Chapter 294: I Never Did It Willingly
A splash of cold water made Peter Pettigrew's body jerk. A muffled cough escaped his throat, and his eyelids began to flutter, showing clear signs of waking.
Indeed, the only reason Peter Pettigrew had dared to act in front of Sirius and Lupin earlier was the Extreme Dream Charm Dylan had cast in secret. The spell had blurred his fear and amplified his unrealistic self-confidence, giving him a courage he shouldn't have possessed.
Now, under the dual effect of the cold water and the spell's removal, Peter Pettigrew's eyelids trembled violently before snapping open. His eyes blinked blankly, his pupils contracting due to the sudden light. After a moment, his vision focused. He found himself staring into Professor Dumbledore's eyes, which seemed to penetrate everything from behind his spectacles.
His heart instantly seized up. He subconsciously shifted his gaze and immediately saw Sirius Black, who was fixedly staring at him, his eyes like sharp blades, ready to tear him limb from limb. To the other side, Professor Snape wore a cold smile, his eyes filled with undisguised contempt and disgust. Further away, the young student stood silently, his face expressionless. But the tranquil gaze that settled on him made him deeply uneasy.
For some reason, the moment his eyes met Dylan's, an indescribable fear suddenly shot up from his heart, wrapping around his spine like a cold snake. It left his hands and feet icy, and his instinct was to curl up or burrow into the ground.
Isn't this cursed kid a Gryffindor student? Why does he feel even more Slytherin than Snape!
No matter what thoughts raced through his mind, he was utterly unable to move. His injuries still throbbed, and the slightest exertion felt like his internal organs were shifting. Madam Pomfrey had only restored his consciousness; attempting to escape in this state was a pipe dream. Moreover, everyone in the room was staring at him, each gaze an invisible chain, holding him firmly in place.
Finally, Peter Pettigrew could only give a stiff tug to the corners of his mouth, forming a smile that was worse than a grimace. His voice was as dry as rubbing sandpaper. "...H-hello?"
"HA!" Before he could finish speaking, Sirius Black let out a suppressed roar of fury, his voice filled with bone-deep hatred. He couldn't hold back any longer and lunged forward, clearly intending to tackle and rip apart this wretched piece of trash and traitor!
"AH—!" Peter Pettigrew screamed, terrified out of his wits. He instinctively hunched his neck, covered his head with his hands, and nearly slid off the chair.
However, the expected attack did not land. A dull thud was heard as Sirius Black hit an invisible wall. His body violently shuddered, and he was flung back, stumbling two steps before regaining his balance. In front of him, a transparent barrier shimmered faintly—the Shield Charm Dylan had casually cast.
"Mr. Black, before the full truth is ascertained, please maintain your composure, alright?" Dylan's wand was still pointed steadily at the edge of the Shield Charm in front of Sirius Black. His tone was even, yet held an undeniable insistence.
Are you kidding me? If Peter Pettigrew gets too damaged, whether I want to extract his soul or completely dominate his body, I won't have a perfect test subject.
Sirius Black's chest heaved, a vein throbbing on his forehead. His voice was hoarse with suppressed rage. "Wasn't what I just said clear enough?!"
"I understood what you said, but ultimately, it's only your unilateral statement." Dylan tilted his head slightly. With his other hand, he calmly took out the small glass vial containing the Veritaserum—which he had, in fact, added a little something extra to. The vial glowed faintly under the light. "As things stand, the current evidence only proves that Peter Pettigrew is no hero; it's insufficient to prove your innocence."
"If you had been willing to drink this before your statement, I might have believed you more, but clearly, you weren't willing, correct?"
"That's enough, Black. Calm down first." Professor Dumbledore's gentle voice interjected. "Soon enough, everything will be answered." He sighed softly, his deep eyes turning toward Peter Pettigrew, who was huddled in the chair. His gaze held a complex scrutiny and a hint of subtle regret.
"Peter, we haven't seen each other in a long time. For all these years, I thought you were no longer with us."
"H-headmaster... Headmaster Sir..." Peter Pettigrew trembled even harder. He looked up at Dumbledore, his lips quivering, his voice full of unrestrained sobs and a thick, tearful quality. "I'm so glad to see you again... You surely don't believe his nonsense, do you? How can you take a fugitive's lie seriously..."
Peter Pettigrew's voice trembled badly, his eyes darting restlessly. He then turned to Dylan, trying hard to force a benign expression onto his rat-like face. The rigid smile was worse than a cry.
Dylan wrinkled his brow in disgust.
"Child... I truly didn't mean to hurt you. That was just a feint." Peter continued, "You saw it yourself, Lupin and Black are in league. They were trying to kill me... just like they killed James and Lily back then..."
Dylan remained silent, but the hand gripping his wand subtly twisted. The wand tip, which had been pointing at Sirius Black, now aimed steadily at Peter Pettigrew's chest.
"Don't get agitated, Brother Rat." Peter was stunned by the name.
"How dare you speak their names?!" Sirius Black could no longer restrain himself and punched the Shield Charm with a vicious thud. The transparent barrier rippled.
Peter Pettigrew was startled by the sudden noise. He shrank his neck like a frightened rabbit. "He's trying to kill me again! You all saw it!" Peter Pettigrew quickly realized Sirius Black couldn't break the barrier. His courage grew slightly, and he shrieked, pointing at Sirius, his voice laced with deliberately feigned terror. "If I truly killed James and them, why wouldn't I kill their son too? For the past three years! I've been so close to him! I've had plenty of chances to strike!" He grew more agitated, as if he were the victim of a great injustice, but his shifty eyes betrayed his guilt.
