Harry nodded too.

"No!" Pettigrew had fallen to his knees as though our nods had been his own death sentence. He shuffled forward on his knees, grovelling, his hands clasped in front of him as though praying.

"Sirius - it's me ... it's Peter ..."

Sirius kicked out and Pettigrew recoiled. 

"There's enough filth on my robes without you touching them." Sirius said.

Emily snorted. "Need some ice for that burn?"

"Hashtag shots fired." I said.

"Emily ... I'm your friend ... you wouldn't ..." Pettigrew turned to Emily.

"You stopped being my friend the day you betrayed Lily and James." Emily hissed.

"Remus!" Pettigrew squeaked, turning to Lupin instead, writhing imploringly in front of him. "You don't believe this ... wouldn't Sirius have told you they'd changed the plan?"

"Not if he thought I was the spy, Peter." Lupin said. "I assume that's why you didn't tell me, Sirius?" He said casually over Pettigrew's head.

"Forgive me, Remus." Sirius said.

"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend." Lupin said, who was now rolling up his sleeves. "And will you, in turn, forgive me for believing YOU were the spy?"

"Of course." Sirius said, and the ghost of a grin flitted across his gaunt face. He, too, began rolling up his sleeves. 

"Wait, Siri, why didn't you tell me they'd changed the plan then? You surely didn't think I was the spy, or that I was collaborating with Remus?" Emily gasped. "If he was the spy, of course."

Sirius shook his head. "I just knew you wouldn't believe me if I told you that Remus was the spy - that being what I believed at the time. I thought you'd go and tell him because you two're so close. I didn't want to risk it."

Emily shrugged. "I guess that explains it. But what about James?"

A knowing look crossed Sirius and Lupin's faces. "He didn't want you to get hurt." 

I got the feeling something much bigger was behind the Marauders' story.

Emily nodded.

"Shall we kill him together?" Sirius said.

"Yes, I think so." Lupin said grimly.

"You wouldn't ... you won't ..." Pettigrew gasped. And he scrambled around to Ron.

"Ron ... haven't I been a good friend ... a good pet? You won't let them kill me, Ron, will you ... you're on my side, aren't you?"

But Ron was staring at Pettigrew with the utmost revulsion.

"I let you sleep in my BED!" He said.

George sniggered. "We've been seeing that for years."

"On the Map." Fred explained. "There was always a guy called Peter Pettigrew sleeping in Ron's bed."

"We didn't want to say anything." George grinned. "We did think that it was a bit weird that Ron had slept with a guy from the very first day of school in first year, like, he was eleven and not exactly a charmer -"

"But we were very proud that Ronniekins had bedded someone already at that age." Fred winked.

"Kind boy ... kind master ..." Pettigrew crawled towards Ron, "you won't let them do it ... I was your rat ... I was a good pet ..."

"If you made a better rat than human, it's not much to boast about, Peter." Sirius said harshly.

"Pew pew pew!" Terry sniggered, pretending to shoot a gun.

"Dear me, there's a lot of sass this evening, isn't there?" Emily muttered.

"Sweet boy ... clever boy ... you - you won't let them ... help me ..." Pettigrew shuffled forwards on his knees towards Terry.

Terry snorted. "You're calling me 'sweet'? Merlin, you don't know me very well. I'm only remotely sweet when I'm with Softpaw." 

"It's true." I admitted, feeling the slight blush.

Pettigrew knelt, trembling uncontrollably, and turned his head slowly towards me.

"Daisy ... Daisy ... you look just like your father ... just like him ..."

"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO DAISY?" Sirius roared. "HOW DARE YOU FACE HER? HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT JAMES IN FRONT OF HER?"

"Daisy," whispered Pettigrew, shuffling towards me, hands outstretched, "Daisy, James wouldn't have wanted me killed ... James would have understood, Daisy ... he would have shown me mercy ..." 

