Disclaimer: Harry Potter does not belong to me, but he is my latest voodoo doll. Bwahahaha!
A/N: I had to reload an edited version, because an anonymous review pointed out an inconsistency in my story. If you didn't notice it then it doesn't matter. I just needed to fix it!
Morning arrived, and Hermione did apologize to Ron like she promised. Ron graciously accepted, but Harry suspected it had more to do with his relief that she wasn't still yelling at him. He was also still plotting his next bet scheme, so he wanted to be on Hermione's good side. The trio headed down to breakfast in high spirits to start the first day of Christmas Break.
The were just sitting down to their eggs and bacon when Hedwig flew in a dropped a note in Harry's lap before flying off. "I wonder who that could be from," Hermione mused as Harry unfolded the note.
"It's from Hagrid," Harry said while scanning the short note. "He wants us to come by after breakfast. Something must be up, because his handwriting is worse than normal." The note was also tearstained, causing some of the ink to blur.
Harry looked at his two companions. "It's been a while since we went down there," Ron choked through a mouthful of food. Hermione stayed silent but nodded her agreement. They quickly scarfed down some breakfast and exited the nearly empty Great Hall. A quick detour allowed them to grab their cloaks and gloves, and then they were off to Hagrid's hut.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione had to brave several inches of snow though luckily the blizzard had died down. Finally, they made it to the hut where Harry knocked on the front door. Hagrid opened it, and he looked terrible. His eyes were bloodshot as though he hadn't slept in days, and there were tear tracks covering his cheeks and disappearing into his thick mane of hair. Wordlessly, he admitted them into the main room like a funeral director into a viewing room. Buckbeak munched on something bloody while laying on Hagrid's bed.
They were seated before Hermione expressed her concern. "Hagrid, what happened? Is it about Buckbeak?" she asked tenderly. She laid her tiny hand on top of his gigantic one in a gesture of true compassion.
Hagrid's black eyes crinkled, and big tears flowed into his beard. "I'm not goin' ter lose my job," he said blankly. He coughed through a heavy sob. "Buckbeak's bein' put on trial in front o' the Committee on the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures!" Hagrid announced before breaking down. Hermione jumped up to envelope him in a hug.
"He could be acquitted. All of the Gryffindors in that class know that Malfoy provoked Buckbeak. We can be witnesses," Harry offered. It was hard to see Harry like that.
Hagrid violently shook his head, jostling Harry around. "No, Malfoy's got the whole committee in his pocket. They won' go against him. They'll convict him and exec-exec…" He broke down into sobs that threatened to throw Hermione across the room. Wisely, she moved farther away to where she could just rub his shoulder. Ron jumped up and started rummaging around in the kitchen.
"What are you doing, Ron?" Hermione inquired in a sort of half-whisper that barely carried over Hagrid's deafening sobs.
Ron stopped with a teakettle in his hand. "Making tea." He noticed Harry and Hermione's bewildered expressions. "What?" he asked. "It's what my mum does when someone's upset." He ignored them and continued to boil water for tea. By the time the kettle whistled, Hagrid had calmed down marginally. Ron served them all huge steaming mugs of tea, and the room was silent apart from the sound of crunching bones.
"I'm sorry. I just don' wan' ter lose Buckbeak. He's not a bad hippogriff," Hagrid apologized. Buckbeak looked up and squawked softly as if thanking Hagrid. He turned to give him a large, wet smile.
Hermione launched into a whole legal strategy concerning the trial. She proposed that the students send the committee their memories, because they couldn't ignore that kind of evidence. Seeing Harry's confusion, Hermione explained how people could extract or copy memories and view them in something called a pensieve. She wanted to start researching immediately, and Harry offered his help. They shared matching grins that Hagrid couldn't mistake. "Who won the pool, Ron?" he asked.
"Professor Lupin won over 10,000 galleons!" Ron informed him.
Harry groaned, "Not you, too!" Hagrid began to laugh heartily, and soon they were all laughing. They ended their visit on a cheery note, and Hermione assured Hagrid that she would have the research done by April twentieth, the day of the hearing. The trio headed back up to the castle, and Hermione led them into the empty library. Even Ron spent a few hours diligently researching cases for Hagrid to cite while at the hearing. Harry and Hermione together found a lot of information on memory spells and thought spheres before Madame Pince kicked the three best friends out of the library.
