In the Eyes of the Beholder

“Lucius Malfoy, you are under arrest for three counts of murder, and several counts of attempted murder. You have also used all three of the Unforgivable curses expressly forbidden by the Ministry. This is your fair warning that anything you say in this court can be used against you. Bailiff, please bring forth the veritaserum.”

A grungy looking man in official Ministry clothes brought forth a tiny vile containing clear liquid. Malfoy opened his mouth and the Bailiff tipped the clear liquid into his mouth. The court waited for him to swallow.

“Mr. Malfoy” Sinister Ganglehoff, the director in charge of these proceedings, continued. “Do you deny any of these accusations?”

After a moment, Lucius Malfoy replied solemnly “No Sir, I do not deny these claims”

“And do you deny that these crimes were committed for the benefit of the notorious wizard, Tom Marvolo Riddle, or, as he is also known, Voldemort?”

Again, Lucius Malfoy replied “No Sir, I do not.”

“Do you have any excuse by which your sentence would be reduced, or anyone to speak on your behalf for the crimes you have committed?”

This time, Malfoy’s head sunk until his pointed chin touched his chest. He replied “No Sir, I do not.”

“This court will ask for its last question, is there anything that you want to say to the court in your defence? Are there any questions you have before we announce your sentence?”

“No sir, I do not.”

“Lucius Malfoy, this court, taking its authority from the wizarding people of Brittain and the Ministry of Magic, find you guilty on all accounts. We charge you with three accounts of murder, and several accounts of attempted murder. We also charge you with the use of all three Unforgivable curses. You are sentenced to the Dementor’s Kiss which will be preformed four days from now, promptly at noon. Does anyone in the court have an argument for why this should not be so?”

Kingsley sighed. He would not be very popular after this. He spoke for the first time during the trial, setting his plan into motion, “Would the court be willing to reduce the sentence of Lucius Malfoy if he is willing to perform desirable and honorable service to the Ministry of Magic?”

A silence fell over the hall. Lucius Malfoy looked into the Minister’s eyes, an array of different emotions playing over his face: fear, relief, confusion. Then, the entire hall erupted in protest.

“QUIET” yelled Sinister Ganglehoff above the arguing hall. He turned to the Minister, his eyes pulled into disbelief, “What is it that you want from this convicted man, Minister. Pray, choose your words very wisely.”

“I want to ask the court whether they would object to full Ministry Pardon for Lucius Malfoy, or postponement of his punishment with terms of restricted freedom, if Mr. Malfoy agrees to the Ministry’s demands to help in the effort of rebuilding and reassessing post-war damage.”

An old witch spoke this time, “Minister, if the man didn’t change the first time, what makes you think that he will change the second time?”

“Muriel, I am not asking for change, simply his acceptance to our demands. There will, of course, be a tag placed on his wand which will let us see all the spells he casts. There will also be a probationary period of five years where the ministry will place a tag on his body and the ministry will be able to tell exactly where he is at all times. Also, without compliance to Ministry demands, the sentence discussed here will be promptly carried out the next noon. But, if Mr. Malfoy shows his cooperation in the efforts of the Ministry, and becomes a functional and model citizen of the Wizarding world, he will regain his freedom after five years, but the tag on his wand would remain.”

“Kingsley,” said Sinister Ganglehoff, “I have known you for these past thirty years, and I know you to be stubborn and righteous. But I have never known you to be a fool. Are you going to tell us the demands of this rebuilding effort that you will put Mr. Malfoy under?”

“They will require the aid of his treasury in rebuilding the damage to parts of the Ministry, Gringotts Bank, Hogwarts School, Diagon Alley, as well as several Muggle and Wizarding towns and homes. It will also include some personal projects. I, as Minister of Magic and also the person speaking on behalf of the convict, reserve the right to change or add to these tasks. If you have trust in me, Ganglehoff, trust that I will not let this man go without his just desserts.”

Ganglehoff sighed, “I do have faith in you Minister. You haven’t led me astray this far. All those in favor of the Minister’s plan, say Aye”

The hall was silent until Ganglehoff spoke, “Aye.” Then following his lead, several prominent members of the Ministry, supporters of Kingsley, and several pureblood witches and wizards said “aye.”

