The Cupboard Series 2: Hermione's Book Nook

Chapter 10

The sun was still trying to peek over the hills behind them as Harry waited alongside the maroon-robed Madam Bones. Before them, the dark waters of the North Sea stretched away in choppy waves. Occasionally, white foam atop the waves made an appearance, breaking up the monotonous greyness.

"The ferry will be here soon," Madam Bones commented, looking down at him through the monocle on the side of her face closest to him.

Harry nodded, barely suppressing a yawn.

In summers past, he'd always been a morning person, but that had more to do with avoiding punishment than anything else. He'd learnt a long time ago that having a cooked breakfast on the table waiting for the two behemoths of his uncle and cousin was the smart thing to do. Even at Hogwarts, he was often up early to ensure that he was ready for the day.

But in the last couple of weeks while he'd been staying with the Pembertons, he'd been gradually adjusting his body clock to allow him to sleep in longer and longer.

That luxury, though, had been blown out of the water the previous day when he'd received Madam Bones' letter telling him that she'd finally arranged a meeting between them and Sirius Black at Azkaban Prison. And, since it was on an island and they needed to catch the ferry, she'd collected him from The Leaky Cauldron in what felt like the middle of the night.

As the ferry suddenly seemed to appear out of nowhere, Harry reflected that getting up early was probably a good thing. Tomorrow, Hermione and her parents were due back in England. The day after was to be the grand opening of his new store. Which meant that in less than two weeks, he'd hopefully be back sleeping in his four-poster up in Gryffindor Tower and sleep-ins would well and truly be a thing of the past. That was, of course, assuming that the outcome of the trial that he still had to look forward to didn't leave him expelled. Or worse.

As the old, black ferry creaked up to the dock, he felt a warm hand on his back guiding him forward. Stepping out beside Madam Bones, Harry forcefully shoved all thoughts of Hermione and Hogwarts to the very back of his mind. There were far more important things to concentrate on today. Like finding out why his dad's best friend betrayed his parents to Lord Voldemort so that he had to grow up as an orphan.

Harry strode forward, his face a mask of pure determination.

-oOoOo-

Looking up at the dark grey fortress above him, Harry shivered. The whole island, even when they were still well off-shore in the ferry, felt incredibly dark and forbidding. A heaviness pressed down on his skull and he nearly staggered.

A hand on his elbow steadied him and he looked up at Madam Bones, intending to give a smile of thanks, but he was sure that what actually came out was more of a grimace than anything else.

Passing through the narrow stone entranceway felt confining and it was all Harry could do not to baulk at the dark shadows to either side of him. As he looked to his left, he could have sworn that he saw something in the shadows move. Whatever it was, be it man, beast or demon, was tall, far taller than the tallest man that Harry'd ever seen.

As they emerged through the portcullis into the open air, Madam Bones looked down to him once more. A sharp crack split the air and Harry shied away.

"Here, Harry, eat this," Madam Bones half-smiled, holding out a piece of chocolate, "it'll stave off the effects of the dementors and make you feel better."

Giving her a quizzical look, Harry took the chocolate and popped it into his mouth. At once, the sweetness of the chocolate permeated his body and he shook himself, feeling much more like his normal self again. A tension in his shoulders told him that he'd been holding them hunched and he deliberately worked them loose, rolling first one and then the other.