Chapter 132
"Stupefy!"
Lupin finally found his opening. He spun around and raised his wand. A burst of dazzling light shot from the tip, followed by a loud crack. Snape was struck head-on and fell straight to the floor with a heavy thud.
"That was close." Hermione collapsed onto the ground, clutching her chest and gasping for breath. Looking at Snape lying there like a lifeless fish, her heart still pounded violently.
"Sirius, we have to hurry," Lupin said, glancing at Black. At the same time, he tried to cast a spell over the wound at his waist to stop the bleeding, but it had no effect.
Injuries caused by the Sectumsempra curse could not be healed by ordinary means. Only the proper counter-curse could close them.
"I think we should deal with Wormtail first, in case anything unexpected happens," Sirius said, coughing. Snape's earlier attack had left him in bad shape—he suspected the impact of the Disarming Charm had even cracked a few ribs. Still, he forced himself upright and walked over to the unconscious Snape. He pried Hermione's wand from Snape's hand and returned it to her.
"Thank you, Harry's friend," Sirius said, gripping the wand tightly. For most witches and wizards, a wand was their greatest reassurance—even if it wasn't their own.
Hermione lending it to him was a sign of trust.
Sirius and Lupin turned back toward Peter, who was cowering in the corner, and advanced step by step.
Peter looked as though he might burst into tears. He hadn't expected his rescuer to fall so quickly.
"Don't force me!" he suddenly shrieked. His sharp voice rang through the office like fingernails scraping a chalkboard.
"I only lost one finger last time!" he screamed hysterically, raising his maimed hand. "That was out in the open. But here, in a closed space—do you dare risk an explosion?"
"Try it," Sirius said coldly.
Lupin only shook his head. Neither of them was intimidated.
"What about her?" Peter suddenly shouted. "You might survive—but can you watch this girl die in front of you?"
Without warning, he kicked off the ground and hurled himself toward Hermione. It was hard to imagine such speed from his squat body—desperation had unleashed every ounce of his strength.
Hermione's mind went blank. She could only watch the grotesque figure lunging toward her. She tried to stand, but her legs wouldn't respond.
And she had already given her wand to Sirius.
"Petrificus Totalus!"
"Stupefy!"
Two spells shot toward Peter at once.
But Peter grinned.
Even as he leapt, his body began to shrink and twist. Midair, he transformed—smaller, smaller—until he became a rat.
The spells missed their targets, slamming into the wall and exploding dust into the air.
After more than ten years in Animagus form, the transformation had become instinctive.
"Fools," Wormtail thought triumphantly. "Why would I sacrifice my life?"
He had no principles. But Sirius and Lupin did—and their hesitation was his advantage. All he had to do was threaten a student, and they would hold back.
Now he only needed to escape. Then he could find Fudge—or Malfoy—and accuse them first. Once Sirius and Lupin were locked in Azkaban, his secret would remain buried.
No one would believe criminals.
He would still be a hero.
In the blink of an eye, the rat squeezed through the narrow gap beneath the door and vanished.
"Damn it!" Sirius moved to chase, but Lupin grabbed his arm.
"You're injured. You can't appear in public. I'll go," Lupin said.
"The Invisibility Cloak," Hermione reminded weakly.
"Yes—the cloak." Sirius immediately pulled out the silvery fabric and threw it over himself. Then he and Lupin rushed out together.
"This farce ends here."
A low, hoarse voice sounded from outside the door.
Hermione saw them step into the hallway—then both of them were suddenly thrown backward as if they had struck an invisible barrier. They crashed to the floor, unconscious.
"Was that Wormtail?" Hermione's heart lurched—but she quickly dismissed the thought. Peter didn't have the courage to attack head-on.
The door opened again, and light flooded the room.
Sirius's Invisibility Cloak had slipped during the fall. His head and the wand in his hand were now exposed.
"Wake up! Wake up!" Hermione rushed forward. Strength had returned to her legs. She grabbed her wand and cast every revival and healing spell she knew. Light flickered from the tip.
Neither of them moved.
"If my Stunning Spell could be broken so easily by a third-year girl, I should retire."
A man's hoarse voice spoke from the doorway.
A wooden leg stepped into the room.
Hermione froze.
When the bright blue magical eye turned toward her, she knew immediately.
Mad-Eye Moody.
Only he could have taken down both Sirius Black and Professor Lupin at the same time.