August 12, 1995
Harry stands in the third-floor hallway, outside his bedroom at Grimmauld Place, an hour prior to departure for his trial for Improper Use of Magic, nervous about what's to come. Hermione approaches, takes Harry's hand, and silently leads him into her room shared with Ginny, though the other girl is not present.
"Harry, this might seem hasty and surprising, but don't think too hard on it for a moment, okay? I've been thinking for a while and this is hard," Hermione starts. She pauses for a moment and seems not to know where to start again.
Then she begins again, "Harry, you know I've been spending all my time researching the law in preparation for your trial, but with your penchant for misadventure and with the Ministry unfairly targeting you, I'm sure things are going to go amiss today." She pauses, then rushes on, "But I want you to know, I really want you to know, that I believe in you, and I'm going to do everything I can to support and protect you. Always. Because... because I love you. And I want the best for you."
Hermione pauses again, looking nervous and uncertain. Then she leans forward and kisses him on the lips gently, holding his face in her hands until he responds and softly begins to kiss her back. After longs seconds, she gently pulls back, looks him in the eye, and leans in again for another delicate shared kiss. Then she grabs hold of him tightly and hugs him fiercely, her head on his shoulder, and they continue to hold each other wordlessly for a timeless eternity. Eventually she releases her hug, he follows suit, and she reaches for his hand.
"Harry, I will always be there for you. Okay?". She covers the hand she holds with her other hand.
He clasps both her hands now. "Thank you, Hermione. I know you will. And... I love you too. For a long time now."
They both smile, tears forming for both, as they simply look into each other's eyes. Hermione once more hugs Harry, then pulls him out of the room to lead him downstairs to his uncertain fate.
As the courtroom door on the lowest levels of the Ministry opens before Harry, he's stunned by the size of the space ahead of him. He walks forward as the hallway opens ahead and above him. He stumbles forward into an arena, tripping over the too-long formal robes Mrs. Weasley provided him while trying to look up and around.
The domed ceiling is dark, and the large, poorly lit space seems cavernous to his eyes. As he walks down a long ramp he sees a familiar circular area the size of a classroom, with a thronelike chair in the center, with stadium seating rising in tiers around the perimeter. Harry recalls -- this is where the Lestrange’s were sentenced to Azkaban, which he viewed in Dumbledore's pensieve last term.
The stands above the arena are filled with perhaps one hundred witches and wizards wearing plum-colored robes and hats. They're staring down at him, many of them looking at him with sullen or angry glares.
Directly ahead across the arena is a wide desk, with four people behind its bulk. As he makes his way closer, he first sees ... Percy Weasley? To the right is Minister Cornelius Fudge at the center, with two unknown witches even further right.
Harry's pace slows as an unpleasant murmur deepens. He continues to walk forward until he nears the large chair. As he draws close, chains of black iron on the arms and back of the chair rattle and clink. Knowing the reason for the chains, and not desiring to sit, Harry halts a few feet to the side of the chair, not sure how to proceed.
Cornelius Fudge bangs a gavel, and the room quiets, then becomes entirely silent.
"Harry Potter", he sneers, not asking a question, but stating a fact he already knows.
"Yes Minister", Harry responds. His voice is quiet, but in the silence, it can be heard throughout the room.
Cornelius turns to the side and announces, "Seal the room."
A loud banging of doors, bars, and locks resounds in the quiet, continuing a long while, long enough to make Harry even more uncomfortable. Then a terrible silence ensues.
After several seconds, the minister resumes into the quest, "Harry Potter, you are here today to answer questions about your illegal activities. My direct assistant, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, Dolores Umbridge, will begin today's inquest." He gestures to the woman to his immediate left.
Harry interrupts before she can begin, meekly asking "Minister, will Professor Dumbledore be joining us?"
Fudge glares at Harry for a moment, then "You cannot continue to hide behind the headmaster for your crimes, Harry. The room is sealed. He will not be joining us. Even Merlin himself could not halt the proceedings of a Wizengamot court once it has been sealed and the proceedings begun."
