Magical Metamorphosis
Chapter 7: Petals, Pettigrew and Patroni
After finishing their final exam, Harry and Hermione returned to the Common Room. Hermione, more relaxed than she had been for months, went on about how interesting the Muggle Studies exam had been, and how fascinating what the questions revealed about the magical understanding of muggles.
They spent some time enjoying being able to finally relax. Suddenly, Ron scrambled into the room, a wild look in his eye. The girls exchanged a concerned glance. "Are you alright?" Harry asked cautiously
"Something weird just happened in my Divination exam," he told them. "Trelawney had some kind of fit. She went all rigid and staring and her voice got loud and raspy. And she said- hang on I wrote it down." He pulled out a piece of parchment with his scrawled handwriting over it. "It will happen tonight. The Dark Lord lies alone and friendless, abandoned by his followers. His servant has been chained these twelve years. Tonight, before midnight, the servant will break free and set out to rejoin his master. The Dark Lord will rise again with his servant's aid, greater and more terrible than ever before. Tonight before midnight the servant will set out to rejoin his master." He shoved it into Harry's hands, looking worried. "And then when I tried to ask her about it she didn't remember it happening!"
Harry wasn't sure what to think about that. Hermione, on the other hand, was giving him a very dubious look. "Really, Ron? We already know she's a fraud. It would be incredibly easy for her to pretend not to remember what she said. She was probably trying to impress you with "the power of Divination" so you wouldn't drop her class. Having three people change to get away from her probably doesn't look very good for her. Although I must say it is in incredibly poor for her to make predictions like that."
Ron was digging his feet in. "You didn't hear her! It wasn't at all like her normal stuff. This was different somehow."
Before Hermione could argue, Hedwig swooped in, dropping a letter between them. They fell silent as they recognised Hagrid's handwriting. Harry shoved Ron's note into her pocket. The appeal had been today. Hagrid had lost. They were, he wrote, going to execute Buckbeak at sundown. And he told them not to go down.
Immediately Harry knew they had to go. She refused to let her friend suffer alone. But without the Cloak it would be impossible to get past the security… Ron and Harry were shocked as Hermione proceeded to sneak to the secret passage and retrieve the Invisibility Cloak for them.
After dinner, they proceeded to sneak away and use the Cloak to reach Hagrid's cabin unseen. Hagrid looked completely hopeless when he let them in. They offered to stay with him for the execution, but he firmly refused. Suddenly Hermione, who had been preparing tea for them, squealed with shock as she found Scabbers hiding in the milk jug. Ron stared in shock before grabbing his squirming pet.
Then Hagrid saw the executioner's group approaching and quickly ushered the out the back. They had barely got away, Ron trying to control his berserk rat, when they heard voices, silence and the swish of the axe. Fighting off shock and tears, they continued back towards the castle. They reached open ground when Crookshanks appeared and Scabbers leapt from Ron's grip. Ron bursts from the cloak to give chase.
Just as he caught it, the group were set upon by a huge black dog. In an effort to protect Harry, Ron was grabbed and dragged into the passage under the Whomping Willow, earning a broken leg as he tried to stop himself.
Harry and Hermione were blocked by the violent Willow for a minute, before Crookshanks showed them a secret knot that froze it, allowing them to give chase. They raced down the passage, which ended in a decrepit room with boarded windows – the Shrieking Shack, they realised, horrified. Carefully, they searched the house until they found Ron, lying on the floor of an upstairs bedroom.
They were in the room before they realised it was a trap and found themselves disarmed by Sirius Black. He looked terrible, gaunt and filthy and mad. He looked over Harry and Hermione, before a strange expression crossed his face. His head tilted and he stepped towards Harry.
"Harry?" he asked and she felt a sense of absurd déjà vu. Fudge had sounded exactly the same. He looked her up and down, looking incredibly confused. If the situation wasn't so serious it would be amusing. "You look different. Your hair's like Lily."
Hearing her parents' betrayer talk about her mum rekindled her anger. She made to move at Black, before Ron and Hermione grabbed her, holding her back.
"If you want to kill Harry, you'll have to kill us, too!" Ron snarled, though his face was bone white from the effort to stand.
Black blinked at him. "Lie down. You will damage that leg even more."
"Did you hear me? You'll have to kill all three of us!" Ron said, though he was leaning heavily on Harry.
Black grinned at that. "There'll only be one murder here tonight."
"Why's that? Didn't care last time, did you? Didn't mind slaughtering all those Muggles to get at Pettigrew… What's the matter, gone soft in Azkaban?" Black's face had returned to that strange expression as he heard her speak. She idly realised her voice, high and feminine thanks to her Sound Altering necklace, must sound odd to someone who thought she was a boy.
"Harry! Be quiet!" Hermione hissed, terrified.
"HE KILLED MY MUM AND DAD!" With a wrench, she broke free and threw herself at Black, who didn't react. She forced aside the wands and punched him hard. There was screaming and yelling and sparks from the wands as she punched him repeatedly. Suddenly Black's hand found her throat.
"No. I've waited too long-" he hissed.
Just as the fingers tightened, Hermione leapt into the fray, kicking Black, while Ron pried the wands from his grasp. She pulled away as Black's grip faltered, and dived for her wand, kicking at Crookshanks to keep him off it. She spun back, pointing her wand as she yelled, "Get out of the way!"
They moved quickly, Hermione grabbing the other wands, Ron crawling to the bed.
"Going to kill me, Harry?" Black panted from where he was sprawled at the base of the wall. Harry approached slowly, wand dead on his heart.
"You killed my parents," she said, standing over him.
"I don't deny it. But if you knew the whole story-"
"The whole story?" she snarled, her rage burning hotter. "You sold them to Voldemort, that's all I need to know!"
"You've got to listen to me. You'll regret it if you don't… you don't understand…" he rasped urgently.
"I understand a lot better than you think," she said, her voice trembling. "You never heard her, did you? My mum… trying to stop Voldemort killing me... and you did that… you did it…"
Before she could react, Crookshanks blurred passed her, curling protectively over Black's heart, refusing to move at Black's weak protest. Harry raised her wand, ready to avenger her parents. It would take just one spell. She trembled, trying to will herself to cast. Footsteps echoes through the floor and Hermione screamed for help. A voice in Harry's head shouted for her to do it, but she still hadn't when the door burst open.
