I do not own Harry Potter, only the OC
Hello guys, Badger here. How are you all today? I'm not going to lie, I have been stressed. Trying to get my final piece finished for College and it isn't fun, not to mention tedious, with all the boxes a have to draw on the pages. One reason why I wished I didn't choose to make a graphic novel.
Anyway, I was able to cook up a new chapter for you all today. People seemed to enjoy the previous chapter and seemed to be glad with my characterisation of Lupin, with him being someone who tried to find Harry and get into contact, instead of just leaving him. Anyway, you have probably already read the title for this chapter, so you might already know what is coming up. I'm not going to lie, I believe the Prisoner of Azkaban era may end soon, I'm not sure. We will have to see how long it takes to finish up what I want to do. I think the Prisoner of Azkaban era may be the shortest so far, in terms of chapter count, which is a shame because Prisoner of Azkaban is one of my favourites from the franchise.
Side note: You might have already seen it, but there is a new poll up, so please take a look and feel free to vote, I'm not going to say what it is, you have to find out for yourself.
That's all for now, enjoy.
Chapter 35
Who is Sirius Black?
Dumbledore sat in his office, glad that the warming charms on his robes stopped the cold from the frosty air. Winter was coming up and already they were getting some frost and he was certain it wasn't the Dementors, as they were stationed a fair distance away from the castle. One good thing to note, was Remus teaching Harry the Patronus Charm. Though it was possible a second attack wouldn't happen, they did serve Voldemort in the war and no doubt they will join him again, when he rose to power once more. He was also glad that Remus was teaching Harry the Patronus Charm, because it would give time for the two to reconnect. Harry needed some good connections and Remus was a friend of his fathers. Dumbledore was certain, with Remus in the picture, Harry will remain in the light. The last thing Dumbledore wanted was for Harry to take Voldemort's place as a Dark Lord. Voldemort's return was inevitable. He had found a few leads on his Horcrux's but nothing solid yet. He just needed more time. Until then, he could only wait.
…
A few days had passed. James and Harry practiced the Patronus Charm, almost, every night, ready for their next lesson. Their results got better after each attempt, though they weren't able to produce a large shield, or a corporeal form like Lupin explained. Harry sat with James and Daphne, in the Great Hall for breakfast. The student population was buzzing, as today was the start of Hogsmeade trips. Trips students could only go on, if they had a permission slip signed by their family, or guardian. As his magical guardian, Amelia Bones signed his slip, whilst the Albrights signed James'.
"So, are you guys looking forward to Hogsmeade?" Daphne asked
"Definitely, I have heard good things about the place" Harry nodded
"I'm going to skip out on this trip" James replied
"Are you sure?" Daphne asked
"Yeah, I don't feel up to it" James sighed "Besides, Blacks name came up several more times in my dads journals, and I want to see if I can find anything"
"Well, if you change your mind, you can join us if you wish" Harry replied, not liking the idea of James spending time alone
James smiled softly, before breakfast was over. Whilst Third Years and up went to their dorms, to get changed for the trip, James went to the library, a few of his fathers journals in his magically expanded pocket, a whole days reading ahead of him. James wasn't sure how long he had been reading for, when Luna Lovegood appeared, a book under her arm.
"Hello James" She said, in her signature airy voice "How come you aren't in Hogsmeade like everyone else?
"I didn't feel like going" James replied, ignoring the warm feeling that always confused him when he was in her presence "I'm also going through my fathers journals…Sirius Black's name appeared a few times in them and I want to find out why"
"I see" Luna said, tucking some hair behind her ear, revealing her ever present radish earrings "Do you need some help looking through them?"
"Sure, I would like that" James smiled "If I am being honest, this whole Sirius Black situation has made me worry about Harry"
"You are right to worry about him" Luna replied, in a monotone voice "He is going to experience both sadness and anger very soon"
"What do you mean?" James asked, causing Luna to shake her head, as if she came out of a trance
"Did you say something?" Luna replied, looking at him, tilting her head
James opened his mouth, before he shook his head. As she opened one of his father's journals, he thought about what just happened. No doubt it was her Seer abilities, though he was worried about what she meant.
