* * * * *
Lucy did not consider herself a very negative person.
Her emotions, as she found through the years, were quite predictable. She was easily excited and pleased, and she let herself get caught up in adventures on a whim. If she had an idea in her head, she'd follow through without much concern for the consequences. She was not one to hold grudges.
She could get annoyed, sure, but it never lasted. Even sadness had its way of trickling away after a while. Quirrell's death was no longer a sharp pain in her gut, instead a somber ache when she happened to think of it. Her falling out with her friends was a quiet discontentment.
The point being, she did not know much of somberness or fear; she always figured she could work her way out of any mess given enough effort.
And then she saw her friends laying, frozen in terror in hospital beds. There was nothing righteous about the feeling in her chest; it was cold, it was ugly, and it was staying. Ten minutes passed since McGonagall left with Ron and Harry, and she stood there with her hand linked through Tom's staring at the bodies.
She wasn't sure if she should say anything. There was no one around to hear her, but she feared that if she opened her mouth, only a flood would come out. She struggled to contain the lump at the back of her throat. She fought the goosebumps travelling their way up her spine.
She felt terrible when Colin was petrified, and she was unhappy with Megan, Susan, and Justin's case, too. But she never in a million years would have expected something to happen to Anthony. It was inconceivable; he was Anthony Rickett. He was the smartest, most caring person Lucy had ever known; he was the older brother she'd never had. She imagined him to be an unstoppable force, standing in the face of evil and laughing. And if something managed to petrify him— not only him, but Daisy and Hermione, the smartest witches in the school— then what chance did she have? What chance did Harry and Ron have? It was only a matter of time before someone else died, just like last year. She was terrified that it might be one of her remaining friends.
She forced herself to walk closer to their bodies, calculating. The sight was terrible, but she owed it to them to try and make sense of everything. Hermione was clearly terrified. She must have seen whatever was coming at her and found it horrible. Daisy's expression was frozen in concentration. Her spare hand held a wand, which was pointed straight ahead of her. She'd been about to cast a spell at whatever they faced. And Anthony, brave Anthony, looked furious. His lips were pulled up in a snarl, and his spare fist was clenched at his side.
"Why was there a mirror?" she asked aloud, without thinking. She picked the mirror off the bedside table and examined it. There was nothing exciting about it. It had a plain, silver backing and it was no bigger than her fist.
She put the mirror down and furrowed her brow. She looked over to Hermione again, thinking. She wasn't doing her makeup, that was for certain— surely, she had a reason to have a mirror on her. That much was obvious. The tricky part, she found throughout the year, was figuring out why this was all happening. It was a question that for the life of her she couldn't pin an answer to. It was mostly her friends being petrified, pureblood and muggleborn alike.
McGonagall returned before she could do any more investigating. When the professor saw Lucy standing beside her friends, she struggled to contain her emotions. She finally cleared her throat and nodded at the student.
Lucy nodded back. With one last glance at Anthony, she allowed McGonagall to escort her back.
The journey was silent, and when she stepped into the common room, it was packed with terrified Hufflepuffs huddling together. They had a good reason, too. Five Hufflepuffs had been attacked, two of which were purebloods.
"So is he—?" Cedric was the first one to find her at the entrance. His face was pale and he looked very faint. "Are they—?"
"Petrified," she confirmed quietly. There was a series of gasps, and the younger Hufflepuffs clamped hands over their mouths in terror. "Has Professor Sprout been here already?"
"Yes," Heidi said, and she looked very tired. "We were hoping there was some chance it wasn't true, but..." She ran a hand through her short hair, letting out a frustrated huff. "Fucking hell!"
Hannah slowly made her way over to Lucy, a fearful expression on her face. This time, there was a distinct difference in its target; she wasn't afraid of Lucy for once. "Lucy, I—" her voice quivered, and tears sprang to her eyes. "I know it wasn't you."
"You wouldn't have done this to Anthony," Ernie added. He avoided her gaze.
Tom's eyes narrowed while Lucy stared at them. She wasn't angry, but... really? This was what finally convinced them? Anthony had to get petrified before they'd fully apologize. And it wasn't really an apology. Despite herself, she felt the need to apologize back, but she resisted the urge. She hadn't done anything to them; anything she could have apologized for was out of her control.
"No," she agreed. "I wouldn't have. Neither would Harry. Just like we wouldn't have done it to Colin, or Megan, or Susan, or Justin. I'm glad you've finally decided I'm not a murderer." She looked pointedly between Wayne, Ernie, and Hannah, all of whom looked properly abashed. "I'll see you around, I guess." She shook her head, muttering under her breath as she headed back to her dormitory.
"It's good that you stood your ground," Tom said once she had closed the door behind them. "They'll have to work harder than that before you forgive them."
"Oh, I've forgiven them," she said offhandedly. She headed over to her desk and sat in her chair. She reached over to grab a spellbook on curses and flipped it open to where she'd left off. "It's just that I'm not fancying any reunions tonight." Her words took on a cold edge to her voice. The window above her began splintering out of nowhere, and she had to take in a calming breath in order to not completely shatter it. Her magic was going a bit mad right now.
She focused on reading the book, but each word she read, she saw Anthony's frozen body and Hermione's terrified expression. Her heart rate picked up, and before she knew it, the window shattered completely. The pieces rained down around her, a few catching in her hair. She snapped the book shut and put her face in her hands. Wisely, Tom chose not to say anything. She sat there for what felt like a few minutes, trying to calm the pounding in her brain. She was a little angry, but mostly, she was afraid. Who was next? Ron? Harry? The thought made her heart stop.
