Written by: HoshiHikari
Disclaimer: I do not own HP
Summary: Tom Riddle regained his body at the end of Harry's second year. Sirius escaped Azkaban a month before the wizardry world realized it. When the past begins to resurface and the dead begin to reappear, Harry begins to realize that nothing is as it appears. Sirius struggles to prove his innocence to Harry while trying to save all the innocence that the boy has lost.
Author Notes: "…." talk Italic thoughts/dreams /…/ Parseltongue Snake language I'm going to update my bio often so please check it out. In addition, the timeline of the Rowling's book have been altered to fit the premises of this fanfic.
Chapter 1 Loss of Innocence
Coldness. Icy, blood-freezing coldness pierced his body, his mind, and his soul. They were here, they were back, and they were restlessly waiting. He could tell, he had learned to tell for it was a means of survival. Thirteen years of living side by side these happy-thought sucking creatures had taught him much, enough to keep him alive, sane, and alert. Dementors, the world had called them that, these creatures that brought coldness in addition to sucking out every moment of happiness in ones life before driving them insane. It had worked, it had always worked, there was no exception, no exception but him.
It wasn't a surprise really. He was always the exception. He was the outcast of his family. He was the exceptional Gryffindor in a full-blown Syltherin line. He was a friend with a Potter, a werewolf and an unregistered animagus. He was charged with murder without trial for a crime he did not commit, at least hadn't meant to commit. It was a mistake, and he regretted it deeply. He was the godfather of the Boy-whose-life-he-had-ruined-completely-and-would-deserve-to-hate-him-for-it. At least the boy's thoughts would be justifiable if it were true. However it was not. He was an innocent man in prison. Of course the boy wouldn't know that, no one but himself knew, and the day the truth would be revealed was the only thought that kept him sane. His only defense against the dementors wasn't a happy thought, but it was a thought, and it was what held him together. Of course, that and his illegal secret.
By now, the dementors were outside his cell. In an instant, the man in the cell wasn't there anymore and a large black dog took its place. The dog huddled in the far corner of the cell and waited patiently for this to be over. To his surprise, the dementors had not crowded around his cell. Instead they were gathered at least ten feet away.
That doesn't make sense! I'm in the highest security Azkaban cell there is; there isn't anything else alive here. So why are they gathered as though new prey had arrived. Too bad I can't see pass the small openings at the bottom of the cell, the ones that were left for air to flow through, otherwise I would be able to find out.
Still for one reason or another, he felt uneasy. Taking in a deep breath, he smelled a familiar scent, which he could not quite place what it belonged to. As he took in more breaths, he realized that the scent was getting closer and closer. At the same time, he also felt the dementors approaching closer and closer as though following whatever it was that he smelled. The dog huddled in the far corner of his cell and waited for both the dementors and the smell to retreat, his head resting on the floor. Unfortunately for him, neither of the mentioned went away, but only grew stronger.
He drew back further as his other form was beginning to be penetrated by the dementors. Even in this form, he began to come in and out of consciousness due to the overly long stay of his guests. At last he couldn't resist and darkness fell upon him. The last thing he saw was a small creature speed through the cracks of his cell.
Dark clouds hovered above the gathered group. No one seemed to care as his or her hearts were represented by the sky. It only seemed right that the world cried for the loss of an innocent.
"We are gathered here today," an old man dressed in black, his white hair and beard causing a drastic contrast to his outfit spoke softly, " on the 1st of July to mourn for the lost of an innocent child, a murdered innocent child, deliberately stolen and snatched from our hearts. We are gathered at the funeral of young Ginevra Weasley…"
It wasn't difficult to block out the headmaster's speech as his mind was somewhere else. In fact, there were so many distractions that he wondered how anyone could stay focus.
"Ginny!" he muttered, sprinting up to her and dropping to his knees. "Ginny—don't be dead—please don't be dead--" He flung his wand aside, grabbed Ginny's shoulders, and turned her over. Her face was white as marble, and as cold, yet her eyes were dead, so she wasn't Petrified. But she must be—
"Ginny, please wake up," he muttered desperately, shaking her. Ginny's head lolled hopelessly from side to side.
