It was all Sirius could do not to punch Moony back. "What the hell was that for, mate?"

"What are you doing here? You confessed to killing them all, so why are you roaming free when my three best friends are dead?" Remus screamed.

"This, Remus, was what I was going to tell you before Harry woke up." Hestia said, having moved Harry to a safer location well away from the hormonal men.

"What do you mean, Hestia?" Remus' eyes were flashing gold, a sure sign that Moony felt his pack was being threatened.

"You've been living under a rock for over a year. I'm surprised you have as much information as you do. Yesterday afternoon, Sirius Black was tried under Veritaserum and declared innocent of all charges, except being an unregistered animagus. He'll be clear of that Monday when he marches down to the Ministry and get's himself registered. Won't he, Sirius?" Hestia said, taking on a no-nonsense tone.

"You… of course you're innocent. It didn't make sense. I couldn't make it make sense in my mind. That you, of all people, would be a Death Eater in disguise. So, it was Pete, then? He turned them over?" Remus said, looking as though a weight had been lifted from his shoulders and his eyes relaxing back to green.

"They are out looking for him now," Hestia said coming back into the room. "It's all over the papers. Don't either of you read? That's not the important thing. We need to make sure Harry is safe from all threats."

"Well then, perhaps I should leave," Remus said, putting the pan in the sink, letting it wash itself.

"Remus Lupin, get your furry arse back here! You are not a threat! That award goes to that Rat Bastard for taking his parents away! You and I have lost enough, so get back here and help me raise Prongs' boy, because Merlin knows I will screw him up if I do this alone." Sirius yelled, the beginnings of tears in his eyes.

"That's true," Hestia said with a shrug. "It's us and McGonagall. Maybe the Weasley's if they can afford the time. But, and this is the most important part, we cannot, under any circumstances, trust Albus Dumbledore."

"Are you going to explain that sentence?" Remus asked dangerously, unwilling to even hear others speak ill of the man who saved him from a truly terrible fate.

"Dumbledore tried to leave Harry with Petunia and that fat tub of lard she calls a husband." Hestia deadpanned. "Then, he was content to let Sirius stay in prison without trial for a crime he didn't commit. Finally, worst of all, he hired Severus Snape to replace Slughorn as Potions professor and is unwilling to allow him to be thrown in prison, despite his prominent dark mark. Those good enough reasons, Lupin?"

"Those… there's no way…" Remus stuttered as his hero turned human.

"Growing up and realizing that adults make mistakes sucks, doesn't it?" Hestia asked.

"It really, truly does." Remus agreed, eyes tired and the fight sapping out of him.

"Dumbledore was just going to leave me there?" Sirius asked, realizing the extent of the situation for the first time.

"Professor McGonagall was the one who fought for your freedom, not him. She shamed Bones and Crouch into giving you a trial…" Hestia trailed off, lost in thought. "Enough of the maudlin. We need to head back to the Burrow and pick up what's left of Harry's things. Professor McGonagall only brought the basics over. Besides, it'll do Harry some good to be exposed to kids his own age."


Chaos reigned as usual in the Burrow. Bill was away at his first year of Hogwarts, leaving six children at home. Charlie was nursing a chicken back to health, the twins were trying to steal Molly's wand when she wasn't looking, Ron was playing in his pen with Harry, and Ginny was upstairs having a nap. The only child left unaccounted for was Percy.

The adults were in the kitchen having a quick bite and keeping an eye on the youngest of the children running around. So, when Percy came running in with his newly acquired pet rat, it took a few moments before Sirius and Remus understood exactly what that rat represented. Percy began crying when Sirius incarcerated his pet rat in tight binds. He became inconsolable when Auror Moody came and took said rat away. It was hours later, and Remus was finally explaining to a confused and worried Molly just what had happened that afternoon.

"It was Peter. He's an unregistered animagus and he escaped by turning into his rat form. He must have thought he would be safe here, far away from us and Potter Manor. He was hiding here, as young Percy's new pet. Tomorrow, we would be more than happy to take Percy to Diagon Alley and get him a replacement. One that isn't a grown man in rat form, preferably," Remus rubbed his eyes tiredly.

