The general panic over Sirius Black continued well past Christmas. If the students were to believed, Black was hiding behind in the potted plants, inside the suits of armor, and nestled inside the chandeliers, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. If any of that was true, then it was a miracle that he hadn't managed to kill anyone yet.
This paranoia extended even to the postal system, when Harry was sent a racing broom in the mail by an anonymous benefactor. Not just any racing broom either, but a Firebolt, which was apparently quite expensive. The staff thought it was cursed, and sent by Black as part of an elaborate plan to kill him. Harry wondered how an escaped convict would be able to scrounge up enough money to buy one of those things, and why he thought Harry would immediately ride it when he got it. Surely, he wasn't the only student at the school with a distaste for broomsticks?
At any rate, it didn't bother him overmuch. He would just pawn the thing off as soon as the teachers had finished checking it. More money was never a bad thing, after all.
The more significant result of Black's alleged escapades was even more security in the already secure castle. Now there was a curfew for students, trips to Hogsmeade were escorted by the teachers, and there were more Dementors around then ever. Eve had apparently been bullied by the Ministry of Magic into doing her actual job, for Harry saw her actually searching around the grounds for Black instead of lazily sunning herself. Or at least she tried to, when the entire castle wasn't snowed over. It left her with little time to visit Harry and listen to his stories, which was a bit of a shame.
All the new protective measures ended up meaning little to Black, who snuck into Gryffindor tower... or so one of the Gryffindor students said. The new portrait in charge of guarding the tower did admit to letting someone in, but it did not say who. Harry didn't think it was Black. After all, why would he go to the trouble of sneaking into Gryffindor tower (the place he was expected to be the most) again, only to run away when one of the students saw him? If he wanted to kill them, surely it wouldn't have mattered if they were awake or asleep? And why in the world would he use a knife to do the deed...?
Even the Fat Lady's testimony was starting to sound suspicious.
Still, Harry had to wonder about what mysterious character was getting in and out of Hogwarts, and making such a ruckus. He asked Eve what she had found, when she wasn't busy slithering around the grounds.
"Not much," Eve said. "There are the dementors, who watch the skies without excitement. There are centaurs that walk the forest, but keep to themselves. The big oaf who puts me in his classes lets some of his pets wander around. His thestrals sometimes eat rats near the village, and his dog occasionally wanders to the castle, but I haven't seen anything that looks like a Serial Black."
"I thought he kept his dog indoors," Harry said, no longer willing to correct her malapropisms.
"Maybe he has two dogs?"
"I don't think he does. Not that it really matters anyway."
Indeed, even if Black had disguised himself as one of Hagrid's pets, Harry assumed that some wizards would have checked to see if they were really animals and not transfigured humans. No, the whole scenario felt like some kind of elaborate prank. Harry had little patience for pranks.
Those feelings were intensified when some red haired boy (wasn't he the same kid who apparently ran into Sirius Black? Harry couldn't quite remember) ran to him, on one warm spring evening.
"You haven't seen my rat, haven't you?" he said, panting and clutching at his chest.
"Your rat?" Harry asked.
"His name's Scabbers, and he was with me until this, this dog took him, and now I don't know where he is..."
"I think that was Hagrid's dog. You should ask Eve about it. She probably knows where it is."
The boy scowled. "Eve? Who's that?"
"The basilisk."
"Well, I can't ask her about it! I don't speak that 'language' you do, alright?"
The boy did not look like he was going to leave him alone until his demands were met. Harry sighed. "Whatever. I'll tell her to look for that dog. Don't bother me after that, okay?"
Eve was looking around the lake when Harry and the other boy approached her.
"Hello, Harry," Eve said. "Are you also looking for the convict?"
"No," Harry said. "This kid was just looking for that dog you saw, because it stole his rat."
"Oh, that dog? It was going to the forest. I do believe I smelled some blood as it passed."
"Bad news," Harry said, turning to the boy. "Sounds like that dog did have your rat, and it ran off to the Forbidden Forest."
The boy was horrified. "Then we've got to go and find him before it's too late! That snake can track its scent, right?!"
"Could you follow where that dog went?" Harry asked Eve.
"Easily," Eve said. "The trail is bright and clear. I like bright things."
"Then go follow it, would you?"
They followed a short path to the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. Harry had put on his invisibility cloak, not wanting to be caught out of bounds or by whatever happened to be in the forest. If the other kid got caught, well, that was his fault for getting them into this in the first place. Still, if they didn't find the dog within the edge of the forest, Harry was going to turn back. There were bound to be Dementors lurking about, and they did not care much for children, invisible or not.
Suddenly, Eve stopped.
"It's him!" she hissed.
"What-"
Eve lurched forward with a sudden burst of speed that Harry hadn't thought she was capable of. Harry quickly followed after her to see what it was that she had found.
