"It's... not that there isn't a way... and I really don't have a reason to refuse directly..."
In front of the Shrieking Shack, Victor Wick muttered to himself.
In fact, when Sirius Black asked him if he actually felt anything for Meadowes, his heart had already wavered.
Both he and Meadowes were survivors of that chaotic era; back then, they had worked in perfect harmony, quietly dismantling many of the Death Eaters' plots and saving countless lives.
How could he feel absolutely nothing for someone who had stood by his side through such hardships?
Victor Wick had always felt that since his lifespan was nearly infinite, he would only end up watching her grow old and die, which was why he resisted these emotional entanglements.
This was also why he had been so proactive in his research upon learning there was a way to resurrect the dead.
It was the same reason he had been so desperate to understand the principles behind the Philosopher's Stone when he obtained it...
In other words, deep down, he didn't want to be alone after all.
In the past, he could use the excuse of being too weak to protect others, but now, things were different...
If he didn't need to find out why Voldemort couldn't be killed, Victor Wick wouldn't have been afraid to lay his cards on the table and send the Dark Lord on his way!
"Fine, where there's a will, there's a way. If the Dark Lord can do it, why can't I? Besides... a yandere? No one understands being a yandere better than I do!" Victor Wick made up his mind and turned to leave the Shrieking Shack.
Early the next morning, Sirius Black arrived at Grimmauld Place once again.
There, Meadowes was still sitting on the bench, looking as if she hadn't moved an inch.
Sirius's heart skipped a beat. 'This is bad; her condition looks like it's getting worse...'
The more abnormally calm a person appeared, the more violent the emotions they were brewing and bottling up inside.
If Victor Wick couldn't come up with a proper solution...
Sirius cast a reluctant glance at the row of houses before him, then pulled out a bottle of freshly purchased Pain-Relieving Potion and checked it.
'I hope she goes easy on us later, and that brat Regulus runs fast enough...'
"How is the plan going?" Meadowes didn't turn around, but her tone was eerily calm, even carrying a hint of ethereal detachment...
This only made Sirius feel even more nervous.
"It's fine, proceeding step by step as planned," Sirius said, forcing himself to stay calm.
"Did you go to Hogwarts yesterday?" Meadowes continued to ask calmly.
Sirius's heart hammered. 'Damn, she couldn't have been watching while I was conspiring with Victor last night, could she?'
But given Victor Wick's alertness and skill, Meadowes shouldn't have been able to hide from his senses...
Besides, he had spent all of last night circling the Forbidden Forest, only slipping into Hogsmeade when the time was right.
In theory, it would have been difficult for Meadowes to keep up with him. She must have just guessed his movements.
"Yes... I went. You know how it is—for the plan to work, I had to find him first." Sirius maintained a forced level of calm in his voice.
Fortunately, Meadowes didn't press further; she just stared straight at the row of houses, as if contemplating where exactly to start the fire...
"Why don't you head back for today? I'll keep watch here. I'm an Animagus, so I won't draw any attention. If you keep sitting here, the Muggles are bound to get suspicious," Sirius advised.
"It's fine. They can't see me, or rather... even if they do, they'll forget soon enough. And... they probably won't be living here much longer anyway, right?" Meadowes said softly.
'Lady, you still haven't forgotten about burning down my house!'
Sirius felt an immense amount of pressure; he suspected Meadowes might have realized he was deceiving her and was dropping hints to warn him...
However, his stress evaporated quickly when he spotted Victor Wick and his dog.
Lucky glanced at Sirius and then ran over excitedly, sniffing all around him.
"Ah... good boy." Sirius knelt down and patted Lucky's head.
Due to being an Animagus himself, he had a natural affinity for dogs.
"You two go play over there," Victor Wick waved them off.
Lucky gave a low bark, tugged on Sirius's pant leg, and signaled for him to follow.
"Alright, alright..." Sirius was about to transform into his big black dog form when he suddenly felt something was off.
'Wait! My Animagus form is a dog, but I'm not an actual dog!'
But seeing Meadowes's suddenly stiffened back, Sirius very wisely swallowed his unspoken protest.
'That's right, I am a dog...'
Sirius transformed into the big black dog and trotted off with Lucky to wander elsewhere...
