Apples and Snakes

With a Thundering Applause

Trial number two. I wore the same dress I did for the first one, and made sure my hair looked at least halfway decent. I even applied makeup to make myself look mature and older, to hide the circles under my eyed and the cut on my cheek.

I stepped into the witness box, and was ready for what was to come.

"We are here to witness the trial of Ky Marco Emrys, for breeching the International Code of Secrecy, for manslaughter of London Bridge, working with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, for the murders of Ryan Oddpick, Cleopatra Penrose, Cardea Sawley, Fabian Pritchard, Felix Fleet, Glenda Fortescue, and Wesley Diggory, as well as lying in the case Potter vs. Umbridge," Fudge read out. "The sentence in suggestion is the death penalty. How plead you?"

Ky hesitated in the chains. "Not entirely guilty."

"Interesting," Madam Bones said. "At least honesty can be said of you now."

"I can only hope so, madam."

Witness after witness, relative after relative of the dead went into their loaded rants. I looked down at my notes for my grand speech I'd have to give out.

"You have only one witness for the defendant I see," Fudge said to Ms. Greengrass.

"I do, but she has plenty of evidence," Ms. Greengrass said pleasantly. "Our witness is Alice Petunia Potter."

Rita Skeeter was scribbling something down in the spectator part. That can't be good.

"Miss Potter, it was noted that you were kidnapped on the night of June 24, 1995, and forced to train as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's apprentice. Is this true?"

"It is," I said, looking up at the audience and the Wizengamot.

"Ky Emrys was an apprentice, was he not?" Ms. Greengrass asked.

"Yes, he was," I said. "But he confided in me that the only reason he chose to train was to save his family from what he believe to be certain death because of their muggle heritage."

Whispers started to go around, but I ignored them. It's my turn now. "I should also say that there was emotional and magical manipulation," I said. "Yes, our magic was increased to levels that are unstable, and tend to react closer to our emotions. But we are not insane, despite what fabricated lies were put in that report by the Department of Mysteries, but we'll get to that in a minute.

"We were both manipulated by our darkest emotions being magically fed to us. Stuffed down our throats, really. For me, it was rage, anger, vengeance for the way that I've been treated at the hands of my parents and my brother. For him, it was fear that his family would die that drove him to his darkest place.

"I was lucky to be able to resist it. When Ky took the Dark Mark, I think it strengthened Voldemort's mental influence, almost like the Imperius. Therefore, Mr. Emrys was not in full control of his actions and should not be treated as such.

"But I'm not finished yet! It should be noted that even Bartimus Crouch Jr., Bellatrix Lestrange, Peter Pettigrew, the worst criminals of the first Voldemort War were all imprisoned rather than killed. Any criminal who died was killed because they attacked the Aurors and refused to be brought in.

"I should also get to the fabrications of the Department of Mysteries. I looked around, and thanks to a certain contact I have, was able to find the full file on the study of the experiments done to my blood and Mr. Emrys."

I opened it and looked straight up at Fudge. "The day of November 23, 1995 at 5:49:35 pm, Delores Umbridge reported overhearing a conversation I had with my classmate Eileen Lee Anders, about said magical modifications. She asked the Department of Mysteries to begin research on magical blood modifications."

I started a little walk as I was talking. "The night of my arrest, January 26, 1996, Cornelius Fudge asked for my blood to be taken, and they began tests on it. On March 17, 1996, they concluded that any mental restraints I had on my magical potential were removed, allowing me to perform powerful forms of wandless and non-verbal magic. In theory, without the mental restraints, the magic does have a chance of driving both of us mad, but it will happen about our thirties or forties, when the body starts to decay and lose qualities that make us able in our twenties, our peak age. Now, however, it will have little-to-no effect on our mental state except for possibly being easily unstable in our emotions.

"The Ministry wanted to prosecute me at the time for instigating a rebellion against Voldemort that had to be kept a secret from the Ministry due to their moral cowardice. Fudge ordered them to share their findings with them, and then to change the results to say that I was unstable. Here are the true reports." I spread the pages across the table it show to the cameramen for the papers.

Fudge looked very red, and a bit angry with me.

"This is straight-up discrimination against two people who didn't want these modifications," I said. "This is refusing justice due to fear, and we have seen to where fear can lead us, as seen today. Also, it should be taken into account while Mr. Emrys may have joined up willingly, he did leave as soon as what he realized what he was doing was wrong. Why shouldn't we reward that? Also, he was not the only Death Eater or Death Eater sympathsizer there that day, as many can attest to.

"My point is, what Mr. Emrys should receive is a few months in Azkaban. Not a life sentence. Not the death penalty. Not twenty years. Three months at the most for his crimes," I finished.

"D-Does the prosecutor wish to cross-examine this witness?" Fudge stammered, red with rage and worry.

"No," Perkins said, looking completely surprised and stricken at my long speech.

"Does the Wizengamot wish to vote?" Fudge asked.

There was a roar of assent.

"Those in favor of the death penalty to Mr. Emrys?"

A good number of hands went up.

"Those in favor of a lighter punishment?"

More hands went up for that, though. I couldn't believe it, what my words had done to impact what was said, not with any insults or incantations in it. What I had to say was enough to change the tide.

"Then we have proclaimed Ky Emrys partially guilty of those crimes and he shall go to Azkaban for two months," Madam Bones declared. "He will also be on probation at Hogwarts for his final year."

They banged the gavel, and that was it. The sentence was proclaimed, and nothing was left to say.

Ky had a look of guilt, and despair. Almost as if he wanted the death sentence. I went over to him before the guards could escort him away to where they'd whisk him away to Azkaban.

"Be happy you got a second chance," I told him. "Not many people who deserve them get them."

He then did something completely unexpected. He kissed me! "Thanks, princess," he said, before the guards of the Ministry escorted him away. I started out of the courtroom myself, when reporters started on me, asking for my experiences on the modifications, and I happily gave my quotes.

"Alice! Alice! It's me, Rita Skeeter," Skeeter called out, and she shoved her way to the front. "I saw Mr. Emrys kiss you. Is it true that you defended him because you harbor romantic feelings for him, and made up what you said?"

Feelings I'd been suppressing shot to the surface. Tears had come, and my fist connected with Skeeter's nose.

"You b****!" I shouted as she staggered back. "I lost someone in that attack, too, you know! I lost Wesley Diggory, the boy who I was romantically involved with! I loved Wesley! You saying that is a falsehood that is disrespect to his memory!"

The mark where the promise ring had impacted stood out. "My interview is over," I declared, and I stepped forwards, as Mum put her arm around me.