Chapter 072

Neville, who'd heard, whispered back, "It's a feature built into the Chief's desk. I also think there's an 'echo' of it built into the Scribe's desk, so the Scribe can do the same thing. Gran told me about it."

Once the copies had been distributed Longbottom looked back at Snape for a moment before she said, "Madam Bones, the charges, if you would."

Once they were read out she then turned to Snape and asked, "Severus Tobias Snape, having heard the charges laid against you this day, how do you plead?"

"Not guilty!" he snarled back.

Thus began quite the long trial. Snape was charged with various crimes, less than half of which were related to his position and behaviour as both Professor and Potions Master at Hogwarts.

But the nail in Snape's coffin, as far as Harry was concerned, was when it became public he was the one that directed Riddle towards the Potters. For Neville, it was finding out he had also directed Riddle at the Longbottoms and would have gone after the Longbottoms next if he hadn't been stopped by what happened at Potter Cottage.

At that point, Augusta Longbottom called an immediate halt to the trial. She'd banged her gavel so hard Harry felt she was surely about to snap the handle of it.

While everyone could see her sit there in complete fury for a long few moments, she finally snapped out, "My... apologies. However, I feel that, given this... given Mister Snape's recent testimony of how he'd directed that sociopath at, not just the Potters, but also at my son, his wife and my grandson... I believe I have to recuse myself from being Chief Adjudicator for this trial from this point forward. I have too much of a vested interest.

As she rose from her seat, still staring in heightened anger at Snape, Lord Miles Ogden stood and said, "I'll do it. So far, it seems, I have no such vested interest."

Longbottom spun on her foot and stalked over to the Longbottom seat, before she sat with a thump. And Ogden moved down to sit at the Chief Adjudicator's seat.

That ended up being the only change and he ordered Bones to continue with the Interrogation.

When it was learned, by his own words, Snape had used the three Unforgivables on numerous and various occasions while serving as a Death Eater, there was really only one sentence he could be given. With an overwhelming majority vote, Severus Snape was sent to Azkaban for life in the maximum security wing. He'd be joining the likes of the LeStranges, Rookwood, Avery and the recently returned Crouch Junior.

When he was led out of the chamber, still in restricting manacles and chains, he walked out without a word and with his head held high.

_‗_

―==(oIo)==―

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While almost everyone who'd witnessed that had no real appetite for lunch, a break of one hour for the midday meal was still called. The trial had taken that long.

Rather than join them in the DMLE cafeteria, Neville went and had lunch with his grandmother in the Members' private dining room. However, he rejoined them just before the hour was up and the Members all returned. He was waiting for them as the two teens were brought back to the chamber.

As soon as they sat, Neville leaned across and, in a voice barely above a whisper, said, "Gran told me Professor McGonagall's up next. She's really not looking forward to this one."

Using the same volume, Harry firmly said back, "Whatever befalls her as a result of this trial, Neville, is entirely her own damned fault."

"But," tried Neville, "It's Professor McGonagall!"

"Yes," he agreed. "However, she's also Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall. And, in her role as Deputy Headmistress, she is partly responsible for ensuring the proper behaviour of, not just the students, but also the staff - including herself; and, sure as hell, that includes Severus Snape.

"The piss-poor behaviour over the last three years, plus the start of this one, that I caused to be brought to light of the staff of Hogwarts is partly her responsibility. It was partly her job to stop it; actually, it was partly her job to see to it not happening in the first place. In that, she clearly failed. She refused to do her job. Today, she has to answer for that."

When Neville paused for a few moments deep in thought and then gave an almost negligent little but firm nod and sat back, Harry knew the other boy understood.

When Minerva McGonagall was called in to sit as defendant, like Filius Flitwick and Pomona Sprout before her, she was not led in wearing chains. However, she appeared to be the most dejected of them all.

Without a word to anyone, not even looking about at anything but the floor before her, she was guided to the accused's chair. One of the escorting aurors even had to gently guide her into sitting upon it. When the chains draped over her and pulled a little tight, she barely flinched.

For McGonagall's trial Ogden remained in the chair as Chief Adjudicator. A look at Madam Longbottom's face showed why. Longbottom was looking at McGonagall with sadness.