"What happened to him?" Angelina gulped, her eyes strangely watery. The entire Gryffindor team – minus Oliver Wood and plus Hermione and Ron – were sat around Harry's bedside, where the boy himself still lay pale and unconscious, still dressed in his Quidditch robes. Fortunately, Hermione had discreetly got rid of the blood stain on his left forearm sleeve, and his tattoo was wrapped tightly in a fresh bandage. In the background, Dumbledore and Lupin were talking to Madam Pomfrey in undertones, casting the occasional look in our direction. The way the sparkle had disappeared from Dumbledore's bright blue eyes and how Lupin had turned a few shades too pale worried me greatly, but I forced myself not to move from the armchair I'd pulled as close to Harry's bed as I could.

"Dementors," Ron told Angela quietly. "He's really no good around them. I can't believe they managed to get on the pitch!"

Fred snorted sourly, clapping me and Katie Bell on the shoulder. I flinched at the contact, gulping hard as Lupin shot me a sympathetic, terrified look. "The show these guys were putting on, it's no wonder. The Gryffindor's were cheering that much, I'm not surprised the Dementors couldn't resist. Everyone's spirits were too high for them."

"Makes sense," Hermione conceded with a reluctant nod. "But Dumbledore was furious. I've never seen him that mad before!"

"If I have to save Potter's life once more, I'll give furious a whole new meaning," I warned under my breath, and the Gryffindor team gave a dark scoff, obviously unsure whether I meant it or whether I was being dramatic. Hermione and Ron, on the other hand, shot me a worried glance, and behind them, Dumbledore's voice faltered a fraction. I ignored them all, curling up tighter in my armchair and laying my head across my knees, closing my eyes and breathing deeply.

No one said much that afternoon. Dumbledore disappeared after his hour long conversation with Madam Pomfrey and Lupin, though the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher didn't seem in any rush, insisting on staying to keep the crowd of curious visitors under control. I didn't for a second believe that was why he was still there, and the thought that he and Dumbledore suspected something did nothing to improve my mood.

Still, the Gryffindor team stuck around long enough to make sure I wasn't going to go on a mad rampage and mumbled a few words amongst each other, Hermione lectured Ron about his homework and Madam Pomfrey snapped irritably about the state of her clean floors after the dirty, wet Quidditch robes had dripped everywhere. A few of the Hufflepuff players came in to see what was happening – and to apologise for beating us so spectacularly after we'd built up such a good lead. Cedric Diggory in particular seemed incredibly sorry to see my concerned state, but instead of making my stomach squirm like his gaze had done on the pitch, it seemed more patronising to me now.

"I am so sorry," he rushed, slyly kneeling down beside my chair to stop Madam Pomfrey throwing him out with the rest of the Gryffindor team. Hesitating for a split second, he clamped a hand gently over the top of mine on the armrest and barely noticed when I went rigid on the spot. "I didn't know he was falling, he was closer to the Snitch than I was. He's a brilliant Seeker too, I heard he's never lost a match before. If it hadn't been for the Dementors-"

"Cedric!" I interrupted with a snap, my hand automatically tightening around the armrest. The Hufflepuff Seeker fell silent immediately, taking his hand back and inching away a fraction. "I don't care about the match, or the Snitch, or if he's bloody good enough for the national team. The Dementors interrupted, you won. End of story. Now unless you have something useful to say, please, get out of my face before I can say anything else you might regret."

Cedric turned to Hermione and Ron, but the two of them sat with straight backs and an identical, blank looks. Scanning my expression for a second, he took a deep breath and started again. "I realise you must be-"

"You realise?" I found myself hissing furiously, my hands clenching around the armrests at my sides. "I swear to God, Cedric, if you don't stand up and leave-"

"Artemis!" Lupin's sharp voice suddenly came, and the teacher was stood behind my chair in the same second. "Is there a problem?"

"Where do I start?" I grumbled through my teeth, and Cedric blinked in surprise.

"I . . . I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," he said uncertainly, straightening out. My jaw locked stubbornly, but my shoulders sagged and my hands relaxed. I realised I was being irrationally unreasonable, but I couldn't force myself to look at or saying anything to him. Without another word, Cedric nodded once and straightened out, turning away from the four of us and cautiously leaving the hospital wing.

Hermione squirmed as Lupin watched him walk away. "He was only being considerate, Arty."

"No, he wasn't, he was being an irritating, conceited moron and the next time I talk to someone like that, it had better be because Harry woke up." She and Ron exchanged an uncertain look, but Lupin grimaced, patting my shoulder once before turning to follow Cedric out of the room.

