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Chapter Eleven: Dementors
Harry sat with Luna on one side and Ginny on the other of the cabin on the way back to Hogwarts. They were, all three of them, reading a large hard-back edition of The Lord of the Rings. Occasionally Luna would comment on how unlikely it was that elves would fight alongside humans, or the fact that oliphaunts actually did exist until the wizards of Rome wiped them out when Carthage was razed at the end of the Third Punic War.
Across from them, Hermione watched the three; Ron read about Quidditch while nibbling a chocolate cauldron Harry gave him; and a man slept in the corner by the window. According to the name on the trunk over his head, his name was R. Lupin.
Hermione reflected on how odd it was that Harry had selected a cabin already occupied by a man she presumed was a professor, but then again she knew that much about Harry, Ginny and Luna was not as it seemed. After the conversations she had with all three, she was frankly just happy to be included in their group, no matter in what capacity.
She was watching them now as all three focused on the book. She looked from one set of eyes to the other, and though she couldn't be sure, it seemed as if all three of them were reading at exactly the same speed. This was strange because she always thought that Harry was a very slow reader, whereas Ginny was a very fast reader.
She had no idea if Luna even bothered to read at all. She just seemed to absorb things.
"Did you have a good summer, Luna?" Hermione finally braved.
"Tolerable," Luna said absently without looking up from the book. "Did you enjoy your trip to Spain?"
"Yes, it was wonderful." Hermione had not mentioned where her family had holidayed, but assumed Harry or Ginny might have.
Next to Hermione, Ron snorted. "Look 'ere. Some bloke in Leeds is trying to say the Irish are going to make the Quidditch cup next year."
"They will," Luna said, again without looking up from the book. "They will play Bulgaria. There's a very good chance they will win the game."
Ron stared at her: "Like you know anything about Quidditch. Been reading Trelawney's tea leaves again?"
Luna looked up and blinked at him with her large, gray-blue eyes. "It's an arithmantical projection."
Hermione felt her jaw drop. "Did you read that, Luna?"
"Bookies don't post their arithmantical projections, Hermione," Luna said as if to a child. "You do your own or take a guess."
"But you have to be a tenth year master arithmancer to be able to do a projection like what you're talking about."
"Really? How interesting," Luna said dismissively before looking back down at the book. "Father staked most of our family vault's contents on the Irish making and winning the Quidditch cup next summer. The odds for a bet this early promise to give us a return of almost seven hundred percent. We will use the money to go on a Snorkack expedition next summer."
"A Snorkack expedition?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, for the Crumple-Horned Snorkack."
"What is that?"
"A magical animal."
"What does it look like?"
Luna kept reading for a long, pregnant moment before saying, "I'm sure I'll find out if we ever find one."
Hermione shook her head. Ron snorted his dismissal and returned to his magazine. Lupin snored for a moment before adjusting his position.
"He must have had a bad night," Ron noted.
Ginny looked up from the book to study the man. "Yeah, must have."
Outside, hard rain splashed against the window. It was so dark it hardly seemed possible that they were in the middle of the day. It was also unusually cold for such an early September day. Hermione wondered if winter was going to arrive early that year. She loved nothing more than to snuggle into a chair by a fireplace with a good book during cold, winter weather.
The brief image was shattered though by the roar of a troll.
Hermione jumped. "What is it?" Ron asked.
"Did you hear that?" she asked.
"Hear what?" Ginny asked.
Luna, though, was staring back at Hermione with wide eyes. "What did you hear?" she whispered.
Something in her tone caused Harry to look up from his book as well.
"I heard a troll," Hermione said. "Like the one from first year."
"I heard something else," Luna said. Hermione noticed that the younger girl was making a fist with her right hand.
The train abruptly lurched, throwing everyone almost out of there seat. "What is going on?" Ron asked. "We can't be at Hogsmeade yet!"
The window outside began to frost over. The temperature abruptly dropped. The man by the window woke with a snort. "What's happening?"
"The train stopped and it's getting cold," Harry said.
Professor Lupin looked around at the frightened children and nodded. "Stay here," he said. "I'm going to see what is happening." He left the compartment.
"What do you think is happening?" Hermione asked.
"I don't know for sure," Ginny said nervously. "But it's not icing or snowing outside. So why is there ice on our window?"
If it were possible, the air got even colder. Hermione jumped again as she heard the troll from first year roaring once more. Only this time she heard her own screams as well. Abruptly she had a flash of Ron, on the chessboard from their jaunt to save the philosopher's stone. She saw the queen's scepter crashing down, and how very still he was afterward. She began to shake.
