DISCLAIMER: Hello, my name is Kiwi Jeanne and I don't own Harry Potter!

-walks around in a circle not owning Harry Potter-

AN: Hello, everyone! I am finally updating! Yay for me! Not a bad length, 12 pages this chapter, and more of the visit to Azkaban!

Last chapter:

"I could be insane. Quite mad, these dementors make most people," Sirius grinned at Hermione.

"Except, you're not," Harry said, firmly, "You're not insane at all."

Sirius' gaze moved to Harry, "No," he said, quietly, "I'm not."

There was an honest note in Sirius' voice that Remus wasn't accustomed to hearing, even (especially) in school.

"So..." said Sirius cheerfully, into the odd silence.

"Er...so... Why aren't you... er...?" Remus started.

"Insane?" finished Sirius, "I'm not precisely sure why not. Probably because I knew I was innocent. Oh, and I can turn into a dog. That's always helpful."

"Oh."

"Not to mention, for some reason, the dementors don't seem to effect me anymore. Quite odd. They have for ten years and all of a sudden, I can't feel a thing."

Remus was startled, "Did you do anything differently?" he asked.

Sirius looked uncomfortable again, "Er... no, I didn't do anything differently."

"You didn't? Then who did?"

"Er... I, uh... I don't exactly remember?" Sirius asked.

"Uh huh. Sure, you don't, Bl... Sirius."

Sirius leaned back against the wall, crossing his arms, looking strangely casual, "First name. Good thing to use. Last name was getting a bit boring. I don't like to be 'a Black.'"

"Er..."

"You know how much I hate my family." Sirius continued.

"Mmhmm."

Sirius sighed, "Remus, say something. You've been pretty quiet, more so than at school. And your one word answers are beginning to bore me," Sirius covered his mouth in a fake yawn to express his boredom.

Remus unstuck his mouth.

"I-"

"There, you see?" Sirius interrupted, grinning contently, "Another one word answer."

"I-"

"It's also a one letter answer. Silly Mooney. Speak in full sentences."

"Sirius!" Remus threw his hands into the air in exasperation.

Sirius looked at the three children and raised his eyebrows, smirking again.

"One word, again, Mooney, old pal."

"Sirius, I'm confused..."

"As usual," Sirius stated, grinning nonchalantly, "Go on."

"How can you be so..." Remus gestured around the cell and at Sirius, still leaning up against the wall, calmly.

"So...? 'So' what, Mooney?"

"So... er... composed?"

Sirius grinned, "Composed, cool, calm, collected, unruffled, and serene?"

"Erm..." Remus blinked, "Yeah. How can you?"

"Would you feel better if I was screaming at the top of my lungs to be let out of here? I can do that, you know," Sirius took a deep breath, as if to illustrate this, but Remus held up his hand.

"No, that's not necessary, Bla- Sirius."

"Well," Sirius answered, "I believe I am calm because there no reason to be otherwise."

Remus was confused; since when did Sirius talk like that?

"Sirius, all the other prisoners seem to think there is a reason to lack self-control," Remus pointed out.

"And since when am I 'all the other' anything?" Sirius joked.

"Since you've been locked up here for ten years," Remus replied, quietly, looking down at his feet.

Slowly, Sirius stood up. He walked over to Remus and, propping up the werewolf's chin, looked him straight in the eye.

"Don't you dare blame yourself, my friend," Sirius Black told him, "I kept my sanity mostly because I know I'm innocent. And I'll continue to keep it, thank you very much."

There was a soft thump, and Sirius was seated comfortably against the grimy wall, again.

Hermione raised her hand quietly, "Er... does being an Animagus help, too?"

Sirius laughed, "Oh, yeah. That's helpful too. And you don't have to raise your hand, Hermione. I'm not Snivellus."

Hermione put her hand down.

"Say, Mooney? What time do you four have to leave here, anyways?" Sirius wondered, looking at his wrist to demonstrate.

"Er..." Remus looked at his worn wristwatch and replied, "Not for another hour or so."

"Oh, that's good," Sirius said.

For a minute there was silence and Sirius seemed to look off into space.

Suddenly Sirius' eyes went wide and he whipped around 180 degrees to look at a small collection of water in the corner of his cell.

Remus watched as Sirius flattened his body onto the ground and placed his face as close as was humanly possible to it.

Sirius babbled incomprehensibly for a moment, before jumping up onto his feet and striding to the door.

Remus backed out of it and raised his wand at Sirius again, "Careful, Sirius. You can't go anywhere, or we'll be in trouble."

Sirius waved him away, "No, Remus, it's not that. It's G-girvea? No, Ginerva? Sorry. Something about a girl named Ginny."

