Disclaimer: I do not own anything classic of this story. Harry Potter and all of the notable characters belong to J.K. Rowling, aka, God. All original characters are copyright of me, however.

Magnolia Crescent

Chapter Thirteen

Freedom

The trio raced over the grounds and the school halls to Professor Dumbledore's office. Harry stopped with horror at the stone gargoyle – he didn't know the password.

"Now what do we do?" Hermione asked, realizing the same thing. Harry shrugged.

"We can always guess," Ron suggested, shrugging as well. "Harry, you've been to his office before and passwords tend to be similar. What was it last time?"

"Sherbet Lemon," Harry replied. Ron gave them a confused look. "It's a Muggle candy. So, I'm guessing that it's going to be another Muggle candy."

"What else is there?" Ron asked.

"Ginger Cream," Hermione tried skeptically. Much to her surprise, the gargoyle leapt to the side, revealing a spiraling staircase. She shrugged, stepping into the opening. Harry and Ron followed, but not before giving each other a shocking look.

"How did she - ?" Ron started. Harry shrugged before Ron finished. Hermione smirked, something neither of them saw.

In a moment, they had reached the top and came upon a large wooden door. Without bothering with the knocker, Hermione pushed the door open, revealing Dumbledore sitting at his desk. He looked up a bit and didn't see too concerned to see them.

"Professor Dumbledore, sir," Hermione rushed before he could say anything. "You need to see this." She pulled out the vial of Sirius's memories and thrust them at Dumbledore.

"And what might this be?" Dumbledore asked gently, taking the vial and looking over it. "Miss Granger, is this…?"

"Yes, sir. They're memories. They belong to Sirius Black." She looked at the ground, avoiding his eyes.

"Oh, no," Ron groaned, slapping his forehead. "We forgot the Pensieve in the forest."

"No need to fret, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore smiled, stepping over to a cabinet and revealing his own Pensieve. He poured the contents of the vial into the silvery liquid.

"You mean we could have just used," Harry started as rested his forehead in his hand. "All that effort and we could have just asked to use his."

"Harry, not many wizards have Pensieves. Besides, it was a wonderful learning experience," Hermione smiled as Ron and Harry exchanged uncertain looks.

"I shall return momentarily," Dumbledore said with a smirk, placing his face against the liquid surface. He was in for only a second as he suddenly pulled out. After a few seconds, he lifted his head and looked at them. His jaw seemed to open a bit as he studied the Pensieve as if looking for something.

"I see," he mused, stepping around to the far side of his desk having recovered from the memory.

"I thought looking at a memory took longer than that," Harry said, furrowing his brow. Hermione balked at him.

"You've never actually seen someone use a Pensieve before?" she asked. He shook his head. "The process is all in your mind, and therefore it doesn't take very long," she explained.

"Indeed," Dumbledore said, but they couldn't be sure he was talking to them. As Hermione had been talking, the headmaster had been sending a message.

"Magic can be confusing and awesome all at the same time," Harry mumbled.

"The Minister will be arriving here shortly," Dumbledore announced. "In the meantime, would you please explain how you came to possess these memories." Shuffling his feet, Harry slowly told Dumbledore about the night on Magnolia Crescent and when Sirius showed up after his first day of classes. When Sirius had done nothing to harm him, Harry saw no reason to fear him, even going so far as to talk to him regularly and to help prove his innocence.

"Please don't punish me, Professor," he mumbled, wincing.

"That would explain why one of the stalls in Miss Myrtle's bathroom was closed," he mused. Harry gave him an odd look. "I know much more than students seem to think, Harry. Probably why I was chosen to be Headmaster," he chuckled.

"What are you going on about now, Albus?" a voice said, coming from the open door. Harry turned to see the portly Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, barging in with a few other officials not far behind.

"I have information regarding Sirius Black," he stated calmly.

"Excellent, let's hear it then," he replied cheerily, clapping his hands together.

"First, I am extending a pardon, thus allowing him to walk the school grounds and hallways freely. I wish to hear from him," Dumbledore said.

"I'll not have that!" Fudge roared, motioning to one of the officials. "The dementors will have him first, either that or when I'm dead!"

"Cornelius," Dumbledore attempted.

