Disclaimer: nothing Harry Potter-related belongs to me.
AN: really sorry for the lateness. I really really want to continue this so much, and I will really try to get the next one out faster…
For this chapter… mainly is about OWLs results and getting back to Hogwarts. I worked quite some time with the owl thing, cause I m not very sure of how it works. So, after some struggling, I came up with like this :
OWLs subject: compulsory: 1. Herbology 2.DADA 3.Charms 4. Transfiguration 5. Astronomy 6. Potion 7. History of Magic
Electives: divination , 'arithmancy', Ancient runes, Care of Magical Creatures, Muggle Studies
Hope this will make sense.
Anyway… on with the story. Beware that… this is a un-beta-ed version and I am not a native English speaker. So there are bound to be grammar mistakes and such. Bear with me I am trying my best…
Chapter 10 The Way Back
Time flew, and soon the summer holiday drew to an end. Nothing special happened these days, just the occasion unexplained accidents, unexplained disappearance, panic, distrust and dispute surrounding the beginning of a large war.
Harry had caught up with the news ever since he got to the Headquarter. From what he observed from the Daily Prophet, which he now learnt not to trust in full, people had not received the news of Voldemort's sudden return very well. There were more and more complaints and dissatisfaction towards the Ministry in general, and the Minister for Magic in particular. Fudge was as keen as ever to hold onto his dear post, but it wouldn't be long before he would be forced to step down and let someone with more talent step in and replace him.
"People are now full of distrust. They are full of anxiety, frustration, and above all, fear. They doubt every person around them, even their own sons and daughters – have they gone to the dark side? Are they planning to harm me? You can see it in the way people act. The number of work place or domestic dispute has been climbing ever since the day the news of You-Know-Who's return has come out. Many of those disputes ended in bloody means and tragedies. " Mr. Weasley said to Harry over dinner one night. Mr. Weasley hadn't returned for dinner that previous week. The dark circles underneath his eyes were quite a scary sight to behold.
"Today I just dealt with a mad tela- telefusion-"
"Television? " Harry offered helpfully.
"Oh, right, television. A mad television that sprouted more than ten tentacles that can move on its own. It kept chasing a woman and her son until it caught them and kept asking if they were Death Eaters and betrayed the husband and kept showing the poor woman and her poor son the things they feared most on its screen. They were locked in the house with the mad television for ten hours before a muggle delivering milk heard their cries."
"Oh… so what become of them…?" Harry asked albeit he hadn't been sure if he really wanted to know.
"They were in shock and already lost their ability to respond to the surrounding by the time rescuers freed them of the mad television. They are now in St. Mungo's. From what I heard, the damage should not be permanent. Bless them… we're still locating the mad man who did this… " Mr. Weasley wiped his mouth with a napkin and threw it down the table. It came into contact with his plate still with some stew in, but he took no deed of it.
"The fact is that something has to be done soon, or else the wizarding world is going to fall into pieces, making it easy for You-Know-Who to seize." He took a long gulp of beer. When he slammed the mug down onto the table, beer split out.
In early August, owls from Hogwarts appeared, not only with their usual letters of booklists and such, but more importantly, their O.W.Ls result.
On the morning of 1stAugust, the Weasleys, Harry and Hermione were having breakfast at the kitchen as usual. Three owls suddenly swooped in via the door and dropped three large envelopes baring the Hogwarts seal on the three soon to be Sixth Year students.
The three of them quickly retreated from the kitchen and went upstairs into an unused room, hoping to find some privacy.
Harry watched at the envelope in his hand with unease. He exchanged a nervous glance with Ron, who appeared as queasy, if not more, as Harry.
Hermione, on the other hand, was clutching her letter with barely contained excitement.
"Hey, we've been preparing forever for this moment. Let's open it together!" Hermione said in near squeak.
"You first." Ron and Harry said at the same time.
Harry could hear Sirius's amused chuckle in his head. Yet he had no mind to feel undignified.
