Author's note: Please be aware that I own ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, everything, except my character OC(S) I place here, belongs to the wonderful Lady J.K. Rowling. THIS IS A TRIAL RUN! I would very much like to hear your thoughts. I was originally never going to upload this fiction, however, I know it was something I was looking forward to sharing. This is a Sirius Black/OC, maybe Severus Snape/OC, Fanfiction. So, welcome back, readers! I hope you enjoy this one as much as you have the first 2 Harry Potter stories! :) Do enjoy, this is the Harry Potter Era, so it's going to be a bit. Keep your heads up. Enjoy!

Update: 12/2021

Chapter 12

Sirius had been worried regarding Sage's reaction. If anyone should have been having a hysterical panic attack it should have been Remus and himself. But this was strange, she'd gone into a full-on attack, but it was a strange one. The warm water should have helped warm her chilling body, but her body was still shivering after ten minutes in the water, she was still cold. "Sage try to breathe deeply and calmly. Come on, just listen to my voice, love. You can do it. Listen to my voice… That's it, now breath in, and out, there you go. Keep that up. In and out." He soothed her.

His voice was amazing, smooth, and calming. Like warm milk and honey to a baby. She could hear his heartbeats slow and calmly beat in his chest, his voice vibrating through his chest cavity as he spoke with Remus after a moment. She wasn't paying attention to the words. Her panic had spiked her blood pressure and adrenaline to dangerously high levels, now with her calming down and relaxing she found herself falling into a deep sleep. She felt ridiculous. She was supposed to be the one watching out for Harry and the others, but she felt like she was just in the way of those who were trying to keep the boy safe themselves.

"She shouldn't have gone into a panic attack, not like that." Remus softly spoke to Sirius, sitting beside the bath's edge, the map in front of him so he could keep an eye on their surroundings.

"She called him her nephew. Did you catch that? Or was I the only one?" Sirius asked.

"You're right, she did. I can't help but wonder why." Remus sighed.

"She has no one else, Remus, like us, she's alone. She just wants her family, at least a form of family. Did she have a nephew in her time?" Sirius asked, his eyes glancing down to her now sleeping form tucked in his arms.

"No, but she told me she had a brother, but apparently he betrayed them for Voldemort. He killed two of her friends who were trying to get her back to us. According to Minerva, she was in a panic when she woke up, almost slugged Severus too." Remus couldn't help the small amount of laughter at that piece of information.

Rasing an amused brow, Sirius chuckled softly, looking to the man over his shoulder, "Her? A little thing like this? No, there is no way she would have landed a good enough punch at Snape." Sirius grinned with disbelief. Sage was tiny, she barely looked like she could toss a solid punch.

"You'd be surprised Sirius, when she found me, I jumped out my apartment window, snatchers found me and beat me to a bleeding pulp in the back alleys in Paris. Four of them, and she's the one that put them all on their backsides, one had a broken nose, two were knocked out, one is still likely nursing his nuts back to health. Unless it was his arm I heard snapping and popping like eggshells. Either way, she had them all down for the count in less than a minute." He explained, a smirk on his face as he tried remembering that day.

"You're joking." He was completely baffled. There was no way she could have done that. "Four of them?"

Nodding with a small laugh Remus ran a hand through his hair, "Yes, then she proceeded to apparate us both to her place before almost falling to the ground with me. I'm pretty thankful we landed on the hardwood floors of her place instead of the dirt and mud of the ground. Either way, Sirius, I owe you my deepest apologies. I left you to suffer, never believed you when you continued to scream of your innocents."

"Apology accepted, just finally relieved you came around, " Sirius said with a sad smile, looking back to her, Sirius sighed as he brushed her red hair back from her face and finally took notice of many other things about Sage's health, something was not right. "Remus, she isn't healthy, I don't think anyone, even her, has truly noticed, but since the last time I saw her, she's gotten paler, she's always cold. Prone to panic attacks far too easily... She needs to have a full health evaluation." Sirius informed him, looking to the man, now a Professor.

