Amelia notices them while she was still regaining consciousness. She senses a presence in the room, slowly nearing her. She stays still, keeping her eyes closed and her breathing deep to fake still being asleep. When they come too close for comfort, her hand blindly reaches out and encloses around the person daring to sneak up on her. She squeezes, putting all her strength into closing of their air supply. She taps in on her last remaining energy and opens her eyes to see just who she was chocking.
The panicked eyes of Sirius Black stare back at her, hands patting at hers as he slowly becomes more red in the face. Amelia rucks her arms away, elbows harshly hitting the wall behind her making her groan at the terrible static feeling it gives her. Sirius lays on his knees, catching his breath while keeping an eye on Lia. Amelia tries to apologize but her dry throat only let's out a pathetic squeak, followed by a coughing fit. The wary eyes in front of her soften. The wizard reaches into his robes, making sure to move slowly as to not trigger Amelia, and pulls out a bottle of water. As soon as the bottle is in reach, Amelia's snatching it and gulping it down so fast she triggers another coughing fit.
"Wow, slow it down Tiger."
Sirius grabs another bottle from his pocket, probably to soothe his own aching throat, but Amelia is quicker. She's instantly regretting it when she takes a big sip.
"Firewhiskey?! Seriously?!" Amelia coughs out.
Sirius chuckles, "Yes siriusly. It was meant for me, Sirius. And well, you didn't think I would come to this place again without liquid courage, did you?"
"This place..?"
She sits up straighter as she remembers, "I'm in Azkaban! Wait, you're in Azkaban?! What are you doing in Azkaban?!" She gasps and whisper-yells, "Tell me you're not here to break me out!"
"He's certainly not going to break you out, Martin."
Amelia jumps, she hadn't even noticed Marcus standing near the entrance. The auror enters the cell, a familiar object in his hand.
"I got your leg. You know, so I don't have do carry you again."
Amelia smirks knowingly because sure that's his only reason, "You don't have to lie, you can just say that you like me Marcus, I'm a likable person."
"Don't make me hit you with it. And it's auror Johnson to you."
"Okay, Marcus."
He rolls his eyes and nods towards his jacket that Amelia's still using as a blanket, "Want to switch?"
They do, but not before Amelia warns Marcus that he might want to wash his coat before using it again. It takes her a while to put on her prosthetic leg with the room so dark and the still lingering pain in the attachment spot. Sirius helps her with it, just like he used to when she first moved in with him after leaving the St Mungo's hospital. The two of them slightly joke around while doing so, but both are tense in the eerie environment.
The men help her through the daunting halls of Azkaban. The trio all rushing to get out as fast as they can. When they finally apparate and appear into the ministry, a weight falls from her shoulders. She feels like she can finally breath again. Until arms embrace her body and cut of her oxygen supply again.
"Oh Lia, I'm so glad you're okay! I mean, I'm sure you could be better, with Azkaban and the trial and I can't even imagine all the trauma from the battle but you're not dead which is great and-"
The witch chuckles and encloses her arms around her friend, "I missed you too buddy."
Timothy pulls away with a angry frown, appearing as threatening as a puppy, "I'm still mad at you by the way! You scared me half to death when you came up to me all bloody!"
"Yeah, sorry about that Tim."
"I see what you're doing here. Trying to sweet talk me by finally calling me Tim. I'm not going to cave that easily." The wizard says with an accusing finger.
"No, it's not like that at all. I just think that you earned it." She answers with an encouraging smile. He stares at her for a second before returning the gesture and pulling her in for another hug. Amelia meets eyes with Sirius over Tim's shoulder and she mouths 'definitely sweet talking him'. Sirius chuckles but knows deep down that Amelia had grown a soft spot for the other wizard.
They pull away, "How's Tyto? Did he give you a hard time?"
The two of them catch up as a team of aurors surrounds Amelia and leads them towards the room the trial will take place in. Amelia walking in the middle, hands cuffed at the front. Timothy walks next to the auror formation, peeking his head between them to remain eye contact with Amelia while they talk. Sirius had decided to change into padfoot so he could follow them around as her 'emotional support dog'. Lia is glad for the distraction, laughing with Timothy as he tells her that Tyto has taken a great liking to Thor and had claimed the god's shoulder as his new sitting place. She almost doesn't notice all the stares and whispers from the Ministry employees they pass. Almost.
They meet Hermione in the backroom of the main courtroom. After a lot of fussing about Amelia (You had us all so worried!) and (You're still shivering, here I brought you some blankets!) followed by a lot of scolding (What were you thinking?! Honestly Lia!) and (Do you know how scared I was when I got your coin message!), which would have had more impact if Sirius wasn't sternly nodding along with Hermione while still being a dog, they finally began talking about the upcoming trial.
Hermione will lead Amelia's plead as her 'lawyer'. They talk some things through, they talk some more crap about Bonneville and they decide when which witness will be asked forward. Padfoot had taken residence by Amelia's legs, laying down so Amelia could lift her prosthetic leg of the ground and onto his back to relieve some of its pressure, which earned him some head scratches from the tired witch.
Somewhere in between a familiar doe patronus visits them, carrying a chocolate bar in its transparent mouth. Harry must have send it in to help Amelia recover from azkaban, as patronuses spread happiness and joy, which is something Amelia is lacking at the moment. Chocolate, however, is her favorite remedy against the empty and cold feelings that dementors give. As she takes a bite out of the dark chocolate bar, she instantly begins to feel better.
The hour of preparing time flies by and before they know it they are saying goodbye. Hermione enters the main courtroom to take her seat. Sirius leaves with her, with a bark in Amelia's direction and tail wiggling.
And then she waits.
________________________________________________________________________________
"So let me get this straight: you can cheat the laws of nature but you can't create comfortable seating in a courtroom where people sit for hours?"
