Author's Note: Hey guys! I can't believe it's been so long since I last updated. I'm sorry for that, but I just finished my sophomore year in college and I needed a break. But I've been working on this for the last few days and I finally have it ready to post.
This is the first chapter that takes place during Prisoner of Azkaban. Most of it takes place during the summer, which Leslie spends with her uncle and with Hermione, and it details the first day of classes. I had a lot of fun writing the part about the dementor on the train because I really got to think up details that are in Leslie's head that she didn't know were there. You'll see what I mean when you get to the italicized portion of the chapter, it's the part where she's trapped in her own memories, courtesy of the dementor. I'm not going to give away too much right this second. Happy reading!
09-03-2003
Dear Diary,
To say yesterday was an eventful first day of classes would be an understatement. It was an eventful summer as well. When I got home, Uncle Jerry announced that he was taking me on my own little European tour and we spent the entire summer travelling from place to place. After I returned home from school, he let me have a week to rest and unwind before we left for Dublin to visit some friends. Many of our ancestors were from Ireland and came to live in London for reasons of their own. I think others immigrated to America, which gives me the hope that I might have family there someplace, but I'm not going to hold my breath. Like I told you before, Uncle Jerry's done as much research as he can into our family and he and I are the only ones left.
But we had a good time all the same. Our friends took us all over Dublin to some of the best tourist attractions for both wizards and Muggles. They even drove us to Wicklow to see Powerscourt House and Gardens, which were breathtaking and we took a few days to go to Galway as well. I've always loved Ireland. I could spend the rest of my life sitting in the Irish countryside and never get tired of it.
We spent about a month in Ireland, then moved onto Barcelona and Madrid, then after three weeks total in both places, we went to Paris. I had been corresponding regularly with Hermione and when I learnt that she was to be spending part of her summer in France, we arranged to meet and spend a few weeks together in Paris. She had already been in Paris for two weeks when Uncle Jerry and I arrived, and she was there waiting for us at the train station. We ran to each other and embraced each other.
"Leslie, it's so good to see you!" she said.
"It's great to see you too," I said back. "How's your summer been?"
"Wonderful, I've been looking forward so much to coming to Paris. I've always wanted to travel, but my parents have never really had time for it with their dental practice."
"I know, Uncle Jerry usually only travels for business. When he told me he was going to take me travelling on the continent all summer long, I thought it was a dream come true."
It was then that I noticed Mr. and Mrs. Granger standing a few feet away apprehensively. I think it was the fact that Uncle Jerry was there, a full-fledged wizard, not just me.
"Mr. and Mrs. Granger, it's good to see you again," I said, shaking hands with them.
"Hello again, Leslie," said Mrs. Granger, smiling kindly.
"Is this your father?" asked Mr. Granger, gesturing at Uncle Jerry.
"My uncle," I replied.
Uncle Jerry extended his hand and said, "Gerald Angkatell. Most just call me Jerry."
"Pleasure," said Mr. Granger, shaking his hand, though still somewhat nervously.
We had a very good time actually. Once the Grangers warmed up to having Uncle Jerry around, they got along quite splendidly. Uncle Jerry keeps up with the Muggle news almost as much as he reads the Daily Prophet, though he knows which articles in the Prophet to avoid, so he and Mr. Granger were able to have several conversations about the state of things in England, the Prime Minister, Parliament, everything the Muggles are concerned with.
Hermione and I spent most of our time sightseeing and shopping. She had already seen a great many of the sights in Paris, but willingly went to see them again with me. We spent an entire afternoon in Notre Dame Cathedral and the next one in the Louvre. We just had fun together, catching up on our summers, neither of us worried about Harry this time; he had been responding to our letters this time.
"You know Harry's birthday is coming up soon," said Hermione, one day while we were doing some shopping. We'd been to most of the Muggle shops and now we were looking around the Parisian version of Diagon Alley. There is a school of magic in France called Beauxbatons, which is supposed to be really prestigious. We saw a group of people whom I assumed attended school there. I stopped to think on Hermione's words for a moment and realized it was the 28th of July. Harry's birthday, the 31st, was in a few days.
"You're right," I said. "I haven't even thought about a present for him."
"I've gotten him a kit to take care of his broom," said Hermione. "But come with me. I'll show you something I found the day before you arrived. I think this might be a good gift for you to give him."
She led me into one shop and tried to speak in French to the salesclerk. I stopped her and asked her what it was she wanted. When she told me, I asked the clerk in perfect French to retrieve it for us. He smiled at me, relief shining in it, and I could tell he spent most of his summer days trying to figure out what British tourists who couldn't speak French were asking of him. He came back a minute later to show us a small mirror, possibly 5"x8" with a silver frame. I didn't see what was so special about it.
"Qu'est ce que c'est?" I asked him and even Hermione could tell I was asking what it was. The clerk responded by telling me it was a Foe Glass. I looked into it and I saw blurred shapes passing through it. I could tell they were people, but they were so blurry I couldn't make out any faces. He explained to me that it was a way of telling who your enemies were and how close they were to you. I liked it at once and I knew Harry would find it useful.
"Je vais acheter," I said and he smiled at making a sale. One good thing about France was that they took Galleons and Sickles as well as in England, so I didn't have to worry about currency. In Muggle France and Spain, I had to learn how to count in Euros, which made things slightly easier, because I didn't have to deal with francs and pesetas, but I was used to British pounds and wizard money.
He wrapped it before I paid for it, then I got an idea. I said, "en fait, Monsieur, puis-je avoir deux?" He nodded at me and went to get another one.
"What did you say, Leslie?" asked Hermione.
"I asked him if I could have two," I said. "One will go to Harry and I'd like one myself. Do you want one as well?"
"No thanks," said Hermione. "I'm not sure I have any enemies to speak of."
"Fine," I said. "But don't come crying to me when an unknown enemy tries to harm you." The clerk handed me my purchases at that moment, I paid him fifteen Galleons, said, "Merci Monsieur, allez au revoir," and left the store. Hermione and I spent the rest of the afternoon shopping before dropping our purchases off at the hotel and dressing up to meet her parents and my uncle for dinner at a very nice restaurant.
The next morning, Hermione got a copy of The Daily Prophet and we saw to our delight an article about the Weasley's.
