Aw Rats
Harry was right, everything was okay. For the two months after Halloween, Harry was having a great time. They won match after match, even against Gryffindor- despite Fred and Goerge knocking bludgers at his face every second. Harry saw his friends from Gryffindor a lot, and snuck down to Hogsmeade with them as the weather chilled and snowflakes began to touch the ground.
Even Professor Lupin confiscating Harry’s map didn’t bring his mood down too much, and he was relieved that the map still said Harry Potter when he wore the glamour. Even Professor Snape’s harsh grading of his potions couldn’t make Harry mad.
The other boys in his dorm tried to reason with him, but quickly gave up and turned to their promise of winning the House Cup over exposing his true identity.
Harry smiled as he ran down the hill after Ron and Hermione. Everything would be fine.
At least, Harry thought everything would be okay, and then all hell broke loose.
You see, Ron had lost Scabbers and had accused Hermione’s cat, Crookshanks, of eating him three days ago. Then, walking through the courtyard just now, Harry spotted the rat running along the wall 10 feet from them. What proceeded was a chase after the rat, until Ron finally scooped him up 20 feet from the only safe distance from the Whomping Willow.
Ron might have been distracted with Hermione yelling about how she was right about Crookshanks, Harry might have been too busy laughing about the argument, who knows.
All Harry knows is that one second they were all standing together and the next a massive black dog had swept Ron off his feet and started dragging him by his leg towards the Whomping Willow.
Harry and Hermione had tried to chase after them, they really did, but the dog looked stronger and faster than it was, and every time Harry and Hermione got close, the Whomping Willow threw them back, until Ron, Scabbers, and the dog had disappeared into a hole in the tree.
What proceeded was a battle between man and tree for 5 minutes as Harry and Hermione attempted to get past the branches, and once they successfully climbed through the hole under the tree, battered and bruised, Harry realized with a jolt that this was one of the tunnels on the map.
“Hermione, this leads off the castle grounds,” Harry whispered.
Hermione didn't respond and just looked even more anxious, leading the way through the tunnel.
After a long walk that seemed like forever, Harry found himself peering through a small opening into a room, a very disordered, dusty room. Paper was peeling from the walls; there were stains all over the floor; every piece of furniture was broken as though somebody had smashed it. The windows were all boarded up.
Harry glanced at Hermione, who looked very frightened but nodded. Harry pulled himself out of the hole, staring around. The room was deserted, but a door to their right stood open, leading to a shadowy hallway. Hermione suddenly grabbed Harry's arm again. Her wide eyes were traveling around the boarded windows.
"Harry," she whispered, "I think we're in the Shrieking Shack."
Harry didn't see any ghosts or shriekers, but proceeded with caution anyway. He made his way up the stairs, and finally saw the top of a redhead sitting in the corner of a room. A few more steps revealed Ron, sitting pressed into the corner, holding Scabbers, and looking positively terrified.
Harry soon found out why, as he emerged into the room and came face to face with none other than Sirius Black. Harry’s godfather, the man from Stan’s paper, and his father’s best friend.
It was risky, Harry knew it, but he smiled and put his wand in his pocket.
Sirius Black looked positively confused, but smiled back.
“Harry what are you doing! That’s Sirius Black,” Ron exclaimed.
“Why are you here?” Harry asked the man, ignoring Ron.
“He,” Sirius said, pointing at Ron, “is Peter Pettigrew, and I’ve come to kill him,” Siirius Black stated, very matter-of -factly.
“No you can’t! That’s not Peter Pettigrew!” Hermione exclaimed from behind Harry, wand still drawn.
Harry did his best to understand, and then it hit him.
“What…Scabbers?” Harry asked, looking in awe at the rat.
“Indeed, Peter come out and play,” Black sang, eyes fixed on the rat.
The door burst through at that moment, and Harry turned to see Professor Lupin with his wand drawn. Lupin lowered his wand and embraced Sirius.
Okay, Harry might have been following along so far but he was definitely confused right now.
“Padfoot, you look positively insane,” Lupin joked to Black.
“Wait…padfoot? You made the map?” Harry asked.
“Harry-” Hermione tried to say behind him, but Harry continued.
“Wait, that’s how you knew about the entrance. You’re one of them too, right? One of the map creators?” Harry asked, directed towards Black.
“Yes, I hoped you would inherit Lily’s brains and not James’…well, James was Prongs, I am Padfoot, and that,” Black said, pointing his wand at Scabbers, “is Wormtail.”
The rat dashed out of Ron’s hands and almost made it to the wall before Black sent a curse at it, turning the small rodent into a very rodent-like man. Peter Pettigrew.
Ron and Hermione looked absolutely bewildered, and Ron more disgusted.
“Scabbers is a- a man?” Ron said in shock.
“Not a man, a traitor,” Black said. “And he is going to die,” he said, raising his wand.
-
Draco Malfoy
To understand why Draco, Theo, and Blaise did what they did, you first have to understand Damian Riddle.
