Previously........................
"Aria West." I began, "I believe her to be the missing Potter girl."
"Based on what?" He wondered.
"Are you blind?" I asked him, "She looks exactly as Lily once did, not to mention the same middle name."
"People have the same first and middle names all the time." He commented, "What did Dumbledore say when you brought this up to him?"
"To leave it alone. That she's dead, but I was the first person there that night, I discovered their bodies, Aria was nowhere to be found." I told him.
"Don't give me that kind of hope, Severus. Not for my god-daughter." He said with tears in his eyes.
"You must believe me." I practically begged.
"There is a resemblance to Lily. I won't lie." He sighed. "But we can't know for sure. How do you know you were the first one there?"
"I-i just always assumed," I answered.
"So, Dumbledore could be hiding something." He told me and it made sense. "We should talk to McGonagall first, he may listen to her better than us."
Now..................................
Snape's POV......................
It was just before dinner, the students had just gotten back from Hogsmead, when Remus and I caught Minerva in her classroom, getting some last minute grading in. "Remus, Severus, how can I help you two?" McGongall asked, not even looking up from the paper she was grading.
"We'd like to talk to you about a student in your house." Remus began and she immediately looked up at us.
"Which one?" She questioned.
"Aria West." I told her.
"What about her? She is a very good student. Tends to be a troublemaker but she has all O's in her classes." She told us.
"That's not what we want to talk about." I sighed.
"Then what is it?" She questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm sure you've noticed how she looks a lot like Lily, Minerva." Remus began, "What if there was some way she could be alive." She took off her glasses and set them down on the tests.
"Are you saying what I think you are saying?" She asked, looking to Remus.
"I was the one who approached him with the idea." I told her. She looked at me. "I asked Dumbledore about it at the end of first year and he was convinced she was dead. It seemed suspicious."
"Yes, she does look like Lily and with Ms. West's full name, it doesn't seem like a coincidence. Has she ever brought up her father?" McGonagall asked.
"I believe I overheard her once tell someone she was adopted." I told them and they both looked at me.
"I believe we should bring Aria in and ask her about it, see if she knows." McGonagall said. "Because if she is and Sirius Black is out there, she is in just as much danger as Harry is."
Aria's POV.....................
I was walking up the stairs, later that night to the common room but before I could get to the Fat Lady's Portrait. There was a crowd of Gryffindors in front of the portrait, I realized Harry was in front of me. "What's the hold-up? Only Neville ever forgets the password." Ron asked. Then Percy pushed himself through the crowd.
"Let me through, please. Excuse me, thank you, I'm Head Boy..." Percy said then stopping at the top. "Back! All of you! No one is to enter this dormitory until it has been fully searched!"
"The Fat Lady.... She's gone." I heard Ginny say.
"Probably stuffing her face with the apples in that still life on the second floor again." Ron commented.
"No. You don't understand." Ginny said and we all all saw the slashed portrait. Then Dumbledore appears.
"Mr. Filch. Round up the ghosts. Tell them to search every painting in the castle for the Fat Lady." Dumbledore ordered. Then there was a scream and we all dash to the landing.
"There'll be no need for the ghosts, Professor." Flich said, looking up at a painting and pointing at where the Fat Lady was.
"Dear Lady, who did this to you?" Dumbledore asked.
"Eyes like the devil he's got. And a soul as dark as his name. It was him, Headmaster. The one they talk about. He's here. Somewhere in the castle. Sirius Black." The Fat Lady said, in a trance.
"Secure the castle, Mr. Filch. The rest of you... to the Great Hall." Dumbledore said and that's where we slept for the night and by morning we had a new portrait because the Fat Lady was terrified. His name was Sir Cadogan, he was absolutely mental. I went to the common room to get dressed for class this morning. Today we had Defense Against The Dark Arts and Lupin wasn't the one to walk in, Snape was.
"Turn to page 394." Snape told us after he pulled the screen over the black board. I looked to Hermione in confusion then opened my book.
"Excuse me, sir, but... where's Professor Lupin?" Harry questioned.
"That's not really your concern, is it, Potter? Suffice it to say, your Professor finds himself incapable of teaching at the present time. Page 394." Snape told him and I looked down at my book. Werewolves. We weren't to werewolves yet.
"Werewolves?" Ron questioned, noticing the screen that showed a werewolf.
"But, sir, we've only just begun learning about Red Caps and Hinkypunks. We're not meant to start nocturnal beasts for weeks-" Hermione commented but Snape cut her off.
"Quiet!" He ordered. "Now. Which of you can tell me the difference between an Animagus and a werewolf?" I raised my hand. "Ms. West."
