Wow, nine reviews on Fanfiction and twenty-two on Portkey. That's pretty good for a first chapter.
I don't own Harry Potter. If I did, Snape would be evil, Ginny would be dead, and Harry would have hooked up with Hermione a long time ago.
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Chapter 1 - Free Me from This Mockery of Justice
"...Okay, guys, you all know what to do, now go do it," Harry addressed the various Prefects before them. After the fall of Voldemort, Hogwarts had reopened for the new year, and those who couldn't attend the year before were allowed to retry the grade that they had missed. Of course, his best friend Hermione Granger was chosen to be Head Girl, but by some miracle, Headmistress Minerva McGonnagal had decided to make Harry Head Boy. As they and the various Prefects milled out to patrol the train, Harry looked at Hermione. "So, how are things with your parents?" he asked.
"Good," Hermione said, smiling. "They're slowly but surely easing their way back into their old lives. It's rough, but they'll make it." Harry nodded understandingly and chewed his tongue, wondering if he should ask his next question.
"And how are you and Ron?" he asked quietly. Ever since he got the Head Boy badge, Ron had been avoiding him like the plague, always giving him disdainful looks and only speaking to him if absolutely necessary. Hermione's smile immediately faded.
"Not so well," she said sullenly. "When we first got together, Ron was very sweet, like he had really changed. But after the war ended and we went back to our lives, he reverted back to his old self. His jealousy of you getting the Head Boy position over him is simply proof positive of that," she sighed. "We both know I'm not one for Divination, but I have a feeling we'll break up before Christmas." Harry didn't know why, but he felt strangely elated at this news. Hermione turned to look up at him.
"What about you?" she asked. "How are things between you and Ginny?" Harry sighed and shook his head.
"Not so well," he echoed her words from before. "It seems that all we seem to do is snog and argue, and we don't even snog that much anymore." He opened a random compartment door. Seeing that it was empty, he closed it again and continued walking. "Our arguments are primarily about you, whether it's as Ron girlfriend, you're not supportive of him enough, or that she's supposed to be the most important woman in my life, and that I'm spending too much time with you, her brother's girlfriend." He chuckled humorlessly. "Maybe we could bet which one of us will break up first?" he asked rhetorically. Hermione snorted at his proposition.
"Gambling is a horrible habit," she said sternly, her hands on her hips. Harry just shrugged innocently.
"I heard that quite a few people got rich during the Tri-Wizard tournament, that's all I'm saying," Harry said. Hermione just rolled their eyes and they finished their patrol in comfortable silence.
After the train docked at Hogsmeade station, they climbed into the thestral-drawn carriages (Hermione paused at the sight of the creatures, but Harry had long since gotten used to them) and rode to Hogwarts. When the reached the Great Hall, Harry saw auror Hestia Jones sitting at the Head Table, along with several new faces. Professor Flitwick climbed onto a stool of his own and placed the Sorting Hat on its stool. The tear in its brim opened into a rough mouth and it burst into song.
A thousand years and more ago,
When I was shiny and new,
The time's four greatest mages
Sought to build a school,
To train the minds of those
Who were weak, naive and young,
And to think, it was once a passing fancy
When one of their number was sloshing drunk.
Master of the sword and wand, Godric Gryffindor,
Said, "I shall take those with honor and valor."
So those of valor, he took into his hold,
And hoisted a lion's banner of blood red and yellow gold.
"I shall take those most loyal," said Helga Hufflepuff,
"Who shall never flee when times grow most tough."
So under the sun's gold and above the black soil,
Still stand those who shall never run from toil.
"I shall take the wise," spoke Rowena Ravenclaw,
"For I value knowledge, not skulls full of straw."
So now in blue and white; wise, knowing scholars,
Now proudly wear the bronze eagle on their collars.
Salazar Slytherin hissed, "And finally, shall I
"Take those who are cunning, slippery and sly."
So now those under that of which it slithers,
Proudly wear the colors of venom green and silver.
I could go on for many hours,
But now this song must end,
So put me on, let me sort you,
And let the Hogwarts year begin!
As the school burst into applause, Hermione leaned over to Harry.