"This is incredible," I said. "Listen to this, 'Arthur Weasley, Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office at the Ministry of Magic, has won the annual Daily Prophet Grand Prize Galleon Draw.' Hermione, they won 700 Galleons and are spending it on a holiday in Egypt."
"That's wonderful," said Hermione. "Lord knows they need the money."
"Uncle Jerry's offered to help, but they won't hear of it," I said. "I'd give them my inheritance right now if it weren't for the fact that I can't touch it until I'm 21. Uncle Jerry can't touch it either since it's not technically his."
"They should spend their money on something they need," said Hermione. "New school supplies, house supplies, something useful."
"You're the only one who would do that, Hermione," I said. "Most people would spend it on an exotic vacation. And Egypt sounds fascinating. The ancient pharaohs, the pyramids, the Valley of the Kings, how the ancient wizards there affected the life of the people. I must tell Uncle Jerry to take me there next year."
"I might have to go with you," said Hermione. "It'd be good to get out of England more."
"When are you going back?" I asked.
"Next Monday, six days" replied Hermione. "I had a letter from Ron saying he was going to be in London the last of week of summer and I thought we could meet up with him and Harry in Diagon Alley, but I'll be back long before then. Why do you ask?"
I smiled as I thought of the suggestion Uncle Jerry had given me the night before. "Because Uncle Jerry and I are leaving for Munich a few days after that and we were both wondering if you'd like to come with us."
Surprise filled Hermione's face. "You want me to go to Germany with you?" she asked. I nodded. "What about my parents?"
"They're more than welcome to come along. Uncle Jerry actually spoke with them about it last night after we went to bed.'
"I don't know if they will, they have a dental practice. But I'd love to come if it wouldn't be too much trouble."
I put my hand on top of hers and said, "no trouble at all. We'd just be glad to have your company." She squealed and we hugged each other, hoping that her parents would say yes.
As luck would have it, they did and eight days later, we were on a train bound for Germany. We spent the last three weeks of vacation touring the place, learning about the Muggle and wizard history of the city and doing even more shopping. We had sent Harry his birthday gifts before leaving Paris and hoped he was doing all right.
It was a surprise actually. The night before his birthday, I was fixing my package and a letter to Ibbett's leg, hoping he was up for a long journey back to England, when Hedwig turned up. Hermione had been wondering how she would get Harry's present to him, since Ibbett couldn't carry both. I was about to ask Uncle Jerry if we could use Horatio, when Hedwig appeared at our bedroom window. We gave her some water and some grain and Hermione tied her package to Hedwig's leg. She and Ibbett flew off together and I knew Harry's presents would get to him all right.
The next morning, Ibbett returned with two letters, one for me and one for Hermione. They were our Hogwarts letters. Also enclosed were permission forms for our parents to sign that would allow us to visit the village of Hogsmeade, which is just a few minutes' walk from the school. Uncle Jerry signed mine, Mr. Granger signed Hermione's and we sent them back to the school. A few days later, Hermione and I were bound for Germany.
But the day we got our letters was when a worry fell over Uncle Jerry. He tried to pretend it was nothing, but I know him better than anyone else and I could tell something was bothering him. I especially knew something was wrong when he hid that morning's issue of the Prophet from Hermione and I. After we got on the train for Munich, Uncle Jerry spent much time looking out the window, lost in thought.
"Uncle Jerry, what's the matter?" I asked. "You've been acting strange these last few days. Is something wrong?"
"No, my darling, nothing's wrong," he said.
"You know I can see right through you," I said. "Please don't lie to me, because I don't lie to you, and I hate knowing something's wrong with you." Hermione didn't say anything, but she knew something was up too, and she gazed at Uncle Jerry, imploring him with her eyes to tell us.
He sighed and said, "all right. Read this." He handed over a copy of the Daily Prophet. It was the issue he had hidden from us. On the front cover was a picture of a man with a sunken, gaunt face and matted hair. He looked almost mad. I almost thought he was except the look in his eyes betrayed it. You could tell just from that look that he wasn't mad at all. It was a very contradictive face.
"Who is it?" asked Hermione.
"Actually, now that I think about it, he looks familiar," I said.
"That's because you've seen pictures of him," said Uncle Jerry. "Old school pictures of him when your father and I were at Hogwarts."
I gave a small gasp as I recognized him. I looked at the headline and saw that the name matched the face, but I couldn't believe it. "That's Sirius Black?" I asked. "That couldn't be him. He looks so different than in the photos we have of him."
"He's been in Azkaban for 12 years, Leslie," said Uncle Jerry. "It will change a person."
"Who is he?" repeated Hermione, looking between us confusedly.
Uncle Jerry looked at her, then said simply, "read the article."
The two of us turned our attention to the paper, but neither of us could believe what we read. It said:
Sirius Black, possibly the most infamous prisoner ever to be held in Azkaban fortress, is still eluding capture, the Ministry of Magic confirmed today.
"We are doing all we can to recapture Black," said the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, this morning, "and we beg the magical community to remain calm."
Fudge has been criticized by some members of the International Federation of Warlocks for informing the Muggle Prime Minister of the crisis.
"Well, really, I had to, don't you know," said an irritable Fudge. "Black is mad. He's a danger to anyone who crosses him, magic or Muggle. I have the Prime Minister's assurance that he will not breathe a word of Black's true identity to anyone. And let's face it – who'd believe him if he did?"
While Muggles have been told that Black is carrying a gun (a kind of metal wand that Muggles use to kill each other), the magical community lives in fear of a massacre like that of twelve years ago, when Black murdered thirteen people with a single curse.
I looked up at Uncle Jerry and said, "he murdered thirteen people with one curse?"
"I'm afraid so, my dear," he replied. "He was one of Voldemort's most faithful supporters, apparently. It was a great shock, not just what he did, but the fact that he did it. Your parents and I couldn't believe it. We'd known Black at school, all three of us. We didn't know him very well, mind you, he was in Gryffindor with his group of friends, while your father and I were in Hufflepuff and your mother in Ravenclaw, but we knew them, yes."
"How well did you know them?" asked Hermione.
"Personally, about as well as the rest of the school knew them, in those days anyway," said Uncle Jerry. "He and his friends were a large group of troublemakers." I noticed then that Uncle Jerry kept referring to them as his friends, never actually specifying who those friends were. He continued, "the rest we heard from Lily Evans, or Lily Potter as she became later."
