The Dream Trilogy Book One: To Dwell On Dreams (A Harry Potter FanFiction)

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

"It's all my fault," said Harry, the horror of the reality sinking in.  

"No," said Dumbledore firmly, conjuring him a chair to sit beside Hermione. "If it were not for you Sirius would have been recaptured long ago." 

"Well how else did they find him?" he argued. "How did this happen?" 

"We're not certain as yet," said Dumbledore. "Please, Harry, sit." 

Harry didn't want to sit, he wanted to move, to do something. But his knees felt like jelly, and after a moment he couldn't help but give into gravity and sank into the chair.  

The Ministry had Sirius.  

This time they would never let him go. 

"The professor's right," said Hermione, blowing her nose and hiccupping down a sob. "You did everything you could." 

"I shouldn't have written to him," Harry argued, his anger and denial rising inside of him. "It was just a stupid dream, what was I thinking!" 

"Hey," snapped Ron stubbornly. "It wasn't you that betrayed him in the first place, it was Wormtail. And it also wasn't you who didn't bother to give him a trial." 

Hermione turned to Dumbledore, wide-eyed. "Surely they'll try him now, won't they?" she asked. 

The look of doubt on the headmaster's face made Harry feel physically sick.  

"No," he insisted, shaking his head. "No, we'll contact them, we'll give testimony. We should have just done that last year, when we learned the truth." 

Dumbledore gave a heavy sigh. "Harry," he began, but Hermione cut across him. 

"No, he's right!" she said excitedly. "We can take some Veritaserum, how can they deny what we have to say if we're using truth serum?" 

"Yeah!" cried Ron. "Sirius should take some too, why didn't anyone do that before!" 

"For the same reason they won't do it now," said Dumbledore darkly, and the flutter of hope Harry had felt died in his chest. "Because they'll want to make an example out of him, and out of you too I'm afraid." He looked directly at Harry. "Sirius is a murderer as far as our people are concerned, and after all the bad press you've caused them in the wake of Voldemort's return, the Ministry - Fudge in particular - will want to drum up some support from this." Harry's heart contracted as Dumbledore held his gaze. "I can imagine there will be an element of spiteful revenge in his thinking as well I dare say." 

Harry swallowed, not believing what he was hearing. "But," he uttered, blood pounding in his ears. "He's innocent. And Voldemort is back!" 

The headmaster dropped his eyes and said nothing, his sadness rolling off him in waves. 

"No," said Harry as Hermione stifled another sob as quietly as she could and covered her eyes. "No this isn't right, there has to be something we can do!" 

"My dad," said Ron. "He might know some other people at the Ministry who'd be willing to listen, who could help?" 

Dumbledore looked up, his blue eyes a little brighter. "Yes," he said. "I will contact Arthur immediately. Kingsley Shacklebolt as well. They will do what they can in the time we have left." 

Hermione's cries froze in her throat, and Harry caught her glance. "Time before what?" asked Harry. Dumbledore pursed his lips, looking between the three anxious students. "Time before what?" Harry repeated, standing with such force he knocked his chair over backwards. 

"I believe," said Dumbledore slowly and softly. "They will not risk Sirius escaping a second time. I believe they will push for a Dementor's Kiss to be performed. 

"No!" shouted Ron and Hermione at the same time. 

"That's as good as killing him!" ranted Ron. 

"They can't take his soul, he won't be human anymore," cried Hermione, clenching the tissue in her fist so tight it was shredding. "He'll just be a zombie, a husk-" 

Harry stumbled and gabbed the desk to keep him upright. This was all his fault. Cornelius Fudge was going to execute his godfather to prove he was more powerful than Harry, to prove that Voldemort wasn't back, that he was in charge once and for all. 

"Harry," cried Ron, jumping up to steady him. "It's okay, we'll think of something, we'll save him." 

"What?" argued Harry bleakly. "If the Minister of Magic himself won't listen to the truth, who will?" 

"We will exhaust all means available to us," assured Dumbledore, quill already in hand as he began writing to Ron's dad. "We will not let him down, we will have a few days at least." 

Hermione had grabbed his hand and was squeezing it. "I promise we won't give up," she said. "Let's leave the professor to work, shall we? We can have a cup of tea and think what else to do okay? It's not over yet, it's not." 

Harry was too numb to argue, so after a moment he just gave a nod. 

"Harry," said Dumbledore. "You have my word I will not rest until he is free once more. We let him down; all those years he was in Azkaban. I won't let them take his life away." 

Again, Harry just gave a nod. Hermione blew her nose for the final time, shook herself and stood up beside Ron. "Come on," she said, her voice less shaky as she rubbed Harry's shoulder. "Let's go back home." 

"I don't want people to ask me about it," said Harry, something like panic gripping him. "Malfoy said-" 

"Malfoy's an idiot," said Hermione fiercely. "We won't let anyone near you, and if they're your friends they'll understand." 

"And if they don't then sod them," chipped in Ron. 

Harry actually managed a weak smile, and looked over to see Dumbledore had already finished his messages. He stood up and moved to the window, looking out as a bird so bright and colourful you would think he was on fire swooped down and landed on the sill. "Thank you Fawkes," said the headmaster. "Take these directly to their recipients, as fast as you can." Fawkes the phoenix let out a call that sounded like a melody, and flew back out into the night. 

"Okay," said Harry, regaining his composure a little. "You're right, there must be something we can do, we'll keep working." 

"All night," said Ron.