Diary of an Orphan (re-written)

by StrangeLittleWeirdo

Jenna grew up alone in an orphanage with no knowledge of who she was or where she came from. It wasn't until an owl arrived with a letter for her, and a man named Remus Lupin walked into her life, that she learnt she was so much more than she originally thought and her life would never be the same again.

18. Running Out of Time

Chapter 17

Running Out of Time

I was sceptical of whether or not Hermione would keep her word and not expose Lupin's secret and what he truly was. At least if she did, then I knew Snape would have achieved what he set out to do when he set us that essay on werewolves and his grudge against Lupin would end as he would get fired for sure. Regardless of this fact, I had to trust Hermione would keep her promise and that Lupin's secret would remain so. But now it meant not only were Harry and Ron not talking to me because of Black, Hermione wasn't talking to me either and so I had lost my one form of support in this whole messy situation.

As for Lupin himself, I hadn't gone to visit him after class since the incident at Christmas when I finally told him that I believed Black could possibly be innocent. Nor had I had anymore Patronus lessons even though I was aware he had started teaching Harry the Charm. I was trying to give him a good amount of time to forget our conversation before I braved to go back for more lessons. I finally braved it on Thursday evening of the first week back after the holidays.

I had overheard that Harry was having his first lesson with Lupin that night and so had snuck out of the common room in the form of a cat so as not to be noticed and followed Harry to where he was having his lesson. I followed him down to the History of Magic classroom where he went inside and shut the door behind him, leaving me alone in the corridor. I hid behind a nearby pillar and lay down to wait. A few minutes later Lupin showed up and went inside too. For the next hour I waited patiently outside the door, pacing every so often to pass the time. I could hear shouts come from inside as Harry attempted to cast the Charm followed by periods of silence where I assumed he'd passed out if Lupin was attempting to use a Boggart as a Dementor for him to fight against. Eventually I had to give up my animal form and I resorted to sitting on the floor with my back leant against the door as I waited for their lesson to finish. It was in their final minutes, however, I realised my attempt at approaching Lupin was far too soon.

'Eat the lot, or Madam Pomfrey will be after my blood,' I heard Lupin say. I took that to mean the lesson had ended and he was giving Harry some chocolate to restore his energy. I got up off the floor and stood to the side of the door that would mean I wouldn't be seen when it was opened. 'Same time next week?'

'OK,' came Harry's reply. There was a short silence and then, 'Professor Lupin?' Harry asked. 'Jenna's mum … she was your sister, right?'

'Indeed, she was,' Lupin confirmed.

'And you said you knew my Dad,' Harry continued. 'If you knew my Dad and Jenna's mum your sister, that means you must've known Sirius Black.'

Lupin didn't reply straight away.

'So you know Jenna's father is Sirius Black,' Lupin finally said. His voice was oddly calm and restrained. 'That explains why she has been spending so much time here. But what makes you think I knew Black himself?'

'Nothing –' said Harry quickly. 'I mean, I just knew they were friends at Hogwarts too …'

'Yes, I knew him,' said Lupin shortly. 'Or I thought I did. You'd better get off, Harry, it's getting late.'

The sound of footsteps alerted me. Quickly I cleared my thoughts and transformed back into a cat. I scarpered behind the nearest pillar as the door to the History of Magic classroom opened and Harry walked out of it. He looked a little worse for wear and his hair was slicked with the remnants of sweat. The Charm must've been quite difficult for him too though it had sounded like he'd had more success than me. He walked quickly down the corridor and around the corner out of sight. Thinking there was little point in hanging around to see Lupin, I darted off in the opposite direction to return to the Gryffindor Tower.

Ravenclaw played Slytherin the following weekend and the match was indeed a close one, Slytherin pulling out a win in the last few moments in what was a close chase between Malfoy and the Ravenclaw Seeker, a girl Lee Jordan identified as Cho Chang. This gave Gryffindor new hope because if we beat Ravenclaw in our next match it meant that we would then be in second place overall. It did mean that I saw less of Harry in the common room as it appeared Wood had increased the team practices. But he still had no broom to my knowledge so what they were going to do when the match arrived, I didn't know nor would I find out. Seen even less than Harry was Hermione. Somehow, and I still didn't know how she was doing it, Hermione was barely seen outside of class and at meal times as she juggled her ever hectic schedule. The only times I did see her was when she was buried behind her mountain of books and homework in the corner of the common room. And she looked exhausted. I wanted to find out if she was OK, maybe suggest she drop a class or two even though I knew the thought of that would appal her, or at least get her to take a rest once in a while. But, of course, with her not talking to me either all I could do was watch.

The only thing I did know was that Hermione was no longer speaking to Harry or Ron at all. In fact, it was common knowledge that Ron and Hermione's friendship was over. It was late on Tuesday evening that it had happened. I had been in the common room working on my homework when from across the room I heard a very loud shout that drew the attention of anyone and everyone in the common room. I looked up in time to see Ron storm down the stairs from the boys' dormitories carrying his bedsheet for some reason. He strode over to where Hermione was sat in our old seats with Harry and thrust it in her face, much to her confusion.

'LOOK!' he bellowed, shaking the sheet in front of Hermione's face. 'LOOK!'

'Ron, what –?'

'SCABBERS! LOOK! SCABBERS!'

My eyes narrowed in a frown as I couldn't see what it was on the sheet Ron was showing her. I didn't need to though as Ron's next shout confirmed what it was.

'BLOOD!' yelled Ron. 'HE'S GONE! AND YOU KNOW WHAT WAS ON THE FLOOR?'

'N-no,' stuttered a shaking Hermione.

I don't know what Ron threw at her but I could probably guess. It had to be something that implicated Crookshanks in Scabbers' disappearance. That could be the only thing that would enrage Ron this much. Whatever it was, Hermione made to say something but Ron stormed off before she could defend herself. The common room was left in a stunned silence once he'd gone. Everyone was staring in Hermione's direction but no one said anything. I watched as she shrunk into her seat before going back to hiding behind her books. She must have also told Harry to leave as moments later he too had left the common room to go upstairs. I watched him leave then looked back at Hermione. As much as I wanted to go and comfort her I decided it was not my place to do so and so I returned to my Transfiguration essay.

January soon faded away. Before I knew it, February was here and term was back in full swing. Unfortunately, however, the weather did not improve and it remained cold and grey. Despite the dreary weather I found myself spending more and more time outside the castle in the grounds wrapped up in my cloak and Gryffindor scarf, mostly under the shelter of a tree in the Transfiguration Courtyard with someone you'd least expect: Daphne. At first when I started showing up in the Courtyard we didn't really speak that much, only the occasional word as we either read in the peace together or practiced whatever spell or charm we'd just learnt in class. Soon though I found myself engaging in conversation with her, talking about whatever topic came to mind whether it was homework or something that had been in the Prophet or even the abysmal weather. I was actually surprised at how much I seemed to have in common with Daphne. We certainly both had a passion for flying even though neither of us was on our respective House Quidditch teams.

'I just never felt like trying out,' Daphne shrugged when I asked her why she had never gone for it. 'Have you seen the Slytherin team? A bunch of meat-head, testosterone-fuelled teenagers who care more about seeing how many players they can injure than actually playing a half honest game.'

'I s'pose that's a fair point,' I mused. I pulled at a couple strands of grass by my foot. 'Do you ever go out to the pitch to just fly around?'

'And have people laugh at the fact I own a Cleansweep Six?' snorted Daphne.

'What's wrong with that?' I countered. 'I fly a Thunderbolt III. They're about the same generation broomstick, aren't they? And Cleansweeps are known for their reliability. There's nothing wrong with that sort of broom.'

'Would be if I wanted to be on the Quidditch team,' said Daphne.

'Again, fair point,' I admitted. 'Still, we both own pretty decent brooms. Why don't we go down to the Quidditch pitch before dinner tonight and have a fly?'

Daphne gave me a sceptical look. She seemed to consider my proposition for a minute or two before sighing. She leant her head back against the tree trunk, her blonde hair falling gracefully either side of her face in a way mine would never manage.

'It would be nice to get back on my broomstick,' muttered Daphne. 'All right, fine. I'll meet you at the in the Entrance Hall straight after class finishes.'

I beamed. It had been quite a while since I'd been on my Thunderbolt too after all. From the other side of the school we heard the Clock Tower bell ring out signalling class was about to start again. We gathered our bags and went our separate ways, Daphne heading off for Herbology as I went inside for Charms.

As soon as class was over I rushed back to the Gryffindor Tower to get changed and grab my broom. I threw off my robes and chucked them in a pile on the end of my bed before pulling on some jeans and a t-shirt and my Gryffindor hoody for warmth. I then opened my trunk and pulled out my Thunderbolt III. The broom care kit Lupin had got me for my birthday had certainly come in handy; you wouldn't think it was three-years-old if you looked at its condition. With a smile on my face, the first in quite some time, I hurried back out of the girls' dormitories to the common room. I crossed it, broom clutched beside me, and walked over to the portrait hole. Almost out of habit my eyes glanced briefly over to the corner where Harry, Ron and Hermione were normally found. Sure enough the boys were there but Hermione wasn't. Ever since Scabbers went missing and was presumed eaten, Hermione was never seen in the common room. Harry and Ron were in conversation, Ron in the seat with his back to me while Harry was in the one that faced the portrait hole. He looked up as I passed. My smile faded when our eyes met and I looked away. I pushed open the portrait of Sir Cadogan and left the Tower, pushing thoughts of Harry to the back of my mind.

Daphne, dressed in what to me looked like very smart clothes for casual ones and her Slytherin scarf, was waiting for me by the doors to the Entrance Hall. In her hand I saw a light brown broom that, in comparison to her clothes, looked like it had seen slightly better days. Judging by its state, she must fly it a lot at home even if she didn't at school. I hurried over to her and together we left the Entrance Hall to go down to the Quidditch pitch. On the way we talked rather animatedly as we compared our different brooms, both of us weighing up their pros and cons. While mine had speed on its side, Daphne's apparently had a lot more control for manoeuvres such as dives and rolls, but it's lack of streamlining did counter this quite considerably. Of course, a broomstick was only as good as its rider so we'd just have to see which was better when we got there.

It felt so good to be on my broom again and Daphne was a very good flyer it turned out. She flew around the pitch on her Cleansweep Six with such accuracy and pinpoint turns that I found it amazing she hadn't tried out for the team when she was clearly a better flyer than most of them. She certainly would make a very good Seeker. As for me, the moment I was on my broom I shot of up into the skies in a blur of burgundy, the speed of my Thunderbolt lifting me feet above the ground in a matter of seconds. When I was level with the top of the stands I turned sharply and came to a stop so I could look back down below me. Daphne was floating some feet below me having been distracted by the sudden ascent. I grinned and went into a diver to rejoin her, the loose strands of my fringe blowing out of my eyes as I streaked back down to the pitch. I levelled out before I reached it and flew over to where Daphne was floating.

While Daphne admired my ability to handle such a fast broom, I couldn't help but praise her skills in control. They were something I doubted I'd be able to master on a broom like mine but it didn't mean I didn't want to try. It took a bit of coaxing but Daphne's desire to learn how to move faster won her over and we agreed to give each other pointers on how to improve our respective skills. I made Daphne go first, telling her that she has the control and so it was down to her flying technique that would improve her speed. I got her to fly a couple of laps around me while I watched her style. From what I could see, her posture was what was creating too much drag for her and she needed to angle her body over her broom a bit further to improve this. And giving her broomtail twigs a bit of a trim probably wouldn't do any harm either. I related this to Daphne and she did another couple of laps. Sure enough, her speed improved even if only by a few seconds for now but enough for her to notice a difference.

Then it was my turn. Daphne got me to perform some basic manoeuvres so she could see where I was going wrong. I did a couple of dives and sharp turns at her request then went on to do some loops and rolls. When Daphne called me back over I saw she had a frown on her face from what she had seen. I gave her a confused look.

'Granted your broom has speed but you are pushing it far too much,' Daphne explained. 'If you lessen how fast you make it go, you're manoeuvrability will improve and so you won't overshoot as much on your turns. It'll also help you control it better, making your dives and rolls a lot less risky. How you haven't thrown yourself from your broom yet is quite impressive but it'll make a big difference if you just hold back on the speed a fraction.'