Throwing the two an offended glare, Hermione ripped the seal on the envelope off. Her eyes rapidly scanned over the parchment. Her eyes slowly widened.
Both Ron and Harry stepped back alarmingly as Hermione's eyes were filled with tears.
"Hermione, don't… I'm sure it's not bad, is it?" Ron reached tentatively towards Hermione's shoulder, but refrained as a sob broke out.
"Oh… I can't… I can't believe it! I … "
Harry was horrified. If Hermione's result was bad, his own would be dreadful. "Hermione, you've done your best. Don't be upset because -"
"Upset?" She was trying to suppress a hiccup, "I can't believe it! Harry, Ron! I get ten O.W.L.s!" she broke into a wide grin and grasped Harry's and Ron's hands and shook them furiously. "I got ten O.W.L.s! I thought I'd not get an Outstanding for DADA, cause I was so sure that the examiner has seen my shield flattered, and - "
Harry and Ron exchanged an exasperated glance as Hermione babbled on.
With some effort, Harry withdrew his hand from Hermione's dead grip.
"Come on, you two, open your envelope!" Hermione said, wiping her eyes with the back of her hands.
/Go on, lad. You'll do fine. / Sirius sent his encouragement via their link.
/Ok… /
Finding strength from the link, Harry steadied his shaking hands and broke the seal of the envelope. He could tell that Ron was doing the same, but his mind was too focused on his own envelope to follow what Ron was doing.
He took out the parchment. With no little trepidation, Harry unfolded it.
Harry scanned over the result letter once. Scanned again. And again. He could hardly believe his eyes.
"How's your results? Come on! " Hermione spoke in anxiety.
"I can't believe it, Hermione! I get 7 O.W.Ls out of 9 subjects I took! Only my divination and history of magic didn't get O.W.L.s!" It was like a huge weight was being removed from Harry's body. He felt so light-headed with incredulity.
Both Hermione and Harry turned to Ron. The expression on his face was one of relieve too.
"I also can't believe my luck! I get 6 O.W.Ls! I thought I was done for Charms! I thought I didn't do that well! Mum will be so happy, she was so afraid that I couldn't even get 4… "
"It's so great that we all get so good results!" Hermione said, engulfing both Harry and Ron in a tight hug at the same time.
"Let's go tell the others!" Ron shouted excitedly as he ran out of the room, with Hermione closely on his heels.
/Congratulations, Harry! I knew you would do fine!/ Sirius was looking at Harry with such pride in his eyes… that could only be described as the pride a parent had for his son.
/Thanks, Sirius./ Harry bent and buried his head into Sirius's thick fur.
He was so grateful that he had got a family member to share this moment with.
"Harry! Are you coming or not?" Ron's excited yell came through the door.
"I'm coming!" Harry replied, straightened and got out of the room.
Later that day, Harry met Remus as Remus returned to the headquarter. Harry told him his O.W.Ls results.
"Harry, congratulations! You have done a really great job!" Remus smiled and clapped Harry on his shoulder with a rarely shown enthusiasm.
"Thanks…" Harry smiled, scratching the back of his head, feeling a bit embarrassed.
What Remus did next startle Harry, as well as the invisible dog besides them – he ruffled Harry's hair. "Don't be embarrassed. I am really proud of you. I am sure your parents and – and Sirius would be too. "
They fell into silence, with Remus's hand rest firmly on Harry's shoulder, lending him support. Harry averted his eyes.
"Yea, I'm sure they would be. And I'm happy too. "
"Harry, I want you to know that… now that … " he cleared his throat and soothed his own coat unnecessarily. "If you need anything. I really mean anything. If you need someone to talk to… or that you are lacking anything… Dumbledore is insisting paying me two salaries now, so I am financially more stable … you know who you can turn to… "
Harry felt absolutely bewildered by his behaviour. But he was warmed nonetheless.
