Something Unknown

Harry awoke with a start. He had just had another one of those incredibly realistic dreams again. He knew that his dream was set sometime in the past, but he couldn't seem to remember any more than that. As usual, the more desperately he tried to hold on to it, the faster it slipped away from him. Eventually, he gave up. It was a losing battle as he knew all too well by now. The only thing he had to hang on to was the vivid memory of a girl, and a strange feeling that for once the dream was not directly related to him, but connected on a more... cosmic plane. 'Wow, I've been taking Divination for too long.'

He quickly put the dream out of mind as he realized that it was almost time for him to be getting ready for his departure from the suffocating confines of his terrible family. He wanted to leap for joy as he thought of being re-united with Ron and Hermione, his nearest and dearest friends.

His heart continued to soar as he thought of Hogwarts, the school for Witchcraft and Wizardry that he attended, and of the most beloved sport in all of the wizarding world, Quidditch. At school he was his house's seeker and had been since his first year, something that hadn't been done in over a hundred years. He only lived to play and couldn't wait until he was able to fly high above the grounds during what no doubt would be the most rigorous training the team had ever seen. With the loss of their team captain/keeper they had quite a large gap to fill, not to mention the fact that they had not been able to play last year due to the Triwizard Tournament that Hogwarts had hosted.

He was brought back reality by one of his uncle's infamous grunts that practically brought the house crashing down around them. The Dursley's had been Harry's foster family since the death of his parents when he was only a few months old and always denied his existence whenever possible. They detested him for his background and had never really come to terms with the fact that Harry, and his parents before him, were wizards. They insisted that he keep his mouth shut about everything to do with his parents and their lives, because, although his mother was Aunt Petunia's sister, she continuously denied the fact that she even had one. He was also forbidden to even say the "m" word (magic) while he was an inhabitant of the house on Privet Drive, and they would have awaited his trip to school as eagerly as Harry himself if it didn't remind them that that whole world existed and that they were related to someone directly involved with it.

Harry quietly got up and dressed. He knew that waking the Dursley's at this hour would only serve to aggravate their already testy tempers. They were always short with him when it came time for them to take him to the train that would deliver him to his adored school. This year, however, they planned on dropping him off at Diagon Alley to shop for school supplies a day early.

He tip-toed down the stairs, careful to skip the one that creaked, and quietly pulled out his trunk. It contained the objects that he owned for magical purposes. His uncle had kept them locked down in the cupboard under the stairs every summer since Harry's first summer back from Hogwarts. Harry had figured out a way to smuggle his books upstairs, so that he could do his summer homework assignments. He was now replacing all of the outlawed items.

After his mission was accomplished, he went back to his room to wait for breakfast. As he waited, impatiently petting Hedwig, his pet owl, he reflected on the past summer. It had not been as bad as he had expected considering that the last summer Fred and George had tricked Dudley into eating one of their gag candies. The outcome had been horrible, Dudley's tongue grew very large. Mr. Weasley had had to stay behind and fix the problem which the Dursley's hadn't been too thrilled about.

When he returned from school at the start of this summer, it was apparent that the fact that he had friends that could do that while just joking had served more to scare the family than to enrage them. They had reverted back to their normal amount of rudeness.

His birthday this year had also brightened up the summer. The Dursley's, however reluctantly, had allowed Ron and Hermione to come and spend the day with him. It had taken him and Ron quite a while to convince Ron's father, Arthur Weasley, who worked in the Department of Accidental Magic Reversal in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office and was an advocate for muggle rights in the wizard world, that he could not attempt to use the railway system of Britain to get his son to Harry's. Luckily for Harry, Hermione offered to stop by and get Ron on her way over. Her parents were muggles, non-magic people, and therefore capable of arriving in a style to the Dursley's liking. The day passed without incident, much to Harry's surprise, and the three comrades spent the day having the time of their lives.

