0152 Secrets

Bryan knew what Tonks meant by 'not peaceful'. He was well aware of the gossip culture that pervaded the British Ministry of Magic. Most of the employees there had graduated from Hogwarts, and they still retained the old habit of their school days. As long as they learned a juicy secret, they couldn't wait to share it with everyone they knew. Therefore, the shocking news that Sirius Black, the notorious mass murderer and Death Eater, had escaped from Azkaban to kill Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, was something that almost everyone who had anything to do with the Ministry of Magic knew, even though the Daily Prophet had not reported it yet.

Fudge, the Minister of Magic, had entrusted him to look after Harry during the summer vacation. Mr. Weasley, who worked in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, obviously knew about it in advance, but for Tonks, who was a rookie Auror and still had to 'practice for two and a half years', she apparently didn't have as many connections as Mr. Weasley, otherwise she wouldn't have said that to him.

Bryan didn't pretend to be confused, because he also wanted to hear from Tonks what progress the Aurors had made in capturing Black. He leaned forward and lowered his voice, as if he was afraid of being overheard by someone.

"If you mean Black," he said cautiously. "I already know he might cause some trouble, but I don't think the Ministry needs to worry too much. After all–"

He pointed to the direction of Hogwarts outside the window and imitated Harry's expression when he mentioned Dumbledore. He tried to sound confident and reassuring.

"Our headmaster is not a simple man!"

"Oh, you already know?" Tonks asked, her voice slightly disappointed. She had been ready to spill the 'secret' to Bryan, but now she realized that he was not as clueless as she had thought. She muttered a few words under her breath, but didn't seem too surprised. Apparently, she also had some understanding of the Ministry's leaky nature.

"–That's not necessarily true, Bryan. Dumbledore has his blind spots too, right? Otherwise, he wouldn't have allowed Black to be the Potter's Secret-Keeper!"

The bar suddenly became very quiet. Tonks looked at Bryan with confusion when she didn't get a response. To her surprise, she saw a stunned and astonished handsome face staring back at her.

"Oh, you don't know this!" Tonks exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. "You haven't heard of this?"

Bryan slowly closed his mouth and hesitated to nod. He felt like he had just been hit by a stunning spell.

Whoosh! Tonks' golden hair turned pink in an instant, and a blush appeared on her pale heart-shaped cheeks. In her black eyes that stared at Bryan, there was a bright light of excitement.

"Oh, of course you don't. This is a top secret. Even in the Ministry, only a few senior officials know about it. Of course, we Aurors often know some secrets that are not known to others because of our work needs, but Bryan, I can't tell outsiders. This is top secret–"

"Since that's the case," Bryan interrupted her politely.

"But you're not an ordinary wizard, are you?" Tonks leaned in closer, ignoring his words. "You have the Order of Merlin. By the way, that's really amazing, Bryan. Except for dying in the line of duty, I don't see any chance of getting an Order of Merlin in my lifetime. That was because you helped Dumbledore solve that annoying Chamber of Secrets of Slytherin last year. I dare say he must trust you very much!"

'Maybe' Bryan thought so, but when he spoke, he said–"Yes, I am Dumbledore's most trusted person!" He hoped that his lie would make Tonks stop talking nonsense.

"Since that's the case!" Tonks glanced at the door and made sure no one came in before saying enthusiastically, "It doesn't matter if I tell you then. Dumbledore will tell you sooner or later anyway!"

'He will?' Bryan thought again. He doubted that Dumbledore would ever tell him such a sensitive information.

"This is a bit complicated, Bryan. I have something important to do and can't tell you in detail. Basically, it's like this: The boy's parents are James and Lily Potter. They were friends with Black when they were at Hogwarts. Back then, when Voldemort was hunting them down mercilessly, Dumbledore suggested using the Fidelius Charm to hide their location and act as their Secret-Keeper himself. But the Potters disagreed. They thought Black was more trustworthy than anyone else."

Bryan's expression changed subtly. He felt a chill run down his spine.

"So you're saying that after Black became the Potters' Secret-Keeper, he betrayed them and joined Voldemort?" 

"That's exactly what happened, Bryan!" 

Tonks said solemnly. 

"Everyone knows what happened next. Voldemort found the Potters and killed them in cold blood. And just when he was about to kill little Potter, the baby who was destined to be his nemesis, somehow his magic failed and he died. Or so it seemed. Some people even think he was severely injured and fled in disgrace, hiding in the shadows for years. 

Anyway, that despicable Black lost everything overnight. He couldn't believe that Voldemort, the Dark Lord he worshipped and followed, would be defeated by a mere infant. When the news came out, he ran to the Potter's house to confirm the situation with his own eyes. When he found out that it was true, that his friends were dead and their son had survived, he chose to run away to avoid trial. 

But then Black was caught up by another friend of the Potters, a short and chubby guy named Peter. Peter had been loyal to the Potters until the end, and he had probably suspected Black's betrayal. He cornered Black on a crowded Muggle street and tried to avenge the Potters. Oh, he was a hero, but he was no match for Black. He was killed by a powerful dark magic spell by Black, along with thirteen innocent Muggles who happened to be there. The hero's mother only got a finger of her son and an Order of Merlin First Class in exchange for his life. And Black" 

Ding dong– Mrs. Rosmerta, who had finished checking the goods, pushed open the door of her pub. A few local residents used magic to control oak barrels and floated them into the shop. They followed the landlady and wanted to send these aged wines to the underground cellar. 

Tonks was not really a silly girl. She didn't tell Bryan these things just because they had 'worked together'. She really thought that Bryan, who had been nominated by the Minister of Magic himself for an Order of Merlin Second Class, was 'one of us'. When she saw strangers breaking into their private conversation space, she closed her mouth vigilantly. 

'Potters and Dwarf Peter' 

While Tonks was on guard against those villagers, Bryan narrowed his eyes and his expression became inscrutable. 

Lupin's words suddenly popped into Bryan' mind, making his breath lighter.

'He killed three of my friends. Very good friends. I have to kill him myself.'

So that's the truth. Bryan tapped his fingers on the table lightly, feeling enlightened. No wonder Lupin hated Black so much that he even asked Bryan to hand him over to him if he really caught him. So it seems that if it weren't for Black's betrayal, Harry's parents, James and Lily Potter, might not have died. Although it was Voldemort who killed them with his killing curse, in fact, Harry's real enemy was Black. 

'Potter must not know about this, right?' 

Bryan had this question in his mind, but soon he thought of the answer. 

From what he knew about Potter, if he knew that his parents died because of their closest friend's betrayal, he would probably drop out of school and run out to 'hunt down' Black. He would not care about the danger or the consequences. He would only want revenge. 

But that man really deserves to die. 

Bryan's eyes with a hint of purple became deeper. Dumbledore has always been the eternal flame in the hearts of those wizards who fight against Voldemort, but the Potters would rather let Black be their secret-keeper than Dumbledore. You can imagine how much they trust this friend, and you can also imagine how much they regret when they fall!

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