Leslie, Ellie, and Samantha were joined by Kirsty and Sapphire, two of Ellie's fellow Ravenclaws that she was friends with in their train compartment, but still there was no appearance of Max. He soon slipped Samantha's mind, however, as she was having too much fun with the other four girls to think of him. She knew she'd see him at Hogwarts, anyway, so it was really only an extra few hours.
"All right, Defense teacher predictions?" Kirsty asked, popping a blue Bertie Botts Every Flavour Bean into her mouth.
"Such as who we think it'll be, or what will happen to them to cause them to quit at the end of the year?" Leslie asked, raising her eyebrows a bit.
"Whatever you want," Kirsty replied.
"Hm… let me think for a minute," said Leslie.
"Well, what've we had so far?" Ellie questioned.
"Let's see…" Samantha said, running the past Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers through her mind. "We had Cemp, who was as spineless as a slug, Quirrell, who was secretly Voldemort, and Lockhart, who was a complete fraud."
"Cemp chickened out, Quirrell was killed, and Lockhart lost his memory," Sapphire recounted.
"What else could possibly happen to them?" asked Ellie. "I think we've run out of possible ways for them to be banished from the school."
"Oh, we're never going to run out of ways," Sapphire said. "It's endless."
"Voldemort's been absent for a while," Samantha pointed out. She noticed that Sapphire was the only one not to flinch when she said his name. "Think he'll make a return this year?"
"Well, Sirius Black has escaped," Kirsty pointed out.
"Ooh, it could be Sirius Black in disguise," Sapphire said. She had pulled out a tube of reddish lipstick and was using a pocket mirror to apply it.
"Give me that," Samantha commanded, holding out her hands for the lipstick, which Sapphire tossed, along with the mirror. "Thanks. And, that would definitely add some spice to our lives."
"Two years ago, we had You-Know-Who on the back of our teacher's head, and last year a murderous snake was roaming the castle walls," said Leslie as she watched Samantha put the lipstick on. "Haven't we had enough spice?"
"You know us." Samantha tossed the lipstick back to Sapphire, who in turn tossed her a tube of mascara. "We'll never have a calm year."
Leslie sighed, running a hand through her just-past-shoulder length, platinum blonde hair that fell in braided waves. "You look like you're about to poke your eye out," she said as she watched Samantha apply mascara.
"It's not hard, Les," Samantha responded. "You should try it sometime."
"You can try right now, if you want," Sapphire offered.
Hesitantly, Leslie took the container of mascara and the pocket mirror from Samantha. "Do I… what do I do?" she asked.
"Here," Sapphire stood up and walked over to Leslie, bending over and guiding her hands to show Leslie how to use it. She smiled at Leslie when she stood up. "You're really pretty," she said.
Leslie's cheeks grew slightly pink. "Thanks," she said, looking down with a faint smile on her lips.
"Now, do you think Snape would yell at me if I dyed my hair blue?" Sapphire asked, sitting back down and running a hand through her black hair that just barely touched her shoulders.
"What's he going to do about it? Get you expelled? Dumbledore would congratulate you. Probably give Ravenclaw twenty points," Samantha pointed out.
"Flitwick would just tell you it looked great," Leslie said. "Which would be true, if you decide to do it."
"I'm thinking not my whole head," Sapphire said. "That seems a bit much. Probably just the ends."
"McGonagall would compliment the magic you did to get the look," said Ellie.
"Binns wouldn't notice," Kirsty said.
"Binns wouldn't notice if the classroom caught on fire while Voldemort was dueling a dragon outside the window in a thunderstorm while the dead rose from the grave and began clawing away at the castle walls," Samantha said, rolling her eyes.
"Merlin, I'd like nothing more than to watch Voldemort duel a dragon," Sapphire said.
"That would be very entertaining," Ellie agreed.
"I have my prediction for what will happen to the Defense teacher," Leslie suddenly said.
"What is it?" asked Kirsty.
"It'll be a dragon in disguise," Leslie said, grinning.
"That would certainly prove for a fun time," said Ellie.
"Is the train slowing down?" Ellie suddenly asked.
"We can't be there yet," Leslie replied, checking her watch.
"I'm going to go check on Harry and Lauren," Samantha said, springing up and leaving the compartment. She'd stop by Harry's compartment first, because the one he was in was closest.
Samantha could feel the train slowing as she walked through the center of it, and she could see curious faces of Hogwarts students peeking out from their compartments. She shrugged as she passed by, letting them know that she knew as little as they did.
Just as she got to Harry's compartment, the train came to a stop, and Samantha grabbed onto the wall to stop herself from falling over, and then she pushed open the compartment door.
"Sam? What's going on?" Harry asked.
