Sherlock Holmes at Hogwarts.

Chapter 461 Departure, to Watch the World Cup
The British Ministry of Magic went to great lengths to ensure the successful hosting of this Quidditch World Championship.

As Mrs. Weasley wrote to Sirius Black, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the British wizarding world.

Because Britain has been without a trophy for a full thirty years.

This is rather embarrassing for a long-established magic empire.

In light of this, the Ministry of Magic's idea was quite simple and straightforward.

Although we can't participate in the competition ourselves, we should at least make this competition look good and not let wizards from other countries laugh at us - after all, we are half a host, aren't we?

So the Ministry of Magic came up with a series of measures:

First, a deserted swamp must be found as the competition venue, and all necessary precautions must be taken in the vicinity to prevent Muggles from entering.

The Ministry of Magic has only a small staff, and just accomplishing this one task has already taken a huge toll on their energy.

The last time the Ministry of Magic was this busy was when Sirius Black escaped from prison.

Secondly, the arrival times of the audience at this designated location should be staggered.

This ensures that audiences arrive at the venue at staggered times, thereby reducing crowds and alleviating the pressure on reception staff.

It also allows for a tiered pricing structure for tickets, requiring those who want cheaper tickets to arrive two to three weeks in advance.

Secondly, different modes of transportation should be arranged.

For example, allowing some wizards to use Muggle transportation.

However, the number of these wizards is limited.

The reason is obvious: too many wizards should not be allowed to ride Muggle buses and trains.

Just by looking at the wizards around you, you can tell that some people have an appalling lack of understanding of the daily lives of Muggles.

Not to mention, such a grand event attracts wizards from all over the world.

If there are too many people, who knows what kind of trouble they might cause.

Of course, skilled wizards can also use Apparition to travel.

However, for this group of people, it is necessary to clearly designate some safe places for them to be visible—mainly to ensure that they are not discovered by Muggles.

This was taken into account when searching for the competition venue.

There was a grove of trees near the site, which was arranged as a landing point for Apparitions, thus ensuring that these people could stay away from Muggles.

Finally, for those who are unwilling or unable to Apparate, simply use the door key.

This thing can transport a wizard from one place to another within a specified time.

If needed, it can transport a large number of people at once, making it the most suitable magical means of transportation for the current situation.

According to Cornelius Fudge, the UK has distributed a total of 200 door keys across the country this time, which is a truly generous gesture.

After listening to Sirius's explanation, Sherlock and the other two nodded.

It's clear that the Ministry of Magic has made a lot of preparations this time.

"The nearest Portkey is in the Ministry of Magic, and it's reserved for Ministry of Magic staff. We need to go there now."

Hermione guessed, "Then this must have been Fudge's arrangement—he really wants other people to see that you and Harry are appearing with him at the game."

"never mind."

Sirius shrugged. "I don't mind this little thing as long as he can find us a good spot."

Soon, the two cars arrived at the Ministry of Magic, one after the other.

Just as Sherlock had deduced, Harry and Sirius were given a warm welcome by Fudge as soon as they arrived at the Ministry.

When he saw the two of them, he couldn't stop smiling.

"Hey Sirius, Harry, it's great to see you."

"You're happy too soon."

"..."

Fudge was taken aback by Sirius's answer, but quickly pretended to be unfazed and said:
"Don't worry, I've arranged everything perfectly. Just follow us!"

After greeting Sirius and Harry, Fudge seemed to notice the others only then.

He didn't react much when he saw Sherlock and Hermione riding in the same car as Harry and Sirius.

But when he saw Ron, Ginny, and the Weasley twins get out of another car, his eyes widened immediately.

Fudge stared in surprise at their distinctive red hair and asked in astonishment:

"These...these aren't the Weasley kids, what are they doing with you?"

Fudge didn't really care about Arthur Weasley, the head of the Muggle misuse office.

This department was originally a marginal department, and its treatment was far inferior to that of the office that abused magical items.

Furthermore, although the Weasley family is one of the Twenty-Eight Holy Pureblood Families, their reputation on this list is not very good.

Of course, the most important reason was that the Weasleys were too poor.

Especially compared to the other twenty-eight holy pure-blood families.

The words Draco Malfoy uttered when he first met Ron on the train became the stereotype the entire wizarding world held about the Weasley family:
Red hair, old robes, too many children to afford.

However, in recent years, the Weasley family's situation has improved as Bill and Charlie have graduated and started working.

This year, even the third son, Percy, joined the Ministry of Magic, meaning that the most difficult period for the Weasley family is over.

Why do you think I need two cars from the Ministry of Magic?

Upon seeing Fudge's expression, Sirius knew what he was thinking and immediately said in an annoyed tone:

"Arthur and the other children are coming with us!"

"Uh... Ah... I see, that's fine too."

Fudge realized his reaction was somewhat impolite, so he quickly took out a handkerchief and began to wipe the sweat from his forehead while trying to make amends:
"This way, I can perfectly demonstrate my care for the children of the Ministry of Magic's employees as the Minister of Magic!"

Sirius Black watched as Fudge shamelessly patted himself on the back, but he couldn't be bothered with him.

Like father, like son; the Ministry of Magic's atmosphere has been corrupted by Minister Cornelius Fudge!

A Ministry of Magic employee walked up to Fudge and said something, and Fudge quickly said to Sirius:
"I have some things to take care of here, so I'll be going now—you, take them ahead!"

After saying that, he gave Harry a friendly smile, nodded to the others, and left with his protruding belly.

“He seems to treat us like we don’t exist,” Fred Weasley said.

“It’s not air, it’s ‘the Weasley kids,’” George Weasley said.

“He just didn’t expect us to be here with Uncle Blake,” Ginny said sharply. “He thought we’d be with Dad!”

