0160 Grimmauld Place
Bryan had a hard time finding Grimmauld Place, although Tonks had given him a clue: "a rundown neighborhood in northwest London" but that was too vague for Bryan to pinpoint the exact location. He knew he couldn't just wander around every Muggle street and ask people if they had heard of Grimmauld Place. That would be too suspicious and risky.
But this was not a new challenge for Bryan, who had been working in the outside world for several years and had gained a lot of experience. He knew how to find the information he needed.
He returned to London that night, checked into a hotel for one night, and the next morning he headed to the largest Muggle police station in the northwest area. He cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself, making him invisible to the naked eye, and sneaked into the station. He quickly hypnotized a policeman with a subtle spell, and made him lead him to the archive room. There, he searched through the files and maps, and finally found the exact address of Grimmauld Place. He memorized it and left the station without a trace. Before heading to his destination, he also stopped by a fast food restaurant for breakfast. He enjoyed a hot dog and a cup of coffee, while planning his next move.
Before he left, he also grabbed a bite at a fast food joint. By the time he reached the three-mile radius around Grimmauld Place using the Muggle transportation, the sun was high in the sky.
"What a shabby place–"
In a 24-hour convenience store three miles away, behind the spotless glass window, Bryan, who was munching on a hot dog, looked at the street that was on the edge of the city and muttered to himself.
It was daytime, but there were not many cars and Muggles on the main road of the district. The paint on the tall street lamps on both sides of the road was severely peeled off, exposing the rusty metal underneath. A gust of wind swept by, and the old newspapers abandoned by people on the side of the road spun up and flew into the air, hanging on a clothesline outside the balcony of a house. The windows of the houses were either broken or boarded up, and the walls were covered with graffiti and stains. The whole district looked like a ghost town, abandoned and forgotten by the world. But Bryan knew that this was not the case,
There was a faint trace of magic in the air–this did not surprise Bryan, he had anticipated this situation beforehand, otherwise he would not have approached this place slowly using the Muggle way.
The monitoring magic was the work of the Aurors. They had set up monitoring magic around Grimmauld Place. As soon as someone used magic in this area, the Aurors would show up behind you in the next second and threaten to lock you up or worse.
But Apparition was not forbidden in this area. In fact, the Aurors were hoping that Sirius Black would do that. They had set up anti-Apparition wards around Grimmauld Place, which would trigger an alarm if someone tried to Apparate in or out. They had also surrounded the house with dozens of Aurors, who were ready to capture or kill Sirius Black on sight. Bryan had seen the Aurors on his way to the convenience store. They were disguised as Muggles, wearing casual clothes and carrying bags or newspapers.
So how to get close to that house, Bryan, who had his cheeks stuffed with food, wondered in his mind. In this area, there was not only monitoring magic, but also a large number of Aurors. They formed a line, a line into a net, centered on Grimmauld Place, evenly distributed within a three-mile range, not leaving any gaps, and ready to support each other in case of an attack.
This was not the first time Bryan had dealt with Aurors. He acknowledged their "Professional skills", but their problem was that they were not prepared for "high-tech" wizards.
He could easily break in with his identity as the Golden Viper, but he didn't want to do that. He had used this identity for several years and had built a certain reputation and influence.
Bryan didn't want to make this identity clash with the Ministry of Magic. For the sake of the stability of the wizarding world, the Ministry of Magic could turn a blind eye to some of the illegal activities of the underworld wizards, but this leniency would definitely not extend to the matter of Sirius Black.
Sirius Black was the most wanted criminal in the wizarding world, and anyone who helped him or tried to contact him would be considered an enemy of the Ministry of Magic. Bryan didn't want to be that enemy.
'Change the disguise?'
That was not impossible. But thinking of those Aurors and Tonks, who had just left St. Mungo's Hospital not long ago, Bryan hesitated and gave up this idea.
Knock, knock, knock—
Bryan gazed at the bleak district with a blank expression, tapping the table lightly, making a rhythmic sound. After a while, the knocking sound abruptly stopped, and his raised fingers froze in the air. A smile crept up on Bryan's mouth for no reason.
"Then, let's lure them away."
The night was deep, and the pale moonlight was gradually obscured by the shifting black clouds. The shadows swelled from one end of the street like a wave, slowly but surely dragging the world into a mysterious realm.
Caw–Caw—
Several startled black crows took flight from a barren grassland in the middle of Grimmauld Place, swiftly darted over the roof and melted into the darkness. Their coarse and raspy cries echoed in the night, adding to the eerie and suspenseful atmosphere.
Hah— In a dark alley on the south side of Grimmauld Place, Tonks, who was clad in a dark cloak and concealed in the shadow of a power pole, exhaled a breath. Her eyes were fixed on the narrow gap between the 11th and 13th houses in the square, but her eyes were dull and weary.
At this moment, a slight sound from behind made Tonks jolt, and she abruptly turned around. She raised her wand instinctively, ready to cast a spell at the intruder But when she saw the visitor's familiar silhouette, Tonks relaxed, rubbed her shoulders, and slowly lowered the wand in her hand.
"I'm here to take over, Tonks, you can go find a place to rest for a while–"
The calm and deep voice said something that made Tonks perk up a bit, but she didn't obey the order and leave right away.
"I think we're just wasting our time, Kingsley."
Glancing at the square that showed no sign of activity, Tonks lowered her voice and grumbled. She felt frustrated and restless, and she wanted to do something more meaningful and exciting than guarding an empty street.
"Since Black escaped from Azkaban, we've been guarding here, but we haven't gotten anything so far. In my opinion, we should send all the Aurors to the vicinity of Hogwarts, search Hogsmeade and the Forbidden Forest, instead of squandering precious time and energy here, Kingsley!"
"You have a point, Tonks."
Surprisingly, Kingsley didn't argue with Tonks's opinion. Apparently, he shared a similar assessment in his heart. He had been an Auror for a long time, and he had seen many things. He had fought against the Death Eaters in the first war, and had witnessed their atrocities and horrors. He had also seen the rise and fall of the Dark Lord, and hoped for a lasting peace and order. Kingsley stood shoulder to shoulder with Tonks, facing the shabby and desolate square in silence. After a long time, Kingsley took a deep breath and said again.
"But Black is a Death Eater, Tonks. You didn't live through that period of time. You don't know how cruel and cunning the Death Eaters are. We can't overlook any possibility."
"Alright, you're right, Kingsley. But maybe you can help me arrange to go to Hogsmeade. At least, after work, I can have a drink with my old classmates–"
Tonks played with her pink hair that looked more like straw and muttered discontentedly.
"Staying up late is really bad for you. Lately, I've noticed that my hair is falling out a lot–"
Boom!
A low rumbling sound like thunder came from another direction two miles away. Accompanied by a shrill scream, the dazzling fireworks that burst in the air suddenly lit up the quiet night!
"Stop, Black!"
When the sound of the fireworks died down, an angry roar made Tonks and Kingsley's faces change.
"It's Dawlish's voice!"
Tonks's eyes were incredulous, and she gasped and shouted.
"Black, he actually came back here!"
Kingsley's face was grim and he didn't reply. He pointed his wand at the empty space in front of him, and with a whisper, a graceful and shiny lynx materialized from a silver-white mist. Kingsley stepped forward and used his wand to transmit a piece of information into the lynx's mind. The lynx leaped nimbly in the air, and then suddenly vanished in front of them.
"Kingsley?" Tonks asked puzzledly. "What are you doing, we should-"
"Prevent the previous mistake, Tonks," Kingsley said calmly. "Let's go, Tonks, let's send that despicable scoundrel back to Azkaban!"
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