Chapter 23: Hogsmeade and Hounds

My favorite part about the end of the second task was Ron's mood. Everyone – everyone – was interested in finding out every little detail of what had happened. Ron was getting more attention then he'd ever had at school. Every time he told the story, events would change a bit. I noticed that he went from telling the truth about how they were asked to kindly partake – to raving about being kidnaped. Padma Patil had taken interest in him again. They had not talked since the Yule ball, but she was mystified over how Ron valiantly fought his way through Merpeople before being beaten and tied up. Despite the absurdity, Ron was completely happy. This meant Harry, Hermione, and I were happy too.

March had approached with dry weather and blustery winds. The morning of the Hogsmeade trip, I had received an owl. The poor bird had half its feathers sticking up the wrong way from its flight. The letter was addressed to both me and Harry. It was from my dad. He wanted us to meet him at two, just off the road to Hogsmeade past Dervish and Banges. Ron and Hermione were surprised that he had wanted us to meet him. It was still dangerous and I didn't want him to get caught. But, he had gone on this long and there weren't any dementors sulking about.

An hour later I found myself waiting in the courtyard for Fred. I was nervous. I shouldn't have been nervous, but I was nervous. This was our first date since the Yule Ball. I mean, that wasn't a date. That was a dance. A dance he hadn't even invited me to. Maybe I shouldn't have said I'd go with him. I had to leave him anyway to meet with dad. A few hours alone wouldn't be so bad, would it? We'd been alone before. I was overthinking things way too much. I hadn't even noticed Hermione standing next to me until Viktor Krum walked up to us. He took her hand and placed a kiss on it. She didn't look as ecstatic about it as she had during the Yule Ball.

They took off as Fred came over. He was wearing a pair of brown pants and one of his maroon "F" sweaters his mom made him. I couldn't control my laughter as he approached. As it turns out, I was wearing the light grey "C" sweater Molly sent me for my birthday this year. Fred's grin was ear to ear.

"You should have told me what you were wearing," he joked as he stood in front of me. "I would have asked you to change. Spare you the embarrassment."

"Oh, you should be used to it," I smirked. "Besides, you like it."

"I do. I really do."

By the time we reached the little village, it had grown too hot for sweaters. We had removed them and tied them around our waists in true 90's No-Maj fashion. I had to explain why I thought this was funny and Fred began to ask me about all kinds of No-Maj fashion styles. As we walked down the cobbled road, I told him that he would probably look good in a military uniform with his hair cut and coiffed – 1940's style. Fred laughed as he marched all the way to Gladrags Wizardwear.

I needed to buy a present for Tonks. I had a good time picking out chiffon scarves I thought she'd like while Fred went through socks, grabbing the gaudiest kind, holding them up to his face, and screaming "wash me" over and over. The store owner kicked us out as soon as I bought an orange scarf with black pumpkins on it for my cousin. Next, we went to the Post Office so I could actually send the scarf. Fred chose an owl on the slowest pole so I could have an excuse for the gift being late. He was so thoughtful that way. We stopped at Honeydukes next. We stocked up on fudge and our favorite kinds of Every Flavour Beans for the rest of the day. I also grabbed a bag full of Cauldron Cakes, Chocolate Frogs, and Pumpkin Pasties for my dad.

We had spent the most time in Zonko's. The orange wood was lit up oddly by the green lights and shimmery shamrocks in the windows. I always liked going inside Zonko's. It had an Art Deco theme with gold accents running down the length of the orange dyed wood. The shelving on the walls were covered in joke supplies and trinkets. You had to avoid the Extendable Ears hanging from the doorway or else you'd get tangled in them. Fred was like a kid in a candy store. Which isn't saying much because he was like that at Honeydukes too. While Fred was running about, picking up items he and George were low on, I was looking over the Puffskein display. Fred's arms were full when he was at my side again.

"Cute aren't they," I asked.

"Yeah, if you like fluffy things."

"It just so happens that I do like fluffy things," I chuckled. "Too bad they're only one color. And big. They should be smaller. Small and in many different colors. What?"

Fred had a wicked smile on his face. It was the same smile he had when he had thought up something Molly would disapprove of. "Like a –" he thought for a moment. "– a Pygmy Puff?"

"Sure," I chuckled. "Sounds catchy and cute. Can I have one in magenta?"

"You could have a rainbow one if it made you happy," Fred nodded enthusiastically. Fred paid for his items and we left the shop for The Three Broomsticks. "Want to hear a funny story?"

