C. M. Black: Bones of a Doe

Chapter I: Days in waiting

A family of four bickered on the beaten track up the side of the sloping hill. The incline was not so gentle that the mother could find her breath to shout at her children to stop running ahead, but it was not so steep that the little boy and girl, both between the ages of ten and seven, slipped or stumbled as their sandals clattered noisily up it. A beagle wove in and out of the bushes, his nose pressed keenly to the ground.

The grass sprouted amicably from the banks, flowers blooming between it, not at all dried or withered from the summer heat; it had been mild that year. Instead, they grew tall and proud, the colourful buds peeking from every spare inch of stem and attracting bees and butterflies from dawn each day. The colour rose over each distant hill. Every field was full of fresh greens and vibrant yellows, purples, and reds. Sheep were scattered in a field on the next hill over, the side so steep that it was a wonder they did not all roll down to the bottom.

The beagle paused. His head turned.

'Daisy!' called the little boy. 'We should go in there!'

The boy pointed to the field the dog was staring into. The little girl skipped to a stop beside him and frowned. She wrung her hands.

'I don't think that's a good idea, Jack,' she refuted. 'I don't want to go in.'

'It's a corn field, Daisy, don't be such a chicken,' he scolded as he reached out to tug on her hand. Daisy stepped backwards and shook her head. With a short glance back at the field, she darted off in a run back down the hill to where their parents had only made it half-way up. The boy let out a gruff huff and folded his arms tightly across his chest.

Cassy watched the family curiously. She sat on the brick-wall outside of an old house at the end of a long front garden. A crooked metal gate stood some six-feet to her right and to her left rested a warm cup of tea atop a pile of thick, dog-eared books. Their cries and shouts had caught her attention long ago, the noise carrying up the country lane effortlessly, but she did not worry about them seeing her. Muggles were naturally deterred from the area. It was a simple charm to stop hikers stumbling across the house, one that protected so many magical buildings all across Britain, yet the little boy in front of her took no heed of it at all. If not for the barrier that rendered the house invisible to everyone outside of its boundary and the nearly impenetrable wards she had erected herself, she would almost be concerned by the child's lack of wariness.

She tilted her head to one side thoughtfully. That boy was most likely a Muggle-Born wizard; a poor soul only a few years away from starting Hogwarts. She hoped he was not on the register. She hoped he was just a boy with an unnatural sense of adventure, one so enraptured by mystery he was unable to sense the foreboding the apparent field emanated. For it would not be long before the Muggle-Borns were hunted down and their magic stripped from them. Every child, every adult; everyone who was believed to have 'dirty' magic would not find a place in Voldemort's new Britain. Even Hogwarts was safe any longer, not with Snape as the Headmaster.

There had been nothing in the newspaper about any of the staff leaving. There had been nothing in the newspaper about Snape having killed Dumbledore either and Cassy could only imagine the rage that had flooded Harry's veins. She knew Professor McGonagall would not leave. The elderly woman watched over everyone with a fiery gaze, stern and strict and yet caring and kind. She would not leave despite the new Headmaster. She would continue to watch over the students, so at least Ginny and Luna would have someone to rely on when the dreaded month of September finally arrived.

It had only been a few short weeks since the end of term. The month of July crept into sight and brought with it much more uncertainty that Cassy would have liked. If Dumbledore was dead then there was no one to lead the Order of the Phoenix. Moody had stepped up. He had taken the mantle as their new leader and had wilfully inducted Cassy into it officially, their members having both risen and dropped after the news of the murder, somewhat balancing the numbers to almost equal of what they had before. With that came issues too; it was difficult to know who to trust, so Cassy settled on trusting no one but those she knew well. She had been to two haphazard meetings so far, neither with all the members present nor in the same location. It seemed, from what she read from the other members present, that no one was sure of where to go from there.

Idly, Cassy wondered if the surprise had shown on her face when Kingsley turned to her expectantly one meeting, waiting her opinion. She had been equally surprised when he asked how she intended to move her mother's relatives so a safer location.

'It's just a precaution,' he spoke calmly in his deep voice. 'It is not a secret who your relatives are and I cannot guarantee with the standing you are in that people will not look for a way to harm your resolve.'

