A/N Princess of Gold has been updated on this site with the new revisions.

Chapter Seven

Unpunctuality

After tearing the house up several days in a row to try to find her rabbit, Lucky reluctantly resigned herself to the fact that Houdini simply didn't want to be found. Her footlocker was packed; all her new books, equipment, and robes neatly laid at the top, but the cage was still empty. Every hat in the house had been turned inside out, and even Alex's familiar, Tes, had had no luck in tracking him down, despite the fact that the food in his dish seemed to empty out on its own.

"He has to still be here," Alex said for the tenth time that morning, looking under the crib and above the icebox and everywhere else they might have missed. "Well, we have to head for the train, Lucky, missing or not. I really don't know what's gotten into him. He's always been so laid back whenever I've spoken with him. Maybe you ought to try and ask Doctor Sagittari about it when you get settled at the school. He might have some ideas," she suggested, picking up Janus who burbled in response. "No, it's not your rabbit. Yes, we're going bye-bye now. Come on, Lucky! I promise I'll send him along whenever I find him."

The fact that Alex had the use of the car that day turned out to be a mixed blessing. The trunk wouldn't quite fit right in the trunk, and she finally had to resort to tying it down.

"There's no way we can risk minimizing one of these trunks with all the sensitive alchemy equipment back there. Not only would it ruin it, but it might blow up the car at the same time," Alex explained when Lucky commented on it. "Remind me of this the next time I try and talk Ben into getting into the trust vault for a second car. We really need a minivan or something."

"I thought you guys were saving what was left in that for a down payment on a house?" Lucky asked once they were buckled in.

"Yes, I know, but every time I've brought the subject up with Father about helping us find a hybrid house, he always finds an argument for us staying," Alex admitted. "And regardless of what Mum thinks on the transportation issue, there are simply too many things in normal London I need to do to try and make do with one car, because toting babies through the tubes is just not time effective and I can't always find a floo close enough to make it worthwhile trying it that way."

"Yeah," Lucky said, nodding in understanding. "'Sides, I think the Professor keeps talkin' ya out of it because he likes having someone in the house all year round."

"Just as well, and I hope he doesn't change his mind in the near future," Alex admitted with a grin. "Don't tell Ben, but I've only brought the subject up to Mum and Father to make sure they were still okay with us being there rather than actually wanting to leave."

"Someone's gotta hold down the fort," Lucky said with a shrug.

"Hold down the fort," Alex repeated the unfamiliar expression with a grin. "Well, I suppose that is what we're doing, isn't it?" she chuckled, before turning her full attention back to the road, frowning at the heavy traffic thoughtfully. "Oh great, just what we don't need right now."

As bad as the traffic was, the parking situation proved to be even worse. When they finally squeezed in, Alex threw on a backpack-like contraption to put Janus in and helped Lucky untie her trunk.

"This place is a madhouse today," Alex swore, Lucky simply nodding as she concentrated on holding up her end of the trunk. "And look at that crowd over there!"

Lucky groaned loudly when she noticed a large pack of mostly teenage girls packed in front of the station holding up signs of "We love you, Second Chance!" and "Bon voyage, we'll miss you!" and even one that declared, "Dear Second Chance, let me be your first!" Alex had paused a moment to stare at them, but then noticed Lucky's seething expression and broke into a grin.

"You know, I could be wrong, but for some strange reason I get the feeling your friend Dale is around somewhere," Alex said, Lucky giving her a dirty look in response. "I wonder how they got tipped off? I bet you knuts on the galleon that the Ministry did not want them knowing he was leaving today."

"No sh…" Lucky stopped short when she saw the look Alex gave her, daring her to finish it. "Never mind him, what time is it?"

"We've got ten minutes tops," Alex sighed, fudging a little magic when nobody was looking to pull out an empty cart out of nowhere so they could hurry to the platform, Janus lodging his own complaints on all of the jostling. "I am sorry, and I do know it's noisy, but we'll be out of here soon, don't worry!" she told him as they hurried over to the platforms.

