Summery: Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban when Harry was five years old. They live hidden from the Wizarding world. Harry is now fifteen.

On the Run

Chapter Twenty One

Questioning Remus

Again, Sirius was in the courtroom waiting for the Weazingmont to finish whispering to one another. Remus and Dumbledore were again behind him watching the proceedings quietly. Remus and Dumbledore were supposed to be seeing him after they finished in the courtroom.

"Mr. Black." A voice brought Sirius out of his thoughts. Looking up Sirius saw the Weazingmont had all seated and were waiting patiently.

"Yes." Sirius said calmly.

"Are you ready to begin?" Sirius saw it was Madam Bones who was speaking.

"Yes, Ma'am." Sirius said politely.

"Today we begin the second day of the Trial of Sirius Orion Black for kidnapping charges on Harold James Potter." Madam Bones continued. "The date is 23 of September."

"Today we would like to call Remus Jonathan Lupin to testify." Minister Fudge began. "Do you agree, Mr. Lupin." He turned to face Remus.

"Yes, sir." Remus said as he stood and went to the chair in the middle of the courtroom. As he sat down the Minister began his questioning.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, Mr. Lupin?"

"Yes, sir." Remus answered honestly.

"What do you know of the night the Potters were attacked by Voldemort?"

Remus took the glass that was next to him filled with water and took a sip before he began. "That night I got a fire call from Albus saying there had been an attack. He told me that Lily and James had not survived the attack, but Harry had. He said that Harry was currently at Hogwarts with Rubeus Hagrid - the grounds keeper of Hogwarts - and that he seemed okay. I asked if Sirius had been notified of the attack and Albus said he was the first to arrive at Godric's Hollow, and the one to find Harry." Remus paused a moment to swallow then continued. "I asked where Sirius was at the moment, and Albus told me he didn't know. He said Sirius had given Harry to Hagrid and said he had something he needed to take care of and that he'd be back soon. A few hours later - early morning - I got news that Sirius had been arrested in the murder of thirteen muggles, Peter Pettigrew, and Lily and James. I found it to be a believable story because I had been under the impression - and had believed - that Sirius was Lily and James' Secret Keeper. I had no reason not to believe this at the time. Peter was believed to be dead." Remus paused again to take a deep breath and let it out. It was obvious this was a difficult story for him to tell. "Sirius went to Azkaban soon after - with no trial - and I didn't see him since. Four years later he escaped. It was all over the news. Soon after, Harry went missing from his muggle relatives, the Dursley's. That's basically all I knew at the time." Remus finished his speech with a sigh.

"Mr. Lupin, did you believe him to have kidnapped Mr. Potter when Mr. Potter when missing?" Mr. Willis asked.

"Yes." Remus answered simply.

"Did you believe him to have been the murderers of the thirteen muggles, the Potter's, or Mr. Pettigrew?"

"I didn't want to. But I had no reason not to. All the evidence was against him, or so I had believed." Remus looked back over at Sirius briefly then turned back to the Weazingmont. Sirius knew Remus was sorry for what had happened, and that he didn't believe in him. But now wasn't the time to get into that.

"You were the one to discover Mr. Pettigrew is in fact alive?" Mr. Willis inquired.

Remus nodded. "Yes."

"Can you explain what happened?"

"I had just gotten the job as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. I went looking for a snack one evening and heard a squeaking. I ended up catching a rat. It seemed familiar to me so I examined it."

"How was the rat familiar?" Mr. Willis, Sirius' lawyer interrupted.

"It smelled familiar, looking closer, it looked familiar. And it had a missing toe."

"What did you do then?" Mr. Willis asked.

"I took the rat to Albus' office and showed him the rat. We then changed the rat from its form to its human form and proved it was Peter. We then called Aurors who questioned him."

"Do you believe Mr. Black capable of harming Mr. Potter?" Mr. Willis asked.

"No." Remus said without hesitation.

"Thank you for your time Mr. Lupin." Mr. Willis dismissed him. Mr. Willis was pleased with all of his answers.

Remus stood up and re-took his seat next to Dumbledore.

"The Weazingmont will take Mr. Lupin's statements into review. We will conjoin a week from now." Minister Fudge said as he stood up, the rest of the Weazingmont following suit.

Sirius was lifted from his seat into a standing position by an Auror who would escort him to the detaining room. Looking back he saw Remus nod, telling him that they would see him in a minute.

Sirius sat in the chair in the almost bare detaining room thinking about today's events. Mr. Willis informed him he was pleased with how it went, and Sirius took that as a good sign. He didn't think Mr. Willis would hide anything from him. Mr. Willis had always been a straightforward person. Sirius looked up as he heard the door open and smiled as he saw Dumbledore and Remus enter the room.

"Hello, Sirius." Dumbledore greeted with a smile of his own.

"Dumbledore, Remus." Sirius greeted inclining his head a little.

"How are you, Sirius?" Remus asked eyeing his once best friend.

"I'm okay." Sirius answered honestly. "I can't wait till this trial is over, but I'm okay. Mr. Willis says today went well."

"That's good." Remus said smiling. "I hope it did."

"So, down to business." Sirius stated suddenly with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "How's my godson doing?"

Remus laughed. "He seems okay. He's doing well in my class, for his not having been thought by conventional means."

"He seems a little detached." Dumbledore interrupted. True to his word to Sirius, he had been keeping a close eye on Harry. He had noticed how Harry had gotten a little quieter than normal, usually around trial days. "He went with Remus last week for his school supplies, and seemed to really enjoy himself."

Looking back at Sirius they could see a thoughtful expression on his face. "I hope he doesn't worry too much about this trial. I know he will, but I hope not."

"His lessons with Severus seem to take his mind off of things." Remus offered. He knew Sirius had a strong dislike that was mutual between Sirius and Snape, but he also knew that if Severus was helping his godson in anyway, loath to admit it, Sirius would be grateful.

"That's good." Sirius said slowly. "I may not like Snape, but if Harry likes him, I'll deal. How is he doing with his new friends?"

"Well." Dumbledore said smiling. "They do their best to keep his mind off of the trial. They talk with him. Mrs. Granger makes sure he is up to speed on his school work, and if he's lacking at all, she helps him learn it. I've spoken to her and she says he's a quick learner."

"He's always been a quick learner." Sirius said proudly.

"And his friend Mr. Weasley makes him have some fun. He tells jokes to cheer him up among other things." Dumbledore continued.

"Has he been out to fly yet?" Sirius asked curiously.

"Not yet." Remus told his friend. "But I believe Ron plans on taking him out to learn soon."

"You said he went shopping with you?" Sirius asked. After Remus nodded he continued. "Did he show any interest in the brooms?"

"A little." Remus answered. "We spent about thirty minutes in Quality Quidditch Supplies."

"I was thinking about getting him a broom for Christmas." Sirius said after a moment.

"I think that would be a great gift." Remus said smiling.

They spent thirty minutes talking about the trial, Harry and school.

End of Chapter Twenty One

A/N: I hope you like the new chapter! I skipped the chapter of Diagon Alley because if I wrote that I would be posting a month from now. Sorry. I promise there will be a Diagon Alley chapter sometime. Please review!