Chapter 754: Speculation and Possibilities
Chapter 754: Speculation and Possibilities
"Sirius Black, armed with a knife, broke into Gryffindor Tower with the intent to assassinate Harry Potter?"
Yawning, Albert listened to Fred, George, and Lee Jordan recount the night's events. Tilting his head, he gazed at the intact portrait passage and asked, "How did Black manage to enter the Gryffindor common room without the password?"
"Lupin wrote the password on a piece of paper, which Ron then lost. Black must have found it," Lee Jordan said, offering around a packet of toad-shaped mints from his robe pocket. He popped one into his mouth, causing his voice to become slightly muffled as he continued, "You weren't there, but Professor McGonagall was furious. She was so angry her voice was shaking."
"Ron mentioned losing the piece of paper with the password on it a few days ago," Albert said, reaching out to stroke Tom, who was napping at the edge of the table. He looked around the crowded common room and asked, "By the way, you guys must have stayed up all night. Why aren't you back in your dorms resting? Are you waiting to hear if they've caught Black?"
"Yeah, everyone's waiting for news," Fred replied, holding a cup of hot, creamy milk tea and a small plate with the previous night's leftover egg custard pies. "Do you think Black could get away again?"
"The chances of capturing Black are slim," Albert said without hesitation. "If the professors had managed to catch him, I think you would have heard about it by now."
"Actually, I'm more curious as to why Black didn't kill Ron and instead continued to look for Harry," George said, voicing the question on his mind.
"Are you hoping your little brother gets murdered by Black?" Lee Jordan retorted with a roll of his eyes.
"Black has a history of killing innocents, dating back twelve years," George pointed out. "Facing five sleeping boys, Black could have easily killed them all. When someone is driven by hatred and is so close to fulfilling their vengeance, I don't think they'd easily give up such an opportunity."
"Maybe Black was worried about being trapped in the castle," Angelina added, joining the discussion. "If they woke up, it would be difficult for him to escape."
"I don't think Black is afraid of death," said Alicia, agreeing with George. "If he was, he wouldn't have dared to break into Hogwarts to assassinate Harry in the first place. There's something odd about what happened tonight. And don't forget, according to your brother, Black had a knife, which means he didn't have his wand. A wizard without their wand can't use their full power. This was probably Black's only chance for revenge, yet he gave it up."
"He could have easily taken a wand from one of the boys in the room," said George. "I believe that a criminal who can escape from Azkaban Prison would also be able to find a way to flee Hogwarts before the professors reacted."
"He'd have to kill everyone in the school, and he might run into teachers..." Angelina realized her reasoning was becoming less convincing.
"If I were Sirius Black," Albert said, pointing to the window beside them, "I'd blast the window open and jump out. Trying to escape through the portrait passage is just plain stupid. If Black were that foolish, I think the Dementors would have caught him by now."
"But this is at least..."
Alya suddenly trailed off, realizing that a fall from seven or eight stories wouldn't be a problem for a wizard. After all, Harry had survived a similar fall in the past.
The worst that could happen would be death, but would a reckless fugitive like Black truly fear that?
Obviously not.
"There are indeed many suspicious aspects to this incident," Fred said, watching as Ron recounted the night's events to others. "There are many ways to unravel the doubts, but for now, I'll ask the questions, and you answer. Give me all the reasons you can think of, no matter how absurd."
With a wave of his wand, Albert conjured a notebook and a quill, which began to write in the notebook of its own accord.
"First question:
Why do you think Black didn't kill Ron or the others in the dormitory, instead of giving up his revenge on Harry?"
The quill scribbled down these words.
"Maybe he didn't want to kill innocent people?" Angelina suggested. "Or perhaps he was worried that if the other students woke up, he'd be trapped in the castle?"
"What about you guys?" Albert asked the others.
They furrowed their brows in thought but couldn't come up with a satisfactory answer. The whole situation was highly suspicious.
"Maybe Black is actually a good person," Fred said with a laugh, "and he came to bring a gift to Potter, but he just couldn't find Harry's bed."
"Could it be that his mind is confused, and his first instinct is to run away?" Lee Jordan offered. "Most people's first reaction to danger is to turn and flee. After all, Black has been hunted by Dementors and Aurors for so long that such a reaction wouldn't be unusual."
Albert recorded these suggestions with his quill and then said, "If I were Black, I definitely wouldn't give up such a good opportunity."
