At noon, Hermione climbed out of bed contentedly, washed up briefly, and then looked around for Harry and Ron. Finally, she found them in the Great Hall. Ron was eating toast with big mouthfuls.
"Hermione, I didn't expect you to miss class. Your roommates thought you had already left, but the professors didn't blame you." Harry said.
"Oh, whatever you say, whatever." Hermione looked worried and hesitated to speak, and subconsciously picked up the wand in her hand.
"So, did you borrow the diary from Ginny?" Harry whispered.
"Of course. I said I needed to review my spells and she lent it to me."
"Take it out quickly, and we'll ask about the unknown things." Harry and Ron said urgently.
But Hermione shook her head: "I've already asked, and I talked to Mr. Sellers all night last night. Harry...things are a little complicated."
"No wonder you slept all morning," Ron said. "Chatting with Mr. Sellers is probably the only thing more important to you than attending class."
Hermione's face flushed unnaturally, and her cheeks heated up.
"Anyway, I need you to come with me. We have to go find the professor, Professor Lupin or Professor McGonagall. It would be even better if Professor Dumbledore was there too." Hermione said solemnly.
Her behavior made both Harry and Ron feel very uncomfortable and worried.
'Is it really a bad omen? Otherwise, why would Hermione be so nervous? ' Harry thought. When he thought of the big black dog he saw when he ran away from home, he felt very suffocated.
Will he die tragically like Ron's uncle? He was worried.
"Harry, can you go find Professor Lupin? And ask him to go to Professor McGonagall's office?" Hermione suggested. She thought it might not be safe to have only one professor present.
Harry nodded woodenly.
"What's going on?" Ron asked, following Hermione.
Hermione was more careful and didn't ask directly where Scabbers was: "I'm sorry Ron, I want to apologize to you for what happened with Crookshanks."
"What?" Ron's eyes widened. He thought he had heard it wrong.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for what Crookshanks did. In fact, Mr. Sellers also thought that I did something wrong last night." Hermione said apologetically, "I didn't take your pet to heart."
"Oh - I don't think it's a big deal. Scabbers is fine now anyway." Ron said a little embarrassedly. He probably didn't expect Hermione to take the initiative to give in and apologize.
Thinking about it now, he felt that he was not a very good person either. He almost ruined their friendship just for a mouse.
"I still feel a little sorry. Can I touch it?" Hermione held the wand tighter in her right hand. She was so nervous that her voice was trembling.
"Oh, of course." Ron nodded solemnly, rummaging through his bag while speaking incoherently, "It's in my bag. You know, I'm afraid Crookshanks will sneak into my room - of course, I'm not saying it's your fault, cats are like this."
After a while, he took out Banban.
This is a big rat, its fur is a little yellow, it looks very dry and lifeless. Hermione remembered seeing it on the train when she first came to Hogwarts, it looked very moist at that time.
"Why is it missing a finger?" asked Hermione.
"I don't know," Ron shrugged. "That's my impression. It's lived in my house for a long time. It's almost as big as me. It's lost a lot of weight recently. I think it may not live long."
Ron looked a little sad.
"Do you want to touch it?"
"Yeah." Hermione swallowed, took Scabbers in her left hand and held it in her hand.
Then--
"Everyone is petrified!"
Banban was as stiff as a rat sculpture.
"What are you doing?" Ron screamed in disbelief, his face flushed red, his red hair bouncing like his burning anger.
"Sorry Ron." Hermione said guiltily. She was just sorry for Ron's sadness at the moment.
"You still dare to say sorry?"
Ron said angrily, this terrible woman, she was saying sorry to Banban one moment, and petrified Banban the next moment.
"Scabbers is not a rat Ron, he is a human being, an illegal Animagus! And the murderer of Harry's parents!" Hermione said seriously.
"What are you talking about?" Ron looked ridiculous, but he still stopped.
"This is the truth that Mr. Sellers told me. I will tell you in detail when all the professors are here, okay?" Hermione comforted, "Let's go find Professor McGonagall first. Harry has already gone to find Professor Lupin. With two professors here, there will be no accidents."
The two of them arrived at Mag's office, and the serious witch looked at them in surprise.
"What is it, Miss Granger, Mr. Weasley?"
"There is a very important thing about Sirius Black..." Hermione said.
"What did you find?" McGonagall stood up quickly, walked quickly to Hermione's side, and said anxiously, "Don't tell me he sneaked into the castle!"
"No - but I wonder if I can say it in front of the principal?"
"If it really has something to do with Black, I think this is the best way. Come with me." McGonagall nodded solemnly, and she walked out the door, just in time to meet Harry and Lupin coming towards her.
"Potter, Lupin?" McGonagall didn't seem surprised at all to see the two of them.
"Harry said something was wrong," Lupin said softly.
"It has something to do with Blake." McGonagall said, "Let's go to the principal's office first."
The group immediately rushed to the headmaster's office. Harry and Ron still had no idea what was going on. They were both very confused and had no idea what was going on.
Even Dumbledore was a little surprised to see so many visitors coming to his office at once.
"Albus, Miss Granger has something she wants to tell you about Black," said McGonagall.
Dumbledore looked at Hermione with bright eyes. He now roughly knew what was going on, but he still listened quietly to Hermione telling everything from beginning to end.
After a long time, everyone was stunned by this story and was speechless. Lupin said to Hermione in shame and anxiety: "Let me see the mouse!"
Hermione loosened her grip, and the hard crust fell to the ground. Ron looked a little reluctant, but also felt disgusted.
"Show yourself!" Lupin's spell fell on the mouse, and Scabbers immediately swelled up and turned into a sloppy, dirty, short and fat wizard.
The petrified man lay on the ground with his limbs stiff, with an expression of fear and pleading on his face, looking like he was trying to please others.
"I slept with this thing for two years?" Ron almost vomited.
"It seems that the truth has finally come out." Dumbledore said softly, and he turned his gaze to Hermione, "But I would like to know, Miss Granger, how do you know these things?"
"Yes..." Hermione found it difficult to come up with a suitable explanation.
Fortunately, Dumbledore gave her a way out: "I think it should be Cyrus, right?"
"He wrote us a letter," Hermione said stiffly.
Dumbledore did not delve into it, but Professor McGonagall was very worried: "Albus, can you believe what that man said?"
"Whether he can be trusted or not does not depend on what he said, but on whether the truth is like this." Dumbledore answered calmly. He showed no emotional fluctuations, like a deep river. "At least we should find Black and then hold a Wizengamot meeting. I believe the law will give us justice."
"But it didn't, did it?"
Harry, who had not spoken since entering the headmaster's office, suddenly spoke. His tone was so full of angry power that it made him feel like his throat was burning.
"It didn't give Sirius Black a fair ending, did it?" He said hoarsely. After listening to the story, the first thing he thought of was not hatred, but how much suffering did an unjust person suffer in Azkaban?
Harry had seen Sirius's wanted picture, and he looked like a monster.
"Harry, the law is fair, but people are not necessarily." Dumbledore said earnestly, "It is not only the law that puts Sirius Black in shackles, but also himself. I think there has been no moment in these twelve years when he has not been trapped in self-blame. Of course, we all know now that he has done nothing wrong.
"And, I think you can help him break free from these shackles and gain freedom of both body and soul."
(End of this chapter)