Chapter 228

Harry stared. Every once in a while, usually with Dumbledore around, he was reminded of how strangely absurd the Wizarding World truly was.

Although considering all else that he had seen, he supposed accidentally using hair curlers as a dildo wasn't all that far out there.

His Gamer's Mind, being the delightfully helpful thing that it was, conjured up a nice little mental image for him.

He then promptly decided that it definitely was far out there.

Deciding to casually pretend that the last minute of conversation had been wiped out of existence by a random black hole dancing through space-time, Harry took a sip of his tea and asked the question on his mind.

"What is the plan for tomorrow's trial? Should I tell them about the possession? That I talked to Riddle?"

Dumbledore's face grew serious, "I have thought about it, and I think pursuing a possession-based defense might be the best option we have. However, Miss Turpin's mind being impenetrable might prove to be an issue"

"What about Imperius Curse? I know that the death eaters during the last war got off on that. That defense must've been really good. I've read that Barty Crouch Sr was really strict on Dark Arts at the time. Why can't we use something like that?"

Dumbledore was shaking his head even before Harry finished, "There were fairly complicated factors at play there, not the least of which were bribes and networking. And remember Harry that the people who will be casting the votes already know that the Imperius defense was popularly used by Death Eaters. Those that know that it had been used to keep guilty people out of prison and are bitter about it would vote against us, and those who themselves used it to stay out of prison would also vote against us."

Harry knew where Dumbledore was going, "Combine that with the families that lost their sons and daughters, who we can assume will vote against us no matter what, we will lose no matter how airtight the defense is."

"Exactly. You have to remember Harry that a Wizarding Criminal trial is not just about the law, but also about the people who vote. It is them we have to convince, and it is them we must focus on the most," Dumbledore said.

"So what do you want me to do?"

"Tell them about the possession without mentioning Lord Voldemort. Say that you saw someone in the Chamber, but were afraid to tell people about it because you thought no one would believe you. Be vague. Your age will give you some liberties. Take advantage of them. Is that clear Harry?

"Crystal," Harry answered before asking, "But what about Lisa? What about her being on the stand?"

Dumbledore's face aged a decade within a second, "Miss Turpin…she does not remember much. A lot of her memories involve blacking out for periods of time. But there are also quite a few things that she does remember and feels guilty about because she does not remember anyone forcing her to those things. Almost all of those I am positive Tom Riddle made her do."

Harry's optimism about the trial plummeted.

Dumbledore wasn't finished, "Further worsening the situation are her mental shields, which make her immune to Veritaserum, and her lack of any recollection whatsoever about the Voldemort's diary. Both no doubt courtesy of Mr. Riddle."

"Letting her take the stand would be bad wouldn't it," Harry asked, leaning tiredly back into his chair.

"To put it lightly, yes,"

Harry sighed, before he looked up at the Headmaster said, "Then I suppose I will have to sway all the people I can."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled at Harry's statement before he set his untouched cup of tea aside to pull out a small file from his drawer and opened it.

"The Prosecutor the Ministry has appointed for the case is Lord Mulciber," he said as he read the page in the file, "He is a very well respected member of the traditionalist side, and a shrewd politician and attorney. The acting Judge, as always, will remain anonymous until the trial starts. The trial will be held in tomorrow in Courtroom Twelve, beginning at two in the afternoon."

Dumbledore closed the file, took off his glasses and leaned in to look Harry in the eyes.

"You must be careful Harry. You must not interrupt anyone. You must not speak up. You must not appear hostile or biased in any way. And most importantly, you must not give them any reason to use Veritaserum on you."

Harry frowned, "But wouldn't my Occlumency stop it from taking effect or something? Couldn't I just lie to th-"

Dumbledore's voice was quite serious when he interrupted Harry, "There are over a thousand different microexpressions and indicators of Veritaserum taking effect on a person. Those indicators are one of the most well guarded magical secrets, passed on by word of mouth from one Court Administerer to the next. Even I do not know them all. A person who is unaware of those indicators might possibly be duped, but it is impossible to fake the effects of the Truth serum in a Court and not be caught. And the situation is even worse for you."

"Worse for me?"

Dumbledore nodded, "Nicholas tells me that memory spells do not work on you, which prevents us from temporarily rewriting your memories to show that you did sneak past the basilisk. If we had been able to do that, you would have been able to bypass Veritaserum, since you yourself would have believed that to be the truth,"

"But my shields prevent that," Harry whispered in morbid realization. The one protection that he cherished above all was proving to be their undoing.

"They do."

Silence took over the office for a moment, the only sound echoing through being the puffing and whirring of the machines.

"Test me," Harry finally said, breaking the silence, "I'll try to take down my shields. Try to Obliviate me."

"Harry, thi-" Dumbledore began speaking, his expression shocked.

"Don't let me think about this twice Professor," Harry interrupted, "I don't trust myself to not stop you. Just do it. Obliviate the last minute of this conversation from my mind. If we can do this then we can save Lisa's life."

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