The sound of his heavy footsteps echoed dangerously through the darkened corridor of the Ministry of Magic, click-clacking off of the polished walls in a dangerous staccato. Ahead of him, a pair of Ministry officials darted out of his path, his severe expression causing a small whimper of fear to escape the man's mouth as the woman turned her head into her companion's shoulder. He passed them with a barely concealed sneer.

His cloak hung from his shoulders and billowed out with each step, even as his black leather creaked against the clasps holding it in pace. He felt his brows crease as he came upon his destination – already the smell was assaulting his nostrils. It was his duty to sit in these chambers, and he would do so for his family honour to be upheld, but damn it if he detested the musty smell of old wizards and witches.

With a wandless gesture of his fingers, the large double doors of the Wizengamot were thrown open, his magic swirling around him as the less than whispered conversations were suddenly silenced. During the recent tumultuous times, he had rarely been seen out in public, the shame of his family having been too great. It was to be expected that he would cause some form of surprise, especially attired as he was.

As he glanced around the large semi-circular room, with its rows upon rows of tiered seating, his eyes swept over those gathered. Many new faces gazed back at him in fascination, awe, and outright fear. A brave few sneered down at him in their delusions of power and security.

"All rise for the Lord Arcturus Black, of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black!" The Speaker called out. A quick swipe of his grey eyes quickly took in the man belonging to the voice and found he was disappointed. He'd gotten on amicably with the last ministry employee to hold that position.

With the shuffling of feet, the chamber rumbled as all members of the session stood at various speeds. He remained where he was, making no move to approach the onyx trimmed throne that held his family sigil.

"Where is he?" He growled, his magic flaring again as he attempted to reign in his emotions. It would do little good if he accidentally killed anyone. For now.

"Ah, I was curious what would bring Arcturus Black out of hiding." A nasally voice called out from somewhere amongst the crowd of ministry employees. "It is no matter, he shall be tried here today and sentenced to Azkaban for his crimes."

His eyes swept the crowd and stuck to a man in the black, loose flowing and all-encompassing robes that the ministry seemed to favour these days. The man's face was severe, a deep frown seemingly permanently etched into his aged features. He didn't look particularly noteworthy, besides the pencil thin moustache that appeared to be held fast to the upper lip by nothing other than a slight sheen of perspiration.

"You dare lay a hand on my heir-" He growled dangerously, his eyes narrowed in on the man he knew as Bartemius Sr, of the House of Crouch. From what little he'd bothered to remember of the man, he was a political parasite with a hard-line attitude to Death Eaters and had aspirations for the position of Minister of Magic.

"Gentleman, gentleman. I think I can speak for the entire Wizengamot when I say that we would prefer neither of you came to blows. Perhaps, my Lord Black, if you could take your seat? That way we may be able to begin the proceedings and determine the accused's guilt." The powerful yet gentle voice of Dumbledore called out. He would be a fool to argue with the Chief Warlock.

With a final glare at the pitiful excuse of magic that was Crouch, Arcturus swiftly ascended the stairs to his throne. In the grand scheme of the assembly, it was in one of the more prestigious positions in the hall, with only one row of chairs in a higher position. Above him, the assembly of Heir's watched on, while across the hall was a public viewing gallery – both were historically full.

With two flicks of his fingers, honed through years of repeating the same action countless times, the two silver clasps holding his fur-lined cloak came undone. With a quick shrug of his shoulders, the garment was removed and draped across the back of the chair in a way that would have had his ancestors throwing a fit. He wasn't here to uphold an image of power - he was here to ensure his house survived.

He slid into the velvet-lined throne with ease and crossed his legs impatiently, glaring down at the central floor as if it had somehow personally offended him. As the remaining members of the Wizengamot settled into their own chairs, a heavy banging of a gavel echoed throughout the chamber.

"Seal the doors! The Wizengamot is officially in session!" The Speaker called out, watching as a pair of Aurors calmly waved their wands and closed the large doors. The quiet boom of them sealing under the ministrations of the wizards reverberated quietly in the high-ceilinged room.

"The Court is called to order to judge the accused, one Sirius Orion Black, for the following crimes. Conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to enact terror, first degree murder and finally, for being a Death Eater." Crouch called out, his nasally voice echoing off the walls. "Bring forth the accused!"

Arcturus watched, his heart in his throat as a section of the floor retracted and a chair rose from the inky blackness below. The chair, with its many chains and cuffs – all designed to nullify the magic of the occupant, didn't bother him for a second. No, it was the slumped form of a man in barely acceptable rags that caused his breath to catch in his throat. Sirius.

