Dark Pasts { A Harry Potter Story }

Chapter 37 - Sirius Brings News

I was sitting at the Gryffindor table with Ron and Hermione when Harry arrived, a small smile plastered on his face.

"What's got you looking so pleased?" I teased as he sat down in front of me.

He seemed mildly surprised that I had spoken to him. "Er... Quidditch later," He said and I nodded.

"Do you mind going out a bit earlier?" Ron asked him. "I could use a bit of training befor practice..."

"Yeah, okay," Harry said, but Hermione shook her head slowly.

"I don't think you should do that. You're both really behind on homework."

Ron rolled his eyes, but Hermione made no further comment as she was now completely absorbed in the copy of the Daily Prophet resting before her.

"Anything interesting?" Ron asked. Harry and I smiled at each other, knowing he was only asking because he was eager to get her off the subject of homework.

"Oh no," She breathed out, making us turn to her.

"What?" The three of us said.

"'The Ministry of Magic has received a tip-off from a reliable source that Sirius Black, notorious mass murderer . . . blah blah blah . . . is currently hiding in London!'" Hermione read in a half whisper half squeal.

"I bet Lucius Malfoy recognized him at the platform," Harry said as we all looked at each other alarmingly.

". . . 'Ministry warns Wizarding community that Black is very dangerous . . . killed thirteen people . . . broke out of Azkaban. . . ' the usual rubbish," Hermione concluded.

"Now he won't be able to get out of the house at all," I said.

"Well, Dumbledore did warn him about this..." Hermione added, making me nod in agreement. "Well, let's get going. We have a lot of homework to do."

***

I had just finished an essay on Self-Fertilizing Shrubs when Ron and Harry gloomily entered the common room.

"How was practice?" Hermione asked even though we could tell by the look on their faces that it had not been so great.

"Completely lousy," Ron said as he sunk in a chair beside Hermione.

"Well, it was only your first one..." she said consolingly.

"Who said I made it lousy?" He snapped, making me frown.

"No one," Hermione said quickly. "I thought..."

"You thought I was bound to be rubbish?"

"Don't be silly Ron, she never said that," I told him, not even bothering to look up from my book. I heard Ron stand up and stomp off to his dormitory before turning to Harry.

"Was he lousy?" I asked.

"No," he said. Hermione and I raised our eyebrows. "Well, I suppose he could have been better..." He muttered, "But it's like you said, Hermione, it was only his first practice."

For the next few hours, I helped Hermione knit a few hats for the house-elves as Ron and Harry tackled their ever-growing pile of homework.

"You know, we probably should try and get more homework done during the week," I heard Harry tell Ron. I laughed slightly, but Hermione only shook her head in an I-told-you-so manner.

It was getting darker outside when Hermione left to fetch something in our dormitory. I stood and walked to the boys, who stared at me questioningly.

"Look, we haven't got much time before she gets back..." I said and handed them several pages of notes. "This is what I've got so far on the Inanimatus Conjurus spell. This is just to help you get started, do not copy!"

"Thanks!" They both said as they smiled at me.

"And yes, you really should try and get more homework done during the week," I said as I sat back down on the sofa.

"Nearly done?" Hermione asked as she came back down.

"Nope," Ron replied.

Harry quickly slid my notes under his book as she glanced over their work.

"Jupiter's biggest moon is Ganymede, not Callisto," She told Ron, who grunted in annoyance.

"Why don't you help us instead of criticizing?" He asked, clearly tired and annoyed.

"Ronald-"

"I haven't got time for another one of your sermons, Hermione," Ron replied in a mocking tone. Harry stared at me with a here-we-go-again look making me nod in annoyance, but my eyes caught sight of an owl outside on the window sill.

"Guys, look!"

"Blimey, is that Hermes?" Ron said as he went to open the window. "What's Percy writing to me for?" he asked as he opened the envelope and began reading the letter.

Ron and Harry scoffed as they read the letter and exchanged gloomy looks after, leaving Hermione and me to wonder about just what was on that letter.

"Well?" I asked impatiently as I gestured for them to pass us the letter.

He handed it over, and I gasped as I read the delicate handwriting that could only belong to Percy.

"Well, if you want to — er — what is it?" Harry checked the letter, " 'sever ties' with me, I swear I won't get violent."

"Rubbish!" I exclaimed, but whatever I might have said next was cut off by a voice coming from the fire.

"Sirius!"

We all ran and crouched down in front of the fire, watching Sirius' head dance in the flames.

"Sirius, what are you doing here?" Harry asked.

"Answering your letter, of course."

At the mention of this letter, Ron, Hermione and I turned to stare at Harry.

"You wrote to him?" I said accusingly. "Harry, that was unnecessarily risky!"

"Oh, it's good of you to worry about me, Elizabeth, but there's really nothing to worry about," Sirius said, but I was still doubtful. "There was nothing remotely suspicious about it."

"Anyway," Sirius went on, "we better hurry in case we're disturbed. Your scar, you said it's been hurting a lot?"

Ron and Hermione seemed shocked to hear this but quickly looked to them to tell them I would explain later.

"We don't think it's really anything to worry about," Sirius said, "It happened a lot last year, no?"

"Yeah, Dumbledore said it happens when Voldemort feels a strong emotion," Harry said, ignoring the three of us as we winced at the sound of the name.

"Well, it's bound to hurt more often now that he's back," Sirius said. "You also said you were worried about Umbridge. What's she doing? Training to kill half-breeds?"

"She's not letting us use magic at all!" Harry said.

"I expect not, the Ministry doesn't want you trained in combat," Sirius explained, making us frown.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "What, they think we're forming a wizard army?"

"That's exactly it," Sirius said. "He thinks Dumbledore wants to use you to take over the Ministry."

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard," Ron admitted.

"Well, I'd better get going, I can hear Kreacher coming down the stairs," Sirius said, "I'll write to tell you a time I can make it back into the fire, then, shall I?" There was a tiny pop, and the place where Sirius's head had been was a flickering flame once more