Capítulo 223: Mysteries Unveiled
After finishing the Buckbeak incident, Hagrid noticed the cage in Ryan's hands and asked, "What happened to this rat of yours?"
"Oh, this is Ron's pet," said Ryan as he opened the cage and handed Scabbers to Hagrid. "This rat seems much thinner and weaker than before. I've tried some methods to treat it recently, but they only slowed down its deterioration. I couldn't cure it. Among the people I know, you're the only one who understands these animals, so I wanted to ask you for advice."
"Let me have a look," said Hagrid, taking Scabbers in his large hand. "Looks like it's been through a lot of injuries before." Hagrid touched Scabbers' head and paws with his hand and said, "Even its ears have been torn apart by external force, and it's missing a claw on its front paw."
"By the way, how old is this rat?" Hagrid asked Ryan after inspecting it.
"As far as I know, it used to be Percy's pet, so it should be seven or eight years old," Ryan replied uncertainly.
"Seven or eight years? That's truly a miracle. You see, ordinary rats usually live for about three years in most cases. But well, everything has exceptions, and this rat might be one. However, even if it's lived longer than a normal rat, it's probably reaching the end of its lifespan. So personally, I suggest you feed it something like wormwood essence. It's not good for a rat, but at least it will make its final moments more comfortable," Hagrid concluded.
"Okay, thanks," said Ryan, placing Scabbers back in the cage. After discussing which case to focus on for a while, Ryan and Hermione said their goodbyes and left Hagrid's hut.
When they returned to the common room, Hermione suddenly said to Ryan, "You go up and put the cage away. I need to talk to you about something."
Ryan nodded and quickly put the cage away before returning to the common room. He found Hermione sitting in a corner, waiting for him.
As soon as he sat down in the seat opposite Hermione, she asked him, "What exactly is that Weasley's rat?"
"How did you figure out something was wrong?" Ryan asked.
"Other people might think the decorations on your cage are just some exotic style, but I've seen you effortlessly turn those corpses into ashes using those beautiful stones with strange runes in the temple. So, something that needs a dozen stones wrapped around the cage couldn't possibly be a normal rat," Hermione explained.
"Well, you observed very carefully. What I want to tell you is that I suspect that rat might be a wizard," Ryan confessed.
"What?" Hermione couldn't control her volume, and several students in the common room turned to look at her. She quickly lowered her voice and asked, "Why do you think that?"
"It was actually an accident," Ryan began, reciting the fabricated story he had prepared. "You know I possess some magic that isn't taught at school. On the first day I got Scabbers, I used a soul-hypnosis spell, which is meant for humans, and it instantly fell asleep."
"Hypnotizing it to sleep is normal," Hermione said, puzzled.
"But the thing is, that spell is specifically for human souls, so animals shouldn't fall asleep under its influence," Ryan explained. "Afterward, I tried similar spells a few times, and the conclusion is that this rat should be an Animagus."
Seeing Hermione's shocked expression, Ryan paused for a moment before continuing. "Today, my visit to Hagrid confirmed this. It's not an ordinary rat pretending to be a magical creature. It's abnormal for a regular rat to live that long."
"So you're saying that the rat could be a wizard in disguise? Being able to live for several years as a rat indicates that the wizard cannot reveal their true identity. In this case, it's highly probable that a wizard criminal is using this method to hide. Oh my, what should we do now?" Hermione said nervously in a low voice.
"I even have a suspicion about who this rat might be, but I need to ask someone to confirm," Ryan said and glanced at the common room before calling out to a tall redhead guy, "Percy, I have a question for you."
Percy quickly finished his ongoing conversation and walked over. "Hey, Ryan, Hermione, what are you doing here?"
"We're discussing an issue. You know about Ron's rat, which has been under my care for treatment recently. We've discovered some, well, unusual things," Ryan replied.
"That rat? It used to be my pet. I can answer some questions for you," Percy said.
"It was your pet before? That's great. I want to know when the pet came to your house and how it looked when it first arrived," Ryan asked.
"Well, the pet was initially brought home by my father. It was given to our eldest brother, Bill, and then it was passed on to me when I started school. After I got a new owl, it was given to my younger brother, Ryan. So it has been living in our house for twelve years. Oh my, Scabbers lived that long, and I never noticed," Percy recalled, feeling a bit shocked by the situation.
"As for how it looked when it first arrived, that day, my father found a rat in our backyard. I remember clearly that the rat had injuries on its ears and was missing a claw on its front paw. Looking back now, none of us could have imagined that this rat, covered in wounds, would live for so long," Percy concluded.
Ryan and Hermione exchanged a glance, and they both saw a sense of astonishment in each other's eyes. However, Hermione's surprise was genuine, while Ryan pretended to be surprised.
Percy also sensed that something was amiss from their facial expressions and asked, "What exactly did you find on Scabbers?"
"Well, your rat at home might actually be a human," Hermione said.
"How is that possible?" Percy said, looking incredulous.
"It's true," Ryan said. "Because when we went to Hagrid's today with Scabbers, he told me that ordinary pet rats have a normal lifespan of only three years."
"Well, it's possible that our rat at home is just more long-lived," Percy stammered in disbelief. "Living one or two years longer could be considered normal, but four times the lifespan is definitely abnormal. If we compare it to humans, Scabbers' age would be equivalent to a person being around 80 or 90 years old, and it doesn't have a Philosopher's Stone or Elixir of Life." Hermione added.
Percy's expression started to turn grim, as any normal person would feel uneasy knowing they had shared a bed with a stranger for several years.
At this point, Ryan continued, "Moreover, based on what Percy just said, I've already figured out who this rat is."
"Who?" Percy and Hermione said simultaneously.
"Peter Pettigrew, the man who is believed to have been killed by Sirius Black," Ryan said.
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