A/N: This is a LONG chapter, but I wanted to get this all in one go. Thanks for being patient. I think the end is in sight.

Story Arc 5, Chapter 2

Harry and Sirius had moved out of the hospital wing once school was out and Harry's treatments were over. They had a nice guest suite of rooms to use. Harry had thought he'd have trouble falling asleep as he was anxious about Sirius' trial the next day. His Occlumency practice had helped him relax enough to drop off. However, about two o'clock in the morning, he woke up screaming from a nightmare. It had taken Sirius a while to get him to calm down enough to talk about it. Sirius sent Dobby off to get a calming draught to help Harry calm down.

"I've got you now, pup. I'm not letting you go. Now do you want to tell me about your nightmare?"

Harry didn't look like he wanted to go through it again, but his mind healer had encouraged him to talk to Sirius when things were bothering him.

"I was dreaming that they had found you guilty. When the dementors came to drag you away, they also dragged me back to the Dursleys. The Dursleys all came outside and started chanting, "Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!" until the Dementors kissed me and then dropped me in front of them. Vernon then dragged me back to the back garden and set me on fire. While I was burning, they were roasting marshmallows."

Sirius wasn't sure how to respond to that graphic depiction of Harry's worst fears, but he tried anyway, "Pup, you know you're never going back to the Dursleys. Remember, Amelia told you that Vernon and Dudley were in jail. But she didn't tell you that they'd also arrested Petunia. That was a few days later after they'd finished interviewing Vernon and Dudley. They're all going to jail for a long time. Even if they weren't and I wasn't here to take care of you, you'd go to Andi and Ted."

Sirius had been holding Harry this whole time. As Sirius softly talked to him and reassured him that the Dursleys were out of his life forever, Harry settled down and soon went back to sleep. Sirius changed into his animagus form and stayed with Harry just to reassure both of them.

Dobby found them together when he came to wake them up. Soon they were cleaned and dressed. Dobby had fixed a light breakfast for them both, the little elf knowing that a heavy meal would make things worse for them.

Sirius looked like a pureblood Lord of an Ancient and Noble House. His black robes were trimmed in silver with the Black crest on the left breast. Sirius made sure his Lord's ring was fully visible. He'd managed to sneak into Gringotts through a "back door" known only to the wealthiest of Gringotts' customers. With his beard neatly trimmed and his hair tied back in a neat ponytail, he was ready to take on the Wizengamot.

Amelia, Tonks, and Moody arrived at seven thirty to take Sirius to the Ministry. Harry would travel with Andromeda later. Amelia handed him the Polyjuice potion. She'd secured the hair from one of her Aurors who she'd assured had a day off that day just for this purpose. Sirius gave Harry a big hug and then was off. Harry tried to sit and read, but that was impossible. He was going to visit Hagrid but didn't want to risk getting his new clothes dirty. In the end, he just sat there worrying until Andi knocked on his door at half-eight. They walked to Professor McGonagall's office to use her floo. The professor looked sadly at Harry and wished them well.

Once again, Harry tumbled out of the floo, but Andi quickly set him to rights and they were off to check in with the security wizard and then head to the Wizengamot Chambers. Harry was looking around the Ministry, taking in all of its garish decorations and trying to remember where important offices were. Outside the Wizengamot Chambers, he found Mr. Weasley with Ron and Hermione. After introductions were made, they all went in and sat near the front where Amelia had reserved a section for them. Harry looked at all of the witches and wizards in their plum robes looking important.

Harry looked around for someone but didn't see them, so he asked Andi, "Where's Malfoy?"

Andi laughed, "Oh, he's not on the Wizengamot. He likes to make people think he has the power, but all he does is line the pockets of those who actually are part of it."

She then explained to the three students a bit more about the Wizengamot and how it worked. She explained its dual roles as both a legislative body and a judicial body. Finally, as the clock struck nine, Albus Dumbledore walked in with Minister Fudge and a woman in pink robes who resembled a toad.

Once everyone was seated, Dumbledore nodded to the Scribe who called the meeting to order and then sealed the doors. It was showtime!

Albus spoke first, "Ladies and Gentlemen of the Wizengamot, you have the agenda before you, however, there was a last-minute addition. For that, I will turn the meeting over to Madam Amelia Bones of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."

