Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own Harry Potter and the characters associated with him. They belong to J.K. Rowling. I am not making money off of this story. So please don't sue.
This chapter starts off right where the prologue left off.
Chapter III: Reactions and PlansThe Day after Harry is taken to Azkaban. Same time as the prologue.
CRASH!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sirius jumped out of bed startled by the noise.
"Remus?" He called out softly.
There was no answer. Sirius did not dare call out again. It could be a Death Eater attack and running down recklessly would only allow him to be captured too. That would not help Moony at all.
Sirius reached over the bed to pull a wand out from under the pillow, when he realized that he had already grabbed it as he was jumping out of the bed. He just shook his head in surprise. At least he knew that he could be prepared at a moments notice. The wand was not actually his, but it would suffice for most of the charms and spells he could use on the Death Eaters.
Quickly and stealthily,
with speed and agility only a Marauder could have, Sirius slipped out into the
hall and down the stairs. He was
careful to stay in the shadows, he knew how to do that quite well, especially now
that he had escaped from Azkaban. He
crept down the stairs, automatically skipping the ones that creaked and
groaned. As soon as he was at the
bottom, he looked around for any signs of trouble.
There was none. Not yet anyway. He carefully looked over at the living room, everything was the same there as it was last night. Sirius was sure that the noise had come from the kitchen. Quickly he made his way towards the room, what worried him was that there had not been another noise after that initial crash. What if Remus had been taken hostage? What if Moony had been killed so that they could lure him away? Did that man know he was here? How could Tom Riddle know where he was hiding? Wormtail. He would bet that Pettigrew told his master where Sirius could be found. Sirius gripped his wand tighter, ready in an instant to yell a couple dozen spells in a row.
He moved away from the kitchen door and slammed it open, staying to the side of it. If any curses were to be thrown through the door, he would not stand in the way of them. This had been how the Aurors would search a house many years ago. This was what he had been trained for.
Sirius waited a moment, but no curses came. Not a single spell was blasted through the door. That was curious. Had they taken Moony hostage, so that he would have to go rescue him? He desperately hoped that his friend had not been taken hostage, he did not think he could face Voldemort again, not after their last meeting. Sirius quickly steered his thoughts away from that memory, he had other things to worry about, now was not the time. He had to check on Moony.
Padfoot looked through the door cautiously. No one was in the room except Moony who sat motionless staring at something on the table. His teacup was on the ground smashed to tiny pieces. Moony was never that careless. It was an ambush! They had petrified Moony and when he came into the room to rescue his friend, they would take him away. Sirius froze. A nameless fear came over him. He would not talk to that man, he refused to talk to that creature, who would dare offer him power. But he had to rescue his friend.
His instincts kicked in and Padfoot knew that he had to go check on his friend, even if it meant being caught by Tom Riddle's lemmings. He ran over to his friend, so as to avoid any curses that might come flying his way. He skidded to a stop beside Moony and looked around. There was no one else in the room. No one. Only Sirius and Moony. So what on earth was going on? Had someone petrified his friend and then ran outside in fear of something? No that wasn't right. There was only one way to find out the truth.
Sirius touched his friend's arm. Remus jumped up, at least two feet in the air. Sirius would have been on the floor laughing at the man's expression if he was not so worried. Remus looked at him in surprise, something close to pure terror reflecting in his brown eyes. Sirius stared at his friend.
"You OK Moony?" He asked quietly.
Remus just nodded and moved his hand so as to cover something up. Sirius caught this and was about to grab it from his friend's hand, when Remus spoke. "I am fine, Padfoot, just a little surprised at today's article. I did not think the Prophet would keep reporting all those lies."
Something in his voice was not right. Padfoot could hear it. After knowing the man for some twenty-odd years, Padfoot could hear that he was trying to keep a secret. But what about that article was Remus hiding? At least there were no Death Eaters attacking the house, as he had feared.
Before he could ask about the article, Remus spoke. "Why on earth do you have your wand out Padfoot?" He seemed to try and looked amused, but to Sirius' eyes, he failed miserably. Even the man's smile was a little jagged.
"I thought someone was attacking the house, I heard your cup crash to the floor and I thought . . ." Sirius stopped in mid-sentence, Remus would never understand.
