The Road Not Taken

Chapter III: The Fight for Harry
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The ringing silence after his story was thick with emotion; mostly anger. And most of it was coming from Sirius. No one spoke for a few moments, but the silence was broken by a knock on Dumbledore's office door.

"Come in," the Headmaster called.

The oak door opened, revealing Cornelius Fudge, the new Minister for Magic. He didn't look as if he knew exactly what he was doing at the school, but came in the room determinedly nonetheless. "Dumbledore," he greeted, and then paused mid-stride. His eyes circled the room, taking in Peter strapped to a chair; Remus, Sirius and McGonagall all holding their wands out; and finally, Snape, a bottle of Veritaserum in his hand. "I say, what is happening here?"

"You have excellent timing, Cornelius," Albus Dumbledore said instead of answering. "Please, allow me to draw you up a seat."

"No, no thank you," Fudge replied, his voice shaking slightly at the end. "But I would like to know what is happening in this office?"

"Certainly," Dumbledore said, coming around the desk. "Peter Pettigrew was just telling us how he has been a Death Eater for over a year. And how, just last night, he informed Voldemort of the Potter's location."

"Informed?" Fudge repeated, looking slightly bewildered by the facts put before him.

"He was the Potters’ Secret Keeper, Minister," Remus spat out, glaring at Peter as he spoke. Peter seemed to flinch back in his seat and shrink even more under the gaze, if possible.

"Oh dear." Fudge looked like he could really use the seat Dumbledore had offered him earlier. He regained himself, if only slightly. "Well, we should bring him in for official questioning before putting him in Azkaban--"

"To await his trial?" Dumbledore inserted lightly, though he seemed to be putting words in Fudge's mouth for him.

"Yes, yes, of course," Fudge nodded. "And what is this I hear of the child? Howard, is it?"

"Harry," Sirius supplied, making Fudge jump slightly. It could be a bit frightening; Sirius made for a rather intimidating wizard when angry. "James and Lily's son is called Harry."

Fudge looked at Sirius like he had never seen the wizard properly before, and then blinked. "Yes, Harry is what I meant." He turned back to Dumbledore, his posture a bit more stiff and confident than before. "As I say, what is this of a child surviving the Killing Curse? How can that be? Where is the child now?"

"He is safe," Dumbledore answered vaguely. "As for why, I'm not sure I can say. For whatever reason, the curse simply bounced off Harry and seems to have rebounded on its caster. Though, I don't believe Voldemort is gone for good, by any means. But he is gone, for now."

"Do you know what kind of zoo it is out there?" Fudge said suddenly, as if picking up a line of conversation they had been having earlier. "The Daily Prophet is hounding the Ministry wanting information we don't have. Death Eaters are running amuck, without a leader they are just causing havoc. We have a lot to sort out." Then, as quickly as he changed tack, he came full circle again. "And who has legal guardianship over the child? Who is the next of kin?"

"His godfather," Dumbledore replied calmly.

"And who is that?" Fudge asked, a silly smile on his face.

"I am," Sirius replied, again making the Minister jump. He spun around, staring at Sirius in a way that suggested he had completely blocked out the fact that Sirius was there.

"You?" he asked blankly, looking around as if this were merely a joke. "You are barely out of school, aren't you? In first year Auror training, I believe?"

"I am," Sirius said, his eyes boring into the Minister. "And I am also the legal guardian of Harry, as stated in James and Lily's will."

"That will be checked into, of course," Fudge said, seeming to finally decide that the best course of action with Sirius was to be firm and commanding. Of course, this didn't sit too well with Sirius. "Until that time, the child will be placed in the care of the next of kin."

"Over my dead body!" Sirius roared, gripping his wand handle as if only the slightest movement would give him incentive enough to use it. This caused two things to happen very quickly. One, Remus jumped up, as if knowing he would have to keep Sirius at bay. And two, Fudge pulled his own wand, looking as if it wouldn't take much for him to use it.