"Remus, you don't need to do that," Molly said, not wanting to add to the tired man's list of things to do.

"Molly, we just arrested his pet rat in front of him. The least we can do is buy the poor kid a suitable pet," Sirius replied, taking the issue off the table.

"Fine, Sirius, you take the poor dear and get him a new pet tomorrow," She sighed.


All hell broke loose in the Wizengamot. Peter Pettigrew had just named Barty Crouch Jr. a Death Eater while under Veritaserum, making this the tenth accusation. The MLE couldn't sweep it under the rug anymore. After that blunder with Black, they were under scrutiny, every move questioned by the press, the minister, and even by other departments. They really couldn't let this slide anymore.

"Crouch, I'm sorry, but you're benched until further notice." Amelia Bones said, both irritated at the sudden increase in her work load and relieved she wouldn't have to put up with the man for a few weeks.

"You can't do this. These are all lies!" Crouch shouted, trying to win this argument on sheer volume alone.

"Under Veritaserum? Are you saying that all Death Eaters tried under the last three batches of Veritaserum were lying because it was all made improperly? Veritaserum from three different sources have a flaw that allows them to lie about your son? You've lost it, Barty. Time for you to take some leave." Amelia said, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"We got him. He's in holding now." Moody chose that moment to poke his head in. "Let's get this trial underway, Bones."

"You can't do this! Not right now! We are allowed legal counsel!" Crouch screamed, tears in his eyes.

"Black wasn't even allowed a trial because of you! Your son can deal with the same conditions as all the other Death Eaters!" Moody yelled, ushering Bones out and slamming the door shut, locking it with a flick of his wand. "We'll have time to get through this before he gets out of that."


Frank and Alice Longbottom were still on red alert. Just because He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was gone didn't mean his followers weren't around and looking for revenge. Longbottom Manor was as secure as any of the old houses in Wizarding Britain, so when Auror Moody came in late that evening and demanded they take Neville and run for Potter Manor, they did as bid. Alice grabbed a piece of paper off the nearest table and made a quick portkey, willing to pay the fine for misuse of magic.

They arrived just outside of Potter Manor and were greeted by a weary looking Remus.

"Quickly! We just received a Patronus message from Moody. Get inside, it's safest here." He said, rushing them.

"What's happened? What's going on?" Alice demanded.

"We'll tell you, Alice, but first let's put baby Neville up with Harry, shall we?" Hestia said, coming into the hall.

"Hest, what are you doing here, with Sirius? I thought Li- Lily said…" Alice couldn't find it in her to finish the statement, wounds over her lost friend too raw.

"Lily and James are dead," Remus croaked. "We can't-We have to protect what's left of the Order, until we know that you-know-who is gone we need to lay low."

"Lily," Alice said again, tears spilling out of her cheeks. Frank closed his arms around her, trying to comfort her grieving. "It could have-what if it was us? Frank," she cried.

"Hush, now. This isn't the time for 'what ifs.' We are going to take Neville up to the nursery, then we are going to catch you up on what's happened." Hestia stated firmly, taking Neville and heading up the stairs.

"What now? We just wait here until the Ministry does its job?" Sirius scoffed from the steps. "No offence, Longbottoms, but they are useless."

"Just shut up, Pads. You were upstairs with Harry when Mad-eye's Patronus came in. Bellatrix and Crouch Jr. were on their way to torture them. That's why he sent them here." Remus said, stopping the chaos.

"Bella? I always knew she was a crazy bitch, but that's just a new low. Torturing her precious purebloods. How the hell are we to maintain a new order with no half-bloods or muggle-borns if we torture all the purebloods into insanity? Answer that!" Sirius said, trying to hide his anger at being born into such an unfortunate family. They were all a lost cause. Not even Narcissa could be saved now, what having married Malfoy.

"Moody was going to head off Bellatrix with one of the Aurors polyjuiced as Crouch Junior so not raise her suspicions. We'll have to wait here for more news." Remus sighed, preparing for a long night.


