Harry Potter isn't mine.

Chapter 11 Traitors

Potter was faster than both Pansy and Draco and almost caught up to Blaise and the dog before they seemed to disappear under the Whomping Willow. Her surprise left her vulnerable to a vine, which almost lazily sent her flying ten feet away.

"Are they at the base of the trunk?" Draco said worriedly, momentarily forgetting that he was talking to a stupid Gryffindor. With a fierce battle cry, she ran for the tree again, only to be catapulted back to his feet. "Potter!"

"There's a tunnel under it!" And with that, she ran again, dodging a few branches before disappearing like Blaise, the dog, and Zeus had done.

Draco and Pansy stared at each other for a long moment. There was no sign of any of them, but neither one of them were about to get tossed around like a ragdoll.

"We should get help," Pansy said nervously.

With a shake of his head, Draco took out his wand. "We don't have time."

"We never do!" she whined as she followed suit, and they both cast, "Immobulus!"

Several agonizing minutes later, the Whomping Willow was still enough for them to sprint for the tunnel. Pansy shrieked as a vine feebly slapped her back.

"Shhh!" They didn't know what was waiting for them at the other side of the tunnel. It was so low that they had to crouch down, and there was no sign of Potter or Blaise when they illuminated the tunnel with their wands.

Seconds felt like years as the tunnel began to rise. Eventually, it twisted, and they started following a dim light. A dusty, mildew-y smelling room opened at the end, and Draco was trying not to hyperventilate as they followed dusty footprints into room after dingy room. What if Black had killed Potter and Blaise and was waiting for them with their bodies?

"Are we in the Shrieking Shack?" Pansy whispered breathlessly.

The haunted attraction in Hogsmeade. Draco looked at an armchair that had bite marks and chunks missing. He sure hoped not because all the ghosts he knew weren't capable of such destruction. The last thing they would need right now is a demon, if they even existed.

"Stay away from him!" They heard Potter yell. Draco looked up and signaled for Pansy to follow him as quickly and quietly as they could up the staircase. Mad laughter made Draco's hair on the back of his neck stand up.

"You're as brave as your mother," a man said. "And as stupid as your father. A dangerous mix, Potter."

Draco gave up on the element of surprise and ran up the stairs, Pansy yell whispering at him all the way. Without even thinking, he ran in the room the voices were coming from and lunged at the man Potter was pointing her wand at.

Potter screamed, but Draco already had his wand at Regulus's throat. He wasn't a tall man, only a few inches taller than Draco, and he was weak, very weak. The escaped convict didn't even bother to try to push Draco away when he slammed him against the nearest wall. He looked like a skeleton with skin stretched over it. Draco pointed his wand at his throat, and the man grinned.

"This is how your father greeted mine," he rasped, "before he took me away to live with him and Cissy."

"Draco," Pansy whispered in terror when angry sparks came out of his wand.

"You killed my mum and dad," Draco growled. "And Blaise's dad."

"August?" Black burst into hysterical laughter, and suddenly, Blaise was at Draco's side. Three wands were pointed at the traitor. Pansy took a step back, shaking like a leaf. "What did Circe tell you about him, Blaise? She call him a hero? Her knight in shining armor?"

"Because he was!" Blaise yelled. Draco couldn't ever recall hearing him yell. Zeus was practically screaming in the hand that wasn't his wand hand, and he hoped his best friend wasn't squeezing his beloved pet.

The man was mocking him and didn't even care enough to mention Draco's parents. They were totally justified in killing him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Potter's wand arm shake. She knew what his intentions were. He just had to do it.

Draco gripped his wand tightly. A reductor curse up his neck should to it. Death would be instant, which was much more than he deserved.

Blaise was waiting for him to make the first move as he struggled to keep his wand up and hold Zeus at the same time. Pansy, on the other hand, had no intention of letting him have justice.

"WE'RE UP HERE!" she screamed. Draco didn't know who she was talking to. He couldn't hear the footsteps over the pounding in his ears. So imagine his surprise when Professor Snape appeared out of nowhere and disarmed him in matter of seconds.

Blaise and Potter's wands went flying as well. Professor Snape caught them with ease and looked at all four of them coldly. Flatly, he asked, "Where is he, Regulus?"

