Disclaimer: I don't own HP, I only own Evan and Iris (and the future Black baby! BTW, boy or girl? I haven't decided yet, so you have a chance to give your preferences!)
Read, enjoy and review!
Published 11-3-2023
Chapter Three
The Trial of Evan Potter
The next few days were awkward, to say the least. Aludra tried to act normal, but she couldn't help but feel tense, and Evan and Iris seemed torn between acting normal and talking about It, something Aludra was hellbent on ignoring. Especially when there was so many people around.
To make matters worse, Lord and Lady Potter seemed to be watching her all the time, leading to Aludra avoiding the guest wing like the plague.
She was selfishly relieved they weren't aiming their anger at her though.
She was forever grateful to her other friends and boyfriend for their intervention. With them easing the way and carefully choosing topics of conversation that wouldn't lead to any arguments or controversies, eventually things settled into...well not quite normal, the tension between Aludra and the Potters was too much for that, but an improvement.
Duelling was an important part of the summer curriculum. The various Aurors were drilling all the children (including the twins, though Ron and Ginny weren't taking part, because Mrs. Weasley "wasn't going to turn her children into little warriors!" She had no say about her of-age children, however) on Defensive and Offensive magic. Even Lord and Lady Potter were helping with the training, and Aludra had to admit, they were good fighters both individually and especially together. It was clear how they had fought and survived Voldemort himself three times. At the very least, the teens would be able to defend themselves long enough to escape, as they'd all been given at least one (technically illegal) portkey to wear that would bring them to a Black property when activated.
"Right," Sirius announced, about a week into the Potters' stay, as he clapped his hands together and gestured for everyone to gather around.
They were in the Duelling Room, preparing for another lesson on fighting. Susan had come over for the lesson, and Aludra was glad to see her. Like every summer, she'd been away for several weeks visiting her American relatives, so this was the first she'd seen her best female friend since June.
"Today is going to be a bit different. So far we've been focusing on teaching you all the usual defensive and offensive spells. Today we're going to work on simple spells, ones from your first two years at Hogwarts so even Iris will know them well, and how you can use them in a fight."
Iris raised a hand.
"Yes, Iris?" Sirius smiled at her.
"We haven't learned anything that could help in a duel with a Death Eater, not even in DADA," she pointed out. "Just things like the Jelly-Legs Jinx and stuff. How could they help against a Death Eater?"
"A good question, Iris," Sirius nodded. "But there are many spells learned in even First Year that, when used creatively, can be deadly in a fight. Can anybody think of an example?"
The twins raised their hands immediately. They were showing themselves to be brilliant at duelling, always coming up with dangerous and astounding ideas. Aludra wasn't surprised they were the first to think of something.
"George?" Sirius said, raising an eyebrow. "And Fred can go next."
"Lumos," George suggested. "If you shone that in your opponent's eyes, you would blind them."
"Very good," Aludra's father nodded in approval. George looked heartened. Sirius wasn't making getting approval easy on her boyfriend. "As a matter of fact, I used that exact technique fighting Corvus Burke, back in the First War. What about you, Fred?"
"Diffindo," the older twin said, with uncharacteristic seriousness. "You could use it to cut off your opponent's wand arm, or even slit their throat."
Evan and Iris looked shocked and horrified at that, but the other teens had already had this conversation with the adults (much to Mrs. Weasley's vocal horror and anger) and simply nodded in agreement.
"Slit their throat?" Evan exclaimed. "But that- I mean, we can't go around killing them, can we? It's evil!"
The others, save Iris, exchanged loaded looks. Lady Potter, to Aludra's surprise, was the one to speak.
"So what would you have us do instead of killing them, Evan, Iris?" She asked pointedly.
The two Potter children exchanged uncertain looks. "Stun them?" Evan tried. "Or Disarm them?"
"And when they wake up and continue to slaughter others what should we do?" Lord Potter said then. "Remember, Azkaban has proved that it's not impregnable. If Pettigrew could escape from inside, then you can guarantee that Voldemort will be able to break the rest of his followers out. It's only a matter of time, especially as Fudge refuses to replace the Dementors with reliable guards."
