Apparently, the Malfoys could lock her up forever– or as good as.
Ariadne had not been allowed to return to Diagon Alley to visit Harry, not even to get her books, nor to meet up with Ron and Hermione to travel to the platform together. Instead, she was sent to her room for the remainder of the holiday, allowed out for meals and to be subject to Lucius's glares and Narcissa's disappointed sighs. It was only a month, but it was a month with no letters and no conversation unless Draco was feeling particularly bored. And Draco was very rarely particularly bored.
As a result, Ariadne was counting down the days until September 1st. When the morning finally did arrive, she was up and dressed before Mimsy even arrived to open her curtains. By the time she did finally get to the station, however, she was still alone. Draco had gone off with his friends, and although Ariadne looked around for the familiar sight of Harry, Ron, and Hermione, or even the more identifiable sight of a flock of red-haired Weasleys, she had no luck.
Instead, however, she watched as a small blonde shuffled back and forth in front of one of the train entrances before steeling herself and stepping on. Ariadne walked over and entered the same way, finding Astoria hovering in front of a full compartment. Her brows were furrowed as she gnawed mindlessly on a fingernail. Across the way was Ron, Harry, and Hermione's usual compartment of choice, occupied instead by one sleeping man that Ariadne had not seen before. So they weren't on the train yet, either.
"Hey, Tori," Ariadne greeted, working to keep her excitement at bay.
"Ariadne!" Astoria grinned, tension leaving her shoulders and nail leaving her mouth. She looked at her thumb guiltily. "It's a bad habit, I know. Mother's tried every trick in the book to get me to stop, but it comes back when I'm nervous. And I am– nervous, I mean. I'm trying to work up the courage to sit with Daphne and her friends, but they've already gone off and, I mean, they're just so intimidating to walk in on alone."
Astoria's eyes brightened as soon as she finished rambling, straightening up and smiling at Astoria sweetly.
"Absolutely not," Ariadne said, preemptive in her refusal.
"Please, Ariadne," Astoria begged, blue eyes wide and pleading. Ariadne looked back once more at the still-empty compartment that Harry, Ron, and Hermione usually claimed for themselves.
"Alright," she sighed, "but I can't promise I'll stay the whole time."
"Oh thank you, thank you! I just need you to help me get through the door, really. Daphne would turn me out the second I walked in if I was alone."
Ariadne took a deep breath and opened the doors to Draco and company's compartment, Astoria trailing after her with a happy grin.
"Hi, Draco," Astoria waved shyly.
"Hello," Draco responded sullenly, though Astoria beamed as though he had just declared his love. He turned to Ariadne with a sneer. "What are you doing here," he said flatly.
"Oh, you know," she began. "Just, er, thought I'd sit with you all for a moment. Hello, everyone," she greeted. Daphne and Blaise nodded coolly in return, while Nott sent her a smirk. Pansy harrumphed grumpily at her presence, establishing her place at Draco's side and running a hand through his blonde hair. She looked Ariadne in the eye as she did so, as if staking her claim. Uh, gross.
"So, Ariadne," Blaise addressed casually, leaning back into his seat. "Has daddy gotten in touch yet?" The rest of the Slytherins laughed.
"Not yet, Blaise." Ariadne responded with a grin, white teeth sharp and on display. "Has yours?"
No one laughed this time, though Ariadne could have sworn she saw Draco's eyes flash with approval. It wasn't until Blaise himself laughed, quietly at first and then a full-on chuckle, that Daphne and Astoria allowed themselves to join in.
"Not bad, Black." Blaise nodded approvingly. "There's the snake I've heard so much about." In any other group this would be a profound insult, but Ariadne was smart enough to recognize the compliment. Maybe not in her own eyes, but in theirs. She nodded her thanks.
"She's always been a snake, Blaise, couldn't you tell?" Nott said, speaking for the first time. He eyed her appreciatively, and Ariadne fidgeted under his dark, piercing gaze. "Give it time, friend, and you'll be able to see what I already do."
"Shut up, Nott," Draco hissed, disentangling himself from Pansy. She pouted, but Draco didn't notice.
"How're you planning to make me, Malfoy?" Nott leaned in, as if genuinely interested in how Draco might go about making him shut up. Draco met him in the middle before pulling out his wand.
"Drakie!" Pansy gasped in what Ariadne figured Pansy had assumed to be a soothing voice. It was like the screech of a cat.
"No," Tori giggled disbelievingly. "There's no way you call him that," she breathed, before covering her mouth with a hand as she realized what she'd said. She flushed crimson when Pansy directed her with a sneer.
"Excuse me," Pansy sneered. "What are you doing here, exactly? Needed Ariadne Black to walk you in?"
"Enough, Pans." Daphne said with an eye roll. Pansy sat back in her seat and crossed her arms with a huff while Astoria smiled victoriously. "You too, Tori."
Astoria's smile dropped.
"I'm waiting, Malfoy," Nott taunted. Draco raised his wand, and Ariadne jumped up out her seat and stood in between the two boys.
It took the door opening to break up the chaos that had erupted in the Slytherin carriage. Ariadne whipped her head to the side to find Harry stepping into the cabin with a mix of bravery and stupidity that only a Gryffindor could truly affect. He looked good, his skin tanned from days spent outside in Diagon Alley. Happier than he'd been the last time that she saw him while they were running away together. Not together, together, she thought, fighting back a blush.
