A/N: Sorry for the long delay, but I've been in the hospital and there's obviously not a whole lot of opportunities to write there. I will probably be in and out for awhile, but I will still try to keep up as much as possible and let you know if I'm going to be taking a bit longer than usual. Thanks for understanding!

Disclaimer: They all belong to JK Rowling, and I am (sadly) not her...

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By the next day, the entire wizarding world had accepted one universal fact.

The Dark Lord had returned.

Even Cornelius Fudge and his supporters couldn't deny the truth any longer. Not when something so terrifyingly real had forced them to accept the horrible truth.

Seeing Sirius had been fabulous. Harry wasn't sure how he'd gotten to feel such a strong connection with his godfather through the short time they'd known each other, but he truly felt like a part of him that had been empty was filled by the presence of the man who had been his parents' best friend.

Sirius Black- Azkaban escapee, one of the most feared convicted murders in the world (both Muggle and wizarding), and the man still considered by thousands to be the right-hand man of the Darkest Wizard of all time- had looked cleaner and healthier than Harry, Ron, and Hermione had ever seen him. His hair was shorter, and his clothes were clean; they knew he'd been staying at Professor Lupin's house for the summer, but his whereabouts since the start of the school year had been kept secret for obvious reasons. However, he appeared well-groomed and well-fed nonetheless, so they could only assume that he had proper living conditions. No more rats at least.

The afternoon visit had gone quite well; all four of them were laughing and joking, and everything seemed to be just fine. Sirius chatted with them about school and life in general. He tried to trick them into revealing the recipient of Harry's late-night letters (he'd obviously been clued in by the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor), but the three of them had simply smiled and shrugged as if they were clueless. He even teasingly joked with them about the new budding romance between two of the three members in their trio.

It was a relief.

Harry had been excited about seeing Sirius, but he had naturally assumed that most of the conversation would be laden with advice on how to prepare themselves for whatever was coming up for them concerning Voldemort. He'd expected to be lectured on the seriousness of the situation and even maybe scolded for not paying proper attention to his lessons. Surprisingly, though, there was absolutely no mention of anything concerning the prophecy.

For a moment, they almost forgot that it even existed.

They remembered quite quickly when the screaming started.

It had started out with a single yell but had quickly escalated to what sounded like mass hysteria on the streets outside. Without thinking, all four of the current occupants dashed to the window in the Shrieking Shack that looked out over the main street of Hogsmeade. The sight they were met with was terrifying to say the least.

There were probably a hundred people scattering out of the way, clearing a huge area in the center of the street. The scattered people were screaming and grabbing onto each other, each trying their best to get away from the much smaller group that was emerging from the center and into the cleared area.

"Dementors!" Hermione had gasped the obvious before Harry even had time to register the sudden searing pain in his head. There were indeed six tall hooded figures in the middle of the crowd, but they weren't close enough to the Shrieking Shack for Harry to get the full effect, as he had in his third year when the presence of the Dementors had tortured him to the point of passing out. Harry was pretty sure that the pain in his head now was simply from the memory of the fear he'd once been crippled by in the presence of the hooded figures.

"Who're the other ones?" Ron asked, his eyes wide with shock. There were two other cloaked figures among the Dementors, from the distance, they could barely tell that one was a man and the other a woman; other than that, though, they couldn't tell anything else about the people. All three teenagers turned to Sirius, who was staring coldly out the window, a look of pure hate and a twinge of something else that appeared unidentifiable was covering his face.

"Take the tunnel back to Hogwarts," he said seriously, finally turning his head looking to the three younger people.

"But..." Harry started to protest, but he was cut off.

"Go now," Sirius repeated. "Hurry."

"But what..."

"Don't argue with me," Sirius said sharply, looking very pointedly at his godson. "Right now. Go."

Harry stared at him wordlessly, unable to comprehend what was happening outside. Sirius looked at him for only a moment.

"I said go!"

