[HP] Three thousand days of innocence

The night before Draco's trial, Ginny couldn't sleep.Staring at the ceiling, she lay in bed for hours in vain, her heart beating wildly in her chest like a caged bird trying to be free.Images kept flashing through her mind: the Wizengamot taunting her, Ron shaking his head in embarrassment, and two guards she didn't know pulling Draco away from her forever.She took a deep breath, holding back tears.Don't think about it.She can't think about it.

As the first rays of morning light filtered through the curtains, Ginny finally had an excuse to get up, and she wrote a note to Simon and John, telling them the time of the trial and the courtroom.She warns Simon to be prepared to testify in court and to take the advice he knows she will give him. "Thank you both so much for your support," she concluded. "In every way, you are all invaluable and I will never forget them."

She tried not to think about it, she sounded like Draco's fate was already sealed.

Ginny put on her best navy blue robes, which her mother had bought her for a Ministry of Magic banquet some years ago.After combing her hair, Ginny picked up the folder full of notes and arguments related to the case, took a deep breath, and went to the Ministry of Magic.

Even though she had arrived early, she walked towards the visitor's entrance to find Percy already standing in front of the red phone booth, fidgeting at his watch. "You're here," he said as soon as he saw her.Before she could speak, he held her tightly in his arms.

"Percy?" she said, her voice sounding disconnected from her body. "What's wrong?"

Percy blushed slightly and smoothed his hair nervously. "I brought you breakfast," he blurted out, reaching inside his robes to produce a brown paper bag.

As soon as she saw this, she felt disgusted.She tried breakfast in the apartment, but couldn't eat it. "Percy, I—"

"You need something to eat," he insisted, and pulled out two slices of toast with hazelnut spread and a fresh red apple.She didn't know how he knew about her favorite breakfast, but Ginny was clearly touched by his effort. "I know you may feel like you can't eat right now, but if you don't, you'll regret it later," he said solemnly. "Eat. I'm not afraid to use force."

"Okay, Mom." Ginny rolled her eyes, and they both laughed - but the laughter sounded forced.She gulped down the food so quickly that she couldn't taste it.

"I can't take part in today's opening argument," he said as she wiped her mouth with the napkin Percy had kindly brought. "I did my best, but I'll be there tomorrow. I made Ron promise he'd stay there as long as he could, and Mum and George would come."

"Wait—what?" she asked nervously.

"Charlie wrote to say he'd miss you," continued Percy, as if he hadn't heard her. "He doesn't understand why you're defending a Malfoy, even after I explained everything, he still doesn't understand, but he says it won't stop him wishing you good luck. Hermione sent the kids to her parents , she will come as soon as possible. Bill will bring Victoire, but the other children are sick, and Fleur will take care of them at home. Dad has no time, so he will not come, but he will be there tomorrow like me."

Her mouth opened at some point.He did it all for her.He got over his distaste for Draco and invited the whole family to the trial - to see her maybe make a fool of herself in front of the whole wizarding world, yes, but they'd all stand behind her and it made all the difference.

"Percy," she said softly. "Percy, I - I may not be able to tell you - how much I -"

"Okay," he said, coughing awkwardly. "I did my best. I knew Charlie couldn't come, but I tried. I know Fred will be with you in spirit."

This sentence made her very sad.Ginny suddenly threw herself into Percy's arms and hugged him tightly. "Thank you," she said softly. "Thank you, thank you. I made sure Draco's friends would be there, but—it didn't even occur to me—"

"You know we'll support each other no matter what," he said hollowly. "This is family."

Ginny let go of him and kissed him on the cheek. "Yes," she said, "this is family."

Percy smiled sadly at her. "You'd better see Malfoy now," he said. "They'll let you in and get him ready for trial, and I think you should take advantage of that."

She nodded, brushing crumbs off her robes. "Percy—"

"I know, Kim," he said. "Go."

She stepped into the phone booth, and the entrance to the Ministry of Magic was at once wide and bright.She showed her silver visitor's badge to the two guards guarding the wizard and the holding cell below the Department of Mysteries.

"You will meet the accused in an interrogation room," the guard told her. "You will be there until the trial is about to start, at which point you will be escorted into court."

Ginny nodded to show she understood, and followed a guard through a side corridor to a bright, bare room with horribly tiled floors and walls.She put down her briefcase and started pacing, and less than five minutes later, the door opened and Draco was ushered in.

"You have two hours," said the guard. "Someone will come to you then." But Ginny barely heard him.As soon as Draco came into her sight, she became her full focus, and she watched in silence as he was forced to sit on the plain wooden chair on the other side of the table, with powerful magic binding his hands and feet to it.

