Chapter 3: The train-ride

Harry, Ron and Hermione found an empty compartment on the end of the train. They met in Diagon Alley and spent a day together in the Leaky Cauldron. Harry was happy to see his friends and the whole Weasley family again but he had a big concern. The evening before he had accidentally heard as Mr. and Mrs. Weasley talked about that escaped convict… Remus Lupin. Mr. Weasley said that the Ministry thinks that Lupin was after him.

After he had heard this he looked up werewolfs in his new DADA book and decided that werewolfs were quite scary creatures. However he was glad that he got to know the fact that Lupin was after him: it's better to be prepared. And he was even happier that Mr. Weasley trusted him enough to tell him the truth.

He just decided to tell the news his friends when somebody stopped in front of their compartment-door and opened it. To their surprise it was an adult. Harry always thought that there was no adult on the Hogwarts Express except the plump which and maybe the engine-driver if a magical train needed one at all.

"Is there a vacant seat here?" asked the tall, dark haired man.

"Yes, of course" answered Hermione without hesitation for which he got a glare from Ron. And to tell the truth Harry agreed with him: this way he won't be able to tell them his story.

"Thanks."

The man stepped inside and after putting his trunk on the rack he took the seat next to the window. Before that however he took out a thick book from his luggage.

He started to read but after a few moments he looked up, obviously registering that the children were still looking at him.

"You can go on with whatever you did before I came in. I won't bite" he added with a strange smile that Harry couldn't place.

"Are you a new professor?" Hermione asked warily.

"Yes, I'm Professor Black."

And he smiled again as if he found it strange to tell his name. He seemed to be quite young to be a professor, maybe in his thirties but he had small wrinkles at the edges of his eyes.

"You will teach Defense Against the Dark Arts?"

"Yes."

"Then – excuse me for asking – but why are you traveling by the Hogwarts Express?" Hermione clearly decided to ask every possible question.

"You must be a top student if you are so inquiring" Hermione blushed but Professor Black didn't seem to be annoyed at all. "Anyway, you can call it a nostalgic ride."

After that he went back to his book and a few minutes later the children started to melt off a little bit. Time went fast and it slowly started to be dark outside. They played three rounds of exploding snap and Ron told a lot more about Egypt. The pulp witch came and went and Harry started to feel himself relaxed again…

Until suddenly all the lights went out and the train stopped so suddenly that the luggage had fallen out of the racks. A loud crash could be heard from the corner as Professor Black jumped and his book fell to the ground.

"What's going on?" asked Ron.

"Ouch!" Hermione gasped. "That was my foot, Ron!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sirius jumped when the lights went out and felt his heart stop for a moment. Time stopped for him but his thoughts stayed clear in a slight way. He heard the children talking … then some new voices joined them and then… the door opened and coldness swamped the compartment. Oh hell, a dementor! It could be nothing else…

Pull yourself together! He tried to order himself. Nice Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher you are who blanks out in the darkness!

Somebody screamed – was it the girl… Hermione? – and then there was a loud thud… Harry!

He practically jumped at the dementor and pushed it out of the compartment which wasn't the right method of course but he didn't feel the strength to make up a happy thought.

"We aren't hiding Remus Lupin in this compartment!" He said and was surprised how steady his voice sounded. "Leave the train!"

The dementor seemed to consider its chances and then floated down the corridor and left the train.

The lights came back after some flickering and despite himself he sighed in relief.

When Sirius stepped back into the compartment he saw to new faces: a red-haired girl who must have been another Weasley-child by her appearance and a chubby boy. They were all pale but what frightened him was that Harry was lying on the floor obviously unconscious.

He kneeled down next to the boy and caressed his face.

"Harry!"

First there was no reaction but after some shaking of his shoulder he started to moan and slowly opened his eyes.

"W-what…?"

"It's okay… come, I'll help you." And he hauled him to the feet and helped him back on the seat.

Sirius felt the other children at his back and knew that he probably should calm them as well, but Harry was his godson, for Godness' sake!

"Where's that… thing…?" Harry asked hoarsely.

"It left. Just stay sitting!" he said when he saw Harry trying to stand up. Sirius moved to his luggage and took out a good size of chocolate that he broke in smaller pieces.

"Come, eat!"

The children looked at him with suspicious eyes. They must have thought that he went crazy.

"It helps to decrease the after-effects of a dementor attack" he explained.

"A what?" the Weasley girl asked with wide eyes.

"That thing was a dementor. They guard the Azkaban prison, they were looking for Remus Lupin."

As they seemed still shaken he told again.

"Take the chocolate, it really helps."

Hermione was the first one to accept the candy but the others followed her in suit. When he was sure that they were all well he said.

"I'll have to talk to the engineer."

The children of course didn't know that there was no engineer at all on this train. He went to the end of the car where nobody could see him, opened one of the windows and took some deep breaths from the cool air. His hands were trembling and Sirius tried to control them. He can't lose it so easy, damn it! What did Dumbledore think? How could he stop anybody and protect Harry if he was a wreck!

Thetrembling slowly decreased and when he looked out the window again, he could see the lights of Hogsmeade.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx