Sherlock Holmes at Hogwarts.

Chapter 376 Don't be sad, don't be afraid

As Sherlock passed by the Auror's office, he took in everything with just a glance.

The walls were covered in a mess of posters: portraits of wanted wizards, photos of their own families, Quidditch team posters, and clippings from the Daily Prophet.

Good morning, Weasley.

Because they were on the same floor, the wizards here greeted Mr. Weasley familiarly, while their eyes kept glancing at the three people beside him.

From their eyes, Sherlock knew that the Aurors were generally of higher caliber than the rest of the Ministry of Magic; at least they recognized Harry and Sirius.

As for myself, it's not important.

Although the Aurors recognized Harry and Sirius, they restrained themselves from speaking to them, simply watching them curiously.

Under the watchful eyes of a group of Aurors, Mr. Weasley led the three through the Auror office, into a dimly lit, dilapidated corridor, and finally to the end of the corridor.

There was a door on the left that was slightly ajar, and you could see that it led to a broom shed.

There is a faded brass sign on the door to the right.

[Office Prohibition of Muggle Item Misuse]

Compared to other offices in the Ministry of Magic, this place is rather simple, even shabby.

This office was actually slightly smaller than the broom room on the left.

This resulted in the office feeling very crowded even though there were only two desks.

The walls were lined with overflowing filing cabinets, with bundles of documents piled on top of them, leaving virtually no room for anyone to move around freely.

Sherlock had long deduced that Mr. Weasley was not treated well at the Ministry of Magic, and now his judgment was further confirmed.

On the other hand, even without Sherlock's deduction, Harry could tell which things Mr. Weasley was particularly fond of.

The only usable space on the wall gave him the answer.

There were several car advertisements posted there, one of which showed a disassembled engine.

The two mailbox illustrations appear to have been cut out of Muggle children's books.

There is also a diagram showing how to install the socket.

That's so Weasley.

The document basket was full, and next to it was a family photo of the Weasleys.

It looked very similar to the photo he had seen before, taken in front of the pyramids in Egypt, but without the spots.

There are no windows here.

Mr. Weasley said apologetically, taking off his coat and draping it over the back of the chair:

“We have made this request, but they seem to think we don’t need it.”

Please sit down. It seems Perkins hasn't arrived yet.

Harry squeezed into the chair behind Perkins' desk.

Sherlock and Sirius did not sit.

Even if you wanted to sit down, you couldn't find a place to sit.

"Uh...sorry, I forgot about that."

Mr. Weasley slapped his forehead at the sight, and just as he was about to say something, a paper airplane whizzed through the open door.

He immediately reached out and grabbed it, then opened it and read aloud:

"According to reports, a third incident of sewage backflow in a public toilet has occurred at Bessner Green. Please investigate immediately—this is truly bizarre..."

Sherlock and Sirius were still looking around the office when Harry instinctively asked:
"Sewage backflow in the toilet?"

"It was done by those anti-Muggle pranksters."

Mr. Weasley frowned and said:

"This happened twice last week, once at Wimbledon and once at Elephant Castle."

A Muggle flushes the toilet, but instead of the filth disappearing, it just—ugh, you can imagine that.

The poor people kept calling those—the pipe people, I think that's what they said.

You know, those guys who fix pipes and stuff like that.

You're probably talking about a plumber, right?

"Yes, that's it!"

But of course, even if they went, there would be nothing they could do.

"Right now, all I hope is that we can catch the people who did this kind of thing."

"Won't the Aurors go and capture them?"

“Oh no, such a trivial matter does not require the Aurors to be mobilized; a regular magical law enforcement investigation team can handle it—ah, gentlemen, this is Perkins.”

Just then, an old wizard with a stooped back, a somewhat shy expression, and a head of soft, gray hair walked into the room, breathing heavily. Mr. Weasley promptly introduced him.

"Ah, Arthur!"

Perkins, who had just entered, didn't look at Sherlock and his companions, but said anxiously:

"Thank goodness, I was just wondering what to do, I didn't even know if I should wait for you here..."

I just sent an owl to deliver a letter to your house, but you obviously didn't receive it.

Just ten minutes ago, an urgent message arrived—

"I already know about the sewage backflow in the toilets." Mr. Weasley said calmly, as if he had everything under control.