Hermione and Ron had long since left to get some rest in the common room by the time Harry woke up. An ominous glow from the moon in the night sky was being cast from the furthest windows, and the temperature had dropped to around freezing. Despite that, I was still huddled on the armchair, with only the fresh clothes Hermione had brought me after the match for warmth. Not only that, but my left forearm was burning like lava was flowing through my veins.

"Miss Williams, really," Madam Pomfrey's aggravated sigh came. I lifted my head wryly, long enough to see her silhouette in the doorway of her office before I dropped my head back to rest on my knees. "You shouldn't be here."

"Can't sleep," I murmured back, blinking my dry eyes painfully.

"Well I can assure you, Williams, that Potter will be fine," Madam Pomfrey replied sharply. "Now I suggest you go back to your dormitory and try to get some sleep."

"I'm not going anywhere," I told her blandly. "Sorry."

"Oh, honestly," she groaned, hurrying forward and snatching a blanket off the end of one of the empty beds. "You'd think he was dying. Williams, the boy will be fine." She was scowling when she came into view, but it didn't stop her throwing the blanket over my shoulders and wrapping it around me as tightly as she could.

"Sorry," I repeated, and I hoped she understood just how sorry I was when she met my gaze. It wasn't like I wanted to stay here. I was drawing far too much attention to myself by refusing to move away from him for more than five minutes. The problem was I didn't think I could. Every time I moved, my head spun and my arm bled.

Madam Pomfrey's lips pursed. "I don't understand you, Williams. These last two years, you couldn't wait to get out of here. You and Potter never saw eye to eye." She gave me a sceptical look, as if to prove her point, then straightened out and marched back to her office without pushing me further.

I gulped hard, scowling at the ground. She was right, of course. It wasn't just that we didn't see eye to eye, but neither of us liked spending too much time in the other's company. For the past two years, Harry had been a boy I'd tolerated because I liked hanging around with Hermione and Ron, nothing more. Now, the thought of moving too far away was like . . . well, falling off a broom. Only this time, there was no one there to catch you before you hit the ground, and I'd do pretty much anything to avoid the impact, no matter how much the thought terrified me.

Just as the panic began to get the better of me, Harry's lifeless form gave a sudden jerk, and a cough caught loudly in his throat. I jumped, instantly straightening out in my seat and shifting a little closer as my chest constricted.

"Harry?" I asked cautiously, watching him splutter with his eyebrows pulled together tightly.

It took a moment or two before he could talk, and when he did, his voice was hoarse and tight. "Arty? W-What happened?"

I hesitated, flicking my gaze toward Madam Pomfrey's office door before pushing myself out of the armchair and onto the edge of Harry's bed. "Dementors," I said simply. "They showed up at the Quidditch match and you . . . well, you fell."

Slowly, he opened his eyes, still narrowed, and glowered at the ceiling. An awkward silence fell over the two of us, and for a moment, I did nothing but watch him come to, wondering why I'd been so worried in the first place. He'd fallen unconscious because of the Dementors before. Madam Pomfrey was right. I should have known he'd be fine.

Wincing sharply, Harry shifted until he was sat upright. Thankfully, the movement forced a bit of colour back into his cheeks, and I felt my shoulder relax in relief. "Fell?" he clarified with a frown. I nodded once. "How . . . who brought me here?"

At that, I dropped my gaze and cleared my throat. "When the Dementors showed up, Wood ordered us all back to the ground. When you didn't show up, I turned back to look for you. I saw you fall and managed to stop you before you hit the ground, but Dumbledore had to bring you up."

Harry's face slackened. "You caught me?"

My eyebrows pulled together as I looked back up at him, squirming on the spot. "That's just it," I murmured under my breath, casting a quick glance over my shoulder. He raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Harry, I left my wand in the changing rooms."

He stared at me, speechless. "B-But you . . . you couldn't have. It's impossible."

"That's what I thought," I rushed, shifting closer. "But I swear, I left it in the pocket of my robes, and then when I reached back to my pocket in my Quidditch robes, it was right there. And . . ."

"And?" he blurted loudly, his eyes widening. "Jeez Arty, there's an and here?"

Sinking my teeth into my bottom lip, I pulled the blanket around my shoulders back and rolled my left sleeve up. Harry's eyes dropped to the bandage Hermione had wrapped tightly around it and a troubled expression descended over his face.

"We have to talk to Dumbledore," he muttered.

