Watery eyes flew about the room as I stood there, holding onto Harry, staring at him. Pettigrew was small and nervous looking but just as unkempt as the other two Marauders. Ron was now silent, Hermione was hiding her open mouth behind her hand whilst the rest of us glared at him. "Well hello, Peter." Lupin said with false pleasantness which made the ratty little man jolt. "Long time no see."
"S-Sirius…R-Remus…my friends…my old friends…" Chattering and sniffling like he were still a rat, shivering in place as Lupin stopped Black from raising his wand to him.
"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 earlier." Lupin began but Pettigrew hurried to try and speak for himself, his shrill, quivering voice insisting that Black had tried to kill him. "So I've heard. I'd like to clear up one or two little matters with you, Peter, if you'd be so…"
"He's come to try and kill me again!" Pettigrew howled, pointing with the finger that was partly missing. "He killed Lily and James, and now he's going to kill me too, you've got to help me Remus…"
"And yet, you're still breathing." I noted aloud, making those watery eyes snap to me quickly. "Which I can't guarantee will last forever, unless you start coughing up the truth and get to the point. I've been standing in this dusty wreck of a house for a good long while now, and my temper isn't going to stay in check for long." Lifting my wand quickly, I pointed it directly at his nose. "So start talking."
"I cannot, he will kill me!"
"No one's going to try and kill you until we've sorted a few things out." Lupin responded smoothly but Pettigrew continued to insist that Black was here to murder him, which I couldn't really blame him for at this point, and that he'd been waiting for twelve years for this day to come. "You knew Sirius was going to break out of Azkaban? When nobody has ever done it before?"
"He's got Dark powers the rest of us can only dream of! How else did he get out of there? I suppose He Who Must Not Be Named taught him a few tricks!"
"Voldemort, teach me tricks?" Black laughed snidely and Pettigrew flinched away from him. "What, scared to hear your old master's name? I don't blame you, Peter. His lot aren't very happy with you, are they?" Pettigrew whimpered as Black then continued, snarling at him sharply. "You haven't been hiding from me for twelve years, 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 Potter's 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…if they ever got wind that you were still alive, Peter…"
This was the longest that Black had ever spoken for, launching into his tirade as he positively trembled with rage as his bloodthirsty look in his eye gleamed as Pettigrew continued to whimper. "Don't know…what you're talking about…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." Lupin replied curtly and Pettigrew floundered, seeing that he was outnumbered and clearly losing any defence he might have had before.
"Innocent, but scared! If Voldemort's supporters were after me, it was because I put one of their best men in Azkaban – the spy, Sirius Black!" Black was completely outraged at the thought of him spying for Voldemort – I might as well start saying his name now, everyone else seemed to – and made his displeasure known.
"How dare you? 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…" It was then that I had decided that I believed Black and Lupin. The crack in his voice, sheer proof of how much he'd loved James and that kind of feeling would never be tempted by betrayal. He was telling the truth, which meant Pettigrew really was a dirty great rat. "Lily and James made you Secret Keeper because I suggested it, 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."
A brief silence followed, the only sound coming from Pettigrew in his pathetic mewling until Hermione spoke up. "Professor Lupin? Can…can I say something?" Giving her free reign, Hermione blushed slightly as she continued. "Well, Scabbers – I mean, 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?"
"Cowardice, I'd bet." I spoke up immediately even as Pettigrew started to brighten, smiling toothily at Hermione who quickly hid her face again. "Wouldn't dream of hurting Harry with Dumbledore around, especially if there was no benefit to him. I bet you were happy with your tidy little life, living as a pet, perfectly comfortable and well looked after, safe from…from Voldemort and his followers." Ron gaped at me as I used the name but ploughed on confidently. "Why would you risk it all for a petty revenge when there was no guarantee you'd reap any reward from it? It was safer to just stay hidden, so that's why you never hurt Harry."
