Year Three Shorts Part III:

I walk away from Snape with Professor Lupin after he just saved my neck. He is clearly disappointed in me and it makes me feel really bad. I feel worse about disappointing him than anyone else. We reach his classroom.

"Professor, I —" I start.

"I don't want to hear explanations, Shannon. I have no idea how this map — yes I know it's a map — came to be in your possession. I am, however, astounded that you didn't hand it in. Particularly after what happened the last time a student left something lying around. And I can't let you have it back," he tells me sternly. He sounds like a proper father chastising his child.

"Yes, sir," I tell him, not able to met his eyes. I expected that he would take it away.

"Don't expect me to cover up for you again, Anne. Your parents sacrificed themselves to save your life. And sneaking around the castle at dark is a pretty poor way to repay them!"

"I saw Pettigrew on the map. That's why I left the dorms and —"

"That's not possible," he tells me with a strange face.

"I'm just telling you what I saw," I tell him.

"Go back up to your dormitory and don't take any detours. If you do, I shall know."

"Yes, sir."

I walk out of the room feeling utterly ashamed of myself. I'm glad that I never took Ron's advice and snuck off to Hogsmeade.

* The Girl Who Lived *

It appears it's going to be Slytherin and us in the Quidditch finals this year. Despite their defeat by us, they came back with a vengeance. I've never felt such tension mounting before a Match.

"Don't catch the snitch unless we're more than fifty points up!" Wood keeps telling me.

He's told everyone in Gryffindor to travel with me so the Slytherins can have no chance of hurting me before the match. The rivalry between our two houses has never been tenser.

I wake up and stare out of the window. It's the only thing to do as everyone else is still in bed. I can see an animal prowl across the empty lawn. I see Crookshanks there but he isn't alone. I then see a large black dog come out of the shadows. The dog and Crookshanks slink across the lawn.

When the Gryffindor team goes to the Great Hall for Breakfast, we are met by a thundering applause by our own house as well as Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. The Slytherins just hiss at us and Malfoy looks paler than usual.

Wood makes us all eat a good meal, all though he eats nothing himself.

We all go out onto the grounds to survey the conditions.

"Beautiful," I observe aloud.

"No wind, sun's a bit bright, hard ground. Good, that'll give us a good kick off," Wood observes in bit more detail.

We all watch as the doors to the school open and the entire school comes spilling out of them.

"Locker rooms!" Wood tells us.

After we change, we walk out onto the field and are met by the loudest crowd I've ever heard at a Quidditch match. I can hear the Gryffindor cheers, and I look to the Slytherins and I see the mass of green, silver serpents. The thing that catches my attention most is Snape sitting there on the front row, also in green and smiling grimly. I'm going to wipe the grin right off of his face.

We start the match and I feel sorry for the Chasers of the team, they are being bullied by the beefy Slytherins. It's abuse. I can see Fred chuck his Beater's bat at Flint's head while I pass him.

Keeping my promise to Wood that I wouldn't catch the snitch until Gryffindor was fifty or more points up, and knowing the Malfoy will follow me, I make sure to keep him preoccupied. I see the snitch on Slytherin side and if Malfoy sees it, our game is shot. So I immediately set off the opposite direction and Malfoy follows me. A bludger suddenly nearly takes my ear off and the next one grazes my elbow.

I can see them closing in and at the last second, I propel myself directly up and it sends the Beaters colliding together.

This is easily turning into the dirtiest game I've ever played. With Slytherin, it's not really unexpected.

We are fifty-ten when Katie scores. Malfoy is continuing to keep close to me, as I knew he would. Angelina scores a penalty. After some seriously awesome Beating, Fred knocks the Quaffle out of Warrington's hand and Alicia grabs it and scores. It's now my time. I've just got to get the snitch. I suddenly see it twenty feet above me and I streak towards it. After my Firebolt slows, I turn around to see Malfoy grabbing onto my broomstick. I see the Snitch immediately dive down back towards the field and I follow it. I start the dive so abruptly that Malfoy has no chance of holding on and I start barreling towards the Snitch. I can hear Malfoy's futile attempt to catch me, but there's no way he can. I thrust myself forward and catch the snitch. I pull out of my dive and hold up my arm in victory.

"WE'VE WON THE CUP!" I hear a loud voice say. I can hear the Gryffindors. "Roar, Roar Gryffindor!" The victory in their voices drowns out any noise from the Slytherin side.

I land to feel thud upon thud against me. Wood is crying and latches himself onto me.

A massive wave of red runs its way onto the field. I suddenly feel myself being lifted and I see the rest of the team up here with me. I see Professor McGonagall sobbing, and I see Dumbledore standing in waiting with the silver cup in his hands. I see Ron and Hermione run towards us. Words cannot express what I'm feeling right now.