"Harry's mother?" I asked.
"Yes," said Uncle Jerry. "She and your mother were the best of friends. In fact, I've compared you and Hermione to the two of them multiple times. You're almost exactly the same. Leslie, you have your mother's common sense, while Hermione has the intellect that Lily had. They even had similar names, Lily Evans and Lydia Christianson. You'd have thought they were twins. Both were extremely kind as well, just as the two of you are, when you're not in foul moods that is. It broke Lydia's heart when she found out her best friend was dead." He continued, "Lily Evans was in Gryffindor, but tried to avoid Sirius and his lot."
"Who were his lot?" asked Hermione.
"No one you need to be concerned with," said Uncle Jerry, but he was hiding something and we could both tell it, but he said it in such a way that I knew he wasn't going to say anymore. When Hermione tried to ask him again, I shook my head at her and she took the hint.
But he did say one more thing. "Black is still in England, so that's why I'm breathing easy for now. But upon our return, I'm not letting you go anywhere alone until you're back in school, Leslie."
"Uncle Jerry, you know I can't live like that," I said.
"I know it's not your style, but I don't want you to have a run in with Black, even if it's pure coincidence. He's dangerous and I won't let him near you."
"And I'm guessing you're going to contact Cedric and ask him to follow me like a shadow from class to class?"
"I wasn't going to, but I could, I suppose. I asked him once before you set off for your first year and from what I heard, he did a good job of it. You just didn't tell him when you were about to do something dangerous, so he wasn't there to protect you. With Black around though, I suspect he'll take it on himself to see that you're safe."
"I wish he wouldn't, I don't want him to get hurt either," I said.
"I don't think he cares too much about that, Leslie," said Hermione. "He cares about you."
"She's right," said Uncle Jerry. "In fact, I think he more than just cares for you."
"All right, you two, quit imagining things," I said. "If you don't, Hermione, I'll hex your next homework assignment so you don't get full marks and Uncle Jerry, I'll spend the fortune on something completely useless."
I was just teasing and Uncle Jerry knew that because he shook his head and chuckled, but Hermione looked petrified at the thought of not getting full credit on her homework. Poor thing, she focuses on work a little too much.
We spent the next week ten days in Munich, then a week in Florence, before we decided to come home. We made it back to London and dropped Hermione off with her parents, promising to come and get her on the way to Diagon Alley the day before term started.
You won't believe this next part, little diary. The day after we got home, Uncle Jerry went to work, needing to catch up on some of his work, while I stayed at home all day resting. We'd been gone for three months, so I wanted to rest and I assumed he did too, but I didn't want to imagine the workload he must have. I also couldn't have imagined how many hours overtime he'd had to work over the last couple years in order to come on such a large holiday with me. I suppose he wanted to make this summer special for me, which he did.
He's the unbelievable part. When Uncle Jerry got home that night, he called out to me saying he had something to tell me. I was in the kitchen putting dinner on the table, so he sat down and as we ate our meal, he told me that he'd heard from a friend in the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad that Harry had blown up his aunt. Not blown up like exploded, but she'd inflated like a large balloon. I nearly choked on my glass of water.
"What on Earth prompted him to do that?" I asked.
"I don't know," replied Uncle Jerry. "Ask him when you see him in Diagon Alley."
The next fortnight passed unbelievably slowly. Since Uncle Jerry didn't want me going out on my own, I was cooped up in the house mostly. The day before term started, Uncle Jerry took the day off from work to take Hermione and I to Diagon Alley. We picked her up at her parent's house, she hugged and kissed them goodbye because we'd be staying at the Leaky Cauldron that night, and we headed out. We immediately went to Gringott's and when we got there, we encountered the Weasley's. Mrs. Weasley hugged and kissed both of us and we said hello to Ron, Fred, George, Ginny and Percy. Percy had a badge that signified he was the new Head Boy and he was bursting with pride. We went round Diagon Alley and got our supplies together and as we were having lunch outside of Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor, Hermione started waving and shouted, "Harry! HARRY!"
Ron and I turned and there he was. He beamed at the sight of us and came over to sit with us. Ron immediately brought up the subject of Harry blowing up his aunt and he told us the whole story. Ron laughed throughout the entire thing.
"It's not funny, Ron," said Hermione, disapproval strong in her voice. "Honestly, I'm amazed Harry wasn't expelled."
"Forget expelled, I thought I was going to be arrested," said Harry. He then said to Ron, "your dad doesn't know why Fudge let me off, does he? Or does your uncle know?" he asked me.
I shook my head, but Ron said, "probably 'cause it's you, isn't it? Famous Harry Potter and all that. I'd hate to see what the Ministry'd do to me if I ever blew up an aunt. Mind you, they'd have to dig me up first, because Mum would've killed me."
The conversation then turned to the school year starting the next day and we began talking about our new classes.
"What's all that, Hermione?" asked Harry, pointing at three bags under her chair.
"Well, I'm taking more new subjects than you, aren't I?" she replied. "These are my books for Arithmancy, Care of Magical Creatures, Divination, Study of Ancient Runes, Muggle Studies…"
Ron cut her off by asking her why she was taking Muggle Studies. I then asked all three of them why on Earth they were taking Divination.
"It's just a bunch of hocus pocus," I told them. "Real seers are extremely rare, the rest make their living on guesswork. They scam their customers by making unusually accurate guesses about people's lives while conning them out of all their money. Before the person knows it, they're dead broke and the so-called seer has mysteriously vanished. There's hardly any truth in it. I thought about taking it just to prove that the professor was a fraud."
"I wondered why you wouldn't take it, Leslie," said Harry. "So what are your new subjects?"
"Care of Magical Creatures, Arithmancy and Ancient Runes," I replied. "All very sensible."
"You two," said Ron, gesturing between me and Hermione, "are too sensible for your and everyone else's own good."
"Is it possible to be too sensible?" asked Hermione.
"Probably," I replied, not admitting that the comment probably did apply to both of us.
