Fudge only noticed the bound Peter Pettigrew at that point.
He studied him with confusion.
"And this is…?"
"This is Peter Pettigrew. He became the Secret Keeper in the end, and he's the one who betrayed my parents."
"You wronged Sirius back then!" Harry said quickly.
At first, Fudge still showed a faint interest in the truth. But the moment he heard the word "wronged," his brow tightened.
"Wronged? No, no, no, my boy. The Ministry of Magic does not make mistakes."
"But you did!" Harry pressed anxiously. "You locked Sirius up in Azkaban by mistake and even gave Peter, the real criminal, a medal!"
He didn't realize that the more he spoke, the more displeased Fudge became.
"Enough!" Fudge suddenly roared, startling everyone present.
Realizing he'd lost his composure, he cleared his throat, as though the outburst had nothing to do with him.
"We'll interrogate them properly to determine the facts. Dawlish, take Black, and this man suspected of being Peter Pettigrew, to—"
"There are towers in the castle suitable for holding them," Marvolio interjected at the right moment.
Fudge hesitated. He had originally intended to bring them back to the Ministry, but holding them at Hogwarts would do just as well. After all, the Dementors were already here.
"Then interrogate them in the castle and report the results to me afterward. As for you," Fudge turned back to the others, "go back and rest. No wandering around tonight."
"What are you planning to do to Sirius?" Harry sensed something was off. He stayed in front of Black and demanded an answer.
Hermione and Ron stepped up beside him, staring at Fudge just as firmly.
"This is standard procedure. We're only conducting a routine interrogation!" Fudge snapped impatiently, waving a hand to signal Dawlish to act.
Harry opened his mouth to argue again, but Dumbledore stopped him.
"Harry, and Hermione. Ron is injured. Take him to the Hospital Wing. Poppy is already waiting for you."
"And you as well, Severus."
Hearing the unmistakable finality in Dumbledore's tone, Harry nodded reluctantly.
"I have potions prepared already," Snape said smugly. He shot a glance at Black, whose arm was still gripped by Marvolio, flicked his head, and strode away.
As everyone's attention finally turned to him, Tver seemed to remember something.
"I'll head to the Hospital Wing too, see if there's anything I can help with."
After exchanging a look with Dumbledore, he left as well.
"Then…"
"I'll take you to the castle towers," Dumbledore said with a light chuckle, noticing Fudge's hesitation. "Of course, afterward I'll return to my office for some tea."
With his little scheme laid bare, Fudge gave an awkward smile.
Black, however, felt increasingly uneasy.
Just as Harry had sensed, he too felt that Fudge was resisting the truth, unwilling to acknowledge Wormtail's involvement.
The thought unsettled him.
He didn't mind being sent back to Azkaban or carrying the blame again. But he could not accept Wormtail slipping away from judgment under these circumstances.
And even more than that, he couldn't stand the idea of Harry's goodwill being trampled by a politician.
That boy was exactly like James, wearing his heart on his sleeve.
By the time Black snapped out of his thoughts, he realized he had already been locked away at the top of a tower.
Even with seven years of sneaking around the castle at night behind him, he couldn't remember ever being here.
Of course, a place this remote was worth mapping once at most. Coming back again would be pure torment.
The howling wind made him pull his clothes tighter around himself.
Even in June, the night wind at this height was cutting cold.
He couldn't afford to fall over something so trivial now…
...
On the other side of the tower…
Fudge stood pacing anxiously in front of the iron door holding Peter Pettigrew. The moment Marvolio stepped out, he rushed up to him.
"Well? What did the interrogation turn up?"
Marvolio pressed his lips together.
"It's confirmed. He is Peter Pettigrew. In order to mislead… well, You-Know-Who, he switched the Secret Keeper and kept it hidden."
"Then why did that bastard have to hide for twelve whole years? Couldn't he have come out a few years earlier?!" Fudge snapped, stamping his foot in irritation.
Marvolio nearly burst out laughing. He bit down hard on his lip to keep his composure.
"Black only escaped last year," he said.
"I don't care. This absolutely cannot get out!"
"But you weren't even Minister back then. What does this have to do with you?" Marvolio asked calmly.
Fudge let out a bitter smile.
"Even if I wasn't the one who tried Black or handed Pettigrew that medal, those cursed reporters would pin the whole mistake on me anyway. Do you understand?"
"I can't let the Ministry be stained by this kind of scandal. At the very least, not while I'm in office!"
Out of Fudge's sight, the corner of Marvolio's mouth lifted slightly.
Not only do I understand, he thought, someone has already seen through every move you're going to make.
By now, even without Tver's reminder, Marvolio was well aware that Fudge was nothing more than a politician obsessed with power.
Truth and facts meant nothing to him. Preserving his own authority was the only goal behind everything he did.
"Then what should we do with Peter Pettigrew and Black?" Marvolio asked.
Fudge fell into thought. After a long pause, he turned back, a ruthless glint in his eyes that even the darkness couldn't hide.
"Kill them," he said flatly. "We'll tell the public that Peter Pettigrew honored his friend's dying wish and protected Harry for years. In the end, he bravely fought Black, who escaped from prison and tried to take revenge on Harry."
"He died because he was weaker. As for Black… he was later—"
"No," Fudge interrupted himself. "Change that. We captured Black and handed him over to the Dementors."
For the first time, surprise flickered across Marvolio's face. Fudge's sheer viciousness was, honestly, beyond what either he or Tver had expected.
"But there are a lot of people who already know the truth. Dumbledore included. How do we silence them?"
"And killing them outright would only raise suspicion. People would say we let Black waltz into the castle and murder a so-called hero."
"…"
Fudge was left speechless.
He had only been venting his frustration in the heat of the moment.
"Then what do you suggest?" he asked stiffly.
At last, Marvolio's smile surfaced fully.
"Maybe we don't resolve the case at all. We drag it out."
"We simply refuse to admit that the Ministry made a mistake. As long as Peter Pettigrew 'accidentally' escapes, then until he's caught again, we haven't done anything wrong. At most, we can say our earlier handling wasn't entirely appropriate."
"And when the escaped Pettigrew is finally captured again, won't the initiative be firmly in our hands?" he said softly, his tone almost coaxing.
Fudge noticed nothing strange. On the contrary, his eyes lit up.
"That's right. Not only do we let him escape, we should even make a bit of a spectacle of it, completely distancing ourselves."
"Leave it to you. I'll go have tea with Dumbledore and keep him occupied."
"And remember. There must be absolutely no connection back to us."
"Don't worry," Marvolio replied, watching Fudge leave with a meaningful look. "I'll make sure it's handled cleanly."