They spent the days leading up to Christmas with a sort of schedule. They researched in the mornings, had snowball fights or played games in the afternoon, and sat around the fire at night. Harry and Hermione began to grow more comfortable with each other as they practiced a few more tentative kisses. Because the castle was so deserted, Ron hung out with them and rarely let them have any time alone. The friends were still having fun, and they were enjoying their break from all the homework, even Hermione.
Christmas morning came, and Harry awoke to a mound of presents sitting on the trunk at the foot of his bed. Ron was already ripping into his parcels with great fervor. Harry opened the packages one-by-one. He got a hand-knitted sweater from Mrs. Weasley, a packet of rock cakes from Hagrid, a book on Quidditch from Hermione, and another package that didn't come with a tag. It was long and thin, and the wrappings were simple.
"Who's that from?" Ron asked through a mouthful of treacle tart.
Harry turned the package over in his hands. "Don't know. Doesn't say," he responded. His curiosity was piqued, but he was hesitant to open it.
Ron looked at him expectantly. "Well open it!" he exclaimed.
"Open what?" Hermione asked as she walked in the room carrying Crookshanks in her arms. Ron immediately hid Scabbers inside the pocket of his pajamas. She cleared the torn wrappings from the foot of Harry's bed before sitting down.
Harry showed her the package. "It doesn't have a tag."
She examined it briefly before handing it back over. "Go ahead. I want to see, too," she encouraged him.
Harry looked between the expectant faces of his girlfriend and his best friend. He sighed and began to pull open the ribbon. "Here I go," he muttered to no one in particular. He couldn't explain why he felt such a sense of foreboding, but he was not comfortable with opening this package. The box contained a brand new broomstick, which would seem harmless enough. "Is this what I think it is?" Harry stared at it in shock.
"It's a Firebolt!" Ron exclaimed. "Who would send it to you?"
He began to reach inside the box, but Hermione stopped him. "No. Don't touch it!" she yelled. "I think that gift is from Sirius Black!"
"Oh, Hermione! Sirius Black's on the run!" scoffed Ron. "He doesn't have the time to walk into a Quidditch supply store and buy a Firebolt. Besides, where'd he get the money? Azkaban doesn't give that much money to its inmates," he reasoned out.
Hermione couldn't contain her anger this time. She began to yell, "If you ever paid attention to other pureblood families, you would know the House of Black is one of the wealthiest in the wizarding world. Because Black is the Head of the House, he controls all of the money, and the Ministry didn't freeze his vaults after he was imprisoned." They argued on and on for another ten minutes.
Finally, Harry got fed up with their bickering. "Will both of you please calm down?" Harry shouted over their fighting. Ron and Hermione were shamed into being quiet. "Thank you. Hermione could be right about this, Ron. This gift is very suspicious." He just couldn't ignore his bad feelings about the broom. "I think I'll take it to McGonagall for her to check out," he conceded calmly while rewrapping the broomstick carefully.
"You always take her side!" Ron huffed before marching out of the boys' dormitory.
Harry and Hermione watched as he left and then looked at each other. "Thank you, Harry," Hermione said in a more even tone. Her eyes apologized for the yelling, but she had no intention of chasing after Ron to apologize.
"I think you may be right, so I want to get this to McGonagall as fast as I can. Do you mind leaving while I change?" Harry asked politely.
Hermione smiled and nodded. "Sure. I need to change out of my pajamas anyway. I'll meet you in the Common Room in ten minutes." Crookshanks followed her out of the dormitory, and she shut the door behind him. Harry listened for a few moments but heard no yelling. Ron must not have been down in the Common Room.
He dressed quickly and carried the broomstick down into the empty Common Room. Hermione greeted him with a peck on the lips, and they walked hand-in-hand down to breakfast. Few students or faculty were in the Great Hall, but McGonagall was sitting at the Head Table. Ron was nowhere in sight. McGonagall spied them coming from over the top of her copy of The Daily Prophet. "Good morning, Mr. Potter, Miss Granger," she said as she put her paper aside. "Happy Christmas."
