47

Emily stayed close to Severus' side as the odd group moved from the tunnel. The pair were in the back observing the others in their trek back towards the castle. Harry and Sirius were at the front the pair talking intently though Emily could not hear them. They were followed closely by Granger and then Lupin, Weasley and Pettigrew who had to walk at an awkward angle to fit in the smaller space.

"This is a circus," Severus muttered annoyed at the slow progress they were making.

"Well at least it will be over soon, we just need to make it to Dumbledore's office right?"

"That is as long as we avoid the Minister. Fudge has been on the grounds most of the day, he will act out of terror and ask questions later."

"But he's an extremely weak wizard I thought?"

"Weak minded yes, but his magic is decent. Certainly not more powerful than Black's but he has been unable to use his magic properly up until his escape and that can be a dangerous combination."

"You think his magic could lash out?"

"It's possible, there are things about magic we have not yet covered and there are reasons I don't want to push your magic too far yet."

"And when did you want to go over these things?" Emily felt a little annoyed at finding out there was more to the magic that she possessed than what she already knew.

"Before you take on your inheritance at 15."

"You know I expect you to explain it to me now."

"I have no doubt, and this wasn't held back to hinder you in anyway it just is something that usually doesn't need to be spoken about until one comes of age."

"My inheritance isn't my coming of age, I won't be 17 for another two years at that point."

"I'm aware but the inheritance will change things." Severus never took his eyes off the people in front of him as he spoke even though Emily was staring at him. "We will continue this conversation later, I promise you, but we must be on alert now, your brother and Black are exiting the tunnel."

It didn't take long for them all to be clear of the tree but what did surprise Emily was the ginger looking cat that had its paw pressed against a knot in the trunk as everyone climbed back onto the grounds. Once everyone was a safe distance from the tree the cat dashed towards Granger and rubbed itself against her leg giving off a loud purr. "Good Crookshanks," the girl praised, giving the animal a pet.

"We need to keep moving," Sirius urged looking back at the group.

Pettigrew must have twitched because Lupin was quick to growl out, "Don't even think about it, Peter."

The clouds started sifting and suddenly the whole group was bathed in moonlight. Severus' eyes watched Lupin intently. "Were you able to give the Wolf his potion?"

Emily froze and looked up at her mentor, "No it's still in the shack. I set it down as to not spill it when I was angry at Harry."

"Everyone freeze!" Severus yelled and for the most part everyone did.

"Oh, come on Snivellus not now!" Sirius yelled.

"Lupin didn't take his potion, Mutt!" That seemed to stop the man as he swerved around and shoved Harry behind himself. Severus for his part ran towards Lupin and was quickly casting spells to release Weasley as Pettigrew begged him to help him as well.

Lupin's change was rather quick and Sirius transformed into a giant black dog as he leapt towards the werewolf. Black grabbed at his friend's neck who had broken free of his shackles and pulled him away from where Severus was protecting the still injured Weasley.

Emily's focus was trained on Pettigrew as he dove for Lupin's wand. Harry was quick to intercept him yelling "Expelliarmus!" The wand flew from the ground and into his waiting hand. Emily attempted to cast a stunner at the man but the spell just missed him as he transformed back into a rat. Emily chased after the rodent as quickly as she could using her wand to keep a light on him but it was just too difficult. Being so small it was easy for him to hide from her in a shadow or under a root of a tree. In a last attempt the witch shot off several spells in various directions but after careful inspection she had to admit it was a lost cause, Pettigrew was free and the prophecy would come true.

From not too far away Emily could hear whimpering and she started running in the direction of the sounds. She realized she was heading towards the lake.

The Slytherin could hear Granger calling out to her brother, "Harry, Professor Snape said we need to…" Emily pushed herself to run faster unsure why the other girl had stopped calling out but it quickly became clear.

