Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 129 128. Relieved Past and Peaceful Blake

It was not until he heard Harry say this, twelve years later, that Sirius finally realized what he had thought wrong and what he had missed.

"In short, I did have an experience that others would find hard to believe." Looking down at his palms, Harry laughed at himself. "In the beginning, the more love I felt from Father Kane, the more I hated the place where I had lived for eleven years."

"I still remember how much I longed to have a real family when I was really only eleven years old, to wish me a happy birthday on my birthday, or to be like Dudley, to have someone love him no matter what he did... Ha..." Harry laughed and suddenly shook his head, "Fortunately, it's all over now, and I no longer care about these little things."

"Father Kane?" Sirius asked blankly. He tried to understand what Harry said, but in the end, there was only one thing he could understand - that his godson did not seem to be well taken care of after he went to prison, and suffered a lot.

Sirius kept opening and closing his mouth, wanting to say something, but he didn't know where to start, so he could only keep apologizing.

"I forgive you."

Harry said suddenly as Sirius apologized.

Harry saw everything he saw along the way, all the things about Azkaban, and the torture of the Dementors. If it was a punishment, then he felt that it was enough.

Even far beyond that.

"...So, there's no need to punish yourself anymore." Harry let out a long breath and calmly said to Sirius, who was kneeling in front of the iron fence and kept apologizing but never looked up at him, "It's enough, whether it's for my parents or for me - everything you've experienced in the past twelve years is enough."

Only by visiting Azkaban in person can you understand the extent of cruelty of this prison that wizards shudder at. The life and death of the prisoners are insignificant here. In other words, the purpose of the prisoners' existence here is to provide a constant supply of emotional food for the Dementors, so that these dark magic creatures that cannot be destroyed will not go out to the outside world and cause chaos and hurt innocent people.

In comparison, the reason of letting the prisoners get the punishment they deserve is more like an insignificant veil covered on the outermost layer.

Perhaps this is the fundamental reason why there is no death penalty in the British wizarding world. There is a more efficient way to utilize those who have committed mistakes.

That is why, after witnessing the cruelty of Azkaban and the barbarity of wizarding society hidden behind the appearance of civilization, Harry thought that Sirius had suffered enough and even the punishment was beyond it.

"... No, it's not enough... Harry..." Just like a kicked dog, broken words whimpered from Sirius' throat, "I'm sorry to James, sorry to Lily... sorry to all of you..."

Harry had no intention of continuing to argue with Sirius about the right and wrong of the past. He knew very well that Sirius was actually unable to think about too many things at the moment. His mind was almost broken and his emotions could collapse and get out of control at any time. He was just forcibly bound by an obsession.

Perhaps this is the reason why Sirius, even though he was imprisoned in the deepest cell for so many years, never became a walking corpse like the Death Eaters in the cells next to him.

So, there is no need to argue about anything.

"Want to see it?" Harry just raised his hand, passed a folded newspaper through the iron bars to Sirius, and said, "Take a look."

Sirius looked up blankly. He didn't understand why his godson would give him a newspaper at this time, but he instinctively took it and opened it.

【Genius Quidditch boy——Legend of Great Britain! 】

There is no doubt that this is the front-page headline of the Daily Prophet today, and the person who wrote this article is naturally Harry's current strategic partner, Ms. Rita Skeeter.

As the person who had shaped Harry's current reputation outside Hogwarts, Rita would naturally not stab her news treasure boy in the back at this time, but would continue to flatter Harry with all her might - it would be good for her anyway.

Rita also severely attacked her colleagues who had expressed disapproval of Harry in the Daily Prophet some time ago, and she was simply killing everyone.

Despite so many people's doubts and all kinds of messy rumors, Harry gave a perfect performance in his first game since his debut yesterday against Ballycastle Bats.

The victory was not achieved by relying on the support of other team members. Instead, Harry was the one who dominated the direction of the game and played a crucial role throughout the game.

Because of this, when the game ended, all the doubts and pessimistic voices in the newspapers and among the wizards disappeared instantly, as if they had never said those words before, and were replaced by all kinds of praise and optimism for Harry...

Harry was used to this kind of situation. It was human nature and didn't affect his mood at all. Well, he thought that with Hermione's personality, she would be angry because of those people's fickleness when she saw the newspaper today.

"S-so - is this really you?" Sirius had even begun to doubt whether it was because he had been in Azkaban for so long that he could no longer read. He simply could not believe what he saw.

