218 Regulus and the Werewolf
After James and the three of them all entered the tree hole, the area around the Whomping Willow became calm again, leaving only the moonlight pouring on the grass.
After another short while, the moonlight suddenly moved.
In a hidden location not far from the Whomping Willow, a small figure stood up from behind a boulder.
He shook his stiff body hard, as if he had been hiding here for a long time.
After his movements gradually recovered, he began to walk towards the Whomping Willow without hesitation.
The moonlight escaped the cover of the boulder and clearly illuminated the figure's face.
This was a face that looked very similar to Sirius, but not as handsome.
This is Regulus Black.
After seeing Madam Pomfrey leading Remus Lupine towards the Whomping Willow, Regulus took the opportunity to tell Sirius about it.
He had long heard about his brother's weird roommate who often took time off.
In fact, he heard much more than this.
While using the double mirror frequently during the holidays, Sirius never avoided Regulus like he avoided his parents and Kreacher.
He had never looked down upon the cowardly Regulus, nor did he think that Regulus would boldly do such a thing as informing.
Regulus did not tell the truth.
But what he did tonight was much bolder than snitching.
After conveying the news about Remus, Regulus did not return to the Slytherin common room. Instead, he came to the Whomping Willow early and chose a hidden location to hide here.
He had been waiting silently for many hours, and even his body had become stiff.
But Regulus didn't have any invisibility cloak. This was the only way he could hide outside the castle in advance, otherwise he would probably be caught by the administrator Filch.
As a result, his thin body burst out with amazing endurance.
During these few hours, Regulus just waited patiently, and he even made plans to stay here every night.
Because he knew that one day, Sirius would be unable to resist sneaking out and studying the whomping willow carefully.
Because he knew Sirius would do such a thing.
Sirius Black is such a person full of rebellious spirit.
He never fears and never gives up.
He will always be much bolder than his younger brother.
But Regulus simply knew all this, he could never really understand Sirius's thoughts.
It was like Sirius couldn't understand why Regulus was always so cowardly.
Regulus also couldn't understand where Sirius' resistance came from.
He didn't understand why Sirius always rebelled against his parents, nor why Sirius hated the pure-blood philosophy so much.
This seemed to be a matter of course to Regulus.
He wanted to make his parents proud of him and make them happy.
He also wanted a magical world truly ruled by pure-blood wizards, so that wizards no longer had to hide.
And of all the things, what Regulus couldn't understand the most was why Sirius Black... became a Gryffindor.
In addition, he also couldn't understand why Sirius and James Potter were more like a pair of real brothers than the two of him.
He didn't understand it, couldn't figure it out.
Therefore, he made a move similar to actively joining the Fire Crab Club.
That's why he hid behind a stone for several hours in the silent night, suppressing the coldness and loneliness.
Now, Regulus has reached the tree hole of the Whomping Willow.
It was dark inside, and it gave Regulus no more fear than hiding behind a stone.
The pale cheeks trembled slightly.
But this not-so-handsome face revealed unprecedented perseverance.
It was like Regulus never understood Sirius.
Sirius never really understood his brother.
He only saw cowardice in Regulus, but never anything else.
I have never seen such perseverance.
Regulus twitched his nose twice.
The next second, the thin body suddenly jumped up and disappeared into the darkness like thick ink.
Regulus didn't understand and couldn't figure it out.
So, he was going to find the answer himself.
Even if it's just alone.
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On the other side, after rowing into the bottom of the tunnel, James immediately realized that they were in a secret passage.
Moreover, this secret passage is located just under the Whomping Willow. This is obviously because the school does not want students to approach this secret passage.
The most important thing is that Remus Lupin is likely to be at the other end of the secret passage.
"Fluorescent flashes."
James cast a lighting spell, and the faces of the three people gradually became clear under the light group.
"It seems that we can only continue to go inside."
Sirius seemed to have the same idea as James. He dusted himself off and said excitedly, "Maybe it's not just this Whomping Willow that has secrets."
"Maybe there's also our sickly roommate."
"This time, maybe we will know where Remus went after taking leave."
Not only the two of them, but even the timid Peter couldn't help but become curious.
It is Gryffindor's nature to love adventure. They did not hesitate any longer and soon walked deeper along the secret passage.
Not long after they left the cave entrance, Regulus also fell down.The messy footsteps covered up the strange sound that was too far away, and none of the three people noticed that there was a tail suddenly appearing behind them.
