DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter does not belong to me but to our beloved J.K Rowling

AN: As always, I welcome your reviews and critiques. Caio for now!

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

STALK, MUCH?!

Neville was in the Gryffindor common, playing chess with Dean when he like he was being watched. Looking up, he found Ron and Hermione staring back at him. Having been caught staring, they both gave him a small tentative smile.

Their interaction since Ginny and the duo had ambushed him under the tree had been like this. Randomly making eye contact and then having to exchange small awkward smiles from across the room. The duo have also gone back to whispering and darting cautious looks at him whenever he walks into a room. That part was starting to grate on his nerves.

"Mate, are you going to continue to ignore them? They miss you" Dean whispered when he saw his friend scowling at the duo.

"Leave it be, Dean…I don't want to talk about them" Neville replied through clench teeth. He had been getting more and more of his friends trying to interfere but he was just done with it all. He didn't even know how he felt about the since their last conversation. He meant what he had said when he had told them that he forgave them but didn't trust them. He just didn't know where to go from there with their friendship.

Meanwhile, Hermione notice Neville's scowl at them had dropped her gaze. She frowned as she remembered Dumbledore's instructions to make up with Neville.

"Ron, there is something strange about Dumbledore being that personally invested in our relationship with Neville, don't you think?" she asked nudging him in the ribs gently with her elbow.

"Huh?" Ron began as he reluctantly dragged his eyes away from Lavender. "Why do you think that's strange? It is probably because he knows how close we used to be."

"There are a lot of students who were close and have fallen out and I don't see the headmaster taking a special interest in their friendship" Hermione shook her head in frustration. "It is strange, Ron"

"Hey, do you think he yelled at Neville too, to make up with us?" Ron asked as he looked forlornly over at where Neville was sat playing chess.

"That's a good question"

Somewhere in London…

He smiled as he listened to the man scream and writhe in pain as snot dripped from his nose.

"I do not know where he lives, I promise" the man screamed as his tears and snot mingled together.

"I put you in charge of monitoring Sirius Black and see where he goes at the end of the day from work and you dare tell that you don't know" he hissed in anger.

"He disapparates right from the Atrium at the Ministry after he is done for the day…it is quite difficult to trace a person after they disapparate"

"Crucio!"

He laughed as he watched the man scream in pain.

Harry grunted as he swung at the punching bag that hung from the ceiling. He kept up the pace repeatedly until he heard someone cough from behind him. Instinctively, he nonverbally threw a levitation spell at the intruder as he swung around to face the person before having whoever it was flung against the padded walls.

"Blimey pup! What was that for?" Sirius asked sounding a little winded as he got up.

"Oh sorry, Sirius…you startled me" Harry apologised before give his godfather a look. "You shouldn't have snuck up on though"

"I didn't" Sirius said as he rubbed his backside. "I was standing behind you for a while hoping you'd notice my presence but you seemed so engrossed in beating up the punching bag that I had to attract your attention"

"Oh!" was the only response, Sirius got back.

"Are you alright pup?" Sirius asked tentatively as he watched the boy begin to rewrap his hand in some tape and gauze. Before he had interrupted him, the boy had been punching the bag really hard, almost like he was taking out his frustrations on the bag.

"It's nothing, Padfoot…just stressed"

"Ok, just wanted to let you know that I am off to work but I'm going to be home a bit later today"

"Ok"

With one last concerned glance at the boy, Sirius left the gym.

Harry continued to work out his frustrations on the bag before switching to duelling with the duelling dummy which surprisingly helped take his mind off his worries as he had to concentrate or the dummy would knock him flat out.

Wiping his sweaty face with a towel as he stepped into his bathroom, he thought of the reason for his frustration. He had had a meeting with the teachers at the Merlin school and while the headmistress had agreed that his ideas for improving the school were great, some of the teachers were still being resistant. He suspected that it had to do with the fact that they weren't happy with the idea that he owned the school.

