Princess Sunburst

The Ministry was slowly getting back to its pre-war glory. Since the war ended at the beginning of May, everyone who was loyal to the Order began making the appropriate changes to bring back the peace. All anti-muggleborn laws were repealed, as was the taboo that was placed on the word Voldemort. In the newly-instated peace, there was no room for the blood prejudice that existed in the world. Taking a page out of Voldemort’s playbook, the Ministry placed a taboo on the word mudblood. And, following Apollonia’s kidnapping, the man-who-conquered asked that a taboo be placed on Unforgivables. It seemed like the best possible way for any remaining Death Eaters to be captured.

As for the captured Death Eaters, the beginning of June meant that there were more Death Eater trials to be held, more of Voldemort’s followers to be jailed. With these trials, Harry Potter spent a lot of time at the Ministry, unable to prepare for the rest of his life. However, there were specific trials in which Harry was looking forward to, for they were the ones that affected him the most. And, they also happened to be the first ones scheduled: Dolores Jane Umbridge and Gabriel Balthazar Selwyn. So, it did not bother him all that much.

Ironically, the Umbridge and Selwyn trials would be held in Courtroom Ten, the very same courtroom in which Harry had his hearing for the Dementors that Umbridge sent after him and Dudley. Harry chuckled when the letter from the Ministry came and he read where the trial was to take place. “Oh, this is going to be good,” Harry laughed, tossing the letter down. “She tried expelling me and now I have the chance to get her sent to Azkaban.”

“What happened?” Hermione asked.

“Umbridge. Courtroom Ten. Tomorrow,” Harry said.

“Isn’t that…?” she asked.

Harry nodded. “It is indeed.”

Upon making sure that Apollonia was aware of the trial date, Harry went back about his business. She needed to know what was happening tomorrow, given her involvement in what was going on. Learning the nature of how the paternal half of her family died; it made the young hero realize something rather important. It would probably be best if Apollonia was attending the trial, to see what punishment Selwyn received for all that he had done to her. Her entire family was blasted away thanks to Gabriel Selwyn.

***

The morning of June 8th, 1998 dawned on the quaint little home called the Burrow. It was not a very active day for those who lived inside the house. In fact, to most of the occupants of the house, this was not a very important day. However, this had to be one of the most significant days in the recovery of the Wizarding World; in changing the whole dynamic of the magical community. When Harry Potter awoke on the morning of June 8th, he quickly went through his morning routine, preparing for the trial that was to come. Given all that occurred as a result of this person’s meddling, Harry thought it prudent to be there to see what fate lay in store for the monster who thought attacking defenseless kids – one of which also happened to be the Muggle cousin of the man-who-conquered – was justified.

“Harry, what are you doing up so early?”

The emerald-eyed teen looked over to find a lanky red-headed youth coming down the stairs. Harry grunted as Ronald Weasley came over. If it were any other person in the house, he would have been okay. But, not Ron. Definitely not Ron. “I have something I need to do today,” Harry hedged, hoping to avoid the conversation. Ron proved himself to be completely incapable of accepting what was most important to Harry. And, Harry wished to distance himself from his so-called friend, at least for awhile. “What are you doing up so early? I would have thought you’d be sleeping. You usually are.”

“Couldn’t sleep,” Ron shrugged.

“How come?” Harry asked.

“Been thinking,” Ron muttered.

“Hope you didn’t hurt your head too much,” Harry chuckled. Unless it involved chess – or maybe Quidditch – Ron was not much of a thinker. Sometimes Harry wondered how Hermione could like him. But, in any case, it was definitely a surprise to see Ron thinking. Wonder what about?

“Nah, there’s no way I could do that,” Ron said.

Harry stared at his friend. Then what could you have possibly been thinking about that caused you to not think as hard as you should have? Harry wondered. Several possibilities flitted through the young hero’s head, with only one of the possibilities – accepting Apollonia – being crossed off. The chances of that happening were slim to none. “What have you been thinking about, Ron?” Harry questioned. “Because, my listening will depend on the topic of this conversation.” It was a veiled threat; Harry refused to listen to anything bad that Ron had to say about Apollonia, a fact Ron had yet to understand.

“Um, okay?” Ron shrugged.

“What do you have to say?” Harry repeated.