"It's alright Padfoot, I was just a little shocked at the article today." Remus said curly the paper up.
Sirius stared at his friend skeptically. For all the years he had known Remus, the man had never once seemed as ruffled as he was now, something about that article scared the man. And that was enough to start alarming Sirius; Moony was not a person one could frighten easily.
"What's in the article Moony? What's it about?" Sirius asked suspiciously.
Moony did not meet his eye, the man looked down, as if ashamed at what was written on the paper. He looked at the pages crumpled in his hands, then at Sirius, who stood waiting on the balls of his feet. "Nothing Padfoot, nothing for you to worry about."
Sirius knew something was wrong. Moony had always given decent explanations for everything. Had it been nothing he would have given Sirius a brief summary. Knowing that he would never get information out of his friend, Sirius dropped his wand and dove for the man, reaching for the newspaper.
Remus moved the newspaper out of his reach just as Sirius crashed into the man. They rolled on the ground. Sirius kept trying to hold Remus down and reach for the newspaper, while Remus tried to keep it out of his friend's reach. Despite the fact that Remus was stronger than Sirius, the man was more agile, probably due to his time on the run. Padfoot grabbed the newspaper trying to tear it away from his friend's strong grasp. Moony held tight. Sirius jerked in Remus' arms and pulled away, taking the newspaper with him. Remus tried to wrap his arms around his friend in desperation. Sirius felt his ankle being pulled and he fell with a crash onto the floor. His prize still clutched tightly in his hands. He tried to roll out of the way so that he could run upstairs into his room long enough to lock the door. But Remus held him tightly. Sirius tried to find some way to dislodge his friend's hand. It was then his eye caught the headline of the article.
He froze.
Remus seemed to realize that he had read the headline of the article, for he stopped tugging his friend's leg. All Sirius could do was sit and stare at the headline of the article, he did not hear his friend's worried pleas not to read it. Sirius read the headline once again continuing on with the article:
The Boy-Who-Lived Murders Relatives and Sent to Azkaban By Wanda Knight
It has been discovered by the Daily Prophet that Harry Potter has been accused of murder and sent to Azkaban. Yesterday morning Ministry officials felt large amounts of magic being used at the Dursleys', Mr. Potter's relatives, home. Since Mr. Potter is the only wizard in that house, they were sent to investigate. Upon nearing the house, the officials realized that it was no longer there. Only a pile of ruins remained of the house. A Dark Mark decorated the sky above. A quick search revealed the bodies of both a Mr. Vernon Dursley and a Mrs. Petunia Dursley. A Mr. Dudley Dursley was found just barely alive. Harry Potter was found in the back yard relatively unharmed. Rescue crews were called in.
Upon quick investigation it was discovered that Mr. Potter's magical signature was all over the house. It was Harry Potter who did blow up his relatives' house. He also created the Dark Mark that decorated the sky for nearly twelve hours before disappearing.
Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, appeared on the scene later that day. It appears he has been watching the boy recently and believed that Harry Potter was truly a Death Eater. He questioned the boy about what happened. Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, claimed to have murdered his own relatives, even claimed to have fun doing it. Upon further investigation it was discovered that he was indeed a Death Eater.
Minister Fudge is saddened by this news. He wished that his suspicions last year at the Tri-Wizard Tournament were false. Ever since the Tournament private court sessions have been going on looking into the death of Cedric Diggory, a Hogwart's student. Just a day before the house was destroyed, the judge announced that Harry Potter is the one who murdered Cedric Diggory.
With the evidence coming out of his mouth and his signature, the Minister wasted no time in sending the boy to Azkaban for life. The boy is guilty of the murders of three people and with attempted murder. Mr. Potter will not be seen any time soon, for he is to spend a lifetime in Azkaban for his crimes. This Daily Prophet reporter only hopes that it is enough to stop more murders and attacks from happening.
Sirius stared at the page. No! This was not happening. This could not happen. It was not possible. Fudge would never go so far. How could someone send a fifteen-year-old boy to prison? To Azkaban nonetheless? Especially when they knew that boy was innocent?
Sirius read it again, and again, and again. Hoping that the next time he read it the article would change. But it didn't. The words remained the same.
