#Sirius black looked very bony when he escaped Azkaban
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Do you ever just look at a character that's worryingly bony and skinny and just think "Jesus Christ are you okay"
#fictional characters#anorexia tw#bony characters#Sirius black looked very bony when he escaped Azkaban#Eda's kinda bony
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When I fall in love with you
The rain fell hard around her, seeping into the mushy earth, as she walked fastly from the Forbidden Forest, feet sinking into the wet grass. She clutched her books tightly in the crook of her arm, covered by her black cloak, protecting them from the incessant torrents of water falling from the dark sky. Lily and the girls had told her to come back to the castle with them, but she had insisted on staying longer to help Professor Kettleburn with the escaped Nifflers, using the occasion to ask a few more questions about the lesson. Unfortunately, the weather had turned for the worse, resulting in her rushing through the Hogwarts Grounds, soaked to the bone. She was already nearing the castle, walking along the greenhouses, when suddenly a hand shot out of the door of Greenhouse number 3, pulling her into the warmth and moisture of the glasshouse brusquely. The unknown hand wrapped itself tightly around her throat, cold, bony fingers digging into her soft skin. Another arm wound itself around her waist, restraining her and impeding any movement whatsoever. Thrashing and kicking against her assailant's firm grip, she attempted to free herself, in vain.
"Now, now, Miss Cattermole, there's no need for such violence," hissed Malfoy's voice in her ear.
"What...do you...want?" she choked, barely managing to force the words out of her mouth.
Another foreign, freezing hand slapped her across the face, long nails scraping her skin, knocking off her glasses, which fell on the floor.
"Do not open your mouth, unless spoken to, you filthy little mudblood," seethed a high-pitched, slightly crazed voice: Bellatrix Black.
Straining to see, she finally distinguished four blurry figures, all dressed in black.
"The Dark Lord is rising, and someone like you has no place in the Wizarding World. Unfortunately for you, that means eliminating all of you mudbloods, one by one, until no one remains standing. Consider yourself...collateral damage, if you will," whispered her attacker.
"You...can't do...anything...to me. You will be...sent to...Azkaban," said Finn in a raspy voice.
She was nearly suffocating now, throat raw, as she continued struggling to try and escape.
"You're right," he continued. "We may not be able to kill you, but we can certainly inflict pain upon you..."
***
Black spots danced in front of her eyes as she painstakingly peeled them open. Memories of menacing, blurry, dark figures, cold, cruel voices, and a chokingly tight grip around her throat flashed through Finn’s mind, yet she did not remember much more. She did recall feeling an intense wave of fear though before darkness swallowed her. Her body felt sore and exhausted, searing white-hot pain bursting in sporadic spurts along her rib cage and hips. She whimpered feebly as another sharp pang of pain stabbed her head. Suddenly alert and aware that she might still be in danger and that her assailants probably weren’t far, she scrambled for her glasses. They had fallen somewhere near her, she was sure of it, but only dirt and gravel rolled under her palms. Palming her cloak rapidly, she found her wand instead.
“Accio glasses,” she whispered, waving it briefly in front of her.
The familiar shape of the spectacles glided smoothly into her palm, having been laying seemingly close to her. As soon as she put them on, the world sharpened around her and came into focus, the black spots and kaleidoscopic spectrum covering her surroundings disappearing abruptly. The greenhouse around her was filled to the brim with lush plants with waxy leaves and bright, blossoming flowers, strange spindly bushes, vibrant potted plants with twisting tentacles, and other bizarre species of magical herbs and fungi. No one was in sight, she was thankfully alone. She attempted to stand up, but her weak, shaking legs, nearly buckled under her and she stumbled forward, nearly flying face-first into a cactus covered in purple berries. More pain flooded her knees as she slowly took a few tentative steps. Groaning in pain, Finn propped herself up against a wooden worktop. Her blurry reflection stared back at her from the misty glass of the greenhouse, covered in millions of water droplets. The crystal was barely clear enough to reflect her unusual, stark paleness, her brown grimy locks hanging limply over her eyes, and the reddish, rapidly bluing bruises on her neck left by rough fingers. The same bruises were probably blossoming on her hips too now, judging by the pain emanating from there and spreading through her body. Angry, scarlet, crescent-shaped nail marks cut across her cheek, and a deeper gash sliced through them, blood pearling at its edges and steadily trickling down her cold, clammy face. She rummaged briefly through her pockets, hoping to find a napkin leftover from lunch to slow the blood flow but they were empty.
“Fuck!” She swore loudly in frustration.
The pain appeared to stem not only from superficial wounds but also from magical wounds terror deeply inside her organism. She could not go to Madam Pomfrey even though she probably should as she would ask questions, which would inevitably lead to consequences, and more trouble with whoever her attackers were was the last thing she needed. She did not know any healing spells for this or Glamour Charms strong enough to cover all the damage up and neither was she in a state fit to perform them. Her best bet was thus Marlene, the one with the most magi-medical experience since her mother was a Mediwitch. But that meant facing her friends, and Merlin knew what they would do if they found out about the whole story, especially Sirius. With a heavy sigh and wand at the ready, she cautiously slipped out of the greenhouse, resolving to wait a bit until everyone was at dinner to sneak back into her dorm and speak to Marlene alone.
Outside, curtains of rain kept falling and hammering against the glass roof of the greenhouse, sliding down along the fogged-up panels, but they were thinner than before. The sky, a murky shade of gray when she left class, had darkened considerably, now ink black. Not a single star or ray of moonlight was insight, and the vicious cold seeped past her clothes. She must have been unconscious for half an hour at the very least. With a deep sigh, she began making her way between puddles of sombre water and mud. The Hogwarts’ shadow loomed over her threateningly, and the entrance door seemed so far away, a pale golden brown blur in the distance. Clutching her wand tighter, she finally stepped between the fleeting, lurking shadows of the Courtyard’s columns. A single, lonely silhouette stood in the center of it, near the fountain, appearing anxious as they frantically looked around themselves. All of a sudden, she heard it, like a nervous whisper cutting through the roaring wind and water in her ears, and the pain clouding her brain, her name, being called over and over again.
“Finn! FINN!”
And then it hit her. That tall, lanky frame and those short, brown curls she could barely distinguish in the dim light coming from the castle, it was Remus.
“Remus!” she shouted.
Instantly, the figure turned around, and walked rapidly towards her, almost running.
“Finn,” he exclaimed loudly. “I was...I mean we were worried about you, you disappeared after class.”
His voice was unexpectedly ear-splitting, sending pangs of pain through her brain, making her wince with pain.
“Finn,” he repeated cautiously, more quietly. “Are you alright?”
His Welsh accent, which he usually managed to cover up, cut through his words worriedly.
“I’m fine,” she replied shortly, swiftly backing away into the darkness, wrapping her cloak around herself tightly.
“No you are not,” he chided. “What happened?”
“I said I’m fine.”
Her tone was hard and cold, bordering on mean.
“Nothing happened, I swear, I’m alright,” she whispered. “There is no cause for worry.”
