Kali Black and the Prisoner of Azkaban

by Hemlockconium

When Sirius Black escapes from Azkaban, the first place the Aurors look for him is on the other side of the Atlantic where his daughter and her godfather are trying to get on with their lives. A moral dilemma is placed upon Kali Black and Remus Lupin as they decide where their loyalties lie.

20. Chapter 20: Claws and Fangs

Chapter Twenty:

Claws and Fangs

Thursday, June 9th, 1994,

The Shrieking Shack,

Kali Kalakaua Lupin Morrigan Black,

It was all becoming too much. First Buckbeak was murdered, then a big, black dog dragged Ron all the way to the Shrieking Shack; it turned out that dog was her farther, who was an unregistered Animagus; he looked and acted like a crazy person, which was not at all how she'd pictured him; Harry was out of his mind with anger, enough so that he'd attack someone with her father's reputation, but he didn't have it in him to strike that final blow; Remus had come barging in, and had disarmed her, which she was rather pissed about, but then he'd gone and done something so unexpected, she still hadn't recovered from it: he'd hugged her father. After years of insisting that Sirius Black was guilty as sin, they'd had a two minute conversation, that could barely qualify as a conversation, and suddenly they were old pals again. Now Kali was finally getting an explanation, and bloody Snape fucking showed up. It was too much.

Hermione screamed. Sirius leapt to his feet. Kali saw that wand pointed at Remus and tried to step between him and it – no matter how much Snape disliked her, she was pretty sure he wouldn't seriously harm one of his students, like 70% sure – but Remus held her back.

"I found this at the base of the Whomping Willow," said Snape, throwing Harry's Invisibility Cloak aside, careful to keep this wand pointing directly at Remus's chest, which was causing Kali all kinds of anxiety, because she didn't doubt for a second that he had an extensive and nasty repertoire of spells, and she wasn't naive enough to think that he wouldn't use it. "Very useful, Potter, I thank you.…"

Snape was slightly breathless, but his face was full of suppressed triumph. "You're wondering, perhaps, how I knew you were here?" he said, his eyes glittering like the cliché bad guy who was about to spill his entire life story to the hero. "I've just been to your office, Lupin. You forgot to take your potion tonight, so I took a gobletful along. And very lucky I did… lucky for me, I mean. Lying on your desk was a certain map. One glance at it told me all I needed to know. I saw you running along this passageway and out of sight."

"Severus -" Remus began, but Snape overrode him.

"I've told the headmaster again and again that you're helping your old friend Black into the castle, Lupin, and here's the proof. Not even I dreamed you would have the nerve to use this old place as your hideout -"

"Severus, you're making a mistake," said Remus urgently. "You haven't heard everything – I can explain – Sirius is not here to kill Harry -"

"Two more for Azkaban tonight," said Snape, his eyes now gleaming fanatically. "I shall be interested to see how Dumbledore takes this.… He was quite convinced you were harmless, you know, Lupin… a tame werewolf -"

"You fool," said Remus softly. "Is a schoolboy grudge worth putting an innocent man back inside Azkaban?"

BANG!

Thin, snakelike cords burst from the end of Snape's wand and twisted themselves around Remus's mouth, wrists, and ankles; he overbalanced and fell to the floor, unable to move. Kali tried to catch him, but he was much taller than she and she fell with him. With a roar of rage, Sirius started toward Snape, but Snape pointed his wand straight between Sirius's eyes.

"Give me a reason," he whispered. "Give me a reason to do it, and I swear I will."

Sirius stopped dead. It would have been impossible to say which face showed more hatred. Taking advantage of Snape's diverted attention, Kali tried to charm away the cords that were tying Remus up, but they weren't reacting to any of the usual counter-jinxes.

Hermione took an uncertain step toward Snape and said, in a very breathless voice, "Professor Snape – it it wouldn't hurt to hear what they've got to say, w – would it?"

"Miss Granger, you are already facing suspension from this school," Snape spat. "You, Potter, Black, and Weasley are out-of-bounds, in the company of a convicted murderer and a werewolf. For once in your life, hold your tongue."

"But if – if there was a mistake -"

"KEEP QUIET, YOU STUPID GIRL!" Snape shouted, looking suddenly quite deranged. "DON'T TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!" A few sparks shot out of the end of his wand, which was still pointed at Sirius's face. Hermione fell silent.

"Vengeance is very sweet," Snape breathed at Sirius. "How I hoped I would be the one to catch you.…"

"The joke's on you again, Severus," Sirius snarled. "As long as this boy brings his rat up to the castle," – he jerked his head at Ron – "I'll come quietly.…"

"Up to the castle?" said Snape silkily. "I don't think we need to go that far. All I have to do is call the dementors once we get out of the Willow. They'll be very pleased to see you, Black… pleased enough to give you a little kiss, I daresay… I -"

What little colour there was in Sirius's face left it.

