Cassius burst into the hospital wing and began to look around. Draco was lying on one of the beds, so small and defenceless. Cassius, not noticing anything, flew over to his brother.
"How are you?" he asked anxiously.
"I'm fine," Draco smiled crookedly, "just my arm hurts.
Today in third-year U.M.A.S. class, something terrible almost happened. Hagrid took the children to the hippogriff pen. Instead of telling them about the characteristics of these half-horse, half-eagle creatures, he used Potter as an example to show that it was possible to negotiate with the beasts and even fly on them. When the students, unafraid of the chimeras, climbed over the fence, admiring Harry's courage, Malfoy also got carried away.
He approached the same beast and tried to negotiate with it. At first, the monster behaved normally, but then it was bitten by some flying creature and jerked its clawed paw awkwardly. The student's hand, which happened to be in the way of the claws at that moment, was torn open along the forearm to the bone. The boy fell from the shock, and the beast, smelling blood, tried to attack. If it hadn't been for the gamekeeper, who happened to be nearby chatting with Potter, there would have been nothing left of Draco. Hearing the cry of the hunting monster, Hagrid, with unexpected agility, grabbed the beast by the neck and put a restraining collar on it. The lesson was interrupted, and Draco was carried away to the hospital wing.
The Gryffindors, defending their unfortunate teacher, said that Malfoy was to blame for going after the beast. Only the Slytherins realised with horror that any of them could have been in Draco's place. There were enough beasts in the pen to tear all the children to pieces if they smelled blood.
The wounds inflicted by a magical creature could not be healed so easily. Draco had to spend a whole week under Madam Pomfrey's supervision. Cassius visited his brother every day and brought him something tasty, despite the grumbling of the midwife. Black sent an owl home, and on the same day, an angry Malfoy flew to Dumbledore. Cassius did not know what they were arguing about, but Lucius came out dissatisfied and hissed that he would not let it go so easily. Hagrid was lying drunk in his hut, and classes were temporarily suspended.
At dinner in the Great Hall, Draco signalled with his eyes that he wanted to talk. Following his brother into an abandoned classroom, Cassius looked around the dusty room and cast a locking spell on the door.
"Is something wrong?" he asked Draco anxiously. Draco just shook his head and said,
"There are rumours that the new teacher, DADA, is teaching Potter to summon a Patronus to defend himself against Dementors.
"He'll burn himself out!" Cassius exclaimed. "Patronuses aren't taught until fifth year for a reason."
"Everyone understands that," Draco grinned.
He took an amulet from his pocket and held it out questioningly to his brother.
"Cass, did you make this?"
"Yeah," Black shrugged.
"So it's expensive to make an amulet like that?" Malfoy asked insinuatingly, smiling slyly.
"Well," Cassius rolled his eyes, thinking about it. "Almost a galleon, a little less. And about an hour for the ritual. But you can perform the ritual on a hundred amulets at once, it won't make any difference.
Draco's eyes lit up and he said in a pleading tone:
"Can you make me at least a hundred?
Cassius grinned:
"Well, if you're willing to help me, I'll do it. I'll show you how it's done at the same time.
Agreeing to meet in an abandoned classroom, but already on the "snakes'" territory, the brothers carefully dispersed to their living rooms. On his way back, Cassius stopped by the owl house and ordered the necessary ingredients for the amulets. The main difficulty was in one specific potion, which required master-level skill. Of course, it could be bought, but then the price of the amulets would be well over a hundred. A week later, locking himself in the abandoned classroom, Cassius took out a hundred silver coins and began laying them out on his work table.
"Look. In front of you are seven templates for amulets. Next to each notch is a description of the spell and the movements of the wand. You need to place each amulet there in turn, say the spell and infuse it with a little energy. So, from left to right, all seven holes. Got it?"
Draco frowned at the indentations and began to learn the basics of ritual magic. After figuring out the sounding gibberish and equally strange movements of the wand, Malfoy decided he was ready.
"Let's begin, Cass," he said impatiently, fidgeting in his chair.
"All right," Black nodded, "let's begin."
