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SIYE Time:2:05 on 29th March 2024
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Paintball Wizard
By cackling stump

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Category: Alternate Universe
Characters:All
Genres: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Tragedy
Warnings: Death
Story is Complete
Rating: PG-13
Reviews: 319
Summary: The life of a typical American teenager (okay, maybe not so typical) is shaken by tragedy. Then he discovers a new world awaiting him, filled with new people, new struggles, and, perhaps, new love.
Hitcount: Story Total: 256034; Chapter Total: 5213
Awards: View Trophy Room




Author's Notes:
Thanks again to Arnel for her beta work. She was especially helpful for the ending for this chapter which ended abruptly in the original version.




ChapterPrinter
StoryPrinter


Rats!

Dumbledore arranged for Ginny to not have to go to History of Magic so that she could attend tutoring with Harry and Remus. At the appointed time, the newly engaged couple walked hand in hand to the classroom Harry and Remus used for their weekly tutoring sessions on that next Tuesday afternoon. When they entered they saw that Remus was not alone, but was accompanied by Tonks.

Remus started the session by saying, “Today I want to assess what the two of you can do together. I have a good feeling of what Harry can do, and he’s told me that when you are touching, your powers are much stronger, but I would like to see it for myself. To help me, I asked Tonks to come as well. Let’s start with a simple Shield Spell.”

Harry and Ginny stood up and held hands and then Harry said, “Protego! ” The shield appeared, similar to the one he made on the Hogwarts Express platform. It was translucent and Remus and Tonks looked shimmery through it. Remus and Tonks then attacked the shield with multiple spells and hexes, but nothing could get through it. “Now let’s see what happens if Ginny does the spell,” suggested Remus. The results were the same; it didn’t matter which one of them did the magic.

“Ok, now let’s try some offensive spells. Let’s start with Expelliarmus. Harry, try to Disarm Tonks while holding hands with Ginny.”

“Tonks, I apologize in advance,” said Harry.

“Me, too,” said Ginny.

“Whatever for?” asked Tonks.

“You’ll see,” replied Ginny with a smirk.

Tonks readied herself for an attack and put up a shield, but when Harry said “Expelliarmus” quietly, her shield disintegrated, her wand flew into Harry’s hand, and she was thrown across the room until she hit the wall, knocking her out.

Remus walked over and awoke Tonks quickly.

“I warned you,” said Harry. “That was as little power as I could put behind it. We’ve never tried to do it full power; we’re afraid of what it could do.”

“I see that we are going to have to do some modifications of our training and our environment to really see what power you two have together,” said Remus. “Harry, why don’t you work with Tonks on duelling while I work with Ginny on Occlumency?”

After about an hour, a sweaty Harry came back to the classroom where Remus and Ginny were working to see how things were going. Tonks stuck her head in the room to say good bye as she had to get back to work.

Harry didn’t need his connection to Ginny to tell that she was frustrated as it was written all over her face. “It is really exasperating,” she said. “I can’t seem to even start to fight off Remus’ attacks.”

“It’s not easy, Gin,” Harry said as he gently rubbed her shoulders. “It took me quite a while before I could do it, too.” Harry paused for a few seconds, and then a smile came on his face. “Hey, Remus, can we try something?”

“What do you have in mind?”

“My Occlumency is much stronger when I am in contact with Ginny. Hers probably will be, too. Can she try it again holding my hand? Perhaps if she can do it with me then she can learn to do it on her own.”

“Great idea, Harry,” said Remus. “Let’s try it.”

Harry sat down next to Ginny and grabbed her hand. He smiled at her and tried to send all of his confidence at her through their Bond. “You can do this,” he whispered.

Ginny’s eyes opened wide, surprised at the feelings she was getting from him. “If you think so,” she whispered back.

Remus asked, “Ready?” When she nodded, he said, “Remember, try to relax your mind and then as I enter, try to build a wall to keep me out. Legilimens!

This time as Remus entered her mind, she was able to start building a wall that pushed him out temporarily, but after a few seconds the wall crashed open and Remus was able to invade again. “Good job, Ginny! That was much better. I think we will have to continue to use Harry’s help until you get better at it. How about calling it quits for the day, since you’re both tired.”