Professor Lupin surged into the room, taking in the scene, before he turned his wand on Harry and disarmed her. Harry stood feeling almost empty. She hadn't been able to do it.
"Where is he, Sirius?" Lupin asked, and she stared from him to Black. Black paused then slowly pointed at Ron.
Lupin stared at Black, murmuring, "But then… why hasn't he shown himself before now? Unless- unless he was the one… unless you switched… without telling me?"
Slowly Black nodded. Before Harry could ask what was happening, Lupin had pulled Black to his feet and embraced him. The silence was broken by Hermione screaming at Lupin for his betrayal. As Lupin tried to interrupt, asked them to let him explain, she shouted, "NO! Harry, don't trust him, he's been helping Black get into the castle, he wants you dead too – you know he's a werewolf!"'
"Not up to your usual standard, Hermione," Lupin said, looking calm though pale. "Only one out of three, I'm afraid. I have not been helping Sirius get into the castle and I certainly don't want Harry dead… But I won't deny that I am a werewolf."
Ron tried to stand, but fell with a whimper. As Lupin made to help him, he gasped, "Get away from me, werewolf!"
Lupin stopped, then turned back to Hermione. "How long have you known?"
"Ages. Since I did Professor Snape's essay." Her eyes darted to Harry. "And I told Harry just after Christmas."
Lupin gave Harry a strange look. "And you still came to learn the Patronus from me. I'm flattered Harry, truly. But Snape will be delighted," he continued, looking back to Hermione. "He set that essay hoping someone would realise what my symptoms meant. Did you check the lunar chart and realise that I was always ill at the full moon? Or did you realise that the Boggart change into the moon when it saw me?"
"Both."
He forced a laugh. "You're the cleverest witch of your age I've ever met, Hermione."
"I'm not. If I'd been a bit cleverer, I'd have told everyone what you are!"
Lupin simply smiled and told them the staff already knew. Then, when they still refused to trust or listen to them, he returned their wands and put his own away. At their questioning he told them he had seen them on the Marauder's Map – which he had helped make, as Moony – and witnessed an extra person join them in Hagrid's hut, to their confusion. Then he asked to see Scabbers. At Ron's question of why his rat was important, Lupin and Black revealed that the rat was an Animagus. Peter Pettigrew.
As they objected that Pettigrew was dead, killed by Black twelve years ago, Black launched for the rat, before Lupin stopped him, telling him to explain, that he owed them – especially Harry – the truth. Hermione pointed out that if Pettigrew was an Animagus he would be registered with the Ministry, which she knew he was not.
Lupin proceeded to tell them the story of how he had become a werewolf as a very young child. How Dumbledore had allowed him to come to Hogwarts anyway, with the Shrieking Shack as a safe location to transform. How his friend – Harry's dad, Black and Pettigrew – had discovered his secret and instead of turning away, had worked to help him. They had become secret, illegal Animagi, to join him while transformed. He also revealed that Snape had gone to school with them, and blamed all of them for Black nearly killing him by sending him to see Lupin transformed.
Before they could say anything else, Snape appeared from beneath the Invisibility Cloak, wand pointed at Lupin. Eye glittering with triumph, Snape revealed that he had seen Lupin on the Map when he went to deliver the Wolfsbane Potion. He refused to listen to them, binding Lupin with painful ropes. When Hermione tried to ask Professor Snape to let them explain, he screamed at her, sounding deranged with his hatred for Black. He sounded horrifically delighted at the idea of presenting Black to the Dementors to suffer the Kiss. He was far beyond reason at this point.
As Snape levitated Lupin and directed them to the door, Harry moved to block it. She wanted answers. Snape glared at her furiously. "Get out of-" he cut off, staring at her as if he had never seen her before. What little colour left in his face drained away.
Harry used the silence to speak. "I don't know how much you heard, Professor, but they told us that Ron's rat is an Animagus. Peter Pettigrew. I know it sounds crazy, but shouldn't we at least check? If they're lying, we can take them to the Dementors. If they're not…"
Snape continued to stare at her. She wasn't sure he was even breathing. After a painfully long amount of time, he spoke in a monotone. "Peter Pettigrew is dead."
"Please Professor," she said. She hated begging her most hated teacher like this, but she needed him on her side. "Just test if it's an Animagus and we'll know the truth."
There was a long moment of silence. It was hard to breathe through the tension. Finally, Snape lowered his wand. "Show me the rat," he said. He turned to look at Ron, and Harry felt relief to no longer have him looking at her like that. Hesitantly, Ron handed the squirming rat to Snape, who held it in an iron grip. He brandished his wand at it, and with a flash of blue white light the rat was suspended, before falling and with another flash began expanding, transforming into a cringing, snivelling man. The man, who must be Pettigrew, glanced around at them all nervously and looking incredibly scared.
Snape stared down at him. "Hello, Pettigrew," he breathed icily.
Pettigrew looked at him fearfully. "S-Severus… please, you have to help me. Sirius has come to try and kill me again!" he shrieked, pointing at Black with his middle finger. Harry noticed that his index finger was missing, and remembered what she overheard. 'The biggest piece of him they could find was a finger.'
"What compelled you to spend the last twelve years as a rat, Pettigrew?" Snape asked, wand not moving an inch. "Black was safely in Azkaban, you would have been hailed as a hero. What were you so scared of?"
Black, who had been glaring with pure loathing at Pettigrew, chose that moment to speak up. "He's been hiding from Voldemort's old supporters. I heard them in Azkaban, Peter… they all think you're dead, or you'd have to answer to them… I've heard them screaming all sorts of things in their sleep. They think the double-crosser double-crossed them. Voldemort went to the Potters' on your information… and Voldemort met his downfall there. And not all Voldemort's supporters ended up in Azkaban, did they? There are plenty out here, biding their time, pretending they've seen the error of their ways… If they ever got wind that you were still alive, Peter -"
Snape turned his head to glare at Black. "Are you saying that you weren't the Secret-Keeper?" he asked coldly. "That you didn't betray them to the Dark Lord?"
Black looked haunted as he spoke. "I persuaded Lily and James to change to Peter at the last moment, persuaded them to use him as Secret-Keeper instead of me. I thought it was the perfect plan…" he said bitterly, "a bluff… Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they'd use a weak, talentless thing like you. Of course, we didn't tell anyone, sure that we had a spy in our midst. And the spy turned out to be you."
