Cleo Chestra and the wizards of America: Chapter 12

Padfoot barks it up

Cleo was more determined than ever to answer her questions. She was researching in brakes, in the morning, at night after home work, and on weekends. She did find, several times, the word America, but it was almost always lead up with "America doesn't have…" this or that. She was also visiting Hagrid a lot more, but he didn't seem to enjoy the subject of Giants anymore.

Hermione was helping her in her investigation that Saturday. Cleo frowned and put her hand in her hair.

"Honestly! These aren't helpful at all! I wish there was something that could answer any of my questions at anytime!" Hermione nodded, but stopped suddenly.

"Any questions…at any time…" She murmured.

"What is it?"

"The Andswarian! It can answer anything at anytime!" Cleo gasped.

"Your right! Oh my gosh! I'm surprised we didn't think of that before!"

"Come on! Lets get the boys!" Without bothering with the books, Cleo and Hermione gathered the boys from the grate hall. (They were eating, or course; what else would boys do?)

Together they ran up to Grifonder tower and checked to see what the Andswarian would say."

"What fools we were! I can't wait to see what it says!" Ron said, with his arm around Cleo and squeezing her into him. Hermione came down from the girls dorm, where she kept the Andswarian and placed it before them.

"Andswarian, we have a question." She announced. The fog swirled into letters that said

"Yes Hermione, go ahead." They exchanged excited glances and looked back down at the Andswarian.

"We wont to know why there has only been 2 witches to date."

"Reason unknown." It answered back.

"What?" They all yelled.

"Well then, why is Charon stalking Cleo?" Hermione took another stab at it.

"Reason unknown."

"You are so not helpful!" Cleo yelled.

Cleo found herself at the Library ones again, looking for the hopeless. One day she was at the library, behind a tall wobbly wall of text books when she heard an unwelcome voice intrude her ears.

"I hope your not trying to upgrade yourself to a sixth year Cleo, You were not very book smart." Cleo took some of the books off until she could see over them. When her eyes met Lindsey she started, stacking books back up.

"Its interesting Lindsey, how you can encore someone there inter friendship with you and still know all their faults."

"As if their not obvious." She said coolly. As you know quite well, Cleo isn't pulled together, she holds her emotions right on her sleeves, so of course she blew up.

"What are you doing in a library anyway, looking for more material on how to be a &?"

"It is none of your dam business why I'm hear, I thought you didn't wont to talk to me anymore any way!"

"You're the one doing the talking!"

"Takes two to make a conversation."

"Bull, I talk to myself all the time!" Cleo skidded to a stop on her rampage. I did not just say that. Lindsey started laughing a loud laugh to make everyone turn. Crap, I did say that. Then, rummaged in her embarrassed thoughts she realized something.

"Wait, are you hear to research about America Witches?"

"Well you're a little random aren't you?" She jeered. Cleo, for the first time, ignored her.

"Where have you been? I've been looking all year!"

"Look I have better things to do than cough of the dust from those nasty books."

"Dam you are such a prep!" Lindsey gasped. The both of them were very against Prep like actions during their friendship, so this was a satisfying and effective insult.
"I am not! I'm a Slithering!"

"And I'm a Gryffindor." Cleo snapped back. "Now, will you please just get over your appearance? I have all the books we need hear if you would like to look." Lindsey looked a little blown back at the offer. Swiftly she turned around and sauntered out. Cleo sighed and went back to her books.

"That was very well handled Cleo." Hermione congratulated her at Lunch.

"Yeah, except for the part when you made a grate prat of yourself." Ron laughed threw his chewing.

"I love you too Ron." Cleo said sweetly.

The next few months went similarly. Cleo would be researching (Ones and a while seeing Lindsey stepping in and turning back around.) and getting as much as she could from Lupin and Hagrid, nothing.

Cleo checked out a big old book that she thought might have something useful in it and was reading it at the breakfast table. Just when she was skipping over a part about Mexico Mail flew in. Stephanie came in and landed on her plate of bacon.

"You little pig!" She said to her increasingly fat bird. Cleo petted the top of her soft head. Another bird joined the table and landed next to Harry.

"Hay Headwig, what you got there?" He pulled the crumpled, dirty letter from her leg and she flew off to eat bacon with Stephanie.

"Its Snuffles." Harry whispered to them dramatically and scooted closer to each other. (Ron putting his arm around Cleo to squeeze her closer to him.)