Glancing to the man he'd once been close to, Remus sighed and glanced at the woman still in his arms, fear suddenly washed over him as he watched her nose dripping with blood with no apparent reason, "Sirius, her nose,"

"Take her, go to Pomfrey, I need to get out of here. Make sure she's alright, Remus."

"Why care so suddenly Sirius? You don't even know her." Remus asked with curiosity.

Sirius sighed as he looked at the redhead now in Remus's arms dripping with water, "Because, she saved me, and if she's watching out for Harry, who's caring for her?" Sirius pointed out. He had a point. She was trying to care for Harry, but she had no idea how to do it, so far she was doing okay, even taking in an angry teen, with Harry's guardianship on top of that. And she feared them all of finding she was from a different time, 300 years in the future, but the four teenagers had settled that anger and come to rather well. She had held her ground casually but made sure they understood she had come back for a reason, that they had been her reason. To safeguard them. "Go, Remus, she needs Pomfrey." Sirius softly shuffled the man off. His heart was heavy with worry as he watched Remus rush down the halls towards the Hospital wing.

Bursting through the hospital wing door's Remus shouted for Poppy, he'd startled the woman who'd been working on her entries for the day.

Rushing from her office, Poppy gasped with fright at seeing the drenching wet woman in Remus's arms and the look of fright on his own pale face. "Dear Lord, Remus, what on earth happened!" She demanded as she rushed them over to a bed. "She had a panic attack. I couldn't calm her down so I took her to the bathhouse hoping the warm water would help her. Eventually, she calmed down, she fell asleep then all of a sudden her nose began to bleed. I didn't know what to do." He told her, doing his damnedest to protect Sirius Black. He'd left his friend in the hands of torturers for twelve years. He would not betray the trust Sirius had put in him to help Sage, likely not caring if Remus told them he was there. But he wouldn't leave him stranded like he had the last time.

"I'll take care of her. Her temperature is running wild, Remus. I'll need help!" Running to the painting in her office Poppy asked the first nurse of Hogwarts to fetch Madam Sport and to inform Albus and Minerva she needed their presence. Help came to her swiftly, and Albus had not been alone. Anya had followed suit.

"What happened?!" Minerva shouted with fright.

"Remus said she went into a panic attack then after calming she began bleeding from her nose, but her body temperature is changing dangerously rapidly. I can't get her body to stay at a temperature -" Poppy was interrupted by the loud and painful coughs coming from Sage, then came the painful moans and groans.

"What is happening!" Minerva cried, dapping the sweat from Sage's face and neck.

"Minerva, get away from her," Anya shouted with fright at the sudden fearful thought that struck her as she pulled the witch from Sage's bedside. "Albus, get everyone out of here, Remus you need to shower immediately and burn those clothes." She quickly informed him, a painful and terrifying look about her as she looked at Poppy. The Nurse's body chilled with terror as she caught on, "Good God… Oh, God… Albus -"

"Would someone please tell me what the hell is going on!" Minerva screamed. Her eyes filled with tears.

"She's from the future Albus, 300 years ahead of us, if they had any illnesses then she could have unintentionally bought something with her, or she could have contracted an illness from our time she may not have had the medical aid for in her time. If either has occurred her body could have mutated it and it could spread like a plague." Anya snapped at them.

"She said the New Order in her time had remained underground. Meaning they had limited access to Medical aid if it was severe. Like an illness." Minerva explained.

"Remus, my office, there's an emergency shower in the back-right corner, go clean up, I'll bring you some clothes." Poppy ushered the Wizard back towards her office. He needed to get clean if this was the case. But as he went about it, he worried about Sirius. He too had been exposed if this was a sickness and he had no idea.

It took them three days to figure out what was wrong with Sage. She hadn't had any of her needed medical medicines or injections upon her arrival, they hadn't thought of any of it. However, with medications and injections, she was getting better, but not 100%. Anya had explained that since Sage was not truly a part of their time, her life could be weakening. Fate or Time was dealing out her consequences for meddling with its children. She was left with regular nose bleeds, mild headaches, bleeding coughs, and regular lightheadedness that could turn into a fainting spell.

Sage had to be careful.

