Badgersoul

Chapter 14: Under Pressure

Chapter 14: Under Pressure

Came up with a brilliant idea to speed up the Animagus process. The Meteleojinx, which causes a small, localized thunderstorm to appear could work and change their potions to red. I just need a test subject before telling Sirius and James... wonder what Pettigrew's up to these days?

**

Leo's statement proved to be correct. Rita Skeeter did not, in fact, press charges or sue for damages. Instead, three days following the incident, she posted a rather nasty article that made Leo out to be some sort of deranged lunatic with severe anger issues and made a point of saying that if he wasn't careful, he'd end up turning out just like his uncle. Personally, Leo already felt he had reached and even surpassed that point. He was quite proud of it, actually.

Far from being an insult, comparing him to Sirius was a compliment. He was a fiercely loyal friend who sacrificed everything to try and get the person who had essentially murdered – and tried to murder – the last family he had left. He'd received a rotten hand in life, but made the best of it and continued to keep smiling, joking, and helping those who needed it. Sirius was someone he looked up to and admired ever since they had first exchanged letters. Sirius Black was his hero, and Leo was damn proud to be cast in the same light as him.

Unfortunately, the rest of the school didn't see it that way. Despite being more well-known for his quirky nature and as a troublemaker on par with the Weasley twins, Leo was also quite well-known for his explosive temper. His actions toward Lockhart on the Quidditch Pitch two years ago and – somewhat more recently – the times he had set Zabini and Ron's robes alight last year stood out well in their minds and even featured in Skeeter's article.

"You know, you never did apologize for setting my robes on fire," Ron commented over dinner one night.

"And I'm not going to," Leo snapped back, absently stabbing a potato. "It was an accident – but you were being a git and deserved what you got."

Ron opened his mouth to argue but Hermione cut across him.

"You shouldn't have attacked Skeeter and broken her camera," Hermione scolded him. "You're very, very lucky all she did was write an article."

"As opposed to what exactly?" Leo grumbled.

"Suing you, filing assault charges, trying to get you expelled or chucked in Azkaban," Draco replied, receiving a dirty look in response. "Not that she'd be able to. Father has a lot of pull at the Ministry and, if you get chucked in Azkaban, there's a risk that the Ministry will seize your funds and Father'll never see a Knut."

"Nice to know there's an upside to all this," Leo rolled his eyes before pushing his plate away. "I'm not very hungry right now. I'll see you lot later."

He rose from his seat and traipsed out of the Great Hall and through the giant oak front doors of the entrance hall. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his robes as he made his way down the lawn toward the Whomping Willow, where he levitated a stick to press a knot in the trunk and freeze it momentarily. He walked inside, going down the long, winding tunnel to the Shrieking Shack and coming up to enter a dusty, semi-destroyed room. Fen was there, laying on the couch with his tail wagging as Leo approached.

"Reckon you've had a better day than I have, Fen," he remarked, flopping onto the couch next to the wolf and scratching him behind the ears.

Fen gave a flick of his ear before turning his head to the side in curiosity. Leo explained about Skeeter and her attempts to turn the wizarding world against him. Fen remained quiet the whole time, and Leo almost wondered if the wolf could even understand him. But intelligence sparkled behind those blue-grey eyes, comforting the teen with the knowledge that someone was listening to him and – hopefully – understood him. When he finished, Fen rested his head on Leo's lap and gave a sympathetic whine.