Wood, who is still sobbing, hands me the cup and together we lift it into the air.

* The Girl Who Lived *

Exam week comes and I manage to get through the Transfiguration and Charms exams without hindrance. The Magical Creatures exam Hagrid set us the easiest exam in having to produce a live flobberworm at the end of class. He's still upset over Buckbeak. After that, Potions goes by rather well. Nothing manages to happen and I manage to produce a Confusing Concoction. The rest of exams go by rather dully, and then Thursday comes: Defense against the dark arts. I'm rather excited for this one. I smile when I see the obstacle course.

I climb out of the Grindylow tank with a smile.

"Excellent, Annie. Full marks," he says with a smile.

When Hermione has her go, she shrieks when she faces her boggart.

"Hermione!" Professor Lupin says, startled. "What's the matter?"
"Professor McGonagall told me that I'd failed everything!" she sobs.

It takes a little while to calm her down. She's been weird all term.

I'm sitting in the Divination classroom, making up things and I turn to leave when Trelawney's voice.

"He will return tonight. He who betrayed his friends whose heart rots with murder shall break free. The Dark Lord will rise again, with his servant's aid, greater and more terrible than he ever was. Tonight…before midnight…the servant will set out to rejoin his master."

Feeling my heart beating in my chest, I climb back down the trapdoor. It seems Ron's mistaken; she might not be a fraud after all.

* The Girl Who Lived *

As we're coming back from witnessing Buckbeak's execution, Scabbers bursts out of Ron's hands after biting him and Ron goes off after him. Just then the giant black dog comes out of the forest. I hear him padding across the ground. Suddenly it hits me: Padfoot. My father and his friends would have learned to become animagi to accompany Professor Lupin when he transformed. It's the only thing that makes sense.

"Black," I whisper.

But the dog just takes hold of one of Ron's legs and pulls him towards the Whomping Willow and through a large gap in the roots.

Crookshanks suddenly bounds forward and touches a spot on the tree with his paw. It freezes immediately.

We slink into it and find that it's a tunnel. "Where do you suppose this goes?" Hermione asks me.

"My guess, shrieking shack. Come on," I tell her.

"Ron, are you okay? Where's the dog?" Hermione immediately asks him.

"He's not a dog. He's an animagus," I say.

"Anne's right. It's a trap!" Ron says from the floor, pointing over our shoulders.

Hermione and I wheel around to see a rather ragged-looking Sirius Black stand before us.

I hold my hands in surrender. "Look, I know, okay? Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs."

"The map, what about the map?" Hermione shrieks in question.

"It was written by my father and his friends," I tell her.

"Clever little thing aren't you?" he croaks.

I can hear 'Scabbers' squeaking in Ron's hold.

Hermione just puts herself in front of me.

"If you're going to kill Shannon, then you'll have to kills us, too." She doesn't sound as brave as she thinks she does.

I push her out of the way. "Listen to me, why has he been going to Ron all this time? He's not after me, he's after him," I say, pointing to the rat in Ron's arms.

"Me? Have you confunded her?" Ron asks Black.

"Not you, Ron. Scabbers!" I shout.

Ron just tightens his hold on the rat that starts squeaking louder.

"In case you haven't forgotten, Anne, he killed your parents," Hermione whispers to me.

"You don't know the whole truth," Black tells her.

I suddenly hear footsteps come through the tunnel. "We're up here!" Hermione shouts desperately.

Lupin comes bursting into the door and looks around at the chaotic scene.

"She's figured it out," Black says to Lupin.

Professor Lupin then looks to me. "I've known since you told me about seeing Pettigrew on the map. Where is he, Sirius?"

Sirius just remains silent and expressionless, a haunting look of guilt crosses his face. No human being could have done what he did and have so much guilt.

"You weren't actually my parents' Secret-Keeper, were you?" I ask him.

"You switched without telling me?" Lupin asks him.

Without his eyes leaving Lupin's face, he nods.

"I don't believe it!" Hermione screams.

"Hermione, listen. Please. I told you about what I overheard, right?"

Hermione's brown eyes gaze around the room frantically. "But the animagus…"

Black and Lupin look at each other. "Hermione, use your head! They all became animagi to accompany Professor Lupin on his monthly excursions!"

"What are you talking about? Ron asks.

"He's a werewolf, Ron. I figured it out the day I saw his full-moon boggart," I tell him with a sigh.

Ron's eyes widen.

"Anne, don't trust him! He's been letting him into the castle. He wants you dead, too!" Ron shouts.

