The Eagle and the Badger

Chapter 22: Don't Forget to Breathe

So stunned was Lucia by the sight of her brother being hauled away by Magical Law Enforcement that she found herself unable to utter a word as the red-haired officer led her swiftly to Professor Sinistra's office. The woman ordered Lucia to stand back as she muttered the password so that Lucia couldn't hear it. Then she ushered Lucia up the spiral staircase.

"Sit there." The officer pointed to a blue velvet armchair across from a handsome mahogany desk. "The headmistress will be with you shortly," she continued. "Don't move - and don't touch anything."

And she was out the door, her dark blue cape swirling behind her.

Lucia's first, absurd reaction was resentment at being spoken to like a potentially destructive toddler. Then anxiety took over and she sank into the chair. Exploring the headmistress' office was the last thing on her mind. She hugged herself as though for warmth, in spite of the merrily crackling fire in the grate.

After a few minutes with only the ticking of the brass-plated mantel clock to break the silence, she glanced around the office, too anxious to be truly curious. The room was pin-neat, with nary a piece of parchment to interrupt the expanse of polished wood on the desktop. Blue predominated in the striped upholstery of the chairs and in the intricate pattern of the rug. Leather-bound books occupied every inch of the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves.

Under other circumstances, Lucia might have been very interested to know what the headmistress kept locked inside the intricately carved wooden cabinet against one wall. At the moment, however, her mind was reeling. What on earth was going on? Why had Scorpius been hustled out of the castle like some common criminal? Surely they didn't think that he . . . She refused to complete the thought. It was all just a misunderstanding. It had to be.

Despite the fire's warmth, Lucia couldn't help shivering. She might as well have been out in the icy rain that had begun to fall just before dinnertime. She jumped when the clock struck the hour, then sighed and stretched, sorely tempted to make her escape while she had the chance - just flee back to her dormitory, jump into bed, and bury herself under the covers.

Instead, she hugged herself a little tighter and continued to sit there, her thoughts as tangled as an Acromantula's web.

"Miss Malfoy." A soft voice caused Lucia to sit up straighter, brushing imaginary wrinkles from her robes. She hadn't heard the headmistress enter.

Professor Sinistra waved her wand, and a chair appeared next to Lucia's. Before seating herself, however, she stepped over to her desk and rang a small silver bell. At once, a house-elf appeared in front of her and bowed so low his long ears nearly swept the floor.

"Yes, Mistress?" The elf's voice had a rusty-gate quality.

Professor Sinistra smiled kindly at the pot-bellied little creature.

"Hello, Noddy," she said. "We'll have a large pot of tea, please, and some of those nice chocolate biscuits."

With another deep bow, the house-elf disappeared again. The headmistress sat down and folded her hands in her lap.

"They tell me that you saw your brother being escorted from the school," the headmistress began, her expression grave. "You must have a great many questions; I shall try to answer them, though there may be aspects of the situation I cannot discuss with you."

Before she could say any more, Noddy reappeared with a large tray containing a steaming pot, two dainty teacups, and a plate heaped high with biscuits. Noddy placed the tray on a small table beside his mistress and reached for the pot, but Professor Sinistra stopped him.

"Thank you, Noddy, I'll pour."

"Will that be all, Mistress?" he replied. Lucia thought his long ears drooped a bit.

Professor Sinistra lifted the pot and pulled one of the cups toward her. "Yes, this will do nicely. You may go."

Again, the little elf vanished, and the headmistress filled both of the cups.

"Cream or lemon?" she asked.

"Er - cream, please," Lucia stammered. She didn't really want tea but felt it would be impolite to refuse. She took a biscuit only when Professor Sinistra insisted.

"It will make you feel better," the professor said, choosing one herself and nibbling at it before placing it in her saucer. Without warning, Lucia felt a wave of anger sweep over her. How could the headmistress be so calm, acting as though this were some sort of tea party when Lucia's world had just been turned upside down?

"I am sorry you had to witness that," Professor Sinistra said gently, as though she'd read Lucia's thoughts. "It must have been very difficult for you."