Alastor Moody hadn't had much luck in this war. It always seemed as though the Order of the Phoenix was stuck playing catch up. Six days after Minerva McGonagall decided she had enough with Dumbledore's crock, Lady Luck decided to smile on them.

He sat in a chair, awaiting the arrival of Bellatrix LeStrange. That psycho was exactly why Sirius Black had to spend three days in prison. Well, that and McGonagall thought he needed to feel the consequences of his actions. He picked up a nearby book, flipping through it, waiting for the shoe to drop. Finally, he felt the wards shift. Smiling to himself he turned and faced the door.

"Yoo hoo, Longbottoms! Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Bellatrix taunted, then laughed maniacally.

Moody stayed firm in his chair in the study, waiting for the mad witch to come to him. If his calculations were correct, they had about 3 minutes until the Polyjuice wore off and their plan went pear shaped. Hopefully the Auror could get her there in time.

Just as Mad-eye was losing hope, the door crashed open from one of Bellatrix's well placed kicks. He smirked to himself as Bellatrix's face turned in confusion. At that moment 'Barty Crouch Jr.' melted into Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt.

"What? What's going on here? You tricked me?" Bellatrix raged. Moody took her momentary distraction as time to send an Expelliarmus at her. He caught her wand as Kingsley shot her with an Incarcerous. This situation was why he preached Constant Vigilance. One second of distraction and the second most feared Death Eater was his without fuss.


Narcissa Malfoy was a proud woman. She didn't coerce her friends, or have to be anything she wasn't. And neither would her son. Draco was sitting in his highchair, his fingers slightly messy with peas.

That's when she heard the news. Her sister was going to prison. Her whole life had changed and she didn't even hear it from her. Or her husband. Narcissa Malfoy's whole life was shattered and there was nothing she could do about it. Her charming baby would never know his aunt.

Swiftly, she pulled out a quill and ink. The parchment already on the table. Her hand moved quickly over, the curves in her cursive more rushed than normal.

Draco let out a laugh before throwing the peas down onto the floor, clapping his hands as he did so.

With a flick of her wand, she cleaned the mess. A letter wouldn't do for this problem. Only groveling, something she wasn't fond of in the least. "Come on, my son." She whispered pulling him from the chair. Quickly, she put another pair of his clothes, and her traveling cloak. Clearly and articulate, she called for the only home her cousin had called home. "Potter Manor."

Their entrance was met by two open mouths, one glass shattering, a sobbing woman and a crying baby.

"Hello cousin." She smiled, stepping into the house. "My child will not be involved in any Death Eater activities."

"That's what you call a greeting? Thought Druelle taught you better manners." Sirius said, unable to come up with a proper response. Fortunately, it did break the tension a bit, allowing Alice to finally draw breath.

"What Druella taught me is my business. Besides, we all know that Orion taught you better. Really, Siri, keeping pets in the house?" Narcissa said, sniffing in Remus' direction.

"Look, Cissa, if you plan on reforming you had better clean your language up. Remus is a human- a human- and you will not treat him any different. Muggle-borns are just as brilliant as purebloods. Better, actually, in the case of the Carrows- so inbred they make us Blacks look normal. So you will clean your act up. Do you understand?" Sirius said, defending Remus in the hopes of making up for past sins.

"Clearly, cousin." Cissa responded. "Now, where shall I put my Draco?

"Draco? You named that ponce's kid Draco? Of all of the decent constellations, you had to go and pick the Dragon? You did inherit the Black family madness, didn't you?" Sirius scoffed, completely unable to focus on the point.

"Well what did you expect? Orion was out, as was Regulus. Leo would have just been gauche. And most of the other decent ones are taken by decidedly dark wizards." Narcissa defended, cuddling Draco just a bit closer.

Sirius looked as though he were about to respond when Hestia hit him over the head, "Follow me, Mrs. Malfoy. I'll show you to Harry's room. Draco will have to share with Harry and Neville, though."

"Narcissa, please. I'd rather not be reminded of that man." Narcissa insisted, following Hestia out of sight.

