Chapter 68
While they wandered down the road towards the wizarding bank, Dudley's eyes became bigger and bigger. He stayed close to his mother, who seemed to be more confident here than his father.
Vernon was still shouting profanities at every witch or wizard on the street, but nobody seemed to recognize him and every time, he walked off a little too far, Lily flicked her wand and Vernon was pulled back like on an invisible string. The fact that the beefy man bumped into poles and shop- signs during this procedure, didn't concern her much.
However, they didn't get very far. Just when Quality Quidditch Supplies came into view, everybody but Lily, Hermione, Kayla and the Dursleys sprinted to the shop window.
Vernon was smashed against the wall as Lily joined the others in front of the store. She smiled at her husband whose eyes were sparkling like a little boy's on Christmas.
"I don't think they make brooms strong enough to carry you Dudders" Harry taunted as he recognized his cousin looking curiously at the brooms in the display.
"This broom here isn't good enough to sweep the floor. Looks very cheap... I think the manufactured ones are much better, but you lot seem to like the strange old style and –"
Vernon did not get any further. Just when he mentioned 'cheap looking' as an attribute of a 1000 Gallon broom, he got whacked on the back of his head by James and Sirius.
"You old fat muggle have no idea what a good racing broom is supposed to look like" Padfoot spoke up and Ron nodded in agreement.
"Let's get the money and make sure we have everything we need. Then we can come back here" Lily suggested, while James and Sirius grinned mischievously at each other behind her back.
Most reluctantly they withdrew from the shop window and followed Lily. They had to drag the girls away from Flourish and Blott's and Madam Malkin's, but finally they arrived in front of the large marble building.
"You can wait here if you like" James said to the children and followed his wife into Gringotts followed by Sirius and Vernon. Petunia looked anxiously at her son but finally entered the place she hadn't seen for over 20 years.
Dudley felt more uncomfortable with every minute. The fact that Hermione seemed to be too friendly with that red-haired boy disappointed and annoyed him more than he could say.
Then all these people around him, dressed in strange robes and talking about things, he didn't understand.
While the kids waited in front of the building, Lily helped Petunia to exchange money for Dudley and the two wizards withdrew gallons from their vaults.
Sirius was extremely excited. For the first time after so many years, he was allowed to walk around freely without people screaming at him in utter horror.
The article in the Daily Prophet about his upcoming trial, mentioning the letter from James, had eased the minds of most people in the wizarding world.
He was determined to ignore the sporadic glares and enjoy this trip.
After they were finished with their transactions, they joined the kids outside and proceeded to Madam Malkin's to get the new robes.
Dudley looked strangely like a blond version of Crabbe or Goyle in his new set of school robes and the pointed hat looked quite ridiculous on his head.
"I'm not going to wear these garbage bags" he whined and fidgeted with the black fabric, while Madam Malkin fixed the length with magical pins.
"Don't be such a wimp, Big D" Harry taunted. "I know it's not laying great stress on your slender figure, but we all wear them and so will you.
Madam Malkin, who was not pleased that someone referred to her excellent garments as garbage bags, was a little bit too enthusiastic with her pins and Dudley screamed like a stabbed pig when a pin pricked his backside.
When the seamstress was finished with Dudley's robes, Lily ordered the packages to be delivered to the Leaky Cauldron so they could pick them up when they left
James and Sirius, who had also bought new sets of robes, were getting restless and wanted to go back to check out the newest brooms, but Lily didn't want to hear anything about it.
Their next stop would be the bookstore and the sparkling in Hermione's eyes proved that she was very eager to get there.
"Mom... mom... can Ron and I wait for you at Florean Fortescue's until you are finished" Harry asked and pointed at the ice cream parlor across the street.
Lily sighed and finally nodded. The boys were old enough and it would be less stressful for her. Just at this moment another wave of dizziness overwhelmed her and she collapsed.
James recognized it a moment to late and Lily's body hit the floor with a thud.
"Dear, oh my god, dear... please wake up" James called and padded her cheek frantically.
