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Yeah! Here's the new chapter!
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-Back to Courtroom 10-
[POV – Third Person]
After Judge Mrs. Stoppard calling Sirius' name he blinked in surprise for a moment before looking at Andromeda, who simply nodded at him.
Getting up he then went to the middle of the courtroom, where a new chair appeared for him next to Pettigrew's, but a little farther away for Sirius' safety... But knowing Sirius that distance was more for Pettigrew's safety.
Sitting down in the chair Sirius turned to Mrs. Stoppard as Andromeda stood beside him.
"Well, before starting the questioning I would like to ask someone to wake up Mr. Pettigrew" she said, and one of the aurors in attendance then went to him and canceled the spell that left him unconscious.
Pettigrew woke up slowly, confused for a moment, before blinking and looking down at himself, realizing he was in his human form and chained to a chair.
Lifting his eyes he looked around, noticing that he wasn't alone, and that he was actually in a large room with many pairs of eyes staring at him, immediately startling him.
Pettigrew then heard a snarl of rage from beside him, and turning mechanically he saw Sirius staring at him with a murderous glare, and immediately realization hit him and he tried to get up and shift.
Emphasis on the tried, because the only thing that happened was the handcuffs squeezing him even more.
Realizing the situation he was in, Pettigrew immediately began to act like a victim.
"Wh-where am I?! Wh-what is he doing here?!" he asked, referring to Sirius at the end.
"Mr. Pettigrew, you are in one of the courtrooms of the British Ministry of Magic" the powerful voice of Mrs. Stoppard echoed through the room, startling Pettigrew and drawing his attention to the serious, professional-looking woman who was seated on a throne.
"C-courtrooms!?" Pettigrew guinchou.
"Yes, and you are here to be judged for the events of 12 years ago" Mrs. Stoppard answered him, then cleared her throat to continue, "Peter Billy Pettigrew, you are being accused of serving the Dark Lord, betraying Lilly and James Potter thereby causing their deaths, and of having murdered 12 Muggles in a public area in broad daylight"
And Pettigrew's face grew paler with every word Mrs. Stoppard, with him looking at her with wide eyes.
"WHAT?! I-I didn't do that! I-I'm i-innocent!" Pettigrew exclaimed, shifting in his seat, grunting in pain as the chains tightened around his body.
"Yes you did!" an angry voice said, and looking to the side he saw Sirius glaring at him with a look of hate and anger.
"You betrayed James and Lily! You killed those 12 Muggles! And you are a cowardly worm who abandoned your friends to kiss Voldemort's feet!" Sirius screamed, trying to get up to attack Pettigrew, but Andromeda's hand on his shoulder stopped him.
And those present at the court were taken aback by his outburst and his hatred, but most of all, what really got to them was Sirius having spoken Voldemort's name, with half the wizards present cringing in fear and the other half gasping in shock.
"N-no! T-that's l-lie!" Pettigrew shouted, turning to Mrs. Stoppard, "D-don't believe him! He betrayed Lily and James and—"
"Don't you dare say their name!" Sirius cut him off with an angry yell, startling Pettigrew and the other people in the courtroom.
And now Andromeda had to put both hands on his shoulders to stop him from getting up and attacking Pettigrew.
"Sirius, calm down" Andromeda whispered to him, "If you attack him, you will only prove to everyone that you are aggressive and therefore dangerous"
And listening to Andromeda's warnings, Sirius took a deep breath, knowing that she was right.
Still shivering in his seat, Pettigrew noticed that Sirius wasn't going to attack him anymore, and so he decided to speak again.
"See! He's crazy! He was going to attack me! Black is dangerous and a murderer!" he yelled, pointing his finger at Sirius, with everyone noticing that one of his fingers was missing.
"Silence!" Mrs. Stoppard said loudly, banging her gavel on the table, "We're not here to see you two argue and point out who the real culprit is, we're here to hear the witnesses and review the evidence needed to reach a verdict."
Mrs. Stoppard then fixed Pettigrew with a cold stare, "And that being said, I suggest you pull yourself together Mr. Pettigrew, as this judgment does not concern Mr. Black, it concerns you, and this situation is bad enough for you."