As they got near, Lucky noticed the two wizards with nice suits and beards she had seen at the football pitch pushing a cart with a trunk and an owl cage at a rapid pace just in front of where they were.

"Hiya, Lucky!" said a voice near her ear. Lucky turned around swinging to hit someone invisible standing just behind her, letting off a small cloud of dust. Alex turned with a sigh to see what was holding her up. "Hey, watch it! This stuff comes off pretty easy, you know!"

"Come on, Lucky! You can talk to Dale on the train!" Alex exclaimed with exasperation, tugging on the cart to get her to keep moving.

"Dale? Where?" a girl that had been scoping the platform called out. Dale's two guards suddenly turned and gave Alex a dirty look.

"Whoops," Alex chuckled nervously.

"Come on, Lucky, let's make a run for it!" Dale said, and she felt him beside her pushing on her cart. The girl and several of her friends began to run through the area, nearly bumping into them in the process as they made for the platform.

"Look! Aren't those his guards?" one of the girls asked excitedly. Seeing the attention of the crowd on them, one of the guards gave Dale's cart a strong shove towards the platform. As the girls came crowding in, Alex ran for the cart, catching it before it could veer away and pushing it inside.

"Man, that was close!" Dale's voice said from beside Alex as he helped her stop the cart on the other side.

"Never mind that, just get on the train! You too, Lucky, I don't want to hear it from Mum if you're not on it!" Alex scolded, trying to calm Janus who hadn't appreciated the excitement at all.

"Come on, Lucky!" Dale said, dusting off some of the Chameleon Powder as they pushed their carts over, quickly unloading hers and nudging her towards the train before tossing his own trunk on as the last whistle blew. Inside, Lucky noticed a pair of redheaded girls sticking their heads out of one of the compartments, looking a bit relieved to see her.

"We were beginning to wonder if you were going to make it," Helena Weasley said, pulling her inside.

"Ya, me too. We ran into Dale's welcoming committee outside," Lucky snorted.

"You came with Dale?" Connie asked. Lucky blinked at her.

"Not together!" Lucky protested loudly, the two girls smirking at each other. "We ran into each other on the platform, that's all."

"Heya guys," Dale said from the doorway, looking quite strange. He hadn't yet gotten all the powder off so only seemed to be partially there, with patches of the train visible through his midsection. "Sorry about that mess out there, Lucky, I know it was a little crazy. It's bad enough having to bring my guards with me to the terminal. I swear it makes me feel like I'm opening for ZZ Top," he said. Lucky smirked, while the other two girls just grinned back unknowingly. "I'm going to go see if Bobby saved me a seat. If not, can I sit with you guys?"

"Sure," Connie said before Lucky could think up a protest.

"Thanks, I'll go check," Dale said, disappearing out of the doorway.

"So what is all the business in the paper about, Lucky?" Helena asked the moment he disappeared. "About Gringotts having a breach of security and all of that?"

"How would I know?" Lucky shrugged.

"Because our father slipped and told us that whoever got down to that level was trying to get into the Craw vault," Connie said. "And everyone knows there's all sorts of evil stuff in there."

"Ya, I'm not allowed to go down there," Lucky admitted. "But don't worry. Alex told me nuthin' was taken out of it. Jackie and her Dad went through every single item when they found out about it to see if any of them went off."

"Went off?" Helena asked with a frown.

"Sure, lots of them are cursed so that if anyone without Craw blood handles them they'll get cursed. The goblins could tell that nothing was taken out. They know that the door was opened by someone unauthorized, but they can't tell whether or not an item might have gone off. It took 'em most of the night, too, because Jackie dropped by the house at five in the morning to tell Alex about it. She also said it hadn't been the first time something like this had happened either, and last time it was a goblin. They're immune to a lot of dark wizard curses, so they're wondering if it could have been another one. There's a team of Enforcers looking into it. The goblins aren't too happy about it," Lucky explained.