"Happy Christmas, Professor," the two teens said together.
"How can I help you?" she asked brusquely.
Harry laid the wrapped broomstick on the table in front of her. "We think Sirius Black sent me this broomstick," Harry explained. "It doesn't have a tag, and I can't think of anybody else who would send it to me unless you and Professor Dumbledore are doing me another favor." Harry remembered how he got his Nimbus back in his first year.
McGonagall surveyed the broomstick carefully. "Neither Professor Dumbledore nor myself had anything to do with this broom, Potter. Where did you find it?"
"It was in the pile with the rest of my presents. It could be cursed." Hermione nodded her agreement, and McGonagall seemed convinced.
"I will have Madame Hooch and Professor Flitwick check it for any possible curses, jinxes, and hexes. We should return it to you before the Quidditch season resumes," McGonagall assured him. Harry knew McGonagall wouldn't want to damage Gryffindor's chances for the Quidditch Cup. She resumed her perusal of her newspaper, and Harry and Hermione took that as their cue to leave.
They took seats around the middle of the table. None of the Gryffindors who had stayed at Hogwarts were at breakfast. Harry and Hermione ate in companionable silence, and Ron didn't come to breakfast until just as the couple was leaving. Ron and Hermione gave each other a wide berth, and Ron went quietly into the Great Hall. Harry and Hermione returned to Gryffindor Tower for some time together.
The Common Room was empty, so Harry and Hermione curled up on the couch. "Harry, why do you like me?" Hermione asked quietly.
Harry was taken aback. He thought for a moment before answering, "I think you are just brilliant, Hermione."
"Really?" she wondered aloud. Her face turned up to his with a smile.
Harry couldn't help but grin back. "Absolutely. You're the brightest witch of our age, and you're really pretty," he said confidently.
Hermione's smile grew wider. "You really think so?"
"Yes," he responded before planting a sweet kiss on her lips. She sighed contentedly, and the crackling of the fire became the only sound in the room.
The day passed by pretty quietly. The library was closed, so Harry and Hermione stayed in the Common Room and discussed Buckbeak's case for a while. They talked about random things throughout the day, and they could hardly separate themselves from each other. Ron didn't bother them the rest of the day; in fact, they barely saw him at all. After dinner, Harry and Hermione took a moonlight stroll around the lake.
They got back to Gryffindor Tower just before curfew. After a while, the last few Gryffindors drifted off to bed, leaving Harry and Hermione alone. Though they talked for a while, the late hour and the crackling fire soon lulled the two teens into a deep sleep.
/
A few hours later, Harry awoke with a grungy hand clamped over his mouth. He felt Hermione struggling next to him on the couch, and he instinctively reached for his wand. "I'm afraid you won't find what you're looking for," said a voice gravelly from disuse. Harry looked up and saw the filthy face of Sirius Black staring back at him. Harry spied his and Hermione's wands in Black's pockets. He looked to Hermione to see if she was okay, and she looked back at him with fear in her eyes.
"Now if I had come to hurt you, I already would have," Black reasoned. Harry felt Hermione calm down next to him, and he also stopped struggling. He settled for glaring at Black, which caused his face to spasm in pain. Such an emotion surprised Harry momentarily. "I'm going to move my hands in a moment. Calling for help won't do either of you any good. All of the other students have been put under sleeping charms, and I've put this room under a privacy charm. I have your wands, so fighting won't do any good either," he explained slowly and carefully. Harry and Hermione looked at each other and realized there wasn't anything they could do.
Black removed his hands, and the teens stayed silent. He stood with his back to the fireplace, throwing his face into shadow. Harry positioned himself to keep Hermione as far from Black as possible. "What do you want? Here to finish your master's job?" he spat at Black. Again, he recoiled as if in pain.
"How can you believe that? James was like a brother to me," Black said softly. His voice betrayed pain as well.
Harry over mulled over that for a few seconds. "Then how could you turn him and my mother in if you loved them so much?" he demanded savagely.
"I didn't! Peter Pettigrew did!" Black yelled. "I've always hated Voldemort, but Peter joined him! That rat betrayed his best friend, and I started to hunt for him once I found out!" he growled in a fit of true rage.