“I’ve been trying to come up with a way to make you see things my way,” Ron said quietly. “And, I think I’ve finally come up with something.” He pushed something towards Harry. “Here. Drink this. That should clear your head; and possibly make you see reason.”

Harry looked at the cup. At first glance, it looked like there was nothing funky about the contents. A second look, however, was all it took for Harry to recognize it for what it was. He just won’t give up, will he? The young hero decided to humor him though. Perhaps it would finally convince Ron that his actions were his own. Harry downed the contents of the cup – a potion that supposedly cleared him of all magical influences, which Harry had to wonder how Ron got his hands on – in one gulp. “Now what was that about?”

“Snape is bad news…” Ron started. “You have to see that.”

Emerald eyes narrowed. Knew it. This was just another sad attempt at trying to turn Harry against the only true family he had left. Well, Ron would soon see. Harry shook his head sadly. He then focused all of his anger on the youngest Weasley; he needed to be made aware of the mistake he was making. Sonorous! Harry silently cast. “TELL ME, DID YOU REALLY THINK THAT WAS GOING TO WORK, RON? I’M NOT UNDER ANY ENCHANTMENT, WHICH YOU PROBABLY WOULD HAVE REALIZED IF YOU ACTUALLY PAID ATTENTION. BUT, NO! YOU ONLY SEE WHAT YOU WANT TO SEE. APOLLONIA IS NOT INTERESTED IN THE DARK ARTS. SHE IS NOT TRYING TO CORRUPT ME, KEEP ME AWAY FROM THE MY FRIENDS. THE ONLY ONE WHO SEEMS TO BE DOING THAT IS YOU!”

Unsurprisingly, Ron was flabbergasted. “But, I thought…”

Harry shook his head. Finite Incantatum! “You thought wrong, Ron. There is no spell. There is no enchantment. Apollonia is my sister, whether she’s Snape’s daughter or not. I don’t care that she’s a Slytherin. And neither should you. Now that Voldemort is no more, there is no need to hold Slytherins below us. They are every bit as important as we are. Without Slytherins, the world would be a very bleak place. Now I’m leaving.” Harry stood up and headed towards the door. Before apparating away however, the young hero turned to his friend. “Just so you know; if you try something like this again – trying to turn me against my sister – our friendship is over.” With that, he apparated away.

Ron, it seemed, had gone off the deep end. He refused to believe that Apollonia was a good person and ultimately tried to douse him with what appeared to be a cleansing draft. He was beyond sick of it. And, if he was being perfectly honest with himself, Harry expected that Ron would try this again. The friendship he had with the youngest Weasley son was slowly coming to close, simply because of Ron’s intolerance of Slytherins. With Ron’s attitude, Harry was about ready to cut off all contact with the Weasleys who refused to accept Apollonia; the more he was around them these days, the more he began to realize that it might be the only way. Only half of the Weasleys would stand by him; however, the other half was a completely different story.

To Harry’s delight, Apollonia was already waiting for him. Apollonia seemed to be just as excited as him to see Umbridge and Selwyn get what they deserved. “You seem happy,” Harry acknowledged.

“Selwyn will get back he deserves,” Apollonia growled.

“And, it’s too bad you want to hide your title until after you graduate from Hogwarts,” Harry mused. “That one could come in handy; the last remaining Prince. It would seal his fate, you know?”

“He sealed his own fate when he killed them,” Apollonia warned.

“True,” Harry said.

“What about you?” Apollonia asked as they headed to Courtroom Ten. “How nice will be for you to see that woman that attempted to kill you and Dudley brought to trial for all of her crimes?”

“Ironic,” Harry laughed.

“How?” she wondered.

“Courtroom Ten is where Dolores Jane Umbridge tried to have me expelled before fifth year,” Harry explained to his sister, who never heard about what happened; other than what Dudley had been through. Although it was part of the story, it was best for her to hear the whole story behind what happened – the trial in particular – which Dudley never knew about. “It was the courtroom I had my hearing – which turned out to be more like a full trial – in. For Umbridge to be found guilty of her crimes against thousands of muggleborns, as well as myself; well, I’ll be rolling if Umbridge is convicted in that room.”

“Should be interesting,” Apollonia mused.

“Oh, absolutely,” Harry agreed.

Apollonia stared at her brother. “What’s with you?”

“What do you mean?” Harry asked.

