30. Justice

While Amelia Bones was spending some quality time on the Mediterranean beaches, her Aurors were busy, preparing everything for the trials of all captured Death Eaters. Everything was ready by the end of summer, and the trials were scheduled to start during the first week of September. With Veritaserum officially approved and used during the initial interrogation, there was no doubt about the results. Each and every one of the accused had confessed of several cold-blooded murders of both Muggles and magical people. That alone could be reason enough for a sentence of death to them all.

There wasn't much information leaking from the investigations, but even the official briefings, despite being short and giving very little information, were enough to set the mood. The public would accept nothing short of the severest punishments for the Death Eaters and their devout supporters.

Yet not everybody seemed to be of that opinion. Albus Dumbledore was doing his best to persuade members of the Wizengamot to give the accused a chance to redeem themselves. "Every person deserves a second chance," he preached to whoever would listen. Very few would, though.

Lord Black, on the other hand, used his influence to make sure that none of the Death Eaters would escape justice. Sirius was fuming at the way Dumbledore was acting. "They didn't give second chances to their innocent victims. Why should they get a second, or most probably third or fourth chance?"

It became extremely evident during the first trial, when Lucius Malfoy, along with other inner-circle Death Eaters, was found guilty of multiple murders, use of unforgivable curses, thieving and bribery. The prosecution asked for a death sentence. Dumbledore, in his role as Chief Warlock, tried his regular trick of making people feel ashamed unless they did as he wanted. "I must remind you all that these people, while their deeds are horrendous, are still people who made a mistake and are surely repenting t..."

Sirius had enough of this. He cut in. "With all due respect, none of them had ever repented their deeds, not even when specifically asked about it under Veritaserum. They had more chances to redeem themselves than they ever gave their victims and it's way overdue to rid our society of such filth, to show whoever contemplates repeating their actions that we cannot and will not tolerate such actions. I suggest we stick with the death sentence and have it executed immediately."

Dumbledore looked at Sirius with evident disappointment, his other trick to make people reconsider and accept his opinion, but Sirius paid it no attention. Dumbledore had another unpleasant surprise when he tried to vote as the Potter proxy, only for his vote to be rejected. "You are no longer Potter's proxy. Lord Black is," the Wizengamot clerk told him. Eventually, the death sentence was unanimously accepted as the least sentence such crimes deserved. Only Dumbledore abstained, gaining himself some loud "Boo"s from the audience.

With all the sentences executed immediately after the conclusion of the trials, the message sent to the public was loud and clear: such crimes would no longer be tolerated, regardless of the criminal's blood status, nobility or wealth. It was also made absolutely clear that nobody was above the law.

With Veritaserum used extensively, many of the unmarked supporters were also found out and put on trial. Some escaped with prison sentences only, while others joined the marked ones, passing through the veil. It came as no surprise that two of the Aurors and quite a few ministry employees were among them.

Back at Hogwarts, Harry was not aware of most of these events. He was happily spending his time with Hermione, occasionally joined by Neville and Susan. He could not refrain from noticing that most of the upper-classes Slytherin, and quite a few from other houses, seemed tense or were seen crying as the trials took place. He saw the headlines and knew what to expect – Madam Bones had not kept her opinions secret and they all knew she would make sure to rid magical Britain of the Death Eaters and their supporters.

"I feel sorry for them," he told Hermione.

"Whom are you referring to?"

"Malfoy, Nott, Bulstrode… Some others as well. They lost their fathers. No matter how awful these people were, they were parents for their children, and these children now suffer the loss."

Hermione sighed. "True, they suffer, but it was their parents' choice to join the Dark Lord and do his bidding. None of them repented; none showed any remorse; they even raised their children to become as bigoted as them. I can find no mercy for the parents, although I agree that we should try to minimize the suffering of their children, if possible."

"I'm not sure it can be done," Harry said with evident sincerity. "They imprinted their children with such views that make them unable to fully understand how wrongly their parents had acted. They'll need a long period of education to try and overcome this, and the results are uncertain, at best."

