Never Let Me Go ⚡︎ [ harry potter ]

⚡︎ • ❝ t w e l v e ❞ • ✴

"He's been sighted! He's been sighted!" Seamus exclaimed as he ran down the Gryffindor table during lunch, squeezing between Neville and Dean and slamming the Daily Prophet down on the table.

"Where?" Grace asked, as she and Ron stood up from their seats and moved further down the table; Harry and Hermione joining them and standing behind Dean.

"Not too far from here!" Seamus answered. "It was a muggle who saw him. 'Course, she didn't really understand. The muggles think he's just an ordinary criminal, don't they? So she phoned the telephone hot line. By the time the Ministry of Magic got there, he was gone-"

"Dufftown?!" Hermione exclaimed, reading the paper over Seamus' shoulder. "That's just on the other side of Hogsmeade!"

"You don't think he'll try to come to Hogwarts, do you?" Neville asked, looking up from the paper and to the rest of their group.

"With Dementors at every entrance?" Parvati asked, frowning.

"Dementors? He's already slipped by them once, hasn't he?" Lavendar replied nervously. "Who's to say he can't do it again?"

"That's right," Seamus nodded grimly. "Black could be anywhere. It's like trying to catch smoke... Like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands."

Grace shivered as she looked down at the paper, staring at the photo of the screaming man. It was the same picture that has been put up everywhere, the same photo that's been in every issue of the Daily Prophet since his escape. It was the same picture she found herself staring at often, always finding ominous similarities.

"Thinking about catching Sirius Black single-handed, Potter?" Malfoy asked, smirking from the Slytherin table. "Or perhaps Little Black is going to help you?" he added, nodding at Grace, who glared at him. Instead, Malfoy's lips curled into a mean smile. "Of course, if it was me, I'd have done something before now. I wouldn't be staying in school, I'd be out there looking for him. I still don't understand how the two of you are such good friends considering-"

"What are you on about, Malfoy?" Ron snapped at him.

"Don't...don't you know, Potter?" Malfoy asked slowly, narrowing his eyes at Harry, then he turned is cool gaze onto Grace. "You really don't know, do you, Black?" this time he asked Grace.

"Know what?" Harry asked, glaring at Malfoy.

Malfoy let out a low, sneering laugh as he shook his head at them. "Maybe you'd rather not risk your necks," he added with a nonchalant shrug. "Want to leave it to the dementors, do you? But if it was me, I'd want revenge. I'd hunt him down myself, and I wouldn't associate with her," he added, sneering at Grace. Before anyone could ask him anymore, the blond boy turned around and strutted away with his friends trailing behind him.

"What did Malfoy mean?" Harry asked. "Why would I want revenge on Sirius Black? He hasn't done anything to me – yet."

"And why wouldn't you want to be around Grace?" Neville asked, looking from Harry to Grace, then back at Harry. "It's Grace. She's the nicest person in our year."

"He's making it up," Ron answered. "He's trying to get a rise out of both of you, and make you do something stupid."

Grace frowned as she turned back to the newspaper, staring at the picture. She had an unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach, that Malfoy knew what she was suspecting herself. If she was right, and if Sirius Black was coming after Harry... she wouldn't blame Harry for not wanting to be around her either.