A/N: Nearly every story I've read has cliff-hangers. Who am I to break a trend? Sorry it took so long, blame it on writer's-block. And Miss Leyne, the Social Studies teacher of death.
DISCLAIMER: In the words of OrcaPotter, will the real J.K.Rowling please stand up?
Harry stared blankly at her,"What?"
She pushed the letter into his hands,"It says...it says..."
"I know what it says. Oh, dear God, what am I going to do?"
Parvati shifted on her feet,"Please, Harry, is this a joke?"
"No," he sighed. What else was he going to say? Yeah, it was just a prank? Let her go around saying Harry's pretending to write to an escaped murderer?
"Why, then Harry, why?"
Harry could feel his hands shaking,"Parvati, just come with me for a moment." He led her back to the Great Hall. Hermione and Ron could think of something. His head pulsed with stress and confusion. This was the last thing he needed; Parvati Patil to know about Sirius.
They met the other two on the way down the marble staircase.
"What's wrong?" said Hermione, staring at their faces.
"She knows," Harry said blankly, his voice quivering. He handed them the letter. Ron swore loudly.
Hermione rubbed her temples,"Not good. This is not good. Alright, then, do we explain this to her?"
"What else is there to do? Give her a Memory Charm?" said Harry.
"Why would I need a Memory Charm?" Parvati's eyes dashed back and forth between them.
"Can't you do one, Hermione?"
She shook her head solemly,"Memory Charms are hard. Really hard. You don't do them until Seventh Year."
"Dumbledore?" Ron said weakly.
They all looked at each other, then at Parvati, who was staring at them with wide-eyed terror.
"You ever been to Dumbledore's office, Parvati?"
* * *
McGonagall was coming out from behind the gargoyle when they arrived.
"Professor Dumbledore has been very busy lately. Why do you want to talk to him?" she peered at them carefully through her specks at their request.
"Tell him it's about a certain black dog," Harry answered.
With a final piercing look, she went back into Dumbledore's office.
"Black dog?" Parvati squeaked,"What's a black dog got to do with anything?"
After a few moments, the gargoyle jumped aside and McGonagall waved them in. Up the dizzying spiral staircase, and to a set of open oak doors. Dumbledore was at his desk, his eyes a blank, greyish blue.
"Harry, what exactly is this about," he said. Harry could hear a faint, but controlled, sense of urgency in the words.
He swallowed,"Parvati, she...she read one of my letters to Sirius. She knows I'm writing to him." He pushed the crumpled parchment across the desk.
Dumbledore studied it for what seemed like hours. He asked Harry, Ron, and Hermione to leave while he spoke to Parvati.
"Go about your classes in a normal manner. If any of your teachers ask, Parvati's feeling ill." Parvati looked true to the part; her dark eyes were wide and she looked an odd shade of green.
"Thank you, Professor," sighed Harry, turning to go.
* * *
"Lord?"
"What, McNair?"
"Lord, I don't understand what you've assigned me to do."
"Assigned?" Voldemort's voice hissed,"Why, I did not assign a thing to you, McNair. I commanded! Now what, pray tell, did your feeble mind not understand about this simple task?"
"Lord, there's no reasonable way I can gather all these creatures into one area much less...there."
"I expect this to be well done. The man I've commanded to help you is also helping Lucius, he can't back you up all the time."
"But sir..."
"Silence! You will go and do as I have commanded!"
Muttering, McNair shuffled out of the cave into daylight. Squinting into the sun, he saw a cloaked figure standing nearby.
"You the new Death-Eater that's supposed to help me?" McNair called.
"Aye," came the answer.
"Um, I'm Walter McNair. Anything I can call you?"
"'Aven't you learned a thin' from yer master?" the voice growled,"'Ow do ye know I'm not an impostor, eh? Perhaps I'm an Auror? Now I know yer name, could go right now an' get ye in Azkaban."
McNair smiled,"How do you know I'm not Walter McNair?"
He laughed and drew back his hood to reveal the face of a man younger than the voice suited,"There we go, laddie, don't let no one be sure. Can't trust no one. Call me Nemo."
"Alright, then, Nemo, how do we get all these creatures inside Hogwarts?" McNair said.
Nemo cocked his head,"You read the newspapers?"
"Of course," McNair said slowly. He wasn't so sure about this all of a sudden.
"You 'ear about what 'appened, oh, say, 14 years ago at 'ogwarts?"
McNair had a terrible memory,"No."
"Don't remember when all them animals got out?"
Something clicked in his mind,"Yeah! All over the news! When those magical creatures stormed the grounds, killed a couple students?"
"Aye. Them newspapers didn't tell why the animals ran the grounds, 'o course. They was called."
"Called," repeated McNair blankly.
Nemo grinned,"Yeh don't believe me, do yeh? I was there when it 'appened, yeh can count on me. Voldemort trusts me to do two jobs at once, don't he? Since he's all knowing, I think you'd better just go along with this."
* * *
Arabella shifted in her chair, staring out the window of Remus's cabin,"Where on earth did Mundungus disappear off to?"
"Said he had 'important business'," Sirius scowled and sipped his tea.
Remus frowned,"What could be more 'important' than this, I've no idea."
"Well, he's Mundungus, never can be to sure about him. Right old nutcase, he is."
"So," said Arabella, putting down her cup,"We've got to round up these creatures again, now, do we?"
"But we can't do it without Romulus, he's the one that can call them!" Sirius bellowed.
"You're right, of course. There isn't anyway to do it. Dumbledore didn't even give us any instructions," Remus said in his usual level tone.
Arabella seemed to be deep in thought, "Think we ought to contact him?"
Remus sighed, "I definitely can't, the full moon's tomorrow night."
"I'm a convict," said Sirius dryly, "He'd freak."
"Can't trust Mundungus, and we haven't talked for nearly twenty years. I can't break the ice," muttered Arabella, rubbing her temples
"Sirius, could you ask Harry a favour?" Remus said quietly.
Sirius stared down at the table for a few moments.
"Alright," he declared, looking up, "I can trust Harry with this. I mean, he hasn't spilled the beans about me to anyone yet, right?"
A/N: Short! Yes, short! I know, I know! Do you get it yet? In your review, could you tell me what you think happened the day the creatures got out, or if you got it at all? It's important you get it. Er, just to give you a hint, Nemo isn't called Nemo; he's someone else.