“You’re on edge, have been since you arrived at the Ministry,” Apollonia pointed out. “And I have no doubt that it’s not because of the trial. You wouldn’t be this nervous.”

Harry shrugged. Telling her might help. “You won’t like it.”

“In what way?” Apollonia wondered.

“In the way that Ron tried to douse me with a cleansing draft this morning,” the young hero told her. “He was hoping to prove that I was under the effects of an enchantment you placed over me. As I’m sure you know, he was already proved wrong.”

“How dare he?” Apollonia screamed.

“It was bound to happen,” Harry reminded her.

“I hoped it wouldn’t,” she said.

“So did I,” Harry said. “So did I. But, I did make him aware of something.” Apollonia looked at him curiously. “If he tries anything like this ever again, my friendship with him is over. I won’t stand for him, or any other Weasley, to insult you; not when they’re supposed to be my friends. Did you know that Bill and George are the only Weasleys to have accepted you completely; and I’ve never been all that close to either of them.” …despite having gone to school with Fred and George for five years, Harry thought darkly.

“That isn’t right,” Apollonia said.

“Don’t I know it,” Harry muttered.

The two siblings entered Courtroom Ten quietly. Both were looking forward to seeing the monsters that ruined their lives sent to Azkaban. It was the only way that either Harry or Apollonia would ever be able to move on with their lives. Harry had a tight grip on his sister, wanting to make sure that she did nothing stupid. After all, Gabriel Selwyn was the man who killed her family. Because of him, Apollonia lost the family she never knew; family she wanted to know, if Zara’s actions were any indication. “Ready?” Harry asked.

“As I’ll ever be,” Apollonia shrugged.

***

When she first heard about the Umbridge/Selwyn trial being held today, Apollonia was completely ready to attend, wanting to see her cousins’ murderer brought to justice. He decimated her family because of his blood prejudice, and she wanted to see him pay. Now that she was here, Apollonia almost wanted to leave. Could she really handle watching this trial, watching as he recounted the vile deed? As they entered the courtroom, Apollonia needed to lean on her brother for support. Otherwise, there was no way that the Slytherin would ever make it into the courtroom. What the hell was I thinking? Do I really want to be here? She had very little family as a result of this man. Less than Harry, who at least had the Blacks on his side. Selwyn’s obvious conviction would never bring them back. It would never dull her pain. “I don’t know if I can do this,” Apollonia said.

“Watching it might help,” Harry whispered.

“But will I be able to stop myself from trying to go after him?” Apollonia had to wonder. “I lost my family because of him and his blood prejudice; you and Dudley are all I have left.”

“That’s worse off than me,” Harry realized.

“Which makes it that much more difficult for me to sit through this trial,” Apollonia reminded him. “I have to sit through Selwyn describing how he murdered them. I already did that once; I’m not so sure I can do it again.” Listening to Gabriel Selwyn describe how he murdered his own family – Apollonia’s cousins – had to be the most torturous thing in which she ever had to endure. It was worse than the Cruciatus, and that was pretty bad. Hearing the story of how her cousins died for a second time would be harder still, especially since no one knew that she was the Lady Prince. Nothing good will come of this, the young Lady realized. Few people know who I am, only one of which is here. How the hell will this ever work when I’ve kept the truth to myself?

As Selwyn and Umbridge were brought in, the woman her brother nicknamed the Toad Woman was screaming. “There must be a mistake!” she yelled. “I haven’t done anything wrong.” While Umbridge was yelling, her half-brother simply smirked, which turned out to be even worse because he was smirking in Apollonia’s direction, as if he knew she’d be here.

“I don’t think I should be here,” Apollonia repeated.

“You need closure,” Harry argued. “The only way that you’ll ever be able to get that is to see the monster that destroyed your family put away. You need this more than anyone.”

“I guess,” she shrugged. Apollonia did not want to admit it, especially to her brother, but it was doubtful that the young Snape would find any closure from this. In the form of Andromeda, Narcissa, Draco, and Teddy, at least Harry had family left. But, it was much different for Apollonia that it was for Harry; she lost any family she had left in August 1996. Harry and Dudley were the only family she had left. Watching Gabriel Selwyn go to Azkaban for destroying his own family; it would never fully heal the hole in her heart.

To the teenager’s relief, Dolores Umbridge was to be questioned first. If it had been Selwyn, then Apollonia might not have been able to make it through the trial. The closer to the end in which the Death Eater recounted his crimes, the more of the trial she’d be present for.

