Poppy spent that summer in a chaotic whirlwind of focus and anxious exhaustion. Aberforth never asked why she needed him to collect her from Dumbledores office. He was quite content with her continuing to work at Hogs Head - though by now he barely asked for her assistance in the bar. The animagus spent her entire summer doing one of two things; training or lying in bed and trying to sleep. The Dark Lord was back and she needed to be ready for him. He was coming for her best friend.
The hardened girl's motivation only increased when she saw the slander that was published about Harry. The Daily Prophet's articles bordered on abusive. As a result of her memory modification charm, Cedric Diggory didn't remember anything about the last task. Which was fortunate for her but now there was no one to verify Harry's story. The Prophet called him an attention seeking liar. It was infuriating. They also dragged Albus Dumbledore through the mud. It was clear that whoever was bribing the Daily Prophet had a grudge against Albus Dumbledore for whatever reason. Harry was simply caught in the crossfire and telling a hard truth when the Wizarding World would rather bury their heads in the sand.
It did not take a genius to realise Minister Fudge was the person with the grudge. It was obvious he was intimidated by Dumbledores sheer popularity and felt threatened. She knew this because the Prophet was peppered with pro-Fudge propaganda. It was not subtle. Cornelious Fudge was voted best dressed Wizard? Only an imbecile would believe that. Clearly, the Minister was an incompetent fool.
The striped haired teenager received many letters that summer from her worried friends. Her abrupt departure made Ron and Hermione worry worse over her than Harry who was kidnapped during the final task! Hermione told her directly in her letters that she didn't care that Poppy was an orphan and who her parents were. Blood didn't matter. Ron was more subtle about it and clumsily told her he accepted her but she appreciated the effort all the same. She didn't deserve her friends.
The boy-who-lived had abruptly stopped asking if she would like to meet Sirius Black and instead tried to cheer her up. It did not work. He was rather lucky that year, Harry would see his godfather every couple of days and for his birthday would be living with him for a whole week. It was not ideal but Poppy was quite happy for him. Harry seemed very pleased.
One morning mid-July, she slept in till nine am and was woken by ice cold water being thrown onto in her face. The Witch bolted upright on her bed and gasped. Poppy grabbed her wand from under her pillow and immediately pointed it at her attacker.
"Incarcerous" Poppy shouted as her vision came into focus.
The old man deflected her spell with a flick of his wand and a scowl. Poppy paused as she realised that she was in fact not being attacked and instead had been rudely awoken by an augmenti from Aberforth.
The animagus scowled at the old man and waved her wand to dry her dripping hair and soaked pyjamas, "What was that for?" She demanded angrily. Now suitably dry and her surprise had passed, she felt the weight of her exhaustion hit her. It was too early. The teenager lay back down with a loud yawn, pulling her duvet up.
The younger Dumbledore brother waved his wand again. Poppy's warm blanket was shoved unceremoniously onto the floor.
She sat up again and glared. The old man appeared unfazed.
"Get up. Your going out today" He commanded with a stubborn set to his face. Poppy narrowed her eyes.
"To do what?" She said warningly, annoyed at his sudden strange behaviour. Alberforth and Poppy usually kept to themselves and they both liked it that way.
The Hogs Head owner lifted a small pouch and threw it onto the bed. It jingled as it landed, "Diagon Alley, London, Cardiff, I don't know and I don't care neither. You need to get out missy and stop moping around" He declared, features hard and unyielding.
Poppy scoffed and then stood up from the bed and stretched, "How generous of you" Poppy drawled sarcastically, "but I don't want to. I've got work to do" Poppy then tried to leave the room to get to the toilet.
Aberforth moved to stand directly in her way, "I don't think so. You've been running yerself ragged. If you keep going like this then you'll end up dead. Now I'm telling you to get out of here, go anywhere, I don't care where but I'm not letting you lounge around the pub all day" He scowled now looking rather frustrated.
Poppy ignored the man's ramblings and tried to move past him again. He stood firm, "Fine, I'll wander about the village, happy?" She huffed out an exasperated breath. Poppy did not have the patience to deal with him today. She was too exhausted. Her shoulders felt heavy and face felt puffy.
