Aftermath
Harry felt gentle but firm hands pull him upwards, and he melted into his Remus' embrace.
"Moody." Harry whispered hoarsely. Remus froze.
"What about him?"
"Something's off with him. I've thought it a few times, but he's laughing right now."
Remus reluctantly let go of Harry, who had started to shake, and went to speak to Snape and McGonagall in low tones. Snape nodded curtly and headed back to the castle. McGonagall, looking very pale, whispered something to the Headmaster.
Harry watched from between Hermione and Ron, leaning on them slightly for support, as Dumbledore summoned Moody's flask just as he went to take a swig.
"Polyjuice." Dumbledore said. He spoke no louder than normal, but the silence was palpable and so everybody heard him.
Moody changed before their eyes. He got younger, thinner, and grey hair became dark.
"Barty Crouch Junior?" Remus said in surprise. "But-"
"He died in prison!" Barty cackled. Amelia leapt into action, capturing Barty quickly and forcing veritaserum down his throat. He told the whole story to a crowd of witnesses.
Thinking quickly, Amelia handed Harry the veritaserum.
"You don't have to." She said quietly. "But it'll make you more believable. People will be reluctant to admit Voldemort has returned."
Harry took a large swig, and in front of the whole school, told them. Not everything, just that Voldemort had been resurrected by Peter Pettigrew and the names of the deatheaters that were there. He also told them Sirius was innocent, so that he hopefully wouldn't have to go to the ministry and witness in his trial.
The rest of the evening was a blur. Harry let himself be escorted to the hospital wing, barely able to walk he was shaking so much, and almost cried with relief when Molly burst in right after him, refusing to leave his side.
"Mr Potter, again? Why am I not - oh you poor, poor child." Everyone watched in silence as Poppy pushed Harry to sit on a bed, and summoned her medical kit. The one specifically for torture situations.
"Why-"
"Cruciatus." Harry said sullenly, and Hermione stifled a sob.
Whilst Poppy worked, Harry forced himself to eat the chocolate Remus handed him. Sugar was good for shock, he new that. He couldn't see Padfoot, but felt the dip in the bed where the dog was watching him carefully.
Fudge came in, red faced and angry, followed by Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape. Harry, still under the affects of veritaserum, answered more of Amelia's questions, and watched as Fudge went from angry to fearful. He heard the Minister agree to clear Sirius' name without a trial and smiled weakly. He could see Snapes' carefully constructed dull expression, and could feel Dumbledore's solemn gaze bore into him. He couldn't bring himself to look at Professor McGonagall.
He refused to the drink the dreamless sleep Poppy handed to him.
"Now isn't the time to rest." He argued weakly, shaking his head. He heard more than saw Draco, Daphne, Ginny, Luna, Neville and the twins enter the hospital wing. He heard Bill escort them straight back out, along with Hermione and Ron. He could hear them all protesting until the door swung shut with a soft thud.
"They're gone, Harry." Dumbledore said gently. "You should rest now." Harry shook his head. He heard the Minister leave with Amelia. He was still shaking.
"Harry." He looked up, flinching at the contact. He relaxed when he saw it was only Remus. "Sleep, please."
"Can't." He bit out through shudders. Molly, Remus, Dumbledore, and Poppy tried to persuade him for ten minutes. Padfoot, after assurance from Dumbledore it was safe, turned back into Sirius and tried too, to no avail.
Eventually, it was the heads of Slytherin and Gryffindor house that got through to him.
"Mr Potter." Harry looked up, and met McGonagall's stern, but not unfriendly, gaze. "It wasn't your fault." Harry broke. Molly held him tightly, stroking his hair, whispering words of comfort no one around them could hear.
Once he'd calmed down, he looked between McGonagall, and to everyone else's surprise, Snape.
"What if..." Harry knew he sounded desperate, but he couldn't stop himself.
"Potter," Snape said coldly, but not meanly. "If you do not rest, you will give yourself magical exhaustion so strong that you will take weeks to recover. You will be bed-ridden, and of use to no one in whatever fight you are so fixated on. If you want to help, help by resting." Harry glared at him. Snape raised a brow. Harry dropped his gaze, and nodded.
"Fine." Snape handed him the bottle, and he took it.
When he awoke the next morning, only Ron and Hermione were with him.
"Like the good old days." Her murmured with a smile, sitting up. Hermione smiled through a sob, and Ron patted him on the shoulder.
They filled him in. He'd been asleep for three days, and in that time, Fudge had apparently tried to deny Voldemort's return. However, most of the Hogwarts populace, Amelia Bones, Hogwarts staff and Harry's friends fought back with Skeeter, and most people believed what Harry was saying.
Fudge was yet to admit he was wrong, and yet nothing seemed to be being done about his position as minister.
"It's all very tricky." Hermione said. "Politics always is. No one will try and push Fudge out, because if he is replaced with a more competent minister that minister is putting themselves on Voldypa- Voldemort's hit list. And there's a risk of one of Voldemort's people taking the position too."
Crouch junior had been given the Dementor's kiss. Crouch senior was dead.
The questions Harry had answered under Veritaserum in his dazed state meant Amelia could clear Sirius' name without the scheduled hearing. Sirius had consented to Veritaserum and answered some of his own, and had been sent to live with his cousin Andromeda for the time being, as she was a skilled mind healer.
Harry loved Sirius, but he was sightly relieved he wouldn't be forced to choose between him and the Weasleys yet. Not that Harry didn't want to live with Sirius, but more so that he loved the security of the Weasleys, and felt like a child with siblings and loving parents when he was there. With Sirius, he felt more like a friend.
Ron and Hermione told him through laughter about the chaos Harry's friend group had been causing whilst he was out, in an effort to keep spirits light.
Daphne, Blaise and Ron had made a wedding cake in potions class and claimed it was for Dobby and Winky. Hermione and Draco had been jinxing books to read aloud during study sessions in the great hall, but made sure they had funny voices or sang everything they read.
Ginny, Luna, and Colin travelled as a pack. Ginny stole Harry's invisibility cloak and used it to accost random students and hold them still whilst Luna dressed them up in wigs and costumes and jewellery, and then Colin took photos. Harry flicked through them when Hermione handed them to him, laughing at the one of Sirius in dog form covered head to toe in glitter, from before he was sent to his cousin.
Harry couldn't help but feel worried about Voldemort's return, but he didn't feel as crushed as he would have if one of his friends had been with him and died. He also had a lot of hope. Hope that grew when all of the rest of his friends came to visit, and Hermione and Ron refused to leave his side. Hope that caused him to cry when Molly returned with a warm hug and cake. Hope when Remus showed up with a tired smile and chocolate. Hope when he was finally released from the hospital wing and he could give his winnings to Fred and George. Hope when the three other champions met him on the quidditch pitch for one last seeker-off before the two other schools left, and Krum invited him to practice with the Bulgarian quidditch over summer.
He had hope, and joy, and love, and it was Awesome.
He couldn't resist intercepting Snape's owl order of shampoo and changing the contents to green and silver hair dye. It didn't work, of course, but it made Harry laugh nevertheless.
Especially when a big black dog showed up for the end of year celebrations with Remus as a surprise, with bright green and silver fur.