"The marauders map? Amanda, what do you want to use it for?"
Harry looked at Amanda in confusion; she wasn't the type of person to break school rules.
"Sirius Black was just here. His name might still be visible on the marauders map."
Amanda's face was expressionless as she gave a quiet, concise explanation. Harry reacted instantly, rushing back to his bed in a few strides and pulling out the marauders map.
Amanda and Hermione immediately crowded around him upon seeing this. Ron also forced himself to calm down, getting out of bed to stand beside his three friends.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."
Pointing the tip of his wand at the marauders map, Harry spoke with great solemnity.
Intricate ink lines began to appear on the parchment, followed by countless names.
Starting from the Gryffindor Common Room and spreading outward, Amanda immediately spotted Professor McGonagall approaching the common room.
Sirius Black had been gone for a while, and since his Animagus form was a large black dog, his movement speed was certainly not slow.
Thinking quickly, Amanda immediately gave up searching nearby and instead looked directly at the Hogwarts Castle entrance hall, the main gates, and other exits.
Sure enough, some distance outside the main gates, she saw the name Sirius Black.
"Over here."
Amanda pointed her finger at his name, her voice incredibly flat, as if she hadn't found a wanted criminal but just an ordinary student.
"It really is him. Can we go catch him?"
Looking at Sirius Black's name, Harry's breathing became noticeably rapid. This concerned the truth behind his parents' deaths; he was now desperate to catch Black and find out the truth.
However, he also understood that with his abilities alone, he couldn't possibly catch Black.
He also couldn't drag his friends into danger because of himself, which was why he asked Amanda first.
She was the most considerate and magically powerful person among the four of them.
Amanda watched the name moving rapidly on the marauders map, and almost instantly deduced his movement trajectory and target location in her mind.
He's heading for the Forbidden Forest; the specific target location is unknown.
Estimated to enter the Forbidden Forest in about two minutes.
"You can't."
Amanda looked up, her bright Black eyes sweeping over Hermione, Harry, and Ron.
"You're going by yourself? How can we let you..."
Harry instinctively wanted to object. Letting his friend face danger alone was something he could never do.
"Harry," Hermione said, pressing his shoulder and shaking her head gently, "if she weren't certain, Amanda wouldn't be so sure."
Time was of the essence now; there was no time for them to stand on ceremony with each other.
"Be careful. Put my shoes on."
Hermione nodded to Amanda, taking off her slippers and placing them in front of her.
"I will."
Amanda put on Hermione's slippers; she could feel the fluffy, soft texture even through her socks.
Walking to the window and opening it, she instantly floated out.
The cold wind whistled in her ears as Amanda approached the Forbidden Forest at top speed. Under the moonlight, a large black dog running rapidly toward the Forbidden Forest was extremely conspicuous.
"Sirius Black, stop running."
Hearing Amanda's words, the large black dog's moving limbs paused slightly, but then it ran even faster.
Blinking with an indifferent expression, Amanda raised her hand toward the large black dog.
Considering the dog's mobility, she cast a Levitation Charm directly centered on the large black dog, covering a five-meter radius.
Dust, small stones, and everything except the ground itself were suspended by Amanda's Levitation Charm, which naturally included the large black dog that had been running at full speed.
"Woof, woof, woof..."
Feeling itself floating, the large black dog turned back and growled at Amanda in a low voice, as if warning her.
"You cannot resist, Mr. Black."
Amanda's tone had no fluctuation. She floated in mid-air just like the large black dog, her eyes looking at it like an inorganic object.
"But you don't need to be nervous. We've discovered some suspicious aspects regarding the case from back then."
"Now I just need to take you back and ask for the truth."
Of course, if the truth was that Sirius Black had betrayed Harry's parents, he would certainly be sent back to Azkaban.
But if the truth was that Sirius Black hadn't betrayed Harry's parents, then he should be exonerated.
This was in accordance with rules and laws.