Ginny started to get up, but Harry held onto her hand and pulled her back down into his lap. “Oh, we’re not ready to leave yet,” he said with a smile. “It’s part of our routine to finish each lesson with a story from the Marauders. What do you want to tell us about today?”

“With the two of you getting engaged, congratulations, by the way. Because of your engagement, I brought some pictures of your parents’ wedding that I thought you would like to see.”

“That sounds great,” said Ginny, obviously excited. “What did Lily’s dress look like?”

Remus shuffled through his photos until he found one showing Lily in her wedding robes. “Oh, Harry, she was beautiful!” Ginny gushed.

“Not as beautiful as you will be,” he whispered in her ear, causing her to blush.

Remus then showed the two of them a picture of Sirius and Remus helping James to get ready, sharing with them how nervous James was. “He was sure that she was going to come to her senses all of a sudden and realize what a prat he was. It took everything we had to calm him down enough to get ready. He was pacing back and forth, sweating, muttering under his breath. He was a basket case,” Remus said with a chuckle. “But when he saw her walking down the aisle, he just stared at her and became all misty. Sirius told me later that he muttered, ‘What did I do to deserve that vision of loveliness?’”

Remus then took out some pictures taken at the reception. “The wedding was small, just family and a few friends, because of the war. Harry, here’s a picture of your parents and both sets of grandparents. All four of your grandparents died soon after. James’ parents died of dragon pox and Lily’s parents died in a car crash a few months before you were born, Harry.”

“Who’s that woman?” Harry asked, pointing at a thin blonde woman. “She’s in several of the pictures for a moment and then leaves, looking like she smelled something rancid.”

Remus chuckled. “That’s Lily’s sister, Petunia. Apparently the two sisters were close, at least until Lily discovered that she was a witch and went off to Hogwarts. She even wrote a letter to Dumbledore, begging him to let her attend also, even though she was a Muggle.” Ginny giggled at that idea. “When he wouldn’t let her come, according to Lily, Petunia started hating all things magical. Lily was surprised that she even came to the wedding, because they had little contact after she left school. She came alone; her husband never wanted anything to do with Lily and James after James showed him up when they first met.”

Harry considered this news. “What happened to her? She obviously wasn’t alive when my parents were killed, or the magic my mother used would have sent me to her instead of to my parents in America.”

“I am guessing that is what Lily’s intention was, to send you to her sister to keep you safe from Voldemort, at least temporarily. I imagine that she assumed that Sirius would pick you up and raise you.”

A look of confusion appeared on Harry’s and Ginny’s face. “Sirius? Why would Sirius Black raise me?” asked Harry.

“I guess I haven’t told you. Sirius Black is your godfather, so, if your parents died, he would have the responsibility to raise you.”

The news stunned Harry, and he leaned back in his chair. After a few moments, he said, “Again it comes back to how could he have betrayed my parents like he did. They trusted him enough to make him their Secret-Keeper, enough to entrust me to his care.” Harry could feel his anger rising, but Ginny sent soothing thoughts to him as she lay her head in the crook of his neck and placed a gentle kiss on his collar bone.

Harry took a deep breath and his pulse slowed. “Thanks, Gin,” he whispered. “Remus, back to my original question. What happened to my aunt? Why didn’t I go to her when I was struck by Voldemort?”

Remus bowed his head and shook it. “It’s a tragic story. We didn’t know it at the time, but just a few days before your parents were attacked by Voldemort, your aunt had an argument with her husband, and he lost his temper. He beat her so severely that she died from her injuries. Then, in his rage, he also killed their son. He covered it up, saying that she had been attacked by a burglar who had broken into the house. But at her autopsy, it was discovered that she had multiple fractures at various stages of healing, as well as scars all over her body that were unseen under her clothes. That made the police suspicious, and when they investigated the husband’s story more closely, they discovered the truth. He was sent to prison for life for the two murders.” He paused for a moment. “I didn’t like Petunia, but she certainly didn’t deserve to be abused and eventually killed by her husband. I think life in prison is too lenient a punishment for the bastard.” Both Harry and Ginny were surprised by the anger in Remus’ voice.

Remus gathered himself and then turned back to his pile of photos. “Now, on to some happier memories.” Remus pulled out another photo, handing it to Harry, and said, “And here are the Marauders at the reception.” Harry gasped suddenly.

As Remus and Ginny looked at him, he asked, “Who is that?” pointing at the shorter man in the group.

