Author's Note: Hey guys! I think this is the fastest update I've ever had. At least you didn't have to wait six months this time. These chapters are taking longer to write and I have to go back to school pretty soon, so hopefully, I'll get at least one more chapter out before then.

So, in this one, we've got the DADA lesson with the boggart, which Leslie is going to freak out during, Sirius Black ripping up the Fat Lady's portrait and the Quidditch match against Hufflepuff. It's going to include a very personal moment between Leslie and Harry and a small conversation with Cedric. Happy reading!

11-10-2003

Dear Diary,

Sirius Black is somewhere in the castle or on the grounds. I know that's not the best news with which to start a diary entry, but it is the main problem we have now. He tried to break into Gryffindor Tower on Halloween while we were all at the feast. Did I mention that Halloween is now officially my least favorite holiday? I'm dreading next year's already just because I know something terrible is going to happen. I tried not to have nightmares about it that night.

On top of that, Malfoy is creating trouble after the Hippogriff incident, he's taunting me because we both know Black's secret, the dementors came to a Quidditch match and had a feast, and this last part is what's bothering Harry the most, he no longer has a broomstick. I don't know why that's bothering him, now that he knows a mad killer is loose somewhere on the castle grounds and is trying to get close enough to him to kill him. I'd be frantic, I am frantic. All right, from the beginning.

Malfoy didn't come back to class for a few days after Buckbeak cut his arm. We were in Potions, learning how to make a Shrinking Solution, when he staggered into the dungeon, over-exaggerating his wound. His arm was even in a sling. The other Slytherins lapped it up. Everyone else rolled their eyes; Harry and Ron looked like they wanted to punch him.

At one point, I went into the student store cupboard to get an ingredient I had run out of and Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson were in there together. She was asking if there was anything she could do for him. I couldn't resist making a snide comment.

"Malfoy, why do I get the feeling that if I went to talk to Madam Pomfrey right now, she'd tell me there's nothing wrong with your arm at all?" I asked.

"She'd tell you that it's a fatal wound," said Malfoy. "I could've lost my arm."

"Oh please, she grew back all the bones in Harry's right arm last year. She can mend cuts in a second. There was absolutely no danger of you losing your arm."

"You're just jealous he's getting attention," said Pansy Parkinson angrily.

"Personally, I've never cared much for attention," I replied. "I find people who seek it constantly, such as you and Gilderoy Lockhart, nuisances." I then looked Malfoy straight in the eye and asked him, "Honestly Malfoy, what is it going to take for you to stop playing the tragic hero and admit you're not really hurt?"

"I am hurt," said Malfoy indignantly, but I could tell he was trying to keep from stuttering. He was also trembling a little and I think it was because I was giving him a very intimidating glare. I gave him a triumphant smirk and shake of my head before going back out to the main dungeon.

But then, Malfoy decided to get back at me. He set up his cauldron next to Harry and Ron. Hermione and I were next to them, so we could hear everything they were saying. Hermione wasn't paying much attention, but I didn't miss a word. Snape made Harry and Ron prepare Malfoy's ingredients for him and at one point, Ron had to change ingredients with the little devil. I know he truly isn't evil at heart, but I can't resist calling him a devil sometimes. Malfoy began taunting Harry and Ron about Hagrid and Buckbeak, saying how his father had a lot of influence over the school governor's and the Ministry of Magic. I had already written my uncle about the incident, thanking God he was a governor, giving my version of the events and because he knew the Malfoy's, he knew I was the one telling the truth. But if everyone else believes what Lucius Malfoy says, there isn't going to be much Uncle Jerry can do.

Professor Snape was giving Neville a lot of trouble. His solution was orange instead of the green it should have been. Hermione offered to put it right, which she did do, but she had to do it behind Snape's back. Seamus Finnegan then asked Harry if he'd heard about the recent Sirius Black sighting. It was in Dovetown, not far from the school.

"I'd have done something before now," said Malfoy suddenly. "I wouldn't be staying in school like a good boy, I'd be out there looking for him."

"What are you talking about, Malfoy?" asked Ron.

"Don't you know, Potter?" asked Malfoy. I was doing some serious multi-tasking, listening to their conversation as well as keeping an eye on Snape so that I could warn Hermione to stop whispering instructions to Neville. But at that moment, my head shot up and all my attention was on Malfoy. I then realized that he knew about Black betraying Harry's parents. He was going to taunt Harry about it without actually saying anything. But if he carried on like this, Harry was bound to figure out something was up and he'd go after Black, which is exactly what I'd promised my uncle I'd try to prevent.

"Maybe you'd better not risk your neck," he continued. "Want to leave it to the dementors, do you? But if it was me, I'd want revenge. I'd hunt him down myself." He gave a smirk when Harry asked again what he was talking about. He then looked over at me and his grin widened. He realized that I knew about Black as well and he also knew that I hadn't told Harry what was going on. I put on an indifferent look quickly, but not quickly enough. Harry looked over at me and he saw that Malfoy wasn't making it up, which is the opinion that Ron took to the whole thing.

