Friday finally arrived, giving Julian a break from his lessons for the next three days, but that did not mean he could afford to relax. He had already received a reply from Ron's father informing him that Moody would be coming to collect him early on Saturday so they could handle the matter. The heavy pressure of the quill strokes on the parchment said more than enough about the anger Arthur was keeping contained, and Julian knew it was only the man's self-control that was stopping him from going after Pettigrew immediately. 'Soon enough we'll catch the bastard,' Julian thought with impatient seriousness.
The rat in question, meanwhile, remained completely unaware of the trap slowly tightening around him as Ron fed him bits of egg and bacon from his plate. Arthur had been watching the rat for several days now, and the longer he observed, the angrier he grew, feeling like an utter fool for not spotting the issue much earlier. A full decade had passed, and the rat had barely aged at all despite having a lifespan only half that long. 'One more day, just one more day and this scumbag will get what he deserves. Hold it together, Arthur,' the head of the household reminded himself.
Alastor Moody was making his own preparations for the following day as well, slipping a spare wand into his enchanted leather coat with its absurd number of pockets. The coat carried so many defensive and offensive enchantments that it was practically dangerous for anyone else to even get close to it. He had his hagstone cuffs, which he had developed for the rare wandless magic users, a pair of curse-resistant gloves, three bezoars, and a variety of other emergency items hidden on his person as he sharpened his focus on the task ahead. When he arrived with Julian, he would need to behave as though he knew nothing at all about the rat's true nature.
Remus Lupin was preparing too. After receiving Dumbledore's letter, he had cleaned himself up from the rough state brought on by his vagrant lifestyle and had begun shaking the rust off his magical abilities. Surviving day to day as a werewolf in the underbelly of the magical world had taught Remus how to act convincingly and keep tight control over his emotions, but even so, he was boiling inside after learning the truth about what had happened that night so many years ago.
The Tonks family was also doing their part, even if their role in the plan to free Sirius was comparatively small. Ted, for example, had gone to Azkaban using his clearance as a lawyer so he could speak to Sirius in person, and he had confirmed everything Julian had said. The gaunt and worn looking Black had seemed as though fresh life had been poured back into him once Ted explained the foolproof plan to capture the rat who should have been occupying that prison cell in his place all along. Sirius had nearly insisted on breaking out himself to deal with Pettigrew personally, but Ted had convinced him to think of Harry, and that had been enough to calm him down for the time being.
Andromeda, meanwhile, had been pulling strings within the light faction to pressure Lucius Malfoy and keep the slimy man from attempting anything troublesome. He was scrambling to defend himself from attacks coming at him from multiple directions, which forced him to ignore what the Ministry was doing for the moment. Unfortunately, a certain house-elf had become the target of the man's frustration, as he vented his anger by making the poor creature punish itself harshly.
Julian, however, spent the day inside his mindscape sparring with Celebrimbor in preparation in case things came to that. The old elf had been told the entire situation and fully shared Julian's desire to punish someone as pathetic as Pettigrew. For an elf like him, who valued honor, integrity, and pride above all else, Peter Pettigrew was an insult to those virtues simply by continuing to exist. Because of that, he pushed Julian especially hard this time in order to prepare him for anything, even though they both knew the rat most likely suffered from the same weakness in close quarters combat that nearly all wizards in this world had.
At last Saturday arrived, and Julian was fully equipped and ready to deal with Pettigrew by any means necessary. Ollivander saw the determination in Julian's expression and only wished him well when Moody arrived at the shop at exactly seven. Julian was so focused that he did not even notice the discomfort brought on by apparition. "Put on a smile, boy. Can't risk spooking the rat now that we're this close to catching him," Moody said gruffly. Julian immediately locked his emotions down with occlumency before arranging his face into the same casual expression he usually wore, a performance so flawless that even Moody was convinced.