"It does—but that's not what happened," Harry said, positively glowing. "We tracked down Remus Lupin. It turns out he's the very werewolf Uncle Scott spoke to back when he was looking for a bodyguard for you."
"It's a small world," Richard observed. "But weren't werewolves barred from attending wizarding school? Or did he become a werewolf as an adult?"
"He'd been a werewolf since childhood." Harry shook his head. "Lupin had kept it a secret from everyone. But Uncle Scott managed to crack him!"
"Harry, you look as though you've uncovered the secrets of the universe," Richard remarked, studying his friend's delighted expression. "Come on, spit it out already. What did you find?"
Potter didn't keep him waiting.
"Lupin told us that my father, Sirius Black, and Peter Pettigrew all learned to transform into animals while they were still at school. They did it so they could keep Lupin company during the full moon, when he transformed into a werewolf. Apparently, a werewolf doesn't attack Animagi it recognizes as its own."
"Now that's interesting," Richard said, visibly intrigued. "So Black and Pettigrew were both Animagi?"
"That's right!" A broad grin spread across Potter's face. "Black's other form is a large black dog. Pettigrew can turn into a gray rat. Uncle Scott concluded that there's more to Pettigrew's story than meets the eye. Most likely, when Black hit him with the Reductor Curse, Peter really did cut off his own finger—but instead of Apparating away, he transformed into a rat and escaped!"
"No way!" Richard was genuinely stunned. "Now that's a twist! So you really didn't spend the summer on holiday—you spent it working, and very productively at that. I wasn't expecting that from you. Well done, Harry. I'm guessing you still didn't find Black?"
"Unfortunately, no." Potter shook his head. "But Uncle Scott thinks it's only a matter of time before word of the amnesty reaches Black. Once he lets his guard down, he'll eventually show himself. Uncle also said there's a very good chance Mr. Black went insane during his time in Azkaban. So he may still be wandering around Britain in the form of a dog."
"Did you tell the Aurors?" Richard asked.
"No," Harry replied. "Only the Minister. Uncle Scott says something about this doesn't smell right. It's possible someone's helping Black."
At that moment, Ron Weasley poked his head into the compartment. Seeing the boys, he brightened immediately.
"Hi, Richie! Harry!"
"Hi, Ron!" Potter waved.
"Good morning, Ron," Richard greeted him with a friendly nod. "Good to see you."
The moment Ron stepped inside, shoved his suitcase beneath the seat, and sat down beside Harry, Richard felt the scar on the back of his left hand begin to itch faintly. He also noticed Harry absentmindedly scratching his own scar. That immediately aroused Young Grosvenor's suspicions. He decided to make sure this really was the sixth Weasley brother and not some other wizard disguised with Polyjuice Potion.
"Ron, how's your flying Opel?" he asked casually.
"Opel?" Ron frowned in confusion. "Richie, we've got a Ford. At least, if you mean the old car. Dad brought home a television over the summer. We couldn't tear ourselves away from all the Muggle films. One of them was called Back to the Future. Dad was so impressed by the flying car in it that he bought himself a DeLorean, and now he's enchanting it."
Richard concluded that this was indeed the real Ronald. His facial expressions, mannerisms, and speech patterns were exactly the same. Besides, he'd passed the test. Plenty of people knew Arthur had enchanted a car, but apart from the Weasleys themselves and a handful of others, no wizard knew what make it was. And, generally speaking, most witches and wizards had little idea about car brands.
"Ron, isn't your sister starting Hogwarts this year?" Richard asked.
"She is," Weasley replied. "Ginny's in the last carriage with her friend, that loony Lovegood. She said she'd come see us once the train gets moving. Oh, right!" Ron suddenly remembered. "Richie, Dad asked me to bring you the things he bought for you."
Ron reached for his suitcase and quickly began laying books, parchment, ink, quills, and potion ingredients onto the seat. Richie was just as quick to transfer everything into his own suitcase. The last item Ron placed on the table was an unremarkable thick notebook bound in black leather.
"Boys," Ron whispered mysteriously, "just look at this!"
He pointed dramatically at the notebook, instantly piquing both Richie's and Harry's curiosity.
"What is it?" Harry asked. "Looks like a notebook. Ron, have you decided to embrace modern note-taking?"
"No!" Weasley exclaimed. "It's You-Know-Who's diary!"
Harry stared at Ron in bewilderment, unable to tell whether he was joking or completely serious.
"Ron, what makes you think it's his diary?" Potter asked.
"Yes, I'd like to know too," Richard said with a nod.
"It's signed—and it's enchanted," Weasley replied.
Ron opened the notebook. Written across the title page in elegant calligraphy were the words:
M. Riddle's Diary
The remaining pages were perfectly blank.
"You can write anything on a title page," Richie said. "Ron, if someone sold you this notebook claiming it was Tom Riddle's diary, then I'm afraid I've got bad news for you—you've been swindled."
"No, that's not it!" Ron protested. "Ginny found it mixed in with her schoolbooks. She was looking through it, and I spotted the name. That's when I realized whose diary it was."
"Now that is serious," Richard said thoughtfully.
Harry picked up the diary and turned it over in his hands.
"Ron, you didn't buy this, did you?"
"No." Ron shook his head.
"But it somehow ended up among Ginny's things," Harry continued, thinking out loud. "Which means someone planted this diary on her."
Ron fell silent for a moment, deep in thought. Then, all at once, realization dawned on him.
"Malfoy!" he exclaimed.
"What about Malfoy?" Richie asked.
"When we were at Flourish and Blotts in August, Lucius Malfoy handled the books in Ginny's cauldron. Dad got into a fight with him after Malfoy started insulting us. I'm sure it was Malfoy who slipped You-Know-Who's diary into Ginny's things!"
Potter dropped the diary as though it had burned him and immediately began rubbing his hands frantically against his robes.
"Harry, what's gotten into you?" Ron asked in confusion.
"What if it's cursed? Or poisoned?" Harry suggested.
"I doubt it," Ron said uncertainly, eyeing the notebook with newfound caution. "I took it from Ginny almost a month ago. If the diary were cursed or poisoned, she and I would've been dead ages ago."
(End of Chapter)
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