Chapter 40 Hermione's Secret
Harry watched as Cassie suddenly dropped. He tried to catch her but she was mostly on the ground when he did. Harry looked up at the terrible snarling noise. Lupin's head was lengthening, as was his body. His shoulders hunched as hair spouted everywhere on visible skin. His hands were curling into clawed paws.
Crookshanks had fluffed up, backing away from Lupin -
Sirius disappeared from Harry's side, taking the shape of the large bearlike dog. The werewolf wrenched himself free of the manacles holding him to Pettigrew, and the dog seized the werewolf around the neck and locked his jaw. Claws were ripping at each other.
Harry was transfixed by the sight, too intent upon the battle to focus on anything else. Hermione's scream brought him back to reality.
Pettigrew had dived for Lupin's dropped wand. Ron, already unsteady on his broken leg, fell. There was a bang, a burst of light - Ron was on the ground, unconscious Another bang - Crookshanks flew in the air and landed in a crumpled heap…
"Expelliarmus!" Harry shouted, pointing his wand at Pettigrew.
The wand Pettigrew hand flew into the air.
"Stay where you are!" Harry shouted, running forward.
Pettigrew gave a little finger wave and transformed back into a rat, getting out of the manacles holding him to Ron.
There was a howl and a rumbling growl; Harry turned to see the werewolf taking flight into the forest.
"Sirius, he's gone, Pettigrew transformed!" Harry shouted.
Sirius was bleeding from the gashes across his muzzle and back, but at Harry's word, he scrambled up again and raced across the grounds.
Harry rushed over to Cassie, and Hermione to Ron.
"Cassie!" He shook the girl.
She was pale and her eyes had a foggy look to them, almost like she was blind. Harry didn't like the look of them and closed her eyes. He put a hand on her stomach and was relieved to feel her still breathing.
"What happened to you?" Harry asked, shaking his head and pulling her to be close to Ron.
"She must be in a trance." Hermione said.
"What?" Harry asked confused.
"Nevermind, she'll tell you when she wakes up." Hermione shook her head.
"What did he do to Ron?" Hermione asked, looking over Ron.
Ron's eyes were half-closed. He was alive, as he was breathing through his mouth, and he didn't seem to recognize them.
"I don't know... " Harry answered.
He looked around. Sirius and Lupin were both gone… they had no one but Snape for company, still hanging unconscious in mid air.
"We'd better get them up to the castle and tell someone." Harry pushed his hair out of his eyes.
"Come -"
There was a whimpering from beyond their vision. A whining dog in pain…
"Sirius." Harry muttered.
There was nothing they could do for Ron and Cassie, and it sounded like Sirius needed help.
Harry set off at a run, Hermione behind him. The yelping was coming from the ground near the lake. As they ran forward, Harry felt cold; not realizing what it meant.
The yelping stopped. When Harry reached the edge, he saw that Sirius had turned back into a man. He was crouched on all fours, his hands over his head.
"Nooo," he was moaning. "Noooo… please…"
Harry saw the Dementors finally. There must have been a hundred of them! A swirling black mass headed towards the three of them.
"Hermione, think of something happy!" Harry yelled, raising his wand.
His vision was starting to blur. And the faint screaming had started in his head…
'I'm going to live with my godfather. I'm leaving the Dursleys.'
Harry forced himself to think of Sirius, and only Sirius.
"Expecto Patronum! Expecto Patronum! Expecto Patronum!" Harry chanted.
Sirius shuddered, rolled over, and lay motionless on the ground, pale as death.
'He'll be alright. I'm going to go and live with him.'
"Expecto Patronum! Hermione, help me! Expecto Patronum!"
"Expecto -" Hermione whispered next to Harry. "Expecto - expecto -"
But Hermione couldn't do it. She didn't know how too. Lupin wanted Cassie to take the anti-dementor lessons, and she wasn't here…
The wall of dementors formed a solid wall around the three of them, floating closer.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" Harry shouted.
A thin wisp of silver came out of Harry's wand. Hermione collapsed next to him. Harry was alone… completely alone…
"Expecto - expecto patronum -"
Harry felt his knees hit the grass. Fog was clouding his eyes, effecting his fought to remember, with huge effort. Sirius was innocent - innocent -
'We'll be okay - I'm going to live with him -'
"Expecto Patronum!" Harry gasped out.
The feeble light of his Patronus showed him one dementor halt, very close to him. A slimy, dead hand slid out from under the cloak. It made a sweeping gesture, trying to move the Patronus aside.
"No - no -" Harry gasped. "He's innocent… expecto - expecto patronum -"
Harry could feel the dementors watching him. Their rattling breath was like an evil wind. The dementor nearest him, was considering him. It raised both its rotting hands - and lowered its hood.
Where there should have been eyes, there was only thin, gray, scabbed skin, stretched blankly over empty sockets. But there was a mouth… a gaping, shapeless hole, sucking the air with a sound of a death rattle.
Paralyzing terror filled Harry so that he couldn't move or speak. His Patronus flickered and died.
White fog was blinding him. He had to fight… expecto patronum… he couldn't see… and in the distance, he heard the familiar screaming… expecto patronum… he groped in the mist for Sirius, and found his arm… they weren't going to take him…
But a pair of clammy, strong, hands suddenly attached around Harry's neck. They were forcing his face upward…
He could feel its breath…
It was going to get rid of him first…
He could see its putrid breath…
His mother was screaming in his ears… She was going to be the last thing he ever heard -
And then… through the fog that was drowning him, he thought he saw a silvery light growing brighter and brighter… He felt himself fall forward onto the grass… Facedown, too weak to move, sick and shaking, Harry opened his eyes. The dementor must have released him. The blinding light was illuminating the grass around him… The screaming had stopped, the cold was ebbing away…
Something was driving the dementors back… It was circling around him, Sirius, and Hermione… They were leaving… The air was warm again…
With every ounce of strength he could muster, Harry raised his head a few inches and saw an animal amid the light, galloping across the lake… Eyes blurred with sweat, Harry tried to make out what it was… It was as bright as a unicorn.
Could it have been Celeste? Cassie's unicorn?
Fighting to stay conscious, Harry watched it canter to a halt as it reached the body welcoming it back… raising his hand to pat it… someone who looked strangely familiar… but it couldn't be…
Harry didn't understand. But he couldn't think anymore. He felt the last of his strength leave him, and his head hit the ground as he fainted.