"No, no, it's not about the toilet—"

Perkins, panting, said, "It's about Peter's trial! They want you to take people directly to the minister's office."

Mr. Weasley gasped sharply, his face turning as white as parchment in an instant.

His hand trembled, almost causing the note reporting the sewage backflow to slip from his grasp and fall to the ground.

"The minister's office? Now?"

He cried out, his voice filled with disbelief and panic, "But we've only just arrived! Perkins, why weren't we informed earlier...?"

"I just received my owl too, Arthur!"

The old wizard Perkins was equally flustered, his forehead covered in fine beads of sweat, as he hurriedly offered his explanation:

"Urgent notice! The minister himself is waiting and requests that Mr. Potter and... uh... Mr. Black come immediately, along with Mr. Holmes!"

As he spoke, his gaze swept over Harry and Sirius, finally settling on Sherlock.

Despite the urgency of the situation, his gaze still held a curiosity akin to that of someone looking at a strange creature.

"Merlin's beard! This...this is a disaster!"

We were supposed to go straight to the first floor, so how did I end up leading you all this way?

"Quick! Come with me!"

As Mr. Weasley spoke, he grabbed his coat from the back of the chair, threw it on haphazardly, and rushed toward the door without even bothering to button it.

He slipped the note reporting the sewage backflow into Perkins' hand.

Perkins quickly pressed his body against the filing cabinet to make way for him, allowing him to rush out of the office.

Mr. Weasley rushed out of his office and ran a short distance before realizing to his surprise that no one was following him.

When I looked back, wow!
Sherlock, Harry, and Sirius had just stepped out of the office.

Apart from Harry, who seemed a little anxious, Sherlock and Sirius both appeared calm and unhurried.

"What are you doing?"

Mr. Weasley became anxious upon seeing this.

"Since we just received the notification, let's take it slow. Anyway, there's still a long time before Peter's trial."

Sherlock said calmly, “I don’t understand.”

Sirius tilted his head. "Arthur, why are you in such a hurry? Take it easy, the sky isn't going to fall."

Mr. Weasley paced anxiously in place, sweat soaking his temples.
"You really don't understand!"
The minister's personal summons signifies an escalation of the situation!
Peter's situation could change at any time—

"—It might make Fudge's official robes even more wrinkled."

Sirius lazily interrupted him, casually flicking the dust off the faded nameplate with his finger, and said in an unmistakably sarcastic tone:

“Arthur, I remember you weren’t like this back then. It seems you’ve been in the Ministry of Magic for too long and have picked up some of its bad habits.”

You should know that we are not the ones who should be in a hurry right now—if Fudge were really in a hurry, he would naturally come to see us.

Since there isn't one, it means the matter isn't that urgent.

Sirius is right.

Sherlock nodded in agreement, "The most ironic thing about Game of Thrones is that when the weak no longer fear the rules, the rule-makers fall silent."

Seeing that both Sherlock and Sirius had this attitude, Mr. Weasley was speechless.

You make it sound so easy, but I have to support my family. If it weren't for survival, who would want to go to work every day?
Fortunately, my department allows me to interact with Muggles frequently, which suits my taste, so I find my job quite interesting.

But in this situation... no matter how anxious we are, it's useless. We can't just grab Harry and run, can we?

He could only helplessly follow the three of them back onto the elevator at a normal pace.

Harry felt a little embarrassed during this time, so he quickened his pace, which greatly increased Mr. Weasley's goodwill towards him.

Fortunately, there weren't as many people taking the elevator at this time as before, so it didn't take long to reach the destination.

"The first floor houses the minister's office and the logistics department."

The elevator doors opened, revealing a thick carpeted floor.

The "Minister's Office" is not the "office of the Minister of Magic," but a specific department that includes the offices of senior officials of the Ministry of Magic.

All the offices had shiny wooden doors with a small sign on them displaying the names and job titles of the people inside.

At a glance, you can see the offices of the Assistant Minister of Magic, the Minister's Advisor, the Senior Deputy Minister of Magic, and so on.

This setup was in stark contrast to the office we had just visited that prohibited the misuse of Muggle items.

"The minister's office is at the very back."

Upon arriving at this floor, Mr. Weasley was no longer in a hurry. He took a deep breath and led the three of them deeper into the corridor.

Finally, they stopped in front of an office door.

