Christmas was over, stress levels were high as the new school term approached. Harry was stressed over having to do twice as many Quidditch practices, homework, think about Sirius Black, and our after school lessons with Lupin. I was stressed for nearly the same reasons. Except Quidditch of course. I had dropped muggle studies, because honestly, I lived and grew up with them. I wasn't about to learn what I already knew. It wasn't helpful. I was, however, very excited to start our lessons with Professor Lupin. I'd read all about the charm he was going to be teaching us.

    "Olivia, Harry! There you are. You came." Lupin greeted us in his classroom. He seemed very tired still even after his recuperation time. "Now, are you two sure about this? You know, this is very advanced magic, well beyond the Ordinary Wizarding Level."

    "I'm sure." Harry and I chimed together.

    "Well, everything's prepared. Now, the spell I'm going to try to teach you is called the Patronus Charm. Did you ever hear of it?" Lupin asked.

Harry shook his head no.

    "Yep." I piped up happily and Lupin chuckled.

    "I'm not surprised. I suppose you studied for this, Olivia?" Lupin asked with a raised brow.

    "Yes, sir." I nodded.

    "Tell me what you've learned."

    "Well, the Patronus Charm is a kind of positive force of light, and for the witch or wizard that can conjure one it acts as a shield. There are two kinds of Patronus's. A Corporeal, and Incorporeal. The Incorporeal Patronus is the most common one used amongst wizards because it's the easiest of the two two cast. It's basically a simple, but powerful beam of light that acts as a shield. A Corporeal Patronus is the hardest to cast because it takes immense concentration and strength. It takes on the form of an animal to protect you from Dementors." I explained mainly to Harry as we stood at the center of the room.

    "Very, very good, little one. A Patronus is used to protect yourself from Dementors, forcing them to feed on it rather than yourself. But, in order for them to work, you need to think of a memory. Not just any memory, a very happy memory, a very powerful memory. Think you can do this?"

    "I think so." I nodded.

    "Sure." Harry nodded.

    "Very well. Close your eyes." Professor Lupin stated. He raised his hand and ushered us to gently close our eyes. I closed them and listened to the sound of his voice. "Concentrate. Explore your past. Do you have a memory?"

I thought about every happy moment in my life. Harry and I as kids, meeting our friends for the first time. Coming to Hogwarts, spending time with Ron...

    "Allow it to fill you up. Lose yourself within it. The speak the incantation. 'Expecto Patronum.'"

    "Expecto Patronum." Harry and I said softly with our eyes still closed.

    "Very good. Shall we?" Professor Lupin asked. He moved across the room and gestured to a large chest that had been sitting on the floor near us. We both nodded. "Wand at the ready."

I took a deep breath and blinked slowly, raising my wand into the air. The Professor waved his hand in front of the chest, allowing the locks to become undone. He lifted the lid and out came soaring, screeching, was a dementor. It flew up into the air, and started making the all to familiar sucking sound. I held my memory in my brain and moved my mouth to speak.

    "Expecto Patronum!" I casted and nothing happened.

    "Expecto Patronum!" Harry stated. And nothing happened once again.

    "Expecto... Expect...." Harry and I whimpered.

    "Harry! Olivia!" I heard the scream of my mother in my ears and I fell to the floor.

    "Here we go." Professor Lupin had put away the Dementor and helped Harry and I sit up on the floor. "Come on. Sit up. Deep breaths. It's all right. I didn't expect either of you to get it on your first try." He chuckled. "That would have been remarkable. Here. Eat this. You'll feel better."

Professor Lupin gave Harry and I both, large pieces of chocolate from his pocket. I took the candy and gratefully ate it, allowing the chocolate to warm my aching body.

    "I should have been able to do it." I grumbled with a pout.

    "That's one nasty Dementor." Harry commented.

