"There you are!" said Sirius, as soon as Harry had stepped inside the Shrieking Shack.

"It's just a little past seven!" said Harry. "I had to make sure people saw me in the morning – you said so yourself. So. How are we getting there, then?"

Sirius went to one of the boarded windows. He opened it. Harry had to draw in his breath at the familiar sight of a sky blue car floating in front of it, giving him the oddest sort of déjà vu.

"By car, of course." Sirius smirked. "It took me a while to tame it, I'll admit. I'll tell you all about it on the way. I also repaired the invisibility feature – I left it off because I thought you'd get here before it was daylight—" He made a face at Harry's eye-roll. "—And I made it faster. If we hurry, we should be back by lunchtime."

Without further delay, Harry climbed through the window, and inside the Ford Anglia. They were on their way a moment later. The car really was faster, thought Harry, as he watched the Forbidden Forest whizz by underneath them.

"The flowers were a good idea," said Sirius. He was looking at them lying carefully on the back seat through the front mirror. "I forgot conjuring flowers won't be possible – what with the Trace."

Harry glanced at him. Sirius had not forgotten that changing his appearance with magic would not be possible. Face shaved, his hair tied back and dressed in the sorts of muggle clothes that would not have stood out on Privet Drive, he had been almost unrecognisable when Harry had first seen him. He was an odd sight, to say the least, but at least nobody they ran into would be able to identify him as the supposed criminal on the run shown on the news.

"How did you find this car?" Harry asked instead of responding to what Sirius had said.

"Well, we'd met already, hadn't we? I found it deep inside the Forbidden Forest, far enough from the dementors."

"And it, er, obeyed?" Harry was not sure how to phrase it. The car was not alive, but it had developed something of a personality.

"Not… precisely." Sirius went into a long-winded explanation of how the various enchantments put on the car must have interacted in unexpected ways to cause it to develop a personality. Arthur Weasley had enchanted the car with more enthusiasm than understanding of muggle technology.

"How can you say that?" Harry shook his head in denial. "It's brilliant! It becomes invisible and it can fly. Alright, so it crashed that one time – but then it saved us – you – from the acromantulas!"

Sirius nodded. "I'm not arguing that it's brilliant. I went to the effort of finding it, didn't I? But it's a bit of a happy accident, I think. Weasley himself wouldn't be able to reproduce exactly what he's done."

Harry did not think that was necessarily a bad thing. That car was no less wonderful for being unique.

Sirius read Harry's expression. He shrugged. "Personally, I prefer keeping as much of the actual technology as possible, and integrating whatever magic is necessary with it. I used to have this motorcycle – Have I ever mentioned it?"

Harry replied in the negative, and Sirius began another long tale about the flying motorcycle he used to own. Harry thought he had once dreamed of just such a motorcycle and said so, going along with the chatty mood.

A strange look passed over Sirius' face. "You did ride on it once, with Hagrid. I let him have it, to take you to the Dursleys."

Before Harry, obviously surprised at hearing about it, could ask any questions about the exact circumstances, Sirius quickly went back to talking about the motorcycle. "Now, that one was essentially a muggle machine. The magic was almost negligible – if you didn't know it was there, you might never have noticed."

"It could fly," said Harry, giving Sirius the satisfaction of showing his bewilderment.

Sirius grinned wolfishly. "I know."

Of course Sirius used to own a motorcycle, Harry thought to himself, but did not say. His appearance, his personality – his very being screamed motorcycle.

Except maybe how he looked just then. Harry had only seen him with a similar appearance in that photograph he had of his parents' wedding, where Sirius had been best man. With his face shaved as in the photograph, it was very obvious how much older he was now. The other two people in that photograph, on the other hand—

"I found another word yesterday," said Harry. It was an abrupt switch of topic, but it served as a distraction from the direction his thoughts had been taking. Sirius naturally wanted to hear more, and Harry recounted his meeting with Lupin the previous morning. "I'm pretty sure this time the word really is 'secret', but I haven't got around to doing the calculation," he said.

"You talked to him yesterday?" Sirius said with some surprise. "The astronomical time of the full moon was only a couple hours after noon yesterday – didn't I tell you that? Remus would've been feeling miserable all throughout the day because of that – while he waited for the sun to set to transform."

