An uproar seized the British wizarding world when the truth about what had happened years ago came to light, exposing the lack of a proper trial for Sirius and the fact that Peter Pettigrew was still alive. Peter lost his Order of Merlin medal immediately after the events were confirmed.
Amid the media storm of the moment, Amelia Bones stared intently at a group of Aurors who were supposed to be escorting the prisoner from Hogwarts to the Ministry of Magic.
Emphasizing the "supposed to" emphatically.
"Repeat that."
"Madam Bones, Peter Pettigrew has escaped," said the captain of the Auror group. "He used his Animagus ability to free himself from the restraints, slipped into Henry's pants, and… started biting." The captain visibly shuddered as he recalled the tragic state of his colleague. "Then he took advantage of the moment when we were distracted by the screams and blood, trying to help, to run off and fall through a sewer grate."
And it was clear they couldn't go in there; they didn't have a Shrinking Solution.
They couldn't even remember if such a potion existed!
Poor Henry, at least he already had three sons and a daughter; otherwise, his family line would have been lost forever...
They never expected Peter to be so determined and ruthless in his attempt to escape!
Henry wore an anguished, terrified expression, much like Arthur Weasley's when he found out he had been harboring a "dead man" for so long.
How had he overlooked the fact that an ordinary field rat couldn't live that many years?
He decisively claimed that Scabbers had died of old age, never telling his sons and daughter that they had been living with a stranger all this time.
What kind of trauma would that cause them?!
Especially Ron and Ginny.
"And why aren't all available squads combing the area top to bottom?!" Amelia couldn't hold back any longer and started shouting like a banshee. "Moody, take everyone and withdraw the Dementors from Hogwarts immediately before sunrise. I want them back in Azkaban!"
Seeing that a pale Fudge didn't dispute Amelia's orders, everyone hurried to carry them out.
How could Fudge say anything?
This was going to be his political end!
Couldn't this whole mess have been uncovered after his term ended?!
No, he needed to cling on and pull a few tricks out of his sleeve to reduce the visibility of the matter!
Announce the Triwizard Tournament they'd been planning for two years?
No, doing that could be even more counterproductive. He had to think of something different, something attention-grabbing, but that would boost his approval ratings...
Desperate, he could only turn to Dumbledore's wisdom, which he had learned over the years, by calling his secretary.
"Bring me a jar of lemon sherbets!"
Hogwarts Headmaster's Tower.
Dumbledore lifted his gaze from the parchment he was writing on, squinting as he looked toward the window.
"I feel a disturbance in the sweet Force..." he murmured to himself solemnly. "Did Barnaby bring the Oompa Loompas back?"
He hoped he wouldn't have to deal with another war between the kitchen house-elves and those guys!
The hard candy machine guns caused so much pain, so many rivers of chocolate were spilled...
"And then there's the matter of Lupin..."
He didn't know how it happened, but the werewolf would run into Barnaby every time he transformed, and the next morning, when his transformation passed, he was wrapped in bandages in the infirmary wing.
Dumbledore knew werewolves were savage when they transformed, but getting the same beating every month?
This wasn't savagery anymore; it was idiocy!
Lupin himself had submitted his resignation. On the one hand, he wanted to stop eating porridge; on the other, he was going to help Sirius recover and bring him up to speed on everything that had happened during his unjust imprisonment in Azkaban.
In other words, he'd be going from professor to babysitter.
Though being Sirius's babysitter, Dumbledore wasn't sure if that was a wise choice.
"At least there'll be one more person to look after Harry, and we can use his house for Order meetings again," he reflected as he reluctantly returned to his work.
He was the headmaster of Hogwarts, wasn't paperwork supposed to be the deputy headmistress's job?
Meanwhile, a few days later...
"Congratulations, Ginny, your Patronus is qualified!" Barnaby congratulated her as he watched the shifting silver mist that flowed from the tip of the young witch's wand.
Ginny was thrilled to have mastered a magic that so many adults hadn't managed their entire lives, even if she still couldn't form the animal, and the Dementors had been withdrawn from the school.
"You're a great teacher, Barnaby!" Ginny stowed her wand away and approached the redhead, looking up to meet his gaze. "Why don't you become a professor at Hogwarts?"
"I don't have the patience to deal with that many people," Barnaby shrugged. "I prefer to teach one-on-one or to a small group if necessary."
