Got a nasty temper, that Sirius Black.
-PEEVES THE POLTERGEIST
before Harry arrived, we actually did some learning here.
Jane-
In no time at all, the great hall was empty as people discarded their food to see what the fuss was about, and as the official journalists of Hogwarts, Sage and Arlene followed.
"What's going on?" Arlene asked, staring at the Gryffindors in front of their tower,
And then she saw it, The Fat Lady was gone, her frame was reduced to chunks on the floor and the canvas was ripped to shreds, as an artist, it angered Arlene beyond measure.
Dumbledore, who had arrived seconds earlier, turned to the rest of the teachers.
"We need to find her," he announced "go to Filch at once, tell him to search every painting in the school for her."
"No need." A voice, made out of pure mischief, said.
Arlene grinned at her frienemy "Hey Peeves."
"What do you mean, Peeves?" Dumbledore asked calmly "where is she?"
The poltergeist smiled mischievously, obviously glade he knew something they didn't.
"Ashamed, Your Headship, doesn't want to be seen, she's a horrible mess, I saw her running through the landscape up on the fourth floor, crying something dreadful."
Peeves was playing games, he wanted to drag it out as much as possible.
"Who did it, Peeves?" Dumbledore questioned, and Arlene had to wonder where he was getting the patience.
The poltergeist clicked his tongue "He got pretty mad when she wouldn't let him in." He answered vaguely.
Then he turned at the canvas and shook his head with a grin, clearly seeing this all very humorous.
"Got a nasty temper, that Sirius Black."
Everybody was sent back to their common rooms, except the Gryffindors who returned to the great hall.
Unfortunately, that meant that she and Sage were separated, and it also meant that it was not a laughing matter.
They were ordered not to leave et he common room, to the dorms or outside the dungeons, which lead to everybody sitting in their pajamas on the couches, armchairs, floor, tables or couch arms, several of them with a blanket or a pillow, some holding books, others with a hot drink in hand, all discussing the situation.
Unlike most beliefs, the Slytherin house was quite united, seeing as other houses tended to avoid them, although there are still some jerks like Malfoy who are assholes about blood purity, but every tree has its rotten fruit.
Arlene sate on the floor with her back resting on a couch in her pajama pants and tank top, a little note book that holds her sketches in her hands and Bast curled up on her left,
"You know, before Harry arrived, we actually did some learning here, I mean, the exams weren't even cancelled each year." The blonde Slytherin prefect from the night before said out loud.
"I'm still pretty pissed about that house cup switch two years ago," another prefect to her right said "I mean, taking points away from his house for breaking the rules, then rewarding them all back because they broke the rules again?"
"Honey, we're talking about the same man who warns us the Forbidden Forest is deadly, then sends us there on detention, at night." A fourth year, Alex? Who was wearing flannel pajamas and sipping hot chocolate added.
"I doubt he even knows Hogwarts is a school." Someone, sitting on the stairs leading to the lower half circle of the room, said, sarcasm dripping from their tongue.
Everybody was nervous, and scared, and it was obvious they were trying to distract themselves.
Arlene bought the teacup in her hand to her lips as she stared down at her drawing of the ripped portrait, not bad since it had been from memory.
The reason for her drawing it, was because she doubted any teacher would let them take a picture, and they needed one for the article.
Why? Arlene didn't know the first thing about journalism, but apparently, as Sage says, 'a picture is worth a million words'.
Arlene thought it was load of bullshit, but drawing was her outlet for anxiety and the mental image of the portrait was all she could think about.
The dungeon's doors opened and Snape came in and the prefects immediately formed a circle around him as they spoke in hushed tones.
A seventh year turned to them "Take what you need to last the night we're not staying here."
As soon as the words were uttered, everybody started talking at once.
"Where are we going?"
"Did they catch him?"
"Where's the Fat Lady?"
"Why do we have to leave?"
