Peter Pettigrew accused Snape of being a Death Eater in court, hoping to escape having his soul sucked out by the Dementor.
The gathered wizards couldn't help but turn to look at Snape.
Snape's gaze grew somber, his sneer becoming even more obvious. However, he didn't need to defend himself.
Dumbledore stood up and took responsibility for addressing the matter.
"I have testified about this matter more than once."
Under the attentive eyes of all the wizards, he said calmly.
"Today I can repeat it once more.
Severus Snape was once a Death Eater. But before Voldemort's downfall, he had already come over to our side.
During the wizarding war, he risked his life more than once to pass us intelligence.
Therefore, he is no longer a Death Eater."
After saying this, Dumbledore sat back down.
Snape beside him showed no reaction, his mouth still curled in a sneer.
Mad-Eye Moody beside Snape wore an expression of deep suspicion.
Sherlock took in this scene completely. 'Good, a new clue obtained.'
Dumbledore spoke calmly, but the vast majority of wizards present shuddered when they heard Voldemort's name.
Fudge was no exception. He looked at Dumbledore somewhat helplessly, then turned viciously toward Peter Pettigrew.
"Defendant! Severus Snape was cleared by this committee thirteen years ago!
You heard it yourself—Albus Dumbledore personally vouched for him.
Unfortunately, you disguised yourself as a rat for so many years that you didn't know about this.
How dare you make false accusations in such a solemn setting as the Wizengamot? You're absolutely lawless!"
Faced with Fudge's rebuke, Peter could no longer speak.
The Dementor had already been affecting him.
Now it extended two clammy, rotting hands from beneath its cloak and removed its hood.
At this moment, everyone's heartbeat seemed to stop.
This was the first time they'd seen a Dementor's true face.
For so many years, no one had been subjected to this fatal kiss. Even if they had, it wasn't in such a public setting.
From today onward, the saying "no one knows what lies beneath a Dementor's cloak" would become history.
Because at this moment, everyone present could see clearly.
When the Dementor removed its hood, where there should have been eyes there were no eyes.
Only gray-scabbed thin skin stretched over empty sockets. But it did have a mouth.
Though rather than a mouth, it was more like a shapeless hole.
Especially Sirius, being closest, saw it extraordinarily clearly. Because that hole was now sucking at the air, making a rattling throat sound that only the dying would make.
Sirius couldn't help but shudder. If Peter's false accusation against him hadn't been discovered, if he'd been caught by the Dementors—
Then it would be him facing this fatal kiss now.
But fortunately, there were no ifs.
The next moment, the Dementor's cold, powerful, sticky hands suddenly gripped Peter's neck, forcing his face up.
"Prepare to meet your end—traitor!"
Although witnessing the Dementor's Kiss at close range brought Sirius great discomfort and intense nausea.
He still stared directly into Peter's now completely unfocused eyes, fighting against his instinct to look away.
His tone held unwavering hatred and contempt.
At this moment, he wanted to personally watch the death knell toll for Peter.
Finally, the Dementor's shapeless hole opened and pressed against Peter's mouth in an extremely intimate posture.
"Kh—kh—"
Peter's last feeble struggle and incoherent whimper were completely cut off.
Replaced by a bone-chilling hollow hissing sound.
It wasn't the sound of air movement, but more like something vital being forcibly stripped away, leaving behind a desperate, rapidly spinning vacuum vortex.
The courtroom grew even more bitterly cold at this moment. The on-site execution of the Dementor's Kiss seemed to suck away the last warmth, leaving only flickering torchlight on the gloomy walls.
Everyone in the courtroom knew this was the terrible sound of the Dementor sucking Peter's soul from his mouth.
Peter Pettigrew got what he deserved, finally meeting his miserable end.
Soon, an indescribable despair and cold emanated from Peter's body, washing over everyone present.
At the highest position in the courtroom, Harry gripped Sherlock's arm so tightly his nails nearly embedded in the cloth of the coat.
That familiar, soul-freezing cold violently assaulted him. Images flashed uncontrollably before his eyes, intertwining with Peter's silent screams.
His mother's desperate cries for help, Voldemort's cold laugh, and that green light bringing death.
His stomach churned, cold sweat beaded on his forehead.