"That much we know," Connie nodded. "The goblins want to handle it internally, but Minister Draco and Minister Craw are very worried about what would happen if anyone got in there again."

"I'd like to know what exactly it was they were looking for in there," Helena said. Lucky shrugged.

"It could have been in there. Alex said they weren't sure if they were lookin' for something they didn't find, or they got in there and realized they couldn't safely get it out because of either the curses on the items or the curses that goblins put down there to keep people from casting spells," Lucky said.

"Most goblins can't cast spells, so I doubt that that'd be an issue," Connie pointed out.

"Grandfather knows one that can. But he's still in jail," Lucky said.

"Wait a minute, what about a Number Turner?" Connie asked thoughtfully, glancing at Lucky. "You use magic to open doors and things, but do you actually cast a spell?"

"I dunno," Lucky said, growing thoughtful. "I just…actually, I don't think I can really e'splain it. I can just see how it's locked and then I just make it turn the right way so it's unlocked."

"Do you suppose you could get a vault door open?" Helena asked.

"I dunno, I've never tried," Lucky shrugged.

"Well, all the same, I wouldn't rule out the possibility of a Number Turner," Connie decided.

"All I know is, it wasn't me, and the Ministry is working on it, so what business is it of ours, anyhow?" Lucky asked.

"We were just concerned for your family's sake, Lucky," Connie said. "I mean, if they're looking for a Craw item and couldn't find it, who knows what they might do next? They might even come to the school."

"Only a complete fool would try and get into that castle with Headmaster Snape is in charge," Helena snorted. "Dad says he's gotten rather paranoid over the years with all that's happened, and because of that the security at Hogwarts is even tighter than Gringotts."

"That may be, but someone still walked into Gringotts, didn't they? So who's to say it's going to be enough?" Connie pointed out, Lucky becoming more thoughtful. Just then, Dale came back in with drinks and a bag of candy.

"I'm back, but not empty handed," Dale said, passing them around before plopping down next to Lucky, who glowered at him for daring to return at all. "Man, am I beat! So what have you girls been talking about?"

"The bank break-in," Connie said. "It was the Craw vault, but they didn't get anything apparently."

"Really?" Dale frowned, glancing at Lucky. "Man, I hope they don't come to the school next. But then, knowing the Professor he'll be ready if they try it."

"Then we got nuthin' to worry about, right?" Lucky said, setting the drink aside and pulling out a deck of cards. "Anybody wanna play?"

"Only if you promise not to cheat," Connie said knowingly.

"Cheat? I don't cheat!" Lucky snorted, the two girls staring at her dubiously. "What you think, guys? Wizard gin? Hearts? Euchre? Poker? Pick your poison."

"Well, whatever we play, it looks like we're going to have a dead hand," Helena said, glancing over at Dale who had made the mistake of leaning his head against the seat and had fallen into a deep sleep.

"Poker it is, then," Lucky said with a shrug, shuffling once and dealing out.


"Father, it itches, can't I please take it off?" Lyra complained, stamping a front hoof with irritation as she tugged at her robe.

"We are not going through this again," Sagittari frowned at her, making certain her buttons her still in place. "It is inappropriate for you to go to school without a shirt on. You will simply have to learn how to tolerate it. Put down your book satchel, you won't need it until tomorrow. Come, we must walk around the lake."

"It still seems rather silly considering its closer to the castle from here," Lyra complained but followed him out.

"They have their traditions just as we have ours, Lyra. The sooner you adapt to them the happier you will be," Sagittari said.

"I was happy where I was," Lyra grumbled.

"Did you not say you wanted to learn magic, Lyra?" Sagitarri frowned at her attitude disapprovingly.

"Well, yes, I do, Father, but I don't see why you can't just teach me," Lyra said wistfully.