Hearing Amanda's words, the large black dog that Black had transformed into quieted down slightly. This behavior made Amanda even more certain of the deductions in her heart.
She turned back in the direction she came from, bringing Sirius Black with her as she flew toward Hogwarts Castle.
Flying back through the window, Professor McGonagall had already arrived in the Dormitory.
At this moment, she was holding her hand to her chest, looking at Hermione and the other two with a face full of anger and anxiety.
"Miss Granger! Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, I simply cannot believe it! How could you, how could you just let Miss Lin go after Black alone!"
"Such a vicious and powerful Wizard!"
At this moment, she had clearly chosen to forget that in her first year, Amanda had used the Levitation Charm to control two walls and crush a Troll to death; in her Second Year, she had solo-killed a Basilisk; and this year, she had even directly threatened the Minister for Magic.
In Professor McGonagall's view, all of these could be ignored. Amanda was still a child, still a student, so she should be protected.
This had nothing to do with how much strength she possessed. At a time like this, any responsible Professor would selectively forget their student's strength.
Because they knew very well that in such a situation, they should be the ones standing in front of the student, rather than letting the student face it alone.
"Professor McGonagall, I'm sorry for acting on my own and making you worry," Amanda said, bowing her head deeply to Professor McGonagall as soon as she landed. "But it was an emergency. If I hadn't gone immediately, Sirius Black would likely have escaped into the Forbidden Forest."
"By then, catching him and confirming the truth would have been extremely difficult."
With a long sigh, Professor McGonagall stepped forward and lifted Amanda's lowered head.
"I won't blame you, Miss Lin, but please don't take all these responsibilities upon yourself. Even if you hadn't chased Black today, we would certainly have caught him."
"You are still a child, a student. This isn't something you should be doing, nor a responsibility you should bear."
She stroked Amanda's head with a gentle expression. That soft look left the group of Gryffindors dumbfounded; even Black, the large black dog still suspended in the air by Amanda, had a stiff expression as if hit by a Petrificus Totalus.
"Sirius Black?"
Professor McGonagall subtly shielded Amanda behind her along with the other students, while simultaneously raising her wand with great intimidation.
Hermione quickly stepped forward and pulled Amanda back, looking at Professor McGonagall with uncertainty.
At this moment, the coldness and anger radiating from Professor McGonagall made even her, as a bystander, feel a chill.
"Professor McGonagall," Amanda's cool voice rang out at the right time, "Based on my analysis of the events back then, I believe there are many illogical points and deductions. I suggest questioning Sirius Black to determine the truth of what happened."
"We cannot wrongly accuse a good person, nor can we let a bad person go."
Professor McGonagall pursed her lips and turned to look at Harry, who was standing behind her.
If anyone here was most qualified to make this decision, it was him.
Facing Professor McGonagall's gaze, Harry took a deep breath. "Professor McGonagall, I agree with Amanda's view. I want to know the truth about my parents being betrayed. Also... I think Mom and Dad wouldn't want a person to spend their whole life bearing a crime if they were truly innocent."
"You're a good boy, Potter..." Professor McGonagall's voice was slightly choked. "You are the combination of James and Lily; you've inherited them well."
Gently waving her wand, and with Amanda not stopping her, Professor McGonagall successfully lowered the large black dog to the ground.
Once on the ground, the large black dog didn't try to run again. Instead, it looked at Harry with moist, vacant eyes—looking at this boy who bore such an incredible resemblance to his father.
He's grown up... this child has grown up. Two clear tears flashed across the corners of the large black dog's eyes.
Professor McGonagall's wand was still pointed at the large black dog, her expression returning to its initial sternness.
"Mr. Longbottom, Mr. Weasley, go find Headmaster Dumbledore. Miss Granger, Miss Lin, go find Professor Snape and tell him to bring Veritaserum."
"Yes."
The four people whose names were called responded and quickly ran out of the Dormitory and out of Gryffindor Tower.
Walking on the path to Professor Snape's office, Hermione looked at Amanda while panting slightly.
