“Azkaban for life!” Ron cried out suddenly while they were seated around the fireplace of their common room.
It was the first time Ron had spoken since the “trial”, or fabrication thereof. No examination of the evidence had actually occurred at any point. The Minister had simply handed down her verdict, “guilty on all charges.”
“I just don’t understand,” Hermione moaned for the fifth time looking imploringly at Ginny, “how can they believe that Percy is a murderer?”
Ginny sighed, not for the first time that morning. “I already told you, they checked his wand and it was definitely the one that cast the killing charm and opened the top security areas in the Ministry.”
“So he lost the wand and later found it,” Ron insisted stubbornly, though this was ground that they had already covered.
“He swore that at no point did he leave his wand unattended,” Ginny reiterated.
“At no point that he knew of,” Ron cut in, but they all knew this conversation would lead to a dead end as Hermione had suggested the very same logic only minutes prior.
“Percy swore under oath that he was the only one in his office all night long and that he did not doze off at any point. There is just no possible person that could have stolen his wand,” Ginny responded.
“Not to mention,” Hermione added, “they tested to see if he was under a Confundous Charm and he was not. No one drugged or cursed him, best as they can tell.”
“What I don’t understand,” Ginny spoke up, “is why he did not offer those possibilities in his defense? Why did he insist that no one had been around him?”
Harry shook his head in frustration; Percy’s behavior had him greatly perplexed, although not in the same sense as his friends. He leaned back into the cozy couch that he was occupying, though it could have been made from porcupine spikes for all the attention he paid it. His thoughts were fixed firmly on Percy’s performance during the trial. Percy had insisted he was innocent, though he shot down every possible alibi that had been offered to save him and unlike his friends, Harry knew that there was a clue in that.
A real Death Eater would have acted in one of two ways; either he would have happily declared his service to Voldemort and taunted the Ministry by the magnitude of the crime that had been committed within their midst, or he would have offered up a million and one excuses as to why he couldn’t be the killer while pleading for compassion and mercy. Percy had done neither, though he had sneezed an awful lot. So much so, that the only thought of his that Ginny could hear was the repetitive “I have to sneeze…” choo, “I have to sneeze…” choo! Naturally, it had aggravated her to no end.
As some footsteps began clumsily clamoring down the boys’ stairwell Harry realized that the recent developments would soon become common knowledge around the school. He leaned closely to Ginny to ask her about another matter that had him confounded.
“Why did the Ministry present us with accusations at the beginning of the trial?”
Ginny frowned furiously, turning to make sure that no one could overhear their conversation.
“Mundungus Fletcher,” she answered promptly, “in order to get out of trouble and avoid going to Azkaban he traded them some information about the Order.”
“Specifically, about us,” Harry guessed and Ginny nodded in response.
Harry let out a string of expletives. Ron shot him a curious glance, but when Harry didn’t respond to the unasked question he went back to discussing the matter of Percy’s trial with Hermione.
“We should tell Dumbledore about that lousy traitor,” Harry whispered in Ginny’s ear.
“He already knows and is quite furious,” Ginny assured him, “but he hasn’t kicked Mundungus out of the Order.”
“Why not?” Harry asked, infuriated.
“I’m not entirely sure. Sometimes I think the old man’s really losing his mind,” Ginny confided in hushed tones.
Hungry witches and wizards began streaming into the common room at a steady pace so Harry and company ended their private conversation and followed the crowd off to breakfast. Before long, as Ron was placing eggs and bacon between two pieces of toast, the owls came whooshing into the Great Hall to deliver the Daily Prophet to those who had a subscription. An owl landed in front of Hermione and she quickly paid it while Ginny opened it to the front page to reveal a large photo of Percy being hauled away by the new Azkaban guards.
Ron became highly flustered and seemed to lose his appetite altogether. He gathered his things and made his way out of the Great Hall before people had the chance is finish reading the article. Hermione wrapped up the uneaten sandwich that he had left behind and quickly ran to catch up to him. Harry was halfway out of his seat to follow them when Ginny suddenly grabbed his forearm and forced him back.
“Read this,” she hissed, shoving the paper into his hands.
Ministry Murderer: Lost and Found
The Ministry showed great strides in their effort to beef up security early this morning with the trial of Percy Weasley who was accused and convicted of murdering and dismembering the body of Igor Karkaroff. Their attempt met with a defiant end when the ship delivering Percy Weasley to Azkaban was waylaid and overcome by unidentifiable wizards.
“I’m telling you they were pirates,” was all that a Ministry official that received a blow to the head alleged as he was being transferred to St. Mungos trauma department.
“Clearly he has been confounded or is otherwise suffering from a head injury,” a spokeswoman for the Ministry insisted, denying the claim that a pirate ship had kidnapped the convicted murder.
However, the Daily Prophet has received exclusive knowledge from a top inside official at the Ministry that confirms that a pirate ship did indeed attack the Ministry ship.