Draco diligently performed the spells, while Cassius checked that they were cast correctly and placed the amulets in a pre-prepared potion. If Draco made a mistake, Cassius simply cleansed the spell from the amulet and returned it to Malfoy. Draco sighed heavily and started again.
Finally, creaking as he moved away from the table, Draco groaned with satisfaction:
"Thank Merlin, we're done!
Cassius just smiled:
"You wanted a hundred amulets right away, so don't complain now.
Drawing a hexagram directly on the floor, after blowing the dust from the corners, Cassius took the amulets out of the cauldron and carefully placed them in the centre. Standing at the edge and ordering Draco not to talk, Cassius began to recite the spell.
The hexagram glowed with a piercing purple colour, then began to change to an increasingly brighter colour, and finally flashed dazzling white.
The room smelled of ozone and, for some reason, apple pie. Draco even swallowed, but still didn't say a word. After another minute, the glow began to fade until nothing remained of the hexagram. On the floor, sparkling like new, lay a pile of amulets.
"Ready," Cassius wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Take your order, Draco.
He didn't keep him waiting long and immediately began folding the amulets into his school bag. After the ritual, they seemed to have lost weight, and the silver became glossy grey.
"I think these amulets will raise my standing in the faculty," Malfoy said, stroking his bag contentedly.
"Just don't sell them for less than thirty galleons," Cassius said seriously. "On Diagon Alley, you can get at least two hundred for them, though they'll have the maker's mark." Draco proudly squared his shoulders and raised his chin haughtily:
"Don't teach Malfoy how to trade!"
Laughing, they tidied up after themselves and, without noticing anyone, slipped out into the corridor. The entrance to the Slytherin common room was not far away, and Draco quickly slipped inside, fearing the omnipresent Filch. Cassius cast a "disapparition" spell on himself and, laughing, moved towards the common room.
The next day, many Slytherins were showing off the amulets under their clothes. The protection shielded the students from the constant pressure of the Dementors' aura, and many students breathed more freely. At lunch, the entire Great Hall looked on in bewilderment at the cheerful Slytherins, while at other tables, many could not get a bite of pie into their mouths. Surprised, Severus Snape called Marcus Flint over to ask for an explanation for his students' behaviour. Marcus proudly showed him the amulet. Puzzled, Snape took it carefully and began to examine it closely.
Flitwick and McGonagall stopped nearby, curious.
"Strange," Severus muttered under his breath. "I know of such amulets, but they are quite expensive. Although they do provide good protection against these creatures.
"How much did you pay for the amulet, Mr Flint?
"Only fifty galleons, sir," said the senior student with a satisfied look. Severus's eyebrows immediately shot up.
"May I ask," squeaked Flitwick, listening curiously to the conversation, "who is this craftsman?
Flint shrugged:
"I don't know who made it, but this morning in the common room, anyone could buy one from Mr. Malfoy.
"Well, I'm not surprised," McGonagall pursed her lips.
The teachers called Draco over, who approached the teachers' table with some caution.
"Mr. Malfoy," the dean addressed him. "Tell us, where did you get such valuable amulets?"
"I made them, sir," Draco said proudly, his nose in the air. "I ordered the necessary materials, did a little magic, and here's the result."
Flitwick looked at the third-year student with admiration:
"Such talent at such a young age."I think Mr Malfoy is hiding something from us," said McGonagall coldly.
"The amulets are completely safe, I've checked," Snape shrugged. "As protection against Dementors, they're more than good enough. I wouldn't turn them down myself."
Draco smiled slyly, immediately took two amulets from his pocket and solemnly handed them to Snape and Flitwick.
"Deans, please accept this gift as a token of my respect.
McGonagall turned pale and, lifting her chin, stepped aside.
"Sometimes, Draco," Severus shook his head, "I think the Sorting Hat made a mistake with your house. You sometimes behave like an empty-headed Gryffindor.
Flitwick examined the amulet with pleasure, marvelling at the filigree work:
"You know, Mr Malfoy, you should come to me for extra lessons. Such talent should not be wasted. Draco's eyes widened in surprise — getting into Flitwick's advanced Charms class was very prestigious. After all, that was where the professor recruited candidates for his duelling club. And becoming a member of the duelling club was the dream of many boys, regardless of their house.