"Tonight, all of this will have an ending, right?"
"Yes," Amanda nodded with a calm expression, her chest also rising and falling slightly.
"Whatever the truth is, there will be a conclusion tonight."
Arriving at Professor Snape's door, Amanda raised her hand and knocked gently. "Professor Snape, I'm sorry to disturb you so late."
No sooner had she spoken than the wooden door in front of her was instantly opened.
Professor Snape, wearing a Black robe and looking grim, looked down at Amanda and Hermione.
"I expect Miss Lin and Miss Granger know that Hogwarts has a curfew, not to mention the precedent of Hogwarts Castle being invaded by Black."
"You had better give me a sufficiently reasonable excuse to explain why you've run here despite the danger."
He spoke with a long drawl but at a very fast pace. It was clear that he was also afraid Amanda and Hermione had urgent business.
"We've captured Sirius Black."
Amanda stated this in an incredibly calm tone, yet it caused a sudden, violent tremor in Professor Snape's eyes.
"He is currently being guarded by Professor McGonagall in the boys' Dormitory in Gryffindor Tower. According to my analysis, there may be doubts regarding his betrayal of Harry's parents, so Professor McGonagall asked us to invite you to come with Veritaserum."
Hearing Amanda's words, Professor Snape's breathing became rapid instantly. He seemed to want to say something, but abruptly gave up when he saw Amanda's wooden, unchanging face.
He turned back into his office, and when he came out, he already had a bottle of Potion in his hand.
"I hope my Potion won't be wasted. Let's go, Miss Lin, Miss Granger."
Professor Snape said as he walked slightly ahead and to the side of Amanda and Hermione, his peripheral vision fixed on the two of them while he also alertly observed the surroundings.
If Amanda's analysis was correct again, and the person who betrayed Lily and the others wasn't that Black... then Hogwarts Castle wouldn't be very safe right now.
Returning to the Dormitory without incident, Headmaster Dumbledore had already arrived. He and Professor McGonagall were together, looking at the large black dog—Sirius Black—standing on the floor.
"Severus, sorry to disturb your rest so late at night."
Professor McGonagall nodded politely to Professor Snape.
Professor Snape shook his head with hollow eyes, staring at the large black dog standing on the floor, his thoughts unknown.
"Albus, shouldn't we let these children...?"
Professor McGonagall looked at Headmaster Dumbledore with some uncertainty. She felt that what was to follow shouldn't be heard by the Young Wizards.
This wasn't something they should worry about, and it might also scare them.
Headmaster Dumbledore was deep in thought. Harry looked like he was about to speak, but Amanda was faster than all of them.
"Professor McGonagall, I'm afraid we need everyone to be here."
Everyone present instantly turned their gaze toward her.
Facing everyone's gaze, Amanda remained unhurried, her facial expression as blank as ever.
"Once the truth turns out to be different from what the Ministry of Magic investigated back then, they will certainly not admit it."
"They might even turn around and say we're siding with Sirius Black, or that we're crazy."
"So we need witnesses—enough witnesses."
"And," Amanda reached out and took a quill from someone's nearby desk, Transfiguring it into a video camera, "a recorded, irrefutable piece of evidence."
Thinking of the people in the Ministry of Magic, especially Minister Fudge, even Professor Snape was somewhat speechless.
In the end, the three Professors unanimously agreed to let all the Gryffindor Young Wizards gathered here stay as witnesses, and they even called over the remaining Little Lions who hadn't gathered yet.
Professor McGonagall waved her wand at the large black dog. In the next moment, the large black dog transformed in front of everyone into a ragged, disheveled, and gaunt man.
"Sirius Black," Professor Snape didn't waste any time. He reached out and held out the Veritaserum, unable to resist a jab, "Will you drink it yourself, or shall we pour it down your throat? Or do you think there's no need to drink it and you'll just confess directly?"
"I'll drink it myself."
Sirius answered in a raspy voice, took the Veritaserum, and drained it in one gulp.
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