“I am not blind, Finn. I see the cut on your face and don’t tell me you fell,” Remus added, seeing that she was about to protest. “Unfortunate accidents do not leave bruises like that.”
He stared sharply at her neck, a dangerous glint playing in his warm brown eyes speckled with green.
“Who was it, love?” He inquired quietly.
Love. He only used that nickname when he was furious, and every time it shook her, sending shivers down her spine.
“I can’t remember,” she sighed.
“What happened? Please tell me, I just want to help.”
His voice had softened once again, concern written all over his face as he raised a gentle hand and brushed a stray strand of hair covered in dirt from her face.
“I was walking back from Care of Magical Creatures class, and someone attacked me near greenhouse number 3, dragged me inside, and…”
“And?”
“Oh Merlin, I remember now,” gasped Finn. “Please don’t tell anyone, not James, not the girls, and especially not Sirius. Regulus was with them and it will only rile him up, things are already𑁋”
“Finn,” he stopped her. “Just explain to me what happened, I promise I won’t tell anyone.”
“I...I can’t...I don’t want to Remus,” she breathed.
“You know you can trust me right?” He asked, putting a soft but heavy hand on her arm.
The young witch trembled lightly, the small touch sending heat and sparks coursing all over her body. He loomed tall over her, almost dangerously, yet she had never felt so safe.
“I will tell you, I swear. Just...not to now, please.”
“Okay.”
She exhaled sharply, before sitting down on the cold stones. Remus kneeled next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, holding her tightly, as if to shelter her from any possible harm. On an impulse, she began to hum, her hushed voice barely hearable over the thundering rain falling around them.
When I fall in love
It will be forever
Or I'll never fall in love
In a restless world
Like this is
Love has ended before it's begun
And too many moonlight kisses
Seem to cool in the warmth of the sun
She was very much aware of the fact that the tall boy was staring at her, while she watched the raindrops fall onto the cobblestones, but she kept going.
When I give my heart
It will be completely
Or I'll never give my heart
And the moment I can feel that
You feel that way too
Is when I fall in love
With you
And the moment I can feel that
You feel that way too
Is when I fall in love with you
“Michael Buble? When I fall in love with you?” He smiled.
“You know it?” She said, surprised.
“Yeah, my muggle aunt used to put some on from time to time.”
He paused.
“You sing beautifully, Finn.”
fanfic written for Finn, the lovely @marauders_aesthetic on Instagram
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“Don’t you love me?” 5 “After everything we’ve been through, you still don’t think that I love you?” 70 please with Sirius/Remus
Hi lovely! Thank you so much this is my first ask ever :''')
This is a bit - a lot - angsty. I really hope you enjoy it and I'm sorry if it's not what you had in mind.
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Eleven year old Sirius Black spent his entire first night at Hogwarts rolling and thrashing in his new bed, drifting in and out of a sleep full of nightmares. He dreamt of that one time his mom used the Cruiciatus curse on him and didn't stop until Regulus was crying so hard he could hardly breathe.
The third time he woke up in sweats, he saw the small figure of Remus move as he sat up in his own bed and looked at Sirius with what he imagined to be an annoyed look on his face in the dark.
Remus got up from his bed and quietly crossed the small distance between his and Sirius' bed,trying not to wake the others up.He sat down on the bed and put his hand on Sirius's shoulder and whispered,"Are you okay?"
That night Remus and Sirius sneaked out of their room into the Gryffindor common room and talked for hours and they fell asleep in front of the fire together.
When Sirius woke up again, the sun hadn't fully risen yet. He sat there and watched as Remus' eyes fluttered behind his eyelids. He felt a pang of affection in his heart for the boy.
Up until the very end, if you asked Sirius Black when he realised his feelings for Remus Lupin, he'd tell you the first time he watched Remus as he slept.
For Remus, it took a bit longer to realize what it meant when his heart fluttered when Sirius walked into a room, or why he felt a burn in the place Sirius' hand would brush his own.
He was about fifteen when he finally admitted to himself that he had wanted to kiss Sirius for longer than he could remember. So he did.
Their insecurities in their bodies and the inconveniences they faced living in a room with three other boys set a very slow pace to their relationship. They took things slow, making out in broom closets and giving each other hand jobs when there was no one else in their dorm room.
The night of Lily and James' wedding, as everyone danced the night away, they found an empty room, Sirius a bit drunk and Remus completely sober.
Remus walked into the room after Sirius, turned Sirius around and slowly backed him up against the door, closing the door in the process.
He kissed Sirius, slowly at first, Sirius' lips hungry, his tongue almost immediately running over Remus' lips. Remus moaned and traced his hand down Sirius' chest, slowly nearing the waistband of his dress pants. He tugged at his belt and Sirius gave a groan, looking up at Remus, his eyes dark with lust.
"Do you want this?" Remus whispered against Sirius' lips.
Sirius said yes. That was the first time Remus made love to Sirius.
When Sirius was sent to Azkaban, Remus couldn't fall asleep for several months. He sat awake at his kitchen table, staring into the dark. More often than not, tears would stream down his face and he would sob for hours with no one to comfort him.
Remus missed Sirius with all of his heart and soul. He missed the feel of his curly long hair on his fingers and the bitter smell of the perfume he insisted on wearing and the way he put his lips so close to Remus' without kissing him.
*****
Remus turned to his side on the bed, taking in the sight of Sirius beside him, his chest bare, his tattoos stretched across his now bony body. He traced his fingers along Sirius' jawline, his cheekbones, running a finger over his moustache. A tear escaped his eyes.
Sirius pressed his lips to his cheeks, kissing away the tear.
Remus kissed him hard and put his hand under the blanket, running his hands down Sirius' thighs. Sirius pulled away.
"We can't, Remus," Sirius whispered.
"Why not? Don't you love me anymore?"
"Baby, after all that we've been through, do you still not believe that I love you? I waited to be with you for twelve years in that hell! Remus, I loved you from the very first night. I died loving you."
Remus woke up, panting, his cheeks wet from crying, his hands clutching the sheets where Sirius had been lying seconds ago.
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Chapter 19: The Servant of Lord Voldemort
I mentioned before that I am not a huge fan of Snape and this chapter doesn’t help change my opinion on him. It really really doesn’t.
So within minutes Snape ties up Lupin, threatens to kill Sirius and insults both Hermione and Harry. He refers several times to Lupin as “the werewolf”, completely dehumanizing him (and he ties up Lupin, not Sirius, who is an assumingly mass murderer). He is completely beyond reason, refuses to listen to anyone, completely convinced of his version of events to the point where he would give over two men to the Dementors, one of them who had been his colleague for the better part of a year. Snape is a man stuck in the past, both in his hatred for Sirius and Lupin, and his love for Lily, unable to let go and move on, and in his bitterness he can’t see beyond his past.