Harry barely registered Black's words. "That's a very convenient story considering you killed Peter Pettigrew and twelve muggles in cold blood," he snarled. Hermione held him back with a steady hand on his arm.
Black came closer, and Harry rose to face him from across the table. Harry was about as tall as the full-grown mass murderer. "Peter did that. He's still alive, and he's here!"
"A street full of people saw you kill him. All they found was a finger! How do you explain that?" Harry countered. Hermione was being so quiet that Harry almost forgot she was there.
Black shook his head firmly. "Pettigrew staged that. His wand cast the spell that killed those people. Then he cut off his finger before scurrying into the sewers. He's an unregistered animagus, and he's why I'm here. I want to commit the crime I was imprisoned for," he declared.
"How come we haven't noticed? The only new pet in our tower is Crookshanks!" Harry couldn't think of anything Crookshanks had done to show that he was anything but a cat.
Black laughed bitterly. "I never said 'new'. I believe your friend Ron calls him Scabbers."
Harry scoffed at the idea. "Scabbers? That's impossible!"
"Is it?" Black challenged. "He's been with their family for twelve years. Normal rats only live three or four years. Seems suspicious, doesn't it?" Black pointed out. Hermione couldn't dispute his claim.
Despite his best efforts, Harry could feel that he was starting to believe Black's story. "How do you know it's him?"
Black pulled out a tattered page from The Daily Prophet. "The picture in the paper," he said and showed them the picture of Ron's family from when they won all of that money. Scabbers was sitting on Ron's shoulder. "I've seen Peter transform hundreds of times, and the rat in the picture is missing a toe. I'm positive it's him."
"How do we know we can trust you?" Harry questioned in a low voice.
"Check his arms," Hermione piped up. Harry was a little startled to hear her voice behind him.
Harry gave Hermione a bewildered look. "For what?"
Hermione stood up at Harry's side. "Check his arms for the Dark Mark. It's a skull with a snake coming out of its mouth," she explained. "It's been twelve years, but some trace of it should still be there."
Black already had his sleeves rolled up. "Come on and look," he invited.
Harry examined Black's arms quickly. Hermione even tried to see any sign of a black skull or snake. "He's telling the truth," Harry announced with a small amount of wonder. "So you've been looking for Scabbers this whole time?"
"Yes. He gave your parents to Voldemort and set me up for it. I want him dead," Black declared.
Secretly, Harry couldn't blame him. He was feeling all of his animosity towards Black redirect itself towards Pettigrew. "No. My parents wouldn't have wanted that. Besides, he's more use to us alive. Alive and we can prove your innocence," Harry reasoned.
Black finally sat down in the armchair next to the fireplace, and Harry and Hermione followed suit by sitting on the couch. "I never thought of that, but you're right. All we need is a plan. But first, I would like to know who this lovely young lady is. She must be pretty special," he admitted.
Hermione blushed, and Harry introduced her, "This is my girlfriend, Hermione Granger."
"Well, it's very nice to finally meet the both of you. Here are your wands," he said as he returned each of the wands to its rightful owner. "I apologize, but I had to make sure neither of you would get out of hand."
"We understand, Mr. Black," Hermione assured him.
He shook his head. "I want none of that. Please call me Sirius," he offered kindly.
"Okay, Sirius, where do you want us to start?" Harry asked.
Sirius sighed and drew his hands together. "Well, you need to get Pettigrew up to Dumbledore. He is the head of the Wizengamot, and he never believed I had betrayed James and Lily. He would be the most likely to believe you two," Sirius began.
"I think so, too," Hermione conceded. "All we have to do is grab him in the morning and take him up to Dumbledore's office. Should we tell him the whole story?" she wondered and looked to Sirius.
Sirius considered it for a few moments. "I don't see any way around it. Nothing besides the absolute truth would be even remotely believable. Don't worry. Dumbledore's a trusting guy," he assured the teens.
"Yeah, he is, and he trusts us. I don't think we'll have any problems with him," Harry added to reassure Hermione as well.
"Okay, so we've got that covered." Sirius relaxed back into the chair. "Now there's something else I'd like to talk to you about, Harry," he said warmly.
Harry perked up out of curiosity. "What is it, Sirius?"
