Hogwarts is my Home

Chapter 48: Professor Werewolf (PA CH9)

Harry grabbed onto my arm and refused to let go as all of the Gryffindors made their way down to the Great Hall. I was technically supposed to be helping guide the students, but there were five other prefects who could do that. Harry's safety was the only thing that mattered to me.

McGonagall was outside the doors and soon as she saw Harry she pulled him aside, and he took me too.

"There you are, Potter. It's convenient you weren't in your dorm. Where were you, anyway?"

Harry was too frozen in fear to speak, so instead I did. "He was with me in my dorm, Professor. We wanted to get away from the crowd and talk since it's the day."

She immediately knew what I meant. "Yes, of course. Good to talk about your feelings. Glad both of you are safe. Get inside the Hall," she muttered quickly before ushering us both inside.

Dumbledore had vanished all the tables and put a pile of purple sleeping bags in the middle of the room. "Guess we're sleeping on the floor," I whispered.

"I'm used to it," Harry uttered.

Rian walked up to us when we went to get one. "What happened?" she asked worriedly.

"Sirius Black broke into Harry's dorm."

"Oh, my god, are you okay?!" she asked Harry, grabbing his arms.

"Yeah, I wasn't in there, I was with Toni." 

"That's good."

Neither Harry or I slept that night. We just held hands and I watched Harry as he continuously stared at the enchanted ceiling above. I thought about how one simple accident had saved his life. Falling asleep in my bed might be the best thing to have happened to Harry.

By my next DADA lesson, I had gathered the courage to thank Lupin for helping Harry on Halloween and then sneak in the fact that I know he's my father. I even had one of the photo albums in my bag to show him. But Lupin wasn't there, Snape was in his place. 

"Where's Lupin?" I asked Snape nicely as I entered the room.

"Professor Lupin is too ill to teach. Nothing deadly, though." 

Werewolves was the lesson that Snape taught, even though it was at the end of the book. I rested my head on my desk, too sad thinking about my dad not being here, and closed my eyes.

Snape let me off easy and only took 20 points from Gryffindor when he awoke me.

It was 4pm now, so I decided to just go back up to the Common Room. Nobody had waited for me to wake up, not even Fred and George. 

It wasn't a secret why- all I ever talked about was Harry or Lupin, and every one of my friends was sick of it.

I let my mind wander to how all my friendships are growing distant and my eyes started to well with tears on my long walk to Gryffindor Tower.

"Toni, I have to talk to you," Hermione scrambled as soon as she saw me enter. She was standing by the entrance and it was as if she was waiting for me. 

"What is it, Hermione?" I asked kind of annoyed. 

"Do you still think Professor Lupin's your real father?"

"Yeah..."

"Well there's something you should know about him."

"What is it?"

"He's a werewolf. That's why he missed class and Snape did that lesson," she said a little too loudly. 

I put my finger over my lips to shush her, then dragged her to an empty corner. "That's a pretty far reach, don't you think? Dark Arts classes just ended, you came up with this theory fast."