Ninja Wizard III: Prisoner of Azkaban 02
By David
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and company isn't mine. JK Rowling has that honor.
Author Notes: [] indicate Japanese spoken. These / indicate Parseltounge spoken.
Ninja Wizard III: Prisoner of Azkaban 02
'Demented Train Ride'
Sirius Black stumbled away from the freezing cold water, his body shaking severely from the cold. He knew he needed to warm up immediately or he stood a good chance dying from hypothermia, not a nice way to go. He looked around and all he could see at the moment was the skinny trees and the fog creeping in around them. He pressed onward hoping to find something. He knew that as long as he kept on moving he would be okay. Something caught his attention, and he looked in that direction. He squinted his eyes, trying to see in the distance through the fog to see what it was. He moved in that direction and the small barn eventually came into view. Sirius was overjoyed. That meant possible warmth in there. Sirius found a door to the small barn and pushed it open, entering the place. It was dark and gloomy inside and by what little light he had Sirius could tell it had been abandoned for some time. He started by the door, searching the entire place in a familiar pattern he had used before in the many times he had done as a former Auror. Sirius tried not to think about his former friends as he continued his search. He came across a stack of blankets and he created a nest out of the blankets and piled a few of them on top of himself. It wasn't long before his body began to feel warm once more. Sirius sighed as he closed his eyes, exhaustion overtaking him. He slept, he dreamed of better days. He slept well into the morning and woke up to the sounds of the birds roosting in there. He sat up feeling better than he had in a long time. Now that it was daylight he could see a lot better in there now. He eventually stood up leaving the nest of blankets behind. He grabbed one and wrapped it around himself in an effort to keep warm. He continued to search the barn and found nothing else. He looked out the windows while conducting his search and saw a small house off in the distance. He stared at it for a time and decided to take a chance. He used the brush, trees, and bushes for cover as he advanced on the house. He left the blanket on the steps as he went up them. He paused at the back door as he had a feeling that something wasn't quite kosher. Pulling the wand he had stolen from the Azkaban guard and hoping there wasn't a track spell on it Sirius very slowly opened the back door and entered the house. The outside of the house had looked like crap. Not so on the inside. It was very clean inside the back porch area. Sirius observed the washer and dryer there in a corner of the room and realized this must be the mud room/service porch. A lot of the farmhouses in England had them. If you came in from the fields a total mess that was the room you stripped down in and washed up in if there was a large sink or a small shower.
Sirius moved on. The next room he entered was the kitchen. He went straight for the refrigerator and much to his surprise found it running, cold, and most importantly, fully stocked. He grabbed the first thing he saw in front of him and practically inhaled it.
"Roast chicken," he whispered. "Glorious, wonderful, tasty, roast chicken."
Sirius turned round as he chewed on a large chunk of chicken breast. He froze when he saw what was on the kitchen table. A automatic pistol, a saucepot half filled with something clear, a bottle of beer with a third of the beer left, a chopping board with a knife on it with something white smeared on the board, and a white piece of cloth. Sirius reached for a towel on the nearby counter and wiped his hands clean after putting the wand away. He reached for the pistol and discovered it to be a Walther 9mm. He dropped the clip into his left hand and noted that the clip was full. He pulled back the slide just a bit to find a bullet inside the chamber. He thumped the clip home back inside the gun and slipped it into the waistband of the tattered pants he was wearing, the same pair of pants he was wearing that day… Sirius shook his violently. He didn't want to think of that day. He turned his attention to the chopping and rolled his finger into the white smear and then licked it, spitting it out in a hurry. Cocaine. Drugs were one of the problems the Wizarding World was dealing with thanks to the damned DE's. Some of them had discovered that drugs were a great way to raise large amounts of money for Voldemort. Sirius wondered if Voldemort knew and didn't care as long as the DE's who were producing and dealing gave him the money, or didn't know where the money was coming from. Sirius left the kitchen intending to return later and get some more of that great chicken in the refrigerator. He found two more guns in the dining room and two large duffels. He opened one of them and blinked at the sight of the stacks of pound notes in it. Sirius smiled as he now had the funds to move around. He left it there for the moment. The other bag contained what Sirius believed was at least fifty keys or more. He sure as hell wasn't touching that!