"Er, yes, you did explain." Harry felt a vague twinge of empathy for Lupin. He shook it off quickly. "But that might've been what did it!" he went on with enthusiasm. "He actually talked about you and Pettigrew – told me you used to, er, argue a lot."

Harry really wanted to ask about that, wanted to know what sorts of things Sirius had said that had caused Lupin to suspect him. He recounted in detail what Lupin had told him, but Sirius did not pick up that topic. He was giving Harry an odd look.

"You don't pull any punches, do you?" he said. "Getting Remus to talk on the morning before the full moon – when he's at his weakest—"

It was not the reaction Harry had expected. He frowned. "Well, he's being stubborn."

"Right." Sirius was still looking at Harry strangely, but he also seemed amused.

Sirius switched topics this time, asking after breakfast, and at Harry's agreement, he landed the car on an empty road close to the motorway, before dropping the invisibility. He seemed to know where he was driving, and soon enough, they had reached a motorway service area. The breakfast was not particularly inspiring – especially compared to what Harry was served at Hogwarts – but to him it still felt like eating out. Sirius was less easily won over. He grimaced after taking the first bite.

"I'm not so sure taking the car was such a great idea," he groused. "If we'd apparated, we'd be back by now. No one pays attention to the Trace during term time – you're all – supposed to be – at Hogwarts."

"But if someone did check, they'd know I was somewhere else—"

"Yes, that was the stupid reason for doing all this." He rolled his eyes. "If the officials are keeping an eye on you, and track your magic to Godric's Hollow, and then go there to check up on it, they might discover traces of my magic around you."

"Yeah. Only a little paranoid," deadpanned Harry.

Sirius gave him an unamused look, then drank some more of the uninspiring coffee, scowled at the mug, set it back down.

"Well, I did bring the time-turner." Harry made sure to lower his voice, even though they were among muggles. Sirius was not the only paranoid one at the moment.

"And I still say that's not a good idea. Going back in time by half a day – adding that many hours to your day – you'd fall asleep in the middle of the Hallowe'en feast, if nothing else." Sirius' voice had also dropped in volume.

"I know, I know. Plus, Hermione really doesn't want me to use it." Harry rolled his eyes. "I promised to do my best not to need it."

"Oh, yes. Honesty." Sirius sighed. He had been told about Hermione's new word – and how she had discovered it. "Not the easiest character trait to have. She really wants to insist on only using the time-turner for classes – as she promised?"

Harry made a face. "Kind of." He told Sirius about Hermione getting the flowers for him using the time-turner. "But I guess she does want to try to be as honest as she can be. It's one of her words, after all. Even when it's a bit, er, inconvenient…"

"Her classmate's still upset with her, isn't she?" Sirius said impatiently. "Being honest in the face of everyone's disapproval – it's difficult, yes, and sometimes brave. Often the best option, despite the difficulties. But…" He frowned, weighed his words. "Maybe not always. Not caring how hurtful you're being isn't—" He shifted uncomfortably.

"Are you talking about yourself?" Harry caught on suddenly.

Sirius nodded. "Remus mentioned some of that to you yesterday, didn't he?" With a grimace, he told Harry of some of the arguments he got in, including about werewolf rights.

Harry listened with rapt attention, trying to understand the consequences that had followed. There was something else, though. "But, I meant, was it one of your words as well?"

Sirius drew back, hesitated, as if weighing whether to answer. Finally, a snorting laugh escaped him. "Yes. Good guess. Served me brilliantly during the Veritaserum questioning." He looked amused again. "First Hermione and now you. You're certainly discovering some interesting aspects of your personalities. I don't know about those classmates of yours – or your divination teacher. But I'm beginning to wonder what you've got in store for poor Remus."

Harry leaned back, pleased that Sirius thought he would be able to make Lupin see things his way after all. "He's a Marauder, isn't he? I'm sure he can deal with it."

Sirius' bark-like laughter followed his words. The amused mood stayed with them for quite some time – and they pretended it was still there for even longer than that. It was only after Sirius had landed the car again, saying that they were approaching the village, that they fell quiet.

~HP~

Hermione grabbed at her collar again, reflexively checking the absent time-turner, before remembering that Harry had it, and dropping her hand before Ron could notice. They followed the stream of older students towards the entrance, where McGonagall was ticking their names off her list of students who had signed forms. Outside, they were greeted by the late autumn morning chill.