"What are you doing here?" Meadowes turned around to look at Victor Wick.
"Should I leave then?" Victor Wick turned to depart immediately.
"Get back here!" Meadowes glared at him with annoyance. "Why are you like this?"
"I do exactly what you say, yet you're still unhappy?" Victor Wick frowned, his face a mask of confusion.
"Heh... then when I told you not to leave, not to abandon me, why didn't I see you agree then?" Meadowes gave a self-mocking laugh, the calm she had maintained for so long finally shattering at this moment.
"Alright."
"What?" Meadowes didn't quite register the response, looking at Victor Wick in surprise.
"I said alright."
Meadowes stood up abruptly. "You... what do you mean by alright? You mean..."
"I mean, the things I didn't agree to before, I'm agreeing to now," Victor Wick said matter-of-factly.
Meadowes hurried over, drawing her wand to carefully examine Victor Wick's body.
"Did Sirius feed you Amortentia?!"
"Amortentia?" Victor Wick laughed. "I could drink that stuff like water now."
Inside Victor's body, he had the automatically triggered Firewall of Delusion. Any adverse magical effects that could influence him, including those from potions, would be instantly neutralized by it.
Therefore, his claim about drinking Amortentia like water wasn't a lie.
"Then why did you suddenly..." Meadowes appeared somewhat restless, the tips of her ears turning slightly red.
"I just suddenly figured it out." Victor Wick walked over and sat on the bench where Meadowes had been sitting.
"Then... then how did you suddenly figure it out?" Meadowes sat down beside him hesitantly.
'Is Sirius's plan really that effective? It's only been one day! Victor Wick's attitude has done a complete 180?'
"Sirius came to talk to me last night. Then I suddenly understood," Victor Wick said calmly, his tone carrying an indescribable sense of detachment. "In the past, I had too many reservations because I didn't have the power to protect what I owned. But now, I possess that power, yet I still habitually think with my old mindset. That was my mistake."
"Then... what do you plan to do in the future?" Meadowes looked a bit bashful, no longer the strong and cold figure she had been moments ago.
"The future? In the future, you'll stay by my side. Without my permission, you won't go anywhere! Otherwise, I'll break your legs..." Victor Wick grinned. "I've already prepared the chains, forged from expensive Mithril, and I've meticulously engraved over three hundred rune sequences on them... This way, you can stay with me forever. Don't worry, Dorcas, I've owed you so much all these years; I'll make it up to you properly..."
Meadowes's smile froze. She felt her scalp go numb and her hair stand on end...
'No! This isn't right!'
'Damn it, Sirius! What on earth did you say to Victor?'
'Give me back my gentle Victor Wick!'
Victor Wick flashed another gentle smile at her. "Come, let's go home..."
"Victor, you're not quite yourself right now... Actually, we don't have to be so extreme..." Meadowes looked at him with concern.
"Don't tell me you're unwilling? Were all those things you said, all those promises you made, just lies?" Victor Wick looked at her with disbelief.
"No, no, no! Of course not! It's just... your state of mind is very wrong right now... something must have gone wrong..." Meadowes looked into the distance, searching for the figure of the big black dog.
"There's nothing wrong with me! Really! Look if you don't believe me!" Victor Wick spread his arms wide, and then a shimmering chain fell out from his wizard's robes...
Then, both of them fell into a bit of a silence.
Victor Wick smiled as he picked up the chain. "See? I didn't lie to you. Isn't this chain beautiful?"
As he spoke, he held the chain up against Meadowes's neck as if he weren't holding a shackle, but a priceless necklace...
The taut string in Meadowes's heart snapped completely!
The slight darkening tendency born from her self-despair vanished in an instant.
"Sirius Black! You bastard, what did you do?!"
Filled with grief and indignation, Meadowes drew her wand and sprinted toward the distance.
Victor Wick watched her figure retreat and rubbed his face hard.
"Fragile. With that kind of mental resilience, she wants to be a yandere? Did she even consult me first?"
From the distance, Sirius's howl immediately rang out:
"Ah! What's happening?! This... this has nothing to do with me! Wait... let me take a swig of painkiller first—Ow ow ow!"