"Tony." Steve hisses, nudging his elbow into the billionaires side while smiling apologetically at Timothy.
"I'm just saying, cap." Steve gives him a glare.
"Most people just use a cushioning charm to make it more comfortable."
"Oh, a cushioning charm, but of course! Let me just grab my wand and- oh wait." Tony gives Timothy a sarcastic look, "I don't have one."
The wizard huffs and rolls his eyes. He had spend a lot of time with the man these last few days and knew him well enough to know that he was just nervous about the trial and was taking it out on the ones around him with sarcastic quips. He waves his wand towards Tony's chair, "There. You happy now."
"Ecstatic."
A black dog runs his way through the crowd and jumps onto the seat next to Clint. As he lands, the dog transforms back into Sirius Black, scaring the crap out of Clint.
"Man, I'm never getting used to that!"
The others laugh as Clint glares at them. The archer stands up from his seat to avoid Sirius' presence and walks away, only to be approached by another wizard. Natasha rolls her eyes at Clint's panicked face before giving into the obvious plead for help. She excuses herself and makes her way to help him.
Thor, however, seems to be blooming in the magical community. His tall statue peaks over even the highest pointed hat and his booming voice reaches the others from all the way across the room. A group of wizards and witches stand around him, looking in awe at his presence and his powerful hammer. On his shoulder sits Tyto. The owl seems ignorant to everything around him, choosing instead to playfully bite into Thor's golden locks.
"Are you feeling alright, doctor Banner?"
Bruce, who was admiring his surroundings, turns to face a concerned Hermione, "Hmm? Oh, I'm alright. It's a lot to take in but I'm not feeling green, if that's what you're wondering. How is Amelia?"
"A bit shaken, but she's okay... I think. I've always had such a hard time reading her."
A tall redhead speaks up, "Lia's a tough girl. She's been in a lot of bloody awful situations and she always gets out of 'em. She'll be fine."
Hermoine smacks Ron's head, "Always so heartfelt with your words, Ronald."
Ron gives his wife a sheepish look. Ronald Weasley had joined the odd group somewhere on the third day, having only just returned from his auror mission in Britain with Harry. With a freckled complexion and lanky figure, Ronald is the second to youngest child in the Weasley household, only one year older than Ginny.
Tony had met the other Weasley family members in the last few day. He received a huge motherly hug from Molly Weasley, the mother of the seven children, who had decided to cater all the 'hard working people' the past few days. Tony had eaten more homemade meals than his stomach could handle. Arthur Weasley had shaken his head fondly at his wife's fuzzing and introduced himself as the father of the family, followed by tons of curious questions about 'muggle inventions'.
The oldest son of the family, William-but call me Bill-Weasley, had met them earlier as well. Bill works for the magical bank as a Curse-Breaker. What his job exactly is, Tony doesn't know. What he does know is that Bill met his beautiful and fierce french wife Fleur Delacour while doing his job. Tony does have a suspicion his job is dangerous, going of the large scar on Bill's face.
Charlie Weasley, the brother next in line, had decided to come in from Romania for the trail as well. Charlie has a muscular figure and long hair, much to Molly's disappointment. He's also a big animal friend, which is why he works with dragons (because they also exist apparently). That would also explain all the burn marks and scars on his body.
Tony hadn't had the chance to meet Percy Weasley yet. The third oldest son has an important job at the ministry and he couldn't be missed, especially with all the current chaos. But he shouldn't be to bothered about not having met him, or so George Weasley told him. Apparently, according to George, Percy has 'a wand so far up his ass that his words sparkle'. George Weasley is a ginger whirlwind of joy and laughter. When meeting Tony and the others, he had offered them candy. A strange gesture but naive Steve had taken the bait. The super soldier's face had turned purple after eating it, and Tony and George immediately got along. George had opened his own joke shop years ago and the business is still blooming to this day, which Tony could understand when he saw what his candy could do. He even opened more shops around the globe and Tony couldn't wait to visit one.
"Ron is right, we got this." Timothy adds in, "We have a lot of proof and on top of that a lot of meaningful witnesses. A literal god, an influential billionaire and let's not forget the-boy-who-lived-twice!"
Ah yes, the apparent celebrity of the wizarding world: Harry Potter. What he exactly was famous for, Tony didn't know (he didn't know much these days, which is something he isn't used to). Tony could guess that the wizard had escaped death closely twice, but how and when he didn't know. Asking about near death experiences doesn't seem like a good conversation starter. Harry wasn't overly tall, but his presence was intimidating and powerful. Just like Ron and Amelia, Harry works for the ministry as an auror. With short unruly hair, round glasses and a particular lightning bold shaped scar, Harry stands out in the crowd.
At the moment, the wizard seems to be talking to the minister from Bulgaria with Ginny by his side. Apparently the couple knew a famous 'quidditch' player from the national team over there (because flying on a broom was made into a sport).
Not only the minister from Bulgaria was present today. Ministers from all over the world were called in for the hearing. Amelia's use of magic had caused an international uproar in the magical community, which makes pleading for her innocence a little bit harder.
"Court will be starting soon. Please take your seats."
They do and a hush falls over the courtroom. The room is massive, circular and filled to the brim with wizards and witches. The sides of the room are filled with benches, stacking higher the closer to the side so that everyone has a clear view of the middle of the room. The lowest row closest to the middle is occupied by all the witnesses. At the front of the room stand towering desks where the most important people sit. Even Fury was present and given a seat at the judges table. The highest of them all stands occupied by the American minister of magic: Samuel G. Quahog. At his side sits a familiar blond woman. Bonneville looks unbothered by the whole event, making Tony's urge to grab his iron man glove and shoot her in the face even more pronounced. Next to her sits another blond woman, in hand a quill and ink to right everything down. Tony guesses her to be Bonneville's secretary and he takes pity on the poor woman who needs to work for that crazy witch.