Sirius moved into the living room to find a few more guns on the coffee table among the pizza boxes. He opened a few of the pizza boxes and found one half eaten. He poked at one of the slices of plain cheese and found it still edible, it hadn't turned hard yet. Sirius took a slice and ate it as he looked around the living room. He finished the slice and headed upstairs to the first floor (In England the ground floor is the ground floor, and the what we know as the second floor here is the first floor there) and started peeking into the rooms until he came to the master. It was bigger than the other rooms and Sirius knew somebody had been living in here from the sight of clothes all over. Sirius began checking the clothes and found a pair of black jeans, black boots, a thick grey sweatshirt proclaiming his allegiance to a soccer club, and a leather jacket. Sirius went into the bathroom and found everything he would need in the shower, to shave, and cut his hair. Sirius smiled as he discovered that the hot water was working. Sirius turned to the mirror over the sink and studied his current look. He decided to cut down the beard to a nice neat look. He decided on a short crew cut that would change his hairstyle to throw people off. He cracked his knuckles and went to work on his appearance. By the time he was done two hours later Sirius Black not only felt like a new man he certainly looked like a new man. He had cleaned up well and took his time in soaking in a hot bath. He had wondered if he would ever get warm again and now he was. After having his bath and getting dressed in the clothes he found Sirius went back down to the kitchen and spent the next hour feasting on the contents of the refrigerator, taking his time as to not upset the stomach. Then he examined the guns he found and decided he liked the Walther the best. He went looking through the house for more clips that would fit that particular gun and found them in one of the smaller bedrooms along with a small of the back holster and at least ten boxes of fifty rounds each for the gun. He struck gold when he found keys to a car. He smiled as he hefted them. That would solve his transportation problem. He kept rummaging around and eventually found a highway map of England. Once he found out where he was he knew he had some serious driving ahead of him. The money he found would pay for everything. Sirius went out to the garage and got excited at the sight of the white Fiat Spider. Things were looking up.
About the time Sirius Black was looking over the Fiat Spider he discovered in the garage, Harry Potter was getting on the train with Hermione. They decided on a private compartment, as they needed to discuss a battle plan for the New Year in the event something happened, and where Harry Potter was concerned, things did happen.
"I'm really hoping for a quiet year Hermione," Harry said as he took his seat after putting the picnic basket in the overhead rack.
Harry had gone across the street to a deli and gotten enough food for the both of them on the way up to Hogwarts, as Harry didn't like the snack cart that was on the Hogwarts Express. Hermione had approved his idea and between the both of them they had chosen a good lunch as they knew that it would be at least a seven hour trip from King's Cross leaving at eleven in the morning and reaching Hogwarts around six in the evening and then sitting down to the feast about seven.
Hermione laughed at that. "Something always happens when you are around, Harry."
"Oh don't say that!" Harry exclaimed.
Hermione laughed at Harry and he mock glared at her. Eventually he smiled too as he couldn't keep up the glare anymore.
"Harry, I've given a lot of thought to what I've learned about you this past summer," Hermione began once they relaxed. "You are a very unique individual, for starters. You have the kind of skills that wizards and witches have never seen due to the fact that they have lives their lives within the Wizarding World for so long and that gives you a big advantage over the DE's by a country mile. All they know is how to cast spells. You can do more than that, using your ninja skills and your magic skills combined gives you a clear advantage over them. You opened my eyes to the danger they pose. I don't agree with Professor Dumbledore's wanting to give them second chances, as they seem to take advantage of that. Draco Malfoy is a strong case in point. He seems to get away with a lot and Snape seems to brush off his bullying and so does Dumbledore. But if someone defends themselves against Malfoy, that person ends up in trouble and all Malfoy seems to get is a slap on the wrist. Same thing for the DE's."
