A/N: Yay, another update! Don't you guys just love me? XD

I've got school in a few days, but I'll see what I can do about another update before then ... :3

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Chapter Six

Draco didn't reappear in classes until late on Thursday morning, when the Slytherins and Gryffindors were halfway through double Potions. He sauntered into the dungeon with his right arm covered in bandages and bound up in a sling.

"How is it, Draco?" Pansy simpered. "Does it hurt much?"

"Yeah." He replied, putting on a brave sort of grimace. But we all saw him wink at Crabbe and Goyle when she looked away.

"Settle down, settle down." Professor Snape said idly, before continuing wandering around the class, criticising. Neville was worst off, as per usual. His potion, instead of being the bright, acid green, had turned orange.

"Orange, Longbottom?" Snape ladled some up and allowed it to drip back into the cauldron, showing it to the whole class. "Orange? Tell me, boy, does anything penetrate that thick skull of yours? Didn't you hear me say, quite clearly, that only one spleen was needed? Didn't I state plainly that a dash of leech juice would suffice? What do I have to do to make you understand, Longbottom?"

Neville was pink and trembling. He looked on the verge of tears, the poor boy.

"Please, sir." Hermione piped up. "Please, I could help Neville put it right-"

"I don't remember asking you to show off, Miss Granger." Professor Snape replied coldly, and Hermione went as pink as Neville. "Longbottom, at the end of this lesson, we will feed a few drops of this potion to your toad and see what happens. Perhaps that will encourage you to do it properly." He moved away, leaving Neville trembling in fear.

"Help me!" He moaned to Hermione.

"Hey, Harry, have you heard?" Seamus began, leaning over my brothers' brass scales. "The Daily Prophet this morning-they reckon Sirius Black's been sighted."

"Where?" Both Harry and Ron perked up, listening intently. I noticed Draco straining to listen too.

"Not too far from here." Seamus provided, looking excited. "It was a Muggle who saw him. 'Course she didn't really understand. The Muggles just think he's an ordinary criminal, don't they? So she phoned the telephone hotline. By the time the Ministry got there, he was gone."

"Not too far from here ..." Ron repeated, looking significantly at Harry. He saw Draco look away quickly though, and pursued. "What, Malfoy? Need something else skinned?"

Draco looked at me, then Harry, his eyes shining evilly. He leant towards Harry.

"Thinking of trying to catch Black single-handed, Potter?"

"Yeah, that's right." Harry replied, focusing on his potion again, not really interested.

"Of course, if it were me," Draco continued quietly, "I'd have done something by now. I wouldn't be staying in school. I'd be out there looking for him."

"What are you talking about, Malfoy?" Ron said roughly.

"Don't you know, Potter?"

"Know what?"

Draco laughed meanly. "Maybe you'd rather not risk your precious neck though. Want to leave it to the Dementors, do you? If it was me, I'd want revenge. I'd hunt him down myself."

"What are you talking about?" said Harry angrily. Just then, Snape ordered us to stop though. We packed up, washing our hands and equipment. I heard Harry and Ron talking, but didn't catch this.

"What about you, then, my sweet? Do you know?" Draco breathed tauntingly down the back of my neck. I jumped, turning to face him, glaring.

"No. What are you talking about?"

But Draco didn't answer. He just smiled and slipped away into the growing crowd as Professor Snape went to test Nevilles' potion. Thankfully, it was successful, and Trevor shrunk to a tadpole. Professor Snape didn't look very happy.

We headed off to lunch, and then our first Defence Against the Dark Arts, sitting prepared, when Professor Lupin arrived and told us to put our books away, that today was a practical lesson. Spark was just as curious as I, watching Professor Lupin closely. Aside from Professor Lockhearts' pixies, we hadn't had a practical lesson before.

"Right then. Follow me." Our teacher instructed when everyone was packed.

Interested, the class got to its feet and followed. He led us through a few empty corridors, around a couple corners and through Peeves, before stopping outside the staffroom door.

"Inside, please."
Professor Lupin ordered us, holding the door open. The teachers' lounge was a long panelled room full of old, mismatched furniture, empty except for Professor Snape, who exited after we entered, muttering things to Professor Lupin as he left.

"Now then," said Professor Lupin as he went to stand near an old wardrobe standing alone at the end of the room. As he moved near it, the wardrobe gave an ominous shake, banging of the wall.

"Nothing to worry about," he reassured the class as a few jumped backwards and Spark hissed. "There's a boggart in there."

Most people looked as if it was something to worry about. Neville looked terrified, and Seamus eyed the door nervously.

"Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces." He told us. "Wardrobes, the gap beneath beds, cupboards under seats-I once met one in a grandfather clock. This one moved in yesterday, and I asked the headmaster if the staff would leave it to give my third-years some practice.

So the first question; what is a boggart?"

Hermione put up her hand. "A boggart is a shape shifter. It will take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us most."
"Couldn't have put it better myself." Professor Lupin praised her, making Hermione glow with pride. "So this boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side. Nobody yet knows what a boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will become whatever each of us most fears.

This means," Professor Lupin continued, ignoring Neville spluttering in terror, "that we already have an advantage over it. Has anyone spotted it yet?"

