FIC: Once in a Blue Moon - Ch 13 (WIP)
Start of the story, including summary, full ratings, warnings, pairings etc. Here
Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognise. J K Rowling retains all copyright.
No Regrets (PG)
Sirius wasn’t surprised to find that Dumbledore was waiting for him when he arrived in the castle.
“Come with me,” Dumbledore said quietly as he hurried towards his office.
“You have to help them,” Sirius panted as he struggled to keep up with the surprisingly agile headmaster.
“I intend to,” Dumbledore replied. “Romulus won’t get far, and he’ll be brought before the Wizengamot within a couple of weeks.”
“A couple of weeks?” Sirius asked. “But…”
“Assuming he can give them the slip for that long,” Dumbledore amended. “But he’s a resourceful young man, and I have every faith in him.”
“But can’t you…?”
“I’ll do everything I can to help him, but until he’s caught my hands are tied.”
“But if he’s caught he’ll be sent to Azkaban.”
“Do you subscribe to the Daily Prophet?” Dumbledore asked, throwing Sirius slightly off balance with the rather random question.
“No, but my father does.”
“I suggest you read it once you get home. Romulus’s capture will be big news. The Ministry will make sure of that, especially since so many other publications have criticised them for their inability to apprehend the Lupin brothers. Now, where’s Remus?”
“In the forest with Firenze,” Sirius replied. “Romulus wants me to help him, but how can I? I won’t be here.”
“I’ll keep an eye on things until you return,” Dumbledore assured him. “He’s in good hands with Firenze, though I imagine the young centaur has problems of his own right now.”
“He said his father’s been challenged.”
“Torin was a good centaur, a good friend.”
“You make it sound like he’s dead.”
“He would never take the life of a member of his herd, not even if his own were at risk. If Magorian is not already leader of the herd, I have no doubt he will be by nightfall.”
Sirius looked out of the window at the early morning sun. He wondered how he was going to concentrate on his lessons today, knowing the turmoil that Remus, Romulus and Firenze were embroiled in.
It seemed that Dumbledore was one step ahead of him as always. The headmaster ushered him out of his office and ordered him back to the dormitories to catch up on the sleep he’d missed the night before.
-o-xXx-o-
It was two weeks into the summer holidays when the news of Romulus’s capture reached Sirius. He’d been reading the Daily Prophet every day, but as it happened, the news reached him from another source.
“The Aurors have captured one of the Lupins,” Orion announced over dinner on a muggy July evening. “Brought him in this afternoon, captured down near Folkstone, about to board a ferry. Thought he’d give us the slip by using muggle transport, as well as illegally apparating. Didn’t work though, did it? He didn’t wager on the Ministry anticipating him attempting that.”
Sirius pushed his vegetables around his plate as he listened to his father. His appetite had disappeared as soon as he’d heard the news.
“Sirius, stop playing with your food!” Walburga ordered. “And Regulus, sit up straight. You may be a useless squib, but that’s no excuse for bad manners.”
Sirius shot his brother a look across the table. The younger boy looked like he was about to burst into tears. Sirius wished there was something he could do to distract his parents from further criticising his brother, then he realised that there was.
“Father?” he asked. “Will you be sitting in the Wizengamot when they deal with R- Lupin?” Sirius hoped that no one had caught his near slip; he breathed a sigh of relief that his parents were too busy criticising Regulus to have noticed.
“Of course I will,” Orion replied, as though this was a very pointless and stupid question.
“Can I come and watch?” Sirius asked.
“Whatever for?” Walburga snorted and shook her head. “Your time would be put to much better use doing your homework and coming with me to social gatherings.”
“Now then,” Orion chided. “There’s nothing wrong with our son wanting to see justice in action. He might even decide to follow in my footsteps, help uphold wizarding law in years to come. It’ll be a good experience for him, and a trial like this will be open to the public.”
“I can come with you?” Sirius asked hopefully.
“As long as you’re up in time,” Orion replied with a sharp glare. “I can’t be late for an important case like this, so you’ll need to be ready to leave at seven.”
“I will be,” Sirius promised, knowing that he probably wouldn’t be able to sleep at all due to worrying so much.
-o-xXx-o-
Sirius slipped away from the dinner table and up to his room at the first available opportunity.
He pulled his mirror out of the back of his journal where he’d been keeping it locked away and tapped it.
Remus appeared almost immediately, and Sirius knew that the other boy had been waiting to hear from him. Remus looked older than he had before, even though it was only a few weeks since they’d last seen each other. Worry lines that should never be on a face so young were clearly visible.
“They’ve caught him, haven’t they?” Remus asked.
Sirius wondered whether it was something in his face that had given it away, or whether Remus had already known on some instinctive level. It didn’t really matter either way, and Sirius watched his friend’s face fall as the last trace of hope vanished.
“I’m going to the Wizengamot tomorrow,” Sirius told him quietly. “I’ll let you know what happens.”
Remus nodded in the mirror but Sirius could tell he was too upset to form words.
-o-xXx-o-
“He’ll be alright,” Firenze said, after Remus had stowed his mirror away once more.
“He’ll be sent to Azkaban,” Remus whispered. “People die in Azkaban. I’m never going to see him again.”
“Maybe the Wizengamot will understand why he did what he did?”
“I have to go there, I have to see him,” Remus said as he gathered his things together.
“You can’t, it’s too dangerous,” Firenze warned him. “They’ll be expecting you to do that.”
“But I have to…”
“Romulus wouldn’t want you to be captured,” Firenze pointed out.
“And your father wouldn’t want you to be trying to raise the other centaurs to fight against Magorian,” Remus countered.
“That’s different.”
“No, it’s not. We’ve both been told to run and hide when we should be…” Remus’s voice trailed off and he sank down onto the grass.
“You’re right,” Firenze stated quietly after several minutes of uneasy silence. “My father wouldn’t want me to split the herd like this.”
“Do you think they’ll accept you back?”
“In time, if I don’t challenge Magorian…”
“Why don’t you go back now and ask if they’ll take you back? It has to be better than living rough in the forest.”
“And leave you here on your own?” Firenze shook his head. “I can’t do that. Your brother would kill me if I left you to fend for yourself.”
“If he were here,” Remus pointed out bitterly.
“He’ll come back; nothing would stop him from watching over you.”
“I hope you’re right,” Remus whispered.
“So do I,” Firenze replied in a whisper so quiet that Remus barely heard it.
-o-xXx-o-
Sirius stood nervously at the entrance to the public gallery of the Wizengamot as he looked for a spare seat. He could barely believe how many people were in the crowded room.
“Took them long enough to catch him,” a woman behind him commented.
“Still haven’t got the other one though,” her companion replied. “Makes the Ministry look incompetent…even more so than usual.”
Sirius felt someone shoving him between the shoulder blades, and he moved further into the room. He wished his father had not deposited him at the door quite so suddenly. Even though he was slightly tall for his age, he felt small amongst all the older witches and wizards. He was just wishing he recognised someone when he heard the sound of a familiar voice coming from a seat near the front.
