I don’t expect Sirius to show up, since his tale was told to its conclusion. His nemesis was Peter, and Peter is dead.
Uh...
“Gosh,” Harry said half a minute later, “you get a seer smashed on six slugs of Scotch and she spills all sorts of secret stuff. I mean, who’d have thought that Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew were secretly the same person?”
and
The old wizard reached out toward another metal door, from behind which came a endless dead mutter, “I’m not serious, I’m not serious, I’m not serious...” The red-golden phoenix on his shoulder was already screaming urgently, and the old wizard was already wincing, when -
Another cry pierced the corridor, phoenix-like but not the true phoenix’s call.
The wizard’s head turned, looked at the blazing silver creature on his other shoulder, even as ephemeral and substanceless talons launched the spell-entity into the air.
The false phoenix flew down the corridor.
The old wizard raced off after, legs churning like a spry young man of sixty.
The true phoenix screamed once, twice, and a third time, hovering before the metal door; and then, when it became clear that its master would not return for all its calling, flew reluctantly after.
Uh...
and
Second quote: Excellent catch.
Re. the second quote, in light of Eliezer’s statement that the story contains no red herrings: good point.