Lucy's POV:
The first Quidditch practice of the year is tonight. And I can't wait to begin again.
"It sucks that there's no open spot on the team this year," Ginny mentions during dinner. "I'd love to be on the team. We could be chasers together!"
"We'd make a good team," I agree sadly. Since none of my teammates graduated last year, no one left the team and there's no try-outs.
"Well, at least you'll be about the same age as the other candidates once you can try for the team," Vanessa tries to cheer her up. "I mean, Lucy was way younger than every- one, that's pretty scary, isn't it, Lu?"
"But she got in!" Ginny responds with a deep sigh. "It's not about your age, it's about talent."
"Still, it would make me quite uncomfortab- le," Vanessa says defensive.
I exchange a look with Liliana and we both roll our eyes at the same time. They can be so dumb.
"Potter!" I turn around to Wood, our team's captain. He's probably going to want to meet up earlier for his usual talks. "Yes, Wood?"
"Tonight's the first practice."
"I'm aware."
"Be there at 7.15, for a team meeting. Oh and have you seen your brother?"
I frown at look down the table at the place where he usually sits with Ron and Hermi- one, but they're not there.
"No, I haven't. I'll look for him for you."
"Thanks Potter, see you tonight at 7.15!"
"Is he saying that weird for a particular reason?" The accusation comes from Marley, who just sat down opposite from me.
I shrug as I look at Wood, walking over to his side of the table. "Nothing serious. I was late one practice last year."
"And now he goes out of his way to remind you of the time every single time?"
"Liliana, have you met the guy?!" I snort at her astonishment. "C'mon it's Oliver Wood! He's more stressed about Quidditch than he is about his graduation!"
"How could he be so chill about his NEWTS?" Marley exclaims, unbelieving. "Cedric had his OWLs last year and he overworked himself from day one! He had two panic attacks!"
"Wow, way to go Marley!" Cedric approach- es us, well Marley, with a smile. He's always smiling. "Are you already spreading all of my little secrets to your friends?"
Marley blushes at being caught. "Sorry Ced... I won't anymore, pinky promise." She exten- ds her pinky to him and he takes the prom- ise while we're watching.
"Hi there girls," Cedric Diggory turns to us with his typical frirndly smile. "How are you all doing? I heard there's something weird with the Malfoy kid going on. Was that you?"
It wasn't us this time. "Maybe the twins?" Liliana suggests with a shrug. "Not us this time."
"Actually, it wasn't them either." Dean, Sea- mus and Neville sit down next to us. "He was attacked by a hippogriff during our first Care of Magical Creatures class. Made a whole big fuss about it."
"Merlin's beard," Liliana looks both surpris- ed and kind of excited. "Is he hurt badly?"
"I don't think so," Seamus answers. "But he acted like he was going to die. Said he'd tell his dad and all."
"Let me guess: 'my father will hear about this!'" Everyone laughs at Ginny's pretty good impression of Malfoy's infamous line.
"Well, it can't mean anything good," Vanessa suddenly sounds worried.
"Are you worried about him?"
She scoffs and rolls her eyes. "Not about Malfoy, if that's what you mean. I mean Hagrid."
Oh no. Hagrid! This is his first year as a teacher! "I gotta go," I excuse myself and hurry to his hut.
Outside the house, I meet Harry, Ron and Hermione. "I heard what happened. Is he okay?"
"At least he didn't get fired yet," Harry is gritting his teeth. He's definitely annoyed and furious.
"Well that's a good thing, isn't it?" Hermione and Ron give me sad looks. It's definitely not okay.
"He won't let us in," Hermione informs me. "And he won't tell us what happened after."
"It can't be anything good, can it?" Ron asks us and Hermione shakes her head. "I don't think so."
"What actually happened? Seamus told us it wasn't even that bad a wound."
"Malfoy was being a prick as usual," Harry grunts, heated. "Hagrid told us not to disres- pect the hippogriff and he did it anyway. He was asking for it!"
That insufferable bastard.
"Well, then it's his own fault, not Hagrid's! Hagrid, open the door!" I bang on the door a few times but Hagrid doesn't open it.
