Chapter 28: Returning to Hogwarts

It was quiet as Peter found his feet and continued to whimper and mumble things I didn't bother to try to hear. He finally admitted to it all, saying the dark lord had powers we couldn't imagine. That he was scared and wasn't brave like us. Peter and Sirius argued back and forth for a while until Remus stopped it, nodding to us to point our wands at Peter. As we prepared our final strike against the man that was responsible for the death of our friends, I felt a power deep inside. I wanted to end him, I wanted to make him suffer, as our friend's suffered for the year they spent in hiding. The worry that we all felt at the thought of my father finding them. I wanted to tear him piece by piece apart until there were only piles of him.

"NO!" the shout came from Harry, as he moved between our wands and Peter's body. "You can't kill him…you can't." he said, making Peter thank him and grab at his clothes. Harry jerked from his hands, saying he deserved to go to prison and rot there, let the dementors have him. He said he reckoned that his parents wouldn't want us to become killers. While Remus and Sirius lowered their wands, I left mine trained right at them. "Phoebe, Harry has decided. We will return this scum to the castle." Remus said, taking a step toward me. Sirius's hand found my forearm and I glanced quick at him before looking back at Peter.

"Phoebe, it's over. They know the truth and Peter will prove my innocence. Lower your wand." I began to, but the power surged through me again and I tightened my grip, feeling the smooth wood under my flesh. "He deserves to be ripped apart. He deserves a long painful end. I will give it to him." he whimpered and tried to hide behind a broken chair, moving from behind Harry and I shot a spell at him, smashing the chair to splinters. "I will use my elemental magic and all of my power to make your last moments ever-lasting torment." I shot another, but Sirius hit me in the side, barely making me miss Peter's head. He pressed me against the wall, holding my wand hand up and my other hand by my side.

"Phoebe, stop it!" I fought him, my magic shooting off in sparks from the tip of my wand. "You see! She's just like her father." I heard his voice and what he said and all my anger burst from me, sending Sirius flying and knocking everybody down. I huffed out as Peter gripped onto Lupin. I stepped forward, hissing in a low voice. "What did I just tell you, Pettigrew? I told you, warned you. Now your tongue is mine. Prepare to die." I didn't think as I threw out my wand, the green light shooting out and hitting him in the face. He screamed and fell to the ground, twitching and shouting for it to stop.

I continued my curse on him, loving his screams as I came ever closer, ready to slice his tongue out and shove it down his throat. I didn't see Lupin pointing his wand at me, but I reacted with pure instinct as I blocked his disarming spell and shot off my own, his wand flying out of his grip and onto the ground. I couldn't hear their voices anymore, only Peter's screams as I went back to my attack on him. I was so close, almost there, a few steps more and he was mine.

I lurched back at the tug on my robe, seeing Sirius in dog form as he jerked his head again, pulling me another step from Peter. I turned my wand on him and he transformed back, his hand holding my robe as his eyes went wide as he looked at me. "Are you truly planning on attacking me, Phoebe?" his voice was soft and I finally saw the hurt in his eyes as he gave my robe another tug, bringing me closer to him. I was right in front of him when he gently pulled my wand from my grasp as I sighed deeply. All the power and hate I was fueled on left as he gave me a final jerk and I fell into his embrace.

"Lupin, can you manage getting them back? We will be along, just need a minute for her to calm down. I guess the truth just got her overwhelmed." Remus nodded and used magic to float Snape's body up and to follow behind him, he chained Ron to Peter, telling us not to be too long. When they left the room, Sirius sank to his knees with me in his arms. "Phoebe, are you alright? What happened to you?" I shook my head, tears coming to my eyes as Sirius stared down at me. He brushed my hair from my face and lifted my chin, giving me a kiss on my cheek and my lips.

"My sweet, I'm not sure what got you so angry, but it's alright. I'll always be here for you. No matter where we come from or what family, we make our own present and future." I blinked, did he really not care that I was the daughter of the most evil wizard of this time. He pulled me up and gave me a hug before handing me my wand back. "Are you going to be alright doing this? Harry is set on handing him over to the dementors. It will also prove that I was framed. You want me to be a free man correct?" I nodded, following him from the room and downstairs to the tunnel entrance.