He basically received the presents he had been expecting from all of his friends. From Hermione he received another book about Quidditch, from Ron he got bunch of candy that Ron had his dad pick up for him on his way home from work, Ron's mother sent some cakes and other homemade delicacies, Hagrid sent over a package that contained a small jug of butterbeer from a pub in Hogsmeade, a small town near Hogwarts, and Sirius, his godfather, sent him a letter and his best wishes. Harry hadn't been expecting even this seeing as how Sirius had been on the run for two years from the whole wizarding world and even parts of the muggle one. Thinking of Sirius gave him hope. If only he could figure out how to prove that Sirius had not been responsible for the death and destruction for which he was accused. 'Hmmm...'

Harry started as the shrill call of Aunt Petunia beckoned him to down to breakfast. He couldn't believe that he had been day-dreaming for so long. He raced down to breakfast eager to start the day. As Harry entered the kitchen, not one of the Dursley's turned or gave any indication at all that they had even noticed his presence. As usual, the plate in front of Harry contained a meager meal at best, but Harry did not mind. He was about to be rid of them until late June. This thought kept him cheerful as the family took turns giving Harry mean looks. They continued on conversation, however, as if they were oblivious to his presence, and Harry preferred it this way.

It wasn't long before Uncle Vernon was yelling at Harry that if he wanted to go to that... that school, and he used the term loosely, of his he had better have all his things loaded in the car before Dudley, his extremely spoiled cousin, was ready to go.

When they reached the Leaky Cauldron, a pub/inn in London that had an entrance to Diagon Alley at the back, his aunt turned up her disdainful nose and gasped in disgust and his uncle grunted as a warning telling Harry to hurry; Dudley just giggled. Harry didn't even bother to say goodbye as he hurried out of the car and quickly gathered his things. The car angrily and disgustedly sped away leaving Harry in a trail of dust. He breathed a sigh of relief. 'At least THAT'S over,' he thought dragging his trunk to the entrance of the shabby, old building that stood before him.

It was late when the plane finally landed at the airport. The flight from America to England was long, and Nicole was glad to be back on the ground. She wasn't scared of flying; she just got airsick. The first part of the flight hadn't been that bad. Nicole had slept and woke babbling about some creature on the wing of the plane—the result of having see one too many movies.

Somewhere mid-Atlantic, turbulence struck. It was horrible. Nicole couldn't sleep, because she was feeling sick. She hoped that none of the passengers minded that she stayed in the bathroom a grand majority of the flight. By the time they arrived, Nicole was ready for a hotel and some food.

Nicole noticed Riley look at her watch for probably the hundredth time. She couldn't help but smile. The letter mentioned that somebody would pick them up from the airport. However, nobody was waiting for them, and Riley was not known for her patience. Nicole was delighted at the abundance of the "cute, young air attendants" at Heathrow. She knew that she was frustrating Robin, who was trying, in vain, to keep her from approaching them. Nicole heard Riley sigh and giggled as Riley dragged her downstairs towards the baggage claim.

Again, there was nobody waiting for them. Aggravated, they climbed in a taxi and headed for the nearest hotel. The next morning, they found their way to King's Cross Station and set about trying to find Platform 9 3/4.

"I'm telling you, we should just ask somebody," Nicole argued. With a triumphant smile, Robin pointed out some people passing through a wall. It was the wall between Platforms 9 and 10. Smirking, Robin passed through the wall. Nicole couldn't help but stick her tongue out as her friend passed from sight. Nicole looked warily at the wall. 'I don't think so,' Nicole thought. She soon found herself being dragged by Riley once more.

A steaming, old-fashioned, scarlet engine greeted them on the other side. Obviously, they were in the right place. Riley put her luggage on the train and took the lead in trying to find a compartment. They preferred an empty one, but it seemed that all were taken. She led the others through the train and at last found a compartment that was not full. It was occupied, but, luckily, there were only three people.

"Hi. We were just trying to find a few seats—everywhere else is full. Do you mind if we join you?" Riley asked.