We walked up to lunch together, after mending a seam in Hermione's bag. Her books had spilled out of it, showing she was carrying a dozen heavy textbooks, but we only had Defense Against the Dark Arts that afternoon. That coupled with the fact that she had disappeared from our side and reappeared at the bottom of the stairs just before, reinforced my opinion that she's hiding something.

After we got done eating, we still had half an hour to go before our next class. I dug through my bag and found that I had put my notes for Transfiguration into my bag instead of Defense Against the Dark Arts. I told the others I was going upstairs to get the right book and I headed off for Gryffindor Tower. I was up the stairs and in a deserted corridor when I heard footsteps behind me. I ignored them and kept walking, then a drawling voice said behind me, "got some interesting little secrets locked away, haven't you, Angkatell?" I tried hard not to groan. It was Malfoy.

I turned to face him and said, "I hide personal things about myself, Malfoy. What business is it of yours?"

"Everyone in this castle knows you've got secrets, thanks to that shouting match you had with Granger outside of Lockhart's class last year," he said. I hung my head in shame at the way I had shouted at Hermione exactly a year before. Malfoy continued, "but I didn't think you the type to a hide a secret of this magnitude from your friends."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, but it was my turn to squirm under his triumphant look.

"Sirius Black betrayed the Potter's, you know it and so do I," he said. "So why haven't you told Potter about it?"

"Because I've promised someone else I wouldn't," I replied coolly.

"Someone else? Your uncle no doubt. He's the only one you'd make a promise like this to."

"I believe I asked you a moment ago what business it was of yours."

"If you aren't going to tell Potter about it, perhaps someone else should." He trailed off ominously, but what he was saying couldn't have been more obvious.

"You will not tell Harry about it!" I said, more of a command than a request.

"What's stopping me?"

"If you tell him, he'll go looking for Black. He will want revenge. I promised my uncle I wouldn't let that happen. I'm not going to let Harry get hurt. Please, you can't tell him."

"Seeing Potter do something stupid like seek revenge is what'll make this all the more interesting," said Malfoy.

"You won't tell him," I said firmly. "If you have any decency at all, you won't."

"I might tell him, I might not," said Malfoy. "It'll cost to keep me quiet, Angkatell."

"I will not be blackmailed into doing something for you, Malfoy!" I said angrily, my voice rising. "Either you will keep this secret on your own or I will go to a professor, and I'm sure all the professors know of the situation, and I will see that one of them puts you in your place!"

"What's going on?" came a voice from down the corridor. It was Cedric.

"What do you want, Diggory?" asked Malfoy bitterly.

"Mind your attitude, Malfoy," said Cedric. "I am a school prefect."

I wanted to roll my eyes at that, for he sounded exactly like Percy Weasley, but it was effective at this point. Malfoy wouldn't heed anything Percy said just because he was a Weasley, but he'd at least listen to the other prefects. Though I know he'd listen to the Slytherin prefects more than the others.

"What's all this about blackmail?" asked Cedric. "Are you blackmailing Leslie here?"

"No, of course not," said Malfoy quickly. "I was just telling her a secret was safe with me."

"Really, because I distinctly heard you say it'd cost to keep you quiet," said Cedric.

"What business is it of yours, Diggory?"

"It is my business if you're threatening Leslie," said Cedric. "You know Malfoy, just as it'd cost to keep you quiet, it'll cost to keep me quiet about something as well."

Malfoy's pale face went even paler if that was possible. "What're you talking about?"

"Your father has been seen entering and leaving Borgan and Burke's many times over the last few weeks," replied Cedric. "And each time, he's gone in with some kind of trinket and left without it. Since that shop has a reputation of being connected with the dark arts, I think it'd be very damaging to your father's towering reputation if he were caught selling some dark items to that shop. And since I'm sure the owners keep a log of what has been bought and sold, it'd be all too easy to prove your father of practicing dark magic. So unless you want me to tell my father, who'll go right to Leslie's uncle and several other Ministry officials, you'll keep your mouth shut about whatever it is you're taunting Leslie with."

I felt as though I could kiss Cedric after that. Malfoy was trembling badly by this point and I knew what had been said was true. I remembered Harry had said he'd seen Lucius Malfoy in Knockturn Alley the previous summer. It wouldn't surprise me if he was trying to get rid of some things that would prove damaging to him and the family. I also remember Ron said there was a secret panel under the Malfoy's drawing room floor and I believe Mr. Weasley already conducted another raid and found several dark items under there.

Malfoy finally managed to stutter out, "fine, but I'll remember this, Diggory!"

"Is that supposed to scare me?" asked Cedric and I had to admit it was a feeble threat.

The little brat just walked back down the corridor to the entrance hall and I went up to Cedric and gave him a hug.

"Thank you," I whispered.

"Don't mention it," he whispered back. "Where were you off to? I'll see you there."

I looked at my watch and realized I only had ten minutes before Defense Against the Dark Arts. I told him I had been headed back to Gryffindor Tower to get my books and he came with me. On the way there, I told him that Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban to come after Harry, but I didn't tell him about what he had done to the Potter's. I said what I said in hushed tones; I didn't want anyone to hear us, but since there wasn't anyone in the corridor, I suppose we were safe. By the time I finished telling him the basics, we had reached Gryffindor Tower.

"Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban to come after Harry?" he asked, when I returned from the dormitory. I nodded. He continued, "does Harry know that?"

"Of course he does," I replied. "Mr. Weasley told Harry of it before we left London."

"There's more to it, isn't there?" he asked.

"What makes you say that?" I asked testily.

"Because Malfoy wasn't trying to blackmail you for something Harry already knows. Why was he trying to blackmail you?"

"I can't tell you," I said simply.

"I thought I'd made it clear by now you can tell me anything," said Cedric.

"I promised my uncle I wouldn't tell anyone, that includes you."

"No, that's an excuse. I'll bet you just promised your uncle you wouldn't tell Harry."

"You don't have any way of knowing what I have and have not promised my uncle." We had reached the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom by this point and I could see the rest of the class filing in. Harry, Ron and Hermione were waiting for me at the door. "Thank you, Cedric, for helping me."

He nodded at me and walked off. Something else occurred to me just then. This was the first time I had kept from sharing a secret like this from him when he asked me to tell it. I had shared our past secrets with him when I was scared of what we were about to do or when I was very close to my breaking point. I knew he'd keep the secret for me, but I also realized that I didn't have to share everything with him. I barely share anything at all with Harry, Ron and Hermione. I knew this might cause rifts in my relationship with Cedric; after all, he didn't like it when I kept secrets from him. But I couldn't let him know about this, not yet anyway.

I joined the others and we went into the classroom together. I was determined not to tell them about what had just passed. If I told them that Malfoy had tried to blackmail me, it would lead to what secret he knew and that would lead to Harry finding out about Black.

Professor Lupin wasn't there at first. He came in a few minutes later and told us all to put our books away, get out only our wands and to follow him. He lead us to the staff room, having a run-in with Peeves the Poltergeist on the way there, and he showed us a cabinet in the corner of the room. It was rattling as though there was something inside it trying to get out.

"Would anyone like to venture a guess as to what is in that cabinet?" he asked.

"That's a boggart, that is," said Dean Thomas.

"Correct," said Professor Lupin. "Can anyone tell us what a boggart looks like?"

Hermione immediately raised her hand. "No one knows," she said. "Boggarts are shape-shifters. They take the form of whatever it thinks will frighten us most."

"Again correct," said Professor Lupin. He then said it was always better to have more than one person present when dealing with a boggart as it wouldn't know whom to choose. "There's a very simple incantation to repel a boggart. Repeat after me, without wands please, riddikulus." We all said it. "Very good, but the incantation alone is not enough, what really finishes a boggart is laughter. You have to force it to assume a shape that you find truly amusing."

He then called Neville to the front of the room and asked what he was most afraid of. Not surprisingly, he said Professor Snape. Professor Lupin then asked after Neville's grandmother and asked if he could picture her clothes clearly in his mind's eye. We all wondered why he was asking that. He then whispered something in Neville's ear and opened the wardrobe. Professor Snape stepped out of the wardrobe and started toward Neville. He pointed his wand at the fake potions master and said the spell. In a minute, Professor Snape was wearing a long green dress, a hat topped with a stuffed vulture and was carrying a big red handbag. We all burst out laughing at that. The boggart looked at all of us confusedly. We all formed a line and anticipated our turns with it. Professor Lupin put on some music and the fun began.

Parvati Patil stepped forward and her boggart was a mummy. But a second later, one of its bandages had come undone and it had tripped over its own feet. Seamus Finnegan stood before a banshee. In Irish folklore, it's said that if you hear a banshee scream, someone close to you is fated to die. Since this one was fake, we had nothing to worry about. Seamus made her choke and grapple at her throat so she couldn't wail. After a few more people, it was Ron's turn. His turned into a gigantic spider, similar in appearance to the ones in Aragog's lair who had tried to eat him, Harry and I a few months before. He put roller skates on his and then I stepped forward.

This is where it went south. I was expecting it to turn into a giant snake, something I've always been afraid of. But when the boggart saw me, it turned into something completely different. There was a cracking noise and I felt my face go white. There she was, standing before me, the devil woman herself, Bellatrix Lestrange. My first thought was, "oh God, she's broken out of Azkaban and come after me. She's going to kill me and everyone here."

She opened her mouth and said, "the last of the Angkatell's. How difficult it must have been, living all these years knowing that your mother and sister died to save you and you couldn't save them. Don't worry, you'll be with them soon enough." She reached into her pocket for her wand.

A second later, my fear was gone and replaced with a new emotion: rage. I marched toward her, throwing my wand to the ground, fists raised. I didn't register Harry grabbing my arms and holding me back. All I could focus on was that the daughter of Satan was standing in front of me and I had to have my revenge. I started screaming at her, "how dare you! How dare you speak of my mother and sister! How dare you taunt me by making me remember what you did to me and my family! You miserable, wretched, loathsome, deceitful, little devil! Go back to the fires of Hell where you belong!"

"Leslie!" Professor Lupin was standing in front of me now, but I didn't see him. All I could see was Bellatrix standing behind him. "Leslie, calm down now. It's not real. Bellatrix Lestrange is in Azkaban and she's not going to hurt you again."

