Before Hogwarts
Sirius Escapes
Rick called Remus into the study one day about a week before Harry and Hermione were due to arrive for the summer. Remus thought it was to talk about the summer courses the kids were to have, he was only partly correct.
"Remus, I know I've said this before, I think Sirius Black is innocent. I don't think he could have betrayed James, Lily, and especially Harry. I want to ask for your help proving, or disproving, this feeling. What I need from you for now is information, and if possible something of Sirius' like a hairbrush or comb. Something that had Sirius' blood would be even better. I need something to get Sirius' DNA. I have a wild idea of a way to get Sirius out of prison, once he is out I know we can prove him innocent. Will you help?", Rick inquired as he looked Remus in the eye.
"Rick, I'll help but if Sirius is guilty then he either goes back to prison or I kill him", Remus replied.
"Fair enough, in fact if Sirius is guilty I'll help you kill him. Forget him going back to prison, if guilty then he dies at our hands", Rick concluded.
Rick explained what type information he needed and Remus left to see what he could find. Rick called Twinkie as soon as Remus was gone.
"Twinkie, I need your help for a surprise for Harry. I need to speak with a couple of English house elves, or have you do it for me. I need to know if it is possible for a house elf to get into the prison here in England and get a man out without any of the wizards here knowing or finding out. Can you do this for me and keep it a secret from Harry?", Rick asked. Twinkie just stood there for a few seconds thinking then said she would see what she could find out, but it would be difficult.
It was a few days later when Twinkie came to Rick and said that all the elves she had talked to said it was impossible for an elf to enter the prison unless the elf's master was there and called them to the place. But, the master could not be a prisoner as the magic prevented an elf from being called by a prisoner. Rick was disappointed as that would have been the easiest way to get Sirius out without anyone knowing. Now, on to plan B. Rick thanked Twinkie for her help and the information.
Remus came in a few minutes later with a package which he gave to Rick. The package contained a blood stained shirt and handkerchief. "This is an old shirt that belonged to Sirius. The blood is from a spell that Severus threw at him that caused many cuts to appear. The handkerchief was used to try and stop the blood flow. This is all I could find that might have Sirius' DNA on it.", Remus explained.
Rick thanked Remus and said it would have to do, even if it was very old blood. Rick then asked Remus if he knew of a place where they could keep Sirius, provided they got him out, safely and away from prying eyes. Rick said he knew they couldn't keep Sirius here at the house, it was too dangerous. Remus said he would think about that and see what came to mind.
Rick took the shirt and handkerchief to Lucy and asked her if she could extract enough DNA so they could charm a piece of parchment to react to it if fresh blood was applied from the same person. Lucy told him that it would take a few days and to remember that the kids were due that weekend to start their summer stay. Rick hoped that Lucy came through for him.
The kids came that weekend and the mayhem started. Rick explained that he had some work to do and that the kids were on their own for the next week or two, so have fun. But Remus and Lucy would probably still be teaching them things in his absents. As it turned out Remus did have a plan for the kids that he thought they would enjoy. He was going to teach them more about Quidditch and hopefully get Hermione interested in being a chaser. Lucy too told the kids she had some important work to do and that they would have to depend on Remus for guidance and lessons, but to have some fun that was important too.
It was a few days later that Lucy brought three sheets of parchment to Rick saying these were all she could do with the old blood from the shirt and handkerchief. The parchments would react to fresh blood from the same person by glowing and then returning to the lab. It had not been easy to get this to work and a lot of luck was involved. Now what did Rick have in mind for these?
Rick explained his idea and Lucy thought he was crazy but would do all she could to help. Rick's next step was to call in a favor or two from his friends and old teammates. He needed someone with a law degree who could pull off acting very feebleminded and be distracting. Who better to ask than his teammate Darrell, that man could distract a demon. It wouldn't hurt that Darrell was almost as strong magically as Rick, but hid it very well.