“‘Two more for Azkaban tonight,’ said Snape, his eyes now gleaming fanatically. […] ‘KEEP QUIET, YOU STUPID GIRL!’ Snape shouted, looking suddenly quite deranged. […] But there was a mad glint in Snape’s eye that Harry had never seen before. He seemed beyond reason.” – All of this is of course told from Harry’s perspective, who is already biased in his hatred for Snape. And yet it paints a clear picture of how unstable and therefore dangerous Snape is.
“‘We attacked a teacher … we attacked a teacher …’ Hermione whimpered, staring at the lifeless Snape with frightened eyes. ‘Oh, we’re going to be in so much trouble –’” – And this is the worst for Hermione, not just that they attacked someone, but that it was a teacher, a figure of authority, no matter how utterly disrespectful Snape treats Hermione.
I did some reading on rats (they are actually quite cute pets) and not only was it suspicious that Scabbers had been alive for 12 years (common rats get 2-3 years old) but rats are also very social animals, who live in packs of at least 3. Like if you ever meet a rat who likes to be on its own and lives quite long… get suspicious.
“’This cat isn’t mad,’ said Black hoarsely. He reached out a bony hand and stroked Crookshanks’s fluffy head. ‘He’s the most intelligent of his kind I’ve ever met.’” – Of course the brightest witch of her age would happen to choose the smartest pet there is. Did I mention how much I love Crookshanks?
Sirius says that Peter had been hiding from Voldemort’s followers in the last twelve years, that he heard things at Azkaban, implying that they did in fact knew who the spy was. Earlier though it seemed like they didn’t know, because Draco had teased Harry about Black, making it seem that he (and therefore most likely his father) just knew the official version, that Sirius was the secret-keeper. So who exactly knew the truth? How much did Snape knew? Because if he thought Sirius to be responsible for Lily’s death it would explain to some degree his fanatic behaviour. And yet Harry, who lost his parents that night, gives Lupin and Sirius a chance to tell the truth, the way Snape didn’t. Snape and Harry do mirror each other, with both finding themselves in similar situations, and yet their choices couldn’t be more different.
But what if Sirius had been the secret keeper and kept his promise and died for it, without ever telling anyone, would the Potters have been hidden forever? Can you literal take a secret to the grave?
“Black was frowning slightly at Hermione, but not as though he was annoyed with her. He seemed to be pondering his answer.” – There is also a great difference how both Lupin and Sirius treat Hermione when she asks a question compared to Snape. They don’t look down to her or call her a “stupid girl”, but rather treat her as an equal, as someone who has the right to ask questions, and who deserves an honest answer.
As I wrote before Sirius intention wasn’t to prove his innocence and to get his life back. His only thought was his obsession with Peter and preventing him from harming Harry (of course ironically if Sirius hadn’t escaped Peter wouldn’t have had a reason to return to Voldemort, which resulted in his rebirth, so what started to protect Harry ended in Voldemort’s return). And this wasn’t a happy thought, so the Dementors couldn’t take it away from him. Sirius was no longer able to be happy, to want something for himself, he no longer cared about himself and his life. This is what Dementors are making of their victims: beings who have long given up the will to live.
“Ron’s face was set. He seemed to have taken Scabbers’s true identity as a personal insult.” – The fact that Ron volunteered to chain himself to Peter is based on the fact that he probably feels guilty and to a degree responsible for what happened. Scabbers was his pet, he brought him to the school, he put Harry’s life unknowingly in danger. None of what happened is of course his fault, but it tells you something about Ron as a person that he still takes responsibility.
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20. Sirius Black
Harry went down to breakfast to find the three Dursleys already sitting around the kitchen table. They were watching a brand-new television, a welcome-home-for-the-summer present for Dudley, who had been complaining loudly about the long walk between the fridge and the television in the living room. Dudley had spent most of his summer in the kitchen, his piggy little eyes fixed on the screen and his five chins wobbling as he ate continually.
Harry sat between Dudley and Uncle Vernon, a large, beefy man with very little neck and a lot of moustache. Far from wishing Harry a happy birthday, none of the Dursleys have any sign that they had noticed Harry enter the room, but Harry was far too use to this to care. He helped himself to a piece of toast and then looked up at the newsreader on the television and almost fell off his chair.
The report was about an escaped convict. And through the gaunt face and matted, elbow-length tangle of hair, there Harry felt sure he recognised the man.
'... the public is warned that Black is armed and extremely dangerous. A special hotline has been set up, and any sighting of Black should be reported immediately.'
That confirmed it then, this man was the brother of Professor Black, the Potions Master at Hogwarts. For just over a year now Harry had known that Professor Black had a brother, one who had been friends with his own father no less. And then, at the start of this year, when he and his friends were doing research into who the Heir of Slytherin might be Harry discovered that he had been sent to Azkaban for the murder of 12 Muggles.
'No need to tell us he's no good,' snorted Uncle Vernon, starting over the top of his newspaper at the prisoner. 'Look at the state of him, the filthy layabout! Look at his hair!'
He shot a nasty look at Harry, whose untidy hair had always been a source of great annoyance to Uncle Vernon. Harry daren't tell him that Black was a wizard, he didn't feel that would go down too well.
The newsreader had reappeared.
'The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries will announce today -'
'Hang on!' barked Uncle Vernon, starting furiously at the newsreader. 'You didn't tell us where that maniac's escaped from! What use is that? Lunatic could be coming up the street right now!'
Aunt Petunia, who was bony and horse-faced, who's around and peered intently out of the kitchen window. Harry knew Aunt Petunia would love to be the one to call the hotline number. She was the nosiest woman in the world and spent most of her life spying on her boring, law-abiding neighbours.
'When will they learn,' said Uncle Vernon, pounding the table with his large purple fist, 'that hanging's the only way to deal with these people?'
'Very true,' said Aunt Petunia, who was still squinting into next door's runner beans.
Uncle Vernon drained his teacup, glanced at his watch and added, 'I'd better be off in a minute, Petunia, Marge's train gets in at ten.'
Harry's mind was taken from one unpleasant thought to another.
...
Stan had unfurled a copy of the Daily Prophet and was now reading with his tongue between his teeth. A large photograph of a sunken-faced man with long, matted hair blinked slowly at Harry from the front page. It was Professor Black's brother.
'That man!' Harry said, forgetting his troubles for a moment. 'He was on the Muggle news!'
Stanley turned to the front page and chuckled.
'Sirius Black,' he said, nodding. ''Course 'e was on the Muggles news, Neville. Where you been?'
He gave a superior sort of chuckle at the blank look on Harry's face, removed the front page and handed it to Harry.
'You oughta read the papers more, Neville.'
Harry held the paper up to the candlelight and read:
BLACK STILL AT LARGE
Sirius Black, possibly the most infamous prisoner ever to be held in Azkaban fortress, is still evading capture, the Ministry of Magic confirmed today.
'We are doing all we can to recapture Black,' said the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, this morning, 'and we beg for the magical community to remain calm.'
Fudge has been criticised by some members of the International Federation of Warlocks for informing the Muggle Prime Minister of the crisis.
'Well, really, I had to, don't you know,' said an irritable Fudge. 'Black is mad. He's a danger to anyone who crosses him, magic or Muggle. I have the Prime Minister's assurance that he will not breathe a word of Black's true identity to anyone. And let's face it - who'd believe him if he did?'