"Get out of my way," I shrieked. "I'll make her pay for what she did to my family!"

"Leslie!" said another sharp voice. It was Harry. That broke through my haze of anger. I realized that Harry was holding on tightly to both my arms. I stopped struggling after that point. When he realized that I wasn't going to keep fighting, he turned me around to face him and said, "look at me. It's all right. That's a boggart, remember? This isn't your nightmare. This is Hogwarts, you're safe here. She can't touch you here and she never will, I promise."

It was only then I realized that I had lashed out in anger at a boggart, at a shape that wasn't real. I flushed in embarrassment as I realized that the entire class had seen my outburst. They were all looking at me in shock and surprise, a couple with confusion, many with apprehension that I would burst out again. I did burst out again, this time into tears. Harry tried to wrap his arms around me and lead me out of the room, but I shoved him away and ran from the room myself. Everyone moved hurriedly out of the way and I ran all the way back to Gryffindor Tower and collapsed onto my bed. I drew the curtains around me, buried my face into my pillow and laid there and cried for hours. I heard Parvati, Lavender and Hermione come in to drop off their books, but I didn't speak to them. I heard a soft thud close to my bed and later I learned that Hermione had brought my bag and wand back for me.

"Leslie," she said after a little while. "Do you want to come downstairs to dinner?"

"No," I stuttered out. "I'm not hungry."

"You have to eat something," she said. "Besides, you can't hide from the others. You have to come out eventually. Hiding here will only make them talk more."

"Please, Hermione," I said. "I'll face the rest of the school tomorrow. Tonight, just please leave me alone with my misery."

I heard her sigh, then she said, "would you like me to bring you back some food?"

"I shan't eat it," I replied. "I'll eat in the morning, I promise."

"I'll hold you to that and so will Harry," she said before leaving the room.

I stayed there for hours. Even after all my tears had dried, I just laid in bed and thought. Even after the others had gone to bed, I couldn't make myself go to sleep. I started to get restless and finally I pulled the curtains back from my bed. I looked at my watch, it was nearly midnight. I went quietly out onto the landing, thinking it would be good to sit by the fire, but as I looked out over the common room, I stopped. Harry was sitting in a chair by the fireplace, just looking pensively into the flames. I had been very quiet as I left the dormitory, but he still looked up as I came out on the staircase. It surprised me that he just happened to look up as I came out, but after giving it some thought, I don't believe it was a coincidence at all. He didn't say anything, he just raised his hand and gestured with his finger for me to come down and sit with him. I almost went back into the bedroom, I didn't want to talk to anyone about what had transpired. But the look he was giving me told me that it would be better for me to get it off my chest now. I walked quickly and quietly down the stairs and came to stand behind the sofa he was sitting on. He turned his head to look at me and patted the seat next to him. I sat down and we stayed silent for a minute.

"Are you all right?" he asked, after what seemed like a lifetime even if it was only a minute.

"Does it look like I'm all right?" I asked.

"I'm sorry, I had to ask," he said. "You haven't left your room in eight hours."

"I didn't want to go anywhere," I said.

"You didn't come and have dinner."

"I wasn't hungry. I told Hermione I wouldn't eat if she brought something back."

"So she said. She and I are both going to make you eat breakfast tomorrow though."

"I might just be well enough to eat breakfast tomorrow," I said hopefully.

"You might just be well enough to eat now," he said. I looked curiously at him and he reached over to grab a bowl off the small table next to the sofa. It was filled with baked potato soup. "It's not exactly a good meal, but I thought you'd be hungry. Fred and George made a run down to the kitchens for some extra dessert a little while ago and I asked them to get you some soup. They heard from Ron about what happened, they were glad to get it for you. Hermione put a spell on it to keep it hot."

"How'd you even know I'd come down here?" I asked as I took the bowl from him.

"Because you don't do well cooped up inside stone walls," he said. "I knew you'd have to get out of your room eventually. I decided to wait here for you. Drink that, you'll feel better."

I took a sip of it and felt the warmth spread from the center of my body to the tips of my toes. I gave a contented sigh and took another sip. Harry smiled at me and I saw him visibly relax. I finished the soup and he took the bowl from me and set it back on the end table.

"You relived your nightmare without being asleep today, didn't you?" he asked.

I nodded. "I wasn't expecting the boggart to turn into Bellatrix Lestrange. I was planning how to make a snake appear comical. But when that devil appeared before me, at first I thought she was going to kill us all. Then all I could think was how much I wanted to make her pay for my suffering. You understand better than anyone else, Harry, what it's like to grow up without parents. I may've been only a year old and incapable of saving my mother and my sister, but that doesn't mean I don't blame myself. Both of them died to save me. If it weren't for the fact that my uncle got there just in time, I would've died regardless of their efforts."

"I don't blame you for wanting revenge," he said. "But you can't let it consume you."

"Harry, she has taken everything from me, everything," I said, tears gathering in my eyes, threatening to spill. "And I want to hurt her. To put my wand against her head and curse the life right out of her. Oh God, I'm so afraid."

"What are you afraid of?" asked Harry.