Hermione was running towards her brother as over a hundred dementors descended on him and Sirius as they laid by the lake. "Think happy thoughts!" Harry called out as the girls got closer. Emily and Harry both had their wands extended towards the oncoming creatures. The overwhelming feeling of darkness was starting to spread and Emily looked at her brother and the pair locked eyes, both clearly nervous about this turn of events.

"SEVERUS!" Emily yelled at the top of her lungs, hoping the Potion Master would hear, before joining in with Harry as he called out "Expecto Patronum!" Thin silver wisps came from their wands but it certainly wasn't strong enough for what they were facing. They tried again, both trying to use stronger memories than before though again there wasn't much change to what they were producing. The twins felt Hermione collapse and the witch could feel her brother give in slightly. "No Harry, fight it. We can do this together!"

Emily searched herself and clung onto thoughts of Draco the best she could but she had to admit the fog was starting to close in on her own mind. The pair tried one last time and this time they seemed to create a dome around their group, it wasn't the full protection they needed but it did start to push the dementors back.

"I don't know how much longer I can hold this!" Harry cried focusing as hard as he could. "There's too many, I've only ever practiced against one!"

"We can't give up," Emily urged. "If we can maintain this long enough Severus should be able to help soon."

"Em…"

"Not now! Focus everything on being happy, feeling joy."

The twins were holding onto their wands with both hands hoping that in some way they were adding more force to their spells. The fog was pushing in closer and they both couldn't deny that their dome was starting to fade away. Harry started leaning to the side and Emily steeled herself to be left alone but then the impossible happened, from the other bank came a bright white stag cantering out towards them. Instantly the dementors started to pull back but it wasn't enough. A few moments later a bright snake slithered by its feet and wound itself around the stag, that seemed to be what was needed as the dementors finally left and Emily felt Harry let go. She joined him, both feeling comfort from the magic on the other side of the lake but as Harry gave in to the tiredness a voice broke through the witch's mind forcing her to become more alert.

"Emily!"

Turning her head the witch saw a panicked Severus followed closely by Fudge and Dumbledore. Sighing she looked down and realized she was the only one conscious left. She tried to stand but her body felt weak, "We're okay!"

Severus rushed to her side and helped her to her feet. "You need to remain calm. Fudge will overreact but we can salvage this. Dumbledore has a plan, but I need you to promise not to intervene until told," he whispered as the remaining wizards got closer.

"And how do you already know his plans?" Looking Emily in the eyes she felt a light push and took the hint, the pair had communicated mentally. "Tell me."

"In time, now promise."

"I promise, but you annoy me sometimes."

That earned her an eye roll turning she noticed Fudge was indeed already overreacting. "Where are the dementors going?! It's Black! They need to administer the kiss!"

"Perhaps we should take him back up to the school," Dumbledore offered nodding towards Severus. "Perhaps you might be able to assist in detaining him and ensuring he is kept safely away from everyone in the castle."

"Of course Headmaster, shall Miss Potter return with you?"

"She can remain with you or she can join us in the Hospital Wing." The pair locked eyes and there was a silence for a few moments, Emily knew the pair were communicating again.

"Do you really think it best we leave Miss Potter so close to Black? What would Lucius say?" Fudge seemed worried at the thought of an upset Malfoy Lord.

"I think he would rather her be with Severus, who is his closest confidant, but we can always bring her with us."

"We shall meet you in the Hospital Wing shortly," Severus answered letting it be known that if he had a choice Emily would remain by his side.

Fudge looked reluctant but again the thought of upsetting the powerful Lord had him holding his tongue. "I guess we do have three students to help, was that Weasel we left behind?"

"That was Mr. Weasley, he is Arthur Weasley's youngest son. He works in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office."

"Does he now…"

Emily struggled and held tightly onto Severus' arm as he cast a binding charm and began levitating the Animagus in front of them. It wasn't long before the pair were inside the doors to the castle and the Potion Master was quick to call on an elf.

"What can Tippy be doing for Master Snapey?" the elf asked jogging happily beside the odd group.

"We need two hot cocoas and a bar or two if you can manage."

