5
Sarah POV
Harry spent the holidays brooding about the incident in Diagon Alley- something about Malfoy being a right foul git to Madam Malkin and then threatening the shopkeeper in Borgin and Burkes, a store I had never heard of or seen. He was dead convinced that Malfoy was up to something. He kept trying to bring it up to Ron and Hermione, who really didn't have any interest in the subject. I hadn't been all that talkative either- I had been thinking hard about how I'd felt in Diagon Alley. Harry had been right- I'd felt sick partly because of Knockturn Alley- the dark stench coming from that place had made my insides quake. But something had made my temperature drop, something that hadn't happened since last year. I was wondering if it was Harry's close proximity to me that day- I had realized on the train ride home that there was something dark inside him. At first, I didn't believe it, until I saw him again when I first arrived at the Burrow. It was very strange, and I made a mental note to ask Dumbledore about it. It had never affected me that way before, and I was almost sure that something darker had been close by that day, something a lot more concentrated and evil. As Harry brought it up again, I twisted the band that Mrs. Weasley had knit me by hand for my wrist. It looked like a sweatband, but we all knew better. "Malfoy's father's in Azkaban. Don't you think he'd want revenge?" I heard Harry ask.
"I suppose, but what can Malfoy do about it?" Ron asked, inspecting the handle on his broom, clearly not interested, but Harry ran with it.
"That's my point, I don't know! But I think he's up to something. His father's a Death Eater and-" Harry broke off, his mouth half open, and at first, I thought he was staring at me. But then I realized he was staring past me with a vacant expression.
"Harry? What's wrong?" Hermione asked anxiously, finally drawn away from her book.
"Does your scar hurt?" Ron asked, glancing at me, but I shook my head. I actually felt pretty good today, despite all the speculation going on in my head.
"He's a Death Eater," Harry said slowly. "Malfoy's replaced his father as a Death Eater!" Harry exclaimed into the silence, looking at all of us. Seconds later, Ron burst out laughing.
"Harry, Malfoy is sixteen! There's no way that they'd recruit him that young-" He broke off as Hermione made and angry noise in her throat, seeing that I had sucked in a breath. This was an entirely new possibility. Malfoy had been in Diagon Alley that day, and I had felt something darker. If Bellatrix had marked me, they could have easily marked him, considering he was probably willing. If he had been truly marked- "Sarah, I didn't mean it like that- I was just-" Ron was fumbling, obviously embarrassed at himself.
"I understand, Ron," I said softly, giving him a smile, but still thinking hard. His comment didn't bother me that much- Ron was always a tad insensitive.
"And when Madam Malkin tried to roll up his left sleeve, Malfoy wouldn't let her. I bet he's been marked." Harry quickly jumped back on the old topic, trying to dispel the awkward silence. "Wait a moment," he said after a second, turning to look at me as if he'd never seen me before. "You were so sick that day- maybe it wasn't Knockturn Alley you felt, maybe it was his Mark!" Harry pressed. I shrugged hopelessly, even though I pretty much agreed with his idea.
"I- there was something more…concentrated, but I can't say that it was a Mark. It could have been anything; I've never felt that way before." I said, speaking quickly as Harry's face dropped. He rolled his eyes, muttering something and grabbed some dirty laundry, going downstairs, apparently fed up with our lack of interest. I heard Ginny's voice and suddenly remembered something about her that made me feel extremely stupid. I hadn't remembered that she was possessed my second year. I was curious of I had truly been possessed this summer or if I had just been weak. It had been bothering me for a long time now. "I'll be back," I said, slipping out and knocking on Ginny's doorframe. She was stuffing something into her trunk with her foot.
"Hey, Sarah. What's up?" She asked. We had become somewhat friends this summer, but we were still kind of awkward around each other, especially when we were alone.
"I was just wondering if you could tell me about something," I said, stepping inside and lightly closing her door. I didn't want to be overheard, not about something like this. "I was wondering if you could tell me what it's like to be possessed."
Ginny looked at me a second, then sat on the edge of her bed. Her new pygmy puff, Arnold, was purring and moving across her desk, but she ignored him. "You don't remember doing things. You find yourself in places you didn't expect. There's this feeling when you fight it- like waking up from something terrible. Then you panic and it starts all over again." She said to the wall opposite her, and I flinched. I hadn't wanted to accept it, but I couldn't deny it any longer. When I was left along for too long, she started to possess me. If the mark stayed on for a long period of time, would that become permanent? "Don't worry about it, you'll be at Hogwarts, with Dumbledore. It won't happen again." Ginny's voice made me start. The look on my face must have let her in to exactly what I was thinking. "You know, I've only told that to one other person, and that's Harry. He thought Voldemort possessed him last year around Christmas." Ginny said, looking back at the wall across from her.
