Chapter Seventeen: Witness for the Defense
“The Defense calls Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore.”
There was a murmur of voices in the courtroom as the Headmaster of Hogwarts strode forward purposefully and settled himself into the witness box. He smiled politely, inclining his head first to the members of the Wizengamot and then to James and Lestrange. He seemed completely oblivious to the excitement his presence had elicited, although James knew very well that that was all a façade. The Headmaster was too perceptive not to notice the surprised and interested looks he was getting.
James chanced a look at Lestrange, and felt some satisfaction in seeing the other wizard looking so thoroughly disgruntled. It was no secret that Lestrange viewed Dumbledore as nothing more than a Muggle-loving old fool, but his dislike of the Headmaster would not blind him to the incredible amount of influence the venerable wizard held.
James then looked at Lily. They had not spoken since her confession, and Marlene’s words kept running through his mind. He had spent enough time thinking over them to know that there was some truth to what she had said, and he was now fairly certain that Lily had not been entirely truthful with him.
He wanted to know more. He wanted the full truth.
She met his gaze and smiled slightly, a bit of warmth in her green eyes. He was surprised by that, having expected her to be angry or aloof after he had practically forced the confession from her, but he smiled as well.
Then James turned back to Dumbledore.
“Please state your name and occupation for the Wizengamot,” James requested with a smile.
“Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore,” the Headmaster answered promptly. “I am Headmaster at Hogwarts.”
“Thank you, Headmaster,” James said. “And can you tell us your relationship to Remus Lupin?”
“He attended Hogwarts,” Dumbledore said. “I knew him then. I also knew him later. We interacted in a professional capacity starting four years ago.”
“Can you describe how this relationship began and what form it took?” James prompted, and he saw several members of the Wizengamot lean forward with interest. Likewise, many sitting in the galleries seemed to be holding their breath, eager to hear the answer.
“Four years ago, Mr. Lupin’s close friend Alice Longbottom was tragically killed by a Dark curse,” Dumbledore said gravely. “The culprit was never caught, but Mr. Lupin was eager to do whatever he could to prevent such tragedies from happening to others. He came to me, asked me if I had any speculation about who had done this. I had ideas… but no proof.”
“And what were your ideas?” James asked.
“Objection!” Lestrange cried, surging to his feet in a frantic manner. “Relevance?”
“The defense will argue that Mr. Lupin was in danger and his interactions with Miss Evans prior to his death were actually attempts on her part to help him. It would therefore be necessary to know why he was in danger,” James answered calmly.
He looked up at the Wizengamot’s platform. Alistar Bones looked decidedly uncomfortable with this line of questioning, and James had to fight back a smirk at that. If everything he had learned from his mysterious informant was true, then Bones no doubt knew exactly who had killed Alice Longbottom and why. This line of questioning would make him very uneasy.
But what could he do? There was no way to sustain the objection. James was breaking no wizarding trial rules, and there was far too much curiosity reflected in the faces of all the other people in the courtroom for Bones to risk unfairly dismissing this line of questioning.
“Overruled,” he said reluctantly.
James grinned, then turned back to Dumbledore. “What were your ideas as to the cause of Mrs. Longbottom’s death?”
“There has been rumors of a Dark wizard recruiting followers. There were stories of attacks on Muggles and Muggleborns. This all happened some time ago. However, the recruitment stopped rather abruptly several years ago.” He paused, his eyes fixed on Lestrange, and then continued, “Seven years ago, to be exact.”
Another murmur ran through the room. Seven was a rather important number to anyone who knew Lily’s history.
“But then, four years ago, with Alice’s death… I was concerned. There were more rumors. This Dark wizard… it seemed that he was back. And his followers were becoming active again.”
“Objection!” Lestrange snarled, on his feet once more. “I don’t recall any reports of attacks from seven years ago.”
Dumbledore raised his eyebrows. “Perhaps you did not pay attention to them, Mr. Lestrange, but I assure that they happened.”
There was a dead silence in the room. Lestrange was not foolish enough to push any further. The only other thing he could say would be that Dumbledore was blatantly lying, and that type of accusation would earn him quite a bit of enmity from the many people in the courtroom who still thought of Dumbledore as the greatest wizard to ever live.
Lestrange sat back down.