***************
Remus stared at his friend. Sirius did not look good. He had gone completely pale, almost white. He could see his friend's hands shake as he held the article in front of him. Sirius remained on the floor, where he had fallen when Remus had grabbed his foot. He had tried to keep it from his friend, he knew that the article could drive Sirius over the brink.
"Sirius?" He pleaded softly, even though he knew that his friend had already read the article, probably several times over. He did not know what he would do if his friend decided to go insane at that moment. If this man was anything like the Sirius he knew, then he would fly out the door ready to rescue the boy in an instant, even braving the halls of Azkaban. He locked the door with a soft whispered spell that his companion would not hear, if he was even listening, though Remus highly doubted it. Remus had a feeling that he should not wait for his friend to pull out of his reverie. He himself had been contemplating the article for quite a while before Sirius had come in. Moving quickly he knelt beside his friend and shook the man's shoulders.
Sirius jumped up from his place and looked around, a mad glint in his eye. That worried Remus, he hoped that the article did not push his friend, his last best friend, over the edge.
"Padfoot?" He asked softly as he stood up to come face to face with the man.
Sirius' blue eyes met his for a minute. The man stared at him silently, though Moony doubted that Sirius saw him, his friend was probably miles away in a prison, reliving memories that were best left alone. "Sirius Black!" He called out, ready to shake life back into the man.
Sirius blinked for a second and looked at Remus once again. "T-they sent him to Azkaban!" Padfoot whispered in shock. "Moony those-those fools sent my son to Azkaban!" At that Moony's brows furrowed. What on earth did he mean by that? He knew that Sirius cared about the boy, but he didn't think that Padfoot considered James' son his own. "Do you know what it will do to him? Do you? It will destroy him! Harry never did anything! I swear he would never hurt a fly! He even saved Pettigrew's life! Moony he didn't do it!" Sirius started to shout. For a moment Remus was afraid his friend was going to break down and cry. He was glad when his friend just kept shouting, it was almost easier to deal with Sirius when he was raging with a fiery anger. But right now he knew that shouting was not helping Harry, his one-time student would not be able to last long in the presence of the dementors.
"Sirius!" He shouted, breaking into his friend's outburst. He was having trouble remaining calm listening to Sirius' outburst. He totally agreed with everything his friend said, and it was taking all his self-control not to give into his anger, to his hate and charge in Azkaban himself to rescue the boy. "I know that Harry did not do it! I know that!"
Sirius jumped in surprise, startled by his friend's outburst. Remus was never one to yell and shout, especially when Sirius lost his temper, even in the most dire situations. Remus looked at his friend who was now silent.
"Yelling and screaming will not help Harry." He said softly. "We need to set up a trial, or if worse comes to worse we need to break him out of prison."
Sirius stared at his friend, his blue eyes darkened by thought. Remus did not like the look on the man's face, it looked like it did when he was thinking of Azkaban. Sirius shook his friend and met Remus' soft brown eyes. He looked heartbroken, as if his whole world had fallen apart, which, Moony knew, it would if Harry died. The black haired boy was Padfoot's pillar, his only hold on the world. If he died . . . Remus did not want to think what it would do to his friend.
"No Moony, we won't be able to set up a trial, Fudge will never allow us to. I even begged for a trial before I was sent to . . . that place, and was never given one. He knew I was innocent, he even told me so before I was sent there. I would bet everything that he knew Harry was innocent." He whispered softly. "That idiot has convinced the 'crowd' that Harry is a murder, and in their eyes that is how he will stay. We would never be able to convince them. No, a trial would not work even if we had solid, hard proof." Remus met Sirius' watery blue eyes. "It is hopeless Moony, we'd never get him out that way."
Remus could not stand seeing his friend this way, he had never seen Sirius like this before, he had never seen Sirius give up so fast. He knew he had to give his friend some kind of hope before Padfoot fell apart. Was it his memories that caused him to give up so fast? Or was it that he doubted himself? He opened his mouth to say something reassuring when Sirius spoke again, his eyes to the floor.