/Give him some response, lad. Save poor Remus. He is now a goldfish out of the water. He never was one for expressing his emotion in words…/
"Remus, thank you. I will never forget this…"
"Oh, you're welcome. " Shoving one of his hands into the pocket of his worn brown coat, Remus ran the other hand through his graying hair. It's fast growing pass his shoulder. Close up, he seemed to have lost even more weigh then before. "Let's get down to the kitchen, shall we? Molly is preparing a fabulous dinner to celebrate your O.W.L.s result."
"Remus, if you don't mind me asking… are you still losing weight?"
Harry could feel his own worry mirrored from the corner of his mind that was Sirius.
"Well, I have been worse."
"But, you really should -"
"See, Harry, you don't have to worry about me. Let me do the worrying, ok? " Remus looked out of the window, studying the setting sun. "Can't you smell the delicious food downstairs? The food must be ready."
Harry decided it would be wiser to let the matter drop.
"By the way, what did you mean by receiving two salaries from Dumbledore?" Harry asked as they nearly finished their descend down to the basement floor.
"Haven't I told you? I'm now working for the Order, and later I'll also be - "
"Harry, Remus, come in!" Mrs. Weasley swung the wooden door of the kitchen open and ushered the two into the crowded kitchen.
It's been a while since so many people were present in the Headquarter. Nearly all of the Weasleys, with the obvious exception of Percy, Tonks, Fletch, and even Hagrid were inside the room. Although it was good to meet so many old faces, Harry doubt if it were prudent to use the Headquarter of the Order for such a personal celebration… but anyway, no one seemed to care.
Remus and he had to be seated separately as there were no two adjacent chairs left.
"Remus, what you were talking about - "
"You will know soon enough!" He had to raise his voice in order for it to carry across the crowded and noisy room
The food was supreme. The atmosphere had never been so in harmony and the ex-Black Manor. Occasion laughter broke out due to the Weasleys twins' infamous jokes. Now that they were really into the joke shop business, they seemed really to have an inexhaustible source of jokes, the main source from which were their customer's response of their products.
"Remus dear, why don't you have some of the mashed potato? You said you loved them very much." Over the bustling of the dinner table, Harry caught Mrs. Weasley talking to Remus. He was particularly drawn to their conversation because there seemed to be something amiss with Mrs Weasley's voice.
"Oh, thanks for offering. But I am really feeling full … I am not that hungry… "
"Why is that? You haven't touched your food yet. " Besides the slight offenceness in her voice, there was something else… Mrs Weasley sounded worried. "Remus, you haven't been …"
At that moment, Mr Weasley and Bill burst out in laughter at a joke the twin had thrown out.
"He didn't really eat that, tell me he didn't!" tears were leaking from Mr Weasley's eyes as his whole lean body shook in incontrollable laughter.
"Of course …" Fred said.
"He did!" followed by George.
"That moment was… "
" Simply priceless! "
The fresh wave of laughter washed out the conversation between Mrs. Weasley and Remus.
Harry didn't notice Sirius's slipping away from him as the Weasley twin each sat down at one side of him to tell him about what they were laughing about.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxx
The summer pasted relatively uneventfully for Harry. Voldemort had not been making new moves, at least on the surface. Nor had the Order, for all Harry could observe. From Sirius's opinion, he thought it was just the 'calm' before the storm finally broke out, which would not be far away. Both sides were racing against time and each other in collecting information, deriving strategies, recruiting new blood. But it would not be long before the tension snaps and all the hell breaks loose.
Harry managed to keep peace with most of the inhabitants at the Headquarter, while trying to put up a lost and mournful face every now and then. With Hermione and Ginny, outwardly he had reached a truce with them, but they didn't seem to have forgiven each other deep at heart. Harry still felt awkward each time he had to face them alone, and therefore he normally would avoid doing so.
