A/N: - I'm not gonna waffle on so enjoy this next chapter and review for me at the end of it! Thank you!
2 – Wormtail's Return
Harry shrieked as the freezing water came into contact with his body. He sprung out of bed and put his glasses on, looking round to see the culprit. Next to him was a sopping wet Ron and a grinning Lupin. However, he too was wet and dripping.
"What happened?" Harry gasped through his shivers.
"Tonks, Hermione and Ginny snuck in here and have poured a bucket of iced water over each of our heads because we wouldn't wake up when Moody and the others tried to wake us!" Ron answered.
"However," Lupin said, shooting Tonks an evil look, "I told them about the other members of our dorm and they've been apologising ever since!"
"Then why did they wake me up like it if they're apologising?!"
"Because it wouldn't have been fair to wake Remus and Ron like it and to not wake you!" Tonks said cheerfully. She looked sharply to the foot of a chair and saw a pink tail disappear under it. Ginny saw it too and screamed as did Tonks. They leapt onto a chair and Hermione ran back up the stairs and stayed up there. Lupin saw the rat make a dart for it and he stunned it.
"Stupefy!" He picked up the rat and dangled it in front of his face by the tail. "Why hello Wormtail. How did you get here…through the sewage pipes?" Lupin threw the rat down and it transformed into a small man with puffy eyes and a balding head. He squealed and turned to leave, his cloak wrapped tightly around him. Lupin stepped in his way.
"What's wrong Wormtail?" he said as Wormtail tried to edge round him "too afraid to fight?" Lupin's eyes were alight with hatred. Harry knew what was coming but before he could warn his Professor, Wormtail had brought out his hands and thrown his cloak back. He grabbed Lupin by the shoulder with one hand and Lupin's left wrist in his other. Lupin cried out and dropped his wand. Wormtail brought Lupin's hand up in front of him.
"Look at my hand, Moony…isn't it pretty? Soon, your wand hand will be disabled and then I can concentrate on getting this silver hand around…your…neck!"
Lupin struggled against Wormtail. He felt his hand losing power, and he knew that it would only be a few minutes before he would never be able to use it again. Not that it mattered, he would be dead soon anyway. He tried to pull away again but to no avail.
Harry couldn't just stand by and watch so he launched himself at Pettigrew's back and dragged him away from Lupin. Lupin clutched his wrist but kicked out at Pettigrew's behind. Pettigrew transformed into a rat again and fell to the floor. He scrambled up Harry's leg and over his head. He made a jump for the dresser and landed on the top of it. He slid down the leg of it and scurried under and back into the safety of his tunnel.
The girls climbed off of the chairs and the three older wizards came bounding into the common room. Lupin headed off to the hospital wing with Kingsley and met the others in Dumbledore's office with his arm in a sling half an hour later. He reassured the anxious faces in front of him that there was no lasting damage to his arm. Lupin did, however, say that if the classes wanted him teaching instead of a supply for the first few lessons then they would have to be very good and not cause any trouble involving the destruction of his classroom or office!!!! This was partly because it would be a couple of weeks before he would be able to use his left arm again and also because the next full moon was just before the start of term.
Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny were waiting in the entrance of Flourish and Blotts for Mrs. Weasley, who had just left to fetch some money from Gringotts Wizarding Bank. When she got back, they headed into the shop with their lists for the next years books. On the list this year was:-
List of Books for Sixth Years at
HogwartsSchool of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Complex potions for advanced makers by Leonard Deckevy
Standard Book of Spells by Miranda Goshawk
Dark Creatures and Deadly Curses by Delim Mastarsheek
Reading in the stars – the Future uncovered by Leyla Misteeque
Charms and other such jinxes by William Minkslard
Herbs and Healing by Rosemary Love
Stargazing for Astronomers by Sally Slinkhard
Magical Animals and their habitat by David Mosco
How to Cope under extreme pressure by Ilona Topkins
They walked into Flourish and Blotts and stumbled into none other that Draco Malfoy. It strongly reminded Harry of a scene in his Second year. Only this time Malfoy's father wasn't with him.
"Hello Potter. I'm glad that you finally got rid of your fleas."
"If that's another snide remark about my godfather then I don't have to listen to it." Harry growled. "Anyway, I don't see your precious father anywhere do you?"
"I'll get you for this, Potter. In case you're forgetting, I'm a prefect and you're not. You'll be in detention before the year is up!"
He laughed and strode out of the shop leaving Harry and his friends standing by the Potions books.
"C'mon Ron, Hermione," Harry mumbled, heading to the till to pay for his books.
After buying all the books they needed they went to Madame Malkin's Robes for all Occasions. This was because they were going to need some robes for the upcoming year as they had all grown out of their robes. The Leaky Cauldron and had a Butterbeer each. Harry was overjoyed to be back there. It had been so long since he had felt the warm sensation of Butterbeer sliding down his throat. They left for Hogsmeade via floo powder. They were thrown forward one by one into the warm, musty smelling bar of the Three Broomsticks. They greeted Madam Rosmerta, the barmaid, before setting off on the long walk to the school. Laughing and joking, they hardly noticed the large amount of full to bursting bags they were carrying, and arrived back at Hogwarts a few hours to see the school more busy than usual. The place was in an uproar. Students from Harry's year were crowding to get in through the doors, which had been thrown wide open. Neville had spotted Harry and he waved madly, tugging at his Grandmother who also turned and gave a small wave. She seemed to look somewhat less frightening than she had when they had met her in St. Mungo's Hospital in their fifth year. Harry, Ron and Hermione hurried over to them.
"Hi Neville, how are you?" Ron asked cheerfully.
"I'm fine."
"How was your holiday?" Harry asked. After all, it can't have been much worse than Harry's had been. Whatever reply he was expecting, it wasn't the one he got.
"My holiday was brilliant! Mum and Dad can recite the alphabet again, and they can count to twenty and remember their two times table!" Neville seemed so overjoyed at this that Harry couldn't help smiling. It sounded like his parents were making a very slow and steady recovery after so many years of being trapped inside their own heads. They finally had an outlet for their feelings.
Suddenly, Hermione uttered a small gasp as she realised why the other students were there. It was so painfully apparent, too much so, in fact. How could she, Hermione, smartest student in her year and maybe even the school, have missed it?
Today was the day that they were going to be collecting their OWL results.