a/n: Howdy partners! (waves cowboy hat in the air) How'd all ya'll guys 'n gals like to feast yer eyes upon a root'n toot'n new chapter from ShrugDuckie! Round up them doggies and hi-ho Silver, 'cuz heeeeeeeere we go! (rides off into the sunset)

(This has been a random moment from ShrugDuckie. You may now read on. Thank you for your cooperation. This message will now self-destruct…boom.)

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Please stop rubbing it in. Thank you.

(A QUICK NOTE: Those of you who like to figure out what I'm doing before I actually tell you, you might want to have your Prisoner of Azkaban close at hand when you read this. Chapter 12: The Patronus will prove most helpful to you. That's all I'm going to say…boom…again.)

Chapter 24: Expecto Patronum

It was the early hours of Monday morning, and Claire was staring at the top of her four-poster, tossing her Rememberall from hand to hand and thinking. Once again, the smoke within the glass had turn a brilliant shade of scarlet. Something wasn't right. But what?

"No…No!...Keep away from my feathers!...I'll bite ya, I will…Bite your bloody fingers off…Zzzzz…"

Claire narrowed her eyes at Aquinas. The little fellow was asleep on the perch on her nightstand, obviously in the middle of some sort of cleanliness nightmare. She should have purchased him a checker set for Christmas, she thought. He could us another hobby besides obsessive grooming.

She resumed her blank staring as soon as Aquinas resumed his snoring. Mostly her thoughts were on what Robin had last said to her: It's not a matter of how much you get to witness and involve yourself in the story, it's a matter of how much you love it not to.

Was Robin accusing her of not really caring about the story? That wasn't true at all! She loved it with all her heart and soul. No one or nothing had been a better friend to her over the years than her Harry Potter books. Claire remembered how she used to sit in the back of classrooms, her nose stuck in a book because it was a much more appealing alternative than talking to her classmates. She sighed and looked around at her sleeping roommates. That was very different now…Hogwarts had given her real friends…Just like it gave Harry his.

A brick of lead seemed to drop into her stomach. Harry. Harry would be starting Patronus lessons on Thursday. Today was Monday. She relaxed and closed her eyes. She had plenty of time to figure out what she wanted to do…

Claire yawned widely as she entered the Great Hall a few hours later. She hadn't slept all that well; she kept dreaming about stags and dementors and a certain shaggy black dog.

"G'morning, everyone," Claire said, seating herself opposite Ginny and Bethany.

"Hey," they said in unison, shoveling oatmeal into their mouths.

Claire was just about to take a bite out of her toast and marmalade when she sighed and set the bread back down on her plate. She couldn't take it! Why was it such a big deal if she went to the Patronus lessons or not! After all, Harry had been happy to hear she was going too. He said it would make the whole experience easier on him if someone else was there trying to learn as well. Besides—maybe being in the room could give Robin and Claire some more information or ideas on how to save Sirius? It was crazy…just crazy enough to maybe convince Robin to let her go…

She looked up and down the table, and once again saw Robin sitting alone far to her right. Now was the time for action.

"I'll be right back," Claire said to her breakfastmates.

"Okay," Ginny and Bethany said at the same time once again. Jeez, they made Ron's eating habits look almost humane this morning the way they were inhaling that oatmeal!

Claire walked briskly to the other end of the Gryffindor table and sat down right beside Robin, who didn't look up from the Daily Prophet that seemed to be mesmerizing her.

"What do you want, Woods?" she asked by means of a greeting.

"Look, Robin," Claire said, trying to be businesslike about the whole thing, "you know I'm already in the books. Harry knows who I am and he knows I'm taking the lessons on Thursday with him. Don't you think it would be a little supcious if I just cut out now? Wouldn't Harry notice and want to know why I didn't go?"

Robin was at the point of lifting a glass of pumpkin juice to her lips, but stopped in mid-sigh. Apparently her drink lost its glamour, for she set it back down on the table.

"Woods, I'm not your babysitter," Robin said, crisply folding the Prophet along its creases and sliding it into her bag. "Do whatever you please. It's your Gift, after all."

