84

Their twenty minutes, however, did not last long. People began to filter back in, taking their seats in anticipation of the tale that was to come from the notorious Hogwarts Professor of Potions.

"This won't be too bad, will it?" she whispered as Lucius sat back down.

"That depends on what they ask." He shrugged, trying to keep an optimistic face.

"We can only hope," she smiled down at him, "I imagine the rest of them will have their chance to speak before Fudge adjourns for the day." She nodded her head up at the Wizengamot's benches. "I'll see you then." Without replying, he simply took her hand a pressed his lips to it; finally releasing it with a sigh and giving her a lingering look as she walked away.

Instead of returning to her seat, however, she walked casually down the courtroom to where Snape was sitting with Dumbledore and McGonagall.

"Good morning Professor Dumbledore," she nodded politely, "Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape."

"Good morning to you too Miss Potter." McGonagall replied, albeit in a slightly stiff voice. Kathryn supposed that she was still having a hard time forgiving her betrayal.

"I see the information I provided you with on Saturday has proved useful." Dumbledore smiled meaningfully.

"Yes, it has. Although I didn't actually mention it to Lucius."

"I had an inkling he was already aware of the connection, but it was you that I felt needed the hope such information would provide."

"Thank you." She smiled again, flattered that he would even think about her needs after all she had done. "And it seems that you were quite prophetic in your predictions for today Professor," she turned to look at Snape, "I look forward to your comments with great interest."

"I'm sure you do." He made to walk towards the podium where she had stood the previous week, only to find her at his side as she returned to her seat. She kept very close to him, their shoulders almost touching, and when she spoke it was so only he could hear.

"Will I like what you say?" she asked quietly. Snape took his time in replying, considering his answer for several moments as they walked. To those that watched, they looked quite the odd pair; both of them with their black hair and black clothes that billowed out behind them as they walked.

"Let's just say that you may be pleasantly surprised." He answered as they drew level with her seat. She simply smiled in response and walked up the steps towards her seat, leaving Snape to continue on.

"What was that about?" Harry asked immediately as she sat down. Rom, Hermione and Ginny all looked equally curious.

"Just talking." She shrugged in an unconcerned fashion.

"Looked more like you were plotting something." Ron chipped in, keeping his voice low. "You should've seen people's faces."

"No, just discussing what he was going to say." She whispered back as the Wizengamot began to file in.

"Careful," Hermione cautioned, nodding her head towards Fudge, "if they hear about that they'll do their best to get you for trying to subvert the course of justice."

"I think at this point, if he caught me at it, Fudge would try to put me away for littering." Any reply Hermione had to this comment was forgotten as the wizard with the quizzical brow cleared his throat and began to speak.

"As I mentioned prior to our brief recess, I wish to question Severus Snape as to the character of the accused. Professor," he turned towards Snape, "would you be so kind as to state your full name for the record?"

"Severus Snape."

"And your profession?"

"Professor of Potions at Hogwarts." Snape looked slightly offended to even be asked such a thing, as his profession was common knowledge.

"Thank you," he made a note before shuffling his papers into order, "now, Professor Snape, could you tell me how long you have known Miss Kathryn Potter?"

"I first met Miss Potter when she arrived to begin her studies at Hogwarts. That would be nearly six years ago."

"You knew her parents, yes?"

"I was in the same school year as her parents, and her Godfather." Kathryn silently hoped that the man would not bring up her mother, as she knew how much it would pain Snape to speak of her.

"And when did you first meet Lucius Malfoy?"

"When I was in my first year at Hogwarts. He was in his fourth year." Everyone in the room seemed to be waiting with bated breath for every answer, desperately wondering what things the notorious Potions Professor could reveal.

"How many years of friendship is that?"

"Twenty five."

"Just exactly how is it that you became friends?"

"I had a certain, er, talent that Lucius found most interesting."

"And what would that be?"

"Curses." Snape admitted reluctantly.