We finished our ice cream and went across the street to the Magical Menagerie, where Ron wanted to get some tonic for his rat, Scabbers, who was looking pretty sick. It ended in a cat chasing Scabbers off the counter and Ron had to dash across the street to get him back. I stayed in the shop with Hermione while Harry went with Ron. I was surprised when Hermione bought the cat that had chased after Scabbers, but apparently she loved him. His name was Crookshanks and he had a face that looked like it had been squashed and he was a bit bowlegged, but she thought he was gorgeous. I just nodded my head and walked outside with her, knowing Ron wouldn't be pleased.
Sure enough, he wasn't and they argued about it all the way back to the Leaky Cauldron. We dropped our purchases in our rooms and rested for awhile before going down to dinner. While we were talking, Mr. Weasley said the Ministry was providing a couple of cars to take us to King's Cross the next morning. We were surprised at that and Mr. Weasley gave a reason for it, but for some reason, I didn't buy it. Everyone else seemed to, but I didn't. I also noticed Uncle Jerry stiffen when it was brought up and saw him visibly relax when everyone seemed to accept the story. He met my gaze though and warned me with his eyes not to say anything. I tilted my head down slightly, then raised it again and he was the only one who could tell I was nodding my head. He turned back to Mr. Weasley and struck up a conversation, while I turned back to talk to Harry and the others.
The next morning was spent doing last minute packing and then we were on our way to King's Cross. We went through the barrier in pairs, Hermione and I went together. We all got our things loaded onto the train and leaned out the window to say goodbye to everyone. I noticed that Mr. Weasley had taken Harry aside to speak to him in private and I wondered what that was about.
Uncle Jerry leaned up to kiss my forehead and said, "have a good year, darling. Study hard, do well, and most of all, be safe."
I didn't understand why at the time, but he put emphasis on those last two words, be safe. Then I thought of Sirius Black and realized that he was still worried that I would have some sort of run in with Black. I didn't have time to assure him not to worry, because the train had started to move. I almost panicked, Harry wasn't onboard yet. He dashed to the compartment door and Ron threw it open to let him in. We leaned out the window again and I waved to my uncle until he was no longer in my sight.
Harry, Ron, Hermione and I searched all along the train for an empty compartment and finally found one at the end of the train. There was no one there except for an adult whom we had never seen before, fast asleep in the corner. Hermione identified him as Professor R.J. Lupin and pointed out his name on his suitcase and guessed that he was there to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts. We weren't sure how long he'd last, he was so thin that I almost that he was malnourished, he was wearing shabby clothes and he looked sickly. He was hopefully tougher and stronger than he looked.
"Do you think he's really asleep?" asked Harry.
"Seems to be, why?" asked Hermione. Harry shut the compartment door and told us something he had overheard between Mr. and Mrs. Weasley the previous night. It was also why Mr. Weasley had taken Harry aside before the train left the platform. Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban to come after Harry. Apparently, he was such a great dark wizard that he thought he would be Voldemort's second-in-command and killing Harry might bring the Dark Lord back to power. I don't see the logic in that, but spending twelve years in Azkaban could have done something to twist his thinking. Though I must say, he didn't look mad in that photo in the Prophet and he looked decent enough in the photos Uncle Jerry has of him.
"Oh Harry, you'll have to be really, really careful," said Hermione. "Don't go looking for trouble…"
Harry cut her off with, "I don't go looking for trouble. Trouble usually finds me."
Ron made a comment about how thick Harry would have to be to look for Black and he and Hermione exchanged a few snide remarks at each other. I just leaned back in my seat, closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I didn't want anything to happen to Harry. He was one of the first friends I had in the wizarding world, the second one actually after Cedric. Harry and I shared a bond because we had lost our parents at early ages. Because we both had experienced that tragedy, it brought us closer together than it would most people. I couldn't let anything happen to him, I wouldn't.
"Leslie, are you all right?" asked a voice. It was Harry. He had scooted closer to me and was looking at me concernedly. He had lightly touched my hand with his fingertips too.
"I don't know if I'll be able to sleep this year," I whispered to him, glad that Ron and Hermione were still arguing. "I'll be up every night wondering where Black is and what's going through his head, how close he might be to you. I don't want anything to happen to you."
"Nothing's going to happen to me, I promise," he said, taking my hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze. I didn't believe him. I just looked at the floor and tried to pretend this wasn't happening. "Leslie, look at me," he said. I did and he continued, "nothing will happen. We'll get through this year as we have done before and all four of us will be fine." I gave a small smile and nodded at him. He smiled back and squeezed my hand again for comfort.
"Are you two lovebirds finished yet?" asked Ron in an annoyed voice.
Harry and I immediately scooted away from each other, but it was clear that Ron and Hermione had seen our little exchange and were watching us amusedly. Hermione elbowed Ron in the ribs for his remark, but it was too late to take it back. I suddenly realized that I had feelings developing for Harry, but I still had the feelings I'd always had for Cedric. I wasn't sure what to do. Fortunately, Ron began talking about Hogsmeade and we happily anticipated the village. Harry told us he wasn't allowed to come because he didn't get his permission form signed. Hermione and I thought that good with Black on the loose but Ron didn't.
Then, as we got closer to the school, the train suddenly stopped. A second later, all the lamps went out and we couldn't see anything. The compartment door opened and someone said, "does anyone know what's going on?" I recognized that voice instantly.
"Cedric, is that you?" I asked.
"Leslie?" he asked. His voice turned anxious as though he needed to see me there. "Where are you?"
My eyes were becoming accustomed to the dark by this point and I could see his hand reaching out, looking for me. "I'm right here," I said, taking his hand and pulling him over to sit down next to me. His arm came around my shoulders and he held my close. I turned my head to look at Harry and noticed that he was looking anywhere but right at the two of us and though I couldn't see his face in the dark, I knew he wasn't pleased that Cedric was here.
The train lurched again and when Ron looked out the window, he said he thought someone was coming aboard. Hermione went outside to see if she could ask the driver what was going on but she bumped into someone in the hall and came back in a second later with Ginny in tow. We were making an awful lot of noise bumping around in there and we woke up Professor Lupin. He held out a handful of flames which illuminated the entire compartment.
But then, the compartment door opened again and I froze in my seat. There was a figure wrapped in a long black cloak standing in the doorway, a hood draped over its face. It took a long ragged breath and overwhelming feelings of misery and sorrow flooded through me like waves crashing on the rocks. I felt every single bit of cheerfulness evaporate out of the compartment and I couldn't help but shiver. The creature turned its masked face towards me and I felt Cedric shift beside me, as though shielding me from this new foe.