She was ridiculously pleased to see him, not only because she'd missed him but also because she was absolutely desperate to escape the room unscathed. She tried not to show her relief too visibly.
"There you are, Aria," Harry greeted. He ruffled up the back of his hair as he eyed the rest of the room. Pansy was huffing at Daphne, who ignored her in favor of focusing on blocking Astoria from the duel, though Astoria was hopping up in her seat in order to get a better look. Blaise could not have been less interested, staring at droplets of rain on the train window even though Draco and Nott were standing in the center of the cabin, each with their wand out and pointed at Ariadne between them. "Er– are you alright?"
"Oh right on cue!" Draco exclaimed, lowering his wand to clap mockingly. "Get her out of here, Potter. Save the day, why don't you?"
Harry scowled at Draco, who scowled right back. The two stood there, glaring at each other, until Ariadne, having stepped off to retrieve her bag, stood up and pushed Harry out of the carriage.
"Take care of her for me, Potter!" Nott called. Harry narrowed his eyes, but only looked at her curiously as the door closed behind them. "What was that about?"
"I don't even know," she responded truthfully. "I can't tell if they're usually like that or if I really do bring out the worst in people."
Harry laughed, leading Ariadne over to his compartment at the end of the corridor, where Hermione and Ron sat waiting. Hermione looked brilliant, tanned and glowing with a light smattering of freckles across her sun-kissed face. Ron was freckled as well, more than usual that is, from the strength of the Egyptian sun.
"Merlin's beard, Hermione! You look tan!" Ariadne exclaimed.
Hermione giggled, holding her arm next to Ariadne's to compare. "I know! I think I'm darker than you!"
"And Ron! How was Egypt?" Ariadne threw her arms around him. He hugged her back with only one arm, the other hand placed protectively over his shirt pocket.
"Watch out for Scabbers," he warned. Ariadne giggled and gave the napping Scabbers a light tap on the head before she noticed the man asleep by the window. She could tell that he was young, perhaps his early thirties, but the bags under his eyes and the gray streaks in his hair said that his life had been difficult, exhausting even. His robes were shabby, patched carelessly in some places and falling apart at the seams in others. Above his head was the key to his identity: a small case with Professor R.J. Lupin stamped across one corner. That sounds familiar.
"Defence Against the Dark Arts, do you think?" Ariadne confirmed with Hermione, who nodded.
"I hope he's up to it," Ron said, looking dubious. "But he looks a bit peaky, doesn't he? Like a solid hex can throw him off his feet. Anyway," he turned to Harry. "What was it that you were going to tell us? That you needed to get Ariadne for?" Ron grinned when Harry flushed.
"Bugger off," Harry said to Ron, who only laughed in response. "Your dad pulled me aside today. Sirius Bl– er, your dad," he indicated towards Ariadne, "escaped to come after me. Finish the job that Voldemort started and all that."
Ariadne put her head in her hands while Hermione and Ron took turns warning Harry to be careful.
"'M sorry, Harry," Ariadne murmured into her palms. She couldn't even look at them, at him. Couldn't even listen to them reassure her. How could she, when it was her blood that had caused all this pain? "Amelia Bones hinted it might be something like that."
"Don't be stupid," Harry admonished. "I told you the first time I met you that you can't choose your relatives. Besides," Harry grinned, hoping she'd hear it in his words. "Doesn't really matter if it's your dad or your cousin who's after me, does it?"
"But aren't you scared, Harry? He's the only person to ever escape Azkaban. They say he's mad!" Hermione warned, shooting an apologetic look towards Ariadne. She waved her off.
"I don't care!" Harry exclaimed before thinking better of himself. "Well, I do care, obviously. I'd rather not have a murderer after me. But I just want to have a normal year for once. No Basilisks or Voldemorts on people's heads."
Although Hermione still looked prepared to argue, Ron cut her off before she could. "I get it, mate. At least there's Hogsmeade."
At that, Harry sat back in his seat and looked truly downtrodden. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked out the window in anger.
"I can't go. The Dursleys didn't sign my permission form, and Fudge wouldn't either."
"No," Ron breathed, and Harry only nodded solemnly in response.
"That's terrible," Ariadne said sympathetically. "But you can hang out with me while everyone's off! I can't go for another year anyway."
Suddenly, not being able to go to Hogsmeade wasn't the end of the world after all, and Harry brightened noticeably before exiting the car to purchase pasties from the trolley lady for Ron, Hermione, and Ariadne.
The rain outside grew heavier and heavier as the day went on, the clouds thickening into a gray sort of fog looming overhead. It was so heavy that Ariadne could hear it, drop by drop beating down on the roof of the train and on the window, thunder beginning to boom in the distance. Even the wind was deafening, strong enough to cause the train to emit a faint rattle every now and again.
It was odd, then, when the train seemed to get slower and slower, and the outside noise slowed down with it. It finally creaked to a stop when the wind became silent, and the stillness was made further jarring by an abrupt absence of light.
"Hello?" A soft thudding noise was followed by a sudden intake of breath.
"Bloody hell, Hermione! That was my foot!
"Well then, move your foot, Ron!"