"Oh..." Ginny was a bit disappointed. In her opinion, it would be great if he took the DADA post next year. "I feel like the map isn't enough to repay your help. How about you come over for dinner at our house one day?"
Barnaby didn't refuse and pondered it for a moment.
He had to admit he was curious about the Weasley parents. The children spoke of Molly as if she had six arms and three heads, while the father managed to support a large family on a rather tight budget.
But that didn't change the fact that the mother could keep her children in line, and the father had a strange obsession with Muggle objects, like the rubber duck.
He just wasn't sure if Charlie would be there, with whom Tonks wasn't comfortable after what happened some time ago. According to her words during one of their dates:
"I still remember how Molly tried to match me up not-so-subtly with Charlie, who also tried in the clumsiest way possible. It was horrible!"
"Well, I'll accept if you don't mind my father and my girlfriend coming along," Barnaby decided, figuring it was unlikely Charlie would be there, especially with the preparations for the Triwizard Tournament, which would be held at Hogwarts next year. "Oh, and I'll bring a dish too!"
"Your father and your g-girlfriend?" Ginny stuttered, momentarily lost, remembering that Barnaby had indeed mentioned her more than once. "Of course! My mother will be thrilled when I tell her. She's always been enthusiastic about these kinds of gatherings."
"Great!" Barnaby clapped, not noticing Ginny's momentary depressed look. "I'll send you an owl to confirm the date. I'll be quite busy this summer."
He already had the final materials for the house; now, he just needed to build the main dwelling.
"Yeah... I, uh, I'll be going then," Ginny said goodbye a bit awkwardly and headed back to the castle.
It wasn't until Barnaby returned to the empty cabin—his father was working near the Black Lake—that Sanshi emerged and looked at him.
"That girl has confused feelings for you."
"She also has them for Harry and maybe for other boys. She's at an age where everything changes too quickly for her," Barnaby said as he took a rock cake and bit into it.
Mmm, they were still too soft; they weren't crunchy enough.
"Is that why you subtly blocked her?" Sanshi asked curiously, realizing Barnaby wasn't as oblivious to the situation as he pretended to be.
"You could say that," Barnaby nodded as his expression turned guilty. "Though I want to apologize to you. Initially, I wanted to..."
"Yes, I know," Sanshi approached and hugged him affectionately. "It's okay; I'm very happy you think of me."
She was aware that Barnaby sought to expand his limited interaction with the world without causing problems, perhaps by introducing her to the Weasleys, who were mostly trustworthy people. At the same time, she also guessed the two reasons why, in the end, he couldn't go through with the idea.
Percy and Ron were the first reason.
Ron didn't need much explanation; he simply needed an opportunity to start boasting, and he would spill everything, even without realizing it. He wasn't someone reliable for keeping a secret, much less one considered juicy.
Percy was a problem not because of his character but due to his ambition to work at the Ministry of Magic, which might drive him to do something foolish. If Barnaby already had so much trouble because of the fire crabs, he didn't want to think about what would happen if they found out about Sanshi's existence.
The second reason was Arthur and Molly.
Arthur wouldn't report it to the Ministry if Barnaby helped him with his Muggle things; he was confident in a deal like that. But whether it was him or his wife, they would undoubtedly have words with Dumbledore and could reveal Sanshi's existence.
Barnaby already trusted that Minerva wouldn't say anything to Dumbledore after her slip-up, but adding more people who supported that man—wasn't wise!
Sighing, Barnaby returned the hug as he accepted her comfort.
Things would be different once he had the house built. By then, Sanshi could move freely, only needing to hide during outings if she chose to accompany him.
A busy summer awaited him, but he was fully motivated to complete the project once and for all.
"By the way, shouldn't Tonks be about to graduate and resign?" Sanshi pulled back a bit and commented, remembering.
Right, Tonks still didn't know about the house, and he didn't want to spoil the surprise...
Barnaby's gaze unconsciously drifted toward a small black square box on a nearby table, his thoughts wandering in various directions.
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This time a slightly longer chapter than usual!
Question: If you were to suffer an isekai and could only choose between the two basic abilities below, which would you choose?
Observation Eye: Gain information about what you see at will, without anything being able to detect your spying. Limited by your general knowledge.
Inventory: Infinite space with frozen time inside, does not allow living beings and to save you must use touch.