Authors Note :P
This story is nearly at an end...
BUT!
I do have something planned for the end of the story, that will add a few more chapters. And it's completely Maximum Ride. No magic, or Hogwarts, or anything, in the last few chapters. THAT'S ALL I'M SAYING BOUT IT!
Now to answer some reviews...
oOSmileOo, to be honest, I'm not sure. I will do my best to put a bit of Fax in somewhere, but it could make Max seem slutty, with Ethan, Harry and Fang. I don't know if there will, because that's in pretty much every other fanfic. I want mine to be different and unique. But I can try, if that's what people want :)
teenbooks4eve, haha sorry! im mean like that... expect more cliffhangers! muhahhaha!
AnnieBell, I never get mad at reviews that will help my writing :) I cried as well! it was really sad :( I'm not putting Max in the Tournament. But she will be involved... in a way... *shifty eyes...* Hahaha I loved writing that line! as you can tell, i was really hyper when I wrote that chapter! ahaa! I don't know what my favorite quote is.. I'll get back to you on that one...
Thanks for all the reviews! Love you guys!
Will we get 300 before this story is over? Please?
Enjoy!
-Rach ;)
Max's POV
Hermione screamed. Iggy jumped a foot in the air. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, and my heart was hammering in my chest. Harry's green eyes were wide, seeming to give off a small tiny light.
"I found this at the base of the Whomping Willow," Snape sneered, throwing the Cloak to the ground, carefully keeping his wand straight at Lupin's chest. "Very useful, Potter, I thank you."
"You had no right to take it! Now it's covered in your greasyness!" I said, only realizing that greasyness wasn't a word until after it left my mouth. Oh well, we were never educated until we were eleven. That's a good enough excuse.
"Ride, do you ever keep that stupid mouth of your shut? Or are you so self-centered that it gives you happiness to hear your own voice?" Snape snapped. I glared at him, and flipped him the bird. Do you get it? The bird? We're- oh, never mind!
"Don't talk to her like that!" Black growled, about to leap at Snape, but Lupin held him back.
"Oh, so it's true? She really is your daughter? Can't say I'm surprised, she inherited your entire attitude and personality," Snape said, curling his lip. Black smiled mockingly, then turned to me. "That's my girl," he said proudly. I scowled at him, giving my best death glare, "I'm not your anything," I retorted, hoping my disgust was obvious.
Snape looked strangely triumphed. "Oh, how I wished Grace Collins could be here to see her own daughter act his way to her father. To see her freak daughter, and murderer boyfriend," he growled. Black actually looked like he was going to rip out Snape's throat. If he went to, I'd help him. The flock were always self-conscious about being mutant freaks, and to have a teacher calling me one, in front of everyone, made my blood boil. But Lupin jumped in before Black could kill Snape.
"How did you know where we were, Severus?" he asked in a normal voice, not as if there was an evil dumbass pointing his wand at him, ready to kill at a seconds notice. Not like that at all. Some people are so strange...
"I've just been to your office, Lupin. You forgot to take your potion tonight, so I took a goblet of it with me. Luckily for me, there was a map lying on your desk. One look at it, and I knew everything I needed to know. I saw you running down this passageway and out of sight."
"Severus..." Lupin started, but Snape cut him off. Honestly, some people are so rude.
"I've been telling the Headmaster your helping Black into the castle, and now here's the proof! Not even I thought you'd have the nerve to use this old place as your hideout-"
"Severus, you making a mistake!" Lupin said urgently. "You haven't heard everything! Let me explain. Sirius isn't here to kill Harry-"
"Two more for Azkaban tonight, I think," Snape went on like there was no interruption. "I'm quite interested as to how Dumbledore shall take this. He was quite convinced you were harmless, Lupin. You know, a tame werewolf..."
"We thought that too," I said.
"Didn't I tell you to keep you mouth shut!" Snape yelled.
"Since when did I listen to you, anyway?" I said, sounding bored.
"Max, that's enough!" Lupin shouted, then turned back to Snape before I could said something else. "You fool," he said. "Your honestly going to let a schoolboy grudge put an innocent man into jail?"