"I'm afraid of what I might do if she does ever break out of Azkaban. She'll come after me and when she does, I'm afraid that I'll do just that and kill her. Then I'll be no better than she is and I'll spend the rest of my life brooding about what I had done to her and never managing to feel an ounce of regret for it."

"You've already spent most of your life festering over what she did to you. If you kill her, you're right, you will brood about it forever, which is why I'm going to suggest that you dismiss her from your mind for now."

"I can't," I said, one tear falling from each eye.

Harry placed his index finger under my chin, tilted my face up so I was looking at him and said, "you can, you will."

I gave a small sob and buried my face into his shoulder. He wrapped one arm around my shoulders, the other arm around my waist and rested his head on top of mine, gently rocking me back and forth. This was a more intimate gesture than I had shared with Cedric, but I didn't object. Harry was the person with me and only Harry could understand what I had been through. Even though I knew Cedric would try to help me through this if he knew about it, this time only Harry could provide me the comfort I needed. Harry stayed quiet and let me get these feelings out of my system. When I was done, the shoulder of his robes was soaked with tears, but he didn't seem to mind. He just smiled at me and asked if I felt better, though I believe he smiled because he already knew the answer to that.

"Much," I replied, giving the first smile I'd had all day. His grin widened and he kept his arm around me as we sat back on the sofa together. Then I asked him, "what happened after I left?"

"If you could call the exit you made just leaving," he said jokingly. "The boggart changed shape right after you left and looked at me. I think it was going to turn into a dementor, but then Professor Lupin stepped in front of me and it changed into a silvery orb. He forced it back into the wardrobe and dismissed us. We all tried to make small talk about our attempts at it, but everyone was wondering about you. They're all worried about you, Leslie."

"Everyone in the school will know my problems now," I said. "They'll also know the burdens I carry."

"I think you'll find no one will talk about it unless you bring it up," said Harry. "Professor Lupin insisted that we do nothing to upset you even more."

"I'm going to have to remember to thank him," I said.

"I don't think he'll take thanks, but if I were you I'd visit him tomorrow and let him know you're all right. He was more concerned about you than Hermione and I were and we were the most worried of everyone there."

"I will," I said, then it was silent again for a minute. Then I asked him, "Harry, when the dementor entered our compartment on the train that night, what happened when you fainted? What did you see in your mind's eye?"

He hesitated and I could tell he was wondering what to tell me. Finally, he said, "I didn't see anything. The dementor came in, my world went black and before I lost consciousness, I heard a woman screaming my name. I thought it was you, Hermione or Ginny. But then Hermione told me that no one screamed and I wondered where it had come from. I think it was my mother the night she died."

"You relived that night, just as I relived my nightmare in vivid detail," I said, a shudder running down my spine. Harry's arm tightened around my shoulders.

"We're going to have to find a way to beat this," he said. "If the dementors come inside the grounds, which they're not allowed to do, but still, we have to learn how to fight them."

"Is there a way to fight them?"

"We'll find a way, we have to. I'll ask Professor Lupin if he knows how to do it."

I nodded and said, "thank you, Harry, for everything."

He gave me a small smile and nod and said, "you're welcome. Now, why don't you get some sleep?"

I only just then realized how tired I was. We said goodnight, went up to our dormitories and for the first time that day, I felt calm. I fell into a peaceful sleep and the next morning, I was able to walk down to breakfast and to class with my head held high, despite the looks everyone who was in Defense Against the Dark Arts the day before was giving me.

The next six weeks passed without incident, and we fast approached the end of October. The first Hogsmeade weekend was on Halloween. I wasn't too keen on passing the dementors to get into the village and I had to admit that I wanted Harry there with me when I walked past them, but he was stuck in school because he didn't have a signed permission form. We said goodbye in the entrance hall and I walked out of the school with Ron and Hermione. As we approached the gate, I hesitated. I could feel the dementor's presence from there and already, I could hear my mother's voice as she told Elena to try and get away. I felt the blood drain from my face and for a moment, I thought I was going to faint again.

Suddenly, I felt someone at my shoulder. "It's all right, Leslie," they said. "Just close your eyes, take deep breaths, and try to think happy thoughts. Whatever you do, don't concentrate on the depression." It was Cedric.

"I can't," I whimpered, feeling more depression wash over me.

"Yes you can," he said. "Try, please Leslie, try for me."

"Leslie," came Hermione's voice from my other side. "Do what he says."

I shut my eyes and inhaled deeply, but it just seemed to bring in more thoughts of pain. Cedric wrapped his arm around my shoulders and took one of my hands in his. Hermione looped her arm through mine and the two of them supported me between them. I breathed a small sigh of relief knowing I had them with me, and leaned my head on Cedric's shoulder, allowing him to guide me past the dementors. I thought of every good memory I had of him, of Uncle Jerry, of Harry, Ron and Hermione. It helped a little, but not much. I felt my knees buckle under me as I walked through the gates. Even with shut eyes, I could sense that those creatures were turning their hooded faces to look at me, could smell their putrid breath in the air. But knowing Cedric and Hermione were there with me brought me enough comfort to face my fears and walk past the monsters that were forcing me to relive them. My two allies supported me down the path, doing most of the walking for me, until we were halfway to the village.