"Does Master Snapey be needing anything else?"

"Retrieve a Pepper Up potions from my lab and bring some chicken and bread for the mutt here. If you can put together a small basket that can be hidden easily, of things under a preservation charm, enough for a few days, that would also be useful."

"Tippy get a few of the elves to help and bes right back!"

"Meet us in Professor Flitwick's office."

With an awkward bow, as the group was still moving, the elf vanished from sight. Emily who had never been to Professor Flitwick's office was exhausted by the time they reached it. She leaned against the wall as Severus set Sirius on Flitwick's chair and enervated him. Sirius looked around frantically but he didn't struggle, he seemed resigned. "You must be pleased," he said noting the binds that kept him restrained. With a flick of the other man's wand Sirius' face turned to disbelief as the ropes vanished.

"Listen carefully mutt because there is not much time." Sirius looked like he was about to argue but his eyes caught a tired Emily's and he was quick to nod. "Fudge was with Dumbledore when they came across us, we needed to keep up pretenses and get you away before he could demand the kiss be administered."

"You would have liked that."

"There are many things I would like in this life but watching you lose your soul for a crime you never committed is not one of them. I may be many things, I am however, not that heartless."

Emily smirked, "You're going soft Sev."

"Hush brat."

Sirius' eyes seemed to dart quickly between the pair and there was an acknowledgment there. "So, what am I to do?"

"Master Snapey," a voice squeaked as a few elves popped into the room each holding various items. "Where yous be liking everything?"

"Put the basket behind the desk and the dinner goes to the man sitting at it. Make sure Emily and him each have a hot cocoa to drink."

"And these?" another elf held up several vials in offering.

"Hand one to Emily and tuck the rest in the basket with the food."

Emily quickly drained the contents of the vile and soon steam was pouring from her ears. As she sipped on the hot chocolate the taste on her tongue turned sweet and she could feel her strength returning. Sirius went to mimic the girl but was quickly stopped by Severus. "Fudge will want to come up here to look at you, you need to appear weary. Take the potion after he has left the room."

The dirty man nodded in agreement, "And then what is next on your great plan?"

"You will wait up here and help will come for you. It won't be too much longer from now, the basket of food should see you until you can get set up somewhere. Dumbledore will find a way to be in touch."

"And Dumbledore believes you? How much time could you have possibly had to fill him in? Were we out for long?"

"He believes you innocent and that is all you need know right now."

"And then, when I do get set up somewhere, what next? The damn rat got away, I can't sit back and let him cause more harm."

"Just do as you're told."

Sirius huffed but he took a bite of his chicken instead of retorting, Emily could tell he was trying not to lash out but then again maybe he really was too tired to fight with the man in front of him for the moment. She had no doubt that in any other situation the pair would be at each other's throats. The witch for her part was proud of Severus because she could tell this act of kindness was partially killing him inside.

"Once you are done banish the plate," Severus added as he walked towards Emily. The man rolled his eyes but was careful to watch as the young witch was guided from the room.

As they walked towards the Hospital Wing Emily took Severus' hand and gave it a squeeze. The man didn't acknowledge the gesture but he didn't drop her hand either. "Are you feeling better?"

"A bit."

"If you needed to cast magic do you think you could?"

"Probably, I would be stronger in an hour or two or with some sleep."

"Do you need more chocolate?"

"Do I need to cast magic?"

"Probably, I'll send you with some chocolate bars. Poppy has a few I'm sure."

"Send me?"

"I need you to remember something very quickly do you understand?" Emily nodded. "Flitwick's office is on the seventh floor, the thirteenth window from the right of the West Tower."

"Why do I…"

"What did I say?"

"Flitwick's office is the thirteenth window from the right of the West Tower on the seventh floor."

"Good."

At that moment the pair watched as Dumbledore stepped out and held the door open for Emily. Looking to Severus he gave her hand a squeeze and a mental nudge. Opening up her mind she heard his voice clearly 'Be careful and quick. Remember emotions are difficult but at the end of the day my door is always open for you.'