***

Three drops of Veritaserum was administered to the former Ministry employee. As soon as the truth serum was swallowed, everyone in the gallery – two emerald-eyed siblings in particular – leaned forward in anticipation of the list of crimes she would admit to have committing throughout her tenure as a Ministry official. Few people in the room truly liked her and most were hoping that she would be sent to Azkaban for life. Minister Shacklebolt glared at the woman for a moment before asking the first question: “What is your name?”

“Dolores Jane Umbridge (nee Selwyn).”

“When were you born?”

“March 15th, 1948.”

Right. And, now that the control questions are out of the way… the Minister thought. It was time to uncover all the secrets the former Ministry employee had been keeping. Even Harry had not said everything about what he knew the corrupt woman to have done. Well, it was time to get some answers. Start off simple, I think. “Are you a Death Eater?”

“No,” she said.

“Do you have any ties to the Death Eaters?”

“Yes.”

“In what way?”

Umbridge scowled. Kingsley grinned. She had no choice but to tell the truth, which seemed to annoy the woman. Good, he thought. She deserves it. “My younger brother is a Death Eater.”

“His name?” Kingsley prodded.

“Gabriel Selwyn.”

While Kingsley already knew that the former Undersecretary was related to one of the Death Eaters – and which one that happened to be – thanks to when Ms. Snape was kidnapped, no one else was aware of that fact. Perhaps the only ones who knew anything about the woman’s family were Mr. Potter and Ms. Snape. It was a shock to everyone, the reason the courtroom filled with gasps. “Settle down!” Kingsley called. He waited until there was absolute silence in the courtroom before returning his attention to Umbridge. “Have you ever committed a crime?” This was a question that he already knew the answer to; however, he needed to make the Wizengamot aware of it as well.

“Yes.”

“What was the first crime you committed?”

Kingsley saw the woman visibly gulp before recounting the transgression. In that moment, the Minister was rather pleased that he went along with Harry’s suggestion. Otherwise, the Ministry might never know of the things that the horrible woman did over the years. “When I was just coming out of Hogwarts, my step-mother thought it best if I was married off to the son of a friend of hers: Jack Umbridge. I never wanted that for myself; so I married the man and later killed him, keeping my married name simply to appease the woman.”

Kingsley was about to address the confession when someone from the gallery beat him to the punch. “You’re sick!” they yelled. “How could you do something so cruel?”

“It was an arranged marriage I didn’t want,” Umbridge said.

A different voice spoke up next, though the Minister suspected that he knew the owner. “You could have easily run away from the marriage, live your own life!” the voice screamed. “There was no need to kill your husband.” There was a momentary pause before the voice started screaming again. “You’re a monster, you know that! You’re as bad, maybe even worse, than Voldemort was. Anyone who would willing condemn a person to death is twisted. Why would you do it? Why would you kill someone like that?”

Before an answer could be rattled off, Kingsley put a stop to this. While it was a question that Kingsley wouldn’t mind having answered, it should not have come from the gallery. Dark brown eyes soon found the owner of the voice. “Ms. Snape, please do not call out like that, or I will have you removed from this courtroom,” Kingsley warned.

“Of course, Minister,” the teen said.

Kingsley turned to Umbridge. “Answer her question.”

Again, the former Ministry official glared at the Minister. “To turn away from the marriage would be suicide. It would have ended any hopes I had at entering the Ministry. I knew a girl, a few years above me, who did the same. She ran off and into the Muggle world and married a Muggle man. Because of that, she was disowned. I was not about to do the same, so I married the man my step-mother wanted me to and killed him.”

While the reason behind Umbridge’s actions from so long ago was being revealed to the entirety of the Wizengamot, the Minister could not help but watch the gallery’s reaction to Umbridge’s tale. Only one reaction was even remotely interesting to the Minister; that of Ms. Apollonia Snape. Kingsley was curious as to why Snape’s daughter was so interested in this story. It was that curiosity that led Kingsley to ask the next question: “Who was the acquaintance of yours that led you to the decision to kill your husband?” There was something that Umbridge was hiding and Kingsley had to wonder what it was.

“Eileen Prince.”