"That will be enough, Mr. Black," Fudge said in a dangerously low voice. "Now, there will be a trial held for Pettigrew, that will determine his guilt or innocence. In the meantime, I want that child taken to a relative’s home until official documentation can be brought forth that proves satisfactory that the Potters wanted their son to be with his godfather."

Sirius looked ready to explode, and it was only the firm, restraining hand of Remus that stopped him cursing Fudge into the middle of the next year. Dumbledore summoned Sirius and Remus into an adjoining room, asking the Minister if they could be excused for a moment. When the door shut, Dumbledore spun on the two men. "Sirius, for whatever reason, whether personal or political, Fudge doesn't want you to have custody of Harry. If you want to remain his guardian after this is said and done, I suggest you stop trying to pull your wand on him."

"I don't care what he wants, this isn't about him! It's about James and Lily, and what they wanted to happen to their son!" Sirius roared, eyes blazing.

"Sirius, calm down," Remus warned in a tone that suggested he not argue. Sirius had a temper on him that was as destructive as a hurricane; Remus had a werewolf’s temper that could rival Sirius' any day. And Sirius knew it. Remus turned to the Headmaster and said, in a deceptively calm voice, "What do we have to do to make sure Harry doesn't go to Lily's sister?"

"I'm afraid there is nothing we can do at this moment," Dumbledore replied. "Even though he generally listens to me, Fudge is the Minister and our laws state that if a child is orphaned, he or she goes to the next of kin until legal documentation can be brought forth. If I had to guess as to why he doesn't want you to have Harry, Sirius, I would say because of what Harry is likely to become.

"He is a very famous wizard at this moment, and will most likely be so for the rest of his life. And that means that the Daily Prophet would have a heyday with the fact that you are raising him."

"I don't care," Sirius replied, as if he were being questioned about his motives. "I can protect Harry from all of that."

"I do not doubt it," Dumbledore replied, smiling kindly. "I'm not against you here, Sirius. But you are going to have to prove to the Ministry that you are capable of raising a child."

"James and Lily appointed me guardian---"

"James and Lily didn't expect their son to rid the world of the most powerful dark lord in centuries, either. That makes this a very different Quidditch game, I'm afraid."

Sirius fumed silently as Dumbledore excused himself and exited back to the main office to speak with Fudge. After the door shut, Sirius started looking around the room wildly. Remus watched, a bit concerned and more than a bit amused. "Sirius, what are you doing?"

"Looking for another way out of this bloody room," Sirius replied, as if it were the simplest thing in the world.

"And what then?" Remus asked, no longer amused in the slightest. Sirius looked like a caged animal that was desperate for escape.

"I'm going to take Harry, go to Gringott’s, empty my vault, and leave." He stopped mid-stride, turning grave eyes to Remus. "Are you coming or staying?"

Remus' eyes were as round as sickles. "Sirius, you must be joking! You can't take Harry and run." Before Sirius could claim he intended to do just that, Remus rushed on to point out the various problems that would ensue from such an action. "If you disappear, there will be no reason for the Ministry to believe Peter was the Secret Keeper. It will look like you not only killed James and Lily, but kidnapped their son! If Harry has to go to Petunia's for a few days, it will be better in the long run. We have to do this legally!"

Sirius had stopped looking around the room, and was currently checking his robe pockets. Looking as if he hadn't even heard Remus speak, he pulled his wand. "Accio Marauders Map!" The parchment came flying out of his inside pocket and into his hand.

"Sirius, are you listening to me?" Remus asked, knowing the answer full well.

"Hearing, yes. Listening, no," Sirius answered, activating the map and searching it for Harry.

"Sirius, you must listen to reason!" Remus implored. He felt like pulling out every hair on his (and Sirius', for good measure) head. "You can not leave with Harry. You cannot storm out of here, demanding things left and right. I don't want Harry to go to Lily's sister any more than you do, but if we don't do this by Fudge's rules, you could--"

"He's not here."

