The day before the match, the winds reached howling point andthe rain fell harder than ever. It was so dark inside the corridors andclassrooms that extra torches and lanterns were lit. The Slytherinteam was looking very smug indeed, and none more so than Draco.
"Ah, if only my arm was feeling a bit better!" he sighed as thegale outside pounded the windows.
I rolled my eyes "grow up" I laughed.
We also had a surprise in Defense against the Dark arts, Snape was teaching. "Good afternoon professor" I said "where is Professor Lupin?"
"He says he is feeling too ill to teach today," said Snape with atwisted smile.
Before I could question further Snape continued "Lupin, has not left any record of what you have covered--"
Harry chose that moment to skid to a halt outside the Defense Against the DarkArts classroom, pulled the door open, and dashed inside.
"Sorry I'm late, Professor Lupin, I —"
"This lesson began ten minutes ago, Potter," said Snape "so I think we'll makeit ten points from Gryffindor. Sit down."
But Harry didn't move.
"Where's Professor Lupin?" he said.
"He says he is feeling too ill to teach today," Snape repeated. "I believe I told you to sit down?"
But Harry stayed where he was.
"What's wrong with him?" he asked, asking the question I was about to.
Snape's black eyes glittered."Nothing life-threatening," he said, looking as though hewished it were. "Five more points from Gryffindor, and if I have toask you to sit down again, it will be fifty."
Harry walked slowly to his seat and sat down. Snape lookedaround at the class.
"As I was saying before Potter interrupted," Slytherins snickered "Professor Lupin hasnot left any record of the topics you have covered so far —"
"Please, sir, we've done boggarts, Red Caps, kappas, and grindylows," said Hermione quickly, "and we're just about to start —"
"Be quiet," said Snape coldly. "I did not ask for information.I was merely commenting on Professor Lupin's lack of organization."
"He's the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we've everhad," said Dean Thomas boldly, and there was a murmur of agreement, even from us.
Snape looked more menacing thanever.
"You are easily satisfied. Lupin is hardly overtaxing you — Iwould expect first years to be able to deal with Red Caps andgrindylows. Today we shall discuss —"
I watched him flick through the textbook, to the very backchapter, which he must know we hadn't covered."— werewolves," said Snape.
"But, sir," said Hermione, seemingly unable to restrain herself,"we're not supposed to do werewolves yet, we're due to start hinkypunks —"
"Miss Granger," said Snape in a voice of deadly calm, "I was under the impression that I am teaching this lesson, not you. And Iam telling you all to turn to page 394."
He glanced around again."All of you! Now!"
With many bitter sidelong looks and some sullen muttering, theclass opened our books.
"Which of you can tell me how we distinguish between thewerewolf and the true wolf?" said Snape.
Everyone sat in motionless silence; everyone except Hermione,whose hand, as it so often did, had shot straight into the air."Anyone?" Snape said, ignoring Hermione. His twisted smilewas back. "Are you telling me that Professor Lupin hasn't eventaught you the basic distinction between —"
"We told you," said Parvati suddenly, "we haven't got as far aswerewolves yet, we're still on —"
"Silence!" snarled Snape. "Well, well, well, I never thought I'dmeet a third-year class who wouldn't even recognize a werewolf."
I raised my hand.
Snape gave me a twisted smile "yes, Ms Potter?"
"thewerewolf differs from the true wolf in small ways. " I said "the snout, the howl, Werewolves are super strong, whereas wolves only have ordinary strengths, speed and senses like domesticated dogs normally have. the can also walked two-legged."
"Good Job" said Snape "10 points to Slytherin."
No one made a sound throughout the rest of the lesson. We satand made notes on werewolves from the textbook, while Snapeprowled up and down the rows of desks, examining the work we had been doing with Professor Lupin.
"Very poorly explained . . . That is incorrect, the kappa is morecommonly found in Mongolia. . . . Professor Lupin gave this eightout of ten? I wouldn't have given it three. . . ."
I however was thinking, Snape hated Lupin. Lupins dementor looked like the moon...
"Please professor?" I said raising a hand "is today a full moon?"
Snape gave me a lazy smirk, with a glint in his eye "yes Ms Potter" he said softly "it is."
Oh. My. Merlin.
When the bell rang at last, Snape held us back.
"You will each write an essay, to be handed in to me, on the waysyou recognize and kill werewolves. I want two rolls of parchmenton the subject, and I want them by Monday morning. It is timesomebody took this class in hand. "
Groaning, we left
The next day it was considerably more than a bit of rain. Such was thepopularity of Quidditch that the whole school turned out to watchthe match as usual, but we ran down the lawns toward the Quidditch field, heads bowed against the ferocious wind, umbrellas being whipped out of their hands as they went. We managed though.
The teams changed into their respective robes and waited for their captain's usual pre-match pep talk.
The wind was so strong that they staggered sideways as theywalked out onto the field. If the crowd was cheering, they couldn'thear it over the fresh rolls of thunder.
Rain must be splattering overHarry's glasses. How on earth was he going to see the Snitch inthis?
I squinted.
The Hufflepuffs were approaching from the opposite side of the field, wearing canary-yellow robes. The Captains walked up to eachother and shook hands; Diggory smiled at Wood but Wood nowlooked as though he had lockjaw and merely nodded. Harry sawMadam Hooch's mouth form the words, "Mount your brooms."
