Chapter 2

Jude rubbed his eyes, trying to contain his yawn as he sat in his seat in the train to Hogwarts. He didn't get much sleep the past few nights since the nightmares just kept coming and coming. It was getting quite annoying really. Each one either had the beasts from the chamber, Lazarus, or the dying Professor Beckett.

He didn't know why he couldn't get it out of his mind. Maybe he was going mad. He wouldn't know just yet.

"It's weird, isn't it?" James spoke up after a moment of silence. "Being a 4th year, I mean. Everything that's happened to us seems so long ago now."

Jude smirked, "We're getting old."

James threw his bag of jelly beans at him, glaring playfully, "Never say that again." The two shared a laugh.

The door to their cart opened suddenly, revealing a slightly winded Emma. She smiled at them as she sat by James, "Sorry I'm late. I was with…Leon. We were discussing some things for this year."

"I was with Leon," James mocked quietly as Emma put her stuff away. Jude kicked his leg admonishingly.

Jude smiled lightly at Emma, "So, still taking the same classes this year?"

Emma nodded happily, "There's no way I'm going to drop any of them this year. They're too much fun."

"Only you'd say that," James muttered, running a hand through his messy hair. He sighed, "I might drop Divination. It's seems a bit boring. The only funny parts are when Trelawney hugs Jude and makes him uncomfortable."

Jude narrowed his eyes at his best friend, "We promised to never speak about that."

"I remember no such promise."

"I think I might take alchemy," Jude chimed in with a smile. "It seems like a good class."

"Lunch seems like a good class," James joked, snickering when Emma nudged him.

The blue eyed boy chuckled at his friend, flicking a jelly bean at him. He scratched his head, speaking, "I don't know if I'm going to drop any classes, but I wanted to talk about the whole patronus thing. Have you guys conjured one yet? And have you found out what animal you are?"

James shrugged, "Well, I assume mine is a stag. When I conjured a patronus the first time, it was a bit indistinguishable but I could see the antlers. And my dad's and my grandpa's was a stag, so I'm sure I'm pretty spot on."

Jude grinned, "That's great, mate." He glanced at a suddenly flustered Emma, "What about you, Emma? Have you tried to conjure yours?"

Emma jumped, her face turning redder as she stuttered, "No-nope. I have not. I ha-haven't really ha-had the time. I've been studying."

"…Right," Jude drawled, pushing his glasses up and sharing an incredulous glance with James. "Anyways, I wonder what quidditch is going to be like now that now that Wood is gone. It might not be the same."

"It might be better," James added in a mumbled as he nibbled around his chocolate frog. "I mean, we're getting a new captain so no more speeches and no more practice until you're practically in your grave. I have a great feeling about this year."

Emma glanced at him curiously, "You do know Kelli is going to be the captain this year, right? She might stick to Olivia's schedule."

James scoffed, "Excuse me. What about Louis? He's been on the quidditch team almost as long as Sharp. He could be captain." He grunted irritably when his friend's gazed at him disbelievingly, "Yeah, I barely believed myself."

"It's only for a year," Jude reminded lightly. "Then we get another captain. It might be Louis, but he told me he wouldn't want to be captain. Too much work."

"So does that mean you'll be captain when Sharp graduates?" James grinned mischievously, snickering when a hue of pink appeared on Jude's nervous face. "Hey, mate, I'd be happy if you became captain. That'd be great."

Jude smiled modestly, the pink on his cheeks becoming a bit darker than before, "You think so?"

Emma giggled with a smile as well, "You're one of the best players on the team, Jude. I'm surprised you haven't tried any other positions to see how good you are."

"I don't know," Jude scratched his head thoughtfully. "Seeker is the only position I've known. I'm surprised I'm even good at that."

When the three felt their bodies lurch slightly at the stop of the train, they grinned at each other and began gathering their belongings. They made their way to the exit quickly before getting the rest of their stuff on the train.

Jude said a quick hello to Hestia as they got onto the carriages. It was still weird being able to see the thestrals while other students still didn't know what they looked like. Jude had seen only one death that he fully understood, but he had seen many people get hurt. It was horrible, but he told himself not to dwell on it. He would defeat Lazarus, and their deaths would be avenged.

Before long, the trio was back in Hogwarts and being rushed to their seats by prefects and the heads of their houses. They sat down next to each other in the Great Hall, watching as Professor Alexander brought the 1st years in.

Like always, the student listened to the teacher rattle off names to see which house the 1st year would be sorted in. Jude didn't know many of the new students coming in, but he paid attention when Lorcan and Lysander Scamander were sorted. Lorcan was sorted into Hufflepuff while Lysander was sorted into Ravenclaw.

After Flitwick gave the speech for the new and returning students, Jude eagerly dug into his meal. He whined when Emma would tell him to slow down, but he was discreetly racing James to see who could finish the fastest and who could eat the more plates.

So far, he was winning since Emma soon moved to tell James to slow down then went off on a tangent that if he didn't, he'd probably choke on his sausage and she suddenly wouldn't know any procedure to help him to which he dropped his sausage and began ranting on letting her friend die wouldn't be very Gryffindor of her.

Jude won by a landslide.

Unfortunately, he should've listened to Emma. He was sluggish getting up from the table and just the thought of going up the stairs made him nauseous. Ignoring Emma's smug face, he made it up the stairs without vomiting then proceeded to go the restroom where he emptied the extra baggage.

It didn't matter that his stomach was aching; he still fell asleep with a light smile. It was nice to be back with his friends.