Remus had warned Sirius as soon as he could have shortly after he'd cleaned himself up and had snuck the man into Hogwarts to let him clean himself just in case. The news he'd later delivered to Sirius regarding her health had not been positive, but it was glad enough news that she had not caught an illness that could spread like Dragon Pox or the Plague.

Harry had spent most of his time outside of the Hospital wing, trying to visit Sage after hearing about what had happened, he'd been terrified when Poppy had told him, and the other's wishing visitations were refused until further notice. For three day's Harry had sat outside of the Hospital Wing hoping he could see the woman who'd taken him in, the first day he got to walk in and see the redhead, Harry had nearly cried. She was paler than usual. Like she was ill, her red hair was even lighter like her life was being drained from her. Harry couldn't help but feel responsible.

"Oh, shush Harry. This is not your fault. I'll be fine, I've been through worse things than this." Sage calmly told him, a small smile on her face. "How're classes?"

"Strange, Professor Snape has been teaching Defense against the Dark Arts lately. We're about to go to see Hagrid today. Buck Beak's execution is today, we want to see him before it happens." He explained sadly. "But I don't want to leave you." He muttered softly, his heart heavy as he looked down at his feet, his shoulder's slouching.

Sitting upright from her lying position, Sage sighed softly and reached out and gently grabbed ahold of his clasped together hands, "I'll still be at the school Harry, go see Hagrid. I should be out of here shortly anyway. Go see him, tell him I said I wish him well, and I'm sorry this is happening. That I'll see him shortly as well. I still owe him a cup of tea." She smiled playful at the last bit, she'd been invited to tea with Hagrid Harry's second year and she still hadn't had the chance, or the memory, to go and see the dear gamekeeper.

Nodding Harry sighed and stood to leave. But he'd taken a moment to hug the woman in the Hospital bed before leaving to meet the others to head for Hagrid's.

"How is she?" Hermione asked with worry as they walked out of the Schools' front gates.

"Fine, I guess. She's paler, I know she isn't alright, but she's alive, and that's good enough for me." Harry sighed.

"So, they're letting people in to see her then?" Draco asked.

Nodding, Harry said nothing, he was in a damp mood already, and Buck Beaks' execution was not something they wanted to see.

Draco nodded. Glad he'd be able to go see the redhead soon then. But their evening was about to get worse. Dagny and his three goons were with him at the standing rocks with binoculars trying to watch something. But his heart fluttered down to his stomach when Hermione began to rush them.

"Ah, come to see the show!" Dagny laughed.

"You! VILE AND EVIL LITTLE COCKROACH!" Hermione screamed, leveling her wand at Dagny's throat. Her rage had actually scared him and the speed she had as the witch advanced towards him had made Dagny unintentionally back up into a stone pillar behind him.

The sudden angry advance the young third-year Witch came at him with her wand had him backing up into the stone pillar behind him with slight fear.

Harry and Ron were confused as to what the girl was thinking, but Dagny had nearly peed himself when she aimed her wand straight at his throat, she had every intention of Hexing the abusive git.

"Hermione no!" Ron shouted with fright.

"Easy there!" Draco said with worry, rushing up behind her, an arm wrapping around her waist, thinking he was going to lift her up and walk her away from the situation, however, he felt that if he did so, she'd possibly turn on him. "Walk away 'Mione, he isn't worth it." He gently said against her hair. He needed to get her away from Dagny. But Draco could see she no longer felt any fear towards Dagny. He was mildly relieved after waiting a few seconds Hermione had taken a few deep breaths to calm herself down then lowered her wand. But she had taken them all by surprise when she bolted around Draco with far more ease than they thought she had after Dagny and the others began laughing and punched him square in the mouth knocking his head back violently against the stone pillar.

Draco snickered at them, "Never mind." The four Slytherins had run off, Dagny holding his mouth.

"You'll pay for that! I swear I'll get you four for this!" Dagny shouted.

"Malfoy! Wait!"

"That filthy mud-blood drew blood!" Dagny screamed. Out of all of them, Dagny never thought Hermione would have had the strength to not only punch him but hit him hard enough to draw blood.

