Chapter 274

(AN: Leave a comment and a review, your feedback helps me a lot.)

If you want to support me and read ahead!

Patrë-on.com/Se7enX

Yeah! Here's the new chapter!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[POV – Third Person]

After Amelia told Sirius to enter, the large doors of the court were opened, and through them passed Sirius who was accompanied by Andromeda and Moody, who Amelia had asked to attend this trial, and as he owed a favor to the head of DMLE he did not could refuse.

Seeing Sirius Black entering the courtroom looking happy and peaceful, as if he were on a walk in the park, Fudge quickly got to his feet with a terrified look on his face.

"Black!?" Fudge exclaimed, and then looked at all the Aurors who were standing there just as shocked as he was, "What are you doing standing there?! Arrest him!" he ordered.

Being ordered so suddenly was enough to snap the Aurors out of their stupor, and with that they immediately jumped to their feet with their wands drawn, but before they could do anything Andromeda stepped forward.

"What do you think you're doing?!" she asked with a cold, threatening look, which was enough to make all the Aurors stop in their tracks.

Looking at each other the Aurors didn't know what to do, but they still held their wands tightly.

Of course, it wasn't just because of Andromeda that they didn't start casting spells on Sirius. In fact, seeing Moody next to Sirius walking calmly, or as calmly as a paranoid old Auror could, had them all confused.

"Put down your wands" they then heard someone order, and turning around they all saw Amelia standing facing their aurors.

"What is the meaning of this Amelia?!" Fudge asked in a panic.

"Minister, I don't know if it has escaped your memory, but as far as I remember this trial in which we are participating is to find out if Pettigrew is guilty of the crimes that happened 12 years ago, crimes of which Mr. Black is accused" Amelia replied calmly, but still with a steady gaze.

"Yes, but…" Fudge started to speak, but Andromeda cut him off.

"And I have to remind you Minister, that you lost all right to arrest my client the moment you decided to deny him a true trial by throwing him in Azkaban 12 years ago," she said.

Andromeda then proceeded to look at everyone in the courtroom, be it Wizengamot members, ministry officials, journalists or the public who had just come to watch the trial.

"My client spent more than 11 years in one of the worst places in the world, suffering terribly along with other real criminals, all because of a reckless mistake by the ministry, and now that some information have come to light that possibly this same man may be innocent the ministry still wants to arrest him again, showing that they haven't learned from their last mistake!" Andromeda spoke to everyone, using a speech that she knew would arouse a certain amount of indignation in some people.

And just as she predicted, the people in the courtroom began to look at one another and whisper, with some staring at Fudge, who shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"We don't know if the things said about Pettigrew are true" one of the dark faction members said as he stood up.

"Yes, and for all we know, Black could still be a psychopathic killer, so I think it's best to lock him up" a short, elderly man said, surprising some as everyone knew he was part of the light faction.

But Andromeda knew that this man was actually from one of the families that owed a debt to the Black Family, and she made a point of remembering his face to talk to Sirius about collecting that debt after the end of this trial.

Seeing these two rise up to oppose Sirius walking freely in the courtroom other people also started complaining and arguing, some because they also had debts to the Black Family and knew what would happen if Sirius was acquitted and others because they were worried about Sirius really be a murderer.

And obviously, there were also those who just wanted to add more oil to the flames, either for their entertainment or a sadistic diversion, as is the case with Skeeter who was sitting in the journalists' area.

"Well, given this situation..." a new voice rose among the others, a voice that carried such a power and presence that it silenced all discussions.

Turning towards the voice, everyone saw Albus Dumbledore, his eyes shining as he stared at everyone, letting some of his magic leak out to make a bigger impact, even if unconsciously.

"I think we should listen to Mr. Black's side, not considering him as a criminal but as a potential victim" Headmaster Dumbledore said calmly.

Hearing what the Headmaster said, some people including Fudge started to open their mouths to protest, but a look from the Headmaster silenced them.

Sirius, who saw this scene with Andromeda, looked at the Headmaster in surprise, not expecting him to speak on their behalf.

Feeling Sirius' gaze on him, the Headmaster turned to look at the last Black, nodding slightly with a slight smile, hiding the guilt he felt behind his eyes.

Nodding back to the Headmaster, Sirius felt a weight lift off his shoulders, sighing in relief as he realized that they probably had the backing of another influential person, while at the same time he felt like smiling, realizing that at least one person from his past still trusted and believed in him.

As Dumbledore's words carried so much weight and confidence people began to relax, realizing that if the great and powerful Albus Dumbledore, the only person Voldemort feared was in the same room with them, then they were safe.

And those who were trying to get Sirius arrested or just wanted to make a fuss sat there in a huff, knowing there wasn't much they could do right now.

"Well seeing how everyone has calmed down let's get on with this trial" Mrs. Stoppard said tapping his gavel, "And the first person I call to be questioned is... Sirius Orion Black"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-With Ethan - Near the courtroom-

[POV – Ethan]

As the trial was going on I approached the doors leading to the prisoner cells that adjoined the courtroom.

There were currently no prisoners inside these cells, but I knew this was where the aurors would bring Pettigrew after the trial before taking him to Azkaban.

As I stood by the doors I began to use my senses to try to feel and see what was going on at the trial.

I could feel everyone's magic inside the courtroom and elsewhere in the ministry, and among the hundreds of different magical signatures I felt Nick's, Penny's, Amelia's, Andromeda's and Sirius's, and even the Headmaster's, but one of the magical signatures that I felt worried me.

This magic was dense and strong, second only to the Headmaster and the Flamels, but that wasn't what made me worried. What had me worried was who this magic belonged to.

This was a magical signature that I made a point of memorizing, as this knowledge would be important in my fourth year.

And that was the magic of Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, one of the greatest wizards of today, who even with all his paranoia and physical problems was still an excellent duelist.

But you may be wondering how I managed to know that this magic belonged to him, if I never met or saw him, and the answer to that is simple... Nymphadora Tonks.

As Moody's student, Tonks spent a lot of time at his side, and remnants of his magic could have lingered around her.

However, these remnants obviously don't last long, so no, that's not how I was able to feel and memorize his magic.

In fact, I managed to find Moody's magic in a wand holster he gave as a gift to Tonks, who said it was a pain to receive it.

And actually, it was a literal pain since Moody had enchanted the holster with several curses and forced Tonks to break them all, and with each mistake one curse would activate and end up hitting her, and all of this was a lesson for her to keep the " Constant Vigilance" while breaking curses.

And it was a good thing he did this little test for her, because he ended up imbuing the holster with his magic, making the remnants stronger and more lasting, thus allowing me to memorize his magic.

Now back to why Moody's presence worried me.

His presence worried me because he was the only person in the entire ministry who could see me under the Disillusionment Charm, and knowing him and his paranoia, he wouldn't think twice before starting to hex me, since one of his mottos it was curse first and ask questions later.

Sure, Nick, Penny and maybe even the Headmaster could sense I was here, but I knew they would be more controlled, and in the case of the Flamels, they would just pretend I wasn't even here to protect myself.

And now knowing that Moody was here I realized that I should be much more careful with this mission of mine, because if I was caught I wouldn't know how to explain why I was here at the ministry, since Hogwarts was still having classes.

And even if Nick and Penny tried to help me I'd still be in trouble, as not even their influence could change the fact that I'd infiltrated the ministry.

'Sigh... And to think that my biggest problem here would be the presence of a paranoid and crazy old man...' I thought with a sarcastic smile.

End.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(End AN: This AN is just for me to say that One Piece is overrated...

...

Just kidding!

... Well, maybe)