Most of September and October passed in a blur. Snape and I had lessons every Wednesday, and every time I failed to produce a decent Patronus Charm. Fred and I had a few more Quidditch sessions as well (with George's broom instead of Malfoy's), which I was delighted to say went perfectly well. I thought it was a bit curious that George never came to play with us, but I did enjoy spending time with Fred, and I was getting much better at Quidditch, which was exciting. Too bad I'd never be able to play on a team. Stupid sexist Slytherins.
Draco Malfoy and I hadn't spoken much since the day I'd stolen his broom. Honestly, I'd been avoiding him, as usual. This time it was different, though: I wasn't avoiding him because I hated him, but I was avoiding him because I was utterly confused. He hadn't made any snide remarks, and he'd barely even scowled at me. It almost felt like we weren't enemies anymore, which was just too strange for me to handle.
One Saturday, I left the Slytherin common room early in the morning, expecting to see Fred waiting for me so we could go play Quidditch. However, when I stepped out, I saw that it wasn't just Fred, but George was there as well.
"Hi, guys," I greeted excitedly. "George, you're coming to join us this morning as well, I see. No more Angelina issues to worry about?"
"Actually, neither of us can play Quidditch this morning, sad to say," Fred told me.
"We're going to Hogsmeade today; it's the first trip of the year," George said.
"We could try to sneak you out—"
"But it'll be pretty difficult—"
"Not to mention, if you get caught, you'll be in loads of trouble."
I raised my eyebrows at them. "Wow, you two are advising me not to do something that'll get me in trouble? That's certainly a first."
"Well, we're just trying to look out for you, Fitz," Fred replied.
"You are just a second year," George reminded me.
"We'd do the same for Ginny."
"You young ones don't know how to get away with things yet."
I forced a laugh, but I was really just feeling disappointed. I'd really been looking forward to practicing Quidditch with Fred...and George too, of course, if he came... And then Fred had just compared me to Ginny, his baby sister. It was nice that they cared about me as much as they cared about Ginny, I suppose, but...
"You two have fun," I said sincerely.
"We will," they assure me before Fred gave me a wink, and then they were off.
I spent most of the day in the library reading with Melody. She was a nice reading partner because she didn't disturb me, but she also made me feel like I wasn't completely alone. I did some homework, but I mostly spent my time researching dementors, Azkaban, and Sirius Black. I'd learned a lot about the three over the last few months, but I still felt like there was something missing...
"Melody—"
"Don't talk to me, Fitzroy," she droned, not looking up from her book.
"I just have a question—"
"And I don't want to answer."
I let out a sigh, glancing back down at my book. I almost wished that Ashley and Astoria were here so I'd have some one to talk to, but they were spending the day doing their hair and make up. I was happy that Melody wasn't so obsessed with those sorts of things. Besides, if anyone was going to be able to answer this question, it would be Melody.
"Have you ever been to Azkaban?" I finally blurted.
Apparently, my question was intriguing enough that Melody actually looked up from her book. "You think I've done something worth imprisonment?" she questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Well—no, but I thought maybe you'd been there...maybe to visit friends...or family...?"
Melody's eyes narrowed as she violently stood up and leaned over the table. "How did you know about that?"
I blinked, staring up at her angry, vicious face. "I—I didn't. I was just spitting out ideas—"
She violently grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled me toward her. "How did you know?" she demanded. "I'll kill you, Mudblood—"
Someone cleared their throat, and we turned to see that Harry Potter was standing next to our table. "Er—girls..." he greeted awkwardly.
Melody let go of my shirt, thrusting me back down into my seat. "Potter," she replied coldly.
"Er—Lainey, would you like to come on a walk with me?" Harry asked, glancing nervously at Melody every few seconds.
"Sure," I replied, hastily gathering my things. "See you later, Melody."
"You better not tell anyone, Mudblood," she warned, her eyes wild.
I nodded quickly before hurrying off with Harry. Once we were safely out of the library, he looked over at me with a face of concern.
"What was that about?" he asked skeptically.
"Oh—um—I just accidentally guessed some deep dark secret about her past and now she wants to kill me," I informed him. "Pretty typical with Melody, honestly."
Harry let out a laugh as we continued to stroll down the corridor.
"So, why aren't you at Hogsmeade? Can't third years go?" I asked casually.
"Yeah, but I can't," Harry replied glumly. "My aunt and uncle wouldn't sign my permission slip."
