Dementors
"So, I blew up Aunt Marge," Harry said, petting Crookshanks, who had wandered over to his lap. He was currently sitting next to Hermione on the Hogwarts Express, giving Dragon a quick rundown of third year.
"I ran into you," the boy continued, "though I thought you were just a scary, dark figure. You don't make very good first impressions, do you?"
"Must run in the family," Draco said, staring into the dog's brown eyes. Dragon barked. Harry laughed and nodded.
Hermione's eyes widened. "Sh!" She glanced over at Remus. The man was leaning against the window, snoring. "We can't wake up Professor Lupin."
"You seriously believe we can wake him up? He's out cold."
"Still…"
"Anyway," Harry said, ignoring the bickering couple, "I accidently hailed the Knight Bus…"
"Wait," Draco held up his hand, "how do you accidently hail the Knight Bus?"
Harry shrugged.
"I have no idea. I am about as muggle as they come when it concerns knowledge of magic. Someone had the great idea to take me out of my home, plop me into the magical world, and expect me to figure it out." He rubbed his eyes. "I find that most of the time when I do the right thing, it is totally by accident."
"How in the world is hailing the Knight Bus ever the right thing?" Draco muttered, scowling.
"It's better than being attacked by a mass murderer." Sirius whined, causing Remus to stir. Everyone froze, waiting until the man settled back down before continuing. "Sorry, Dragon, but that was everyone's thought process back then, even mine."
"But that is all beside the point." Hermione pulled Crookshanks back onto her lap. "The Weasleys and I came back from our holidays and went to Diagon Alley to get our things. We stayed the night at the Leaky Cauldron, and that was when the Weasleys told Harry about you."
"How did the Weasleys get enough money to go on holiday, you ask?" Green eyes sparkled. "They won a lottery at Mr. Weasley's job."
Draco straightened. "Ooh, Ooh. May I insult him again? May I? May I? May I?"
Hermione rolled her eyes and Harry smirked.
"Sure, Ferret, whatever floats your boat." Dragon cocked his head. "Oh, you wanna know why I call him Ferret? Well, a fake Mad-Eye Moody turned him into a ferret for a short period of time. But that's a tale for another time." Harry turned to his friend. "You know, you made quite a cute ferret, Draco."
"I didn't know I was your type, Scarhead," the blond said, winking.
Harry smirked.
"Well, actually, I didn't mention that the first time around. Hermione…"
The girl in question slapped a hand over the mouth of the boy-who-lived.
"What Harry was trying to say, is that you know he has his eye on another blonde. This one is female and in Ravenclaw."
Dragon perked his head, and Harry blushed. He opened his mouth to complain but stopped, tilting his head.
"We should go find Luna. We haven't seen her since the train ride home." The boy pouted. "She didn't come when I called on the communicators."
Hermione sighed. "What a relief! She could've found out…" The girl's eyes narrowed. "Harry, did you want to tell her about the whole time travel thing?"
The boy averted his eyes. "Maybe."
The carriage door slid open. "Hello all!"
The trio jumped, swiveling to find Luna standing in the doorway, smiling. They peeked at each other through the corner of their eyes. How had the young girl known they were talking about her? Had she placed an alarm on her name like Voldemort?
"I trust you all had a safe holiday and the wrackspurts didn't ruin it," the blonde said, flopping down next to Draco. She placed her glasses on her nose, looking over at Remus. "Oh no," she gasped. "He's tormented by them."
Hermione scrunched her nose, staring at their professor. "Really?"
"Who is he?" Luna asked, pointing to Sirius.
"Oh, this is Dragon," Harry said, petting his head. "He's my dog. I got him this year over holiday." He pointed to the girl. "Dragon, this is Luna, our friend. She's someone we don't attack."
Luna smiled. She opened her father's magazine and turned it upside down to read.
"Anyway," Hermione said, lowering her voice, "Mr. Weasley warned Harry that there was a mass murderer after him who'd betrayed his parents. Harry went to Hogwarts, and everyone treated him like he was fragile. They wouldn't allow him to go to Hogsmeade. They didn't allow him outside alone. He felt strangled."
Harry scowled. "I can speak for myself, you know." He crossed his arms. "I ended up sneaking off anyway. I used Dad's invisibility cloak to escape to Hogsmeade."
"So that's who threw mud at me," Draco said, glaring.
Harry rolled his eyes. "Yes, but admit it. You deserved it."
The blond huffed. "But…well…yeah." He sighed. "But that was still a new robe."
"I'm sorry, Princess Malfoy." The boy-who-lived laughed as he dodged the blond's slap. "The twins gave me the Marauder's Map and taught me how to use it…"
Sirius popped into his human form, eyes wide.
"What? Who are these twins? How did they find it? Did they use it right? Did they use it well?"
The trio gaped.
"Padfoot," Harry hissed, his voice squeaking with awkward hormonal voice changes. He snuck a peek at Luna.