"The professors of Hogwarts can teach you much better than I," Sagitarri said solemnly. Lyra sighed but didn't comment any longer. Stopping only now and again to gaze at the sky or glance at the Kraken splashing about in the lake only to be scolded for lagging behind.

A whistle blew ahead and Sagittari broke into a gallop, Lyra calling out in surprise before hurrying up behind just as the train began to slow to pull into the station. She gaped at the creature in amazement. What manner of beast was this? But her father showed no fear of it at all and simply watched it calmly, so Lyra stood her ground, wishing her father had brought the Spear in case it decided to turn on her.

Just then the students began to come off in droves, some waving at Sagittari and smiling curiously at her while others gasped when they saw her and began talking excitedly as they walked by. Most of their exclamations of surprise were drowned out by her father, calling out for the other first years. Lyra found herself soon surrounded by a pack of wide-eyed students, some surprised to see any sort of centaur at all, while the rest seemed curious about what she was doing here.

"Are you Doctor Sagittari's daughter?" a golden-haired girl asked with surprise. "Are you supposed to be here?"

"I am Lyra, daughter of Gemini under the fallen sky," Lyra said warily, stepping back a bit and making some of the other students scatter to get out of her way.

"I'm Winnie Brim…Taurus of Hidden Mars. Are you really going to Hogwarts too?"

"Miss Brim!" Sagittari called out with a sigh, and Winnie realized it was the second time he had called her name, quickly lining up where he indicated as he went down the rest of the list.

"I'm Josh Liffey," said a boy on the other side of her. "Are there many centaurs at Hogwarts?" he asked.

"No, most live in the Dark Forest," Lyra said. "What sky were you born under?"

"Haven't the foggiest," Josh said with a shrug, and then heard his name called. Lyra watched him with a frown, then noticed several of the new students were hanging back, staring at her and whispering to each other. She was debating going over there when she heard her name called as well.

"Lyra of Gemini," Sagittari said solemnly, pointing her to her own row before sorting the rest of the students into groups for the boats. "We had best load you in first, Lyra, the rest may fill in around you," he said, holding out her hand to help her in. The boat swayed dangerously as she got on, and it took a great deal of coaxing to get her calmed down and standing in the center of the boat while Josh and the three others assigned to the boat glanced at each other, grimly wondering if they were even going to make it to the other side. But finally they were on their way and the students gazed up at the castle as they drew nearer; some excited, some filled with awe, and Lyra, who found it so foreign that she really didn't feel much at all.


Jennifer and Ginny raced down to the Great Hall, running so late that even Ginny risked a short jump between staircases, the lack of lingering students further reminding them of the time as they slipped in the back. Severus glanced over at them, waiting for them to take their places before they sat down just as Hermione peered in the main doors checking to see if they were ready.

"Cutting it close again, are we?" Severus murmured to Jennifer, who grimaced in reply.

It wasn't as if he hadn't any idea what her week had been like after spending half her normal preparation time running between Gringotts and the Ministry only to have nothing to show for it. None of the devices inside had gone off. Nothing seemed out of place. There was, in fact, such a lack of evidence except for the fact the alarm on the door went off that Knobgait and the rest of the bank board had decided the only explanation was a false alarm. Jennifer, however, wasn't convinced any more than her father was. It was much too soon to rule anything out; the bank simply didn't want to deal with another political conflict with the wizards right now.

Movement caught the corner of her eye and she looked over to see Ambrose Bailey trying to get Lucky's attention at the other table. She sighed and shook her head slightly, glancing beside her to see Severus giving him a disapproving look of his own before turning his attention to the front as the doors opened to let in the first years. A loud murmur went up as they came in as those who hadn't heard about the centaur yet began to talk, the rest joining in as the group stepped up.

