Pre-Chapter A/N: Please do check out the first chapter of the novel I'm working on up on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/Oghenevwogaga)- it's completely free to access. What can I say except you're welcome? Here we go. Lovely to have you all here, and I hope you enjoy this one. If you do, feel free to head over to Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/Oghenevwogaga) and read the next two chapters- I update there on a daily basis so there's always something for you to read.
Dumbledore was wearing a set of maroon robes with stars all around them— stars that moved of their accord in some sort of intricate dance. If anyone had expected the man to wear something a bit less garish for opting as serious as an ICW meeting, then they would be sorely disappointed. His entrance marked the beginning of the serious business as everyone went to take their seats.
"Good day Gentlewizards and Gentlewitches, welcome to the three hundred and fourteenth annual congress of the International Confederation of Warlocks. As custom, those with rights of petition have submitted their names for consideration." He said after banging the gavel and all eyes in the room turned to the front row.
"Firstly, we will hear from one Mister Sirius Black" There were gasps around the room but nothing too disruptive. He didn't even have to bang his gavel to restore order.
I stood, wiping my arms against my robe as I cleared my throat.
"I am Harry James Potter, here speaking for and representing Sirius Black who has the right to petition this body as the Lord of House Black per the ICW Formation Statute of 1680" I began.
"Mr. Black wishes to petition this body to overturn an illegal International Warrant which has been placed on his head by the British Ministry of Magic, as well as to seek remedies against the British Ministry of Magic for illegal incarceration in the Magical Prison known as Azkaban" I said, and then sat down. Now, it would be up to Dumbledore to invite the British Ministry.
"Warlock McKinnon?" Dumbledore called. Eyes turned to Mathilda Mckinnon's father, who was the British primary representative to the International Confederation of Wizards.
"Apologies, Supreme Mugwump. I find myself ill-prepared to address these ludicrous charges. Everyone knows Sirius Black was found guilty of the murder of Peter Pettigrew and over a dozen muggles. Of course, he was sent to Azkaban, and last I checked, escape from Azkaban is a crime. I suggest that the Boy Who Lived be subject to a check to determine that his faculties are in order" The man said in a gruff voice. And to think I'd almost taken his daughter to the Yule Ball. If I had, she'd probably have survived the massacre.
I lifted my wand to show I intended to respond, and Dumbledore gestured to me. His face was flat, it was difficult to tell what he thought at this point, but knowing what I did, I doubt he was thrilled.
"First of all, everyone knowing something is far from enough to make it true. Go out and ask the muggles skiing, and they'd tell you that everyone knows magic doesn't exist. Yet, we remain here. Sirius Black as never found guilty because there was never a trial. In that case, that means his incarceration in Azkaban was illegal. The Administration of Magical Justice Act of 1778 clearly stipulates that wizards be remanded to Azkaban only after a guilty verdict is entered by a quorum of Wizengamot members— which never happened in this case. Secondly, as an example of how one's knowledge might be faulty, I challenge Warlock Mckinnon's assertion that escaping Azkaban is a crime. I invite him to appraise me of the specific law breached." I took my seat, and turned to see that McKinnon had begun to redden in rage. It was only for a second or two, before his expression returned to normal.
"I move for a recess so that someone more apprised with the matter can take over. The allegations raised by Mr. Black's representative are severe, and the Ministry has the right to defend itself" The man said. Of course, Dumbledore granted the recess.
"We will recess for forty-five minutes to allow Warlock McKinnon return to England and come back here with the required documents and personnel. For this purpose, the British Representative shall have access to my personal portkey terminal" Dumbledore said, banging the gavel.
"That was so good, Harry. You just ate him up in seconds. Didn't even let him think to come up with a reply" Sirius gushed, and I smiled at him.
"Yeah, but he was easy. The man is grieving his daughter and is not a qualified barrister by any means. If Fudge has any sense about him, he'll send the best Barrister that they have on their employ, and that will be a whole different ballgame" I cautioned.
"But you said that we wouldn't need to hire one and that you'd be enough" He said.
"Well, no barrister would have agreed to take this case. While there might be repetitional gains from arguing and winning before the ICW itself, there's the threat of ministry retaliation— besides we'd never have been able to be absolutely certain that any barrister we hired wouldn't just go and report the whole thing to the Minister" I said, sensing that had worried him. I could empathise. He could see his freedom in his grasp, and anything that threatened to snatch that away would be an unacceptable danger.