According to the older students, Flitwick taught a lot in these classes that went far beyond the scope of school education. At the very least, with such a mark on your graduation certificate, you could join the Auror Corps without having to take any entrance exams. Draco, of course, didn't need the Auror training, but the mere fact that he could join the most prestigious club in the school was a huge boost to his ego.
"What a great idea I had. I earned some money, pleased the deans, and got into Flitwick's private lessons," Malfoy thought smugly. Cassius, sitting at the Gryffindor table, just smiled as he watched his younger brother's moment of glory.
That night, Cassius woke up to the sound of frightened voices coming from the living room downstairs. Yesterday, the Gryffindor team had beaten Ravenclaw, and a spontaneous party had broken out in the common room. Everyone was celebrating and honouring the winners. Someone brought butterbeer, and the older students quietly poured themselves firewhisky.
But at almost midnight, when the most enthusiastic were already getting ready to continue, the strict Minerva entered the common room and sent everyone to their dormitories. Fred and George Weasley tried to persuade everyone to continue after the dean left, but the students decided to go to their dormitories.
And then Cassius, still a little sleepy but nevertheless with a knife in his belt and a wand in his hands, cautiously descended the stairs to the living room. McGonagall was standing downstairs, scolding the younger Weasley. He was blushing and nervous, but stubbornly insisted that he had seen Sirius Black in his dormitory.
Cassius was overcome with black rage; he had not forgotten who had stabbed him unexpectedly, and when the opportunity arose, he was not averse to getting even with the fugitive. He discreetly communicated with the Dementors, who promised to assist in Black's capture. They even guaranteed that they would drink Sirius if he fell into their hands. In return, they asked him to do the same thing he had done for their comrade on the train: empty the tank of accumulated dark energy. Cassius gladly agreed, even if they didn't catch the fugitive.
The summer term passed uneventfully. Cassius passed the Ministry exams with ease and successfully completed his training. Even the harsh Marchbanks noted that with such a high level of knowledge, she would be happy to see Cassius in some position at the Ministry of Magic.
Draco also tried to keep up with his brother, and Snape was pleased to inform Lord Malfoy that his son had been showing excellent progress in his studies lately. And the younger Malfoy's business acumen proved worthy of the Slytherin faculty.
Hagrid had been sleeping very poorly lately. Lord Malfoy's threats and his own inability to teach were greatly upsetting the half-giant. More and more often, his day ended with a couple of bottles of firewhisky.
Someone kicked the door of the hut several times. The dissatisfied, slightly drunk gamekeeper grumbled as he stepped outside.
Standing in front of the hut were the haughty Lord Malfoy and the man Hagrid hated most in the world, Walden MacQuire. A former Death Eater, he had avoided Azkaban because he always hid his face behind an executioner's mask during raids. When Voldemort disappeared, Mad-Eye Moody got a job at the Ministry of Magic on the Disarming Committee, where he indulged his eternal thirst for murder.
He was a tall man with a horse-like face, a prominent nose and thin, contemptuously twisted lips. His perpetually unkempt stubble and bags under his eyes made an extremely repulsive impression on those around him, and the fierce look in his small, dark eyes confirmed the fanatical cruelty of this man.
Malfoy took a scroll from his robe pocket and solemnly unfolded it:
"The Ministry of Magic and the Commission for the Disposal of Dangerous Animals sentence the hippogriff known as 'Buckbeak' to death for attacking a Hogwarts student. The death sentence will be carried out this evening. Malfoy's eyes flashed with hidden triumph, while McNearey kept his unblinking gaze fixed on the half-giant.
The half-giant collapsed on the steps, his legs giving way beneath him."Is that clear, Hagrid?" Lucius pressed. The gamekeeper paused for a few more seconds, then jumped up and rushed into the castle, nearly knocking the stunned Malfoy off his feet.
"Animal," McPhee spat contemptuously. "See you tonight, Lucius," and he Apparated back to the Ministry.