"SILENCE!" Snape yelled, causing everyone to shut up at once "You heard clearly, take what you need to last the night," he turned to the blonde prefect "Jane, check to see if everybody is present, we don't want another troll incident."
There was six Slytherin prefects in total that year, seeing as the heads were Percy and Penelope. A seventh year prefect was in charge of first and second years, the other seventh year prefect was in charge of the seventh years, a sixth prefect was in charge of sixth year, the other one was in charge of the third years and the remaining two fifth year prefects were in charge of fifth and fourth years.
Arlene grinned as she realized 'Jane' the blonde from earlier was the one leading them to wherever they were going.
"-my father will hear about this-" Arlene caught Malfoy telling Crabbe and Goyle in a small voice.
"Do you need to take a shot?" She whispered to Jane "I'll distract them if you want."
Jane's eyes widened and she blushed furiously as she realized that Arlene saw her drunk in the latest drinking game.
Finally, they arrived at their destination, the great hall.
The Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were already there, all looking just as confused.
"I'm afraid that for your own safety, you will be spending the night here as we search the castle, the prefects will stand guard and the headboy and headgirl will be in charge." Dumbledore said.
At the doorway, he turned on his heel "Oh, and you'll be needing these."
All the tables were pushed to the walls and hundreds of sleeping bags started to appear.
"Arlene," Blaise, who was wearing silk pajamas, said as he appeared on her right "What happened!?"
Arlene bit the inside of her cheek "Sirius Black attacked the Fat Lady."
"He's in the castle!?" Theo, who had appeared on her left and was wearing pajama pants and an oversized t shirt, asked.
"Yes, and we are going to write about it." Sage had left the clan of badgers and joined their conversation.
Sage took out a yellow notebook and a muggle pen "I managed to grab this at the last second, we could write some points?"
Arlene nodded as she continued her sketch.
"Why so we have to stay here?" Blaise questioned as he looked around, clearly uncomfortable with sleeping anywhere not his bed.
"I think they're searching the castle for Sirius Black." Theo replied, wrinkling his nose at the purple sleeping bags.
"Once the prefects took us back to the common room, Professor Sprout arrived and told us to take what we need for the night and to leave our pets, I managed to grab Napoleon though." Sage told them what happened.
For the first time, Arlene noticed the little chameleon poking out of the pocket of Sage's night shirt in camouflage mode.
Napoleon wasn't the pet Sage took to classes, she had an owl, but a year before finding out she was a witch, her parents bought it to cheer her up and Sage didn't want to leave it behind, so while at Hogwarts, Napoleon lives in a glass cage filled with foliage.
"Everyone into their sleeping bags!" Percy Weasley called out as the prefects started to round them up.
Arlene sighed closed her note book, she and Sage grabbed two sleeping bags and made their way into an empty space, wishing the two boys goodbye as they went to sit with the other Slytherins.
Even though they were all in sleeping bags, everybody was buzzing, sharing their theories and hearing people describe what happened, but there was only one question on people's minds.
How did he get in?
Sage was sitting cross legged in her sleeping bag, and Arlene was laying on her stomach as she continued her drawing.
"He could have apparated." Said a Ravenclaw girl from across them.
"Or he disguised himself." A Hufflepuff boy added.
"He could have flown in." Dean Thomas said.
Arlene rolled her eyes, Hogwarts was originally built to keep out an army of wizards.
"Am I the only one who read Hogwarts, A History?" A voice said from her right, and color drained from Arlene's face as she realized who she was sitting next.
"Probably," Ron Weasley told his friend "why?"
"Hogwarts is protected by far more than just walls," Arlene told him "the statues and armor come to life as an army, the forbidden forest prevents any entrance from the back and spells to prevent apparation."
Suddenly the four of them had thier attention on her.
"When the founders build Hogwarts, they had been hiding from both the muggles and the Council of Warlocks, as they had been on the rebelling side, the ones that didn't want to just survive, but to live without the constant fear, not to mention that the giant squid and mermaid colonies were their water defense."