"The fact is, Evan, Iris, that we're in a war now," Sirius said grimly, but not harshly. He was simply stating a fact. "What the Death Eaters do is pure evil. The textbooks don't go into the specifics of their crimes, but it's appalling. They would hold 'revels', where they'd savagely rape kidnapped muggles, banish bridges with dozens of cars on them so everyone fell to their deaths, torture and slaughter indiscriminately...and that's just the tip of the broomstick.
Second chances are all well and good when the person wants them, but these people are fanatics. They're not going to change their minds. If you have a chance to put them down and don't, then you're just as responsible for the blood of the innocents that they spill afterwards as they are."
"We're at war, you two," Uncle Remus repeated. "The time for Disarming is over."
The two looked shaken, especially as their parents were nodding in agreement. Sirius, meanwhile, turned back to the lesson.
The teenagers watched as Aunt Alice faced off against Sirius, the two so talented at their jobs they made the duel look like a dance, all with First- or Second-Year spells. Once the duel ended with Aunt Alice yielding to Sirius after he tricked her into falling prey to a Jelly-Legs Jinx (probably deliberately, to show Iris it could in fact be useful), the teens were split up into pairs and told to use only basic spells in their duels.
Aludra faced off against Fred, and their duel ended in a draw. Neville lost to Susan, Iris to George, and Evan then faced Susan as well, again with Susan winning. Still, despite the clear struggle to adjust their thinking, both Potters put up a good fight.
After that it was time for lunch, and they all (Lord and Lady Potter included, though they'd mostly been eating in the guest wing) headed to the main dining room to eat Millie's delicious lunch of Cornish Pastries.
Then the teenagers went to the beach, where they enjoyed a nice swim. Aludra didn't go into the water herself (the events of the Second Task had left her leery of swimming, even knowing there were no Merpeople to attack her), but she sunbathed, glad she'd gotten all her official work done for the day so she could just relax.
She shrieked as she was suddenly covered in water and jumped to her feet, glaring at her cackling boyfriend. He quickly shut up and swallowed nervously at the furious expression on her face.
"Three," she snarled. His eyes widened in alarm and turned to flee. "Two, one!" She ran after him, shooting variously spells that wouldn't actually harm him but would make him regret soaking her and interrupting her relaxation time. Especially as he'd gotten her book wet.
"Aaahhh! Fred save me!" George shouted, but Fred (along with everyone else) was too busy howling with laughter at the scene to aid his twin.
Beneath her angry expression Aludra was feeling relaxed and happy for the first time in weeks, if not months.
She really loved these people.
Of course, things couldn't stay carefree for long in these times. Evan's trial snuck up on them, and before they knew it, it was the sixteenth.
Aludra was coming into the Ministry as well, as she and Sirius had received notices of a Wizengamot meeting the evening before. She had to admit to being a bit nervous about it. She'd be acting as Proxy for her father, as he had a meeting with Scrimgeour that couldn't be missed. She'd been attending Wizengamot meetings since she was ten as an observer during the summers, and she'd taken part in the June and July sessions as Lady Urquart, but she'd always had him there to guide her before. She wouldn't even have her grandfather there, though at least Uncle Frank would be present.
"We'll go in early," Sirius informed them at breakfast that morning. "Once we're finished eating. Evan, your meeting with Amelia is at one, so you'll wait in my office for it, and I'll take you there."
"We have to go to Gringotts at ten," Lord Potter added. "But we'll be back in plenty of time for your hearing with Madam Bones. Don't worry Evan. You had every right to defend yourself and Dudley, and Iris is a witness. Everything will be fine."
Evan, who was unusually pale, nodded silently as he picked at the plain toast he'd selected for breakfast.
"Aunt Mia is very fair," Aludra assured him. "She'll probably launch an investigation into the Dementors after the hearing, so this could turn out to be a good thing. We might even be able to prove they've gone rogue!"
"Right," Evan muttered.
"Evan, sweetheart, eat a bit more," Lady Potter urged him. "You'll be weak otherwise."
"I'm fine, Mum," he responded curtly, a thread of anger lacing his tone.
