HARRY:

Lucy folded up her piece of parchment into a tiny square and slipped it into her backpack, blinking quickly to clear the moisture in her eyes. When I glanced away, I realized I wasn't the only one watching her. Neville was staring, too, an odd expression on his face.

Suddenly, the compartment door banged open, and blond curls streaked past me, followed quickly by a sleek black ponytail.

"Lav," Lucy gasped, pushing herself to her feet and hugging Lavender Brown, then Parvati Patil.

"You're so tall!" Lavender gushed, now having to look up slightly to meet Lucy's eyes.

Lucy's pale cheeks flushed a bit. "Taller, at least."

"Do you really have your dog?" Parvati asked in a stage whisper, eyeing the basket.

Lucy blushed harder and nodded. "I reckoned you two might want to meet him."

She knelt and lifted the top off, and a black and white flash of fur appeared. He immediately bolted for the open door, but Ginny jumped up just in time and slid it shut.

"Thanks, Gin," Lucy said, sighing with relief. "He's... a tad energetic. Being cooped up in that basket..." She shook her head just as he indignantly shoved his nose against her chest. "Hey, it's not my fault. Now go be social, you have new people to meet."

She shoved him away and toward Lavender and Parvati, who were already giggling uncontrollably as they tried to get him to sit still long enough to be pet. Neville got down on the floor of the compartment, too, and Tuck darted toward him, nearly knocking him over.

Lucy's expression faltered, and tears sparkled in her eyes again.

"What is it?" I asked in a voice only she could hear, gently taking her by the arm and pulling her back up onto the seat next to me.

"It's just..." She swallowed hard, then answered in a whisper, "The morning Cedric and I left for school, last summer, Tuck was... something like this. He barreled into Cedric's room and just kept licking Cedric's face over and over and over. He'd never been quite so affectionate before, and he hasn't been since. It was like..." She shook her head. "It was as if he knew, somehow. Which is ridiculous, but..." Tears glistened in her eyes once again, and she hurriedly swiped them away. "Some nights this summer, Tuck would just whine at Cedric's door. I would try to get him to come to bed with me, but he would lie down in front of Cedric's door and refuse to move."

Tuck barked happily, then ran a couple of laps around the compartment before running back to the middle and letting Lavender and Parvati and Neville to pet him. Ginny made her way over to Luna and read The Quibbler over her shoulder. Lucy turned to look out the window, and I could tell her mind was distant even though she was right next to me.

Lavender and Parvati left with the food trolley came, and Neville asked if he could keep Tuck entertained rather than returning him to the confines of the basket. Lucy glanced away from the window only long enough to smile a bit and say Tuck would like that. She said she wasn't hungry when I offered her a Chocolate Frog, which I doubted was true since she hadn't eaten very much at breakfast. I wanted to protest, but she returned her attention to the hills rolling by outside the window.

Ron, on the other hand, announced "I'm starving!" upon his arrival, Hermione just behind him. Lucy slid over to the window, away from me, and rested her head against the glass, and Ron quickly took the space that had been created between the two of us. Hermione settled on my other side.

She huffed. "Well, there are two fifth-year prefects from each House. Boy and girl from each."

"And guess who's a Slytherin prefect?" Ron asked, biting the head off a Chocolate Frog.

"Malfoy?"

"Of course."

"And that complete cow Pansy Parkinson. How she got to be a prefect when she's thicker than a concussed troll is beyond me," Hermione muttered. I held out a Chocolate Frog to her, too, which she accepted.

"Who's Hufflepuff?"

"Ernie Macmillan and Hannah Abbott," Ron replied. He turned to Lucy, who had turned away from the window and was now listening with some interest. "The Hufflepuff prefects all have Cedric's initials on their badges. Thought you might want to know."

"That's neat," Lucy's voice cracked on the last word, and I was afraid for a second she'd start crying again, but she cleared her throat and managed a small smile I could tell was forced. "Henry's idea, I bet. Thanks for telling me."

"Anthony Goldstein and Padma Patil are the fifth-year prefects for Ravenclaw," Hermione said.