“That’s Wormtail, of course. Oh, I guess I haven’t shown you any pictures of him yet, have I?”

“No, you haven’t. His first name was Peter, right? Was his last name Pettigrew?”

“Right, Harry,” said Remus, obviously confused.

“And you say he was killed by Sirius the night after my parents were killed?” asked Harry, with anger growing in his voice.

“Right, again. What’s wrong, Harry? Why are you getting angry?”

“Because Sirius didn’t kill him. He’s still alive!”

“What do you mean?”

“Pettigrew was Voldemort’s assistant when he regained his body. He was the one who cut off his hand and stabbed me for my blood!”

Remus tried to calm him down. “You must be mistaken, Harry. Peter is dead.”

“Did they ever find a body?” asked Harry.

“No, all that was left was a finger; the rest of his body was destroyed in the explosion.”

Harry thought for a moment. “You said he was a rat in his Animagus form. Could he have cut off his finger and then changed to a rat to escape the explosion?”

Remus considered that theory. “I guess that’s possible, but why wouldn’t he have just changed back afterwards if he was still alive?”

“Because he wanted Sirius to stay in Azkaban for killing him. If he reappeared as Pettigrew then that might reopen Sirius’ case.”

“But why wouldn’t he want Sirius to be free?” asked Remus. “He was one of Sirius’ friends.”

“Maybe Sirius didn’t do everything he was accused of,” said Harry, in a voice barely above a whisper. “We were just talking about how we couldn’t understand how Sirius could betray my parents,” he explained. “Maybe someone else did, like Pettigrew.”

Ginny had been just trying to follow the conversation when an idea struck her. “Wait, you said that Pettigrew may have cut off his finger before he turned into a rat. And that he also cut off his hand in Voldemort’s rebirth. Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

Harry and Remus both looked at Ginny with confused looks on their faces. She muttered under her breath as she worked out her thoughts in her brain. “Percy said he received him when he was five, so the time frame fits. And he was in Ron’s room before Christmas.”

“Ginny, what are you thinking? We’re not following you,” said Harry.

“Peter Pettigrew is Scabbers! He’s been hiding out with our family since the end of the first Wizarding War!” At the incredulous looks on Harry’s and Remus’ faces, she continued. “You see, Percy acquired him as a pet when he was five or in 1981, and he was always missing a toe on one of his forelegs. And when he returned after Christmas, he just had a stump of a leg!”

Ginny jumped up off of Harry’s lap as she had another idea. She looked into his eyes. “Remember Harry, when we went up to Ron’s room the day we got back to the Burrow before Christmas. You took off your ring for a few minutes. Scabbers was in Ron’s room that day! He would have seen your real appearance. Then he disappeared for a few days. That’s when he must have told Voldemort about who you were. Then he returned the day after you were kidnapped. Don’t you see? It all fits!”

“And remember that headache I got the next day when I thought I heard laughter. That must have been when Wormtail told Voldemort about me! You’re right; it does fit! You’re a genius, Ginny!” He jumped out of his chair, lifting Ginny up, spinning her around and giving her a big kiss.

“Calm down, you two,” said Remus. “I don’t know; this all sounds a little far-fetched. Why would Peter want to fake his death and be willing to live as a rat for 16 years?” asked Remus.

“Like I said earlier, maybe Sirius didn’t do everything he is accused of. He certainly didn’t kill Peter, because I know that he is the man that helped Voldemort,” said Harry.

“But Sirius had to be the one who betrayed James and Lily; he was the Secret Keeper, and only he could reveal the location of where they were hiding,” replied Remus.

Ginny and Harry thought for a moment. “Hmm. I don’t have an answer for that one,” said Harry.

“But I know where we can get some of the answers: Scabbers,” said Ginny. “He should be up in Ron’s dorm in his cage. Remus, is there a spell that can reveal the true identity of an Animagus?”

“Yes, Aperio Humanis. Let’s go up to the dorm and see what we can learn.”

The three quickly left the classroom and went up to the Gryffindor boys’ dorm. As they hoped, Scabbers was sitting in his cage near Ron’s bed, snoozing. Ginny rattled his cage, waking him up. As Scabbers woke up and saw who was there, his eyes bulged when he saw Remus.

