11 Ch. 11: Azkaban

"No...there's no need!" Pius retorted, his face contorted in displeasure.

He exhaled deeply, reining in his anger before asking, "Since you've brought up the dragon, Mr. Vinson, could you enlighten us as to its whereabouts? After all, the dragon is rightfully Gringotts' property!"

Jon pondered for a moment, then replied with a smirk, "I've hidden it in...England!"

Pius's face twisted further, his fury threatening to erupt at Jon's absurdly vague response.

"Mr. Vinson, could you be a tad more specific?" Pius hastily rearranged the documents before him, feigning composure.

"England!" Jon reiterated, his eyes wide, "And to be more precise...London?"

"You...!!!" Pius was momentarily taken aback.

Realizing that Jon was toying with him and withholding the truth, he decided to steer clear of this topic.

"Very well, Mr. Vinson! If that's how it is, let's shift our focus!" Pius inhaled deeply, forcefully suppressing his anger.

"Mr. Vinson, according to the charges leveled against you, you unlawfully procured a vault key yesterday afternoon and pilfered property from Gringotts! The indictment states that the original owner of this key is Mr. Gibbon Campbell!"

"Furthermore, witnesses claim that you had a confrontation with Gibbon Campbell, Jeff Campbell, and Modi Campbell yesterday morning. Subsequently, these three individuals vanished, and their family members have yet to establish contact with them."

"So, Mr. Vinson, do you have any idea where these three individuals might be?"

Jon contemplated for a moment, then declared: "They... are dead!"

Whispering!!

Bang!! Bang!! Bang!!

"Order!!!"

The courtroom erupted into chaos at his words. It was only after Pius pounded the gavel that silence was restored.

"So, you murdered them?" Pius inquired.

"I killed Gibbon!" Jon confessed without hesitation.

"And the other two?" Pius probed further.

"I killed them as well!" Jon responded.

'Why couldn't he just admit to killing all of them? Why did he have to make me ask each question separately?' Pius was infuriated by Jon's demeanor and was at a loss for words.

"What about their remains? How did you dispose of them?" Pius continued his line of questioning.

"Well... I considered how heartbroken their families would be upon seeing their lifeless bodies!" Jon feigned empathy.

"That's why I incinerated their corpses until nothing remained but ashes!" Jon added with a grin, "After all, I'm not a monster intent on shattering their families' hearts!"

The courtroom fell into a stunned silence at Jon's words. After a while, the jury members engaged in a heated debate. In their eyes, Jon's actions were an abomination, a heinous crime warranting a lifetime sentence in Azkaban.

Once the uproar subsided, just as the presiding judge was about to speak, a voice emerged from the jury:

"With all due respect, Your Honor, I don't believe there's a need to proceed further. The defendant has clearly committed many unforgivable crimes. I propose a life sentence in Azkaban!"

This voice, dripping with saccharine insincerity, was grating to the ears, reminiscent of an elderly woman attempting to mimic a girlish tone.

Upon hearing the voice, Jon immediately turned towards the jury seats. He recognized this voice from the movie; it belonged to one of the most detestable characters, the Senior Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Magic, Dolores Umbridge.

At this moment, she was self-righteously enumerating his crimes and expressing indignation. However, Jon knew that her anger likely stemmed from his murder of three pure-blood wizards. Although Dolores wasn't a Death Eater, she was a staunch supporter of pure-blood supremacy and harbored extreme prejudice against Muggle-born wizards, despite being a half-blood herself.

However, Umbridge's comments were met with unanimous approval from the jury.

"Ahem!" Jon coughed twice, interrupting Pius who was about to speak.

"Your Honor, with all due respect, could you silence that garish pink toad? Her voice is making me nauseous!"

Jon's words caused Umbridge's face to darken instantly. Regaining her composure, she continued in her falsely sweet tone: "Oh, of course! After all, I'm not the one being sent to Azkaban!"

Jon retorted without missing a beat: "Alright! Then expedite my sentence! I'd rather embrace a Dementor in Azkaban than endure your incessant droning!"

"You…!" Umbridge's face contorted in disgust, and she thought to herself: 'This brat has no idea of the horrors that await him in Azkaban! He'll regret his words!'

Bang!! Bang!! Bang!!

Pius had lost count of the number of times he had struck the gavel that day. Once the courtroom quieted down, he continued, "Then, there are no objections to sentencing Jon to life imprisonment in Azkaban, correct?"

The jury remained silent, evidently in agreement with Pius's verdict.

"In that case, I hereby sentence Mr. Jon Vinson to life imprisonment in Azkaban for murder and theft!"

Bang!! Bang!! Bang!!

Pius struck the final gavel of the day. Simultaneously, Griphook in the plaintiff's seat and Umbridge in the jury seats wore satisfied smiles.

They sought signs of panic or other negative emotions on Jon's face, but were met with disappointment. Jon appeared utterly indifferent, as if he had anticipated this outcome all along.

The Aurors behind Jon escorted him out of the courtroom and up the elevator. Emerging, he was led to a deep basement.

He was confined in a cage-like enclosure, shackled in chains.

"Enjoy your stay in Azkaban, young man!" the escorting Auror taunted.

He then brandished his wand and cast a spell on Jon in the cage. Jon saw a flash of blue light, and the next moment, his surroundings had transformed completely.

A pungent, rancid odor filled his nostrils. He found himself in a dark, damp cell.

Before him was an iron gate, the kind typically used in prisons. Through the bars, Jon could barely make out a few shadowy figures floating in the air.

Clang! Clang!

Jon attempted to move, but found himself bound in chains.

At this moment, the eerie shadow outside the iron gate seemed to be drawn to the sound of the chains, and floated towards Jon's cell.

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