Disclaimer: I do not own any Harry Potter characters. The scienwitzists are mine, but if J.K. Rowling wants them badly enough, she can have them. : ) I am not making any money off of this; it's for pure enjoyment and fun.

The Hogwarts Fugitive, Part 2

When Sirius had apparated within five miles of Remus's without Harry, he groaned. "It's been too long since I've done that spell." When he reached the house some time later, he called down the hall, "I'm back!"

A frizzy-haired witch dressed in red-striped pajamas came into the hall, while Remus Lupin came out of the kitchen.

"Where's Harry?" The witch called Arabella Figg asked.

"I tried to disapparate both of us and it didn't work. I don't know how to get back now; I don't know where we were. I know it's dangerous to disapparate, but I disapparated about five miles off; and I don't think finding me is top-priority these days, so hopefully I'll get lucky and the Ministry won't have noticed."

Remus looked perturbed. "It ought to be all right, it's late enough that the Ministry won't be paying attention to one disapparation. I only hope Harry can find us. How was he doing?"

"His scar started hurting while we were in the air and he fell off his broomstick. He hit his head, but seemed to be getting better before I disapparated." Sirius felt horrible about leaving Harry alone there. A thought occurred to him and he said it out loud, "What if he waits there for me and the Death Eaters find him?"

"He won't," Remus attempted to reassure. He didn't do a good job; his face was a mask of concern.

"Oh, for the love of Merlin. You two are a couple of mother dragons. You can't protect him all the time. Harry can look after himself."

"I agree, Arabella, under ordinary circumstances. These are not ordinary circumstances."

"You-Know-Who's not going to give up on Harry, then, is he? Not after all that."

"I'm afraid not. Harry's safety is my highest priority. As long as Voldemort's still alive, he's in danger, "Sirius said.

Remus told Sirius, "Don't underestimate Harry, Sirius. He's very special and I have the feeling he will be the one to conquer Voldemort someday."

"I know he's special. He'd be special even without possibly being the one to defeat Voldemort. But he's not ready yet, if that is part of his destiny, which I dread that it is. I can't let him do it. I am allowed to worry, aren't I?"

"Yes, of course you are," Arabella said to him impatiently. "I'm worried too, as Remus is. We don't want Harry to fight him again, but it may be necessary. He nearly destroyed him as a baby all those years ago, didn't he?"

"That was mainly Lily's doing, as I understand it," Sirius replied. "She put a protective charm so strong on him that Voldemort couldn't break through it and lost his powers, parts of them being transferred to Harry."

"Charms always were her strong point, weren't they?" Arabella mused.

Taking a seat by the window, Sirius stared out at the inky blackness of the sky morosely. Remus sat down with a sigh and leaned back in his chair to gaze at the ceiling and wait.

"You both," Arabella said, "are exhausted. Go lie down and get some sleep. I'll watch for Harry."

"I can't sleep," Sirius and Remus answered at the same time.

Arabella flopped down on the couch and shook her head.

At Hogwarts, all the students were talking about Harry Potter being expelled and his being a spy for Sirius Black. All of Gryffindor was especially outraged with Fudge and he was spending the day "working" (hiding) in his office. Howlers had been coming in droves from the wizarding public. The Gryffindors, Ravenclaws, and Hufflepuffs alike were trying to pry information from Ron and Hermione, yet could've saved their breath because Ron and Hermione weren't talking to anyone much except each other. Draco Malfoy and the Slytherins were loving every moment of this. Ron and Hermione tried to avoid them because they knew they would absolutely explode if anyone attempted to say anything.

Most the students had given up on Ron and Hermione by lunchtime and were now speculating on the details in excited whirrs. Grateful for the chance to talk with more privacy to Hermione, Ron whispered what had happened the night before with Sirius coming to the school. Hermione let out a gasp of horror, causing all the Gryffindors to glance at her with eager curiosity.

"What if he's been captured? Or hurt somewhere? How will we find out about what's going on?" Just then, the mail owls flew in and a letter dropped into Hermione's lap.

"That could be from Harry!" Ron hissed. "Open it, quick!"

"What if it's from Sirius and something terrible has happened to Harry? I don't want to know!" She hissed back.

"Give it here, I'll open it," Ron said impatiently, taking the letter from her and ripping it open.

Ron and Hermione,

H was attacked at Kings Cross by Muggles possibly hired by one of the Death Eaters. He was taken to a Muggle hospital nearby where his doctor was disguised as a Death Eater trying to take him to Voldemort. I had him for a while, but we got separated. If things are all right, he ought to be here at L's even as you read this. He'll send an owl if he can, but we're going into hiding. Keep your eyes open and let's hope for the best.

Snuffles

Ron and Hermione simply looked at each other, not knowing what to say, knowing there was nothing they could do.

The door to Remus's house opened cautiously at lunchtime, just as Sirius, Arabella, and Remus were nibbling sandwiches absentmindedly. Harry poked his head in the door, right side still having some blood on it. All three of them leapt to their feet. "Harry!"

"Well, I guess I found the right house," he said with a tired grin.

Arabella went over to him and held out her hand. "Oh, thank goodness! I'm Arabella Figg."

Harry did a double take at the name Figg. "Figg? You're not related to Mrs. Figg near Privet Drive, are you?"

"I'm not related to her; I am her."

Harry eyed her as if she'd gone a bit mad. "Er, well, the Mrs. Figg I know is

pretty old. You don't look old."

"Ever heard of a Mascarada charm, Harry?" He shook his head.

"Well, when you were brought to Privet Drive, Dumbledore wanted me to move near enough to watch you and make sure you were all right. I knew you before you came to Privet Drive, and, did you know, I actually held you in my arms when you were just a baby? You had to be the sweetest little guy there ever was," she prattled on as Harry looked embarrassed.

"Er, Arabella," Remus started.

"Oh, yes, I'm sorry, I do tend to run on. Dumbledore wanted me to use the Mascarada to appear as an old woman, just in case someone from our world recognized me. I apologize for never having told you before, but it just wasn't safe for you. I wanted to, believe me. I wish you could have been spared those dreadful Dursleys. Awful Muggles, just awful."