An onerous silence follows, no one daring to speak.
"Hem. Hem. Thank you, Minister," Dolores Umbridge begins, ignoring the interjections following her introduction. "In addition to myself and Minister Cornelius Fudge, Madam Amelia Bones is present in her capacity as Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement as required by procedure." She gestures to her left towards the last woman present at the far end of the desk, a look of annoyance crossing her face. "And Percy Weasley will be acting in the capacity of scribe," followed by a dismissive wave to her right.
"Harry Potter, we have been informed by the Improper Use of Magic Office that you have violated the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, by casting spells in the presence of muggles, and that this offense occurred on the second of August at 8:11 PM."
Dolores pauses and leans forward. The furious scratching of Percy's quill is the only sound to be heard, pausing after a few seconds.
She continues in her high, unctuous voice. "You are Harry Potter, of number four, Privet Drive in Little Whinging, Surrey?"
"Yes.", he says, then thinks "Well, there goes any thought of safety by hiding at the Dursleys."
"You conjured a Patronus in a muggle area, fully aware that you were violating the Statue of Secrecy?"
"Yes."
"Mr. Potter," Madam Bones breaks in, "You say you conjured ..."
"Hem. Hem," said Dolores as she interrupts. "Please allow me to get the basic facts of the case recorded before we allow the culprit an opportunity to misdirect the court."
Madam Bones looks annoyed but ceases her question.
Dolores continues, "And previously, on the thirty-first of July 1992, you were warned about the use of an illegal hover charm at your residence?"
"Yes, but..."
"And on the sixth of August 1993, you illegally cast an inflating charm on a muggle, but were not charged for this crime?"
"Yes, but ..."
Fudge interrupts, "The witness has already impeached himself," raising a single finger skyward as if he's laid out an incisive legal point.
Dolores nods, then continues in a rising tone, her voice increasing in volume, intimidating Harry from responding. "You have therefore admitted to casting an illegal spell in the presence of muggles in 1992, admitted to being warned not to do so again, knowingly casting another illegal spell a year later on a muggle victim, and then casting yet another illegal spell a few days ago when in the presence of a muggle."
Harry stands, daunted, unsure how to proceed.
Dolores addresses the room. "Esteemed members of the Wizengamot. You have heard from the very mouth of the malefactor that he knowingly and repeatedly broke one of our most fundamental laws. One of the laws that protects us from being overwhelmed by vicious muggles should they discover our existence. What say you as to his guilt? All in favor of conviction?"
Madam Bones startles, not anticipating Madam Umbridge's rapid call for a verdict. Several other members raise their hands to object, or start to stand, caught in confusion. Many witches and wizards raise lit wands, indicating their concurrence with a guilty verdict -- significantly more than a majority of those present.
Dolores continues, "With a super-majority of those present signaling their agreement with the prosecution, we deliver a guilty verdict. Harry Potter, do you stand ready to accept the judgement of the Wizengamot?"
Harry stutters in confusion, unable to think what to do or how to halt the proceedings. He feels frozen in fear, his bodily responses going past fight-or-flight into run-or-hide in the presence of the hostile interrogation.
A loud bang shakes the room along with a bright flash of light, startling all present enough that many flinch or duck
Everyone is momentarily blinded, though Harry less so than others as the source comes from immediately behind him. He turns to look and sees a ghostly figure become visible behind him. The robed figure is a man, tall, dark-haired, wearing long robes and glasses. He appears to be the exact likeness of Harry, if only a few years older.
The man walks forward while increasing in brightness, though remaining translucent and colorless.
The man speaks, his voice ringing loudly as the acoustics of the circular room amplify his voice, "As a member of a family that can trace its roots to the times before the Ministry of Magic existed, before the Wizengamot, and before even the Wizards Council that predates it, and which family helped install the Statute of Secrecy, I object to the charges being brought, and to the manner and calumny of their delivery, and to the callous disregard for the spirit and letter of the law. This trial is a farce. So say I, James Fleamont Potter."