"I don't understand," Lucia blurted, sounding querulous even to her own ears. "They couldn't possibly believe Scorpius had anything to do with hurting those students . . . "

She trailed off, well aware that was probably exactly what the Ministry did think. At that moment she wished with all her heart that her mother was here beside her instead of at the Ministry. But she was safe, at least. It was Scorpius who really needed their mother.

The professor let Lucia subside without interrupting, then said, "I wanted you to hear this from me first, before the gossips have a chance to do their work. Your brother is being questioned in connection with this morning's unfortunate incident."

If Lucia had harbored a hope that there was any other explanation for Scorpius' summary exit, it vanished quicker than a dismissed house-elf, replaced by a terrible fear. Suppose Scorpius really was involved?

The headmistress seemed to sense her charge's distress, because she gave Lucia a rueful little smile before continuing. "I cannot say much, but as you know, the Ministry felt it necessary to conduct a thorough search of students' rooms and belongings. I am sorry to say that they found - evidence implicating Scorpius."

Lucia held her teacup in a two-handed death grip that might easily have crushed the delicate china.

"Evidence?" her voice quavered in spite of herself.

Professor Sinistra leaned forward to lay a light hand on Lucia's own. "I'm afraid I am not at liberty to say. Your brother was questioned here, as were you and everyone else, and he will undergo a further examination at the Ministry. If he is innocent, he has nothing to fear."

Lucia put her teacup down with a trembling hand, her thoughts in a whirl. "They won't - hurt him, will they? Will they let Mother stay with him? And" - the oddity of it suddenly struck her - "why was she here at all?"

The headmistress smiled and shook her head at all the questions. "No, your brother will not be harmed in any way. If he is found to be innocent of any involvement in the poisoning or in the - incidents that preceded it, he will of course be released without further consequences. And your mother was here to offer support during the preliminary examination that took place here in my office. I''d hoped it could end there, but . . . ." The headmistress trailed off, leaving Lucia to wonder what had really taken place between Scorpius and his questioners.

A sudden, horrible thought occurred to her. Scorpius might well have a perfectly reasonable explanation for everything but be deemed guilty anyway, simply because of who he was: Grandson and son of Death Eaters, known to agree with with their pureblood prejudices if not with their methods . . .

Hopelessness and exhaustion overcame her, and she shut her eyes for a moment.

A soft voice caused her to open them again. "Try not to worry, Miss Malfoy. Your brother's fate is in his own b hands, and whatever happens, you will be all right. Now, it is time for you to be off to bed."

She reached over and rang the little bell once more. When Noddy appeared, she ordered him to escort Lucia back to her dormitory. Dumbly, not even remembering to thank the headmistress for tea, Lucia followed the house-elf to the door. Just as it was about to close behind her, she thought she heard Professor Sinistra say, "Don't forget to breathe, Lucia."

What she meant by that, Lucia had no idea, but she was far too tired to care.

ooOoo

True to the headmistress' prediction, news of Scorpius Malfoy's "arrest" - as many were calling it - was on everyone's lips by the end of breakfast the next day. Hugo found himself wondering - not for the first time - how the Prophet got wind of things so quickly. He doubted that the headmistress would want news about the attack to be broadcast all over Britain; there must have been some sort of leak.

As eager as anyone to to know what the paper actually said, he snuck a peek over Robbie's shoulder, trying to read past the huge bold headlines.

QUICK WORK NABS WOULD-BE HOGWARTS KILLER!

Malfoy Scion Taken into Custody

Hugo had time only to skim the next few sentences before Robbie turned the page, apparently too absorbed to notice he was being pelted with questions by the first years hovering around him. With a snort of impatience, Hugo elbowed the bespectacled boy, who looked up with a muffled "Wha - ?"

"Is it true?" Hugo blurted. "Did Malfoy really do it?"

With a sigh of annoyance, Robbie closed the paper, not bothering to smooth out the pages.

