A day at Hogwarts.

Chapter 607 The Case Happened

"Charles, are you free? Harry's in trouble!"

When Charles received this urgent message from Percy, he was at the massive doll production base located beneath the Antarctic ice sheet, while Gabrielle was playing King's Game with the dolls at a nearby castle.

He arranged the next steps of production, then called Gabrielle over and activated the door key.

A speechless feeling kicked them into a spatial teleportation, and a moment later, the two of them staggered into Farbatton Castle.

Charles told Gabrielle to go to the film set to visit the old man and Professor McGonagall, while he went to find Percy.

Percy and his girlfriend Penelope now own an old Victorian apartment in London. The red brick exterior is covered with ivy, and the interior space is cramped but exudes a sense of history. In other words, the century-old wooden floors and stairs emit an unpleasant smell of decay.

As a result, they took on a 20-year mortgage.

Although the two young people are already living together, sharing a kitchen and living space that belongs only to the two of them, and are always the first to leave work and the last to arrive with a yawn, they are both busy with the initial stages of their respective careers, and marriage will have to wait. Percy plans to complete the werewolf treatment program first.

Charles met Percy in a café tucked away in a quiet alleyway not far from their apartment.

As dusk settles, the air is filled with the aroma of roasted coffee beans. The owner transforms his wand into a cat toy and teases his pet cat.

Percy sat alone in a corner booth, a barely touched cup of coffee in front of him.

His expression was unusually solemn, his brows furrowed, and he only breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Charles sit down in front of him.

Charles ordered coffee, and soon a latte was served.

“Harry’s in trouble,” Percy leaned forward slightly and lowered his voice, so that no one around could hear him. “He’s violated the Act on Reasonable Restraint of Underage Wizards.”

Charles took a sip of coffee. He had broken the law so many times that he had almost forgotten it existed, but he immediately realized the crux of the matter.

This law primarily targets underage wizards living with Muggles. Families like Percy's, where the entire family are wizards, are subject to far less oversight, and the Ministry of Magic simply ignores them.

Privet Drive, due to Dumbledore and others' frequent comings and goings, had long been on the Ministry of Magic's "whitelist" for surveillance. Minor disturbances, such as Charles using a Spell to get a bottle of soda, would not attract any attention or investigation.

"Is the situation serious?" Charles asked, putting down his coffee cup as he began to quickly consider the matter.

He knew all too well how the Ministry of Magic's bureaucratic system operated; some things could be big or small, weighing either four ounces or a thousand pounds.

The fact that Percy chose to speak to him privately suggests that the matter has not yet caught the attention of higher-ups and may not have entered the formal review process.

Percy took a sip of coffee and replied, "He used the Patronus Charm in the Muggle neighborhood, making quite a commotion. The eyewitness reports are all very clear about it."

"The Ministry of Magic is currently in a chaotic period of power transition between the old and new ministers. Fudge has not yet finished handing over the mess he left behind, and Scrimgeour has just taken over. Many departments are still sorting out the daily work of the handover, and there are mountains of documents. Therefore, not many people have noticed this report yet."

“I have a friend who works in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement’s special office that deals with these kinds of underage wizarding violations. It’s summer vacation now, and Harry’s name is very memorable. He told me about this the other day while we were drinking.”

Upon hearing this, Charles quickly sorted through the fragmented information in his mind.

The newly appointed Minister of Magic, Scrimgeour, comes from the Auror Office and is known for his strong sense of justice and incorruptibility, especially his hatred of lawlessness and disorder.

A new broom sweeps clean, and once he has fully streamlined the department's operations and established himself firmly, he is very likely to vigorously rectify public security in order to establish authority and a strong-willed image.

In this context, Harry's case could very well be brought up again at some point in the future, and might even be used as a cautionary tale, with unpredictable consequences.

“What is the current minimum penalty standard?” Charles asked, trying to find the safest solution. “If possible, try to handle it according to the minimum standard, go through all the legal procedures, and minimize the impact.”

Percy was clearly prepared for this. He adjusted his glasses and answered clearly, "The lightest standard is that the Ministry of Magic sends a formal letter of warning, which is rather formulaic and severe; the person involved needs to write a written apology no shorter than the length of their wand, detailing their mistakes and understanding; finally, their legal guardian must sign the apology and send it back to the Ministry of Magic within the deadline."

Charles nodded. This sounded almost like a slap on the wrist, more like a formality, a very lenient treatment that would hardly cause Harry any real trouble.

However, Percy's expression did not relax; instead, he became even more worried.

He continued, "That's the problem."

“There have been too many cases like this lately. My friend didn’t want to make things too complicated and increase his workload. He originally planned to close the case quietly, just like everyone else’s, and file the report together.”