The words were said so softly, that had Remus not been standing directly in front of Sirius, he wouldn't have heard them. As it was, the words didn't make sense straight away. Who wasn't here? He was here. Sirius was here, as was Peter, in the next room. But then, as Remus' mind started catching up with what Sirius was doing, rather than arguing why Sirius shouldn't be doing it, he gasped. "Harry?"

"Isn't here," Sirius confirmed. Remus had never truly been scared of Sirius. Others had, and with good reason. But Remus knew the man underneath had a heart of gold. Knowing Sirius meant that his looks of loathing, anger and so on rolled off Remus' back so much as a drop of water. However, at this moment, Sirius looked scary. And it was within this second that Remus understood what made him the top Auror in his class. After a highly colourful string of profanity came tumbling out of Sirius' mouth, the black haired Marauder shoved past Remus and slammed the door open into the main office of the Headmaster. "Where is Harry?!" It wasn't so much a question as a demand, and Professor McGonagall squeaked in momentary surprise. Remus, praying to whatever Gods may be listening that Sirius wasn't about to do something more stupid and rash than normal, followed after him in stride. "Where is Peter? Where is Fudge? And where is my godson?!"

"Sirius, please calm yourself," Dumbledore said in a pleasant, though oddly firm voice. He came around his desk, pushing his half moon glasses up the bridge of his nose a bit as he went. "Harry has been taken to--"

"Don't say it!" Sirius warned. "You did not allow him--"

"He is on his way to his Aunt and Uncle's, and if you want what is best for him, you'll listen to me." Now Dumbledore didn't sound so pleasant, and even though he wasn't being addressed, Remus shut his mouth meekly and hoped that maybe Sirius would do the same.

"You know that I--"

Remus watched another hope bubble burst before his eyes as Sirius continued as if no one had interrupted him to begin with. Dumbledore looked at Sirius sternly over the top of his glasses. "Pettigrew is on his way to the Ministry, where he will be placed in an anti-transformation cell to await questioning. After which he will be moved to Azkaban to await trial. Harry will remain in the care of his Aunt until your custody hearing is complete."

"My what?" Sirius asked, momentarily distracted.

Dumbledore leaned against his desk, and now that he had Sirius' undivided attention, relaxed a bit. "First thing tomorrow morning you will need to go to James and Lily's vault and retrieve their official documents. Then I suggest that you find a place to live that is very, very well warded. I don't need to stress to you the importance of being able to protect Harry. I'm sure you know. I'm just as positive that Fudge will be making sure that you have a home that is heavily guarded."

Sirius opened his mouth as if to reply, retort or perhaps swear a bit more colourfully than earlier, but Remus was prepared. And though it had been years (ok, not that many years, Remus amended) since the Marauders had hexed each other, he deemed it was high time.

"Silencio!"

*************

Sirius stood in the middle of a clearing and blinked up at the bright sun. Trees surrounded the clearing in every direction, and just off to the east the sounds of water running through a brook could barely be heard over the rustle of the wind. For early November it wasn't exactly cold, especially with the illusion the sun made by shining down so brightly. It would be a good day for Quidditch, a small voice in the back of Sirius' mind whispered. A very good day. Only he wasn't here to play Quidditch. He had work to do. And judging by the fact that he could still see Remus meant he had a lot more work to do.

"Lily could have done this in no time," Sirius muttered. The thought hurt. Badly. Just four days ago Sirius would have never imagined himself standing here, trying to ward up Remus' house so tightly that even a beetle couldn't get through without setting off alarms and being burnt to a crisp. Because four days ago Harry's parents had been alive to protect him. Forty-eight hours ago Sirius' biggest worry had been if Peter was ok.

Now he hoped Peter wasn't ok. He hoped that damned rat was in Azkaban, being tortured to death for all he had done.

