Rhys had no idea about the little drama unfolding on the other side of the library between Hufflepuff and Hermione, nor did he know that Helga had once again secretly jotted his name down in her mental blacklist.
Even if he had known, he wouldn't have cared much: You chose this path yourself, Helga Hufflepuff!
Back then, it was you who gave up on setting admission standards for your students and instead opted to accept everyone indiscriminately.
That decision led to your House's declining reputation and made it harder to attract highly talented students.
Just think about it—when Hagrid introduced the Houses to Harry, he literally said Hufflepuff produced "a lot of duffers." What kind of genius would want to join a House with such a stereotype?
By comparison, it was his own Slytherin that really got screwed over—ending up like this for no reason at all. The mere thought of it made him angry.
Still, even if Helga were given another chance, she wouldn't change the way her House recruited. Because this version of Hufflepuff was the one that fulfilled her dream…
You couldn't possibly send a young witch or wizard their Hogwarts acceptance letter, let them experience the magic of this world, and then kick them out later just because they didn't "measure up," could you?
That would be far too cruel to those children.
"Hungry? Want to go get something to eat?" Rhys closed the book in his hands after hearing a stomach growl and looked over at Daphne.
"Ah—sure!" Daphne smiled a bit sheepishly. She was rather hungry. She hadn't eaten much at breakfast, spent the whole day walking around Hogsmeade, followed Rhys through the tunnel beneath the Shrieking Shack, and only had a single Butterbeer—now her stomach was practically caving in.
After arriving at the Great Hall, Daphne quickly speared a few pieces of sizzling, greasy roast meat and placed them onto her plate, rapidly replenishing her energy.
Just then, an owl flew over and dropped an envelope in front of Rhys.
Upon opening it, he saw it was a letter from Mr. Jamison Henry Greengrass.
In the letter, Mr. Jamison informed Rhys that Amelia Bones, the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, had approached him a few days ago to ask what it would take for him to support her candidacy for Minister of Magic. Bones was a sharp and highly capable woman who met the criteria Rhys had mentioned previously. Mr. Jamison wanted to know Rhys's opinion on her.
Rhys didn't have much of an opinion. He wasn't familiar with most of the Ministry's officials, and the final decision had always been left to Mr. Jamison.
Still, he arranged to meet Mr. Jamison in Hogsmeade.
Rhys felt it was time to clear Sirius's name. In his view, something like that had to be done openly and properly, and for that, the power of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement would be essential. Conveniently, Amelia Bones was the department head—and currently in need of a favor from Mr. Jamison.
Mr. Jamison's reply arrived before dinner, and the two scheduled their meeting for the next morning at Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop.
After receiving the reply, Rhys managed to track down Sirius and told him to come with him to Hogsmeade the next day.
"It's time to let the truth come to light."
Upon hearing Rhys's words, Sirius trembled with excitement.
"Brilliant, brilliant! I've waited thirteen years for this day!" His eyes were bloodshot from the sheer emotion. But once he calmed down, he noticed a particular detail.
"Why did you choose such a weird place for the meeting?"
"Is there something wrong with the tea shop?"
Sirius gave him a strange look. "It's… fine, you'll see when we get there…"
Rhys couldn't help but feel puzzled.
That confusion was resolved the next day when he arrived at Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop with Sirius in tow: the place was far too feminine in style—clearly the kind of spot where young couples would go on dates.
Now that the Hogsmeade weekend had ended and the Hogwarts couples were gone, the tea shop was quite deserted.
Soon, Rhys spotted Mr. Jamison Greengrass.
Before Jamison could step into the tea shop, Rhys intercepted him at the door and steered him toward the Three Broomsticks instead—he absolutely could not accept having a serious conversation in a place like that.
It wasn't until they stepped into the noisy, bustling room of the Three Broomsticks that Rhys finally let out a breath of relief. He led Jamison and Sirius deeper into the tavern, finding a spot near the fireplace in the back of the room to sit down.
"Alright, now we can talk business. Sirius, sit down too—Jamison is someone we can trust."
"Sirius?" Jamison looked up in confusion, only to see that the black dog from earlier had transformed into Sirius's human form.
Jamison: !!!
He never imagined that Sirius was an Animagus! No wonder this man had managed to escape from Azkaban and had never been caught.
"I need the Ministry of Magic to reopen the case from back then. Sirius was falsely accused."
Jamison: Huh?
His mind couldn't immediately process all the information being thrown at him.
Rhys explained, in the simplest terms possible, the complicated relationship between Sirius and Peter Pettigrew. Jamison listened, clicking his tongue in amazement as the story unfolded.
Sirius sat quietly the whole time, saying nothing from beginning to end. He had assumed someone like Jamison Greengrass would be difficult to convince with just Rhys's word alone—but to his surprise, Jamison didn't show the slightest hint of doubt.
"So, you want me to help clear Mr. Black's name?" Jamison asked after listening carefully, finally understanding Rhys's intention.
"Yes, and I've brought the key evidence with me," Rhys said, pulling out the cage containing Scabbers. At this moment, Scabbers was still fast asleep inside, completely unaware that his true identity had already been uncovered by many.
"This is excellent!" A hint of delight appeared on Mr. Jamison's face. "With Peter in our hands, I can bring him to Bones. She'll be able to reconvene a Wizengamot session as the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and reopen the trial from back then."
Rhys nodded in satisfaction, then glanced over at Sirius to see if he was willing to return to Greengrass Manor with Jamison and wait for the day of the public hearing.
On that day, the injustice he had borne for over a decade would be cleared, and those who had caused his downfall would finally be held accountable.
"Alright!" Ever since seeing Peter, Sirius had been visibly excited. Now, upon hearing Rhys's suggestion, he agreed without the slightest hesitation.
Rhys let out a breath of relief—This pitiful lord of the Black family of this generation... Sigh, his matter could finally be considered resolved.
He would regain his innocence in a grand, open trial. Justice delayed might not be perfect justice, but delayed was still better than never delivered at all.
"Make sure to write to Dumbledore before the trial begins and explain everything to him," Rhys reminded Jamison, emphasizing the importance of proper preparation.
"Of course!" Jamison replied.
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