Cassius sat by the lake in a transfigured chair, using Occlumency to sort through the books he had read, recalling past exams, and meditating. Suddenly, a familiar voice snapped him out of his thoughts. Turning his head, Black noticed his brother, who, accompanied by his usual companions, was walking towards a hill from which the gamekeeper's hut was clearly visible.
"Out for a walk?" Cassius smiled warmly at his brother.
"We're going to watch the execution of the creature that almost killed me," he replied excitedly. "Finally, that animal will get what it deserves. If it weren't for our headmaster's refusal, my father would have definitely 'avenged' the hippogriff right there, in front of Hagrid. But anyway, we managed to get justice through the Ministry.
"But why did the Ministry bureaucrats decide to put the hippogriff on trial? It was obvious what had happened," Cassius said with a wry smile.
Draco nodded in agreement:
"No one puts a goose on trial if it pecks a child. They just wring its neck. As if anyone cares about an ordinary hippogriff, even if Potter himself rode it. Will you come with us?
Cassius shook his head:
"I'm a little busy right now. But I'm glad your offender is going to die. No one dares to hurt our family," Black's eyes turned completely black for a moment.
The third-year students headed for the hill, and Cassius returned to his meditation.
Several people moved slowly past the crackling willow tree. Albus Dumbledore led the way, his sombre and alert gaze contrasting with his colourful robe. The Minister of Magic puffed along beside him, followed by McNair, who carried a sturdy-looking axe on his shoulder.
Half an hour later, the cries and tears of a half-giant could be heard from behind the hill. "It's as if they're executing a dog, not a wild monster," Cassius grimaced, once again knocked out of his meditation by the mournful cries. "And what's he doing there, making such a racket?"
***
Cursing under his breath, Cassius decided to take a walk around the lake. It was already evening, and near the squeaky hut, which had a bad reputation among the students, he heard swearing and some kind of commotion. Transforming himself into a snake, the wizard carefully slithered inside through a crack and changed back into a human. Then he silently climbed to the second floor of the hut and froze in a corner under a "disilluminating" spell.
There were two people in the spacious room: Ronald Weasley, who was sitting on the bed and rocking his broken leg, and Sirius Black, standing near the door, waving the wand he had taken from Ron. At that moment, there was a loud thud and the noisy breathing of teenagers from below, and a few seconds later, Potter and Granger burst into the room.
"It's a trap!" Weasley shouted, noticing his friends and wincing from the pain in his leg.
Behind them, Sirius's voice rang out:
"Expelliarmus!" The teenagers' wands immediately flew out of their hands.
Cassius watched the situation unfold. After a few minutes of arguing about how Sirius had betrayed Harry's parents, Harry couldn't take it anymore and lunged at Black with his fists. Taken by surprise, Black didn't have time to react and soon found himself against the wall without his wand. Cassius almost choked with laughter and the anger burning inside him. This comedy was no longer amusing him.
Sirius Black, a Shakespearean hero wannabe and a scoundrel, had no doubts when he stabbed him. He wasn't stopped by the fact that he was facing a stranger. He struck with certainty, hoping to kill, not wound. There was a crash below, and another person burst into the room.
"Professor Lupin," Cassius squinted in surprise. "What's he doing here?"
First, he raised his wand and disarmed the teenagers. Then he began to hug the Azkaban escapee, patting Black on the shoulder. The third-year students were in shock, and Cassius barely managed to refrain from facepalming.
Suddenly, Granger, tense as a string, squealed:
"Harry! Professor Lupin is a werewolf, he and Black want to kill you!"
Lupin shook his head sadly and replied:
"Yes, I'm a werewolf, but I'm not dangerous. Otherwise, Dumbledore wouldn't have invited me to teach you at Hogwarts.
"I still don't believe you," Potter said angrily, glaring at him.
At that moment, Weasley's pet rat, which Ronald had brought with him for some reason, began to quietly emerge from his robe pocket. It was about to jump neatly onto the floor when Lupin, with a cat-like movement, was suddenly beside it and grabbed the rodent by the throat.
"Gotcha, Peter!" Lupin growled angrily, and Sirius backed him up with a vicious barking laugh.
"Give me back my rat!" the redhead cried indignantly. "That's Korosta..."