"They're not saying, exactly, at least in the part I've been able to read, he replied pointedly. "Here, see for yourself." He shoved the paper toward Hugo.

Ignoring the hubbub around him, Hugo read the article with care, hoping the last few paragraphs would give more specifics. It turned out that Robbie was right, though: The article was maddeningly short on detail. It mentioned "evidence" without saying what sort or how it was found. Hugo handed back the paper with very mixed feelings. Scorpius Malfoy was a prat, definitely, but he was Lucia's brother. She was going to be devastated.

Glancing over at the Ravenclaw table, he couldn't find her among the other first years and guessed that she'd knew what had happened to Scorpius. Maybe she just couldn't face the looks and comments she'd probably get as the suspect's sister. Taking a last bite of his scrambled eggs, he got up to follow Ruth, who was just leaving.

"Wait up!" he called after her, and she slowed to let him catch up.

"How is she?" he asked, not having to specify whom he meant.

Ruth looked at him, her face a study in misery. "Oh, Hugo, it's awful! She wouldn't get up this morning. I'm just taking her some breakfast, but I don't know if she'll eat it." She thrust a lumpy parcel into her pocket.

"I don't suppose she'll be up for double Potions, then," Hugo said, knowing that if he'd been in her place, he probably couldn't stand to sit through a class, pretending everything was normal.

Ruth shook her head sadly.

Something else occurred to Hugo. "Erm - I haven't seen Lucia and Mike together much lately. Is there a problem?" He'd almost said that the two had always been best friends, but he stopped himself just in time to avoid hurting Ruth's feeling. Obviously, she cared a lot about Lucia and he was glad that at least one Ravenclaw was looking out for her.

Instead, Hugo said, "You'd better go if you don't want to be late for class. If you don't make it in time, I'll tell Professor Kindle why. I'm sure he'll understand. Just tell Lucia " - he stopped, realizing he didn't know quite what to say. "Tell her I'm sorry, okay?"

Ruth smiled wanly and started for the stairs, then turned back once more.

"Hugo - do you think he's really the one?"

Hugo shrugged. "No idea. But if he's not guilty, who is?"

He saw several of his classmates heading toward the dungeons and bade the Ravenclaw girl goodbye.

"Tell Luce not to worry, all right?" he called after Ruth as they parted company. "Whatever happened, it's not her fault."

Neither Lucia nor Ruth was missing when Potions class began. In an effort to forestall any possible commotion about the sensational news, Professor Kindle put the day's lesson on the board with rapid flicks of his wand, and he monitored his charges with a beady eye as they gathered their ingredients and set to work. Hugo found it nearly impossible to concentrate and had to restart his Deordorizing Solution twice, hoping the professor wouldn't notice a couple of extra trips to the ingredients cupboard.

Passing by Mike's table, he tried to catch her eye, but she and the pale boy - David - she was sitting with had their heads bent over their cauldrons. It was a rather complicated formula.

Hard as he tried to do the same, Hugo couldn't help wondering what was going on at the Ministry, what would happen next, and how Lucia was doing. The accusation and the waiting must be torture for her. Not surprisingly, his finished potion turned out several shades darker than the desirable rosy pink and smelled a lot like skunk cabbage. In fact, the odor was so strong that by the time he bottled his potion, some of his neighbors were gagging and holding their noses.

"We were supposed to make a De-odorizing potion, not the opposite," Marco complained as he bolted for the door.

It wasn't until he'd left the classroom himself, resigned to a failing mark for that day's work, that Hugo realized he'd completely forgotten to copy down the homework assignment. He thought about going back but reasoned that he could get it from one of his friends. On the way back to the common room, he was close enough to Gabe to overhear the blond boy crowing to Sukie about what he insisted upon calling the "capture" of Scorpius Malfoy.

"I knew it had to be him, and I'll bet his mates were in on it, too. Did you see them at breakfast this morning? They looked very pleased with themselves, I must say. Bunch of brigands, they are."

