I opened my eyes. Sirius was kneeling over me, shaking me gently. "Laura! Can you hear me?" he asked urgently. I nodded faintly and groaned. "What happened?" He caressed my face, leaning over to kiss me.

"Shit," I moaned. "Snape hit me with a spell. Don't know what his problem is." I gingerly tried to sit up as he helped me.

"Snape?" He spat the name with venom. "The bastard's unconscious now. When he wakes up, though, I'll fix him for you." A look of utter hatred crossed his face, but then he smiled broadly, remembering something. "Laura, we got him!" His arm supported me as I sat up.

The words registered with me just as Pettigrew was being led out of the hole, flanked by Lupin and Ron, with an injured leg. I winced when I saw it, realizing that Sirius had most likely been the one to do that. I'd heard the crack as he had taken him into the hollow of the tree earlier. I regarded Pettigrew for a moment. He looked a lot like the rat he had been pretending to be. A slight, milquetoast kind of a man who was moaning pitifully as he was forced out of the tree's hole, I decided that, though I despised Snape, Sirius had given the nickname Snivellus to the wrong person.

Lupin and the injured boy, Ron, kept moving in a halting manner with Pettigrew attached to them. Harry and Hermione had exited with Sirius and were standing close by watching Sirius with me while keeping an eye on Pettigrew at the same time. Sirius helped me to stand and put an arm around me, and I kissed him in celebration of the rat's capture. He took my face in his hands, kissing me again with the biggest smile I had seen in quite a while.

"Laura, go on to the castle," he said. "You need to be checked out by Pomfrey to be sure Snape didn't hurt the baby."

"I can't leave! I want to wait on you," I said stubbornly. His hand was still on my face, and he stroked it softly.

"We'll be alright. You go on, darling. Get yourself checked out." He kissed me again. Very reluctantly, I walked off, looking back at everyone still standing under the immobile branches of the Whomping Willow. Then, I turned around. I had forgotten something important.

"Sirius," I called. He looked back my way. "I love you."

"I love you, Laura." I could hear the joy in his voice.

I turned and trudged back up the hill toward the castle.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Later, I reclined in a hospital bed, sipping water, impatient for Sirius and the others to return. Damn. It was growing very late, and I hadn't heard a word from anyone. Madame Pomfrey had looked me over and declared that I just needed to rest for a while, but all I wanted to do was get up and go find Sirius. Surely nothing had gone wrong. I hoped.

After what seemed like forever, the doors to the infirmary opened, and the prostrate forms of Harry, Ron and Hermione were summoned by magic into the room. Snape held his wand as he walked behind them, and Madame Pomfrey rushed over to see what had happened.

"Oh dear! What on earth-" She sputtered. Snape looked over at me with a malevolent glare and ignored her.

"Cornelius Fudge is here. I'm sure he would like to speak to you." Then he turned to Madame Pomfrey. "They've been affected by dementors," he said emotionlessly. He turned to leave. Harry and his friends were still unconscious as he departed, leaving them lying supine in mid-air.

"Just a minute!" I yelled. He paused ever so slightly, barely tilting his head back in my direction. "Where's Sirius? Where's Pettigrew?" I demanded. I was growing desperate.

"Peter Pettigrew, as you well know, has been dead for years. Don't bother pretending otherwise. As for Sirius Black, he awaits the dementors' kiss in another part of the castle. You may not be far behind him," he added with obvious pleasure. "Maybe they'll kiss both of you together. Wouldn't that be romantic?" Then he turned and walked out, closing the door behind him.

I turned in a panic to Pomfrey, who was staring at me in confusion. "You're Sirius Black's wife, aren't you? Dear Merlin, that's his child, isn't it?" These facts were hitting her all at once, and she clearly didn't know what to think. Then, she pulled herself together and remembered the students floating in air who were still out cold. I slumped back down on the bed with my head in my hands.

After Pomfrey had attended to the kids, they slowly began to regain consciousness. Hermione awoke first, then Harry.

"Harry," I said urgently, after he had pulled himself together. "What happened?!"

"Pettigrew got away. Lupin transformed into a werewolf. Everything went ... all to hell after that. He transformed back into a rat and scurried off down the hill," he said sadly. "Sirius was injured trying to keep Lupin from hurting us. Then he disappeared. I followed him down to the lake, but the dementors had beat me to him."

I choked a sob. But before I said anything, he continued. "But I think ... well, someone showed up and cast a patronus. It drove the dementors away. They didn't get him. But I passed out, and next thing I knew, we were here."

By now, I could hear voices outside. Snape and Fudge. They opened the door and walked in. Harry and Hermione immediately began to sit up and argue with them. I saw Fudge look in my direction with a triumphant smile.

"Well, Mrs. Black, Severus here tells me he has irrevocable proof that you are aligned with Sirius Black and providing aid to him. Of course, I knew it all along," he added smugly. I sat there in a daze, not bothering to respond.

At that moment, the headmaster opened the door and strode in. Harry tried to tell him what had happened, but Fudge, damn him, kept interrupting. Finally, Dumbledore convinced them to leave. He then turned and looked at me questioningly. I could only say, "Listen to Harry. He's right." I knew it was hopeless now. "I just want to see Sirius one more time."

Instead of answering me, though, Dumbledore looked at Hermione. "What we need ... is more time."

Yeah, I though sarcastically. That would be really nice.

But Hermione had a thoughtful look on her face. She pulled out a long, odd looking necklace from under her blouse. Dumbledore began issuing instructions to her in a low urgent voice. I interrupted.

"Excuse me, what the hell are you doing?"

Dumbledore looked at me. "I am sending them back to attempt to change the outcome. The ultimate goal being to save Sirius."

"Well, I want to go, too!" I said, standing up quickly.

"Laura, I'm afraid that in your, um, condition -" he started to say, looking at my stomach.

"Well, screw my condition! I'm getting the damn rat! I'm sick and tired of that little shit ruining my husband's life!"

"Laura, I really don't think -" he began again. This time he was interrupted by Harry.

"Professor, I think she should go," he said. I shot him a grateful look, and he gave me a ghost of a smile. "We won't be able to go after Pettigrew, but maybe she can. I can tell her where he transformed. What do you think?"

The professor seemed resigned. "I'm worried about her pregnancy. I wouldn't want to risk anything happening to the baby. But," he added with a nod in my direction, "that decision is not mine to make."

"I'm going," I said. "Tell me what I need to know."