Miss Quinn

146 ~ Harry's Vision

"I'm not going . . . I don't need the hospital wing . . . I don't want . . ."

Harry was gibbering as he tried to pull away from Professor Tofty, who was looking at Harry with much concern after helping him out into the Entrance Hall with the students all around them staring.

"Return to your seats!" demanded Professor Marchbanks. "There are still ten minutes left of the examination!"

The fifth years followed her instructions. That was two examinations that had been interrupted. First, Astronomy. Now, History of Magic. Emma tapped the tip of her quill against the desk as she waited for time to be called.

Emma didn't know exactly where Harry would have gone to after his black out, but she, Hermione, Venus, and Ron hurried upstairs, hoping he'd have gone back to Gryffindor Tower. It didn't take long before they ran into him. He seemed to be heading back to the Entrance Hall, still appearing extremely frazzled.

"Harry!" said Hermione at once, looking very frightened. "What happened? Are you all right? Are you ill?"

"Where have you been?" demanded Ron.

"Come with me," Harry said quickly. "Come on, I've got to tell you something." Emma looked to Venus, who was staring at Harry with wide eyes, as if she knew what he was going to tell them.

He led them along the first-floor corridor, peering through doorways, and at last found an empty classroom into which he dived, closing the door behind them the moment they were inside, and leaned against it, facing them.

"Voldemort's got Sirius."

"What?"

"How d'you --?"

"Saw it. Just now. When I fell asleep in the exam."

"But -- but where? How?" said Hermione, whose face was white.

"I dunno how," said Harry. "But I know exactly where. There's a room in the Department of Mysteries full of shelves covered in these little glass balls and they're at the end of row ninety-seven . . . he's trying to use Sirius to get whatever it is he wants from in there . . . he's torturing him . . . says he'll end by killing him!"

Harry moved over to a desk and sat down on it, trying to master himself. He was shaking uncontrollably. Emma didn't know what to say to him. There was a chance what he Saw was just a fake vision. He'd stopped his lessons with Snape. Voldemort could have planted it in Harry's mind.

"How're we going to get there?" he asked them.

There was a moment's silence. Then Ron said, "G-get there?l

"Get to the Department of Mysteries, so we can rescue Sirius!" Harry said loudly.

"But--Harry . . ." said Ron weakly.

"What? What?" said Harry.

He could not seem to understand why they were all gaping at him as though he was asking them something unreasonable.

"Harry," said Hermione in a rather frightened voice, "er . . . how . . . how did Voldemort get into the Ministry of Magic without anybody realising he was there?"

"How do I know?" bellowed Harry. "The question is how we're going to get in there!"

Emma shook her head. "No, Harry, he couldn't have. It's 5 PM. Someone will have noticed Voldemort and Sirius strolling through the Ministry of Magic."

Hermione took a step towards him. "Harry . . . they're probably the two most wanted wizards in the world . . . you think they could get into a building full of Aurors undetected?"