Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
Innocence
By: ChoCedric
Sirius Black sat miserably in a chair in Professor Flitwick's office. There was no way he could get out, for the door was locked and he had no wand. As he sat there, he thought dejectedly of how close he had come to freedom.
If it hadn't been for Remus's transformation, he would by now have told the entire story to Dumbledore, with Pettigrew close by him to admit the truth as well. Harry would have come to live with him, and he would have finally been doing right by Lily and James. But now, that traitorous little rat had escaped, and Sirius was going to have his soul sucked out by a dementor.
But as hard as he tried, Sirius couldn't be angry with Remus. It wasn't his fault he was a werewolf; Fenrir Greyback was the one Sirius should be furious with. And plus, he couldn't believe he'd been reunited with one of his best friends.
But oh Gods, thought Sirius as he continued to sit there, waiting for his fate. I'm going to fail Lily and James all over again. Harry will die at Peter's hand, and I won't be able to do anything to protect him. Some godfather I am, he thought bitterly, clenching his jaw. What a true idiot I am.
Suddenly, he heard a strong voice say, "Alohamora!" and the door opened. In walked Albus Dumbledore, and a tiny ray of hope sprang up in Sirius. If anyone would believe him, it was Dumbledore.
When he looked into the Headmaster's face, however, he instantly felt a surge of fear. He understood now why Voldemort was afraid of him; the aura that Dumbledore was radiating was one of pure power. The look on his face was scary to behold, and he was staring at Sirius with anger and disgust.
"Sirius Black," he said in a soft, dangerous voice. "Oh, Sirius. Where did we go wrong with you?"
"Please--please!" Sirius begged, staring at Dumbledore and trying not to flinch. "Please believe me, it wasn't me, it was Peter!"
"And why should I believe you, when you've been trying to get into Hogwarts all year to get Harry?" Dumbledore demanded coldly.
"I wasn't trying to get Harry!" cried Sirius in desperation. "You don't understand! James, Peter, and myself all became Animagi in our school days!"
"And why would you do that?" asked Dumbledore, still looking extremely guarded.
"To help Remus," croaked Sirius. "We found out in our second year that Remus was a werewolf. It took us three years, but we managed to become Animagi so we could spend full moons with him. See, I can prove it!" As quick as a flash, Sirius turned into the huge, grimlike black dog.
For a flicker of a moment, Sirius saw surprise flash over the Headmaster's face. "Change back," the man then said.
Sirius did as he was told, and he said, "James ... he was Prongs ... he became a stag. I, as the dog, was Padfoot. And Peter ..." He spat the name as if it were poison. "He became Wormtail, the rat."
"And what does this have to do with you admitting, under Veritaserum, that you killed the Potters the day you were arrested?" asked Dumbledore.
"I admitted I killed them because I as good as did," Sirius whispered, guilt careening over him. "At the last minute, I had an idea that we should switch secret keepers, so as to keep the Potters even safer. My brilliant plan," he added bitterly, "was to switch to Peter. We didn't tell anyone of the plan, for we didn't want the wrong people finding out."
"You could have told me, Sirius," Dumbledore said, the expression on his face starting to soften.
"I know," Sirius replied miserably. "I wish I had. Then this whole mess wouldn't have happened. Please, please believe me, Albus. I never meant for the Potters to die."
"What about Peter and the street full of Muggles?" Dumbledore questioned.
"I meant to kill Peter," snarled Sirius angrily. "I cornered him in the street, not the other way around. The little piece of vermin got the better of me, yelling for the entire street to hear that I'd betrayed Lily and James. Then he blew up the street with the wand behind his back, killing twelve Muggles."
"And he changed into a rat and cut off his finger," Dumbledore surmised.
"Right," Sirius said. "And disappeared into the sewers. He's been living as the Weasleys' pet for years. Please, please listen to me, Albus. I was trying to protect Harry all year, not hurt him."
Dumbledore looked straight into Sirius's eyes. He remained in that stance for a few moments, and then, he began to look like the kindly Headmaster Sirius had always known, not the wizard Voldemort feared. Sirius then knew that Dumbledore believed him. He didn't know how he could believe him so quickly, but everyone said the Headmaster could read minds, and Sirius thought, for the first time, that that was true.