    "Now, don't be so hard on yourself, Olivia. And No, no, no, Harry. That, my boy, was a Boggart. A Boggart. The real thing would be worse. Much much worse." Lupin explained. Harry wobbled onto his feet and lent me a hand. I took it and stood up next to him. "As a matter of interest, what were you two thinking? Which memory did you choose?"

    "The first time I rode a broom." Harry shared.

    "When Hagrid came and rescued us from the Dursley's for the first time." I answered.

Lupin turned from having fixed the candles in the room and gave us a rather unimpressed look.

    "Well, that's not good enough. Not nearly good enough."

    "I don't even know if I have another stronger memory." I complained as I ran my hand through my hair.

    "Oh, I'm sure you'll think of something, Olivia." Lupin tried to reassure me.

    "Liv," Harry whispered in my ear. "Remember talking about if we remembered anything from Mum and Dad being around?" He asked curiously.

    "I don't know, Harry." I whispered back. "Maybe... But that one's complicated..."

    "Just think about it." Harry said. "I've got a good feeling." He assured me and I nodded. "Professor? I think I have another. It's not happy, exactly. Well, it is. It's the happiest I've ever felt. But it's complicated."

    "Is it strong?" Lupin wondered.

    "Yes." I nodded.

    "Then let's give it a try. Do you feel ready?"

    "Just do it." Harry breathed as we both stood firm and pointed our wands.

Once again Lupin waved his hands in front of the chest and it began to unlock. I allowed the memory Harry was referring to, to fill me up. Seeing their faces in my mind. The dementor rose from the chest shrieking and sucking the air. Harry and I aimed our wands towards the creature as it moved downward slowly.

    "Expecto Patronum!" Harry chanted firmly.

    "Expecto Patronum!" I spoke firmly.

Yet, nothing happened. Not even a glimmer appeared from out of our wands. I frustratedly took in a deep breath.

    "Expecto Patronum!" Harry and I yelled at the same time.

I could feel the power surge through me and out the end of my wand burst a bright white light. Harry's, doing the same thing. The dementor pushed against the shields with no such luck on breaking through. I was right about one thing, and that was it takes immense concentration and strength. We both lowered our wands, leading the Boggart Dementor back into the chest, allowing Professor Lupin to close it. He laughed happily at the fact that we'd actually done it and on our second try.

    "Yes! Well done, Harry! Well done, Olivia!" Lupin congratulated us both. I felt my feet wobble beneath me. Harry and I leaned on each other for support as we breathed heavily.

    "I'm good for today." I breathed.

    "Yeah, I think I've had enough. For today." Harry agreed.

    "Yes. sit down. Here, eat this, it helps." Lupin handed us each some more chocolate as we took a seat on the floor. "It really helps. And just so you know, Olivia, Harry, I think the both of you would have given your father a run for his money. And that is saying something." Lupin chuckled.

    "We were thinking of them." I explained with a soft smile. I took a bit of my chocolate.

    "Mum and Dad. Seeing their faces. It's one of the only good memory's Olivia and I can remember about them. They were just talking to us. Just talking. That's the memory we chose." Harry smiled.

    "We don't really know if it's even real, but it's the best one we've got." I smiled at Harry and Professor Lupin happily.

A few weeks into the new term, after practicing the Patronus Charm, we'd decided to go and visit Hagrid since it had been a while. But, tensions were high within our friend group. Ron and Hermione's friendship seemed to nearly be over. Scabbers has been no where to be found as of recent. Continuously, they had begun to indirectly throw comments at each other, leaving Harry and I in the middle to choose. Ronald accusing Hermione and her cat of  the vicious murder.

"Beautiful day." Hermione stated through gritted teeth. We walked outside the clock tower heading to the Black Lake to meet up with Hagrid.

"Gorgeous. Unless, of course, you mean ripped to pieces." Ron snarled at her.

"Ripped to pieces?" Harry questioned at the new set of circumstances.

"What are you talking about, now?" I asked with a sigh.

"Ronald has lost his rat." Hermione stated.

"I haven't lost anything!" Ron's voice squeaked as it rose with anger. "Your cat killed him!"