Harry would really like to spend more time with Remus and get to know him better, but he could seldom get a hold of the man, who had no doubt been burdened with various matters and responsibilities concerning the Order.
Ron was the person Harry spent most time with.(Well, perhaps except Sirius.) Most of the time they just chatted idly about trivial matters, or played chess with half their mind on it. Ron could be increasing seen with books concerning theories on Quidditich towards the end of the holiday.
Most of Harry's time was actually spent with Sirius. Sirius instructed Harry on what he should spend more time on studying, especially in the field of Defence Against the Dark Arts. More importantly, Harry had started reading on Sirius' research into Occlumency. So far, he hadn't been able to make a lot of sense out of the difficult articles and extracts from various books. But thankfully, his scar had been feeling normal and there had been no funny vision or whatsoever for a while.
Soon, September 1st descended upon them. Accompanied by the usual haste and chaos, Harry, Hermione and the Weasleys's remaining two members who still attended Hogwarts: Ron and Ginny, made their way to the King's Cross via borrowed cars.
The journey to the King's Cross was much more quiet then before, as the Fred and George were no longer there to noise about anything or to make jokes on any living object.
The parting with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley was nearly close to tearful. Mrs. Weasley especially gave each of them a long and tight hug, as if they wouldn't see each other for a long time.
Harry had wanted to bid his farewell with Remus before he left the Headquarter, but he had been nowhere to be seen.
They boarded the Hogwart Express just in time.
Ron and Hermione went ahead to the prefect compartment as soon as they settled their luggage down. They promised to be back as soon as they could, but Harry knew it would be well after mid way before that happens.
Therefore, Harry was left alone with Ginny in the compartment. Well, not exactly alone, if one counted the invisible-to-all-other-people-except-Harry dog who was crouching rather quietly besides Harry.
Ever since the incident in which both Hermione and Ginny slapped him, Harry had not really been alone with Ginny. Which left Harry quite wary to be left alone with her. Actually, Harry had been, one way or another, quite wary around Ginny ever since she grew out of her fancy of him and started talking in front of him.
"Hey! Sorry! I said I'm sorry!"
Harry jumped in his seat at the sudden shouting. What had he done this time?
"What? Sorry for what?"
"Are you ok? I have been calling you for ages, 'cause you were rubbing your cheek for no reason at all. Did it really hurt that much? "
Harry quickly put down his raised hand. Strangely enough, he had rubbed his cheek without himself knowing.
"No, it didn't hurt that much." Harry couldn't help but recoil a bit at Ginny's glare. "ok, it hurt like hell, but I know I deserved that. "
"I'm glad that I could get the message across, then."
"Yeah. "
/this young lady has a strong will and fierce temper that remarkably resemble your mother./ Sirius broke his silence finally. Harry had been dreading his taunt since Ginny had made her move.
/how would I know?/
/you and your father really had natural magnetism for trouble. /
/What do you mean?/ Harry's irritation towards the stab of smugness that seeped through the bond was steadily mounting.
/Well, you aren't falling for our Miss Weasley here, are you?/
"Of course NOT!" in his indignity, Harry shouted.
And regretted as soon as the words left his mouth.
"What?"
"Nothing…no, I'm sorry. I mean I was just… talking to myself?"
"Harry, are you sure that you are quite ok? You have been acting really weirdly… "
Lunar became Harry's saviour by breaking into the compartment suddenly.
Before he or Ginny knew it, Lunar had already dragged Ginny out with her, muttering something about "conspiracy of Fudges", "the Dark Lord is on this train" as she left with Ginny, leaving Harry behind.
Harry released his breath and slumped back down in the seat.
/Look what you have gotten me into again, Sirius. She would have solid proof that I am mental, now. /
/I'm terribly sorry, Harry. Have I jeopardized your chance with little Ginny back there?/
/No! She's more of a little sister to me that I could never have. That's all. /
Shooting Harry a doubtful glance, Sirius turned to study the scenery flying by outside the train. Putting his paws on the window sail, Padfoot pressed his snout against the glass to get a better view of outside.