But there was no time for such wonderful daydreams. He had to finish up here and get to Gringott’s before nightfall. Tomorrow was the big day. Tomorrow he would go to the Ministry and face a council and try to convince them that he and a registered werewolf could properly raise a child. And not just any child. But The Boy Who Lived. Sirius hated the very sound of that name. Harry was only a year old, he had no idea what had happened. And then the thought of Harry in Petunia's care was enough to make Sirius mad enough to break something. First he loses his parents, and the Ministry's brilliant idea after that is to give him to people who, whilst being related to him, were complete strangers? The poor child must be terrified.

But that would all end tomorrow, one way or another. Remus and Sirius had talked about many things in the past few days. They had discussed first what they would do about living arrangements. Sirius had a flat, but he needed some place away from the prying eyes of reporters. Especially since only four days had passed since James and Lily's death and already the Daily Prophet was badgering both Remus and Sirius. They could use Sirius' childhood home, if they could find a way to satisfactorily kill his mother. But since that wasn't truly an option, Sirius had started to look for a place, but didn't make it very far when he concluded that he needn't do that. Remus already owned one. That had been another long discussion (or argument, depends on how one looked at it) about keeping Harry safe from the werewolf. In the end Sirius got his way when he decided that they would build a place out in the woods, under ground, that would serve as a place for Remus to stay. And he would take Wolfsbane potion. That way Harry was doubly safe.

The last discussion, that very morning, had been one both Remus and Sirius knew they would have, but had been avoiding it all the same. What would happen if for some reason the Ministry decided that Sirius couldn't have Harry? And after a very heated debate, Remus and Sirius agreed. If the ruling wasn't in their favour, they would take Harry and do as Sirius had wanted the first day. Run.

"Imperturbatus."

"That's an odd choice of spell, isn't it?" Remus asked, coming up beside Sirius, his wand in hand. Their plan was to ask Dumbledore to come to the cottage after they were done with their spells. If Dumbledore could get through, then they had a lot of work left to do.

"Seemed like a good one," Sirius muttered. He scratched the back of his head and popped his neck. "Are you finished with the map?"

Remus searched his pockets for a moment before producing a piece of parchment. He unfolded it, smoothed out the wrinkles and handed it to Sirius. For a moment the dark haired Marauder stared at the blank piece of parchment, a look that Remus couldn't quite place on the other wizard's features. It was a cross between amused and very, very sad. Then he bought his wand up, touched the parchment and declared: "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

At once green ink appeared, zigzagging across, down and up to form words. Sirius chuckled, despite himself. "Mr. Moony would like to announce his astonishment that one would think we'd use the same password on two different maps." Sirius shook his head. He knew the password, but wanted to test it. No one but himself, Remus and Dumbledore would be able to access this map, and that's the way he wanted to keep it. "I swear that I am using this map for the sole purpose of protecting Prong's son, Harry James Potter." Sirius touched his wand down again, but this time lines started spreading out from the tip, stretching to all ends of the parchment; showing trees, the house, every room in the house, and the gardens. Everything within a square mile of the cottage showed on this map. Including every animal.

And then, at the top of the parchment, words began to appear and Sirius felt like someone had punched him in the stomach.

Messers Moony and Padfoot
In honour of Prongs
proudly present
The Canis Casa Map

When Sirius didn't speak for a moment, Remus cleared his throat a bit and looked down at the map. "It's voice activated," he explained. "And some of the spells are a bit more complicated than on the Marauder's Map. Granted, we were in the sixth year, we were clever just to make the first map." Remus touched his wand down on the parchment, and Sirius, still silent, watched. "Sirius Black," Remus said. The map suddenly zoomed in on the front garden, enlarging the area until they could clearly see two figures standing roughly 100 yards from the porch. "When you aren't looking for just one person, it shows the entire area."

Sirius still said nothing, only stared at the map. Or, rather, the map's heading. Remus, eager to fill the nasty silence, began walking around the outer brim of the ward they had constructed just that morning. "You know that Dumbledore will knock this down without any problem, right?" Remus asked, glancing over his shoulder at Sirius.