Aberforth snorted, "Aye so you can run about practising your duelling?" Poppy paused and looked at him in shock... he knew about her duelling? He scowled at her again, "Think I don't know what you're up to? If you're not running yourself ragged with the duelling then you're up all night reading all kinds of books that I frankly don't wanna know about" He frowned and his eyes drifted around to the many old tomes littered around her small room. Poppy followed his gaze and saw that clothes were lying all across the floor. There were a few old cups that started to let off a slight odour. She frowned. When had her room gotten so messy?
Poppy opened her mouth to object when all of the anger seemed to deflate from the old man. He moved to perch on her bed.
"Look kid" He began and then sighed deeply, "I get that your worried about Voldemort being back and what this means for your little friends. But you can't be doing this to yourself. If you run yourself too thin then you'll be no use to anybody" Poppy tried to open her mouth to object again when he cut in,
"-Merlins balls have you seen the state of you, missy?" He suddenly snarled and bolted upright. Poppy was a little startled and blinked, swaying a little.
The Hogs Head owner conjured a hand mirror and thrust it in front of her face. The striped haired teenager's eyes drifted to it and gasped.
Her hair was the first thing she noticed. It was as limp and lifeless as her eyes, hanging carelessly down her face. It was greasy like rats tails and its usually lovely shine was all gone. Next was her face. Poppy was a naturally pale person but she was not as pasty and chalky white as her reflection showed her. The pink tinge to her cheeks was gone and replaced with an unnatural grey hue. Her lips were faded and cracked. But her green eyes were the worst. They looked haunted and dead.
The girl continued staring at her reflection when she heard a sigh, "And how are you expecting to be taking care of your friends when you can't do it for yourself" He stated.
The old man then left her room.
Poppy felt properly abashed that day. The first thing she did was clean her little room and shower. It felt so refreshing and freeing. It was like she was washing away the cloud of despair that had been following her around. She had been neglecting herself. She had been neglecting her friends.
The teenager then knew what she wanted to do that day.
As Poppy left the Hogs Head pub, she gave a slight thankful and acknowledging head tilt to Aberforth. He grunted back at her but his blue eyes looked approving as he wiped down the bar.
Poppy shifted into her wolf form and sped off into the crisp summer air. She ran for a while, simply enjoying the sensation of the wind passing through her form and the sense of freedom it brought her.
The wolf slowed down near Surrey and approached the quaint little house on Privet Drive. It was not her first visit to Harry and she knew exactly where to find her friend. She materialised in Harry's bedroom.
The teenage boy looked up in shock from a book he'd been reading. Seeing her standing there in four legs he grinned brightly,
"Poppy" He breathed happily. The wolf yipped happily and bound over to her friend. Harry pet her enthusiastically, making her tail wag furiously and pant in excitement. Her friend laughed at her antics as she began licking his face.
"Ugh, get off" He groaned but with a smile. Harry's excited mood seem to simmer down. His bright green eyes looked more sympathetic, "How've you been?" He asked quietly.
Poppy let out a doggy whine and dropped her ears. Harry pet her head again, "Yeah, I thought so"
The animagus stayed in her wolf form for a while, not feeling much like talking. Harry seemed quite content to sit with her for a while silently, hands gently cascading through her pure white fur. The wolf began to make a little rumbling noise in the back of her throat. She lay on his bed with her eyes closed, enjoying the sensations.
Harry let out a little laugh. Poppy peeked one eye open. He was smiling down at her, "It's funny how you purr like a cat" He said with an amused smile. Poppy let out a playful growl and pounced forward. The boy-who-lived landed on his back with a puff of air. The wolf then proceeded to slobber on every inch of his face enthusiastically. Harry began giggling much to his horror and tried to buck her off. The animagus was not particularly large for a wolf but she was still reasonably sized.
The wolfs ear twitched and head raised itself when it heard someone approach the door. The bedroom door opened to reveal a very fat man with a hideous moustache, "What's all this racket" He growled, eyes darting around the humble bedroom.