Snapped!Snapped!
Under Harry's speechless gaze, Sirius slapped himself twice without hesitation to wake himself up - then he found that what he had just seen was not wrong, yes, the person mentioned in the newspaper was Harry.

"You? A professional Quidditch player?!" Sirius became more and more surprised. "Kenmare Kestrel?!"

Sirius was so surprised that he even forgot to wipe his tears. His snot and tears were all stuck to his hanging hair and beard, which was a bit disgusting, but he didn't care.

"You, you - you are only this old - I mean, shouldn't you still be studying at Hogwarts?!" Sirius gestured with his hands and stammered, "If I'm not mistaken, you should be only twelve years old now - right, right? Am I right?"

"Yes, you are right, I am indeed twelve years old." Harry's helpless expression suddenly became even more intense. "And I do go to school at Hogwarts. The reason I was able to join the Quidditch club is because I am... talented, so Professor McGonagall helped me contact the Kenmare Kestrel team."

"Aha! I knew it!" Sirius sat up straight with excitement, "You really have inherited James' talent! I saw in the newspaper that you are a Chaser? James was also a Chaser!! You really are father and son!!"

Harry: "..."

What if it's the other way around?

Sirius greedily read every word in the newspaper, as if he wished he could stick his eyeballs on it. He repeatedly chewed over the descriptions of Harry in it, especially those about the content of the game.

And Harry had no intention of urging him. He just waited patiently, his eyes constantly looking at Sirius.

From the first moment he saw Sirius deep in the dungeon, Harry had been observing his godfather through the astral perspective, and he could also see the aura emanating from Sirius' soul.

Just like Quirrell, Sirius' soul also exudes a decaying light, gloomy and dark. During the long years of being sucked by the Dementors, Sirius not only lost all his positive emotions, but his soul was also continuously weakening.

Not to mention that Sirius had not had a full or good meal in the past twelve years, and his body was seriously lacking in nutrition and exercise. The weakness of the body would also be reflected in the soul.

But as Sirius greedily read the newspaper, Harry discovered that the aura emanating from his godfather's soul was a little stronger than before - not much, but like a traveler short of water in the desert, even a tiny bit of moisture to moisten the lips is precious.

"...That's great." Having put down the newspaper, Sirius muttered in a daze. His eyes were empty, seemingly looking ahead, but in fact his mind had already gone somewhere else. "That's great... Quidditch star, ha, my godson is a Quidditch star - but why not Charlie Cannons?"

Sirius suddenly came back to his senses and asked a question that Harry didn't know how to answer.

"Charlie Cannons... maybe they need a reorganization." Harry didn't expect that his godfather was actually a fan of Charlie Cannons. He tried his best to use some non-offensive descriptions, "Well... and they are lacking opponents for training matches now, so it's difficult for them to improve."

"Oh, Harry, you are just like Lily when you are gentle." Sirius sighed deeply, "I know the situation of Charlie Cannon Team very well."

"So?" Harry asked suddenly. "What so?" Sirius hadn't reacted yet.

"I thought you'd want to cheer me on at my game against the Charlie Cannons," Harry said calmly, "So - you wanna come live with me?"

Those plain words seemed to have the impact of a tsunami, and even made Sirius's brain go blank and stop even thinking.

It was as if someone had put a barrel over Sirius's head and was hitting it with a hammer.

Deafening, yet so quiet.

"...Of course." He suddenly laughed. Sirius' lips covered by his beard could not be seen, but the man was indeed laughing happily, or rather - couldn't wait.

Guilt, persistence, atonement, and repentance - everything was not as good as Harry's words - words from his godson.

It had never been so familiar, a scene that only existed in fantasy in the past. It was a feeling Sirius had never experienced before. Even the physical and mental pain seemed to disappear... he felt light-headed.

"Of course!" Sirius repeated again, "Let's go - let's go now!"

The man had even forgotten where he was at the moment. He struggled to get up, and his movements were very difficult. He looked like he wanted to run away with Harry right away - but then he was pushed back to the ground by a gust of wind.

"Calm down, you are still a prisoner now," Harry said with a headache.

"But I am innocent! I will explain everything to them!" Sirius said through gritted teeth, "Tell them everything that happened that year! Then I can get out!"

Harry had to say that his godfather's naivety left him speechless.