The four friends began laughing, Hermione blushing from her violent behavior, "That felt good," She wouldn't lie, she was slightly embarrassed she'd sank to Dagny's level and became physically violent. However, after everything Draco's brother had done, Dagny deserved it.

The three boys laughed at Hermione's blushing, that had been amazing, and something they wouldn't be forgetting anytime soon, Draco was just glad it wasn't him.

"Good? Bloody brilliant that was!" Ron praised, a wide grin on his face.

"Yeah, but we're late getting to Hagrid's come on." Draco pointed out, but it didn't stop him from ruffling Hermione's hair.

They had made it to Hagrid's shortly after and sat with him while he waited for Dumbledore, the executioner, and Fudge. They'd gotten distracted and rather busy by Hagrid handing Scabbers over to Ron and gave a small scolding for not taking better care of his pet then Hermione had instantly jumped to her feet wanting an apology. With all of this happening, they hadn't realized the Headmaster and the other two were already on their way down. Ron's and Hermione's argument had been ended the second a small rock flew through the window, shattering a jar full of sand and dirt. This had made them look through the window and they'd nearly panicked as their eyes watched the three arrivals walking up to Hagrid's door and knocking. "You four need to leave, quick, ou' the back door, hurry and don't get caught," The door had been knocked on then bagged on, demanding entrance, "Be with yeh in a moment!"

Ron grasped hold of Hermione's hand as they rushed up the steps and back towards the school. They had stopped just at the top and stood between two of the stone pillars to watch as the executioner raised his large ax and watched it fall, slicing through whatever it had been aimed at. The action scared the crows away from their comfortable perch causing them to fly off into the air and scatter.

They had no idea that their night was about to get worse. And it all started when Scabbers bit into Ron's figure causing the poor boy to drop the rat from his hold and Scabbers fled with determination, squeaking with fright.

Ron's shock drew everyone's attention and worry when their eyes found their friend's bleeding figure.

"He bit me!" Ron shouted with shock, "He's never bitten us before, that's the first time he's ever - SCABBERS! Come back!" Ron screamed, rushing after the fleeing Rat he'd just had returned to him and he'd finally caught him, after having to dive for Scabbers and smoothing over the ruffled fur of his pet. "What's the matter with you?"

Draco shared a worried glance with Hermione upon realizing what tree they were at, to where exactly Scabbers had been running to as he tapped Harry's arm as he looked at the tree, "Harry, we have a problem." Draco muttered.

Looking at the two of them completely confused, Harry wasn't really paying much attention simply because his attention was purely on Ron sitting himself up from the lying position he had landed in from diving after his Rat, "What, why?"

Hermione's jaw dropped with disbelief, "Do you not see what tree this is?!"

"What?" The answer was no, he hadn't noticed. Turning, Harry finally took the time to look and his stomach knotted, he and Ron previously had a horrible encounter with that specific tree their second year, one that they had found Sage near. And Ron was far too close for any means to be considered a 'safe distance', "Ron! Run!"

Their confusion was rattled when Ron's face paled, thinking he was looking at them, until the ginger-haired boy pointed in shaking fear, "Harry look out! Behind you, it's the Grim!" Ron shouted.

The second they turned, their eyes spotted a large black dog as it barked, growled, and finally charged them, shoving between the three teens. Its destination was clearly Ron, who screamed and turned in an attempt to run for his life, only to have the beast try attacking Scabbers.

Ron, not wanting anything to happen to his pet that he had just been reunited with, smacked the dogs nose hoping to daze it at least a little, but he'd been knocked over and its' jaws latched onto Ron's leg and began pulling Ron into the Whomping Willows opening and into the darkness as the frightened redhead screamed.

All three teenagers gasped with fright and rushed after him and shouted for him, Draco continued chanting to himself in his mind that as long as Ron continued to scream that meant he was alive, in pain, but alive. "RON!"

The Whomping Willow swung its branches. Hermione's sudden glance at it from the corner of her eyes had her gasping with fright, "Duck!" Hermione shouted, but Draco had been suddenly blind-sided by the branch, smacking him against his side and sent the boy flying as he grunted in pain.

