"Perhaps I've met him somewhere--"
Limes smiled, his expression looking a bit downcast, and finally shifted his gaze to Ammosta, saying, "So, nothing was found last night?"
"Clearly so--"
Ammosta stretched lazily, walked to the fireplace, removed the scalding tea kettle and brewed a cup of tea for herself, with his back to Limes.
"I have checked all the secret passages that Filch doesn't know, and I haven't found any clues related to Black. Hmm... the secret passage under Dementor's tree has been sealed."
The result left Limes unsure whether to be happy or disappointed. Anyway, he left with a disconsolate look on his face, reminding Ammosta again that he would transform again in a few days and please Ammosta to help with the lesson, then walked out of the office.
Ammosta held her teacup, watching with interest as the ears of the furry creature, Lenny, drooped without saying a word.
After a while, Sirius requested Amostra to change him back to his original form, speaking in a low voice, "Can you please change me back to my original form?"
"That means you already know about Limes being a werewolf?"
"Since Dumbledore has appointed him as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, he wouldn't keep it from the Board of Governors or the Ministry of Magic. The professors here were his teachers back then, so they've known about Limes being a werewolf for a long time, and as for me..."
Amostra sipped her tea and smiled,
"I've known him before he became a colleague of Limes."
Sirius seemed very interested, and Amostra explained it to him simply.
"--The underground world hidden in Diagon Alley is probably something you know. Limes has been living there for the past few years, trying to make a living. Of course, he hasn't done many illegal things. Every month when he transforms, he goes into the forest or remote areas to spend those days alone, and after his transformation ends, he will take some herbs from the woods to sell. However, he seems not very good at this and most of the time his stuff can't be sold for much money--"
Seeing that Sirius was listening attentively, Amostra thought for a moment and then continued,
"A few years ago, I mean when Voldemort was defeated, the wizarding world had a deep-seated prejudice against werewolves. At that time, Limes was forced to associate with Grayback for a while, but it seems he couldn't bear Grayback's cruel working style... padding his time... hmm, that's more or less it."
"In the past, I mean when we graduated from Hogwarts,"
Sirius said in a gloomy tone,
"Limes didn't have a very good time, he didn't want to accept my help... Some of James's relatives own properties, and he wanted to introduce Limes to work there, but Limes was afraid of bringing trouble to James."
Sirius took a deep breath, shaking off the unpleasant memories, and then, with an odd look, stared at the young wizard leaning against the fireplace.
"I suddenly noticed something, Brenn."
Hmph--
Amostra expressed doubt with a nasal sound.
"You graduated from Slytherin, didn't you? That's rare. A wizard from that school actually dared to call Voldemort's name directly?"
Sirius spoke with a mocking tone,
"During those years, Slytherin was almost the reserve of Death Eaters. Many of the Slytherins we know became the backbone of the Death Eaters after graduation, including Snape, who is often called Snivellus. Yes, you have a good relationship with him, did he ever tell you about his glorious past?"
"I can't see what qualifications you have to mock Cedric Diggory, Black."
Amostra said coldly,
"Indeed, Professor Snape might have taken a wrong turn in his youth, but over the years, he has been doing things for Dumbledore to make up for the mistakes he made in his ignorance. And as for you, Black, after your foolish suggestion led to the death of the Potters, what did you do? At best, volunteering to go to Azkaban was an act of atonement; at worst, it was just a way for you to avoid the conscience that accused you."
"In my opinion, Snape is much braver than you, Black. If you really have the guts, why don't you take up the responsibility of raising Harry? As far as I know, you're his godfather."
"I did want to do that!"
Sirius shot to his feet, his cheeks flushed with shame.
"On the night that the Potters were killed, I did want to raise Harry, but Hagrid said Dumbledore was going to arrange him with his aunt!"
"And that was what you wanted?"
Amostra replied with a cold laugh,
"Clearly, acting impulsively and going on a revenge quest is more in line with your capabilities than taking on the heavy responsibility of raising a child."
He couldn't win a fight, couldn't win an argument, and even couldn't slam the door and leave. Sirius was so angry that his lungs were bursting, but Amostra's next words made him freeze in surprise and sink into a long silence.
"Last summer, due to some matters, I visited Harry's uncle and aunt's house. Privately, he told me that before coming to Hogwarts, he had been living in a storage cabinet under the stairs... Clearly, Mr. and Mrs. Potter were very happy to see Harry grow up in such 'luxurious' conditions, weren't they?"
The room was silent, the argument seemed to be over for a while.
Sirius stayed motionless on the sofa all morning, not even responding to Kruckshorn's curious pawing. It seemed that Amostra's sharp words had indeed knocked him down.
"What are your plans for the Christmas holiday, Amostra?"
After two classes in the morning, before lunchtime, Professor McGonagall walked out of her office and knocked on the door of Amostra's office.
"Hmm, I plan to visit my orphanage, professor, is there anything I should be aware of--"
Is he an orphan?
Hearing the word "orphanage", Lenny on the sofa raised his head in surprise and looked at Amostra·Brian standing at the door talking, suddenly realizing something...
"It's like this, Amostra,"
Professor McGonagall held the parchment in her hand, looking a bit troubled.
"This is the list of children who applied to stay on campus during the Christmas holiday, considering that Black is still on the run, so--"
Amostra blinked her eyes, "Who are they?"
"Mr. Potter is definitely one of them,"
Professor McGonagall sighed, "This boy has nowhere to go... and then, Granger and Weasleys are staying to keep him company!"
Malfoy from Slytherin and his two little cronies are not going home for Christmas this year either, and a few senior students from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw are staying behind to prepare for the NEWTs, and Gryffindor has a trio. Also, Neville Longbottom is forced to stay this year due to the loss of his wand.
"Speaking of Neville's wand--"
Amostra suddenly came back to his senses, he took out his wand from his pocket and showed it to Professor McGonagall,
"I found it by accident while I was taking a walk in the courtyard yesterday."
"Oh, thank goodness!"
Professor McGonagall immediately said happily,
"I convinced Longbottom for a while, even offered to write a letter to Augusta, but he wouldn't dare go back. Now, Mr. Longbottom can finally go home for Christmas... Well, as for looking after the children during the holiday, since you have arrangements..."
Professor McGonagall hesitated for a moment, "I'll ask Remus, he should not have any extra travel plans."
The guilt-stricken Black received another psychological blow due to Harry's situation.
Amostra had his lunch in the office and, taking advantage of the break before classes, he was preparing to go to the Gryffindor common room to return Mr. Longbottom's wand and pick up his own spare wand.
'Adorable' Lenny obviously wanted to follow them, but he was ruthlessly rejected.
"Watch Lenny so he doesn't cause trouble, Kruckshorn."
After giving that order, Amostra locked the door with a click, and his figure disappeared from the sight of the two unhappy cats.
"..."
Library