Pettigrew hearing this started to open his mouth to speak again, but a silent spell cast by Moody himself silenced him, causing the rat to only squeak and whine in his place.
Turning to Moody, Mrs. Stoppard looked at him with a raised eyebrow, to which he just shrugged.
Seeing that everyone was silent again and that Sirius had calmed down, Mrs. Stoppard turned to him.
"Well Mr. Black, getting back to the point, we would like to ask you to take a few drops of Veritaserum" Mrs. Stoppard said, gesturing for an auror to approach, carrying a vial of clear, glittering liquid.
But even before the auror could open the vial, Andromeda stepped forward, preventing the auror from reaching Sirius.
"My client will not submit to drinking the Veritaserum" Andromeda said firmly.
"Mrs. Tonks, we know your capabilities and I know you are a great lawyer, but you have no right to deny the use of Veritaserum on Mr. Black" Mrs. Stoppard said with a frown, "The use of Veritaserum is one of the only ways to discover the truth with 100% certainty, and if Mr. Black has nothing to hide he shouldn't be afraid to take just a few drops of the potion."
"Mrs. Stoppard, I hope you understand that my client doesn't trust the Ministry enough to take Veritaserum and be questioned by one of you, especially when we remember the effects of this potion…" Andromeda explained, "And besides Also, if taking the potion is that important, why in the trials 12 years ago did some... defendants not take the potion? As far as I remember just claiming to be under the Imperius was enough for them"
"Mrs. Tonks, I know that you..."
"What are you implying?" Fudge asked as he stood up, cutting off Mrs. Stoppard, "These people are honest and innocent members of this wizarding community, and I don't want to hear any slurs about..."
"Minister" Mrs. Stoppard interrupted him in a strong voice, "I am the judge of this trial, and I know how to run it."
After she said that, Fudge looked at her in surprise for a moment before sitting up quickly, turning a little red, but no one knew if it was out of embarrassment or anger.
Turning her attention to Andromeda, Mrs. Stoppard motioned for her to continue talking.
"After all the bad things my client has gone through, I think he has the right to refuse to be subjected to a potion prepared by the same ministry that made him suffer so much" Andromeda said, but then she looked at Sirius who nodded , "But he agrees to make a magical oath to prove the truth of his words, which is already more than enough"
Hearing Andromeda's words, Mrs. Stoppard reflected for a moment before turning to the Wizengamot's court.
With Judge Stoppard's gaze upon them, the members of the Wizengamot turned and began to whisper to one another, and after a few seconds of consideration one of the senior members got up.
"After a moment's consideration, the court has decided to accept Mr. Black's magical oath," this member said, returning to his seat shortly thereafter.
"Well, as the court has decided, Mr. Black will not need to take the Veritaserum and we will continue the questioning after he takes a magical oath swearing that whatever he speaks in this trial will be the truth and nothing but the truth" Mrs. Stoppard said, and Andromeda nodded.
She then turned to Sirius, who stared at her for a moment before nodding and extending his hand to her.
Andromeda seeing this took her wand and handed it to Sirius, who held it in his hand for a moment, feeling his magic connect with the wand.
'Well, it's not as good as mine but it will do' he thought, raising his wand and pointing it upwards.
"I, Sirius Orion Black II, swear by my magic that while I stand in this courtroom I will speak the truth and only the truth to the questions put to me by the judge and my attorney" Sirius said in a loud and clear tone.
As soon as Sirius finished taking the magical oath the tip of the wand glowed and a golden line appeared from the top of it, tangling tightly around his wrist until it disappeared into his body, showing that the oath was effective.
Obviously Sirius wasn't going to take an oath that would put him at the mercy of the vultures that are the politicians and journalists present in the courtroom, and so he made it clear to everyone that the only questions answered by him would be those asked by Andromeda and by Mrs. Stoppard, who Andromeda has already said to be reliable and serious in her work.
A few people grimaced at Sirius' oath, but they couldn't say anything as the terms of the oath were still within acceptable range.
"Well, as Mr. Black has already taken the oath we can proceed, without further interruption I hope" Mrs. Stoppard said looking lightly at everyone present.
End.
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(End AN: Released the new season of Demon Slayer, and I didn't even watch the first one, hehe)