A/N: Congratulations to Trinity-Fenton-Phantom for being Fledgling's 100th reviewer! This chapter is dedicated to you, as well as some homemade chocolate chip cookies (or at least any kind of cookie you like!)! And thanks to everyone else for reviewing. This chapter will answer some of your questions, especially the question of whether Remus will recognize Padfoot. Of course he would. How could he not? (author grins) Anyway, here is the next chapter! Please keep on reviewing!

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Chapter Nine: Discovered

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Harry could hardly wait for this Remus person to visit. He bounced on the sofa, barely holding back his excitement. Minerva and Severus were in the kitchen, talking, and his dog, Padfoot, sat stiffly in front of him. Harry didn't know that it was odd behavior for a dog to be sitting this stiff. He didn't know that the dog was, in fact, a man and the man knew he was going to be discovered. The man wanted to give in to his instincts and run, but he knew that he would hurt his godson if he left. Besides, he could always try to deliver the news of his innocence.

There was a knock on the door. Harry nearly bolted toward the door, but the training Minerva and Severus drilled in his head forced him to still himself. It was up to the older people to answer the door. He watched as Minerva moved toward the door but he noticed that Severus didn't join her. In fact, he didn't even enter the living room with Harry. The boy frowned, wondering why Severus wasn't coming.

"Good afternoon, Remus. It is wonderful to see you again."

"Thanks, Professor," a low, hoarse voice answered.

"Please, dear, you can call me Minerva. I haven't been your professor for years. Come in."

The man stepped over the threshold and Harry got his first look at his father's best friend. The man was hardly taller than Minerva, maybe even a few inches shorter. He had short light brown hair that was sprinkled with gray hair and his eyes were an amber color. His skin was pale and he had three diagonal scratches across his face, faint but still visible. He was dressed in ragged, worn clothing: a tattered brown jacket, a slightly stained tan t-shirt, and worn jeans. The man stepped into the living room and his face lit up as he looked at Harry. But then he glanced down at the dog at his feet. He backpedaled, his face taking on a shocked look.

"Remus?" Minerva asked, frowning. "What's wrong?"

"Where did that dog come from?" Remus asked, his voice strained.

"I found him out by the park," Harry replied. He instinctively reached down to touch Padfoot on the head. "He's very friendly. Why? Is he your dog, Mr. Remus?"

"No, no he's not my dog, Harry." The younger man turned to Minerva. "Could you call Dumbledore over here? There's something I need to talk to him about. It's important."

Padfoot fidgeted, never taking his eyes off of his old friend. Merlin, Remus had aged a lot since he had been in Azkaban. Sure, Remus had told his friends that werewolves didn't have a long life expectancy and that they aged more than humans, but Padfoot didn't think it would be this bad. The werewolf wasn't even thirty years old and he looked close to forty.

"Is there something wrong with Padfoot?" Harry asked.

Remus turned to Harry, wide-eyed. "What did you call him?"

"Padfoot. Why?"

"Why name him Padfoot?"

The boy hesitated. "He just reminded me of a dog I knew that was named Padfoot."

Remus blew out a breath and ran a hand through his graying hair. What was Sirius thinking, staying with the boy and pretending to be a lovable stray? Was he waiting until the perfect moment to strike, to kill the last Potter?

Minerva shot Remus a look but she went toward the fireplace. She scooped some powder from a jar on top of the mantle and she threw it into the fire, calling Dumbledore's name. There was a bit of a pause but then Dumbledore's face appeared in the fire. Harry, who had seen this done before, didn't let out a sound, earning odd glances from both Padfoot and Remus.

"Ah, my dear Minerva," Dumbledore said, beaming. "What do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

"Could you please come over to the house, Albus?" Minerva asked nervously. "I have Remus Lupin here and he requests your presence, saying that it is very important."

"I will come over soon. I have very little to do around here."

Dumbledore's face vanished and Minerva stood up. She turned her gaze to Remus. "May I ask what is going on, Remus?"

"I'll tell you as soon as the Headmaster comes. I would rather say this only once."

Her eyes wandered over to Padfoot then back to Remus. "Are you saying that this dog is dangerous?"

Remus looked down at his shoes. "He may be, Professor."

"He hasn't hurt me!" Harry protested. "If he was dangerous, he would have hurt me already."

The werewolf turned his amber gaze to the young boy he thought of as a son. "Harry, do you remember anything else about Padfoot from your memories?"

Harry frowned in concentration, scrunching his face in a funny way. Even Severus chuckled at the boy's expression. "I do remember Dad calling someone Padfoot, a man who wasn't a dog." He glanced down at the dog. "You know, now that I think about it, his eyes look very familiar."

Minerva paled. She turned sharply to Remus. "An Animagus' eyes don't change even in their animal form. Is that what you are getting at, Remus? Do you think Padfoot is an Animagus?"

"An illegal one, I presume," came a voice from the fireplace. Everyone turned to see Dumbledore rising from the fireplace, dusting off some soot. "Sorry if I startled you. I tend to be quiet when I go through the Floo network."

"It's alright, Dumbledore," Remus replied. He looked back to his former professor. "Yes, I am saying that Padfoot is an Animagus. Think back to my school days, Professor. Who was named Padfoot in our group?"