The two adults began to explain to the teenagers that it wasn't a rat, but their third friend, the Animagus Peter Pettigrew. Cassius just shook his head, listening to the two old friends. The adults decided to throw some jelly beans to the teenagers, who stared at them with their mouths agape in amazement. Cassius heard quiet footsteps on the stairs, and a minute later another participant appeared in the room — Severus Snape.
Pointing his wand at Lupin and Black, he said with a malicious grin:
"I warned Dumbledore that you couldn't be trusted, Lupin. You, you dark creature, have always supported your friend Black." His eyes glowed with malicious joy, as if he had finally found an enemy he could take revenge on.
Suddenly, Potter, who was behind the teacher, pointed his wand at the Slytherin headmaster and shouted, "Expelliarmus." Not expecting an attack from Potter, Snape lost his wand and was thrown hard against the wall. Everyone stared at the teenager in horror, and only Sirius grinned approvingly:
"Well done, boy, that's the way to do it...
"Now, let's give little Peter back his appearance.
Sirius and Professor Lupin pointed their wands at Weasley's rat. It flew into the air, and after a spell to force it to transform into a human, it began to turn into a scruffy, bald little man who really did resemble a rat.
"How long has Peter been a rat?" Cassius thought to himself in horror. As the owner of several animagic forms, he knew from his time in Uagadu how dangerous it was to remain in animal form for too long. Such a wizard begins to take on more and more of the traits of his animal.
The fat man was proof of this. His small eyes darted from side to side like a cornered rat, looking for a way out of the cage. Sirius suggested killing the fat man, but Potter asked him to take him to Dumbledore. The adults exchanged glances and sighed in agreement. Through the boarded-up window, Cassius saw the whole company descend into the tunnel and move into the darkness.
The unconscious Snape, who was being dragged along by the "levicorpus," kept banging his head against all the protruding corners. Cassius slipped out of the hut the same way and shook his head in amazement:
"What passions are raging right under my nose, and I know nothing about it."
Deciding to see where they would emerge, Cassius called over the nearest Dementor and asked him to look down from above to see where the fugitives would appear. After a while, the Dementor signalled, and Cassius ran towards the thunderous willow. At that moment, the magicians were just climbing out from the roots of the tree, which for some reason had frozen motionless. Usually, the thunderous willow greeted everyone who came under its canopy with blows from its branches, but now the violent tree behaved like a normal tree.
Stopping not far from this strange company, exhausted from running, Cassius tiredly put his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.
"Mbwai," the boy cursed under his breath in Swahili, "what a crazy day..."
Exhaling, he headed towards them, removing his invisibility.
"Hello, gentlemen. Where are you taking Professor Snape, if I may ask?"
Everyone turned in shock at the voice. Cassius grinned maliciously:
"I see Professor Lupin and a fugitive criminal leading our faculty students away and dragging our poor potions teacher with them. I'm curious, Mr. Lupin, why are you doing this?"
"You've got it all wrong, Mr Black," Lupin mumbled, while Sirius stared at Cassius in surprise.
"Who's Black?" he interrupted with a barking laugh. "Did my mother take up with someone else while I was in Azkaban? No, this guy's too old for that.
Cassius's face darkened; he loved his grandmother Walburga, and such words hurt him deeply, then anger welled up inside him.
"You have no right to speak that way about Lady Walburga, you vile creature. You're only a Black by name... Blood traitor," Cassius spat.
Black, enraged, quickly pulled out his wand, pointed it at Cassius and shouted, "Expelliarmus, Seco, Confringo, die, you creature!"
Cassius took the curses on his shield.
"Well, now I'll get even with you," thought the angry boy. Deflecting flying spells and dodging whistling beams, the young wizard suddenly grabbed his uncle's clothes with telekinesis and pulled him sharply towards himself, not giving him time to react. Flying Sirius, in one swift motion, impaled himself on the knife that the young wizard was holding in his hand.
"An eye for an eye, uncle," Cassius whispered, looking into his glassy eyes.
Amidst the frightened cries of the teenagers, the wizard wiped the knife on Black's clothes and put it back in its sheath.
