What Voldemort Left Behind

Chapter 33 - A Different Perspective

AUTHORS NOTE: This chapter took me ages 😂 it was really hard to write but someone said more villains so i accepted the challenge and FINALLY here it is!!!!!

A correspondent for the Daily Prophet reports that Harry Potter was seen storming out of a secretive meeting at the Ministry of Magic yesterday afternoon at around 4:30pm - The meeting may have been to do with the attack on Potter's son, James, the day before... Allegations on Potter's sanity... Frequent displays of reckless behavior... Is he really a fit parent or is he as dangerous as the unnamed criminal?

Dennis set the newspaper down. He didn't really believe that Potter was going insane, but as it had worked before to discredit him as a teenager, it could work again. It wasn't like Dennis was sneaking into the Courtroom area of the Ministry to spy on the meetings, but when others came with information he didn't complain. He tucked the paper away and walked the short distance to his parents' house, he lived in the same Muggle neighborhood as them when he wasn't working at Hogwarts, so they spent a lot of time together over the holidays. After Colin's death they didn't want him to go back to Hogwarts and it took months of persuasion to convince them that magic itself wasn't the problem, just some of the people who use it.

Over the years he had realized that Harry Potter was the main problem, the only person who had a hope of saving the world had avoided the problem for too long and sacrificed far too many lives on the way to killing Voldemort, including poor Colin. Colin had always looked up to Potter, before starting Hogwarts, Dennis had often received various books that talked about The Boy Who Lived, once even a signed photo of Harry with Colin, from his brother in the mail. Dennis didn't think as much of Harry Potter as Colin did, to him he seemed a little rude and would ignore the Creeveys, despite his brother's insistence that he was best friends with the famous boy.

Dennis knew nothing else of the Wizarding World and so followed in his brother's footsteps and supported Harry Potter, a huge mistake. Dennis spent a year hiding with his brother and parents, blending in with Muggles and waiting for some signal, some sign that the war was being won. Colin and Dennis had both felt their coins burn on that terrible night, and Colin had persuaded his brother to stay. He lay awake all night waiting for Colin to come home but had instead received an owl in the morning informing the family of his death. Potter couldn't even be bothered writing it himself.

