The effects of the truth serum were gradually wearing off, and the reporters had already obtained the exciting news that left them trembling with excitement.
Seeing Peter Pettigrew beginning to regain consciousness, Lupin wasted no time in casting a Stunning Spell to put him back to sleep.
As he dragged Wormtail out of the room, the reporters acted as though they did not see a thing, and continued eagerly discussing the articles in their hands.
Since they came from different countries and there was no competition between their newspapers, the atmosphere among the reporters was harmonious and friendly.
Before leaving with Peter Pettigrew, Wade added, "One more thing, Mr. Marchionne."
"Please, go ahead," Marchionne replied courteously.
"I hope they refrain from publishing this report—until the British government denies its past mistakes," Wade said.
Marchionne initially thought Wade meant "admit" rather than "deny," but after a moment, he understood.
With a sly smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, he replied, "As you wish, Wade."
…
"Will you come with me?"
Back in the attic, while standing in front of the Vanishing Cabinet, Wade asked Lupin.
Lupin was tempted but hesitant.
He wasn't supposed to enter the school without permission.
Moreover, he knew Wade didn't want everyone to know about the secret of the Vanishing Cabinet—
If this was exposed, the professors would likely require Wade to turn over the Vanishing Cabinet for the safety of the students and staff.
But Lupin couldn't resist the desire to witness the traitor's punishment with his own eyes.
"Let's go." Wade made the decision for him. "But just say that you arrived at the school through a certain secret passage."
Wade knew that the secret of the Vanishing Cabinet might not stay hidden from Dumbledore—he suspected the headmaster was already aware but chose to stay silent.
Dumbledore often granted his students too much freedom, such as allowing first-year Harry to face Voldemort, or in sixth year, letting Malfoy carry out various plans to assassinate him.
When this freedom worked to his advantage, Wade was rather fond of it.
But Wade also understood that the privileges granted by this silent understanding could only be used, not spoken of; once publicized, the Vanishing Cabinet would no longer be his to keep.
After all, only one of the cabinets was bought by him; the other one belonged to the school.
…
In the Umbrella Room, everyone had just listened to Percy recount the part he could remember.
Back then, Percy was only five or six years old, so his memory of the events was limited. However, his account jogged Hermione's memory, and she recalled reading something similar in a book.
She quickly found Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century—a book she had finished reading before her first year at school—and located the name Peter Pettigrew within its pages.
"…cruelly murdered by a desperate Sirius Black… bodies strewn everywhere… the Ministry of Magic awarded the fallen Peter Pettigrew the Order of Merlin, First Class…"
Reading this text and thinking back to that cringing, cowardly face they had just seen, Harry couldn't shake a sense of disbelief.
"If he was a hero… why would he hide as a rat?" Harry asked in confusion. "Hiding in Ron's house… as a child's pet?"
"That's what makes it so horrifying, Harry," Fred said with a meaningful look.
"Remember?" George looked at him and asked, "Last year when we heard about that…"
"Professor Quirrell was the Dark Lord's puppet… little Ron's pet is a 'hero' who was supposedly blown to bits…" Fred sneered, "It's like we've never truly known this world at all."
He looked at his other brothers—the previous and current owners of Scabbers—who both wore equally unpleasant expressions and were too stunned to say a word.
They looked as if they were going to be sick.
The book didn't mention the Fidelius Charm or the role of a Secret Keeper, so Harry's feelings were mostly ones of confusion rather than betrayal.
"I just remembered, I've actually seen a photo of him," Harry told his friends. "Remus had it on the wall. Peter Pettigrew, Remus, and my dad were friends back in school."
"There must be a lot of stories between them…" Hermione said thoughtfully. "Peter Pettigrew faked his death despite his reputation as a hero; there must be a reason."
"Yeah… but he didn't harm me, did he? We've lived in the same dormitory all this time, and besides eating and sleeping a lot, Scabbers never did anything bad."
Harry looked into everyone's eyes, seeking agreement. "I think he might not be a bad person, just hiding from the Death Eaters in fear of revenge… right?"
Everyone stared back at him as if he were an innocent fool.
"If he is just a coward…" Fred shook his head and said, "he could have easily sought help from Dumbledore… but he remained in his rat form even at school, which means he wasn't afraid of others…"
"…he was afraid of Dumbledore, wasn't he?" Ron said in a low voice.
Fred nodded.
Harry opened his mouth, but he didn't know what to say.
Just then, the curtain parted, and Wade appeared with Peter Pettigrew, along with one more person.
"Remus!" Harry immediately went over to him. "How did you get to the school?"
Lupin managed a faint smile and patted Harry's head.
The memories that had been awakened were tugging painfully at his heart; seeing Harry's face reminded him of the dear friend who had been betrayed and killed because of his trust in others.
Lupin took a deep breath to steady himself, pushed down the ache in his eyes, and said, "Wade knew I was one of the people involved, so he came through the secret passage to bring me here… Let's take Peter to see Dumbledore."
The presence of the steady, reliable adult wizard seemed to naturally shift authority to him. This time, even Percy didn't say anything as they all left the Umbrella Room together, heading toward the headmaster's tower.
"You lot!"
Professor McGonagall appeared along the way, she strode over and said angrily: "I heard you created a mud pit outside the Gryffindor common room! The Fat Lady told me—"
She stopped mid-sentence when she saw Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. She gasped and froze in shock.
"By Merlin…" Professor McGonagall said in disbelief, "what is going on here?"
"Just as you see, Professor," Lupin said as calmly as he could. "Peter Pettigrew is not dead. Everything that happened back then was a lie… We need to see Dumbledore."
"Of course… of course…" It took a moment for Professor McGonagall to process it all. Her expression stiffened as she said, "Follow me…"
As they walked, she kept glancing at Lupin and Peter Pettigrew, and even rubbed her eyes, as if she thought she was seeing things.
Students they passed along the way looked at them in surprise, and some quietly asked the Weasley twins what was going on, but no one answered.
Before long, they arrived at the headmaster's office.
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