Just as the Minister expected, Ms. Snape gasped. And with that, the final piece of the puzzle fell into place. In the preliminary questioning that Mr. Potter conducted a week ago – while he was looking for his sister – it was mentioned that Umbridge and her half-brother, Gabriel Selwyn, would kill their younger sister and her family. Harry reacted to that news far too personally, as if he knew the names before. Following that, there was a whispered conversation between him and George Weasley. And, though the Minister did not hear the contents of their conversation, it sparked his interest; what was Harry Potter hiding?

Eileen Prince was the last puzzle piece that the new Minister needed to unlock an eighteen month mystery. During the war, there was a spy in the school; a contact known only as the Quarter-Blood Princess. That contact was revealed to be Apollonia Snape shortly after the Ministry was taken over. It was also revealed during that time that her mother was a muggleborn, making her father – Snape – a half-blood. Kingsley never knew what family, though he obviously should have if the girl’s codename was any indication. Apollonia was the Quarter-Blood Princess. That meant Snape had to be the Half-Blood Prince. Eileen Prince was his mother. In discovering this, Kingsley made a quick decision. “I’m calling a fifteen minute recess. Mr. Potter, Ms. Snape, please come with me.”

Kingsley had a suspicion that he knew what the young hero was hiding. Ms. Snape was the last remnant of a once-prominent family. Upon making sure that the two siblings were behind him, Kingsley led him to a small office. “Inside, the both of you,” he told them. They did as they were told, two sets of emerald eyes staring at the Minister. “There is something that you’re hiding from me. I would suggest not doing so in the future.”

“I don’t know what you mean,” Ms. Snape said.

“I’m sure that you do, Lady Prince,” Kingsley said.

The girl stared at him. “I’m sorry; who?”

“Do not try to hide it,” Kingsley warned the girl. “Bit by bit, the secret was revealed. Anyone who was paying attention could piece it together. Your codename in the Order was Quarter-Blood Princess, a sleight on your father as you so explained; your reaction to Umbridge’s story, specifically that she knew a woman named Eileen Prince, was far too personal; and your brother reacted in much the same way to the fact that she and her brother would murder their own sister; people that Mr. Potter should not know. Tell me; how did you get the title when you are from a disowned branch of the family?”

The girl elbowed her brother. “Do we tell?”

“We don’t have much of a choice, do we?”

“Right. Well, since I already have a contact in Gringotts; one at St. Mungo’s; and one in the Aurors, I guess it wouldn’t hurt to tell Kingsley; to have the Minister on my side,” Apollonia shrugged. “But, no more. I don’t want anyone else to realize this until next year. After what happened with Selwyn, I can’t afford letting this news slip out.” She looked over at Kingsley. “No matter what, this cannot be released to the public. Not for another year.” She wove one of her hands over the other, allowing a ring to appear on her middle finger. “I am the Lady Prince. My cousin, Zara, realized that I was her cousin and had me – and my father – brought back into the family. Dad never knew what Zara and Christophe did, so he never claimed the title. I might not have ever done so if not for the fact that Bill insisted that I go to Gringotts. From there, I learned what my cousin had done.”

“And you wish to hide the title?” the Minister wondered.

“I’m already a target,” the young Lady reminded him. “As Harry’s sister, the Death Eaters will go after me, hoping to get to him. Selwyn has already proven that they’re capable of it. Were they to discover that I am also Lady Prince, the target on my back will grow. They’ll come after me even more. I’m giving the Ministry a year to catch as many of the remaining Death Eaters as you can before I take my seat on the Wizengamot.”

Harry stepped up beside his sister. “And, as Lord Potter-Black, I’m in full support of her decision. If she dies, the Prince title goes right along with her. I’m not about to let that happen.”

“Crimes committed against the Lord Potter-Black and the Lady Prince,” Kingsley mused. “That carries a lot of weight. I wonder if there’s a way to add that to the charges against Umbridge and Selwyn without revealing the truth. To attack the last of a house is a serious crime.”

“The blood quill,” Harry remembered.

“The blood quill against Umbridge; kidnap and torture against Selwyn,” the Minister agreed. “I’ll have the charges added and the records sealed after the trial. Until the time is right, no one will ever learn that it was the Lady Prince who was attacked.” Prince was one of the Most Ancient and Noble families; one of only a few that remained. For the last of the line to be attacked; it meant certain death to the one who committed the dead.

“There is one more thing,” the young Snape said quietly.

