Chapter 322 Please give me your autograph, I won't cry until I see the coffin
"Tsk! Today was truly an eye-opener," Aaron exclaimed, then took out the quill and parchment he used for practicing magic arrays from his pocket and walked over to Pettigrew. "Please, you absolutely must sign this for me. Your will to survive is unlike anything I've ever seen. In the future, when I face insurmountable challenges, thinking of you might just help me persevere."
Pettigrew was dumbfounded. Did this kid not understand the situation?
I'm busy running for my life right now, who has time for autographs?
The others also looked a bit bewildered; Aaron's audacious move had truly shocked them.
"Sign, oh, yes, I can..." Pettigrew stammered, but his gaze swept over Aaron.
There were three Archmages in this room no weaker than him; the possibility of escaping was very low, but if he had a hostage, that would be a different story.
But after a brief thought, he decisively abandoned the idea.
It was too dangerous. Firstly, he didn't have a wand, and secondly, Black, Lupin, and Snape were all staring intently at him, giving him no opportunity to act.
Peter Pettigrew shakily wrote his name on the parchment. Aaron smiled as he put away the autograph, subtly flicking his wand.
Blood suddenly spurted out, and Peter Pettigrew's left thumb fell onto the floor, followed immediately by his agonizing screams.
"My apologies, my apologies," Aaron said with an awkward laugh, wrapping the severed finger in the autograph paper and putting it into his pocket. "I was just so curious about what it was like when you cut off your finger twelve years ago."
"You..."
Pettigrew's gaze at Aaron was filled with more terror, and he couldn't help but take two steps back.
At this moment, the danger Aaron posed to him was no less than Black and Lupin. His almost innate will to survive told him that this child looked harmless, but when it came time to kill, he would absolutely not hesitate.
"Well done," Sirius praised. "While I personally don't much care for Slytherin Wizards, you seem to be an exception."
"Hmph!" Snape sneered, saying coldly, "I'll tentatively believe you."
"The facts are right in front of you; it's useless even if you don't believe us."
"Then you'd best not let him escape."
"He won't, absolutely not," Lupin said, then looked at Peter Pettigrew. "Hello, Peter. Long time no see."
"Remus, Black, my old friends," Peter Pettigrew spread his arms, making a gesture to embrace them, then suddenly rushed towards the door.
Just as Lupin and Black were about to stop him, Aaronkicked him in the stomach.
Peter Pettigrew crashed heavily into the wall, half his body protruding outside the room.
He ignored the physical pain, quickly adjusting himself, wanting to escape the Shrieking Shack through the hole he had created. "Get back here," Aaron waved his wand, and Pettigrew's chubby body rapidly flew backward, landing in the center of the room.
Peter Pettigrew glanced around, then quickly walked over to Harry Potter. "Harry, look at you, you're so much like your father. We were the best of friends."
Before he could finish, Sirius stepped in front of Harry, sharply rebuking, "How dare you speak to Harry, how dare you mention James in front of him!"
Pettigrew quickly tried to hide, but was blocked by Lupin. He and Sirius, with unspoken understanding, cornered him behind a piano.
"You betrayed James and Lily to Lord Voldemort," Lupinsaid, pointing his wand at Pettigrew.
"I didn't want to!" Pettigrew said indignantly. "That Dark Lord, who knows what weapons he had? Ask yourselves, what would you have done?"
"I'd rather die than betray my friends," Sirius said.
Peter Pettigrew scrambled under the piano, intending to make a dash for the door.
But as soon as he lifted his head, he saw Aaron smiling at him.
"You again?" Pettigrew said, exasperated. "Why is it always you?"
Aaron patted his shoulder, gently pulled him out from under the piano, and even brushed the dust off him.
"Don't be nervous, I have a small question I need your help to answer. If you answer well, I will..."
"You'll let me go?"
"How could that be?" Aaron shook his head. "Even if I agreed, they wouldn't. If you answer well, I can make your death a little quicker. Since you serve Lord Voldemort, why didn't you kill Harry Potter?"
Pettigrew trembled. The name of Lord Voldemort had too much sway over him.
"Because, because I am innocent."
Aaron's smile widened. "I'll give you another chance to rephrase your words."
"Alright! I'll tell the truth. Although I am innocent, I was scared!" Pettigrew said uneasily. "I sent Sirius to Azkaban, and You-Know-Who's subordinates would surely try every means to get revenge on me. So I had to protect Harry Potter; only he, the Wizard who defeated You-Know-Who, could contend with him."
Upon hearing this, Aaron raised an eyebrow. He had truly never seen such a shameless person.
"Professor Snape, you should have Truth Serum in your office, right?"
"I don't have that in my office. It might take some time to brew," Snape said thoughtfully.