“We could not catch the person who had killed Alice. But we could perhaps stop such a heinous crime from happening once more. I ask Mr. Lupin to investigate these rumors.”
“And he worked for you for four years, sir?”
“Yes, Mr. Potter,” Dumbledore confirmed.
“And would you say that this job was dangerous?” James asked, turning away from Dumbledore and staring at the witches and wizards gathered in the galleries.
“Quite” Dumbledore answered.
His words caused Lily to flinch and then lower her gaze, and James felt a welling if pity for her. He had not thought much about what it would be like for her to sit here and hear them discuss Lupin’s job. But since they were all now assuming that it was his mission that had cost him his life, listening to a description of that very same mission could do little besides cause her pain.
“I had asked him to essentially spy on this wizard and his followers. I hoped to keep him as safe as possible by never sending him to the Dark wizard directly, but that does not mean that their paths did not cross. He was in grave danger at all times.”
“Then why did he accept the mission?” James asked.
“Because he wanted to help fight evil,” Dumbledore said bluntly, his eyes finally leaving Lestrange and settling on Lily. “Because he wanted to stop other people from being killed as Alice was. Because he wanted justice for his friend’s death.”
James nodded. That was the end of the questions that he had prepared for Dumbledore. He had briefly spoken to the Headmaster this morning, confirming everything that he was planning to ask. They had agreed on this list.
But he couldn’t help himself. As Sirius had pointed out, this was about more than just Lupin and Lestrange and Lily. This was about fighting a war, and the best way to fight a war was to make sure that everyone knew who the enemy really was.
So he asked, “Can you tell us this Dark wizard’s name?”
Dumbledore’s gaze snapped to James, and a look of surprise showed briefly in his blue eyes. Then there was an almost calculating expression on his features, followed by a satisfied nod.
“Yes. He calls himself Lord Voldemort.”
“Thank you,” James said. “No further questions.”
Lestrange rose to his feet and gave Dumbledore a long look. “Why was this Dark wizard recruiting followers?” he asked.
Dumbledore tilted his head to the side. “You would have to ask him, Mr. Lestrange. I cannot tell you what Lord Voldemort is thinking or why he acts the way he does.”
James felt a bit of satisfaction at the way Lestrange flinched when Dumbledore so carelessly mentioned Voldemort’s name. But he also knew that if the Dark wizard’s own followers were terrified of uttering that name aloud, it would not be long until that fear seeped into the rest of the world. They would all be afraid of the name, and of the man himself.
“You have already implied that he was responsible for Alice Longbottom’s death,” Lestrange said steadily. “If you can conjecture about that without actual proof, then surely you can conjecture about his motives.”
Dumbledore inclined his head. “If I had to venture a guess,” the Headmaster said, “I would point to his habit of encouraging attacks against Muggleborns.”
“He’s recruiting followers for the sole purpose of attacking Muggleborns?” Lestrange repeated skeptically. “But Mrs. Longbottom was a pureblood.”
“And one who befriended Muggleborns, defended them,” Dumbledore countered, his eyes sliding momentarily to Lily. “I believe that Lord Voldemort would view her as a blood traitor.” He leaned forward and asked mildly, “Or do you think that ideas of blood purity are so out of date that no one would resort to violence to uphold them?”
There was a rustling of paper and a few whispers from the Wizengamot. James glanced up at them quickly, and was pleased to see that more than a few were nodding their heads in agreement with Dumbledore’s words. There were still some stony expressions, and a number of looks of loathing tossed towards the Headmaster or Lily, and James wondered just how many witches and wizards would join with Voldemort if given the chance.
He looked over at Lestrange. The wizard was flushed with anger as he glared at Dumbledore, but he was keeping his temper in check, and when he spoke, his voice was calm.
“And so Mr. Lupin was killed by this Dark wizard or one of his followers,” Lestrange said slowly. “With a knife? It’s an odd way for someone to kill if they despise anything related to Muggles.” And without giving Dumbledore a chance to answer “ although James wasn’t sure what he would say because it was an odd way for a witch or wizard to kill “ Lestrange continued, “And still, do you have any proof of your theories?”
Dumbledore shook his head. “I don’t know who killed Remus Lupin, if that is what you are asking,” he replied evenly.