Then the guard left, leaving only the two of them in the room.

Silence seemed to come from all directions, overwhelming her.For the first time in weeks, they were truly alone. "Have you eaten yet?" Ginny said softly, remembering Percy's suggestion.

Draco bent over, his head almost touching the table. "I was asleep when they came in," he grumbled, struggling feebly in the restraints. "I haven't..." He shrugged his shoulders, and she discovered something she hadn't noticed before.He was disheveled: his shirt was unbuttoned, exposing his chest, his belt and trousers were not even fastened.

"They can't let you out like this!" exclaimed Ginny, her eyes widening in horror. "Don't let this affect you. They're just trying to put you down as much as possible, trying to scare us into surrendering in court."

"Well, it worked." Draco sniffed. "I couldn't sleep at all last night, and the night before, because I kept thinking, I'm going to be in prison for the rest of my life—"

"No," insisted Ginny, leaning towards him.She looked around the room.Are they being closely watched now? "I know I'm not a lawyer, but I swear to you—"

"It's okay," Draco said, finally looking up.His eyes were red, and his cheeks were stained with tears. "It doesn't matter who defends me. They've already made their decision."

"it's not like that."

"I'm scared, Ginny." He scrunched up his face. "I'm really scared. I don't want to be locked up forever."

"To hell with the Ministry of Magic," she muttered, standing up, pointing her wand at Draco.He recoiled in his seat as she said the spell, and with a crackle like electricity the binding spells on his limbs vanished.The guard forgot to cast a tracking spell on the restraint.Draco stared at the untied hands in amazement.

"What did you just do?" he asked with wide eyes.

She quickly buttoned his shirt and tied his belt with trembling fingers.When she was done, he buried his face in her shoulder, panting heavily.He put his arms around her waist.

"God, I thought you were going to kill me," he said. "Get me out of the pain."

She ran her fingers through his hair and hugged him tightly. "Do not you trust me?"

"Quite sure." He replied immediately.Her robe muffled his voice.

"Then you have to believe that I will save you." She said. "Don't show how scared you are. No matter how they tie you up, sit upright in your chair. Look everyone in the eye. Let me speak up, I swear to you, Draco, I will save Yours." She kissed his hair passionately.

She let him go, looked down into his beautiful, worried, empty eyes, and gently wiped away his tears with her fingertips, soothing his pain, soothing him in the only way she could think of, hoping it would be enough.He closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.

"Trust me, Draco," she said softly. "As long as I have strength, I will fight for you."

He swallowed hesitantly, and leaned against her again, touching her cheek. "I don't know what I did to deserve you," he said softly, "but I'm glad I did."

Ginny, still holding Draco, sat carefully on his lap.He immediately pulled her into his arms and pressed her against his broad chest. "I hate knowing nothing," he said, and she thought he was talking more to himself. "Hate uncertainty. I want to know what's going to happen next."

"You'll be free," Ginny said, cupping his cheek. "That's what's going to happen next."

Mouth Mouth Mouth Mouth Mouth Mouth Mouth

Mouth Mouth Mouth Mouth Mouth Mouth Mouth

When a guard came to fetch them, Draco was tied to the chair again, and Ginny sat solemnly across the table, flipping through her files.Another guard came this time, so he didn't notice either the mysterious change in Draco's initially slovenly appearance, or the disheveled look in Ginny's robes.

"They're ready," said the guard.Ginny nodded and glanced at Draco, who hadn't spoken for over an hour.Draco nodded silently, and the guards stepped forward to untie him.

They had just stepped out of the interrogation room when they heard the hum of the audience in the distance.The energy in the air made Ginny's hair stand on end, and even Draco seemed to be shaking slightly.The guards took Draco out of the holding cell without incident.They came to the floor of the Department of Mysteries and turned another corner into a wide corridor leading to the courtroom, where the clamor grew louder.

Two uniformed Aurors blocked the way to the courtroom, none other than Angelina and newbie Nigel Bertram.Angelina smiled at Ginny and glanced worriedly at Draco, who ignored her.Nigel just stared in wonder at the wizarding world's most famous criminal.

Even though the door was closed, Ginny could still hear Kingsley's deep baritone voice begin the interrogation.The hum of conversation died away immediately.Ginny moved nervously, noticing that her sweaty hands had crumpled the file.Annoyed, she shifted it into the other hand.

"Wait a little longer." Angelina said softly.Ginny dared not look at her.

Kingsley called the roll, and all the members of the Wizengamot provided their names to the court clerk.

Draco sniffed, shaking the hair out of his eyes.He straightened his body, raised his chin slightly, and stared straight ahead.