Surrounded the cold and black nothingness of the train car, Ariadne began to feel fear seeping over her. She felt submerged, suddenly, as though she couldn't breathe. Unable to see anything at all, Ariadne reached out a hand to the warmth of the presence that she knew was beside her.
Harry accepted Ariadne's grip around his arm, and she felt the pressure on her lungs alleviate ever so slightly.
"Something's out there," Harry said, pulling Ariadne's arm with him slightly as he peered out the window, squinting to adjust his eyes to the dark.
"I'll ask the driver if he knows what's going on," voiced Hermione from Ariadne's left. The door to the compartment slid open, squeaking slightly as it did, before a thud and two simultaneous yelps sounded out.
"Ron?"
"Ginny? Is that you?"
"Ariadne? Is Ron here?"
"Here, Gin!"
"Come sit– oh no, that way. Here, I'll move." Ariadne scooted in closer to Harry, making room for Ginny by her side.
"Ouch!"
"Neville? When did you get in here?"
"Oh, well, a couple of minutes ago, actually–"
"Quiet!" a voice croaked out, and Neville shut his mouth with an audible Click.
Ariadne listened as the now-awake Professor Lupin fumbled with his wand before a dim light filled the cabin, illuminating his tired face hazily.
"Stay here," Lupin commanded hoarsely. "I'll go speak with the driver."
But before he could open the door to leave the compartment, the door was opened for him. A cloaked figure hovered in the doorway. It towered above Professor Lupin, stature heighten by the fact that it remained a foot off the ground. Covered entirely by swaths of black fabric, the only part of its body that showed was its mummified hand, gray and slimy as though water clogged.
The thing glided into the compartment, pushing past Lupin easily. It placed itself in the center, hovering in front of Harry and Ariadne's linked arms, before taking a long, rattling breath.
The effect was instantaneous. Whatever chill Ariadne had felt before paled in comparison to the cold now. Her breath caught and her lungs stopped, but more than anything else, she could feel the pain.
An odd sort of pressure began to form, behind her eyes at first, before spreading quickly enough that Ariadne's vision blurred, and a ringing noise sounded in her ears. She yelled as the plain spread, a blinding pounding that she feared suddenly would never end. She'd never feel warm, never feel free, never live without this pain ever again.
She could hear something, footsteps, approaching from a distance. Ariadne felt afraid, more afraid than she could ever remember feeling in her life. She was scared of the person approaching, whoever they were. And the steps were getting louder and louder, closer and closer until
Obliviate.
Feeling Harry's arm wrench from her hand, Ariadne forced herself to open her eyes. He was on the floor, green eyes rolling into the back of his head. His body shook so violently that Ariadne feared he would crack open his head.
Ariadne fell to the ground, hoisting herself into a sitting position to place Harry's head in her lap. Head still pounding, she looked around at the ashen faces filling the rest of the compartment, each watching in terror.
"Help me!" she demanded, yelling loud enough to hear herself over the ringing that remained incessant in her ears.
Ron, Hermione, and Ginny each dropped to the floor as well, grabbing onto various parts of Harry so as to keep him still. Ariadne placed a hand on Harry's face, thumbing away a tear that had leaked out of one of his eyes.
Above her, Professor Lupin faced the creature directly.
"Sirius Black is not here," he said firmly, and if Ariadne wasn't busy having the absolute worst experience of her life, she might have died from the shame of it.
The creature, however, was undeterred, and it wasn't until Lupin pulled out his wand and shot something silvery out of it that it finally glided out of the cabin. The pain was gone, mostly, though its essence still lingered at the front of her head. But the compartment began to warm again, and the lights turned on one-by-one. Lupin heaved a few large breaths to recollect himself before facing the students.
"That was a Dementor," he explained, face drained of color. "You'll be alright, and so will Harry. We just need to wait for him to wake up."
Ariadne stayed seated, cupping Harry's face with her hand. "Harry," she leaned over his face. "It's alright. It's gone."
"Oh, come off it," muttered Ron, before he reached over to slap Harry hard across the face. Harry's eyes opened abruptly, and he was entirely out-of-sorts as he peered up into Ariadne's own.
"Aria?" Harry said shakily. He closed his eyes tightly before opening them again. "There's a woman– she was screaming. We have to help her!"
"Woman?" asked Ron nervously. "I mean, Ariadne was really going at it, but I'd hardly call her a woman, mate."
Ariadne looked over to glare at Ron, receiving only a shrug in return. Harry, meanwhile, was undeterred by Ron's attempt at humor.
Harry raised himself to standing position, and they all joined. "It couldn't have been Aria– the woman was far away. I heard–"
Snap! Professor Lupin walked over to their group with a slab of chocolate, from which he was breaking off pieces. He reserved the largest two for Harry and Ariadne.
"This will help," he said, handing them over. Ariadne took a bite and encouraged Harry to do the same, feeling warmth spread through her body almost instantaneously. Lupin might know what he's doing.
"We should be pulling up to the station now," Lupin stated after observing the pair for a long moment, making sure that they finished their chocolate. "Are you both all right? Harry? Ariadne?"
Ariadne nodded and Harry flushed before muttering his assent, and Ariadne did not bother asking how Lupin knew their names. The scar and the mass murderer father were probably dead giveaways, anyway.
For the first time ever, those frightening skeletal horses pulling the carriages were a welcome sight to Ariadne. It meant, at least, that she could finally go home.
