An entire week of classes passed, and to Lucy's surprise, and immense delight, not a single peculiar event happened.
There weren't any attacks or mysterious writings on the wall, nor had any monsters attacked the castle. None of her teachers acted as if they were hiding a dark secret and she certainly didn't suspect any of them of having Lord Voldemort on the back of their head. She finally felt as though Hogwarts was a school instead of a castle filled with secrets.
Now, she did not doubt that there were still secrets hiding in the corners of empty classrooms, but for once she was not a part of it. Any adventures were of her own volition. Instead of running into the Forbidden Forest to face a hoard of Acromantulas, she and Anthony were solving everyday mysteries. Last week they wanted to find out why Peeves was so frightened of the Bloody Baron. They had to exchange a few favors with other ghosts— the Fat Friar expected Anthony to win against Ravenclaw in the next Quidditch match— and through their investigation, they found out that ghosts were the only beings that could harm a poltergeist.
That was indeed very useful information.
Their current mystery was less exciting, but they treated it with the same amount of importance nonetheless. Lucy and the rest of their Quidditch team often found themselves curled up in Daisy's own Head Girl room late at night talking. Since 90% of the bloody team were prefects, no one could tell them that it was against the rules.
During one of their late-night conversations, the question of Snape's tastes in desserts came to mind— and Lucy and Anthony were now trying to figure out what sweets were the man's favorite.
They ran several experiments over the past few days but none of them revealed anything promising. So far, Snape hadn't shown a reaction to any desserts they presented him with. Anthony had even purchased a chocolate scented perfume that Lucy sprayed in class. If the man could smell it, he didn't give any indication, which led to another theory that Professor Snape could not smell at all.
"D'you reckon I should sneak a Dementor into the school?" Anthony muttered to her in the common room. He was flipping through their observations, trying to shield the contents of the parchment from Daisy, who was suspicious of their whispering.
"Tempting, but why?" Lucy asked. She was sitting beside him on the couch writing down possible ways to make Snape reveal something. She hadn't yet written down the Dementor idea since it sounded insane, but who knows? She was easily persuaded.
"Well, if we get a Dementor into Professor Snape's classroom, the odds are he'll have to eat some chocolate afterward. Unless, of course, he's allergic, but he didn't give any reaction when I snuck some into his breakfast yesterday—"
"You did what?"
Anthony ignored her accusing tone. "We're detectives, Rochester," he said calmly. "We cannot cut any corners in our investigations."
"Feels like we're the Moriarty of the situation at this point," she muttered.
"Who?"
"You've never read Sherlock Holmes?" Lucy asked with surprise. She wasn't overly fond of storybooks while she attended Wool's but Jane Eyre and The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes had been two of the only books she could sit down and read for hours. When Anthony shook his head, she gaped. "I'm getting you that book immediately," she muttered to herself.
"If it gives us hints on how Snape might react to a Dementor, then by all means," he said.
Lucy shook her head fondly. Anthony really was a different specimen, and she cared for her friend dearly. She uncrossed her legs and kicked them on the coffee table. She leaned back, thinking. "How would we get a Dementor inside the castle in the first place?" she wondered. "I don't suppose I'd be able to get anywhere near it."
And she wouldn't want to go anywhere near it, for that matter. They were fun to watch from afar, but the fear of slipping back into a terrible memory kept her from poking at them.
"That is something I hadn't thought about," Anthony muttered. He set the parchment down on the table and folded his hands together. "Maybe if I tell them Sirius Black is in the potions classroom. No— then they might rat me out, and I reckon Dumbledore won't be pleased with me. Cub, how did Quirrell sneak the troll all the way to the dungeons?"
"He could speak Trollish," Lucy recalled. Professor Quirrell told her one night, but no matter how much she prodded at him, he refused to speak it in front of her.
"Damn. I can only speak Mermish," he sighed.
"You can speak Mermish?!"
"Sort of," Anthony said, like it was nothing special. Lucy gaped at him. "Heidi showed me The Little Mermaid a few years ago and I was determined to learn it. Works best underwater, but here it is—" He then proceeded to make a series of harsh, rasping screeches, all with a straight face. Every other Hufflepuff in the common room turned to stare at him in horror after he finished. Anthony smiled innocently at everyone.
"What'd you say?" Lucy asked, stifling her laughter.
"You have the eyes of a dangerous woman," he grinned. "I've tried it on the Merfolk at the Black Lake but I reckon the one I told it to was a man."
Lucy had never seen the merfolk before, but she was sure they'd have been more confused at the sight of Anthony Rickett than what he was saying. "That's rad, mum," she told him. He shot her the thumbs up. "But I don't think we can sneak a Dementor into the school."
Anthony sighed and slumped back into the couch next to her. Lucy leaned forward, tapping her chin with her finger. "But, that's not to say we can't bring Snape to the Dementor—"
"All right, I'm stopping this train of thought right now," Daisy said firmly. She walked over to the coffee table and started to organize the scattered papers into piles. "You two can do whatever mysteries you want, but do not mess with the Dementors. They're not toys; they're incredibly dangerous creatures that any sane Minister would have never allowed around children. I've already stopped Rickett from throwing rocks at them two times this week alone." Anthony pouted as she put the papers in her school bag. "You'll get these back later."
"You're no fun, Locke," Anthony huffed.
"If being the boring one keeps you two out of Azkaban, I'll assume my title graciously," she said wryly. She sank into the armchair across from them. "Have either of you heard anything from Cedric about Quidditch practice? I've got a few meetings with the Auror department and I'd like to schedule around them."
"No, I'm afraid my dear Ceddy has been too lovestruck by Ms. Chang to pay attention to his best friend," Anthony said in a would-be casual tone, but his crossed arms said otherwise.
"Don't be ridiculous, Rickett. I've spoken to Cedric plenty," she said with a straight face.
He sat up straight and jabbed a finger in her direction. "You will not steal my best friend from me!" he said firmly. "You have Herbert, leave Cedric to me!"
"You're interviewing with the Auror Department, Daisy?" Lucy cut over Anthony's indignation. She wasn't fully convinced that bringing Snape to the Dementors was such a terrible idea, but she could put it aside for now. She was more interested in Daisy's news.
Daisy tried her best to keep her pride from showing, but she couldn't help but smile. "Well, I've already had an interview in the summer— but they've offered me an internship. For two days each month I'll be training directly under an Auror... Can you believe it?" Lucy could, in fact, believe it: Daisy was one of the most brilliant witches she'd ever met. "I always thought I'd be more of a Healer, but it turns out I'm rubbish at Potions..."
"That's amazing, Daisy," Lucy told her, smiling brightly at the Head Girl. Then something terrible dawned on her. "Oh no," she whispered. "Daisy... This means you're going to be gone after this year!"
Daisy's smile faded and she buried her face in her hands. "I know!" she groaned, "You'd think seven years would feel a bit longer!"