She stood up quickly, flicking her long blonde hair in Claire's face. She was walking quickly out of the Hall, but Claire was right on her heels.

"You're going to give me crap if I go, aren't you?" Claire shouted at Robin's retreating back. "You're going to call me selfish and ignorant if I go to something I already promised I'd go to!"

"If you jump to many more conclusions you'll be jumping off a cliff," Robin commented, starting up the marble staircase.

"C'mon, admit it!" Claire continued, fuming. "You think you're better than I am just because you haven't messed up! Just because you haven't been mentioned in the books, you think you're more clever than I am!"

Robin stopped dead in her tracks, spinning around on her heel to face Claire. Her eyes were menacing black slits.

"I never said I hadn't been in the books before, Woods," she muttered darkly.

Claire blinked, confused.

"But—but you said—"

"No, I didn't," Robin said coldly. "You assumed."

And for the second time in less than twelve hours, Robin Gregory left Claire standing there, bewildered by something she had said.

Thursday rolled around a lot quicker than Claire would have preferred, but alas, there was no control over something as powerful as time. Even her classes seemed to fly right on by without so much as a blink of an eye, as if the sun was taunting her by trying to set as early as possible. She just wasn't cut out to handle all this pressure!

Needing some time alone to think, Claire didn't go down to dinner with Ginny and Bethany, but instead sat quietly in front of the fire, making a futile attempt at her Potions essay. It wasn't long though before 'Proper Potion Thickness and it's Importance in Brewing' was interrupted by a tap on her shoulder.

"Hi," the intruder said, smiling politely.

"Hello, Harry," Claire replied, her mouth unusually dry. She swallowed. "Something I can do for you?"

"Well, actually," Harry said, scratching his ear in a distracted manner, "I'm sorry I didn't catch you earlier, but—er—you know, those dementor lessons Lupin promised us? They start at eight—that is, if you still want to go. Just thought I'd tell you."

Claire nodded, saying, "Okay, thanks Harry." She then returned her attention the the three-foot essay she was supposed to be composing.

Harry stared at her blankly.

"So…" he asked. "Are you—er—going? To the lessons?"

Claire could have kicked him. She was trying so hard to resist the temptation of learning one of the most complicated spells in the wizarding universe, and here he was, repeatedly asking if she was planning on going. Gah!

"Um…" she started, trying to think of how she should respond. "Well, I don't really know. You see, I've got tons of work to do, and I'm not really sure I'd be all that good at it anyway—"

"Well, of course you're not now," Harry said, cutting her off. "I mean, that's the whole point of Lupin teaching us—so we'll get better at it."

She sighed, growing increasingly irritated. Couldn't he just be quiet!

"Yeah…but…No, I don't think so, Harry," she concluded quickly. "I really need to finish this essay for Snape."

Harry's eyes looked a little crestfallen behind his glasses.

"Oh…" he said. "Well, okay then."

He turned about and exited the portrait hole. Claire sighed, tapping her quill on the table top and wiggling her knee up and down. Well…if she really wanted to go, the excuse she gave Robin Monday at breakfast would suffice, wouldn't it? Yes, yes. It was a silly question. Of course it would! After all, she was in complete control of her decisions—why was she letting Robin influence her? It was completely ridiculous! She was about to throw away the chance of a lifetime and for what! Someone who couldn't even look her in the eye because they believed themselves more superior than she! Yeah right!

"What am I doing?" she said to no one in particular. She stood up abruptly, bumping her knee on the table she had been sitting cross-legged under. "Ouch! Harry! Harry wait!"

She ran out the portrait hole and into the corridor. She looked left and right. How did he walk so fast?

Claire began sprinting as fast as she could toward the History of Magic classroom. Hopefully, Lupin wouldn't start without her…

"W—wait!" she sputtered, coming to a halt in front of a large door on the second floor. "Wait professor!"

She reached out for the door handle only to find it missing, for Professor Lupin had just twisted the knob and opened it, staring at her curiously.