“And how do you explain Miss Evans’ presence at Mr. Lupin’s home? How do you explain why she was standing over his dead body?”
“Objection,” James said instantly. “Counsel is requesting the witness give conjecture about something of which he has no personal knowledge.”
“The Headmaster already speculated about the motives of this Dark wizard and the counsel for the defense had no objection to that,” Lestrange countered. “Unless you believe that he has personal knowledge of the Dark wizard’s innermost thoughts and…”
“What the witness did or did not answer previously is not relevant to this issue. This line of questioning is speculative.” He glanced at Lestrange and added coolly,” And the fact that you did not follow wizarding rules on a prior line of questioning is hardly a defense you should be using now.”
“Enough,” Bones said furiously. “I will not allow this to devolve into an argument about court rules.” He paused, considering the two wizards for a moment, then said, “The witness may answer this question.”
Dumbledore gazed at Lily as he answered, “Mr. Lupin and Miss Evans were friends. If Mr. Lupin thought himself in trouble, she would naturally be one of the first people that he turned to for help.”
“But why would the deceased not contact you upon returning from his mission? You were the one who sent him on it, correct?”
“Objection!” James said angrily. “Counsel is asking for speculation again.”
“Overruled,” Bones replied lazily.
“It seems to be that if Mr. Lupin really was in such great danger, he would have come to you before going to Miss Evans,” Lestrange sneered.
Dumbledore merely smiled in response. “But Mr. Lupin did contact me via owl. I was unfortunately away from Hogwarts at the time. He had not informed me of his plan to return and I was not aware that he was back until after he had been killed.” He paused, his blue eyes serious, his expression filled with regret. “I wish I had known. Perhaps then I would have been able to stop it.”
“And why wouldn’t he tell you that he was going to return? That seems like important information, doesn’t it?” Lestrange hissed, and James saw the way his eyes flashed dangerously and his face slowly suffused with color. He was clearly losing this verbal battle with Dumbledore, and he knew it. But Dumbledore wasn’t just another witness that he could intimidate or mock or deride.
James opened his mouth, about to object again, but then stopped. It wouldn’t make a difference anyway, his objection would no doubt be immediately overruled. And, besides, Dumbledore seemed quite able to hold his own.
“Perhaps he had to leave in a hurry,” Dumbledore suggested mildly. “Perhaps he was in danger and didn’t have time to spare.”
James watched impassively as Frank Longbottom settled himself into the witness box. He had not spoken to Frank since the Auror had revealed the truth about Lily’s alibi, and there were so many things he still wanted to say, so many questions he wanted to ask. But now was not the time for any of those conversations.
Longbottom, like James, had seemed to instinctively know that stopping Voldemort before he waged his war was what truly mattered, and so when James had sent him an owl stating that he wished to put the Auror on the stand as a witness for the defense, Longbottom had not hesitated.
And no doubt some of it was also fueled by his desire for revenge against Lestrange.
“Auror Longbottom, you have already testified before the court,” James said, “but will you please remind the Wizengamot of you name, occupation, and connection to this case.”
“Frank Longbottom,” Longbottom said readily enough. “I am an Auror, and was on the team of Aurors that retrieved Mr. Lupin’s body and investigated his murder. I…” He paused, then said, “I was also friends with both Remus Lupin and Lily Evans at Hogwarts and… and for a few years after that.”
“Thank you,” James said. “And what were you responsibilities as an Auror on this case?”
“I gathered clues in the beginning,” Longbottom replied, “and looked for the murder weapon. I helped secure the scene of the crime and keep out people who did not belong. I did an inventory of everything in the room where Remus’ body was found. And I spoke to Lily shortly after she was first taken to Azkaban, mostly to see if she would confess.”
“And just to reiterate what you said previously… did she?”
“Confess? No. She was adamant that she had not harmed Remus, that she never would have hurt him, let alone kill him.”
“Thank you,” James said, glancing over at Lily briefly. She met his gaze, her expression calm and collected. He had no idea how she had managed to gather her emotions and hide them again after their last, tumultuous conversation. But her eyes were dry and her expression was devoid of any feeling.
James ran a hand through his hair, messing it up, and wishing that he could simply force everyone to tell the truth. It would be so much easier then, so much less complicated.
