Chapter 797: What is Going on in This World?
Chapter 797: What is Going on in This World?
In the darkness, Sirius Black opened his eyes and found himself waking up in a comfortable and soft bed.
Sirius sat up abruptly, looking around. The surroundings were pitch-black, and he could not see anything.
This was definitely not Azkaban prison.
If the Ministry of Magic had caught him, they would have surely handed him over to the Dementors to have his soul sucked out.
"Where am I?"
Sirius quietly transformed into a black dog, allowing himself to see clearly in the darkness.
Lupin lay on the bed next to him, while Harry and his friends were on the opposite beds.
"Am I... in the school hospital?"
At this moment, Sirius's head was in a muddle. He couldn't understand why he was in the school hospital, racking his brains to recall what had happened before he lost consciousness.
Someone must have brought him here, but why hadn't they turned him over to the Ministry of Magic? Even if they were waiting for the Ministry officials to arrive, they should have kept him locked up securely instead of leaving him unattended in the hospital.
"Are you awake?"
A sudden voice in the darkness interrupted Black's thoughts.
Sirius twitched his ears and looked around again, but still couldn't locate the source of the voice.
"Over here, on the table. Look at the photo," the voice prompted.
Sirius followed the voice and his eyes landed on a photo on the bedside cabinet. He recognized the person in the photo—his great-grandfather, Phineas Nigellus Black.
"You're really an unreliable fellow," Phineas complained, looking at the dog's head that had leaned closer. "You actually need a deceased person like me to help solve your problems. Oh, and could you please turn back into a human? I don't like talking to a dog."
Sirius didn't want to pay attention to the nagging man in the photo and was considering whether to make a run for it when Phineas' words pulled his attention back.
"If you want to know your situation, let me finish speaking. This is much better than you blindly causing a ruckus here," Phineas said.
"Make it quick," Sirius replied curtly.
Sirius transformed back into a human, took the photo, and walked to Lupin's bedside. He picked up his wand from the cabinet and lit a faint light. His gaze swept over his old friend's face, and he couldn't help but feel concerned about Lupin's frail appearance.
"I found someone to help clear your name as a wanted criminal, which is why you're standing here talking to me instead of being thrown into Azkaban," Phineas Black muttered. "Well, you can't be thrown into Azkaban anymore. If the Ministry of Magic catches you, they will definitely kill you directly."
"Cleared my name?"
Sirius turned his gaze from Lupin to the elderly man in the photo, asking in confusion, "What do you mean?"
"It means exactly that," Phineas replied impatiently.
Sirius could hardly believe his ears. He clenched his teeth, his voice hoarse as he asked, "This sounds absurd. How is this possible?"
"While you were unconscious, Mr. Albert Anderson captured Peter Pettigrew and handed him over to the Ministry of Magic. He also helped clear your name through Dumbledore," Phineas' voice was calm, but there was a hint of pride and emotion in his tone. "So, you are no longer a wanted criminal."
Sirius widened his eyes, unable to believe that this news was true. It was too good to be true.
"Now, all you need to do is transfer five thousand Galleons to Mr. Anderson's vault at Gringotts as soon as possible," Phineas warned sternly. "Although I took the liberty of promising this on your behalf, don't even think about backing out of this debt. Mr. Anderson was kind enough to let you go and even saved your life and that of your godson, Harry Potter. Make sure to express your gratitude properly when you have the chance."
"What's this about five thousand Galleons?"
Sirius Black was still a bit dazed, but he remembered the name—Albert Anderson. This person had saved him, saved Harry, captured Peter Pettigrew, cleared his name, and restored his honor.
"Of course, it's the price for Mr. Anderson's help. You're not friends, and you don't even know each other. Naturally, he wouldn't help you for free. This price is already very cheap, so be content," Phineas explained.
Phineas proceeded to tell Sirius what he knew, although he didn't know exactly how Albert had accomplished these things. Nonetheless, he could piece things together.
"I understand. I'll write to Gringotts later and ask them to help transfer five thousand Galleons to Mr. Albert Anderson's vault," Sirius said, finally regaining his senses after a long while.
Although he hadn't been able to take revenge on Peter Pettigrew with his own hands to avenge James and Lily, the current outcome was undoubtedly the best. As Phineas had said, he truly needed to express his gratitude to Albert—for not turning him in to the Ministry of Magic for the ten thousand Galleon reward; for saving him and Harry from the Dementors, preventing them from having their souls sucked out and becoming soulless shells; for firmly stopping the Ministry's Aurors, giving him the chance to wait for Dumbledore and plead for a chance to clear his name; and for giving him a brand new life.