While Muggles have been told that Black is carrying a gun (a kind of metal wand which Muggles use to kill each other), the magical community lives in fear of a massacre like that of twelve years ago, when Black murdered thirteen people with a single curse.
Thirteen. Harry was sure Hermione said it was twelve Muggles that Professor Black's brother had murdered.
'Scary-lookin' fing, inee?' said Stan, who had been watching Harry read.
'He murdered thirteen people?' said Harry, handing the page back to Stan.
'Yep,' said Stan. 'In front of witnesses an' all. Broad daylight. Big trouble it caused, dinnit, Ern?'
'Ar,' said Ern darkly.
Stan swivelled in his armchair, his hands on the back, the better to look at Harry.
'Black woz a big supporter of You-Know-'Oo,' he said.
'What, Voldemort?' said Harry, without thinking.
Even Stan's pimples went white; Ern jerked the steering wheel so hard that a whole farmhouse had to jump aside to avoid the bus.
'You outta your tree?' yelped Stan. ''Choo say his name for?'
'Sorry,' said Harry hastily. 'Sorry, I - I forgot -'
'Forgot!' said Stan weakly. 'Blimey, my 'eart's goin' that fast ...'
'So - so black was a supporter of You-Know-Who?' Harry promoted apologetically.
'Yeah,' said Stan, still rubbing his chest. 'Yeah that's right. Very close to You-Know-'Oo, they say ... anyway, when little 'Arry Potter put paid to You-Know-'Oo' - Harry nervously flattened his fringe down again - 'all You-Know_'Oo's supporters was tracked down, wasn't they, Ern? Most of 'em knew it was all over, wiv You-Know-'Oo gone, and they came quiet. But not Sirius Black. I 'eard he thought 'e'd be second-in-command once You-Know-'Oo 'ad taken over.
'Anyway, they cornered Black in the middle of a street full of Muggles an' Black took out 'is wand and 'e blasted 'alf the street apart, an' a wizard got it, an' so did a dozen Muggles what got in the way. 'Orrible, eh?'
So he murdered a wizard as well as the twelve Muggles. Black was a powerful and evil wizard alright.
''An you know what Black did then?' Stan continued in a dramatic whisper.
'What?' said Harry.
'Laughed, said Stan. 'Jus' stood there an' laughed. An' when reinforcements from the Ministry of Magic got there, 'e went wiv 'em quiet as anyfink, still laughing 'is 'ead off. 'Cos 'e's mad, inee, Ern? Inee mad?'
'If he weren't when he went into Azkaban, he will be now,' said Ern in his slow voice. 'I'd blow meself up before I set foot in that place. Serves him right, mind ... after what he did ...'
'They 'ad a job coverin' it up, din' they, Ern?' Stan said. ''Ole street blown up an' all them Muggles dead. What was it they said 'ad 'appened, Ern?'
'Gas explosion,' grunted Ern.
'An' now 'e's out,' said Stan, examining the newspaper picture of Black's gaunt face again. 'Never been a breakout from Azkaban before, 'as there, Ern? Beats me 'ow 'e did it. Frightenin', eh? Mind, I don't fancy 'is chances against them Azkaban guards, eh, Ern.'
Ernie suddenly shivered.
'Talk about summat else, Stan, there's a good lad. Then Azkaban guards give me the collywobbles.'
Stan put the paper away reluctantly and Harry leant against the window of the Knight Bus, feeling worse than ever. This Sirius was a murderer all right, and a supporter of Voldemort. And Harry's dad had been best friends with him, what kind of a man did that mean he was?
____________________________________________________
I find it quite fun when Harry knows that Sirius Black and his dad were friends. That'll be interesting to explore for this part of the story.
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Unsung Heroes: Crookshanks - Pottermore
Can cats receive the Order of Merlin? If not, they should. Here’s our case for Crookshanks, and why he deserves more praise.
A purr-fect match
Hermione always stands up for the underdog (or ‘undercat’ in this instance) and this is precisely how she and Crookshanks met. To her, an animal going unwanted at The Magical Menagerie just because they’re not pretty was totally wrong, and thus, a great staple to Harry’s friendship group was made.
For Hermione, it was love at first sight. But not everyone was a fan of her new pet.
Ron buckled as something huge and orange came soaring from the top of the highest cage, landed on his head and then propelled itself, spitting madly, at Scabbers.
‘NO, CROOKSHANKS, NO!’ cried the witch, but Scabbers shot from between her hands like a bar of soap, landed splay-legged on the floor and then scarpered for the door.
‘Scabbers!’ Ron shouted, haring out of the shop after him.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
For a while, it really seemed like Crookshanks was simply fulfilling his role as a cat by wanting to feast heartily on Ron’s rat Scabbers - leading to many heated arguments between Ron and Hermione. As we later learned, Crookshanks was only doing this because he’d worked out Scabbers wasn’t all what he seemed, far before anyone else had.
‘What was that?’
‘It was either a very big cat or quite a small tiger,’ said Harry.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
A cat genius
Due to the slight misunderstanding, Crookshanks spent his first year at Hogwarts being kicked, sat on and repeatedly shouted at by Gryffindor students. Yep, that’s the thanks you got for trying to protect someone from a murdererous intruder.
Eventually Crookshanks found an ally in the escaped convict Sirius Black, of all people, disguised as Padfoot the dog, finally having someone understand him. Throughout the year, the supposedly troublesome kitty actually contributed to the unmasking of Peter Pettigrew, obtained the passwords to Gryffindor tower (sorry about it, Neville) and even carried the order form for Harry’s Firebolt. Yes, Crookshanks even dealt with the admin.
‘Hi,’ chorused Harry, Ron and Hermione, all three kneeling down on the hearthrug. Crookshanks purred loudly and approached the fire, trying, despite the heat, to put his face close to Sirius’s.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Feline fine
But how did Crookshanks know that Scabbers was up to no good? That might have something to do with his parentage…
The Kneazle is intelligent, independent and occasionally aggressive, though if it takes a liking to a witch or wizard, it makes an excellent pet. The Kneazle has an uncanny ability to detect unsavoury or sus-picious characters and can be relied upon to guide its owner safely home if they are lost.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Sound familiar? Bear in mind, Kneazles are known to crossbreed with domestic cats. Crookshanks always knew when people were up to no good, even if they were only planning to cheat on their homework. Plus he made sure to guide Hermione and her friends safely through the Shrieking Shack and back again. Very Kneazle-like indeed.
‘Oh, help, help,’ Hermione whispered frantically, dancing uncertainly on the spot, ‘please ...’
Crookshanks darted forwards. He slithered between the battering branches like a snake and placed his front paws upon a knot on the trunk.
Abruptly, as though the tree had been turned to marble, it stopped moving. Not a leaf twitched or shook.
‘Crookshanks!’ Hermione whispered uncertainly. She now grasped Harry’s arm painfully hard. ‘How did he know –?’
