A Grim Surprise
Under the Invisibility Cloak, Hari, Ron, Draco and Hermione made their way across the grounds and over to Hagrid’s hut on the edge of the forest. Hermione reached up and knocked on the door, calling, “Hagrid! It’s us!”
The door swung open and Hagrid stared down at them as Har pulled the cloak off of them and stuffed it inside his robes. “You shouldn’t be here! You’re not allowed out after dark!” Hagrid said, though he let them inside the hut nonetheless.
“It’s not dark yet, to be fair,” said Hermione, sitting down in her usual seat. “We just thought we might come and visit you for a cup of tea before it gets dark. It’s been ages since we were all here to see you.”
“I suppose it has been…” said Hagrid. “Just a quick one, though.”
Hari, Draco and Ron sat down at the table and Hermione offered to help Hagrid make tea so that it could go faster. “So, how’d the rest of the exams go, then?” asked Hagrid, turning the kettle on.
Hari, Ron and Draco told Hagrid all about their various exams, complaining or bragging about their individual performances as Hermione pottered about the kitchenette, pouring them each cups of tea.
“I’ll have passed Potions, of course,” said Draco proudly, puffing out his chest and grinning. Ron pretended to be sick onto the floor while Hari groaned and Hermione rolled her eyes fondly. “It would be a real surprise if I—”
Hermione interrupted Draco’s rant, however, as she shrieked suddenly, pointing out the window and hopping on her feet. “It’s Scabbers!” she yelped, still pointing out the window. “Ron! It’s—it’s Scabbers!”
Sure enough, just outside the window, a very skinny rat with fading, thinning fur was scuttling across the grass, towards the cabin. Harry’s eyes caught the rustling of the trees and he thought he saw a flash of colour, but thought nothing of it as he was distracted by the rat. Ron scurried outside through the side door and grabbed his rat.
“Scabbers! What are you doing here?” Ron asked, grinning broadly as he carried the rat back inside the house. He plopped the rat onto the table and Draco scowled, pushing his seat back a few inches. “He looks even worse! Poor Scabbers!” he exclaimed, stroking the rat’s tiny head with the back of one of his fingers.
“I think you owe someone a proper apology,” said Draco, eyes intense, glancing briefly at Hermione by the window.
Ron looked up from stroking the rat, glancing at Hermione. “I promise I’ll apologise to Crookshanks as soon as I see him,” he said. After a beat, he added, “I’m kidding, jeez! Look, I’m sorry for accusing your cat of eating Scabbers and for treating you like crap all year because of it.”
As Hermione grinned, Scabbers made a flying leap off the table, landing on the floor in a tiny heap of splayed legs and greying, patched fur. “Scabbers! It’s alright, there’s no more cats!” Ron exclaimed, bending down to lift his pet off the floor. But still, Scabbers continued to squirm and writhe, trying to get out of Ron’s hands. “Come on, Scabbers, it’s me! Scabbers! Stop—squirming!”
“Come on, we should probably just get back to the school before Scabbers gets out again and it gets too dark,” said Draco, getting to his feet. He turned to Hagrid. “We’ll be back again for a proper visit soon, Hagrid. I apologise.”
They all said goodbye to Hagrid and made for the castle together, Scabbers still scrambling in Ron’s hands. Halfway across the lawn, Ron yelped, dropping the rat on the ground. “Ow! He bit me!” he exclaimed.
And then, Scabbers took off once more, scurrying away from them in the other direction. “Scabbers, wait!” Ron shouted, sprinting after the rat running across the field with surprising speed.
“Ron! Ron, be careful! We have to get back to the castle before it gets dark!” Hermione called as she, Hari and Draco hurried after Ron across the grass.
Ron kept running for another two minutes until he made a brave leap onto the ground, pouncing on top of the rat with his hands cupped over him. “Gotcha!” he said triumphantly, rolling over with the rat clutched to his chest, grass and dirt staining the front of his shirt and robes.
“Merde. What’s that?” said Draco, freezing, looking up ahead. Harry furrowed his eyebrows and turned in the direction Draco was looking. His stomach dropped.