Tears in his green eyes had already blurred his vision, leaving only tremendous terror and physiological disgust he couldn't suppress at the scene before him.
Perhaps because of the distance and not directly facing the Dementor, although Harry's legs were weak, he managed to stay seated on the bench, neither sliding down as he'd anticipated nor fainting.
He didn't know how much longer he could hold on. But he felt he should persevere.
Sherlock maintained that almost coldly detached posture throughout.
However, when he saw Peter having his soul sucked out by the Dementor, those gray eyes finally showed barely perceptible fluctuation.
It was a flash of wariness.
His keen observational skills let him clearly sense the ripple-like disturbance produced when the soul was stripped away, instinctively feeling a trace of disgust as someone who revered life.
And Harry's constantly trembling arm also made his body shift gradually as he silently made a decision.
"Peter—!"
Professor McGonagall let out a suppressed, pain-filled sob.
Her previously straight back trembled slightly for the first time, her hands gripping each other so tightly her knuckles turned white.
Though McGonagall hated Peter from the bottom of her heart, personally witnessing her former student subjected to such cruel punishment, even though he deserved it, still brought unbearable complex pain as a teacher.
Their little group had been such good friends at school!
How did it come to this?
With this thought, she couldn't bear to watch anymore and glanced at Lupin beside her—her former student, now colleague.
Lupin's body swayed. The earlier sorrow beneath weariness now transformed into tremendous impact.
Watching Peter's fate worse than death, the incredulous pity in his eyes was finally replaced by nearly frozen pain.
The betrayal thirteen years ago, his friends' deaths, his best friend's wrongful imprisonment.
All those heavy memories seemed to crystallize into ice at this moment, finally being extracted along with Peter's soul.
Dumbledore's gaze remained calm. But deep in those ice-blue eyes behind his spectacles lay profound vigilance and disapproval of this ancient punishment's cruel nature.
He turned his head slightly, glancing toward Sherlock and Harry, then withdrew his gaze.
His tightly pressed lips didn't move, but the surrounding cold temperature seemed to affect his white beard, coating it with a barely visible layer of frost.
The extremely satisfied sneer at the corner of Snape's mouth also froze.
Though he was pleased to see the traitor's fate, the Dementor's Kiss brought a pure, cold despair that also awakened dark memories from his past that he didn't want to touch.
The malicious gleam in his eyes also temporarily dimmed at this merciless soul-extraction scene.
His memories returned to that night thirteen years ago that had left him heartbroken and agonized.
His black robes merged even more deeply with the shadows before him.
Mad-Eye's expression was the purest.
Strangely, though he had little connection with Peter, seeing him meet such an end inexplicably brought great satisfaction.
Perhaps because he detested evil.
The reactions of all the other wizards present were similar to theirs, just without the close relationships the Hogwarts wizards had.
So, most people felt, besides shock, still shock.
Finally, Peter's violent convulsions stopped, and the Dementor released its grip.
"Thump—" Peter Pettigrew or rather, the shell that had once belonged to Peter Pettigrew—collapsed to the ground like a bag of broken trash.
His face still retained a frozen expression of terror. But soon, those eyes lost their luster and became empty.
He was still breathing, his chest was rising and falling weakly, but this breathing was meaningless.
This man who had betrayed his friends, sided with the enemy, and harmed over a dozen innocent lives had finally become a living corpse with no possibility of recovery.
He had a fate worse than death.
In contrast, the Dementor that had consumed Peter's soul seemed greatly satisfied at this moment.
It pulled its nauseating hood back on and stood silently beside the other Dementor, like cold machines that had completed their task.
The entire courtroom presented a deathly silence.
Only Peter's shell's faint breathing sounds reminded them of what had just occurred.
Fudge forcibly suppressed the fear and nausea rising in his throat, straightened his back, and spoke.
"Justice has been served!
The criminal Peter Pettigrew has been executed by Dementor's Kiss. Sentence carried out!"
He cleared his throat, his volume suddenly rising.
"This court declares that all charges and trial proceedings related to the 1981 murders of James and Lily Potter, the Muggle massacre, and the wrongful conviction of Sirius Black are hereby concluded!"
No one applauded.
No one cheered.
Only suppressed breathing, desperately held back sobs, and silent gazes.
The two Dementors stepped forward again, lifting Peter effortlessly from either side.