Rita Skeeter was sitting in the public gallery with a notebook and quill at the ready. Sirius contemplated turning back and finding somewhere else to sit, but there was an empty seat right beside her in the second row. He realised as soon as he’d sat down beside her why the seat was empty; a woman with an obnoxiously large hat sat directly in front of him, effectively blocking the view of the accused’s seat in the centre of the floor.
“Sirius!” Rita exclaimed excitedly. “I didn’t think to see you here. I’m reporting on the trial for the school newsletter. Dumbledore’s letting the Slytherin Standard go to the whole school next term.”
“How…nice,” Sirius muttered as he tried to see around the woman in front of him.
“He says I have to change the name though,” Rita complained. “Something to show the newsletter’s about the whole school.”
“So if the newsletter’s about the school, why are you reporting on this?” Sirius gestured to the floor where several members of the Wizengamot were standing talking before the proceedings began.
“Romulus Lupin was a Hogwarts student,” Rita explained. “He was a prefect and one of the top students in his year. He was in Hufflepuff house, and everyone was really surprised when he didn’t go back to do his NEWTs. My brother was in the year above him and told me all about it.”
“What happened?” Sirius asked, wondering what rumours had circulated the summer the Lupin brothers had ran away.
“Well…” Rita launched into a detailed list of the various rumours that had circulated the halls of Hogwarts that year. When she got to the tidbit about Romulus and Remus masterminding a plan to rob Gringotts he actually laughed out loud. Unfortunately for Rita she didn’t manage to finish her list because proceedings were about to start.
Sirius strained to see what was happening, and flashed Rita a grateful smile when she prodded the wizard on her right with her quill. This encouraged him to move along slightly, so that she and Sirius could do likewise.
Sirius watched as Romulus was led into the room. He breathed a grateful sigh of relief when he saw that Albus Dumbledore was accompanying him. Romulus looked tired, and far older than when Sirius had last seen him. His hair was a little unkempt and he looked as though he hadn’t shaved in a couple of days.
“That’s strange,” Rita whispered into his ear.
“What?” Sirius hissed back.
“Dumbledore’s Chief Warlock,” Rita murmured. “But someone else is sitting in his seat instead.”
It seemed that Rita was not the only one to have noticed the oddity, and the whisperings of the crowd were becoming louder and louder, until finally the wizard sitting in the seat of the Chief Warlock called for silence.
“The accused will stand,” the Chief Warlock commanded. “State your name and date of birth for the record.”
Romulus’s reply was clear but Sirius could hear the slight tremor in his voice.
“And representing the accused?” the Chief Warlock continued.
“Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore,” Albus Dumbledore announced.
The Chief Warlock nodded. “Let the record show that Albus Dumbledore stands for the accused instead of sitting as Chief Warlock. Let it also show that I, Tiberius Ogden sit as Chief Warlock in his stead.” He shot a glance at a younger wizard who was seated further down the row, scribbling frantically.
Sirius waited impatiently as the formalities were dragged out, rather unnecessarily in his opinion. He suspected that the still standing Romulus might share his opinion. Surely it was better to just get this over with?
Ogden finally seemed to realise that everyone in the room was shifting impatiently and turned back to Romulus. “Romulus Lupin, you stand accused of various crimes committed in contravention of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, the Decree for Apparition Restrictions and the Decree for the Control of Dangerous Creatures. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir,” Romulus replied with a nod of his head.
Ogden nodded in acknowledgement and turned to the parchment before him. “Do you admit that on the date of the fifth of July, nineteen sixty six, you did perform the Expelliarmus disarming spell on John Lupin?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And do you accept that at that time you were aware that at the age of sixteen years such a spell was in contravention of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery?”
“Yes, sir.”
Ogden nodded and turned to the scribe to ensure that he was still taking notes, before referring to his parchment again.
“Do you admit that on the same date of fifth July you did remove Remus John Lupin, a child of six years of age, from the lawful custody of his parents, John and Celeste Lupin?”
“Yes, sir.”
Ogden looked somewhat surprised at this reply and it was apparent from the whispers in the public gallery that many people had been expecting a different reply to the one they had heard.
Ogden didn’t let the whispering hold matters up for long though and returned to his list after only a moment’s hesitation. “Would the accused please clarify whether he was aware at the time of the abduction that there was a warrant of execution issued on the afternoon of the fifth of July for Remus John Lupin?”
The gasps from the public gallery were louder this time and Ogden had to shout for order again. Sirius couldn’t tell if Romulus had replied to the question or not, though he was sure that whether he’d known about the warrant or not would have made no difference to his actions.
Sirius watched Dumbledore give a small nod to Romulus, before turning to face Odgen and the rest of the interrogators. “I think we can safely assume that at the time of the…abduction…no one in the Lupin residence had been notified of the success or failure of the application for the warrant. The boys had left the vicinity before the Officers from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures arrived.”
“Does this accused agree with this?” Odgen asked.
“Yes, sir.”
“We’ll continue then.” Ogden returned to scanning the parchment in front of him and Sirius caught a glimpse of how long it was. He hoped that it wasn’t all a list of accusations, after all how many laws could he have broken? “Do you admit that when you left the residence of John and Celeste Lupin you did apparate without a licence at the risk of your own health and wellbeing and that of Remus Lupin whom was apparated alongside you?”
Romulus looked like he was about to make some sort of sarcastic response but Dumbledore was stepping in again. “I think we can safely assume that all instances of underage magic and apparating without a licence will be admitted to, without the need to go through them all individually,” he stated calmly. “Perhaps we might move on to the more complicated business at hand?”
Ogden looked a little put out, but nodded his agreement. “Very well.” He shuffled through the parchments until he found the one that he was looking for. “Romulus Lupin, do you admit that between the fifth of July nineteen sixty six and an unspecified date in June of this year, you did commit the following offences? You did neglect to inform the Ministry of Magic that you knew the whereabouts of a dangerous creature, namely a werewolf…”
At the word ‘werewolf’ the public gallery let out so many cries of astonishment that Odgen threatened to clear the room of all non-official persons. Rita had actually dropped her quill in surprise. It seemed that despite all the rumours about what had happened to the Lupins, the mention of a werewolf was a surprise to most people in the room. Thankfully for Sirius the room finally settled down again as no one wanted to be forced to leave before the conclusion of the case.
The room waited as Odgen repeated the charge and Romulus replied in the affirmative.
Sirius risked a glance to the side of him and saw that Rita was now writing away again. She seemed to have recovered from her own surprise fairly quickly and was scribbling away at her notebook.
Meanwhile, the list of charges went on and on. Sirius wondered if Romulus had known at the time how many laws he’d been breaking, when he’d taken Remus away from their parents. Failure to notify the Ministry of the whereabouts of a werewolf, failure to ensure that a werewolf in his custody was properly registered, disrupting aurors in their duty to capture said werewolf, failure to properly secure said werewolf on the nights of the full moon…
Sirius frowned at this last one, wondering just what more Romulus could have done to keep Remus, and anyone in the vicinity, safe during the full moon. It seemed that he was not the only one who was of that opinion.
