The house seemed empty and no sound could be heard as I left the room and closed its door behind me.

     I knew we would be going back to Hogwarts in no time, and with these many people around the house, it would probably be impossible to talk to Sirius again.

     Knowing that this was one of my only chances, I walked around the house to look for him, only to find Sirius on the last floor, in his mother's room. The door was fully open and I peered inside.

     Buckbeak was sleeping on the floor and Sirius was sitting on the edge of the big bed. His elbows were on his knees and he was hiding his face in his palms.

     He was apparently too stressed over Harry's hearing that he felt messed up; because I knew a part of him wanted the best for Harry and wanted for him to return to Hogwarts, though part of him secretly wanted Harry to stay there with him.

     The scene pained my heart to the point that I decided to leave him and his thoughts alone, and not to bother him right now.

     For some reason, I still felt closer to Sirius than any other adult that I had met in this world. Probably because he had ways been one of my favorite characters, I reasoned to myself.

And therefore I couldn't bear to make him feel more confused. So by that, I tried to turn on my heels to leave, but the floor beneath my foot gave a crack and then I heard Sirius call behind me, "Lexi?"

     I groaned, cursing myself over and over as I turned around, trying to look cheerful.

     "Hey," I simpered. "I – I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude–"

     "–No, it's alright," he smiled at me weakly, obvious in his voice that he wasn't feeling alright at all.

     As I looked at his miserable expression, all I wanted to do was to help him out. To tell him something to make him feel better.

     I knew Dumbledore had told me not to tell anyone anything about the future, but surely small things didn't matter, I thought to myself.

     "Hey, Sirius?" I finally said, making him look up at me as he sat there on the bed. "I – I'm gonna tell you something, but you have to promise me that you won't tell Dumbledore."

     "Alright," he nodded, growing curious.

     Gulping, I walked closer to where he sat and then said in a low voice, "Harry's going to be alright. They're gonna let him go."

      By those words, Sirius's face quickly lit up and he leaped off the bed. "R-really?"

     "Yeah," I nodded happily.

     "Thanks," he looked as if he was going to hug me for a second, but then held himself back and just smile in relief. "You really know how to cheer someone up."

     "Promise you won't tell anyone I told you this?" I grinned.

     "I promise," he grinned back and winked.

***

After a few hours, the door to the house opened and Harry and Mr. Weasley came in, with the good news of Harry being let off.

     "I knew it!" yelled Ron, punching the air. "You always get away with stuff!"

     "They were bound to clear you," said Hermione, who had looked positively faint with anxiety when Harry had entered the kitchen. "There was no case against you, none at all!"

     "Everyone seems quite relieved, though, considering they all knew I'd get off," said Harry, smiling.

     Mrs. Weasley was wiping her face on her apron, and Fred, George, and Ginny were doing a kind of war dance to a chant that went, "He got off, he got off, he got off—"

     "That's enough, settle down!" shouted Mr. Weasley, though he too was smiling. "Listen, Sirius, Lucius Malfoy was at the Ministry —"

     "What?" said Sirius sharply.

     "He got off, he got off, he got off —"

     "Be quiet, you three! Yes, we saw him talking to Fudge on level nine, then they went up to Fudge's office together. Dumbledore ought to know."

     "Absolutely," said Sirius. "We'll tell him, don't worry."

     Only God knows how much I wanted to talk to them about it, to let it all out, yet kept it to myself like always.

      "Well, I'd better get going, there's a vomiting toilet in Bethnal Green waiting for me. Molly, I'll be late, I'm covering for Tonks, but Kingsley might be dropping in for dinner —"

     "He got off, he got off, he got off —"

     "That's enough — Fred — George — Ginny!" said Mrs. Weasley, as Mr. Weasley left the kitchen. "Harry dear, come and sit down, have some lunch, you hardly ate breakfast..."

I stood up to help Mrs. Weasley set up the table as everybody else was too busy either dancing, or gloating over Harry.

"Thank you, Lexi, dear," Mrs. Weasley smiled at me as I carried the plates over the table, but I could feel her eyes on the back of my head as I passed on the plates.

When I returned, I caught Mrs. Weasley giving a knowing look and she smiled.

"You know, I've been hearing somethings..." she started, handing me the forks.

I gulped at those words and immediately looked away, taking the forks to the table and setting them down.

"I've heard that you and Fred are... well... something of an item?"

I took aback at those words and avoided her gaze as I went towards her to collect the goblets.

"Oh, it's alright. No need to get uncomfortable about it around me," she laughed and shook a hand reassuringly. "I just didn't thought that you were the type to go out with... well..." she sighed, glancing at Fred who was still going in circles like an idiot as he did the war dance.

I giggled at the disapproving expression on Mrs. Weasley as she watched him. "He's way different than the person he lets out," I muttered with a grin, saying it mostly to myself.

"Other than a trouble-making idiot, you mean?" said Mrs. Weasley, turning on me to make sure I wasn't joking.

     "To be honest, in a way... so am I," I shrugged, still grinning.

     "Well... as long as you two are happy..." Her voice trailed off into a warm smile as she carried the food trays toward the table and placing it in front of everybody else.

     Sirius, who had looked rather pleased at first when I told him the good news about Harry, seemed to be getting gloomier. Obviously, the realization that he was going to be left alone again had hit him hard.

     "Course, once Dumbledore turned up on your side, there was no way they were going to convict you," said Ron happily, now dishing great mounds of mashed potatoes onto everyone's plates.

     "Yeah, he swung it for me," said Harry.

     I saw Harry wincing as his scar hurt, but none of the others had noticed a thing; all of them were now helping themselves to food while gloating over Harry's narrow escape. Fred, George, and Ginny were still singing.

     Ron said happily, "I bet Dumbledore turns up this evening to celebrate with us, you know."

     "I don't think he'll be able to, Ron," said Mrs. Weasley, setting a huge plate of roast chicken down in front of Harry. "He's really very busy at the moment."

      "HE GOT OFF, HE GOT OFF, HE GOT OFF —"

     "SHUT UP!" roared Mrs. Weasley.