Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 192, Section 191: Dumbledore's Determination and Sirius Black's Freedom

“Very good,” Dumbledore nodded slightly, then looked around the room. “Does anyone have any other opinions?”

silence.

"Now, please raise your hands to vote," Dumbledore said casually. "Those who agree that Sirius is innocent, please raise your hands."

The members of Wisengamo all raised their right hands in unison.

“Alright, please put it down,” Dumbledore continued, “those who agree that Peter Pettigrew is guilty, please raise your hands.”

Just like before, a whole row of hands were raised.

"Put it down!" Dumbledore announced loudly. "I, Albus Dumbledore, the Chief Wizard of Wizengamor, hereby declare Sirius Orion Black innocent and released!"

"The restoration of Sirius's reputation and the return of his personal assets will also proceed simultaneously, and the details will be published in the Daily Prophet."

"In addition, as the chief mage of Wizengamo, I hereby formally declare Peter Pettigrew guilty of an unforgivable crime, revoking all his honors and awards related to heroes, officially listing Peter as a fugitive, and issuing a warrant for his arrest."

"Batty Crouch, your negligence and dereliction of duty have caused an innocent soul to suffer for years in Azkaban, while allowing the real criminals to go unpunished for twelve years. Even considering the special circumstances of the war, this is not an excuse for your wrongdoing, Minister Fudge?"

"As Minister for Magic, I hereby announce the suspension of Barty Crouch from his position as Director of the Department of Magical Exchange and Cooperation and order him to rest and reflect at home. Until a new election is held, all affairs of the Department of Magical Exchange and Cooperation will be temporarily handled by Deputy Director Carter Morando..."

"..."

The trial concluded with a solemn reading.

Meanwhile, Mary Pedrew's lawsuit against Harry Potter for defamation of her son was also declared closed, and Harry was found not guilty.

In less than three months since the summer vacation, Harry has been declared innocent twice in the Ministry of Magic's courtroom. For an ordinary wizard, this experience is nothing short of legendary.

“It was a very novel experience, Mr. Potter.” After the event, Amelia called out to Harry, “When are you planning to train a group of people specifically for the Ministry of Magic? What’s the specific time?”

“Minister Fudge asked me the same question,” Harry said somewhat helplessly. “I can’t give a definite answer, but I can say that I will work towards that goal as soon as possible—I would rather they finish slowly than make mistakes.”

“This is a very rational decision,” Amelia said without pressuring him. “If the Department of Magical Law Enforcement had a group of shamans like you, we would avoid many wrongful convictions during trials and save a lot of trouble.”

“I’m afraid we can’t rely on this method entirely,” Harry said after thinking for a moment. “After all, the souls summoned by shamans are connected to the person involved by blood. Out of their own blood ties, they might choose to conceal or lie.”

“In other words, it should be used according to the actual situation of different cases. Don’t worry, I understand.” A smile appeared on Amelia’s serious face. “In any case, congratulations, Professor Potter. Your efforts have won you back a godfather and a family member.”

"Thank you," Harry said with a smile. "I will cherish it."

Why does it sound like Sirius won it all by playing cards?
Using the Phoenix Express, the group evaded the fanatics waiting at the entrance to the Department of Magic and arrived directly at Potter's old house.

"Lord Harry is back home!" Alfred's shrill, excited voice rang out as soon as they landed. "Welcome!!"

"Wow, a house-elf?" Sirius couldn't help but look Alfred up and down, dressed in his fine clothes. "You look quite dashing. You're living a more comfortable life than I imagined, Harry. After all, the Potters didn't have any house-elves serving them before."

Harry took off his coat and hung it on the hanger. He then said to Alfred, "Thank you for your hard work, Alfred. He is my godfather, Sirius Black."

Even though Harry isn't currently living in the Potter mansion, Alfred still keeps it very clean. After learning that they would be staying there today, the diligent housekeeper had already started preparing food in the kitchen and lit a fire in the fireplace, making it warm and cozy.

"Greetings! Sir Harry's godfather!" Alfred bowed deeply and said in a high-pitched voice, "My name is Alfred, and I am Sir Harry's most trusted butler! Would you like something to drink? What would the great Dumbledore like to drink?"

"Coffee is fine, Alfred. Don't worry about me too much. To be honest, I probably know this old house better than Harry," Sirius said, looking quite carefree. He had even started wandering around the living room, touching and looking at everything. "I've lived here for at least seven years. I come back with James every holiday. Uncle Fremont and Aunt Euphemia are practically like my own parents."

“Oh, I don’t need to. I’ll be leaving soon,” Dumbledore said with a chuckle. “I can testify about what Sirius said. The four bandits back then had an incredibly good relationship with each other, but even among the four, James and Sirius had the best relationship, almost like brothers. That’s why I couldn’t believe that Sirius would betray James after the news spread.”

"Actually, Aunt Euphemia has always regretted that either I or James wasn't a girl, then none of this would have been a problem," Sirius joked, but the smile only lasted a few seconds before disappearing. "And the four of us... ha, James and I both got the wrong person..."

“It’s all in the past,” Dumbledore comforted him. “At least you’ve regained your freedom and your honor—you should now fulfill your duties as Godfather, Sirius.”

"Don't dwell too much on the past; think more about Harry."

“You’re right,” Sirius forced a smile. “Now that I have Harry, yes, I should start thinking about how to be a good godfather—do you have any favorite things? Or any girls you like?”

“You really should learn from Sirius,” Harry almost lost his composure. He said expressionlessly, “especially that last question. That’s not a question a proper godfather would ask a child.”