Emily, Sirius, and Lupin strode forwards, seized Pettigrew's shoulders, and threw him backwards into the floor. He sat there, twitching with terror, staring up at us.

"You sold Lily and James to Voldemort." Sirius said, who was shaking too. "Do you deny it?"

Pettigrew burst into tears. 

"Sirius, Sirius, what could I have done? The Dark Lord ... you have no idea ... he had weapons you can't imagine ... I was scared, Sirius, I was never brave like you and Remus and Emily and James. I never meant it to happen ... He Who Must Not Be Named forced me -"

"DON'T LIE!" Sirius bellowed. "YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE LILY AND JAMES DIED! YOU WERE HIS SPY!"

"He - he was taking over everywhere!" Pettigrew gasped. "Wh-what was there to be gained by refusing him?"

"What was there to be gained by fighting the most evil wizard who has ever existed?" Emily said, with a terrible fury in her face. "Only innocent lives, Peter!"

"You don't understand!" Pettigrew whined. "He would have killed me, Emily!"

"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" Emily screamed. "DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!"

The three of them stood shoulder to shoulder, wands raised.

"You should have realised." Lupin said quietly. "If Voldemort didn't kill you, we would. Goodbye, Peter."

Rage coursed through my veins. Good. Anyone that betrays their friends like that should die. He betrayed our PARENTS! I wish I was the one killing him.

Hermione covered her face with her hands and turned to the wall.

"NO!" Harry yelled. He ran forwards, placing himself in front of Pettigrew, facing the wands. "You can't kill him." He said breathlessly. "You can't."

Emily, Sirius, and Lupin looked staggered.

"Harry, this piece of vermin is the reason we have no parents." I snarled.

"Your sister's right. This cringing bit of filth would have seen you, your sister, die too, without turning a hair. You heard him. His own stinking skin meant more to him than your entire family." Sirius said.

"I know." Harry panted. "We'll take him up to the castle. We'll hand him over to the Dementors. He can go to Azkaban ... just don't kill him."

"Harry!" Pettigrew gasped, and he flung his hands around Harry's knees. "You - thank you - it's more than I deserve - thank you -"

"Get off me." Harry spat, throwing Pettigrew's hands off him in disgust. "I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it because I don't reckon our dad would've wanted his best friends to become killers - just for you."

No one moved or made a sound except Pettigrew, whose breath was coming in wheezes as he clutched his chest. The three Marauders were looking at each other. Then, with one movement, they lowered their wands.

"You and Daisy are the only people who have the right to decide, Harry." Sirius said. "But think ... think what he did ..."

He betrayed my parents ... he got them killed ... he should die ... 

But a single good thought was shining through the darkness clouding my mind. Harry was right. Mum and Dad wouldn't want their best friends to become killers ... Pettigrew wasn't evil ... well, he was, but not like Voldemort or Floppy ...

"He can go to Azkaban." I said slowly. "If anyone deserves that place, he does..."

Pettigrew was still wheezing.

"Very well." Lupin said. "Stand aside, Harry."

Harry hesitated visibly.

"I'm going to tie him up." Lupin said. "That's all, I swear."

Harry stepped out of the way. When Lupin was finished, Sirius growled, "But if you transform, Peter, we WILL kill you. You agree, twins?"

We both looked down at the pitiful figure on the floor, and nodded so that Pettigrew could see us.

Crookshanks led the way down the stairs; Lupin, Pettigrew, and Ron - his leg in a temporary split - went next, looking like contestants in a six-legged race. Next came Snape, drifting along creepily along, his toes hitting each stair as we descended, held up by his own wand, which was being pointed at him by Sirius. The rest of our rather large group brought up the rear.

When we got into the tunnel, I noticed that Snape's head kept bumping the low ceiling. I had the impression Sirius was making no effort to prevent this.

"You know what this means?" Sirius said abruptly to me and Harry as we made our slow progress along the tunnel. "Turning Pettigrew in?"

"You're free." I said.