"Go 'way!" Hagrid calls to us in response. "You shouldn' bother comin' here!"
"Of course we bother," Hermione tries help- lessly. "We're your friends, Hagrid! And what happened with Malfoy wasn't your fault, we all know that!"
"No' at the Ministry they don,'" he answers. This isn't good.
"Did Draco really go to his father?" I ask him through the door. I can practically hear him shrug before he actually does so. "'S just a matter o'time. Then I'll be done."
"Malfoy's father has a lot of influence at the Ministry," Ron clarifies for us. "They'll do whatever he wants them to do."
"What about Dumbledore?" Hermione beats me to it. "He's got a lot of power too, he'll help, right?"
"I'm not askin' Dumbledore ter help me," Hagrid says, immediately cutting the train of thoughts off. "He's done enough fer me as i' is."
"But this is about your job Hagrid!" Harry protests. "He can help, you know he will!"
But Hagrid doesn't give in. Eventually, we have no other choice but to leave him to it.
"It's so unfair!" Hermione was steaming red in her anger. "They should be punishing Malfoy, not Hagrid!"
"I know," Ron tries to calm her fury. "We need to do something. But right now, I don't tgink we can, right?" He looks to Harry and me for help, but I just shrug. It's not like we have any power here.
"Buckbeak wasn't even aggressive!" Harry suddenly bursts out. "He was just offended! It's not like humans don't attack when we're being offended, especially Malfoy."
"Calm down Harry," I mutter. "Don't you see? It's not about that, they just wanna get rid of it, because they're affraid of him."
"The Ministry of Magic always wants to kill all the dark creatures," Ron adds. "I mean, most of them really are pretty dangerous I s'pose..."
"How would you know?!"
"Harry, stop it."
"Sorry mate, I didn't know you'd react like this." Ron looks taken aback by Harry's over-the-top reaction. Great, just great.
*~*
Remus' POV:
"Poor Hagrid." Minnie just told me about what happened during Hagrid's class. "He's not getting fired, is he?"
"I certainly hope not," Minnie responds. "If he dares to fire Hagrid, I swear, I quit too."
I'm surprised to see Minnie so determined on that matter. I never saw Minnie as the type to make these kinds of promises.
"That's really Gryffindor of you to say, Min- erva."
"You better know I mean it, Remus!"
I chuckle at her fierceness. "You bet I do, Minnie."
"Are you out of your mind?" Lucy is whisper-shouting to someone as she walks through the hall. It's Harry. "You nearly blew it, Harry!"
"How did I blow it?!" He retorts, not too quiet. Minerva and I share a look and keep quiet, in order to hear their conversation.
"Are you really that dim? Getting this angry in front of Hermione Jean Granger?!"
"She didn't notice," Harry mumbles, but he sounds pretty unsure of himself now. "She was just as angry about it."
"She was angry at Malfoy. You nearly exp- loded on Ron when he mentioned someth- ing about the Magical Creatures being dang- erous!"
"Because he's wrong and a hypocrite!"
"How's he wrong? Or a hypocrite?"
"You know why, Lu."
"No, actually I don't. But Minnie and Lupin are around the corner now, so I suggest we stop this. They're already listening in."
Well, this is awkward.
"...shit!" Harry comes storming around the corner, Lucy right behind him. "Harry, stop it!"
"I just ruined it all!"
"You did not, I promise. You didn't do anyth- ing."
"Of course I did!"
"As a matter of fact Mr. Potter," Minnie in- terrupts him. "You really didn't. Nothing is ruined here."
"Harry, can I talk to you for a bit?"
Harry seems very wary of me and my ques- tion. Nevertheless, he comes with me to my office and I can hear Lucy talk to Minnie.
"I can tell you don't really trust me," I tell him when he's sat down. "And I get that. Really, I do, I wouldn't have either if I were you-"
"Professor, why didn't you let me have a go with the Boggart?" He interrupts me quite suddenly and I'm surprised by the question. Of all the things he could've said, this was probably what I'd least expected him to ask.
"...I thought that was pretty obvious," I therefore answer.