I had to admit I was a bit sceptical but I accepted Daphne's advice. She made me repeat the movements I'd just done but to try and reduce my speed. I set off and started with some turns. I streaked across the length of the pitch towards the goals but this time I made sure to not push my broom as much as I was used to. It was hard to do as I was so used to flying at maximum velocity and I certainly noted how different it felt just with the small reduction in it. When I was above the sandpit area, I made the turn. Sure enough the small change in my speed meant my turn was a lot smoother and I didn't feel my broomtail swing out as much as it had before, nor did my broom perform its usual air-skid that I was accustomed to. Surprised, I flew back down the pitch towards Daphne and repeated the move. Again, my broom's control was much better just because of that simple lowering of my speed. The same happened for my dives, rolls and weaves; with less speed I had more control but at the same time my broom's strength had not been hampered, only improved.

Our time at the Quidditch pitch drew to an end when Daphne spotted a group of students walking out on to the pitch. We had been trying out a few moves professional Quidditch players used in team routines after having helped each other's flying techniques when I had heard Daphne calling me. I was currently balancing carefully on my broom handle, trying out a move used by the American and Australian Quidditch teams that involved using your broom like a Muggle skateboard and riding it standing sideways on its shaft. I looked over in her direction to see seven people dressed in red robes walking on to the pitch. It was the Gryffindor team. They must have practice which means Harry would be there. I sighed. Carefully I used my back foot to angle my broom to allow it to turn and flew back towards Daphne as she flew down to meet me; luckily I wasn't flying too high off the ground in case I fell off. Daphne landed a few feet from the entrance where the Gryffindor team were gathered. I slowed down and hopped off my broom beside her. Unfortunately our presence hadn't gone unnoticed and I saw that the others had been watching us, including Wood, Harry and Ron. I assumed he was here because I noticed in Harry's hand was his Firebolt. He must've got it back from McGonagall.

'Come on, Daphne,' I said quickly, seeing the frown on Harry's face. I didn't know whether it was because I was here, or because I'd been on a broom as Harry didn't know how well I could fly, or because I was in the company of a Slytherin.

Daphne and I picked up our brooms and made to leave. To my dismay, I heard Wood's voice call over to us.

'Hey, hold on there,' shouted Wood. Reluctantly I stopped and glanced back at him. He jogged over to us. 'You fly, Jenna?' he asked me. 'What broom do you ride?'

'A Thunderbolt,' I replied. 'Why?'

'Hmm, a speedy model but known for their problems regarding their control and safety. Good nonetheless. And how long have you been flying for?' persisted Wood.

'Only a couple of years, since I started here.'

A familiar look appeared on Wood's face. It was one I recognised whenever he had a spark of inspiration whether it was for a new team practice or at the thought that Gryffindor was winning. He looked between his team and me. I didn't like where this was going.

'Have you ever considered playing Quidditch? You look like you've got a good flying form and considerable control over the handling of your broom.'

'No, not really,' I shrugged. I glanced at Harry. 'I fly for fun more than anything.'

'Would you possibly consider it?' asked Wood. 'With all these Dementors floating around the school and after what happened at our first match, I was thinking about putting in a substitute for Harry if something happens to him in the next match. Your broom certainly gives you the speed needed for a Seeker and you have the right build for it too. With a bit of training we could get you quickly up to Harry's standards so you can replace him if necessary.'

I hesitated, again glancing in Harry's direction. I knew this would infuriate him more than I already had done and again this was not my fault. I hadn't intended to be seen flying by Wood and I certainly didn't want to replace him on the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

'I don't think so,' I said eventually. 'I'm not really that sporty. Besides, Dementors affect me really easily too. It would kind of defeat the purpose of having me as a substitute if I can't even play for the same reason.'

Wood looked disheartened by my refusal but seemed to accept it. Together Daphne and I left the pitch. As we walked past the Gryffindor Quidditch team I saw Harry and Ron whispering to each other about something but I chose to ignore it even though it was probably about me. We walked back up to the castle then separated again at the Entrance Hall to return to our respective common rooms until dinner. I returned to the Gryffindor Tower and proceeded back up to the dormitories to put my broom away, happy to hide in there and away from any stares I might get when the Gryffindor team returned.

I was reluctant to go to the match on Saturday morning but despite all the bad feelings currently going around I still wanted to see Harry play. I ended up sitting with Parvati and Lavender, which in hindsight wasn't the best of choices as they did spend a lot of the match discussing our most recent Divination lesson whenever Gryffindor weren't in possession of the Quaffle. I sat beside them silently with my eyes focused on the match as I listened closely to Lee Jordan's commentary and McGonagall's continual reprimanding of him for going off track and talking about Harry's Firebolt.

'They're off, and the big excitement this match is the Firebolt which Harry Potter is flying for Gryffindor,' Jordan told us. 'According to Which Broomstick, the Firebolt's going to be the broom of choice for the national teams at this year's World Championship –'

'Jordan, would you mind telling us what's going on in the match?' Professor McGonagall would interrupt him.

'Right you are, Professor – just giving a bit of background information. The Firebolt, incidentally, has a built-in auto-brake and –'

'Jordan!'

'OK, OK, Gryffindor in possession, Katie Bell of Gryffindor heading for goal, Ravenclaw Chaser Davies attempting to block her – she dodges – KATIE SCORES THE FIRST GOAL FOR GRYFFINDOR!'

While the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw Chasers fought for the Quaffle, Harry had his own competition in the form of Ravenclaw Seeker, Cho Chang. I watched as she marked Harry and copied him almost move for move, diving when he dove, turning when he turned, following him wherever he went. I frowned. If that was how she played as Seeker, then she clearly didn't seem to be a very good one if she relied on the skill of others to find the Snitch and not do it herself. A sudden 'Ooooooh' went through the crowd as a Ravenclaw Beater sent a Bludger towards Harry, narrowly missing him. George decided to retaliate and sent it straight back in his direction, much to the Gryffindor students' delight.

'Gryffindor lead by eighty points to zero,' Jordan announced, 'and look at that Firebolt go! Potter's really putting it through its paces now. See it turn – Chang's Comet is just no match for it. The Firebolt's precision-balance is really noticeable in these long –'

'JORDAN! ARE YOU BEING PAID TO ADVERTISE FIREBOLTS? GET ON WITH THE COMMENTARY!'

Never a dull moment when listening to Lee commentate, is it? I thought to myself.

Harry must've realised what Cho was doing as he now seemed to be chasing the Snitch whether he had seen it or not. He would fly one way then sharply change direction then go into a fast dive before pulling out of it last minute so Cho almost hit the ground. There would certainly be no love lost between these two after the match. I watched as they shot to and fro over the pitch before a whisper across the Gryffindors attracted my attention. Something about Dementors on the pitch. Instantly alert, I looked in the direction of where some of them were pointing to see three tall black figures on the pitch. However, I didn't feel the usual chill I got when they were near. In fact, I didn't feel ill at all. My eyes narrowed at the Dementors. If they were real, how come I didn't feel anything? What was going on?

In this distance I heard a vague shout that sounded like Harry's voice. Then something happened. A large silvery shape burst into the sky, its appearance blurred into the clouds above it. The form charged down from above and into the three "Dementors", knocking them to the ground. Was that a Patronus? Did Harry just cast a Patronus? Seeing this, I made my way through the students next to me to go down to the pitch. I wanted to know just what had happened to those black forms, as they clearly weren't what they appeared to be. Above me the action continued followed by screams and cheers which I took to mean someone had caught the Snitch.

I ran down the stairs in the stands and through the nearest entrance to the pitch just before the rest of the Gryffindors flooded down after me. Instead of running over to the team who had now landed and were embracing Harry in celebration, I ran over to the three black forms crumpled in a heap over near the Ravenclaw goals. I came to a stop just before I reached them. I stared at them in disbelief when I saw what it was. Tangled in three large black robes were none other than Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle and the Slytherin Quidditch Captain, Marcus Flint. They had tried to sabotage Harry by pretending to be Dementors. The shock of being hit by a Patronus had certainly winded them all as they were lying on the grass letting out groans of pain. I shook my head, almost disgusted by their tactics.

'Ah, so that explains it,' said a voice beside me. I looked to my right to see Lupin had come down to the pitch to investigate. 'I guess you too realised you weren't being affected by them?' he asked me.

'Yeah, it seemed a bit weird,' I shrugged. 'That silvery thing that hit them, was that Harry's Patronus?'

'It was, but it wasn't a full one yet from what I could tell,' said Lupin. 'But certainly enough to wind Mr Malfoy and his friends.'

I nodded in agreement. When I looked round again I saw Lupin had disappeared. I guessed to go speak to Harry about what happened. Thinking it best to leave, even though I really wanted to congratulate Harry on both his catch and his Patronus, I thought better of it and disappeared out of the pitch and back up to the castle before the rest of the school. I knew my congratulations wouldn't be appreciated, not until I'd either proven Black was innocent to him or I admitted I had been wrong, and I wasn't going to get my friendship back with him, if at all, until one of those things happened.

I was sure there was only one piece of the puzzle missing. I just couldn't find it. Continuously I ran through everything I knew about them in my head. Black had been one of Lupin's friends at school along with another boy named Peter Pettigrew and had been James Potter's best friend; they had become Animagi to help Lupin with his werewolf problem; Pettigrew had been at my Mum's death and had laughed at the mention of the Marauders and I was positive he had been a Death Eater; there had been suspicions between the friends when the Potters were marked for death and they went into hiding; Black had been the Secret-Keeper for the Potters to everyone's knowledge including Lupin's; and Pettigrew had tracked Black down the following day and was "killed" in front of several Muggle witnesses, or so we were led to believe. Something just didn't fit, the thing that was confusing me most being how Black had changed so much in such a short space of time between the boy he had been described to me at school and the man who'd killed twelve Muggles and a wizard with one curse. Why would Black do it if James Potter had been his best friend? And if Pettigrew was a Death Eater and even more absurd – alive – how did he escape Black's curse unscathed apart from a finger?

I lay awake in my bed once again as I thought this all through. My head was aching with the amount of thoughts rushing through it. I let out a silent groan and turned on to my side.

'I'm missing something, something important,' I whispered to myself. 'But what?'

A loud yell suddenly came from outside my dormitory. I threw open the curtains around my bed, alarmed by the noise. So did Parvati, Lavender, Hermione and Sally-Anne. The five of us looked around at each other in confusion before rushing out of the room and into the stairwell where more girls were gathering. Something had happened in the boys' dormitories. I followed the crowd of girls downstairs into the common room who then began to gather at the foot of the staircase leading to the boys' dormitories.

'Black! Sirius Black! With a knife!' shouted a voice that sounded like Ron's. Instantly I shrunk back in the crowd and away from everyone. I hid in the corner where I used to sit with the others out of sight.

'What?'

'Here! Just now! Slashed the curtains! Woke me up!

'Black?' gasped several of the girls while others screamed.

'Here in the Tower?'

'Where?'

'What're you doing?' came Percy's voice over the commotion. 'Why are you all out of bed?'

'Percy, it was Sirius Black!' shouted Ron. The girls backed away from the staircase as it became filled with boys streaming down from their dormitories as well. At the front of the crowd were Ron and Percy, closely followed by Harry, Neville, Dean and Seamus. 'I'm not lying, he was there!'

'What? Ron, that's preposterous,' dismissed Percy. 'Are you sure you weren't dreaming?'

'I'm telling you, I saw him!'

'What's all the noise?' asked one of the students from the top of the stairs.

'Professor McGonagall told us to go to bed!' said another.

'Excellent, are we carrying on?' asked Fred. Clearly the party from earlier was still on his mind rather than the possible murder of his brother.

'Everyone back upstairs!' snapped Percy. He had even pinned his Head Boy badge on to his pyjamas.

'Perce – Sirius Black!' repeated Ron. 'In our dormitory! With a knife! Woke me up!'

'Nonsense!' said Percy, again dismissing his brother. 'You had too much to eat, Ron – had a nightmare –'

'I'm telling you –'

'Now, really, enough's enough!'

All the noise had roused Professor McGonagall. She stormed into the common room, hair up in a hairnet and dressed in a tartan dressing gown, a furious look on her face at the students awake in the Tower having been told to go to bed after partying for too long earlier.

'I am delighted Gryffindor won the match, but this is getting ridiculous! Percy, I expected better of you!'

'I certainly didn't authorise this, Professor,' said Percy indignantly. 'I was just telling them all to get back to bed! My brother Ron here had a nightmare –'

'IT WASN'T A NIGHTMARE!' shouted Ron. 'PROFESSOR, I WOKE UP, AND SIRIUS BLACK WAS STANDING OVER ME, HOLDING A KNIFE!'