And then Amelia walks in. Hands cuffed before her, the witch struts in with a slight limp in her step. Her head is held high and no emotion is shown on her dirty face. Her hair's a knotted mess, unruly waves of brown locks fall on top of her prisoner jump suit. Her body is shaking but not from fear, more like she's shivering from a cold that no one else can feel. Guards guide her towards the single chair in the center in the room.
Amelia's eyes meet Bonneville's and they narrow in determination. Lia looks ready to take her down. Tony sees her waver for a second when she notes that Bonneville isn't looking fazed, but Lia recovers quickly, even more determent than before. She looks confident and even gives her old boss a smirk.
Her eyes meet his as she sits down. Her eyes widen, as if she didn't expect him or the others to be here. She blows him a kiss and a cheeky wink, catches him of guard. He laughs loudly in surprise and pretends to catch the kiss and swoon. His actions so over the top it makes her smile. Amelia gives the rest of the team a nod and smiles as Tyto hoots at her.
"Welcome wizards and witches, magical and non-magical folk from far and wide. I thank you all for coming here to decide the fate of the future." The minister slams his hammer on the desk, "I hereby officially open the trail of Amelia Martin.
The American minister of Magic removes his wand from his throat, removing the spell that makes his voice louder, "I would like to remind the court that even if miss Martin agrees to the use of veritaserum, that she, as a former auror, is trained to dodge questions and fight against the urge to speak the truth." He then faces Amelia, "Do you agree to be put under the influence of veritaserum for the whole duration of this trail, miss Martin? Under the vow to not fight against it?"
"I agree."
And so Tony watches as one of the guard guides a bottle towards Amelia's mouth. She smells the potion first, as to make sure it isn't poison, before allowing the guard to chug it back for her to drink. There isn't a lot in the bottle, but from what Tony has heard about the truth potion, only a little is needed to go a long way. The small amount of liquid slides in without a problem, the solution being clear and tasteless.
"What is your name?"
"Amelia Harvey Martin." She answers, eyes only slightly more glazed than before.
"What is your age?"
"It's rude to ask a woman her age but I'm thirty, if you really want to know." Amelia reply earns a few chuckles in the hall, her mouth running freely, "Born in 1982, on the eleventh of February if I need to be exact."
"Very well. Amelia Harvey Martin, you are accused of breaking the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, attacking the head of the auror department and carrying and using an illegal potion. Furthermore, these actions have resulted into international panic and protests in the magical community. Do you acknowledge these crimes as your own and do you agree to be put on trial for these crimes?"
"I-" Amelia hesitates for a moment, which Tony knows isn't good. Hermione had told him that in order for Amelia to seem honest she needed to answer quickly, otherwise she might have 'altered' her truthful answer. Lia luckily quickly continues, words sure and without doubt, "I admit to being a factor in the cause of these crimes. I therefore also agree to stand accountable for my actions, with these actions having been influenced and limited by the information and orders given to me for my mission. The same mission that put me in the position to commit these crimes. In other words, I take my part of the responsibility, but this responsibility is only partly responsible for the crimes."
"If I understand you correctly, you claim you aren't the sole reason for the cause of events?"
Amelia sits straight and sure, "No." She pauses a second before continuing, "Apart from carrying and using the death potion, which I take full responsibility for."
People begin murmuring in the courtroom. The minister clears his throat, "I see, please elaborate miss Martin."
"I made the death potion myself, and carry it around as an emergency solution. I don't regret using it on the alien space whale that invaded the city, as I see that event as an excellent example of an emergency-"
The minister holds his hand up to cut her of, "May I ask how you were able to create the potion? As far as I was aware, that potion recipe has been removed from all the potion books."
"I make potions in my free time. I like to create potions myself, experiment a little now and then. But I mostly look around in stores and such for incomplete potion recipes and challenge myself into completing them. I don't always know what the potion is supposed to be, sometimes the name of the potion is absent on the remaining recipe. I don't always get the upper part of it."
"So you found a part of the recipe of the death potion and made it complete?"
"I suppose."
"May I ask where you found the remains of the recipe?"
Amelia looks sheepish, "In the chamber of secrets."
Tony looks at Sirius on his left, a little lost as the attendees begin whispering again. Sirius seems to understand and explains, "It's a hidden room at Hogwarts, the magical school in Britain. It was meant to serve as a room to hide Slytherin's monster as it goes around the school killing children with non-magical parents."
Tony blinks, "I can see how that doesn't give a good impression."
The minister calls for order in the court before continuing, "The chamber of secrets in Hogwarts, I presume?"
"Yes." Amelia stares up at Ginny, who gives her a nod. "My friend, Ginerva Weasley, was traumatized in the chamber at an early age. She never got closure for that part of her life, so when she asked me to join her on a trip down there to face her fears, I agreed. It was actually quite beautiful without a giant killing basilisk sliding around. We explored the chamber and found what used to be a library. But the chamber had flooded during the battle of Hogwarts, and all the books and documents in it were lost. Still, I was curious about what was in those books so I tried to find small pieces that were decent and figure out the rest. Which wasn't easy as most of the books were written in the snake language, which I'm fluent in now, if anyone's wondering. I didn't study snakes and dragons for years for it not to be acknowledged."
Amelia's eyes widen, she hadn't meant to tell so much. And Tony had never heard Amelia talk so much. Her words are always so calculated and thought out. Apparently veritaserum not only makes you tell the truth, but also persuades you to tell more than you normally would.
"You didn't think to inform anyone about your findings? Especially when you learned that that piece of paper was part of the potion of death?"
"I didn't know that it was the potion of death, only that the version that I made with it had a similar reaction. It might have been a different version of the killer potion or not the killing potion at all. Oh, and I did tell someone about it but I wasn't going to tell the whole world about it. A killing potion is something people would literally kill for. But I know the rules for creating a 'new' kind of potion. A potion master needs to be made aware of the potion. Lucky me for knowing a potion master that I also trust not to kill me."
