#274 - Chapter 274 Ron, do you still want a pet?

A big black dog?

Harry turned his head and, sure enough, spotted a large black dog following the carriage not far away.

This wasn't the first time the three of them had seen this big black dog. Since late November, they'd seen it on the road every time they went to Hogsmeade.

Every time, it was the same: appearing halfway, following the carriage for a while, and then completely disappearing before entering the town.

After so many times, it was hard not to notice it.

Since the three of them always traveled by carriage, they hadn't had any close encounters with it so far.

As the carriage continued, the big black dog followed closely.

The thick snow made its steps seem laborious, but it never gave up, always following the tracks of the carriage.

Looking at the black shadow in the wind and snow, Harry felt a pang of unease and pity in his heart.

Why did it always appear here?

What was it looking for?

Why was it still following the carriage on such a cold day?

Suddenly, Harry felt a strange impulse. He wanted to get off the carriage and see what was going on with this dog.

"Driver, please stop the carriage. I want to get off here."

"Student, it's only two more minutes to Hogsmeade. You won't get a refund if you get off here."

"It's okay, I'll get off here." Harry said, staring at the big black dog in the distance without turning his head.

The carriage came to a steady stop, and the three of them filed out as soon as the door opened.

A cold wind rushed towards them, and Ron couldn't help but shiver.

"God, it's unbelievably cold," Ron complained, rubbing his hands to warm them while looking at Harry curiously. "Harry, why are you so concerned about that dog?"

Harry couldn't explain the strange feeling in his heart, so he could only shake his head, his gaze still fixed on the big black dog in the distance.

"I don't know, I just feel like it's very familiar." As he said this, he subconsciously waved at the black dog.

Ron rolled his eyes and said with a twitch at the corner of his mouth, "Mate, don't bother. Stray dogs are usually very wary and won't approach people easily."

He gestured with his mouth towards the direction of the dog, "Don't waste time, let's go to Hogsmeade and have something warm to drink."

However, as soon as Ron finished speaking, the big black dog suddenly wagged its tail and slowly ran towards them.

Ron's eyes widened, and he looked at this unexpected scene in surprise.

"Ron," Hermione said with a suppressed laugh, "It seems you were wrong this time. It's not afraid of people at all."

Harry's eyes lit up, and as he watched the dog run closer and closer, he suddenly felt an inexplicable impulse. He couldn't wait to get close to it.

However, when the big black dog ran to their side, it ignored Harry and went straight past him, heading straight for Ron.

"Huh?" Ron took a half-step back in surprise, but the big black dog showed no hostility at all. It just circled around him, its tail wagging like a small fan, sniffing Ron's body, appearing unusually excited and affectionate.

Harry stood on the spot, slightly stunned.

The scene before him made him feel a little lost. He had originally thought there was a special connection between him and this dog, but he didn't expect that it actually liked Ron.

"Hey, mate, I didn't eat anything special!"

Ron looked at the black dog that had suddenly latched onto him with a wry smile, gently pushing its head, but the dog continued to circle around him, as if it was very interested in him.

"Harry, the dog seems more interested in Ron," Hermione said with a smile.

Harry could only smile helplessly. He didn't know that the overly familiar big black dog in front of him was actually Sirius Black, whom he wanted to catch.

Ever since being driven into the Forbidden Forest by Sebastian, Sirius had tried countless times to sneak into Hogwarts.

But each time ended in failure. As soon as he crossed the edge of the Forbidden Forest, two house-elves would appear and drive him back into the forest again.

It wasn't that he hadn't thought about stunning these annoying little things with his wand, but these little things seemed to have been instructed by a master, and their positioning was always very particular.

Sirius wasn't sure he could knock down two house-elves at the same time.

In order not to alert the enemy, he could only give up the idea of sneaking into Hogwarts to catch the rat and instead waited for the rabbit outside the school.

As far as he knew, the youngest son of the Weasley family was very fond of that rat and often carried it with him.

However, what frustrated him was that the little guys these days were too lazy, even too lazy to walk.

Every time Harry and his friends left the school, they would take the carriage directly to Hogsmeade, which made it impossible for Sirius to find a chance to approach them.

After all, neither the wizard form nor the Animagus black dog form was so popular in Hogsmeade.

So Sirius could only lie in wait on the road to Hogsmeade every weekend, and after seeing Harry and his friends appear, he would follow them to see if he could find any opportunities.

Merlin be praised!

His actions had finally attracted the attention of Harry and his friends, and now they were even getting off the carriage halfway to wave at him.

How exciting!

Sirius couldn't bother to communicate with Harry and went straight for Ron, wanting to use his keen sense of smell to find the rat.

However, no matter how he sniffed, he couldn't smell the slightest trace of the rat.

None?

How could there be none!

Was it because it was too cold that Peter the rat didn't want to come out?

But the smell on this little guy was too clean, as if he had never been in contact with a rat.

Sirius was so anxious that he circled around Ron, which, to outsiders, looked like he liked Ron very much.

"Ron, it really likes you very much," Harry couldn't help but say, "Have you considered taking it in as a pet?"

Take it in as a pet?

Sirius was stunned. It seemed like he had heard Stinky Swan say this before, and he had been very tempted back then.

But it wasn't too late now.

Thinking that he would be able to catch Peter more easily after becoming Ron's pet, Sirius wagged his tail faster and faster, constantly rubbing against Ron's legs, putting on a flattering look.

Ron was very tempted by this suggestion.

Although the black dog was a little dirty now, it looked very majestic and extraordinary upon closer inspection.

Just thinking about himself leading the black dog with his left hand and holding the owl with his right hand made Ron feel so cool.

What's more, with this black dog around, Fred and George would definitely not dare to bully him.

"But......" Ron's voice was full of hesitation, "The school doesn't allow dogs to be kept."

"That is a problem," Hermione frowned, "Applying for a pet license requires the signature of the head of the house. Professor McGonagall won't agree, so how can we get a pet license for it?"

Hearing Professor McGonagall's name, Ron couldn't help but shrink his neck, after all, Professor McGonagall was known for her strictness, and she would definitely not allow students to keep dogs at school.

Harry thought for a while: "We can foster it at Hagrid's and ask Hagrid to take care of it. After all, Hagrid already has Fang, so it's not a problem to keep another dog."

"We can apply for a special pet license for it, so that its range of activities is limited to the vicinity of Hagrid's hut."

"It's just that I don't know if Professor McGonagall will agree."

Hearing Harry's suggestion, Hermione's eyes lit up.

She also wanted Ron to take in this dog.

After all, the weather was really too cold, and if they ignored it, she was worried that the dog would not survive this winter.

"Harry, I have an idea."

"Applying for a pet license requires the head of the house to sign, but there is no rule that we must find Professor McGonagall to sign, right?"

"Why don't you ask Professor Snape for help."

"I think, for your sake, he will definitely be willing to help."

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