Chapter Forty-Six

A/N: As usual, everything you recognize belongs to JKR. I make no money. My deepest gratitude to Shellsnapeluver, RedOrchid and OpalJade who beta my work with such grace, always seeming to know when to push and when to hold my hand. Thank you, my friends.

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The courtroom was tense and silent. Kingsley did not have to raise his arms nor call for quiet, as the Wizengamot sat as straight and stiff as if they had been immobilized. Minerva fairly vibrated from her seat next to Hermione, her thin lips pursed together so tightly that they were nearly invisible. Every now and then she would pat Hermione's knee briskly and say, "It's going to be just fine," which only served to make her more anxious than before.

Narcissa Malfoy was first on the docket as Kingsley had told her three days before. Dispense with the Unbreakable Vow from the beginning, he had said. Don't let it become a shock later. Hermione had agreed, but now, as she watched the lithe and regal form of Madam Malfoy entering the courtroom as if escorted on the arms of her admirers, rather than Aurors, her lungs felt cold and brittle.

Narcissa took her seat, crossed her ankles and laid her forearms gently upon the arms of the chair, a little moue of distaste crossing her features as the chains bound her firmly in place. She wore the same shapeless gray pajamas that Hermione had seen on Lucius Malfoy and Yaxley before her, but Madam Malfoy wore them as if they were made of silk.

"July the twentieth, nineteen hundred and ninety-eight. The Ministry of Magic vs. Severus Snape. Today the court intends to address the murder of Albus Dumbledore and Snape's activities during the second war."

Hermione could hear the hiss and swish of quills starting up, and the members of the Wizengamot seemed to sit up a bit straighter, straining toward the center of the courtroom. Severus sat tall and impassive in his seat. Hermione had smoothed his hair behind his ears before they had entered. His profile was sharp and clear and welcome to her eyes.

"We will begin with the testimony of Narcissa Black Malfoy. Madam Malfoy, if you please, where were you on the sixteenth of June, nineteen ninety-six?"

"Visiting Severus Snape in...." her throat worked, "his home in Manchester."

Hermione breathed a heavy sigh of relief. The woman did not seem able to speak the words 'Spinner's End.'

"Was it a social call, or did you have official business to discuss?"

Narcissa raised her chin a bit higher. "I had learned that the Dark Lord intended my son, Draco, to murder Albus Dumbledore. I was, very naturally, distressed."

"You wished to preserve the Headmaster's life?"

"Draco was still underage. He had not yet even completed his schooling. I knew that he would not be powerful enough to complete the task assigned to him. And I knew that the punishment would be... severe."

"I see. So your concern was that your son would be killed for his inability to carry out his orders?"

"Yes."

"And why did you turn to Severus Snape?"

"At that time, Severus Snape was employed at Hogwarts under Albus Dumbledore. I knew that the Headmaster trusted him, believed him to be a spy for the Order of the Phoenix. Draco was a favorite pupil of Snape's. I thought... I thought he might wish to protect Draco, to use his influence and access to the Headmaster to aid him."

"So you went to ask for his assistance."

"Yes."

"Were you alone?"

"I was accompanied by my late sister, Bellatrix Black Lestrange."

"Your sister also wished to plead Draco's case?"

Narcissa paused for a very long moment. She seemed to be choosing her words quite care carefully. "My sister was very selective in her associations. She thought Snape... untrustworthy."

"Your sister mistrusted Severus Snape? Did she think him a traitor to the Dark Lord?"

Narcissa twitched her head, sending her long silvery hair sweeping over her shoulder. "My sister was deeply devoted to the Dark Lord and a harsh critic. She felt that Snape had not shown the level of commitment..."

"Did she think him a spy?"

"She did not use those words."

"Why, then, did she accompany you to the home of Severus Snape?"

"She intended to stop me."

"I see. But you ignored her protests?"

"I was sorely in need of Snape's help."

"And what did you ask of Severus Snape?"

"I asked him to watch over my son as he attempted to fulfill his duty, to keep him from harm, and to... complete the task if it seemed Draco would fail."

"And did he agree?"

"He took the Unbreakable Vow."

There was a gasp from the upper seats of the courtroom. Hermione sat still and quiet. She had known this was coming. Both Kingsley and Snape himself had prepared her to hear it, but still it sounded harsh and damning as it rang through the courtroom in Narcissa Malfoy's genteel tones. She remembered a night that seemed as if it belonged to another lifetime: Slughorn's Christmas party. The night she had first heard of the Unbreakable Vow. She looked at Snape. She knew the conclusions she had leapt to that night.

"Did he seem eager to take the Vow?"

"He was not reluctant."

"Do you believe that he wished to kill Albus Dumbledore?"

"He spoke derisively of Dumbledore. He said that the old wizard was already injured, that his reflexes were growing slow. I thought at the time that he believed it would be easy to kill Albus Dumbledore."

Kingsley smiled a slow, self-satisfied smile.

"Thank you, Madam Malfoy."

