Chapter 152: The Opened Pendant Box
Chapter 152: The Opened Pendant Box
Peter was bound tightly, his small, rat-like eyes darting around nervously as he trembled at the sight of those surrounding him.
"Sirius Black, Remus Lupin", Peter's voice was high-pitched as he looked around again. "My friends, my old friends."
Sirius Black's eyes gleamed with satisfaction, excitement, hatred, and impatience as he raised his wand.
But Lupin held his hand, signaling him to hold off for a moment.
In front of Harry and the others, they confronted Peter, exposing all his lies.
Realizing he couldn't change the situation with words and had no chance of escape, Peter completely broke down.
His face ashen, he pleaded, "Sirius Black, it's me, Peter, your friend. You wouldn't... you wouldn't kill me, right?"
Sirius Black kicked him to the side without hesitation, his eyes filled with disgust, as if looking at trash.
Peter's nose and eyes were streaming, and he wriggled on the ground like a worm, crawling to Lupin's side in an attempt to invoke his sympathy, but Lupin ignored him.
Then he begged Ron and Harry, hoping they would say a word in his defense, but Ron only looked at him with revulsion.
"He slept in my bed and even defecated on Harry's pillow!"
Sirius Black was already impatient, raising his wand along with Lupin.
Sherlock felt increasingly uneasy, the strange sound growing louder, like a clock ticking incessantly in his ear, each second clearly audible.
"Hurry up and finish this, before something goes wrong", he urged.
Lupin and Sirius Black no longer hesitated, both preparing to wave their wands.
But just as they were about to cast their spells, and Peter's face showed utter despair, Harry suddenly shouted, "No! You can't kill him!"
Lupin and the others stopped, turning to Harry in shock.
"This is the enemy of your parents, Harry!" Sirius Black roared. "He's the one who betrayed them! This despicable, groveling scoundrel wouldn't care if you died. You heard what he said just now—his own life is more important than your entire family's!"
"I understand", Harry gasped, "but we should take him to the castle and hand him over to the Dementors. He can go to Azkaban, but don't kill him. If he dies, you'll never clear your name, and it's not worth it for someone like him."
Hearing Harry's words, Sherlock's face showed relief. He was glad Harry had thought things through.
Sirius Black's expression twisted in frustration. He desperately wanted to kill Peter on the spot, but he had to respect Harry's decision.
Among those present, only Harry had the authority to decide Peter's fate.
Regaining hope for his life, Peter wept with joy, hugging Harry's legs and endlessly thanking him for his mercy. Harry, however, looked at him with disgust and shook off his hand.
At this moment, Sherlock fixed his gaze on Peter.
"Can a Petrification Charm prevent an Animagus from transforming?"
He couldn't pinpoint the source of his unease, but he remembered from the original story that a rat had escaped, so he needed to verify Peter's state.
Sirius Black shook his head.
"No, once an Animagus has learned the transformation, it becomes a wizard's instinct. It doesn't require a wand or a spell, just a thought to complete the transformation."
Lupin understood Sherlock's concern.
"Don't worry. Sirius and I will hold onto Peter. If he tries to transform, we'll kill him. Is that acceptable, Harry?"
Harry nodded, having no objections to this decision.
Their plan seemed flawless, but Sherlock still felt something was off, though he couldn't explain what.
"Only a thought to transform?" He raised his wand at Peter and, under Peter's horrified gaze, cast a spell, "Stupefy."
The red light from the wand struck Peter, and he slumped, unconscious.
Sherlock nodded in satisfaction.
"Much better."
"You're too cautious, Sherlock", Lupin said, "but caution is never a bad thing."
Sirius Black and Lupin each grabbed one of Peter's arms, lifting him from the ground.
Hermione's pet, Crookshanks, strutted proudly at the head of the group.
Sirius Black and Harry, having just reunited, were discussing their godfather-son relationship.
Sherlock didn't join the group, still listening intently for the strange sound, trying to locate its source.