"And to break into Azkaban is impossible too. Did you not read the papers after I escaped; they tripled the guard there and strengthened the wards. I could hardly break out as it was." Sirius looked up again. "No Moony, I would not take you there, I could not stand it if you became a convict too." A coldness came into Sirius' eyes, one that Remus had never seen there before, one he hoped that he would never have to witness again. "You stay here." Sirius' voice had become cold, and bitter with resolve. Remus could see the man thinking of a plan.
"What are you going to do Padfoot?" He asked softly, as badly as he wanted Harry out of Azkaban he would not let his friend risk his life on a suicide mission.
"I am going to get Harry out of Azkaban. I know where he will be, which cell block. I am going to get him out of Azkaban no matter what." Sirius said coldly. "Even if it means I have to go back there."
"Padfoot, please, don't go, you will be caught, and then Harry will have no hope." Remus pleaded. He did not know if he could live through the deaths of his best friend and his other best friend's son. And Harry could not last long in that prison, if Padfoot ran in, then Harry would never be freed. He needed Padfoot for planning, Sirius had always been one of the lead planners in their pranks. He was good at adding logic to the plans, not creating them.
"I am going Remus! I don't care if I get caught. I need to free Harry." Sirius stated callously.
"Sirius! Listen to me. If you go into Azkaban, you will be heading into a trap, that is exactly where Fudge expects you to be. He knows you will go after Harry. He will have quadrupled the guard around Harry, just so that you will be caught." Remus begged. He did not know if that was the truth, but it might be the voice of reason for his friend. "And in being caught, you will be doing Harry more harm, he needs you Sirius. When we get him out of there he is going to need you, you're the only one he trusts enough to confide in. You can help him through whatever horrors he has seen. Think about how happy Harry was when you said he could live with you. Would you throw that all away with your recklessness?"
***************
Sirius stared as his friend as the words penetrated his mind. Would he throw away the chance to let Harry have a home, a family, with his careless planning? No, he would not, could not do that to Harry. But he would not leave his son in Azkaban. It was worse for Harry in Azkaban than anywhere else. At least at the Dursleys he had a place that he could be left alone without his memories terrorizing him every moment, he could think happy thoughts. At least at the Dursleys he could mail his friends. But the Dursleys were dead. So where would Harry go if he died? Remus could look after him, but the boy would be an innocent convict, just like he himself was, and nobody would believe that Harry was innocent. What kind of life would that be for a fifteen year old boy? Especially after staying in Azkaban.
It was hopeless.
There was nothing he could do to help Harry. They could not break into Azkaban, no one had been successful at it yet. It had been hard enough getting out of the prison as an animagi. It would be nearly impossible to enter the prison. Then there would be the near impossible task of finding the way to the high security cells. And then they had to take Harry out of the prison, while avoiding dementors, and spells. No that was impossible. Absolutely and completely hopeless.
Sirius felt the memories of Azkaban come back to him. He could feel the dementors near him, their coldness blanketed him like death. He could hear the screams of a man as he died by a curse. He could see Pettigrew in the streets blaming him for killing Lily and James. He could see his son, a small babe, tears in his eyes and a new scar etched on his forehead. Those memories had played over and over in his mind, every bad situation he had ever been in, he had relived. He brushed those memories away before they could take him away in their grasp.
Harry would see all his horrible memories too. Offhand Sirius could name two that would drop even the bravest of souls on their knees. Harry would never be able to stand it. And Sirius would not leave his son to that torment. He would never . . .
"Sirius Black!" He felt something smack against his cheek.
Sirius blinked.
And blinked again. The fuzzy image of a man, came into focus showing the very concerned face of Remus.
"Sirius? Padfoot are you there?" Remus' worried voice penetrated through his void.
"Yes." Sirius answered tiredly, hopeless.
"It's alright Padfoot, we'll think of something. We managed to come up with some brilliant plans before." Remus said. Sirius knew that he was trying to sound reassuring, but it did not help him. Of course they had managed some brilliant plans, but getting a convict out of Azkaban was not like planning to curse Snape's bed so it shook.
There was no way to free Harry from Azkaban, unless . . .
No it would not work. But maybe it could. If done right. Would it? What if Sirius asked Voldemort for help? The man, no, the creature, would be all to glad to have access to Azkaban, all Sirius needed to do was think of some story that would allow him to free Harry. Would it work? Would the man actually help him? The price would be high, true, but if it freed Harry, he would gladly pay. He would even agree to the man's earlier offer and join him.