Anthony also went very quiet. Evidently, the thought of Daisy leaving Hogwarts forever hadn't occurred to him either. "I'll talk to Cedric about Quidditch practice," he said, standing to his feet. He slung his bag over his shoulder and ruffled Lucy's hair. "I'll see you at lunch, Cub."
Lucy batted his hand away. "Enjoy your time with Snape," she said, knowing his first class today was Potions. "While you still can," she added ominously.
Anthony threw his head back and laughed. After he left the common room, Lucy turned back to Daisy and looked sadly at the older girl. "I'm going to miss you, Daisy," she complained. "You haven't even left yet and I already miss you!"
"You are too cute for your own good sometimes, Lucy," Daisy said gravely. She stood up and opened her arms wide. "Come here, already!"
Lucy lunged forward, and Daisy hugged her warmly. It was silly of her since Daisy hadn't even graduated yet, and she still had an entire year with the older girl, but the thought of not seeing her in the common room, not seeing her at Quidditch practice for the next four years made her heart give a sad twinge. Especially since last year, Daisy spent the end of it petrified in a hospital bed.
"We'll still write to each other— and I can still attend Quidditch matches," Daisy assured her. She stepped back, but kept a hand resting on the top of Lucy's head.
"It'll be agony," Lucy sighed.
"I'm sure you'll survive. Come on, I'll walk you to your next class." Daisy picked up her bag and grinned. "One good thing about being the Head Girl— I'm never counted late."
Laughing, they left the common room.
She was very excited for class today for only one reason, and that was because it was her first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson of the year. She had real expectations for this one. Her first year, Quirrell turned out to be a joke early on. Second year, she knew Lockhart was going to be a joke from the summer holiday alone. She had a good feeling Professor Lupin was going to be the first, and perhaps the only adept Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.
The third year Hufflepuffs were the last ones to see Professor Lupin and so far she'd heard nothing but praises about him. Hermione and Ron were particularly enthusiastic and no matter how much she bugged them, they refused to tell her what their first lesson was going to be about. The only hint she received was talk of 'Snape in a dress' and if that wasn't confusing, she didn't know what was.
"You'll see for yourself," Ron would repeat over and over again. She asked Malfoy too, but she was pretty sure he was lying to her when he said she had to fight a dragon.
"Hello, Remus!" Lucy said after she bid Daisy goodbye. She burst through the doorway, and just in time, too: the bell rang as soon as she stepped foot in the classroom. The other Hufflepuffs were already gathered and Ernie turned to shoot her an amused look.
Throughout the week she found herself slowly reconciling with Ernie and Wayne. Ernie was sort of impossible to despise for long. He was a bit full of himself, but never in a cruel way. Out of everyone she would have suspected him to believe she was the Heir of Slytherin, it was him. He was a bit of an idiot so that gave him more of a pass than the others. Wayne, on the other hand, was the only one who knew what he was doing in Care of Magical Creatures and so Lucy used him as a second professor.
Things were still awkward with the other three; Justin still flinched whenever he heard Lucy talking to Ford, and Megan was too embarrassed to look her in the eye. The only one Lucy could talk to without too much awkwardness was Susan, but she always had Hannah with her and Lucy was getting sick of the puppy-eyed looks.
Lupin looked up from a stack of papers on his desk and smiled. He suspected she would be one of his more excitable students. "Hello, Lucy," he returned. "You're right on time. Don't bother taking out your books; we'll be doing a practical lesson today."
Lucy's smile faded ever so slightly. Her wand had still been acting strangely. In classes like Charms and Transfiguration it only worked in her favor half of the time, usually after she quieted down and concentrated on it. She found it upsetting because she'd always prided herself on how quickly she was able to pick up spells. Even if she understood how to perform them, her wand refused to work with her.
She trailed behind the rest of the class as Professor Lupin led them out of the classroom, all the way to the staffroom. Hopefully she wouldn't embarrass herself too badly in front of Professor Lupin.
"With all the poking and prodding at it over the last week, I expect it'll be a bit more temperamental— but I'm sure you'll all be able to handle it," Lupin said, reaching for the doorknob. He held open the door for the others and beckoned them into the room.
Professor Snape was inside, leaning over the fireplace. The fire turned from green back to its usual orange color. He must have been using the floo. When he looked at Lupin, he had such a look of loathing on his face that she wasn't sure if he was mistaking Lupin for herself, because ordinarily she was the one able to extract such an expression from him.
"Hello, Professor Snape!" Lucy said, just as brightly as she'd greeted Professor Lupin. "Are you really going to wear a dress, or was everyone lying to me?"
Ernie made a choking sound and hid his face behind Justin's back. Lupin fought hard to keep a straight face.
"Do us all a favor and think before uttering whatever atrocities come to mind, Rochester," Snape hissed. He stormed past her and out of the room.
Lucy stared at his retreating form. "So is that a no?" she called.
"Detention!"
"Well, someone's touchy today. That's the first one of the year," she complained.
"The first one?" Wayne arched an eyebrow at her.
She thought back to yesterday, where she'd been so bored that she launched a pile of dirt at Goyle's head in Care of Magical Creatures. Crabbe and Goyle had been so upset that Hagrid was forced to give her a detention. She spent the evening having tea with him, so it wasn't much of a punishment."
"The first Snape one," she amended.
The wardrobe at the end of the room gave a huge rattle, nearly falling forward before it teetered back and smashed against the wall. It repeated this violent motion a couple of times. Whatever was in there was ready to burst. Hannah eyed the wardrobe warily and took a few steps backward.
"There's nothing to be afraid of, Hannah," Lupin said calmly. "There's a Boggart in there. Can anyone tell me what a Boggart is?"
Lucy's eyes lit up. She remembered her first encounter during the summer, and while the Boggart had been unsettling, she liked the opportunity to impress Mallory. She raised her hand like a respectful student.
He seemed surprised that she hadn't just blurted it out. "Yes, Lucy?"
"They take the shape of your worst fear," she answered. Hers was unfortunately a lame prefect.
"Precisely. The Boggart inside the wardrobe has not yet chosen a form— he does not know what will frighten us yet. Nobody knows what a Boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become each of our worst fears." He kindly ignored the stricken expressions of her classmates. "This means that we have a big advantage over the Boggart. Does anyone know what that is?"
"We are Hufflepuffs, and that is, in fact, a Boggart's worst fear," Lucy said, nodding like she'd known it all along.
She liked Professor Lupin, but that didn't mean he was safe from her either.
"Not quite," Professor Lupin smiled. "What do you think, Susan?"
Susan was nearly as wary as Hannah. It took her a few moments to manage a response. "There's... There's a lot of us?"