"That's just it, Harry, I tried," I breathed. "When you were unconscious, Dumbledore and Lupin were right there. They've both been down to see you since, and I . . . I just couldn't say it. I wanted to, more than anything, but I couldn't."

Harry didn't say anything, taking my hand in his and unwinding the bandage from around my arm. When he pulled it away, the only thing marking the skin beneath was the tattoo; no blood, no damage.

Finally, after weeks of bottling up whatever worry I had, I felt my entire body cave in. "God Harry, what are we going to do?" I groaned, dropping my face into my hands.

"Hey, we'll figure something out," he replied softly, wrapping an arm around my shoulders without hesitation. "If we have to spend every waking moment in the library searching for answers from now until the end of Hogwarts, I promise you, we'll figure this out."

I sighed heavily. "I wish I had that amount of confidence."

He scoffed. "It takes years of practice, and you definitely don't have the patience for that."

"Oh, but golden boy does?" I snorted, pushing myself away from him with raised eyebrows.

He smirked, shrugging one shoulder and opening his mouth to reply. Only, it wasn't his voice I heard. "Potter!" Madam Pomfrey's shrill voice came. "You're up! Thank Heavens, perhaps Williams will go to bed now!"

"I wouldn't bank on it," Harry grinned with a wink in my direction. "She has a habit of doing the exact opposite as she told."

"Watch it, Potter," I warned with a glower.

He laughed at me as Madam Pomfrey took me by the shoulders. "Well, if you have to, sleep here," she instructed, placing me on the edge of the next bed. "But for heaven's sake, sleep girl! Your teachers will have my head if you aren't in lessons tomorrow!"

"It's Saturday tomorrow," I complained with a roll of my eyes, and Harry's grin widened a fraction. "I'm warning you, Potter!"

"Now enough!" Madam Pomfrey snapped. "Both of you! Williams, sleep. Potter, how are you feeling?" Without another word, she took the dividing curtain and pulled it between us, leaving me alone and shattered. Yawning widely, I swung my legs onto the bed and barely managed to crawl beneath the covers before my eyelids fell completely.

Harry was released from the hospital wing the next day, and no one seemed to miss how I'd suddenly cheered up dramatically. Lavender and Parvati immediately mistook this as a sign that the two of us were more than friends, or that at the very least I wanted to be, so I'd taken to avoiding the common room as much as humanly possible.

And, as usual, that meant I frequently got into a lot of trouble. Spending so much time outside of the common room meant I spent more time with other students outside of Gryffindor which, when it came to Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, wasn't so bad. It even gave me a chance to spend some time with Liam and Will, and I found I could get on with all lot of students much more than I thought. Harry, Ron, Hermione and I spent many afternoons off sat on the banks of the Black Lake with an ever-growing group of students, including the Weasley twins, Lee Jordan, a girl called Susan and a boy called Eric from Hufflepuff, a large group of Liam and Will's friends, and what seemed to be the entirety of the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw Quidditch team – on which both Liam and Will played, Liam as a Chaser, and Will as the Keeper. Honestly, despite everything, I don't think I'd ever been happier.

So it wasn't a surprise when Snape decided to give me detention every night for week, after making just one unfortunate comment to Malfoy and Parkinson. It didn't help matters that nothing he did made the slightest impact on my mood, and it was with great satisfaction I watched Snape give in entirely and dismiss me from my last detention at the end of the week.

I was grinning to myself like an idiot, but I couldn't help it. I'd actually beaten Snape. I thought I might actually laugh.

"Well," Lupin's voice came from the dark ahead of me. "Someone looks happy."

It was nearing midnight, so technically I shouldn't have been wandering the corridors, but Lupin didn't seem to notice. He was stood in front of me, with the tip of his wand alight and a small smile on his face. "Dare I ask where you're going?" he asked with an eyebrow raised.

"The common room," I replied truthfully. He gave me a knowing look. "Seriously! I've just finished detention."

"Again?" he breathed in disbelief.

I pulled a face. "It was with Snape."

"Professor Snape, Artemis," he corrected, but his eyebrows pulled together in concern. "May I ask why you're smiling?"

I couldn't help laughing, grinning from ear to ear. "I think he gave up," I admitted. "He's been trying to ruin my mood all week."

"I'm glad to see he failed," Lupin chuckled, his eyes shining in his wand light. "You have been rather happy recently, not that I'll complain. However, perhaps you should get back to the common room, before Filch catches you out so late."