Professor McGonagall stared at Ron.

'Don't be ridiculous Weasley, how could he possibly have got through the portrait hole?'

'Ask him!' said Ron, pointing at the entrance to the Tower. 'Ask him if he saw –'

Eyes narrowed, Professor McGonagall turned on her heel and walked back out of the common room. The crowd waited and listened anxiously.

'How many I serve you, Madam?' came his voice.

'Sir Cadogan, did you just let a man enter Gryffindor Tower?' we heard her ask.

'Certainly, good lady!' cried Sir Cadogan.

There was a stunned silence. I felt my heart sink as I crouched behind the chairs in the corner.

'You – you did?' said Professor McGonagall. 'But – but the password!'

'He had 'em!' said Sir Cadogan proudly. 'Had the whole week's, my lady! Read 'em off a little piece of paper!'

Professor McGonagall stormed back into the common room. She was white as chalk but I could see her lips were pursed so tightly they were barely visible. I'd never seen her look so angry before.

'Which person,' she said, her eyes closed and voice shaking, 'which abysmally foolish person wrote down this week's passwords and then proceeded to leave them lying around?'

There was silence. Then from the back of the crowd came a tiny terrified squeak. A shaking hand lifted into the air. I peered out from where I was hidden to see a trembling Neville raising his hand.

'Is it always going to be you, Longbottom?' Professor McGonagall snapped. Neville squeaked again. Professor McGonagall sighed in exasperation. 'Well,' she said, 'Sirius Black is gone for tonight. But I think you can safely assume that he will, at some future time, attempt to return. Now, I speak for the entire staff when I say while we take every precaution to ensure your safety, it is incumbent upon yourselves to act responsibly. Is that understood?'

A muttered "yes" went round the common room. With that Professor McGonagall sent us back to bed and left the common room. I crouched back down in the corner to wait for everyone to go. So Black had gotten into the Tower. Harry could have died tonight if Black had gotten the right bed. I closed my eyes tightly. I didn't want to think that. I still didn't want to believe Black was after Harry and had simply gotten Ron's bed by mistake. It was odd though. Black scarpered before he could kill Harry. Why? Five thirteen-year-old wizards couldn't stop a man as powerful as Black. Why would he run instead of just finishing them all off? Certainly didn't stop him all those years ago. Glancing out from behind the chair to see everyone was gone, I came out from hiding and returned to my room.

Professor McGonagall returned in the morning. The castle had been searched once more but again Black had escaped and was nowhere to be found. Later that morning I saw Professor Cadogan's portrait being removed from in front of the Tower entrance and the portrait of the Fat Lady was reinstalled with the addition of large surly-looking security trolls for extra protection. When I went to lunch I saw Professor Flitwick attempting to teach the front doors of the Entrance Hall to recognise a picture of Black in case he tried to get in a third time. A part of me was pretty sure he wasn't stupid enough to use the front door. Either way, security around the castle had increased tenfold and everyone was on edge. It was all I could do to keep my nerves hidden from anyone around me.

To my surprise, Neville wasn't punished for losing the passwords to the Gryffindor Tower that allowed Black inside. Then again, I think what happened on Monday morning was punishment enough for him. When the post arrived a scarlet envelope was dropped in front of Neville at breakfast that must've been from his grandmother. It was a Howler. Professor McGonagall must've written to her. The sound of her voice magnified several times over ringing out from the Entrance Hall after Neville had run for it probably was enough humiliation for him and so would do the same as any detention would here. The only thing that could be worse for him would have been Snape belittling him for it instead of McGonagall.

The next week passed by and soon Sirius Black was forgotten about as the next Hogsmeade weekend arrived. Once breakfast was over I headed out into the grounds for some peace and quiet away from the first and second-years that had taken over the common room as usual in the absence of the older students. I took refuge beneath the beech tree near to the edge of the lake, dumping my bag beside me that I had brought down with me just in case I felt like starting some revision. Exams were a few months away after all and with Lupin here I had no excuse not to revise for them. I sat alone in the grounds, the only noise being the lapping of the lake's water against the bank from the ripples caused by the creatures living in it or the giant squid. And the noise of footsteps.

My head twitched up from staring at the mountains in the distance when I heard a rustling beside me. I looked round. Now I already knew there were a lot of animals and creatures living in the grounds from centaurs in the Forbidden Forest to the cats and owls kept as pets by the students. But I wasn't aware that there was a black dog wandering around, besides Fang of course, but he was usually in Hagrid's Hut. My eyes fell upon the animal as it walked across the grass a few feet away from me. It wasn't any discernable breed from what I could tell, but was rather big for its size and very shaggy. And it wasn't alone. Padding along beside it taking two strides for its every one was a familiar ginger feline I hadn't seen in quite some time: Crookshanks. I frowned. Why was Crookshanks hanging around with a strange black dog? More to the point, what was the dog even doing here? Did it belong to someone from the village or was it a stray? As I watched the dog stopped and looked over towards me. It seemed to stare at me for a moment or two before turning away and carrying on. They disappeared into the Forest. I remained where I was, completely stunned. How strange.

I returned to the castle shortly before lunch. I had decided to go see Lupin. I needed to talk to him about Black. He was the only one I could talk to after all. I knew the subject was a touchy one for him but I just needed him to hear me out and help me decide what to do. I was thirteen, for Merlin's sake. I didn't know what to do about all that was going on. I made my way back into the castle and up towards the Dark Arts Tower. Just as I reached it, however, I was distracted by something. Emerging from the back of the One-Eyed Witch statue was Harry. He must've snuck into Hogsmeade again. He stood straight having just climbed out of it but stopped when he saw me. Before either of us said anything there was another set of footsteps. Harry jumped. Alarmed at the thought of being caught with Harry after he had gone to Hogsmeade, I instantly cleared my thoughts and changed into a mouse, not caring if Harry saw me or not. Just in time too as Snape suddenly appeared where I had been seconds before in the entrance to the Tower. Quickly I scurried across the stone floor and ran up Harry's trouser leg and into his pocket; it may not be the best choices of hiding places but at least it meant I was out of the firing line.

'So … Come with me Potter ...'

I could just make out Snape's voice through the material of Harry's trousers. I dug my tiny claws into it when I felt Harry walk off to follow Snape wherever he was taking him. It was a very uncomfortable ride in Harry's pocket for the following few minutes as I felt us go down several sets of stairs. I could only guess we were heading to Snape's office in the dungeon. After what felt like an eternity in this form I heard Snape tell Harry to sit down and I felt the pocket constrict slightly as Harry did as he was told.

'Mr Malfoy has just been to see me with a strange story, Potter,' Snape said slowly. His voice sounded even nastier through these ears. 'He tells me that he was up by the Shrieking Shack when he ran into Weasley – apparently alone.' There was a pause before Snape continued. 'Mr Malfoy states he was standing talking to Weasley, when a large amount of mud hit him on the back of the head. How do you think that could have happened?'

'I don't know, Professor,' replied Harry. I bet my whiskers he bloody did.

'Mr Malfoy then saw an extraordinary apparition,' Snape said next. 'Can you imagine what it might have been, Potter?'

'No,' said Harry.

'It was your head, Potter. Floating in mid-air.'

Harry! I groaned in my head. You are such an idiot sometimes!

'Maybe he'd better go to Madam Pomfrey,' suggested Harry. 'If he's seeing things like –'

'What would your head have been doing in Hogsmeade, Potter?' Snape cut over him so softly I almost couldn't hear it. 'Your head is not allowed in Hogsmeade. No part of your body has permission to be in Hogsmeade.'

'I know that,' said Harry. 'It sounds like Malfoy's having hallucin–'

'Malfoy is not having hallucinations,' snapped Snape. I felt the chair creak as something moved it. 'If your head was in Hogsmeade, so was the rest of you.'

'I've been up in the Gryffindor Tower,' said Harry. 'Like you told –'

'Can anyone confirm that?'

'Jenna could,' replied Harry straight away. 'Ask her –'

'Miss Black has been in the grounds all morning,' sneered Snape, 'having been seen heading there by myself before I ran into you earlier in the very same corridor I found you in just now. Anyone else?'

This time, Harry didn't reply.

'So,' said Snape. 'Everyone from the Minister for Magic downwards has been trying to keep famous Harry Potter safe from Sirius Black. But famous Harry Potter is a law unto himself. Let the ordinary people worry about his safety! Famous Harry Potter goes where he wants to, with no thought of the consequences.'

Again Harry said nothing.

'How extraordinarily like your father you are, Potter. He, too, was exceedingly arrogant. A small amount of talent on the Quidditch pitch made him think he was a cut above the rest of us, too. Strutting around the place with his friends and admirers … the resemblance is uncanny.'

'My Dad didn't strut,' said Harry suddenly. 'And nor do I.'

'Your father didn't care for the rules of us lower wizards,' Snape goaded. 'Rules were for lesser mortals, not Quidditch Cup winners. His head was so swollen –'

'SHUT UP!'

Harry must have gotten to his feet as all of a sudden I felt his pocket shake. After all of Snape's taunting I'm not surprised Harry had lost his temper. The shock of it though made me cower in his pocket, scared of what might happen while I was in this very easily killable form.

'What did you say to me, Potter?' said Snape, his voice deadly.

'I told you to shut up about my Dad!' yelled Harry. 'I know the truth, all right? He saved your life! Dumbledore told me! You wouldn't even be here if it weren't for my Dad!'

'And did the Headmaster tell you the circumstances in which your father saved my life?' retorted Snape viciously. 'Or did he consider the details too unpleasant for precious Potter's delicate ears?'

Harry didn't respond. I remained still, confused as to what they both meant.

'I would hate you to run away with a false idea of your father, Potter,' snarled Snape. 'Have you been imagining some act of glorious heroism? Then let me correct you – your saintly father and his friends played a highly amusing joke on me that would have not only resulted in my death but also the death of your partner-in-crime's mother if your father hadn't got cold feet at the last moment. There was nothing brave about what he did. He was saving his own skin as much as mine. Had their joke succeeded, he would have been expelled from Hogwarts.'

I frowned. What on earth had James done that could have resulted in Snape almost being killed and apparently my Mum as well? Unless … it didn't have something to do with Lupin, did it? Was that the reason behind why Snape hated him so much?

'Turn out your pockets, Potter.'

I jumped. Snape wanted Harry to empty his pockets. That means he might feel me in here. I'd be caught. If he did how was he going to explain why he had a mouse in them?

'Turn out your pockets, or we go straight to the Headmaster! Pull them out, Potter!'

I felt Harry's pocket shift as he put his hand in them. I squirmed and dove deeper into the one I was in, narrowly avoiding Harry's hand as he grabbed the bag I'd apparently been sitting on. I slid down into the now empty pocket using my claws once again to steady myself so I wouldn't be noticed. It was a few minutes before anything was said in which time I assumed Snape was examining what Harry had taken out.

'Ron gave them to me,' Harry said. 'He – brought them back from Hogsmeade last time –'

'Indeed? And you've been carrying them round ever since? How very touching … and what's this?'

I don't know what Snape had picked up but it didn't sound good.

'Spare bit of parchment,' replied Harry.

Spare bit of parchment? No …

'Surely you don't need such a very old piece of parchment? Why don't I just – throw this away?'

No! I thought as Harry shouted out the same thing.

'So!' said Snape suspiciously. 'Is this another treasured gift from Mr Weasley? Or is it – something else? A letter, perhaps, written in invisible ink? Or – instructions to get into Hogsmeade without passing the Dementors?' A brief pause. 'Let me see, let me see … Reveal your secret!'

I shut my eyes tightly. We'd be in so much trouble if Snape found out about the Marauder's Map.

'Show yourself!' demanded Snape. Again there was a brief silence as he waited for something to happen. 'Professor Severus Snape, master of this school, commands you to yield the information you conceal!' Finally something must have happened as seconds later Snape said, 'Read it.'

'Mr Moony presents his compliments to Professor Snape,' Harry read out, 'and begs him to keep his abnormally large nose out of other people's business.'

If I had been in human form my jaw would have dropped open at that. I sat completely stunned in Harry's pocket at Moony's – or as I know him – Lupin's insulting message to Snape. If the situation hadn't been so serious I might have even found it funny. And it didn't stop there.

'Mr Prongs agrees with Mr Moony, and would like to add that Professor Snape is an ugly git.

'Mr Padfoot would like to register his astonishment that an idiot like that ever became a Professor.'

Oh geeze, my father put that? I thought.

