The Boy Who Lived

Marauders at Large

When Harry woke up in the bed of Room 11 at the Leaky Cauldron, there was a brown tabby cat with very distinctive square markings around its eyes asleep on the end on his bed. As soon as he stirred, the cat awoke instantly and stared at Harry with slightly narrowed eyes.

'I'm glad to see you,' he whispered sleepily. 'I was going to try and get back to Scotland today but I don't understand what's going on, mum. It's been a really weird night. I should be expelled. And Minister for Magic was involved in a case of Underage Magic, which he completely dismissed, and he'd told me to stay here to two weeks so he can keep an eye on me. I'm not to wander beyond Diagon Alley. I'm not even allowed to come home to you. Then he said I have to stay in school over Christmas and Easter, which we do anyway. But I'm not allowed on the Hogsmeade weekends... Is that my punishment instead? That's what I thought anyway, but then Fudge nearly jumped out of his skin when I asked him about Sirius Black.'

Minerva changed back into her human form and pulled her sleepy-eyed pyjama'ed son into her arms, relishing in him being safe in her arms again. Her nose buried into his soft black hair, comforted by its familiar citrusy smells.

She decided Dumbledore and Fudge were wrong, Harry had already worked out the basics and deserved to know the truth. 'I'm so glad you're safe. Did Vernon Dursley so much as lay a finger on you?' she said.

'No. I had Minnie. He was frightened of her,' he said quietly.

'And last year?' she said softly. She felt Harry freeze and pull away from her and he wouldn't look her in the eyes.

'It doesn't matter now,' he whispered.

'It does matter, Harry,' she said. 'And you must understand, you are not a fault, this is all on him. Oh Harry, if I'd known, I would never have let you go alone. You don't have to face these things alone.'

'But sometimes I do. And he threatened to hurt Aunt Petunia if I told anyone. He wanted to stop me coming back, he locked me in my room, there were bars on the window... and then, after Dobby threw the pudding at me and Hedwig escaped...'

Harry fell silent and she could only give him space despite the terrible images that filled her head and made her feel so angry. She had to give Harry the time to tell her when he was ready. Though she was definitely planning to curse Vernon Dursley and was wondering if there was a slow and torturous method to send him to his death that was extremely painful but not actually Dark Magic.

Harry said forcefully, 'there are things that people aren't telling me. I'm sure Professor Dumbledore and even the Minister for Magic know information about me that they're not willing to tell me. Like about Sirius Black, what's the Minister not telling me? What haven't you told me? I know you've mentioned he was one of dad's friends but what else? Why the sudden connection to me that's got everyone frightened? This is about more than my name, isn't it?'

'I was going to tell you... I just didn't know how to, I wanted to protect you,' she said sadly. 'Fudge and Albus don't want to scare you but I think you have a right to know. It appears that before he escaped Azkaban, Black was talking in his sleep, he kept repeating "He's at Hogwarts... he's at Hogwarts..." The Minister thinks that because Black lost everything the night you defeated Voldemort, and after twelve years alone in Azkaban, well...'

'He's after me.'

'Yes.'

Harry rolled his eyes. 'Another year, another madman...'

'Harry, it's not just a case of another madman, you have to be on your guard. We all have to be on our guard. I'm not sure the Minister is completely right; he's putting it down to revenge, pure and simple but it's so complex. I'm sorry we haven't talked about him, I suppose some of it was me protecting you, but also, how, even when, am I supposed to tell you about him? Sirius was more than just a friend of your father's; he was his bestfriend. We all thought he'd turned away from the pureblood rhetoric and the Dark Magic the Black family sided with. He was sorted into Gryffindor and eventually disowned by his mother. He was practically adopted by your grandparents, Fleamont and Euphemia, after that. But, in the end, he betrayed your parents for the Dark Lord and it seems he maybe after you too, even now. I don't want to believe it of him, I never have. He doted on James and Lily and he adored you, yet the evidence is hard to deny. He was their Secret Keeper; he was the only one who knew where they were hiding. Not even Dumbledore knew until after they were killed.'