"Yes ..." Sirius said. "But I'm also - I don't know if anyone ever told you - I'm your godfather."

"Yeah, we knew that." Harry said.

"Well ... your parents appointed me your guardian." Sirius said stiffly. "If anything happened to them..."

My brother and I waited. Did Sirius mean...?

"I'll understand, of course, if you want to stay with your aunt and uncle." Sirius said. "But ... well ... think about it. Once my name's cleared ... if you wanted a ... a different home ..."

There was a tingly feeling in my toes. Of course I'd have to go and visit Dudley if I went to stay with him ... but ...

"What - live with you?" Harry said, accidentally cracking his head on a bit of rock protruding from the ceiling. "Leave the Dursleys?"

"Of course, I thought you wouldn't want to." Sirius said quickly. "I understand. I just thought I'd -"

"Are you mad?" I said, my voice easily as croaky as Sirius'. "Of course I want to leave the Dursleys! I'd have to go and visit my cousin and Muggle friends sometimes, but I certainly won't miss being used as a exhibit in a museum whenever there's a dinner party or whenever my aunt or uncle have people round for business - you know, to just sit there and look pretty. They've never really treated me like a daughter or even a proper niece - I'm certain Harry won't miss them either - so when can we move in?"

Sirius turned right around to look at us; Snape's head was scraping the ceiling but Sirius didn't seem to care.

"You want to?" He said. "You mean it?"

"Yeah, we mean it!" Harry and I chorused.

Sirius' gaunt face broke into the first true smile I had seen upon it. The difference it made was startling, as though a person ten years younger was shining through the starved mask; for a moment, he was recognisable as the man who had laughed at our parents' wedding.

We did not speak again until we reached the end of the tunnel and clambered up through the entrance. 

"One wrong move, Peter." Lupin said threateningly, ahead. His wand was still pointed sideways at Pettigrew's chest.

A cloud shifted. There were suddenly dim shadows on the ground. Our party was bathed in moonlight.

Sirius froze. He flung out an arm to make the rest of us stop.

I could see Lupin's silhouette. He had gone rigid. Then his limbs began to shake. 

"Oh my -" Hermione gasped. "He didn't take his Potion tonight! He's not safe!"

"Run." Emily whispered. "Run! Now!"

But I couldn't run. Ron was chained to Pettigrew and Lupin. I leapt forwards but Sirius caught me around the stomach and threw me back.

"Leave it to us - RUN!"

There was a terrible snarling noise. Lupin's head was lengthening. So was his body. His shoulders were hunching. Hair was sprouting visibly on his face and hands, which were curling into clawed paws. Crookshanks's fur was on end again, he was backing away -

As the werewolf reared, snapping its long jaws, Sirius disappeared from my side. He had transformed. The enormous, bear-like dog bounded forwards. As the werewolf wrenched itself free of the manacle binding it to Pettigrew, the dog seized it about the neck and pulled it backwards, away from Ron and Pettigrew. They were locked, jaw to jaw, claws ripping at each other -

Pettigrew had dived for Lupin's dropped wand. Ron, unsteady on his bandaged leg, fell. There was a bang, a burst of light - and Ron lay motionless on the ground. Another bang - Crookshanks flew into the air and back to the earth in a heap. 

"Expelliarmus!" Draco yelled, pointing his own wand at Pettigrew; Lupin's wand flew high into the air and out of sight.

"Stay where you are, asshole!" Terry shouted, running forwards.

Too late. Pettigrew had transformed. I saw his bald tail whip through the manacle on Ron's outstretched arm, and heard a scurrying through the grass. Evidentially, Emily did too, for she transformed ... into a Dik-dik? Xylophone ... wait ... that Tumblr post ... it was going on about the pronunciation of Dik-diks. Someone, being sarcastic, said that it was pronounced 'xylophone'. I remembered seeing it when I was scrolling through Tumblr with Harry. But how could Emily have seen that post? But she's a Seer...

Anyway, Emily darted away into the darkness after Pettigrew. 