"My son--" Narcissa began as the Aurors approached her chair. "My son did not kill Albus Dumbledore. He did nothing; he was just a child--"

"Your son will testify this afternoon, Madam Malfoy."

"But you must see that Draco is not--"

"Draco will have his day in court. Today, we are not prepared to hear--"

"My son is innocent! Snape killed Dumbledore!"

"That will be all," Kingsley said firmly, and a flick of his head told Hermione that he had given the Aurors permission to silence her if necessary.

Kingsley rounded on Snape.

"Narcissa Malfoy testified that you made a vow to kill Albus Dumbledore."

"I beg to differ," Snape said smoothly. "Narcissa Malfoy testified that I made a vow to help her son, to protect him, and to take on his task if it seemed he would fail."

"His task was to kill the Headmaster," Kingsley said, undeterred.

"Indeed," Snape said. "However, having already made a vow to Dumbledore that I would kill him, the vow to Narcissa seemed relatively innocuous."

The courtroom erupted. The uproar following Narcissa Malfoy's statement seemed barely a whisper in comparison. Hermione could hear Tiberius Ogden's voice roaring for silence, and the distinct shrill of Skeeter's voice as she used the distraction to edge closer to the action. Kingsley stood silently, looking ahead, as if he could not hear the noise at all.

Hermione watched her husband, who sat as impassive and calm as the Minister. She had hoped for this; she had prayed to see his hands come up to shield his face, to know that he would fight, would not just keep silent and await their judgment, and yet, she was afraid. If he fought, and they lost... but she would not consider that.

When Ogden had succeeded in silencing the crowd, Kingsley said, "I shall remind you that you have promised to answer these questions truthfully."

"In my stores, you will find a suitable amount of Veritaserum if you doubt me."

"You know very well that Veritaserum cannot be used in a courtroom."

"These are your rules, Minister. Let it be noted that I offered."

"Snape! I will do the noting, thank you."

"As you wish."

"So you are testifying that Albus Dumbledore asked you to kill him."

"I am."

"For what purpose?"

Hermione watched Snape's face carefully. She saw the moment of decision cross his features for a split second.

"He knew of the Dark Lord's plan to have Draco Malfoy kill him and wished to spare young Malfoy's soul," Snape said with a slight sneer. "And he wished me to remain in the Dark Lord's good graces, to succeed him as Headmaster and thereby protect the students."

"He wished to install you as Headmaster," Kingsley said incredulously.

"No, he wished Voldemort to install me as Headmaster, which he would not do unless he believed me to be a faithful Death Eater."

"And he wished to protect Draco Malfoy's soul?"

"He said that he would not see an innocent's soul torn in two on his account."

"And your soul, Snape?"

Snape's features twitched very slightly as he said, "I'm sure he thought my soul blemished enough that one more stain would matter little."

"When did he propose this plan to you?"

"On the second of June, nineteen ninety-six. He returned to Hogwarts that night having suffered a severe curse--a curse that, unchecked, would have been fatal. In fact, he very likely would have died within the year due to its virulence despite my efforts. I was called to his office to try to contain it, which I did, trapping it in his left hand. When he had recovered enough to converse, he informed me of his intent."

"You say he had suffered a severe injury?"

"Yes."

"Was this the same injury about which you spoke to Narcissa Malfoy on the night that you took the Unbreakable Vow?"

"It was," Snape said simply.

Kingsley allowed a weighty pause, and he turned slightly toward the Wizengamot. After a moment, he returned to Snape.

"Why did you take the Unbreakable Vow?"

"It was what Dumbledore would have wanted. It kept me firmly within the ranks of the Death Eaters. It may have gone a fair way toward persuading Bellatrix Lestrange to trust me. And it really mattered very little. Dumbledore and I had already made our agreement. I was already bound to do so."

"You were bound? Did Dumbledore ask you to take the Unbreakable Vow?"

"Dumbledore was satisfied with my word."

"I see. The court is interested in Dumbledore's plan."

"Then I suggest you speak to Dumbledore."

"In a moment. What you claim he asked of you--who knew about it?"

"No one."

"No one? But surely someone would have to know--to prevent you from being killed by an Order member, or--"

"Did you know?" Snape asked steadily.

"I--no, but--"

"No one knew."

"But surely he must have foreseen today's events. Why would he provide no alibi for his trusted--"

"Neither Albus nor I had much hope that I would live through the war. However, he did endeavor to provide me with help... in the unlikely event that I were to live."

"And that help was..."

"He married me to Hermione Granger."

Kingsley talked over the murmur that swept through the Wizengamot. "You testified only a moment ago that no one knew of the Headmaster's plan."

"No one did. My wife was told only that I would commit some atrocity that would make it appear that I had betrayed the Order, and that only she would know differently."

"Why Hermione Granger?"

"If your experience with her has not been enough, I am sure there are a multitude of Hogwarts house-elves willing to testify to her... tenacity... where justice is concerned."