“I would call a witness to speak on the accused’s behalf in relation to the security at the Hogsmeade residence of the Lupin brothers,” Dumbledore requested.
Ogden nodded in agreement, though Sirius suspected that he was simply reluctant to argue with the man who was standing before him.
“I call Officer Horby of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures,” Dumbledore announced.
“You can’t call a Ministry worker!” a horribly familiar voice called out from a seat to the left of the Chief Warlock. Sirius looked across the room at his father, and hoped that no one would listen to his complaint.
“Orion.” Dumbledore acknowledged the other man with a polite nod. “I merely call Horby to assess the appropriateness and security of the spells cast by Romulus Lupin in order to confine his brother during the time of the full moon. As the Head of the Ministry Department that has dealings with such matters, who better to determine such a thing?”
Orion looked furious but gruffly took back his complaint.
“That’s your father, isn’t it?” Rita whispered beside him.
“Unfortunately,” Sirius muttered back.
“You sound like you’re on Lupin’s side,” Rita commented.
“So?”
“So?” Rita echoed. “No one else seems to be.”
Sirius looked about him and listened to the snatches of whispered conversations. The couple in front of him were clearly advocating the harshest penalties for the accused. The man sitting beside the woman was commenting in a nasally tone that it was only a shame they hadn’t captured both of the Lupin boys, and that the more dangerous one was still out there.
“Dumbledore is,” Sirius finally replied with a shrug.
Rita looked down to where Dumbledore was now questioning Horby who, to the obvious disappointment of quite a few members of the Wizengamot, confirmed that he’d rarely seen such effective measures of en-caging werewolves outside of a dangerous creatures camp. He actually seemed quite impressed with the way the spell continued to work regardless of Romulus’s presence. He even openly suggested that the staff at the dangerous creatures camps might take to implementing the forest smells charm in order to calm down their prisoners.
The morning dragged on as the Wizengamot heard evidence from other witnesses, including several residents of Hogsmeade, who all expressed their astonishment at learning they’d had a werewolf living in their midst for so long. Unfortunately the room seemed divided on whether this was a good thing or a bad thing. On the one hand, it was good that they hadn’t noticed a dangerous creature running loose through the village, but on the other hand, it had been noted by one of the residents that Romulus had been working in the village, including on nights of the full moon.
“Remus always knew to get to the basement before sunset,” Romulus explained for the fourth time. “He’s not stupid and I never left him on his own until he was old enough to understand.”
“You took the werewolf to work with you, didn’t you?” Ogden asked.
“Not on a full moon night,” Romulus pointed out.
“Nevertheless, only a dangerous creatures camp can provide the appropriate security that creatures of this kind need.”
“I’m not going to let you put my brother in one of those places,” Romulus replied harshly.
“Well as it happens, the decision is not yours to make,” Ogden calmly pointed out. “The warrant of execution issued seven years ago is still valid today, and only the werewolf’s legal guardian can request its withdrawal. If he is still at large when he comes of age he can make the appropriate application through the proper channels.”
“I believe this would only be relevant if Remus were also here,” Dumbledore interrupted. “Perhaps, we might concentrate on the matter at hand.”
“Excellent idea,” another member of the Wizengamot called out. “I have a question for the accused.”
Dumbledore nodded, as did Ogden. Sirius leaned forward in his seat to see who it was that had spoken. The grey-haired man looked somehow familiar but it wasn’t until Rita whispered in his ear that he realised who it was.
“That’s one of the Potters,” she whispered. “They’re quite controversial in their opinions.”
“How do you know?” Sirius asked.
“I’m going to be a reporter, I make it my business to know,” Rita haughtily replied as she continued taking her notes.
Sirius turned back to the proceedings where a man who could be none other than James Potter’s father was now questioning Romulus.
“Why did you take your brother?” Potter asked.
“So he wouldn’t be murdered by the Ministry,” Romulus replied without hesitation. His reply caused another stirring in the ranks of the Wizengamot.
“It isn’t murder when there is a sanctioned warrant of execution in force,” Ogden declared and he called for silence again.
“I’m sure the accused means no disrespect,” Dumbledore assured the Chief Warlock. Sirius was grateful that Dumbledore was helping to smooth things over although he disagreed with his comment. From the look on Ogden’s face as he glared at an equally furious Romulus, he suspected that no one was really convinced.
“If I may continue?” Potter asked. “Were you aware of the seriousness of your actions when you took your brother away?”
“I was, sir,” Romulus replied.
“And would you have done anything differently, if you had been of age?” a kindly looking witch asked.
“I’d have applied for guardianship of my brother.”
“Why didn’t you do that when you came of age?” Potter asked.
“Because he knew he was facing thirty years or more in Azkaban,” Orion Black called out.
Sirius saw Romulus’s face pale to a near white colour. Thirty years in Azkaban? No one could survive that, not without going completely insane.
Dumbledore raised his hands and shook his head. He reminded Sirius of Professor McGonagall when a student had given an entirely wrong answer to a question much to the hilarity of the rest of the class. “As an adult, Romulus would indeed be facing a rather lengthy stay in Azkaban,” he commented. “But you are forgetting that when most of these crimes were committed, he was an underage wizard, and the penalties for those are not nearly as harsh.”
“He was apparating without a licence just last week,” Orion argued.
“But apparating without a licence doesn’t carry a prison sentence, merely a fine of up to five hundred galleons.”
“Or a prison sentence if the accused does not have the funds,” Orion concluded.
“I believe the Wizengamot has, in the past, allowed payment in instalments of fines,” Dumbledore commented. “But, back to the point in question. As the majority of these crimes were committed when the accused was underage the maximum penalty that can be imposed is ten years in Azkaban.”
“Ten years?” Sirius whispered. Ten years with the dementors didn’t sound that much better than thirty. His father seemed to disagree with that assessment though, and was loudly pointing out that even though the initial abduction had taken place when Romulus was underage, he’d had more than enough time since turning seventeen in which to turn himself in.
The members of the Wizengamot continued to argue about whether Romulus should be sentenced as an adult or an underage wizard for some time. Most of the arguments were going over Sirius’s head, and from the stalling of Rita’s scratching, he suspected she was equally confused about the technicalities.
Finally, it seemed that Dumbledore’s arguments had won out and a vote by the Wizengamot confirmed that the majority were agreeable to Romulus being treated as a juvenile because most of the crimes had been committed, at least initially, while he was still sixteen. Sirius didn’t fail to notice that his father was against the idea, whilst James’s father was quite vocal in his agreement with Dumbledore. In fact, Sirius suspected that it was Mr Potter’s stance, as much as Albus Dumbledore’s, that had helped to sway the Wizengamot in their favour.
“I push for the maximum penalty of ten years,” declared Orion immediately after the vote had been taken.
“Surely, the maximum penalty is a little extreme?” a squeaky-voiced witch piped up. “The accused has been truthful and forthright today. He hasn’t sought to excuse his actions, or waste everyone’s time with a long and drawn out trial.”