Dear Harry, and your pals,

A Hogsmade trip is approaching, meet me behind the owalry and I'll take you up to my hide out. Looking forward to seeing you, bye.

(Drippy paw print)

"They haven't said anything about a Hogsmade trip yet." Ron said curiously. Neville then suddenly bustled in with rosier cheeks that usually.

"Hogsmade trip coming up! This weekend!" And left them to look at each other questionably. Harry started laughing.

"Trust Sirius!" Cleo was simply ecstatic about meeting Sirius, er…at a more matcher point in his life.

She fixed her hair in a loose braid, so that her curly bangs could fall over her pink face. She ones again put on her s8er boy pants, so that she wouldn't feel to uptight. Then as the finishing touch, she wore her rose-red earrings.

"Hurry up Cleo! We'll miss the train!" Harry whined outside her door.

"Keep your pants on Harry! For all our sakes!" She heard Ron laugh and Harry smack him. With a quick swish at her hair (Unconsciously) She bounced out the door and went with her beloved friends to see Sirius.

They got on the train, with Harry raving about his God father.

"I hope you'll be able to live with him soon." Hermione said with a squeeze at his hand.

"He has to!" Cleo insisted. Harry raised an eyebrow curiously.

"What makes you say that?" Cleo searched for the proper words.

"It would just suck! He has to be cleared he's too important! And too cool." Cleo said as an after thought. Harry laughed and told her all he knew about Sirius on the train. (Even though, she knew most of it.)

After what had seemed like eternity, Cleo finally got off that retched train and sprinted over to the owalry, Harry at her neck. They slowed down to look less suspicious and really walked quickly around the building.

There sniffing the ground was the biggest furriest dog Cleo had ever set eyes on! She was even rather tempted to go and pet it, but she restrained herself knowing what that dog actually was.

"Snuffles?" Hermione said sweetly approaching. The head of the dog snapped up dangerously, but seeing who his visitors were he wagged his tail.

"Lets go then!" Ron said, but Sirius didn't move. He crept over to Cleo with his head bent and smelled her pocket. His long shaggy tail thumped loudly and licked her hand. Harry, Ron and Hermione looked bewildered at her.

"What are you doing Sirius!" Harry said, fumbling with the words. Sirius barked. Cleo laughed and reached into her pocket.

"Food!" She said certainly. Harry looked embarrassed.

"Oh, I thought he was, er…" Sirius barked and growled at him.

"Well you know it looked like it!" Harry fussed. Sirius snorted and turned around to the forest behind the owalry.

The snow had just recently melted, so it left the forest with a clean dewy smell and soft leaves you sunk into. Cleo didn't mind though. The only thing she didn't like about the brilliant Hogwarts was how cold and unnatural it was. She almost longed to go into the forbidden forest and Zen, encoring the fact she could be eaten alive. Oh well, at least I'd die comfortably. As she pondered on these thoughts, things were blurring around her, she knottiest that she stopped.

Cleo snapped back into reality and saw that they were going into a tree. Harry, Ron and Hermione had already gone into the cramped space so Cleo followed.

Inside it was just a normal moldy tree, smelly. They stood there trying not to hit the sides and looked down at Sirius like "You can't be serous." As Cleo took the breath to say this aloud, Sirius started sniffing on the north wall. He stopped a little ways before the end and scratched it. The tree trunk magically decayed into marble stairs. Sirius looked up at them. Now, if dogs could smile this would most defiantly be what it looked like.

Sirius led them up the stairs (Wall decaying back ones they were in) and into a very nice sitting room. It had a white marble floor (With scattered dog prints everywhere) A blue dog bed in on the side of the circular room, and on the far side, Blackbeak sat with bones scattered around him. The four of them bowed, and the hippogriff did the same in return. Cleo went with Hermione to pet the top of Blackbeak's head while the boys sat on some cushions on the far left side.

"So glad to see you again." Said a horse voice behind her. Cleo turned to respond, her hart fell to the floor. She stepped back from Blackbeak (Who looked crossly at her for stopping the petting) and tried with all her might to keep from tearing up. Sirius, beside his grin looked so sad. His hair was tangled and unwashed, face dirty and scratched up. His lack of food was far too obvious and quite sickening to be blunt. It almost seemed as if all the meat that resigned on his body just barley evened out with his thin muscles. Cleo would have flung to him and hugged him had it not been her shaking fear that he might brake! Her acting skills failed her, as he knottiest her worry.