I bit my lip, feeling true sympathy for Harry. He'd had a rough time growing up with the Dursleys, so he'd told me, and his situation made my mother's circumstances seem decent.
"They won't let anyone else sign it for you? I mean, they've got to know—"
"No," he interjected quickly. "I already asked McGonagall. She said no. I just had tea with Lupin though, which was nice..."
"Well, we can spend the rest of the day together, if you'd like," I suggested, slipping my arm through his. "We can go get lunch at the Great Hall, then we can play wizard's chess!"
"I'm horrible at wizard's chess," Harry said with a laugh.
"I know, and so am I. It'll be a horribly pathetic but fun game. C'mon, you know you want to—"
"All right, all right, but I don't want you making fun of me if I lose."
"When you lose, Harry, when."
∆
After hours of playing wizard's chess with Harry, Ron and Hermione came back from Hogsmeade, and the three of them remained in the Great Hall to have dinner together. They wanted me to stay, but I was feeling tired, so I decided to go back to the Slytherin common room instead.
As I walked through the corridor, my mind was racing with thoughts of Melody and her connection to Azkaban. Who did she know that was imprisoned? Could it be Sirius Black? I wanted more than anything to find out more information about him. I really just felt like there was something mysterious about him, something that was not so evil and murderous.
Apparently I was so lost in my thoughts that I actually became extremely lost while walking back to the Slytherin common room, and instead I found myself standing outside of the entrance to Gryffindor tower. I'd only been to the Fat Lady's portrait a few times (mostly with Ginny), but never before had I seen it so torn up and destroyed. And never before had I seen an angry, shaggy, black-haired dog growling in front of it.
I gasped, jumping back as soon as I saw the creature. He heard me, and averted his eyes in my direction. They were gray, and surprisingly calm for such a large, bear-like dog. I narrowed my eyes at him, studying him carefully as I took a step closer. He didn't move; he merely continued to stare at me in a pensive, deep way. With slow, cautious hesitation, I brought my hand down to his head and began to stroke his dirty, thick fur. He closed his eyes serenely, letting me pet him.
After a few moments, I crouched down in front of him to get at his eye level.
"Did you do this?" I asked gently as I motioned toward the destroyed painting. To my surprise, the dog nodded. "Y—you wanted to get in? Into the common room?"
Again, the dog nodded, and I pondered over what kind of magical creature this dog must be. There was no way he was just an ordinary dog.
"Can you... Can you talk?" I asked curiously.
Instead of giving a response, the dog's body began to contort and morph before my eyes. I staggered back, scrambling on the floor to get away from him as the large dog transformed into a tall, thin man. I blinked furiously, hoping that it was just my imagination, but every time I opened my eyes he was still there.
"I can talk," he said hoarsely, taking a step closer to me. He had long, matted, crazy hair that frayed in all directions. His face was skull-like and thin, and I could see that tattoos were hidden beneath his ratty garments.
"You—You're—Sirius Black," I blurted, trembling slightly on the floor. His demeanor wasn't particularly menacing, but something about the fact that he'd murdered twelve people was gripping me with terror.
"Indeed I am," he replied rather smoothly. His gentle tone betrayed his rough features. "And I know who you are. You must be Lainey. Your voice—you sound just like your mother."
As I got to my feet, my mouth fell open, and I scrambled to find words. "You—you know my mother? How many wizards know my mother? First Lupin, now you—"
"Ah, Remus," Sirius Black said as though he were reveling in some sort of memory. "I suppose you've had the opportunity to become quite close with him, then, since he wasn't thrown in Azkaban."
"He didn't kill innocent people," I countered, a certain fire in my tone. "And I only just met him two months ago, and I only found out that he even knows my mother recently. How do you know my mother? Tell me everything you know."
"Well, well, let's not get ahead of ourselves, my dear Lainey," he replied. "First I'll have you know that I didn't kill all of those innocent people. Then I'd like to know how your brother is doing—"
"Which one?" I interjected, although I really just wanted to ask him to explain how it is that he wasn't the one to kill innocent people and yet he was sent to Azkaban.
"Which one?" he questioned, letting out a spiteful laugh. "Lainey, you truly—"
Before he could get another word out, we heard a commotion of voices coming from the staircase behind me. The Gryffindors must be coming up from dinner—
"Hurry—quickly—leave," Sirius hissed as he shooed me away. "And don't tell anyone that I was here! Don't tell anyone that you spoke with me, is that clear?"