“And the last time that you were sent as an Auror to visit Mr. Lupin’s house, can you tell us what happened?”
Longbottom pursed his lips and nodded. “I was taking one last look around the room, and I noticed that the window was open. I was surprised by this, because I was sure that we had closed it after removing Remus’ body. It was necessary to protect the room from the weather, and that seemed the easiest way. But I didn’t give it much thought, just walked over to the window to close it.”
“And what happened?”
Longbottom grimaced. “I was attacked.”
“Attacked?” James repeated, feigning surprise. All around him, the courtroom was suddenly filled with whispers of shock and concern. Several members of the Wizengamot leaned forward intently, their expressions filled with curiosity and anticipation. Whatever kind of defense they had expected him to mount for Lily, this theory about Remus fighting against some Dark wizard was clearly not it, and the trial was becoming more and more interesting with every passing minute.
“Yes,” Longbottom said with a grimace. “There was someone already there. A witch, I believe. She was wearing a cloak so I never saw her face, but it sounded like a woman’s voice. I think she was already there when I arrived, and I interrupted whatever she was doing. She hid, and then when it became clear that I wasn’t leaving right away, she attacked me.”
“Could it have been a common thief?” James questioned. It was not uncommon for witches or wizards to pilfer through the belongings of a recently deceased person, particularly one who died in such morbid circumstances. That was one of the many reasons Aurors always enacted wards around any crime scene.
“Remus lived in near poverty,” Longbottom replied. “What would he have to steal? Besides, any time I’ve dealt with looters in the past, they don’t stay around to fight. And they don’t conjure Fiendfyre.”
There were several gasps from the galleries and even one or two exclamations of shock. Fiendfyre was almost unheard of now, given that it was so dangerous and difficult to control. It was one of the darker spells, and that particular Dark art was never taught at Hogwarts.
“Fiendfyre?” James repeated.
Longbottom nodded. “And it wasn’t the only lethal spell used. The witch didn’t just try to disarm or stun me. She was trying to kill me.”
“Objection!” Lestrange said. “The witness cannot possibly know the attackers intent.”
James turned around with a laconic smile. “Why would someone use Fiendfyre if not to kill?” he countered.
“Sustained,” Bones said. “The witness will refrain from speculating on the motives of others.”
James had the momentary desire to argue the point, but then stopped and simply nodded instead. Bones might not be playing this fairly, but he couldn’t undo what had already been said, and the other members of the Wizengamot would not be quick to forget what they had heard.
He looked over at Marlene. She was gazing up at the Wizengamot with a thoughtful expression on her face, and when she finally turned and met his eyes, she gave him a wan smile.
He made a mental note to ask her later what it was that had pleased her.
“Auror Longbottom, you previously stated that you had not spoken to Mr. Lupin in three years,” James said, turning his attention back to the witness. “Is this correct?”
“Yes.”
“And you stated that your last interaction with him was an argument. Is that correct?”
“Yes.”
“Can you tell us the details of the argument?”
Longbottom interlaced his fingers on his lap and stared down at his hands. “Remus was… he was working for Dumbledore. We thought… the Headmaster believed that this Dark wizard was responsible “ either directly or indirectly “ for my Alice’s death. Remus was working with Dumbledore to learn all that he could about this wizard and to prevent the wizard from recruiting more followers. He had gotten hurt more than once, and Lily was upset about this. We argued. She wanted me to help her convince Remus that these missions weren’t worth his life. And I… I was grieving for Alice, and I couldn’t…”
He trailed off with a sigh and didn’t finish the sentence. For a moment, it seemed as though he had forgotten that he was in the courtroom at all. He lifted his eyes slowly and looked at Lily, catching her gaze and holding it, oblivious to everything else around him.
He gave her a sad smile.
James felt the strangest sensation of apprehension as he watched Lily smile tentatively back, and it took him a moment to realize that he was jealous. Jealous of their shared history, of how well Longbottom knew Lily, how well they could understand each other, even now, even after so much had pulled them apart.
But that was ridiculous. He forced the thought away and mentally berated himself for even considering it in the first place.
“Auror Longbottom,” James said, and his voice was a bit colder than he had intended, “in these argument, is it your recollection that Miss Evans was upset because Mr. Lupin was putting himself in danger?”