"Bring me the dementors, have them search the grounds – "

"Cornelius," Dumbledore stated more sternly, causing Fudge to stop talking. "This is still my school and I have the final say in what goes on. Therefore, Sirius will be granted a pardon. Young Mr. Potter and his friends will go and fetch him," Dumbledore said, handing Harry a roll of parchment. "If I hear that the dementors made an attack on them, the Wizengamot will be hearing from me. You know what consequences that can cause." The tone of his voice made it clear that this was not up for discussion. Hermione tugged on the sleeves of Harry and Ron, pulling them towards the door.

"And what of the hippogriff, when shall that be taken care of?" Fudge asked quite rudely.

"All in due time. But first things first," Dumbledore said, appearing to give Harry a wink. "Were you to be on your way?" They quickly bolted down the stairs, thoughts racing through their minds.

"Not Buckbeak, how're we supposed to deal with that as well?" Ron asked.

"What are you going on about?" Leo asked as they raced by. Hermione stopped in her tracks.

"Leo!" she said, snapping her fingers.

"I didn't do it," he said, throwing his hands into the air and glancing around. Hermione rolled her eyes, sighing.

"Can you do us a favor?" she asked.

"Depends, is it something that might get me in trouble?" he asked, a smile apparent on his face.

'Why, afraid of getting caught?" Ron accused, crossing his arms.

"Ignore him," Harry said, elbowing Ron. He grunted and cast a glare at him. "Yes, you could get in trouble – but only if you get caught."

"I think I can help you out, what do you need me to do?"

"You remember that I have been working on Buckbeak's case, right?" Hermione said. Leo nodded. "Hagrid lost. However, we don't want Hagrid to be heartbroken at losing him so we were wondering if you could possibly get Buckbeak out of there without getting Hagrid into trouble."

"My cunning skills have been employed by this young lady," he smirked, bowing in an overly dramatic fashion. "I will do what I can. How long do I have?"

"The Ministry is currently up in Dumbledore's office. Sometime tonight, they're going to execute him," Harry replied. Leo nodded, heading outside shortly after the trio.

Harry led them across the darkened grounds and towards the pitch black forest. Even though they had been in the forest many times at night, it took them a while to find the clearing where they usually met Sirius. He didn't even have to call Sirius's name; they heard a bark from the deeper part of the forest and within a minute, Sirius was entering the clearing.

"That was fast," he said after he shifted. "Did you already talk to Dumbledore?"

"Yes, and he's granted you a pardon," Hermione said, handing him the roll of parchment. Sirius ripped open the seal and quickly read through it.

"Lead the way," he said simply. His body was tense but, very much like his godson, he trusted Dumbledore's judgment. Heart racing, he followed the trio up to the castle. He half considered walking up there as a dog, simply to avoid the dementors. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed them seem to perk up at the gates and move closer, causing his heart to nearly stop. Apparently, Harry noticed this as well for he pulled out his wand and fell in step behind Sirius. Thankfully, they made it to the front steps with no problems. Pausing for only half a second to breathe a sigh of relief, they rushed to Dumbledore's office for the second time that night.

When Harry pushed open the door, he noticed that Fudge visually darkened at the sight of Sirius. The latter seemed to tremble at seeing the Ministry officials.

"Ah, Sirius," Dumbledore said with the air of greeting an old friend. "Come and sit." He waved his wand and some chairs appeared in the office.

"Please explain to me what is going on now, Albus," Fudge demanded. Dumbledore inclined his head towards Sirius, indicating that he should explain.

"Minister, please," he tried. "I'm innocent. You have the wrong man. Peter Pettigrew – "

"Pettigrew is dead, thanks to you," Fudge retorted, voice dripping with venom.

"No, you don't understand. He faked it," Sirius begged.

"It's true, sir," Harry interjected. "We can prove it. Hermione, do you have the memories?"

"They are still here in the Pensieve, Harry," Dumbledore said, indicating the basin. "Cornelius, all you need to do in have a look in here and you'll understand why." Dumbledore's voice was so calm that it took everything Fudge had to simply glare at the man. With a resigned sigh, he stepped closer to the Pensieve.

"Alright, Albus, but only because I want to take care of the hippogriff deal quickly and get back to the Ministry. Lord knows my staff goes cuckoo when I'm absent," Fudge stated, a small shudder going down his spine. In a matter of seconds, Fudge had pressed his face close to the Pensieve and straightened back up, a look of guilt-filled horror on his face.

"Thank you for the trial by the way," Sirius shot smugly, glowering at the Minister. Fudge balked a little bit, stammering out that something that sounded vaguely like an apology. Sirius smirked, glad to be the source of Fudge's discomfort.