"Rubbish." Hermione argued.

"Oh, boy." I sighed quietly next to Harry.

"Tell me about it." Harry rolled his eyes.

"Harry, Olivia, you've seen how that blood thirsty beast of hers is always lurking about. And Scabbers is gone." Ron slowed down to complained to us.

"Well, maybe you should learn to take better care of your pets!" Hermione shouted as she turned around and walked backwards to yell.

"Your cat killed him!" Ron shouted back.

"Did not!"

"Did!"

"Didn't!"

"Oh stop it, both of you." I complained.

The rest of the walk down to the Black Lake was quiet and peaceful. We met Hagrid by the water's edge. He stood in the water skipping large stones, his pant legs pulled up his legs. He looked peeved and sad all at the same time.

"How did the hearing go, Hagrid?" I asked.

"Well, first off, the committee members took turns talkin' 'bout why we were there." Hagrid rolled his eyes and skipped another stone across the water. "Then I got up, did my piece, said how Buckbeak was a good Hippogriff, always cleaned his feathers. And then, Lucius Malfoy got up. Well, you can imagine. He said: Buckbeak was a deadly, dangerous creature who would kill ya as soon as look at ya." Hagrid imitated Lucius and then scoffed and threw another stone.

"And then?" Hermione asked.

"And then he asked for the worst did ol' Lucius." Hagrid's usually peppy voice lowered with sadness.

"They're not sacking you?!" Ron gasped.

"No, I'm not sacked." Hagrid shook his head. He threw another stone across the water and suddenly let out a large strangled sob. One that was immediate to pull on your hearts strings. "Buckbeak's been sentenced to death."

He threw another stone, only to have it crash in the water with a loud splash. Hagrid stood out in the water sobbing while we gasped and stood on the shoreline helpless.

Harry and I had been sleeping less and less lately. The constant thought of Sirius Black fogged our minds. Tonight, Harry had the map in his room. Sitting in his bed, using the Lumos Charm to see, while the other boys around him slept. He was enjoying the silence of the night, eating some chocolate and studying the map.

"Spiders?!" Ron whimpered and shot up in his bed Sleepily. "Eh, ah, ugh, Spiders. Spiders, they want me to tap dance. I don't wanna tap dance..."

"You tell those spiders, Ron." Harry grinned at his sleepy friend.

"Oh yeah, tell, tell, tell them. I'll tell them." Ron laid back in his bed and was soon snoring peacefully again.

Harry chuckled and looked back down at the map, seeing nothing interesting and opening another flap of the map. A name he did not expect showed up on one of the little flags above scurrying feet. Peter Pettigrew it read. He rethought about the conversation we'd overheard in the Three Broomsticks that day. Harry looked up at sleeping Ron and decided not to wake him. He quickly leapt out of bed and searched for the cloak of invisibility, only to remember I had it last.

I was sitting in my bed, reading a book while using the Lumos charm. The soft snores and even breaths of my fellow girl classmates surrounded me. I heard the door creak ever so slightly and I saw the familiar unruly jet black hair and round glasses in the corner of the door.

"Psst. Liv." Harry whispered.

"Coming." I whispered back. "Nox." I stated and my wand's light went out. I climbed from my bed and walked out the dormitory door and shut it behind me. "What's wrong, Harry?" I asked quietly.

"Look and tell me what you see." He whispered. He pushed the map into my hands and shined his lit wand upon it.

"Just tell me what I'm looking for." I whispered annoyed.

"I need to make sure I'm not seeing things that aren't really there. Would you just look, please?" Harry said exasperatedly.

"Fine." I grumbled. I began to look over the map. "I see Filch monitoring the hallways as always. The Arithmancy class room, Snape's also on patrol tonight, Peter Pettigrew is walking the halls." I paused at my own words and blinked heavily and looked even closer. "Peter Pettigrew? He's supposed to be dead."