"On you go Miss Potter, I fear I must lock you in now but go quickly with Miss Granger and your brother. Madame Pomfrey left out some chocolate bars on the side table grab a few," with a wink the door slowly shut behind her and she was left staring at Harry and Granger who were looking at her with equal confusion.

"Emily come quick!" Walking over to the pair the witch was confused at what was so urgent if they were being locked in. "We don't have much time."

Granger seemed to pull something from under her shirt and Emily instantly knew what she was looking at but how on earth had the muggleborn gotten her hands on one or was this all part of Dumbledore's plan? Rushing forward she looked to the side table by the two Gryffindors and noticed a stack of chocolate bars grabbing a handful she joined them.

The chain was tossed over the twins and with three turns suddenly the world around them blurred into motion. The room seemed to brighten and sounds and noises filled their ears. Emily felt slightly unsteady, she tried to ask how much longer it would take but she couldn't hear whether she had even made a peep.

When the world righted itself, Emily closed her eyes and tried to center herself. "I probably should have warned you to close your eyes sooner," Granger said. "Take a moment but we need to move from here!"

"Hermione, how on earth did we end up in the Entrance Hall?" Harry looked baffled as Emily opened her eyes and noticed the same thing as her brother.

"We've gone back in time, hurry!" The girl darted for a tapestry and the three students hid behind it.

"How is that possible?"

"How did you get one of those is a better question," Emily mumbled as she poked her head around the edge of the tapestry. "I hear footsteps but no one is there."

"That has to be us going to Hagrid's," the other girl said thinking something over in her mind as she counted on her fingers. "It should be about the right time."

"Are you saying I'm here but also over there?" Harry was pointing from himself to the back of the tapestry with a look of disbelief.

"Yes, now be quiet. I'm trying to think."

"And I'm trying to figure out what's going on!"

"Don't yell," Emily scolded her brother. "We can't risk being found right now. I think I should be in Severus' quarters with Draco already so we shouldn't cross my path. I never left his rooms until we went to give Lupin his potion."

Granger nodded, "That will be one less thing to worry about."

"Excuse me, can one of you two please clue me in to what's going on and what that necklace is?"

"It's a time turner," Emily answered at the other girl's hesitation. "And I am also curious as to why you have it."

"It was to get to all my classes. I didn't want to miss out on any of the topics so I signed up for everything but I think I over did it. I've already cut Divination but I'm afraid Muggle Studies will have to go as well, I just can't keep this up for another year…"

"Your parents are muggles," Emily pointed out. "And you still signed up for Muggle Studies?"

"I thought it would be interesting to see how it was taught from a wizarding point of view…" The girl looked around the small nook they were hiding in and dropped her head into her hands, "I'm too tired, what did Dumbledore mean? How is this going to help anyone?"

"What were his instructions to you?"

Harry shrugged, "He said that he thought we could not only help Sirius but that perhaps more than one innocent life could be saved."

"Who else needs saving?" Emily thought of the man who at this time was roaming somewhere on the grounds freely and in a few hours would find himself confined to Flitwick's office.

Harry paced as best he could in the tight quarters. "We were headed to Hagrid's!" Harry said excitedly looking between the girls.

"I already pointed that out," Hermione answered as she leaned back against the stone wall.

"We can save Buckbeak!"

Emily looked over, annoyed at her brother, "You think the Headmaster is worried about saving a creature when we need to save a man…"

"Our Godfather," Harry added quietly.

"Who told you that?"

"He did."

"When?"

"In the tunnel."

"Can you play twenty questions later, we have a more pressing dilemma here! We need to figure out what we are supposed to do and quickly."

"Fine," Emily answered crossing her arms, "why do we need to save the hippogriff?"

"Dumbledore mentioned the window where Sirius is being kept."

"Severus mentioned that to me as well, granted it's kind of odd seeing as I was with him when he set him up there."