"We've got to find Pettigrew," he finally managed. "He was the rat, correct?" Sirius nodded. "An illegal animagus and a traitor; oh, the charges he shall receive."

"Mr. Weasley, have you seen Scabbers lately?" Dumbledore asked, causing Fudge to look at him oddly.

"No sir, he's taken off. And we have reason to believe that Scabbers is really Peter," Ron admitted.

"How do you plan on scouring the grounds for a rat, Albus?" Fudge asked inquisitively.

"Our gamekeeper has taken possession of a very rare animal that will aid us," Dumbledore said, leading them out of his office. Fudge asked multiple times on the way to Hagrid's hut just what kind of animal he was referring to but Dumbledore made no inclination to answer him. When they arrived at the hut, he knocked on the door without saying a word. At this point, Fudge was positively angry and his voice was starting to rise in volume.

"Minister, Professor Dumbledore, sir," Hagrid greeted; but one could tell he wasn't too thrilled to see the Minister.

"Cornelius, could you perhaps be any louder?" Dumbledore asked calmly. "I don't think Fluffy heard you."

"You're lookin' for Fluffy?" Hagrid asked, stepping outside and closing the door. "He'll be so pleased to see you, Headmaster." Harry suddenly went pale as he remembered Fluffy and the heart attack the animal had given him on his first year.

"I am sure, Hagrid. We actually are looking to utilize Fluffy tonight," Dumbledore said. "Sirius Black here has been proven innocent."

"Innocent?" Hagrid roared, noticing Sirius standing behind Dumbledore and giving a sheepish glance at the half-giant. "How'do ya reckon?"

"Peter Pettigrew faked his death. We need Fluffy to locate him," Dumbledore calmly explained. "Would that beat all possible?"

"I guess so," Hagrid said quietly. He had begun to walk to the edge of forest, passing the pumpkin patch where Buckbeak was tethered. The three gave the animal a sympathetic glance as Hermione glanced around.

"Fluffy, as in the three-headed monstrosity you employed a few years ago?" Fudge demanded.

"The very same," Hagrid said gruffly. "What's it to ya?"

"I can't believe you allowed him to keep that creature. And on the school grounds, nonetheless! A three-headed dog is not something to be kept at a school and I told you that very same thing when you brought it up before!" Fudge was vehement.

"Ah, but Minister, I assure you that Fluffy is perfectly harmless," Dumbledore said as they stopped. Hagrid whistled and the trees shook as Fluffy came running. Harry suddenly realized the dog was a bit bigger than he remembered when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"What?" Harry questioned as he turned to see Hermione and Ron cowering in fear behind him. "What are you two doing?" Harry asked.

"You remember last time he nearly took our heads off," Ron said with a frowned as Harry glanced at the dog then back to them.

"Do you really think I'll be a good defense, and against a giant three-headed dog?" asked Harry. The two paused as they seemed to consider this a moment. They both opened their mouths to speak when the dog stopped digging up dirt and grass.

"There's a good boy," Hagrid said, clapping his hands. The dog dropped to the ground, rolling over to expose its belly, which Hagrid promptly scratched. Fluffly's back leg kicked in the air, all three head panting with happiness. When Hagrid went to pet their heads, they sort of snapped at each other, fighting for who got pet by Hagrid first. The dog finally settled down. "Hey you three want to give him a good pat?"

"Pat?" Harry repeated weakly as he suddenly felt very tense.

"A pat; he's a good dog when he is not on guard duty," Hargid informed. Harry didn't feel like chancing a limb.

"Maybe some other time," Harry replied, a nervous smile appearing on his face. Hagrid shrugged. Harry had to admit that it was an amusing sight, seeing a giant three-headed dog fighting with itself for attention. Hagrid riled up the dog, asking if it was ready to do some searching.

"I just realized something," Harry said quietly, looking at Ron and Hermione. "Do you think this would be easier if we had the map?" Hermione's eyes went wide with a 'you're-mentioning-this-now' expression.

"Why didn't you grab it?" she hissed.

"Because I don't have it," he griped. "Lupin does."

"Way to go, mate. Why does Lupin have the map anyways?" Ron asked.

"Long story," he sighed, not sure if he wanted to share. He looked up at the moon and noticed it wasn't full. He then looked over at Fudge for a moment. "Maybe not a good idea," Harry mused to himself.