"Good evening, Claire!" he said with a kind smile. "I was wondering where you were! Harry and I were just about to begin!"

"S—sorry, professor," Claire said, still gasping for air. "I was running a—a little late—"

"No worries," Lupin said, opening the door wider and gesturing for her to enter the room. "You haven't missed a thing!"

Harry was standing in the middle of the room, staring at a large packing case on Professor Binns's desk. He looked up when Claire entered the room and grinned.

"Change your mind?" he asked.

"Yeah, yeah," she said, not caring to be teased when she would have rather concentrate on breathing properly.

"Now, as I was just explaining to Harry, Claire," Lupin said, shutting the door behind them and walking over to where they were standing, "we won't be using a real dementor in here. I've managed to get ahold of a boggart for us to use for now, and I think it will do quite nicely. I know you probably haven't had a lot of experience with these creatures, Claire, but they are really quite simple to understand—"

"You'd be surprised, Professor Lupin," Claire said, smiling knowingly at her teacher.

"Oh?" he asked.

"I happen to have had some experience with bogarts," she replied, her eyes twinkling with secrets. "Similar to those I've had with pixies."

"I see," said Lupin. Harry looked bewildered. "Well, you are truly a young witch ahead of her education, Miss Woods! This makes my evening much simpler…

"So," he said, taking out his wand and indicating to Claire and Harry to do the same. "The spell I am going to try and teach you is highly advanced magic—well beyond your Oridinary Wizarding Level. It is called the—"

"—Patronus Charm," Claire finished for him.

Both Lupin and Harry turned to stare at her.

"I've read about them," Claire said, thinking quick on her feet. "Although, I am kind of confused about them."

"How does it work?" Harry asked, sounding a little apprehensive.

"Well, when it works correctly, it conjures up a Patronus," said Lupin. "which is a kind of anti-dementor—a guardian that acts as a shield between you and the dementor."

"I see," Claire chimed in, making a resolution to be quiet from then on lest she get herself into trouble.

Professor Lupin went on, "The Patronus is a kind of positive force, a projection of the very things that the dementor feeds upon—hope, happiness, the desire to survive—but it cannot feel despair, as real humans can, so the dementors can't hurt it. But I must warn the two of you, the the charm might be too advanced for you. Many qualified wizards have difficulty with it."

"What does a Patronus look like?" asked Harry curiously.

"Each one is unique to the wizard, or witch, that conjures it," Lupin answered.

Claire had a sudden rush of adrehenlin, wondering what her Patronus would resemble should she be able to conjure it.

"And how do you conjure it?" Harry questioned.

"With an incantation, which will work only if you are concentrating, with all your might, on a single, very happy memory."

"Right," said Harry, thinking about happy memories. Claire was thinking as well, although her happiest memory wasn't really a hard one to choose; she almost immediately settled on the moment she had fallen into the Entrance Hall and realized she was at Hogwarts.

"The incantation is—" Lupin said wearily, clearing his throat, "Expecto patronum!"

"Expecto patronum," Harry repeated.

"Expecto patronum…" Claire muttered, concentrating hard on the exact way it felt when her knees buckled and she was staring at the marble staircase for the first time.

"Shall we try it without the boggart first?" Lupin suggested. Claire and Harry nodded, readying their wands.

"On the count of three then. One…two…three!"

"Expecto patronum!" Harry and Claire said clearly.

Two whisps of smoke emerged from the tips of their wands.

"Alright!" said Claire happily.

"Did you see that?" said Harry excitedly. "Something happened!"

"Very good," Lupin said, clapping his hands together a single time, looking slightly worried but smiling nontheless. "Alright then—which one of you would like to try first? Remember, this is just practice, there is absolutely no pressure whatsoever."

Claire stopped being excited for a moment to think about the question. What would change if she went before Harry? Or after Harry for that matter?

"You go ahead," Harry said to her. "I'm still thinking."

"Um—well, if you're sure…" Clarie said uncertainly, fiddling with her wand and staring from the case on the desk to Harry.

"I'm sure, go ahead," Harry replied, trying to give her an encouraging look, but failing miserably in his own nervousness.