"A window though… Buckbeak can fly," Harry's voice was getting eager again. "We fly Buckbeak to the window and then Sirius can leave with him!"

"And we have to do that without being seen," Emily looked to the other witch who nodded her head. The girl looked exhausted, Emily handed her over one of the bars she had grabbed and then passed one to Harry. "We should probably eat this quickly, if we have to do all that we are going to need some strength."

The trio quietly ate their chocolate as they listened to the footsteps that were passing until they were left in silence.

"I think it's safe to move," Harry announced poking his head around the tapestry. "The hall is clear, hurry!"

The three dashed from their hiding place and Granger looked around worriedly, "What if someone is looking?"

"Just run to the edge of the forest," Harry commanded.

"The forest has a ward to block us." Emily said thinking back to the day Bill had visited the castle. "It's supposed to trap everything in and keep everyone but Hagrid out."

"The ward is gone, Hagrid told us about it," Hermione answered pointing towards the greenhouses. The group ducked once they reached the large glass structures making sure they wouldn't be seen if anyone happened to be in one of them. "Hagrid said Fudge wanted to take a few people into the forest earlier to inspect it for Black, it's why they didn't do Buckbeak's execution right after the appeal."

Harry scoffed, "Apparently the minister is afraid of the forest after dark."

"I seem to remember you thinking there was a werewolf around every corner when we went in after dark," Emily reminded her brother.

"I was a first year! And maybe I was wrong about the werewolf then but there will be one tonight."

"Don't forget about the spiders."

"Ron's the one that's scared of spiders!"

"Will you two stop," Granger was crouched in front of the pair. "It seems clear, if we head around the Whomping Willow we should be able to make it into the tree line."

Once again the small group made a mad dash across the grounds. Staying as clear as they could of the Whomping Willow the trio soon found themselves in the shelter of the trees.

"Perhaps we should get to a spot where we can observe Hagrid's hut?" Emily suggested once everyone had caught their breath.

"It's a home," Harry snapped.

"Fine, his house," Emily corrected ensuring she was emphasizing the word. "Despite what you might think, I'm not attempting to be offensive."

Granger leveled a glare at the boy and that seemed to be enough for him to hold his tongue from lashing back at his sister. His cheeks blushed and motioned off with his hand, "So maybe we should head that way."

The group moved as silently as they could being careful to remain hidden by the large trees. Once they could see Hagrid's front door the group stopped and waited. It wasn't more than a few seconds before they watched the door open and Hagrid appear. He seemed to look around before looking down in surprise. Ushering an invisible person in they could hear the man say, "Yeh shouldn've come."

"How did we beat you here?" Emily pondered watching the window as suddenly she could make out the figure of her brother.

"We have to walk really slowly to all stay hidden under the cloak," Hermione answered joining the witch as she observed what was unfolding through the window. "I doubt we will all fit under it by next year."

"This is so weird," Harry added tilting his head to the side. "I mean, that's me and you!"

"Try doing this all year."

"We need to get closer to Buckbeak," Harry nudged the group to move and suddenly they heard a squeak. Turning they all saw the rat in the window and Hermione was quick to stop the wizard as he made to change directions. "He's right there, we just need to nab him and we can avoid this whole thing!"

"We can't be seen!" Granger urged. "Even by ourselves."

"She's not wrong," Emily added, edging herself towards the pumpkin patch where she could see the hippogriff tied to the fence. "People have been known to kill their past or future selves, granted they were older and probably not as trusting as you. You may only stun yourself or maybe you would create an entire timeline where we weren't there to protect Sirius from dementors and he ended up a soulless husk."

Harry stared blankly at his sister before he started mumbling about crazy witches which earned him a slap to the back of his head from Granger. "It was just an idea!"

"That's not why I hit you," the girl huffed crossing her arms as she moved to join the other witch.