Poppy sat up properly from her place on Harry's chest. The messy haired teen scrambled up, cleared his throat and wiped his face.
The fat man looked disgusted when he peered at her. The wolf hunched down and tried to give him big puppy eyes so he would be kinder. He still sneered.
"What do you think your doing bringing a mangy stray into this house" He spoke in low dangerous tones. It was when he approached Harry in an almost a threatening manner that she walked forward and placed herself between her friend and the beefy man. The wolf refrained from growling, though only barely. Her friend placed his hand on her head. Her tail wagged a little in acknowledgement.
Harry piped up, "She isn't a stray Uncle Vernon, I was watching her for a friend. Her name is...Ghost?" Harry said almost questioningly. Poppy's tail dropped. Ghost? What kind of name is that? Was that some kind of a joke?
Harry's uncle looked hesitantly down at her now but still scoffed, "Get it out of my house or you'll be sorry boy" He warned and then stormed from the room.
Harry immediately guided her from the house and onto the Muggle street. The wolf could easily be mistaken for a dog as she was only medium sized but as they walked down the street, the teenage boy still garnered alarmed looks for the possibly threatening 'dog' not on a leash. Poppy actually wouldn't mind too much wearing a leash... was that strange of her?
Eventually, Harry sighed, "Shift back, would you? I don't want someone to phone the police" He muttered to her as they reached a small and deserted park. Poppy found a secluded bush in the little park in order to shift back into a human.
The two best friends didn't talk much but simply enjoyed each others presence on the swing set, idly drifting back and forth. Harry would be getting picked up by Sirius in a couple of days and spending his birthday with his godfather. Poppy wished him an early happy birthday. He looked sad for a moment but didn't ask her to join. For whatever reason, it seemed like he wasn't as eager to introduce the animagus to his godfather. Probably because the awkward stage had passed and Harry was more comfortable around the man.
It was dusk when the pair began the walk back to Harry's home. They, unfortunately, encountered Harry's overweight cousin who teased him about having a girlfriend in front of his friends. Dudley eyed her in a crude manner, making her want to knee him in the groin. Poppy toyed with the boy and gave Harry a big kiss on the cheek. Dudley's friends looked impressed while Dudley himself looked put out.
Harry's Muggle cousins little 'friends' then left while Harry and Dudley walked awkwardly back to their house. Poppy was certain Dudley only joined them as he wanted to know more about her. He kept shooting her looks from Harry's other side.
A street away from the house, Poppy smelled something foul in the air. Rotten. She paused abruptly and looked to the sky. Harry and Dudley stopped walking and looked back at her. Poppy closed her eyes and unashamedly began sniffing the air. Something smelled rotten and foul. It was a mixture between dead flesh and dark magic. It made her slip out a tiny growl in human form.
Dudley stumbled back and declared her a freak while Harry moved up beside her and whispered, "What is it?" His green eyes darting back and forth, subtly taking his wand out.
Poppy gulped and closed her eyes. The scent was getting stronger. The air got noticeably colder and the atmosphere of the street tense. Darkness. Emptiness. Wrong. The scent was blowing in the wind towards them. When the smell became overwhelming she opened her eyes again. She growled properly this time.
A large being approached from the distance. It a floating coat, black as midnight with frayed edges. It drifted closer to the three teenagers slowly but menacingly. The sharp sting of dark magic filled the air. Poppy tried not to gag. Whatever this thing was, it was wrong.
It approached closest to Dudley though the boy himself did not look worried. He was scowling at the other teenagers. When it was dangerously near, Poppy instinctively stepped in front of Harry and started growling louder. It was uncontrollable by this point and she was running on instinct. Keep this thing away from Harry. Her instincts were at the forefront of her mind. She had to concentrate to use the rational side of her brain to remain calm and figure out just what this being was. Clearly a dark creature.
Harry let out a small breath of shocked air from behind her. A small glance in her peripheral vision told her that her whole hair was glowing white by this point. She didn't care.