The corners of Hermione's lips turned up. Snape's tone was acerbic, and yet beneath it, she sensed the kind of warmth with which he had harangued her long before the shadow of the trial had touched their lives. But her pleasure was cut short by Dumbledore's voice as he interrupted yet again.

"Forgive me, Minister Shacklebolt, for my intrusion. But Severus Snape is not telling you everything."

Hermione's hand strayed unconsciously to her wand pocket, and her mind hummed with waiting. Her heart beat; her breath came steady and sure. If Dumbledore would take her on, he would not find her the malleable schoolgirl who had stood in his office and agreed to act out his plans.

"The court will hear from Albus Dumbledore. Continue."

Dumbledore sat forward. "Severus has not lied to you. No, he has told you the absolute truth and the entirely of what I asked of him on June the second. But he is not telling you what he later learned to be the real reasons behind his marriage and the act that I asked him to commit."

"So you admit that you asked Snape to kill you."

"Oh, yes. I all but insisted."

Ogden broke in, standing suddenly, his chest thrust out and straining against his plum coloured robes. The man looked furious, demented with rage. "I would like to remind this court that Albus Dumbledore's request affects the law not one whit! If 'he told me to' were a defense, this court would have no reason to try any of the Death Eaters!"

"No, Ogden, it does not," Kingsley said calmly. "But perhaps we might hear from Dumbledore, just the same. Unless you have some objection to hearing the testimony of the former Head Warlock of this court?"

"Of course not," Ogden hissed. "I simply want it to be clear that no wizard has the legal right to consent to his own harm--not even Albus Dumbledore."

"Your point is noted. Now, Albus. You said that there were further reasons behind your requests?"

"Indeed. As many of you undoubtedly know, I defeated the Dark wizard Grindlewald in August of 1945."

"Will this deteriorate into a history of Dumbledore's achievements? As I said, it makes no difference who did the asking--Snape used an Unforgivable--"

"My dear Tiberius. Undoubtedly, you have seen many wizards try to escape their rightful punishments before this court. However, you should be reminded that each case is different and should be approached with an open mind and willingness to act in the spirit of the law. I should like to finish my testimony."

Ogden grunted in response, while Hermione sat in what could only be described as a confused stupor. Dumbledore meant to tell them about the Elder Wand?

"As I was saying, in 1945, I defeated Grindelwald and took his wand. It was a wand of extraordinary power, a wand of legend. A wand I knew that Voldemort would learn of eventually and wish to possess."

"Forgive me if I am not following you. You asked Snape to kill you because you believed you had a powerful wand--"

"The Elder Wand passes only by conquering its master. You cannot steal the wand, nor give it freely. Its allegiance must be won. It is said that the Elder Wand is unbeatable. It brings its master great power."

"So you intended Snape to take the wand by killing you?"

"Yes. I meant him to keep it for Harry Potter."

"And Miss Granger?"

"I intended Snape to communicate with Harry through Miss Granger."

"But why not tell them of your intent?"

"Because I was afraid of their capture or discovery. Severus Snape is a marvelous Occlumens, and through his instruction, I am certain that Miss Granger--pardon me, Madam Snape--is a fine one also. But the Dark Lord has ways. I was afraid that something of the plan would be discovered and ruined before it began."

"But what was the plan exactly?"

"The papers have already made much of Voldemort's Horcruxes. A foul bit of magic--and one I am sorry to see publicized, but the news travels on, I suppose, regardless of our best intent. Harry Potter and his friends were hunting Voldemort's Horcruxes--to make sure that when Harry finally faced Lord Voldemort, he would be as mortal as any man."

"But how did the wand figure--"

"Harry himself was a Horcrux. His scar was imbued with a bit of Voldemort's soul, though Voldemort did not intend it, nor even recognize that he had placed a portion of himself within the boy. I had hoped to see the mastery of the wand end up with Harry. I knew that Voldemort would come looking for the wand itself, that he would have no compunctions about removing it from my tomb. I had hoped that he would believe himself the owner and try to use it against Harry Potter, its master, thus destroying the Horcrux and leaving Harry alive."

"You intended for Harry Potter to take the mastery of the wand from Severus Snape?"

"It was my hope that my death would give Harry the impetus necessary to... seize the wand from Severus. I was certain he would not have found it within himself to take it from me."

A low hum began to rise from the stands, the sound of shifting, of breathing, of active listening.

"I'm afraid I don't understand."

"In Snape, the mastery of the wand would remain hidden. Voldemort would come to my tomb looking for it, and in seizing it, he would believe himself the master."

"But if Voldemort realized--"

"Then Snape would have had a very short time to appear before Harry."

"And Snape's life--"

"Would almost certainly have been forfeit either way."

There was a bit of a murmur in the crowd, though nothing that compared to the sound that had roared through the courtroom when Snape testified that he had vowed to kill Dumbledore, and Hermione burned with helpless fury that the thought of the death of Dumbledore would rouse these people, but the thought that Dumbledore had just as quickly sent her husband to die registered little, if at all. Hermione thought that Kingsley looked vaguely shocked, despite the fact that he had heard this story several times.