From the waving of the dog tail and the bounciness that was at the back of his mind, Harry could tell that Sirius was really enjoying himself, and really looking forward to arriving their destination.
At the moment, it was quite sunny outside. The radiance of the midday sun furnished the pastures and forests outside with liveliness.
However, the thick cloud at the far side of the sky was a promise of heavy rain.
Harry was contemplating whether to bring up a subject when Sirius turned back down from the window and fixed Harry with his clear blue gaze.
/Just spill it, lad./
Harry flipped the book in his lap close.
/Sirius. I really think we should at least tell Remus that you are alive./ Harry knew Sirius knew perfectly well why he had said that. Harry had been reluctant to bring up this subject himself, though it had been nagging at him ever since Sirius's return. Rationally, he knew he should relieve Remus the grief of losing the last best friend. Emotionally, Harry couldn't help but wanted to keep Sirius to himself…
It's about time for the selfishness to stop, however.
The remorse from the bond was evident.
/No…/
/Come on! Remus would never betray us! You know this better than I do. The poor man is suffering… I know how he feels… /
/Harry, I want you to understand. This is a matter between Remus and I. what you have said is right, but I would solve it in my own way. Don't you trust me?/
From the fading stubbornness and the emerging resolution and determination, Harry knew they would be ok.
/Well, of course I do. I just believe that it would do both of you some good./
/I know. Thanks for being caring. But I think we should stop talking now as someone is coming…/
Just then, there was the sound of a knock at the door leading to the small compartment. The door soon was slide open, revealing the head of a small, weedy-looking boy in Ravenclaw's uniform.
"Hey," the boy peeped around, "everywhere else is so full. Mind if I sit here?"
"Well, no. It'll not be occupied for a good while. Just make yourself home. "
The boy took the seat directly opposite Harry. From the heavy-looking bag, the boy drew a thick book out and sank deeper into the seat, preparing to read. As he flipped the thick book open, the boy stopped and looked up.
Tilting his head, he studied Harry curiously. Though slightly put off by the boy's action, Harry just start observing the boy in return. With short raven hair, high cheek bone, the boy reminded Harry of someone.
"Hey, you're not by any chance… "
"Harry Potter?" Harry finished for him.
"Oh, you really are him!" the inevitable flicker of eyes towards the infamous scar. "I see. You see, I read all about you last year. And I've been trying to research into the possibility of a cursed scar hurting years after it has been inflicted, but to no avail. I was wondering if there'd be any chance I could experiment on… no, I mean examine your scar in person. "
Harry stared at the boy.
"You are kidding, right?"
However, judging from the boy's intent look, he didn't seem to be kidding. It was as if he had merely asked to examine Harry's glasses, but not asked to experiment on Harry's scar.
"Oh, sorry," the imprudence seemed to finally dawn on him, "I didn't mean to be rude. I'm just fascinated by matters related to healing. I want to be a healer when I grow up. "
The boy closed his book, which Harry saw the title was "The Art of Healing", and set it aside. He then fixed his inquisitive grey gaze back onto Harry.
"Harry – you don't mind me calling you Harry?"
"No…"
"I really think what the media said about you last year was rubbish. Back then, a second year like me saw right through those lies. I bet other people also knew it was just the Ministry's way of diverting attention from the arising Dark Lord. My father always tells me that those who receive the mass media's information without processing are truly morons. "
Harry was surprised by the short third year's speech. However, he had taken an instant liking towards the Ravanclaw. He was not awed or disgusted by the fact that he was the-Boy-Who-Lived.
"I'm grateful that at least someone did see through what those reporters were trying to do, but I'm afraid that's not always the case with most people." Harry said, reminiscing the harsh period he had to endure last year.
/It's over and done with now. Stop thinking about that! And where's your manner? You have talked to him for so long without know his name!/
Harry nodded to Padfoot and turned his attention back to the boy.
