Lucius felt his blood boiling.
Clearly, this was Dumbledore's attempt at targeting him. Lucius wanted so much to refute him, but was able to keep his cool.
The others around, those who were siding with Dumbledore or could not believe Harry Potter would commit such a crime, gave a nod upon hearing Dumbledore's words.
The headmaster continued, "We cannot discount the possibility that Harry was under the influence of external forces, that he was compelled to perform these actions against his true nature. The use of the Unforgivable Curses requires a level of intent and malevolence that contradicts Harry's character as we know it."
His eyes moved deliberately to Fudge. "Minister, I ask you... Can we, in good conscience, claim that Harry Potter, a boy who has stood time and again against the darkness that plagues our world, has suddenly become its servant?"
Fudge's patience was wearing thin. At that moment, he remembered Luicus' words.
Dumbledore was aiming for his position in the Ministry of Magic.
Fudge was quick to reply.
"Ah, Albus Dumbledore, always eager to interject with your opinions." The irritation was clear in Fudge's tone.
"But if I may remind you, you are no longer the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. Your presence here is as a witness, not a participant. You will speak only if requested, as everyone here knows."
Of course, Dumbledore knew about this clearly. But he also knew that this was a chance for him to talk with all the Wizards present. What he wanted to do was done. He could already see the change in behaviour among the group.
Seeing Dumbledore taking his seat, Fudge smirked, thinking he had bested the old wizard.
Turning back to the Wizengamot, Fudge continued his focus once again on presenting the prosecution's case against Harry Potter.
"As I was saying," Fudge resumed, "the evidence against Harry Potter is substantial and cannot be dismissed lightly. The Unforgivable Curses were cast, and lives were taken. Now I'm sure a lot of you must be thinking about what Dumbledore has just said. Albus here thinks he is the only one who knows how to use his brain while assuming that I, the Minister of Magic, and every employee here are just fooling around."
Dumbledore responded, "Minister Fudge, my intention was not to cast doubt on the competence of the Ministry's employees. I merely seek a fair and just assessment of the circumstances. As we've seen throughout history, the Imperius Curse has been used to manipulate individuals, and it is within the realm of possibility that Harry Potter was not acting of his own accord."
Fudge, however, dismissed Dumbledore's words with a wave of his hand.
"Save your philosophical musings for another time, Dumbledore. To assure everyone here, the Ministry has indeed considered the notion of the boy Harry Potter being under the Imperius Curse. To address this concern, the Ministry, in its wisdom, decided to impose a one-day delay between the capture of Harry Potter and the initiation of his trial. This delay allowed our skilled Aurors to carefully assess and monitor Harry's state.
On top of that, we had reached an arrangement with the Goblins at Gringotts. Together we have used the goblin thief's fall, which removes all Curses, including the Imperius."
This was such shocking news to most of the wizards present.
Even Dumbledore was unaware of this. He glanced at Kingsley Shacklebolt, but the latter gave a negative nod. Even he, an Auror in this case, was unaware of this.
Upon seeing the emotion of the people, especially Dumbledore, Fudge felt a sense of pride.
He reminded himself to thank Amelia Bones later for this suggestion.
"And to confirm if the boy was indeed under the Imperius Curse, who better to ask than the boy himself?" Fudge, with a calculated pause, turned his attention back to Harry.
All attention was now back on him.
"Harry Potter, you stand before the Wizengamot. Were you under the Imperius Curse, compelled against your will to cast those Unforgivable Curses?"
As Cornelius Fudge posed the question, Harry's attention was totally on another matter. He was looking at Dumbledore. Harry saw how Albus was still trying to manipulate all the events to happen as he wished. Dumbledore's subtle attempts to undermine the Ministry became transparent to him.
Inwardly, Harry fumed.
Dumbledore had, for years, guided him under the guise of protecting him. Yet, in this pivotal moment, Harry saw through the facade. Dumbledore's ambitions and desire for control were laid bare. Harry understood that with Albus Dumbledore questioning Cornelius Fudge about the use of the Imperius Curse, many of the wizards present would have doubts in their minds and show the incompetence of Fudge. Like Voldemort told Harry, Albus indeed wanted the position of Minister of Magic.
Ignoring all the piercing stares from everyone who was waiting for his answer, Harry shifted his attention back to Fudge.
His entire emotion changed. No longer was the nervousness present. Instead, his eyes were devoid of all emotion, not letting his rage be visible.
"No, Minister Fudge," Harry said loud enough for everyone to hear clearly.
"I was not under the Imperius Curse. I acted of my own accord, and I take full responsibility for my actions."
The chamber fell into a tense silence. The members of the Wizengamot exchanged glances, wishing what they heard was not the truth.
Fudge, not one to dwell on sentiments, pressed on. "Very well, Harry Potter. Your testimony will be considered in the proceedings. We shall proceed with the presentation of further evidence."
Although Harry has basically admitted his crime, this was supposed to be a fair trial where all the evidence and testimony would be presented to the public.
As such, Fudge began with the witness in the case.
"Our first witness, Dudley Dursley, the Muggle who was tortured by Harry Potter. He is the sole survivor of this chilling incident," announced Cornelius Fudge, gesturing toward the witness stand.
From the side of the chamber, a door opened, and a trembling Dudley Dursley appeared.