"How is it that a first year student would have such knowledge of curses to interest a fourth year?"

"I read." Snape replied dryly, already looking like he was losing his patience with the man. "I spent a lot of my childhood reading and it is no secret that I was fascinated with Dark Magic."

"I see." His quill scratched over paper in the relative silence of the courtroom. "So, aside from those Death Eaters either dead or in Azkaban, you are the one person who can claim the longest-standing friendship with Lucius Malfoy."

"Obviously." Snape drawled, giving him a look that would have silenced the entire student population of Hogwarts in three seconds flat.

"Therefore, it follows that you have more than the average insight into his life and the reasons behind his actions."

"Not essentially," Snape shook his head, taking pleasure in dashing the man's hopes that he would be able to reveal each of Lucius' many secrets, "Lucius has always been a private man, even with the closest of his friends."

"Well, let us hope that you shall be able to shed some light on the things that particularly concern me." Shuffling his papers around for a second time, he found the sheet he was looking for and then directed his gaze back to Snape. "Firstly, the matter of how Mr. Malfoy managed to conceal his dealings with Miss Potter for so long."

"The answer to that is relatively simple," Snape shrugged, "in-between the Dark Lord's first fall and his return five years ago, I assisted Lucius in bettering his Occlumency skills."

"Did he give you a reason for needing to do so?"

"No, but it does not take great intelligence to understand how such a skill could be of use to him."

"And what of Miss Potter? She too was able to conceal her activities from both Dumbledore and yourself; two great experts in Legilimency."

"Again, the answer is deceptively simple. Once it became apparent that both Miss Potter and her brother needed to be able to shield their minds from the Dark Lord's invasion, I was tasked with their tuition." Beside her, Harry shuddered at the memories of those exhausting sessions in Snape's offices. "In comparison with her brother, Miss Potter took to the discipline relatively well, and it appears that she was smart enough to practice hard."

"Excellent." Another mark was made on his notes.

"Indeed it was," Snape went on, "considering also that she managed to conceal the truth from the Dark Lord, despite being exhausted and severely injured. It was only seconds before his death that her shields failed, but by then it didn't matter." Snape recounted what Dumbledore and Lucius had told him of the events whilst he had been unconscious.

"Personally I think that speaks of great presence of mind." Had she been standing, Kathryn was sure that such praise from her former Professor would have knocked her off her feet.

"Well, moving on," if Snape's last comment had made any impression, he did not show it, "can you verify what Mr. Malfoy had told us about his activities as a Death Eater over the past five years?"

"What do you wish me to verify?"

"He told us that he became steadily less involved in what I suppose we would consider the traditional Death Eater activities, and took on more of a political role."

"Then yes, I can confirm what he told you."

"So Mr. Malfoy's involvement in attacks and killings orchestrated by the Death Eaters was minimal?"

"Yes. In the Dark Lord's mind, the killing could be left to the more inexperienced generation of followers; those that were eager to prove themselves. Orchestrating the fall of the Ministry required the contacts and finesse that only Lucius possessed."

"I see. On a slightly related point, Mr. Malfoy appears to have undergone some quite major shifts in attitude over the past two years at least. Being as you are such a close friend of his, did you not notice the shift in his behaviour?"

"Well, I was teaching for the most part, so our meetings were limited. But beyond that, I do not know what makes it so hard for you to comprehend that there was no perceptible shift in his general conduct."

"Surely something must have changed?"

"In all of his publicly visible interaction with Miss Potter, his conduct was that of a gentleman. Such behaviour was nothing out of the ordinary."

"But you had your suspicions, Miss Potter showed us last week how you tried to warn her off." He recalled the harsh words spoken between Kathryn and Snape at the ball.

"I could see past the politeness," he replied bluntly, "and I could tell he was interested for other, more questionable reasons. I could also see that she knew this, and was using it to her advantage. I merely sought to warn her off such a dangerous course."

"A touch too late though."