"Really, Ron? I would think that he's had quite the bountiful opportunities to kill me. Black, as well, and neither of them have taken them."

"You're only saying this because they're your parents' friends!" Hermione argues.

"No, I saying this because it's right!" I shout.

"So how'd you know that we were here?" Hermione asks Lupin.

"When I confiscated the map from Annie. I saw you three together but then I saw a fourth."

"No, only three!" Ron cuts across.

"Ron, do you really not know how animagi work?" I ask him. Neither of them knows that I have that capability, but I have a feeling that it's going to be known tonight. "Pettigrew's body was never found. All they found of him was his finger."

"So?"

"He's missing a toe, Ron. If you're an animagus, your animal form will change with any physical difference in your human one," I say, exasperated.

Black suddenly lunges for Ron again and he whimpers when Black's weight is thrown against him bum leg.

"Sirius — no!" Lupin yells. "We've got to explain. There are things even I don't understand. Ron's kept him as a pet. We owe Annie the truth, Sirius."

"You'd better make it quick, Remus. I want to commit the murder I was imprisoned for," Black tells him.

"I've had enough," Ron says as he tries to get up.

Lupin raises his wand towards Ron and I step in front of him.

"You just hold tight to Peter while you listen," he tells him.

My eyes find Black's and he's eyeing Scabbers with the upmost rage.

"The map never lies, Peter's alive," Lupin starts.

"Scabbers can't be Pettigrew…it's just can't be true," Hermione whispers as if she is willing herself to believe it's true.

"We did an animagi class with Professor McGonagall. Animagi are registered with the Ministry. There have only been seven animagi this century."

"It's not true," I tell her.

"I never saw any of their names on the list," Hermione argues.

"Werewolves are harmless to animals," I say, turning to Lupin "That's why they all became animagi? They couldn't abandon you."

"Right. And under their influence, I became less dangerous. This was before the Wolfsbane was invented. I kept asking myself why didn't I let Dumbledore know that Sirius was an animagus, but I was too cowardly. I convinced myself that Sirius was getting into the castle using Dark Arts he learned from Voldemort. In a way, Snape has been right about me all along."

"Snape?" Black asks harshly. "What's Snape got to do with anything?"

"He's teaching here as well."

"Sirius played a trick on him while we were at school, a trick which involved me."

Black snorts. "Serves him right. He was always sneaking around trying to find out what we were up to, hoping he could get us expelled."

"We were in the same year, and didn't like each other very much. He especially disliked James. Jealous, I think of James' talent on the Quidditch field. Sirius told Snape that all he had to do was prod the knot on the tree. If he'd gone in, if James hadn't stopped him, he'd have met a fully-grown werewolf. James risked his life to pull him back. Snape was forbidden to by Dumbledore to tell anybody, from that moment on, he knew what I was…"

"So he thought you were in on the joke?" I ask him.

"That's right," sneers a cold voice from the door.

I immediately spin around and put my hand up, casting out my shield that stopped my Uncle from hitting me and cast it at the door to make it where he can't get any farther into the room.

He walks towards the door, but bounces back away from it.

"What'd you do?" Black asks me.

"There was no way he'd see reason, so I'm going to make him," I whisper.

"Severus —" Lupin starts.

"I told Dumbledore you we're helping an old friend into the castle, and here's the proof."

Lupin shakes his head stubbornly. "Neither one of us would hurt Anne."

"Dumbledore was quite convinced that you were safe, that you were a tame werewolf."

I immediately step in front of Lupin. "Don't speak to him like that!" I spit. "If you think they're going to kill me, wouldn't you think that they would've done so by now? After all, Sirius was in Ron's dorm, not mine. And I've been alone with Professor Lupin multiple times, he's been giving me lessons on how to fight dementors."

"Didn't need them much after that first one," Lupin says.

It's time to put this all to rest.

"He can't get in here, but we can get out," I tell the room.

"Potter!" Snape sneers.

I'm hoping that Scabbers heard me and will try to make a break for it. When I hear an "ouch!" from Ron I know it worked. Scabbers runs towards the door, and like Snape before him, finds himself bounced back.

"That's quite an advanced shield charm," Lupin tells me.

I ignore him as I immediately bend down to pick up the dazed rat by the scruff of his neck.

"Anne, leave him alone!" Ron bellows.

Scabbers squeals and thrashes, but I don't let go. I point my wand towards the rodent and let go as a fat, balding cowardly man appears beside me.

I can see the shock on Snape's face.
Ron looks scandalized.

"Hello, Peter," I tell him, my wand still pointed at his head. "Why would my parents use a cowardly thing like you for their Secret-Keeper?" I ask him.

