HRHL# CHAPTER 257

Sirius Black had never imagined that he, of all people, would be captured by a Slytherin woman and delivered straight to his lifelong nemesis, the greasy, hook-nosed bat—Severus Snape.

Snape, for his part, had never dreamed that a student would bring one of his greatest enemies—second only to James Potter—Sirius Black, right to his office door.

Merlin only knew how many sleepless nights Snape had spent grinding his teeth, fantasizing about exacting revenge on both of them!

But now!

The perfect opportunity lay before him.

He opened his mouth to say something, but noticed the good student had already tactfully slipped away.

Hmm...

He looked down at Sirius Black, a wicked grin spreading across his face.

Sirius opened his mouth to shout, but suddenly his stomach churned violently, the room spinning before his eyes.

Then came the excruciating pain in his gut, so intense he grimaced, baring his teeth.

“Stop pretending, Black,” Snape sneered, his smug lips curling into something resembling a Nike swoosh. “Or are you scared?”

“Woof! Woof!” The great black dog rolled on the floor, writhing and flopping like a fish in a frying pan.

“You should know,” Snape said, his villainous cackle echoing, “even this won’t make me go easy on you. Why bother with the theatrics?”

But to Snape’s surprise, the black dog suddenly stopped struggling. It lay flat on the office floor, its eyes radiating a profound loss of hope, as if it had seen through the futility of life itself.

Snape’s instincts screamed that something was off, but his venomous urge to taunt his enemy won out.

He opened his mouth to speak, only to hear a loud squelch.

Hmm...

The black dog had let loose.

Snape managed two seconds of stone-faced composure before it shattered. First came fury, then... still fury.

“Sirius Black!” he roared, whipping out his wand and firing a Scourgify at the dog.

He swiftly stashed the potions in his hand and grabbed two new vials—dull, unremarkable, mustard-yellow ones, far less vibrant or dazzling than the others.

Meanwhile, Veratia Grindelwald arrived at Professor Scamander’s small tent.

Poppy Sweeting was outside, kicking a ball around, looking quite cheerful despite being alone.

Of course, Newt and Tina Scamander, with their aging limbs, didn’t exactly seem up for a game of football with Poppy.

When Poppy saw Veratia approaching, she nudged the ball forward with her front hoof, rolling it to Veratia’s feet.

“Come on,” Poppy chirped, bouncing with excitement. “Join me for a kickabout!”

“I’ve got something urgent, Poppy,” Veratia said, her expression tense. She hurried to Poppy’s side and whispered, “I found a big black dog by the roadside—it looked a lot like the one sitting next to you at the Quidditch match. It wasn’t doing well, so I took it to Professor Snape’s Potions office... but it seems that dog and Snape have some bad blood.”

“What?!” Poppy leapt in place, her voice laced with panic. “Oh no, that’s bad! Snape’s the worst! What if my black dog friend ends up as potion ingredients? Merlin’s beard!”

Poppy didn’t know the dog’s true identity, but she’d been sneaking it food lately. If someone like Professor Sprout had taken the dog, Poppy might not have worried, but Snape? That was a different story.

Falling into Snape’s hands? Could anything good come of that?

Especially since they apparently had a grudge...

Poppy was genuinely terrified. What if Snape killed her black dog friend?

“Exactly,” Veratia agreed, nodding. “That would be awful. We need to save him—don’t forget, you’re a Hogwarts governor!”

“Oh, right!”

Poppy’s eyes lit up at the reminder of her status. She raised her head proudly. “Yes, I’m a governor! Why should I be afraid of that old bat? Come on, let’s go rescue that black dog!”

With that, she galloped off toward Hogwarts Castle, hooves thundering.

Veratia followed at a leisurely pace, seemingly in no rush.

Poppy charged straight to Professor Snape’s office door. Without hesitation, she reared up and slammed her front hooves into the door with a resounding thud.

The office door couldn’t withstand such an assault and crashed to the floor with a boom.

Inside the Head of House’s office, Snape, who had just finished force-feeding the black dog a potion, looked up, his dark eyes flashing with unmistakable shock.

What was this unicorn governor doing here?

Before Snape could speak, the governor at the door spoke first.

“Hey, Professor Snape!” Poppy declared from the doorway. “Your days of evildoing are over! Hand over the black dog!”

“You’re a step too late,” Snape said, his voice dripping with menace as he raised his head. “I’ve already given him a stomach-cleansing potion—though it doesn’t taste pleasant. Honestly, I question the intelligence of Gryffindors. What kind of brain decides to mix spider venom glands with snakeberries and eat them?”