"Isn't that the idea?" Sirius muttered, clearing the map and pocketing it. He also pocketed his wand and strode up on the porch and through the front door. "I need to head to Gringott’s. Are you coming?"

Remus sighed, looked around at the seemingly empty garden, and nodded. "Yes."

**********

Neither Sirius nor Remus wanted to be in Diagon Alley this evening. Especially the day before Sirius' custody hearing for Harry. The entire wizarding world was in uproar anyway. Death Eaters were being brought in to the Ministry by Hit Wizards, half were claiming to be under the Imperious curse and the other half was swearing revenge for their master. The newspapers were having a field day with everything going on, and yet with all the bigger stories about how famous families were being tried as Death Eaters, Sirius Black still managed to make it to the front page of the Daily Prophet as the dark child of the Blacks wanting to raise The Boy Who Lived.

"Explain to me how it is that I'm one of the few Black children that didn't become a Death Eater and they try to make me out to be the bad person?" Sirius muttered darkly, crushing up a copy of The Daily Prophet he had just picked up off a table in the Leaky Cauldron. The bartender looked as if he wanted to say something to Sirius about destroying the paper, but lacked the actual courage to do so. Sirius and Remus headed to the back of the pub and to the brick wall that served as an entrance to Diagon Alley. Taking a deep breath to prepare himself, Sirius tapped his wand on the wall and waited.

Not to be disappointed, as they made their way towards the bank, many wizards and witches stopped, pointed, and then began talking in low voices to one another as they made their way through. Pictures of Sirius blinked slowly back from the front of Daily Prophets on the stands in front of shops, and in the hands of people standing everywhere. Sirius ignored them and continued on. Remus, of course, showed no one how much he was bothered by anything going on. They walked into the bank, past a goblin and up to the high counters. Sirius produced a key that James and Lily had had made for him only a few short months ago. If only they had known then what they knew now.

The goblin took them to James and Lily's vault and Sirius stepped in, an odd thickening in his throat.

For nearly six months Lily had been storing pictures, trinkets and whatnot in their vault. It was almost as if she knew that their home would be destroyed and she wanted Harry to have something to remember them by. Harry's first toy broom was laid against a box labelled "Quidditch". Sirius, distracted from his reason for being here, walked over and opened the box. Inside lay James' Gryffindor Quidditch robes and a trophy the entire team had won in their seventh year when they won the House Quidditch Cup. Sirius had one identical to it, only his said "Sirius Black - Beater" where James said "James Potter - Chaser". Under the robes was a worn out snitch that James had nicked in their fifth year. There was pictures of the team together, celebrating their wins. Everyone looked so happy.

Sirius closed the box and opened the one next to it; "Harry's Things". Inside was letters, pictures, Harry's first shoes and the outfit they brought him home from the hospital in. Then there was his baby album, still intact with a smiling and moving picture of Harry, James and Lily on the first page. Lily's handwriting was everywhere, documenting Harry's first smile, his first trip, his first tooth, his first word. Their love for their son was written on these pages in slightly wiggly words and pictures. The only thing their child had left of the parents that had loved him more than their own lives.

Sirius hadn't realized he was crying until the first tear fell on the baby album. Closing his eyes against them, he wiped the back of his hand across his face and stood up. He would bring Harry here, when he was old enough, and try his best to explain something words couldn't describe. How wonderful his parents were.

"Sirius? Did you find it?"

Sirius turned his back to where Remus was standing in the doorway, hurried over to a charmed box laying in the far left corner of the vault and laid his hand flat down on the top. "Sirius Black." He waited until the warm sensation had eased, and picked the box up. Lily, being one of the best person in Charms Sirius knew, had placed a few more charms on this box, even though it was in a Gringott's vault. If anyone besides Sirius, or Harry, tried to pick that box up it would throw some pretty nasty curses at them. "Got it," Sirius replied and stepped out of the vault.

***********

Fifth November, 1981 dawned cold, rainy and not at all like the previous day when the sun had been beating down. Sirius sat at the table in the kitchen of Canis Casa and drummed his fingers against the wood. There was a cold cup of coffee in one hand that Sirius hadn't even taken the first sip of. He didn't need caffeine to keep him awake this morning. He had been awake all night. Across from him, with a cold cup of untouched tea in his hand, was Remus, staring ahead unblinking.

"I will be there during the entire process," a deep, soothing voice said. Albus Dumbledore sat on the third side of the table, drinking hot tea and acting for all the world as if they were trying out for a Quidditch team, not gaining custody of The Boy Who Lived. Dumbledore didn't know of the bags Sirius and Remus had packed. Didn't know that if the Ministry ruled against Sirius' guardianship that they planned to take Harry anyway and run. Or, at least, the two men didn't think Dumbledore knew. One could never be sure what the Headmaster knew and what he didn't.

Albus took a sip of his tea and sat it back down on the table gently. Sirius suddenly stood and began pacing back and forth inside the small kitchen, running his hand through his hair. Albus took another sip. "They will ask you a lot of questions, some of them may be hard. Just stick to the facts, I'm not sure emotion will get you anywhere. But anger will definitely get you nowhere. These wizards work with this situation on a daily basis, and if you get cross, they will, too."

Sirius continued to pace, saying nothing. He threw an occasional look towards the hall cupboard where they had stashed their bags, but made a mental note to not look like he was guilty about anything. Years of practice in school should have made that knack second nature, but he didn't want to take chances today. He turned on his heel and made to walk back across the hardwood floor when suddenly Remus stood. "It's time."

**********

The flash of various cameras was making Sirius' head pound unpleasantly. Sirius, Remus and Dumbledore quickly crossed the long hall away from the many fireplaces that wizards were Flooing in and out of. The Atrium in the Ministry for Magic was jammed with every reporter this side of Japan, each of them screaming out questions that Dumbledore had already warned both Sirius and Remus not to answer. They finally made it to the end of the hall, past the fountain and came to a stop in front of a set of golden gates. Each of them gave their wands to the wizard at the security desk and waited while they were weighed and checked in.

"Mr. Black, what do you plan to do if you don't gain custody of Harry Potter?"

"Mr. Lupin, how close were you to James and Lily Potter? Were you close to Peter Pettigrew?"

"Sirius, do you mind answering just a few questions for an old school friend?"

Sirius, momentarily distracted by the fact that whoever was speaking hadn't yelled "Mr. Black" (which made him feel terribly old, for some reason) turned to see a tall, slim witch with long finger nails and horn rimmed shaped glasses. She smiled toothily at him. "Rita Skeeter," Sirius muttered. "Exactly when was we friends?"

"Sirius, I can't believe you don't remember," Rita said silkily.

"I remember pranking you a few good times, if that's what you mean."

"Sirius," Remus warned, taking his wand back from the wizard behind the desk. He nodded towards Rita. "Let's go."

"Gladly," Sirius replied, ignoring Rita as she yelled another question at him and took his wand. He pocketed it and followed Remus and Dumbledore further into the Ministry, leaving the screams of reporters and the flash of cameras behind the gates. With each step he felt like his heart was pounding loud enough that everyone in the Ministry could hear it. Dumbledore led them through a long hall that ended in a set of lifts.

As they waited for the lift, a short portly wizard in a black top hat glanced back at Sirius and Remus once or twice, then smiled toothily at Dumbledore. "Hello Headmaster. Fancy seeing you at the Ministry today."

"Hello Clifford," Dumbledore replied, smiling happily at the wizard. "How are things?"

"Oh, you know," Clifford said, holding up a stack of parchment and rolling his eyes. "A bloke down in Kent went and got himself in trouble with a niffler. I've been trying to sort it out for days. I just don't understand what is so wrong with nice, normal animals."