Staring down at them with its big yellow eyes, the great black dog from before stood only a few metres away. “Ron, get away!” Hari yelled, moving to get to Ron. But then, the shaggy black dog sprinted over and suddenly grabbed one of Ron’s legs in its mouth.
Ron screamed in agony, swearing colourfully. “RON!” Hari, Hermione and Draco screamed in unison. Hari tried to grab Ron’s wrist but the dog began dragging Ron back by his leg. He held onto Scabbers for dear life, screaming the whole forest down as he was pulled across the ground like a sack of potatoes.
Following after Ron’s agonised yells, they bounded after Ron and the dog, the light fading fast. As they neared the fading shouts of their friend, Harry was suddenly thrown into the air as something massive hit him with the force of a speeding car. He landed on the ground with a thud, skull hitting the earth so that he saw stars.
“Lumos!” Hari exclaimed, pulling out his wand. It lit up at the tip just in time for Hari to illuminate one of the hulking branches of the Whomping Willow, which was trying to attack them quite fiercely. Hari rolled out of the way just in time to avoid the branch swinging where he just was, leaving a dent in the ground. The clock tower chimed over the grounds just as Ron was dragged inside the trunk of the tree, shouting so loud the booming bell was almost drowned out.
Hermione screamed a few feet away and Draco swore, both in a similarly disastrous situation with the attacking tree branches. Hari dodged away from another branch as he army crawled over to where Draco was lying flat on his back, bleeding slightly where one of the branches had apparently hit him in the head.
“Do something!” Hari shouted desperately in Hermione’s direction, pulling Draco to the side as a branch slammed down onto the ground beside them. Draco yelped. This resulted in Hermione ducking down to avoid another branch, shrieking.
“Crookshanks!” Hermione blurted suddenly. “Crookshanks, no!”
Sure enough, Crookshanks was scuttling towards them with his tail in the air, apparently unfazed by the giant sentient tree attacking them. Ignoring Hermione entirely, Crookshanks crossed deftly towards the base of the tree, hopped up on his hind legs and pressed his front paws into a small knot in the tree. As soon as his paws hit the knot, the tree’s branches froze midair like it had been petrified.
“Good Crookshanks!” Hermione exclaimed, getting to her feet. Crookshanks disappeared through the hole in the trunk merrily. “Damn, we’ve got to follow him,” said Hermione, helping Draco and Hari to their feet. Draco grumbled about grass stains as he followed over to the tree. Ron’s shouts echoed towards them, growing ever more distant by the seconds.
“I’ll go first,” said Hari, putting his feet into the hole in the trunk and pushing himself inside. He slid into a dark and damp room of sorts, the ceiling incredibly low so that even he could barely stand. He raised his wand to get a better look, but before he could get to his feet, Draco slid down after him, knocking him flat on his face. “For Salazar’s sake, Draco!” Hari groaned as Draco rolled off him and Hermione slid down with a yelp.
“Where are we?” asked Hermione, crouching under the low ceiling and lighting up her wand as well. Ron’s shouts carried towards them once again, sending chills down Hari’s spine. Hermione pointed her wand ahead towards a set of rickety old stairs leading up to a dimly lit doorway.
“I think we’re in the Shrieking Shack,” said Hari, moving towards the stairs.
Carefully, one behind the other, they walked up the stairs together, holding hands like children at a daycare centre. They crouched low under the crumbling ceiling to stick together, bits of dirt and dust raining down on them. A grey door stood ajar at the top of the stairs and Hari, at the front, opened it with his foot, leading the other two inside.
The room was mostly empty, the grey floorboards covered in a thick layer of dust, except for paw prints and the place where someone had been dragged across the floor. A window looked out onto a small hill, crooked as though it had collapsed under the poorly built frame of the house. On one side of the room, an old, sagging bed was placed, coated in a thick layer of dust and frayed, moth-eaten blankets. In the corner, Ron huddled with Scabbers clutched in his hands, one of his trouser legs torn to shreds and his leg bleeding immensely as he leaned against the window sill.