"I couldn't have said it better myself. A Boggart is easily confused when there's company. Alone, the Boggart might trick his victim into believing he is real, and that is where he succeeds. But when a Boggart is forced to change from shape to shape, it becomes substantially harder to find it frightening." Lucy found Professor's Lupin's lecture so interesting that she couldn't bring herself to interrupt it. She, like the rest of the class, stood enraptured in front of him. "The charm that repels a Boggart is simple enough, but it requires concentration. The best weapon against a Boggart is laughter. In order to defeat a Boggart, you must force it to assume a shape you will find amusing. We will practice the charm without wands first. After me, if you will... Riddikulus!"
"Riddikulus!" they all chorused.
"Excellent. Now, Hannah, if you would be so kind as to step forward..." Though she looked as if she'd rather run from the classroom, Hannah took a few tentative steps toward the wardrobe. Lupin gave her a reassuring smile. "Hannah, what frightens you more than anything in the world?"
Hannah avoided everyone's eyes and said, "Werewolves."
Wayne glowered in her direction, and Lucy understood why. It wasn't common knowledge outside of their group of Hufflepuffs, but Wayne's father was a werewolf. He was very defensive over any discussions involving them. Professor Lupin was a bit taken aback by her answer but he fought to keep his expression neutral.
"What do you find frightening about them, Hannah?"
"Their teeth and— and their fur..."
"I'd argue that their fur makes them more cuddly," Lucy spoke up.
Wanye stared at her. "Please do not try and cuddle a werewolf."
"Don't tell me how to live my life, Wayne."
"That's going to end your life, Lucy."
Professor Lupin cleared his throat. Lucy and Wayne shut their mouths immediately, but they pulled faces at each other. Stupid Wayne thinking he could stop her.
Lupin turned back to Hannah. "Then I wonder, Hannah, what a werewolf might look like without its fur. Can you imagine that?"
Slightly weird out, Hannah nodded.
Lupin grinned. "Well, when a werewolf bursts out of that wardrobe, you will say 'Riddikulus'. If you perform as well as I'm sure you will, that werewolf will lose all of its fur." He looked to the rest of the class. "I'd like all of you to take a moment and think of the things that scares you the most, and then imagine how you can turn it into something humorous."
Lucy already knew what her Boggart was and she knew how to deal with it, but she was more worried for everyone else in the room. How might they react once they saw Voldemort? But— hold on, nobody knew it was Voldemort. Nobody except for the very few she told about Tom knew that Tom Riddle was Lord Voldemort. To them, they'd see a normal, albeit somewhat frightening fifteen-year-old boy.
"Everyone ready?" Professor Lupin asked.
Slowly, they all nodded.
"Hannah, we'll be a ways behind you so the Boggart doesn't get confused. I had a student in yesterday's class get too close, and the Boggart turned into a half-spider, half-centaur. Needless to say, that was disturbing on its own." Lupin cleared his throat to get back on track. "I'll call the next person forward... On the count of three. One— two— three— now!"
The wardrobe burst open, and a huge, shaking werewolf stepped out, its mouth foaming red as it growled down at Hannah. Lucy at once understood how Hannah could have been so terrified of such a sight, but she couldn't help but think to herself that inside a real werewolf was still a man that lived his life normally for the rest of the month. She and Wayne were the only ones who didn't flinch back at the sight of the werewolf.
"R-Riddikulus!" Hannah said in a very high-pitched voice. A loud crack sounded, and suddenly the werewolf's fur dropped off, revealing a wrinkled body not unlike a hairless rat. She let out a slightly hysterical giggle.
The Boggart flinched, and Professor Lupin called, "Megan— forward!"
Megan had always been rather brave and she stepped forward with a casual expression on her face. It soon faded, however, when the werewolf turned into a cackling clown. It raised a bloodied hammer in her direction. "Riddikulus!" she said forcefully, and the hammer's head fell off and landed on the clown's foot. She laughed as it let out a groan of pain.
"Justin!"
Another crack. A zombie swung its rottings arms around, bits of flesh flying off. Justin made a strangled noise and called, "Riddikulus!"
The zombie's arms fell off. Confused, it looked down at them on the floor and tried to pick them up, but it only succeeded in falling on its face.
Lucy hadn't even realized she was next before Lupin called out, "Lucy! Forward!" She snapped out of her musing and stepped toward the collapsed zombie. Surely, since she'd already faced her fear, it wouldn't be so hard the second time, right?
But the sight of Tom Riddle kneeling in front of her, his face white with black tears flowing from his eyes, it was like a fresh slap to the face. She hadn't seen him so clearly in a long time, and against her will, she felt a fresh wave of longing to have her friend back with her. He reached a hand toward her. "Lucy!" he cried in a strangled voice. He wasn't angry with her anymore. He was dying, he had died, and she was alone. "Please, I want to be alive, Lucy, please let me—"
It's not real, she reminded herself, squeezing her eyes shut for a second. She pictured Mallory's stern face staring down at her. It's not real, she thought again. It was only a Boggart. She opened her eyes. Sorry, Tom, she thought, and then she said in a firm voice: "Riddikulus!"
Tom was still kneeling, but he was suddenly dressed in Hufflepuff robes. Disgusted, he held his tie in front of his eyes and then looked at Lucy with an outraged expression. "Seriously?" he demanded.
She laughed. "Sorry, mate." She quickly darted to the back of the class, still laughing her head off. The rest of her classmates continued to face the Boggart but she couldn't help it, she had to lean against the wall to keep from collapsing. Every time she managed to collect herself, she thought of Tom Riddle in Hufflepuff, having to deal with their raving parties and Anthony Rickett, and she ended up laughing again.
"Excellent!" Professor Lupin called, once Hannah finished off the Boggart with another hairless werewolf. He looked back at Lucy who finally, finally managed to get a grip. "I am very proud of all of you. Five points to every person who faced the Boggart, ten for you, Hannah, since you finished it off, and then five to Lucy for answering my question at the start of class. For homework, please read the chapter on Boggarts and summarize it; it'll be due next week. That will be all for today."
Murmuring excitedly to each other, they began to leave the classroom. "A word please, Lucy," Lupin called before she left.
"Have you decided to give me detention after all?" she joked.
He chuckled. "Don't tempt me. No, I've got a note for you. From the Headmaster."
Those words were never pleasant to hear. Lucy took the piece of paper into her hands.
I would be delighted if you would join me in my office for a spot of tea after your classes are finished with, Lucy.
Sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore
"Aw, what, I haven't done anything yet!" she complained. She thought back to the entire week where she hassled everyone in all her classes. She pursed her lips. "Well, I haven't done anything out of the ordinary yet."
"You've turned a new leaf, then?"
She was stricken at the notion. "Never say something so horrible ever again, Remus." He chuckled and gave her a knowing look, and she smiled back at him. "But really, this was a brilliant lesson, Professor," she told him earnestly. "Really. And I don't just give these compliments to any professor... If anyone asks if I've been respectful, I expect you to deny it, sir."