She heard a low, keening groan. Luna was backing away from the door, her face pale and tears streaming down her face. It was the most emotion Hermione had ever seen on the young girl's face. Harry and Ginny were also both pale as they stood to either side of Luna. They were facing the cabin door.
Hermione's breath caught in her throat and her heart skipped a beat. Long, skeletal fingers were slowly pulling the door of their cabin back. She squealed and scooted back against Ron, who himself scooted back while holding her. The door continued to slide back until they saw clearly the horror on the other side.
It was a living, breathing shadow; a nightmare clad in rotting rags that floated off the floor. It had no face, only a writhing, living darkness. It looked around the cabin.
Luna's eyes rolled up into her head and she started going into violent convulsions. Harry cried out in obvious pain and fell right down beside her, while Ginny shakily pulled her wand. "Confringo!"
A red blast of magical energy ripped out from Ginny's wand, but passed through the demon without apparent affect. It did, however, blow out the wall of the carriage behind it, revealing the cold, rainy weather beyond. Despite her terror, Hermione wondered where Ginny had learned such a powerful spell.
Suddenly a flash of bright light struck the creature, which squealed in rage before fleeing before the light. Hermione sighed with relief as Professor Lupin arrived. His eyes immediately went to the floor.
She looked herself and felt a tinge of new fear when she saw Luna and Harry both passed out. Her little fear was nothing compared to Ginny's panic. "No, no no no no no no no! Harry! Luna! Please, Oh Merlin, please wake up!"
Hermione started to stand when she realized Ron's arms were still firmly around her stomach. "Er, sorry," he muttered.
She turned and smiled shyly at him. "My protector," she said softly before looking back to Remus. He was kneeling on the floor looking at the two of unconscious students.
"It's all right," he said gently to Ginny.
Ginny was shaking, though, as she desperately hugged the two. "They won't wake up!"
"Miss Weasley," Lupin said calmly, "they will wake up. Dementors affect those with difficult pasts worse than others. I promise though they will be okay."
As if to prove his words, Harry's eyes flittered open. "Ginny?" he asked. He sat up and looked in surprise at the chocolate shoved in his face.
"Eat it," Lupin advised. "It will help, I promise."
"Yes, sir," Harry said. He absently popped the chocolate in his mouth. He then bent over and lifted Luna off the floor as if she were a child. She was not, though, and Hermione was surprised at how casually Harry seemed to lift her.
Without prompting, Ginny seemed to read his mind and sat down. Harry sat against a corner and together they laid the blonde girl out until her head rested on Ginny's lap, and her feet were on Harry's.
"What happened, Harry?" Hermione asked.
"I heard screaming," Harry said. "A voice talking, and screaming. Someone screaming my name. I…I think it was my mother."
"Oh," Hermione whispered. She glanced up and saw an expression of abject agony on Lupin's face, though it only lasted a moment.
"Why isn't Luna waking up?" Ginny demanded.
"She will soon," Lupin promised. "I don't know why those foul creatures were allowed on the train, but rest assured it will not happen again. Stay here and keep the door closed. When she wakes up, give her some of this chocolate. I need to go check on the other students."
He turned and left again, closing the compartment door behind him.
Hermione shivered a little—the cold from the hole in the outside wall across from their compartment blasted in while Lupin stepped out. It still amazed Hermione that Ginny knew such a dangerous spell. Ron blinked when he saw the hole, then looked back to his sister, who was carefully cradling Luna's head. His eyes travelled to Harry, who was oddly enough rubbing the girl's feet.
"Mate," he finally said, "you're rubbing her feet."
"Pressure points," Harry explained. "It helps."
"He's right," Hermione said, though she couldn't for the life of her figure out how Harry of all people would know that.
Suddenly Luna's eyes popped open and she let out a shockingly loud scream even as she began to struggle. Ginny leaned over and simply hugged the girl, while Harry kept a firm grip on her legs to keep her from kicking. Almost immediately the convulsions stopped. Luna went perfectly still with her face buried in Ginny's developing chest.
She leaned back. "That is a lovely scent," she said as if they were having a normal conversation. "Is that lily?"
Wordlessly Ginny nodded.
Luna sat up with some help from the other two and wiggled her toes. "Hmmm," she said, "my feet feel quite refreshed. Thank you, Harry."
"Are you all right?" Hermione asked.
"Of course," Luna said. She blinked, once. "Sadly Dementors have a rather negative impact on me. I apologize for being a bother."
"I passed out too," Harry said with a shrug. He handed her the chocolate. Luna reached up to take it, but her hands were still trembling too badly, so she let them fall back to her lap.
"Thank you, perhaps later."