I hope she catches him ... he needs to get karma.

There was a howl and a rumbling growl; I turned to see the werewolf taking flight; it was galloping into the Forest - 

"Sirius, he's gone, Pettigrew transformed!" Harry yelled.

Sirius was bleeding; there were gashes across his muzzle and back, but at Harry's words he scrambled up again, and in an instant, the sound of his paws was fading to silence as he pounded away across the grounds.

We all dashed over to Ron.

"What did he do to him?" Hermione whispered. Ron's eyes were only half-closed; his mouth hung open. He was definitely alive, I could hear him breathing, but he didn't seem to recognise us.

"I don't know." Terry huffed.

"We'd better get him and ol' Slimeball over there up to the castle and tell someone." Fred said.

"Come -" George started.

But then, out of the darkness, I heard a yelping, a whining; a dog in pain...

"Sirius." I muttered, staring into the darkness.

I had a moment's indecision, but there was nothing we could do for Ron at the moment, and by the sound of it, Sirius was in trouble -

I set off at a run, everyone right behind me. The yelping seemed to be coming from near the lake. We pelted towards it, and I felt the cold without realising what it must mean -

The yelping stopped abruptly. As we reached the lake's shore we saw why - Sirius had turned back into a man. He was crouched on all fours, his hands over his head.

"Nooo..." He moaned. "Noooo ... please ..."

Emily was a little farther off from him, her head in her hands, rocking back and forth.

And then I saw them. Dementors, at least a hundred of them, gliding in a black mass around the lake towards us. I spun around, the familiar, icy cold penetrating my insides, fog starting to obscure my vision; more were appearing out of the darkness on every side; they were encircling us...

"Guys, think of something happy!" I yelled, raising my wand, blinking furiously to try and clear my vision, shaking my head to rid it of the faint seductive whispering that had started inside it -

Quick! Think of something that's happy and means a lot to you!

I love someone. He's my entire world. His smile is the thing that makes my day alone, his laugh always makes my heart skip a beat, his eyes always look at me with such intensity and love I always find myself blushing when I look into them. He's funny, charming, hot, and very sincere. He's the guy of my dreams, the guy I would die for, the guy who would say the same for me.

I was trying to think of Terry when I thought those words. So why did my mind keep going back to my Dragon?

Fuck it! I forced myself to think of Terry, and only Terry, and began to chant, "Expecto patronum! Expecto patronum!"

Sirius gave a shudder, rolled over, and lay motionless on the ground, pale as death. A second later, Emily followed suit.

"Expecto patronum! Expecto patronum!" Harry was chanting too.

"Expecto -" Hermione and Draco were trying. "Expecto -"

"Expecto patthum - um -" Fred stuttered, looking confused.

"Exacto passonum - what am I -" George tried.

"Expec - what was it again?" Terry groaned.

The Dementors were closing in, barely ten feet from us. They formed a solid wall around us, and were getting closer...

Hermione and Draco collapsed next to us. 

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" I yelled, trying to blot Tom Riddle's voice from my ears. "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

A thin wisp of silver escaped my wand and hovered like mist before me at the same time Harry did the same. 

The twins collapsed too.

"Expecto - expecto patronum-"

I felt my knees hit the cold grass. Terry and Harry fell beside me. Fog was clouding my eyes. With a huge effort, I fought to remember - Terry - I love Terry - he loves me -

"Expecto patronum!" Us three gasped.

By the feeble light of my twin and I's formless Patronus's, I saw a Dementor halt very close to us. It couldn't walk through the cloud of silver mist we had conjured. A dead, slimy hand slid out from under the cloak. It made a gesture as though to sweep the Patronus aside.

Terry collapsed.

"No - NO -" Harry gasped. "He's innocent ... expecto - expecto patronum -"

I could feel them watching us, hear their rattling breath like an evil wind around us. The nearest Dementor seemed to be considering Harry. Then it raised both its rotting hands - and lowered its hood.