Cassy mulled over the thought and nodded slowly. Very few people knew she had contact with the Lowe's, yet she advocated Muggle-Born rights and a re-evaluation of integration between them and Pure-Bloods. It would not be a stretch to go as far as to say she looked upon Muggle's favourable – though they still somewhat baffled her – so to be in contact with her own relatives would not be unimaginable. Even if she did not know them, she knew she would not want to hear of their deaths.

That was how Cassy came to sit upon the brick-wall in the countryside, watching the two children argue about whether or not Daisy was a coward for not entering the golden cornfield. Their father hurried them on with a breathless call, before he paused to link arms with his struggling wife and heave her up the last few steps of the incline.

'That never fails to shock me,' came a voice from behind, 'that they can't see us.'

Cassy turned her head just enough to see a glimpse of blonde hair, before she turned her attention back to the family in front. The dog was staring at her again, some distance up the track now. She knew he could not see her, but he could certainly sense her.

Pale arms came to rest on the wall beside her, a light smattering of freckles stretched up and down the limbs and right to her fingertips. Jessica's hair fell now to her shoulders, shorter than when Cassy had seen her last and a smile suited her oval face much more than the crumpled frown she had worn. Her aunt was trying her hardest to be cheerful about the situation, to engage with Cassy when she came to check on them and tried to listen when she explained magic in long, rambling sentences full of foreign words and unthinkable physics.

'This is the farthest I have ever seen you go,' commented Cassy, fingers returning to peeling the tangerine she had been toying with.

'Yeah, well, I don't want to touch anything,' said Jessica, waving her hand towards the track.

'It won't make any difference if you did,' said Cassy, 'you would either pass straight through it or hit an invisible wall. Nothing here will hurt you.'

For a moment, her aunt remained quiet.

A thunderous bang sounded from behind. The front door was thrown wide open and clattering footsteps grew louder and louder. By the time either adult had turned her head fully, a shout was already resonating through the air.

'Cassy!'

'Olivia,' greeted Cassy, far calmer and mildly amused.

The girl, now nine-years-old, clambered up the stone wall and positioned herself on the opposite side of the stack of books. She eyed them carefully, as if expecting them to shift shape and size, to sing or to snarl. Quickly, she pushed her thick, tangled dark hair from her brown-eyes and stared at Cassy with a fierce pout upon her face.

'Why didn't you tell me you were here?' she demanded, her arms crossed firmly over her chest.

'You were asleep,' said Cassy.

'You should have woken me up! '

Cassy laughed lightly and Olivia reached over to help herself to a segment of the tangerine.

'Ollie,' said Jessica suddenly, 'go and get dressed. You shouldn't be outside in your pyjamas and with nothing on your feet.'

For a second, Cassy expected Olivia to protest, but she did not. From the little girl's expression, she could only imagine the stern, pointed look Jessica had shot her daughter behind her back. When Olivia had padded inside, Cassy turned back to Jessica, eyes half-lidded and her smile gone.

'You don't like her spending time with me,' she commented. It was not an accusation. It was merely a fact. For as much as Jessica was keen to know Cassy, she did not appreciate any interest her children showed in her at all. Alex was only five, too young to really understand what was happening, but Olivia knew she had been moved across the country and she knew something of why it had happened. She had already sussed out that Cassy was different from how the family spoke of her and it was only when Jessica sat down with her and explained a little bit that she truly began to fit pieces together. Suddenly, everything was of interest to her. Her untameable curiosity was only matched by Cassy's seemingly endless patience. She had never been around young children before, but Olivia adored anything that was magical, so much so that she would happily sit and watch Cassy do whatever it was she was doing, whether magic was involved or not, just in case.

Cassy thought it was strange. Tess thought it was cute.

'She wants to be a witch,' said Jessica flatly. 'My daughter is clever, but she isn't a witch. I don't want her to be one either, not if it means all this.'

Jessica did not have to gesture for Cassy to know what she meant. It was because of magic that they had to be uprooted. Tess and Phil were content to be wherever they would be placed, retired and occupied by their subjects as they were, but Jessica had had a job. She had two children to educate and a life to put on hold for as long as the war may last. It could be years that she was cooped up in a plot of land and only allowed out to shops when accompanied by a witch or wizard. Her children had to be educated somehow, an arrangement Cassy had put in place, her work gone and her friends unaware she had ever existed. All because of magic.

'This is your choice,' said Cassy. 'You could have said no.'

'I am not risking my children's lives,' she said stiffly. 'If I have to stay here then I will, but I hate it. And I hate how you make it sound as if you're not coming back.'

