A Farce Called Justice
Draco and Hermione were seated in two large chairs surrounded by chains that softly rattled on their own, as though they wanted to lunge at them at any moment.
The chamber looked like a massive dungeon built from dark stone, lit only by torches. There were two empty galleries on either side, and another directly ahead, filled with witches and wizards wearing plum-colored robes marked with a W across the chest, signifying their status as members of the Wizengamot. Each sat in a specific seat representing either one of the pure-blood Houses or members elected by the magical community, though most of those seats belonged only to influential witches and wizards.
Each one formed part of the jury that decided the fate of whoever sat in the center of that chamber.
And now they were about to decide, essentially, the fate of Draco and Hermione.
Fudge sat in the center. Beside him was a square-jawed woman with very short grey hair, wearing a monocle and a stern, severe expression. To his right sat another woman whose face was almost entirely hidden by the shadows.
Draco's gaze swept across those present, recognizing a few familiar faces. Naturally, his mother was sitting there with an expression of genuine displeasure over this whole affair. Beside her sat Selene, who let out a small yawn behind her hand, wearing an expression almost identical to Daphne's whenever someone woke her up too early. Wanda was there as well, looking somewhat lazy, like someone who could solve everything with a snap of her fingers but was being held back because using that much force would be like killing a mosquito with an atomic bomb. He also spotted Tonks casually raising a hand to wave at her cousin, making it obvious she'd once again been forced to occupy Sirius's seat.
But there was one more person sitting among them who drew even more attention than the rest.
Dumbledore.
He simply watched Draco and Hermione, deep in thought.
"Now that the accused are present, we may finally begin. Are you prepared?" Fudge asked in a solemn tone that seemed to exist purely for protocol's sake, since no one present appeared inclined to answer.
Except for one excited voice that immediately said,
"Yes, sir!"
Draco and Hermione followed the voice and spotted a striking head of red hair and a familiar figure they had seen a few times around Hogwarts.
Percy Weasley.
He appeared to be serving as the court scribe.
The two of them quickly lost interest in him, though. He was only someone they'd crossed paths with a handful of times.
"Disciplinary hearing of August twelfth regarding violations of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery and the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, committed by Hermione Jean Granger and Draco Lucius Malfoy," Percy read aloud, while his quill flew across the parchment at incredible speed, writing down every single word.
Hearing his full name, Draco couldn't help making a slight face.
For a brief moment, it seemed his mother shared the same reaction.
Fudge continued.
"Questioning officers: Cornelius Oswald Fudge, Minister for Magic; Amelia Susan Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement; Dolores Jean Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister. Court scribe: Percy Ignatius Weasley. Witnesses and counsel for the defense: Edward Gareth Greengrass and Sirius Orion Black the Third..."
Fudge paused there, glanced down at the document, then lifted his head.
"Where are your supposed lawyers?" he asked when he failed to see Edward or Sirius anywhere in the chamber, unable to completely hide the faint smile forming on his lips.
The smile vanished almost immediately.
The chamber doors suddenly swung open.
Two men walked in at an unhurried pace, making their way toward the center of the chamber before stopping on either side of Draco and Hermione.
"Oh, apologies for being late. There seems to have been a problem with the wand-measuring device in the entrance hall, and they tried to stop us from coming in. Fortunately, we weren't carrying our wands today. Otherwise, perhaps we wouldn't have made it here in time," Sirius said in a mocking, disdainful tone as he looked straight at Fudge. "Though that doesn't make a wizard any less dangerous," he added with a dangerous smile.
He casually waved one hand as though he still held his wand.
A chair appeared beside Hermione.
He calmly sat down.
Edward didn't say a single word.
He did exactly the same with complete indifference, conjuring himself a chair before sitting down with his arms folded, his cold expression fixed on Fudge, while Sirius continued wearing that dangerous smile, staring at him without blinking.
As Fudge found himself facing both of their gazes, watching them perform magic so effortlessly without even holding their wands, he couldn't entirely hide his nervousness.
"Ah... yes. It seems to have been malfunctioning these past few days. I'm sure the Ministry will allocate part of its budget to purchasing a new one," he said with a forced smile.
At least a third of the Wizengamot respected Edward and Sirius. Over the past few years, the two of them, together with their allied families, had amassed an enormous fortune that now gave them control over a large portion of England's economy, and many of the members present had profited by doing business with one or both of them.
The only ones who didn't seem pleased were the members of the Dark faction, which was now far smaller than before, as most of its members were spending their days in Azkaban, and many of those seats were now occupied by new faces. But even within the so-called "Light" faction, there were several who regarded the two men with respect. They had rid the Wizengamot of many former Death Eaters with whom they had once been forced to share those seats, something not even Dumbledore had managed to accomplish during all that time.
That made Fudge's expression turn genuinely sour, as though he felt his political career itself was threatened by the existence of those two men. It was precisely why he was looking for any possible way to discredit them.
"The charges?" Edward asked in a cold voice.
"Yes, the charges," Fudge replied, picking up the small scroll before him and shuffling a few notes around. "The charges against the accused are as follows: being fully aware of the new regulations regarding magical control in the Muggle world, and being underage, they used spells that have not yet been classified within any branch of magic and therefore remain under observation due to their potential dangers, previously associated with categories of Dark Magic, and furthermore did so in an area inhabited by Muggles, thereby violating Paragraph C of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery of 1875, as well as the Statute of Wizarding Secrecy and the use of a form of magic whose nature has yet to be determined and remains pending evaluation."
Fudge finished reading before looking up at Draco and Hermione.
"Regardless of the fact that it was done in self-defense against the now imprisoned Pansy Parkinson, the use of an unclassified form of magic remains a serious offense."
He paused for a moment before looking directly at Draco.
"Isn't it true that you used that magic to apprehend Miss Parkinson, Mr. Draco Lucius Malfoy?" Fudge asked, fixing his gaze on Draco while once again using his full name.
Draco frowned again.
"Yes," he answered calmly.
"And Miss Hermione Jean Granger was present as an accomplice and witness?"
"Yes, but..." Hermione tried to say, only for Fudge to interrupt her.
"And you are both aware that you are forbidden from using magic outside school until you come of age, correct?" Fudge asked again.
"Yes," Draco answered just as calmly.
"But...!" Hermione wanted to object, yet Fudge seemed determined not to let her speak, making her look increasingly desperate.
Crack.
The sound abruptly interrupted the so-called trial.
Everyone immediately turned toward Sirius, who had one hand lazily raised toward one of the empty side galleries, where the wooden bench could now be seen split cleanly in half from a distance.
"Oh, sorry," Sirius said with an obviously fake smile that never reached his eyes. "It's just that whenever I see a farce this disgusting, I feel like breaking something. Better to aim at something that can be repaired than something that can't, don't you think?" he said while looking directly at Fudge.
For a brief moment, Fudge went pale, as though he could feel the threat behind that stare.
"Ahem."
The voice suddenly echoed through the chamber, cutting Sirius off and making Fudge visibly relax.
It was Dumbledore.
He seemed to have spoken simply to remind everyone of his presence.
"It would seem you still cannot set aside that personality of yours, Mr. Black. But you should remember that you are now a grown man and ought to conduct yourself with greater maturity. It would not do for the younger generation to learn from your example," Dumbledore said in a calm voice.
"Yes, personalities are difficult to change. Just as I'm impulsive, I'm sure you're still a manipulative old man who needs to keep everyone dancing like puppets under his control, aren't you?" Sirius replied with open contempt toward Dumbledore before throwing Fudge a mocking glance, causing the Minister's face to sour immediately. "Why don't we just get this ridiculous farce over with? I don't have time to waste. As Headmaster of Hogwarts..." Sirius said, looking at Dumbledore with undisguised disdain, "I've got better things to do than play games with you lot. And if I really wanted to play, we'd settle it with our wands. Unfortunately, all of you are far too cowardly, so you resort to these pathetic little tricks that accomplish absolutely nothing."
Edward, who remained seated as calmly as ever, gave Sirius a brief glance but didn't seem surprised in the slightest, as though he had fully expected Sirius to lose his patience sooner or later.
At the same time, he calmly pulled several documents from inside his robes and rose to his feet.
"Here I have the evaluation regarding the magical classification of golden magic, analysed and certified by magical researcher Pandora Lovegood. There is also visual evidence obtained through magical recordings taken at the scene, as well as a complete analysis of the events through tracing magic. In addition, a magical and medical examination was conducted on the prisoner, Pansy Parkinson. If necessary, those reports will also be presented properly and entered into evidence as supporting documentation," he said, holding a thick stack of documents in his hands.
Fudge's gaze shifted from Sirius to Edward in surprise, as though he hadn't expected them to have prepared all of this so quickly.
Susan Bones gestured for Edward to bring the documents over and began reading them carefully.