"You went to the Yule Ball with Padma Patil," Luna commented, looking up from The Quibbler for the first time.

"Er, yeah, I know I did," Ron replied.

"She didn't enjoy it very much. She doesn't think you treated her very well, because you wouldn't dance with her. I don't think I'd have minded. I don't like dancing very much."

With that, she returned her attention to the magazine. Ron looked at Ginny, hoping she'd offer an explanation, but she merely grinned at him, looking thoroughly amused by his reaction, and laid her head on the blonde's shoulder.

Ron shook his head and blinked as if to reset himself. "We're supposed to patrol the corridors every so often, and we can give out punishments if people are misbehaving. I can't wait to get Crabbe and Goyle for something."

"You're not supposed to abuse your position, Ron!" Hermione scolded.

"Yeah, right, because Malfoy won't abuse it at all."

"So you're going to descend to his level?"

"No, I'm just going to make sure I get his mates before he gets mine."

"For heaven's sake, Ron!"

"I'll make Goyle do lines, it'll kill him, he hates writing!" He furrowed his brow and grunted, "I... must... not... look... like... a... baboon's... backside..."

The compartment erupted into laughter; even Lucy managed a smile that looked more genuine than her earlier one. But of everyone, Luna was laughing the hardest. Her magazine flopped onto the floor, and her shrieks echoed throughout the compartment.

"That was funny!" she exclaimed, rubbing her sleeve against her cheeks to mop up the tears of laughter.

Everyone laughed even harder, both at her unusual laugh and the look on Ron's face. I glanced at Lucy, whose smile had widened a bit.

"Are you taking the mickey?" Ron asked after a moment, looking a bit suspicious.

"Baboon's backside!" Luna repeated, laughing anew.

I glanced down at the magazine on the floor and reached forward to pick it up for her, but one headline in particular caught my eye.

SIRIUS BLACK: Villain or Victim?

I snatched it up and asked, "Can I have a look at this?"

Luna nodded, still gasping for breath and laughing occasionally. Neville, Ginny, and Ron launched into a spirited discussion about possible punishments for Crabbe and Goyle as I flipped through the pages.

The actual title of the article was even funnier: SIRIUS — Black As He's Painted? Notorious Mass Murderer OR Innocent Singing Sensation?

I was so lost in trying to make sure I'd read the sentence correctly I didn't realize Ron had switched places with Lucy until she said, "Yeah, you're reading that correctly. I love The Quibbler."

I grinned. "This should be good."

Lucy inched closer to read the article over my shoulder.

For fourteen years Sirius Black has been believed guilty of the mass murder of twelve innocent Muggles and one wizard. Black's audacious escape from Azkaban two years ago has led to the widest manhunt ever conducted by the Ministry of Magic. None of us has ever questioned that he deserves to be recaptured and handed back to the dementors.

BUT DOES HE?

Startling new evidence has recently come to light that Sirius Black may not have committed the crimes for which he was sent to Azkaban. In fact, says Doris Purkiss, of 18 Acanthia Way, Little Norton, Black may not even have been present at the killings. "What people don't realize is that Sirius Black is a false name," says Mrs. Purkiss. "The man people believe to be Sirius Black is actually Stubby Boardman, lead singer of the popular singing group The Hobgoblins, who retired from public life after being struck in the ear by a turnip at a concert in Little Norton Church Hall nearly fifteen years ago. I recognized him the moment I saw his picture in the paper. Now, Stubby couldn't possibly have committed those crimes, because on the day in question he happened to be enjoying a romantic candlelit dinner with me. I have written to the Minister of Magic and am expecting him to give Stubby, alias Sirius, a full pardon any day now."

I turned to Lucy. "They can't be serious," I said incredulously.

She shook her head. "They are. I'm curious to see what they have to say about Fudge, though."

I flipped to that page and found an equally-entertaining article.

Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, denied that he had any plans to take over the running of the Wizarding Bank, Gringotts, when he was elected Minister of Magic five years ago. Fudge has always insisted that he wants nothing more than to "cooperate peacefully" with the guardians of our gold.

BUT DOES HE?

