A/N: This chapter will be a flashback taking place a little before the Time Turner scene; right after Sirius (in his animagus form) dragged Ron into the Whomping Willow. I am not actually going to have Harry saying what happened to McGonagall. I'll just show the scene instead, and you can assume him telling her how he felt rather then the actual events that transpired. You'll see why soon. Oh and I credit the screenplay writers of "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" for some dialogue in this chapter because I had to use some of it for the scenes to be accurate. R&R!
A Promise
Wack! Harry and Hermione had just been swatted like flies by the WhompingWillow, and had both fallen to the ground. Hermione was up first, and helped Harry by picking him up by the arm. Harry had felt it again. No Harry! You can't bloody well have flutters now while there's a tree trying to kill you both. Just protect her from getting hurt!
And he had tried, tugging her along behind him; hand in hand, and step for step.
And then "Move!" He directed her so the huge branch wouldn't stomp on her. And then he pulled her up.
"Duck!" He heard her shout just as he got hit with the branch, falling to the ground with his glasses flying off. He could hardly register anything when the tree had tried to step on him again, but he heard it. Her voice, screaming. A high pitched scream, and then his name, and he could barely see her form with his glasses off. He frantically searched around for his glasses so that he could rescue her, and just when he had found them and put them back on he heard her voice yell "Harry!" He saw her grasping desperately to a branch, and before he could think of a way to help her he felt her hand grab his shirt, and pull him with her. He was flying mid air when she threw him into the hole he had seen Ron go through.
He landed on his back with an "Ahh!" That Hermione was strong. And then he realized just how strong she was when she landed right on top of him seconds later.
"Ahh! Oh, I'm sorry." She said it so cutely though, like she really needed to apologize. Her lips were right against his neck, and her breath was hot from her weakened panting. He shivered. Had her lips always been that soft? He had never known. Her hair was splayed all across his face, and he inhaled her flowery scent. She smelled like nothing he had ever smelled before, which surprised him given the fact that they had been running and sweating. It was a cross between daffodil and lily. Gorgeous, he thought. His hand had subconsciously gone to her hair, and he stroked it which only made her breath become more ragged and long against his neck. He shivered again, and she had slowly raised her head to look at him. Had she noticed?
Oh God, oh god! I'm stroking her hair, smelling her, and shivering like an idiot! Of course she noticed! Okay say something cleaver! Wow, she has pretty eyes. They're like a cross between honey, and cinnamon. Why is she smiling? Wait, why am I smiling? I probably look like a big buffoon. Okay say something Harry, anything!
"No worries." As he said this he realized just how close their faces were. Their noses barely grazing. Their breaths mingled. It was the most sexually charged moment (mind you there hadn't been many) of his life because suddenly he became fully aware of the fact that Hermione was on top of him. Her legs intertwined with his. Her arms around his head. Her lips inches away. Her eyes burning through his very soul. He thought if he died in that moment, he would have died a happy man looking into those eyes. He reached up his hand to brush a stray piece of hair from her face and placed it behind her ear, and she smiled at him. He loved her smile. He loved making her smile, but this smile suddenly looked so unique to him. Like he was looking at it in a new light. Maybe it had something to do with that fact that he had never been that close to her before, and hadn't taken the time to appreciate her lips, and the way they curved into a cute smugness that was all her. He suddenly admitted the fact that he liked being this close to her, and he wondered what it would be like to kiss the smugness right off of her soft lips.
Snap out of it mate! This is Hermione! You know your bookwormish-bossy-best friend!? Harry wanted to punch that part of his subconscious into oblivion. Sod off you git! Harry was suddenly shaken out of his daze when he felt a weight leave his body, and saw that Hermione had risen to her feet, and pulled on his arm to get him to do the same. He felt a little peeved that she had ended the moment, but he thought that he would have ample time to make new ones with her, and made a promise to himself to do so.
"Where do you suppose this goes?" She asked as he dusted himself off to regain some of his composure to lead them forward.
"I have a hunch. I just hope I'm wrong." They walked up steps, and all the while the only noise Harry could hear was their breathing. When they came to what looked like an attic door at the end of the stairs Harry stuck his head in first to look around, and just as he had turned he saw that Hermione had done the same. Their noses were grazing again, and it was all becoming too much for Harry not to grab her face and snog her senseless right there. He decided to break the silence, and say something.
"Hi." He whispered right against her face. She smiled, shaking her head slightly at, no doubt, his goofiness and whispered back.
"Hi. You're a loon, you know that?" They tried to suppress giggles, but were failing miserably. Wait, weren't they in there to find Ron?
"I try." Then Harry decided it was time to get back to business, and help his friend. He stepped forward and turned back to help Hermione up and took her hand in his.
"We're in the Shrieking Shack, aren't we?" She asked looking worried.
"Come on." Trying to urge them forward up another staircase. He started to speed up a bit, with her right behind him, when he heard screaming. He looked into a door opening, and saw his friend.
"Ron! The dog…where is he?"
"Harry! It's a trap. He's the dog. He's an animagus!" Pointing behind Harry, and Hermione. And again, their eyes followed the same path until they saw him…Sirius Black. Suddenly he felt, rather then saw, Hermione move from the spot where she stood beside him to right in front of him where she held him in place with her hands, and stood with her backside pushed right against him. He knew he should be thinking about other things, but the only thought he could muster was of her extreme closeness. Bloody hell man! She's protecting you now? Why don't you just wear a damn skirt! Then he heard her speak.
"If you want to kill Harry then you'll have to kill us too!" She yelled at the man. The man, who he believed to have killed his parents, spoke back.
"No, only one will die tonight." Suddenly Harry remembered his rage, and he pushed Hermione away forcefully before grabbing the man by his neck, and throwing him to the ground. He pulled out his wand, and the man laughed.