Eventually, she managed to calm down a bit. Enough for the books on her desk to stop rattling ominously. She reminded herself that nothing would change by panicking. Her friends needed her; if they couldn't remain strong, she'd have to, just like Harry always pulled her out of trouble at the last second. She had to be in control of all of her senses. This in mind, she felt the intense feeling trickle away, leaving remnants of a cold feeling in its wake.
She looked up at Tom. "So, how's your night going?" she said, with a pleasant smile.
Tom genuinely did not know how to reply to her sudden shift in demeanor.
"Well... better than yours, I'd say," he said, eyeing her strangely. "Are you alright?"
She shrugged one of her shoulders. The easy answer was: no, no she was not. She'd rather not get into the logistics right now. "I've been better," she admitted. "I could do without glass in my hair, for one."
He looked from her hair, to the misplaced books on her desk, and then to the shattered window above her. "I think," he said, after being quiet for a while, "that only a fool would make an enemy of you, Lucy Rochester. Now please rid yourself of glass."
She sent him a mocking solute before heading into the bathroom. She did her best to wash the glass out of her hair, but she couldn't avoid the small cuts of fingers. There weren't a lot because she was being careful but she still felt silly as she did it; she was too old to be losing control like that. Thankfully, Tom didn't question her lapse; she couldn't explain it very well herself.
Sometimes, even when she was younger, she had an awfully hard time controlling her emotions. She did whatever came to mind as soon as it occurred to her, such as stealing the knives from Wool's kitchen and carving into furniture. She had to kick that habit once she arrived at Hogwarts, but apparently it hadn't fully left her... At least she hadn't lashed out on anyone. She was still upset, but now she could think clearly. Weigh her options and go over her facts. Do something about it.
Lucy heard the voice for the first time— because she was present for the first time. Only she and Harry could hear it. Tom showed no signs of hearing it either, and so yet again, it was just her and Harry being the odd ones out.
She also had to think of Draco's words: there was a distinct possibility that he wasn't simply bragging. Dumbledore might be suspended, and then there would be no one to protect the students. She'd wager that a lot of Hogwarts's peace was due to Dumbledore's presence.
She left the bathroom, still deep in thought as she went over to her desk chair. She had to dodge the glass on the floor on the way. Vanishing it was an option, but she'd better find a way to repair it first. Hogwarts nights were not forgiving, even on the warmest of days.
Tom was now sitting in his chair next to her desk. He was examining the window with mild interest and once she'd arrived, he pulled his eyes over to her. He cracked a slight smile. "I see you've survived."
"The window hasn't," she said, sinking into the chair next to him. "Rest in pieces, mate," she said sorrowfully. That window had served her well.
"Are you sure you're alright now?" Tom asked. "I don't mind if you break a few more things. In fact, I found it adorable. I might encourage it."
She snorted for real this time and shook her head, putting a hand over her face. Give it to Tom to make her laugh when three of her closest friends had just been petrified. "I'm afraid I'm out of fire for tonight, Tom. You should see me when I'm mad instead of upset. It gets scary."
"Me, too. You at least managed to spare others from witnessing your lapse; for that, I must commend you."
"It'd be embarrassing if they did." She winced at the thought. The only reason she didn't mind Tom seeing was because she was sure he'd done much worse. If she had a temper problem, then there was no word to describe what he must have had when he went to Hogwarts.
"What will you do, when you find whoever's responsible?" Tom leaned forward, a curious look on his face. "You could be angry enough to kill, I think."
"I wouldn't kill anyone," she said. It was kind of stupid that she had to clarify; she was only twelve. But if people thought she was the Heir of Slytherin she might as well cover all her bases.
"But," Lucy finally pulled her hand from her face and clenched it tightly into a fist. Her smile became strained. "I'm not opposed to violence."
Anthony duelled an entire courtyard for her, and he was being merciful. Should she ever find who petrified him, she would not be so kind.
"Did you hear that voice?" She asked in an attempt to banish her less pleasant thoughts.
She couldn't forget the horrible feeling it gave her when it happened; never had she heard a voice so evil, and she had met Voldemort. There was something else about a monster crawling through places it should not be that didn't settle well with her. It was mind-boggling that Salazar Slytherin would let a creature into his school to prey on his own students. Suddenly, she didn't think he was so great anymore.
"I was more focused on your reaction," Tom said apologetically. "But if you hear it again, don't go looking for it: it's no wonder Potter is always found at the scene of the crime."
She nodded, knowing she'd definitely go looking for it.
She almost jumped out of her skin when the door behind her creaked open. She thought she'd locked it. When she turned around, no one was there but her door was wide open. "What the—" she pulled out her wand and pointed it threateningly at the general area. "If you're the Heir I swear I'm going to kick your arse—"
"Not the Heir, not the Heir!"
Harry appeared out of thin air, his invisibility cloak thrown to the side. Ron's eyes were wide, and he raised his hands in defense. Lucy relaxed upon seeing them and gave them a sheepish little smile.
"Oh, hello. What are you doing here?" She asked, eyeing their antsy expressions. She wasn't sure if it was because she nearly cursed the daylights out of them or if they had some sort of scheme. Knowing them, it was the latter.
Sure enough, Harry furrowed his brow and picked the cloak back up. "We have to talk to Hagrid," he said determinedly. "If he set the monster loose last time, he might know where the Chamber of Secrets is."