In order to avoid being discovered, Regulus was unable to use the lighting spell.He could only follow the faintly flickering light group in front of him in the dark secret passage with staggering steps.
On the way back and forth, several people had different thoughts.
There is excitement, excitement, and also a faint uneasiness.
This made time pass extremely quickly, and the three people in front gradually heard an unusual roar.
"Did I hear wrongly?"
James clicked his ears and looked at the two of them doubtfully.
"Or is there another beast waiting for us ahead?"
"Like in the Forbidden Forest?"
The two did not answer.
Sirius frowned, but he did not slow down, but even sped up a lot.
Peter, on the other hand, was a little frightened and speechless.
After walking for a while, the roars that sounded from time to time became clearer.
James finally understood that this could not be a so-called hallucination at all, but a real abnormal noise.
"All come in!"
He didn't intend to give up here, but spread out the invisibility cloak and enveloped all three of them.
This would at least make them less vulnerable to wild beasts.
"Don't tell me that Remus took leave to come here specifically to keep some forbidden pets."
Sirius whispered.
As the tunnel began to slope upward, he became increasingly uneasy.
Because the roar has become clearer.
"Remember, no matter what you see for a while, don't make a sound."
Sirius deliberately turned around and warned, and Peter nodded quickly. He covered his mouth tightly with his palms, revealing only a pair of eyes full of surprise and fear.
After turning another corner, James immediately extinguished the button on his wand.
But the tunnel here is not completely dark.
At the end not far away, there was a faint mist exuding.
It was something like moonlight.
James and Sirius looked at each other silently, and then he stretched out his hand to tug Peter, asking him to focus on him.
Three fingers spread out.
Then two fingers.
a finger.
Finally, James clenched his fists and waved forward slightly. The three of them raised their feet at the same time, approaching the exit of the secret passage little by little.
For some reason, the roar of the beast suddenly stopped at this time.
There was tension and uneasiness in the air.
In the silence, a little cold sweat broke out on the foreheads of the three of them.
James' throat rolled hard.
The export has arrived.
They cautiously looked inside.
There seemed to be a room at the other end of the exit. The light of the full moon poured in through the gaps in the sealed windows, forming thin silver lines on the ground, and then spread out to the surroundings, making everything in the room Everything seemed to be covered with a light layer of white mist.
The roar stopped.
There didn't seem to be anything unusual in the house.
Peter didn't even dare to breathe at this time. He trembled and glanced around the room with wide eyes.
Inexplicably, in the darkness of the room facing the three of them, Peter seemed to see something moving quietly.
Every time he took the lead to say something, his mouth was suddenly covered tightly by two palms, one on the left and the other on the right, preventing him from making any sound.
James and Sirius did not let go of their hands. Their bodies suddenly became a little stiff, and their eyes were fixed on the darkness.
Gradually, the fluctuations in the darkness became more obvious, and the figure that had fallen inexplicably slowly got up.
The weak moonlight shone on the figure, but the light that was not dazzling seemed to make the figure feel great pain.
The figure held its head and roared. It seemed so weak that it almost lost its balance, and its legs suddenly bent.
After stumbling slightly to the side, the figure finally stood upright again.
Half of its body was completely exposed in the holy moonlight, while the remaining half was still hidden in the thick darkness.
Light and darkness overlap, the figure becomes more painful, and the roar becomes more intense.
It raised its five fingers, a hint of desperation in its voice, and its sharp claws scratched the fur on the shoulder side, cutting bloody marks.
The floor was already covered with torn hair and blood stains.
The figure's steps became hollow due to pain.
It emerged from the darkness little by little, completely exposed to the cold moonlight.
As the sharp claws dropped, drops of blood silently flowed across the arms, adding new patterns to the floor.
In the end, the figure fell backwards weakly and hit the floor hard, making a loud "bang" sound, causing it to curl up in pain.
The ferocious beast attacks itself in despair.
It could no longer see clearly what was inside the house, and there was only a blur of whiteness in its eyes.
That's moonlight.
The cold and cruel moonlight.
After the pain was relieved for a while, the figure writhed on the floor like a pitiful creature, leaving more blood stains on the floor.
It struggled to crawl toward the darkness, hugged itself into a ball, and hid itself again, preventing the slightest bit of moonlight from reaching it.
The werewolf licked his wounds feebly.
It hid in the only safe corner and roared once again at the white mist in front of it.
But compared to being ferocious, this is more like a crusade without any threat.
Or maybe it's just a wail that hurts to the bone.