A boy with messy, black hair smiled and shook his head. "No problem."

Riley shrugged and sat down. She began to study the three people across from her and noticed Nicole and Robin doing the same. There were two boys and one girl. The girl had long, bushy hair and was already wearing her school robes. One of the boys was wearing hand-me-down clothes, and had freckles and red hair. The one who had spoken had messy black hair and wore glasses.

"I've never seen you before, and Hogwarts doesn't have a lot of students. What are your names?" He asked.

"I'm Riley, this is Nicole, and that is Robin. May I ask who you are?" She responded smiling.

"That's Hermione, this is Ron, and I'm—"

"Harry Potter, right?" Robin interrupted with a strange tone in her voice. "You're the 'boy-who-lived.'"

Harry blushed and nodded. "I'm sorry about your parents," Nicole offered. Riley nodded in agreement.

Ron, Hermione, and Harry practically gaped at Nicole. 'Apparently,' Riley thought. 'Nobody's ever said that to Harry before. Also, I guess most people would make a big deal out of the fact that he's famous.'

Finally, Ron found his voice. "Where are you from?"

"America." Nicole answered. "We're transfers to Hogwarts."

"Transfers? Is that done?" Harry questioned.

"Obviously," Riley replied realizing too late that it would sound rude.

Harry blushed. "Right. Well, it's a pleasure to meet you," he said pleasantly.

"How do you know each other?" Hermione asked.

"Riley, the one with blond hair, is my adopted sister. And, Robin and Riley are best friends," Nicole replied.

"Well, I should hope we're your best friends as well!" Robin exclaimed.

"You are!" Nicole answered back. Riley smiled as her sister desperately searched for words. "I just...I just..."

"Yeah, you were saying?" Riley finally offered. Nicole started laughing sheepishly, and soon all six of them were laughing.

Remus sighed. They were on orders from Dumbledore to find and escort three American girls from the airport to Kings Cross Station, and they had missed the girls at the airport. 'Please let them have caught the train,' he thought worriedly. He glanced at Padfoot trotting along beside him, trying to sniff out the girls. Of course, Remus realized that Padfoot could have no possible idea of what the girls were supposed to smell like.

So, he looked through the windows of all the compartments trying to find girls that matched the pictures that Dumbledore had sent him. He reached a compartment and saw Harry with Ron, Hermione, and some other kids. He began to walk back when he realized that the girls Harry was talking to matched the picture of the Tenshi that he held in his hand.

"Sirius, I found them. They're in the same compartment with Harry." At the mention of Harry, Padfoot's tail started to wag faster and a canine smile graced his face.

Remus opened the door.

The girls were fast; he'd admit that. The moment the door opened they were standing up with their wands drawn. Apparently, paranoia was their forte as well. Harry had to convince them that Remus and the dog were friends. With a doubtful look, they took his word for it and slowly lowered their wands.

Harry ran to the dog and hugged him. "PADFOOT!" He shouted and laughed when his face got a bunch of licks. Remus, Ron, and Hermione tried to choke back their laughter. The Tenshi sat down and watched. Harry decided that he should introduce the men to his new friends and stood.

"Girls, this is Professor Lupin and his...er...dog, Padfoot," Harry smiled as Padfoot replied with a bark.

Remus took a seat. "I was supposed to meet you at the airport, but I was...detained," he explained.

The girls relaxed and introduced themselves. "So, you and the dog are our babysitters then?" Nicole asked somewhat sarcastically. Harry was confused. 'Babysitters?' he thought.

Remus raised an eyebrow. Padfoot stopped licking Harry, turned towards Nicole and let out a small growl.

"In a way, I guess you could say that. We're mainly supposed to watch out for you and answer any questions you might have," he replied after some thought.

Now Riley raised an eyebrow. "We?" She asked, skeptically.

Remus chuckled. "Me and Sirius here."

"The dog? The dog is named after the Dog Star? How cute and original." Robin muttered. Nicole bit back laughter.