Where there should have been eyes, there was only thin, grey, scabbed skin, stretched blankly over empty sockets. 

A paralysing terror filled me so that I couldn't move or speak. Both our Patronus's flickered and died.

White fog was blinding me. I had to fight ... expecto patronum ... in the distance, I heard the familiar voice ... expecto patronum ... I groped in the mist for Harry ... they weren't going to take him ... 

But the Dementor was forcing his neck upwards ... they were going to get rid of him first ... NO ...

"Harry!" I squeaked weakly.

And then, through the fog that was drowning me, I thought I saw a silvery light, growing brighter and brighter ... I felt myself fall forwards onto the grass -

Face down, too weak to move, sick and shaking, I opened my eyes. The blinding light was illuminating the grass around me... The whispering had stopped, the cold was ebbing away...

Something was driving the Dementors back ... it was circling around my group ... the rattling, sucking sounds of the Dementors were fading. They were leaving ... the air was warm again...

With every ounce of strength I could muster, I raised my head a few inches and saw three animals amidst the light, moving away across the lake. I tried to make out what they were ... they were bright as unicorns. Fighting to stay conscious, I watched them skid to a halt as they reached the opposite shore. For a moment, I saw, by their brightness, people welcoming them back ... raising their hands to pat them ... people who looked strangely familiar ... but it couldn't be...