Hermione shrugged. "Well, it's not our doing and not our responsibility, although we may try to help whoever seems to want our help. Right now, there doesn't seem to be any."

\/\/\/

Dumbledore's behaviour at the trials seemed to stir the public, but certainly not in the way he would have liked. "Why did he insist on giving another chance to proven criminals?" people asked. This brought some additional attention to the way he had been running Hogwarts, exposing his support of Snape (who hadn't escaped the death sentence despite his actions as a spy, after his previous crimes were brought to light) and the way that man bullied the children, depriving the magical community of people who knew potions, just because he loathed teaching. Dumbledore's "give another chance" philosophy was also exposed as one of the reasons that Tom Riddle had been able to graduate Hogwarts and become the feared Lord Voldemort. Had Dumbledore put him in his place on time, many lives would have been spared.

It was the article by Rita Skeeter, titled "Is Dumbledore Really Light?" that started the landslide. Public opinion changed, seeing Dumbledore as the cause for many ailments of the magical society. He was forced to resign his positions as Chief Warlock and Supreme Mugwump and concentrate on Hogwarts, trying to salvage his image and introduce some overdue reforms at school.

By the end of November, Binns was sacked and replaced by a young and energetic teacher who made History sound like an interesting adventure. Professor Slughorn had already been called from retirement as soon as Snape was arrested, showing the students that Potions was something they could really like. Divination and Muggle studies were next to change.

Harry liked the changes. "I can finally see why my mother liked Potions," he told Hermione. "With Professor Slughorn, even Neville proves able to brew quite well."

"His knowledge in Herbology seems to be very useful for potions," Hermione agreed.

\/\/\/

After the trials were over, James decided it was time to come out of hiding. He re-opened Potter Manor with an elegant New Year Ball, inviting all the influential people in magical Britain, although he continued to live in the modest house in Kent. Dumbledore was invited to the Ball, of course. It wouldn't do to ignore such a powerful wizard, even after he lost most of his influence and was quite disgraced.

"I thought you were dead, killed by Voldemort that Halloween," the old man said when arriving at the Ball.

"It was a doppelgänger, yet it eventually gave me an excuse to leave Britain and raise Harry in peace, until he reached Hogwarts. You didn't do much to protect him there."

"I tried my best, you should know," Dumbledore insisted.

"Did you? You kept your pet Death Eater, despite him being a bully and teaching nothing; you hired a teacher hosting Voldemort; you let the ministry post Dementors at school. Should I mention the fiasco of the Triwizard Tournament? And now, you tried to pledge for mercy towards people who do not deserve it. You never did your best. You're too blinded by some false ideals to see the truth."

Dumbledore was unable to refute these accusations.

It was not a great surprise that Dumbledore was sacked just as the new term started. Although some suggested giving the headmaster position to Professor McGonagall, she was considered too close to Dumbledore to be fully trusted with the job. An American teacher was chosen, one who had successfully managed a school and was looking for a job in Britain.

The way Dumbledore had acted during the trials also made many of his followers re-evaluate their position. Most decided that one who had pleaded mercy for confirmed murderers could no longer be trusted to lead the light faction.

\/\/\/

With no official position, Albus Dumbledore went back to his childhood house at Godric Hollow, a place he hadn't visited since his sister's funeral. He would have preferred to live somewhere else, but as he had never married, he had also never bothered to make his own home. Hogwarts had been his home for about a century. Now he had to return to this house, if only temporarily. Despite his long tenure at Hogwarts and despite his other positions, he had never accumulated any fortunes. Sure, he put aside a bit of nest money, just in case, but he spent most of his income on books, on summer excursions, and on his extravagant robes.

Yet the old house, even after some of the Hogwarts house-elves, that the new headmaster was kind enough to lend him, cleaned and renovated it, was still full of memories. It made him think. It made him take another look at many of his decisions and actions. After a while, he found that he didn't like what he saw. Despite his conscious dedication to the light, some of his deeds seemed quite dark, when judged in retrospect. Was it really wise to give second chances to people who showed no remorse? Couldn't he prevent Voldemort from rising, had he acted swiftly to crush any budding tendencies to bullying and to dark arts? Nothing could be guaranteed, but looking back, Albus didn't feel like he did the right thing then, nor since.

