NO TIME WAS WASTED as Peter was magically bound and gagged. McGonagall sent out two owls, one to the Ministry of Magic and another to Albus Dumbledore to alert the Headmaster of what was happening. Meanwhile, Hogwarts had to carry on, as usual, it was her responsibility as Deputy Headmistress to keep things as organised as possible during times of chaos. For those that had not witnessed the scene in the corridors, by word of mouth, the story spread fast. But McGonagall gave quick instruction that all students were to report to their respective common rooms until further instruction.

Leaving Professor Sprout and Professor Flitwick in charge, McGonagall led Charlus to the Headmaster's office, while Peter was towed behind them. Even though he could not scream or talk for that matter, Peter tried to fight it with all his might. He tried to beg for mercy, unsure of what the consequences were going to be for his actions. However, it all fell on deaf ears as Charlus, too stunned by everything, continued to follow McGonagall quietly.

It had been one thing to theorize possible scenarios to prove Sirius' innocence, but Charlus never thought he would actually be right with the most far-fetched idea of them all. Peter was alive, maybe not well, but he was alive. Living incognito as a pet rat to the Weasley family after pretending that he was murdered that night. The explosion that everyone had witnessed had worked as an excellent cover-up, especially for a rat to escape and leaving behind only a finger had only added to the evidence that worked against Sirius in the long run.

And still, Charlus couldn't believe that it had actually happened. For Peter to grow up with him, James, and Sirius, only to sabotage them in the worst way possible. If Peter had been the spy in the Order all along, then more than likely, he was also responsible for Bellatrix and the other Death Eaters showing up that night when Charlus was attacked. Peter knew they were going to go through with the switch, Charlus would be left home alone, and it was the perfect opportunity.

Once Charlus was out of the picture, Sirius would be left vulnerable, and it would all spiral downward from there.

Peter claimed he had done everything for the sake of protecting himself and his mother, it would have been understandable if he had first attempted to ask for help. But he didn't. Instead, he attended every Order meeting, agreeing with everything that was said, drinking in every bit of information that he would later turn over to Voldemort and his followers. Charlus didn't feel pity for Peter in those moments, he almost felt numb to every feeling that attempted to overwhelm him.

McGonagall gave the password, allowing access to the staircase hidden behind a gargoyle statue. As soon as they reached the office, she urged Charlus to sit because he looked as though he was going to fall over at any given second. Peter was left on the floor and the only thing they could do was wait until someone arrived.

Charlus sat in a leather armchair, his eyes focused on Peter's body before he went for his wand. Peter flinched, anticipating being struck with a curse and McGonagall prepared herself to disarm Charlus so that he didn't do something he ended up regretting. However, Charlus merely lifted the Silencing Charm off of Peter, freeing his mouth once more to speak.

"That was one of Molly's boys, wasn't it?" Charlus asked McGonagall. He watched as she nodded her head before he looked back at Peter. "You have absolutely no shame, Peter. Molly lost her brothers to the war, the same war that you played traitor for! She lost her brothers and you decided you were going to live among them."

"Charlus, you don't understand, he was going to kill me," Peter told him, " they were all going to kill me."

"You would have been better off dead," Charlus replied coldly, " your life to save multiple. Instead, so many lost their lives. My brother is dead because of you!"

"It wasn't just me! It wasn't! It's true, I was the Secret-Keeper, I gave up the location, but it was Severus that told the Dark Lord about Harry and Neville. He heard about the prophecy and told the Dark Lord! That's why the Dark Lord came after me because he wanted to know who the Secret Keeper was after the boys were born."

The room became still as Charlus closed his eyes, trying his very hardest to keep his composure. He could feel his stomach lurching inside of him, filling him with the horrible desire of wanting to vomit. He couldn't keep up with lip-reading when it came to Peter, the traitor's frantic movements made it too difficult, but he did manage to get the information he needed through it all.

Peter wasn't solely responsible, Snape had played a role as well, but Charlus wasn't shocked by that revelation. Before he had fallen under attack, Snape had been a Death Eater, so why he wasn't in Azkaban raised plenty of questions in Charlus' mind as he turned back to McGonagall.

"Whether or not Severus played a role in that scenario, why is he not in Azkaban?" Charlus asked her. "He was a Death Eater, he should be rotting away with the rest of them!"

"Dumbledore had his reasoning-"

Charlus closed his eyes again, it seemed Dumbledore had a lot of reasons behind his sketchy actions and no one dared to question them. When he did finally open his eyes again, Charlus was surprised to see that Dumbledore had finally decided to show his face.