"Seems like you'd be out of a job if people didn't insist on breaking laws with illegal animals," Remus insert politely just as the lift doors opened. A few wizards came out, each of them smiling or saying hello to Dumbledore as they passed. Above their heads flying pieces of parchment that zoomed into the lift as the doors opened nearly crashed into pieces that were on their way out. But this didn't surprise either Sirius or Remus, both of them being familiar with the Ministry. Sirius because he worked there and Remus because he had recently had to pay a visit to the Werewolf Registration office.

The doors to the lift shut and Sirius let out a breath of relief. At least no one had crowded in with them. The last thing he wanted was to answer more questions about the hearing today. It was bad enough that he had taken time off work to prepare Remus' home with wards, charms, and the like. And even now he wasn't sure if he planned on going back to work after he got Harry.

"Level Two; Department of Magical Law Enforcement."

It seemed to take forever. But at the same time, before they knew it the announcement was "Level Nine; Department of Mysteries. Court Room Ten." The three of them filed out and descended a set of stairs, past the Department of Mysteries and further down into the Ministry.

The courtroom was located on the bottom most floor of the Ministry, and there wasn't a lift that actually went to the floor. The long hall loomed darkly before them. Sirius followed Albus Dumbledore and Remus quietly, wondering why someone hadn't thought to light the torches. The pep talk Remus had given him last night (or was it this morning? Time was running together...) kept repeating in his mind. Stay calm. Mouthing off will not impress anyone. Keep to the facts. They won't care about your view of things. Keep in mind that Harry's fate is on the line. The last part Remus hadn't needed to say. Sirius was acutely aware of that fact, thank you very much.

They stopped in front of a large wooden door and Sirius waited for Dumbledore to give them one last speech. But it seemed the Headmaster had said all he was going to. He pushed the door open and the three of them stepped in.

The courtroom was a large circular room with cathedral style benches that rose up so that all its occupants could see the small stage-like platform with a single chair sitting on it. Sirius knew from attending Auror trials that the single seat had chains on it that would bind its occupant down. But that was for criminals, and he was only here for a custody hearing that it appeared the entire Wizengamot had turned out for. That puzzled him, even though Dumbledore had warned them it may happen. Fudge wasn't happy with being here and it was clear by the look on his face he expected this to be short and in his favour.

"If we can begin," Fudge said, clearing his throat afterwards. The witches and wizards sitting on either side of him, their faces in the dark shadows stopped talking almost instantly. Dumbledore drew up a chair for himself and Remus just to the right, leaving Sirius to perch on the edge of the chained chair.

A wizard at the end of the bench that seated the Minister stood and pulled a piece of parchment up. "We are here, the 5th day of November, 1981 at 9am for the custody hearing in regards to one, Harry James Potter, child, to Sirius Auva Black. Present in front of the Wizengamot this morning is the applicant, Sirius Auva Black, witness to character on behalf of the applicant, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore and Remus John Lupin."

Sirius scowled to himself. Did they have to mention his middle name? Damn his mother for one more thing. Afraid that he might make a face at the thought, Sirius forced his face into a neutral mask and stared ahead.

"Now, then, Mr. Black. You have come before us to gain custody of the child, Harry James Potter, saying that you were named his appointed guardian in the case of his parents’ deaths," Minister Fudge said this all matter of factly, as if waiting for someone to jump up and argue with him over it. "You wish to remove the child from his current location in the care of Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Dursley, the child's aunt and uncle. And we assume you have brought forth substantial evidence to prove that you are legally, and personally, capable of such an action."

But this Sirius was prepared for. He hadn't been friends with Remus all his life and not picked up a few tips on how to get what you wanted, or sound good in your argument. And this smooth talker had gotten himself out of a few good jams, as well. Clearing his throat, Sirius nodded. "I have brought with me legal documentation signed, dated and sealed by James and Lily Potter stating as such. I also have legal documentation naming myself godfather to Harry." Sirius surprised even himself with how strong and calm his voice carried.

