The Marauders: Year Four

Druella at the Ministry

In Godric's Hollow, James and Sirius sat facing one another on James's bed, both in pyjamas. Bubo sat on her perch in the corner, preening her wing feathers, and James picked at a loose thread on his socks as Sirius rocked himself, hugging his knees. "Bloody hell, there has to be some word," he murmured, "It's been all ruddy day." He looked to James with wide, fearful eyes, "What if Dumbledore's not updating us because it's bad and he thinks not telling me right away will spare me pain or some stupid fuckery like that?"

James shook his head, "Dumbledore wouldn't do that. He'd come and tell you if something was bad. Or else he'd send Miss. Minnie or Kingsley or Moody or somebody."

Suddenly, there was a scream from downstairs - followed by something shattering - and James leaped from the bed, running out of the room and down the hallway. Sirius jumped up, too, grabbed James's wand from the nightstand where he'd forgotten it, and ran, after his mate, drawing his own wand. "James!" he called, thundering after him on the stairs and James looked back as Sirius tossed his wand to him, catching it, and they hurried into the kitchen to find Dora Potter standing in the center of the kitchen, flinging tea cups and saucers to the floor...

"WHERE IS THAT BLOODY DOG WHEN YOU NEED IT! OH MERLIN'S BEARD!" she cried.

"Mum! What is it? What's the matter?" James cried, rushing to Dora.

Sirius breathed deep, catching the scent, "Rat," he said and he fixed James with a meaningful stare, then turned, grabbing the handle of the cellar door and wrenching it open. The rat stood, trembling on the top step. He reached down and picked the rat up by it's tail - it swished and squealed, waving it's legs about quickly, trying to escape, grabbing onto it's own tail and tugging. "I've got it, Mrs. Potter, it's alright." He turned and she shrieked, ducking away quickly. "James - the door, if you will?"

Charlus skid into the room, having gone to bed early, not feeling well. "What's happening?" he asked, worry in his eyes. The scales left over from the Dragon Pox that marred his face seemed more prominent than usual.

James said, "Rat. Mum's found a rat." He turned to Dora, "Don't worry, Mum, we'll take care of it, don't worry. You and Dad just work on repairing all the dishes!" he smiled and pulled the door opened for Sirius and the rat, then ducked out into the yard after them as Dora nodded, still clutching her heart, leaning against the sink at the far end of the room, and Charlus hurried over to comfort her.

They ran in their slippers across the stone patio, jumped a low hedgerow and bolted through the empty field's long grasses into the trees at the edge of the woods. The moment Sirius dropped the rat onto the ground, it exploded into Peter Pettigrew.

"BLOODY HELL!" he cried, eyes wild, face twitching with fear, "She nearly got me with some of those plates!"

"You idiot, I told you she's terrified of rats!" said James admonishingly. "Are you mental? You're just lucky she didn't blast you to death! There's still a dent in the tile by the pantry where she saw a garden gnome and thought it was a rat once. Poor thing didn't stand a chance."

Peter shivered, "I didn't know what else to do! Have you heard anything about Remus yet?"

"Fenrir Greyback took him to the north, where he's building a bloody army for Voldemort, and Dumbledore's gone with Newt Scamander to save him," Sirius said, summarizing quickly, Peter's eyes growing comically large with the words, "That was this morning 'round breakfast and we haven't heard anything else since!"

Peter worried his hands, "Well my dad was at the Ministry tonight and he said there was an attack, just as he was leaving! Druella Black was there and she exploded half the Ministry and killed loads of people! She set the Dark Mark in the chamber and she had a wand and was saying Greyback killed somebody!" Peter looked terrified.