"I remember your name from when Dumbledore was giving Sirius instructions last year, but I didn't make the connection."

"We must talk later. Right now, let me see your head."

"It's fine," Harry told her.

"You fall from the sky, hit it on a rock, and it's fine? You are like James, aren't you? Come, now, let me see." Harry tilted the right side of his head toward her reluctantly and she tsked, taking out her wand. She mumbled a healing charm and Harry felt the skin piece back together. She used the corner of her pajama shirtsleeve to clean the side of his face. "There, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

Sirius directed a firm look at him. "I haven't gotten a chance to tell you this, Harry, but you have put yourself in a lot of danger by leaving Hogwarts. I know you felt you had to do it for me, and I appreciate that, but you cannot be unprotected in times like these."

"Sirius, if I had stayed and waited, then you would've been caught and I'd still have been expelled. There was no other option here," Harry defended.

"He's right, Sirius," Remus agreed. "If he had stayed, things would be worse. You would be back in Azkaban at the least and unable to help protect Harry. He would have been expelled regardless."

"Well, look what happened: he was beaten, stabbed, almost delivered to Voldemort."

Harry felt a ridiculous urge to laugh; Sirius had taken on a tone similar to Mrs. Weasley's. Just then, a wave of hunger and severe fatigue washed over him and he sat down wearily on the couch.

"I think some food would be in order," Remus said. With a flick of his wand, a plate appeared in Harry's lap covered in sandwiches and fruit. A tall glass of Butterbeer hovered in mid-air.

Harry thanked him for the food, and began attacking a sandwich hungrily, tiredness put on hold. "How's Hedwig?" He asked with his mouth full.

Sirius glanced into her cage. "She looks better than when I saw her last."

Harry moved onto a second sandwich and watched Sirius who was looking at Remus questioningly.

"Harry will be perfectly all right here. We won't let anything happen to him. We'd better start packing, you two are going to be heading out of here and into hiding. Arabella, walk into town, will you, and buy some warm sweaters and a coat for Harry. Dumbledore gave me instructions for you," Remus told Sirius. "Harry, I need you to tell me about your attackers at Kings Cross later."

Harry nodded.

"Okay, tell me about Dumbledore's instructions while I pack. Oh, that reminds me, you have to tell me how you knew what to do last night when you took us to Dumbledore. I didn't even know where he was," Sirius said.

"I'll come with you, Mrs. Figg. I can't sit still," Harry told her, apple in hand. It was odd calling this young woman in her thirties by Mrs. Figg, the old woman he'd known her as for so long.

"It's Arabella, Harry. And I'm glad you're coming. I don't really know what colors are best for you. I've never seen you in any Muggle clothes other than Dudley's old things." Arabella replied, giving him the once-over.

Sirius frowned and gave her a withering glance. "He's not going to a fashion show, hurry back. And keep an eye on him."

Harry and Arabella both looked at Sirius in exasperation. "I'll keep both on him," Arabella said at the same time as Harry said, "I'll be fine."

They went out the front door and down the road, Arabella chattering. "I was friends with your parents, two of the best people who ever walked the face of the earth. Sometimes I forget, even though it's been so long, and start to apparate over and visit Lily. Then, I remember and it all hits me like a ton of cauldrons." She looked over at Harry. "Having to watch you live with the Dursleys has been an absolute torture for me, you've no idea. It must be very hard on you."

"Yeah," he replied, "it is." An idea struck him and he looked back at her with a hopeful expression. "Can I ask you a question? I asked Sirius and he wouldn't answer me. What did my parents do? Why did Voldemort try so hard to find them?"

"I can't see the harm in telling you. Goodness, I thought you would've known. They were both Aurors, dedicated to catching You-Know-Who. They caught so many Death Eaters and Dark Wizards together. James picked up information from the Wizard Underground about who You-Know-Who would go after next, and then Lily would put a strong charm on the person and their family to protect them. They found out where Death Eaters would be gathering and they'd catch them. They were two of our most-valued in the wizarding world."

Harry was speechless. His parents did all that?

Arabella continued as they walked. "Once you were born, they tried to stop putting themselves in as much danger, but it was too late: You-Know—this is ridiculous, you don't mind if I say his name, do you—Voldemort already had them and you as his next targets. He was dead-set on killing you, for reasons I'm not sure of, and he hated James and Lily for obvious reasons. I'm not surprised about your surviving Voldemort's attack with Lily's ancient protection charm on you. They loved you so much; they knew if anything happened to you while they were still alive, they wouldn't be able to bear it."

Harry managed to say, "Voldemort told me that Mum didn't have to die, that she was protecting me."

Arabella looked thoughtful. "There's so much to this story that I don't know. Not even Sirius knows everything, I don't believe. Dumbledore does for sure, however. You should ask him sometime."

"I kind of asked once, but he said he couldn't answer all my questions and said when it was time for me to know, I'd know."

Arabella smiled vaguely. "That sounds like Dumbledore."

Harry gave her the same vague smile. "Yeah." They arrived at the clothing store and Harry chose clothes quickly at random, thinking about what Arabella had told him about his parents. Everything new he was finding out about them hit home and it hurt.

Back at Remus's house, Sirius handed Harry another trunk and told him to pack quickly. He took a closer look at him. "Are you feeling all right? You look sort of off-color."

"Fine," Harry mumbled, tossing clothes into the trunk. He looked up at Sirius. "Can we talk sometime soon, though?"

"Sure, anything," Sirius replied. In his head he thought, "Except James and Lily. I can't take it right now, I can't."

After Harry told Remus every detail he could remember about the attack at Kings Cross, Remus sent out several owls. Then, Remus reminded Sirius of how to disapparate himself and Harry in case of emergencies but gave the two of them several portkeys to hold onto. They were going to stay in a small hut in a Scotland forest for a while. Remus would join them on their third day. Arabella would be staying at Remus's to 'continue the mission'.

Harry held onto his Firebolt and Hedwig's cage. His trunk had been shrunken once more.

"Ready to go?" Sirius asked him.

"Yeah."

"Bye, Harry," Arabella said with a wave.

"I'll see you two soon," Remus told them with a smile.

