Astrophile [J.P]

Chapter 67

~ Alone and forsaken by fate and by man. O lord, 

If you hear me please take my hand, please understand. ~

***

It had been 12 long years since Sirius Black had been sentenced to Azkaban under the accusation of being a Dark Wizard, helping out the Dark Lord by being a spy on the Potters, aiding in the Potter's death as well as causing the brutal murder of Peter Pettigrew.

Sad to say, none of those accusations were true.

Sirius had neither been a Dark Wizard nor the spy among his friends. He had neither caused James and Lily's death nor betrayed them. he had attacked Peter though because he knew the spy could be none other than him as the latter was switched to the role of Secret Keeper but even then, Peter had not died instead he had made his escape, using his Animagus form to his advantage.

Hence, Sirius Black had suffered those twelve years in Azkaban for all the crimes he had not committed.

He had not been aware that Peter had escaped and was living with a Pureblood family disguised as a pet rat. But the truth came to light when he accidentally caught sight of him in a Daily Prophet issue he had borrowed from Cornelius Fudge who had visited Azkaban that time.

There on the cover page had been a picture of the Weasleys who had won the Annual Grand Galleon Draw and his eyes had immediately been caught by the rat in the hands of one of their children.

To say that he was mistaken would be an insult for he had watched Peter transform into his Animagus form multiple times and could recognize him anywhere. That revelation relit the fire in his heart which had almost extinguished after those twelve years of severe torture.

Right then, he had seen that his best friend's betrayer was still alive and he could not rest until he avenged the Potters' death.

That revelation became a motivation for him to escape Azkaban and put an end to the traitor once and for all. Furthermore, he wanted to meet his godson Harry and clear up everything to him.

And proving that he was Sirius Orion Black, a daring spirit who was ambitious and determined enough to do the impossible, he eventually broke out of Azkaban.

Using his Animagus form to escape as it was unregistered and the Ministry would not be able to track him just like it had happened with Peter, Sirius left the confinement of the wizarding prison but was met with severe tribulations ahead of him. He had to swim the North Sea and the intense cold would have killed him if not for the determination he had to find Pettigrew.

His escape caused quite an uproar and he was forced to stay in hiding though he reached London in order to meet Harry and warn him of Pettigrew. And while he was unable to reveal himself to Harry as the rumors of him being a mass murdered and a threat were everywhere, he couldn't resist coming back to Magnolia Crescent for one last time.

He was well aware that his freedom was short-lived and perhaps after he managed to avenge the Potters' murder, he might never be able to see the light of day again. But he wanted to find out what happened to his cousin and that need of finding her brought him back to Hose number 7 at Magnolia Crescent.

It was raining heavily as he padded up the steps to the door, still in his Animagus form, his black fur dripping wet. Mustering up all the remaining strength he had, he tried to knock on the door, using stones to hit on it so that the sound would reach the occupant.

He somehow knew that Felicity would still be living in that same house and he wasn't wrong as shortly after the door opened.

Felicity looked down in shock at the frail form of the poor black dog and her heart churned to see it in such a pitiable state. She did not know that it was Sirius but she didn't hesitate to bring the dog in and locked the door afterwards.

Sirius noticed that she hadn't changed much though her hair had a few greying streaks which were visible in the dim light as she prepared a makeshift kennel for him using warm blankets. She looked exhausted though since the past few days, the Ministry had been bothering her a lot with unexpected raids to her house as they suspected her to be aiding Sirius Black.

The basis they had for that suspicion was the fact that she had been the only person who had requested to meet the Azkaban inmate several times but was denied. Even earlier that day, the Ministry officials had turned up again to as her if she had encountered Black lately or not.

She was tired of justifying to them that she had no idea where he was or how he escaped but deep down, she knew it was impossible to convince them. They would keep her under suspicion for as long as they did not find another lead on the case.

Right then, she took care of the injured and soaking dog that had shown up at her doorstep, unaware that it was none other than her cousin who was eluding capture. However, as she brought some leftover meat for him and sat down, arranging the blankets over the shivering form of the animal, she couldn't help but find those eyes to be somewhat familiar.

It reminded her of the black dog Remus had claimed to have befriended at Hogwarts and later on she had kept seeing the dog a lot near the Lake whenever she went there alone.

And even though it was far fetched for her to assume that the dog she had met at Hogwarts and the one she was taking care of right then were the same, deep down an instinctive feeling suggested just that.

That night, she talked to him just like she used to talk to the black dog in school, sharing everything that had been on her mind lately.

Through her, Sirius came to know some parts of what had happened in his twelve year long imprisonment and was relieved to learn that Remus was alive too and gotten the post of Professor at Hogwarts.

He wanted so badly to tell her his side of the story, to tell her that he was innocent and Peter was to blame for the betrayal. He knew she would have been very hurt due to all that had followed after the attack at the Potters but he refrained from revealing himself, knowing that she could get in trouble with the Ministry if they suspected her further.

So early next morning while Felicity was still asleep, Sirius left her home, not wanting to put her in any trouble due to himself. Deep down he hoped that he would get some time later to clear his name of all the charges, to meet his friends again and to tell them that he was innocent.

But at the current moment, it could not be done. He had to track down Peter because the capture of that rat was the only thing that he could use to prove his innocence. Otherwise, there would be no way for him to clear his name of all the accusations on him.

***