It was Sirius Black. To be precise, Sirius Black crouching on the ground, looking like he had been struck several times with a large, blunt object. Blood trickled from his nose and the corners of his mouth, and one of his legs looked to be broken. There was also a rat beside him, which quickly rushed over to its owner.
"I got him!" Eve said, positively glowing with pride. "I am the best security this school has ever had!"
"Euugh," Black groaned.
"So... he was the dog the whole time?" Harry thought aloud. "Strange."
"The.. the rat. The rat...," Black muttered, trying and failing to get up.
"Why's he talking about Scabbers?" the boy said. "Must be a nutter."
"Is there anything strange about that rat, Eve?" Harry asked.
"Why yes," Eve began. "It's not that exciting, though."
"It's... it's Pettigrew! The rat is Pettigrew!" Black coughed. "He's... an animagus... you have to-"
"What's the meaning of all this?!" another voice snapped.
It was Snape, marching straight towards them, looking as if someone had put a large thumbtack in his shoe.
"Potter, wherever you are, I must ask that you remove your invisibility cloak immediately, before I forcefully remove it from you," Snape said.
Harry gloomily took it off. "How'd you guess?"
"I saw you put it on. It was my turn to watch you, and I didn't suspect you'd be getting into trouble. Just like your father..."
Snape then noticed that Black was lying on the forest floor.
"Perhaps I'll forgive you for it this time, though," Snape continued. "Catching Black all by yourself? Quite an accomplishment, I must say."
"I didn't do anything," Harry said. "Eve-the basilisk- did it."
"Did she? Well, I suppose everything has its place." Snape leaned in to examine Black. "And for you, I think we won't have to bother giving you a formal arrest. The Ministry said that they're quite content to have the Dementors kiss you on sight."
"Snape, the rat, it's Pettigrew... please," Black pleaded.
"Eve was saying there was something weird about the rat," Harry said. "What exactly did you mean, Eve?"
"Most vermin would naturally flee from my presence in all circumstances," Eve said. "This one won't. It must be very brave! This boy is lucky to own such a brave rat."
Snape ignored the conversation in parseltongue. "Obviously, the man is delusional. There is nothing special about this rat. Watch me prove it. Homenum Revelio!"
All Harry felt from the spell was an odd feeling in his chest. Snape, however, flinched away from where the red haired boy was standing.
"Weasley, I won't ask you twice," Snape snarled. "Drop that rat. NOW!"
Weasley didn't have to, for the rat jumped out of his hands and began running. It didn't get very far, as Snape slashed his wand through the air, and the rat ceased being a rat. It was some sort of highly advanced Transfiguration at work, for the rat grew and changed until it was no longer a rat, but a very ratty looking man, with a couple of bite marks on his back.
"Pettigrew?" Snape whispered.
"S-Severus," Pettigrw mumbled. "H-How nice to s-see you again-"
"STUPEFY!"
A jet of red light flew from Snape's wand and struck Pettigrew in the head. He fell to the ground.
"You two will return to your dormitories," Snape said, glaring at Harry and Weasley. "Now."
Snape brought Pettigrew and Sirius to the dungeons first, taking care not to be seen by anyone else. They would be returned to the proper authorities soon enough, but there was something that he had to know now, when he had a moment to look at both of them.
His store of Veritaserum was ready, Snape having prepared it several months before. It was always something handy to have, but now it was worth more to him then all the gold of Gringotts put together.
First, he gave a bit of it to Sirirus, who regarded him with the same dispassionate loathing he always had.
"Did you betray the location of James and Lily Potter to the Dark Lord, leading to their deaths?" Snape asked.
"No," Sirius said. "I would never do such a thing. Never."
"Did you kill twelve muggles when you confronted Pettigrew?"
"Of course not."
That was all he needed from him. Next, Snape moved to Pettigrew, who was locked in a different room.
"Did you kill twelve muggles when you were confronted by Sirius?" Snape asked him.
Pettigrew could not resist the potion's effects, although he was starting to cry. "Yes," he said.
"Did you tell the Dark Lord the location of Lily Potter?!"
"Yes, I did, but you don't understand, there was nothing I could do," he sobbed.
For a moment, Snape was silent. Just one little moment.
"CRUCIO!" Snape shouted.
The ugly man writhed in horrible, excruciating pain. Again and again and again, the curse acted upon Pettigrew, as if every nerve in his body had been forced against a burning iron. Eventually, Snape stopped.
"Obliviate," Snape muttered.
It was a while before Harry was called out of the Ravenclaw common room, as he suspected he would be when the Ministry found out that Peter Pettigrew had been alive all this time. It gave him some time to think about what had happened, which now made some sense. Black escaping to chase after Pettigrew in a quest for revenge was much more likely then him hunting down some stupid kid who was only partially involved in Voldemort's downfall. Although, it might have been better for him to have plead his case to Dumbledore or someone similar... Eventually, he was told by Flitwick to go to Dumbledore's office, which was as good a sign as any.