“Er?” Poppy froze.

“Shall I go on?” Snape continued icily. “This black dog—or perhaps I should call him Black—has a gluttonous streak. He ate something foul in the Forbidden Forest and upset his stomach. So, I’ve had to play veterinarian for the moment. That’s the situation, Governor.”

“Black?” Poppy blinked, stunned.

She knew the name Black, of course. Back when she was a student, Hogwarts’ headmaster had been a Black—Phineas Black, the one everyone “loved” so dearly.

“Oh,” Snape drawled, glancing down at the black dog lying despondently on the floor. “Still hiding your identity, are you? Not even brave enough to tell your new friends who you are. I’m starting to think your Animagus form should’ve been swapped with Peter Pettigrew’s—a rat suits you better.”

At the mention of Peter’s name, the black dog’s eyes blazed with fury.

A ferocious glint sparked in his gaze, and he let out a weak but fierce growl, leaving no doubt that if Peter appeared, he’d be torn to shreds.

“Look at that, still so full of vigor,” Snape said, his lips curling into a mocking, humorless smile. “Just like when you decided to relieve yourself on my office floor. Merlin, I can hardly believe it—the Sirius Black who once ruled the school is now, quite literally, a dog.”

“You’re saying he’s Sirius Black?” Poppy pressed. “The Sirius Black Harry’s been looking for? His father James Potter’s friend?”

Sirius turned and barked twice at Poppy.

Seeing the urgency in his expression, Poppy struggled to process it.

This black dog?

Harry’s godfather?

Merlin’s beard... his godfather was... eating raw rats and live spiders?

For a fleeting moment, Poppy wished she hadn’t witnessed this.

“Is he stuck in his Animagus form?” she asked.

“Oh, no,” Snape said lazily. “Just a rope around his front paws preventing him from transforming back.”

As he spoke, Remus Lupin burst in, stumbling as he rushed to Sirius’ side.

Without a word, he reached down and untied the ropes binding Sirius’ front paws.

In an instant, Sirius reared up, transforming into a gaunt, scruffy middle-aged man.

“Moony?” he asked, disbelief in his voice.

“Padfoot!” Lupin, heedless of Sirius’ filth, pulled him into a tight embrace. “Merlin, twelve years! You’re finally back!”

“Forget about me, Moony!” Sirius cried. “We need to catch that traitor Peter! He’s with the Weasley boy—turned into a rat! I saw it in the Daily Prophet! That rat’s missing a toe!”

“Look at that, such touching friendship,” Snape sneered from a distance. “I’m positively nauseated.”

“Shut it, Snivellus!” Sirius shot back weakly.

Snape’s lips twitched as he fired back without mercy.

“Oh, look at that. The black dog seems to have forgotten I just saved his miserable life, yet here he is, barking at his savior. They say dogs are loyal, but this one? Clearly an ungrateful beast.”

Poppy stared at the three middle-aged men before her, feeling like she was watching a drama unfold among old rivals.

“What just happened?” Lupin asked, sharp enough to catch the crux of Snape’s biting sarcasm.

Snape smirked.

“Oh, let him tell you himself—what he decided to eat.”

“What did you eat?” Lupin asked, looking down at Sirius with concern. “Mate—”

“The priority right now is catching that rat Peter!” Sirius said, trembling. “I’ve waited for this day too long—twelve years in Azkaban!”

“He’s already been dealt with,” Lupin said with a sigh. “Two nights ago, after you were bitten by a Sphinx, Harry used our Marauder’s Map and caught Peter Pettigrew in his rat form.”

Sirius froze.

Then a relieved smile spread across his face.

“Haha, it was Harry,” he said, covering his face with a joyful laugh. “Merlin, he’s brilliant, isn’t he? Just like his father.”

“I wish your eyes weren’t so blind,” Snape said coldly from the side. “If you’d spent any time with Potter, you’d see he’s nothing like his big-headed father.”

Poppy opened her mouth, ready to defend Harry, but then realized Snape wasn’t insulting Harry—he was targeting James Potter.

Well, that had nothing to do with her, she thought.

Lupin continued recounting the events to Sirius, who listened quietly, not saying a word.

“Alright, if you two old lovebirds want to catch up, I suggest you take it to the Headmaster’s office,” Snape said icily. “The Potions office isn’t your romantic hideaway, understood?”

“Let’s go,” Lupin said, patting Sirius’ shoulder. “Professor Dumbledore’s waiting for us in his office.”

Before he could finish, Sirius’ face twisted.