"Shocking business… shocking… miracle none of them died… never heard the like… by thunder, it was lucky you were there, Snape…"
"Thank you, Minister."
"Order of Merlin, Second Class, I'd say. First class, if I can wangle it!"
"Thank you very much indeed, Minister."
"Nasty cut you've got there… Black's work, I suppose?"
"As a matter of fact, it was Potter, Weasley, Granger, and Zwart, Minister…"
"No!"
"Black had bewitched them, I saw it immediately. A Confundus Charm, to judge by their behavior. They seemed to think there was a possibility he was innocent. They weren't responsible for their actions. On the other hand, their interference might have permitted Black to escape… They obviously thought they were going to catch Black single-handed. They've got away with a great deal before now… I'm afraid it's given them a rather high opinion of themselves… and of course Potter has always been allowed an extraordinary amount of license by the headmaster…"
"Ah, well, Snape… Harry Potter, you know… we've all got a bit of a blind spot where he's concerned."
"And yet - is it good for him to be given so much special treatment? Personally, I try and treat him like any other student. And any other student would be suspended - at the very least - for leading his friends into such danger. Consider, Minister - against all school rules - after all the precautions put in place for his protection - out-of-bounds, at night, consorting with a werewolf and a murderer - and I have reason to believe he has been visiting Hogsmeade illegally too -"
"Well, well… we shall see, Snape, we shall see… The boy has undoubtedly been foolish…"
Harry kept his eyes closed. He was groggy. His brain was slowly taking in what was being said in the conversation. It was difficult to understand… His limbs felt like lead; his eyelids too heavy to lift… He wanted to lie here, on this comfortable bed, forever…
"What amazes me most is the behavior of the dementors… you've really no idea what made them retreat, Snape?"
"No, Minister… by the time I had come 'round they were heading back to their positions at the entrances…"
"Extraordinary. And yet Black, and Harry, and the girl -"
"All unconscious by the time I reached them. I bound and gagged Black, naturally, conjured stretchers, and brought them all straight back to the castle."
The conversation paused. Harry's brain seemed to be picking up speed. As it did, a gnawing sensation grew in the pit of his stomach…
He opened his eyes.
Everything was slightly blurred. His glasses had been removed. He was lying in the dark hospital wing. At the very end of the ward, he could make out Madam Pomfrey with her back to him, bending over a bed. Harry squinted. Ron's red hair was visible beneath Madam Pomfrey's arm.
Harry moved his head over on the pillow. In the bed to his right lay Hermione. Moonlight was falling across her bed. Her eyes were open too. She looked petrified, and when she saw Harry awake, pressed a finger to her lips, then pointed to the hospital wing door. It was ajar and the voices of Cornelius Fudge and Snape were coming through the room from the corridor outside.
Madam Pomfrey now came walking briskly up the dark ward to Harry's bed. He turned to look at her. She was carrying the largest block of chocolate he had ever seen in his life. It looked like a small boulder.
"Ah, you're awake!" She said briskly.
She placed the chocolate on Harry's bedside table and began to break it apart with a small hammer.
"How's Ron?" Hermione asked.
"How's Cassie?" Harry asked at the same time.
"They'll live," Madam Pomfrey said grimly. "As for you two… you'll be staying here until I'm satisfied you're - Potter, what do you think you're doing?"
Harry was sitting up, putting his glasses back on, and was picking up his wand.
"I need to see the headmaster." He said.
"Potter," Madam Pomfrey said smoothly. "It's all right. They've got Black. He's locked away upstairs. The dementors will be performing the kiss any moment now -"
"WHAT?" Harry jumped up out of bed.
Hermione had done the same. But his shout was heard in the corridor because the next second Fudge and Snape had entered the ward.
"Harry, Harry, what's this?" Fudge looked agitated. "You should be in bed - has he had any chocolate?" He asked Madam Pomfrey anxiously.
"Minister, listen!" Harry said. "Sirius Black's innocent! Peter Pettigrew faked his own death! We saw him tonight! You can't let the dementors do that thing to Sirius, he's -"
Fudge was shaking his head, a small face on his smile.
"Harry, Harry, you're confused, you've been through a dreadful ordeal, lie back down, now, we've got everything under control…"
"YOU HAVEN'T!" Harry shouted. "YOU'VE GOT THE WRONG MAN!"
"Minister, listen, please," Hermione said; she had hurried to Harry's side and was gazing imploringly into Fudge's face. "I saw him too. It was Ron's rat, he's an Animagus, Pettigrew, I mean, and - "
"You see, Minister?" Snape said. "Confunded, both of them… Black's done a very good job on them…"
"WE'RE NOT CONFUNDED!" Harry roared.
"Minister! Professor!" Madam Pomfrey was angry. "I must insist that you leave. Potter is my patient, and he should not be distressed!"
"I'm not distressed, I'm trying to tell them what happened!" Harry was furious. "If they'd just listen -"
But Madam Pomfrey suddenly stuffed a large chunk of chocolate into Harry's mouth; he choked, and she took the opportunity to force him back into bed.
"Now, please, Minister, these children need care. Please leave -"
The door opened again. Dumbledore had entered the ward. Harry swallowed his mouthful of chocolate with great difficulty and got up again.
"Professor Dumbledore, Sirius Black -"
"For heaven's sake!" Madam Pomfrey was starting to get hysterical. "Is this a hospital wing or not? Headmaster, I must insist -"
"My apologies, Poppy, but I need a word with Mr. Potter and Miss Granger," Dumbledore's voice calm. "I have just been talking to Sirius Black -"
"I suppose he's told you the same fairy tale he's planted in Potter's mind?" Snape spat. "Something about a rat, and Pettigrew being alive -"
"That, indeed, is Black's story," Dumbledore surveyed Snape closely through his half-moon spectacles.
"And does my evidence count for nothing?" snarled Snape. "Peter Pettigrew was not in the Shrieking Shack, nor did I see any sign of him on the grounds."
"That was because you were knocked out, Professor!" Hermione said earnestly. "You didn't arrive in time to hear -"
"Miss Granger, HOLD YOUR TONGUE!"
"Now, Snape," Fudge was startled by Snape's attitude. "The young lady is disturbed in her mind, we must make allowances -"
"I would like to speak to Harry and Hermione alone," Dumbledore said abruptly. "Cornelius, Severus, Poppy - please leave us."
"Headmaster!" Madam Pomfrey sputtered. "They need treatment, they need rest -"
"This cannot wait," Dumbledore said. "I must insist."
