The Grove

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It was around midnight when Albus Dumbledore and Snape were in the director's office.

Snape: Why did you call me, Albus?

Dumbledore: There's something I'd like you to see and share your opinion on.

Snape: Something?

Dumbledore pulled out a test tube containing a gray and white substance.

Snape: A memory.

Dumbledore: Yes, a resident provided this to me. It wasn't very difficult to convince him.

Snape: Before anything else, where did you go with Potter?

Dumbledore: Believe me, it's nothing dangerous.

Snape: So you're not going to tell me?

Dumbledore: I try not to keep too many secrets from you, but this could be dangerous.

Snape: Dangerous? Not telling me what you're planning? Remember, I'm here to gather information.

Dumbledore: I know, and I appreciate that, but I don't want Voldemort to invade your mind and find out. That would put everyone at risk.

Snape: I understand.

Both wizards entered the Pensieve to view the memory.

The memory depicted a fight between Sasuke and Lupin. They watched everything unfold, even the moment when Lupin was torn apart.

Dumbledore: What do you think of this?

Snape: He was testing Lupin's strength, but once he saw no further need, he simply eliminated him.

Dumbledore: What I see is that he doesn't hesitate to kill, even in the presence of others.

Snape: What do you mean?

Dumbledore: He doesn't know mercy.

Snape: Mercy? He was no longer Lupin; he was a werewolf who had killed three people, and the fourth could have been Flitwick.

Dumbledore: I know, but he shows no remorse. You saw him in the Great Hall; he seems indifferent, as if nothing has happened.

Snape: So what do you want? For him to boast about his great achievement?

Dumbledore: Let's forget that; we won't get anywhere. What's more important is knowing how strong he is. You must have a sense of that since you dueled against him.

Snape: He was holding back with me but absorbed everything I did, as if he were copying my techniques. Moreover, I hate to admit it, but he's a genius who will undoubtedly surpass you, Albus. Plus, he creates his own spells.

Dumbledore: I know. I tried to replicate them without a wand, but I couldn't succeed.

Snape: If there's nothing more, I'll take my leave. Goodbye.

Dumbledore: There's one more thing. The way he killed Lupin is identical to that found on the corpse of Peter Pettigrew.

All the portraits of former directors were awake, listening to their conversation...

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The next morning, everyone was having breakfast when the newspaper arrived, featuring a serpent in the sky on the front page. The article detailed the events that took place in Hogsmeade, mentioning three fatalities: the employees and the owner of Zonko's. It also reported 40 injuries, including local residents and Hogwarts students.

Sasuke: It seems they managed to censor the photo of the massacre involving the giants and Death Eaters near the train station, as well as the news of the werewolf transformation without the full moon. They only mentioned the deaths of 20 Death Eaters and three giants, along with the capture of five Death Eaters, he thought as he read the paper.

Despite the newspaper not mentioning the werewolf, the news spread throughout Hogwarts. Everyone looked at Sasuke with admiration, respect, and fear.

Several Ravenclaw students approached the Slytherin table to thank Sasuke for saving their house.

Classes continued as usual, the only inconvenience being the suspension of Charms classes due to Professor Flitwick's health.

Tired of being pursued by fans, Sasuke noticed that whenever he walked, a group of girls followed him, whether in the library or the owlery.

In the end, he managed to escape them by jumping out the window and running toward the Forbidden Forest.

Upon reaching the forest entrance, he leaped from tree to tree as he made his way to the base.

Thirty minutes earlier, beneath the Whomping Willow, Sirius had exited the Shrieking Shack, where he had spent the night. Quickly, he put on the Invisibility Cloak and opened the Marauder's Map.

Sirius: I solemnly swear I am up to no good.

The map began to reveal all the people present in the castle.

The map showed Harry Potter in the Gryffindor common room, accompanied by Ron and Hermione.

Then, another name appeared: Sasuke Uchiha.

On the map, Sasuke was closely followed by several girls. Sirius then saw that Sasuke was leaving the castle.

Sirius: You're making this easy for me, he thought, heading toward the forest to intercept him.

When he arrived at the entrance, he couldn't find him anywhere.

Sirius: What happened? I should have arrived before him or at least seen him enter, he pondered.

Sirius checked the map again, but there was no sign of Sasuke, meaning he had already entered the forest.

Sirius transformed into his Animagus form and picked up Sasuke's scent, although it was fading. He needed to hurry, so he began to run.

Sirius ran for two hours. Finally, he reached the spot where the scent was strongest, then returned to his human form and took out his wand, but found no one there. There was no one around; only dead trees with no leaves and others with green leaves.

Not giving it much thought, he turned around and headed back toward the castle.

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On the other hand, an hour earlier, in the director's office, Dumbledore was with Harry.

Dumbledore: Harry, there's something important I need to tell you.

Harry: What happened, professor?

Dumbledore: The werewolf that attacked Hogsmeade was Remus Lupin.

Harry felt as if the world was spinning around him. In his mind, he thought it couldn't be true; he must have heard wrong. Lupin...

Harry: Professor, please tell me this isn't true, that it's someone else.

Dumbledore: I'm sorry, Harry, but it really was Remus.

Harry couldn't hear Dumbledore's comforting words anymore; his mind was in chaos. One of his father's best friends had died, someone Harry considered a mentor and friend.

Slowly, he made his way to the Gryffindor common room. Upon arriving, he found Ron and Hermione and told them about his conversation with Dumbledore. In addition to expressing his hatred for Sasuke, Hermione remained silent, unsure of what to say.

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