PRINCESS ➳ harry potter , draco malfoy (OLD VERSION)

44 || Time

The group clambered out of the secret passage. Ron instantly threw himself to the ground, desperate for some relief on his injured leg. Katie, Harry and Hermione sat down beside him and attempted to aid his wound.

While Lupin was threatening Pettigrew, telling him not to dare to try and escape, Black stepped away from the group and stared at Hogwarts, the illuminated windows of which were the only source of light on the grounds.

"Go talk to him." Katie said to Harry.

Harry shook his head. "No, it's fine, I'll stay."

"We'll stay," Katie protested. "Go."

"You're OK?" Harry asked Ron apprehensively.

"I'm fine. Go."

Harry stood up and made his way over to Sirius. Katie undid her tie from around her neck and tightly bound it around Ron's leg to stop his bleeding. He hissed and grimaced in pain but ultimately nodded a thanks.

"That looks painful..." Hermione said, sounding sick.

"So painful," Ron nodded. "They'll probably chop it."

Katie couldn't stifle her laugh. She snorted and clapped her hand over her mouth in regret, but neither Ron nor Hermione seemed to have noticed.

A cloud shifted. There were suddenly dim shadows on the ground. Their party was bathed in moonlight. Katie could see Lupin's silhouette. His head was growing larger and his body taller.

"Harry!" Hermione shrieked a warning.

Lupin's shoulders were hunching. Hair was sprouting visibly on his face and hands, which were curling into clawed paws. As the werewolf reared, snapping its long jaws, Sirius disappeared from beside Harry and was replaced by a huge, bear-like dog. He snarled at the werewolf and bound forward. They were locked, jaw to jaw, claws ripping at each other.

With one great swipe, the werewolf knocked the dog aside, and it tumbled across the ground with a whimper. The werewolf rounded on Katie, Ron and Hermione. It growled and bared its pointed teeth at them, before springing forward.

Hermione let out a terrified scream as the werewolf drew closer. It swung its gigantic, clawed paw at Ron, but Katie threw herself in front of him at the last moment. She received a huge blow to the side of her head and felt a gash open up on her cheek, before she hit the ground and everything went black.

A ringing sound whistled in Katie's ears. Her head was spinning. Her heart was thumping. She awoke with a start, springing forward. The girl's vision had gone foggy and her eyes darted around the room in desperate search of any familiar shapes.

"Katie? Katie? Are you alright? It's me, it's Hermione."

Katie blinked thrice and her eyesight was restored, though her head was still spinning, making her stomach feel awfully sick. A worried Hermione Granger came into focus.

"Is she alright?" another voice chimed in.

"Hermione," Katie said breathlessly. "What happened? Where's Harry?"

"I'm fine too, thanks." Ron announced sarcastically. Katie looked across the room and saw Ron sat in a bed that was identical to hers. She finally realised that they were in the hospital wing.

"Lupin attacked you," Hermione started to explain. "Well, actually, he attacked Ron. You jumped in front of him. That was really brave of you, Katie."

Not liking the attention and praise, Katie brushed off her heroic act. "Yeah, well, I'm sure any of you would've done the same for me."

"You should lay back down. Madam Pomfrey suspects you have a concussion. You got really lucky, Katie. It could've been much worse." Hermione said as she placed her hands on Katie's shoulders and pushed her back down onto her back. Katie had to admit that laying down did make her feel much better.