Pettigrew sputtered and stammered, "Me, a spy… must be out of your mind… never… don't know how you can say such a thing…" But Harry noticed how pale he looked, and how his eyes kept darting to the doors and windows.
"But," Hermione spoke up, looking between Black and Pettigrew, "it's just your word against his. How do we know who is telling the truth?"
Snape stared at Black for a long moment, before turning back to a quivering Pettigrew and stabbing his wand forward. "Legilimens," Pettigrew collapsed to his knees, eyes darting around at something only he could see. His arms drew protectively around his head. After almost a minute, Snape pulled back slightly. Pettigrew whimpered softly at his feet.
"Black is telling the truth, for once," he said softly. A quick flick of his wand released Lupin from his bonds. Harry stared back and forth, trying to understand what had just happened.
"What- what did you just do to him?" Hermione asked, staring at the trembling form on the floor.
"I used Legilimency to determine the truth, Granger," Snape said harshly, eyes never leaving Pettigrew. "And Pettigrew was lying." Harry stared at her parents' true betrayer.
Lupin, who was behind helped up by Black, noticed the trio's confusion. "It is essentially mind reading," he told them. He and Black turned back to Pettigrew with grim looks.
Putting aside the horrifying revelation that Snape had the power to read minds, Harry asked, "So what are we going to do with him?"
"I'm going to kill him," Black said, a mad glint in his eye. Pettigrew seemed to have recovered from Snape reading his mind and scrambled backwards.
"Severus, please, don't let him kill me!"
Snape's wand continuing to track him. "Still just as pathetic as you were at school, aren't you Pettigrew. Always running to hide behind the biggest bully you can find."
"I'm sorry for everything that happened while we were at school," Pettigrew shrilled. "Please, I was just a child! You can't let him kill me for that!"
"Oh, it wouldn't be for just that. You betrayed L- the Potters, and then sent someone else to Azkaban for twelve years. You spied for the Dark Lord." He flicked his wand, tearing away the sleeve of Pettigrew's shirt and revealing a strange scar on his forearm. The rat Animagus cowered, covering it quickly. "You even have his Mark."
Pettigrew flinched then turned to Lupin. "Remus, my old friend, you don't believe him do you… he tried to kill me."
"Because you betrayed James and Lily," Lupin replied harshly.
Pettigrew fell back before scrambling to Ron. "Ron… haven't I been a good friend… a good pet? You won't let them kill me, Ron, will you… you're on my side aren't you?"
Ron recoiled from him, looking utterly revolted. "I let you sleep in my bed!"
"Kind boy… kind master… you won't let them do it… I was your rat… I was a good pet…" Before Pettigrew could touch Ron, Snape snapped out a jinx, knocking him back. He turned and scrabbled at the hem or Hermione's robes. "Sweet girl… clever girl… you – you won't let them… help me." Hermione pulled away, horrified and Snape knocked Pettigrew away from her, onto his back.
He scrabbled wildly to his knees, eyes falling on Harry. "Harry… Harry… please don't let them do this… I was James' friend…"
"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO HARRY?" Black roared. "HOW DARE YOU FACE HIM? HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT JAMES IN FRONT OF HIM?"
"Harry, Harry, James wouldn't have wanted me killed… James would have understood, Harry… he would have shown me mercy…"
Black and Lupin strode across the room together, grabbing his shoulders and throwing him away from Harry.
"May I, Remus?" Black asked in casual tone.
"Of course," Lupin replied, passing over his own wand.
"Anything to say for yourself, traitor?" Black asked, wand raised.
"Sirius, Sirius, what could I have done? The Dark Lord… you have no idea… he has weapons you can't imagine… I was scared, Sirius, I was never brave like you and Remus and James. I never meant it to happen… He Who Must Not Be Named force me-"
Sparks shot from Black's wand, making Pettigrew squeal in terror. "DON'T LIE! YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE LILY AND JAMES DIED! YOU WERE HIS SPY!"
"He- he was taking over everywhere! What was there to be gained by refusing him?"
"What was to be gained by fighting the most evil wizard who has ever existed? Only innocent lives, Peter!"
"You don't understand! He would have killed me, Sirius!"
"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED! DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!"
Lupin spoke in a quiet, dangerous voice. "You should have realised. If Voldemort didn't kill you, we would. Goodbye, Peter."
As Black drew back his wand, a voice called, "Wait."
Black froze, turning to glare at Snape. "Why?" he hissed.
Snape had a terrible smile on his face as he moved forward. "Because I want to do it too."
Black's eyes bored into Snape. "Why?"
"You know why."
Harry stared, feeling very confused by the conversation. Ron and Hermione looked just as lost, while Lupin looked rather shocked. Black stared at Snape for a long moment, before nodding shortly. Snape and Black raised their wands as one.
"NO!" Harry yelled, darting between them and Pettigrew. "You can't kill him. You can't." Her breathing felt ragged as she stared down the two grown wizards.
Black staggered, while Snape's eyes glittered with malice at her. "Move, Potter," he hissed venomously.
"Harry," Black snarled, "this piece of vermin is the reason you have no parents. This cringing bit of filth would have seen you die, too, without turning a hair. You heard him. His own stinking skin meant more to him than your whole family."
"I know," Harry gasped. "We'll take him up to the castle. We'll hand him over to the Dementors. He can go to Azkaban… just don't kill him."
Pettigrew flung his arms around her knees. "Harry! You – thank you – it's more than I deserve – thank you –"
"Get off me," she spat, kicking him away from her. "I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it because I don't want them to become killers because of you."
Black exchanged a look with Lupin, before lowering his wand. Snape's eye burned into her, his wand not wavering. She met his gaze, defiantly. "He's not worth it." After a pause, his wand slowly dropped.
"You're the only person who has the right to decice, Harry. But think…" Black urged, "think what he did…"
"He can go to Azkaban," she said stubbornly "If anyone deserves that place, he does…"
"Very well," Lupin said, reclaiming his wand from Black. "Stand aside, Harry." When she hesitated, he added, "I'm going to tie him up. That's all I swear."
With a flick of his wand, he had Pettigrew firmly bound and gagged.
"But if you transform, Peter," Black growled as he crouched over him, "we will kill you. You agree, Harry?" Harry looked down at him and nodded her agreement.
Then Snape turned to Ron, conjuring bandages and splint to strap his leg. Sirius suggested two people be chained to Pettigrew to make sure he couldn't escape. Lupin and Ron volunteered, and were quickly manacled to each of his arms.