Cassy gazed at her, unable to tell her that in a month's time, there would be a very good chance she would never see her again. She said nothing, however, and took her leave after an early lunch. The urge to depart had crept up much sooner, though she found herself unable to shake her relatives hold on her long enough to even suggest she must go. For as much as she liked her relatives, they were not quite familiar; she could not cope with their continuous presence and always react genuinely to their words. She felt herself beginning to slip into a false persona as charismatic words spilt from her lips as she found herself lacking anything authentic to say. The conversation was drawn out until she could retreat after eating and she vanished from sight in an instant, hearing the start of a squeal of amazement and delight from Olivia.

Immediately, she appeared in front of a little cottage at the other end of the country. She unlatched the wooden gate and stepped towards the painted front door with little hurry or spring in her step. It was exhausting, she thought, being around people for so long when attempting to be herself. She had little in common besides a fascination with the unknown and a keen intellect. Hours spent conversing about things she hardly knew anything about or ideas and notions that passed the Lowe's by without a fighting chance of being understood was tiring.

She had forgotten how difficult it was to talk to people without a purpose behind it – with the exception of her friends, but she only had a handful of those.

The door clicked shut behind her. She tucked her shoes into the corner of the hallway, just beneath the coat stand, when her eyes flicked up to the the landing. Stood on the very top step was Sirius, his hair longer than it had been at Christmas, stubble cut short and grey socks upon his feet. He looked down at her. When he said nothing, she turned away and headed towards the kitchen. The house was stuffy as no windows were open to maximise defence and even a cooling charm could not freshen the air completely. She waved her wand, opening a window anyway before moving to put the kettle on the stove.

Sirius followed her to the little kitchen and sat in one of the seats around the small table.

'You're still angry,' he said.

The kettle began to emit a low hiss.

Cassy sighed and rubbed her eyes. 'I'm tired, not angry. Do you want a drink?'

'If you're offering,' he replied and Cassy took another mug from the cupboard above. He watched her for a time and took the steaming drink in both hands, emitting a grateful thanks. When she was finally sat opposite, Sirius finally voiced the thoughts that had been building over the past two weeks. 'It's not worry for yourself that keeps you up, is it?'

Cassy peered at him from over the rim of the mug. 'Of course not, but please don't start questioning me again because it makes being here unbearable.'

The words were harsh. They were blunt and if Cassy had said them to her father two summers ago, she reckoned he would most likely flinch at the suggestion. He knew her better now, though, and she needed him to understand.

'There is nothing I can tell you,' she pressed on as he continued to gaze at her.

'But you do have a plan. One Dumbledore helped design,' he said, not so much questioned as stated. 'If there is anything I can do, tell me.'

Sirius had not wanted to allow whatever it was his daughter was planning to slip by with only an offer of assistance. He wanted to demand what it was, to force her to explain everything she knew and everything the Headmaster and Harry had been doing the year before without any of his knowledge. He had tried to make her tell him. He had tried and tried and after several explosive arguments, Cassy had thrown open the door and left the house for two whole days.

It was not as though he did not understand the need for secrecy, nor the concept of thinking oneself old enough to manage by one's own means; Cassy was seventeen, she went to court and she had conducted herself independently for three years now following Alphard's death. Her ability to manage was not a fallacy of her young age, but a proven fact. However, that did not mean Sirius was going to allow Cassy or Harry to hide vital information in the fight against Voldemort from him easily.

He had tried once more to pull information from her when she had returned after her absence last night. She had given him a brief growl and stalked off to her room. When he had awoken this morning, she was already gone. Panic sunk into his stomach when he considered that she might have taken flight once more – he never did ask where she had gone – and almost slipped from his chair upstairs when he heard the door open by noon.

He did not want to force her from the house. The cottage was one he had purchased the year before, now unplottable and warded with the best wards the Black Family had to offer to keep the two from sight. He did so with good reason. He was Harry Potter's Godfather; Cassy was Harry's girlfriend and open advocate against Voldemort. If they were already under scrutiny before Dumbledore had died, they were certainly going to be hunted now he was gone. Therefore, the last thing he wanted to do was to force Cassy to flee from the house or make her uncomfortable enough that she agreed to take any more unnecessary trips into London just because Mad-Eye Moody had asked her to 'take a look'.

He changed topics. 'You need to stop being so tired, you are supposed to be head bridesmaid tomorrow.'

