Secrets Only Trouble Knows - George Weasley

63 - Truth Comes Out

"They're the dogs... They're Animagi..."

Ron was staring over Harry's shoulder, past even Jasper and I. We all wheeled around, inhaling sharply. With a snap, the two men who'd been hiding in the shadows closed the door behind us.

Sebastian Pierce and Sirius Black.

Jasper immediately hobbled me backwards, away from them, until we were next to the trio. He tightened his hold around me, pulling me closer into his side. I could hear the pounding of his heart and his ragged breathing from next to me.

Truthfully, I didn't think I'd been more stunned in my entire life. I was utterly speechless. Sirius Black and my father were actually standing before me right now. In the flesh. This was really happening. This wasn't a dream. I was seeing them and they were seeing me.

The two of them looked a proper mess. They were thin, very thin, and were still dressed in their Azkaban jumpers. They both had bags under their eyes and long, dark hair that was completely matted and filthy.

When my gaze landed on my father, I realized he actually looked so much like myself and Jasper. Of course, I'd seen pictures of him and had already noticed similarities between us before because of that, but it was just so... different, so surreal, seeing them between us now when he was really right here in front of me.

He was tall, just like my brother, and I figured the two of them would look incredibly similar if he cleaned himself up and got a haircut. When we made eye contact, I saw we all shared the same eyes as well— bright blue with a bit of green if you looked at them close enough. It didn't take me long to pinpoint they were the same as the grey wolf's.

Thanks for breaking my ankle, Dad.

My father's gaze then drifted downward, taking in Jasper's protective arm around me, before his eyes fell on my slashed and broken ankle I was holding off the ground. Up until now, he'd had a rather unreadable expression on his face, but now I saw slight traces of guilt and remorse in his features.

Ripping me out of the utter shock I was in, Black suddenly pointed Ron's wand at us, his yellow teeth bared in a grin. Before we could even think to lift our own in response, he shouted, "Expelliarmus!"

All four of our wands shot out of our hands, high in the air, and Black caught them all with ease. He then slowly stepped forward, his eyes fixed on Harry.

"I thought you'd come and help your friend, Harry," Black said hoarsely, his voice sounding as though he'd long since lost the habit of using it. "Your father would have done the same for me—"

Pure rage overtook Harry's face and he started forward, but two pairs of hands grabbed him. Hermione was holding him back and she quickly whispered for him to stay put.

"Don't you dare talk to him about his father,"
I spat, feeling my own anger coursing through me.

Black's eyes flickered to me momentarily, but then he went back to focusing his attention on Harry, ignoring what I had to say.

"Brave of you not to run for a teacher," he continued, stepping a bit closer. "I'm grateful... it will make everything much easier for us..."

"If you want to kill Harry, you'll have to kill us too!" Ron spoke up suddenly. He attempted to stand upright but began swaying unsteadily.