The Wolf's Lion ~ Harry Potter (Editing)

Chapter Nineteen | The Return of Sirius

Ariana didn't sleep well that night, not that she ever did. She had subscribed to the Daily Prophet, just to keep an eye on the news. The witch had refused to read the article about the Tri-Wizard Tournament, but now, at midnight, she decided to give it a go.

She pulled the paper into her hands, using the glow of the fire that illuminated the gold and scarlet Common Room to read the section.

Crookshanks purred on her lap, curled up like a ginger pillow as he slept. He made a habit of using Hermione as a bed, and if she wasn't around, he would lie on her friends. Ariana didn't mind, she appreciated the company.

Her stomach dropped before she even allowed her eyes to graze over the words in the article. She and Harry had a page each, an entire page! With headlines such as:

Teenage Mystery: Ariana O'Connor

Will she survive?

The witch sat and read the article concerning the other champions as well as herself and Harry, but still, they were given the spotlight. Anger bubbled inside Ariana, feeling awful for her fellow competitors, who deserved to have much more of a mention than they had.

Apparently Rita had an uncanny knack of translating Ariana's silence during the interview into wild sentences: yes, I think my parents would be proud of me, if only I knew them...

She never remembered saying that in her entire life; she was not a self-pitying person, let alone one who speaks about her emotions.

Other people had been interviewed about her, too.

Ariana and Harry's "close friend", Colin Creevey, had reported that they spend a lot of time in each other's company... They had found love.

Ariana had enough. She couldn't continue reading that article that made her absolutely furious. The witch crumpled the paper into a ball, apologising as Crookshanks jerked awake on her lap.

She used her wand to make it hover in the air, then whispered "Incendio" and the ball burst into flames. As the paper ball burned, she watched the photograph of herself burn into nothing.

The satisfaction wasn't enough, she knew that hundreds (probably thousands) of people. In an ideal world, she would be able to get Rita Skeeter fired. That's what dreams are made of.

Footsteps echoed from the spiral staircase but Ariana never peeled her eyes from the slowly burning ball of newspaper, resting her arm on the large book she had been reading.

"Ariana?" Harry asked, wide awake as he came down the stairs. "What're you doing up?"

"Reading. I decided to read the article about the Tournament, terrible idea. That's what's left of it," she replied, using her wand to point to the hovering, burning ball. "Why are you awake?"

As Harry rounded the sofa, Ariana heard a gasp come from the fire. Her eyes landed on the fiery face of Sirius Black, the logs contorting into a moving replica of his head.

He had definitely cleaned up since they last saw him, fresh out of Azkaban. His hair was neater, still reaching his shoulders. His face seemed fuller, no longer looking skeletal, making him look younger.

"Sirius?! How..." Harry asked, crouching by the fireplace.

Ariana stood up, not wanting to intrude on the moment. She shifted Crookshanks off of her lap, making him mew in annoyance, then placed him down on the warm patch where she had been sitting. Gathering up her 'The Complete History of Dragons' book, she said, "Well, goodnight, Harry."

"Ariana, wait," Sirius called, making the girl turn back around. "I don't have much time, so let me get straight to it. Did you or did you not put your names into the goblet of fire?"

Ariana shook her head, standing just behind Harry. "Definitely not."

"No!" Harry protested  rather loudly.

"Shh... I had to ask. Now, Harry, tell me about this dream of yours. You mentioned Wormtail and Voldemort, but who was the third man in the room?" Sirius asked, the fire crackling as his face moved.

Ariana stood in the background, not knowing whether she should leave or stay. The witch decided to stay, since she hadn't actually been dismissed. She did, however, use her wand to toss the tiny remnants of the newspaper ball into the fire, landing on the opposite side of Sirius.

"I dunno," Harry answered.

"You didn't hear a name?"

"No. Umm.. Voldemort was giving him a job to do. Something important," Harry explained, catching Ariana's attention.

"What was that?" Sirius questioned, just as interested as Ariana, if not more so, since she had already heard the story.

"He wanted... us. I dunno why, but he was gonna use this man to get to us."

Ariana blinked, letting the words sink in. "Sorry, us? You told me he only wanted you."

"Well, he seems to want both of us. Don't know why," Harry said, a look of regret on his face. "I mean it was only a dream right?"

"Yes. It's just a dream," Sirius agreed, although Ariana was not convinced at all. "Look Harry, Ariana, the deatheaters at the world cup, your names rising from that goblet these are not just coincidences. Hogwarts isn't safe any more."

Ariana, now kneeling beside Harry, frowned. "What exactly do you mean?"

"I'm saying the devils are inside the walls. Igor Karkaroff, he was a deatheater. And no one, no one stops being a deatheater. Then there's Barty Crouch, heart of stone, sent his OWN son to Azkaban," Sirius explained hurriedly, knowing his time was short.

A door creaked upstairs, making Ariana's heart leap into her throat. Her and Harry's heads spun around at such a speed they about gave themselves whiplash, their eyes pinned on the stairway, but no one arrived.

"Do you think one of them put our names in the goblet?" Harry asked, looking at Sirius once more.

"I haven't a clue who put your names in that goblet, Harry, but whoever did it is no friend to either of you. People die in this tournament."

"I'm not ready for this Sirius," Harry said, his eyes portraying fear.

Ariana was also scared, terrified, but she couldn't afford to cave now. Instead, she gave Harry's shoulder a squeeze, accompanied by a reassuring smile.

"You don't have a choice," Sirius replied, although Ariana knew that if he could take Harry's place, he'd do it in a heartbeat.

"Sirius," Ariana spoke up, deciding he was her best option for now. "You knew my parents, yes?"

"Yes, I did," Sirius nodded. "I'm sorry, Ariana, we don't have time -"

"Oh, I know. I just wanted to know if either of them were Legilimens?"

"Your father, Matthew, was," said Sirius. "Why do you ask?"

"Matthew. His name was Matthew?" Ariana asked, mesmerised for a moment, until she snapped herself out of the daze. "I seem to of inherited his talent.

"Someone's coming!" Harry whisper shouted, getting to his feet.

Ariana followed his lead, plonking herself down on the red sofa, opening her book as if nothing had happened.

She heard Ron and Harry argue briefly but the only thing Ariana could concentrate on was her parents. Her eyes were transfixed on the fire, her mind whirring with questions.

Did either of her parents have the same shade of hair as her?

Did her mother tuck her in at night?

Did she meet James, Lily and Harry before she could even remember them?

Until Ariana fell asleep that night, she thought about the two people who raised her for a year, despite only knowing their names and nothing more.

For a short time, Ariana O'Connor was happy. For the first time in a long time, she slept for more than five hours.