“B-behind you!” Ron spluttered, panic in his eyes, pointing frantically towards the door. Hari jumped to the side, pushing Hermione and Draco aside and pointing his wand, preparing to face the large black dog again.
Instead, half-hidden behind the door, dressed in baggy, tattered clothes and matted, chest length black hair… Sirius Black stood before them, smiling maniacally with yellow teeth and sunken, tired eyes. He stepped out from behind the door, dust particles scattering around his footsteps, looking as thin as a skeleton, collarbones jutting out sharply and tattoos peeking out of the loose clothing. Crookshanks stood protectively in front of him, yellow eyes glaring up at Harry and his orange hair standing on end.
“YOU!” shouted Hari, pointing his left hand in the face of Sirius Black. He pushed Hermione and Draco over to where Ron was still standing in the corner, guarding his friends instinctively behind him. “How did you get here?” he asked through gritted teeth, pointing his wand in the man’s face.
“He’s an Animagus!” Ron blurted weakly, leaning against Draco’s shoulder for support. “He was that black dog that dragged me here! Broke my bloody leg almost clean off!”
“Not like Black would give a damn about hurting anyone,” said Hari, still pointing his wand at Black threateningly. He refused to look away in case Black took advantage of even a split second distraction. “You betrayed my parents.”
“I thought you’d come for your friend,” said Black, his voice rough as sandpaper from lack of use for so long, a slight French lilt in his dark tone. He tilted his head, looking down the end of Hari’s wand as if it didn’t hold the power to kill him. “Just like your father…” Something flashed in Black’s eyes, though Hari was reluctant to identify it as regret.
“Don’t you dare talk about my father,” Hari seethed, chest rising and falling rapidly with his anger. “You lost that privilege the day you betrayed him and my mum.”
“Going to kill me then, Hari?” asked Black teasingly, leering.
Hari swallowed, thinking of his parents and how he was now standing face to face with the man that betrayed them. They called him their friend, trusted him with their lives and he betrayed them, left them for dead, left Hari for dead. But something in Black’s pale eyes made Hari hesitate, uncertain even as he plotted to kill him. There was something oddly familiar about those striking silvery eyes, something more human than the rest of him.
“Hari, no!” exclaimed Hermione.
“Hermione, he killed my parents and he’s going to kill us too if I don’t!” Hari exclaimed, voice croaky with fear as he pointed his wand in the face of a killer.
“Only one will die tonight,” said Black, smiling cruelly and looking at something behind Hari’s shoulder.
Hari scoffed. “Oh, brilliant. You’re just going to kill me! That’s really bloody comforting, then!” Hari deadpanned, pressing the point of his wand into the spot directly in front of Black’s heart, feeling the ribs through the fabric and his chest.
“You’ve got it all wrong,” said Black.
Ron hobbled over, trying to pull Hari back as he continued to wince from the pain in his leg. “You’ll have to get through us first before you kill Hari!” he said defiantly, pushing in front of Hari.
“I already said you’ve got this all wrong!” exclaimed Black. “I’m not here to kill you,” he said to Ron, frowning.
“Then who—?”
The door to the room burst open again, slamming against the wall. Every head snapped towards the doorway. Remus Lupin stood in the doorway, wand raised in the air and chest heaving. Hari felt his heart soar. Remus was here to save them!
“Expelliarmus!” said Remus, pointing his wand at Hari so that his wand went flying out of his hand and into Remus’ free hand. He did the same again, taking Ron, Draco and Hermione’s wands as well.
“Uncle Remus?” asked Hari in bewilderment as Remus tucked their wands into his pocket. A light flickered in Black’s eyes.
“Where is he, Sirius?” he asked calmly. What was going on here?
“There,” said Black hoarsely, pointing at… Ron?
“Me?!” Ron exclaimed in surprise.
“Not you,” said Black irritably. “Your rat.”
“My rat? What’s this got to do with Scabbers?”