"Obviously." Snape drawled, glaring at the man. "Their real agenda was too well veiled by the supposedly vast differences between them."

"And so you did not pursue her further on the subject?"

"I knew that the Dark Lord wanted to make a move before the school year ended, and I assumed that she would be safe whilst within the school boundaries."

"You did not even raise the potential problem with Dumbledore, or any of the other members of staff?"

"I did not see the reason to create suspicion or fear when I had little proof to support my claims." Watching her former Professor intently, Kathryn realised how Snape's inaction had saved them from earlier discovery.

"Very well." His quill scratched as he made another note. "Miss Potter's memories show how they narrowly missed discovery when you called upon Mr. Malfoy at his Manor. From what she told us, you did see something whilst you were there."

"I saw a leg, and a face in a window, but not much else."

"And what did that lead you to conclude?"

"As I explained to other members of the Order, it meant one of several things. The first was that he had taken a Mistress."

"Did you consider that to be likely?"

"Not really, especially considering that there would have been evidence of a Mistress before Narcissa's death." Kathryn listened raptly, most curious to hear the full details of that particular conversation.

"And your other theories?"

"The second was that she was someone with whom he should not be involved, for whatever reason. The final hypothesis was that she was being handsomely paid for her services."

"A prostitute, you mean?"

"Yes."

"Which did you believe to be correct?"

"The second."

"Any particular reason?"

"Well, having known Lucius for so long, I was fairly confident in my assumption that he would consider it beneath him to pay for sex. Being an eligible bachelor once again meant that he had plenty of women practically queuing up to be the next Mrs Malfoy." Snape explained surprisingly patiently. "He had no cause to pay for what he could readily get. It had to be someone with whom he could not afford to be seen."

"And, as it turned out, you were right."

"Yes, although when we were discussing this, I had no idea that the person in question would be just a few floors above me."

"What did you think when you first discovered that Miss Potter was the woman you had glimpsed?" he scrutinised Snape closely, as if searching for any hint of falsehood.

"At first I did not know that it was her, the general conclusion was that he had abducted her from the battlefield in order to obtain what he had long desired." Snape revisited those harrowing, tumultuous hours after the final battle. "We found them together, in his bed, and jumped to all sorts of conclusions. However, it soon became very apparent that there was something wrong."

"What told you this?"

"She was on edge, but it seemed to be more due to our presence than what we assumed had happened to her. Beyond that, she bore no signs of injury and seemed to be relatively at ease in the Manor."

"Nevertheless, what did you first think when you saw them together?" he returned to the original point of the question. "Before you knew of their relationship?"

"All her life, she has been a symbol of hope, of everything that is pure and good in this world. The moment I walked through that door, I thought that no matter the victory we had just won, what he had done served to destroy it all."

"Did it shock you?"

"I had prepared myself for the eventuality, and it was no shock that Lucius would wish to possess the best; no matter the means in which he did it." Lucius could not deny that this statement was true.

"And right at that very moment," he asked, steepling his fingers together, "what did you imagine toe future to hold?"

"For Lucius, I thought he would never again see the light of day, not after what we thought he had done. As for Miss Potter, well, I thought that she would be destroyed."

"Destroyed?"

"For all we knew, in the course of the night she had gone to hell and back, only to be dragged off and ravaged when she was finally supposed to be safe. Thinking her innocent of the more carnal aspects of life, it was not hard to imagine the effect such an act would have. I did not think she would recover." Many people, Kathryn included, were stunned at the concern he seemed to have for his former student. However, it was only a select few who understood that this was inextricably linked to his love for her mother.

"Yet here she stands, defending him," if he had thought there to be a surprising level of concern on Snape's part, he did not choose to pick up on it, "what did you think about that?"

"At first I thought she was a fool," Snape shrugged unsympathetically, "deluding herself into believing that he cared for her when all he wanted was a way out of Azkaban." The comment stung, but both Lucius and Kathryn knew that it was not exactly an unreasonable judgment to make. "I was not made fully aware of the details until August, when I paid Miss Potter a visit."