"Okay then…" Clarie said, taking a step forward. "Ready when you are, professor…"

"Concentrating hard on your memory?" Lupin asked, grasping the lid of the case firmly as Harry moved to stand beside him.

Claire nodded, afraid to speak for fear that she would lose her concentration.

Lupin pulled the lid off the case and a dementor rose slowly, eerily, from it's depths. Immediately, the room was consumed in darkness as the lamps and candles blew out in a chilling wind. Claire tried to focus.

"Expecto patronum!" she shouted. "Expecto—Ex—Expecto pa…"

The room around her was dissolving. A scabbed and skeletal hand was reaching toward her, consuming all of her confidence and consiciousness.

And then…she heard it…the voice she had heard at the Quidditch stadium nearly a month before when the dementors had come to Harry's match…

"This isn't Harry's fault!" She was screaming at someone. "It's mine—all mine!"

"You speak lies!" a cold voice said fiercely. "You are just a silly girl, and a dead one at that if you do not remove yourself from my path—"

"You don't understand!" Claire yelled desperately at whoever it was. "Sirius! Sirius! Help me, Sirius!"

"STAND ASIDE! NOW! AVADA—!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Her eyes snapped open. Her breathing was coming in short, heavy gasps and her robes were drenched in a cold sweat. She was lying spread-eagled on the floor, twitching convulsively.

"Claire! Claire! Are you alright!"

Someone was shouting at her. But who? Where was she? What was she doing on the floor? It was rather cold on the floor. She didn't much care for it, but she couldn't get up. It was as if an invisible hand was pushing her down. She wished it would stop.

"Harry, there's a chocolate bar on the desk. Get it, quickly!"

She heard footsteps hurrying away from her. A moment later, she heard someone kneel beside her and something crisp snapping in half.

"Chew, Claire, c'mon…"

Something sweet was on her tongue, she could taste it. It was warm and good. It tasted like…like happiness.

Suddenly, Claire stopped twitching and snapped back to her senses. Harry and Lupin were leaning over her, Lupin shoving choloclate into her mouth while Harry held her head upright. Shakilly, she swallowed the candy in her mouth.

"Wh—what happened?" she asked.

"Here, sit up," Professor Lupin said. Claire clutched Lupin's shoulder and Harry gave her a gentle push and took her hand to pull her up. "Easy now…"

"What was that—that voice?" Claire said, trying swallow but finding her mouth rather dry. Her hair was sticking to her face she was sweating so much. "That voice…it was going to…to kill someone…"

"There wasn't any voice, Claire," Lupin said, looking solomn. "You must have not been concentrating hard enough on your memory—the dementor got to your bad memory instead."

"But—but that wasn't a memory of mine!" Claire insisted, shaking her head. "And—and I was focused, Professor Lupin, I really was—"

"Will you relax?" Harry injected into the conversation. It wasn't until then that Claire realized she was gripping his hand rather painfully.

"Sorry, Harry," she said, attempting to let go but having to grab ahold again the moment the room started to sway.

"It's fine, just calm down," Harry insisted. "Here, eat another piece of chocolate, it helps…"

"Thanks," Claire said, her voice cracking a little as she took the candy out of his hand and shoved it into her mouth. The tips of her fingers and toes began to warm up as she chewed the chunk of chocolate, her limbs relaxed slightly and her breathing slowed. Finally, she was able to sit up without Harry's assistance. "I'm okay…"

"Perhaps it was foolish of me to try and teach you this," Lupin said, relighting the lamps that hung along the walls. "As I said, it's very advanced magic and clearly very difficult—"

"No, professor!" Claire said, shaking her head. "I promise, I won't try it again because clearly I'm just not ready. But you shouldn't take that away from Harry! Please, let Harry try, professor! He has to win the Quidditch Cup, after all, I was just learning for the heck of it—"

"Relax, Claire, relax," Lupin said soothingly, helping her slowly to her feet. "It's fine if you don't want to continue, I completely understand. However, I must insist that you wait here and eat some more of that chocolate bar so that Harry can walk back to Gryffindor Tower with you. You still look a bit pale and Madam Pomfrey will have my head mounted in the hospital wing if I let you pass out in the corridors by yourself."

