Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of J.K Rowling's books and stories. Just my character, Melanie, and the slight changes. I also don't own any of the pictures put through out the story.
"RON!" Mrs. Weasley yelled through the crowd.
"Ron. It's your mom." Melanie told him. He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion until he heard the all too familiar yelling himself, popping his head out a window in a poor attempt to comply. Once spotted, Mrs. Weasley rushed towards him as the train honked in haste, a petite, grey rat cradled between her palms. His eyes widened as he realized he had nearly forgotten Scabbers. Mrs. Weasley handed him the rat with an intense, scolding glare that would make Ron think twice about forgetting something ever again. Unfortunately, it was out of his hand.
The four continued down the corridor in search of an empty compartment, which was far from easy. Too many first years this year. "I'm sorry, Scabbers." Ron pouted to his pet. Melanie and Harry smiled at the sight of their silly friend while Hermione just scoffed at how neglectful he was. They went on.
"So Harry, is it true you blew up your aunt?!" Ron grinned mischievously. Melanie and Hermione's eyes went wide while Harry's face fell. News goes around fast, especially when your father works at the Ministry.
"You what?!" Hermione asked in shock, looking over her shoulder as they continued through the train.
"I didn't mean to blow her up. I just…lost control." He tried to defend, obviously feeling a sense of guilt, which Melanie caught on to quickly, the need to comfort him overwhelming her like it always did when one of her friends was hurting. She, behind him, put a hand on his shoulder.
"It's alright Harry. We all lose control sometimes." He looked over his shoulder to see her smiling at him and immediately smiled back. It was hard to deny that he did feel better now, she'd always had that effect on people.
A quick encounter in a train compartment on the first year led the four of them into a strong, and hopefully, long lasting friendship. "I think it was Brilliant." Ron commented excitedly. Melanie rolled her eyes playfully.
"Honestly, Ron, it's not funny. Harry's lucky he wasn't expelled." Hermione retorted sharply. Melanie glared at her from behind, sensing Harry's concerns rise with his guilt.
"Hermione!" She warned. Hermione stopped in her tracks, wondering why her friend was yelling at her, then she saw Harry's face and immediately regret her words.
"Sorry, Harry. I didn't"-
"Its fine. Let's just find somewhere to sit." Harry interrupted, desperately wanting to change the sour subject. Hermione nodded and continued leading.
"I still think it was brilliant." Ron repeated, ignored by all three as a copy of The Monster Book of Monsters scuttled by them in crab-like behavior, pursued by non-other than Neville Longbottom, the boy with the extensive bad luck.
He greeted them all, they replied as he bumped past them, Hermione finally noticing a compartment empty enough to house the four of them, nodding to it. "C'mon. We're in here." She said.
As they made their way in, Melanie allowing Ron and Scabbers in first, she was rudely shoved by the boy with unreasonably bright hair and drastic grey eyes. He sharply turned to her, obviously wrathful.
"Watch what you're doing, Redwing!" He spat.
"Nice to see you too, Malfoy." She replied sarcastically, fighting back with kindness like she always did when it came to him. "Perhaps look before you hast next time." She offered kindly. He scoffed.
"Still as dump as ever, I see." He commented. Crabbe and Goyle struggling to keep in line with all the hurrying students.
"No need to be rude, Draco."
He seriously doesn't know how to deal with her, never did. Insulting her never seemed to work, neither did mocking her. She was acting like some kind of invincible princess from fairy land!
"I can be rude whenever I want to, to whomever I want to be rude to! What can you do about it, Redwing?" He challenged harshly, wanting to see something out of her, anything! Anger, fear, annoyance, but no, she didn't squirm, she didn't flinch, she was unfazed.
"Suit yourself." She last said before entering her compartment and closing the door behind her, leaving a very baffled Malfoy outside, who fumed and barked at his goons to follow.
The trio stared at her like she was from another planet. "What?" She questioned, perplexed, stationing herself next to Hermione, who was next to Ron, Harry and a silhouetted man that Melanie hadn't noticed yet were seated across from them.
"How do you do that?" Ron asked in bewilderment.
"Do what?"
"Shut Malfoy up like that." Melanie chuckled at the comment.
"I told you Ron, just be nice and he'll give up." She replied.
"Easier said than done." Hermione said sarcastically. Just then, Melanie noticed the man next to Harry.
"Who's that?" She asked.
"Professor R.J. Lupin." Hermione replied.
"You know everything. How is it she knows everything?!" Ron asked in surprise.
"It's on his case." She replied tiredly. Melanie giggled.
"Do you think he's really sleeping?" Harry asked suspiciously.
"Seems to be. Why?" Hermione asked.
"What is it, Harry?" Melanie questioned in concern, noticing the intense worry that had fallen on his face.
"I have to tell you something." He confessed.
….
"Let me get this straight. Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban to come after you?" Ron asked in shock. Melanie couldn't believe her ears. Her poor friend suffered so much, his past just won't let him go, there's always something or someone trying to pull him back. She can't imagine how hard it must be.
"Yes." Harry replied with a mixture of fear, sorrow, and maybe, exhaustion.
"But, they'll catch Black, won't they? I mean…eventually?" Hermione hoped.
"Sure, except, no one's ever broken out of Azkaban before, and he's a raving, murderous lunatic…" Before Ron could continue implying the worst, their compartment rattled, the lanterns flickered, the train lurched, slowing down by the second.
"Why're we stopping? We can't be there yet." Hermione asks. Melanie rose out of her seat and slide the compartment door open, pepping her head out to see that all along her carriage, the heads of her classmates peer out as well in sheer curiosity. Then, the train jerks, the cars sway, the lamps running along the ceiling flicker until they die out, one by one, until all is dark, a swift rush of cold wind washes over the students. Melanie sits back inside, worried, leaving the compartment door half open.
"What's going on?" Ron asked her, his breath freezing over as it escaped his lips, Melanie suddenly felt cold, but not like she did when snow was falling and she was standing in the middle of it, freezing her toes over as she played with its glowing grains, her grandma soon scolding her afterwards for playing outside in such bad weather, this was a different kind of cold, one she didn't like.
"I don't know. Maybe we've broken down." She suggested, hoping she was right, she had a bad feeling about this.
"Ouch, Ron! That's my foot!" Hermione hissed. He apologized, still squirming in his seat as he tried to get a better view of the window.
"There's something moving out there." He said warily. The car jerks again, making most of them gasp at the sudden movement. Ron's palm still on the window which was starting to freeze over it, making him hiss and remove it quickly. "Bloody hell! What's happening?!"
Their attention is diverted to the soft, but eerie breathing outside their compartment door. There, stood a dark, hooded silhouette, just behind the glass. A black, slimy, skeleton-like hand grips the half open door, Melanie gets an instinct to shut it, but is too afraid to move. The hand pushes its obstruction aside, only to reveal its ghastly, more intimidating form of…death.
Hermione's cat hisses in her cage. The creature moves towards Harry, its face inches from his. It starts, literally, sucking the life out of him, and before any of his friends could react, the sleeping professor arouses and reacts, using a spell they were unfamiliar with to send the supposed demon back to where it came from.
….