At some point in his life, Charlus had viewed Albus Dumbledore as somewhat of a grandfather-figure. The older man had always been quite quirky with a magical twinkle in his eyes. Maybe that was why Charlus and James had put all their faith and trust into joining the Order when they were offered the chance. They were willing to fight under Dumbledore's orders and guidance, but seeing him again after years had passed, Charlus didn't feel the same warmth anymore.

He felt a sudden coldness wash over him as he faced Dumbledore again. Showing his face, only after something eventful had happened because spending six years in a coma wasn't a good enough reason.

Part of Charlus wanted to just count his blessings and go with the idea of better late than never, but the majority of Charlus wanted to curse Dumbledore on the spot for keeping him waiting for so long. Pushing himself up from the armchair, he approached his old headmaster slowly until they were standing just an arm's length apart.

"You're a very busy person as of late, Professor," Charlus said, " I'm surprised that you were able to come so quickly."

"Charlus Potter," Dumbledore said, his hands moving in sync with his speech, " it is good to see that you have recovered well."

"Is it? You could have seen my recovery sooner if you bothered answering my letters. I've sent multiple to you with no response."

"Truth be told, Charlus, I was not ignoring your letters but rather investigating your claims for myself. Your letters to the Minister stirred up quite a bit of drama that I was asked to look into the matter. I only had limited time to do so in between running the school."

"I find it hard to believe you couldn't spare just a minute to respond with a short letter, saying we would talk soon. Or rather investigating on your own, you could have asked for my help!"

"After six years, Charlus," Dumbledore continued, " I was led to believe that you would need the proper time to gather your strength before going on any wild goose chases."

"Wild goose chases?" Charlus repeated. "You mean clearing my husband's name?! And finding out that you sent Harry to live with the Dursleys of all people!"

Once again, Charlus felt McGonagall's hand come to rest on his shoulder, a sign that she was telling him to keep his temper. He took a deep breath but it did nothing to settle the rage he felt at the moment.

"I have my reasons as to why Harry was-"

"To hell with your reasons!" Charlus spat. "That's all I've been told since I woke up. That you have your reasons. I don't care about your reasons. Right now, Sirius is in Azkaban while the traitor is right here! Peter Pettigrew is alive! He's alive while James and Lily are dead! And Harry is with people who don't care about him. Your reasons don't matter to me!"

McGonagall stepped in front of Charlus, gently pushing him back so she could speak to the Headmaster.

"Sir, I've sent a letter to Minister Fudge regarding the matter. Mr Potter had been accompanying Madam Bagshot during her visit to the castle. We were talking in my office when Mr Weasley entered with his pet rat, Scabbers. Charlus recognised him right away in his animagus form. It's true, that is Peter Pettigrew, he's been hiding all this time. Mr Potter said that Peter was made the Secret-Keeper for Lily and James Potter. It all makes sense and there is evidence to back it all up. When Minister Fudge arrives, you need to seek Sirius Black's release immediately. "

Dumbledore didn't respond to her right away as his gaze travelled back to where Peter remained on the ground. All the crying and pleading from before had come to an abrupt end as Petter looked up at his former headmaster.

"I told him!" Peter suddenly spoke to Dumbledore. "I told him all about how it was Severus that told the Dark Lord about the prophecy!"

"Did you also tell Charlus that Severus defected as a Death Eater in order to protect the Potters?"

Charlus focused on McGonagall's hands as she continued to effectively translate the conversation for him. Dumbledore turned back to face Charlus, ignoring Peter shaking his head and yelling once more.

"Severus realised the dangers that would come to your family," Dumbledore said, " he defected from Voldemort and his followers and became a spy."

"I don't care about Severus," Charlus said, " I don't care about him in the slightest. But I understand now, that you were willing to defend Severus over Sirius and that tells me everything I need to know about who you really are instead of the person I thought you were. I was told that Sirius wasn't even given a trial. His wand was snapped and he was placed in Azkaban. But because Severus had a change of heart after years of being a Death Eater, he becomes a professor at your school. I will remember that until the day I die."

Dumbledore wasn't given a chance to argue his side as Minister Cornelius Fudge arrived with Professor Sprout leading him to where the others were gathered. Fudge entered the area, but he didn't need to ask what was going on as he immediately spotted Peter Pettigrew on the floor. His eyes widened and his lips parted in shock before he looked around the room. His eyes finally settled on where Charlus stood behind Professor McGonagall.

Charlus reached out and touched McGonagall's arm as he went to walk around her. She shot him a look but Charlus nodded his head, promising that he was done yelling for the time being. He only had one little thing to tell Cornelius Fudge as he approached him.

"I expect Sirius to be released before midnight tonight," he said, " or I go to the Daily Prophet with tomorrow's headline."