Amelia took her place as the prosecutor for criminal cases, "Lords and Ladies of the Wizengamot, I come before you to right a wrong done to one of our own. He should be sitting among you but is not. He was denied his right to a fair trial before this august body. Today we are here to correct this. Aurors, bring in the prisoner!"

Four Aurors escorted Sirius in and directed him to the witness chair. The chains wrapped themselves around him loosely.

As soon as Fudge saw who it was, he was up and shouting, "Amelia, what is this nonsense? Black shouldn't be here! He should be kissed by a Dementor and thrown back into Azkaban until he dies. I demand you take him there immediately!"

Amelia gave the Minister a look that would cow almost anyone, "Minister, apparently you did not listen to what I said. Sirius Black never received a trial in 1981. He was summarily thrown into Azkaban and left to rot. As he was never convicted, he cannot be tried for escape which renders your 'Kiss on Sight' order unenforceable."

"But I was there! I heard him confess!" said Fudge.

"Then you will recuse yourself and I will call you as a witness as you are so willing to give testimony," Amelia said.

"He will do no such thing! He is the Minister for Magic! His word is law!" said the pink-clad toad.

Amelia was ready to strangle both of them, "Madam Umbridge, I beg to differ. The word of the WIZENGAMOT is law. The Minister just carries it out. Now, Minister Fudge, are you going to recuse yourself or do I have to call for a vote?"

Fudge was nervous. He didn't have Lucius here to advise him. If Black was truly innocent, there went all of the gold he'd been promised when Malfoy's son became the next Lord Black. If he didn't recuse himself, he could face a vote of No Confidence. Better to live to fight another day.

"I, Cornelius Oswald Fudge, do recuse myself from this trial until such time as a judgment is rendered." He was then directed to a chair nearby until his testimony was needed.

Albus Dumbledore also recused himself as he had co-signed the order to send Sirius to Azkaban. Griselda Marchbanks took over as Chief Witch, and the trial resumed.

"Now that we have that out of the way, I call Cornelius Fudge to give testimony," said Amelia.

After Fudge had given his oath to tell the truth, she asked him to describe how he had known about the incident and what actions he had taken in response.

"I was working in the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes when we received a report of a large magical incident in Bath. When I got there, there were dead muggles everywhere and a big hole in the street. Black was sitting on the ground laughing and kept repeating, 'I killed them! I killed Lily and James!' By the time the Obliviators got there, the Aurors had taken Black away. The next thing I heard is that he was in Azkaban."

"Thank you, Minister. At any time after that night were you informed that Black might be innocent?"

"No, of course not!"

"You were not informed by Mr. Potter or any others that Black was innocent?"

"Well, they did say something about it, but Professor Snape claimed that Black had confounded them, so I ignored it."

"Did you think to call the DMLE to investigate further?"

"What? No! Black was guilty and should be Kissed so I took the necessary steps to do so. I still don't know how he managed to escape the tower," said Fudge.

"Thank you, Minister. That will be all for now," said Amelia.

Fudge took out a handkerchief and wiped his forehead. For a minute it felt like HE was on trial.

Amelia then said, "I call Bartemius Crouch, Senior."

A wizard in impeccable robes strode up to the stand. When asked, he gave his oath to tell the truth, then took his seat.

"Mr. Crouch, please state your title at the time of the arrest of Sirius Black in 1981," asked Amelia.

"I was the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."

"Were you at the Ministry when Sirius Black was brought in?"

"I was."

"Please describe the events of that night as you remember them," she asked.

"It was total mayhem. Earlier in the evening we had gotten word that the Potters were dead, except for their son, and Voldemort was gone. I sent Alastor Moody and a team to Godric's Hollow to secure the Potter home and do a proper investigation. Apparently, there was a leak somewhere and as word went out among the rest of the wizarding public, we were having to send Aurors and Obliviators out around the country to stop all of the celebrations going on. Later that morning we got a notification of a large magical event in Bath. I sent Cornelius Fudge and several Obliviators there first as I didn't have any Aurors available. About an hour later, they brought Sirius Black in saying that he had confessed to killing James and Lily Potter and attempted to kill their son, Harry, by leading the Dark Lord to their location. Witnesses stated that Black had confronted another man, who we later determined was Peter Pettigrew. Pettigrew also accused Black of causing the murder of the Potters, but before he could say more, the street blew up and took Pettigrew with it. All the Aurors found was a finger."