"I see."

"However, my plan was compromised. Draco Malfoy disarmed me before Severus had a chance to carry out the plan. He therefore took the mastery of the Elder Wand."

Kingsley, still looking rather shaken, said, "Thank you for your clarification, but I am going to stop you there for a moment. The court calls Draco Malfoy to testify."

The heavy doors of the courtroom opened once more, and Draco appeared, flanked by the Aurors. He looked frightened. Frightened and terribly young, Hermione thought, and she wondered briefly what she looked like to him.

"Please state your name for the court."

"Draco Malfoy."

"Were you present on the Astronomy Tower on June the fifteenth, nineteen ninety-seven at midnight?"

"I was."

"Who else was there?"

"Just Dumbledore at first. Then the Carrows. Fenrir Greyback." Draco glanced quickly around the courtroom, as if to see which of the aforementioned might be watching.

"What were you doing on the Astronomy Tower after curfew?"

Draco's head dropped forward slightly. "I had been given an assignment."

"A school assignment?"

"An assignment from the... from Lord Voldemort. He wanted me to kill the Headmaster."

"Alone? That seems a very important task for someone as young as yourself."

"I had help. Other Death Eaters--"

"The castle was very heavily fortified. How did you manage to smuggle Death Eaters into the school?"

"Vanishing cabinet," Draco said quietly. "We'd found it the year before. It was broken, but its mate was at Borgin and Burkes. I fixed it in the Room of Requirement."

"I see."

"Then I set off the Dark Mark over the Astronomy Tower," Draco said, apparently unable to stop now that he had begun. "I knew that he would go straight there when he arrived back onto the grounds. I had Imperiused Madam Rosmerta at the Three Broomsticks. She carried a charmed coin. She told me when Dumbledore was on the way. I joined him moments after he'd arrived. I disarmed him. I--I--"

"You had Albus Dumbledore alone and wandless on the Astronomy Tower," Kingsley prompted gently.

"I did."

"And then what happened?"

"I... The others arrived. They were all yelling, distracting me. Snape came."

Hermione watched as Draco looked helplessly at Snape.

"Snape came, and he--Dumbledore said, 'Severus, please,' and Snape..."

"Snape did what?"

"He hit him with the Killing Curse," Draco whispered.

"Thank you, Draco. That is most helpful. Only a few more questions now. Did you take Albus Dumbledore's wand that night?"

"No. No, we left in a hurry. I never saw Dumbledore again."

"Did you tell the Lord Voldemort that it was not, in fact, you who cast the Killing Curse?"

Draco looked at Severus once more, and Hermione could swear there was shame in his eyes. "I did. I told him that Snape had rushed in and stolen my glory."

"I see. Thank you, Mr Malfoy. That will be all."

Draco turned toward Hermione as he exited the courtroom. The fingers of his left hand twitched a bit as he passed her, and she lifted her chin very slightly in response. She was not sure what had been communicated, but something had passed between them.

"Draco Malfoy's testimony confirms that he indeed disarmed Albus Dumbledore before Severus Snape cast the Killing Curse. It also confirms that Voldemort would not have suspected that Draco Malfoy had taken the mastery of Dumbledore's wand."

"Did you doubt my word?" Dumbledore said, sounding vaguely amused.

"This is a complex case. The court reserves the right to cross check every witness's testimony," Kingsley snapped.

"Of course," Dumbledore said mildly.

"When did you inform Severus Snape that your plan had gone awry?"

"I believe that we discussed it in March of the following year."

"You waited until March to reveal your plan to Snape? But why? You would have known even before you... were killed that something had gone wrong."

"As I said, I did not wish my intentions to be discovered by Voldemort. And it seemed to me that having the wand hidden beneath yet another layer of secrecy could only benefit the war effort. Even if Voldemort came to understand the workings of the wand, he would kill the wrong man in order to get it."

"But if Snape was not the master of the wand, he could not pass it to Harry Potter."

"That is true."

"So you were willing to risk Potter's life?"

"Forgive me, Harry," Dumbledore said, glancing into the crowd before returning his gaze to Kingsley. "But Harry Potter is but one man. The war endangered all of wizarding society as we know it. Surely, you can see how vital it was that Voldemort not come into possession of an unbeatable wand."

Kingsley did not speak for a moment. The silence in the courtroom was a palpable, living thing. Hermione looked up at the Wizengamot. The witches and wizards there seemed frozen with shock, their faces blank and waiting for the moment at which Dumbledore would rephrase, would say those words when they did not mean that he had agreed to the sacrifice of Harry Potter. Slowly they seemed to blink and look at one another cautiously. Kingsley's voice rang harshly against the silence.

"But the wand did not act against Harry Potter," he said. "How did you secure its mastery for him?"

"I didn't," Dumbledore said simply. "About that, you will have to ask Severus Snape."

Hermione sucked in a breath along with what seemed the entire courtroom. Dumbledore had stood by his statement.

"Mr Snape?" Kingsley said, making another of his dramatic turns and facing Snape, palms open.