"You're surely not going to wander around at night after there's been three attacks?" Tom said, staring intensely at her. He phrased it as a question, but Lucy knew it was more of a command.
She cared for her friend, really she did, but she ignored him entirely.
She grabbed the diary out of her bag and slipped it into her pocket. It was sticking out slightly; she'd have to perform the extension charm again.
"Let's go," she said, and Harry threw the cloak around the three of them.
The journey was not as peaceful as their other late-night excursions had been. The sun had set, yet the castle was crawling with teachers, prefects, and ghosts. Tom kept an extra eye out to make sure no one caught them, but he was clearly very annoyed by Lucy ignoring him. Well, she'd deal with that later. She was busy at the moment.
"Fuck!" Ron let out a quiet, agonized noise as his foot caught on the ground. This would have entailed certain doom if Snape hadn't sneezed at the exact same moment. As it was, Lucy and Harry turned to stare incredulously back at him.
Really? They mentally said.
Ron made a rude hand gesture back at them.
They shook their heads. Aside from that, the rest of their slow pace out of the castle went smoothly; after they stepped into the cool night air, the three of them ran toward Hagrid's hut. They matched their pace quite well, and there was no awkward fumbling of staying under the cloak as they'd done in their first year. Now they were well versed with the art of sneaking.
Harry only dared to take off the cloak when they made it to Hagrid's front door.
Lucy knocked, and not a moment after the door was flung open. She was met with a loaded crossbow right in front of her nose. She raised her eyebrows, staring at the arrow in front of her face. "Not cool, Hagrid," she said, shoving the crossbow to the side. "Can we come in?" she said, walking in anyway.
"What're you three doin' here?" Hagrid asked, stepping aside as the other two headed in after her.
"What's that for?" Harry pointed at the crossbow instead of answering.
Lucy was trying to think of ways to bring up their line of questioning. Perhaps they'd ease him into it? Yes, that sounded like the best option.
"It's to keep out invading Lucys, by the looks of it," she said from where she sat at his table. "I hate to tell you Hagrid, but it did not work this time. I'd recommend investing in a cutout of Snape."
Hagrid chuckled, but it didn't last. He set on making them tea, but he was fumbling as if he had forgotten how.
Harry noticed this and regarded him with concern. "Are you okay, Hagrid? Did you hear about Hermione?" he asked.
"Oh, I heard, all righ'," Hagrid said, his voice breaking.
Lucy noticed the way he glanced out the window, like he was expecting something. Or, more likely, someone. He served them all mugs of boiling water— she didn't have the heart to tell him he'd forgotten the tea bags— and made to serve them slices of fruitcake when a sharp knock rang at the door.
Hagrid dropped the fruitcake on the floor as Harry grabbed Lucy's arm, dragging her out of her chair and over to the corner. He threw the cloak around all three of them. All of them were small, but not enough for the cloak to cover their legs. Lucy glanced between them and then made her decision. She ducked out from the cloak, sat back at Hagrid's table, and picked up her mug of boiling water.
Tom looked at her with absolute horror.
"What in Merlin's name are you doing?" he demanded.
"Lucy, hide!" Hagrid whispered, pointing violently at the cloak. She could feel Ron and Harry's apprehension as well.
"There's not enough room. Trust me, Hagrid— I can talk my way out of almost anything," she said calmly. At least maybe she could. Probably?
Hagrid threw her one last nervous glance, but he'd stalled too long already. He grabbed his crossbow and swung open the door.
At once, Lucy made herself look as scared and upset as possible. It really wasn't hard: she was scared and upset, all she had to do was let herself show it. Her bottom lip was trembling as she shrunk in on herself.
"This might work," Tom mumbled. He looked appraisingly at her display.
"Good evening, Hagrid."
Ah. That complicated things.
Dumbledore entered, looking deadly serious. After him, an oddly dressed man walked in. He had gray hair tucked underneath a lime-green bowler hat, and he looked more nervous than Hagrid did.
Dumbledore looked at her with surprise. "Lucy—"
"She was scared, Professor Dumbledore—" Hagrid said hastily. He was clearly lying, but the man with the green hat didn't seem to notice. "I invited her ter tea— three of her friends, yeh know—"
"I know, Hagrid. Any student is, of course, safe with a member of staff." Dumbledore's eyes flickered over to the other man's, his gaze cold. "Perhaps we might continue this another time, Minister, where my student is safely in bed."
Minister?!
"Minister?" Tom said, at the same time as she thought it. He looked at Lucy with great displeasure. "Keeping you out of trouble is a full-time job."
"'I can't do that, Albus, you know that—" The minister trailed off at Dumbledore's deadly look. He cleared his throat and turned back to Hagrid. "Bad business, Hagrid. Very bad business. Had to come. Four attacks on muggleborns. Things've gone far enough. Ministry's had to act."
Lucy had a very bad feeling about where this was going. She stayed quiet for now, her dark eyes darting between the minister and Hagrid. She caught Dumbledore's eye, and she'd bet her life that he glanced at the corner and then to her. So he knew Harry and Ron were there, too? She gave him a hardly noticeable nod. His blue eyes had a certain gleam in them for a moment before he looked coldly at the minister again.
Look at that, my old pal Dumbledore and I are working together, Lucy thought, hardly able to grasp this turn of events.
"I never," Hagrid looked desperately at Dumbledore. "You know I never, Professor Dumbledore, sir—"
"I want it understood, Cornelius, that Hagrid has my full confidence," Dumbledore said as he frowned at the minister.