"I'll take this secret with me to the grave," Lupin said. She thought he looked touched at her words. "If you've got time before your next class, would you mind helping me bring this back to the classroom?" He waved his wand at the wardrobe, and something black shot out of it. It narrowly missed Lucy and Remus as it was sucked into a crate near the doorway. "This being, of course, the Boggart."
"I would be delighted," Lucy said in a serious tone. She picked up the crate, and she was somewhat taken aback to hear Tom's faint whispers from inside. "These creatures really do not let up, do they?" she marveled.
"They feed entirely off of fear," Professor Lupin agreed. He followed her out of the staffroom and stopped to lock the door behind him. "I was worried it would be too intense of a first lesson, but the third years handled it admirably."
"Yeah, speaking of your other third years, who put Professor Snape in a dress?" Lucy was dying to know. She could only assume that someone's fear was Professor Snape, and while she thought the sight of the man was unpleasant, she didn't consider him particularly frightening.
Professor Lupin smiled at the memory. He coughed to hide a laugh, because of course it would be entirely unprofessional to laugh at a fellow teacher. "That would be Neville Longbottom."
Ah. Lucy understood immediately. From the few potions classes she shared with the Gryffindors, Snape was an absolute monster to him. He made Neville cry by the end of the lesson. Lucy tried to avenge Neville by calling Snape a 'barrel of rotten bat-wings' but that only succeeded in giving her a detention with Filch.
"Snape is, in fact, the worst," Lucy nodded. She respected him for helping her in first year, but that didn't mean he wasn't still a git.
"Talking poorly of professors is against the rules," Professor Lupin reminded her but he was hardly disagreeing. "What was your Boggart, Lucy, if you don't mind me asking? It's perfectly find if you'd rather not discuss it—"
"I don't mind," she assured him. She was a bit surprised he hadn't heard already; had the teachers decided to never speak about the Chamber of Secrets again? She'd been telling Mallory, Nathan, and Emma all summer about how Harry killed a Basilisk. "My Boggart was Lord Voldemort."
Lupin's easy-going expression dropped, and he stared at her with a mixture of surprise and disbelief. "...Pardon?"
"It's a long story. If you give me a note for my next class, I'll tell you," she offered.
"I don't know if you should be missing classes in your first week..."
"I'm hardly afraid of detentions, Remus. In fact, I welcome them! I live for them! I long for them!" Lucy's voice grew louder in volume to the point where the Boggart in the crate stopped rattling. She realized she was getting too loud and quieted down. "Sorry, Boggart," she whispered. The Boggart's ominous whispers resumed.
Professor Lupin dropped the pretense of trying to remain neutral, and he laughed at her antics. "This surely cannot reflect well on my teaching record, but a tale like that is too tempting to pass up." They reached his classroom and he instructed her to put the crate in the backroom. When she returned, there was a floating tray of tea at his desk. Lucy drew up a chair to sit across from him. "I hope you don't feel obligated to tell me this story, Lucy," Remus said in a concerned tone. "If it's too upsetting, we can talk about something else entirely."
Lucy could not believe how nice this man was. She supposed that Lockhart was kind of nice, but he was nothing compared to Lupin. "Don't worry, Professor, I've told it loads of times over the summer. Not to any muggles, of course, definitely not..." She trailed off at Lupin's raised eyebrows. She cleared her throat... "Anyway! Have you heard of the Chamber of Secrets?"
Lupin blinked. "The what?"
...She couldn't believe that the ministry managed to keep the Chamber of Secrets opening a secret not once, but twice. And this time two people had died. What the heck.
She had twenty minutes until her next class started, and luckily she was able to fit most of the contents within that time frame. Depending on the audience, she liked recounting the more exciting parts. If she removed herself from the experience then it was fun to tell the tale as whimsically as possible. She used loads of hand gestures, lowering her voice to fit certain characters, and she tried to make her sad little tale less terrible by the end of it.
Remus was a great audience. He quietly sipped his tea throughout, and she made him choke on it when she told him how she and Tom Riddle, also known as Lord Voldemort, stuck Snape's office furniture to the ceiling. She skimmed over a few parts and she was sure Remus noticed. Her encounter with Montague was described as an "bit of a fight" and she also didn't touch very much on Pucey and Flint's death. The real fun part was describing Harry's fight with the Basilisk.
"You should have seen him, Professor! He fought off Voldy's Imperius curse, yes, the Imperius— and when Tom was all like 'How dare you Potter, you are nothing, Dumbledore sucks', Harry was all, 'No, Voldemort you suck,' and Voldy went, 'Fine, fight my HUGE BASILISK and see how well you do' and you know what he did, Professor? Do you know what Harry freaking Potter did? He killed a Basilisk with a sword. A sword!" Lucy had to catch her breath. She fell back into her seat, grinning. She took a long drink of her tea. "My best friend is very awesome, Remus."
"So I've heard," Professor Lupin said. He seemed very amused by her speech. "Professor McGonagall told me a little about last year, more as a preface than anything, but nothing so descriptive as... that. I hope there was a happy ending?"
"No, I was very sad afterward!" Lucy said, her smile as bright as before. "But I'm doing better now, although the Dementors are a bit of a downer." She took another long drink. "So I think the moral of this story is that Anthony and Harry are the greatest friends ever."
Remus nodded in agreement. "You are very lucky to have such close friends, Lucy," he said, "Just as they are lucky to have such a kind friend as you."
"You mean one that gets them into trouble?" She said it as a joke but there was a sad amount of truth to her statement.
"But isn't that what friends are for?" Remus countered. "They get into trouble and they get each other out of trouble. Was it not you that spared Harry from the falling staircases?" Lucy tried not to shift in her seat. "Was it not you that looked Lord Voldemort in the eye— somebody, if I am correct, was a dear friend to you— and told them no?" He set his tea on the desk and smiled at her. "You shouldn't discount yourself, Lucy. I think that Hogwarts has a fine selection of students with you and your friends around."
The bell rang at that exact moment, signaling that it was time for Lucy to go to History of Magic. She grabbed her bag and stood up, but before she left, she looked at Professor Lupin and smiled. It was a small one, but genuine. "Thanks, Professor," she said, and she meant it.
"I'll see you around, Lucy," he returned.
She left the room before she could do something stupid like ruin her own mood.
Sure enough, once her classes had ended, she headed to Dumbledore's office. She was keen on seeing what the heck he wanted to talk to her about. She'd only been there a handful of times, and it was usually for an ulterior motive. Last year, she went there because she was suspected to be the Heir of Slytherin. Well, Dumbledore was almost right with his assumptions— the only part he had wrong was that Lucy hadn't done it on purpose.
