Buckbeak's Plight
Ron and Hermione were still not speaking to each other. Hermione had her nose in her homework all weekend so David took Ron to see Hagrid. The term had been so hectic they had only seen Hagrid in class.
"Yeh've heard!" said Hagrid when he saw them.
"Heard what?" asked Ron.
"Hagrid, what's happened?" asked David. Hagrid sobbed and pointed towards a letter on the table. David took it and began to read.
"Dear Mr Hagrid,
"Further to our inquiry into the attack by a Hippogriff on a student in your class, we have accepted the assurances of Professor Dumbledore that you bear no responsibility for the regrettable incident."
David and Ron looked up puzzled. "Read on," sobbed Hagrid.
"However, we must register our concern about the Hippogriff in question. We have decided to uphold the complaint of the school governors on behalf of the minor Harry Potter, and this matter will therefore be taken to the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures. The hearing will take place on…"
"How can they do that?" asked David. "I never said anything against Buckbeak."
"It's Lucius Malfoy," said Ron, "trying to show his concern for the boy-who-lived."
"How is Buckbeak, Hagrid?" David asked, remembering Severus's words about the consequences of a magical creature harming a Zia.
"Been bad for months," said Hagrid. "Rest of the herd have banished him. They don' like what he did. He's not eating properly, starving himself to death."
"But it was my own fault," protested David.
"Rather that git Malfoy's you mean," said Ron.
"That doesn't matter to them gargoyles at the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures!" said Hagrid.
David and Ron left a short while later. They had tried to cheer Hagrid up without success. As they walked up to the castle they passed Hagrid's pumpkin patch where Buckbeak was tethered on the Ministry's orders.
"Give me a moment," David said and he turned to bow to Buckbeak. The Hippogriff returned the bow and David approached him and looked him straight in the eyes. "Not your fault," he tried to tell the creature. Buckbeak's eyes softened and he preened his feathers. He would no longer starve himself. David re-joined Ron.
"What did you do?" asked Ron. "I know you're a parselmouth, but that wasn't a snake."
"I've found I can communicate with most magical creatures," replied David softly.
"You can never be normal can you!" said Ron.
"No," David agreed with bitter amusement. "I can't."
When they returned to the common room Hermione was still hard at it. Ron went upstairs avoiding her gaze. David sat down and explained in a low voice about Buckbeak.
"But they can't!" responded Hermione. "It's not fair."
"Perhaps we can find some legal argument," suggested David. "There might be something in the library."
"Is this Harry Potter suggesting spending time in the library?"
"Think Hermione," replied David smiling. "How much time have I spent reading this year?"
David went up to bed, leaving Hermione still pouring over her ancient rune translation. He fell asleep quickly and was woken abruptly.
"AAARRRRRGGGHHHH NOOOO!" came a scream. David fumbled with the hangings of his four poster bed and emerged just as Dean Thomas was lighting a lamp.
"Black! Sirius Black with a knife!" Ron shouted, pale and sweaty. He held up a knife. "Must have dropped this when I screamed."
David reached towards the knife and suddenly saw the Grim again. Sitting back in horror he said, "We'd better get Professor McGonagall."
They went down to the common room. Doors were opening and sleepy voices were calling out asking what was going on. The common room was soon filled with students. Professor McGonagall appeared moments later.
"What is all this noise?" she asked.
"Professor," said Ron holding out the knife. "Sirius Black was in our dormitory. He slashed my curtains. I woke up with him standing over me."
"Professor McGonagall gingerly took the knife. "But how did he get in?" she wondered aloud. She walked back to the portrait hole and went outside to speak with Sir Cadogan (the Fat Lady was still away being restored).
"Of course I let him in," Sir Cadogan replied loud enough for those in the common room to hear him.
"But the password…"
"He had it, had the whole week's, my lady! Read them off a little bit of paper."
Professor McGonagall re-entered the common room. "It was I, Professor," mumbled Neville stepping forwards. "I wrote them down and then I lost the paper." Professor McGonagall looked astounded.
Nobody slept well that night. The castle was once more being searched. Black did not turn up.
"You think that Hermione still thinks he is innocent?" Ron remarked to David over breakfast. "Perhaps if she was woken up at knife point she wouldn't think he was so harmless."
Everywhere there were signs of tighter security. David saw Professor Flitwick charming the great doors to recognise a photograph of Sirius Black. He turned to walk into supper and banged into Professor Snape.
"Potter!" snarled Snape, handing David a slip of parchment under cover of his billowing robes. David took it and turned it invisible to all other eyes. He read it quickly. Severus wanted to see him that evening. David assumed that it was to ask Lady Hogwarts again about Sirius Black.
David was correct in his assumptions. Once inside Severus's office that evening, the door closed abruptly.
"David, Black must have spent some time in the castle to accomplish what he did last night." said Severus. "The castle must know something about how he got in. Please ask her again."