They dragged the living-dead Peter slowly toward that dark corner door, disappearing into the darkness beyond.
As the door closed, it finally shut out the last trace of concentrated cold from the courtroom.
Only then did discussion erupt like a tide.
Some were pale-faced, as if still immersed in that terrible scene.
Some cursed Peter in low voices, denouncing him as getting his just.
Still others wore indescribably complex expressions as they looked toward Fudge seated in the chief position.
After the Dementors left, Fudge also let out a long breath.
He couldn't help but complain. It was all the Hogwarts professors' fault—why did they have to do this?
Now he wouldn't sleep well for a while.
He'd probably have nightmares for several days before recovering.
With this thought, eager to end everything, he announced loudly once more.
"Now, I will award the Order of Merlin, First Class, to the true hero, Sirius Black!"
Sure enough, everyone's attention was captured by his words.
Fudge solemnly took out a dark velvet box from his robes.
He opened it publicly—a golden, intricately designed medal with a gemstone in the center lay quietly inside.
This was the highest honor in the magical world—the Order of Merlin.
In this regard, Fudge hadn't gone back on his word and had truly done his utmost to secure a First-Class medal for Sirius.
He had originally wanted Sirius to come forward to receive it, but looking at his condition, he decided to take the initiative himself.
Fudge moved his fat body down the steps one by one, walked up to Sirius, and carefully held out the medal and box to him.
His face beamed with satisfaction and the pleased smile of a successful transaction.
"Congratulations, Mr. Black!
This is the Ministry's highest tribute on behalf of the entire wizarding world for your tremendous sacrifice and selfless cooperation!
Please accept it. This medal symbolizes your outstanding contribution to rebuilding the magical world's safety and stability!"
Sirius stared at the medal held before him, his expression dark and ambiguous. The anger in his eyes hadn't completely dissipated, but thinking that Peter had been punished, after several seconds of silence, he extremely slowly reached out and took the velvet box.
Click—a shutter sound.
The moment of Sirius receiving the Order of Merlin, First Class from Fudge was captured, finally drawing a satisfactory conclusion to the Prisoner of Azkaban incident.
"Harry, are you all right?"
As people began leaving, Lupin hurried to Harry's side on the spectator benches, looking at him with concern.
"Thank you, Professor Lupin. I—I'm okay."
"Damn, I forgot to bring chocolate."
Noticing the cold sweat on Harry's forehead and the tears in his eyes, Lupin looked anxiously toward the other professors. "Does anyone have any?"
Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Mad-Eye Moody all shook their heads.
They were all skilled wizards who could masterfully control the Patronus Charm.
However, today they were merely observers and didn't need to directly face Dementors, so they hadn't prepared any.
Just then, there was a snap.
Snape pulled out a large piece of chocolate from somewhere and broke it in two.
Seeing this, Sherlock couldn't help but smile slightly.
He recognized it at a glance—this was clearly Honeydukes' finest chocolate, quite expensive too.
The others also turned surprised gazes toward Snape.
"Don't misunderstand. I'm not concerned about Potter."
Snape said coldly as he held out the chocolate. "I simply don't want others to see a Hogwarts student being this useless."
Seeing his action and hearing those words, Sherlock almost wanted to laugh.
Although this professor always tried to avoid him, these inadvertent actions betrayed his true inner thoughts again and again.
Harry obediently took the chocolate.
With just one bite, warmth quickly flowed to his toes and fingertips, and he immediately felt much better.
"Thank you, sir."
Harry looked at Snape and said sincerely.
"Hmph!"
Snape had been about to make a sarcastic remark, but seeing Harry looking at him so genuinely, and seeing those green eyes, the words ultimately went unspoken.
Just then, another click.
Sherlock quickly turned his head.
Sure enough, the witch he'd noticed earlier entered his line of sight.
This time she was closer to them than before. She wore jeweled spectacles, and her blonde hair was styled in elaborate curls.
When she noticed Sherlock's gaze, she flashed what she thought was a charming smile, spread her fingers, and waved at them, actively greeting them.
Sherlock withdrew his gaze, looked at Snape, then at Dumbledore, and couldn't help but show a slight smile.
Even though this matter had reached a satisfactory conclusion, it seemed he wouldn't be bored for some time to come.
"This is getting more and more interesting."
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