Sirius and Harry used one of the numerous portkeys and landed painfully on a hardwood floor.

With a groan, Harry stood and said, "I can't wait to learn how to disapparate. If I ever get back to Hogwarts, that is."

"You will." The two glanced around the cabin. It was very tiny, dirt and dust covered the windows and the floor. There were two cots standing crookedly by the fireplace and a small sink with a shelf above it on one wall.

"It's a bit bigger than my cupboard at the Dursleys," Harry cracked, "but not by much."

"Cupboard?" Sirius asked sharply. "What cupboard?"

Harry sat down and filled Sirius in on his life at the Dursleys.

"You lived in a cupboard for ten years? Unbelievable, absolutely unbelievable." Sirius shook his head angrily.

"They did let me have Dudley's second bedroom after the first letter from Hogwarts came. That's progress," Harry added bitterly.

"If I had known how you were being treated earlier, it would have been more motivation to escape Azkaban sooner." Sirius's eyes took on a momentary haunted look (as they always did when the wizard prison came up) before he shuddered and continued. "They've never hurt you, have they?"

"Not in a way that matters now."

Sirius smiled suddenly. "I met Petunia once during our fifth year at Hogwarts. James, Remus, and I went home with Lily for a couple weeks during the summer. In fact, Petunia had just started dating that Vernon character. What a funny pair they were." Mentioning James and Lily was indeed painful, and Sirius forced his mind away from them.

"It's hard to picture them dating, kissing...eurgh!" Harry laughed out loud, Sirius joining him after a moment, sniggering. "Scary."

That night wasn't too bad. The cots creaked and there were nighttime noises from outside, but there was plenty of firewood for the cold evening. Sirius wanted Harry to tell him about everything that had happened since he found out he was a wizard. They'd never truly gotten the chance to merely sit and talk about anything relatively normal at length, so Harry caught Sirius up on what had been going on with his life. Sirius went to sleep pleased to have an actual normal (normal for Harry) conversation with his godson. Harry lay on the cot thinking about his parents for a long while before he drifted into a deep, exhausted sleep.

Sirius woke Harry up mid-morning the next day to go fishing with him using Muggle rods. Sirius wanted them to live off the land as much as possible so that they wouldn't use up their food supply. He told Harry they shouldn't even use magic in case it was traced.

In the afternoon after a trout lunch, Sirius and Harry pulled the invisibility cloak over themselves and took off exploring in the forest in order to find some more food choices. Fish would get tiresome fast. Once, Sirius thought he heard someone else in the forest and he transformed into dog form to find out who or what it was. Nothing was there, but Sirius rushed Harry back to the cabin quickly and left him in his invisibility cloak with a warning to stay put.

He was gone for several hours. Upon his return, he wore a frown and carried a bucketful of blackberries. He held it out to Harry.

"What happened?" Harry asked, reaching for a handful of berries.

"I could have sworn I heard someone, but I searched this whole section of forest and didn't find anyone. We're going to board up the windows, and I'll keep watch tonight."

"You don't have to do that," Harry said. "We can switch off or something."

"No, I'd rather do it myself. You're the one in danger here, and if you fell asleep, anything could happen."

"You're not exactly safe yourself, Sirius. If you get caught...." Harry said.

"If Voldemort got you...." Sirius began, voice drifting off.

"Okay, okay. We're both in trouble. If you really think you heard someone, let's get out of here and find somewhere else to go."

"Remus is coming tomorrow morning, we can't leave until then."

"I won't fall asleep, I promise," Harry offered.

Sirius yawned. He was very tired and started to hedge a bit. "All right, wake me up at two o'clock and I'll take over."

The two of them boarded up the windows quickly and Sirius fell asleep under a wool blanket on one of the cots.

Harry sat down on his cot, senses tuned for the slightest sound. He didn't hear anything; he just sat there and waited. He passed the time thinking about everything and yet nothing at the same time. Hogwarts seemed ages away and he was missing his friends and normal life. He snorted inwardly. Since when had Harry Potter ever had a normal life? Just then, he felt a familiar pain begin to throb softly in his forehead. It had never come on gradually like this; it had always been a shock of unrelenting pain occurring in a single instant. He thought about waking Sirius, but didn't know whether he should. What could Sirius do except worry? He heard a whisper inside his head. It kept repeating his name over and over. What was going on? His name began to get louder and louder. Suddenly, the pain hit him full-blast and Harry heard a familiar, high, cold laugh. "Sirius!" He yelled; keeled over, vision gone black.

Sirius threw the blanket off and asked frantically, "Your scar?"

"Yes!"

Sirius sat there helplessly. Dumbledore had told him his theory about the scar. Could Voldemort be close by or was he simply angry about something? "What can I do?"

"Nothing." Harry was sprawled on the floor now, trying to suck in some air so he could breathe. The laughter faded and the pain subsided gradually now, after it had taken the remainder of Harry's energy. He fell into a mix of unconsciousness/sleep right there on the floor. Sirius checked his breathing. It sounded kind of irregular.

"Voldemort," Sirius spoke into the air with a tone full of fierce hatred, "damn you. Damn you for destroying families and people. Good people. Damn you for killing James and Lily and damn you for trying to kill Harry. I'll never let you do it, you know. Over my dead body you'll get him. Over my dead body."

Harry Potter was sound asleep when Remus Lupin apparated in the next morning. Sirius stood up looking tense and unshaven.

"What's wrong?" Remus inquired perceptively.

Sirius told him about Harry's scar hurting again last night.

Remus sat down looking puzzled. "From what I've heard, Voldemort's been pretty quiet the past couple of days. Now I wonder if that's a good sign or a bad one."

"Let's hope for the former," Sirius replied.

Later in the early afternoon, Harry woke up feeling as though everything was completely normal. His head didn't ache at all. He heard two voices talking quietly nearby.

"Harry, how do you feel?" Sirius asked when he noticed Harry sitting up.

"Better." Harry replied. "Hi, Professor Lupin."

"You can call me Remus, Harry. I hear your scar was acting up again last night," he remarked, trying not to sound too worried.