"Impressive vocabulary," Hugo couldn't help muttering behind Gabe's back. Though he had no use for Scorpius' three sidekicks, he hadn't detected any sign of triumph in them that morning. In fact, in the absence of their leader, they seemed unusually subdued and wasted no time in downing their food and escaping the Great Hall.

Gabe's smugness grated on Hugo. It wasn't as though he'd helped to discover who was targeting Muggle-borns before things turned deadly. Then again, it was natural for Gabe to be glad to think the potential killer had been caught. If Scorpius was really the poisoner, Muggle-born students could walk the halls of Hogwarts now without looking over their shoulders all the time.

Before he could decide whether he actually wanted Scorpius to be guilty, he was following the other Hufflepuffs through the entrance.

Once there, Hugo found it harder than he'd expected to settle down. He walked to the dormitory and back on a nonexistent errand just to work off some nervous energy, plopped into a chair, got up again to pace.

"Ants in the pants, mate?" Trevor said from a corner of the sofa.

Hugo stopped and shrugged. "Guess you could say that. It's just - "

" - everything," Trevor completed Hugo's sentence. "Tough on Lucia, but if Scorpius did it . . . "

"Yeah, I know," Hugo sighed. "We can all relax."

He sat down and dragged out a textbook at random, not much in the mood for homework. The slog down the lawn to Herbology would be a welcome outlet, in spite of the rain and mud. Right now, he felt a lot like a Crup puppy in too small a kennel.

ooOoo

Someone had thrown back the heavy blue draperies in the girls' dormitory, though the lowering sky provided little in the way of light. When she was sure that everyone had left, Lucia peered out just long enough to note the heavy clouds lowering over the castle. The pervasive gloom matched her mood precisely and made it easier to justify staying in bed.

She'd hardly slept, her anxious waking thoughts interrupted only by fitful nigchtmares. In one, Scorpius sat in a high, straight-backed chair, his arms shackled, his mouth open in a silent scream. In another, he was in a huddle with his friends, talking in low tones. She could hear their laughter, but the only word she could make out was "mudblood."

After one more futile attempt to fall asleep, Lucia at last decided it was no use. She ought to get up while the dormitory was empty. A glance at her watch told her that breakfast was still in progress. That was good; she might be able to slip out of Ravenclaw tower unnoticed and go - where? It didn't really matter, as long as she didn't have to deal with people's curiosity - and worse, their pity.

Pushing back the covers, she saw a napkin-wrapped bundle on her bedside table and guessed that someone - Ruth, probably - had brought her breakfast. Though she had no intention of eating anything, she didn't want to hurt Ruth's feelings and wished she'd learned a proper Vanishing spell.

She washed and dressed quickly and ran a comb through her hair, yanking impatiently at the tangles. Then she made for the door, though she had no idea where to go. Anywhere but Potions; she definitely did not want to face her classmates just yet.

Only a half-dozen or so of the older students were in the common room when she entered. Unfortunately, one of them was Stephen Mullen, who somehow managed to catch her eye as she passed. To Lucia's astonishment, he gave her a little mock-serious bow. He must have heard the news; why else would he even acknowledge her existence? Getting through the day without unwanted attention was going to be more difficult than she'd hoped.

Pretending not to notice Stephen, she quickened her pace, pleased to see the door unguarded. On the landing outside she paused, wondering what to do next. Standing there, she became aware that something was nagging at her, something other than her brother's plight - what was it? She was missing something, something very important . . .

At last it came to her: She hadn't laid eyes on her familiar since her confrontation with Claudia Vector. How could she have forgotten Calypso, especially when Claudia had threatened her? She could be locked up somewhere, or hurt - or worse.

She had to find her familiar. Fighting a wave of fear, Lucia took a deep breath and began to descend the stairs, trying to fix on a plan. She tried to reassure herself, reasoning that Calypso had stayed out all night on more than one occasion and had always returned, serene and unharmed, fluffy tail held high. It was no use. If Claudia could use a Stunning spell on the cat, what else might she be capable of?

Lucia's pace quickened as she made up her mind to search for Calypso floor by floor, room by room. Of course, someone might see her, even stop and question her, but with a few precautions she ought to be all right.

