Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 190, 189. The dead are talking!
Does anyone have any objections to this chronological order?

“No,” Amelia said frankly. “So, after the mysterious man murdered the Potters twelve years ago, the first person to arrive at the scene was not an Auror or any other member of the Order of the Phoenix, but Sirius Black?”

“This is indeed a strong witness to prove his innocence,” Amelia said thoughtfully. “After all, if Sirius Black were a Death Eater or a traitor, he would have avenged his master after witnessing the death of the Man of Void, which would mean he would kill Harry Potter—but clearly, Harry Potter is standing right in front of us right now.”

"He wasn't killed, but handed over unharmed to someone else, and then Sirius went on to commit the crime we all know about. Well... if it was to punish a traitor, then the logic makes perfect sense."

“Indeed, Peter Pettigrew did not perform well during the war, and the possibility of him becoming the Death Eaters' primary target after the disappearance of the mysterious man was not high to begin with... The mysterious man died too suddenly, you should all remember, right?”

"I'll never forget it. At the time, many people didn't believe it. It was so sudden. We didn't even have time to capture those Death Eaters. Those guys escaped faster than anyone else, haha..."

"..."

The members of Wizengamo talked amongst themselves, and their discussion made Hagrid's evidence seem more credible.

“Rupert Hagrid?” the pink-clad woman, Umbridge, asked again. “Can you guarantee that everything you’ve said is true? No lies, no fabrications? Can you swear it?”

“Oh, of course I can!” Hagrid said gruffly, annoyed by the suspicion he was being subjected to. “I can swear that everything I’ve said is true. If I’m lying, may a dragon bite my head off! I’m even willing to drink a truth serum as proof!”

“Calm down, Hagrid,” Dumbledore reassured him. “Of course we believe you. That was just a routine inquiry.”

“Albus is right, child, there’s no need to be so nervous,” said the old witch Maggie Ban, whom Harry had met before, with a smile. “Forget about the Veritable Fluid. We never use it as a regular treatment; in some ways, it’s worse than the Imperius Curse.”

Ms. Macchiban's words were met with a chorus of agreement.

In the consensus of wizarding society, truth serum, as a means of forcing a person to reveal their deepest secrets, cannot be used arbitrarily because it deprives the accused of their free will, regardless of whether they are innocent or not.

“I don’t care about that, ma’am,” Sirius suddenly shouted. “I’m willing to take truth serum and confess!”

“I remember I already said this, Sirius,” Barty Crouch said calmly, “that those with strong will can resist the effects of truth serum, so we cannot believe your testimony obtained using truth serum.”

“If you insist, Crouch,” Dumbledore said with a chuckle, “then let’s call the next witness—I suspect many of you have been looking forward to this part for a long time.”

As he said this, Dumbledore winked at the members of Wizengamot, who responded with good-natured laughter.

“Please summon the witness, Mr. Potter,” Dumbledore said humorously. “To be honest, after working in Wizengamot for so long, this is the first time I’ve encountered a witness who wasn’t brought in from the corridor.”

The laughter grew louder.

The case to be heard in the First Trial Chamber today does indeed have a great social impact, but to be honest, if we don't consider the impact of the case itself on the Ministry of Magic's reputation, it would actually be very simple to reach a verdict, because the doubts are very clear and the evidence is very sufficient—there has never been such a sufficient case before, with not even a hint of suspense.

The fundamental reason why so many renowned wizards and well-known officials from the Ministry of Magic were present to listen to the proceedings was their curiosity.

People want to see for themselves what it's like to witness the spirit of the dead appearing to testify, not just from what they read in the newspapers, but to witness the magic of shamanic priests that has been touted as miraculous.

There was nothing fancy about it, well, although Harry's actions might have seemed fancy enough to the wizards in the stands—he pulled out a whole log, more than half a person's height and as thick as a normal adult male's waist, from his small bag, which was enchanted with the Unseen Stretching Charm, and then began carving it with his wand.

It's worth mentioning that even outside of holidays, Harry was not originally allowed to cast spells outside of school. However, after becoming a full professor at Hogwarts, the Ministry of Magic signed a special agreement for him, allowing him to cast spells freely outside of school without having to sign a covenant.

After all, it would be ridiculous for a Hogwarts professor to be unable to freely cast spells outside the home. The British Ministry of Magic would not allow its French counterparts to mock it... especially the magic schools in France!
In just a few seconds, the log had been transformed into a complete ancestral totem by Harry's carving, and then he hugged it and forcefully shoved it into the floor of the courtroom—no one knew how that small figure could have such strength, the courtroom floor was marble.

Just as he had demonstrated to his students in class, James Potter was reborn amidst a special light effect deliberately created by Harry.

However, his pre-death experience still influenced this audacious man to some extent. James did not circle the arena like he did in Harry's class; he merely smiled and nodded to the wizards of Wizengamot and the jury in the stands.

The whispers in the courtroom grew louder instantly. People were talking amongst themselves, pointing and whispering about James, who had a semi-transparent body and was emitting a ghostly blue light in the center of the room. Even though everyone tried to control their voices, the courtroom still became noisy when so many people spoke at the same time.

"quiet!"

The sound of the bells ringing again silenced the crowd.

"James Potter," Dumbledore said solemnly, "Do you possess your own consciousness? Are you being controlled by some unknown magical force? Can you prove that you are free?"

As expected of a seasoned, centenarian wizard, he immediately pointed out the part of James' testimony that would make many people doubt it.

