Now that he had come back to his senses, he realized that this wasn't the way to Honeydukes or Zonko's Joke Shop.
“Let's explore the Shrieking Shack first. It's a famous haunted house, and I've always wanted to see it. I was always alone before. You never came to Hogsmeade, and Ethan was always with Hermione and them. Now that there's someone, of course, I can't miss it.”
Harry explained with a forced smile.
Having arrived here, and about to meet his enemy, Harry felt like he was about to lose control.
Ron also noticed that something was wrong. To the Shrieking Shack?
Why hadn't he mentioned it before?
“Harry, I'm not feeling well today. I won't go to the Shrieking Shack. I'll just buy some chocolate at Honeydukes and go back to Hogwarts.”
As he spoke, Ron prepared to retreat. Not even dogs would go to the Shrieking Shack.
“Ron, what are you panicking about?”
“Just come in with us, and Harry will pay for your purchases at Honeydukes.”
Ethan directly blocked Ron's retreat. They had already come this far, how could they let him leave?
Seeing Ethan blocking his way, Ron frowned and looked in Harry's direction.
“That's right, Ron, just come in with us. I'll pay for everything later,”
Harry couldn't care less about Ron's feelings. They had already come this far, and there was no possibility of backing down.
Ron was now certain that coming to Hogsmeade today was a trap set for him.
Harry definitely wouldn't have thought of this. Recalling that Harry had been called out by Ethan in the morning, and now Ethan happened to be here, not with his little girlfriends.
Without a doubt, Ethan had orchestrated everything.
But he and Ethan didn't have any conflicts right now. What was his intention?
After considering the possibility of escaping from Ethan.
“Then I'll go in with you.”
That possibility was naturally impossible. Since this was specifically targeted at him, they definitely wouldn't let him leave.
If he forcibly refused to go, Ron didn't rule out Ethan using magic.
Rather than making a scene and alerting Ethan, it was better to wait for an opportunity later.
As Ethan and the others headed towards the Shrieking Shack, a large bat hung behind them, about one or two hundred meters away.
Every time Harry came to Hogsmeade, Snape would follow him, just like a stalker.
This was also to protect Harry's safety.
Even now, Snape believed that Sirius Black was the one who betrayed Lily, and that his escape was to kill Harry.
And when Harry was out, it was Sirius Black's greatest opportunity.
As a result, Snape had spent this Christmas squatting near Harry's aunt's house.
Now, Snape was using specially purchased alchemical tools to observe Harry's situation. Although he couldn't hear their conversation, he knew where they were going based on the route.
Thinking of that place, Snape's face immediately darkened.
In his fifth year, Sirius Black had deliberately used Lupin's secret to lure him into it.
As a result, just as he entered, Lupin had transformed into a werewolf and launched an attack on him. Facing a successfully transformed werewolf, Snape at that time was clearly no match, and knowing that being scratched or bitten would infect him and turn him into a new werewolf, he could only dodge in a panic.
In the end, James saved him. No matter the reason, he did owe him a favor.
But at the same time, Snape truly hated Sirius Black and Lupin to the core.
Second only to James, who had stolen Lily, and the hatred deep within his heart for himself.
Ethan also noticed the tail behind him. Having learned the extrasensory charm, his senses were a bit sharper, and this distance of one or two hundred meters was not a problem.
Moreover, he had confirmed that it was Snape through the magical reaction.
Therefore, Ethan couldn't come forward to expose him now, so he just let him hang behind.
Arriving at the entrance of the Shrieking Shack, Harry directly pushed open the door and took the lead without hesitation.
Ron hesitated for a moment and followed behind Harry.
After Ethan entered last, he directly closed the door.
“Lumos!”
Along with the voice in the darkness, a soft light illuminated the dim space inside the Shrieking Shack.
In front of Ethan and the others were Lupin and Sirius Black in human form. Their attention was currently on Ron.
And when Ron saw the two of them appear at the same time, he couldn't help but tremble.
The worst had indeed happened.
But he should have thought of it earlier. If not for these two, Ethan wouldn't have needed to orchestrate all of this.
And looking at Harry's appearance, he must have known the situation for a long time.
But the necessary performance still needed to be done.
“Sirius Black!”
A look of horror and nervousness appeared on Ron's face, and he drew his wand and pointed it directly at the two people opposite him.
“Professor Lupin, why is this?”
“Sirius Black is a wanted criminal by the Ministry of Magic, and the one who betrayed Harry's parents. Instead of reporting him to the Ministry of Magic, you brought him to Harry. What are you trying to do?”
“Ethan, why aren't you doing anything? Could it be that you're in league with them too?”
Ron became more and more agitated, pulling Harry back, moving away from Ethan, and towards the door.
And he looked warily at the other three people here.
Being protected by Ron behind him, Harry was also quite moved. He didn't expect Ron to actively protect him, instead of hiding behind him.
The little complaints he originally had about Ron constantly showing concern for Peter all day long disappeared without a trace at this moment.
