On August 12, Eda appeared at the Ministry of Magic in London. This was her second time coming here.
The lift doors clattered open, and Eda stepped out of the empty lift. Before her was a deep, gloomy corridor.
The walls of the corridor were made of rough stone, with torches set into brackets that flickered unsteadily. The doors on both sides were heavy wooden doors, fitted with iron bars and keyholes.
In front of a gloomy black door with a large iron lock, Eda saw the extremely anxious Mr. Weasley.
"Eda, what are you doing here?" Mr. Weasley asked, panting heavily. He had only just brought Harry to this courtroom.
"Of course I'm here to defend Harry," Eda answered confidently. "Professor Dumbledore asked me to come."
Mr. Weasley's expression instantly became complicated. It was not that he did not acknowledge Eda's abilities, but that depended on what the matter was. How could Eda be allowed to defend Harry? Wasn't this a joke?
"Don't worry!" Eda smiled reassuringly. "Harry will be fine. I'm confident. You only need to worry about one thing. What should I do if I accidentally beat up the Minister of Magic?"
Eda's reassurance, which was hardly reassuring at all, left Mr. Weasley both amused and exasperated.
Before Mr. Weasley could even say, "Good luck," Eda had already pushed open the heavy door and walked into Courtroom Ten.
The walls of Courtroom Ten were built from black stone, and the torchlight was dim and gloomy. On both sides were rows of benches rising progressively higher, filled with members of the Wizengamot dressed in dark red robes.
Eda saw Fudge. She also saw Amelia Bones, as well as Percy Weasley. This summer, Percy, blinded by the allure of power, had left home and become a lapdog of the Ministry of Magic.
"Presiding officials: Minister for Magic Cornelius Oswald Fudge; Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement Amelia Susan Bones; Senior Undersecretary Dolores Jane Umbridge. Court recorder: Percy Ignatius Weasley..."
"Witness for the defendant: Esmeralda Jessica Twist," Eda said calmly. She composedly stepped out of the shadows, then playfully winked at the uneasy Harry.
Eda had not come here to send Harry to prison. Not even if the prison had a huge, round bowl waiting to serve him food.
The Wizengamot members sitting high above on both sides all looked surprised. They had expected to see Dumbledore, but instead they saw a young girl who had not even left school yet?
They were looking down on her! Eda thought to herself.
"Twist? The Twist from the Triwizard Tournament?" A deep and resonant female voice rang out. It was Amelia Bones, sitting to Fudge's left.
"Yes, Madam Bones. We've met before, at St. Mungo's and in Hogsmeade," Eda said.
As she spoke, she observed Fudge's expression. Perhaps because the person who had appeared was not Dumbledore, the Minister's expression had relaxed considerably.
Madam Bones, wearing a monocle, continued, "Yes, I remember you. You personally killed three Dark wizards when you were only a second-year student. Last year, you also defeated an adult dragon with ease. Quite impressive."
Eda gave a slight bow without saying anything. She did not need to say anything. Amelia Bones had raised her status far too obviously.
The effect was also obvious. The haughty old men all put away their contempt, turning their gazes toward Eda and carefully sizing up this young witch.
Her dark green dress was tailored perfectly, appearing dignified and elegant without concealing the vitality of youth.
Her long golden hair shimmered in the torchlight. Her fair face did not show the slightest trace of nervousness under everyone's scrutiny. Instead, there was even a faint hint of excitement.
The members of the Wizengamot whispered among themselves, discussing why Dumbledore trusted this girl so much.
In a situation like this, the slightest mistake could result in Harry Potter having his wand destroyed and being locked away in Azkaban. Yet Dumbledore had not come in person. What kind of trick was he playing?
Fudge tapped the small gavel in his hand, and the murmuring immediately stopped.
The Minister said, "It seems you and Dumbledore received our letter and knew that the time and location of the hearing had been changed?"
"Not at all, Minister," Eda said respectfully. "However, I was very uneasy about attending such a grand occasion. I suffered from insomnia and could not fall asleep, so I arrived a little early."
