A/N) I would just like to apologise for the delay… I didn't intend on the next update taking nearly three weeks. All I can say is I had the majority of this chapter written a week ago when I realised I had messed up so I had to go back, rethink and re-plan and make sure all the scenes worked. I then lost the internet and have worked 7 days straight so my writing has been impaired this week. However, this chapter is now here and I just want to thank everyone here who has been very supportive of my decision to not update weekly anymore. It has helped and I hope to update again soon.

Twisting Time

Chapter 31

Sunday 5th April 1992

They had to wait for Dumbledore to return to his office before either James or Lily could discuss with him Harry's decision to help. Madam Pomfrey was watching over their two sons whilst they waited in the confines of his office. Though it was the Easter holidays, they didn't want to be waiting outside the statue for the Headmaster to return.

Remus had joined them though he was leaning against the Headmaster's desk, arms folded across his chest, his facial expression grim. Neither of them spoke. All of them were thinking about what could be happening to Sirius now. They were hoping they would be able to rescue Sirius today but first they needed a plan and for that to form, they needed Dumbledore.

"How long have we been waiting for?" James broke the silence. He needed to say something. He hated the quiet. He didn't want his brain to go running off in a direction he really didn't want it to go to.

"Nearly an hour," answered Remus.

James growled. He had hoped to be leaving by now but the Headmaster seemed to have run off. He hadn't been in his office when they had arrived to talk to him about rescuing Sirius. "Where could he have gone?"

"I think he's been checking the wards surrounding the Graveyard every few hours," admitted Remus. "Poking holes in it to see if he can crack through. I do not believe he feels that comfortable about putting Harry in danger."

James grimaced. Sirius had told them more about his Harry and to James it felt like Dumbledore had been putting everything on his son. Even James had noticed that the Headmaster had placed a lot of attention on Harry whilst growing up, urging them to keep him prepared just in case the Prophecy was still valid. James didn't believe it was. Sirius had changed too much. He wanted to quip about how it hadn't bothered the Headmaster before but he chose not to. "I hope he comes back soon."

Both of the Potters had agreed they needed Dumbledore on the mission to rescue Sirius. It was the only way James and Lily could feel okay-ish about allowing Harry to put himself in danger.

As if on cue, the doors to the office opened and Dumbledore walked in. He didn't seem surprised to see them gathered around his desk.

James immediately stood.

"Ah, I expected to see you here. Has your decision been made?"

Lily nodded for them all. "Yes. Harry wants to help. Both James and I are uneasy about it but we would feel more comfortable if you were with us."

"I always intended on accompanying you," confirmed the Headmaster. "It is imperative we retrieve Sirius from Voldemort's hands. I know if he sees me he will attempt to flee and hopefully will leave Sirius behind in his haste to escape."

Lily leaned forward. "Have you obtained any more information?"

"I have. My observations inform me that only those with a Dark Mark can pass through the wards. None of us have this Mark branded therefore I cannot break through the wards," explained Dumbledore.

"So if we need a Dark Mark will our idea to utilise Harry's bond with Sirius work?" asked James. Could they be in the position where they didn't need to put their son in danger?

"It is possible but we can only try. We cannot leave Sirius in Voldemort's hands. He is much more powerful than Sirius and if he does break into his mind…" The Headmaster trailed off. The consequences of that happening were not something James wanted to consider.

"You know… I've just had a thought," said Remus. "Severus Snape."

James pulled a face. "What do you mean?"

"Well…" the werewolf smirked, leaning back. "He's a Death Eater. He has a Dark Mark. He could get through the wards."

"Why aren't we asking him to get Sirius out?" asked James, turning his attention back to Dumbledore.

"I do not wish to endanger Severus with this mission."

"But it is okay to endanger Harry?" retorted James. Lily stood beside him, her face thunderous.

Dumbledore raised his hands. "Please, let me explain. Severus could be useful further down the line. I want him to infiltrate Voldemort's ranks and spy on him for us. If we use him for this mission, we will lose that advantage. To be able to know what Voldemort is up to, we need a spy and Severus is best placed for that role. He has already agreed that he will return to Voldemort's service when I ask him to." He moved forward and walked around to his desk. "It is not my decision to have Harry aid us. It is advice I gave but I am not ordering it. It is your decision as Harry's parents to put him in this danger. If you wish to continue this discussion we can do so, but we are running out of time."

James exchanged a glance with his wife. They came to a mutual agreement. They wouldn't pursue it for now as they had more important things to do but they wouldn't let Dumbledore forget this.

"Fine," said Lily. "What's the plan?"