"Right," Hagrid announced. "We are going to need something to go by scent wise." He smiled. Sirius moved forward, pulling out a piece of cloth.

"It's a bit old but it should do the trick," Sirius announced as he held out the fabric. Fluffy growled a bit as Hermione gripped Harry's shoulder. He held the cloth up to the dog. The dog snorted, blowing his hair back as it sniffed the cloth. The dog released a large breath as Sirius looked away.

"Dog breath," he frowned and Hermione giggled at his comment. Fudge grumbled as the dog started to sniff the ground and the air at the same time, beginning to approach Harry. He took a deep breath as all three were too scared to move.

"You sure you got the right piece of cloth?" asked Hagrid as he glanced over at Sirius. The dog started barking at Ron, who closed his eyes while his mouth started to twist in fear.

"Arf!" the dog barked and the trio suddenly jumped. The very forest seemed to echo with the noise as Fudge gave Dumbledore a confused look.

"Harry," Ron whispered as he tried to move. Hermione and Ron had now dug their hands into his shoulders.

"Wait, I fought a giant snake," Harry thought, bracing himself. "No!" Harry shouted and the dog backed off, whimpering slightly. Hagrid smiled at this handling.

"Hagrid, Peter's smell would be all over Ron; he was the boy's rat for a long time," Sirius pointed out, realizing they hadn't told Hagird that fact.

"You mean Scabbers? Oh, I have that ol' rat locked up in my hut," Hagrid announced as the whole group turn to look at him, wide-eyed.

"Why didn't anybody ask?" Harry questioned as he slapped his forehead. The dog apparently understood and started clawing at the roof of Hagrid's hut.

"It is the things that are left unspoken that tragedies are built upon," Dumbledore quoted. Harry frowned; the whole school year seemed to be one massive misunderstanding. One such misunderstanding landed a man in Azkaban for twelve years.

"What in heaven's name is going on here?" asked the familiar voice of Professor McGonagall. The group turned as Hagrid tried to keep Fluffy from pulling apart his hut. Harry turned to see Lupin as well as a few other professors.

"Hey Lupin," Sirius greeted. Lupin waved at him without thinking, looking at the dog for a moment.

"Sirius?" Lupin questioned, doing a double take as his rather rugged looking friend smiled at him. "I must be dreaming," he said as he realized the situation he found himself in.

"Good to see you. You're just in time for the capture of an old friend," he smiled as Hagrid finally calmed Fluffy down. The dog sat quietly, still managing to throw everyone's balance off. Hagrid emerged from his hut carrying a cage. Harry noticed Ron biting back words; he wasn't too thrilled with what they were doing even though he knew the truth about his pet.

"Eek," the rat squeaked as Sirius got closer.

"Aren't you glad to see me, Peter?" he asked, smiling grimly. The rat began to shriek even louder. Dumbledore drew his wand as he eyed the rat's foot.

"Missing a finger," Dumbledore commented, glancing over to the staff. "I would recommend everyone having their wands out and at the ready," he smiled cheerfully, pointing his wand at the cage. It broke open and a balding man appeared on all fours in front of the group.

"Hello Peter," Sirius smiled as the man faked a smile back.

"S-sirius," he greeted, trying to run for the woods. Sirius and Hagrid were one step ahead, grabbing him roughly by the arms.

"Well then, I do believe that settles the matter of Mr. Black," Dumbledore smiled, putting his wand away. Everyone moved around Peter, blocking any escape routes. "I do believe you owe someone an apology," Dumbledore reminded. "This will certainly bite the Ministry if there are any hard feelings on Sirius's part," he said, patting Fudge on the back.

"Peter! Get back here and face us like a man!" Sirius shouted. Peter had transformed into a rat and dashed between their legs. He quickly shoved his way through the crowd of people while Fluffy took a renewed interest in the animal.

"Aurors!" Fudge ordered. Nearly everyone chased after Sirius.

"That's not going to be good. Professor Snape, if you be so kind as to close off the barrier around the forest. I have a feeling Cornelius will be having a long night," Dumbledore commented. Harry waited a moment before taking a deep breath and rushing after his godfather.

"Idiot, he doesn't even have a wand and that place is dangerous," Lupin frowned, sounding like this was a regular occurrence for Sirius. Harry finally caught up with his godfather; nearly every wandtip was lit.

"Damn it, I lost him in the underbrush," Sirius growled. Lupin caught up to them, glancing around.