Claire nodded and Lupin helped her into Professor Binns's desk chair. Resting her head against it's arched back, she chewed another bit of chocolate very slowly, savoring every bit of it. Her pulse was still rocketing…She didn't at all understand the voice she had heard, not any more than she had understood it the last time…

"Are you ready, Harry?" Lupin was saying.

Apparently he was, because Claire heard Lupin thrust the crate open once more and the shouting of the Patronus incantation. Claire kept her eyes tightly shut, not wanting to hear the horrible, fierce voice again upon seeing the dementor.

Eventually, Harry's voice faltered, and Claire heard Lupin calling off of the boggart. Feeling it was safe, Claire opened her eyes and looked on the scene. Lupin was helping Harry to his feet.

"Let me try again, professor, please?" Harry asked through a mouth full of Chocolate Frog. He seemed a bit pale, but alright for the most part. Claire frowned slightly, trying to imagine what hearing your dead mother pleading for your life must sound like. Then again, for all she knew, that could have been what she had just heard too…

"Harry—are you sure? If you don't want to continue I will more than understand…"

"I do!" said Harry ferociously, stuffing the remainder of the choloate into his mouth. "I've got to! What if the dementors turn up at our next match against Ravenclaw? I can't afford to fall off again. If we lose this game we've lost the Quidditch Cup!"

"All right then…" Lupin said. Claire could tell by the look on Lupin's face that he must have been thinking about how similar Harry was to his father—willing to give his heart and soul up for a game he loved. She frowned, trying not to concentrate on Harry's unhappiness too much, her heart rate was only just returning to normal.

"You might want to select another memory, a happy memory, I mean to concentrate on…" Lupin was saying. "That one doesn't seem strong enough…"

In the short pause that Harry took to think about another happy memory, Claire could have sobbed at saddened look on the face of Remus Lupin, aged beyond his years. He was certainly thinking about how this was the son of one of his best friends, James Potter, and feeling responsible for his safety. She stopped these thoughts immediately, they were too sad to think about and made her head spin strangely.

"Ready?" Lupin asked again. In his worry over his best friend's son, the professor seemed to have forgotten that Claire was there.

"Ready," sadi Harry, looking determined and focusing with all his might.

Claire held her breath. Lupin realeased the dementor and she shut her eyes once again, clenching the arms of the chair in fear.

"Harry! Harry…wake up…"

She opened her eyes again and saw Harry lying once again upon the floor, Lupin tapping him hard on the face in attempt to wake him up.

"I heard my dad," Harry mumbled. "That's the first time I've ever heard him—he tried to take on Voldemort himself, to give my mum time to run for it…"

Claire controlled her tears as she saw a few trickle out of Harry's eyes. It wasn't fair! It wasn't fair that they had to die! Why—whoa, better stop thinking about this, Claire thought, getting slightly dizzy again.

"You heard James?" Lupin asked, his tone one Claire had never heard before.

"Yeah…" said Harry, having whipped away his emotions for the time being and sitting up. "Why—you didn't know my dad, did you?"

"I—I did, as a matter of fact," said Lupin. A single tear escaped Claire's eyes and slid down her cheek. "We were friends at Hogwarts. Listen, Harry, perhaps we should leave it here for tonight. This charm is ridiculously advanced—I shouldn't have suggested putting you through this…"

"No!" said Harry, standing up once again. "I'll have one more go! I'm not thinking happy enough things, that's what tit is…Hang on…"

"No, Harry," Lupin said firmly. "I really think we should end it here, for now. Besides, Miss Woods needs to be escorted upstairs as well."

"It's alright, professor, I can wait," Claire said quietly. It felt like too many emotions were getting jumbled up in her head at once.