Dumbledore smiled. They knew he was relieved James and Lily had dropped their argument. "I have already temporarily suspended the Anti-Apparation wards within this office. Bring Harry here. We will need to guide him into reaching for his bond. All of us will need to hold hands if this is to work. As you are his parents, James, Lily, you may be able to aid him. Do what you can to boost his magical power. If this works we should all be pushed past the wards Voldemort has erected. Once there, we will all begin to duel but only defensively. Harry, under the invisibility cloak, will immediately begin moving towards Sirius as low as possible, unless you believe it is too dangerous to do so. We will need a code-word for him. I will leave what that word is, up to you." He motioned to James and Lily. "Once Harry has reached Sirius, he must wait for the code-word to reveal himself. All of us will immediately run for his position. I hope by the time this has occurred, the wards will have fallen and we can leave with ease."

"And if not?" probed Lily. "How will we escape, especially if we need a Dark Mark to get back through the wards?"

Dumbledore was silent for a few seconds. "We will have to improvise. Just let me deal with it."

James wondered why the Headmaster hadn't just asked Lily to help. She was good at breaking wards but he guessed his wife would be more concerned on her son to concentrate on a specific task.

"I would hope you can still trust me, James," said Dumbledore.

Oh, James knew he could. He just wouldn't be so blind to the man's faults.

Nerves tugged in Harry's stomach. He glanced at both of his parents as they led him up the stairs towards Dumbledore's office. Remus, who had accompanied Harry's parents to collect him from the hospital wing, remained at the bottom of the stairs, though Harry suspected whatever his parents wanted to say to him, Remus would hear anyway. He had excellent hearing.

They stopped by the door leading to the Headmaster's quarters, and his father and mother got down on their knees so they were close to his height. Harry towered over them both slightly. His mother took his hands in hers and when their eyes met he could see his reflection.

"Harry," she said quietly, "this is very important and I need you to listen to me. What we are about to attempt is very dangerous. I need you to do exactly what we say. We both love you too much to lose you and we wouldn't be risking you like this if we had any other choice…"

Harry swallowed. He didn't want to worry his parents. "I know what you are going to say. You want me to do everything you tell me to do. I will. I know how important this is. If I screw up…" He bit his lower lip. "I know it won't just be me who will be in trouble. It could lead to more people… dying."

"We did raise a smart kid," smiled his father.

Harry shook his head. "No, you didn't. If you had then I wouldn't have been duped by Tom so easily…"

His mother pulled him into a strong hug, resting her chin on his shoulder. "Harry, many wizards older than you have been duped by Voldemort. You have nothing to feel sorry about. Voldemort targeted you because he knew Sirius would do anything to protect you… Do not think any of this is your fault. It isn't."

But Harry couldn't think otherwise. He was young and he had made a mistake: a catastrophic mistake that could have led to the deaths of his parents as well. He had a lot to make up for and he would spend the rest of his life working towards achieving that goal. He was scarred and he knew it. The Dark Lord had taken his innocence from him. Harry knew that he could no longer be a child. He had entered the adult world. But he nodded to his mother, accepting her words, but he could never truly believe in them.

"Harry," said his father, "you know what the plan is. Just remember…"

"To listen for 'Pronglet'?" finished Harry.

His father smiled. "That's the special code word we are using for you. Listen for it. And when we do…"

Harry continued his father's words. "Either stop in what I'm doing or reveal myself if I'm by Sirius. Then all of you will join me so we can escape."

"And?" his mother probed. They had elaborated earlier on what they had planned. This was just a revision lesson prior to leaving.

"Take his hand and wait for the rest of you to reach us. If you haven't reached us in exactly thirty seconds I have to leave," said Harry. "But, what if I can only get us in and not out? Sirius will be there. I can't use the bond to get us out, can I?"

"No," his mother confirmed, "but we hope to sabotage the wards whilst we duel so you can leave. If we can bring the wards down, even for a brief second you should be able to escape. And if Sirius can he should be able to Apparate you out without you needing to try."

Harry lowered his head again. "What if I can't do this?" The fear of failure was at the forefront of his mind.

"Harry, we are here to help you. Apparating isn't easy. But I know you can do it," said his father. "We've told you the theory. If we had the chance to help you practice we would be taking it… but we have to take the chance that the bond between you and Sirius works and Apparates you to him on instinct rather than you doing it consciously. I know it is scary but Potters never give up. Even if this doesn't go to plan, we will still love you no matter what. You're trying to help in a difficult situation. You can only do what you can."

Harry nodded. "Ok." He swallowed. The fear was still there. He knew it wouldn't go away. Resolve settled in and his green eyes flashed. "Mum. Dad? Let's do this."

Professor Dumbledore was waiting for them in his office, standing in front of his desk. He smiled sadly at the four of them as they entered. Harry stood between his parents, with Remus flanking his mother.

"Are we ready?" Professor Dumbledore asked quietly. His voice was soft and smooth and reassuring.

Harry took it as a good sign. His mother squeezed his shoulder.

Each of the three adults affirmed they were ready.

"I do not believe we need to go over the plan." The Headmaster's eyes sought Harry's. "I believe everyone is ready."

Harry swallowed.