“Just wasted everyone’s time by going on the run for seven years,” Orion argued.
“I would ask the Wizengamot to take into account the reasons for the actions of Romulus Lupin,” Dumbledore asked quietly. “The bond between siblings is not always strong, but in this case I doubt anyone would disagree that Romulus did what he did out of love for his brother.”
“The accused’s love for his brother is not in question,” Orion sneered. “I believe that the only thing that could be said that would encourage leniency, would be if the accused were to reveal the location of his brother…does he intend to do so?”
“No, sir,” Romulus replied immediately.
“Then I suggest we adjourn to consider the sentence.”
Ogden nodded thoughtfully. “If there are no more questions…?”
The members of the Wizengamot shook their heads and began to get to their feet.
“Isn’t it exciting?” Rita asked breathlessly as they too stood up and walked towards the exit.
Sirius looked back towards the centre of the room and saw that Dumbledore was speaking quietly to Romulus, who was nodding in a somewhat resigned manner to whatever it was the older man was saying. Sirius wished he could go over and talk to them but couldn’t think of an excuse to do so.
“I think my story needs something…more…” Rita muttered beside him. “I wonder what Dumbledore’s saying to him. I wish I could get close enough to hear. Romulus is quite handsome, isn’t he?”
Sirius was barely listening to Rita as she rattled on.
“I wonder if Dumbledore might like to give me a quote, or maybe Romulus will…?”
“We should probably leave,” Sirius suggested. “Everyone’s going to get lunch, my father gave me some money to go to the Ministry Refectory. Are you coming?”
“In a minute,” Rita said as she climbed over the railings and hurried towards Dumbledore. “Professor Dumbledore?”
“Miss Skeeter,” Dumbledore said politely. “And Mr Black. So nice to see youngsters taking an interest in the justice system. Can I help you Miss Skeeter?”
“I’m doing a report for the school newsletter,” Rita announced as she brandished her notebook importantly. “I thought you might like to give me a quote?” She looked hopefully at Romulus and shot him what she probably thought was her most winning smile.
“May I see that?” Dumbledore asked politely as he pointed to the book.
“Of course, Professor.” Rita handed over her book proudly and was positively preening as Dumbledore flicked through the pages, commenting on things like how impressed he was with the amount of detail she’d included and the like.
Finally he handed the notebook back to her with a smile. “Very informative,” he told her with a nod. “Now, perhaps you should be running along to lunch…”
Rita looked a little disappointed, but was not inclined to argue. She turned towards the doorway, pulling Sirius along with her.
“One moment,” Dumbledore called. “Sirius, I have a message from your father, if you’d wait a moment.” Rita halted as well, but Dumbledore waved her away, telling her that Sirius would be joining her shortly.
Dumbledore waited until Rita was out of the door before turning to Sirius. The room was now empty apart from the three of them.
“My father’s message?” he asked curiously, wondering what his father could have had to say that he hadn’t said that morning.
“Oh, there isn’t one,” Dumbledore chuckled. “But Miss Skeeter is quite persistent when it comes to a story - she’ll make a fine, if rather moral-free, reporter one day.”
“Professor?”
“Oh, her story was true in essentials, but quite exaggerated. Giving her more information for her newsletter would be rather foolish, especially considering the precariousness of Remus’s position.”
“You aren’t going to let her print that story, are you?” Sirius asked.
“I can’t stop her printing it entirely,” Dumbledore sighed. “Not without shutting down the newsletter altogether, and I’d rather not do that unless it’s absolutely necessary. Especially when so many other publications will be reporting on the hearing anyway. But I think I can successfully apply for the removal of Remus’s name from any and all reports about the hearing. He’s still underage and it will be a simple matter for the Wizengamot to cast a spell to remove his name from all notebooks that have been in the room…even those of students.”
“So, Remus’s name won’t be in the paper?” Romulus asked with relief.
“No, I don’t think so,” Dumbledore replied. “That doesn’t mean yours won’t be…you’re of age now and I can’t make the same application on your behalf.”
Romulus nodded in understanding. “Do you still have your mirror?” he asked turning to Sirius. “How’s Rem?”
Sirius smirked as he pulled the carefully wrapped mirror out of his pocket. “I wanted to be able to talk to him as soon as I knew what had happened,” he explained. “I know he’s worried.”
“May I?” Romulus asked.
“You won’t be able to take it into Azkaban with you,” Dumbledore told him as Sirius handed the mirror over.
“If he gets sent to Azkaban,” Sirius corrected.
“They’ve already got me a place booked on the next boat,” Romulus muttered. “The only question is how long I’m going to be there for.”
“We’ll give you a few minutes,” Dumbledore said as he steered Sirius away so that Romulus had the privacy to speak with Remus for a few minutes.
“Professor?” Sirius asked.
“Yes?”
“You said before that it would be worse for Romulus if he got caught than for Remus…”
“I did.”
“But Remus will be killed if he’s caught, isn’t that worse than Azkaban?”
“So young,” Dumbledore mused. “There are worse things than death and few would disagree that dementors fall into that category.”
“Can Remus stay hidden until he’s of age?” Sirius asked.
“I doubt it,” Dumbledore replied sadly. “But there’s new legislation being drafted that might help when it comes into force.”
“I don’t understand.”
“And I’m afraid there’s no time to explain now,” Dumbledore said with a shake of his head. “Let’s just hope that when Remus is brought before the Wizengamot, I will be able to use the new legislation to keep him alive and well.”
Sirius nodded in agreement and let Dumbledore lead him back to where Romulus was still sitting in the chair in the centre of the floor.
“Thank you,” he whispered as he passed the mirror back to Sirius, turning his head away as he did, but not before Sirius had spotted the tears on his face.
“I’d better go catch up with Rita,” Sirius said as he wrapped up the mirror and tucked it back into his pocket.
“Sirius?” Romulus called after him. “Don’t forget your promise.”
“I won’t,” Sirius replied.
“We’ll look after him,” Dumbledore assured Romulus kindly. “You just remember what I’ve taught you.”
“I still don’t know if I can do it,” Romulus replied.
“Yes, you can,” Dumbledore stated firmly. “You know what the dementors are, you know how they feed, this is the best chance you have of coming back out of there with your sanity intact.”
“But…”
“Think of Remus,” Dumbledore advised quietly.
Then Sirius was out of earshot and heard no more of the conversation.
-o-xXx-o-
Sirius could still hear his father raging downstairs, when he finally managed to slip away to his room.
He activated his mirror as soon as his door was shut.
Later, he couldn’t help but compare the reaction of Remus with that of his father.
“Six years!” Orion had shouted, thoroughly disgusted with what he perceived to be a light sentence.
Remus on the other hand had barely been able to choke out a reply to the news. Sirius had ended up speaking with Firenze and wishing there was something more he could do. More than anything, he wished he was in the Forbidden Forest with his friend. He didn’t know how Remus was going to make it through the rest of the summer holidays and he wanted nothing more than to be in Scotland with him.