"What's wrong with mom? Is she sick? She –she is not back in that coma isn't she?" Harry asked anxiously and knelt down next to Lily.
"No baby, I'm ok. Just a little bit exhausted, that's all. I had no breakfast after all" Lily answered softly and smiled.
James sighed with relief and helped his wife up.
"You need to see Poppy as soon as we are finished here and I'm not going to leave your side until then"
Petunia had remained silent since they had exited the store, but now she shouted with a shrill voice "VERNON!"
Everybody was looking around for any sign of Harry's uncle. "There!" Zara called and James could see the stout form of Vernon Dursley disappear in the entrance to a backstreet.
"Harry, you and the others take your mom and Petunia to the ice cream parlor. Sirius and I will get him."
"But dad... we want to help too" Harry called but James interrupted him.
"You help me more when you take care of your mother until we are back" he said firmly and his son nodded.
"Oh I knew we should have never come here" Petunia howled and threw her hands up in horror.
"Dad will be ok, right?" Dudley asked meekly, but with one eye he was peering hard at Florean Fortescue's ice cream parlor.
James and Sirius helped Lily to a chair and called for Florean before they disappeared in the dark alley.
"Why, of all places, did he have to run into Knockturn Alley?" Sirius panted while they quickly walked down the road. It wasn't safe here and they didn't want to draw too much attention
"He is scared Sirius and all he wanted was to get away from all of us. This moron had no idea that he couldn't get into a more dangerous place than Knockturn Alley. We need to find him quickly before others do"
After several minutes, they had finally spotted him in front of a store that was selling poisonous candles.
A little group of people with fiery red cloaks had gathered around him and pushed him against the dirty shop window.
Vernon was screaming on the top of his lungs, but the figures didn't move and they couldn't hear him.
"You freaks get off me! Go and see a dentist and a barber! Don't touch me! Get your hands away from my chest. AAAAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGGGH"
Sirius and James passed the remaining distance in high-speed.
As soon as the strangers had recognized the two wizards, they let go of their victim and moved further down the alley.
James had already bent over his injured relative while Sirius tried to pursue the strange cloaked figures.
Unfortunately these men were too fast and Sirius finally had to give up. Before they vanished around a corner, one of them turned around and stared at Sirius. The black-haired wizard had the feeling that his blood turned to ice when his eyes met the ones of the stranger.
They were flashing golden with vertical black slits for pupils. His skin had the color of sand and looked like old parchment.
Sirius was just about to call out but then the stranger opened his mouth and growled. A set of long fangs on each jaw made the wizard swallow his call instantly.
"Merlin's jewels" he whispered before the man disappeared.
He returned to James and Vernon, who was awake but groaning in pain.
"Do you know who these people were?" James asked while he tried to help Vernon up from the ground.
"I don't know, but I have a feeling and he needs to lose weight, honestly" Sirius groaned when he help his friend and finally the stout man was back on his feet.
The two wizards supported him and they walked as quickly as they could manage.
Sinister looking warlocks, ugly old hags and other creepy looking individuals stared at them curiously, but nobody approached them.
James heaved a sigh of relief when they finally reached Diagon Alley, where it was always warm and sunny even in winter.
The dark and gloomy atmosphere in Knockturn Alley had touched a spot deep inside of Sirius. His father had taken him there once when he was little together with his brother Regulus.
Being not older than 5 years, all these odious things that were sold at Borgin & Burkes had made a deep impression in his mind. He often wondered if this first impression had been the reason why the deatheaters had never been able to misguide him.
They placed Vernon down in front of the Magical Menagerie, to examine him a bit closer and not to risk that Petunia or Dudley could see him from their seats.
Sirius was trying to shield them from the gaping of curious passers-by and answered inquiries about what happened to the poor man with a lame excuse about the heat.
Vernon was pale as a ghost and his breathing was jerky and shallow.
James opened the shirt and gasped. In the middle of Vernon's chest was a big black mark that looked like the print of an enormous paw.
Sirius glanced at the injured man and shuddered. "They burnt him that bad?"