Ron immediately grabbed Harry's arm and started tugging him toward the tunnel exit that they had used only once before. Harry tried to turn around and protest again, but Sirius had transformed into his dog figure and was disappearing toward the back of the house. Something was wrong, and Harry had no idea what it was.

"What's happening?" Hermione asked breathlessly, hurrying to keep up with the boys as Ron literally dragged Harry beside him.

Harry ignored her and wrenched himself free of Ron's grasp. "Sirius!"

"Shut up!" Hermione had just as quickly clapped a hand over Harry's mouth as Ron had once again grabbed his arm. "Are you trying to get him caught?! What if someone hears you?!"

Harry realized that, of course, she was right. However, it didn't stop him from almost opening his mouth and calling out to his godfather again. The only thing that did stop him was the screaming from outside; it had gotten so loud that any attempts at calling out to Sirius would have gone completely unnoticed.

Later that evening, the whole school was locked in their respective Common Rooms. Dinner in the Great Hall had been cancelled, and the House-Elves had brought mini-feasts of sandwiches, pumpkin juice, and dessert to the four Common Rooms. No one was eating much, though; conversation was too animated about what had really happened a few hours earlier.

Apparently, Hogsmeade had been evacuated before anyone could really tell what was happening. There were stories, of course, rumors of what had happened. Each so-called eye-witness account sounding a bit more far- fetched than the last.

Rachel Ellington, who Harry recognized as a fourth year that hung around with Ginny quite frequently, claimed that she had been knocked out of the way by the Dementors as they came storming into town. Her friend Marissa, another fourth year, backed up the statement and even added to it by saying that one of the Dementors had shoved her forcefully. Bradley Jamison, a third year who Harry had never spoken to, said that a woman who was beside him in the crowd had fainted during the commotion; Harry remembered his own fainting-days and somehow didn't find this too difficult to believe. Lavender and Parvati had even come up with their own tale, both claiming to have seen the faces of the two unidentified persons. They described them as ghastly and horrifying; Lavender even said that the woman resembled an illustration in 'Holiday With Hags,' only much skinnier. The twins had what was quite easily the most outrageous of stories, but they were backed quite adamantly by their Quidditch mates and fellow seventh years, Alicia Spinnett and Katie Bell. The four of them told an insanely detailed story of the occurrences, starting at the moment a dark cloud had settled over Hogsmeade's main street preceding the sudden out-of-the-blue appearance of the Dementors and their mystery friends and ending with the Dark Mark being sent straight into the sky by the hooded man. He was laughing like a maniac, they claimed seriously. Christa Davidson, a first-year born of a wealthy pure-blood family, had burst into tears during the story, having to be comforted by Deena Larkson, the sixth year Prefect.

"The last time Dementors came to Hogsmeade, they were looking for Sirius Black!" It had been Seamus who had brought this fact to light. "Do you think he's back?"

Immediately, an excited rush of conversation erupted among the Gryffindors. Harry glanced nervously at Ron and Hermione, both of which looked just as worried as he felt. None of them had so much as said a word during the gossip-fest. The only other people in the room who knew the truth behind Sirius were Fred and George. But, ever the drivers behind mischief, they met Harry's eye fleetingly with grins, Fred even winked, and then they joined in on the latest Sirius Black rumors.

"Didn't Sirius Black try to kill your little brother?"

The question was posed to the twins by Jamelle Baudelaire. She was one of, if not the, prettiest girls in Gryffindor, and she had effectively turned the heads of ninety percent of the males at Hogwarts and approximately ten percent of the females. She was a sixth year with long blonde hair, wide sky blue eyes, and a body that made guys want to drool and girls want to spit.

And the way she was suddenly cozying up to the twins gave Harry the distinct feeling that things were about to take a turn for the worse.

"Why, yes," George said with a smooth grin, "Yes, he did."

"He had a knife and everything, didn't he, Ron?" Fred grinned brightly at his younger brother who was turning a bit red as heads swung around from all over the room to look at him.

