Chapter five: Nifflers

After her encounter with the dementor, Alicia stayed in the castle. She still dared to go out to Hagrid on occasion but only if she was sure that he was there. Her trips into the forest had to wait for a while, as well as her long walks in the weekends. The encounter had shaken her more than she thought. Her friends were really nice to her too. They realised Alicia wasn't in a happy place and they decided to be supportive and stop pestering her.

Alicia also decided she was getting angry with Sirius Black. He was closing in on Hogwarts. What idiot would escape prison and then go to the most heavily guarded place in Britain? It was his fault the dementors were here. She couldn't wait for him to get captured.

As for her DADA teacher, they didn't have any contact outside the classroom for a couple of weeks. Alicia was sure this was his way of answering her question: no he did not trust her and he did not need her. He probably decided that the school rules were important after all and he didn't want her to be more than one of his students. She was hurt by this. There was still hope within her that he would prove her wrong. The first week she would linger in the classroom in the hopes he would call her name, but he didn't. The next week she was the first one out the door. She had given up. Michelle seemed to notice Alicia's odd behaviour, but because of the dementor incident she decided not to say anything.

The good news out of all of this misery, was that she could focus better on schoolwork. She wanted to be distracted so desperately that she kept studying almost all the time. Sophia did the same, but she was simply scared she would not get her NEWTS. One day Alicia found herself in the library with Sophia and Michelle, when someone tapped her on the shoulder.

'Excuse me, Alicia is it? Alicia Doreen?' a whispering voice said. Alicia turned around to look at the intruder.

'Yes. How can I help you?' she asked.

The girl with the curly wild hair sat down in a chair next to her and dropped a heavy volume of Ancient Runes on the table. She quickly tugged a golden necklace under her robes.

'I'm Hermione Granger. I take Care of Magical Creatures for the first time this year and….well,' Hermione sighed deeply, 'And I'm stuck on a subject. I have tried all the books in here but I can't find what I need for the paper. I asked Professor Hagrid and he told me to ask you, because you are top of your class. I am so sorry to disturb you, but do you think you could help me?'

Alicia smiled. She had heard stories about this girl. There wasn't a student in the school that didn't know famous Harry Potter and his two best friends. Hermione was famous for her advanced magic and love for studying. She hadn't actually met the girl before today, but already decided she loved her dedication.

'Of course I will help you. Show me the problem,' Alicia replied, scooting closer to the younger girl. Hermione looked very grateful and launched into an explanation of the problem. Michelle and Sophia looked and each other and smiled before returning to their work.

Alicia found it to be a lot of fun to work together with Hermione. She picked up on everything so quickly, even though half of it was above her year. She seemed determined to know more than she had to, and that passion these girls shared.

After a long study session the three seven-years and the third-year walked down to the Great Hall for dinner. They were lost in conversation about a thousand things, when they rounded a corner and were nearly ran over by a little herd of nifflers. The small creatures resembled a platypus combined with a mole, and were roughly the size of a guinea pig. However small, nifflers were known for creating a lot of chaos. Not to mention a group of about ten of them.

'Whoa!' Alicia yelped as she nearly lost her balance. The creatures scattered around the girls' ankles and continued down the hallway. Somewhere in the distance they could already hear someone shouting for them to come back. Alicia decided to act quickly.

'Girls, give me something shiny. Jewellery, coins, now!' She held out a hand as she searched for her wand with the other. All girls just looked, but didn't act. Alicia looked at Hermione. 'Your necklace quickly! The gold one!' Hermione shook her head. Alicia rolled her eyes. 'Ow you'll get it back! Urgh, never mind.'

She fished out a threat from her robes and transfigured it into a golden string, long enough to roll down on the floor. When it hit the stone floor it made a distinct sound. All the nifflers suddenly stopped running and turned around with curious little eyes turned to the string.

'Come and get it! I know you want it!' Alicia teased, hoping they could respond to encouragement. As it turned out, nifflers really don't need a lot of encouragement to run towards gold. Alicia spoke a quick charm over the string, and the moment they all touched it, it started whirling around them all to bind them together.

Just at that moment the infamous twin brothers Fred and George joined the scene.

'How did you…?' George asked, looking incredulously at the bound and struggling nifflers. Then the two looked up to face Alicia. She could have sworn Fred's face turned a bit redder as he looked at her. 'Nessie! Of all the people you were the one they ran into! Aren't we lucky George?'

George poked his brother with his elbow. 'You always feel lucky when we run into Nessie, right Fred?' They had a little back and forth poking before Alicia spoke up. 'Just out of curiosity, why do you have ten nifflers? Or better yet, why do you have ten nifflers on the loose?'

They looked at each other before replying simultaneously: 'That's a secret.'

Alicia rolled her eyes. The other girls seemed to come back from the shock of the moment. Hermione checked her bag for any missing shiny items. 'You reacted so quick Alicia. Straight up knew what to do,' she said, sounding impressed.