Once that was taken care of, the strange group proceeded down to the tunnel back to Hogwarts. Lupin, Pettigrew and Ron went first, with Snape directly behind, wand half raised in case Pettigrew tried anything. Sirius followed behind, with Harry and Hermione trailing.
As they attempted to manoeuvre the manacled trio into the passage, Hermione spoke up tentatively. "Er – Mr Black – Sirius?"
Black turned to her, looking startled at being address in that way. "If you don't mind me asking, how did you know Pettigrew was here? And how did you get out of Azkaban?"
Reaching into his robes, he drew out a crumpled piece of paper. He smoothed it out to reveal a photograph, torn from the Daily Prophet. Harry blinked at the waving figure of the Weasley family from their trip to Egypt over the previous summer. Black told them how he recognised Peter sitting on Ron's shoulder in the photo. Hermione noted that it could have been any rat but Black shook his head, indicating the missing toe, which Pettigrew had cut off. Then, he told them how between his Animagus form and knowledge of his innocence, he had kept enough of his sanity and magic to slip out, once he knew Pettigrew was at Hogwarts with Harry.
They walked in silence for a short while, before Sirius glanced back to Harry. He tentatively checked if she knew he was her godfather, and offered, when his name was cleared, to take her in. She agreed, immediately and enthusiastically, asking when she could move in.
After a few beats of silence, Sirius looked back at Harry again, with a curious expression. "If it's alright for me to ask… what's happening with…" He gestured to her hair and uniform. "All this? Did you lose a bet?"
Harry took a deep breath, as her stomach flopped with worry. 'I hope he doesn't change his mind…' Pushing away that depressing thought, she explained, "No, I didn't lose a bet. I- I'm transgender. I'm actually a girl." As Sirius blinked at her in confusion, she hurriedly added. "I mean, I have a boy's body right now, but Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall are helping me find ways to fix it." She stopped herself, realising she was babbling. When the silence stretched, she added in a small voice, "I hope that's okay…"
Sirius stopped and turned fully, to see Harry withdrawing, shoulders hunched, arms protectively around her stomach. "Hey," he said, kneeling down in front of her. He reached out and gently grasped her hands. "Of course it's okay. All I care about is making sure you're happy. You're my godso– my goddaughter. It's my job."
Her breath caught and she gave him a trembling smile. As he smiled gently back at her, she felt tears form in the corner of her eyes. Her hands were still trapped in his and she couldn't wipe her eyes. She ducked her head, trying to hide her face as she steadied her breathing. Sirius released one of her hands and gently raised her chin. Feeling incredibly vulnerable, she met his gaze, before he pulled her into a firm hug, with a murmured, "C'mere." He patted her hair gently and she clung to him, trembling slightly.
Once her breathing had steadied, she pulled back, wiping her eyes. Sirius ushered her ahead, to where Hermione stood waiting a short distance away. She had clearly slipped passed them at some point, and then been torn between following the rest of the group and remaining with them. They hurried to catch up to the others, where Snape cast a disparaging look over his shoulder.
"Do try to keep up, Black," Snape drawled. "We are doing this for your benefit after all."
Sirius narrowed his eyes at Snape. "We can't all slip down the tunnel so fast, Snape. We don't have enough grease in our hair."
Snape stiffened. "I would expect such poor gratitude from you, Black. You always were a boorish fool."
Harry heard a longsuffering sigh echo back from where Lupin was walking. She watched as the two of them sniped at each as they continued down the tunnel.
After carefully exiting the tunnel, the strange group travelled across the darkened grounds. The castle was drawing nearer, when a cloud suddenly shifted, and the party was illuminated by the moon. Lupin went rigid, his limbs beginning to tremble. Sirius and Snape froze, horrified. Then they surged forward, Sirius pushing Harry and Hermione back. Lupin's body was warping, stretching horribly, as hair sprouted all over his face and body.
Snape's wand flashed out, severing the chain that bound Lupin to Pettigrew and Ron. As the transformation finished, Sirius blurred into his Animagus form and dove at the werewolf, biting its arm and dragging it away from them. As the canines fought, a clash of teeth and claws, Snape stopped, staring transfixed.
Then Hermione yelled as Pettigrew dove for Lupin's fallen wand. There were two bangs; Ron, already unsteady was knocked unconscious and Crookshanks was sent flying. Finally, Snape came brought his wand around, disarming the rat Animagus, but before he could cast anything else, Pettigrew transformed, vanishing into the grass. As Snape turned back to the werewolf, it gave a howl and fled into the forest.
Harry called to Sirius, that Pettigrew had escaped, and the huge dog immediately pounded away in search of the rat. Harry and Hermione rushed to check on Ron, who was thankfully alive. Striding over to them, Snape flicked his wand over Ron's form.
"He will live," he told them, returning to scanning the forest.
"We'd still better get him up to the castle," Harry said.
Snape nodded, "Yes, let-" He was interrupted by the loud yelping sounds of a dog in pain.
"Sirius," Harry whispered, before bolting towards the lake, where the sounds were echoing from. Hermione was a moment behind her.
"Potter, you idiot child, get back here! Granger!"
They arrived to see Sirius transform back to a man, curling up and moaning. And then, they saw the swarm of Dementors gliding towards them over the lake. Desperately, they attempted the Patronus, to protect Sirius and themselves, but all they could do was silvery mist. As the Dementors overcame their failing Patroni, the nearest ones lowered their hoods, revealing disgusting, horrific faces. A pair of strong, clammy hands grabbed hold of her neck, turned her face up.
Suddenly, a burst of silver light knocked the Dementor away from her. She fell gasping to the ground and then looked up. A silver doe was circling them, and Snape was there, determinedly directing the Patronus to hold foul hoard away.
But even with his protection, the Dementors were only held at bay. Already, she could see him faltering under the strain, feel the chill returning. As a hundred soul sucking beasts pressed in against them, the doe began to flicker.
As she felt herself fading, her mother's screams growing louder once more, another blindingly bright silver form charged across the lake. The Dementors, unable to withstand the assault, scattered, abandoning the feast. Harry used the last of her strength to raise her head, peering desperately to where the new Patronus was returning. For a moment, she glimpsed a figure reaching out to greet it. 'They looked like… but that was impossible…' Unable to keep her eyes open any longer, she fell in to blackness.
Harry awoke, feeling rather groggy. She heard noise and listened. It was the sound of raised voices, from very nearby. "-dare you question my integrity!"