"Look, Albus. Hagrid's record is against him. Ministry's got to do something— the school governors have been in touch—"
"Yet again, Cornelius, I tell you that taking Hagrid away will not help in the slightest."
Dumbledore's voice didn't rise in volume once, but he held a fury in his face that, in Lucy's opinion, was unmatched. She couldn't believe that the minster had not simply disintegrated on the spot.
"Look at it from my point of view." Fudge took off his bowler hat and fidgeted with it. "I'm under a lot of pressure. Got to be seen doing something. If it turns out it wasn't Hagrid, he'll be back and no more said. But I've got to take him. Got to. Wouldn't be doing my duty—"
"Take me?" Hagrid began to tremble. "Take me where?"
"For a short stretch only," Fudge said, and he didn't even have the decency to look at the man he was accusing. "Not a punishment, Hagrid, more of a precaution. If someone else is caught, you'll be let out with a full apology—"
"I didn't know the Minister had the grounds to arrest whoever he pleased," Lucy said suddenly, and fiercely. She glared over her mug at the minister, straightening to her full height. "Or that you could take them to prison on a whim."
"Lucy," Tom and Dumbledore warned her at the same time.
"Kill me now," Tom pulled a face of absolute repulsion when he realized he and Dumbledore had just been in sync. "Kill me now, Lucy. I have always been opposed to death until now. Throw the diary into the fire if that ever happens again."
Before the minister could properly answer against the accusations of a child, there was another knock at the door. Dumbledore opened it, and if Lucy wasn't sour enough already, Mr. Malfoy walked in. His long, black cloak swept behind him, and he shot everyone a nasty smile. His smugness was interrupted only when he saw Lucy sitting at the table. He froze for a split second before addressing the minister.
"Already here, Fudge," Mr. Malfoy said approvingly. "Good, good..."
"What're you doin' here?" Hagrid demanded. "Get outta my house!"
"My dear man, please believe me, I have no pleasure at all being inside your— er— d'you call this a house?"
Now Lucy knew where Draco got his insults from. Mr. Malfoy even made a show of glancing around the cabin, like a dramatic git.
"I simple called at the school and was told that the headmaster was here," Mr. Malfoy finished.
"And what exactly did you want with me, Lucius?" Dumbledore said politely.
"Dreadful thing, Dumbledore," Malfoy produced a long roll of parchment from his robes. "But the governors feel it's time for you to step aside. This is an Order of Suspension— you'll find all twelve signatures on it. I'm afraid we feel you're losing your touch. How many attacks have there been now? Three more this afternoon, wasn't it? At this rate, there'll be no muggleborns left at Hogwarts— not to mention the pureblood students— and we all know what an awful loss that would be to the school."
Just then, Lucy decided she hated him.
"Oh, now, see here, Lucius—" Fudge protested. "Dumbledore suspended— no, no... Last thing we want just now."
"The appointment, or suspension, of the headmaster is a matter for the governors, Fudge. And as Dumbledore has failed to stop these attacks—"
"See here, Malfoy, if Dumbledore can't stop them, I mean to say, who can?"
"That remains to be seen," Malfoy said, smiling coldly. "But all twelve of us have voted—"
Hagrid leapt to his feet, knocking over the mug of water on the table. Lucy barely managed to throw a repelling charm up before the boiling water hit her; nobody noticed her cool magic except for Tom, who smiled at her like Christmas came early. Bit dramatic for a charm, but whatever.
"How many did yeh have to threaten an' blackmail before they agreed, Malfoy, eh?" Hagrid shouted at the man.
He'd struck a nerve; Malfoy's expression soured for a second. "Dear, dear, you know, that temper of yours will lead you into trouble one of these days, Hagrid. Especially in front of a child?" he tsked his tongue, shaking his head. "My sincerest apologies, Ms. Rochester."
"I don't like you," she informed him. His smug look faded entirely.
Tom let out a burst of laughter. He, of all people, understood the appeal of insulting a Malfoy— they were so cocky that bringing them down a notch was an excellent feeling.
"Lucy, manners," Dumbledore reminded. However, she had a feeling he appreciated her assessment.
Malfoy turned to Hagrid with a crueller look on his face. "I'd advise you not to shout at the Azkaban guards like that, Mr. Hagrid. They won't like it at all."
"Yeh can' take Dumbledore!" Hagrid yelled. "Take him away, an' the muggleborns won' stand a chance! There'll be killin' next!"
"Calm yourself, Hagrid," Dumbledore said sharply. He looked toward Malfoy. "If the governors want my removal, Lucius, I shall of course step aside." He ignored the quick protests of Fudge and Hagrid, keeping his eyes on Malfoy's. "However," he said slowly, "you will find that I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me... Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it."
His eyes flickered to the corner, and then to Lucy at the table. If she could have saluted without drawing attention, she would have.
"Admirable sentiments," Malfoy said. He was hardly able to contain his glee. "We shall all miss your er— highly individual way of running things, Albus, and only hope your successor will manage to prevent any— ah— killins."
With that, he opened the cabin door and gestured for Dumbledore to leave. Fudge stayed at the door too, fiddling with his hat, waiting for Hagrid.
Hagrid stood his ground and took a deep breath in. "If anyone wanted ter find out some stuff, all they'd have ter do would be ter follow the spiders," he said carefully. "That'd lead 'em right. That's all I'm sayin'."
Now that's how you give a hint! Lucy had no idea what Dumbledore meant, although his words were inspiring. She nodded at Hagrid. "Right on, Hagrid, right on." And then before anyone could stop her, she leapt up to give him a tight hug. She whispered to him, "We'll fix this, Hagrid."
