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My heart is pounding hard inside my chest. I don't wanna be here. Mouth dry. Hands sweating and shaking. I don't wanna see them. No matter how I try to calm myself down, I can't stop the trembling. People dressed in all black enters the Courtroom and the room immediately gets filled with this loud chatter. My body goes more intense and there is this squeeze in my heart. I want to run away. I flinch when a warm hand touches the top of mine that is neatly placed on my thigh. "It's going to be alright, darling." gentle female voice reassures as she's sitting right next to me. Ruby. To have her sitting beside me eases the anxiety. "Order, order in the Courtroom!" the man behind the podium hits the surface of the table few times and the gabble slowly dies down.
All of our attention is now on the man behind the high podium, who first looks around the room to make sure everyone is seated and quiet before speaking. I do a quiet inhale thru my nose and my chest raises slowly. Ruby's grip around my hand tightens just a tiny bit. "We are gathered here today to hear Mr. Harold and Mrs. Eloise (Y/L)'s final plead before we make the final decision considering their seventeen year old daughter - Miss (Y/N) (Y/M) (Y/L)'s custody battle between the parents and Eloise (Y/L)'s older sister, Ruby Hannah Harris." the judge announces to the whole court. The room quickly gets filled with quiet chatter between the adults all around. Mostly because they recognized my father's name since he is part of the Ministry.
There are only five people who are not gossiping in this room; me, Ruby, the judge, Albus Dumbledore and Alastor Moody. I'm not sure where to look at this point. So I pretty much keep my head down and hope all of this would be over as soon as possible. The judge once again hammers against table couple times:"Order.". The room goes quiet again. Judge fidgets some papers in his hands before speaking again:"I call in both of the parents - Mr. Harold (Y/L) and Mrs. Eloise (Y/L).". Feels like my heart stops when I see how two cages slowly appears to the room thru the floor. Ruby's hand that once was holding my hand, slides behind my back and she pulls me closer to her. I can feel her warmth radiating from her body. She must be as anxious as me right now.
Ruby's eyes are fixed on the two people inside the tight cages that has sharp spikes all around them. If they'd move, they would quickly get in touch with one of them. Seeing my parents standing there, dressed in the shabby prison clothes of Azkaban... They really do look quite awful - even they have been in there only four days. They always had dressed up in their fanciest suits and dresses. Hair neatly combed back so not a single hair would be sticking out. But now... It is all buffed and dirty. Talk about the dark circles under their eyes. The sight of them gives me the chills.
The judge starts with saying all of the specific dates and times when they were captured by the Headmaster of the Wizarding School - Albus Dumbledore, and one of the Aurors - Alastor Moody. He also lists about the awful things Harold and Eloise has done in their past that has come up to the surface during this investigate. Some of the things I didn't even know about. But for some reason, hearing the things they have done, doesn't surprise me. Not anymore. I'm numb. The Unforgivable Curse that has been used on me got mentioned as well. After all of this, the judge asks:"How do you plea?". Eloise forces a shaky smile on her face that comes across more creepy than intended:"Like we have said before; this is all... Just a huge misunderstanding. You must understand, I..- I would never - ever - hurt my little daughter. She..- she is the apple of my eye, Your Honor.". Hearing this makes me feel sick to my stomach. Ruby's face goes more intense and she has to bite her tongue not to blast her own little sister right in there.
Before judge can say anything, Dumbledore raise to stand across the room from where I'm sitting:"How do you explain all the bruises and cuts on her, if you claim there has never been any sort of violence towards her?". People began to whisper. Eloise's smile drops. She doesn't know what to say. "The poor girl is self destructive, Your Honor. My wife and I are only trying to help her." Harold raise his voice over the whispers. What?! The room goes quiet again. Some of the people raise their eyebrows now. Unsure what to believe. "That's bullshit!" Ruby shoots up from her seat. "Order! Order!" the judge hits the gavel four times quickly and Ruby grudgingly sits back down. My mother starts nodding her head before looking up to the judge with pleading eyes:"Y-yes, yes, Your Honor. That night when Mr. Dumbledore and Mr. Moody broke in to our home, (Y/N) had locked herself in her room and - and we as parents were so worried for her she'd do something to herself! That is why we tried to get in her room in the first place.".
The fear the judge and the whole jury will buy their act spreads all over my body and tears raises in my eyes. Dumbledore once again speaks before the judge:"We have evidence that is in fact not true.". More whispers fills the room. "What evidence do you have, sir?" the judge asks. Everyone got quiet and turn to look at the old, bearded man. "A man who's not here today, but would be happy to testify if needed." the Headmaster reply. "And, who this man might be?" the judge ask. My parents carefully turn their heads to see the Headmaster. "It'll be for the best, if he stays anonymous." Dumbledore answer. The judge doesn't look too convinced:"The name, Albus.". He purses his lips, wondering how to handle the situation. "May I approach the bench?" he finally ask, and his wish got granted. Everyone lean a bit in their seats, desperately trying to hear what is he saying. Even I tried to hear the name, but for vain.