"No, Claire, I insist," Lupin said, shaking his head. "You two are completely worn out. This was phyiscaly and mentally exhausting for the both of you, I suggest you immediately head up to your dormitories and get some rest. Here—have another couple Chocolate Frogs, both of you…"

Lupin handed them each a large handful of Frogs. Harry merely stared at them, apparently lost in thought.

"Professor Lupin?" Harry asked finally, taking a bite out of one of the Frogs. "If you knew my dad, you must've known Sirius Black as well."

Lupin turned around very abruptly, giving Claire a start.

"What gives you that idea?" he said sharply.

"Nothing—" said Harry, slightly taken aback. "I mean, I just knew they were friends at Hogwarts too…."

Claire turned her attention back to Lupin, who relaxed slightly.

"Yes, I knew him," he said shortly. "Or I thought I did."

Claire lost it. Another couple tears trickled down her cheeks and she began to shake again. Badly.

"But—but you do…" she said in a slightly delirious voice. She couldn't stop the shaking. "You do you do you do…"

"Harry, it's very late. You and Claire better be off. Here, I'll help you…"

Together, Harry and Lupin helped Claire to her feet. Harry put one of Claire's arms around his shoulders and one of his arms around her waste to help her walk. Claire could feel herself slipping in and out of conisioness again.

"You do you do you do…" she was muttering. "Same Snuffles…Same Snuffles…"

"You going to be alright getting her upstairs, Harry?" Lupin asked, although it was clear by his tone that his mind was on other matters.

"I'll be fine, professor," Harry said. "Good night."

They started slowly up the corridor and around the corner. Claire was still muttering.

"You do you do you do…"

"Shh, Claire, it's alright," Harry said. "Here, I'm going to put you down here…"

He set her as gently as he could on the ground behind a suit of armor and sat down next to her, unwrapping another Chocolate Frog and handing it to Claire. She shoved it in her mouth quickly as Harry began unwrapping one for himself. As soon as Claire's head cleared again, she noticed that Harry was clearly far away. She frowned.

"You okay, Harry?" Claire asked, already knowing the answer.

Harry shrugged, shoving another Chocoloate Frog in his mouth after the first. Claire looked at him, concerned.

"I imagine that wasn't easy for you, Harry," Claire settled on saying, her voice very low. "I'm sorry that you had to hear that."

"You know, I'm not," Harry said, looking a cross between depressed and angry with himself. "It was like I wanted to hear them, you know? I wanted to hear their voices…"

Claire paused for a moment, wondering what she should say.

"Well," she said, swallowing hard, "That's understandable, Harry—"

"No it isn't," Harry snapped. "They're dead. They're dead and listening to echos of them won't bring them back. I'm never going to help Gryffindor win the Quidditch Cup if I can't get a grip…"

"Harry, listen," Claire said, placing her hand comfortingly on his arm. "It's okay to miss them. Really, it is—"

She stopped in midsentence, her head starting to spin again.

"Not if it makes the entire team lose the Cup, it's not," Harry said, stuffing his last Chocolate Frog into his mouth. "C'mon, we better get upstairs…"

He helped her to her feet, but she wasn't done talking yet. She had been saying something…what was it? What had she been saying…?

"They loved you, Harry," she said in her delirious tone once again. "Loved you so much so much so much…"

"Breathe, Claire," said Harry. Could he heard her, she wondered? "We're almost there…"

"So much so much so much…"

Claire wasn't really aware of making it all the way back to the Fat Lady, through the portrait hole, and up the girl's staircase. All she knew was that she wanted to flop down on her bed and sleep forever…

"So much so much so much…" she continued to murmur.

She was about to drift off to sleep when she heard something land on her nightstand. She tried to look over, but whatever it was had a pair of great big yellow eyes that were inches from her's and a very sharp beak that was pecking away at her skull."

"Ow…" she muttered.

"You IDIOT!" Aquinas shouted.

a/n: DUN DUN DAAAAAAAAAAaaaa! Wow, that was really long! Haha, sorry kiddies! So…why is Claire an idiot? Did she change anything important? Is Aquinas going to eat her? Well…you'll see…Yes, things are about to get veeeeeeeery interesting…