"What about that lawyer-client confidentiality thing that Lily was always going on about?" Sirius posed. I wanted to ask when my mother would never have needed to even mention that, but I held off for now.
"Only works if the client isn't actively committing a crime. While escaping from Azkaban is no crime, running from a warrant is sure enough a crime. Don't overthink it, Sirius. I just wanted to manage your expectations. To be completely honest, I'm going to run circles around wherever the Ministry sends." I said with my most confident smile. It didn't work.
"I know you're good at Magic, Harry. But this is different".
"Not really. For one, I'm smarter than anyone dumb enough to work for the British Ministry, of all places. For another, you're innocent. We are in the right here, and the world itself will come to know it. There's no case that's ever going to be as easy to win as this one" I pressed, fibbing a bit, but doing it for the greater good. Being innocent didn't matter one whit when it came to trials. In my early career as a defence attorney, I'd even found that guilty clients were easier to defend than innocent ones— when they were being honest, at least.
He smiled, and I returned it, even as the various representatives murmured to themselves during the recess. I reached into my pocket and began to go over some of my notes. It wasn't anything for Sirius' trial. I had that on lock already, but something I was working on for my next project. The fact that I now had a time turner for my personal use meant that I could take on more tasks. One of them? Mastering ancient runes. Tom Riddle had been beyond NEWT level in the subject, and so I could rely on that expertise, but I was beginning to find out that NEWT-level was just the bare minimum. If I wanted to manage anything more useful than the lengthy prayer I'd used to subdue the hellhound, then I needed to be far more than just NEWT-level.
"Order" Dumbledore called as a Woman walked into the hall. She had straight grey hair, matched with a monocle over one eye, and the most ridiculous pair of knockers I'd ever seen. How the hell were they so upright at that size? They stood in opposition to everything I'd ever learned about gravity. Behind her, looking much less impressive, came Fudge and Umbridge. The minister was fidgeting, looking like he wanted to be anywhere but here. I almost scoffed. If I could tell that much, then there was no chance that the rest of the representatives here couldn't. All the government's of the world would be learning one simple fact after today— 'Britain is Weak'. Hopefully, that didn't lead to too bad of a situation before I could take power and set everything to rights. Behind Fudge and his pink monstrosity was another man. He was thin as a reed, and tall as a flag. He stood easily, with a confidence that belied his appearance, as he walked to the other side of the room, where an alternate set of chairs had appeared.
"Jonas Forswythe, Head Barrister under the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, British Ministry of Magic, appearing for the defence." The man was the one who spoke, and it was clear that he was born to do it. His voice was loud, and clear, reverberating through the chamber with ease.
"Now that both parties are present and accounted for, we may continue. I trust that you have been briefed on the petition levied against your Client, Mr. Forswythe?" Dumbledore asked.
"Yes I have, Supreme Mugwump"
"Excellent. Now, how do you respond?"
"The charges placed are so farcical that they beggar belief. The Ministry vehemently disputes every charge levied." He said.
"Noted. Now the Petitioner shall address this august body first." Dumbledore said, waving a hand in my direction.
I stood, and audibly cleared my throat before turning, so I was looking at the Representatives arrayed before me. They were the ones I needed to convince, not Dumbledore. The old man could do whatever the hell he wanted, but they were the ones that would vote.
"There is no greater privilege we enjoy as wizards and witches than liberty. We invented brooms and flying carpets to thread the skies, we invented ships that sail at the speed of sound to sail the seas, we invented portkeys, apparation, a million other forms of magical transportation because as a people, we value our freedom above all else. Now imagine if that freedom was taken away from you unjustly. That is precisely what the British Ministry of Magic did to Sirius Orion Black, Heir to House Black. He was arrested and placed in Azkaban, a prison so bad that the German Chancellor himself was quoted referencing it as an 'abomination', while Italy's President referred to it as 'shockingly inhumane'. He was placed in the care of dementors, with no care given regarding whether he was innocent or not." I took a breath before continuing.
"No trial. No due process. Just being locked up and having the key thrown away. If we declare here that the British Ministry has the right to do such to him, what stops any other government from doing the same to her people? They did not stop at unjustly detaining Mr. Black, but when he escaped as was his right, they came to this very body and lied to secure an international warrant for his arrest. I have here the transcript of Warlock Mckinnon's address of this body where he described Mr. Black as an escaped convict. Convict implies he was found guilty. He never received a trial of any sort, and so could never have been convicted. The defence is going to stand up and tell you all sorts of things. They may say his crimes were so bad that he could not be tried, but that did not stop them from trying Bellatrix Lestrange, who massacred her way through a village in France. That did not stop them from trying and pardoning Igor Karkaroff, whose carelessness led to the death of several Durmstrang students even as the British Ministry supported his ascension as Durmstrang Headmaster. If they had done their duty, he would have been behind bars not getting your children killed" I said, making sure to meet Mckinnon's eyes as I said those words. Several nations had students in Durmstrang. While Hogwarts was seen as a British school, and Beauxbatons, a French one, Durmstrang was seen as a truly European institution.
Karkaroff had warrants out for his arrest in numerous European countries already, and no one was holding Magical Britain in very high regard right now. I hoped to take advantage of that fact.
"A ministry that fails to do its duty should not be defended. They failed you, the International Community, they failed your children, and they failed Sirius Black. Sadly, only one of those failings is in the power of this body to address. Please see to it that justice is served today, I beg you. Show the British Ministry that their days of laziness and incompetence are at an end." At the end, I had raised my voice so loudly that I was nearly shouting as I pointed right at where Fudge and his group were sitting.
"Thank you" I said, as I turned to take my seat. I tried not to react as the representatives began to clap. I knew they weren't doing it for me— Britain was extremely unpopular now, and they were showing their displeasure.
"Order" Dumbledore called after allowing the applause to go on for a few seconds.
"Now the Defence" He said.
"Gentlewizards and Gentlewitches of the ICW. Let us not allow flashy rhetoric and strong words sway us away from common sense and judicious application of the law. The Decree for Expedited Apprehension and Trial-less Holding, and Azkaban Transfer for Egregious Rebellion authorizes the ministry to arrest suspected death eaters and in situations where the ministry holding cells are filled, hold those Death Eaters in Azkaban while awaiting trial. Mr., Potter seeks to convince you that Sirius Black was never given a trial, but the truth is that he had not been given a trial yet. Yet. The ministry was always going to get around to it. The Decree for Expedited Apprehension and Trial-less Holding, and Azkaban Transfer for Egregious Rebellion, wow that's a bit of a mouthful, so I'll call it the Death Eater decree as we call it back in Britain for brevity henceforth. Back to the case, the Death Eater decree mandates no maximum time for the ministry to hold the accused. Mr. Black was held lawfully in custody while the ministry prepared its case. That makes his escape, not the act of a man fleeing persecution, but that of a man fleeing justice in his home nation. Are learned Gentlewizards and Gentlewitches like you distinguished representatives going to be swayed by pretty words into believing a plain falsehood?" He was good, I grudgingly admitted. So good that Sirius was already bristling at the words coming from his mouth. He was shoveling bullshit, and he knew it. He fucking knew it, but he didn't care.
"The truth is Sirius Black is guilty. He did it. If he didn't, he would have waited for his trial. Why am I so certain? Minister Fudge is right here, and he can testify that he visited the prison mere days before Mr. Black's escape, and when he did so, he told the man that a trial was going to be held in a matter of weeks. Why else would a man who had been content to sit docile in Azkaban for twelve years suddenly escape? He did I because he knew that once the depths of his crimes came to light, he'd be sent to the veil".
"He's fucking lying through his teeth" Sirius whispered, pissed. His eyes were wide and frantic. In that moment, he looked every bit the guilty man, and so I did what I did best. I manipulated. I dove into his mind, spreading feelings of calm.
"Calm down. These are just opening statements. He can say whatever he wants. If he puts Fudge on that stand, I'll tear the bastard apart."
"So, Wizards and Witches, let us see that justice is done today and put a guilty man back where he belongs." He rounded up to substantially less in the way of applause, but I did not allow that to make me more confident than I should have been. They could clap one way and vote the other. It was the votes I needed.
"Now, the petitioner may open his case" He said.
