read my new story : American Fast & Furious NSFW
"You want to question Sirius Black alone, but why can't you let Severus and Remus know?"
"No, I have no intention of questioning anyone. Melvyn said we should let them discover the truth themselves."
"It's about letting Harry investigate the truth, not Remus and Severus," Melvyn corrected seriously.
Professor McGonagall was noncommittal; she was more inclined to trust the Headmaster's statement.
Walking back toward the Gryffindor Tower, the three walked shoulder-to-shoulder down the corridor, their shadows stretched long by the candlelight. Professor McGonagall glanced back at Melvyn, finding the young professor a bit mysterious, giving the impression that he knew the truth but couldn't reveal it.
The tragic night thirteen years ago in Godric's Hollow—because the two victims hadn't returned as ghosts or left any last words—everyone had been forced to infer the truth from superficial clues. Of those four close friends from their school days, one was dead, one was imprisoned, and one was left to wander, with no wizard ever raising an eyebrow of suspicion.
Professor McGonagall knew Remus couldn't face the tragedy of that night and couldn't even find anyone to confide in. And Severus, though he had made wrong choices in the past, had repented after Lily's death, locking himself away in the dungeon ever since he became the Potions Master.
The very people who should care about the truth hadn't raised any objections, yet an exotic, foreign wizard had spoken up, pointing out the suspicious details of the event and guiding them closer to the facts.
"This truth is important—it is for Remus and Severus, and it is for the entire wizarding world," Dumbledore's voice was very soft, as if he didn't want to wake the sleeping trolls and Barnaby in the tapestries. "Back then, we overlooked some things because of the chaos; we might have made a mistake. We cannot make the same mistake now, so we cannot question Sirius Black directly, nor can we blindly believe the truth from any single side."
"The truth that emerges when all these participants are active, gathered together, and state their accounts collectively is the most trustworthy."
Melvyn added in a timely manner, "So, we need to be patient in the early stages to facilitate the public announcement in the near future."
---
## 🦁 Gryffindor Common Room - 3 A.M.
Tonight, this tower was the most bustling place in the castle. All the students of the Lion House had gathered for a legitimate reason, so there was no need to worry about being penalized for being out late. Melvyn and the other professors stepped through the portrait hole, waiting for the two Headmasters to speak.
Snape's search had already been declared a failure. The entire eighth floor had been patrolled several times; the faculty, ghosts, and portraits had all been activated, but there was still no result.
Melvyn, who hadn't spent much time here before, showed no expression but had an intrigued look in his eyes as he surveyed the surroundings.
It might not have the comfort of the Hufflepuff Common Room, but it was cozy and spacious enough. The vaulted ceiling looked quite old, and Melvyn noticed many medieval decorations.
He pulled up a chair and sat on the outer ring. In the inner circle were Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall, surrounded by students, led by Percy, their eyes showing a mix of tiredness, fear, and excitement, eagerly awaiting an explanation.
The students were very concerned about the outcome of the night's raid and worried that the Headmaster would dismiss them with boring clichés. When Melvyn handed the cherry wood wand back to Neville, some students crowded around to ask if Black had been caught and if the castle was safe now.
He then smiled and told the students that Black's whereabouts were unknown, that no one knew where he was hiding, and that he was very likely still in the castle and might attack solitary students.
Neville's face immediately went pale and bloodless. Ron fought back his fear, his shoulders trembling a few times, and Lavender immediately buried her face in her roommate's shoulder.
Some students who were equally terrified but managed to keep it together were mostly those who had taken Muggle Studies, along with a few unfamiliar faces from the lower years.
"Professor Lewent, is that really true?" Hermione asked, full of worry. Dumbledore was speaking at the front, and the information the two of them were giving out was a little contradictory.
In response, Melvyn waved his hand and gave a gentle smile: "It is true that Black has not been caught, and it is also true that Dumbledore told you not to worry. In this castle, no professor will let any student be harmed."
Hermione didn't know whom to believe and quietly listened to Dumbledore, hugging Crookshanks, who looked droopy.
The situation didn't sound too bad. The professors were prepared and all of them were reliable.
Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor Flitwick went without saying; their offices were on the eighth floor, allowing them to arrive immediately if needed. Professor Sprout's reinforcement was also a given, as were Professors Lupin and Lewent. Even Snape, whom everyone found disagreeable, arrived promptly—his words were brief, and his fighting was swift, like those heroic Aurors in the newspapers.
