𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙜𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙣 - 𝙝.𝙥. ⚯͛

𝐱𝐯𝐢𝐢 - 𝖺 𝗐𝖾𝗋𝖾𝗐𝗈𝗅𝖿 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖺𝗇 𝖺𝗇𝗂𝗆𝖺𝗀𝗎𝗌

A.N. Hi lovelies!! I had lots of fun writing this chapter, and I especially enjoyed figuring out what Elsie's Patronus should be! Also, I'm curious, what are your guys' Patronuses? Mine is a cat ♡. 

─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

╰┈➤ HARRY'S POV

Harry, Hermione, and Elsie exchanged a glance and continued down the dark hallway. Just then, a creak overhead caused them to glance up, wide-eyed and ready to put up a fight. With Harry in the lead, the three of them headed slowly up the stairs, wands gripped tightly in their hands.

At the top of the landing, at the far end of a dark hall, there was a door ajar; a soft light emitted from it. A low growl came from somewhere in the distance.

"Let's go," said Harry, exchanging one last look with his friends.

When they reached the door he kicked it wide open, and he was surprised to see a purring Crookshanks sitting atop a four-poster bed.

"Ron!" Harry gasped with relief as he saw his freckled friend sitting in a corner of the room.

Ron, however, didn't look as relieved to see them. His leg stuck out at a weird angle and his eyes were wide as he pointed a shaky finger towards Harry, Elsie, and Hermione. "Guys, it's a trap! He's the dog— he's an Animagus!"

The three of them spun around just as the door shut behind them. A man dressed in a tattered prison uniform with limp, black locks hanging around his face was grinning maliciously at them. Harry's stomach dropped. The man who stood before them was Sirius Black.

"Expelliarmus!" Sirius Black shouted, pointing Ron's wand at the three of them.

Their wands shot out of their grips and zoomed straight into Black's hand. Slowly, they took a step back as Black took a step towards them.

Sirius Black's eyes looked sunken and hollow, the skin around his cheekbones sagging and yellow. Harry suppressed a shudder as the man spoke.

"I knew you'd come to help your friend," Black sneered at Harry. "That's exactly what your father would have done. James was always there for his friends."

James. At the mention of his father, something inside of Harry snapped. For the first time in his life, he wanted his wand not only to defend himself but to kill. Without thinking, he lunged toward Black but felt several pairs of hands pull him back. Hermione let out a small whimper.

"No, Harry!" Elsie hissed in his ear. Her grip on his bruised arm was tight, her fingernails digging half-moons into his skin.

Using the wall to support himself, Ron tried to stand up from where he was crouched on the ground. He glared directly at Black, his eyes glimmering with malice. "If you want to kill Harry, you'll have to kill us too!"