As he looked around, Sherlock suddenly noticed the bright, full moon in the sky and froze.
At that moment, it seemed Sherlock finally understood what had been causing his anxiety. He abruptly turned to look at Lupin, whose face was deathly pale.
"Remus!"
Hearing Sherlock call Lupin by his first name, something he rarely did, Harry and the others, standing at the edge of the Forbidden Forest, were taken aback.
Lupin looked at Sherlock curiously.
"What's wrong?"
Sherlock stared at him, lips pressed tightly together.
"You told me earlier in the office that Snape hadn't brought you the Wolfsbane Potion yet."
Lupin's face paled even more!
"I can't go back to the castle!"
Harry and Ron were bewildered; they didn't know about Lupin's identity as a werewolf. Hermione, however, seemed to have guessed something beforehand, and Sherlock's words confirmed her suspicions.
Sirius Black also realized what was happening. He looked at the Forbidden Forest behind them and said anxiously.
"Run deeper into the Forbidden Forest, the farther the better."
Just then, a voice that didn't belong to any of them suddenly rang out.
"There's no need to run, Lupin. I've brought the potion for you."
From the direction of Hogwarts Castle, a light tread approached. Snape, with his greasy hair glistening in the moonlight, wore a sardonic expression. He held a vial of potion in one hand and a wand in the other.
Lupin's face lit up with relief.
"How did you know we were here? Thank you, Snape."
But Sherlock wasn't as optimistic. Snape's expression when he looked at Lupin and Sirius Black was far from his usual demeanor. It was a look of intense, burning hatred, similar to how Sirius looked at Peter!
He avoided Lupin's hand that reached for the potion and instead pointed his wand at Sirius Black's chest.
"Compared to delivering the potion, I think I've discovered a much bigger problem", Snape said in a menacing tone. "Two Hogwarts professors and three Gryffindor students sneaking out at night to meet the top Ministry of Magic fugitive! What do you think you're doing?"
"Listen, Severus, we can talk about my situation later. Give the potion to Lupin first! Just give it to him!"
Black had noticed that Lupin, standing next to him, was acting strangely. He shouted, but Snape didn't budge.
"It's better if he turns into a werewolf! The Dementors will be here soon. They'll see the fugitive they're hunting and a werewolf out of control! Can you guess what they'll do?"
A look of satisfaction crossed Snape's face, the thrill of impending revenge!
Suddenly, a flash of red light struck him from behind!
Snape's body stiffened, unable to move.
The wand that had attacked him from behind was the only thing moving, floating in mid-air. After casting the spell, it spun lightly and returned to Sherlock's hand.
"Hurry! Lupin is about to transform!" Sirius Black helped support the kneeling Lupin, urging Sherlock.
Sherlock knew time was of the essence; he had to get Lupin to drink the potion before he transformed into a werewolf!
As he approached the petrified Snape, the ticking of a clock grew louder and louder!
It sounded like a timer counting down, with the second hand about to reach the final moment.
Sherlock had no time to worry about this. He walked quickly to Snape, and just as his hand touched Snape's, the ticking stopped.
Not just the ticking, but everything around him froze!
A leaf that had been blown from a tree hung motionless in the air, as if paused in time.
Sherlock grabbed the potion from Snape's hand. He saw Snape still blinking angrily.
But the others—Sirius Black, who was urgently supporting Lupin, Lupin, who was kneeling on the ground in pain, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who were staring in shock—were all frozen in place.
Sherlock looked around, bewildered.
"What's happening?"
The only other person capable of movement in this scene, Snape, could only blink forcefully.
His eyes were filled with confusion, as he didn't understand what was happening either.
It was then that Sherlock noticed the pendant box he always wore around his neck had somehow opened!
Inside the box was a golden watch, but the face had no time markings. The single hand, when Sherlock saw it, suddenly began to spin wildly in reverse!
(End of Chapter)
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