"Shoot."

"Ron had a Puffskein once."

"No way! He did," I laughed as we reached our destination.

"Yeah," Fred laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck. "I mistook it for a Bludger."

The Three Broomsticks was much warmer than it was outside. Not even two mugs of refreshing butterbeer could cool us off. As we waited for George and Angelina to join us, I explained to Fred that I needed to leave around two. He was more than understanding. When George and Angelina did arrive, the three began a conversation about Quidditch. I started doodling on a napkin I found. I sketched out a large circle with a smaller one inside. In between the two circles I made two tiers of even smaller circles. I boldly wrote "Weasley" in the very middle and surrounded it by a six pointed star.

"– so now I have to find a new Keeper," Angelina had just finished a rant when George snatched my doodling from under my hand.

"Hey," I exclaimed, reaching over Fred. He placed a hand on my wrist and lowered it.

"Whatcha got there?"

George looked over my doodle with a smile. "Someone's got a crush," he sang as he waved the napkin in front of my face.

"It's not done yet," I pouted, leaning back. I felt my face go red.

"Hold on," Fred cocked his head to the side. "I like it."

He took the napkin and the pencil I had. He turned the napkin upside down and copied how I wrote "Weasley" like a mirror image. He added an 'and' symbol between the end of the two Y's. "Weasley and Weasley," George mused.

"Second best idea you've had all day, Cora," Fred beamed. I felt my shoulders rise with my embarrassment. "We can use this as the sign for Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes! Though it would have to be done up a bit."

Fred and George began telling Angelina and I about more ideas for products. They talked about one day buying out Zonko's; wanting to revamp Zonko's Extendable Ears, making the sound clearer and the distance longer. In fact, they wanted to revamp and reissue multiple Zonko's products on top of selling their own creations. George mentioned a telescope that punched the user when it was squeezed and then selling a bruise cream that would only be able to remove the bruise it left the user. The Canary Creams were an obvious goldmine. They would sell Dungbombs with longer lasting effects. Some sort of item or clothing a person could wear to make themselves invisible (inspired by Harry's cloak). A teacup that would bite your nose when you sipped out of it. Fake moustaches (I tried to explain that this was already a silly No-Maj joke product but the twins would hear none of it). They also were thinking of some pyrotechnic products but had yet to try anything out.

The four of us were laughing and having a good time as we ate lunch that I had completely forgotten about meeting my dad. When I looked at Fred's watch I saw that it was ten passed the hour. I stood up quickly, apologizing profusely that I had to leave right away. Fred tried to accompany me outside but I told him to stay. I kissed his cheek and took off, knowing fully well that he would explain to George why I ran off so suddenly.

I sped off towards the road at the end of Dervish and Banges. I had never gone that far from the village before and I couldn't see my three friends anywhere. The cobbled street turned into a dirt road that lead away from the village towards the countryside. There were fewer buildings around here which was perfect for a meeting spot. I had approached a fork in the path and was completely alone. One of the paths lead right and around back to the village, the other lead left to meet the foot of the mountain. I raised a hand to my eyes to block the sunlight. The mountain looked a bit steep and was covered in rocks and boulders. That's when I spotted a glare from something shiny making its way up the side of the mountain. It was the glare of the sun reflecting off of Harry's glasses. Ron and Hermione were behind him. They were led by a black creature on four legs.

I didn't want to startle them by calling out so I followed quietly. I was soon out of breath as I climbed higher and higher. I lost sight of the four as the path became more winding and stony. I heard voices as I reached a stony opening in the rock. They were coming from a small cave.

"What are you doing here, Sirius," I heard Harry ask.

"Fulfilling my duty as your godfather," my dad replied with his mouth full.

"And what about fulfilling your duty as a father?"

The small fire in the cave cast dark shadows over my friends and father. Even so, I could tell that he was wearing the same robes he had been wearing when he escaped prison. His hair was longer but still unkempt and matted. He was still skinny, but his face was fuller. I sighed a little. He had been mid chew when I spoke. My dad swallowed his food quickly, wiping his mouth. A wolfish grin appeared on his face making him look younger.

"Cora!" In a leap and a bound, I was pulled into a hug. I wrapped my arms around my dad's wiry frame, pressing my nose into his chest. He didn't smell disgustingly unwashed like I had thought he would. Instead, he smelled like exotic spices and chicken. My dad placed a hand on the back of my head, stroking my hair. "I've missed you, my darling," he whispered softly.