It would work. He just had to plan it properly.
"Sirius?" Remus broke into his thoughts once more. Couldn't his friend allow him to think a little? He knew that Moony worried about him, but his friend kept at it, not leaving him alone even when he needed to be the most.
"I'm still here Remus." He said softly, he needed to think. Suddenly he missed James. He missed being able to tell someone everything he was thinking, everything he was planning. He missed the friend that had been there forever . . . So what would James think about his plan?
James would wonder what happened to him for him to be so desperate. He would stare at Padfoot as if he were raving mad. Prongs would probably think about locking him up until he came to his senses. Then his old friend would ask him how Lily would feel about that.
Lily.
She would look at him as if he was mad for risking his life and his son's life. She would give him a tongue lashing for even thinking of trying to do that. She would tell him that he should be ashamed he even thought of it. Lily would tell him that it would jeopardize his son's life. It could reveal one of the most closely guarded secrets.
No. That plan would not work. He had to keep Voldemort away from Harry, he had to keep the knowledge of his son's parentage a secret. If Voldemort found out . . . Sirius cut his thoughts off there.
"It's hopeless Moony." He whispered softly, defeated. Sirius felt a hand touch his shoulder in a comforting gesture.
"It's not hopeless yet Padfoot. It's not hopeless until we see Harry's body, until we know that he is dead. He's not yet, is he? We need to think of someway to bring him out of there."
Sirius looked at him skeptically.
"We shall go see Albus and see what he has to say about this. See what he thinks about it. Especially before you go running into Azkaban with a crowbar." Remus said reassuringly. Remus started to move towards the fireplace where the floo powder was kept.
"A crowbar?" Sirius muttered, stopping for an instant behind his friend. "What on earth is a crowbar?"
***************
Sirius stepped out of the fireplace into the headmaster's office. He always hated using floo powder. He honestly did not blame Harry for complaining about it – the boy had told him in one of his letters over last summer about it. It was about just as bad as using a portkey, but it was one of the only quick ways into the headmaster's office.
He studied his surroundings. The room had not changed since he had last been there two weeks ago. Everything was in its proper place. Sirius' eyes traveled over to the desk where an older man sat, his normally twinkling eyes dim. All three of them stood there staring at one another in a silent contest. Sirius glared at the told man, he had let this happen to Harry, Albus Dumbledore had left Harry with those good-for-nothing relatives. Dumbledore lowered his eyes to Sirius, as if to say that he was sorry.
"Sirius, Remus," Albus said as the two men walked silently across the room and took their seats. "I did not expect you so soon. I didn't think you would be up until later Sirius." He said looking at the two men, both of which looked ruffled from their battle over the newspaper.
Sirius did not bother responding, it was unimportant that he had gotten so little sleep, especially since his son, his little baby boy, was in Azkaban. He shuddered. Oh how he hated that place, to think about it brought chills down his spine. Before his thoughts could go any further, Sirius fixed his eyes on Albus and gave him the best glare he could. It was best to be direct; he did not think he could stand listening to pleasantries anyway. "How do we get Harry out?" He asked, not bothering asking if Albus knew the news or not, of course the man did, he knew everything just after it happened.
Albus raised his eyebrows in question, but seemed to read the worry and desperation that filled the man's face. "Well we will not be able to break him out, they have put him in a high security cell, as I am sure you guessed Sirius. The wards around Azkaban have been strengthened again. If we tried, it would only end with you getting caught again Sirius, and sending the rest of us to prison as well."
Sirius glared at the man. He had already thought of that, well he hadn't thought about the rest of them being caught just for associating with him. But he had already figured out it was hopeless to dash in headfirst. Moony had convinced him of that in their earlier talk.
"However," Albus said before either man could speak in protest, "If we can prove that Harry really did not kill his relatives then he will be let out, there is no way they will keep him in there if the public thinks that Harry is innocent."
"But Albus," Remus said cutting in before Sirius could go on another tirade about how it was not possible. "How will we prove that, the Death Eaters have been very thorough in their planning, all the evidence points to Harry. They even managed to copy his magical signature. And what about Cedric Diggory's death?"