"The criminal has been caught and killed. Let's revive Professor Snape and go to the castle. We need to call the Aurors and take the body away," Cassius sighed wearily.
Potter looked incredulously at Cassius, then at the dead Black, his eyes filling with rage and anger. Redhead and Granger backed away in fear. Lupin stood as if petrified, and only the fat Peter grinned cheerfully, revealing his sharp rat teeth.
At that moment, the clouds parted, and the full moon shone, bathing the surroundings in an eerie light. Frightened cries rang out from the standing crowd as Professor Lupin began to rapidly transform into a real werewolf.
"Morgana for my wife!" Cassius grabbed his wand again. The monster, ignoring the screaming teenagers, rushed at him. The smell of fresh blood drove the beast mad, and it leaped, growling and howling, baring its fangs. The young wizard jumped aside, firing a "reducer" from his wand as he moved. The werewolf's paw was torn off, but it still turned on its enemy, ploughing the ground.
"Expulso," Cassius did not wait for another attack, and the beast's body, hit by the spell, was simply torn in half. But even with almost half of its body missing, the werewolf, on its front paws alone, tried to crawl towards Cassius. If they had been alone, Black would have boiled the blood of the living monster long ago, but this was England — he had to restrain his abilities.
"Seko," Cassius said, putting an end to the wounded werewolf's attempts to crawl towards him.
The monster's head flew to the side, its body finally froze, and everything was plunged into silence. There was a nasty sound, emptying the teenagers' stomachs. Peter had turned into a rat and long since fled, not waiting for the outcome of the short battle, while the unconscious Snape still lay on the ground. Cassius pointed his wand at the professor and, to Hermione's frightened cry, said, "Ennervate."
Severus took a deep breath and opened his eyes. Cassius examined the wizard and cast a healing spell and bandaged his head, as blood continued to ooze from Snape's broken skull.
"What happened?" Severus croaked hoarsely, barely able to move his dry lips.
"Gryffindor," Cassius shrugged. "Foolhardiness and courage, our motto. You, the professor, and the third-years were being dragged towards the forest by Black and Lupin. I saw the procession, jumped on my broom and followed you. When I asked where they were taking you, sir, Black attacked me with a series of powerful spells. Each time he hit me harder, and in the end I had to neutralise him, as stated in the Ministry memo.
"Black's dead?" Severus whispered with hidden joy.
"And Lupin too," Cassius continued.
Snape's eyebrows involuntarily rose.
"Yes, sir. The moon came out, and Professor Lupin turned into a monster. To prevent him from eating you, me, and the children," Cassius nodded to the trio of third-year students. "I had to kill him too.
Snape sat down cautiously on the grass, holding himself up with his hands. Cassius approached and helped him to his feet.
"You really knocked me out, Potter, Mordred would have taken you, Snape groaned, swallowing thick saliva.
With Cassius's support, they returned to the castle. Potter and his friends went to the living room, while Cassius took Snape to the infirmary. The nurse, who had been dozing quietly in her room, was startled and tried to lay Snape on a bed, but he just shook his head.
"Leave him, Poppy," Severus waved her away. "I have to go to Dumbledore right now. Give him something to strengthen him, and I'll come back for the bone-mender later. I think I've cracked my head a little."
After giving Snape a strengthening potion and finally getting him into bed, Pomfrey sent a Patronus to Dumbledore. The alarmed old man rushed to the hospital wing and stared at Snape in horror.
"Where's Harry?" he asked first.
"What could possibly happen to him?" Snape snorted sarcastically. "I think all three of your favourites are in the living room right now."
Cassius, who had been standing next to Madam Pomfrey the whole time, coughed softly.
"Headmaster," he said, getting the attention of the grey-bearded wizard. "We need to call the Aurors. Black is lying there dead, and Professor Lupin has turned into a werewolf."
Dumbledore stared at Cassius in disbelief, and Cassius recounted the events without going into detail.
"You can ask Potter and the others, they will confirm my words.
The headmaster's face darkened, he nodded dryly and said:
"Don't go anywhere, Mr. Black. I'll call the Aurors right away, and we'll sort out what happened. Severus, I'd like you to come to my office when the Aurors arrive.
***
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