Alicia was about to launch in a speech about her amazing abilities with magical creatures when one of the creatures broke loose from the restrains and climbed up her leg. She was too late to react this time, as the creature was already on her shoulder. He opened his beak and bit down on her ear. She could feel the tiny teeth sinking into her flesh.

'Auch!' She yelped. As she tried to pry him loose he clamped on even harder. Tears sprung in her eyes and she started mumbling curses. 'Someone get him off!'

Fred was the first to the rescue. He grabbed the niffler with one hand, while holding a coin in front of his face with the other. Soon enough the niffler released the Ravenclaw and held on tightly to its coin. George was already putting the rest of them in a cage and finally they added the last one.

'So sorry about that Nessie! I didn't know they could be that vicious,' Fred apologized, his face almost the same shade as his hair.

Alicia held up her finger to her ear and they came away soaked with blood. 'Nifflers aren't pets, guys. You should know that! Now I better get to the Hospital Wing quickly. Nifflers can carry deceases in their saliva.'

Once again, the boys looked unknowing and guilty. She hushed them as Michelle took her to the Hospital Wing.

'You know, I think George fancies you,' Michelle said with a giggle.

Alicia rolled her eyes. 'Fred. You mean Fred.'

Her friend gave her a curious look. 'You can tell them apart?'

Alicia laughed. 'Yes I can! There are some differences in the eyes and face shape. Also Fred has a deeper voice. Why is it so hard for people to see that?'

Michelle shook her head. 'I don't know. I don't pay a lot of attention to fifth-years. But you do you, honey.' Alicia slapped her on the arm for that and for a moment she had forgotten why she was walking into the Hospital Wing.

As she could have expected, Madame Pomfrey fussed about her injury like she was dying. Too many times had Alicia walked in this place with injuries. The poor nurse had thought she was under a bad luck curse of sorts, but soon found out it had more to do with Alicia's ability to get into trouble, mostly involving magical creatures. The niffler bite wasn't bad at all, and it could be healed easily, but Madame Pomfrey was afraid of infection. So she told her to stay the night. If she got feverish at least the nurse would be close.

Alicia ate dinner in her bed. For the first two hours of the evening she could talk to a Hufflepuff that occupied the bed next to her. The poor girl had been the victim of a bad transfiguration spell, and was slowly becoming more human than wooden chair. But after all her limbs were back in their normal shape Alicia was left alone. Michelle came over later to bring her a book to read but left quickly afterwards. She had no idea whether she was alone, because some of the curtains were closed.

It was later that evening when a frantic Professor Flitwick came through the doors.

'Poppy? Poppy where are you?' he asked with his squeaky voice.

Alicia got up from her bed and walked over. 'I think she is in her office. What is wrong, professor?'

He didn't seem too surprised to find Alicia here. 'Miss Doreen! You might as well know.' Madame Pomfrey came out of her office and the two women waited for clarification.

Professor Flitwick dabbed at his forehead with a handkerchief as he started talking. 'The castle is in lockdown. All the students are gathered in the Great Hall. We had a break in today!'

Alicia was shocked. 'A break in? How so? Did they steal anything?' The small professor shook his head. 'No, it was not a thief! It was as we feared…Sirius Black is in the castle!'

A cold chill ran down Alicia's spine. The hairs on the back of her neck stood upright. 'Black in here? B-but, have they found him already?'

Once more he shook his head and sighed. 'We are looking everywhere. It seems like he is gone again. We think he came here for-,' He seemed to rethink how much he would tell a mere student, 'Never you mind. Miss Doreen, I shall accompany you to the Great Hall.'

Madame Pomfrey intervened. 'No, she cannot. She might have an infection and I need her here if it starts. We can lock the Hospital Wing as well, no one else will come in or out except emergencies.'

Her Charms professor agreed with those conditions and before Alicia knew it she was locked inside the wing, seemingly alone. She walked back to her bed and tried to get some sleep. But the thoughts of Sirius Black being in the castle made it hard to relax.

After several hours of twisting in her bed she decided it was hopeless. She pulled up a chair to the windows and looked out over the stunning view of the Forbidden Forest and the Black lake. The water reflected the moonlight perfectly. The serenity of the view calmed her down more than lying in bed could do.

She was so lost in thoughts that she jumped when she heard someone groaning. She turned around to see movement behind one of the drawn curtains. It sounded like someone was getting up from their bed. She kept watching as a hand appeared between the sheets and drew them apart. She was quite shocked to see Professor Lupin, wearing pyjamas and a robe over them, but with bare feet. He ran a hand through his untidy blonde hair and looked around. When he noticed her sitting in the chair, he came over.

'Hello again,' he said quietly, pulling up a chair next to her.

'Quite surprised to see you here, professor. Were you asleep earlier?' she asked, trying to sound casual. In her mind she summoned all the uncomfortable moments from the last four weeks. The times he talked to her in class about homework, the times they crossed paths in the hallways and barely managed to greet each other or the times he caught her looking at him during meals in the Great Hall.

He seemed to still be in a dozed state, not very aware of the casual intimacy between a teacher and a student sitting in their pyjamas, talking in the middle of the night. 'I have been asleep for a while yes. Did I miss something?'