BANG!
Thin, snakelike ropes burst from Snape's wand and wrapped themselves around Lupin's mouth, wrist and ankles; he overbalanced, and fell to the ground, unable to move a muscle. With a roar of rage, Black lunged toward Snape, but Snape pointed his wand right between Black's eyes. "Give me a reason," he whispered, "Give me a reason, and I'll swear I'll do it."
Black looked at me out of the corner of his eyes, but didn't say anything. Snape laughed a high, cold laugh. "Are you serious, Black? Your daughter? The daughter that hates you? The one you've never even spoken to properly? That's not a good enough reason!"
It was impossible to tell which face showed more hatred.
The six of us shared a look. Who were we meant to believe? Ron was still struggling with Scabbers, but looking confused. Fang was looking angry, but other then that, he was the same emotionless person I grew up with. Iggy looked confused, and was glaring at Snape. Harry looked confused and angry. Hermione, however, stepped forward. "Professor Snape, would- would it not hurt to hear what they had to say?" she said.
"Miss Granger, you are already facing suspension," Snape spat. "You, Potter, Ride, Weasley, Griffiths, and Martinez are out of bounds, in the company of a werewolf, and a convicted murderer. For once in your life, hold your tongue!"
"But-if- there could of been a mistake-"
"BE QUIET YOU STUPID GIRL!" Snape bellowed, looking crazy. "DON'T TALK ABOUT THINGS YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!"
"We understand a bit more then you do," Iggy said boldly. "And Hermione is smarter then everyone in this room! Including you!"
"Griffiths, if you do not keep quiet I'll-"
"You'll what?" I said, sick of Snape. I just wished I could rip his spine from his body and beat him with it. "You have no power here. Like you said, we're out of bounds. Here, your just an ugly, stupid, pathetic man!" I shouted the last sentence, not caring about anything any more. Snape had crossed the line ages ago, and now he was getting what he deserved.
"MISS RIDE, I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!" Snape yelled. "You are arrogant, rude, no respect for others-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, tell me something I don't know," I said.
Red sparks flew from the end of Snape's wand, and his hand twitched as if he wanted to point it at me instead. But Black reached out and grabbed his hand and growled, "If you touch her, you'll regret the day you were born." Then as if realizing he was touching Snape, he threw his hand back to his side as if something had burnt him. There was read anger in Black's eyes, but also something else... Misery, I thought. He's absolutely miserable. But why would a serial killer be miserable? Wouldn't he be happy? Or maybe he's not a killer...
Well done, Max,the Voice said. Your thinking of the bigger picture.
Jeezum, this is starting to confuse me, I thought. Not all things can be simple, Max. the Voice said.
Well, things would be easier if this were simple! Then get this... The Voice didn't reply! Shocker!
"Revenge is sweet," Snape snarled, as if forgetting all about the last few minutes. "How I hoped to be the one that caught you..."
"Once again, the jokes on you, Severus," Black said. "As long as the boy brings his rat up to the castle -" he quickly jerked his head towards Ron- "I'll come quietly."
"Up to the castle?" Snape said silkily. "I don't even think we're going to get that far. All I need to do is call the Dementors once we get out of the Willow. I'm sure they'll be pleased to see you again. So pleased that they'll give you a- shall we say, a kiss?"
What little color was left in Black's face slowly drained. I got an acing feeling in my chest thinking about Black getting the kiss. He was still my father after all.
"Y-you've got to h-hear me out!" he croaked. "The rat! L-look at the rat!"
But there was still a mad glint in Snape's eyes. He seemed to be beyond reason.
"Come on," Snape snapped. "All of you." he snapped his fingers and the ends of the ropes around Lupin flew to his hands. "I'll drag the werewolf," he said. "Maybe the Dementors will have a kiss for him too."
Without warning, Harry had walked over to the doorway and blocked the way out. I grinned at him.
"Get out of the way, Potter," Snape growled. "Your in enough trouble already. If I hadn't been here to save you-"
"Professor Lupin had about a hundred chances to kill me this year," Harry said, still blocking the doorway. "I've been alone with him loads, having defense lessons against Dementors. He was alone with all of us," he said, pointing to me, Fang and Iggy. "If he was helping Black, why didn't he kill me then, or them?"
