Harry and Blaise waited in the Entrance Hall for a bit before Snape, Dumbledore, and Lupin returned. Snape held the cobra in one hand and a small black container in the other. The cobra was limp, but Snape looked grimly satisfied. Lupin was cradling his arm, the expression on his face eerily similar to Snape's, and Dumbledore led the way. His expression was also grim, but any satisfaction he might have been feeling was not in his face.

Harry caught Snape's eye, who held up first the snake, then the container. Harry nodded. Lupin smiled encouragingly at Harry, so Harry smiled back. Now that he was certain of their success, Harry had plans to stake out Snape's office for more details. Blaise followed Harry down the stairs into the dungeons, and didn't look surprised at their destination.

"She's dead." Harry looked down at his snake when she spoke, and nodded.

"She is. I'm sorry."

The snake twined between Harry's fingers a few times before settling at his wrist again.

"She wanted to eat me. If we didn't have time to hunt." Harry blinked, surprised.

"She wanted to eat me, too," he said. "She was bloodthirsty."

"She was." Her tone was pensive, almost sad. "I will miss her."

Harry hissed his agreement. He was somewhat worried about what Snape would replace her with.

Blaise sat silently while Harry and his snake discussed the cobra, and when they were done, Harry translated.

"So wait, she's upset?" Blaise asked again. He was having difficulty with the idea of Harry and his snake mourning someone who wanted to digest them.

Harry nodded.

"And you're upset."

Harry nodded again. Blaise shook his head.

"Is this to do with that 'snake culture' thing you're always talking about with Anthony?"

Harry nodded solemnly. Blaise rolled his eyes.

"Fair enough."

Snape arrived, finally, and sent Blaise away. He waved Harry into his office and they sat down at the desk.

"My snake gives her condolences," Harry said. Snape nodded once. "I assume you caught him?"

"We did." There was a gleam of vicious gratification in Snape's eyes now. "He begged. The Aurors have him now, along with our statements, more's the pity."

Harry suppressed a smile. "What about Black, then?"

Snape grimaced. "If they ever find him he'll have a trial, after Pettigrew's."

Harry nodded. He wasn't likely to get a play by play account of what happened from Snape. On the other hand, it was Monday, and they'd missed their meeting because of Pettigrew's capture. Snape seemed to be thinking along the same lines. He pointed his wand at Harry deliberately, giving him barely enough time to jump from his seat as he cast the first spell. Harry focussed on not moving his lips as he breathed the words to the counter. It failed and he dove out of the way, much to Snape's displeasure.

The capture of Peter Pettigrew made the papers the next day. Rita Skeeter published what Lupin said was an eerily accurate description of the events following their exit from the castle.

"She didn't interview any of us, that I'm aware of," he told Harry, before narrowing his eyes suspiciously. "Harry."

Harry blinked innocently at him, and took another bite of chocolate. He really hadn't done anything this time. "Yes sir?"

"You've talked to this reporter before. Did you follow us after Dumbledore specifically told you not to?"

Harry denied this with a straight face, and paid close attention to how the expression felt. He was determined to lie convincingly at Pansy, Blaise, and Draco, and the first step was being aware of how his face acted when he was being truthful, so that he might replicate it when he wasn't.

Lupin eyed him for a moment, and seemed to find him innocent. His face lapsed back into thoughtful curiosity.

Harry picked the newspaper up from the desk and looked through the article again. He'd read it at breakfast, but he wanted to look through it again with Lupin's guarantee that it was practically all true in mind.

Pettigrew had kept the cobra at bay with the wand that he'd stolen from a house in Hogsmede, though the cobra fought hard. Harry felt proud of her. According to the article, the fight hadn't lasted long after Dumbledore arrived, though Lupin was wounded when his attempt to talk to Pettigrew backfired. What took so long was Snape's successful attempts to turn Pettigrew into a sniveling lump of guilty, terrified rat. According to Skeeter, Pettigrew had been crying and confessing to anything Snape asked him by the end of it. Harry felt vaguely proud of Snape, though Skeeter's portrayal of him wasn't exactly kind.

Harry left Lupin's office after a while, and headed for the library. In a bizarre twist, Hermione wasn't there. Anthony and Luna were, though, so Harry sat down and said hello.

"You were right, Luna," Harry said, then paused. "Well, probably not about the Stubby Boardman thing, but about there being more to it than we thought."

Luna smiled at him. "Thank you, Harry. You could ask him, you know."

Harry blinked. "Ask him?"

"When you meet him. If he's Stubby Boardman."