I nodded quickly, taking a brief glance down at the oncoming Gryffindors. "But—where are you going?" I asked, looking back to Sirius, but he was gone.
As much as I wanted to go find him, I knew that I couldn't get caught standing by this destroyed painting. If someone saw me here, they'd think I was the one to destroy the poor Fat Lady.
I dashed toward one of the alternate staircases and ran all the way to the Slytherin common room. When I got there, I saw that Snape was trying to tame the frantic Slytherin students that were all gathered within. I seemed to be the last to arrive.
"Ah, Miss Fitzroy," Snape greeted coldly, and everyone grew quiet as they looked to me. "Nice of you to join us."
"Er—sorry," I mumbled as I hurried over to join Ashley, Astoria, and Melody in the crowd.
"There has been a recent breach of security," Snape announced, and all of the Slytherins began to whisper again. "Silence! It is believed that escaped prisoner Sirius Black has entered the school. He has attempted to infiltrate the Gryffindor common room, but has been unsuccessful. Because of the imminent danger, all students will be sleeping in the Great Hall this evening to ensure your safety."
"Woo!" one sixth year boy cheered from within the crowd. "Party!"
A few people began to clap and cheer, but Snape quickly silenced them.
"There will be no riff-raff this evening. Anyone causing any disturbances will receive detention of the worst kind," Snape proclaimed.
"What's detention of the worst kind?" Melody questioned dully.
Snape's lip curled as he glared over at her. "I assure you, Miss Flemming, that even you would not enjoy it. Now, you will all grab your things, and I will usher you to the Great Hall. You have five minutes."
There was a mad rush toward the dormitories, one that Ashley and Astoria were prominently a part of. Melody and I, however, lingered back, letting the massive horde pass before we made the trek to our room.
"I hope Sirius Black kills you tonight," Melody drawled. "That'll take care of more than a few problems."
I smirked to myself, knowing that her threat was empty. Sirius Black had had the chance to kill me just minutes ago, but he hadn't taken it. He hadn't even attempted to hurt me in any way. He couldn't be a murderer could he? I mean, he knew my mother. And he seemed so nice. Maybe I was just being completely naïve, but I didn't get a bad vibe from the "notorious murderer."
As I gathered my things, what was really on my mind wasn't necessarily my encounter with Sirius but how I got up onto the seventh floor. I'd been planning on going down to the dungeons and I'd somehow gone up without even realizing it. The entire journey seemed to be almost a blur...
"Melody, wanna share a sleeping bag?" Ryan Harper asked as we walked toward the Great Hall. Apparently all we needed to bring was a pillow, since they'd be providing us with sleeping bags.
"With you? No," Melody retorted condescendingly.
"What about you, Mudblood?" Harper pressed on. "Are you going to share a sleeping bag with Draco?"
I scrunched my nose, nearly gagging. "Malfoy? Why would you ever think that?"
"We heard you have your hands on his wand," Vince Anderson said, nearly giggling. "It's only a matter of time before you have your hands on his other wand—"
"Oh my God!" I groaned loudly. "You two are utterly disgusting!"
Harper and Anderson probably didn't even hear me over their laughter, however; it seemed to be radiating throughout the halls. I wasn't so mad at them though; I honestly thought Harper and Anderson were pretty comical most of the time. What had me pissed was the fact that Malfoy was telling people that we'd exchanged wands. I had been under the impression that we were keeping this a secret; I didn't want everyone to know that I was somehow more powerful with his wand than my own.
I scanned the crowd of Slytherins, searching for signs of Malfoy, but I didn't see him. I knew he'd end up in the Great Hall with everyone else, so I'd definitely confront him there. For now, I'd just have to deal with listening to the rants of Astoria.
"I can't believe we have to sleep on the floor!" she whined loudly. "I will kill Sirius Black if I see him!"
"You're going to kill a mass murderer?" Melody questioned, amused. "Somehow I find that highly unlikely."
"I just want to beat Adrian to the Great Hall," Ashley said simply as she glanced back at her brother, who was laughing with some of his fifth year friends at the tail of the crowd. "I just have to get a better spot than him."
"What do you consider to be a good spot?" I questioned skeptically.
"Inside of my sleeping bag is a pretty good spot, wouldn't you agree, Melody?" Harper teased, wiggling his eyebrows at her.