"No." Kali scrambled to her feet.

"Take another step Miss Black, and your father might not even make it that far," said Snape, shifting to the left slightly so that he could keep an eye on her.

"You – you've got to hear me out," Sirius croaked. "The rat – look at the rat -"

But there was a mad glint in Snape's eyes that Kali had never seen before. He seemed beyond reason.

"Come on, all of you," he said. He clicked his fingers, and the ends of the cords that bound Lupin flew to his hands. "I'll drag the werewolf. Perhaps the dementors will have a kiss for him too -"

Kali felt murderous. "You will not, you foul -" Sparks flew from the end of Snape's wand toward Sirius, and she fell silent.

Harry crossed the room in three strides and blocked the door.

"Get out of the way, Potter, you're in enough trouble already," snarled Snape. "If I hadn't been here to save your skin -"

"Professor Lupin could have killed me about a hundred times this year," Harry said. "I've been alone with him loads of times, having defence lessons against the dementors. If he was helping Black, why didn't he just finish me off then?"

"Don't ask me to fathom the way a werewolf's mind works," hissed Snape. "Get out of the way, Potter."

"YOU'RE PATHETIC!" Harry yelled. "JUST BECAUSE THEY MADE A FOOL OF YOU AT SCHOOL YOU WON'T EVEN LISTEN -"

"SILENCE! I WILL NOT BE SPOKEN TO LIKE THAT!" Snape shrieked, looking madder than ever. "Like father, like son, Potter! I have just saved your neck; you should be thanking me on bended knee! You would have been well served if he'd killed you! You'd have died like your father, too arrogant to believe you might be mistaken in Black – now get out of the way, or I will make you. GET OUT OF THE WAY, POTTER!"

Snape took a threatening step toward Harry, and Kali raised her wand.

"Expelliarmus!" she yelled – except that hers wasn't the only voice that shouted. There was a blast that made the door rattle on its hinges; Snape was lifted off his feet and slammed into the wall, then slid down it to the floor, a trickle of blood oozing from under his hair. He had been knocked out.

Kali, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had tried to disarm Snape at exactly the same moment. Snape's wand soared in a high arc and landed on the bed next to Crookshanks.

"You shouldn't have done that," said Sirius, looking between Kali and Harry. "You should have left him to me.…"

Kali felt a tremor of guilt as she stared down at Snape's limp form. Hermione obviously shared the feeling.

"We attacked a teacher… We attacked a teacher…" Hermione whimpered, staring at the lifeless Snape with frightened eyes. "Oh, we're going to be in so much trouble -"

Remus was struggling against his bonds. Kali bent down quickly and untied him, without Snape concentrating to maintain the spell it was easy enough to undo. Remus straightened up, rubbing his arms where the ropes had cut into them.

"Thank you, Kali, and you too Harry," he said.

"I'm still not saying I believe you," he told Remus.

"Then it's time we offered you some proof," said Remus. "You, boy – give me Peter, please. Now."

Ron clutched Scabbers closer to his chest.

"Come off it," he said weakly. "Are you trying to say he broke out of Azkaban just to get his hands on Scabbers? I mean…" He looked up at Harry and Hermione for support, "Okay, say Pettigrew could turn into a rat – there are millions of rats – how's he supposed to know which one he's after if he was locked up in Azkaban?"

"You know, Sirius, that's a fair question," said Remus, turning to Sirius and frowning slightly. "How did you find out where he was?"

Sirius put one of his claw-like hands inside his robes and took out a crumpled piece of paper, which he smoothed flat and held out to show the others.

It was the photograph of Ron and his family that had appeared in the Daily Prophet the previous summer, and there, on Ron's shoulder, was Scabbers.

"How did you get this?" Remus asked Sirius, thunderstruck.

"Fudge," said Sirius. "When he came to inspect Azkaban last year, he gave me his paper. And there was Peter, on the front page on this boy's shoulder… I knew him at once… how many times had I seen him transform? And the caption said the boy would be going back to Hogwarts…"

"My God," said Remus softly, staring from Scabbers to the picture in the paper and back again. "His front paw…"

"What about it?" said Ron defiantly.

"He's got a toe missing," said Sirius.

"Of course," Remus breathed. "So simple… so brilliant… he cut it off himself?"

"Just before he transformed," said Sirius. "When I cornered him, he yelled for the whole street to hear that I'd betrayed Lily and James. Then, before I could curse him, he blew apart the street with the wand behind his back, killed everyone within twenty feet of himself – and sped down into the sewer with the other rats.…"

"Didn't you ever hear, Ron?" said Remus. "The biggest bit of Peter they found was his finger."

"Look, Scabbers probably had a fight with another rat or something! He's been in my family for ages, right -"

"Twelve years, in fact," said Remus. "Didn't you ever wonder why he was living so long?"

