Crookshanks | 𝘚𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘴 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬

Chapter 157

After the Hogwarts Express finally came to a stop in the Hogsmeade Station, the students got out of the train one by one. Hermione carried Crookshanks's basket with herself along with her trunk, talking with Ron about their prefect duties this year.

    Jenna was glad that the luggages and the animal's cages would magically be transported to the dorms, and that she didn't have to get to Hogwarts with the carriages. She was glad, seeing as she hated seeing the Thestrals that pulled the carriages, because to her, they were just a reminder of all the people she had seen die right in front of her eyes.

    Although she did realize that there was something different going on this year; many Aurors stood guard at the gates, searching the luggages for anything unusual.

    Not surprising, Jenna thought to herself, knowing that it was reasonable to make the castle more secure.

    Jenna didn't see Harry get off the train after Ron and Hermione had left, and she just assumed that he had went up to the castle earlier. But before she could make sure of this, her cage had appeared inside the Gryffindor dorm magically in a split moment.

***

Jenna didn't get the chance to speak with Hermione that night, or even the next morning, because she couldn't risk transforming into her human form with the dorm and the common room so crowded.

    The next day, Jenna waited for everyone to leave the common room and get to their classes before she sneaked out and made her way over to the kitchen. She wanted to speak with Mickey, and ask him to keep an eye on Kreacher.

    It was Jenna's her first day at Hogwarts, and she was already bored. Or rather, she felt useless. She wanted to do something for the Order, and to fight along Sirius. But now all she could do was worry for him, afraid that he would get hurt, and yet she wouldn't be there to help him.

     Her mind was in chaos for every minute of every hour, and she couldn't stop her thoughts from going to the worst placing, imagining Sirius in danger and in deadly situations. She even worried for Remus, afraid to think of what would happen if Greyback and the other werewolves figured out that he was a spy.

     So in order to get her mind off such matters and to distract herself from all these horrifying scenarios, Jenna decided to pay Hagrid a visit in his hut. Still in her cat form, Jenna made her way down to the edge of the Dark Forest, seeing the smoke leaving Hagrid's chimney.

    When Jenna reached his hut, she hopped behind his window in her cat form, looking inside to make sure nobody else was in there. Once she was certain that Hagrid was alone, making tea by his fireplace, she jumped down and got to his door, scratching at it as though knocking.

     In a few short moments, Hagrid opened the door, looking around in confusion when he didn't see anybody outside. Although he became startled when Crookshanks let out a meow down at his feet, catching his attention.

    "Oh, it's just yeh." Hagrid chuckled in relief, before moving aside to let the ginger cat inside.

     He then looked around carefully before closing the door. When he turned around, he saw Jenna standing there in her human form, a tired and anxious look in her hazel eyes.

     "How are you doing, Hagrid?" Jenna asked, taking a seat behind his abnormally large table.

     "Not good, to be honestly." Hagrid heaved a loud sigh. "Tea?" he offered.

    "Yeah, sure." Jenna shrugged. "What's wrong?"

     "Just learned that Harry and Ron and Hermione didn't pick a class with me," Hagrid said in disappointment, pouring Jenna some tea. "Can you believe 'em!?"

    "Um... well... they might've been very busy this year... probably had a tough schedule," Jenna tried to reason as Hagrid grumpily laid the cup before her on the table and sat down as well.

    "Yeah, right," Hagrid said bitterly. His heart was obviously broken over the matter, but he shook his head. "Anyway... Heard the news? Dumbledore's brought back old Horace Slughorn. Yeh remember him?"

    "Slughorn?" Jenna repeated in surprise. "Of course I remember. He was our Potions master. But why him? What about Snape?"

    "Snape's the new Defense Against the Dark Arts, he is," said Hagrid.

     "What!?" Jenna exclaimed. "How come!?"

     "Dunno... but Dumbledore's always got his reasons." Hagrid sighed deeply again. "Great man, Dumbledore. Great man."

     "If you say so," Jenna muttered under her breath distantly, still wondering why Dumbledore had brought Slughorn back to Hogwarts to teach Potions.

     Although she couldn't deny that Hagrid was right. Dumbledore never did anything without a reason. Perhaps he needed Slughorn for something, but Jenna doubted that it had anything to do with Potions.

     Just then, Jenna's eyes fell upon a little wrist watch, hung on the wall to her right. She found it interesting, because she couldn't figure why Hagrid would own such a small watch, while having giant hands; it certainly didn't fit him. And why would he even hang it on the wall, when he had another clock in his hut?

    "Interesting watch you have," said Jenna, pointing at it before taking a sip of her tea.

    Although she then grimaced at the bad taste of the tea, putting the cup back down on the table. Thankfully Hagrid was now too busy looking at the silver wrist watch on the wall to see her expression.

    "That belonged to an old friend," he said, and Jenna noticed a sad smile on his lips. "She was a really nice girl, she was."

    "Who?" Jenna asked curiously.

     "Alexandra, of course," Hagrid answered, looking down at his cup as he sniffed. "Yeh must know her. She went to Hogwarts at yer time."

     "Did she? I don't remember her, to be honest... What's her full name?"

     "Alexandra Starling. She was a Ravenclaw girl. Very sweet, she was. I don't suppose I've seen anyone like her."

    "Starling... Starling..." Jenna repeated her name under her breath thoughtfully, trying to see if it rang any bell. But then it suddenly hit her. "Oh, yeah! I remember her now! Poor girl... she was the one whose parents' dead bodies were found. Where is she now?"

    Tears gathered in Hagrid's eyes at her memory. "Gone missing, years ago. Nobody knew what happened to her. Everyone assumed she was dead, but her body was never found."

    "Oh... I'm so sorry to hear that," Jenna said sympathetically as she watched the large tears streamed down Hagrid's face.

     "The half-elf who raised her — Edna — died just a few years ago of old age, but even she hadn't heard a word about Alex." Hagrid sniffed loudly. "After the firs' war ended, Alex's old friend came to me, asking 'bout her. Mike Williams. He was a Muggleborn, so his family had fled the country long ago."

     Jenna remembered him too. Mike was the Ravenclaw's Quidditch Captain.

    "He was hoping that I'd heard of Alex," Hagrid went on, sobbing. "He was very sad, yeh see. But he's livin' in London now, I suppose. Has a wife and a kid and all."

     Jenna had stopped listening now, because she had suddenly remembered that Alexandra Starling was in fact Regulus's friend. Jenna found it extremely odd that they had both gone missing in the first war, and neither of their bodies were found.

     She had discussed the matter with Sirius many times before, about the possibility of Regulus still being alive and the fact that he could be Lexi's father. But this made her wonder if this Alexandra girl had anything to do with it.