"Don't ask me to tell you how a werewolf mind works, Potter!" Snape sneered. "Get out of the way!"
"YOUR PATHETIC!" Harry suddenly shouted. "JUST BECAUSE THEY MADE YOU LOOK LIKE A FOOL WHEN YOU WERE AT SCHOOL! YOU WON'T EVEN LISTEN-"
"SILENCE!" Snape yelled. "I WILL NOT BE SPOKEN TO LIKE THAT!" Snape looked completely insane. "Like father, like son, Potter. I just saved your life; you should be thanking me on bended knee! You'd have died like your father, too arrogant to believe you were mistaken in Black- now get out of the way, before I make you! GET OUT OF THE WAY POTTER!"
Without thinking, I raised my wand at Snape. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the others do the same.
"Expelliarmus!" I shouted- except I wasn't the only voice. There was a huge blast that made the floor shake under my feet. Snape was lifted off his feet, and went head first into the wall, then slid down to the floor, blood oozing from his forehead. He was out cold.
About time.
I looked around. Harry, Ron, Iggy, Hermione and Fang all had their wands pointed at Snape. The six of us all tried to disarm Snape at the same moment. Snape's wand had flown from his hand to the bed beside Crookshanks.
I seriously tried not to laugh. I did. But the `freak' comment was still ringing in my ears.
"You shouldn't of done that," Black said, looking at us. "You should of left it to me..."
I avoided looking Black in the eyes. I'm still not sure what to think about any of what's happening just yet.
"We attacked a teacher," Hermione was whispering anxiously. "We attacked a teacher... We are in so much trouble..."
Lupin was still struggling against the ropes. Black bent forward and untied him. Lupin straightened up, rubbing his wrists where the rope cut him.
"Thank you, Harry," Lupin said. Oh, yeah, because the rest of us just sat around talking about the weather. Jeezum, thanks Professor, really feeling appreciated.
"I'm not saying I believe you," Harry said. I nodded, as did the others.
It's time you believed what you saw, rather then what you hear, Max, the Voice said. I frowned, wondering what I should do with that.
"Then I believe it's time we offered you some proof," Lupin said. "Took your time to figure that out," I said cheekily. Lupin just stared at me, but didn't say anything. He walked over to Ron. "Ron, give me Peter, please. Now."
Ron just clutched Scabbers closer to his chest. "Come off it," Ron said. "Are you saying that nutter broke out of Azkaban just to get his hands of Scabbers? I mean-" he looked around at us for support. "Okay, say if Pettigrew could turn into a rat- there are millions of rats- how are you meant to know which rat is Pettigrew if you've been locked up in Azkaban?"
"You know, Sirius, that's a fair question," Lupin said, frowning at Black. "How did you know where he was?"
Black reached into his robes and pulled outa crumpled piece of paper, which he smoothed out and held it out to show us.
It was the picture from the Daily Prophet of the Weasley's and the flock in Egypt from the previous summer. And on Ron's shoulder, was Scabbers.
"How the hell did you get this?" I asked, thunderstruck. "Fudge," Black answered. "When he was inspecting Azkaban last year, he gave me the paper. And there was Peter, on the front page, on the boy's shoulder. With Max. I knew him at once. How many times had I seem him transform? And the caption said the boy was going back to Hogwarts... To where Harry and Max was."
"Oh, God..." Lupin gasped, looking at the picture, then to the real Scabbers. "His front paw..."
"What about it?" Ron said.
"He's got a missing toe..." Black said slowly.
"Of course..." Lupin breathed. "Its so simple and brilliant... he cut it off himself?"
"Just before he transformed," Black said, looking revolted. "I cornered him, but he started yelling for the whole street to hear that I'd betrayed Lily and James. Then before I could curse him, he blew up the street with the wand behind his back, killing everyone within twenty feet of him- then ran down into the sewer with the other rats."
"Did you not hear, Ron?" Lupin said. "The biggest part of Pettigrew they found was his finger."