Harry pulled his right foot out of the mud with a squelch and swungit over his Nimbus Two Thousand. Madam Hooch put her whistleto her lips and gave it a blast that sounded shrill and distant —they were off.
Harry rose fast, but his Nimbus was swerving slightly with thewind. He held it as steady as he could and turned, squinting intothe rain.Within five minutes Harry was soaked to his skin and frozen,hardly able to see his teammates, let alone the tiny Snitch. He flewbackward and forward across the field past blurred red and yellowshapes, with no idea of what was happening in the rest of the game.
He couldn't have heard the commentary over the wind. The crowd washidden beneath a sea of cloaks and battered umbrellas. Twice Harrycame very close to being unseated by a Bludger; his vision was soclouded by the rain on his glasses he hadn't seen them coming.He lost track of time. It was getting harder and harder to holdhis broom straight. The sky was getting darker, as though night haddecided to come early.
Twice Harry nearly hit another player, without knowing whether it was a teammate or opponent; everyonewas now so wet, and the rain so thick, he could hardly tell themapart. . . .With the first flash of lightning came the sound of MadamHooch's whistle; Harry could just see the outline of Wood throughthe thick rain, gesturing him to the ground. The whole teamsplashed down into the mud.
Then they were back.
There was another clap of thunder, followed immediately byforked lightning. This was getting more and more dangerous.Harry needed to get the Snitch quickly —
He turned, intending to head back toward the middle of the field,but at that moment, another flash of lightning illuminated thestands, and I saw something that distracted me completely —the silhouette of an enormous shaggy black dog, clearly imprintedagainst the sky, motionless in the topmost, empty row of seats.
Harry's numb hands slipped on the broom handle and his Nimbus dropped a few feet. Shaking his sodden bangs out of his eyes,he squinted back into the stands. The dog had vanished.
"Harry!" came Wood's anguished yell from the Gryffindor goalposts. "Harry, behind you!"
Harry looked wildly around. Cedric Diggory was pelting up thefield, and a tiny speck of gold was shimmering in the rain-filled airbetween them —With a jolt of panic, Harry threw himself flat to the broomhandle and zoomed toward the Snitch."
But something odd was happening. An eerie silence was fallingacross the stadium. The wind, though as strong as ever, was forgetting to roar. It was as though someone had turned off the sound, asthough I had gone suddenly deaf — what was going on?And then a horribly familiar wave of cold swept over me, inside me, just as I became aware of something moving on the fieldbelow. . . .
At least a hundred dementors, their hidden faces pointing up at us, were standing beneath us. It was as though freezing water were rising in my chest, cutting at my insides. And then I heard itagain. . . . Someone was screaming, screaming inside my head . . . awoman . . .
"Not Harry, not Emma, please not them!"
"Stand aside, you silly girl . . . stand aside, now. . . ."
"Not Harry, please not Emma, take me, kill me instead —"
Numbing, swirling white mist was filling my brain Where was Harry?. . . . Whatwas he doing? Why was he flying? I needed to help her. . . . hewas going to die. . . . She was going to be murdered. . . .
"HARRY" I yelled "HARRY?" My sense of sight had vanished.
"EMMA!" I heard Draco say "EMMA, CALM DOWN--" "
PROFESOR, PROFFESOR HELP!"I heard Zoe say
"EMMA! EMMA, NO!"
Then everything went black.
***
I could hear the voices whispering, but they made no sensewhatsoever. I didn't have a clue where I was, or how I'd gotthere, or what I'd been doing before I got there. All I knew wasthat every inch of me was aching as though it had been beaten.
"That was the scariest thing I've ever seen in my life."
Scariest . . . the scariest thing . . . hooded black figures . . .cold . . . screaming . . . my eyes snapped open. He was lying in the hospital wing, beside my brother
TheGryffindor Quidditch team, spattered with mud from head to foot,was gathered around harry'sbed. Ron and Hermione were also there,looking as though they'd just climbed out of a swimming pool.
Zoe, Nicholas and Zoe looked equally drenched. Zoe was gripping my hand tears pouring down, and Draco was squeezing my other head on bed, mumbling something like "let her be alright...please.." Nicholas, was sitting beside Zoe head in hands.
I got up, and their heads snapped up. "Emma!" said Zoe looking as though she had won the house cup on her own "your alright!!"
"Wh-what?" I croaked "what happened?"
"You fell off," said Nicholas, looking pale. "Must've been — what — fifty feet?"
"We thought you'd died," said Zoe, who was shaking.
Hermione made a small, squeaky noise. Her eyes were extremelybloodshot. "Emma!" she gasped "your ok!" Harry turned sharply, looking as though he could cry with relief.
"Yeah" I smiled.
"Emma" whispered Draco I turned to see him, his eyes had brightened "a-are you--?"
"Fine" I said "I'm fine"
His arms were around me, and my head was buried in his chest, the scent of mint welcomed me. "Thank god" he whispered "we'll be back later" he added, as madame promfery came to shoo them off."
They left and me and Harry were left alone.
"I'm sorry" I gasped "I-I was petty--I shouldn't have ignored you...the dementor--I heard--I think I heard mom--Harry--sh-she--"
"Shh" he whispered, reaching out to grab my hand "I'm sorry too.I was horrible. I heard her too." he gave my hand a squeeze.
we smiled at eachother. We both knew what the other had done but we were the only family we had left, and that automatically was a big deal.
Like Mr Weasly said; we need to ride together
"Also" said Harry "what was with that hug?"
I groaned.