…
Hogsmeade was a very beautiful village, with the old stone village covered in snow giving off a magical look to the place, no pun intended. The streets were busy, with students and locals going store to store, the air filled with various smells of sweets, chocolate and other delicacies, mixed with the cold, crisp air. Harry was disappointed that James wasn't here to, but there were plenty of trips in the future. He and Daphne had gone their separate ways early in their trip, agreeing to meet later in the Three Broomsticks. Harry had just come out of one of the sweet stores when he ran into Ginny.
"Oh, hi Harry" She said
"Hi Ginny" Harry replied, glad to see she didn't seem to be blushing or standing nervously in his presence "What are you doing out here?"
"Well, with what happened in the Chamber, Fred and George thought I would enjoy a day out in Hogsmeade" Ginny replied
"That was nice of them" Harry smiled
"It was" Ginny nodded "I also want to properly thank you for helping me as well…and also apologise…looking back, I was a bit…obsessed, to say the least, I hope we can be friends?"
"Of course we can" Harry replied "Just no fangirling"
Ginny rolled her eyes, making Harry chuckle, where something caught his eye. Ginny followed his gaze, where they saw Cornelius Fudge and Amelia Bones, talking to Madam Rosemerta, the owner of the Three Broomsticks.
"Ahh, Rosemerta" Fudge smiled "I trust business is good?"
"It would be a lot better if the Ministry wasn't sending Dementors into my pub every night" Rosemerta glared
"Believe me, we wish it wasn't so" Fudge sighed "But there is a killer on the loose"
"Are you talking about Sirius Black?" Rosemerta asked "Is he in Hogsmeade? What on earth would bring him here?"
"Harry Potter" Amelia spoke up, causing Rosemerta's eyes to widen
"Come inside" She said, ushering them in
"What do you think that was about?" Ginny asked, as the door closed
Not receiving a reply, she looked to see Harry was no longer standing next to her. Taking a closer look, she saw footprints appear in the snow, making her realise he was using his Invisibility Cloak, which Fred and George said he carries it around with him more then usual nowadays. Knowing she wouldn't be able to find him inside, she chose to wait for him to return.
…
Back in Hogwarts, James and Luna were still looking through the journals, looking for information on Sirius Black. His name had popped up on occasion but nothing more then that. Both of them had gone through three journals each, making James wonder just how many journals his father actually had.
"Why does Sirius Black worry you?" Luna asked, eventually
"Because, if what has been said is true, he betrayed Harry's parents to Voldemort, with some believing he did so with my parents too, though, there is no evidence to support it" James replied "If he did betray Harry's parents, no doubt he wants to finish the job and…well, you've seen the wanted posters, he doesn't look entirely sane"
"I don't believe anyone is sane in this world" Luna said
"Are you saying I am insane?" James asked, jokingly
"The good kind" Luna smiled "You are just as sane as I am"
"We should start a club" James replied, looking through a passage in one of the older journals "We could make jackets"
Luna giggled softly, though grew concerned, when she saw James tense up, as he looked in the journal he was holding, turning more pale than usual.
"What's wrong?" She asked
"We need to get to Harry and quickly!" James responded, jumping out of his seat and rushing out of the library.
Luna was shocked as to what caused James to look that scared, but quickly ran after him, trying her best to keep up with how fast he was moving.
…
Under the cover of his cloak, Harry followed Fudge and Amelia upstairs into a room, slipping through, before the door closed. Having heard his name, he wanted to know what was going on.
"Alright, out with it" Rosemerta sighed
"Years ago, when the Potters were marked for death, they went into hiding, like many others" Amelia replied "Few knew where they were, One of which was Black himself and he…"
"Told You-Know-Who, I know" Rosemerta interrupted "I've heard all this in the Daily Prophet, and I will say now, what I said then: Black is the last person I would suspect allying to the Dark. Hearsay…that's all the Ministry had. Hearsay"
"Ha!" Fudge laughed "Tell that to Peter Pettigrew!"
"Peter Pettigrew?" Rosemerta asked
"You must remember Peter" Amelia replied "Little lump of a boy…really shy…always tagged along behind Black and…"
"Oh yes, I remember him now" Rosemerta nodded "But, what does he have to do with anything?"
"After the Potters were killed, Pettigrew went looking for Black" Fudge sighed "And unfortunately found him…Black was vicious…he didn't kill Pettigrew…he destroyed him!"
