章 235: 0234 A Deal

"Dumbledore and Remus, I don't want to see either of them now!" Sirius shouted, his voice hoarse with anger and pain.

He took a quick step back, avoiding Bryan's hand that reached out to grab his shoulder.

"I won't ask for your help, Watson. As long as you don't reveal my secret to them, I'll find a way to catch Peter myself!"

"Save it, Black." Bryan said coldly, his frown deepening. "No matter what, I am the Director of Student Safety Office. Black, don't expect me to let you run wild in the castle. Whether it's Dumbledore or Remus, someone needs to monitor your actions."

Bryan had figured out Sirius's character. Perhaps he was loyal to his friends, but he was also a stubborn and arrogant fool. He had a reckless disregard for the rules and the consequences of his actions. Letting him run wild in the castle would inevitably cause trouble. If this trouble only involved himself, it wouldn't matter, but the potential result could harm the young wizards in the castle. Bryan couldn't allow that to happen.

"Don't make me use magic to force you, Black." Bryan impatiently threatened, waving his wand in a menacing gesture. "You know I'm more powerful than you. You don't stand a chance against me."

Sirius clenched his fist tightly, glaring at Bryan fiercely. He hated to admit it, but Bryan was right. He had lost his wand and couldn't use spells, and he knew that even if he had his wand, he couldn't put up a decent resistance.

The only way he could express his anger might be to suddenly transform into a dog and give Bryan a bite when he wasn't paying attention! But that would be foolish and futile. How could he convince Bryan not to hand him over to Dumbledore?

Sirius desperately thought about this question, and suddenly, the sparks exploding in the fireplace gave him an inspiration. He remembered something that might sway Bryan's mind. He hurriedly said,

"Wait, Watson, I want to make a deal with you!"

'A deal?'

Bryan raised an eyebrow, and something flashed in his eyes.

Noticing the change in his expression, Sirius felt a secret joy. He knew how to deal with this powerful and somewhat excessive young wizard.

"Don't hand me over to Dumbledore and Remus, help me enter Hogwarts to find Peter. If you can agree to this," Sirius gasped, as if he was making a great sacrifice,

"You want the bounty money from the Ministry on me, right, Watson? How much was it, fifty thousand Galleons? No problem, I can pay you that!"

Bryan pursed his lips, his expression showing intense 'struggle'.

"No, Mr. Black–" Bryan shook his head and said, trying to sound noble and virtuous. "I can't give up my principles for money. I've said before, letting you run wild in Hogwarts may harm those innocent and lovely young wizards. I can't pretend to ignore this possibility, Mr. Black. My conscience would condemn me!"

'Principles and conscience, do you really have any of that, Bryan Watson!' Sirius thought scornfully.

"I just want to kill Peter, Watson." Sirius's pale face turned livid. "Unless I've gone mad, I will never harm those children. They have nothing to do with this. Alright, let's stick to the previous number, I'll pay double the price for my freedom!"

'These spoiled rich kids are so annoying'

Bryan thought indignantly!

"The smooth-talking, ungrateful young master is lying again. He doesn't have a single galleon in his pocket, but he dares to lie to a powerful wizard–" A croaky voice interrupted their conversation.

Suddenly, Kreacher, the old and ugly house-elf who had been eavesdropping on the stairs, slowly crawled out. Its voice made both Bryan and Sirius change their expressions.

Bryan didn't need to say anything, he immediately scrutinized Sirius, his gaze suspicious. He wondered if Kreacher was telling the truth, if Sirius was really broke and desperate.

And Sirius, who noticed that Kreacher was still alive, looked surprised for a moment, but his eyes quickly flashed with relief. However, as soon as he regained his composure, he immediately asked in a sinister tone,

"So, you've been pretending to be dead all this time, Kreacher. When did you become so clever? Never mind that, what do you mean by saying I don't have a single coin in my pocket? If I remember correctly, the Black family's Gringotts vault should be filled with mountains of galleons and a large number of antique gold items, accumulated over several centuries, worth at least hundreds of thousands?"