Right on cue the door opened to reveal a sneering Draco Malfoy.
He stood there for a moment and then smiled a nasty smile. "Hello Potty, miss mudblood. Getting cozy now are we? Enjoy it while you can!"
"I've been meaning to ask you Malfoy, where you learned to sneer like that. Is it something your daddy and dear old Snape taught you how to do? They must have because it seems it's all they are capable of doing very well. That and posturing like the idiots they are. There's a name for people like you, and we call you a poser," Harry said.
Malfoy glared at Harry. "Just what the hell do you mean by that?"
Hermione smiled. "A poser is a dim witted idiot like you who has to try and make himself look good and better than everybody else."
Malfoy ground his teeth in anger. He took a step forward and suddenly found Harry in his path. He looked up into Harry's face and saw something in Harry's eyes that scared him. He backed up and in a show of fake bravado snarled at Harry.
"You'll get yours someday, just like your mummy and daddy," he snarled and walked off.
Harry heaved a sigh and relaxed. He smiled as he closed the door to his compartment and sat down in his seat by the window opposite Hermione.
"He makes me laugh," Harry smiled. "He's just a little boy with a big mouth on him. One day he will learn not to flap it to the wrong person."
Hermione smiled. "I seriously doubt it, Harry. His kind will never learn."
Harry nodded. "You're right about that one Hermione. It's nearly two thirty. Ready for lunch? I'm famished."
Harry stood up to fetch the picnic basket and brought it down. He pulled up the fold away table and the both of them spread out the food and began to enjoy lunch. Harry enjoyed the fully loaded pastrami he had gotten while Hermione had gotten the roast beef one she had gotten. Harry had gotten a container of potato salad while Hermione had the tuna salad. They shared a bag of sour cream and onion flavored crisps (potato ships to us) along with cold bottles of cream soda. Harry cleared away lunch as Hermione excused herself to use the restroom. She settled down with a book and before long she had dozed off. Harry pulled out her Gryffindor robe and covered her up with it and picked up the book she had been reading from the floor. He looked at the cover, 'How To Create Your Own Defensive Style' and nodded. Hermione was definitely on the right track with this. He marked her place and sat down to read it. He didn't get too far into it, only three chapters when suddenly the train jerked and started slowing down. Hermione came awake instantly. The first clue of potential trouble was the window suddenly frosting over and the lights in the compartment going dim. The train had completely stopped and Harry went battle ready. It grew colder by the minute and Harry began to see his breath in the air in front of his face. Hermione huddled under her robe, as it got colder. She was looking miserable. Somewhere in the distance there was a high pitched scream. Harry wondered who it was. He turned his attention to the door as the glass insert had frozen over. The door started to open and Harry raised his wand, prepared to do battle to protect Hermione. He was not prepared for what he saw.
Opening the door was a skeletal hand. Harry blew out his breath and set his feet in a combat stance ready to fight. The door continued to open to reveal something black. Then whoever or whatever it was stepped into the doorway and Harry gaped in horror as the freezing cold struck him hard. The being was a living, breathing, skeleton wrapped up in a black hooded cloak. Harry felt cold, icy cold start to spread over him. He reached for his Potter wand in an effort to try and defend himself. He moved to stand in front of a sobbing Hermione in an effort to protect her.
[Bastard], he snarled, [you will not harm my woman]!
He managed to fire off the Expelliarmus spell and it passed through the skeleton harmlessly. Harry dropped the Potter wand and reached for a short sword and tried to bring it up as the compartment faded away around him and a memory floated up from deep within his mind. He blinked, and suddenly he was in a strange living room where everything seemed to be bigger than he was. He turned as someone bent over him to pick it up and he looked up into his mother's face. Suddenly the front door exploded inward and Harry heard his father's voice.
"It's him, Lily! Get Harry to safety! I'll hold him off!" James Potter yelled.
Harry saw himself moving up the stairs rapidly and into the nursery, finding himself inside a crib. He reached up to try and catch his mother's wand as it moved in a circle around his crib a few times as she chanted something in a strange language. She turned to face the bedroom door when she was done just as the bedroom door was flung open. Standing inside the doorway was a monster with red eyes and a snake like face. The creature pointed his wand at his mother.