It was always chilly in the corridors, and as usual, Lucia wore a light cloak over her robes. To make it easier to pass unnoticed, she stuffed her bright hair under the hood and pulled it as far forward as she could while still being able to see.

Hugo had told her about the Marauder's Map; it would be nice to have that or his Uncle Harry's Invisibility Cloak, but she didn't . She would just have to avoid doing anything to call attention to herself.

As she walked, she tried not to think about how huge Hogwarts castle was. It was hard to know just how many rooms there were when they had a tendency to disappear and reappear at random, but the number had to be staggering. Then there were the trick stairs and corridors that suddenly went nowhere. Well, she had to begin somewhere. With new determination, she arrived at the sixth floor and trying the first door she came to. It was empty and windowless. Lighting her wand, she examined every corner, determined not to miss any sign of the white cat.

ooOoo

It was good to be back in class, though Hugo didn't envy the teachers who had to woo their students' attention away from the Scorpius Malfoy sensation. Even mild-mannered Professor Longbottom had to speak sharply to a group of Gryffindor boys. He rarely gave detentions, but Hugo sensed even Uncle Neville could be pushed too far.

Hugo and Lily kept their heads down as they worked in silence for a few minutes. After all these weeks, it was still their habit to work together, as it gave them a rare opportunity to catch up. Seeing that their teacher had his back turned to correct Susan's technique, Lily whispered, "How's Lucia taking this? Have you seen her?"

"No, Hugo whispered back. "Ruth's worried about - "

"Mr. Weasley! Miss Potter! More work and less talk, please."

Hugo didn't dare catch Lily's eye for fear one of them might break into giggles. He concentrated on filling his pots. The seedlings would be set outside now until they were sturdy enough to be transferred to the garden.

Professor Longbottom allowed his students to leave as soon as they'd filled all their pots and copied down the homework assignment. Hugo quickly washed his hands and put on his cloak, looking forward to a real talk with Lily on the way back to the castle.. Then something occurred to him, and he told her to go ahead; he'd catch up.

He waited until everyone else had gone to approach Professor Longbottom, who was rearranging pots on a shelf with his back turned. He jumped and whirled around at the sound of Hugo's voice, and his sleeve caught a small watering can, which crashed to the floor, splashing water all over Hugo's boots. A bit pink in the face, the Herbology teacher quickly pulled out his wand to dry up the water and restore the now-empty can to its rightful place.

"No harm done, then," he muttered. Hugo pretended not to have noticed a thing.

"Er - professor?" Hugo chose the formal title, hoping politeness might gain him the information he wanted. It had been a long time since he'd detected any Slytherin tendencies in himself, but a bit of strategy couldn't hurt.

"Question about the homework, Hugo?" the professor asked.

Hugo shook his head. "No, sir. I was just wondering - have you heard what what evidence Law Enforcement has against Scorpius Malfoy?"

Neville Longtottom regarded his honorary nephew thoughtfully. A moment passed before he replied, "Sorry, Hugo. I'm sure you and everyone else would like to know that and many other things. However, even if certain - details were to come to my attention, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to share them with you."

The look of genuine regret on the professor's face prevented Hugo from feeling patronized, but still, it was frustrating to be totally in the dark. He hated being so completely in the dark, especially after all those months of trying to figure out who was targeting Muggle-borns.

He glanced absently at the shelf where the pots of wolfsbane stood in neat rows, and something clicked.

"The poison - was it something that could have come from one of the greenhouses?" Some of the plants grown at Hogwarts - including wolfsbane - were definitely toxic or could be if misused.

He thought he saw a small smile play around Professor Longbottom's lips, but when he looked again it was gone.

"A lot of things are possible, Hugo. It's useless to speculate."

Hugo left the greenhouse sure of only two things. One, Uncle Neville knew a lot more than he was letting on. Two, he wasn't about to share what he knew with Hugo.

ooOoo

A trio of older girls was heading her way, so Lucia ducked behind a suit of armor and sank to the floor, grateful for the excuse to rest.