"Kind of short, isn't it?" she asked. Harry just shrugged as the first-years began to be sorted. As soon as they were sent to their appropriate houses, Professor McGonnagal stood up from her seat at the center of the head table.
"We have some announcements to make this evening, but I am sure that you would rather fill your stomachs right
now, so tuck in," she said, and she clapped three times, alerting the house elves below to start sending food
up.
Once the last of the pudding had disappeared, Professor McGonnagal stood up again.
"Firstly, I would like to remind you that venturing into the Forbidden Forest is strictly forbidden, hence the name. Secondly, Mister Filch has asked that I inform you that the list of banned items has increased to nine hundred and forty-three; the full contents can be found in his office. Finally, we have some new and returning faculty." She gestured to a large man with a moustache that made him look like a walrus.
"Returning to fill the role of Potions teacher is Professor Slughorn." There was some polite clapping from the students.
"Filling the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts is former auror Hestia Jones." There was more polite clapping, as well as whispering from the students. "I would appreciate it if the student body did not run a betting pool as to how Professor Jones will be driven from her post, if you please," Professor McGonnagal added sternly, and the whispering immediately stopped.
"Filling the role of Muggle Studies is Professor Ambercrombie," she continued, gesturing to a middle-aged man with blonde hair and brown eyes.
"And finally, filling in for Transfiguration is Professor Newhart," she concluded, gesturing to a tall, thin man in his seventies with blue eyes and gray hair. "The Head Boy and Girl for this year are Harry Potter and Hermione Granger." This time there was excited clapping from most of the students. "I'm sure that you're all tired now, so Head Boy and Girl, please follow me; the rest of you, follow your Prefects to your respective dormitories." Harry and Hermione stood up and followed Professor McGonnagal as the rest of the students milled out of the Great Hall. They stopped when they reached a portrait of a unicorn near the kitchens. "The password is `harmony,'" Professor McGonnagal said. "I hope you enjoy your last year at Hogwarts, and uphold your positions," she added.
"We will," Hermione said confidently. Professor McGonnagal flashed them one of her rare smiles before bidding them goodnight and walking away. Speaking the password, Harry and Hermione walked into the Head Common Room. It looked a lot like the Gryffindor Common Room, but to the side of the stairways to their rooms was another door labeled "Bathroom".
"Are you going to be okay with your new wand?" Hermione asked as she turned to Harry. Harry held up his new eleven-inch holly and dragon heartstring wand.
"It's not perfect, but it'll do," Harry admitted. "Besides, I'm getting good at my wandless magic, see?" he said. He pointed at a candle on a desk, and it slowly levitated upwards before drifting back down. Hermione nodded in satisfaction.
"It's a big improvement, Harry, I'm proud of you," she said sincerely.
"Thanks," he said. "Well, see you tomorrow," he said, walking upstairs to his bedroom.
"`Night," she said up to him before walking up to her own bedroom.
The next few days were fairly uneventful, except for one incident in Potions where Harry got a bit to eager chopping up his ingredients and ended up nicking his thumb.
"Go, Harry, I'll cover for you," Hermione said as Harry squeezed his thumb and muttered in pain. Harry ran to the nearest bathroom and wiped the pooled blood with a paper towel before cleaning the wound and bound it and returning to class. As he left, he failed to notice a figure emerge from a cubicle behind him and pull out the bloody towel from the rubbish bin.
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MINISTRY OF MAGIC, MINISTER'S OFFICE, NIGHTTIME
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Kingsley Shacklebolt, acting Minister of Magic until elections could be held again, was currently packing up for the night. He thought being one of the top aurors in the force was stressful; being Minister was absolute torture. His biggest problem was trying to force change past the pureblood bureaucrats in the Wizengamot, who had their minds stuck on outdated laws and customs. As he finished putting away some loose files, he heard a knocking on the door.
"Come in," Shacklebolt said as he closed his briefcase. The door opened and someone walked in, hiding in the shadows. "Can I help you?" he asked. Instead of answering, the figure walked out into the moonlight, illuminating his face. Shacklebolt's eyes widened in surprise. "Shouldn't you be at Hogwarts?" Still silent, the figure simply raised his wand and spoke two words that Shacklebolt never expected.
