Okay, weird things are going to happen from here.  That's all.  Please leave a review.  I don't own anything. 

Chapter 21

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After New Years, they got back to the castle and started school.  January came by fast and then February followed soon after. Angelina grilled them with hard-training practices. 

  "We have to get ready to beat the Hufflepuffs next week," she reasoned at the Locker Rooms one night after practice.  "I just heard that they almost beat the Ravenclaws in their last game."

  "Come on, Hufflepuffs? They are so easy to beat!" exclaimed George.

  "I don't know.  I heard that the Hufflepuffs have a new motivation.  I mean remember what happened to Cedric?" said Alicia.  They were all silent for a moment.

  "Exactly, so you can never be too sure. We have to be prepared.  Remember what Mad-Eye Moody said? Constant Vigilance?" said Angelina.  They burst into laughter.  "What? Hey, I don't have any piece of wisdom I can share with you, all right?"

  "Yeah, but Mad-Eye?" said George through a surplus of laughter.  "Constant vigilance? You're really funny, Angelina. Ow!"

Fred had hit him on the head.  "Angelina's trying really hard, you guys.  Give her a break."

Angelina blushed with pleasure and beamed.  George rolled his eyes and rubbed his head. 

Harry walked out of the locker rooms with Ron and Seamus.  They were walking and laughing about the incident that had just happened.  As they approached the grounds toward the castle, Harry noticed some flashes of light coming from the forest.  He stopped and Ron bumped into him.

  "Hey, Harry, what's wrong?" he said.  He looked at where Harry was looking.  Seamus also looked at where they were staring.

  "Whoa," he whispered.  Harry ran towards the Forbidden Forest.  He knew something must be wrong.  "Hey, Harry, wait up!"

Seamus and Ron were running after him.  They approached the forest.  Harry heard male voices.

  "Avery, I have chosen a side."

  "You're wrong! You and me, we could have worked together again.  You and me at the Dark Side.  We could bring back everything."

  "You fool! Don't you see what's has happened?  To Rosier, Wilkes, the Lestranges? You see what has happened to them? Gone! I'm not going to end up that way, Avery!"

  "I called you my friend.  But now, I have the privilege to kill you.  Good bye, dear friend."  Harry looked at Ron. 

  "Go get somebody.  Dumbledore, anybody! Seamus, you too, go!" he whispered to them.  Ron and Seamus sprinted up to the grounds.  Harry went in the depths of the forest.  BANG! A curse hit a trunk of a tree next to Harry. 

  "Don't do this, Avery."  Harry approached the place where the voices were arguing.  Two men were dueling.  One with billowing black robes and the other with hooded robe and a mask, a Death Eater.  Harry stepped on a twig.  The masked man heard him and the other turned around, it was Snape.

  "Well, well, the boy who lived and my dear friend, Severus.  Two people that the Dark Lord wants to get rid of the most.  I have the privilege of killing both of you.  Master will be really pleased." 

Snape gave him a dangerous look.  "Go! There's nothing to see here!" he snapped. 

  "You are not going anywhere!" Avery raised his wand. 

  "EXPELLIARMUS!" He was thrown back onto a tree.  Harry turned around and saw Professor Sullivan with her wand out.  She ran to him. 

  "Go! Leave this to me," she said.  Harry was about to say something when Snape interrupted him. 

  "But-"

  "No, go now.  Harry, go with him and leave now," she said.  Harry looked at her like she said something quite impossible.  Snape gave him an angry look. 

  "No way, I'm not going anywhere with him!" he pointed.

Suddenly, Professor Sullivan's eyes flashed with anger.  "I'm not asking for a miracle, Harry.  Go with him, now!"  Harry had never seen her so angry.  Avery stood up and laughed. 

  "How happy will the master be when he finds who has come into town." 