"But now we've encountered a thorny problem: the Ministry of Magic's owls can't locate Harry Potter's current address, so that crucial warning letter simply can't be sent!" "If the letter isn't sent within the stipulated processing time, the case will be considered as the party refusing to cooperate with the investigation, and according to procedure, it must be reported level by level. At that time, the punishment will increase at each level, and the punishment will become more and more severe. At first, it will just be a fine, then it will be a restriction on wand use, and there's even the possibility of community service in Azkaban. That will become very troublesome, and it will be impossible to suppress it."

Charles understood immediately.

He had underestimated the situation, assuming that the process simply hadn't started yet.

The matter wasn't that it hadn't been weighed yet, but that it had already been placed on the scale. The staff responsible for weighing it wanted to put it down gently, but they couldn't find Harry or contact the person in charge, so they couldn't make an exception.

"Have you been in contact with Ron lately?" Charles asked from a different angle, trying to confirm one of his suspicions.

A complex and frustrated expression crossed Percy's face as he said, "There's almost no one at home now. My mother tells me to go home to feed the chickens after get off work, and my father always tells me not to forget the ghouls in the attic when he sees me at the office."

Charles understood. It was clear that Dumbledore had reassembled the Order of the Phoenix, and almost the entire Weasley family was in there, except for Percy.

As for why Percy wasn't included, Charles wasn't quite sure. Perhaps Arthur had some deeper meaning, or maybe he didn't want to disturb the young people's lives, and it would be best if they produced a grandson soon.

Charles recalled that when he first returned to Privet Drive, Dumbledore had taken time out of his busy schedule to come and play computer games. He was not the type to waste his time on frivolous pursuits, so this action seemed a little strange.

Now Charles thinks back on that strange behavior was probably an attempt to recruit him. Luckily, Dobby contacted him at the time, and he had to slip away beforehand, thus avoiding being dragged into it.

Therefore, Harry is most likely at number 12 Grimmauld Place, the Black family’s old house.

It must have been placed under powerful shielding and protective spells by Dumbledore, cutting off all means of tracking and communication, including the Ministry of Magic's owls, turning it into an information black hole.

“I think I understand what’s going on.” Charles picked up his coffee cup and took another sip. “Don’t worry too much. I’ll try to contact Professor Dumbledore and have him arrange for Harry to cooperate as soon as possible, receive the warning letter, and complete the procedures.”

This matter is easy to resolve; there are two solutions.

To minimize the damage, Harry just needs to write a letter of apology, have Black sign it, and send it to the Ministry of Magic.

Making a mountain out of a molehill: Harry being punished by being sent to Azkaban for community service, and Charles simply saying hello to the Dementors.

However, more than this trivial trouble, Charles was concerned about a fundamental issue.

What kind of urgent and dangerous situation forced Harry to use the Patronus Charm?

First of all, the possibility of him showing off or practicing is extremely low; Harry is not the kind of child who doesn't know his place.

It's almost impossible to accidentally summon a physical guardian spirit; that would require extremely strong willpower and a clear emotional trigger.

The only, most reasonable explanation is that he encountered a Dementor, and it was a real threat.

It's not surprising that Dementors appear on the beach and gnaw on fishermen; it's practically become their daily activity.

However, it is highly unusual for them to venture into the heart of Muggle residential areas like Privet Road in Little Wheegland, which is a serious violation of their usual range of activities and the Ministry of Magic's regulations.

Now that everyone knows about Voldemort's resurrection, Fudge doesn't need to cover it up anymore. There's no reason for him to send Dementors to cause trouble for Harry like in the "memory".

So why were these Dementors, who should have been strictly controlled by the Ministry of Magic, there? Was it a large-scale loss of control by the guards of Azkaban, or was there something else going on?
Could it be Voldemort's doing?
Charles thought to himself, "Why not make a big deal out of this and send Harry to Azkaban to find out what's going on there?"

Although he was very familiar with the Dementors, when it came to matters of principle, he decided to be on the safe side and let Harry gather information first, while he would then go and talk to them purposefully. If all else failed, he would have the old man make the trip.

Charles spoke with Percy for a few more moments, confirming the Ministry of Magic's current handling of the matter and the possible timeframe before leaving the café.

He strolled through the streets of London, surrounded by the bustling traffic.

The changes in the Ministry of Magic left him uncertain, not only because they involved Voldemort, but also because of many business-related matters.

For example, if Scrimgeour decides that the budget should be spent on dealing with Voldemort and therefore bans lavish spending on food and drink, then Dancing Grass Restaurant will lose a lot of money.

Charles decided to try to find out some inside information.

(End of this chapter)