white roses // neville longbottom

twenty-seven

i walk with harry as he desperately try's to get mcgonagall to sign his permission slip. "no permission form signed, no visiting hogsmeade." she says. i had simply forgot to ask michelle to sign it so i was straight out of luck. "those with permission, follow me. those without stay put." filch says. "but professor i thought if you signed it, maybe then i could." "i can't. only a parent or guardian can sign. since i am neither it would be inappropriate...i'm sorry potter but that's my final word." mcgonagall says. ron and hermione look at us sadly. "forget about it guys. see you later." harry says and walks off. "have fun." i say before following harry. "don't be sad harry. at least we have eachother." i say smiling and wrapping my arm around his shoulder. he was only four inches taller than me so i didn't have to strain my arm.

"mr potter, miss lestrange. shouldn't you be at hogsmeade?" lupin asks. "should be. but aren't." harry says. we begin to walk with lupin. "i forgot to give my guardian the permission slip and harry's stupid aunt and uncle wouldn't sign it." i say.

"professor can i ask you something?" harry asks as we walk through a connector of the school to the outside. "you want to know why i stopped you facing that boggart, yes? i thought it'd be obvious. i assumed it would take the shape of voldemort." lupin says. "i did think of voldemort at first." wow i must've missed a lot. "but then i remembered that night in the train..and the dementor." harry says. the lean against the edge. "well i'm very impressed. that suggests what you fear the most is fear itself. this is very wise." lupin says. "before i fainted..i heard something. a woman. screaming." harry says. "i heard dementors force us to relive our very worst memories. our pain becomes their power." i say feeling extremely out of place. "i think it was my mother...the night she was murdered." harry says. "the very first time i saw you harry i recognized you immediately. you too of course y/n. but harry not by your scar, by your eyes." lupin says. i look harry in the eyes. "he has his mother's eyes." i say. "exactly." lupin says. "you knew my mother?" harry asks. "oh yes. i knew her. your mother was there for me at a time when no one else was. not only was she a singularly gifted witch she was also an uncommonly kind woman. she had a way of seeing the beauty in others. even, and most especially, when that person could not see it in themselves. and you father james on the other hand...he..he had a certain, shall we say, talent for trouble. a talent, rumor has it, he passed on to you." lupin says and smiles at the both of us. "you're more like them than you know harry. in time you'll come to see just how much."

i grab harry's hand as we walk to the great hall. "y'know harry, you and i are special." i say. "how so?" harry asks squeezing my hand. "we just are. our parents were complete opposites yet we're still friends. if i was anyone at this school i would hate me." i say sitting down at the almost empty gryffindor table. "you're nothing your mom." harry says. "i know. but i still have her blood, that still makes me about 25% bad." i say. "quit talking like that, you're so much more than your blood." he says. the doors to hogwarts open and there's a bunch of chattering. "i suppose they're back already."

a group of us walk to the common room. "what's going on?" harry asks noticing the large crowd infront of the common room. "probably neville forgot the password again." ron says. "hey!" neville says. "oh, you're there." ron says. "let me through please. excuse me! i'm head boy!" percy says. "get back all of you. no one is to enter this dormitory until it's been searched." percy says. "the fat lady! she's gone!" ginny says. there's a large gash in the painting. "served her right. she was a terrible singer." ron says. "that's not funny ron." i say. all of the paintings are going crazy. the baby in the painting next to the fat lady's is wailing. "the headmasters here!" percy says and we all clear a path in the stairwell. "mr. filch? round up the ghosts. tell them to search every painting in the castle to find the fat lady." dumbledore says. "there's no need for ghosts, professor. the fat lady's there." filch says and points. everyone books it to where filch pointed. "dear lady, who did this to you?" dumbledore asks talking to a random hippo painting. i clamp my hand to my mouth. he didnt-  the fat lady peeks her head over the hippo. oh. "eyes like the devil, he's got, and a soul as dark as his name. it's him, headmaster. the one they all talk about. he's here, somewhere in the castle! sirius black!" she shouts. "the rest of you to the great hall!" dumbledore shouts. "sirius black?" i whisper.