What surprised him the most was that Harry didn't shy away from Tonks' obvious affections, proving that his godson was truly evolving from that emotionally distant boy he had met the previous summer, which caused him to discreetly smile.
"First of all, will Lord Malfoy even still stand trial? Despite having no memory of his name, much less his crimes?" Harry asked.
...
It was Andy who answered the question, "No, Lord Malfoy likely won't stand trial; after all he's not physically capable of it anymore. Memory charming yourself to erase a crime normally isn't a viable means to avoid trial in the magical world, due to the well known counter spells that can restore the erased memories.
But this situation is quite different due to the spell being interrupted and compounded by the use of several overpowered stunners while it was still working. Unfortunately, the spell is likely permanent and unable to be reversed under those circumstances. The healers at Saint Mungos' will give it their best effort, of course, but the chances are ridiculously small that they'll be successful.
To make the damage even more difficult to repair, from what I've heard he didn't erase just a small period of time; he virtually erased his entire mind. The spell Lord Malfoy used was not meant to be used in such a way, and as a result has caused permanent memory damage. That means that even if some memories could be recovered, there is significant risk of fragmentation.
The Wizengamot will be very hesitant to prosecute him personally under those circumstances. However, even if Malfoy can't personally be prosecuted in his state, the House of Malfoy can stand trial in his place if enough evidence is found to prove the accused's crimes. It's basically the same, although Malfoy won't be going to prison and it is far more time consuming."
Harry gave a thoughtful nod, before asking another question. "Who will be responsible for defending the House of Malfoy?"
"The head of the family would normally be responsible for defending one of their family member's actions, if the one accused was incapable of doing so. But since he is the one being accused of multiple crimes, it will be the heir to the family name that has to defend them," Andy lectured, as Ted sat on the arm of her chair, nodding at her answer.
"Draco? But he's just a snotty, immature second year who grossly overestimates his own importance and skill," Tonks spat, as Harry nodded in agreement. It was clear that Tonks didn't see Harry in the same way, despite his being relatively the same age as Draco. His Godson was ridiculously mature for his age, probably even more than Tonks actually.
"Did you know Draco was making fun of your death? Doing re-enactments of your supposed last moments for laughs in the Great Hall," Tonks added.
Harry responded only with a shrug of his shoulders, not looking all that angry or surprised at this bit of news. "I kind of guessed he and others would do something like that. Oh well, I'll just have to return the favour tenfold when I'm back at Hogwarts. Please continue Andy."
"If the heir of the family is unable to, it would normally be the Lady of the family who would be responsible for overseeing the family's defense, but since my sister is also being accused of her own involvement in the various crimes it will fall to Draco's godfather to defend the family's honour, at least until my sister is cleared herself," Andy finished.
"Professor Snape," Harry said aloud.
"Probably," Ted agreed.
"That means Dumbledore will almost certainly get involved then," Harry groaned in annoyance as he realized that the Chief Warlock's potent influence would be working behind the scenes during the trial. The old manipulator would love for his puppet Snape to gain control of the Malfoy's money, businesses and political influence.
"Madam Bones said that I could receive a fixed percentage of assets from the Malfoy family in compensation for their attempts on my life, due to some old law, is she correct?" Harry asked.
"Indeed, Madam Bones said that Harry could get something like 40% of their estate if he was the Lord of his family, and that the rest would be forfeited to the Ministry," Sirius seconded, not taking into account the Peverell family name, which could increase that percentage up to 80%.
"I would assume that she's right about that, but we will have to identify the specific law that she's referring to, review the actual language and see how it applies to the facts of this specific situation, if at all, then research the circumstances that it's been used successfully in the past. We'll talk to Madam Bones first to get the details then report back. We also need to consider how this law is enacted when other parties are involved, since Neville Longbottom, the heir of the Longbottom family, was also a victim of Lord Malfoy's plot. You were the main target of Malfoy's attempt and suffered multiple attempts on your life, but it's uncertain how that'll be taken into account," Ted answered in a thoughtful tone.
