"Expelliarmus!" Lupin cried at the top of his voice, his wand pointed at Harry. As the spell hit him, Lupin motioned for him to move aside so that he could have a better view of one of his best friends. He saw Sirius, battered and bruised, sprawled out on the floor of the Shrieking Shack. His once in a full-moon home and he hated that fact.
"Well, well, well Sirius, looking rather ragged aren't we? Finally the flesh reflects the madness within!"
"Well you would know all about the madness within wouldn't you Remus?" Sirius and Remus grinned at each other as Remus helped Sirius up. They embraced tightly.
"I found him! I found him. Now let's kill him!" Sirius stuttered in a rather Quirrell-like manner.
"NO! I trusted you!" Hermione shouted at Lupin, furious at what she had heard. "And all this time, you were his friend," she turned to address Harry and Ron before stating "He's a werewolf, that's why he's been missing classes!" Remus starred at Hermione. She looked and sounded just like Minerva. Sirius spoke up.
"Remus, she sounded just like Minnie then." Remus nodded and watched the teenagers' expressions, then Harry spoke up.
"Minnie? That was on the map, one of the Marauders. Who is it?" Ron and Hermione starred at the two adults. They were confused.
"Who are the Marauders?" Ron asked wanting to know more.
"The Marauders were a load of self-absorbed bloody pranksters, that, apart from Minnie and Lily, made my school life living hell. Lupin wasn't too bad, but I was proven wrong when he abandoned his wife and daughter." Harry's hand covered his mouth in shock. "Dumbledore had to take the poor little girl to a new home because you destroyed Minnie's heart. You had a bloody rhyme as well, Messrs and Miss Moony, Minnie, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs" Remus bowed his head as Severus Snape came barging in the room." I told Dumbledore that you were helping an old friend into the castle. How I'd hoped I would be the one to find you here. Though Minnie's reaction would have been priceless."
Harry looked at Sirius and said.
"Why are you here, you betrayed my parents, you want to kill me too?" Sirius shook his head as Remus explained.
"He didn't sell your parents to Voldemort Harry, someone else did, who, until quite recently, I believed to be dead." Harry looked shocked and asked naively.
"Who?" Sirius answered this time.
"Peter Pettigrew and he is here, in this room. Come out, come out Peter, come out and play, you dirty coward!" Snape shouted out the blue.
"Expelliarmus!" Harry's wand that had been in Sirius' hand, flew across the room. "Vengeance is sweet! Another cover up plan!"
"Brilliant Snape! Once again, you put your sharp and penetrating mind to the task and as usual come out with the wrong conclusion, now if you will excuse us, Remus and I have some unfinished business to attend to." Snape put his wand to Sirius' neck and said.
"Give me a reason, I beg you!"
"Severus, don't be a fool," Remus said calmly.
"He can't help it!" Sirius snapped.
"Sirius, be quiet!" Remus was growing more agitated by his best friend's behavior.
"Be quiet yourself Remus!" Sirius shouted angrily.
"Oh look at you two, fighting like an old married couple, oh wait, you're already are married aren't you Lupin?" Lupin's eyes flared aggressively.
Harry's hand inched towards Hermione's wand.
"Why don't you run along and play with your Chemistry set." Sirius retorted to Snape. Snape's wand moved menacingly closer to Sirius' neck.
"I could do it you know? But why deny it the dementors, they're so longing to see you. Do I detect a flicker of fear? A dementor's kiss, one can only imagine what that is like to endure, it is said to be almost unbearable to witness but I'll do my best. After you," Snape moved his head, signaling Harry and his friends to move out the room. Harry held up Hermione's wand and pointed at Sirius, he then changed it suddenly and shouted
"Expelliarmus!" Snape went flying into a nearby bed. "Tell me about the Marauders and Peter Pettigrew." Remus started forward to explain. Harry kept Hermione's wand at full length.
"He was at school with us, we thought he was our friend." Harry was confused
"No, Pettigrew is dead, you killed him," his wand arm still pointed at the Azkaban Escapee. Remus interjected again.
"I thought so too until you mentioned you seeing Pettigrew's name on the map."
"The map was lying then."
"The map never lies, Minnie charmed it and besides Flitwick, she is the best. He is alive and he is right there!" Sirius pointed at Ron as he spoke.
"Me? He's mental!" Ron cried in despair.
"No, not .. Your rat!" Ron looked horrified at Sirius. He started stuttering.
"But Scabbers has been in my family for.." Sirius interrupted again.
"12 years! An unusually long time for a common garden rat. He's missing a toe isn't he?"
"So what?" Ron questioned.
"All they could find of Pettigrew was his …" Harry started.
"His finger!" Sirius finished. "The dirty coward cut it off so everyone would think he was dead! Then he transformed into a rat!" Sirius proclaimed.
"Show me!" Harry demanded. Sirius nodded and went to get the rat.
"Scabbers, what are you going to do to him?" Sirius tore it out of Ron's hands.
"Give it to him Ron!" Harry ordered throughout the commotion.
Sirius carried the now-free rat to the piano that stood in the center of the room. He dropped the rat onto the open top piano. His wand, Snape's wand, started firing spells at the scurrying rodent that was trying to escape. Lupin and Harry started joining him. Pettigrew jumped off the piano and scampered towards the door. It looked like all hope was lost when the rat neared the door.