"And who may that be?"
"Draco Malfoy of course. He would be here today but he's stuck on babysit duty at Hogwarts. With him being the potion professor there. He did write a letter in my defense." Although Sirius and Remus share the defense against the arts position at Hogwarts, they were able to join the court as they are Amelia's legal guardians.
"I see." The minister says, "And mister Malfoy didn't think the potion dangerous enough to pass this information through to the ministry."
"No! No, of course he found the potion too dangerous! I mean, he came to my potion lab to inspect my finding, only to find me laying on the ground in pain because a part of my left pinky finger had accidentally touched the potion." Amelia says, waving her cuffed hands in the air to show of her partly missing left finger. "But that is exactly why he didn't notify the ministry about it. As far as I know, it might not be exactly the same as the death potion. I guessed the recipe with what I was given, and let me remind you that that given part didn't have a name so it might not have been a part of the death potion in the first place. So the potion is not illegal, yet. I, as the inventor, decided to notify a potion master about it, as is required by the protocol, before deciding to delete and burn the recipe."
"You burned it?"
"Yup." Amelia simply states, popping the p at the end.
"And that potion you used?"
"Was the remainder of the same liquid that lost me part of my finger. The first and only batch made of the potion." Amelia then looks straight at Bonneville, "And if the inventor of a potion only makes one dose of it, it isn't seen as a new potion because it won't exist and so it isn't required to notify anyone but one potion master about it. That is, if I know the laws correct, which I think I do. That, along with the fact that the remainder of the potion wasn't used to harm a person or animal, apart from myself and an alien, should make my actions not-illegal."
"You are correct." A man to the left of the american minister mutters, much to Bonneville's dismay. The higher up court murmur for a while before the minister speaks up, "The court has found you innocent on the claims about the usage of an illegal potion. This case will be looked into further, but as this is not the main crime you were brought here for it will be excluded for the rest of this trial."
As he smacks his hammer to make it official, Tony and the others whoop in joy. It was a small victory and the trial wasn't over by a long shot but it was a good start. The genius takes his time to admire Amelia's strategy. She and Hermione had clearly thought this through. Peaking the judges interest with the potion, knowing that she had a waterproof excuse for it and so setting a more positive mood for the rest of the trial. Amelia is a cunning and smart woman, more so than Tony originally thought. And as he looks at Bonneville's angry face, clearly a much stronger opponent then Bonneville had first thought.
"Now that that is finished, let's continue with the main reason we are here today." The minister states with another beat of his hammer. "Now, as you stated in the beginning, you don't think you are the only one responsible for the other crimes."
"That is correct."
"Who was your accomplice?"
"Oh, she wasn't my accomplice. She set me up. Ready to fail and take all the blame." Amelia says with a sarcastic chuckle. "I'm talking of course about my former boss, Marilyn Bonneville."
Gasps echo through the room, people talking in shock about her claim. It becomes so loud that the minister needs to call for silence with his wand to his neck.
"SILENCE!" Once he is sure that all the attention is back on him, he calls the spell off. "Now, Miss Martin, this is a serious claim. Not only is she a person of higher power but she's also the person you attacked. Are you sure you want to continue with this claim? If this turns out to be false, falsely accusing a person of power will be added along on your list of crimes."
Amelia doesn't hesitate for a second, "I'm aware of the consequences and I stand behind my claims."
"Very well. You may start with your defense."
"Gladly." Amelia says as Hermione moves to stand near her, "For my lead in defense, I call upon Hermione Jean Granger. A woman like her doesn't need an introduction, but she deserves one. Head figure and inventor of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Furthermore, the assistant of the current British Minister of Magic. Not only that but she also occupies a big role in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. She is the brightest witch of her age and part of the golden trio that defeated the dark lord Voldemort at only seventeen years old, earning her an Order of Merlin award, first class, and her own chocolate frog card. Hermione Granger everyone."
Amelia claps along with the others in the room, somewhat awkwardly with her hands still in the cuffs. Hermione blushes at the praise, though still standing strong and sure next to Amelia. Even the British Minister of Magic looks shocked at his assistant taking up the lead roll in defending her. It is a risky move, defending someone who is practically standing with one foot in her grave. It could ruin her reputation and career.
But it also showed that Hermione stood behind Amelia. She believed in Amelia's accusation of Bonneville, making the people who believe in her, also quicker to believe in Amelia. It makes Amelia's claim seem more serious than just a way to shift the blame. What better way to fight a person of power than with another person of power.
"Furthermore, I would like to present my witnesses for this trial." She gestures to the witness seats and goes through the persons seated, "The Avengers, the team of muggle heroes that helped me defeat the alien invasion that infested New York. Thor Odinson, son of Odin and the Norse god of Thunder. Natasha Romanoff, a spy and agent for S.H.I.E.L.D, not the weapon but the muggle organisation. Clint Barton, archer extraordinaire and agent at SHIELD. Bruce Banner, scientist and powerhouse. Steve Rogers, the super soldier who fought in WOII. And user-slash-inventor of the Iron Man suit, the man who willingly sacrificed his life to save us all. Genius, billionaire and philan-to-something which I can't pronounce because he's just that smart that he has smart titles: Tony Stark."
"These people were with me through it all and serve as witnesses for my actions." Amelia then calls upon all the other people who were willing to testify for her, people who weren't aware of the events but are aware of her personality and life. Sirius, Timothy, Remus, Harry, all the weasleys and so forth. Amelia was actually quite surprised and touched by the amount of people that were ready to defend her.
"I also like to call my previous self as a witness." Amelia says, earning herself some confused stares. "I knew that I would be punished for my actions, and so decided to remove my memories of the days leading up to the battle before heading to Azkaban. I'm giving you my most important memories, the good and the bad, for you to watch right here in court without the tainting of dementors."