Chapter 14
Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognise. J K Rowling retains all copyright.
No Regrets (PG)
Sirius wasn’t surprised to find that Dumbledore was waiting for him when he arrived in the castle.
“Come with me,” Dumbledore said quietly as he hurried towards his office.
“You have to help them,” Sirius panted as he struggled to keep up with the surprisingly agile headmaster.
“I intend to,” Dumbledore replied. “Romulus won’t get far, and he’ll be brought before the Wizengamot within a couple of weeks.”
“A couple of weeks?” Sirius asked. “But…”
“Assuming he can give them the slip for that long,” Dumbledore amended. “But he’s a resourceful young man, and I have every faith in him.”
“But can’t you…?”
“I’ll do everything I can to help him, but until he’s caught my hands are tied.”
“But if he’s caught he’ll be sent to Azkaban.”
“Do you subscribe to the Daily Prophet?” Dumbledore asked, throwing Sirius slightly off balance with the rather random question.
“No, but my father does.”
“I suggest you read it once you get home. Romulus’s capture will be big news. The Ministry will make sure of that, especially since so many other publications have criticised them for their inability to apprehend the Lupin brothers. Now, where’s Remus?”
“In the forest with Firenze,” Sirius replied. “Romulus wants me to help him, but how can I? I won’t be here.”
“I’ll keep an eye on things until you return,” Dumbledore assured him. “He’s in good hands with Firenze, though I imagine the young centaur has problems of his own right now.”
“He said his father’s been challenged.”
“Torin was a good centaur, a good friend.”
“You make it sound like he’s dead.”
“He would never take the life of a member of his herd, not even if his own were at risk. If Magorian is not already leader of the herd, I have no doubt he will be by nightfall.”
Sirius looked out of the window at the early morning sun. He wondered how he was going to concentrate on his lessons today, knowing the turmoil that Remus, Romulus and Firenze were embroiled in.
It seemed that Dumbledore was one step ahead of him as always. The headmaster ushered him out of his office and ordered him back to the dormitories to catch up on the sleep he’d missed the night before.
-o-xXx-o-
It was two weeks into the summer holidays when the news of Romulus’s capture reached Sirius. He’d been reading the Daily Prophet every day, but as it happened, the news reached him from another source.
“The Aurors have captured one of the Lupins,” Orion announced over dinner on a muggy July evening. “Brought him in this afternoon, captured down near Folkstone, about to board a ferry. Thought he’d give us the slip by using muggle transport, as well as illegally apparating. Didn’t work though, did it? He didn’t wager on the Ministry anticipating him attempting that.”
Sirius pushed his vegetables around his plate as he listened to his father. His appetite had disappeared as soon as he’d heard the news.
“Sirius, stop playing with your food!” Walburga ordered. “And Regulus, sit up straight. You may be a useless squib, but that’s no excuse for bad manners.”
Sirius shot his brother a look across the table. The younger boy looked like he was about to burst into tears. Sirius wished there was something he could do to distract his parents from further criticising his brother, then he realised that there was.
“Father?” he asked. “Will you be sitting in the Wizengamot when they deal with R- Lupin?” Sirius hoped that no one had caught his near slip; he breathed a sigh of relief that his parents were too busy criticising Regulus to have noticed.
“Of course I will,” Orion replied, as though this was a very pointless and stupid question.
“Can I come and watch?” Sirius asked.
“Whatever for?” Walburga snorted and shook her head. “Your time would be put to much better use doing your homework and coming with me to social gatherings.”
“Now then,” Orion chided. “There’s nothing wrong with our son wanting to see justice in action. He might even decide to follow in my footsteps, help uphold wizarding law in years to come. It’ll be a good experience for him, and a trial like this will be open to the public.”
“I can come with you?” Sirius asked hopefully.
“As long as you’re up in time,” Orion replied with a sharp glare. “I can’t be late for an important case like this, so you’ll need to be ready to leave at seven.”
“I will be,” Sirius promised, knowing that he probably wouldn’t be able to sleep at all due to worrying so much.
-o-xXx-o-
Sirius slipped away from the dinner table and up to his room at the first available opportunity.
He pulled his mirror out of the back of his journal where he’d been keeping it locked away and tapped it.
Remus appeared almost immediately, and Sirius knew that the other boy had been waiting to hear from him. Remus looked older than he had before, even though it was only a few weeks since they’d last seen each other. Worry lines that should never be on a face so young were clearly visible.
“They’ve caught him, haven’t they?” Remus asked.
Sirius wondered whether it was something in his face that had given it away, or whether Remus had already known on some instinctive level. It didn’t really matter either way, and Sirius watched his friend’s face fall as the last trace of hope vanished.
“I’m going to the Wizengamot tomorrow,” Sirius told him quietly. “I’ll let you know what happens.”
Remus nodded in the mirror but Sirius could tell he was too upset to form words.
-o-xXx-o-
“He’ll be alright,” Firenze said, after Remus had stowed his mirror away once more.
“He’ll be sent to Azkaban,” Remus whispered. “People die in Azkaban. I’m never going to see him again.”
“Maybe the Wizengamot will understand why he did what he did?”
“I have to go there, I have to see him,” Remus said as he gathered his things together.
“You can’t, it’s too dangerous,” Firenze warned him. “They’ll be expecting you to do that.”
“But I have to…”
“Romulus wouldn’t want you to be captured,” Firenze pointed out.
“And your father wouldn’t want you to be trying to raise the other centaurs to fight against Magorian,” Remus countered.
“That’s different.”
“No, it’s not. We’ve both been told to run and hide when we should be…” Remus’s voice trailed off and he sank down onto the grass.
“You’re right,” Firenze stated quietly after several minutes of uneasy silence. “My father wouldn’t want me to split the herd like this.”
“Do you think they’ll accept you back?”
“In time, if I don’t challenge Magorian…”
“Why don’t you go back now and ask if they’ll take you back? It has to be better than living rough in the forest.”
“And leave you here on your own?” Firenze shook his head. “I can’t do that. Your brother would kill me if I left you to fend for yourself.”
“If he were here,” Remus pointed out bitterly.
“He’ll come back; nothing would stop him from watching over you.”
“I hope you’re right,” Remus whispered.
“So do I,” Firenze replied in a whisper so quiet that Remus barely heard it.
-o-xXx-o-
Sirius stood nervously at the entrance to the public gallery of the Wizengamot as he looked for a spare seat. He could barely believe how many people were in the crowded room.
“Took them long enough to catch him,” a woman behind him commented.
“Still haven’t got the other one though,” her companion replied. “Makes the Ministry look incompetent…even more so than usual.”
Sirius felt someone shoving him between the shoulder blades, and he moved further into the room. He wished his father had not deposited him at the door quite so suddenly. Even though he was slightly tall for his age, he felt small amongst all the older witches and wizards. He was just wishing he recognised someone when he heard the sound of a familiar voice coming from a seat near the front.