A man appeared in place of where the rat had been. He was stuck in the door frame. Remus and Sirius leapt forward to keep their former best friend from escaping again.
Hermione was curious as to who had cast the spell that had transformed the man back.
Harry's train of thought was exactly the same as Hermione's.
Ron's was a feeling of pure disgust. This man had been in his house for 12 years, he had been in possession of the man that cost Harry his parent.
Harry and Hermione's question had been answered when none other than Professor Minerva McGonagall walked into the room. All the adults shouted at the top of their voices like young children.
"Minnie!"
The three teenagers in the room looked at their teacher in confusion. She was a marauder, the strict McGonagall had been one of the most legendary pranksters. She looked at the 6 occupants of the room and looked at 4 of them happily. She turned to one of the adults.
"Padfoot!" She exclaimed excitedly. She embraced Sirius much to the children's and Peter's surprise. Remus' shoulders slumped, but his eyes saw Minerva go into her robes and produce a vial of potion and she threw it in Remus' direction. As he caught it, he saw it Wolfsbane, it was a brew Severus had made making him completely harmless during a full moon. He swallowed the lot.
Minerva then let go of Sirius and brushed right past her husband straight to Harry and his friends.
She stepped up to Harry, kneeled down infront of him and said.
"Harry, are you alright? Hermione, Ron, either you injured?"
All three of them nodded. Minerva shook her head at Ron and said.
"Mr. Weasley, I may be seeing things, but to me you have a massive bite mark probably given to you by Padfoot? Am I correct?" Ron nodded.
"And may I present to you, our own sassy, extremely intelligent and overly sarcastic Minnie!" Sirius said rather like a ring master at a circus. Minerva laughed at her friend's antics as she got up. She then felt an arm slide round her waist from behind her.
"Remus, no!" She shouted, her voice rising in volume. She twirled around to look him in the eyes. "You don't have the right. You left, with no warning that night, leaving me with a 1 year old infant, the night after my best friends had died. Dumbledore came because I hadn't come to the staff meeting. He saw me in tears and said that she would be better off somewhere else so I could grieve. He took her, to some muggles I expect. No offence Hermione, but I wanted a magical family to adopt my little baby girl." Minerva's voice was breaking into sobs. She couldn't take it anymore. Remus couldn't take it seeing his wife and best friend in tears. He wasn't bothered if he got hurt from his action. He walked closer to his wife who had tears silently streaming down her face, he placed his arms around her and drew her to his chest. She relaxed and cried into his chest.
"I know, I know, I am sorry, Minnie, what will it take for me to convince you. I want you back, I want to be back. If we resolved this, we could get her back, possibly get Harry too, but we can't if you don't give me a chance." Minerva sighed and nodded. She looked up into her husband's eyes. She saw the sincerity behind them. She leaned up as he leant down. Their lips connected for the first time in 12 years.
Harry was happy for his two professors but was confused on what Lupin had said to McGonagall near to the end of their conversation. What did 'possibly get Harry too' mean? He looked at Sirius and Pettigrew, Pettigrew was confused by what his 'friend' had said. Sirius though, seemed to know exactly what was going on.
When the two finished their kiss, Minerva moved back. She turned to speak to Harry.
"I'm sorry Harry. Because I couldn't see past what he had done, you were forced to stay at your Aunt and Uncle's. I asked Dumbledore to allow me to look after me and to give me back my little girl. But he denied me both. If I had seen past this, you wouldn't have had to go there. Lily told me how bad Petunia was as a child. I am sorry! Can you see past this and give me another chance?" Harry nodded, wanting to ask her another question but she carried on before he had the chance to speak. "Right! Now where is Severus? I saw him come down here," Harry shifted uncomfortably.
"Our godson, Mr. Harry Potter, here, disarmed our good friend Snivellus! Good going Harry!" Minerva shook her head.
"Of course he did! He's James' son, of course he took any chance he was given to knock out Snape! I don't kno…"
"Wait!" Harry interrupted. He was looking straight at Sirius. "Why did you say 'our godson'?"
"Well, Harry, this is what 'Moonie' was talking about. I am your godfather, and Minnie is your godmother!" Harry was shocked. His teacher was his godmother. "She tried to gain custody of you the night they were killed, but Dumbledore said she was in too much of a state to take care of her own little girl, therefore, apparently, she couldn't take care of two infants." Minerva hung her head low and then turned to Pettigrew.
"We can discuss this later but right now we need to what to do with this traitor. Any suggestions?"
"Minerva, wait. What would you have done, if you were in my position, what would have done Sirius?" Peter pleaded.
Sirius and Minerva looked at each other and then said in unison. "We would have died, we would have died rather than betray our friends!"
Peter looked down.
"You should have known Peter, that if Voldermort didn't kill you, then we would, together." Sirius shouted.
"No!" Minerva and Harry interjected. "We'll take him to the castle," Harry stated.
"Bless you boy, bless you!" Peter sighed, trying to touch Harry.
"Get off him, we'll take you to the castle, after that the dementors can have you!" Minerva finished. Peter shrunk back in fear.
Minerva sighed and thought,
This is going to be a long night!