Disclaimer: Characters and settings belong to JKR, plot belongs to me.

A/N: This is my first fic. It takes place in 1996 i.e. Harry's 6th year, and will be pretty long if I get good feedback. I would love some constructive criticism so please review. If I've made any mistakes, please let me know and I'll fix them. Sorry if the chapter is too long. Anyway, enjoy!



Life on the Run - Chapter One



Dear Sirius,
I'm still at the Dursley's. The school year starts in a few days. I haven't heard much news yet. There's not much in the Daily Prophet but I'm sending you a copy anyway. It says there are 7 Death Eaters left, but that's including you and not Pettigrew. A few more have been sent to Azkaban but the rest are still being searched for, especially you. The general belief is that your Voldemort's greatest supporter. That's what Fudge believes and the majority go with Fudge. Anyway, write back and tell me how you and Buckbeak are going, I haven't heard from you in a while.
-Harry

Sirius folded up the letter and brushed his long hair out of his face. Hedwig was perched on a nearby tree branch and was looking at him expectantly. Sirius played with his beard thoughtfully and stared out into space for a while before reaching into the knapsack sitting next to him and pulling out a piece of parchment and a quill. He glanced at Buckbeak, who was sleeping soundly in the shade under a tree, and began to write in a messy scrawl.

Dear Harry,
Buckbeak and I are doing fine. I've been getting food from muggle towns nearby, and we've found a comfortable place where we can't be seen. I don't think the Ministry would look for me here and nobody here knows who I am. I'm glad to hear about the Death Eaters but don't worry about Fudge, he'll come around. Sorry I haven't sent any owls, we've been travelling for a while. Thanks for the paper. Keep sending more owls with any news and tell me how things are going.
-Sirius

He folded the letter and tied it around Hedwig's leg, which Hedwig had stuck out promptly as a way to prove her efficiency as a post owl. He gave the snowy owl a stroke before it flew off on its long journey.
Sirius was not looking healthy at all. His hair and beard had grown long and become messy, he was very pale and he had become very skinny, his face sunken. It was a good thing Hippogriff's couldn't tell the difference because Buckbeak was his only companion. They had spent many nights curled up together, and many days travelling over countries and over seas.
They were staying at this place to hide from the Ministry until Sirius received further information on the whereabouts of Peter Pettigrew. Finding Pettigrew was Sirius' only chance at regaining the freedom he hadn't seen for 16 years. Pettigrew had managed to maintain the notion that he was dead while still helping Voldemort gain more power.

Sirius looked up, realising he had been lost in thought. He yawned as he noticed that the sun was going down and it was getting dark. Travelling for so long had made him extremely tired. He stood up from the tree stump he had been using as a chair and went to where Buckbeak was sleeping. With the little energy he had left he assumed the shape of a great, black, shaggy dog and curled up next to the Hippogriff.
As he was drifting off, he thought of Harry, and the peaceful, happy life he could have had with him if it weren't for Wormtail, and if Voldemort hadn't risen. He fell asleep and dreamed about tearing Wormtail apart, limb from limb. It was a sweet dream.

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Harry was up hours before his alarm went off. It was September the first 1996. After a whole summer at the Dursley's he was more than glad to be leaving for Hogwarts that day, despite the constant gloom that hung over most people of the wizarding world and had for the past year. For the past few hours, Harry had been sitting on his bed, staring out his window, just thinking. He thought of where Sirius might be (he had just read his letter the night before). He also thought of Pettigrew, and of capturing him and putting him in Azkaban for good. His thoughts were cut off by his alarm and the sound of his Aunt, Uncle and (making extra loud thumping noises) his positively obese cousin getting up.

When Harry got downstairs, the Dursley's were sitting around the kitchen table, eating the usual bacon and eggs. Dudley, who was five times the size of the chair he was balancing his massive bum on, was wolfing down his breakfast at record speed. Last year's fruit juice diet hadn't exactly worked wonders. Harry ate quickly too so he would have enough time to get dressed and pack. Just as he was hurriedly leaving the table, Uncle Vernon boomed "where do you think you're going, boy?"
"To pack, Uncle Vernon," Harry replied innocently, "It's September the first, remember, you're taking me to King's Cross to catch the Hogwarts Express at 10 o' clock?" He hoped his uncle hadn't forgotten. Mr Dursley merely grunted in reply. Harry shrugged his shoulders and made his way upstairs to pack.