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
After stopping Harry and Hermione getting clobbered by the Whomping Willow, Crookshanks bravely defended Sirius Black. When Harry got his wand at the ready and prepared to avenge the murder of his parents, Crookshanks leapt on to Sirius’s chest and refused to budge. Whether or not Harry would have gone through with it we’ll never know, but Crookshanks stopped him in his tracks when he was dangerously close to the edge.
‘This cat isn’t mad,’ said Black hoarsely. He reached out a bony hand and stroked Crookshanks’s fluffy head. ‘He’s the most intelligent of his kind I’ve ever met.’
Prisoner of Azkaban
Soon afterwards the truth came out and Crookshanks started leading the troops back to the castle. Without this faithful feline, things might have turned out quite differently. Even Ron changed his tune and made peace with Crookshanks on the train home:
He looked closely at the owl for a moment, then, to Harry and Hermione’s great surprise, he held him out for Crookshanks to sniff.
‘What d’you reckon?’ Ron asked the cat. ‘Definitely an owl?’
Crookshanks purred.
‘That’s good enough for me,’ said Ron happily.
Prisoner of Azkaban
The last we see of Crookshanks is at the Burrow in Deathly Hallows before the trio are forced to make a hasty exit. We don’t know where he ended up after the Battle of Hogwarts but here’s hoping he was reunited with Hermione and led a happy, purr-ceful life. Crookshanks, you can be our hero, baby.
#crookshanks#kneazles#familiars#cats#animals#hermione granger#ron weasley#sirius black#peter pettigrew#characters#pottermore
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The Servant of Lord Voldemort
Hermione screamed. Black leapt to his feet. Harry felt as though he'd received a huge electric shock.
"I found this at the base of the Whomping Willow," said Snape, throwing the cloak aside, careful to keep this wand pointing directly at Lupin's chest. "Very useful, Potter, I thank you...."
Snape was slightly breathless, but his face was full of suppressed triumph. "You're wondering, perhaps, how I knew you were here?" he said, his eyes glittering. "I've just been to your office, Lupin. You forgot to take your potion tonight, so I took a gobletful along. And very lucky I did...lucky for me, I mean. Lying on your desk was a certain map. One glance at it told me all I needed to know. I saw you running along this passageway and out of sight."
"Severus --" Lupin began, but Snape overrode him.
"I've told the headmaster again and again that you're helping your old friend Black into the castle, Lupin, and here's the proof. Not even I dreamed you would have the nerve to use this old place as your hideout --"
"Severus, you're making a mistake," said Lupin urgently. "You haven't heard everything -- I can explain -- Sirius is not here to kill Harry --"
"Two more for Azkaban tonight," said Snape, his eyes now gleaming fanatically. "I shall be interested to see how Dumbledore takes this...He was quite convinced you were harmless, you know, Lupin...a tame werewolf --"
"You fool," said Lupin softly. "Is a schoolboy grudge worth putting an innocent man back inside Azkaban?"
BANG! Thin, snakelike cords burst from the end of Snape's wand and twisted themselves around Lupin's mouth, wrists, and ankles; he overbalanced and fell to the floor, unable to move. With a roar of rage, Black started toward Snape, but Snape pointed his wand straight between Black's eyes.
"Give me a reason," he whispered. "Give me a reason to do it, and I swear I will."
Black stopped dead. It would have been impossible to say which face showed more hatred.
Harry stood there, paralyzed, not knowing what to do or whom to believe. He glanced around at Ron and Hermione. Ron looked just as confused as he did, still fighting to keep hold on the struggling Scabbers. Hermione, however, took an uncertain step toward Snape and said, in a very breathless voice, "Professor Snape -- it wouldn't hurt to hear what they've got to say, w-would it?"
"Miss Granger, you are already facing suspension from this school," Snape spat. "You, Potter, and Weasley are out-of-bounds, in the company of a convicted murderer and a werewolf. For once in your life, hold your tongue."
"But if -- if there was a mistake --"
"KEEP QUIET, YOU STUPID GIRL!" Snape shouted, looking suddenly quite deranged. "DON'T TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!" A few sparks shot out of the end of his wand, which was still pointed at Black's face. Hermione fell silent.
"Vengeance is very sweet," Snape breathed at Black. "How I hoped I would be the one to catch you...."
"The joke's on you again, Severus," Black snarled. "As long as this boy brings his rat up to the castle" -- he jerked his head at Ron -- "I'll come quietly...."
"Up to the castle?" said Snape silkily. "I don't think we need to go that far. All I have to do is call the Dementors once we get out of the Willow. They'll be very pleased to see you, Black...pleased enough to give you a little kiss, I daresay...I --"
What little color there was in Black's face left it.
"You -you've got to hear me out," he croaked. "The rat -- look at the rat --"
But there was a mad glint in Snape's eyes that Harry had never seen before. He seemed beyond reason.
"Come on, all of you," he said. He clicked his fingers, and the ends of the cords that bound Lupin flew to his hands. "I'll drag the werewolf. Perhaps the Dementors will have a kiss for him too --"
Before he knew what he was doing, Harry had crossed the room in three strides and blocked the door.
"Get out of the way, Potter, you're in enough trouble already," snarled Snape. "If I hadn't been here to save your skin --"
"Professor Lupin could have killed me about a hundred times this year," Harry said. "I've been alone with him loads of times, having defense lessons against the Dementors. If he was helping Black, why didn't he just finish me off then?"
"Don't ask me to fathom the way a werewolf's mind works," hissed Snape. "Get out of the way, Potter."
"YOU'RE PATHETIC!" Harry yelled. "JUST BECAUSE THEY MADE A FOOL OF YOU AT SCHOOL YOU WON'T EVEN LISTEN --"
"SILENCE! I WILL NOT BE SPOKEN TO LIKE THAT!" Snape shrieked, looking madder than ever. "Like father, like son, Potter! I have just saved your neck; you should be thanking me on bended knee! You would have been well served if he'd killed you! You'd have died like your father, too arrogant to believe you might be mistaken in Black -- now get out of the way, or I will make you. GET OUT OF THE WAY, POTTER!"
Harry made up his mind in a split second. Before Snape could take even one step toward him, he had raised his wand.
"Expelliarmus!" he yelled -- except that his wasn't the only voice that shouted. There was a blast that made the door rattle on its hinges; Snape was lifted off his feet and slammed into the wall, then slid down it to the floor, a trickle of blood oozing from under his hair. He had been knocked out.
Harry looked around. Both Ron and Hermione had tried to disarm Snape at exactly the same moment. Snape's wand soared in a high arc and landed on the bed next to Crookshanks.
"You shouldn't have done that," said Black, looking at Harry.
"You should have left him to me...."
Harry avoided Black's eyes. He wasn't sure, even now, that he'd done the right thing.
"We attacked a teacher...We attacked a teacher..." Hermione whimpered, staring at the lifeless Snape with frightened eyes. "Oh, we're going to be in so much trouble --"
Lupin was struggling against his bonds. Black bent down quickly and untied him. Lupin straightened up, rubbing his arms where the ropes had cut into them.