Cassy scoffed. 'I am too old to be a bridesmaid and besides, there are five guests. I would be the only bridesmaid.'

Sirius leant to rest his chin on the palm of his hand. 'You are still not on board for this wedding, are you?'

For a minute, Cassy said nothing. She frowned down into the amber liquid steaming in the mug between her hands. 'I think it's too soon. How can it last when they have spent the last year avoiding each other only then to get married with no warning?' she said after taking a long drink of her tea. 'I feel like they are getting married for the sake of getting married.'

'Some people don't wait long and besides, they've known each other years,' he said simply. 'Conflict brings people together and marriage makes them feel closer in case the worst happens.'

'That's like saying Harry and I should get married in case one of us dies this year,' said Cassy flatly. 'In fact, there is more of a foundation because we have been together longer and known each other much longer.'

She cared for Tonks dearly and Remus was always a sensible and reliable man who Cassy would be grateful was at her father's side, but that did not mean she agreed with their wedding. Though she had not mentioned it, Sirius had read the disbelief on her face when the happy couple made their announcement only two weeks prior, a mere three weeks after they had begun dating. It was too soon, she protested in the company of her father, it was a whirlwind romance that would see them locked together when they did not know if they really should be together at all. It was simply ridiculous. Sirius had merely hummed and heard her out. He had no qualms with their marriage so long as the pair were happy and while Cassy wished them all the happiness for the future, she remained perplexed by the engagement, unsure of how they felt they knew each other enough – unsure of how it was dissimilar to marrying a boy that you knew vaguely through family friends and agreed to marry for convenience sake years later and none-the-wiser to him really.

They had a simple wedding planned. Cassy had helped Tonks arrange much of it with the company of her mother, Andromeda, who seemed to have warmed to Cassy in the years she had not seen her. They were to be married by a friend of Tonks', then have a meal between the Tonks, Blacks, and Lupin's as Remus' father Lyall was to make their acquaintance for the first time. Tonks had picked out Cassy's dress, a short navy blue one with a bouquet of the most vivid, vibrant pink flowers she had ever seen. She had said it was like Cassy was a real bridesmaid if she chose her dress; Cassy had wondered if it was really the wedding Tonks wanted, but when she gently probed Tonks simply turned with a beaming smile. She was marrying Remus and that was all she wanted. So, Cassy let the doubts fall silently to the back of her mind.

Sirius shrugged at Cassy's flat response. 'If that's what you two wanted, although, I'm already paying out a lot for this wedding as the Best Man, so you should have mentioned it earlier.'

Cassy stared at her father incredulously. It was a whole ten seconds of silent staring before Sirius burst into laughter. Cassy sighed.

'Is that your way of letting me know something is on the horizon?' he asked cheekily and Cassy narrowed her eyes.

'No,' she denied firmly. 'You would know anyway, Harry would ask you.'

Sirius snorted. 'Cassy, you have never asked my permission for anything in your life and you never listen to what I say anyway. I don't expect it to start with my opinion on who you marry.'

Cassy blinked slowly. The groom always had to ask permission; it had never occurred to her that they did not need their family's blessing unless they intended to elope in the night. She settled on replying: 'We are not getting married. I'm seventeen.'

Downing the rest of his drink, Sirius placed the mug on the table and inspected his fingernails idly. 'You know, James and Lily got married the year they left school.'

'Stop!'

Sirius let out a howling laugh and Cassy growled, flustered, as she tried to find something to throw at him.

Welcome to year seven! The final year!

Wow, so I didn't imagine getting this far realistically. When I began the story several years ago, I didn't realise how massive the task was. Yet, we're here and we're going to see it through. So, I hope you enjoy the final book on Cassy's life.

Just an introduction chapter. The second one will be up soon enough too. Cassy's mulling around at the moment, doing what she can. She's facing some hard questions from Sirius and is unwilling to let him know of the secret mission they're on.

Also, I think that while Cassy is pleased Tonks and Remus are happy, she would in no way understand marrying someone a few weeks after getting together. She's barely got a romantic radar half the time, as we all know, and the idea of rushing into something that like does not even begin to compute logically with her. She's not against the marriage exactly, she just doesn't quite get it either. Sirius, on the other hand, I think would just shrug it off. James and Lily got married quickly (albeit not that quickly) and they were the happiest couple he had ever met. Plus, it's an opportunity to tease Cassy.

Anyway, I hope you stick with me for the year.

Thanks!