"Oh." Harry considered this. Meeting Sirius Black had been a very vague notion up to this point, though it was a distinct possibility. "I suppose I could. Alright." Harry grinned at her. "I'll owl you when I find out."

Luna nodded in her absentminded way and went back to the magazine she'd been looking at. Harry glanced at it and saw runes. Anthony had barely nodded when Harry arrived, so Harry assumed he wasn't going to get any conversation from that quarter.

"What's that?"

There was a pause. Harry waited for an awkward minute before repeating his question. Luna finally looked up at him, and her already protuberant eyes widened.

"They're rebus puzzles," she said. Harry frowned at the page. He had heard of rebuses, but he'd never seen them in rune form.

"I'm taking Ancient Runes," Harry said. "Can I try too?"

Luna didn't respond, but she did shift the magazine so that Harry could see more clearly. She had a thoughtful frown on her face. Harry looked at the first puzzle and wrinkled his forehead.

"The only one of those I recognise is the first one." Harry pointed. Luna blinked and looked at it.

"That's because the second isn't a rune at all, it's a 'not-equal' sign, and the third one is two runes put together."

Harry's mouth fell open very slightly, and he stared some more. "Are they supposed to mean rocky water or something?"

"Close."

Anthony glanced up from his book and looked at the puzzle for about one second. "No man is an island?"

Luna nodded, and Anthony went back to his book, missing Harry's consternation entirely. He looked at the second puzzle, then up at Luna, who was clearly halfway down the page by this point.

"My brain hurts," Harry said. "I'm going to go find something easier to read."

"There's a children's section near the Charms section," Anthony said, smirking behind his book. "I used to wonder why."

Harry rolled his eyes and finished Anthony's sentence. "But now you don't."

"Nope."

Sirius Black didn't turn up until Pettigrew was sentenced to life in Azkaban. In fact, Harry was reading the article about the trial and eating his breakfast when Dumbledore rose from his seat at the Head table and left the Great Hall. The only reason Harry paid any attention at all was because Lupin followed him.

Exams were coming up soon, and Harry, who had already been ignoring Blaise's attempts to quiz him on his Potions theory, ignored him even more obviously by standing up and following Lupin out of the Hall. He hadn't been asked to stay put this time.

Dumbledore and Lupin were already long gone, and Harry poked his head out the door cautiously. He felt someone pushing at him, and then Draco was there too, peering out the door next to him.

"What're we looking at?" he asked as Dumbledore and Lupin strode across the grass, wands out.

"Not sure," Harry said. "But it's bound to be important."

A large black dog trotted up to them before they got thirty meters from the castle. Draco sucked in a breath.

"Didn't you say Black's animagus form is a dog?"

Harry nodded mutely and watched as the dog whined and rolled over on its stomach. Lupin laughed, and the dog rolled back over and stood on two feet. After a brief moment, a skeletally thin man stood in his place and hugged Lupin.

Dumbledore lowered his wand and spoke to the two men. Harry could see the twinkle in his eyes from where he stood, but whatever he said made Lupin and Black break apart and nod solemnly.

They turned to walk up to the castle, and Harry and Draco ducked back inside and ran back into the Great Hall before they could be caught.

"What's happened?" Blaise asked as they sat down again. Harry opened his mouth to answer, but Draco beat him to it.

"Sirius Black was out on the grounds," he said, shrugging. "He's probably already in the castle."

Harry rolled his eyes as several people around them began to look alarmed.

"Dumbledore and Lupin have him," he explained, and Draco grinned at the exasperated look Harry was giving him. "He turned himself in."

"I'm surprised Snape didn't go, too," Pansy remarked, and they all looked up at the Head Table. Snape's expression was sullen.

"He probably got told to stay put," Harry said, grinning. "I like that I'm not the only one."

Snape looked over at the Slytherin table in that moment, and they all busied themselves with their pancakes. It wouldn't do for Snape to see that his students were laughing at him. Slytherin or no, he might kill them all.

"You're leaving."

Harry stood in the door of Lupin's office, having stopped there, startled, when he saw the state of things. Trunks and boxes filled the space; it was obvious what was going on here.

Lupin looked up from a stack of parchment he had been sorting through. "Well, yes," he said apologetically. Harry glared at him.

"Why?"

Lupin sighed and set the parchment down. "It's unlikely that the Wizengamot will do anything but let Sirius off, considering the embarrassment this entire situation has caused for them, and the fact that Pettigrew has already admitted to framing him. I'd like to be there for him. I've already talked to Dumbledore, and he agrees it's for the best."