"What are you doing? You don't even have a wand. You are of no help to them. Let the Aurors handle this and head back to the castle as a free man," Lupin advised.

"I have been wanting to kill him for twelve years, I have a lot of stress to release," Sirius shot back.

"There are easier ways to release stress. You could always head to the – " Lupin stopped as he noticed Harry. Sirius took the opportunity and shifted into a black dog, trying to pick up the scent. Harry noticed Hagrid and Fluffy were searching as well.

Sirius suddenly took off in a direction while Fluffy moved into another area. The group spread out as they ran after Sirius. The lights from the other wands grew dim as they moved deeper into the forest.

"Damn it," Sirius swore after shifting. "He doubled back; I picked the wrong trail." He frowned as her headed back. Harry felt detached; he got Sirius free and that was enough for him. So long as Peter was on school grounds, he would be caught eventually. He turned back when a shadow froze. Not even thinking, he shifted into his animal form and lunged at the figure. Harry moved fast but felt slow at the same time, realizing his perspective was far too low. Harry paused when he realized he had no legs.

"Harry!" Ron panicked. "You're a snake!" Harry turned to see Lupin with a confused look and the other three in a panic, not sure how to react to someone with two Animagus forms.

Wand light filled the dark as Fluffy bounded towards them. Lupin turned Harry back to normal before anyone could notice. Harry picked himself up as he started to feel his arms, making sure they were still there.

"Bloddy hell, Harry, how did you do that?" Ron asked. Hermione began to look him over, making sure he was fine. Even Sirius was taken out of his revenge obsession for a moment as Fluffy ran past them.

"I don't know, but I don't want to do it again," Harry said with a shudder.

"Oh no," Lupin groaned, realizing that Hagrid was not with Fluffy. Sirius suddenly got a wicked grin on his face.

"Oh, this should be interesting," Sirius smirked, his mind making a decision. "Eat him Fluffy!" he shouted, deciding that his godchild was more important. Quickly putting his arm around Harry, he noticed that the change had really shaken him up.

"Harry, are you okay?" asked Hermione. The group moved back to the castle, noting that all the lights inside were on. They were surprised to see Professor McGonagall at the front doors.

"Dear me, what happened to Potter?" she asked, rushing over to Harry. Nobody wanted to answer.

"Harry ran off with the others after Sirius, since he didn't have a wand. He got into a frightful scare with one of creatures out there. Sirius decided it would be best to us back to the castle and get everything checked out, just in case," Hermione explained quickly. The professor nodded, glancing over at Sirius with a look of approval.

"Very well, take him to the infirmary," she ordered as the group quickly moved into the castle. Harry glanced over to see a look of pride swell over his godfather as they walked through the doors. Harry didn't speak as they were led to the hospital wing. He had just been set down when the group heard Fudge shouting, growing louder as well.

"This day has been one problem after the next and now that hippogriff is missing as well," he all but shouted. Harry turned to see Dumbledore enter the room, closely followed by a ranting Fudge. Harry glanced over at Ron and Hermione with a soft smile.

"I heard you had a run-in with something out in the woods. Are you alright, Harry?" asked Dumbledore, promptly ignoring the Minister.

"Just a little shaken, Professor," Harry nodded. Dumbledore patted Harry on the shoulder, satisfied with what he had said.

"Sirius, if you wouldn't mind joining me and the Minister. We have some things we need to discuss," Dumbledore informed.

"You don't mind if I bring Remus with me, do you?" asked Sirius. Lupin seemed a bit surprised as the request but had no issues with it.

"Of course, but there are some things we will have to talk about in private regarding your legal rights," Dumbledore said, momentarily glancing at Harry. He frowned in confusion. Sirius seemed to brighten at this.

"I would be more than happy to take Harry in, if he is interested. As my duty as his godfather would entail," Sirius said, a large smile on his face as he glanced at the teen. Harry visibly brightened at that idea. Dumbledore smiled, but not in a kind way, striking Harry as odd.

"Of course, but you need to come with us. Some things should not be explained in front of children," Fudge informed. The four men exited the room as Harry glanced out of the windows. So many questions raced in his head as he thought about Buckbeak and his godfather.

"Let's hope everything works out all right," Ron said with a shrug, leaning up against the metal hospital bed.

Oh so much more has gone on! And the conclusion should be so interesting! Next chapter will be up before the weekend. R&R as always!

~LE