Remus' brows furrowed, "What in Merlin's-"

"And-" Sirius jumped back into the cell, his face one of anxiety, "The dementors are coming!"

Remus grew more confused, "I thought you said you couldn't feel them...?"

"I can't, but you can!" Sirius said, snatching Remus' wrist and dragging him inside the cell.

"Come on," he called to the children, "get in here!"

The three students looked at each other, uncertainly.

Hermione finally joined Remus in the cell, but Ron was biting his lip, and holding Harry back.

"I dunno if that's a good idea," he whispered to Harry.

"What if the dementors are coming?" Harry shot back, "I don't like those things!"

"Well," Ron started, but he was cut off when Sirius shouted something again.

"Come on! They're..." he stopped, his hands balling into fists, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, "too late... they're here."

Harry and Ron turned around to see three, tall, hooded dementors hovering toward them.

Hermione screamed when, as had happened before, the closest dementor lowered its hood.

Without thinking, Sirius took the three steps needed to reach the boys outside the cell. Remus was too stunned to do or say anything, and just watched numbly as Sirius snatched the two boys by their collars and dragged them backwards. He stumbled as Harry fainted.

Remus, still mildly stunned with all the activity of that day, looked at his empty right hand.

Hermione noticed Remus' empty hands as well and let out a yelp, "Mister Lupin! Where's your wand? You can't help them without your wand!"

Remus opened his hand and flexed his fingers before realizing that he really shouldn't leave two kids and an unarmed, convicted murderer alone with three dementors. Particularly when one of the children had just fainted.

Remus and Hermione, still inside the cell, watched as Ron, too, crumpled to the ground.

'Alright, then, make that two unconscious children.'

Sirius yelled something, which echoed around the stone hallways, and grabbed Harry's wand.

Pointing it at the nearest dementor, Sirius shouted, "Expecto Patronum!"

A large silver animal leaped toward the dementor. Remus squinted his eyes, trying to tell if it was still the same as when Sirius had first learned how to do the Patronous charm.

The four-legged animal charged the closest dementor down. The monster disappeared down the hallway, gliding so fast, it almost seemed to vanish into thin air. As the silver animal turned toward the next dementor, Remus was able to get a clearer look at it. It was a stag. Remus would have dropped his wand, if he still held it.

"Mister Lupin!"

Remus jumped and looked down at the girl.

Hermione was holding out her own wand, demanding, "Do something!"

Remus grabbed Hermione's wand and walked to the door of the cell, pointing the wand in the same general direction that Harry's was pointing, still being directed by Sirius.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" Remus copied, and a large, silver, bear-like, dog bounded towards the single remaining dementor and the other patronus joined it.

The two patronus' easily chased the last dementor away.

Breathing heavily, Sirius walked back into his cell and sat down next to the small pool of water in the corner.

"Whew. What a day, eh, Mooney?"

Remus watched, completely nonplussed, as Sirius realized he was still holding Harry's wand and passed it to Hermione.

"And Remus? Your wand is on the floor over there," Sirius motioned to a spot next to the door, "You must've dropped it when I dragged you to safety."

Remus silently picked up his wand and then handed Hermione hers back.

"Might wanna wake up those two," Sirius suggested, pointing to Harry and Ron.

"Mmm. Enervate." Remus said.

The two boys opened their eyes. Harry was shivering.

Remus walked over to them and knelt down. He handed each of them a piece of chocolate.

Harry sat up, blinking wildly, and took hold of the chocolate.

"Wha...?"

"Dementors. There were three of them," Sirius answered, "I borrowed your wand, Harry. Hope you don't mind."

"Wa-was that my mum screaming?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows, "Come again?"

"Well, before, that's what Mooney told me. He said that it might be my mum."

"Er, I suppose so. Maybe."

Remus looked at the other boy. Ron hadn't said anything, yet, but looked as if he was summing over everything that had happened.

Ron looked over to Sirius.

"You saved us, didn't you?" Ron asked.

"Er..."

"Yes, he did," Remus confirmed.

"Did he use 'Expecto Patronum'?" Harry wondered.

Hermione answered, nodding, "Yeah, he did. So did Mister Lupin, once he figured out that he didn't have a wand. He borrowed mine."

Suddenly, Ron looked at Sirius and said, "Wait a minute, Mr. Black, you said something about my sister...?"

"Oh, yeah," Sirius looked back at the puddle, "Er... I have no idea what's wrong with her, but I think..."

"What?" Ron interrupted, as Sirius' voice faded out.

"Is your sister old enough to be in Hogwarts?" Sirius wondered.

"No, she's younger than I am. Why?"

"Well because..." Sirius paused, as if unsure of how to continue, "because that's where she is."

"What?" Ron was flabbergasted.