"Look, Scabbers probably only just got into a fight with another rat or something!" Ron said, looking desperate. "He's been in my family for-"
"Twelve years?" Lupin said. Ron nodded slowly. "Didn't you ever wonder why he was living for so long?"
"We- we've been taking really good care of him!" Ron said.
"Not looking too good now, though is he?" Lupin said. "I'd guess he started losing weight ever since he heard Sirius was on the loose again.£
"He's been scared of that stupid cat!" Ron shouted, pointing to Crookshanks. But that wasn't right, I thought. Scabbers was looking sick before Hermione bought Crookshanks... since we came back from Egypt... Since Black escaped...
"This cat isn't mad," Black said, "He's the most intelligent of his kind I've ever met. He knew what Peter was from the first moment he saw him. And when he met me, he knew that I wasn't a real dog. It did take a while for him to trust me. Finally, I managed to communicate to him what I wanted , so he's been helping me."
"What do you mean?" Hermione breathed.
"He tried stealing Peter for me, but when that didn't work, he stole the passwords to Gryffindor tower, and gave them to me. As I understand it, he took it from a boy's bedside table..."
My brain was ready to explode from all this new information. First, I learn I have a father, second I learn that he may or may not be evil, and third I learn that Ron's rat may be the reason Harry's parents are dead.
"But Peter figured out what was happening and ran for it. This cat- Crookshanks, you called him- told me that Peter left blood on the sheets. I suppose I bit himself. Well, faking his own death had already worked before..."
Hearing this seemed to jolt Harry back to his senses. "And why would he fake his death? Because he knew you were going to kill him, like you killed my parents!"
"No, Harry," Lupin said. "You've got to-"
"And now you've come to finish him off!"
"Yes, I have," Black said with an evil glint in his eyes.
"Then I should of let Snape take you!" Harry yelled.
"Harry," Lupin said desperately, "don't you see? This whole time, we thought Sirius had betrayed your parents, and Peter tracked him down- but it was the other way around! Peter betrayed James and Lily. Sirius tracked Peter down-"
"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Harry yelled. "HE WAS THEIR SECRET-KEEPER! HE SAID HE KILLED THEM BEFORE YOU SHOWED UP!" Harry was pointing at Black, who started shacking his head sadly. His sunken, dead eyes suddenly filled with tears, and became strangely bright.
"Harry... I as good as killed them," he said, his voice thick. "I convinced James and Lily to change to Peter at the last minute, persuaded them to use him as their Secret-Keeper instead of me... It's my fault... The night they died, I was going to check on Peter, to make sure he was alright and still safe. But when I got to his hiding place, he was gone. But, there was no sign of a struggle. It didn't feel right for me. So I went to your parents house, saw the house destroyed, their bodies... I knew then what Peter must of done. What I'd done." His voice broke. He turned away from us.
"Enough of this," Lupin said, looking as if he was trying not to cry, "There's only one way to prove this. Ron, give me that rat."
"What will you do to him?" Ron asked.
"Force him to show himself," Lupin said. "If he's really just a rat, it won't hurt him."
"And if it's Pettigrew? Will it hurt him?" I asked.
Lupin looked at me, but didn't say anything. That was all I needed to know.
Ron hesitated, but finally handed Scabbers over to Lupin. Scabbers began squeaking madly without stop, turning and twisting. "Ready, Sirius?" Lupin asked.
Black had already gotten Snape's wand from the bed. He went over to Lupin, his wet eyes trained on Scabbers. "Together?" he asked quietly.
"I think so," Lupin said, 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 filled the room, momentarily blinding me. When I blinked a few more times, I saw that Scabbers was frozen in mid-air, twisting madly, then fell to the floor. There was another blinding flash -seriously? More?- then...
A man was standing where Scabbers had fallen. He was small, fat, nearly bald, with small, watering eyes. He kept cringing and wringing his hands. He was breathing fast and shallow. One look at him, and I already felt loathing towards him.
"Hello, Peter," Lupin said calmly. "Long time no see."