"Oh no, whatever is she doing here?" Jennifer heard off to her left above the rumble. She glanced over to see Icarus Ravenclaw fading into view with such a look of open anxiety that she felt a strange sense of foreboding. Frowning, she turned back over to the front and gazed at the filly. But the girl seemed simply awkward, subconscious about everyone looking at her, and curious…not all that truly different from the other first years around her. She glanced around then and then broke into a warm smile when she saw Winnie trying to catch her gaze, breaking into a grin of her own.

"Jessica Bishop," Hermione called out, and Jennifer remembered she was the daughter of Carey Bishop, a former student who now sat on the board.

"Ravenclaw!" the Sorting Hat declared after a moment, and Jennifer clapped and grinned warmly at the girl, taking a seat near where Pimra Glass was sitting.

"Winifred Brim," Hermione said with a smile, and Winnie flashed her a grin as well as she went to sit on the stool. The Sorting Hat sat there for only a moment or two before crying out, "Hufflepuff!"

Elated, Winnie went over to the table and immediately hugged Ambrose and Lindsay before sitting down. Jennifer clapped enthusiastically, but didn't miss when Andrew slipped a coin in Danny's hand.

"Had her pegged for Gryffindor, did you?" Severus murmured softly.

"She could have been hiding under a bushel," Andrew murmured back, but then turned his attention back to the next student.

"Elizabeth Coventry," Hermione called out, and Jennifer gazed intently at the dark haired girl, wondering what the chances were that she would be Sorted away from her brothers.

"Slytherin!" the Hat declared, and Jennifer's shoulders slumped slightly despite the fact she clapped and gave her a warm smile when she glanced behind her.

"Veronica Greisley," Hermione called out, and Jennifer got interested again as a brown haired, slightly overweight girl stepped up to the stool and smiled thoughtfully at her. There was no doubt at all that the girl looked quite a bit like both parents.

"Slytherin!" the Hat cried out again, and Jennifer nodded to herself, grinning at the girl. Well, her father would be happy about that at least.

It took several more names before the Hat seemed at all inclined to sort anyone into Gryffindor, but it seemed to make up for it by doing several in a row. It was during this that a pale red-haired boy stepped up to the stool, and even though she didn't recognize his features or the name of Liffey, there was a mischievous twinkle in his eyes that reminded her so much of Corey that she knew he was going to follow Neil Kelsey into Gryffindor.

"Lyra, daughter of Gemini," Hermione called out as he settled at the table. "Er, we can do without the stool," she said when Lyra gave her a dubious look, moving it out of the way so the centaur could step up. As the Hat fell on her head, Jennifer found herself holding her breath, although she wasn't quite sure why.

"Gryffindor!" the Hat declared, and everyone clapped, most especially the Gryffindor table. Hermione grinned at her and spoke softly to her a moment, and Lyra stepped over to the end of the table with a timid smile. At least the Gryffindors seemed quite happy to have her, although Jennifer couldn't help but feel a little sorry over what it must be like to be in such a foreign place in such surroundings. Jennifer glanced over to the far end where Sagittari was sitting, expecting him to have been reminiscing about what it had been like for him when he stood at that very table. Instead he seemed intent only on watching how his daughter was reacting to everything without really experiencing it with her.

Feeling a nudge at her side, she clapped belatedly for one of the new Ravenclaws, trying push all the distractions aside while the rest of the first years were placed into their houses, tuning out the pained lack of melody when Hermione led a rendition of Hogwarts Forever, wishing she could hear it like Severus heard it; in pure languid tones. But Severus seemed distant through the whole thing, and seemed just as glad when it was over as he stood up beside her.

"A few short but important announcements before we begin," Severus said, the hall quickly growing quiet. "First, a welcome to Mr. Pyther, who will be teaching Defense on a full time basis this year…and without the unusual schedule," he added, earning a few soft chuckles from the students and a cordial nod from Francis. "Secondly, as many of those concerned were informed last year, Professor Scribe will be helping Professor Sprout with much of her advisory duties for Hufflepuff this year. They will be working closely together so feel free to go to either advisor, although I would encourage first years to go to Professor Scribe since she'll be doing most of the legwork around the castle," Severus said, glancing at the two women who beamed warmly out at the students; one middle aged, one ancient, and yet Jennifer noted there was something quite similar in the way they smiled.