"Did you investigate the scene yourself?" asked Amelia.

"No. It was pretty cut and dried and I had too much else to do trying to track down the remaining Death Eaters."

"Did you authorize sending Black to Azkaban without a trial?"

"We had a confession. That was good enough for me," Crouch said, sending a look of hatred towards Sirius.

"Did you or any of your Aurors test Black's wand for recent spells?"

"Not that I'm aware of. I snapped it on the spot."

Well, that explained why it wasn't in the evidence box, thought Amelia.

"Thank you, Mr. Crouch.

Crouch left the stand and went back to his seat as a Department Head.

Amelia then stated, "I call Albus Dumbledore to the stand."

Dumbledore came to the witness stand but conjured his own chair which was much more comfortable than the one provided. Despite the glare from Amelia, he sat down in it.

"Mr. Dumbledore, please state your positions on the night of October 31, 1981."

"My positions were as they are now. Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, and Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards."

"Please tell us about the events surrounding the Potters' deaths from your perspective," she asked.

"It was mid-evening, about eight when the alarm I had on the Potter's house alerted me that the Fidelius had fallen. That could only mean that they were dead. I sent Hagrid to check on them and if any of them were alive, to bring them back to Hogwarts."

Amelia interrupted, "You sent Hagrid? A person who doesn't possess a wand?"

Albus replied, "Yes, I did. I felt that whoever had killed the Potters would be gone and Hagrid would be able to keep any onlookers away from the property."

"And what did you do?"

"I waited for his return. He confirmed that James and Lily were dead. He brought little Harry to my office and said that Sirius Black had tried to take Harry from him, but he didn't let him. Sirius then gave Hagrid his motorcycle and ran off. I then took Harry to Madam Pomfrey to be examined. He was bleeding from the mark on his head but otherwise was fine. I then sent Minerva McGonagall to Harry's muggle relatives to watch over them until I could bring Harry to them the next evening," replied Albus.

"Why wait until the next evening?" asked Amelia.

"I wanted to be certain that no other health problems were noted and then give the boy a chance to get over his parent's death," he replied.

"I also went to the Ministry to see if anyone had found Sirius Black yet. That's when I discovered they weren't even looking for him. When I explained to Barty that Sirius was the Secret Keeper for the Potters, he put a team on it. It wasn't for another day before they found him. I received a floo call from Barty and went to the Ministry. Barty told me that Sirius had blown up a street in Bath and killed Peter Pettigrew. The members of the Magical Reversal Squad and Obliviators all swore that Sirius said he had killed James and Lily. Barty drew up the paperwork to send Sirius to Azkaban. Once he signed it, Minister Bagnold signed it and then I did."

Amelia was furious, "You didn't see any need for a trial? You just sent him to Azkaban?"

"I assumed that Barty would bring him back for a trial at a later date once things settled down. Then his own son was found to be a Death Eater and in the confusion that brought about, we all forgot about it."

"You forgot. And left a man in Azkaban prison for twelve years without ensuring justice was done properly?"

"Alas, I'm afraid I did."

"I have no further questions. Mr. Tonks?"

Ted got up and faced Dumbledore, "Mr. Dumbledore, who cast the Fidelius Charm on the Potter's house?"

"I did," said Albus.

"Who was the secret keeper when you cast it?" Ted asked.

"Peter Pettigrew."

"Then why did you tell the Ministry that Sirius Black was the secret keeper?"

"James told me that they had switched Secret Keepers to Sirius after I'd cast the spell."

"Is this something they could do or did the original caster need to make the change?" asked Ted.

"That is the fickle thing about the Fidelius Charm. Once cast, the secret keeper can be changed by one of the members in the household. I have no doubt that Lily Potter had the magical strength and the knowledge to do so."

"So, you told the Ministry that Sirius Black was the Secret Keeper based on James Potter's word?"

"Yes."

"Did you ever think that Sirius was being used as a diversion from Peter Pettigrew?"

"No. I never thought they would do something like that."

"Madam Adjudicator, I have no further questions."

Madam Marchbanks nodded at Amelia and told her to call her next witness.

"I call Percival Weasley to the stand."

Percy didn't look as pompous as he usually did. The discovery that his beloved pet rat was actually a Death Eater had humbled him a bit. He walked up to the chair for the witnesses and gave his oath to tell the truth, then quickly sat down.