Hermione, Harry and I had our hands in the air, Hermione bouncing up and down, Harry and I hesitantly.

"Harry?"

"Er-because there are so many of us, it won't know what shape to take?"

"Precisely." Said Lupin, and Hermione looked disappointed. "It's always best to have company when dealing with a boggart. He becomes confused. Which should he be, a headless corpse or a flesh-eating slug? I once saw a boggart make that mistake. It tried to frighten two people at once, and turned into half a slug. Not remotely frightening.

The charm to repel a boggart is simple, yet it requires force of mind. You see, what really finishes a boggart is laughter. What you need to do is force him to assume a shape that you find amusing.

We will practice the charm without our wands first. After me ... riddikulus!"

"Riddikulus!" said the class together.

"Good! Very good, but that was the easy part, I'm afraid. You see, the word alone is not enough. And this is where you'll come in, Neville."

The wardrobe shook again, as Neville walked forward, shaking as well.

"Right, Neville. What scares you most in the world?"

Nevilles' lips moved, but all that came out was a terrified squeak.

"Didn't catch, that sorry." Professor Lupin said cheerfully.

"Professor Snape." Neville whispered. The class laughed, and Neville smiled, slightly apologetically. Spark sneezed in distaste. Professor Lupin looked thoughtful.

"Professor Snape ... hmm ... Neville, I believe you live with your grandmother, am I correct?"

"Er-yes. But I don't want the boggart to turn into her either."

"No, no, you misunderstand me." Professor Lupin said, smiling. "Could you tell us what your grandmother usually wears?"

Neville proceeded to tell the class her outrageous outfit.

"Right then," said Lupin. "Can you picture those clothes very clearly, Neville? Can you see them in your minds eyes?"

"Yes." Neville said uncertainly.

"When the boggart bursts out of this wardrobe, Neville, and it sees you, it will assume the form of Professor Snape." Professor Lupin explained. "And you will raise your wand-like this-and cry 'riddikulus' and concentrate hard on your grandmothers' clothes. If all goes well, Professor boggart Snape will be forced into that vulture-topped hat, green dress and big red handbag.

If Neville is successful, the boggart is likely to turn his attention to each of us in turn. I would like all of you now to take a moment and think of the thing that scares you most and imagine how you might force it to look comical."

The room went quiet, and a lot of people shut their eyes. What scared me most? Hmmm ...

"Everyone ready?" said Professor Lupin. Everyone nodded, and a few rolled up their sleeves.

"Neville, we're going to back away. Let you have a clear field, all right? I'll call the next person forward, everyone back now-"

We all retreated, many backing to the walls, leaving Neville looking pale and frightened, holding his wand in front of the wardrobe.

"On the count of three, Neville!" said Professor Lupin, pointing his own wand at the wardrobe. "One-two-three!"

A jet of sparks flew from Professor Lupins' wand to the doorknob, and the wardrobe burst open. Hook-nosed and menacing, Professor Snape stepped out of the closet, staring evilly at Neville.

Neville started to back away, wand up, mouthing wordlessly. Snape was bearing down upon him, reaching inside his robes.

"R-r-riddikulus!" squeaked Neville.

A loud crack shot through the room as Snape stumbled, suddenly wearing a long, lace-trimmed dress and a towering hat topped with a moth-eaten, stuffed vulture, swinging a large red handbag.

There was a roar of laughter from the class, and even Spark made a tittering noise, which I laughed at. The boggart was pausing, looking confused.

"Pavarti! Forward!" Professor Lupin shouted.

Pavarti walked forward, her face set. Snape rounded on her, and there was another crack, and where he stood was a bloodstained, bandaged mummy, its' sightless eyes staring at Pavarti, and it began to walk towards her, feet dragging, arms rising-

"Riddikulus!"

A bandage unravelled at the mummys' feet, it became entangled and fell.

"Seamus!"

Another crack and the mummy was replaced by a woman, with floor length black hair and a skeletal green-tinged face-a banshee. She opened her mouth wide, and an unearthly sound filled the room, making the hair on the back of your neck rise up-

"Riddikulus!"

The banshee made a rasping noise, clutching her throat; her voice gone.

"Dean!"

It became a severed hand with another crack, flipping over and creeping along the floor like a crab.

"Riddikulus!"

Then a snap ... and the hand was caught in a mousetrap.

"Excellent! Ron, next!"

Ron leapt forward, and a giant spider, six feet tall and covered in hair was advancing, clicking its pincers menacingly.

"Riddikulus!" shouted Ron after a moment. The spiders legs vanished, and it fell to the floor, rolling over and over. It rolled to Harrys' feet, and he began to raise his wand, but Professor Lupin interrupted, by stepping in the way. The boggart turned into a silvery white orb hanging in the air.

"Riddikulus." Lupin ordered, almost lazily. The orb disappeared, landing on the floor as a cockroach.

"Neville, forward to finish him off!"

And with a crack, Snape was back. Neville charged forward, looking determined.

"Riddikulus!" he shouted, and we had another glimpse of Snape in his lacy dress before Neville laughed, and the boggart exploded into a thousand tiny wisps of smoke and was gone.