“Why, hello, Scabbers. Or should I say, Peter! I’d recognize you anywhere. Let’s get you out of this cage and have a talk,” said Remus. He opened the cage, pointed his wand and said, “Aperio Humanis.” causing the rat to change into the form of a man with a stump at his right hand. As soon as he did, Harry bound him in some ropes.

Remus’ face showed the rage that he was barely controlling as he held his wand in Peter’s face. “Tell me, Peter, the truth, what happened that night?”

The small man trembled. “Please, Remus, don’t hurt me. I’m your friend. Remember the fun times we had here at Hogwarts?”

“I do,” replied Remus, “and that is the only reason I have not killed you yet. Again, I ask, what happened that night?”

“I don’t know,” Pettigrew responded, shaking his head back and forth. “Sirius was the Secret Keeper, so he must have told Voldemort how to find James and Lily.”

“And when Sirius found you the next day?”

“Sirius was crazy; he said it was all my fault. I turned into a rat and escaped.”

“What about the finger they found?”

“Oh, that. I cut it off so when they found it people would believe I was dead.”

“After Sirius was captured, why didn’t you reveal that you were really alive?”

“I thought Sirius or maybe You-Know-Who would come after me. I thought the only way I could be safe was to stay in my rat form.”

Harry interjected, “If you really were afraid of Voldemort, then why were you helping him regain his body?”

Pettigrew turned toward Harry, a look of fear on his face. After a few moments of considering the question, he answered. “Um, er, I was under the Imperius Curse. Yeah, the Imperius Curse,” he said, nodding his head.

Harry took a step toward him, his wand pointed at Pettigrew’s face also. “Except the potion wouldn’t have worked,” he growled. “Part of the spell is ‘Flesh of the servant, willingly given, you will revive your master. ’ Under the Imperius, your hand wouldn’t have been willingly given.”

“And we know that you were the one who told Voldemort about Harry’s existence. No one else knew that Brook Pelton was actually Harry Potter,” added Ginny, her wand also out and pointed at the cowering wizard.

Pettigrew started to stammer, stalling for time, when Ron came into the dorm suddenly and said “Oi, what’s going on here?”

Remus, Harry, and Ginny all turned at Ron’s entrance, giving Pettigrew a split second to change back into his rat form, escaping the ropes that bound him, and he scampered out the door, despite the injury to his forepaw. Ron, shocked, asked, “Scabbers?”

Remus yelled, “After him!”

Scabbers led them on a chase through the corridors, evading all hexes that were thrown at him. Harry had almost caught up to him when they approached the entrance doors. I have him now, thought Harry, but the doors opened as a class of third years came in from a Care of Magical Creatures class with Hagrid, and the rat slipped between their feet, causing several girls, and one boy, to scream, and he made it out of the castle. Harry, Remus, and Ginny were slowed up significantly trying to get around the scared third years. When they freed themselves from the students and made it outside, they searched for where Wormtail had gone, fearing they had lost him. Ginny shouted, “There, by Hagrid’s hut!”

They sprinted toward him, but they didn’t have much hope at catching him before he escaped into the Forbidden Forest. Just as Wormtail was starting to enter the trees, they heard a bark, and a large black dog jumped out and grabbed the rat’s nape in its mouth. Harry, Remus, and Ginny caught up a few seconds later, but when the dog saw them, it started to run off into the forest.

“Padfoot, wait!” yelled Remus, his hand out in front of him. “Don’t run off! We know you didn’t kill Peter! Please just stay there so we can talk.”

The dog stopped and waited for the trio to arrive. Ron pulled up behind them as well, very confused as to what was occurring. Harry grabbed Ginny’s hand to make sure they could combine their magic if it was necessary. When everyone was there and had regained their breath, Padfoot looked questioningly at Remus. Remus nodded and Padfoot threw the rat on the ground and Remus quickly said, “Aperio Humanis,” causing Wormtail to change back into Peter again. Remus then disarmed him and Harry surrounded him with a shield that encircled him to prevent him from escaping again in either his human or rat form. Padfoot then changed to his human form as well.

Ron pulled out his wand. “Sirius Black! Stupefy! ” But before the spell could reach him, Ginny threw a shield to protect Sirius.

“Ron, stop! He’s not what you think he is! He is not a murderer.” She pointed at Peter, saying, “This is Peter Pettigrew, the man Sirius supposedly killed. He is an Animagus and has been masquerading as Scabbers since the end of the first Wizarding War.”