Harry had suddenly been hit in the gut himself, also sending him flying while Hermione jumped over the branches flying at her feet, trying to leg sweep her.

Hermione looked off at Draco and Harry when they had been hit and knocked off into the distance for the third time, it had been enough of a delayed reaction on her part ending in her being picked up and in the sudden panic and fear from being lifted into the air with no safety net, she wrapped her legs around the branch and held on for dear life as she screamed. From her height, Hermione was able to see a way into the tree without them getting constantly knocked back and ending up with their butts bruised. Taking the chance, she grabbed a hold of Draco's shirt and tossed him into the entrance, and did the same to Harry. Now all she had to do was aim herself into the entrance or she'd have broken legs, but thankfully she had aimed herself perfectly, besides landing against Harry's back, knocking them both back into the ground, "Sorry."

Draco could only laugh as he helped the two up from their fallen states.

"It's alright, thanks Draco," Harry replied, a nod to the blond.

"Any idea where this tunnel leads to?" Draco asked curiously. He'd thought Hermione would have an idea, but it was Harry that gave them an answer.

"I have a hunch. I just hope I'm wrong."

Draco and Hermione just looked at one another as Harry walked on, they had no idea what kind of hunch he had, and they wished he'd share it. But they soon figured it out once they came to a door to a house.

"The Shrieking Shack? You're kidding, right? I mean this place is supposed to be more haunted than the school." Draco wouldn't lie, he was shaking in his shoes. Forcing his body to stop shivering, Draco willed himself to stay grounded. But he couldn't seem to get rid of the bad feeling he had about this.

As soon as they walked into the first bedroom they found Ron, with a hurt leg and frantic Scabbers fighting in his hold "NO, IT'S A TRAP, HARRY RUN, IT'S HIM, HE'S AN ANIMAGUS!" Ron cried.

The three turned just as one of the two doors closed with an old squeak of the rusting bolts. They were shocked to find the form of Sirius Black, "I'm not here to hurt any of you… Well, not intentionally of course, please just hear me out -"

"No way! You attacked Ron, why the bloody hell should we believe you!" Draco growled, pushing Harry and Hermione behind him and towards Ron, who grabbed a hold of Hermione as she checked him over frantically.

Sirius gently laughed at the blond, he couldn't help but realize that Sage hadn't been joking. Malfoy's boy was in fact in Gryffindor, the Gryfindor band was hand-made with green and silver entwined with it, likely symbolizing the transfer from Slytherin to Gryffindor. The band was wrapped around his wrist provided that clear notion.

Lucius had to of been angry, then again according to Sage as well, Lucius had sired another child, born a few days before Draco, from another woman while married to Narcissa. The thought sickened Sirius, the fact Narcissa had allowed her husband to do such a thing was beyond him, and the fact his cousin loved the fool angered him on behalf of Narcissa. But he didn't want to think about that, he and his family had a bad history, and Narcissa was not his priority, not yet. Pettigrew was, and the safety of his Godson was his priority. "Believe me, if anyone is dying tonight it'll only be one."

Harry, however, had caught everyone off guard when he pulled his wand from his pocket and pointed it at Sirius, even Sirius was left a little shocked, but mostly by his words, "You killed my parents! You're the reason they're dead!" He accused.

They were stunned when Remus charged in, disarming Harry.

"Professor Lupin?" Ron and Draco asked in unison. They were confused as to why Remus was there, they knew he wanted nothing to do with Sirius Black, he wanted him back in prison, though they were now thinking that maybe Remus wanted Sirius dead more than anything. This was cause for worry to the teens, they didn't want any part in a murder connection. "Harry, get back over there."

He wasn't moving, Draco saw Remus's look of "Do as you're told". Knowing his friend wouldn't move on his own accord, Draco moved towards Harry, gently pulling him back by his jacket, "Harry, come on."

"No, no, I want to know…Did you kill my parents?" The question was full of heartache, but most of all, he was filled with the desire to not believe it.

