"Cool! Too bad I still can't cast that charm."
Adam stared at Rock's small trunk and whistled in admiration.
"Give it a rest," Michael said, pouring cold water on the idea. "Even sixth-years don't always manage that one."
"Fair point," Theo agreed with a nod.
"All right, let's get on the train," Rock said, shutting the trunk and urging them forward. "It's about to leave."
They helped Adam haul the rest of his mountain of luggage aboard and started hunting for an empty compartment. By sheer luck they found space near the very back of the train, but once everyone and their bags were inside, there wasn't a single seat left for Rock.
"I'll check the other carriages," he said, leaving Theo, Adam, Michael, and Terry to wrestle with the luggage.
He walked all the way to the last car and sighed. Every compartment was packed. Had the school really taken in more students this year? Or were there just more first-years than usual?
When he reached the compartment he'd sat in alone during first year, he slid the door open and froze.
It wasn't full. The only other occupant was the first-year girl he'd seen earlier on the platform.
She sat by the window, and the sunlight turned her already pale skin almost luminous. Her light-blonde hair caught the light and seemed to glow.
A sharp tap on the glass made him jump. The girl's father was standing outside the window, staring straight at him with unmistakable suspicion.
This kid again. Staring at my daughter.
Rock blinked, coming back to himself. What was wrong with him today? He kept getting distracted.
"Sorry, I thought it was empty," he said quickly to the girl, already reaching to shut the door. He could find another seat farther up.
"No need," the girl said, lifting her head. Her voice was strange—light and dreamy, like someone talking in their sleep, yet every word came through clearly. "You've been surrounded by wrackspurts ever since I saw you."
Rock hesitated, then stepped inside. He sat down, opened the window, and looked out at Xenophilius Lovegood.
"Hello, Mr. Lovegood. It's good to meet you."
Xenophilius blinked, clearly surprised that a young wizard recognized him.
Rock smiled. "My grandmother loves The Quibbler. She says it's the most entertaining thing she reads when she wants to unwind."
Xenophilius's expression shifted. The sharp, defensive look in his eyes softened.
"I'm glad she enjoys it."
"Oh—my name's Rock. Rock Scamander, sir."
Xenophilius went still. Then his eyes widened in disbelief. "You're from the Scamander family?"
"Yes, sir."
"Well," Xenophilius said, clapping Rock on the shoulder, "that changes things. I thought you were just some nosy little brat."
Rock: "…"
He really didn't need to say it quite so bluntly.
"Since you're a Scamander, I suppose it's all right. Look after my daughter for me, would you?"
"No problem. I'm in Ravenclaw."
They talked a little longer until the train whistle blew. Xenophilius gave his daughter one last lingering look through the window, then stepped back as the train began to move.
Only when the platform and Xenophilius Lovegood had disappeared did Rock let out a long breath and close the window.
Merlin. For a minute there the man had been giving Snape a run for his money in the intimidation department.
The girl had been watching him the whole time. After a long moment she smiled, her eyes crinkling at the corners.
"Hello. I'm Luna. Luna Lovegood."
"Hi. I'm Rock. Rock Scamander."
Rock stowed his small trunk overhead, then pulled out his notebook and set it on the table.
"I'll let you know when we're close," he told her, then bent over his notes.
Luna blinked at him. This boy was odd. He'd been surrounded by wrackspurts earlier, then they vanished when he spoke with her father… and now he'd gone and found a fresh cloud of them all by himself.
The compartment stayed quiet except for the occasional rustle of pages and Luna's soft, dreamy voice as she read aloud from The Quibbler.
Rock managed to focus for a while—until Luna reached the part about the puppet Minister still having no real power after two years in office. He paused, frowning slightly.
Hadn't the magazine run almost the exact same story last year? Back then it had been dated only a year earlier. He remembered Tina reading it to him and saying the editor had real nerve.
At the time Rock had thought Xenophilius Lovegood was either very brave or very reckless. Publishing open criticism of Cornelius Fudge? The man was petty enough to make someone's life difficult over far less.
"Something wrong?" Luna's voice floated over, light as ever. "Am I disturbing you?"
"No," Rock said, shaking his head. "I was just thinking about what's in the magazine. It's… interesting."
Luna's eyes lit up like he'd handed her a gift. She started talking, and Rock found himself actually listening instead of just nodding along.
Her ideas were strange. On the surface they sounded completely absurd, but the more he thought about them, the more they made a peculiar kind of sense.
Before long they were chatting easily—first about the magazine, then about Hogwarts. The time passed faster than Rock expected.
The compartment door slid open.
"Rock, have you seen Harry and Ron?" Hermione asked, stepping inside with Neville right behind her.
Rock looked up and couldn't help a small laugh. "This feels familiar, doesn't it?"
Hermione and Neville both paused, then smiled. First year they'd done the exact same thing—except back then they'd been hunting for Neville's toad.
"I haven't seen them. What happened?"
Rock already had a pretty good idea. Dobby had probably sealed the platform again. Harry and Ron were likely somewhere over London right now in Arthur Weasley's enchanted Ford Anglia.
"Oh no," Hermione groaned, clutching her head. "I've checked every single compartment on the train."
Rock glanced out the window and pointed. "I don't think you need to keep looking."
The text cuts off here, but the implication is clear: Harry and Ron's flying car is visible outside.