Sirius watched his friend. Suddenly a thought hit him, it had been the Death Eaters who had set that up. He had never thought of it before, he had never thought of why it had happened, only a way to get his son out of that place. So that meant his last plan was definitely out of the question. But why on earth would Voldemort want to send Harry to Azkaban? It did not make sense. Sirius always thought he wanted just to kill Harry so that he would not have to worry about the boy anymore. Remus was still talking but Sirius, who was not listening, interrupted him. "Why would the Death Eaters do such a thing? It would be pointless to put Harry in Azkaban, and then Voldemort could never claim that he killed him. What would the point be in that? Do they want Harry to go mad? Did they put Harry in there for safekeeping? Was Harry supposed to be taken during the raid, but he only stepped outside the backyard instead of going down the street where they could take him? Or did they put him in there because they are going to take over . . ." Sirius stopped where he was. That was it. He knew the creature well enough to know what he was going to do. Voldemort wanted the dementors on his side, and he wanted to free those in Azkaban. To make everything easier for himself, the monster had put Harry in there as well. He could feel the blood draining from his face. Remus had gone deathly pale and any twinkle that had been in Albus' eyes had winked out.
"I had thought of that possibility, however I believe we still have time on our side. Voldemort (Remus winced at the usage of that name) still does not have the power to attack Azkaban yet. If we work quickly, we will be able to free Harry before Voldemort has a strong enough force against Azkaban. We just can't give him time to suspect anything during the next little while. If he knows what we are doing he will try to jump start his plans." Albus Dumbledore told the two men. "Now Remus is right and the Death Eaters were very thorough in their planning. However they forgot one little thing, they forgot to allow the object they placed the spells on to self-destruct." Sirius wondered how Albus Dumbledore had figured that out. "If we could find that object then Harry would be freed."
Sirius stared at the man incredulously, it was nearly impossible to find one of those objects. But the headmaster did have a point, it would prove that the Death Eaters were coming back into power, that they were starting to raid. It would prove that Voldemort was back. And that would prove Harry's story as truth. Sirius could feel the small bubble of hope, that had been slowly shrinking, rise a little.
"They could have used a pebble as their object." Remus muttered earning a reproving glare from Sirius. He was starting to gain a little hope, he did not want Remus to destroy it. As silly as the idea was, it just might work. It was more of a hope than they had before.
The headmaster seemed to have heard Remus' comment, for he gave them a small, secretive smile. "You are forgetting Mr. Lupin in order for the spell to go off, Harry had to touch it. How could they be sure that Harry was going to touch that certain pebble, or a small stick on the driveway? No they would have used something else. It had to be something from outside. According to the sources I have, the explosion took place in the kitchen, that should give you somewhere to search. The muggles were told that there was a gas explosion so they should not go near it and the Ministry considers the case closed so they won't bother with the house, they'll just leave it for the muggles to take care of."
The men nodded anxious to be off, they took the hint. Anything to help they would do. Sirius was just itching to go, he knew what was happening to his son, he had been there. Harry must be so frightened, and hurt. He prayed that Harry was alright. All they needed to do was find the evidence . . .
Suddenly a thought broke through, one that sent chills down his spine. The hopelessness that seemed to have burrowed itself in his stomach came back full force. "Professor," he whispered softly, "What if we can't find any evidence? What if there is nothing left?"
It was Remus, the optimist, who answered. "Padfoot we will find the evidence, don't you doubted that. Harry needs us right now, we can't mope around worried about scenarios that haven't happened."
Sirius just smiled and nodded. That was not a comforting thought. But he knew Harry needed him, and for once he might, just might be able to help his son.
But deep within him, the part that still lived in Azkaban, knew that it may not be possible to save his son. That the boy would be destroyed before the week was out because of his memories, because of who Harry was.
The two men said their goodbyes to Albus, turning back to the fireplace. Sirius refused to acknowledge the fear, it would not help. Their task was already hopeless enough.
***************
Alexander woke with a start. He gazed at the room around him in curiosity. This was not the room he and his wife shared, nor was it his office. He gazed around the room again. His eyes fell upon the picture in his hand. It was an old picture from school, at his graduation, with James Potter, Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin and Sirius Black.
