Framing Someone, Does it Matter if the Scapegoat Knows?

"Phoenix!"

Upon hearing Vinson's introduction, Hagrid gasped in disbelief, "My goodness! Where on earth did it come from!"

"Mr. Crouch gave it to me."

Vinson, as usual, deflected responsibility, saying nonchalantly, "It's been with me since I was four. I originally wanted Mr. Crouch to take care of it..."

As he spoke, Vinson patted the Ice Bird's beak and sighed, "Unfortunately, for some reason, perhaps because it realized I wasn't home tonight, it flew to the school and found me itself..."

"So smart..."

Hagrid didn't spare his praise.

Vinson Wright nodded, unable to deny it, and calmly continued, "Fortunately, I was punished today and had to come to the Forbidden Forest to help you with the patrol..."

"That's great!"

Hagrid quickly interrupted Vinson, feeling something was off again. He quickly explained, "I mean, it's just that we encountered it..."

As Hagrid spoke, he kept glancing at the Ice Crystal Phoenix beside him. "Honestly, I've never seen such a beautiful phoenix..."

"..."

This was definitely Hagrid's flattery.

The Wizarding World was filled with countless magical creatures, many of them breathtakingly beautiful. The Ice Crystal Phoenix brought more of a sense of awe.

Of course.

It was also possible that Hagrid had questionable taste. For a half-giant, perhaps the sheer size of an animal was a form of beauty.

"I want to find a place to keep it for now."

Vinson Wright glanced at the still mesmerized Hagrid and introduced his pet, "Anivia is very smart and won't cause any trouble. As long as it retracts its magic and falls asleep, it won't affect the surrounding environment..."

"Sleep?"

"Similar to hibernation."

Vinson Wright gently stroked the ice crystals on Anivia's head and whispered, "For Anivia, winter is the most suitable season. During other seasons, it can stay in a place it likes and sleep until winter awakens..."

"How fascinating!"

Hagrid stroked his beard and quickly offered his suggestion, "You can put it next to my hut. I can build a separate nest for it right now. Even if it wakes up and the weather turns cold, I won't mind..."

"..."

Hagrid truly loved animals!

Vinson patted Anivia's head and looked at his pet. "Actually, it's not that much trouble. Anivia can do it itself, right?"

"Chirp~"

The Ice Crystal Phoenix affectionately nuzzled Vinson's arm.

The next second, under Hagrid's gaze, the Ice Crystal Phoenix suddenly spread its wings, and snowflakes began to swirl in the cold wind once more!

Ice walls suddenly rose from the ground!

Vinson slowly stepped back a few paces, watching his Ice Crystal Phoenix build its nest. With the powerful enhancement of ice magic, a large, enclosed ice house sprang up!

Anivia stood inside the ice house, slowly folding its wings. Its head gradually buried itself within its wings, and its entire body curled up.

This Ice Crystal Phoenix...

Fell into a slumber as if it were frozen.

Vinson Wright slowly walked to the side of the ice house, his palm silently caressing the ice wall, gazing at the Ice Bird inside, which looked like a statue.

Of course.

If anyone thought it was truly asleep and tried to tease or steal it, they could only pray that the thief had many lives to waste...

As the Ice Crystal Phoenix entered its slumber.

The snowstorm across Hogwarts also subsided.

Hagrid stood beside the ice house, unable to help but admire the Ice Bird within. "It's truly magical. Nature always creates such great beings..."

"Perhaps..."

Vinson nodded noncommittally and suddenly changed the subject. "Hagrid, shall we go on patrol now? I'm a bit sleepy..."

"Then you should go back and rest quickly."

Hagrid said without looking back, emphasizing, "The Forbidden Forest has been very quiet lately. Go back and rest, Vinson..."

"..."

Vinson was silent for a moment.

However, the gray-haired youth glanced at his pet again.

Noticing the lack of movement beside him, Hagrid turned to look at the somewhat reluctant Vinson and couldn't help but laugh heartily, "Don't worry, I'll look after it. If you have time, you can come to my hut to find me..."