"We – we've been taking good care of him!" said Ron.

"Not looking too good at the moment, though, is he?" said Remus. "I'd guess he's been losing weight ever since he heard Sirius was on the loose again.…"

"He's been scared of that mad cat!" said Ron, nodding toward Crookshanks, who was still purring on the bed.

"This cat isn't mad," said Sirius hoarsely. He reached out a bony hand and stroked Crookshanks's fluffy head. "He's the most intelligent of his kind I've ever met. He recognized Peter for what he was right away. And when he met me, he knew I was no dog. It was a while before he trusted me.… Finally, I managed to communicate to him what I was after, and he's been helping me…."

"What do you mean?" breathed Hermione.

"He tried to bring Peter to me, but couldn't… so he stole the passwords into Gryffindor Tower for me.… As I understand it, he took them from a boy's bedside table.… But Peter got wind of what was going on and ran for it. This cat – Crookshanks, did you call him? – told me Peter had left blood on the sheets.… I supposed he bit himself… Well, faking his own death had worked once."

"And why did he fake his death?" Harry said furiously. "Because he knew you were about to kill him like you killed my parents!"

"No," said Remus, "Harry -"

"And now you've come to finish him off!"

"Yes, I have," said Sirius, with an evil look at Scabbers.

"Then I should've let Snape take you!" Harry shouted.

"Harry," said Remus hurriedly, "don't you see? All this time we've thought Sirius betrayed your parents, and Peter tracked him down – but it was the other way around, don't you see? Peter betrayed your mother and father – Sirius tracked Peter down -"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Harry yelled. "HE WAS THEIR SECRET-KEEPER! HE SAID SO BEFORE YOU TURNED UP. HE SAID HE KILLED THEM!"

He was pointing at Sirius, who shook his head slowly; the sunken eyes were suddenly over bright.

"Harry… I as good as killed them," he croaked. "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'm to blame, I know it.… The night they died, I'd arranged to check on Peter, make sure he was still safe, but when I arrived at his hiding place, he'd gone. Yet there was no sign of a struggle. It didn't feel right. I was scared. I set out for your parents' house straight away. And when I saw their house, destroyed, and their bodies… I realized what Peter must've done… what I'd done…."

His voice broke. He turned away.

"Enough of this," said Remus, and there was a steely note in his voice that Kali had learned from a very young age not to disagree with. "There's one certain way to prove what really happened. Ron, give me that rat."

"What are you going to do with him if I give him to you?" Ron asked Remus tensely.

"Force him to show himself," said Remus. "If he really is a rat, it won't hurt him."

Ron hesitated. Then at long last, he held out Scabbers and Remus took him. Scabbers began to squeak without stopping, twisting and turning, his tiny black eyes bulging in his head. "Ready, Sirius?" said Remus.

Sirius had already retrieved Snape's wand from the bed. He approached Remus and the struggling rat, and his wet eyes suddenly seemed to be burning in his face.

"Together?" he said quietly.

"I think so," said Remus, holding Scabbers tightly in one hand and his wand in the other. "On the count of three. One – two – THREE!"

A flash of blue-white light erupted from both wands; for a moment, Scabbers was frozen in midair, his small grey form twisting madly – Ron yelled – the rat fell and hit the floor. There was another blinding flash of light and then -

It was like watching a speeded-up film of a growing tree. A head was shooting upward from the ground; limbs were sprouting; a moment later, a man was standing where Scabbers had been, cringing and wringing his hands. Crookshanks was spitting and snarling on the bed; the hair on his back was standing up.

He was a very short man, shorter than Kali and Ron, and hardly taller than Harry and Hermione. His thin, colourless hair was unkempt and there was a large bald patch on top. He had the shrunken appearance of a plump man who has lost a lot of weight in a short time. His skin looked grubby, almost like Scabbers's fur, and something of the rat lingered around his pointed nose and his very small, watery eyes. He looked around at them all, his breathing fast and shallow. Kali saw his eyes dart to the door and back again, and Pan jumped out of her pocket, turning into a full blown tiger as he landed. He sat in front of the door, tail flicking from side to side.

"Well, hello, Peter," said Remus pleasantly, as though rats frequently erupted into old school friends around him. "Long time, no see."

"S – Sirius… R – Remus…" Even Pettigrew's voice was squeaky. Again, his eyes darted toward the door, earning a soft growl from Pan. "My friends… my old friends…"

Sirius's wand arm rose, but Remus seized him around the wrist, gave him a warning took, then turned again to Pettigrew, his voice light and casual.