"For my case, I shall call a single witness, Sirius Black himself" I said, and he took a step forward before a chair and dock appeared at the podium a few steps away from Dumbledore. He walked forward to the seat and took it. An aide of some sort appeared to make him take a magical oath to tell the truth. That was one thing the ICW Judicial Process had over the British one. Actual magical oaths to prevent lying on the stand. Of course, you could still tell half-truths or phrase things cleverly, but that was the name of the game.
"Good, now we may begin" I said with a clap of my hands.
"Please state your name for the record" I started
"Sirius Orion Black"
"What is our relationship, Mr. Black"
"I am your Godfather" He said next. It was a bit of an irrelevant question but as expected, the ministry stooge did not bother objecting.
"How did you get into Azkaban, Mr. Black?"
"I was arrested by aurors and taken to a ministry holding cell for a few days and then Barty came to my cell to tell me I would be tossed in Azkaban. The next day, some people came over and took me to the island."
"Good. Now, do you remember your Azkaban cell?"
"I see it every time I close my eyes"
"I won't ask about the cell to spare you the pain, but I do want to know who your neighbors were"
"The cell opposite mine had Bellatrix Lestrange. The cell to the left of mine was Antonin Dolohov, and the cell to the right was Augustus Rookwood. To Bellatrix's left was Rabastan, and to her right was Rudolphus."
"How can you remember them all so clearly?"
"They all screamed when they came. Everyone screams for the first few years, I think".
"Did you?"
"I did."
"Hmmm. You were an auror, were you not?"
"I was"
"Did you ever serve at Azkaban?" I asked. I had coached him on what answers to give.
"Yes I did. Every trainee does two rotations at the Prison a month."
"Did you ever see suspected Death Eaters held in the prison as a result of the Death Eater Act?"
"Yes"
"What level were they held at?"
"The bottom level. They had the fewest dementors because they still needed to be mostly lucid to stand trial".
"Not the kind of place people like the Lestranges, or Rookwood would be placed, do you think?"
"Objection: The question calls for the Witness to give his opinion which he is not credible to do" Forswythe rose and said.
"Sustained" Dumbledore ruled.
"Apologies. What level were convicted death eaters kept?"
"The top level. With the most dementors and the least protection from the elements".
"Was that where you were held?"
"Yes." He said clearly.
"What did Mr. Fudge say when he visited your cell?"
"He spoke no words to me, but he did leave behind a newspaper and that was what made me escape."
"Why? What could have been on the newspaper to make you want to escape?"
"It was a picture of the Weasley family, and in the picture was a rat with a single finger missing" He said.
"If you see that picture, would you recognise it?"
"I would" He said, and I took the issue of the daily prophet out of my pocket to show it to him, before turning towards the crowd representatives and showing it to them.
"With the permission of the Supreme Mugwump, I shall disseminate these"
"Granted" Dumbledore said, hitting his gavel against the table. I twirled my wand, silently casting Geminio and levitating the papers towards the representatives, only stopping once everyone had a copy.
"What about the picture stood out to you"
"The rat. It has a single finger missing, and that is the same finger that Pettigrew cut off before he blew up the street we were standing on and killed the non-magicals." Thank heavens he didn't use the word 'muggle'.
"So you are saying that Pettigrew was the rat?"
"Yes, he was" He said.
"And why did that make you escape?"
"The article told me that the Weasley boy holding the rat was a Hogwarts student, and I was unwilling to leave my godson in the same vicinity as the one that had betrayed his parents" There were gasps from the audience. Of course there was. Every word, Sirius said, was true, and the oaths meant that they could not deny it.
"How did Pettigrew betray my parents?"
"He was the Secret Keeper for their Fidelius charm, and he gave the secret to Voldemort" He said, drawing even more whispering.
"Thank you for your honesty, Sirius. Gentlewizards and Gentlewitches, the Petitioner rests", I said.
A/N: Stopping here to ask if you guys want to see the rest of the trial or just a summary. Obviously, the DEATH EATER Act is entirely my creation. I think it would make sense in the context of the war being fought and lost, though. As always, the next two chapters are up on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/Oghenevwogaga). If you just want to read complete chapters and not my work in real-time, then feel free to purchase this story as a collection on my Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/Oghenevwogaga) page so you get to read each chapter after I finish it and not necessarily the daily updates available with a regular Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/Oghenevwogaga) membership- nice way to support this story and me while you're at it. Enjoy!