Immortal Magic (Book 1)

Chapter Twenty-Four

Allison's Point of View.

"You're mental," Ron said flatly, staring between Sirius and Professor Lupin like they had both completely lost their minds. Harry and Hermione looked equally horrified.

"That," Lupin said calmly, nodding toward Scabbers, "is precisely why I wanted to see the rat." "Peter Pettigrew is dead," Harry snapped, pointing furiously at Sirius. "Black killed him twelve years ago."

Sirius let out a harsh laugh from where he stood. "I meant to," he muttered darkly, glaring at the trembling rat in Lupin's hands. "But Pettigrew got the better of me."

He suddenly lunged forward, but Lupin quickly stepped between him and Ron. "Sirius, no," Lupin warned firmly. "They need to understand first." 

"We can explain later," Sirius growled. "No," Lupin said sharply. "Harry deserves the truth. And Allison deserves to know why you've supposedly been hunting her all year."

At that, Sirius finally stilled. After a long moment, he gave a stiff nod. "Tell them whatever you want," he said bitterly. "But once you're done, I'm finishing what I was sent to Azkaban for."

"There were witnesses," Harry argued immediately. "An entire street full of them saw you kill Pettigrew."

"They saw what Pettigrew wanted them to see," Sirius shot back. Lupin stepped forward quietly. "Everyone believed Sirius killed Peter," he admitted. "Even I did for years." He looked down at the rat in his hands.

"But tonight, when I saw Peter Pettigrew's name appear on the map." His voice tightened slightly. "I knew the truth. The map never lies." He raised Scabbers higher.

"Peter Pettigrew is alive." Hermione shook her head rapidly. "But Professor, that's impossible," she whispered. "Scabbers can't be Pettigrew." 

"And why not?" Lupin asked gently. Hermione immediately launched into explanation mode despite the situation. "Because if Pettigrew were an Animagus, the Ministry would know. Professor McGonagall told us all registered Animagi are monitored and recorded."

"Unless," I said slowly, piecing it together, "they never registered." Harry, Ron, and Hermione all looked at me. Lupin smiled faintly. "Exactly." He glanced toward Sirius.

"The Ministry never knew three unregistered Animagi were wandering Hogwarts." "Remus," Sirius said tensely, eyes locked on Scabbers again, "please hurry up."

Lupin sighed softly before handing the rat back to Ron. "Hold onto him tightly." Ron reluctantly took Scabbers back. A sudden creak echoed through the shack. All six of us froze.

Lupin moved quickly to the door and peered outside before relaxing slightly.

"No one's there." Ron swallowed hard. "This place really is haunted." To my surprise, Lupin actually laughed. "No," he said softly. "It never was." He leaned back against the wall.

"The screams villagers used to hear came from me." The room fell silent. "This all started because I was bitten as a child," Lupin continued quietly. "That's how I became a werewolf."

Ron opened his mouth to interrupt, but Hermione and I immediately shushed him. Lupin told us about the attack when he was young, and how the Wolfsbane Potion Snape brewed for him allowed him to keep his mind during transformations.

"If I drink it for the week leading up to the full moon," Lupin explained, "I remain harmless. I transform, yes, but I keep my mind." He looked toward Harry and me. "The Whomping Willow was planted the year I arrived at Hogwarts."

His expression darkened. "It was planted for me." He gestured around the shack. "This tunnel. This house. They were built so I could transform safely away from everyone else."