"Stop a moment," said Cedric. We were already lagging behind because I was walking so slowly.

"We have to keep going," said Hermione. "We have to get further from the school."

"We're far enough away the dementors won't affect her," said Cedric, making me sit down on the ground. He kept his right arm around my shoulders and Hermione kept a hand on my arm. Cedric pulled something out of his robes, another bottle of smelling salts. My uncle must've written him to have a bottle handy for after I got past the dementors. He held it under my nose and after taking a few whiffs of it, I felt my head clear and I stood up with his help.

"Thank you, both of you," I said.

"You're welcome, Leslie," said Hermione. Cedric just nodded.

"Where've you two been? What's he doing here?" asked Ron, standing a few feet away, directing his question at Hermione and I. He had walked on ahead and hadn't noticed until a moment before that we had lagged behind. He isn't that fond of Cedric, for reasons I'm not aware of.

"I almost passed out again walking past the dementors," I said icily. "Cedric and Hermione were helping me. You're honestly saying you didn't notice we weren't with you until a moment ago?"

"More than that," said Cedric, just as icily. "You didn't notice that Leslie needed help and support?"

"I was trying to keep the dementors from messing with my head," he said, which was an excuse more than an explanation. "I didn't really see what was going on around me."

"After what happened on the train, you should've been keeping an eye on her, like Hermione and I were, like Harry would've if he were here," said Cedric. "You should learn to pay better attention to your friends."

I dearly wanted to say, "he also needs to take better care of his pets," because his rat, Scabbers, is looking thinner and sicklier than ever. Ron says it's because Crookshanks keeps chasing him, but I'm not so sure. Scabbers was looking ill before that cat ever came along. I made a mental note to tell Ron this later.

Ron was stuttering, trying to find something to say to this, but Hermione just grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the village. Cedric kept his arm around me and led me on right behind them.

"Has he always been like that?" he asked me, nodding at Ron.

"Always," I said, rolling my eyes. I told him about how I had shouted at Ron a few months earlier for not seeing the big picture, the night Harry and I had our little chat outside on the grounds. Cedric shook his head when I was done.

"He needs to learn how to open his eyes, see that he's hardly ever right and start looking at the situation as a whole," said Cedric.

"You're right," I said. We walked the rest of the way into the village together. I could see Ron and Hermione waiting for me and a bunch of Cedric's friends were waiting for him at the door of The Three Broomsticks. We said goodbye and I joined Ron and Hermione. We spent most of the afternoon exploring the village, buying souvenirs for Harry in the hope that he wouldn't feel quite so left out. I don't think it helped much. When we got back to the castle that evening, Harry was still miserable over the fact that he didn't get to go. He told us about how he had had tea with Lupin in his office and how Snape had come in with a steaming goblet, the contents of which Lupin drank. Ron thought he was mad. I had to agree with him; one shouldn't trust anything Snape gives you.

The Halloween feast was marvelous. The food was excellent and the ghosts provided the entertainment. I thought fondly that perhaps we finally had a Halloween where nothing would happen and we could just enjoy the festivities. But as we ascended the stairs to the Gryffindor common room, we saw that the Fat Lady was gone and her portrait had been slashed. Professor Dumbledore, Filch and many of the other professors came to see what was going on.

"Mr. Filch," said Dumbledore. "Round up all the ghosts and tell them to search every portrait in the castle until they find the Fat Lady."

There was no need for ghosts however. Filch spotted her in another portrait almost at once and she revealed to us that Sirius Black had tried to gain access to the tower. Dumbledore sent us all back down to the Great Hall and a few minutes later, the other three houses joined us. The professors began a thorough search of the castle and the prefects went outside to stand guard over the entrances. Harry, Ron, Hermione and I grabbed four sleeping bags, which Professor Dumbledore had provided for the students, and we dragged them into a corner where we could talk. I saw Cedric looking over at me from another part of the hall and I mouthed to him that we'd talk later. He nodded, but I could tell he wanted to join in our conversation.

"It's lucky you know," said Hermione. "The one night we weren't in the tower."

"I reckon he's lost track of time being on the run," said Ron. "Didn't realize it was Halloween. Otherwise he'd have come bursting in here."

"No," I said. "It wasn't luck and I doubt he mistook the day. If you want to kill someone, you plan it thoroughly. You wait for the time you know they'll be alone or you plan it in a way so that if you do have to kill him in a public space, you can get away quickly enough. He knew we weren't going to be in the tower, I'm sure of it."

"But why would he want to get into the tower if he knew we would all be at the feast?" asked Hermione.

"I don't know," I answered. "Perhaps he wanted to hide in the tower and wait for us all to go to bed. Then he could wait for the right time to murder Harry in his sleep."

"How could he wait for us in the tower?" asked Ron. "There's nowhere to hide."

"He could under one of your beds," I said. "He could lie there and wait patiently on the floor. Then when he was sure everyone was asleep, he could kill Harry and get away and none of us would be any the wiser until morning. By then, he'd be long gone."

"That's a good point, Leslie," said Harry, who was doing a remarkably good job of hiding how nervous he was. "But we're still forgetting, how did he get in?"