Dumbledore watched the interaction between the two with a smile, then prepared to leave, and Harry did not try to stop him.

“Oh, right, Harry,” Dumbledore suddenly remembered something and turned around at the door, saying, “As the president of the International Confederation of Wizards, I think it is necessary for me to convey to you the invitations extended to you by the Ministries of Magic of other countries.”

"An invitation? From the Ministries of Magic of various countries?" Harry's mind raced. "Because of the shamans?"

“Yes,” Dumbledore nodded. “In a sense, the wizarding community is indeed a very small circle, and a small circle means that whatever happens will spread in an instant.”

"What did they invite me to do?" Harry asked, somewhat curious.

"A lecture?" Dumbledore replied briefly, "Explaining everything about shamanism and the resurrection of the elements, just like you did in your shamanism class." "...Then they can look through past issues of the Daily Prophet; Rita's notes are very comprehensive," Harry shook his head slightly.

"Oh?" Dumbledore looked at Harry with some surprise. "From what you're saying, you're planning to decline this invitation?"

“I have no interest in making a special trip to demonstrate something they think doesn’t exist,” Harry said, casually fiddling with a flower that had already bloomed in the garden. “The elements will revive sooner or later; now is not the time.”

“It seems you have a well-thought-out plan, so I, this old man of the past, will not say anything more,” Dumbledore said lightly. “How interesting. As far as I know, another professor of mine would not refuse such a good opportunity to appear in front of wizards all over the world. It’s not just the Daily Prophet that will be there—well, I can even imagine the tone he will use to lament that you missed such a good opportunity.”

"Don't try to annoy me with Lockhart," Harry said, rolling his eyes in annoyance. "Is there anything else? If not, let's go."

Harry immediately began chasing away the centenarian.

“I’m afraid there’s one more thing,” Dumbledore’s voice was as light as before, “Could you please teach me ancestral magic?”

Harry suddenly looked up and sized Dumbledore up and down.

Dumbledore offered no further explanation. He simply raised his palm, and as his fingers danced, five small orange flames flickered at his fingertips, eventually merging into one and burning quietly in the center of his palm.

Harry was almost certain that when Dumbledore demonstrated this supernatural ability, he did not use any silent, wandless magic, but simply relied on his connection with the elements and his own consciousness to control and depict them, ultimately gathering the fire element that existed in nature and manifesting it as real flames.

A pure, authentic shamanic spell.

“It was indeed very difficult, wasn’t it?” Dumbledore said with a playful wink, quite pleased with Harry’s astonishment. “They were very serious and enthusiastic—but thankfully I succeeded in the end.”

Dumbledore, the shaman, took office with dignity.

"...Are you ready?" Without saying anything more, Harry just gave Dumbledore a deep look. "To face those who have passed away."

“Yes, Harry,” Dumbledore said calmly, lowering his hand as the flames he had summoned dissipated. “We must always move forward, mustn’t we? Death is never an end, just as the Mystic Realm is a new adventure… We must always keep going, forever.”

“I can’t keep running away forever… I’m over a hundred years old, Harry.”

“…I have no objection,” Harry nodded and said, “I’m happy to have such an experienced apprentice.”

“I hope Miss Hermione won’t mind that I’ve raised the average age of your apprentices,” Dumbledore joked. “How about Saturday evenings? I guess I won’t need too many class hours.”

“No problem, it’s settled then,” Harry said, extending his hand.

"see you then."

The two hands were clasped together.

After seeing Dumbledore off, Harry stood in the garden for a while, lost in thought... He looked toward the chapel in Godric's Hollow, and toward the name he had seen there before—Ariana Dumbledore.

The source of Dumbledore's inner conflict.

Harry pondered the consequences of his obsession with having Dumbledore meet him... but ultimately, he decided to do nothing.

If Dumbledore dies because of this, then such an outcome is ultimately Dumbledore's own wish.

That's it.

....................................

Besides the two classes he was supposed to teach as a professor, Harry had to skip all his other classes for the new week.

Because he had to take care of Sirius.

It is indeed a bit counterintuitive. Don't be fooled by Sirius's previous claims of how handsome and cool he was, or how he would take on the responsibilities of a godfather—it was all nonsense.

How can he shoulder this responsibility?

Does he simply lack the ability to know?

A person's maturity has nothing to do with their age, but only with their experience. Sirius Black was just a young man who had just graduated from Hogwarts before he went to prison, and it was clear that he could not have gained any experience during his twelve years of imprisonment in Azkaban.

He even became extremely neurotic due to years of prison life and torment by Dementors.

In addition, years of imprisonment have completely disconnected Sirius from the outside world. He needs time to adapt to the new environment. After all, wizarding society is relatively stable and hasn't changed much, but twelve years is a long time for Muggle society.

The latter, in particular, Sirius Black would never allow himself to fall behind in fashion. Even twelve years ago, he was considered a staunch Muggle-lover, as evidenced by the magically modified motorcycle he gave to Hagrid, which put him a full twelve years ahead of Mr. Weasley.

To be honest, even Harry himself felt that his life was becoming strange. There was a man in his life who would occasionally ask him to summon his mother's spirit for a detailed meeting, and now there was another man in his life who would occasionally ask him to summon his father's spirit for a detailed meeting.

On the night he was completely exonerated, Sirius had Harry summon James's spirit again, and then he drank himself into a stupor by himself, and James couldn't stop him no matter what he did—he, a soul that couldn't touch a physical body, could only watch with heartache as his best friend kept pouring himself more alcohol, pouring out his pain and guilt.

(End of this chapter)