Harry Potter and the Obscurus

Chapter 90 Adding Fuel to the Fire

"Protego Gubraithian." (Protected by divine fire)

With a whoosh, the azure blue Ancient Flame burst forth from a meter away from Harry. The ancient flame, which had once appeared as a quiet, flowing flame, became slightly more active under the control of the new magic Harry had mastered.

Seeing the blue flames gradually forming a semi-circular shield, Severus Snape no longer hesitated. He raised his wand and chanted:

"Sectumsempra." (The Unseen Sharp Edge)

The invisible blades were already incredibly fast, and this time, the Sleight of Hand spell was cast by its creator, making it even more powerful. However, just as the spell was about to reach within a meter of Harry, the Goblinsfire spontaneously leaped up and slammed into the Sleight of Hand spell that was about to harm Harry.

"puff"

There was no deafening roar of magical clash as expected; the malevolent curse created by the Half-Blood Prince vanished without a trace. Seeing this, Snape sheathed his wand and said calmly:

"A great reputation is well-deserved. It seems that this wizard named Grindelwald does indeed possess talent no less than Dumbledore's."

Snape's assessment was not a mere formality.

It's worth noting that Protecto Diabolica is Grindelwald's signature self-created magic. Decades ago, if it weren't for Nicolas Flamel leading a group of elite Aurors from Europe to stop it, the entire city of Paris would likely have been engulfed in flames.

"His magic is truly remarkable..."

Harry nodded as he put away the fire shield beside him and said:

"But thankfully, Professor, you've been there to guide me the whole time. You've really been a great help to me."

Snape, who had long coveted the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, became more serious. Already well-versed in Dark Arts, he adopted a more stern attitude than he usually did in Potions class. He said:

"Heh... Don't think you've become a master of dark magic in just a few months. Even with my help, you've only scratched the surface."

"But at least now I can use his magic to protect myself."

Harry smiled slightly and replied, showing no sign of being discouraged at all, having grown accustomed to Snape's teaching style.

In the few months since leaving the Department of Mysteries, he has learned a great deal about dark magic using the knowledge Grindelwald imparted to him from Mo Ran's memories. Besides the Unforgivable Curse, which is most well-known to contemporary wizards, his memories also include the "Oscausi" spell, a prank-like spell that silences.

Harry's learning ability is not bad, but dark magic is called dark magic not only because of its harmful effects. Most dark magic spells require the caster to use negative emotions as a guide, which is completely contrary to the Grubbish Fire and the Patronus Charm.

If it weren't for Grindelwald designing Fire Shield as a "defensive" spell, Harry probably wouldn't have been able to master any of the powerful dark magic.

(Strictly speaking, the "Protego Diabolica" fire shield spell essentially utilizes the ability of Fiendfire to devour other magic, constantly borrowing enemy spells or flammable materials from the surrounding environment to create a "territorial" advantage for the caster. Therefore, using any other magical flames besides Fiendfire to cast the fire shield will inevitably reduce its effectiveness.)

"Any new information from Little Pettigrew's side?"

"Not yet, but what Black heard in Azkaban gave me some inspiration. Since the Death Eaters in prison don't know the truth of what happened back then, and even believe that Pettigrew's false information killed their master, it means they don't know much about Voldemort's current situation. We can use Pettigrew's words to have DB Cooper spread some rumors."

Harry did not tell Professor Snape that Peter Pettigrew had actually been "brought back to life" through some kind of dark magic ritual. Therefore, when he made such a risky suggestion, Snape, being a double agent, immediately and firmly rejected it.

He said coldly:

"No, that guy's Animagus is a rat. If we're not careful, he'll escape. Besides, he's the one who killed your mother. Rather than risk letting him go free by spreading rumors that might not even work, we should just execute him on the spot!"

Harry nodded, not denying Professor Snape's statement.

"Of course I understand your concerns. To be honest, if I hadn't already killed him once, I would definitely want to get rid of him as soon as possible, just like you. But you've met that guy DB Cooper. He's pretended to be subservient to Voldemort and cooperate with us on business at Hogwarts. It's become an inevitable part of history. If we don't let him find such a Death Eater in the castle after school starts, things might change."

Hearing Harry's words, even Snape, who had been engaged in espionage for over a decade, had to admit that his words and actions had been somewhat rash. Whether Peter Pettigrew was dead or alive, Lily was gone and would never return, but for him and Harry, who were in the midst of time travel, ensuring that history proceeded in the correct direction was their most pressing concern.

"All right."

Snape drew out an extremely long tone:

"Leaving aside what message you want Little Pettigrew to convey, how can you get him to negotiate with DB Cooper according to your wishes?"

Sensing that the other party was showing signs of relenting, Harry twirled his wand and said bluntly:

"After studying dark magic for so long, I think my Imperius Curse is quite powerful. I'll take this opportunity to test the training results on Peter Pettigrew."

