The Dark Lord's Daughter- Book One (A Harry Potter Fan Fic)

Chapter Thirty-One: Meeting With the Minister

A week later, Leah was preparing herself for her meeting with the Minister of Magic. She tried not to think of it as a hearing. He had agreed to leave her alone for the week, and she would come under her own steam. She would not be dragged into the Ministry by force. She still had some dignity left.

She had chosen to wear a simple muggle pant suit. It was deep navy, with her blazer open to reveal a pale salmon colored blouse and a string of pearls around her neck. Her black hair fell gracefully over her shoulders. Barty's reflection appeared behind her in the mirror, gently pressing out some of the wrinkles in her outfit. "Be careful today, alright? Don't speak out of turn and be civil."

"You're one to talk." She smiled slightly at him, but it didn't reach her eyes. She turned around, allowing him to wrap his arms around her and pull her into a kiss. "If things go wrong," Leah told him, pulling away from the kiss, "take the kids and run. Get out of the country of you can. Try and find Daniel. He might help."

"Don't think like that," he said sternly.

She sighed, but somewhere through the house, a clock chimed eleven. "I have to go."

He nodded and kissed her once more, full of passion. Leah had a bad feeling in her stomach and didn't want to let him go. Seth, Arya, Mason, and Fiona bounded into their room, all chorusing "bye mummy!" Leah hadn't explained to them what was going on. They didn't need to know. She hugged them all goodbye, plastering a smile on her face and wrapping her arms around each of them in turn.

She made her way down the stairs and to the fireplace, where she took a pinch of Floo Powder. "Ministry of Magic!" she cried, tossing the powder into the flames. Green fire burst all around her, spinning her round and round until she stumbled out into the Atrium of the Ministry.

Brushing ash off her shoulders, she was suddenly surround by four men in black robes. Leah looked up and met the leader's eyes. "Are you Miss Riddle?" he inquired.

"I am," Leah said with as much dignity as she could muster.

"Wand, please?" He held out his hand. Leah reached inside her blazer and handed over her wand, feeling empty as she did so. "Follow me." Leah did as she was told, the four men flanking her. As they made their way through the Atrium, many faces turned to look at her. None of them bothered keeping the shock off their faces. She felt like a zoo animal, being paraded through the onlookers for show. She was quite happy to reach the privacy of the lifts.

Her guards remained silent, none of them looking at her. The lift clattered to the very bottom level. They then proceeded down the flight of stairs and to the dungeons which had been turned into courtrooms. The lead guard opened the door for her and stepped aside to let her through.

Inside, the room was large and circular, with a high ceiling. In the center of the chamber sat a solitary chair with chains linked all around it. Not including her four guards, which now stood by the door, there where only four other people. Kingsley Shacklebolt, the Minister of Magic, sat in the center, staring down at her. Harry and Ron flanked him, with wands out like bodyguards. Hermione sat a small distance away with a clipboard full of notes in her hands.

Slowly, Leah made her way to the chair. The moment she sat down, the chains clinked to life and wrapped around her wrists, securing her to the chair. She looked up at the minister, fury gleaming in her eyes, but either he didn't notice or he ignored her. "You are Miss Leah Rosemarie Riddle?"

"Yes," Leah said stiffly.

"This is your wand? Ebony and dragon heartstring, twelve and a half inches?" he asked, holding it up.

"Yes," she repeated.

He shuffled his papers and only then did he look at her. "Miss Riddle, you have been brought before me at your own request. What do you want?"