"Luna, be a Ravenclaw, not a Gryffindor. Open up."
Ron stared in disbelief as Luna opened her mouth and let Harry pop the piece of chocolate in. "Hmmm," she whispered, "Quite delicious."
"You lot are barmy," Ron finally said.
"You're just mad because I had my face in your sister's chest," Luna pointed out.
He turned bright red, "Am not."
"You wish you had a chest like hers too, don't you?" Luna asked.
"Gods, he'd never come out of his room," Ginny snorted. "He'd be in there playing with his own boobies all day."
Harry snorted while Ron burned an even brighter red.
"Enough," Hermione said. "Please." She put a hand on Ron's shoulder. "He was very brave just now."
Ron noticeably straightened.
"We're just having you on, Ron," Harry said. "Thanks for taking care of Hermione."
The train started moving again. A few minutes later Lupin reappeared with the conductor and two other adult wizards. They began repairing the damage to the wall, using charms to pull the pieces back together until it was finally repaired. Then they disappeared.
"So, wonder what Professor Lupin will teach?" Ron asked.
"Defence," Harry and Ginny both said. They smiled at each other.
"Do you know him?"
"I…exchanged some owls with him," Harry said. "He knew my parents. I think we might actually have a good teacher in defence this year."
~~Unspeakable~~
~~Unspeakable~~
It was a miserable carriage ride up to the castle in the rain. The five friends clambered into a single carriage, making room at the last minute for Neville. By the time they reached Hogwarts they were all thoroughly soaked, that is until Hermione, Harry and Ginny began applying drying charms to anyone who asked.
They stopped when Malfoy and his entourage arrived, of course.
At the opening feast, after the sorting of first years, it was a very somber headmaster who announced that because of the escape of Sirius Black, Dementors would be guarding the castle.
"Harry," Hermione said, having read all about the events of Godric's Hollow, "you're not going to go off and do anything stupid, like hunt for Sirius Black, are you?"
Across the table Harry looked back at her with an unreadable expression. It was the first time that Hermione had ever found herself unable to read her friend's emotions. "No," he said. "I'm not going to do anything stupid."
That evening, after dinner, Harry and Ginny met Luna in the hall in front of the library. Without a word the one third year and two second years turned and walked down the hall until they reached the third class on the left.
Inside, Remus Lupin sat on an old, dilapidated chair while looking at a map. "Good evening," he said brightly. "Come in."
The three came in, closed the door, and then warded it behind them. Ginny and Harry began warding the floor and walls while Luna warded the ceiling with privacy charms.
Lupin watched in approving silence. "Very well done," he said. "Adonis did a bang up job."
"Security clearance?" Luna asked.
"Basilisk."
Luna nodded in satisfaction. "So you've been brought up to date?"
"Yes, I have. And I must say I truly appreciate the faith I've been shown so far. I'm afraid there isn't too much work available to someone in my condition, so for Zeus to take me into his confidence so thoroughly was a pleasant change."
"Of course," Luna said lightly. "If you don't work out, we'll just kill you."
Lupin smiled weakly. Evidently he did have enough clearance to realize the girl was not joking. "Well, first order of business. I want to introduce you three to the legacy of Harry's father. Come here."
The three gathered around a broken desk. "This is called the Marauder's Map," Lupin said. "In school, this allowed us to get out of more trouble than I can recall. I liberated it from your brothers, Miss Weasley."
"Remarkable," Luna said. "You obviously did the arithmancy."
"Well, yes," Lupin replied with a modest blush. "James pumped in the power, Sirius did most of the mapping for us, while I provided the spell work. It uses the same matrix the Atlas Map at the ministry does to identify citizens by their magical core. It can't be fooled by Polyjuice, animagi, invisibility cloaks or disillusionment charms. This is how we'll capture Sirius if he comes looking for you, Harry."
"Can I kill Sirius, Harry?" Luna asked.
"No," Harry said with a shake of his head. "At least not until I know why."
Luna nodded. "Okay."
"It seems strange that he would escape Azkaban and come all the way here just for Harry. What's the point?" Ginny asked.
"To finish Voldemort's job?" Remus said with a shrug. "I honestly don't know. I used to the think of the man as my brother. Now, I'm just not sure."
Harry was leaning over the map attentively. "Professor Lupin, does the map show ghosts?"
"Well, no, it doesn't."
Harry stood and pointed at the map. "Then why is this map telling me that Peter Pettigrew is in my dorm room?"
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Author's Note: Special thanks to Teufeul1987 for Beta reading and Brit Picking, and also to JR and Miles for additional beta reading. As always the three of them made this a better chapter.