"Mr. Weasley, please tell this court about your pet rat and how he came to be with your family."

Percy said, "I guess I was about four or five years old. I'd been outside playing in the yard when this rat came up to me. We see them in the fields around the Burrow, but they usually run as soon as they see us. This one didn't, so I thought it might be some sort of magical rat. I noticed it had been hurt and was missing a finger on one of its paws. I went inside and got it a few morsels to eat and some water. I figured it would be gone after that. But I saw it again the next day and several days after that. So I brought it inside for Mum to make sure it was ok and then they let me keep it."

"And how long did you keep this rat?"

"Until I was fifteen. I was made Prefect so my parents got me an owl as a present. I gave my rat to my brother Ron. He was just starting Hogwarts and wouldn't have had a pet otherwise."

"Did you ever wonder about this rat living as long as it had?"

"No ma'am. I just assumed it was magical and that's what made it live so long."

"Did you take Care of Magical Creatures at Hogwarts?"

"Yes ma'am. I got an Outstanding at both OWL and NEWT level."

"Do you remember if you covered magical rodents during your course?"

"Oh, yes ma'am. It was covered in the third term my third year. Professor Kettleburn was very thorough."

"And did he discuss the life expectancy of them?"

"We went through magical mice and rats and he even said that garden gnomes are a distant relative. Most magical mice and rats live about three to five years if they are living in a magical location."

"So at the time you gave your rat to your brother, you'd had him how long?"

Percy swallowed hard, "I guess about ten years."

"And you never questioned its longevity?"

"No Ma'am. I thought it might be one of those things where a parent replaces a dead pet with another one without telling their child."

"Thank you, Mr. Weasley. Mr. Tonks, do you have any questions?"

"No, not for this witness."

"I call Harry James Potter."

There was a quiet chatter as Harry took his seat. He also gave his oath to tell the truth. Sirius had cautioned him about making oaths, but he had encouraged him to make this one.

"Mr. Potter, could you tell me about the events leading up to the capture of Sirius Black on June 6?"

Harry took a deep breath and began his story, "Ron, Hermione, and I had gone to Hagrid's hut to be with him when they came to execute Buckbeak, the hippogriff. Just as Professor Dumbledore, the Minister, and the Executioner got to his hut, we sneaked out the back door. Ron's rat, Scabbers, tried to get away, but he caught it. Then this big black dog came out of nowhere and dragged Ron off under the Whomping Willow."

"These friends of yours would be Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger?" asked Madam Bones.

"Yes ma'am," Harry replied.

"Go on," she said.

"Well, once Hermione and I figured out how to get the Whomping Willow to stop, we followed the tunnel to the Shrieking Shack. Just as we saw Ron, he warned us that the dog was Sirius Black. Mr. Black tried to explain to me what had happened the night my parents were killed, but I wouldn't listen to him. Then Professor Lupin came in and interrupted us. He and Sirius tried to explain what had happened that night they died. While they were explaining, Professor Snape interrupted and tried to take Sirius back to the Dementors. We disarmed him and he hit the wall, knocking him out. Then Professor Lupin used the animagus reversal spell and the rat turned into a person. That person was Peter Pettigrew. He confessed that he'd been the one to bring Voldemort to my house. We tied him up and were bringing him back to the castle. But Professor Lupin had forgotten to take his Wolfsbane and when the moon came out, he transformed into a werewolf. Peter was able to transform back into a rat and ran away."

"Thank you, Mr. Potter. I will now show Mr. Potter's memory of the events of that evening. The Department of Mysteries has certified this memory as being untampered with and is a true memory," said Amelia.

By the time the memory finished playing, there was no doubt in anyone's mind that Peter Pettigrew was alive and that put the seed of doubt of Sirius' guilt in their minds.

"I have no further questions for this witness. Does the Defense have any for him?"

Ted stood up and said, "No, Madam Bones."

"For the record, I have memories from both Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger that corroborate the memory of Mr. Potter," Amelia said.

Madam Marchbanks asked, "Do you have any more witnesses to call?"

"Just one. I call Sirius Orion Black to the stand."

Ted Tonks stood up, "Madam Adjudicator, Madam Prosecutor, Members of the Wizengamot, my client requests his testimony be taken under Veritaserum."

