The beginning of summer term came peacefully - after a day of regular classes including DADA, which Longbaugh had drawn the short straw on yet again to replace an otherwise incapacitated former teacher, the Hammer took some time to himself to re-read the day's newspapers up in his office. He couldn't keep the smile off of his face looking at the headline:

"BOY WHO LIVED CRACKS SCHOOL ATTACK CASE" with a smaller front page article titled, "DISGRACED CELEBRITY WIZARD ARRESTED FOR MEMORY CRIMES, ALLEGATIONS OF SEXUAL ABUSE"

The Prophet hadn't done much different from their normal muck-raking, so he felt like Hermione and Neville hadn't had their proper credit to their involvement with the year's events - but the Wizarding World News had given them a paragraph amidst the sensationalism. The Hammer had ordered an extra two copies to send home to his mum and dad. In a little fourth page article buried inside the Prophet, there had been an announcement that Lucius Malfoy had been sacked from the board of governors to the school. It was a good news day all around.

Harry folded up the papers and began taking down the slips of paper on the thought board, putting them away into a folder labelled "Serpent's Shadow" before filing it into the cabinet. There were still some loose ends he'd want to deal with before the year was out. He had replaced the 'V' sheet with a new one that read 'Tom Deadman'. He thought it was clever enough.

Unfolding the Marauder's map from his pocket, he turned it on and began to pore over the entire spread on his desk, looking from name to name to endless name yet again. Up in the Gryffindor dormitories, he caught sight of one labeled quite clearly, "Peter Pet-" before it disappeared behind something again. There was no mistaking it. A knock at his door pulled the Hammer's attention away from the map.

"Hello, Hammer! Quite a nice place you've found."

"Very moody, I rather like it. Ron was right."

Fred and George had shown up as per his earlier invitation.

"So what is it you wanted to see us about? More rubber chickens? A few whizz-bangs or two?"

"No, something a little strange you two might be able to help me with." Harry opened his door wide and let them into the office, a hand sweeping to indicate the Marauder's map.

"Something wrong with it?" Fred peered over the map, looking at the secret passages.

"Everything looks to be in order." George nodded sagely, tracing the outlines.

"This, right here." Harry pointed a finger into the Gryffindor dorms where he had seen the name. "I saw a name for someone who might be 'Peter Pettigrew'. Does that ring any bells for you two?"

The twins looked between each other and shook their heads.

"Where is this, anyway?" The Hammer asked.

"Looks about where Ron's bed is, actually." George said.

"About right, about right. Why's this got you in such a twist?"

"Listen, I don't expect you to believe me-"

"Hammer, you dusted a professor last year and not a full month ago you saved our sister from a dirty great snake and You-Know-Who. Even if we didn't trust everything you had to say, we owe you for that much."

"But we do trust you. Or at least we'll follow your hunch."

The Hammer nodded, "I appreciate it. I want to know who else might be in that part of the dorm."

"I can't imagine anyone else would want to share Ron's bed except for maybe his pet rat."

"That old beat up one he's had since last year? I remember it from the Hogwarts Express."

"Oh, he's had it longer than that."

"By a lot? Like three or four?"

"Er- now that you mention it, Scabber's been around…"

Fred started thinking back, counting on his fingers. "Going on past ten…"

George looked at him with an eyebrow raised, "has it been that long? He's catching up to Errol at this rate."

"You two think you could bring it to me here? In a cage?"

There was a moment of silence as the twins stared at Harry, trying to figure out what it was he was on about.

"I mean - we can steal Scabbers for you, no problem, Hammer."

"It's just a wee bit strange." they both nodded.

"It might have to do with a case I'm working on," The Hammer said, "if it's nothing then Ron'll get him right back, no harm no foul."

"What're you planning on doing with Scabbers?"

"Well, I figure if I can see him on the map, then that's a start. I just need to ask it some questions, do a couple tests - see if there's anything suspicious. Believe it or not, this might connect right back to Tom."

"Who?"

"That's Voldemort's old name."

