Sirius laughed so hard that tears streamed from the corners of his eyes. The last time he laughed this happily was over a decade ago when he saw Peter Pettigrew "blow up" into pieces.
His laughter echoed through the dense forest, frightening the birds that flew away in a flock.
Tom heard the laughter from a short distance away and saw a group of birds fly out of the forest. He knew Sirius had found the Marauder's Map he had left in that spot.
That map was intentionally left by him. The Marauder's Map was a useful tool, but he didn't have much use for it. Sirius needed it more than he did. With that map, Sirius could earn Lupin's trust.
Besides, that map was Harry's property, and Tom wouldn't do something as petty as "finders keepers." In the end, he'd have to return it, so it was better to do a favor and let Sirius have it back.
Tom quietly walked away from the Forbidden Forest. Gryffindor's Great Hall was about to liven up.
...
Sirius wiped away the tears that had welled up in his eyes. He freed himself from the vines that had wrapped around his body and shook off the leaves and dirt. Then, he unfolded that parchment that was so familiar to him.
Looking at that familiar parchment, Sirius felt a mixture of emotions. It was filled with memories and happy moments from his youth. Back then, the four of them were full of spirit and energy, but unfortunately...
It was like a dream, an ephemeral happiness like a bubble. Beautiful as a bubble but fragile as a bubble. And the most ridiculous part is that one of the four members that made up those wonderful memories became the needle that burst that dream.
Peter Pettigrew was despicable from the start. James had treated him kindly and included him in their group of friends, but he betrayed that kindness. Thinking about this, Sirius's expression turned grim. Perhaps they should never have let that guy mix with them from the beginning.
Sirius took a deep breath and suppressed his resentment. He lowered his head and looked at the Marauder's Map. Since it had been confiscated from him, he hadn't touched it. In the past, they had attempted to steal it from Filch's office, but they failed. Then, they noticed that Filch started guarding it more closely.
However, it was evident that Filch had never figured out how to use the map: the spell they had left on it concealed the map's greatest secret, turning it into a simple piece of parchment that could insult people.
It was a forbidden item, but apparently not that important. If they had been more patient at that time and waited a little longer to steal the Marauder's Map after Filch relaxed, maybe they would have succeeded. But they were too nervous at that time: they had invested too much effort in that map, and they feared that Filch, in a fit of madness, would destroy it. Worry leads to chaos, and they ended up at a disadvantage.
After Filch became more cautious, they never succeeded again. Until they graduated, and Filch finally started to relax, leaving it locked in his office. Eventually, it fell into the hands of the mischievous twins.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," Sirius murmured with a trembling voice, and ink lines began to appear on the blank parchment. The lines gradually extended, finally revealing the map of Hogwarts before his eyes.
Sirius stared intently at the small black dots on the map, trying to find the cursed name he had been chasing so desperately. After exploring every corner of the map, he found nothing. He saw Professor Dumbledore in his office, saw his friend Lupin leaving his own office, but he didn't see the name "Peter Pettigrew" he so eagerly sought.
Sirius's expression changed drastically: Where the hell was that rat? His breath quickened, fearing that the rat had already escaped from Hogwarts.
He forced himself to calm down and thought carefully. He realized that Peter Pettigrew was currently posing as the Weasley family's pet, so it was very likely that the boy had taken him to Hogsmeade. Thinking about that, Sirius could no longer stay still. Hogsmeade was a good place to escape: the guy only had to slip away and then disappear from the village after a few days, leaving no trace.
Now Sirius could only hope in the young wizard named Ron, hoping he would take good care of his rat.
"Ouch!" Ron shouted as his rat Scabbers tried to crawl out of his coat pocket, and he grabbed it, but the rat bit him.
Ron, in pain, let go of Scabbers. The rat fell to the ground, taking Ron's heart with it. He knew that if he lost Scabbers in a crowded place, it would be difficult to find him again.
The last time he found Scabbers in Diagon Alley was pure luck; Ron didn't believe his luck could still be that good.
But fortunately, a Stunning Spell shot out from behind and hit Scabbers, ruining his escape plan.
The person who cast the spell was Neville, who had come to Hogsmeade with Ron.
"Thanks!" Ron, still shaken, put Scabbers back in his pocket and looked at Neville in surprise. Using that Stunning Spell had been truly amazing, almost as good as Tom Yodel's.
From several meters away, hitting a moving Scabbers was not an easy task. It was probably luck, right?
Neville looked at Ron's expression and smiled sheepishly. "It's amazing; you're really lucky! I thought I was going to miss..."
Ron chatted casually with Neville and didn't pay too much attention to the matter. However, he no longer felt like staying in Hogsmeade and hurried back to Hogwarts.
...
Restless, Sirius looked down at the Marauder's Map and became excited to see the black dots representing Peter Pettigrew next to Ron Weasley and Neville Longbottom at the school gate. Sirius was thrilled: the little Weasley from the Weasley family didn't disappoint me!
Sirius looked up at the sky and saw that it was noon. He knew it was his chance. Third-year or higher students would still be in Hogsmeade, and first and second-year students would be having lunch. There shouldn't be many students roaming the castle, and with the Marauder's Map, surely no one would see him. So he seized the opportunity to slip back into the castle.