"Huh?"
Gazing at the empty secret passage, William furrowed his brows and then glanced at Lupin beside him.
"...Could he have erased his Trace Curse from above?" Lupin's tone carried a hint of uncertainty. "Uh... James and Sirius used the Marauder's Map most often, maybe they cast some Blinding Technique on it?"
"No problem, I have another plan—"
Hearing this, William wasn't in a hurry. Instead, he took out his plan B, a dark blue Talisman Stone. Watching the red shimmer on the Rune, William nodded, "He's roughly covered about a third of the way. I have a way to catch him—but I plan to let him run outside a bit longer to see who's been helping him in this time."
With Dumbledore and Lupin's annotations, William continued to explain, "I suspect there are other Death Eaters helping him..."
Actually, William knew there probably weren't any. Those Death Eaters he marked would likely not dare to do so, and those not yet subdued were being one by one, thanks to Lucius Malfoy, this great persuader—not to mention those Death Eaters were all terrified by Voldemort's brutality—
Each one would tremble and kneel to him at the sight of William.
Yet he still wanted to see how Sirius managed to hide for so long from both the Aurors and those previous Dementors' search... Normally, a Black Wizard shouldn't be able to conjure a proper Patronus Charm, and some Black Wizards might release disgusting maggots from their Magic Wands while trying.
After hearing William's explanation, Dumbledore nodded wearily, "You go after him... try not to kill him, I have some questions for him." Saying that, the old man turned to leave, "I'll go explain the situation to Minerva, she just used a Patronus to contact me, saying Sirius attacked Ron Weasley—"
"Not Potter?"
Hearing this, both William and Lupin were slightly taken aback.
William was just wondering why he hadn't felt any feedback from the Sneakoscope, he even suspected Hermione forgot about it...
"Yes, Mr. Weasley... so I want to know the reason."
Saying that, Dumbledore turned to William, the meaning in his gaze very obvious.
"...I'm not some kind of demon."
William sighed, clearly displeased with Dumbledore's expression.
But the old man just chuckled and vanished in a flash of fire.
Seeing William raise his hand to grasp his own shoulder, Lupin promptly closed his eyes, and then the familiar dizziness hit. The man only felt as if someone pulled his navel out of his mouth, the intense twisting caused him to take a couple of steps back involuntarily—
But immediately, William steadied him by the shoulder, and their figures swiftly vanished into thin air.
...
... No one?
Looking at the empty corridor behind him, Sirius's tense expression relaxed slightly.
It seemed William indeed hadn't followed him, he had escaped this time, but staying with Hagrid was no longer an option—looking at the small pink Umbrella in his hand, Sirius felt a bit troubled.
This Umbrella contained most of Hagrid's broken Magic Wand, and through some methods, they could reconnect, but they weren't very effective. He carried it only just in case, yet it had unexpectedly come in handy.
However, that Umbrella must have been seen by the little wizard, and Sirius knew the person was quite familiar with Hagrid.
So, he had to find a new place to hide. Hagrid's place was undoubtedly unsafe, Peter was not dead yet; he couldn't afford any wishful thinking... he had to find a solution, perhaps returning to the previous cave and negotiating with that cat.
"..."
Ensured there was no one behind, Sirius nostalgically thought of Hagrid's stew, then continued on his way.
This section of the corridor was indeed very long; the narrow, dark catacombs no longer had stone bricks, and quite a few thick plant roots were growing from above, barring Sirius's path. He had to lower his stance, using Diffindo to cut through these tendrils—
Finally, after rushing for half an hour, Sirius saw the moonlight.
The narrow tunnel's mouth was blocked by bricks, except for a small opening; and not accustomed to his Magic Wand, Sirius didn't intend to use any Chants. Instead, he held the Umbrella in his mouth, then leaped lightly, a large black dog squeezed through the opening.
"Whew—"
He landed on a moonlit grassy patch.
Smelling the scent of dirt at the tip of his nose, Sirius felt a bit comforted, but then he suddenly felt shrouded in shadow.
"Oh, it really is you?"
A voice filled with amusement reached him from above, sending shivers down Sirius's spine.
This was straight out of a horror movie; thinking he had lost his pursuer, yet appearing the moment he escaped. Before he could exclaim, Sirius retreated quickly, transforming back into human form, then without hesitation, swung the Umbrella, twist—
But at the same time, William's hand was already on the man's shoulder—
"Pop—"
With a loud crack, the two disappeared into the moonlight.
"..."
Pushing the stone wall open, the belated Lupin blinked in confusion.
"Not you, mate?"
...
...
"Pop—"
At Grimmauld Place, the same loud crack sounded, scattering leaves piled on the ground by a sudden whirlwind. Two figures cloaked in black appeared in the square's center, one holding a pink Umbrella pointed at the other, creating an oddly comical scene.
"Who exactly are you?"
Sirius demanded fiercely yet uncertainly. He was truly shocked by William's seemingly impossible maneuver, compounded by the unfamiliar Magic Wand that aggravated his buff, his left palm now split from the middle, ring and pinky finger missing. Blood dripped onto the bricks, leaving dark red trails.
He had dislocated.
The sharp pain agitated the man's nerves, making him dizzy, he could only stare at William, who was smiling widely, slowly backing away.
"We can talk."
William raised his palm, offering a French salute, contemplating how to approach this man—in that moment, if this guy was indeed loyal to the Death Eaters, William was ready to wrap himself in Voldemort's guise—that was the initial plan.
But now, clearly, there was something off about this person. His target didn't seem to be Harry...
Strange.
While William hesitated, Sirius had already retreated to the nearby steps. He pulled open the old door with effort, dashing inside, "Bang—" The door slammed shut heavily behind him, sinking into the room's musty scent, Sirius leaned against the door, powerless.
"Ah— look who it is? The disgrace of the Black Clan! You dare return here?" The portrait in the hallway sneered, a lavishly dressed woman mocked loudly.
Meanwhile, a tiny figure emerged from a room down the hallway, staring at the man by the door in shock—"…It's that mischievous... Master?" Kreacher's voice carried disbelief, his aged face showing a hint of disdain.
"Kreacher—find me some Healing Potion."
Combating the dizziness from his dislocation, Sirius forced himself to speak—ignoring the portraits on the wall that were beginning to scream because of his presence, only glaring grimly at the House-Elf, whom he thought was dead, "I am the last male of the Black Clan, you must listen to me—"
Sirius's words bore the weight of command.
Returning to this place was the last thing he'd ever wanted.
"..."
Kreacher paused momentarily before slowly heading into the house, ambling as slow as possible, almost hoping to see Sirius bleed out and die.
Watching his retreating back, Sirius couldn't help but exhale in relief, as long as Kreacher was still obedient, he had a fighting chance.
Moreover, he knew the house was under magical protection, without the owner's permission no non-Black Clan member could enter, so for now, he was safe...
"Bang—"
Suddenly, as the man relaxed his nerves, the sword, gleaming with golden light, smashed through the door behind him.
Right after, the sword's tip withdrew, revealing William's smiling face, "Found you."