The dementors were visible in the periphery, but Hermione knew they had been strictly warned not to go near the students. It was not a long walk to Hogsmeade, made even shorter by the chatter of the students all around, walking on as a group. The talk revolved around what everyone wanted to see, to do. The elder students were giving recommendations.

There was indeed enough to see in the village to keep them entertained for the whole day. The sightseeing was fun, even if they were worried about Harry. They explored the Hogsmeade high street to their hearts' content. Ron followed her into Dervish and Banges, the wizarding equipment shop, and let her look without rushing her. Hermione, in turn, did not complain when he went into Zonko's Joke Shop, and tried her best to be entertained by the merchandise there – at least until they saw Lee Jordan through the window. As expected, Fred and George were not too far behind, and Ron and Hermione beat a hasty retreat before they could be discovered. It would not do to give the twins an excuse to test Zonko's products on them.

They kept running into their classmates everywhere. Parvati and Padma were in the post office, debating which of the myriad of colour-coded owls to choose to send to an acquaintance in India. They ran into Dean in Dervish and Banges, where he was asking about repairs for something that looked like a watch. Seamus and Neville had gone along with him as well. Through the window, they saw several Hufflepuffs clustered around Susan Bones inside Honeydukes, admiring the laden shelves. Ron and Hermione considered going in as well, but decided to leave that for last, so they could buy all they wanted without having to drag the shopping bags for the rest of the day.

Later, they also ran into Lavender, who was leaving Gladrags Wizardwear, together with the Patil twins. She was in a good mood and invited Hermione to admire her new scarf. Ron had to suffer a bit through the ensuing talk about patterns and fabric, but Hermione was feeling uplifted, the rift with Lavender now mended.

Hermione began to notice the curious looks she and Ron were getting from some of their friends. She almost asked, but then Parvati actually commented about how well the two of them were getting along. Hermione bit back the retort that rose up in her. There was some truth to her dorm mate's words, she had to concede, after the initial feeling of denial had passed. She and Ron had been bickering – well, arguing, really – more than they used to recently.

Still. Hardly something to be commented on. Ron was one of her best friends. They were always spending time together – and not only when Harry was around. There was quidditch training, and muggle studies lessons…

They had only seen glimpses of Ron's brothers here and there, by the time they made their way to the Three Broomsticks for a mid-morning rest. Ron knew already what they would find on the menu, and had been giving her advice on what to get. They ordered butterbeer from Madam Rosmerta at the bar, before having found a place to sit. It was no easy task. There were students filling up the pub as far as the eye could see.

Madam Rosmerta appeared with their order of drinks and noticed their search. "Oh, dear. Seats are in short supply today, aren't they? Madam Puddyfoot's might've more seats, though. The older couples prefer to go later, usually."

Hermione was about to decline, when she remembered what sort of place Madam Puddyfoot's was. Ron caught on quicker that the landlady thought them a couple and grew red immediately. They both rushed to explain otherwise.

Before the embarrassing moment could lengthen, Ron spotted a group of three older boys vacating a table at a somewhat awkward spot next to the staircase. Beggars could hardly be choosers. Happy to have found a spot, he and Hermione awkwardly stood next to the table – to make sure no one else would take it from them – until the boys had left.

It was not a good moment to be found by all three of Ron's brothers. But there they were, inside the pub, and had apparently witnessed their exchange with Madam Rosmerta. Fred and George sat at a larger table, surrounded by several of their classmates – including Lee and Angelina. Percy was standing behind their chairs, saying something to them that even from a distance was recognisable as an admonishment. As soon as Ron and Hermione had sat down, they walked over to greet them – after a fashion.

"Now, now, Ronnie. It won't do to stare after Madam Rosmerta when you've come here with your girlfriend," George mock-admonished his brother, enjoying the younger boy's sputtering denial.

Partly to take the attention away from the two of them, Hermione brought up the alcohol content in butterbeer. "My parents warned me against drinking it, you know. They think it's rather medieval that children our age are allowed to drink alcohol – not to mention the amount of sugar in this." Not that she minded the sugar – it was certainly making for a very enjoyable drink.

Percy shook his head with a knowing air. "The alcohol in butterbeer is hardly worth mentioning. Besides, it's not medieval at all, but rather from the 1500's. Actually, it was in the Middle Ages, that drinks with a higher alcohol content were banned from children – at least in the wizarding world."