I heard it take another ragged breath and I felt myself go limp in Cedric's arms. I heard a shout of "Leslie!" and another of "Harry!" before my eyes closed and I was sent to a completely different place.
I didn't recognize my surroundings immediately. I was in a forest, dark, damp, utterly silent. I knew I had been here before but nothing looked familiar. Then I heard a little girl shout, "Mummy, what do we do?"
I turned towards the voice and saw a beautiful young woman holding a blanket-wrapped bundle in one arm and the hand of a child in the other. The child had dark brown hair and she was more frightened than anything else. There was the sound of evil laughter and the woman looked over her shoulder to see what it was. She gasped, then turned back to the child.
"Elena," she said in a voice that I recognized instantly and made me gasp in shock. It was the voice I heard the night Harry, Ron and I went down into the Chamber of Secrets, the one I heard after I blacked out when the boulder cracked my back, the one that told me to hold on even when I wanted to give up. It was my mother's voice. I was in my old childhood nightmare, but this time, it felt more real than ever. She said, "Elena, there isn't time. You take your sister and keep running. Get someplace safe. I will find you, I promise."
Elena protested, but Mother just pushed her in the opposite direction and I heard Bellatrix say, "dear me, Lydia. Sending your daughters out into the wilderness all alone. What kind of mother are you?"
I was so angry at that, but I didn't have time to see more, for I was suddenly following my sister. Now I've told you, little diary, that before when I've had this dream, it's been shapes that's run past my eyes, blurred shapes. Not this time. I could clearly see the expression on Elena's face, her frightened countenance, her eyes darting back and forth seeking shelter, her chest heaving as she struggled to keep running. But she was only six years old and could not run far or fast.
Then there she was, that devil woman. Bellatrix Lestrange was walking slowly and calmly towards my sister, a look of amusement on her face. She wasn't moving quickly, yet with each step she seemed to cover more distance than Elena did in five. She was watching the child with a look that said she was enjoying watching her panic. But then, she raised her wand hand, said the words, "Avada Kedavra!" and a jet of green light shot from her wand. It hit Elena in the back and she gave a scream as she fell to the forest floor. She was dead before she hit the ground.
The blankets, which had my tiny body wrapped in them, fell out of her arms and rolled a few feet away, crying all the while. Then suddenly, it was as though I was a year old again, looking up from behind the blanket at the face of the woman who was about to kill me. She stood towering above me and raised her wand hand again. I heard the sound of a baby screaming and then I myself began screaming.
I sat bolt upright and gave a loud shriek of terror. I began breathing quickly, trying to hold back the nervous breakdown I was on the verge of having. But it didn't work and tears poured quickly down my face. I didn't register that I was not in my dream any longer, that I was on a moving train and there were people all around me. When I felt a hand on my shoulder, I jerked away and shouted, "don't touch me!"
"Leslie!" a voice shouted back, which broke through the panicked state I was in and instantly made me calm down a little, Cedric's voice. It was his hand that was still on my shoulder and was gently pushing me down so that I was lying on my back on the seat in our train compartment. He had conjured a damp cloth out of thin air and was now sponging my forehead, wiping away my tears.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
I shook my head. It was a moment before I was able to speak. "I….I w…was in my nightm…mare, the one I…I've h…had s…since I was a ch…child, b…but I c…could see all the e…events. I w…watched m…my sister d…die. It was so awful!" I burst into more tears at that.
"Shh…" whispered Cedric. "It's over. It was just a dream. That creature is gone."
I heard the sound of something snap and I jumped. Professor Lupin was sitting in the corner breaking a large bar of chocolate into pieces. The others were all sitting there looking shell shocked. Harry looked as bad as me, but he wasn't having a panic attack. He passed the chocolate out to everyone and said to eat. He then came over to sit next to me.
"It's all right, my dear," he said. "Have a drink of this." He was holding what looked to be a glass of brandy. I remember Uncle Jerry had given me brandy a couple times before whenever I had had a terrible shock. I closed my eyes and sipped it. As it went down my throat, I could feel my nerves lessen and I felt myself relax. Professor Lupin made me drink the entire glass, then gave me an especially large piece of chocolate. Later, I thought Lupin looked familiar, but I couldn't quite place the face. At that moment, I was just concerned with forgetting what had just happened.
"You should go straight up to the hospital wing when we get to the school," he said. "That dementor affected you worse than everyone else."
"Dementor?" I asked. "That was a dementor?" I had heard about these creatures, but didn't think they'd be that terrifying.
"What's a dementor?" asked Hermione.
"One of the guards of Azkaban, it was searching the train for Sirius Black," replied Lupin. "If you'll excuse me, I need to have a little word with the driver." He paused as he reached the door and said, "eat, you'll feel better."
I took a bite of the chocolate and somehow, it calmed me down more than the brandy did. I felt warmth rush through me and I was able to take a deep breath, which made Cedric visibly relax.
"Leslie," said Harry's voice. "Are you all right?"
I shook my head, then asked, "did I faint?"
"You didn't just faint, you collapsed," said Ron, but he was stopped by an elbow to the rib from Hermione. "You went limp and fell back against the seat. If it makes you feel any better, Harry passed out too." I looked over at Harry and he nodded.
"Who was screaming?" Harry asked suddenly. "Before I woke up, I heard someone screaming."
"No one was screaming, Harry, that is until Leslie screamed," said Hermione. She thought something was wrong with him, but I knew what kinds of things dementors could do and I knew what Harry had heard was a woman screaming years ago and the memory had been forced to the surface of his mind.
"You were much worse though, Leslie," said Cedric. "Harry went rigid, then unconscious, but he woke up after a moment. You collapsed, then started fidgeting and whimpering. It got worse as the moments progressed, even after the dementor had gone, you didn't get any better. Then you jerked awake on your own."
"You were talking too," said Ginny. "But it was just incoherent mumbling most of the time."
"Most of the time?" I asked. "What did I say that was coherent?"
