White Heather for Protection

The Wolf and the Hound...and the Hippogriff?

The moment Headmaster Dumbledore opened his office door with a casual wave of his wand, a large black dog bounded eagerly into the office. The canine morphed seamlessly, shedding his inky fur and trading four legs for two. One step he was a dog, the next, a bedraggled wizard. The animagus headed straight for Heather, reaching her in three large strides.

Or he would have, if not for Professor Snape's wand at his throat.

"Stay back, Black!" the Professor spat nastily. Wow, Heather had only heard that much venom in his voice in first year; when he'd pronounced 'Potter' like it was an Unforgiveable.

"Get out of the way, Snivellus!" the other man snarled, not unlike the dog he'd been mere seconds ago. His eyes flickered desperately to hers, taking her in like she was an oasis he'd found in the desert. Madly hopeful yet almost disbelieving.

"Now, Severus," the Headmaster finally put in. "There's no need for all that. You know Sirius is innocent. Put away your wand."

"Yeah, Sniv, put away your wand!" Sirius Black taunted when Professor Snape didn't budge an inch. Heather frowned at the confrontational tone. It'd been years since their Hogwarts days. Merlin, they could really hold a grudge. She should've known, though, by Professor Snape's initial treatment of her.

"Mr Black, you shouldn't goad him like that," Heather said. The dog animagus sputtered incredulously while the Professor smirked. "And Professor Snape, maybe you should put down your wand. I want to speak to my godfather properly." And his smirk disappeared into a heavy scowl while Sirius Black's expression turned smug.

Heather asked Merlin for the patience to deal with these two.

Sighing, Heather stepped out from behind the Professor. The irascible man could be so very protective of his snakes. She walked up to her godfather and put her hand out. "Pleased to finally meet you, Mr Black."

The man's eyes shone happily as he disregarded her hand - and the wand at his neck - to pull her into a hug. "Oh, little fawn, you've grown so much!"

Startled, Heather stood stiffly for a while before putting her arms around the man. She hid her mild discomfort at being so close to the almost-stranger. Whatever horrors he'd experienced in Azkaban had taken their toll on him. His grip was just this side of too tight and his voice tinged with desperation.

Apparently, she couldn't fool her Head of House. She felt a steadying grip on her shoulder as Sirius Black was pushed unceremoniously away. At the enraged look on her godfather's face, she smiled brightly and interjected, "Let's go find Hadrian; we have so much to catch up on, Mr Black!"

It did the trick; the man perked up like a puppy offered a walk. She could even imagine a tail wagging excitedly behind him. "You can just call me Sirius or Padfoot, or even Snuffles really. So long as it's not Mr Black." He made a face at the formal address. "C'mon, let's go find little Prongslet!"

"Albus, surely you are not allowing Miss Potter to be alone with this felon?" Professor Snape sneered contemptuously.

"Thank you for volunteering to serve as their chaperone, then, Severus," Headmaster Dumbledore said jovially.

The dour wizard growled something inaudibly before commanding Heather and Sirius to hurry up.

Heather hid a smile and led the way out of the office. Sirius eagerly trailed after her while the Professor just strode, glaring daggers at the other man.

"Where are we going?" Sirius asked.

"The Quidditch pitch."

He tilted his headed inquiringly. She was amused to note how canine that appeared. "How do you know that the pup is there?"