"This time was different," Harry explained. "At first it wasn't bad, but then I heard Voldemort whispering my name over and over and my scar started hurting worse. Then Voldemort laughed and the pain hit me full-on. I don't know what happened."

Sirius asked, "Why didn't you wake me up sooner?"

"I thought it would go away or something. Anyway, there was nothing you could do."

Remus, brow furrowed, said aloud, "I wonder if Voldemort could be 'tracking' you, Harry, by intentionally making your scar hurt. From what I've heard, there was no obvious reason for him to be enraged last night."

Sirius frowned. "I think if he could track Harry, he'd have been here by now or sent someone. Good theory, Remus, but you're not thinking like Voldemort."

Harry got a sudden insight. "Maybe he was dreaming last night! He could have been dreaming about trying to catch me or something."

Remus smiled. "That could be, Harry. And he must have become angry when he couldn't get you."

"Well, that sounds like a plausible scenario," Sirius mused. "It certainly makes me feel better."

"So, what are we going to do now?" Harry asked. "Are we going somewhere else or staying here?"

"Dumbledore told me about somewhere we ought to go instead. We can go ahead and use one of the portkeys to get there. Let's make sure there's nothing here that would give your presence here away," Remus said.

Harry looked in on Hedwig. She was dozing inside her cage, wings fluttering softly. "Did you give her some food, Sirius?"

"Yes, she's eaten. I think she's doing better too."

"Can I send Ron and Hermione an owl later today, then?"

"Why don't you use another owl?" Sirius suggested. "Everyone knows Hedwig belongs to you."

"Oh, right," Harry replied, feeling foolish.

Remus carefully selected one of the portkeys from the bag he'd given Sirius. "Well, are we ready?" Remus asked.

Sirius and Harry nodded, Harry taking hold of his trunk, the Firebolt, and Hedwig's cage.

"Let's go," Remus suggested, holding out a tennis ball. The three placed fingers on it and Harry felt the familiar tug somewhere behind his navel.

The three landed hard in the dark on a rocky surface. There were oofs and Hedwig's hoots echoing throughout the vast blackness.

Remus lit up his wand to reveal the fact that they were in a cave sprawled out on the floor.

"Rather rough way to travel, Moony," Sirius commented wryly, easing up from the floor. "Harry and I are going to be turning all sorts of colors by the time this is over."

"Well, at least we're here," Remus replied. "Lumos todamenta!" The whole cave was filled with light from an unknown source.

However good it was that there was light, it was freezing inside. Harry stood up and asked, "Are we going to stay here?"

"For now," Remus said vaguely with a small shiver. "I'd make it warmer in here, but I think we'd better stick with doing that the Muggle-way because we're already going to be doing more magic than we ought to be."

"How long will we be here?" Harry asked curiously.

"I don't know, as long as Dumbledore advises it. He only told me to bring you here, he didn't say how long."

Sirius was studying the cave, a mysterious smile playing on his lips.

Remus noticed the expression and asked, "What?"

"I've been here before."

"When?"

"With Carnatia, a year after Hogwarts. She always was wild about caves, so we spent a few days here."

"How do you know they're the same caves?" Remus asked, as Harry asked slyly, "Who's Carnatia?"

Sirius grinned wider. "I know they're the same caves because of that." He pointed to the ceiling. On the top of the cave was written 'Carnatia Sirius love'.

"And, Harry, Carnatia Bixon was my longest relationship ever of three months the year after I graduated from Hogwarts."

"I liked her, Padfoot," Remus commented, using his nickname fondly. "She was good for you."

"I know," Sirius replied, regretful. "But I was young and couldn't even think of being attached to just one woman. If I had a brain in my head back then, I probably wouldn't have broken up with her to go after that barmaid Muffy."

"Muffy?" Harry chortled.

"She happened to be the equivalent of Madame Rosmerta," Sirius defended.

"In your mind perhaps," Remus commented. "I always liked Tyla better. You know, the girl at the pub in Ragwortsville. Now she was classy."

Sirius grunted good-natured disagreement and changed the subject. "So, where should we set up?"

"Dumbledore told me about a chamber a bit deeper down this tunnel to the left. We'll conceal the entrance to it after we're inside so it won't be obvious that anyone's here."

Just before the three headed deeper into the cave, Pig flew in excitedly and flew circles around Harry's head. He had come in through a hole at the cave's top.

"Whoa! Hey, Pig! What are you doing here?" He reached up and took a rather large packet from him. Harry read the letter aloud first:

Harry,

We hope you made it to Lupin's and you're okay. Fudge is furious about your running away and has the Ministry looking for you. The whole school is talking about it. Filch doesn't look so happy either, come to think of it. Hermione is the one who put all your assignments in here. Fred, George, Hermione, and I all slipped into the teachers' offices to see their plans for the next month. Hermione wants to say that your O.W.L.s are very important and not to 'neglect your studies'. Anyway, Hogwarts isn't the same without you. Find a way back quick.

Ron & Hermione

Harry smiled sadly.

Sirius spoke up encouragingly, "Harry, you know, we were fifth years at Hogwarts once upon a time, we can help you out. You will get back to Hogwarts. Remember that."

"I wasn't a bad professor, was I, Harry? You'll get through."

"You were the best," Harry answered, looking over at Remus. "Can I send an owl back to them?"

"Sure, we just need to get into that chamber and sealed up soon," replied Sirius. He and Remus took their belongings and Hedwig into the chamber, leaving Harry to write back. He opened his trunk and took out a piece of parchment and a quill with ink.

Ron & Hermione,

I'm with them now and we're all right. Thanks for the owl. I don't know if I'll get to send another for a while because I don't know how long we'll be here. S and R are going to help me keep up with schoolwork. I have to go now. I will be back as soon as I can.

He tied the piece of parchment around Pig's small leg. "Go on, take this to Ron." Pig hooted eagerly and flew up and out of the hole.

Harry lugged his trunk into the rock chamber. Sirius and Remus looked up when he came in. Three sleeping bags had been laid out with blankets piled on them and a roaring fire blazed in the center of the "room".

"Cave sweet cave," Sirius said light-heartedly.