Hagrid squeezed her back tightly and then stepped away. He shrugged on his overcoat and told her. "Someone'll need to feed Fang while I'm away."
"I'm on it," she said, nodding.
Mr. Malfoy closed the door behind her as she left the cabin. He looked at Dumbledore and Fudge. "I shall escort Ms. Rochester to the castle. Farewell, Dumbledore, Cornelius." He smiled nastily. "Hagrid."
Aw, man. Why did she have to walk with Malfoy? She was tempted to make a break for it toward the forbidden forest; if a werewolf ate her, it'd still be a better fate.
They began to walk back, and of course, Malfoy was an agonizingly slow walker. As if she hadn't just told him she didn't like him, she looked at him with a pleasant smile on her face. "So how's your night going, Mr. Malfoy?"
He arched an eyebrow. "Quite well, I'd say. And yourself?"
"Well, three of my mates have just been petrified, but aside from that I think the weather's nice and all. Hey, how do you feel about centaurs— ah!" Lucy tripped over a hole in the ground, and she barely managed to catch herself before she face planted. Malfoy looked unsure of how to handle that as she pushed herself to her feet again.
Tom pointed at the ground next to the hole. "You dropped my diary," he said, complaining slightly.
"Oops," she said as an answer, and she picked it up again. She shook some of the dirt off it, but there was still some mud smeared on the cover. "Scourgify."
Malfoy had stopped completely, staring at her and the diary with an emotionless look on his face. She almost burst out laughing. Bloody hell, confusing Malfoys should be a sport.
"This diary is my closest confidant," she informed him. She smiled with a slightly crazed look in her eye.
"And-" Malfoy struggled to keep a calm expression. "— you had to bring a diary with you in the middle of the night?"
"Oh, yes," she said, nodding. She began walking again. "My diary gets mad if I don't. It's slightly frightening, you see."
Tom started laughing at the growing look of horror on Malfoy's face.
"It's almost like I can hear it laughing now," she said thoughtfully. With that, she started walking toward the castle again. She could feel Mr. Malfoy's wary gaze at the back of her head.
Although it was fun confusing Lucius Malfoy, she was more than relieved when Percy took over the escorting process. He frowned at Malfoy's back as he retreated from the castle and cast Lucy a confused look. "Why were you—?"
"You don't want to know," she assured him.
* * * * *
Summer swept over the castle like a blanket of flowers and life, and yet the students were more afraid than ever before; she tried to keep everyone's spirits up, but without Anthony Rickett walking through the halls and Hagrid tending to the grounds, Hogwarts was incomplete. There was an off feeling in the air that she couldn't shake no matter how hard she tried.
Hagrid's tip had been explicitly clear, but of course, Hogwarts had a distinct lack of spiders at the moment. She searched everywhere, even deigning to examine Snape's hair in case of any crawlers in there. She even asked McGonagall to transfigure her a spider. The professor had been confused and disturbed by her request and politely declined. There was nothing to do but wait, or perhaps order a spider through the mail if it came down to it.
With Dumbledore leaving the castle, the Slytherins were the only ones who were truly happy amidst all this chaos. Flint looked particularly inspired. Lucy had taken to sitting with Malfoy and Blaise at a few meals, just to hear some laughter for once. Malfoy's smug attitude about Dumbledore leaving the castle was hard to handle at times, but Theodore Nott was masterful at changing the subject before Lucy ended up throwing something at him.
Today, Potions was a bit of a mix. The Ravenclaws were off on one of their house activities— which Lucy thought was unfair, why weren't the other houses as fun— and so the Hufflepuffs joined the Slytherins and the Gryffindors. With three houses in second year, it still wasn't enough to fill up every seat in the classroom.
Lucy took Hermione's old spot, and in doing so she made sure to be particularly careful on her assignment. Snape kept looming over her like he expected disaster to strike; she wasn't sure if he was commenting on her brewing skills, or if he was being cautious since she was in a class with both Malfoy and Harry.
To his credit, Malfoy was especially insufferable today. "I always thought Father might be the one who got rid of Dumbledore," he said loudly, "I told you he thinks Dumbledore's the worst headmaster the school's ever had. Maybe we'll get a decent headmaster now. Someone who won't want the Chamber of Secrets closed. McGonagall won't last long, she's only filling in."
"Hey Malfoy?" Lucy called over to him. He looked at her. "Shut up."
Malfoy pulled a face at her, and she flipped him off.
"Ten points from Hufflepuff and a detention," Snape said easily.
"Do you really want to spend more time with me than you have to, Professor?"
He considered this for a moment, and then he scowled. "Thirty points from Hufflepuff, then."
Well, it wasn't a billion, but it would do for now.
"Sir," Malfoy called as Snape passed him, "Sir, why don't you apply for the headmaster's job?"
Snape as the headmaster? Lucy wouldn't last a week.
"Now, now, Malfoy," Snape said with a smile, "Professor Dumbledore has only been suspended by the governors. I daresay he'll be back with us soon enough."
"Yeah, right. I expect you'd have Father's vote, sir, if you wanted to apply for the job— I'll tell Father you're the best teacher here, sir."
"And if that happens I'll tell your father that his son's been decapitated in his sleep," Lucy said brightly. Harry snickered into his robes from beside her.