Madam Pomfrey pursed her lips together. As she strode away she took a minute to look at Cassie who was laying next to Ron. Harry noticed that her eyes were open and still had a foggy look to it.
Fudge consulted a large gold pocket watch dangling from his waistcoat.
"The dementors should have arrived by now," he said. "I'll go and meet them. Dumbledore, I'll see you upstairs."
He crossed the door and held it open for Snape, but Snape hadn't moved.
"You surely don't believe a word of Black's story?" Snape whispered, his eyes on Dumbledore's face.
"I wish to speak to Harry and Hermione alone," Dumbledore repeated.
Snape took a step in Dumbledore's direction.
"Sirius Black showed what he was capable of murder at the age of sixteen," he breathed. "You haven't forgotten that, Headmaster? You haven't forgotten that he once tried to kill me?"
"My memory is as good as it ever was, Severus," Dumbledore's voice was quiet.
Snape turned on his heel and marched through the door Fudge was still holding. It closed behind them, and Dumbledore turned to Harry and Hermione. They both burst into speech at the same time.
"Professor, Black's telling the truth - we saw Pettigrew -"
"- he escaped when Professor Lupin turned into a werewolf -"
"- he's a rat -"
"- Pettigrew's front paw, I mean, finger, he cut it off - "
" - Pettigrew attacked Ron, it wasn't Sirius - "
But Dumbledore held up his hand to stem the explanations.
"It is your turn to listen, and I beg you will not interrupt me because there is very little time," he spoke quietly. "There is not a shred of proof to support Black's story, except your word - and the word of two thirteen-year-old wizards will not convince anybody. A street full of eyewitnesses swore they saw Sirius murder Pettigrew, I myself gave evidence to the Ministry that Sirius had been the Potters' Secret-Keeper."
"Professor Lupin can tell you -" Harry was unable to stop himself.
"Professor Lupin is currently deep in the forest, unable to tell anyone anything. By the time he is human again, it will be too late, Sirius will be worse than dead. I might add that werewolves are so mistrusted by most our kind that his support will count for very little - and the fact that he and Sirius are old friends -"
"Then what about Cassie?" Harry gestured to her.
"Cassie is occupied with matters I don't even understand, and I don't know when she'll wake up." Dumbledore said, looking over at Cassie.
"But -"
"Listen to me, Harry. It is not too late, you understand me? You must see that Professor's Snape's version of events is far more convincing than yours."
"He hates Sirius," Hermione said desperately. "All because of some stupid trick Sirius played on him -"
"Sirius has not acted like an innocent man. The attack on the Fat Lady - entering Gryffindor Tower with a knife - without Pettigrew, alive or dead, we have no chance of overturning Sirius's sentence.
"But you believe us."
"Yes, I do," Dumbledore said quietly. "But I have no power to make other men see the truth, or to overrule the Minister of Magic…"
Harry looked up at his grave face and felt as though the ground beneath him was falling away sharply. He had grown used to the idea that Dumbledore could solve anything. He had expected Dumbledore to pull some amazing solution out of the air. But no… their last hope was gone.
"What we need," Dumbledore said slowly, his light blue eyes moving from harry to Hermione. "Is more time."
"But -" Hermione began. And then her eyes grew round. "OH!"
"Now, pay attention," Dumbledore spoke low and clearly. "Sirius is locked in Professor's Flitwick's office on the seventh floor. Thirteenth window from the right of the West Tower. If all goes well, you will be able to save more than one innocent life tonight. But remember this, both of you; you must not be seen. Miss Granger, you know the law - you know what is at stake… You - must - not - be - seen."
Harry didn't know what was going on. Dumbledore turned his heel and looked back when he reached the door.
"I am going to lock you in. It is -" he consulted his watch, "five minutes to midnight. Miss Granger, three turns should do it. Good luck.
"Good luck?" Harry repeated as the door closed behind Dumbledore. "Three turns? What's he talking about? What are we supposed to do?"
Hermione was fumbling with the neck of her robes, pulling from beneath them a very long, very fine gold chain.
"Harry, come here," she said urgently. "Quick!"
Harry moved toward her, completely bewildered. She was holding the chain out. He saw a tiny sparkling hourglass from it.
"Here -" she threw the chain around his neck.
"Ready?" She asked, breathless.
"What are we doing?" Harry asked, completely lost.
Hermione didn't answer. Instead she turned the hourglass over three times.
The dark ward dissolved. Harry had the sensation that he was flying very fast, backward. A blur of colors and shapes rushed past him, his ears were pounding, he tried to yell but couldn't hear his own voice -
And then he felt solid ground beneath his feet, and everything came into focus again -
He was standing next to Hermione in the deserted entrance hall and a stream of golden sunlight was falling across the paved floor from the open front doors. He looked wildly around at Hermione, the chain of the hourglass cutting into his neck.
"Hermione, what -?"
"In here!" Hermione seized Harry's arm and dragged him across the hall to the door of a broom closet; she opened it, pulled him inside among the buckets and mops, then slammed the door behind them.
"What - how - Hermione, what happened?" Harry asked.
"We've gone back in time," Hermione whispered, lifting the chain off Harry's neck in the darkness. "Three hours back…"
Harry found his own leg and gave it a very hard pinch. It hurt a lot, which seemed to rule out the possibility that he was having a very bizarre dream.
"But -"
"Shh! Listen! Someone's coming! I think - I think it might be us!" Hermione interrupted.
Hermione pressed her ear against the cupboard door.
"Footsteps across the hall… yes, I think it's us going down to Hagrid's!"
"Are you telling me," Harry whispered, "that we're here in the cupboard and we're out there too?"
"Yes," Hermione whispered, her ear still glued to the cupboard door. "I'm sure it's us. It doesn't sound like more than three people… and we're walking slowly because we're under the Invisibility Cloak -"
She broke off, still listening intently.
"We've gone down the front steps…"
Hermione sat down on an upturned bucket, looking desperately anxious, but Harry wanted a few questions answered.
"Where did you get that hourglass thing?"
"It's called a Time-Turner," Hermione whispered, "and I got it from Professor McGonagall on our first day back. I've been using it all year to get to all my lessons. Professor McGonagall made me swear I wouldn't tell anyone. She had to write all sorts of letters to the Ministry of Magic so I could have one. She had to tell them that I was a model student, and that I'd never, ever use it for anything except my studies… I've been turning it back so I could do hours over again, that's how I've been doing several lessons at once, see? But…
"Harry, I don't understand what Dumbledore wants us to do. Why did he tell us to go back three hours? How's that going to help Sirius?"
