56: Chapter 56 The New Prisoner by the Ebony Box

The ebony box fell into the depths of the Portable Space, and faint thuds came from inside the lid.

Void coiled beside the ebony box, its silver slit pupils pressed against the gap in the lid.

Peter's scream came from inside the box.

"Let me out!"

"I can negotiate, I know many things!"

Void's tail tip touched the lid, the patterns on the box lit up, and a five-square-meter cage unfolded.

The grey rat rolled inside, its bones made a faint sound, and in the blink of an eye, it transformed back into a man wearing a tattered nightgown.

A finger was missing from his right hand.

Peter looked up and saw the Black snake; he immediately retreated, his shoulder hitting the transparent wall, and he was bounced back to the ground.

"Snake, don't come over here!"

Void merely rested its tail on the edge of the box.

Peter climbed up, bracing himself against the wall, and scanned the stone surroundings, the ebony box, the cracked pocket watch, and the Black snake guarding the outside.

"This isn't Hogwarts."

"Allen Potter, you're listening, aren't you?"

Void flicked its tongue.

Peter pulled his hand back and cursed, "I wasn't talking to you, beast."

The snake's tail tapped the lid lightly.

The walls of the cage contracted by half an inch.

Peter pressed against the boundary, his expression changing.

"Fine, I won't curse."

"Let your master come out; I know what he wants."

Ripples spread through the space.

Allen's projection appeared above the ebony box, his silhouette towering over the cage, gazing down with lowered eyes.

Peter looked up, his lips trembling.

"You really can come in here."

Allen looked at him.

"You really can transform back into a human."

Peter stood up immediately.

"Allen, there's no need for things to be like this; I can help you."

"You're in Slytherin; there are some things you can't entrust to Dumbledore, nor to the Ministry of Magic."

Allen said, "Continue."

Peter's speech quickened.

"I know who is left of the Death Eaters, and I know which families appear clean on the surface but still keep the old mark in private."

"Malfoy, Nott, Lestrange, Rosier, and many other names."

"If you want a list, I can give it to you."

Allen said, "You've been a rat in the Weasley Family for twelve years; how fresh can your information possibly be?"

Peter choked, then immediately tried to remedy it.

"Old information is also useful."

"Many people weren't caught back then because they testified for each other."

"You're only eleven; no one would tell you these things."

Allen said, "You seem willing enough."

"I'm willing, as long as you don't hand me over."

Peter pressed against the wall and said urgently, "If you hand me to the Ministry of Magic, they will ask you how you discovered me."

"If you hand me to Dumbledore, he will investigate your magic."

"If you hand me to Snape, he will ask too."

"This does you no good."

Allen said, "So you think I will let you go."

"I can swear that I will leave Britain and never touch Harry, nor touch you again."

Allen said, "How much was your last oath worth?"

Peter's face twitched.

"The situation back then was different."

Allen said, "James and Lily are dead."

Peter grew anxious.

"That wasn't my fault alone!"

"It was Black, Sirius Black was the Secret-Keeper. He hunted me down, he killed the people on that street!"

Allen looked at his right hand.

"You are missing a finger."

Peter hid his right hand back in his sleeve.

"That was forced by Black."

Allen said, "Was hiding in the Gryffindor boys' dormitory also forced by Black?"

Peter shut his mouth.

Allen said, "Was hiding in the Weasley Family home also forced by Black?"

Peter wiped his sweat with his sleeve.

"I just wanted to live."

Allen said, "That's more believable than the rest."

Peter seized the opportunity.

"Yes, I want to live. What's wrong with wanting to live?"

"The Dark Lord's power is too great; no one can stop him."

"You don't want to die either, right?"

"You know to hide behind the scenes at such a young age; you're smarter than Harry."

Allen said, "Don't put me in the same category as you."

Peter immediately lowered his head.

"I misspoke."

"You are stronger than me, so you should keep me; I will be useful."

Allen looked at the cracked pocket watch beside the ebony box.

"Do you know where Lord Voldemort is now?"

Peter looked up.

"You know he is still alive?"

Allen did not answer.

Peter stopped probing.

"I don't know the exact location, but he won't die."

"He has old followers, and he has other means."

Allen said, "You fear him."

Peter gritted his teeth.

"Who doesn't?"

"You haven't seen him truly strike."

"Those people are loyal in words, but when they are truly before him, they are too slow even to kneel."

"I'm just more honest than them."

Allen said, "Honest enough to sell out your friends."

Peter's voice grew sharp.

"Friends?"

"When did they ever truly treat me as a friend?"

"James only knew how to show off, Sirius only knew how to mock, and Remus always just watched from the sidelines."

"They only remembered me when they needed a sidekick."

Allen said, "So you defected to Lord Voldemort."

Peter slapped the wall.

"I had no choice!"

Void's tail tip moved.