"Anyway, that's over and done with now. Um… if you don't mind me asking, what's your name? "
"Oh, sorry. Haven't I told you yet? My name is Stanley. My friends all call me Stan. "
Afterwards, they embarked onto a pleasant conversation about virtually everything, such as Fudge's losing favour with the public, which was the best Quidditch team out there nowadays, the best way to treat a dislocated joint, their favourite spot in Hogwarts, and the worsening weather out there.
Sirius, on the other hand, was half listening to their conversation and half dozing off, lying down quietly besides Harry's feet.
Stanley was evidently of a pure magical upbringing. However, he did not hold any prejudices against the muggle world. For example, he was not at all repelled by the muggle way of 'healing'; instead, he was intrigued by its effectiveness on certain aspects, and respected their scientific and evidence-based approach to problems.
Harry wondered if this were how he would feel if he had a younger sibling.
Someone knocked on the door as they fell into a comfortable silence, each reading books of their own interest.
"Stan, are you in here?" someone called from outside.
Stanley snapped his book close. "It's my brother!" he said, sprinting to the compartment's door.
As the compartment's door slided open, it revealed none other than a Slytherin the same year as Harry, Theodore Nott.
"Hey, Theodore, where have you been? I couldn't find you after I board the train. It's lucky that I have met Harry here, who has been so kind to let me have a seat here. You know each other, right? Harry is such a nice person, he… "
Stan babbled on as Harry and Theodore stared at each other. Except being a Slytherin, Harry didn't really know about what sort of a person Theodore was. In class, he just seemed a quiet and hard-working student. All Harry could tell was that this Theodore had not shown great interest in hanging around with Malfoy to bully other people. He was a Nott, nonetheless. The son of a Death Eater. As was Stanley.
Harry could feel Sirius returned to full alertness and stared the two brothers in vigilance.
"Hey… do you two hear what I say?" Stan looked from his brother to Harry, and then back to his brother.
Theodore Nott's expression looked blank. Harry wondered what's going on in his mind. Was Nott the same as Malfoy? Did he intend to follow his father's steps? Would Stanley also do so? He seemed to admire his father so much… but Harry just didn't want to believe such…
"I hope my little brother has not given you a lot of trouble, Potter. He doesn't know when to shut up sometimes. Let's go, Stan." Theodore spoke in a polite manner, with a bit of annoyance seeping into his voice.
"Why's that, bro? I just am getting to know Harry. Let's stay and talk a bit more…"
"Theodore? What are you doing here?" an un-mistakably arrogant voice.
Harry signed. Trouble was coming.
Studying Theodore's face, Harry was a bit startled to find a fleeting flash of … annoyance?
"Draco, it's nothing, I just was looking for Stan…"
"Well, well, well." Malfoy was upon the doorway. He was as arrogant and as irritating as ever. The scowl on his face looked as if the whole world owed him.
"Look what we have got here. Potter." Malfoy spat his name out like venom.
"Malfoy." Harry met Malfoy's burning glare steadily.
/Be careful, Harry. We have three potential Death Eaters here. /
/I'll manage just fine. /
"I seemed to hear someone moaning in pain over there." Malfoy smirked darkly, cruel light glittering in his grey eyes, looking down upon at Harry who was by then standing.
Harry simply glared at Malfoy with cold eyes, daring him to say further.
"Playing deaf now, are we? Or perhaps you have cried yourself over some dead dog so much so that your voice is now too hoarse for speaking? Poor you."
/This boy sure has a lot of imagination./ Sirius commended dryly.
Harry kept his face as stonily mask-like as possible. He was treading dangerous water to play such a game with Malfoy. Malfoy might be evil, but he was by no means dump. One wrong act, and he might just be the first one to realize that Harry was no longer grieving for a godfather that was no longer quite dead.
