Sirius Black stared at a map of Wizarding Britain. It was the morning of November 1, 1981, and he had been up all night. His eyes were raggedly red, his robes dishevelled, and his legs were sore from walking, standing, and Apparating for hours on end.
It was all my fault, he thought as he turned another corner, looking around for some clue. Seeing no one around, he leaped forward, transforming into Padfoot midair. The wind blew and Padfoot lifted his nose in the air. A faint trace of rodent still lingered. He growled. The traitor was here.
He turned the corner onto a busy street. Muggles walked quickly, passing shops and street lights still lit in the foggy morning air, but one individual stuck out. A dark shadow was running against the flow of foot traffic. Padfoot's eyes narrowed, and he began to run. Dodging cars and feet he soon caught up to the rat who turned around. An expression of terror passed his face as Sirius stepped out from an alley, wand in hand. Peter Pettigrew scrambled backwards into the middle of the street.
Cars honked and swerved around him while Sirius advanced. Muggles stopped and soon the entire block was frozen watching the confrontation.
"You knew I would find you, Peter. Did you really think you could run?" Sirius's voice was dark, his face was almost murderous. He pointed his wand right at Pettigrew's chest. For his part, Peter was cowering, his hands clasped behind his back and fingers fidgeting. Of the two, they both knew Sirius was the better dueler, and if it came down to it, Pettigrew would die. Sirius was as loyal as a dog, and he would avenge his friends, breaking the law if he had to. But the Muggles didn't know that. Nor did they see the sly look cross Pettigrew's face as he stood up straight. Sirius was surprised, though in hindsight he shouldn't have been. This was not the Peter Pettigrew he knew.
"How could you do it, Sirius? How could you betray Lily and James?" Peter yelled so the entire street could hear him. Sirius's eyes widened and he was about to protest when he heard a bang and was sent flying backwards. He looked up just in time to see a rat scurry over his prone form and into a sewage drain.
After a few minutes, Sirius stood up. The once bustling street had now erupted into chaos. Bodies lay strewn across the sidewalk and the air was full of screaming. After all this time. He really was a rat. Sirius' sleep-deprived brain began to shut down, and all he could do was laugh.