"Yes, Professor," I nodded, still smiling to myself as I skirted around him. The sound of his chuckle followed me down the corridor, and the moment I slipped out of sight, I broke into a run, just for the sake of it. I couldn't explain why I was so happy, but a small part of my mind kept telling me that it couldn't last forever.

Just as I had made my mind up to make the most of it while it lasted, another voice shattered the peace and silence of the night, only this time, it didn't sound as welcoming as Lupin had. Frowning, my footsteps slowed as I neared the corner of the corridor, straining to hear the argument ensuing outside the Gryffindor common room. I couldn't make out any of what was being said, but gradually, the Fat Lady seemed to be getting more and more worked up, until eventually-

Her scream pierced the air and I started, snatching my wand out of my back pocket on instinct and slipping around the corner. A figure was stood by the portrait with his back to me and in his hand he held something silver that looked oddly like a knife shining wickedly in the light of the lamps on the wall.

"What the hell are you doing?" I snapped loudly, and the man whipped around. The sight of him made my face fall and my stomach twist harshly.

He was taller than I'd imagined, with scraggy, greasy black hair that fell to his shoulders and a bony figure, so skinny his skin was stretched impossibly thin over his bones. His black eyes seemed hollow and unseeing, and the furious expression on his face was slowly disappearing, being replaced with something else. Dressed in dirty, torn robes with a knife in hand, Sirius Black looked every bit as dangerous as the papers made him out to be.

Suddenly, my throat was tight and my hand felt loose around my wand, stretched out in front of me uselessly. My heart hammered in my chest in sheer panic, and it took a minute or two for me to remember that this man was trying to kill my best friend.

The best friend that was currently inside the Gryffindor Tower.

In the same second this registered, I snapped out of my trance, my hand clenching my wand as my mouth opened. I'd barely drawn breath, however, when Black darted forward, grabbing my wand arm and twisting. Gasping in surprise, I staggered and turned under the pressure, until Black had my back against his chest and his knife to my throat.

I took a ragged breath through my teeth, my anger burning through my veins. The tattoo on my left forearm burnt painfully, and a flicker of recognition seemed to run through my mind, immediately followed by a fresh wave of fury.

Harry, I realised with a jolt of panic. Harry knows I'm in trouble. He can't come down here, I have to do something!

"If you're going to kill me, get it over with," I snarled quietly at Black.

He went rigid behind me. "I'm not going to kill you, Artemis," he croaked hoarsely, and I felt myself shudder at the sound of my name. How did he know who I was? Gulping hard, I twisted my wand hand painfully until I felt my wand sticking out of Black's pocket.

Heart hammering, I snatched clumsily at it, clenching it in my fingers tightly. Before Black could say another word, I twisted the wand to point in his direction and pushed my free arm at his armed hand with a wince. "Bombarda!"

A rush of cold air encased me as Black skidded backwards over the floor, leaving a small, tingling cut across the skin over my throat. Shuddering in fear, I lifted my wand without turning to him, pointing it at the suit of armour directly across from me. I had to sound the alarm, and there was only one way that might be fast enough. "Expulso!"

The explosion was terrifying and the force made me stumble back, dropping to the ground and throwing my arms over my head to shield me from the blast that shook the floors. Behind me, something like a whine sounded and I scrambled around, but Black had already gone. Instead, my eyes fell on the portrait of the Fat Lady. It had been sliced open three times, and the Fat Lady herself had gone. Obviously, she'd refused to let him in.

I'd barely had time to catch my breath when the portrait was swung open and Harry skidded to a halt in his pyjamas, his face pale and his glasses sat lopsided on the bridge of his nose. "Arty!" he breathed, rushing forward and bending down to help me to my feet. "Are you alright? What happened?"

He took my arms in his hands and pulled me upright, steadying me carefully as I staggered. I blinked a few times, trying to shift the dizziness that the blast had caused. "I-"

"Artemis!"

Harry's grip tightened as I staggered around, watching a pale and concerned Lupin rush forward, his panicked gaze glancing over his shoulder at the destruction I'd caused. Several students were crowding in the entrance to the Gryffindor Tower, muttering amongst themselves curiously and trying to get a better look.

"I'm sorry, Professor, that was me," I gulped at Lupin as he scanned the rumble at the other end of the corridor. "It was the only way I could get someone's attention fast enough."

Lupin hesitated. "And why did you need someone's attention?"

There was silence for a moment, and my eyes cast an awkward glance back at the Gryffindor Tower, where Hermione and Ron had just about managed to fight their way forward. Beside me, Harry was staring at me expectantly, expecting the worst by the look on his face.

I sighed. "Because he's here. Sirius Black."