"Stand aside woman!" the creature shouted.
"No! Not Harry! Take me instead!" she shouted back at him.
"Stand aside, you silly girl! Lord Voldemort will not be denied!" he called out.
"Not Harry, please! Kill me instead!" she cried.
The monster drew himself up to his full height. "Very well then."
There was a flash of green light and he watched his mother drop to the floor the moment it touched her. The monster stepped forward as baby Harry began to cry from the fear he was feeling. He watched the monster kick his mother to the side and then smile in a very evil way as he pointed his wand at Harry.
"Nighty night, little boy," the monster sneered at him as the green light reached out for him and Harry cringed.
Before he could react, the green light suddenly reversed direction and hit the surprised monster and everything exploded in a brilliant flash of light and thunder. Harry screamed and fell backwards.
"Harry?" a voice called out to him.
Harry rolled onto his back as a pair of hands pushed him. He knocked them away and managed to get to his knees in front of Hermione and he growled loudly.
[If you value your life monster, you will leave], Harry snarled.
Harry felt other hands grab him and he managed to focus on the face above him. It belonged to an older man and he was pressing something into his hands.
"It's chocolate, Harry. Eat it and it will help you. I swear it," the man said.
Harry put a small square in his mouth and let it melt. Suddenly his mind began to clear and he was starting to feel better. He turned to Hermione and gathered her into his arms. He fed her little bits of the chocolate until she settled down. The man was gone but he left a bar of chocolate behind. Harry closed and locked the door to the compartment and then returned to Hermione. He continued to hold her until they arrived at the Hogsmeade train station.
Harry carried Hermione off the train and to a nearby carriage. All around him were shell shocked kids. They looked like they had been through severe trauma and Harry knew that it would take more than bars of chocolate to help them. The first years were clinging to each other and Harry didn't know what to do. For the first time in his life his training had failed him and that tore at him. He had no idea what to say to them. He got Hermione into a carriage and turned to help a few other girls up and inside. Ginny Weasley was the last to board.
"I'll be there in a bit. I need to help people," Harry said and she nodded.
Harry went to the next one and started helping girls board them. At the moment it didn't matter which house they were in, Harry got them inside a carriage and set it off towards the castle. Eventually the last girl was gone and Harry started to the castle. He nodded to a few of the guys he knew and they nodded back. This was not a good start to a new year at Hogwarts. Someone was responsible for this and they would be made to pay. Harry slowly cracked his neck as he walked with a group of guys from the four houses. As they approached the gates to Hogwarts, a pair of the dementors turned to them and looked them over. One of the little first year boys broke ranks and charged at the dementor and kicked him hard in the left shinbone.
"That's for scaring my sister, you big meanie!" the little boy yelled.
There were cheers and laughter at the little boy's reaction to the sight of the dementor. The dementor moved backwards and they continued their trek to the castle. Harry was sure that would get around before long. He hoped it would. It would cheer up everybody for a little while. The castle was well lit up but Harry didn't notice he was too busy with his thoughts. Someone had gone too far overboard with the dementors coming to Hogwarts and he wanted to find that person and strangle them. He hoped that Fudge hadn't been that stupid. He was sure he would find out. The teachers and staff were at the doors as the group Harry was with trudged in and they were handing out something else. Harry took a square of something white and nibbled on it. He felt something warm spreading through him and felt much better. As he entered the great hall he noted that Dumbledore wasn't there at the high table. Snape was talking to the members of his house off to the side. Draco Malfoy looked extremely pale. He was sure the dementors had left an impression on the brat. Harry turned his attention to Professor Flitwick.
"Harry? Are you okay?" the man asked as he stood on top of the house table.
Harry leaned forward and whispered into the man's right ear. "I will be. Right now my only desire is to wrap my hands around the throat of the idiot who allowed them to board the train and scare the hell out of people."