I didn't understand. I couldn't think anymore. I felt the last of my strength leave me, and my head hit the ground as I fainted.

~~~

"Shocking business ... shocking ... miracle none of them died ... never heard the like ... by thunder, it was lucky you were there, Snape..." 

"Thank you, Minister."

"Order of Merlin, Second Class, I'd say. First Class, if I can wangle it!" 

"Thank you very much indeed, Minister."

"Nasty cut you've got there ... Black's work, I suppose?" 

"As a matter of fact, it was the students, Minister..."

"NO!" 

"Black had bewitched them, I saw it immediately. A Confundus Charm, to judge by their behaviour. They seemed to think there was a possibility he was innocent. They weren't responsible for their actions. On the other hand, their interference might have permitted Black to escape ... they obviously thought they were going to catch Black single-handed. They've got away with a great deal before now ... I'm afraid it's given them a rather high opinion of themselves ... and of course the Potter twins have always been allowed an extraordinary amount of license by the Headmaster -"

"Ah, well, Snape ... Daisy and Harry Potter, you know ... we've all got a bit of a blind spot where they're concerned."

"And yet - is it good for them to be given so much special treatment? Personally I try to treat them like any other student. And any other student would be suspended - at the very least - for leading their friends into such danger. Consider, Minister: against all school rules - after all the precautions put in place for their protection - out of bounds, at night, consorting with a werewolf and a murderer - and I have reason to believe they have been visiting Hogsmeade illegally, too -"

"Well, well ... we shall see, Snape, we shall see ... the children have undoubtedly been foolish..."

I lay listening with my eyes tight shut. I felt very groggy. The words I was hearing seemed to be travelling very slowly from my ears to my brain, so that it was difficult to understand. My limbs felt like lead; my eyelids too heavy to lift ... I wanted to lie here, on this comfortable bed, for ever...

"What amazes me most is the behaviour of the Dementors ... you've really no idea what made them retreat, Snape?"

"No, Minister. By the time I had come round they were heading back to their positions at the entrances..."

"Extraordinary. And yet, they all -"

"All unconscious by the time I reached them. I bound and gagged Black, naturally, conjured stretchers and brought them all straight back to the castle."

There was a pause. My brain seemed to be moving a little faster, and as it did, a gnawing sensation grew...

I opened my eyes.

I was lying in the dark hospital wing. At the very end of the ward, I could make out Madam Pomfrey with her back to me, bending over a bed. Ron's red hair was visible beneath her arm.

I saw that everyone else was awake. Fred, George, and Terry were in the beds next to me, and Harry, Hermione, and Draco were in beds across from us.

Hermione looked petrified. When Draco saw that I was awake, he pressed a finger to his lips then pointed to the hospital-wing door. I had a hard time dragging my eyes away from his lips for a few moments, then tore my eyes away to look at the ajar door through which Cornelius Fudge and Snape's voices were coming from. I looked back at Draco, and he was smirking at me. He bit his lip, and his smirk grew bigger when I quite obviously tried not to look. Well look at that, looks like Dragon hasn't lost all his cockiness and self-confidence over the years. Not that I was complaining.

Merlin! If I have a boyfriend, why am I thinking and acting like this?!

Madam Pomfrey now came walking briskly up the dark ward to my bed. I turned to look at her. She was carrying the largest block of chocolate I had ever seen in my life. It looked like a small boulder. 

Nice.

"Ah, you're awake!" She said briskly. She placed the chocolate on my bedside table and began breaking it apart with a small hammer. 

"How's Ron?" We all asked together, then looked at each other with surprise.

"He'll live." Madam Pomfrey said grimly. "As for you lot ... you'll be staying here until I'm satisfied you're - Miss Potter, what do you think you're doing?" 

I was sitting up, picking up my wand.

"I need to see the Headmaster." I said.

"Daisy." Madam Pomfrey said soothingly. "It's all right. They've got Black. He's locked away upstairs. The Dementors will be performing the Kiss any moment now -"

"WHAT?" 

I jumped up out of bed; Harry had done the same. But my shout had been heard in the corridor outside; next second, Cornelius Fudge and Snape had entered the ward.

"Daisy, Harry, what's this?" Fudge said, looking agitated. "You should be in bed - have they had any chocolate?" He asked Madam Pomfrey anxiously.

"Minister, listen!" Harry said. "Sirius Black's innocent! Peter Pettigrew faked his own death! We saw him tonight! You can't let the Dementors do that thing to Sirius, he's -"

But Fudge was shaking his head with a small smile on his face.

"Harry, Harry, you're very confused, you've been through a dreadful ordeal, lie back down, now, we've got everything under control..."

"YOU HAVEN'T!" I yelled. "YOU'VE GOT THE WRONG MAN!"

"Minister, listen, please." Hermione said. 

"We saw him too!" Fred and George chorused. 

"It was Ron's rat!" Draco said. 

"He's an Animagus, Pettigrew, I mean, not Ron -" Terry failed.

"You see, Minister?" Snape said. "Confunded, all of them ... Black's done a very good job on them..."

"WE'RE NOT CONFUNDED!" I screamed.