"But could I get drunk from it?" said Ron, coming to her defence. "If I really tried—"

Percy drew himself up pompously. "Not if I have anything to say about it – and I do," he added, to forestall his brothers. "Besides, Madam Rosmerta simply wouldn't sell you that much of it—"

"Maybe if you keep reassuring her that Hermione's really not your girlfriend, she might—" Fred began to say, getting his twin to laugh.

Ron, doing his best to ignore his brothers, was pointing out a customer that Hermione had to agree among quiet giggles looked suspiciously like an ogre. He stopped all of a sudden, his eyes sharpening. A moment later, he said something banal, in a slightly raised voice, waited a heartbeat, until his brothers had looked away. He nudged Hermione, then very subtly gestured for her to look at the ogre. Then he got up and Hermione followed suit, among Fred's jeers. She ignored him.

"Did that – that ogre – just shrink a bit?" she hissed at Ron, as soon as they were hidden among the mass of people in the pub.

"Yeah. Do you remember who bragged to us that she could do such things?"

Hermione gasped. "That auror – or trainee. What was her name—"

Ron nodded. "Tonks, I think. If it's really her, she's just become agitated."

They watched the strange customer lean this way and that, contorting in a way that suggested she – or he – was trying to get a good look at something, while hiding it from view.

"Oh, if only we could've taken Harry's invisibility cloak," groused Hermione.

Ron nodded. "Might've come in handy. But maybe we can do without…"

They shared a long, serious look. Then Hermione nodded. "Inobservatus." She cast the spell on both of them. "With this many people around it might be enough."

The ogre was getting up. As quickly as they dared, Ron and Hermione made their way closer to the ogre, who was headed towards the door, as they had thought. They followed behind the strange customer, doing their best to dodge everyone else tripping over them – failing to notice them until the last second due to the disillusionment charm.

There were a fair number of people outside in the street, making it possible to follow along despite the fast pace – at least for a while. They were lucky that their target tripped over a barely-there gap in the cobblestones, allowing them to catch up, as well as hear her soft cursing. In the voice of a young, human woman. When she had reached an alleyway next to a house with barred windows, her form began to shrink, taking on the appearance of the familiar pink-haired auror trainee.

"What took you so long!" The voice belonged to an angry-sounding man out of sight. "He might've already left, with how slow you're being!"

Hermione thought that sounded a bit harsh. Tonks had walked so fast, she and Ron had barely been able to keep up. Before she could look at Ron to communicate this, she felt him push her forward none too gently. She went along, to avoid drawing attention. There were old cauldrons stacked up on top of a barrel next to the house with the barred windows. They smelled funny close up. Hermione was not at all sure they were cover enough for them, but it was too late to argue with Ron – the two adults were only a few feet away from them.

The man was middle-aged, with a weathered face, short greying hair and a trench coat – the image of an auror.

"Well, I'm supposed to keep an eye on the kids, aren't I?" said Tonks. "Not to mention, stay undetected. I couldn't just apparate away—"

"Better that than risk his presence at Hogwarts! Dawlish and his crackpot ideas about Godric's Hollow—" Instead of explaining what he was talking about, he cast a spell.

Hermione recognised the wand movement, even if the spell had been cast non-verbally. Not that it was not obvious what it had done: she could no longer hear what was being said.

"Damn," Ron whispered next to her. "You don't think – Godric's Hollow – Harry and Sirius—"

Hermione's initial wish to admonish him, for taking this unnecessary risk, vanished. The little they had heard had sounded ominous. Who was supposedly at Hogwarts? And what ideas about Godric's Hollow were they talking about?

Before she could answer, a third person ran towards the alleyway, passing them on his way. He had failed to notice them, so focused was he on getting where he was headed.

"Savage, Tonks, there you are!" he wheezed. "We have to go—"

The other man – Savage, apparently – began to say something, then remembered the spell he had cast, undoing it. "You don't say!" he finally ground out, not hiding his displeasure. "We've been waiting, if you hadn't noticed. You're late!"

"Well, there was—" The newcomer stopped, looked around himself, then drew his wand.

Hermione was faster. "Confundo!" she hissed as quietly as she could, before the man could cast his spell.

It worked. He waved his wand in the correct pattern to cast the protective spell, but they could still hear what he was saying.

"There's been another development, haven't you heard? The other one's been sighted in Godric's Hollow—"

"So they really were right about that!" said Tonks, sounding alarmed and surprised.