"We've been having a little chat, Peter, about what happened the night Lily and James died. You might have missed the finer points while you were squeaking around down there on the bed -"

"Remus," gasped Pettigrew, and Kali could see beads of sweat breaking out over his pasty face, and the rancid smell of fear flooded Pan's senses, "you don't believe him, do you…? He tried to kill me, Remus.…"

"So we've heard," said Remus, more coldly. "I'd like to clear up one or two little matters with you, Peter, if you'll be so -"

"He's come to try and kill me again!" Pettigrew squeaked suddenly, pointing at Sirius, using his middle finger, because his index was missing. "He killed Lily and James and now he's going to kill me too.… You've got to help me, Remus.…"

Sirius's face looked more skull-like than ever as he stared at Pettigrew with his fathomless eyes.

"No one's going to try and kill you until we've sorted a few things out," said Remus.

"Sorted things out?" squealed Pettigrew, looking wildly about him once more, eyes taking in the boarded windows and, again the only door and its furry guard. "I knew he'd come after me! I knew he'd be back for me! I've been waiting for this for twelve years!"

"You knew Sirius was going to break out of Azkaban?" said Remus, his brow furrowed. "When nobody has ever done it before?"

"He's got dark powers the rest of us can only dream of!" Pettigrew shouted shrilly. "How else did he get out of there? I suppose He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named taught him a few tricks!"

Sirius started to laugh, a horrible, mirthless laugh that filled the whole room.

"Voldemort, teach me tricks?" he said.

Pettigrew flinched as though Sirius had brandished a whip at him.

"What, scared to hear your old master's name?" said Sirius. "I don't blame you, Peter. His lot aren't very happy with you, are they?"

"Don't know what you mean, Sirius -" muttered Pettigrew, his breathing faster than ever. His whole face was shining with sweat now.

"You haven't been hiding from me for twelve years," said Sirius. "You've been hiding from Voldemort's old supporters. I heard things 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. Sounds like 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 still plenty out here, biding their time, pretending they've seen the error of their ways."

"Wait," said Kali, and Pettigrew's eyes shined with hope as though he honestly believed she was going to help him. "The Death Eaters know that Pettigrew was the one who sold out Lily and James?"

Sirius nodded, and she cast a glance over at Snape's unconscious form, at his left forearm and the Dark Mark hidden beneath his robes. She was going to kill him, or at least make him wish she'd been so kind.

"If they ever got wind that you were still alive, Peter -" said Sirius.

"Don't know… what you're talking about…," said Pettigrew again, more shrilly than ever. He wiped his face on his sleeve and looked up at Remus. "You don't believe this – this madness, Remus -"

"I must admit, Peter, I have difficulty in understanding why an innocent man would want to spend twelve years as a rat," said Remus evenly.

"Innocent, but scared!" squealed Pettigrew. "If Voldemort's supporters were after me, it was because I put one of their best men in Azkaban – the spy, Sirius Black!"

Sirius's face contorted.

"How dare you," he growled, sounding suddenly like the bear-sized dog he had been. "I, a spy for Voldemort? When did I ever sneak around people who were stronger and more powerful than myself? But you, Peter – I'll never understand why I didn't see you were the spy from the start. You always liked big friends who'd look after you, didn't you? It used to be us… me and Remus… and James…."

Pettigrew wiped his face again; he was almost panting for breath.

"Me, a spy… must be out of your mind… never… don't know how you can say such a -"

"Lily and James only made you Secret-Keeper because I suggested it," Sirius hissed, so venomously that Pettigrew took a step backward. "I thought it was the perfect plan… a bluff… Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they'd use a weak, talentless thing like you.… It must have been the finest moment of your miserable life, telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters."

Pettigrew was muttering distractedly; Kali caught words like "far-fetched" and "lunacy", but she couldn't help paying more attention to the ashen colour of Pettigrew's face and the way his eyes continued to dart toward the windows and door.

"Professor Lupin?" said Hermione timidly. "Can – can I say something?"

"Certainly, Hermione," said Remus courteously.

"Well – Scabbers – I mean, this – this man – he's been sleeping in Harry's dormitory for three years. If he's working for You-Know-Who, how come he never tried to hurt Harry before now?"

"There!" said Pettigrew shrilly, pointing at Ron with his maimed hand. "Thank you! You see, Remus? I have never hurt a hair of Harry's head! Why should I?"

"I'll tell you why," said Sirius. "Because you never did anything for anyone unless you could see what was in it for you. Voldemort's been in hiding for twelve years, they say he's half dead. You weren't about to commit murder right under Albus Dumbledore's nose, for a wreck of a wizard who'd lost all of his power, were you? You'd want to be quite sure he was the biggest bully in the playground before you went back to him, wouldn't you? Why else did you find a wizard family to take you in? Keeping an ear out for news, weren't you, Peter? Just in case your old protector regained strength, and it was safe to rejoin him.…"

Pettigrew opened his mouth and closed it several times. He seemed to have lost the ability to talk.