The Ministry must have been quite shocked by the news, for the Minister of Magic himself was there, along with Dumbledore and Snape.. Sirius Black lay on a levitating stretcher as well, his leg covered by bandages, and Pettigrew was unconscious and handcuffed in the corner of the room.
"... I must say, I never expected that it could turn out this way!" Fudge said. "Pettigrew alive, and guilty; Black innocent! I never would have dreamed it. Oh, the Daily Prophet's going to have a field day with this!"
"I do imagine there will be a great deal of paperwork to file about this case," Dumbledore said. "If you wish, I could help you fill it out, when I have the time."
"That would be nice, actually. You can floo into the Ministry and talk to Bones about it. She's been busy with something tonight, so she'll be able to get started on it right away."
"I think I shall. It is best to have these matters away and done with before they are forgotten about. But I do believe we are forgetting someone," Dumbledore said, nodding in the direction of Harry.
Fudge looked up and noticed Harry, his face breaking into a large grin. "Ah, the man of the moment!" he said. "Why, it's only thanks to you that we've been able to sort this mess out! I'll have a word with Rita Skeeter about this. I'm sure she'll want to hear every word of your story."
"But I didn't do anything," Harry said. "It was all Snape and-"
"Are you talking about the Weasley boy?" Fudge asked. "I do believe I requested to see him as well?"
"I'm afraid Mr. Weasley was quite distraught upon learning that his rat was a middle aged hobbit," Dumbledore said. "I don't think he would like to see you tonight."
"Quite distressing, I'm sure. Now, Harry, why don't you come along to the Ministry with me? I'll have someone ready to publish the story right away."
Harry blinked. "I'd rather not-"
"Not to worry, my dear boy!" Fudge said. "You won't be held accountable for anything that happened tonight, I assure you. Now, if you'd just follow me..."
Clearly Fudge wouldn't take no for an answer, being so desperate for his stupid article in the Prophet, so Harry moved to follow him. Fudge magically lifted Black and Pettigrew into the air, and made to leave the office.
"I think I will escort you from the grounds," Snape said, moving to follow them as well. "It would be quite a shame if an accident occurred, and Pettigrew was to escape again."
"Oh, of course," Fudge said, some of the exuberance draining from his cheeks.
Of course, it didn't last long before he had built it back up again. The man was quite a chatterbox, and just wouldn't stop talking about how big Pettigrew's capture was and how much it would affect their careers. Sirius was resting, and Snape wasn't talking at all, so that meant Harry was the only one for him to run his mouth at.
"Now, how about this? The Boy Who Lived, and the Minister of Magic, both standing at the hall of the Ministry?" Fudge said, continuing to outline his grand plans for tomorrow's headlines.
"For the last time, Mr. Fudge, it's Snape you want to be interviewing, and the basilisk here as well," Harry grumbled. "They're the ones who figured out this whole mess."
"Don't undersell yourself! Why, if you hadn't looked for that boy's rat, then everything would have turned out for the worse."
"Yeah, and if Snape hadn't followed me-"
Fudge cut him off as they reached the edge of the grounds. "Ah, I was in such a hurry tonight that I forgot to call off the Dementors. Ah, well, not to worry about it."
"You know, Fudge, there are some who say that speaking of evil is the best way to bring it towards you," Snape said, his voice catching Fudge off guard.
Pettigrew also seemed to stir at these words, but no one besides Harry seemed to notice.
"Well- I'm sure it won't be a problem. Now, let's-"
Fudge's voice died down as a deep chill settled over there air. Harry had only one guess as to what might have caused it. Sure enough, a second later a huge swarm of Dementors swooped in from the sky. Fudge screamed something inaudible.
"Expecto Patronum!" Snape yelled, summoning a silver doe from his wand. It charged at the Dementors, driving some of them back, although the effort appeared to be straining him a great deal.
Harry, in the meantime, was mentally kicking himself for not bothering to learn that spell. He knew that there were a bunch of Dementors around the castle, he knew that he might need to defend himself from them, he knew that he could learn the knowledge of how to do so from books, or by asking Professor Lupin about it, but he had never actually gotten around to doing it, and here they were.
For the moment, the doe was enough to protect them, but Fudge wasn't doing anything to help them (in fact, he had tripped and fallen over), and it looked like they would be overwhelmed. At least, until Harry caught something speeding towards them out of the corner of his eye.
"Stop it!" Eve hissed.
The Dementors didn't listen to her, but they did freak out when she lunged and bit one of them. It sizzled and burned as it struggled in her jaws, flailing around as it melted and decomposed into something that looked like burnt rubber. The other Dementors quickly fled from the basilisk.
"Are you alright?" she asked.
"I'm fine," Harry said.
Snape dismissed his doe, and took a deep breath before looking around. And noticed somebody was missing.
"Pettigrew's gone," Snape growled.
"Well, that's just great," Harry muttered.