Clutching his stomach, he bolted out of Snape’s office without a word.

Lupin blinked, puzzled, then shot a suspicious glance at Snape, half-convinced the old bat had slipped something into Sirius’ potion—just like how his Wolfsbane always had a faint whiff of... well, excrement.

Snape, however, flashed a cryptic smile and gestured toward the office door.

“Let’s go, Professor Lupin,” Poppy said from the side. “Merlin, I never would’ve guessed the black dog was Harry’s godfather, Sirius Black... How did you know he was here?”

“Miss Grindelwald told me,” Lupin said with a smile.

“Oh, I see,” Poppy said, nodding knowingly and beaming at Lupin. “Well, that’s no surprise. Veratia’s the best.”

Moments later, Sirius staggered back from the bathroom, looking utterly drained.

As the saying goes, even a hero can’t withstand three bouts of diarrhea, and Sirius was definitely feeling it.

He was starting to regret it now—if he’d known spider venom glands were off-limits, he wouldn’t have eaten them. It was his fault for mistaking them for something sweet, like rich hot cocoa...

“You alright, Padfoot?” Lupin asked, steadying him with concern.

“I’ll live,” Sirius sighed, looking up at Lupin.

“So what happened? Why did Snivellus say he saved you?” Lupin asked curiously.

Sirius let out another long sigh.

“Blame that damned Slytherin woman! The one always hanging around Harry!”

Poppy and Lupin exchanged a glance, intrigued. “Slytherin woman? Which one?” they asked.

Sirius paused.

Which one?!

Was there more than one around Harry? Oh, right, there were two.

“The one who’s always smiling,” Sirius grumbled. “You can tell she’s no good just by looking at her. Merlin, I’m telling you, Moony, when we see Harry, we need to warn him to stay away from her.”

“It was Veratia who told us to come save you,” Poppy said to Sirius. “She saw you on the road, looking rough, so she brought you to Professor Snape to get some potions.”

“She definitely knows something!” Sirius closed his eyes in anguish. “Merlin, Snape’s potions were so greasy, I swear he dripped his hair oil into them.”

“So what happened to you?” Lupin pressed.

“Oh,” Sirius said, a bit sheepish. “This morning, I caught an Acromantula and thought its venom gland looked tasty, so I ate it with some snakeberries.”

Lupin and Poppy exchanged a look, their expressions indescribable.

Poppy felt a twinge of guilt—after all, she’d been the one to find the snakeberries for Sirius.

“Sounds like Veratia really did save you, Padfoot,” Lupin said gently. “I think you’re prejudiced against Slytherins. Sure, your family was a bit extreme, but Miss Grindelwald’s different. If you got to know her, you’d see she’s actually—”

“No good either,” Sirius cut in quickly.

“You’re jumping to conclusions, Padfoot,” Lupin sighed. “But either way, she saved you.”

Sirius felt a bit stifled, unsure how to respond.

Should he just admit that he’d interrupted Veratia and Harry’s close moment with a few jealous barks from behind, like some lonely dog?

That wouldn’t do, would it?

It’d make him sound petty.

“Listen, Padfoot,” Lupin coaxed. “When we see Miss Grindelwald, just thank her, alright? She and Harry are quite close, after all.”

Sirius sniffed, deciding to take Lupin’s advice.

But he was still determined to make Harry see that woman’s true, wicked nature!

“By the way, thank you, Miss Poppy,” Sirius said, turning to her. “You really helped me out, bringing me food so I didn’t starve.”

“It’s nothing, Mr. Black,” Poppy said with a nod. “You’re Harry’s godfather, and I know how much you love him. Merlin, eating rats for him? I could never.”

“Haha...” Sirius scratched the back of his head, chuckling sheepishly. “You know Harry too?”

“We’re friends,” Poppy said, then added, “Really, really, really good friends.”

“I see,” Sirius said with a grin. “I was even thinking of introducing you to Harry.”

“But I owe you an apology, Mr. Black,” Poppy said glumly. “I didn’t know about the snakeberries... Merlin, I messed up.”

“Oh, it’s fine,” Sirius said cheerfully. “It was my fault for being greedy.”

As he spoke, Sirius thought to himself that this unicorn was quite nice.

If only she were human, he mused. She’d be perfect for Harry—gentle, innocent...

Leagues better than those conniving Slytherin women! He could chat with her so easily...

They talked and laughed as they made their way to the Headmaster’s office.

T/N: If you find any typos or incorrect names, please leave a comment. Thanks, and enjoy reading!