"Your tale is beyond preposterous! I saw Black laughing over the destroyed street! I heard him confess! You can't just waltz in with a story about a man supposedly back from the dead to undo that!"
"I was not the sole witness, Minister. Lupin, Potter, Granger and Weasley were all present and can confirm what I am telling you!"
"So I'm supposed to believe the word of a werewolf and three children?"
"I would be trivial to prove truthfulness with Veritaserum!"
"Unless they've been bewitched! Black could easily have warped all of your minds with his Dark Magic!"
"Dark Magic does not work like that, you incompetent buffoon!"
"How do I know you weren't helping Black the entire time? You served You-Know-Who as well!"
"Be careful with such accusations, Minister. I was cleared of charges after the war. You wouldn't want the public to think the Ministry could have failed to find justice in those trials. And with the Dementors running wild, attacking students and a staff member of Hogwarts… it wouldn't look good for the Ministry."
As Fudge began sputtering, Harry opened her eyes and glanced around the dark Hospital Wing. She saw Ron asleep nearby and Hermione watching her from the next bed with a worried expression. Madam Pomfrey approached them with an incredibly large block of chocolate which she began breaking up.
Harry sat up, grabbing her wand and glasses. "I need to see the Headmaster."
The matron paused, taking in Harry's defiant stance. "Is this about Professor Snape's version of events? He insists Black is innocent, but the Minister intends to have Black Kissed immediately."
"WHAT?"
Harry and Hermione leapt out of bed. Before they could move more than a few steps, the door opened as Cornelius Fudge and Snape entered.
Fudge was giving her a concerned look. "Harry, Harry, what's this. You should be in bed – has he had any chocolate?"
She pushed aside her annoyance at being called he. "Minister, listen! Sirius Black's innocent! Peter Pettigrew faked his own death! WE saw him tonight! You can't let the Dementors do that thing to Sirius, he's-"
"Harry, Hary, you're very confused, you've been through a dreadful ordeal, lie back down, now, we've got everything under control…" Fudge said, shaking his head patronisingly.
"YOU HAVEN'T! YOU'VE GOT THE WRONG MAN!"
"Minister, listen, please," Hermione said beseechingly. "I saw him, too. It was Ron's rat, he's an Animagus, Pettigrew, I mean…" She trailed off as Fudge just looked at her condescendingly.
"Quite clearly bewitched. They will have to be monitored carefully yes…"
Snape gave him a look filled with disgust. "Why would Black bother to bewitch them? He had them at his mercy. He could have killed them at any time!"
Fudge waved the question off, as if it were a trivial concern. "The man is insane. I can't comprehend the way his deranged mind works!"
"SIRIUS ISN'T INSANE! WE'RE NOT BEWITCHED!"
Madam Pomfrey, quite fed up with them all, ordered the Minister and Potions Professor out. Before anyone could move, Professor Dumbledore entered. With a quick apology, he asked to speak to Harry and Hermione, alone. After a short debate she shot him a look promising dire retribution if her patients' care suffered and stormed into her office. Fudge checked his watch, then left to meet the Dementors.
Once he was gone, Dumbledore looked to Snape. "Dear me, Severus. Wouldn't it be a shame if some of the teachers hadn't heard about the Minister's decision, and attempted to impede the Dementors from entering the school? That was the last decision they had been informed off, after all." Snape narrowed his eyes at the Headmaster before nodding and striding away with a swirl of his robes.
As Dumbledore turned to them, Harry and Hermione tried to explain what they had seen. The Headmaster stopped them, telling them their testimony would do no good. Even with Snape's testimony, they had no evidence. Fudge was refusing to budge.
"I fear he feels it would not reflect well of the Ministry. Thus, he is doing what is easy, rather than what is right."
"He'd rather an innocent man lose his soul than look bad!" Harry exclaimed, beyond outraged. Hermione was gaping in horror beside her. Dumbledore looked incredibly tired as he nodded sadly.
"I do not have the power to overrule the Minister for Magic. What we need is more time," he told them, looking to Hermione.
Hermione's brow furrowed. "But- OH!" Whatever realisation Hermione had received was clearly what Dumbledore was waiting for. His voice turned low and urgent as he told them the exact room Sirius was in and then gave cryptic advice. They were told not to be seen, that they could have two lives and that three turns would do it. Harry was incredibly confused.
Her confusion only became greater as Hermione leapt into action, pulling her close, looping the chain of a small hourglass around their necks and turning it three times. Suddenly, with a feeling like being pulled backwards, she found herself standing in the Entrance Hall with Hermione, who immediately dragged her into a nearby cupboard. Once in there, her studious friend quickly and quietly explained to her the function of a Time Turner, and how she had been granted one for her expanded class timetable. After a short discussion, they realised what Dumbledore wanted them to do – save Buckbeak and ride him to save Sirius.
With that tentative plan in mind, they snuck after their past selves, desperate to remain unseen. They reached the safety forest and crept around to Hagrid's where they heard themselves talking. Harry couldn't keep a small smile from her face as she heard voice, sounding wonderfully feminine. 'I need to thank Professor Flitwick for my necklace again.'
Harry resisted the urge to simply grab Pettigrew now, heeding Hermione's words of caution about time travel. Once their past selves left and the execution party had arrived and seen Buckbeak, Harry slipped out from hiding. She bowed to the hippogriff and then quickly urged him into the safety of the forest, Hermione desperately joining her. They barely made it in time.
Once the party returned inside, Harry and Hermione carefully moved around the edge of the forest to watch the Whomping Willow. They watched as their past selves chased Sirius and Ron, as Lupin followed a few minutes later, then Snape. The two settled in to wait until they could act to save Sirius.
After a short while, Hermione looked at Harry hesitantly. "Harry, there's something I don't understand… why didn't the Dementors get Sirius? I remember them coming, and Snape came to protect us, but I could feel it… it wasn't enough. I think I passed out… there were so many of them…"
Harry explained how, as Snape's Patronus had begun to fail, another Patronus had saved them, from the other side of the lake.
"But who conjured it?" Hermione asked. "Did you see what they looked like? Was it one of the teachers?"
Harry shook her head. "No. She wasn't a teacher."
"But it must have been a really powerful witch, to drive all those Dementors away… If the Patronus was shining so brightly, didn't it light her up? Couldn't you see–?"