"Looks like it. Dawlish will be happy, at least."

"One of us has to go to Hogwarts, I reckon," the newcomer said.

"I'm going to Godric's Hollow—" began Tonks, but Savage cut her off.

"You're a trainee. Pettigrew is bad enough, but… You're going to Hogwarts."

A moment later, the men had disapparated. Tonks swore softly, then turned around and ran – likely towards Hogwarts.

"Oh, no. Oh, no. What did I do?" said Hermione, as soon as she was out of earshot. She felt like panicking at her own audacity. "Confounding an auror – oh, I can't believe I did that—"

"That was very brave of you, Hermione," Ron said earnestly. He did not even attempt to downplay it. "And very well done. You managed it by yourself, and the guy looked almost normal – rather than completely confused—"

"Brave!" Hermione's voice sounded shrill to her own ears, but she could not take control of it. "I wasn't feeling brave. But if Harry's in trouble—"

"And when is he ever not?" said Ron grimly. "If they suspected Sirius might go to Godric's Hollow today – But why would they have?"

"Well, they must've been talking about him – who else would've caused that much of an uproar? Oh, I knew going there was a bad idea – And Harry's there now as well."

"He said the other one," said Ron. "Then that must mean Pettigrew's at Hogwarts!"

"Ron, we need to check the map," said Hermione. "Maybe Harry's already back, and we're worried for no reason."

Ron did not reply. Neither of them believed that to be the case and they both knew it. With pale, drawn faces, they walked back into The Three Broomsticks, back to where they had left their bags. Picking them up, they left, ignoring the older Weasley boys' questions. Briskly, they walked away from the thatched houses, towards the solitary Shrieking Shack.

Once they were far enough away from everyone else, Ron drew Harry's copy of the Marauders' Map from his pocket, left with them because Sirius' copy was serving him and Harry for the day. He quietly spoke the passphrase, before looking for Harry's name among the few left inside the castle – to no avail. There were too many names to read them all, but Harry's name was not visible in the likely places – like their common room, the library, the great hall.

They did not see Pettigrew's name anywhere, either.

Grim-faced, Ron and Hermione stared at each other for a long moment, their thoughts racing.

"Let's go back," Hermione implored. "I can't go out there and act like I'm having fun. At least in Hogwarts, we can talk – watch the map—"

"We can't," said Ron, looking glum. "If we're there, and Harry's not with us, it'll immediately draw attention to his absence."

~HP~

It was sheer luck that Sirius had left the invisibility enchantment on after they had landed. It was even more luck that Harry recognised the auror in muggle clothing, having seen him at Hogwarts a mere few months ago. Sirius cursed, stopping the car.

"Maybe—" Harry swallowed after being frantically shushed by his godfather. "Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it's just some muggle," he went on very quietly.

"Maybe he just lives here – a fair number of people in this village are magical—" Sirius stopped mid-sentence, observing the man in question.

Harry did likewise. The auror was shifting awkwardly, as if trying to take a look at something away from prying eyes.

Sirius cursed again. "Harry, grab your invisibility cloak now. Then get away from the car as fast as you can. As far as you can. Go."

"What? No, wait—"

"No, he's noticed something! Maybe he heard the car he couldn't see. He'll find us – me – any moment now. Go!" He reached over to open the back door, on the other side from the auror. Harry stopped arguing, swallowed down the bile threatening to rise, haphazardly wrapped himself in his invisibility cloak, and rushed out of the car.

He had to be quiet, he knew. He also had to be fast. Sirius would not use any magic, until he was sure Harry was far enough away to not activate the Trace.

He had gone all the way up the road, when he turned around. Well over a hundred feet. Far enough to avoid the Trace, but certainly close enough to see – and hear. Sirius was out of the car – which remained invisible. He was being attacked – stalked – by two aurors now. A moment later, Harry saw a third apparate not too far from him, running down the road towards Sirius.

"Call in the hit wizards!" one of the aurors shouted to the new arrival.

Harry had to do something. Quickly. But what? Frantically looking around, he saw a family of muggles – parents and a pair of teenaged boys – walking along the street crossing the one he was on. They were chatting calmly, completely unaware of the mayhem going on so nearby. Muggle-repelling charms, Harry thought, remembering Hermione's long instructions. In some ways very similar to the simple disillusionment charm.