Harry stared at her shadowy face.
"There must be something that happened around now he wants us to change," he said slowly. "What happened? We were walking down to Hagrid's three hours ago…"
"This is three hours ago, and we are walking down to Hagrid's." Hermione added. "We just heard ourselves leaving…"
Harry frowned, he felt as though he was screwing up his brain in concentration.
"Dumbledore just said - just said we could save more than one innocent life…" And then it hit him. "Hermione, we're going to save Buckbeak!"
"But - how will that help Sirius?"
"Dumbledore said - he just told us where the window is - the window of Flitwick's office! Where they've got Sirius locked up! We've got to fly Buckbeak up to the window and rescue Sirius! Sirius can escape on Buckbeak - they can escape together!"
From what Harry could see of Hermione's face, she looked terrified.
"If we manage that without being seen, it'll be a miracle!"
"Well, we've got to try, haven't we?" Harry asked.
He stood up and pressed his ear against the door.
"Doesn't sound like anyone's there… Come on, let's go…" Harry pushed open the closet door.
The entrance hall was deserted. As quickly as they could they darted out of the closet. They were able to get to Hagrid's unseen.
"If anyone's looking out of the window -" Hermione squeaked, looking up at the castle behind them.
"We'll run for it," Harry said with determination. "Straight into the forest, all right? We'll have to hide behind a tree or something and keep a lookout -"
"Okay, but we'll go around by the greenhouses!" Hermione was starting to get breathless. "We need to keep out of sight of Hagrid's front door, or we'll see us! We must be nearly at Hagrid's by now!"
Still working out what she meant, Harry set off at a sprint, Hermione behind him. They tore across the vegetable gardens to the greenhouses, paused for a moment behind them, then set off again, as fast as they could, skirting around the Whomping Willow, tearing toward the shelter of the forest…
Safe in the shadows of the trees, Harry turned around; seconds later, Hermione arrived beside him, panting.
"Right," she gasped. "We need to sneak over to Hagrid's… Keep out of sight, Harry…"
They made their way silently through the trees, keeping to the very edge of the forest. Then, as they glimpsed the front of Hagrid's house, they heard a knock on his door. They moved quickly behind a wide oak trunk and peered out from either side. Hagrid had appeared in his doorway, shaking and white, looking around to see who had knocked. And Harry heard his own voice.
"It's us. We're wearing the Invisibility Cloak. Let us in and we can take it off."
"Yeh shouldn've come!" Hagrid whispered.
He stood back, then shut the door quickly.
"This is the weirdest thing we've ever done," Harry said fervently.
"Let's move along a bit," Hermione whispered. "We need to get nearer to Buckbeak!"
They crept through the trees until they saw the nervous hippogriff, tethered to the fence around Hagrid's pumpkin patch.
"Now?" Harry whispered.
"No!" Hermione whispered. "If we steal him now, those Committee people will think Hagrid set him free! We've got to wait until they've seen he's tied outside!"
"That's going to give us about sixty seconds," Harry whispered back.
This was starting to seem impossible.
At that moment, there was a crash of breaking china from inside Hagrid's cabin.
"That's Hagrid breaking the milk jug," Hermione whispered. "I'm going to find Scabbers in a moment -"
Sure enough, a few minutes later, they heard Hermione's shriek of surprise.
"Hermione," Harry said suddenly, "what if we - we just run in there and grab Pettigrew -"
"No!" Hermione said in a terrified whisper. "Don't you understand? We're breaking one of the most important wizarding laws! Nobody's supposed to change time, nobody! You heard Dumbledore, if we're seen -"
"We'd only be seen by ourselves and Hagrid!" Harry interjected.
"And Harry, what do you think you'd do if you saw yourself bursting into Hagrid's house?" Hermione asked.
"I'd - I'd think I'd gone mad," Harry answered, "or I'd think there was some Dark Magic going on -"
"Exactly! You wouldn't understand, you might even attack yourself. Don't you see? Professor McGonagall told me what awful things have happened when wizards meddled with time… Loads of them ended up killing their past or future selves by mistake!"
"Okay!" Harry said. "It was just an idea, I just thought -"
But Hermione nudged him and pointed toward the castle. Harry moved his head a few inches to get a clear view of the distant front doors. Dumbledore, Fudge, the old Committee member, and Macnair the executioner were coming down the steps.
"We're about to come out!" Hermione breathed.
And sure enough, moments later, Hagrid's back door opened, and Harry saw himself, Ron, and Hermione walking out of it with Hagrid. It was, without a doubt, the strangest sensation of his life, standing behind the tree, and watching himself in the pumpkin patch.
"It's okay, Beaky, it's okay…," Hagrid said to Buckbeak.
Then he turned to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, "go on. Get goin'."
"Hagrid, we can't -"
"We'll tell them what really happened -"
"They can't kill him - "
"Go! It's bad enough without you lot in trouble an' all!"
Harry watched the Hermione in the pumpkin patch throw the Invisibility Cloak over him and Ron.
"Go quick. Don' listen…"
There was a knock on Hagrid's front door. The execution party had arrived. Hagrid turned around and headed back into his cabin, leaving the back door ajar. Harry watched the grass flatten in patches all around the cabin and heard three pairs of feet retreating. He, Ron, and Hermione had gone… but the Harry and Hermione hidden in the trees could now hear what was happening inside the cabin through the back door.
"Where is the beast?" came the cold voice of Macnair.
"Out - outside," Hagrid croaked.
Harry pulled his head out of sight as Macnair's face appeared at Hagrid's window, staring out at Buckbeak. Then they heard Fudge.
"We - er - have to read you the official notice of execution, Hagrid. I'll make it quick. And then you and Macnair need to sign it. Macnair, you're supposed to listen too, that's procedure -"
Macnair's face vanished from the window. It was now or never.
"Wait here," Harry whispered to Hermione. "I'll do it."
As Fudge's voice started again, Harry darted out from behind his tree, vaulted the fence into the pumpkin patch, and approached Buckbeak.
"It is the decision of the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures that the hippogriff Buckbeak, hereafter called the condemned, shall be executed on the sixth of June at sundown -"
Harry was careful not to blink. Staring into Buckbeak's fierce oranges eyes once more and bowed. Buckbeak sank to his scaly knees and stood up again. Harry began to fumble with the knot of rope tying Buckbeak to the fence.