The older witch let out a gasp and put a hand to her mouth. She strode over to where Harry and Padfoot sat watching the scene unfold. She automatically lifted the young boy up in her arms and she stepped away from the dog, glaring at it. "You stay away from my charge, Sirius Black!"

Harry frowned. "How can that be Sirius Black, Minerva?"

"Just like I can become a cat, Harry," she replied, never taking her eyes off of the dog.

The dog let out a huff and immediately a man replaced the dog, making Harry gasp. The man was very thin and his dark hair was matted and messy. A thick beard covered his jaw and there was a mustache as well. He still wore his Azkaban prisoner outfit, including the moth-eaten cloak around his shoulders.

"Hear me out," the man rasped, his voice hoarse with disuse.

Before anyone could say anything, there was a brilliant flash of light and Fawkes appeared. He trilled and landed on Minerva's shoulder, nuzzling Harry's face gently.

Listen to him, Fawkes said, talking to everyone in the room. Things are not what they seem. Sirius Black means no harm to Harry.

Severus withdrew his wand from his sleeve and he leveled it at the older man on the floor. "If you make any sudden movements, Black, you will be no more. I am willing to hear you out, but that's it. I will have no one hurt my charge, especially not in our home."

Black nodded. His gray eyes traveled around the room, but he mostly locked gazes with his old friend. "I wasn't the Secret Keepers for the Potter's," he began. "I was the one everyone expected to be the Secret Keeper for James and Lily. I thought that if we used someone else that it would be safer, just in case I don't last long under the Cruciatus Curse. Moony, you knew I could throw off the Imperius, but the Cruciatus would make even the strongest person tell anything. I wasn't going to risk it. So we used Peter instead and we told no one of the arrangement. It wouldn't do to switch Secret Keepers and tell everyone about it."

"You could have trusted me to keep the arrangement secret, Sirius," Remus said, his voice thick with pain and hurt. "I would have kept it secret."

"We weren't sure who amongst our friends was the spy," Black said. "I am sorry for thinking it was you, Moony. I thought that maybe something happened and your wolf submitted to Voldemort." He took in a breath. "So, we made Peter the Secret Keeper and hid him safely away. At first, we thought that it would work. It was only when I came to check up on the Potters on Halloween night that I knew something was wrong. The house was in flames. I got off my bike and went inside." He swallowed hard. "I saw James first, lying on the floor by the door. I knew that he went down fighting. I ran upstairs to see if Lily and Harry had gotten out alright. Lily was beside Harry's crib. Harry was next to her, curled up against her, crying. I took him out of there and was ready to take him away when Hagrid came. He said that Dumbledore had sent for him to get Harry. We both argued for awhile. I was almost winning the battle when I remember that it was Peter that had done this, Peter who betrayed us all. I was lost in my rage. So I let Hagrid take my godson and I went after Peter. That was my second mistake. The first was to trust the lying bastard with the secret of the Potter's location. Peter outsmarted me. He blew up the street, bit off one of his fingers, and transformed into a rat…"

"Wait," Minerva interrupted. "Peter was an Animagus?"

Black grinned. "James, Peter, and I were Animagi, Professor. We did it for Remus."

Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling as he turned to look at Remus. "You have the most amazing friends, Remus, for them to become illegal Animagi for you, risking a fine plus putting their lives at stake. Witches and wizards need to be under supervision in order to make the complete transition into their animal form. How long did it take you?"

"Three years, sir," Black said. "We started to study in our second year and we finally completed the transformation in our fifth year."

"What were your forms? You are a dog, you say Peter became a rat. What was James' form?" Minerva asked.

"Stag," Remus and Black chorused.

"What's a stag?" Harry asked.

"A male deer," Severus spoke up. He was still glaring at Black. "It was remarkable but stupid to undergo something like that."

Black's eyes widened. "You are giving compliments now, Snivellus?"

"Sirius!" Remus said sharply. "Don't call him that. Can't you be nice to the man who is helping to raise your godson?"

"At least it seems that I have grown more mature than you," Severus sneered.

"Don't antagonize the man," Minerva said to Severus. Then she turned to Black. "So, where is Peter now?"

Black shrugged. "No idea. For all we know, he could have died in his rat form. But I have a feeling that he is with a wizarding family, waiting for any sign of his master."

"That would be logical, wouldn't it?" Dumbledore mused. He dug in his many pockets and he pulled out a pocket Sneakoscope. "He has been telling us the truth the entire time. It hasn't made a sound."

Remus let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Severus sneered again but didn't make a sound. Minerva looked indifferent but Harry looked extremely happy. He grinned at Black, who grinned back.

"I suggest, Sirius, that you go spend some time at Remus'," Dumbledore continued. "Allow yourself time to get cleaned up and relax. I will start a search for Peter as soon as I can. Besides, I do believe Harry will need all the protection and love he can get." With that, the old man strode over to the fire and he threw Floo powder in to the fire. He vanished in a column of flames.

"Does this mean I can still call you Padfoot?" Harry asked, breaking the silence.

Black was the first to laugh, followed shortly by Remus and Minerva. Severus kept the sneer on his face but it lightened. His black eyes showed his mirth, however.

Ahh…. I finally got this chapter done. I started it last night, right after I finished doing Blood Brothers, but I lost my muse and I couldn't find it in me to finish it. But now it is done. Thanks again to all of you who continue to review. I appreciate it!

Next Chapter: The search for Pettigrew starts and Remus and Sirius visit with Harry.