Malfoy glared at her. "Alright, Rochester. I'll bet you five Galleons the next Mudblood dies. Pity it wasn't Granger—"
"I'll bet you the next Pureblood dies, and it's going to happen in, oh, about two seconds!" Lucy snarled. She went to lunge at him, but Harry pulled her away by her arm.
"Not in front of Snape," Harry whispered in her ear.
She wouldn't mind if she did hit Snape's golden boy right in front of him, but she relented, instead shooting a nasty glare at Malfoy's smug face. "You're a bitch," she told him nonetheless. His smug look disappeared and turned into absolute outrage.
"That's another thirty points!" Professor Snape hissed.
She looked at him and said in Parseltongue, "You're a bitch, too."
Harry hid his face behind Lucy's back, nearly dying of quiet laughter.
Snape led them to Herbology next, with Harry, Ron, and Lucy in the back of the line. This time, she had to help Harry keep Ron from lunging at Malfoy. Harry was still laughing about Lucy calling Snape a bitch to his face, while the man had been none the wiser.
"You'll have to teach me how to do that," he said thoughtfully as they entered the greenhouse.
"Just imagine a snake at first, and then it comes naturally," she advised. " 'Course, every time I look at Snape I see a great big ugly snake, so that's not saying much."
Herbology was somehow less fun than Potions, and that was saying something. She'd never been fond of the class in the first place— magical plants were fun and all, but perhaps not when they tried to bite, claw, and spit on you every five seconds. She set to work on cutting the withered stalks off while Harry dropped them into the compost heap.
At one point, she got bored and started poking Ron with one of the stalks, to which he grabbed a handful of dirt and threw it at her shoulder.
"Please do not," Professor Sprout said, already exasperated.
"Yeah, Ron. Keep it together, mate," Lucy said, shaking her head disapprovingly at him.
Ron gaped at her. Before he could retort, Harry snatched the pruning shears out of Lucy's hand and hit Ron over the knuckles with it.
"Ouch!" Ron complained. "What're you—"
Harry pointed out the window.
Following his gaze, Lucy felt like they'd struck gold; there was a line of spiders moving across the grass. They were moving in sync; she'd never seen spiders behave that way and she had seen loads of spiders at Wool's. She furrowed her brow. "Should we leave?"
"We can't follow them now," Ron shook his head.
Ernie, Hannah, and Wayne sent them odd looks.
"Looks like they're heading for the Forbidden Forest..." Harry muttered.
Lucy beamed, while Ron groaned.
Tom was not going to be happy about this.
And he certainly wasn't; she snuck to Ron and Harry's common room amongst the Gryffindors. Tom skulked unhappily behind them. She'd charmed her tie red, and since Lockhart was leading them back, he didn't even question it. Dean and Seamus sent her amused looks along the way.
"Aren't you feeling brave today? I'm so chivalrous! Aren't I chivalrous?" She said happily, linking her arms through Ron and Harry's. "Gee golly, do I love lions!"
"I hate you," Ron decided, as they approached the portrait hole.
They had a while to wait before everyone went to bed. The Hufflepuff parties stopped after Anthony was petrified, but all the common rooms were packed since the students weren't allowed to go anywhere else. Fred, George, and Ginny played Exploding Snap with them for ages, until Lucy got bored and challenged Ginny to a game of paper quidditch. The other girl absolutely slaughtered her in that game.
It was approaching one in the morning by the time Fred, George, and Ginny went to bed. No one bothered asking why Lucy was in the common room; once again, being a menace had its perks.
Harry and Ron went up to grab their invisibility cloaks.
Tom took the chance to remind Lucy how stupid she was.
"I'm going to remind you how stupid you are," he said.
"Don't care, didn't ask," she said, flashing him the thumbs up. He rolled his eyes and promptly ignored her, crossing his arms over his chest.
Once again, she and her friends piled underneath the invisibility cloak. They stopped at Hagrid's hut to bring Fang with, although Lucy had her doubts on how useful the boarhound would be. In her memory, he'd been a coward the last time they went into the Forbidden Forest, too.
Lucy stuffed the Invisibility Cloak in her backpack. She had been the only one who thought to bring any supplies. She'd rid herself of her books and now had a potions knife, a few firecrackers, and a borrowed Dung bomb from Fred. She wasn't sure if they'd be useful, but it was better to have something than nothing.
"Lumos," Harry muttered, holding his wand in front of them.
Lucy followed her lead and summoned a series of yellow sparks to light her way.
"Good thinking," Ron said. "I'd light mine, too, but you know— it'd probably blow up or something..." He eyed his broken wand with disdain.
They finally entered the edge of the forest, with Harry and Lucy leading the way. The thick branches above them blocked out most of the moonlight. They were guided solely by the steady glow of Harry and Lucy's light. They were mindful not to accidentally step on one of the spiders, and there was nothing but silence between them as they walked through the trees.
She was alert, but she was surprised to note that she wasn't afraid as she walked through the forest. For one, she had Tom Riddle with her to keep an extra eye out. She felt extra capable now too, with all the new spells she could do.
The spiders began to lead them off the path. Harry paused, but Lucy kept going. She gave him a reassuring look. They had to follow the spiders; Hagrid wouldn't have sent them there if he wasn't sure they could handle it.
They walked for another half an hour. The night air was chilling, but she was grateful she hadn't brought her robes with her. She had to stop more than once to wait for Harry and Ron to untangle their robes from branches and bushes. Her bare legs stung slightly from the thorny branches scraping against them.
Fang was beginning to grow antsy. Lucy held his collar with one hand, scratching underneath it to comfort him. Suddenly, Fang let out a loud, echoing bark.