Sirius growled at the girls and turned to Remus and started whining. He began scratching at Remus' leg, until he finally sighed and consented. "Alright, go ahead."

The girls gasped. Where there had once been a dog, a man appeared. "This is Sirius Black—Harry's godfather and my loyal canine companion when I need one." Remus said.

Nicole smirked and then started laughing. Everybody looked at her. She kept laughing until she fell out of her seat and began rolling on the floor, doubled over, and gasping for air. "It's too cute!" She exclaimed then began laughing again.

Riley and Robin glanced at each other and sighed. "Great, now she'll never stop laughing!" They said.

They just stared as Nicole kept laughing. After an hour of laughing (in which they wondered if they should get an oxygen tank ready), Nicole stopped suddenly and sat up straight.

"What's the matter?" Everybody asked her.

"It's cold." She said.

Suddenly Robin went rigid. "People are scared. They're afraid of the darkness, the coldness. Something's there, they can't see it though." She put her head down on her knees and was silent for awhile. "They think they're dreaming." She finally whispered. "They think they're having nightmares, but I can't see their dreams. The nightmare is real, for all of them."

"Dementors." Riley stated, as the others watched the three girls.

The Tenshi suddenly stood up and made a quick decision.

"I'll stay here. Hermione, go with Riley to help the other students. Sirius, you go with Robin to the front of the train. The conductor will need help." They all nodded. Sirius and Robin ran out of the compartment, but before Riley and her group could go, the Dementors came.

There were three of them, and Remus found himself living the pain of transforming again. He heard Harry try to use the Patronus spell, but nothing happened.

Then he heard a voice, Nicole's voice. "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" She cried and a silver Phoenix appeared from her....he looked...she wasn't holding her wand.

The Dementors were held back. "Riley and Hermione go. Help the others, now!!" Remus stood up, nodded, grabbed Hermione and nudged her after Riley out of the compartment and past the Dementors.

Sirius and Robin had run into troubles of their own. They had almost reached the front of the train, when they met a group of Dementors. Sirius drew his wand and tried to think of a happy thought, but nothing came to mind.

He was back in Azkaban...in the darkness...alone. The silence was deafening. The cold, the darkness, alone. He tried to think, to clear his mind.

Robin stepped in front of the doubled over Sirius, took a glove off her hand, and spoke a few words. A dark web of power flew out of her hand and wrapped itself around the Dementors. The air around Sirius cleared, and he could think again. He was in the train; he had a job to do.

He stood up and stared at Robin as her power tied the Dementors together and then vanished. He saw it shot back at her, and she gasped and doubled over in pain as the spell hit her stomach.

"You think we don't know your powers, half-breed? Your dark spells won't work on us. You can't defeat us, Angel-Demon," one of the Dementors said. He reached out a boney hand and more of Robin's power was thrown at her.

She didn't move fast enough and got hit in the side. Sirius drew his wand with determination and thought of Harry. "Expecto Patronum!" He shouted. A silver wolf shot from his wand and placed itself between the Dementors and Robin and Sirius.

The Dementors laughed a cold, cruel sound. "It will wear out, just as you shall. Our Master is waiting for this war to begin. And, he will be pleased to know that this battle was ours." And he vanished, with the others around him.

The wolf vanished as Robin collapsed on the ground. Sirius kneeled beside her. "Robin?"

Riley headed for the back of the train. When she arrived at the door leading to the next car, she stopped suddenly.

"What are--" Hermione began before being silenced by Riley's hand.

Riley closed her eyes and focused on the voice screaming in her head. "—I swear I'll do better. Don't take my wand away. Please," a scared voice pleaded. "The Dementors have cornered someone. Get ready!" Riley stated matter-of-factly to a confused Hermione. She pulled open the door and shouted, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" The same silver phoenix that had come from Nicole suddenly surrounded the cowering figure that was being attacked by the hooded demons. The Dementors, angry at the intrusion, directed their attention to Riley.

