I couldn't figure out what was happening. It was so dark that it was difficult to see even. I don't know how I ended up here. I mean I couldn't even recall where I was before this. It was dreadfully cold and I was shivering (not the winter kind of cold but instead it was an eerie sort of coldness, a horrible emptiness, a feeling of intense fear). 

The wind hit me like a storm and was way harsh than I had ever experienced. I cautiously walked forward a bit and could see prison cells all around. It is impossible to explain how terribly scary it was at the moment. Peeking through the bars I could see people howling with pain and banging their heads on the cold stone walls. 

They were chained and it all reminded me a lot of the cold dungeons in which the asylum people used to lock me up. Only difference was that this place seemed more lethal. It was quite sickening seeing the prisoners crying and wailing in distress. I wanted to shut my ears and run away but there seemed to be no escape. 

Suddenly black hooded creatures swarmed in floating or rather gliding above the ground. The cold and fearful feelings intensified. The prisoners had started to scream and howl worse than ever. I sank down on the floor not being able to breath. It seemed as if all the oxygen was sucked out of me and the atmosphere was terribly heavy and suffocating. 

Those creatures were Dementors, for sure. I recalled that I had seen a picture like that in one of Percy's books and when I had asked him about them he had said that these were the most ghastly creatures to exist and they fed on fear as well as human souls. I shuddered at the thought. 

Surely I don't want to become a feast for one such Dementor. 

I had to keep myself going if I was to find out any escape. But at the moment, it felt burdening to even try to get up.

Out of instinct I glanced inside the cell that was closest to me. And what I saw nearly shocked me to death.

Sirius.

He was Sirius, no doubt. 

Chained and locked up inside that cell was none other than Sirius Orion Black. He held his head in his hands trying to shut out the maddening noise. His long black hair were no longer perfect but rough and tangled. He was weak as if starved for years. the skin clung on to his bones and he looked fatally wounded. Pale and suffering. 

I scrambled up to my feet and rushed towards the cell but the iron bars separated us. I couldn't find my voice to speak to him, to let him know that I was there. My throat felt dry and seeing Sirius in such a painful state had hurt me in the midst of my heart even though I was unaware why it had hurt me so intensely. 

"S-Sirius," I managed to say his name. 

My hands had tightened round the iron bars such that my knuckles had gone white. The bars were spiked with sharp iron nails and I felt the spikes pierce through my skin and could feel the blood trickling down but I didn't care anymore. 

"Sirius, look at me!" I pleaded. My voice was heavy with the sobs choking me inside as tears ran down my face. 

When he looked up I was horrified. He was no longer the handsome and charming Sirius I knew. His gray eyes were stormy as before but vacant. The mischievous spark of humor in those irises was gone. I couldn't bear to look at him like this. 

All of a sudden one of those Dementors glided inside his cell. A frightening chill went down my spine. That creature was so close to Sirius that it was giving pain to him. 

"I did not betray them!" he shouted as if envisioning a nightmare, "it wasn't me. I would never even think of hurting my friends!" 

The Dementor could suck his soul out and it terrified me out of my wits. "No, please," I begged but it seemed as if no one could hear me. As if I was invisible. With a loud swishing sound the Dementor pushed him to the wall, positioned to suck his soul out and reduce him to a lifeless corpse. 

I could not see that. It was too much for me. I could not see Sirius being subjected to such torture. And then I screamed. I couldn't hold back any longer so I screamed in fear, agony and distress. 

There seemed no end to it. It was like falling into a void empty and horrible. Sirius was perishing and I could do nothing to save him. He was going to die in front of my eyes and I could do nothing to stop it.

***

I sat up with a jolt. I could hear a voice close to me but didn't pay much attention to it. "Sirius," his name escaped me again but I couldn't see him anywhere. 

I could hear someone calling me, "Kat? Can you hear me? Open your eyes." 

I did as I was told. I was still trembling even though the current place wasn't cold at all. I was in the Gryffindor Common Room. It was a nightmare. Thank God it was a nightmare. I felt someone holding me and turned to see Moony beside me with a worried look on his face. 

"Are you okay?" he asked with concern. 

I didn't know what to say. I was okay but then probably I wasn't okay at all. Tears were still streaming down my cheeks. 

"It was just a nightmare," he spoke in a gentle voice as he wiped the tears away, "come on. Whatever you saw won't ever happen in reality, okay?" 

I nodded only since I couldn't find my voice to speak. He was trying to calm me down and whispering soothing words but all that I had seen in that nightmare was flashing in front of my eyes. I could hear the voices as clear as if I was there again and it was driving me out of my wits. I buried my head in my hands trying to shut out the noise. 

"Make it stop... Please," I couldn't bear it. 

Moony took my hands in a firm grip, "I promise you Kat everything will be alright. Just do as I say." 

I mumbled, "it hurts. I... I can't take it." 

He replied, "take a deep breath. Do as I say, okay? Just take a deep breath." 

I did as I was told but I wasn't quite sure that it would help. He told me to inhale and exhale deeply for a few seconds. Gradually, the surroundings came into focus. He handed me a bar of chocolate. I couldn't even half understand what was going on. 

"Chocolates help in coping with fear or distress. Eat it. Trust me you'll feel better." 

My hands were slightly trembling as I took it and ate it. It did help though. I closed my eyes leaning back on the couch still clasping Moony's hand. I had had nightmares before but they were never this scary. 

"Don't think about it," he ordered. I nodded wearily. Of course I did not want to think about it at all. A while later I was feeling almost normal. "Come on lets get you back to the dorm," he helped me up to my feet and gently led me towards the dormitory. 

The lights were still out meaning that Sirius was still asleep. That is, if he was there. I shuddered. "Is Sirius okay?" I whispered. 

"Of course. I can hear him snoring. Go to sleep. Everything's okay and normal," he replied in a low voice. 

I climbed into my bed and he finally let go of my hand, "don't tell Marlene. She'll get upset." 

He nodded, "don't worry. I won't tell anyone." 

He silently closed the door behind him. As if I had just come to my senses, I felt a stabbing pain in my hands. I turned them over and was horrified to see marks on my skin as if I had actually grasped those spiked iron bars. 

This can't be happening. 

But I could see the blood trickling down my hands and could feel the pain. It all seemed so real. It was real. I lit up my wand to get a closer look. The blood was tracing letters on my skin much to my disbelief. I focused on the word formed by the blood trail and it sent a shiver up my spine: AZKABAN.    

***