Rick made arrangement to meet Darrell and ask for his help, Darrell would probably think it a great joke to play on the British wizards - and if it worked then he would be right, it was a great joke. Darrell and Rick met a couple of days later in Paris, after all it wouldn't do for them to be associated with each other in England. Rick explained what he was up to and what he needed Darrell to do, just as Rick suspected Darrell thought this would be a really good joke on the "stuffed shirts" in England and was all for the idea.
-o-o-o-o-
It was two weeks later when a mild mannered Darrell showed up at the British Ministry of Magic with a strange request. He needed to see one of their prisoners, one Sirius O. Black, in matters related to paternity in the states. At first his request was denied, then he explained that all he needed was about ten minutes with the man and a blood sample. Darrell even offered to go to the prison to do the interview, if that was allowed. The interview was finally allowed when Darrell mentioned that his client was very high up in the government back home and could cause some real problems when he didn't get his way.
It may have been summer but it was still very cool in the north Atlantic where the wizard's prison was located. Darrell was taken to the prison by a young man named Dingus. Darrell had to give up his wand to the warden, but was assured that the Dementors would not be a problem. God he hated those things for real and was thankful they had been removed from the US. Darrell was shown to a dirty room and soon a very disheveled man was soon brought in, in chains no less. Darrell asked if they could release at least one of the man's hands so he could sign some papers.
After the guards had left the room, Darrell cast a silent wandless spell to prevent anything being heard outside the room. This was standard practice in the US to insure privacy.
"Mr. Sirius Black I assume. My name is Darrell Smith and I'm from the US. I'm here to talk with you about a paternity matter there. I will explain and will need a small sample of your blood. You know this is only the second time I've had to visit a person in prison, the last time was some rat faced man named Pettingzoo; no Pettigrew, Peter Pettigrew yes that was his name. A disgusting little man, turned out he was an animagi and used his animal form to escape prison. That was real embarrassing for the prison.
He kept talking about some group he had been in, The Marauders, and some place having to do with warts on a hog? Oh well, that's not important right now; I do get distracted every now and then.", Darrell went on.
The mention of Peter Pettigrew and Hogwarts got through the haze in Sirius' brain and now he was very interested in what this man had to say. But he had to be careful how he acted.
". . . oh what were those names Pettigrew kept mentioning, Prongs, Padfoot, Mooney, and Wormtail; yes that's it. And he kept saying the same thing all the time 'I swear I'm up to no good' whatever that means. I wonder if they were in that Marauders group? Oh, I guess I had best get the guard so he can witness my obtaining the blood sample", Darrell went on again.
Darrell got up and knocked on the door and asked if the guard would witness the sampling, just to keep everything legal. Once the guard was watching, Darrell withdrew a sample of Sirius' blood and applied one drop to a parchment. The parchment glowed briefly then disappeared. "Well, that proves you are the Sirius Black I'm looking for doesn't it?"
"Well now Mr. Black, I will be here in jolly old England for another week or so if you have any questions you can find me at . . Oh what was that address again, oh here it is 1313 Mockingbird Lane in Glasgow."
"Mr. Smith what exactly am I accused of this time? I mean I've never been to the US so how can I be the one you are looking for?", Sirius asked.
"Oh didn't I mention it was a paternity matter, it seems you got some girl pregnant about 9 years ago and now she wants you to support the child as she has fallen on hard times. Well I must say you are a lot more pleasant than I expected, yes much better than that Pettigrew guy. Why the nerve of him not reporting that he could change into an animal, I understand it isn't an easy task to perform. That's one of the reason we got rid of the Dementor guards, they can't see animals, or animagi either I guess when they are in animal form. Well, if you will just read this and sign it we will be finished and I can get out of this horrid place.", Darrell said hoping Sirius was catching on to what he had said.
Sirius read the parchment and was surprised that it contained the phrase "I swear I am up to no good". Sirius had to reread that several times, before he understood that he was to place his thumb inside a square before signing the form. As soon as he placed his thumb print in the square the document changed and he read the new note.
Sirius,
As soon as you can get in touch with Padfoot, come to 1313 Mockingbird Lane in Glasgow. We have something you need to see, Prongsett. This is not a trick, I swear this on my magic and on the honor of the Marauders.