Sirius looked awful – his black hair, with its many wild curls that were iconic of the family was greasy and limp, his skin was pale and sallow. He looked broken.

"Sirius Orion Black, you are brought before the Wizengamot to determine your guilt. How do you plead?" Dumbledore asked. Arcturus could see the frown on the ancient wizards lips.

"Not guilty." Was the barely audible response a few moments later.

"Lies!" Was the call that answered the accused throughout the chamber – men and women, witches and wizards stood in a cacophony of sound, stamping their feet, smashing their palms onto the railing before them screaming their disbelief. Arcturus remained seated, the fingers on his right hand gently tapping the end of the armrest.

"Silence!" Dumbledore called; his wand-tip pressed lightly to the side of his neck in a Sonorus charm. Within moments, the avalanche of noise was halted with only the faint murmur of whispers left in its wake. "Let it be known for the record, Sirius Orion Black, heir to the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black, has pleaded innocent. Prosecution, you may make your opening statement."

A middle-aged witch stood then, her hair pulled tightly into a bun on the top of her head underneath her ridiculous ministry hat. Her face was long, though Arcturus thought idly that her neck was longer. Her robes were bereft of any adornments of office, which was odd for a case like this – usually the ministry spared no expense when dealing with Azkaban cases, though with the number of dead witches and wizards over the last few years, perhaps this is all they had left to call upon. That thought both elevated his mood and dashed it all at once.

"Sirius Orion Black, of the House of Black. You are a ministry employee under the office of the Hit Wizards, are you not?" The prosecutor asked, her voice sharp and unyielding. If he were a younger, more inexperienced politician, he may have winced against the offending sound assaulting his ears.

"I am."

"Mr Black, is it also accurate to say that the House of Black and the House of Potter have been rivals for generations?"

"I suppose but-"

"Is it indeed not out of the realm of possibility, that you could, if given the correct means and motive, use the skills accrued as a Hit Wizard, to further your House agenda? Say, for example – removing the Lord of another House?"

"Never!" Sirius snarled, his arms thrashing against the bindings. Arcturus felt the corners of his lips twitch in pride. "I'd die before harming James and the Potters!"

It was true, Arcturus knew. James Charlus Potter, and Sirius Orion Black had been inseparable since their first step onto the Hogwarts Express as children. Sirius had been born to his own son Orion Black and his wife Walburga – what a disaster that had been. Both Orion and Walburga subscribed to the idiot notion that the Pureblood Elite were the only magicals that were deserving of magic. Through some miracle, Sirius had never agreed with that outlook, though to Arcturus' own guilt, the boy had been beaten and whipped bloody over the years by his parents. He'd have disowned Orion if it hadn't meant disowning his entire line after him – instead, he'd quietly announced Sirius as his heir, with his fool son not knowing any more. He was after all, a Slytherin at heart.

"Very well, Mr Black. Let the record show that the accused has become violent after the previous question."

"Objection!" Arcturus bellowed, leaping to his feet. The loose strands of hair around his face billowed out as his magic swirled. "That was obvious baiting!"

The gavel of Dumbledore over-powered the responding noise. "Objection allowed. Prosecutor, this is your only warning. You may continue."

"Sirius Orion Black, the Ministry of Magic is of the opinion that you were a spy for He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, shared ministry secrets, betrayed the trust of the Potters and murdered Peter Pettigrew and a dozen Muggles in London with a Blasting Curse, thus breaching the Statute of Secrecy and endangering our world further," At this, the prosecutor turned to address the room as a whole. "All of you gathered here today have been provided the evidence. Sirius Black was found at the scene of the crime, laughing hysterically over the remains of Pettigrew. It is well known he was the Potter's Secret Keeper-"

"I wasn't the Secret Keeper! Pettigrew was!" Sirius yelled desperately. The room fell into utter silence.

"Excuse me?!" The Prosecutor snapped, spinning on her heel to glare at Sirius.

"I was the decoy! We thought that if everyone knew I was the Secret Keeper, I'd be targeted, and Peter would be overlooked. It was supposed to be a grand prank!" Sirius wept, the events of the last week taking its toll on him. Arcturus' heart broke.

"But I performed-" Dumbledore rumbled, a disbelieving from on his elderly face.