Fred put his hand over his heart, "Please, Hammer. Y'don't need to go waving the He-who-musn't-be-named flag all the time."

"Will you do it?"

"Sure Hammer, sure. Give us some time, yeah? We'll have him up here for you maybe tomorrow once we can distract Ron."

The Twins were good to their word. They came by the next day with the rat in its travel cage and set it down on the Hammer's desk.

"How long has it been missing a toe?" Harry asked them as he spun the cage to look it over. The rat sat staring at him with beady little eyes, whiskers twitching in animal pensiveness.

"Honestly, can't remember. Might've gotten into a scuffle in the garden when we were but wee tots." George waxed poetic.

"Well, if you don't mind, keep Ron distracted while I do my thing, would you?" Harry asked, "and probably Hermione too, if she asks about it. She'll probably be livid I'm messing with people's pets."

The twins gave him overblown salutes and spun around, marching out the door with grins on their faces, leaving Harry alone with a caged garden rat.

Harry leaned down next to the cage, examining the animal. It did look a little old and it felt like the only notable thing about it was that it was missing one of its toes. He grumbled as the rat sank back on its haunches, cleaning itself like it had nothing to do and nowhere to go.

Harry threw a cloth over its cage, resulting in protesting squeaks, before laying out the Marauder's map. If there was a way to get proper identification on it, he could start there. Searching through the map, he slapped a hand to his forehead. The office wasn't listed in the diagram so there would be no way for him to know or see who he had in there with him. He decided to move his operation somewhere he knew wouldn't be invaded by prying eyes.

Myrtle's bathroom was mostly silent save for her usual weeping.

"Oh! Harry, come to visit?" She perked up as soon as he slipped in, closing the door as quietly as he could.

"Just here to do some work, you don't mind, do you, Myrtle?" He asked, tipping his hat to her.

"I don't kiss and tell." She said with a mischievous grin on her face.

The Hammer set the covered cage down on the floor before stepping back a few paces and unfurling the map, whispering, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good." and tapping his wand to it. The picture came in with the usual theatrics and the Hammer found the room he was looking for. His own name hovered next to a black dot, flanked on the far side by Myrtle's. In the middle, one labeled 'Peter Pettigrew' did small circles inside the cage. Harry waved his hand to Myrtle, calling her over.

She did a slow, lazy arc until her ghostly head was looking curiously over his shoulder. "What is it?" She asked. Harry pointed at the spot on the map, "I think I just found what I was looking for, sweetheart."

Harry folded it up and put the map away again before kneeling down next to the cage and whipping the cloth off. The rodent inside gave a surprised squeak at the sudden light, spinning around the cage trying to figure out where it was before calming down and cleaning itself with nervous twitches of its whiskered nose, one eye looking at Harry's staring face.

"Hello, Peter." Harry said. The rat paused a moment too long before going back to scratching itself.

"So I'm going to guess, Scabbers, Peter, whoever you are, that you're not what Ron or the rest of the Weasleys think you are. You've got one chance to come clean." Harry glowered at it.

The rat continued to be a rat and chittered to itself in the cage, idly scratching and cleaning. The Hammer picked up the cage and brought it to his eye level.

"Tell you what: I'm going to dunk you in water. At first it'll be for one second. It'll be a second longer every time after that. Let's see how long you can keep playing at this."

"What are you doing, Harry?" Myrtle asked as the Hammer crossed to one of the stalls. The rat squeaked in panic as its cage swayed with Harry's rough handling.

"Finding out the truth." Harry said, lifting up the toilet seat and plunging the cage down into the water. He lifted it up and the rat began to squeal, its fur waterlogged, running about in its confines in a panic. The Hammer dunked it again, counting to two out loud before pulling it back out. He let the rat catch its breath and continue tiring itself out running futile laps in its cage before shoving it harshly back down and counting to three. When he had reached ten seconds under water, the Hammer left the cage in the bowl and pulled on the flush chain. Once the water level had fallen, squeaking and squealing echoed off the bathroom tiles, Harry lifting the cage back out and yelling, "You're only making it harder on yourself!" before plunging it back in.