Harry grinned halfway, thoughts of Hogwarts and his friends.

"I'm going to go ahead and seal off this entrance," Remus warned. "Why don't you step away from the opening a bit more, Harry?"

Harry obliged and Remus raised his wand crying out, "Cierramenta llave!"

The opening to the cave's chamber appeared to be exactly the same. "It doesn't look any different to me," Harry told Remus uncertainly.

"Reach out and touch it."

Harry stuck his hand into what looked like empty space only to feel the cold surface of rock. "Cool, how does the entranceway look to people outside? Like solid rock?"

"Exactly right," Remus answered with a satisfied, teacher-sort of smile. "Now, Sirius, since you've been here before, why don't you give us a tour down these tunnels that lead away from here. We have to see if any more exits need to be sealed."

"It's been a while," Sirius replied, "But I think I can remember a few basic things. There's a waterfall somewhere inside these caves."

So that afternoon was spent finding their way around. There was a waterfall that pooled into a small pond way down one of the tunnels that spread off another tunnel. It was warm water, too, a nice change from the coldness of the cave. Harry wanted to jump in right then, but Remus said they had to keep going. Since the second task in the Tri-Wizard Tournament, Harry had wanted to try swimming again when he wasn't under pressure to save lives or trying to avoid being attacked.

They wound up not having to seal any other entrances off and headed back to their camp.

"I'll fix something for us to eat," Sirius offered. "Where's the Muggle food you brought, Moony?"

"In my trunk," Remus told him. He turned to Harry, "How about seeing what the assignments Hermione sent you are?"

Harry took them out rather reluctantly and handed them to Professor Lupin, who looked them over, mumbling.

"Potions may be out, I don't have any of these ingredients. What is your Defense of Dark Arts professor trying to do to you? McGonagall keeping her workload level up, I see. Charms, no problem. Professor Binns piling you with essays this year, I see. Divination, ha!" Harry listened to him, highly amused.

Remus looked at Harry. "We won't be able to do any actual magic, but I'll walk you through the steps. I think we're going to be busy. I'd forgotten how much work there was for fifth years."

Harry groaned inwardly. That wasn't exactly what he'd wanted to hear.

Sitting in Divination, Ron had even less patience for the ridiculous lessons than usual. Professor Trelawny kept sending him knowing glances. She was babbling on about Saturn and Jupiter collisions when she finally stopped and changed the subject to Harry. "You know, class, I had foreseen it all about Mr. Potter, the poor soul."

"What's going to happen to him now?" Parvati Patil asked her mentor eagerly.

"Ah, well, my dear, the fates haven't seen fit to inform me the details yet, but he is sure to get into trouble out there. You-Know-Who is bound to go after him once again."

Ron squirmed angrily in his chair. Neville trembled slightly.

"Indeed, Mr. Potter was ill-fated from the day of his birth, that's for sure."

Ron rose from his chair quickly. "He was not!"

"Mr. Weasley, you are not trained in The Sight as I am; you are not qualified to make such a judgment."

Ron snorted in disgust and headed towards the door. "I won't listen to this. You can shove The Sight; I'm leaving."

"I told Dumbledore about your attackers, Harry. He was going to put a couple of Aurors on the case and get back to us the moment he discovered anything," Remus said mid-bite of a Muggle hotdog he had just roasted over the fire they had built in the center of their cave chamber.

"Those miserable pieces of filth. If I ever run into them..." Sirius started angrily.

"I'm with you, Sirius," Harry added. On a different subject, he asked, "Can I ask you two a question?"

"Of course," Remus said.

"Do you think I'd make a good Auror?"

Sirius nearly spat out the water he'd been drinking. He swallowed quickly and coughed. "What makes you ask that?"

"I just wondered. It sounds interesting." Harry hesitated for a moment before adding, "Arabella told me Mum and Dad were Aurors, but that's not the only reason I asked you."

"Arabella told you?" Sirius repeated dumbly.

"Yeah," Harry answered, a bit sheepishly.

"I thought that was going to be a matter left to me," Sirius said, looking over at Remus.

Harry was confused. "When I asked you, you didn't want to tell me. Why now?"

"It wasn't the right time, I wasn't ready; I didn't think you were either," Sirius told him. He looked straight into Harry's eyes. "It's still not the right time." He stood and headed down the passageway without another word.

Harry felt awful. He couldn't help his curiosity; he had wanted, needed, to know the truth. He set down his pumpkin juice and stared uncomfortably at his hands. He could feel Remus's gaze on him.

"It's not your fault, Harry," said Remus quietly.

"Everything is my fault," Harry answered glumly. "My parents died for me; if I hadn't told Cedric to take the cup with me, he wouldn't be dead. If I had only let you two kill Pettigrew, Voldemort wouldn't be back. I'm cursed, that's what. Everything and everyone who cares about me gets put in danger." He started to stand, but Remus took hold of his arm and brought him back into a seated position.

"Don't say things like that. Nothing of this is your fault and, trust me, you are not cursed. This is just how things were meant to be, how they happened. After what happened with Pettigrew, and I actually thought about it, I realized that you were right: James would not have wanted us to become murderers because that was just not the type of person he was. Please don't blame yourself."

"Who decides how things are meant to be and why do they have to be this way?" Harry's voice became very hoarse and full of bitterness.

"I don't know. I wish I had the answers, Harry, but I don't." Remus's voice grew heavy and his whole body seemed to sag. "Do you want me to go talk to Sirius?"

"Do you think he's very angry at me?"

"I don't think he's angry at you. He has the same problem as you do: he blames himself for circumstances out of his control."

"I know it wasn't his fault," Harry said.

"And it wasn't yours either," Remus told him, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Do you understand?"

"I can't help the way I feel," Harry replied. "You know what else I can't help?"

"What?"

"I can't help thinking about how different, how right everything would be if Mum and Dad were still here and Voldemort was gone. I can picture it, in my mind. We could all be happy."

"Yes," Remus agreed softly, his eyes becoming a bit moist. "Yes, we could."

Harry was immediately embarrassed about his thoughts spilling out of his mouth like that and felt suddenly vulnerable. It felt good, in a way, to talk about it, but those had been his private, personal thoughts for so long and sharing them felt strange.

