Chapter Two: The Trial of Peter Pettigrew
James hadn't been in the Ministry, not the bottom level at least. This court room was cold, though that could be partly due to the Dementors that had just brought in Peter Pettigrew.
The room was buzzing with noise. Dumbledore was there, being closely related to the trial. He had known all involved well during their years at Hogwarts, and he had been a member of the Order of the Phoenix, and as such knew Peter, who had also been a member, quite well.
Many notable witches and wizards were in the room. Minerva McGonagall was one such witch, the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts had came to accompany Dumbledore. Not that he needed backup, but James was sure that she had refused to let him go alone.
"How do you think this'll go?" asked one wizard sitting behind James."Trust me, I knew Hisashi Midoriya, his loss won't be forgiven so easily," said another.
Sirius nudged James, who glanced his way. Following Sirius' gaze, he saw that even Igor Karkaroff, who days prior had given up names of plenty of Death Eaters, had shown up to the hearing. Perhaps he would help to expose Peter as well?
James knew the trial was set to begin soon, so it was no surprise when the current Minister, a woman named Millicent Bagnold, called the room to silence. Then, a chill filled the air, the recent trauma coming to James' mind.
If it wasn't for how furious he was at the man brought in, James likely would've collapsed on the spot. James had never heard of pure rage being able to have the same effect of happiness, but James supposed that magic was funny like that.
"This meeting of the Wizengamot, on the date November 11th, 1981, is called into session. Minister for Magic Millicent Bagnold presiding," said Bagnold, her tone perfectly neutral, sounding very artificial.
Peter was sniveling in the chair, surrounded on all sides by the judging faces of the Wizengamot. He seemed to try to shrink into his seat. "Peter Pettigrew, you stand accused of being a member of the Dark Lord's servants, also known as a Death Eater, and of colluding to murder not only Lilly Potter, but also Inko and Hisashi Midoriya. How do you plead?"
Peter seemed to think for a moment, but James never doubted what the idiot would say. "Not guilty," he squeaked. James exhaled. He was going to enjoy seeing Peter carted off to Azkaban. If anyone would deserve it, it was Peter Pettigrew.
"James Potter, you are the prosecutor. Please, tell us your story."James stood up, not worrying about all the eyes on him. He thanked the Minister before he began.
"On Halloween night, we had the Midoriyas over for a little get together. Now, our home was under the protection of a Fidelius Charm, and Peter here was our secret keeper. In spite of that, Lord Voldemort had found our location." There was a loud gasp as Voldemort's name.
"You said your home was placed under a Fidelius Charm, yes?" Bagnold said. "Then how were the Midoriyas over at your home that night?"
"Well, Peter had decided it best to tell our old friends from school where our house was. In fact, one of my other friends, Sirius, had been over not two weeks ago." Sirius raised his hand proudly when his name was mentioned, though he gave Peter a death glare.
"And that night, your wife and the Midoriyas were killed, correct?" James nodded, though he was beginning to get rather angry with the invasive questions Bagnold was asking.
"Yes," he managed."And are there are witnesses to this event?"James nodded, and Sirius stood up.
"The Wizengamot recognizes Sirius Black," Bagnold said.
"I was there at the Potter's house that night, I saw Voldemort try to murder Harry Potter in cold blood." Once more, there was a gasp at his name, though there was a second at the mention of the murder of a child.
"Now, hold on one moment. How did you end up in Godric's Hollow that night?" Bagnold asked. "Apoligies, but this is highly important for the records."
Sirius nodded, being surprisingly understanding of how thorough the process was. He usually had problems with such authority.
"Well, Peter had gone silent a few days before hand, which I thought was pretty odd. So, I decided it was best to pay him a visit, but when I got to his place, the whole house looked ransacked. That was about when I realized what happened. Peter always had been a coward."
At this moment, Peter looked as if he were on the verge of crying, though no one acknowledged him.
"I came to Godric's Hollow as fast as I could. Hisashi was already dead when I got there, and before we knew it, Lily and Inko were both dead." Sirius sounded very hoarse now, which had likely been the result of a shouting match he had gotten in with Severus an hour ago.
"And where was the Dark Lord?" Bagnola asked, almost sounding scared to ask."Gone. When he tried to attack Harry, his curse rebounded. When it hit him, he vanished. There wasn't even a body left behind," Sirius said. Dumbledore looked particularly interested in that part of the story. What was going on behind that wrinkled face?
"And what do you have to say on this, Mr Pettigrew?" Bagnold asked.
Given the opportunity to speak, Peter began to beg the crowd. "Please, you must understand, the Dark Lord is powerful! He would've killed me if I hadn't told him...!"
"You disgust me!" roared Sirius, his eyes fierce. "I would've died rather than betray them!"
Sirius yelling caused an eruption of noise. Karkaroff berated Peter, the members of the Wizengamot began to discuss the man in front of them, and Sirius hurled insult after insult.
"Order!" yelled Bagnold, her voice magically amplified. The echo of her voice quickly became the only noise in the chamber, which had fallen silent at her yell.
"Now, how does the Wizengamot judge the accused?" Bagnold asked. "All in favor of a guilty verdict?"
James couldn't see a single hand that wasn't raised.
Peter didn't stick around to be taken to Azkaban. Revealing himself as an Animagus, he transformed into a rat and scurried out the exit door, getting by the Dementors, which were apparently unaware of who he was since he was a rat.
He scurried out of the open door, attempting to make a break for the elevator out of the bottom level of the Ministry. James would be damned if he let his wife's killer escape that easily.
Sirius leapt down on the chamber floor, transforming into a large, black dog, charging after Peter. James threw caution to the wind and transformed into the stag that had once traversed Hogwarts grounds.
Chaos engulfed the chamber as Prongs chased after Wormtail. Padfoot was far closer to Wormtail, and he was gaining ground due to his size. Still, the wide hallway was large enough for Prongs to catch up.
If Moony were here, it would almost be like the old days. If only Wormtail could've kept his mouth shut.
Prongs took the lead, quickly gaining on Wormtail, who turned a corner, scurrying down a corridor with an ominous looking door. Prongs was right on his tail, and he lowered his head. Lifting it up, he flung Wormtail up with his antlers.
Padfoot caught him with his teeth, not biting down hard enough to kill, but it definitely hurt. So, they returned to the chamber. Padfoot let go of Wormtail, who fell to the ground and transformed back into Peter.
The chamber was in the midst of a very chaotic scene, though it quickly returned to calm when Bagnold stood up from her seat.
There was a charm placed on the exit now, securing any chance of escape once more. James was slightly concerned about what may happen now that his status as an Animagus was known, but it was the least of his worries at the moment.
"Peter Pettigrew, you are hereby sentenced to life in Azkaban," Bagnold said, sounding rather vindictive in the moment. James felt a great deal of happiness even as the Dementors entered the room once more.
Lily was dead. So was one of his best friends in the world, but at least their killer was gone, and the one responsible was brought to justice.James' mind went to Harry and Izuku. They would need to be raised knowing what happened to their parents. He wouldn't have it any other way. They would be brothers, much in the same way he and Sirius were, but only closer.
One day they would go to Hogwarts, where they would make James proud, no matter what they did. James would make sure they had the best childhood they could, they deserved it.