"I'm to blame," Black says, striding forward. "I persuaded them to change. It was a bluff. I never dreamed that they'd use a weak, talentless thing like him."

"Don't listen to him," Pettigrew squeaks. "He killed James and Lily and now he's come here to kill me! You've got to help me, Remus!"

"No one is going to kill you until we get a few things sorted out," Lupin tells him.

"Sorted out? He's here to kill me. I've been waiting for this for twelve years."

"You knew that Sirius was going to break out of prison when no one has done it before?" Lupin asks him.

"He's got Dark Powers that we could only dream of. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named taught him a few tricks."
Black roars with laughter. "Voldemort —"I see Pettigrew and Snape flinch"— teach me tricks?"

"What? Scared to hear your old master's name?" Sirius asks him, apparently have forgotten about Snape's presence. "It's not me you've been hiding from for twelve years, but Voldemort's old supporters."

"Surely — surely you don't believe him, Remus," Pettigrew says desperately.

"Why would an innocent man want to spend twelve years as a rat? Which, by the way, is a very appropriate animal for you," I say.

"Excellent point, Annie," Lupin tells me.

"You're just a coward who enjoys the company of people who could look after you. Some Gryffindor you are. McGonagall said that my father, Sirius and Professor Lupin were much more intelligent than you," I tell him.

When Black and Lupin decide it's time to kill Pettigrew, he begins to plead with each of us with no optimal result.

"Annie —" Pettigrew starts when he crawls up to me.

"Don't call me that," I spit at him. I'm starting to understand that this is what my father and his friends called me, 'Annie.'

"Just like when she was a baby," I hear Sirius comment.

"So much like Lily, you are, but with your father's nose."

"How dare you speak to her? How dare you speak of James and Lily in front of her?" Black asks savagely.

"You sold James and Lily to Voldemort didn't you?"

Pettigrew starts to cry. "I didn't mean to!"

"Stop crying!" I shout. "You don't deserve to feel guilt."

"Shall we do this together?" Black asks Lupin and they both point their wands towards Pettigrew who cowers.

"Wait!" I tell them.

"Annie —" Lupin starts.

"We all know what he's done," I say, looking around the room for any opposition, "but if he dies, the truth dies with him. We'll take him up to the castle. After that, the dementors can have him."

"Annie, you once told me that forgetting is never a punishment," Lupin argues.

"Not for people who have already sold their soul," I say bitterly. "Let's go," I withdraw the shield charm and Snape appears to have listened to us. He doesn't do anything as we all exit the tunnel. Sirius walks a bit away from the group and looks wistfully at Hogwarts. It feels a bit weird.

"You know what turning Pettigrew in means?" Sirius asks me.

"That you're free," I tell him with a small smile.

"Yes, but also, I don't know if anyone's told you, but I'm your godfather."

"Oh. Yes, I knew that," I tell him.

"Well, your parents appointed me your guardian. If anything happened to them…" he trails off.

Is he saying what I think he's saying?

"What? Come and live with you?" I ask him. I might not know the man very well but anything's better than the Dursleys.

"I'll understand if you want to stay at you aunt and uncles…"
"Anne!" I hear Hermione shout. Sirius and I turn around to see the clouds part.

It's a full moon.

"He hasn't taken the potion," Snape says.

"Run," Sirius tells us. "Run, now!"

Pettigrew runs forward to Lupin's dropped wand but I quickly disarm him, but the coward turns into a rat. He slips away into the night. I hate to admit but there's no way we're going to be able to find him out here.
"Come, Potter!" Snape sneers.

We all go to the hospital wing to have Madame Pomfrey look at our minor cuts and bruises and I can hear Snape, Dumbledore and Fudge in the hallway.

"Well, this is grave news. Grave indeed. The Daily Prophet is going to have a field day. We had Black cornered and he slipped away."

I just smile as Madam Pomfrey leads me to the hospital wing.

* The Girl Who Lived *

I really want to go and check on Professor Lupin. Now that his secret is out, it's all everyone is talking about. It's so painful to hear everyone judge him for something that was out of his control. He is no doubt pining away alone in his office, so that's where I go. On my way there, I happen to see Snape. I just glare at him as I pass.

He just couldn't handle being wrong about Sirius so he took it out on poor Professor Lupin.

