"The face changed, but the scent didn't." Sirius grinned, showing his yellowed teeth. "I thought you'd failed, until I saw your wanted poster. I didn't expect you to infiltrate the Ministry of Magic and become an Auror. What, are you here to catch me?"
Both of them were escaped prisoners from Azkaban, yet their circumstances couldn't have been more different.
"Scent? I hadn't considered that." Elijah seemed quite pleased to discover a flaw in his transformation. "But you… you're living rather miserably, aren't you?"
"Miserably? Anywhere is better than Azkaban." Sirius gave a self-mocking laugh. "I just hate that the rat is hiding so well. The moment he heard about me, he must have gone into hiding. I can't exactly walk into Hogwarts openly."
He had been free for nearly two months and still hadn't found Pettigrew. Recently, however, he had come across a clever boy and intended to turn him into an ally.
The only safe path into Hogwarts for him was through the Shrieking Shack. All other secret passages led directly into the castle, which was far too dangerous. It was a shame the map had been confiscated by Filch back when they were students. Otherwise, things would have been much easier.
"You didn't try to meet Harry?" Elijah asked. Pettigrew held little interest for him. Sooner or later, that traitor would meet his end.
"I… I've seen him. From a distance." Sirius's voice slowed, and sorrow filled his expression. "He looks so much like James."
"Is that so? And you never thought about revealing yourself to him?"
"I…" Sirius hesitated.
"You could give him a home, Sirius. Just like the Potters took you in when you left the Black family," Elijah said. "Harry needs a home."
Harry could be reckless at times, but that didn't change the fact that he was a good child. Elijah regarded Harry and his friends as his own, and he wanted to fix what he could.
But Sirius faltered.
He had escaped Azkaban, yet he couldn't escape the guilt in his heart.
"What right do I have? If it weren't for me… he would've had a family…"
"Then now you have the chance to make amends," Elijah replied calmly. "You've seen Privet Drive. He's not treated well by the Dursleys. James Potter didn't leave them with fond impressions."
"But he… he…" Sirius looked deeply uncertain. "Do you think he would forgive me?"
"Let me ask you something instead," Elijah said. "Do you really think he would blame you?"
"Why wouldn't he? If it weren't for my suggestion, maybe they wouldn't have…" Pain filled Sirius's face.
"Then you're underestimating Harry," Elijah said quietly. "He's a good child. He'll know who the real traitor is, and who truly killed his parents. And he'll be happy to have someone who cares for him. Not just a relative by blood, but someone who genuinely loves him."
Sirius fell silent.
Just then, there was a knock at the door.
Elijah quickly resumed his disguise as John Dolores and opened the door slightly.
"Ribs and Butterbeer," Madam Rosmerta said.
"Thank you."
Elijah took the tray and shut the door again. He set the food on the table and picked up a Butterbeer, taking a sip. The drink was sweet and slightly sticky, but not overly so, and the taste was pleasant.
"Eat something first. I imagine you've been digging through rubbish bins for the past two months."
"Not always," Sirius muttered, sitting down and starting on the food. Avoiding the previous topic seemed to ease him. He didn't fear Death Eaters, or even the Dark Lord himself, but when it came to James Potter's son, he felt nothing but fear.
In truth, it was nothing more than cowardice.
Sirius took a large gulp of Butterbeer, swallowed a mouthful of meat, and suddenly seemed to recall something. He looked up at Elijah with a serious expression.
"Oh, right… you need to tell me something."
"Uh-ha."
"What's this about the heir of the Chamber of Secrets?" Sirius demanded.
"You know about it?"
"It's hard not to. Ever since your escape, every Auror I've run into while they were hunting us has been talking about it. You're the heir of Slytherin. You controlled a giant Basilisk and wreaked havoc at Hogwarts, attacking several Muggle-born wizards!"
Because of how well he got along with Elijah, Sirius sometimes forgot that the man in front of him had once been a prisoner in Azkaban.
Due to the Unbreakable Vow, he hadn't been able to ask about Elijah's past before. But now that the contract had ended, he could naturally inquire about what had happened.
"I don't think you're that kind of person. Could it be that, like me, you were also wronged?"
"No. I am responsible for the Chamber of Secrets incident. At least this time. The attack fifty years ago had nothing to do with me," Elijah said calmly. "What's wrong? Regretting helping me escape from Azkaban?"
The Chamber of Secrets affair was extremely complicated, especially from the Ministry's perspective. It was essentially the reappearance of the "Riddle" who had vanished fifty years ago. Although Elijah had been put on trial, the Ministry deliberately concealed the truth about the earlier incident.
