We've Got A Big Mess On Our Hands

[Sirius Black]

Sirius was shocked. "You really don't think that your dad would be willing to do whatever it takes to get Kris back?" he said. "Do you believe he'd just leave her with the crazy woman, instead of giving her what she wants?"

[Remus Lupin]

"He did it once before," Remus pointed out. "He let this woman raise Kris. He lied to me about her existence, and let me think I didn't even have a sister. And he keeps changing his reasons for doing it. I don't trust him anymore. I'm surprised he even agreed to meet the woman at all, actually." He was unable to keep the bitterness from his voice. "Come on, are we almost there yet?"

[Sirius Black]

Sirius leaned over and peered out the window, trying to figure out where they were. But the Knight Bus was going so fast that he couldn't make out anything. Instead, he made himself dizzy from the motion and he leaned back and closed his eyes. "I don't know," he said. "I can't tell where we are right now. And I wouldn't recommend trying. We're going too fast."

[Remus Lupin]

Remus frowned. He was impatient, and he wanted to be there now. Actually, what he wanted was for this all to be over. He wished they had already rescued Kris and were on their way back to Hogwarts with her, safe and sound. He'd only just found her, and he didn't want to lose her again. Not this time. "Well, I hope we get there soon," he grumbled, folding his arms across his chest.

[Sirius Black]

Sirius was just starting to regain his equilibrium when the bus came to another screeching halt, throwing them all from their seats. He was just about to let out a loud yell of protest, but he was interrupted by the conductor's voice. "Diagon Alley, everyone for Diagon Alley here!"

Sirius stumbled to his feet, and glanced around to find the other four doing the same. "OK, we're here," he said needlessly. "Let's go." He led the way off of the bus, noticing that almost all of the other passengers were getting off in the same place.

Once they were all off the bus, Sirius looked back at them. "OK. We can't let anyone see... uh, where we're going. Act like you're interested in the rest of the stuff around first. When we get a chance, we'll duck behind a building and slip on the cloak."

[Remus Lupin]

Remus nodded and wandered over to the Cauldron shop, which was the closest to where they were standing. "I wonder if I'd be any better at Potions if I had a better cauldron," he commented. He was pretty sure that he wouldn't, but he also couldn't help but think that having better equipment might have helped him to improve his work. Or maybe not.

He slowly began to move away from the window, and the others followed him. He took a quick glance around and saw that there were still a few too many people around, so he wandered over to the next store, Eeylops Owl Emporium. They stood there, admiring the owls for a few minutes, then Remus looked around the street again. The street had cleared out now, leaving only a stooped old witch and a goblin on his way to the bank. "OK, now," he whispered, ducking into the narrow passage between the owl shop and the next store.

[Sirius Black]

Sirius followed right behind Remus, checking over his shoulder to make sure that James and Peter were behind him. Once they were all in the alleyway, Sirius reached into his backpack and pulled out the invisibility cloak. He draped it over himself and stuck his hand out to signal that they should come underneath with him. Once they were all under, he did a quick check. "OK, everyone ready?" he asked at last. "Let's head to Knockturn Alley."

He led the way, walking slowly through the streets with the others directly behind him like a human caravan, only invisible. They stayed as close to the buildings as possible, in order to avoid colliding with any passersby. It was slow going, because they all had to walk at a similar pace and make sure they didn't lose their grip on the cloak. They couldn't let even a little bit of them be seen.

They were almost there when suddenly, a large dog ran up to them and began to sniff them. Though they were invisible, they were still giving off a scent that the dog was able to smell. "Shoo, dog!" Sirius whispered. But the dog continued to sniff at them. And then he began to bark.

"Just stand still, guys!" Sirius whispered urgently. If they ran, the dog would try to give chase, and they would risk losing the cloak. After a moment, the dog's owner came, and dragged the dog away, yelling at the poor creature for barking at what seemed to be thin air. Sirius let out a sigh of relief.

"Let's go," he whispered, as he began moving forward again. They took a few more steps, then turned onto Knockturn Alley.

[Remus Lupin]

Walking into Knockturn Alley was like walking into a dark, underground tunnel. Although the sun was shining brightly, the minute they turned down Knockturn Alley, they were plunged into darkness. It was cold, damp, and eerie. Remus could understand exactly why everyone had warned them about coming down here. It was downright creepy. It was the kind of place where Fenrir Greyback would feel perfectly at home. Remus shuddered at the thought.

They walked close together, huddling next to the wall in order to avoid running into anyone. There were a few shady-looking characters wandering around, and they definitely did not look friendly. "Where are we going?" Remus whispered to Sirius.

[Sirius Black]

"Shhhh!" Sirius whispered. "Just follow me." The truth was, he had no idea where they were going. He only knew one place in Knockturn Alley, and that was Borgin & Burke's. He somehow doubted that the crazy lady was going to be keeping Kris in a place like that. But there had to be more places in Knockturn Alley.

As they passed the door to Borgin & Burke's, a group of rough-looking wizards stumbled out of a building just ahead, laughing raucously. Judging by their behavior, Sirius guessed they were coming out of a pub. The alley was so narrow, that he was afraid they might bump into the rowdy-looking wizards, so he led them into the doorway and flattened himself against the wall. "Don't move!" he whispered while he waited for the wizards to pass.