"... sentenced to execution by beheading, to be carried out by the Committee's appointed executioner, Walden Macnair…"
"Come on, Buckbeak," Harry murmured, "come on, we're going to help you. "Quietly… quietly…"
"... as witnessed below. Hagrid, you sign here…"
Harry threw all his weight onto the rope, but Buckbeak had dug in his front feet.
"Well, let's get this over with," said the reedy voice of the Committee member from inside Hagrid's cabin. "Hagrid, perhaps it will be better if you stay inside -"
"No, I - I wan' ter be with him… I don' wan' him ter be alone -" Hagrid answered.
"Buckbeak, move!" Harry hissed.
Harry tugged harder on the rope around Buckbeak's neck. The hippogriff becan to walk, rustling its wings irritable. They were still ten feet away from the forest, in plain view of Hagrid's back door.
"One moment, please, Macnair," came Dumbledore's voice. "You need to sign it too."
The footsteps stopped. Harry heaved on the rope. Buckbeak snapped his beak and walked a little faster.
Hermione's white face was sticking out from behind a tree.
"Harry, hurry!" She mouthed.
Harry could still hear Dumbledore's voice talking from within the cabin. He gave the rope another wrench.
He wished Cassie was here, she was good with animals and he was sure Buckbeak would listen to her better.
Buckbeak snapped his beak and walked a little faster. Hermione's white face was sticking out from behind a tree.
"Quick! Quick!" Hermione moaned, darting out from behind her tree, seizing the rope and adding her weight to make Buckbeak move faster.
Harry looked over his shoulder; they were now blocked from sight; they couldn't see Hagrid's garden at all.
"Stop!" Harry whispered to Hermione. "They might hear us -"
Hagrid's back door had opened with a bang. Harry, Hermione, and even Buckbeak stood quite still; even the hippogriff seemed to be listening intently.
Silence…
Then -
"Where is it?" The reedy voice of the Committee member asked. "Where is the beast?"
"It was tied here!" The executioner was furious. "I saw it! Just here!"
"How extraordinary," Dumbledore spoke up, and he sounded amused.
"Beaky!" Hagrid's voice was husky.
There was a swishing noise and the thud of an axe. The executioner seemed to have swung it into the fence in anger. And then came the howling, and this time they could hear Hagrid's words through his sobs.
"Gone! Gone! Bless his little beak, he's gone! Musta pulled himself free! Beaky, yeh clever boy!"
Buckbean started to strain against the rope, trying to get back to Hagrid. Harry and Hermione tightened their grip and dug their heels into the forest floor to stop him.
"Someone untied him!" The executioner snarled. "We should search the grounds, the forest - "
"Macnair, if Buckbeak has indeed been stolen, do you really think the thief will have led him away on foot?" Dumbledore was still amused. "Search the skies, if you will… Hagrid, I could do with a cup of tea. Or a large brandy."
"O' - o' course, Professor," said Hagrid, who sounded weak with happiness. "Come in, come in…"
Harry and Hermione listened closely. They heard footsteps, the soft cursing of the executioner, the snap of the door, and then silence once more.
"Now what?" Harry whispered, looking around.
"Harry? Hermione?" Cassie's voice asked behind them.
Hermione let out a gasp, and when Harry went to turn around she grabbed him and wouldn't let him, keeping their backs to Cassie. Harry saw Buckbeak from the corner of his look at the girl. For a second he was afraid Buckbeak would attack Cassie, but the hippogriff sank to his knees and came back up. He started to look for worms in the ground.
"What -" Cassie started to ask a question, but stopped.
"Oh, I wasn't supposed to see you, was I?" Her chuckle was dry.
Harry shook Hermione off and turned around to face Cassie. He opened his mouth to say something.
"Don't!" Cassie shook her head, her skin only lightening up so they could see her. "I know about Hermione's secret. And if you say anything to me, it could change what you've been through."
Harry closed his mouth but he looked pained.
"I'll see you soon, and then maybe you can tell me what happened?" Cassie smiled at them.
Cassie turned her head to the Whomping Willow and looked back at her two friends.
"I better go. Do not be seen again!" Cassie warned.
Cassie darkened her skin and Harry lost her in the shadows.
"We'll have to hide in here," Hermione finally spoke up when they were sure Cassie had gone. "We need to wait until they've gone back to the castle. "We need to wait until they've gone back to the castle. Then we wait until it's safe to fly Buckbeak up to Sirius's window. He won't be there for another couple of hours… Oh, this is going to be difficult…" She was very shaken.
She looked nervously over her shoulder into the depths of the forest. The sun was setting now.
"We're going to have to move," Harry was thinking hard. 'We've got to be able to see the Whomping Willow, or we won't know what's going on."
"Okay," Hermione said, getting a firmer grip on Buckbeak's rope. "But we've got to keep out of sight, Harry, remember…"
They moved around the edge of the forest, darkness falling thickly around them, until they were hidden behind a clump of trees through which they could make out the Willow.
"There's Ron!" Harry said suddenly.
A dark figure was sprinting across the lawn and its shout echoed through the still night air.
"Get away from him - get away - Scabbers, come here -"
And then they saw two more figures materialize out of nowhere. Harry watched himself and Hermione chasing after Ron. Then he saw Ron dive.
"Gotcha! Get off, you stinking cat -"
"There's Sirius!" Harry said.
The great shape of the dog had bounded out from the roots of the Willow. They saw him bowl Harry over, then seize Ron…
"Looks even worse from here, doesn't it?" Harry asked, watching the dog pulling Ron into the roots. "Ouch - look, I just got walloped by the tree - and so did you - this is weird -"
The Whomping Willow creaked and lashed out with its lower branches; they could see themselves darting here and there, trying to reach the trunk. And the tree froze.
"That was Crookshanks pressing the knot." Hermione said.
"And there we go…," Harry muttered. "We're in."
"The moment they disappeared, the tree began to move again. Seconds later, they heard footsteps quite close by. Dumbledore, Macnair, Fudge and the old Committee member were making their way up to the castle.
"Right after we'd gone down into the passage!" said Hermione. "If only Dumbledore had come with us…"
"Macnair and Fudge would've come too," Harry said with bitterness. "I bet anything Fudge would've told Macnair to murder Sirius on the spot…"
They watched the four men climb the castle steps and disappear from view. Then -
"Here comes Lupin!" Harry pointed as they saw another figure sprinting down the stone steps and toward the Willow.