Aludra glanced uncomfortably at her father as Lord and Lady Potter exchanged communicative looks. She (along with everybody else in Ravenshold) had noticed the sharp edges of Evan and Iris's voices when they spoke to their parents this summer, the increasing distance between them. Evidently the Potter children had yet to forgive their parents for lying about Aludra. It made being in the same room exceptionally uncomfortable.
"If you're not going to eat anymore, then we should probably get going," Sirius decided. "My meeting with Scrimgeour is in an hour."
They all rose. Lady Potter made to hug her children, but they stepped out of reach, causing a hurt look to cross her face before she (clearly) forced a smile and waved them off. They'd spent the night at Black Manor in London to make getting to the Ministry that morning easier.
They Flooed to the Ministry, and handed over their wands to the receptionist to be weighed before accepting the visitor badges. Then Sirius took them to his office to wait.
Aludra took out a thick tome on the Statue of Underage Secrecy and flipped through it, giving Evan tips after setting an alarm to warn her when she needed to leave for the Wizengamot, while Evan paced and Iris fidgeted anxiously.
The alarm had just gone off, causing Aludra to set aside her book and risen to go when an owl flew into the office to deliver a short, official-looking letter to Evan. Aludra paused, concerned. They'd been expecting Fudge to pull something, but when nothing had happened they'd assumed he was distracted with his push for his new legislation to give the Ministry the ability to interfere with Hogwarts. Aludra now realized that was a very naive thought.
Evan read the note and lost what colour he'd had left.
"It's saying my hearing's been changed!" He cried. "It's right now, in Courtroom Ten! Where even is that?"
"What?" Aludra demanded sharply. "Let me see!" She snatched the letter away with uncharacteristic rudeness and read it, letting out a hiss that would've been a swear word for anyone not raised with the influence of Cassiopeia Black and Andromeda Tonks, who would never countenance something so plebian in their Family's Heir.
"We should've known Fudge would do this!" She exclaimed. "Courtroom Ten is where the Wizengamot meeting is to be held! You're not having a hearing with Aunt Mia, you're having a full trial in front of the entire Wizengamot!"
"What!" Both Evan and Iris yelped, now resembling ghosts more than living people.
Aludra thought furiously. "Alright, we need to go," she announced, grabbing them and rushing them out of the office. Kingsley's desk was just outside of her father's office and she paused to tell him the situation and ask for him to contact the Potter parents. He agreed before rushing off, while she ushered her two siblings towards the lifts urgently, slamming her hand on the button. The meeting was in three minutes now, the letter having delayed her leaving, so they would be either just in time or moments late. Either way, it wouldn't look good. She turned to Evan. "You have the right to have someone represent you," she told him hastily. "Especially without your father here to act as your guardian and Head of House. I'm allowed, as a Lady of the Wizengamot, to do so, so I'll do it. Let me do the talking. If I ask a question, just answer it as truthfully as possible. Bow when we enter and be respectful and polite. Fudge will try and railroad you, so don't lose your temper. It'll show you as a good, innocent young man and him a grown man trying to bully a teenager. Iris, stay quiet unless I ask you a question. Remember everything Neville, Susan and I have taught you about the Wizengamot and it'll be fine. Fudge has done this to throw you off, but I know how to turn it back on him."
His hands shaking a bit with nerves, Evan nodded.
"I trust you more than anyone else, Ally," he said fervently. "If anybody can get me out of this mess, it's you."
No pressure then, Aludra thought darkly, even as she felt a rush of love and adoration for her twin brother. At times like this, she regretted that they'd been separated for so long. She didn't regret being adopted in any way, but she wished they'd grown up together.
She reached out and squeezed his arm. The doors of the lift creaked open before she could respond and she hastily regained her focus, ushering the other two out and leading them past the Department of Mysteries to the Courtrooms.
She paused before room Ten and glanced at her watch. Five minutes late. If only the Courtroom was closer to the lift, but it could've been worse. If she'd left already, Evan wouldn't have known where to go at all.
"Remember, let me do the talking," she ordered. Their faces pale but determined, the others nodded. She pushed open the door and led the way inside, Evan and Iris following at her heels.