The door to the hut swung open and the three Gryffindors shuffled out into the pumpkin patch. Hagrid moved to calm the hippogriff and rushed the students away begging them not to watch. The trio ran off as a loud knock sounded at the door. Hagrid went back into the hut and shortly the Minister could be seen looking out the window to ensure the creature was indeed still there. When he moved Emily urged the others forward, "We need to act now. He's seen him, if he vanishes now, he will know Hagrid isn't at fault."

"Let me try," Harry said running quickly into the patch. With a bow of the head, the creature mimicked him allowing him to approach but remained where he was, making no attempt to stand. Harry petted Buckbeak and attempted to shove him to standing a few times but he wouldn't budge.

"Oh, seriously? We need to hurry!" Granger darted to Harry's side and joined in helping him to push, realizing it wasn't working she unhooked the rope from the fence and tried pulling but still the creature remained on the ground.

Sighing at the obvious, Emily grabbed the dead ferrets from where they were hanging on a post and dangled it close to creature's head. Immediately it stood and started to follow the girl into the forest. Emily looked at the two stunned Gryffs and motioned for them to join her, it would not do for them to be discovered instead of the beast. Once everyone was back safely hidden in the trees they moved themselves a bit deeper inside the treeline just in case the Ministry officials decided to sweep the edge of the forest looking for the escaped hippogriff.

Harry looked uncomfortable as he looked between Granger and his sister, "Now what?"

"We wait," Emily answered looking in the direction of the Whomping Willow. "There's nothing we can really do until Sirius is in Flitwick's office."

Granger shivered, the sun was going down and the prospect of having to stay in the forest for a few hours was starting to bother her. Harry moved and wrapped an arm around his friend who smiled at him in thanks. Emily turned her head away and led Buckbeak off towards a spot where they would be able to watch when their past selves came out from the tunnel. Settling down the girl leaned against a tree trunk and the large animal settled next to her, putting its head on her legs.

"He likes you," Granger said as she and Harry joined the pair.

"I see that."

"You don't have to be rude," Harry snipped.

"I'm tired," Emily answered her head looking up into the canopy of trees, she could just make out a few stars shining through.

"She's fine, Harry. We're all tired," the other girl urged. "Once this is over I'm sleeping for an entire day."

"I wish I could do that," Emily said looking over at the girl who was now sat to her right and leaning against the closest tree.

"Why can't you?"

"I promised Cedric I would spend tomorrow with him."

"He's your boyfriend, right? He should understand."

"I can't exactly tell him why I'm so tired though."

"Oh right, I guess not…" the girl got quiet again. After a few minutes of silence she couldn't help herself any longer, "What's it like having a boyfriend?"

"I don't know, they take up a lot of your time but I guess that's the point since essentially you are trying to figure out if you want to enter a contract together, at least in my case, not everyone gets that trial period. It's kind of exhausting at times trying to make sure the other person is happy and balancing everything so your friends don't feel like you don't have enough time for them. Especially this year with all the additional work I've been doing with Professor Snape."

"Contract?"

"Betrothal contracts, most wizarding families enter into them."

"That's barbaric!"

"That's a rather muggle view on things."

"Oh please," Harry groaned.

"But it is, this isn't the muggle world. There are customs and traditions, you don't have to follow them but if you are going to live in this world you should respect them."

The group fell silent once again, Granger was deep in thought and Harry looked bored as he tossed a wrapper he had in his pocket up in the air repeatedly before catching it.

"I have a question," Granger said unable to bear the silence any longer, when no one responded she decided that was permission enough to ask. "I saw the dementors but why didn't they get Sirius… or even us?"

"Harry and I were able to create a shield around us. It wasn't fully formed but it kept us separated from them."

"Did you not see them?"

Emily looked over to her brother confused, "See whom?"

"Our parents," he mumbled quickly losing his nerve.

"They're dead." Emily said looking at her brother with concern.

"I know!" he appeared frustrated as he ran a hand through his already wild hair. "But only a fully formed Patronus could have saved us and it's just…"

"I saw the Patronus, well both of them, but I highly doubt one of our parents had a snake as a protector from what I've heard about them. Harry, even with the little I've read on Necromancy the dead don't cast spells when brought back to life, they have to be controlled by another force."