Sirius seemed at a loss on how to start the conversation. Finally, he started with, "Well, I don't know if you know that I'm your godfather…"
"Yes, I do. We overheard some teachers talking about it once," Harry interjected.
His godfather smiled. "Good. You should know that your parents intended for you to live with me if they died. Not those horrid Dursleys," he informed Harry.
"Are you asking me to come live with you?" Harry stared at Sirius with his mouth hanging open.
"Only if you want to." Sirius left his invitation open, but Harry could see the excitement in his eyes.
Harry's mind was reeling, and he wasn't sure what he wanted. "Do you even have a place for us to stay?"
"Of course," Sirius laughed. "I own the house I grew up in. We'll probably have to fix it up a bit, but it should be fine besides that. So what do you say?" He looked at Harry to gauge his reaction.
Harry paused to think it over. On one hand, only minutes before, Sirius had been his parents' murderer. Now, he was Harry's godfather and the only real tie he had left to his parents. Finally, he made up his mind. "I'd like that," Harry said confidently.
"What about your aunt and uncle? Won't they have something to say?" Sirius pointed out.
Harry dismissed that with a cynical laugh. "They will say good-bye. I hate living there, and they will be happy to see me go," Harry assured him. "When would I be able to move in?"
Sirius brightened visibly. "At the end of the school year if everything is revolved by them." Harry and Hermione knew perfectly well what he was referring to. "I'd best be going anyway. Morning will be here soon." He rose, and they followed.
"How shall we contact you?" Hermione inquired before he could leave.
He shook both their hands and said, "I'm staying in Hogsmeade. Owl me, but don't call me Sirius. Address all your letters to Padfoot so if your owl is intercepted no one will know you're talking to me. Let me borrow your wand, Harry, and I'll remove the privacy charm." Sirius took Harry's wand and quickly undid the spell. "Your friends will wake up in the morning. Bye, you two. Don't underestimate Pettigrew," Sirius advised.
"We won't," Harry and Hermione reassured him. "Bye, Sirius," they said together. He took off into the shadows and was gone. Harry fell back on the couch, and Hermione sat down to face him. She took both of his hands in hers. "Are you okay, Harry?" she asked with concern.
Harry released the breath he had been holding. "I think I am. It's just a lot to take in," he answered truthfully. "I don't know why, but I believe him."
Hermione nodded with sympathy and agreement. "So much of what he said makes sense," she added. "Is it strange to think that you will be living with him once this is all done?"
"Maybe I rushed into that decision, but the Dursleys are so horrid that even living with a convicted murder is preferable," Harry said with a smirk. She giggled and settled back in the couch again. "You'll come and visit, right?"
Fatigue was starting to set in, and she smiled sleepily. "Of course. I'll even help you guys clean up your place," Hermione promised.
"Good. Now you need some sleep. We have an innocent man to save in the morning." Harry took Hermione by the hand and led her to the staircase leading to the girls' dormitories. "Good night, 'Mione." He watched her disappear up the shadowy staircase. He sighed and went to his bed and dreamt of a certain brunette.
/
Harry awoke the next morning to the shouts of an angry redhead. He saw Ron run out of the dormitory, trailing his sheet behind him. Harry scrambled behind him. "Hermione! Wake up!" he bellowed from the bottom of the girls' staircase.
"What's wrong, Ron?" Harry asked, but Ron ignored him.
A couple minutes passed, and Hermione finally came down the stairs. "What is it, Ron?" she mumbled through a yawn.
"Look at what Crookshanks did!" he exclaimed as he held up his bed sheet. It was splattered with blood. "Crookshanks ate Scabbers! This is his blood!"
Harry and Hermione's faces had identical expressions of shock. "Are you sure?" Hermione asked quickly. "Maybe he's hiding under your bed or something."
"I looked everywhere. Your cat killed him!" Ron accused. His face and ears grew redder with each passing second. Harry began to protest, but Ron cut him off. "Stop taking Hermione's side!" He ran off, and Harry and Hermione forgot all about him.