Their conversation lasts couple minutes before Dumbledore goes back to his seat. As he's walking away from the podium, without anyone's notice, Dumbledore gives me a quick wink to resure everything will be alright. My heart missed a beat and felt this relief slowly spreading from the heart, up to my brain, and down to my toes. Last time I felt like this was when I knew I was going to go live in Ruby's and her husband's the night I got rescued. The judge once again speaks and asks one question after another from my parents and from my aunt. They keep going back and forth some time, when all of sudden, Eloise breaks down and began to cry her usual crocodile tears:"It was him! Ha-Harold... He forced me to do all those awful things to my poor baby girl!". The shabby looking man next to her turn his gaze:"What?! NO! How dare you accuse me something like that?!".
They soon start putting each other down, and it became a screaming match between them. Sure, it was true Harold did use violence towards his own wife if he couldn't cast the curse on me whenever he felt like it, but that doesn't take away the fact how Eloise was been part of the torture. Their screaming voices has become my norm over the years, so I get little bit surprised when aunt-Ruby pulls me closer and covered my ears with both of her hands. It was the first time I realized maybe this is something a child shouldn't haveto deal with. Both of the prisoners just lay it all out there. The things they have done. Things they had denied so far was now out there. Even the truth about how Eloise poisoned Ruby's drink, so she couldn't have children with the Muggle and had the miscarriage, came out.
This obviously strike Ruby right in the heart. But, she swallowed her words and just sat there. Perhaps, she thought if she'd burst in a rage in middle of the Courtroom, it would lower her changes to get the custody of me. The room once again is filled with chatter among the other adults. "Order! Order!!!" the judge tries to calm them down many times. When he finally got them all quiet, he sighs deep. Ruby just now releases my ears and lets me hear what the man has to say. With the corner of my eye, I can see how there are tears slowly streaming down on Ruby's cheeks as she's staring at the judge. The sight gives pain in my heart. I force myself to shift the gaze away from her to the man who's about to give the last words what's about to happen next.
Judge once again fidgets some papers in his hands and writes something down:"With these evidence we have heard today in here in the Courtroom, I hereby order Miss (Y/N) (Y/M) (Y/L) in the custody of Ruby Hannah Harris, and sentence Mr. Harold (Y/L) and Mrs. Eloise (Y/L) to spend rest of their lives in the prison of Azkaban. If they however wish to plea ever again, we will hear the man Albus Dumbledore mentioned earlier in this trial.". His last words gets muffled to the chatter. And right after he banged the gavel for the last time, my parents yells at the same time:"NO!!!".
At this point, aunt-Ruby had got up and started to drag me out of the room. That's when they both turn to me and began to scream:"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!!! YOU BETRAYED US!!! YOUR OWN PARENTS!!!". Corner of my eye, I again see Dumbledore who has his eyes on me the whole walk out of the Courtroom. Right after we go past him, he comes after us. Alastor stays to see with smallest smile corner of his mouth how the parents gets tamed and dragged back down where they first came from. Their awful screams kept echoing all the way to the hallway:"HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?! TO US?! WHERE DOES YOUR LOYALTIES LIE, (Y/N)?!?!".
With that, my eyes slowly opens and I get to see the ceiling of my chamber, and the feeling of Muffin's soft fur against my right cheek as she snuggles against me. Then, without raising the head from the pillow, I look at the time. It's already the next morning. My eyes then shifts from the clock to the Two-way mirror on the nightstand Sirius gave me. Immediately, everything that has happen so far floods into my mind. The memory of the Courtroom made me think when Neville and I were there and saw Harry with his friends. How they were running away from Corban Yaxley and the guards. How the thought of raising my wand towards the boy crossed my mind in that moment... There is a twitch in my heart and I cover my eyes. Muffin looks at me little bit confused what am I doing, but I just lay there like that.
Severus's smooth voice echoes in my head. 'So, when the time comes... The boy must die?' I feel so torn. Wish I never knew Harry is one of the Horcruxes. There must be another way to set Severus free - and defeat Voldemort... Other than killing the boy. But how? What can we do? I've tried to track my brain other ways to avoid the worst out come, but... Can't think of anything that will end up happily for all of us. Merlin's sake... There is this feeling in my heart. Telling me there will be a time I need to make the choice when things hits the fan. And this one question began to spin around my mind... Slowly, I lower my hands away from my face and once again stare at the ceiling while laying there. Where does my loyalties lie?