"That's my girl." Black said proudly and without meaning to, I blushed slightly, rather pleased that I'd earned his approval. "She's got you figured out down to the letter, Peter. Bet you forgot all about my little girl, didn't you? Sharp as a knife, she is. You won't be fooling anyone here tonight." Tentatively, Hermione then asked Black how he had escaped Azkaban, though he was at first surprised that she talked directly to him. "I don't know how I did it. I think the only reason I never lost my mind is that I knew I was innocent." He began slowly, thinking with a furrowed brow. "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. They feel their way towards people by sensing 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."
He then looked back to the newspaper article, now completely forgotten in Lupin's hand. "But then I saw Peter in that picture, I realised he was at Hogwarts with Harry, perfectly positioned to act, if one hint reached his ears that the Dark Side was gathering strength again, ready to strike the moment he could be sure of allies, 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." Chest tightening at the realisation, my hand naturally reached for Harry again, anchoring my grasp onto his shoulder. "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 thing, thin enough to slip between the bars. I swam as a dog back to the mainland, I journeyed north and slipped into the Hogwarts grounds as a dog…"
"Grim. You really were my Grim." I said to him and he stopped to smile at me.
"I couldn't help myself, I had to see you, Mia. You've grown into such a splendid, beautiful young woman. I could tell instantly you were mine, you look so much like me after all…and you were so kind. Giving me food, telling me you were going to look after me…it took everything I had not to change back in front of you just to hug you, but I couldn't. I came rarely to see you, to see you both. Of course I watched your quidditch matches. You both fly spectacularly. Harry, you fly as well as your father did…and Mia, I could hardly believe it when you leaped off your own broom to rescue Harry..." He said, the thick beads of emotion manifesting in glimmering tears as he nearly choked on them. "Believe me. Believe me, I never betrayed James and Lily. I would have died before I betrayed them." He was looking at the both of us imploringly, waiting to see our decision. Mine was already made, and after sharing a long look at Harry, we then both nodded at him.
Pettigrew wailed, dropping onto his knees and started to beg. First Black, but he kicked at him to make him keep away, then Remus, trying to reason with him that Sirius would have told him if the plan had changed but Lupin just looked at him grimly. "Not if he thought I was the spy, Peter. I assume that's why you didn't tell me, Sirius?" Lupin asked rather calmly, as if nonplussed by the situation.
"Forgive me, Remus."
"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend." Pure joy broke through Black's face, relief sweeping through him and for a moment, I thought he might faint from it. "And will you, in turn, forgive me for believing you were the spy?"
"Of course." Rolling up his sleeves, all attention returned to Pettigrew who'd resumed snivelling and whimpering on the floor. "Shall we kill him together?" Wait, what?
"Yes, I think so."
"No wait, hold on a moment!" I interrupted, making them both look at me as I flung out my hands from my head as if saying they were out of their minds. "What's the matter with you?! We have kids present! You're really going to kill a man right in front of them? Honestly, I'd expect better at least from you, professor." I scolded them as Pettigrew started to cry obscenely.
"Thank you, thank you dear girl…Ron, haven't I been a good friend? A good pet?" Pettigrew started on us, turning to Ron to try and seek his help as he chattered his teeth from fear. "You won't let them kill me, Ron, will you…you're on my side, aren't you?" But Ron looked like he was about to vomit.
"I let you sleep in my bed!" I don't blame him for feeling ill, to be honest. I'd probably feel the same way. Pettigrew continued to beg, pawing at Ron but he pulled himself out of reach so Pettigrew then turned to Hermione, who also retreated from him. Growing desperate, he then turned towards Harry and the moment he looked at him, I raised my wand and moved in front of him as he whispered.
"Harry…Harry…you look just like your father…just like him…" Roaring fiercely, Black admonished Pettigrew for speaking to Harry and mentioning his parents in front of him as he started to fumble at my feet. "Dear Mia, lovely Mia…I would have been like an uncle to you…you can't let them kill me…please!" That seemed to be the final straw for Black, who lunged across the room for Pettigrew but Lupin caught him, holding him back as I touched the tip of my wand under Pettigrew's chin, forcing him to rise to his knees and look at me as I peered down at him. Black settled a little, as if his curiosity to see what I would do outweighed his fury. "Please…please…"
"Because of you, Harry never knew his parents, and I grew up without my real dad. I grew up with everyone but me knowing who he was, and my family all ostracised me for it. I was the daughter of a murderer, in their eyes, when the truth was it had been you all along." I told him coldly, my voice even making my own spine tingle from the frostiness it possessed. "Don't you ever speak my name again. Or Harry's, for that matter." Now drawing back, I looked to Harry who seemed to still be processing everything. "What do you want to do, Harry? I'd say you've got as much right as anyone here to have a say."