It still disturbed her when she thought about the nights she must have left her dormitory without even knowing. She wondered just how many times she went to the Chamber of Secrets. She wondered what else Tom made her do. Dumbledore was right to suspect her then, but now, she was determined to change her reputation. She didn't want to be the dark one. The mysterious one. If she had it her way, she'd like to be the funny one, maybe even the helpful one.
She arrived at the gargoyle in front of Professor Dumbledore's office and points her wand at it. She didn't know what the password was and she was certain her wand wasn't going to work, but she said, "Open Sesame!"
To her delight, the gargoyle jumped to the side. She did an excited little jump before she saw Lucius Malfoy step through the archway. Oh. Her shoulders slumped; it wasn't her epic magic, it was a slimeball.
"Oh. It's you," Lucy said, glaring at him. She wished she sent him worse items than a mere shrunken head. Hopefully, Draco had been kind enough to pass along her message. If the suspicious look in Lucius's eye was anything to go off of, he had.
He seemed taken aback by her words, but he kept his composure. "Good afternoon, Ms. Rochester. I trust you're doing well?"
"I'm alive, which is more than you were hoping for, I'm sure." She plastered a sarcastic smile on her face. She didn't care if he had influences in the ministry. The ministry could hate her all they wanted; it didn't take away from the fact that she could make Lucius Malfoy's life very annoying.
"I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about," Lucius said coolly.
Lucy stepped aside to let him pass. She held out a foot to trip him but he stepped over it as if he'd expected her to try. Damn, that would have been funny.
He paused after a short distance and looked over his shoulder. "But if I did know... I had it on good authority that you'd survive."
Her throat went dry. "What do you mean?"
"Whose orders do you suppose I follow, Lucille?" He offered her a cold smile and continued down the corridor.
Lucy stared after him, stunned. Lucius Malfoy used to be a Death Eater. Lucius Malfoy followed Lord Voldemort's orders. Voldemort told him to give her the diary...? Why? If the Dark Lord wanted her dead, he could have sent the man to kill her at any given moment, or better yet, do it himself. He thought she'd get a hold of the diary and survive? If she was understanding the purpose of the diary correctly, it was designed to kill the holder in the end.
"What the hell, Voldy?" Lucy grumbled. "Killing one thirteen year old isn't enough for you? You've got to throw another one in there? Geez."
She was so going to warn Dumbledore about Lucius Malfoy. Hopefully, the Headmaster could do that fun little trick of his where he threatened the man in a polite way. She rushed all the way into Dumbledore's office and burst through the door.
"Good morning, Professor!" She was out of breath from running up the escalator in a dead-sprint and she stopped, catching her breath. "Oh Merlin I need to get into shape... I... I got your note, sir..."
Professor Dumbledore was sitting at his desk. His perturbed expression turned amused. "I appreciate the enthusiasm, Lucy. Please, sit."
She wanted nothing more than to collapse into the comfortable chair across from him, but she paused, staring at it. "Did Lucius Malfoy sit here?" she said slowly.
Dumbledore realized his mistake and nodded. "My apologies, Lucy. I should have known better." He waved his wand and the chair slid to the side, replaced by another, more comfortable one. "Now please, sit."
She shot him the thumbs up and fell back into the heavenly armchair. She made herself comfortable, crossing her legs. "What's up, Professor? Have any Chambers been opened lately? Because I promise you there has been a distinct lack of talking diaries in my possession."
He didn't hide his surprise at her casual joke. To be fair, it was a stark difference to the last time he saw her, where she'd just been tortured by a fellow student. "You're in high spirits today," he observed.
"I had Remus's class today," she explained. She really should stop calling him by his first name, but nobody had stopped her yet. "He's a brilliant teacher. It's his first week and he already deserves a raise." She gave him a pointed look, which he chuckled at.
"I'll tell him you said so in our next meeting. Tea, Lucy?"
"Yes please, thanks."
He waved his hand and at once, a tea set began preparing itself. It seemed as if every professor knew this exact spell. As he waited, he popped a sugar cube into his mouth. "I've been meaning to chat with you this week, but unfortunately I've been rather busy with meetings. Mr. Malfoy was rather adamant he meet with me as soon as possible."
"Let me guess— about Hagrid's class?" she said in a displeased tone. Perhaps she should send Mr. Malfoy a letter of her own. Or better yet, find out how to make her own diary and send him one.
..That was a very tempting idea.
"Yes, I'm afraid Mr. Malfoy has his own opinions on how to handle the situation." Dumbledore's tone turned cold. Lucy grinned, imagining how uncomfortable the meeting must have been for Mr. Malfoy if Dumbledore was still this annoyed afterward. "But, enough about ministry matters. How was your summer, Lucy?"
Well, she'd spent the first half wallowing in misery, but things picked up after Mallory blackmailed her into working for her restaurant. Lucy decided to keep that part to herself and half-smiled at the headmaster. "It was alright, I suppose. I spent most of my time in Diagon Alley." Where she ran into Sirius Black, but if she mentioned that, she'd have to mention that she was breaking into an auror's apartment and she really didn't want to have a bad reputation in the first week of school. "I found it mostly uneventful. How was yours, sir?"
"Very pleasant, at first. I spent a little time in Europe at the beginning, but at the request of the Minister, I returned from my trip early." Dumbledore had a grand way of communicating his displeasure without giving a single outward hint.
"Because of Sirius Black, sir?"
She was still unsure why a single man had the ministry in such an uproar. She'd read his crime, and while killing a group of muggles with a single spell was atrocious, she'd also read about plenty of other attacks by Death Eaters. She had it on good authority— the authority being Mallory's web of information— that a lot of the men working in various ministry departments had killed many more people than Sirius Black had.
Dumbledore nodded grimly. "Yes, because of Sirius Black. I recommended the Minister station a team of Aurors to patrol the school, but he seems to believe that the Dementors would achieve far more than trained professionals." He moved his hand slightly, and a cup of tea floated over to Lucy. She took it into her hands and took a sip of it. "But I do not mean to trouble you with these matters, Lucy. How are you finding your classes?"
She was entirely surprised that the next hour or so was pleasant. For once she did not feel as though he was tracing her every move, waiting for some sign of wrongdoing. She told him all about her favorite teachers, and especially her fun in Divination.
Lucy also took the opportunity to explain to him, in detail, what occurred during Hagrid's class.
"I told Draco specifically not to insult the Hippogriffs, and he still did. Surely, there has to be some way to prove it was his own fault?" Lucy said hopefully after she finished recounting her tale. She'd even included her threats toward Malfoy which Dumbledore was a little disapproving at, but he didn't scold her for it.
"In a perfect world, yes, I would consider that a reasonable verdict. But the world of politics is far more messy. I'm sure you've caught on by now that many of the wizards in the Ministry, particularly the Wizengamot, are mostly in cohorts with one another. The Notts, for example, would never vote against a plan that the Malfoys favor, and should the Blacks still have a representative, they would always back up the Malfoys."