“Pirates are Muggle sea bandits that raid random ships for loot or as it referred to by Muggles ‘booty’. We believe that the crew of this pirate ship was under the imperious curse and were not acting of their accord. Nor were they alone. Wizards and/or witches, that is to say magical persons, were casting spells to disarm the guards of the murderer,” he told us.
When we pressed for more information, another Ministry official spoke on the condition of anonymity:
“Here at the Ministry many people are upset with the persecution of Arthur Weasley’s sons. Personally I would not be surprised if the guards had been lax in their duties on purpose.”
The persecution the source was referring to applies not only to Percy Weasley. Before the murder trial, Fred and George Weasley, entrepreneurs of the famous Weasley Wizarding Wheezes, were charged and fined for their part in a pre-trial disturbance that occurred at the Ministry when they attempted to break out their older brother.
“I’m not entirely sure how my sons learned that Percy was going to be tried for Igor Karkaroff’s murder,” Mr. Weasley told us as he entered the Ministry with his sobbing wife by his side, “but I’m sure they didn’t mean to turn the Minister into a horn-huckeled bullfrog.”
“At least Bill got to them before they came to any harm,” Mrs. Weasley interjected before being led inside the Ministry to attend her son’s trial.
Along with Fred, George and Bill, Ginevra Weasley and Harry Potter were also forced to attend and answer to outlandish accusations of which they were quickly acquitted.
Continued on page 6…
As Harry made to turn to page six to read the rest of the article he felt an unnerving feeling that all eyes were now on him. When he braved a peek he found that virtually everyone in the Great Hall was staring directly at him and Ginny. Opting to read the rest of the article in privacy, he grabbed hold of Ginny’s hand and they scuttled out from under the scrutinizing eyes of their fellow students. Even before the doors had closed behind them they could hear an audible upswing in the whispers, gossiping, and conjecture.
“Well at least there are quite a few people that refuse to believe Percy is a murderer,” Ginny mumbled, hoping to point out the silver lining.
“That’s nice,” Harry replied, “but how many of them are likely to believe that pirates kidnapped him?”
Ginny took a moment to seriously consider his flippant question before responding. “I believe it.”
The sincerity of her response startled Harry so much so that he stepped onto the screeching step of the staircase leading to the dungeons hallway. After making his mistake and getting an earful of berating as a result he turned to Ginny in amazement.
“Pirates do not exist anymore,” he told her gently.
“Of course they do,” Ginny retorted, “how else could they kidnap Percy?”
Harry was stunned. He had not expected Ginny to believe the rubbish excuse that the Ministry had given the Daily Prophet about Percy’s whereabouts. “Pirates did not kidnap Percy,” he told her in measured tones.
“Alright,” Ginny said with a sigh, looking as though she was willing to humor her dimwitted friend, “than who do you think has Percy?”
Harry took a moment to consider the matter. “Either he has escaped on his own,” Harry said, putting up his hands to ward off Ginny’s exasperation, “or he has been kidnapped…but not by pirates.”
Ginny rolled her eyes in response, “Are you quite finished?” When she received the affirming nod she was seeking she continued. “Pirates are as real as you and I, something I learned in Muggle Studies, though I do not believe that they have Percy. I suspect that members of the Order or Ministry Officials unhappy with the outcome of the trial had their hand in Percy’s disappearance. Who else would be silly enough to use Pirates as a cover when the entire muggle-born population is sure to react just as you have?”
Harry pretended to mull over the possibility though Ginny was not fooled by the concerned look in his eyes. “You disagree?” she guessed, confused that he was not applauding her genius.
“I want to agree,” Harry said wistfully, “but you’re forgetting that the only living people to ever have escaped from Azkaban are not on our side.”
Ginny went pale as the warning behind his words sunk into her mind. Could the Death Eaters have kidnapped Percy, and if so why?
That was the question on everyone’s mind during the passing days. Behind books and with not-so-stealth glances in their direction, people continued to argue in murmurs about Percy’s whereabouts and his innocence. The rudeness didn’t bother Harry, but than he had become accustomed to being the schools main source of gossip. Ginny, however, was not. With each passing day she seemed to grow increasingly introverted, speaking only to those closest to her. Harry was not thrilled that she counted Dean as among those nearest and dearest to her heart, but he was elated by the fact that she talked more to him than anyone else, including Dean.
Only one thing truly plagued Harry as the days rolled by. He was visited by a nagging feeling, or rather, a strong suspicion that he had forgotten something. As the time passed his unease continued to grow, until it was compounding faster than a snowball rolling down a hill. A couple weeks after the persistent annoyance had started he bolted upright in his bed. Finally, he remembered what he had forgotten. A chill ran down his spine.
In Adversity We Know Our Friends by Wise Owl
Chapter Notes: I didn't want to leave you hanging for too long! This chapter tells you what happened during the trial and afterwards...If you can figure out what the title means than you are amazing! ;)