James nodded and replied "This looks very serious. He needs to be taken to the hospital immediately. I think they didn't try to burn the skin only"
"Can you take him to the hospital and I will make sure that the others finish their shopping. We will meet you at St Mungo's then. Do you think you can transport him there alone?"
"I trust I haven't forgotten how to apparate with a passenger" James said cheekily and vanished.
Sirius walked up to the others, who were still sitting in the ice cream parlor.
"Did you find him, Sirius? Where is James?" Lily said anxiously as her old friend came into view.
He sat down next to Kelsey and said firmly "James has taken him to St Mungo's"
A stern look towards Petunia stopped her from howling again, as Sirius continued "We found him in Knockturn Alley and a group of strangers had encircled him. He has a severe burn mark on his chest, so James took him straight to St Mungo's. These strangers were dangerous and they might still be hanging about somewhere. So I think we should finish here quickly and get back before anything more happens"
Lily agreed and they left the parlor.
Petunia was seriously disturbed about the situation. She didn't say a word but tears were running down her face constantly.
They bought a wand and a cauldron for Dudley and anything else that was on the list for first years, except the books. He could use Harry's old books to catch up.
In a short time they were finished and were ready to leave. Lily hadn't forgotten to get the potion for Ginny so finally, before they entered the Leaky Cauldron, she rushed into the apothecary.
"Wait inside the pub for me. I will be back shortly" she said and the others crossed the short distance between the apothecary and the Leaky Cauldron.
Sirius waited until they all were inside and then he closed the door.
"Everybody here?" he questioned.
The students looked around and then Kelsey wondered "Where's Zara?"
"Damn!" Sirius shouted. "You stay here! Tom will take care of you, until I return"
The black-haired wizard turned around and rushed out of the pub.
"Zara?" he called out for her, but didn't get any reply.
Zara, however, didn't hear him calling, but she heard somebody calling in her head.
Come over here.
She obeyed the command and walked into the small dark backstreet on the side of the building.
Zara felt a little dizzy but she couldn't resist the tempting voice in her head.
In the shadows next to a few trash cans she recognized a woman who once had been a remarkable beauty. She was tall, had black hair and heavy-lidded eyes, but years of deprivation had left their marks.
Zara walked over to her as she was told and then the veil that seemed to cover her mind finally fell.
"The Imperius curse is very useful to trap innocent little children" she sneered and strong delicate fingers snapped around Zara's wrists like a vice.
Zara wanted to scream but no sound came out. She grabbed at her throat but she couldn't even croak.
"Don't cry to call for help, little poppet. Nobody will hear you. I doubt that my friend Severus will be too pleased when he finds out that you are with me, but- who cares?"
Then finally Zara remembered where she had heard that voice before. They had found her. She had found her.
"Now would you please follow me?"
She grabbed Zara's hair with one hand and pulled her closer. Zara tried hard to fight her, but Bella's grip was too tight.
-----------------------
Sirius had looked around everywhere but Zara was no where to be seen.
Finally he entered a little backstreet and cleaved a way through scattered glass, knocked over trash cans and other filth.
Then he thought he had heard a voice. A voice that sounded familiar and then he saw her.
"Too late dear cousin" she cried and vanished into thin air together with Zara.
Sirius felt like rooted to the spot, but only for a moment, then he sprinted back to where he came from just when Lily exited the apothecary.
"Oh my god, she caught Zara"
"Who caught Zara?" Lily inquired and stared into Sirius horror-stricken face.
"Bellatrix! She must have lured her into the alley and before I could do something, they both were gone."
Lily ran towards the Leaky Cauldron and beckoned Sirius to follow her.
"You take the kids home and inform Dumbledore, while I take Petunia and Dudley to St Mungo's"
"Hurry, you leave with Sirius. NOW!" she shouted when she entered the pub, but before anybody could say something, she grabbed Petunia and Dudley and left via portkey.
"What happened to Zara, Sirius? Where is she?" Harry called confusedly.
"We have no time for that now. Hurry!" Sirius exclaimed and shooed them towards the fireplace.
They knew that it was no use to argue now, so they flooed to headquarters without any more fuss.