And so the trial begins. Bonneville had looked caught of guard by the mention of the memories for a moment, but she quickly regained her smug look. Amelia didn't pay her any mind. Instead she focused on explaining her reasoning behind her actions while the court plays her memories for everyone to see. The special type of pensieve, designed especially for court, projects her memories into the middle of the circular courtroom. In between the memories, other witnesses get called to testify, to explain their thoughts about it and how they felt in the situation that was shown as a memory. Hermione sometimes stops a memory to lay focus on parts she found important such as Bonneville stating that the board of directors had decided that Amelia was a capable candidate for the mission. Which the board members in the courtroom deny from having happened. And then she lays the focus on the memory just before the battle.
Everyone gasps in shock when Bonneville turns herself on Amelia. Bonneville looks shocked, which means that she is going to play the 'that didn't happen card'. But the proof was out for everyone to see. Some eye Bonneville in disgust or anger, others seem to find the whole story hard to believe and remain unsure. But Amelia looks sure, ready to finally get the chance to get revenge on the woman that she trusted. The woman that left her to die in Azkaban. Even Auror Davis en Johnson appear shocked, the latter more so than the first.
The minister asks for the memory to be put on pause when past-Amelia flees the room and faces Bonneville to his right. "What do you have to say about this, Auror Bonneville?"
The auror acts shocked and scoffs, "This is ridiculous, that obviously didn't happen."
"You have quite some evidence pointing out the opposite."
"You seem to have forgotten that Miss. Martin had given that memory before going to Azkaban. Obviously one of her friends altered it to put me in a bad light. I would never do something of the kind."
People around begin to mumble, a hint of doubt appearing in those Tony thought were on Amelia's side. He sees Amelia falter in the middle, smug smile sliding off her face.
"While I don't exclude your theory Bonneville, it seems unlikely for that to have happened. Memory alternation is something delicate and almost impossible to do without leaving a trace. As far as I can see the memory is untouched."
"I don't know how they did it, Samuel, but they did. I wouldn't lie to you. I didn't do that, she turned her back on me! It might be delicate and almost not possible to alter a memory but as Miss Martin said, she does have some impressive magic users on her side. Mrs. Granger, Mr. Potter and Remus Lupin, who has been a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts for multiple years now. Mister Black is known for going through a lot of mind healing for his years in Azkaban, he might know more about that topic then we first thought." Bonneville sounds so sincere as she speaks to the minister, "I'm not trying to accuse anybody, don't get me wrong. I'm just saying that she has a lot of magically powerful wizards and witches on her side."
"YOU BITCH!"
Harry pulls his godfather back down onto his seat while hissing his name, "Sirius, sit down!"
"I'm willing to give you my own memories: right here, right now. Making it impossible for me to alter it." Bonneville offers. The jury table comes closer together and talk the offer over. Tony feels his heart pound like never before. It wasn't supposed to go like this. Steve turns to Timothy with Tony listening in over his shoulder, "It doesn't matter, right? She can't alter her memories so it'll just show the truth. Amelia will win, won't she?
The wizard nervously wrings his fingers, mind racing at hundred miles an hour, "I don't know? I wasn't expecting her to do anything to defend herself. Our proof is almost waterproof. Oh, but she is good, using Amelia's praising words of her witnesses against her. Playing into the moment of time that Amelia gave the memory, the one thing that could proof that the memory could be fake. If her memory really is different from Amelia's, hers will be more likely to be seen as true. She's higher up in the hierarchy, it's given right here for everyone to see and she has a clean record- I don't know if Amelia would be able to get the votes back to her side."
And Amelia seems to realize that too, at the panicked look that she shares with Hermione. The judges decide to agree with Bonneville's request and ask her to step forward and remove her memory straight into the pensieve. The blond woman seems sure and unbothered, as if she had already won.
The blue glowing memory shifts from her head into the bowl and so her version of the events play out. It stays fairly the same, only this time Bonneville is coming up with all the ideas of defense. Only this time Amelia points her wand at Bonneville first. In her version, Amelia threatens Bonneville and tells her boss her ideas of exposing the magical community.
The present Amelia gasps at the scene before her. It seems perfect, no black spots that you usually get when you alter a memory to be seen. The dialogue is thought out, the details are impressive and all in all it looks completely real. It was flawless and also impossible! She must be immensely skilled with memory magic for her to pull this off.
Bonneville acts as if the scene still hurts her, grabbing her shoulder in the present when Amelia of the past shot a spell at it. More and more people turn to shoot Amelia hateful glares. Tony can't believe it. Bonneville is getting away with it. When the memory ends, Bonneville turns to face the judges.
"As you can see, this is what really happened that day."
"She's lying! If my friends and I could somehow alter my memory, what says that Bonneville can't! I don't know how but she altered it! You have to believe me!" Amelia yells, jumping up from her chair in a similar manner as Sirius had done just before. She faces her old boss, "How dare you!" It looks like she's about to jump on top of her boss and punch her at ever surface she can reach. Not that she was going to put herself into such a bad light, so she calms herself. But the guards don't seem to find her calm enough. Their wands go up, holding her at wand point and one wand already firing a curse in her direction that has her falling down and screaming in agony on the floor.
Thor and Steve immediately jump into action, jumping over the bench railing in front of them and coming to Amelia's aid. Tony feels powerless in the situation. He can't call upon his suit, the technology would be useless in such a magical environment. Thor smacks his hammer into the guard that was holding the curse upon Amelia, making the guard smack into the side of the courtroom. Steve is putting his arms around Amelia, helping her up and making her lean against him as she shudders in the aftershock. Her vision fuzzy and unclear as she shakes in his hold.
Tyto flies on top of his owners head, flapping his wings threateningly in the other guards' directions. As if daring them to try something.
Steve faces the minister, "What's wrong with you people?!"