"Well, it wasn't." Damn, he really dislikes me, doesn't he?
"I didn't really think it clever to have Volde- mort appear in my very first lesson, did you?"
He stops and for a second, I think I've startled him by saying Voldemort's name. But then, a look of understanding washes over his face.
"I see I was wrong in my assumption there."
I would've really thought Harry Potter's worst fear would be Voldemort. It seemed only logical, right?
"I did think of Voldemort," he eventually lets on. He's not really looking at me anymore, but at his hands. "But then I remembered that night on the train, and..."
It's the Dementor. His worst fear is the de- mentor?!
"That is very... wise," I manage to say. He looks up in surprise, the same green orbs I knew so well.
"Wise?"
"Yes, very wise in fact. It means what you fear most, is fear itself. I think that's very wise, and impressive too."
Talking to Harry, I realise how horribly independent he's had to be all his life. According to Lucy, he was the one who took care of the two of them at those Dursley's. He's forced himself to be the bigger brother for years. He feels highly responsible for his sister.
I never had a sibling, so I can't say I know the feeling truly, but I've seen it. My friend Marlene, who had six younger siblings and was most protective of her twin sister, also a friend of mine. Sirius in the beginning, of his brother. Never this intense though. Lucy is very lucky to have him.
"You're a good brother to her Harry," I tell him eventually. He looks at me with sur- prise in his eyes. "You really are. I've seen how good you've been for her. You shouldn't be so hard on yourself."
"You think that now. Didn't you hear what just happened?"
"Yes, I heard that. But siblings fight Harry, it's only normal. An occasional fight doesn't make you a bad brother. Even if you think so, you're not."
"Thanks, professor."
Finally having a real conversation with Harry feels so much easier than I'd have expected. It's not even about doing this for Lily and James anymore. I truly enjoy talk- ing to Harry, like I enjoy talking to Lucy. It doesn't even feel like a duty to be there for them; it's just a given.
So naturally, when he leaves to do whatever it is he's doing, I know he'll be back. I mean, of course he will, I've been Lucy's werewolf friend for three years now!
I'm pulled back to the real world by a knock on my door. I half expect it to be Lucy or Harry, but it's Severuus Snape, my old arch- nemesis. And also the one who is brewing my potion.
"Hello, Severus."
"Spare me the niceties," he snaps back. Way to hold a grudge Snape. "I've got your pot- ion."
"Thank you Snape." He looks around the office like there's mice everywhere, full of disgust. Or maybe he is just disgusted with me. I can't really blame him for that.
"You really think you're going to be able to hold a job?" He finally asks, oncr he's done judging the place.
"I hope to," I answer, trying to not let him bother me. "I certainly believe I should try. I need to get by some way."
"You can try to fool everyone here, but I am no fool Lupin," Snape sits down in the chair oposite from me, a fierce look on his face. "You are not here for the job. You are here for one thing and one thing only."
"If this is about Sirius Black, then you are both right and mistaken." I sigh at the disbelief on Snape's face. "I solely hope to help protect everyone I can from him once he gets here."
"I bet you do," Snape narrows his eyes at me, as if to say I'm watching you. "Just know, I will be right there and I will not hesitate to kill you both."
"I certainly thought so." It's only to be expec- ted that Snape has been ready to eversince I got the job. Or before that even, I reckon. "I can tell you now that I am not on Sirius' side. You seem to forget one thing, Severus. I lost my best friends because of him."
He might think he lost Lily that night, but he is no fool. He lost her the day he called her a mudblood, if not before that.
He might think he lost the love of his life, but I lost mine too, plus all of my friends, who died because of him. The only differ- ence is that mine is still alive. That however, doesn't mean I didn't lose him. He is not the man he once was, that man was lost somewhere along the way. Maybe that man never truly existed, who knows? But no, I don't believe that's true. I can't.
It doesn't matter now anyway. That Sirius is gone forever. And that's the one thing Snape and I have in common.
I too, will not hesitate to protect the two students, if necessary, all students. And if the occasion comes, I need to do what needs to be done, and I will.
For them.
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