“All those in disfavor of this new plan, say Nay.”

There were still several Nays, but less than the Ayes.

“And all those who chose to abstain?”

Only four people spoke in this.

“The Aye’s have it. Do you Mr. Malfoy have any objections to this proposed plan?”

Lucius Malfoy looked bewildered. He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath before answering. “I have done many wrongs in my time, under false guidance and false beliefs. I have causes much pain to this world as well as to my own family. I am humbled by this chance to at least absolve some of my crimes, although I know that most are too heinous to forgive. I accept the Minister’s plan.”

“Bailiff please take Lucius Malfoy into the Minister’s office where he will be briefed on the terms and conditions of his probation.”

The gruff looking man returned and unceremoniously pulled Malfoy out of his chair and out the heavy doors.

“Minister, words of caution,” said Ganglehoff as the court began to disband, “I really hope you know what you are doing.”

***The Minister’s Office***

Kingsley was looking at the convicted man. He was sure that Malfoy’s pureblood breeding prevented Malfoy from showing anything but condescendence and hate to someone of Kingslely’s half-blood stature. Yet, the mask that Malfoy wore today prevented Kingsley from seeing anything different in the man’s demeanor.

“Mr. Malfoy, I have watched you for the last month or so, and I am willing to believe that you are a changed man. If I am mistaken, I will gladly accept the court’s decision.” Kingsley said coolly, leaning back into his heavy leather chair.

“But I dare to hope that this war has taught you your lesson. I am being self-righteous here, and I have no qualms about being this way. You have seen enough death and destruction in this war to sanely believe your previous ideologies were true. After all, your own son’s life had been endangered several times.

“I need your help. I need you to close the rift between this pureblood world and the rest of the Wizarding world. I need you to show them that your ideologies may have been wrong, and that you have learned to accept the power of the ministry. We can’t have factions forming, and so we need the support of the Malfoys” Kingsley stopped. It looked as if Malfoy had something to say.

“Minister, in all due respect, the Malfoy family doesn’t hold the same position in pureblood society that it did before the war. Recent events have shown the Dark Lord’s disapproval in my family, so I am not sure how much influence I still hold within the wizarding community” Malfoy said guardedly.

“I am aware of this Mr. Malfoy, but I will make sure that you can still stay in the good graces of that community. I will use my power to remove any documentation of you being forced into the rebuilding effort. The wizarding community need not know the terms of your freedom. I will get you interviews with contacts I have in the Daily Prophet, and make sure that your ‘philanthropic’ efforts are covered. It will look as if you have become a changed man after the war.” Kingsley replied. He looked at Malfoy skeptically, as if not believing in the words he was saying.

“I see,” Malfoy said, looking at the Minister intently.

“But, there is another condition I have. And this is why I have chosen you Malfoy, instead of any other pureblood. I want you to taint your bloodline. I want Draco Malfoy to marry a Muggle-born witch. And not just any Muggle-born witch, but a war hero and a beloved figure in the wizarding world. I want Draco Malfoy to marry Hermione Granger.”
Malfoy looked shocked “I-I….Y-you what?”

Kingsley knew he had never seen Malfoy stutter. He smirked inwardly and continued, “Of course, Draco can wait until after he leaves Hogwarts, but I know that there will be a parenting program there this year. I have already arranged it with Minerva McGonagall, but they will find that they have become each other’s partners in this program. They will pretend to fall in love, and marry soon after they leave Hogwarts. You will find yourself quite pleased with her, and the world will recognize a new status. One not gained through money, but through talent and hard work.”

“Are you sure this will work Minister? Although I don’t know Ms. Granger’s thoughts in the matter, I can hardly imagine she will be happy with this” Malfoy said, quite embellishing the understatement.

“You needn’t worry about Ms. Granger’s compliance. I will deal with that. You need to however break the news of your son’s coming engagement to the rest of your family. I trust you will comply with my demands?”

Malfoy saw that he had no choice in the matter. In fact, the Minister hardly seemed to wait for Malfoy’s quick nod before he swept out of the room, leaving Malfoy with a sense of impending doom.