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Chapter 890: The Squib
🕑 Added 2023-09-30 11:18:38 +0000 UTCEvan had reported the details of the incident, and he believed that everyone present had read the report.
However, judging from their current expressions, they should not have believed it.
Even Madam Bones, who had been in their favor all the time, raised her thick eyebrows so that her monocle looked in danger of falling out.
In the early days of Voldemort's power, the Bones family was one of the most powerful pure blood wizard families. Like the Weasleys, they were willing to trust Dumbledore rather than support Voldemort.
Amelia Bones’s brother Edgar Bones was also one of the founders of the Order of the Phoenix. He was a very great wizard.
Because of the influence of the Bones family, Voldemort personally killed Edgar's family, and only Amelia survived.
Voldemort used this to let the wizarding world know his horror and succumb to his power.
Madam Bones never married, and there was only one member of the Bones left, her niece, Susan Bones. She was a classmate of Evan and Harry, a Hufflepuff student in the same year as Harry. She was a girl with a ruddy face, wearing her hair in a long plait down her back. She was a little nervous, but she was pretty good.
"Dementors?" Ms. Bones murmured.
"Yes, there were two Dementors down that alleyway and they went for me and my cousin!"
“Ah,” said Fudge again, smirking unpleasantly as he looked around at the Wizengamot, as though inviting them to share the joke. “Yes. Yes, I thought we'd be hearing such nonsense. I'm not surprised. This time, it's Dementors attacking you!"
“Dementors in Little Whinging?” Madam Bones said in tones of great surprise.
"Madam Bones, you should have read that report in the newspaper," said Evan.
"Yes, I did read it, but I don't understand..."
“Don’t you, Amelia?” said Fudge, still smirking. “Let me explain. These two boys had been thinking it through and decided Dementors would make a very nice little cover story, very nice indeed. Muggles can’t see Dementors, can they? Highly convenient, highly convenient … so it’s just your word and no witnesses. Then you find a reporter who is good at making up lies to publish it in that ridiculous newspaper, causing panic in the whole wizarding world, so as to prove your greatness. A 15-year-old wizard can defeat two Dementors. How amazing!”
Looking at his expression, it was as though he was really thinking that was all the truth.
“I’m not lying!” said Harry loudly, over another outbreak of muttering from the court. “There were two of them, coming from opposite ends of the alley, everything went dark and cold and my cousin felt them and ran for it..."
“Enough, enough!” said Fudge with a very supercilious look on his face. “I’m sorry to interrupt what I’m sure would have been a very well-rehearsed story. We shouldn’t be listening to this boy making it all up...”
Just then, Dumbledore cleared his throat, and the Wizengamot fell silent again.
“We do, in fact, have a witness to the presence of Dementors in that alleyway,” he said quietly, “other than Harry's cousin Dudley Dursley, I mean."
Fudge’s plump face seemed to slacken, as though somebody had let air out of it.
"You have a witness?"
"Yes!" said Dumbledore with a smile.
"How could there be a witness, this incident was purely made up by these two boys..." he murmured, staring down at Dumbledore for a while, then, with the appearance of a man pulling himself back together, said, “We haven’t got time to listen to more taradiddles, I’m afraid, Dumbledore. I want this dealt with quickly…”
"I may be wrong," said Dumbledore pleasantly, "but I am sure that under the Wizengamot Charter of Rights, the accused has the right to present witnesses for his or her case? Isn’t that the policy of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement?”
“True,” said Madam Bones. “Perfectly true."
“Oh, very well, very well, where is this person?" snapped Fudge. “How long will it take us to see him?"
“I brought her with me,” said Dumbledore. “She’s just outside the door. Should I...?"
“No ... Weasley, you go,” Fudge barked at Percy, who got up at once, hurried down the stone steps from the judge’s balcony, and hastened past Dumbledore, Evan and Harry without glancing at them.
Immediately, there was a loud noise outside the door, and Evan was sure he’d heard Rita Skeeter's voice.
Under her inquiry, Percy dared not say a word.
Fudge gasped heavily, staring at them impatiently, and the discussion around him grew louder.
Judging from the current situation, today's trial had become a complete joke. Now all he needed was a reporter to add to the story, and then it was screwed, which was great!
He glared at Evan fiercely, then turned and whispered to Umbridge next to him.
A moment later, Percy returned, followed by Mrs. Figg. She looked scared and more eccentric than ever.
Dumbledore stood up and gave Mrs. Figg his chair, conjuring a second one for himself.
“Full name?” said Fudge loudly, when Mrs. Figg had perched herself nervously on the very edge of her seat.
“Arabella Doreen Figg,” said Mrs. Figg in her quavery voice.
“And who exactly are you?” said Fudge, in a bored and lofty voice.
“I’m a resident of Little Whinging, close to where Harry Potter lives,” said Mrs. Figg.
“We have no record of any witch or wizard living in Little Whinging other than Harry Potter,” said Madam Bones at once. “That situation has always been closely monitored, given … given past events."
“I’m a Squib,” said Mrs. Figg. “So you wouldn’t have me registered, would you?"
“A Squib, eh?” said Fudge, eyeing her suspiciously. “We’ll be checking that. You’ll leave details of your parentage with my assistant, Weasley. Incidentally, can Squibs see Dementors?” he added, looking left and right along the bench where he sat.
“Yes, we can!” said Mrs. Figg indignantly.
Fudge looked back down at her, his eyebrows raised.
The Squibs were a very special group in the wizarding world, referring to people born to wizarding families but with no magic powers, just the opposite of Muggle-born wizards.
Their identities were very embarrassing, and most of them had spent a mediocre and impoverished life.
Indeed, because of his parents and family, a Squib understood some magic knowledge, but had no chance to participate.
This was a sad thing; they belonged neither to the wizarding world, nor to the Muggle world.
The only consolation was that the number of squibs was very small. Experts generally believed that it was rare for future generations to be unable to use magic because the magic genes were dominant and active.
Correspondingly, this had greatly increased the misfortune of the Squibs.
Getting Squibs to learn to use magic had always been one of the difficult problems in healing magic, and there had been a lot of research on the matter.
In addition, it was worth noting the difference between the Squib and the Obscurial...
