Sherlock Holmes at Hogwarts.

Chapter 382 For Whom the Bell Tolls
The Tenth Trial Chamber.

Peter Pettigrew testified in court that Snape was a Death Eater, hoping to escape the fate of having his soul drained by the Dementors.

All the wizards present couldn't help but look towards Snape.

Snape's gaze darkened, and the sneer at the corner of his mouth became even more pronounced.

However, he doesn't need to prove this himself.

Dumbledore stood up and took the blame.

“I have testified about this matter more than once.”

Under the watchful eyes of all the wizards present, he calmly said:

"I can repeat it again today:"
Severus Snape was once a Death Eater.

But he had already sided with us before Voldemort's downfall.

He risked his life more than once during the Wizarding Wars to pass on intelligence to us.

Therefore, he is no longer a Death Eater.

After saying this, Dumbledore sat down again.

Snape, standing beside him, remained unmoved, a cold smile still playing on his lips.

Mad-Eye Moody, standing next to Snape, wore a look of deep suspicion.

Sherlock took in the whole scene. Great, a new clue has been obtained.

Dumbledore spoke calmly, but most of the wizards present shuddered when they heard the name Voldemort.

Fudge was no exception.

He glanced at him with a hint of helplessness, then turned fiercely to Peter Pettigrew:
"Defendant! Severus Snape was released by this committee thirteen years ago!"

As you heard, Albus Dumbledore himself vouched for him.

It's a pity that you disguised yourself as a mouse for so many years without knowing this.

How dare you make baseless accusations in such a serious setting as Wisconsin-Gama? You're utterly lawless!

Faced with Fudge's accusations, Peter was speechless.

The Dementor had already taken effect on him.

Now, two sticky, rotting hands emerged from under the cloak and removed its hood.

At that moment, everyone's heart seemed to stop beating.

This was the first time they had seen the true form of a Dementor.

For so many years, no one has ever been subjected to this fatal kiss.

Even if it happened, it wouldn't be in such a public setting.

Starting today, the saying "No one knows what's under the Dementors' cloaks" will become history.

Because at this moment, everyone present could see it clearly.

After the Dementors removed their cloaks, they had no eyes where they should have been.

Only a thin layer of skin covered with gray scabs covered the empty eye sockets.

But it does have a mouth.

However, it was more like a large, shapeless hole than a mouth.

Sirius, which is the closest star, is especially clear.

Because at that moment, the large hole was sucking in air, making a hissing sound that only a dying person would make.

Sirius felt a shiver run through him.

If Peter's false accusation against him hadn't been discovered, if he had been caught by the Dementors...

So now, the one who has to face this fatal kiss is himself.

Fortunately, there are no "what ifs".

The next moment, the Dementor's cold, powerful, sticky hands suddenly gripped Peter's neck, forcing its face upwards.

"Prepare for your end, traitor!"

Despite Sirius Black experiencing immense discomfort and intense nausea from witnessing the Dementor's Kiss up close.

But he kept staring into Peter's completely unfocused eyes, desperately trying to suppress his instinct to look away.

His tone was filled with unwavering hatred and contempt.

At this moment, he wanted to see the death knell toll for Peter.

Finally, the Dementor's amorphous hole opened and pressed against Peter's mouth in an extremely intimate manner.

"Low...Low..."

Peter's last faint struggle and incoherent sobs were completely extinguished.

Instead, a chilling, hollow hissing sound filled the air.

That wasn't the sound of air flowing; it was more like something more essential being forcibly stripped away, leaving behind a despairing, high-speed spinning vacuum vortex.

The courtroom grew even colder and more chilling at that moment. The execution of the Dementor's Kiss seemed to have sucked away the last warmth, leaving only the cold torches flickering on the dark walls.

Father, like son.

Everyone in the courtroom knew that this was the terrifying sound of the Dementors sucking souls from Peter's mouth.

Peter Pettigrew deserved his fate and ultimately met a miserable end.

Soon, an indescribable despair and coldness spread from Peter's body, washing over the hearts of everyone present.

In the last and highest position of the trial chamber, Harry gripped Sherlock's arm tightly, his nails almost digging into the fabric of Sherlock's coat.

That familiar, soul-chilling cold assaulted him violently, and images flashed uncontrollably before his eyes, intertwining with Peter's silent cries.

The mother's desperate cries for help, Voldemort's cold laugh, and that green light that brought death.

His stomach churned violently, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead.