"She won't wake." Said a soft voice.
That was it that had been the beginning of his nightmares.
"Harry?"
He looked up at that, before quickly averting his eyes from his best friend. His best mate, Ron Weasley was peering down at him with swollen eyes.
"Are you alright mate?"
Harry nodded vigorously, not trusting his voice. After all what right did he have to say he wasn't and make the others worry about him, when in fact they all weren't all right and he was the cause of it. He didn't deserve any of the Weasley's hospitality, or anyone else's for that matter, especially since he had let it happen, he had killed his best friend's sister. It was his fault that she was dead.
A hand squeezed his, and he looked up to see his other best friend, Hermione Granger, forcefully giving him her best smile.
"It wasn't your fault," she whispered, knowingly.
'It wasn't my fault.' He had repeated that line over and over again to himself, yet he had a difficult time believing it. It was his fault, he was guilty. He should have died to protect her, but instead had chosen to listen to the monster talk, suddenly fascinated by how similar they were.
"I wondered, you see. There are strange likenesses between us, after all. Even you must have noticed. Both half-bloods, orphans, raised by Muggles. Probably the only two Parselmouths to come to Hogwarts since the great Slytherin himself. We even look something alike…"
Now, not only had that cost Ginny's life, but it also had brought back the Dark Lord—a fact that the had withheld from the wizardry world.
Though no one has said anything, I'm sure they blame me. I was there I didn't do anything. I'm their bloody boy-who-lived, their savior and I didn't do anything. What would they think of me if I had told them the truth, the real reason why the youngest Weasley died? Would they understand or would they further blame me for once again setting the Dark Lord on them?
A look to his right, at the parents of the girl whose body wasn't there to be buried, confirmed his suspicions. Arthur Weasley was holding onto a hysterical Molly. Both looked so fragile that the news of the Dark Lord's return would have broken them. As he looked around he noticed how true this was for everyone else that was present.
At last polite clapping echoed, and Harry noticed that the man giving the speech, Albus Dumbledore, had finished and was leaving the stage. An elderly woman took his place instead, giving yet another speech.
Harry's eyes briefly connected with the headmaster of Hogwarts. He barely held it for a second before turning away. That man was someone he would have to be cautious around, to avoid. For one reason or another, after being interrogated about the Chamber of Secrets, he had gotten the strangest feeling that Albus was more then he appeared.
No, what am I thinking? That's Tom's influence.
He sighed defeated, turning his attention back to the front of the stage. This was going to be a long procession.
Slowly the dog regained consciousness. The dementors had come and gone; yet the smell was still there. In fact the smell was so close that he was sure whatever it was, resided within in the same cell. Standing up, he decided to sniff out whatever it was that was bothering him. Closing his eyes, he perked up his ears and nose. As he stalked about, he could hear subtle breathing and an increase in the scent. At last when he thought that he had located the smell, he opened his eyes.
Pain, betrayal, and most of all anger rushed through him. His emotions flared as he stared at an unconscious rat, one that he would never forget. Changing back to his human form, the man snatched up the creature and closed his hands around it, squeezing it's neck.
At last justice is served. At last I am able to commit the crime that I have been imprisoned for!
To his surprise, instead of dying, the rat began to squirm, suddenly awake from the shortness of breath. The rat's eyes flared open and upon seeing the man before it, gave and undignified squeak before trying to escape.
"Well seeing now that you're awake, might as well have a little chat." The man's voice croaked as he spoke. "Transform!" he demanded harshly. To emphasize his point, he continued to torture the rat, until at last the creature complied.
A short man plump man stood where the rat had been, staring at the towering figure before him.
"Si…Si…Sirius…my old, my old friend" The former man squeaked, trying to remain calm.
"Pettigrew," the man, Sirius acknowledge, spitting out the name. "Fancy seeing you in Azkaban, where you belong!"
"I—I don't know what you're talking about, Sirius…" he tried again.
"You killed James and Lily Potter!" Sirius boomed, his words echoing through the empty floor. "You sold the Potters to Voldemort!"
At this Pettigrew winced. He tried to open his mouth but no words came out. He backed away from the other as though it could protect him.