"Er – Mr. Black – Sirius?" said Hermione.

Sirius jumped at being addressed like this and stared at Hermione as though he had never seen anything quite like her.

"If you don't mind me asking, how – how did you get out of Azkaban, if you didn't use Dark Magic?"

"Thank you!" gasped Pettigrew, nodding frantically at her. "Exactly! Precisely what I -"

But Remus silenced him with a look. Sirius was frowning slightly at Hermione, but not as though he were annoyed with her. He seemed to be pondering his answer.

"I don't know how I did it," he said slowly. "I think the only reason I never lost my mind is that I knew I was innocent. That wasn't a happy thought, so the dementors couldn't suck it out of me… but it kept me sane and knowing who I am… helped me keep my powers… so when it all became… too much… I could transform in my cell… become a dog. Dementors can't see, you know.…" He swallowed. "They feel their way toward people by feeding off their emotions…. They could tell that my feelings were less – less human, less complex when I was a dog… but they thought, of course, that I was losing my mind like everyone else in there, so it didn't trouble them. But I was weak, very weak, and I had no hope of driving them away from me without a wand.…

"But then I saw Peter in that picture… I realized he was at Hogwarts with Harry… perfectly positioned to act, if one hint reached his ears that the Dark Side was gathering strength again.…"

Pettigrew was shaking his head, mouthing noiselessly, but staring all the while at Sirius as though hypnotized.

"… ready to strike at the moment he could be sure of allies… and to deliver the last Potter to them. If he gave them Harry, who'd dare say he'd betrayed Lord Voldemort? He'd be welcomed back with honours.…

"So you see, I had to do something. I was the only one who knew Peter was still alive.… It was as if someone had lit a fire in my head, and the dementors couldn't destroy it.… It wasn't a happy feeling… it was an obsession… but it gave me strength, it cleared my mind. So, one night when they opened my door to bring food, I slipped past them as a dog.… It's so much harder for them to sense animal emotions that they were confused.… I was thin, very thin… thin enough to slip through the bars.… I swam as a dog back to the mainland.… I journeyed north and slipped into the Hogwarts grounds as a dog. I've been living in the forest ever since, except when I came to watch the Quidditch, of course. You fly as well as your father did, Harry.…"

He looked at Harry, who did not look away.

"Believe me," croaked Sirius. "Believe me, Harry. I never betrayed James and Lily. I would have died before I betrayed them."

Harry said all that was needed to be said with a single nod.

"No!"

Pettigrew had fallen to his knees as though Harry's nod had been his own death sentence. He shuffled forward on his knees, grovelling, his hands clasped in front of him as though praying.

"Sirius – it's me… it's Peter… your friend… you wouldn't -"

Sirius kicked out and Pettigrew recoiled.

"There's enough filth on my robes without you touching them," said Sirius.

"Remus!" Pettigrew squeaked, turning to Lupin instead, writhing imploringly in front of him. "You don't believe this… wouldn't Sirius have told you they'd changed the plan?"

"Not if he thought I was the spy, Peter," said Remus. "I assume that's why you didn't tell me, Sirius?" he said casually over Pettigrew's head.

"Forgive me, Remus," said Sirius.

"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend," said Remus, who was now rolling up his sleeves. "And will you, in turn, forgive me for believing you were the spy?"

"Of course," said Sirius, and the ghost of a grin flitted across his gaunt face. He, too, began rolling up his sleeves. "Shall we kill him together?"

"Yes, I think so," said Remus grimly.

"You wouldn't… you won't…," gasped Pettigrew. And he scrambled around 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?"

But Ron was staring at Pettigrew with the utmost revulsion.

"I let you sleep in my bed!" he said.

"Kind boy… kind master…" Pettigrew crawled toward Ron "You won't let them do it.… I was your rat.… I was a good pet.…"

"If you made a better rat than a human, it's not much to boast about, Peter," said Sirius harshly. Ron, going still paler with pain, wrenched his broken leg out of Pettigrew's reach. Pettigrew turned on his knees, staggered forward, and seized the hem of Hermione's robes.

"Sweet girl… clever girl… you – you won't let them.… Help me.…"

Hermione pulled her robes out of Pettigrew's clutching hands and backed away against the wall, looking horrified.

He made to stumble into Kali next, but she gave him a look that said quite clearly that he'd be getting no help from her, and pointed her wand at him. "Do not touch me," she said.

Pettigrew sobbed and knelt, trembling uncontrollably, and-turned his head slowly toward Harry.

"Harry… Harry… you look just like your father… just like him.…"

"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO HARRY?" roared Sirius. "HOW DARE YOU FACE HIM? HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT JAMES IN FRONT OF HIM?"