Remus stepped closer, looking down at the rat cowering in Ron’s tight grasp, realisation dawning on his face. “Of course! But why has he been hiding for so… long… unless...” Remus looked amazed, eyes widening. “You fucking switched, didn’t you! Without telling me!”
Black closed his eyes and nodded solemnly.
“Can someone please explain what the hell is going on?” Hari exclaimed.
But then, Lupin lowered his wand to his side, eyes softening as he smiled at Black. Then, he took the last steps towards Black, grabbing him by the front of his shirt and tugging him into a kiss so fierce that Black stumbled forwards into him.
Hari felt as though a trap door had opened up underneath him, bile rising in his throat, betrayal washing over him like a bucket of freezing cold water.
“NO! I DON’T BELIEVE THIS!” Hermione shrieked, pushing aside Crookshanks as Remus and Black pulled apart and turned toward her. “You and him! This whole time?”
“Hermione, calm down—”
“NO!” Hermione yelped. “We’ve all known this whole time that you were a werewolf and we’ve never told anyone and this is what you do? You’ve been helping Black into the castle this whole time! What about Hari? Did the last 8 years mean nothing to you?!” She was trembling from head to toe, reaching over to pull Hari away.
“You’re right only about my being a werewolf, actually,” said Remus calmly. “I would die before I betrayed Hari.” He looked at Hari, but he scoffed, turning away from the other man that, until now, he had looked up to as almost a father. Hermione’s grip on his wrist tightened. “That is the most incorrect of your statements, Hermione.” He glanced between Sirius and Hermione. “Second, I haven’t been letting Sirius into this school. In fact, until about 30 seconds ago, I believed him to be a killer,” said Remus.
“Because he is!” Hari snapped.
“Not yet I’m not,” grumbled Black, eyeing Scabbers squirming in Ron’s hands still, squeaking in terror. Crookshanks hissed and Ron scowled even more, holding his rat closer to his chest.
“Sirius, no!” chastised Remus. “They’ve got to understand first! You can’t just kill him with no explanation!” He pointed at Scabbers.
“Can someone explain what the hell any of this has to do with Scabbers? He’s just my pet rat!” exclaimed Ron, holding Scabbers defensively as he leaned against Draco, who seemed to be stunned into silence for once.
“That’s not just a common rat you’ve got, Ron,” said Remus calmly.
Ron gaped, but Black said, “That there is a wizard. An Animagus, as a matter of fact.”
Ron spluttered, stumbling into Draco. “No he’s not. He’s just a regular rat!” exclaimed Ron. “He’s been in my family for years!”
“Twelve years, perhaps?” said Black. Ron shut his mouth, ears going pink. Black smiled, humming. “Strangely long time for a common rat to survive.”
“We’ve—we’ve taken good care of him!” said Ron defensively.
“I don’t mean to judge your animal care,” said Black, humorously, “but that rat looks close to death. Am I correct to assume he’s only been like that since, hm, August?”
Ron’s eyes darted to the floor and he nodded solemnly.
“Excuse me,” said Draco, talking for the first time since they were attacked by the Whomping Willow. Everyone turned to him. “If that rat is supposed to be someone you’re trying to kill, who is it then?”
“You don’t believe this rubbish, do you?” said Ron, gaping back at Draco.
Draco shrugged the shoulder not holding up Ron. “I don’t know what to believe,” he said, frowning. “I grew up with Death Eaters around my house all the time and, when they weren’t there, they came up in conversation often. And yet, not once did they ever mention Sirius Black until he miraculously escaped from Azkaban.”
Black narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “You look familiar. You’re not related to Lucius Malfoy, are you?” he asked, eyes flickering to Draco’s white blond hair.
“Unfortunately, he’s my father,” said Draco bitterly. Black gave Remus a curious look, which Remus returned with a shake of his head. “Are you going to explain who you’re claiming that rat is or keep asking questions about my family?” He was clenching both of his fists at his sides, scowling between Remus and Sirius.
“I’m glad this one’s got his priorities right,” said Black to Remus, who rolled his eyes.
“That,” said Remus, pointing at Scabbers again, “is Peter Pettigrew.”