I to thought Sirius was the one who betrayed us. Part 1
Harry stared at Sirius Black, the man who betrayed his parents, he looked so different to how he looked in the picture Harry had from his parents wedding. His face that once depicted such smiles of joy was now shallow with a mother Harry didn’t think could ever form a smile again.
Harry had his wand raised to the man’s throat with Hermione and Ron behind him. “Why?...How could you, they…they were your friends?...my parents! and you, you sold them to Voldermort.” Harry stumbled over his words with anger pouring from his being. He was waving his wand around and as his emotions got too much it would emit red sparks that hit his hand and Sirius’ neck.
Sirius did not answer straight away as his voice box was previously occupied with filling the room with manic, mad man laughter that shook the three third years to their core. “Harry, Harry, Harry. I did not kill your parents…”
“Don’t lie you sold them to Voldermort.“ Harry cut him off, his voice raising more than he knew it could.
“Harry, calm down, we need to get a teacher, or the Dementores, you can’t kill him yourself.” Hermione spoke up (being the voice of reason of course) from behind Harry, putting her hand on his shoulder.
“Only, one will die tonight.” Sirius said with his eyes flickering over to Ron, who was sitting in the corner wincing (because of his probably broken ankle) clutching onto scabers with both hands to stop him from his desperate attempts at running away. Harry turned briefly to Ron making eye contact with the bewildered boy.
“He’s mad, honestly Harry” Ron whispered, not daring to talk any louder as Crookshanks prowled over to him.
Harry was now losing all restraint of his anger as he turned back to Sirius, in a second of no thought to what he was actually doing Harry flung himself across the room dropping his wand in the process, resorting to using his hands to throttle the escaped convict instead. They both fell to the floor, Sirius reached up to his neck trying to prise Harry’s hands from around it. He managed to get one hand off but Harry reached for his wand which was lying next to their legs. Harry raised the wand above Sirius’ head about to say a spell, when the door they had come through opened. Harry turned his head to see the intruder just as the person yelled. “Expelliarmus” Harry was flung backwards as his wand flew out of his hand in the direction of the new figer.
“Professor Lupin” Hermione said in astonishment, as Harry stumbled up to see that it was his defence against the dark arts teacher who had disarmed him. Harry, Ron and Hermione were too shocked to speak so they took to watching their professor walk over to where Sirius still lay on the floor.
Lupin’s wand was still out as he now pointed it at Sirius. “Sirius” Lupin said looking down at him, he said it almost questiontly examining Sirius’ unkempt appearance and torn clothes.
“Remus Lupin” Sirius said, a real smile forming on his face. Remus put his wand away and pulled Sirius to his feet pulling him into an embrace. Sirius tensed up at first, having not been hugged in at least twelve years. He soon unclenched as he remembered the familiarity of Remus’ embrace.
Hermione, suddenly regaining her voice first said “You, you're helping him. I protected your secret.”
“How long have you known?” Remus asked in a calm collected voice, even though he could feel his heart betting nineteen to the dozen. Sirius and Remus had broken apart once Hermione had started speaking but Sirius still had his back facing Harry, Ron and Hermione.
“Since Professor Snape set us the homework on werewolves.” Hermione replied with a hint of guilt in the voice.
“What are you talking about?” Harry pipped up, moving to stand next to Hermione. He silently slipped her wand out of her back pocket in case he needed it later.
“He’s a werewolf Harry, that's why he’s been missing classes.” Hermione turned to Harry. “He’s probably been helping Black get into the castle all year.
Remus flinched at her words. Sirius at this point turned around, stepping forward slightly so he was half standing in front of Remus. “I can tell you, Hermione, up until very recently I to thought Sirius was the one who had betrayed us.” Remus was addressing Harry and Hermione but with his last word he turned to look apologetically at Sirius only to find the other man looking up at him in the same manner.
“He’s the reason my mum and dad are dead” Harry exasperatedly said.
Remus turned back to look at Harry and said, “No Harry he didn’t, Peter Pettigrew sold out your parents.”
“Peter Pettigrew? He’s dead” Harry said, even more annoyed.
“Come on Remus, let's just kill him already.” Sirius moved his eyes once again towards Ron.