"Harry," whispered Pettigrew, shuffling toward him, hands outstretched. "Harry, James wouldn't have wanted me killed.… James would have understood, Harry… he would have shown me mercy…"

Both Sirius and Remus strode forward, seized Pettigrew's shoulders, and threw him backward onto the floor. He sat there, twitching with terror, staring up at them.

"You sold Lily and James to Voldemort," said Sirius, who was shaking too. "Do you deny it?"

Pettigrew burst into tears. It was horrible to watch, like an oversized, balding baby, cowering on the floor. Kali screwed up her nose in disgust.

"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 forced me -"

"DON'T LIE!" bellowed Sirius. "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!" gasped Pettigrew. "Wh – what was there to be gained by refusing him?"

"What was there to be gained by fighting the most evil wizard who has ever existed?" said Sirius, with a terrible fury in his face. "Only innocent lives, Peter!"

"You don't understand!" whined Pettigrew. "He would have killed me, Sirius!"

"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" roared Sirius. "DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!"

Sirius and Remus stood shoulder to shoulder, wands raised.

"You should have realized," said Remus quietly, "if Voldemort didn't kill you, we would. Good-bye, Peter."

Hermione covered her face with her hands and turned to the wall.

"NO!" Harry yelled. He ran forward, placing himself in front Pettigrew, facing the wands. "You can't kill him," he said breathlessly. "You can't."

Sirius and Remus both looked staggered.

"Harry, this piece of vermin is the reason you have no parents," Sirius snarled. "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 panted. "We'll take him up to the castle. We'll hand him over to the dementors.… He can go to Azkaban… but don't kill him."

"Harry!" gasped Pettigrew, and he flung his arms around Harry's knees. "You – thank you – it's more than I deserve – thank you -"

"Get off me," Harry spat, throwing Pettigrew's hands off him in disgust. "I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it because – I don't reckon my dad would've wanted them to become killers – just for you."

No one moved or made a sound except Pettigrew, whose breath was coming in wheezes as he clutched his chest. Sirius and Remus were looking at each other. Then, with one movement, they lowered their wands.

"You're the only person who has the right to decide, Harry," said Sirius. "But think… think what he did.…"

"He can go to Azkaban," Harry repeated. "If anyone deserves that place, he does.…"

Pettigrew was still wheezing behind him.

"Very well," said Remus. "Stand aside, Harry."

Harry hesitated.

"I'm going to tie him up," said Remus. "That's all, I swear."

Harry stepped out of the way. Thin cords shot from Remus's wand this time, and next moment, Pettigrew was wriggling on the floor, bound and gagged.

"But if you transform, Peter," growled Sirius, his own wand pointing at Pettigrew too, "we will kill you. You agree, Harry?"

Harry looked down at the pitiful figure on the floor and nodded so that Pettigrew could see him.

"Right," said Remus, suddenly businesslike. "Ron, I can't mend bones nearly as well as Madam Pomfrey, so I think it's best if we just strap your leg up until we can get you to the hospital wing."

He hurried over to Ron, bent down, tapped Ron's leg with his wand, and muttered, "Ferula." Bandages spun up Ron's leg, strapping it tightly to a splint. Remus helped him to his feet; Ron put his weight gingerly on the leg and didn't wince.

"That's better," he said. "Thanks."

"What about Professor Snape?" said Hermione in a small voice, looking down at Snape's prone figure.

"There's nothing seriously wrong with him," said Kali, bending over Snape and checking his pulse.

"Other than his personality," said Pan.

"You were just a little – overenthusiastic," said Remus. "Still out cold. Er – perhaps it will be best if we don't revive him until we're safely back in the castle. We can take him like this.…"

He muttered, "Mobilicorpus." As though invisible strings were tied to Snape's wrists, neck, and knees, he was pulled into a standing position, head still lolling unpleasantly, like a grotesque puppet. He hung a few inches above the ground, his limp feet dangling. Remus picked up the Invisibility Cloak and tucked it safely into his pocket.

"And two of us should be chained to this," said Sirius, nudging Pettigrew with his toe. "Just to make sure."

"I'll do it," said Remus.

"And me," said Ron savagely, limping forward.

Sirius conjured heavy manacles from thin air; soon Pettigrew was upright again, left arm chained to Remus's right, right arm to Ron's left. Ron's face was set. He seemed to have taken Scabbers's true identity as a personal insult. Crookshanks leapt lightly off the bed and led the way out of the room, his bottlebrush tail held jauntily high.

Crookshanks and Pan led the procession down the stairs; Remus, Pettigrew, and Ron went next, looking like entrants in a six-legged race. Next came Professor Snape, drifting creepily along, his toes hitting each stair as they descended, held up by his own wand, which was being pointed at him by Sirius. Kali walked next to her father, each casting discreet glances at the other. Harry and Hermione brought up the rear.