Because she had spent nearly the first two months of her first year wandering the Hogwarts grounds, Ariadne told Ginny to go on without her to the library so that she could have a bit of time to, well, pay her dues and commemorate the first day of her second year. Which is how she found herself in Hagrid's hut again, after he had spotted her walking alone.
Ariadne sat on the hardwood floor of his hut, watching happily as a crup puppy nipped at her fingers while Hagrid nervously paced his kitchen in preparation for his upcoming lesson.
"Congratulations again, Hagrid!" Ariadne enthused, hoping to assuage his nerves. "You're a professor now! It's unfortunate that I won't be able to take the class with you until next year."
"Now, now, Ariadne. We don' know if Dumbledore will have me again," Hagrid replied humbly, but Ariadne could see that he was already beaming at the thought. "Why don' yeh join me for this firs' lesson? Yeh can be my assistant."
Ariadne shrugged. "Might as well. Can I bring one of the puppies?"
"Not wit' the animals we have today, yeh can't," Hagrid said ominously. Ariadne slowly placed the crup back on the ground before getting up to her feet to follow Hagrid outside.
The students showed up fifteen minutes later, a hybrid Gryffindor-Slytherin lesson that Ariadne likely would not have agreed to had she known exactly who was involved. She could handle the Gryffindors, of course, and she could handle Draco, but the combination was the perfect setup for someone to be hurt. And more often than not, it felt as though she were the catalyst. According to Draco, anyway.
Ariadne smiled as the students approached but said nothing, taking her professional duties as a teaching assistant very seriously. She even ignored Harry, Ron, and Hermione's attempts to make her laugh while Hagrid spoke, though she did send them a grin of acknowledgement.
Once the whole class had arrived, Hagrid directed the students to the edge of the Forbidden Forest before he disappeared into it. Ariadne took the opportunity to walk over to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but before she could do so, she was blocked by two large bodies while a third pulled her away. Draco.
"What are you doing?" she hissed.
"What am I doing? What are you doing?" Draco retorted, matching her irritation with his own and then some. "Are you following me? Don't think I haven't forgotten that dung you pulled with Parkinson earlier."
Ariadne scoffed. "Following you? Are you out of your bloody mind? I agreed to assist Hagrid in his first class."
That was perhaps the last answer that Draco would have wanted to hear. His pale face reddened as his brows furrowed in anger.
"Help that great oaf? You're making yourself look like some sort of half-breed lover in front of the whole of Slytherin!" His eyes darted over to the crowd of students who had gathered to watch them, with the Slytherins taking a particular notice.
"Hmm," Ariadne mused sarcastically. "I wonder if they'll think that you like me again now that you've secreted me off in private. Maybe they'll even risk talking to me!"
It was clear to even the most unobservant witness that Draco had pulled her aside to berate at her, but her words still prompted a nearly imperceptible blush to cover his pale cheeks as he rapidly pulled his hand from where it had been wrapped around her wrist.
"Why do you even care what the Slytherins think of me, anyways?"
"Because!" He hesitated briefly before speaking again, by which time his words sounded sure. "Because you're my family, Ariadne, and your actions reflect back onto me whether either of us likes it or not. Not to mention, how am I supposed to get the beast fired if my own family's given him their seal of approval?"
"Draco! You have to be nice to Hagrid. Especially today." Draco scoffed, but Ariadne was undeterred. "I'm going to be up there with him. If you say anything to humiliate him, you're humiliating me, too. Family," she repeated, in the exact same drawling tone that he had used for the word. Draco stepped back when she finished, and Ariadne took that as her cue to retreat.
She walked over to where Harry, Ron, and Hermione were standing. Harry stood miserably in the center, while Hermione and Ron stood to his right and left with their arms crossed. No one was speaking, and Harry brightened when she arrived.
"Thank Merlin," he said, and both Hermione and Ron sent him a glare. In doing so, they accidentally made eye contact with one another, causing each to scoff and look away.
"What are they fighting about?" she whispered loudly to Harry. Now the glare was focused on her, causing Harry to laugh.
"I'm not quite sure," he whispered back just as loudly. "Divination, I think?"
Ron threw his hands in the air. "Somebody is bad at something for a change, and they can't handle it."
Hermione began to laugh, but it was edging on hysterical. "More like somebody believes in a quack teacher and a quack subject and can't handle that I don't care to waste my time on that kind of nonsense!"
"It's nonsense when you're not top of the class, is it?" Ron returned.
"Alright, alright," Ariadne held her hands up placatingly in front of them both, as if to soothe a wild animal. "Will this stop if we promise to never mention Divination again?"
Ron still looked annoyed. "What'd Malfoy want anyway?"
"And what are you doing here, Ariadne?" Hermione tacked on, remembering for the first time that Ariadne was not in their year.
"Draco was just yelling at me about something, as usual. And Hagrid's asked me to assist with his first lesson. I thought it could be fun."
"Ooh, how lucky!" Hermione said with a dreamy expression. The other three laughed, and she straightened up. "It's an honor, I mean, to be asked by a professor to assist in that way. I never have been, but I would gladly."
"Even Divination?" Ron muttered under his breath.