Damian Riddle is Draco’s cousin, and when he was taken Draco’s family fell apart. Damian was supposed to be Draco’s best friend. They would grow up together, go to Hogwarts together, and their families would always be together. That was the plan. So, when Draco found out Damian was alive, he would do anything to get him back.
The one development that could not be predicted was Harry Potter.
They had agreed that if their parents wrote asking them if they had found Damian or asked if Harry Potter was Damian, then they would come out with the truth.
For now, though, they kept Damian’s secret. It was hard, it was really hard. They knew Uncle Marvolo was struggling in desperation to find his son, that their parents were using every resource they had to find him. They were currently investigating Neville Longbottom and Seamus Finnigan, but Draco knew this would all be for nothing.
Their boy was right there, hidden in plain sight, he just didn't want to be found.
At least he was right there, until he wasn't.
Harry wasn’t anywhere. It had been hours, and Harry was missing from his dorm. Pansy said she heard a 4th year say they saw Harry, Weasley, and Granger running toward the Whomping Willow, and now you understand why Draco had to do it. Why he had to do what he did.
“Severus,” Draco said, slightly out of breath from running with Theo and Blaise to Severus’ office.
“It’s after curfew, what are you doing out of your dorm?” Severus accusingly asked.
“Harry’s missing, he was last seen near the Whomping Willow with Weasley and Granger,” Theo said.
“Well I’ll be sure to give Mr. Potter ample detentions,” Severus answered, still looking down at some papers on his desk.
“We need you to go find him,” Blaise said.
“I’ll leave it to Minerva to deal with her two Gryffindors,” Severus said, waving the matter off.
“No, you don’t understand, it has to do with Damian,” Draco said, regretting the words that came out of his mouth but knowing it was necessary.
“What does Potter have to do with Damian?” Severus snapped, suddenly looking up.
Draco sighed and pinched his eyes shut, knowing what he was about to reveal would change everything for everyone involved.
“He is Damian.”
-
“Stop!” Harry shouted at Lupin and Black, as they had their wands trained on Pettigrew.
“Harry, this man is the reason your parents are dead,” Lupin tried to say.
“There's only one man responsible for that,” Harry grimly said, thinking of his biological father as he did. “If you kill him now, you will always be the man who betrayed the Potters. If he went to trial, you could have your charges cleared,” Harry reasoned, turning to Black.
A few minutes later, Harry had won the debate and Pettigrew was floating, tied up in invisible chains and trailing after them as they walked through the tunnel out of the Whomping Willow, Hermione and Harry supporting Ron on his bad leg.
Do you remember when all hell broke loose before? Yeah, when they made their way out of the Whomping Willow, that happened again.
Lupin started grunting from behind them, and Hermione gasped.
“Harry, I tried to tell you before,” Hermione said, backing them away from Lupin with Ron still being supported by their arms.
“Tried to tell me what?” Harry asked, watching Lupin.
“He’s a werewolf,” Hermione whispered.
As if on cue, Lupin’s face began to contort and limbs began to lengthen, and before long, Harry was staring at one of the terrifying beasts in the DADA textbook, whose howls he heard sometimes from the Forbidden Forest.
And it was staring right at them.
“Protego Totalum,” he heard someone shout from behind them. He could now only see the beast through a shimmery green shield that had been cast between them and Black, Pettigrew, and transformed Lupin.
Soon there were black robes in front of him, Professor Snape… and Professor McGonagall…Flitwick…and Septima? How did they know to look for them? Oh…right…it was way past curfew.
Harry couldn't see much past the professors, but somehow they had distracted Lupin by casting something into the Forbidden Forest, and Harry watched as the werewolf ran off towards the trees.
Snape said something to McGonagall about taking the students, and his head of house grabbed his shoulder, flicked his wand at Ron to float him a bit, motioned to Hermione to follow, and started marching them to the castle, leaving McGonagall, Septima, and Flitwick to deal with the two men left.
Harry tried to move his shoulder away from Snape, but the man wouldn’t loosen his grip. Snape hadn't even addressed Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew.
“Sir, that man, the one with Sirius Black. He’s the reason for everything,” Hermione tried to say.
“Silence, Mrs. Granger. Take Mr. Weasley to the Hospital Wing and then proceed directly to Gryffindor Tower,” the man said, once they reached the castle doors. Hermione looked at Harry regretfully, and then stepped to the right with Ron, who was still floating.
Snape just continued pushing Harry in the other direction, until Harry saw a blonde head down the corridor, accompanied by two figures who were likely Theo and Blaise.
Those fucking twats.
“Take him to your room and do not leave,” Snape ordered once they reached him, Draco dragging his arm in the direction of the dungeons.
Snape turned around and back the way they came, and Harry was left to glare at the three boys pulling him along.
“What the fuck? Why did you snitch?” Harry asked.
“You were missing, dipshit,” Theo said as they walked down the steps.
“And you told Snape?” Harry asked.
“Yeah and for good reason, Sirius Black could have killed you,” Draco said.
