The blackthorn and willow wands Lys had been using frequently these past two years were hidden in Gabon's collar.
After all, just a few Prior Incantato spells on that blackthorn wand would be enough to get Lys thrown into Azkaban to spend the rest of her life with Dementors.
Surrounded by two Aurors with several obviously formidable old wizards watching from above, Lys breathed a sigh of relief—she knew her show of weakness had been effective.
What she hoped for next was that what her sixth-year Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher had said was true: if suspects in heinous crimes couldn't prove they were coerced or wrongly accused, but could cast a Patronus Charm, it would greatly increase their chances of being found innocent.
"Expecto Patronum!"
Silver mist quickly spread as the Aurors on both sides gripped their wands tighter, pointing them at Lys.
These past few days, quite a few defendants had cracked under interrogation pressure or lashed out after refusing to accept their verdicts. The Aurors had grown accustomed to staying alert at all times.
Lys didn't unleash her magic as freely as she usually did when casting the Patronus Charm—at this moment, appearing weaker was more advantageous.
From the silver mist, a massive Patronus leaped forth, circling the oppressive, tiered interrogation chamber before standing beside the central clearing. It reared up on its hind legs, pounding its chest rapidly and forcefully with its forelimbs. Sharp canines flashed in its silent roar—it was on guard.
Lys sighed again. A miscalculation. The Patronus was a manifestation of one's inner self, and right now her Patronus's behavior was defensive and threatening, indirectly revealing Lys's wariness toward the Wizengamot and this interrogation. This, compared to her performance...
Well, it was fairly consistent.
"That's... I know! That's a type of African monkey!" A wizard in the back began introducing it with great superiority.
"My African friend keeps one—extremely sensitive and gentle. Apart from being too large, it's just like a little baby, terribly afraid of pain, always clutching its little blanket!"
Lys's mouth twitched. He wasn't wrong either—thank goodness for wizards' biased perceptions.
Thank Merlin they'd never seen silverback gorillas hunting or defending territory!
After her demonstration, Lys obediently turned her wand around and handed it back to the Auror beside her.
But things didn't develop as Lys had hoped. In the show of hands that followed, those supporting suspension of interrogation pending further evidence outnumbered those voting for innocence and release.
Lys glanced up and roughly understood what was happening—those indifferent looks and perfunctory expressions. They didn't dare release people casually. Because of the Death Eaters' special nature, every wizard outside was watching each person who walked out of the Ministry of Magic.
Sentencing someone to life imprisonment in Azkaban was no problem at all—people might even applaud the judges and jury.
But if you declared someone innocent, you'd better guarantee that the person you voted to release had a spotless record or that everyone felt comfortable with them. But how was that possible?
Moreover, Lys was a Slytherin graduate, and not many people had positive thoughts about Slytherin these days.
So even if they despised Lys's family background and truly believed the Dark Lord couldn't possibly choose such a person as a Death Eater, even if those accusations against Stalys Black-Lamb for murderous behavior seemed as laughably insubstantial as chasing shadows, they still wouldn't easily vote to release a suspected Death Eater.
Lowering her head, Lys wasn't too disappointed—at least she'd managed to delay things.
Lys was taken back to the previous small interrogation room, but the alchemical chains binding her weren't wound quite as tightly.
She sat on that hard chair, staring at the door before her, lost in thought.
Next time, would they interrogate more people? Would anyone directly accuse her? Would they collect more evidence?
Lost in thought, her mind wandered—what if while they were conducting trials and verdicts here, the Dark Lord made a spectacular entrance and slaughtered the entire Ministry?
Then severely punished her along with these useless slaves and traitorous betrayers.
Never mind that. Being sent to Azkaban might still mean survival, might still mean being rescued—after all, in Lys's mind, the Ministry of Magic's image was like a sieve.
But the Dark Lord? Forget it...
That tall figure standing atop a pile of corpses, those countless bodies in that stretch of sea, those casual letters, the pain brought by Crucio, the green-flashing Avada Kedavra—all of it hung over her like invisible storm clouds.
Azkaban over the Dark Lord any day!
Tilting her head back, Lys prepared to get some sleep. She'd been here for three days already—she was so tired...
——————————————————
🔥 Hey readers! 👋
Great news! HP: The Stellar Witch [OFC] main storyline is now complete on Patreon!
And that's not all - we've got 4 exclusive bonus chapters in the works that you won't find anywhere else! Enjoy the read, and thanks for being awesome! 💫
👉 Join on -
patreon.com/DarkGolds