The Butcher of Hogsmeade

Sirius Black was the first to rush out the door, shouting into the empty corridor, "Kreacher, come out here! I command you to come out!" It was obvious that the hoarse, deep voice belonged to Kreacher, the house-elf of the Black family, and Sirius recognized him immediately.

However, although Sirius issued the command as the master, he only received a verbal response; the house-elf was nowhere to be seen. "Kreacher is going to tell the mistress that the good-for-nothing traitorous young master has returned, and he's being rude, bringing strangers with him..."

"You come out here!" Sirius's fierce and stern demeanor was very close to impotent rage in Shen Hou's eyes. Wizards are said to be the masters of house-elves, but in reality, they only have the title of "master"; once the house-elves no longer recognize this title and the relationship of affiliation, most wizards are actually helpless.

Fortunately, among the three wizards present, one was an old wizard who did not belong to the "vast majority".

Dumbledore didn't look around to find the source of the sound. He simply waved his wand, and the surrounding air seemed to freeze instantly. The next moment, a short, ugly figure floated in the air as if it had risen from the water. Its limbs flailing wildly in the air, unable to find any foothold or control itself. It screamed in distress, but could not break free from the magic's restraint.

What angered Sirius most was that a house-elf had appeared less than three feet in front of him, practically within arm's reach. Predictably, this house-elf named Kreacher had been staring at Sirius almost face-to-face, completely ignoring his young master's commands.

"Intruder, madam, intruder!" Kreacher turned and shouted toward the stairs, trying to make his voice carry to the other floors.

The sound echoed between the walls and floors; suddenly, the walls began to shake, the floor undulated like waves, the stair railings twisted and turned into dark chains that lashed out at Shen Hou and his two companions, the crystal chandelier on the ceiling shattered abruptly, and countless crystal fragments shot out like arrows, and even the animals in the paintings on the walls roared at them.

The gloomy house seemed to awaken completely, revealing its ferocious face to the intruders.

"It's the house's defensive magic!" Sirius exclaimed. He then waved his wand repeatedly, seemingly trying to stop the changes around him, but to no avail. It was only in time that Shen Hou cast the "Iron Wall Charm," which blocked the attack from the railings and the crystal chandelier. Chains and arrows struck the shield, producing a piercing and dense explosion. The iron wall was on the verge of collapse.

Of the three, only Dumbledore remained calm. He pointed one finger at the house-elf, immobilizing him, and raised his wand in the other, pointing it straight at the ceiling. He even had time to instruct Shen Hou: "This is the perfect time for 'All Curses End' to work; however, as a guest visiting us, there's no need to be too violent."

As the knotted wand spun around above everyone's heads, the walls, the vibrations, and the floor began to subtly change. In a daze, Shen Hou thought he was seeing not a wand, but a conductor's baton, each turn of which incorporated everything around it into its rhythm.

In less than half a minute, the vibration frequency of the walls and the amplitude of the floor fluctuations were completely synchronized with the rotation of the conductor's baton. At this moment, Dumbledore suddenly swung his wand down heavily, just like a conductor drawing a pause for the orchestra's performance. All the abnormalities around disappeared in an instant.

The walls are quiet, the floor is calm, the railings are still railings, and the paintings are just paintings.

"Even the best club DJs are like this," Shen Hou muttered to himself.

Before Dumbledore could ask what a DJ was, a high-pitched and shrill voice came from down the stairs: "Where did these shameless scoundrels come from, you filthy, lowly Mudbloods, you despicable little men? Who gave you permission to trespass on Black family property? Who gave you the audacity to desecrate the honor of the Black family...?"

As the shouts of abuse grew louder and louder, echoing through the stairwell, the house seemed to tremble and erupt again.

Sirius's face showed a complex mix of emotions—dissatisfaction, helplessness, and anger—as he shouted with a hint of reluctance, "Mommy, it's me! I'm back!"

The insults abruptly ceased, leaving only faint echoes lingering around the beam.

Hurried footsteps echoed from the stairwell, and a middle-aged woman in a black house robe stumbled up the stairs. Her voice preceded her figure: "My son is back? Regulus, is it Regulus? My son Regulus..."

Sirius's expression, which had begun to soften, suddenly froze. When his mother finally appeared at the bottom of the stairs, he called out with great difficulty, "It's me, Mom..."

The middle-aged woman froze, staring incredulously at the three men of varying ages before her. After a long while, she suddenly let out an extremely shrill scream: "Who are you? Who are you all? You're not Regulus, you're not either, none of you are! Who are you? How dare you impersonate my son...?"

Sirius was momentarily taken aback, and unconsciously began to defend himself, "It's me, Sirius..."

But the woman in black seemed not to hear her, continuing her incessant shrieking: "My son is serving the Dark Lord, and one day he will return home in glory, adding the most glorious chapter to the Black family's honor! How dare you impersonate him, how dare you..."

Amidst screams, a black magic spell shot out like lightning, so fast that even Shen Hou couldn't react in time; who would have thought that a mother would unleash a curse on her own son without explanation?

The curses struck the "iron wall," and the already overburdened shield shattered. Yet the middle-aged woman continued to unleash her curses.

Along with the curse came a series of seemingly endless insults: "Shameless thieves, despicable madmen, who gave you the audacity to despise Regulus? Who allowed you to mock Regulus? Who condoned your coveting of the Black family..."

Sirius stood frozen in place, unable to utter another word; Shen Hou was at a loss, neither daring to retaliate nor able to watch Sirius be beaten, so he could only grit his teeth and cast a new Ironclad Spell to barely maintain a crumbling iron wall between the two sides.

Even the usually composed Dumbledore couldn't help but let out a sigh at this moment.

Anyone could see that the matriarch of the Black family, Sirius Black's mother, had gone mad.