Hermione either didn't hear him or chose to ignore him for the sake of the peace. Instead, she pointed to where Malfoy was now swaggering over. "I guess he's not done, Ariadne."
The four turned to face Draco directly, and though he was walking towards them, he stopped and situated himself a few feet away. What's he playing at?
"God, this place is going to the dogs," Draco noted loudly, to the laughs of several surrounding Slytherins. "That oaf, teaching? My father–"
"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry said with a glare.
Draco turned to Harry with a smirk. "Ooooh, big words, Potter. But what if I told you there was a Dementor behind you. Not so brave now–"
"Shut up, Draco," said Ariadne this time. The Dementors, still? She'd bet ten galleons that Draco would cry if faced with one. And if he knew how they affected her, would he still use them as a taunt? She didn't think she wanted to know.
But Draco looked genuinely surprised at her interjection before he narrowed his eyes into a glare, now aimed in her direction. He was surprised enough that he'd stopped talking, at least. What was he expecting?
Hagrid stepped out of the Forest then, but this time, he was not alone. Behind him were twelve bizarre eagle-horse hybrids: their bodies were all horse, from the hind legs to the tail, but the front legs, chest, and head were all bird. While they had hooves in the back, their talons on their front legs were nearly a foot long and deadly sharp. Their beaks were twice the length and similarly lethal, and the chain around their necks that attached them to one another made it clear that they were dangerous.
"Hippogriffs!" Hagrid announced proudly. "Gorgeous, aren' they?"
No. Ariadne wasn't particularly fond of either birds (besides owls!) or horses, and the combination of the two wasn't particularly endearing to her either. Especially when it looked like a small peck could slit her throat.
"Now," Hagrid began to explain. "When meetin' a Hippogriff, yeh always wait her it ter make the firs' move. It's polite, see? They're mighty proud and easily offended, so don' never insult one. Yeh walk toward him, yeh bow, an' yeh wait. If he bows back, yeh touch. If not, run. Now– would my lovely assistant like ter come up ter the fron' and give us a demonstration?"
Ariadne swallowed before pulling herself together enough to walk to the front of the class. Looking out at the sea of faces in front of her, she could see nothing but apprehension. For themselves or for her, she wasn't sure, but even Draco looked slightly worried.
Still a few feet away from the nearest Hippogriff, Ariadne observed the bright orange eyes and the razor-sharp edge of the talons and beaks once more. Be brave, she thought.
Well, Ariadne was brave, but she wasn't stupid. She looked up at Hagrid and smiled kindly. "I'd love to Hagrid, but I overheard Harry saying that he wanted to give it a try first. I'd be happy to let him have my turn."
There was a loud burst of laughter from the crowd behind her, and Ariadne didn't even have to look to know that it was Ron.
"Good man, Harry!" Hagrid called, pleased. "Why don' you come up here an' give Buckbeak a try?"
Harry walked up as if to his own execution and Ariadne made an attempt to apologize at him with her eyes. He didn't seem too mad, though. His green eyes were equal parts amused and wary, and he nodded at her as if to say Well played.
Harry bowed to Buckbeak who, after a rather worrying beat, bowed back. Hagrid urged Harry on further– to pet Buckbeak's beak, garnering applause, and then to get on his back and go for a ride. This should've been the moment that Harry put his foot down and returned to the crowd. Which meant, of course, that he hoisted himself up onto Buckbeak's back instead.
"That's rather brave of Harry, isn't it," commented Neville quietly from amidst the crowd as, Buckbeak took off into the air.
"Brave?" Seamus piped up with a chuckle. "Poor bloke's too polite to say no!"
"Brilliant, Harry!" Ariadne clapped lightly and smiled brightly as Harry dismounted Buckbeak. She walked over to the animals with the rest of the students, willing to participate now that Harry had survived.
Harry grinned when they came near, hair an utter mess from the wind. "Trying to do me in, are you?" he teased Ariadne. "It was a rubbish attempt, honestly. Can't imagine why anyone would think you were working for your dad."
"Oh, shut up." Ariadne laughed as she hit Harry on the shoulder. A few students began murmuring about Harry's cavalier attitude behind her, but she didn't care. It was between her and Harry, after all. As long as he didn't doubt her, nothing else really mattered.
"Sorry, by the way," she continued. "I was scared! I threw you to the wolves a bit, but I figured if anyone would be willing to try, it would be you. Defeated Voldemort and all that, right?" Ariadne's smile widened as Harry reddened.
Observing the pair, Malfoy snorted to her right, a deliberate noise of derision. "Well, this is all rather easy!" he declared loudly, to no one in particular. He walked up to Buckbeak with a smirk on his face, looking around to ensure others were watching him. "I expected that it would be, if Potter was able to do it. You're not dangerous at all, are you–"
Ariadne looked away from Harry. "Draco…"
"–you great ugly brute!"
Before Ariadne could even blink, Draco was curled up on the ground, emitting a high-pitched shrieking noise. Ariadne rushed to his side, dropping to her knees to observe the blood spreading over his robes, frantically swiping through fabric to look for the source.
"I'm dying!" Draco cried, clutching his arms to his chest. The rest of the class gathered around in a panic, shying away from Hagrid who was wrangling Buckbeak back into chains.
"You are not dying," Ariadne said, having found the long gash from which the blood was flowing. "It's a scratch. It's deep, but you're not dying. You'll be alright, Draco."