Ginny and Hermione exchanged a look and Hermione replied, "you kept repeating small phrases like 'run faster,' 'don't leave me,' and 'don't kill her.' We couldn't understand the rest." She paused a minute, then said, "after you woke up, you said something about an old childhood nightmare. What were you talking about?"
I remembered then that I still hadn't told Harry, Ron, and Hermione about my nightmare. I also remembered the conversation Harry and I had had the previous term after I had shouted at Ron. Harry had said he was hurt that I confided in Cedric so much and the rest of them so little. I still had yet to tell them tons of things about myself, but I knew I wouldn't be able to talk about it now.
"Please, Hermione," I said, my voice still quivering. "Please not now."
"Of course, I'm sorry," said Hermione looking down.
We reached the school a short while later and Harry and Cedric both helped me down from the compartment. I saw them giving each other death glares, but I was too exhausted to deal with them tonight. As we approached the carriages that would take us to the school, Draco Malfoy made some comment about how Harry had fainted, which made Harry unnecessarily angry. The last thing we needed was for a fight to break out on the first night back.
When we got to the entrance hall, Professor McGonagall stopped Harry, Hermione and I as we were about to go into the Great Hall for dinner. She said she wanted a word with all three of us. I looked at Cedric, mouthed, "see you later," and followed the others up the stairs and to Professor McGonagall's office.
"Now Mr. Potter, Professor Lupin sent an owl ahead and said that you and Miss Angkatell were both taken ill on the train, something to do with the dementor," she said.
"Please Professor," said Harry. "We're both all right."
"That is a matter of opinion, Potter," said Professor McGonagall. "For while you appear to be in good health, Miss Angkatell looks as though she is about to come apart at the seams."
It was true. I was feeling better than I had been on the train, but I still wanted to just lie down and go to bed. There was a knock at the door and Madam Pomfrey, the nurse, came in and began fussing over Harry and I. She agreed after a moment that Harry could go down to the feast, but she considered having me spend tonight in the hospital wing.
"Please Madam Pomfrey," I said. "I just want to go upstairs to my dormitory and go to sleep. I don't want to be fussed over."
"No," she said. "You will come with me now."
I sighed and followed her out of the office, the door closing as Professor McGonagall was beginning to say something to Hermione about her course schedule. We walked up to the hospital wing together and she gestured towards one of the beds. I went over to it and sat down. She came back a minute later with some more chocolate, even though I had explained to her that I'd already had some, and stood over me to make sure I ate it. I was still very shaken from what I had been through and really just wanted to go to sleep.
Madam Pomfrey went to get me a sedative and as I was pulling back the covers to get in bed, the doors of the hospital wing burst open and Uncle Jerry dashed inside, panic etched all over his face. His eyes darted about the room and when they landed on me, he ran as quickly as he could over to me.
"Leslie," he said, enveloping me in his arms. "Darling, are you all right?"
"I'm fine, Uncle Jerry," I said. "How did you know something was wrong and how did you get here so quickly?" If Professor McGonagall had written to him, surely an owl wouldn't have gotten to him this quickly. I'd only left her office a few minutes before.
"I knew Remus Lupin from school," he said. "After the events on the train, he sent his owl up to the school and he sent a message for me by way of a very complicated spell, so complicated most wizards don't attempt it. I won't go into the details now, but it got the message there more quickly than an owl ever would have. When I read it, all I could think of was how much that dementor might have hurt you. So, I apparated into the village of Hogsmeade and ran the rest of the way here. Professor McGonagall was waiting for me at the entrance to the grounds and she told me you were up here. My dear, what happened?"
"Can't you leave the story 'til morning?" came the sharp voice of Madam Pomfrey. "She needs rest. She can tell you everything after she's had time to recover."
"Putting her to sleep won't make it any better," argued Uncle Jerry. "It's better that she just gets it over with now."
"Please Uncle Jerry," I said and I felt fresh tears begin to fall down my face. "Please, I can't go through it again tonight."
He softened at the look on my face, nodded his head in resolve and said, "all right. We'll leave it until morning then. Lie back now and try to relax." I did as he said and he pulled the covers up over me, though I knew he wanted to know what had transpired right then.
Madam Pomfrey came forward then with a bottle in her hand. "You'll need to drink all of this," she said. "It's a potion for dreamless sleep. You should feel just fine in the morning."
"Can my uncle stay with me tonight?" I asked. She nodded and I reached out to take the bottle from her. I uncorked it and swallowed the contents of it in a few sips. I immediately felt drowsy and I let my head fall back against the pillow and my eyes closed. I felt Uncle Jerry take the bottle from me, kiss my forehead and whisper, "good night, darling," before I fell into a deep sleep. I slept more soundly than I'd ever had in my life and it felt as though I had just closed my eyes when I opened them again to find the sun streaming through the windows at the other end of the hospital wing. Uncle Jerry was asleep in the next bed over, but I could tell he wasn't sleeping peacefully. I gave a small cough and he was awake in an instant.
"Leslie, how do you feel?" he asked anxiously.
"I'm all right, Uncle Jerry," I replied. It was true, I felt much better after a good night's sleep and I felt ready to go to class, but whether I could go or not was for the nurse to decide. When she came out though, she said I should be well enough to go to class. I was about to tell Uncle Jerry what had happened the night before when the doors opened and Harry, Ron and Hermione came in.
"Mr. Angkatell," said Hermione. "What are you doing here?"
"Professor Lupin sent me a message saying Leslie had been taken ill and I came at once," he replied. "I've been here all night, but I must say you're looking better, Leslie."
"Thanks," I said.
"We brought you some breakfast and your schedule," said Hermione, handing them out to me. I eagerly took the toast and bacon she'd brought and ate quickly. I then looked over my schedule and saw that today was mostly new subjects. I had Arithmancy at 9:00 and Care of Magical Creatures at 2:00. Ron snatched Hermione's schedule out of her hand and handed it to me.
"Look at it!" he said in disbelief. "They've got her down for ten subjects a day. She has three subjects at 9:00 this morning. How is she going to be able to do that? Can one of you explain that?" He looked at Uncle Jerry and I, obviously expecting an answer.
I said, "Hermione, this is ridiculous. A schedule like this is going to drive you mad. How will you manage it?"
She just said simply, "don't worry, I will."
"You'll have to work extra hard then," said Uncle Jerry. "Just make sure to have some downtime, else you really will lose all your sanity."
