First, he had to find Moony.
He would explain everything and then they would get Harry.
Moony, ever predictable Moony, was hiding away in one of their old haunts.
After hexing him and tying him to a chair, he heard him out.
And Merlin bless Moony.
He believed him.
….
Turns out, Harry had been missing for over a year.
Dumbledore gave a story, something about recovering from trauma in a "safe place".
Like Hogwarts wasn't the safest place in Wizarding Britain.
That he would be receiving private tutoring until he was ready to return to Hogwarts.
And no, he didn't know how long that would take.
Something seemed off about the whole thing.
It was too forced.
He didn't believe him.
Neither did Moony.
….
Moony was a teacher!
At Hogwarts!
It was a dream come true for him and he was incredibly proud.
Plus, if he was a Hogwarts, he was near Dumbledore, and work towards finding Harry.
….
Moony took him along to Hogwarts.
He was allowed to wander around as long as he stayed on four paws.
Snivellous stopped by with Wolfsbane.
Moony should have been more grateful that he rip Snivellous to pieces.
….
A red haired kid had their map.
As a teacher, all Moony had to do was promise detention and it was his.
Now, they knew.
Wormtail was in the castle.
Wormtail was hiding out in Gryffindor.
The coward was sullying the lion's den.
….
The kid who had the map, had a pet rat.
He didn't understand why no one had said anything.
It wasn't a pet students were permitted to have.
Plus, it was gross.
….
The rat was Wormtail.
He could tell from first sniff.
The stench of a traitor.
….
It was surprisingly easy to get a hold of the rat.
Moony confronted the kid about an unsanctioned pet.
The kid glumly handed it over and Moony brought it into his office.
An animungus reveale later and a quivering, disgusting, rat of a man stood before them.
Moony took him to Dumbledore.
….
Amelia Bones was good, for a ministry worker.
She called for a trial and Wormtail was force-fed Veritaserum.
Wormtail was found guilty and sentenced the Kiss.
Sirius was cleared and he didn't even have to turn himself in for the verdict.
….
Moony was laid-off. Well, he left voluntarily As voluntarily as one could leave given the circumstances.
That bastard Snivellous let it slip he was a werewolf. Let it slip like it wasn't completely intentional.
He knew Moony was upset but he always had been much better at hiding his emotions.
Sirius told him he should have bitten the sod when he had the chance.
Moony laughed.
….
Harry was still missing.
And they were no closer to finding him.
….
He finally convinced Moony to move into the Black family home with the promise that they would gut the place as soon as physically possible.
They stripped everything but the library and the potions lab.
They even sent away that nasty elf.
….
Over the next year they scoured the Black library for tracking spells, rituals, potions, anything.
Anything they could possibly use to find Harry.
They tried and failed over and over and over and –
….
Voldemort has returned .
The three words no one had ever wanted to hear.
Anyone worth their salt knew it was inevitable, but everyone was surprised.
Apparently he had used a ritual that required mass sacrifice.
And numerous Light supporters from the last war had gone missing.
He had attacked at the end of the Triwizard Tournament being held at Hogwarts that year.
A competitor had been killed.
New and old supporters took to the streets.
It was a massacre.
….
A new head of the Department of Magical Creature Control was appointed.
The rights of beings were stripped, leaving them with nothing.
Jobs were taken, beings were arrested, and werewolves were no longer allowed in public spaces for longer than just passing through.
More creatures flocked to the Dark Lord.
….
The Order of the Phoenix was reinstated and he had been coerced in allowing them to use the Black family home as headquarters.
As time passed the members became few and those admitted became younger.
No one wanted to admit the truth.
….
In light of the intensity of the war, the Ministry of Magic declared a state of martial law and issued decree after decree.
One of many criminalized anyone from a suspected Dark family no matter which side they supported.
Neither he nor Moony could afford to leave the house in light hours.
They spent their days either in the library or planning for war.
They spent their nights fighting.
….
They gave up hope of finding James' son.
And the war continued to escalate.
….
Dumbledore was dead and Hogwarts had fallen.
A Death Eater became headmaster and those able to, fled.
Those who couldn't were subjected to unknown horrors.
That day could be marked as the day the war was lost.
….
The Wizards and Witches alike lost hope that Harry Potter would appear and save them all.
….
The Ministry fell soon after.
The Minister in action was appointed during wartime after the previous Minister Fudge took his own life.
Without so much as a warning, Voldemort himself stormed the Ministry of Magic and down it fell.
Any hope the Light had was crushed.
….
It would be an understatement to say that Britain didn't change after the Dark Lord's victory.
Not all was bad.
Werewolves could be gainfully employed and innocent Dark families walk the streets.
Muggles were still largely ignored.
But their world was filled with death.
Innocents were hexed and cursed in the streets and it was no longer safe to travel to once populated areas that had been overrun by violence and Darkness.
No one could go in or out.
Many of the old families bribed the new officials and fled the country.
Everyone else was trapped.
….
The rebellion stayed active, quiet as it was.
They communicated through mirrors and two-way journals.
New was broadcast over underground radio stations.
They raided abandoned manors and Death Eater outposts in the dead of night.
They re-homed children whose families were taken and healed those without access to potions.
Slowly, slowly, they rebuilt their lives.
….
Dark and Light no longer existed in their world.
In order to survive in the new world, one had to embrace all aspects of magic.
The segregation had ended but there still wasn't peace.
They did their best to adapt.
….
Several years passed before they began searching for Harry again.
They knew what that he lived. That he had somehow survived the purges.
They also knew that they didn't want to bring him into a world of evil.
He was probably happy where he was, oblivious to the downfall of Wizarding Britain.
Then, one day, with a ritual that would have once been deemed dark, they found him.
They found Harry.