"Er..." Ron started stuttering but stopped making all sounds completely when Jamelle got up from her place across the room and joined him on the couch he was currently sharing with Harry and Hermione. In fact, she slid down right beside him, forcing herself between his body and Hermione's. Harry was afraid to look.

"Weren't you scared?" she asked soothingly, as if she were talking to a small child rather than a boy only a year younger than her. "You were just a third year, weren't you?"

The look on Ron's face then was one that Harry recognized. He had seen it a few times in the past- the last few days of their first year after they'd gone for the Philosopher's Stone, the final weeks of school after the whole Chamber of Secrets thing, for nearly a month after the Second Task in their fourth year, and, of course, the weeks following the 'attack' of Sirius Black in the third year Gryffindor boys' dormitory. It was the look of someone who craved attention continuously finally getting their fifteen minutes of fame. Ron smiled, a far stretch from the nervous stuttering he'd done only seconds before, and nodded proudly.

"Oh, it was terrifying, of course," he said seriously. "I woke up, and there he was... just standing over my bed and holding this knife that must have been... oh, I don't know, two feet long." The entire room was captivated by the story, and Harry knew that if he was asked to tell the story again, Ron would suddenly remember that the knife had really been three feet long.

"So, what happened next?" asked Jamelle, her already large blue eyes widening even more.

Ron shrugged. "Oh, I screamed so he would be caught off guard and run away." Harry rolled his eyes slightly; yes, that had been exactly the reason he had screamed... "But then we, my roommates and I, were just mainly concerned with making sure that everyone else was safe, so we came down here to tell Professor McGonagall." To Harry's rather shocked surprise, Dean, Seamus, and Neville were all nodding along as if that had been exactly the way the night had panned out.

"What did he look like?" Jamelle now had her entire attention focused on Ron, as did the rest of the room.

Ron hesitated for a moment. "Well, he was huge. I mean really, really big- not like you'd expect of someone who had been living in Azkaban for twelve years. And he really looked like a monster; his hair was long, and his face was this deathly pale shade of white."

Harry didn't know whether to be more pissed off by the fact that Ron was giving such a horrible description of Sirius (it wasn't as if he had any choice, but still...) or by the fact that his best friend was being so incredibly and utterly stupid. Hermione looked as if she didn't know whether to cry or scream, and she seemed to be debating whether to hit Ron or to hit Jamelle.

And Ron didn't even notice.

When Jamelle leaned over so far that her hair was actually brushing against Ron's cheek, Hermione got up silently and headed toward the dormitory stairs. Harry doubted if anyone even realized that she'd moved; he knew Ron hadn't.

With a loud sigh, he stood up, too, and announced that he was going to bed. Ron stopped in the middle of a particularly embellished story of how Sirius had whispered death threats to him before the scream had run him off, and he looked up at his best friend questioningly. "It's early."

Harry shrugged. "I'm tired." He turned and started to leave but turned around and looked at Ron. "If I happen to see Hermione, I'll tell her you said good-night."

Ron raised his eyebrows in confusion and turned his head to the spot that Hermione had previously been occupying. Once he finally realized what had happened, he stood up and headed for the dormitory stairs with Harry. Everyone was confused for a moment and a bit put off by the fact that the story had been cut short, but they were all appeased when the conversation turned back to the identity of the mystery cloaked figures.

"You can be a real jackass sometimes," Harry said pointedly as they climbed the stairs and entered the room they'd been sharing for five years.

Ron sent him a quick glare. "Thanks, mate," he said sarcastically.

"I'm serious." Harry dropped beside his bed and rummaged through his trunk. When he found what he was looking for, he pulled it out and tossed it to Ron. "Go apologize."

Ron looked down at the Invisibility Cloak in his hands and then back up at Harry. "Apologize for what? I couldn't very well tell the whole bloody house that Sirius was there looking for Scabbers, now could I?"