As a result, most wizards only knew fragments. In their understanding, "Tom Riddle" had released the Basilisk, and the whole matter eventually became just another minor chapter in Dumbledore's long list of achievements.
"Controlling a Basilisk more powerful than a phoenix, yet not killing a single person… do you think someone like you needs worrying about?" Sirius scoffed. "All I care about is killing Pettigrew. The rest has nothing to do with me."
"Fine. You can stay here tonight. I'm leaving," Elijah said as he stood.
"Leaving? You're not staying?"
"Staying here? With you?" Elijah looked at him as if he were ridiculous.
Did Sirius really think he would ignore Tonks back at the Hog's Head and stay here instead?
Only a fool would do that.
Just as he reached for the door, the temperature in the room suddenly dropped. At the same time, hurried footsteps echoed from outside.
Both Elijah and Sirius immediately tensed.
Sirius dropped the rib in his hand and shrank back into his Animagus form, becoming a large black dog.
Knock, knock, knock.
There was a sharp knock at the door.
"Open up. Aurors and Dementors," Madam Rosmerta's annoyed voice called from outside.
Seeing Sirius already transformed, Elijah opened the door.
A faceless black figure lunged in instantly.
A freezing chill cut into his body like a blade.
"Expecto Patronum!"
Silver threads of light burst from the tip of John Dolores's wand, forcing the Dementor backward and slamming it against the opposite wall.
"Get out, you filthy thing!"
The silver glow burned like fire. The Dementor shrieked silently and fled in panic.
Rosmerta and the Auror behind her were both startled. The Auror even instinctively raised his wand, ready to engage.
"It's me."
Elijah had already stepped out.
"John Dolores? What are you doing here?" the Auror asked, surprised. Since they were both Aurors, there was no need to search him. "I didn't know you could cast a Patronus."
"The Hog's Head doesn't have any spare rooms," Elijah replied, glancing at the retreating Dementor with distaste. "It's not like I can share one with Tonks."
"I really don't know how long this will go on."
"Tell me about it," the Auror sighed. "Patrolling with these things every day drains all the joy out of life."
"Fudge is being reckless," Rosmerta snapped. "These Dementors are going to cause trouble sooner or later! I heard he even sent them to Hogwarts. He's lost his mind!"
As someone outside the Ministry, she had no reservations about criticizing him, though the Auror looked somewhat uncomfortable.
"What else can he do?" Elijah said with a faint, disdainful smile. Fudge's incompetence was no secret, but with Dumbledore absent for months, he had tasted power and was unwilling to let it go.
"Don't say that inside the Ministry," the Auror warned quietly. "You'll never get promoted."
He then added, "At least Dementors are better than Sirius. He's a madman. More than ten years ago, he killed so many people with a single spell—"
"Speaking of Sirius," Rosmerta said thoughtfully, "I still can't believe he turned out to be a Death Eater. Of all people, he was the last one I would have expected. Back when he was at Hogwarts… if someone had told me then, I would've thought they were drunk."
"Exactly! A complete madman," the Auror agreed. "He must've snapped. Otherwise, why go insane only after the Dark Lord fell? And he even killed Pettigrew. They were so close at school…"
Inside the room, Sirius listened, his ears twitching. At that, he let out several furious barks.
"What, you've got a dog in there?" the Auror asked.
"A stray," Elijah replied, opening the door wider to reveal the gaunt black dog. "It looked pitiful, so I brought it in and got it some food."
Sirius bared his teeth at the Auror.
"Doesn't look very friendly," the Auror chuckled. He said his goodbyes, and Rosmerta followed, her heels clicking against the floor as she went downstairs.
Elijah closed the door.
"You seriously need to learn to control your temper, Sirius."
"Control my temper?" Sirius laughed bitterly. "I must've been blind! It's my fault I didn't notice that rat's stench back then! Do you know, we even suspected Remus? We thought he couldn't be trusted—"
Elijah let him vent without interruption.
After a while, Sirius quieted down, whether from exhaustion or the realization that no amount of anger would harm Pettigrew in the slightest.
Elijah glanced out the window.
Night had fallen over Hogsmeade. Dark clouds blanketed the sky, leaving not a trace of light, as if heralding the return of something ominous.
...
Night shrouded the dark forests of Albania.
A staggering figure emerged from the depths of the woods, moving in a twisted, unnatural manner.
On closer inspection, his eyes were vacant, his body like that of a puppet without a soul. His face seemed to carry a faint double image, as though something else overlapped it.
In his hand, he clutched a tattered newspaper from over a month ago. The headline, written by Rita Skeeter—"The Second Escapee! Is Azkaban Really as Safe as We Imagine?"—stood out glaringly.
The body swayed as a hoarse, astonished voice escaped from it:
"He… has returned…"