Fudge motioned for the wizard who had read the court proceedings to come over and retrieve the parchment. He rushed forward, took the documents and handed them to Fudge. The room's silence was only broken by the shuffling of parchment as it was passed among the Wizengamot to examine. After what seemed an eternity Fudge again addressed Sirius. "Continue."

Sirius wanted badly to glance at Remus, looking for a sign of what to say next. All the facts that Remus had pulled out of books were completely gone now. All he knew was that he was standing in front of a room of witches and wizards that would decide, not if he would get Harry (for he planned to do that, anyway) but if he was going to be on the run from the Ministry for it. He managed not to look to Remus or Dumbledore. "Minister, in the best interest of Harry, I feel he should be placed in my care. His aunt and uncle do not understand our way of life and will, in turn, never understand Harry. Petunia Dursley and Lily Potter hadn't spoken in well over five years because of Mrs. Dursley's prejudice against wizards and magic. They may resent the child for something he cannot control. I've known Harry since the day he was born, I have been around him all his life. He has just lost his parents, does he need to loose everything and everyone he's known? Including his way of life?" Against his will, Sirius knew he probably sounded like he was begging. And Remus would give him a telling off for it later. At the moment he didn't care.

Fudge paused, as if waiting for Sirius to continue. But he had nothing more to say. To the right, Dumbledore stood. "I would also like to submit for the record a statement from Mr. and Mrs. Dursley." The wizard at the side jumped to life again and rushed forward to take the paper to Fudge. "It states, and I do believe I'm quoting, "We do not wish in any way to be concerned with the upbringing of the child in question, Harry James Potter." "

Fudge had the decency to look shocked, even though he had to already know he had placed Harry with people who didn't want him. The witches and wizards behind and around him began muttering to their neighbours as they read the statement. Dumbledore, looking neither apprehensive nor delighted at the reaction, once more sat down and crossed his legs. Sirius stole a look his direction and noticed Remus was studying the members of the Wizengamot intently, most likely using his advanced werewolf hearing to listen to them talk. Sirius wished he could do that; the waiting was killing him.

Finally the room quieted and Fudge once more began speaking: "And of the safety of the home in which, should you gain custody of the child, you would be raising him in?"

Dumbledore once more got to his feet. "Both Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin have addressed his problem and have warded up the home so that no one, not even myself, could access it. I give my word, the house is completely safe for the child."

"Lupin?" a high pitched voice said suddenly from the shadows just right of Fudge. "Remus Lupin?" the voice continued. Sirius squinted as a woman leaned forward, her small eyes staring intently at Remus. Sirius instantly recognized the woman as Dolores Umbridge, and knew at once that this wasn't a good sign. He had seen her enough, and heard enough stories in his office at the Ministry to know that she detested all non-human magical creatures. Especially werewolves. He felt his heart beat quicken as she pushed her horn-rimmed glasses up her nose. "I do believe, Mr. Lupin, that you are a werewolf, are you not?"

There was several audible gasps from the wizards surrounding Fudge, and some of them peered forward for a closer look. Sirius fought the urge to curse all of them into next week. They were being bloody stupid! He opened his mouth to say as much, but was cut off by Remus' voice carrying across the room. "Yes, I am. And I assure you, this has been taken into consideration. My condition will pose no harm to the boy."

"How so?" Umbridge squeaked.

"The day of the full moon I will leave the house and not return until the next day. Sirius and I have made arrangements for me to stay at a town one hundred miles north of our home, where I will take wolfsbane potion and sleep off the effects of the full moon." Remus said all of this with a calm exterior, but Sirius was raging. He wanted to scream at them for only looking at the werewolf, and not realizing that he was a human for the other 29 days of the month.

"Well, that said," Fudge suddenly announced, looking extremely pleased with himself. "A show of hands, please, of all those in favour of giving custody of The Boy Who Lived to Sirius Black."

---End Chapter 3.