"Oh no, Robin!" shouted a very concerned Nicole in Riley's mind. Riley's patronus began to flicker.

"Oh no, you don't," Hermione muttered. "Expecto Patronum!" A silvery cat stalked up to the Dementors and leapt angrily. The Dementors shimmered and disappeared revealing a quivering mass. The phoenix had disappeared, as well. Hermione suddenly recognized the poor victim. "Neville, are you okay?" She asked, rushing to his side.

"I...uh...think so," Neville finally managed.

"Go into that compartment and lock the door," Riley commanded sternly as she began to press forward.

Neville gave his best attempt at an indignant look.

"You should do what she says," Hermione counseled, though not sure why this stranger from America knew any better than them what should be done.

"Well, thanks," Neville mumbled to the girls' backs as shut and locked the door he had quickly backed into.

"What happened back there? You're really pale and were quite cross with my friend just now," Hermione questioned, struggling to keep her voice even. She was also having trouble keeping up with the long-legged blonde.

"Was I?" Riley asked distractedly. "Well, I'll have to apologize later, then. As to my lack of color, I suppose it's just a reaction to the Dementors." Riley pulled open a compartment door. The scared faces of six small children—first years Hermione supposed—stared at Riley. "Lock this door!"

"What did you see?" Hermione ventured as Riley moved on to the next door. It was already locked.

"I didn't see anything. But they fed on my greatest fear, I suppose."

"What's that?" Hermione pressed.

"Probably that something bad will happen to Nicole or Robin. I heard Nicole cry out for Robin, as if something had happened to her," Riley answered with a sigh.

"—I do promise to serve you faithfully, my lord. Don't punish me. Please, I beg you." Another victim of the Dementors echoed in Riley's mind. She ran forward and burst through the next door. "Expecto Patronum!" As the phoenix circled the Dementors, Riley pointed to them and waved to the wall.

To the surprise of everyone, expect Riley, the Dementors were lifted off the ground and slammed against the wall. Riley stood facing them, holding them to the wall. The phoenix had dived into Riley, and she glowed with the silver light of the Patronus charm. "Are you okay?" She asked the doubled-over boy.

He stood obstinately. "I had everything under control here," he spat, giving Hermione a withering look. He approached the Dementors, and Riley was glad to see the fear in his steps. "You've made a serious mistake. My father is a Very. Powerful. Man."

"You wasted your time. This is Draco Malfoy. His father is a death-eater. He's one of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's loyal followers," Hermione disgustedly told Riley.

The Dementors ignored Draco and focused on Riley. She glowed even more brightly. "We know who you are as does our master," they hissed in a screeching voice that reminded Riley of nails on a chalkboard. "Your day is coming. Our master will not be defeated again."

"Then give your master a message for me. We have indeed risen again. There is no escaping us. His day is coming and soon. Now, GO!" Riley commanded. The wisdom and power in her voice shocked Hermione. Riley lowered her arm, and the Dementors once again shimmered and disappeared.

Riley turned to Draco, who, to Hermione's satisfaction, took a step back. "You, too." Draco scowled, but obliged.

"Since when do Dementors speak or apparate?" Hermione worried out loud.

"Oh my God, Robin!" Riley heard Nicole's concern loud and clear in her mind once more.

"What is it?" Hermione asked, noticing Riley tense.

"Robin. It wasn't the Dementors," Riley muttered, angry with herself. She began running to the front of the train.

Nicole gasped, and her Phoenix faltered as she clutched her stomach and then her side. "Oh no, Robin!" She cried out, ignoring the advancing Dementors.

Remus drew out his wand, spoke the spell and a giant dog burst from his wand. The Dementors stopped, and slowly turned their heads to look at Remus. "We don't need you, Werewolf. Since you've interfered, you will face the consequences." Suddenly, they turned and vanished. Confused, Remus, Ron, and Harry knelt by Nicole.

"Are you alright?" They asked.

Nicole nodded. "I'm fine, but we have to find Robin. She's injured."