“What might that be?” Kingsley queried.

“I’m also a princess,” she replied.

“You were literal in creating your Order codename,” he observed.

“Not on purpose,” Apollonia admitted. “I didn’t know that I was a princess until after my visit at Gringotts. A conversation with Rowena Ravenclaw, my ancestor, confirmed that my grandmother’s maiden name was derived from the title the founder once held.”

“The Heir of Ravenclaw as well?” Kingsley asked.

“I am indeed,” she replied.

“I had no idea that Ravenclaw a princess,” the Minister said.

“No one did,” Apollonia said. “It’s not mentioned in History of Magic. That knowledge was lost. The only reason I know is because I found a portrait of the woman.”

“This just getting even more complicated, isn’t it?” the Minister asked. The two siblings nodded. “It seems that a revamp of History of Magic is in the works then. I’ll have to look into that after all the trials have been conducted. Speaking of which, we must get back to the courtroom. The three of us know that there is a lot more that must be covered yet during this trial. Her husband’s murder was only the first of many crimes she committed.” The blood quill and the Muggleborn Registration Commission had yet to be discussed. Then there was also the list of crimes she committed against Ministry employees, of which he was sure existed. She did anything she could to help Fudge – and to help Voldemort. No doubt she would do something to advance his career, to further her own career.

***

As she and Harry returned to the courtroom, Apollonia shook her head. “How did you talk me into telling Kingsley who I am?” she asked. “I thought we agreed that my title should be concealed until next year.” The more people who knew who she was, the more of a chance there was at anarchy breaking out. Death Eaters would surely come after her, wanting to use her as a way of getting to Harry. Hiding the truth was best, for both their sakes.

“We might need his help,” Harry reminded her.

Apollonia had contacts in most places; people who could help her hide the secret from the rest of the world. Mirabelle Rook was a Healer; Harry was an Auror; Bill and Fleur worked for Gringotts. Through them, it was possible for Apollonia to hide her identity for as long as was needed. All that was left, she supposed, was Minister Shacklebolt. No, that wasn’t true; an Unspeakable was the last one, though it was doubtful that she would find anyone to trust from there. “Telling him is risky, you know?” Apollonia reminded him.

“It’s our best option,” Harry replied. “So long as Kingsley knows the truth, he can help us hide it. You have a seat in Wizengamot, which must be hidden until next year. How else would we have concealed that seat if Kingsley knew nothing of the seat Christophe handed you?”

“I suppose,” Apollonia admitted.

The two siblings returned to the pews in the courtroom, ready to listen to the remainder of Umbridge’s confession. What Kingsley said was true; there was so much more that the toad woman had to confess. So much more had to be revealed that it was unclear as to whether or not the Selwyn trial would actually take place here today. Kingsley returned, as did Umbridge, and the questioning resumed. “What crimes have committed from the time you started working at the Ministry until June 24th, 1995?” he asked.

From this question, a lengthy list of crimes was created. Dolores Jane Umbridge entered the Ministry in mid-1966, shortly after killing her husband. She worked as a mail clerk for the first few years, until blackmail material fell into her hands. The horrid woman blackmailed her way in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, so as to push through the legislative she had been working on since her seventh year at Hogwarts – the law that Remus Lupin would come to hate – no werewolf was permitted to hold any employment or marry. It was because of her hatred of all half-breeds that a good man’s – werewolf or not – future was completely destroyed.

Umbridge remained in that office until all the laws she wanted were pushed through, which took until the early eighties; to be precise, it was her thirty-fourth birthday. From there, she made her way up the ranks of the Ministry, eventually finding herself assistant to the Junior Minister in the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, a man by the name of Cornelius Oswald Fudge, in late 1987. She worked with him up until the date in question, becoming his Undersecretary when the man became Minister.

“Shortly after Mr. Potter’s fifteenth birthday, two Dementors were sent to attack him and his cousin, resulting in the Patronus Charm being cast in defense of him and his cousin. Mr. Potter was then questioned in front of the full Wizengamot, this very courtroom in fact,” Kingsley revealed. “Do you know who sent those Dementors to Little Whinging?”

“Yes,” she growled.

Kingsley smirked in hers and Harry’s direction as he asked the next question “Who would be so cruel as to send two Dementors to a Muggle neighborhood where a known underage wizard lived with his muggle cousin, a cousin who already knew of magic at the time of the attack, so the Statute of Secrecy should have never been a factor?”