"That's only because you were too scared! You didn't dare to act under Dumbledore's nose! And you didn't dare to expose your true self again for a master who's been gone so long!" Sirius Black pressed his hands firmly against the Shield Charm barrier, his knuckles white, his veins bulging, practically embedded in the transparent magical wall. His eyes were wide, webbed with fierce red lines, fixed deadly on Peter Pettigrew. His voice was hoarse with extreme rage, every word forced out between clenched teeth.
"Enough." A low, forceful voice sounded in the office, instantly cutting short the animalistic snarls of the argument. Professor Dumbledore slowly raised his head, his gaze settling on Peter Pettigrew's face, which was a mask of terror and self-justification. His usually mild eyes held a new sharpness. His thick eyebrows were knitted tightly.
"Peter." His voice was calm but authoritative. "Do you truly need a dose of Veritaserum before you will speak the truth? Believe me, I genuinely do not wish to use such a method on someone who was once my student." His tone held a hint of unspoken disappointment, as if grieving the fall of this student.
Dylan nodded, taking out the vial of potion he had subtly altered once more.
"No... you can't... you can't do this to me..." Faced with Dumbledore's question, Peter Pettigrew merely shook his head vehemently like a rattle. His hands gripped the armrests of the chair tightly, his fingers digging splinters into the wood. His body trembled like an autumn leaf, his face a picture of a man pushed to the brink of despair. His lips quivered, unable to form a single coherent defense.
"Ahhh..." Professor Dumbledore let out a long sigh, heavy with untold disappointment. He slowly opened his eyes, kept his gaze on Peter Pettigrew for a moment, and then turned to Dylan, giving a slight nod.
"No! You can't—" Peter Pettigrew's shriek was caught in his throat. The fear on his face hadn't fully bloomed before he was frozen in place by a spell.
"Petrificus Totalus," Dylan's voice was utterly calm.
Peter Pettigrew's face instantly stiffened, his eyes wide and round, his mouth half-open, like an ugly statue frozen in time. Even the tear that had seeped from the corner of his eye due to terror was solidified on his cheek.
Dylan smoothly retracted his wand into the holster on his sleeve. He then picked up the vial of Veritaserum, pulled off the cork, tilted his wrist, and three drops of clear liquid fell from the mouth of the bottle, landing precisely inside Peter Pettigrew's immobilized mouth.
After recorking the vial, he drew his wand again and aimed it at Peter Pettigrew. "Finite Incantatem."
As the counter-spell took effect, Peter Pettigrew's stiff body slowly regained mobility. However, the expression on his face faded from terror to an abnormal calmness, almost a numb stupor. His eyes were vacant, as if half his soul had been drained. He only occasionally made a motion like he wanted to vomit.
Professor Dumbledore winced, closing his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, his gaze was strictly serious. He began to question Peter Pettigrew about the specific details of the events from that year, from switching the Secret-Keeper to the act of betrayal. Every question was clear and direct. Peter Pettigrew, like a puppet on strings, laid everything bare, his voice flat and devoid of emotion.
When the Veritaserum's effect gradually wore off, and Peter Pettigrew's consciousness returned, he saw the varied gazes of the people around him, especially the fire in Sirius Black's eyes. Overwhelming despair instantly engulfed him. He opened his mouth but couldn't make a sound. He knew clearly that everything was over; there was no turning back.
Sure enough, Sirius Black, like an enraged lion, lunged forward again. This time, the Shield Charm that had blocked him was gone.
"You betrayed us even before then! You were the one who tipped off Voldemort, too!" Sirius Black fiercely grabbed Peter Pettigrew by the collar, lifting him completely off the ground. In his rage, veins bulged on his arms. Every word was squeezed out between his teeth, carrying a scorching hatred, as if he wanted to drill a hole through the repulsive face before him.
"Sirius... Sirius... I truly didn't mean to..." Peter Pettigrew's feet kicked fruitlessly in the air, his small body shaking like a dry leaf. Tears streamed from his small, beady eyes, rolling down his waxy cheeks and mixing with the grime, making him look utterly wretched. "But... what could I do? The Dark Lord... you simply can't imagine how terrifying he is. His methods... I was just too scared, Sirius."
"I never had the courage you, Remus, and James had. I'm just a coward..." He sobbed, his voice ragged, trying to use cowardice as a shield of defense. His shoulders twitched, making it seem like he was the one who had suffered a great injustice. "I never did it willingly... the one who must not be named forced me... I-if I had dared to refuse, he would have killed me! You don't understand that kind of fear!"
"But you served him for a whole year, didn't you?" Dylan tilted his head slightly, his gaze fixed on Peter Pettigrew's tear-stained face. "You had countless opportunities during that year to ask your friends for help, to confess to Professor Dumbledore."
"I believe they would have been willing and able to protect you, just as they desperately tried to protect Harry's parents." He then looked at Sirius Black. "You all could have stayed together, safely protected by the Fidelius Charm. After all, at that time, James was willing to make you the Secret-Keeper. Given the depth of your friendship, Harry's father would never have minded letting you live with them to ward off danger together."
These words were like a sharp dagger, precisely piercing all of Peter Pettigrew's excuses. He opened his mouth, a gurgling sound escaping his throat, but no words came out. He could only shake his head hopelessly, his cries growing more hysterical, but no longer capable of eliciting any sympathy.
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