David stretched his magic out into the castle. "Lady Hogwarts," he said. "Please show me Sirius Black." Initially he just saw the Grim, but then he saw a tall man with shaggy black hair and ragged robes over his skeletally thin body. This he assumed was Black. He saw Black running down the corridor out of Gryffindor tower, and then suddenly, there was the Grim again. It took David a few moments to realise what he had seen. Lupin had been right; the dog was not the Grim. The dog was a person; an animagus. He had been seeing Black all year, in his tealeaves, on the broomstick, through the eyes of Lady Hogwarts, on the knife…
"I think that Black is a dog animagus," David tried to say but before the words came out he felt a rush of anger from the castle. She did not want him reveal Black's animagus skill. "I don't know." David said. It was as if Hogwarts was speaking through him. David was unsure what Lady Hogwarts was trying to tell him. She was letting him see Black, but she was angry with David too. She was helping Black! David had to hope that Black was innocent; Hermione thought that he was and obviously Lady Hogwarts did too. He had seen the Grim when he had received the Firebolt and that had been clear of jinxes. Perhaps Black was innocent.
"Well, at least you tried," said Severus. David nodded and left the office. He went straight to the library where he was meeting Ron to look up legal precedencies which might help Buckbeak. Ron and Hermione were still not speaking to each other. David was astonished to find both of them looking through large books. Ron looked at David sheepishly.
"Well, we need her help," he said. "And Scabbers was old… could have gone any time."
The next Saturday was another Hogsmead visit and Ron and Hermione set off for together. This time instead of being the only Gryffindor third year not going, David had company. Professor McGonagall had decreed that Neville Longbottom not be allowed out to Hogsmead as punishment for his password fiasco. David went up to his dormitory. There in his trunk was his invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map. It was tempting but he withstood it. Getting himself caught or killed was not a good idea. Instead he headed off to the library. Neville went with him and worked on his homework while David looked through law books.
For the next few weeks David, Hermione and Ron spent all their spare time in the library. They were desperate to find something to help Buckbeak.
David ran his hand along the shelf of books, absentmindedly reading the odd title here and there, trying to find anything which would help them. One of the books jumped out into his hand. He looked around quickly but nobody had noticed. David pulled the large volume down and read the title, "Most Dangerous Criminals." Well, maybe that would help.
All too soon the day of the hearing came and Hagrid took Buckbeak up to London. The trio waited with baited breath. The next morning at breakfast, Hermione, who had been getting the Daily Prophet delivered each morning, gave a stifled shout.
"It's all over the paper," she said pointing to an article on the front page. David glanced down and read quickly.
"Death for Harry Potter Attacking Hippogriff," read the headline. He examined the article further. "I was not traumatised for months," he protested just as Malfoy called across the hall.
"Still scared of all magical creatures Potter? Going to faint next flobberworms lesson?"
"They can't," said Ron. "Buckbeak isn't dangerous. You just have to be respectful to him."
"Bet it was Malfoy's dad who bullied the Committee into it," said Hermione skimming the rest of the article. "See here, he's quoted as talking about how steps must be taken to keep the boy-who-lived safe."
David finished the article. "You don't think he is angling for custody of me? Do you?" he asked his heart in his mouth.
"I don't know Harry," pondered Hermione. "Could be."
"Don't worry Harry," said Ron. "Dumbledore'd never allow that to happen."
"Oh, the charm," said Hermione quietly. "Harry, if you do have a live magical relative you can circumvent Malfoy's interference."
Ron looked between Hermione and Harry. "What… you have a what, Harry?" he said in surprise.
"Shh," said Hermione and Harry together.
"What haven't you told me?" asked Ron more quietly. Harry gave them both a meaningful look and left the table. They followed him out into the hall way and inside a disused classroom.
"Remember when I couldn't tell you where I'd been during the holiday," David said very softly to Ron. "Well, Hermione thinks that that is because I was under pressure from a guardianship bond."
"But those are only possible between family members," said Ron. "And only those with great magical power."
"Yes," said Hermione. "Sort of fitting that, only those who would be too magically powerful for their parents to control can be controlled by this magic. The graph is like this…" she turned to the blackboard. Ron put his hand on her shoulder and she turned back. "… sorry too much detail," said Hermione. "Anyway, I've been reading up on them as has Harry. There's this charm to reveal the bond. It requires a lot of magical power so Harry asked me to help with it. If you help too it will be easier."
David had a restless night. He was worrying about Buckbeak and about Sirius Black. He opened the photo album that Hagrid had given him at the end of his first year at Hogwarts. He flipped through the book to the wedding photos. He had no trouble identifying Black from the labels, but he looked nothing like what Lady Hogwarts had shown him. On closer inspection David found several pictures with a large black dog in them. There was a large picture of a dog with a chubby baby. 'Harry and Padfoot,' read the caption. The dog was not skeletal, but David had been seeing it all year, yes this must be Black. "Padfoot," he murmured. David had seen that name somewhere else. Try as he might he could not remember where. He reached for the only library book he had with him, having taken it out to look for help for Buckbeak. David took 'Most Dangerous Criminals," and opened it at the bookmark. There was the case of a Manticore who had got off a charge of murder. David flipped through the rest of the book trying to find something interesting to read until he was tired enough to go to sleep.