We listened to some of the crazy theories that were circulating around: Apparition, flying, disguised himself, etc. Hermione shot them all down, not that the others heard.

"You can't Apparate in here," she said. "There are dementors at every entrance, they can see through invisibility cloaks. I'd like to see the disguise that can fool them. They'd have seen him fly in too."

"How can he have done it then?" I asked. Percy Weasley shouted for everyone to hear then that the lights were going out and we had to stop talking. We didn't fall asleep at once though. We laid there whispering for awhile, then Ron and Hermione both fell asleep. Harry and I didn't though. He checked to make sure Percy wasn't anywhere close by and whispered to me, "Leslie, what happened a few weeks ago, before the lesson with the boggart?"

"What are you talking about?" I whispered back.

"You know what I'm talking about. That Potions lesson, when Malfoy was talking about going after Black, he wasn't making that up, was he?"

"Of course he was," I muttered. "He wants you to get hurt, look like a fool."

"Maybe he does, but he wasn't making it up like Ron and Hermione think. He knows something and I think you know it too. I saw the look on your face when you heard what he was saying. And I saw the smirk on his face that told me he knows you know. I used a spell Hermione taught me to hear what you and Cedric were saying as you approached the classroom. Why was Malfoy trying to blackmail you? What did you promise your uncle you wouldn't tell anyone about?"

"They call it a promise for a reason," I whispered harshly, stopping when I heard Percy's footsteps coming in our direction. Harry and I hurriedly shut our eyes and pretended to be asleep, but I think Percy knew we were both awake. There was nothing he could do though, so as soon as he passed on, I whispered, "I'll tell you when the time is right, if that time ever comes. Hopefully, it never will. Now, no more talk on the subject." I closed my eyes then and tried to go to sleep and Harry could see that I wasn't going to talk anymore, but by the disgruntled sigh he gave, I knew he wasn't pleased.

Professor Dumbledore came in about two in the morning and Harry and I both heard him talking to Professor Snape telling him that the entire castle had been searched and that Black was nowhere to be found. My heart sunk at that. I had been so sure they would catch him and now that he was gone again, it meant that he could come after Harry any time he pleased. Snape also said something about concerns he had prior to the start of term about his appointment of one of the members of the faculty. But Dumbledore cut him off before he could finish the sentence. Clearly, Snape believes someone inside the castle is helping Black enter it, but just as clearly, Dumbledore doesn't believe it. I'm not sure I do either. Why would someone inside the castle help Black to enter it? He escaped fairly close to the start of term, only a few days before we received our Hogwarts letters with our booklists. That would mean all the faculty for that year had been finalized. When would an accomplice of Black's have had time to gain admittance to the castle? And how would they have gotten past Dumbledore? He would've seen them for who they were, yes? I don't know what to think anymore.

The next morning, we all went back to the common rooms together. Because it was still the weekend and we didn't have to go to class, the teachers thought it would be best if we all stayed in the dormitories until they were absolutely sure the castle was safe. I was sure it was, Black wasn't fool enough to linger. Nonetheless, we were all made to spend the rest of the next day in our dormitories. While the rest of Gryffindor House sat and talked about Sirius Black, I went upstairs to the dormitory and tried to get some more sleep. But my head was buzzing with thoughts of how he managed to get inside the castle. I just couldn't make my thoughts stop for even a minute.

Suddenly, I heard a tapping on the window. I looked up and I saw Cedric's owl, Diana, sitting there looking at me. I went to the window and allowed her to come in. She had a note from Cedric clutched in her talons. I took it from her and noticed that she didn't fly off immediately, which meant that she'd been told to await a response. The note read:

Leslie,

We need to talk, but I assume you've been trapped in your dormitory as well. I don't want you to leave your dormitory either. I seriously doubt Black is still in the castle, but I don't want you to have a run in with him. Even if you have your cloak on, you could gasp or something and give yourself away. Send me a note back and tell me what you and your friends were talking about last night. I know you have some theories and I want to know about them.

Expecting your answer,

Cedric

I quickly wrote back, telling him what Harry, Ron, Hermione and I had said the previous night. His next note agreed with me on my theory that Black was trying to infiltrate the Gryffindor common room before we got back so that he would have an easier time murdering Harry. But he didn't have any thoughts on how Black entered the castle grounds either. We sent messages through Diana for awhile, but stopped when neither of us could come up with anything conclusive.

The next few days were passed with me looking over my shoulder, thinking Black might appear at any moment. But considering that we were being followed wherever we went, I don't think there was much chance of that happening. Percy Weasley and all the professors were watching Harry like hawks; Cedric was doing the same to me. Professor McGonagall summoned Harry into her office, saying she didn't want him practicing Quidditch in the evenings anymore, but he got her to ask Madam Hooch to oversee their training sessions.

"It's good that you're still training," I said to Harry that night. "It'll get your mind off things." He nodded and I could tell he was grateful for it too.