Two beats pass as people wait for his next words. Perceiving none, the room fills with the buzz of many voices whispering, then talking, and some even yelling into the confusion.
Cornelius Fudge looks astonished for a long moment even as many people are appealing directly to him. Finally, he bangs on the gavel once, pauses, then bangs once again. The room continues to resound with the noise of conversation. After another long pause he continues pounding until order is restored and a last few whispers quieted.
"You claim to be James Potter", he begins tentatively.
"I am James Potter", James interrupts, "and by the divine will of Magic I join you posthumously to assert the rights of my son in the face of the injustices presented and to deliver retribution to those who would do evil in the name of the law."
Cornelius looks stricken. He tries to speak several times but remains silent.
James continues, "Harry Potter was last week set upon in Little Whinging by two dementors, while in the company of his cousin, Dudley Dursley, a muggle. To defend himself ..."
The buzzing of conversation increases but James increases his volume and pitch and repeats, driving out the other conversations, and repeats "... TO DEFEND HIMSELF, and his cousin, Harry Potter cast a fully corporeal Patronus charm that drove away the dementors."
He pauses, and the audience remains silent.
"So, the facts of the matter before you are that Harry Potter cast a spell in defense of his life, in front of a family member who is aware of the existence of magic, and therefore did not violate either the spirit or letter of the Statute of Secrecy and should accordingly be cleared of all charges immediately."
James steps forward once and raises his voice further.
"Moreover, since all dementors within the realm of the British Isles are known to -- and controlled by -- the Ministry of Magic, the Ministry must immediately and forthwith investigate the reasons for their materialization in Little Whinging. Furthermore, the Department of Magical Law Enforcement by rights has sole authority in this matter, as is guaranteed to all of us as citizens of the Magical Isles of Britain by the People's Constitution of Magic, created in accordance with the tenets of the Great Charter of Magic, which was laid down by Merlin himself during the Convocation of Arfderydd."
His voice booms, "I have given my blood in the defense of the Realm and in the service of Magic. I vow upon my magic to exact retribution against any who would deny justice this day. Who amongst you will step forward to gainsay my words?"
The cowed audience remains silent, as ten seconds pass in silence.
James speaks again, now directly to Madam Bones in a lower voice, "due to the absence of justice and leadership in today's proceedings, I entrust in you the power to take Cornelius Fudge and Dolores Umbridge into custody for their misconduct until such time as an investigation clears them of wrongdoing or necessitates that you charge them for their actions, in accordance with the Laws of Governance set forth in the Constitution."
Madam Bones looks briefly aghast, but quickly reins her emotions. She silently summons the wands of Cornelius and Dolores, silences them, and calls out, "Aurors! Make it so. Collect these two and hold them until further notice."
Several aurors rush forward, wands drawn, to enact her orders.
Bones continues, "Everyone! Attend me! Let no one disrupt these proceedings until we resolve matters. I will alert the DMLE, aurors, and hit wizards."
She signals to nearby aurors and whispers quick instructions to two before sending them off, as the stunned audience looks on.
James takes another step forward. A flash, bang and puff of smoke rise from the stands outlining a man halfway up one of the tiers. James loudly begins again, "Lucius Malfoy, you are sitting in the hallowed seats of the court's judges, but I do not recall that you are a member of the judiciary nor otherwise have that privilege."
"No," says Malfoy, in a flat tone.
James follows up after a beat, "Do you acknowledge yourself liege-sworn to the Dark Lord Voldemort to do his bidding, and that you attended upon him after his resurrection on twenty-fourth June of this year?"
"Yes," intones Malfoy directly.
A riot of voices burst forth throughout the room. A cacophony. A discordant roar.
Three loud bangs a second apart override the voices, and they pause again. Lucius Malfoy continues to sit without moving.
James turns toward Amelia Bones, and speaks again, "In front of you is a letter containing a full accounting of the last task of this year's Triwizard Tournament and the immediate aftermath: the death of Cedric Diggory; the resurrection of the half-blood Tom Riddle, also known as Lord Voldemort; and the gathering of many of his Death Eaters to renew their vows, including the names of these individuals, many of whom are here in the room with us today."