"I'll have downtime," said Hermione, but the look on her face said she hadn't thought of that and was now wondering if she would get time to relax that year.
Uncle Jerry then turned to me and said, "you'd better get going, you need to get your books and go to class. But I've gotten permission from Professor McGonagall to take you to dinner tonight out of school. I want to talk to you, Leslie. I'll meet you in the entrance hall at 6:00."
I nodded and said, "all right. I'll see you then." I got out of bed and dashed up to Gryffindor Tower to get my notebook, after getting the password from Harry, and then found the Arithmancy classroom, getting there at five 'til 9:00. Just as I got there, Hermione appeared panting at the other end of the hall. She hurried over and we entered together.
"Why aren't you in Divination with Harry and Ron?" I asked. "You have Muggle Studies too now, don't you?"
"Don't worry, Leslie," she said. "I've got it all sorted out."
I knew better than to ask questions, but I had to admit it was suspicious. How could she be so laid back about this? But she changed the subject pretty easily.
"Did you know Hagrid's the next Care of Magical Creatures teacher?" she asked.
"Really?" I asked. "Oh, that should make for an interesting first lesson."
"It should," she agreed. "I'm looking forward to seeing how Professor Lupin teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts."
"As long as he isn't like Lockhart, I'm fine," I said.
Hermione was about to retort, but luckily Professor Vector came in and the lesson started. Arithmancy is a fascinating subject, but it's difficult. I think I'm going to enjoy it.
Hermione and I went downstairs together to meet Harry and Ron for Transfiguration. Something strange happened then. As we turned into the corridor, I saw Harry and Ron at the other end and Hermione was with them. I looked at them in shock and turned around to look at her, but she was no longer by my side. I hurried down to meet them and said to her, "how did you do that?"
"Do what?" she asked.
"Get to the other end of the corridor. A moment ago, you were right next to me."
"No I wasn't," she said. I just shrugged and entered the room with them. Everyone seemed a little subdued and I wondered what was wrong. Hermione and I were the only people who paid attention to what Professor McGonagall was saying about Animagi and she did ask what was wrong.
"Please Professor," said Hermione. "We've just come from our first Divination class and…"
"Ah, of course," Professor McGonagall cut her off. "There's no need to explain any more, Miss Granger. Tell me, which of you will be dying this year?"
I looked at her in surprise and then I turned to Harry in shock when he answered that he would be dying. Professor McGonagall then went on to explain that Professor Trelawney has predicted the death of one student a year since she arrived at the school. You're in no danger, Mr. Potter, I assure you."
After we had sat down to eat lunch, Harry explained to me that they had been reading tea leaves and Professor Trelawney had seen the Grim in his cup. I knew what the Grim was, of course, but I had never believed in it myself. It was obvious that everyone else in that class believed in it though, everyone that is, except Hermione.
"I think Divination seems very wooly, a lot of guesswork if you ask me," she said.
But then Ron made a comment about how she didn't like being bad at something and she retorted back that Divination was absolute rubbish compared with Arithmancy and she left.
"What's she talking about?" he asked. "She hasn't been to an Arithmancy class yet."
"Yes she has," I said. "That's why I was so surprised to see her with you and to hear that she had been in Divination with you. She was in Arithmancy the entire time with me."
"What?" said Harry and Ron together.
"She was in another class at the same time as she was with us?" asked Harry. I nodded.
"How did she do that?" asked Ron.
"I don't know," I answered. "As we went into the classroom, I asked her why she wasn't with the two of you, but she just said she had everything under control. She's hiding something."
"We'll figure out what it is," said Harry. "Let's eat and head down to Care of Magical Creatures."
The day got worse though when we found that we had to take that class with the Slytherins. Malfoy made a comment about how none of us could open our books and that brought Hagrid's morale down a bit because none of us thought the books were funny. He brought a creature called a hippogriff over to see us, half horse, half bird and its name was Buckbeak. Harry volunteered to come a bit closer, bowed to it and when Buckbeak bowed back, Harry was allowed to go up and pet him. Hagrid then lifted Harry onto the creature's back and they flew over the school grounds. I could hear Harry's exhilarated shout and I knew he was enjoying himself.
But after they had landed, Malfoy shoved his way forward and called Buckbeak a great ugly brute. Hagrid had specifically said not to insult him and it was obvious Malfoy hadn't been paying attention. Buckbeak's talons slashed across Malfoy's arm and blood started to spread over his robes. Hagrid took him up to the hospital and the Slytherins began berating him while we tried to argue for Hagrid.
"Well, you can't say it wasn't an interesting first day back," said Ron.
That evening, I met my uncle in the entrance hall at 6:00 as arranged and we went into Hogsmeade for dinner. As we walked down to the gates, there were two dementors sort of hovering there. Their hooded faces turned towards us and I felt that wash of hopelessness again. In an instant, I was back in my nightmare, but before I could get too caught up in it, Uncle Jerry picked me up in his arms and carried me down the path to the village. Once away from the dementors, the memory wasn't as strong, but I didn't recover from the misery that quickly. Halfway there, he stopped, set me down on his knee and held some smelling salts under my nose. I was still a little dizzy, but a few whiffs of that and I was all right again.
"Are you all right, my dear?" he asked.
I nodded that I was, but I still took a moment to clear my head. Uncle Jerry kept an arm around me and helped me the rest of the way into the village. When we got to the Three Broomsticks, he ordered me a large mug of butterbeer and after a few sips of it, I felt a lot better. We got some food there and I finally told him what had happened on the train the previous night.
"Good God," he muttered, bringing one hand up to rub his forehead. "I know what dementors do to a person, but I didn't think they'd affect you that badly."
"They affected Harry as well," I said. "He fainted too. I don't know what he saw in his mind's eye."
"Ask him about it the first chance you get," said Uncle Jerry. "You two might be able to find a way to beat this together. But that's the other problem. Every entrance to the castle is being guarded by dementors."
"What?" I asked in disbelief. "Are you serious?"
"I'm afraid so, my darling," he said. "They're guarding the school in case Sirius Black tries to break in."
"He won't try to break into Hogwarts, would he?"
"If he can break out of Azkaban, he can break into Hogwarts, and it is the belief of most people in the Ministry, that he will try to break in. You know about the reason he broke out, I suppose."
