Chapter Ten: A Sirius Problem, Part One

November 1, 2011/1775

After being dropped off at Hogwarts by George and Alex, Athena was met by Professor Flitwick, who was waiting for her at the gates.

"Hello, Professor. Thank you for waiting for me."

"It was my pleasure, Miss Washington. Tell me, how did your little excursion go?"

"Perfectly fine, Professor. Me, George, and Alex certainly learned a lot, to put it lightly."

Flitwick chuckled. "I can imagine. After all, I just got an invitation to the Potter will reading; that problem must finally be solved."

Athena smiled. "Yes, sir. It finally was."

The pair jogged lightly up the pathway that led to the castle, reaching the front doors just as the sun was about to set over the horizon. "Professor, what class, if any, should I go to?"

"Classes are over for the day, Miss Washington. Dinner is just starting."

"Perfect! But, Professor, do you mind if we have a quick little discussion about something in your office? I need to ask you a few questions."

Flitwick looked confused, but nodded anyway. After sending off a quick Patronus message to Dumbledore ("I am eating dinner in my office tonight; something has come up.") he and Athena made their way to his office. Just as a precaution, he casted some silencing charms on the portraits in his office, in case Dumbles decided to listen in, and he ordered his personal House Elf, Jerry, to bring them both some food.

"Professor, what do you know about Sirius Black? Where is he now? Why did he not play a part in my life?"

Professor Flitwick spent the next hour explaining about Sirius to Athena, who got angrier at Dumbledore and Pettigrew every minute.

"Get this, Professor. Sirius is innocent. It was Pettigrew who was really the Secret Keeper, according to the portrait of James. They had only made the switch because it was believed that Sirius would be an obvious choice for a Keeper, and that he would be the one that Voldy went after before going after Lily and James. But, you see, James, Remus Lupin, Sirius, and Pettigrew all are animagi. We believe that Pettigrew orchestrated a run-in with Sirius after Lily and James died, causing Sirius to get captured, and is probably now hiding in some wizarding family in his animagus form. Did you know that the biggest part of him found was a finger? Say, do you know of any students who brought a rat pet to school? If so, it might be him. Better safe than sorry, right?"

Flitwick nodded. "Actually, yes, I do. The youngest Weasley, Ronald, brought a fat grey rat as his pet. I believe that it has one toe missing on one of it's feet."

"It's him." Athena whispered, her face paling. "Shit. He's been living right here under my very nose and I didn't even realize it!"

~XXXXXXX~

The Next Day

The Office of DMLE Head Amelia Bones, Ministry of Magic

Thanks to Fate, Peter Pettigrew found himself in a cage with a note attached to it, on a desk that belonged to the DMLE head Amelia Bones. No one knows how he got there. But they do know why he was there. Amelia looked at the letter with narrowed eyes.

Dear Amelia Bones,

Ever heard of Sirius Black? This rat right here in this cage is actually Peter Pettigrew, the real person responsible for the deaths of the Potters, who betrayed their location to Lord Voldemort. You see, the Potters' Secret Keeper was originally Sirius, but they switched to Pettigrew when SOMEBODY reminded them that everyone knew how tight they were with Sirius, and how he would be the first one Voldy would go after.

The letter then went on to explain how Sirius was wrongfully imprisoned, and it left Amelia feeling quite enraged.

Cornelius Fudge was about to learn why you never should piss off Amelia Bones.

She would make sure Sirius got a trial if it was the last thing she ever did.

~XXXXXXXX~

END OF CHAPTER

Author's Note: Hey guys! The Queen is in da house! So, yeah, another chapter is up. I told you all that the story was going to get interesting! So, here we see Athena learning more about Sirius Black, and Amelia is on a crusade to get Sirius a trial! Next chapter: The trial and Athena, George, and Alex meet Sirius. As for the Stone thing, be patient. 'Thena will find out about it soon enough. Sorry for such a short chapter; I wanted to get this explanation out of the way so I could get to the good stuff.

Disclaimer: We the people of Fanfiction hereby recognize that The Queen of Grammar does not own any part of the American Revolution and Harry Potter fandoms, no matter how much she may pretend she does.