A scroll wrapped with a black ribbon appears in a blush of blue light and drops to the desk in front of Madam Bones.
"I further entrust you to fully investigate the crimes contained therein and prosecute those incriminated. Do I have your word you will take on these matters to the best of your abilities, as required by your service to the Ministry and by your vow as a director?"
Madam Bones stands, plants both hands on the desk as she leans forward, and avows, "you have my word."
James walks forward several steps and turns to Harry.
"Harry, all will be explained shortly. I must leave you now," James states.
James turns and scans the stands, "I will leave you now to your own ends. Upon my word, do NOT make me return in anger and desirous of remedy." Another bright flash, and he disappears.
Harry, watching in silence for the last few minutes, shakes his head to clear the aftereffects of the flash, then looks around at the stunned audience as they begin to converse quietly again.
More aurors rush towards Madam Bones at her gesture, and she begins directing them to apprehend members of the judiciary still in the room, while others head to the doors in pursuit of their orders.
After a long several minutes, two of the aurors recently conversing with Madam Bones walk towards Harry. The first, a gray-haired woman with a narrow face and dark eyes, says gently, "Harry, I'm Gracia Goldstein, an auror captain. Director Bones has asked me to return you safely to where you're staying. May we assist you in this matter?"
Harry looks at the woman, then glances at her partner, a younger man with auburn hair, and seeing no ill intent on their faces, assents. After a moment he realizes that he won't be able to have them return him to Grimmauld Place as it is hidden by the Fidelus Charm, and instead asks, "Arthur Weasley brought me here and said he'd meet me outside. Will you help me find him?"
"We'd be glad to do so. Please follow me; let's leave the way you came in to avoid the chaos."
Back at Grimmauld Place an hour later, Harry shares his experiences at the trial for the first of many times that day to an astounded audience. Harry feels a sense of calm, and an anticipation as he looks forward to talking again with his father, while wondering how it was possible that he could still be alive, and why he only showed himself now.
Much later that evening, and with his voice hoarse from talking, Harry heads upstairs to prepare for bed. As he steps onto the stairs to the third floor, he sees Hermione sitting on the topmost step, reading a large book on her lap.
While he has seen her many times today after the trial, this is the first time they're alone. She looks up before he ascends and smiles at him. A warm smile, her eyes crinkling at the corners. Remembering their kiss from this morning, but seemingly weeks before given the enormity of the day's events, he blushes, his neck and face first, and then across his entire body.
She looks down demurely, momentarily overwhelmed by the emotion of his gaze.
She stands as he walks up and reaches for his hand. "Harry," she says as she draws him up the last step, "will you please come and talk with me for a while?" If he had any reason not to, her earnestness would quell whatever desire Harry might have had to question her here, and he gamely follows as she leads him into her bedroom and closes the door.
They're alone again.
She reaches now for both his hands, grasping one in each of hers, and looks him in the eyes. "Harry, I need to say a few things. I need to apologize," she begins.
"You don't have to ..."
She speaks more softly, "Harry, I need to apologize, and I must ask you to give me a chance to explain everything before you interrupt. Will you do that for me?"
"Of course."
"Harry, most importantly, I love you. I'm so glad I'm able to say that now. It's a truth I've wanted to share since our hippogriff ride in third year. I love you."
She rubs his hands with her thumbs as she looks into his eyes. "I'm so glad that you're safe and that you were finally, for once, judged fairly."
Harry interrupts, "Yes, my father ..."
"No Harry", she says. "Your father was not in the courtroom today." Her eyes will him to be silent. After another moment, she speaks. "I'm so sorry, Harry, to have mislead you today and to disappoint you now. It was not your father Harry in the courtroom today, it was me."
"What?", Harry asks in a whisper, leaning back, shocked at her words.
"It was me, Harry. What I did, I did for you, because of my love for you. I pretended to be your father so I could convince the court of your innocence, and right the wrongs you've endured. I'm so sorry for my deception."