'Mr Wormtail bids Professor Snape good day, and advises him to was his hair, the slimeball.'

I cringed inwardly. Things couldn't get any worse. I was definitely wrong.

'So …' said Snape, his voice dangerously soft. 'We'll see about this …'

I'm not quite sure what Snape did as all I heard was a couple of footsteps and then Lupin's name being shouted very loudly. It was followed by the sound of whooshing, like when someone arrived by Floo powder, and then Lupin's voice spoke.

'You called, Severus?' he said mildly.

'I certainly did,' replied Snape. 'I have just asked Potter to empty his pockets. He was carrying this.'

Snape must have showed Lupin the Marauder's Map. I'd bet my wand Lupin would recognise it the moment he read the words that had appeared on it. Harry and most likely I were going to be in so much trouble with Lupin even if he spared us being in trouble with Snape.

'Well?' demanded Snape. 'Well? This parchment is plainly full of Dark Magic. This is supposed to be your area of expertise, Lupin. Where do you imagine Potter got such a thing?'

'Full of Dark Magic?' came Lupin's response after several minutes. 'Do you really think so, Severus? It looks to me as though it is merely a piece of parchment that insults anybody who tries to read it. Childish, but surely not dangerous? I imagine Harry got it from a joke-shop –'

'Indeed?' said Snape. 'You think a joke-shop could supply him with such a thing? You don't think it more likely that he got it directly from the manufacturers?'

No, Snape couldn't possibly know that Moony was Lupin. Lupin had said those nicknames he and his friends had used while they were at school were just used by them, no one else. Snape just couldn't know!

'You mean, from Mr Wormtail or one of these people?' said Lupin. 'Harry, do you know any of these men?'

'No,' said Harry quickly. Well, of course, he wouldn't, would he?

'You see, Severus?' said Lupin. 'It looks like a Zonko product to me –'

It looked like Harry was going to be in the clear, and hopefully I would be too if Lupin couldn't tell I was here. Just then I heard the sound of the office door banging open followed by Ron's panicked voice.

'I – gave – Harry – that – stuff,' he panted. 'Bought – it – in – Zonko's – ages – ago …'

'Well!' said Lupin cheerfully. 'That seems to clear that up! Severus, I'll take this back, shall I? Harry, Ron, come with me, I need a word about my vampire essay. Excuse us, Severus.'

I kept very still as I felt Harry's trouser pocket begin to move again as Harry left Snape's office with Ron and Lupin. If I was lucky, that would be the end of it, Harry and Ron would return to the Tower and I'd be able to sneak out of Harry's pocket undetected and it would have been like I was never even in there. Unfortunately, Lupin knew me better than I thought and somehow, and I really didn't know how, he knew I was there. After leaving the office, Lupin instructed Ron to go back to the Tower as he wanted a word in private with Harry. I assumed Ron did as he was told and Harry proceeded to follow Lupin to wherever he led him to. It was another few minutes before they stopped and Harry attempted to explain himself.

'Professor, I –'

'I don't want to hear explanations,' said Lupin shortly, 'but firstly, Jenna, you can come out now.'

Harry must've been very confused when Lupin said that because as far as he could see, I wasn't there. Little did he know what was hiding in his pocket. Inwardly I sighed at the knowledge I'd been caught. I used my claws and scrambled out of Harry's pocket. I jumped out of the opening and transformed back to my normal self to see we were in an empty classroom, much to Harry's shock. He stared at me having appeared from nowhere while I kept my eyes firmly averted away from him. A single glance from beneath my fringe told me Lupin wasn't pleased. He was looking at the pair of us with an expression of great disappointment on his tired face. I'd never seen him so angry.

'Now,' said Lupin, his voice very calm, 'I happen to know this Map was confiscated by Mr Filch many years ago. Yes, I know it's a Map,' he said, ignoring Harry's look of surprise at this. 'I don't want to know how it fell into your possession. I am, however, astounded that you didn't hand it in. Particularly after what happened the last time a student left information about the castle lying around. And I can't let you have it back, Harry. Did it never occur to you that this, in the hands of Sirius Black, is a map directly to you?'

Harry didn't respond but shook his head.

'No.'

'No, sir,' Harry muttered.

'Your father didn't set much store by the rules, either,' Lupin continued. 'But he and your mother gave their lives to save yours and gambling their sacrifice by leaving the castle to go to Hogsmeade unprotected with a killer on the loose seems to me as a pretty poor way to repay them.'

It seemed Harry was going to get most of the brunt of Lupin's anger. That's when he turned to me.

'And you, Jenna, you know perfectly well that you cannot flaunt your abilities like that or use them to leave the castle when someone could see you.' I didn't respond, despite the fact that had not actually been the case. I had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time and used it to avoid being caught by one person despite being caught by another. 'And if Black knows you're alive he will try to use you and he will hurt you. I am not losing you again.

'The pair of you should both know better and I'm extremely disappointed with both of you,' finished Lupin. 'I expected better of two people who know what it's like to lose their loved ones in dangerous times.'

For the first time in weeks, Harry and I looked at each other. We shared the same look of embarrassment at what had happened.

'Why did Snape think I'd got it from the manufacturers?' Harry eventually asked.

'Because …' Lupin hesitated, 'because these mapmakers would have wanted to lure you out of the school. They'd think it extremely entertaining.'

'Do you know them?' said Harry. I didn't like the fact he seemed impressed at that thought.

'We've met,' said Lupin shortly. 'Now, don't expect me to cover up for you again, Harry, either of you. I cannot make you take Sirius Black seriously. But I would have thought that what you have heard when the Dementors draw near you would have had more of an effect on you. Your parents gave their lives to keep you alive, Harry. A poor way to repay them – gambling their sacrifice for a bag of magic tricks. I will not cover up for you two again. Do you hear me?'

'Yes, sir,' said Harry.

'Yes, Lupin,' I muttered. If he hadn't noticed, he'd just blown it for me in front of Harry by making me reveal myself. Otherwise Harry probably hadn't realised what I'd done to vanish from the corridor before Snape found us.

'Now, I want you to return to your common room and stay there,' instructed Lupin. 'And don't take any detours.'

Lupin tapped the Map then turned to leave the classroom. While Harry might not have picked up on Lupin's hint, I certainly did. I remained where I was, not daring to say anything or leave until Lupin had gone. Beside me, however, Harry spoke.

'Professor,' he said quietly, 'just so you know, I don't think that Map always works. The other night, it showed someone in the castle. Someone I know to be dead.'

'Oh, really?' asked Lupin, turning briefly to answer Harry. 'And who might that be?'

'Peter Pettigrew.'

My eyes widened. I looked between Harry and Lupin. Sure enough, Lupin too had seemed to freeze at the mention of Pettigrew's name, staring at Harry as if he'd just seen a ghost. But for me, I had found my final piece of the puzzle. Pettigrew was alive, somehow, and now all I had to do was prove it.

'That's not possible,' breathed Lupin.

'It's just what I saw,' said Harry.

Harry made to leave the classroom, walking past where Lupin stood rooted to the spot by this revelation and out the door. As soon as he was gone, I spoke.

'I told you,' I said. 'I said what if he never died?' Lupin didn't respond. He was still trying to comprehend what he had just learnt. 'You said your best friends became Animagi for you because you were a werewolf. What did they change into?' I asked.

'James, was a stag, Black was a dog, and Peter, a rat,' replied Lupin slowly. 'The nicknames we had on this Map are enough of a clue: Prongs, Padfoot and Wormtail. I was Moony, of course. But it's not possible, Peter died, there were witnesses.'

'But isn't anything possible with the help of a little magic?' I asked. Lupin looked at me.

'Yes, it is. But there were witnesses. Black destroyed Peter.'

I could see Lupin was still grasping at straws, not wanting to believe that his friend was alive. He went to leave the classroom but again I stopped him.

'What if they didn't see what they thought they saw?' I called.

Lupin glanced at me long enough to acknowledge my remark then left the classroom.

The Marauder's Map was more than enough proof for me that Pettigrew was alive and was somewhere in the castle or grounds hiding in his Animagus form. How long he'd been here, who knew. I could only hold an animal form for a few hours, overnight at best, depending on what form I took. By what it seemed, Pettigrew had been hiding as a rat for years. The only problem was there had to be hundreds of rats in Hogwarts, both pets and the wild ones living in the grounds. There would be no way of knowing which one Pettigrew was, nor did I have any idea about how to find him, not now Lupin had the Map. I had reached another dead end but there was one source of comfort in all this. Harry might not be Black's target after all: Pettigrew was.

To my surprise Harry did not attempt to confront me about my "abilities" that Lupin had exposed to him. I wasn't sure if this was due to shock that his former best friend could transform into animals or that he just didn't know what to say about it. And by the looks of it, he hadn't told anyone either. When I came down to dinner later that day I had expected several people to stare at me for my abnormality but to my surprise I went by unnoticed as usual. It appeared that, despite being on bad terms, Harry had not told anyone about what I could do. Our eyes met briefly as I walked down the Gryffindor table looking for a spare seat but that was about it. My secret was safe, for now.

The lack of contact between Harry, Ron, Hermione and I had finally stopped taking its toll on me and so by April I was more than used to finding out information I had previously known about far too late or by someone I didn't want to hear it from. The latter was certainly the case when I finally heard about the results of Buckbeak's trial. I had known the trial had been and gone, but I hadn't found out what the outcome was. It wasn't until Care of Magical Creatures on Thursday afternoon that I found out from a rather unwelcome source that Buckbeak had lost his trial and was going to be executed.

''S all my fault,' I had overheard Hagrid saying to Harry, Ron and Hermione – who appeared to be on speaking terms again – as he escorted us back up to the castle after class. 'Got all tongue-tied. They was all sittin' there in black robes an' I kep' droppin' me notes and forgettin' all them dates yeh looked up fer me, Hermione. An' then Lucius Malfoy stood up an' said his bit, and the Committee jus' did exac'ly what he told 'em.'

From what I could hear, things didn't sound promising. It was Malfoy, however, who confirmed what I suspected.

'Look at that great oaf,' came Malfoy's voice just ahead me. He was talking quite loudly to Crabbe and Goyle about the trial. I glared over at him out the corner of my eye. 'Still, at least that beast's getting what's coming to it. Father says the Committee is going to contact him with a date any day now.'

My glare darkened and I felt a swell of anger rise in my chest. I blocked out Malfoy's voice to try and focus on Hagrid's conversation with the others.

''S no good, Ron,' Hagrid was now saying. 'That Committee's in Lucius Malfoy's pocket. I'm jus' gonna make sure the rest o' Beaky's time is the happiest he's ever had. I owe him that …'

Now at the top of the hill and in the Clock Tower Courtyard, Hagrid turned away and hurried back down it towards his cabin. His face was buried in his large red spotted handkerchief as he fought back the tears. I truly felt sorry for him. I knew how much he loved creatures and to lose one like Buckbeak for reasons that weren't his fault was just so unfair. My sympathy for Hagrid, however, was quickly replaced with anger once more when I heard Malfoy's voice again.

'Look at him blubber!' he jeered to Crabbe and Goyle. They had been watching from the castle doors. 'Have you ever seen anything quite as pathetic? And he's supposed to be our teacher!'

Never had I felt such anger in my life before now. It felt like a heat had risen in my body and my skin felt all tingly like it was going to catch fire. And his words had done it for me. While Harry and Ron made a move to get to him, I got there first. I just marched right up to him, regardless of the boys and Hermione being there, drew back my hand and slapped him as hard as I could across the cheek. Malfoy staggered backwards in shock while Crabbe and Goyle looked flabbergasted beside him as I drew back my hand a second time.

'Don't you dare call Hagrid pathetic, you foul – you evil –'

I felt someone grab my hand and Ron say my name.

'Get off me!' I growled at him. I snatched back my hand then pulled out my wand. I levelled it with Malfoy, my eyes focused down its tip at his chest. To my surprise, Malfoy was still smiling, which only made me angrier.

'Well, well,' said Malfoy, 'Black's finally broken away from golden boy Potter? No longer part of his team? Found out your dark little secret, did he?'

'Say one more thing, Malfoy, and I swear …' I warned him.

Malfoy merely grinned, then muttered, 'C'mon.' to Crabbe and Goyle. The three of them went inside, leaving me alone with Harry, Ron and Hermione. I glared at his back as he walked away then pocketed my wand again. I made to go inside but stopped when I heard Harry behind me.