He was only like this because he was unaware of the situation.
Sirius Black would naturally not just watch Ron take Harry and run, and immediately took a few steps forward.
“Petrificus Totalus!”
A greyish-white curse shot out from the tip of Ron's wand, aimed directly at Sirius Black's head.
The sudden turn of events caused a hint of panic to flash in Sirius Black's eyes.
He hadn't experienced combat or used magic in over a decade, and he was already rusty. He also didn't expect Ron to suddenly attack, so he was caught off guard at such close range.
Also, Sirius Black hadn't obtained a wand after escaping from Azkaban.
At the critical moment, a red light arrived first, colliding directly with the greyish-white curse on Sirius Black's face.
Bang!
The explosion between the spells directly enveloped Sirius Black's head. The power of both spells wasn't very great, so the commotion caused was also quite small.
But even so, by the time Sirius Black emerged, his face was completely black, and his neat hair was charred and messy.
Ethan couldn't allow anything to happen to Sirius Black before the contract was completed.
Harry, on the other hand, grabbed Ron's wand-wielding hand as soon as he reacted.
“Ron, Sirius Black isn't here to kill me. We've misunderstood. The thing is…”
Seeing this, Sirius Black was annoyed, but ultimately held back.
After Harry explained everything to Ron, Sirius Black had already cleaned himself up a bit.
“Ron, are you clear now? Scabbers is still with you, right?”
After Harry explained, he looked at Ron's pocket.
Harry had seen Scabbers peek out on the Knight Bus.
“Yes, he is!”
Ron said this with great difficulty. If he could, he would have liked to say no, but now was obviously not the time.
Under everyone's gaze, Ron reached into his pocket and pulled out Scabbers.
“Peter, do you still need to maintain your Animagus form even now?”
The moment Sirius Black saw the rat, a sneer appeared on his lips.
He had seen it in his dreams countless times, day and night, and now his wish had finally come true.
Scabbers also looked at Sirius Black with a terrified expression, struggling desperately, with a hint of human-like fear in his eyes.
“I'll hand him over to you now. You guys hold him. I don't want to touch such a dangerous guy.”
Ron, who was holding Scabbers, showed a trace of fear in his eyes, glancing at Sirius Black and Lupin from time to time.
“Then give him to me.”
Sirius Black gave Scabbers a cruel smile and unceremoniously took Scabbers from Ron's hand.
If Ron was just holding him to prevent him from escaping, then in Sirius Black's hands, he couldn't wait to strangle him to death.
【Thank you to the big boss Golden Age's urge to update ticket, thank you big boss!】.
Chapter 204: Ron Turns into a Rat
“I'm not feeling well. I don't know if I caught a cold last night or what, but now I want to go to the bathroom. I'll go to Hogsmeade to find a toilet first, you guys continue.”
After handing Scabbers over, a look of pain flashed across Ron's face, and he clutched his stomach as he looked at Sirius Black and the others.
“Go ahead!”
Sirius Black waved his hand dismissively. Now he only had eyes for the rat in his hand, and he didn't have the leisure to pay attention to Ron.
Anyway, Ron's role was just to deliver the rat. Now that he was useless, it didn't matter whether he left or not.
“Harry, I'll wait for you at Honeydukes, and you're still paying.”
After saying that, Ron prepared to pull open the door and leave.
“Okay!”
Harry didn't pay much attention to Ron. Like Sirius Black, his eyes were fixed on Scabbers.
“Wait, if your stomach hurts, I'll conjure up a toilet for you.”
Ethan pointed his wand, and the door that Ron had opened closed directly, and the entire material of the Shrieking Shack also changed.
It was even more outrageous than what Sirius Black had faced last time. It was all half-meter-thick granite, sealing the entire Shrieking Shack, and the tunnels were also blocked by Ethan.
But on the outside, there was no change at all. It was still that dilapidated house. This was also to avoid attracting too much attention from Snape.
“Ethan, let me out. I'm not used to being here. Hurry up!”
Ron's face changed drastically, and he shouted loudly at Ethan impatiently.
“This is also for your own good. Look, this is a toilet, and there's a basin inside. You can take care of it inside. If you're any later, you're going to shit your pants.”
Ethan pointed to a cubicle he had conjured up and said to Ron.
Ethan had felt that something was wrong with Ron for a long time. Now, if he was running away in a hurry for no reason, that would be a ghost.
Why didn't he say his stomach hurt at the beginning? Now he wants to run away at the critical moment. How could he get his wish?
“Harry, say something. I want to go out.”
Seeing that he couldn't get through to Ethan, Ron looked at Harry again, hoping he could help him.
“Ethan, Ron, he…”
“Ron, you either shit your pants, or you go in here and take care of it. No one can leave now.”
Ethan directly laid his cards on the table, and said unceremoniously.
If he guessed wrong, he would just give him a hundred Galleons.
If it really was as he thought, and he let him run away, his loss would be great.
“Adrian is right, no one can go out now, Ron, you should take care of it in here first.”
