Dedicated to Ami, my fellow beta, admin, and the ultimate hater of Smurfs. Because she ROX!
Chapter 33 – I've got a bad feeling about this
"Malfoy!" Sirius shouted, striding forward and ripping the wand from the Death Eater's hand. Rowan collapsed roughly to the stone flooring, still Petrified by Malfoy's first curse. "Are you insane?" Sirius snarled, hurling Malfoy's wand back at him and removing the Petrifying spell with a sharp flick of his own wand. Rowan gasped as she regained control of her body and pulled herself carefully to her feet.
"Leave this alone, Severus," Malfoy snapped icily. "You're on tenuous ground as it is."
"Not my problem." Sirius smirked at the look that blossomed over Lucius's pale face as his fist connected with his temple. Malfoy's eyes rolled into his head and Sirius didn't bother to catch him as he dropped to the floor, blood trickling out of a small gash on the side of his head.
Sirius straightened his robes and massaged his right hand. "He's got a harder head than I expected," he winced, wiping a tracery of blood off his knuckles. Rowan wordlessly produced a handkerchief from her robes, looking slightly ill at the blood. Sirius frowned at her reaction. That was odd. She was a mediwitch, and he'd watched her tend worst scrapes before. Blood didn't phase Rowan Myfanwy.
Then another thought struck him. Rowan wasn't caught. Ever.
Sirius swore mentally rounded on his companion, pressing his wand into the hollow of her throat. "You're not Rowan."
Rowan blinked and glared at him. "We don't have time for this, Sirius!" she scolded. Sirius didn't move the wand.
"Who are you? And where is my fiancée?"
"Fiancée?" she scoffed. "Rowan hasn't been your fiancée since she left your ring on the paths of CaerMyrddin! Do you want to find Pettigrew or not?" she huffed, folding her arms, and ignoring the wand partly cutting off her air supply.
Sirius goggled at her sudden mood change. Her entire manner and tone settled into a more proper and precise attitude than Rowan usually bothered with around Sirius. "Morgaine?" he hazarded, lowering his wand slightly in shock. She nodded and reached up to push his wand the rest of the way down.
"I know where Pettigrew is," she said, turning and pulling him down a side corridor. "Roughly anyway." She smiled as his eyes widened in surprise. "I'm not thirteen anymore, Sirius Black. I'm a full seeress now. And the moon will be full in three days. Right now, I can smell our little friend. He's not far."
~*~
"Put your wand away, Moony," 'Morgaine' ordered, calmly setting her medical equipment to rights. Harry couldn't believe his eyes as Professor Lupin did just that! He sighed and shook his head at the veela-witch, sticking his wand back in his belt.
"I swear, Rowan Myfanwy, half of my grey hairs are your doing!"
Harry stared at his Professor in shock and quietly pulled out his own wand. He had to assume that Professor Lupin was under a spell. Ginny glanced down at his wand and pulled out her own, giving him a wan smile before turning her attention forward. Hermione and the twins just stared at the two adults in shock. "She could be a Death Eater, Professor!" Harry said, stepping forward and covering the impostor with his wand. "We can't trust her." Ginny stepped forward as well, her wand held steady and her eyes cold. Harry shot a glare at the twins, making them both scramble for their wands.
The impostor slowly stood, ignoring the various wands trained on her and nodded approvingly. "You choose excellent friends. Now, ask them what I just said."
Harry blinked in confusion. "What do you mean: what you just said?" he asked. "Everyone heard you."
"We heard her all right, but we didn't understand her," Fred told him.
"Harry, it is Professor Myfanwy!" Hermione gasped. The others nodded and lowered their wands in relief. "Only Parselmouths and magical creatures can understand a Vox Veritas Argentum!"
Professor Lupin shrugged and smiled slightly. "I understood her perfectly too, Harry. But then," his smile turned self-depreciating. "I'm a magical creature."
"Technically, so am I, Moony," Rowan shrugged. "Any brilliant ideas on how we find young Mr Weasley?"
"Prongs was always the best at thinking on his feet, Rowan," Lupin pointed out.
"But the schemes that didn't involve scaling a tower to escape Mr. Filch, leaping off a third story balcony, squeezing four of you into a broom cupboard or various other insanities were generally yours," she countered laughingly.
Harry watched their exchange with half an eye and slipped closer to the dormitory stairs, trying not to be noticed. No doubt, they'd try to leave him behind when they went after Ron. But Harry didn't intend to be left behind. If he got his father's Invisibility Cloak he could follow without being seen. Voldemort had taken Ron to get to him, Harry, and that made it Harry's responsibility to help rescue him. Hermione caught his eye and frowned slightly in disapproval. Harry glared back stubbornly and mouthed Ron's name. Her eyes looked pained, but she still glared at him in disapproval.
Professor Lupin saying her name startled them out of their silent contest. "I think Hermione had the right idea. We should wait for Morgaine to come back. After all, that seems to have been your reasoning for finding Peter. It may be the only way to find Ron."
~*~
Morgaine led the way through the winding corridors of Malfoy Manor. Her eyes half-slit as she trusted her heightened hearing and smell. Rowan was very right he realised. Morgaine was still a werewolf with wolfish mannerisms and the nearing full moon only heightened the tendency. He'd seen the same actions in Moony countless times. It was a bit disturbing to see the same thing in someone he remembered as a social and frivolous sixteen-year-old. Right now she acted like a wolf on the hunt. His inner Padfoot was only too happy to let the she-wolf lead.
Sirius hoped she would still divide her attention enough to listen to him. He still wanted answers. "Where is Rowan?" he asked.
"Still at Hogwarts, watching over your godson," Morgaine reported without turning. "She's not allowed to leave the grounds - especially not to walk directly into a trap. Grandfather and Professor Dumbledore had us switch places right before you and I left."
"Why wasn't I told?"
"There wasn't time," Morgaine shrugged. "And it wasn't safe. According to Rowan, there's spy at Hogwarts, but she doesn't know who it is yet. She didn't want anything said that would put you in danger."
Sirius grimaced. He did not need a keeper! He started to ask something else, but Morgaine put her hand up, motioning for silence and pointed triumphantly at the door they'd stopped in front of.
With a decidedly feral grin, Sirius pulled out his wand and pushed open the door. Only a few candles lit the room and its lone occupant squeaked in terror as he stalked in. Morgaine joined him and Peter Pettigrew cringed in front of a tall moonlit window. His watery blue eyes darted nervously to the open door behind them. Morgaine moved slightly, more fully blocking any escape. "Rowan . . . Severus . . . what a surprise!" Pettigrew squeaked.
"Good evening, Peter. Have you enjoyed your holiday?" Morgaine asked, icy contempt dripping off her voice. Apparently, she didn't appreciate his utter betrayal anymore than her sister did.
"Don't kill me?" he smiled weakly.
"I think we'll reserve that pleasure for later," Sirius felt a dark smile stretch across his lips.
A sharply spoken Expelliarmus from behind yanked both of their wands out of their hands and sent them flying backward. Sirius spun, barely noticing Morgaine's lunge out of sight, and saw Narcissa holding two extra wands in her off hand.
"Narcissa! Help!" Peter squawked followed by scuffling sounds and a thud.
"Stupefy," she said almost lazily. There was a brief flash of red light from her wand and the scuffling sounds quieted. "You are right, you know," she told him thoughtfully. "The Dark Lord will probably allow you to kill Wormtail; at a later, more suitable time. Stupefy."
~*~*~*~
~ No, I am not dead. And I apologise for how long this took! Everyone is incredible for putting up with me ~