"Harry, have you got the cloak?" asked his father.

Harry nodded, and pulled out the invisibility cloak from underneath his jumper. "Here." He handed it to his father.

"Okay. Stand still."

The cloak lay on top of his head, covering his small frame. Harry moved his arms out from underneath the cloak. He grasped first his mother's hand and then his father's. He watched from underneath the cloak as Remus grasped his dad's hand and then linked his other with Professor Dumbledore, who's right hand grasped Lily's, making it a full circle.

"Now, Harry. Close your eyes." Dumbledore instructed carefully.

Harry did so, trying to ignore the fear that was building inside his stomach.

"Think of Sirius."

Harry focused his thoughts on his godfather. He was beginning to tremble. Ignoring it, Harry tried his best to think only of Sirius. Images began to swim into his head. Memories of his time with him. And then Harry felt something he hadn't really felt before. A warm feeling in his heart and amongst the memories he saw a shining gold light. But intense pain rippled from the golden light. He nearly felt his concentration slip but Harry realised the pain he had felt and hadn't fully understood was pain his godfather was experiencing right at that moment.

Intrigued by the sensation he was getting from the golden light, Harry sent his thoughts to it. He couldn't hear anything more from the Headmaster but something was telling him to continue. I want to go to him.

It was just a thought. A single line.

Then something tugged at his navel. He felt the cloak move to the side.

He could barely discern the Headmaster's voice. Instinct kicked in. Harry grasped his parent's hands tighter.

And then he felt himself moving.

Sirius was reeling. His mind was feeling fuzzy. His defences were holding. Barely. Voldemort was temporarily giving him relief which meant he was able to recover from some of the pain he had been in. He was constantly shaking. The effects of the Cruciatus was taking its toll.

Still he kept his eyes searching. Looking for anyway out, though being bound the way he was, it would be pretty much impossible. He sighed.

His eyes focused on Voldemort's form approaching him again.

Great. Here we go again.

Voldemort stopped in front of him, holding his wand loosely in his hand. "It would be beneficial for me to kill you now to prevent you from relying what you know to your friends."

Sirius smirked.

"But I suspect they already know. Why tell them and not me?"

Sirius resisted a laugh. Voldemort was really asking him that? "You're not my friend."

"Pity." Voldemort replied lazily. "I know you died and then came back. Tell me how you did that."

Now that was an easy question to answer. "I don't know." He didn't feel bad about that. He did know the answer since he had used the resurrection stone. But he wasn't going to let Voldemort know that.

"Really?"

Sirius decided to play along. "I was dead. How am I supposed to know what happened? I just woke up." Which was true. He had no memory of what had occurred between.

"Why do you insist on keeping things from me? You've changed the life you've lived through, haven't you?" stated Voldemort.

"Maybe."

"Don't take me as a fool, Black. I saw you fall through the Veil in your mind. I saw a boy with messy black hair. And that wasn't James Potter. I've seen him in your head before. Even if you will not tell me I feel assured that Harry Potter defeated me. I still want him dead but I will not attack him myself."

That's a relief. At least Sirius had confirmation Voldemort would not be going after Harry himself. Horcruxes not withstanding.

"I have given you information, perhaps you could return the favour?"

Sirius raised an eyebrow. He was surprised by Voldemort's attempt at politeness. "I have nothing to give. Why confirm when you can just guess anyway?"

"Because I need to know for sure. My guesses could be wrong."

"No. Make me confirm." Sirius' eyes flashed angrily.

"If you insist… Crucio!"

Baiting the Dark Lord wasn't a good idea. Sirius writhed as pain hit his body. And then he felt something bounce against his shields. Voldemort was attempting to get into his mind again.

No! No! NO!

He fought against it. The fact Voldemort could get into his head without eye contact was unnerving but the Dark Lord was powerful, had more knowledge of dark magic than anyone else. Of course the Dark Lord could make it easier on himself by immobilising Sirius and forcing his eyes open. But if he did that he wouldn't be able to torture him effectively to enable weakening of Sirius' mental shields.

Through gritted teeth, Sirius managed to speak. "I… won't…!"

He felt sparks of pain through his head. The Dark Lord's mental onslaught worsened. He was battering the shields continuously, forcing Sirius to attempt to concentrate on his mind or his body. The more pain the torture curse caused the more Sirius wanted to concentrate on his body.

No!

Despite the pain in his head and body, and the screams that were being ripped from his throat, Sirius was unable to ignore the unmistakable crack of Apparition that rocketed through the surrounding air.

The pain stopped immediately.

Groaning, Sirius turned his head and as he opened his eyes, he saw the last person he had expected to see.

The cold, cruel voice of Voldemort echoed around them.

"Potter. How nice of you to join us."

To be continued…

Please let me know what you think!

The next chapter is going to be quite epic… A lot will be happening. I have already started it.

Until next time,

the-writer1988