Lucy listened with great interest. She'd never looked into it before, but with Lucius Malfoy against Hagrid she was going to have to learn quickly. "But if they're making all the decisions and most of them are against muggles, then how can so many pro-muggle laws exist?"
"Well, Lucy, most of the departments regarding Wizard-Muggle relations are relatively new, and so those elected to those positions do not have strong ties to the Old Families. The departments that have existed for a much longer time, such as the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, have had established families involved. The final appointment for any major positions must be approved by the Minister, and if not the Minister, then it's up to the members of the Wizengamot. So, even if, by chance, the Minister was looking to change some of these proceedings, they would be entirely overruled by the Old Families."
That sucked. So basically, unless the accused was favored by the Wizengamot, there was no chance? Lucy resisted the urge to pull a face because she wanted to remain calm in this nice, mature discussion.
"But, the members of the Wizengamot are still human at the end of the day. I'm sure that any of them could be swayed by a well formulated case." He gave her a slightly pointed stare. She understood. If anyone had a chance at helping Hagrid against winning his case, it would be the combined efforts of Lucy, Hermione, and Dumbledore. Harry and Ron were brilliant in their own way, but they were sort of helpless with rules and politics. She, however, was a very good liar. "Lucius Malfoy has not officially taken any legal action, but I had the impression that was what he was hinting at when he graciously requested I terminate Professor Hagrid's employment."
"I should've tried harder to trip him," Lucy muttered. Mr. Malfoy really was troublesome. Okay, so Hagrid's class wasn't the most enjoyable one, or the best organized one, but it was only his first year teaching! Perhaps she could give him pointers, or maybe have one of the other professors try and help him...
"I wouldn't advise making an enemy out of Lucius Malfoy, Lucy," Dumbledore warned her. "He can be rather troublesome if he's annoyed. I know from experience."
Oh yeah, he had Dumbledore fired for a while there. Lucy had mostly forgotten.
"Technically, Tom was the one who put that plan into motion..." she trailed off at Dumbledore's slightly perplexed expression. "He overheard Draco bragging about how Lucius could have you sacked, and I guess he got all excited and decided to petrify not one, but three of my friends. What a git, right?"
This political discussion was turning more into a gossiping round, but Lucy found it pleasant either way. Dumbledore took a sip of his tea. "Well, I also would not advise making an enemy out of Tom Riddle, but I have been troubled with that early on."
"Well, you did sort of set his wardrobe on fire," she said in her friend's defense. "Of course, that's not an excuse to try and take over the world, but I'd have been a little on edge too."
"That may have been a tad excessive," he conceded as he dropped another sugar cube into his tea. "Some biscuits might be nice with this, don't you agree?" Lucy nodded, and a tray of biscuits appeared on the desk in front of them. She wondered where they came from and reasoned they must have been in the kitchen. Some house elves were going to be very confused. "I recall that meeting very well, but I hadn't expected Tom to remember such details."
"He didn't really remember it. It's sort of cheating, really, sir— he had a way of showing me his memories." This definitely captured Dumbledore's attention. He looked up from buttering his biscuit to give her his full attention. "He only showed me two of them. His first meeting with you and then Hagrid's expulsion. He said he wanted to see some of mine, but..." She frowned. He never asked to see any, actually, which made her suspicious... "But I suppose he could have looked for himself without me knowing."
"He was a very powerful wizard," Dumbledore nodded. "I find myself surprised by his mind still even to this day."
That reminded her of something. "Speaking of powers, sir—" she pulled out her wand and frowned as it gave out a violent burst of sparks. It repeated the motion over and over until she shook it harshly, and it stopped. "As you can see, my wand hasn't been working the best recently. I was wondering if you had any idea?"
"May I?" The headmaster held out his hand. Lucy gave him her wand. He tried to give it a wave, but he jumped as a loud ZAP! Rang throughout the room. He placed the wand on the desk and rubbed his hand gently with a wince. "Alas, Laurel. It's not fond of outsiders." He laughed and handed her back her wand. "Why don't you try?"
Lucy pointed her wand at her shoe and said, "Duro." It was a spell she'd cast loads of times and she should have had it mastered by now. But the only thing that happened was a shower sparks bursting from her wand, scorching her sock. She rubbed her ankle with her other foot to keep her sock from setting on fire. "See? Nothing!"
"Why don't you try it on something else?" he suggested. He pushed a globe on his desk toward her. She was hesitant to use the spell on it, because it looked very valuable. "I give you my blessing," he chuckled.
"Duro," she said, and the globe turned completely to stone. "What?! Now it works?!" She gave a frustrated sigh as she tried to do it on her shoe again, and it didn't work.
"How long has this been happening?"
Lucy thought back on it. It became more of a problem toward the end of summer, when the sparks and random bursts of spells became more frequent. Now it was downright annoying. She found herself doing things the muggle way just so she wouldn't have to deal with it.
"Since this summer— and, oh..." Lucy realized just who had been in her possession before it started acting strangley. Furiously, she said, "I swear to GOD if Tom messed up my wand with his stupid snake fingers!" She tried to turn the globe back to normal but it didn't work. She put her wand away, crossing her arms over her chest. "It's fine. I didn't want to keep being a witch anyway. It's fine."
Dumbledore laughed at her dramatics. "I'm sure it isn't too serious. Professor McGonagall seems to believe that you've performed admirably in her class. But, if the problems persist, I'd suggest sending a letter to Mr. Ollivander. He knows the functions of wands far better than I."
"Alright, but if Voldy messed up my wand, vengeance will be mine," she warned. To hell with his and Harry's enemy status— she was more than willing to take the limelight if it meant avenging her precious wand.
His eyes had a twinkle in them. "Wherever he dwells, I imagine he's frightened at the possibility. Now, let's you and I leave the matter of Lord Voldemort alone for now— it's far too nice a morning to trouble it with unpleasant memories."
"My morning's already been tainted, Professor. I had to see Lucius Malfoy." Lucy didn't think she was being dramatic at all. The sight of that slimeball would send anyone's mood spiraling downward. And Ron thought the Grim was a bad omen... "That man gives me the creeps."
"Why is that?" he wondered.
"He's always looking at me like he knows me. Also, he gave me the diary, which I'm sure you already know," she said. Dumbledore didn't nod, but she could tell he agreed by the way his lips turned slightly downward. "Don't worry, sir. I got him back."
"How so?"
"Nothing he's willing to admit in the court of law," she assured him. Dumbledore wasn't so sure about that, but he didn't comment on it. She sat there with a bright, innocent smile on her face. "So where'd you get that globe, sir?"
She was not particularly subtle in changing the subject, but Dumbledore humored her anyway.
"Well, I was in Europe for a long stretch of time..."
The following weeks were, astonishingly, just as pleasant as her first week had been. Lucy found herself waiting for the other shoe to drop— for something terrible to happen in between her classes. Perhaps another death threat, or an attack, or something. But nothing ever did, and slowly, she found herself relaxing into the peaceful atmosphere.