"You and me both, Mr. Potter. I will talk to you later," he said and turned to the next Ravenclaw behind Harry.
Someone was going to pay, and pay dearly.
Sirius Black had been on the road for a few hours. The map he discovered in the house he left behind had been a big help as he was able to avoid the major roads and stick to the smaller ones. He kept the radio going to find out if there was anything being said about him and there had been very little information. He hadn't been stopped yet for anything and that was good. The chatterbox next to him had been unexpected, as the girl had latched onto him at his last stop for gas, or petrol. She had been there at the station and the moment he pulled in she had approached him and told him she needed to get up the road a ways to some small town he had never heard of. She started yakking away the moment they left the station and had barely slowed down. Sirius wondered if she was capable of taking a breath in between words she was talking so fast. He had eventually tuned her out a half hour into the drive. He was extremely relieved when she hopped out of the car and walked off when he stopped at the place she needed to be. He stopped in at a pub and nobody looked at him twice. He ate a big steak and downed a few cold pints of beer before getting back on the road once more. As he had flown down the highway he worked on a plan for getting to Hogwarts and then inside Hogwarts to get that damn rat. That rat had been the cause of all of his problems. He recalled the day that he had gone after Peter Pettigrew, the man responsible for everything, from his betrayal of the Potters to his masterful escape down a storm drain in his rat form after blowing up the street and killing thirteen people by casting a spell into the gas main underneath the street. The Aurors had arrived and took him into custody almost immediately. The ones he considered his friends had immediately turned on him and made up lies about him during the investigation and he had been shipped off to Azkaban without any kind of a trial. Sirius had spent the twelve, thirteen years trapped in there planning all kinds of revenge against them. He even formed a list of the people he planned on suing once he was able to clear his name. Sirius yawned as he glanced at the dashboard clock. It was coming up on ten and he needed to stop for the night someplace. He saw a sign for a motel up ahead and pulled into the parking slot in front of the office. He checked in and rented a room for the night. He noticed a cluster of shops across the street and knew he needed to get a few more things for his trip up into London. He went to the last room at the far end of the complex and settled in for the night. So far so good.
Sirius started his day with a hearty breakfast in the coffee shop across the street. Nobody was staring at him and that was a good thing. Sirius knew that if he acted like a normal person he would be fine. He ambled over to the shops after he paid his bill and went into the first one he came to. It took him nearly an hour to get what he needed. He carried everything back to his room and packed everything into a duffel before checking out and getting back onto the road. The sooner he got back to London and started his search for the rat named Peter Pettigrew and his godson Harry Potter the better. Sirius had the radio going in the car as he raced down the road to find out if there was anything said about him and there was, but the details were very sketchy and of course they gave out his description, which made him glad he had altered his looks. Cutting his hair down to a crew cut had been the first thing to be done. Trimming his beard down had been the second and now he looked a lot better and much younger. Adding a pair of gold hoops to his ears completed the effect and now he looked completely different. Getting a new ID had been easy. He conjured up a new driver's license for himself in the name of Mr. Bill Padfoot. Sirius knew there were numerous people in England with unusual names and that would pass muster if a cop stopped him. Sirius was concentrating on his driving that he nearly missed the sign by the side of the road. The next sign confirmed what he knew. He was close to a small magical village. There were a few of them scattered about and most of them weren't on any kind of map. Sirius recognized the name from a previous case he had worked in years back. He would be able to do a few things from there, namely get in touch with a certain goblin that liked rare scotch. He was sure the old goblin would be spitting up his morning glass of scotch when he got his letter. Sirius laughed out loud as he turned down the road that would take him to the village. It was too bad he wouldn't see the old goblin's reaction to his letter.