"You should know that the Imperius Curse is an unforgivable curse, right?"

Snape did not directly reject Harry's suggestion; instead, he spoke in a warning tone:

"Any wizard who casts an Unforgivable Curse on a person, whether or not he succeeds, will be punished by the Ministry of Magic with a life sentence in Azkaban."

"On the condition that you get caught by the Ministry of Magic."

Harry's answer wasn't without constructive argument. Among the three unforgivable curses, the Imperius Curse is the only one that differs significantly from the Killing Curse and the Cruciatus Curse. It doesn't require the caster to invoke evil thoughts when casting the spell, and the person afflicted by the Imperius Curse doesn't suffer simply because of it.

A person under the influence of the Imperius Curse will feel their mind go blank, all thoughts, burdens, and even the sense of responsibility of being human will vanish, and they will feel immense happiness and joy, following the only voice in their mind to do whatever they are guided to do.

Theoretically, the Imperius Curse could even help some people in extreme pain find relief, or force those unfortunately addicted to things like drugs away from what harms them. However, like Muggles, wizards are ultimately human, and human desires and evil thoughts can grow and expand with power.

If a kind of magic that can manipulate life and even souls is no longer monitored and controlled, then the strong will endlessly exploit the weak, leading to moral decay and the collapse of the social system.

Therefore, even if the magic itself is not malicious, the Imperius Curse is marked as an unforgivable curse by the Ministry of Magic because of its special effects.

"Mr. Potter."

After a moment of contemplation, Snape knew he couldn't come up with a better solution, so he could only remind Harry again:

“Peter Pettigrew is an adult wizard. Although he looks rather odd, someone who can master Animagus in the fifth year should not be underestimated. As for the Imperius Curse, its magical effect will gradually decrease after casting too many spells on a particular person. Once Wormtail develops resistance to your spells, he may escape when the spell's power weakens. You must remember this.”

"Okay, don't worry, Professor, I'll keep a close eye on that guy."

Snape, who was completely unaware that Pettigrew had been completely transformed into a humanoid puppet, was somewhat relieved after receiving Harry's confirmation.

Counting the days, more than four months have passed since they used the Time-Turner. Now that Hogwarts is about to start, his mindset is gradually changing.

Perhaps to pass the time, or perhaps out of longing for his deceased friends, he, who had once vowed not to participate in Lily Health Insurance's commercial activities and had no interest in making shampoo, actually secretly helped the small company, which only had Harry and Dobby, to handle many troubles behind the scenes.

If it weren't for this, even with the help of magic and elves, Harry and Morales wouldn't have been able to simultaneously search for the magical ancient books mentioned by Nicolas Flamel and successfully promote Lily Peanut Hair Tonic to the British wizarding market.

Your birthday is coming soon.

Snape suddenly said, as if out of nowhere:

"If you still have the Invisibility Cloak, I suggest you hand it over to me now. That way, you can put it directly into that transforming pocket watch and avoid trouble later."

"The one I have?"

Harry, whose attention was diverted by Professor Snape's Invisibility Cloak, did not notice that the gloomy bat in front of him had actually prepared a birthday present for him, which was unprecedented.

He continued to ask:

"Where is the invisibility cloak you have?"

"I gave it to Dumbledore."

Snape replied:

“Dumbledore found me about three weeks ago. He knows that you and I have traveled back in time and said that he needs to borrow your invisibility cloak to accomplish something very important. It’s normal for you to have doubts, but I have known Dumbledore longer than you have lived, so don’t worry that I won’t be able to tell that someone is impersonating him.”

Three weeks ago?

Harry muttered to himself.

If Mo Ran were still awake, he would surely have connected the dots by the time Dumbledore found Snape—the very day after he and the Dementors had caused chaos by "hunting" Sirius Black. However, Harry, at this moment, was unaware of the many details about the time rift and could only connect it to his memories of destroying Horcruxes.

"So, are you going to help Headmaster Dumbledore next?"

As Harry spoke, he pulled out the Invisibility Cloak, which he had secretly kept in his suitcase to hide Peter Pettigrew's body, and handed it over.

"I'm afraid so."

Snape took the Invisibility Cloak, sniffed it, and said:

"Why does it smell like a cobra's brain and a dead scarab beetle? What did you pack in your suitcase, Mr. Potter?"

To avoid making his Potions professor vomit on the spot, Harry didn't reveal that he had covered Wormtail's corpse with the Invisibility Cloak. He scratched his head sheepishly and said:

"I've been too busy lately and have neglected it a bit. These are all leftover materials from when I was practicing potions in the lab at the end of Spider Alley."

"I taught you how important the quality of the ingredients is when you're making potions. Did you think you'd learned enough and could now hold yourself to the standards of the mediocre students at school?"