The creature stopped by Dudley and the boy dropped to his knee's gasping. Poppy snarled. Her vision changed and she saw a cloud of black sucking from a cloud of white. The black was turning the white grey and enveloping the lightness inside itself to destroy.
Dementor.
It was with a start that she realised it was eating the boy's soul. How did she know this? It just... seemed right. The girl knew what to do then although something inside of her was telling her to leap forward and rip out its neck.
She raised her wand and spoke clearly with a picture of Harry and her dancing at the Yule Ball together inside her mind, "Expecto Patronum"
Immediately a blue light reminiscent of her animagus form darted from her wand in the shape of a large animal. The large animal charged forward with its head ducked and antlers poised for defence. The dementor let out a wail of pain and flew off, being driven away. Her Patronus glowed brightly in the dull twilight. The animal turned around slowly to face her head on.
The magnificent Stag regarded the pair for a moment before tipping his head and fading away.
Harry stood beside her with wide eyes, "It...it looks just like you" He murmured and then this eyes cut across to hers, "When you are... you know" He said by way of explanation.
Poppy snorted as they watched the Stag disappear, "Yeah it's my corporeal Patronus animal. Apparently, the Charm was inspired by my animagus form. It's a protector... specifically from dementors" She explained as the two friends approached the chubby teen that was lying on the ground. Harry began worriedly checking over his cousin while Poppy stood tall and kept an eye out for any more danger.
A Dementor does not simply wander into a suburban Muggle area. She kept alert, "Weird it's male, isn't it?" She commented on her Patronus form idly.
Harry huffed out a laugh as he attempted to pick up his cousin up. The fat boy sort of just flopped there. Poppy frowned at him, was he brain dead? Did the dementor do permanent damage?
The two teenagers attempted to drag the Muggle boy back to his house. It was difficult, "What-what was that thing?" Harry asked a bit breathlessly. Dudley's arms were around both of their shoulders as the two friends tried to carry him back. Neither of them was particularly strong, however.
"I... I think it was a dementor. They're the dark creatures that 'guard' Azkaban. It must be if a Patronus scared it off" Poppy sighed. The whole incident was troubling. Was the dementor attracted to her because of her animagus form? Hermione had said that Spirit animals were enemies to dark creatures that feasted on the soul.
Harry gulped and looked a little pale, "Where Sirius was..." He muttered. Poppy didn't feel she had a right to comment so didn't. Dementors were vile creatures and Sirius Black must be extremely strong willed to survive their constant presence.
The rest of the walk was silent though both of the friends were worrying about what had happened. What if Poppy wasn't there? Would that creature have eaten Harry's and his cousin's soul? No, perhaps it was attacking her. Though how could it have tracked her?
For the rest of the short walk, Poppy's wand was out at the ready and eyes alert.
"As soon as we reach Hogwarts, you need to teach me that" Harry huffed out, struggling under the weight of his cousin.
Poppy strongly agreed as they helped the boy in the doorway. A sudden shriek made Poppy point her wand. A long necked woman was making all kinds of hysterical noises and reaching for the fat boy. This must be Harrys lovely Aunt Petunia.
Poppy stood in the doorway to the living room with a frown on her face. Dudley was moved to an armchair and seemingly unresponsive as his Aunt fret over him frantically. Harry's Uncle glared a and threw wild accusations at his nephew.
"You are your little freaky friend-" Vernon Dursley said and glared at Poppy, eyeing the wand in her hand.
Poppy paused for a moment and finally turned to look the man in the eye, "Excuse me, Vernon, is it?" She asked dryly and stepped forward. The man stepped back in response, looking wary. Coward.
"We did not do anything to your precious son. As a matter of fact, I saved his life. Dudley was being attacked by an evil creature that was trying to eat his soul. If it wasn't for us and our... how did you put it?" Poppy paused dramatically for a moment and tapped her lips. Vernon's face had gone from red to white and looked about to faint, "Ah yes" She snapped her fingers with a smirk, "Freaky magic. Then your precious Dudders would be dead. No, actually, he would be an empty spiritless body" She smiled condescendingly at the moustached Muggle.