Ashley gasped when Melody whipped her wand out of her pocket and pointed it in Harper's face.
"One more time, Harper, I swear—"
"Sorry, sorry!" Harper sang before he and Anderson dashed toward the front of the crowd.
When we got to the Great Hall, McGonagall was standing by the entrance, handing out the sleeping bags. Ashley grabbed hers and dashed over toward what she considered to be a "good spot"—which was just a random spot on the middle of the large, empty floor—and Astoria, Melody, and I reluctantly followed her there. Astoria was still complaining about sleeping on the floor when I spotted Harry, Ron, and Hermione over by a bunch of Gryffindors.
"I'll be right back," I told the girls as I put my sleeping bag down in the Slytherin section.
"Lainey! Where are you going?" Ashley complained. "Adrian might try to steal your spot if you leave! That is a very good spot you've claimed, Lainey—"
"I doubt he'll want to sleep near a bunch of second year girls, Ashley," I assured her before walking away.
"I wish he would sleep near me," Astoria swooned.
"Ew, ew!" I heard Ashley squealing from behind me, and I just shook my head.
"Oh, Lainey!" Ron greeted as I approached them. "There you are—did you hear about Sirius Black?"
"Oh—er—yeah," I replied hesitantly, thinking back to the conversation I'd had with Sirius Black earlier this evening. "I mean, how do we really know that it was him, though? It could have been anyone—"
"It was him," Harry insisted, brooding. "He was looking for me."
I bit my lip, unsure of what to say. Why hadn't I asked Sirius why he was trying to get into the Gryffindor common room? That would have been a logical question... Sirius had told me not to tell anyone he was there, though, but it already seemed that everyone knew.
"Um, did you have a good time in Hogsmeade today, Ron and Hermione?" I asked, quickly trying to change the subject.
"We did!" Hermione enthused. "We did loads of shopping, and we got lunch together at the Three Broomsticks—it was a lovely day, really."
I forced a smile. "That does sound lovely," I managed to say. Until now, I'd never really gotten this vibe, but for some reason I felt like Hermione...liked Ron. In the same way that I liked Ron. Did Hermione know that I fancied Ron? Did she hate me for it? Oh—I didn't want to cause problems with Hermione. But how could I just stop fancying Ron?
"Lainey!" Ginny greeted excitedly before I could ponder any longer. She was sitting in her sleeping bag not too far from where the trio was stationed. "There you are! Are you going to come sleep by us? It'll be like a slumber party!"
"Oh—I would love to, but I think I'm obligated to stay by the Slytherins," I replied glumly.
"Pish posh," George insisted as he and Fred walked over to me.
"Yeah, come sleep over by us, Fitz," Fred encouraged. "Those Slytherins will probably throw you to Sirius Black if he shows up. We'll protect you."
I couldn't help a smile from forming on my lips. "Well—er—thanks."
"Oh, Fitz, we got you something," Fred said as he took a step closer to me. He pulled a small, rectangular box out of his pocket and handed it to me. Shyly, I took it and saw that it read "Frog Spawn Soap."
"Oh, that's so nice of you Fred!" Hermione enthused much too eagerly.
"And George," George added, raising a hand from where he stood behind Fred.
"Yeah, Fred, you're so nice to Lainey!" Ginny agreed, raising her eyebrows at me.
"And George," George repeated.
My brow furrowed as I looked between all of the Gryffindors. "Nice? This soap spawns frogs! I don't want frogs in my shower—"
"Ah, but it's not for you," Fred assured me. "We got it so you could put it in the Slytherins' showers."
"Yeah, Lainey, you're in a pretty good position to prank the Slytherins," George chimed in.
"And how funny would it be to hear them scream when they find frogs in their shower?" Fred added, flashing a grin.
A smirk spread across my lips as I looked down at the soap and then back up at the twins. "You two are brilliant! I will definitely use this on Malfoy! Or Pansy—which do you think would be better?"
"Definitely Malfoy," Ron insisted. "He was being a bloody git in Hogsmeade today."
"Apparently he got a new wand," Hermione went on. "He was showing it to everyone, bragging about how powerful it is."
I gritted my teeth, knowing exactly whose "new wand" that was. "I'm going to go back over to the Slytherins. I'll talk to you guys later."
They seemed slightly confused that I was leaving in such a hurry, but Draco Malfoy needed an immediate beating.