"No!" Draco yelped as Hagrid scooped him into his arms to carry him to the Hospital Wing. Ariadne stood to join them. "It's killed me!"
Ariadne rolled her eyes but ran to keep up with the pace Hagrid was setting. She looked back at the Harry, Ron, and Hermione, indicating with her hands that she'd see them later. Behind them, Pansy Parkinson burst into worried tears. Great.
"Draco, you're being ridiculous. You could leave now! You're fine."
Draco was lying in a cot in the otherwise empty Hospital Wing, having been looked over and healed by Madame Pomfrey. He was fine, of course, other than the fact that his injured arm was in a sling (requested by him, not suggested by Madame Pomfrey). Still, he kept his face screwed up in pain– which Ariadne was quite certain he was no longer feeling.
"Madame Pomfrey said that I should stay for overnight observation," Draco responded sullenly. His head was turned away from her, looking off at the empty beds to his side.
"Madame Pomfrey said that you could stay overnight if you really wanted to, but that it was unnecessary."
"I could have died!" he yelled abruptly. He met her eyes for a moment before turning away once more, a flash of hurt passing through them.
Ariadne softened as she looked down at him. He was lashing out, but his anger was driven by fear more than anything else. She placed a hand on his uninjured arm and spoke softly, as if he were a wounded animal.
"I know, Draco. I was scared, too. But you're fine! Madame Pomfrey said you wouldn't even need a Blood Replenishing Potion. Just some Essence of Dittany."
"It's that wretched beast's fault," Draco retorted, when it became clear that he had no good response to Ariadne's reasoning. "Father will have it killed and that oaf fired."
Ariadne pulled her hand back as if it had been struck. "What? Draco, you can't. It wasn't Hagrid's fault. Or Buckbeak's! I mean, you saw the way Harry had–"
Draco's head snapped back towards her, and his gray eyes were filled with malice. Ariadne recoiled, surprised to see it directed at herself.
"It's always about Potter, isn't it?" Draco scoffed. His lips curled in disgust. "What is it about him?" he asked, but the question was rhetorical. Instead, he looked away from Ariadne and towards the door before speaking tersely once more. "You should leave."
"What? What are you–"
"I said leave!" He reached out an uninjured hand to pick up the glass of water by his bedside and throw it at her. Ariadne dodged it easily, but she got the message. She picked up her bag and walked out, looking back only once to see Draco facing the other direction now, still resolutely avoiding her. She bumped into something soft in her hurry.
"Watch where you're going, Black!" Pansy sneered, coming in as Ariadne was leaving. "Merlin, can't you walk?"
The next day, Ariadne resolved to put Draco out her mind as she sat with Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione for breakfast in the Great Hall. It seemed, however, that Draco had other plans.
"Hey, Harry!" Seamus called out from two seats down. He dropped his spoon and held up a copy of the Daily Prophet. He eyed Ariadne nervously for a moment when her head popped up along with Harry's but continued on anyway. "Seen this? They reckon Sirius Black has been sighted."
Ariadne froze, but Harry leaned over Ron and Neville to grab a copy for himself. "Sirius Black: Spotted?" He read aloud.
"Does it say where?" Ariadne asked woodenly. Her tongue felt heavy in her mouth, like she suddenly had lost all the water in her body.
"Not far from here," Ron responded, reading over Harry's shoulder. He looked at Harry meaningfully, alerting him to the severity of the situation without calling attention to the rest of the Gryffindors.
Unfortunately for Ron, he alerted a Slytherin instead. At that moment, Draco, flanked as always by Crabbe and Goyle, walked into the Great Hall. His arm was in a sling held closely to his chest, but his eyes were fixed on Harry. He sat down next to Ariadne, across from Harry, breaching the unspoken rule of no Slytherins at the Gryffindor table and vice versa. The surrounding Gryffindors glared, and even Crabbe and Goyle looked confused (more than usual, that is) from where they stood behind him.
"To be honest, Potter, I didn't come here to insult you. I'm actually quite impressed by how much you've managed to stop yourself from playing the hero." Harry narrowed his eyes suspiciously as Malfoy continued. "Of course, now's an interesting time to finally sit at home and play good boy. If it was me, I'd have done something by now."
"What are you playing at, Malfoy?" Ron said defensively. Draco did not take his eyes off Harry.
"Don't you know, Potter?"
"Know what?"
"Stop it, Draco." Ariadne said quietly. But Draco pushed on.
"Don't you want revenge?" He asked, a taunting smirk pulling at his lips. "Or perhaps you've already tried, what with your little attempt last term to get Ariadne expelled. But she's a poor substitute to the real thing, isn't she, Potter?"
"That's enough, Draco! Please." Ariadne was begging now. Tears welled up in her eyes as she pleaded, looking firmly at the side of Draco's face. He had not yet turned away from Harry, but Ariadne couldn't bear to look in his direction. To see the confusion in his green eyes, the betrayal even, if he had pieced it together. She grabbed at Draco's shoulder roughly instead. "Please."
He dragged his face from Harry to Ariadne, and his smirk dropped the moment that silver eyes met gray. But a grin replaced it after a beat, filled utterly with glee, after he'd taken in the tears in her eyes and the panic on her face.
