The halls had crowded with students running around excitedly, chattering of their plan at Hogsmeade village, stores they wished to visit, how they were going to spend their money.
"Ron, slow down!" Said Hermione from the breakfast table. Ron had already eaten two bowls of cereal and three pieces of bacon. "You're going to make yourself sick."
"What? I'm hungry."
"Disgusting." Hermione had said before Harry sat next to them.
"Have you seen Professor Adler anywhere?" He had asked with a permission slip in hand. "I've been looking for her everywhere."
Hermione looked at him confused, "You haven't gotten it signed?" She pointed to his signature-less permission slip to hogsmade.
"No." Harry muttered in slight frustration, "That's why I'm trying to find Professor Adler."
"Why would you go looking for her, shes a teacher." Hermione said, "Only a parent or a guardian can sign it."
Harry frowned to that, if only she knew.
"Or you can forge it." Ron spoke with a mouthful of bacon.
Hermione glared at her friend.
"It wouldn't work." Said Fred from behind the three of them
"He's right, They can see who actually signed it." George added
"Looks like you're out of luck mate." Said Fred who patted Harry on the back who slumped in gloom.
Professor Lupin walked passed, spotting Harry who slumped over the breakfast table. Once he saw the permission slip he put two and two together.
"Morning Harry, everything alright?" Remus checked in with the boy who only nodded, "How about you stop by my classroom when they're gone. We'll go for a walk. " He whispered down to the boy who stared up at him with a confused expression, but agreed.
Eleanor smiled softly at students who ran in and out of shops at Hogsmeade, kids ran around with their friends eating sweets from Honeydukes and drinking butterbeer from The Three Broomsticks.
She clenched onto her long coat from the autumn winds, keeping an eye on the kids and making sure they don't go too far out of her vision.
"Professor Adler!" Shouted a cheerful Neville Longbottom who ran from Honeydukes.
"Hello Neville!" She said with a grin, the boy came up to her with his hands behind his back. Eleanor couldn't help but grin more, Nevilles sweater was two sizes too big.
"I've got you something!" He said sweetly, Eleanor raised her face with a smile as the boy pulled out a chocolate frog from behind him.
"Oh my gosh!" Eleanor exclaimed with a giggle, "Thank you so much!" She took the box with a charmed chocolate frog carefully. Hugging Neville immediately after.
"You're welcome!" He said right before he ran off grinning ear to ear. Eleanor beamed at the purple gift box, pocketing it in her coat for later.
As Eleanor turned around she could feel a presence around her, like something was watching her. The unusual gut feeling made her stomach turn as she hesitantly looked behind her where there was a gap between the village and the leafless forest. Eleanor began to ignore what was going on around her and only focused on the phantom like presence.
She pursed her lips, slowly gripped her wand from her coat as she stared between the woods, looking for whatever is causing this disturbance.
It was unsettling, the thought of whatever was creeping near the village was bringing goosebumps to her skin, immediately the thought of Sirius Black came to mind.
"God no." Eleanor backed up turning around in panic only to pump into a hard chest which sent her more on edge.
She yelped.
Severus looked down at her worriedly. "Hey... are you alright?"
"Evacuate the village Severus." She spoke, "Now!"
She demanded, but instead of taking it to action he swiftly pulled her to the side to avoid attention of alarmed students, which some had been already.
He backed her up, holding onto her shoulders before saying, "Calm down, explain."
Eleanors blank face turned hard, and begged, "Severus, Please. Listen to me." She sharply sucked in her breath. "He's here." Her last words in whisper.
Harry and Professor Lupin had ended up strolling around Hogwarts in the mean time. They talked, mostly about James as Remus knew that Harry was wanting to hear stories about his father.
"And Lily, she was the kindest. She had a big heart, helped me through my times when I needed someone the most." Remus says smiling at the memory. "You look much like James, but your eyes— they are your mothers."
Harry and Remus both beamed at eachother.
"But you remind me most of your aunt." He said to the boy, "The most selfless woman I've ever met. Shes intelligent, caring and would do anything to keep the people around her safe. I dont know if she knows it, but she truly is the strongest woman alive." He spoke about Eleanor with such grace. "You are strong, just like her Harry. You can do anything."
Their eyes were stolen from a crowd of studnets that had entered Hogwarts from their time at the village. Ron and Hermione waved to see Harry down the corridor.
With that, the Gryffindor boy thanked Professor Lupin for the stories and ran to see his friends. Ron had gotten harry a few treats from Honeydukes, which consisted of them being half eaten by Ron himself.
"Very thoughtful of Ron, he made it all the way back without eating the whole bag." Said Hermione as the trio began walking back to their dorm.
"You've always got something to say." Ron replied to Hermione
"You came back early." Harry muttered which was heard by Seamus who was behind them as they went up the moving staircases.
"Yeh? That's because Professor Adler was acting all paranoid." The irish boy said with an annoyed tone which Harry immediately responded to with a concerned brow raise.
"What?"
Hermione Granger sighed, "She has the right to you know? There is a prisoner on the loose!" She said to Seamus who rolled his eyes. Seamus didn't like Professor Adler and made it clear to everyone he didn't, which nobody understood why.
"You're always so rude to her." Ron replied to Seamus
"She's the one that's rude, she expects me to give up my free time for some bloody homework assignment." He said while everyone shook their heads.
There was a sudden stop near the entry to the gryffindor dormitory, the staircase was backed up by students. Not just that, but all of the paintings were going bazerk.
"What's going on?" Asked Harry to Ginny
"Neville's probably forgotten the bloody password again." Ron muttered but to his suprise Neville was standing behind him with a hurt expression, "Oh, hi Neville."
"No, the fat lady, she's missing." Said Ginny
Eyeone eyes widened, that is until headmaster Dumbledore arrived calmly with filch and ms Norris.
The painting had a huge tear in the center, like a work of a monster.
The ghosts were sent up and down the corridor, looking for the fat lady until she was found shivering and hiding behind another painting.
"Fat lady, what's happened?" Asked headmaster Dumbledore
"Its him, the one who all fears him, Sirius Black. He's in the castle!" The painting cried out.
"You're a deadman." Said Ron to Harry
"Thanks Ron."
AN: hi. guess who moved into NY successfully? I have so much to unpack !