Rita Skeeter was sitting in the public gallery with a notebook and quill at the ready. Sirius contemplated turning back and finding somewhere else to sit, but there was an empty seat right beside her in the second row. He realised as soon as he’d sat down beside her why the seat was empty; a woman with an obnoxiously large hat sat directly in front of him, effectively blocking the view of the accused’s seat in the centre of the floor.
“Sirius!” Rita exclaimed excitedly. “I didn’t think to see you here. I’m reporting on the trial for the school newsletter. Dumbledore’s letting the Slytherin Standard go to the whole school next term.”
“How…nice,” Sirius muttered as he tried to see around the woman in front of him.
“He says I have to change the name though,” Rita complained. “Something to show the newsletter’s about the whole school.”
“So if the newsletter’s about the school, why are you reporting on this?” Sirius gestured to the floor where several members of the Wizengamot were standing talking before the proceedings began.
“Romulus Lupin was a Hogwarts student,” Rita explained. “He was a prefect and one of the top students in his year. He was in Hufflepuff house, and everyone was really surprised when he didn’t go back to do his NEWTs. My brother was in the year above him and told me all about it.”
“What happened?” Sirius asked, wondering what rumours had circulated the summer the Lupin brothers had ran away.
“Well…” Rita launched into a detailed list of the various rumours that had circulated the halls of Hogwarts that year. When she got to the tidbit about Romulus and Remus masterminding a plan to rob Gringotts he actually laughed out loud. Unfortunately for Rita she didn’t manage to finish her list because proceedings were about to start.
Sirius strained to see what was happening, and flashed Rita a grateful smile when she prodded the wizard on her right with her quill. This encouraged him to move along slightly, so that she and Sirius could do likewise.
Sirius watched as Romulus was led into the room. He breathed a grateful sigh of relief when he saw that Albus Dumbledore was accompanying him. Romulus looked tired, and far older than when Sirius had last seen him. His hair was a little unkempt and he looked as though he hadn’t shaved in a couple of days.
“That’s strange,” Rita whispered into his ear.
“What?” Sirius hissed back.
“Dumbledore’s Chief Warlock,” Rita murmured. “But someone else is sitting in his seat instead.”
It seemed that Rita was not the only one to have noticed the oddity, and the whisperings of the crowd were becoming louder and louder, until finally the wizard sitting in the seat of the Chief Warlock called for silence.
“The accused will stand,” the Chief Warlock commanded. “State your name and date of birth for the record.”
Romulus’s reply was clear but Sirius could hear the slight tremor in his voice.
“And representing the accused?” the Chief Warlock continued.
“Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore,” Albus Dumbledore announced.
The Chief Warlock nodded. “Let the record show that Albus Dumbledore stands for the accused instead of sitting as Chief Warlock. Let it also show that I, Tiberius Ogden sit as Chief Warlock in his stead.” He shot a glance at a younger wizard who was seated further down the row, scribbling frantically.
Sirius waited impatiently as the formalities were dragged out, rather unnecessarily in his opinion. He suspected that the still standing Romulus might share his opinion. Surely it was better to just get this over with?
Ogden finally seemed to realise that everyone in the room was shifting impatiently and turned back to Romulus. “Romulus Lupin, you stand accused of various crimes committed in contravention of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, the Decree for Apparition Restrictions and the Decree for the Control of Dangerous Creatures. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir,” Romulus replied with a nod of his head.
Ogden nodded in acknowledgement and turned to the parchment before him. “Do you admit that on the date of the fifth of July, nineteen sixty six, you did perform the Expelliarmus disarming spell on John Lupin?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And do you accept that at that time you were aware that at the age of sixteen years such a spell was in contravention of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery?”
“Yes, sir.”
Ogden nodded and turned to the scribe to ensure that he was still taking notes, before referring to his parchment again.
“Do you admit that on the same date of fifth July you did remove Remus John Lupin, a child of six years of age, from the lawful custody of his parents, John and Celeste Lupin?”
“Yes, sir.”
Ogden looked somewhat surprised at this reply and it was apparent from the whispers in the public gallery that many people had been expecting a different reply to the one they had heard.
Ogden didn’t let the whispering hold matters up for long though and returned to his list after only a moment’s hesitation. “Would the accused please clarify whether he was aware at the time of the abduction that there was a warrant of execution issued on the afternoon of the fifth of July for Remus John Lupin?”
The gasps from the public gallery were louder this time and Ogden had to shout for order again. Sirius couldn’t tell if Romulus had replied to the question or not, though he was sure that whether he’d known about the warrant or not would have made no difference to his actions.
Sirius watched Dumbledore give a small nod to Romulus, before turning to face Odgen and the rest of the interrogators. “I think we can safely assume that at the time of the…abduction…no one in the Lupin residence had been notified of the success or failure of the application for the warrant. The boys had left the vicinity before the Officers from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures arrived.”
“Does this accused agree with this?” Odgen asked.
“Yes, sir.”
“We’ll continue then.” Ogden returned to scanning the parchment in front of him and Sirius caught a glimpse of how long it was. He hoped that it wasn’t all a list of accusations, after all how many laws could he have broken? “Do you admit that when you left the residence of John and Celeste Lupin you did apparate without a licence at the risk of your own health and wellbeing and that of Remus Lupin whom was apparated alongside you?”
Romulus looked like he was about to make some sort of sarcastic response but Dumbledore was stepping in again. “I think we can safely assume that all instances of underage magic and apparating without a licence will be admitted to, without the need to go through them all individually,” he stated calmly. “Perhaps we might move on to the more complicated business at hand?”
Ogden looked a little put out, but nodded his agreement. “Very well.” He shuffled through the parchments until he found the one that he was looking for. “Romulus Lupin, do you admit that between the fifth of July nineteen sixty six and an unspecified date in June of this year, you did commit the following offences? You did neglect to inform the Ministry of Magic that you knew the whereabouts of a dangerous creature, namely a werewolf…”
At the word ‘werewolf’ the public gallery let out so many cries of astonishment that Odgen threatened to clear the room of all non-official persons. Rita had actually dropped her quill in surprise. It seemed that despite all the rumours about what had happened to the Lupins, the mention of a werewolf was a surprise to most people in the room. Thankfully for Sirius the room finally settled down again as no one wanted to be forced to leave before the conclusion of the case.
The room waited as Odgen repeated the charge and Romulus replied in the affirmative.
Sirius risked a glance to the side of him and saw that Rita was now writing away again. She seemed to have recovered from her own surprise fairly quickly and was scribbling away at her notebook.
Meanwhile, the list of charges went on and on. Sirius wondered if Romulus had known at the time how many laws he’d been breaking, when he’d taken Remus away from their parents. Failure to notify the Ministry of the whereabouts of a werewolf, failure to ensure that a werewolf in his custody was properly registered, disrupting aurors in their duty to capture said werewolf, failure to properly secure said werewolf on the nights of the full moon…
Sirius frowned at this last one, wondering just what more Romulus could have done to keep Remus, and anyone in the vicinity, safe during the full moon. It seemed that he was not the only one who was of that opinion.
