in the end ~ d. malfoy

Chapter Seventeen

tw: blatant racism, anti-asian sentiments, race-related bullying, burn-related injuries (don't read if you're uncomfortable; it's not very graphic)

𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟓

MAYA'S NEVER BEEN IN THIS DIRECTION OF HOGSMEADE BEFORE

On this particular afternoon, the trio and her are headed to see Sirius. Sirius Black, to be exact. The mass-murderer that managed to escape Azkaban last year, the very same one the Ministry is currently on a witch-hunt for. Hermione has explained the truth to her — that Sirius was actually framed by his best friend, Peter Pettigrew, after the death of James and Lily Potter. Maya's always had doubts about his sentencing, considering that he used to be a friend of her fathers, a tall, dark-haired man present in the old yearbooks that collect dust at home, sitting in a box beneath her mother's bed. He's also present in some of her baby pictures, laughing uproariously as her two-year-old self zooms around the house with a toy broom.

Even still, it doesn't quell her nervousness at meeting him for the first time.

The winding lane leads them out into the wild countryside around Hogsmeade. The cottages are fewer here, and their gardens larger; they are walking toward the foot of the mountain in whose shadow Hogsmeade lies. Then they turn a corner and see a stile at the end of the lane. Waiting for them, its front paws on the topmost bar, is a very large, shaggy black dog, which is carrying some newspapers in its mouth and oddly, looking very familiar. . . .

"Hello, Sirius," says Harry when they reach him.

What?! screams her brain.

Apparently he's an animagus.

The black dog sniffs Harry's bag eagerly, wags its tail once, then turns and begins to trot away from them across the scrubby
patch of ground that rises to meet the rocky foot of the mountain. The four of them climb over the stile and follow. Sirius leads them to the very foot of the mountain, where the ground is covered with boulders and rocks. It's easy for him, with his four paws, but Harry, Ron, Hermione and Maya are soon out of breath. They follow Sirius higher, up onto the mountain itself. For nearly half an hour they climb a steep, winding, and stony path, following Sirius's wagging tail, sweating in the sun. Maya starts to wonder whether she should've just curled up with a novel and stayed in her dormitory.

Then, at last, Sirius slips out of sight, and when they reach the place where he vanishes, Maya sees a narrow fissure in the rock. They squeeze into it and find themselves in a cool, dimly lit cave. Tethered at the end of it, one end of his rope around a large rock, is a Hippogriff. Maya's eyes widen in shock

What has she gotten herself into?

Half gray horse, half giant eagle, it's fierce orange eye flashes at the sight of them. All four of them bowed low to him, and after regarding them imperiously for a moment, the Hippogriff bends his scaly front knees and allows Hermione to rush forward and stroke his feathery neck.

Maya, however, looks at the black dog, which has just transformed back into a man.

Sirius is wearing ragged gray robes; the material hinting that it used to be part of a prison uniform. He looks drastically different than he did in the old pictures; it has been thirteen years, after all. His black hair is greying and matted, falling to his shoulders in a tangled mess that looks as though it hasn't seen a brush in years. He's still tall, but incredibly thin, to the point where he could be considered emaciated; Sirius's cheekbones jut out of his skin, though his eyes still have the same mischief-ridden sparkle that her father used to mention.