“Of course, Professor Dumbledore, I can prove myself,” James said cheerfully. “On the first day I entered Gryffindor, during my first flying lesson as a first-year student, I rode a broomstick and crashed into a window on the third floor of the castle. Professor McGonagall punished me by making me clean the toilets for half a semester.”

“Oh, typical Gryffindor,” muttered a wizard from Wizengamor.

"...Besides, I have a friend with a few fuzzy little problems, and we get along very well—do I need any more proof? Professor Dumbledore, I actually have quite a few secrets."

“Well, actually I responded to Harry’s call voluntarily. He couldn’t have forced me to come if I hadn’t wanted to. My mind is quick, my actions are swift, and most importantly, I have no reason to lie, do I?” “No need,” Dumbledore nodded. “It is necessary to protect a child’s father’s dignity in front of him.”

Dumbledore's words brought a knowing smile to many people's faces.

“I believe James Potter’s soul is free, and I’m willing to vouch for him,” Dumbledore said calmly. “Does anyone disagree?”

No one answered.

“Then let the trial continue,” Dumbledore said seriously. “James Potter, according to Sirius Black, you secretly changed the Secret Keeper during your lifetimes, and the last Secret Keeper was Peter Pettigrew, is that right?”

“That’s right,” James said calmly, “this isn’t the first time we’ve brought this up. Peter betrayed us. He gave Voldemort the address of Potter’s old house, and that’s why Lily and I died.”

With the deceased's personal testimony, the value of this evidence is undeniable.

People were talking about this again, while the clanging of chains echoed from a chair in the center of the courtroom—it was Mary, Peter's mother, struggling desperately, the effects of the tranquilizer seemingly wearing off.

She was indeed silenced by the striker, but she used her physical movements to draw the attention of others.

“Oh, really…” Fudge gave the agitated old witch a disgusted look. “Let her speak.”

The striker did as instructed.

"lie!!!"

“You liar, James Potter! You heartless bastard! My child lost his life because of you, and now you want to take away even his last shred of honor! You liar!! You beast!! You bastard who deserves to have your head bitten off!”

“I knew it all along! I knew you and that bastard from the Black family were no good! I should have kept my little Peter away from you, away from you bastards!”

"I curse you! I curse you all to die a horrible death! I curse you! All of you! And this little bastard, you will all die! Just like that woman! Die a horrible death!!"

The old witch had snot and tears streaming down her face, and her bloodshot eyes seemed to be filled with the most vicious curses and hatred. If she hadn't been bound to the chained chair, she probably would have pounced on them and bitten off a chunk of flesh from several living people.

"You mean I wronged Peter?!" James roared, his voice a twisted laugh of rage, drowning out Mary's cries and curses. "Who knows better than me who killed me?! Don't I want to watch my child grow up, don't I want him to have a perfect life?!"

“Mary Pedru! I finally understand why Peter is the way he is, he's just another version of you! I can't even say who's more despicable! Neither of you nor your son has any conscience, no one who can be called kind! That's why you can lie through your teeth!!”

"Enough! Shut that witch up!" Mary's shrill curses made Fudge even more unbearable, and he gave the order directly.

This time, the striker's blow was much heavier. The impact of the silencing spell slammed the old witch heavily against the chair behind her, and the chains stretched even longer, binding Mary tightly... This time, not even a sound could be made.

“Tell me, what reason would I have to lie?” Floating in mid-air, James surveyed everyone in the stands and said in a deep voice, “If Sirius really had killed me and Lily, I would hate him more than anyone else and want him to pay the price—but the truth is, it wasn’t him! It was Peter!”

“I’m sorry, James,” Sirius said, his voice choked with emotion. “It’s all my fault. If I hadn’t had this sudden idea, if I hadn’t thought I was so clever, if I had gone to tell Dumbledore about this idea and discussed it with him…”

From the moment James's spirit appeared, Sirius's gaze was fixed on his best friend, unable to look away. Before he knew it, tears were streaming down his face. He tilted his head back and banged his head against the back of the chair, trying to punish himself with pain, but his hand was held down by his striking hand.

Even when Mary Pedro was hurling the worst insults, he didn't look away or spit in her face.

“Never, never punish yourself for the mistakes of a traitor, Sirius,” James said, landing back beside his friend. James looked sadly at the disheveled Sirius. “It wasn’t your fault. It’s never a mistake to trust someone. The one who should apologize is Peter, who betrayed your trust.”

There was no answer; Sirius was already sobbing uncontrollably.

“I now know what Harry has been through all these years,” James said again to the crowd in the stands. “He lived with Muggle relatives who didn’t like him, he was always hungry and had no new clothes. He was practically a house-elf, having to stand on a chair every morning to make breakfast for his Muggle relatives… No father wants to see his child live like that, no one!”

Suppressing his anger and sorrow, James recounted Harry's tragic life over the past twelve years, deeply moving many sentimental wizards in the stands, who kept wiping away tears.

“...That is why I am here to testify,” James’s voice echoed throughout the courtroom. “I want the culprit who caused our family’s tragic end to be punished, to be stripped of the undeserved reputation he has been given, and to be exposed as nothing more than a coward and a traitor!”

"I implore you—I implore you to deliver the fairest verdict!"

"Sirius is innocent! Peter is the culprit who destroyed everything!!"

The soul cannot shed tears... but at this moment, everyone could feel the sorrow in James Potter's heart.

His tears still flowed as if he were still alive.

(End of this chapter)