Ami, I want to try us again." Sirius smiled a nervous smile as he looked at the woman he had loved before his life went to hell, waiting for her answer.
"Sirius, I-I want to give us a shot again as well. Things won't be easy, but I want to give us another shot." Amelia smiled at Sirius, and he gave her a giant grin back, before he gave her a hug.
"Thank you. I will owl you to set something up later tonight." The two then said goodbye, before Sirius took Remus and Harry back to Hogwarts.
The room was dark, the only light in the room coming from the candles and the fire dancing in the far corner. Only a single man sat in the room, in a chair facing away from the light, only the strange red glow of the runes carved into his arms illuminating him. The man jolted as he heard the sounds of footsteps, and his open doorway was suddenly filled by the man he had been expecting.
"Evening Lord Black. Do you have what we agreed upon?"
Sirius, from the doorway, slowly began walking in, the room seeming hostile to him. He reached into his coat, pulling out a small folder tied closed with twine, before tossing it onto the ground before the man. The man leaned down from his chair, pulling the folder from the floor, reading the writing upon the folder's front, nodding when it had the words he was expecting.
"So, I held up my end, you will hold up yours?" Came Sirius' hesitant voice as he watched the man stare at the folder in his hands.
"Of course, for good or for worse, you provided me with the information I have wanted for years. I am a man of my word, I will not be able to begin immediately, but I will hold up my end of our deal."
"And if that doesn't have the information in it that you want to be there?"
"That's for me to worry about. Not you Lord Black. Leave."
Sirius turned and began walking away, unable to shake the feeling that he had just made a deal with the devil himself.
And that's a wrap for this chapter.
Yes yes I know, there are going to be plenty of people mad at me for those last two bits. Amelia and Sirius, I felt like it. Deal with it. The cloak and dagger part? Been planning that for a while. The entire trial arc was literally for that final scene. Every other change to the story it brings is all well and good, but had I not wanted Sirius and the glowing man to make their deal, then Sirius would have remained wanted till after Christmas.
Now, some bad news. I am having to stop my update schedule, I will still update, there will be no hiatus, it's just that my life is getting busier at the moment, I'm looking for a part time job right now, I go back to university at the end of the month, and several other important factors taking place.
One of the aforementioned factors, the next chapter I release will be a giant timeskip, me covering the rest of the third year, giving an overview of changes to the world, Harry and the group's improvements, and various other things. Which brings me to another one of the other factors, I need to spend time developing all of the various changes that are going to take place in 4th year. Different Challenges, more fancy French, more surly Bulgarians, and a bunch of other stuff, including more moments with the glowing man. Who shall only be addressed as the glowing man, I hate making names.
So yeah, I apologise about the end of regular updates, the two exceptions aside, but it's a necessary evil.
So, until next time, whenever that is, (Hopefully soon for the timeskip at least)
Lucison.