"Thank you."

Vinson Wright nodded gratefully.

Because Hagrid was indeed a kind-hearted person.

Vinson Wright didn't rush. He slowly walked along the snow into the gates of Hogwarts Castle, leaving a long trail of footprints in the snow.

Vinson stood at the main entrance, gazing at the footprints in the snow. He slowly took out the Polyjuice Potion he had brewed and calmly took a sip.

This sip of Polyjuice Potion...

Was enough to sustain his transformation for an hour.

This sip of Polyjuice Potion began to take effect almost the moment it entered his mouth. Accompanied by an extremely unpleasant taste, Vinson Wright's body rapidly changed!

A head of handsome grey hair turned brown-yellow...

A slightly loose Wizarding uniform was instantly stretched taut by his transformed, obese physique, the suddenly tight clothes making his figure appear even larger!

Vinson Wright slowly touched his transformed face. He could feel how terrible this face looked, because the owner of this face was indeed not good-looking...

Peter Pettigrew.

That was the name of the owner of this face.

This was the true identity of Scabbers, the rat kept by Percy Weasley.

Peter Pettigrew was an unregistered, illegal Animagus at the Ministry of Magic. Just like his animal form, a rat, he had a sharp, toothy mouth...

Peter Pettigrew was not a good person.

Because during his time at Hogwarts, he had several good friends and was always deeply trusted by them.

Originally, Peter Pettigrew should have been a member of the righteous faction, just like his friends. However, he was captured by Voldemort, surrendered to Voldemort, and became a spy, directly leaking secrets to Voldemort, which led to the deaths of Harry Potter's parents at the hands of Voldemort...

Of course.

This also led to the destruction of Voldemort and his Death Eater army.

Because when Voldemort tried to kill the infant Harry Potter with magic, it was reflected by the ancient curse on Harry Potter, causing Voldemort to lose more than half his life...

From then on...

Voldemort disappeared, lingering to await the opportunity for resurrection.

Both the righteous and evil factions suffered heavy losses due to Peter Pettigrew's betrayal, by sheer coincidence.

This kind of spy...

Was truly beyond words.

Of course.

Peter Pettigrew was not entirely without merit.

At least he hid himself successfully. Apart from Sirius Black, who was the only one who knew the truth, no one else ever suspected Peter Pettigrew.

However, this led to Sirius Black hunting down his old friend, Peter Pettigrew.

Eventually, Peter had to create a massive explosion to fake his death and escape. To avoid further pursuit by Black, Peter simply transformed into his Animagus form—a rat—and thus hid in the Weasley home.

This hiding...

Lasted for about seven or eight years.

Vinson Wright sighed faintly and turned his school uniform inside out before putting it on.

Then, wearing Peter Pettigrew's face, Vinson stepped back into the snow and ran rapidly through the snow, leaving rows of deep footprints until he stopped at the school gate...

To avoid being discovered...

Vinson had prepared the footprints of Peter Pettigrew escaping Hogwarts in advance, ensuring everything was foolproof.

Everything was interconnected, and this sudden heavy snowfall was also within Vinson's plan.

As for what to do next, it was naturally time for Peter Pettigrew to cause a huge disturbance at Hogwarts and become an enemy of the entire Wizarding World!

"Apparition!"

Vinson Wright's figure instantly vanished from the school gate.

The entire Hogwarts school prohibited anyone from using Apparition unless they had the Headmaster's permission or possessed sufficient magical power. Vinson Wright's control over Apparition allowed him to use it freely anywhere!

No matter what tonight...

He had to get the Marauder's Map!

Because that map was in the office of Filch, the caretaker of Hogwarts!

Who knew if the Weasley twins would be caught by Filch and brought to his office tomorrow for violating school rules? Once the Marauder's Map fell into their hands, it would be difficult to retrieve it!

If the opportunity arose...

Vinson wouldn't mind taking on a few more tasks.

It wasn't his own appearance now, and someone else was already taking the blame for him.

Even though that person taking the blame knew nothing, what did it matter?

Never mind, I'll update early.