Author's Note: Yes! Thank you for the reviews! I know I only have, what? Six? But thanks anyway! Okay, to whoever said that the British don't say "freaking":: Is that supposed to be a flame? Well, It wasn't a very good one was it?

Swimadeà I know that the "Heir of Gryffindor" sounds sort of lame, but that's my only explanation of why Voldemort can't kill Harry. This could probably help Harry in the future, too, when he finds out how to use his powers.

~*~*~*~*~*~

            The scarlet Hogwarts Express pulled onto Platform 9 ¾, smoke billowing from the smokestack. The train seemed to hold the same amount of carriages, though Aidan could see that a considerable amount of students were not returning to Hogwarts for the second term. Their parents must have been even more sceptical than Jennifer O'Reilly, because Aidan was definitely returning to Hogwarts.

            Aidan noticed Hermione right off. She was standing next to her parents with a trolley loaded with a trunk, a cat, and an owl. Her parents didn't seem too worried from what Aidan could see. They only looked like they wanted their daughter to have a good education with her powers. "Goodbye, darling," the woman said waving to Hermione.

            "Have a good term, 'Mione," said the man.

            "Bye, Mum. Bye, Dad," Hermione said hugging each of her parents. She then climbed onto the train. Aidan redirected his attention to his own parents.

            "Bye, Mum. Bye, Dad." Jennifer let out sort-of strangled whimper. "Mum, I'll be fine. I can take care of myself; I was doing that just fine before I came here."

            "Oh, I know, darling, I just don't want anything to happen to you. Be safe." Then she hugged Aidan for quite a long time.

            "Mum….Mum," Aidan said, gasping.

            "Oh, sorry, dear. Just be careful."

            "Mum! I will be!"

            "Okay, okay."

            "Have a good term, sport," Sam said. "You've got to get ready for the O.W.L.s"

            "I know, Dad. I'll do fine. Stop fussing, both of you. I'll see you in the summer. I'll write a lot."

            "Goodbye, darling," Jennifer sniffled, and Aidan climbed aboard. The train lurched forward with a sudden jolt and the half-full train was headed to Hogwarts once more.

            Aidan looked up and down the train for Hermione and Leigh. He finally found Hermione after about fifteen minutes, but Leigh was no where to be found. "I looked for her too, she must not be here," Hermione said.

            "What? Hermione, have you read the Daily Prophet lately?"

            "What? Yes, of course I have. You-Know-Who broke the prisoners out of Azkaban. My parents thought it was safer at Hogwarts for me."

            "But Leigh's a pureblood. Why would her parents keep her home?"

            "I don't know."

~*~*~*~*~*~

            Sam turned to his wife after the Hogwarts Express pulled out of the station. "I know who Madeira is," he said.

            "What? Darling, what are you talking about?"

            "Aidan's girlfriend, Leigh Madeira. Her father was one of the Death Eaters way back when. He said he was under the Imperius Curse." This didn't do anything for Jennifer's fears, because she burst into tears again.

            "She was a nice girl."

            "I just hope the evil doesn't run in the family."

~*~*~*~*~*~

            Aidan was really disappointed that Leigh wasn't coming back to Hogwarts for the second term. He had met her parents and they seemed really nice, so the must just be worried, they couldn't possibly be involved in the Voldemort uprising.

            Aidan and Hermione didn't really talk they studied most of the train ride and the silence was only broken by a squawking noise outside the window. Aidan looked up from 1,000 More Magical Herbs and Fungi to see a barn owl trying to keep up with the train. He immediately recognized it as Leigh's owl, Aphrodite, and he opened the window hastily to let it in. The owl flopped down on the seat beside him and he took the letter that was attached to his leg.

  Dear Aidan,

     I bet by now you are wondering why I'm not on the train sitting next to you, but I can't really explain that at the moment. I'm in trouble. Do you remember how to get to the secret room? There's a tapestry near the statue of Uric the Oddball and follow the corridor behind that door nine floors up. You should find it easily after that.

     I'll be using Floo Powder to get up there. I need you to meet me there at midnight on January seventh. I'll explain everything then.

                                                         Love,

                                                                 Leigh

P.S. Don't bring anyone with you.

            "Aidan! What could be the problem?" Hermione gasped. Aidan had read the letter to her.

            "I…don't know. What does she mean by she's in trouble?"

            "She's a pureblood, she can't be in that much trouble, unless…"

            "No. Her parents aren't Death Eaters. They can't be." At that moment the compartment door flung open and Malfoy appeared, looking more menacing than ever, flanked by none other than Crabbe and Goyle.

            "Ah, look, the Mudblood and her companion Leprechaun," Malfoy drawled. Crabbe and Goyle chortled stupidly.

            Aidan rolled his eyes and stood up, towering at least six inches over Malfoy. "Do I look like a bloody short guy to you?" Malfoy took out his wand.

            "I'd watch it, O'Reilly. You wouldn't want anything to happen to her, now would you?"

            "Oh, yeah? What are you going to do?" Aidan, who was gripping his wand very tightly, pulled it out with lightning reflexes and shouted the first spell that came to his head. "Stupefy!"

