#304 - Chapter 304 News Holy Land Hogwarts
Big news!
This is really big news!
Sirius Black, the fugitive, has been captured at Hogwarts.
The Hogwarts professors are really bold, actually letting him sit openly with the Boy Who Lived.
The Boy Who Lived is also quite generous, able to refrain from seeking revenge in this situation.
Hogwarts is indeed a news mecca; every few days, it seems, a piece of shocking news rocks the British wizarding world.
I've already thought of tomorrow's headline:
[Returning Good for Evil, the Boy Who Lived is a Model Youth of the New Era!]
The reporters are ecstatically happy, as if it were Christmas.
Holding up their magic film cameras and various magical cameras, their faces are filled with excitement and fervor as they scramble to the front, trying to get the best position.
This is a contest of will and stamina; only the strong can grab the best shooting angle.
The frenzied flashes of light flicker incessantly, and the noisy clicks of shutters rise and fall.
Sirius sits there, coldly watching everything before him, without any intention of explaining.
The reporters don't care about Sirius's attitude at all; they just keep asking questions.
"Mr. Black, may I ask which professor caught you?"
"Mr. Black, may I ask how you infiltrated Hogwarts?"
"Do you admit guilt?"
"Are you worried about being re-sentenced?"
Some reporters can't squeeze into the very center, and they are extremely anxious, constantly scanning the surroundings, trying to find a better angle for interviewing.
Suddenly, an older reporter spotted the small man bound by chains nearby.
The more he looked, the more familiar he seemed, until he recalled a news article he wrote himself more than a decade ago.
"Peter Pettigrew!"
The older reporter's eyes lit up, and he pounced on Peter Pettigrew; this time, he was determined to grab the best position for the first interview.
Hearing his shout, the noisy atmosphere in the dueling hall suddenly quieted down.
Peter Pettigrew?
Wasn't he supposed to have died many years ago? Back then, the Ministry of Magic even specially awarded him a Medal of Merlin to commend his heroic deeds.
Does this mean there's a hidden story in Sirius's case!
Reporters with quick minds were like sharks smelling blood, abandoning Sirius one after another, swarming around Peter.
"Oh my god! It's him! It really is Peter Pettigrew!"
"What exactly is going on?"
"No matter what's going on, it's definitely earth-shattering news!"
The reporters' voices had changed from excitement to frenzy; they were almost standing on tiptoe, vying to photograph that dirty face.
The Aurors also noticed the anomaly; their eyes kept wandering between Sirius and Peter, and their expressions became extremely complicated.
Some frowned slightly, looking somewhat confused; others looked solemn, seemingly pondering their next move.
Each Auror gripped their wands tightly, but no one dared to act rashly.
What's going on?
Hagrid didn't explain it clearly just now!
He only said that we no longer need to catch Sirius, but he didn't say that the situation on the scene would be so complicated.
Harry looked at the motionless Sirius, stood up without hesitation, and strode towards the reporters.
Just like Professor Slughorn said, the grievances of the older generation have nothing to do with him.
No matter what, this is the godfather his parents found for him.
His face wore a determined expression, and his voice was clear and forceful, drowning out the surrounding noise.
"Everyone, listen to me, Sirius is innocent! The one who truly betrayed my parents is him—Peter Pettigrew!"
Merlin's beard!
Black is actually innocent; does that mean the Ministry of Magic sentenced the wrong person back then?
This is indeed earth-shattering news!
Who would have thought that a case settled more than a decade ago could have such an amazing reversal.
The reporters all turned to Harry, trying to get more of the truth from him.
Facing the many cameras, Harry was not intimidated at all, narrating the truth he had discovered bit by bit.
The reporters listened with rapt attention, afraid of missing a single detail.
Tomorrow's headline is here, titled:
[Shocking! An Innocent Man Spent More Than a Decade in Azkaban, and the Real Culprit Was Only Caught Today!]
[The Ministry of Magic's Wrongful Conviction: Is It a Distortion of Human Nature or a Decline of Morality?]
Just as the reporters were preparing to continue asking for more details, an anxious urging came from outside the dueling hall.
"He's in here, isn't he, Dumbledore?"
"That's great. It seems that stationing Dementors outside the school was indeed a wise decision; it caught Black after all."
As soon as the voice fell, the figure of Minister of Magic Fudge appeared at the entrance of the dueling hall.
Although he had just fallen asleep when Dumbledore's phoenix startled him awake, his expression at this moment was devoid of resentment, but rather full of joy.
His pace was also extremely fast, completely unlike his usual slow self; Dumbledore and the other professors were far behind him.
Fudge had been waiting for this day for too long.
Ever since Sirius Black's breakout, he had been under tremendous pressure every day, unable to eat or sleep well.
Now, the dark clouds have finally parted to see the sun.
With a wave of his hand, he drove the reporters aside, and then carefully observed the man with the somewhat strange hairstyle.
It really is Black!
Fudge felt the burden on his shoulders lighten, and his breathing became much easier; then, he beckoned to the Aurors.
"What are you still standing there for? Quickly arrest Black."
Fudge was filled with the joy of catching Sirius Black, completely ignoring the fact that Dumbledore had told him earlier that Sirius was innocent.
He happily scanned the surrounding reporters, wanting them to record his heroic posture.
He had already thought of tomorrow's headline, titled:
[Minister of Magic Goes to the Front Lines, Sirius Black Can't Escape the Law!]
The Aurors looked at each other, unsure whether to carry out the Minister's orders after having learned the facts.
Before the Aurors could react, Harry suddenly shouted loudly.
"Minister, there's a misunderstanding here; Sirius is innocent!"
"Harry," Fudge said with a smile, "Whether Black is innocent, we will definitely investigate it clearly to ensure that no good person is wronged."
What innocent or not, what do you know as a child?
Judging whether a person is innocent is something that the Ministry of Magic should do; don't overstep your bounds.
Besides, in this regard, can you, a student, be more professional than the Ministry of Magic?
If it weren't for the fact that you're the Boy Who Lived, I would have had the Aurors kick you out right now.
"Really," Harry argued reasonably, "The real culprit is someone else; it's Peter Pettigrew."
Peter Pettigrew?
How is that possible; I personally saw that tragic scene back then; Peter Pettigrew was blown to pieces, leaving only a finger behind.
The real culprit can never be him.
The Boy Who Lived is indeed still a child; what nonsense is he talking about.
Just as Fudge was about to say something, he followed the crowd's gaze and saw Peter Pettigrew, tied up in a ball.
He blinked his eyes sharply, as if doubting that he was hallucinating.
His voice suddenly rose, pointing at Peter and shouting in disbelief.
"Peter Pettigrew, how could you still be alive?!"
......
...
.
