Madam Bones paused here and beckoned to the two Aurors standing behind the chair in which Remus Lupin was detained. Both Aurors nodded and flicked their wands at Lupin's chair. The chair lifted off of the ground, floated forward a few feet and then landed again, leaving Lupin in the centre of everyone's attention.
"To start with," continued Madam Bones "we have Remus John Lupin, aged 35. Mr Lupin is a known Werewolf. I have liaised with the Werewolf Registry Office in our Ministry's Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. They have assured me that Mr Lupin is classed as a "Werewolf of Least Concern."
"For those of you who might not know, this means that Mr Lupin is not known to have done anything to cause concern within the Werewolf Registry Office. He has consistently complied with regulatory requirements for Werewolves, including updating the Department should he move home and possessing a trunk with an internal expansion charm in which he spends the night of a full moon so as to not pose a risk to others.
"For all in intents and purposes, he is what the Werewolf Registry Office would consider "an ideal Werewolf" – one whom the Office does not have to worry about, the polar opposite to Fenrir Greyback."
Harry could not help but admire Amelia right then. While opinions about the effectiveness of the Werewolf Registry Office were often divided, there was no doubting that it was there for a reason. Amelia had not hidden the fact that Remus was a Werewolf, something that was bound to rub certain people the wrong way, but she still spun it so that Remus was seen in the best possible light. Personally, Harry had no idea just who this Fenrir Greyback character was, but affect was obvious when Amelia asserted that Remus was the complete opposite of Greyback.
"So," continued Amelia "How does an ideal Werewolf end up involved with the Order of the Phoenix? Well, the answer is simple – He felt he owed Albus Dumbledore."
As some members of the Wizengamot exchanged looks, Amelia spoke in a slightly louder voice. "I suggest that you take extra notice of that, as it will be a reoccurring theme in these trials."
Turning she continued "Mr Lupin was a young child when he was bitten. Once bitten his prospects became bleak. Neither Hogwarts nor Waxwings allow Werewolves as students and most people within the Wizarding World refuse to employ Werewolves.
"Then along comes Albus Dumbledore who pats the young Mr Lupin on the head and says "That's alright, we will make special arrangements so that you can come to Hogwarts.
"Dumbledore's reasons for doing this are currently unknown, even to Mr Lupin. We have questioned the Hogwarts Staff members that were amongst the arrested and as far as we can tell, Dumbledore had not offered such an option to a young Werewolf before Mr Lupin, and has not done so since Mr Lupin's time at Hogwarts. This makes it seem unlikely that Dumbledore offered Mr Lupin a place at Hogwarts in order to appeal to Werewolves everywhere. After all, why only make such an offer to one Werewolf when there are dozens who could benefit from the offer?
"Nevertheless, the fact remains that Dumbledore did offer Mr Lupin a place at Hogwarts where, for seven years, Mr Lupin was treated like any other student, even gaining friends, something which had been largely denied to him up until that point.
"From then on, Dumbledore has played on Mr Lupin's sense of indebtedness on many occasions. This included persuading him to join The Order of the Phoenix.
"As for Mr Lupin's role within the Order itself, we have found nothing that gives us cause for concern. He was not involved with, or even aware of the mass potioning of students which took place at Hogwarts, being away meeting with a Werewolf colony at the time. That meeting, by the way, is also something that is not a cause for concern.
"From what we can tell, Mr Lupin's sole crime during his time within the Order is his failure to report the whereabouts of Sirius Black to the Ministry. However, Mr Lupin has explained that he did not feel he would be believed if he came forward to state that Mr Black was innocent and he did not want to put his friend in danger. As the Dementors had been given a 'kiss on sight' order for Mr Black, this fear does carry some validity."
Fudge cleared his throat and asked "So it is the opinion of The Department of Magical Law Enforcement that Mr Lupin has committed no crimes?"
"It is," replied Madam Bones.
"Excellent," said Fudge, smiling. "Then I see no need to even turn this matter over to a vote. Mr Lupin, you are hereby cleared of all charges. Thank you for your cooperation."
The chains that held Remus to his chair suddenly fell away, leaving the Werewolf free.
"Thank you, Minister," said Remus, before getting to his feet. One of the Aurors who had been guarding him gestured towards the crowd and quickly a space formed so that Remus could sit next to Sirius.
"Good to see you again, Remus," said Sirius.
"You too," replied Remus before lowering his voice. People were talking all around them but he wanted to be sure. "But I don't understand, if Madam Bones was happy to let me go, why was I brought before the Wizengamot?"
"Because your story helps people understand how Dumbledore works," said Harry, leaning around Sirius in order to answer. According to Sarah, a lot of people in the Order were there because they felt greatly indebted to Dumbledore in some way. Your story was one example of that."
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