"I became aware of the Elder Wand in March of this year. I consulted with Woodward Ollivander and then with Dumbledore. My wife, Hermione, was privy to my conversation with Dumbledore, and it was actually she who came up with the plan to visit Malfoy Manor and try to secure the mastery of the wand for Potter."

"The court calls Woodward Ollivander to testify."

Hermione watched as Ollivander explained the rules of the wand that had reared up to dictate the end of the war, to dictate everything. It seemed strange to hear about it in public, this thing of secrets. She wondered if the notion of it had ever been inside a courtroom before, or if this was one of hundreds of times. She craned her neck to watch the Wizengamot as Ollivander relayed the history of the wand--its path from Gregorovitch to Dumbledore--and was surprised to see how placidly they sat, as if discovering that Death's own wand had been passing between them were an everyday occurrence.

Her eyes drifted to Snape, lighting on his face and tasting the mood there. He was alert, perhaps even restless. He seemed to tense as Kingsley questioned Ollivander about who had come to him for information on the Elder Wand.

"You do not remember speaking with Snape about the Elder Wand?"

"No. Miss Lovegood says that he Obliviated us following his interview. The charm, it seems, was not as strong on her, or perhaps being young, she was better able to throw it off than I. For days, she insisted that Snape had been to see us, though I told her it was the darkness beginning to take her mind--half remembered dreams and fear, the swirling black so dark the mind begins to invent... and yet a house-elf came back for us. The very same house-elf that Miss Lovegood insisted had brought Severus Snape."

"What causes you to believe that he came for information on the Elder Wand?"

"Again, I must rely on Miss Lovegood. But it seems telling that Potter arrived at Malfoy Manor within the week."

"The court will hear testimony concerning the events at Malfoy Manor. Harry Potter, please come to the center of the courtroom."

Harry rose quickly and strode to the center of the room beside Snape.

"How did you learn about Dumbledore's wand?"

"In his will, Dumbledore left Hermione a book. In it there was a symbol. Not quite a rune. I recognized it because Xenophilius Lovegood had worn the same symbol around his neck at Bill and Fleur Weasley's wedding. We went to Mr Lovegood for an explanation, and he told us that it stood for the wand among other things.

"I--you have heard that for a time I shared a connection to Voldemort's mind. I knew that he had become obsessed with wandmakers and that he had visited Grindelwald at Nurmengard. From there it was just a little jump to Dumbledore."

"And Miss Granger presented you with a plan to enter Malfoy Manor and try to take the mastery of the wand?"

Harry smiled. "Hermione has a way of making you believe that you thought of things yourself. But, yes."

"What was your plan?"

"We had learned that Voldemort's name carried a Taboo. I said the word, hoping that we would be picked up by Snatchers and delivered to Malfoy Manor."

"That seems foolhardy, Mr Potter."

"It was. And I admit that I was rather rash about it once the idea had taken hold. I'm certain that Hermione would have fine-tuned the plan significantly. But it was clear the moment that we arrived that we had help."

"Explain."

"Well, for one thing, when Draco Malfoy was called to identify us, he couldn't do it--he'd been Confunded, I believe. Then, after Bellatrix Lestrange had cancelled all our protective enchantments and disguises with Finite Incantatem, someone hit me with a Shield Charm. And Dobby arrived to help us before we could call him."

"And you believe this helper to have been Severus Snape?"

"I do."

"Who else was in the Manor?"

"The Malfoys, Bellatrix Lestrange, Fenrir Greyback. Two Snatchers. Dean Thomas and Griphook of Gringotts. Wormt--Peter Pettigrew. And in the basement, Mr Ollivander and Luna Lovegood."

"You feel certain that none of those people could have been your benefactor?"

"Quite certain. Dobby arrived before we'd even been to the basement and ferried Mr Ollivander and Luna to Bill and Fleur Weasley's. And while we were in the Manor, Snape secured for us a bit of Bellatrix Lestrange's hair and the key to her Gringotts vault and gave it to Hermione. She knew he was there, though I did not. He made it possible for us to destroy the next Horcrux."

"And you were successful in capturing the mastery of the wand from Draco Malfoy?"

"I'm standing before you now because Snape's Shield Charm made it possible for me to overtake Draco Malfoy."

"Thank you, Mr Potter."

"You realize, don't you, that without Snape, I might not have lived to face Voldemort? Nor survived it when I did?"

"The court will draw its own conclusions. I thank you again for your testimony."

"You're welcome," Harry said dubiously and returned to his seat.

"Mr Snape, you testified earlier that you learned of the Elder Wand in March. Was that when you sought out Woodward Ollivander?"

"It was."

"And how did you discover the existence of the Wand?"

"I was informed by my colleague, Minerva McGonagall."

"But if Minerva McGonagall was not aware of Dumbledore's plan, she would have believed you to be a traitor to the Light. Why would she have brought so powerful a wand to your attention?"

"She realized the danger to my life. And she had begun to suspect that Dumbledore's death was not quite what it had seemed."