You would have thought someone tossed a dung bomb in the middle of the Wizengamot with the protests that were made. Most were along the lines of 'He's a Pureblood and exempt from Veritaserum testimony.'

Having had enough, Madam Marchbanks raised her wand and shot off a couple of cannon blasts, "That's enough! While we cannot compel Mr. Black to take Veritaserum, he has the right to do it at his request. Mr. Black, is this your wish?"

"Yes, Madam Adjudicator."

Madam Marchbanks nodded to Amelia to proceed.

Amelia looked at Kingsley Shacklebolt, "Auror Shacklebolt, please administer the Veritaserum to the witness."

Kingsley walked over to the Scribe and gave the particulars on the bottle then went over to the witness chair. Sirius tilted his head back and stuck out his tongue. Kingsley placed three drops on it and stepped back to his post. Sirius' eyes started to glaze over, which was the signal that he was under the potion.

"Prisoner, state your name for the record," asked Madam Bones.

"Sirius Orion Black."

"What is your birthdate?"

"November 3, 1959."

"Madam Adjudicator, the Veritaserum is working."

"Proceed, Madam Prosecutor."

"Mr. Black, were you the Secret Keeper for the Potters at the time of their death?"

"No."

"Who was?"

"Peter Pettigrew."

"Were you ever the Secret Keeper?"

"No. We just spread the rumor that I was to take the pressure off of Peter."

"Tell us what happened on October 31, 1981."

"I'd had a bad feeling all day that something was wrong. I went to check on Peter, but he wasn't there. I then went to Godric's Hollow only to see part of the roof had blown off over the nursery. I ran in and found Prongs' body and then went up to the nursery. Lily was also dead, but Harry was standing in his bed crying. He had a cut on his head that was bleeding. I picked him up and grabbed the diaper bag that Lily keeps in the nursery and went back downstairs. I was going to take Harry to my cousin Andromeda since she is a Healer. When I got outside, Hagrid had just arrived. He said that Dumbledore had ordered him to bring any survivors back to Hogwarts. I asked him if he had a portkey back and he said he didn't. He'd planned to take the Knight Bus back. I gave him my motorcycle since it was enchanted and would be safer for him and for Harry. Once I was sure Harry was in safe hands, I went back inside and confirmed everything else was secure and cast a weather repelling charm over the blown-out roof. Then, using my Auror training, I started following Peter's trail. He was using multiple apparitions to hide his trail, but I finally caught up with him in Bath. Before I could say anything, the little rat yelled, 'I can't believe you were the traitor! You turned them into Voldemort! You killed Lily and James!' then he cast a quick cutting curse on his little finger, then a blasting hex straight down into the street. He then transformed into his rat animagus form and disappeared into the sewer."

"Mr. Black, who is Prongs."

"James Potter."

"Why did the Ministry personnel who brought you in say you admitted to killing the Potters?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I think I had a bit of a breakdown. I was the one who had suggested Peter as the Secret Keeper. I might as well cast the curse at them."

"Were you ever a Death Eater?"

"No."

"Were you a sympathizer to the Death Eater cause."

"No."

"While you were in Azkaban, the guards heard you muttering, 'He's at Hogwarts,' what did you mean by that?"

"I meant Wormtail was at Hogwarts."

"And who is Wormtail?"

"Peter Pettigrew."

"How did you know he was at Hogwarts?"

"Fudge had been around doing his annual inspection of Azkaban. I saw he had a newspaper, so I asked him for it. There on the front page of the paper was Wormtail on the shoulder of a young boy."

"How could you be sure it was Pettigrew?"

"Peter's markings were distinctive, even for a common brown rat. His right paw was white and he had one gray ear and one brown one. But the thing that gave him away was the missing toe on his left front paw."

"How did you escape Azkaban?"

"I'm a dog animagus. I was able to slip through the bars and then swim to shore."

"I found no record of you or your friends being an animagus."

"We never registered. It was the middle of a war and we had a way to escape the enemy. No way were we going to publicize that! We were planning to register once the war was over.

"Mr. Tonks, do you have any other questions before I give him the antidote?"

"I do. Mr. Black, what is your relationship to Harry Potter?"

"I am his oath-sworn godfather."

That caused another gasp from the assembly.

"What does that mean, for those who may not be aware of the responsibilities it entails?"

"As an oath-sworn godfather, if I tried to intentionally harm Harry, I would have lost both my magic and my life."