As she looked at him directly, she noticed a line of ink on his cheek. She chuckled and reached over to touch him. He stiffened but that didn't stop her. 'Well I think you fell asleep while writing because you have some ink right here.' Her thumb found the spot on his cheek and she started rubbing it gently. With three strokes the ink came off. Then she realised her hand was cupping half of his face, with her thumb mindlessly caressing his cheek. She felt a part of his scar, where his soft skin turned rough to the touch. It took her a couple of long seconds to realise she was really overstepping a line here.

She withdrew her hand and cleared her throat. 'Sorry. It's gone now.'

She was afraid he would scold her for that, but instead she heard a little chuckle leave his lips. 'Thank you for your assistance. I am quite the mess these days.'

She raised an eyebrow at that remark, but he didn't seem to want to explain further, so she dropped it. She stared at him a moment longer before realizing she still had to answer a question.

'Yes, you did miss something by the way. We are locked in here, because Sirius Black has broken into the castle earlier tonight,' she informed him.

He gave her a shocked look and rose from his chair. He crossed the room to the window next to his bed, and stared out through it.

'Professor?' she asked.

He made a little "hmm" sound as he continued to look out across the grounds. She saw his shoulders fall and his head drooped forward. 'He shouldn't have come here.'

She wondered what he meant by that. 'You know what everyone is saying right? That he is here for Harry Potter? To finish what he started and to kill him?'

The professor leaned on the windowsill with his fists. He seemed to be taking deep breaths. Alicia only saw his back from where she sat so she hardly could hear him when he mumbled to himself. 'If you dare to touch Harry I will kill you myself, Padfoot.'

'Who is Padfoot?' Alicia asked, rising from her chair now.

He quickly turned around and walked back to her. 'Sorry, I forgot you were here for a moment. Please forget what I said. It's not important.'

He sat back down in the chair with a groan of protest. Something was hurting him bad. Alicia rolled her eyes, internally annoyed that he "forgot she was here". 'Don't mind me,' she mumbled.

He turned to look at her. He looked tired again, like he did last time she was asking questions. Whatever got him so ill last time, it was happening again. Despite the tired look, there was a look of guilt in his eyes. He reached out with his hands to hold onto her hand. She looked at her hand covered in his, with a dazed look.

'I'm sorry, I've been rude to you a lot lately. It is hard for me to be around you Alicia. You are not making it easy,' he said in hushed tones. She tore her hand away from his and crossed her arms over her chest. 'Well you don't have to talk to me. Go back to sleep and ignore me all you like, if that makes you happy.'

He was quiet for a moment, before he spoke again. She still refused to look at him. 'That is not what I mean. I think you actually know what I mean,' he said with a meaningful look.

She huffed. 'I'm done playing your games, professor. Just say what you want to say, or say nothing. No half-answers anymore.'

He chuckled again. 'Give it to me straight, why don't you?'

Alicia couldn't help the snicker that formed in her throat. They both chuckled for a bit before she finally looked at him again. Then her expression grew serious. 'I mean it. What do you mean, professor?'

His green eyes looked deep into hers, searching for the right words. 'I mean that I fear we have surpassed a teacher-student bond. I feel like I know you better than any of my colleagues, and enjoy spending time with you more than…well anyone really.' At this point he became self-aware and looked at the ground as he rubbed the back of his neck. 'I do trust you, Alicia. I want to tell you everything about me and ask everything about you, but…'

Alicia didn't know how she should feel, or react. She was just frozen in her seat, fearing and loving everything he said. 'But?'

He laughed uncomfortably. 'But I can't. Because I am your professor, not your friend.'

Auch. That hurt.

Alicia looked away, ashamed by her own disappointment. Rationally, she knew this was the logical thing to happen. Rationally, she knew they were never going to be more than this.

Irrationally however, she was deeply hurt and disappointed by his words.

'I know,' she whispered back.

A silence stretched between the two. Alicia was fighting back tears as she sat there, clutching the chair. Her professor sat on the edge of the seat, resting his elbows on his knees. She heard him sigh and clutch his head in his hands. He was muttering "I can't, I can't" under his breath. Then he sat up.

'I'm going to rest now. You should get some sleep too,' he said.

'Okay,' she replied in a whisper, hoping he wouldn't notice how broken her voice sounded. He stayed in his seat for a little longer, almost frozen in place. Alicia was about to ask him something when he turned to face her and very swiftly and very carefully, placed a kiss on her cheek. It was as quickly gone as it was there, but she had no doubt that he had pressed his lips to her cheekbone and kissed her there. Mixed feelings flooded through the girl as the professor stood up and walked away. She dared to look up at him as he stood next to his bed, ready to close the curtain.

'Goodnight, Alicia.'

'Goodnight Remus.'

It was hard to see in the darkness, but she thought she saw him smile. Then he disappeared behind the curtain. In a sort of a trance, she walked over to her bed. Earlier, she had little chance of falling asleep as her mind wandered.

Now, she had no chance at all.