As I walked across the Great Hall toward where the Slytherins would be sleeping, I passed by the Hufflepuff section. The Hufflepuffs all laughed and talked so cheerily compared to the Slytherins, who were snickering and mocking each other on the other side of the room. That wasn't the only thing I noticed as I passed the Hufflepuffs, though; Cedric Diggory—as usual—was staring at me.
When our eyes met, he gave me a crooked grin, and I—being the dumb twelve-year-old I am—smiled broadly and waved. He seemed to like this at first, actually, until his friends noticed.
"Why is that second year waving to you, Cedric?" I heard one girl say. "You talk to second years?"
I lowered my hand slightly, listening for his response.
"No, of course not," he replied hurriedly as he looked away from me.
My lips immediately slumped into a frown as I clenched my fists. That downright git! He couldn't even be seen saying hello to me? He was that embarrassed that he just knew a second year? He couldn't even be my friend? I mean—it wasn't like he fancied me or anything... That might be a bit different. But still—
I stomped over to the Slytherins, thoroughly enraged. I was mad at myself for fancying Ron when Hermione was clearly in love with him, I was mad at Malfoy for telling everyone that he had my wand, and now I was mad at Cedric for being embarrassed by me.
When I arrived at the Slytherin section, Melody, Ashley and Astoria were already in their sleeping bags, and Harper had pulled his right up next to Melody. He was lying there, trying to talk to her while she just faced the other way. If I were in a better mood, I actually would have laughed.
I saw Malfoy sitting over by a group of third years, obviously telling some drawn out story that the rest of them found oh-so-entertaining. I didn't even care that they were all older, or that they all hated me; I marched right over there and yanked on Malfoy's sweater.
"Get up," I demanded as I began to pull him.
"What are you doing, Mudblood!" he exclaimed, trying to swat me away.
"Get up," I commanded with a bit more force in my tone.
"Leave him alone, Mudblood," Pansy whined loudly, and the rest of them began to laugh.
I rolled my eyes, still trying to pull on Malfoy, and to my surprise, he actually complied.
"What do you want?" he snapped as I pulled him away from his friends. They were all clearly talking about us in their huddle, but I didn't even care.
"Why have you been telling people that you have my wand? I don't want people thinking that we're—that we're friends or something," I ranted ragefully.
"Why would I tell anyone that I have your wand?" he scoffed. "I don't want to be associated with you."
"I have heard from multiple people today that you've been talking about this new powerful wand you have. And Harper and Anderson—who are hardly your friends—know that it's mine."
Malfoy groaned, rolling his head on his neck. "Fine, I've been bragging about my new powerful wand. I told people that I disarmed you and stole it and that's why it's so powerful. No one's going to know about how we have some kind of weird connection."
"We do not have some kind of weird connection—"
"Fine, no one's going to think we do, though. They're just going to think that you're weak and I'm more powerful. Does that irk you as well?"
I clenched my jaw. "Yes, because it's not true. But I guess it's doable—as long as people don't think that we're friends."
"Yeah, wouldn't that just be the worst thing in the world," he replied with a bite of sarcasm in his tone.
"Well, maybe we should switch back," I suggested. "That way no one starts to suspect weird, untrue things."
"No way, Fitzroy. I already told you that I'm keeping this wand. It's way too powerful. I could probably kill Sirius Black with this thing if I had the chance—"
"Don't even say that," I nearly roared. A few people looked at me and I tried to mentally stop the blood from rushing to my cheeks.
"I was just joking—"
"Sirius Black is not a threat," I hissed sternly.
"Not a threat? What are you talking about, Mudblood? He broke into the school—he's the reason we're having this bloody slumber party on the floor. How is he not a threat?"
"Never mind," I replied briskly. "Let's just not spread this wand rumor any farther than it needs to go. Harper and Anderson already think that I fancy you, and that is not something that I need people to know—"
"Because it's true," he interjected, that cocky smirk playing on his lips.
I rolled my eyes. "Because it's false. I fancy someone else—sort of."
"Weaselbee," he grumbled bitterly.
I narrowed my eyes threateningly, but I didn't retort. He was right, of course: I liked Ron. But was that actually the "Weaselbee" he was thinking of? Or could he be thinking of someone else...?
The events in this chapter correlate with The Prisoner of Azkaban Chapter Eight, "Flight of the Fat Lady."