Despite the impending menace on the wizarding world, nothing had changed at Hogwarts. There were whispers around the school; his name was in quiet tones, sometimes even changed to You-Know-Who and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Even though they were aware of the danger outside, the whole student body went on as before. It didn't seem like anything would ruin it.

Until now.

Liam could hear them whispering around the corner as they tried to stay out of view, probably to give him some time alone. Frankly, he could have cared less about having personal space. He didn't even want space.

"But what if he doesn't want to talk to me?"

He wondered why Eleanor thought he couldn't hear her; she was smart enough to know that he was only a few meters away and speaking in hushed voices in an empty corridor was bound to reverberate off the walls.

"He needs to talk to someone!"

Ever since the incident with Eleanor's roommates last month, Suzanne had stayed around them and away from the rest of the Ravenclaw girls. It was still somewhat awkward between the three, but Liam could tell Eleanor was trying to open up.

There was a long silence and Liam had the feeling Eleanor was seriously considering Suzanne's advice. And then, with a couple soft footfalls, he knew she was standing behind him.

And for once, he didn't know what he could say to her. His mind was already too jumbled.

"Hi..."

Turning around, he caught a glimpse of Suzanne hiding behind the corner. Eleanor was staring at him expectantly, looking almost nervous.

He knew why.

"It's okay-" he began, trying to reassure her.

"Did you know him well?" she interrupted him without pause.

Liam was used to the questions and curiosity by now. After all, she didn't know much about his family other than the troubles with his father. Liam didn't like talking about his brothers and he never had anything interesting to say about his mother; in fact, he avoided conversations about his family.

And now, with this...

"No," he finally responded with a soft shrug. "I met him a couple times, but he never visited. We always went to see him when my father was around."

Eleanor was frowning at him and he paused, waiting for her next comment. "He was still your uncle. It's so awful. Unexpected. Cruel."

Liam nodded at Eleanor's exclamations. He never expected to be called into Flitwick's office for something other than schoolwork. Instead, through much stuttering and many hesitations, the Professor finally had told him that there was an attack, one by the Dark Wizard and his followers on a muggle town. And his uncle...

Slowly taking in a breath, Liam forced himself to smile. "I'm starving," he said, turning around to make his way down to the Great Hall.

Eleanor hesitated before following him and Suzanne quickly ran to catch up. They were quiet and Liam felt like doing or saying something to get his mind off of what had just happened. They just weren't any good at comforting and Liam had the feeling Eleanor was silently freaking out about it, wishing she knew the right words to say.

What could she say anyway?

In the Great Hall, they took their usual seats and Liam tried to smile to relieve some of the awkwardness. But when he looked over at the Hufflepuff table, he could see a student had dissolved into tears and he knew she was going through the same thing as him.

Thankfully, Eleanor leaned forward and started to say, "Liam, did you-"

"Students!"

Liam's attention turned to the Headmaster standing in front of the podium with his arms outstretched in a greeting. The hall immediately hushed at the sound of his voice as if they knew what had happened. Liam hoped there wasn't any rumors going around; he didn't want anyone trying to sympathize with him.

"As you may very well know, outside of these walls there is a growing threat to the wizarding world."

Liam had heard all of this before. Professor Dumbledore had given a similar speech at the beginning of the term. Even though it was vague, he still could sense the severity of the situation. However, there hadn't been an attack on the muggle world then.

His own family was now in danger and they had no idea what was happening. How were the muggles supposed to save themselves when they couldn't be warned beforehand?

"The Ministry wishes for me to stay silent about his rise to power. However, as your headmaster, I am meant to prepare you for the outside world and I feel you must be aware and conscious of this serious threat. Yesterday, there was an attack in Wales on a muggle community."

Liam could practically feel Eleanor's gaze on him.

"For your safety, tomorrow's Hogsmeade trip is canceled."

A loud groan met Dumbledore's words. But Liam didn't care. Even if he was allowed to go, he wouldn't care. As long as this "Dark Lord" was rising in power, he couldn't care about trips to get butterbeer and Licorice Whips.

His uncle was dead.

Anyone could be next.

As Dumbledore ended with a few reassuring words, Liam glanced over at Eleanor to find that she was still staring at him. He expected another round of questions about his uncle or maybe more questions about his mental health.

"Do you think Ivy's okay?" she asked instead, the words so even and yet, he could tell she was struggling with every syllable.

Liam shuffled his feet, looking down at the table. Suzanne wasn't looking at them; she was hidden behind a textbook.

"Yeah," he finally said, though he wasn't sure if he believed it himself. "I mean, she's not even in danger, right? She's working for the Daily Prophet now and all they do is write articles. Aren't her friends working with Dumbledore or something? They'll keep her safe."

Eleanor nodded, looking quite convinced. "And we're absolutely safe here at Hogwarts. We don't have to worry."

She sounded as if she was trying to reassure herself. Liam nodded, watching Eleanor carefully. She seemed so disturbed by the news that was supposed to hurt him the most. His uncle was attacked and yet, he wasn't even crying. He needed to cry; that's what he was supposed to do. He was supposed to be like the Hufflepuff.

Maybe it was just because he didn't know his uncle that well. If it was his mother, his brothers, even his father, would he be crying? Probably.

If it was Eleanor? He didn't want to think about it.

Then, he realized he was shaking and didn't understand why. Eleanor didn't hesitate to still his hands, by placing her own on top of them.

"Nothing bad is going to happen," she reassured.

He nodded mutely. "Everything is going to be fine."

After all, how much of a threat could one wizard hold?

Oh, the irony.

Nathpollen gets props as always. Lots of props. Like a random lamp...it is used a prop, right?

Anyway, thanks for all of the reviews! I really appreciate it. You're all awesome.