Once Harry's trunk was loaded into the Dursley's car, Uncle Vernon shoved everyone in, jumped in the driver's seat and sped down the driveway and up the street.
"Uh, Uncle Vernon?" Harry said uncertainly.
"What, boy?" Uncle Vernon said in his usual, booming voice.
"W-why are we going so fast?" Harry stammered.
"'Cos I've got more bloody important places to be than bloody King's Cross station, that's bloody why!" Vernon was almost yelling now. He was speeding round the corners and throwing Harry, Petunia and Dudley around the car. He could see from their expressions that they were too frightened to speak.
"Um," Harry began tentatively, "Uncle Vernon, are you sure you're… feeling all right?" Vernon looked like his head might explode. His cheeks where puffed and his ears were flaming red. He meant to slam the brakes but instead he hit the accelerator.
"OF COURSE I'M BLOODY ALL RIGHT!" he yelled, this time at the top of his voice. Meanwhile, the car was racing down the road at full speed and Petunia and Dudley had began to scream. Luckily they reached King's Cross station right then. Vernon really did slam on the brakes this time, the car spinning around, and then he literally threw Harry, his trunk and (causing terrible shrieks) Hedwig's cage out of the car before speeding off again in reverse.

Harry rubbed his elbow, which he had landed on.
"He's really lost it this time," he muttered to himself. He got up, and brushed himself off. Looking around, he saw that everyone was staring. And probably not because of the cage he was carrying containing his large, snowy owl. He limped the rest of the way to the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. He didn't quite feel up to taking the wall at a run so he leaned casually against it and found himself instantly in platform 9¾. He was staring at the large, magnificent Hogwarts Express in front of him when someone with big, bushy, brown hair jumped in front of him. It was Hermione. She greeted him with a hug.
"Hedwig looks a bit… dizzy," she commented.
"Don't ask," Harry sighed. Ron and Ginny showed up, ready with a hug for everyone to.
"What the-" Ron began at the sight of Hedwig. The usually graceful, dignified owl was now swerving around its cage, feathers flying everywhere, letting out a random "hoot" every now and then.
"What's the matter with Hedwig?" Ginny asked.
"Hmm…" Harry held up Hedwig's cage and inspected her condition, "I think she has a concussion."

When they had all boarded the train Harry began telling his friends about the whole ordeal with the Dursley's that morning.
"I have never seen him so angry," Harry was saying, "and this is Vernon Dursley we're talking about."
"It looks like he threw Hedwig pretty hard," Ron said, looking at the owl stumbling around her cage.
"Well, she hasn't had a beating like that since our second year," Harry chuckled, winking at Ron knowingly. Harry was just in the middle of telling Hermione and Ron about Sirius' latest letter, when something near their compartment door caught Ron's eye. Harry and Hermione, who were sitting with their back facing the door, turned around to see what Ron was staring at. They caught sight of it before it scuttled out of view. It was a rat; a fat, grey rat with small, watery rat eyes. All three got up at once and raced to the compartment door, but it was too late. The rat was gone.
"Scabbers," Ron muttered. "Are you sure it was him?" Hermione said, "I mean, don't all rats look the same?"
"I know that rat when I see him," Ron said, a look of loathing in his eyes.
"How are we going to find him?" Harry spoke up.
"Well, we know where he's going," Hermione answered, "I guess it's just a matter of searching Hogwarts."
"But, why?" Harry said bemusedly.
"To find Pettigrew, silly," Hermione said.
"No, I mean, why would Pettigrew want to come to Hogwarts," Harry explained, "there's more people there that are hunting him down than any other place."
"Yes, it is the least safest place for him to be, but he's probably here on Voldermort's orders," Hermione said, "he wouldn't want to disobey his master just because he's at risk of being caught."
"Well, he'll be caught alright," Ron said, "even if I have to do it myself."
"I do think we should go to Dumbledore about this immediately," Hermione said firmly, "it is a very serious matter."
"Yeah, you're probably right," Harry agreed. For the rest of the journey the three talked about other things, and soon they were getting off the train, ready for their carriage ride up to the Hogwarts castle.

Harry, Ron and Hermione had just finished their third helpings from the large array of food that was the Hogwarts first-night-of-term feast. Everyone else was staying for fourth helpings but Harry had something important to do.
"I'm going to the Owlery," Harry told Ron and Hermione, "I need to tell Snuffles right away what's going on." Ron and Hermione went with Harry. As soon as they walked in, one of the Hogwarts owls flew down to where Harry was, ready to make a delivery. Harry took out a quill and a piece of parchment and wrote his note to Sirius.

Dear Sirius,
Pettigrew is at Hogwarts. We saw him on the train. We're going to Dumbledore immediately.
-Harry

The school owl stood proudly while Harry tied the letter to its leg and then promptly took off on its journey.
Just as they were turning to leave, in the corner of his eye, Harry saw something scuttle into the shadows.
"It's him!" Harry cried and threw himself towards the spot where he saw the rat. Ron and Hermione followed suite. Harry fell to the ground and, stretching out his arm, he wrapped his fingers around the furry mass, but felt it squeeze from his grip and he watched as it sprinted away, as fast as a rat can go.
"He's getting away!" Harry yelled, but Ron and Hermione were already chasing the rat down the hall. Harry got up quickly and followed them, running faster than he'd ever run.



A/N: Thanks for reading this far. Find out what happens next chapter. Some reviews please?