Bonneville answers before the minister can, "What's wrong with us?! No, what's wrong with you?! This is an official court hearing, you don't get to jump in and play hero when the guilty person is put down for showing aggressive tendencies!"
She then faces the others, "If I had not earned your vote, do you now see that I'm not at fault here?! These people are violent and they don't know our ways! Do you really believe that over me?"
Thor speaks up from the side with his booming voice, "How could you all believe this one person over a whole group? Are humans really that petty?"
Bonneville scoffs, "A group?! All we know is that Amelia's claims get defended by the brother of Loki, the man that caused all of this in the first place. A pair of assassins, a man who wasn't from this century until two weeks ago, a scientist who made himself into a monster that is known for causing ravage and a man who used to create bombs that terrorized the world. And let's not forget a werewolf, an ex-convicted who was in Azkaban for 12 years and a group of teens who went through trauma at a young age!"
Amelia mumbles "Hey, don't speak about my friends like that" but her words are too quiet to be heard. It does earns her a reassuring squeeze from Steve, who was close enough to hear while giving her support.
"ENOUGH!"
The ministers booming voice quiets the whole courtroom. He sighs as he faces Amelia, "Auror Bonneville is right. Both the memories are flawless but her's is given right now which makes it more reliable. I'm sorry, Miss Martin, but if you don't have any other proof the jury will stand behind Bonneville's version."
"But- but- I can't give you my memories right here. I don't have them in my mind anymore. You already have them. The dementors would have made them unreliable. I- how can I?"
Lia thinks and thinks. Of anything, something that could work as evidence in her favor. Amelia's knees feel weak as all the fight leaves her body. Steve holds her up, helplessly looking around as if to find proof laying around. Tony feels his heart break as he watches the woman in front of him fall apart.
Amelia's eyes become unfocused. It wasn't supposed to go like this. Now she made her own sentence worse. Not only that, but she pulled all of her friends and family down with her. Poor Hermoine, her whole career and reputation down the drain. She can't believe Bonneville actually won-"
"Wait!"
The whole room falls quiet as a small blond woman stands up from her seat.
"Abigail?" Bonneville asks surprised.
The secretary shuffles on her place, "I- I was there that day."
"You were?" Amelia mumbles deep in thought, "Wait! That person I ran against when I left the office. That was you, wasn't it?"
"Yeah, that was me... I received an urgent call from one of the magical people that was doing undercover work in SHIELD. She said she couldn't reach Bonneville and called me instead so she could warn us that Loki had escaped. I was going in to tell auror Bonneville about it, but when I opened the door I heard Amelia talking. I knew she was part of this mission so I thought that she would have probably warned Bonneville and that I didn't have too. But I wasn't sure so I stayed to watch and listen." She faces Bonneville, "I'm glad that I did, because I heard and saw everything."
"Everything?" Bonneville squeaks.
"Everything?" Lia hopefully asks.
"Everything." Abigail faces the minister, "I'm vowing to speak the truth and I'm willing to give my memory to you right now."
"I also have a memory I would like to share!"
Everybody gazes towards the side to lay their eyes upon Marcus Johnson. Amelia's mouth falls open as the colleague that always hated her speaks up, "It's a memory of Amelia before going to Azkaban. Bonneville refused to give her the healing she deserved. Especially after what she went through to defend our city. I'm also willing to swear an oath and give the memory here as well."
Just like that, for the first time since the trial had began, Bonneville looks genuinely scared. She might be able to smooth talk herself out of a few of the accusations but she was definitely going down for something. She's the one who assigns auror's to their missions, making her always partly responsible for what they do. But she always has a way out.
It's what she does.
She gives impossible missions to those of lesser status and perfectly plans things out. And if for some reason things don't go her way, she has plans A to Z ready. Bribing them, threatening them, collecting leverage to blackmail them.
But she did everything right with Amelia. She talked bad about the witch to her colleagues, so that no one would want to be her partner. Which means less missions, which means that she would be willing to take any mission that Bonneville offered her. It certainly helped that the witch lost a leg, what made her even more desperate. She has no friends, no lover and no family, which meant that no one would miss her if she was gone. She only had an owl as companion. An owl. That and the witch's mind was also weak and damaged from all the trauma, and so easier to manipulate. Amelia was the perfect black sheep. That's why Bonneville held her on the side until the most impossible mission came.
But then it turned out that Bonneville didn't know Amelia as well as she thought she did.
How was she supposed to know that Amelia knew lot's of important people in Britain. She had never talked about them! And Amelia had acted out so much on the mission that putting her in a bad light would be easy. Bonneville thought maybe that's where she went wrong, that she underestimated the muggleborn witch. And when she began to cause more and more trouble Bonneville knew that she needed to take action.
Only for her undercover agents at SHIELD to tell her that Amelia fell to her death. So she was out the picture, but then Amelia calls her, still alive, talking about helping muggles. And Bonneville knew she was going to be a problem. So she told the witch to come to her office. She let her come through her personal fireplace so that no one would know that she was there and Bonneville could pretend that she fell to her death if it was needed. It should have been easy! She had given the witch the opportunity to leave and escape the death she was risking out in the battle field, but Amelia didn't want to leave, she wanted to save those stupid muggles. So she asked the witch to join her circle of superior people, if only so she could kill her another time, but Amelia wasn't interested. And because she thought that the muggleborn didn't have any family, she couldn't blackmail Amelia with them! So she needed to take her out. Amelia was severely hurt so overpowering her should have been a piece of cake! But, again, somehow she got out.
Bonneville wasn't afraid of her, even at the moment that Amelia ran out of her office. She broke the main law of magic. Magical communities from all over the world were going to protest. Amelia was up for Azkaban for a very long time. And her trail? Nothing to worry about, even with those memories that she gave, which Bonneville had to admit wasn't something she had expected Amelia to do, partly because once again, she wasn't supposed to have family of friends to give it to. But she became friends with those muggle superheroes! And then it turned out that she did have friends, and what friends they were! Influential wizard and witches, even those 'Avengers' were a big deal! But still Bonneville wasn't afraid because she could alter her memories flawlessly and give them before the courts eyes. No alternation possible, so the court would definitely see it as the truth.