He was in the attic. Alexander groaned. He must have fallen asleep trying to unravel the mystery that lay before him. He was not an Unspeakable and did not look into mysteries like this. But he needed answers, something about it all did not add up. A part of him knew that he needed to find the answers. In finding the answers, everything would be set right again.
Alexander stretched and groaned. Boy was he stiff. He was getting too old to sleep in odd positions. He knew he should go downstairs and check on his son and reassure his wife that he was alright, but something held him to that spot. A gut instinct told him that another puzzle piece to the mystery remained inside that box. He had followed that instinct for the past fifteen years and it had served him well, he would not let it down now. He placed the photo down and started to sift through the contents of the box. Most of the photos were of his old friends in Hufflepuff; a few more were of James and his gang. Alexander scanned the photos before taking them out of the box. There was nothing there that he did not remember. Then one small photograph caught his attention. It did not move as the others had, instead it was still like a muggle photo. Alexander looked at the photo curiously. He did not remember taking that one, actually he had never created a muggle photograph in his life. He studied the man more carefully. If he did not know any better, he would have said the man in the picture, sitting so solemnly was Sirius Black. But Sirius was never serious in pictures; he was always smiling, with a mischievous glint in his eye, well until he went to Azkaban . . .
The man had black hair; his eyes were the same shade of blue as Sirius' were. Alexander picked up the picture of the graduation placing them side-by-side. The two men could have been brothers. Or father and son. There was no way the two men were not related. Alexander flipped the muggle photograph over to see if anything was written on it.
Indeed there was. In neat handwriting in the center of the photo were the words: Tom Riddle.
Tom Riddle.
Who on earth was Tom Riddle? Alexander had heard that name before, but he did not know where. He started to think back to the names of all his old school friends. No, none of them had that name. None of his relatives carried that name either. He would have sworn he had heard that name in school though. But where? Something told him it had to do with school, to do with Hogwarts. He closed his eyes and took a silent tour of the school, down the halls, past ghosts of people who had been there many years ago. None of it fit. Then he came to the trophy room. He would remember that room on his deathbed; he could have drawn every detail down to the last little stain in an instant. He had cleaned it more times than any two students put together. His mind's eye looked at it. And there, on a trophy against the corner was the name Tom Riddle.
So that was where he had seen it before. But why was it important? And then it hit him.
Tom Riddle was He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
Albus Dumbledore had told him that after he had asked for the twentieth time who the man was.
So why did Sirius Black and the Dark Lord look alike. Where they related?
No they couldn't be. Sirius was playful and funny. He was not evil. That was until one of his friends were threatened. Sirius had always protected his friends with a loyalty that rivaled any Hufflepuffs'. He had never thought of Sirius as evil. That was until the man was sent to Azkaban. That was until James and Lily were betrayed by their secret keeper. But even then Sirius had not seemed evil. He had even visited his one time friend once in Azkaban, Sirius had been heartbroken about Lily and James' deaths. He had begged to know how Harry was, if the boy was safe, if he was well taken care of. He had even tried asking who had custody of the boy. Alexander had refused the last request, he was not about to tell a murderer where the boy was. He closed his eyes and tried to remember how Sirius looked. The man had looked absolutely terrible. His face was gaunt and sallow. But when he had told the man that Harry was safe, a bright twinkle had come into the man's eyes, as if he was glad of it. Even then he had not seemed evil.
So why did Tom Riddle and Sirius Black look alike?
***************
End Chapter 3
A/N: Sorry that this chapter is so bad. I find it really choppy, especially the part where you see Sirius' reaction to the article. If you have any suggestions to improve, then by all means tell me, I would love to improve this chapter. I hoped you liked their reactions. It was not exactly what I had planned, but Sirius did not want to co-operate. It's hard to keep him in character. No matter how many times I re-edited it, the chapter was still choppy and did not co-operate. I hope it is OK. Please tell me if you have any suggestions for improvement.
A/N: Thank you soooo much to all those who reviewed. Thank you thank you thank you thank you. *Author gravels at reviewers feet* You guys are the best. It just makes my day to read those reviews.