"Exactly!" Harry exclaimed and I quickly covered his mouth with my hands. After not hearing anyone move from his outburst I moved my hands. "You have Dad's cloak, grab it and let's go."

"Okay." I nodded furiously and went back into the dorm. I quickly grabbed the cloak in my chest and met Harry in the common room.

The both of us used the cloak to escape the common room portrait, a new painting taking the Fat Ladies place until she could be fixed. It was that of a knight named Sir Cadogan, a rather annoying painting that like to challenge people to duels, even though he's just a painting. Harry and I uncovered ourselves and walked the corridors, following after the Peter Pettigrew name tag. My wand was light with the Lumos charm while Harry studied the map. We decided the better option to try and find him was to cut him off in one of the corridors.

Paintings all around us were snoring soundly.

"Put that light out!" One yelled angrily as I had it up to high.

"Sorry." I frowned and lowered my wand back towards the map.

"We're getting close." Harry whispered.

He led my hand to the map and Pettigrew was nearly in front of us. We stood still and watched the map, the foot steps seemed to scurry about back and forth through the hall, closer and closer to us. I held my wand out and scanned the air around us. Peter was nearly on-top of us and our breathing became heavy. We tensed and followed the footsteps that went around us both and we both gasped and jumped.

"Gah!" We both yelped. We scanned the hallway and there was nothing to be seen anywhere.

"It's just a mirror." I sighed with my hand on my chest. My heart was beating a mile a minute. Our own reflections had scared us. "Oh, no, Harry!" I whispered quickly.

I pointed to the map with my wand showing Snape was coming up the corridor next to us.

"Quickly!" Harry pointed his wand at the map. "Mischief Managed."

"Nox!" I whispered and the light went out on my wand.

I must have been a second to late as Snape rounded the corner. His wand illuminated in our faces before we could get back underneath the cloak.

"Potter's." Snape scowled at us both, his wand shining right in our faces. "What are the both of you doing wandering the corridors at night?"

"Sleep walking." I answered him quickly knowing how to press his buttons. "Very common you know, for twins to sleep walk together, studies have shown..."

"Silence." Snape snapped annoyed. "How extraordinarily like your father you both are, Potter's. He, too, was exceedingly arrogant, strutting about the castle."

"Our Dad didn't strut." Harry spat back. "And nor do we. Now, if you don't mind, I think we'd both appreciate it if you lowered your wand."

"Please." I nodded in agreement of Harry's harsh tone. Trying to stay somewhat polite.

I glanced quickly to Harry and didn't see the map in his hands. But it was in his sweatshirt pocket, poking out slightly. Snape lowered his wand as requested.

"Turn out your pockets." Snape demanded looking at Harry. I shifted ever so slightly and made sure the cloak was in my pants pocket flat against my leg. Harry didn't move and Snape's glare intensified. "Turn out your pockets." Harry reluctantly took the parchment from his pocket. "What's this?"

"Spare bit of parchment." Harry said blandly.

"Really? Open it." Snape demanded not believing him for a second.

I watched with an emotionless face, but I was curious to see if Snape perhaps knew what the map was. Harry struggled to open it as he was being rebellious. Snape opened his mouth to speak again and I took the parchment from Harry and opened it. Harry gave me a glare as if to ask what I was doing. I shot him a hard glare back to say trust me.

"Reveal your secrets." Snape asked the map.

The map began to reveal itself and for a moment my heart stopped, worried that he indeed knew what it was. But only for a moment. He didn't say the right words... I looked down at the map that was showing itself and to my surprise it didn't look the way it normally did. The beginning headlines were there, and on the bottom was a written note.

"Read it." Snape asked slowly in his monotone voice.

"Messrs Mooney, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs." I began as Harry looked over my shoulder. "Offer their compliments to Professor Snape and..." I didn't continue as I tried to hold in my laugher.

"Go on." Snape hissed.

"And request that he keep his abnormally large nose out of other people's business." Harry replied to him without even needing to look like he was reading it off the paper.

