Harry Potter: I started checking in from Diagon Alley

Hermione, what's wrong?

Harry and Ron, who had been listening intently, were puzzled when Hermione stopped.

Hermione didn't speak, but gave the two of them a tense look.

Harry and Ron then noticed that the wizard who had been sitting opposite them had woken up at some point, and a pair of sharp eyes were peeking out from the gaps in his top hat and collar, staring intently at them.

Their conversation attracted the other person's attention and even woke them up.

After noticing this, neither Harry nor Ron said anything more, and an awkward silence immediately filled the entire carriage.

"...Don't mind it, kids, I just overheard your conversation."

Perhaps realizing that his gaze was too direct, the man sat up straight, took off the hat covering his face, revealing a angular face with a small mustache.

The man managed to force a smile and said.

His voice was a little hoarse, perhaps because he had just woken up, and he exuded an undeniable fatigue.

“I don’t think eavesdropping on other people’s conversations is a good habit, sir?”

Hermione glanced at the two people beside her, her face looking a little pale, and spoke up.

The other person looked quite old; they were definitely not a student.

It's not surprising that they appeared on this train.

Besides Hogwarts students, Ministry of Magic staff, teachers, and even wizards living in Hogsmeade occasionally board this train.

However, these people usually don't go into the student booths.

Of the trio, Hermione is undoubtedly the smartest.

She quickly realized that the other person had not been woken up by the volume of their conversation.

What caught my attention was the content of their conversation.

To be precise, it was when Blake's name was mentioned.

But even the most oblivious Ron noticed the wizard's attitude in that instant.

That was an unquestionable scrutinizing gaze, devoid of any trust.

It was simply because they mentioned Blake's name.

This caused the three of them to stop talking about Blake without prior agreement.

“I’m really sorry… I didn’t mean to eavesdrop on your discussion, but you just mentioned Blake, and that name reminded me of something.”

"And you are Harry, right?"

The unfamiliar wizard smiled and spoke again.

Upon hearing this, Hermione and Ron both turned to look at Harry, whose expression indeed became strange.

"I think one should at least introduce oneself before asking someone's name, right?"

Harry was still in a daze, so Hermione had to speak.

"Oh right, I almost forgot, I am..."

Just as the unfamiliar wizard sitting opposite was about to speak, the door to the cubicle was suddenly opened.

Before anyone inside could react, the person who opened the door strolled in, and a voice that sounded very familiar to Harry rang out.

"He is Professor Remus Lupin, the newly appointed Defense Against the Dark Arts professor this year."

Chapter 34 Peter and Lupin with a Headache

"Eric!"

With Harry's surprised exclamation, the others in the carriage immediately realized who this person who had suddenly barged in was.

It was Eric, the one Harry had mentioned.

After a few days apart, Eric had changed his clothes and was carrying only an inconspicuous suitcase.

He had already changed into his school uniform, but the chest area of ​​the uniform was empty, lacking the academy's emblem.

He wore a white shirt and a matching tie underneath, giving him a very casual and unconventional look.

"Long time no see, Harry."

Eric was not surprised to see the trio and Lupin, who was cautiously sizing him up, in the carriage, and smiled as he spoke.

Eric's appearance dispelled the dull atmosphere in the carriage, and Harry excitedly got up to introduce the people in the carriage to each other.

This was also the first time Eric had met the trio.

Ron has the Weasley family’s signature red hair and makes no attempt to hide his true feelings.

After Eric arrived, Hermione's eyes were glued to him. Her cheeks were positioned perfectly under the dim overhead light of the carriage, and the tip of her nose was slightly red, making her look exceptionally cute.

As for Lupin...

Even though Eric didn't make eye contact with Lupin, he could still sense Lupin's wariness towards him.

Lupin's gaze swept over Eric like a sharp knife.

How could Eric not understand that look in his eyes?

Lupin must have already learned about Eric from Harry.

But Eric didn't have time to pay attention to Lupin's attitude.

He bypassed Harry and Hermione, who were closest to him, and immediately looked straight at Ron, or more precisely, at Ron's chest.

At this very moment, in the breast pocket of Ron's shirt, lay a mouse missing a finger, lying quietly.