"I'm hoping he wasn't." I said, and Ginny laughed, shaking her head.
"No, Harry's…different." She said carefully, and I almost smiled. I could definitely tell that Ginny still had the smallest of crushes on him.
"That's never a bad thing. Listen, Ginny, thanks." I said, and Ginny made shooing motions at me, grinning at her pygmy puff, but I could tell her mind was on something else.
"Don't worry about it, Merlin knows you worry enough." She replied, and I smiled, but it was half-hearted as I slipped back out of her room, something new to think about on my ever-growing list. That night, I packed with Hermione and Ginny, and bless her, she didn't mention a word about our conversation, and acted like it never happened.
The next morning, we were again escorted by the Ministry to Platform Nine and Three Quarters. I tried to act relaxed and at least somewhat happy, but no matter what, I moved stiffly, freaking out. Again I sensed something dark, something that didn't belong. Would this happen every time I stepped out the door? Harry asked Mr. Weasley for a word, and Ron and Hermione went to the Prefect's Compartment, leaving me to haul my trunk onto the train. Harry joined me at the last second, frowning, but we waved goodbye to the Weasley's nonetheless. "Come on, let's find a compartment- what is it?" He asked, noticing me suddenly look sharply behind me and how my eyes swept quickly over the passageway. I had been hoping that the presence would have been left behind on the platform, but it was on the train, far at the other end.
"Nothing. I'll tell you later. Come on, you're about to be swarmed." I murmured, seeing a pack of fourth year girls look at Harry hopefully from their compartment, giggling like mad. After a quick search, Harry beating off a pack of girls and finding Luna and Neville, we found a compartment.
"Sarah, you look positively dreadful." Luna said, in her embarrassing honest way, and I felt my face flush for the first time in months. I had purposefully spent more time on my appearance today, letting Mrs. Weasley braid my hair by magic, and slapping my cheeks, trying to get color in them. Apparently I hadn't fooled anyone.
"Can I see it?" Neville whispered.
"I don't think that's best, Neville, trust me. I can't even stand to look at it." I said, now concerned with trying to think of an excuse for why I looked 'like a corpse' as I learned Fleur had said in French when she first saw me. I shrugged at Harry, seeing the look he was giving me, and looked around for inspiration, my eyes resting finally on Luna's Quibbler. A smaller headline in the corner referred to Inferi, the zombies of the wizarding world, and it gave me an idea. "If anyone asks, tell them I ran into Inferi over the summer. Got it?" I asked, and Luna nodded dreamily, absorbed in her magazine, while Neville said some form of agreement, halfway under his seat, looking for Trevor, his toad. Moments later, a blushing first year came in with invitations for Harry and Neville to go to some Club for the new Professor. I raised my eyebrows at Harry, daring him to ask me if I'd be alright, and seeing my look, he hastily said goodbye, following Neville out. I was more worried about him doing something stupid than me having an episode.
Harry and Neville didn't return, even when Hermione and Ron popped in for a quick chat. As the train finally slowed, I heaved my trunk out of the luggage rack and changed hastily, noticing Luna's eyes resting on the band around my wrist.
"Let's go." Luna said dreamily, and I followed her out, wondering where the hell Harry had gotten to. As soon as I stepped out of the compartment, I felt my skin get cold, but I pushed on anyway, then jerked to a halt beside a random compartment door. The smallest bit of negative energy I had started to associate with Harry was emanating from it, and the shades were closed. "Aren't you coming?" Luna called from a few feet away, but she was batting her hands around her head, as if to beat off giant moths, looking through a strange pair of glasses. I shook my head, motioning her on, and drew my wand, opening the compartment door, bracing for the worst. However, the place was empty, almost sterile. I cautiously took a step forward, then another. The more concentrated bit was off the train now, already getting farther away, towards Hogwarts, so that wasn't my main concern. I slowly inched farther in, jumping about a mile when a compartment door slammed farther up the train. Almost everyone was off the train by now, and yet… I put my foot down to take another step and it slipped on something that felt like water, and I fell entirely backwards into the edge of a seat then onto the floor with a sharp gasp. What the hell was that? I snatched up my wand from where it had fallen, raised it, and felt around until the slippery substance hit my fingers again. After a second, I realized it was cloth and everything clicked.