Cornelius Fudge – Minister for Magic

Weasley reached out and knocked on the door.

After hearing Fudge's voice from inside, he pushed the door open.

He stepped back, gesturing for the three to go inside first.

Sirius Black, without hesitation, walked in front.

Sherlock and Harry followed one after the other, with Mr. Weasley entering last.

When he closed the door and turned around, he was startled.

Because the office doesn't just have Fudge alone.

Several professors from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, including Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, and Lupin, are here.

Upon seeing these familiar faces, Mr. Weasley, after his initial surprise, let out a long sigh of relief.

The moment he saw Dumbledore, a strong emotion welled up within him, making him feel grounded and filled with hope.

It seems there's a reason why Sherlock and Sirius were so calm.

But to Mr. Weasley's surprise, the first person to greet Sirius upon seeing him was not one of the Hogwarts professors, but rather Fudge, the Minister of Magic.

That overly enthusiastic attitude seemed particularly out of place in the dimly lit, luxurious minister's office.

He held Sirius's hand tightly, his face beaming with a smile Mr. Weasley had never seen before.

"Ah, Blake, you've finally come!"

Fudge raised his voice as if afraid no one would hear him, "I thought you would come with Harry and Headmaster Dumbledore and the others!"

What I'm saying is that we're very short on time, extremely short, and the matter concerning Peter Pettigrew needs to be decided immediately.

He shook Sirius's hand enthusiastically while turning his gaze to Mr. Weasley, who had just breathed a sigh of relief.

"Arthur! My dearest Arthur!"

Almost instantly, Fudge's tone shifted from warm greetings to concern for his subordinate, "Regarding that urgent report that should be your department's responsibility, it's about the restroom in Bessner Green..."

“I know about this, Minister. You mean…”

"This matter is urgent!"

Fudge stated firmly:
“Those poor residents… I need to know the situation on the ground and the progress of the response immediately!”

You know, public confidence is crucial, and we can't let them lose faith in us!

Arthur, you must take responsibility!

Mr. Weasley had just recovered from the comfort of Dumbledore's presence when he was immediately overwhelmed by the minister's heavy responsibility.

What's going on?
The color drained from his face almost instantly, and the urgent note he had given Perkins about the backflow of sewage in the toilet seemed to become scalding hot again.

"Minister, I..."

"Go immediately, Arthur!"

Fudge urged without room for argument, "Go yourself, I need you to get a firsthand report!"
This matter concerns the Ministry of Magic's efficiency in handling emergencies!

He waved his hand as he spoke, as if dismissing a subordinate to deal with a minor, thorny problem.

They completely ignored the fact that Mr. Weasley was the one who brought Harry and Sirius here.

Mr. Weasley opened his mouth, his gaze sweeping over Dumbledore's calm face and McGonagall's serious expression.

On one side are the minister's strict orders and livelihood issues that are giving Muggles a headache; on the other side is the crucial Peter trial and the key figure who has just been brought in.

At that moment, beads of sweat that had just dried from Mr. Weasley's forehead reappeared.

"But, Minister..."

"Go quickly, Arthur!"

Seeing that Mr. Weasley was still dawdling there, Fudge's tone began to grow impatient.

Of course, he also noticed Mr. Weasley's gaze, so he casually mentioned it:
"As for Peter... Headmaster Dumbledore and the others are all here, so you can rest assured."

But you must understand, every minute you're late now could damage the Ministry of Magic's image!

Although it was said in a high-sounding manner, this heavy label was actually quite effective on Mr. Weasley, the conscientious head of the Office for the Prevention of the Abuse of Muggle Articles.

"...Yes, Minister! I'll go right away!"

Mr. Weasley gritted his teeth, first giving Harry and Sirius an apologetic look, then glancing at Sherlock with a complicated expression.

Finally, he nodded to the Hogwarts professors, turned, and left the minister's office.

Although Fudge seemed to be just trying to get himself out of the way and didn't really care about the sewage backflow issue in the public toilets.

However, I can make good use of it in my future work.

In any case, this has now become a task personally deployed and arranged by the top leader.

With Minister Fouché's personal order, as long as I make good use of this opportunity, I can make the most of it.

The thought that those poor Muggles would soon no longer feel sadness and fear made Mr. Weasley, who had already left the minister's office, straighten his back.

As long as the problem can be solved.

(End of this chapter)