She sounded respectful on the surface, but in reality she was criticizing the Ministry of Magic for making such a huge production out of such a minor matter.
Not only had they used a formal courtroom, they had also summoned so many members of the Wizengamot.
Fudge was somewhat embarrassed. He suddenly felt that the person before him might be much more difficult to deal with than Dumbledore.
Fortunately, Fudge adjusted quickly, and Eda did not dwell on the Ministry's underhanded methods, allowing the hearing to continue.
Fudge first announced Harry's charges, emphasizing that this was not Harry's first violation. He had knowingly broken the law and should therefore receive an even harsher punishment.
"You produced a fully corporeal Patronus?"
Amelia Bones interrupted Fudge once again, her powerful voice completely drowning out the Minister's. Eda could not help giving Madam Bones a huge thumbs-up in her mind.
"What I mean is, your Patronus had a clear and definite form, rather than merely being vapor or smoke?" Madam Bones pressed.
Harry said rather foolishly, "A stag. Every time."
Being formally tried by a large group of Wizengamot members in an actual courtroom made Harry somewhat desperate. Even if Dumbledore had been standing beside him, Harry would still have been very uneasy.
Fudge struck his gavel again. He could not let Bones continue questioning Harry back and forth. This was supposed to be the trial of Harry Potter, yet Bones had turned it into a celebration of "the amazing Harry Potter."
A third-year student being able to produce a fully corporeal Patronus was certainly something worth boasting about. The whispers among the wizards made that obvious.
"We are not discussing the Patronus Charm," Fudge said angrily, trying to bring the hearing back on track. "We are here to hear the case of Harry Potter performing magic in front of a Muggle!"
But how could Eda possibly let Fudge have his way?
Eda waved her hand to signal Harry to remain quiet. He needed to leave a good impression on the Wizengamot members sitting in judgment and try to win them over to his side. As for the matter of completely falling out with them, she would handle that herself.
"Yes, Harry Potter did cast the Patronus Charm in front of a Muggle. There is no question about that," Eda said. This was an indisputable fact. There was no point in denying or arguing against it.
Harry looked confused. He trusted that Eda would help him, but he did not understand why she was not mentioning the Dementors.
Fudge was equally confused. He did not understand why Eda was not making a fuss and arguing nonsense, but had instead directly admitted the offense.
"The Muggle's name is Dudley Dursley. He is Harry Potter's cousin. Dudley Dursley knows that his cousin is a wizard, and he also knows that the wizarding world exists," Eda said. "The Dursleys know this as well. For reasons everyone is aware of, Harry was raised by the Dursleys..."
"That's sophistry!" Fudge brought his gavel down hard. "That is not a reason for Harry Potter to perform magic in front of a Muggle! It is not a reason for him to violate the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery and the International Statute of Secrecy!"
Eda did not become angry at Fudge's interruption. She continued, "Of course, that is indeed not a reason. Then let's talk about the reason. Why did Harry Potter perform magic in front of a Muggle? You also said that he had previously received a warning from the Ministry of Magic, so why would he knowingly commit another violation?"
"Especially when he was being wantonly smeared by certain people." Eda looked coldly at Fudge. "Would he really be stupid enough to hand his opponents ammunition against himself?"
There were very few fools among the people who could sit in this courtroom. Everyone knew exactly who Eda meant by "certain people."
"No one has smeared Harry Potter!" Fudge said slowly and emphatically.
"Fine, let's assume that no one has smeared him." Eda sounded very aggrieved, as though she had no choice but to bow her head before those in power.
Eda continued, "Harry Potter did indeed use magic in front of a Muggle, even though that Muggle was his cousin and knew about wizards and the wizarding world. But I really cannot understand why he would do such a thing. Surely it wasn't just to show off? Harry, why don't you tell me?"
"I did it because of the Dementors!" Harry shouted, as though trying to vent all the frustration in his heart.
The courtroom fell completely silent. Not a single person spoke. They could even hear everyone's breathing.
...
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