"But," Harry fumbled for words. "Why do you have to leave?"

Lupin regarded him for a moment. Then he lifted a stack of books out of Harry's usual chair, and started making tea, the teacups and bags being about the only things not in disarray. Harry sat down and accepted his cup when Lupin offered it.

"Sirius has spent the past thirteen years in the presence of dementors," Lupin said after a moment. Harry bowed his head, acknowledging this. "He would kill me if he knew I thought this, but his emotional state is very delicate. He needs a friend, and not one that has other demands on his time."

Harry sighed. Lupin had a point, and Harry couldn't begrudge him time spent with a friend he'd thought gone for so long. Though he sorely wanted to.

"You're the best defense teacher we've ever had."

"I don't know whether to take that as a compliment to me, or as a dire insult to Dumbledore," Lupin said.

Harry looked up and saw Lupin smiling at him. "I've heard about Lockhart."

Harry laughed in spite of himself. "Alright, so it's not as complimentary as it sounds," he agreed. "But it's meant to be."

Lupin nodded and took another sip of his tea. "I'll take it in the spirit it was given, then. Thank you."

Harry looked up at Lupin hopefully. "One more story about my dad?"

Lupin appeared surprised. "Harry, just because I'm no longer your professor, doesn't mean we won't be seeing each other."

Harry blinked, surprised. "What?"

"Sirius has expressed an adamant desire to meet you," Lupin said with a fond smile. "Even your being in Slytherin has not put him off in the slightest - not that it should," he added hastily when Harry began to frown. "I imagine you'll be receiving an owl sometime this summer, after the trial is over and Sirius has settled into the life of a free man."

Harry nodded, remembering the conversation he'd had with Luna on this very subject.

"That sounds great," Harry said. "I want to meet him as well. And I have a few questions for him."

The term ended a few days later. Harry had been following the papers religiously since Black turned himself in, and things seemed to be going the way Lupin had predicted. The Wizengamot was trying to keep everything very quiet, but Skeeter's article the day after Black's return hadn't allowed for that. She painted him as a Ministry scapegoat, which wasn't entirely inaccurate from Harry's point of view. After that, another reporter covered the trial, the same one that had covered Pettigrew's. It was mostly a formality, though he was charged with being an unregistered animagus, and with breaking out of prison. He was found guilty of both, but his time in Azkaban covered the penalties for both crimes with plenty to spare, so the Wizengamot ended up paying him reparations anyway.

Harry and Dudley spent the car ride home from Kings Cross trying to explain the situation with Sirius Black to Uncle Vernon. It wasn't going very well.

"You have a convicted felon for a godfather," Vernon shouted, nearly crashing into the car in front of him when Harry mentioned that little detail.

"No," Harry said. "He was never convicted. He was framed."

"He spent thirteen years in wizard prison," Dudley added unhelpfully. Harry elbowed him in the ribs.

Uncle Vernon's face was turning purple. Harry remembered that face very well, and decided to spare all their lives and wait until they were out of the moving vehicle before continuing the conversation.

"So how about that Gryffindor Quidditch team," Harry said. "Gee, Dudley, you sure are getting good on a broom."

The promised letter from Sirius Black didn't arrive for a month. Looking back, Harry felt relieved that he'd been given such a long time to reconcile Vernon to the idea. To be honest, he hadn't reconciled him at all; he'd simply convinced him to stop yelling whenever the subject came up. They finally came to an agreement that, firstly, Sirius was never to step foot on the property, and secondly, that Dudley was never to meet him. Harry later understood this to mean that Uncle Vernon was never to know when Dudley met him. Dudley had very earnestly explained the subtle difference, and Harry didn't really mind as long as his cousin kept his mouth shut.

The letter was written in Lupin's handwriting, which Harry found interesting, as it purported to be from Black. It said things like, "I know you might not be aware, but I'm your godfather", and "I'm sorry for all the trouble this year". It was very generic and formal, even the invitation to come visit, "…if you wish to speak in person, and I'll understand if you'd like to bring a friend along…"

Harry felt mildly disappointed until he found a hastily scribbled post script in another handwriting entirely, apologizing for "Remus' boring sense of propriety" and explaining hurriedly that the Firebolt had indeed been a present from Black, who had managed to buy it in his animagus form somehow.

Harry was greatly cheered and wrote back, accepting the invitation and explaining Uncle Vernon's terms. Two days later, Lupin arrived in a clunky old Ford and Harry grabbed his knapsack and ran out the door, thankful that Dudley had taken up soothing Uncle Vernon.