The exterior door to the bathroom slammed open and two sets of footsteps came running to the stall he was in, two sets of hands dragged him away from the toilet bowl and caused him to drop the cage to the floor.

"Harry, what are you doing?" Hermione yelled.

"Are you mental, mate? That's my rat!" Ron yelled at the same time.

"Harry! This is animal abuse!" Hermione continued, fighting him as he tried to make his way back over to the cage. Ron lifted it up and the rodent came up to the bars, little paws reaching out toward a more familiar face.

"Leave it in the cage, Ron!" Harry yelled, "he's not what you think!"

"What are you on about? Why were you trying to drown my pet rat?"

The Hammer finally stopped struggling so hard and brushed off Hermione's grasp when she relented and stood up, straightening his clothes.

"He's a dirty fink, Ron! Gimme another ten minutes with him and I'll prove it to you!"

"Another ten minutes with you and I'll have to buy a new rat!"

"Harry!" Hermione tugged on his arm, "Just slow down and explain - what are you trying to do here?"

"Oh, the rat isn't just a rat," Myrtle drifted out of one of the adjacent stalls and hovered toward Ron, who leaned away from her, "The map said he was Peter." Scabbers squealed desperately from inside the cage as Myrtle poked at it through the bars.

"Peter?" Hermione asked, "Peter Pettigrew?"

"Yeah, that's' the one." Harry said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"We can take him to Professor McGonagall. She's the transfiguration teacher and an animagus." Hermione offered, extending a hand to Ron for the cage.

"You're just mental! The both of you! What's Scabbers got to do with Peter what's-his-name?"

Hermione didn't say anything, merely leaving her hand extended, giving Ron a level stare. Harry looked at the floor tiles, both hands in his pockets.

Ron hesitated, looking back at the caged rat. "It doesn't make any sense!"

"People can turn into animals, Ron. That's something every wizard knows, right?" Harry asked, still not looking at Ron.

"I-" Ron sputtered

"We don't want to hurt him. We just want to know if he's the pet you think he is." Hermione said.

Ron looked at the rat, then at the two investigators, "How'd you even figure that?"

"Fred and George trusted me." Harry said, finally looking up at Ron, "I saved Ginny on a wild hunch. I beat Tom last year on a wild hunch. Will you let me find out if your rat is what you think he is?"

The little rat did panic circles in its cage, throwing itself against the bars. Ron still had a disbelieving look on his face. He looked down at Scabbers, who had stopped and looked like it was pleading with Ron with its rodent expression.

"Only-" Ron clenched his eyes shut, "Only if we take him to a Professor. I don't want you to hurt Scabbers anymore."

"That's all I want to do." Hermione said.

Ron gave her the cage and the rat gave a long, wailing squeal.

Professor McGonagall didn't know what to make of the situation,

"Are you saying, Mr. Mason, that Mr. Weasley's rat is not only an animagus, but also possibly a missing person previously believed to have been murdered?"

"That about sums it up." Harry said.

"That is a very serious and far-fetched accusation." She said.

"Just mental is all it is." Ron sulked, "nicking my pet and shoving it in the loo."

McGonagall sighed. "If it were anyone else I would be deducting house points and assigning detention - but given the events of this year…"

"And last." Harry added.

"... and last." Professor McGonagall conceded, begrudgingly, "I believe the correct answer may be to take this to the headmaster."

The rat practically exploded in panic, slamming itself against the bars of its cage with a renewed fervour, gnawing at them and squealing, the change in balance almost wringing the whole works out of Hermione's grip.

"That basically proves it!" Harry pointed at the cage.

"Patience, Mister Mason. We'll see soon." She led the group out of her office and to the headmaster's gargoyle - 'Chocolate Toffee' was the new password.

The Chief looked up from his desk with a twinkle in his eye when he saw Harry, Hermione, and Ron striding in behind Professor McGonagall.

"Why, Harry, what is it you've brought me this time?"

"Chief, this is the stuff that dreams are made of."