"We'll…" Stopping for a moment, Harry finalised his thoughts before continuing and, to my surprise, he placed his hand on my shoulder. Whether to calm me down or to support himself, I wasn't sure, but all the same I reached up and gave his fingers a squeeze to reassure him that I was on his side as we exchanged a look. "We'll take him up to the castle. We'll hand him over to the dementors. He can go to Azkaban, just don't kill him." Black started to protest but Lupin silenced him as Pettigrew practically threw himself at our feet.
"Harry! Thank you! It's more than I deserve, I know…"
"So you're admitting you deserve it?" I broke in and with a gasp, Pettigrew only then realised his mistake. "This is perfect. We'll head on up now, in that case, where you can tell everything to Dumbledore and we can get the history books rectified. What an extraordinary night, and here I was planning to just have dinner and go to bed. This is far better." I said sarcastically, clicking my tongue and flicking my wand to signal for Pettigrew to get up. He winced, whimpering again as he did so but tried to paw at Harry, begging him to show mercy.
"Get off me." Drawing himself away, Harry shot him a dark look. "I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it because I don't reckon my dad would've wanted his best friends to become killers just for you."
"Too right, Harry." I agreed and at the same time, we both raised our wands to point at Pettigrew, standing side by side with our hands on each other's shoulders. Being left handed, it was easily done. "Besides, if you die now, who's going to clear – ahem – my father's name? The least you can do to start atoning for all this is set him free." The look in Black's, and even Lupin's faces was priceless. They were glowing, even with the smallest of smiles as they looked at Harry and me, and for a moment I allowed myself to wonder how it could have all been different.
If Pettigrew had never betrayed the Potters, Harry and I could have grown up together, maybe even close as siblings. I would have had uncles and an aunt, people to visit during the holidays and write to other than my mother during school. Dear Merlin, my mother. What's she going to say about all this? I have so many questions. Were she and Black married? How did they meet? What happened? Did they love each other? Whilst I was thinking, Lupin and Black had agreed to Harry's decision and next thing I knew, Pettigrew was on the floor and wriggling against the bonds that Lupin had cast around him.
"But if you transform, Peter, we will kill you. You agree, Harry?" Considering for a moment, Harry made sure Pettigrew was looking at him before he nodded. Lupin was now trying to strap up Ron's leg so I went over to help, touching Lupin's arm lightly.
"Let me help." Focusing on the leg, I poked it with my wand for a bit before frowning. "I can reset it, but it'll hurt like a damn, Ron. What do you think?" He whimpered at me, looking like he'd very much like to just not have a broken leg in the first place so I gave him a wry smile. "I either reset it or you lose it. Simple choice really. Maybe you should bite down on something, it's going to be so painful. You'll probably faint. In fact, I think I might just save you the trouble and chop it off anyway…" As I talked, I had already cast a numbing spell on Ron as he stared at me then with a simple flick, the bone snapped back into place. "And we're done. Now we can strap it."
"Wait, what?"
"I was only messing with you Ronald. Don't worry, you won't be losing any legs today." Behind me I heard Black chuckle as I helped make a support for Ron's leg so that it wouldn't become further agitated as Hermione pointed out that we had to do something about Snape. "Can't we just leave him here? The prat deserves it really."
"Mia!" Hermione gasped so I shrugged, pushing my curls back from my face as Lupin went to check on Snape next. Eventually we were all decided on what was happening. Lupin levitated Snape and picked up Harry's invisibility cloak as I helped Hermione move Ron, who had offered to be chained to Pettigrew along with Lupin to keep him from trying to pull a disappearing act. So, once all was properly chained and levitated, we started to make our way back out of the Shrieking Shack, the oddest party of people I could have ever imagined to be thrown together.