"No, he's not the convict, he's a professor..."

"Hi," Harry said as he climbed into the car, knapsack on his lap. Lupin responded in kind and they drove away. After several minutes of quiet, Harry began to reach awkwardly for conversation points.

"Er, so how's your summer been, sir?"

Lupin glanced at him and quickly back at the road. "It's been fine, Harry. I wish Arthur had explained all these buttons more clearly though."

Harry's eyes widened and he finally noticed how lost Lupin looked in the driver's seat. He flipped a switch experimentally, and the turn signal came on.

"Oh no, does that mean I go left?" He frowned at the dash and turned into what appeared to be an alley. Harry clutched his knapsack closer. They were heading for a dead end.

"Professor?" Harry said uncertainly. "Er, I don't think we were supposed to turn here. You don't usually do what the turn signal tells you to unless you already meant to."

Lupin put on the brake and peered out the windows at the brick walls surrounding them. "No, no. This looks fine."

Harry began to wonder if he should have brought a friend after all, and reached for his wand. Just in case.

Lupin began fiddling with the levers and buttons again, unaware of Harry's movements.

"It's one of these buttons," he said thoughtfully as the boot popped open. "He should have labelled them more clearly…"

He pressed another, slightly larger button, and vanished. Harry jumped in his seat. The whole car had disappeared, including him.

"There," Lupin said, satisfied. "Now which one makes you go up…Oh, bu-darn. I can't see them anymore."

Harry considered getting out of the car. Lupin would hardly notice, and then maybe they both wouldn't die in the flaming wreckage.

Before he could begin to feel around for the handle, though, Lupin made a victorious sound and they began to rise in place. Harry found that simply clutching his knapsack wasn't enough anymore, and instead clutched the seat. It reminded him that he was actually in a car and not just sitting on air.

When they were above the houses around them, Lupin cleared his throat. "Here we go then," he said, and they began to sail over the rooftops. Once Harry was able to accept that they probably weren't going to die, he started to enjoy the view.

They were up in the clouds, now, and Lupin was apparently playing with levers and buttons again. Harry could hear the windscreen wipers go on.

"Is that really necessary, sir?" Harry asked. They couldn't see the windows, after all. What did it matter if they were a bit cloudy?

"What did I do?" Lupin asked, curious.

Harry clutched at his seat again. "Maybe you should just stop touching things. Sir. Er, no offence or anything…"

The windscreen wipers stayed on for the rest of the trip.

Lupin began to mutter and, Harry feared, fiddle with things again as they descended. They landed in a large field, and Harry let out a breath he only then realised he'd been holding. Flying on a broom under his own power was something entirely apart from what he just experienced. He thought he might take the Knight Bus back to Privet Drive.

"We're somewhere near Exeter," Lupin said as they climbed out of the car. "The Weasleys live nearby. In fact, this is their car. Arthur was good enough to let me borrow it for the day."

Harry nodded as they walked, and waited for a house to appear. Lupin stopped instead by a sapling and took hold of the trunk. Harry followed suit after Lupin glanced at him.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," Lupin said, a faint smile on his face, and suddenly a house grew up around them so that they were in a courtyard.

"Sirius insisted on the password." Lupin let go of the sapling and began to walk toward a pair of sliding glass doors. "He also insisted on the house being made mostly of windows."

Harry looked up at the walls around him and realised this was a very accurate description. The only parts of the outer walls that weren't glass were the doorframes. Harry could see straight through one side of the house and out the other, into the field they had just been walking in.

It occurred to him that, had they been visible, Black would have been able to see them coming for miles from almost anywhere in the house. He certainly knew they were there now, given that he had appeared very suddenly in the doorway.

He looked much better than when Harry had seen him last, out on the grounds at Hogwarts. He was still thin, but clean shaven and dressed nicely. He looked less like an escaped convict and more like a recovering invalid.

"Hey, Moony," Black said, and turned to Harry. "It's good to meet you at last, Harry." Black eyed him for a moment, and smiled. "You look exactly like your father, but the eyes are purely Lily's."

Harry grinned at him in spite of himself as they went inside.

"It's good to finally meet you, sir," Harry said. Black looked surprised.

"Don't call me sir," he said, glancing at Remus. "He's a sir. For Merlin's sake, call me Sirius."

They all settled down in an area with several sofas scattered around and began talking. From what Harry could see of the house (which was most of the first floor), it looked like Sirius preferred open spaces and lots of light. There were next to no walls, and the only delineations between the rooms were in the form of different types of flooring. Where there were walls, they were offset by incredibly wide doorframes, and ended up looking more like pillars as a result.