The only problem with this scenario is that Malfoy is still playing the injured party two months after his cut. This is really starting to get annoying. I even think the rest of the Slytherins have caught on to what he's doing, but are going along with it just so they have an excuse to stir up more trouble. Gryffindor is playing Hufflepuff in the first match of the season and Cedric is the Hufflepuff seeker. He just got the position this year. I'm going to do my best to cheer on both of them, but I don't know how well that's going to go down. I overheard one of Cedric's friends asking him if his friend, little Miss Angkatell, was going to cheer for him instead of famous Harry Potter. Cedric gave a very diplomatic answer and said that he was sure I would cheer for them both as they're both my friends. I gave a sigh of relief at that, but I don't think his friend was very pleased.

Something interesting though, two days before the match, we had Defense Against the Dark Arts and Snape was teaching it instead of Lupin. He taught us about werewolves, gave Ron detention and almost made Hermione cry. She tried to explain that we hadn't reached werewolves yet and then answered the question Snape asked us correctly. He took five points from Gryffindor for speaking out of turn even though the answer was right. That man is insufferable! But all the same, I can't help but wonder why he was teaching the lesson and why Snape was making us learn about werewolves.

Then came the Quidditch match and to make things even worse than they already were, there was a raging thunder storm outside. Of course they weren't going to cancel a Quidditch match for a trifle like a thunder storm (Oliver Wood's words, not mine), but I still wished they would postpone the match until they had decent conditions. The match began and I could see immediately that Harry was having problems. The winds were so strong that Harry was almost knocked off his broom. Nimbus 2000 brooms are made for speed, not durability during rain and Harry, like most seekers, is light and speedy which makes it easier for him to fly quickly. Cedric is strong and heavy, so his weight kept him from being buffeted by the wind.

"Harry doesn't stand a chance!" Ron shouted over the wind. "The weather's too strong!"

"Don't be such a pessimist!" I shouted back. "He'll be fine!"

But that wasn't true and we all knew it. He was fighting to stay on his broom as the rain fell. I could also see that the rain was getting in his eyes and he was having vision problems. He and Cedric went shooting after the Snitch, but then I saw Harry stop abruptly and it wasn't hard to see why. The wave of misery and depression washed over the entire Quidditch pitch and all of a sudden, I was no longer on the Hogwarts grounds, but back in my nightmare. I could see my sister running through the woods, trying to get away from Bellatrix Lestrange, I could hear Bellatrix coming up behind her, I could even smell the pine trees. I couldn't help it, I passed out again.

I woke up a few minutes later, giving another scream as I did. Hermione and Ron were kneeling down next to me.

"Leslie, are you all right?" asked Hermione.

I was shaking just as badly, if not worse, than I did that night on the train. I wasn't all right at all. Apparently, well over 100 dementors had entered the Quidditch pitch and decided to feed on the emotions of all the student body. Dumbledore was furious, he sent them straight off. They affected Harry too. He fell off his broom, fell well over 100 feet, but Dumbledore managed to catch him. Cedric caught the Snitch, then looked down to see what was going on. He tried to get a rematch, but he got it fair and square. It looks like I fainted at the same time as Harry. I almost fell over the side of the stands, but Hermione caught me just in the nick of time.

Harry was taken straight to the hospital wing and the rest of us all went to see if he was all right. I wanted a glass of brandy after what I had just been through anyway. Hermione conjured up a glass for me after we had gotten back into the castle. While we were waiting for Harry to wake up, Professor Flitwick came in with a bundle in his arms. Harry's broom got blown away after he fell off and it flew right into the Whomping Willow. I gasped when I saw the tangle of twigs and branches that was all that's left of the broom. Poor Harry. He was so broken-hearted over the loss of his broom. I didn't know what to do to make him feel better.

He was released from the hospital wing this morning and I've spent this entire day trying to figure out how Black got into the grounds and how we can stop him. This whole thing is going to come to a head pretty soon. Harry's going to figure out the secret I've been keeping from, Black is going to find us, the dementors are going to keep coming after Harry and I unless we can find a way to fight them. This is all just too much. I can't wait until Christmas. I'm going home to Uncle Jerry and I can just get away from all this for awhile. But I might not go home. We'll have to see. I may have to stay here and be with my friends. But we'll have to see what goes on. Sweet dreams little diary. I'm sure you'll have better dreams than I will.

Love,

Leslie

Author's Note: All right, so that's the next chapter done. What did you think? I really wanted the focus of it to be the lesson with the boggart so that I could reveal that Leslie had subdued anger hidden beneath the surface of her mind. She isn't even aware that she is this angry, but seeing Bellatrix Lestrange again makes it surface.

In the next chapter is going to be Christmas, Harry getting the Firebolt and I don't know what else. I haven't decided whether or not Leslie is going to stay at Hogwarts with the others over Christmas break yet, but I don't think she is. I think I'm going to have her spend her break with her uncle. Harry's also going to find out that Black betrayed his parents and he's going to figure out that Leslie knew about it.

One more thing, I'm soon going to write a Harry Potter one shot and when it comes up, it would mean a lot to me if you all would read it. It's going to be a songfic to "You Raise Me Up," originally performed by Josh Groban, but the link I'm going to put on my profile to the song is going to be the Celtic Woman version of "You Raise Me Up." It'll be available soon. Thanks for staying with this story! Stay tuned!