Chapter 251

Chapter 251

“One moment, Cornelius.” Dumbledore finally spoke as Fudge waved for his subordinates to leave.

Fudge halted, mild surprise in his eyes. As far as he could see, this was an outcome in which everyone won. Dumbledore had plainly prepared the entire spectacle in advance.

Dumbledore looked at Black, whose arms were still held and who had remained silent until now.

“I am most curious as to why Mr Black was so determined to enter Hogwarts. What was his purpose?”

“Would you care to tell us, Mr Black?”

Fudge was surprised by Dumbledore’s form of address. It was hardly normal to grant a criminal the courtesy of “Mr”.

Could it be that Dumbledore’s purpose was not to raise his own reputation still further?

Fudge suddenly realised that something was wrong. Perhaps Dumbledore’s earlier mention of the truth had carried far more meaning than he had thought. His expression shifted.

Indeed it did, Suer thought from the rear of the crowd. He took a sweet from his pocket and popped it into his mouth. His part was finished. All he had to do now was stand quietly in the corner and enjoy the spectacle.

Black, silent until that moment, finally moved. He opened his palm. A rat lay motionless upon it, its condition impossible to judge.

“A rat?” Dumbledore said in surprise.

“He is not a rat,” Black said hoarsely. “He is Peter Pettigrew.”

“Impossible.” Before Fudge could speak, Amelia, who had been serving as part of the scenery, exclaimed in shock. “Everyone knows Pettigrew died twelve years ago, killed by Sirius’s spell.”

Fudge’s expression changed slightly as well. He stared intently at Dumbledore, evidently watching for the smallest reaction.

“Why do you say that, Mr Black?” Dumbledore, however, remained perfectly calm and composed. Fudge widened his little eyes as far as they would go but still found nothing.

“Because Pettigrew is an Animagus,” Black’s hoarse voice whispered through the room. “I am not the only one who knows. Remus knows it equally well.”

Professor Lupin, abruptly dragged into the scene, started before nodding and promptly lending his support.

“That is correct. Pettigrew is indeed an Animagus, and his form happens to be a rat.”

“How can you prove it?” Amelia asked. Suer noticed Fudge cast his aunt a displeased glance.

“Very easily. One charm will suffice. If he is not an Animagus, it will have no effect whatsoever.” Black turned his head towards Fudge. “I believe Minister Fudge is the most suitable person here to cast it.”

“Of course.” Fudge fell silent for a moment. He looked up at Dumbledore, then back at Black. “You understand, I hope, what the consequences will be if this is merely another of your excuses.”

Black nodded without the slightest fear.

Fudge drew his wand and fiddled with it for quite some time. Then he suddenly looked at Amelia.

“As Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, I believe Ms Bones is the most appropriate person for the task.”

You simply don’t know how to cast the Homorphus Charm, do you? Suer remarked inwardly.

“It would be my honour, Minister.” Amelia drew her wand with leisurely grace and, without the slightest hesitation, cast the Homorphus Charm.

At the same moment, Suer heard the faint tap of a finger against the desk. It had come from Professor Dumbledore.

He looked towards the sound and met a pair of brilliant blue eyes. Dumbledore gave him a tiny wink.

Yes, Pettigrew had not been entirely himself since before the performance began. Before the Ministry party arrived, Dumbledore had used an extraordinarily profound spell to seize control of Pettigrew’s thoughts, compel him to assume his Animagus form and then guide him back to his little nest in Gryffindor.
That also explained why the rat had remained so inert, allowing himself to be handled at will.

Dumbledore had never explained what sort of magic it was. Yet any magic capable of controlling a person’s soul had to be Dark magic.

At times, only a single thought separated a White Lord from a Dark Lord.

Several seconds later, the rat resumed his familiar human form. At the same moment, the spell Dumbledore had placed upon Pettigrew dissolved without the slightest trace.

Peter Pettigrew felt a beam of light fall across his eyelids. His eyes twitched, and he opened them in bewilderment.

“It truly is you, Peter Pettigrew!” Fudge’s astonished voice rang through the silent headmaster’s office.

After the alterations to his memory, Pettigrew remembered only that he had eaten dinner and gone to rest in his warm bed.

He had only just awoken and his mind was still foggy when Fudge’s voice reached him. His drowsiness vanished at once.

When had he changed back into a man?

And this place was… the headmaster’s office?

Wait! Who was that? Pettigrew’s pupils contracted sharply. Sirius Black?

What followed was much the same as before, save that they now had an audience from the Ministry of Magic.

Pettigrew’s first instinct was to deny everything. Dumbledore, however, produced a bottle of Veritaserum with a wave of his hand. Naturally, administering Veritaserum without permission was against the law; it was merely there to frighten Pettigrew.

As expected, Pettigrew crumbled under Dumbledore’s pressure and confessed the entire truth.

Fudge’s face shifted from livid to deathly pale, then flushed scarlet with rage. Pettigrew’s account made it perfectly clear that someone else had been the traitor all those years ago. What enraged Fudge was that the Ministry had been played for fools by a rat for twelve entire years.

One could easily imagine what a devastating blow this would deal to the Ministry’s reputation in the wizarding world. Once the story travelled abroad, the British Ministry of Magic would become a laughing-stock.

Nor was that all. The major events planned for this year and the next, events meant to bolster the Ministry’s standing, would inevitably suffer.

At the thought that his own power might be weakened as a result, Fudge’s expression grew even uglier. He glared furiously at Pettigrew, who had wet himself from fear once again.

With so many witnesses present, it would be extremely difficult for Fudge to manipulate the outcome. By now, he believed he had finally seen through Dumbledore’s intentions…

Overturn a miscarriage of justice from twelve years ago, damage the Ministry’s reputation in the wizarding world, greatly enhance his own and secure his position at the very summit of wizarding society.

Several birds with one stone. What a masterful scheme.

No one knew what was passing through Fudge’s mind. After several changes of expression and a great deal of staring, he finally regained his composure.

Black had already been released. The criminal was plainly Peter Pettigrew now, and continuing to restrain Black would have been rather inappropriate.

Fudge gave the ragged Pettigrew one last look and waved a hand. His subordinates naturally hauled Pettigrew up from the floor.

Beneath Dumbledore’s faintly amused gaze — or so Fudge imagined it — the Minister felt like a clown.

He frowned at Dumbledore.

“How did you discover that Pettigrew had not died, Dumbledore?”