Harry looked up and saw that there was no moon in the sky.
"Remus?" Cassie's voice asked.
"She is good at disguising herself!" Hermione complimented, watching as Cassie revealed herself to Lupin.
"Cassie! What are you doing here?" They watched Lupin look from Cassie to the Willow.
"Following my instincts, let's go." Cassie led the way into the Willow.
"They must have swapped places in the tunnel. Lupin jumped into the room first." Hermione mentioned.
"If only they'd grabbed the cloak," Harry sighed. "It's just lying there…"
He turned to Hermione.
"Harry, we mustn't be seen!" Hermione hissed.
"How can you stand this? He asked fiercely. "Just standing here and watching it happen?" Harry hesitated. "I'm going to grab the cloak!"
"Harry, no!" Hermione seized the back of Harry's robes not a moment too soon.
There was a burst of song. Hagrid was making his way up to the castle, singing at the top of his voice, weaving slightly as he walked. A large bottle was swinging loosely from his hands.
"See?" Hermione whispered. "See what would have happened? We've got to keep out of sight! No, Buckbeak!"
Buckbeak was making frantic attempts to get to Hagrid; Harry seized his rope, straining to hold Buckbeak back.
They watched Hagrid meander tipsily up to the castle. He was gone. Buckbeak stopped fighting to get away, his head drooped sadly.
Barely two minutes later, the castle doors flew open yet again, and Snape came charging out of them, running towards the Willow.
Harry's fist clenched as they watched Snape skid to a halt next to the tree, looking around. He grabbed the cloak and held it up.
"Get your filthy hands off it," Harry snarled under his breath.
"Shh!" Hermione hushed him.
Snape waved his wand and the tree stopped moving and he vanished from view as he put on the cloak.
"So that's it," Hermione said quietly. "We're all down there… and now we've just got to wait until we come back up again…"
Hermione took Buckbeak's rope and tied it securely around the nearest tree. Then she sat down on the dry ground, arms around her knees.
"Harry, there's something I don't understand… Why didn't the dementors get Sirius? I remember them coming, and then I think I passed out… there was so many of them…"
Harry sat down next to her. He explained what he'd seen; how, as the nearest dementor had lowered its mouth to Harry's, a large silver something had come galloping across the lake and forced the dementors to retreat.
Hermione's mouth was slightly open by the time Harry had finished.
"What was it?"
"There's only one thing it could have been, to make the dementors go." Harry explained. "A real Patronus. A powerful one."
"But who conjured it?"
Harry didn't answer. He was thinking back to the person he'd seen on the other bank of the lake. He knew who he thought it had been… but how could it have been?
"Didn't you see what they looked like?" Hermione asked eagerly. "Was it one of the teachers?"
"No," Harry shook his head. "He wasn't a teacher."
"But it must have been a really powerful wizard, to drive all those dementors away… If the Patronus was shining so brightly, didn't it light him up? Couldn't you see -"
"Yeah, I saw him," Harry chose his words slowly. "But… maybe I imagined it… I wasn't thinking straight… I passed out right after ward…"
"Who did you think it was?" Hermione asked.
"I think - " Harry swallowed, knowing how strange this was was sounding in his head.
How would it sound out loud?
"I think it was my dad."
Harry glanced at Hermione and saw that her mouth was fully open now. She was gazing at him with a mixture of alarm and pity.
"Harry, your dad's - well -dead." She said quietly.
"I know that," Harry said quickly.
"You think you saw his ghost?"
"I don't know… no… he looked solid…"
"But then -"
"Maybe I was seeing things," Harry said, trying to explain it to himself. "But… from what I could see… it looked like him… I've got photos of him…"
Hermione was still looking at him with a worried look on her face.
"I know it sounds crazy." Harry's voice was flat.
He turned to look at Buckbeak, who was digging his beak into the ground, searching for worms. But he wasn't really watching Buckbeak.
Harry started thinking about his father and his father's three oldest friends… Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs…
Had all four of them been out on the grounds tonight? Wormtail had reappeared this evening when everyone had thought he was dead… Was it impossible his father had done the same? Had he been seeing things across the lake? The figure had been too far away to see distinctly… yet he had felt for sure, for a moment, before he'd lost consciousness…
The leaves overhead rustled in the breeze, making a faint noise. The moon teased brightness across the top of the forest.
"What is going on with Cassie?" Harry asked.
"I can't tell you that." Hermione sighed.
"She knew about your Time-Turner." Harry didn't mean to sound accusatory.
"She figured it out. She made a comment earlier this year about how I had to make my classes by turning time, and then a week later she caught me in a slip up and she figured it out. She told me about her… secret and I was so overloaded with classes, I didn't think to tell her to tell you guys." Hermione explained.
"You? Not think to tell us?" Harry gave her a 'are you kidding me?' look.
"Okay." She sighed. "She didn't want to tell Ron, specifically because he might want to exploit her, but she felt like she couldn't tell you and not tell Ron, so we kept each other's secrets. When she wakes up she may tell you." Hermione answered truthfully.
They shared a moment of silence. Which lasted forty-five minutes.
"Here we come!" Hermione whispered.
They got to their feet, Buckbeak raised his head at the movement. They saw Lupin, Ron, and Pettigrew getting out awkwardly from the roots. Then Hermione, followed by an unconscious Snape. They watch Lupin help pull Cassie out. Harry and Sirius followed, and together they walked to the castle.
Harry's heart began to beat fast. Any minute now, the Moon was going to come over the Forest.
"Harry," Hermione muttered.
She knew what he was thinking.
"We've got to stay put. We mustn't be seen. There's nothing we can do…"
"So we're just going to let Pettigrew escape all over again…" Harry hissed quietly.
"How do you expect to find a rat in the dark?" Snapped Hermione. "There's nothing we can do! We came back to help Sirius; we're not supposed to be doing anything else!"
"Alright!"
"Professor!" Cassie's voice rang out.
The moon finally showed itself.
"There goes Lupin." Hermione whispered. "He's transforming -"
"Hermione!" Harry said suddenly. "We've got to move!"
"We mustn't, I keep telling you -"
"Not to interfere! Lupin's going to run into the forest, right at us!" Harry said desperately.
Hermione gasped.
"Quick!" Hermione moaned, dashing to untie Buckbeak. "Quick! Where are we going to go? Where are we going to hide? The dementors will be coming any moment -"
"Back to Hagrid's!" Harry suggested. "It's empty now - come on!"