Kingsley stroked his chin for a moment, looking pensive, before he said, "The court calls Minerva McGonagall."

Hermione watched as Minerva rose shakily to her feet, her posture stiff, and her bun so severe that it seemed to be holding her face in a permanent expression of extreme displeasure.

"Please state your name and occupation for the court."

"Minerva McGonagall, Professor of Transfiguration and Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"Professor McGonagall, you are also the Head of the Gryffindor house, are you not?"

"I am."

"How long have you known Severus Snape?"

"I taught him myself when he was at Hogwarts. And we have worked together closely since he returned as a professor in nineteen eighty-one."

"How would you characterize your relationship with Snape?"

Minerva smiled tightly, and Hermione could not help but smile in return. "We head rival houses. Our relationship has necessarily been one of competition. And yet, I like to think that we have found enjoyment in our respective roles."

"Would you say that you were friendly?"

"In so far as Snape is friendly with anyone," Minerva said, the trace of a smirk on her lips.

"How did you feel when you learned that Snape had killed Albus Dumbledore?"

She paused. "There are no words for that feeling," she said quietly.

"Would it be safe to say that you felt angry? Betrayed?"

"Among other things, yes."

"Then why would you approach Snape with information about the Elder Wand?"

"I... Albus left me a Deluminator in his will. One of its functions is to locate the lost. I am ashamed to say I thought it would lead me to Harry Potter. I clicked it several times that year. It only ever led me to Severus.

"In March... Snape and I had an argument. I asked him why he had done it, and he told me he thought it had been perfectly obvious. I went back to my chambers, and I thought about it. What reason could he have had? What possible reason could he have had to hurt Dumbledore? And why would he stay at Hogwarts afterward, knowing that he would have to work with us? Why didn't he sack the lot of us--fill the school with Death Eaters? And then I knew."

"You knew?"

"That he had not betrayed us. That Albus must have asked, that they must have agreed--"

"And you came to that conclusion based on an argument?"

"Yes--well, and Severus's time as the Headmaster."

"Please elaborate."

"I'm terribly ashamed that I didn't see it. I was just so angry, so--but that is immaterial. Snape, from the moment he became Headmaster, took control of all the discipline at Hogwarts excepting House points. He oversaw the curriculum of all the staff members, even those of the longest standing--"

"And this convinced you that he had not betrayed you?"

"It's hard to see, at first, I know. He plays the part of the bastard too well for his own good. But there were Death Eaters on staff--Death Eaters who could have punished our children--but he insisted that all punishments be turned over to him. Neville Longbottom and Ginevra Weasley tried to steal the sword of Gryffindor from his office and were merely given detention with Hagrid. Hagrid! And by controlling all of our syllabi, he could control theirs, and to Voldemort, it would appear that he had taken complete responsibility for the overhaul of the school."

"So you are saying that you felt that Severus Snape was protecting the students of Hogwarts from the Death Eaters?"

"Yes! I cannot imagine--I truly cannot imagine, Minister, what it would have been like if--Oh, and we were hard on him. We did thwart him every chance we got. The things I said personally--" She turned away from Kingsley for a moment and seemed to focus her watery gaze on Snape. "Oh, Severus, I am sorry."

Hermione almost laughed at the look that crossed her husband's face. There seemed a war going on there between self-righteousness, amusement, horror and a strange sort of gratitude. Minerva turned back to Kingsley.

"But he would simply warn us in that very Severus way that we should be careful lest he turn us out--and now I see... now I see that we were much safer where we were."

"So when you had come to your conclusions, you approached Snape about the Elder Wand."

"Yes."

"And what did you tell him?"

"I told him that I thought Albus had put his life in great danger. There had been rumours for years among the seekers of the wand that Albus Dumbledore had it, and if there were never any attempt to take it, I imagine it was because Dumbledore was so revered and so formidable a wizard. But it seemed to me that if the rumours existed, it would only be a short time before Voldemort had heard them. And then he would come looking for Snape."

"You did not seek Dumbledore to confirm your theory?"

"I was far too angry to speak to Dumbledore at that time."

"Angry?" Kingsley's eyes narrowed, and to Hermione he suddenly looked very fierce, as if he knew he held the trial now in the palm of his hand and intended to squeeze.

"You do not ask a man to go through what Severus must have gone through--you do not make him an outlaw and a pariah among his friends and force him to... I'm sorry," Minerva said, pausing to blot her eyes with her handkerchief. "You cannot ask him to do those things and then send him mercilessly to his death without even telling him. It is not... It is not decent."

Hermione bowed her head. She had not yet allowed the courtroom to see her cry, and she would not begin now, but her eyes stung, and the world swirled before them for a moment. It was neither despair nor joy that squeezed her heart, but simple gratitude that someone shared her feelings, that she did not live in a world filled with souls she could not understand. Harry seemed to sense her distress, and he moved slightly closer to her on the bench.

"I think they're turning now," he said, sotto voce. "Don't look up. I'll be your eyes. Madam Marchbanks is crying. You know that wizard who always wears the purple hat?"