“Wait Sirius, Harry deserves answers.” Remus said to Sirius trying to calm him down a bit.
It didn’t work. “I did my waiting! Twelve years of it, in Azkaban!” Sirius all but shouted.
At this the door to the room opened again as suddenly as before but this time a tall greasy haired man stepped into the room. All their heads turned as Seversus Snape (with his wand pointed at Sirius) entered the room.
“Seniverus” Sirius said with no hint of surprise at seeing the man in the room. “I did think I could smell a considerable amount of grease in the air”
“Sirius don’t” Remus reproched loudly.
“Don’t what Remus?” Sirius shouted back.
“Look at you two gorn back to your teenage years have you?” Snape said mockingly.
Sirius stepped towards Snape till Snape's wand was nearly touching Sirius’ neck. “and what would you know about our teenage years, Seniverus?”
“Oh, as if you didn’t strut around like you owned the place, the whole school knew everything about you.” At this Sirius burst into manic uncontrollable laughter.
“Sirius.” Remus repeated an edge to his voice.
“I would listen to him if I were you, you see I hoped I would be the one to find you and present you to the dementors, and I told Dumbledore…” Severus now pointed his wand at Remus. “that you were helping your old friend into the castle.”
“Once again Seniverus,” Snape flinched at the name.” you have put your nose to the task and have come to the wrong conclusion.”
Professor Snape ignored Sirius’ words and, with his wand pointed to Sirius, turned his head to address Harry, Ron and Hermione. “Potter, Weasley, Granger out the door please.” Snape gestured to the door with his free hand as he spoke.
At this point, Harry had become curious as to, what Remus and Sirius had been about to tell them, so in a split second of insanity and once again no thought of the consequences of his actions Harry shouted, “Expelliarmus” and with full force Snape was blown into the old four poster bed as his wand flew into Harry’s outstretched hand.
“Harry!” Hermione reprimanded at the same time that Ron started repeatedly saying, “OH MY GOD, WE ARE GOING TO BE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE!” becoming more nerves and more awestruck with Harry. Sirius wasn’t helping the situation, as he was cackling so much that he was having to grip onto the old piano, at the side of the room, to stop himself from falling to the ground. Harry however, was now pointing the wand, he had taken out of Hermione's pocket to disarm Snape, at Professor Lupin. ”Explain!” Harry said with force pointing the wand at Sirius continued, “Now!”
Harry moved the wand back to point at Remus. “Like I said, it wasn’t Sirius who betrayed James and Lily that night, it was Peter Pettigrew.” Started Remus.
“No he…” Harry moved his wand again to Sirius. “was their secret keeper, HE sold them to Voldermort.”
“I was your parents' secret keeper but at the last minute I requested that they change it to Peter.” Sirius said obviously put out, that he had to explain everything.
“Why?” Harry asked pointedly.
“because Voldermort would have known I was their secret keeper.”
“How?” Harry questioned again.
“I thought there was a spy in the order, so me, James, Peter and Lily made the switch, I didn’t trust anyone else.” Once again Lupin and Black looked to each other apologetically.
“You were my dad’s best friend.” Harry said almost questiontly.
“We all were: me, Moony, Mary, Marline, Dorcas and I thought Peter.” Sirius said sadly. As Sirius answered more of Harry's questions he lowered his wand till his arm was rested at his side.
“That doesn't explain why you think Peters still alive, you still killed him”
“When I went to confront him, he chopped off his finger then turned into a rat to escape.”
“The map proves it.” Remus piped in.
“The map could be lying.” Harry countered, as if wanting them to be wrong, so he didn’t have to think that he had blamed the wrong person for his parents death.
“The map is never wrong, Harry.” Remus explained.
Suddenly, it dawned on him that Sirius had called Professor Lupin Moony, one of the creators of the marauders map. “You’re messers Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs, aren't you?”
Sirius nodded “Remus, Peter, me and your dad.”
Harry could see the sadness in Sirius and Remus’ eyes so he decided to believe them, for now. “I believe you, so where is Peter Pettigrew?” Harry asked.
This time instead of just staring, Sirius pointed at Ron, at this Ron looked alarmed and started frantically mouthing “mental” at Harry. “Not the boy, his rat.” Sirius said in a way that made Harry think that Sirius thought that they were slow.