"I'm not sure, I felt the train slowing and I came to check on you," Samantha replied. "Who's that?' she asked, pointing to a man who was seemingly asleep on the corner of the compartment.
"We-" Hermione began, but without warning, the lamps in the compartment flickered out, leaving them in darkness.
"What's going on?" Ron asked frantically.
"Ouch!" Hermione exclaimed. "Ron, that was my foot!"
"Come on, let's sit down," Samantha suggested, using her hands to feel for an empty seat. "Merlin, how do you think Laur is doing?"
"Dunno, we'll check on her soon," Harry replied. "Do you think we've broken down?"
"Can magical trains break down?" Samantha responded.
There was a squeaking sound, and Samantha could see that Ron had wiped some of the mist off of the window to look outside.
"There's something moving out there," Ron said, pushing his face against the glass and squinting. "I think people are coming aboard…"
Frowning, Samantha wondered what in the world was happening. Everything felt slightly off, like the dark clouds of the storm outside was some indicator of what was to come.
Suddenly, the compartment door was opened, and you could hear someone fall onto someone else. "Sorry- do you know what's going on? Ouch- sorry-"
"Hello, Neville," Harry said.
"Harry? Is that you? What's happening?" said Neville.
"We have no idea, Neville," Samantha said.
"I'm going to go and ask the driver what's going on," Hermione declared.
"I should go find Lauren," Samantha said, also standing up. She put her hands in front of her to make sure she wasn't going to run into anyone, and made her way to the compartment door, which slid open.
"Ow!" someone yelled after a thud.
"Lauren?" Samantha asked, frowning.
"Sam?" Lauren replied.
"Oh, I was just about to come find you," Samantha said.
"Ginny and Sarah are here too," Lauren said. "Can we come in?"
"Of course. Try to- hold on," Samantha said. She took out her wand, which she had briefly forgotten about. "Lumos," she said, and the tip lit up. "Here, watch where you're going." She pointed the wand around the room so it created a dim light that was bright enough for the girls to navigate around and find places to sit.
"Harry, move over," Lauren said.
"No, Laur, just sit over there-"
"That's my seat," Hermione said.
"Wait, Sarah, that's mine," Samantha said.
"Where do I sit, then?"
"Quiet." The man in the corner had finally spoken, and Samantha realized she had heard his voice before. She wasn't sure where. She looked at his dimly illuminated face and could swear it looked oddly familiar.
"Stay where you are," he commanded, his voice hoarse. He stood up and slowly made his way towards the compartment door, but it slid open before he could even reach out.
There was a towering, cloaked figure standing in the doorway, ghostly lit up from the light still on the tip of Samantha's wand. All of the body seemed to be hidden underneath the cloak, except for what looked like a hand. It was only uncovered for a brief moment, but Samantha still got a glimpse of the gray, dead, decaying hand peeking out. She shivered as she looked at it.
And then whatever the thing was drew in a breath that sounded as if it had just emerged from the water and was now gasping desperately for air. The air grew extremely cold and Samantha clenched her jaw and shut her eyes. There was this feeling inside of her, this cold, dreadful feeling that she wold never be happy again.
She couldn't keep her mind from traveling back to that memory she had seen of her parents dying. Lauren's screams, Harry's cries, Voldemort's laugh as the jet of green reached her father, her mother falling to the floor…
"Samantha!"
A sharp voice brought her out of her thoughts, and Samantha realized that along with the fact that the train was moving again and the lights had come back on, there were tears streaming down her face. Slightly embarrassed, she used her sleeve to wipe them off, and was thankful that the mascara Sapphire had let her use was enchanted to stay on her eyelashes.
"Harry! Lauren! Are you two alright!" someone else yelled.
"W-what?" Harry said.
Samantha saw that Harry was laying on the floor, and she vaguely remembered feeling that thud. Lauren was sitting curled up in the corner, her eyes wide and filled with tears.
"What just happened?" Samantha asked, looking between her siblings and then to the man standing there. "And who are you?"
The man stared at her for a moment, sadness in his eyes. "I'm Professor Lupin, your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."
"Lupin…" Samantha muttered, furrowing her eyebrows. "Do I know you? You seem so… familiar."
Lupin appeared surprised at the question. "I- er- n-no, you don't…" he replied.
Samantha didn't know why Lupin would lie to her, but he was way too familiar to be a stranger. She had to know him from somewhere.
"What was that?" Harry asked, pointing to the entrance of the compartment where whatever had been there no longer stood. "And- and who was screaming?"
"Harry…" Hermione said slowly, "no one screamed."
"But I heard screaming," Harry said, looking around at everyone to see if they had heard it too.
"I didn't hear anything. I couldn't feel… anything but sadness," Samantha replied.
"Me too," Lauren added on quietly.
