"Everyone has their own choices. We cannot impose our decisions on others, even if we believe it is for their own good."
Dumbledore's voice was calm and steady, causing everyone to quiet down involuntarily.
"I have served as a teacher at Hogwarts for nearly eighty years, and I have encountered almost every kind of student. In terms of education, we can teach and guide, but we cannot impose our own ideas on them, no matter how correct we believe those ideas to be."
"Even for ourselves, can we be sure that what we think is absolutely correct? Wizards are also people, and people make mistakes. If we cannot be sure that our own choices are correct, how can we be sure that our choices for others are correct?"
His words caused many people to bow their heads in thought, but Mrs. Weasley still spoke with deep worry.
"But Sally only had him as her child. We promised her, while she was still with us, that we would ensure Sherlock stayed away from danger his whole life, and that the war would not affect the next generation..."
"Stupid thinking!" Moody said disapprovingly. He was the only person among them who did not object to Sherlock joining the Order of the Phoenix, which explained why the Original Owner had the best relationship with him.
"A protected fledgling will never become an eagle soaring in the sky. If he stays in a warm nest, what can he do to remain safe when danger strikes? In the midst of danger, even we ourselves cannot guarantee our own safety with absolute certainty, so how can we guarantee his peace?"
"There is no danger now, Moody," objected a wizard named Edgar Bones. "You-Know-Who has been dead for so many years, and the Death Eaters have all been locked up in Azkaban. The entire Wizarding World is peaceful."
"You only think it's peaceful because you haven't seen the dangerous side of things," Moody grumbled. "Dozens of Aurors still die every year, Dark Wizards are everywhere, and disturbances happen every so often!"
Moody argued alone with the other wizards who opposed Sherlock joining the Order of the Phoenix.
Sherlock now understood why Mrs. Weasley and the others opposed him joining the Order of the Phoenix.
They were afraid he would encounter danger. (TN: Duh.)
After all, the Order of the Phoenix was fundamentally a combat organization, and even though Lord Voldemort had lost power for more than ten years, that fact could not be erased.
As long as conflicts occurred in the future, Sherlock, being part of it, could potentially face danger.
Sherlock felt a sense of happiness inwardly.
He had previously suspected some kind of scheming or rivalry, but in reality, everyone's intentions were pure.
The disagreement was simply over the best way to protect him.
These wizards, led by Dumbledore, might not be the most powerful in the Wizarding World, but they were certainly the most upright and selfless.
Just as Moody and the original members of the Order of the Phoenix were arguing their points, Dumbledore gently clapped his hands, silencing the room and drawing everyone's attention to himself.
"Sherlock wants to join the Order of the Phoenix, and this is not solely his own wish. When Sally was alive, she also said that she hoped her son would share her aspirations, and joining the Order of the Phoenix was a plan she set for Sherlock from the beginning."
Everyone who had been arguing fell silent. The reason they did not want Sherlock to join their ranks was because they had made a promise to Sally that her son would not risk danger for the stability of the Wizarding World.
No one doubted that Dumbledore was telling the truth. If he said this was Sherlock's mother's dying wish, then it must be true.
In that case, it was no longer their place to object.
Kingsley stood up and raised his glass toward Sherlock from a distance.
"Welcome to our ranks, Sherlock."
He drank the wine in his glass in one gulp, and the other wizards at the long table also raised their cups.
"Welcome, Sherlock."
Sherlock was moved by their gesture and wanted to stand up and return the toast, but he hesitated, wondering if such an action would be too abrupt given the Original Owner's personality.
Just as he was agonizing over it, a golden-red light shone beside Dumbledore. Fawkes the Phoenix appeared on his shoulder, wings spread, clutching a note in its sharp beak.
Dumbledore took the note, read its contents, and the expression on his face slowly grew serious, his brows furrowing.
Just as Professor McGonagall was about to ask him what had happened, he suddenly stood up from his chair.
"Pardon me, everyone, but something unexpected has happened at Hogwarts. I must take Minerva and Sherlock and return immediately."
Professor McGonagall and Sherlock also stood up from their seats upon hearing his words. Dumbledore grabbed their arms, and Fawkes once again burst into fiery red light, teleporting them away.
The remaining members of the Order of the Phoenix at the long table exchanged glances, unsure of what had happened.
As for Sherlock and the others, with a flash of fire, they were back in front of the Headmaster's Office at Hogwarts the next second.
There, Professor Flitwick was anxiously waiting for them. Upon seeing Dumbledore, he immediately spoke breathlessly.
"It's another attack! This time it's Colin Creevey, a first-year student!"
Dumbledore did not return to the Headmaster's Office. Instead, he motioned for Professor Flitwick to lead the way and hurried with Sherlock and Professor McGonagall toward the scene of the attack.
"How is the student now?"
"He is not dead; he was petrified, just like the previous student. Normal counter-curses had no effect on him, so I have already had students send him to the Hospital Wing."
They first arrived at the scene of the incident, where quite a few students were still gathered.
As soon as they arrived, Professor McGonagall shouted sternly at them:
"Everyone back to class! Do not congregate here! Back to class!"
Her authority among the students was usually very high, so no one dared to linger. They scattered and left, though they did not go too far, watching from a distance instead.
At the scene, aside from the petrified Colin being taken to the infirmary, the items he had dropped had not yet been removed.
It was a Muggle camera, lying on the ground.
Sherlock recalled and said:
"Colin told me yesterday that he planned to take pictures of every part of Hogwarts to show his family back home."
Professor McGonagall immediately realized:
"The camera might have captured the appearance of the culprit."
But when Dumbledore picked up the camera and opened the back cover, the inside had been burned out, leaving nothing behind.
"Very powerful magic," Dumbledore murmured.
Sherlock looked at the burnt camera in Dumbledore's hand, contemplating, and decided that this was the perfect time to reveal the only clue he still remembered.
"There is an artificially created Dark creature, the Basilisk, whose eyes seem to possess such a powerful petrifying effect."