Eric knew that the mouse wasn't asleep.

Because the name Blake was being discussed in the carriage just now.

The rat's fear of the name Black was ingrained in its very bones.

That rat was Peter Pediru, the one who truly betrayed Harry Potter's parents, and also Sirius Black's real target after escaping from prison.

Harry's father, James Potter, along with Sirius Black, Peter Parker, and Lupin, were very close friends during their school days.

All four of them were from Gryffindor, knew each other well, and even helped each other practice Animagus transformations on their own.

This relationship remained unchanged even after graduation.

When the war instigated by Voldemort broke out, all four of them joined the Order of the Phoenix led by Dumbledore and became involved in the front lines of the war.

It was in this environment that Harry was born.

Sirius Black, who was the Keeper of the Secrets of Harry's family's address, cleverly relinquished that role to Peter, thinking he could use himself as a target to attract the attention of most Death Eaters.

Who knew that Peter would turn around and join Voldemort, and tell him the news.

This also led to the deaths of Harry's parents.

Afterwards, when Sirius was chasing him, Peter was so frightened that he used his Animagus powers to transform into a rat and escape, leaving only a finger at the scene. He has been hiding in the Weasleys' house ever since.

In a sense, this is quite ironic.

Peter betrayed his friends and allies, but gained nothing. He lived in constant fear and hid, not even daring to revert to human form. Everyone thought he was dead.

If the Weasleys hadn't taken a picture while on vacation that showed Peter transformed into a mouse, he could have continued to hide.

Harry's parents died tragically, and Voldemort also died in that battle.

Finally, Sirius Black was left, who took responsibility for the whole affair, exiled himself, and willingly confessed his sins and entered Azkaban.

Eric silently activated his mental field, and the world inside the carriage instantly turned gray and white in his eyes.

Focusing his gaze on Peter Pedirou, a flash of white light appeared, and sure enough, the following information appeared in Eric's mind.

[Animagus-type creature, transformation duration: twelve years.]

After staring for a while, Eric discreetly canceled his mental stance, turned around, and greeted Harry and the others.

After Eric's reminder, Harry and the others finally realized that Lupin, who had been sitting opposite them, was actually a professor.

To be fair, they had never seen a professor dressed so poorly.

However, the three of them still maintained basic respect for the professor, at least not showing any disgust in front of him.

"How did you discover Professor Lupin's identity?" Hermione asked before anyone else could speak after the introductions were completed.

Her eyes were full of curiosity as she looked at Eric.

Eric smiled and said, "Is it possible that Professor Lupin's name is written on his box?"

"And I just happened to see a report in the Daily Prophet about the new teachers at Hogwarts recently, and among the candidates, there just happened to be one named Lupin."

Hermione immediately looked at Lupin's suitcase, and sure enough, below the handle, there was a line of inconspicuous small print that read Lupin's name.

Harry and Ron then looked at Lupin in realization.

Lupin sat in his chair and chuckled, “Excellent observation skills. If this were in the academy, I would probably have to give you extra points.”

Eric chuckled in return, "Even if you want to do that, Professor, you'll have to wait until I officially sort out my departments."

Lupin's smile faded. He couldn't possibly fail to notice that Eric's school robe lacked the house insignia, a mark unique to first-year students who hadn't yet been sorted.

This means that the young wizard who immediately revealed his identity was indeed a first-year student.

Lupin didn't think it was a coincidence that a first-year student could figure out the relationship between Sirius Black and Harry's parents.

Lupin glanced at Eric and said softly, "I also saw your name in the Daily Prophet, Eric."

"For your age, you've done something big; they say you almost ruined Diagon Alley."

Eric put his luggage down, sat down next to Lupin, and laughed, "That was just an accident, Professor. Compared to Black, what I did is nothing."

“Blake…” Lupin grinned, surprised that Eric had brought up Blake again. He sighed, “He’s definitely caused everyone a lot of trouble…”

“So, Professor!” Ron asked eagerly as the two began to talk, “Is what Eric said true? Did Black really kill so many people? And betray Harry’s parents?”

Lupin was even more troubled when he heard this question.

Chapter 35 Anger