Ragnock was pursuing his morning's mail as the letter popped out of his letterbox getting his attention. He barely glanced at the return address. He put it down, clearly puzzled over the strange return address. Paddy's Cove, indeed. The only Paddy he knew was… wait a minute. Paddy? As in Padfoot? As in Lord Sirius Black? Ragnock automatically reached for his glass of precious scotch as he looked at the return address on the letter. The script looked very familiar as he studied it. He drained his glass of scotch in one go as he realized who owned the script. He opened the letter and read it slowly, and sure enough, the special code he knew that belonged to one Lord Sirius Orion Black was there. So it was true. Sirius Black had escaped Azkaban prison. Definitely a kick in the arse to the wizards who ran the place. Ragnock laughed out loud as he considered the possibilities the escape would have on people. They would want protections, and that meant more gold galleons for their coffers. He grinned as he set down the letter and poured himself another glass of his favorite scotch. He would send Sirius a letter with a special portkey to a special place away from the bank. Then he could truthfully say that Sirius Black hadn't been there. He immediately wrote a reply to the letter and sent it off with a portkey secured within the letter. Time was now crucial. There were things that needed to be done to ensure the Black Estate was kept away from the greedy minister Fudge. He wrote the letter to Fudge informing him of the steps taken to secure the Black Vaults knowing the man wouldn't be able to do a thing until Black was captured once more. This should ruin his day if it hadn't been already.
Dumbledore's morning had gone straight to hell. After the disastrous train ride, thank Merlin nobody died, he had presided over a Welcoming Feast that was more like a wake after a funeral. Nobody said much of anything, very little had been eaten, the sorting hat skipped over his yearly song and sorted the new students and in the process did what he could to reassure the new first years, which Dumbledore had appreciated. The morning edition of the Daily Prophet had destroyed his hopes for trying to keep this thing low key and the howlers started coming. After the first few dozen Dumbledore had them redirected to a room deep under the castle where they would explode and not be heard. The staff had been busy in making sure all of the students affected would be okay. The worst cases had been Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and several others. Filius had informed him that Harry had stayed in his bed that morning instead of coming out. Dumbledore cursed soundly, dashing his plans in using that event to lay a heavy emotional trip on Harry to try and break him to his fist. What nobody knew was that Harry had gone down into his trunk and was actively pursuing the books in the library in his trunk for answers to the dementors and how best to defend himself from them. He eventually found his answers in the late afternoon after taking a break from his research. Hermione had joined him even though she still looked shaky.
"Harry," she called to him softly.
Harry looked up from the book he was looking at. "Right here."
He had the feeling that Hermione wanted to know.
"I know what happened that night," Harry said after a few minutes. "I was able to recall the memory after that damned creature broke it loose. He got into my head and swept aside all of my mental defenses like they were nothing."
Hermione gasped as she stood there. She moved to Harry and he stared off into space as he told her everything. Hermione shared her darkest memory and that was being attacked by a group of her girl cousins at a family reunion. Harry wrapped his arms around her and held her as she cried on his shoulder from the pain of that memory she had carried within her for years. Harry knew that Dumbledore would be demanding to see or hear about what he saw and heard when the dementor came after him. There was no way he would share the memory with Dumbledore after he held back so much information from him. Dumbledore would not get one shred of information from him.
As he had expected, Dumbledore sent him a summons to his office after dinner. Harry dived into an empty classroom to shore up his mental defenses and to make sure all of his defenses were ready. He entered Dumbledore's office to find the old man sitting behind his desk in his usual throne like chair.
"Ah, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore began in his gentle, kind, and loving grandfatherly act and Harry knew what it was, an attempt to gain a toehold into Harry.
Harry recognized the act that Dumbledore was about to play on him.
"How are you this evening sir?" Harry asked.
Dumbledore's face took on a somber look. "Not too well, my boy. It has been a trying day dealing with this horrifying incident. Thankfully nobody died. Only a few serious injuries. I had warned then what would happen if nearly all of the dementors were released from Azkaban. A few would have been sufficient. But no, I was greatly overruled by the Wizengamot in their great panic."
"But that's how panic works, sir. It makes people get excited and they tend to lose control over reason, and that leads to making wrong decisions," Harry said.
"Well said, Harry. That is exactly what happened in this case," Dumbledore sipped his tea.