Harry looked sullen but Granger looked nervous, "You've read about Necromancy?"

"It's just been touched on in some of my books, I don't have any desire to study it." The answer seemed to pacify the girl and it was true, the art of rising the dead didn't appeal to Emily. There wasn't much to be gained really from the magic either, mostly from what the witch gathered was that the main use in the past was to add bodies to large armies or the misconceived notion that someone could bring back a loved one. Once dead, a person no longer belonged to this realm and she had no desire to change that.

The group fell back into silence and Emily could tell that both her companions were starting to get antsy. Granger was fiddling with her sleeve and Harry had started levitating the wrapper and making it do crazy movements.

There was a strong breeze and Granger had a soft exhale of "Finally," before she jumped to her feet. "We're coming."

Harry was quick to follow suit, "Who goes after Pettigrew?"

"No one," the girls said together.

The boy looked over shocked at his companions, "How can you both say that?! We're just supposed to let him run back to his master?!"

"Harry, how are we going to find a rat in this forest and do you really believe he can find You-Know-Who?" Granger's hands were on her hips. "Nobody even knows where he is! How is Pettigrew supposed to find him?!"

Emily knew that while the girl's logic seemed sound the rat was destined for be reunited with his master by the dawn of the next week, obviously Harry had not shared the prophecy with his friends. Standing she looked towards where Lupin was starting to transform. "I hate to break up your little spat."

"We are not fighting," Harry said turning on his sister.

"Wonderful, then you both won't mind if we get out of here." The two Gryffindors looked at her as if she was crazy, so she pointed towards the action unfolding from earlier. "We are about to be greeted by a werewolf shortly."

"Oh right," Granger looked around. "Where do we go?"

"I saw Hagrid head towards the school," Harry called starting to run back towards the Gamekeeper's hut. "His house is empty!"

Everyone was running and within a few minutes they found themselves back in the pumpkin patch, even Buckbeak seemed to sense the urgency and had run without the promise of food. Granger started to head in but Harry stopped her, "Maybe we should wait outside, that way we can keep an eye on everything."

"We can't keep Buckbeak in the open with Fudge running around," Emily prompted petting the creature's head in an attempt to calm him.

"I'll stay here and bring him inside," Granger offered moving to take the rope from the other witch.

"But…"

Granger shook her head and leveled a glare at Harry, "It will be better if you two go watch together. It will be good for you." With that the girl turned around and led the hippogriff into the hut leaving brother and sister to stare at each other.

"By the Goddess, this is ridiculous, let's go to the lake." Emily started walking off towards the lake and was soon joined by her brother who seemed distinctly uncomfortable now that they were alone.

The awkwardness didn't last though as suddenly dementors came from every direction. Emily held back a shiver running down her spine. Harry ran to the lake's edge seemingly looking for something but what she had no idea, he took a step back and appeared to now be waiting as he watched the other bank closely. Suddenly he whipped out his wand and was screaming "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

A silvery stag burst from his wand and Emily could see the dementors start to retreat. "Emily you need to help!" Emily hesitated she had been struggling with this all year and unlike Harry an animal like shape had never escaped her wand. "HURRY!"

Emily searched her memories worried about what to use, taking a few steps forward a flash of red crossed her mind as she raised her wand and joined her brother, "Expecto Patronum." There was a rush of warmth that flooded through her system and seemed to flow from her body and into her wand. It was a feeling she had never known before. Watching, the silver mist formed a large snake that slithered over to the stag and wrapped itself around it just as she had seen earlier. The dementors fell back until they all had completely gone. With the threat taken care of the animals unwound themselves and moved back to their casters. The snake nuzzled Emily's hand before it vanished into nothing.

Emily could feel her body still humming, looking over at her brother and his goofy grin he was clearly experiencing something similar.

"What did you two do?!"