Kingsley announced the day's schedule in the dull official tone Ginny had heard a thousand times.Time seemed to pass more slowly than usual, at half its normal speed.

"Let's go," said the guard, at which point Kingsley called, "Bring in the defendant." Nigel and Angelina opened the courtroom door.

It's like being on the set of a Quidditch match.There were voices, cameras, crowds, and the uproar from all directions was enough to temporarily deaf Ginny.Draco had faced this before, staring at his destination and ignoring their attention, but Ginny couldn't help staring at them in horror.The witches hissed, the wizards stood up from their seats and shouted, and the media cameras kept flashing.It's a damn circus show.

In the midst of all this chaos, there is an area of ​​calm.Ginny spotted them almost immediately, sitting to the left of the Wizengamot box.John and Simon never took their eyes off Draco as he made his way to the lonely chair.John looked into Ginny's eyes and gave her a serious smile.

Lucius Malfoy sat a few rows back, all in black, still in mourning for his wife.His gaze followed his son as well.

Prosecutor William Harper was seated at his long table with a small corps of assistants.After Draco entered, he stood up.Ginny went to the table that had been set for her and stood there alone, with Draco sitting in a chair between the two tables, with chains around his wrists and ankles.This time, he was very calm and didn't even blink his eyes.

Kingsley kept tapping the gavel until the crowd fell into an uneasy silence. "As said," his voice filled the room, "we are gathered here for the opening argument in the case of Draco Malfoy v. the British wizarding world. If there is no objection, we will have an opening statement from the public prosecutor."

"Thank you, Chief Shacklebolt," said William Harper haughtily, bowing to the Wizengamot.He came out from behind the desk and stood in front of the courtroom, with Ginny looking down at her papers.Where's her quill?Frowning, she took a quill from her robes and sat down to take notes.Hermione had warned her that Harper wouldn't hold her hand just because she wasn't a real lawyer.He will give her a fatal blow from the very beginning without letting up.

"Ladies and gentlemen, members of the Wizengamot," said Harper in a melodious voice. "What the second war against Tom Riddle has done to our society is well known. Broken families. Suspicious and anti-friends. Death, fear, torture. Ladies and gentlemen, this is our wizarding Dark times, dark times indeed. But the brave Harry Potter put an end to our misery - "there was a hearty cheer" - and we bounced back the only way we knew how. We ensured such terrible things will not happen again.

"Since then, the Auror Office at the Ministry of Magic has worked tirelessly to restore order to our world," Harper continued. "They detained and killed criminals from World War II and we know these dangerous people are in prison - they deserve it so we can breathe a sigh of relief and sleep better at night."

Several people shouted angrily and agreed.Simon glared savagely at a particularly loud man, but Ginny saw John hold his back.Harper waited until the commotion died down. "Ladies and gentlemen, as I said, the Aurors have worked tirelessly to capture those who threatened the peace in times of war, and they have quickly succeeded. Before you is the last Death Eater: Draco Malfoy. With his sentence and murder, the last of the evil criminals will be imprisoned, and what evil has done to us will finally be corrected.

"Some people will say, but this man was a child in World War II. How can he be responsible for such evil? Ladies and gentlemen, judges, he may have just reached legal age when he did these things, but he He was old enough at the time to know that what he was doing was terribly wrong. We are educated from the cradle to know good from evil, aren't we? Draco Malfoy was 16 years old and pointed his wand at the respected Albus Dumbledore, ready to kill him. When Draco Malfoy, he killed Colin Creevey - the boy was only a year younger than him.

"It's been eight years, some would say. War is old news, and our society should let it go. Ladies and gentlemen, time may blur our memories, but it must never take them away. We all remember when we When we learned that Rufus Scrimgeour, RIP him, was killed in the ministry. We all remember when we were called to battle and went to Hogwarts for the final battle. We learned that our When friends, our spouses, our children died in heroic battles. Those we lost will never come back. Some families will never be whole again. No crime goes with impunity.

"Some would say, Draco Malfoy said he lost his memory. Can you be held responsible for a crime you don't remember committing? The answer is yes, ladies and gentlemen. Regardless of Draco Malfoy's current state , he was sane and sane when he attempted to kill Katie Bell and Ron Weasley, and assault Padma Patil. No matter what excuses he and his lawyers came up with, he could And he must be held accountable for what he did to us. He had no other choice.

"In the next few days, I will enumerate the full range of crimes and wrongdoings of Draco Malfoy, and I will prove that this man deserves beyond doubt to spend the rest of his life in Azkaban."

Harper bowed again to signify the end of his speech, and the audience gave him thunderous applause.