"The Ministry of Magic won't believe you. After all, it's been so long and you don't have any evidence," Harry said, shaking his head.

"It doesn't matter! Then we can just go! I don't care what others think of me!" Sirius continued without hesitation: "By the way, I know how to shoot--"

"Okay, calm down first!" Harry raised his hand and used the wind to bind Sirius' mouth, who was becoming more and more excited. After all, if his godfather continued to make trouble like this, the two strikers over there would really come over.

And it's too noisy.

Sirius whimpered twice before he managed to calm down. He widened his eyes and finally realized what his godson had just done - silent and wandless magic? !

Still outside of school!
During the holidays! Minors performing magic! The kind that the Ministry of Magic doesn't allow!!
Since his mouth was sealed, Sirius tried desperately to raise his eyebrows to give Harry hints - but unfortunately all the hints were blocked by his messy hair.

"I don't want you to escape from Azkaban like a dog with a broken spine and live in hiding from now on." Not noticing that his godfather's body suddenly stiffened, Harry continued, "Rather than letting you be hunted down as soon as you show your head, I would rather you come to watch my game openly."

Sirius finally stopped struggling. He didn't try to break free from the restraints on his mouth and say anything. He just stared at Harry's serious face.

"Leave it to me," Harry said seriously, "I will clear your reputation, so that you can hold your chest high with pride and return to the wizarding world as a hero who killed the Death Eater Peter... Then, we can go to Diagon Alley together."

The wind that had held Sirius captive had dissipated.

He had too many questions and too many words he wanted to say to Harry - but at this moment, when that word came out of his mouth, Sirius was surprised to find that he had become strangely calm.

"it is good."

That's it.

"...Take this." Glancing at the two strikers on the other side and after confirming that they were not paying attention to him, Harry threw a small bag through the iron bars. This was a bag that had been cast with a Traceless Extension Charm.

"There are food and water preserved in it. Remember to eat on time every day, but be careful not to be discovered by patrolling Dementors and Striker. I haven't studied the Traceless Extension Charm in depth. The spell on this bag will expire in half a year at most. You can just throw it away when the time comes. It shouldn't be a big problem, because you'll probably be able to get out by then..."

Harry was still mumbling something, and his instructions were very detailed. After all, based on what he had observed so far, Harry felt that there would be no problem in simply reversing the relationship between him and his godfather, and there would be no sense of incongruity.

But Sirius Black was unexpectedly calm at this moment, as if his former rationality had returned to his brain. His eyes were fixed on Harry, and it seemed as if he could see through the past and see someone who did not exist here.

After a long while, Sirius suddenly chuckled, but it was covered by his messy beard and no one noticed.

"...Anyway, just wait here peacefully." Finally stopping, Harry stood up and said, "Don't do anything unnecessary, and don't be found to be abnormal, understand?"

"Don't worry, Harry." Sirius leaned back, supported himself with his arms, and said briskly, "It's just pretending to be innocent. I've already learned it."

"Not pretending to be innocent." Harry rolled his eyes and said unhappily, "At least in this matter, you are innocent."

"I understand," Sirius became happier. "Don't worry, I will stay here well... until the day you come to pick me up."

"It won't be long...let's go." After taking a last look at Sirius' spirit, Harry simply turned around and left.

There was no need to be awkward because Harry knew this was not a farewell forever and there was still a long way to go.

I just hope that my godfather won’t make too much noise when he is released from prison in the future... Thinking of this, Harry sighed slightly.

It feels like there is little hope.

Compared to what he saw at the beginning, Sirius's spirit at this moment had lost a lot of its grayness, and even many other colors appeared, red, orange, and yellow, which represented excitement and enthusiasm, satisfaction and warmth - and most importantly, happiness.

Without making any sound, or even raising his head to watch Harry leave, Sirius just fell back completely, spread his arms and legs, and lay on the ground in a "big" shape.

Between his messy and thick beard, the corners of Sirius' mouth lifted up uncontrollably, with warmth, joy, and emotion...

He greedily recalled everything that happened today. As long as he had this memory, let alone staying in Azkaban for another period of time, even if he stayed here for another twelve years, no, twenty-four years! Even if he stayed here for another twenty-four years, Sirius felt that he could easily get through it.

Staring fixedly at the moss-covered rocks above his head, Sirius closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Today, I will definitely have a good dream.

(End of this chapter)