Petunia was hyperventilating by this point, "Eat his soul?" She wailed from behind her.
Poppy sighed.
Vernon Dursley was eyeing her in a frightened manner. She ignored him and approached Dudley. Poppy lifted her wand to assess the damage. Petunia gasped. Poppy glared at her in response. Harry's Aunt visibly startled from her glare. The teenage orphan softened her gaze but stared directly into the woman's brown eyes, "I need to check if he will be alright. I won't hurt him" Poppy spoke calmly, reigning in her irritation.
Mrs Dursley swallowed and looked away. A flash of something on her face made Poppy frown. Did it look like guilt? Shock?
Poppy lifted her wand and cast silent diagnostic spells. It seemed that aside from mild shock and emotional trauma Dudley would make a full recovery. The animagus let her green eyes linger on the chubby boy and his vacant expression. Why was he in such a state? Was it because he was emotionally weak or were all people like this when attacked by a dementor? She would need to do more research. Harry hovered at her side.
Vernon Dursley - coward that he was - wasn't quite cowering in the corner but was definitely more on the outskirts of the room than before. She held in a snort.
"You... what is your name?" Petunia Dursley asked her quietly as she finished her diagnosis.
Poppy looked up at the thin, blonde and severe looking women for a moment. She really did not look much like Harry at all. Mrs Dursley's eyes flickered back and forth between Poppy's own eyes. She frowned.
"Poppy" She stated. The woman seemed to startle in her seat and her eyes went wide again. The woman's eyes drifted all over her face then. She was a strange one.
"Dudley will be fine. It might take him a while to get over it but there will be no lasting damage. Chocolate will help" She explained. Harry's Aunt stopped her obvious parasail of her to sigh in relief and envelop her large son in a hug. It was actually a little sickening to watch.
The striped haired teenager was about to make a swift exit when the screech of an owl drew the attention of everyone in the room. A plain barn owl flew in the open window and dropped a letter at Harry. The boy-who-lived went to catch it when it opened and a woman's voice began talking,
Dear Mr Potter,
We have received intelligence that you performed the Patronus Charmat twenty-three minutes past nine this evening in a Muggle-inhabited area and in the presence of a Muggle.
The severity of this breach of the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery has resulted in your immediate expulsion from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Ministry representatives will be calling at your place of residence shortly to destroy your wand.
As you have already received an official warning for a previous offence under Section 13 of the International Confederation of Warlocks' Statute of Secrecy, we regret to inform you that your presence is required at a disciplinary hearing at the Ministry of Magic at 9 a.m. on the twelfth of August.
Hoping you are well,
Yours sincerely,
Mafalda Hopkirk
Improper Use of Magic Office Ministry of Magic
When the letter had stopped speaking and had ripped itself up, Poppy turned to Harry with a tense expression. Harry was staring at her in disbelief. This was insane. How did the Ministry know about the Patronus Charm being cast? Poppy certainly didn't have a magical underage trace. Why did they blame Harry? Most likely because he was the only magical being near this area. But this also meant that the Ministry knew about the dementor... The Ministry also had control over dementors.
Poppy suddenly knew why a dementor had appeared suddenly in a muggle populated area.
The teenage girl decided to take charge of the situation. She turned to her friend, "Harry, write a letter to Sirius and explain the situation. Tell him to meet you at the Leaky. I will start packing your trunk. We need to go now before they come for your wand. Go now" Poppy commanded her friend. Harry didn't even pause and quickly ran upstairs.
Poppy followed him calmly to his bedroom and began packing his clothes. The letter was hastily scrawled and sent off with Hedwig when Harry took over his packing.
The orphaned teenager wandered back down the stairs to keep an eye out for any impending Ministry workers. She would not be allowing them to snap his wand. Poppy would go to the hearing and explain how she was the one that cast the Charm. In the meantime, they needed to get Harry away from here.
