The Golden Trip

Chapter 7

"C'mon Foxy," Someone whispers-Sirius I think. He gently picks me up, and carries me like a baby. I yawn, stretch my legs, and rest my head on his forearm. I slowly open my eyes. It's still a little dark, but the moon is gone. That mean Remus is in the Shrieking Shack. James, Sirius, and I pass the Black Lake and climb into the shack. Remus is lying on the floor and Peter is slumping on the ground. It looked like he was waiting for us. He yawned.

"It was better tonight," He whispered, glancing at Remus.

Sirius and James nodded. "Good," James whispered.

"Who's the fox?" Peter asked, nodding at me. James shrugged.

"We found her. Apparently she was by the lake and followed Sirius into the forest."

"Why did you bring her here?"

"Sirius thinks there is something odd about her." I barked.

Sirius shrugged. "I'll just do the spell that forces an animagus to switch," Sirius put me on the ground in front of him. He took out his wand. I knew the spell he was going to do. I might be able to put up a shield. I won't switch then. It's kinda like Occlumency;a shield that surrounds me that no one notices.

"Okay," Sirius says, pointing the wand at me. "Three, two, one." James steps back. I make a whining noise. SIrius takes a breath. He mouths words that I don't hear. A blue light flashes, and I inadvertently close my eyes and imagine my shield. I wait a beat. I open my eyes. I'm still a fox. "Huh," Sirius says, putting his wand away. "That's one odd fox then." I look at James. He still looking at me suspiciously. Does he know something? I bark at them and Sirius pets me. Then, I run away. It's still early so I head to the lake where I switch back. I find my wand, the map, and the cloak. After, I head inside the castle.

The sun is just starting to rise so I head to the kitchens. An elf appears. "Hello Miss! What would you be liking today?"

I smile. "Hello Raffy!"

His gapes. "Miss Hermione! I have missed you! Raffy apologizes for not remembering you!"

"No need to apologize Raffy! Can I have a hot chocolate?" Raffy nods.

"Yes Miss!" He scurries off. I wait patiently , fingering the necklace on me. Raffy soon comes

back with a hot chocolate that I take. I say goodbye and leave. The hot chocolate reminds me of the Burrow at Christmas. Mrs. Weasley made us hot chocolate with whipped cream, and we would sit in front of the fireplace sipping our drinks laughing and talking. A single tear falls down my face that I wipe away. Those were simpler times. I head over to the Great Hall and see that James and Sirius are there. Harry and Ron are nowhere to be found. Slowly I walk up and sit across from them.

"You're up early." Sirius said, raising an eyebrow. I set my mug down.

"I'm not used to sleeping in." I say, taking some bacon. I'm still not used to freshly baked food. James nodded.

"Sleep good last night?" He asked.

I nod. "Yup. One of my best nights in a long time." Mainly because since I was a fox, I can't have nightmares. No one talks for a moment. Just the munching of food.

"Do you get nightmares?" James suddenly whispers. I choke on my hot chocolate. I look up at him, and both he and Sirius cheeks have a pinkish tint to them. "Like, a lot?" They're both staring at me.

"Yes," I whisper. I look at James' eyes. Brown. Hazel. Shimmering. Like a torchlight. "Every. SIngle. Night. They don't go away. They aren't nightmares though," I say softly. I look at Sirius now. A grey like a cloud on a sunny day. A grey that invites you in, like the steam that comes from a hot drink. "Nightmares are made up things that scare you. WHat I have are memories that I have to relive every night." I look back and forth. They're starting to pale. "Right now, whatever you think, you are boys. In war you are going to be scared. You'll see things-live through things! You'll then become men." My voice cracks at the end. "And you'll have these memories that never leave your brain. That stay and haunt you for the rest of your lives. You'll get scars that stay with you. Forever." I whisper the last word. Their mouths are open. "That is war." I sigh. "Come to me whenever when you have questions. I'm quite good at describing what war is like." I say and stand up. I leave them whispering, and walk outside. I head over to a big oak tree that provided lots of shade. I sit down on the soft grass and close my eyes. I didn't sleep as well as I could have last night, but I didn't have nightmares. I listen to the chatter of students walking to and fro.

It's Saturday, so students are enjoying the sunny weather. After a few minutes, I hear the loud voices of Harry and Ron. I open my eyes. "Hi." I whisper.

"Hi." Harry says back. He and Ron sit down next to me. I ruffle his hair. "Where were you last night?" He asks.

"It was a full moon." I say back. He nods.

"Was it cool?" I sigh.

"It was amazing seeing them in their forms." I say back. I rub my forearm.

"Why do you always do that?" Ron says, looking at me.

"I...I don't know," I say. I blink rather rapidly. "I can't help myself." I lean back against the tree and close my eyes, "I really want to use a Dreamless-Sleep potion, but I don't want to get addicted. And I really want to sleep." I add on. Harry leans against me, Ron as well. They both put an arm around my shoulders. It feels...right. It's silent for a while.

"Could you sleep now?" Harry asks. I shake my head.

"No." I whisper. We start to then talk for awhile, about random things. The CHudley Cannons, some relatives of people we know. Soon, I get hungry.

"I'm going to get something to eat. You guys can stay here." I say, stretching and getting up. I left them behind, as they soon fell asleep. I wish I could sleep peacefully like that. I rub my eyes, tired, and head to the Great Hall. I take an apple and crunch on it, not hungry. My appetite isn't like it used ot be.

Someone taps me on the shoulder.

"STUPEFY!" I shout, whirling around and stunning them. James goes flying into a table. "Oh no!" I exclaim, dropping my apple and running over. I hold out a hand and pull him up. "I have very quick reflexes," I mutter. "Sorry." He laughs, running a hand through his hair.

"It's okay," He gets solemn then. "Actually, Sirius and I want to talk to you. In private. Follow me." He leads me out. Students are staring at us, along with some professors that are sitting at the Head Table. I know they might not know about the Room of Requirement, so if anything they'll be talking to me at a passage way. We walk in silence. I'm worried. Talking about war is hard for me. Especially the one we fought in.

He leads me around a corner on the first floor. We stop besides a tapestry. He holds out his hand. I slowly take it. He then faces the wall and walks through the tapestry, pulling me with him. We pass through it without noise, and arrive in a dark hallway. Only a sliver of light comes through from the bottom of the wall step-up. Quietly, I whisper a lumos, and a ball of light forms on my hand. James jumps back into the wall. I hear quiet laughs coming from farther down the hallway.

"Jamesie's spooked!" Sirius exclaims, laughing and coming closer to us.

"Shut up Sirius." James grumbles, standing up. He runs a hand through his hair. I sigh at them

"Why do you two need me?" Sirius' laughing immediately stops. He and James both become solemn.

"Well," James starts slowly. "We were thinking about what you said. About war." I stop him. I conjure seats for us and then we seat.

"And we thought about what you said." Sirius starts to talk. "Can you...tell us more? So we'll be prepared for this war?" I exhale and lean down in my seat, making the light float in the air in the middle of our chairs, which are arranged in a circle for three.

"Okay," I say. I look off into the distance. "I'll tell you about war."

Hola!! How was everyone's week?

I have a favor to ask. If not, it's ok if you don't BUT-

It would be amazing if you guys told friends to read this story. I'm actually quite proud of it and would like other people to read it. Also, comment anything you would like to know. But thank you! 

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