This gratitude could not be expressed with a mere five thousand Galleons.
As for Mr. Anderson, Sirius had already guessed who he was.
He was sure that the student who had stared at the black dog in the alley the other day was none other than him.
Although he hadn't gotten to experience the satisfaction of taking revenge himself, Sirius was still looking forward to a fresh start and a new life! "Get married and have a few kids soon. Don't let the Black family line die out. Your brother, Regulus, is already dead, and you're the only one left in the direct line of the Black family."
Sirius stuffed the photo of Phineas into his pocket and, with the faint light from his wand, made his way to Harry's side to check on his godson.
The person on the right bed next to Harry began to stir. As Ron opened his eyes, he noticed a faint glow in the darkness coming from the left. He turned his head and saw a figure sitting at Harry's bedside, who also happened to look up at the same time.
In that instant, the figure before him overlapped with the image of Black, who had burst into the dormitory with a knife in hand.
"Ahhhh!"
A piercing scream reverberated through the school hospital, immediately rousing Madam Pomfrey, who had been sleeping in the adjacent room.
"What's going on?"
A half-asleep Madam Pomfrey, clad in her pajamas, hurried into the ward, wand at the ready.
"B-Black!"
Ron raised the arm that wasn't wrapped in bandages and pointed at Black, who was standing by Harry's bed. "He's Sirius Black!"
"Calm down, Weasley," Madam Pomfrey chided, shooting a reproachful glance at Sirius for causing a ruckus in the middle of the night. She administered a calming draught to Ron before explaining, "Mr. Black is no longer a wanted criminal. He's innocent."
In fact, when Madam Pomfrey had first learned of this news, she had been equally bewildered.
Later, Dumbledore personally explained the situation to her, and it took a considerable amount of time for Madam Pomfrey to accept what was being presented as the "truth."
"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Sirius said helplessly. He truly hadn't intended to scare Ron; he knew that others were still unaware of his restored reputation and continued to view him as a fugitive.
"If you're innocent, why did you break into our dormitory with a knife?" Ron persisted, unable to let go of the traumatic incident.
"I was looking for your pet, that rat named Scabbers," Sirius explained to the still anxious Ron. "He's actually a wizard named Peter Pettigrew, and his Animagus form is a rat."
"Peter Pettigrew is already dead," Ron argued, finding the whole situation absurd.
"No, he's alive," Sirius countered, unperturbed by Ron's distrustful gaze. "He's currently imprisoned in Azkaban by the Ministry of Magic. Otherwise, how do you think I managed to clear my name?" His voice was hoarse as he added, "You'll probably read about it in tomorrow's issue of the Daily Prophet."
Ron wore a baffled expression, completely at a loss as to what was happening. How could the world have turned upside down while he slept?
In fact, it wasn't just him who was bewildered. Soon, the entire school hospital, and even the entire British wizarding world, would be equally confounded.
They couldn't comprehend how Sirius Black, the vicious fugitive who had been wanted by the Ministry of Magic just the day before, had suddenly transformed overnight into a tragic hero who had silently guarded Harry Potter for twelve years. And how had Peter Pettigrew, once hailed as a hero, turned out to be a traitor and the murderer of the Potter family?
Aside from a select few who knew the whole truth, the rest of the wizarding world was destined to remain perplexed after reading the morning edition of the Daily Prophet.
What was going on in this world?
...
Harry bolted upright in bed, his eyes darting around the room in alarm. To his dismay, he found himself in the school hospital, and even more unsettling was the disheveled middle-aged man sitting by his bedside—a man he instantly recognized as Sirius Black.
"Y-you... How did you get here?" Harry edged backward, trying to put distance between himself and Sirius while simultaneously reaching for his wand.
"Sorry, it seems I've startled you," Sirius said, his gaze taking in his disheveled appearance. "Remus was right; I should've changed into something more presentable before coming to see you."
"Why are you here?" Harry remained tense, as Sirius still conjured images of a ruthless fugitive in his mind.
"I'm free," Sirius replied, handing the newspaper to Harry. "Peter Pettigrew has been imprisoned in Azkaban by the Ministry of Magic, so my name has been cleared. I'm no longer a wanted criminal."
Harry looked at the front-page news of the latest issue of the Daily Prophet, then back at Sirius, his mouth hanging open as he struggled to find words.
To be honest, Harry's mind was in a complete muddle. How could the world have changed so drastically while he slept?
The once-feared fugitive had now somehow become a tragic hero. The reason for Sirius Black's escape from Azkaban was to protect him—it all seemed utterly ridiculous, and yet it was apparently true. Harry couldn't help but question his own sanity.