Cokefreak: Well here's another chapter. I'm glad you liked it. Thank you soooo much for your review *Author smiles in gratitude* Please keep reviewing. Tell me what you think of this chapter.
Hope: Thank you for your review, I'm so glad that you did, it makes me want to write more. Is it suspenseful? You really think so? Well thank you. I didn't think it was, probably because I am the one writing the story. I am trying to update quickly, but this chapter was hard to write, and I still don't think it's that good. What do you think?
Mrs. Moony: I am glad that you like my story. I will keep writing, no matter how long it takes, till the end of the story. I want to finish it, this is the longest story I have ever written so far, almost 30 pages.
Death Eater: Thank you sooo much for your review. Thank you *Bows down low to reviewer*. When I read it, it made me feel giddy that someone actually felt that way while reading TWTF. And it means so much that you actually took the time to review again. (Please keep reviewing, I love to hear your opinion, especially as the story progresses). Have I really won your Most Attention Demanding Fic award? I can't believe that! Is it really that good?! I am amazed . . . no, shocked that you actually were able to feel for the characters, I don't think that has happened to any other story I have written. Please tell me what do you think of this chapter? Is it OK? And don't worry about your reviewing skills, they are pretty good, mine are worse by far.
Sara Minks: Thank you! No I am not JK, probably will never be JK. You really think that my writing is that good? I don't think that this chapter is up to par with the other chapters, but it would not co-operate. I hope its alright though. Don't worry Harry will get better . . . eventually. And yes all will be revealed in time, like why Sirius is lying about his and Harry's heritage. If you keep reading, you'll find out why. Thanks sooo much for your review.
siriusbpadfoot: Thank you soo much for your review. Well as you probably know from reading the chapter above, Sirius finds out that Harry is in Azkaban now. He doesn't know that the Dursleys were beating him – or else I think our Padfoot would track them down into the Underworld and curse them into oblivion. I think that he will eventually pay a visit to Dudley, near the end of the story. What do you think? I am trying to write more, as quick as I can. I hope this chapter is alright. Wish the characters had co-operated better.
Stonehenge: Thank you! More will be coming soon. Hopefully by Friday at the latest – just hope that my teachers don't give me a lot of homework.
Nicky: Thank you for your review. You like the Auror? I think you are the first person to say that. I kind of like to think that some of the Aurors can think for themselves, even if they do follow Fudge. He will be back for just a little while longer, then he has to leave.
vmr: You liked the last chapter? Was it really that good? I thought it was Ok, better than the prologue, definitely. Thank you soo much for your review. I will keep writing as long as you guys keep reviewing.
harrystwin: Thank you for your review. Was this chapter OK? Were Sirius' and Remus' reactions alright? (I won't be offended if you say no, feedback would be really good and I would like to fix this chapter up a bit when I have a little more time). Please keep reviewing.
usa32: Thank you soo much for your review. As I have said before, I will keep uploading as long as you guys keep reviewing, the more reviews the better.
Lynx: Brilliant? My story is Brilliant? I'm speechless. Thank you so much for your review. How were Sirius' and Remus' reactions? Were they that out of character? Please review and tell me.
Lady Python: Thank you for your review. I am glad that you think my writing is OK. And you actually added me to your favorite stories list? I'm absolutely shocked, I can't believe it . . . Thank you.
mythtry: Thank you soo much for your review. Harry will get out of Azkaban . . . eventually. He should come out before the sixth chapter is written – I hope.
Nagini: Thank you for your review. More will be coming. Please keep reviewing.
A/N: Thank you soo much! Mucho Gracias! Merci Beaucoup! Wish there was a way I could show you guys my gratitude for the reviews. I was going to say that the next chapter wouldn't come out until 20 more reviews had been written, but I decided to be nice and I won't put that restriction on. The next chapter will come out whenever it is ready. I have only begun to write it – what's in it was not initially part of what I had planned, but I decided that it would be a good idea to add. Please keep reviewing everyone. I don't care what you write, theories, suggestions, comments, questions, anything. Please review.
A/N: Please tell me if I spell anything wrong for spells and stuff like that. I don't have the books. (Must buy books, check). Its just that they are expensive where I live, well they cost more than a 1000 paged novel so please tell me, that would really be appreciated, thanks.