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Chapter 147: Catching the Bug-tailed Monster, Part 4
Chapter 147: Catching the Bug-tailed Monster, Part 4
"Good afternoon, Filch," said Weasley. "As you can see, we're not breaking any rules."
Everyone turned to look at him.
Even good students could lie convincingly when they wanted to.
Would Filch have given Weasley a whole semester's detention if he had seen the mud pit from earlier? Of course, none of them betrayed Weasley in front of Filch.
Weasley was the only one among the students who would greet Filch proactively and not show any signs of contempt or disgust towards him.
Although Filch's paranoia made him constantly suspicious, such as whether Weasley was trying to get him to lower his guard before doing something bad, his attitude towards Weasley was ultimately a little more relaxed.
The caretaker grunted, "Best be that way."
He called to his cat, Mrs. Norris, who scurried out from a corner. The skinny duo of man and cat continued to prowl the corridors.
Soon, they heard Filch's shout, "Stop right there, Peeves! Defiling the castle and making a mess! I'm going to teach you a lesson..."
"I can't believe he just let us go," George said incredulously.
"Let's go!" Percy said through gritted teeth. "I'd like to hear what brilliant excuse you have! Bullying a mouse... You two are getting more and more outrageous!"
"We have Ved and Hermione with us too!" Fred argued. "Do they look like the type to bully a mouse?"
This was also the reason why Percy was willing to endure them. Otherwise, the twins' credibility with Percy would have been negative, and he wouldn't have listened to anything they said and would have taken them straight to a professor to report them.
But Percy wouldn't say that. He reprimanded them with a straight face, "Mr. Grey, Mr. Potter, and Miss Granger, I think you should spend more time on your studies and less time messing around with certain individuals!"
The twins were so angry that they could barely breathe, and they tried to kill him with their eyes.
Ron asked quietly, "What's going on?"
Harry shook his head, "I was just called over by Ved, I don't know anything."
"I think only Fred and George are in cahoots with Ved," Ron frowned. "But what does my Scabbers have to do with them?"
"Yeah..." Harry agreed, puzzled. "It's just a mouse, isn't it?"
...
"This is not an ordinary mouse."
When they arrived at the umbrella stand, Ved looked at the twins and said, "In fact, we suspect that he's an Animagus."
"Animagus?"
Ron certainly knew what an Animagus was, as Professor McGonagall had taught about it in class a few days ago.
He snorted, "That's ridiculous. Scabbers has been living with us for eleven years, and you're saying he's an Animagus?"
He paused and asked seriously, "Are you guys mentally ill?"
Harry remained silent, but he also thought Ved's claim was bizarre.
Percy frowned at the Weasley twins, "Is this your new prank? You're using this lie to toy with Ved and fool all of us?"
Ved wasn't a Gryffindor student, and he hadn't even seen Scabbers. How could he come up with such an absurd idea?
In Percy's opinion, his younger brothers must have deceived Ved in some way.
Percy was furious. He said angrily, "Just you wait! I'm definitely going to tell Mom about this!"
Fred rolled his eyes, and George explained, "We have evidence!"
"What evidence?"
George: "..."
He knew his brother all too well. If Percy found out about the Marauder's Map, he would surely confiscate it and hand it over to a professor.
This was something George would never allow.
George turned to Fred and Ved.
Fred spoke up, his voice low and serious. "It's been with us for eleven years, Percy. No ordinary mouse could live that long."
"And so?" Percy waved his arms dismissively. "Do you think you're the only smart one? Do you think Mom and Dad haven't thought of that? We give it health potions every year; the potion extends its lifespan!"
"But that's just a regular health potion, not an elixir of life!" Fred countered, raising his voice. "We've always said it's on its last legs, but it still eats just as much, and there's not a single sign of aging!"
"That's because... I've always taken very good care of it!" Ron yelled. "You guys don't understand! Scabbers is a good mouse!"
"The one who doesn't understand is you!" Fred snapped, his anger rising. "We're not making trouble for no reason. This mouse has a name..."
"Yeah, its name is Scabbers," Ron said sarcastically.
"No!" Fred insisted. "Its name is Peter Pettigrew!"
Percy paused, his face draining of color as he stammered, "W-what did you say?"
Ved waved his hand, interrupting the quarrel between the brothers.
"There's no point in arguing. The truth will prove everything."
He waved his wand, and the doors and windows of the umbrella stand slammed and locked shut, not leaving a single crack open.
Then, Ved took out the jar and poured out the unconscious mouse.
"Scabbers!"
Ron moved to retrieve his mouse, but Percy grabbed his shoulder.
"Percy?" Ron asked.
"Wait," Percy said, as if he couldn't catch his breath. "Why do you think... it has that name?"
Fred remained silent. He was worried that he might have exposed the existence of the Marauder's Map.
"Revelio," Ved said, pointing his wand at the mouse, and he explained to everyone, "If he's an Animagus, this spell will reveal his true form. If he's just a mouse, then nothing will happen."
"I'm saying..." Ron frowned. "You're taking this joke seriously; it's really too funny..."
He couldn't finish his sentence as his face slowly paled.
The tip of Ved's wand emitted a blue-white light, and the unconscious Scabbers suddenly woke up. It struggled and squealed, its body contorting strangely.
Hermoine covered her mouth in horror.
Suddenly, a head popped out, followed by a pair of hands, feet, and finally, a body...
A short, stout man had taken Scabbers' place, lying on the floor and gasping for breath.
Bald, with sparse hair, dirty, and resembling a mouse with a pointed nose and watery small eyes.
"Is this Scabbers?" Ron moaned. "Or did you turn Scabbers into a human?"
"Impossible!" Percy exclaimed in disbelief. "Peter Pettigrew... Didn't he die a long time ago? Wasn't he killed by Sirius Black years ago?"
As he spoke, he glanced at Harry.
Harry, bewildered, looked back at him.
"Petrificus Totalus! Incarcerous!"
Ved didn't give Peter Pettigrew a chance to plead his case and immediately cast two spells, binding the man rigidly to the floor, unable to move.
"Now do you believe us?" Ved said. "This is what we wanted to tell you."
(End of Chapter)
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