Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Nope, not me.
A/N: Yay for reviews!
I've had some wonderful comments on the story thus far - for these, I thank you! And I hope I can get more wonderful comments as the story goes on…
…and there will be lots more cliffhangers, fear not!
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Remus could barely breathe. "Regina!" he whispered. Sweet Merlin, he thought.
She was lying on the floor, and he could see blood trickling from her temple, but she looked up. "R-Remus?"
In two strides he was beside her, and he lifted her off the ground as effortlessly as if she were a feather. "Reggie!" he wept into her hair. "Oh, Reggie, I've missed you so much!"
Her arms snaked up around his neck and she held him tightly. "I've never stopped thinking about you," she sobbed. "Never, never!"
There was still blood running from her temple. Remus looked at Dumbledore. "Professor…"
Dumbledore smiled and pointed his wand at Regina. "Sanationis!"
Regina gazed up at her brother, her wounds healed. "Remus…"
"We had better get out of here," Sirius said. He had scrambled to his feet without Remus noticing and Aemilia was supporting him. He was weak and shaking, but alive. He cast an anxious eye on the veil. "I don't trust it. There were wights… Cearb…"
Remus carrying Regina, Aemilia supporting Sirius, Severus and Dumbledore left the room post-haste. Severus pointed his wand at the door. "Colloportus Totalus!"
And the Death Chamber was sealed forever.
*
There were gasps and shrieks as they re-entered the courtroom. High in the gallery above, Remus saw Helena's eyes roll back in her head and she fainted. Bill Weasley caught her and he and his brother Charlie fanned her, trying to waken her.
Cornelius Fudge was still tied to his chair. Kingsley Shacklebolt had vaulted the balcony and had his wand pointed at the Minister. Tonks was with the Dursley family, alternately trying to calm Petunia down and brandishing her wand at Vernon. Ron, Hermione and Ginny had come down to the floor of the courtroom too and stood round Harry, who was chalk-white and shaking. He was sitting on the edge of Remus and Aemilia's desk and Ginny was whispering urgently to him, clearly trying to calm him down. Moody was standing nearby, his normal eye fixed on them, his magical eye roving for any potential dangers. The Wizengamot were still in their seats, but most of them looked scared and Lakshmi Patil had fainted.
Moira Meadowes, however, was hale and hearty as ever, and the instant Remus, Regina, Sirius, Aemilia, Severus and Dumbledore came back in the door, she slammed her gavel down on the bench. "ORDER!"
"Can you stand?" Remus asked Regina under his breath.
"Yes," she whispered back. Remus gently set her on her feet, but continued to support her with his arm.
"Explain," Moira ordered shortly.
Dumbledore cast eyes over the party. "Sit down, all of you," he said gently. "I shall deal with this." He waved his wand and an enormous squashy chintz sofa appeared.
Remus helped Regina to the sofa and then Sirius before pulling up a chair from the desk for Aemilia. Severus had disappeared, and Remus saw him out of the corner of his eye, making his way up to where Helena Seraphim lay, unconscious, in the gallery.
"Harry," he whispered. "Harry, come and sit down."
Remus pulled his wand out of his sleeve and drew up another sofa - a red velvet one like one he remembered from Godric's Hollow before it was destroyed. Harry was still chalk-white and looked dazed so Ginny had to lead him by the elbow to get him to sit down. "Listen to me, Harry," Remus heard her whisper to him. "Sirius is back. He's alive. And he's not going to go again any time soon. Look, he's just over there, sitting on the sofa…"
Remus gestured to Ron and Hermione. "Come and sit down, you two," he told them gently. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
"I'm still not entirely sure that we haven't," Hermione muttered, glancing to where Sirius and Regina sat.
Dumbledore was trying to convince the Wizengamot of Sirius's innocence, Remus realised, as he pulled up the other chair from the desk and sat down himself. He was explaining what had happened in the Shrieking Shack, and the Wizengamot were listening raptly.
Regina was looking strangely at Sirius. "You spent twelve years in Azkaban?" she asked softly.
Sirius looked away. "Yes," he replied.
"Why?"
"He was framed," Remus interjected, knowing that Sirius could not tell the story without blaming himself for Lily and James's deaths. "You remember Peter Pettigrew?"
"Of course."
"He went over to the other side," Remus said quietly. "He spied for them. We knew there was a spy among us, but not who. Then our spy came back with news that Voldemort intended to go after Lily and James. Dumbledore told them the best chance would be the Fidelius Charm, and they planned to use Sirius as their Secret-Keeper - the obvious choice, of course. So Sirius persuaded them to use Peter instead - a very unlikely choice, given how weak and talentless we all knew him to be - without telling anybody. But Peter betrayed Lily and James, and they died… and everyone thought Sirius had betrayed them because he was the Secret-Keeper. And so he was thrown in Azkaban without a trial."
Regina looked aghast. "Without - a trial?"
Sirius nodded grimly. "Yes. I was there twelve years." His eyes took on that dead quality they always did when he thought about his time in Azkaban. "It was awful."
"But - how did you escape?"
"I'm an Animagus," Sirius replied. "A dog. Illegal, of course, but they didn't know about it. Dog emotions are simpler, and the Dementors couldn't feed off them so well. I'd turn into a dog when they came by and just made sure I was human when human jailors came through. Then, one day, Fudge came through and gave me the paper. And there, sitting on Ron Weasley's shoulder - he's the tall, redheaded one over there - was a rat. Peter was an Animagus too, you see, and I recognised him. He was going to be at Hogwarts, where Harry was. I knew I had to get out. I couldn't let Peter near Harry - not when he'd good as killed Lily and James. So I made a desperate plan… and it worked. I slipped past the Dementors as a dog and swam to the mainland. And then, slowly, I made my way to Hogwarts, where I met up with Harry and his friends - and Remus, who was a professor - near the end of the year. We caught Peter and we were going to kill him, but Harry wouldn't let us. He showed mercy." He sighed as he looked over at his godson. "Just like his father, that one. And… well, it's a long story, but Peter got away. Hence me still being a mad murderer at large."
Regina's eyes were filled with tears. "Oh Sirius," she whispered. "Why didn't you tell me?"
Sirius gazed at her. "I…"
"You don't have to answer that," Regina told him quietly, putting a finger against his lips. "I understand."
Aemilia nudged Remus. "They're about to take a vote on Sirius's innocence!" she hissed.
The courtroom fell completely silent as the Wizengamot scribbled on their secret ballot parchments. Remus could feel blood thundering in his ears.
Moira stood and Remus caught his breath. "The results have been recorded," she announced. "By thirty-five to thirteen, the Wizengamot declare that Mr. Sirius Canis Black of London is innocent of all charges laid against him!"
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