A/N: More mysteries! Don't hate me. :(
Gee whiz I love writing this fic.
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Julia was stifling giggles. Oliver's jaw was slack with shock. Teddy merely smiled.
"What?" asked Winnie. "Why are you all staring at me?"
"Did you look at yourself in the mirror this morning?" Oliver asked, somewhat hysterically. Julia laughed harder.
"Yes," Winnie said stiffly. "I fail to understand what is so shocking about my appearance."
Oliver continued to stare, slack-jawed. Teddy cleared his throat. "I think he's a bit surprised by the fact that you look like you just rolled around in a fireplace."
Winnie looked annoyed. "Did he even bother to read the sign?" she asked, beckoning to the slab of cardboard hanging around her neck.
"I don't think 'Boggart' means anything to him. He's Muggle-born, don't forget." Teddy paused, still amused. "How do you know what a Boggart looks like, anyway?"
"I don't," Winnie shrugged, now a bit less annoyed and looking pityingly at Oliver for being so sheltered. "That's why I'm all black. I'm nothing. Get it? No one's seen me yet."
"So why didn't you just make a sign that said 'nothing'?" Oliver asked, still confused.
"No one wants to be 'nothing' for Hallowe'en, silly," Winnie said, flaunting past them. "Besides, being a-Boggart-before-anyone's-seen-me is ever so much cleverer."
"Uh-huh," Teddy said, rolling his eyes to Julia, who chuckled appreciatively as the quartet wandered into the Great Hall.
"I can't believe none of you dressed up," Winnie said, shaking her head as they sat down. "Hallowe'en is the best day of the year. You are welcomed to be appear completely ridiculous! And none of you took the opportunity. For shame."
"Whereas you, Winnie, who takes the opportunity to act ridiculous on a daily basis, needs an excuse to appear completely ridiculous?" Oliver asked.
"Well, no," Winnie admitted, "but it is better when grown-ups aren't frowning upon you for doing so."
"Have you met the professors here?" Oliver asked. "I think they'll still be frowning upon you for doing so."
"Peh," Winnie said, waving a hand dismissively. "They can stuff it, can't they? It's Hallowe'en for pity's sake. Heeey, how was your date with Dumbledore last night?" Winnie asked suddenly, taking on a completely different tone.
Teddy stared his waffles. "Informative," he said vaguely.
"Unlike you, you mean?" Winnie shot back.
Teddy looked up and blinked at her in annoyance. "Yes, it happened to my dad. Yes, he got over it. Yes, I will to."
"That's it?" Winnie asked as Teddy inconspicuously leaned closer to his waffles, ignoring Riley's scent as he walked by. "No word as to cause or anything?"
Teddy tried to keep the blush out of his cheeks and hair as he stared at his plate. "As long as I get over it, I'm not overly concerned as to the cause."
Winnie stared long and hard at Teddy. "You're lying," she finally said quietly.
Teddy looked up. "No I'm not."
"Yes, you are," she said, just as quietly. "You keep a lot of secrets, Teddy. It's getting very tiresome." Without further ado, Winnie grabbed a piece of toast and a banana and left the table.
Teddy frowned. "Winnie… Winnie!" Teddy stood up, but Winnie didn't stop. "Oh come on now, let's not…" But Winnie left the Great Hall without turning back.
Oliver clapped Teddy good-heartedly on the back as he sat back down in his seat. "Don't worry about her, mate."
"You're not upset that I keep some things quiet?"
Oliver shook his head pensively. "You've got this somewhat unfortunate past that you're slowly trying to figure out in reverse based on things that are happening to you now. I get that you want to figure things out for yourself. I also get that you're sort of a quiet bloke, so I'm not going to push you for information you don't feel comfortable giving. The thing about Winnie is that she wants to know everything the world has to offer, including everything about one of us. Her curiosity is insatiable, and she'll never be happy until you let her in."
Teddy smiled, appreciating Oliver's rational matter. "Thanks, mate," he said, clapping him on the back in return.
Oliver waved a hand dismissively. "Just keep this in mind, though: you and Julia both seem to have some secrets, and it's alienating us. It's like this split is developing: you and Julia, me and Winnie. Which is fine, but only up to a point. I'm trusting that you're going to let us in eventually, but I don't think Winnie thinks that's going to happen. Just be careful about how many secrets you two keep, all right?" Oliver, too, grabbed several pieces of toast and stood from his seat. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have an invisible Gobbart or something to hurry after."
Teddy and Julia sat for several minutes, Teddy dejectedly staring at his plate and Winnie turning oatmeal around on her spoon. Shortly, however, the ghosts came streaming suddenly through the walls, cackling happily about Hallowe'en—all except Nearly Headless Nick, who floated gloomily over to the Gryffindor table and sat down across from Teddy and Julia, sighing heavily.
"Good morning, Nick," Teddy said in an attempt to sound cheerful.
"For some, perhaps," Nick sighed.
Teddy raised his eyebrows. "You sound about as bummed out as we are, and we just got told we were alienating our best friends."
Nick's glassy eyes looked somewhat confusedly at Teddy, looking at either side of him before lightly shaking his head and regarding Teddy solemnly. "Today, my dear boy, is my deathday."
Teddy mentally rolled his eyes. Harry had fortunately warned him about this one. "Oh… I'm sorry," Teddy whispered. Julia nodded sympathetically beside him.
Nick waved a hand as though they were being too kind. "Alas… I'm holding a party in memoriam this evening, and I'd appreciate it ever so much if you and your friends would make an appearance."