"Never mind then." Aaron waved his hand, pointing his wand at Pettigrew's chest. "As I said before, I'm quite good at Crucio."
Pettigrew's face changed drastically. "You, you can't..."
"Cruciatus Curse!"
"Ah ah ah..."
Pettigrew fell to the ground, emitting a bloodcurdling scream. His body twitched constantly, his face contorted, becoming particularly hideous.
Everyone watched this scene with complex expressions, but no one cried out for him to stop. In fact, they all secretly felt a sense of satisfaction; this is how a traitor should be treated.
"Stop, I, I'll talk!" Pettigrew shrieked, enduring immense Pain!.
Aaron lifted the spell, carefully pulling him up. "If you had been so sensible earlier, you wouldn't have had to suffer this physical pain, would you? A word of advice: don't lie."
"I wouldn't dare," Pettigrew stammered. "This is true, I would not harm Harry Potter, because James and Lily..."
Pettigrew was about to explain when Aaron impatiently rolled his eyes. "Cruciatus Curse!"
Another series of bloodcurdling screams followed. Aarononly stopped casting when Pettigrew was on the verge of unconsciousness, sneering at him, "Can you tell the truth now?"
Pettigrew nodded tremblingly. "Because of Dumbledore. He's the person You-Know-Who fears most. I wouldn't dare kill someone right under his nose."
"There's more to it than that!" Sirius sneered. "The reason you chose a Wizarding family was so you could keep your ears open for information. No one would suspect a poor rat. Once you were sure Lord Voldemort would rise again and become the overlord, you would hand over the last of the Potters. Then no one would blame you for Lord Voldemortlosing his magic and disappearing for twelve years. On the contrary, you would become the greatest hero."
"Impressive," Aaron said, giving a thumbs up. At least he couldn't have been so cowardly, even preparing a bargaining chip for his comeback.
Pettigrew opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but was speechless.
His eyes darted around, then he suddenly knelt down and crawled to Harry. "Harry, James wouldn't want me to die. Your father would spare me, spare my life."
"How dare you speak to Harry?" Sirius roared.
Pettigrew immediately changed targets, crawling to Ron. "Ron, I was your pet, a good pet, a good rat. You wouldn't let them kill me, would you?"
Ron immediately moved his leg away, not letting him touch it.
The thought of having kept such a person for twelve years made him sick, and the thought of him sleeping in his bed made him nauseous.
Pettigrew turned around, staggering and crawling towards Hermione, tears of grievance on his face. "Clever girl..."
"I advise you to stay away from her," Aaron said indifferently. "Being ugly is one thing, but being ugly and still offending people's eyes is a bit too presumptuous."
Pettigrew shivered, placing his last hope on Snape. He tugged at Snape's robes. "Severus, you have to save me. You hate Sirius and Lupin, right?"
"Yes, but I don't like you either."
"No, Severus!" Pettigrew became frantic. "You must save me, we..."
"Hmm?" Snape gave him a cold look. "You'd best not babble nonsense."
Aaron's heart skipped a beat. He immediately went up and slapped him twice, then punched out two of his front teeth. "Mr. Black, Professor Lupin, I imagine you'd be very happy to avenge your dear friend!"
"Of course," Sirius said decisively, then walked over to Ron, taking his wand from his hand. "Just borrowing this. I'll return it to you after I've killed him."
Lupin and Sirius simultaneously aimed their wands at Pettigrew. "You should have known, Peter. If Lord Voldemortdidn't kill you, we would."
"No!" Harry suddenly shouted. "You can't kill him."
"Harry," Lupin said, surprised. "This man, he is..."
"I know what he is. Take him to the Castle. Let the Dementors deal with him. He can go to Azkaban."
"Thank you, child," Pettigrew said, as if granted a great pardon. For him, living was the most important thing; the manner of living didn't matter. Moreover, his case was particularly complex, and it wouldn't be easy to sort out, so he might even find an opportunity to escape!
"There's no need for that," Aaron chuckled. "If you want to prove Black's innocence, a corpse will do the same."
Pettigrew:...You're a devil, aren't you? Not giving me any chance at all?
"But a living person is more convincing than a dead one," Harry said. "My dad wouldn't want them both to become murderers."
Sirius and Lupin exchanged glances, then reluctantly lowered their wands.
"Harry, you have the right to make this decision," Sirius said in a deep voice, "but he truly doesn't deserve it."
"That's why he's going to Azkaban. That's where people like him belong."
"Professor, the truth is out," Aaron said, shrugging at Snape. "You're the most suitable person here to handle this absurd miscarriage of justice."
"Gaius, next time if you have something to say, you can tell me directly; there's no need to beat around the bush," Snapesaid indifferently, then stood up from his chair. "Tie them up and hand them over to Dumbledore."