They ran as fast as they could, Buckbeak cantering along behind them. They could hear the werewolf howling behind them…
They made it to the cabin. Harry skidded to the door and wrenched it open. Hermione and Buckbeak flashed past him; he flung himself inside after them and bolted the door when he closed it.
Fang, Hagrid's boarhound, started to bark loudly at the intrusion.
"Shh, Fang, it's us!" Hermione hurried over and started to scratch his ears to quieten him.
"That was really close!" She said to Harry.
"Yeah…" Harry nodded.
He was looking out of the window. It was harder to see what was going on from here.
"Why did Cassie fall into her trance at the moment we could have used her?" Harry asked himself.
"I don't know." Hermione said, sounding miserable about Cassie.
"Sorry, I know I keep asking questions about her." Harry apologized.
"It's okay, I'm worried about her too." Hermione admitted. "One minute she was trying to stop Professor Lupin and the next she just isn't doing anything." Hermione sighed.
"Do you think she's going to wake up?" Harry asked.
"I hope so." Hermione answered honestly.
Harry nodded, wanting to hope too.
"I think I'd better go outside again, you know," Harry said slowly. "I can't see what's going on - we won't know when it's time -"
Hermione looked up from Fang, looking at Harry with a suspicious expression.
"I'm not going to try and interfere," Harry said quickly. "But if we don't see what's going on, how're we going to know when it's time to rescue Sirius?"
"Well… okay, then… I'll wait here with Buckbeak… but Harry, be careful - there's a werewolf out there - and the dementors -"
Harry nodded and stepped outside again. He edged around the cabin, hearing yelping in the distance. That meant the dementors were closing in on Sirius… He and Hermione would be running him any moment…
Harry stared out toward the lake, his heart doing a kind of drumroll in his chest. Whoever had sent that Patronus would be appearing at any moment…
For a fraction of a second, he stood irresolute next to Hagrid's hut. You must not be seen. But he didn't want to be seen. He wanted to do the seeing… He had to know…
And there were the dementors. They were emerging out of the darkness from every direction, gliding around the edges of the lake… They were moving away from where Harry stood, to the opposite bank… He wouldn't have to get near them…
Harry began to run.
He had no thought in his head except his father…
If it really was him…
He had to know, had to find out…
The lake was coming nearer and nearer, but there was no sign of anybody. On the opposite bank, he could see tiny glimmers of silver - his own attempts at a Patronus -
There was a bush at the very edge of the water. Harry threw himself behind it, peering desperately through the leaves. On the opposite bank, the glimmers of silver were suddenly extinguished. A terrified excitement shot through him - any moment now
But no one came.
Cassie's voice floated through his head.
'It's you, Harry.'
Harry raised his head to look at the circle of dementors across the lake. One of them was lowering its hood. It was time for the rescuer to appear - but no one was coming to help this time -
'Harry! It's you!'
Cassie's voice was sounding more urgent in his head.
"Come on!" Harry muttered, ignoring Cassie's voice. "Where are you? Dad, come one -"
And then he understood. He hadn't seen his father - he had seen himself -
'Harry, GO!' Cassie shouted.
Harry flung himself out from behind the bush and pulled out his wand.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" Harry shouted.
Out of the end of his wand, a dazzling silver animal burst out. Harry screwed up his eyes, trying to see what it was. It looked like a horse, the way it galloped away from him. He watched it lower its head and charge at the swarming dementors…
It started to gallop around the three shapes on the ground. Around in circles it went until all of the dementors fell back until they were gone.
The Patronus turned. It cantered back towards Harry across the still surface of the water. It wasn't a horse, it wasn't Celeste either. It was shining brightly as the moon above… it was coming back to him…
The Patronus stopped on the back. Its hooves made no mark on the soft ground as it stared at Harry with its large, silver eyes. Slowly, it lowered its antlered head and Harry realized…
"Prongs," Harry whispered.
His Patronus vanished just as he reached his trembling hand out to pat it.
Hooves sounded behind him. When he turned around, Hermione was leading Buckbeak towards him.
"What did you do?" Hermione asked fiercely. "You said you were only going to keep a lookout!"
"I just saved our lives…" Harry started to explain. "Get behind here - behind this bush - I'll explain."
Hermione listened to what Harry just witnessed with her mouth open again.
"Did anyone see you?" She asked at the end of his story.
"Yes, haven't been you listening? I saw me, but I thought I was my dad! It's okay!"
"Harry, I can't believe it… You conjured up a Patronus that drove away all those dementors! That's very, very advanced magic…"
"I knew I could do it this time," Harry said, "because I'd already done… Does that make sense?"
I don't know - Harry, look at Snape!"
Together they watched around the bush to the other side of the bank. Snape had regained consciousness. He had conjured stretchers and lifted the limp forms of Harry, Hermione, and Sirius with his wand. Two more stretchers were already floating by his side. Containing Ron and Cassie.
Then Snape guided everyone to the castle.
"Right, it's nearly time." Hermione sounded tense, looking at her watch. "We've got about forty-five minutes until Dumbledore locks the door to the hospital wing. We've got to rescue Sirius and get back into the ward before anybody realizes we're missing..."
They waited, watching the clouds reflecting on the lake. Buckbeak started ferreting for worms again.
"D'you reckon he's up there yet?" Harry checked his watch.
He started counting the windows to the right of the West Tower.
'Look.' Cassie's voice in Harry's head echoed Hermione's.
"Look! Who's that? Someone's coming back out of the castle!" Hermione pointed.
A man was hurrying across the grounds, toward one of the entrances. Something shiny was glinting on his belt in the moonlight.
"Macnair!" said Harry. "The executioner! He's gone to get the dementors! This is it, Hermione -"
Hermione was already putting her hands on Buckbeak's back. Harry gave her a boost up then climbed up in front of her. He pulled Buckbeak's rope back over his neck and tied it to the other side of the collar making the rope like reins.
"Ready?" he whispered to Hermione. "You'd better hold on to me -"
He nudged Buckbeak's sides with his heels.
Buckbeak soared straight into the dark air. Harry gripped his flanks with his knees, feeling Buckbeak's great wings rising powerfully beneath them. Hermione was holding tight to Harry's waist; she was muttering, "Oh no - I don't like this - oh, I really don't like this -"
Harry urged Buckbeak forward. Gliding quietly toward the upper floors of the castle… Harry pulled hard on the left-hand side of the rope, and Buckbeak turned. Harry was counting the windows as they flew past them.