Mooney
Sirius felt something strange touch him and noticed that Darrell had touched his hand and was trying to get him to sign the form. As soon as Sirius signed the note from Mooney disappeared, as did the parchment.
"Well, Mr. Black that concludes our business so I will leave this horrid place and let you return to whatever you were doing. I would suggest you take a bath sometime soon, I heard saltwater is good for toughing the skin. Yes a good cold saltwater bath would do you good", with that remark Darrell got up and left.
A couple of days later the newspapers were all proclaiming that Sirius Black had escaped from prison and asked that anyone having information to contact the police. This was carried in both magical and regular papers complete with an old photo of Sirius. Meanwhile in Glasgow a large, thin black dog was seen entering the back yard of 1313 Mockingbird Lane, that is if you were up at 3am to notice.
When Sirius got to the yard he saw Remus and another man waiting with wands drawn and pointed at him. He thought to run but was suddenly bound with magical ropes. "Sirius, if that is you change back right now on your own or we will force the change.", Remus said.
Sirius changed back into his human form only for the ropes to be reapplied. "Sirius, prove it is you and not someone else. Tell me about the humpbacked witch at Hogwarts", Remus continued.
Sirius told them that the humpback witch was the entrance to the secret passage to the sweet shop in Hogsmead. The ropes fell away and Remus approached with his hand out. Sirius was pulled into a rib cracking hug by Remus.
"Sirius, this is Rick Green. I'm sure you remember him from his visit to James and Lily's just after Harry was born. Well he says you are too dumb to have betrayed James and Lily, so it must have been Peter. Rick was also the one to come up with a way to get you out of prison without any help from the Ministry. Now come inside before someone sees us. You could probably use a hot meal, stiff drink, and a hot bath - especially the bath.", Remus went on as he lead Sirius inside the house, followed by Rick with his wand still out and ready.
As soon as the door shut the lights came on and there was Darrell with his wand out also. Remus had Sirius sit down then explained what was going to happen to Sirius that night. Either Sirius was proven innocent or he died right where he sat. Remus said that Sirius would be given a truth potion and that his answers would decide if he lived or died. Sirius' only comment was get the potion and get this over with.
Sirius answered all the questions asked and as soon as the potion wore off he received another rib cracking hug from Remus, then Rick and Darrell. "Paddy old man, I'm sorry I doubted you. But I listened to Dumbledore and he said you were guilty of betraying James and Lily to Voldemort and of killing all those people in the street, including Peter. Can you ever forgive my old friend?", Remus asked Sirius.
"Remus, of course I forgive you. It was my idea to change the secret keeper for James and Lily. I thought I was too likely and they might find a way around the charm and get the information from me somehow. When I heard about James and Lily I went looking for Peter and found him. I would have killed him then and there except he blew up all those people and I was knocked out. The next thing I knew I was in custody and on my way to prison, without a trial. Now I'm out and it is time to find Peter and revenge James and Lily. Now someone said something about a stiff drink and food.", was Sirius' reply.
Rick suggested Sirius have a bath first, then food. Remus and Darrell agreed to that suggestion as they held their noses and fanned the air. Sirius had a very stiff drink then went to drown himself in hot soapy water. After his bath, and in clean clothes that fit - kind of. Sirius sat down to a large meal that Twinkie had made for him. While he ate, Rick, Remus, and Darrell explained what was planned next. First, Sirius was going to meet Harry and spend sometime with him. Then Sirius was headed to the US to hide out and get his health back before they went looking for Peter. Sirius asked about a wand as his had been broken. Rick said that would be taken care of in the states, that way nobody in England would know he had a wand and therefore couldn't try and track it.
It was two days later when Rick and Remus called both kids into the study. "Harry, remember when we talked about the night your parents were killed? Well, at the time it was thought that Sirius Black, your Godfather, was the one who betrayed your parents. Remus and I have found out that was false and that Sirius was innocent and should have not been sent to prison", Rick started only to be interrupted by Harry.
"In that case we need to get Sirius out and show them he is innocent!", Harry interjected and Hermione nodded in agreement.