"Narcissa is defecting to the light. Why do you suppose that's happened?" Frank postulated while comforting his wife. Alice was slowing calming down, the night wearing her down to numb.

"I should answer that question, don't you think?" Narcissa said from the stairs, returning impossibly quick. At Sirius' questioning look, she added, "I called for Dobby. Just because my husband is a criminal doesn't mean I have to care for the child myself."

"Oh thank Merlin," Sirius breathed a sigh of relief. "Your whole attitude changed too much, too quickly. I don't think I could handle it if you didn't leave you child with a house-elf."

"That's what it takes to reassure you? A house-elf?" Hestia asked, joining the adults. "We should have thought of the house-elf earlier. Aida's got her hands full in the kitchen with you boys. We should get her some help."

"We'll discuss it later, Hest. For now, Cissa is explaining why she is here."Sirius turned to his cousin, seriousness setting in.

"As you know, Bella was arrested tonight," Narcissa started.

"Oh, thank Merlin," Alice sighed, clutching Frank tighter.

"That was uncalled for," Narcissa said, raising an eyebrow at Alice. Before Alice could respond, Sirius cut her off with a wave.

"Alice, I'll handle this part. It's family, you know. Cissa, Trixie-dear was arrested at Longbottom Manor. Alastor Moody barely had time to send them here. She and Crouch Jr. were on their way to kill Neville. Everyone thinks Harry is gone. Cissa, there was a prophecy and Voldemort was going to kill your son's future classmates before they could kill him." Sirius explained, causing Narcissa to go pale.

"I heard, but I didn't realize. All the inbreeding, its made magical children so rare, so hard to find. I overheard Lucius' friends speaking of it, of course, but I didn't think it possible," Narcissa rambled, her world continuing to crumble around her.

"Yes, it's horrible. Yes, later, after you've explained some things, I will give you a hard time. For now, go about telling us why you are here," Sirius instructed.

"You're growing, Siri. I hadn't expected that. Now, where was I? Oh, yes. Bella's been arrested. What you seem to be unaware of is that Lucius was also arrested. It seems there was a high profile case two days ago and all suspected Death Eaters are being re-tried under Veritaserum. After several dark objects were hidden in our house, he was retried and this time claiming an Imperio didn't work. He's in Azkaban for the foreseeable future. With Bella there now, it's safe for me to turn to you for protection. In light of very recent information, I don't want to chance Draco being caught up in that world. You have to help us, please, Sirius. If not for me, then for another innocent child who shouldn't be punished for his parents mistakes the way you almost were," Narcissa pleaded in beautiful fashion.

"That's a hell of a guilt trip, Cissa. Did you really think that I would set you out on your arse? There are conditions to the House of Black allowing you to take refuge, though. Can you handle them?" Sirius asked, lessons that Orion Black taught him coming back unbidden.

"You will, of course, tell me these conditions before I agree to them. I am not one of your Gryffindors that agree blindly to unknown conditions," Narcissa said, raising her eyebrow in Sirius' direction.

"You know the first, reform yourself- or at least your language- no more insulting others. No 'mudblood,' not 'half-breed,' none of it. Two, all dark object you find get turned over or recorded. All of them. Including that horrid engagement ring Lucy gave you. Finally, you have reconcile with Andromeda. All. By. Yourself." Sirius pulled the trump card.

"Andromeda? You expect me to go to Andromeda?" Narcissa asked, taken aback.

"Not today or tomorrow, but soon. Don't let it wait. The sooner you do this, the better." Sirius said, hugging his cousin. "The three of us are the only ones left."


Gabs: I win! I win!

Kat: We are both right, but only because the American educational system doesn't teach grammar. Prongs' and Prongs's are both correct with the individual possessive! Am I the only one that paid attention in high school!?

Gabs: The American educational system may teach grammar in some places, we just didn't want to learn it so our teachers just let us make it up as we went.

Kat: Well, this is what happens when you graduated with 13 people!

Gabs: Ah, small town America. We still own nothing.

Kat: We're also really happy with the response to our story so far! Leave us a comment! Gabs is a vanity snob.

Gabs: She really is.

xoxo Gabs & Kat