"There is one more thing of a serious nature that I must discuss with you," he began again, a look so sharp in his black eyes that the room seemed to grow even quieter. "Due to certain circumstances concerning the school's welfare, the Dark Forest is once again off limits to everyone, student and staff alike, including educational trips as we've been fortunate to have in recent years. No one, and I do mean no one, should be going in there for any reason, no matter how legitimate you think it is. And if you are not certain if 'no one' or 'any' includes you or not, I assure you it does. Anyone who wants to argue the point can find me in my office," he added. A few glances were passed around, but no one said anything. "Any students found breaking this rule will more than likely find themselves out of this school. Also, if you are going to Hogsmeade this year, you are encouraged to stay close to town. Picnic trips and so forth to Keki's Grove are highly discouraged, and I'd prefer it if you didn't go there at all. Please also note that the Hogsmeade bus will be leaving and returning an hour earlier than in recent years, so make certain you watch your house bulletin boards for updated times. That is all," Severus said and sat down, the plates filling as he did so. "Any defiance, Jennifer?" he asked in a low voice. On the other side of him, Hermione smirked at the question.

"No, not really, but a lot of curiosity, and I noticed a great many of the older students looked over at Lyra when you mentioned the forest restrictions," Jennifer admitted.

"Yes, well, she's bound to attract some attention her first few weeks here, although I'm sure once everyone gets used to each other it'll calm down. She's hardly the first high profile student we've ever had," Severus said quietly.

"Well, perhaps not quite that high from the back," Andrew said, earning a few dirty looks in his direction. "So, were you able to get all your potions caught up, Mum?"

"Yes, somehow, but I still have a lot left to do tonight," Jennifer admitted, glancing apologetically at Hermione.

"Well, I admit you had me worried as behind as you had gotten, Jennifer," Hermione said. "I was going to go down there and check up on you if you hadn't gotten your syllabi on my desk before lunch. I have enough to do just taking care of schedules and things tonight."

"My syllabi?" Jennifer said in complete bewilderment, staring at Hermione's face wondering how she could have possibly gotten them when she hadn't gotten past third years yet. She looked over at Severus wondering if he had done it, but he in turn was giving her such a critical sideways glance that she suddenly realized what must have happened. "Oh, yes, of course, just before lunch," Jennifer said in such a way that Severus and Hermione were both staring at her. Jennifer immediately became preoccupied with the food on her plate and refused to look at either of them; blatantly aware that beside her Severus was drumming his fingers on the table.

"And just what would happen, I wonder, if I decided not to humor this little setup of yours and not lend you the you-know-what which you obviously come to ask for at some point this evening?" Severus murmured in her ear.

"Um. Time paradox?" Jennifer murmured back with a nervous giggle, but didn't miss the dangerous glint in his eye. "Besides, you can't really scold me for something I haven't done yet, can you?"

"You mean like your agendas?" Severus asked curtly.

"Er…yes, but, I will have had those done in time, won't I have…had?" Jennifer said in a low voice. Severus squinted at her but then sighed in resignation, shaking his head and twisting his goblet around. Jennifer got enough of a glimpse to see she was going to get away with it, despite the fact she knew she'd be up most the night to try and get everything done in time. Well, maybe she could catch up on some sleep the second time around after she turned her paperwork in, she mused, glancing towards the Ravenclaw table. At the very least, she still wouldn't look as tired as Dale Chance did, who had apparently fallen asleep at his seat with a loaf of bread substituting as a pillow. Jennifer tugged on Severus' sleeve and gestured over to the Ravenclaw table, and Severus frowned, squinting at him. "I think I'd better have a word with Sagitarri and take care of that as soon as we're done," she murmured to him.