"We need to tell Sirius right now," Hermione declared. Harry nodded and quickly wrote a note on a spare piece of parchment while Hermione ran and got dressed. They bundled up against the cold and hurried to the owlery. Harry couldn't think straight except when he wished they had just tried to grab him the night before. They attached the scroll to Hedwig's leg, and she sped off and disappeared into the snowy whiteness.
"What do we do now?" Harry wondered aloud.
"I guess we wait for Sirius's reply," Hermione said with a calmness Harry could only admire. Silently, the couple walked down to the Great Hall for a breakfast they had no appetite for. Their untouched plates sat in front of them, and neither spoke until Hedwig settled down and caused a cold puddle to form on the table.
Hermione quickly removed the damp scroll tied to Hedwig's leg while Harry fed her a piece of bacon and scratched her head. "Thanks, girl."
"He wants us to search the school for Scabbers," Hermione whispered incredulously. "This school is huge! I wouldn't even know where to begin looking!"
Harry thought for a moment. "What about the Marauders' Map? It shows everyone in the school, so if he's in Hogwarts, he'll show up too."
"Brilliant!" exclaimed Hermione. "Is it up in your dormitory?" He nodded, and they hurried back to Gryffindor Tower. Harry opened his trunk and found the map hidden carefully under a couple layers of debris.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," Harry intoned. Lines spread across the paper like a quick-acting spider with shiny black silk webbing. Buildings took shape, and soon the teens were confronted with a two-dimensional model of Hogwarts. Little labeled dots were grouped in a few locations. Finding Pettigrew would be much easier because of Hogwarts's diminished population.
Their eyes raked over every inch of the castle and came up empty. "I don't see him anywhere!" Harry threw up his hands in exasperation.
"Wait," Hermione said as she continued to study the map. "I saw one dot disappear through a passageway under the Whomping Willow, but I couldn't read the name." She looked back up at Harry. "It has to be Pettigrew, but I don't know how he got past the Whomping Willow. Even as a rat, that had to be difficult."
Harry thought back to the year before when he and Ron had a bout with the strong-armed tree. He didn't think anything or anyone could get past that tree. He shuddered at the remembered sound of crunching metal. "We should send Sirius a message and ask him if he knows anything. We are definitely going to need his help to find Pettigrew anyway," Harry suggested.
Hermione agreed, and Harry quickly penned him a short note. This second trip to the owlery was much shorter, because the sky was growing darker, and the temperature was dropping even lower. The teens huddled close together as they walked the cold passageways back to the Tower. "Why would someone build a secret passageway under the Whomping Willow?" Harry asked through chattering teeth.
"Maybe it was the other way around. Someone must have planted the Whomping Willow over the passageway to hide something," Hermione countered through her own clacking teeth.
They stopped in a corner near a torch on the wall while Harry pulled out the map. He traced the passageway to the edge of the map where it disappeared into Hogsmeade. "I'm not sure where this leads. It goes off into Hogsmeade."
Hermione studied it carefully. Finally, she said, "This passage seems to go in the direction of the Shrieking Shack. Why would Pettigrew want to go there?"
Harry shook his head. "I'm not sure. Maybe Sirius will give us some answers," he said as he folded the crinkly parchment and stowed it inside his cloak.
"Ah, Harry and Hermione," came a voice from behind, startling them. They saw the pale, pleasant face of Professor Lupin. "You two really should go back to your dormitories. It's almost curfew," he reminded them with a smile.
"Of course, Professor. We were headed there now," Hermione assured him. Harry nodded extremely glad to run into Lupin rather than Snape. He could imagine how many points Snape would dock Gryffindor because of his and Hermione's wet shoes.
Lupin's grin became toothy. "I thought as much. I expect to see the both of you in my office first thing after the holidays. Good night."
They waved as he ambled off and hurried back to the Tower. The Common Room was empty, and a suddenly drained Harry dropped an anxious Hermione off at the staircase to the girls' dormitory. He trudged up his own staircase and slipped quietly into the room he shared with Seamus, Neville, Dean, and Ron. It seemed quieter than normal with the sounds of only three boys breathing and snoring. Once Harry had laid his heavy head against his pillows, he noticed with bleary eyes that Ron's bed was empty save for a glowing pair of animal eyes…
A/N: I'm sorry this chapter has taken so long. It's been mostly written for months, but I didn't ever have the time to finish.