"She's in Hogwarts right now. She was in Dumbledore's office last I saw."

"You saw...?"

"Er... heh..."

"I thought you came in here ten years ago," Ron puzzled, "But my sister would've been born a year after you came in here.

"How would you even know of her existence, let alone her name?" Hermione added.

"Er, I'm not entirely sure."

"Not entirely?" Remus asked.

"Heh... no. I don't know. I mean... I'm not sure... I just... sort of... found out."

"Right..."

Sirius' eyes suddenly widened and his mouth hung open.

He dropped his body to the ground again and placed his face next to the pool of water.

"But... he's not..." Sirius muttered, standing up.

The animagus walked to the door of the cell and let out a holler.

"HAH!"

Remus jumped, and looked outside too.

The dog that resembled Padfoot had disappeared, but the stag was still standing outside the door. He seemed to be guarding them.

"What- is- going- on?" Remus asked.

"Er... I've no idea. None whatsoever," Sirius replied, grinning at the stag.

'I have no idea whatsoever!' James told Sirius, 'When you did the patronous, I ended up inside it! But now my vision is limited to a stag's sight. It's almost a letdown to have a body again, even if it is only temporary.'

'Come on, James, lighten up!'

'No.'

'Fine. Whatever you say, you're the dead one. But, I do have a question for you.'

'What now, Sirius?'

'Do you think I should tell Remus about you now?'

'NO!' James snapped.

'Alright, alright. Sheesh.'

'Uh oh, Sirius. That guard person that we saw at the gate is coming.'

'And how can you tell that?'

'Don't ask me; I'm dead.'

'Okay, then.'

"Er... Remus?" Sirius said, looking at the werewolf, "You'd better lock me back up. The guard person is coming. You've probably been in here too long."

James looked on as Remus checked his watch and then jumped, "You're right! Hurry back in there, please."

Sirius was already in the cell, sitting, once again, against the wall.

"I... I'll do my best to get you out of here, Sirius," Remus told Sirius.

James smiled as much as a patronus-stag could.

"Well, that's good," Sirius decided, "I don't really like the décor around here, anyway. Could use more maroon and gold, if you ask me."

Remus smiled as he picked a small key from his pocket and locked Sirius in his cell.

James caught Sirius' eye and then had a thought. Maybe it wouldn't be prudent for him, even if he was in patronus form, to be visible to the guard.

Remus seemed to be thinking along the same lines, "What about..." Remus turned around, his hand raised toward where the bright, silver stag had been standing, "Oh. Hmm..."

James grinned, stag-ishly. He had tried and managed to make himself invisible. He'd have to remember how to do that...

At that moment, the door down the hallway that Remus and the children had come from, opened with a groan and the burly guard looked suspiciously in.

"Yoh sahd yoh'd ohnly beh een ere a leettle while," he said, accusingly.

"Terribly sorry. Lost track of time when I was interrogating him," Remus replied smoothly.

James saw Sirius grin at Remus' fib.

'Interrogating you. Hah.'

'Well, he was some of the time.'

'Yeah, but not all that much, Padfoot.'

'Only too true, my illegally dead friend.'

'Sirius, you can't be illegally dead. I'm only an illegal animagus, it's not illegal to be d-'

'Yeah, well, whatever you say, James-y-o.'

'Who did you get that from, Harry?'

'He's eleven years old, now, James-y-o, you can't use him as a retort anymore.'

'I'd be sticking out my tongue at you, if I weren't invisible.'

'Oh, I feel so threatened.'

"'ELLO?! Anybodeh een thar? Seh Lupen? Heh's gone. Tote-lly ouh of ih. I woun't be surprised eef heh'd finally lost eht."

Sirius realized the guard was talking about him, "Who, me?" he asked, innocently, "Why, as I've said before, 'I never had it'! I can't very well lose it if I never had it."

The guard shook his head, "Yeh, indeed. Quite insaene."

James noticed that Remus looked close to tears, he was shaking so hard with mirth.

"Well, yeh'd best beh on yehr way, now. Yeh never know whah kinah diseases ahre floa-en roun'," The guard told Remus.

The werewolf nodded, weakly, "Yeah. Diseases. Of course."

"I'll just leahd yeh ou' an' leave 'im," he jerked a finger in Sirius' direction, "tah them dehmentohs."

The three free wizards (and a witch) left through the door.

James glanced at Sirius, and then, grinning, followed the children out.

Harry shivered. As cold as it was out on the water that surrounded Azkaban, he was still cold from the building itself.

That was the strangest visit I have ever witnessed. At least now we know who's guilty and who's not.

The group was halfway across the channel back to the shore, and no one had spoken a word the entire time.

Harry was revisiting all of the conversations they'd had in Azkaban, and he remembered how Sirius had saved their lives.