Harry had an idea. Quickly, he broke off a branch from a shrub in someone's front garden and threw at the muggles. Then another. Then he picked up a rock. The boys by then were running towards him. He ran down the street, while he threw the rock, making sure they noticed it floating in mid-air. An obvious breach of the Statute of Secrecy. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he felt a twinge, an acknowledgement that what he was doing was crossing all sorts of lines. But he did not have time to worry about such things.

He did not dare get any closer to Sirius and the aurors, but the muggles did. Just like with Inobservatus, once the thing that was to be hidden was noticed, the spell stopped working. The muggles could notice the aurors now, could see the spells thrown about.

A moment later, the aurors noticed the muggles, as well, who were shouting and gawking at them, the boys running towards them, in the line of fire, asking about the 'Hallowe'en display'. They could not ignore the bystanders, had to obey the law, protect the Statute of Secrecy.

It was enough of a distraction. Sirius apparated away, among the astonished shouts of the muggles, before the aurors could deal with the situation.

Harry, his heart still jumping in his throat, slowly turned around and walked away from them. His knees felt like jelly, but he forced himself to put one foot in front of the other. Just a little lane that curved to the left brought him to a small square – the centre of the village. He recognised what looked like a war memorial in the middle of the square as the disguised statue of his parents and himself as a baby. Sirius had told him about that. The church was already visible from there.

Harry felt so jittery by the time he reached the war memorial and watched it transform into the statue, that he almost took a rest. But he had to find Sirius, and he vaguely suspected – hoped – his godfather would meet him at his parents' graves. The statue was difficult to look at, besides. Those happy, smiling faces did not at all resemble the image he had of his own family. His parents were gone, and he had almost just lost Sirius as well. In fact—

There were a few people stepping out of the church when he got there. The morning service must have just ended. The invisibility cloak was still around Harry, so they could not see him as he passed them. They could see someone else, though. Padfoot.

Harry let out a breath he had not been aware he had been holding, as he watched the villagers take a wide berth around the huge, shaggy dog, sat almost in the middle of the road, keeping a close watch of the entire village square.

"Hey," whispered Harry when he got there, trying his best not to attract attention. "Here I am."

Padfoot inclined his head, to show he had understood. He got up, and almost ran into Harry, still hidden under the invisibility cloak. He did not stop, however, but continued to trot down the street leading out of the village in almost the same direction from which they had entered. It did not take them long to reach the point where the lane turned into open country again. Padfoot came to a halt behind the nearest thicket, and turned back into a human – one of the very few bits of magic not detected by the Trace.

"That was you, throwing sticks at the muggles, wasn't it? I should admonish you for taking such a risk back there, but you might've saved my life – or at least my freedom," Sirius said. His eyes were shadowed, and he looked more like the Azkaban prisoner he had been than he had in a long while.

Harry drew back the invisibility cloak. "It was because of me you got into that mess in the first place. If you'd been able to apparate right away, instead of having to wait for me to be far enough away—"

"I mightn't have recognised that auror, though. And I certainly wouldn't have gone in an invisible car," Sirius said more lightly than either of them felt.

Harry did not have a reply for that. He did not want to imagine that scenario. "How are we going to get home?" he asked instead. "We still can't apparate. So, public transport?"

Sirius shook his head. "The muggle version would take forever. This village is fairly cut off. The nearest railway station is quite some distance away. And I'd really rather not risk the Knight Bus now, when I can't transfigure you. Someone could easily recognise you. No. I think Weasley's car is still our best option."

"But the aurors!"

"I don't think they're aware it exists. I left the car under the disillusionment spell. Not the one you know – the proper one, that makes you almost invisible. The auror found the counter for it in no time, but I don't think he'd have looked for a car afterwards."

"Not a very likely way for you to travel, is it? Not if you don't have to take me along." Harry shook his head. "But they'll be watching that street, won't they?"

Sirius frowned. "I've no idea. I can't figure out why they're here in the first place. It seems to be a setup for me. But how – why – would they have expected me to turn up?"

"Maybe Pettigrew somehow gave it away? Maybe he's been caught?" The thought sent a jolt of nervous energy through Harry. It was something he wished for, yet it held so many dangers.

Sirius shook his head. "There aren't any wards around the graveyard – I checked before you got to the church. Aurors inside the village, yet not where I'd actually want to go…"

"Is there anything else in this village you might've come for?"