There was a snap, and Samantha turned to see Professor Lupin breaking off a piece of chocolate from a chocolate bar. "Here," he said, handing out pieces to each of the kids in the compartment, handing the biggest chunks to Harry, Lauren, and Samantha. She took it, then looked curiously up at him from her seat. "Eat it. You'll feel better."
"What was that?" Samantha asked him.
"A dementor," Lupin said. "They are the guards of Azkaban." He noticed that none of them had eaten their chocolate yet. "Eat. It'll help. I need to speak to the driver, excuse me…"
"That was strange," Sarah said, taking a small bite from her chocolate.
"Are you sure you're okay, Harry?" Hermione asked, looking at the boy anxiously.
"I don't get it… what happened?" Harry replied.
"Well- that thing- the dementor- stood there and looked around, I mean, I think it did, I couldn't see its face, and you- you-"
"I thought you were having a fit or something," Ron said. "You went sort of rigid and fell out of your seat and started twitching-"
"And Professor Lupin stepped over you, and walked toward the dementor, and pulled out his wand," said Hermione, "and he said 'None of us is hiding Sirius Black under our cloaks. Go.' But the dementor didn't move, so Lupin muttered something, and a silvery thing shot out of his wand at it, and it turned around and sort of glided away…"
"What about Laur and I?" Samantha asked. She knew she needed to talk to Lupin, and soon. Something was up, and she wanted to know what.
"Sam, you kind of zoned out, and Lauren just froze," Sarah supplied.
"I mean, none of you three looked good-" Ron gestured to Harry, Lauren, and Samantha, "-but Harry was certainly the worst."
"It was horrible," Neville said. "Did you feel how cold it got when it came in?"
"It felt weird," Ron said, shifting uncomfortably. "Like I'd never be cheerful again…"
In the corner, Ginny gave a small sob, and Lauren put her arm around her, nestling her head onto the girl's shoulder.
"But didn't any of you… fall out of your seats?" asked Harry.
Samantha shook her head, biting her lip. She honestly couldn't remember what had happened with the dementor, but she had been in her seat when she was brought back to reality.
"No," Ron said slowly. "Ginny was shaking like mad, though."
Professor Lupin reappeared. He looked around at the chocolate still in everybody's hands and chuckled. "I haven't poisoned it, you know."
Samantha sighed and took a bite from the chocolate, finding it nice.
"We'll be at Hogwarts in ten minutes," Lupin revealed. "Are you all right, Harry?"
"Fine," Harry muttered, appearing embarrassed.
"And you two, Lauren and Samantha?" Lupin asked the girls.
"I'm… fine," Samantha said slowly, furrowing her eyebrows. How did he know her name? Something was going on here.
"I think I'm okay," Lauren whispered hoarsely.
Samantha stayed with that group until they arrived at Hogwarts, where she found Leslie, Kirsty, Ellie, and Sapphire. Still, she had never spotted Max.
They got into the carriages pulled by the horses invisible to everyone there except Samantha, and rode up to the school. Samantha didn't bother bringing up the Thestrals- she already knew what they were, and she didn't want anyone's pity. Besides, the Dementors were a much more important discussion point.
"Potter!" McGonagall called out to Samantha just as she was about to walk into the Great Hall. "Come here, I need to see you."
Glancing around to make sure McGonagall was not talking to one of her siblings, Samantha hurried over to Professor McGonagall, muttering a quick goodbye to her friends. She had a feeling she knew what this was about.
"Now, where is… ah! Miss Granger! Mr. Potter! I want to see you both," McGonagall cried out to Harry and Hermione as they walked by. The kids looked at each other questioningly before breaking off from Ron and walking to Samantha and McGonagall.
"There's no need to look so worried, I just want a word in my office," McGonagall told them. "Move along there, Weasley."
McGonagall led the three students through the empty halls of Hogwarts, as everyone was downstairs for the feast. She brought them to her office, motioning for them to sit down as she sat down behind her desk.
"Professor Lupin sent an owl ahead to say that you were taken ill on the train, Mr. Potter," she said.
Just then, there was a knock on the door and Madam Pomfrey walked inside.
"I'm fine, I don't need anything-" Harry said, his face red.
"Oh, it's you, is it?" Madam Pomfrey said, examining Harry and ignoring his words. "I suppose you've been doing something dangerous again?"
"It was a dementor, Poppy," McGonagall said, exchanging a dark look with the nurse.
"Setting dementors around a school…" Madam Pomfrey muttered disapprovingly. "He won't be the last one who collapses. Yes, he's all clammy. Terrible things, they are, and the effect they have on people who are already delicate-"
"I'm not delicate!" said Harry, and Samantha bit back a laugh.
"Of course you're not," Madam Pomfrey said.