"Thank you, Harry," he said.
"I'm still not saying I believe you," he told Lupin.
"Then it's time we offered you some proof," said Lupin. "You, boy -- give me Peter, please. Now."
Ron clutched Scabbers closer to his chest.
"Come off it," he said weakly. "Are you trying to say he broke out of Azkaban just to get his hands on Scabbers? I mean..." He looked up at Harry and Hermione for support, "Okay, say Pettigrew could turn into a rat -- there are millions of rats -- how's he supposed to know which one he is after if he was locked up in Azkaban?"
"You know, Sirius, that's a fair question," said Lupin, turning to Black and frowning slightly. "How did you find out where he was?"
Black put one of his claw-like hands inside his robes and took out a crumpled piece of paper, which he smoothed flat and held out to show the others.
It was the photograph of Ron and his family that had appeared in the Daily Prophet the previous summer, and there, on Ron's shoulder, was Scabbers.
"How did you get this?" Lupin asked Black, thunderstruck.
"Fudge," said Black. "When he came to inspect Azkaban last year, he gave me his paper. And there was Peter, on the front page on this boy's shoulder...I knew him at once...how many times had I seen him transform? And the caption said the boy would be going back to Hogwarts...to where Harry was..."
"My God," said Lupin softly, staring from Scabbers to the picture in the paper and back again. "His front paw..."
"What about it?" said Ron defiantly.
"He's got a toe missing," said Black.
"Of course," Lupin breathed. "So simple...so brilliant...he cut it off himself?"
"Just before he transformed," said Black. "When I cornered him, he yelled for the whole street to hear that I'd betrayed Lily and James. Then, before I could curse him, he blew apart the street with the wand behind his back, killed everyone within twenty feet of himself -- and sped down into the sewer with the other rats...."
"Didn't you ever hear, Ron?" said Lupin. "The biggest bit of Peter they found was his finger."
"Look, Scabbers probably had a fight with another rat or something! He's been in my family for ages, right --"
"Twelve years, in fact," said Lupin. "Didn't you ever wonder why he was living so long?"
"We -- we've been taking good care of him!" said Ron.
"Not looking too good at the moment, though, is he?" said Lupin. "I'd guess he's been losing weight ever since he heard Sirius was on the loose again...."
"He's been scared of that mad cat!" said Ron, nodding toward Crookshanks, who was still purring on the bed.
But that wasn't right, Harry thought suddenly...Scabbers had been looking ill before he met Crookshanks... ever since Ron's return from Egypt...since the time when Black had escaped....
"This cat isn't mad," said Black hoarsely. He reached out a bony hand and stroked Crookshanks's fluffy head. "He's the most intelligent of his kind I've ever met. He recognized Peter for what he was right away. And when he met me, he knew I was no dog. It was a while before he trusted me...Finally, I managed to communicate to him what I was after, and he's been helping me..."
"What do you mean?" breathed Hermione.
"He tried to bring Peter to me, but couldn't...so he stole the passwords into Gryffindor Tower for me...As I understand it, he took them from a boy's bedside table..."
Harry's brain seemed to be sagging under the weight of what he was hearing. It was absurd...and yet...
"But Peter got wind of what was going on and ran for it." croaked Black. "This cat -- Crookshanks, did you call him? -- told me Peter had left blood on the sheets...I supposed he bit himself...Well, faking his own death had worked once."
These words jolted Harry to his senses.
"And why did he fake his death?" he said furiously. "Because he knew you were about to kill him like you killed my parents!"
"No," said Lupin, "Harry--"
"And now you've come to finish him off!"
"Yes, I have," said Black, with an evil look at Scabbers.
"Then I should've let Snape take you!" Harry shouted.
"Harry," said Lupin hurriedly, "don't you see? All this time we've thought Sirius betrayed your parents, and Peter tracked him down -- but it was the other way around, don't you see? Peter betrayed your mother and father -- Sirius tracked Peter down --"
"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Harry yelled. "HE WAS THEIR SECRET-KEEPER! HE SAID SO BEFORE YOU TURNED UP. HE SAID HE KILLED THEM!"
He was pointing at Black, who shook his head slowly; the sunken eyes were suddenly over bright.
"Harry...I as good as killed them," he croaked. "I persuaded Lily and James to change to Peter at the last moment, persuaded them to use him as Secret-Keeper instead of me...I'm to blame, I know it...The night they died, I'd arranged to check on Peter, make sure he was still safe, but when I arrived at his hiding place, he'd gone. Yet there was no sign of a struggle. It didn't feel right. I was scared. I set out for your parents' house straight away. And when I saw their house, destroyed, and their bodies...I realized what Peter must've done...what I'd done...."
His voice broke. He turned away.
"Enough of this," said Lupin, and there was a steely note in his voice Harry had never heard before. "There's one certain way to prove what really happened. Ron, give me that rat."
"What are you going to do with him if I give him to you?" Ron asked Lupin tensely.
"Force him to show himself," said Lupin. "If he really is a rat, it won't hurt him."
Ron hesitated. Then at long last, he held out Scabbers and Lupin took him. Scabbers began to squeak without stopping, twisting and turning, his tiny black eyes bulging in his head. "Ready, Sirius?" said Lupin.
Black had already retrieved Snape's wand from the bed. He approached Lupin and the struggling rat, and his wet eyes suddenly seemed to be burning in his face.
"Together?" he said quietly.
"I think so", said Lupin, holding Scabbers tightly in one hand and his wand in the other. "On the count of three. One -- two -- THREE!"
A flash of blue-white light erupted from both wands; for a moment, Scabbers was frozen in midair, his small gray form twisting madly -- Ron yelled -- the rat fell and hit the floor. There was another blinding flash of light and then --
It was like watching a speeded-up film of a growing tree. A head was shooting upward from the ground; limbs were sprouting; a moment later, a man was standing where Scabbers had been, cringing and wringing his hands. Crookshanks was spitting and snarling on the bed; the hair on his back was standing up.
He was a very short man, hardly taller than Harry and Hermione. His thin, colorless hair was unkempt and there was a large bald patch on top. He had the shrunken appearance of a plump man who has lost a lot of weight in a short time. His skin looked grubby, almost like Scabbers's fur, and something of the rat lingered around his pointed nose and his very small, watery eyes. He looked around at them all, his breathing fast and shallow. Harry saw his eyes dart to the door and back again.
"Well, hello, Peter," said Lupin pleasantly, as though rats frequently erupted into old school friends around him. "Long time, no see."
"S--Sirius...R--Remus..." Even Pettigrew's voice was squeaky. Again, his eyes darted toward the door. "My friends...my old friends..."
Black's wand arm rose, but Lupin seized him around the wrist, gave him a warning took, then turned again to Pettigrew, his voice light and casual.
"We've been having a little chat, Peter, about what happened the night Lily and James died. You might have missed the finer points while you were squeaking around down there on the bed --"
"Remus," gasped Pettigrew, and Harry could see beads of sweat breaking out over his pasty face, "you don't believe him, do you...? He tried to kill me, Remus...."