Regulus Black took a moment to catch his breath. Then, he said hoarsely, "With his son."

"You switched without telling me," Professor Snape said coldly.

"I thought…" Black's eyes filled with tears. "Lucius and Cissy thought it was clever! They thought Dumbledore would never suspect!"

In an almost fatherly way, Professor Snape put his hands on Black's shoulders. "We'll make this right."

Professor Snape walked towards Blaise, who was hysterical as Draco tried to sluggishly process what he was hearing. His favorite teacher, the one who had looked after him, taught him how to fight the dementors…

"HE'S A WEREWOLF!" Blaise couldn't handle this. Facing his father's killer, being betrayed by the one adult in the castle besides Professor Riddle who was on their side… It was too much for him to bear, and his cool, emotionless cover was starting to crack. "That's why Professor Black's always covering for him!"

Professor Snape's eyes widened slightly, but other than that, he showed no emotion to Blaise's hysterical words. Even Regulus Black, the murderous, raving lunatic, looked horrified by Blaise divulging such a secret.

"Clever boy," Professor Snape admitted.

"I'll tell everyone what you are," Blaise threatened, "if you don't let me and my friends go… and Potter. I-I-my mum will read it in my journal. If you kill us."

"Thanks for the afterthought," Potter said dryly as she took a step back. Her eyes kept darting to the loose floorboards, trying to find on that she could rip off before Black or Professor Snape could stop her.

"The staff already know," Professor Snape snapped.

Pansy shook her head. "Professor Riddle wouldn't let—"

"Professor Riddle trusts me," Professor Snape said quietly.

"And you've been helping him," Draco hissed. Potter was now glancing at the door, desperate to flee. Pansy was crying quietly to herself while Blaise was shaking with rage. "All this time—"

"I have not." Professor Snape paused and handed each of them their wands back. He stopped at Blaise and stared at Zeus, struggling in his hands. "But you need to let me explain. I need to see your rat, Mr. Zabini."

"Why?" Blaise barked. "So Black could bite his head off?"

"If I wasn't so squeamish, I would," Black said hatefully.

"So immature," Professor Snape said to Black, but his eyes were still on Zeus. "Did Draco tell you of the Map I confiscated from him?"

Blaise held Zeus close to his chest, even though the rat was tearing his hands to shreds. He was willing to take the pain to keep him. "Yes," he said nastily. "He also said that you made it."

"On the Map, I saw the two of you heading through the Whomping Willow with Regulus," Professor Snape said slowly.

"Zeus?" Blaise spat.

"No." Professor Snape ran a hand through his greasy hair. "August Zabini. He's an animagus."

A ringing silence filled the room. Like Blaise's dad would be with him for twelve years and let him think he was dead. Ridiculous. And Blaise, being his best friend, surely would have told him. His friend just stood there in shock, shaking his head and holding Zeus as close to him as he could.

"You're out of your minds," Draco snapped and pointed at Black. "You killed him!"

"I meant to—"

"The Map doesn't lie." Potter was as white as a sheet. "My dad made one."

"Yes," Black spat. "And Lucius made one so we could avoid your dad and my brother. They bullied us to the point that August and I were scared to leave our dormitories! My brother nearly killed Severus!"

Potter thinned her lips, and Draco waited for her to deny it, to make their story make even less sense. Instead, she flatly said, "Yes."

"What the fuck?" Draco whispered.

Potter threw her hands in the air. "Sirius fucked up, but that didn't mean Remus deserved to go to Azkaban at twelve! They… Mum says they took it hard."

"Took what hard?" Pansy yelled.

"Give me the rat!" Black seethed.

"They deserve to know the truth!" Professor Snape growled. Black didn't care and began to charge at Blaise but still stopped when Professor Snape held out an arm to block his path. "Are you really going to kill August in front of his son without him knowing the truth?"

"I've waited twelve years!" Black yelled. "In Azkaban!"

"Then you can wait another twelve minutes!" Professor Snape yelled back. Then, he turned to Potter. "Will you corroborate what you know?"

Potter glared at him. "Sirius tricked you into finding Remus during the full moon. Remus bit you, and you became a werewolf. Sirius was suspended for a while, but when he came back, he was still upset about Remus and wasn't nice to you guys. Mum only told me because I saw Remus in old pictures. She said your mum made sure he went to jail."