Getting back into the tunnel was difficult. Remus, Pettigrew, and Ron had to turn sideways to manage it; Remus still had Pettigrew covered with his wand. Kali watched them edging awkwardly along the tunnel in single file. Crookshanks and Pan were still in the lead. Harry and Hermione went right after the two Blacks, Sirius was still making Snape drift along ahead of them; he kept bumping his lolling head on the low ceiling. Kali had the impression Sirius was making no effort to prevent this.

"You know what this means?" Sirius said abruptly as they made their slow progress along the tunnel. "Turning Pettigrew in?"

"You're free," said Kali.

"Yes…," said Sirius. "I know you already have a life that doesn't include me – and you don't really know me… but now – if you'd let me – I'd like to be a part of it."

"Of course you're going to be a part of it," she said, as though this was the only possibility she'd ever considered, and it was. It wasn't how she'd imagined it – not even close – but reality was seldom as clean-cut as fantasy.

Sirius's gaunt face broke into the first true smile Kali had seen upon it. The difference it made was startling, as though a person ten years younger were shining through the starved mask; for a moment, he was recognizable as the man she'd seen in photos. Kali grinned back.

"And Harry…," said Sirius. "I'm also – I don't know if anyone ever told you – I'm your godfather."

"Yeah, I knew that," said Harry.

"Well… your parents appointed me your guardian," said Sirius stiffly. "If anything happened to them…. I'll understand, of course, if you want to stay with your aunt and uncle. But… well… think about it. Once my name's cleared… if you wanted a… a different home…"

"What – live with you?" Harry said, accidentally cracking his head on a bit of rock protruding from the ceiling. "Leave the Dursleys?"

"Of course, I thought you wouldn't want to," said Sirius quickly. "I understand, I just thought I'd -"

"Are you insane?" said Harry, his voice easily as croaky as Sirius's. "Of course I want to leave the Dursleys! Have you got a house? When can I move in?"

Sirius turned right around to look at him; Snape's head was scraping the ceiling but Sirius didn't seem to care.

"You want to?" he said. "You mean it?"

"Yeah, I mean it!" said Harry.

Black smiled again.

They did not speak again until they had reached the end of the tunnel. Crookshanks darted up first; he had evidently pressed his paw to the knot on the trunk, because Remus, Pettigrew, and Ron clambered upward without any sound of savaging branches.

Sirius saw Snape up through the hole, then stood back for Kali, Harry, and Hermione to pass. At last, all of them were out.

The grounds were very dark now; the only light came from the distant windows of the castle. Without a word, they set off. Pettigrew was still wheezing and occasionally whimpering.

"One wrong move, Peter," said Remus threateningly ahead. His wand was still pointed sideways at Pettigrew's chest.

Silently they tramped through the grounds, the castle lights growing slowly larger. Snape was still drifting weirdly ahead of Sirius, his chin bumping on his chest. And then –

A cloud shifted. There were suddenly dim shadows on the ground. Their party was bathed in moonlight.

Snape collided with Remus, Pettigrew, and Ron, who had stopped abruptly. Sirius froze. He flung out one arm to make Kali, Harry, and Hermione stop.

Kali saw Remus go rigid, saw his limbs begin to shake, and glanced up.

"The full moon," she whispered.

"Oh, my -" Hermione gasped. "He didn't take his potion tonight! He's not safe!"

"Run," Sirius whispered. "Run. Now."

But Ron was chained to Pettigrew and Remus. Harry leapt forward but Sirius caught him around the chest and threw him back.

"Leave it to me – RUN!"

There was a terrible snarling noise. Remus's head was lengthening. So was his body. His shoulders were hunching. Bones ripping. Flesh tearing. His body contorting and changing in ways that shouldn't be physically possible, causing pain unlike any other. Hair was sprouting visibly on his face and hands, which were curling into clawed paws. Crookshanks's hair was on end again; he was backing away –

As the werewolf reared, snapping its long jaws, Sirius disappeared from Harry's side. He had transformed. The enormous, bearlike dog bounded forward. As the werewolf wrenched itself free of the manacle binding it, the dog seized it about the neck and pulled it backward, away from Ron and Pettigrew. They were locked, jaw to jaw, claws ripping at each other. Pan jumped protectively between the two canines and the rest of them.

Kali stood, transfixed by the sight, too intent upon the battle to notice anything else. It was Hermione's scream that alerted her –

Pettigrew had dived for Remus's dropped wand. Ron, unsteady on his bandaged leg, fell. There was a bang, a burst of light – and Ron lay motionless on the ground. Another bang – Crookshanks flew into the air and back to the earth in a heap.

"Expelliarmus!" Kali yelled, pointing her own wand at Pettigrew; Remus's wand flew high into the air and out of sight.

"Stay where you are!" Harry shouted, running forward.

Too late. Pettigrew had transformed. Kali saw his bald tail whip through the manacle on Ron's outstretched arm and heard a scurrying through the grass.