"Harry," I groaned, whipping the cloak off him and starting in surprise. His face was covered in blood and his nose looked broken. He had been petrified. I muttered the countercurse and he sat up instantly, wiping blood off his face with the back of his hand. "What the hell are you doing back here?" I stood up and gave him a hand onto his feet.
"Long story," He panted, as we got off the train, then stopped, frowning at me. "How'd you know where I was?" He asked, and I froze, completely caught off guard.
"Wotcher, Harry," Tonks' voice saved me from answering, and she appeared from the darkness. She looked like she had at Grimmauld Place- somber and almost sad. "Why is your nose broken? Episkey," She said with a sigh, and Harry blinked, his nose suddenly fixed. "Wotcher, Sarah," she said, looking at me for a second before quickly looking away. "Come on then, they'll be wondering." She sent off a Patronus, a strange but huge four-legged creature and urged us up towards the castle. All the carriages were gone, so we had to walk. A moment later, we arrived at a large, black gate, with a huge padlock on it. "We'll have to wait here, these gates can't just be unlocked." Tonks said, her face still impassive, as if nothing had changed. I could feel Harry looking at me, but I looked up at the castle, trying desperately to think of a lie to tell him- I didn't want to tell him that I always felt evil on him. "Look, someone's coming." Tonks pointed out unnecessarily as a lantern appeared. As it got closer, I took a step back, then three. I could tell instantly that it was Snape- his mark getting closer to mine hurt.
"Sarah?" Harry asked, then stiffened as Snape appeared, his face unusually tight, and I knew damn well why. I turned my face away, snaking my left hand behind me, keeping it as far away from his as possible. Harry muttered a quick goodbye to Tonks, opting to walk closer to Snape to keep us apart, and for that, I was grateful. The mark was burning just as harshly as it had last year when I was near him, and my body was radiating cold. Jaw clenched, I looked straight ahead, holding my left wrist in front of me, feeling my face slowly get whiter and whiter. I refused to groan out loud; I wouldn't give Snape the satisfaction. Unfortunately, Snape's pain seemed to diminish with time, and he started docking points off of Harry, acting as if I didn't exist.
"Enough." I said finally, and my voice came out so dark and angry that both Snape and Harry stopped, staring at me, fully stunned. I gave Snape such a fiery look that he dropped his gaze. I seized Harry's hand and pulled him on without another word, towards the Great Hall. Without pausing or stopping, I walked right in, almost dragging Harry with my speed, heading for the Gryffindor Table. My only thought: get away, get away, get away! The longer I stood close to Snape, the colder I'd felt, until I couldn't stand it any longer. "Move." I said in the same voice to a third year sitting on Ron's left, and he scooted down, looking absolutely petrified. "Sit." I ordered Harry, sitting down, leaving him a space between Ron and I, and he sat, looking at me open mouthed. All the food had disappeared, and deserts were appearing, but I wasn't hungry. My stomach was twisted up in knots again, and my hands were shaking.
"What the-?" Ron said, looking at me clearly for the first time. "What happened?" He rounded on Harry as Hermione peeked down at us and her eyes widened when she looked at me. I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath, trying to focus. I slowly let out the breath, not even listening to what my three friends were viciously arguing about in whispered voices. I felt Snape come in, moving up to the staff table. But there was something else…my eyes snapped open, scanning the Slytherin table. I didn't know if it was just because there were so many dark people in one place, (it would certainly explain Diagon Alley and the train) but I felt that concentrated darkness again. I closed my eyes again when my face twisted, taking another slow, deep breath.
"I'm alright," I said, relieved to hear that my voice was back to normal. When I looked again, all three of my friends were looking at me with concern. "I'll explain later." My voice came out flat, and I risked another look around the hall, avoiding looking at Snape and the Slytherin table. I felt Harry shift away from me slightly as the coldness started again, chilling the air around me too. The third year on my other side was now thoroughly terrified, sitting as far away from me as possible. I looked up again from my empty plate to see Luke and Danielle looking at me in horror. Seconds later, I saw Dumbledore stand up, and his address saved me from any further interaction with my ex-friends. I didn't even listen to Dumbledore, just looked straight ahead at the wall, trying to stay calm. I thought that Hogwarts was going to treat me like it had at the end of last year- I'd at least I'd be comfortable in Dumbledore's wake. But I felt just as empty as I had at the Burrow- even worse after the interaction with Snape.