She'd lost count of all the corridors and rooms she'd searched so far. Many of the rooms had proven to be locked, but she'd made a thorough search of the others, to no avail. Lucia had lost track of which floor she was on and wished she'd brought parchment and quill with her. Even a rough map might help her avoid retracing her steps. She was pretty sure she'd passed the same tapestry three or four times already.

She was exhausted, discouraged - and famished.

In her weakened state, she found herself actually feeling angry at her familiar for worrying her so. She was also beginning to conclude that trying to find Calypso this way was silly. She was a Ravenclaw, for Merlin's sake, which meant she should be using her head, not wearing out her feet.

She tried to put herself in Calypso's place. Being a magical creature, the cat would certainly have sensed danger from Claudia and was wisely steering clear of Ravenclaw tower. She was also intelligent enough to find a good place to lay low.

Maybe it was because her own stomach was growling that the obvious choice popped into Lucia's head: the kitchens!

She'd been incredibly foolish not to think of that in the first place. Not only would Calypso be safe there, but the house-elves would attend to her creature comforts. Lucia pictured the white cat basking on the hearth, lapping at a bowl of cream. The image made her smile for the first time all day.

Lucia forced herself to her feet, made sure the coast was clear, and emerged from behind the suit of armor. Looking more closely at it, she realized she hadn't seen it before, and an awful thought struck her: If she didn't know where she was, how could she find her way back?

Well, going down would be a logical start. Once she reached the first floor, she was pretty sure she could find her way to the Great Hall. She would just look for stairways and meanwhile, hope to come across some familiar classroom, statue, or tapestry.

As she walked, she spotted a painting of a large owl with snowy white feathers. When she stopped for a closer look, the bird spread its wings and flew slowly away. It occurred to Lucia that she could ask a portrait where she was, but most of the paintings along this corridor seemed to be landscapes or pictures of magical creatures. The absence of portraits puzzled her until she remembered that large parts of Hogwarts castle had had to be rebuilt after the war with Voldemort. Many of the old decorations, not only pictures but also statues and suits of armor, had been destroyed.

She turned the corner as the girls had done, trying doors and softly calling Calypso's name as she walked toward the stairway at the end of the corridor. She'd been doing that all day and at times, she'd been sure she heard faint mewing, but each time she tried to follow the sound to its source, it stopped. Her imagination was working overtime, and fatigue and hunger weren't helping.

Lucia reached the staircase and started down. Her thought on other matters, it took her a few minutes to look dowward and realize she was no closer to the bottom than she had been when she started. Surely her eyes were playing tricks on her. She kept going for a few more minutes, then checked again. The distance to the bottom stair was as great as ever.

She turned to go back; there were plenty of other stairways. To her dismay, it soon became evident that the enchantment - whatever it was - worked both ways. If she climbed for a week, she would get nowhere.

Frustration, then panic, overtook her. Lucia sat down and cradled her head on her knees. Crying wasn't going to help - she knew that - but the tears soon came anyway.

She must have fallen asleep then, because when she opened her eyes, the only light along the stairs came from a couple of dimly flickering torches. She dug into her pocket for a handkerchief. As she dabbed away the last trace of tears, she remember Professor Sinistra's words: Don't forget to breathe. Taking a few slow, deep breaths, Lucia was surprised to find hersel feeling a bit calmer. No amount of deep breathing, however, was going to get her out of her present predicament. Her only hope was for someone to come along who could help her. Unfortunately, she hadn't seen anyone since the three girls had gone.

Come to think of it, how had they avoided the trap? Perhaps they knew a spell to reverse the enchantment - or had cast the spell themselves, just for laughs. Well she wasn't laughing.

She put her head down again, resigned to a long night of waiting. Just breathe.

Heavy footsteps behind her brought her head up with a snap. Then an all-too-familiar voice said with a chuckle, "Well, well. You certainly don't have much luck with stairs, do you?"

