Tuesday March 12th, 1991
If the defence professor were to be honest with himself, today has no hope of being a pleasant one. Marcello has run through these plans each day for the past two weeks, and each one has it's negatives. In the worst case scenario, a (possibly) criminal animagus could escape and cause unknown damage to the students of this school on his watch. In the best-case scenario, the day will go on as originally planned, leaving one of his students to suffer a broken heart while her friend continues life in an abusive home until further options can be explored.
Unfortunately for Marcello, the best-case scenario is not his objective today. His objective for the day is going to have the consequence of chaos, questions, and the tedium of a foreign legal system. At least, in the short term. The long term would have it's benefits, should all go well, but it was still by no means a comfortable task. Not that his life has ever been one of comfort.
"Good morning, class. Today we shall continue our discussion on the use of magical and mundane creatures in defence and information gathering." He began the lecture. His eyes roamed across the classroom, vaguely noting the preening of owls and cats and the quiet croaking of toads.
He moved into the lecture, smoothly picking up where he left off on the topic of defence and slowly worked its way into the discussion of information gathering. The students were less excitable with this lesson, he found. Where before he spoke of griffins guarding treasure or tamable beasts that could be used to sniff out dark creatures, the animals in today's lesson were far less menacing, therefore less interesting in his students' eyes. Those taking the care of magical creatures elective would perk up on occasion with ideas on domesticated nifflers or sapphire mimickers sneaking into enemy territory. That said, it was apparent that the students were less interested in the verbal lesson and more interested in the unknown quantity of their pets' presence.
"While having these creatures assisting in espionage is useful, it is also useful to know how to counter such measures when it is being used on yourself." He segued. "In most cases, runic wards can be used to include animals to keep at bay. Unfortunately, wards that include animals tend to have an all or nothing approach. You can keep all creatures at bay, but it will leave you without resources and keep away your own guard animals. If you know which sort of creature you are targeting, there are species-specific wards that can be used; though only one or two species is advisable, or else the runic system becomes weak.
"Beyond the use of wards, a simple revelio can reveal mundane and magical animals hidden by a wizard's magic. For example, if I may, Miss Clearwater?" He gestured to the blonde student's ginger tabby sitting politely on the front-row desk. The student nodded, allowing him to cast a simple invisibility spell on the feline, and bring back its appearance with the stated revelio. The children nodded at the change and took their notes. "That said, such measures are not easily useful against creatures that can camouflage or turn invisible, like a hidebehind or a demiguise. It also cannot reveal an animagus, a person disguised as an animal, or reveal a creature when a wizard has disguised it as another, seemingly harmless animal. Mister Weasley?" He asked pointedly. The boy nodded, and the seemingly docile rat twitched in agitation. Before the pet could move, the professor quickly swished his wand and spoke the demonstrative spell.
In the best-case scenario, nothing would come from this act. As the rat began to grow, however, it became apparent that the best-case scenario was no longer a possibility.
Mister Weasley and the surrounding students jumped out of their seats as the rat continued to grow in size. It's hair shrunk into its skin and its limbs grew out like branches on a tree. Even Marcello felt some moment of shock before pushing more willpower into the spell, forcing the half-revealed creature to topple over the desk and scramble helplessly as it took form.
"Everyone stay back!" Marcello shouted to his students. They obeyed immediately, giving him leave to cast a quick stupefy and incarcerous on the (seemingly unknown) man, leaving the man bound and gagged on the floor. He then turned to Percy Weasley with a searching look and a soft voice. "Mister Weasley, were you aware of this?"
"This?" He muttered in a daze. "I don't understand, professor. Was Scabbers never a rat?"
That was enough confirmation for both Marcello and the class to assess the situation. "It appears not, Mister Weasley. Applied on a true animal, that spell should have done absolutely nothing." He emphasized. He then turned to the man pensively. "Unfortunately it appears that today's lesson has proven relevant for all of you, and has ended it, all at once. Mister Hilliard!" He called out to one of the Ravenclaw students.
"Sir?"
"Please advise Professor McGonagall that an intruder has been apprehended on school grounds and that she needs the ministry to send in aurors as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir." The boy nodded dutifully and scrambled out of the classroom.
"The rest of you are dismissed for the morning. Mister Weasley, I will need you to remain to answer any questions the aurors may have for you." The boy gulped, looking at the bound man with fear, before turning back to nod mutely at the professor.
As the class emptied in a decrescendo of whispers, Marcello took a moment to collect himself and exhale a tense breath. This entire situation is madness! An animagus hiding among school children as a pet was by no means the most dangerous situation he has ever encountered, but it was certainly one of the strangest. To think, this was meant to be a break to ease him into retirement! His colleagues at the CEC will never let him live it down once word reaches them.
"Professor Salvatore?" The red-headed boy spoke with quiet unease. "I swear I didn't know about… whoever this is. I've had Scabbers for years, and I never saw him turn into a person."
"I believe you, Mister Weasley. There is no need to worry. I'm sure that the aurors will uncover the truth of this man soon enough." He assured the boy, while ensuring to catalogue the fact that the rat has lived with him for years yet no adult put the rodent's lifespan into question. Which means that his parents either were aware of the rat's true form, or his family simply had little idea of proper pet care and facts.
The boy thanked him for his words, then looked at him curiously. "Professor, shouldn't we inform Headmaster Dumbledore about him?"
It was a good question. He nodded approvingly, pleased that the boy had already recovered from enough shock to think critically about the situation. "On any other day, I would have. Unfortunately, the Headmaster is away today as he is in session with the Wizengamot. That said, I am sure Professor McGonagall can handle the situation in his stead."
A loud rap at the door interrupted the second-year transfiguration lecture, before a head quickly stuck through the door.