"Well, that is why we called you in here. Sirius make yourself visible and say hello to your godson and his best friend Hermione Granger", Rick said.
Sirius appeared out of nowhere and Harry, Hermione, and Sirius just stared at each other for a few seconds before Harry ran to hug his godfather. Hermione walked slowly over to say hello and was surprised when Sirius held out his hand to her and said any friend of Harry's would always be a welcome sight to him. Sirius then told both kids he could only stay a day or two as he was "on the run" and didn't want to cause any problems for Rick, Remus, Harry, Lucy, or Hermione. So he was going to stay with some friends of Rick's and Lucy's in the states until he was feeling better and could get his health back, but he would keep in touch through Rick and Lucy.
The next day Sirius got to see Harry do some of his magic and Sirius was dumbfounded at the power Harry showed, and he soon noticed that Hermione wasn't any weakling either. she might have given Lily a run for her money. It was when he saw the way Harry flew that he knew this was James' son for sure. Sirius was even better at transfiguration than Remus and showed the kids a few tricks. Sirius even got a chance to fly with Harry and Hermione and found that Hermione would give most chasers a real run on the Quidditch pitch. Hermione might be 9 going on 10 but in a couple of years she would most likely rule the pitch, especially if Harry played seeker.
There had been one time after Sirius heard where Harry was staying and how he had been treated when Rick and Remus thought they had a problem. Sirius was ready to go pay a visit to the Dursleys and express his displeasure with their treatment of his godson. It had taken a lot of talking to calm Sirius down and prevent that visit.
Meanwhile somewhere in London in an underground building, several people were discussing how Sirius Black had been able to escape prison. It had never been done before, the Dementor guards caught them all and that was the end of the escape. But the guards said Black just went missing during the night sometime. A check of all the magical sensors didn't show any strange magic anywhere close to Black's cell. The only thing found was the death of a condemned man who had been "kissed" as ordered.
In another part of that same building a tall elderly man with a long gray-white beard, wearing a bright purple robe with silver moons and stars on it was talking with a man wearing a bright green bowler hat. The two men, Albus Dumbledore and Cornelius Fudge, were discussing the missing Black and a couple of unusual magical surges that couldn't be traced back to their source.
"Cornelius, I don't see how Sirius Black could get out of his cell, much less off the island. The wards are intact so even if he somehow got a wand he couldn't disapparate off. The sensors show no traffic out to the island since a week before and that was the auror boat. Now these surges that were recorded, these are disturbing, the power is too great to be an underage witch or wizard. These have to be from a very powerful full grown wizard or witch. I'm not sure the wards at Hogwarts could contain this much power. But, on the other hand there may be a malfunction of the monitoring system. I assume the system has been checked", Dumbledore said.
"Yes, the system has been checked and nothing was found to be wrong. What are we to do about Black? I've asked the DMLE to put as many men on his escape as they can spare. If he-who-must-not-be-named wasn't dead I would think he had something to do with Black's escape. This doesn't look good for me, there has never been a successful escape from that place. Maybe Black should have been 'kissed' instead of just imprisoned for life", Fudge replied.
It was the final weekend and Sirius was getting ready to leave with Darrell and Harry and Hermione were getting ready to return home and to school. As usual, Hermione was looking forward to school starting; not so with Harry, he had enjoyed his time with Sirius. Sirius was not sure what would happen once he got to the US. The plan was for Darrell to take Sirius in as a roommate and get Sirius some type of job. Sirius was still weak and would need another month of potions and a good diet to get back where he was supposed to be health wise. Sirius was also concerned that the money put back for Harry would run out before Harry came into his inheritance. Rick assured him that wouldn't happen since Vernon was contributing funds - even if he didn't know it yet.
A/N: Now Sirius is semi-free and safe. Do you want a short chapter dealing with Harry's summer or will this be enough and I go on to the school year? Let me know soon as I need to plan ahead somewhat. Just a reminder there won't be much about Dumbledore or the rest of the people from the books until Harry starts Hogwarts (if I don't decide to put him in school in the states that is -- just kidding that would limit a lot of action from the books). Sorry this one is so short.
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