Ron eyed Sirius suspiciously, keeping his wand on him. “Okay, Ginny, if you say so. I’ll not hex him for now, but I am keeping my eye on him; if he steps out of line, he’s going down.”

Sirius approached Harry slowly, staring at his face. “Oh, Harry,” he said before grabbing him into a hug, sobbing into Harry’s shoulder. “I thought you were dead. I never thought I would be able to see my godson again.”

Harry patted Sirius on the back, comforting him as he cried. When Sirius regained control, he pulled back and went over and hugged Remus as well. “Remus, I never thought I would be able to see you again either. I’ve missed you old friend.”

“I’ve missed you too, Padfoot,” slapping his friend on the back.

Remus pulled out of the hug and asked, “We are still a little confused, Sirius. What really happened that night?”

Sirius took a deep breath to collect his thoughts. “Actually the story began a few days before. Peter and I were talking about the Secret-Keeper idea and said that everyone would expect it to be me. He suggested perhaps someone else might be a better choice.”

He turned toward Peter in the shield bubble, his voice reflecting the anger that he felt. “In retrospect, he was obviously scheming to get me to suggest a change to James and Lily.” Sirius dropped his head, his voice lower. “To my great regret since then, I approached them the next day and suggested that they make Peter the Secret-Keeper for the cottage. We didn’t tell anyone, not even you, Remus, so that the secret couldn’t get out.” He put his hand on Remus’ shoulder. “I’m ashamed to admit it, but we knew there was a spy in the Order, and we thought it was you. I’m sorry for doubting you. I should have trusted you and let you know about the change.”

Sirius then turned back to the group. “When I heard about what had happened to James and Lily, I knew immediately that Peter must have betrayed them, so I went after him in a rage. I know what people say they saw, and I was crazed in anger, but when I found Peter and confronted him, he cut off his finger, caused the explosion that killed all those Muggles, and then ran off as a rat through the sewers. When he disappeared, I just collapsed there on the street.”

He dropped his head again. “I had failed James and Lily. I had failed Harry. And I had failed to get retribution for them. I hated myself at that moment. It was in that combination of mourning and self-loathing that the Aurors found me. I was almost incoherent in my grief. There was enough evidence against me that they took me straight to Azkaban after a short hearing, but I wasn’t allowed to give any testimony.”

He paused for a moment. “After I recovered a little, the only thing that kept me going was knowing that I was innocent, but there were times when I wished the Dementors would just Kiss me and end it.

“Then, when I saw Harry’s picture in the Daily Prophet after he was revealed to be alive, I also saw this boy here,” pointing at Ron, “with Wormtail on his shoulder. Knowing that Harry was alive but in Wormtail’s presence gave me enough motivation to transform to Padfoot and escape from Azkaban.

“I made my way to Ottery St. Catchpole, since that was the last place I knew where Wormtail was, but I couldn’t find him at the Weasley’s home.”

“So, you’re the one who tore up the Burrow!” exclaimed Ginny.

“Yeah, sorry about that. My mind still wasn’t in a right state after years of exposure to the Dementors. Since I couldn’t find Wormtail, I suspected that Peter might be at Hogwarts. So I came here to make sure I could protect Harry,” slapping his godson on the shoulder. “You can’t imagine how I felt that day when you found me out by the Quidditch pitch,” he said, his eyes misting up. He then turned to Remus and smiled. “Didn’t expect to see you here, Moony, though.”

“You gave me a shock too, Sirius,” smiled Remus. “Sorry for casting all those spells at you.”

Remus turned back to the imprisoned traitor, pointing his wand at him. “Peter, do you have anything to say in your defence? Do you want to contradict anything that Sirius just said?”

Peter’s head dropped to his chest. “No, everything he said is true. I was the one who betrayed James and Lily. But you have to understand,” he pleaded, “the Dark Lord threatened to kill my parents if I didn’t help him. And he promised me a place of importance in his regime, something I would never get in the Order. You all thought of me as a loser, a hanger-on, someone who was incapable of anything great,” the infuriation obvious in his voice. “Now, I have helped him return! I will be greatly rewarded.”

“I don’t think you will be receiving any reward where you are going. We are going to march you up to the castle and turn you over to Dumbledore so he can transfer you to the Ministry for trial,” said Remus. “Harry, can you levitate that bubble you have him in so we can take him to Dumbledore?”