"Indeed" Amelia nodded "All that was left of Pettigrew was nothing but a finger, found at the scene when Black was arrested"
"Dear Merlin" Rosemerta gasped
"Yes, Sirius Black may not have raised a hand to the Potters, but he is the reason they are dead, now he wants to finish what he started…Harry" Fudge spoke, before looking grim "But that isn't the worst part…"
"What can be worse then that?" Rosemerta asked
"This: Sirius Black was, and still remains to this day…Harry Potters godfather!"
Harry took a step back, in shock, before he ran out of the room completely, unable to believe what he had heard.
…
Ginny was still standing outside, when the door opened, where she saw foot prints in the snow, moving a lot faster then they were earlier, almost like Harry was running, where he seemed to knock over a small choir group. She was about to follow after him, when someone called her name. She turned to see James and Luna running to her, both looking out of breath.
"Ginny, have you seen Harry?" James asked
"Yeah, he was under his cloak" Ginny replied "He followed Fudge and Bones into the Three Broomsticks and came out a few minutes later, though he seemed to be running, and he went down the street"
"Oh shit!" James cursed "Come on, we need to find him!"
Ginny looked at Luna, who shrugged, before they ran after James, who was practically sprinting down the cobbled street, knocking over a few people, as he used a few point-me charms to try and find where Harry went. The spell took them into a small wooded area, with footsteps leading to a small rock, where crying could be heard. Ginny and Luna kept back, as James slowly approached, his hand reaching out, until he felt fabric, where he removed the cloak, revealing Harry, sadness, confusion and rage on his face.
"James" He said "Sirius Black…he is…"
"I know" James interrupted, opening his father's journal
Harry looked to see, clear as day, written on the page: James Potter had asked Sirius Black to be Harry's Godfather and Sirius agreed, a big grin on his face, as he wrapped his friend, a brother almost, into a massive hug. Rage filled Harry's entire being as he smacked the journal out of James' hand, causing it to go flying.
"Why?" He asked "Why would he betray them!"
"I don't know Harry" James replied "But I'm sure the Ministry will be able to…"
"No!" Harry snapped "I know he is coming for me!...when he does, I will be waiting and when he finds me…I'm going to kill him!"
…
Oh my god, what a surprise, which probably isn't that shocking, if you are a Harry Potter fan!
There is a bit to go through here. Firstly Dumbledore. I feel like I need a few moments like that, to remind you that he isn't bad or manipulative, he just does what he thinks is the only way. That may seem manipulative but, Dumbledore is old and has been fighting for a long time, he is probably senile by this point.
This was also the chapter with the first Hogsmeade trip. Because the Dursleys were locked up [Thank god], Harry was able to go. Then comes another moment, based on real life. James not choosing to go, is close to real life. I prefer to keep myself to myself most of the time. Unless I'm going to be hanging out with really close friends, I just choose to stay in my room playing games or writing fanfiction, which I guess is a good thing, because how else will you get more updates on this story.
I'm not going to lie, the journals belonging to James' father are kind of a running gag, aren't they? Something else, based on real life. Though my dad doesn't write in journals, he does enjoy writing a lot and I can imagine him owning dozens of them. Plus, we had another case of Luna's seer abilities.
The moment between Harry and Ginny was a plan in the making, to show that she isn't going to be some obsessed fangirl, who blushes in his presence, like we have no doubt seen before. No, there will not be a pairing between them, I have a girl in mind for Harry so sorry for Harry/Ginny shippers. Also, I hope you liked the small moment between James and Luna about people being sane or insane. I meant to include this earlier in the fanfic, unless I repeated myself and if I did, I apologise, but I thought it would be a cute moment. As I am sure I have already mentioned, I may be a headbanging, Hardcore Heavy Metal fan, but I do have a soft side, where I enjoy little things like hugs, I love hugs.
Anyway, we then come up to the, not-so-shocking-reveal-because-we-probably-already-know-about-it, where Sirius Black is revealed to be Harry's godfather. What do you think? Will Sirius stick close to canon, where he was framed, or will he actually be a Death Eater? You'll have to see. One last thing, take not of the small moment at the end, between Harry and James, with Harry declaring he will kill Sirius. I won't say what for exactly, but I similar situation will play out, but reversed, though that won't happen for some time. Honestly, the things I have planned for Goblet of Fire onwards, gives both Harry and James their own personal mission for the rest of the story.
Anyway, that is all for now, I hope you enjoyed and I will see you in the next one.
Badger out.