"Are you going to kill me Harry?" Suddenly, before he could answer, Professor Lupin burst through the door.
"Expelliamus!" And Harry's wand was cast from his hand. Lupin tilted his head to tell Harry to move. When he did he was eagerly greeted by Hermione's arm, which pulled him right beside her again. Again he was gone from any other thoughts but her closeness. He knew that Lupin and Sirius were talking, but he couldn't really get his mind to listen until he felt Hermione's body jerk against his, and heard her tattered breathing. Then she was a few feet in front of him yelling at the men who were, hugging? What was going on?
"NO! I trusted you! And all this time-you've been his friend…" She turned back to Harry and Ron before whipping back to the men. "He's a werewolf. That's why he's been missing classes."
"How long have you known?" Lupin inquired.
"Since Professor Snape set the essay."
"Well, well, well Hermione you really are the brightest witch of you age I've ever met-
Before Harry could even subconsciously agree Sirius cut them off.
"Enough talk Remus…come on let's kill him!" The man said.
"WAIT!"
"I DID MY WAITING! TWELEVE YEARS OF IT! IN AZKABAN!" Harry realized that Hermione was beside him again, and she was breathing heavily. Harry eyed Lupin, feeling the sting of betrayal before hearing him speak again.
"Very well. Kill him, but wait one more minute. Harry has the right to know why."
"I know why…" His voice came out shaky, and he could feel Hermione's eyes on him. "You betrayed my parents…you're the reason they're dead."
"No Harry, it wasn't him. Somebody did betray your parents, but it was somebody who, until quite recently, I believed to be dead."
"Who was it then!?"
"Peter Pettigrew..." The other man answered. "And he's in this room, right now. COME OUT, COME OUT PETER! COME OUT, COME OUT AND PLAYYY!" Just then Snape burst in the room.
"Expelliamus!" He yelled making Sirius' wand go flying. Hermione gasped, and pushed herself closer to Harry. "Ahh vengeance is sweet…how I hoped I'd be the one to catch you."
"Severus…" Lupin tried to speak calmly and approach Snape until he pointed his wand at him, and he backed away.
"I told Dumbledore you were helping an old friend into the castle, and now here's the proof."
"Brilliant Snape. Once again you put your keen and penetrating mind to the task, and as usual come to the wrong conclusion. Now if you'll excuse us, Remus and I have some unfinished business to attend to." Just then Snape put his wand to Sirius' throat.
"Give me a reason. I beg you." They went on arguing. Snape threatening something about a "Dementor's kiss." Just then Harry reached his arm over Hermione's back, letting it lay there for a moment until his fingers grazed her hand slightly, and took her wand from her pocket. He approached the men, and Snape ticked his head to the door for Harry to leave when Harry pointed his wand at him and cast the Expelliamus spell making him fly back against a bed.
"Harry, what did you just do?" He heard a frightened Ron ask.
"You attacked a teacher!" He heard Hermione say disbelievingly herself. He would tend to them later. Right now it was time for answers. And after more conversation he got them.
Turns out that Peter Pettigrew was Ron's rat, Scabbers, and had hidden himself for twelve years in his animagus form. Pettigrew was in fact the one who had handed Harry's parents over to Voldemort to be killed. Remus and Sirius had remained loyal to his family, and had wanted to kill Pettigrew right there, but Harry insisted for them not to. He wanted to take him back to the castle so that the Dementor's could have their way with him. He had figured too that his father wouldn't have wanted his two best friends to become killers. And with that they had made their way back to the castle.
Harry had wanted to talk to Sirius, but at the same time thought he should stay behind with Hermione and tend to Ron, whose leg was accidentally bitten by Sirius in his animagus form. She had told him she would stay with Ron because she knew, as always, what he had needed at that moment. Sirius was the closest thing to family he had, and she knew he would want to talk with him. He silently thanked her for that. As they were talking, Sirius had suggested that if Harry wanted to he could and live with him. Just then Hermione broke them from their conversation.
"Harry!" She had just looked at him, and pointed to the full moon. And with that Harry, as well as everyone else, knew that Professor Lupin was about to change into a werewolf. And as he did, Pettigrew transformed back into a rat and got away. Harry had tried to go after him, but as if Hermione could read his thoughts she grabbed him back the second he even attempted to run. And when she approached the werewolf to see if there was any signs of consciousness from Lupin left Harry thought his heart had sunk to the ground. But she had just as quickly come back to his and Ron's arms.
Then Snape reappeared, and he had just started to yell at Harry when he too saw the werewolf, and instead tried to protect them. Harry was surprised by his gesture, but later reasoned it was probably just because he was a teacher, and it had been a reflex. Sirius was back in his animagus form, and had tried to fight off Lupin, but Harry had run after them to make sure the werewolf wouldn't hurt him. He had thrown a rock at his head, and it had approached him angrily ready to scratch into him when he heard what he thought to be another werewolf howl. He had just been saved, and silently thanked whatever it was because the werewolf followed the cry.
He heard Sirius' whimpers, and then saw his form change back into man. He ran after him to see if he was alright when he realized he was on the ground unconscious near the lake. Just then the water around them turned to ice. Sirius awoke with a yell, and Harry looked to see Dementor's flying over-head. They had already begun on Sirius when Harry cast the Expecto Patronum spell. It wasn't nearly strong enough, and then they started on Harry, then Sirius again, taking turns. The cold was filling Harry's body, and then it stopped suddenly when he saw what looked like a deer of bright light walk across the lake and then encircle all of the Dementor's, making them take off. Sirius breathed life again, and before Harry gave into weakness he saw the light fade from the wand of a figure standing across the lake. Could it be? Then he saw black.