'Following in your father's footsteps?' he asked. I span round to look at him. His usual glare at me these days was now more of a frown. 'Violence must run in the family.'

'He deserved what he got,' I said. I wasn't attempting to justify what I did but it was true. 'Besides, I've got more right to do that to Malfoy then any of you have, even if I was defending Hagrid.'

'Oh, and why's that?' Harry asked.

'You want to know why?' I repeated in disbelief. 'Because his father killed my mother!' I shouted. 'I spent years in that horrible orphanage because of his father! Where's the justice in that? A man guilty of murder walks free because of his influence at the Ministry, something he still flaunts to get others sentenced to death – creature or not – while another is condemned for a crime he didn't commit!'

My unexpected outburst caught the others off guard. I had never told any of them how my Mum had died, only that she had been killed by Death Eaters shortly after I was born. Not even Lupin knew it had been Lucius Malfoy who'd killed her.

'For the record, I am not on Black's side nor am I on yours,' I told them, talking more directly to Harry. 'I don't want Black to kill you. But as his daughter, I have to believe there's a chance that he's innocent if it means getting half of my family back until I'm proven wrong. I'm just sorry my "friends" can't understand that.'

I turned on my heel and pushed open the door to the Clock Tower. Behind me, I just heard Hermione say, 'I'm not saying what Jenna did was right, but if she hadn't of done that, I would have. You'd better beat him in the Quidditch final! You just better had, because I can't stand it if Slytherin win!'

The two didn't really even things out, in my opinion.

I got to Charms before the others and took a seat between Seamus and Neville. When the others got there I noticed Hermione had disappeared. I frowned in confusion when I saw this. It had not been the first time this had happened. In fact, now that I thought about it, several times throughout the year I had seen Hermione suddenly vanish without warning then reappear again seconds later in a slightly different place nearby to where she had originally been. But due to us not being on speaking terms since Christmas I had never had the opportunity to ask her. As Professor Flitwick began the lesson on Cheering Charms, my thoughts of Hermione's mysterious disappearances were pushed aside and left unanswered. She didn't show up again until Divination that afternoon.

Divination seemed stuffier than usual and I was forced to loosen my tie in order to cope with the heat. Sat with Lavender and Parvati, a large crystal ball was placed on the table before us meaning we had finished all the work on palmistry. I was definitely relieved about that; there was only so much you can gleam from someone's lifeline. I sat silently as the last few entered the classroom, including Harry, Ron and Hermione, and waited for Professor Trelawney to start the lesson. The sooner that happened, the sooner it would be over.

'Good day to you!' she chimed in her usual "ethereal" voice. By now her dramatic entrances from out of the shadows in her classroom barely made us flinch, although Parvati and Lavender always giggled with anticipation of the lesson. 'I have decided to introduce the crystal ball a little earlier than I had planned,' said Professor Trelawney, taking her seat by the fireplace. 'The fates have informed me that your examination in June will concern the Orb, and I am anxious to give you sufficient practice.'

'Probably because you wrote the exam,' I muttered under my breath to myself.

'Crystal-gazing,' continued Professor Trelawney dramatically, 'is a particularly refined art. I do not expect any of you to See when you first peer into the Orb's infinite depths. We shall start by practicing relaxing the conscious mind and external eyes –' across the classroom I heard Ron start to snigger, '– so as to clear the Inner Eye and the superconscious. Perhaps, if we are lucky, some of you will See before the end of the class.'

I know they say seeing is believing, but all I could see when I looked in the crystal ball was a lot of grey smoke. After twenty minutes or so of some calming breathing exercises designed to empty the mind, Professor Trelawney got us to start looking into our crystal balls but what we were looking for, she didn't actually say. Beside me Parvati and Lavender were feverishly whispering to each other whenever they thought they saw something whereas I merely sat there with my eyes fixed on a single spot seeing absolutely nothing. Professor Trelawney was passing from table to table, offering help to those who needed. She passed Harry, Ron and Hermione, seconds later the three of them bursting into uncontrollable laughter at something Ron had said.

'Now, really!' said Professor Trelawney. Parvati and Lavender looked horrified by the disturbance. 'You are disturbing the clairvoyant vibrations!'

Everyone was now watching Harry's table. It appeared it was time for Professor Trelawney's daily prediction of Harry's demise.

'There is something here!' she whispered. 'Something moving … but what is it?'

The Grim? I thought to myself.

'My dear …' breathed Professor Trelawney. 'It is here, plainer than ever before … my dear, stalking towards you, growing ever closer … the Gr–'

'Oh, for goodness' sake!' snapped Hermione. 'Not that ridiculous Grim again!'

Professor Trelawney looked scandalised at Hermione's outburst.

'Typical Hermione,' whispered Parvati beside me. 'Too close-minded to be able to See anything …'

'I am sorry to say,' said Professor Trelawney, her voice a lot sharper than usual, 'that from the moment you have arrived in this class, my dear, it has been apparent that you do not have what the noble art of Divination requires. Indeed, I don't remember ever meeting a student whose mind was so hopelessly mundane.'

There was a moment's silence. Then –

'Fine!' said Hermione. She sprung to her feet and crammed her textbook back into her overstuffed bag. 'Fine!' she repeated, swinging it on to her shoulder, nearly taking Ron out with it in the process. 'I give up! I'm leaving!'

To everyone's amazement, Hermione strode over to the trapdoor, kicked it open, and climbed down the ladder out of sight. Of all the people to ever walk out of class, Hermione was the last you'd suspect to do so. But sure enough, she had done just that. I looked around the class. Everyone was unsure what to do. Professor Trelawney, meanwhile, just stood there not saying a word.

'Ooooo!' said Lavender suddenly. Everyone jumped. 'Oooooo, Professor Trelawney, I've just remembered! You saw her leaving, didn't you? Didn't you, Professor? "Around Easter, one of our number will leave us forever!" You said it ages ago, Professor!'

Professor Trelawney gave a half-smile.

'Yes, my dear, I did indeed know that Miss Granger would be leaving us,' she admitted. 'One hopes, however, that one might have mistaken the Signs … the Inner Eye can be a burden, you know …'

I rolled my eyes. It didn't take a genius – or an Inner Eye for that matter – to know Hermione had hated the subject from day one and that it would only be a matter of time before she walked out.

'Signs, my wand,' I muttered under my breath.

The Easter holidays arrived but for the third-year students, they seemed anything but a holiday. We had so much homework to do that the common room and library was constantly overtaken by us as we attempted to make some sort of dent in our workload. The weather at last finally started to improve and so instead of containing myself inside the castle as I attempted to revise, I broke away from the rest of the year and began spending more time out by the lake underneath the beech tree. It was much quieter than the common room was where you'd hear the frequent mutterings and swearings about the work we'd been set and wasn't too quiet like the library where I got easily distracted.

Being out in the grounds did mean that once again I saw that strange dog from weeks ago. This time without Crookshanks by its side, I had looked up from my homework having had the strange feeling I was being watched and sure enough saw the dog sitting at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. I rested my quill on my parchment and sat up. The dog and I stared at each other, neither of us moving. I waited, wondering if there was a reason why it found me so interesting. After a moment or two, the dog got to its paws and stepped out from the shadows of the trees. It padded slowly across the grass and towards me where I sat by the lake. The closer it got, the bigger I saw it was. It seemed almost the same size as Moony, in fact, now that I thought about it, and werewolves were known to be bigger than normal wolves. The dog stopped just in front of me, sitting down on its back legs. It looked at me almost expectantly. I cast my eyes over it. I definitely could not place what breed it was, its face, body and tail seeming to be a mixture of several types making it no more than a common mutt by my guess; its fur was almost pure black and was so thick and shaggy I wouldn't be surprised if it was matted through to the dog's skin; its ears were large and pointed, standing straight up on its head; but it was the eyes that caught me by surprise, a strange grey in colour that were staring at me with such intensity it was almost unnerving, almost as if they were … human …

Braving it I reached out my hand to touch the dog, keeping my palm open and facing it so it knew I meant it no harm. The dog leaned forwards just enough so it could sniff it before letting its muzzle touch my skin. Then to my surprise it ran its head under my hand as if to encourage me to stroke it. I did so, gently scratching it behind its ear. I was surprised how soft the dog's fur actually was, gliding underneath my fingers with ease. The dog seemed to be enjoying my attentions as its bushy tail was wagging quite happily behind it. Suddenly its ears twitched as it picked up something I couldn't hear and it looked back towards the Forest. I followed its gaze. Crookshanks had appeared and was sitting where the dog had originally been. The dog looked back at me then took a step closer. It gently licked my cheek before turning on its heel and running off back into the darkness of the trees. It was gone.

I sat there in silence, my mind spinning. I had never seen a dog act like that before and yet the creature seemed so familiar. For a brief moment the first Gryffindor Quidditch match came back to my thoughts. I had seen this dog before; it had been sitting in the stands at the first match, watching it. I had seen it in a flash of lightning and, because of it being fresh in our thoughts, I had thought it was possibly the Grim. But now having seen it close up twice, I knew it wasn't some giant omen of death. It was just a rather large black dog. But despite recognising it from the Quidditch match there was still something I couldn't place about it or why I felt like I knew it.

Despite the mood cast by impending exams, there was nothing else that Gryffindor could talk about other than the pending final match between Gryffindor and Slytherin. They were leading on the scoreboard by two hundred points, which wasn't a narrow margin for Gryffindor to catch up to but it was still possible for us to win the Cup. It had got the entirety of the House worked up at the thought that this could finally be the year we won the Quidditch House Cup having not won it since Ron's brother Charlie was at Hogwarts and so the team was practicing every free moment it could. I could only imagine how unbearable Wood must be currently, what with all his tactics and plans and strategies, and I almost felt a wave of pity for the team at having to put up with him until the match was over.

By the time the Easter holidays were over, the tension between the Gryffindors and Slytherins was higher than it had ever been in previous years. Walking down corridors provoked shouts and jeers from both sides and the teachers were seen on more than one occasion having to break up scuffles that broke out between the students. One fight got so bad that a Gryffindor in the year above us and a Slytherin sixth-year both ended up in the Hospital Wing growing leeks out their ears. The few times I saw Daphne I didn't dare go speak to her; instead we seemed to share the same knowing look as we passed each other before walking off in our separate directions. Things were not likely to settle down until the match had been played and a winner decided. And the sooner that was the better.

The night before the match it was impossible to get any work done. I sat hidden away in amongst some fifth-year students reading my Defence Against the Dark Arts textbook while the rest of the House revelled in the chaos. Fred and George seemed to be dealing with the pressure by being twice as loud and twice as destructive as they normally were and so were at the centre of all the excitement in the common room; Wood was still pouring over a miniature model of a Quidditch pitch; Angelina, Alicia and Katie were laughing at the twins antics; and in the opposite corner I could see Harry tucked away with Ron and Hermione. I could see how nervous he looked, the same nerves he had before his very first Quidditch match all that time ago.

'Team!' Wood's voice rang out through the noise. The rest of the Gryffindor team looked up. 'Bed!'

The arrival of the Gryffindor team at breakfast the next day was greeted by a thunderous round of applause from the rest of the House as well as the Ravenclaws and the Hufflepuffs. The Slytherin table meanwhile hissed loudly as they walked passed. At ten o'clock the team rose after a stilted breakfast to another round of applause and left the Great Hall for the pitch. Reluctantly I abandoned my half-eaten breakfast and joined the crowds to go and watch the game. Just like the previous game I was torn in two between wanting to be there for Harry and support him as he tried to win the title for Gryffindor while another part of me knew I'd still only be on the sidelines until I had my answers. Nevertheless I took my place in the stands and waited for the match to start.

'And here are the Gryffindors!' yelled Lee Jordan's voice over the Quidditch pitch. Thunderous cheers and applause rang through the stadium. 'Potter, Bell, Johnson, Spinnet, Weasley, Weasley and Wood. Widely acknowledged as the best side Hogwarts has seen in a good few years –'

I glanced over at the Slytherin stands as a tide of boos sounded out as they made their opinion known. I rolled my eyes at the predictability of it. Since meeting and spending time with Daphne, the animosity between Gryffindor and Slytherin seemed so absurd and unfounded in my opinion. It did make me wonder just what exactly was it that made us hate each other so much.

'And here come the Slytherin team, led by Captain Flint. He's made some changes in the line-up and seems to be going for size rather than skill. Malfoy, Flint, Montague, Warrington, Derrick, Bole and Bletchly.'