Sighing sadly to the boy, Sirius's chest grew heavy at the memory. The scene in which he and Hagrid had found Harry, Lily, and James in that night. The house had been destroyed. James had been found on the stairway steps with Lily in Harry's room, "You're truly asking me if I could ever hurt you or your parents? James was like a brother to me." Sirius said to his Godson. In truth, Sirius was hurt Harry was asking him that, but after everything the boy had been told, everything he'd heard Sirius could understand.

"Answer my question," Harry had to know. Waiting as patiently as he could for Sirius to answer him, he noticed the shock, the hurt, and the disbelief.

Shaking his head in his own disbelief, Sirius sniffed back the cold nose he'd had for twelve years being in the cold prison. "Never, I'd have never hurt James or Lily."

They watched his reaction, a sad look in his eyes of long-lost could hear it, the sorrow of missing so many years with Harry's parents, missing the years with Harry he'd been robbed of, missing out of having a family of his own.

"How can I believe you?" Harry choked. No matter how badly he wanted to believe this he wasn't sure if he could yet.

Shocking them all, Remus spoke up, lowering his wand as he moved between Harry and Sirius, in deep hopes to guard his friend for the first time in years, even against Harry and the other three. "You can trust him, Harry. Believe me. Sirius is innocent. Trust me, I spent years thinking otherwise and not truly knowing. But he's telling the truth. I know now I was wrong."

They were stunned by the sudden number of people who seemed to be joining 'Sirius is innocent party'. First Sage now Remus. But Snape's sudden appearance did startle the four teenagers as their Positions Master rushed in, his wand aimed for Sirius, an angry look of desired revenge in his dark eyes, "Well, well, well. Look what I've found, I told Dumbledore you were helped by an old friend. Now, here's my proof. However, I must say, Lupin, I am equally disappointed in you, I'd have thought of all the people to have helped him I thought it would have been Sage. How ridiculous could you possibly be-" The sudden flash of bright blue slamming into Snape was what utterly shocked them when he went flying back into the old bedposts and rendered the Potions Professor unconscious.

Sage had rushed in only moments after Snape had been hit with the attack and stopped in her strides as she came through the door looking for who did the attacking, only to nearly lose her jaw when she found Harry brandishing, not his own wand, but Hermione's. She wasn't the only one in shock, so was everyone else. Rushing to check on the unconscious man Sage prayed he was alright, "Severus! Sev, answer me!" she called with fright as she checked him over. She was slightly relieved when she found a pulse and sighed. "Oh, thank Merlin," She breathed. Standing from her place next to Severus she sent a stern glare to Harry. "Harry James Potter!"

Draco stood with his mouth gaping open as he watched the scene, Snape had been hit by a powerful curse to send him flying with that much push, he was knocked out cold. Draco had barely found his voice to even question his friend. "Harry!" Draco gasped with shock and he was glad he wasn't the only one in shock at Harry's attack against Snape.

"What did you do!" Ron had shouted out right after him in equal shock and wide eyes. 'We're definitely going to be expelled for this! Mum's going to kill us!'

"You just attacked a teacher, Harry!" Hermione shouted at him, they all had absolutely no idea why he'd even attacked Snape. The teacher had likely thought the students were in danger of the escapee and had acted purely on protective teachers' instincts to protect his students!

"Tell me about Peter Pettigrew," This wasn't a question. It was a demand as Harry stared at the two in wonder, but they willingly answered him.

"He went to school with us, we thought he was our friend." Remus started with a sigh.

"Pettigrew is dead, he killed him." Harry accused.

Jumping in front of Sirius once again Remus pointed to the boy with a stern determination to fix what he had let go of for so many years. Remus had failed to stand by Sirius twelve years ago, he wouldn't stand by any longer. "No, he didn't, I thought so too until you mentioned seeing Pettigrew on the Map!" Remus pointed out, stepping in Remus was afraid Harry may accidentally hurt his own Godfather.

"The Map was lying then!" Harry argued, he was pointing out facts and evidence, the map likely wasn't perfect, maybe it was possibly glitching. So of course, he was going to question these things.