“Sure, I can do that,” replied Harry. Ron led the way with Harry and Ginny close behind, holding hands, while Harry levitated Pettigrew. They were followed by Sirius and Remus, walking with their arms around each other in the growing darkness.

However, as they approached the castle, Snape appeared out of nowhere. He barred their way, saying, “Potter, Weasleys, what is the meaning of this? You students know better than to be out of the castle without a professor!” He paused when he saw there were others, but then his eyes opened wide when he realized who they were. “Black! Get down Potter! Stupefy!

As Snape shot the spell at Sirius, Harry threw up a shield to protect him, as Sirius did not have a wand. However, when he did this, he lost control of Wormtail, whose bubble shield fell to the ground and broke open. The instant this occurred, he changed back into a rat and scampered off.

Ginny and Ron took after him while Harry continued to protect Sirius, avoiding any offensive spells as he didn’t want to attack a professor. In reality, he did want to hex Snape, but he thought it would be better if he didn’t do anything to hurt him. Remus tried to get Snape’s attention, yelling at him to stop and asking him to let them explain, but he was unable to get Snape to cease firing spells at Sirius. In the end, he shot a Stunning Spell at Snape, rendering him unconscious.

Ginny and Ron returned, their heads down. Ginny said, “Sorry, but we lost him in the dark.”

“Now what?” asked Harry, lifting his palms upward. “I don’t suppose anyone is going to believe Sirius as long as we have no evidence that Pettigrew is still alive.”

“No, I don’t suppose they will,” said Remus. “First, I am going to Obliviate Severus so he won’t remember that he saw Sirius. Sirius, we need to get out of here and figure out where to hide you.”

Sirius replied, “That sounds like a plan.” He turned to Harry, “Now that I know that you are alive, I want to be a part of your life. That’s what your parents wanted and I plan to do as they wished.”

A smile grew on Harry’s face. “I would like that. Remus has told me a lot about you and the rest of the Marauders, and I feel like you two are the only family I have left, outside of the Weasleys, of course,” turning to Ginny and squeezing her hand.

“And it looks like I need to get to know this gorgeous young woman as well; she obviously means a lot to you.” Pulling Harry into a hug, he said, “Good bye, Harry. It won’t be long until we see each other again, I promise.” While Sirius was saying good bye, Harry heard Remus discussing that evening’s DA session with Ron, but couldn’t make out any specifics.

Sirius released Harry and walked over to Remus and they walked toward the gates, leaving Harry, Ginny, and Ron standing there with Professor Snape lying on the ground. “What do we do with him?” asked Ron, nudging the Defence teacher with the toe of his boot.

The trio thought for a moment. Harry ran a hand through his hair and glanced at Ginny, who was chewing on her lower lip. He could feel her uncertainty through their Bond, so he put his hand on her shoulder and she calmed a little at the contact. Ron was pacing back and forth, muttering to himself. Harry thought he heard “Hermione” a few times and he suppressed a chuckle as Ron was obviously trying to think like his girlfriend.

He looked back at Ginny who appeared to be scanning their area for something, which gave him an idea. “Let’s pull him out of the direct view of the front doors to make sure no one can see him,” said Harry. After Harry and Ron had moved him to in a little nook on the exterior of the castle, Harry suggested, “Now, I’ll run up to the dorm and grab my Invisibility Cloak. From under the Cloak, Ginny and I can cast a Rennervate at him from a distance and we’ll be able to ensure that he doesn’t suspect anything. Hopefully he won’t have any idea how he arrived out here or what he was doing.”

Ron said, “Harry, why don’t you and Ginny stay here and I’ll get your Cloak? If Snape starts to wake up, the two of you are better able to handle him together.”

“Good idea, Ron,” said Ginny, obviously impressed.

“Is it in your trunk?” asked Ron.

“Yes, I put it under some old t-shirts on the left side. You should be able to find it easily.”

Ron left quickly while Harry and Ginny kept their wands pointed at their Defence professor and an eye out for anyone who might come outside. Fortunately, no one did, and a few nervous minutes later, Ron returned, somewhat out of breath. “Whew, I wasn’t sure if I was going to get away from the common room. Hermione wondered where I had been and I didn’t want to take the time to explain what I was doing.”