Dennis returned to Hogwarts for his 5th year, it would've been Colin's seventh. Over the years he forgot what his brother had stood for and grew apart from the people his brother had cared about. It wasn't worth it if it would all just end in death and destruction. A decade later he applied for the Muggle Studies teaching position, it wasn't perfect, there would always be an aura of coolness between Dennis and his colleagues, they didn't agree with his views and he didn't agree with theirs. Minerva McGonagall however, was always fair, she hated him, possibly more than any of the others did, but she didn't let that get in the way of her job to hire teachers suited to their position. In front of students she would treat him the same way as she would any other teachers, it went over most of their heads that there was even any tension. Only Harry Potter's children noticed anything, Dennis saw their odd stares when they walked into his mandatory class, they tried not to glare but their eyes showed it. He would never be like Snape, he refused to stoop to that level, he took every student, no matter who their father was, and praised them for their achievements. Maybe one day one of them will agree with his beliefs but he tried to be a nice person. Potter's oldest, James, wasn't having it, he was badly behaved in every Muggle Studies class and refused to listen to his teacher, but it was quite unlike his behavior in other classes. The middle child would give Dennis odd looks every now and then but didn't seem to care very much. The youngest, Lily, was concerning. Dennis had to watch his step in her class, she was very perceptive and would notice anything, if he said anything inappropriate she wouldn't hesitate telling the Headmistress who, despite her tough exterior, loved and had a soft spot for little Lily.
If Dennis accidentally spoke in Hogwarts the way he did in his personal life, he would almost certainly get a warning, if not fired. Lily was the most cordial towards him out of the three, but he knew that she held a lot more power within the Wizarding world and Hogwarts. than he did, if he did something wrong she could easily get him in trouble.
It was silly really that he was scared of a thirteen year old girl but he could easily offend her and her family and get in serious trouble. She was a nice girl, she wasn't out to get him but some of the things he had said in the past were seen by many as trying to indoctrinate children with his own beliefs and he knew there was no way he could do that in front of the smartest child he'd possibly ever met. Not in the conventional way, although she was academically gifted too, in her way to perceive things and understand them. Dennis would not be able to fool her and it made it even worse that she was the child of the man he hated more than anything.
Dennis made his way to the Ministry of Magic, there was a meeting today between all members of the Wizengamot to discuss the trial. Dennis hated these meetings because he was outnumbered by far. There were around three people who sympathized with his ideals, two of them also had Death Eater sympathies. He had no idea how he was able to get elected, half of them were elected and half taken from Ministry officials in the DMLE and similar departments, all of his supporters rallied around to get someone they liked elected.
Harry Potter of course, got everyone's vote when he didn't even try after leaving the Ministry. Unlike Dennis, who scraped through, Potter had most of the Wizarding World behind him. When Dennis stepped out of the lift into the courtroom area, it was filled with Wizengamot members standing and talking in small groups. Lots of them side eyed him as he passed, no one talking to him, Dennis had no choice but to walk straight past and into the courtroom. There were a few others already in there, no one was sitting in formation, they were all spread out across the room and Dennis sat around the middle of the tiered seats, at first not noticing that Potter was nearby. Dennis thought he looked terrible, his face was very pale, he was very thin, which was saying something as the Wizengamot uniform hid a lot, he also looked like he was going to throw up, leaning slightly on his friend Longbottom. Many of the other Wizengamot members from outside had begun to come into the room and lots took a longer way to their seats in order to see Potter. Some bowed to him or tipped their hats before making their way to a seat but most stopped to offer him words of comfort and support. He was slightly more alert than he seemed in the minutes before, but still distant and by no means happy talking to the people that supported him. He smiled but it never reached his eyes and the moment the person turned their back, he slumped back in his seat.
Dennis couldn't understand why anyone would believe his side of the story, no sane  and truthful person would behave like that at an important meeting, he shouldn't be trusted with power. Finally Shacklebolt arrived, the talking ceased. The meeting started, Shacklebolt droned for a while about the trial. Suddenly Longbottom stood up, interrupting the Minister.
"Why on earth does Harry have to go on trial? Surely he's protected by the self defense and defense of others policy?"
Harry muttered something to his friend, looking embarrassed but Neville shook his head and stared directly at the Minister.
"Kingsley please. You must have some power to overstep this, you know he'll just be proven innocent anyway."
"As the Minster of Magic I did have that power... unless it was opposed by any member of the Wizengamot."
The witches and wizards turned towards Dennis, their gazes burned into him. Neville laughed sarcastically which was completely out of character. "Of course."
Dennis stood up, it was time to tell them what he thought no matter if they wanted to hear it or not. He felt his anger rising as he stood and he knew he would sound like a lunatic but he didn't care, he had an opportunity to tell the whole Wizengamot what he thought. He started with all the reasons why Potter should be put on trial, they said nothing but stared incredulously at him. Finally Potter stood, shakily, his expression not succeeding in concealing his anger.
"And who are you to decide?"
Dennis spoke quietly. "You're the reason Colin is dead, my brother died protecting you and I won't have anyone else suffer just because you're incapable of the tasks given to you."
He appeared to be struggling for words, between anger and guilt and his voice was almost quiet, between a realization and a defense. "Minerva sent him home."
Colin was confused. "Excuse me?"
"The battle. Minerva McGonagall sent him home....... he was underage. I didn't see him again until Oliver and Neville..... On my walk to the Forest."
Dennis was furious. "And you think that makes you any less guilty?"
The crowd muttered to each other and Dennis had a feeling that it was aimed at him rather than Potter.
Kingsley interrupted gently. "We are not here to discuss matters of the war. Legally Harry Potter holds no blame for what happened in the War and that was decided by me alongside the temporary government set up in 1998. Due to your refusal to cooperate with the rest of the Wizengamot, holding us back in this whole trial, I will settle it with a vote to decide whether Harry will be held accountable, or cleared. Harry, obviously you will be unable to vote but you may stay in the room as I feel you will not have any sway over members' votes if you haven't already. I will not vote either, as I fear I may be biased."
Kingsley conjured a table with 48 pieces of paper and a box, quite basic but it served the purpose. One by one, the members tapped an empty sheet with their wand and returned to their seat. When Dennis reached the table he tapped the paper which ticked his desired box. The room was strangely silent and there was a sense of unease. Kingsley waved his wand and the voting papers organized themselves.
"Cleared. Fourty-six votes to two. Meeting adjourned."