Douglas paid the two men no mind and continued, "From Sirius, I learned the truth behind everything. At first, I didn't believe him, so I kept him imprisoned..."
Professor Sprout frowned. "Douglas, I remember you told me Mr. Potter spent nearly the whole summer at your house. You let him and Black—?"
She didn't finish, but everyone understood her meaning.
Snape's eyes all but sparked with fury.
The Ministry of Magic officials drew their wands, glaring daggers at Douglas.
Fudge started to say something to Dumbledore, but Dumbledore silently motioned for him to wait.
To his own Head of House, Douglas was happy to explain. "Yes, Professor. I'm sorry I never told you about it."
Professor Flitwick smiled. "I suppose Minerva was in the loop, wasn't she?"
He'd already suspected as much back at the Three Broomsticks, having sensed a secret between them—undoubtedly about Black—but he wasn't one for gossip, so he'd never pressed the matter.
Professor McGonagall nodded, then said, "Let's allow Douglas to finish."
Douglas went on, "My original plan was to turn Black over to Headmaster Dumbledore at the start of term. But..."
Fudge interrupted, disgruntled. "You should have notified the Ministry! You know Black is—"
Douglas glanced at him, an idea sparking, and improvised, "Then, at the start of term, there was the Dementor incident on the Hogwarts Express. It made me realize there was more to this than met the eye. I questioned Black—he was convinced those Dementors had been lured away by Vol—Voldemort..."
At the mention of Voldemort, a collective gasp swept through the office.
Fudge slammed his teacup down, voice sharp as a whip. "Nonsense! He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is dead—dead, do you understand?"
Douglas met his gaze. "I'll prove he's still alive soon enough. And as far as I know, you still haven't found the missing Dementors."
Dumbledore quietly picked up a Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Bean, watching Douglas's performance with interest.
Lupin, who had been silent until now, exchanged a glance with the massive black dog at his side. Both man and dog shared a fleeting, knowing smile.
Snape snapped, "Get to the point. Where's Black?"
Douglas shrugged. "The train incident made me realize Black might be telling the truth. After term started, I reached out to Remus and confirmed Black's story through him..."
He gestured toward the mirror. Inside, George and Fred were placing a cage in the center of a group of students.
Their voices echoed from the mirror: "That's right, Scabbers is Peter Pettigrew. He's not some ghost—he's an Animagus..."
In the office, Lupin spoke up, "That's right. Peter is an Animagus—his form is a rat. After Douglas asked me, I went to see the rat at Mr. Weasley's. I can say with absolute certainty it's him. I saw him transform countless times at school..."
Fudge blinked, staring at the rat in the mirror. "Peter Pettigrew? Why would he hide as a rat? The Ministry awarded him the Order of Merlin, First Class!"
Meanwhile, Snape's eyes narrowed as he processed Lupin's words. Suddenly, realization dawned. He shot a sharp glance at the hulking black dog by Lupin's side. The dog—Sirius—bared his teeth, a low growl rumbling from his throat.
Douglas ignored Fudge, his attention fixed on Snape.
Scrimgeour, noticing Douglas's focus, followed his gaze to Snape.
A twitch of Snape's right hand—and his wand dropped neatly into his palm.
The instant Snape gripped his wand, Douglas's own wand snapped into his hand. He flicked it, and a jet of red light—Expelliarmus!—sent Snape flying. Before he could crash into the Headmaster's desk, a shimmering silver rope shot out, wrapping Snape tightly and anchoring him to Fawkes's perch. He landed safely, but before he could even start to rage, a Silencing Charm struck him. Snape was left bound and utterly mute.
At the same moment, Scrimgeour raised his wand and shouted, "Expelliarmus!"
But Douglas had predicted this. With a swift backbend, he dodged the spell and, in the same motion, fired a Silencing Charm at Snape—just to be sure no stray words escaped before the truth came out.
Professor Flitwick, quick as lightning, saw the stray Disarming Charm coming his way. With a casual flick of his wand, he blocked it with a Shield Charm, then sidestepped and fired off a Disarming Spell that hit Scrimgeour squarely.
The Aurors Scrimgeour had brought all whipped out their wands.
Fudge, pale and sweating, drew his own wand and instinctively ducked behind the Aurors.
All of this happened in the space of a few heartbeats.
Then, Dumbledore, a beat slower than the rest, bellowed, "Enough!"
Douglas watched as crumbs flew from Dumbledore's mouth with each word, and he stepped aside in distaste, motioning for Professor Flitwick to return Scrimgeour's wand.
Scrimgeour, wand back in hand, glared daggers at Douglas, but finally waved for his Aurors to stand down.
Fudge continued to bluster behind the Aurors, demanding answers from Dumbledore, but no one paid him the slightest heed.
Douglas turned to Sirius, who was still being held back by Lupin and baring his teeth at the bound Snape. "Quiet. Don't forget your promise..."
Sirius retreated a step, but there was mischief in his doggy eyes as he looked at Snape.
He padded over to the immobilized, silenced Snape and said, almost apologetically, "Professor, you guessed right—but now's not the time. You'll have to bear with it for a bit."
Dumbledore added gently, "Severus, I'll explain everything to you later."
Everyone present was among the magical world's elite, and each was forming their own suspicions.
But no one made a move. The Ministry officials knew they couldn't take Black from this assembly of Hogwarts professors. And with the only person at Hogwarts who had a grudge against Black now securely restrained, even those who suspected the truth weren't about to say so aloud.
Douglas could read the room perfectly. Until Peter Pettigrew was publicly revealed, it was best to keep Sirius hidden. It might seem a little like sticking his head in the sand, but if Black resumed his human form now, the Ministry would have no choice but to arrest him on the spot. Better, for now, that everyone pretended not to notice.
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