"Minister! Professor!" Madam Pomfrey said angrily. "I must insist that you leave. Miss Potter is my patient, and she should not be distressed!"

"I'm not distressed, I'm trying to tell them what happened!" I said furiously. "If they'd just listen -"

But Madam Pomfrey shoved a piece of chocolate into my hands. 

"Ooh!" I grinned.

"Now, PLEASE, Minister, these children need care. Please leave -"

The door opened again. It was Dumbledore and Emily.

"Emily, tell them -" I said hurriedly.

"For heaven's sake!" Madam Pomfrey said hysterically. "Is this a hospital wing or not? Headmaster, I must insist -"

"My apologies, Poppy, but I need a word with these pupils." Dumbledore said calmly. "I have just been talking to Sirius Black and Emily Lancaster-Scofield here -"

"I suppose they've told the same fairy tale Black's planted in their minds?" Snape spat. "Something about a rat, and Pettigrew being alive -"

"That, indeed, is their story." Dumbledore said, surveying Snape closely through his half-moon spectacles.

"And does my evidence count for nothing?" Snape snarled. "Peter Pettigrew was not in the Shrieking Shack, nor did I see any sign of him in the grounds."

"That was because you were knocked out, Professor!" Hermione said earnestly. "You didn't arrive in time to hear -"

"Miss Granger, HOLD YOUR TONGUE!" 

"Now, Snape!" Fudge said, startled. "The young lady is disturbed in her mind, we must make allowances -"

"I would like to speak to the pupils alone." Dumbledore said abruptly. "Cornelius, Severus, Poppy - please leave us."

"Headmaster!" Madam Pomfrey spluttered. "They need treatment, they need rest -"

"This cannot wait." Dumbledore said. "I must insist."

Madam Pomfrey pursed her lips and strode away into her office at the end of the ward, slamming the door behind her. Fudge consulted the large gold pocket watch dangling from his waistcoat.

"The Dementors should have arrived by now." He said. "I'll go and meet them. Dumbledore, I'll see you upstairs."

He crossed to the door and held it open for Snape, but Snape hadn't moved.

"You surely don't believe a word of Black's story?" Snape whispered, his eyes fixed on Dumbledore's face. "Of course Lancaster's Confunded too -"

Emily flipped him off.

"I wish to speak to the children alone." Dumbledore repeated.

Snape took a step towards Dumbledore. 

"Sirius Black showed he was capable of murder at the age of sixteen." He breathed. "You haven't forgotten that, Headmaster? You haven't forgotten that he once tried to kill ME?"

"My memory is as good as it ever was, Severus." Dumbledore said quietly. 

Snape turned on his heel and marched through the door Fudge was still holding. It closed behind them and Dumbledore turned to us. We all burst into speech at the same time.

"Professor, Sirius's telling the truth - we SAW Pettigrew, Godric damn it -"

"He escaped when ol' Remus turned into a werewolf - lol -"

"He's a rat - I know, it's weird, but it's great banter -"

"Pettigrew's front paw, I mean, finger, he cut it off -"

"Pettigrew attacked Ronald the Ginger, it wasn't Sirius -"

But Dumbledore held up his hand to stem the flood of explanations.

"It is your turn to listen, and I beg you will not interrupt me, because there is very little time." He said quietly. "There is not a shred of proof to support Black's story, except your word - and the word of a few teenage wizards will not convince anybody. A street full of eye-witnesses swore they saw Sirius murder Pettigrew. I myself gave evidence to the Ministry that Sirius had been the Potters' Secret Keeper."

"Professor Lupin and Emily can tell you -" I said, unable to stop myself.

"Professor Lupin is currently deep in the Forest, unable to tell anyone anything. By the time he is human again, it will be too late, Sirius will be worse than dead. I might add that werewolves are so mistrusted by most of our kind that his support will count for very little - and the fact that he and Sirius are old friends ... As for Emily, the Ministry will believe that she is Confunded as well - her naturally erratic and unpredictable behaviour will lead to that belief -" There was a twinkle in Dumbledore's eyes. "- and also the fact that Emily was engaged to Sirius..."

Emily looked at the ground and twirled a ring on her finger. It was an engagement ring ... the diamond was in the shape of a paw...

How she must have felt when she heard the false news about Sirius betraying my parents and killing all those people...

"But -"

"Listen to me, Daisy. It is too late, you understand me? You must see that Professor Snape's version of events is more convincing than yours."

"He hates Sirius." Hermione said desperately. "All because of some stupid trick Sirius played on him -"

"Sirius has not acted like an innocent man. The attack on the Fat Lady - entering Gryffindor Tower with a knife - without Pettigrew, alive or dead, we have no chance of overturning Sirius' sentence."

"But you believe us."

"Yes, I do." Dumbledore said quietly. "But I have no power to make others see the truth, or to overrule the Minster for Magic..."

I stared up into the grave face and felt as though the ground beneath me was falling sharply away. I had grown used to the idea that Dumbledore could solve anything. I had expected Dumbledore to pull some amazing solution out of the air. But no ... our last hope was gone.

"What we need," Dumbledore said slowly, "is more TIME."

Wait a second ...

Thank you so much, Dumbydora, I don't regret getting you those socks for Christmas after all...

(Go on Tumblr and search up the words 'dik-dik xylophone' for the post!)