"So, you've recaptured Peter?" Sirius sat in Dumbledore's place, and several plates of food were in front of him. His face displayed some confusion; he didn't understand why Tom was taking extra measures. Was he seeking revenge? That would be great, how loyal!
"Hasn't Dumbledore told you about his plan?" Tom feigned a puzzled expression.
Of course, this look was intentional. To make Sirius and rebellious members of the Order of the Phoenix like Lupin more obedient, Tom had to wear Dumbledore's skin as a disguise.
Even if this plan wasn't actually related to Dumbledore, he had to pin it on Dumbledore. The reason was simple: if the members of the Order of the Phoenix heard that it was Dumbledore's plan, they would execute it without conditions. But if they heard it was Tom Yodel's plan, there would surely be debate before carrying it out.
Tom didn't want to waste energy on these pointless discussions, so he chose to attribute the plan to Dumbledore.
"A plan?" Sirius showed a confused expression.
"Well, Dumbledore will probably tell you at some point," Tom shrugged and took a tuna sandwich from the plates in front of Sirius. He had woken up early today and hadn't had breakfast yet.
The delicious combination of salty tuna sauce, sour pickles, and mayonnaise was truly excellent. Furthermore, the Hogwarts house-elves had chosen a baguette for the sandwich, making it even more delicious. It was a rare food that could be enjoyed both hot and cold.
Tom was focused on enjoying his sandwich and paid no attention to Sirius's confusion beside him. After finishing his sandwich, he crouched down beside Peter, who had been unconscious and unresponsive since his arrest. Most of the time, Peter had been asleep under the influence of magical potions, only awake during the trial, and even then, he had been subjected to Veritaserum.
Tom supported this approach. Someone like Peter, an Animagus, should be subject to the deep sleep strategy. If he couldn't stay awake, he couldn't transform and wouldn't have a chance to escape.
Tom opened Peter's eyelids; his own right eye turned into a snake and then forcibly entered Peter's mind.
"Gryffindor," the old Sorting Hat vociferated without any doubt. A group of young wizards and witches clapped excitedly and jumped for joy, welcoming the new addition of fresh blood.
...
"My name is James, James Potter," said a slim boy with jet-black hair, extending his hand toward him. Next to that boy was another handsome boy who seemed carefree and disinterested.
...
"Follow me, and let's see what Remus is up to..."
...
"Dear, spirited, Animagus!" The short boy drank the crimson blood potion along with his friends. They all writhed in pain and eventually transformed into a deer, a dog, and a rat.
...
"Peter, I can't believe you turned into a rat; it's so funny... But it suits you well."
"Isn't this transformation great? It can help us press the Knot of the Whomping Willow."
James and Sirius were commenting on Peter's transformation, and Peter clenched his fists in secret but dared not show it, afraid of angering Sirius and being kicked off the team. He could only smile foolishly.
...
"I hope you become our Secret Keeper," James said calmly, sitting across from Peter. Sirius and Lily were beside him, both looking at him. However, Lily's gaze was soft and loving, while Sirius's look remained unpleasant.
...
"Yes, my Lord Voldemort," Peter fell to his knees in front of a figure whose coat he could only see. "The Potters are hiding in the Godric's Hollow..."
A chilling burst of laughter echoed above his head, followed by a sinister chuckle in the surroundings.
The person in the cloak spoke, and everything fell silent immediately around him. "If the information is accurate, you shall be rewarded. You are intelligent and know what is convenient at the right time..."
...
"Traitor!" The man in front of him had disheveled hair, bloodshot eyes, and seemed beside himself, but his own hand was already reaching for his wand at his back...
Boom!
Tom, as if watching a fast-paced movie, reviewed the first half of Peter's life. When he finished, he closed his eyes and tried to relieve the discomfort in his eyes, while a drop of blood trickled down his cheek.
Sirius, on the other hand, was completely baffled. What had Tom done? In Sirius's eyes, Tom had simply approached Peter, crouched for a while, and suddenly his eyes started bleeding.
"Are you okay?" Sirius hurriedly approached Tom and checked his condition.
"It's nothing much," Tom said as he waved his hand. "I just strained my eyes too much."
Sirius: ???
Now excessive visual effort causes bleeding? Although he couldn't say much about it, he simply stood there in silence.
If it gets worse, I'll take him to the infirmary. Sirius thought to himself.
It seems like it wasn't actually a big deal, as Tom said. The blood at the corner of Tom's eye stopped quickly. Although he still had one eye closed, it seemed like there was no serious issue.
Tom rested for a bit, and when the eye pain lessened, he approached Dumbledore's Pensieve. He placed the wand on his temple and pulled it, causing a silvery, ethereal substance to slide from his temple into the Pensieve.
The strand wrapped around the tip of his wand and slowly entered the meditation bowl.
The fragments of memories he used to see were small, but this time Tom extracted a complete memory of Peter in his adulthood. This memory was so long that it took three minutes to be fully absorbed by the Pensieve.
After putting the memory there, Tom felt as if his whole body had lost two kilograms in weight, and he noticed that the level of liquid in the Pensieve seemed to have risen a bit.
There's no capacity limit for this Pensieve, right? Tom thought to himself as he glanced at the distance between the liquid level and the edge of the Pensieve. Fortunately, there was still plenty of space before it would be completely filled. It would be terrible if the memories overflowed from the Pensieve due to excessive quantity.
Tom looked at the Pensieve and the hazy memories it contained and felt a sudden curiosity.
First, he placed the wand on his temple and extracted another bit of memory.