Slytherin Army [HP]

17. Reapers on a Train

"Hi, Drew!" Wilby rolled his suitcase across the platform to her, beaming. Drew blinked at him uncomprehendingly. Had he spoken?

He came to a halt directly in front of her. His jade eyes were staring uncertainly, and confused, he cocked his head at her, "Hello?"

Drew practically jumped ten feet in the air. She recoiled with a fright and spluttered unintelligibly before she managed to articulate her thoughts. "Wh-what happened to your voice!?"

Wilby's eyes widened with comprehension. Embarrassed, cheeks tinting and eyes averting, he replied slowly, so as not to startle her, "Um...it changed?"

She shook him desperately, and he squeaked in surprise. She cried, "What happened to your cutesy baby voice?! Bring it back!"

He laughed, voice wobbly from her movements, "I c-can't do th-that."

Merlin, he actually sounded older than her.

She flung him back, still eyeing him with a newfound horror, "Are you taller than me, too?"

"By like, this much," Wilby held up his thumb and forefinger two centimetres apart.

Drew imitated his action and stared at her hand, "This much is too much. Don't stand beside me."

He dutifully moved away from her.

"Let's get on the train," she sniffed, stalking off. She could still feel the loss.

How dare he.

* ° * ° *

Sirius Black creeped her out. Like, more than Wilby's new voice did.

Drew and her friends were on the Hogwarts Express, and she took the newspaper from Cyndee and read the front page. Black was an escaped convict from Azkaban, and he was wanted for blowing up a street and instantly killing twelve Muggles. Twelve.

"You shouldn't even be able to escape from Azkaban," Cyndee murmured.

Blaise nodded in agreement, "Not even me."

"You're literally a third year," Drew snapped at him. "You couldn't break out of the least guarded Gringotts vault if you tried."

"A bank vault sounds like a nice place to die," Blaise pondered thoughtfully. "Surrounded by money."

Drew's eye twitched, "Back to Azkaban. Why can't you escape?"

"It's guarded with Dementors," he explained, finally telling her something useful.

"What, the grim reaper things?" Drew asked curiously. She'd done a bit of reading on magical creatures and non-beings, and the Dementor was one that stuck in her mind.

Blaise head tilted, "What on earth is a grim reaper?"

"He's like the Muggle version of Death from The Tale of the Three Brothers," Cyndee explained.

"Well, sure," Blaise rolled his eyes. "Dementors do resemble Death. They also suck the happiness out of you, and can even take your soul with a kiss. Prisoners usually feel so hopeless they don't even try to escape."

Drew stared, "Geez, that's horrible. And Hagrid went there?"

Wilby winced, "Poor Hagrid."

Drew hit him, "Don't talk. Your voice freaks me out."

Cyndee's eyes twinkled as she smiled, "I think it's nice."

"I respect your opinion, even though it's wrong," Drew snapped dismissively. "So about Hagrid, I'm really glad he's back. He's a nice person, and I'm really excited for his class."