He had discussed the problem with the headmistress who kept promising that the teachers will eventually come around to the idea, which he highly doubted. Lucas had suggested firing those who keep opposing and antagonising him. He couldn't do that as he didn't want to be the reason someone loses their source of income. Mad-Eye Moody had suggested challenging one of the stubborn teachers to a duel, which he thought was barbaric.

"If you win in the duel against one of the strongest teachers, they would no longer see you as just a child that they had previously been teachers to" Mad-Eye had advised after their training.

"But wouldn't that just alienate them more?" he had asked with a frown.

"Harry, they are already alienated but at least this way you'd gain their respect"

"Or their fear and hate" he said under his breath.

He didn't want to have to resort to challenging his own staff to a duel but he really was at his wit's end.

Sirius was headed to his office when he felt someone's presence behind him. Looking behind, he saw no one. He held his wand tightly in one hand as he began to walk faster while keeping his ears perked up for any sounds.

He suspected that whoever was stalking him had a disillusionment charm to prevent Sirius from seeing the person. He turned right into a long hallway and plastered himself against the wall as he quietly listened to the stalker's footsteps get closer. As the footstep sound got close enough, he hit the person with a stunning spell, catching the person unaware and unable to put up any defense. As soon as the stunning spell hit the man, the disillusionment charm wore off enabling him to see the man underneath the charm. Quickly, he apparated with the stunned person straight into his office.

As soon as he was in his office, he sent a quick patronus message. With a quick spell and a flick of his wrist, he had the stalker tightly bound in ropes and also cast a muffliato charm around the office.

He watched as the stalker slowly came around after casting the reviving spell.

"Who are you? And why have you been stalking me?" he asked as he pointed his wand in the man's face.

The man flinched but didn't say a word in response.

Just then, Tonks walked in while quickly shutting the door behind her.

"I got your message and came as fast as I could…" she stopped as she took in the man lying on the floor tightly bound in ropes.

"I found him stalking me" Sirius said as she looked up at him in question. "He wouldn't tell me who sent him though"

Just then, he heard a knock on the door. Opening it, he took in the young man with full beard and red hair but immediately recognised the bright forest green eyes twinkling mischievously at him.

"Who's he?" Tonks asked in a whisper.

"Oh, it's Harry" Sirius replied, "I sent him a message as soon as the incident happened."

"Wotcher, Harry!" Tonks greeted with a smile.

Harry smiled back in response before turning his attention towards the stranger who as soon as he had heard Sirius mention his name, had gasped.

"He looks familiar actually" Tonks said as she had also diverted her attention back to the man. "Doesn't he work in the pest advisory bureau?"

"He does?" Sirius asked, still not taking his eyes off the perpetrator.

"Yes, his name is John something…can't remember his last name"

Harry, however, was still staring intently at the man. He wasn't even paying attention to the conversation between his godfather and Tonks.

"I brought the truth potion you asked for, Padfoot" Harry said still not taking his eyes off the man on the floor while effectively ending his godfather's conversation with Tonks.

As he took the small vial from his son, Sirius frowned at how intensely Harry seemed to be staring at the man.

After forcing about three drops of potion down the man's throat, they stood back and watched as the man's face became slack and his gaze, Harry noticed, became even more unfocused that it was before.

"Can you hear me?" Sirius asked as he peered at the man.

"Yes" he murmured.

"Why were you stalking me?" Sirius asked softly.

"Because I was told to hit you with a stunning spell and bring with me" the man replied in a flat and expressionless voice.

"Who sent you to get me?"

"I don't know, but I was supposed to bring you to the meeting spot" the man said.

Sirius and Tonks exchanged confused looks. Harry, however, just smiled. His suspicions were correct.

"He is under an Imperius curse" he explained to his godfather and Tonks as they had looked even more confused by his smile. "I already suspected but this just confirmed my suspicions"

With a nod, Sirius turned back to the man and again asked gently, "Where is the meeting spot?"