"Don't tell me you haven– oh, that's rich, Ariadne! Keeping secrets from Saint Potter? I didn't know you had it in you!"
"What's he talking about, Aria?"
"I–" Ariadne looked at Harry for the first time to see the confusion that she'd expected. But there was no betrayal, no suspicion, nothing. Just genuine concern and puzzlement.
She felt terrible.
Not even Malfoy's hints could sway Harry's trust in Ariadne, a trust that she proved undeserved every time that she spoke to him. Feeling almost dizzy with guilt, Ariadne averted her eyes from Harry. It was then that she noticed the eyes of almost every student in school on them, the prying ears of those close by waiting for her explanation and the students in the peripheral observing the anomaly of Malfoy's seating choice. It was Draco's self-satisfied smug that encouraged her to speak again. Not here. Not like this.
"I– I have to go," she stuttered out, shoving her books into her bag. Her breakfast was untouched, but the pit in her stomach canceled out any hunger that she'd had before. "I'm going to be late to Defence."
"You don't have Defence for another quarter hour!" Ron called out after her, but she was already hurrying out the door, long dark hair flying behind her in her rush.
Ariadne waited out the fifteen minutes inside the classroom. No student would be caught dead in class early, save Hermione, but Ariadne knew that she had Potions this time instead. She sat down at a desk, took out her books, quills, and parchments as if preparing for class, and then put her head into her hands and began to cry. What am I doing?
She was so quickly lost in her own guilt in misery that she did not even notice Professor Lupin enter the room. He placed his tatty briefcase on the teacher's desk before pulling up a stool from the desk up front and seating himself across from her.
"Ariadne," he said gently. Ariadne's head shot up. "Is everything alright?"
"Oh, Professor Lupin," she greeted, quickly wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. It was no use, of course, but the attempt still felt necessary. "Everything's fine. I'm just being silly, but I'm okay. Really."
Lupin nodded before getting up and pushing his stool back into the desk in front of her. She didn't know what prompted her to speak again, when he'd just given her such an obvious out. Perhaps it was the fact that he didn't push, or that Ariadne spotted something soothing in his kind, oddly familiar face, but she found herself opening her mouth once more.
"Professor," she called hesitantly. Having been making his way back towards his desk, Lupin turned back around to face her.
"Yes, Ariadne?"
"Have you ever…" she trailed off, not sure exactly what she was intending to say. "Have you ever kept a secret? One that you knew was bad, and you knew you should tell, but you didn't want the person you were telling to think any less of you?"
Lupin utterly froze, so silent and silent for so long that Ariadne, who had been looking down at her hands, had to check and make sure that he was still there. It was when her eyes met his that he seemed able to shake himself loose.
"Yes," he said gruffly, before clearing his throat. "Yes, I suppose that I have."
Ariadne waited, but Lupin did not seem prepared to say any more. In fact, when the rest of the second-years began trickling in seconds later, he seemed almost relieved.
"Good morning," he greeted the class. "Put your books back into your bags, please. Today will be a practical lesson. All you need is your wands."
"What's up with him?" Ginny asked, sidling up in the seat next to her. "He looks absolutely spooked."
Ariadne shrugged. "I'm not sure," she said thoughtfully. "But I think he's hiding something."
Lupin urged the class to their feet before leading them outside the classroom, down the corridor, and around the corner. He finally stopped down a second corridor, outside the staff room door. He opened the door and indicated for them to go inside. The second-years hesitated for only a moment before walking into the staff room, where usually students were forbidden from entering. They were Gryffindors, after all.
"Now," Lupin said once everyone was inside. "Today we'll be working on Boggarts." He walked over to a wardrobe at the end of the room that began to bang once he neared. "It's a lesson typically reserved for the second-year curriculum, but it seems that it was not taught last year." Ariadne snorted, and she was not alone. Not much was taught last year, besides which color combination Lockhart thought looked best with his complexion. "You and the third-years will be learning it concurrently. But first, can anyone tell me what a Boggart is, exactly?"
Several students groaned, and Ariadne looked around curiously to notice that it came largely from the pureblooded students of the class. Ginny raised her hand.
"Yes, Miss Weasley."
"It's some sort of creature," Ginny began confidently. "But it can change shapes. It'll turn into whatever your biggest fear is – it's awful, really, we've had a couple in our older drawers back at home."
"Well said!" Lupin praised. "Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces. And lucky for us that there's so many of you. It makes it quite a bit more difficult to frighten when a Boggart doesn't know precisely which shape to take. A shark or a car crash might be frightening, but both combined? A shark crash might even make you laugh. And that's the key to repelling a Boggart. The spell is simple – what really clears a Boggart is laughter. So you must make it assume a shape that you find amusing. Picture it very well in your head. Let's try the charm without wands first. Repeat after me… Riddikulus."
"Riddikulus," the class said in unison.
"Very good. Now who'd like to have a go?"
It was little Colin Creevey who stepped forward first. Lupin paused before opening the door, checking with Colin silently if he was prepared, and Colin nodded firmly, rolling up the sleeves on his skinny arms.
"One, two, three, now!"
The wardrobe burst open, and something slithered out. Gigantic and a poisonous green, Ariadne recognized it instantly, around the same time as the rest of the class, as indicated by their gasps. Of course Colin's greatest fear was a basilisk, after it had left him comatose for months last year. But Colin planted his feet into the ground, lifted his wand, and shouted "Riddikulus!"
