Courage

-76-

Layla began heading back down the hall with Harry, concerned with whatever was going on, her heart rate increasing.

"Harry, say something," Layla pleaded. Her eyes stared at Harry with more softness than they had shown all year as they hurried down the hall. "Is Sirius okay? Is he hurt? Is he—"

"I'll explain in a second."

"Harry, you're worrying me!"

But thankfully, they finally reached Ron and Hermione, the two of them also looking concerned.

"Harry, Layla," said Hermione, her brown eyes flickering between the two of them. "Is everything alright? What happened?"

"Come with me," Harry said quickly. "Come on, I'll explain somewhere quiet."

Harry led them along the first-floor corridor, peering through doorways, and at last found an empty classroom into which he dived, closing the door behind Ron, Layla,  and Hermione the moment they were inside, and leaned against it, facing them.

"Voldemorts got Sirius."

"What?!" Layla exclaimed, her eyes widening in worry. "

"How d'you—?"

"Saw it. Just now," Harry interrupted Ron. "When I fell asleep in the exam."

"But — but where? How?" said Hermione, whose face was white.

"I dunno how," said Harry. "But I know exactly where. There's a room in the Department of Mysteries full of shelves covered in these little glass balls and they're at the end of row ninety-seven... he's trying to use Sirius to get whatever it is he wants from in there... he's torturing him... says he'll end by killing him! How're we going to get there?"

There was a moment's silence. Then Ron said, "G-get there?"

"Get to the Department of Mysteries, so we can rescue Sirius!" Harry said loudly.

"But — Harry..." said Ron weakly.

"What? What?" said Harry.

"Harry," said Hermione in a rather frightened voice, "er... how... how did Voldemort get into the Ministry of Magic without anybody realising he was there?"

"How do I know?" bellowed Harry. "The question is how we're going to get in there!"

"Is this a joke, Potter? Did you seriously have me worrying about Siri for nothing?" Layla snapped. "It's five o'clock in the bloody afternoon. The Ministry of Magic will be full of workers. How would Voldemort and Siri have got in without being seen? They're probably the two most wanted wizards in the world, you idiot. You think they could get into a building full of Aurors undetected?"

"I dunno, Voldemort used an Invisibility Cloak or something," said Harry. "Anyway, the Department of Mysteries has always been completely empty whenever I've been—"

"You've never been there, Harry," said Hermione quietly. "You've dreamed about the place, that's all."

"They're not normal dreams!" Harry shouted in her face, taking a step closer to her.

"You better not be lying about Siri, or I swear to Merlin, I will send you right down to hell," Layla exclaimed. "I know when you're lying. You forget that I know you."

"I'm not lying," said Harry, his eyes silently begging for Layla to believe him. "I saw him being tortured, I swear."

Layla stared into his eyes, searching for any sign that Harry was just doing this for attention. She found nothing. With a sigh, she turned to the others.