Chapter Text
January 7th, 1982
The Department of Magical Law Enforcement was never silent. There was always the sound of running boots, quills scratching on papers, and orders being shouted. The department was always alive.
But not today.
The doors suddenly burst open, letting in an icy wind that made papers fly everywhere. Every Aurors present shot to their feet, their wands in hand, only to stop and stare, shocked. At the door stood a man wearing dark robes with fine silver accents, his grey eyes surveying everyone in the room, daring them to move a muscle. His gaze settled on the door to the director’s office, and the wind grew colder. His stride was powerful, reminding everyone that despite his age, he was still fit and more than capable of handling them if they so breathed wrong.
Two more people followed behind him : a man, probably of the same age with stunning blue eyes dressed in long blue robes to match his eyes, and a woman with short blond hair and green eyes, dressed in a black low-cut dress and matching chocker. The most shocking of all, perhaps, was that the older Aurors in the department immediately recognized her, standing tall and averting their gazes from her.
There was a loud bang as the door to the director’s office blew open, followed by screaming coming from inside.
“What in Merlin’s name is going on ?! What are you-” Crouch Sr stopped talking, his mouth open and eyes wide with shock. He quickly regained his composure and bowed deeply to the man in front of him.
“Lord Black, I wasn’t aware you were coming. I sincerely apologize for my rudeness.” Crouch Sr stood back up, but he looked anywhere but the furious man in front of him. Even he had some survival instincts, and everyone knew you do not anger further Lord Arcturus Black unless someone wanted to die a painfully slow death.
“Crouch, it has come to my attention quite recently that you imprisoned a man in Azkaban without a trial.” Even his voice sounded cold, and his words brought shivers down everyone’s spines. Crouch paled dramatically, and he tried to stammer an excuse, but Lord Black cut him off with a raised hand.
“I do not wish for your excuses, they are not welcomed nor appreciated. I am here today to know why my heir, Sirius Orion Black, was thrown in prison without anyone lifting a single finger.”
The only sound heard was Crouch’s attempts at explaining himself. Everyone else was standing with slowly downing horror. Had they really sent the heir to a Most Ancient and Noble House in Azkaban without a trial ? Have they really been so blind ?
“B-but Sirius Black w-was disowned...” Crouch’s voice grew quieter the more he spoke in the face of Lord Arcturus’ fury. It was becoming clear quite quickly that they made an enormous mistake.
“He was never disowned, my daughter-in-law doesn’t have the power or the right to do so. Neither did my son when he was still alive.” Lord Arcturus said, his eyes never leaving Crouch’s face. “Only the Lord of an Ancient and Noble House can do so. And I can assure you, Crouch, that I never disowned Sirius. So now, will you answer my question ?”
Crouch remained silent, growing paler by the second, his hands shaking. Lord Black made a little humming noise, before turning towards his companions.
“Lord Ferrell, Lady Holloway, it seems we have all the information we needed.”
“Indeed, Lord Black.” Lord Alton Ferrell said, his deep voice reverberating around the silent room.
“We should leave now, then.” Lady Teressa Holloway added, looking around her former office with disdain, before turning on her heels and leaving the room. “This department clearly isn’t the same as when I was Director. A pity, really.”
“The real pity is all the years you spent working here.” Lord Alton said as he followed her, a little smirk on his lips.
“Alton is right, you should not have waisted all these years here. Clearly, all the things you accomplished were for naught.” Lord Arcturus added, the cold wind slowly dying down with each step he took in the direction of the doors.
They were nearly out when Lord Arcturus stopped and turned to face Crouch, still in the same place, frozen on the spot.
“One more thing.” He began, focusing on Crouch. He waited until the man looked at him before continuing. “Bartemius Crouch, you imprisoned my heir. You left him to rot in that place. You have made an enemy in the House of Black. Parate iudicium.”
They all could feel Lord Arcturus’ magic settling on Crouch, before the man fainted, crumpling on the floor like a puppet whose strings were cut. Lord Arcturus turned on his heels and left the room, leaving everyone frozen in shock.
Lord Arcturus Black was never as furious as he was when he was informed that his heir, his grandson, Sirius, was imprisoned in Azkaban since November of 1981. He just managed to get to the dueling room in the basement of Nightwell Keep before letting his hold on his magic go. He felt a lot of emotions all at once : fury, anger, disbelief, horror, betrayal, fear. When his lovely wife came to see him, nearly an hour had passed. His magic had calmed down by that point, but it truly settled with a gentle push from his wife’s magic.
They spent the rest of the day questioning their daughter, Lucretia, on everything she had learned. They never got notified of Sirius’ incarceration, or the events leading up to it. Someone in the Ministry didn’t think it important, and for that, they will pay. The Black temper was infamous for its coldness, and these fools would learn quickly to never mess with the Black Family.
As soon as Lucretia finished, Arcturus contacted Alton and Teressa. They were both dear friends of his, having gone to Hogwarts at the same time. When they heard what happened to his grandson, they were both furious. They immediately offered him their help in getting Sirius a trial, and bringing him back home. Because there was never a doubt as to his innocence. Sirius and James Potter were basically brothers, and Sirius was little Hadrian’s godfather, he would never betray them like The Prophet and everyone else said. If the British Ministry still insists on the contrary, there was only one thing left to do. Bring this up to the ICW.
Luckily for Arcturus, he had a lot of power with the International Confederation of Wizards, and so did his friends. Alton was a member of the Jury Panel, and Teressa was a private investigator since she left her place as Director of the DMLE. It was only a matter of time before the Magical World remembered why the House of Black was feared since its creation.