"S-Sirius... R-Remus..." Even Pettigrew's voice was squeaky. It sounded like it could cut through glass. His eyes were darting towards the door every few seconds. "My old friends... my dear old friends..."
Anyone else getting a creepy vibe off this guy?
Black slowly started raising his wand, looking ready to kill, but Lupin grabbed his wrist, giving him a warning look. He turned back to Pettigrew, his voice light and casual.
"We've been having a little chat about the night James and Lily died. Maybe you weren't able to hear over all the squeaking you were doing-"
"Remus," Pettigrew gasped, and I saw beads of sweat breaking out on his forehead. Gross. "R-Remus, you d-don't believe him do you? He tried to kill me!"
"So we've heard," Lupin said coldly. "I'd like to clear some things up with you, Peter..." Pettigrew looked like he was going to pass out. What a weenie.
"He's come to try to kill again!" Pettigrew cried, looking ready to wet his pants. Was this guy seriously in Gryffindor? Where the brave dwell at heart? The Sorting Hat had some explaining to do.
Pettigrew was pointing at Black with a shaky hand. I saw that he had to use his middle finger, because there was no index finger there. "He killed Lily and James, and he tried to kill me too! I bet it was his fault that Grace is dead too! And their daughter!"
I coughed loudly, causing Pettigrew to jump violently. He turned to me, looking frightened and confused. "Talking about me? Jeez, I didn't I was dead," I said, rolling my eyes. In the middle of the room, I saw that Black looked ready to rip Pettigrew's head off.
"Your- your Sirius and Grace's daughter?" Pettigrew stammered. "Apparently," I snarled. "Well, your so beautiful! Just like Grace! So gorgeous," he said, and moved like he was going to come closer to me, or touch me, but Black jumped forward and pulled him back.
" If you touch her, or mention Grace again, I will kill you," Black growled threateningly.
Pettigrew stared at Lupin with wide, terrified eyes. "You've got to help me, Remus..." he whispered.
Black's face looked more skull like then ever before, his eyes wide in their sockets. The anger in his voice about Pettigrew touching me was real enough for the truth to finally settle in for me. Sirius Black was really my father.
But the question still remained. Was he an evil, killing, psychopath?
"No one will try to kill you until we find out a few things," Lupin said calmly. How ironic was that? The werewolf was the one keeping the peace. Well, there;s a first time for everything.
"Find out a few things?" Pettigrew squeaked, looking wildly around the room, and again looking at the door or at the boarded window. "I knew he was coming back for me! I've been waiting for twelve years!" Lupin frowned. "You knew Sirius was going to break out of Azkaban?" he asked. "When no one else ever did before?"
"He's got Dark magic that we can only dream of!" Pettigrew shrieked shrilly. "How else was he meant to get out? I'm sure He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named taught him a few tricks!"
Black started laughing, a high, cold, emotionless laugh. "Voldemort? Teach me treats?" he laughed.
Pettigrew flinched, looking absolutely terrified. This guy was seriously getting on my nerves.
"What? Are you scared to hear your old masters name?" Black sneered. "I don't really blame you, Peter. His lot aren't very happy with you now, are they?" he said, grinning. "I have no idea what you mean, Sirius-" Pettigrew said breathlessly.
"You haven't been hiding from me for twelve years!" Black snapped. "You've been hiding from Voldemort's followers! I heard things in Azkaban, Peter. They all think your dead. Or else you'd have to answer to them. I've heard them screaming all kinds of things in their sleep. To me, it sounds like they think the double-crosser double-crossed them. Voldemort went to James and Lily's house on your information, and thats where he met his downfall. Oh, and not all of Voldemort's followers are in Azkaban. There are plenty of followers out there, pretending they've seen the error of their ways...
"If they ever got wind that you were still alive, Peter."
"Don't know...What your talking about..." Pettigrew was breathing faster and slower then ever before. His entire face was gleaming in sweat. He wiped his face with his sleeve, and looked up at Lupin. "You can't believe... Complete madness, Remus-"
"I do have trouble in understanding why an innocent man would spend twelve years as a rat," said Lupin in a normal voice. "Innocent, but scared!" Pettigrew squealed. "The only reason Voldemort's supporters would be after me would be because I put one of there best spies into Azkaban- Sirius Black!"