"So we've heard," said Lupin, more coldly. "I'd like to clear up one or two little matters with you, Peter, if you'll be so --"
"He's come to try and kill me again!" Pettigrew squeaked suddenly, pointing at Black, and Harry saw that he used his middle finger, because his index was missing. "He killed Lily and James and now he's going to kill me too...You've got to help me, Remus...."
Black's face looked more skull-like than ever as he stared at Pettigrew with his fathomless eyes.
"No one's going to try and kill you until we've sorted a few things out," said Lupin.
"Sorted things out?" squealed Pettigrew, looking wildly about him once more, eyes taking in the boarded windows and, again, the only door. "I knew he'd come after me! I knew he'd be back for me! I've been waiting for this for twelve years!"
"You knew Sirius was going to break out of Azkaban?" said Lupin, his brow furrowed. "When nobody has ever done it before?"
"He's got dark powers the rest of us can only dream of!" Pettigrew shouted shrilly. "How else did he get out of there? I suppose He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named taught him a few tricks!"
Black started to laugh, a horrible, mirthless laugh that filled the whole room.
"Voldemort, teach me tricks?" he said.
Pettigrew flinched as though Black had brandished a whip at him.
"What, scared to hear your old master's name?" said Black. "I don't blame you, Peter. His lot aren't very happy with you, are they?"
"Don't know what you mean, Sirius --" muttered Pettigrew, his breathing faster than ever. His whole face was shining with sweat now.
"You haven't been hiding from me for twelve years," said Black. "You've been hiding from Voldemort's old supporters. I heard things in Azkaban, Peter...They all think you're dead, or you'd have to answer to them...I've heard them screaming all sorts of things in their sleep. Sounds like they think the double-crosser double-crossed them. Voldemort went to the Potters' on your information...and Voldemort met his downfall there. And not all Voldemort's supporters ended up in Azkaban, did they? There are still plenty out here, biding their time, pretending they've seen the error of their ways. If they ever got wind that you were still alive, Peter --"
"Don't know...what you're talking about..." said Pettigrew again, more shrilly than ever. He wiped his face on his sleeve and looked up at Lupin. "You don't believe this -- this madness, Remus --"
"I must admit, Peter, I have difficulty in understanding why an innocent man would want to spend twelve years as a rat," said Lupin evenly.
"Innocent, but scared!" squealed Pettigrew. "If Voldemort's supporters were after me, it was because I put one of their best men in Azkaban -- the spy, Sirius Black!"
Black's face contorted.
"How dare you," he growled, sounding suddenly like the bearsized dog he had been. "I, a spy for Voldemort? When did I ever sneak around people who were stronger and more powerful than myself? But you, Peter -- I'll never understand why I didn't see you were the spy from the start. You always liked big friends who'd look after you, didn't you? It used to be us...me and Remus...and James..."
Pettigrew wiped his face again; he was almost panting for breath.
"Me, a spy...must be out of your mind...never...don't know how you can say such a --"
"Lily and James only made you Secret-Keeper because I suggested it," Black hissed, so venomously that Pettigrew took a step backward. "I thought it was the perfect plan...a bluff...Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they'd use a weak, talentless thing like you...It must have been the finest moment of your miserable life, telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters."
Pettigrew was muttering distractedly; Harry caught words like "far-fetched" and "lunacy," but he couldn't help paying more attention to the ashen color of Pettigrew's face and the way his eyes continued to dart toward the windows and door.
"Professor Lupin?" said Hermione timidly. "Can -- can I say something?"
"Certainly, Hermione," said Lupin courteously.
"Well -- Scabbers -- I mean, this -- this man -- he's been sleeping in Harry's dormitory for three years. If he's working for You-Know-Who, how come he never tried to hurt Harry before now?"
"There!" said Pettigrew shrilly, pointing at Ron with his maimed hand. "Thank you! You see, Remus? I have never hurt a hair of Harry's head! Why should I?"
"I'll tell you why," said Black. "Because you never did anything for anyone unless you could see what was in it for you. Voldemort's been in hiding for fifteen years, they say he's half dead. You weren't about to commit murder right under Albus Dumbledore's nose, for a wreck of a wizard who'd lost all of his power, were you? You'd want to be quite sure he was the biggest bully in the playground before you went back to him, wouldn't you? Why else did you find a wizard family to take you in? Keeping an ear out for news, weren't you, Peter? Just in case your old protector regained strength, and it was safe to rejoin him...."
Pettigrew opened his mouth and closed it several times. He seemed to have lost the ability to talk.
"Er -- Mr. Black -- Sirius?" said Hermione.
Black jumped at being addressed like this and stared at Hermione as though he had never seen anything quite like her.
"If you don't mind me asking, how -- how did you get out of Azkaban, if you didn't use Dark Magic?"
"Thank you!" gasped Pettigrew, nodding frantically at her. "Exactly! Precisely what I --"
But Lupin silenced him with a look. Black was frowning slightly at Hermione, but not as though he were annoyed with her. He seemed to be pondering his answer.
"I don't know how I did it," he said slowly. "I think the only reason I never lost my mind is that I knew I was innocent. That wasn't a happy thought, so the Dementors couldn't suck it out of me...but it kept me sane and knowing who I am...helped me keep my powers...so when it all became...too much...I could transform in my cell...become a dog. Dementors can't see, you know..." He swallowed. "They feel their way toward people by feeding off their emotions...They could tell that my feelings were less -- less human, less complex when I was a dog...but they thought, of course, that I was losing my mind like everyone else in there, so it didn't trouble them. But I was weak, very weak, and I had no hope of driving them away from me without a wand...."
"But then I saw Peter in that picture...I realized he was at Hogwarts with Harry...perfectly positioned to act, if one hint reached his ears that the Dark Side was gathering strength again..."
Pettigrew was shaking his head, mouthing noiselessly, but staring all the while at Black as though hypnotized.
"...ready to strike at the moment he could be sure of allies...and to deliver the last Potter to them. if he gave them Harry, who'd dare say he'd betrayed Lord Voldemort? He'd be welcomed back with honors...."
"So you see, I had to do something. I was the only one who knew Peter was still alive..."
Harry remembered what Mr. Weasley had told Mrs. Wealsey. 'The guards say he's been talking in his sleep... always the same words... 'He's at Hogwarts.''
"It was as if someone had lit a fire In my head, and the Dementors couldn't destroy it...It wasn't a happy feeling...it was an obsession...but it gave me strength, it cleared my mind. So, one night when they opened my door to bring food, I slipped past them as a dog...It's so much harder for them to sense animal emotions that they were confused...I was thin, very thin...thin enough to slip through the bars...I swam as a dog back to the mainland ...I journeyed north and slipped into the Hogwarts grounds as a dog. I've been living in the forest ever since, except when I came to watch the Quidditch, of course. You fly as well as your father did, Harry...."
He looked at Harry, who did not look away.
"Believe me," croaked Black. "Believe me, Harry. I never betrayed James and Lily. I would have died before I betrayed them."