His mind wandered to Voldemort's attempt to return. How could he do that? After reading the testimonies of the Aurors and interrogating Peter about the ritual that had been planned, Albus was starting to get a certain idea. Some more research was needed, though.

He used the Floo to contact Sirius. "Lord Black, may I gain access to your library? I have a certain suspicion that I'd like to see if I can prove or disprove. If proven, it may have profound significance for magical Britain, and especially for your godson."

Sirius was very suspicious of the old man, but he still appreciated Dumbledore's vast knowledge and his dedication to fighting the dark, despite some of his more questionable actions. "I suspect most of the books of interest are protected by Black family magic, so you'll have to do it with me present. Can you tell me what you're looking for?"

Albus sighed. "I'm not yet sure, but it's evident that Voldemort didn't completely die during that fateful Halloween, and I'm not sure he's completely dead now. The ritual that was planned for his resurrection has given me some clues, that I'd like to check. As it's all very dark magic..."

"You need to say no more," Sirius cut in. "You're welcome to study, but I expect full disclosure of the details."

"Of course, Lord Black. I feel like I should have shared more of my knowledge of certain events. It may have proven much wiser than the secrecy I've kept."

It took quite a few visits and many hours of browsing through ancient tomes of the darkest magic before the pieces of the puzzle started seeming to settle in place. "I suspect that Riddle used Horcruxes to keep himself immortal. It looks like his snake was one, destroyed at the graveyard along with him. I believe that Harry's scar was also one, yet it had been dealt with during his childhood. I wish I knew how it was done. Yet putting a Horcrux in live vessels is not the recommended way to act, as the Horcrux would be destroyed once its vessel dies. I believe that Riddle used some artefacts to store more Horcruxes."

Sirius felt nauseous at the idea. Having grown in the Black family, he knew what that blasted name meant and how such a thing was created, even if he didn't know the exact procedure. "How many did he create?"

Dumbledore sighed. "Having studied Riddle, I believe he chose a magically powerful number. Three is quite powerful, but Riddle was too paranoid to be content with only three. The next power number is seven, and then thirteen. Since a Horcrux stores a part of the creator's soul in it, I don't believe he could use thirteen, as dividing one's soul so much would render it too unstable. He probably used seven. That means six Horcruxes. The snake and the one in Harry are already gone. That leaves us with four unless Harry was unplanned."

\/\/\/

When Sirius told James about the new information, James turned thoughtful. He remembered that small book that stank of dark magic. Could that be another Horcrux? There was a loud shriek heard and some dark smoke escaped from the book when destroyed by fiend-fire. "I believe another one was destroyed before Harry's second year. He discovered one that somehow found its way into Weasley's book shopping and Liz helped, bringing it to me. When destroyed by fire, it sounded almost like someone was killed."

Albus wasn't sure about it. He asked for some more information until he was convinced that it had really been another Horcrux he could finally discount. That left only three.

"I suspect he would have chosen some significant relics. Tom was obsessed with the founders, so it might be some relics of them."

Sirius frowned. "What kind of relics do you have in mind?"

Albus sighed. "Let's see… The only thing left by Gryffindor is his sword, as far as I know, and it's still at Hogwarts. Rowena had a diadem that had been lost long ago. He may have found it, though… Slytherin had several cutlery pieces, but I doubt he would use such mundane stuff. There was also a locket I once saw for sale. I'm not sure what happened to it."

He didn't notice Sirius becoming thoughtful at hearing this. "Then there's Helga's cup – a large ceremonial cup made of gold. I wonder what happened to it..."

"Could you recognize Slytherin's locket if you saw it?" Sirius asked.

"Probably. Do you have any idea where it could be?"

"Let me check." Sirius quickly moved to another room, returning with several gold lockets. "Is that one of these?" he asked.

