The Shrieking Shack Showdown.
I had done it. I, Crookshanks the Magnificent, had successfully herded the humans, the dog, and the rat into the derelict building they so cleverly called the Shrieking Shack. (Humans and their flair for the melodramatic, honestly.)
It hadn’t been easy, mind you. The Chosen Human was fretting, the Ginger was screeching, and the rat—oh, the rat—was practically vibrating with terror. Justice was so close I could taste it.
The humans burst into the dusty room, shouting and pointing their wands every which way. Honestly, it was like watching badly choreographed theater. The rat squealed, trying to squirm free from The Ginger’s sweaty palms. I leapt onto the nearest rickety table, my tail flicking imperiously.
“Silence!” I yowled, though to them it likely sounded like a dramatic meow. Typical.
Sirius, now in his wizard form (scruffy but passable), pointed a finger at Wormtail. “There you are, you coward!” he growled.
The rat squeaked, shaking harder. “I—I’m just a rat!”
“Lies!” I declared, but of course, no one understood me.
“See?” Ron shouted, clutching Scabbers tighter. “He’s just a rat! Crookshanks is obsessed with him for no reason!”
I rolled my eyes and leapt onto The Chosen Human’s shoulder, glaring at The Ginger. “How do you people survive with such low observational skills?”
“Listen to him!” Sirius barked. “Even the cat knows!”
Finally, someone who gets it.
As Sirius and Lupin cornered the rat, I stayed perched, grooming my paws. After all, my work here was done. Without me, they’d still be back at the castle arguing over whether or not Scabbers needed a flea bath.
“Transform, Peter!” Lupin demanded, his wand pointed steadily.
The rat squealed again, and then—POOF!—he morphed into the balding, twitchy wreck of a wizard he truly was.
“Finally,” I muttered, leaping down for a closer look. “The world sees the truth.”
The Ginger screamed, “SCABBERS?! WHAT?!”
“Keep up, Weasley,” I said, sauntering closer.
Peter grovelled, his beady eyes darting between Sirius, Lupin, and me. “It wasn’t my fault! I—I had no choice!”
“Excuses,” I hissed, circling him like the majestic predator I am. “You betrayed your friends. You faked your death. You’ve been hiding as a rat for over a decade. Pathetic.”
Of course, what came out was a low growl, but Peter’s shivering made it clear he got the message.
---
Then, as if this melodrama wasn’t enough, Lupin transformed. One minute, he was a calm, cardigan-wearing werewolf; the next, he was a snarling beast. The humans panicked, waving their wands like madmen. Sirius turned into a dog again, growling and lunging at Lupin, while Wormtail took the opportunity to transform back into a rat and scurry away.
“Oh, come on!” I yowled, leaping after him.
But before I could pounce, the human woke up from being unconscious. BANG
And there he was: Severus “I’ll Never Use a Hairbrush” Snape, entering this theater play into the room like a one-man thunderstorm.
“Well, well,” he sneered, brandishing his wand. “What a touching reunion. Black, Lupin, Potter, Granger, and Weasley.” He spat Ron’s name like it was an insult, which honestly, I kind of respected.
“Snape!” Sirius barked, halfway between human and dog.
“Professor Snape,” Hermione corrected automatically, proving once again that she was the only human in this room with manners.
Snape’s eyes finally landed on me, narrowing suspiciously. “And, of course, the cat. A creature as meddlesome as its owner.”
Meddlesome? I nearly launched myself at his greasy boots. “You dare insult me, you overgrown bat?!”
But before I could make my move, Sirius lunged at Snape, growling. This, of course, only escalated the chaos.
By the time Snape had been disarmed (and accidentally knocked unconscious by a particularly aggressive Expelliarmus), Wormtail had escaped, Lupin was howling at the moon, and Sirius was barking orders.
I sighed, leaping back onto Hermione’s lap. “I orchestrated this entire operation, and they still managed to botch it. Truly, I am surrounded by incompetence.”
As Hermione petted me absently, I narrowed my eyes. Wormtail might have gotten away, but I would not rest until he was brought to justice.
After all, justice has paws.