Peter's finger, like a venom-tipped thorn, pointed straight at Lia behind Hermione.
The entire world seemed to have its mute button pressed.
"He's right there on that girl—!"
This shriek tore through the frozen air inside the shack.
Snape's pupils contracted sharply; his hawk-like gaze instantly shifted from a jubilant Sirius Black to Lia.
A complex mixture of emotions—surprise and suspicion, even more intricate than hatred—surged in his eyes.
He knew this cat wasn't simple!
"Sirius! He's telling the truth! To save yourself, you sold out Harry, and now you want to do it again by finding a scapegoat!" Snape's voice was hoarse and sharp; he had already made up his mind.
"Shut up, Snivellus!" Sirius's anger was instantly ignited. Like a raging lion, he lunged at Peter again. "I'll kill this traitor first!"
"Expelliarmus!"
Snape's magic wand was as fast as lightning, a red light accurately knocking Sirius's magic wand away.
"The taste of revenge is sweet; I'd love to see it with my own eyes." Snape approached step by step, a twisted pleasure on his face. "But why not let the Dementors enjoy it? They'll be much happier."
Chaos was on the verge of breaking out.
Just then.
"Enough."
Dumbledore's gentle yet authoritative voice rang out. He hadn't even drawn his magic wand, but an invisible, majestic pressure instantly enveloped the entire shack.
Sirius's struggling movements froze.
The vicious curse about to burst from Snape's lips was also stuck in his throat.
Everyone felt a sense of suffocation, as if they were facing a mountain.
Dumbledore's gaze swept calmly over everyone, finally landing on the shivering Peter. Behind the half-moon spectacles, those azure eyes held no trace of emotion.
"A traitor driven into a corner will grasp at any straw he can reach to survive, even if it's a burning match," he spoke slowly, his voice not loud but clearly reaching everyone's ears. "Severus, your hatred has clouded your judgment. As for you, Peter, I don't wish to hear any more crazed ramblings before the true trial arrives."
A single, understated sentence directly categorized Peter's accusation as "crazed talk."
Hermione's tense body instantly relaxed; she subconsciously held Lia tighter.
Lia looked up at Dumbledore.
She saw that this old man's soul was like a deep starry sky—calm and vast. But in a certain corner of that sky, when he looked at her, a star twinkled with an extremely bright light named "inquiry" and "vigilance."
He believes half of it, Lia thought.
"Now then," Dumbledore clapped his hands, breaking the silence. "Since the actors have all arrived, the audience should take their seats. We need a witness of sufficient weight to draw the curtain on this drama that is twelve years late."
His gaze turned to Professor McGonagall: "Minerva, I'm afraid we'll have to make another trip to the Ministry of Magic to invite Minister Cornelius Fudge. A 'grand gift' that would earn him an order of merit, first class—I don't think he'll refuse."
Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall disappeared from the spot with a bang.
At some point, the last trace of the sunset had been swallowed by darkness. A full moon, nearly eerily round, was slowly rising above the Forbidden Forest. Silvery moonlight filtered through the cracks in the window, casting a cold bright spot on the floor.
The air inside the shack, in another sense, froze.
Remus Lupin's face turned as pale as paper in an instant.
"No... no! Today..." He looked at his hands in horror, his body beginning to tremble uncontrollably. He had forgotten! In the massive shock of chasing the truth, he had completely forgotten what day it was!
"Remus!" Sirius let out a cry of alarm. He tried to rush over but was held back firmly by Snape's magic wand.
"Ah—!"
A painful roar, not sounding human, erupted from the depths of Lupin's throat. His body began to twist and deform, bones making a tooth-grinding "crackling" sound as muscles bulged wildly beneath his skin. Gray fur grew savagely from his pores.
That face of a gentle scholar was stretched and distorted in extreme pain, turning into a hideous wolfish snout.
"Werewolf..." Ron screamed, scrambling backward in terror.
A triumphant, cruel smile appeared on Snape's face. "I told Dumbledore long ago about keeping a dangerous beast here! Look, the retribution has come!"
At this critical moment, a look of ecstatic relief erupted in the eyes of Peter, who had been ignored by everyone.
An opportunity!
Without hesitation, he transformed instantly, turning back into that gray rat. Like an arrow from a bow, he shot toward the door, which was left unguarded due to Lupin's transformation!
He was going to escape!
However—
Bang!
A white afterimage was faster than him!
It was Lia!
The moment Lupin began to transform, her Danger Intuition had already issued a death-warning alarm.
But this time, she didn't hide in Hermione's arms. Those ice-blue cat pupils instantly locked onto the gray streak of lightning attempting to flee.
This was Hermione's prey!
Predator instinct overwhelmed the fear of death.
Lia went on all fours, her back arching like a bow full of power, and she suddenly sprang forward! She was so fast she left a white blur in the air!
Smack!
A crisp, dull thud.
The rat, which had already reached the door, was slammed down from mid-air by a paw covered in snow-white fur! Five sharp, blade-like claws, like five steel nails, pinned it firmly to the wooden floor!
"Squeak—!!!"
Peter let out a shrill scream, blood instantly staining the floor red.
His Animagus transformation ability was forcibly interrupted under Lia's wrathful claws! He could no longer maintain his rat form, yet he couldn't change back into a human either. He could only be pinned there in a disgusting half-human, half-rat state, twitching in pain.
At this moment, everyone in the shack, including the newly transformed Werewolf, turned their gaze toward the petite Cat-girl kneeling on the ground, one paw pinning her prey as she slowly raised her head.
Her silver hair fluttered, cat ears stood high, and her blue eyes narrowed into a heartless vertical line. Her mouth curled slightly, revealing two sharp little tiger teeth, and her face was stained with a trace of Peter's blood.
"Hermione didn't say you could leave."
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