"Yes, Harry told us on the train," I said. "I don't understand. What does he hope to accomplish by killing Harry?"
"Harry, in Black's opinion, is the only thing standing in the way of Voldemort returning to power," said Uncle Jerry, whispering so that people around us wouldn't hear him say the Dark Lord's name. "Killing him will ensure there is nothing stopping Voldemort's return."
"Is there any news of where Black is at the moment?" I asked.
"He was last sighted just outside of London. We don't know where he is now."
"I'm so frightened, Uncle Jerry."
"You have good cause to be, darling. Now look at me." I did and his face had taken on the most serious expression I had ever seen. "Mr. Weasley made Harry promise not to go looking for Black, no matter what he might hear. If Harry does decide to go looking for him though, promise me you'll do everything in your power to discourage him. Look after him please."
Just as I had on the train to Munich, I got the impression that there was something Uncle Jerry wasn't telling me. I also had the feeling that the answer was staring me in the face, but I didn't have enough clues to figure out what it was yet. I said, "Uncle Jerry, why should Harry go looking for Black?"
"I won't tell you now," said Uncle Jerry. "But he might hear something that would make him forget his promise. Just promise me you'll look after him." I nodded my head, but I knew he was still hiding something.
We went back up to the castle together and Uncle Jerry left me in the entrance hall. He kissed me goodbye and said to write if I needed anything. I went back up to Gryffindor Tower and to the girl's dormitory. It took me a long time to do the homework Professor McGonagall had assigned, but I got it done and went to bed. Hermione came in after awhile and said that she, Harry and Ron had been down to see Hagrid and just as we thought, Lucius Malfoy was raising a ruckus, demanding an inquiry. I sighed at that. Madam Pomfrey could heal cuts in a second, so we all knew that Draco was exaggerating pain in his arm, but we couldn't prove it.
I went to bed soon after that, but I couldn't sleep. Even hours into the night when knew Hermione, Parvati and Lavender were asleep, I couldn't drift off. I knew there was something I was missing and I couldn't figure out what it was. Uncle Jerry had deliberately hid something from me and I knew I wouldn't be satisified until it came to me. Then, just as I felt myself beginning to drift off, I sat bolt upright, remembering something Uncle Jerry had told me once and if I remember rightly, I told you once, little diary. James Potter had been a fantastic Quidditch player and his three friends Peter, Remus and Sirius had always cheered him on.
"Sirius isn't a very common name," I said to myself. "And the few photos we have of him are with a large group of people, but he's standing close to James Potter. And oh my God…"
I suddenly remembered why Professor Lupin had looked so familiar to me. I had seen a younger version of him in the pictures with Sirius and James. The three of them were at school together and there was a fourth member, Peter Pettigrew. Uncle Jerry had told me stories about the trouble they'd all get into together. They were notorious around the school apparently.
"And Lily Evans married James Potter," I thought. "She tried to avoid his group, but she eventually married him. And because Mother was such good friends with her, she would've known everything. And when Mum became close to Dad, she would've told him, probably not everything, but a few details anyway and he would've told Uncle Jerry. Whatever he's hiding from me has to do with the Potters. Imagine how brokenhearted Mum was when she found out Lily was dead, it must've been devastating to her and James when they found out Sirius was a traitor and a killer. But why would that prompt Harry to go looking for Black?" It took me a minute, then I realized, "unless he had something to do with their death."
I immediately got out a quill and a piece of paper and wrote a letter to Uncle Jerry outlining my suspicions. I got a whistle out of my bedside table, opened the window and blew on the whistle. It was ultrasonic, meaning I couldn't hear it, but a moment later, Ibbett appeared at the window, wondering why I had interrupted his sleep.
"I'm sorry if I disturbed your rest, but this is urgent," I whispered to him. "Take this to Uncle Jerry and stay there until you have a response." He gave a sleepy hoot and flew off.
This morning, I got a response from Uncle Jerry at breakfast. I didn't dare read it at the table in case one of the others looked over my shoulder, but instead tucked it in my bag. I saw Harry looking at me curiously, but I pretended it was nothing. I went to class with the others and when I was sure I was alone, I read the contents of the letter. It confirmed all my suspicions, but told me something worse. Lily and James Potter had gone into hiding from Voldemort and Sirius had betrayed them to him, told him where they were. It was because of Black that they're dead. Uncle Jerry had also told me to swear that I wouldn't tell Harry of this development. I couldn't not tell him, he has a right to know what this man did. But I knew that if Harry knew of this, he would go searching for Black and that was something we all wanted to avoid. So I wrote back and said that I wouldn't tell him, though I didn't feel good about it. I didn't want to keep something like this a secret from Harry, but I was going to do what my uncle told me.
Then something else occurred to me. I didn't say this in my letter to Uncle Jerry, but it can't be a coincidence that Remus Lupin is at Hogwarts this year. As he's an old friend of Black's, perhaps he's helping or is going to help Black get into the castle. I don't know what to do or whom to trust. My only comfort is that Dumbledore wouldn't have let Lupin take the teaching job if he thought he was a traitor. But what if Dumbledore's been fooled or hexed?
What do I do, little diary? I don't want Harry to get hurt and Uncle Jerry doesn't want me to tell anyone about this discovery. I told my uncle I wouldn't say anything and I won't back down on that promise, but what if Harry finds out on his own from someone else? If he finds out I knew about this, he won't forgive me. What do I do?
Hoping you have a more pleasant few weeks than I'm going to.
Love,
Leslie
Author's Note: All right, so that's the first chapter of Prisoner of Azkaban. What did you guys think? It only just occurred to me this morning to put in that section about Leslie figuring out how Sirius is related to the Potter's death. Of course, Malfoy knows and when he taunts Harry about it in Potions in the next chapter, he's going to see that Leslie knows and is going to taunt her as well. I don't know what all's going to be in the next chapter yet.
If you remember from the AN in the last chapter, I had a poll on my profile page about an alternate ending that puts Leslie with Harry. I think I am going to write that. Since I started writing this, I really want Leslie to end up with Harry, but I already promised everyone that she would end up with Cedric, so I'm going to write both. That's what most people voted on, so that's what I'm going to do. I'll try not to take so long with the next chapter. Stay tuned!