More boos echoed from the Slytherin end. My eyes followed the group of seven as they slunk on to the pitch in their green robes, each looking as surly as the next. Whether or not Jordan's comment was in jest, it appeared he was right. Each one of them was either taller or broader than their Gryffindor counterpart apart from Malfoy, who seemed to be dwarfed by his teammates. This was going to be an interesting match. Madam Hooch called for the Captains to shake hands. You didn't need to be standing right next to them to know that as they did so both Wood and Flint were staring at each other steely-eyed and seeing who could crush whose hand.

'Mount your brooms!' said Madam Hooch. 'Three … two … one …'

With a sharp blow on her whistle, the fourteen players shot into the air and the game began.

'And it's Gryffindor in possession, Alicia Spinnet of Gryffindor with the Quaffle, heading straight for the Slytherin goalpost, looking good, Alicia! Argh, no – Quaffle intercepted by Warrington, Warrington of Slytherin tearing up the pitch – WHAM! – nice Bludger work there by George Weasley, Warrington drops the Quaffle, it's caught by – Johnson, Gryffindor back in possession, come on Angeline – nice swerve round Montague – duck, Angelina, that's a Bludger! – SHE SCORES! TEN-ZERO TO GRYFFINDOR!'

My heart was in my throat just watching these first few minutes of the game. I had never seen a match as tense as this. Angelina celebrated her goal only to be rammed seconds later by Flint and almost knocked from her broom. Three quarters of the students erupted in boos. Next moment, I saw Fred had chucked his Beater's club at the back of Flint's causing him to fall forwards and smash his nose into his broom handle. This was getting violent and the game had only been in play less than ten minutes.

'That will do!' shrieked Madam Hooch. 'Penalty to Gryffindor for an unprovoked attack on their Chaser! Penalty to Slytherin for deliberate damage to their Chaser!'

Alicia took the Quaffle and lined herself up for the penalty.

'Come on, Alicia!' yelled Jordan. 'YES! SHE'S BEATEN THE KEEPER! TWENTY-ZERO TO GRYFFINDOR! Flint's up next to take the Slytherin penalty.' Still bleeding, Flint levelled himself with the Gryffindor goals. Wood floated steadily in the middle, ready for him. ''Course, Wood's a superb Keeper!' continued Jordan. 'Superb! Very difficult to pass – very difficult indeed – YES! I DON'T BELIEVE IT! HE'S SAVED IT!

I let out the breath I didn't realised I'd been holding in. I honestly didn't know how much more of this I could take.

'Gryffindor in possession, no, Slytherin in possession – no! – Gryffindor back in possession and it's Katie Bell for Gryffindor with the Quaffle, she's streaking up the pitch – THAT WAS DELIBERATE!'

I gasped as I watched Montague from Slytherin go to grab the Quaffle from Katie only to grab her head instead. Katie screamed as her broom cartwheeled in mid-air. She only just managed to stay on it. She did, however, drop the Quaffle. A second penalty was awarded to us by Madam Hooch. Katie took it and we scored once more.

'THIRTY-ZERO! TAKE THAT, YOU DIRTY, CHEATING –'

'Jordan, if you can't commentate in an unbiased way –' interrupted Professor McGonagall's voice warningly.

'I'm telling it like it is, Professor!'

My attention was diverted away from Jordan's commentary when a sudden gasp rang through the crowd. My eyes scanned the pitch and I found the source. Harry had spotted something and suddenly shot off towards the Slytherin goalposts? Was it the Snitch? We only had thirty points, it was too early for him to catch it if we want to win. Malfoy was close on Harry's broom tail. Suddenly a Bludger flew past Harry's face, Harry narrowly missing it as it grazed his right cheek; next the second Bludger shot past Harry's elbow. Both of the Slytherin Beaters were closing in on him. With seconds to spare Harry aimed his Firebolt upwards and shot higher into the sky as Bole and Derrick collided with a sickening crunch. That was close.

'Ha haaa!' laughed Jordan as the crowd cheered Harry's manoeuvre. 'Too bad, boys! You'll need to get up earlier than that to beat a Firebolt! And it's Gryffindor in possession again, as Johnson takes the Quaffle – Flint alongside her – poke him in the eye, Angelina! – it was a joke, Professor, it was a joke – oh no, Flint in possession, Flint flying towards the Gryffindor goalposts, come on, now, Wood, save –!'

The horns rang out meaning Slytherin had scored. The cheers from the Slytherins, however, weren't enough to drown out the boos from the Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws combined. Beneath them you could just hear Jordan swear so badly the magical megaphone he was using crackled as Professor McGonagall must have tried to seize it from him.

'Sorry, Professor, sorry! Won't happen again! So, Gryffindor in the lead, thirty points to ten, and Gryffindor in possession –'

This had to be the dirtiest match I'd ever witnessed in my three years at Hogwarts. The Slytherins were taking any means necessary to block or put out of action the Gryffindor team using increasingly dirty tactics to try and stop our early lead continuing. Bole hit Alicia with his Beater's club and tried to claim he'd thought she was a Bludger; George had gotten Bole back by elbowing him in the face. Each team was awarded another penalty, Alicia easily scoring for us taking our score to forty points and Wood pulling off another spectacular save and stopping Warrington from scoring his penalty. It was forty points to ten and the game was far from being won. Katie next had the Quaffle and in seconds had scored once more. Fifty points to Gryffindor. Surely that must be enough for us to now win.

Our joy at Katie's goal was short lived. While Fred and George had been distracted circling her to make sure no Slytherin attacked her, Bole and Derrick had instead aimed both the Bludgers at Wood. The first hit him square in the stomach causing him to double over on his broomstick, the second hitting seconds later in the same place leaving him winded and clutching on to his broom's shaft. Madam Hooch was beside herself with rage.

'You do not attack the Keeper unless the Quaffle is within the scoring area!' she snapped at Bole and Derrick. 'Gryffindor penalty!'

I don't think I can take much more of this, I thought to myself, and I wasn't even playing in the match.

Angelina scored the penalty. Sixty-ten. Fred hit a Bludger straight at Warrington as he flew up the pitch to the Gryffindor goalposts. He dropped the Quaffle, Alicia catching it from below him and flying off in the opposite direction. She passed it to Katie, across to Angelina, back to Katie and back to Alicia. Alicia dodged Flint and Montague and threw the Quaffle. Bletchly dove to stop it but it soared through the right-hand goal. Seventy-ten to Gryffindor.

'Look!' someone screamed to my right. I followed where they were pointing. Harry had spotted something.

'Come on, Harry!' I shouted without even thinking. 'You can do it! Come on, Harry!'

Harry, flat to his Firebolt, shot directly upwards, my eyes just catching the golden glint that he must have spotted. It must've realised it had been seen as seconds later it was gone from my view but obviously not from Harry's. He flew as fast as he could after it, reaching out his hand to catch it and put an end to this game once and for all. But then to my horror I saw Harry's broom jerk. Flashbacks of his first ever match when Professor Quirrell had jixed Harry's broom came to my mind but I quickly saw that wasn't the case. Malfoy, who had been marking Harry closely throughout the match, had grabbed on to his Firebolt's tail and was dragging him down causing his broom to stall and lose its speed. I shouted my anger along with the rest of Gryffindor at Malfoy's actions but he had achieved what he wanted. The Snitch had gone.

'Penalty!' screamed Madam Hooch, flying over to Malfoy who was looking very pleased with himself. 'Penalty to Gryffindor! I've never seen such tactics!'

'YOU CHEATING SCUM!' howled Jordan, dodging Professor McGonagall's attempts to take it away from him. 'YOU FILTHY, CHEATING B–'

I didn't hear what Jordan called Malfoy as my ears were pounding with the sounds of the cries of the students around me.

Alicia took Gryffindor's penalty but she overshot it and missed by several feet. The Slytherin teams tactics were working and it was causing the Gryffindor team to lose their concentration and start to retaliate and sink to their level of playing. And Malfoy's foul on Harry had only encouraged them to play even dirtier.

'Slytherin in possession, Slytherin heading for goal – Montague scores –' Boos rang through the stadium. 'Seventy-twenty to Gryffindor … Angelina Johnson gets the Quaffle for Gryffindor, come on, Angelina, COME ON!'

Angelina streaked up the pitch towards the Slytherin goals. Every single Slytherin player had abandoned their position, apart from Malfoy who was being closed guarded by Harry, and were descending upon her. She managed to swerve them once but they doubled back on her in seconds. Suddenly a shot of red burst through the group of Slytherins and they scattered, the path to the Slytherin goals cleared for Angelina to score. It had been Harry. He'd abandoned marking Malfoy and used himself as a human bullet to disperse the Slytherin players so Angelina could get through.

'SHE SCORES! SHE SCORES!' shouted Jordan. 'Gryffindor lead by eighty points to twenty!'

I watched as Harry shot above the stands where I was, turning his broom and skidding in mid-air to avoid going out of the stadium. I had never seen such concentration on his face; his green eyes were so focused it was like nothing could distract him from finding the Snitch now. I couldn't help but stare during that split second he was directly above me before he shot off back towards the centre of the pitch where Malfoy was hovering. Until he went into a dive. No! He couldn't have found the Snitch!

'Come on, Harry!' I shouted as loud as I could, hoping that he could hear me through all the noise. 'You can do it!'

I didn't know if a silence had fallen over the stadium as everyone's attention turned to the two Seekers or whether it was because I was so caught in the moment as I watched Harry and Malfoy fly after the Snitch neck and neck that I could no longer hear anything around me. I pushed myself through the Gryffindors in front of me so I was at the edge of stands to get a better view. Harry had caught up with Malfoy. Both were reaching out for the Snitch, which was barely inches in front of them. A Bludger narrowly missed Harry's head as he flattened himself against his broom. Harry and Malfoy were level, both reaching as far forwards as they could –

'YES!'

I screamed in joy as I saw Harry pull out of his dive with his hand raised high above him, the tiny golden ball clutched between his fingers and its wings still flapping hopelessly after being caught. Screams of elation and excitement soon filled the stadium as it trickled through the rest of the spectators that the match was over and the Snitch had been caught. Jordan's commentary was almost inaudible now through all the cheering but I just managed to make out the words "Gryffindor wins the House Cup!". Caught up in the atmosphere I ran with the rest of the Gryffindor students down to the pitch to congratulate the team. But the moment I saw Harry being raised on to the shoulders of the Gryffindor team, I stopped.

I stared at Harry as Wood handed Harry the House Cup, his face bearing a grin so large as he looked round at everyone cheering his name. I remained where I was, several feet away from the celebrations, my heart sinking in my chest as I realised I could not be part of this. I wanted to go congratulate Harry, to throw my arms around him and hug him so tightly, to tell him how proud I was of him, but I couldn't because to him, I was still the enemy. I hadn't yet proven Black was innocent and so Harry still wanted nothing to do with me. I sighed. I turned away from the cheering Gryffindors and began to walk out of the pitch, disheartened that I could not be part of Harry's win. But as I walked away, my look of sadness was replaced by a look of determination. Somehow, someway, I was going to prove to Harry that Black was innocent and clear his name. That was a promise.

My renewed determination to finally figure out what had happened that night twelve years ago seemed to light a spark in me I had never felt before. Almost like an obsession that couldn't be extinguished. The only thing that managed to push it to one side was the thought of exams. With June fast approaching all the teachers had piled the homework and lessons were now spent revising all that we had done over the course of the year. When I wasn't thinking about Black, I was thinking about my exams and spending more and more time in the library going over all my notes or I was out in the grounds practicing my wandwork and spells. Hermione, had we still been on speaking terms, would be proud of how much focus I had now and how hard I was working on these two very different tasks.

The only thing that did manage to distract me briefly from my goals was news about Buckbeak's appeal. Malfoy, who had been strangely quiet since Slytherin's epic defeat in the final Quidditch match last week, I had noticed was walking around looking strangely pleased about something. Curious as to what had got Malfoy in such a good mood I headed to the Transfiguration Courtyard after class anytime I could manage in the hopes of finding Daphne. The first few times I went there she was nowhere to be found. It wasn't until Friday lunchtime she finally appeared and I was able to ask her if she knew anything about Malfoy's sudden change in mood.

'I think it has something to do with that Hippogriff that attacked you,' Daphne told me. We sat facing away from each other with our backs to the tree trunk, our faces both buried in our textbooks so it didn't look like we were talking.

'About Buckbeak's appeal?' I questioned. I kept my eyes focused on my copy of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 3 though I wasn't taking in a single word in front of me. 'Did he say when it was?'