Snape's expression was quite serious, as if the improper storage of potion ingredients was Harry's unforgivable sin, rather than casting the Unforgivable Curse. He reiterated his warning:

"I will help the principal finish the tasks he assigned as soon as possible. In the meantime, do not make any more careless moves. Even the smallest oversight could lead to complete failure. Never let your guard down with Peter Pettigrew."

The familiar feeling, almost like a private tutor lesson, made Harry a little more wary. He nodded, solemnly indicating that he would pay attention. Similarly, watching Harry grow from a child into a wizard who could gradually stand on his own, a complex emotion flashed in Snape's eyes.

"Then good luck, Mr. Potter."

......

"Imperio." (Astral projection)

Inside the Leaky Cauldron, Scabbers, the little mouse Ron left in the room, quietly lost consciousness in his dream.

After the Weasleys' trip to Egypt, Peter Pettigrew, upon learning of Sirius Black's escape, fell into deep anxiety, just like in the original story. It was precisely this anxiety that allowed Peter to temporarily find relief from the emptiness he felt under the Imperius Curse.

"Turn back into human form, Peter."

Harry commanded in a calm tone, no longer unable to control his anger towards the traitor who had killed his parents. Soon, the grayish-yellow mouse squeaked twice, then puffed up its fur and slowly transformed back into its human form, which it hadn't used for over a decade.

"Tell me all the information you've gathered over the past decade or so, whether it's about Harry Potter and Dumbledore or about Voldemort."

Perhaps because he had been in Animagus form for too long, Peter, who had returned to human form, still curled up his arms and crawled on the ground like a mouse.

"Yes... the Dark Lord was never truly destroyed by Harry Potter from the very beginning... According to Arthur Weasley, since the Godric Hollow incident twelve years ago, the Ministry of Magic has considered the Dark Lord's complete defeat and has never issued any orders to search for or investigate him. I think that apart from Dumbledore, only the most fanatical Death Eaters in this world would dare to believe that the Dark Lord is still alive."

"What were you thinking? Why did you stay at the Weasleys' house?"

"The Dark Lord's power far exceeds ordinary people's imagination. He is too powerful. Unless he completely disappears, the Dark Mark he left on the Death Eaters will not disappear. In the past ten years, although I have not felt any fluctuation of the Dark Mark, it has never disappeared from my arm. I stayed at the Weasley family to get first-hand information from the Ministry of Magic. If Lord Dark Lord makes a comeback, I will go and seek refuge with him. If he is completely dead, that would be good too, so I can disappear from public view and go to other countries."

"Didn't you ever think about running away?"

Harry's question brought a hint of apprehension to Pettigrew's usually taciturn tone, and he continued:

“Escape… there’s no escaping it. No one can escape. The Dark Lord can not only summon Death Eaters with the Dark Mark, but also pinpoint our location. Once branded, we must serve him for life. Not only me, but other high-ranking individuals who lie to the Ministry of Magic must also be ready to welcome his return at any time.”

"If you didn't genuinely want to dedicate yourself to Voldemort's cause, why did you betray the Order of the Phoenix in the first place?"

"I just wanted to survive. In that situation, I... I could only survive by following the strong. Besides, if I hadn't met James and the others in the first place, I wouldn't have had to join the Order of the Phoenix and get involved in..."

"enough."

Harry frowned and interrupted Peter's self-justification.

He didn't believe any of that bullshit talk about "just trying to survive."

If being an ordinary person who doesn't get involved in any trouble is so good, then why did Little Star become a member of the Marauders' team at Hogwarts? Could it be that his father James and Black really need a follower?

No matter how he tries to justify himself, he is still a guy who would sacrifice everything for his own benefit. If we sympathize with him, then what about the members of the Order of the Phoenix, and other wizards who dared to fight against Voldemort and sacrifice themselves?

What's even more infuriating is that, despite being under the influence of the Imperius Curse, Pettigrew still saw himself as a victim. This shows he's not one to say one thing to one person and another to another; he genuinely believes that doing so is the right thing to do.

"Turn back into a rat and stay at the Weasleys' house."

Having obtained the required memories, Harry gave the order again.

He came to see Pettigrew for two reasons: first, to get information from him so that the puppet corpse could better deceive DB Cooper; and second, to prepare for how his former self could scare Peter to death.

"Confundo." (To mislead or confuse)

A faint white light flashed, and Sirius Black, already affected by the Imperius Curse, almost completely lost control of his senses. In a world detached from reality, James Potter, Sirius Black, and even Voldemort surrounded him like vengeful ghosts, each wielding their wands.

"Don't scream or run away; this is just a nightmare. But if you cry out, your former friends and your master will come to take your life."

The shrill squeaking stopped abruptly after Harry finished speaking, and Ron's room in the Leaky Cauldron returned to silence once more.