She was sort of relieved she'd taken so many classes; she never found herself bored or at a loss. Defense Against the Dark Arts was her favorite class by far, but it was less to do with the subject and more to do with Professor Lupin. She still liked Professor McGonagall plenty, but Lupin had quickly taken her place as her favorite professor.
There was never a boring moment in his classroom. Even when they were supposed to work on essays or worksheets, it was easy to get off track and end up talking about a completely different subject. Lucy was meant to be writing an essay about her Boggart experience but by the time the hour ended, she and the rest of the Hufflepuffs were in a deep discussion about whether a magical bear could pose a serious threat against Wizardkind.
Lucy remained strong in her stance that no, she could totally fight a bear with her own two hands, but Ernie disagreed with yes, magical bears would be terrifying and would kill her in a single blow. Just when the argument seemed to be settling down, Professor Lupin chimed in and mentioned that Lucy might be able to take down a magical bear, but in very specific circumstances. The class hour erupted into chaos after that.
Lupin totally meant to do that, she knew it.
Whenever she was kicked out of class— which usually happened in Potions, because she couldn't resist bothering Snape— she went to his classroom and hung around. Any mention of Snape's boggart form was sure to get her sent out of class. He never turned her away, as exasperated as he became sometimes, and in turn she never bothered him when he was busy with real work.
Her second favorite class was Divination, but nobody would have guessed it with the amount she messed around.
Despite the Parseltongue prophecies she whispered, which always impressed Professor Trelawney, she did her homework the correct way and finished their in-class work before everyone else— even Hermione. It was a great source of annoyance for the bookworm, but by far the person most hassled in Divination was Lucy, and by Harry Potter of all people.
Trelawney had started using Lucy's papers as 'good examples' for the rest of the class. She realized, with a great deal of horror, that she was becoming the nerd of the class. The teacher's pet. She couldn't believe herself. Even when she tried getting in trouble, like igniting a tea leaves war with Seamus and Dean, Professor Trelawney turned a blind eye.
Unfortunately, Care of Magical creatures was not as fun as Lucy thought it would be. It was rather boring, but she tried to have fun in it, and she made sure to treat the Flobberworms well. She had to smack Ron a handful of times for handling them too roughly.
"They're still animals, slughead!" she snapped, after an hour of watching Ron nearly choke the flobberworm with food. They were hideous and boring, but Merlin.
"Go be a Hufflepuff somewhere else," Ron huffed back at her.
Lucy picked up a handful of the regurgitated lettuce and flung it at him. Ron shrieked, and needless to say Hagrid was not pleased with her.
Presently Lucy had just finished writing a letter to Mallory. She was very worried because according to Mallory, Grimm had stopped showing up for food a week ago. In her letter, she asked if the woman could put up a poster for him or something, and even if Mallory said no, Lucy had a feeling she would anyway.
There was nothing to be done but wait hopefully for Mallory's reply. In the meantime, she was sitting in the Great Hall, listening to Heidi recounting her and Maxine's summer in Venice, but she was soon interrupted by Cedric collapsing into the seat next to her. Anthony beamed and sat across from them.
"Sooo, just had a talk with Ceddy and he agrees that Quidditch practice starts today!" he said with an innocent grin.
Cedric straightened out his robes. He scowled at Anthony. "We did not have a talk, you dragged me away from Cho and threw me at the table." He seemed genuinely annoyed and Lucy felt bad for him. In the countless late nights the Quidditch Team spent in the Hufflepuff common room, he could write essays about how cool and smart and talented Cho Chang was. At this point Lucy felt like she knew the girl as well as he did from how much he talked about her.
However, Anthony was a soulless demon, and he couldn't care less about Cedric's love life. "Yes, well, I meant to have a talk, and that is what we are doing now. So what do you say about having Quidditch practice today?"
"The season hasn't started yet," Cedric said in an impatient tone. "And I'd have to go and talk to Madam Hooch—"
"And is she not right up there?" Anthony pointed to the professors' table, where sure enough the hawk-eyed woman was sitting next to Professor Snape. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously at the sight of Cedric, Anthony, and Lucy all staring at her.
"Yeah, no, I'm not interrupting her breakfast."
"I will," Lucy volunteered. She looked toward Madam Hooch and made a throwing gesture, then shot her the thumbs up. A bit confused, Madam Hooch slowly nodded her head. Lucy beamed and turned back to Cedric. "It's as easy as that."
"You only get away with that because you're young," Cedric grumbled, but she could see he was coming around to the idea. He wasn't as intense as Oliver Wood but he loved the sport every bit as much as the Gryffindor Quidditch captain. "I suppose we'd better get a head start if we want to beat Gryffindor. If I can't outfly Potter, we need to work on gathering enough points so that we're still in the running..."
Cedric was a skilled Seeker, but Lucy had to admit that there were not many people who could outfly her friend. She wasn't too bad herself, but Harry could easily fly circles around her. She was just glad he wasn't a Chaser.
Lucy decided to go and warn Harry of his impending doom. While Herbert still wasn't the best keeper, their beaters were sure to try and take any of the Gryffindors' heads off. The Gryffindors themselves had been practicing for two days already, so she couldn't really blame Anthony for wanting to get a move on.
Harry had dark circles under his eyes, and he turned to her with a pleading look on his face.
"What are the odds you'll let Wood win the Quidditch Cup for his last year?" he said hopefully. "He's killing us, Luce. He's killing us."
She stared at him and said in a voice like ice, "Harry, nothing would please me more than to see that man break down crying at the end of the Quidditch season."
"What the hell?" Ron whispered. He was edging away in his seat from Lucy's threatening expression. Fred and George were also thoroughly displeased.
The twins looked at each other and exchanged a grave frown. "I always knew she was evil," they said together, and they slowly pulled out their wands.
"We've got to save the Quidditch season somehow," George said apologetically.
"We'll make it quick, Rochester," Fred joked, and he raised his wand. Lucy laughed at their dramatics and raised her hands in defense. The worst they'd do would be to dye her hair a ridiculous color again.
"Weasleys!" Anthony's voice called from the Hufflepuff table. Lucy turned to see him sitting facing outward on the bench, leaning forward to glare at them. He didn't need to utter a word before Fred and George were stowing their wands away.
George shot him a serene smile. "We would never, Andy, love!"
"I'll get you!" Anthony warned. "I'll get you while you're sleeping!"
"I think that's our cue to go to Herbology," Harry muttered. He grabbed Lucy and Ron's arms and pulled them away from the table. Ron made a noise of protest and reached for his toast, but it was too late. He gazed longingly at his plate all the way out of the Great Hall.
