Chapter 3

- Suspicion -

Teddy leaned out of the open window of the Hogwarts Express, waving goodbye at the figure of his dad that was getting smaller and smaller as the train sped forward. When the station was finally out of sight he walked down the thin corridor, looking for a spare compartment. Halfway down he stopped, Ginny and her new boyfriend Dean were standing in the center of the corridor kissing. They looked at him. "Sorry." He mumbled, glancing at the small creature on Ginny's shoulder that looked like a fluffy pink pompom, a Pygmy Puff.

"Quibbler. Quibbler." He turned around to see Luna trotting up the corridor towards holding a stack of brightly coloured tabloids. "Hello, Teddy. Do you want a Quibbler."

"Ugh, sure." He said, glancing at the tabloid she placed in his hands. Her eyes flew to the creature of Ginny's shoulder.

"Oh, he's lovely. They've been known to sing on Boxing Day, you know." She hummed and Teddy tried to cover his smile with the tabloid. They'd been taught about Pygmy Puffs the year before and he knew for a fact that it was a tall tale. "Quibbler?"

"Oh, yes please." Ginny said, glancing at the cover. "What's a Wrackspurt?"

"They're invisible creatures. They float in your ears and make your brains go fuzzy." She replied bluntly. Dean looked at Luna with a raised eyebrow then glanced at Teddy who shrugged. "Quibbler. Quibbler." Luna continued walking from compartment to compartment.

"Ginny, you wouldn't happen to know where the others are?" Teddy asked.

"They're a few compartment down, so's Arkie." She said, pointing down the still crowded corridor. "You must've missed them on your way up."

"Thanks." He nodded, weaving between the students. "Excuse me, sorry. Oops! My apologies. Arkie," he opened one of the compartment doors in which Arkie and her Hufflepuff friends had been chatting and giggling in. A few of them had been joined by their boyfriend's who gave him unwelcoming stares as he poked his head into the compartment.

"Oh, hey Teddy."

"Can I talk to you, alone?" He added and Arkie nodded. She put down her issue of the Quibbler glancing at her disapproving friend who all tried to send the same message with their eyes. "I'll be right back." She promised, pushing back her long chestnut hair and followed Teddy out of the compartment. "Is everything alright?"

He glanced back at the girls and boys who were still watching them. "I wanted to apologize."

Her golden eyes grew in concern. "What for?"

"About not getting to meet your parents."

"Oh, is that all?" She let out a sigh of relief. "Teddy it's fine. Another chance will come, and maybe it was too soon anyway, I haven't even told them I have a boyfriend." She said smiling.

"You haven't?" Now Teddy looked concerned. "Why not?"

"Well... I- I didn't want things to go too quickly... I wanted to get to know them first before I went and told them about my personal life- you understand right?"

"Yeah, I- I understand." He crossed his arms looking down the corridor. Arkie didn't seemed convinced and move to the left so that she was standing in front of his gaze. He looked down at her, his eyes hurt. "Teddy, I'm sorry if this hurts you."

He lowered his crossed arms and leaned against a compartment door. "It's fine, Arkie. I guess... I'm wondering if there's another reason why you didn't tell them."

"What! I'm not ashamed of you Teddy, if that's what you mean." Her hand went up to his cheek. "I just didn't want to rush things... they could be my last chance of having a family." His eyes softened and he nodded, a small smile creeping to his lip.

"I understand, sorry. I'm just going to find the others."

"Why don't you join us?" She asked, pointing back to the compartment. Her friends had stopped staring and were now talking to each other in hushed voices.

"I'll be good, I-" He stumbled over his own words.

Arkie nudged him. "It's okay, I understand. Will I see you in the Great Hall?"

"Can't wait."

He watched her as she walked back into her compartment and the door shut with a small click. Then he ambled down the corridor which was still tightly filled with young teens until he found Harry, Ron and Hermione. "Hey guys, Quibbler?" He asked, sitting down and offering the tabloid. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"That thing is just filled with nonsense and old wives' tales."

"How about you Harry? Heard there's these things called Wrackspurts that you might find interesting. Apparently, according to Luna, they're these little-"

Harry was still staring out the window when he interrupted as if Teddy hadn't even spoken. "What was Draco doing with that weird-looking cabinet. And who were all those people?"

"I recognised one of them." Teddy leaned forward in his seat, lowering his voice slightly. "His name's Fenrir Greyback, he's the leader of the London Werewolf pack. The pack Dad tried and failed to convince to join Dumbledore's forces."

"It was a ceremony, an initiation."

"Stop it, Harry." Hermione's eyes bored into Harry's. "I know where you're going with this."

"It's happened. He's one of them."

Teddy shook his head. "Harry..." he began then faded off, staring out the window at the mountains decorating the horizon.

"Wait, one of what?" Ron asked.

Hermione turned in her seat. "Harry is under the impression that Draco Malfoy is now a Death Eater."

Ron let out a half-hearted laugh. "You're barking. What would You-Know-Who want with a sod like Malfoy?"

Harry gave them an frustrated glance look, and Teddy guess he was annoyed none of them would believe him. "He's got a point, Harry."

"Well, then what was he doing in Borgin and Burkes? Browsing for furniture?"

Ron shrugged breaking off half of his pumpkin patty and offering the rest to Teddy who gladly took it. "It's a creepy shop. He's a creepy bloke."

"Look, his father is a Death Eater. It only makes sense. Besides Hermione saw it with her own eyes." He gestured to the frizzy haired girl who stared down at her lap.

"I told you, I don't know what I saw." Harry went silent and soon they were listening to the rhythmic thumping of the train's engine.

"I need some air." He grumbled, standing up and Teddy watched curiously as he grabbed his invisibility cloak. The door clicked shut and Teddy reached down into his book bag, pulling out one of his textbooks. He let out a sigh. "Hermione, do you mind testing me? It's for my OWLs."

She nodded taking the book and flipping through the pages.