The animagus stood in the doorway of the living room, watching Vernon Dursley hand his son lots of different kinds of muggle chocolates. Poppy's eyebrows rose in slight surprise at the sheer amount. But, then again, considering the size of the Dursley's she should have expected as much. She snorted.
Her noise drew the attention of Petunia Dursley.
The woman decided to approach Poppy. The teenager in question raised an expectant eyebrow at Harry's Aunt. Petunia pursed her lips and eyed her suspiciously, "Poppy... was it? What's your surname?" She asked.
Poppy looked at the woman blankly. The muggle averted her eyes when Poppy made eye contact, "Stark. Poppy Stark" She said.
Mrs Dursley nodded sharply and frowned. Poppy stood awkwardly, hearing the banging of swift packing going up upstairs and wished Harry would hurry up.
"I see. Do you stay nearby or will your parents be coming to pick you up?" She asked in a tense manner. Poppy stared at her. The question would normally be one of a concerned aunt wondering how a teenager would get home safely. But Petunia's dull brown eyes didn't look worried or anything remotely kind. She looked suspicious and a little shaken.
Poppy decided to answer, "No parents. An orphan like Harry and I will be leaving with him" She said pointedly.
Petunia Dursley frowned again. Dull brown eyes once again flickering back and forth between her green ones.
"Ready" Harry interrupted the strangest conversation she'd ever had. Poppy nodded her head once and left the room immediately without a goodbye. Harry followed behind her without a word to his relatives. She didn't blame him.
The two teenagers made their way down the street. Poppy planned on using the Knight bus. She pulled out her wand. Immediately a triple decker bright blue bus appeared before them. Harry stumbled back a little and stared with bright eyes.
"That's the knight bus. It'll take us to the Leaky" She explained and tried to board.
Harry's hand shot out to stop her though, holding her upper arm gently. Poppy turned back to look at him curiously.
Her messy haired friend shuffled a little and then sighed, "Poppy, I told Sirius that I cast the Patronus Charm" He admitted quietly.
Poppy frowned, "Why would you do that? We need to tell the truth and get this ridiculous expulsion fixed. You will be going back to Hogwarts Harry" She said seriously, staring at her friend in almost a challenging manner.
Harry sighed angrily and ruffled his hair, "No Poppy, let them think it was me. No one needs to know about your involvement. I'm sure Dumbledore can sort it out at the trial. They can't just expel students without a hearing" Harry explained calmly. Poppy already knew this and had been planning on confessing the truth at the hearing anyway.
Harry looked at her with nothing but worry, "I mean, I'm the boy-who-lived... They can't just expel me. Maybe this is the one time that it can be used for something good, right?" Harry's lips twisted into something slightly bitter then. Poppy felt her heart drop. He didn't know about the slander written about him in the Prophet, did he?
Poppy opened her mouth to explain this to him gently. Harry stopped her with a raised hand and frown, "No Poppy. Let me take care of this. You can't get expelled from Hogwarts. I'll be fine. I promise. You should get going though, no one should know you were here" He said, completely solemn. Poppy regarded him for a moment. Harry's face was uncharacteristically serious and stern. His green eyes were hard and expression read unmoveable. She knew this expression.
Poppy sighed heavily and reached forward to give him a hug, "Fine Harry" She huffed, silently deciding if things went wrong then she would be telling the truth no matter what the boy said.
When Harry pulled back he was smiling a little sadly. The boy-who-lived lifted his trunk and walked onto the bus. Poppy watched him go. Harry turned around with one last wave.
Needless to say Poppy did attend Harry's trial. Though to her absolute rage, they had changed the time and by the time she arrived at the Ministry it was already over. Thank Merlin that it ended in Harry's favour or she would have gone on a bloody rampage.
Harry stayed with his godfather for the rest of summer. He learned all about his reputation being dragged through the mud and Poppy did her best to try and comfort him. When she said she would tell the Prophet of her presence in the graveyard to verify his claims, Harry was very unhappy. He refused to hear anything of the sort and it only made Poppy frustrated.
By the time for Hogwarts to begin, Poppy was feeling restless, determined and prepared for whatever fifth year might throw at her.