“I would call a witness to speak on the accused’s behalf in relation to the security at the Hogsmeade residence of the Lupin brothers,” Dumbledore requested.
Ogden nodded in agreement, though Sirius suspected that he was simply reluctant to argue with the man who was standing before him.
“I call Officer Horby of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures,” Dumbledore announced.
“You can’t call a Ministry worker!” a horribly familiar voice called out from a seat to the left of the Chief Warlock. Sirius looked across the room at his father, and hoped that no one would listen to his complaint.
“Orion.” Dumbledore acknowledged the other man with a polite nod. “I merely call Horby to assess the appropriateness and security of the spells cast by Romulus Lupin in order to confine his brother during the time of the full moon. As the Head of the Ministry Department that has dealings with such matters, who better to determine such a thing?”
Orion looked furious but gruffly took back his complaint.
“That’s your father, isn’t it?” Rita whispered beside him.
“Unfortunately,” Sirius muttered back.
“You sound like you’re on Lupin’s side,” Rita commented.
“So?”
“So?” Rita echoed. “No one else seems to be.”
Sirius looked about him and listened to the snatches of whispered conversations. The couple in front of him were clearly advocating the harshest penalties for the accused. The man sitting beside the woman was commenting in a nasally tone that it was only a shame they hadn’t captured both of the Lupin boys, and that the more dangerous one was still out there.
“Dumbledore is,” Sirius finally replied with a shrug.
Rita looked down to where Dumbledore was now questioning Horby who, to the obvious disappointment of quite a few members of the Wizengamot, confirmed that he’d rarely seen such effective measures of en-caging werewolves outside of a dangerous creatures camp. He actually seemed quite impressed with the way the spell continued to work regardless of Romulus’s presence. He even openly suggested that the staff at the dangerous creatures camps might take to implementing the forest smells charm in order to calm down their prisoners.
The morning dragged on as the Wizengamot heard evidence from other witnesses, including several residents of Hogsmeade, who all expressed their astonishment at learning they’d had a werewolf living in their midst for so long. Unfortunately the room seemed divided on whether this was a good thing or a bad thing. On the one hand, it was good that they hadn’t noticed a dangerous creature running loose through the village, but on the other hand, it had been noted by one of the residents that Romulus had been working in the village, including on nights of the full moon.
“Remus always knew to get to the basement before sunset,” Romulus explained for the fourth time. “He’s not stupid and I never left him on his own until he was old enough to understand.”
“You took the werewolf to work with you, didn’t you?” Ogden asked.
“Not on a full moon night,” Romulus pointed out.
“Nevertheless, only a dangerous creatures camp can provide the appropriate security that creatures of this kind need.”
“I’m not going to let you put my brother in one of those places,” Romulus replied harshly.
“Well as it happens, the decision is not yours to make,” Ogden calmly pointed out. “The warrant of execution issued seven years ago is still valid today, and only the werewolf’s legal guardian can request its withdrawal. If he is still at large when he comes of age he can make the appropriate application through the proper channels.”
“I believe this would only be relevant if Remus were also here,” Dumbledore interrupted. “Perhaps, we might concentrate on the matter at hand.”
“Excellent idea,” another member of the Wizengamot called out. “I have a question for the accused.”
Dumbledore nodded, as did Ogden. Sirius leaned forward in his seat to see who it was that had spoken. The grey-haired man looked somehow familiar but it wasn’t until Rita whispered in his ear that he realised who it was.
“That’s one of the Potters,” she whispered. “They’re quite controversial in their opinions.”
“How do you know?” Sirius asked.
“I’m going to be a reporter, I make it my business to know,” Rita haughtily replied as she continued taking her notes.
Sirius turned back to the proceedings where a man who could be none other than James Potter’s father was now questioning Romulus.
“Why did you take your brother?” Potter asked.
“So he wouldn’t be murdered by the Ministry,” Romulus replied without hesitation. His reply caused another stirring in the ranks of the Wizengamot.
“It isn’t murder when there is a sanctioned warrant of execution in force,” Ogden declared and he called for silence again.
“I’m sure the accused means no disrespect,” Dumbledore assured the Chief Warlock. Sirius was grateful that Dumbledore was helping to smooth things over although he disagreed with his comment. From the look on Ogden’s face as he glared at an equally furious Romulus, he suspected that no one was really convinced.
“If I may continue?” Potter asked. “Were you aware of the seriousness of your actions when you took your brother away?”
“I was, sir,” Romulus replied.
“And would you have done anything differently, if you had been of age?” a kindly looking witch asked.
“I’d have applied for guardianship of my brother.”
“Why didn’t you do that when you came of age?” Potter asked.
“Because he knew he was facing thirty years or more in Azkaban,” Orion Black called out.
Sirius saw Romulus’s face pale to a near white colour. Thirty years in Azkaban? No one could survive that, not without going completely insane.
Dumbledore raised his hands and shook his head. He reminded Sirius of Professor McGonagall when a student had given an entirely wrong answer to a question much to the hilarity of the rest of the class. “As an adult, Romulus would indeed be facing a rather lengthy stay in Azkaban,” he commented. “But you are forgetting that when most of these crimes were committed, he was an underage wizard, and the penalties for those are not nearly as harsh.”
“He was apparating without a licence just last week,” Orion argued.
“But apparating without a licence doesn’t carry a prison sentence, merely a fine of up to five hundred galleons.”
“Or a prison sentence if the accused does not have the funds,” Orion concluded.
“I believe the Wizengamot has, in the past, allowed payment in instalments of fines,” Dumbledore commented. “But, back to the point in question. As the majority of these crimes were committed when the accused was underage the maximum penalty that can be imposed is ten years in Azkaban.”
“Ten years?” Sirius whispered. Ten years with the dementors didn’t sound that much better than thirty. His father seemed to disagree with that assessment though, and was loudly pointing out that even though the initial abduction had taken place when Romulus was underage, he’d had more than enough time since turning seventeen in which to turn himself in.
The members of the Wizengamot continued to argue about whether Romulus should be sentenced as an adult or an underage wizard for some time. Most of the arguments were going over Sirius’s head, and from the stalling of Rita’s scratching, he suspected she was equally confused about the technicalities.
Finally, it seemed that Dumbledore’s arguments had won out and a vote by the Wizengamot confirmed that the majority were agreeable to Romulus being treated as a juvenile because most of the crimes had been committed, at least initially, while he was still sixteen. Sirius didn’t fail to notice that his father was against the idea, whilst James’s father was quite vocal in his agreement with Dumbledore. In fact, Sirius suspected that it was Mr Potter’s stance, as much as Albus Dumbledore’s, that had helped to sway the Wizengamot in their favour.
“I push for the maximum penalty of ten years,” declared Orion immediately after the vote had been taken.
“Surely, the maximum penalty is a little extreme?” a squeaky-voiced witch piped up. “The accused has been truthful and forthright today. He hasn’t sought to excuse his actions, or waste everyone’s time with a long and drawn out trial.”