  "Harry, go now.  I mean it. Go with him, Severus.  This is my job.  I have to do this.  For your safety, go and leave now!" Harry needed no second word. He ran out of the forest, closely followed by Snape.  When he approached the edge of the forest, he found Professor Dumbledore there with Ron and Seamus, both seemed out of breath. 

  "Is she in there?" asked Dumbledore to Harry.  His eyes were full of concerned.  Harry nodded. He looked at Ron and Seamus. 

  "We found Professor Sullivan coming down from the stairs.  So we told her that we saw some light at the forest.  She asked if you were down there, and we said yes.  Then she ran down to here.  That's when we went to Professor Dumbledore's office to get him. And he came out of the office-" Seamus stopped explaining when someone emerged out of the forest.  It was Professor Sullivan.  She had gashes on her face and her robes were torn.  Her left arm had a huge cut on it.  She was holding her right arm.   

  "Professor!" Harry approached her.

  "I'm all right, really.  I'm fine," she said meekly. She looked at Dumbledore.  "It's a Death Eater.  He summoned a broomstick and flew away before I could get to him." 

  "Of course, you can't apparate within Hogwarts," he replied.  "Are you sure you are all right, Briana?  Why don't you go to the hospital wing and have those things mended? You three, why don't you go with her?" 

Ron, Harry, and Seamus looked at each other. 

  "All right, I'll go. What about you?" she asked at him. 

  "I am going to talk to Severus, Briana," he replied.  "Harry, Ron, and Seamus, why don't you go ahead and accompany your professor to the hospital wing right now?"

The four of them walked up to the castle.  All of them were silent along the way.  Professor Sullivan broke the silent when she said, "Madam Pomfrey is going to have a fit when she sees these.  Don't worry about me, you three.  I had far worst injuries before."

They went inside the hospital wing.  Madam Pomfrey did have a fit when she saw Professor Sullivan's cuts. 

  "Just like when you were a kid.  You never seemed to change. Climbing a tree, you broke your arm.  You broke your nose just because of the damn bludger!  And now, look at you! Still getting hurt!"

  "Madam Pomfrey, you sound like a mother.  Honestly, it's my profession." She winked at the three.  She saw Ron's and Seamus's pale faces and Harry's stern look.  She then added,  "Look, I'm fine.  See? Gone." 

When Madam Pomfrey was finished mending her wounds, she looked at the three. 

  "Well, what about you three?  Do you have any wounds too?  What about you, Potter?"  Harry shook his head.  Madam Pomfrey left to her office mumbling to herself.  Professor Sulllivan sighed. 

  "Well, I guess I should take you three back to your common room."  Harry was thinking of going to the Owlery to send Hedwig to Sirius telling him what had happened.  Professor Sullivan seemed to have read his mind and then said,  "I'm sure you three would be fine walking by yourselves, right? Afterall, you three are fifteen."
She bid them goodbye and left the hospital wing.

  "-And that's when you came out," said Ron.  It was an hour later, and they were in the Owlery with Hermione.  Ron has just finished telling Hermione and Harry his version of the events.  "But you know what?  What I don't get was when Professor Sullivan was coming down from the stairs; she was holding her right wrist.  I don't know what that was about." 

  "Hmm…" said Hermione thoughtfully.  Harry was sitting down on the stone floor writing his letter to Sirius. 

  "I know.  Maybe she's a Death Eater!" exclaimed Ron so loudly that he woke up a few owls, who flew out of the window. 

  "Oh, honestly, Ron, she's an auror.  I mean she fights the Dark Arts.  I don't think so," said Hermione. 

Harry was reading his letter and was quite satisfied with it.  At once, Hedwig came flying down to him. 

   "So what do you reckon, Harry?" asked Ron.  "What do you reckon she was holding her wrist for?"

Harry thought for a while.  He did notice that Professor Sullivan was holding her wrist at the grounds. 

  "Well, whatever it is, she probably has a good reason why she's holding it."  He said as he let Hedwig fly out the window. 

 

That's all for now.  More to come.  Please leave review.  Thanks!