“Yes.”
“She cared about him? She was concerned?”
“Yes, very much so.”
“Did they argue a lot?”
Longbottom paused then nodded. “In the year before Remus disappeared, they argued quite frequently. Lily has quite a temper, and Remus… well, he didn’t have a temper, but he could be incredibly stubborn. He wouldn’t often change his mind once it was decided.”
“And did they argue in public?”
“Yes.”
“And in private?”
“Yes.”
“And the arguments were loud and angry?”
“Yes.”
James smiled and finished, “And the arguments, to the best of your knowledge, always revolved around the fact that Miss Evans thought Mr. Lupin was putting himself into too much danger and she didn’t want him to get hurt?”
“Yes.”
Longbottom answered the final question with such resounding decisiveness that even James was a little surprised. The rest of the courtroom was filled with the buzzing of hushed conversations, but James ignored it and instead looked between Longbottom and Lily. They were staring at each other again, and this time Lily’s smile was more firm and Longbottom didn’t look quite as sad.
James frowned, furrowing his brows in bewilderment at what had just happened.
Then it occurred to him. This was Longbottom’s way of conveying to Lily that, no matter what had happened seven years ago, he didn’t believe she was guilty now. Whatever she had or had not done in regards to Lucius Malfoy, he knew she would never willingly and deliberately hurt Remus.
As James sat back down at his table, Marlene leaned over and rested her fingertips on his arm. “That went well,” she whispered.
James slanted a look at Lestrange, who was silently seething. “It did.”
Marlene followed his gaze, then shook her head and murmured, “It’s more than that.” She nodded towards the Wizengamot, and he looked at the witches and wizards aligned on the raised platform. There was nothing about them that was at all out of the ordinary, and he gave Marlene a bewildered look.
What was she trying to tell him? What had she seen that he had missed?
But she just smiled and said, “They’re starting to have doubts.”
James settled himself into the seat opposite Lily and offered her a warm smile. She stared blankly at him, thoroughly nonplussed by his attitude. And he supposed he couldn’t blame her. The relationship that existed between the two of them was so fractured, so fraught with complicated emotions, that neither knew exactly what to make of it at this point.
“I want you to testify,” James said finally. “Tomorrow morning. You’re the last witness I am going to call.”
“That went quickly,” Lily replied in some distress. “Lestrange had more witnesses and… it lasted longer. Is there really enough evidence?”
James raised an eyebrow. “I thought you were convinced this was a lost cause anyway?” he said pointedly.
Lily flushed and averted her gaze. “It is… I know it is. I just…” She stopped, chewed her bottom lip. Then she blinked a few times and said in a clearer, stronger voice, “Are you sure that is a good idea? Lestrange will twist everything I say.”
“Let him,” James replied. “I’ll just untwist it when he’s done.”
“Why are you doing this?” Lily asked after a moment of silence.
James narrowed his eyes. “Doing what?”
“Helping me.”
James leaned back in his seat. “Do you think Lupin was wrong?” he asked quietly. “Do you think he shouldn’t have taken the job from Dumbledore?”
Lily let out a breath. “I… It was dangerous. I didn’t want him to…” She folded her arms over her chest and the look in her eyes was almost defiant. But underneath that was something akin to resignation. “We’re going to war, aren’t we?” she said softly, her voice only just audible.
“I think so,” James answered. “Dumbledore certainly thinks so, and he’s… he’s afraid. So you can imagine how serious he must think this threat is.”
Lily nodded. “I see.”
“Do you?” James demanded, bending forward and resting his arms on the table. “You’ve talked about yourself and you’ve talked about Lupin. But what about the rest of us?”
“What about you?”
“How can you believe that this isn’t something worth fighting for? This wizard… this Voldemort… he wants to take away everything that we hold dear. He wants to destroy our society and turn it into his own twisted…” James stopped abruptly, biting off the words. He hadn’t come to attempt to convince Lily of anything other than the necessity of her testimony tomorrow. But somehow, he found himself talking about other things, spewing out fierce proclamations that he had never had any inclination of stating.
How did she get under his skin like that?
“We have to fight back. It’s about more than just you and Lupin. It’s about doing the right thing. And I… I’m just trying to prove that I’m one of the good guys.”
“I don’t understand you,” Lily said flatly.
