Being in the courtroom as a witness rather than an accused was a very different experience. Once he got past the initial burst of panic at the sight of the courtroom again, he was actually starting to look forward to this. This would be the first time he went public with exactly what it was he did. It would most likely make his job harder, but it was also a very public statement about what side he was on. The Yann Fredericks kidnapping, and the shut-down of the Dark Dungeon had both gotten massive press coverage. Even more than his own abduction, which he honestly didn't mind. The less he had to think about that, the better. He had also been lucky that he wasn't caught as Amerson at the raid. He still didn't know if Harry even knew he had been there. He was lucky that it was Rose alone that had run after him.
The accused entered, under guard. The crowd grew excited, but in a very different way than they had at his trial. The crowd had been on the accused side at his trial. This time, the sympathy was with the victim. It was Hermione that led the proceedings. Harry much preferred it when he could just be in the background.
Hermione quickly went through the opening procedures. They had discussed when the name "Amerson" should be mentioned. But they had decided that since this was an official court, Scorpius had to be registered by his own name. He would mention the alias in his statement. It would ruin the alias, but that would have happened anyway.
When he was named as a witness, the crowd started buzzing again. They hadn't expected that. The three men on trial looked at him with hostility.
Everything went as expected. The three men, already serving a sentence for the membership in an illegal group of Dark wizards, was additionally charged with the kidnapping and torture of Yann Fredericks. The hate from the crowd at this charge was almost physical. The men didn't seem worried. It would be hard to prove, in fact, without Scorpius' testimony it would have been impossible.
Yann Fredericks made his own testimony first. He didn't give many details, but the way he was shaking as he recalled his experience spoke for itself. Scorpius wished he would have been able to prevent them from even taking him into the dungeon in the first place. The thought of how he had done much the same to Vane unwelcomingly came into his head, but he shook it away. He couldn't think about that right now.
Yann did manage to describe how the room he had been held in looked. That was important, as Harry then next was able to show the court photographs and descriptions of the dungeon they had raided months later, to show that it was the same place. That was when the defender, a man Scorpius didn't know, came with what he probably thought was a winning argument.
"You have shown that these men were members of this group, as they have not denied. And that Mr. Fredericks here was taken there. But how do you know that it was these men in particular that kidnapped and kept him there? By your own admission, there were over 30 members of that group. Yet you only charge these three with this specific crime?"
"Yes," Harry replied without hesitation. "I would love to be able to charge every one of the members with the exact crimes they have committed, but unfortunately, we don't have the evidence for most of it. Though a few of them were foolish enough to leave a written account of their deeds where we could find them."
"You claim that some other member wrote that these three kidnapped Mr. Fredericks?"
"No. We have a witness who saw them do it. The same person who then later rescued Mr. Fredericks from the dungeon and then tried to apprehend these three people."
The defender did not expect that, but the three accused looked over at Scorpius again. They had already guessed what had happened. Of course, they knew that Yann had been rescued, but not how, or by whom. Well, they were about to find out.
"The court asks that Mr. Scorpius Malfoy please give his testimony," Hermione said. Whispers immediately broke out on the viewing benches. Scorpius went forward to the centre of the room.
"Mr. Malfoy, how did you get involved in the events surrounding this kidnapping?" Hermione asked, to start the testimony.
"I work for the Department of Magical Law Enforcement," Scorpius began. "But my job description is somewhat unusual. My job is to infiltrate the lower parts of society and find information. My most successful job so far was when I was able to infiltrate the very group that the accused were members of." A gasp went through the crowd.
"And how did you manage that?" Hermione asked.
"I created an alias for myself. I would never have gained access to such a place as myself, so I pretended to be someone else. It took me many months, but eventually I succeeded. I was known as Amerson, to those I interacted with."
The three men jumped at the mention of that name. The court, and the audience noticed.
"Now, Amerson is not a nice person," Scorpius said. "But it is amazing what you can do by spreading the right rumours. As I said, this took me many months. But once I had gained access to that dungeon, I was able to rescue three people who would otherwise have suffered horribly. Unfortunately, it was only with Fredericks that I was able to identify the people behind it, though I only knew their faces. I tried on several occasions to get a hold of the membership book, but it was eventually Albus Potter that managed that." All of this had already been presented in other trials, so Scorpius didn't need to explain that part. Exactly how and why Al had managed to get a hold of the book had not been described, only that he gained access somehow and copied the book as the guard was otherwise occupied.
"My main goal was as always to minimise the victims suffering, more than gathering evidence. That is why it took so long for the Ministry to shut down the location. Once we had the membership book, we knew there was nothing left to lose. But without it, we couldn't be sure that we would catch the men who did such heinous acts as this."
Scorpius explained more in detail about how he had been able to release Fredericks from his bonds and returned him home. He hadn't explained who he was because he didn't know if Fredericks would be able to keep quiet about it.
"It was very important that I didn't expose myself, to keep my alias and access to the dungeon, in case they kidnapped someone else I had to rescue," he said as a finishing statement.
No one said anything as he sat down again. The defender was taken by complete surprise. Why had he agreed to defend these terrible men anyway?
Hermione tried to stay professional, but those who knew her well could see that she was very pleased with how this had gone.
"Does the defence have anything to add?" she asked.
The defender conferred with the three accused for a few moments. Scorpius was a little bit nervous about this part. There were some questions they could ask that would make things difficult for him. It would probably not change the verdict, but it could cast doubt about his testimony.
"Mr. Malfoy," the defender said eventually. "You said you weren't able to identify who the kidnappers were at first. When did you find out who they were?"
That was one of the questions he had prepared for.
"Not until after the raid and the arrests. I went over the arrest pictures of all the members and saw the three men I had seen physically hurt Fredericks. That was the first time I saw their names."
"You say you saw them hurt Mr. Fredericks. Did you see them kidnap him?"
"Not the kidnapping itself, as I didn't know that would happen. But I saw three hooded men enter the dungeon, with Fredericks between them. I watched the door and they all left at one point or another, without their masks on. Whether there were others involved as well, I cannot say. But these three are the ones I am certain were involved. I didn't see anyone else come into the dungeon after they arrived."
"We have asked all three of them if they wish to name others who were involved in this," Hermione added. "They refused. The offer still stands. If they are willing to testify as to who else was involved in the kidnapping of Yann Fredericks, or the others Mr. Malfoy has rescued, their sentence may be reduced."
None of them said anything, of course. Scorpius hadn't expected them to. But Harry hoped that they may be more willing to talk in a few weeks, after the judgement and without everyone's eyes on them.
The defender looked unhappy but didn't protest. It was quite clear what Scorpius had seen. Unless any of the three was willing to give up someone else as the three hooded men that did the actual kidnapping, they would be charged for it. Scorpius felt their eyes drill holes in his back, but he didn't look at them.
Unsurprisingly, all three men were sentenced to life in Azkaban. That judgement hadn't been given since the days of Voldemort, but no one seemed to doubt that these men deserved it. Scorpius felt relieved. He had feared that the defender would ask more details about how he had gained access, but he had prepared answers to that as well. All in all, this was the best result he could hope for.
Of course, outside, reporters and curious onlookers asked all the questions that had not been asked in the courtroom. He had no problems dodging the truth with them, but he had dreaded having to avoid lying in court. Most of the time, he just said that he couldn't answer questions about his work, since it was secret. Luckily, Al and Harry soon came out as well and they were able to leave. Scorpius had never become comfortable with the spotlight. He preferred the shadows and anonymity. That was what he was best at.
He came home and Rose was waiting with dinner. He smiled and gave her a kiss. This was where he belonged.