Her voice was pretty, it was husky, but in a feminine sort of way. He liked that. He followed her towards a clump of trees, dreading where he was going but not knowing why. Finally they got to the clearing in the middle, only to find themselves looking up into the wall of a mighty castle. The walls were black, and they had some odd sort of writing on some of the stones. Harry bent forward to look at what it said. Suddenly, he was pitched forward, and found himself sprawled out on a cold stone floor, which was oddly comforting. She was sitting next to him. She took his hand, and she lead him down a hall, the walls covered with tapestries. She was talking to him, but they were walking so fast, and his eyes were looking around so much that he didn�t hear her. She pulled him around a corner, and he found himself facing an old, carved door. The images were pounded into his memory. The door was cut into portions. One quarter was covered in lions, one quarter in ravens, and the other two in badgers and snakes. Everything was cut so delicately and intricately that he reached out to touch it, but drew his hand back. The carving was moving. Harry knew well enough that after spending five years in a world filled with magic that touching the door would be a very idiotic thing to do. The girl opened the door, and Harry found himself facing a very old looking woman. "I hope we're not too late," the girl said, looking at the woman with hope in her eyes. Suddenly, the lady took out her wand, and muttered a few words under her breath. Then, purple light shot out of the lady's wand, and the she fell to the ground with a terrible scream.
Harry had thought the dream over and over in his head, but none of it seemed to be linked. He had so many questions. Who was she? Where was the mighty castle? Harry had the odd feeling that the dream was trying to tell him something, but he just couldn�t place it. He pushed it to the back of his head, and took out his Transfiguration homework, two entire scrolls in research of Animagus. Harry had some help, of course, and had just sent Sirius and owl. He was in the middle of writing his sentence when an owl flew through his window. Harry grabbed the owl by it's foot, dragging it down mid-swoop. Then he tore at the letter, revealing it wasn't from Sirius at all. It was from Ron.
Harry - HAPPY BIRTHDAY! - thought I'd sent you this with your present. Mum reckoned we shouldn't send another Muggle letter, so we're sending you this instead. Pig couldn't handle the gift, so we had to send Percy's new owl, Lena. I figured Hedwig might like another girl owl. Hermione's sending you a gift as well, I suppose. She sent me a letter saying she wasn't going to Bulgaria after all. Poor Krummy. Anyway, I'll be sending you your present tomorrow at noon.
Ron
Harry had no idea of what Ron would send him, but he hoped it would be something either funny or exciting. His summer had been incredibly boring, and the lack of fun things to do was slowly gnawing away at him. Dudley had lost very little weight, but Aunt Petunia convinced Uncle Vernon that another diet was just what Dudley needed. So Harry had been starved for the entire summer, and looked considerably thinner. He sent out letters to Hermione, Ron, Sirius, and Hagrid seeking help. Hermione had sent him chocolate chip cookies, Ron sent him a jug of butterbeer that instantly refilled itself when you were finished, Sirius sent him some sort of jerky, and Hagrid sent him a tablecloth that would set itself with a large meal whenever you needed it.
Harry looked out the window, and saw a flying object coming towards him. He dived down just in time, as a bird flew at top speed into his window. Harry wasn't all that surprised to see owls coming into his window at night anymore, but this wasn�t an owl at all. Harry looked up from the ground only to see a very large, very mean looking raven. It was black from head to claw, and threw the letter it held at Harry's feet. Harry picked up the letter, and read it out loud.
Dear Harry,
I hope the bearer of this message isn't as cold-hearted to you as it was to me. Unfortunately, he is the only one willing to do the job, so I suppose we'll both be seeing him more often. Buckbeak and I are doing great. I can't say too much in case this gets into the wrong hands. I spoke to the parents of your friend, Ron, and they tell me that you're doing all right. I included your birthday present with this, I hope you like it. It belonged to your parents. Happy Birthday.
Sirius
Harry found in the envelope a small cloth bag. He emptied it out into his hand and found two items. Two rings, to be exact. Two wedding bands. He looked at them closer, revealing one very small ring, and another nearly twice the size. He took the larger one (obviously James's), and held it in his palm. It was in the shape of a lion opening his mouth, as though he was yawning. Harry put it on his middle finger, and it fit perfectly. Suddenly, the ring started shaking on his hand, vibrating at such a speed that it was painful to keep it on. Then, a smoky mist protruded from it, making a shape in the air, floating a few inches off the ground. It elongated to make the shape of a human. Harry found himself facing James Potter.
