Continued from here.
Chapter 80: Taboo Tradeoffs, Pt 2, The Horns Effect
At the Wizengamot. Oh god, this chapter. I'm going to skip a lot of description meant to be impressive.
"The current Defense Professor of Hogwarts, if you asked him for his opinion of the Lords and Ladies, would say that while many of them are ambitious, few have any ambition. He would observe that the Wizengamot is exactly where someone like that would end up - that it is exactly the sort of opportunity you would grasp, if you had nothing better to do. Such folk are rarely interesting, but they are often useful; pieces to be manipulated, points to be scored, by the true players of the game."
Thank you, Quirrell-in-absentia, WHOEVER YOU ARE.
"If there is an enemy here, or something to be manipulated, it is merely "the Wizengamot". The wealthy elites of magical Britain have collective force, but not individual agency; their goals are too alien and trivial for them to have personal roles in the tale. As of now, this present time, the boy neither likes nor dislikes the plum-colored robes, because his brain does not assign them enough agenthood to be the subjects of moral judgment. He is a PC, and they are wallpaper.
This view is about to change."
Ruh-roh. Today's Daily Prophet: MAD MUGGLEBORN TRIES TO END ANCIENT LINE.
"Earlier, Albus Dumbledore had told him,
"I will not try to keep you from this trial." The old wizard's voice quiet and unyielding. "I can well foresee how that would go. But I would have you treat me with equal courtesy in return. The politics of the Wizengamot are delicate, and of them you know nothing. Dare any folly and it shall be to Hermione Granger's cost; and you will remember that folly for the rest of your days, Harry James Potter-Evans-Verres."
"I understand," Harry said. "I know. Just - if you're planning to pull a rabbit out of your hat and save the day at the last minute when everything seems lost, please tell me now instead of letting me sit and worry -"
"I would not do that to you," the old wizard said, a terrible weariness seeming to suffuse him as he turned to go. "Still less to Hermione. But I have no rabbits in my hat, Harry. We can only see what Lucius Malfoy wants."
DAMMIT. Hermione is brought out. Harry freaks when he sees Patronuses and has to be dragged back down by McG.
"But by then he'd already declared war on the country of magical Britain, and the idea of other people calling him a Dark Lord no longer seemed important one way or another."
Priorities.
Harry is going all dark side within when...oh goody, here comes everyone's favorite, Umbridge.
"He couldn't find anything to say that Neville could also have said. Dumbledore had warned Harry that if anyone else wanted the Boy-Who-Lived to speak, he must pretend to be his age -
"The Headmaster said I shouldn't ought to talk," the boy said, not quite able to keep the edge out of his voice.
"Oh, but you have our permission to talk!" the woman said brightly. "I'm sure the Wizengamot is always happy to hear from the Boy-Who-Lived!" Beside her, Minister Cornelius Fudge was nodding."
Yeah, right. Harry thinks she looks like a toad, but is trying to give her a chance anyway. That won't last long. Harry is publicly offended at Dementors and Umbridge defends it. Harry is all, what, you need that for a 12-year-old girl?
"That's enough, Madam Umbridge, Mr. Potter," came Dumbledore's stern voice from high above. And then after a short pause, the old wizard went on, "Although, of course, the boy is correct on every count."
Only a few agree with Harry. Too few.
Hermione is drugged with Veritaserum.
"After the first few questions Harry looked away and stared off to one side with his fingers in his ears, as Hermione's brain played back the contents of the False Memory Charm. He couldn't handle the drug-dulled anguish in Hermione's voice as she recounted the false memories, and his dark side couldn't handle it either, and he'd already heard the contents summarized.
Harry's mind flashed back to another day of horror, and even though Harry had been on the verge of writing off Lord Voldemort's continued existence as the senility of an old wizard, it suddenly seemed horribly and uniquely plausible that the entity who'd Memory-Charmed Hermione was the very same mind that had - made use of - Bellatrix Black. The two events had a certain signature in common. To choose that this should happen, plan for this to happen - it would take more than evil, it would take emptiness."
Draco's drugged testimony is read aloud.
"Until she went after me in that battle, I wasn't plotting anything against Granger. But after that day I really was feeling insulted, I'd helped her all those times -"
A lot of choking occurs at that revelation. On to the debate:
"It seemed that many members of the Wizengamot were of the strong opinion that murder was bad."
Ya think?
Dumbledore attempts to defend Hermione by praising her goodness.
Lord Malfoy wants her to go to Azkaban for ten years and be tried as an adult. He will never be dissuaded--unless Dumbledore confesses his own crime to the Wizengamot. Whatever that is. He won't.
Hermione is pleading with Harry for help, and Harry answers. Ominously. And loudly.
"This folly does not become you, Lucius," said the boy. "Twelve-year-old girls do not go around committing murders. You are a Slytherin and an intelligent one. You know this is a plot. Hermione Granger was placed on this gameboard by force, by whatever hand lies behind that plot. You were surely intended to act just as you are acting now - except that Draco Malfoy was meant to be dead, and you were meant to be beyond all reason. But he is alive and you are sane. Why are you cooperating with your intended role, in a plot meant to take the life of your son?"
Harry doesn't know who plotted this, but he doesn't think it was a natural event, and he definitely thinks the vengeance is misdirected.
"She is my friend," the boy said, "as Draco is my friend. It is possible that this blow was aimed at me, and not at House Malfoy at all."
Again the muscles jumped in Lucius's face. "And now you are lying to me - as you lied to my son!"
"Believe it or not," the boy said quietly, "I never willed anything but that Draco should know the truth -"
You will not be surprised to find out that this doesn't work.
"Draco had said that Lucius was scared of him, for some unknown reason. And Harry could see it in the rictus that Lord Malfoy's face had become, drawn and tight, that it was taking all his courage for him to tell Harry to shut up.
So Harry said, his voice cool and deadly, hoping to hell that it meant something, "You will earn my enmity if you do this thing, Lucius..."
Lord Malfoy gazed at him with hard dignity, as that laughter spread. "If you want the enmity of the House of Malfoy, you shall have it, child."
"Now really," said the woman in too much pink makeup, "I think this has gone on quite long enough, wouldn't you say, Lord Malfoy? The boy will miss his classes."
OH, FOR FUCK'S SAKE, UMBRIDGE. PRIORITIES.
Of course everyone's voting to send Hermione to jail. Harry flounders trying to think of ANYTHING-- End of chapter!
Four stars for making everyone about to throw up here. Oh damn.
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