"Whoa!" Harry pulled backward on the makeshift reins.
They managed to float, unless you count the several feet the rose and fell when Buckbeak beat his wings to stay in the air.
"He's there!" Harry said, pointing to Sirius as they looked into the window.
When Buckbeak's wings were down, Harry was able to tap on the glass. Sirius looked up and his jaw dropped as he came over to the window.
"Stand back!" Hermione called through the window.
She had a grip on Harry's robes and pointed her wand at the lock on the window.
"Alohomora!"
The window sprang open.
"How - how -?" Sirius asked weakly, staring at Buckbeak.
"Get on - there's not much time," Harry urged Sirius, gripping Buckbeak's neck to stay on. "You've got to get out of here - the dementors are coming - Macnair's gone to get them!"
Sirius didn't need anymore convincing. He was lucky to be so skinny. He had managed to get one leg over Buckbeak's back and pulled himself behind Hermione on the hippogriff.
"Okay, Buckbeak, up!" Harry shook the rope. "Up to the tower - come on!"
Buckbeak gave on sweep of his wings and they were up in the air over the castle again. Buckbeak landed with a clatter on the battlements, and Harry and Hermione slid off of Buckbeak.
"Sirius, you'd better go, quick!" Harry panted. "They'll reach Flitwick's office at any moment, they'll find out you're gone."
Buckbeak pawed the ground, tossing his head.
"What happened to the other boy? Ron? And Cassie?" Sirius croaked.
"They're going to be okay. They're still out of it, but Madam Pomfrey is the best. Quick - go -"
"How can I ever thank -" Sirius was trying to get his words out.
"GO!" Harry and Hermione shouted together.
Sirius turned Buckbeak around, getting ready to take off.
"We'll see each other again," he said, looking at Harry. "You are - truly your father's son, Harry…"
He squeezed Buckbeak's sides with his heels. Harry and Hermione jumped back as Buckbeak's wings rose once more. The hippogriff took off into the air, they watched as he and his rider became smaller and smaller. A cloud drifted across the moon, and they were gone.
"Harry!" Hermione tugged on Harry's sleeve. "We've got exactly ten minutes to get back down to the hospital wing without anybody seeing us - before Dumbledore locks the door -"
"Okay," Harry forced himself to look away from the sky. "Let's go…"
They slipped through the doorway behind them and down a tightly spiraling stone staircase. As they reached the bottom of it, they heard voices. They flattened themselves against the wall and listened. It sounded like Fudge and Snape. They were walking quickly along the corridor at the foot of the staircase.
"... only hope Dumbledore's not going to make difficulties," Snape was speaking. "The Kiss will be performed immediately?"
"As soon as Macnair returns with the dementors. This whole Black affair has been highly embarrassing. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to informing the Daily Prophet that we've got him at last… I daresay they'll want to interview you, Snape… and once young Harry's back in his right mind, I expect he'll want to tell the Prophet exactly how you saved him…" Fudge spoke.
Harry clenched his teeth. He caught a glimpse of Snape's smirking face and he and Fudge passed their hiding place. They waited a few moments before starting to run in the opposite direction. Done one staircase, then another, along a new corridor - they heard a cackling ahead.
"Peeves!" Harry muttered, grabbing Hermione's wrist. "In here!"
They entered a deserted classroom to their left just in time. Peeves was bouncing along the corridor in boisterous spirits, cackling his head off.
"Oh, he's horrible," Hermione whispered, pressing her ear to the door. "I bet he's all excited because the dementors are going to finish off Sirius…" She checked her watch. "Three minutes, Harry!"
They waited until they couldn't hear Peeves's voice and then slid out of the room. Picking up their pace again.
"Hermione - what'll happen - if we don't get back inside - before Dumbledore locks the door?" Harry panted.
"I don't want to think about it!" Hermione moaned, checking her watch again. "One minute!"
They reached the end of the corridor with the hospital wing entrance.
"Okay - I can hear Dumbledore," Hermione was tense. "Come on, Harry!"
They crept along the doorway, the door opened, and Dumbledore's back appeared.
"I am going to lock you in," they heard him say. "It is five minutes to midnight. Miss Granger, three turns should do it. Good luck."
Dumbledore backed out of the room, closed the door, and took out his wand to magically lock it. Panicking, Harry and Hermione ran forward.
Dumbledore looked up and a wide smile grew on under his silver beard.
"Well?" He asked, his voice quiet.
"We did it!" Harry was breathless. "Sirius has gone, on Buckbeak…"
Dumbledore beamed at them.
"Well done. I think -" he listened intently for any noise in the hospital wing. "Yes, I think you've gone too - get inside - I'll lock you in -"
Hermione and Harry slipped back inside the ward. It was empty except for Ron and Cassie. They were still laying motionless next to each other. Harry and Hermione crept back to their own beds, Hermione tucked the Time-Turner back under her robes. A moment later, Madam Pomfrey came out of her office in a huff.
"Did I hear the headmaster leaving? Am I allowed to look after my patients now?"
Harry and Hermione figured it would be best if they took the chocolate from Madam Pomfrey, not wanting to make her more angry. Their nerves were jangling…
Madam Pomfrey went over to check on Cassie and Ron, and was given quite a scare.
Harry even jumped when Cassie sat up, letting out a scream.
Her eyes weren't foggy anymore, but the clear gray eyes of her father.
I did not realize how long this chapter was until I had it all on here. Enjoy it! And Happy Birthday to our Cassie, to celebrate her birthday her is this chapter! And don't worry, you'll get the scheduled chapter on Saturday!
Shout out to Awritingbookworm and Pamela Hutchins for leaving a review!
Awritingbookworm: Perfect! That was the goal! Pettigrew comes off as someone who is a victim of his own stupidity and I figured if he had actually liked a girl he would become stalkerish.
Pamela Hutchins: Sirius is a free man! Well, as free as he can be with the circumstances.
Shout out to MyFandoms7 for adding the first and third story to your favorites list!
Shout out to Vampryelove21 for following and favoriting this story!
Shout out to climate25 for following this story, and for following me!
I updated the chapter because afeleon246 was kind enough to let me know that I doubled up on some paragraphs. Thank you afeleon246!
afeleon246: Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Sometimes doubled paragraphs get away from me, especially with long chapters like this! And I'm so glad you love this story so much!