"Imagine that," Professor Snape said dryly. Then, he went on as Potter's explanation wasn't totally rude and biased. "Before Wolfsbane, werewolves couldn't control themselves during the full moon. Lupin was the smartest of the lot. He would not have bit me intentionally."

"Yet he's rotting away," Potter grumbled, folding her arms over her chest. She looked away, covering up her fear and uncertainty with her usual bratty exterior.

"Yes," Professor Snape said simply. "Your father, Sirius, and Peter Pettigrew became animagi to keep him company during the full moon, correct?"

"Yeah, and my dad saved your ass," Potter said rudely, despite her wide eyes and shaking hands. "You would've been dead if it wasn't for him! And you thank him by—"

"And my friends did the same for me," Professor Snape went on. "Regulus took after his brother. August turned into a black rat. And Lucius became an owl. Regulus would keep me from biting myself. August would touch the knot on base of the Whomping Willow to freeze it. Lucius would fly around the forest and make sure I didn't get too close to Hogsmeade or the castle."

"This isn't true!" Pansy cried. "And if it is—you wouldn't mind me getting Delphi!"

For the first time tonight, Professor Snape looked startled. "Don't."

"See!" Draco yelled. "You're lying! Because if you weren't, you'd welcome an auror to hear your case!"

Black frowned. "Why can't Delphi come?" Professor Snape gave him a look that absolutely screamed Shut up! "What?"

"Regulus, did anyone ever tell you that you have the mind of a child?" Professor Snape drawled.

"Well that's not fair, Severus." At the sound of Delphi's voice, Draco nearly jumped out of his skin. With a swish, she threw off an invisibility cloak. "You were the one who screwed everything up."

She twirled her wand with her two index fingers as she circled the room. Potter looked relieved at the sight of her idol, but as much as Draco wanted to be, he couldn't. He had firmly believed that Delphi didn't have true emotions until now. She was looking at Professor Snape with true, blind hatred. Hatred that was enough to cloud one's judgment.

"Once a spy, always a spy, eh Severus?" Delphi taunted. "Lucius and Narcissa must be rolling around in their graves to find out that they trusted two traitors with their son."

"What is she talking about?" Black, Black, said nervously. He was nervous about Professor Snape begin a traitor, which wouldn't make sense. He should be relieved to know that Professor Snape was on his side.

Delphi tutted. "It is not for the ears of children."

"Listen," Professor Snape begged. "Listen to my thoughts, Delphini!"

"I don't need to!" she hissed. "I've seen enough over the past twelve years! The dementors will have a Kiss for you too!"

"I made a mistake!" Professor Snape pleaded. Like Blaise, his character was doing a complete one eighty. "Lucius and Narcissa were dead! August too! Regulus—"

With a lightning fast swish from Delphi's wand, Professor Snape's mouth looked like it was sown shut with invisible thread. He desperately tried to pull his lips apart but nothing would work, and he wound up tripping on the dusty floor as his ankles snapped together. She sauntered away from him and pointed her wand at Regulus Black.

"Severus was a spy?" Black asked quietly.

"Off and on," Delphi said simply.

"So I was right not to trust him…" Black put his face in his hands. "Delphi, you have to listen to me! August was the Malfoy's Secret Keeper! It was a bluff! A bluff to trick Dumbledore!"

"But," Draco said weakly, "Professor Snape could have killed me loads of times this year, and he didn't!"

Delphi wasn't listening. Instead, she stared at Black rather intently. Her lips parted as she gasped slightly, but Draco was the only one who saw it. If she could read minds like everyone seemed to believe, hopefully she could sort out this headache inducing mess.

"Expelliarmus!"

It wasn't Potter, the Gryffindor idiot, who sent her flying across the room and crashing into the wall. Black didn't swipe Pansy's wand in her tearful state. No.

It was Blaise.

Thank you for last chapter's reviews a prick, Rain-XIX, and gr8rockstarrox!

gr8rockstarrox: There will be a chapter that features all the parents to start off the fourth year summer! I almost added Sirius in! But Delphi got the role instead!