"No more questions, Madam Prosecutor."

"Auror Shacklebolt, please administer the antidote."

Kingsley came over and gave Sirius the antidote. Sirius shook his head like a wet dog to clear the cobwebs.

"Madam Adjudicator, I rest my case."

"The Wizengamot will be in recess while we consider our verdict. A chime will ring signifying we will resume in ten minutes."

A barrier rose in front of the Wizengamot that blocked both sound and visuals (in case someone could read lips). This allowed the members to discuss among themselves without fear of retribution from a member of the gallery.

The court had been in recess for only ten minutes when the chime rang. Everyone hurried to their seats. At exactly ten minutes, the barrier came down.

"The Wizengamot is now in session. In the matter of Sirius Orion Black, if you find the defendant guilty, please light your wand with a red light. If you find the defendant not guilty, please light your wand with a white light. It didn't take long to count the lights. There were four red lights – all from hard-line Voldemort supporters.

"Mr. Black, the Wizengamot finds you not guilty of all charges. In addition, the charge of escaping Azkaban prison is removed in its entirety as you were never legally incarcerated. As to the potential charge of being an unregistered animagus, you have forty-eight hours to register your form. The Wizengamot also awards you three hundred thousand galleons as reparations. Any further treatment you require from St. Mungo's will also be covered by the Ministry. You are reinstated as an Auror in good standing should you desire to return to work."

The chains fell from around Sirius and he stood up, "Thank you Madam Adjudicator and members of the Wizengamot. I have but one request at this time. I request full custody of my godson, Harry James Potter. While I realize that I do not have appropriate living quarters at the moment, we will both be living under the care of Healer Andromeda Tonks and her husband Theodore."

Madam Marchbanks smiled, "That is one request I find easy to grant, Mr. Black. Mr. Potter, do you have anything to say about this? As you are at an age where you should have full say so in who has your custody, I think it's only right to ask your thoughts."

Harry stood up from his seat and said, "I am quite happy to have Sirius Black as my godfather and guardian."

"Then that shall be so ordered. Mr. Black, when I next see you, I expect you to be wearing the proper accouterments of your station."

Sirius smiled at the witch and said, "I, Sirius Orion Black, the Black of Black, do hereby claim my seat on the Wizengamot of the United Kingdom on this date." A brief flash of light and a seat previously shrouded with the sigil of the House of Black was made available."

"Please state your affiliation, Lord Black."

"The House of Black stands with the Neutrals at this time."

"Very well. We welcome the House of Black again to the Wizengamot."

"I have one more announcement, Madam Marchbanks." She nodded to him to proceed.

"I Lord Sirius Orion Black, duly sworn godfather of Harry James Potter, assume proxy for the House of Potter until such time its Head is legally able to take up his seat. So I swear, so mote it be."

Another flash of light appeared, but this time a chair that was already occupied literally dumped the occupant on the floor.

"Hey! That's my seat! Give me back my seat! Albus said I could have it until the Potter whelp was seventeen!"

Sirius looked at the man with a light of recognition, "Daedalus Diggle, your services to House Potter have ended and we thank you for your time."

Diggle got up and dusted himself off. There was no way he was going to try and fight both the House of Black and the House of Potter.

With a slight smirk, Madam Marchbanks asked, "And what is the affiliation of House Potter?"

Harry said in a very clear voice, "House Potter stands with the Neutrals at this time."

That caused an uproar! House Potter had always affiliated with the Light faction! It was inconceivable that they would change to the Neutral. It must be the influence of the Blacks. There was an appeal to revoke Sirius' guardianship, but Griselda hadn't gotten to where she was by being stupid.

"Heir Potter, do you know what it means to be affiliated with the Neutral faction?"

"Yes, Madam Adjudicator. It means I am not the poster boy for the Light that Dumbledore thinks I am. This gives both my godfather and myself time to look at the current state of affairs and make a decision at a later date if we want to change factions. Neither of us ever see us going to the Dark faction, but at the moment, we're not ready to pledge ourselves to the Light either."

"Well said, Heir Potter. We welcome the approved proxy for House Potter to the Wizengamot. We will see you at our next session, then, Lord Black."

"As milady commands," Sirius said with a smirk and a bow.

With that, Sirius, Harry, the Tonks, the Weasleys, and Hermione left the Wizengamot Chambers.