"Cleo what's the matter?" He said so softly and fatherly that Cleo was sure she was going to sob.

"You…I just wish they would clear you." Her lip trembled as she took a deep breath to calm herself. Don't cry, just calm down. She repeated herself. Sirius's were soft and gentle when he stepped closer to her. He was silent when the pink teenage girl looked up at him. Cleo reached into her pocket, pulled out the crushed sandwich, bacon and turkey stick, and handed them to him.

"Thanks." He smiled, and Cleo smiled back.

"Well on that happy note what's going on Sirius?" Ron spoke up. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"To much." Sirius frowned.

"Hu?" Sirius took a bite of the sandwich.

"And it's all happing around you and Lindsey." He said pointing to Cleo.

"Me? And Lindsey?" Cleo said stupidly.

"What dose Lindsey have to do with everything that's happing?" Harry implored.

"Well she's American too!"

"What are you talking about?" Hermione said, shocking Cleo.

"That guy that's attacking you, Charon he's doing it 'cause you're American!" Sirius barked, quite k-9 like.

"No way!" Ron exploded, just so startled. Sirius glared at him.

"What makes you say that? Just think about it! Charon's only attacking you and Lindsey…"

"Lindsey's being attacked too?"

"Not as severally as you have I don't think but still."

"Continue Sirius!" Hermione said earnestly.

"Yeah, so Charon's only attacking you and Lindsey because your American that is why theirs no school."

"But why dose he care so much about Americans?" Sirius face fell.

"That I'm not completely sure about." Cleo sat down on the floor and rested her chin in her hands.

"I can't believe you just told me all this!" Sirius snorted.

"I'm not part of the school board I don't care!" They chuckled.

"Well its not all that bad! I can take it!" Cleo said while she smacked her hand on the floor.

"I figured you could, and have been insisting apon it the inter year but not all of the teachers agreed."

"Well why the h-e- double hockey stick not!" Cleo screeched.

"Well you are a very emotional girl." Sirius said honestly. Cleo huffed.

"I am not!" Everyone couldn't help but laugh then.

"Of course you're not Cleo!" Harry said understandably. He suddenly noticed something. "Wow! It's a pig who learned to Appreciate!" All of them cracked up widely, clenching their stomachs.

"Oh soooo funny!" Cleo sneered sarcastically. The rest of the visit was spent talking about subjects away from the more mysterious topics.

Cleo was quite sad she had to leave but, as annoying as it is to admit it, all good things must come to an end. She was walking back to the train with her friends, eating candy, and talking cheerfully to one another, trying not to spit candy out on them.

Cleo was just about to pull out a suspicious looking jelly bean when of course Charon had to rain on her parade. His ugly self was sneering up at her and she sneered back at him, her nose lifting unattractively.

"Tell him off!" A voice suggested forcefully in her ear.

"You get out of my jelly bean bag! Theirs enough nasty beans in there as is!" Harry, Ron and Hermione stopped and glanced into the bag to see what exactly was bringing her to yell at her candy. Then something strange and potentially dangerous happened. Charon stopped smiling. He tilted his head in a confused manner and no trace of his arrogant smile remained. Cleo could fell a gasp coming on.

"Can you hear me?" She hissed. His face spontaneously vanished and Cleo nearly dropped her bag.

"What is it Cleo? Did you see Charon?"

"I didn't just see him! I spoke to him!"

"Honestly!" Ron's voice quavered.

"And he heard me! We need to find Dumbledore… now!" Cleo, without bothering to get their responses sprinted to the train and delivered her urgent message to her headmaster.

Dumbledore agreed that this was indeed a strange and potentially dangerous happing. He left to discus this with his people when Cleo went to discuss it with her people.

"Tell us exactly what happened in every intimate detail!" Harry forced apon her. They all sat down so that they could watch Cleo's presentation.

"So I was eating my Bertie Bots every flavor beans and I was just going to inspect a nasty lookn' one when I saw Charon. I told him off and he stopped smiling!" (Gasp) "He was like this." Cleo said, demonstrating his look.

"So he heard you?" Hermione whispered dramatically.

"Exactly! That means he must be getting stronger! If he keeps going at this rate he could have full form by the end of the year!"