Black's face contorted with anger. It was the same look I got when I was angry.
"How dare you!" Black yelled. "Me, a spy for Voldemort? When did I ever sneak around with people who were bigger, stronger, and more powerful then me? But you- I never knew why I didn't suspect you from the start. You always liked being with people who could protect you. It used to be us. Me... Remus... and James."
Pettigrew wiped his face again. He was panting for breath.
"Me? A spy? You must be out of your mind...never... don't know why would-"
"Lily and James only made you Secret-Keeper because I made them!" Sirius hissed so meanly that Pettigrew took a step backwards. "I thought it was a great plan. I knew that Voldemort would think I was the Secret-Keeper... I was James's best friend. Stronger then you were, anyway. He probably wouldn't of even dreamed that we would use a weak, little talented thing like you. It must of been the best moment of your life... Telling Voldemort that you could give him the Potters..."
Hermione took a deep, nervous breath and stepped forward. She said, "Er, Professor Lupin? Can I say something?"
"Of course, Hermione," Lupin said kindly.
"Well, Scabb- this man has been sleeping in Harry's dormitory for three years. If he was working for You-Know-Who, why hasn't he tried to hurt Harry before?"
"There!" Pettigrew yelled shrilly, pointing to Hermione with his maimed hand. "Thank you! You see, Remus? I've never hurt a hair on Harry's head! Why would I want to?"
"This is why," Black said, "Because you never do anything for anyone unless you know what it's in it for you. Voldemort's been gone for twelve years, presumed dead. You weren't going to commit murder right under Albus Dumbledore's nose, were you? You'd want to make sure Voldemort was the biggest bully in the playground before running back to him. Why else would you find a wizard family to take you in? Keeping an ear out for any news, weren't you Peter? Just in case Lord Voldemort returned..."
Pettigrew seemed to have lost the ability to speak. He opened his mouth several times, but nothing came out. About time, his voice was starting to give me a headache. And for once, the normal kind. Not the there's-a-voice-coming-into-your-head-now kind of headache. It was a nice change.
"Er, Mr Black- Sirius?" Hermione said, stepping forward.
Black looked startled, as if being addressed this way was something he wasn't used to, and stared at Hermione as if he'd never seen her.
"If you don't mind me asking...how did you escape from Azkaban? If you didn't use Dark magic?"
"Thank you!" Pettigrew shrieked. Oh for the love of God! Does he ever shut up?
"Exactly!" he went on. "Precisely what I-"
Lupin silenced him with a stern look. Black was looking at Hermione, not as if he was angry at her, but more like he was pondering his answer.
"I'm not sure what I did exactly," he said, looking slightly confused. "I think the only reason I never lost my mind was because I knew I was innocent. While the others in there were screaming nonsense, I was able to keep my mind. Anyway, that wasn't a happy thought, so the Dementors couldn't take it away from me. But it kept me sane and knowing who I am. It helped me keep my powers. So when it all became a bit too much... I would transform in my cell... become a dog. Dementors couldn't see me then.
"They feel their way towards people by reading their emotions. I was less human... less complex, as a dog, so they weren't getting a big enough emotion from me to know I was actually there. But I was still very weak, so weak, too weak too draw them away without a wand...
He swallowed, and stared at Pettigrew. "But then I saw Pettigrew in that picture. And Max. So I knew they were both at Hogwarts, where Harry was. And Pettigrew was perfectly positioned to attack if such a whisper reached his ears about Voldemort..."
Pettigrew was shaking his head, mouthing noiselessly, but he never once took his eyes off Black.
"You see, I had to do something. I was the only one that knew Pettigrew was still alive."
My mind went back to that summer night in the Leaky Cauldron, where me and Harry first heard that Black was after Harry. Mr Weasley saying, `The guards say he's been talking in his sleep. Always the same thing. He's at Hogwarts... He's at Hogwarts..."'
