Golden Age by black_blade

Chapter 35: Chapter Thirty-Five

Harry looked down at the cuffs on his wrists as he waited in his cell. He could have easily broken out and left but he didn't. He couldn't find it in himself to fight this. He felt empty at what he'd come so close to doing and shuttered to think about what could have happened if Severus hadn't been there. He could have killed Albus and so many more.

"In some ways, I thought you would end up here."

Harry didn't raise his head at Dean Albert's words as he stared at his cuffed wrists. The Aurors had placed him in the nicest cell in the Ministry and had come in the back way to avoid him being seen. Harry had just followed along without a word.

"Harry?" Albert whispered and slowly Harry lifted his head. "I'm sure that we'll have this all sorted out shortly."

Harry just nodded lifelessly and Albert frowned at him in concern. The other man held out a bottle of water and a paper bag through the bars but Harry just stared at it. Albert sighed and placed them down on the floor of the cell. The Auror watching him didn't say a word but Harry was sure that that had been against the law.

"Have they had a medic look at you?" Albert questioned in concern.

"Yes," Harry answered, roughly.

"You don't look well," Albert stated and turned to the Auror. "Perhaps we should get the medic back down here?"

"I can do that," the Auror conceded.

"I'm fine," Harry whispered and looked back down at his bound hands, they still shook.

"Are the cuffs necessary?" Albert questioned.

"Sorry, sir." The Auror replied. "Head Auror Greengrass wants them kept on. Swift did kill You-Know-Who with dark magic."

"How else was he supposed to do it," Albert bit back. "I'm going up there to talk to the man. This isn't right."

"Isn't it?" Harry pressed as he looked back up with dull green eyes. "I think he is correct-"

"Harry," Albert cut in with a dark glare and Harry found it amusing how the man had changed. "They are celebrating the death of You-Know-Who up there and you are down here in this cell."

"Where I belong-"

"Get over yourself!" Albert snarled as he grabbed the bars of the cell.

"Go away," Harry snarled back as he rose to his feet.

The Auror shifted stance but didn't do anymore. Albert stared at him long and hard as Harry stared back. Something uncurled within him and Harry shoved it down. He could not let the Deathly Hallows get a grasp on him once more.

"You killed the darkest wizard of the age and you wallow down here-" Albert went to say

"Wallow!" Harry snapped and stepped closer and held his cuffed hands up. "I have been arrested, Dean!"

"You let that happen-"

Harry laughed bitterly at that and Albert flushed red.

"Would you rather that I fought through the Aurors and confirmed what they are saying?" Harry questioned and the Auror glanced over in amusement.

"We were half expecting that," the Auror said with a quirk to his lips and Harry paused.

"Why?" Harry asked.

"As the Minister just said," the Auror commented. "You have just killed the Dark Lord with dark magic. We thought that you had fallen to that side then you just calmly let yourself be arrested."

The anger and frustration left Harry in a rush and he slumped his shoulder as he looked down at the floor.

"As I said, Harry." Albert said into the silence. "We'll have this sorted out soon and you can go back to Hogwarts."