Teddy tried his best to look crestfallen. "Oh, Nick, I'd love to, but—"
"But you'd rather come here and have your feast with all of your living friends… I understand," Nick said, downcast, looking at his transparent hands.
Teddy tried desperately not to sigh in frustration. He got the impression that Nick did this yearly with his favourite Gryffindors. Harry once said that he suspected having the living at Nick's party every Hallowe'en was a tradition, watching them stumble around in search of digestible food. "Actually Nick, it's not that. It's just that I've got tons of school work to do, I'm sorry."
Teddy glanced at Julia, nudging her with his elbow. She looked up at Nick sadly and said, "Yes. Er, me too."
If Nick noticed Julia's awkward response, he gave no notice. Instead, he looked strangely at Teddy's elbow. "Is your arm quite all right?"
"Hm? Oh, yes. A twitch."
"I see," said Nick suspiciously, but seemed to suddenly forget about it and brightened up. "Are you on your way to class?"
"Yes, actually," Teddy said, looking at his uneaten waffle and getting up from the table, happy for an excuse to get away from Nick.
"Excellent! I'll walk you there, give us a chance to catch up. How's Harry?"
Teddy clenched his teeth as he and Julia walked out of the Great Hall. "He's fine. Haven't heard too much from him lately, but I imagine he's busy."
"Oh yes, I would think so. Have you heard about the resurgent Goblins in Kent?"
Julia giggled. "No, I haven't," Teddy admitted.
"It's quite an issue, I would imagine the Aurors have their hands full with it."
"Why are they resurgent?" asked Julia.
"Gringotts, of course, is all up in arms," Nick continued, ignoring Julia's question. "Some of the Goblins there are expressing their support, while others of course completely deplore it. Goblins are a strange folk."
Teddy's gears were cranking. "Hold on… could this have anything to do with the House-Elf dispute here? I mean, I think I remember Harry or Hermione or someone saying that Goblins and House-Elves are third cousins twice removed or something…"
Nick nodded pensively. "Second cousins thrice removed, but you're quite right, there might very well be a connection. I can't think of…" Nick suddenly trailed off as he stopped in his tracks and looked at a point just behind Teddy with interest. "Well, hello there. You're new."
Teddy cocked an eyebrow and turned around in a circle to try and see what Nick was looking at. "Er… Nick?"
"Why… what is that around…" Nick peered closer at the invisible spot and suddenly recoiled quickly, looking horrified. "Oh. Oh my."
"Nick, what's going on?" Teddy asked, stepping forward with concern.
Nick's gaze returned to Teddy's face. He looked, if possible, even whiter than usual. "Nothing. Nothing to worry about. Sorry, I've just remembered, I've got to, er…" and without finishing his explanation, Nick turned quickly and disappeared through the corridor wall.
Teddy seethed frustratedly. "All right, I know it's Hallowe'en, but that was just a little too strange. Has the entire wizarding world gone bananas?"
"Very possibly," came Oliver's voice from behind him. "Teddy Lupin, for instance, has now been sighted talking to himself."
Teddy stopped on the spot and spun around. "Julia was just here!"
"Now he's spinning on the spot and shouting things," Oliver continued to commentate to Winnie, who was trying hard not to look amused.
Teddy stared at the pair, looking unimpressed. "Am I the only one concerned with the state of chaos everything is falling into?"
"No," Oliver said, grinning, "but you're fun to egg on. Isn't he Winnie?"
"Yes. If only I had some actual eggs to throw at him," she said, pointedly not looking at Teddy.
Teddy ignored the pair and continued to peer around the corridor for signs of Julia. Finally he spotted her standing solemnly beside a suit of armour at the end of the corridor. His eyes lit up as he started off toward her. He opened his mouth to call out to her as he came within a few metres, but a passing seventh-year broke his line of vision. Teddy's call echoed in the empty corridor; Julia had disappeared while the burly student passed in front of him. Teddy stopped dead in his tracks.
Winnie and Oliver caught up with him. "Oh, come on Teds, let's not fight anymore, I'm sorry for what I said, obviously it's your prerogative, blah blah blah, let's be friends," Winnie spouted off, poking Teddy in the back.
Teddy didn't move. He continued to stare at the spot where Julia had stood, not allowing himself to blink. He could feel the hair on the back of his neck stand on end; he clenched his jaw and exhaled hard from deep inside his throat.
Oliver and Winnie stepped back. "Teddy, mate, I'm sure she didn't mean to make you that mad, there's no need to growl at her—"
"Oliver," Winnie said seriously, holding up a hand to silence Oliver. She watched Teddy as closely as he watched the suit of armour. "Teddy, I need you to look at me for a moment, please. Stay calm. Just look."
Teddy was breathing deeply. Emotion pounded through his veins, clouding his thoughts. He clenched his fists and fought to keep himself controlled as he shifted his gaze slowly over to Winnie.
The tiny girl stared deep into his eyes for several seconds, her expression determined and unchanging, before she finally stepped back, grabbed Oliver by the arm, and turned and sprinted as quickly as she could down the corridor and around the corner.
Teddy deflated and swallowed hard. Anger and frustration gave way to sadness. His neck stopped prickling; his hands unclenched, and the boy, ignoring his welling eyes, turned and trudged, alone, to class.
Teddy paid no attention to Flitwick's lecture. Despite his fair proficiency at Charms, Teddy was distracted and failed to make a single object levitate all class.
He wasn't sure what had just happened, but for the rest of the day, he was haunted by the terrified glance Winnie had shot behind her just before she'd turned the corner at the other end of the corridor.