Harry sighed as he sat down next to Hermione. "You would not believe what I just had to endure."

"What's that?" She asked slightly miffed.

"Rita Skeeter…she asked me all these questions and kept saying I was 12…"

"Oh to be 12 again…" Hermione said wistfully sighing and then looked back at Harry. "What else?"

"Well apparently my eyes were glistening with the ghosts of my past."

"Oh, did Erin get drunk again?"

"No, but I really would not be surprised if she did. I'm about to myself." He groaned.

"Hagrid's not away. You can't sneak into his hut like Erin did."

"True." He paused. "How is she?"

"Don't really know myself. We had a bit of a row last night." She put her hand up. "It was no one's fault. I guess it had been coming for a while, just with everything and both of us not really talking about anything we should have been. I hear you and Ron did too…"

"Yeah, we did. Everything has just gone from bad to worse in such a short time and I guess being here isn't helping the situation. You know I wish we could go back to that morning before the World Cup…Everything was good then."

She nodded. "Yeah, it was…maybe things could be different."

"Maybe, but we can't change the past."

"Erin could, but she's not."

"I think it would take a lot of turns on that Time-Turner of hers…and we don't want to break it…ummm…again."

"Very true," Hermione agreed. "She needs to go to her classes with it. She's thrown herself into her school work even more than usual and Ron too. He's right along with her. It's surprising to see. He's hanging out with her today and Neville. The three of them have been in the library for ages."

"Well, Ron needs to buckle down a little on his school work, let his mum be proud of him."

Hermione smiled. "Yeah, Fred and George are working too…but I'm not sure it's on school work."

"With those two I wouldn't be surprised."

Harry had written Sirius about everything that night. He had needed that long to get his thoughts and feelings together to write. He even wrote about Erin and what he thought he had seen at the World Cup. It was a long letter, and now he was just waiting to hear back. He had a feeling Sirius probably knew all about it though. Erin wrote him at least once a week, probably more.

He eagerly awaited the owl and was glad when it finally came. He took the note from the owl. Harry, I couldn't risk sending Hedwig. Since the World Cup, the Ministry's been intercepting more and more owls and she's too easily recognized. We need to talk, Harry, face-to-face. You and Erin meet me in the Gryffindor common room at one o'clock this Saturday night. And make sure the two of you are alone. Sirius. Harry was suddenly bitten by the owl. P.S. The bird bites.

Erin was already in the common room when Harry came down. He had asked Hermione to tell her that he needed to talk to her. She looked up as he came in sitting on the couch in front of the fire wearing a long night gown, her feet peaking out beneath it. He swallowed a little. "Are we alone?" She nodded. "Good, um, I got a letter from Sirius…he wanted to talk to us tonight."

"All right," She said still looking at him. It had been the most he'd spoken to her all year.

Harry picked up a copy of the Daily Prophet with his name on it. He groaned. "She thinks I'm 12."

"Yeah, keep reading."

Harry Potter, age 12, suspect entrant in the Tri-wizard Tournament, his eyes swimming with the ghosts of his past and choking back tears…

He groaned even more. "God, you'd think I was a git."

"Well, you know…" She said smiling a little.

He chuckled. "Shut up."

The fire began to make noise and then Sirius's face appeared in the coals.

"Sirius? How…?" Harry whispered as the two of them came closer to him.

"I don't have much time and the three of us have a lot to discuss, so let's get straight to it. Harry, I don't care what she did, if she even did it," Sirius was saying. "You two need each other. Do not cut her out of your life, you're connected. At least be civil to each other, understand?" Harry nodded not about to argue right now since he didn't have much time, "Now, did you or did you not put your name into the Goblet of Fire?"

"No!" He whispered loudly.

"Shhh! Now, tell me about this dream off yours. Both of you mentioned Wormtail and Voldemort, but who was the third man in the room?"

"I don't know," He said glancing at Erin. She just shrugged shaking her head.

"You didn't hear a name?"

"No." Erin said.

Harry nodded agreeing with her. "Voldemort was giving him a job to do."

"Something important," Erin added.

"And what was that?"

"He wanted…me." Harry admitted.

Erin nodded. "He did, I don't know why, but he was going to use this man to get to Harry."

"But it's only a dream, right?" Harry asked.

Sirius looked at him and then smiled a bit comfortingly. "Yes."

"DAD!"

"SHHH! It's just a dream." He gave Erin a look. "The Death Eaters at the World Cup, your name rising from that goblet…these are not just coincidences. Hogwarts isn't safe anymore."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying the devils are inside the walls. Igor Karkaroff?"

"A Death Eater, turned evidence to get out of Azkaban." Erin said.

Harry just looked at her wondering how on earth she knew that.

Sirius agreed. "Yes, but no one stops being a Death Eater."

"Dad—"

"No one!" he whispered loudly. "Then there's Barty Crouch, heart of stone, sent his own son to Azkaban."

Harry turned his head thinking he heard something. "You think one of them put my name in the goblet?"

"I haven't a clue who put your name in that goblet, but whoever did it is no friend to you. People die in this tournament."

"I'm not ready for this, Sirius."

"You don't have a choice. And you must keep Erin close, Harry. She can help you."

Harry heard something and then saw a shape on the stairs. "Someone's coming."

"Keep your friends close, Harry."

Harry got up as Ron came into the room. "Who were you talking to?"

Erin got up. "He wanted to talk to me."

"And you actually said yes?" He sneered a little at Harry before turning and going back up the steps, "Probably just to insult you some more."

They looked back at the grate, but Sirius was gone. Harry looked at Erin. "I don't know what happened at the World Cup…" He began. "But Sirius is right. I need you if I'm going to stay alive in this."

She nodded and put her hand out, "All right." He shook it.