Whirling around the twins were greeted by an annoyed looking Granger and Buckbeak. "We saved our lives," Harry answered running up to his friend and giving her a hug.

"What?"

"We were the ones who cast the Patronuses we saw. I thought it was our parents but it was us all along!"

"That's extremely advanced…" there was a glint of jealousy behind the girl's eyes but she seemed to smother it quickly.

"Yeah, but we already had done it before, so I knew we could do it again!"

"Technically it was just the once," Emily corrected her twin. Turning she noticed her and Severus were heading back towards the castle with Sirius as the others were loaded onto stretchers by Fudge and Dumbledore. "We're nearly there, we went straight to Flitwick's office from here."

Granger nodded in agreement, "We have about forty-five minutes before we need to be back in the Hospital Wing. We don't want anyone to know we are missing."

The group moved towards the castle and snuck up to the bottom of the West Tower. The trio counted the windows and could see there was light coming from the window they needed to reach. "It was dark when we got to the room so that means he's there." Emily noticed a figure walking out in the darkness towards the forest and she had a feeling that it was someone sent to retrieve a dementor on Fudge's orders. "We need to get him now."

"But what if Fudge hasn't seen him yet?" Harry asked.

"We can't wait any longer, I think our wonderful Minister has already sent someone to retrieve a dementor." She pointed in the direction where the figure was vanishing into the trees. The other two nodded in agreement.

"Harry you and Emily take Buckbeak and I will meet you at the tower door to let you both back in."

"Can you get up there quick enough?" Emily questioned looking skeptically at the Gryffindor.

"Harry's shown me a few secret passageways, just go, now!" With that Granger ran off towards the entrance as fast as she could and the twins climbed onto Buckbeak. Harry sat in front and seemed to have good control of the hippogriff as they took off and started flying higher. When they were in front of the window Emily was quick to pull out her wand and unlock it. The old window swung forward and Sirius approached it tentatively.

The man examined the scene before him and quickly looked behind himself, "You were just here a few minutes ago…"

Emily shrugged, "It's magic."

The man gave a deep belly laugh before calming himself and looking back at the two teens, "So is this my ride?"

"Yeah," Harry answered nervously. "Get on quickly!"

"Don't forget your things!"

The man reached down and passed the basket through to the witch, "Oh I won't, it's not everyday Snivellus offers help, you're sure he didn't poison any of this right?" Carefully the man crawled out of the window and threw a leg over the hippogriff, settling in behind the witch.

"You really are going to have to stop calling him that," Emily said as Harry urged Buckbeak to go higher.

"So no to the poison?"

"He's not a bad man, despite whatever happened between you in the past."

"You don't know him like I do."

"Or perhaps I know him better," Emily challenged as they landed on the top of the tower. The twins slid off the creature and Sirius took the rope from Harry as he settled into a better position for the ride ahead.

"How can I…"

Harry waved his hand, "Just go, and maybe write… if it's safe…"

"Of course I will write to you both! This is the first step to freedom Harry, we will make it happen. My offer always stands no matter where in the world I am! You two take care of yourselves!" With a kick of his heel to Buckbeak he acted like the animal was to take off but it didn't budge, "It worked in those cowboy things Lily would make us go see sometimes."

The twins having not been exposed to many muggle movies other than Dudley's favorites just nodded nicely at the man. Harry patted the side of the beast and yelled "Go!"

Instantly Buckbeak took to the air and the pair started to disappear into the clouds.

"What offer was he talking about?" Emily asked looking at her brother who still hadn't torn his eyes off the skies.

"He said we could live with him."

"Harry, you can't live with him until we find a way to clear his name." The witch had long given up hope that her brother might join her at the Manor, if last summer couldn't convince him she was done asking so she didn't mention the fact that he already had a better option than the Dursleys available to him.

"Is he gone?" An out of breath Granger held open the door to the tower as she hunched over trying to regulate her breathing.

Harry looked over to his friend and with one glace back at the sky he nodded, "Yeah, he's gone."