"Sir, an Animagus is a wizard who elects to turn into an animal. A werewolf has no choice in the matter. Furthermore, the werewolf actively hunts humans and responds only to the call of its own kind." I answered. Draco then lets out a howl.
"Quiet, Malfoy!" He snapped at Draco. "Five points to Gryffindor." And at that very moment I was confused. I was being treated differently than any of the other Gryffindors and I don't know why. Hermione shot me a look of confusion and I shrugged at her. "I prescribe two rolls of parchment on the werewolf by Monday morning, with particular emphasis placed on recognizing it." Then suddenly he said, "Passing notes, Potter?" He snatched a note from him, I didn't see what happened because I sat in the front of the class with Hermione. "Not exactly Picasso, are you? I hope you demonstrate more talent on the Quidditch pitch this weekend then you do as an artist. If not, I fear you'll perish, given the weather forecast. Until that time, however, you'll forgive me if I don't let you off homework. Should you die, I assure you... you need not hand it in."
When we got out of class Hermione stopped me. "Why does he treat you differently?" She asked.
"I don't know, Hermione." I told her, a little scared. "It's worrisome."
Before the Quidditch match that day Draco and I went down to Hagrid's Hut. "It looks like it may rain for the match today." Draco told me.
"It probably will but you know, rain or shine." I shrugged as we walked up to the door of the hut. Draco knocked. It was a second later that Hagrid opened the door.
"Malfoy. Aria. Wha' d'you lot wan'?" Hagrid asked, seeing us at the door.
"I wanted to apologize." Draco sighed.
"Well, yeh better come in then." He said, letting us in. I closed the door behind us. Hagrid looked at us and I looked at Draco.
"After talking to Aria, I realized that I should've listened to you. I'm sorry." Draco apologized. "I tried to talk my father down but he wouldn't have it, for that I am also sorry."
"Well, thank yeh fer the apology an' I accept it. I jus hope yeh learn how ter take things more seriously in the future." Hagrid told him, "Now, fer yeh two go before yeh are late ter the match." We then left and headed to the match.
"Now was that so bad?" I asked him.
"I guess it wasn't." He sighed. "Come on, I'll walk you to the Quidditch pitch." The match was Hufflepuff vs. Gryffindor and by the time we got to the pitch and we sat with our respected houses it had started to rain and when the match had begun it got worse, a lot worse. There was a point in the match we couldn't even see what was going on. The weather had gotten so bad but then Harry fell off of his broom and around him were Dementors. They took him to the Hospital Wing immediately. Cedric caught the snitch and Oliver went to go drown himself in the showers.
"Looks a bit peaky, doesn't he?" Ron commented.
"Peaky? What d'you expect him to look like? He fell fifty feet." Fred told his younger brother.
"Yeah, c'mon, Ron. We'll walk you off the Astronomy Tower and see how you come out looking." George suggested. I was just waiting with the rest of the team to see how my brother was doing, of course, only Fred and George were the only people on the team to know my relation to him.
"Probably a right sight better than he normally does." Harry sassed, just waking up. We all looked at him, thankful that he was awake.
"Harry! How're you feeling?" Hermione asked.
"Brilliant." He answered.
"Gave us a right good scare, mate." Fred told him.
"What happened?" He questioned.
"You fell off your broom." I said, finally speaking up.
"Really? I meant the match. Who won?" He questioned and we were all quiet for a minute then Hermione spoke up.
"No one blames you, Harry. The Dementors aren't meant to come on the grounds. Dumbledore was furious. After he saved you, he sent them straight off." Hermione answered.
"There's something else you should know, Harry. Your Nimbus...when it blew away?... it sort of landed in the Whomping Willow. And well..." Ron told him, showing him his broom. Soon after that I left the Hospital Wing only to be stopped by Professor Lupin.
"Just the student I was looking for." Professor Lupin smiled at me. "Can we talk in my office for a moment, please?" I nodded and then he escorted me to his classroom, which was luckily on the same floor. When we made it into his office he closed the door behind me and Professor McGonagall was also there.
"I'm sorry, am I in trouble?" I asked.
"No, however, we just wanted to ask you a few questions, Ms. West." McGonagall told me. "If you would have a seat." She pointed to the chair in front of Lupin's desk so I nodded and sat in it.
"So, what is this about?" I questioned.
"Just some family matters, that's all." Professor Lupin reassured me but it didn't reassure me. In my head I was dreading it, coming up with the perfect lie already. "Is it true you're adopted?"
"Yes." I answered with a nod.
"Ms. West, do you happen to know who your birth parents are?" McGonagall asked, I sat there for a second in the shock of the question but truly deciding if I should give an honest answer, just give it all up here and now.