Disclaimer: I only own Chloe, no more, no less.

Thanks to all who reviewed last chapter! This next part was written over a year after I wrote the first chapter, so it’s a bit shorter and may flow a little differently because of that. Anyways, I hope y’all enjoy!

Two

Chloe, though her gaze focused on a plate of fruit, noticed that the Boy Who Lived and two of his friends watched her intently as she entered the hall. She slid onto the bench a few yards from them and picked up an apple and a few pieces of toast, her breakfast. She sunk her teeth into the piece of red fruit as she looked out of one the windows.

Remus walked in momentarily, pausing beside her en route to the professors’ table. There were only a few words exchanged before the professor left her to her silence once again.

After a moment of persistence from his friends, Harry got up from his seat and walked over to the young woman. He noted the blemished scar that ran along the left side of her jaw which added to her mystery. “Um, excuse me.”

She turned her head to him as she took another bite of the now half-eaten apple. “Can I help you?”

“Is it true, what the other students have said about you? Are you here to kill Sirius Black?”

Her dark eyes searched his look for any trace of deceit, trickery. All she found was Lily’s green eyes and James’s expression of innocence. “You have your mother’s eyes.”

Harry blinked at her for a moment, puzzled. “You knew my mother?”

“Many years ago, yes. And to answer your first question, I am here to supervise the dementors and capture and deliver Sirius Black to the Ministry, if the dementors don’t get to him first.” The thought spoken aloud pained her, though she was bound by her duty. “Us agents usually only have to talk to Azkaban inmates after they’re visited, but we have our other uses.”

“What can you tell me about him?”

“Only what the papers tell you, kid. After that, I can’t say a word to anyone with less than a level four clearance.” A tawny owl swooped in, earlier than the usual mail time. It dropped a letter beside Chloe’s toast and took off out the window again.

“But he might be after me!” The black-haired boy exclaimed quietly, not wished to attract attention.

She slid a nail under the seal of the letter to break it and unfolded them. “That’s why the dementors and I are here. He’ll have to get through some very pissed soul-sucking ghosts and my gun to get to you. Considering he has no wand, he won’t be able to do much.”

The papers were anything known about Sirius and his plan, how he was most likely headed for Hogwarts, etc, etc. It told her little more than she already knew, and even then she knew that he had the ability to hide as a great black dog. It was a tempting thought to tell the Ministry, but knew that it would only bring more trouble to him as an unregistered Animagus, and that it would make it that much harder to set free. Not to mention how angry he would be if she revealed the secret.

“So he is after me?”

“It’s a possibility, yes. But don’t worry, kid. I’ve never missed a target with my wand or my gun yet.” Chloe folded the papers back inside themselves and picked up her toast. “If you see or hear anything suspicious, let me know.”

The boy nodded as she got up, watching her. She strode out of the hall quickly, letters clutched to her hip as if they were unimportant and nibbling on her toast. The echo of the heels of her tall boots clicking on the floor was the only signal of her rush.

Chloe dropped the letters on her empty bag and set the remaining piece of toast down on the nightstand. Her cloak was tossed to the bed, nearly slipping to the ground. She clambered into the narrow windowsill and rested her knees against the opposing wall. Her head rested against the cool stone, a few rays of morning sun hitting her cheeks. She could only hope that Kingsley’s end of the plan held up.

“Damn you, Sirius. It’s days like these I wish I never fell for you.”

Chloe yawned as she finished tying her shoe, sitting up to look towards the compartment door. Lily bustled in with her trunk and assorted belongings. She fought with the trunk to get it even remotely near the rack as her cat leapt onto the seat and watched with a bored expression.

“Lil, you don’t always have to do things for yourself.” The blonde, not much different from her older counterpart save for the scars, a few wrinkles, and an inch or so of height, jumped from her seat to catch the trunk before it fell from the seat across from her. She gave the trunk one good tug, estimating its weight. “Lily, back up. I can get it up there.”

The redhead stepped into the doorway reluctantly. Her friend picked it up as much as she could handle and gave it one good flying toss. The trunk smacked against the wall, but was otherwise unscathed.

“Merlin, Shacklebolt, did you eat your brother for breakfast this morning?” Lily stepped back into the compartment as four boys wrestled their way in. The remark came from Sirius, who had grown several inches taller over the summer. His grey eyes sparkled with the thought of being able to bug the two girls for yet another year, not to mention test the patience of every teacher.

“No, but he did get me into better shape, just so I could beat your ass. Or so was his reasoning.”

“If only she could take after his silent nature,” Remus remarked as he made sure his trunk was out of the way. They had only known her to be quiet in their first year, before she knew them well enough to chatter freely. Sirius laughed, or rather barked, as Chloe glared at them. She flopped back into her place beside the window and refused to make eye contact, seemingly irritated.

Meanwhile, Lily and James were already in one of their discussions. It was always hard for the others to decipher the tone of the conversation, which could easily switch between them talking calmly to arguing. Peter was digging for a few sweets in his pocket, ignoring the others. Lily was clearly trying to read her book while the boy kept talking to her.

An arm was casually placed around her shoulders. Chloe pretended to ignore it as she kept her arms crossed over her chest and gaze fixed out the window. Within a few moments, the train disembarked from the platform and was chugging along.

“Shacklebolt.”

“Black.”

“Chloe.”

“Sirius.”

“Erin.”

“Don’t go there.”

“Wrong, as usual.”

“What do ya want, Sirius?” She finally turned her head to glare at him.

“Why does your brother want you to beat me up, of all people?” There was a perplexed look in his eyes, though he tried to mask the uneasiness with his usual smirk.

“Because you still owe him about a hundred or so Galleons from that Quidditch match.”

“But I’m an orphan! My parents hardly acknowledge my existence!” His eyes widened with his exclamations, though he knew it was a hard argument to make against either of the Shacklebolt children.

She rolled her eyes in mock annoyance. It was noticeable in her smile that there was no hardened, wounded soul, only a sarcastic young woman who had her whole life ahead of her. “In Kingsley’s book, that isn’t going to be much of an excuse. It only works for me because he knows I spend all my money on clothes and broom gear.”

James looked over from Lily, hazel eyes brimming with amusement at Lily’s responses and the lack of reply at times. “Don’t tell me you got the new Nimbus, Chloe.”

She blinked at him. Her lips struggled against a smile. “Maybe.”

Sirius stared at her in surprise. “You didn’t.”

Chloe turned her head to look at the young man next to her. “I did. This Chaser isn’t going to be beat by a bunch of Slytherins again.”