'Yeah, the sixth of June,' replied Daphne quietly. She fell silent when a group of fifth-years walked too close to where we were sat. 'From what he's bragged about, it sounds like the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures have already made up their minds. They're bringing an executioner with them to the appeal.'

I frowned. Thoughts of Black came to the forefront of my mind.

'Just like before,' I muttered. Daphne must have heard me as I heard her shift behind me.

'What d'you mean?'

'My Dad,' I replied. I surprised even myself; that was the first time I'd referred to Black as my father. 'He was sent to Azkaban without trial. No one ever found out if he actually did what he was accused of.'

There was a brief silence, then Daphne asked, 'You still think he's innocent?'

My frown deepened as I thought through what to say.

'I believe it's possible,' I said. 'But the thing that could prove his innocence … I don't know where to find it …'

Pettigrew.

'Jenna, even if you found that evidence, it's too late,' said Daphne rationally. 'Black's as good as dead. You must've seen the Prophet. The Dementors can perform the Kiss on him the moment they find him.'

I closed my book and got up.

'Then I better find that evidence.'

Before I knew it, exams began and I was forced to push Black from my mind and stop the search I had started for Pettigrew. Being Lupin's niece had meant I had access to his office whenever I wanted to see him and because I knew he had the Marauder's Map, I had attempted several times since my conversation with Daphne to try and get a look at it long enough to see if Harry was right and Pettigrew's name would show up if he was somewhere in the castle or the grounds. Every time I'd tried, however, I'd had to abandon it because Lupin was very hard to distract. With exams now upon me, I gave up for now so that I could focus on them though Black remained there in the back of my mind.

The exams as a whole weren't actually that bad. I had been worried we'd be tested on things that I might of missed while revising or be set some task that was beyond our skills but nothing actually seemed too difficult. The only difficult part was the fact I was being forced to be near Harry, Ron and Hermione after weeks of being able to avoid them. Being at the top of the register, however, had its advantages; I was always one of the first called into the examination room to do any practical work and so I was always finished well before Hermione was called for hers and nowhere near either Harry or Ron, while any work that required us to be in the same room together meant I was sat nearer the front while they were at the back.

Despite this inconvenience, I remained focused. I managed to Transfigure my teapot almost completely into a tortoise although it still seemed to steam a bit; my Cheering Charm had just the right amount of strength to it to cause Millicent Bulstrode whom I'd been paired with (unfortunately) to crack a smile, not the most pleasant of things to witness while hers barely tickled a laugh out of me; the following day, I sat through my Care of Magical Creatures exam – we were charged with making sure our Flobberworms didn't die during the hour long exam – bored out of my mind and aimlessly drawing on some spare parchment as the Flobberworms were best left to their own devices; and Potions required us to brew a Confusing Concoction while Snape prowled around us, my determination to not let Snape get to me working in my favour as my potion thickened and bubbled away to the right consistency and colour. I couldn't help but notice the disgruntled look on Snape's face as I handed him my phial of potion at the end of the exam. He couldn't fail me as much as he might want to.

Over the course of the week I sat through the rest of my exams one by one. Astronomy, followed by History of Magic, and then Herbology. On Thursday morning was my second to last exam and admittedly the one I had been looking forward to: Defence Against the Dark Arts. I had expected us to be in a classroom like we had for all our other exams but when we arrived, Professor Lupin instructed us to leave our bags and only bring our wands, and to follow him down to the grounds. Curious, I did as he told us and followed along near the back of the crowd. When I saw what was waiting for us, I couldn't help but admire Professor Lupin's creativity. Set up in the middle of the Training Grounds was what looked like an obstacle course made up of several different environments, each, I could only guess, was playing host to one of the creatures Lupin had taught us about during the year.

'Before you,' Professor Lupin instructed us, 'is a series of challenges you must face, that will test you on some of the creatures you have learnt about this year. You must use your knowledge to identify the creature's strengths and weaknesses and defeat them before you can move on to the next. With each environment, the creature's difficulty increases. Only when you face your fears will you pass this exam.'

Face your fears? I thought. I glanced at Professor Lupin as he set Hannah going through the course. If that meant what I thought it meant, and Professor Lupin was giving us a clue, at the end of this course was a Boggart. I hadn't faced a Boggart since Christmas. I had no idea what mine would change into.

'Jenna, you're up!' called Professor Lupin.

I swallowed and gripped my wand. I walked over to the start of the course where Professor Lupin was waiting. I gave him a nervous look, hoping he'd recognise my concern over the final bit of the course. He must have as he gave me a reassuring smile in return. I faced the course and readied myself. Professor Lupin blew his whistle and my exam started.

I ran forwards right into the first obstacle. It was a large paddling pool full of murky water that reached all the way up to my knees. I looked around; the pool kind of resembled the lake, dark water for concealing the creature and loads of weeds and algae. I gripped my wand. There had to be a Grindylow lurking here somewhere. Carefully I moved forwards trying not to disturb the water. I was about halfway across when suddenly I felt something grab my ankle and I was pulled underwater. I fought against what had grabbed me but I couldn't shake it off. I opened my eyes, the water stinging them, and caught sight of the dirty-brown creature that was tugging at my sock and shoe. I pointed my wand at it and, without thinking about it, I released the breath I was holding and said a spell to break its grip.

'Stupefy!' I shouted, a stream of bubbles exploding from my mouth.

The red spark shot from my wand and hit the Grindylow square in the face. Stunned, I pulled my leg sharply downwards and broke its grip around my ankle. I then swam upwards as quick as I could before I lost all the air in my lungs. My head broke through the water's surface and I took a large breath, panting from the exertion. I really hoped the rest of the creatures weren't going to be as tough as that. I shook my wet hair out of my face and pushed myself to my feet. I mentally thanked Lupin for teaching me that spell; a third-year didn't normally know the Stunning Spell but I knew it for Lupin's transformations. Never had I been so glad I knew it as I don't somehow think drowning was part of the exam.

The next creature I faced were a pack of Red Caps, from what I could tell of the next environment. Deep potholes had been dug into the ground and there were large puddles of what looked like blood scattered around the area. Above me the area had been magically covered by dark clouds to help mimic an old battlefield. I lit my wand and proceeded forwards with caution. Red Caps struck sometimes deadly blows with their clubs if they managed to catch unsuspecting people off guard. Again, being Lupin's niece had its advantages as I could identify a creature by its habitat in a matter of moments. They must have sensed I was on guard as instead of attacking one by one in a barrage like they normally would, the Red Caps converged on me as a group to try and knock me out. I used the Disarming Charm to knock their clubs out of their hands then made a run for it for the other side of the area before they could recover them. You didn't attempt to fight an armed Red Cap, especially if they outnumbered you three to one.

I pulled back the curtain to the next area to be confronted by a thick mist. I climbed over the dividing wall and my feet were once again submerged in water. This time, however, it was more like a bog than a lake. That had to mean there was a Hinkypunk somewhere in here. Sure enough a small one-legged creature appeared from within the depths of the mist, a small light-bearing lantern held out in its hand and its blue, smoke-like body barely visible. I stood still, my eyes fixed upon its light. With its free hand it beckoned me to follow it. I tried to resist but I could feel my body being pulled under its magic. I felt myself take a step forwards, then another, then another. The Hinkypunk hopped off in the direction it wanted me to follow, the light being the beacon I followed.

'Come on, Jenna!'

'You can do it!'

'Come on!'

'Go for it, Jen!'

I looked round, the voices distracting me from looking at the Hinkypunk's light. I couldn't tell where they were coming from as I was deep in the mist but the sound of them was enough to bring me back. With its spell broken, the Hinkypunk let out a raspy cry. It swung its lantern overhead and aimed a fireball at me. I raised my wand and performed a Shield Charm, another spell Lupin had taught me to use during the full moons. An invisible barrier appeared in front of me and deflected the Hinkypunk's flame, a flash of fire illuminating where it had connected with the shield. With that dispelled, I used the Lighting Charm once again and used it to find the Hinkypunk. As soon as the beam of light from my wand hit the creature, the Hinkypunk screamed as its body solidified, rendering it incapable of attacking me. With that indisposed, I ran onwards until I found the exit to the area.

As soon as I stepped into the final area I knew my suspicions were right. This time separated by a series of curtains, the only thing before me was a large trunk. There had to be a Boggart inside. I took a deep breath then took a step forwards, prepared for whatever fear it was I was about to face. I kept my eyes on the trunk, searching for any sign of movement. The box was silent, still, not a single hint of life coming from it.

Then, in a move I completely missed, the lid of the trunk flew open and something came from its depths. Whatever it was surrounded me and I found myself in pitch black. I couldn't see anything. The curtains surrounding the area, the trunk that had housed the Boggart, the grass beneath my feet, all of it had vanished. I looked round desperately for a light within the darkness but there wasn't any. I was completely alone.

'Help!' I shouted. 'Someone help! Lupin, help me!'

I didn't know what fear it was the Boggart had zoned in on for me but whatever it had done had scared me and I could not recall a time I had felt more scared than now. All my thoughts and knowledge on how to defeat a Boggart left me as all I could think about was that I was trapped on my own and no one could hear my screams.

'Lupin, please!' I screamed again. 'Help me! Lupin!'

I looked around wildly, my eyes wide with fear. Lupin wasn't answering my screams. Could he even hear me? Did he know I was in trouble? I could feel my heart racing, my breathing was erratic, and a cold sweat was dripping down the back of my neck. All around me was darkness and with every passing second it seemed to get deeper, cutting me off from anyone who could help me. I stepped backwards and felt myself stumble to the ground. I swallowed; I had never felt so alone in my life, not even when I was an orphan.

All of a sudden it hit me. Loneliness. That was what the Boggart was representing. For the best part of the year I had been alone, since Harry, Ron and Hermione had found out about Black being my father, but I was so consumed with finding out the truth that I didn't even realise how it had affected me. How much I missed their company and their friendship. That's what this darkness was, the loneliness I felt without the others. But those voices earlier, the ones that had been cheering me on when I faced the Hinkypunk. One of them had shouted out "Jen" and only one person called me that.

'Harry,' I breathed.

Carefully I got to my feet. I looked round. The darkness seemed thick as ever despite me now knowing what it was. I raised my wand. That's when I noticed something. I could still see my wand. In fact, I could see my whole body. As if I was still being illuminated by something.

'Friendships,' I said to myself. I closed my eyes and tried to think back. Lupin had said something to me about relationships between people, whether friends or family, ages and ages ago. I had been upset at the thought of what Black had done murdering all those people and it had caused me to wonder if he'd ever loved me considering his choice to abandon me as a baby. If Mum had even known about Black's change of heart.

Just because Black didn't care for you, doesn't mean no one did, Lupin had told me. The ones that love us never really leave us, even if we get separated. They will always be with us as long as we remember them.

'The ones that love us never really leave us,' I repeated to myself. 'That's why I can still see myself. Because people still care about me, even when I'm alone, so I'm never really truly alone as long as I remember them. That's it!'

I stood straight, raised my wand and said with as much strength as I could, 'Riddikulus!'

All of a sudden the darkness around me seemed to be sucked away. There was a faint pop and in the darkness' place stood one of those toys from my childhood with the Muggles at the orphanage, a little toy bunny that would do a back flip every so often. I let out a short laugh before I heard someone shout Riddikulus behind me and the Boggart was sent back into its trunk. I looked round. It was Lupin.

'Jenna, are you all right?' he asked me. I could hear an edge of panic in his voice and his face looked concerned.

'How long was I in there?' I asked. I had lost all track of time from the moment the Boggart had surrounded me.

'You got through the first part of the course in just over five minutes,' said Professor Lupin. 'When you reached the Boggart, however, we heard a scream and then nothing. Whatever fear it had focused on created a barrier and I couldn't help you break it. You were shut off for quite some time.'

'It … it knows I fear being alone,' I mumbled. I looked away, my fringe covering my eyes. 'It just surrounded me in darkness. I screamed but no one could hear me.' I felt Lupin's hand on my shoulder. I looked back at him. 'Did I fail?'

Professor Lupin shook his head, 'Not at all. The time it takes you to complete the course has no effect on your mark. You did very well.'