"Sirius," Dumbledore said, his voice soft with sadness. "I cannot express to you in words how truly sorry I am. I thought it was a cut-and-dry case when you all out admitted that you had killed the Potters."
"I did kill them, Albus," Sirius whispered brokenly. "It was my fault."
"It was Peter's fault, my boy," Dumbledore said gently. "Please tell me what happened tonight."
So Sirius launched into the tale of the confrontation at the Shrieking Shack, talking about how Peter had confessed to being the secret keeper and telling Voldemort where the Potters were. He then talked about Remus transforming at the last minute, and Peter escaping. When he got to the end of his tale, Dumbledore looked at him with regret and sorrow all over his lined face.
"You understand," he said slowly, "that there is nothing I can do now? The dementors will be here soon, and nothing I will say to the Minister will get through. You know Cornelius Fudge, do you not?"
"I do," Sirius said morosely. "I know there's nothing that can be done, Albus. But please promise me something."
"Anything, my boy," Dumbledore answered.
"Promise me that you'll protect Harry," Sirius pleaded. "Don't let Peter kill my godson, he's more precious to me than anything in this world. I know I've failed James and Lily, and I know I've been an awful godfather to Harry. But please, please protect him."
"You haven't failed them, Sirius," Dumbledore said softly. "But I promise, I will protect Harry until my dying breath."
All the emotions Sirius had been feeling all night suddenly crashed down upon him, and before he knew it, he had broken down into tears. Dumbledore took the trembling man into his arms, all the while whispering how sorry he was over and over again that he'd let him stay in Azkaban when he was innocent.
Once Sirius had calmed down, he looked up into the Headmaster's kind face. "Thank you so much, Albus," he croaked. "And tell Harry all about me, okay? Don't let him take this too hard."
"I promise I will do all that I can," Dumbledore said, turning to leave. As he opened the door, he suddenly turned back to Sirius and said, "There is always hope, my boy. Please remember that."
As the door shut and locked again, Sirius wondered what Dumbledore's cryptic statement had meant. As he sat and awaited the arrival of the dementors, he thanked Merlin that he had Albus Dumbledore. The man would protect Harry, at all costs.
After a few minutes, Sirius heard a sound of someone tapping at the window. Looking up, he saw an absolutely amazing sight. Harry, his friend Hermione, and a hippogriff were outside. Sirius then knew at once what Dumbledore had meant by "There is always hope, my boy." Somehow, he had told Harry and Hermione about him being locked in here, and he was going to escape to freedom! Tears entered his eyes again as he realized he was going to have another chance to do right by James and Lily.
He hurried to the window and tried to open it, but it was locked. "Stand back!" Hermione called, and Sirius did. "Alohamora!" she cried, and the window sprang open.
"How--how?" said Sirius weakly, still unable to believe the sight before him.
"Get on--there's not much time," Harry told him. "You've got to get out of here--the dementors are coming-- Macnair's gone to get them."
Sirius managed to heave himself out of the window and climb onto the hippogriff behind Hermione. "Okay, Buckbeak, up!" called Harry, shaking the rope. "Up to the tower--come on!"
Buckbeak gave a sweep of his wings, and then they were flying up to the West Tower. Once they'd landed on the battlements, Harry and Hermione climbed off.
"Sirius, you'd better go, quick," Harry panted. "They'll reach Flitwick's office any moment, they'll find out you're gone."
"What happened to the other boy? Ron?" Sirius croaked.
"He's going to be okay. He's still out of it, but Madam Pomfrey says she'll be able to make him better. Quick--go ..."
Sirius stared fixedly at his godson, hungrily drinking him in. "How can I ever thank ..." he started.
"GO!" Harry and Hermione both shouted, and Sirius wheeled Buckbeak around, facing the sky.
"We'll see each other again," he said softly. "You are--truly your father's son, Harry."
And as he and Buckbeak flew up into the heavens, a feeling of freedom arose in Sirius. He whooped with joy, and smiled with pure happiness. Dumbledore believed in him, and so did the two other most important people in his life, Harry and Remus. I won't fail you again, James, Lily, he thought as Buckbeak continued to ride on into the night.