"I see, and did what you see change your mind?"

"What I saw certainly forced me to consider a different point of view," Snape was sure his face twinged at the memory of being sent flying into that cabinet, "but I was not completely certain until I had further meetings with Lucius."

"So you visited him in Azkaban?"

"To the extent that I was permitted, yes." He thought it prudent not to mention the times he had seen Lucius at his Manor, knowing that such freedoms were kept secret from the public.

"And now, from what you have seen, what do you think of their relationship?" he asked casually, belying the importance of such a question. "Do you approve? Do you understand?" Snape took a deep breath, knowing that he had to get this right.

"At first, I did not approve," he began, "I'm not sure anybody did. Yet, despite that, she has ignored all censure that has been directed her way. Two and a half months of constant criticism and still she has not backed down. Surely that must speak volumes as to her determination to prove that, on the whole, she did very little wrong."

"But we are not here to discuss her determination, or her drive, or what she may or may not have done wrong. I wish to know what you think." His reply was clipped and stern. "If you would please return to the original question."

"As I was going to elaborate, before you interrupted," Snape's voice was equally brusque, sending a shiver down Kathryn's spine, "I was disapproving at first."

"But?" the man interjected as Snape paused briefly, making the Potions Professor's eyes widen in fury.

"But I have since had the chance to reconsider all that I had seen over the past two years, as well as being able to observe them together without any pretence." Her hand hidden by her sleeve, Kathryn crossed her fingers and hoped that what Snape was about to say was favourable. "And funnily enough, I find them surprisingly well suited." Kathryn's heart soared.

"In what way?" the curly-haired wizard looked quite perplexed at the notion.

"Because she challenges him, disagrees with him." Snape explained. "In twenty five years of friendship, I have never known someone to do so, especially not a woman. As he made clear to you earlier, he has spent his entire life surrounded by those who have done nothing but reinforce his beliefs and ideals. Her presence in his life marks a great change, for she is not a woman who was raised to agree with everything he says in the hope that she will become the next Mistress of Malfoy Manor and benefit from his fortune."

Hermione could not help but be slightly proud as she listened to Snape's assessment, having proposed such a theory to Harry and Ron several months ago.

"Interesting, do go on."

"I have listened to them talk, both in public and in private, and she is not afraid to dispute his opinions. She can make quite the persuasive argument and therein lies the importance, because she forces him to reassess his ideals."

"Anything else you would like to add?"

"She is fiercely intelligent, in case you hadn't noticed, she matches him" Snape drawled, "and that is a far cry from some of the women who have vied for his attention since his wife's death. She is politically savvy, and has proven herself more than capable of manipulating events in order to get what she wants."

"You say that she is manipulative?"

"No, not in that sense, but it is the only word that accurately describes what I mean. For example, she pushed the start date of this trial forwards by simply going to the bank and reminding people that she was there. Without speaking a word to anyone in a position of authority over such things, a date was set and the public, once again outraged at what they believed to have happened, were placated."

"I see." He gave a nod of understanding, and Kathryn could only hope that he really did comprehend what Snape had just said. "You mentioned his fortune; does that have any bearing on the situation between Mr. Malfoy and Miss Potter?"

"She asks nothing of him," Snape was quick to reply, shaking his head, "she has her own fortune and makes no claim upon his. Despite what people may be inclined to think, she is financially independent of him. She is not some sycophantic fortune-hunter, oh no!" Snape smirked slightly. "Indeed, it is somewhat peculiar, as she is far more powerful than him. She has always been so, even when she was young, and is one of the few people that can boast a sphere of influence larger than that of Lucius Malfoy." From the looks on many of the faces that lined the walls of the courtroom, it was apparent that few had ever looked at things in this way before.

"What about all the clothes and jewels? From what we have seen, such things cannot be inexpensive?"