Hermione nodded, still gazing into her lap where a single tear splatted against her robes. She covered the spot with her hand.

"He's looking at the portrait like he's never seen Dumbledore before. People are writing. They're listening, Hermione. Hang on."

She nodded again and blinked until her eyes were clear and then she raised her head once more.

When Professor McGonagall returned to her seat beside Hermione, the young witch slipped her hand into the elder's as she had done just before the Battle of Hogwarts. Minerva clucked lightly, but she did not let go.

"There remains one last order of business," Kingsley said, his voice sounding clear and ringing now. "The matter of the Unforgivable Curses."

Harry rose suddenly beside Hermione, startling her. "I'd like to schedule my own trial."

"Sit down," Kingsley said sharply.

"Minister, please. If you intend to try Snape for the use of the Unforgivable Curses then I'd like to schedule my own trial date. I used all three."

"Harry, I am warning you--hero or no, this is a courtroom and--"

"Crucio on a Death Eater in Hogwarts, Imperio on a Gringotts goblin, and Avada Kedavra on Voldemort himself. It was war, Minister. We all--"

"Potter, this is not the time! For the last time, take your seat, or I will eject you from this courtroom!"

Harry and Kingsley stared at each other for a long moment. Kingsley raised an eyebrow, and Harry sat.

"As I was saying. As you know, Severus Snape has been without magic since well before this trial. The Auror Department took possession of Snape's wand and through Priori Incantatem, they have been able to catalogue the spells he cast over the past year and a half.

"There were two instances of the Killing Curse. One we have heard of at length today. The other was used on Bellatrix Lestrange."

Ginny leaned over Harry and hissed, "The final battle!" and Hermione nodded. An echo of Ginny's revelation seemed to travel through the crowd.

"There were no instances of the Cruciatus Curse nor the Imperius Curse."

Hermione's breath caught in her throat as Kingsley began to descend from the Minster's podium to the center of the courtroom. He strode impressively before the collected court, his multicolored robes swirling, his expression set and determined.

If Kingsley had sometimes appeared bumbling, if he had sometimes displayed his inexperience, it was clear now that it had been an act. There was nothing laughable about the man who stood before them. Hermione wondered if it was a charm he was using, or if this had always been the man underneath, a man who did not so much resemble the Minister of Magic, but some ancient warrior-king. His voice rolled through the courtroom like a battle cry.

"Witches and wizards of the Wizengamot, you have heard much testimony over these last few weeks concerning Severus Snape's role in the second war against Voldemort. The events on the Astronomy Tower of Hogwarts School cannot be denied. The question that we must now ask ourselves is whether greater evil was prevented by Snape's actions than the crime that was committed. Was he motivated, was he driven to act to prevent great harm from coming to children? Did he act with the intent to strengthen the Light?"

Hermione heard Ogden's voice before she saw him, though he was pushing past other wizards as he hastened from the stands. It was simply so difficult to look away from Kingsley, as he seemed to be radiating some kind of very bright light.

"That is not the way the law works, Minister!" Ogden shouted, red faced and puffed with anger. "Whatever Snape may purport to have done, he was a member of the group that threatened those children! You cannot join a group and then claim to murder in order to prevent--"

"You are assuming that Snape was a Death Eater," Kingsley said, seemingly unperturbed, while Hermione's hands were like ice and her stomach had clenched into a knot so tight that it seemed she could not swallow.

"You heard his testimony! He was a Death Eater! He sits before you with the Mark upon his arm! There is no question of whether--"

"Ah, but I think that is exactly the question, Judge Ogden. In the eyes of the Ministry, Snape has not been a Death Eater since nineteen eighty-one when he defected and turned spy."

"Roll up your sleeve!" Ogden thundered.

"Snape, that will not be necessary," Kingsley said, turning to Severus.

"Roll up your sleeve!" Ogden said again.

Hermione watched, and her fingers trembled as if she were Snape as he unbuttoned the sleeve of his robe, revealing the smooth white flesh underneath.

"It means nothing," he said. "The Mark disappeared when he died. Lucius Malfoy would have no more Mark than I."

"The Mark is gone," Kingsley said, looking, if it were possible, even more triumphant and assured than before. "The Mark is gone, and all that remains are the actions of this man. You have heard what Albus Dumbledore asked of Snape--"

"It makes no difference, as I have already pointed out to this court!" Ogden was nearly frothing at the mouth, but Kingsley continued talking, his words seeming to somehow drown out the other man.

"--though he knew that it would bring him ignominy and likely death. You have heard that Dumbledore asked Snape to place his life between the Voldemort and the students of Hogwarts School, between Voldemort and Harry Potter, and you have heard the choice that he made. The question that Judge Ogden raises is the only question left for you to consider.

"Was Severus Snape a Death Eater?"

Kingsley's voice seemed to reverberate of the stone walls of the courtroom, enveloping everyone within them in a blanket of warm, powerful vibration.

