Remus rushed up to the Owlery. Hedwig. It can't be a coincidence. Regulus Black had given Renee that nickname over a decade ago—the Saint of Orphans. How sad that now Harry himself was orphaned. It must be her. An owl that looks like Remus' patronus, which is a carbon copy of Renee's—a Snowy Owl. Lupin doesn't know exactly when it changed. One day he just decided to cast a corporeal patronus and it was Renny's. He broke down instantly, not able to cast one fully until today.
If only he had the map. He would be able to see if Renee was at the castle or if it was all just some sick joke fate was playing on him. Finally, at the top of the stairs, Remus hesitated to enter the round, drafty room. He spans in a circle, studying the many owls. "Renee?" A flutter of wings came from behind the werewolf. An Eagle Owl screeches at the man causing him to jump back. The man frowned, shoulders sagging. The thirty-four-year-old felt like a kid. The sudden excitement and giddiness were quickly overtaken by disappointment and grief. "What was I thinking? She's gone." He stalked to the stairs and sat on the very top step, overlooking Hogwarts. The breeze was nice at least.
✿
Hedwig sat on one of the ring-shaped goals on the Quidditch pitch. She watched as Ron raced around on the Firebolt with Harry watching from the ground. Surely Remus couldn't have gifted it to him. It would have emptied their vault at Gringotts. Renee often wondered if he had still been using it. It was willed to him.
Madam Hooch gave them trouble as the sunset. They slowly made their way back to the castle. About halfway there, Harry looked startled. Renee watched the area he had been staring at. She flew circles around it. Waited until the boys reached the Entrance Hall, she then dived down after Hermione's ginger cat. It was very likely she wouldn't find him, but very curious as to why a cat would wander off into the Forbidden Forest.
The sight she fell upon had her heart almost stopped. The cat wrapped its tail around the leg of her old best friend. Sirius Black stood surrounded by the towering trees. His body was clad in a torn, dirty Azkaban uniform. Hair knotted down his back. He just stood examining a piece of parchment. Renee couldn't help herself. She drove down, scratching his arm with her talons.
Black cowered, transforming almost immediately into his animagus form. A skinny, black dog growled at the owl. It was a minute until it stopped, recognizing the bird for who she was. Sirius stared at where she was flying. "Renny?" She shrieked in return, hoping he could tell she was shooting death glares at him. Black seemed to notice that she was about to take off. To get help from the castle. He panicked, "Peter's in Hogwarts!" She stopped, turning to face him again. "He was the secret keeper; he gave them up. The cat gave me the password for Gryffindor Tower so that I could kill him—Peter. He's living as the ginger boy's pet." Sirius pleaded, his eyes staring desperately at her.
Something clicked in Renee's mind. Why else would he trap her in her animagus form? She was going after Black. Peter didn't know if she was capable of finishing the job. She was a liability. But why didn't Peter kill her? Why fake her death? "Ren? Do you believe me?" She would trust Sirius with her life. The owl fluttered down, landing on his arm. She nuzzled into the side of his face. Black let out a chuckle. "Now I've just got to get in." Ren squawked, flying after him in a hurry.
✿
Unfortunately, Sirius' plan didn't work out very well. Renee had tried to tell him, but being an owl talking to a human/dog. He didn't listen or pretended to not know what she was saying. Renee was quite tired of being an owl. She just hoped that soon she would be able to walk around and not be the size of a three-year-old. Black took off in the middle of the night. Ren was trying to stay awake but she just couldn't, especially since now she knew Harry wasn't in danger. The next day everyone was on high alert. Ron almost being slashed up by the mass murderer. While flying over the grounds she spotted Hagrid calling to her.
"Here you are, Hedwig. Could yeh bring it to him right away?" Hedwig hooted and waited until the giant gave her an owl treat to leave. She flew off and dropped the treat from her mouth. She landed on the table in front of Harry. Impatiently, she watched as he stared after Neville Longbottom. He didn't seem to be focusing his attention on her, so she gave him a nip on the wrist.
"Ouch! Oh—thanks, Hedwig." Renee leaned down, taking some of the cornflakes from an abandoned bowl. She lifted her head again to see Harry reading the letter. That's when they made eye contact. It had been twelve years but Remus still looked like himself. Save for a few new scars and greying hair. The professor stood abruptly, breaking eye contact until just before he left the Great Hall. Hedwig gently patted Harry's wrist as a 'sorry' and flew off.
The Owlery was never somewhere she'd like to be. She'd often fly around Hogwarts and stay in a hollow tree by the Shrieking Shack. Too many owls, too many owl droppings. She didn't like it. Plus, if she could stay off school grounds she would. Ren knew the map was somewhere there. Harry would have many questions if he followed the name Renee Potter and found his beloved owl. She didn't want him to find out any other way than through her lips. When she could turn back, that's when she'd tell Harry everything.
"Renny!" The owl fluttered down from behind Lupin, landing on his shoulder. That caused him to become unbalanced. She quickly hopped off, standing in front of him. The werewolf collapsed onto his knees. His face buried into the owl's feathers. Ren stood there, slowly wrapping her wings around his shoulders. "You're supposed to be dead." He mumbled, calming down from the shock. She hooted sympathetically. "Why aren't you dead?" Remus backed away, sitting on the ground. Renee lifted her foot to show off the tight ankle bracelet. He placed his hand on it feeling the magic run into his palm.
"You're stuck. Who did this?" She preened her feathers letting three fall to the ground. Her talon arranged them and she looked up at Remus. "P? Peter? But if he spelled this on, it would've been broken. Peter was murdered by Sirius." He looked at it again, touching the metal. There was no doubt that it still worked. "He's alive." Renee let out a hoot, scratching her bracelet with her other foot. "Sirius is innocent?" Remus stood as the owl seemed to nod. "What do we do?" Renee moved her bound leg and then rearranged the feathers. "D? Dumbledore?"
YOU ARE READING
Game Over▬RL 2
FanfictionPart two of The Waiting Game. Follow Renee Potter and the gang throughout the war and onward. Battling relationships and hard times. Tons of loss and tons of love. Where will life bring her? How can she face life losing those closest to her?