"I know it's a lot to take in," Sirius said, a bitter smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "To be honest, I only learned about all of this myself not long ago."
When Sirius had first awakened, he found himself lying in a bed at Hogwarts and had even contemplated sneaking away.
Finally, it was his great-grandfather, Phineas, whom he had never liked very much, who explained everything to him.
It took Sirius a long time to accept this absurd answer when he learned that Phineas had paid someone to help clear his name.
"So you're innocent, and Peter Pettigrew, Scabbers, is the traitor who betrayed my parents?" Harry asked tentatively.
"Yes." Black said guiltily, "I'm sorry, if it weren't for me, Peter wouldn't have succeeded."
"Is Scabbers really still alive? Is he really Ron's pet rat?" Harry asked eagerly, wanting to know the truth.
"Yes, he's alive." Sirius said softly, "To be honest, I'm still very confused myself. It was only recently that I found out Mr. Anderson had captured Peter and helped restore my reputation."
"Mr. Anderson?" Harry asked with wide eyes. "Do you mean Albert Anderson?"
"Yes, if there's no one else at Hogwarts with that name, it must be him." Sirius said, feeling very emotional about this matter.
"Albert Anderson?"
Harry's head was still spinning, and he listened to Black in a daze.
"What happened after I passed out?"
"I'm not sure." Sirius hesitated for a moment before changing the subject, "I don't know if anyone has told you, but I'm your godfather."
"Yes, I know." Harry said dryly.
"Now that I've cleared my name, if you want a different home..." Black said as he secretly observed Harry's expression, although he tried to hide his anxiety, he didn't do a very good job.
However, Harry didn't notice the change in Sirius' expression and was instead attracted by his proposal.
"Live with you?" Harry asked incredulously, "Leave the Dursleys?"
"Yes." Black nodded, "Of course, if you want to continue living with your aunt and uncle, I understand."
"Are you crazy?" Harry said hoarsely, "Of course, I want to leave the Dursleys!"
At this moment, Harry felt like he had been struck by luck. He was finally going to leave the Dursleys and live with Black, his parents' best friend.
The excitement made Harry feel dizzy. He wondered what expressions the Dursleys would have if he told them he was going to live with the wanted criminal they had seen on TV.
However, Harry still didn't understand what was going on.
Sirius didn't know much either, and he told Harry what he knew.
"So, Ron's pet rat is Peter Pettigrew? That's why Hermione's cat, Crookshanks, kept staring at Scabbers? And it was a cat, not Professor Lupin, who helped you break into the castle?" Harry asked, feeling more and more incredulous as he listened, especially about Hermione's cat helping Black steal Neville's note and placing the owl order.
And the crossbow really was a gift from Sirius.
But what really left Harry dumbfounded was yet to come—the reason Albert was willing to help Sirius clear his name was that Sirius' great-grandfather had paid him five thousand Galleons as compensation.
"Harry, I'm able to be here talking to you thanks to Mr. Anderson. He helped me out of a tight spot, and it's only right that I pay him some money." Sirius said with a bitter smile, "Actually, Mr. Anderson had his eye on me a long time ago. If he cared about the reward, he would have turned me in to the Ministry of Magic a long time ago, but he didn't. He seemed to have discovered Peter's presence. Later, he drove away a large group of Dementors and saved our lives. I heard he even took down the Ministry's Aurors with his friends... Anyway, Mr. Anderson gave me a brand new life."
Harry listened to Black with his mouth hanging open the whole time.
"After receiving that money, Mr. Anderson seemed to have divided it among the few friends who were with him last night. I heard they plan to use the money to open a shop to realize their dreams." Sirius expressed his gratitude and admiration for Albert, "He also took out a large sum of Galleons to hire Lupin, allowing him to live a decent life for quite some time after quitting his job. I need to make time to thank him properly."
"I see." Harry nodded stiffly, "Wait, you said Professor Lupin resigned?"
"Yes, he resigned himself. He should be packing his things in his office right now." Black said softly, "I'll be leaving with him later."
"Why?" Harry asked in surprise.
"Snape told everyone this morning that Lupin is a werewolf." Black said angrily, his teeth clenched at the thought, "If Lupin didn't resign, Dumbledore's office would be flooded with owls from concerned parents. No one would want their children taught by a werewolf, and he doesn't want to take that risk. Who knows what would have happened if it weren't for Albert."
Black continued, "Dumbledore used Snape's Veritaserum to make Peter tell the truth. I think for that guy, losing the best opportunity to send me to Azkaban and having my name cleared thanks to his potion must have been a huge blow, so he did that to get back at Lupin."
(End of Chapter)
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