"What?" Ron burst out, looking around them. He gripped Harry's elbow, and Lucy raised her wand higher.
Lucy listened intently. Somewhere to the right, something big was moving through the trees. So big that it was carving a path.
"Oh, no," Ron muttered, backing up, "Oh, no, oh, no, oh—"
"Shut up! It'll hear you!" Harry hissed.
"I think it's already heard us," Lucy muttered.
Something in front of them rumbled, and then there was silence.
"What do you think it's doing?" Harry whispered.
"Probably getting ready to pounce," Ron said.
"I'll pounce back," Lucy decided.
They waited for a minute, and nothing happened. Harry sighed in relief. "I think it's gone—"
Just then, a blaze of light blinded all three of them. Lucy shouted out a series of curses, all of them dark, but it did nothing to stop the onslaught of—
...a car?...
Lucy blinked, her eyes adjusting to the light. Her eyes were not deceiving her. Mr. Weasley's Ford Angela had driven toward them, standing in a circle of trees. Ron headed toward it, gaping, and the car slowly crawled to them as well.
"I. Love. Magic," Lucy decided, trying to settle her beating heart. She shoved her wand in her pocket again now that the headlights lit up the clearing. "It's like a dog! Hello, nice car!" She walked up to it and patted its hood fondly. "I wish I could have flown with you, but unfortunately my temporary and crippling fear of heights stopped me. How are you doing?"
The car honked its horn in response.
"It's been here the whole time!" Ron laughed, "Look at it, the forest's turned it wild... and we thought it was going to attack us!" he patted the car as well. "I wondered where it'd gone..."
Harry was less impressed by it. He crouched on the ground looking for the spiders. "We've lost the trail," he sighed, pulling an unwilling Lucy away from the car. "C'mon, let's go and find them."
Ron's laughter suddenly broke off. He was staring at something right behind her and Harry. For a moment, she thought it was Tom, until she heard Tom's voice split through the night air. "Lucy—"
Something seized Lucy's backpack, lifting her above the ground as something else wrapped around her waist. Looking down, she saw two giant pincers below her. Follow the spiders, Hagrid told them... He didn't tell them they were bloody giants!
"Well shit," she hissed.
Tom looked furious in the short glimpse she caught of him. She supposed he was at a bit of a loss of what to do, since he couldn't very well get rid of the spiders himself; he couldn't do anything but watch as the three of them were marched to a possible death. Lucy too could hardly believe their situation. Once her hands were freed, she could grab her wand and then go from there.
The spiders carried them to a clearing in the woods; it had been manually cleared, she observed, by the same sharp pincers dangling below her. Giant webs spanned from the tops of the treetops to the sides, trapping them in a dome of webs.
The spider dropped her to the ground, and she very ungracefully landed on her side. She glared at the spider and it glared right back at her.
"Aragog! Aragog!" Some of the spiders were chanting.
"I hate life," Lucy whispered. Tom had appeared at her side, looking from her to the spiders around them in various forms of disbelief.
"This," he began, "This is why I don't let you do anything! Don't antagonize them!"
She wasn't planning on it. She was admittedly a bit miffed at being manhandled by a spider, but getting mad could only go so far when she was faced with dozens of sharp, skull-crushing pincers.
She watched anxiously as another spider emerged from the middle of a huge web; there were spots of gray hair coming out of it, and all of its eyes were pure white. "What is it?" the spider said.
"Men," the spider who carried Harry informed.
"Is it Hagrid?"
"Strangers," the one who brought Lucy said.
"Kill them," Aragog said, unbothered. "I was sleeping..."
"We're friends of Hagrid's!" Harry said quickly. His green eyes were wide behind his framed glasses. Lucy wasn't doing much better, but she was trying not to let the fact that they were surrounded by spiders the size of horses drive her mad.
Aragog paused, considering them. "Hagrid has never sent men into our hollow before..."
"Hagrid's in trouble," Harry said. "That's why we've come."
"In trouble? But why has he sent you?"
Lucy gladly left the talking up to Harry for now. She had a habit of saying not-so-nice things and that was not going to help them at the moment. She kept one hand in her pocket, ready to draw her wand at any moment.
"They think, up at the school, that Hagrid's been setting a— something on students. They've taken him to Azkaban."
The hollow erupted with clicks, almost like applause. Aragog, however, fretted. "But that was years ago! Years and years ago. I remember it well. That's why they made him leave the school. They believed that I was the monster that dwells in what they call the Chamber of Secrets. They thought that Hagrid had opened the Chamber and set me free."
"And you... you didn't come from the Chamber of Secrets?" Harry said faintly.
"I was not born in the castle!" Aragog said angrily. "I come from a distant land. A traveler gave me to Hagrid when I was an egg. Hagrid was only a boy, but he cared for me, hidden in a cupboard in a castle, feeding me on scraps from the table. Hagrid is my good friend, and a good man. When I was discovered—" Lucy stared pointedly at Tom, who was scowling at Aragog. "—and blamed for the death of a girl, he protected me. I have lived here in the forest ever since, where Hagrid still visits me. He even found me a wife, Mosag, and you see how our family has grown, all through Hagrid's goodness..."
"So you never attacked anyone?" Harry concluded.
"Never," Aragog croaked. "It would have been my instinct, but out of respect for Hagrid, I never harmed a human. The body of the girl who was killed was discovered in a bathroom. I never saw any part of the castle but the cupboard in which I grew up. Our kind like the dark and the quiet..."