"The jewels he provides," Snape explained carefully, "but not at her request. He gives such things out of kindness alone. As for her clothes, I cannot offer factual information."

"Miss Potter," the man turned to face her, "you were pictured in Diagon Alley yesterday morning with numerous bags of clothes. Whilst I do not wish to speculate their value, I do with to know from which vault the payment will be taken."

"I am not a kept woman," she answered clearly, "and as such, I am perfectly capable of paying for my own wardrobe. Oh, and just to save the speculation, the bill was over seventy thousand Galleons." Feverish muttering broke out at the mention of such a sum being spent on clothes alone. Even Harry, who knew that his sister had never been one to compromise when it came to style, was quite shocked at such an amount.

"Seventy thousand?" he whispered to his sister before Snape continued.

"Well, fifteen outfits," she counted quickly on her fingers, "plus shoes and accessories from the new autumn/winter collections. It's not such a shocking price to pay considering I was given a discretionary discount by most."

"They gave you a discount?"

"Well, if I wear them in public, that's free publicity for them." She explained quickly. "Besides, I have been a good customer to most of those fashion houses for several years. That is at least worth something." Harry merely shrugged, not knowing how to reply as the man cleared his throat and called for order.

"Thank you for that helpful insight, Miss Potter." He gave her a curt nod before turning his attention back to Snape. "Do you have any other comments to offer?"

"Many," Snape sighed, "but I shall keep to the most important. Aside from her obvious youth and beauty, what I would consider to be a key reason for their being so well matched, is that they both care for each other." The entire room was silent, waiting on tenterhooks. "What I have been told in confidence, I shall not repeat, but it is suffice to say that such a matter takes precedence over trivial matters of money and power."

"A most enlightening point." The wizard scratched out a note on his parchment. "Now, finally, could you tell me whether you think he is a danger?"

"To whom?"

"To the public at large."

"No." Snape's firm response rang out in the quiet. "I cannot say from when, but it was at least certain from the moment he lied to the Dark Lord."

"Thank you, Professor." He made one final note. "I have no further questions." Silently, fudge motioned for Snape to return to his seat, which the Potions Professor did with a look of relief upon his face, before turning to the witch who was to speak next.

"Again, with your permission Minister," it was the elegant woman with fading blonde hair that spoke this time, "I would like to pose several questions to Albus Dumbledore about his former student and her relationship with the accused."

"Granted." If Dumbledore was surprised to be asked to speak, he did not show it. His silvery hair and beard seeming to glow in the dim light of the courtroom, he walked calmly forward to the podium that Snape had just vacated and waited for the first question.

"If you would be so kind as to state your name and profession for the record." The witch asked politely, giving Dumbledore a faint smile.

"Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore." His voice was cool and clear, commanding the attention of everyone in the room, just like he did when speaking to a crowded Great Hall at Hogwarts. "Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"Thank you Professor. Now, simple mathematics tells me that you have known Lucius Malfoy for around twenty eight years, is that correct?"

"It is."

"And Miss Potter you have known for the same length of time as Professor Snape?"

"Technically yes, although I have known of her existence since she was born."

"Thank you." She glanced down at her notes before continuing. "Firstly, I notice that you have remained silent over what has happened between Mr. Malfoy and Miss Potter. In fact, you have steadfastly refused to answer questions on the topic, why is that?"

"I have refused to make any remark upon the situation because I did not wish my opinion to plant any ideas in the minds of the public," he explained rationally, "or the Wizengamot. In my position, one tends to find that your opinions are all too often accepted as the right ones by those who do not know their own."

"And so you have stayed silent on the subject in order to protect the integrity of the current proceedings, yes?"

"Well, aside from that, it would have been terribly tactless of me to speak before being appraised of all the facts. Such as it is, I only heard the full tale from Miss Potter last week."

"So you were unacquainted with any of the particulars until last week?" she seemed completely stunned that someone with such a close connection could be kept so in the dark.