Hermione scratched Crookshanks' head and sighed.
"Some things are not for us to know."
She still couldn't figure out why, when Black attacked the boys' dormitory, Ron was the one who had the bad luck.
Professor Sprout brought refreshments, biscuits and hot milk. Hermione fed Crookshanks a biscuit. Failing to sort out her thoughts, she turned her head to observe Professor Lewent.
Half a minute later, a thought suddenly flashed through her mind:
Black's target might never have been Harry, but Ron; he had been targeting Ron all along.
She felt her thoughts suddenly fall into place, but immediately more doubts arose, and she stared intensely at the professor, her eyes burning.
Melvyn couldn't ignore her. He simply raised one finger to signal for quiet and then pointed to the Headmaster who was speaking at the front.
"...I must praise one person tonight: Neville Longbottom."
After Dumbledore finished his comforting clichés, he smiled and offered an award, quieting the entire common room. "He showed the courage of Gryffindor. There are many types of qualities in a champion; dealing with the enemy requires not only powerful magic but also quick wit in a crisis. Therefore, I award Gryffindor House fifty points."
The entire common room immediately erupted in cheers. All the students stood up and yelled their praise. George and Fred called the entire Quidditch team over, and they worked together to toss Neville into the air.
"But the loss of the list is also the reason why Black broke into the tower!"
Professor McGonagall had to cast a Sonorus charm to barely overcome the thunderous cheering. "For the next month, Neville must serve detention every weekend!"
The deafening cheers gradually died down, followed by George's question: "Does this mean that as long as he hadn't written the password on the list, Black wouldn't have gotten in?"
The silence lasted only a few seconds, followed by an even more enthusiastic roar.
Flitwick and Sprout exchanged glances and couldn't help but smile. Decades of working together had given them experience: the two Headmasters offering a reward and a punishment meant that the situation was now under effective control.
Snape stood next to Hagrid, his face cold, unable to figure out how Black had managed to escape.
He also had an opinion on how the two Headmasters handled things:
Why reward House Points and punish with detention, instead of using the reward to offset the detention, or using the punishment to deduct House Points?
It was clearly Professor McGonagall trying to widen the House Points gap and eyeing the House Cup at the end of the year.
Lupin, standing alone in the corner, looked lost, his mood exceptionally complicated.
---
## 🛏️ The Boys' Dormitory - Before Dawn
The moonlight shone into the boys' dormitory.
Harry was helping Ron remake his bed. The blanket and pillow had been scattered everywhere in the chaos of the unexpected event, so he had to pick them up one by one, dust them off, and put them back.
Trevor's small cage sat on the bedside table. Neville lay on his four-poster bed, feeding dried mealworms with one hand and twirling the cherry wood wand with the other.
The professor had confirmed with a Prior Incantato that the spells Black had cast with this wand were mostly Stunning Spells, with no trace of Dark Magic.
"After Black snuck into the boys' dormitory, he used a tracking charm to find Harry's dormitory, snuck in, and was going from bed to bed. Just as he reached Ron's bed, before he could find Harry, he was startled by Scabbers the rat. Then, Professors Snape and Lupin arrived and scared Black away."
"Neville and Cadogan left the tower to call for help, and Black's embarrassed escape—the whole process took less than five minutes. Even though Black is a vicious Death Eater, he still underestimated our Neville."
Seamus was recounting the re-examined sequence of events.
Casting a Fire-Making Spell to create a distraction, secretly using Trevor the toad to shield himself from the Stunning Spell, pretending to be knocked out, and immediately reporting the incident after Black left... The entire sequence had been figured out and would spread throughout the school by breakfast tomorrow.
"Neville the Champion is going to be famous!" Dean cheered along.
Neville practically buried his head under the covers. He wasn't really comfortable with being in the spotlight.
But just as Harry and Ron were listening to their conversation and chuckling, Harry lifted a pillow from the floor and saw a pool of glaring crimson on the carpet. Next to it were scattered chunks of flesh and bone splinters.
This mass of mutilated remains was imprinted right on the carpet next to the bed. They could vaguely make out the bald, rat-like skin.
"Ah!!" Ron let out a mournful wail.