[Remus Lupin]

Remus, realizing that Sirius was trying to keep them from the group of guys stumbling through the streets, did as he was told. He didn't even breathe as the guys moved past, laughing and making rude comments. They waited until the drunk wizards were out of sight, then waited for Sirius to lead them on. "What is this place?" Remus asked of the store whose doorway they were standing in. "Do you think she'd be here?"

[Sirius Black]

Sirius shook his head. The street was clear of people for the moment, so he felt free to talk. "Probably not," he replied in a whisper. "This is just a store for old magical items. Mum likes to sell heirlooms from disowned family members here." He gave a wry smile.

"Come on, let's get moving. There's gotta be an inn or a boarding house nearby. That's probably where she'd be."

He led them back out into the street and walked slowly forward. Along the way, they passed a dodgy-looking pub. Obviously where the drunk wizards had been. Sirius wondered what the place must be like, if the guys were coming out of there drunk so early in the morning.

But the next building was what he'd been looking for. It was a large, rundown-looking inn. The Hollow Tree Inn, it read. Sirius shivered just looking at it. The place looked like it should be condemned. "Let's try in here," he whispered.

[Remus Lupin]

Remus took a deep breath and followed Sirius inside. No one even seemed to bat an eye at the fact that the door had just seemed to open by itself. Everyone inside looked tired and dead in the eyes, like they had just come back from a long night of drinking. Remus was pretty sure that was exactly the case.

They stood there in the middle of the lobby, if you could even call it that, for a long moment, trying to figure out what to do. "How are we supposed to find her?" Remus whispered. "We can't just go up and ask.."

[Sirius Black]

Sirius frowned. He hadn't thought of this problem, although he should have. How were they going to figure out which room Kris was in, or if she was even there? They were invisible, and they needed to stay that way. But they couldn't just expect the woman to walk down the stairs and tell them exactly where Kris was, could they?

But that was exactly what did happen. A woman came out of the lift and walked briskly to the front desk. Sirius recognized her instantly. "That's her!" he hissed.

[Norah Lake]

Norah approached the front desk haughtily. "Listen," she said in a loud, rude voice. "I want to make completely sure that you are not going to have housekeeping clean my room, is that understood? No housekeeping at all. I have... a large pet snake, and if it sees strangers, it attacks. It will be in your staff's best interest not to clean my room. Got it? No housekeeping for room 118."

Without even a thank you, Norah marched out of the inn and headed to Diagon Alley.

[Remus Lupin]

Remus felt a thrill of hope rush through him. If this was the woman, as Sirius said, then she had literally told them exactly where to find Kris. And she was leaving her alone, so they could just walk right in and take her out. Could it really be that simple? He almost didn't dare to believe it. "Well, let's go, guys!" he whispered.

[Sirius Black]

Sirius nodded and led the way over to the lift. A sleepy-looking witch was also waiting for the lift to come, so when the doors opened, they followed her inside. They all took extra care not to even breathe while they stood next to the witch. Unfortunately, she was getting off on the third floor. They had no choice but to ride to the third floor with her, because they couldn't push the button without raising suspicions.

Finally, the woman stepped out, and the elevator doors closed. They were alone. Quickly, Sirius reached out and pushed the button for the first floor. It seemed to take ages before the lift opened again, depositing them on the first floor. They all got out, still walking in a straight line under the cloak.

Sirius checked the first door they came to for the room number. It was room 101. Across the hall on the left was room 102. "This way," he whispered.

[Remus Lupin]

Remus followed behind him, with James and Peter right on his heels. They were so close now, he could feel it. He could sense Kris's presence. He wondered if that was a werewolf thing, or if it was just the connection between family members.

At last, they came to a stop outside room 118. Remus threw off the invisibility cloak and leaned over to peer inside the keyhole. Inside, he could see someone on the bed. They seemed to be tied up.

He was tempted to yell, to call to her and let her know that they were there for her, to rescue her. But he also didn't want to call attention to what they were doing. So he simply took out his wand, pointed it at the door, and said, "Allohamora!"

The door swung open.

[Kris Lupin]

Kris jumped when she heard a voice and jumped even more when the door opened. She was too scared to speak and she barely breathed but then when she caught a whiff of something she whispered, "R-Remus?" She hoped it wasn't just wishful thinking.

[Remus Lupin]

"Kris?" Remus cried, running into the room. He stopped at the bed, seeing that she was tied up. He was so relieved to see her, apparently unhurt, that he felt tears scalding his eyes. "I'm sorry it took so long to find you... we're all here. Sirius and James and Peter, too." He began tugging at the ropes. "Come on, guys, help me get her untied!"

[Sirius Black]

Sirius laughed, feeling incredibly relieved to see Kris again. It was like he could finally breathe. "Are you a wizard, or what?" he said. He pointed his wand at the ropes. "Diffindo," he said. The ropes immediately fell to the floor. "Kris, are you OK?" he asked, kneeling down next to her. "I'm so sorry..."