"Yes."

"Had you no desire to know?"

"I wanted to know what had gone on as much as the next person," if he was slightly exasperated, he did not show it, "but I respected Miss Potter's right to share the details when she was ready. I had heard the basic details form her brother and Godfather and beyond that I was willing to wait She was in a fragile enough state as it was, and I was not about to make it worse."

"Very well. Have you had the opportunity to discuss things with Miss Potter since she finished giving her testimony?"

"I spoke to her this weekend."

"What did you discuss?"

"We discussed what she had told the Wizengamot, obviously, and I told her what I thought."

"And what, might I ask, do you think? After all, your opinion is highly valued like you said, and now you are at liberty to express it." Dumbledore paused for a moment, his eyes twinkling as he collected his thoughts.

"I told her that I was proud of what she had done." He stated calmly, keeping his eyes fixed on the Wizengamot.

"You were proud?" she gasped in shock. "Proud of her lies? Proud of her sneaking around with a Death Eater?"

"No," Dumbledore corrected coolly, "I am proud of how she has stepped forward to answer for her actions. I am proud of her handling of a most difficult situation." The admiration that suffused his words was unmistakable, and left no one in any doubt of his feelings. "Most of all, however, I am proud of the sacrifice she was willing to make to keep those she loved safe."

"Surely you cannot claim to be so proud when you first heard what had gone on?"

"No, indeed I was quite unhappy that Miss Potter had thought it necessary to conceal the original incident from those who were best placed to help her. As for my anger, well, I must confess that such feelings were mostly directed towards Mr. Malfoy."

"Had you believed him capable of such an act?"

"I don't think I was ever entirely sure what he was capable of." Dumbledore shook his head; a pensive expression playing across his features. "I don't think anyone has ever really been sure. He treads the boundary between light and dark without really ever straying too far into either. He has certainly confessed himself capable of some fairly unspeakable deeds, yet at the same time he has proven himself to be quite selfless when it comes to certain things."

"I don't think that selfless was ever a word used to describe Lucius Malfoy." She commented sardonically.

"How else would you describe his actions towards Miss Potter?"

"Which ones?"

"He lied to save her life without any thought for his own," Dumbledore reminded her curtly, "I think that just about manages to be selfless."

"Yet he also gave her control of his finances and estate in order to keep them far from the reach of the Ministry. That is self-preservation, not selflessness."

"True, yet I must remind you that he earlier mentioned that this was also done in order to ensure that she had a safe place in which to reside." Dumbledore countered her argument smoothly. "Now, perhaps, you see what I mean about the fine balance he strikes between light and dark?"

"Perhaps." She conceded after a few moments pause. "But that is still not enough to redeem him."

"I am not suggesting that it is, but I do suggest that you review his prior actions and consider them from a different perspective. Look past the façade he has always presented to the world and seek out the hidden reasons, for it is only there that you will find the man he really is."

"And what, might I ask, did you think of her behaviour once relations between Miss Potter and Mr. Malfoy were fully consensual?" despite the profound nature of his last statement, the witch glossed right over it and moved onto her next question.

"I believe that her," Dumbledore paused, correcting himself, "no, their behaviour, was that of any lovers."

"But they are not just any lovers."

"They were two people between whom any relationship would be considered taboo, how did you expect them to have acted? When you forget who they are and what they stood for, that is all you have left. They acted as any clandestine lovers would."

"Surely you cannot have been so blasé at the time of their discovery?"

"It would be a lie to say that her actions did not leave me somewhat disconcerted." Dumbledore explained carefully, not wanting his words to be misunderstood. "Because she did tell a great many lies, and took a great many risks. Most of all, she risked her own life; placing herself in a position of extreme vulnerability whenever she stole away to his Manor. With no one who knew where she really was, she relied on blind trust that he would not betray her to his Master."

"For someone that has been praised for her intelligence, that does not seem particularly clever."