“He would never,” Harry defended as the stone entrance to Slytherin opened.
“Oh and you know him so well?” Theo asked.
“Yeah, actually, I do,” Harry lied. Well, he felt like he knew the man after speaking with him in the tunnel from the Shrieking Shack. Sirius had even offered, given the clearing of his charges, for Harry to stay with him over the summer. For Yule in a couple weeks as well, if Sirius was cleared. Harry didn't have enough hope for that, though.
They walked through the entrance only to find Penelope Clearwater and Marcus Flint aggressively making out on the sofa.
Both prefects jumped up when they saw the boys, Clearwater adjusting her shirt.
“What the fuck are you doung awake? Go, get to bed,” Flint yelled.
They didn't move. Harry could hear Theo laughing next to them.
“Go,” Clearwater emphasized.
The boys listened when she said it, and made their way over to the stairs.
When they got into their room, Draco closed it behind him and they all looked at Harry.
Harry felt his heart drop. “What did you do?”
“They know,” Theo confirmed.
“Why the fuck did you tell them?” Harry exploded.
“We told Snape because we thought Black was actively killing you and it was the only way to get him to go after you,” Draco defended.
Greg and Vince were awake by now and looked absolutely lost, following the shouting with their heads rotating between the three purebloods and Harry.
“What do you expect is going to happen? I go and live happily ever after with the man who killed my parents?” Harry asked. “Last year your father almost caused the death of Ginny Weasley,” Harry said, turning to Draco. “Not to mention, my father tried to kill me first year and his memory set a basilisk on me last year. So I’m sorry if I want nothing to do with you people,” Harry shouted.
“And do you ever wonder how you ended up with the Potters? You were kidnapped from your parents!” Draco yelled back.
“Maybe that was a good thing, I didn’t turn out like a fucking pureblood supremacist dick like you, and now you’ve fucked everything up for me, congratulations,” Harry said, voice turning cold and matter-of-fact. He put on his mask for the Dursleys, an uncaring apathetic face.
“I’m just putting my family back together,” Draco said.
“Go fuck yourself,” Harry replied, turning to enter the bathroom and locking it from the inside.
“Yeah, very mature Damian,” Draco shouted from the other side of the door.
For twenty minutes Harry remained locked in the bathroom, knees tucked up against him as he sat, leaning on the cold stone wall.
After that time though, he heard the door to the dormitory open.
“Where is he?” A muffled voice asked.
A moment later the lock on the door clicked, and Professor Snape pushed open the door, closing it behind him.
Snape leaned against the door, staring at Harry and waiting for him to speak first.
He wasn't going to.
“Did you know before the Gringotts blood test?” Snape asked.
“What does it matter?” Harry asked.
“It matters so that I can assess your current mental state,” Snape said.
Harry looked up at the man. “My mental state is fucked because my biological father killed my parents in front of me, and now they know who I am. Are you happy?” Harry asked.
“No, and your parents will understand. They will understand why you hate them,” Snape said, in a tone so full of promise that Harry almost believed him.
Then he realized Snape was trying to warm him up to the idea of knowing his parents. Harry didn't care if they ‘understood’ jack shit.
“You say that like I’m going to meet them,” Harry said, eyes narrowing at the man.
“They are your parents,” Snape said, in a very matter-of-fact way.
“That’s what everyone keeps fucking saying, but I only have two parents who died to protect me. My ‘real’ parentage is nothing more than a biological incident,” Harry said.
“We don’t see it that way. I know my treatment of you in the past has been…misguided, but you must trust me in this matter. Your family loves you above all else,” Snape tried to argue.
“He tried to kill me, sir. Three times. So, I’m sorry if I don’t believe you and if I want nothing to do with them,” Harry said.
“Will you meet them?” Snape weakly asked.
“I already did. On October 31st 1981. When I got this scar,” Harry said, pointing to his head.
Snape just sighed and stared at him for a moment. Then, he opened the door, walked out, and closed it behind him, leaving Harry alone again.
Harry heard muffled voices, mainly of Snape being angry that the other boys had known for two months about his identity.
Finally, a couple hours later, Harry slowly creaked open the door to find the others asleep in their beds and fell into his own.
He got almost no sleep, instead staring at the window and thinking about how everything got so fucked in the course of 12 hours.
The next morning, he didn't speak to anyone, walking out of the common room alone and to the Great Hall without even talking back to Peeves.
He saw two familiar redheads sitting at Gryffindor table, and sat down, finally embracing some normalcy.
That lasted about 2.3 seconds, because Fred passed Harry the morning Daily Prophet, and there, plastered on the first page:
HARRY POTTER: THE BLONDE WHO LIVED
Rita Skeeter
Early this morning, sources from inside the Ministry say that Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy have petitioned for custody of Harry Potter, claiming a close relation. This relation has not been made public, but it makes one wonder…what is the boy who lived doing having a familial connection to the Malfoys? Is he secretly a blonde under that unruly hair, or is he hiding something more sinister…like a heart of Black?
You have got to be joking.