"I've tried to understand all of this," Harry sighed, "and I can't. Just what made him do it? What made him sell out my parents? He was my Dad's best friend! Dad's parents took him in when he walked away from his own family. He stood with my Dad as his best man. He was there the night I was born. Dad made him my godfather. I don't understand what made him turn on my parents."
Dumbledore shook his head in sorrow. "I am at a loss to say what the reason is, Harry, because nobody but him knows. We can guess at the reason why, but will never know the true reason. Black is the only one who can tell us if he so chooses to."
Harry nodded. "Arthur Weasley and I had a conversation this morning."
"I see," Dumbledore said.
"He made me promise to not go rushing off after him as much as I want to and avenge my parents," Harry said.
"A wise decision," Dumbledore said. "Now I must ask what it was you saw that affected you so much when you came face to face with the dementor on the train."
Harry had been right. Dumbledore was fishing for information.
Harry needed to decide if he should tell Dumbledore what happened. Harry decided he was going to keep it to himself. He frowned as if he was trying to recall it all. Finally he looked up at Dumbledore and sighed.
"All I can remember was that is was so cold… I was freezing… sad… miserable… couldn't move… couldn't defend myself," and here Harry got very emotional, reaching for the tissues on Dumbledore's desk.
The incredible thing was that Dumbledore bought the act Harry played for him. He came around the desk and patted Harry on the shoulders as Harry gave in fully to his grief. Dumbledore handed him a few more tissues and then decided to dismiss him. He knew he wasn't going to get anything out of Harry. Harry nodded to Dumbledore as he made his way out of the office. Harry furthered the illusion by going straight to his bed and secluding himself inside of it for the rest of the night. Dumbledore's spy inside Ravenclaw house would later inform him of that. Harry would appear at breakfast the next morning looking like he has a rough night. Dumbledore decided to hold off starting classes for a few days to let the students settle down.
Harry went looking for the new DADA instructor after breakfast. He found him inside the defense classroom. The man was sitting in a chair at one of the desks gazing at the skeletal remains of a flying creature above him. Harry moved up to the left of him and dropped a picture on the desk in front of him. He looked down at the photo. It was a group picture of James, Lily, Sirius, Peter, and Remus. James and Sirius were making goofy faces at the camera, Lily was laughing, Peter was standing off to the side looking on, and Remus had a book under his right arm and he was smiling. Remus picked up the picture and smiled for a moment. Then his eyes took on a far away look.
"Your parents were the absolute best friends anybody could ever have," he began. "They were well liked by many in school at the time."
"Dad's journal stated that he didn't care about you furry problem, that he was able to look past it and see the person underneath," Harry said.
Remus nodded. "And so can you."
"People are people so why should it be? You and I can get along just fine. So you're different. Big deal. If people can't understand you the way my parent's did then they can sod off," Harry stated.
Remus nodded to that. "You are definitely a Potter, Harry. The Potters always stood up for what was right, and they were known to be honorable people. Have a seat. Let me tell you a few stories. I can and will tell you more."
Harry did sit down and for the next few hours Remus Lupin told Harry story after story of his parents. Harry listened and filed away each story to examine later. He looked into Remus' eyes and tried to get into his mind but it was closed tighter than a bank vault. Remus reacted to that.
"So you have that ability Harry," he said as Hermione arrived.
They watched her close the door to the classroom and walk over to them.
"You can't break into the thoughts of a werewolf, Harry. It's impossible. They have a natural defense about their minds that is very advanced," Hermione said as she sat down and looked at them.
"And you must be Miss Hermione Granger, the brightest witch ever to attend Hogwarts. Well, second best. Lily Potter has the top spot in that department," Remus nodded to her. "Harry and I were just about to discuss why he tried to break into my mind. I hope he has a very good reason for it."
"I do," Harry stated. "I needed to make sure that Dumbledore and Snape won't be able to pick apart your mind for any kind of information on me."
"There's something you don't want them finding out," Remus said.
"More than just a few things," Harry said. "I need to know if I can trust you."
"You can Harry," Remus said.
