The cliché Trial of Sirius Black

*** Headmaster's office

"Harry, I have something very serious to talk to you about… do you know Sirius Black?" Arcturus asked.

Harry's eyes hardened, "The man who betrayed my parents." He said simply.

Arcturus shook his head, "No, Sirius Black did not betray your parents."

"How! He was their secret-keeper, only he could-"

"-But he wasn't their secret-keeper, in his last letter to me, he said he was a decoy and proof was in the Potter will… I need to see if it's true, the boy is my grandson, I am formally requesting you to publically have your will unsealed, I already have Albus' permission, now I just need yours." Arcturus sent the boy a pleading look.

*** Wizengamot monthly meeting

"Our next order of business is a request by the Heir Potter, to unseal his parent's will and I, as his guardian have granted permission." Dumbledore said loudly.

"Bring forth the will." He commanded, and a goblin representative handed an old-looking scroll to Dumbledore.

Being of sound body and mind, I Lord James Charlus Potter, hereby declare this document as my official will.

Being of sound body and mind, I Lily Evans Potter, hereby declare this document as my official will.

We leave all our earthly possessions to our son, Heir Hadrian James 'Harry' Potter.

We hereby donate the sum of 100,000 galleons to the Hogwarts student fund.

We hereby donate the sum of 100,000 galleons to Lord Albus Wulfric Brian Dumbledore to support the war effort.

We hereby donate the sum of 1,000,000 galleons to Mr. Remus Lupin in hopes that he may purchase a new pair of robes.

We hereby donate the sum of 10,000 galleons to Heir Sirius Black though he is not in immediate need of it.

We hereby donate the sum of 100,000 galleons to Peter Pettigrew for being a good friend in a time of need.

In the case of our untimely death, we would like our son to reside with Heir Black and in the case that that it not possible, we leave it up to Lord Dumbledore to decide the temporary home for our son.

Lord Potter and Lady Lily Potter would like the court to recognize that their secret keeper for Godric's Hollow was Peter Pettigrew and NOT Heir Black and if Mr. Pettigrew indeed betrayed Lord and Lady Potter, his portion from the will is revoked.

So mote it be.

So mote it be.

Having read the entire will, Dumbledore looked up to see the stunned audience.

"What shit is this Dumbledore; Black is obviously guilty!" Fudge got out of his seat in an effort to look intimidating.

Amelia Bones entered the courtroom with Sirius Black in magic-restraining handcuffs, "I think you'll find, Minister, that Sirius Black did not receive a trial at the hands of my predecessor, so I shall right my wrong. Let the trial of Sirius Black begin!"

Sirius was tied up in a chair in the middle of the court.

"Sirius Black, for thirteen charges of muggle murder, and 2 charges of accessory to murder. How do you plead." Amelia intoned.

"Not guilty." The man hoarsely said.

"Administer the veritaserum." Amelia commanded but Lucius Malfoy raised his hand before the veritaserum could be administered.

"Are you sure the man is of his proper mind after so many years in Askaban?" Lucius said, sounding positively concerned for the man, "Because if it isn't, you cannot interview him under veritaserum by laws put in place by this very body."

Amelia shook her head in exasperation, "Very well, then our only evidence is a MAGICALLY-BOUND will which states that Black is not guilty so I am ready to give my vote right here and now."

In the end, the vote was close, because all the dark families and a couple of the light families voted against him, though thankfully most light and grey families followed the lead of Dumbledore and Amelia and voted in favor of Sirius.

"Heir Black, it is my pleasure to announce that you have been cleared of all charges and will be given compensation for your time in Askaban."

Sirius smiled tiredly, but a few astute families noticed Amelia's wording, Heir Black when he should be Lord Black.

A voice chuckled from the visitor's gallery, "It seems that some people have realized what Amelia meant…"

Dumbledore straightened, "Our next order of business is welcoming back the Lord Black into this party after a long leave in regards to his uncertain health."

Arcturus strode out of the visitor's gallery and walked straight to the Black seat, sitting down, taking the whispering to an all-time high.

"SILENCE!" Dumbledore roared.

Arcturus rose again, "I would like to take custody of my grandson until he is well."

*** Hogwarts, a month later

Harry and Hermione continued their training, Harry continued training with elemental magic, learning nuances and by the end of the month, Harry had a reasonable grasp over the basics of the art.

Sirius himself was recovering in a mental clinic in America.

Hermione was more focused on getting her spell-magic up to where Harry was, not having practiced dueling techniques like he had and not being built for fighting, her posture being a bit too stiff and not fluid enough to be a winning duelist, thought Dumbledore was working on that with her.

Unfortunately, the petrifications continued, and Dumbledore was required more and more at school and he kept his investigation going, having narrowed it down to a handful of magical creatures, citing the 'monster' in the legend of the Chamber of Secrets. Currently, he was theorizing that it might be a Basilisk and the three victims so far were just really lucky in surviving their encounters.

Dumbledore explained his theory while he and Hermione were doing a mock-duel and Arcturus and Harry were already done for the day.

You're grasping at straws now, Albus, there is no way that a goddamn Basilisk could go around this school and not kill ANYONE." Arcturus scorned Dumbledore's theory.

"But it would fit Voldemort's mo…" Nicolas mused.

Dumbledore nodded, "Out of all magical snakes, this is the only one that makes logical sense. Not to mention, the last time the chamber was opened, a girl died and it was definitely Voldemort who opened it then, so perhaps, instead of an Heir, we should be looking for a possessed student."

"But wouldn't they have a head sticking out of the back of their head, Like Professor Quirrell." Hermione asked, sending another simple spell-chain at Dumbledore.

"There are many types of possession, Granger, what we are talking about is Voldemort taking over somebody's body from inside his horcrux, not just attaching himself to any consenting individual." Arcturus explained.

Nicolas cleared his throat, "Either way, it's about time that I start teaching you battle alchemy."

Harry raised his hand, "Doesn't Alchemy basically work off the law of equivalent exchange, so isn't transfiguration more versatile?"

"Good question, the answer is that Alchemically transmuted objects cannot be reverted or broken with magic, they are entirely resilient to anyone's magic but your own. At the same time, transfiguration is a form of alchemy as well, simplified and enhanced by wizard's magic to bypass the law of equivalent exchange but lose any magical properties." Nicolas explained.

Harry nodded, and Nicolas proceeded to give a long lecture on Alchemy and how it worked, having them work in pentagrams, which helped beginners learn the basics and he had them do simple alchemy, turning a big rock into a small knife, which both Harry and Hermione managed.

"The goblins are great Alchemists, as the legends go, they sacrificed over ten kilograms of pure diamond to create the sword of Gryffindor." Nicolas said, "Alchemically created weapons are the best in the world, you would do well to learn how to use a sword and alchemically transfigure yourself a physical weapon, it is also possible to turn your weapon into a conductor for magic, though that would require a greater sacrifice. For the next couple turns, we'll be working on simple alchemy of physical objects, however, greater uses of alchemy include blood magic and alchemical wards, both of which involve sacrifice, making them the most powerful forms of magic. Incidentally, the wards protecting your aunt's house are also alchemical wards, working off the willing sacrifice of a life, perhaps one of the most powerful sources of magic ever, making the wards around that house perhaps the strongest wards created in the last hundred years."

*** End of Chapter