Harry Potter and the Secret Treasures - H.P.S.T Chapter 1658: The Fight

“Expelliarmus!” Harry whirled around, brandishing his wand, but the rat-like man opposite him was faster.

A red flash streaked across the room, and Harry’s wand flew away.

He clutched his right hand, seeing Peter Pettigrew huddled in a corner, his wand trembling as he pointed it at him.

“Wormtail,” Harry murmured, his voice filled with disdain and contempt. More than anger at facing again the traitor who had betrayed his parents, more than anger at having his wand knocked away by Pettigrew — what shocked Harry most was that this man was still alive.

The last time Harry had heard news of Peter Pettigrew from Sirius Black, he’d been told the man was near death. Four years ago, the Dark magic he’d tried to unleash had spun out of control, causing a massive explosion, and costing him his entire right arm. He had then been attacked by countless Acromantulas in the Forbidden Forest.

That night, Peter Pettigrew’s body had been torn nearly to pieces.

If Evan hadn’t used the Time-Turner to bring him back, he would have died in the Forbidden Forest long ago.

Moreover, it wasn’t just the physical injuries; Sirius’s rage and the subsequent torture by Dementors in Azkaban had nearly killed him. Even if not then, it was only a matter of time — everyone thought so.

He wouldn’t live much longer; each extra day would be more unbearable than death itself.

But incredibly, he had survived.

Voldemort had rescued him from Azkaban and taken him back.

Peter Pettigrew was once again a Death Eater, staying at Malfoy Manor to guard Ron.

Guarding his former “master” — it was a profound irony.

To escape Sirius’s vengeance, Pettigrew had hidden for thirteen years in the Weasleys’ home as a rat. For a long time, he had literally been Ron’s pet. Perhaps that was precisely why Voldemort had assigned him this task — a thoroughly twisted sense of humor.

Across from Harry, in the dim corner of the secret chamber, Pettigrew stood cringing, his face full of terror and shock.

Though he had disarmed Harry, it didn’t seem to give him much of a sense of security.

Faced with Harry’s sudden appearance, Pettigrew was far more terrified than any other Death Eater, even more so than Harry himself.

He could never have imagined meeting Harry again like this, in this place.

“H–Harry… Potter!” Pettigrew stammered in his shrill, trembling voice. “W–why are you here?”

“I’m here to rescue Ron,” Harry answered bluntly. “And I think Sirius will be very pleased to hear you’re here too, Wormtail.”

Hearing Sirius’s name, Pettigrew shuddered. He said in horror, “No, Harry, you can’t —”

“What’s wrong with Ron?” Harry cut him off impatiently.

“It’s the Dark Lord’s magic,” Pettigrew wheezed, his disgusting little eyes darting around.

He seemed to have just realized that Harry was alone, and that he had just blasted his wand out of his hand. He was now facing a wandless Harry, who couldn’t possibly do anything to him. He had captured Harry Potter — it was that incredible. If he handed him over to Voldemort, he would receive an unprecedented reward.

“Where’s everyone else, Harry? Just you, isn’t it?” Peter Pettigrew asked. “The great Harry Potter came here alone to rescue his friend,” he said, tentatively approaching Harry with his wand raised.   

His body emerged from the shadows of the corner, and Harry squinted, scrutinizing Peter Pettigrew.

The man’s body was strikingly odd. Though his face was gaunt and haggard, his body beneath the black robes was not thin at all — in fact, he seemed fatter than the last time Harry had seen him, noticeably so, almost unnaturally so. At first glance, the sight was disturbing.

Yes, extremely strange, very abnormal.

That strange sense of wrongness he’d felt when touching Ron flickered again in Harry’s mind.

He examined the oddly-looking Wormtail before him, wondering why he had become so fat.

Sirius Black was able to leave Azkaban mainly because he’d grown so thin — thin enough to squeeze through the iron bars of his cell. Harry had never seen a wizard imprisoned in Azkaban become fat, especially someone as obese as Peter Pettigrew now.

He pointed his wand at Harry with his left hand, and his severed right arm seemed to have healed.

But Peter Pettigrew seemed reluctant to use his hand, concealing it completely within his sleeve.

“Your right hand is back?” Harry asked casually, hoping to distract him.

He didn’t answer Pettigrew’s question directly, hoping to buy time and find an opportunity.

The scar on his head throbbed with pain, making Harry feel uneasy.

“Yes, the Dark Lord gave me a great reward,” Wormtail gasped. “He gave me a new body.”

“Why?” Harry shouted. “Why did he do that? Who did you betray this time?”

He truly couldn’t see what use a wizard like Wormtail was to Voldemort, and why Voldemort would expend magic to reshape his body!

“This is an immense honor,” said Peter insincerely, his sharp voice now tinged with barely suppressed fear. “You don’t understand, Harry. You don’t understand what happened to me, and you don’t understand how powerful and incredible the Dark Lord’s magic is.”

“Hmph!” Harry scoffed. “You know too much to betray my parents seventeen years ago.”

“I had no other choice!” Peter Pettigrew shouted. “I’m not as powerful as them. I don’t want to die. Whether in the past or now, I have no other choice. This is the only way for me to avoid death. Come on, boy, now you should tell me, are you alone?”

“Evan and Sirius are right upstairs, they could come down at any moment.”

As soon as the words left Harry’s mouth, he seized the moment when Pettigrew was distracted, and threw himself onto the man just as he reached Harry.

He seized Wormtail’s wand arm tightly with one hand, and forced it upward, while his other hand fought with him.

Harry used all his strength to throw punches; Sirius’s special training had clearly paid off, and he couldn’t have lasted this long before.

Wormtail’s wand emitted sparks, but he couldn’t cast spells.

He seemed about to be subdued by Harry, however, his right arm, which had been hanging limply at his side, suddenly floated up.

Yes, it just floated up, at a very strange, unnatural angle.

Translating_Wizard

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