bioinnovel Chapter 186 Mutual Confirmation
Chapter 186 Mutual Confirmation
Chapter 186 Mutual Confirmation
Belvina had intended to conceal her speculation, as there was no evidence to support it, and the search of the Gryffindor Tower tonight had yielded no results.
But on second thought, Dumbledore's excuse to send everyone away and his sudden recollection of the past suggest that he might also harbor doubts about the Secret Service.
Therefore, Belvina decided to take the risk. At worst, she would be scolded by Dumbledore for having wild thoughts, or at worst, suspected of having ulterior motives.
The potential for disastrous consequences is still within Belvina's tolerance level.
If they are lucky enough, they might even get Dumbledore's help to re-examine the whole story and correct any errors in their deductions.
Belvina never considered herself a brilliant person. For someone who isn't particularly intelligent, seeking help from a smart person can sometimes be a sign of intelligence.
When Belvina, with a hint of arrogance, voiced her baseless speculation, Dumbledore's expression immediately turned serious.
"The possibility is low, but not impossible," Dumbledore said. "The Ministry of Magic failed to find Peter's body."
As the saying goes, the dead are never found. The Ministry of Magic only found a blood-stained robe and a severed finger at the scene.
With the added testimony of Muggles, the Ministry of Magic concluded that Peter Pettigrew had been killed, blown to pieces by Sirius Black's magic.
The streets were littered with scavengers. The Ministry of Magic did not believe that Peter Pettigrew was still alive. They recognized Peter as a hero and posthumously awarded him the Order of Merlin, First Class.
Dumbledore thought for a moment, then continued, "Whether at school or after graduation, Peter was always the least noticeable of the four. When Peter was with his friends, it was hard for people to notice him."
Belvina listened attentively to Dumbledore's narration, her memories of Peter Pettigrew were awakened one by one, and Peter's image gradually became more vivid in her mind.
In my memory, Peter Pettigrew was a short, chubby boy who always followed behind James and Sirius, always looking at his friends with adoring and admiring eyes.
Whenever Gryffindor and Slytherin clashed, that short, chubby figure could always be seen following behind his friends, never letting himself be left alone.
Peter Pettigrew wasn't particularly outstanding during his school days. He always followed behind his friends, was timid and cowardly, and had a bit of cleverness. Overall, he was a decent "friend."
Belvina would never befriend someone like Peter Pettigrew; his so-called friendship is merely worship and following of the strong, and such friendship is not stable.
Through Dumbledore's words, Belvina also learns that Peter Pettigrew has joined the Order of the Phoenix, and the coward once again chooses to follow in his friends' footsteps.
As far as Belvina knew, the Order of the Phoenix was a secret society founded by Albus Dumbledore, dedicated to resisting Voldemort's reign of terror, and played a vital role during the war.
Despite the victory in the war against Voldemort, the Order of the Phoenix paid an extremely heavy price.
The Prewitt brothers, Caladok Dearburn, Benji Fenwick, Edgar Bornes,
And Marlene McKinnon and her family...
Belvina knew they were members of the Order of the Phoenix because they had all been killed by Voldemort and the Death Eaters.
Karadok Dearborn remains missing to this day because his body has not been found.
Besides these people, James and Lily Potter were also killed by Voldemort, and the Longbottoms were driven insane by the madwoman Bellatrix.
In other words, choosing to join the Order of the Phoenix means putting your life on the line; death and disappearance can happen at any time.
How could the timid and cowardly Peter Pettigrew join the extremely dangerous Order of the Phoenix? Was he insane, or was Dumbledore senile, or did Belvina mishear him?
"It's shocking that Peter Pettigrew is a member of the Order of the Phoenix," Belvina exclaimed, still unable to believe that Peter could be so brave.
"The Order of the Phoenix is made up of all sorts of people, from exceptionally talented Aurors to Squibs who can't cast spells, and even thieves," Dumbledore said. "I'd be happy to have anyone who dares to stand up to Voldemort join me."
Dumbledore's tone suddenly turned somewhat melancholy, as if he were thinking of the members who had already sacrificed their lives, their lives ending too soon to see the day of temporary victory.
Dumbledore remained silent for a long while before continuing, "You know what happened next. To escape Voldemort's pursuit, James and Lily formed the Faithful Charm and chose someone they trusted to be their Secret Keeper."
"Sirius Black," Belvina said. "He was supposedly the best man at the Potters' wedding."
"Yes, that's what James told me," Dumbledore said. "Black deserved to be imprisoned in Azkaban, with Dementors guarding his cell day and night. But I always felt something was amiss."
Sirius Black was one of the most heavily guarded criminals in Azkaban.
Every time Belvina goes to visit the wizard prison, the approval process for her visitation application is a major hurdle.
If it weren't for the fact that the surname Black is synonymous with wealth and status, and if Belvina's position in the Ministry of Magic hadn't been steadily rising, it would have been virtually impossible for her to speak to Sirius alone.