Sources close to the Minister have recently disclosed that Fudge's dearest ambition is to seize control of the goblin gold supplies and that he will not hesitate to use force if need be.

"It wouldn't be the first time, either," said a Ministry insider. "Cornelius 'Goblin-Crusher' Fudge, that's what his friends call him, if you could hear him when he thinks no one's listening, oh, he's always talking about the goblins he's had done in; he's had them drowned, he's had them dropped off buildings, he's had them poisoned, he's had them cooked in pies."

"I may not be Fudge's biggest fan, but..." I said as I closed the magazine, unable to bring myself to finish the article.

Lucy nodded understandingly. "Luna's dad is the editor. She gave me old copies last year to distract me from worrying about..." Her eyes clouded over, and she glanced away.

Across the compartment, Neville had seen the shift in Lucy's demeanor, so he nudged Tuck off of his lap. Tuck understood his job and jumped into my lap so he could rest his head in Lucy's. She stroked the top of his head silently, while I rubbed my hand up and down his back. I had been his favorite human at Grimmauld Place — aside from Lucy, of course. He didn't trust me much at first, standing guard in front of Lucy's bed and eyeing me warily whenever I lingered in the girls' room until Lucy fell asleep, but in time, he grew to like me, to the point where he often fell asleep as soon as Lucy did.

It was a nice moment. So, of course, it was interrupted by the compartment door opening again.

Draco Malfoy stood in the doorway with Crabbe and Goyle behind him.

"What?" I snapped, not liking the smirk on his face one bit.

"Manners, Potter, or I'll have to give you a detention. You see, I, unlike you, have been made a prefect, which means that I, unlike you, have the power to hand out punishments."

Lucy was staring at Malfoy with her mouth open, her face paler than it had been in several weeks. A protective sort of anger flared in me.

"Yeah, but you, unlike me, are a git, so get out and leave us alone."

"Oh, but I see a punishment I have to give out," he said, sauntering into the cabin and walking over to Lucy. "Is this your crup?"

I opened my mouth to defend Lucy, but to my surprise, she jerked her chin upward and met his gaze defiantly. "Yeah, he is." At her tone, Tuck lifted his head and turned to face Malfoy, wanting to see for himself who had upset his favorite human so much. "I'll have you know, Draco, that I have a signed note of permission from Professor Dumbledore himself allowing me to transport him on the train. I could get it out for you, if you'd like, I think I know a place I could shove it after you read it."

Malfoy's pale face colored. "I could give you detention for that, you know."

"Do it." Lucy stared at him for a second, waiting. She smirked when he was silent. "It would seem not following through runs in the family."

"What on earth do you mean by that?" he spluttered.

"I think you know," she replied coolly. "You know, Draco, you and your father sound exactly the same when you make an empty threat. Now would you like to see the note from the Headmaster or not? This compartment was plenty full before you came in, and I've been itching for a chance to try out my new wand for the first time, if that's what it takes to make you leave."

He took a step backward, the tips of his ears going red. "You're going to regret that, Diggory."

"Yeah, I'm sure I will," she replied sarcastically, shrugging. She scratched behind Tuck's ears, turning her attention to the animal. "It's okay, boy, he's just a bully. But don't worry, I can protect myself."

Malfoy took another step backward, still glaring at Lucy. He blinked hard and turned to me. The smirk he gave me was less confident than usual.

"Tell me, how does it feel being second-best to Weasley, Potter?"

"Shut up, Malfoy," Lucy snapped before I had the chance to speak for myself.

"I seem to have touched a nerve. Well, just watch yourself, Potter, because I'll be dogging your footsteps in case you step out of line."

My heart dropped. Sirius.

Before I could react, Lucy jumped up, hand flying to her wand without actually drawing it. "Take a hint! Get out!"

His smirk was even less confident that time, but he left. Lucy stood there staring at the open doorway for a second longer, jaw clenched.

I realized half a second later my mouth was hanging open with shock. I wanted to say something, I wanted to acknowledge just how bloody brilliant Lucy had been, but before I could speak, Lucy snatched up her backpack.

"I'm going to go change into my robes," she said bluntly, stalking from the compartment with her head bowed low.