The five of them walked through the crowded kitchen and into the living room of the Burrow. Scrimgeour did not speak.
Although the garden was reflecting the soft golden glow of the sunset, the living room was already very dark.
When Elwyn entered the room, he waved his wand at the oil lamps, and they lit up the shabby but comfortable room.
Scrimgeour sat down in the soft, sunken armchair that Mr. Weasley usually sat in. Elwyn, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had to squeeze onto the sofa. As soon as they sat down, Scrimgeour spoke.
"I have a few questions for the four of you. I think it would be best to ask them one by one, starting with Mr. Ron Weasley. The three of you …" He pointed at Elwyn, Harry, and Hermione. "Go upstairs and wait. I will talk to Ron first."
"We are not going anywhere," Harry said. "Either you talk to the three of us, or you don't talk to any of us."
"Well, Mr. Minister, we have told you everything we can at Dumbledore's funeral. I don't see the need to talk to any of us alone," Elwyn said. Hermione nodded vigorously. "I think you should understand this. In that case, you must have something to do with us. Is it about Dumbledore? If so, then talk to us together. "
Scrimgeour looked at them coldly and scrutinized them, as if he was considering whether it was worth it to make his hostility public so soon.
"Well, let's talk together," Scrimgeour said with a shrug. Then he cleared his throat. "My visit this time does have something to do with Abus Dumbledore, but not everything. Let's talk about it one by one. First of all, I want you to know that Dumbledore left a will, which mentions the four of you."
Sure enough, it was Dumbledore's will. It seemed like he had left it before.
Except for Elwyn, no one had expected this. Harry and Ron looked at each other in bewilderment, their faces clearly showing that they did not know.
"Looks like it's a surprise! Don't you realize that Dumbledore left something for us? "Scrimgeour caught the look on their faces.
"M-both of us?" Ron said, "Me and Hermione too?"
"Yes, you all have …"
Before Scrimgeour could finish, Harry interrupted him.
"Dumbledore has been gone for more than a month. Why did he only give us the thing he left us after so long?"
"Because I want to check what he left behind to make sure …" Scrimgeour said coldly.
"You don't have the right to do that!" Hermione immediately said with a slightly trembling voice.
"Of course I have the right." Scrimgeour said contemptuously. "According to the Lawful Confiscation of Goods Act, the Ministry of Magic has the right to confiscate the things related to the will …"
"That law was made to prevent wizards from moving black magic items." Hermione said, "The Ministry of Magic should have concrete evidence to prove that the deceased's things are illegal before they can confiscate them! Are you saying that you think Dumbledore wanted to leave us some evil things? "
"Do you plan to pursue a career in magic law, Miss Granger?" Scrimgeour asked.
"No." Hermione retorted sarcastically. "I want to do good in the world!"
"I don't quite understand. Why did you decide to let us get our things now? Can't you find an excuse to detain them? "Harry asked bluntly.
"No, it's because the thirty-one-day deadline is up." Hermione said, "They can't detain them beyond this deadline, unless they can prove that the things are dangerous …"
It seemed like that was the case, but there was no point in insisting on this kind of thing. Elwyn said at the right time, "Since Dumbledore left things for the four of us, and it's already the deadline for detaining them according to the Lawful Confiscation of Goods Act, then please hand them over to us. Mr. Minister, I understand it correctly, right?"
"No, I don't think it's that simple, Elwyn!" Scrimgeour said, shaking his head. "The Ministry of Magic has plenty of reasons to doubt Dumbledore's motives. For example, can you say that you and Dumbledore are close, Ron?"
Ron was surprised to be called out suddenly.
"Me? No, not too close. I don't have much contact with him. It's always been Elwyn or Harry … "
Hermione elbowed him hard, signaling him to shut up. She really didn't know where Ron's temper had gone when he was with Harry and Ginny in the afternoon, but now he was completely flustered in front of Scrimgeour. Ron shut up, but the damage was done: Scrimgeour seemed to have heard what he expected and needed.
He pounced on Ron's answer like a hungry bird pouncing on its prey. "If you and Dumbledore aren't very close, how do you explain the gifts he left for you in his will? According to his will, he specifically left things to a few people. Apart from you, these people were his close friends when he was alive. Most of his belongings, his private library, his magic instruments, and other personal belongings … were all left to Hogwarts. Why do you think he treated you differently? "
Dumbledore wasn't really dead. He would come back, so he didn't have to give everything to others.
Of course, if he really died, he wouldn't leave most of his belongings to Hogwarts.
Scrimgeour's words stunned Ron. He looked at Elwyn, Harry, and Hermione for help, and stammered, "I … I don't know. I, I just said we weren't very close. Actually, I think he liked me …"
"You're too modest. He liked you very much, Ron!"
"That's right. He thought highly of you and mentioned you more than once. I don't think there's anything wrong with Dumbledore leaving some gifts for Ron in his will, "said Elwyn. Of course, he knew that Dumbledore didn't think much of Ron. He didn't even spend time alone with Ron. However, the important thing was that he left behind his will and things. There must be something in it that he thought would help Elwyn and the others. Otherwise, he wouldn't have done it. "There's no point in continuing to talk about this. Let's be honest. Mr. Minister, what did the headmaster's will say?"
Scrimgeour looked at him for a while, then reached into his cloak and pulled out a small drawstring pouch. It was much bigger than the one Hagrid gave to Harry.
He pulled out a roll of parchment, unfolded it, and read aloud, "The will of Albus Percy Val Wulfric Brian Dumbledore … Yes, here it is … My Extinguisher is left to Ron Billiers Weasley. I hope he will remember me when he uses it."
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