"Why didn't Sirius Black attack Hagrid that night in Godric's Hollow?" Dumbledore continued. "He clearly saw Harry in Hagrid's hands, and he knew Hagrid was going to hand Harry over to me. Why didn't he take the opportunity to snatch Harry away?"
Not only did they fail to snatch Harry from Hagrid, they also left the flying motorcycle with Hagrid so that he could hand Harry over to Dumbledore as soon as possible.
Sirius also said to Hagrid, "I don't need it anymore." It sounded like a farewell.
Belvina stared blankly at the flickering flames in the fireplace, recalling their last meeting in Azkaban, where Sirius's pain and self-reproach seemed genuine.
"Do you remember what you told me last year?" Dumbledore said. "You relayed Sirius's words, 'If it weren't for my damn decision.' What kind of decision was that?"
"Refuse to be the Potters' secret keeper?" Belvina said slowly as she pondered. "To be honest, it's not suitable for Sirius to be the secret keeper; he's just too conspicuous."
Dumbledore nodded, then offered his guess, a guess without any evidence.
The headmaster said, "I'm afraid it's not that simple. Sirius may have done something that indirectly led to the deaths of James and Lily."
Then Dumbledore added, "Of course, that is, assuming Sirius Black isn't the Secretkeeper and Peter Pettigrew isn't dead."
After listening to Dumbledore's analysis, Belvina fell into deep thought, trying to see the whole thing from Sirius's perspective.
The Fidelity Spell is an extremely complex magic that can keep secrets hidden forever in the soul of a living person, so that they will never be discovered unless the chosen one reveals them voluntarily.
Belvina's understanding of the Faithful Charm was limited to this; her thinking was always either/or, and if Sirius wasn't the Secret Keeper, then the Secret Keeper must be Peter Pettigrew.
As for Lupin, Belvina never considered him; his special status made him unsuitable for keeping secrets.
"What if, and I mean what if," Belvina said slowly, "what if Sirius had suggested to the Potters that they change the Secret Keeper? That they replace him with the unassuming Peter?"
Sirius Black likely realized the drawbacks of becoming the Secret Keeper, so he thought he had come up with a brilliant solution: replacing the Secret Keeper with Peter Pettigrew.
In this way, even if the Death Eaters manage to capture Sirius Black, and even if they have the ability to pry open Sirius's mouth, they will never find out where the Potters are hiding.
Sirius Black, disguised as the Secret Agent, is responsible for attracting everyone's attention, while the real Secret Agent, Peter Pettigrew, just needs to hide.
As long as Peter Pettigrew doesn't encounter any mishaps, the Potters will be absolutely safe, and Voldemort will never be able to find them.
"That possibility cannot be ruled out," Dumbledore said. "Only by finding Sirius Black can we possibly find out the truth. Or we can find Peter Pettigrew, if he really is not dead."
Dumbledore stood up and continued, "Generally speaking, rats are very good at hiding and escaping, so it's not easy to find a hiding rat."
It sounds like Dumbledore is trying to comfort Belvina.
If Peter Pettigrew hasn't died, then he's been hiding for twelve years. Where has he been hiding all these years?
Also, where did Sirius Black learn about Peter's whereabouts, and how did he determine that Peter was hiding in Hogwarts?
Who was the secret agent twelve years ago? What is the truth behind Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew's bloody street incident? What was the deciding factor that led Sirius Black to escape from prison?
Belvina's suspicions were confirmed by Dumbledore, but this was followed by even more questions, so many that Belvina began to question the meaning of life!
The only way to solve all these problems is to find Sirius Black, or Peter the Little.
But both of them are illegal Animagus, one is a hardened criminal who escaped from Azkaban, and the other is a "hero" who has been hiding for twelve years. Finding them is no easy task.
Belvina tapped her head helplessly. She suddenly realized that her previous plan to just lie down was a bit inhumane.
But it's really comfortable; at least I don't have to worry about these things.
"Professor," Belvina also stood up, and she asked, "why would Voldemort be interested in the Potters?"
This was a question that Belvina had been pondering for years: why did Voldemort insist on finding the Potters?
Why did they have to kill Harry Potter, who was only one year old?
Dumbledore sighed, his back to Belvina so she couldn't see the expression on his face.
"Because of a prophecy," Dumbledore said. "It's too late today, but I'll tell you the details of this prophecy another time. Everything started because of this prophecy."
When it comes to prophecies, the first person that comes to Belvina's mind is Sybil Trelawney, a fraudster who used her ancestor's name to swindle people.
Thinking about it again, it seemed impossible. Trelawney might be good at charlatanism, but prophecy was out of the question. In any case, Belvina didn't believe a single word of Trelawney's prophecies.
"Because of a prophecy, a strong friendship was destroyed, and a happy family was torn apart," Belvina said. "That prophecy was really harmful!"
Belvina didn't mention Voldemort. The prophecy was the cause of everything, but the one who made the prophecy the cause was Voldemort, who also lost his physical body and fell from his peak because of it.
What does this tell us?
This illustrates that feudal superstition is unacceptable.