And at long last, Harry believed him. Throat too tight to speak, he nodded.
"No!"
Pettigrew had fallen to his knees as though Harry's nod had been his own death sentence. He shuffled forward on his knees, groveling, his hands clasped in front of him as though praying.
"Sirius -- it's me...it's Peter...your friend...you wouldn't --"
Black kicked out and Pettigrew recoiled.
"There's enough filth on my robes without you touching them," said Black.
"Remus!" Pettigrew squeaked, turning to Lupin instead, writhing imploringly in front of him. "You don't believe this -- wouldn't Sirius have told you they'd changed the plan?"
"Not if he thought I was the spy, Peter," said Lupin. "I assume that's why you didn't tell me, Sirius?" he said casually over Pettigrew's head.
"Forgive me, Remus," said Black.
"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend," said Lupin, who was now rolling up his sleeves. "And will you, in turn, forgive me for believing you were the spy?"
"Of course," said Black, and the ghost of a grin flitted across his gaunt face. He, too, began rolling up his sleeves. "Shall we kill him together?"
"Yes, I think so," said Lupin grimly.
"You wouldn't...you won't..." gasped Pettigrew. And he scrambled around to Ron.
"Ron...haven't I been a good friend...a good pet? You won't let them kill me, Ron, will you...you're on my side, aren't you?"
But Ron was staring at Pettigrew with the utmost revulsion.
"I let you sleep in my bed!" he said.
"Kind boy...kind master..." Pettigrew crawled toward Ron "You won't let them do it...I was your rat...I was a good pet...."
"If you made a better rat than a human, it's not much to boast about, Peter," said Black harshly. Ron, going still paler with pain, wrenched his broken leg out of Pettigrew's reach. Pettigrew turned on his knees, staggered forward, and seized the hem of Hermione's robes.
"Sweet girl...clever girl...you -- you won't let them...Help me...."
Hermione pulled her robes out of Pettigrew's clutching hands and backed away against the wall, looking horrified.
Pettigrew knelt, trembling uncontrollably, and turned his head slowly toward Harry.
"Harry...Harry...you look just like your father...just like him..."
"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO HARRY?" roared Black. "HOW DARE YOU FACE HIM? HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT JAMES IN FRONT OF HIM?"
"Harry," whispered Pettigrew, shuffling toward him, hands outstretched. "Harry, James wouldn't have wanted me killed...James would have understood, Harry...he would have shown me mercy..."
Both Black and Lupin strode forward, seized Pettigrew's shoulders, and threw him backward onto the floor. He sat there, twitching with terror, staring up at them.
"You sold Lily and James to Voldemort," said Black, who was shaking too. "Do you deny it?"
Pettigrew burst into tears. It was horrible to watch, like an oversized, balding baby, cowering on the floor.
"Sirius, Sirius, what could I have done? The Dark Lord...you have no idea...he has weapons you can't imagine ...I was scared, Sirius, I was never brave like you and Remus and James. I never meant it to happen...He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named forced me --"
"DON'T LIE!" bellowed Black. "YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE LILY AND JAMES DIED! YOU WERE HIS SPY!"
"He -- he was taking over everywhere!" gasped Pettigrew. "Wh-what was there to be gained by refusing him?"
"What was there to be gained by fighting the most evil wizard who has ever existed?" said Black, with a terrible fury in his face. "Only innocent lives, Peter!"
"You don't understand!" whined Pettigrew. "He would have killed me, Sirius!"
"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" roared Black. "DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!"
Black and Lupin stood shoulder to shoulder, wands raised.
"You should have realized," said Lupin quietly, "if Voldemort didn't kill you, we would. Good-bye, Peter."
Hermione covered her face with her hands and turned to the wall.
"NO!" Harry yelled. He ran forward, placing himself in front Pettigrew, facing the wands. "You can't kill him," he said breathlessly. "You can't."
Black and Lupin both looked staggered.
"Harry, this piece of vermin is the reason you have no parents," Black snarled. "This cringing bit of filth would have seen you die too, without turning a hair. You heard him. His own stinking skin meant more to him than your whole family."
"I know," Harry panted. "We'll take him up to the castle. We'll hand him over to the Dementors...He can go to Azkaban...but don't kill him."
"Harry!" gasped Pettigrew, and he flung his arms around Harry's knees. "You -- thank you -- it's more than I deserve -- thank you --"
"Get off me," Harry spat, throwing Pettigrew's hands off him in disgust. "I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it because -- I don't reckon my dad would've wanted them to become killers -- just for you."
No one moved or made a sound except Pettigrew, whose breath was coming in wheezes as he clutched his chest. Black and Lupin were looking at each other. Then, with one movement, they lowered their wands.
"You're the only person who has the right to decide, Harry," said Black. "But think... think what he did...."
"He can go to Azkaban," Harry repeated. "If anyone deserves that place, he does...."
Pettigrew was still wheezing behind him.
"Very well," said Lupin. "Stand aside, Harry."
Harry hesitated.
"I'm going to tie him up," said Lupin. "That's all, I swear."
Harry stepped out of the way. Thin cords shot from Lupin's wand this time, and next moment, Pettigrew was wriggling on the floor, bound and gagged.
"But if you transform, Peter," growled Black, his own wand pointing at Pettigrew too, "we will kill you. You agree, Harry?"
Harry looked down at the pitiful figure on the floor and nodded so that Pettigrew could see him.
"Right," said Lupin, suddenly businesslike. "Ron, I can't mend bones nearly as well as Madam Pomfrey, so I think it's best if we just strap your leg up until we can get you to the hospital wing."
He hurried over to Ron, bent down, tapped Ron's leg with his wand, and muttered, "Ferula." Bandages spun up Ron's leg, strapping it tightly to a splint. Lupin helped him to his feet; Ron put his weight gingerly on the leg and didn't wince.
"That's better," he said. "Thanks."
"What about Professor Snape?" said Hermione in a small voice, looking down at Snape's prone figure.
"There's nothing seriously wrong with him," said Lupin, bending over Snape and checking his pulse. "You were just a little -- overenthusiastic. Still out cold. Er -- perhaps it will be best if we don't revive him until we're safety back in the castle. We can take him like this...."
He muttered, "Mobilicorpus." As though invisible strings were tied to Snape's wrists, neck, and knees, he was pulled into a standing position, head still lolling unpleasantly, like a grotesque puppet. He hung a few inches above the ground, his limp feet dangling. Lupin picked up the Invisibility Cloak and tucked it safely into his pocket.
"And two of us should be chained to this," said Black, nudging Pettigrew with his toe. "Just to make sure."
"I'll do it," said Lupin.
"And me," said Ron savagely, limping forward.
Black conjured heavy manacles from thin air; soon Pettigrew was upright again, left arm chained to Lupin's right, right arm to Ron's left. Ron's face was set. He seemed to have taken Scabbers's true identity as a personal insult. Crookshanks leapt lightly off the bed and led the way out of the room, his bottlebrush tail held jauntily high.
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