"You're late, Mr. Potter," Fudge remarked coldly. He was clearly trying to be intimidating, sitting half in shadow. Aludra recognized the violently pink robes of the women on his left and felt her lips tighten in angry recognition. How she hated Dolores Umbridge.
"With all due respect to you and the Court, Minister, the accused only received notice of the change in time and location of his hearing less than ten minutes ago," Aludra told him, placing a light emphasis on the word hearing to remind the Wizengamot members that this was meant to be a simple Underage Magic hearing, not a full-blown court session. Aunt Mia, who's purview this was, wasn't even present. The timing was clearly planned by Fudge, in the hopes that they could get Evan alone to terrorize him.
Bastard. She bet it was Umbridge who came up with the idea. Fudge was too stupid to think of it.
"That is not our fault," Fudge said haughtily. Aludra raised an eyebrow and gave him a look of pureblood condescension.
"As a matter of fact, Minister, it is your fault," she replied icily, sounding the epitome of a Pureblood Lady. Her father had grown up hating this sort of thing, but he'd learned it all the same, and eventually had come to realize the value of it when he used it for his own gains. Aludra had flourished under his and Aunt Cassiopeia's (may she rest in the embrace of Mother Magic) tutelage. She put those lessons to use now. "Or at least your secretary's. Perhaps you and your Undersecretary are unaware, Minister, neither of you being of noble descent or receivers of a hereditary Seat, but the Wizengamot requires those being called before it to receive at minimum twenty-four hours' notice if the meeting is after the pre-arranged time, forty-eight hours if beforehand. Heir Potter," she emphasized that word heavily, to remind the watching Wizengamot members that this was an Heir to one of their Chamber's seats being accused, and that if he was put in this position, so could their own children. Clearly they picked up the subtext, because their expressions blanked in the telltale sign of an angry pureblood and they shot glances at Fudge, though he was too upset to notice. Uncle Frank and the others of the Black Alliance looked especially unhappy. "Was unaware of his hearing for Underage Magic was upgraded to a criminal trial until only minutes ago." The blank pureblood expressions went blanker, signalling an increase in their members' ire.
"That rule is out of date-" Fudge began.
"Strange," Aludra cut him off. "Considering I, being a newly inaugurated member of his Noble Chamber, familiarized myself with all of the current rules prior to my swearing in, that rule being among them."
"Are you questioning the Minister?" Madam Umbridge asked in her high-pitched voice.
"I am not questioning anyone, Ms. Umbridge," Aludra replied coolly. "I am stating facts."
"Nevertheless, the accused has arrived and so we shall begin," Fudge declared, his cheeks flushed an ugly red. "You may take your seat, Heiress Black."
"I am in the Wizengamot as Lady Urquart, Proxy for Lord Black, and should be addressed as such, Minister," Aludra corrected. "Furthermore, as Lord Potter is not present to defend his son, I am representing Heir Potter on his behalf."
"You do not have the ability-" Madam Umbridge began to object. Again, Aludra interrupted.
"Ms. Umbridge, I will remind you that you are merely the Minister's assistant," she remarked icily. "You are not a member of this Noble body. Please remain silent, especially as you seem unaware of Wizengamot rules. As a member of this Chamber, I have the right to act on behalf of anyone called before it."
The vicious look Madam Umbridge aimed at her caused Aludra to suppress a smirk. She despised this prejudiced spawn of a Dementor and a hag, and insulting her was probably going to be the highlight of her week.
"Very well," Lady Miranda Bletchley, the current Chief Sorceress since Dumbledore was ousted and a reasonable member of the Grey Moderates interrupted. "We shall begin the trial. Interrogators, Cornelius Oswald Fudge, Minister for Magic and Miranda Josephine Bletchley, Chief Sorceress. Accused, Evan James Potter. Representative for the Accused, Aludra Scarlet Black, Lady Urquart. Court Scribe, Percival Ignatius Weasley."
