Chapter 278: The Great Escape Duo
Chapter 278: The Great Escape Duo
"I'm hiding down here too, what can I see?" Gal grumbled, then glanced at the sea in the distance and saw a shark swimming past the ship's side. He quickly retracted his head, startled.
"In any case... that must be a powerful wizard, an Animagus... I saw a bird fly out of the sea."
"What kind of bird?" Lockhart asked again.
"An eagle, perhaps," Gal guessed.
He didn't know much about birds.
The two fell silent for a moment, glancing at each other.
"Peter's dead. What should we do now?"
...
Lockhart's escape from his cell with the stolen wand didn't go unnoticed by the other prisoners, who clamored for him to release them as well.
During his time in prison, Lockhart had not only been subjected to the Dementors' patrols, which drained his happiness and left him in a state of sadness and despair, but he was also frequently subjected to insults and bullying by other inmates.
In this place of moral decay, his fame and good looks did not bring him any advantages; instead, they relegated him to the lowest class.
After escaping, Lockhart did not help his fellow prisoners; instead, he used the Memory Charm on each of them, one by one.
With the power of his spells, he could ensure that those men would spend the rest of their lives as empty-headed fools.
Then, Gal from the cell across the hall called out to him.
Gal was also a relatively minor offender; he was a vampire who knew a bit of magic.
He had been caught stealing blood from a Muggle hospital's blood bank using magic, committing the serious crime of theft and violating the Secrecy Act. He was sent to Azkaban.
Lockhart hadn't planned to release Gal, but Gal's words made him reconsider—
"You can escape your cell, but do you know how to deal with Dementors?"
Lockhart assumed he could cast a Patronus Charm and released him.
However, Gal didn't actually know the advanced Patronus Charm; he hadn't even attended school.
After encountering a Dementor, his only option was to transform into a large bat and ram into the Dementor.
These creatures, which fed on human positive emotions, seemed a bit clumsy when faced with a simple-minded animal.
But after colliding with three Dementors in a row, Gal became so discouraged that he almost turned into a mushroom. Lockhart had no choice but to flee, carrying the dispirited bat on his back.
As they ran, they encountered Peter Pettigrew, who was imprisoned in a specially designed cell.
News about Peter had dominated the headlines for a while, and both Lockhart and Gal recognized this famous betrayer and loyal follower of the Dark Lord.
At that moment, Peter was pacing in his cell, and when he saw the two of them, his small eyes lit up. He rushed forward and grabbed the iron bars, pleading, "Help me! Get me out of here!"
His cell had a window with tightly spaced grids, allowing him to stick out only one finger at most. Food was delivered through a specially designed thin tube.
The floor and walls gleamed with a metallic sheen, and the space was narrow and cramped, but it seemed incredibly sturdy.
The cell's design ensured that Peter couldn't escape, even if he transformed into a rat, but as a result, he suffered greatly.
Seeing that Lockhart and Gal had no intention of unlocking the door, Peter pressed his face against the bars and shouted, "Even if you escape, you'll be fugitives! Apart from... apart from the Dark Lord, who else can protect you? Dumbledore?"
...
In the end, they became a trio.
Peter wanted to release more prisoners, but most of the short-term inmates refused.
Without escaping, they could return to normal society after serving their time. If they escaped and were recaptured, they might end up receiving a Dementor's kiss.
Moreover, the chances of a successful escape were slim.
Azkaban was located in the vast sea, and no one had ever escaped from it before.
Long-term prisoners, almost all of them driven mad by the Dementors, would be of no help and only hinder their escape.
Gal suggested that Peter seek help from his former companions—
Everyone knew that in Azkaban, there was a section where Death Eaters were imprisoned for life. These madmen had been insane before their imprisonment, and even after a decade, they hadn't completely lost their minds.
Peter's face turned pale with fear, and he firmly rejected this crazy suggestion.
The person he feared the most wasn't Voldemort or Dumbledore, but his former Death Eater companions.
Especially that most loyal group... They knew it was Peter who delivered the message to Voldemort, and they also knew that their master disappeared afterward.
In the eyes of some, Peter Pettigrew was the main culprit behind the Dark Lord's disappearance.
For instance, Bellatrix...
If she were released, Peter had no doubt that the insane woman would first torture him with the Cruciatus Curse, and she might even kill him outright.
Only by finding the Dark Lord and under his protection would Peter dare to meet those insane "colleagues."
He painted a rosy picture for Lockhart and Gal—by helping the Dark Lord rise again, they would not only be free of their criminal past but also regain power, wealth, and fame! The Dark Lord was never stingy with his followers!
And so, the three of them began their escape.
Peter and Gal could both transform into animals—rats were easy to hide, and bats could fly, making them almost invisible to the Dementors.
Lockhart didn't have much talent for Animagus magic, but his Memory Charm even worked on the Dementors.
When hit by the charm, the Dementors would forget what they were doing and stand in place for a few minutes, allowing the trio to escape from the magical world's most dangerous prison with their lives.
In the vast sea, swimming back was no easy task. Fortunately, Gal could fly, and he soon found a nearby Muggle fishing boat...
Unfortunately, their luck seemed to end there.
"What do we do now that Peter's dead?" Lockhart asked.
The person who promised to lead them to the Dark Lord was dead, and Lockhart immediately lost his way, unsure of where to go next.
"Let's figure out how to survive in the Muggle world first."
Gal thought for a moment before replying with a grim expression, "The city is so big, it'll be hard for the Ministry to find us... But we can't use magic freely, and we might have to find regular jobs..."
Lockhart deeply missed his fans and bestselling books, but at this moment, he had no other choice but to follow Gal's advice.
The two of them devoured the fishermen's dinner, filling their stomachs.
"What about these fishermen? Should we throw them into the sea too?" Lockhart asked.
"No, leave them. They can provide us with cover. You can use your Memory Charm to make them forget they ever saw us." Gal said worriedly, "Otherwise, if that killer returns..."
The two of them shivered in unison, filled with fear.
After making their decision, they crawled back into the ship's cabin to hide, sailing into the unknown on this old fishing boat.
(End of Chapter)
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