She thought her life was over – but fate gave her another chance, in a world of magic. Now, running around Hogwarts with James Potter and his friends, she's about to make choices that will change the future in ways she never thought possible…

Marauder's Phase

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

The Near Miss

No One's P.O.V:

Sirius was walking down the hallway, aware that someone was walking a few good yards ahead of him, and stopped when the person went into the girl's bathroom.

Sirius didn't worry too much, and kept on walking, unsure of where he was going. He turned down another corridor, and walked toward a flight of stairs.

James was at the bottom of the stairs, and called to him: "Have you seen Emma?"

"No." Sirius called back down, just as a girl's scream issued from the bathroom he had just passed.

Sirius turned and ran, alarmed by the way the scream had broken off, as if the one who'd uttered it had been choked off suddenly.

Without hesitating, he threw open the door, and nearly collided with Snape, who was on his way out.

"You!" Sirius growled.

"Sirius!"

Sirius swung around at the sound of the voice, and what he saw filled him with horror.

Emma lay on the bathroom floor, soaking wet from a broken faucet and lying in a pool of her own blood. Heavy gashes were across her face and chest. Her face was deathly white and she was shaking like mad.

"Sirius!" She cried again, and broke of when she coughed up blood. "Sirius!"

Sirius ran toward her, knowing he wouldn't get there in time – she'd bleed to death, and he'd see death again…

Again…

Sirius awoke with a start, sitting bolt upright in his bed. Squinting around in the darkness of the early morning light, Sirius got out of bed quickly and walked over to the bed closest to the window.

Emma was lying there, sleeping peacefully, curled up under the blankets. Her dark brown hair fell around her face as she dreamed, and Sirius felt himself breathing a sigh of relief.

His had clearly just been a dream as well. Snivellus was never going to find out about Emma. And Sirius would kill him if he tried to hurt Emma like he had in the dream.

But still…the dream had seemed so real.

Sirius went back to bed, and fell asleep uneasily.

***

"…I think he'll be bruised." I finished.

James and Sirius were thrilled when Remus and I told them what had happened, and Peter was awed that we hadn't been caught. Even the prospect of facing detention with Snape wasn't enough to dampen James' spirits, especially when we walked into the Great Hall and caught sight of Snape, bearing two black eyes and an angry purple bruise on his forehead.

"Overbalance on your nose, did you Snivellus?" James called, as Snape glowered at him from other at the Slytherin table.

Peter and I giggled (yes, guys can giggle apparently), whilst Sirius roared with laughter, and even Remus allowed himself to smile, as we settled our selves down at the Gryffindor table, to a breakfast of waffles.

"Where have you been all my life?" I lovingly asked the waffle I was gazing at. I had missed waffles.

"You talkin' to me, Em?" Sirius grinned at me from across the table.

"In your dreams, dog-boy." I replied. I wondered how strange it was for the guys to talk to me when I was invisible. And I also wondered why Sirius liked flirting with me so much when, clearly, he didn't give a second glance to any other girl around Hogwarts – I had seen it with my own eyes. To distract myself from this provoking thought, I glanced around the Great Hall.

I looked to where the teachers were sitting…

I saw Professor Riberta, talking to Professor McGonagall. I recognised Professor Flitwick, Madam Pomfrey and Madam Hooch.

And I could have sworn Dumblebore looked right at me when my gaze passed over him. The old, wise-looking Professor, who was headmaster here at Hogwarts, could probably see right through the cloak…so why was he not doing anything?

I gulped, and took a swig of pumpkin juice quickly, before my gaze came to rest on the Slytherin table.

Snape was talking to three people, whom I immediately recognised and disliked. One was Lucius Malfoy, the other was Sirius' younger brother, Regulus. And then there was…

"Bellatrix!" I hissed under my breath, staring at the wild-haired, black-eyed woman who would one day become a Death Eater along with Lucius and Regulus. Not only that, but…I gulped. She would kill Sirius if she got the chance, I knew it to be so. I wanted to run across the Great Hall and throttle her. I glanced uneasily at the handsome boy sitting across from me. Sirius was laughing at something James had said, and felt sickened at how easy and carefree he seemed, how we all seemed – and only I knew the truth of what would happen, of how one would betray, one would be wrongly convicted without trial, and one would…die. I glanced at James, who was doing a pretty good impersonation of Snape. Well, they'd all die…James with Lily, Sirius, Peter, Remus with Tonks…I felt like the only one who was sitting in the hall, I was alone. I alone was alive, even though I had died before. I alone knew the way the future would unfold…

And I wanted to change it, with all my heart.

I glanced back at the Slytherin table, and saw Snape staring right at me, with his eyes opened wide in shock.

And that was when I noticed the goblet of pumpkin juice, not hidden under the cloak!

I fairly slammed it down onto the table and stood up, my actions having alerted the Marauders that something was wrong.

Snape turned to whisper to Malfoy.

I grabbed Remus' hand and dragged him up, half-pulling him out of the Great Hall as the others followed quickly, knowing something was going on.

Once out, I led them into a deserted corridor, and threw off the cloak. Turning to James, I said: "Here, I won't be needing this today." And I handed him his cloak.

He didn't take it: "Why?"

"Snape saw the goblet floating in mid air, he knows there was someone sitting there!" I said, shoving the cloak into James' hands.

Sirius paled slightly, but I wasn't sure why.

"What are you going to do?" Remus asked me in a tight voice.

"Go for a run in the forest, see if I can find that Manticore again." I shrugged.

"See if you can find that what!?" James yelled in a strangled kind of voice.

Sirius didn't say anything. Peter seemed scared.

"Ssh, keep your voice down James!" I hissed. "Anyway, I don't know if it was a Manticore, I didn't stop to find out. It could've been a Chimaera."

"Oh, yeah," Remus said, with a hint of sarcasm. "That's loads better."

***

I ran through the forest, enjoying being a wolf again, and wishing that I didn't have any problems, which I did.

I recalled Remus' words: "Be careful out there…in the forest."

To which I'd cocked my head to the side and said: "Aside from the Manticore/Chimera, what could possibly be more dangerous than you?"

He'd just smiled slightly and shaken his head, leaving me feeling confused.

And now, as I ran, I thought: I can take care of myself. Remi's just being over cautious, if I can take him on, then I think I can handle whatever the Forbidden Forest throws at me…

And then again…I screeched to a halt, as I spotted what was unmistakably a Graphorn, and I wasn't so sure that Remus was being overcautious anymore. While not as dangerous as a Manticore or a Chimaera, by Ministry of Magic regulations, I didn't particularly want to face any of them today – I had just made that part up when I was talking to the others.

Now, I turned on my tail and bolted, unable to think of myself as cowardly, and just considering myself to be…smart.

Smart enough to know that I was in over my head here…maybe in more ways than one.