Snape's face showed one of shock for a singular moment at Harry, and then he looked positively furious.

"Why you insolent little..." Snape growled.

"Professor." Professor Lupin's voice appeared suddenly. Snape turned quickly and shined his light on Professor Lupin's sunken face. He looked dreadful.

"Well, well, Lupin." Snape replied smugly. "Out for a little walk in the moonlight, are we?"

I knew exactly what Professor Snape was referring so openly too. I met Lupin's eyes and greeted him with a kind smile.

"Olivia, Harry... Are you all right?" Professor Lupin asked kindly. We both nodded at him.

"That remains to be seen." Snape quickly snatched the parchment from my hands. "I have just now confiscated a rather curious artifact from Miss and Mr. Potter. Take a look, Lupin." Snape handed the parchment to him. "Supposed to be your area of expertise. Clearly, it's full of dark magic."

Something in Professor Lupin showed as he realized what he was holding. His face remained stoic, but his eye's twinkled with remembrance and as he read the words written on the page you could tell he was trying not to laugh.

"Oh, I seriously doubt that, Severus. It looks to me as though it's merely a parchment designed to insult anyone that tries to read it." A small chuckled escaped his lips, and he tried to calm himself. "I suspect it's a Zonko's product." Professor Lupin explained and Snape tried to snatch it from him, but Professor Lupin was much quicker. "Nevertheless, I shall investigate any hidden qualities it may possess. It is, after all, as you say, my area of expertise. Harry, Olivia, would you two come with me, please. Professor, goodnight."

The walk back through the corridors to the DADA classroom and up to the office where Harry and I had been spending much of our time this year, was very quiet.

"Professor, we..." I tried to explain.

"I don't want to hear explanations, Olivia." He spoke shortly with me for the first time ever. As soon as we were all in the office. He turned towards us both. His voice was low as though he were making sure no prying ears were listening in. "I happen to know that this map was confiscated by Mr. Filch many years ago. Yes, I know it's a map." He confirmed at our surprised and amazed faces. "I haven't the faintest idea, Harry and Olivia, how this map came to be in your possessions. I am quite frankly, astounded that neither of you turned it in. Specially you, Olivia. Did it never occur to either one of you that this, in the hands of Sirius Black, is a map to you?"

His voice softened as he noticed the frightened and solemn look on our faces as he scolded us.

"No, sir." I spoke softly as I looked at the floor ashamed.

"No." Lupin shook his head and sighed. He walked back up closely to the both of us and we looked up at him. "You know, your father never set much store by the rules, either, but he and your mother gave their lives to save the both of yours." Professor Lupin explained and began to raise his voice again to explain the urgency in his words. "And gambling their sacrifice by wondering around the castle, unprotected with a killer on the loose, seems to be a pretty poor way to repay them! Now, I will not cover for either of you again, Harry an Olivia. Do you hear me?"

"Yes, sir." Harry and I whispered.

"I want you to return to your dormitories and stay there." He stated and we turned to leave. "And don't take any detours. If you do... I shall know." He explained as he tapped the map.

Harry and I felt like two kids that had just been scolded by their parent for the very first time in our lives. Sure, we've been in trouble before, but never with someone we've cared so much about. Our head hung low until we reached the door. I grabbed Harry's sleeve and expressed my feeling's through my thoughts, which Harry nodded at.

"I'm sorry, Professor. We're leaving, but I think there's something, Harry and I should tell you."

"Just so you know, we don't think that map always works." Harry began to explain.

"Earlier on, it showed someone in the castle. Someone we know to be dead." I expressed.

"Oh, really? And who might that be?" Professor Lupin asked in a disbelieving tone.

"Peter Pettigrew." Harry and I stated together.

Professor Lupin's facial expression changed very quickly. Each emotion ran over his face as he studied our serious ones.

"That's not possible."

"It's just what we saw." Harry stated. "Goodnight, Professor."

"Goodnight, Professor Lupin." I bid him a goodnight and we walked back to Gryffindor Tower.