"Do you know what did kill that girl?" Harry asked. "Whatever it is, it's back and attacking people again—"
Suddenly, the spiders around them clicked angrily, and the spiders began to circle them.
"The thing that lives in the castle," Aragog said slowly, "is an ancient creature we spiders fear above all others. Well do I remember how I pleaded with Hagrid to let me go, when I sensed the beast moving about the school."
"What is it?" Lucy and Harry asked, at the same time.
As soon as Lucy spoke, Aragog's head snapped over to her. He sniffed once, and then he jerked backward, clicking furiously. "You— you smell of death!"
Lucy gaped at the spider, while Tom's posture stiffened. What the heck! "I do not smell bad!" she argued.
"We'll just go, then," Harry said quickly, glancing at the way Aragog stared his friend down.
"She will not leave this forest alive, and neither will you," Aragog hissed. "My children— feast on the men and kill the Death-Bringer!"
"Death-Bringer? That's a new one..." Lucy backed into Harry, watching the spiders begin to circle them. She took out her wand and shouted, "Rubraecus!" The spell exploded out the end of her wand and hit three of the spiders. They screamed, not because it was painful, but because Lucy had just taken away their sight and replaced it with a pure white vision. It would fade in a few days, but it was all she could think to do without getting Hagrid in trouble.
She cast it again, and at the same time, the roaring of an engine burst through the screams of the spiders. She almost cheered when she saw Mr. Weasley's car burst down the slope, knocking spiders to the side as it charged toward them. It screeched to a stop in front of them, and its doors swung open.
Lucy grabbed Fang and threw him into the back of the car, ducking in after him. Harry and Ron had barely gotten into the car when Mr. Weasley's car floored it; she slammed against the back of the seat at the sudden speed, and they went up the slope, out of the spider den, and back into the woods.
Tom sat next to Lucy, looking stunned at the entire encounter.
Harry looked in the rearview mirror at her. She looked at him and then Ron, whose mouth was opened in a silent scream. It was then that Lucy recalled that spiders were Ron's biggest fear.
...What a rough night for him, then.
"Are you alright?" Harry asked of both of them.
"Fine, thanks. D'you reckon I can get 'Death-Bringer' copyrighted?" Lucy joked. Harry chuckled, but she secretly didn't find it very funny. What did Aragog mean by that? Why was he scared of her, out of all people? From a first glance of an outsider, she was easily the least intimidating of all her friends. She tried to dismiss these thoughts. Perhaps it was something in her nature that made people assume the worst of her. She could do nothing about it but try to prove them wrong.
The car took them to the edge of the forest, where it would go no further. The three second years stumbled from the car, their legs feeling like jelly. Fang shot off toward Hagrid's house, while Ron promptly leaned over and vomited into the bushes. Lucy patted him on the back, grimacing.
"Some Gryffindor," Tom said disdainfully. Lucy shot him a warning glare.
"Follow the spiders," Ron croaked, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. "I'll never forgive Hagrid. We're lucky to be alive."
"I bet he thought Aragog wouldn't hurt friends of his," Harry said, trying to defend Hagrid. Lucy agreed. Besides, the man was being sent to Azkaban— she was sure he was just trying to ensure a quick way out.
"That's exactly Hagrid's problem!" Ron said furiously. "He always thinks monsters aren't as bad as they're made out, and look where it's got him! A cell in Azkaban! What was the point of sending us there? What have we found out, I'd like to know?"
"That Hagrid never opened the Chamber of Secrets." Harry walked behind Lucy and dug his cloak out of her backpack, and then he threw it over all three of them. He jabbed Ron in the arm to make him walk. "He was innocent."
"Seems like we could have asked him and found out that exact thing," Lucy muttered.
They made it closer to the castle, and then they walked carefully through the corridors to Lucy's common room. Once they reached it, she bid them each a goodnight. Ron grunted in response. She patted him on the arm again and then left, bone-tired.
She dropped her backpack to the floor and then collapsed onto her bed, closing her eyes. She peaked one eye open at Tom. "No lecture?"
"At this point, there's no use," he said, utterly resigned. If he couldn't stop her from sneaking into the Forbidden Forest to find man-eating spiders, there wasn't a point in arguing anymore. "At least you're not dead."
"Sure feels like it," she muttered. She closed her eyes again, ready to fall asleep at any given moment.
Then Tom snapped, "Who did that?"
Lucy sat up, confused. Tom was pointing at something behind her, and when she saw it, her heart nearly stopped.
Carved into her headboard was a smiling face, and then two words next to it.
See you!
She jerked away from it, taking quick breaths in. She looked all around her room, but there was nothing. There was sawdust on her pillow, and now that she looked closer, she could see evidence of someone kneeling on her bed. She jumped off her bed like it had burned her. The breeze from her shattered window tickled her cheek, and her body was wracked with deep shivers.
"Who's doing this?" she said, distressed.
Tom looked just as much at a loss. "I don't— did they come through the window?"
That was even more terrifying. She looked up at it, like she was expecting a face to peep through. There was nothing. Not even a howling of the wind. It was completely, and utterly, silent.
She waited for a few seconds.
And then, a soft chuckle.
Lucy snapped; she grabbed her wand and fired curses out the window, spitting out every ugly, horrible, deadly curse she could think of, short of the Unforgivables. She heard footsteps retreating, and shaking, she ran to the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind her. She sat on the floor with her head between her knees, trying to control her breathing.
Tom sat next to her, silently watching the door.
They stayed like that all night.
There was not another sound.
* * * * *