Harry Potter and the Great Old Ones

Chapter 400 The Final Decision

After being dragged from the bed, Tiera didn't linger and immediately jumped to London through the divine dimension.

Upon arriving in London, Tyra didn't rush to the Ministry of Magic. Instead, she found a high-end-looking coffee shop, ordered a black coffee and a cake to go, and sat down to wait.

About twenty minutes later, Tierra stood up, walked out of the coffee shop, and then disappeared around a corner.

Just minutes earlier, at the Ministry of Magic, in Wizengamor, on the tenth basement level.

Harry's heart pounded wildly in his throat.

He swallowed hard, twisted the heavy iron handle on the door, and walked into the tenth courtroom.

Harry gasped, unable to control himself. The dark, deep room he had entered was all too familiar, and it filled him with dread.

Harry had not only seen it before, but he had been here before. This was the place he had seen in Dumbledore's Pensieve, where he had witnessed the Lestranges being sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban.

The walls on all sides were made of dark stones, and the torchlight was dim and eerie.

On either side of him were rows of empty benches that gradually rose higher, and in front of him, on the highest benches, many dark figures appeared. They had been whispering to each other, and when the heavy door closed behind Harry, an ominous silence descended.

A cold male voice echoed in the courtroom.

"you are late."

“I’m sorry,” Harry said nervously, “I—I didn’t know the time had changed.”

“That’s not Wizengamot’s fault,” the voice said. “An owl was sent to inform you this morning. Sit down.”

Harry lowered his gaze to the chair in the center of the room, its armrests adorned with chains on both sides.

He had seen these chains suddenly spring up and bind the person sitting in the middle tightly.

His feet echoed loudly as they stepped across the stone ground. He sat carefully on the edge of the chair, the chains clanging menacingly, but they did not bind him.

Harry felt dizzy and nauseous, and looked up at the people sitting on the benches above.

He could see about fifty people, dressed in crimson robes with an exquisite silver "w" embroidered on their left breasts. They all looked down at him, some with stern expressions, others making no attempt to hide their curiosity.

In the very center of the front row of benches sat the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. Fudge was a large, fat man who usually wore a dark yellow-green bowler hat, but he wasn't wearing it today.

Furthermore, the kind smile that he used to always have on his face when speaking to Harry was gone today.

To Fudge's left sat a broad-shouldered witch with a square jaw, short gray hair, a monocle, and a frightening expression.

Another witch sat to Fudge's right, but she was sitting too far back on the bench, her face shrouded in shadow.

“Very good,” Fudge said. “The defendant has finally arrived. Let’s begin. Are you ready?”

He shouted towards the other end of the bench.

“Yes, sir,” a familiar voice said urgently. Ron’s brother, Percy, sat at the very end of the front bench. Harry looked at Percy, expecting him to recognize him, but his face remained expressionless.

Percy's eyes, hidden behind his horny-framed glasses, were fixed intently on the parchment in front of him, a quill pen in his hand, ready to write.

"The trial on August 12th," Fudge said in a booming voice, and Percy hurriedly began to take notes. "The trial of Harry James Potter, who lives at 4 Privet Drive, Little Huigkin, Surrey, for violating the Reasonable Restraint of Underage Wizards Act and the International Secrecy Act."

"Interrogators: Minister for Magic Cornelius Oswald Fudge; Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement Amelia Susan Bornes; Senior Undersecretary Dolores Jan Umbridge. Trial Recorder: Percy Ignatius Weasley—"

"Defendant's witnesses: Albus Percival, Woolflick, Brian, and Dumbledore." A loud, yet calm voice suddenly resounded through the dark space.

Harry turned his head quickly, but Dumbledore did not appear.

Along with the other wizards of Wizengamor, Dumbledore's voice seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"呲-"

"呲呲-"

"呲呲呲——"

A ball of orange-red flame appeared out of thin air in mid-air.

The flames spun and burned, growing larger and larger until finally, an old man emerged from them—it was Dumbledore.

Dumbledore was dressed in a magnificent gold and red robe, carrying an incongruous packing strap in his hand, and his face was extremely calm.

He walked to a spot parallel to Harry, looked up, and gazed at Fudge through the crescent-shaped glasses perched on his hooked nose. His long, silvery-white beard and hair gleamed in the still-burning firelight.

"Harry, it's been a long time."

