"Probably after Animagus... Though I think we're pretty close on that."

"Hard to tell until you actually get there... but yeah. I think we are too."

"The final step's a month long... If we wanna see if it's finished by the end of winter break we should probably start soon..."

"We'll have to set things up with Professor Reynolds."

She nods, humming.

This weekend might be the best time to start, and Fudge'll probably have the Dementors back by then anyways...

Sounds like a plan.

They're able to get a bit more outside time before the Dementor patrols resume, allowing them to set up their snakes for their absence, but Grim's nowhere in sight, and when Professor Reynolds takes them out to Hagrid's hut (wandering entirely off the student-trod paths is dangerous, sadly) they see what might be him only in passing, a dark shape in the eaves of the Forbidden Forest staring forlornly at them.

Ellie gives a small wave.

Grim stares at them, still, and then melts into the forest.

Oh well.

Really, she's got too many other things to worry about right now.

Like end of semester midterms, and homework, and the omnipresent feeling of gloom and depression that rapidly settles over the castle...

And also Professor Reynolds asking the house elves to pass them a request to meet up one day, a week before break. It doesn't sound like a social call. It doesn't sound urgent or like they should rush, but the general timeframe is 'sometime today after classes, please.'

That's only a little bit ominous, huh.

Before dinner?

That works for Anathema.

Before dinner, then, up to Professor Reynolds' suite.

She waves the door open for them, closing it behind them right away. She's sitting on her usual couch, but her gaze flickers only briefly to both girls.

Instead -

She seems to be mostly focusing on Grim, laying on the couch across from her, his posture distinctly guilty.

Scarlet is supervising from the couch back above Grim, staring a bit more intently than Professor Reynolds. They do give the two girls a friendly chirp, though.

"Professor?"

Sigh.

"...I honestly don't know the best way to handle this mess..." she says, softly, briefly rubbing at her temples. "First: I don't believe you two are in any threat right now. Second: your friend Grim is not a dog. He's an Animagus." She glaces at 'Grim' again, expression neutral. He looks like he wants to sink further into the couch cushions.

"An Animagus?"

Anathema flinches a bit as she realizes she'd been speaking Parseltongue in front of another human.

And. Talking. And - being so vulnerable, she'd cried in front of him -

"Who is he, then?" she demands, closing in on herself.

"That's - the harder part." She frowns, staring at him. "He hasn't told anyone about anything he witnessed while being 'Grim,'" she says, first off. "Partially because - I do believe he's unlikely to, and also the three of us are the only human contact he's had in months." Stare. "He's not a student, or anyone you'd met before, Anathema."

Sigh. "But he is someone Ellie's met before - as an infant, at least." Before either girl can question her: "Like ripping off a band aid, I guess..." She crosses her arms. "He's Sirius Black. He's provided me credible evidence he's innocent of the crimes he was accused of, and that he did not receive even a show trial at the time of his arrest and incarceration."

"Sirius Black," Ellie repeats. She glares at Grim.

...Anathema's brain has come to a screeching halt.

'Grim' slinks off the couch, tail between his legs, ears down, head hanging, and flows into a human form. He looks shabby - simple black robes frayed, expression exhausted, underfed, skin clinging so tightly to his bones it almost looks like someone shrink wrapped a depressed skeleton. There are deep bags under his eyes, stress lines in his face, grey shot throughout his hair. He should be Ellie's parents' ages, if they'd lived - he should be something like ten years younger than Professor Reynolds.

He looks much older.

His posture's an almost exact match for 'Grim' at his most guilty-dog. His head's down, arms closed in, body drooping.

"I'm sorry," he says, biting his lip. "I - I can't say - how sorry I am - "

Ellie hugs Anathema protectively. "You should try anyway. Professor Reynolds believes you, but you still lied to us."

"I shouldn't have lied to you. I shouldn't have - hung around, when you didn't - know who I was - I shouldn't have come to Hogwarts at all, I put you in so much risk - I was - I wanted to know you were okay, to see you happy - you were the most amazing thing I ever saw the first time Lily showed you to me, I'd turn into Padfoot and you'd laugh while you threw your toys for me - "

Deep, shaky breath. "I didn't - remember that. At first. Because - because I couldn't remember anything good had ever happened - I came here because I realized the man who betrayed Lily and James, who sold them out like a sniveling coward, was hiding here - and no one'd ever notice, he's a rat Animagus, and you can spend forever shifted - "

"But I don't want anything bad to happen to you, I don't want you to be afraid of people knowing your secrets - or afraid of those monsters, you should never have been around Dementors ever - "

" - I turned myself in to Professor Reynolds because I didn't know what to do, didn't know how to fix this, I keep failing to corner that bloody rat and the Dementors are here and they're not going away - and she's always been - competent and terrifying and ruthless - so I figured she'd - do whatever it took to protect you - "