"It was like someone lit a fire in my head. It wasn't a happy thought... It was an obsession, so the Dementors couldn't take it away. But it cleared my mind, and gave me strength. So one night, when they opened the cell door to give me my food, I transformed into a dog and slipped past them. I was thin enough to slip through the bars. I swan as a dog back to mainland, then went north and came to Hogwarts as a dog. I've been living in the Forest since...except for when I go to Quidditch of course. You fly as well as your father, Harry," he said, looking at Harry. Then he turned to me, and said, "And you fly better then I've ever seen anyone fly before."
I smiled at the irony of his words. "Yeah, well, I'm kinda used to flying," I said. As soon as the words left my mouth, I had the burning desire to spread out my wings. But I couldn't do that. Even though I only just met him, I was afraid of the rejection that he would think I was a freak.
"You played Quidditch before school?" Black asked. I shrugged, conscious of my wings tight against my back. "Something like that," I said.
Black looked between me and Harry. "Believe me," he begged. "Please, believe me. I never betrayed James or Lily. Or even Grace, wherever that idea came from."
At long last, I finally believed everything. The desire and desperation in his eyes was enough. Throat too tight too actually say anything, I nodded. Beside me, Harry nodded too.
I had a father.
"NO!" Pettigrew yelled. He feel to his knees, as if I just told him that Erasers were going to rip his face off. Yeah, he sounded that bad. Creepy.
"Sirius, it's me- your old friend- you wouldn't-" Pettigrew said, reaching out to grab onto Black's robes. Black recoiled, and growled "There's enough dirt on my robes without you touching them!"
New Dad=1
Creepy traitor=0
"Remus," Pettigrew squeaked. "You can't believe this! Wouldn't Sirius of told you that he changed the plan?"
"Not if he thought I was a spy," Lupin said calmly. "I assume that's why you never told me, Sirius?" he asked.
"Forgive me, Remus," Black said.
Lupin smiled. "Not at all, Padfoot," he said as he rolled up his sleeves. "If you forgive me for believing you were the spy all these years?"
"Of course," Black said, smiling his first real smile since this whole thing started. "Shall we kill him together?"
"Yes, I think so," Lupin said.
"You wouldn't- you wouldn't-" Pettigrew was whimpering. Then he scampered over to Ron.
"Ron, I've been a good pet-a good friend. You wouldn't let them kill me, Ron. Your on my side, aren't you?"
But Ron was just staring at Pettigrew with the utmost revulsion.
"I let you sleep in my bed!" he said.
Pettigrew turned to Iggy, who was still right beside Ron. "Kind boy... Funny boy... you wouldn't let them kill me..."
"Go rot in hell," Iggy said. Pettigrew turned to face Fang, but Fang just said, "Don't even think about it. Your better off dead."
Pettigrew then turned to me. He crawled over to where I stood, and clasped his hands like he was praying. "Kind, strange girl... Brave girl... You look just like her... Just like your mother... Like Grace... She was a very sweet girl... Please, have mercy..."
Thinking carefully, I gave a well placed, strong side kick right into Pettigrews neck. He fell onto the floor, wheezing and gasping.
Black leaped forward and yelled, "HOW DARE YOU TALK TO HER! HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT GRACE IN FRONT OF HER!"
Pettigrew ignored him, then turned to Harry. Honestly, this guy was not going to stop.
"Harry... You look just like James... He wouldn't want me dead, Harry. He'd have spared me..."
"DON'T TALK ABOUT JAMES TO HIM! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT!" Black was shouting.
"Please... Harry... Max... James and Grace would have shown me mercy... Please!"
Black and Lupin strode forward and grabbed Pettigrew's shoulders, then threw him across the room. He just sat there, twitching and shuddering.
"You sold James and Lily to Voldemort," Black said, shaking with anger. "Do you deny it?"
Pettigrew burst into tears. It was quite pathetic, actually. "Sirius, Sirius, what would you have done? The Dark Lord... you have no idea what powers he has...I was scared... I was never brave like you or the others. I never meant for it to happen. He forced me-"
"DON'T LIE!" Black yelled. "YOU WERE PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE LILY AND JAMES DIED! EVEN BEFORE GRACE AND ME GOT ENGAGED!"