"I saw her. But… maybe I imagined it… I wasn't thinking straight… I passed out right afterwards…"
"Who did you think it was?"
"I think… I think it was my mum." She knew without even looking that Hermione was giving her a concerned look.
"Harry, you mum's – well – dead."
"I know," she answered quietly.
They fell back into silence, watching and waiting.
Finally, over an hour later, they saw their past selves emerge and begin moving towards the castle. Harry burned to intervene, to stop Pettigrew somehow, but there was nothing they could do. Then, realising the danger they would be in when Lupin rushed to the forest, they dashed back to Hagrid's now empty hut.
Once she felt Lupin had passed, Harry stepped outside. She wanted, needed to see who cast the Patronus. If there was even a chance it was her mum… She dashed to hide in the bushes by the lake, staying low so she wouldn't be seen. Across the lake her past self failed to repel the Dementors, Snape's own Patronus faltered under the onslaught. She watched, waiting to see who cast the Patronus, they had to act soon.
Then, she was struck with a bolt of understanding. 'I didn't see my mum… I saw myself!' She burst from hiding. "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" A huge, silver creature erupted from her wand, so bright she could barely look at it. It seemed almost dog-like, as it charged across the waters, biting and tearing at the hoard of Dementors as they fled from the sudden onslaught.
Finally, the Dementors were gone, and the Patronus stalked back to her. It wasn't a dog. It was a tiger. Even through its silvery glow she could make out the pattern of stripes across its ethereal fur. Even as it approached with the dangerous grace of a predator, she didn't feel threatened in the slightest. It slowly blinked at her, before rubbing its cheek against her hand. She felt a surge of warmth and… and love.
Then it suddenly vanished. She blinked, slightly disoriented, before a sweeping beam of light from the other shore startled her, and she dove back into the bushes. Moments later, a furious Hermione dashed to him, dragging Buckbeak along. Snape's wandlight searched the bushes and for seconds longer, before turning away. Harry quickly and quietly explained what happened, as Hermione listened with mouth open.
"Did anyone see you?"
"Yes, I saw myself, but I thought it was my mum! It's OK! Although…" she bit her lip worriedly. "Snape may have as well. But at least he's on our side this time."
Hermione looked worried by that revelation. "Oh, I hope he doesn't tell anyone. We could get in so much trouble for misusing my Time Turner."
Harry couldn't keep the smirk off her face. "We just saved a hippogriff from execution and are about to do the same for Sirius, I think those are what we'd be in real trouble for."
Hermione shot her a glare, though it lacked any real heat. Then her expression became thoughtful. "That Patronus you cast – it drove away all those Dementors! That's very advanced magic…"
"I knew I could do it this time because I'd already done it." And," she looked away, feeling bashful, "it also felt really good that I mistook myself for my mum, y'know?" Hermione gave her a warm smile.
They watched as Snape gathered their past selves, as well as Sirius onto floating stretches, before taking them and Ron, back to the castle. Once they saw the Ministry's executioner hurry passed to fetch the Dementors, they sprang into action. They mounted Buckbeak and flew swiftly through the air, finding the right window and opening it. Sirius looked at them with shock and wonder, before joining them. Buckbeak carried them to the nearby tower, where Harry and Hermione quickly dismounted. After a quick offering of heartfelt thanks, Sirius turned Buckbeak away and vanished into the sky.
Harry and Hermione then rushed back to the Hospital Wing, hiding from first Fudge and then Peeves. They barely made it in time. Once Dumbledore locked them back inside the Hospital Wing, they returned to their beds, just as Madam Pomfrey came out of her office, insisting on them eating their fill of chocolate.
The Matron raised an eyebrow at the expression on Harry's face, which was torn between pride and nervousness. "I don't want to know," she told them, with a stern look. "But you are not to leave this Wing without my permission, do you understand?" Harry and Hermione exchanged startled glances before nodding hurriedly.
Harry had honestly lost track of how much chocolate she had eaten before she heard raised voices once more. They grew louder as the speakers approached. Madam Pomfrey shot the door a glare with a mix of frustration and resignation.
"He had no wand he couldn't have simply vanished! You must have done something to let him out, Snape!"
"I don't appreciate such unfounded accusations, Minister," Snape snarled back. "I was with you or Professor Dumbledore for the entire time Black was in custody."
"That is true, Cornelius," Dumbledore said mildly. "Severus left the Hospital Wing with me."
"We'll see about that!" blustered Fudge, as the doors to the Hospital Wing rattled, before the lock clicked and they opened. Fudge strode in, red with anger, followed by an annoyed looking Snape and a mildly amused Dumbledore.
"What is the meaning of this?" Madam Pomfrey demanded. Fudge waved her off dismissively.
"Harry," Fudge said, looking to where Harry sat on the bed, mouth covered in chocolate. "Tell me, my boy, did you see if Snape left the Hospital Wing before Professor Dumbledore was finished talking to you."
Harry scowled at him. She was tempted to tell him she was a girl right now, just so he would stop calling her 'my boy', but pushed aside the thought. She looked to where Snape was watching her, a strange look glimmering in his eyes.
Turning back to Fudge, she felt the lie slip out easily, 'He stayed the whole time, Minister."
"Are you sure? He couldn't have slipped out and come back?"
Harry stared at him incredulously. 'How stupid does he actually think I am?' she wondered. "We didn't talk for much longer than two minutes, Minister," she said, unable to keep an undertone of scorn from her voice.
Fudge went even redder, while Dumbledore smiled happily. "There, you see Cornelius, Severus had nothing to do with Black's escape."
"Well… he must have used some sort of Dark Magic. Probably the same type he used to escape Azkaban in the first place." A sudden look of horror crossed his face. "What if he can Apparate through wards without a wand!?"
"Now, now, there's no need to jump to conclusions, Cornelius. I certainly doubt Black can Appratate through the wards of Hogwarts. Even Voldemort-" Fudge flinched violently "-couldn't manage that, after all. We will find out how he did it, I'm sure. Now, I trust the Dementors will be removed from the school now?"
Fudge deflated slightly. "Yes, they'll have to go. Never dreamed they'd attempt to administer the Kiss on an innocent boy… completely out of control… No, I'll have them packed off back to Azkaban tonight. Perhaps we should have dragons at the school entrance…"
"Hagrid would like that," Dumbledore said mildly, as he escorted the Minister, who was muttering under his breath about the press, out of the Wing.