“Just wasted everyone’s time by going on the run for seven years,” Orion argued.
“I would ask the Wizengamot to take into account the reasons for the actions of Romulus Lupin,” Dumbledore asked quietly. “The bond between siblings is not always strong, but in this case I doubt anyone would disagree that Romulus did what he did out of love for his brother.”
“The accused’s love for his brother is not in question,” Orion sneered. “I believe that the only thing that could be said that would encourage leniency, would be if the accused were to reveal the location of his brother…does he intend to do so?”
“No, sir,” Romulus replied immediately.
“Then I suggest we adjourn to consider the sentence.”
Ogden nodded thoughtfully. “If there are no more questions…?”
The members of the Wizengamot shook their heads and began to get to their feet.
“Isn’t it exciting?” Rita asked breathlessly as they too stood up and walked towards the exit.
Sirius looked back towards the centre of the room and saw that Dumbledore was speaking quietly to Romulus, who was nodding in a somewhat resigned manner to whatever it was the older man was saying. Sirius wished he could go over and talk to them but couldn’t think of an excuse to do so.
“I think my story needs something…more…” Rita muttered beside him. “I wonder what Dumbledore’s saying to him. I wish I could get close enough to hear. Romulus is quite handsome, isn’t he?”
Sirius was barely listening to Rita as she rattled on.
“I wonder if Dumbledore might like to give me a quote, or maybe Romulus will…?”
“We should probably leave,” Sirius suggested. “Everyone’s going to get lunch, my father gave me some money to go to the Ministry Refectory. Are you coming?”
“In a minute,” Rita said as she climbed over the railings and hurried towards Dumbledore. “Professor Dumbledore?”
“Miss Skeeter,” Dumbledore said politely. “And Mr Black. So nice to see youngsters taking an interest in the justice system. Can I help you Miss Skeeter?”
“I’m doing a report for the school newsletter,” Rita announced as she brandished her notebook importantly. “I thought you might like to give me a quote?” She looked hopefully at Romulus and shot him what she probably thought was her most winning smile.
“May I see that?” Dumbledore asked politely as he pointed to the book.
“Of course, Professor.” Rita handed over her book proudly and was positively preening as Dumbledore flicked through the pages, commenting on things like how impressed he was with the amount of detail she’d included and the like.
Finally he handed the notebook back to her with a smile. “Very informative,” he told her with a nod. “Now, perhaps you should be running along to lunch…”
Rita looked a little disappointed, but was not inclined to argue. She turned towards the doorway, pulling Sirius along with her.
“One moment,” Dumbledore called. “Sirius, I have a message from your father, if you’d wait a moment.” Rita halted as well, but Dumbledore waved her away, telling her that Sirius would be joining her shortly.
Dumbledore waited until Rita was out of the door before turning to Sirius. The room was now empty apart from the three of them.
“My father’s message?” he asked curiously, wondering what his father could have had to say that he hadn’t said that morning.
“Oh, there isn’t one,” Dumbledore chuckled. “But Miss Skeeter is quite persistent when it comes to a story - she’ll make a fine, if rather moral-free, reporter one day.”
“Professor?”
“Oh, her story was true in essentials, but quite exaggerated. Giving her more information for her newsletter would be rather foolish, especially considering the precariousness of Remus’s position.”
“You aren’t going to let her print that story, are you?” Sirius asked.
“I can’t stop her printing it entirely,” Dumbledore sighed. “Not without shutting down the newsletter altogether, and I’d rather not do that unless it’s absolutely necessary. Especially when so many other publications will be reporting on the hearing anyway. But I think I can successfully apply for the removal of Remus’s name from any and all reports about the hearing. He’s still underage and it will be a simple matter for the Wizengamot to cast a spell to remove his name from all notebooks that have been in the room…even those of students.”
“So, Remus’s name won’t be in the paper?” Romulus asked with relief.
“No, I don’t think so,” Dumbledore replied. “That doesn’t mean yours won’t be…you’re of age now and I can’t make the same application on your behalf.”
Romulus nodded in understanding. “Do you still have your mirror?” he asked turning to Sirius. “How’s Rem?”
Sirius smirked as he pulled the carefully wrapped mirror out of his pocket. “I wanted to be able to talk to him as soon as I knew what had happened,” he explained. “I know he’s worried.”
“May I?” Romulus asked.
“You won’t be able to take it into Azkaban with you,” Dumbledore told him as Sirius handed the mirror over.
“If he gets sent to Azkaban,” Sirius corrected.
“They’ve already got me a place booked on the next boat,” Romulus muttered. “The only question is how long I’m going to be there for.”
“We’ll give you a few minutes,” Dumbledore said as he steered Sirius away so that Romulus had the privacy to speak with Remus for a few minutes.
“Professor?” Sirius asked.
“Yes?”
“You said before that it would be worse for Romulus if he got caught than for Remus…”
“I did.”
“But Remus will be killed if he’s caught, isn’t that worse than Azkaban?”
“So young,” Dumbledore mused. “There are worse things than death and few would disagree that dementors fall into that category.”
“Can Remus stay hidden until he’s of age?” Sirius asked.
“I doubt it,” Dumbledore replied sadly. “But there’s new legislation being drafted that might help when it comes into force.”
“I don’t understand.”
“And I’m afraid there’s no time to explain now,” Dumbledore said with a shake of his head. “Let’s just hope that when Remus is brought before the Wizengamot, I will be able to use the new legislation to keep him alive and well.”
Sirius nodded in agreement and let Dumbledore lead him back to where Romulus was still sitting in the chair in the centre of the floor.
“Thank you,” he whispered as he passed the mirror back to Sirius, turning his head away as he did, but not before Sirius had spotted the tears on his face.
“I’d better go catch up with Rita,” Sirius said as he wrapped up the mirror and tucked it back into his pocket.
“Sirius?” Romulus called after him. “Don’t forget your promise.”
“I won’t,” Sirius replied.
“We’ll look after him,” Dumbledore assured Romulus kindly. “You just remember what I’ve taught you.”
“I still don’t know if I can do it,” Romulus replied.
“Yes, you can,” Dumbledore stated firmly. “You know what the dementors are, you know how they feed, this is the best chance you have of coming back out of there with your sanity intact.”
“But…”
“Think of Remus,” Dumbledore advised quietly.
Then Sirius was out of earshot and heard no more of the conversation.
-o-xXx-o-
Sirius could still hear his father raging downstairs, when he finally managed to slip away to his room.
He activated his mirror as soon as his door was shut.
Later, he couldn’t help but compare the reaction of Remus with that of his father.
“Six years!” Orion had shouted, thoroughly disgusted with what he perceived to be a light sentence.
Remus on the other hand had barely been able to choke out a reply to the news. Sirius had ended up speaking with Firenze and wishing there was something more he could do. More than anything, he wished he was in the Forbidden Forest with his friend. He didn’t know how Remus was going to make it through the rest of the summer holidays and he wanted nothing more than to be in Scotland with him.
Chapter 14