"Avada Kedavra," the figure whispered, and a bright green light shot out of his wand and hit Shacklebolt straight in the chest. The murderer looked up at the small monitoring crystal nestled into the corner of the ceiling and waved at it before walking out.
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HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY, THE NEXT DAY
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Harry walked down to the Great Hall, breakfast already in progress. He sat next to Hermione, who was eating a piece of toast and had her face buried in Hogwarts, A History for the umpteenth time. Harry chuckled softly as he started spooning eggs onto his plate, when the fireplace flared green, and three aurors stepped out. Harry grimaced when he recognized one of them as Dawlish. Dawlish said something to his partner and they walked in his direction while the third walked to Professor McGonnagal. Once they were within a few yards from Harry, Dawlish and his partner whipped out their wands.
"Harry Potter, by order of the Ministry of Magic, you are under arrest," Dawlish snarled. "You can come quietly, or we can make you come, your choice."
"Arrested? On what charge?" Harry asked defiantly, pulling out his own wand.
"For killing the Minister of Magic," a voice said behind him. Harry turned around to see Professor McGonnagal with a sad look on her face and a scroll in her hand. "This," she said, holding up the scroll, "is an arrest warrant for killing the Minister of Magic. I'm sorry, Harry, but there's nothing I can do." Harry sighed, defeated. He slowly nodded his head, and Dawlish roughly snatched Harry's wand out of his hand while his partner wrapped ropes around his wrists before dragging him back through the Floo to the Ministry of Magic. Professor McGonnagal stood tall and addressed the students.
"You will all be dismissed from classes today while I attempt to fix what I am sure is a grave mistake," Professor McGonnagal said. "You may accompany me, Miss Granger," she added softly to Hermione. She nodded, and together, they Flooed to the Ministry of Magic. Professor McGonnagal strode over to the clerk in the Atrium, who tapped his wand on his desk boredly.
"Where is the trial of Harry Potter?" she asked the attendant roughly.
"Courtroom ten, but you won't be able to get in," the attendant said tiredly. Professor McGonnagal and Hermione simply ran to the nearest lift and rode it down to the courtroom level. They went to courtroom ten, only to see it surrounded by reporters and two aurors standing guard at the entrance.
"I'm sorry, misses, but this is a closed trial, Wizengamot members only," one guard said.
"But I'm his headmistress, I demand to be there!" Professor McGonnagal shouted.
"I'm sorry, but I can't let you in; orders are orders," the auror said. Scowling, the two women
simply stood amongst the sea of reporters, anxiously waiting for the moment when Harry would be released.
Inside the courtroom, Harry struggled vainly against the chains that were binding him to the chair he was currently occupying. Above him sat several members of the Wizengamot, all of whom were giving him a glare of hatred, including a certain toad-like woman.
"The trial of Harry James Potter is now in session, on the charges of murdering Minister Kingsley Mortimer Shacklebolt, as well as treason to the wizarding world," an old man read off of a scroll.
"Treason?!" Harry shouted, still struggling against his bindings.
"Sufficient evidence has been presented to find the accused party guilty of both counts- " the Wizengamot member continued, but was once again interrupted.
"What evidence?" Harry snapped. The Wizengamot member sighed in irritation, but gestured to a man standing next to a covered podium. He wheeled the podium in front of Harry and removed the cloth to reveal that it was a pensieve. The man tapped the basin with his wand, and a projection appeared in front of Harry. It showed Shacklebolt cleaning up for the night, then a figure coming in and firing a killing curse at him. Then the figure turned around, and Harry gasped when he saw himself smiling and waving at the monitoring crystal before leaving. The man tapped his wand again, and the image disappeared.
"T-that wasn't me!" Harry sputtered. "Did you check my wand? I know you can do that!" The Wizengamot member gestured again, and the man that ran the pensieve touched his wand to Harry's and cast prior incantato. The image showed was one that Harry had practiced the night before for school. The Wizengamot snorted derisively.
"This simply shows that you were smart enough to erase the memory of the killing curse with a harmless one," he said dismissively. Harry gaped at the old man incredulously.
