Chapter 31

It was October and the quidditch season had began. Harry and I started training sessions three times a week. With all the quidditch and homework, we barely had time to meet up in the Room of Requirement to practice becoming animagi. We did find the time to meet up once a week though.

We were all very close to finishing. I was going through the last stages. They did however, prove to be the most difficult. I was so close to changing completely. My head had a different shape and colour but it hadn't quite got there yet. For some reason I just couldn't complete it.

The others were at different stages in the transformation. Hermione had actually done it. She was a beautiful barn owl. Neville however, was half way through transforming his body. Harry and Ron were both somewhere in between.

The trip to Hogsmeade was also coming up and everyone was in high spirits. Except for Harry. Harry tried to ask McGonagall to sign his permission form but she refused. I talked to Remus while he was doing that. "I can bring you pettigrew on Halloween morning." I had told him. "Ron will be too excited about Hogsmeade to notice. Then you can take him to the ministry and prove Sirius's innocence.

"Good plan." He told me in approval. "I'll be in my office waiting for you."

...

So Halloween morning, I got up early and snuck down the stairs. I quietly crept up the boy's stairs and into Harry's dorm room. I found Ron's rat sleeping by his head. I cast a silencing charm on the rat (just in case), before wordlessly stunning him. I picked him up and put him in the cage Remus had given me. He had told me it was charmed to stop Pettigrew from changing.

I walked down the corridors to Lupins office. He was waiting for me at his desk like he promised. I gave him the rat and he flooed out of Hogwarts. Once he was gone I quietly made my way back to Gryffindor tower and waited in the common room for everyone to wake up.

...

We were all lined up and ready to go. McGonagall came down the line and took our permission slips. I handed Professor McGonagall my permission slip. She looked at it and stopped. "You have signed this Miss Rogers." She said. There was some sniggering but I ignored it.

"Well as I have no parents or legal guardians, I am in charge of myself Professor." I explained. She didn't say anything she just moved on down the line. Few. I was worried I would have to get Dumbledore to sign it and I didn't really want to go near him at the moment.

We all climbed in carriages and they carried us down the path to Hogsmeade. It didn't take long for us to arrive and we all climbed out. First, Neville, Ron, Hermione and I went to Honeydukes. We bought mountains of sweets both for ourselves and Harry.

After that, we were walking over to Zonko's when I saw him. He was hiding behind a hedge. I walked over to him slowly so as not to scare him away. "Hello." I said. The big black dog, walked out from behind the hedge. It immediately struck me how thin Sirius was. "You look hungry. Are you a stray?" I asked, pretending I thought he was just a dog. He nodded.

"Merlin Annie!" Ron yelled. "Get away from it! It's the Grim." He sounded panicked. I rolled my eyes.

"It's a dog Ronald!" I called over my shoulder. Then I said to the dog. "If you wait here I'll bring you some food. Okay?" Sirius sat down so I got up and walked back over to my friends.

"You guys go ahead I'm going to go and get the dog some food." I told them.

"We'll meet you at Zonko's." Hermione said as she dragged Ron away. Neville followed reluctantly behind her. I went into the nearest place that sold food and brought a big burger.

Sirius was still waiting for me buy the bush. I walked over and looked around before wordlessly conjuring a plate and setting it down in front of the dog. It looked surprised. Dam, I forgot I wasn't supposed to be able to do that. I put the burger on the plate and he ate it eagerly. I crouched down in front of him.

"I would appreciate you not telling anyone about me conjuring the plate like that. I'm not really supposed to know how to do that." I said as he ate. He looked at me curiously. I face palmed. "Oh Merlin, I'm talking to a dog. What is wrong with me?" The dog had finished eating and he was looking up at me. "Well actually, I'm talking to an Animagus who was framed for murder and ended up in Askaban for twelve years because of a stupid rat." I corrected myself. Then I clapped a hand over my mouth. 'Subtle Annie. Very subtle.' I thought sarcastically to myself. The dogs mouth fell open and Sirius appeared to be doing the dog version of gaping.

"Yeah, I know who you are Sirius Black." I told him calmly. "I also know Peter Pettigrew was the secret keeper. He framed his own murder and transformed into his rat form." I was trying to earn his trust. "As we speak, Remus Lupin is taking the rat to the ministry to clear your name." Sirius jerked forward and started licking my face in thanks. I giggled and pushed him off me. "Can we go into the forest so you can transform?" I asked him. "Harry can't go to Hogsmeade because his aunt and uncle wouldn't sign his permission form. Since your his godfather, you could sign it for him." I held up the permission form that I had taken from Harry's things.

We went to a hidden spot behind some trees and he transformed. The poor guy was a mess. He was looking at me curiously. "How did you know all that?" He asked. His voice was scratchy. Probably because it hadn't been used in years.