'Is that Irony, or what?' Harry wondered.

The boy looked around the small boat, from Hermione to Ron to Remus.

On the ride into the prison, Harry had asked about the boat, and why it was able to move by itself, and Remus had explained to him it was a precaution against a prisoner escaping his cell and wanting to try to row back to shore.

Harry glanced back to his friends. Ron was looking at his feet and fidgeting and Hermione was staring off into space, clearly thinking deeply.

Harry listened to the silence for a moment more. It was getting so annoying, why wouldn't someone say something?

That second, Remus let out a cry of wonder, "What is that patronus doing out here?"

Harry turned around in his seat and saw the silver-colored stag prancing happily across the water after their boat.

Harry cocked his head in confusion. He had seen the patronus disappear before they left Azkaban, so how was it still here?

"Aren't those supposed to fade after a little while?" Hermione asked.

Remus nodded, "Yeah. Mine did, but Sirius' isn't, for some odd reason."

The stag stood up onto its hind legs and turned around in a circle.

Remus looked alarmed, "B-bu... that was... that was what James... How did you know how to do that?" he demanded of the stag.

The stag shrugged, nestling its head down into his shoulders, and pulling his shoulders up as much as he could.

"Did you just shrug?"

The stag's eyes were glittering with mirth.

Harry wondered if a stag could laugh.

There was a small thump and the boat was pushed onto the shore. All of its occupants were rattled and Hermione was tipped backwards into the bottom of the boat.

The stag let out a loud snort.

"What're you laughing at?" Hermione asked, sitting up, her bushy hair flying around her head.

The stag shrugged again and turned around to walk back over the water.

Remus stood up and called after him, but the stag didn't look back.

"Where were you?" Sirius demanded.

'Following Remus and Harry. And those other two.'

"Why?"

'Just making sure they made it to shore,' James replied, dismissively.

"And did they?"

'Yeah,' James said, nonchalantly.

"Did you do anything else?" Sirius asked suspiciously.

'Scared them pretty well. The girl, what's her name, Hermione? She fell over and fell into the bottom of the boat! It was so amusing. Just like what I did to Lily that one time, only she was...'

"How did you scare them, James?"

'I... er... I... heh...'

"James?" Sirius demanded, in his most stern voice.

'I did my stag dance. And I shrugged. And they made me laugh, but that wasn't my fault.'

"You did your dance?!" Sirius asked, disbelievingly.

'Mmhmmm.'

"Cool! How did Mooney react?"

'Oh, he'll be thinking about that incident for a few days.'

"Did he do his fish imitation?" Sirius laughed.

'Actually, no. It was more his 'Wait, what the heck is going on that I don't know about?!' expression.'

"You're going to end up apologizing, you know."

'I always do.'

"No you don't. You never apologize."

'Yes, I do.'

"No, you don't."

'Yes, I do.'

"No, you don't"

'Yes, I do."

"No, you don't."

'Yes, I do!'

"No, I don't!

'No, I don't!'

"Yes, I d... JAMES!"

James stuck out his tongue.

End Chapter.

I am so happy, I got eight reviews for the last chapter... we're at 88 reviews, people!

Alanna Hrncir: Sorry it took so long, again. I hope school's going ok.

sumrandumperson: Thanks!

I-want-to-fly: Don't worry, Pettigrew will get what's coming to him... that's all I'm saying about that. I'm not sure how much longer it will take for me to resolve the story, but I'm working on it, believe me. And to your other question, yes, Dumbledore gave permission for Harry, Ron, Hermione and Lupin to go to Azkaban. I know it's a bit OOC for him to let them do that without any extra precautions, but...

koriaena: Lily didn't change Ginny's eye color, but when Lily was in control of Ginny's body, Lily's eyes shown through. You know how they say that the eyes are the window to the soul. Oh and to your other question: No, Sirius has no sense of tact at all, in this story. Hehehe...

hobbits soul: Why, thank you! Here's some more Azkaban-y-ness for you. Hope you liked it.

STARINA69: Hi, Candystar! I know I'm a slow writer, but I can't really do anything to change that (except maybe quit school, but I'm voting against that. Lol)

Eggo Waffles: Thanks for sticking with the fic! I'm sorry I don't update as often as you and I would both like. I'm working on it, but my schedual is so busy!

-whacks herself on the head with keyboard multiple times- Bad Kiwi, Bad Kiwi!

-dizzily wanders around for a few minutes-

I'm okay...

So... Reviews are welcome, be they criticism or compliments. I really love to write, but I also love to read reviews. Obviously not necessary, but I would like to reach 100 fairly soon.

-gives puppy dog eyes-

TTYLL! (talk to you-lot later)

Kiwi Jeanne