"I hope you are interrupting my class with good reason, Mister Hilliard." Professor McGonagall chided sternly at the bashful student.
"Yes, Professor, sorry- but Professor Salvatore sent me. A rat just turned into a man in our class and he needs you to call the aurors!"
The class of younger children broke into a mass of alarmed whispers and shouts.
"Did he catch him?" One of the girls asked.
"He did, he's tied up in the defence classroom."
That answer led to more discussions as the professor called them to be quiet. Once they settled to a low murmur she walked over to the door. "Very well. Mister Hilliard, please mind the class. I want all of you to remain in your seats and read from chapter 14 until I return. I'll see to this intruder, myself."
"Professor!" The female student called out again. "Since Professor Salvatore already caught him, shouldn't the aurors be called, like he said?"
Professor McGonagall gave the girl a considerate look before giving a nod. "Quite right, Miss Bennett. I will inform them of the situation. All of you are to be on your best behaviour until I return!" She warned before striding out of the classroom.
Once she was out of the room the classroom exploded into chaos.
The British aurors met the situation with as much disbelief as could be handled, all things considered.
"So you're telling us that you accidentally revealed this animagus in the middle of a classroom?"
"That is correct, Auror Dawlish." Marcello answered solemnly. "I was using pets in the front row as demonstrations for the class."
The grey-haired auror shook his head as he looked over the situation. "And you have no idea of who this man is?" He asked the two of them.
"No, sir." They both replied in turn.
"There is one thing, however." Marcello brought up, walking over to the still-unconscious prisoner. "Before you arrived I searched his person for any dangerous, transfigured items he may have hidden on him. Fortunately, I found none. However, I did find this tattoo on his arm." he gestured, pulling the man's sleeve upwards. "It may give us a clue as to who he is and why he has been hiding as an animal."
The aurors in the room inspected the arm in question and gave a collective gasp.
"The Dark Mark!" Auror Savage exclaimed.
Dawlish gapped at the mark before turning to the professor. "Why didn't you say he was a Death Eater in the first place?"
Marcello gave the man a practiced, stoic expression. "I wasn't aware that your dark wizards branded themselves this way." He noted.
"Oh, right. You're foreign." Dawlish muttered rather rudely. Nevertheless, he exhaled with a grunt and ran a hand through his hair. "This is going to be a headache. I can only imagine what the Minister will do with him."
At the back of the classroom the door creaked open and the Deputy Headmistress walked inside.
"Professor McGonagall." Marcello greeted with a singular nod.
"Professor Salvatore." She returned the gesture. "I see you have our intruder handled. Do we know why he came here?"
"We have a couple guesses, now." Auror Dawlish replied, though those guesses were little more than that at the moment.
At his answer, the transfiguration professor reached the front of the class and gave the bound man a once-over, only for her eyes to grow confused, then widen in shock. "Merciful Morgana! It can't be! Peter Pettigrew?"
"You know this wizard?" Dawlish asked in surprise.
"Know him? Of course I know him! This is Peter Pettigrew! He was a friend of Lily and James Potter. Good Merlin, I thought Sirius Black had killed him!" She quickly moved to untie him, only to be stopped by Marcello standing in her way. "Professor Salvatore, please! This man is no intruder. He is a good man!"
The aurors looked at each other before stepping in. "Professor, this Pettigrew bloke has the Dark Mark." Dawlish explained. McGonagall looked at him in shock before stepping around Marcello to inspect the mark. It gave the male professor enough time to catalogue and accept the confirmation that everything his wayward student had guessed about the rat has turned out to be true.
"If someone could enlighten me." He began, turning to Auror Savage. "Who is Sirius Black?"
"He's the Death Eater that betrayed the Potters to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and, supposedly, killed Pettigrew, here, and a bunch of muggles in one blast."
Marcello took that information and gave himself a well-timed moment of thought. "It appears to me that those facts ought to be switched around."
"You don't mean," McGonagall paused in a moment of disbelief, "that it was Peter who betrayed the Potters?"
"I can't say that I know that, on an intimate level. However, that appears to be the most likely explanation, given this man's tattooed allegiance."
The adult British wizards were doused in an uncomfortable realization of the facts.
Dawlish gave an annoyed grunt as he got his wand out and ready to carry the prisoner out. "Merlin, the press is going to have a field day with this."
The school was abuzz with gossip by lunchtime. Tales of the mystery rat-man ran rampant, especially when all of the Weasleys had to be called away to make statements at the Ministry. People didn't know what to make of it, which meant they made of it whatever they could imagine. Melissa kept her own tales carefully humourous. Only once mentioning the Weasleys by suggesting that the Twins had had a hand in producing an elaborate prank using spells from the restricted section.
Realistically, they probably would do that, if given the chance.
Fun as the gossip was, Melissa was more tempted to make a visit once the witnesses returned to the school. A trip that she pulled off that very evening.
"Professor Salvatore, may I come in?" She asked politely at the foot of the classroom door.
The man paused before calling back. "I suppose you may."
She walked into the classroom, finding the professor in the middle of some wandwork along the border of the classroom.
"I hear you had an interesting day."
"Indeed." He answered curtly. "Though, you must understand that I cannot divulge any information until the aurors have made it available for public knowledge."
"Oh. No worries, then." She walked further into the classroom to watch him work. The spaces where the floor ended and the wall began were glowing with soft green glyphs before fading into obscurity. "I take it that they came in handy?"
"In the sense of being in use, no." The wizard answered, smiling to himself. "In the sense of keeping vigilance against all possibilities, most definitely."
Melissa rolled her eyes, but kept on a playful smile. "Always in need to teach a lesson." She teased. She continued to watch his work, small feelings of hope and worry fluttered in her chest. "He'll be okay now, right?"
The man considered the question in its vagueness, nodding faintly. "With time, we shall see."