Arlene smiled, she knew reading that book would come in handy.
"And the defenses weren't just from the outside," She continued "there is a room, I don't know where but when you need it, it appears, if you're in a fight, it's full of weapons or if you need a place to hide, there's also secret passages to evacuate to the village and Peeves was supposed to be here to slow down the attackers."
"Which means," Hermione said, shooting her a smile "that an enemy could only enter the castle from its front doors, and disguises don't work on dementors."
"What if he used one of the secret passages?" Sage asked.
"Filch already knows them all," Arlene told her "they would have had them covered."
Before they could discuss Sirius Black any further, the lights went off.
"I want everybody in their sleeping bags and no more talking!" Percy called out as Penelope raised her wand and began putting out the candles, leaving only one lit so there was enough light to see their silhouettes.
But that was all the light Arlene needed to stare at her finished drawing.
There was no man or spell capable of making that type of damage, it didn't look like it was blown apart, it looked... ripped...
..and the slashes on the canvas were claw marks.
Unfortunately, before she could dwell on it any longer, Penelope passed her, and she had to close the note book and pretend to sleep.
Every hour, a teacher would come and check up on them and if they wanted to go to the bathroom they had to wait until there was enough people that wanted to go and then be accompanied by a prefect.
Around four in the morning, Arlene was still not sleeping, and she doubted many were, she was laying her back, staring at the ceiling that was enchanted to look exactly like the outside sky, looking at the birds flying and the clouds moving across the baby blue sky, wishing she could draw it and not be caught awake.
Suddenly, the doors opened, and Arlene managed to glimpse Dumbledore before she closed her eyes to pretend to sleep.
"Have you found him, professor?" Percy asked him
"No, all well here?"
"Everything under control, sir." Penelope replied.
"Good, I've found a temporary guardian for the Gryffindor portrait hole, you'll be able to move them back in tomorrow"
"And the Fat Lady, sir?"
"Hiding in a map of Argyllshire on the second floor, apparently she refused to let Black in without the password, so he attacked. She's still very distressed, but once she's calmed down, I'll have Mr. Filch restore her."
Arlene heard the door of the hall creak open again, and more footsteps.
"Headmaster?" Arlene trying to lay as still as possible "The whole of the third floor has been searched, he's not there and Filch has done the dungeons, nothing there either."
"What about the Astronomy tower? Professor Trelawney's room? The Owlery?"
"All searched."
"Very well Severus, I didn't really expect Black to linger."
"Have you any theory as to how he got in, Professor?" asked Snape.
Arlene pretended to shift in her sleep to free her other ear.
"Many, Severus, each of them as unlikely as the next."
Arlene opened her eyes a fraction and squinted up to where they stood, Dumbledore's back was to her, but she could see Percy's face, rapt with attention, and Snape's profile, which looked angry.
"You remember the conversation we had, Headmaster, just before the start of term?" said Snape vaguely, as though trying to block Percy and Penelope out of the conversation.
"I do, Severus." said Dumbledore, and there was something like warning in his voice.
"It seems almost impossible that Black could have entered the school without inside help, I did express my concerns when you appointed-"
"I do not believe a single person inside this castle would have helped Black enter it," said Dumbledore, and his tone made it so clear that the subject was closed that Snape didn't reply "I must go down to the dementors, I said I would inform them when our search was complete."
"Didn't they want to help, sir? "Said Percy.
"Oh yes," said Dumbledore coldly "But I'm afraid no dementor will cross the threshold of this castle while I am headmaster."
Percy looked slightly abashed as Dumbledore left the hall, walking quickly and quietly, Snape stood for a moment, watching the headmaster with an expression of deep resentment on his face, then he too left.
One thing was clear, Sirius Black had entered the castle unseen, and Snape thinks Lupin helped him.