[Discontinued] When Shadows Collide, The Game Begins

Chapter Twenty Five

The court case had gone less than smoothly. Dozens of witnesses, magical and muggle jury, and almost none of it organised. Harry sat at the front, between Sherlock and John, trying to avoid looking at the once-headmaster who was standing in front of him, handcuffs and chains glowing with magical energy and covered in binding runes. At the front of the room, the muggle judge and wizard wizengamot were having a heated discussion.

The judge soon got fed up and banged her gavel, calling for order. The bustling jury and witnesses settled down, grumbling and groaning, knowing this was going to be a very long case. Harry could feel fear and anger radiating off of just about everyone in the courtroom. He tried to distract himself, analyzing the people surrounding him, but found even that too stressful.

"You can leave once you've given your witness statement," said John, trying to comfort his son. Harry nodded and gulped slightly, fidgeting with his tie.

Soon, the court proceedings began, quite unlike any Harry had been to. The combination of wizarding and muggle practices making for an interesting watch. It may have been entertaining were it not for the consequences of Dumbledore not receiving a sentence.

Evidence was presented, analysed, and questioned a lot. The wizards seemed to want to keep Dumbledore free of guilt, whereas the muggles saw how evil his actions were, and wanted justice. This led to dozens of arguments that definitely broke court rules, as well as Harry's memories being shown over and over again, the wizards insisting that they had been tampered with, yet unable to find any proof of tampering.

Many long, long hours later, a while after Lestrade had taken Harry back to the flat, Sherlock and John came home. Neither of them seemed sober, but Sherlock was the only one trying to hide it. As John saw Harry, his face lit up and he giggled.

"Life in max security," he said, before collapsing onto the carpet.

"Jesus Christ, John," said Lestrade, jumping up from his spot on the sofa and helping Sherlock lift the drunk man to his bedroom. Lestrade returned alone. "Sherlock passed out," he said, shaking his head. "You good, Harry?" The boy was hugging his knees, curled up on the floor. Lestrade ran over, kneeling beside the boy.

"He's gone," said Harry, his voice weak and child-like.

"He's gone," confirmed Lestrade. Harry sat up and grabbed Lestrade, pulling him into a long hug, his tears soaking Lestrade's jacket. Lestrade, after getting over his initial shock, hugged the boy back. "You did it."

At some point, Harry fell asleep, he couldn't quite remember when, but he woke in his suit, lying on top of his bed covers. It took him a moment to recall the events of the previous day, and grinned once he did.

"Dumbledore's gone." The words alone seemed so incredulous, unlikely, but Harry knew they were true. He got up and changed into something more comfortable before going downstairs to greet his fathers.

"You'll be going back to Hogwarts on Monday, if you want to," said John once he had greeted his son. Monday, two days from then. Harry considered it for a moment, before remembering his friends, and nodding excitedly. He hadn't really realised how much he'd been missing Draco, Hermione, and the twins until he thought about it.

Sherlock and John decided to take Harry to the aquarium, as a reward for getting a good enough case for Dumbledore to be locked up. Harry agreed, excited, but something about the whole case felt off. He decided to think about it later, and for now, just enjoy the aquarium.

Harry, Sherlock, and John arrived home quite late, Harry insisting that they couldn't leave the aquarium until it closed, as he did every time he went. Waiting patiently in Harry's room was Hedwig, a few dozen letters scattered around her. Harry recognised all the handwriting immediately and sat on his bed, slowly starting to read the messages from his friends and writing his own replies.