Remus subtly wiped his eyes and stood up. "I think you ought to go off to bed now. I'll talk to Sirius tonight and see what I can do."

"Okay," Harry answered a bit relieved. He wanted to sleep and escape from his life and troubles for a while. "Thanks. I'm not sure what I would say."

Remus said, "I've known Sirius a long time. Things will be all right. Goodnight, Harry."

Harry climbed into one of the sleeping bags and laid there for a long while before drifting off, staring up at the cave's ceiling, thinking.

"Sirius!" Remus called once he got farther down the passageway and came to a split. "Where are you?"

"Down the right tunnel," A tired-sounding voice responded, not too far away.

Remus walked down the right tunnel and saw Sirius sitting against the tunnel wall with his head back. "Are you all right?"

"Oh, wonderful," Sirius said sarcastically. "I think I could quite possibly be the worst godfather in the world. First, through my own stupidity, I get James and Lily killed. Then, I let Harry go live with three horrible Muggles. He's attacked by Voldemort time and time again and I let it happen. Now, I've messed up because I couldn't answer his perfectly logical questions about his own parents because I can't handle it. I'll win no awards, let me tell you that."

"Listen to me, Sirius, and listen well. What happened to James and Lily is not your fault in the slightest. We trusted Peter, all of us. He betrayed them by turning them over to Voldemort. He did it, not you. You checked on him that night because you cared. You were a good friend to James and Lily. If they were here right now, they would tell you that they know it wasn't your fault. Whether you believed them or not would be questionable, but you know that they wouldn't want you to blame yourself forever. You didn't have much choice in where Harry was sent, but you have him now, so take care of him. And what's happening with Voldemort is beyond everyone's control at the moment. But we're all trying to stop him and we will. Sitting in dark tunnels isn't going to help anything."

"You always were too sensible, Moony. I know you're speaking sense, but the words just won't get through to me." He was silent for a moment. "Harry thinks I'm angry at him, doesn't he?"

"He might. I tried to tell him that you weren't but I'm not sure if he understood or not. He's like you, Sirius, in that he's blaming himself for all the terrible things going on, even for his parents' death. In truth, I'm worried about his whole attitude about himself; called himself cursed."

"Hogwash!" Sirius got to his feet.

"Hogwash exactly, my friend," Remus said meaningfully.

"I get your point. Is Harry still awake?"

"I sent him to bed. Talk to him tomorrow, Padfoot, or at least very soon."

"I will," Sirius agreed, dreading it but knowing it had to be done. He had to get everything cleared up with Harry before it built up.

Harry had fallen asleep by the time the men got back into the chamber and gotten into their sleeping bags, but it was a fitful sleep full of nightmares. Harry woke up once or twice that night sweating profusely and he had to sit up and try to calm his racing heart and mind.

The next day, Sirius, Remus, and Harry began a pattern that would continue for the next two weeks. Remus got out Harry's assignments and Harry took out his books and they went over lessons. Sirius mainly sat by and told professor jokes that made Harry laugh and Remus scowl.

That evening as Harry was writing an essay on Melinda Snodgrass, witch rights reformist from the 1960s, for History of Magic, Sirius came over and sat down next to Harry, reading over his shoulder.

"Sounds good." He cleared his throat nervously. "Er, Harry, I'm sorry about last night. I just can't talk about it all right now. I want to, but I just can't. I'd like to discuss your parents and our work as Aurors, but..."

Harry cut in, "You're an Auror, too?"

"Yes, we all worked together." Sirius shifted uncomfortably then stood up. "But that's all for another time. You should finish that essay or Remus will be after my blood."

Every day for the next two weeks went well, for the most part. Harry was keeping up with his schoolwork with Remus's and Sirius's help, and the three even had some fun. Nearly every night they swam in the warm water down the tunnel. It was great, but rather a shock when getting back out into the coldness of the cave. Remus kept challenging them both to games of Wizard Chess, which he nearly always won. Harry lost every time against Remus but won his first game ever against Sirius and thought about what Ron would say had he been there. Sirius usually lost to Remus and, being competitive, didn't appreciate it very much. Some of the chess pieces came close to being hurled into the fire, but Remus usually came to their rescue. Hedwig completely recovered from whatever had been ailing her, and she flew around exploring the cave during the days. Being in hiding with Remus and Sirius wasn't bad at all. They were getting the chance to truly get to know one another, as they should have gotten long ago.

One night, as Remus was trying to explain to Harry how to do a transferring charm, making two objects switch places, a subtle but strange noise echoed from the passageway leading away from the chamber.

"What was that sound?" Sirius asked suddenly, jerking his head up, tensing.

"I heard it, too," Remus said. "I think it came from somewhere down the tunnel."

"Let's go find out what it was," Sirius suggested grimly. "Harry, stay here no matter what you hear down there."

"If you guys get into trouble, I'm going to help. I couldn't just sit here."

"Harry," Sirius started.

Remus interrupted. "Let's go find out what the noise was and come back here as quickly as possible. It could be nothing."

"Or a really bad something," replied Sirius. "We'll be back in a minute, Harry. If you get into trouble, yell."

The two friends set off down the tunnel post-haste. Harry watched them disappear into darkness.

"Moony, this divide up here, you take the left, I'll take the right."

"Be careful."

"You too."

After Remus and Sirius had separated and walked about five minutes, they heard the distant sound of rocks crashing down behind them, trapping them into their passageways.

Harry jumped up at the rumbling sound he heard down the cave. "Sirius? Remus?" He called hesitantly. Not receiving replies, he picked up his wand and started toward the tunnel entrance himself.

A familiar voice behind him warned, "Don't move, Harry."

Harry turned around slowly to face the owner of the voice. Before him stood Peter Pettigrew, aka Wormtail; betrayer of his parents, follower of Lord Voldemort.

Harry moved quickly with his wand, but not as quickly as Wormtail.

"Expelliarmus!" The short, pathetic-looking man cried. He caught the wand deftly, tucked it into his robes, and gave Harry a quivering smirk.