Tears in his green eyes had already blurred his vision, leaving only immense terror and an overwhelming physical aversion to the scene before him.

Perhaps because of the distance and the fact that he didn't face the Dementors directly, Harry's legs were weak, but he managed to stay on the stool and didn't slip down as expected, nor did he faint.

He didn't know how much longer he could hold on.

But he felt he should persevere.

Sherlock maintained an almost indifferent and aloof demeanor throughout.

However, when he saw Peter's soul being sucked away by the Dementors, a barely perceptible tremor finally appeared in his gray eyes.

That was a hint of alertness.

His keen observation skills allowed him to clearly feel the fluctuations generated when the soul was stripped away, like invisible ripples, which made him, who revered life, instinctively feel a sense of disgust.

Harry's trembling arm also caused his body to move almost imperceptibly, as he silently made a decision.

“Peter—!”

Professor McGonagall let out a suppressed, painful sob.

For the first time, her normally straight back trembled slightly, and her hands clasped tightly together until her knuckles turned white.

Although Professor McGonagall genuinely hated Peter, witnessing her former student being subjected to such cruel punishment, even if he deserved it, still caused her immense and complex pain as a teacher.

They... that little group of friends were such good friends when they were in school!
How did things get to this point?

Thinking of this, she couldn't bear to look any longer, and glanced at Lu Ping beside her—her former student and now colleague.

Lupin's body swayed almost imperceptibly.

The sadness that had been tinged with exhaustion had now transformed into a tremendous force.

Seeing Peter suffering a fate worse than death, the unbelievable pity in his eyes was eventually replaced by an almost frozen pain.

Betrayal thirteen years ago, the death of a close friend, and the wrongful imprisonment of a dear friend.

All the heavy memories seemed to freeze into ice at this moment, and were eventually drawn away along with Peter's soul.

Dumbledore's gaze remained calm.

But deep within those icy blue eyes behind the lenses lies a profound wariness and disapproval of the cruel nature of this ancient punishment.

He turned his head slightly, glanced in the direction of Sherlock and Harry, and then looked away.

His tightly pursed lips remained motionless, but the surrounding low temperature seemed to affect his long white beard, covering it with a faint layer of frost.

Snape's extremely satisfied, cold smile froze.

Although he was pleased to see the traitor's fate, the pure, chilling despair brought on by the Dementor's kiss also awakened the dark past he was unwilling to touch deep within his heart. The gloating light in his eyes temporarily dimmed in this merciless scene of soul-sucking.

His memories returned to thirteen years ago, to that night that had torn his heart apart with pain.

The black robe blended even more seamlessly with the shadows in front of him.

Mad-Eye's eyes were the purest.

Strangely enough, he rarely interacted with Peter, but seeing him end up in such a state, he inexplicably felt a great sense of satisfaction.

I suppose it's because of their hatred of evil.

All the wizards present behaved much the same way as them, except that their relationship with Peter was not as good as that of the wizards at Hogwarts.

Therefore, most people were simply shocked.

Finally, Peter's violent convulsions stopped, and the Dementors released their grip.

"boom--"

Peter Pettigrew, or rather, the body that once belonged to Peter Pettigrew, lay limply on the ground like a bag of smashed trash.

The frozen expression of terror still lingered on his face.

But soon, those eyes lost their sparkle and became empty.

He was still breathing, his chest rising and falling weakly, but the breathing was meaningless.

This executioner, who once betrayed his friends, turned to the enemy, and murdered more than a dozen innocent lives, ultimately became a walking corpse, with no possibility of recovery.

Life is better than death.

On the other hand, the Dementor that had devoured Peter's soul seemed to have gained immense satisfaction at this moment.

It pulled its repulsive hood back up and stood silently alongside the other Dementor, like a cold machine that had completed its orders.

The entire courtroom was deathly silent.

Only the faint breathing of Peter's body reminded us of what had just happened.

Fudge suppressed the fear and nausea rising in his throat, straightened his back, and said:
Justice has been served!
The criminal Peter Pettigrew has been executed by the kiss of the Dementors; the sentence is complete!

He cleared his throat, and his voice suddenly rose:
"This Court hereby declares that all charges and proceedings relating to the murders of James Potter and Lily Potter in 1981, the Muggle massacres, and the Sirius Black wrongful conviction are hereby concluded!"

No one applauded.

No one cheered.

Only suppressed breathing, barely suppressed sobs, and silent stares.

The two Dementors stepped forward again and effortlessly dragged Peter up from either side.

