We Will Protect You

Chapter 8 - Where We Belong

!!!TRIGGER WARNING: MALNOURISHMENT, GENERAL AZKABAN-TYPICAL INJURIES, INSECURITY (PARTICULARLY BODY INSECURITIES)!!!
!!!PS: I really hope you guys like long chapters, this is a big one. Also, translations are at the end!!!

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Remus didn't know what he was doing or why he was doing it. He really didn't. All he knew was that this was, for all intents and purposes, exactly what he'd implied Harry shouldn't do; get the idea in his head that Sirius was innocent and do something stupid, as a result.

But he'd been watching the Marauders Map religiously since he confiscated it, and had seen two names on the parchment— two names he never thought he'd see again. Peter Pettigrew in the hallway, close to the kitchens, and Sirius Black in the Shrieking Shack. His initial instinct was to go find Peter, but then both names had disappeared, and, realistically, Peter could have been anywhere, but Sirius had nowhere else to go. So, before he'd had time to think it out, he found himself throwing on his outdoor cloak, shoving the Map in his pocket, and rushing outside.

It was only when he was hunched over in the tunnel, minutes away from the Shack, that he realized how stupid his idea was. Despite the evidence and the fact Sirius was proven guilty in court of law, Remus couldn't imagine him betraying James, not after all those years of near-codependency and borderline obsession with each other. And, maybe, just maybe, some part of Remus still cared for (see: loved) Sirius.

Regardless, though, if Sirius was guilty... if Sirius was guilty, he might not make it out alive. What he warned Harry about was true, more so than the boy likely understood. Sirius was powerful, intelligent, and horribly stubborn, to the point Remus had never actually seen him give up on something he had his mind set on, and the werewolf was inclined to believe he had not only his mind, but his heart set on whatever he was at Hogwarts for.

But, by the time Remus decided, for sure, he shouldn't have gone, he was standing on old, wooden floorboards. What he should have done was tell Dumbledore he saw Sirius slip into the tunnel to the Shack and let Aurors deal with him. Unfortunately, he was already there, so he did his best to summon his Gryffindor bravery. He had a wand, he had twelve years of living a life (not a great one, granted, but a life nonetheless) out of Azkaban and the strength that comes with that, he had his sanity fully intact. Despite the magnitude of Sirius' unfiltered, raw power, he would win if push came to shove. Obviously. Probably. Hopefully.

Of course, Remus was so absorbed in his thoughts that he didn't notice the massive, mangy, black dog lying low as it slinked down the stairs and slipped into the corner, nearly vanishing into the inky blackness that was the Shrieking Shack near midnight. Well, he didn't notice until a small, nervous-sounding yip drew his attention to the clear, silver eyes shining out of the darkness, locked on him.

"Sirius," Remus had blurted out before he could stop himself. He didn't even have a plan for going there, he'd just randomly decided to go— do what, exactly? Talk to his murderous, traitorous, liar of an ex-fiancé? How the fuck did he expect that to go?

The large shape in the dark was blurry and fuzzy, making it difficult to tell where the shadows ended and black fur of the animagus started. Remus remembered just how big a dog Padfoot was from when they were young. When he was twenty and six-foot-four, the beast had been able to rear up on his back legs, put his paws on Remus' shoulders, and lick his forehead. If James and Peter were to be trusted, Padfoot wasn't all that much smaller than Moony, a fucking wolf. Yeah, he was smaller, but James had deduced his breed to be a (very fluffy) Great Dane, and those maxed out at around thirty-two inches at the shoulder and one-hundred-twenty pounds. Wolves, on average, maxed out at thirty-five inches at the shoulder and one-hundred-thirty pounds.