Bryan's lips tightened even more at the mention of hundreds of thousands. He really wanted to rob Gringotts.

After being beaten up by Bryan, Kreacher's attitude became much more respectful. It walked down the stairs with a limp and stopped in front of Bryan, pressing its fleshy nose to the ground, as if it was worshipping him.

"Kreacher apologizes for the previous rudeness, esteemed powerful wizard. Kreacher knows he has offended you greatly. Therefore, Kreacher must tell the truth. My noble mistress hates the young master. The young master is a prodigal who no longer cares about the family's honor. He has betrayed the pure-blood ideals of the Black family. She doesn't want to leave any property to the young master. So, before her death, my noble mistress left a will, distributing everything in the vault to Miss Bellatrix and Miss Narcissa. Kreacher likes the two young ladies. They are much nobler than the young master–"

Sirius's face visibly darkened, even though his original expression was already unpleasant.

Just as Kreacher said, he didn't care about the so-called honor of the Black family. Of course, he didn't care about those boring galleons either. He had never been interested in money or material things. However, his mother would rather give all the wealth to 'outsiders' than leave it to him, which hurt his feelings.

"Just like something my mother would do-" Sirius sneered dryly, trying to hide his pain.

But then he noticed that Watson's gaze towards him was a bit off. His heart skipped a few beats, and he quickly said,

"I have my own vault, Watson. My uncle Alphard left me a sum of money in the underground vault of Gringotts.!"

Saying that, Sirius fumbled in his tattered shirt and quickly pulled out a small piece of parchment, still bearing the Gringotts seal.

"What is this?" Bryan asked, curiously taking the parchment from Sirius. He had never had stored money in Gringotts before. He had always kept his money in a secret place, hidden from prying eyes. He didn't trust the goblins, or anyone else for that matter.

"I used an owl to help Harry order a Firebolt, using the money from my own vault. When he was competing, those Dementors caused his broom to turn into a pile of splinters. This is the receipt from Gringotts, stating that there is still over thirty thousand in my vault." Sirius explained.

"Sorry, Mr. Black." Bryan said, coldly handing back the parchment to Sirius. But, He was a bit surprised, that Sirius cared so much about Harry.

But Bryan remained unmoved. He calmly said, "I've thought it over carefully, and I still can't trust you to roam around Hogwarts. In my opinion, we should go see Dumbledore. He must have a way to help you find Peter."

'Greedy and shameless scoundrel, a Slytherin-born villain!'

Sirius thought indignantly.

"I only have this much now, Watson!" Sirius gritted his teeth and said, desperately trying to change Bryan's mind. "If you're not satisfied, there might be some valuable old things in this house that you can take!"

Upon hearing this, Kreacher immediately widened its reddened eyes and was about to scream. However, when it tried to do so, it found that it couldn't make a sound at all because Bryan had already blocked its voice and movements!

"Don't think too badly of me," Bryan shook his head and defended himself, as he pointed his wand at Kreacher. He had noticed the house-elf's reaction, and he quickly silenced it.

"I'm not after your wealth, Mr. Black. I just want to get the reward I deserve, that is, the fifty thousand Galleons from the Ministry for you. But since you've lost your family inheritance and don't have enough money, well, I have an idea–"

Sirius didn't notice Kreacher's strange behavior. He stared at Bryan, angrily saying,

"Tell me your plan, Watson. I want to know how you can agree not to hand me over to Dumbledore and Remus!"

"Well, here it is!" Bryan's face changed, and he enthusiastically looked around the kitchen.

"Since you don't have enough gold coins to compensate for my loss, in my opinion, you can temporarily mortgage the right to use this house to me for a year. After a year, if you manage to gather enough money, I'll return the house to you. If you can't do it by then, well, with interest, you'll need to hand over the right to use the house to me for two years. If you still can't repay the mortgage after three years, the mortgage period will be four years–"

Looking at Sirius's unexpected expression, Bryan smiled.

"Of course, while you're still alive, I'll allow you to live in this house." Bryan said, 'generously'.