“What did you tell her?” asked Ginny.

“I said that Harry and I were having an argument about Quidditch rules, and that I needed proof that I was right,” he said, showing them that he had also retrieved his copy of Quidditch Through the Ages. “She just rolled her eyes, muttered ‘Boys!’ under her breath, and returned to her revising,” he said with a smirk.

Harry chuckled, picturing Hermione’s reaction in his mind. He slapped Ron on the back and said, “Quick thinking, mate!” He added with a smirk of his own, “If I didn’t know any better, I would think that you were channelling your inner Slytherin with that fib.”

Ron turned a little white. “Bite your tongue, Potter! I’m a Gryffindor through and through.” He then laughed and said, “I couldn’t exactly tell Hermione the truth, could I? I don’t think she’d approve of us holding a Stunned and Obliviated professor at wandpoint, would she?”

The three sniggered. Ron pulled out Harry’s Cloak and handed it to him. “You better get back inside, Ron,” suggested Harry. “The Cloak covers the two of us, but just barely.” Ron agreed and left.

Harry pulled the Cloak over Ginny and himself and they walked about twenty feet away from Snape before casting the reviving spell. They watched, holding their breath, as Snape awoke, looked around with a confused look on his face, stood up, and brushed some debris from his clothes. He then stood up straight, donning his usual sneer, and walked back to the castle entrance.

A few minutes later, Ginny and Harry followed him inside and went to one of the ground floor classrooms where they removed the Cloak. They then walked hand in hand to the Great Hall for dinner, trying to act naturally. Shortly after they sat down, they were joined by Hermione and Ron. Hermione asked, obviously perturbed, “So, Harry, did you and Ron settle your argument?”

Harry, who had been trying to watch Snape furtively, was caught by surprise by Hermione’s question, but quickly recovered. “Yeah, Ron was right. I never should have questioned him,” turning his attention back to Snape.

“What was the argument about?” asked Hermione.

“It’s not important, Hermione,” said Ron.

“It was important enough for you to go running out the portrait hole, Ronald! Why don’t you simply tell me what the argument was about?”

Ginny whispered to her best friend, “Hermione, please just leave off the Quidditch argument. We’ll tell you about it later.”

Hermione, a little stunned at Ginny’s angry tone, nodded and went back to her dinner. Throughout the meal, she looked back and forth between the three, trying to figure out what they were up to, but didn’t say anything.

Harry and Ginny continued to check on Snape periodically, and, fortunately, the professor seemed to be acting normally with no suggestion that something had happened that afternoon. When they finished eating, the two couples arose together, with Harry glancing one more time at Snape as they left.

As soon as they were in the corridor, Hermione turned on the other three. “What is going on?! What did you three do this afternoon?”

Ron pulled Hermione into a deserted classroom and Harry and Ginny followed them inside. Harry quickly cast an Imperturbable Charm on the door so they could explain the events of the afternoon to Hermione without being disturbed. It took quite a while since Hermione repeatedly interrupted with questions or scolding comments about how they could have handled it differently.

“While I certainly don’t agree with Stunning and Obliviating a professor, I do see where that might have been the best option at the time,” she eventually acquiesced. “Are you sure that he suspects nothing?”

“That’s what we were trying to determine during dinner, when you kept going on about the ‘Quidditch argument,’” retorted Ginny.

“Oh,” Hermione said, turning a little pink. “Sorry about that.”

“We’ll just to keep an eye on him the next few days, but my guess is that he doesn’t remember anything. When has he ever delayed a punishment for me,” Harry said with a chuckle, which was joined by the other three.

Ron looked at his watch and hopped off the desk he’d been sitting on. “We need to be going,” he whispered to his friends. “It’s almost time for DA and I need to set everything up. Remus told me what he had planned, but he didn’t think he was going to be able to make it. Other things taking up his time, you know,” he said with a wink. The other three also arose and followed him towards the Room of Requirement.

A/N: As has been requested in several reviews, the truth about Peter and Sirius is finally revealed. It also shows why I had Voldemort call Peter “Pettigrew” throughout the resurrection scene and not “Wormtail” as was in canon. It was also refreshing to have someone other than Hermione figure out a puzzle.

I also resolve a question that I was surprised I never received in reviews: Why was Harry transported to America and not to the Dursleys? I felt like I had to close that loophole in my plot.

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