Chapter 7

November 1, 11:00 AM.

Muggle London was thick with people who didn't care or know one another. Cars honked, people talked, and there never was a quiet moment.

A childish part of Sirius reveled in the chaos he was causing as he ran down a sidewalk. He pushed through a crowd of Muggles, ignoring their angry cries as Peter Pettigrew tried to escape. The rest of him was resisting the urge to send a Reducto in Peter's back and watch his body explode into tiny pieces.

"Police!" Sirius shouted, pushing through the crowd. "Out of the way!"

The crowd parted, and Sirius pointed his wand—which had been Illusioned to look like a baton—at Peter's fleeing back. "Pettigrew! Stop!"

He had gone back to Grimmauld Place and changed out his blood and sweat-stained robes. He had then put on Transfigured clothes that Muggles would normally wear, such as blue jeans and a white t-shirt. He kept his dragon-hide boots, as they were just boots and wouldn't raise many eyebrows.

And now I'm chasing Peter through the streets of London, Sirius thought as Peter turned the corner and went down an alleyway. I've raised many eyebrows already.

Sirius rounded the corner and threw up a Protego as a bright red bolt came hurtling toward him, smashing into his shield.

"You've been holding out on me Peter," Sirius said. He let the Illusion on his wand vanish and aimed at the ground in front of Peter. "Reducto!"

Peter's eyes widened, but he said nothing and jumped, turning himself sideways and transforming into his Animagus form as a rat. The Reducto hit a few feet in front of where he had been standing, but Peter had managed to avoid the spell.

But he couldn't avoid the resulting explosion, and Peter was thrown forward, hurtling head over tail. Just before he hit the ground, he transformed back, landing on one knee a few feet in front of Sirius. He then rolled to avoid a second, less explosive Reducto.

He transformed into a rat again, but this time Sirius was ready.

"Accio!"

Peter flew into Sirius hand, and he began to squeeze. Peter squeaked as his bones began crack and pop, but Sirius kept squeezing. "I don't care if you're crippled," Sirius hissed, raising the rat higher so he could look him in his beady brown eyes. "You're going through the Veil if I have to hurl you through it myself."

Peter squeaked again, louder and more desperate as he began to struggle. Sirius kept squeezing, snarling at Peter. He was the one had destroyed his brother in all but blood and Lily, who he had eventually come to see as a sister. That wasn't even mentioning little Harry, who was now without his parents. My godson, now. My charge and mine to protect.

Peter stopped thrashing and bit Sirius, and instinctively his hand opened. Peter fell to the ground and transformed, pulling his wand out of his pocket. "I… won't… go to Azkaban," Peter huffed. He got to his feet and batted away a curse from Sirius. He stumbled while still parrying and shielding Sirius' spells until he managed to twist and apparate away.

Sirius whirled, snarling as screams sounded behind him. He ran out of the alleyway and onto the sidewalk. Peter was surreptitiously waving his wand that was hidden underneath his robe sleeve, making the car come to a complete stop.

"Stop him!" Sirius shouted. He changed a pebble into another baton and Accio-ed it into his hand. He waved it over his head. "That man is a murderer who's trying to escape justice! Don't let him get away!"

A Muggle ran forward, a bulky man who looked like he played Rugby or some other Muggle sport. He tried to tackle Peter, but Peter instead stabbed forward with his wand. Sirius watched Peter's lips moved and the Muggle fell back, bleeding heavily. The crowds screamed again and began to run, leaving the Muggle to die in the middle of road.

"No!" Sirius snarled. He began shoving through the crowd. "Out of my way! Police!"

The crowds parted just enough to let Sirius through. He was on Peter's tail again. Peter ran down a road and into what seemed like a main street, with even more traffic and Muggles to potentially worry about.

"Stop!" Sirius shouted again, and miraculously Peter listened, turning around to face him. There were a dozen people behind him, and he was aiming his wand back at them. Sirius narrowed his eyes. He's taking hostages now, in the middle of Muggle London? Why?

"Surrender, Pettigrew," Sirius said, stepping forward. He cast an Illusion so that he looked more the part of a Muggle Auror, complete with their blue uniform and funny hat. "The Au—Police on their way. Give up!"

"Lily and James, Sirius!" Peter shouted. He held a knife in one hand and his wand in the other. Tears were running down his face again and Sirius stepped back, confused. "How could you?!"

Sirius watched, numb as Peter's tear-streaked face and trembling lips morphed into the beginnings of a sneer. He then snarled, silently casting the most powerful Reducto that Sirius had ever seen anyone cast. Normally white tinged with grey, the spell was now pure white. It slammed into the ground behind Peter with such force that Sirius was thrown off his feet.

There were more screams as Sirius hit the ground hard, smacking his head. His Illusion faded, and he could only groan and shield his face as more explosions rocked the world around him. Oblivion called, and Sirius wanted desperately to answer it. He didn't, as the thought of abandoning Harry made Sirius groan and push himself to one knee.

It was a massacre. The dozen Muggles Sirius had seen were completely gone, only bloodstains showing that they had existed. Sirius blinked rapidly, trying to clear his bleary gaze until he saw a small figure running toward the sewers at the side of the road. It was a brown rat that looked remarkably like Peter Pettigrew's Animagus form. The rat was missing a finger, which was on the ground in front of him. Everyone would think Peter was dead, and Sirius the betrayer of Lily and James along with the murderer of the Muggles.

Little Peter just pranked me, Sirius thought in disbelief. It's a prank worth of a Marauder.

Sirius began to laugh and found that he couldn't stop. He laughed, even as the cracks of apparition sounded and Aurors began to surround him. "We have him," a voice said near Sirius. "We have the traitor."

"I killed them," Sirius said, still laughing as tears ran down his cheeks. I made James choose Peter as the Secret Keeper. "I killed James and Lily. I killed them."

"Yes you did," the voice replied tersely. "You murdered the Potters."

Sirius didn't respond. He just kept laughing at the irony of it. Peter Pettigrew had finally pulled a prank and framed him while doing so! If it had been any other situation Sirius would have felt proud, but instead he only felt self-hatred at his own stupidity for trusting someone so weak.

"I killed them," Sirius gasped, shaking off hands that were gripping his shoulders. "I killed James and Lily. They're dead because of me."

"We're not going to get anything out of him," the voice said again. "Stun him."

Immediately, Sirius saw a flash of red in the corner of his eyes. I'm sorry James, Sirius thought, and then surrendered to oblivion as the Stunner struck him. I'm sorry.