Jumping up and whirling around, Lucia saw Gordon Pucey grinning down at her from the top of the stairway. With a bow and a flourish, he whipped out his wand and muttered a few words.

"You're lucky I came by and even luckier that my magic is so powerful," he said with a straight face."

Lucia stared at her brother's friend, amazed at the extent of his egotism. With his shaggy brown hair and stocky build, he looked to her at that moment like a bear with a pot of honey.

He started down the stairs toward her, and she had to resist the urge to turn and run. He jostled her arm a bit as he drew up beside her and she snatched it away.

"You're not afraid of me, are you?" he inquired with an amused grin. "No need; come along, I have a surprise for you."

He held out his hand, obviously expecting Lucia to take it. Ignoring the gesture, she crossed her arms, wishing that the annoying boy would go away and leave her alone. There was no way she was going to fall for what was clearly a ruse.

Pucey shook his head as though in disbelief. "Be that way. If you'd rather stay here and miss dinner - and the surprise. Your loss, though."

With that, he started down the stairs at a fast clip.

After a moment Lucia started after him. Unless she wanted to wander for hours, she had little choice but to follow.

ooO

"I don't believe it," Gabe kept saying, his eyes glued to the Slytherin table. "Wonder who his family paid off to let him out?"

The object of the blond boy's scorn - and source of a great deal of commotion in the Great Hall - was Scorpius Malfoy, who had made a grand entrance just as dinner was starting and now held court at the Slytherin table.

Ignoring Gabe, Hugo leaned over to Trevor and muttered, "He certainly does look pleased with himself, doesn't he?"

Scorpius''s prompt reappearance was the last thing Hugo would have expected. From the smirk on the Slytherin's face, things had gone well for him at the Ministry.

Wonder if the Malfoys really did intervene, Hugo thought. He dismissed the theory at once, since it implied the corruption of Magical Law Enforcement. His knew his mum would never allow the wheels of justice to be blocked by piles of gold or anything else.

Trevor pulled a platter of chicken closer and took a couple of pieces. "He does. How do you suppose he pulled it off?"

Susan Pho, who was sitting across from the boys, frowned at them. "You're assuming he's guilty," she said, her tone a bit sharper than usual. "I think if the Ministry let him go, that must mean they're satisfied he didn't do anything wrong."

This was a long speech for Susan, and with cheeks a bit flushed, she turned her attention to her plate.

"Hmmph," Trevor replied through a mouthful of chicken. Though he wasn't inclined to argue the point, Hugo thought that Susan was probably right; it was highly unlikely that any mere third year student, Malfoy or not, could outwit the entire apparatus of magical law, aurors included.

Suki Lawrence, too, was staring at Scorpius, a troubled look on her face as she unconsciously pulverized her dinner roll. "You don't suppose they tortured him, do you?"

Gabe snorted. "Does he look like he's been tortured? Smug git." He pushed his plate away, clearly disgusted by the latest turn in the case of the Hogwarts poisoner.

Hugo didn't much care w hat Scorpius had had to endure; he was more concerned about Lucia. He hadn't seen her at lunch and now, glancing at the Ravenclaw table, he realized that she wasn't there tonight, either. How long could she go without eating? She didn't have that much meat on her bones to begin with.

Maybe she'd spent the day in her dormitory or the Ravenclaw common room, trying to keep her mind off her brother's situation. Too bad she hadn't come to dinner, or she'd known Scorpius was back, apparently none the worse for his presumed interrogation.

Just then, the noise level in the room rose a couple of notches, and Hugo turned his head to see what everyone seemed to be looking at. At first he had trouble seeing over the students standing up for a better view of the doorl. By standing on the bench and waiting a bit for the crowd near the door to part, eventually he caught sight of one of Scorpius' friends - Pucey - standing there, a self-satisfied smirk on his face. He wasn't alone. In his wake, looking wan and unhappy, was Lucia Malfoy.

Pucey pointed at something and Lucia followed with her eyes, then stood stock-still, her face draining of color.

The next moment, with nearly the entire school watching, she fainted dead away.