"Time's up, Harry. My master requires your presence; you're coming with me." Wormtail moved slowly toward him. "I don't want to force you to come with me, but I will if necessary. Padfoot and Moony won't get here in time to help you, don't count on them."

Harry backed away until he found himself against the wall, trying to think. If he ran, Wormtail would curse him and take him to Voldemort. If he called Sirius and Remus, the same result would occur and they wouldn't hear him anyway. His only hope was to stall Wormtail.

"I saved your life once, doesn't that count for anything?" He asked, trying to send Pettigrew into a guilt trip to stall him.

"Not to me," Wormtail answered, his watery eyes and shaky voice revealing fear. "I'm not afraid of wizard debt." He gave Harry an almost sympathetic look. "I was a good friend of your father. I'm sorry for what happened to James and Lily, truly. But my master had to come first, before everything and everyone."

"But my parents were your friends! They cared about you, they trusted their secrets with you!" Harry shouted, furious. "If it weren't for you, I could be with them right now. I wouldn't have had to grow up with those Muggles and I would have parents, a family. And you helped make it happen."

Wormtail tried not to look fazed by Harry's statement, but his eyes looked more watery than ever and he began to shake a bit.

Over Wormtail's shoulder, Harry caught sight of Sirius entering the room quietly, looking dusty, robes torn in places.

Wormtail spoke to Harry, "We've wasted enough time. Come with me." He reached out with his silver hand for Harry's arm when Harry let a punch fly and connected solidly with Pettigrew's nose.

That was Sirius's cue to run over, whirl Pettigrew around, and slam him against the wall. Pettigrew managed to mutter a curse that disoriented Sirius. He stopped fighting Pettigrew and stood still for a moment, wavering. Wormtail took that cue to put his silver hand around Sirius's throat and was lifting him off his feet, against the wall of the cave. Sirius began to choke, his feet swung furiously trying to connect with Wormtail's shins.

"No!" Harry yelled. "Let go of him!" He dashed toward Pettigrew and leapt onto his back, arms around his neck.

Sirius's eyes were wide, warning Harry to stop.

What Harry was trying to do worked; Wormtail dropped Sirius, grabbed one of Harry's hands with an iron grip and twisted him over, casting him to the hard floor of the cave. "Encircle carcela!"

Harry flew into mid-air and green bars surrounded him, forming a cage. He attempted to touch the bars and received searing pain in his scar. He bent over, floating inside the cage.

Sirius had picked up his wand, was on his feet, and pointed his wand at Wormtail, his eyes burning with fury. "Release Harry. Now."

"No," Pettigrew answered, terrified. "My master has waited too long."

"Peter," Sirius addressed him with gritted teeth, trying to appeal to his old friend, "you can't do this. Please. There's still time, you can come back to our side."

"No, the Dark Lord is my master. I will not betray him." Wormtail was trembling like mad now.

This enraged Sirius. "Like you betrayed James? And Lily? They trusted you! I trusted you!"

Wormtail answered coldly with newly found courage, "Then, that was your misfortune." He pointed his wand at Sirius. "Avada..."

A new voice roared and a bright light hit Wormtail. "Friamenta!"

Wormtail was now embedded in a block of ice, frozen solid.

Remus Lupin hurried over to where Sirius and Harry were.

"You got him!" Harry exclaimed excitedly from inside the green glowing bars. "You got Pettigrew! Sirius is free!"

Sirius could merely goggle at his friend. He said hoarsely, "Moony, you've just saved my life, in more ways than one." He pulled his long-time friend into an embrace of pure joy.

Remus could hardly believe what had happened himself. "No one deserves freedom more than you. We'll have to keep him frozen until we get him to the Ministry."

"What happened to you down the tunnel?" Harry asked.

The two men broke off their hug, remembering Harry's state. "Wormtail caused a slight cave-in, but he must not have thought we would use wands, so as not to be traced," Remus said, examining the cage carefully.

"There's no lock. Harry, have you tried to touch the bars?"

"Yeah, it hurts my scar," Harry answered ruefully. "I can't make it through the bars either, they're too close together. Just get Pettigrew to the Ministry and we can figure this out later. It's not so bad." He was lying, but he wanted Pettrigrew to get to the Ministry as fast as possible to be sure that nothing happened to mess up Sirius's freedom.

"We can't leave you here," Sirius exclaimed. "That's ludicrous!"

"Sirius is right. Why don't we try disapparating there all together? We won't need to bother worrying about being traced now. Take Harry's hand, hold onto the ice here, and I'll be on the other side of Peter."

"If it doesn't work," Harry said, "don't come back for me. Take care of Pettigrew first."

"Let's not concentrate on the ifs, let's just try this and see what happens," Remus suggested. He began to disapparate all of them.

The next thing they knew, they all arrived (cage intact with Harry) in the office of acting Minister of Magic, Grover Fudge (Cornelius Fudge's brother).

Grover jumped from his seat in surprise at the bizarre sight, spilling a cup of coffee all over his desk. "What the devil! Sirius Black!" He gulped nervously. "What do you want?"

"I'm here to prove my innocence," Sirius stated matter-of-factly, as though he had been practicing for ages, "and also to see if someone can get my godson out of this strange prison he's in."

"First, explain to me who all these people are. I recognize you and Harry Potter, who did a runner from Hogwarts, (He gave Harry a suspicious glare) but it is beyond me why there's a man in an ice cube and" (to Lupin) "I plainly don't know who you are."

"I'm Remus Lupin, a friend of Sirius."

"Professor Remus Lupin? All right, I've heard of you."

"And this," Remus continued with a gesture, "is Peter Pettigrew."

Grover Fudge looked fearful and disbelieving. "Weasley, Erickson, Matthers, come into my office NOW," he called into a corner of his desk.

Ministry employees Arthur Weasley, Samuel Erickson, and Linda Matthers apparated into his office. Samuel was in charge of the Magical Law Enforcers and Linda was from Ministry Justice. Mr. Weasley was there due to his seniority on the Ministry staff and trustworthiness. The three let out cries of alarm at Sirius Black and the sight before them. Mr. Weasley rushed over to Harry immediately.

"Harry, are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm great, except for these bars."