With my arms still wrapped around him, I looked up at my dad. A small smile replaced the larger one from before. This one looked sad. "We're together now," I beamed.

"Sirius," Harry's voice pulled us out of our father-daughter moment. "What if you had been caught? Or seen?"

"You four and Dumbledore are the only ones who know I'm an Animagus," he said. My dad left my side and went back to the chicken that my friends had brought for him. I pulled out the bag of gently crushed Honeydukes sweets and tossed them his way. He caught it, examining the contents. "That's my girl," he winked as he began devouring a Cauldron Cake.

As he ate, Ron and Harry began looking over the numerous Daily Prophets dad had acquired. A conversation about Barty Crouch began. I leaned against the stone wall, watching Hermione gently stroke Buckbeak's feathers. I didn't really care about Crouch or his house-elf to keep up with the conversation. Dad had cared, however, because he jumped up and began to pace around. He was asking Harry all kinds of questions about the two and the night of the Quidditch World Cup. Fudge was mentioned, as were the Malfoys and Ludo Bagman. My dad's face darkened as he and Harry discussed Crouch further. He was the one who sent my dad to Azkaban without trial. I didn't like the man before, now I hated him. My dad was at the mouth of the cave when his voice carried back to us full of deep sorrow.

"Voldemort is powerful," he contemplated. "Imagine you don't know who his supporters are, who's working for him or not. He can control people and they can't stop it from happening. You, you're friends, you're family…all scared. News of death, disappearances, torturing. Chaos in the Ministry. Muggles are disappearing too…dying. It seems the world is engulfed in terror and confusion. That's how it used to be. That's how it could be again."

Hermione, who had stopped petting Buckbeak, looked like she was going to burst into tears. Ron had gulped. The fire had cast long shadows upon Harry's frowning face. When my dad turned around, he looked utterly defeated. The war took everything from him. It was written all over his face.

"Moody said Crouch is obsessed with catching Dark wizards," Harry said after a moment of silence. "Why didn't he do more back then?"

"He had other – personal problems to deal with it would seem," my dad responded carefully as he sat by the fire again. He started munching on a loaf of bread.

"He snuck into Snape's office," Ron exclaimed.

"I don't get why," dad shrugged. Ron was about to retort when Harry cut in.

"You think Snape could be up to something?"

Hermione tried to defend our Potions professor while Ron built his argument against him. The two began to bicker and my dad watched in amused interest. It was like watching a Quidditch match; both going back and forth with their reasoning for why Snape was either good or bad.

"What do you think, Sirius," Harry asked over the two.

"They both have a point. But he was part of the gang of Slytherins who became Death Eaters. Rosier, Wilkes – killed by Aurors. The Lestranges –" I shivered at the name. "Both in Azkaban. Avery – at large after pleading not guilty due to being under the Imperious Curse. Snape has never been accused of being a Death Eater. Though I will admit, he's clever enough to keep out of trouble. Dumbledore trusts Snape. I don't think he'd every let Snape, or anyone for that matter, teach at Hogwarts if they'd ever worked for Voldemort."

We lapsed into silence. Everyone was mulling over the information my dad had just given us. Buckbeak started clucking for more food as he scraped his beak on the ground, looking for bones. My dad sighed heavily as he rubbed his deeply shadowed eyes.

"You'd better get back to school," he said. "Listen to me," he narrowed his eyes at Harry. "I don't want any of you sneaking out to see me, all right? Send any notes here, got that? You are not to leave Hogwarts without permission."

"No one's letting me leave anyway," Harry muttered. "What time is it?"

"Just after three," Hermione checked her watch.

"Damn," I frowned. "I should get back to Fred. He's probably wondering where I am."

"Why would Fred be wondering where you are –" Ron questioned.

"Who is Fred," my dad barked with wide eyes.

Hermione smirked at me, "They're on a date."

Ron and my dad's mouths dropped open as Harry and Hermione tried not to laugh. Before I could be questioned further I took my chance and backed out of the cave. My three friends and my dad as his dog Animagus were behind me moments later. The black dog head-butted the back of my legs as if to tell me he'd get the information out of me soon enough. We trekked back down the mountain until we came to the fork in the road. Harry, Ron, and Hermione patted Snuffles on the head. I dropped to my knees, embracing his furry black neck.

"I'll talk to you soon, Snuffy." He licked my cheek which made me laugh. Then he turned and ran off around to the other side of the village as the four of us wandered back to Hogsmeade.