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章 236: 0235 Tom

Although Bryan was eager to start cleaning his new house so that it could become comfortable and pleasant as soon as possible, He knew that he didn't have time to deal with it now, as he had more urgent matters to attend to. So, he had no choice but to give an order to Kreacher, Sirius's howling and viciously cursing house-elf, to sit and wait until the Christmas holiday when he would return.

"Don't cry, Kreacher," Sirius snapped impatiently, "You heard everything, didn't you? I just temporarily mortgaged the Manor, I didn't plan to sell it. Once I get rid of Peter, I'll quickly gather the Fifty Thousand Galleons and buy it back."

"Oh, how my poor mistress would react if she knew that the young master had given away the old house of the Black family, how she would hate him, oh, she would be disappointed in Kreacher, Kreacher watched all this happen but couldn't stop the young master from doing stupid things -" the elf wailed, rocking back and forth.

'Tsk tsk, This house-elf is indeed not very likable.'

Bryan wondered if he should sell him to the underground world, where he had heard that there was a high demand for house-elves. A few months ago, a rogue wizard had unleashed a beast that had slaughtered many of the house-elves that worked in the underground world. Since then, the house-elves had fled in terror, leaving behind a shortage of labor. Bryan could make a good profit if he sold Kreacher now.

'Do not disclose anything heard tonight to any third party in any way.'

Bryan gave Kreacher a stern command, making sure that the elf nodded in understanding. Then, with a loud bang, he grabbed Sirius by the arm and apparated back to the Shrieking Shack.

During their absence, the collapsed kitchen of the Shrieking Shack had been covered with a thick layer of falling snow. The sound of the cold wind whistling through the cracks and holes of the dilapidated house was like the wailing of a female ghost, sending shivers down Bryan's spine.

He waved his wand, and the damaged bricks, broken boards, and shattered beams on the ground awakened from their slumber. They struggled to stand up, shook off the accumulated snow, and flew back into the air to reassemble themselves. In an instant, the house returned to its original state, as if nothing had happened.

Although Bryan had decided not to use the Shrieking Shack anymore, he still repaired it. The house stood on a hillside, overlooking the village of Hogsmeade. It was a well-known haunted house, and Bryan didn't want to attract any unwanted attention. If some busybody came to investigate why the house suddenly collapsed, it could cause unnecessary trouble and may expose his secrets.

"This cat, you said its name is Crookshanks, it's freezing!" Sirius, who had rushed into the house, said angrily, holding a ginger cat in his arms. The cat looked half-dead, its eyes closed and its body limp.

"As long as it's still breathing, I can revive it," Bryan said, pointing his wand at Crookshanks' stiff body. A red light flashed across the ginger fur, and white steam rose. The cat twitched and opened its eyes, letting out a weak meow. Bryan then took out a bottle of homemade potion from his pocket, tapped the bottle with his wand, and the swirling liquid turned into a flowing stream that flew into Crookshanks' nostrils. The cat sneezed and shook its head, then looked around with curiosity.

"How did you get mixed up with this cat?" Bryan asked casually, as he stroked Crookshanks' fur.

"This cat is very clever. I guess it has some Kneazle blood because it recognized at first sight that I'm not a dog," Sirius said, stroking Crookshanks and clicking his tongue. "It took me some time to make it understand who I am and what I want to do. Since then, it has been helping me gather information and find food. I can't roam around freely because of the Dementors and Aurors in the village. It also tried to bring Peter to me, but it didn't succeed."

"Speaking of which—" Bryan said, as he noticed the papers scattered on the living room floor and the remains of small animals in the kitchen. They were the evidence of his research. He whipped the air a few times like conducting an orchestra, and those things gathered themselves in the hallway and turned into ashes in a dazzling green flame. He didn't want to leave any traces behind.

"This house, mainly the secret passage, how did you find it?"

This question, if explained in detail, would involve some secrets of Remus. Logically speaking, Dumbledore had recruited Remus as a professor at Hogwarts, and Bryan, the Director of the Student Safety Office, could not possibly be unaware of Remus's werewolf identity. But Sirius didn't dare to take the risk, if Dumbledore and Remus hadn't told Watson about this, then he might bring trouble to his old friend.

