The world spun around them sickeningly. Sirius had never been fond of Apparation and kept his eyes squeezed closed, swallowing hard to fight the dreadful feeling in his guts. When he felt solid ground beneath his feet, he opened his eyes slowly.

Still arm in arm, the trio stared up at the burning building before them, their mouths hanging open. A group of Muggles were walking past obliviously; if they had seen the boys Apparate, they didn't show it.

Sirius glanced at his friends, his throat tight. "Now what?" he asked lamely, his eyes huge and dancing with light from the fire.

"I…I don't…" James seemed transfixed by the fire, his Adam's apple bobbing. "Hopping hippogriffs, do you think anyone's alive in there?"

Remus coughed. "I can't imagine so. But where is everyone?"

They looked around pathetically at the empty, silent street. The Muggles had long since turned the corner, and nothing decorated their vision except an old telephone booth and a bit of rubbish that littered the street. "You think they evacuated?"

"To where?" James bit his lip worriedly. "No, damn it, no, I think they're still in there." He looked at his friends with eyes Sirius had never seen before. He had never looked so old. "We have to go in and check."

"That's suicide." Remus shook his head. "No way."

"We have to!" James took a step towards the building and stopped. "We have to, don't we?"

Sirius looked back up at the dancing flames that engulfed the building and swallowed hard. "I'll do it."

"What?" asked Remus, as James cried, "No! Not alone! We'll all go...won't we?"

"No, no." Sirius wanted to touch James, to make him feel okay, but with Remus there… "I'll go in as Padfoot. You know how it is in Animagus form; pain feels different as an animal. I'll be okay. I'll check for survivors and find a good path for you guys, and then I'll come back out. Don't worry."

"I'll come! I'll come as Prongs!"

Sirius shook his head. "A burning building is no place for a stag, mate. This is a dog's job." He smiled and touched James' shoulder, wishing he could kiss him. "I'll be right back."

Clearing his throat, Remus asked, "Are you sure about this?"

"It's the right thing to do." Sirius thought of Dumbledore and nodded. "I'm sure." He glanced up at the building and, watching the flames, changed forms in the blink of an eye. Not hesitating at all, he began to trot off towards the building.

"Promise!" shouted James, his voice thick.

Sirius looked back at him. James had picked up his clothes from the sidewalk and was clutching them to his chest, his eyes bright. "Promise you'll come back," he said softly.

Padding back, Sirius stopped in front of James and lifted one paw. James took it with a nervous smile. "Okay. Okay," he breathed. Leaning down to Sirius' ear, he added in a whisper, "I'm trusting you. Come back to me."

The building was hot and thick with smoke. Sirius slunk low to the ground, his ears pricked for the slightest noise, his eyes watering. It was hard to smell anything but the acrid scent of burnt and burning ruins.

Moving slowly and picking his way through collapsed walls and flaming debris, Sirius left the main atrium and stalked off towards the reception offices. He didn't hear anything except the "phoomph" of fire consuming something large and the crackle of flames licking through paper. Leaving there, he slipped into the bathrooms, the janitor's closet, the conference hall, and the Wizengamot chambers. All empty. He stood in the atrium for a moment, panting, his fur thick with ash, and wondered how large the Ministry really was. It could take hours to search all of it.

Swallowing thickly, he moved towards the stairs- but a crashing noise from above gave him pause. Through a ragged hole in the ceiling he could hear someone cry, "Crucio!"

Severus.

Sirius bounded up the steps, a low growl rumbling in his throat. He burst through a burning partition and leapt over a ruined desk, taking Snape down as he landed. Snape tumbled over, his wand somersaulting through the air and falling through the hole in the floor, hitting the ground floor's marble with a few soft plinks. Severus crawled toward the hole and looked down at it, a little cry escaping him.

"I'll kill you!" Snape shrieked, turning back to Sirius. Though he was wearing a Death Eaters' mask and hooded cloak, Sirius imagined he could see the hatred in his slitted eyes. Severus charged him furiously, but Sirius was strong, stronger than he had imagined, and he quickly found himself tumbling roughly to the ground and rolling away. Sirius kept his head low to the ground, his teeth bared, and Snape froze…before dashing towards the steps, his cloak billowing behind him. Sirius made to chase him-

-but an awful coughing from the center of the room stopped him in his tracks. He perked up and listened and she coughed once more, the noise terrible and ragged. Sirius hesitated for just a moment, listening to the hurried pace of Snape's feet on the stairs, before moving hastily toward the noise.