"No." Sirius grimaced. "But maybe they thought so. Your parents' old cottage…"

Harry felt the air leave his lungs. His eyes darted back to where he could see the cottages of the village they had walked past. Any one of them could have been the one where he used to live with his parents. And he had not even thought about that until Sirius had mentioned it.

"We haven't gone past it, of course," came Sirius' subdued voice. "It's on the other side of the village."

"We can't risk going there now, then, because the aurors might be waiting there," said Harry. He was not sure if he felt disappointed or relieved.

Sirius nodded. He was looking away, avoiding Harry's eyes. "It's not a nice sight, anyway," he said softly. "Part of the top floor was blown apart by the rebounding curse. It's all overgrown and rusty and—" He stopped. Swallowed. "Besides, it's a kind of memorial now. There's a magical sign at the gate that appears to all magical visitors."

Harry nodded. "Right. So the wards around the car—"

"Yes." Sirius cleared his throat. "There wasn't any warding around that street, just that one patrolling auror. He cast a basic anti-apparition spell, but I managed to counter it easily enough. They can't have added any serious warding on such short notice – especially when they have the muggle family to deal with as well."

"I'll go back—" they both began to say at the same time.

Sirius won the ensuing argument, but Harry convinced him to take his invisibility cloak, as well as keep him updated over their talking mirrors. When he returned, Harry saw that he had brought along the flowers.

"There's a few dark detectors, but they were easy enough to avoid. Not using dark magic and not having murderous intentions is all it takes – for the most part. I parked the car some distance away from that street, closer to the church. Then I also checked out your parents' cottage – I didn't get too close," he added to forestall Harry's objections. "There are definitely some wards there…"

"And… you brought along the flowers," said Harry. "Hermione had to steal them, had to find stasis charms to keep them looking fresh—"

Sirius nodded instead of arguing. "We took all that risk to get here. We'll go."

They walked back towards the little church, now almost empty, and behind it, past a kissing gate, to the graveyard. Harry, covered by his invisibility cloak, carefully, quietly unlatched the gate, and Padfoot pushed it open. Harry looked at the nearest tombstone, surprised to find the name Abbott there. Padfoot did not linger, though. He was walking deeper into the graveyard, clearly knowing where he was going. Harry followed along.

Padfoot came to a halt finally, sitting down in front of a double grave – head lowered, posture hunched, completely still.

Harry stopped next to him. He had been surprised to see graves with the name Dumbledore only a couple rows back and he almost asked about that. But as he lowered the flowers on his parents' grave, he felt as if something heavy were pressing on his chest.

The headstone was made of white marble, newer than many others in the graveyard. The inscription on it was easy to read – his parents' names, followed by their birth and death dates. Below that, followed the words:

The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

Harry saw the words blur and only then noticed his tears. Padfoot heard his hitched breath and a soft sound escaped him in response. Harry knelt down next to him, until they were leaning against each other, united in their grief for the lost part of their family.

It was not how they had planned to get there. In the guise of a dog, hidden from view under an invisibility cloak, furtive, hunted by aurors – hunted due to the consequences of the event that had led to his parents' deaths. But in the end, Harry doubted it could have been any easier, regardless.

They stayed there for longer than was prudent, and it was Harry, who finally put his hand on Padfoot's head and nudged him to go.

They made it safely back to the Shrieking Shack. With Sirius' help, who was watching his map and giving him instructions through the talking mirror, Harry slipped back inside the castle. He had barely stepped away from the statue of the one-eyed witch, when Ron and Hermione assailed him, bombarding him with questions, telling him about the aurors they had overheard. Harry began telling them of his own meeting with the aurors, but Hermione interrupted.

"We've been waiting for hours!" she all but shouted, her voice shrill. "Not knowing what might've happened to you – and no way of finding out!" She threw her arms around him. Her breath hitched. "Oh, but you're back. You're alright!"

Ron had also been looking relieved, but his eyebrows began to draw in a tiny frown. "Harry, what about the time-turner?" he said very quietly. "How come you didn't use it?"

Harry, who had been planning to do just that at that very moment, frowned in response. If his friends had not seen him on the map, then he could not have been back in time – which meant something was about to prevent him from going back in time just then. By the time they had all thought through the twisted logic of the time-turner, arriving at the same strange conclusion, Hermione was frowning as well.