HARRY POTTER and the Prisoner of Azkaban CHAPTER 5
Chapter 5
THE DEMENTOR
The next morning, Harry wakes up to noise and chaos in the Leaky Cauldron. All the Weasley children, Hermione, Hedwig, Scabbers, and Crookshanks are waiting for the Ministry cars to take them to the train station. The room is full of luggage and loud voices!
Mr. Weasley looks nervous. He watches Harry as the cars arrive. He checks the street carefully before pushing everyone inside the cars. The cars drive fast to King’s Cross Station. Not as fast as the Knight Bus, but they go fast! Again, Mr. Weasley looks around to make sure it is safe. Then he hurries the children into the station.
He keeps Harry close. “Listen,” he says. “We will go through the wall in pairs. I will go first with Harry.” Mr. Weasley walks to the barrier wall and leans on it casually. Harry does the same. Suddenly, they fall through the barrier and arrive at Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. The big red Hogwarts Express is waiting. The platform is full of witches and wizards saying goodbye to their children.
Soon, Ron and the others come through the wall. Ron’s brothers and sister run onto the train. Mrs. Weasley has tears in her eyes. “Be good!” she shouts.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione get on the train. “Ron, Hermione, I really need to talk to you in private,” says Harry. They look for an empty compartment, but they are all full. They find one, but a man is sleeping inside. He is wearing old robes and he looks tired. His face is young, but his hair is brown with some gray.
“Who do you think it is?” Ron whispers. “His name is Professor R.J. Lupin,” says Hermione. “How do you know that?” asks Ron in shock. Hermione points to the man’s bag. There is a tag on his bag with the words ‘Professor R.J. Lupin’. “What does he teach?” Ron asks. “It must be Defense Against the Dark Arts,” Hermione answers. “That’s the only position that needed a new teacher.”
Ron sighs. “I hope he is better than our last teacher.” Then he turns to Harry. “What did you want to tell us?” Harry speaks quietly. He says he heard Mr. and Mrs. Weasley talking about Sirius Black. He tells them everything Ron’s parents said. Ron and Hermione look shocked. “Sirius Black escaped to find you? To kill you?” Hermione asks. “Harry, you must be careful!”
“No one has ever escaped Azkaban before,” Ron says, scared. “He is very dangerous.”
“They will catch him,” Hermione says. Then she hears a noise. A small whistle comes from Harry’s bag.
Ron opens it and takes out a spinning Sneakoscope. It shines brightly. “Put it back!” Harry says. “It will wake the Professor!” Ron hides it in a sock. The man moves but stays asleep.
“It must be broken,” Ron says. “We can fix it in Hogsmeade.” “I can’t go to Hogsmeade,” Harry says sadly. “Why not?” Ron and Hermione ask together. “The Dursleys didn’t sign my permission form,” Harry says. “And the Minister of Magic thinks it’s too dangerous.”
“The Minister of Magic is probably right,” Hermione says. She opens her cat’s box to let him out. “Don’t!” Ron yells, covering his pocket where Scabbers hides. The cat jumps out and stares at Ron. Scabbers the rat is shaking in fear inside Ron’s pocket.
The train moves north. After many hours, the sky begins to get darker and darker. Rain starts to fall. Then, the train begins to slow down. “We’re not at Hogwarts yet,” Hermione says, confused. Then the train stops. The lights go out! It is completely dark.
“What’s happening?” Ron asks. “I don’t know,” Harry says. Hermione opens the door, and Ginny and Neville fall in. “We were looking for you,” Neville says. Neville and Ginny enter the compartment. They make a lot of noise. Neville sits on Crookshanks. The cat hisses and Neville screams!
“Quiet!” says a voice. Professor Lupin is awake. He opens his hand. There is a small blue flame in his hand. “Stay here. I’m going to talk to the driver of the train.”
Before he can move, the door slowly opens. A dark figure stands there. It wears a black cloak. It fills the doorway. The thing reaches out a hand…