David's finger paused at the title 'Sirius Black.' Hermione was still convinced that he was innocent. Ron was convinced that he was guilty. David was unsure. Hermione had a persuasive argument. David started to read. 'Sirius Black was the Potters' secret keeper,' blah… blah…, 'Harry Potter's guardian,' blah… blah… 'Blew up a street murdering Peter Pettigrew and twelve Muggles." David turned back to the photo album. "Peter Pettigrew," he murmured looking through the pictures. The pages flipped over by themselves and stopped, open on the Potters' wedding photos. He found him. Pettigrew was in the wedding photos too, a short fat man. He was in a lot of the pictures. So was Professor Lupin. David looked back at the library book. 'Pettigrew cornered Black' blah… blah… 'all that was found of him was a finger,' blah… blah… 'Order of Merlin First Class.'
Sirius Black had betrayed the Potters and murdered one of James's best friends. Now he was after David. David was furious. He wanted to find Black and take revenge for the three dead friends. Black would die. Suddenly David remembered the map. He hurriedly found it and tapped it with his ring finger. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he recited.
'Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot…'
"Padfoot," David repeated.
'and Prongs
'Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers
'are proud to present
'THE MARAUDER'S MAP'
David opened the newly visible map and searched it for Sirius Black. He started in Gryffindor tower and then looked down the nearby corridors. Nothing, then David did a double take. Making his way along a corridor on the third floor was a dot labelled 'Peter Pettigrew.' David pushed his feet into his slippers and quietly left the dormitory, map in hand.
David made his way through the castle, checking the map every few seconds to make sure of where Pettigrew was. He kept a ball of light hovering in front of him to light his way, despite the protests of the portraits he passed who were trying to sleep. David was so intent on his quest that he did not notice a dot labelled 'Severus Snape' heading for his location.
"Potter," Snape hissed making David turn around abruptly. "Get rid of that light you foolish boy. Where's your wand?"
"In my dormitory," mumbled David, not meeting Snape's gaze. He extinguished the light and Snape's wand was left as the only illumination. Secretly David touched his ring to the parchment and thought hard, "Mischief Managed." He hoped that would work.
"I told you not to go wandering around under that cloak," said Snape, "but I didn't expect that you'd then go wandering around the castle late at night without it. What were you thinking of?"
David was silent.
"What's this?" Snape asked seizing the map. "A letter instructing you to leave your dormitory for a rendezvous?"
"Just a spare bit of parchment," replied David casually.
"Indeed," said Snape. He tapped the parchment with his wand. "Reveal your secrets," he commanded. Nothing happened. "I, Professor Snape, master of this school, command you to yield the information you contain."
Writing appeared on the parchment.
"Mr Moony presents his complements to Professor Snape and begs that he keeps his abnormally large nose out of other people's business."
Snape froze. David gulped; this was not going to be good. Writing was still appearing on the map. "Mr Prongs agrees with…" Footsteps were coming down the corridor. Snape thrust David behind him and kept his wand raised. David breathed a sigh of relief when it turned out just to be Professor Lupin.
"Ah Lupin," said Snape handing over the map. "I have just now confiscated this parchment. Things of dark origin are your province. What is your opinion?"
Lupin glanced down at the parchment. He gave David a quick look telling him not to interfere. "Looks like a Zonko's product to me, Severus, designed to insult anyone who tries to read it."
"But why would Potter be carrying it around in the middle of the night? Perhaps he got it from the manufacturers?"
"I doubt so," replied Lupin easily. "Harry do you know any of these men?"
"No sir," replied David.
"Still as you say, it is my province," said Lupin holding on to the parchment so that Snape could not snatch it back. "Harry, perhaps you would come with me?"
"Certainly Professor," replied David, looking up at Snape with a worried glance. If Lupin opened up the map he would see David's new name and Lupin appeared to know what the parchment was. Snape made another snatch for the map but Lupin held on to it.
"Harry!" said Lupin.
"Yes Professor," said David, and he followed Lupin down the corridor. Snape stood still while the pair left.
Lupin led David to his office and closed the door. "Now I'm not interested in explanations," began Lupin. "I don't know how this map came to be in your possession but I am astounded that you did not hand it in. Harry, don't you see, in the hands of Sirius Black this is a map to you." David said nothing. "I can't let you have it back," said Lupin. David had expected that.
"Sirius Black made this didn't he?" David asked.
"What makes you think that?"
"In my photo album, he's called 'Padfoot,'" replied David, half truthfully.
"All the more reason you should have handed it in," scolded Lupin. "I won't cover up for you again. Now go back to bed, straight back, I will know if you don't."
David turned to leave, and then he remembered the reason for his nocturnal wonderings. "Professor," he said, "there's something wrong with that map. It showed me Peter Pettigrew – that's who I was following tonight."
"That's not possible," said Lupin startled.
"It's just what I saw Professor," said David. He thought hard, best to prepare Lupin if he was going to try to watch David returning to Gryffindor Tower. "And sometimes it calls me David Antirrhinum," he tried to say but no words would come out. David left hurriedly. Perhaps Lupin would not follow the map and make the connection himself. He could only hope. Snape had not known of the map and this chance that their secrets would come out.