"What does he need?" Professor McGonagall asked. "Bed rest? Should he perhaps spend tonight in the hospital wing?"
"I'm fine!" Harry cried, jumping up.
Madam Pomfrey rolled her eyes. "Well, he should have some chocolate, at the very least," she said.
"I've already had some. Professor Lupin gave me some. He gave it to all of us," said Harry.
"Did he, now?" Madam Pomfrey nodded approvingly. "So we've finally got a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who knows his remedies?"
"Are you sure you feel alright, Potter?" McGonagall asked.
"Yes," Harry said, sounding annoyed.
"Very well. Kindly wait outside for a few moments, I need to have a quick word with your sister and Miss Granger, and then we can all head down to the feast together," McGonagall said.
Harry walked outside of the room, leaving Samantha with Hermione and Professor McGonagall.
"Here you girls are," McGonagall said, handing Hermione and Samantha each a small box. "Samantha, I trust you remember the rules from last year?"
"Yes, Professor," Samantha answered. She grinned as she opened the box and placed her finger delicately on the glass hourglass of the necklace in the box. She then took it out and slipped it over her head, letting the charm fall down her shirt to stay hidden.
"What is this?" Hermione asked, looking at the necklace.
"This is a Time Turner. It allows you to turn back time for a few hours. Since you are taking so many classes, some will have to overlap. This is your solution," McGonagall said. "However, you must be very responsible with it. You must only use it for getting to classes, and you must not tell anyone about it. And that includes everyone. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Professor," Hermione nodded, slipping the long chain around her neck and hiding the hourglass under her robes.
"Alright, now, let's get on to the feast," McGonagall said with a warm smile. The girls followed her out into the hall, where Harry joined them as they began to head down to the Great Hall.
"Oh, we've missed the Sorting," Hermione said softly when they arrived to see Professor Flitwick carrying the stool with the Sorting Hat on it out from the front of the room.
"Take your seats," Professor McGonagall told them before walking off to the front of the room.
Samantha scanned the table quickly, wanting to find Max. She spotted him looking at her, but he didn't smile like she expected. Instead, his face remained neutral, and then he turned away. There was no space next to him, or even near him, so Samantha walked to the other end of the table, taking a seat next to Leslie and Katie Bell.
"What's up with Max?" Samantha whispered to Leslie.
"I don't know. I haven't talked to him," Leslie whispered back. "Where were you?"
"Talking to McGonagall. She wanted to clear a few things up about my schedule," Samantha lied easily. She then turned her attention to Dumbledore, who had begun to speak.
"As you will all be aware after their search of the Hogwarts Express, our school is presently playing host to some of the dementors of Azkaban, who are here on Ministry of Magic business," Dumbledore announced, pausing for a moment before continuing to talk. "They are stationed at every entrance to the grounds, and while they are with us, I must make it plain that nobody is to leave school without permission. Dementors are not to be fooled by tricks or disguisesーor even Invisibility Cloaks," he added, his eyes looking directly to Samantha and then to Harry. "It is not in the nature of a dementor to understand pleading or excuses. I therefore warn each and every one of you to give them no reason to harm you. I look to the prefects, and our new Head Boy and Girl, to make sure that no student runs afoul of the dementors."
Dumbledore let a few seconds pass, allowing the students to take in the information he had just given them, the rules he had told them to follow.
"On a happier note," he continued, "I am pleased to welcome two new teachers to our ranks this year. First, Professor Lupin, who has kindly consented to full the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."
"I met him on the train. He's good," Samantha told Leslie, and they joined in the scattered applause coming from the students of the Great Hall. Samantha couldn't blame them for not being overly enthusiasticーhe wasn't very impressive in his looks.
Just then, Samantha caught a glimpse of Snape's face. It was more than hatred, more than loathing, even. And then Samantha suddenly remembered where she had seen Professor Lupin before.
She gasped, the pieces of a puzzle falling rapidly into place inside her mind. She needed to talk to Professor Lupin.
"What is it?" Leslie whispered, catching Samantha's realization.
"Nothing, nothing," Samantha whispered back. She clenched her jaw and forced her attention back to Dumbledore's speech, determined not to spill any of this information to her friends.
"As to our second new appointment," Dumbledore continued, "Well, I am sorry to tell you that Professor Kettleburn, our Care of Magical Creatures teacher, retired at the end of last year in order to enjoy more time with his remaining limbs. However, I am delighted to say that his place will be filled by none other than Rubeus Hagrid, who had agreed to take on this teaching job in addition to his gamekeeping duties."
"Oh, wow," Samantha said as she clapped for Hagrid. "He must be so excited."
"Well, I think that's everything of importance," Dumbledore said. "Let the feast begin!"