(2) Dracarys (D. Malfoy)

Chapter Seventeen

"All right then. As you wish..." Remus agrees. Furious, Harry eyes Sirius murderously.

"You betrayed my parents! You sold them to Voldemort!"

"It's a lie! I never would've betrayed James and Lily! Or..." He stops and glances at Dani and then Remus who gives him a look back, telling him to stop talking.

"Harry! You've got to listen..." Dani pleads with him.

"Did he listen! When my mother was dying! Did he hear her screaming!"

"No! I wasn't there! And I'll regret it the rest of my life!" Sirius admits. Harry's eyes flash to Sirius', glittering with pain.

"Someone else betrayed your parents, Harry." Remus states. "Someone in this room right now. Someone who, until quite recently, I believed to be dead."

"He's as good as dead." Sirius threatens.

"What're you talking about? There's nobody here." Harry argues.

"Oh yes there is..." Sirius corrects. Remus sighs and looks at Dani.

"You were right, Dani," He tells her. "I should have listened to you...." She looks at him and frowns. Sirius turns to Ron, and croons in a cruel sing.

"Come out, come out, Peter. Come out, come out and play..." Ron draws back from Black's demented gaze.

"You're mad..." Harry's eyes shift from Ron's face to his hands, where Scabbers twists violently. As a curious expression befalls Harry. Remus and Sirius, as one, raise their wands.

"Expelliarmus!" The wands fly from their hands. The others turn, find Snape standing in the doorway, smiling smugly. "Ah, vengeance is sweet. How I hoped I'd be the one to catch you"

"Severus..." Remus starts.

"I told Dumbledore you were helping your old friend into the castle. And here's the proof." Snape points out.

"Brilliant! And -- as usual...dead wrong. Now give us our wands back. Remus and I have a bit of unfinished business to tend to." As Sirius approaches, Snape puts his wand to Sirius' neck.

"Give me a reason. I beg you." Snape states, ready to snap if need be.

"Don't be a fool, Severus!" Remus pleads with him.

"He can't help it. It's habit by now."

"Quiet, Sirius!" Remus scolds.

"Listen to you two. Quarrelling like an old married couple. The creature and the criminal"

"Piss off," Sirius grumbles.

"Witty as ever I see. Tell me, will you be so irreverent when I turn you over to the Dementors?" Snape asks, Sirius flinches slightly. "Do I detect a flicker of fear? One can only imagine what it must be like to endure the Dementor's Kiss. It's said to be unbearable to witness. But I'll do my best" Snape's eyes harden. He gestures to the door. "After you," Snape tells them. As the others start to go, Dani glances to the wand in her hand, her fingers tightening around her own. In a flash, she has it pointed at Snape.

"Expelliarmus!" Dani casts. Snape soars into the air, hits the wall with a thud, and slides down. Ron and Hermione stare in shock.

"Dani. You attacked a teacher." Hermione tells her. Dani looks a bit shocked herself. Harry then turns to Black.

"You said Peter before. Peter who?" Harry asks.

"Pettigrew. He was at school with us. We thought he was a friend"

"No. Pettigrew's dead. He killed him." As Harry points at Sirius, Sirius laughs mirthlessly.

"I thought so, too. Until you mentioned seeing Pettigrew on the Map" Remus admits.

"The Map was lying then..." Harry argues.

"Even if I thought it was...Dani came to me" Remus looks back at her. "She explained her dream...she figured it out after Sirius was in your dorm..." Dani offers Harry a small smile. "I...didn't believe her at first" Remus admits. "I'm sorry" He whispers to Dani who glances at him.

"Pettigrew's alive. And he's right there." Sirius continues, he points at... Ron. Ron goes white with fear.

"M-me? It's lunatic..."

"Your rat" Dani offers softer. "Ron, your rat" He looks at her.

"Scabbers?" He asks her, she nods. "Scabbers has been in my family for..."

"Twelve years." Sirius finishes for him. "A curiously long life for a common garden rat. He's missing a toe, isn't he?" Sirius unfolds a dog-eared clipping from The Daily Prophet: it shows Ron in Egypt with his family, Scabbers on his shoulder.

"So what?"

"All they could find of Pettigrew was his...." Harry starts when he starts to believe this.

"Finger" Sirius agrees "Dirty coward cut it off so everyone would think he was dead. Then he transformed into a rat." Harry stares into Sirius' sunken eyes. Wanting to believe. Desperate to believe. Glances at Ron, his agonized face. Scabbers squirm violently.

"Show me" Harry demands. Remus and Sirius turn to Ron. He holds Scabbers protectively.

"What are you going to do to him?" Sirius and Remus exchange a glance.

"Together." With that, Remus takes out his wand and, as one, he and Sirius cast a stream of blue-white light. Scabbers twists madly in midair, then transforms into... a very short man with thinning hair and grubby hands. Peter Pettigrew.

"S-Sirius... R-Remus. My old friends." Neither speaks. Pettigrew's small, watery eyes dart toward the windows and door. Suddenly, he makes a break for it, but Sirius merely shoves him back. Pettigrew's nose twitches, his gaze finding Harry. His hands flutter nervously, reveal a missing finger. "Harry! Look at you! Y-you look just like your father." Peter then looks at Dani. "And you...Daenerys and your brother....you both look just like your father too" Remus appears panicked. "Like James and Edward" Remus' face crumples. Dani moves forward, her wand held out at Peter. She knows that James was Harry's father, that makes sense, because she knows that to be true. But Edward is not her father. He is wrong. He is mistaken. 

"My father is Apollo" She corrects him. "Apollo Scamander....You are wrong" 

"No" Peter whispers "No...Edward...Potter is your father" Dani takes a sharp breath as Harry does. "We were the best of friends, them and I..."

"Shut up!" Sirius snaps.

"I didn't mean to! The Dark Lord, you have no idea the weapons he possesses! Ask yourself what you would have done, Sirius. What would you have done!"

"Died! Died rather than betray my friends! And you should have realized, Peter, if Voldemort didn't kill you..."

"We would," Remus adds as he places a hand on Dani's shoulder, she shakes it off though.

"No... please... you can't..." Peter pleads, his eyes darting to Ron. "Ron! Haven't I been a good friend? A good pet? You won't let them kill me, will you? I was your rat..." Ron draws back in disgust. Peter turns to Hermione. "Sweet girl. Clever girl. Surely you won't let them..." As one, Remus and Black raise their wands, point them directly into Pettigrew's face. He shrinks back trembling, closing his eyes in fear, when.

"No." Harry stops them. Peter's eyes open. Remus and Sirius turn to Harry.

"Harry, this man..."

"I know what he is. But we'll take him to the castle." Harry interrupts.

"Bless you, boy! Bless you..."

"Get off!" Harry shoves at him when Peter paws at him. "I said we'd take you to the castle. After that, the Dementors can have you."