"You will not speak of it again in front of me, Malfoy. You're not worthy of even mentioning him. " Cold fury was radiating from every inch of Harry's pale skin, and his emerald eyes were shooting daggers.
"Doesn't that moans of pain sound pitiful?" Malfoy turned to Theodore, his face smug, apparent pleased with himself.
"Draco. That's quite enough." Theodore's voice was flat.
Stan was clutching uncertainly at his brother's robe, his eyes wide, looking uncertainly at the three year six students from one to the other.
Harry decided it was time to make his strike.
"I really don't understand how you still have the mood to stick your smug face around other people's business, Malfoy. I suppose it is because your sorry excuse of a father is too busy partying in someplace nice to care about you."
Malfoy's smug smirk froze.
"It wasn't what I thought I have heard. " Malfoy, his face still turned to Theodore, hissed under his breath.
"You did. It was such a pity that you weren't there to see them chain up your noble father and ship him off. You could have enjoyed the sight."
Malfoy slowly turned.
"You don't know what you are talking about." Malfoy hissed.
And Harry suddenly found himself at the receiving end of a wand, the hand gripping it surprisingly steady.
Harry was not to be intimidated, however.
"Who's the one moaning and squeaking in pain, now? I guess it just kind of saddening to know that one's almighty father isn't as powerful as his son would like him to be. "
"Sorry to disappoint you, Potter, but my father is that powerful. He -"
In a firm motion, Theodore pushed the wand point down and stepped in between the two foes.
"Don't do stupid things that you will regret, Draco."
"Don't you dare telling me what to do, Theodore."
A deadly silence hang heavily around the small train compartment as the two Death Eater's sons engaged in a dead glare with one another.
Malfoy was the one to relent. With a swish of his robe, he left the compartment. But not without leaving his last farewell to Harry.
"Potter, you will regret this. You will regret the moment that your father set his eyes on your filthy mudblood of a mother and curse the moment that you were born. "
Without another glance at Harry, Theodore grabbed his brother's forearm and turned to leave.
Stanley turned to look back at Harry, uncertainty written all over his face as he was forced to leave.
"See ya around, Harry…" Stan said to Harry before the compartment door was slid shut.
Harry let loose the breath that he didn't aware he was even holding, and sank back down onto the seat.
Harry could feel Sirius's razor blue gaze still directed at him.
/That was not what I would have called clever move, kido. You over provoked him. /
/I know. But I just couldn't hold back, seeing his smug stupid face. /
Harry and Sirius remained relatively silent throughout the train ride, each lost in his own thoughts, pondering over the little incident with Malfoy and Notts.
Ron and Hermione found Harry alone in the compartment when they were around an hour's way from Hogwarts. They chatted half-heartedly as the train drove nearer and nearer to their destination.
The Hogwarts Express finally stopped with a loud screech, declaring the end of the trip. Students started to disembark the train.
With the dim silhouette of Hogwarts in sight, it signified the beginning of another school year. Harry's legs felt numb all of a sudden. There's no telling of what harshness would lay ahead. Harry really didn't want to see the beloved school to fall under the chaotic craziness surrounding the war, but changes were just inevitable.
Sirius nudged Harry gently on his leg.
The sight of the gigantic black dog granted life back to Harry's limbs.
He would not be alone this year. And this alone could make all the difference to Harry's world.
And he would surely strive to make a difference this year. He had not dared to mention this to Sirius, but he was determined to find a way to free Sirius back to his human form.
There had to be a way.
AN : Click the little Review button and give me some comments, everybody! I need it, I really need it to keep me going!
Thanks to all who reviewed last time! And responses to some of them –
HoshiHikari: Remus will get involved in his own way… just wait and see!
Iris Firewing : thanks to your advice of not stating the 'lesson' thingy… I will try, but as I am not a professional writer, I might not be able to do so all the time… so just remind me of that if it happens again!
Marguerida: 4 to 5 times? Are you serious? hope you like this chapter