Madam Pomfrey stared pointedly at Snape, who stared right back. Finally, she threw up her arms and strode back to her office, saying only, "Lock the door on your way out!"
Harry exchanged a nervous glance with Hermione as Snape turned to her, eyes glittering menacingly. After a long, tense silence, he spoke. "I, of course, have no idea how Black escaped. I certainly don't remember seeing the person on the other side of the lake, who cast the Patronus. A person who's Patronus is identical to Lily Evans."
"Who is Lily Evans?" Harry asked. A quick glanced showed Hermione was as confused as she was.
A small sneer appeared as Snape said, "Evans was your mother's maiden name, Potter." As she gaped slightly, he gazed down at her impassively. "I will keep your secret. Ensure you keep mine." With that, he spun and left the Hospital Wing. The lock clicked loudly once the door closed.
Sighing with relief, Harry and Hermione relaxed in their bed. So of course that was when Ron awoke, confused and asking for explanations.
The trio were released by noon the next day. They spent their afternoon enjoying the leisure of exams being completed and no longer worrying about a supposed mass murderer. Their relaxation was only ruined when Hagrid informed them that Professor Lupin had resigned and was packing to leave. Harry immediately left to see him.
She found his office almost completely packed, the office stripped bare. Lupin reassured her that he was not being blamed for Sirius' escape, as Dumbledore had protected him, so he was not leaving because of that.
"Then why?!" Harry asked desperately.
Lupin gave her a sad, tired look. "Harry, look what happened. In a moment of utter foolishness, I forgot to take my potion and I put all of you in grave danger. I could have killed you, or bitten you. If that happened, I would never be able to forgive myself. That must never happen again."
"You're the best Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher we've ever had! Don't go!"
Lupin simply shook his head and continued packing. "From what the Headmaster told me this morning, you saved a lots of lives last night, Harry. If I'm proud of anything, it's how much you've learned. Tell me about your Patronus."
Harry told him about how she had cast and he laughed warmly. "Yes, Lily's Patronus was originally a tiger. She was always immensely talented in Charms and learnt to cast it in our Fifth Year."
Realising that she had managed to learn the Patronus Charm two years before her mum, Harry felt incredibly proud. Then something in Lupin's wording stuck her. "Was originally?"
Lupin nodded. "Your Patronus can change throughout your life. It can happen as you naturally grow and develop, you find that it changes. Or significant events can suddenly cause the shift. Lily's changed… I believe it may have been their wedding day. That is most likely what changed hers."
"What did it become?" Harry asked, incredibly curious.
"When you love someone, it can cause your Patronus to match theirs," Lupin told Harry. "Jame's was a stag – which incidentally matched his Animagus form, Prongs – so your Lily's became a doe."
Harry paused at that. 'So why does Snape have the same Patronus as my mum?' She hesitated, unsure if it was a good idea to ask Lupin about that. Before she decided, he finished his packing and passed over her Invisibility Cloak and the Marauder's Map.
They were interrupted by the arrival of Professor Dumbledore, who informed Lupin that his carriage was waiting. With a goodbye and a final smile, Lupin left. Harry dropped into the seat at the desk, feeling wretched.
Dumbledore spoke to her gently, reminding her that if not for her actions, Sirius would have suffered a terrible fate. Something in his wording reminded her of something. She looked away in thought then remembered Ron frantically telling her something yesterday. Slipping her hand into her pocket, she drew out the note he had given her. Madam Pomfrey had been kind enough to cast a Cleaning Charm on them before they left.
"Umm, Professor? Yesterday Ron told us that Professor Trelawney had a… a sort of fit during his exam."
"Oh my," Dumbledore said, looking rather unworried by the news. "Perhaps I should send Poppy to see her."
"Er, well… apparently her voice went all raspy when she said this," she said, passing him the note with Trelawney's words on it. Dumbledore read it, eyebrows slowly rising. When he finished he looked into the distance, seemingly deep in thought.
"How interesting," he said at last. "That brings Sybill's total of real predictions up to two. I should offer her a pay rise…"
Harry stared at him, aghast. "But- But – I stopped Sirius and Professor Lupin killing Pettigrew! That makes it my fault, if Voldemort comes back!"
Dumbledore assured her that it was not her fault, that the consequences of actions could be unpredictably vast and varied. He also told her that her saving Pettigrew had formed a bond between them, one Voldemort would likely be unhappy with.
"I knew both your parents very well, both at Hogwarts and later, Harry. They would have saved Pettigrew too, I am sure of it."
Harry bit her lip, gathering her courage to admit to Dumbledore, "Last night… I thought it was my mum who'd conjured my Patronus. I mean, when I saw myself across the lake… I thought I was seeing her."
"An easy mistake to make," Dumbledore replied quietly. "Your hair, coloured so, is almost a perfect match for hers." He gave her a gentle smile. "You are shaping up to be a fine young woman."
Harry blushed, but shook her head. "It was stupid, thinking it was her. I mean, I knew she was dead."
"You think the dead we have loved ever truly leave us? You think that we don't recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble? You mother is alive in you, Harry, and shows herself most plainly when you have need of her. Your mother's love lives in your skin and your Patronus was that which was truest of her – a fierce, powerful mother, dedicated to protecting her child."
The day before they received their exam results, Harry pulled Hermione into an abandoned classroom. As her studious friend gave her a curious look, Harry took a steadying breath. "I wanted to talk to you about your Boggart."
Hermione groaned and looked away. "Do we really need to talk about this?" Harry noticed her cheeks were tinged with red.
"Yeah, we do." She leaned against the nearest desk. "It honestly worried me."
Hermione flopped down onto a seat next to her. "Alright, yes, I know it's really silly for that to be my greatest fear. Ron's made it quite clear how amusing it is, when I care about my grades so much."
"But it's not just about grades, is it?" Harry asked, with a shrewd look. "It's not just how well you do in class. You know you're amazingly smart."
"Harry…" Hermione began, voice tinged with embarrassment and exasperation.
"No, really. Aside from you consistently staying at the top of our grade, we have First Year," she ticked off on her finger, "where you solved Snape's riddle to get me through the fire. Second Year," she ticked of another finger, "you brewed Polyjuice Potion in secret, in a bathroom, successfully, and you figured out Slytherin's monster was a basilisk, which definitely saved my life. And this year," she ticked a third finger, talking over Hermione's protests, "not only did you figure out Professor Lupin's lycanthropy almost immediately, you also took every single subject you possibly could, and probably still did amazingly."