"No, you couldn't have," Harry said calmly. "But you didn't have to make up a huge story, either. And as for what you should apologize for, how about telling her you're sorry for being such a great, incredible, insensitive prat?"

Ron opened his mouth in defense, but Harry knew that Ron knew he had no real backup for whatever was about to come out of his mouth. After a moment, he finally just shut it and headed for the door wordlessly.

Harry rolled his eyes as he changed into his pajamas and dropped lazily onto the bed. He wasn't sure why he was giving Ron advice on how to make things right with Hermione when the idea of them together was still more than a bit sickening. He did know, though, that getting them out of the way gave him more time to focus on the things that were really plaguing his mind.

What were the Dementors doing in Hogsmeade?

Who were the cloaked man and woman?

And could they possibly have known that Sirius was in the Shrieking Shack?

Harry wanted desperately to talk to Professor Lupin, but they weren't allowed out of the Common Room, and all of the portraits had been enchanted to alert the proper authorities immediately if someone tried sneaking in or out. He just wanted some sort of reassurance that Sirius had gotten away unnoticed.

And safely.

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The students were all summoned to the Great Hall for breakfast the next morning. It was a Sunday, so several people could be heard complaining about the mandatory morning meal, as the weekends were pretty much a fend- for-yourself sort of time. Everyone stopped complaining when they realized exactly why they were all being assembled.

Professor Dumbledore was going to give them the true details about what had happened the day before.

"The staff and I feel that it is important for you all to know the truth behind the events that took place in Hogsmeade yesterday. The papers will, undoubtedly, be laden with stories, and many of them will most likely be falsities. Letters have already been arriving from parents who are concerned for their child's safety. I will tell you the same thing that I am relaying to those inquiring parents; you are perfectly and completely safe while you are within the school grounds. On the outside, however, I cannot guarantee any such thing, as was proved yesterday. Therefore, all further Hogsmeade visits are cancelled until further notice."

A disappointed murmur went through the crowd of students. Harry heard people all over protesting about how that wasn't fair at all. Harry felt his own stomach drop when he realized that he definitely wouldn't get to talk to Gia or Sirius anymore. It really wasn't fair.

"I truly hope that this matter is sorted out in a timely fashion, so that we may all go back to normal." Dumbledore paused for a moment. "I am sure that by now you are all aware that a small group of Dementors appeared in the town of Hogsmeade yesterday. Those Dementors have been confirmed to be Azkaban guards; I have been officially informed that all of the Dementors guarding the wizarding prison left early yesterday morning, taking at least two of the prison's occupants with them."

That explained the mystery people...

"Two people who have been convicted of murdering and torturing Muggles and wizards alike escaped yesterday. Their names may be unfamiliar to some of you, as you are all too young to really remember the time when these people held such power, but I want to inform you that they are both highly dangerous individuals. I am not telling you this to frighten you, merely to educate you." Another pause and then Dumbledore revealed their identities. "Alexander and Jessica Lestrange are now running free."

The talking started immediately. Harry could see some of the Slytherins' faces light up with excitement, and he could hear many of the confused inquiries about the Lestranges around him. He knew, though, exactly who Alexander and Jessica Lestrange were.

They were two of Voldemort's most loyal supporters, and Harry had heard the Dark Lord himself say how greatly they would be praised.

And the Dementors had rejoined the Dark Side as well. They were truthfully the natural allies.

Harry felt physically ill and forced his breakfast to stay down. He looked across the table to Ron and Hermione, who had obviously made up, and saw the look of questioning they were giving him. He just shook his head in response; it wouldn't do to go around talking about it out in public. He would tell them later in private.

He knew just one thing.

It had really started. And no one was safe.

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A/N: Please review!!!!

Oh, and I will eventually (as soon as I write it) be posting the outtake of what happened between Ron and Hermione in this chapter. It will go up at the Yahoo! discussion group, so if you want to read it (when it's finished), the URL is .