“Oh?”
“Just a couple days ago you were dismissing Muggle ideas of a fair trial as though they weren’t even worth considering. They were trivial and… and quaint… to you. Before that, you couldn’t even understand the difference between being considered a blood traitor and being considered a Mudblood. And now you’re championing an all-out war to defend us? You talk about equality and justice, but you are blind to your own privilege and the prejudices you grew up with. You were an arrogant, cocky, prankster at Hogwarts, and maybe you weren’t a prankster when we met again, but you were still arrogant and cocky. And now you’re willing to die to defend people you don’t know and will probably never interact with?”
James leaned back in his seat. “We’re at war. Everything changes.”
“It shouldn’t,” Lily argued. “It shouldn’t take a war for you to realize that this society is inherently prejudiced. You talk about protecting Muggleborns now, and maybe you’re thinking a bit more kindly about werewolves, but what about everyone else? House elves and centaurs and goblins and… Merlin, Mr. Potter, have you ever even wondered how Squibs are treated?”
“You can’t change society overnight, Miss Evans, and you can’t expect me to get everything right now. But this is a war, and this is something worth fighting for, dying for. Lupin was right about that. Maybe he was only ever out for revenge, maybe he didn’t think about justice or any of that, but…”
“He did,” Lily whispered, cutting into James’ argument. He gave her a confused look, and she said, “Remus… he thought about more than just revenge. He wanted to fight back. He wanted to change things. I didn’t understand at the time. After Malfoy… I put so much energy into just staying afloat. How could I think of fighting back when every time I tried, Cissy made it worse for me? The easiest way to survive was to stay as much out of their way at possible.” She closed her eyes and drew a shaky breath. “But if this is war, I guess that isn’t possible anymore.”
“So maybe we were both wrong in the beginning,” James suggested with a wry grin.
She opened her eyes and studied him. “Maybe,” she conceded, and James’ smile grew. Who knew he’d ever be able to get his temperamental client to admit to being wrong about anything?
“Why didn’t you tell Lupin about what happened with Malfoy? Why did you use Longbottom as an alibi?” James questioned curiously.
Lily shrugged. “Frank was a better alibi. He’s a pureblood, and his family name is well-respected, so he would be taken more seriously.”
Her words were careless, blasé, but James knew better. Whatever else could be said about Lily, she would not have made a decision like that for solely practical reasons. Longbottom might have been a better alibi, but that didn’t mean she had to lie to Lupin. She could have told him the truth, too. If he loved her as much as everyone claimed he did, he would have stood by her, lied for her if necessary.
No, there was some other reason she didn’t tell him.
But James didn’t press the issue. Instead, he said, “Tomorrow. You need to testify.”
Lily nodded. “If you think it is a good idea…”
“I do.”
“Very well.” Lily rubbed at her weary eyes. “You still haven’t told me why you are doing this. You were so disgusted with me after Frank told you about the alibi, and you stormed out of here pretty quickly after I told you about Malfoy. Do you really expect me to believe that you’ve just changed your mind so quickly?”
“I don’t think you’ve told me everything,” James replied honestly. “What happened to your wand that night? How did you get the scratches on your face? Why did your watch break at seven minutes past midnight when in your story you kill Malfoy before that? Why was Malfoy so angry at you then, when he had known for years that you were trying to get Narcissa away from him? You told me originally that you couldn’t relay the whole story because you were trying to protect someone. Who was it?”
Lily stared at him. “How did you know Malfoy was supposed to become Minister? Who told you that Lestrange was to have control of the Wizengamot and Rookwood would take St. Mungo’s? Who told you that Voldemort had ordered Remus’ death?”
James said nothing. It was true that he had not informed Lily of the mysterious stranger who had give him all that information. Neither had he told her about the fact that Lupin had evidently hidden this unknown and important object in her house, and that someone had found it, although they had no idea who.
It wasn’t that the didn’t trust her with the information. It was just… well, he wasn’t sure he could explain it to her, or even to himself, but he just didn’t want to tell her any of this quite yet. Maybe once the trial was over, when she was free “ assuming she was cleared of all charges “ then he could explain everything. But until then…
“I guess we both have secrets, Miss Evans,” he said softly.
“I guess we do,” Lily agreed.