So, Sirius decided to be vague and evasive. He said, "We used this secret passage frequently when we were in school,"

"We?" Bryan repeated, narrowing his eyes. He sensed that Sirius was hiding something. "So, Remus actually knew about the secret passage under the Whomping Willow. Well, I guess he should also know that you are Animagus… He had so many opportunities to reveal all this, but when I heard from Harry tonight that there is a secret passage here, he acted as if it was the first time he heard about it."

Sirius remained silent, just playing with Crookshanks, whose limbs were already twitching unconsciously. He could roughly guess why Remus didn't say anything when he didn't know he was innocent. His old friend regarded Dumbledore as a benefactor and was afraid of disappointing him. He feared that Dumbledore would be displeased or even angry with their reckless behavior.

Another piece of information from Bryan caught Sirius' attention.

'How did Harry find out about the secret passage under the Whomping Willow?'

So, He tried to change the subject and said, "Everyone who knows James Potter says that Harry looks a lot like his father. I guess he inherited some kind of talent," Sirius said, with a hint of pride in his voice. "That boy really resembles James! His Quidditch talent is just as outstanding as James'!"

He smiled, remembering the good old days when he and James had played Quidditch together, flying through the air with grace and skill.

At this moment, Crookshanks in Sirius's arms finally fully regained consciousness. Without understanding what had happened, it immediately bared its teeth and claws, hissing at Bryan.

"Don't get agitated, Crookshanks. We have explained everything, and now, Bryan won't be hostile towards us!" Sirius said, trying to calm the cat down. He held Crookshanks close to his chest and quickly explained the situation.

"It's not my fault—" Bryan said innocently, raising his hands in defense. "Who could have expected such a turn of events? Before, I thought you were an accomplice to a heinous criminal, so my actions were completely justified, right?"

Crookshanks made a growling sound, looking dissatisfied.

Bryan sighed, knowing that he couldn't win the cat's approval. He decided to ignore him and focus on the more pressing matters. He looked out of the window and saw that the night was almost over. The snow continued to fall, but a faint pink dawn appeared in the sky. He knew they had to leave soon, before anyone noticed them.

He said to Sirius, "In my opinion, it's best for you to stay at home or hide in the mountains like before. I will regularly bring you food. But if you insist on going to school to cause mischief, then we'll have to find a way to disguise you."

"I can just use my Animagus form. I can disguise myself very well, and no one can recognize me!" Sirius dismissed Bryan's suggestion, thinking it was too cautious.

Bryan rolled his eyes, and said sarcastically, "I suggest you take a trip to Azkaban and see if you left your brain there when you escaped.

If you want to stay in the castle for a long time, it's inevitable that you'll run into Remus. He knows you're an Animagus and what you look like in your transformed state. And, as a reminder, on the basis of our transaction, I'll tell you that while Animagus is a perfect disguise in terms of magic and appearance, from a soul perspective, you are still Sirius Black. Unfortunately, our esteemed Headmaster Albus Dumbledore has the ability to observe a person's soul. So, you better be clever."

Sirius had a gloomy expression. He asked, "Then what do you suggest?"

Bryan had already considered this question when they were in the Black family's ancestral home. He had thought of a way to give Sirius a new identity, one that would allow him to enter the school without arousing suspicion.

He smiled, looking at Crookshanks. He had decided to use the cat as a part of his plan.

He pointed his wand at Sirius, and Sirius's gaze suddenly became sharp and alert. He said, "What are you planning, Watson!"

"Of course, I'm going to arrange a new identity for you. Do you expect me to bring a wanted criminal back so openly?" Bryan said, with a mischievous smile. He looked at Crookshanks, who was still hissing at him.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you or your friend. I have a brilliant idea that will make you both very happy.

From today on, you will be the stray cat that Crookshanks found outside. Hmm, I think 'Tom' would be a good name for you."

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