Sirius noticed him looking around. "We bought the house and completely redesigned it." His expression was satisfied. "It used to be a huge maze of rooms and walls and next to no windows. You should see the upstairs. In fact," and here his expression turned nervous, "If you wanted, you could pick out one of the upstairs rooms, for when you come visit."

Harry looked around again, then back at Sirius, who was watching him hopefully.

"Aunt Marge is coming to stay in a week, which means I'm going to be avoiding the house anyway," Harry said with a shrug. "So if you don't mind such short notice…"

Sirius was delighted. "Perfect!" he said. "You can even stay for your birthday, if your relatives don't mind. We'll have a party."

Harry laughed a little, stunned. "Uncle Vernon wouldn't mind at all," Harry said. "I normally try to disappear for part of the summer anyway. That sounds great."

"That's an idea," Sirius said, perking up further. "The Quidditch World Cup is in August. You could stay until then and we'll just take you back to Hogwarts. It's brilliant!"

Lupin spoke up at this point, glancing between Harry and Sirius uncertainly. "Now, Sirius, I'm sure Harry wants to spend some time with his family -"

Harry rolled his eyes and interrupted, before the disappointment that was beginning to wash over Sirius' face could take hold.

"Dudley won't mind," Harry said. "That sounds great, if you'll have me."

And it was settled, nearly. Lupin sighed and gave Sirius a significant look, which worried Harry, because Sirius sobered very quickly.

"Harry," Lupin said. "If you're going to be staying here for such an extended period of time, there are certain things you should be aware of, so that you can decide if you're still comfortable with your decision."

Harry nodded. "Okay." Lupin was watching Harry very seriously, and very nervously.

"Once a month, I am not quite myself," Lupin said uncomfortably. Harry nodded again, uncertain as to where he might be going with this. "You may have noticed that I sometimes missed classes. There's a potion that I take, that helps me to keep calm, and there's a basement level in this house that is very securely warded. I want you to understand that there is no danger."

Harry thought Lupin probably expected another nod, so he gave him one. He had suspicions as to what this might be about, but they were incredibly outlandish.

"Remus is always pretty careful," Sirius said encouragingly. "He doesn't let his furry little problem get out of control."

Remus gave him a faint smile, and Harry stared. He was only confirming Harry's second most outlandish theory at this point. It occurred to him that Snape usually had a reason for teaching the lessons he did, and as a substitute for Lupin's class, teaching a lesson on werewolves could only be a giant hint.

But then, Harry could have the wrong idea. This was awkward. And now Sirius and Lupin were both watching him expectantly. Harry figured another nod was in order.

"The potion that Professor Snape brews for me helps me to keep my mind," Lupin elaborated, clearly feeling the awkwardness. "I'm perfectly myself, only not. And Sirius spends that time with me, so you should know you'll be spending certain nights essentially alone in the house."

Harry nodded. Werewolf was looking more and more likely, especially since Professor Snape knew. But he still couldn't say it. What if he was wrong? He wished Lupin would just spit it out.

"Do you understand what I'm telling you, Harry?" Lupin asked. He was fidgeting with one of his sleeves. Harry very nearly nodded again, before realising that might give them the wrong idea.

"Er, I think so," Harry said. He decided to turn the tables on Lupin, and gave him an expectant look. Lupin was startled, if his expression was anything to go by, and embarrassed. This was far too awkward for words.

"I'm a werewolf," said Lupin.

Oh thank god, Harry thought, relieved that it was finally out there. He felt the tension drain out of the room like a plug had been pulled, and gave Lupin a small smile.

"Okay," he said, nodding more casually now. Lupin blinked at him.

"Okay?" he asked.

"Yep," Harry said, and Sirius grinned at him. Harry grinned back. "So I was hoping to take the Knight Bus, next time I come here. That shouldn't be a problem, right? No offence, Professor Lupin."

Lupin still looked startled. "None taken, and I'm not your professor anymore," he said. "You don't have any questions?"

Harry shrugged. "You said you were safe, behind wards and using some potion Snape brewed for you. It all sounds safe to me. I assume I'm meant to keep this quiet?"

"Yes, if you could," Lupin said with relief. Harry gave him a reassuring smile. Hopefully Lupin would let him change the subject this time, and put the awkwardness behind them. Harry really didn't care about the werewolf thing, as long as certain precautions were taken. Which they clearly were. Anyway.

"Oh, Sirius, that reminds me," Harry said. "Have you ever heard of Stubby Boardman?"