Harry clenched his fists and glared furiously at the short, fat man with gray hair in front of him.
The Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, wore an expression of anxious concern, though there was a faint glimmer of smugness in his demeanor. With a crisp tone, he said:
"I know, this is very unpleasant, but we had to come... Peter Pettigrew, Gilderoy Lockhart, and Gale Troka are still at large. This is absolutely dreadful... truly dreadful...
The public is in a state of panic, and the Ministry has no choice but to conduct a more thorough investigation..."
"So you're here for Sirius? You think he has something to do with this?"
Lupin spoke icily, he placed a firm hand on Harry's shoulder and gently pushed him back to prevent him from getting involved.
Harry gritted his teeth and stepped back a few paces, but his gaze darted quickly to the corner of the room.
In the corner crouched a large black dog, and its cold eyes were fixed on Fudge and his entourage.
At that moment, Harry felt nothing but relief—thankfully, the Ministry of Magic doesn't know that Sirius is an Animagus.
Even luckier, just before the Ministry officials entered, Sirius had been in his dog form, demonstrating the Animagus transformation to Harry.
Knowing that Wade had already successfully mastered Animagus transformation, Harry was eager to learn the magic himself.
When Sirius found out, he was not dismissive of Harry's ambitions. On the contrary, he was thrilled and insisted on teaching Harry the art of Animagus transformation himself.
"James started learning Animagus magic around this age! It took us three years to master it! You might learn even faster!" Sirius had said.
Though he was often busy and rarely home, every time he returned, Sirius made sure to transform into his dog form to spend time with Harry.
Suppressing the urge to glance too often at the black dog, Harry opened his Book of Friends and swiftly sent out a message.
Dumbledore, for reasons unknown, had not replied, leaving Harry feeling increasingly anxious.
The adult wizards in the room didn't pay much attention to Harry's actions. Fudge, meanwhile, was focused on Lupin, whose unwavering gaze refused to back down. Fudge ruffled his hair in frustration.
"I know... I've heard you're very good friends, Remus Lupin. I've also heard you hold significant influence in the Aslan Magic Workshop..."
"Yes."
Lupin spoke through gritted teeth, his anger was barely contained.
"Just one week ago, we donated the world's largest Streaming Mirror to the Ministry. Three days ago, Aslan conducted an exclusive interview with you, Minister, to promote the Ministry's recent policies."
"Yes, yes, I know. We've always had a great working relationship. You're an honorable man, dear Remus, and we've never doubted you."
Fudge's words, however, sounded awkward and insincere.
If it weren't for Lupin's deep ties with the Aslan Magic Workshop—an important taxpayer for the Ministry of Magic—and the fact that Aslan had repeatedly donated limited-edition products to the Ministry, including to Fudge personally...
Then Fudge would have already ordered the Aurors to take Remus Lupin into custody for investigation.
After all, he had also been one of Peter Pettigrew's close friends at one time.
But now, Lupin was untouchable.
By standing his ground so firmly, he made it impossible for them to lay a hand on Sirius, even though Sirius was nothing more than an unemployed drifter.
"But Remus, have you never considered this? Until recently, no prisoner had ever escaped from Azkaban. But after Sirius left, jailbreaks started to happen..."
"But Sirius has been out of Azkaban for almost a year! Those three people you're talking about went in after him!"
Harry couldn't stop himself from loudly retorting, "How would he help them escape? Unlock their cell doors from thousands of kilometers away?"
"Hahaha..."
Fudge gave a few polite chuckles, then looked at Harry with a pitying expression, as if he were an ignorant child.
In his best attempt at a gentle tone, the Minister of Magic said:
"Harry, maybe after Sirius escaped, he shared some details about Azkaban with Peter or Lockhart? He spent eleven years there—no one knows that place better than him..."
"Perhaps he taught them how to break out, and after Peter and the others escaped, he even provided them with shelter. That would explain why we haven't been able to track them down for so long..."
"Minister Fudge, you're insulting Sirius!"
"That's absolutely impossible! Sirius hates Peter Pettigrew more than anyone else; there's no way he'd do that!"
Lupin and Harry's angry voices erupted almost simultaneously. By the fireplace, the black dog bared its sharp teeth and let out a menacing growl from deep in its throat.
Fudge remained unfazed, and he even seemed to find their determination somewhat amusing.
"Remus, Harry, people change... A normal person would go mad after spending eleven years in Azkaban. Let alone... well... no one truly knows what happened between Sirius and Peter back then, do they?"
Fudge avoided Harry's blazing green eyes and instead fiddled with his walking stick, his words carried the subtle malice of a devil's whisper.
"Think about it—twelve years ago, Pettigrew accused Sirius of being the traitor; one year ago, Sirius accused Pettigrew instead. It's all just their own words, isn't it?"
"Oh, I know you'll mention Veritaserum... but we all know that some people can resist its effects..."
Harry felt a lump in his throat. His whole body trembled with rage, and he was nearly too furious to speak.
—How dare he... how dare he slander Sirius like this right in front of us!
He gritted his teeth and said, "I've been with Sirius every day. If he had any ill intentions, I'd already be dead by now!"
"Well..." Fudge said, "You used to spend every day with Pettigrew too, didn't you? You even shared a dormitory, and he never laid a hand on you... Who knows what goes on in the minds of people like them?"
Fudge became more convinced of his own reasoning as he spoke and stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Maybe the Death Eaters have some sort of unspoken rule—not to harm you directly, or something like that..."
Harry couldn't listen anymore. He turned abruptly and stomped back to his room.
Fudge didn't seem to mind, assuming the boy had finally realized he trusted the wrong person. He continued trying to persuade Lupin to hand over Sirius.
Back in his bedroom, Harry opened the book of friends, only to feel disappointed when he saw that Dumbledore still hadn't replied. He flipped through the thick book as he wracked his brain about who else he could turn to for help.
Professor McGonagall? No, she might insist that Sirius cooperate with the investigation. Professor McGonagall is always the most rule-abiding... Hermione, Ron... Wade...
—Wade?
An idea struck Harry. He grabbed his quill and quickly scribbled a messy line:
[Harry: The Ministry of Magic wants to take Sirius. I can't get in touch with Dumbledore. What should I do?]
[Wade: Explain in detail.]
Harry briefly recounted the situation.
[Wade: Got it. I'll find someone to help you. Be patient.]
After thinking for a moment, Wade reached out to the house-elves at the school:
[Wade: Hey, Is Anyone Free? ?]
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⭐Harry Potter: Becoming a Study God (HP:BSG)- +235 Chapters
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