Walking out of the library, Hermione and Harry walked side by side, heading back to their dorm. Ron wasn't with them; he wanted to take one last look around and ask if anyone had seen Scabbers.
"Harry, what are your plans for Muggle Studies?" Hermione asked him. "I've been curious what subjects you'll choose, and you haven't chosen anything yet. Need help?"
Harry shook his head. "I told you before and now—I have no clue. Once I head back for Christmas to New York, I'll ask Tony about it. I am interested in technology, not gonna lie... Tony even guided me when he needed help in his lab... Still, I'll think carefully about what courses I want to do once I know more about them."
"All right. If you need anything, do ask. I'm also doing Muggle Studies; I never left them. I always select Math, Science, Chemistry, Biology, Physics—"
Harry sweat-dropped. Of course she would. He wouldn't out loud call her crazy—that's rude. She had passion for study and anything that's knowledgeable.
As they kept walking, Hermione rambled on and on, and Harry, being polite, nodded and kept walking. That's when something felt off. Harry noticed how there were no students around here. At this time, the hallways were usually not this empty. Hermione hadn't noticed yet as she kept talking, but Harry started to have a bad feeling.
He pulled out his wand, gripping it tightly, eyes sharp and scanning around. It felt wrong. Very wrong.
"And I told Mum that we can get more chemistry—Harry?" Hermione stopped talking. "What's wrong?" Why was he looking so tense?
"Don't you think it's too quiet?" Harry asked her in a low voice.
That's when Hermione noticed. Looking around, the hallway was quiet—no footsteps, no noises. "Huh? How odd," she frowned. "Usually there are students hanging around here... They still have three classes to attend. Maybe everyone—"
"Watch out!!" Harry pulled Hermione against him as a red light flashed past them.
"What the?!" Hermione gasped. "Was that—"
"Stupefy!!" someone shouted again.
Harry held his wand out. "Protego!!" A shield appeared, and the spell hit against it. "Who is this?! Show yourself!"
Hermione had her wand out and threw her bag on the floor. "Is it Malfoy's group?!" She looked around.
"Not bad, you're like your father, Harry."
Harry's and Hermione's eyes widened as they saw him appear out of nowhere.
Disillusionment charm! Hermione thought. "Who are you?!"
"Peter..." Harry's eyes widened as he recognized the man. "You...!?"
"You know him?" Hermione didn't look away from the fat man. He looked ugly and weird.
"Harry... Harry... I was your father's best friend..." Peter smiled a little shakily. "Aren't you—"
"Shut it, you murderer!!" Harry shouted with rage and hate. "You killed my parents!!"
Hermione gasped. "Wait, him?! That's Peter Pettigrew?!"
"I had no choice! Lord Voldemort was powerful! He was the winner! He could have won if it wasn't for you!" Peter's wand pointed at them. "Don't worry... It'll be over soon... He comes back... My master will come back... and finish... what he started!"
In anger, Harry moved and threw a fist at Peter, who got hit and fell backwards on the ground in pain.
"Harry—" Hermione moved to stop him but got hit from behind with a full body bind curse and fell down.
"That's enough," a man said in a rough voice. "Stupefy!" He sent the spell at Harry, who got stunned and fell to the side. Peter hurriedly got up, eyes filled with tears, pressing his hand against his bleeding nose.
The man sneered at Peter's pathetic state. "Hurry up and go! I'll bring the Potter outside. If we want to succeed with our plan... we must do it now!"
The man step closer, Hermione recognized the man who had escaped from Azkaban, Herman West. A half-blood. 'Don't you dare touch him!' She thought, Even if she can't move, she can hear and see.
"What are you standing there for?! Go!"
Once again—to Hermione's horror—pale, disgusted, and shocked, Peter transformed into a rat. Not just any rat. Scabbers. She wanted to vomit so badly. Peter was Scabbers?!
"And to make sure you don't tattle our location," Herman pointed his wand at her. "I—" He immediately turned around and shouted, "Protego!" Just in time from getting hit from behind.
"Hermione! Harry!" It was Ron. "Get away from them, you bastard!"
Herman was getting tired of this. He had been holding back from murdering anyone, but it seemed he might as well just do it. No—that would draw more attention. Damn that Peter!
"Fumos!" The thick smoke spread everywhere. Herman immediately moved, grabbed Harry, and ran off toward the secret passage with him. He ignores the shout.
Finally, the mission was complete. Soon, the Dark Lord will rise again!
________________________________
Tony wasn't going to sit down and do nothing. He had already called Gellert to come as soon as possible. He'd been pacing back and forth when JARVIS informed him that Gellert was here.
The lift doors opened, and Gellert stepped out. "Tony, what's wrong?" He hurried over the moment Tony called him, though he hadn't been told what was going on. "Did someone attack?"
"A dark wizard named Herman West escaped from Azkaban—one of the followers of that You-Know-Who-died-by-my-brother's-awesome-diaper-stink. He's after him. Johnny informed me. Can you take me to Hogwarts? Graves is busy, and I've got no other wizard in contact who can take me there," Tony said in one breath.
Gellert placed a hand on Tony's shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze. "Easy…" He frowned. "Don't worry, I'll take us—"
Their conversation halted as a golden portal opened and the Ancient One stepped through. "Gentlemen, we have a problem." Her tone was grave. "It's about your brother, Tony."
Tony groaned. "I fucking knew it!"
Why can't they all take a break!?
_______________________________
"I CAN'T BELIEVE HE WAS UNDER OUR NOSE ALL THIS TIME AND WE DIDN'T KNOW!!! HOW DID WE NOT REALIZE??!!" Sirius screeched as he ran out of the castle with Remus and Snape.
That fucking Peter!! He was Scabbers!
Ron and Hermione rushed to the staff room where others were gathered. They told them Harry had been kidnapped by the dark wizard and Peter. Hermione told them Ron's pet Scabber was Peter Pettigrew all this time!
Right then and there, Ron fainted upon hearing it.
Sirius, Remus, and Snape rushed out immediately to chase after the criminals who took Harry.
"If you two idiots shut up and use your noses to track him down!!" Snape snapped at them. He had so many curses he wanted to use on Peter. He still hated Sirius, but the revelation that it was Peter who was the keeper and not Sirius made Snape beyond furious.
How the fuck didn't he see him?! In all the meetings, Peter was one of the Dark Lord's undercover agents. A spy!
"He's right! Harry is in danger!" Remus shouted. "We need to find him! They could be inside the forest!"
"If anything happens to Harry, I will throw him at Moony!!"
"You have no idea how it pleases my wolf!"