บท 85: Sirius Black and the Shrieking Shack! Part-1
{12 Grimmauld Place, London}
{10th Sep 1991}
{3rd Person POV}
Sirius looked at the house carefully wedged in a series of similar-looking structures. He could clearly see a couple of broken windows, but overall, the condition of the house was better than he last remembered. As he took a step back, he forcibly suppressed a flashback of several painful memories.
'I remember Walburga screeching about blasting my name off the family tree. If my mana signature were put on to blacklist by her, then trying to enter the house would be suicide.' Sirius thought. He could risk it, but since he did not have a wand right now to defend himself, trying something like that would be foolish.
His stomach grumbled. The meal that he had salvaged from a muggle dustbin didn't do much for him, and although he didn't like it that much, he didn't have much of a choice. Ignoring the prospect of a warm bed, Sirius turned around and hid in the shadows. A second later, a black German shepherd walked out.
Although his thoughts were once again simplified, his basic urges were heightened once again. Staying hungry in his animagus form not only made it difficult to ignore the never-ending hunger, but it also consumed mana, which was quite hard on his already weak body. Only his determination to make things right had driven him to do things that he normally wouldn't have done.
Throughout the entire journey, thoughts about who Rigel's mother was could swirl around in his mind. No matter how many times he thought about it, according to Rigel's age, he should be the same age as Harry. The thought of his godson and James made his mood more gloomy as his steps wobbled.
'Why, though, if Rigel is Harry's age, then he should be at least one year old when all of that happened. Why didn't she come forward, and why would she give him away?' Sirius thought, looking at the bright lights of the lamppost as he crossed the street. The entrance to the Leaky Cauldron was still the same. The pub stood out as the wooden dore, and the aesthetic of the place was just too different from that of the muggle buildings.
It wasn't quite late in the evening, and many pedestrians simply walked by the door as if it didn't exist. Sirius walked forward and nudged his head against the door. He was at a loss for what to do. He couldn't go back to his normal form and open the door, and walking through the pub in his animagus form would draw too much attention. Faced with the dilemma, he decided to wait.
'I could wait for someone to leave the pub and follow him. No one would suspect that I'm an animagus, so it shouldn't be too hard to deal with them. But if I miss the first time, fighting against a wizard would not be easy,' Sirius thought. After a moment of hesitation, he walked away from the pub. While it may not be the best idea, and a suitable target might walk away, he needed to take some precautions.
He walked around until he found the alley that was a popular Apparition spot. From his experience as an auror, he knew what kind of people didn't like using the Apparition spot of Diagon Alley, worried about their privacy. Dealing with them might be harder since the people who use this spot are quite cautious, and he had no other choice.
Sirius transformed back into his normal body and looked around, his beady eyes showed tiredness as he scanned the alley. The best thing he could find was half a broken brick, it wasn't much but it was solid enough to pack a punch. He grabbed onto it tightly and shifted back into his animagus form. Entirely unconcerned about where the brick went, he walked back to the front of the apparition spot and sat down. He waited, his shaggy black fur melding perfectly with the shadows as the stars twinkled up in the sky.
...
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{The Leaky Cauldron, London}
{10th Sep 1991}
{3rd Person POV}
...
"...How much was it again, Tom?" Nicholas asked as he looked around, his eyes scanning the bar as its patrons slowly dwindled. Nicholas was a smuggler. He worked for the Greengrass family, smuggling various plants and artifacts from around the world. Even if he was off duty now, he was still on alert.
He had been keeping an eye on one of the ladies, but when she walked back into the Diagon Alley, he was a little disappointed. For someone who was more involved in criminal activities, he didn't have many distinctions between muggles and witches, at least when it comes to carnal pleasures. Even if witches were not opposed to sexual interactions, he had realized that muggles were a lot more open in these regards, especially if one knew where to find one.
'It's getting late. I should take a look around to see if Lucy is in today,' Nicholas thought. His thoughts were full of the busty redhead who worked in one of the muggle brothels. He quickly paid 8 sickles to Tom and walked away.
He opened the door and took a deep breath. A blast of cold wind jarred his senses, and the buzz of fire whiskey dulled a bit. After scanning the area for any potential red flags, he walked toward the Apparition point close to the alley. Before entering the alley, he habitually took out his wand and walked into it.
The alley was deathly quiet like always, but as he took a step closer, he noticed something moving.
"Lumos," Nicholas screamed as he backed away. Adrenaline shot through him as he expected an ambush, but all that happened was the startled whines of a dog that backed away from his wand.
"Tch~ Fucking hell..." He muttered as he looked at the alley and let go of the spell. The glaring white light vanished as the alley once again was engulfed in shadows. Due to the sudden change in the light, he wasn't able to see quite clearly anymore as his eyes adjusted.
"Stop whining, mutt..." He glared at the dog, who had looked to be on its deathbed under the light of Lumos. Hidden in the shadows, he could barely see the dog's shivering body. Only his shiny, beady eyes allowed him to track where it was.
"Why always me..." He grumbled as he walked past the dog, his vision still a little distorted from the incident moments ago. He began thinking about the dingy brothel he frequents, but before he could twirl the wand around, a sharp pain erupted from the back of his head as his body crumpled forward.
...
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AN - 40 + Advanced Chapters on p.atreon!
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