Mr. Weasley turned to Grover. "What's going on here?"

"You're just in time for the explanation. Before that though, I want you three to verify for me that it is indeed Peter Pettigrew inside that block of ice."

"Peter Pettigrew?" Linda, Samuel, and Mr. Weasley walked up close to the front of the block, peering inside. Mr. Weasley was the first to gasp.

"Great Merlin! It is!" Linda and Samuel nodded their heads, mouths agape.

Linda spoke up, "I know all about your case, Mr. Black. If Peter Pettigrew is alive, you don't have a case anymore, you're cleared. Tell me how all this happened."

It took nearly an hour for Sirius to explain everything, with Remus and Harry chiming in with what happened in Harry's third year when Sirius had escaped.

"So that's why you blocked him in ice when you caught him, so he couldn't transform into the rat," Samuel mused.

"I can't believe that Pettigrew was in my home for all those years!" Arthur exclaimed angrily.

"Minister Fudge, I suggest that we hold a trial right away so that Sirius's name can be cleared for good. It's about time," Linda proclaimed with a smile.

Grover Fudge looked amazed and a bit stunned. "Oh, Cornelius is going to absolutely burst with envy when I get the glory for this one. Samuel, set up a freezer for Pettigrew, cast a disabling spell so that he can't be disapparated out, and assign Enforcers to watch him day and night."

"Yes, Minister," Samuel said with a bow. He disapparated with Pettigrew.

"Linda, why don't you go with Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin here and gather some statements for the trial. Arthur, take Harry downstairs to the lab."

Sirius told Harry, "I'll meet up with you after we're done with giving our statements."

Harry confirmed hopefully, "This means I'll get to stay with you, right?"

Sirius beamed. "Yes."

"This is great!" Harry exclaimed, rolling a bit in mid-air.

Remus and Sirius grinned at each other. Everything was working out like, well, magic. They began to follow Linda from the room to her office down the hall, when Sirius turned and asked Fudge as an afterthought, "Harry will be able to go back to Hogwarts now, won't he? Since he turned out not to be a spy for me?"

"I'll have to talk to Cornelius, but I don't see why not," Grover replied with a dazzled look.

Harry and Sirius smiled at each other. "See you in a bit," Sirius told him and kept following Remus and Linda.

"Thank you, Minister Fudge," Harry said. "You don't know what this means."

"It was my pleasure," Grover answered. He'd get to be permanent Minister of Magic at this rate.

Arthur reached into the bars gingerly and took Harry's arm to disapparate.

They appeared in a laboratory setting. Two wizards and three witches dressed in solid white robes turned from their work, surprised at the sudden company.

Mr. Weasley spoke first. "Harry Potter here ('The Harry Potter?') has been imprisoned inside this, er, cage you could say, by one of You-Know-Who's followers. When he touches the bars, it hurts him, and there doesn't appear to be a lock on the ruddy thing."

The witches and wizards introduced themselves as Ministry Scienwitzists: Zelma, Rod, Tim, Carolyn, and Florence. They then went into scienwitzest-mode, examining the bars, and trying to touch them hesitantly.

"It doesn't exactly hurt me trying to touch it; however, there's a force-field surrounding it," Florence said. The others concurred with her.

While the bars were still being examined, Mr. Weasley said to Harry, "Ron told me you were expelled for something you didn't do. Fudge, Grover Fudge, that is, told me you had been spying for Black. I didn't want to believe it, but it all makes sense now. I wouldn't be worried about not being able to get back into Hogwarts, Cornelius will let you back in as though nothing has happened. I'm sure of it."

Harry smiled. "I hope so. I haven't been gone that long. I should still be able to pass my O.W.L.s, shouldn't I?"

"I think so. They're a long way off yet. You'll just have to get caught up. Your professors should be understanding."

"I don't know about Snape," Harry realized aloud glumly.

Mr. Weasley chuckled. "Who knows? Maybe he'll surprise you."

Zelma was flipping through a very thick book. "Rod, come over here and look at this. See what you think."

Rod read to everyone, "'The Easy Way to Penetrate Through Dark Magic Impounds: 1) Hold onto the imprisoned firmly with one hand. 2) Grip one of the bars or sides of the impound with a dragon-hide glove for protection from the force-field if one exists. 3) Cast the penetration spell. 4) Try to disapparate the prisoner and yourself somewhere close by.'"

"Let's try it," Tim suggested. "It sounds like what we're looking for."

"I'll do it," offered Mr. Weasley.

"I have a dragon-hide glove you can use," Carolyn said. "I just need to get it off my motorcycle outside." She disapparated.

Harry told Mr. Weasley, "Thanks, floating in mid-air trying not to brush against these bars is getting a bit old."

"No problem, glad to help."

Carolyn apparated into the room and handed Mr. Weasley a rather large, expensive-looking glove that he put on. "Good luck."

Mr. Weasley gripped Harry's forearm and clasped one of the green, glowing bars. He concentrated hard and shouted, "Penetrata" as he tried to disapparate the two of them.

Mr. Weasley apparated on the second floor but Harry wasn't with him.

Disappointed, he disapparated back into to the lab. "We'll have to try something else," He said. "It didn't work." Mr. Weasley then noticed that the cage was still there, now glowing a bright, sinister red. It was empty. "He didn't apparate?"

"No."

"He's not with you?"

"Where could he be?"

"This is not good."

"Search the building!"

All five of them plus Mr. Weasley each took two floors calling out Harry's name. Harry was definitely not in the building.

"Shouldn't we tell Black? He is Harry's godfather," Zelma asked Mr. Weasley uncertainly.

"Not yet," replied Mr. Weasley, just as uncertainly. "He has to finish making his statements without interruption and, who knows, we may find Harry before then."

They called out the Magical Law Enforcers to search the town and surrounding areas for hours but to no avail. Harry Potter had seemingly vanished.

Sirius had just finished his last statement for the trial and was standing up with a deeply satisfied sigh when someone knocked and entered Linda's office. It was Arthur Weasley, ashen-faced.

"What's going on?" Sirius asked, his blood turning to ice. He knew at once something was very wrong.

"Harry's gone."