Sagres returned to the corner where the professors were gathered. His expression remained calm, but his thoughts were in turmoil.
Twelve years of life?
That far exceeded the lifespan of an ordinary rat.
Missing a toe?
Another extremely crucial detail.
Fudge's terrified voice seemed to echo in his ears: "...the brave Peter Pettigrew! Blown to smithereens by that deranged Black in broad daylight! They only found... one of his fingers at the scene!"
The scattered fragments gradually came together.
It seemed that the rat called Scabbers was no ordinary pet at all, but an Animagus.
Peter Pettigrew.
The man who had been posthumously awarded the Order of Merlin, First Class, and mourned as a hero for twelve years, had hidden in the Weasley household for a full twelve years, disguised as an unremarkable rat.
Why had he done that?
What grudge did Black hold against him, so deep that he broke out of Azkaban the moment he learned Pettigrew was still alive?
Sagres did not know what had happened between them, but as long as he caught either one, the truth would surely come to light.
"I need to find Lupin and ask him about Black's Animagus form."
Having made up his mind, he quickly headed into the corridor outside the Great Hall in search of Lupin.
The Defence Against the Dark Arts professor was nervously checking every window and door lock again and again, his movements betraying an anxiety he could not shake.
His face was pale, deep shadows beneath his eyes, clearly worn down by Black's intrusion and everything that had followed.
"Professor Lupin, may I have a word?"
Sagres's voice interrupted his inspection, and he gestured for Lupin to follow him to a more secluded corner.
Lupin turned around, his eyes tired and carrying a trace of wariness. "Is there something you need, Professor Greengrass?"
His voice was slightly hoarse, and his complexion looked poor.
Sagres skipped any pleasantries and went straight to the point. "About Black. I want to know what his Animagus form is."
At the same time, invisible threads of Legilimency quietly spread out, silently enveloping Lupin.
Lupin was startled by the question. Then the colour drained from his face, leaving only stunned disbelief. "How do you know?"
The words slipped out instinctively, but they confirmed Sagres's suspicion beyond doubt.
"Oh." Sagres did not answer him directly. He simply nodded in understanding. "So it's a large black dog."
At once, he thought of the huge black dog he had seen in the Alley. At the time, he had assumed it was some Dark wizard's pet, but now it was clear. That had been Black in his Animagus form.
And that rat… Scabbers… Peter Pettigrew.
He had even helped Ron pull it out of an alcove himself.
Twice.
Twice he had let crucial figures slip away right under his nose.
A cold, cruel smile appeared at the corner of Sagres's mouth.
Very well.
Since they all liked to hide beneath the skins of animals, concealing themselves and deceiving others… then he would personally drag them out, strip away that disguise, and leave them nowhere to hide.
Lupin finally realised that Sagres had not been asking a question at all, but had drawn the answer directly from his shock through Legilimency.
He frowned and took half a step back, his face filling with anger and defensiveness. "Professor Greengrass, what you're doing is—"
"What I'm doing has more than enough justification," Sagres cut in calmly. He looked at the young professor with prematurely grey hair and spoke each word clearly. "Because this is the key to Black's escape from Azkaban. It is also the secret behind his ability to slip into Hogwarts like a ghost."
"And you, Remus Lupin.." He fixed Lupin with a searching gaze. "...as a professor at Hogwarts, chose to conceal this vital information despite knowing it. I truly want to know who is standing before me right now. A werewolf? A professor? Or Black's friend?"
Lupin opened his mouth, but in the end, not a single word came out.
Sagres paused. Looking at Lupin's suddenly pale face, his voice turned cold. "If Black succeeds this time and kills someone in Hogwarts Castle… then I wonder whether you will still be able to stay silent as you are now, numbing yourself with that pathetic sense of guilt."
With that, Sagres turned to leave.
"Wait," Lupin suddenly said.
Sagres stopped, slowly turned around, and looked at him without expression.
Lupin seemed to have all his strength drained. He leaned against the cold stone wall, his voice hoarse. "It's a secret," he said.
"Sirius, James, and Peter… all three of them are unregistered Animagi."
He looked up at Sagres, speaking bitterly. "And you already know—I'm a werewolf."
Sagres did not respond. He merely raised an eyebrow, signalling for Lupin to continue.
"We were too foolish back then…" Lupin shook his head. "Always indulging in our own cleverness. Sometimes I feel guilty too… tormented by betraying Headmaster Dumbledore's trust."
His voice was low. "After all, back then, no school was willing to take me in. He gave me the chance to study at Hogwarts. But he didn't know that my being a werewolf led my friends to become illegal Animagi. He also didn't know that when my friends broke school rules, I, as a prefect, not only failed to stop them but became their accomplice."
Lupin seemed lost in thought. "But whenever we sat together, excitedly planning our next adventure, that pathetic sense of guilt was pushed to the back of my mind… Even now, I haven't changed…"
His voice grew softer and softer, filled with helplessness.
Sagres watched him, his tone calm and unruffled. "There are two kinds of courage. One is bravery in the face of enemies. The other is holding fast to principles when facing friends. And what people often lack the most… is the second kind of courage."
He looked at Lupin's crestfallen face and said slowly, "I can understand what you did in the past, because that friendship was very precious to you."
Lupin's body trembled, as if those words had struck him hard.
The last trace of colour drained from his face, leaving only desolation and self-loathing.
"You're right. This year, I've struggled countless times, wondering whether I should confess Sirius's Animagus identity to Dumbledore. But I didn't… not once. Because I'm a coward. Because admitting it would mean saying with my own mouth that I betrayed his trust when I was a student, admitting that I led them into those foolish acts with me… And Dumbledore's trust means everything to me!"
He sighed heavily. "When I was a child, he gave me a place to belong. When I grew up, rejected by the world and unable to find work to support myself, he gave me a job again. So I deceived myself into believing that Sirius must have used some Dark Arts learned from Lord Voldemort to infiltrate the castle, that it had nothing to do with being an Animagus. In that sense, Snape's opinion of me is right."
"I... I am his accomplice."
Those last words seemed to drain the final strength from him. Though he was still standing, he looked more like a hollow shell on the verge of collapse.
Sagres was silent for a moment before finally speaking calmly. "Fortunately, there were no casualties this time. As long as we catch him, it won't be too late."
He did not tell Lupin that Peter Pettigrew was still alive. It was not the right moment.
And no one knew whether that rat had already been bitten and killed by Black.
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