“Good point,” Harry muttered.

“How did they miss that?” Apollonia wondered.

“Not a damn clue,” Harry said.

Apollonia returned her attention to Umbridge, for she was about to admit to what she had done. “I did,” Umbridge grumbled. “I was the one to send the Dementors to him.”

“Why?”

The young Snape wanted to know that as well. She was curious as to the reason for what Umbridge did to him. “Because he was trying to upset the peaceful existence that the Ministry helped establish so many years ago,” Umbridge snarled. “He questioned every little thing; Black’s guilt; Voldemort’s return; he just couldn’t leave well enough alone.”

“Fanatical loyalty?” Apollonia questioned.

“More like trying to further her own career,” Harry said.

“That toad!” she hissed angrily.

“My thoughts exactly,” Harry said.

Apollonia knew that the next question was to be the most damning, for the item in question was banned. “Did you use a blood quill as punishment for misbehaving students at any point between September 1st, 1995 to June 18th, 1996?” Kingsley asked the woman.

“Yes.”

Everyone in the room, save Kingsley, Harry, and Apollonia, gasped at the admission of guilt. Kingsley shushed them all and continued questioning her. “Did you know that it was banned?”

“Yes.”

The entirety of the Wizengamot was outraged at Umbridge’s admission, many of which had children attending the school during that period of time. But, no one was more outraged by what was said that Apollonia Snape; she had no clue that it had been used for the entire nine and a half month period that the woman was teacher. No wonder Fred and George left.

“Quiet!” Kingsley yelled. Once silence was maintained, the Minister was able to question Umbridge about the final event she participated in: the Muggleborn Registration Commission. Apollonia was rather pleased to note that they were about finished in questioning Umbridge, for the young Lady was becoming antsy. She wanted to see Selwyn sent away off to Azkaban; it was the only way that the Prince family’s deaths would be avenged. “Were you the Head of the Muggleborn Registration Commission, working alongside Death Eaters such as Carter Yaxley and Gabriel Selwyn?”

“Yes.”

“And did you send hundreds of Muggleborn witches and wizards to Azkaban simply for possessing magic while in this position of power?” Kingsley asked the toad woman.

“Yes.”

“Does this crime exist?”

“No. It was done to rid the world of Mudbloods.”

Cold brown eyes glared at the prejudiced former Ministry official. Many others, including Harry and Apollonia did as well. “So, you willingly sent innocent souls to Azkaban, did you not?” Kingsley asked.

“Yes,” Umbridge scowled.

Apollonia elbowed her brother. “She’s finished.”

“And all she had to do was not tell lies,” Harry grinned. He laughed. “Ironic, don’t you think?” He showed her the hand with the message carved into it: I must not tell lies.

“I bet George would get a kick out of that,” Apollonia said. “Funnier still, the trial is being held in the same room where Dolores Jane Umbridge tried to expel you.” She was pissed that such a thing would happen. Had she known that Harry was her brother before she entered Hogwarts, she might have been about to prevent the carving from existing. And, she blamed her father for that. Because her father wanted to keep her safe, Harry had a miserable life, a life she could have prevented him from living through.

“True. And now, all we must do is wait for the sentence,” Harry said. “I doubt we’ll have to wait very long either. Not with all that damning evidence, especially the blood quill.”

***

Just as her brother said, it did not take much time for a decision to be made. It was perhaps five minutes before Kingsley addressed the group again; they waited until the Veritaserum wore off before informing the woman of her future. It would make the punishment more poignant. “In the matter of Dolores Jane Umbridge, we find the accused guilty of all charges. She will be sent to Azkaban for the remainder of her days,” Kingsley said.

“But, I did nothing!” Umbridge blustered.

“You might want to take a look at your testimony,” Kingsley laughed. “You confessed to numerous crimes while under the effects of Veritaserum. You won’t be able to get out of this one.”

Apollonia and Harry were not the only ones cheering as the toad woman was dragged out of the courtroom. She was screaming all the while, begging to be given a second chance, a second chance that she would never receive. “Too easy,” Apollonia laughed as the woman was dragged away. “The toad is gone and hundreds of muggleborns will cheer.”

“And, next up is Selwyn,” Harry reminded her.

“Damn!” Apollonia hissed.