"Ignore him."

Sirius Black then turned to the Ministry of Magic employee whom Fudge had designated and said gently, "Could you please take us there?"

Sirius Black was much more amiable when dealing with ordinary staff members of the Ministry of Magic.

Earlier, seeing Sirius Black show no respect for the Minister, this Ministry of Magic employee was somewhat worried, but seeing his attitude now, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said:
"Follow me, please come this way!"

Under his guidance, the group arrived at an empty office.

Surprisingly, the person in charge of hosting them was an old acquaintance: Arnold Pisgood, a memory eraser from the Reversal of Accidental Magic Events team, who considered himself Professor Flitwick's prized student.

He greeted Sherlock and Harry warmly: "Hi, Sherlock, Harry, long time no see!"

"Do you know?"

Sirius was somewhat surprised to see this.

Harry nodded. "Yes, Mr. Pisgood accompanied us to Diagon Alley to shop last summer and even took us to King's Cross Station."

At this moment, Pisgood also extended his hand to Sirius:

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Black—I am Arnold Pisgood, the minister has sent us to take you there!”

Since they were acquaintances, Sirius certainly wouldn't say things like "You're getting ahead of yourself" like he did with Fudge.

He extended his hand and shook hands with Pisgood. "Hello, Pisgood, what is the key to the door this time?"

"that's it!"

Pisgood said, picking up a moldy old boot from the side:

"Let me see, one, two, three, four... seven, eight, there are eight of you, that's just the right number."

See, all you need to do is touch the door key, like I'm doing now, just hold up one finger—”

"I really envy the rest of my family."

As Fred reached out and hooked his fingers around the boot like Pisgood had done, he said:
"Bill, Charlie, and Percy have all passed the Apparition test, so they can get some more sleep."

George patted Fred on the shoulder:

"Be thankful, brother, if we were still in the hut, we would definitely be getting up even earlier than we are now."

There were no cars to pick us up; we had to walk to the top of Weasel Mountain.

"So this time, we have Harry to thank!"

Fred grinned and put his arm around Harry. "We got to enjoy it too. We've never ridden in the Ministry of Magic's official car before."

Harry smiled but didn't say anything. It was his first time using a Portkey, and he was involuntarily a little nervous.

Sirius noticed his nervousness and said with a smile, "Relax, Harry, this is much more comfortable than Apparition."

"Is that so?"

"Of course, in some ways, it's even faster than using Floo Powder."

Hearing Sirius's words, Harry felt a little relieved.

"Sherlock, aren't you nervous at all?"

Hermione looked at Sherlock's calm expression and couldn't help but ask a question.

At this moment, she held Sherlock's arm tightly with one hand, her whole body trembling slightly, and her chest heaving.

She was clearly nervous.

Sherlock gave her a strange look:
"Why be nervous? Sirius already said it's much easier than Apparition."

"That's what I said, but..."

Hermione has a fear of heights, and her voice was trembling as she spoke, “I read in a book that using a Portkey feels like flying.”

"Sherlock, you and Harry are so lucky; you've already Apparated with the adults!"

Ron said with envy, "For you, moving things with a door key is nothing new."

Ginny also looked nervous. Seeing Sherlock and Hermione beside her, she had a sudden inspiration and, just like Hermione, hugged Harry's arm tightly.

Harry: ? ? ?
You have three older brothers here, why are you hugging me?
However, considering the girl's delicate skin, Harry didn't question her and even gave her a kind smile.

Ginny was instantly healed by that smile.

Harry, my little angel!
At this moment, Pisgood noticed that they had finished talking, so he hooked the key in one hand and held a pocket watch in the other, whispering:

"Very good, everyone, are you all ready? I'm about to start, three... two... one!"

It's too late, but it's soon.

Sherlock felt as if a hook had suddenly and irresistibly pulled him forward from behind his navel, and he was lifted off the ground and flew into the air.

As Sirius Black said, this feeling, while unique, is much more comfortable than using Apparition and Floo Powder.

He could even sense Harry and Hermione on either side of him.

Harry's shoulder collided with his.

Hermione, however, clung to his arm even tighter than before.

It flew! It really flew!
Not only did Hermione feel herself flying, but Sherlock also felt as if he were flying forward like a gust of wind, unable to see anything clearly.

Sherlock found that he hadn't deliberately used any force, but his index finger was still firmly stuck to the boot, as if the boot had a magnetic force that was pulling him toward it.

He silently calculated the time in his mind, and three and a half seconds later, his feet landed heavily on the ground.

"Ouch!"

Hermione gasped and bumped right into his arms.

Sherlock frowned, took a half step back, and reached out to hold her tightly.

Harry wasn't so lucky.

Ginny, who was standing next to him, was holding onto one of his arms. As soon as her feet touched the ground, Ron stumbled and bumped into him, knocking him down.

With a snap, the key that had just been used fell to the ground next to his head.

Harry looked up and saw that only Sirius, Pisgood, and Sherlock were still standing.

Hermione was able to stand up, albeit with difficulty, while everyone else had fallen to the ground.

"6:08, from the Ministry of Magic."

Then a voice was heard speaking.

Harry shook off Ron and Ginny and stood up.

Then he pulled Ron and Ginny up as well.

"Thank you, Harry."

Ginny blushed as she spoke to Harry, this being the first time she had ever had such close contact with him.

However, Harry didn't seem to care. He smiled, nodded, and began to observe his surroundings.

"Thank you, Sherlock."

Hermione quickly broke free from Sherlock's embrace.

She blushed deeply, but still remembered to thank Sherlock.

However, the sound was very soft, and only Sherlock could hear it.

However, Sherlock's attention was not on that.

Even as he caught Hermione, he was still observing his surroundings.

(End of this chapter)