Chapter 263: Appearance

"Crookshanks, why are you here? Where have you been running off to lately?" Hermione asked, holding Crookshanks tightly. Crookshanks nestled in Hermione's arms; its fur had become messy due to recent neglect.

Behind Hermione, Harry felt as though he had fallen into an ice cave. His whole body stiffened as he stared at that figure, so familiar yet strange to him.

Although he had once imagined what a meeting with him would be like, when it actually happened, Harry still felt a wave of powerlessness.

A mass of dirty, tangled hair hung down to his elbows; if the eyes hidden in his deep, dark sockets did not glow, he might have been a corpse. Waxy skin clung tightly to the bones of his face, making him look like a skull. He bared his yellow teeth in a grin. It was Sirius Black.

"Expelliarmus!" he said hoarsely, pointing Hermione's wand toward Harry. Although Harry was still wearing the Invisibility Cloak, Hermione and Ron had just exposed his position. Before Harry could react, the wand flew from his hand, soaring high into the air, caught by Black. The Invisibility Cloak on Harry slid to the ground.

"What's wrong?" Ron's voice suddenly came. "Who put two Muggle flashlights in the Forbidden Forest..." Ron's voice trembled slightly.

The moment his figure appeared, Sirius Black cast another Disarming Charm. Ron's wand flew high as well, caught deftly by Black.

Beep-di-gu

All three lost their combat ability in a mere instant.

Sirius Black pointed his wand at the three of them, revealing a terrifying smile.

"What beautiful friendship! Just like back when I was with your father," he said in a raspy voice. His voice sounded as though he had not spoken in a long time.

Harry's ears echoed with his taunts about his father, as if Black had just shouted them aloud. Hatred boiled in Harry's chest, leaving no room for fear. For the first time in his life, he desperately wanted his wand back in his hand, not to defend himself, but to attack... to kill. He lunged forward, not understanding what he intended to do, but sudden movements on both sides occurred; two hands grabbed him and dragged him back.

"No, Harry, calm down, the scroll!" Hermione whispered into his ear.

Harry immediately calmed down. He could feel the long object in his arms; it was something Allen had made for him before leaving, a means of self-defense. This was the only thing they could rely on now.

But pulling that scroll from his chest and activating it would take time. They were currently being pointed at by Black's wand. He was unsure whether his motion of retrieving the scroll would alert Black.

He turned his head and gave Ron a look. Ron obviously had also thought of the scroll Allen had given him. Harry knew Black's main target was himself; he needed to buy time for Ron and Hermione.

He took a step forward. "Your target is me. Do not hurt my friends. Let them go!" Harry said calmly.

"Although you may have heard it many times, I still want to say, you are very much like your father." Sirius Black's smile grew broader.

Perhaps because there was still a glimmer of hope for victory, Harry did not feel as provoked by this remark as he had just moments ago.

"Is all of this your trap?" Hermione suddenly spoke up.

"Yes, but you had better show me your hands. Do not try any tricks." Sirius Black suddenly spoke.

Hermione had no choice but to take her hand out of her pocket.

"The letter from Hagrid was forged by you, wasn't it?" Hermione continued.

"Yes, I am very familiar with Hagrid's handwriting," Sirius Black said calmly. His current appearance was completely different from the madness shown in the wanted poster's photograph.

"Stop wasting words. There will be only one murder tonight," Sirius Black said with a smile.

He pointed his wand at Ron.

Ron was quietly observing the surroundings for something suitable for transfiguration.

"Take out the rat from your chest pocket!" Sirius Black suddenly said something that surprised all three of them.

Ron's chest suddenly moved; it was Scabbers the rat struggling violently inside. After such a huge commotion, it had remained motionless, yet now it struggled instead.

"What?" Ron said. "What does Scabbers have to do with this?"

"Everything!" Black roared. "Get that rat out!"

Ron reached his hand into his robe; Scabbers struggled even more violently.

Sirius Black's eyes shimmered with excitement as he stared intently at Ron's hand.

Hermione immediately realized this was a good opportunity. She quietly took the blue scroll Allen had given her from her clothes, broke the ring binding the scroll, and aimed the scroll at a stone she had already spotted...

Throughout the entire process, Sirius Black did not notice at all; he was still staring at Ron's hand reaching into his robe.

Hermione knew Allen's scroll was their last hope.

She pulled the entire scroll open without hesitation. As the scroll unfolded, countless streams of light flowed over the dense text on it. Then, that stone rapidly began to change. Immediately, a white shadow shot out from the scroll and merged into the constantly transforming stone...

The white shadow was the Patronus Allen had cultivated. Allen had finally decided to suppress the Patronus within the scroll, to shoot it at the Transformed Beast the moment the Transfiguration spell took effect.

Hermione noticed that some strange things were fixed on the surface of the scroll: some were hair, some were leaves, some were scales...

Then the entire scroll caught fire. Hermione quickly threw the scroll away; it soon turned to ash.

And that stone completed its transformation. It was a creature that did not exist in this world, looking incongruous. It was only the size of a sheep. On its back were a pair of miniature dragon wings. A large green leaf grew on its head. Its body looked like a fox, but its forelimbs were not claws; they were a pair of fin-like limbs. Most peculiarly, on both cheeks of this fox were two strange red dots...

Hermione immediately discovered that something had established a connection with her. That feeling was the same as when she used Transfiguration to transform an animal and establish a connection.

"Defeat Sirius Black." Hermione looked at Black and silently gave the command in her mind.

That strange creature suddenly spread its wings, opening a pair of watery, bright eyes. Hermione felt those big eyes were completely unlike the dullness of an animal created by Transfiguration...