It was her last plan. It was her last letter. Her plan Z. And still Amelia found a way to fight against it. And worst of all, she didn't even do it herself! No, she won because of people who don't even like her decided to take pity on her! Abigail hated Amelia! Marcus hated Amelia!
This wasn't supposed to happen!
Bonneville's mind flew back to the present. She knew that no doubt once they began researching her, that they were going to find some or maybe even all of the things that she did wrong. She was going down, but she didn't want to give up without a fight. So she raises her wand and runs for the only exit in the court room. With her wand held high she deflected all the incoming spells.
She was unstoppable.
She was powerful.
She was... unable to lift the stupid hammer standing in front of the exit door?
No matter how hard she pulled, it wasn't lifting up and out of the way. The door refused to open.
"You are not worthy!"
It was the owner of the hammer who spoke. Bonneville pointed her wand at the god.
"Lift the hammer."
"No."
"Lift it!"
"Or what?"
"Or-" Bonneville looks around and notices Amelia still weak in the arms of the supersoldier. She points her wand at the handcuffs and summons them her way, making the woman who was still wearing them fly towards her too. Bonneville holds her wand to Amelia's head once she is in her arms, standing behind the witch to use her as a shield, "Lift that god awful hammer or I'll kill her."
It's deadly quiet in the courtroom. Bonneville was trapped in a corner, sure, but no one would be able to hit her without Bonneville hitting Amelia first. The god looks uncertain, gazing at the hammer in a way that says that he would rather lift it than let his friend die. And then the silence gets broken by a laugh.
Not a normal laugh. No. A full blown loud and ugly laugh. Laughter in between big gulps of air, because the laughter is so powerful that you can't breath.
And that laughter was coming from her hostage.
Amelia laughs like she never has before. Tears of laughter are streaming down her face, opposite to the tears of fear that most hostages have. Bonneville needed to keep her grip strong because Amelia's body was shaking from laughing so hard.
"Stop it! Right now!" Bonneville yells at Amelia, digging her wand deeper into her temple.
"I'm- I'm sorry- I-" Amelia stops to giggle, "It's just that- it's just so funny that you think that I'm a worthy hostage."
She giggles again, "Oh wow, forget a patronus or chocolate against dementors when you've got this jokester around." Bonneville digs her wand even deeper and it causes Amelia to finally stop laughing. But she continues still speaking. Blame it on the veritaserum, "You know, I'm flattered. I really am. But I rather that someone shoots through me to get you, than let you escape. I'm an auror, and unlike some people I'm willing to offer myself up to stop the bad guy."
She faces the others, "So, shoot your shot guys. Who is the lucky one who get's to kill two witches with one bonfire?"
Now Bonneville laughs, "I've underestimated your friends before but not again. They care too much about you to kill you, for whatever reason." And as Amelia takes in the faces of her friends and family, she sees that they weren't going to do it. They weren't willing to offer Amelia. It was quite a touching moment and she takes a second to appreciate it.
But this was taking them nowhere.
So Amelia collects all her remaining power into swinging her handcuffed joined hands backwards over her head, causing the wand that was pointing at her head, to move to the side. But Amelia wasn't done yet. She locks her arms behind Bonneville's neck, leans forward and uses the momentum to throw the witch over her back and onto the floor. It was a draining action and she stumbles to the wall next to her as soon as the action is over. But it was okay because other wizards had come as soon as she was out of wandpoint and were currently holding Bonneville down on the ground.
The blond woman was screaming madness on the ground. Clawing at the guards around her to break free and attack Amelia again. Thor walkes up to the chaos, summones his hammer and lays it on the woman's stomach. Bonneville tries to push it off but it keeps her in place. Thor gives Amelia a wink before looking down and glaring at the blond witch that was laying on the ground.
Arms circle around her and she looks up to meet Tony's eyes.
"Hey Tincan. Do you come around here more often?"
"You're bleeding."
Amelia frowns, "That's not how the joke goes."
She moves her hand towards Tony's point of interest. Tony's hands were cradling her head, but his concerned look was focused on the right side of her face. Her hand touches her ear and Tony was right, she was bleeding. Bonneville must have fired a spell at her after all. It only grazed her ear for as far as she can tell. She looks behind Tony and into the crowd.
"Hey Georgie! We're twinning! Look, I also lost a part of my ear!"
The people in the court visibly flinch at Amelia's words. It wasn't a secret that George used to have a twin brother named Fred, who he lost in the battle of Hogwarts. But who can blame Amelia for speaking nonsense with the amount of blood that she was currently loosing.
George meets her eye and gives her a laugh, a somewhat nervous and concerned laugh, "Yeah Lee-lee, I can see that. We should start a club."
"Oh! Definitely, you can name it though. As long as you put 'holy' somewhere in there." She then faces Tony, "Can you believe that that was the only ear joke George could come up with when he lost his ear?" She stumbles in his arms, "Okay, no I'm starting to understand it. Blood loss does make it harder to be clever."
Tony chuckles and steadies his grip on her, letting her body weight rest on him. Amelia sees a mediwitch walk towards her out of the corner of her eye, but Bruce arrives at her side quicker. She yawns and snuggles deeper into the warmth that Tony was giving off.
"How is it doc? Am I going to live?" She mumbles to Bruce, who was inspecting her ear while talking quietly to the healer.
"It's only a graze." He says, "But you're still lucky that magical healing is so advanced."
Amelia can't help but flinch at the wand pointed at her ear by the mediwitch. Tony guides her head into his neck so she couldn't see what was happening. The darkness and warmth that reaches her makes her realize just how exhausted she was.
