Chapter Forty-Two: The Dementor

Harry still couldn't seem to understand what Hermione had seen in the flat and squished faced Krookshanks. (Ron had agreed with him but Hermione in return called Scabbers a smelly old shoe brush.) Hedwig flew off of the top of Harry's shoulder and landed on top of a chair while Patches re-entered the room and slowly walked over to his master.

"Bad dog!" Harry whispered while he bent over and slowly hoisted him up inside his arms. "You're lucky I love you." He told him and started carrying him over to his father past Ginny and his little sister Sarah. Both girls were glaring up at him with a look of complete and utter sheer annoyance on their faces.

"Idiot." Sarah whispered while Harry came to a stop in front of his father.

"Harry, there is something very serious that I need to talk to you about. It's about your godfather Sirius Black. Apparently, he's been causing havoc all over Godric's Hallow and murdering muggles and muggleborns." He told him.

"No,.." Harry began really starting to get irritated himself now. "he's not. He's innocent. He never murdered my dad." He began as there was a moment of silence between them. "My other dad I mean." He finished. "It was Peter Pettigrew who murdered him." He added.

"Yes,.. so Black said. However, I never really trusted that evil bastard." His father told him.

"You never trusted my father either and hated me when I was a baby for it until you got to know me." Harry pointed out.

"That was a completely different circumstance, Harry. Anyways, the point is that you're to stay away from him. If something ever happened to you, I don't know what we would do without you." He told him and Harry opened his mouth to argue with him, but then quickly shut it again because he realized that there was not any use in arguing with him and he just silently nodded at him.

.…..

The next thing that Ronald Weasley knew was that his mother was racing towards him with his rat in her hand telling him not to lose him while Sarah leaned out the window and waved goodbye to her mother and then sat back down next to Ginny.

"So Sarah, are you excited to go to Hogwarts for the first time?" Ginny questioned her with a grin.

"You bet!" She exclaimed excitedly not being able to wait to see what house she would be sorted in and if it would be the same as her brother's.

Meanwhile, Harry, Ron, and Hermione found another compartment together where a strange man they had never seen before was sleeping.

"Who is that?" Ron inquired as all of three of them sat down.

"Professor R.J Lupin." Hermione replied while Ron turned to look over at Harry.

"How is it that she knows everything?" He wondered.

"It's on his suitcase Ronald." Hermione responded with a groan and a roll of her eyes.

"Right,.. I knew that." Ron lied when suddenly the Hogwarts Express came to a complete stop.

"Why are we stopping?" Hermione wondered. "We can't be there yet, we just started moving." She said as the air started getting cold and Krookshanks and Patches went to go hide underneath the seat. Harry could suddenly see his breath as he turned his head and looked over at his compartment door.

A black hooded creature had managed to open it and was now hovering in front of him. All of a sudden, he felt as if the creature was trying to suck out his soul. The next thing he knew the mysterious stranger had woken up and shone a bright light from the tip of his wand into the creature's face and Harry heard the sound of James Potter's voice telling his mother to take him and run before he blacked out.

.

By the time all of the students had arrived back at the castle word had gotten out what had happened to Harry on the train. Sarah and Ginny threatened to hex anybody who would make fun of Harry and his experience. Before she knew it, Sarah had her turn to be sorted into her house.

She was somewhat surprised when instead of Gryffindor like her brother, the sorting hat had decided to place her in Ravenclaw and once she got to her table, she met another little girl a year older than her named Luna Lovegood. Although Sarah found her rather strange and mysterious, she also found her rather likeable and enjoyed chatting to her as the feast began.

Harry had trouble getting to sleep that night. For the mysterious stranger on the train wound up to be Professor Remus Lupin and he had told Harry that that creature had been a dementor and fed off of bad energy, but Harry didn't think that he had had any before it attacked him. However, now he found that he had had lots of negative energy because that creature had scared him more than anything else that he had ever been afraid of in his life. Even Lord Voldemort himself.

The next morning at breakfast he was extremely exhausted since he hardly had had any sleep. His first class would be his newest class as a third-year student which would be divination. However, he highly doubted that he would be able to see the future when he could barely even stay awake. He ate as much as he could and then he gathered his things and went to the North Tower with Ron but as he looked around, he realized that he couldn't find Hermione anywhere, so he simply just shrugged and continued on his way to class with Ron.

"Hey Ron, you wouldn't happen to know where Hermione is would you?" He questioned him.

"No. She must be taking another class this morning." He replied before they both went up to the tower together. They found their desks, sat down together, and waited for the teacher to come to their room and for class to begin.