Dumbledore frowned. All of them had very dark auras that he could almost touch, and yet… one of them felt darker than all others. Looking closer he noticed a snake on it, forming the letter S. A quick diagnostic spell raised his confidence. "Yes, this might be one of them."

"How can we destroy it?" Sirius asked.

"The safest way is to destroy the container. Fiendfire should be able to do it, or dragon fire. One can also use AK to destroy only the soul fragment and keep the container, but that may also leave some curses and other protections that can harm the innocents."

"I can find a place in the dungeons where we could safely use fire to destroy it. We may destroy the other lockets too, as they're all very dark."

Half an hour later, Slytherin's locket, along with the other dark pendants, was turned into some molten gold. The shriek that sounded in the process seemed to confirm that this had been a Horcrux.

"If my brother had access to one of these, maybe Bella kept one too. As Lord Black, I can take control of her vault and take whatever is in there. You may be able to find one there."

"Indeed, Lord Black, that would be very nice of you," Albus agreed.

It took a few days for Gringotts bureaucracy to process the request, but then it was quite quick. Dumbledore identified the Hufflepuff cup, Sirius took it to Grimmauld place and it was destroyed in the same way as the locket. "That leaves us with only one," Dumbledore sighed.

"That leaves us with only Ravenclaw's diadem," Sirius noted. "How does it look? We can't find something if we don't even know what to look for."

Dumbledore gave it some thought. "It's probably the one seen on Rowena's statue in her house's common room. Have you seen it?"

Sirius chuckled. "I've dated a few nice Ravenclaws at my time, you know. I believe I've also seen a picture of it in some book."

It took him half an hour to search for it, but he eventually found the picture in an old edition of "Hogwarts, A History," along with a detailed description of it.

"I only wish I knew where to find it," Dumbledore sighed. "I thought it was hidden somewhere in Hogwarts, but after years of futile search, I no longer think so."

Sirius moved his hand through his hair, thinking. "I believe James once found a room full of lost things when he wanted to hide something. None of us managed to find it again afterwards. Do you know of such a room?"

Albus looked pensive for a few moments, letting his fingers comb his long beard. He finally spoke. "The house-elves sometimes mention the come-and-go room. I've never paid it any attention, knowing how they mangle the language, but maybe we could ask them."

With the cooperation of the new headmaster and the school's house-elves, it took only a few days to find and eventually destroy the diadem.

Dumbledore was still not content. He had a feeling that the one in Harry had just been created accidentally. Thinking some more, he decided to check the Gaunt and Riddle homes, or their remains, to be exact. A month later, after some Muggles complained of some stench near an abandoned house, his decomposing body was found at Gaunt shack. He was still wearing a ring with a cracked stone on his withered finger. Luckily, that area was searched by Aurors, as the Muggle police couldn't reach it. They suspected the ring to be cursed. Lord Sirius Black, in his role as part-time Auror, suggested to handle the ring. He wasn't surprised to hear the agonized cry when the ring was destroyed, like the other Horcruxes.

Somewhere in the forests, a possessed rabbit passed away as soon as the ring was destroyed. It was hidden in a hollow tree-trunk and would rot there for months until the ants and the termites would finish off the carcass.

\/\/\/

Harry and Hermione married as soon as they finished Hogwarts, three weeks before Harry's Eighteenth birthday. After enjoying their prolonged honeymoon, they started college. They had four children, whom they raised with love to become good, smart and courageous people.

Hermione became a medical doctor, specializing in paediatrics. She then apprenticed at St. Mungo's, eventually becoming a very good healer. She opened a private clinic near her parents' dental clinic, where she treated both muggle and magical children combining methods from both worlds for best results, soon becoming w world renown authority in medicine and in healing.

Harry put his effort into learning how to manage businesses and how to influence people. He made the Potter estate the largest in Britain, before taking the Potter seat in the Wizengamot, eventually becoming the Minister of Magic for a decade, before being replaced by his wife, and much later, by his oldest daughter.


A.N. I'm not sure that this last chapter is up to the quality of the rest, but that's the best I could do at this time.

I hope you enjoyed reading this story, and as always,

Please Review!