"The Map never lies Harry!" Sage's stern voice suddenly came to the adult's defense, she was clad in a red, tightly button-down, robe. And many noticed her once dark red hair was noticeably lighter, still dark, but it was not as dark as it had previously been as her hair slid down her shoulders and back like a blood-red waterfall, but it was the very unhappy expression she had directed Harry for cursing Snape into an unconscious state.

Sirius's jaw dropped. Now they needed to worry, "Remus? I thought you said she was held up in the Hospital!" Sirius scolded.

"Yes, I was. Poppy released me. However, on my way to search for Remus, I found the Marauder's map wide open on his desk with him and several others vanishing out of the Castle and towards the Whomping Willow! Then I find Severus following Remus then all of a sudden Harry casts his own teacher into an unconscious state! You and I will have words later Harry James." Sage clarified, glaring between an ashamed-looking Remus Lupin and a paling Harry as he faced down Sage's glare, "You're very welcome by the way… Now, where is that traitor, I want him arrested and taken to Albus before anyone gets hurt."

Sirius pointed towards Ron and Scabbers with an obvious shrug and honestly, he really didn't want to endure Sage's wrath right now, "Right there,"

Sage eyes found Scabbers and her eyes instantly darkened with a burning wraith. He'd faked his own death, he'd lied to those he was supposed to have trusted, they had trusted him. They needed answers as to why he stayed in hiding.

"Me! He's mental!" Ron shouted.

Confused Hermione stepped in front of Ron, "Ron isn't a Shapeshifter.

Sirius huffed with irritation.

"Not Molly's kid! The bloody Rat!" Sirius yelled Pettigrew was right there.

Completely baffled by this, Ron's grip on his pet almost doubled as Scabbers continued to fight his hold. He was scared it was all, just like Ron. "Scabber!? Bu-but Scabbers has been in the family for-"

Sirius took a few steps towards the frightened young Weasley, silencing the redhead, "Twelve years, yes? Surely that's an uncommonly long life for a common Garden Rat! He's missing a toe isn't he!" Sirius pointed out.

Ron was in utter shock. 'How the bloody Hell does he know that!'

Hermione watched as Ron shivered, Draco and Harry moved almost in front of the redhead to either side of him while Hermione held a comforting hand on Ron's shoulder.

"That's close enough," Draco warned, holding his wand up between Ron and Sirius, yes, he was scared Sirius Black was the killer he was said to be, but Draco wasn't going to let him get any closer to Ron. The poor kid was shaking in his clothes.

Everyone seems to catch on, especially Harry, his face falling as he spoke up, saying exactly what the rest were thinking, "The only thing left of Pettigrew was his-"

"Figure! The bloody coward cut it off so everyone would think he was dead! Then he transformed into a Rat!" Sirius ranted, huffing and puffing with seething rage.

Sage took a breath, her head was beginning to pound with a heavy heartbeat, one of her migraines was beginning to settle in, she felt sick to her stomach as Harry looked at the escapee and he took a breath of courage. Harry beat her to it, and she was thankful. She couldn't find her voice. She could feel her blood warming a bit too much. Covering her mouth and nose with a hand Sage felt a small trickle of something wet drip and slid from her nose. She could taste the blood that slipped into her mouth just a bit. This wasn't good. She had discharged herself because she knew something was likely going to happen. She had to make sure Pettigrew was arrested. However, it seemed she was going to become a burden to them than helping. 'I shouldn't have come, I'm always ever just in the way,'

"Prove it, show us," Harry demanded, again, he was leaving no room for arguments nor more talking, he wanted to see the true traitor for who he really was.

Sighing from slight exhaustion, Sirius rushed Ron. Their curiosity and suspicion now spiked as they watched Scabbers thrashing about and squealing as Sirius removed the rat from its owners' hands.

Ron screamed, fighting him back to keep the frightened rat in his hold, but it was useless, Hermione and Draco had held Ron back, aiding Sirius in removing his pet from his grasp as he continued to scream for someone, anyone to help, to help his rat, to get Scabbers from the mental escapee. But no one gave him aid. For this, Ron felt betrayed.

