But before long, several figures who clearly weren't students entered the Three Broomsticks.
Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick walked in first, followed by Hagrid and a portly man.
"It's the Minister of Magic!" Ron whispered, quickly shoving Harry under the table.
"Quick, the Invisibility Cloak—"
Hermione urged, then used magic to shift the Christmas tree's position slightly to better conceal their movements.
Even though they were the ones hiding, the four of them still curiously huddled next to the tree, trying to eavesdrop on the professors' and the Minister's conversation.
"What brings you here?" Rosmerta, the landlady of the Three Broomsticks, asked. "Minister, it's been ages since you've been here."
"What else could it be..." Fudge looked around. "It's Sirius Black, of course. There are rumors he's been spotted in Hogsmeade – and we all know what he's after."
"Do you know the Dementors have searched my pub twice already?" Madam Rosmerta said, disgruntled. "They've scared away all my customers. It's terrible for business, Minister..."
"Rosmerta, my dear, I'm not fond of them either," Fudge said awkwardly. "Especially now. I suspect they might be a little... unreliable..."
"Unreliable?" Rosmerta raised her eyebrows.
"Do they even really have a quality like 'loyalty'?" Professor Flitwick asked in his squeaky voice.
"Well, of course – they're still willing to protect everyone from even more terrible threats... We all know what Black is capable of – but I must say, our communication with them is still at a very basic level..." Fudge said pointedly.
"I thought Dementors weren't capable of communication at all..." Hagrid said uneasily.
"That's true for wizards," Fudge said, rubbing his fingers together. "But considering the situation here at Hogwarts... I must remind you all, you need to keep a closer eye on that Cohen Norton..."
"Cohen? What's he got to do with them?" Hagrid said, puzzled. "I mean, he's always been a good kid..."
"This isn't something I can easily explain in a public place, but I must say, after discussing it with Barty Senior, it's highly likely that someone helped Sirius Black escape – those Dementors might have..."
"Rubbish. I don't believe for a moment that my students would encourage Dementors to help a murderer escape from prison," Professor McGonagall said sharply, her protective instincts kicking in. "That's an unfounded and malicious accusation. Cohen is only thirteen – and leads a very full life—"
"Indeed," Professor Flitwick nodded in agreement. "If prejudice can spread to a thirteen-year-old student – perhaps I should also be thrown in Azkaban for the goblin rebellions, shouldn't I?"
"Ah—I... er, I think I actually was in prison once..." Hagrid also wanted to help clear Cohen's name, but suddenly remembered that he had indeed been locked up in Azkaban fifty years ago because of the Chamber of Secrets – although Dumbledore had vouched for him and gotten him out pretty quickly.
"Of course, I wasn't accusing..." Fudge wiped his brow – he could still put on airs with others, but he couldn't bring himself to be condescending to the Hogwarts professors, as he had once been their student.
The feeling of being under your teachers' thumb lasted a lifetime.
"Why would it be about Cohen?" Ron asked, utterly confused, turning his head to whisper to Hermione and Cohen. "Are you a fugitive?"
"Yeah, yeah, I spent seven whole days during the summer holidays committing illegal activities and got thrown into Azkaban," Cohen said dramatically. "Oh my god, it was so terrible, so I escaped, and I brought Sirius Black along for the ride."
A muffled snort came from the air beside them; Harry hadn't been able to hold it in.
"Sounds like the Minister doesn't have a clue about Sirius Black's whereabouts," Hermione said, changing the subject. "I'm starting to doubt if the Ministry can even catch him."
"But ridiculous things do happen, don't they?" Madam Rosmerta mused. "Speaking of which, do you know? I still can't believe that out of everyone who joined You-Know-Who's side, the one I'd least expect is Sirius Black... I mean, I remember him when he was at Hogwarts..."
"You only know the surface," Fudge said gruffly. "He's done things far worse than just killing those Muggles."
"What could be worse than killing so many innocent people?" Rosmerta asked curiously.
"You said you remember him at Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall said softly. "Do you remember who his best friend was?"
"Of course, I remember," Rosmerta chuckled. "Never saw the two of them apart, did you? Those few times they were here – oh, they used to make me laugh so much, like a double act. Sirius Black and James Potter!"
Clatter!
Cohen heard the sound of a cup falling behind him. Harry had dropped it – understandable, considering how upsetting it must be to hear that his father's friend had joined Voldemort.
If something like that happened to Edward and that "Ministry desk jockey," "Edward's best buddy," "obsessed customer" Arnold...
Cohen didn't think he'd feel much. Maybe it was because Cohen didn't idolize his "father" as much as Harry did...
The professors reminisced about Sirius Black and James Potter's past, their words painting a pleasant picture – a story of close friendship.
Until Fudge uttered the "truth" that would make Harry's heart stop.
"James and Lily, on Dumbledore's advice, chose to protect their home with the Fidelius Charm," Fudge said.
"How does that spell work?" Madam Rosmerta asked.
"An immensely complex spell," Professor Flitwick explained. "It involves concealing a secret inside the soul of a living person. The secret is hidden in the heart of the chosen person – the Secret-Keeper – and is therefore impossible to find..."
"But James and Lily were still found by You-Know-Who?" Rosmerta's face fell.
"You-Know-Who would never have been able to find them if the Secret-Keeper hadn't willingly revealed it," Professor Flitwick said sadly. "James chose Black. He told Dumbledore that Black would rather die than tell anyone where they were. It was perfectly safe."
"Dumbledore wasn't entirely comfortable with it," Professor McGonagall said. "I remember him offering to be the Potters' Secret-Keeper himself."
The conversation headed, unsurprisingly, towards "Sirius Black's horrifying betrayal." To be honest, this suspicion sounded even more like the truth than the actual truth.
Cohen figured Sirius and James were probably just mischievous and thought they could play a trick on Voldemort by secretly switching Secret-Keepers.
People weren't always rational, like Sirius and James with their "I have a plan," and like Harry after listening to the professors' conversation.
"I'm going to kill him."
After leaving the Three Broomsticks, Harry said through gritted teeth,
"I'm going to avenge my parents."