Losing Hope: Sirius Black's daughter Book 1

The traitor

"Sirius, Remus, my friends, my old friends." squeaked Pettigrew. My father raised his wand but uncle Remus held him back.

"We've been having a little chat about the night Lily and James died and you might have missed the finer points while you were squeaking on the-" said uncle Remus casually.

"Remus you don't believe him do you? He tried to kill me." gasped Pettigrew.

"So we've heard." said my uncle coolly.

"He's come to try and kill me again. He killed Lily and James and now he's come to kill me...you have got to help me Remus." he tried again and Sirius' eyes certainly proved this. 

"Nobody is going to try to kill you till we sort things out." my uncle said.

Pettigrew's eyes darted to the door and I rolled my eyes.

"I knew he'd come for me! I knew he'd be back. I've waited twelve years."

"You knew Sirius would break out of Azkaban when it has never been done before?"

"He's got dark powers he learnt from He Who Must Not Be Named!" gasped Pettigrew.

"How dare you? Dark powers from Voldemort? What scared to hear your master's name? Don't blame you... I've heard his lot screaming in Azkaban. It's not me you've been hiding from these twelve years but them." said Sirius.

"Don't know what you're talking about. You don't believe this madness Remus?"

"I have difficulty understanding why an innocent man spent twelve years as a rat."uncle Remus said.

"If Voldemort's supporters were after me it was cause I put their spy in Azkaban!"squeaked Pettigrew.

"I, a spy for Voldemort? When did I ever sneak around people more powerful than I? But you did. It used to be me, James and Remus."said Sirius and Pettigrew paled. "Lily and James only made you secret keeper because Rhine and I suggested it. Must have been your finest moment telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters."

Hermione then asked the silly question of why Pettigrew didn't kill Harry. Uh duh because of old Dumbledore. And I decided to corner my dad.

"Er, Sirius? Black? Dad? Whatever. How d'you escape from Azkaban without dark magic?" I asked.

"I'm not sure. I never lost my mind because I was innocent and looking at my daughter's picture in my locket  kept me sane. I knew, like Rhine used to say, where there is life there is hope. I saw Peter and knew he was close to you and Harry. I got thin enough to slip through the bars and escaped as a dog." he paused, "I have been living in the forest where you found me. Except when I came to watch Quidditch and when I saved Cam from the fire. Believe me, I never betrayed James and Lily. I'd have died first." Harry nodded and he turned to me. "I didn't start that fire. It was him, Peter, he slipped out of the room as a rat. The locket has sensing charms. It warned me that you were in danger. I thought I was too late." he said. I turned away crying.

"No! Remus. They'd have told you if the plan had changed!" tried Pettigrew.

"Not if he thought I was the spy. I suppose that's why?" said uncle Remus.

"Forgive me Remus."

"Not at all Padfoot old friend. Will you in turn forgive me for thinking you were the spy?"

"Of course, shall we kill him together?" asked Sirius with a ghost of a grin.

"I think so."

Pettigrew scrambled to Ron.

"Ron haven't I been a good friend? A good pet?" but Ron edged off.

"If you made a better rat than human its nothing to be proud of." said Sirius.

He turned to Hermione,

"Sweet girl, clever girl, you won't let them kill me...help me." but she pulled away her robes from him. He turned to Harry. "Harry, you look like your father...just like James."

"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK OF JAMES TO HARRY?" bellowed Sirius seizing Pettigrew as he made toward me."DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT TALKING TO MY DAUGHTER."

"Harry, James would have shown mercy." Black and Remus raised their wands.

"You sold Lily and James to Voldemort do you deny it?" Pettigrew burst into tears. I felt no mercy.

"And Rhine? She said that she had taken her information from you the day she went on the mission that she was killed on! You led her to death too!" my dad was shaking now. 

 "Rhine was far from perfect. She was a snake. She deserved-" but he never finished that sentence because Sirius threw him violently to the ground. "Sirius, Sirius, what could I have done? The Dark Lord...you have no idea...he has weapons you can't imagine ...I was scared, Sirius, I was never brave like you and Remus and James. I never meant it to happen...He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named forced me --"

"DON'T LIE!" bellowed Black. "YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE LILY AND JAMES DIED! YOU WERE HIS SPY!"

"He -- he was taking over everywhere! I wasn't the only one who switched sides." gasped Pettigrew. "Wh-what was there to be gained by refusing him?"

"What was there to be gained by fighting the most evil wizard who has ever existed?" said my father, with a terrible fury in his face. "Only innocent lives, Peter!"

"You don't understand!" whined Pettigrew. "He would have killed me, Sirius!"

"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" roared Sirius. "DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!"

"You should have realised. If Voldemort didn't kill you, we would. Goodbye Peter." said uncle Remus but I knew there would be no death tonight.

"No! You can't kill him." said Harry. The boy has too good a heart.

"Harry this vermin is the reason you have no parents. For him, you would be dead." snarled Sirius.

"I know. We can hand him over to the dementors. I don't think my dad would have wanted his best friends to become killers for him."

"He is right." I said seeing the uncertainty on dad's face

"Thank you lovely girl." said Pettigrew.

"You are the reason that I nearly died! Why I can't walk. But I can stand-" I put all my effort into standing. My feet were still swollen and painful but I stood balancing on the door"- to say I hope you enjoy the dementor's kiss." He paled. Traitor.