They carried the agonizingly miserable Peter slowly toward the dark corner door, where he disappeared into the darkness behind it.

As the door closed, it finally shut out the last vestiges of chill that had settled in the courtroom.

Only then did a wave of discussion emerge.

Some people were pale, as if they were still immersed in the terrible scene that had just happened.

Some people muttered curses against Peter's shamelessness, accusing him of deserving his punishment.

Others looked at Fudge, who was sitting in the head seat, with indescribable complex expressions.

After the Dementors left, Fudge breathed a long sigh of relief.

He couldn't help but grumble inwardly, blaming the Hogwarts professors for doing this out of the blue.

Well, that's great, I won't be able to get a good night's sleep for a while now.

I estimate it will take me several days of nightmares to recover.

Thinking of this, eager to end it all, he spoke up once more:
"Now, I will award the Order of Merlin First Class to the true hero, Sirius Black!"

Sure enough, everyone's attention was drawn to his words.

Then Fudge solemnly took out a dark velvet box from his pocket.

He opened the box in front of everyone, and inside lay a glittering, intricately designed medal with a gemstone inlaid in the center.

This is the highest honor in the wizarding world—the Order of Merlin.

In this respect, Fudge kept his word and did his best to earn Sirius a First Class Medal.

He had originally intended to have Sirius come over and collect it, but after seeing Sirius's appearance, he decided to take the initiative.

Fudge shuffled his fat body down the steps one by one, walked up to Sirius, and carefully presented the medal and its box to Sirius.

His face beamed with satisfaction and a pleased smile that suggested a successful transaction.

"Congratulations, Mr. Blake!"

This is the Ministry of Magic's highest tribute on behalf of the entire wizarding world to your enormous sacrifices and selfless cooperation!
Please accept this medal; it symbolizes your outstanding contribution to restoring safety and stability to the magical world!

Sirius Black stared at the medal handed to him, his expression dark and unreadable.

The anger in his eyes had not completely dissipated, but considering that Peter had been executed, after a few seconds of silence, he very slowly reached out and took the velvet box.

A soft click was heard—the sound of the camera shutter.

The scene of Sirius receiving the Order of Merlin First Class from Fudge ultimately brought the Azkaban prisoner incident to a satisfactory conclusion.

"Harry, are you alright?"

People began to leave, while Lupin, who was in the audience, rushed to Harry's side and looked at him with concern.

"Thank you, Professor Luping. I... I feel fine."

"Oh no, I forgot to bring chocolate."

Noticing the cold sweat on Harry's forehead and the tears in his eyes, Lupin looked anxiously at the other professors, "Did any of you bring any?"

Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Mad-Eye Moody all shook their heads.

They are all powerful wizards who are skilled in using guardian spells.

However, today we are just observing and will not be facing the Dementors directly, so we did not prepare this thing.

Just then, a crisp cracking sound was heard.

Snape then produced a large piece of chocolate from somewhere and broke it in two.

Sherlock couldn't help but smile slightly upon seeing this.

He recognized it at a glance; it was clearly Honeydukes' best chocolate, and it wasn't cheap.

Everyone else also turned their surprised gazes toward Snape.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not concerned about Potter."

Snape, with a stern face, handed over the chocolate in his hand. "I just don't want others to see that Hogwarts students are so useless."

Seeing and hearing his actions, and then hearing his words, Sherlock almost wanted to laugh.

Although the professor always tried to avoid me, his unintentional actions repeatedly betrayed his true inner thoughts.

Harry obediently accepted the chocolate.

After taking just one bite, a surge of heat rushed to his toes and fingertips, and he immediately felt much better.

"thank you, sir."

Harry looked at Snape and said it from the bottom of his heart.

"Tsk!"

Snape had intended to make a sarcastic remark, but seeing Harry looking at him so sincerely and noticing his green eyes, he ultimately couldn't bring himself to say a word.

Just then, there was another soft click.

Sherlock turned his head quickly.

Sure enough, the witch he had just noticed came into his line of sight.

This time she was closer to them than before.

The other person wore a pair of jeweled glasses, and their blonde hair was styled into elaborate large curls.

When she noticed Sherlock's gaze, she flashed what she thought was a charming smile, spread her fingers, and waved in their direction, taking the initiative to greet them.

Sherlock looked away, glanced at Snape, then at Dumbledore, and a smile crept onto his lips.

Even though this matter has come to a satisfactory conclusion, it seems that I won't be bored for the foreseeable future.

"It's getting more interesting."

(End of this chapter)