[a/n: Nice to see you again, you wonderful people! ::hugs her readers:: I have notes for you all!!

Kellaor: Thanks! I'm glad to hear I didn't mess up anyone's personalities—cuz if I did that would just make me terribly sad ::sigh:: lol! Thanks for reading!

Scorchy-11: Hey! Yeah, I myself have just realized Sirius hasn't been in the story in a while—but don't worry, he'll be in here more and more as the story progresses! I promise!!! Hmmm…I don't know, perhaps Claire will have another slip-up and tell someone her secret…or perhaps maybe she'll HAVE to tell someone…but who knows? ::wink:: Thank you for always reading and reviewing, you make me happy!

emikomaru: YOU'RE STORY IS AMAZING!!!!! Everyone, go read it, I'm madly obsessed with it!! Thank you for reading my story ::bows:: you are far too kind!

BlackKat99: Hi Kat! ::waves to her awesome friend:: I'm glad you won't have to ruthlessly hunt me down and hurt me now, cuz here's my update!! Haha, our computers SUCK, I couldn't get it to post on here either!! ::beats compu with a fish:: TAKE THAT YOU PIECE OF POO! ::blink:: Heh, anyway, I love ya, Judgey!!

NoOdLeZ: HEY NOODLEZ AND SNUFFLES!!! ::tackles them:: Everyone over here says hi, they are assisting me in cleaning my room…again lol! Thanks for reading, guys!! You rock my multi-colored socks! I love you!!

Okay, I think that's everyone who reviewed the last chapter! Thank you guys SO much, I really love you all!! Please enjoy the chapter!!]

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I do own a nice stack of homework. eyes the pile of books sitting next to her desk If anyone would like to take that off my hands, just let me know… .

Chapter 11: Aquinas

Claire stated. Now she HAD to be dreaming. Talking animals?! Even for Harry Potter that was a little farfetched, and slightly childish. Her mind was spinning with reasons for the owl's sudden desire to speak. She decided to ask the first thing that popped into her head.

"Are you an animagus?" she said, taking a step closer to get a better look at the bird, who was casually flicking bits of dust off his feathers.

"Tuh! And I thought your grandmother said you were intelligent!" he scoffed. "Don't you know that animagi can't talk when they're in their animal form?!"

"Sorry," Claire said, realizing the owl was quite correct. Sirius had never talked when he was a dog, she should have thought of that. "I didn't think—"

"And that is the precise reason I'm here!" the owl said, sitting up to his full height (an amazing six inches tall) as if to send shivers down her spin. Claire merely cocked an eyebrow, waiting for him to go on. He sighed and impatiently added, "Didn't you ever wonder who was sending you all the letters? Who the box at the quidditch pitch was from? ANYTHING?!"

Claire replied, "Well—I figured they were from my grandma—"

"At long last, you show proof that there is a brain inside that skull of yours!" the owl commented, swooping down from the bed post to perch instead on the foot of the bed. "However small it might be, it'll prove itself useful…"

"And just who do you think you are, coming in here and insulting me like this?" Claire asked, more intrigued than outraged. She rushed over and ungracefully plopped down on the floor to have a better look at this fellow. He was simply staring at his outstretched wing feathers, looking like a human who was checking to see if his nails were still in order.

"Who, me?" he asked, dragging out his introduction in an unnecessary manner.

"No, the talking gopher over there," Claire said sarcastically.

He tucked back his wing, clucking his beak. "Impatience is not a virtue, Claire, and something I refuse to work with."

"That's pretty big talk coming from someone who's about a twentieth my size," she said coolly, poking the owl's fluffy stomach, sending him crashing onto the mattress.

"Eeeeek!!!" shouted the bird, ruffling his feathers as he tried to get up. "Watch it, toughie! I have a beak and I'm not afraid to use it! You'll pay for that—!"

"Hey, hey, take it easy!" Claire said, grabbing the bird carefully and setting him upright on the footboard once more. She was trying not to giggle because his feathers (which he obviously tried very hard to keep clean and tidy) were completely amuck and he seemed very perturbed by this. "I'm sorry."

"As you should be!" he squawked, readjusting himself. After he had finished this, he said, "Anyway, my name is Aquinas, messenger and loyal servant of Paulette Griggs—aka your grandmother."

"I know my own grandmother's name, thank you very much," Claire said indignantly, chuckling a bit at Aquinas. "But it is nice to know yours. Pleasure to meet you Aquinas, loyal message—or whatever it was!" She shook his wing with two fingers.

"Hey! HEY! Don't touch the feathers!!" Aquinas said, jumping back from Claire, causing her to yank out one of his feathers. "C'mon! I need those! If I meet a nice female she's gonna think I'm molting!" He grabbed it back and attempted to stick it back in place. Claire laughed.

"Not exactly a wise move for you to be making fun of someone who was sent to help you, is it?" he commented coolly, abandoning the feather attempt and letting it flutter to the floor. "It might impair my judgment in a moment of dire need, wouldn't you think?'

Claire chose to end her giggling and mutter an apology.

"That's what I thought," Aquinas said with a proud little smirk. "Now, to business." He straightened up. "You're great-grandmother thinks you need to get more serious about your task."

Claire couldn't keep quiet at that, and burst out, "What do you think I've BEEN doing?! I nearly got myself killed at the quidditch match to try and talk to Sirius! Doesn't that could as something?!"

Aquinas made a rude sound.

"You haven't looked at any of the other books, have you?" he said, in a voice that suggested he already knew that answer to what he was inquiring. "You've only been concentrating on the story you're in right now, rather than the big picture, right?"

"Erm—"

"Yes, I am right! Go me! Go me!" Aquinas wiggled about, jostling his wings in some absurd form of a victory dance. He took a moment to recollect himself (while Claire nearly suffocated herself trying not to laugh, mind you) and went on, "Get the fifth book out of your trunk and take a look. Go on, some time this year please? Jeez…"

Muttering under her breath, Claire opened the trunk at the foot of her bed and took out The Order of the Phoenix She looked up at Aquinas uncertainly before she opened to one of the last and fateful chapters, and sighed with sorrow as she read aloud the words still printed on the page:

"There's nothing you can do, Harry…nothing…He's gone."

"Precisely," said Aquinas. "You're too busy thinking of things to fix THIS particular book, THIS part of the story, when the reason you were sent here was to fix THAT part of the story." He gestured toward the book that was open in Claire's hands. "Haven't you thought of anything that could be changed now, something that could change the outcome in the end?"

Claire thought for a moment, and then her eyes grew wide as the thoughts connected in her brain.

"Dumbledore!" she exclaimed. "If he would have just told Harry sooner—about the prophecy—about Voldemort and his parents—maybe Harry wouldn't have gone to the Department of Mysteries…"

Aquinas began to look excited. No doubt he was a great adventure lover, like Claire.

"And what can you do to make that possible?" Aquinas said, trying to help her along.

Claire grinned.

"Somehow," she thought aloud, "I have to get myself sent to Dumbledore's office."

Aquinas flew over and rested on her shoulder. "Now you're speaking my language."

[a/n: DUN DUN DAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaa!!! What kind of tricks and treats are Claire and Aquinas going to pull in order to reach Dumbledore? Will Aquinas's sarcastic nature get in the way of Claire's cause? Is she, in fact, about to land herself in even more trouble with him at her side? Well, you'll just have to wait and see, won't you? ::wink:: Thank you for reading, I'll be back with a new chappie soon! ::hugs all her readers::]