With a sound like a cracking whip, the basilisk began to shrink until it was quickly no larger than an average garden snake.
"Next, next!" Lupin called.
The boggart transformed rapidly as each student stepped up to greet it. Romilda was first, and the snake became a mirror, quicksand, the ocean, a zombie, fire, a hag, bees–
"Good, good! It's getting confused!" Lupin shouted.
At Ginny's turn, the swarm of bees coalesced until it formed the shape of a boy. Not just any boy, but a handsome brunette Slytherin with cruel, laughing eyes and a smile that cut like a knife. Tom Riddle.
"Who is that?" Ariadne heard Romilda say admiringly behind her. But Ariadne was focused on Ginny, who had frozen at Boggart-Tom's feet, white knuckles tightening on her wand.
"What use would Harry have for you, Ginevra?" Boggart-Tom taunted, perfect mouth curling up into a cruel smirk. "When there is greater– she is greater–"
Ariadne pushed Ginny out of the way when her face began to crumble and her wand arm dropped uselessly to the side. Unfortunately, this meant that Tom had transformed once more, into exactly what she had feared he would become.
Was there anything left for her to fear? she wondered. If her greatest fear had already come to pass?
Selena Fenwick lay in front of her, looking exactly as she had when Ariadne had found her those years prior. She had been dead, of course, Ariadne had checked her pulse herself before the neighbor had to pull her away. But her skin was still pink – it had been warm to touch, Ariadne remembered, when she pressed her fingers to her mother's throat and hoped beyond belief that she would feel something, anything, indicating that there was life left in her. She might have been asleep, even, if those blue eyes hadn't been wide open, staring sightlessly at nothing.
There was no laughter now. Ariadne stared down at her mother's body, and suddenly she was nine years old again. Her head began to hurt, the same sort of splitting headache that she hadn't had since that day on the train, when the Dementors were near. She scrunched her face up at the pain but didn't otherwise react, too busy looking down at her mother.
If she'd looked to her left, she'd have seen that Lupin was staring as well. There was an odd sort of expression on his face, unsettling enough to the other students that they didn't dare call for his attention. He recognized this woman, that much was clear. But he remembered himself, remembered his students, and moved to step in front of Ariadne.
Until her eyes opened.
Lupin and the rest of the class watched entranced as Selena Fenwick slowly brought herself to her knees, fixing her bright blue eyes onto Ariadne's own. Boggart-Selena began to tug at her hair, idly at first until she was pulling, pulling like she wanted to tear it out. Like she wanted to hurt.
"Did you tell anyone?" the Boggart demanded, eyes narrowing at Ariadne as it peered into her greatest weaknesses. "They've found us. Was it you? They've found us. They've found us. They–"
"Please stop, mum," Ariadne whispered brokenly, tears filling her eyes at a sight she had longed to forget. She was a child again, raising her hands to cover her ears and shutting her eyes on instinct.
At Ariadne's words, Selena's eyes turned sharp. She peered at Ariadne as if seeing her for the first time, suddenly lucid.
"Baby," she breathed. "Please, darling. Please, remember. Why don't you remember? How could you forget?"
Ariadne felt her heart still. Forget what?
Lupin looked at Ariadne's pale face and finally moved to step in front of her once more, shaking himself out of the reverie of seeing Selena Fenwick like she'd never been before. But Ariadne would not let him.
"No!" she yelled, pushing him aside with a strength she didn't know that she had. She was determined to do this herself. To face her past head on. "I can do it! Riddikulus!"
The whip cracked once more, and Selena was still kneeling, but now leaning on the edge of a bed with a smile. Ariadne's bed, from back in London. Selena was younger here, but not by much, considering she had been quite young to begin with. And she was beautiful alive – strikingly so, with golden hair floating messily down her back. She was wearing her café uniform, which is how Ariadne knew that this was before. This was still her mother – her mother at her best, before that final year when she was nothing but her own paranoia.
This Selena did not mutter to herself, did not tug at her hair, or retreat to her bedroom for so long that she'd forgotten that mealtimes had passed. She was glowing, with a wide grin and a loud laugh.
"How could you forget?" Selena repeated, but there was laughter in her voice now. She was happy.
"I've told you this story a million times, darling. That's when James set off the dungbomb in the Great Hall! You should have seen McGonagall's face– I'm sure you will someday, little troublemaker you already are… you don't get it from me, that's all I'll say!"
Ariadne remembered this night. It was one of the rare occasions that a story about her past had been offered up willingly, happily. Selena had been putting Ariadne to bed the night before her first day of primary school. She had been nervous, she remembered, and asked her mother to tell her favorite story about her own first day. She had been nervous too, Selena promised, but there she was in the Great Hall and about to be Sorted when a group of four boys set off a series of dungbombs as a distraction. It was at Hogwarts, where Ariadne would someday attend as well. When she was big – far bigger than she could imagine being, she'd be at Hogwarts just like her mum had been. And here she was.
It was this vision of Selena, oddly enough, that seemed to jar Lupin even more than the last.
"That's enough for today," he choked out, but no one seemed to move. "Class dismissed."
New chapter and a lot happening! Please let me know what you think and leave a review! I appreciate all of your input and kind words so far!