"Maybe Black wasn't there to kill Harry, or perhaps Harry wasn't his target?"
George tried to dig for more possibilities.
"Black broke into Harry's dormitory with clear intentions. If his target wasn't Harry, then who could it be? Obviously, it couldn't be Ron, or else he would've had his throat slit."
"Don't forget, Dad once mentioned that Black mumbled in his sleep: 'He's at Hogwarts.' Who do you think he was referring to? Harry? No, that's just our speculation," George continued. "The only certainty is that Black wanted to kill someone within that dormitory."
"How do you think Black got the password?" Albert asked. "To be honest, I find it hard to believe that Lupin simply misplaced the password, which Black conveniently found. There aren't that many coincidences in this world."
Fred, George, and Lee Jordan exchanged glances, as if they had thought of something. "Are you suggesting that Black has an accomplice within the school?"
Everyone looked a bit uneasy, as this guess was close to the truth.
"And that person altered Lupin's memory?"
"Very likely."
"Lupin is forgetful, so it would be hard to spot any inconsistencies."
"Do you think it's possible for Black to disguise himself as one of the professors?" Shan'na interjected. "As far as I know, there's a Polyjuice Potion that can make one person look like another."
"Who do you find suspicious?"
"Professor Lupin." Shan'na replied without hesitation. "Although he's a decent professor, something always happens with the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher each year."
"Polyjuice Potion is possible, but it's time-consuming to brew," Albert recorded this and then asked, "Does anyone else have other ideas?"
"Transforming into a small animal, like someone's pet?"
"If Black could turn into a cat, he wouldn't need the password, and of course, it could be a disguise."
"Whose pet is newly acquired?" Angelina asked.
"Hermione's cat." George said, "And it's been chasing after Ron's rat."
"So, Black disguised himself as Hermione's cat to actually hunt down Ron's rat?" Shan'na said, and everyone felt that this sounded absurd.
"How did Black enter the castle?" Albert asked.
"Secret passages!" Fred, George, and Lee Jordan said in unison.
After seeing everyone's gaze, they lowered their voices. "It must be through the secret passages. I don't think he would have blatantly broken into the castle."
"Using a flying broomstick." Angelina said.
"Or transforming into a bird and flying into the castle," Shan'na speculated.
"Or using some weird magic. After all, who knows if he learned any tricks from the mysterious person?" Alya reminded them.
"Lastly, how did he evade the Dementors?"
"Disillusionment Charm?" Fred said, then shook his head, remembering that Dumbledore had mentioned that invisibility spells didn't work on Dementors.
"Did the Dementors let him out on purpose?"
"He disguised himself as someone or something?"
Everyone fell silent as they recalled Shan'na's speculation—that Black had disguised himself as someone and was hiding within Hogwarts.
"But how did he escape from Azkaban?"
"Actually, to judge if a professor is suspicious, just observe if they frequently drink from a bottle. Polyjuice Potion usually only lasts for an hour, so they would need to drink it regularly to avoid being exposed."
"No." "No." "No."
"As far as I remember, none of the professors have done that."
Everyone searched their memories and shook their heads. Such a thing couldn't be completely hidden, at least not without a trace.
"So, the possibility of him disguising himself as a professor is low. He probably has an accomplice."
"Okay, let me summarize." Albert quickly scanned his notes and said, "What we can be certain of is this: Black indeed wants to kill someone, and that person is within Hogwarts, in Harry's dormitory. Black escaped from Azkaban Prison for this purpose. He knows about certain secret passages in the castle, even those known by Filch, allowing him to enter and exit the castle unnoticed. Black has an accomplice within Hogwarts who helped him obtain the Gryffindor common room password, and he is able to disguise himself in a way that evades the detection of the Dementors."
"I think we're getting close to the truth. Once we narrow down the suspects, we can uncover the truth by finding out who Black wants to kill or who his accomplice is."
"Aside from Harry, I really can't think of anyone else Black would want to kill."
"But Black gave up on killing the others." Shan'na reminded them, "Assuming Black is a good person, who would he want to kill?"
"How could Black possibly be a good person?" Alya found this absurd. "If he were a good person, how could he have been imprisoned in Azkaban for over a decade? If he were innocent, the first thing he would've done after escaping would be to prove his innocence and clear his name, not come to Hogwarts to kill someone."
(End of Chapter)
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