Draco and Hermione held Ron back, keeping him on the cushions he was rested on. Ron was hurting himself more than he was trying to help is a rat, "Ron… It'll be alright. If Scabbers is not Pettigrew then we're back at square one." Draco said, in an attempt to calm the frantic redhead as he cried.

In truth, Sirius knew it was Pettigrew, but now his mind was swimming with doubt if it did turn out this wasn't Pettigrew he'd not only be sentenced to death but he'd be looked at as a liar by everyone and possibly called insane. Tossing the Rat onto the Piano top, he and Remus began aiming charms at him. They had almost lost him when he jumped through a large hole in the side of the wall next to the door. Relief filled them all when their charms hit him, the Rat was re-transfigured into an older, rugged, dirty, Peter Pettigrew.

Sage sighed with relief, her wand falling from her hand after her spell had connected with the rat. She was relieved it was Pettigrew, now they could arrest him. And the Ministry would be forced to give Sirius a deep apology, and then some. She slowly slid to the floor to rest as her vision spun making her dizzy, she'd left the hospital too soon.

Sirius and Remus pulled the now human body from the gaping hole as he growled and snarled in fear.

Keeping his arms close to him, tucked in bodily protection, and kept his head slightly down, refusing to look at anyone.

Sage took her time resting back near the broken bed. She didn't feel alright at all, and the last thing she wanted was for them to take their attention from Pettigrew, they needed to get him to Albus. A sudden fearful thought stuck her as to why she had gone looking for Remus, he'd forgotten to take his potion. With what little strength she had left she raised her wand and bound Pettigrew quickly. "We can question him later, Re-Remus… We need to get him to Albus… Your potion. Here… Your potion, take it- Don-don't argue you fool, just drink the damn thing!" She shouted as nausea set in.

Remus's eyes widened with fright at realizing he'd been in such a rush to get here he'd forgotten to take his potion. However, he hoped it still worked after waiting so long to take it. Nodding his thanks to her he took the vile of Potion and drank the only thing he knew could help him. "Thank you."

Snape had woken up with a groan, yet when he regained his composer his eyes widened, and the breath caught in his throat as he looked at Pettigrew body bound. To say he was utterly shocked was an understatement. "You? You-your-"

"Yes, Peter Pettigrew is alive, now if you don't mind Severus, Remus and I have some unfinished business to attend to," Sirius growled, the wand in his hand waved at Peter, placing a second bind on the once pronounced dead man. He'd rather the second binding be a precaution than think it enough with just one.

Snape's eyes turned from the shivering Wormtail to Sage's resting form against the broken bed upon the floor, his heart nearly leaped from his throat as he watched her looking the way she was. Ill and a bleeding nose, she looked as if she were about to be sick. Rushing to her aid, he began evaluating her condition, though he was unsure as to what could be causing her sudden fever and illness, least of all her bleeding nose! "Lupin, Black, stay on that mongrel, we need to get him to Professor Dumbledore, but Sage needs to go back to Poppy." He stated. Sirius and Remus would need to stay on Wormtail, otherwise, he'd likely get away, and they couldn't risk that. They needed to turn him over to Fudge for interrogation.

Harry finally had enough. Moving to Sage's and Snape's side he took in her condition. She didn't look good at all. "Professor, what's wrong with her?"

The two shared a concerned look, "I don't know, come on. We need to get her to the hospital." Severus said lifting Sage up into his arms, "Come along. Lupin, levitate him, be sure he has nothing on him, we don't need a repeat from twelve years ago. Black, Mr. Malfoy, help Mr. Weasley walk out of here. We are reporting directly to Professor Dumbledore. Sage are you alright? Sage, can you hear me?"

She tried everything she had to answer, a full answer, but all she could comprehend was pain throbbing in her head, and a pressure in her chest she couldn't control, she was burning up quickly and it was very uncomfortable. Sage was unable to answer other than a small moan of pain. The slightest touch to her skin was like she was on fire, she was burning up too much it was so uncomfortable she felt she may vomit blood.

** Thank you for reading, hope you've all enjoyed reading the chapters as much as I have enjoyed writing them! Have a wonderful day/night!