"Then I demand veritaserum!" he shouted. The old man simply shook his head.
"Most of our stores were destroyed when He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named took over the Ministry, and we used our remainder on interrogating prisoners, and it would take too long to wait for a fresh shipment to arrive. Besides, with the evidence we have, we do not need it." The man cleared his throat and looked at his scroll again. "With sufficient evidence of the crime, as well as testimony from Theodore Nott Jr., Millicent Bulstrode, Pansy Parkinson, Marcus Flint, Abraham Dolohov, Mortimer Avery, Seamus Finnegan, Ronald Weasley and Ginevra Weasley, we of the Wizengamot find the accused party, Harry James Potter, guilty of mudering the Minister of Magic Kingsley Shacklebolt and for treason to the wizarding world. You are hereby sentenced to a lifetime sentence in Azkaban prison. Take him away." The chains surrounding Harry fell away, and he felt himself being pulled up and dragged away, the doors swinging open to the blinding flashes of photographers' lightbulbs. Trying not to look at the reporters, Harry heard a familiar voice calling his name.
"Harry!" Hermione shouted, and Harry turned his head to see her and Professor McGonnagal struggling through the sea of reporters. "We'll get you out, Harry! We'll prove you're innocent, I promise you! I promise, we'll get you out!" Harry could only nod silently as he was dragged off to the worst prison in wizarding Europe.
When the two women Flooed back to Hogwarts, Hermione immediately strode to the Gryffindor table and adopted a sickeningly sweet smile.
"Ron, could you meet me in the Room of Requirement in an hour?" she asked sweetly. Ron, whose mouth was full of food, only nodded in confirmation. "Excellent." She went back to her seat and buried her face in her book, keeping the cheerful facade up, even though she was dying inside.
An hour later, Ron showed up at the Room of Requirement to see Hermione already waiting for him. Ron jumped slightly when he heard the door close behind him.
"Ron, I have a surprise for you," she said, uncharacteristically batting her eyelashes. "But I need to you close your eyes first." Grinning dumbly, Ron closed his eyes, and puckered his lips for good measure. After checking to make sure that he wasn't really peeking, she pulled her arm back and thrust it forward, punching Ron in the face as hard as she could. She heard a sharp crack, and his nose was now crooked, a sure sign that she had broken it.
"My nobe!" Ron shouted nasally, clutching his face. "You broke my fubbing nobe!"
"That's right, and that was for Harry," Hermione spat. "How could you, Ron?! He was your friend, our friend! He bent over backwards to make you happy, and you go and betray him?!" Hermione scoffed at him. "Like pet, like master, I suppose. Now get out of my sight before I do something I won't regret. I don't know how I ever fell for you, you petty, jealous, egotistical asshole! Get out!" Ron ran out of the room, clutching his bloody face and whimpering like a frightened puppy. As soon as the door slammed closed, it melted back into the wall to give Hermione privacy, and she collapsed onto the floor, sobbing.
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AZKABAN ISLAND PRISON, APPROXIMATELY ONE HOUR LATER
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Harry stumbled blindly through the prison. Although between the fact that the aurors had confiscated his glasses and he was being dragged around by two burly aurors, it was rather difficult to keep one's balance. They finally stopped in front of an empty cell.
"I'm glad those spooks in the Department of Mysteries came up with this spell; them dementors give me the creeps," one auror said while the other opened the gate and roughly threw Harry in. As soon as Harry crossed the threshold, he felt the chill and saw the dark memories flashing through his mind that signaled the presence of a dementor. "Enjoy your stay," the auror said, laughing maliciously as they locked the gate.
Harry pulled himself onto his cot and wrapped a small blanket, barely large enough to cover his shoulders around himself and curled into a ball. You're innocent, Harry thought to himself. You're innocent and Hermione's going to prove it. Just hold on, and she'll get you out. Just hold on. That thought, not being a good memory, stuck in his mind, and the pain receded somewhat. Just hold onto that thought, Harry. You'll get out someday. Never forget that you're innocent.
Never forget.
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Whew, I haven't written a chapter that long in a while. I hope you enjoyed it.
Don't forget to read and review!
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