"Was he? Was Severus Snape a Death Eater? Did he betray the Light? Or was he the reason that Harry Potter lived to defeat Voldemort?"

Hermione tore her eyes from Kingsley for a moment to read the faces of the witches and wizards above her. There were those who seemed unmoved, whose jaws remained set, but there were many whose eyes shown with rapt attention. There were brows furrowed with questioning, and she thought she had never seen such a beautiful sight in her life.

"The court will adjourn to allow the Wizengamot to reach a decision. We will reconvene on the first of August, nineteen ninety-eight to hear the verdict. That is all."

She closed her eyes as she felt the people around her begin to stir and rise. A tingle ran down her spine, raising goose bumps on her arms. Please, she thought. Just... please.

***

Hermione stood in the doorway, watching Severus as he knelt by the fireplace. He wore his customary house clothing--the denims, which had once looked so odd to her eyes, and his graying button down shirt, open at the collar and rolled to his elbows. His hair was tucked behind his ears. Behind him on the coffee table sat a glass and the remains of a sandwich. It was clear from his posture that he had no idea that she was there at all. Beside him on the hearth lay the matches he would use to light the fire. Despite the heat outside, the house seemed perpetually dank and chilled, and occasionally they would sit side by side on the sofa before the fireplace and let the dancing flames lull them to sleep.

She supposed that, tonight of all nights, they would need the help.

She watched him quietly, learning this new man who was her husband. Regardless of what might have been, in the castle for instance, or far from here, renamed and revisioned as other people, this was the Snape she had now. This was her husband in repose, attending to the task of lighting a fire.

Tentatively, he reached out his right hand and flicked his fingers. Hermione's heart seemed to lurch, and her throat felt thick and heavy. He flicked again. Nothing. He sighed and reached for the matches as she entered the room.

He stood abruptly, abandoning the fire unlit.

"I was intending to retire," he said, not looking at her.

She stood there for almost a half a minute before she realized that he was asking her to join him.

"Yes," she said, careful to keep her face impassive. "We'll need the sleep."

He headed, without another word, to the stairs, and she followed. The hall was dark and shadowy, but he did not turn on the lamps, and when they entered the bedroom, he undressed and got into bed without speaking. She joined him, lying on her back in the darkness. His hand crossed the invisible line that ran down the center of the bed and took hers. She squeezed.

"Do you have the will?" he said after a moment. His voice seemed loud in the quiet of the house, and his words baffled her.

"The will?"

"Yes," he said formally. "I left a will."

"Oh. Oh, yes. I mean, no, I don't have it, but yes, I knew that you had. Arthur Weasley had it. I believe he destroyed it."

Snape was silent for a long time.

"I am sorry to hear it. It seems you have made a friend of Kingsley Shacklebolt. I had hoped... I had hoped that he might be convinced to honor it when I am--"

"Severus, don't."

"Hermione." He rolled toward her, and she could just make out his face, pinched and earnest. "You have been... formidable. You have done better than I could have ever dreamed, better than perhaps I deserved. It is imperative that you know that it will not be your fault. No one could have--"

"Stop," she said quietly. "Let's not invite trouble. Let's wait and see what happens."

"You know what will happen. You are not a foolish girl; you have never been one, no matter what I might have said to the contrary. You know our world, and you know that they will never--"

"When will you learn to stop saying goodbye to me?" she said, too weary to be truly fierce. "If we lose, I will appeal. I will appeal over and over and over again until they give in because they are so damned tired of my face. What do I have to do to convince you that I will not let this happen?"

"You are thoroughly Gryffindor, Hermione," he whispered, and if there was sorrow in his tone, there was also a kind of rueful affection. "So convinced that you can change the world by your own power, so willing to charge out into the fray. Listen to me. I do not wish you to beat yourself to death against a wall that cannot be moved. I do not want to be your life's work. You deserve better things than courtrooms and newspaper articles and judgments."

"Which is why we will do what needs to be done and then get on with it."

He was silent for so long that she thought he might have nodded off. She was glad. Perhaps he had needed to offer her one last option, and having done so, felt able to close his eyes. She squeezed his hand again gently.

"I do not know how to get on with it," he said so softly that she strained to make out the words. "I have spent my entire life in Voldemort's shadow."

There was nothing to say. What did she know about what happened next? As little as he did or even less. Whatever came out would be trite at best. She rolled toward him and tucked herself into his arms. He accepted her without a struggle, and they waited out that long night together.

---

A/N: Hello again! I've never done an end note before, but I wanted to say that Kingsley's defense was built around the idea of Duress or Duress of Circumstances (Necessity), which unfortunately does not really apply in a murder trial (nor to a Death Eater)--and hence at the end he tried for Jury Nullification, trying to get the Wizengamot to focus on the issue of whose side Snape was on rather than whether he was guilty of the crimes he was charged with. All of this is dreadfully inexact, of course, and all slaughterings of the law are my own. Sadly, I could not find a real defense for Snape. Dumbledore, it seems, screwed him very, very thoroughly.