As soon as Dumbledore appeared, he looked at Harry and handed him the packing bag. "Harry, you probably didn't eat much this morning. Here, I packed you a cake and a coffee. Go down and sit in the audience to eat slowly."

"Huh?" Harry took the packing strap, looking at Dumbledore with some confusion.

Before Harry could react, Dumbledore lifted him from the chair in the center of the courtroom and shoved him toward the audience.

"Watch and learn, Harry, watch and learn."

"Dumbledore" whispered the instructions, then stood in the center of the trial chamber on his own.

The members of Wizengamot were whispering amongst themselves. All eyes were on Dumbledore. Some looked annoyed, some seemed a little scared, while two elderly witches in the back row waved in welcome.

But Dumbledore acted as if he didn't recognize them. He first greeted Harry with a smile, then looked straight ahead without glancing to the side.

The moment Harry saw Dumbledore, a strong emotion welled up inside him, making him feel at ease and full of hope, just like the feeling that the song of Fawkes the Phoenix had once given him. This directly dissipated much of Harry's previous resentment towards Dumbledore.

“Ah…” Cornelius Fudge exclaimed, looking completely bewildered. “Dumbledore, Dumbledore…yes…so you—um—um—you received our letter—and knew that the time and place of the interrogation had changed?”

“No,” Dumbledore said firmly, his face cold. “However, coincidentally, I’m not here today just for Harry’s sake. After all, it’s quite a journey to the Ministry of Magic, and my old bones can’t handle it. So, I’m also here today to gather the wizards of Wizengamot so that I can pass one of my reform proposals.”

Harry noticed that Dumbledore used the phrase "through one of my reform proposals," as if stating a given fact.

"You, you, what do you want to do?" Cornelius Fudge stammered. "This is, this is Harry Potter's trial. You—"

"I don't think there's any need to waste any more time on the Harry Potter case."

"Dumbledore" interrupted rudely, "The 'Law on Reasonable Restraint of Underage Wizards' states in Section 7 that magic may be used in the presence of Muggles under certain circumstances, including when the life of the wizard or other wizards or Muggles present is threatened... I remember the Ministry of Magic records clearly state that Harry used the Patronus Charm in front of Dudleysley, right? Obviously, even if Harry intentionally violated the Statute of Secrecy, there are only two possibilities: either he was showing off his magical power in front of Dudleysley, a Muggle, and a Transfiguration, a Fire Charm, or even a Levitation Charm or a Clear Water Charm would be the best choice. A fifth-year wizard like him doesn't need to use such a profound spell as the Patronus Charm."

"If the goal was to punish the Dursleys, why didn't Harry blow them up like he did the summer before he started his third year?"

"Dumbledore" paused, then looked at Cornelius Fudge with a mocking expression, and continued, "And I remember you didn't say a word when Harry blew up his aunt into a balloon, which was a much worse incident than this one, and you just laughed it off."

“Dumbledore! You—” Cornelius Fudge’s face turned red, his heart seemingly filled with shame in an instant.

"What am I?"

Dumbledore didn't give Cornelius Fudge a chance to continue.

“We’re all adults, Connelly Fudge, so I think you might as well just say it.”

"Dumbledore" intensified his sarcasm, "Look at you, look at you, the Tenth Inquisition again, Wizengamot again, what are you trying to do?"

"Isn't this just your way of getting back at me? Aren't you just trying to use Harry as a pretext to get back at me?"

"Wow, Cornelius Fudge, you're so impressive."

"Dumbledore" continued, "How impressive! The lineup that judged the Death Eaters was the same one that judged Harry Potter, haha..."

"You, you, you, you, you..." Connelly Fudge's face turned red, and he couldn't say a word except "you," as if someone had removed the last layer of his veil of modesty.

"I can tell you right now, no way!"

Dumbledore's voice boomed like thunder:
“I’m telling you, there’s no other outcome regarding Harry Potter. Harry Potter’s use of the Patronus Charm in front of Dursley was entirely in accordance with Section 7 of the Reasonable Restraint Act for Underage Wizards. He used the Patronus Charm to protect both himself and that Muggle named Dursley when he encountered the Dementors.”

"Therefore, I believe he should not only not be sitting here on trial, but should also be commended. Even if he doesn't receive the Order of Merlin, Third Class, he should at least be featured in the Daily Prophet!"

"The Harry Potter case is now closed!"

Thank you

lozinda casts January vote
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(End of this chapter)