Sirius Black has been staying at the Leaky Cauldron recently, and his return to Hogwarts this time is not for simple reasons.
He couldn't stand the various activities arranged by the Ministry of Magic anymore, and his return to school was actually a refuge.
Hogsmeade, the Hog's Head Pub.
Sirius Black, now back in human form, sat at the bar and downed three glasses of Firewhisky in a row, all under the watchful eyes of the children.
Ah—I really miss this taste!
Aberforth poured him another cup.
Almost 20 years have passed, and the four kids who secretly came to drink back then are no longer the same people they were.
The only constant is the burning sensation from the Firewhisky that dispels numbness and a sense of unreality.
Sirius Black picked up his glass and drank it all in one gulp. Perhaps due to the alcohol, he frowned slightly.
As soon as Aberforth finished pouring the wine, he drank it all in one gulp.
His brows furrowed even more, probably because he was thinking about those troubling things.
Drinking alone can easily make you feel more and more depressed; having someone accompany you should help a lot.
Sirius Black looked toward Aberforth.
Albus Dumbledore; I wonder if he'd even want a drink.
He turned to look at the children sitting around him.
He's not exactly a model student, but he probably has no problem drinking a little alcohol.
Sirius Black swirled his glass of wine. "Would you like some?"
Harry and Ron hesitated for a moment, then shook their heads and refused.
The legal drinking age in the Britain is 18.
However, children over the age of 5 can legally drink alcohol under the guidance of their parents.
Fred and George got up and pushed the two men toward the bar.
"Harry, he's your godfather, wouldn't you like to try some?"
"Little Ronnie, what's so great about Butterbeer? And we're not going to tell anyone."
Aberforth shook his head helplessly and poured them four glasses of Firewhisky.
Harry and Ron said they wouldn't drink, but when the glasses were placed in front of them, they both stared longingly at them.
The twins raised their glasses, "Celebrating the freedom of Little Black —that is, Mr. Black!"
Sirius Black pursed his lips, seemingly still bothered by their earlier teasing.
He raised his glass to the other children, "What about you? Would you like to have a drink too?"
Hermione and Daphne held up their iced Cokes, while Cedric and Rolf waved their hands in refusal.
Vincent got up and walked towards the bar.
"Celebrating our return to joyful campus life!"
After clinking glasses, he and Sirius Black drank it all in one gulp.
George and Fred weren't as fast as the other two, while Harry and Ron were still slowly drinking with long faces.
The Firewhisky burns like a fire in your throat, but it has a unique charm that seems to give you boundless courage.
After three rounds, only Sirius Black Vincent remained at the bar.
"Ha—I didn't expect you to be such a heavy drinker."
"It's probably due to his constitution; my dad can really drink a lot."
Sirius Black suddenly realized.
When he was serving his sentence in Azkaban, he had heard about Vincent's father from a new fellow inmate.
Eric Wayne, the only man in three hundred years to successfully challenge the Gamp's Vintage Social Brew.
Although he was Muggle, the shock he brought to wizards was no less than that of a disabled person winning a gold medal at the Olympics, and he even broke the world record.
Three more rounds passed, Vincent was still acting as if nothing had happened.
Sirius Black shook his head. "Looks like my alcohol tolerance has declined, to this extent."
The glasses for Firewhisky were small; the two of them together didn't even make half a bottle.
Is it really because my alcohol tolerance has declined?
Vincent shook his head slightly at Aberforth, indicating that there was no need to pour any more wine.
There is a saying in the distant East: "Don't think that you must get drunk when you have wine, because wine only makes sorrow worse."
He turned the wine glass upside down. "This means that you shouldn't drink to the point of getting drunk. When you have worries, drinking will only make you more and more troubled."
Sirius Black was somewhat taken aback. "It seems you're a good person to confide in."
Vincent stood up from the bar. "I'm sorry, I'm not the most suitable one."
For the role of a spiritual mentor, Dumbledore obvious choice, and Lupin is even more suitable.
But we made it in time, didn't we?
Sirius Black pulled Vincent back to sit down. "Want to chat with me for a bit?"
"What do you want to talk about?"
"Let's just chat."
Just as Vincent was about to become a conversation killer, Sirius Black started talking about Azkaban first.
The prisoners inside have no human rights, and the floors are even divided according to the severity of the crimes they commit.
Dementors usually live in the sky, so the higher you go, the more torment they become.
Not only Vincent became interested, but everyone else perked up their ears.
"Which floor do Quirrell and Lockhart live on?"
Sirius Black thought for a moment, "That bald idiot and that bald conman?"
"Yes, yes, that's them."
"These two are on the same floor as me, and their cells are quite close to those Death Eaters."
One of them just drools and says "Aba aba" all day long, while the other is crazy and thinks he's a big celebrity.
Alas, two poor souls manipulated by Voldemort.
According to their true crimes, they shouldn't even be entitled to a single room on the top floor.
They weren't wronged, but the Ministry of Magic was too eager to cover up Voldemort's whereabouts, which led to the creation of two scapegoats.
Sirius Black got up and went to the liquor shelf, casually picking up a bottle of whiskey under Aberforth's watchful eye.
"There are many innocent people like me in Azkaban, but they have been driven insane by the Dementors and can't even remember their own names."
If they wanted to redress the injustice, they would have done so long ago. So many years have passed, they probably even gave up on their families.
As soon as Sirius Black pulled the cork off the bottle, Vincent handed him a glass of wine.
His lips twitched violently as he reluctantly poured the wine.
"Over the years, I have always remembered that I am innocent, and that I am the traitor who betrayed James Potter and Lily."
If it weren't for that, I think I would have been driven insane by them long ago.
Everyone felt a lump in their throat, even Aberforth.
"Come on!" Sirius Black seemed particularly optimistic, smiling as he raised his glass high. "Let's celebrate that we've finally caught that traitor!"
Not only Vincent, but everyone raised their glasses, even Aberforth poured himself a glass of whiskey.
The trial is next Sunday, and public opinion is overwhelmingly in favor of the death penalty.
With the will of the people in control, the Ministry of Magic urgently needs a fair trial to maintain its dwindling authority.
Various topics were brought up one after another, Hog's Head Pub suddenly became lively.
The children surrounded Sirius Black with questions, and he patiently answered them one by one.
When Fred and George asked him how he would treat the wealthy women in the fan club, his face darkened instantly.
This is one of the troublesome things, and since the Weasley family twins dared to ask, he really dared to answer.
"If it weren't for the fact that I was trying to maintain the victim persona that the Ministry of Magic was trying to create, I would have already gone over and told them to stop bothering me."
I didn't expect him to be such a straight man.
But unlike Vincent's deliberate act, he probably genuinely has no interest in women.