Fudge leaned in, lowering his voice. "We've received word that Black is very likely a werewolf. The Ministry has questioned several people—when Sirius was struck from the Black family tree, it was probably because of his true nature…"
Cough, cough, cough!
Douglas nearly choked on his drink, sputtering as the wine caught in his throat.
"Apologies, Minister. Haven't had a drink in ages—caught me off guard. Please, go on."
Fudge's revelation didn't just catch Douglas off guard; everyone at the table was left momentarily speechless.
Hagrid let out a resounding hiccup, his voice booming with disbelief. "That can't be! We all know werewolves are—"
He was abruptly cut off by an exasperated Professor McGonagall. "Hagrid!"
She shot a sharp glance around the pub. The nearby patrons, who'd turned at Hagrid's outburst, quickly ducked their heads and pretended not to listen.
Douglas poured Hagrid another drink and pressed it into his hands. "Drink up, Hagrid. Less talk, more mead."
Fudge, oblivious to the true werewolf among them, assumed Hagrid was thinking of the infamous Fenrir Greyback. He shrugged. "Hagrid, you must know Greyback isn't the only werewolf in the world. Sirius may well have been one of his victims…"
Madam Rosmerta frowned, puzzled. "If I remember right, Black and Potter were as close as brothers at school. If Black is a werewolf, did it happen after graduation?"
Fudge shook his head, glancing around before lowering his voice further. "No, no. Our investigation shows the Black family struck Sirius from the family rolls quite early. We suspect the real reason was that his werewolf blood tainted their pure wizarding line. As for his friendship with Potter—well, that just proves how kind-hearted Potter was, befriending a werewolf… sigh."
Hagrid stared at Fudge in shock, then looked to Professor McGonagall for confirmation.
McGonagall's own expression was one of surprise. She glanced at Douglas, blinking as if to say, Is this your doing? Another part of your plan?
Douglas shook his head subtly.
A heavy silence settled over the table, and Fudge seemed quite pleased by the effect of his bombshell.
Professor Flitwick glanced between McGonagall and Douglas, noting their odd expressions. He finally spoke up, "Minister, how exactly did you confirm Sirius is a werewolf? Is it just because he was disowned? Pure-blood families strike people off for all sorts of reasons—usually ideological, not… lycanthropy."
Everyone, whether in the know or not, now looked to Fudge for answers.
Douglas sighed inwardly. He could already guess where Fudge's "information" had come from—likely some student from the Charon Detective Society had let slip their speculations at home, and the rumor had wormed its way up to the Minister. In a way, it gave Sirius a convenient excuse for his Azkaban escape. Announce it at the right time, and no one would worry about other prisoners breaking out.
Fudge only offered a mysterious smile. "Sorry, that's Ministry business. But I can tell you why Black came to Hogwarts."
Hagrid looked surprised. "Isn't he after Harry?"
Fudge shook his head. "Not just that. We have reason to believe there's a pack of werewolves in the Forbidden Forest, and Black's real target is them. He's looking to build a werewolf army. Of course, Harry Potter is likely a target as well."
Hagrid put down his mug, frowning in confusion. "But there aren't any werewolves in the Forbidden Forest—just wolf cubs, born when werewolves mate during the full moon… They're smart, sure, almost as clever as people, but they're not true werewolves and don't answer to them. I'm quite certain of that. When Professor Scamander set up the Werewolf Registry, he came to Hogwarts and recorded all this in the Ministry archives…"
As soon as Hagrid mentioned werewolves in the Forbidden Forest, Douglas discreetly cast a Muffliato charm around their table.
He knew those wolf cubs well—offspring of werewolves, beautiful and nearly human in intellect. He'd once tried to recruit their leader, but was politely refused. Still, to keep students from wandering into the Forest, the professors had all agreed to let rumors about "werewolves" in the Forest persist.
Fudge looked momentarily flustered—he clearly had no idea about any of this. The Werewolf Registry had been neglected for years; who would bother digging through those old files?
He awkwardly sipped his wine. "Oh? Maybe it's just been so long no one bothered to update me."
Douglas gave a helpless shrug. "Minister, if Sirius really is a werewolf, why hasn't he sought out Greyback and his lot?"
Fudge was clearly irritated now, but forced himself to answer civilly. "I can't say. That's partly why I'm here to see Dumbledore—to send people into the Forest, make contact with these supposed werewolves ahead of time…"
Suddenly, Hagrid had a revelation. "If Black's a werewolf, it explains everything—why he betrayed us, and why he tried to take Harry from me. He must've wanted to make Harry a werewolf too… And to think, I even tried to comfort that werewolf at the time."
Douglas massaged his temples. Hagrid had been completely led astray, now believing the werewolf rumor himself. It was easy to mislead even those in the know—especially when your close friends included an actual werewolf. You could never be too careful…
Madam Rosmerta spoke up thoughtfully. "Of all who turned to the dark, Sirius Black was the last I'd have suspected. He was such a bright boy at school. But if he's a werewolf, well… I suppose it explains a lot."
Douglas cleared his throat. "Harry knows about this."
Fudge blinked in surprise, turning to Hagrid.
Hagrid threw up his hands. "Wasn't me who told him!"
Then he looked at Douglas for help.
Douglas lowered his voice, "I do know who told him—Lucius Malfoy's son. Apparently something classified in the Ministry is now common knowledge among children. Tsk, tsk."
Hagrid stared at Douglas, thinking, That's not what you told me before.
Fudge awkwardly raised his glass and took a long drink.
Another hush fell over the table.
Then Hagrid began to sniffle, muttering curses at Black. Fudge and Madam Rosmerta soon joined in, denouncing Sirius with growing fervor.
Professor McGonagall remained silent, shooting Douglas a look brimming with reproach—Is this really your plan?
Professor Flitwick had sensed something off between McGonagall and Douglas from the start, especially their conspicuous lack of comment on Black. His instincts told him there was more going on here than met the eye, so he simply kept quiet.
After a while, Madam Rosmerta wiped her eyes, her tone tinged with bittersweet satisfaction. "Thank goodness he didn't get away in the end. Wormtail's sacrifice was worth it—poor boy. The Ministry handled it well."
The three of them drained their drinks.
Douglas noticed Professor Flitwick watching him with a gentle smile, occasionally glancing at McGonagall. Douglas could only return an awkward grin.
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