"Probably not, but the heart is not governed by logic."

"So, in essence, you disapprove of the risks she took?"

"I certainly disapprove of her placing herself in such danger," the pensieve look returned, "but the very nature of a risk is the gamble you take with the possible consequences. For example, a Seeker feints during a game of Quidditch; risking crashing in order to have a few extra seconds to seek out the Golden Snitch. In this instance, Miss Potter took the risk of forging a relationship with the most unlikely of candidates, but ultimately that relationship saved hers and her brother's lives."

"A curious analysis." She nodded, apparently able to understand his point. "Although it does seem impertinent, I would like to know how a relationship of such intensity escaped your notice whilst she was in school."

"Like all those who saw Miss Potter and Mr. Malfoy together, I saw what I was supposed to and no more. As Professor Snape told you, she had obviously made a concerted effort to enhance her Occlumency skills. Although such exploits were not the original reason I had Miss Potter and her brother study Occlumency, it certainly did benefit her situation."

"How did such a misunderstanding, on your part, make you feel?"

"I was severely unsettled by the fact that I did not even come close to the conclusion that there was something between them." Dumbledore admitted I accepted the apparent coincidence that brought them together more often than normal and, I suppose quite carelessly assumed that she was capable of handling herself."

"Did you not even consider intervening?"

"To intervene would have been foolish."

"How so?"

"I did not want Miss Potter to believe that I did not trust her, and I did not wish her to doubt herself, or her capabilities. I knew the sacrifice that she and her brother would eventually have to make, and I did not want her to think for a moment that I did not trust her to make the right decision."

"And did she," the woman asked, an inquisitive gleam in her eye, "make the right decision?"

"Yes, she did."

"I meant beyond the sacrifice necessary to defeat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named." She clarified firmly.

"I know you did," Dumbledore replied with a smile, "and my answer is still the same." The occasionally reverent silence the audience had kept throughout the majority of his questioning was swiftly broken. "Though the beginnings were undoubtedly questionable, and the concealment an unfortunate necessity, she has found someone with whom she is happy. After a lifetime of danger and concealment, and five years of war, it would be very cruel to begrudge her such satisfaction."

"I do not think that there is anyone who resents her having peace, indeed, I believe we all enjoy it."

"Oh but it is resented," Dumbledore immediately disagreed, "that much is evident every day. Yet, even though she could hide away from the scandal and the scrutiny, she has stood before this court to answer for what she did."

"Nothing less would be acceptable." The witch replied coldly. "It had to be determined that there was no duplicity on her part."

"Of course, of course," Dumbledore nodded, "and though you have still to pass judgement on that matter, both you and I know that someone who has so willingly laid open her private life to such invasion can have nothing to hide. The only deception you will find is the fact that she concealed her relationship with Mr. Malfoy." Furtive whispers again swept through the room, all of them deliberating the effect such staunch support from Dumbledore would have.

Kathryn sat silent and stony-faced, fighting the temptation to smile with every ounce of her self control. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny shared small, private smiles; knowing what such a statement would mean for their friend. Lucius was similarly devoid of expression, although it was more out of shock than happiness. He had never in his life expected the Hogwarts Headmaster to speak such words in his defence.

"That is yet to be seen." The woman replied, again in an icy tone. "I only have one final question for you, Headmaster."

"Ask away."

"Like my esteemed colleague asked of Professor Snape before you, do you consider Mr. Malfoy to be a threat?"

"I consider Mr. Malfoy's detention in Azkaban to be a waste of resources." Dumbledore's voice did not waver as he told the court exactly what he had told Kathryn on Saturday morning. "The Dark Mark is, of course, incontrovertible proof that he was a Death Eater. However, if you'll remember, there sits one in this room who is living proof that those who follow such a path can change." Hundreds of eyes immediately focused on Snape. Dumbledore cracked a small smile, his blue eyes twinkling. "Granted, it is rare, but it is not impossible."