"You sentenced an innocent man to a life time in prison!"
"I—I—didn't know…" Pettigrew tried to defend himself. "I, I, he just wanted the boy. He promised, he promised to leave James and Lily alone."
"Voldemort never keeps his promises!" Sirius continued. "How thick can you get, Wormtail?"
Pettigrew winced again, either at the name or for the deeds he did not deny.
"The dark lord was only after the boy. I—I wouldn't have done it if I knew I would be putting my friends in danger!"
Sirius laughed hard.
"Friends? If we were your friends, then you would have died then betray us. You should have died as any of us would have done for you!" He paused to catch his breath. "How dare you bring Harry into this! He was just a baby, an innocent boy!"
"He was tearing our friendship apart!" Wormtail started. "It was always Harry this and Harry that…"
"You tore our friendship apart!" Sirius breathed. With one quick stride, he once again closed the distance between them. Picking the man up he shook him furiously by his collar. He stopped when the shorter man's wand, a few wooden dolls and a bottle of thick dark mud fell to the ground. Dropping the man, Sirius picked up the newly acquired items. It took only a minute before he pieced them together.
"Once a dark wizard, always a dark wizard." Sirius breathed as he watched Pettigrew shuffle before him. "Don't you agree Peter?"
The next time, Sirius spoke, he was calm and composed.
"Looks like you better stay here. Failing Voldemort's missions are unacceptable."
Peter's eyes widened.
"How did you know…?"
"he returned?" Sirius asked casually. He picked out a loose hair and dumped it into the bottle of mud. "Well you never did do anything without seeing a benefit to it. Thus you would not have attempted a rescue mission without being ordered to. As for the whole disappear for good crap, I never believed it, I'm not a Black for nothing."
He shoved the bottle in front of Peter.
"Unfortunately for you, not only have you messed up on your mission, you have also aided in my unannounced escape." He unclamped the other's mouth, pouring the substance in, before clamping it shut. Using his other hand, he held the man's nose.
"Now you either die, or you swallow. Neither option is good for you. I'm guessing the latter as you are a coward and are afraid of everything, even though death maybe a better choice."
Peter Pettigrew, as predicted by Sirius Black, swallowed the substance.
"Harry, my boy, may I speak with you?" Harry turned around to see Dumbledore before him. The procession was over, and people were leaving. He was waiting for the Weasley's to take him back to the Durselys. Before Harry could answer, the old man had continued.
"How are you feeling?" the older man asked gently. "I know this is hard for you, after all you were the only one who witnessed her death. The impact should have been worst towards you. I hope you aren't blaming yourself."
"I…I…I'm fine." He managed to stutter out.
"Are you sure Harry?" before adding, "You look awfully tired."
Harry shifted uncomfortably below the penetrating stare he should have been used to be now. The stare that he had seen Dumbledore use on Tom.
"I am fine, just exhausted headmaster."
"Harry, Harry, Harry, what have you done? You killed her!" Tom Riddle laughed.
Harry sobbed miserably.
"You, you, you," but no words came out.
"You're guilty Harry, guilty!" he paused. "You may try to deny it, and even if the entire world believes it true, Dumbleodre won't! Dumbledore saw right through me, he'll see right through you!" Riddle laughed insanely, before bidding his farewell.
"Are you sure?" Dumbledore asked again. "You haven't spoken much on the subject matter…."
"I'm fine!" Harry said, slightly harsher then usual.
Albus opened his mouth again, however before he could speak, Molly had come over to get Harry. Without another word, Harry hastily left the headmaster, glad that he was away from the older man.
Immediately, Peter's appearance changed drastically.
"Permanent Polyjuice Potion" Sirius said triumphantly to his double. "Now when my escape goes into action, it would indeed be flawless. No one, absolutely no one would suspect a thing!"
That night, after making the proper perpetrations, Sirius Black became the first to break out of Azkaban without the world knowing any wiser.
It's been a while, but here's a new fic! This is one is going to focus on Harry and Sirius. The story takes place right before Harry's third year and continues on. As it can be easily seen, the original plotline has been altered! Please Review!