"Yes, but don't you dare let him skip classes over this, Jennifer," Severus warned.

"Of course not. I'm sure he's just tired from his busy summer, but all the same, I'd feel better if he had a checkup," Jennifer said. "I'll be up after I pass out schedules."

"Fine, if I'm not up there when you get there, I'll leave the Time-Turner out on the desk, but it had better be done," he added when he saw her grin, shaking his head. "You know how I hate that thing."

"And yet I know perfectly well you use it more than anyone," Jennifer whispered challengingly.

"No baiting me at dinner," Severus muttered back, and Jennifer grinned even wider and began to poke at her plate again.

Severus had his mind on too many other things to follow up on it further, watching the Gryffindor table as several students moved places so that several of the girls sat by Lyra, apparently uncomfortable with eating around the boys. To Severus' other side, Andrew was busy picking on Francis over the bean sprouts, beet leaves and crumbled tofu on his plate, for apparently the ex-vampire had gone with his doctor's suggestion of sticking with a vegetarian diet, until Danny and Hermione began talking about Rich and Gloria and he found his attention drawn back to their conversation. Curiously, everything felt quite distant to Severus. Deciding he was just tired, he was glad when it finally got late enough that he could get up and dismiss the houses. He watched as Jennifer slipped upstairs and then made his exit out the back door, lost in thought.

"Severus?"

He paused just before he got to the back stairs and looked back at Icarus Ravenclaw, who seemed even more troubled the usual.

"What is it, Ick?" Severus asked.

"Can I walk you up? I need to talk to you about that centaur girl," Icarus said.

"You would have known about her already if you would show up for staff meetings once in a while," Severus scolded him, knowing he had locked himself up in the Divination Tower again.

"She isn't supposed to be here, Severus," Icarus said firmly. "You are only going to make things worse by bringing her here."

"I didn't bring her here, Icarus. Sagittari enrolled her," Severus said calmly. "I simply tested her to make certain she could handle the work, and she's more than capable."

"I am not worried about her handling it. I'm worried about how you are going to handle it when that girl meets her fate," Icarus said. Severus stopped short and stared at him. "She is not going to live out the year if you keep her in this school. She needs to be back with her people."

"Her people have already condemned her to their predictions of doom, Icarus. Do not expect me to do the same," Severus said. "I don't care what you've seen, or they've seen for that matter. You know perfectly well that such silly portents and even 'future memories' can be changed, I'm here as proof of that."

"You didn't change any memories, Severus. You simply found a way to make both of them happen," Icarus said solemnly, passing him on the stairs and then turning to face him. "But sometimes we are so eager to change a bad path in front of us that we sacrifice the present to do it, succeeding in nothing but causing that ill fate to come about. And I, Severus, am here as proof of that," Icarus said firmly. "You've done a lot of good things for this world and for others over the years, and you have taken a great many risks to do it. But you can't save them all, you know."

"I am well aware of it," Severus snapped. "I've had countless students stray down wrong paths before despite my best efforts, but that hardly means I'm going to give up on a student who did nothing wrong in this world except be born on the wrong date."

"There is more to it than that," Icarus said softly. "If that was all it was, I wouldn't have reason to protest."

"As far as I'm concerned, you still have no reason. We live in the present, and we're responsible for our own decisions," Severus said firmly, partially passing through the ghost as he continued up the stairs.

"Yes, that is true, Severus," Icarus said unconcernedly, following him in spite of the obvious dismissal. "But what are you going to do when she decides to follow that fate instead of fight it? You can only make your own decisions, you cannot make hers as well, you know."

"Then we'll simply have to make certain she learns how to make the right decisions, won't we?" Severus said. Icarus grew quiet and watched him continue up the stairs, frowning deeply and shaking his head before finally fading away.