When we got into the tunnel, Sirius asked, "So who is your father? Peter seemed to be sure that you were out of control or something." I realized that he still didn't understand that Peter had been talking about Voldemort. I shook my head, pointing ahead. "There's the others, we can talk about it later." I took a few steps, then realized the closer I got to Peter, the deep power got stronger, my anger would rise. I hung back behind Hermione and Harry, and Sirius was right there with them. "I don't know if anyone told you…I'm your godfather." "I know." Harry replied and Sirius glanced back at me. "Lily also made Phoebe your Godmother."

Harry turned and looked at me, "Really? Why did you never say anything?" I shrugged, fighting the hate as Peter glanced back at me with fear in his eyes. "I never imagine that I would actually have to be your godmother. James was sure that Sirius would take you first, so I was the back up if he was killed…I guess I could've once he was imprisoned, but I was a bit upset about the whole thing happening." Harry didn't say anything as he turned back to speak to Sirius. "I'll understand, of course, if you want to stay with your aunt and uncle. But…well…think about it. Once my name's cleared…if you wanted a…a different home…"

I realized that Sirius was asking Harry if he wanted to live with him as Harry asked the same. He said of course he wanted to leave the Dursleys, asking if Sirius had a house and when Harry could move it. I chuckled, it was a happy moment, they were planning a future together. We were coming up on the opening to the Willow and silence fell between us all. As we all climbed from the hole and into the darkness covering the grounds, we began to walk toward the castle. Suddenly Remus stopped and Snape's body crashed into him along with Ron and Peter. I looked up, a feeling of dread settling through me. The moon was shining bright and….full.

"Run!" Sirius and I said at the same time and Harry tried to get to Peter and Ron, who were still chained to Remus. Sirius tossed him back, telling them to leave it to us and run now. Sirius quickly changed as Lupin finished his transformation, snapping at us. Sirius launched himself at Lupin, jerking his neck further away from us. Harry noticed Peter was trying to get away, I managed to disarm Peter after he attacked the cat and Ron. But it was too late, he transformed in a flash, disappearing into the grass and gone from our view.

I cursed myself, how I could I let my guard down, now he was gone and Sirius was fighting our friend, the werewolf. Remus took off running after a moment into the forest and I saw Sirius with gashes on his nose and marks from the fight as Harry told him that Peter escaped. Sirius took off, I guess after him as Hermione and Harry went to Ron, who wasn't moving. I looked between them before telling them to go to the castle and find Dumbledore. I took off after Sirius and kept my ears listening for the sounds of Remus as well. I ran until I got a glimpse of his tail running through the brush.

I felt a chill in the air as I huffed out a breath, seeing the breath in the air from the cold that shouldn't be here. "Oh no…dementors…" I whispering, coming to a stop as I saw him transforming back into a man as I heard footsteps behind me. I rushed forward, pulling up my wand to conjured a patronus to help keep them at bay from his unmoving body now. "Sirius!" I cried out, nearing him as more and more appeared from nowhere it seemed. I reached out to grab him, pull him to safety, when a dementor came from behind and grabbed my robe, slamming me to the ground as it descended to me, sucking out a memory.

I gasped as the screaming reached my ears, the sounds of innocent lives that were ended because of my father. As it began to overwhelm me, I caught a blurry vision of Harry and Hermione being attacked too. I turned and saw Sirius's body surrounded by dementors, they were going to give him the kiss…take his soul. I felt a power inside, I let the memories flow into my mind, overtaking the screams as I thought of the kisses I shared with Sirius in our younger days, our young love forming us into who we are now with that same love inside. "Expecto Patronum!" I screamed, pointing my wand up as the bright light shot out.

I felt the air warm and my breathing come easier as I sat up, blinking the blurs from my vision. My Patronus was rushing around, forcing the dementors from me and back from Harry and Hermione as well. I squinted at it, seeing it's form had changed. It had always been a bird, strong wings and bright. Yet here I saw the large dog form leaping around, looking a lot like Padfoot. But as I tried to keep my focus, my shock weakened my spell and the dog was almost at Sirius when it began to vanish.

I tried it again, to remember how much I cared for Sirius, how much he loved me. But it didn't work, I was so weak right now, I couldn't fight back as much as I wanted to. My head rolled back as I coughed at the freezing air in my lungs. We were all doomed. I saw a dementor lower itself to me, lowering its hood as I gazed into the nothingness of its face and the hole of a mouth coming toward me. I went to move, but my body was so cold, I couldn't even twitch away from the creature about to take my soul as my eyes went dark and I faded out.