A dark shape slammed through the office window.
A Ministry of Magic owl with disheveled feathers and terrified eyes hurtled in like an out-of-control spell.
Screeching, it hurled a scarlet envelope onto Sirius's desk.
Then it fled without looking back, as though the envelope were a curse about to explode.
The office instantly fell silent.
Everyone stopped moving.
The blood drained from the assistants' faces.
They recognized it.
A Howler.
The scarlet envelope smoked violently and twisted.
It swelled painfully on the desktop, changing shape.
At last, it became a mouth roaring in fury.
A loud, commanding voice, laden with the Ministry of Magic's particular arrogance, thundered through the entire office.
"Black! Lupin!"
"Where do you think Hogwarts is? Somewhere above the law?!"
The smile on Lupin's face froze instantly.
The roaring mouth turned toward him, every word hammering viciously at his nerves.
"On behalf of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, I am issuing you a formal warning!"
"This so-called Wolfmane Academy graduation party is an unreported event that disregards Chapter Thirty-Seven of the Magical Creatures Control Act..."
The voice paused deliberately, then spat out the words with utter contempt.
"...an utterly irresponsible, high-risk gathering!"
It placed enormous emphasis on "high-risk."
In the office, a Hufflepuff assistant knocked over an ink bottle in fright.
But no one dared move.
The Howler's voice grew shriller, brimming with naked threats.
"Planning to gather dozens of... these creatures in Diagon Alley!"
"...Don't let me find out where you're hiding them..."
"Lupin is merely an isolated case. Until everything has been proven on a large scale..."
It did not even deign to use the word werewolf.
That deliberate, insulting label stabbed into Lupin's heart like a spike of ice.
"This is an open provocation against the International Statute of Secrecy!"
"Do you want