Percy was tucked away in the corner and didn't look at them as he transcribed the trial. Aludra didn't look at him. He didn't believe that Voldemort was back. He believed the Ministry's story of an imposter orchestrated by Pettigrew and Crouch Junior. He'd had a big fight with his parents the day of his promotion and hadn't contacted any of them since, nor would he respond to Aludra's letters. She hadn't even mentioned Voldemort in them, simply congratulating him on his promotion and saying she hoped he was satisfied.
It hurt that he had abandoned her friendship, but she was determined not to let him see her hurt, never mind he'd once comforted her when she fell and skinned her knees while visiting her grandparents at Hogwarts.
"The accusations against the defendant are as follows," Lady Bletchley announced. "That he did knowingly and willingly, with full knowledge of the laws he was violating, use magic, despite being underage and in view of a Muggle. What is your plea, Heir Potter?"
"Not guilty," Aludra said immediately. "Furthermore, I hereby move that the second charge be dismissed. The Muggle in question is Heir Potter's first cousin through their mothers, and fully aware of the existence of magic."
Fudge glared at her bitterly as Lady Bletchley put the motion to a vote. Aludra suppressed the urge to sigh in relief as it passed by a landslide. Things were going well, but she wouldn't relax until Evan was fully cleared of all charges.
"That being done," Fudge stated. "Mr-Heir Potter still performed magic illegally outside of school. Do you deny it?!"
"The Statue of Underage Magic, Article 5, Subsection A allows for magic to be used in defence of oneself or another," Aludra declared. "Heir Potter and his sister and cousin were attacked by a pair of Dementors whilst out for a walk. Heir Potter sent his sister to find their parents for help while he defended himself and his cousin. He is willing to provide a memory of the event to prove it."
"I am?" Evan said in surprise. "Er. I mean, of course I am. But I'm not sure how."
"This is ridiculous," Madam Umbridge complained. "I-"
"Ms. Umbridge!" The Chief Sorceress snapped. "As Lady Urquart stated, you are not a member of this body, nor are you on trial, and so have no right to speak. Be silent or you will be removed. Heir Potter, in order to present a memory, you must concentrate on it, hold your wand to the side of your head and pull it out, then place it in the Pensieve. It's very simple."
Umbridge flushed an even uglier red than her vaunted Minister, but she clapped her mouth shut. More than a few smirks could be seen as Lady Bletchley continued.
"Court Scribe Weasley, bring forth the Pensieve."
Not looking at either of the Potters or Aludra, Percy silently grabbed the Pensieve always kept in the Wizengamot Courtrooms for trials. It wasn't mandatory to be used, but an accused requesting it generally signalled that they were innocent.
Evan followed Lady Bletchley's instructions, then Aludra tapped the rune for viewing, allowing them all to watch the same thing she had seen through his eyes as Evan sent Iris for help then defended himself and Dudley from the Dementor before the image dissolved.
"All in favour of clearing the accused of all charges?" Lady Bletchley asked afterwards. More than a few Lords and Ladies were pale with clear alarm at the prospect of rogue Dementors on the loose, while Fudge's eyes were wide with nerves and Umbridge just looked angry. Percy shot Evan a concerned look, before wiping his expression clear and looking away again. Aludra was heartened by the sign that he still cared, though she'd never doubted it. Maybe this would be the beginning of him gaining some suspicion of the Ministry.
Over half the Chamber, the Light and Grey factions, all lit their wands.
"All in favour of having the DMLE launch an investigation as to why there were Dementors in a Muggle neighbourhood instead of Azkaban?" The Chief Sorceress said then.
This time, even the Darks lit their wands, which concerned Aludra a bit. The Order had assumed the Dementors were sent by Voldemort, but the Darks wanting an investigation seemed to indicate otherwise. That suggested that someone in the Ministry had done it. Hopefully the investigation would discover who, because she wanted to murder them for nearly costing her the lives, worse still the souls, of her brother and sister.
"Very well," Lady Bletchley stated. "Heir Potter, you are hereby cleared of all charges. The Wizengamot extends our apologies for the mix up in your timing. This session is now ended. Blessed be."
"Blessed be," the others in the Chamber echoed, rising and bowing to each other before Aludra turned and ushered her siblings out of the Chamber.
It had been a long day already, and it wasn't even one o'clock yet.