"On you honor as a Marauder," Harry stated.
Remus looked at him in surprise. "So you know about that."
"I've got the Marauder Pranking Journal," Harry grinned.
"If you have that then you have two other books," Remus leaned forward.
Harry grinned as he apparated around the room a few times and then came back and turned himself into a cat and then his falcon form.
"Oh very well done, Harry!" Remus declared. "Your parents would have been so thrilled by this!"
Hermione smiled and did the same thing Harry had done and Remus liked her owl form.
"Both of you are amazing," Remus said, turning to Harry. "But I get the feeling there's something else."
Harry nodded and then told Remus his life story. Remus didn't react until Harry was done with his tale.
"A wizard ninja. Quite an accomplishment, Harry. You would fare well against the DE's if they ever rose again," Remus said.
"I've been in combat with a few of them," Harry said and then told him of the fights he had been in, including the crazed werewolves and showed off the silver swords.
Remus looked very serious. "Are you sure about this? Dumbledore should know about this, Harry."
"No he shouldn't," Harry stated, and then told him everything he knew about Dumbledore's activities against the House of Potter.
Remus was furious. No, he was beyond furious. He stood up and Harry pushed him back down.
"Leave him be for now. The goblins are in the process of putting together an airtight case against him. When the time is right I intend to attack him," Harry said.
"Can I be there? I can go see the goblins if it would help," Remus said.
Harry nodded. "Do it. Anything you can give them is good. The main reason I came looking for you was to find out how I can defend myself against the dementors."
"I found a spell, Harry. Expecto Patronum," Hermione said proudly.
Remus laughed. "Very good Hermione. Take twenty five points."
For the next hour Harry and Hermione worked on the spell and by the end of the lesson Harry was able to produce a solid silver colored mist. Hermione managed a bit of one.
"Keep working at it. Once you get it to work right you can teach it to the others. I'm not comfortable with those things being here either," Remus said. "It's getting late so off with you. Don't want you out after curfew."
Harry nodded. "Thanks Remus. Welcome back to Hogwarts."
He waved to them as they left the classroom.
Sirius Black got the letter from Ragnock the next morning after visiting the tiny Gringotts office. He took it back to his motel room and opened it. He smiled as a large Gringotts medallion fell out of the parchment. He read the letter and then started moving round the room gathering his things and getting packed up. He checked out and headed off down the road. He wanted people to say that he had left the town before attempting to portkey to Gringotts London or wherever it was going to take him. Sirius found a side road after an hour's drive and went down it to find an abandoned cabin by the small lake. He parked the car inside the shed and made sure to wipe away all of his fingerprints. He went to the clearing where he left his bags and grabbed hold of them with his left hand and the medallion in his right.
"Marauders Rise!" he declared and the portkey grabbed hold of him.
The moment he arrived at where it was he was supposed to go he dropped the bags and the medallion and went for his gun as he saw warrior goblins.
"Now, now, that isn't the way to greet an old friend," a familiar voice said.
Sirius watched the neatly dressed Ragnock step out into the light and smiled at him. Sirius began to relax a bit.
"Come now, I have opened that bottle of scotch you gave me fourteen years ago for my birthday. We should drink it together to celebrate this occasion," Ragnock smiled wide, showing off his razor sharp pointy teeth.
"What occasion would that be sir?" Sirius asked.
Ragnock threw back his head and laughed. "You're pulling off the greatest Marauder prank ever! Escaping Azkaban prison!"
Sirius smiled as he put the gun away back in the holster. He shook hands with the laughing goblins as they greeted him to safety. Sirius followed Ragnock to the nearby conference room and took a seat after accepting a glass of the aged scotch. They toasted his success and Sirius sighed, as he tasted that smooth scotch.
"Been way too long," Sirius said.
Ragnock nodded his agreement. "Indeed it has. Now there are things we need to discuss, plans to be made, and pranks to pull."
Sirius smiled and leaned forward. "We're gonna have fun now."
Ragnock laughed. "Serious fun."
And the conversations began.
To Be Continued