"Since it seems very likely that Professor Snape will become involved and thus the Chief Warlock, how do we prevent Dumbledore from interfering?" Harry asked. "Dumbledore will do everything in his power to ensure the Malfoy wealth and assets remains intact if his puppet Snape is going to be largely in control of it all for the next five to six years. The man all but robbed me and destroyed my family's legacy when he was my supposed guardian."
"Simple, we limit Dumbledore's ability to become involved in an official capacity. The Wizengamot wouldn't dare challenge the validity of an old law like this one, since it would mean other laws and inherited rights and positions could be challenged as well. We'll stress that in all our statements and filed documents." Ted replied with a grin.
"We can make the case that the Chief Warlock is also an unfortunate victim of this plot as well, since it happened on his watch as Headmaster of Hogwarts, hence his judgement is clouded and biased. Therefore he can't lawfully oversee the trial like he normally would be required to," Andy added, as her husband nodded in agreement whilst smiling lovingly at his wife.
"We can use this same argument to get the Minister removed from overseeing the case, since he is a close personal friend of Lord Malfoy. He's made that statement publically many times and won't be able to deny it. That means Madam Bones will be responsible for overseeing the trial, and we all know what she thinks of law breakers," Ted added with a grin, as smiles broke out around the group.
"What happens if Madam Bones is removed? Everyone knows she dislikes Lord Malfoy," Harry asked.
"Then the second most senior law enforcement officer replaces her," he offered, recalling his training as an auror. Harry merely nodded in response, obviously deep in thought.
"The best thing you two can do, if you want to counter the Chief Warlock's extensive influence, is to meet and greet the Lords and Ladies of the other important families in the Wizengamot. Charm them and influence them into joining your cause. Lady Longbottom is one of the Chief Warlock's most powerful allies, but her family can gain a lot through this as well. If you gain her support you can use her to split the Chief Warlock's influence. If his own political faction and powerbase is divided on this issue, then it will greatly limit Dumbledore's political reach and how many promises and favors he can offer to get his way. Plus, the Chief Warlock is already going to be in a difficult position if he tries to fight this case, because it will appear to the public and his allies that he is protecting a murderer. A murderer that his own powerful allies hate and have been fighting against tooth and nail for over a decade," Andy proposed with a sly smile.
"Good thing I am already talking with Lady Longbottom then, we already have a basic deal worked out," he added smugly.
"Sirius, can you make an appointment with the Daily Prophet? I think it is time that I triumphantly return to life and did an interview to win some public sympathy and support. I did do my considerable part to bring down a murderer after all," Harry voiced thoughtfully.
"How are you not Lord of the Slytherins?" Tonks added from behind Harry with a joking smile.
"Ask the hat," Harry replied with his own smile.
...
He knew his cousin was still annoyed and angry with him, and frankly he didn't blame her. It was time to make amends and give her a peace offering. "I have something for you Tonks," he offered, before heading up to his bedroom. He heard his cousin's footsteps following dutifully behind him. Once in his room he retrieved a small silver pocket mirror from his chest.
"What is it Harry? I need to get back to Hogwarts," Tonks asked.
He held out the silver mirror for her to take, "Here, I enchanted this mirror for you; so you'll never again be out of contact with me if you don't want to be," he offered with a small smile.
"Contact?" Tonks asked, whilst looking over the mirror. He quickly explained the purpose of the mirror and how to use it, which resulted in Tonks giving him a tight hug in thanks.
"Am I out of the dog house now?" he asked, hoping he was back in Tonks' good books.
"Not yet, but you're close," she teased.
"I guess that will have to do for now," he replied, knowing he still had much to do to get them back to normal. "So tell me, how's Hogwarts with Professor McGonagall as headmistress?"
...
A/N : if we get 400 power stones by the end of the week, I will release an extra chapter ;)
...
if you want to read ahead of the public release you can join my p atreon :
p atreon.com/loveran