After Ginny's slightly trembling voice echoed that sentence, the hall fell into a deathly silence, and Harry could feel that at least two-thirds of the young witches' eyes were fixed on him.
"Give some response, Harry, you're too suspicious."
Hermione quietly patted Harry's back and whispered.
Harry himself had never encountered such an embarrassing situation. Sirius was innocent; he had not betrayed Voldemort, which was something they already knew. However, in the eyes of his classmates, Sirius remained theinous prisoner. Moreover, according to rumors, he had escaped from Azkaban to seek revenge on him, as he was the 'Boy Who Lived' who had thwarted Voldemort's plot!
So. Well, he should act happier?
"Oh, really?"
Harry widened his eyes, striving to convey his surprise and excitement over the news.
"When did this happen? H cough, well done - I mean, the Ministry of Magic!"
Ron pinched his own thigh because if he didn't do that, he was afraid he would laugh on the ground and roll around, and Hermione's shoulders were shaking slightly, apparently, she was also struggling to suppress her laughter.
"This morning's The Daily Prophet mentioned this..."
Nevil, a few steps away, stood up and shook the Daily Prophet in his hand.
"Ministry of Magic has been advertising his capture for some time now," he said, pointing to the paper. "It's said they've been interrogating him. Presumably, they want to know how he managed to escape from Azkaban. After all, he is the first to pull it off -"
The gazes from the various colleges put considerable pressure on Harry. He didn't like being gawked at like an animal in a zoo, so he hurried over to stand between Seamus and the twins, who had made room for him, took the newspaper from Neville's hand, and buried his head in it to read. Hermione and Ron crowded in on either side of him.
"What does the newspaper say about how they 'arrested' Sirius?"
Having stayed in the school hospital for a week and tired of drinking all kinds of tasteless potions, Ron's appetite returned to normal once he was back in a normal environment. He couldn't wait to stuff his mouth with pies, and his happiness was overflowing as he mumbled.
"---they say he was found during the search for Greyback in the Forbidden Forest."
Harry's attention was mainly on the photograph of Sirius in the center of the newspaper, which showed him wearing a prison uniform again. However, the wounds from that night looked almost healed, just, because he had to play along with the act, his plump cheeks showed a hint of helplessness.
Fred, on behalf of Harry, replied to the question.
"Black is destined to return to Azkaban, Harry. There's no need to worry about it anymore. Tell us about your duel with the werewolf, everyone at school is talking about it. Malfoy that little snob is finished; his mouth was torn to shreds by Greyback. Please, for the love of all that's holy, tell us this is the truth of the matter!"
"Almost!"
Ron swallowed the food in his mouth with great effort and said brightly, "He is going to be alright!" He was about to tell everyone about Malfoy's misfortune, but Hermione kicked him hard on the ankle under the table, causing him to clam up.
Students from Gryffindor came up one after another, and quite a few from Hufflepuff, as well as Ravenclaw students across the long table, gathered around to ask. At first, Ron managed to stick to the moral high ground and told everyone that Professor Lupin, Snape, and Hagrid had saved them. But five minutes later, he was boasting enthusiastically to everyone about how he had used a Patronus charm to chop off a dozen or so werewolves' ears.
"Can they handle this situation?"
The Headmistress, Professor McGonagall, spoke with concern.
"Professor Flitwick has strictly ordered not to leak anything in advance. But that may be difficult; they are the age of braggarts."
"Oh, that's really rare -"
Snape's thin lips twisted into a mocking arch.
"Rarely do Potter and his empty-headed friends manage to agree on anything."
"There's nothing to worry about, Miller."
Dumbledore shook his beard, smiling brightly.
"I believe they can keep a secret. By the way, does the explanation that Miss Granger is to provide for Amortens require my signature as well?"
"Oh, if you're willing, Albus, I think it would be best if you signed it as well."
Professor McGonagall,Aloof from Snape, grumbled crossly.
When mentioned the Ministry, Snape fell silent. After a moment, the sound of delicate knives and forks clacking against plates on the table was back. Snape muttered.
"What is he doing now?"
"Excuse me, Severus?"
"You're asking about whom, Albus?"
Dumbledore laughed happily, oblivious to Snape's cold glare.
"If you're asking about Amortens, well, I imagine he's currently busy dealing with a small trouble of his own. I sincerely hope he'll adopt a more moderate approach, after all, things are different now, aren't they."
As the first lights of the evening shone upon London's east, the Market at Hackney Road was bustling with wizards and Muggle tourists. The stalls, filled with a variety of foods from Asian barbecue, Latin American roast meats, Mediterranean snacks, classic British cuisine and more, were teeming with all kinds of people in different styles of clothing. Most of them were tourists who had come to the place by hearsay.
The Muggles who pass by have probably never imagined that two well-known figures in the wizarding world are just a few feet away from them.
On the roadside, there was a Chinese-style tea restaurant with retro decor. Opposite each other at one end of a wooden table near the window, Amortens and Amelia were sitting and conversing.
Klunk--
After taking a sip of the bitter tea, Amortens placed the rare purple clay teacup he had brought with him from Britain on the wooden table before him. The dim yellow light inside cast a soft glow on his cheeks, adding a touch of laziness to his mild smile.
"Surprising, Amelia –"
Amortens tapped the wooden table with his fingers and pointed to the dimly lit world outside the window.
"As a well-known senior official of the Ministry of Magic, your understanding of the Muggle world surpasses my imagination –"
"According to the Muggle government's records, I am a single middle-aged woman who lives alone."
Amelia, outside of work hours, shed the intimidating facade she always presented. She wore a loose-fitting green T-shirt and jeans that looked like any ordinary Muggle woman's outfit.
Staring out at the various Muggle young men passing by the window, Amelia's expression looked a bit melancholic.
"You grew up in the Muggle world, Amortens. How do you view them?"
"Fear-inspiring –"
After a moment of silence, Amortens turned his gaze toward the window and said softly.
"Yes."
Amelia took a deep breath and let it out, speaking with a tone as bitter as the tea in her cup.
"Not just London, but the Muggle societies in Europe, America, and Asia as well. Over the years I have been serving as the Minister for Magic's Legal Apparatus, I have visited other countries' ministries of magic for exchanges on several occasions, and their situations are largely the same as ours."
Muggles' society is rapidly changing. The so-called "technology" has greatly changed their lives. They have achieved things that even wizards cannot do. People can communicate across an ocean, one weapon can destroy a country, and people can go to the moon.
"And the wizards, for hundreds of years, our society has not changed fundamentally - many wizards born into the Muggle world are quickly transformed by some of the rigid things in our world after they enter the wizarding world. They indeed blend into the wizarding world, but they lose the ambitious and broad-minded qualities that are so enviable in Muggles. ”
Amortens lowered his eyes, silently staring at the ripples in the tea liquid within the teacup.
Magic needs change, or eventually the dignity and confidence of wizards will be crushed under the "tech boots" of Muggles. This is a consensus among some wise people in the magical world. But no one knows exactly where to start.
(The End of This Chapter)