Underneath a fallen support beam laid a small brunette woman, her face dirty and cut. She was trying weakly to move the beam from her chest, but it wouldn't budge. Sirius moved in closer and pushed his body against the beam, first sliding it only inches, then knocking it to the floor with a clang. The woman pressed a blackened hand to her chest and coughed deeply, her eyes rolling. Sirius nudged her and whined, and she tried to focus on him, though he could tell it was a struggle.

"A Grim," she gasped. "I'm dying."

Sirius made a frustrated noise; it would be easier if he could speak, but of course he couldn't…and transforming into a naked teenager surely wouldn't help the situation. He nudged her hand again, hoping she'd get the hint and grab on to him so he could pull her out of the building.

She didn't. "It's funny. I'm dying, but I feel like I'm getting better. Does this take long, dying?" She looked up at Sirius expectantly. "You know, for a Grim you're awful quiet."

He nudged her again, more roughly, and barked. Blinking, she cried, "Oh! Oh, you're no Grim! You're a rescue dog!" She tried to sit up and winced. "I could use rescuing. But…" She looked him over. "Should I just…grab you, then?"

He nodded, and her eyes went wide. "Those damn Muggles think of everything. You speak English, too? Merlin's beard." She leaned up again, hissing at the pain, and wrapped an arm around Sirius' neck. "Suppose you'll have to drag me. Standing doesn't seem to be an option just yet." Carefully, Sirius did as he was told.

The air outside was so lovely Sirius had to stop for a moment and take several deep breaths. The young woman did the same, breathing deeply before giving another pitiful cough.

"Sirius!" James jogged over and bent down, pressing his face into Sirius' furry neck. "Bloody hell, you were gone long enough!"

"This is your dog, then?" asked the woman, releasing Sirius and slumping to the cement.

James looked at her, then Sirius, then back to her. "Are you the only survivor?"

"Heavens, no." She hacked something black and gritty up on to the sidewalk and groaned. "The others…well, everyone's fine, mister. Better go on your way, then, and forget this ever happened."

"We're wizards," said Remus plainly, stooping beside her. "We go to Hogwarts. See?" He showed her his wand and smiled patiently. "And we know about the Order, and the attack on the Ministry. So we'll ask again: are you the only survivor?"

She looked up at him with narrowed eyes before leaning back and closing them. "The others went after the Death Eaters. Everyone Disapparated, including the Ministry people, though were they went I haven't the foggiest. I stayed behind to clear the building. I had just finished checking all the upstairs rooms and was on my way to check downstairs when that damned bloody beam fell on top of me. And then…oh and then one of those damned dreadful Death Eaters came back and started trying to torture information out of me, if you can believe it!" She sat up angrily, her cheeks pink under the filth of the ash. "When I see that bastard again, I'll give him a piece of my mind, all right!"

Remus suddenly looked very strange. He took off his jacket and put it down under the woman's head before clearing his throat and standing up.

James watched him with a cocked eyebrow before turning back to her. "And what's your name, if you don't mind my asking?"

"I'll ask yours first, if that's quite all right. And your friend, too." She eyed Remus, who flushed and began to fiddle with his collar.

"I'm James Potter," said James, pointing to himself. His thumb towards Remus, he said, "And that's Remus Lupin. Like he said, we're students at Hogwarts. Seventh years," he added hastily.

Remus wiggled his fingers and coughed. "Yes, erm...adults, in fact. Both of us. Including me." He rocked back on his heels awkwardly. "In case you were wondering."

"That's great," said the woman, watching Remus grow increasingly more uncomfortable. "And I'm Alice Longbottom. Now we're done the introductions, can we get somewhere a little, I don't know, safer? Hogwarts would be super." She smiled at Remus, who had immediately knelt down beside her.

"I'll take her to Hogsmeade. You…eh…take care of Sirius. We'll meet in the Shrieking Shack, okay?"

James nodded, barely hiding a smirk. "Sure. Just watch him, miss; that Remus can be a real rouge."