Hermione was blushing so brightly she rivalled Ron's hair. She made a small squeaking noise as she tried to speak, and buried her face in her hands. Harry smirked slightly. 'This is kind of fun,' she thought idly, before focusing. "So, why are you so afraid of failing your classes?"
It took a few minutes Hermione could compose herself enough to speak. "I suppose it's not really failing my classes that I'm afraid of. I… before I came to Hogwarts, I never really had any friends. I was the awkward, nerdy, teachers' pet. So, I was honestly rather lonely growing up. And then Professor McGonagall showed up with my Hogwarts letter and told me I was magic and there was a whole new world full of people like me. I was so excited! This was why it was so hard to make friends, I thought, I was too different from them because of my magic. It would be so much easier to find friends at Hogwarts!"
Harry winced. She remembered how alone Hermione had been the first few months, and how she and Ron had contributed to it.
"It hurt," Hermione continued, "to realise that I still didn't have friends here. That there were people who thought I didn't even belong in the magical world."
Sliding off the desk, Harry moved the sit beside Hermione. She slipped an arm around her shoulder, and received a small smile in response.
"I guess what I'm really afraid of is them being right about me. Deep down, I'm scared that I don't deserve to be here."
After a moment of hesitation, Harry slipped her other arm around her friend. As Hermione hugged her back, she wracked her brain for some way to respond. A memory came to her and she quietly said, "When we were waiting for the Sorting Hat, I was so worried. I kept imagining the Hat just not Sorting me, and McGonagall yanking it off and telling me I had to go home. It was terrifying."
Squeezing her tighter for a second, Hermione then sat back. They exchanged small smiles. "I'm really sorry for how Ron and I treated you during First Year," Harry said softly. "We were real jerks. You deserved better."
Hermione shook her head. "It's okay. Honestly, it was mostly Ron who said anything to me. And I know I can be a bit abrasive sometimes. Besides," she added with a teasing smile, "you both certainly made up for it."
Harry burst into a fit of giggles. A few seconds later Hermione joined her. When she finally managed to get herself under control, Harry said, "You really are an amazing witch Hermione. You belong here. Never doubt that."
Hermione responded by hugging her tightly once more.
They received their exam results the next morning. Harry was surprised at how well she had managed in several of them, although the O in Muggle Studies earned an eye roll. Hermione, of course, received top marks in everything – including a 320% correct Muggle Studies exam. Ron was pleased to have passed every subject.
Before heading down to the Leaving Feast, Harry sorted through her clothes carefully. She was immensely grateful Hermione had bought her a few different styles. Tomorrow would require some very careful planning. Picking out one that she thought would work, put it aside. She would leave it on top once she was finished packing.
Reaching into her trunk, she smiled as her fingers brushed against the box Madam Pomfrey had given her. It contained enough doses of her Masculinity Muffling Mixture to last through the summer, until she saw the matron again. She hoped the woman hadn't minded Harry hugging her, too much.
She smiled as she glanced around the dormitory, where her peers were doing their own final sweeps. That was one difference from the boys' dorm – no one was leaving their packing to the last minute. She could easily picture Ron, Dean, Seamus and Neville relaxing before the feast, blissfully forgetting their frantic rush the previous years. The other girls had found her recounting of their desperate struggles incredibly amusing.
The trio enjoyed the Leaving Feast, where the Quidditch team's performance earned enough points for Gryffindor to take the House Cup as well. Then, after a restful night's sleep, they found themselves riding the horseless carriages to the station and shoving their trunks onto the luggage racks of their compartment. As the train pulled away from the station, Hermione told Harry and Ron that she had dropped Muggle Studies to have a normal schedule. She poked her tongue at Harry's "I told you so!"
As Harry looked forlornly towards the receding castle, Ron invited both of them to the Quidditch World Cup. Harry immediately agreed, and Hermione nodded amiably. "Don't forget, I'm having you both over to study for your electives!" she warned. "You don't want to disappoint Professor McGonagall, after all." Ron gave a theatrical shudder.
They talked and laughed through the trip, interrupted only by the arrival of a positively tiny owl, bearing a message from Sirius. He wrote that he was now in hiding, and let her know that he had sent the Firebolt. Hermione gave a triumphant "I told you so!" in return. There was also a note, giving Harry permission to attend Hogsmeade weekends. Sirius closed by giving the owl to Ron, to make up for the loss of Scabbers.
As the train approached the station, they changed into muggle clothes. Harry's outfit was a carefully decided balancing act. She really, truly didn't want to return to wearing boy clothes over the holidays. So much so, she had actually thrown away the majority of her old clothes. On the other hand, she knew her relatives were going to hate the fact that she was transgender. In an effort to prevent a fight at the station, she had picked out the most androgynous set she could manage.
She wore a simple lilac shirt and light denim shorts. The shirt sat differently on her than Ron's shirt did on him, and the shorts were cut slightly higher than she had seen on boys before. She kept her trainers, just in case she needed to bolt. Overall, she felt rather cute. "Could you watch to make sure I'm alright?" she asked her friends, as they waited to pass through the barrier. They nodded, as she had already told them her worries about her relatives' reactions.
Uncle Vernon turned almost purple as he took in Harry's hair and clothes. "What the hell are you wearing, Boy?" he snarled, glancing around to see if anyone was looking.
"Clothes, Uncle Vernon," Harry replied mildly. It was rather amusing to see him jump at the sound of her altered voice. He puffed up, clearly wanting to yell at her, but being in such a public place stopped him.
"Now see here," he hissed venomously instead, leaning in close to her face. "You will not wear rubbish like a queer ever again! And stop doing – whatever it is with your voice! And get a haircut! You hear me?" As he straightened, he noticed the envelope from Sirius' letter still in her hand. "And what's that?" Harry couldn't keep the grin off her face. If this wasn't most beautiful segue ever…
"If it's another form for me to sign, you've got another -"
"It's not. It's a letter from my godfather," she told him brightly. The grimace on his face with every word delighted her. Then her words sunk in.
Uncle Vernon sputtered, "Godfather? You haven't got a godfather!"
"Yes, I have. He was my mum and dad's best friend. He's a convicted murderer, but he's broken out of wizard prison and he's on the run. He likes to keep in touch with me, though… keep up with my news… check I'm happy…" With a wide grin she moved passed her horrified Uncle, to what looked like her best summer yet.