"So what happened to Zara?" Harry asked once again as they arrived in the kitchen.
"She has been abducted by Bellatrix Lestrange" Sirius said firmly.
"But how could that happen? Zara wouldn't wander off just like that" Kelsey stated anxiously.
"I have the impression that Bellatrix put her under the Imperius curse. She likes to use the Unforgivables to get what she wants. Now I want you all to go upstairs and wait there until further notice" he said sternly.
"Come one" Hermione said and looked at Kelsey, who looked devastated. "There's nothing we can do now"
Harry nodded mutely and followed his friend. Kayla put her arm around her brother and pulled him out of the kitchen, followed by Ron.
Kimberly, who had been in the kitchen when they arrived, was shocked.
"Oh my god Sirius, we have to tell Albus and Severus"
"Oh I agree that Dumbledore needs to know, but what does the Slytherin git have to do with Zara?" Sirius asked, while he seized the floo powder from the shelf.
"He's her father" she said calmly and Sirius almost dropped the jar.
"He's what?"
"Yes... you've heard right. He's Zara's biological father. He told her on Christmas and it confused her very much, so she confided in me a few days ago. But we have no time for that now" she said and grabbed the jar from Sirius.
She threw a little bit of powder into the flames and called "Albus Dumbledore" but nothing happened. The flames didn't turn colors and nobody answered.
"What in the name of Merlin is that now" Sirius yelled furiously. "Let me try"
Sirius threw some powder into the flames and called for Dumbledore again, but still no reaction.
He even tried to floo to Hogwarts, but the flames wouldn't transport.
"She blocked the floo network" he sighed and sat down in a chair.
"How could she do that" Kimberly said flabbergasted. "I thought this place is under the Fidelius charm?"
"It is" Sirius explained. "I have the feeling that she knows that we are using my old family home as headquarter. She might not be able to get here now, even if she has been here plenty of times before, but she somehow found a way to block our gate to the floo network"
"Bugger it! What are we going to do now?"
"I have no idea" Sirius sighed.
"Maybe I can help you out there"
Sirius turned towards the door and spotted Lady Tanya, who had just entered the room.
"What could you do? You don't have a picture at Hogwarts" he retorted.
"No, but I have another idea how we can get to Hogwarts" Lady Tanya said calmly and joined Sirius and Kimberly at the table.
"So here is my plan. Someone is going to fly Buckbeak to Hogwarts. He is a lot faster than any broom and knows the way better than any of us"
Sirius head perked up and he smiled. "This is a brilliant idea. I will leave immediately."
"Where are Lily and James" Kimberly asked before Sirius could get up.
"They are both at St Mungo's. Harry's uncle was injured and needed treatment."
"In this case, I don't think that it's a good idea, when you leave. Someone needs to be here to protect the children and we don't know if our fireplace is the only one that is blocked" she replied. "Lily and James might not return for hours"
"I second that. I'm not much use here as protector right now. I will go." Lady Tanya said firmly.
"You're not going alone" Sirius retorted. "I don't care what you are,... dead, a ghost, or what, but you're not taking this long trip alone. We will need to find one to come with you, although I still think I should go."
Kimberly rose from her chair and exclaimed "Yes I think at least one Gryffindor should accompany you, Tanya. Let's get ready."
Sirius looked very uncomfortable while he prepared the hippogriff for the journey.
Kim was changing into something warmer and Lady Tanya went back to her portrait to get her cloak.
Several minutes later, the two women met in Mrs Black's old bedroom where the hippogriff was residing.
"Are you ready?" Sirius asked and beckoned them over to meet Buckbeak.
Lady Tanya looked slightly flustered when she approached the hippogriff and bowed.
After a moment that seemed like forever, Buckbeak bowed as well and she padded his neck carefully.
After Kimberly had been through the same procedure, Sirius opened the doors to the big balcony.
Before the two women mounted the hippogriff, Kimberly casted a Disillusionment charm on Buckbeak, Lady Tanya and herself.
"Take good care of your passengers and come back as soon as possible" Sirius said and padded the hippogriff a last time before they took of into the cold winter sky.