The cage wall pressed closer to Peter's shoulder.

Peter immediately shut up, his chest heaving.

Allen said, "Keep your voice down."

Peter nodded hurriedly.

"Fine, I'll be quiet. Don't let it come near me."

Allen said, "It understands."

Peter glanced at Void, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"I won't touch it, and I won't curse it."

Void coiled its body tighter, its silver slit pupils never shifting away.

Peter turned his gaze back to Allen.

"You want to interrogate me, right?"

"Ask away, I will answer."

Allen said, "Not now."

Peter was stunned.

"Then why did you capture me?"

Allen said, "First to ensure you can't run away."

Peter touched the boundary.

"How long can this thing keep me locked up?"

Allen said, "Longer than you want to live."

The color drained from Peter's face.

"You can't keep me locked up forever."

"A living person here will need to eat, drink, and get sick."

Allen said, "You didn't live very luxuriously when you were a rat in the Weasley Family."

"That's different!"

Peter said urgently, "There was air, there were people, there was food."

Allen said, "You have air now; food will be provided, and water will be provided."

"As for people, you don't need them."

Peter's fingernails scraped across the transparent boundary, leaving no trace.

"You're treating me like a prisoner."

Allen said, "That's what you are."

Peter stared at him.

"You don't have any evidence."

Allen said, "The evidence is on you."

Peter pulled back his right hand.

Allen said, "Plus your name, your Animagus form, and your reaction to Harry and Black—that's enough."

Peter's lips moved.

"These can't be used in court."

Allen said, "I don't intend to send you to court right now."

A glimmer of hope for survival reappeared in Peter's eyes.

"Then what do you want to trade for?"

"Money, family secrets, the truth about Black, the old affairs of the Potter Family—I can tell you all of it."

Allen said, "Just stay alive first."

Peter froze.

"What do you mean?"

Allen said, "The value of a living person changes."

Peter gripped his mutilated right hand.

"You want to wait for the situation to change?"

Allen said, "Your brain isn't broken yet."

Peter panted a few times.

"Then I also have a request."

Allen looked at him.

"Are you negotiating with me?"

Peter immediately changed his tone.

"It's not a condition; it's a request."

"Don't let any Dementors come near me, don't hand me over to Black, and don't tell the Dark Lord I'm in your hands."

Allen said, "The third point is spot on."

Peter leaned close to the wall.

"If he knows I'm here, you'll also be in trouble."

"He won't let anyone who has betrayed him go."

Allen said, "You admit you betrayed him?"

Peter's expression changed.

"That's not what I meant."

Allen said, "You betrayed James, you betrayed Lily, you betrayed Black, and you will also betray Lord Voldemort."

Peter's mouth twitched.

"I can betray others, and I can also do things for you."

Allen said, "That statement is at least honest."

Peter nodded quickly.

"So keep me."

"I'll be obedient; whatever you tell me to say, I will say."

"I can be a witness for you, and I can also be bait for you."

Allen said, "Bait doesn't need to say too much."

Peter sensed something was wrong and backed away.

"What are you going to do?"

Allen's projection sank, and the light inside the cage dimmed.

Peter retreated to the boundary.

"Wait, I haven't finished speaking."

"I am your father's friend."

Allen said, "You don't deserve to mention him."

Peter spoke hurriedly.

"I know about James, I know what happened before Lily died, and I know why they didn't escape."

"Allen, you want to know, right?"

Allen said, "No rush."

Peter's face fell.

"Are you really from the Potter Family?"

"Harry wouldn't be like this."

Allen said, "That's why he's sleeping in Gryffindor, and you are here."

Peter wanted to say more.

Allen raised his hand.

"Be quiet, traitor; your life belongs to me now."

Peter's voice cut off in his throat.

He clutched his neck with both hands, his mouth opening, but only gasping sounds came out.

Void raised its head, its tail tip sliding past the edge of the ebony box.

Peter pounded on the cage, his palms striking the transparent wall over and over, but there was not a sound from the outside.

Allen said, "Nod if you can hear me."

Peter stopped and nodded.

Allen said, "From now on, I ask, you answer."

"Speak when you can; when you can't, use nods and shakes."

Peter nodded hurriedly.

Allen said, "Attempting to escape, transforming, shouting, or attacking the cage will cause it to tighten."

Void's tail tip touched the lid.

Peter looked at Void and nodded again.

Allen said, "Food and water will be provided."

"Don't touch the cracked pocket watch, don't touch the patterns on the walls of the cage, and don't try to curry favor with it."

Void flicked its tongue.

Peter put his hands behind his back.

Allen looked at him for a moment.

"You are alive because you are still useful."

"Don't make me recalculate this account."

The projection dissipated.

The Portable Space became quiet again.

Beside the ebony box, Void coiled back into its original position, its silver slit pupils guarding the new prisoner inside the cage.