Hermione followed behind them. She refused to come within a certain distance of Ron, and from the way Ron was pointedly looking away from her, Lucy concluded they had another argument. Lucy gave Harry a questioning look, but he shook his head and mouthed, 'I'll tell you later'.
Turns out, he didn't have to tell her later, because as the four of them were working on the same Puffapod in Herbology, Hermione tentatively turned to face Ron. "How's Scabbers?"
"He's hiding at the bottom of my bed, shaking," Ron snapped, and in his anger he accidentally dropped the Puffapod beans all over the floor.
"Careful, Weasley!" Professor Sprout scolded. She hurried to gather them up as they burst into bloom.
"What's happened to Scabbers now?" Lucy asked absently. She was trying to focus on her plant since she and Harry were both slightly hopeless at Herbology.
"Crookshanks is trying to murder Scabbers specifically," Harry answered before Ron could say anything too mean.
Hermione still took offense. "I've told you, Harry, he doesn't know it's wrong!"
"Then how'd Crookshanks know Scabbers was in my bag?" Ron demanded. "That cat's a monster, Hermione! Scabbers is already ill—"
"Shut up already," Lucy huffed, "Forget I even asked." She thought that Hermione should keep better watch of her cat, but she also knew that Ron didn't care at all about Scabbers until his life was in danger. She could list about ten times in the past two years that he said he wished Scabbers would keel over already, so he could get a better pet.
"Thank you," Harry sighed as Ron went back to fuming in silence.
Lucy shrugged. All three of the Gryffindors were in a bad mood today, Harry's was just less angry and more brooding. The first Hogsmeade weekend was coming up, and he was still upset he didn't get to go. She was more tolerant of his mood because his was based on something with more substance than a stupid cat and rat fight. She remembered how he tried his best to withstand his Aunt Marge's terrible, terrible words, but there was only so much a person could take. He would have been able to go to Hogsmeade if it wasn't for that one night.
"Transfiguration is next for you, isn't it?" she said after a few minutes of tense silence. Harry gave her a questioning look. "Couldn't you at least talk to McGonagall about the permission slip? Your relatives were going to sign it, after all."
"Yeah, I reckon I will," Harry said, more lively at the idea. "You could do the same with Professor Sprout, right?"
Lucy shrugged in reply. She didn't intend to at all, but before the end of class, Professor Sprout called out, "All Hufflepuffs should hand their Hogsmeade permission forms to me before Halloween! If you've got one on you, I'll take it now."
A few students filed toward her. Lucy didn't make any move. Hermione nudged her with her elbow and looked pointedly at Professor Sprout, but Lucy shook her head. She didn't want to admit she wasn't given one. She wasn't sure which was worse— if they meant to exclude her, or if they truly had forgotten her.
Hermione narrowed her eyes and raised her hand. "Professor Sprout, Lucy was never sent a form," she said firmly.
Lucy wanted to melt into the floor. Hermione was only trying to be fair, but man. Professor Sprout looked over at her with surprise. "The Headmaster sends them all out. Are you certain?"
"Yes, she never got one," Hermione continued.
"Just leave it, Hermione," Lucy muttered.
Hermione wouldn't accept any form of injustice. "No, it's not fair, Lucy. Can't she have one anyway, Professor? Surely she could—"
"Hermione, who would sign it?" Lucy burst out. She tried to will her face not to turn red as everyone's eyes turned to her, but her cheeks burned nonetheless. "I haven't got any parents, or aunts or uncles—" and after she fled from Wool's before they could punish her, she doubted any of the staff would feel kindly enough to sign a form for the unruly one.
Hermione's face fell, and even Professor Sprout seemed at a loss.
Harry nudged her, "C'mon, we're going to be late," he muttered.
They hurried from the greenhouse and nobody said anything on the way to the castle. Her friends forgot, sometimes, that even though she and Harry were orphans, she was not the same as him. Harry was the only one who really caught a glimpse into what an orphanage was like; he had seen the grim, fenced in building for himself.
"Maybe I shouldn't ask McGonagall—" Harry started as they drew nearer to the castle.
Lucy turned and gave him an affronted look. "Yes, you should! If anyone's got a shot at cheating the system, it is you, my friend."
"Yeah, but I don't think it's fair if I can go and you can't."
"You forget, Harry, that I am very good at entertaining myself. Far better than you, Mr. Brooding," she poked him in the chest and he batted her finger away, scowling. "I've got books and spells and a brilliant mind. You have nothing but a tiny little Gryffindor brain rattling around in that head of yours."
Harry shoved her. "That is the rudest way of telling me to have fun!"
"I wonder if you can think over all the lions roaring?" She continued. "Does your bravery get in the way sometimes? The chivalry?"
"Right, you're insulting all of us at this point," Ron snapped.
Lucy was very offended. "I'm not insulting Hermione!" she protested. Then she grinned. "Only you two, is all."
Hermione laughed, while Ron picked up a handful of leaves off the ground and tossed them in her direction. Lucy stopped laughing when a leaf landed in her mouth. "That is so gross, Ron!" She complained, and she went to kick him. He dodged out of the way and she tripped and fell to the ground. "That's it! Hermione, kill!"
Hermione wasn't sure what to do with such a command, so she settled with picking up leaves and throwing them at him as well. Except Ron had the common sense to pull Harry in front of him, and it was now the Boy-Who-Lived who was picking leaves and dirt out of his hair.
"Hermione, really?" he groaned.
Lucy snickered and leg-swept him as he was brushing through his hair. He yelped and landed next to her.
"That's it, you're dead," he growled.
"What are you going to do, Potter?" She sat up and raised her eyebrows at him. "What are you going to do, huh? You're going to kill a basilisk, are you, Potter? Is that what you're going to do?"
"Maybe not a basilisk, but I reckon I've never killed a badger before!" With that he reached over to shove her back into the grass. Hermione simply could not allow her ally to fall to the hands of Harry Potter; a quick knockback jinx made Harry fall a few feet away from them.
Hermione hurried to help Lucy to her feet. "Run!" she hissed. She turned and shot a knockback jinx at Ron for extra measure.
"We're casting spells now, are we?" Ron demanded after he fell to the grass. He pulled out his wand. "The slug spell is going to work now, you know!"
"Run!" Lucy agreed. She grabbed Hermione's hand and together, the two sprinted toward the castle, laughing as the two angry Gryffindor boys chased them.
"You're dead!" Harry's voice called behind them, and Hermione laughed.
Hermione clamped her spare hand over her mouth to contain herself. She looked over her shoulder and called, "Only if you're fast enough, Potter."
Lucy cackled madly as a jet of red sparks whizzed by their ear— it wasn't very strong, so she suspected Ron cast a disarming charm at them.
By the end of their chase, the four of them would be late for class; but she dared to believe that not even Hermione minded in the slightest.
As they ran to the castle, laughing like madmen, a large black dog sat watching beside a bush. And his tail, if anyone had cared to look, was wagging happily.