(2) Dracarys (D. Malfoy)

Chapter Fourteen

Harry finds Dani in the common room, curled up in an armchair by the fire. This is not a surprise. They all often find her in that chair, so much so that it's unofficially become Dani's chair and no other Gryffindor sits in it now.

"You missed dinner" She points out without looking at him.

"I was with Professor Lupin" He admits. "He's teaching me a spell to protect me from the dementors"

"Smart" She whispers. "The Patronus charm?" She asks him, he nods and sits on the floor. "Good" She offers as she yawns.

"He says he knew my parents" He admits, she nods in agreement.

"They were friends," She tells him, Harry frowns at her. "Did you know that my mom" She smiles at him. "She was friends with your mom as well" Harry gives her a look.

"You never said anything" He points out, she shrugs.

"Not very often I want to talk about my mom...and I didn't want to upset you either, by talking about yours" She admits, he nods, can understand that. "She was more friends with the boys anyway...." She draws off, thoughtful. "You should get some sleep," She tells him, Harry looks at her.

"So should you" He counters, she shrugs a little. He gives her a small smile and then stands to head to bed.

"Harry" He turns back at her, her eyes all white as she stares at him. "The Sneakoscope that Ron brought you back from Hogsmead" She starts. "Keep it close tonight...and your wand" He frowns a little as her eyes return to normal. "Don't ignore my warning this time..." She adds and then turns back to look at the fire. Harry hums a little and heads up to the boys' chambers.

........

All the other boys are asleep, but Harry remains awake in his bed, Dani's warning spinning around in his head. He lets out a breath and picks up the Sneakoscope, he turns it around in his hand and then sets it on the bedside table, next to a photo of his parents. He turns in his bed, his eyes on the device. He didn't listen to Dani about quidditch, he is not going to ignore her now.

.............

Later; The Sneakoscope is whirling madly against the bedside table, skitters across the cabinet and taps against a water glass, sending shafts of red light over the photo of Harry's parents.

"Aaaahhhh!" Ron screams in the dark, Harry bolts up, awake now. Can see a silhouette against the window. A man clutching a knife. All the boys are up now. Screaming. Amid the chaos, Harry grabs his wand.

"Everybody out!" Harry snaps at his roommates. The others flee. Harry faces the shadow, wand poised in front of him. "Show yourself." Crash! The water glass shatters on the floor and Scabbers darts past Harry's bare feet, chased by Crookshanks. Seizing the moment, the silhouette grasps the curtains and swings through the open window, plunging into the night. Harry rushes to the window, looks down. The man leaps from ledge to ledge with an animal's grace, then... vanishes. Harry sweeps Ron's curtains aside. His bed is... empty. "Ron! Ron!" Harry's eyes flash toward the window, when... Ron pokes his head out from under the bed.

"Is he gone?" Ron asks, Harry lets out a relieved breath.

.....

In the common room, the entire Gryffindor house are all crammed in together. Harry weaves his way through them all, his eyes on a made of white hair. When he reaches her, Harry hugs Dani tightly, she glances at Ron over Harry's shoulder, Ron shrugs a little.

"I promise I will never ignore anything you tell me" Harry whispers to her, she chuckles and hugs him back.

"Nice to see I finally got through to you" She counters, he shakes a little as he laughs. "And all it took was a knife-wielding mad man threatening your best friend" Harry pulls back and looks at Ron.

"Yeah" Harry whispers, Dani touches his arm and then moves away.

...........

Not long later; The entire Gryffindor House, in pyjamas, now stand before McGonagall, who wears a tartan robe and an expression of singular irritation.

"That's preposterous, Weasley. How could Sirius Black possibly have got through the portrait hole?" "

"I don't know how he got in! I was a bit busy dodging his knife!" Just then, a curiously content Crookshanks wends his way through Ron's legs. "And this bloody cat ate my rat!"

"That's a lie!" Hermione defends.

"It is not and you bloody well know it!" Ron argues.

"Silence!" McGonagall orders and then looks at Dani. "Do you have anything to add, Scamander?"

"Ron is right" Dani answers. "It was Black..."

"Anything else? Like how he got in" McGonagall continues.

"He had the password" Dani answers, whispers spread through the common room. "Had the whole week's, in fact. On a little piece of paper."

"Which abysmally foolish person wrote down the passwords and then proceeded to lose them!?" McGonagall asks, literally every set of eyes in the common room move to one person. Neville. McGonagall sighs. "Is it always going to be you, Longbottom?"

"I'm afraid so, Professor" Neville whispers, Dani touches his arm softly.

"While we know Sirius Black is gone tonight, I think you can safely assume he will, at some future time, attempt to return. Let me be clear. You are not to move about the castle alone. And you are not to write down the password! Understood!" A collective nod of the head. McGonagall gives the ties of her robe a sharp tug, collects herself. "Very well then. Go to bed." She tells them all and then exits. As the students drift off, Ron casts a last angry glance toward Hermione, who now holds Crookshanks in her arms.

"I could've killed him" Hermione turns, sees Harry staring out the window. "He was right there. Close enough to touch. I could've killed him." Harry whispers to himself.

"I find it astonishing that someone who prides herself on being so logical can be in such denial."

"Harry. Will you explain to your friend Ronald that he has absolutely no proof whatsoever that my sweet, unassuming cat ate his shabby, decidedly decrepit rat." Hermione points out.

"Harry was there! He'll tell you how it was. Go on, Harry, tell her." Ron pushes.

"No, I won't. Know why? Because I don't care about your stupid rat! I don't care about your stupid cat! I've got a few other things on my mind right now!" Harry snaps at them.

"Really? Wasn't you had to roll under the bed last night to avoid getting cut to ribbons! A person could die being your friend, Harry!" Ron stops, wishes he could take it back. They all wish he could.

"He wasn't after either of you" They all turn to Dani stood behind them.

"What?" Harry asks her.

"Black" She explains. "Neither of you was his target...and Crookshanks didn't eat Scabbers" Hermione shoots Ron a look.

"Who was he after?" Harry asks Dani who looks at Drogon as he curls around her neck.

"The rat" She answers. "I'm starting to understand that dream now...Scabbers is very important to it, at the centre of it" She then turns and heads up towards the girls' dorms. Ron frowns a little.

"She said that, right?" He asks. "That she thinks she's having dreams about Scabbers?" Harry and Hermione nod in agreement. "And that he's important?"