I managed a small smile and nodded. Professor Lupin and I walked back round to start of the course and he sent Susan into the course now I'd finished it. I walked away from where the students were gathered waiting their turn and sat down on the grass. I took a few deep breaths to steady my nerves. I was just glad it was all over. When I looked up I saw I was being watched. Harry was looking in my direction, his eyes focused on where I was sat. I looked away, my hair falling forwards to hide my face. Even if he had shown concern for me while I was in there, even if he did still care about me despite hating who my father was, I knew he wouldn't be the first to swallow his pride and approach me. He was too stubborn to do that. And nor was I, even with the new knowledge I had of just how lonely I was without him and the others. I wasn't going to give up on Black before I had my answers.

I sat away from the class as I watched the rest of the year go through the exam. As I expected, Harry came out with a massive grin on his face after facing his Boggart which probably meant he'd easily defeated the Dementor it turned into when it saw him; Ron stumbled when he encountered the Hinkypunk and almost ended up stuck in the bog; as for Hermione, she had raced through her exam with almost no mistakes until she took on her Boggart. From what I could tell of her cries through the tears, it had turned into Professor McGonagall and told her she'd failed everything. It did amuse me slightly but I knew not to laugh. Hermione's fear of failure for all I know could have a deeper meaning than us thirteen-year-olds might know at this age.

I walked on my own back up to the castle once the last person in our year had gone through the course. Harry, Ron and Hermione were just ahead of me. One by one we filed back into the castle to await our final exams, which for me was to be Divination. As I turned the corner I noticed someone waiting in the Clock Tower Courtyard. It was Cornelius Fudge, the Minister for Magic.

'Hello there, Harry!' Fudge called when he saw Harry. 'Just had an exam, I expect? Nearly finished?'

Harry, Ron and Hermione stopped so Harry could talk to the Minister. I stopped too, just close enough so I could hear what was being said but not so close I could be noticed.

'Lovely day,' Fudge was saying. 'Pity … pity … I'm here on an unpleasant mission, Harry. The Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures required a witness to the execution of a mad Hippogriff. As I needed to visit Hogwarts to check on the Black situation, I was asked to step in.'

'Does that mean the appeal's already happened?' asked Ron.

'No, no, it's scheduled for this afternoon,' said Fudge, though he gave Ron a curious look.

'Then you might not have to witness an execution at all!' said Ron stubbornly. 'The Hippogriff might get off!'

Before Fudge could answer, three more wizards came out through the Clock Tower doors into the Courtyard. Two of them I didn't recognise whilst the third I did. Wearing the same disgruntled look that he had the last time I saw him, Edmund Fawley stood there with his hands clasped behind his back; he must have been appointed to the case as he works in the Beast Division at the Ministry and was probably on the Committee. The second was a very wizened looking wizard who looked like he himself might drop down at any second. The final wizard in contrast was tall and lean, dressed completely in black from head to toe with most of his face obscured by his mask apart from his mouth above which he sported a thin black moustache. I presumed this man was the executioner. That and he was also carrying attached to his belt a hand axe which he was running his thumb over its blade. I guess executions were still carried out the old fashioned way.

The sight of the executioner all ready with his axe put me off eating any lunch and so instead I headed straight for the North Tower for my last exam. I dug out my copy of Unfogging the Future and half-heartedly turned its pages as I waited for lunch to be over and to get this exam out of the way. Slowly the rest of the students in my Divination class appeared. Each of them was silent with what I presumed was both nerves at what to expect but also anticipation of getting their final exam done. Even Parvati and Lavender, whom usually never stopped talking about Divination, were strangely quiet. About ten minutes before lunch was over, Professor Trelawney appeared to tell us she would see us individually in alphabetical order so that we each got the opportunity to access our Inner Eyes in complete silence and concentration. I shook my head and rolled my actual eyes at this.

Harry and Ron were the last to appear. Shortly after their arrival the trapdoor to the Divination classroom opened once more and from within its depths I heard my name being called. I got up off the floor and walked towards the ladder that had now descended. To get to it I had to walk past where Harry and Ron were standing with Neville, Dean and Seamus. I felt my arm graze his as I reached for the ladder.

An old wooden house … people gathered, a haggard man confronting them … a man arrested in chains … someone escaping … a swarm of Dementors surrounding their target …

I let out a small gasp, but not loud enough for anyone to notice. I opened my eyes and stared at the step of the ladder my foot was on. I blinked, not truly understanding the images I had just seen. I looked up when I heard my name being called a second time and climbed up the ladder. The heat of the room hit me instantly as the warm weather outside was combined with the overpowering fire burning in its grate. The smell of perfume made me wrinkle my nose it was so strong. Sat in the centre of the room at her chair was Professor Trelawney, a single table and chair set up in front of her. Upon the table sat a crystal ball and nothing more. I guess that meant our exam was to be on that. So much for all that revision I did on palmistry.

Great, I thought, I'm going to be gazing into a load of smoke again.

'Good day, my dear,' said Professor Trelawney. She gestured for me to take the seat in front of her. I did so without a word. 'Your exam today is going to be based on your predictions from the crystal ball. Let your Inner Eye guide you and kindly gaze into the Orb … take your time and let the images come to you … then tell me what you see within it …'

Professor Trelawney fell silent and sat back in her chair to wait. My eyebrow arched. That was it? Stare into the crystal ball until I see something? Well this was going to be a "challenging" exam with guaranteed high marks. I frowned then turned my eyes to the Orb in front of me. I stared into it but all I could see was thick grey smoke. We sat in silence for quite some time as I struggled to find anything in amongst the wisps swirling inside the glass ball. Time was ticking by and I still hadn't said anything to get some sort of grade. I glanced at Professor Trelawney; she was scribbling something on to her clipboard. Ugh, I was going to fail if I didn't say something.

'I see …' I hesitated but it was too late. Professor Trelawney was looking at me. 'I see an old wooden house, on a hill,' I ventured. Having absolutely nothing to go on from the Orb, maybe what I saw in my head when I touched Harry wasn't a flashback for once but a flash-forward or something. 'I see … someone being confronted, friends becoming enemies. I see the Dementors. Hundreds of them swarming.'

'Indeed,' whispered Professor Trelawney. I frowned again. 'Could it be you are seeing the capture of Sirius Black?' she said dramatically. My eyes widened. Had that been what I'd seen? 'Look closer, my dear. Do you see what the outcome is? Do you see Black alive or do the Dementors capture him and perform …' she took a shuddered breath, '… their Kiss?'

I hesitated again. I had only caught a glimpse. I hadn't seen anything like that.

'I see a body,' I reply after a moment or two. 'Nothing more.'

Professor Trelawney seemed disappointed by my lack of clarity but nodded.

'Very well, my dear, we shall leave it there,' said Professor Trelawney, her tone heavy. 'Promising … but a lack of concise information on events you foresaw … I'm sure you tried …'

I got up, picked up my bag, and descended the ladder. I kept my eyes lowered when I got to the ground and walked off now my exam was over. I ignored the voices that called after me asking what the exam had required, instead heading straight for Lupin's office. I was spooked. What had I just seen? Did I really just see Black being captured? And the Dementors finally getting to perform their – I swallowed at the thought – their Kiss? But that wasn't the most disturbing thing. I knew that old wooden house. I knew where this was going to happen. It was the Shrieking Shack and judging by the surrounding area, it looked like it had to be close to this time of year. What I saw could take place in a matter of months, weeks – even days! – and so Black could be dead before I find Pettigrew.

I was outside Lupin's office before I knew it. I reached for the handle then stopped. I couldn't tell him. I couldn't tell Lupin I had possibly seen Black's demise. I had to keep it to myself and work as fast as I could to find Pettigrew. If that meant I had to ask Lupin to borrow the Marauder's Map then so be it. It was a risk I'd have to take. I sighed. I took the handle and twisted it, pushing the door open. I poked my head around it to see Lupin was sitting at his desk. It looked like he was marking papers or something.

'Hey,' I said quietly. Lupin looked up from the parchment in front of him.

'Jenna, finished your last exam?' he asked me. I nodded. I walked into his office and dumped my bag on the floor, then took a seat over by the wall. I swung my legs over the arm and pulled out my copy of Fantastic Beasts; it was my go to book after all if I needed to distract myself. I stared at its pages, all too aware that Lupin was staring at me. 'Is something wrong?'

'Besides having no friends?' I countered slightly tetchily to him.

Lupin sighed. He got up and, as he always did in situations like this, tapped his wand to his kettle to make a cup of tea.

'Have you tried talking to them about how you feel?' Lupin asked me.

'Like that did any good,' I muttered.

I turned the pages in my book until I'd reached the small paragraph on Animagi. Not being proper magical beasts, Newt Scamander hadn't dedicated much to the subject, only a brief outline on how to recognise an Animagus over a true beast. It was all to do with their distinct markings. Take McGonagall for example: one of her distinctive features as a human is that she's always wearing those square spectacles and she's known for giving misbehaving students very sharp looks; when she showed us her Animagus form, I saw that as a cat she had darker markings in her fur around her eyes that mimicked her glasses, the same square shape, and her eyes kept that similar piercing stare. That was how you could identify an Animagus, by looking for the human characteristics that are visible in their animal form. It was true even with werewolves. Lupin, whenever he transformed, retained his lean build in his wolf form and his grey fur was flecked with the same light brown colour his own hair was.

I felt something nudge my shoulder. I looked up. Lupin was holding out a mug of hot chocolate to me. I looked at him, expecting to see the same frustration on his face every time Black is mentioned. But I didn't. Instead he was giving me a sympathetic smile.

'Jenna, I know how hard this must be for you,' said Lupin quietly. He handed me the mug. I took it, cupping the warm ceramic in my hands. 'But don't you think you need to let it go? Even if there was evidence to prove Black was innocent, it's too late now. Black's sentenced to death the moment the Dementors find him.'

'Lupin, I've got to believe he's innocent,' I said firmly. Lupin gave me a curious look. 'Have you ever had that feeling when you know something's not right and yet everything tells you it is? That something just doesn't add up when everything else tells you it's true?' Lupin nodded. 'Well, that's what I have with this. Out of everything you've told me about him, all the stuff I read that Mum wrote about him, something just doesn't add up.'

'Jenna,' sighed Lupin. He stroked my hair then kissed my head. 'I'm sorry …'

I didn't go down to dinner that evening, instead having it up in Lupin's office with him. I sat silently in my chair in the corner reading my books as Lupin finished his various piles of parchment and marking that he had to get through before the end of the week. After an hour or so of work, Lupin sat back in his chair and put his quill down. He ran a hand over his tired face. I watched as Lupin flicked his wand at the various piles of parchment and they floated off to be filed away in their correct shelves and files. He then reached into his desk drawer and pulled out a familiar large piece of parchment.

'That's the Marauder's Map,' I said. I swung my legs off the arm of the chair and got up. I walked over to Lupin's desk. He had opened the Map out so it lay unfolded across the width of it and was muttering its activation spell so that the Map would appear. 'I like how it insulted Snape when he tried to read it. "Mr Moony presents his compliments to Professor Snape, and begs him to keep his abnormally large nose out of other people's business",' I recited. 'Did you mean it to say that if Snape ever found the Map?'

'Very funny, Jenna,' said Lupin dryly, 'and certainly my teen-self would have been amused if Snape had read that. I, however, am not so much.'

Lupin flicked through the folds in the parchment until he'd found the section showing the grounds near Hagrid's Hut.

'What are you looking for?' I asked, curious.

'I have a feeling Harry, Ron and Hermione are going to attempt to see Hagrid tonight,' muttered Lupin, not looking away from the Map. His eyes were scanning all the nearby dots looking for their names. 'No doubt he's probably using the Invisibility Cloak –'

'You know about Harry's Cloak?' I asked, surprised.

'It belonged to James originally,' said Lupin dismissively. 'I used to see him disappear under it numerous times when we were at school together. And if I'm correct, Harry will be using it to get down to Hagrid's Hut. His Hippogriff is being executed, after all. Harry will want to comfort him.'

'Hang on, Buckbeak's definitely being executed?' I said. 'What about his appeal?'

'They lost,' said Lupin. 'Hagrid told us earlier this afternoon.' Lupin fell silent. He'd found the others on the Map. 'They've just gone into his Hut. Hopefully they'll leave before the Minister for Magic and the Committee get –'

Lupin stopped. I looked at him strangely.

'What? What is it?'

'Pettigrew …'

---

AN: This was originally meant to be the final chapter of Prisoner of Azkaban but it has turned into two chapters as I found myself going into more detail to develop Jenna's changing world such as her burgeoning friendship with Daphne, exposing her inner fear of loneliness as we didn't see her Boggart in the lesson, and how she deals with being separated from Harry. I hope you all enjoy the new developments and let me know what you think.