𝐑𝐄𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐒-ℍ𝕒𝕣𝕣𝕪 ℙ𝕠𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕣❥

𝐏𝐎𝐀 𝟏𝟕

Harry had never been part of a stranger group. Crookshanks led the way down the stairs; Lupin, Pettigrew, and Ron went next, looking like entrants in a six-legged race.

Then Eric and Ethan walked beside each other with one hand on their little sisters shoulders who walked in front of them.

Next came Professor Snape, drifting creepily along, his toes hitting each stair as they descended, held up by his own wand, which was being pointed at him by Sirius.

Harry and Hermione brought up the rear.

Getting back into the tunnel was difficult. Lupin, Pettigrew, and Ron had to turn sideways to manage it; Lupin still had Pettigrew covered with his wand.

Harry could see them edging awkwardly along the tunnel in single file.

Crookshanks was still in the lead.

Harry went right after Sirius , who was still making Snape drift along ahead of them; he kept bumping his lolling head on the low ceiling. Harry had the impression Sirius was making no effort to prevent this.

"You know what this means?" Sirius said abruptly to Harry as they made their slow progress along the tunnel. "Turning Pettigrew in?"

"You're free," said Harry.

"Yes..." said Sirius. "But I'm also-I don't know if anyone ever told you-I'm your godfather."

"Yeah, I knew that," said Harry.

"Well... your parents appointed me your guardian," said Sirius stiffly. "If anything happened to them..."

Harry waited. Did Sirius mean what he thought he meant?

"I'll understand, of course, if you want to stay with your aunt and uncle," said Sirius. "But... well... think about it. Once my name's cleared... if you wanted a... a different home..."

Some sort of explosion took place in the pit of Harry's stomach.

"What-live with you?" he said, accidentally cracking his head on a bit of rock protruding from the ceiling. "Leave the Dursleys?"

"Of course, I thought you wouldn't want to," said Sirius quickly. "I understand, I just thought I'd-"

"Are you insane?" said Harry, his voice easily as croaky as Sirius'. "Of course I want to leave the Dursleys! Have you got a house? When can I move in?"

Sirius turned right around to look at him; Snape's head was scraping the ceiling but Sirius didn't seem to care.
"You want to?" he said. "You mean it?"

"Yeah, I mean it!" said Harry.

Sirius' gaunt face broke into the first true smile Harry had seen upon it. The difference it made was startling, as though a person ten years younger were shining through the starved mask; for a moment, he was recognizable as the man who had laughed at Harry's parents' wedding.

Harry turned round and noticed Emily watching sadly, once she caught Harry's eye she coughed awkwardly and hurriedly caught up with her brothers.

They did not speak again until they had reached the end of the tunnel.

Crookshanks darted up first; he had evidently pressed his paw to the knot on the trunk, because Lupin, Pettigrew, and Ron clambered upward without any sound of savaging branches.

Remus helped Emily up through the whole who then helped her brothers out.

Black saw Snape up through the hole, then stood back for Harry and Hermione to pass. At last, all of them were out.

The grounds were very dark now; the only light came from the distant windows of the castle.

Without a word, they set off.