The young Ravenclaw looked up, shrugged, and went back to her magazine. Hermione's jaw dropped, and her brows knit together. How could anyone not react to finding an escaped convict in their carriage? Had she briefly gone blind?
The young Gryffindor girl motioned to Sirius, and the man quickly transformed back into his animagus form. They waited a minute, preparing for the moment of dawning recognition, but the young blonde never freaked out.
"Luna, what did you see when you looked up?" Hermione asked finally, her brow creased.
"Sirius Black with blond hair seemingly excited over some map," she said, not looking up from her magazine. All three gaped. She finally tore her attention away from the paper. "What? I'm loony, not stupid. You guys talk about a previous timeline every time I see you. I can put two and two together." She shrugged. "If it helps, I won't tell anyone you're time travelers, or that you're harboring a supposed fugitive. I figure if all that was said was true about him, Harry would be dead by now."
"Hi, I'm Sirius Black. Are you the cute, blonde Ravenclaw I've heard all about?" the animagus asked, once again in human form.
Harry turned bright red. Luna giggled.
"Yes, I suppose I am." She held out her hand. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Black."
The man smiled. "And you as well."
"I hope you enjoy your stay in Gryffindor tower."
Remus stirred again, and everyone froze.
"Ugh," Draco said quietly, hugging his arms. "Did anyone reserve a spot in the icebox?" He puffed, a small stream of breath visibly spewing from his mouth.
Green eyes widened.
"No," Harry said, trembling. The windows began to freeze, and Sirius popped back into a dog.
Hermione pulled out her wand. "Expecto Patro…"
"Are you insane?" Draco hissed, grabbing her wand. The girl scowled. "Most adult wizards can't do that spell. How are you going to explain a third year muggleborn's ability to cast a corporeal patronus?"
Harry's head snapped to the side. "Not my Harry…" someone was screaming. His eyes locked onto a black robe, and his trembling increased.
"Harry!"
The boy opened his eyes. When had he shut them? He grabbed his head, his temples throbbing. His eyes blinked, and his mentor came into view.
"Oh, Harry," the man said, grabbing the boy up into a hug. "Are you okay? I've never seen someone react so poorly to them." He pulled the boy to arm's length, checking all over for signs of harm.
"Well, sir," Luna said, smiling sadly, "he has been through a lot. He has almost as many wrackspurts following him as you do."
Harry smiled. He sat up slowly, using Dragon as a support. The dog panted, eagerly licking his hands and neck. The boy glared teasingly at his three friends, who couldn't help but laugh at the marauders.
Remus sighed. "Are you alright?" The boy nodded. "The dementors came before I could stop them. I need to tell Dumbledore to keep them away from you. Imagine if you'd been on your broom when this happened."
"I know, Remus."
The man pulled out some chocolate, handing it to Harry. Dragon tried to snatch it, but Remus stopped him, batting him on the nose. "No, chocolate isn't good for dogs."
Sirius whined and cowed, but accepted his fate.
The DADA professor stood. "Well, Harry, we're almost to Hogsmeade. Go get your robes on and then come with me." The man gathered his things. "I want you to get a basic health exam once we get to Hogwarts."
"What?" Harry asked, grimacing. "Why?"
"Most people do not faint when they come in contact with a dementor." The man shook his head. "I want to ensure this has nothing to do with the neglect you receive at home."
The boy crossed his arms. "No. I don't need an exam."
"Harry…"
"Seriously, Moony, I'm fine."
"This isn't a request."
The boy shook his head. "You won't get me to go willingly."
"Fine," the man sighed. "I was hoping to do this the easy way." He flicked his wand and ropes flew around Harry, encompassing the boy. "Levicorpus."
Remus took the bound boy and floated him up to the castle, much to the boy's distress.
"To be fair," Hermione said, turning to Draco as they walked behind the wolf and his charge, "Professor Lupin did give him the choice to go willingly."
Draco snickered. They paused in the atrium, watching the three make their way to the hospital wing.
McGonagall walked up and stood next to them. She stared at the mutt prancing happily next to Harry and Remus and scowled.
"Who is that?" she asked with disdain. "And why is Professor Lupin levitating Mr. Potter down the hall?"
"Harry refused to go to the hospital wing. Momma Bear took matters into his own hands." Draco smirked. "And that's Dragon, Harry's dog."
Her scowl deepened. "And we allow dogs now at Hogwarts?"
"You allow Lupin," Draco muttered under his breath.
Professor McGonagall's eyes widened and she quickly shook her head. She'd come over here for a reason.
"Miss Granger, will you come with me, please?"
Hermione stared at her Head of House. "Of course, Professor."
The two walked toward Professor McGonagall's office.
Draco quirked a brow. "I can only imagine what that is about."
He shrugged and walked away. It wasn't his concern. Right now, his stomach told him it was dinner time. He'd force his friends to give him the details later.