"We performed it again afterwards! Lily performed it herself. We all knew there was a spy, but we had no idea who – you have to believe me! I-I'll answer any questions with Veritiserum!"

"Mr Black, you know full well that Veritiserum is inadmissible in court!" Minister Bagnold spoke out for the first time. Arcturus resisted the urge to sneer in her direction.

Slowly getting to his feet once more, Arcturus leaned against the gold filigree railing before him. "I demand that the clothing on Sirius Black's left arm be removed. If he truly is a Death Eater, and a loyal servant of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, let me look upon the Dark Mark!"

A pair of Aurors that flanked the box of the Chief Warlock turned to look at Dumbledore. With a sharp nod, the pair stepped forward, one of them conjuring a small knife to cut away the fabric of the once rich material.

There was a collective gasp throughout the room as an unblemished arm was revealed. Murmurings broke out once more throughout the room.

"Order! Order!" Dumbledore bellowed, enunciating the word with the banging of his gavel. When the room was silent once more, he continued in a much softer tone than he'd used the entire session, "Sirius, my boy – I fear there's been a grave misunderstanding. In your own words, can you tell us the events of that night?"

Arcturus watched as Sirius nodded his head eagerly – his grandson was drowning, and he'd been thrown a lifeline.

"I was in my flat in London when the Wards I'd helped James put up were breached. I raced down the stairs to my motorcycle and headed to Godric's Hollow immediately. If they'd been breached, it meant that Peter had sold them out." Sirius paused as a heart-shattering sob wracked his body. "When I got there, I was too late. Hagrid had gotten there before I had, and was carrying Prongslet out the front door. I was so angry." He growled, his fists clenching. Even from his position, Arcturus could hear the chair struggling to contain the man.

"I demanded Hagrid give me Harry. I'm his Godfather by right of ritual." A collective gasp punctuated the statement – the ritual was old magic, binding a witch or wizard for life to that of a child. The individual was sworn from causing harm to the child for life – it was sacred and powerful. If Sirius had indeed betrayed the Potters, he'd have keeled over dead and stripped of his magic the second the Potters came to harm. "Hagrid said he was under orders to take Harry to Dumbledore. I was stupid and wasn't thinking right. I let him go. Stupid, stupid, stupid!"

"Sirius…" Arcturus called down, watching as Sirius turned to look at him. His eyes were wide and wild, tears streaking down his cheeks. He gave a shaky nod.

"I went after Pettigrew. I wanted to know why! He caught me off-guard and accused me in the street. He cut off his finger and just when I raised my wand, he shot a blasting curse into the street and escaped."

"How did he get away?" Bagnold demanded, leaning forward in her seat.

"He's an Animagus and can turn into a rat. I think I saw him go into the sewer. I blacked out after that, and the next thing I remember is waking up in a cell here."

Arguments for all sides erupted from the hundreds of witches and wizards gathered. This changed everything. Prior to this session, there had been rumours of post-humorously awarding Pettigrew with an Order of Merlin for his bravery. No doubt that was off the table now. He briefly remembered the Pettigrew boy, from a photograph Sirius had sent him of his 'Marauders' during his years at Hogwarts. He hadn't been impressed by the pimple-faced boy then, and certainly less-so now.

"In light of this new information, I demand the release of my heir, effective immediately." He demanded, standing to his full height. He may be eighty years old, but damn them all if he wasn't walking out of here with his boy.

There was a moment of silence, and then Albus Dumbledore gave a sharp nod. "The Wizengamot Court of November 4th, 1981, in light of new information finds the accused, Sirius Orion Black, innocent of all charges!" With a bang of his gavel, it was official. "Arcturus, my friend – come and get your boy."

Authors Note:

Just a little plot idea I've had bouncing around my head these last few weeks in lockdown. For those that are interested in The Last Jedi, I haven't forgotten about it, nor do I intend to leave it unfinished. I'm currently working on another unrelated Star Wars project, so I've avoided drowning myself in that universe and put the written work on hold for now.

In regards to this, I've set up a whole lot of World-Building through a few different documents on my PC and have a basic plot outline to cover Hogwarts and past it. Changed up a few of the established things from the Canon, which would come into play later on. I was massively inspired by Dobby's Deceit over on AO3 and a number of other works that I've read over the last few weeks. I definitely suggest checking them out if you haven't already. I'll also be posting this to AO3 in the next few days.

This is my first foray into this world, so I'd appreciate hearing what you guys have to say. Did I do good? Do I need to get good? Let me know!