There was a howl and a rumbling growl; Kali turned to see the werewolf taking flight; it was galloping into the forest, heading toward Hogsmeade –

"Sirius, he's gone, Pettigrew transformed!" Harry yelled.

Sirius was bleeding; there were gashes across his muzzle and back, but at Harry's words he scrambled up again, and in an instant, the sound of his paws faded to silence as he pounded away across the grounds. Pan ran off after Remus and Kali ran off after Pan. Harry tried to stop her but Hermione grabbed his arm.

"She knows what she'd doing, Harry, she grew up with Professor Lupin. We can't help."

Kali was glad; she didn't have time to argue. She saw Harry and Hermione dash over to the friend they could help – Ron – before she was engulfed by the forest. Now, if only Hermione had been right.

"Do you have a plan?" Pan asked, putting on a burst of speed to keep up with Moony, but still falling behind.

"I'm working on it," she said as branches whipped at her face.

"Can you work on it a little faster? At this rate he'll have reached the village within the next ten minutes."

"Oh, Circe, I'm going to get myself killed." She stopped in her tracks and whistled, the sound loud and shrill in the quiet forest.

"What are you doing, you idiot?" Pan asked as he nearly collided with Moony who'd backtracked and was now running straight for Kali.

"Keeping him away from the village."

She backed up until she was under a tree with low enough branches and she waited. It didn't take long. Moony barrelled into the clearing and headed straight for her like a freight train. She waited as long as she physically could, until she could see the amber shade of those eyes that were too human to belong to a wolf, before jumping up, grabbing hold of a sturdy branch and heaving herself up, while Moony's momentum had him smacking head-first into the wide trunk, hard enough that the tree shook and she almost lost her balance.

He stumbled a couple of steps, dazed and disoriented, and Kali sent silent apologies to Remus for the headache he was going to have come morning. It wasn't enough to knock him out, though, and Kali was quick to scramble further up the tree before he came back to his senses.

"Any more brilliant ideas?" asked Pan. He'd turned into a brown bear, choosing a form that was big, with sharp teeth and a hide that was practically bulletproof.

"We could take him for a walk."

She showed him where she wanted to lead Moony to, and he grudgingly agreed that it might work.

Having a nice stroll with a werewolf wasn't in the cards, so they settled for a game of fetch: Kali was the stick, and she finally put those gymnastics trophies from when she was a kid to good use. She jumped, tumbled, and swung from one tree to the next, always carefully out of reach of Moony who had quite the bounce in him. They had to take the scenic route to avoid a nest of Acromantula that Kali had very nearly stumbled into a few months ago, and Pan kept Moony on track when Kali proved to be too frustrating a target and the werewolf caught the scent of easier prey on the breeze. Finally they made it.

A few feet ahead, the forest floor disappeared into a dark abyss. The cavern entrance looked like the open maw of a great, ancient beast, with sharp, stone protrusions that were either teeth or makeshift steps, depending on how you looked at it.

This next part would be difficult. There were no trees down there, no safe path where she'd be out of reach of the angry werewolf, so she'd need to outrun him in a fifty metre dash down a treacherous slope, and then trap him inside the cavern, preferably without her having to be in there with him. Easy.

She waited until Moony was thoroughly distracted by Pan, then she leapt from her safe perch. She hit the ground running, making it a few paces into the maw before Moony noticed her. She sped up, but she could only go so quickly, if she lost her footing down here, she wouldn't need to worry about Moony, the fall would break her neck for him. Pan slowed him down as best as he could, but for this plan to work, Moony would have to keep up a decent pace. She reached the bottom of the slope and pelted toward the fissure that led to the large cavern beyond. She slipped in and climbed onto the ledge that hung above the entrance. She made it up just in time as not a second later, Moony had managed to wiggle through the narrow crack. Pan had to transform into something much smaller to join them. Kali took advantage of Moony's distracted state as he discovered his new environment to quietly climb out of the cavern and levitate a big boulder in front of the only way in or out for all creatures that couldn't fly.

Then she collapsed in an exhausted heap, her nerves completely frizzed out.

She closed her eyes and let herself see what Pan saw. Moony was chasing him around the underground cave in a friendly game of tag, the pesky human he'd been trying to kill earlier completely forgotten.

Pan had been the one to discover this place after winter break. The inside of the cavern was about the size of a football stadium. It had a number of small skylights carved into the rocky ceiling which let in just enough sun and rain for plant life to grow within, and there was a spring on the opposite side from the entrance; making it to perfect place to hide away a werewolf while he waited out the full moon.

She heaved herself up and started the climb to the surface. Pan would keep Moony company until sunrise; in the meantime, Kali had a rat to find, a father to catch up with, and a Potions Professor she desperately wanted to kick in the groin.