"What was there to be gained by refusing him?" Pettigrew whispered.
"Only innocent lives, Peter!" Lupin shouted.
"You two don't understand!" Pettigrew gasped. "He was going to kill me, Sirius-"
"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" Black yelled. Boy, can he scream. "YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED RATHER THEN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS!"
Black and Lupin stood shoulder to shoulder, wands aimed right at Pettigrew. I was really glad the rest of the flock weren't here. Watching someone die was not something I wanted them seeing.
"Then you should have realized that if Voldemort didn't kill you, then we would- together. Good-bye, Peter."
Hermione covered her face with her hands and faced the wall.
"NO!" Harry yelled, jumping forward. He stood in front of Pettigrew, facing the wands. "You can't kill him," he said. "You can't."
Black and Lupin both staggered, looking confused.
"Harry, this piece of vermin in the reason you haven't got any parents. You heard him. He would rather save himself instead of saving an entire family."
"I know," Harry said. "We'll bring him back to the castle. The Dementors can have him. He can go to Azkaban."
"Thank you, Harry!" Pettigrew said. "Thank you!" He flung his arms around Harry's knees, crying.
"Get off me!" Harry growled. "I'm not doing this for you. I just don't think my dad would have wanted them to become killers for you." He turned around to me, and said, "Or you mom."
Oh, great. Now I feel guilty.
Without saying a word, Black and Lupin stared at each other, then lowered their wands. "Your the only one who can have a real say in this, Harry," Black said. "But just think about what he did."
"I know," Harry said. "He can go to Azkaban."
Pettigrew started wheezing on the floor. I felt happy to see a large, painful looking bruise forming where I kicked him.
"I agree," I said. "If my opinion is important."
"Of course it is," Black said. I smiled, not really thinking about what I was doing.
"Very well," Lupin said. "Stand aside."
Harry hesitated.
"I'm only going to tie him up," Lupin said.
Harry stepped out of the way. Thin ropes shot out of the end of his wand, and tied around Pettigrew. Next minute, he was wriggling around on the floor.
"But, if you transform, Peter," Black said, "We kill you. Do you agree?" Black said, looking at me and Harry.
Together, me and Harry nodded.
"Right," Lupin said, looking at Ron. "Ron, I can't mend bones as fast as Madam Pomfrey so I'll just strap up your leg until we get to the castle."
He went over to Ron, wand out, and tapped Ron's leg with it. Bandages erupted around Ron's leg, strapping it tightly in a splint. Lupin helped him to his feet, keeping a secure arm around him.
"That's better," he said. "Thanks."
"What about him?" Iggy asked, pointing at Snape.
"Can't we just leave him here? He knows the way out," I said. Black barked a laugh, but Lupin said, "We'll take him back with us. There's nothing seriously wrong with him. He's still out cold though. But it's best if we don't revive him until we're back at the castle. We can take him like this," he said, and waved his wand.
It was like invisible strings were tied to Snape's neck and wrists and knees, he was pulled into a standing position, his head lolling against his chest. He hung a few feet in the air, looking like an ugly puppet.
Lupin picked up the Cloak and stuffed it carefully into his pocket.
"Two of us should be tied to this," Black suggested, indicating to Pettigrew.
"I'll do it," Iggy said, stepping forward.
"And me," Fang said.
Black conjured manacles from mid-air, and a few minutes later, Iggy and Fang were strapped to Pettigrew.
I went over to Ron, and put my arm around his shoulders for support, and without a word, he put his hand around my waist for more help. By the look on his face, he had taken the whole Scabbers things as a real insult.
Crookshanks leapt from the bed, then leaded the way out of the door, his bottlebrush tail held high.
I left the room feeling strangely happy, and numb inside.
I had a dad. A real dad.
I left the room smiling.
Hey! Sorry for the wait on this chapter, but I hope you all enjoy it! This is probably the longest chapter I've ever done! Hope it wasn't too long!
Thanks for all the reviews on the last chapter!
Free cookies and butterbeer for everyone that reviews so...
REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!
LoVe YoU gUyS!
-Rach ;)