"I'm tired."
Tony lightly pats her head, careful of her injury and says, "You can sleep. I'll deal finish this for you."
"You promise?" She asks with a small voice, the fear of falling asleep and awaking back in Azkaban clouding her mind.
"I promise," He answers, "Besides, you did all the hard parts already. I've got this, this is not my first court rodeo."
And Amelia believes him and finally rests her eyes and let's everyone around her disappear.
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When she awakes again later, she immediately knows that she isn't in Azkaban. The surface she was laying on was too soft, the smell was too nice (even if it was somewhat chemical) and her body felt numb, but unlike before, in a good way.
So it didn't surprise her when she opened her eyes and took in a hospital room around her.
She sits herself up straight and grabs her head as the sudden movement makes her dizzy. Her fingers graze a medical bandage and she faintly remembers receiving a wound at her ear.
The door opens, and a nurse walks in. It only took Amelia one fierce glare for the woman to hurry out again, without having fully entered the room in the first place. Amelia didn't want to deal with people at the moment.
"I see you're happy to be awake."
Sirius was an exception on the no people rule. The man was poking his head through the door opening, giving her a sheepish grin.
"How long have I been out?"
Her stepfather walks fully into the room and takes a seat on the chair next to her bed. "A few hours, the trial has been over for a while."
Amelia gives him a supposedly casual look as she sits herself straighter, "Going by the lack of handcuffs on my hands, I'm assuming it didn't end too terribly."
Sirius grabs her hand, "How about we let the others in and we can tell you all about it, hmm? You have a lot of people very eager to see you. You think you are up for it?"
"Hmm, depends. Are they fun people?"
Sirius looks offended, "Do you think I would hang with boring people?"
Amelia rolls her eyes but tells him to let the others in. With a loud finger whistle from Sirius, the others storm into the room. She immediately gets attacked by the color ginger. George, Ron and Ginny rush into the room followed by a more careful Hermione. Tony enters the hospital room next with Remus and Timothy in tow. Amelia hears voices in the hallway before the door fully closed and realizes that more people were waiting outside, probably doctor's orders so she wouldn't be too overwhelmed by too many people at once.
They immediately attack her with questions about her health. Amelia chuckles and holds up her hand.
"I'm fine, I'm fine. Now, if anyone here is allowed to ask questions, it should be me." She meets Tony's eyes, "What happened after I passed out?"
The billionaire opens his mouth to speak, but Ron is faster. "It was amazing, really! You should have seen Tony, going on and on about giving the magical community a voice of reason in the muggle world. Taking the courtroom like it was his stage. It was bloody brilliant."
Amelia nods along with him, even if she couldn't really follow where he was going with this. Tony seems to understand her and clarifies it for her.
"I just stated that you didn't reveal the wizarding community to the world, only yourself. As far as all the non magical people know, you are a one of a kind. Just like Thor, or Steve, or me."
"That's.. really smart actually."
Tony winks at her, "I have been told that I'm a pretty smart guy."
"And then what?" Amelia questions.
Hermoine grins at her, "Well, Tony also suggested that it might not be too bad to have a representative from the magical community in the muggle world. Someone who knows a lot about both worlds. A way to create a better bond between magical and non-magical folk, as we clearly aren't each others enemies with all the otherworldly fuss going around. That way the magical community gets to be more included in the big decision making and they have someone who looks out for their best interest."
"Congratulations! You're an Avenger!" George takes a party horn out of his pocket and blows on it making little fireworks escape. Ginny steals it from him and sounds it again, making jazz hands.
"So- so I'm not charged for anything? That's it? I'm not guilty?"
"Well," Remus begins, "The court wasn't happy with the way things turned out... but they understood your reasoning. It helped that the person that was supposed to give you directions on your mission turned out to be a nutcase. And with Tony's reasoning they found a solution for all the international trouble and panic. As for the concequences for your actions, they decided that the trauma from the last few days counts as enough of a punishment, and so you were excused for all your crimes."
"It's that simple?"
"You call this simple, woman? I don't want to see you at stance 'difficult'!" Ron exclaims.
Amelia chuckles, "So no more Azkaban?"
Remus reassuringly pats her shoulder. "Never again."
Amelia's mind was still a little to slow to think about what all the information just given to her meant. She was missing a few gaps and still had some questions but the witch decided that she didn't mind. That would be a problem for future Amelia. She smiles, there was going to be a future for her. She claps her hands together.
"This calls for a celebration!" She faces Tony, "Call the others, it's time for us Avengers to assemble! Which we shall do in the nearest bar, because Merlin, I could really use a drink."
"You aren't allowed to drink with your medication."
Amelia pouts but still moves to get out of bed. Ron is by her side in an instant, giving her support.
"You also aren't allowed to leave your bed actually."
The muggleborn frowns at Hermione, "I'm leaving this bed with or without you. So are you with or against me? You should be with me, I'm a Avenger now. I'm quite a big deal, you know?"
Hermoine glares at her with her arms crossed, tapping her foot. "Fine! But we are getting you a wheelchair. And I'm not leaving you out of my sight!"
Amelia grins, "I wouldn't have it any other way."
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Author's note
It is here! The last official chapter is out! Don't worry, we still have an epilogue left after this! And then the first book of the Hocus Pocus series is complete! You read that right! Amelia's story will continue in a next book!!!
I already want to thank all of you for sticking around with me until the very end. I apologize for the long wait for this chapter however. I wasn't in the mood to write for a long time, and I didn't want to do this story injustice by quickly crapping a chapter out while I was not feeling it. But I found my passion back and I wrote this extra long final for you (10 206 words, oh merlin), which I hope you all enjoy!
So stay tuned for the final chapter! And if you liked this series so far, be sure to follow me to be made aware of when the new book will be out!
Lots of love, Leentjekat <3