            Malfoy staggered backwards hit the ground with full force, unconscious. Crabbe and Goyle gave Aidan an ominous glare but did nothing but crack their knuckles. Then they pulled Malfoy back out of the compartment.

            "Good job, Aidan," Hermione said.

            "Thanks. Why do I always get the feeling that he knows something that I don't?"

            "He probably does. He knew about Sirius Black in third year, when Harry didn't."

            "Do you suppose that he knows something about Leigh?"

            "Look, Aidan, perhaps he does. Just don't go crawling to him. He's a slimeball."            "I know, I won't talk to him. I'll be seeing Leigh tomorrow anyway, right?"

            "Of course, now forget about Malfoy and enjoy the rest of the train ride."

~*~*~*~*~*~

            "You're what?" Ron nearly yelled. He and Harry were in the common room talking. Harry had told him of his meeting with Dumbledore. Harry was feeling dreadful about all the new weight being dropped on him, and he had to let it all out to his best friend.

            "Dumbledore says I'm the last remaining heir to Godric Gryffindor," Harry repeated. "Now I have to learn all this advanced magic because Voldemort is back."

            "Don't say his name!" Ron hissed.

            "Sorry. Anyways, this is really complicated stuff, and I don't know if I can do it."

            "Of course you can. You're the Boy-Who-Lived. You're a great wizard. Go on, show that creep what you can do."

            "It's not going to be that easy, Ron. I can barely conjure a proper Patronus, let alone some advanced inherited magic."

            "Give it a try, mate. You don't know you're capabilities until you actually prove to yourself that you're incapable."

            "Did your dad teach you that one, too?"

            "Nope, I thought of that one all by myself."

            "I guess I'll have to remember that one, it's pretty good." Ron blushed slightly.

            "Hey, have you talked to Ginny yet?"

            "No, I haven't told her yet. There're a lot of things she still doesn't know."

            "Really, like what?"

            "Snuffles, for a start. She doesn't know about Scabbers actually being Wormtail. She doesn't know about Buckbeak and the Time-Turner. She doesn't know about Lupin being a werewolf. She doesn't know a lot of things, and now with Voldemort on the rise, I think I'm going to have to talk to her soon."

            "Yeah, I think you will. Well, why don't you forget about all this for a while," Ron said, glancing at his watch. "What do you say that we go meet Aidan, Hermione and Leigh in the entrance hall? The train should have arrived already."

~*~*~*~*~*~

            Aidan and Hermione hurried into the entrance hall in a flurry of snow and wind. The cold outside was almost unbearable and the castle was far from the relief they needed. Aidan was just aching to get up to the common room and light a fire.

            Harry and Ron, wrapped in cloaks, were already there when the returning students entered. They waved to Aidan and Hermione when they noticed them they hurried over.

            "Hey, it's nice to see you," Hermione said embracing Harry and kissing Ron.

            "It's even better to see you," Ron replied.

            "Where's Leigh?" Harry asked

            "She's not here. She wrote to me and said she was in trouble," Aidan said. He showed Harry and Ron the letter. Once he had finished reading it, Harry looked up, bewildered.

            "What could be the problem?"

            "That's the thing, I don't know. But, I'm going to see her tomorrow and I'll find out."

            "We can help her if something is wrong, right? I mean, we've done things like this before," Ron said.

            "This could be different, Ron. This could be Death Eaters or abuse, we just don't know."

            "Her parents aren't Death Eaters!" Aidan yelled so that the whole corridor in which they were walking rang.

            "I didn't say they were, but what if Death Eaters have a hold on her family? Or what if her parents have been killed or something?"

            "Don't even let me think about that," Aidan sighed, looking downright gloomy. "I've had enough disappointments in my lifetime."

            "Well, here we are at the seventh annual Glum-Fest folks, and let me tell you right now that it's looking downright awful from my perspective. What do you think, Dick?" Ron said in a lowered voice like a sports commentator. Hermione frowned.

            "Do you have a sensitive bone in your body?" she scolded. Aidan chuckled.

            "Ease up, 'Mione. He was just trying to lighten the mood."

            "I suppose. I just don't think that we should act like this is no big deal," she sighed as she flopped onto the couch in the common room.

            "It is a big deal, 'Mione," Harry said. "And it's getting bigger. Ron can explain that to you right now. I have to go find Ginny. I'll see you later."

            Harry hurried up the stairs to the dormitories to find Ginny's room. She was lounging on her bed, reading Witch Weekly. She looked up when Harry knocked. "Do you mind if I come in?" Harry asked.

            "Not at all," she replied with a surprised look on her face. She pointed to a spot on her bed and Harry sat down next to her.

            "We have to talk. A lot."

~*~*~*~*~*~

Author's Note: The next instalment. I hope you like this. I'm afraid it might be a bit too repetitive, but please review. Why is Harry so apprehensive about his newfound powers? Where exactly is Leigh? When is our good pal Voldy going to try his big siege of the castle? Coming soon in future chapters. Cheerio!