"I'm a seer." I said, giving him my regular excuse. His eyes widened it amazement. I handed him the permission form and he signed it. He handed it back to me. "Meet me in the Shrieking shack tonight at midnight." I told him. He nodded and I turned and left as he transformed back into a dog.

I met up with the others at Zonko's and we continued the day like nothing happened.

...

When we arrived back to the castle we met up with Harry and gave him all the stuff we bought him. As soon as I could get away, I met up with Remus.

"How did it go?" I asked him.

"Great." He smiled at me. "They questioned him with Veritaserum. The truth came out and the announcement in the prophet should be in tomorrow morning's issue. Pettigrew was sentenced to the Dementors kiss. The dementors will be called off tomorrow."

"That's fantastic!" I exclaimed. Then I told him about my meeting with Sirius. He agreed to come with me tonight and I left to tell the others everything.

...

I had finished explaining everything and they were just gaping at me with their moths open. I handed Harry the permission slip. "Now you can go to Hogsmeade." He jumped up and hugged me.

"You're the best Annie!" He told me.

After Harry had sat back down I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up. It was Fred. "Oh hey Fred." I said innocently. It was then I realized that I forgot to put up charms to stop people ease dropping. I mentally kicked myself for my stupidity. "How much of that did you just hear?" I sighed.

"All of it." He admitted. Then he whispered in my ear so that only I could hear him, "You should tell them the truth. Why you really know all these things they don't." I realized he was right. I should tell them. No more secretes would be nice. Apart from the curse, the only reason I didn't tell them was that Dumbledore told me not to. Now that he showed his true colours, I don't want to listen to his opinions anymore. I also know that there are ways I can get around the curse. I nodded.

"Come to the shrieking shack with us." I told him. "You can hear everything too." I said.

...

So that night, Fred, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Remus and I, used the map to fine our way to the Whomping Willow undetected. Remus used a broken branch to press the knot and the tree froze. We climbed into the tunnel and made our way down the narrow passage way.

After a lot of walking, we reached the shrieking shack. Sirius was waiting inside. He was in his dog form but when he saw us he changed back into a man. He embraced Remus in a brotherly way. Then they started telling us their story. I already knew it but I listened patiently as they talked about how they became animagi for Remus and how Lily and James made Pettigrew the secret keeper because people wouldn't suspect him. He explained how Peter betray them and how he went after Peter. He told them how Peter blew up the block and transformed before fleeing.

"No offense, but why is Fred here?" Ron asked.

"He knows my secret." I said simply. Harry scowled at me.

"What secret?" He growled. "I thought we were past secrets."

"That's why I'm telling you." I explained. "I'm not really a seer."

"But how do you always know everything?" Ron asked. I turned towards Remus.

"Could you? You know I can't." I said to him.

"She's from the future." He said simply. "But she wasn't allowed to tell anyone and she was cursed to not be able to say anything about the future or the present unless the person she is telling already knows."

"So how do you and Fred know then?" Hermione asked them.

"I over heard her talking with Dumbledore." Remus explained.

"Me too." Fred added.

I then launched into my explanation about...well everything that I could tell them while the curse was on me. "Dumbledore did it?" Harry asked angrily. "He summoned you from the future and just left you in the dark?!" I nodded.

"He told me not to tell you but since he tried to erase my memory, I don't feel the need to do anything he tells me." I told them.

"He tried to what?!" Harry yelled. He was pissed. I knew it wasn't directed at me but it was still terrifying.

"Calm down Harry. It's not like he succeeded." I said gently.

"How did you pull one over on him anyway?" Asked Ron.

"Obviously he didn't know I could do wandless magic so after he disarmed me, I put up a shield and the spell crashed into it." I explained. "The magical force knocked me over so he didn't realize it hadn't hit me. I pretended it worked."

"Why can you do wandless magic so well? You conjured a plate out of thin air with your hand and you acted like it was nothing." Sirius said.

So I explained all about what I did in the holidays, The Ravenclaw Library, and how Voldemort, Harry and I are the founders heirs. Fred then told them about the horcruxes so I could explain what else I did that summer. "I've destroyed five so there are only two horcruxes left." I told them.

"What are they?" Neville asked. I opened my mouth to tell them but I couldn't. I tried again. This was so annoying. I punched the wall in frustration.

"I can't tell you." I ground out before punching the wall again. "Stupid curse!"

"Don't do that!" Fred said, grabbing my fist. "You're going to hurt yourself."

"We should go." Hermione said. "We've been here for three hours." I nodded and we walked back down the passage. Sirius came with us. He and Harry were trailing behind. I think Sirius was asking Harry if he wanted to live with him.

We made it outside but we weren't alone. Waiting for us, just beside the Whomping Willow, were around thirty Dementors.

...