Tears begin to course down her face as she silently cries.
Harry pulls her closer, reaches up with his hands to grasp her face, gently wiping away her tears with his thumbs. In his softest voice he says, "No, Hermione, no. You have no reason to be sorry. It's okay. Shhhh. It's okay. You didn't do anything to intentionally hurt me. I don't think you need to apologize for what you did, but I forgive you."
At this she darts forward and crushes him in a hug, arms wrapped around his back, and begins crying loudly into his shirt, face pressed hard against him. Harry wraps his arms gently around her shoulders and rubs her back. They remain pressed against each other for a long while until her sobbing subsides.
She pulls back from him, "Thank you, Harry." She's beaming now, her lips pulled back in a wide smile, her face streaked with tears still falling.
She draws him over to the bed, and they sit next to each other on its edge, their sides touching. She leans in and hugs him, and says, "Let me explain. I'm sure you have many questions."
"You were a ghost. My father's ghost," Harry says.
"Polyjuice potion to imitate you, aging potion to look a few years older, a Colovaria Charm and a partial invisibility spell to create the ghostly effect."
"Wow! You don't do anything by half measures, do you Hermione?" asks Harry in amazement.
"Well, I had to convince a lot of people, including you who were standing right there. I've always heard that you are the spitting image of your father, and so I just mimicked him by impersonating you."
Now Hermione is getting into her teaching mode, speaking more rapidly. "I used Colovaria to wash out my, well, your coloration because I was worried that your green eyes would give away the game. It was easy, really. You know I learned to make Polyjuice in first year and I still have a store of it, and the Weasley twins were able to provide me with some of their Aging Potion -- you saw them use that to try to get past the age line around the Goblet."
"A few fireworks charms for the noise, light flashes, and smoke effects. And Dobby, of course. Dobby, would you like to join us?"
Dobby pops into view in front of them, bursting with pride. He's rocking back and forth on his heels, barely able to contain his emotions.
"Dobby is happy to be helping Miss Hermione help the Great Mister Harry Potter. Dobby is proud of being able to help the Best Wizard Ever when he is needing it."
Hermione beams at Harry, then at Dobby. "Thank you, Dobby, you were amazing." She turns to Harry, "Dobby took Veritaserum from Professor Snape's stores, then gave it to Lucius right before I began my questions. And delivered the scroll to Madam Bones. I assiduously recorded all your explanations of what happened the day of the Third Task for her attention. Oh, and I included a lot more about the injustice to Sirius, in the hope that the revelations about Voldemort and the Death Eaters might help shake him loose from the Ministry's claws."
"Wow!" Harry interjects again, shaking his head. "You're just amazing, you know that, right? And Dobby, you're such a great friend! Thank you. Thank you!"
Harry lets go of Hermione and grabs Dobby and, uncharacteristically, hugs him. Dobby bursts into tears, with great drops of water leaking from his eyes.
Hermione looks back at Harry, unflinching now in his gaze, her eyes sparkling with new tears -- tears of pride -- pooling on her lashes.
Then Harry turns back to Hermione. Harry pulls her to him slowly and kisses her gently. Then they wordlessly hug again, just holding each other in their arms for a timeless time.
Eventually Hermione pulls back gently. "Harry, will you go to Hogsmeade on a date with me, just me?"
Dobby starts bouncing with joy, hopping from one foot to the other.
"Of course I will. I'll do you one better. Hermione, will you be my girlfriend?"
Hermione, betraying her bookish nature, unknowingly evinces a quote from Jane Austen, "Yes. Yes! A thousand times yes!"
"Well then, I'm happy today. I got to meet my father and turn the head of the prettiest, smartest girl and best friend ever", says Harry.
Hermione blushes, and then says meekly, "You'll help me tell everyone what really happened then?"
"Of course," Harry says solemnly. "Maybe in a couple more minutes?" He leans forward and captures her lips once again.
After a moment, Hermione pulls back slightly and says "Dobby, maybe we can talk again later?"
The End