"How do you know?" Harry asked.

"I'm not allowed to tell you, yet. But, please, just trust me." She stood up then ran out the door.

"Who is she, Remus?" Ron asked.

He sighed. "I can't tell you. I'm not allowed. She'll tell you when she's able. But she's right; we just have to trust her, or at least try." He then turned and walked out the door and followed Nicole.

They found Nicole kneeling next to an unconscious Robin, trying to wake her up. Remus looked at Sirius. "What happened?" He asked.

"I don't really know. When we met the Dementors, I...I froze. I was back in Azkaban, and then when I looked up, I...I saw something, something dark around the Dementors, tying them up. It disappeared, and suddenly she was crying out in pain. Then, she cried out in pain again and passed out. That's all, except...well it was strange, the Dementors spoke."

Remus looked at him. "I would think that strange if it weren't for the fact that the ones who attacked us spoke as well."

Riley arrived breathlessly with Hermione close behind. "Is she okay?"

"Riley, what do I do? She's not waking up?" Nicole asked as she looked up at Riley. Riley knelt down beside Robin, looked at her, felt her pulse, and nodded. Raising her hand, she slapped Robin hard across the face, twice before she woke up.

"Ow!" She mumbled rubbing her cheek before Nicole tackled her from behind.

"YOU'RE AWAKE!!" She yelled. "I thought that you were hurt badly, and then Riley slapped you across the face, and you woke up, and now you're fine!" Nicole rambled.

"Yeah, I'm awake now. Wait...Riley did what?"

Riley began backing away due to the look on Robin's face. Robin stood up and started chasing after Riley. Nicole just sighed as everybody watched them.

"This could last forever." Nicole sighed.

Finally, they both stopped fighting, and they all went back to their compartment. Sirius and Remus lingered behind the rest talking quietly.

"So what do you think?" Remus asked.

"What do you mean?"

"About the girls? Do you think they really are the Tenshi?"

"I don't doubt that they are the Tenshi. I just wan to know whose side they're on."

"What do you mean?"

"Robin got hurt by having her power shot back at her. It didn't affect them at all—it was a dark power. I don't know what she did, but it was some dark spell. It makes me think that she at least could be working for Voldemort."

"I'm interesting in the fact that Nicole knew that Robin was injured and Riley didn't."

Now it was Sirius's turn to look surprised. "Nicole knew that Robin got injured? How do you know?"

"Well, when we were attacked by the Dementors, she used the Patronus charm, without a wand, and it held. Then, she clutched her stomach and her side. That's when the spell faltered. So, I used the Patronus charm. They spoke and left. Then, Nicole said something about Robin being hurt, so she ran out."

"I don't know about this Remus. I mean...how do we know for a fact that they're on our side? How do we know that they're the Tenshi?"

"I think the power speaks for itself. They are, without a doubt, the Tenshi. I don't know what side they're on, but for now it seems like they're on ours. We should do everything we can to keep them on our side."

Sirius nodded, and they pondered the information in their heads. Remus was about to say something when they heard a crash in the compartment in front of them.

"LET ME IN!!" Came a shout that was followed by:

"Not by the hairs of my chinny-chin-chin!"

"NICOLE!!!"

Remus let a small smile grace his face and little bit of laughter escaped him. Sirius sighed, and they continued walking towards the commotion.

Behind them, a lone Dementor appeared and turned down the hallway filled with the laughter of the Tenshi and Harry and his close friends.

"Just wait," he sniggered. "Just wait until my master comes. See how trusting and ignorant you are then. We will win, Tenshi. Be sure of that!" And he vanished.

A/N: Ok, yes, I realize Dementors can't Apperate, but they do in this story. I didn't come up with it. My co-writer did. I blame her for being too creative! LOL . It was also her idea to make the Dementors speak. Which, is just freaking awesome. If you're intrigued and would like more: review. If you think we're full of crap and wish to tell us so: review. Either way, review. Thanks!