The entire chamber fell silent. The only sound was the turning of pages.
Fudge immediately picked up a few of them as well, trying to find some flaw, but the more he read, the more irritated his expression became.
"You created this golden magic?" Susan asked, looking up at Draco with genuine interest.
"Yes," Draco answered, remaining as calm as he had been from the beginning.
"And you're only fifteen years old?" she asked again.
"Yes," Draco replied once more.
"Remarkable," Susan said, her eyes seeming to light up for a moment. "You're one of the Triwizard Tournament winners alongside Harry Potter, aren't you? I watched your magic during the competition, as well as that young man's. I have to say, many witches and wizards would give anything to possess the kind of power you two have. And on top of that, to be capable of creating magic of this caliber..." she said, unable to hide her admiration. "Have either of you considered joining the Auror Department after you graduate?" she asked immediately.
By that point, Fudge looked nearly furious.
"It doesn't matter how impressive his magic is. Even if it can now be properly classified, it was still used in a Muggle area, endangering the Statute of Secrecy. It is already known that the International Confederation imposed severe sanctions upon the Ministry of Magic because of—"
"But that has nothing to do with these young people, does it?" Madam Bones interrupted. "They were merely defending themselves from an attack. The potential danger of an unclassified form of magic was the main issue to be evaluated in this disciplinary hearing, but now that we have a full analysis..." She glanced back at the documents. "There isn't much left to discuss. Continuing this hearing would simply waste the time of the Wizengamot members, who have far more important matters to attend to."
Her firm tone made even Fudge, the Minister himself, bitterly clamp his mouth shut.
"But they still deserve punishment. After all, there are numerous reports documenting the behaviour of Malfoy, Granger, and their friends at the schools they attended, both Beauxbatons and Hogwarts—"
"Yes, but the Ministry has no authority to interfere in the internal affairs of magical schools, whether that's Beauxbatons in France or Hogwarts, old or new," Sirius cut in immediately with open disdain, though there was a faint edge of coldness in his voice. After all, he was Hogwarts' Headmaster, as well as the largest financial supporter of the Board of Governors.
"Are you suggesting that Hogwarts' internal affairs are none of the British Ministry of Magic's concern, Headmaster Black?" interrupted a raspy voice trying to sound sweet, though it only made people feel disgust.
At last, the woman seated beside Fudge could be clearly seen.
Dolores Umbridge.
"I must remind you that every magical matter within Great Britain falls under the authority of the Ministry of Magic, does it not?" she continued in that sickening tone that seemed capable of irritating anyone forced to listen to it. "Hogwarts is hardly a separate government."
"Yes? Then perhaps the Ministry should have paid part of the reconstruction costs both times the school had to be rebuilt. But I don't recall seeing a single Galleon from your budget, do you? So why exactly should the Ministry have the right to interfere when it can't even contribute a single coin to help educate the next generation?" Sirius replied mockingly.
Fudge's face turned almost purple, his complexion darkening with anger, while Umbridge stared at Sirius with an unreadable expression.
"Based on the evidence submitted, the defense has presented a complete case. We would like to hear the verdict," Edward interrupted in his usual cold, clipped tone.
Fudge turned to look at him, then at Sirius.
His indignation—and his anger—continued to grow.
"Those in favor of acquitting the defendants of all charges," Madam Bones announced in her booming voice.
Immediately, more than half the chamber raised their hands.
Even those who hadn't done so found themselves under the steady gazes of everyone else. The evidence was simply too clear.
One by one, more hands went up.
There was no need to ask who opposed the motion.
It would only have been Fudge, Umbridge, and a handful of their followers.
Dumbledore and several others simply abstained.
Hermione finally released the breath she'd been holding since the hearing had begun.
Without thinking, she turned and hugged Draco in sheer relief.
Draco blinked in mild surprise before a gentle smile appeared on his face.
Hermione seemed to realize what she'd just done and quickly pulled away again, her cheeks lightly flushed.
Several of those present couldn't help watching the two of them with interest, smiling faintly.
Fudge noticed it.
His face darkened once again, now filled with barely restrained fury.
"The defendants are acquitted of all charges," he declared before standing abruptly and striding toward the exit, as though he couldn't bear to remain in that chamber for another second.
"Next time, Minister..." Sirius muttered toward Fudge's back, "...put together a better farce."
Fudge stopped for the briefest moment before continuing on, now walking noticeably faster, followed closely by Umbridge and Percy Weasley.