The roommates on the beds gathered around, helping to pick up the sheets and blankets. They looked at the remains on the floor, then back at Ron: "Don't be too sad, Ron. Scabbers sacrificed himself to protect you."
"..."
Neville and Harry didn't speak, each patting him on the shoulder.
---
## 🏰 Castle Staircase Landing
Melvyn, Professor McGonagall, Snape, and Lupin walked down the stairs together. Their offices were located on the lower floors. Along the way, they calmed the ghosts and portraits. With every floor they descended, a layer of torches was extinguished.
Melvyn exchanged goodnights with them on the third floor. Compared to Snape's dungeon and Professor McGonagall's second-floor "Cat Café," the Muggle Studies office was relatively high up.
Carrying a kerosene lamp, he walked down the corridor, extinguishing the torches and candlelight along the way. Outside the door, which was tightly sealed with an Anti-Alohomora Charm, a familiar figure was crouched:
Scabbers the rat.
The flame in the kerosene lamp turned into a firefly, transforming into a stream of light that illuminated the sconces on the surrounding walls and ceiling. Separated by the walnut desk, Melvyn and Wormtail sat facing each other.
The shelves were much more cluttered than last year, holding teeth from magical creatures, dried flowers sent by Professor Sprout, and a new model of the Shadow Mirror sent by Wright. But the middle section was empty—it used to hold a glass jar, the one for the old rat.
Taking advantage of the chaos to grab a rat, crushing it in the dormitory, and escaping once again by faking his death after thirteen years, leaving the Gryffindor boys' dormitory, and waiting for the young professor to return and sit in this chair—Wormtail felt safe for the time being.
He had escaped Sirius's pursuit and was under the protection of a powerful wizard.
Yet, for some unknown reason, he was still a little scared. He felt an instinctive fear facing this young professor, just like facing the former Dark Lord.
"Hot cocoa or Pumpkin Juice?" Melvyn asked kindly, holding a teapot that was letting out wisps of steam from its spout.
Wormtail sniffed, unable to smell what was in the teapot. He didn't want either, but didn't dare say so: "I'll take anything. Whatever you're having."
"Relax. Don't be shy. We're business partners; we've had a pleasant collaboration before, and I believe we'll have a chance to work together again in the future."
Melvyn looked into Wormtail's eyes, tilting the teapot. Out flowed frothing Butterbeer. "Brewed by Madam Rosmerta. It's been a long time since you've tasted this, hasn't it?"
"I actually wanted to drink th—that."
Wormtail's last syllable caught in his throat. He suddenly felt a chill rise in his heart, lowered his head, took the teacup, and no longer dared to meet the young professor's dark eyes.
"I simply prepared a few different beverages in the teapot beforehand. I guessed you might miss the Butterbeer from the Three Broomsticks. I didn't use Legilimency to pry into your mind," Melvyn's voice was gentle.
Wormtail recoiled again, burying his head even lower.
"..."
Melvyn was a little helpless. No one believed him even when he told the truth. "You must have heard what happened tonight from your hiding spot. Tell me, what are your plans now?"
"Find a safe place and keep hiding," Wormtail's voice trembled.
"Actually, the safest place is right next to Ron," Melvyn sipped his Butterbeer. "Black was able to sneak into the Gryffindor Tower tonight because the Longbottom boy lost the password list. He won't write down the password again, so Black can never get into the tower. The dormitory is safe."
"It's not safe at all," Wormtail said in a low voice. "Ron was attacked in Hogsmeade first—you know that black dog is Sirius; he's coming for me. And tonight, he was attacked in the dormitory again. He might find another opportunity, and unless I leave Ron's side, I'll never get rid of Sirius."
"So you came to me for..."
"Sir, I want you to send me away. To a Muggle city or a wizarding village—the more remote, the better. Somewhere Sirius can never find me for the rest of his life."
"Sending you away... that's easy."
Melvyn paused, then changed his tone. "But do you really want to hide forever, living your whole life as a rat who can't stand the light?"
"..." Wormtail was unsure of his meaning and remained silent.
"Animagi can evade capture. You can hide from Black, and he can hide from Aurors and Dementors. He's only in his early thirties. How many more years do you plan to hide?" Melvyn persuaded him earnestly.
"Are you suggesting?"
"Find a way to take care of Black. Get rid of this trouble once and for all."