I walk into Professor Lupin's office to find him packing his trunk. No. This cannot happen. There is seriously something wrong with the Defense Against The Dark Arts position. It's got to be cursed. No teacher has lasted more than a year. The Professor might not have been here long, but I definitely grew attached to him. He's one of the few people that can understand what it is that I'm going through. My parents were his friends. He thought Sirius had betrayed them, but he was cleared when Scabbers was found to be Peter Pettigrew. A coward-turned-spy. He somehow managed to get away from all of us last night, but it will be the last time he does so. I might have fought Professor Lupin a little last night and have the bandages to prove it, but I'm fine and I don't think any less of him. He feels guilty, no doubt, but he shouldn't.

"You've been sacked?" I ask him, in complete shock.

"You shouldn't be here," Professor Lupin tells me without looking at me. He is doing this on purpose. Whether or not he's ashamed or he's actually doing something that requires his back to be facing me is about a 50/50 shot. I just want to yell, "Look at me" at him, but I don't. I can't force this.

That small phrase is what causes the dam to break. I feel the tears sting my eyes and fall onto my cheek. "I shouldn't be here, I shouldn't be there. I just wish that just once someone could please tell me where I should be instead of where I shouldn't."

This finally causes him to turn around. I can tell that he does so purely on autopilot. He wouldn't have turned around otherwise, I don't think.

He takes a deep breath and steadies himself. "I'm so sorry, Annie. More than you can imagine."

I embarrassingly wipe my eyes on the cuff of my uniform shirt.

"There's no reason for you to be sorry. You can't be for something that was out of your control."

"That's what infuriates me. I cannot control this beast inside of me."

"Do you think I don't know how you feel? I might not have your particular affliction, but my life has been based upon the simple fact that I was born! We all carry around tremendous demons inside of us."

"Mine just happened to almost kill you."

"You did noting of the sort," I reassure him.

"Would you stop that?" he asks me.

"Stop what? Reassuring you? Not until you finally come to the conclusion that none of this was your fault. We are who we are, scars and all."

"To answer your earlier question: I resigned."

That extinguishes the philosophical part in me and brings rise to the student who's watching her favorite teacher leave. "Resigned? Why?"

"Everyone knows and shortly, so will their parents and they wouldn't want a werewolf teaching their children. What happened must never happen again."

"But you're an excellent teacher. The best. Can't Dumbledore —" I retort back quickly. This isn't fair. He hasn't done anything wrong. Snape is the one who blabbed.

"Dumbledore has already risked enough for me. He was the reason was able to attend this school in the first place. I'm used to it, Annie." He continues to go about collecting his things.

"Now, if there is anything I can be proud of, it is watching you this year. Here, since I am no longer you're teacher, I feel no guilt whatsoever about giving this back to you." He hands me back the Marauder's Map.

"Besides the obvious, why do you look so miserable?" he asks me.

"Despite everything that happened, Pettigrew escaped."

"Yes, but you uncovered the truth and saved an innocent man from a terrible fate. But, now, we must say goodbye. It's been a pleasure teaching you, Annie."

"Why do you call me 'Annie'?" I ask him as the both of us limp towards the castle.

"It's what James called you. Lily was a bit cross about it, always saying that your name was Shannon. Sirius called you Bright Eyes."

"Bright Eyes?" I ask.

"Your eyes were a bit big for your head when you were a baby."

He and I just both laugh.

I just run and hug him. "Thank you, Moony."

"There's no need for this. I feel sure we'll meet again."

I just smile and follow his exit from his office. I stand on the stone steps that lead to his classroom and I watch his slow and limp exit. He goes without a second look back and I wish him all the luck in the world.

I can't help but think that Pettigrew is out there somewhere, nursing Voldemort back to health, but when I speak to Dumbledore about Trelawney's prediction he tells me that I might be glad that I saved Pettigrew's life, that he now owes me a debt.

We manage to win the House Cup once again and our table is bustling with celebration. It almost makes me forget that I'm going back to the Dursleys.

On the train, a very small owl is flying beside the train and I let him in. He zooms around the room and Hedwig hoots indignantly at the tiny creature.

It's a letter from Sirius.

Anne,

I hope this letter finds you before you reach your aunt and uncle. I don't know whether they're used to the owl post.

I am in hiding. I won't tell you where, in case this owl falls into the wrong hands. I have some doubt about his reliability, but he is the best I could find, and he did seem eager for the job.

I believe the dementors are still searching for me, but they haven't a hope of finding me here. I am planning to allow some muggles to glimpse me soon, a long way from Hogwarts so the security will be lifted.

It was I who sent the Firebolt. If you ever need me, send word. Your owl will find me.

I'll write again soon. Tell your friend Ron that he can keep this owl, as it's my fault he no longer has a rat.

Sirius.

I look inside the envelope and see another piece of parchment.

I, Sirius Black, Shannon's godfather, do hereby give her permission to visit Hogsmeade on weekends.