Nasrin was not used to lying.
Yes, she had withheld information from authority figures at Hogwarts, but never from her family or friends.
Harry had taken the lead when Remus first approached them, telling him that the Lord of Sevii wanted to discuss some rumors the man had heard about attempts to reform Team Nocturne, and that prisoners were offering information in exchange for having time commuted off their sentences.
Since some pieces pertained to Harry, the Lord had gone straight to him to determine if said information was genuine.
No one asked why Nasrin had also been called for, which she explained to Harry that night after everyone else had gone to bed, sated from the Welcoming Feast.
"Fusion is a big deal for Gems, and for me." She had reminded the boy, both curled into Prince's warm fur. "Everyone knows that threatening one means bringing the other's wrath…And secrets can damage that bond, sometimes beyond repair."
So those first two days were hard, but bearable, just like that first Halloween three years ago.
As long as they had each other, anything was possible.
"So, how awkward is this going to be for you?" Ron wondered, nudging Harry's shoulder.
"Depends on how Remus is feeling." Harry admitted as they approached the Battle classroom, Robin swaying on his shoulder while Hedwig preened at Nasrin's long curls.
"What?" Neville asked, Flora safely in her Poke Ball. "You mean like if Remus treats you all coldly and stuff because he doesn't want to come off as giving you preferential treatment?"
"I'd be more concerned about baby pictures and being called Pronglet." Nasrin replied dryly, earning a laugh from the boys.
The group looked around for good seats as they entered, and Neville noticed something amiss.
"I wonder why Hermione is sitting there."
It was true; instead of sitting in the front row, right by the professor's desk, Hermione was seated in the very back corner, or the so-called 'slacker section'.
If she had not been reading on her Pokedex, Nasrin could be forgiven for thinking the bushy-haired girl had been possessed.
"This is very weird." Harry noted honestly.
"Maybe us giving her the cold shoulder made her brain snap, and she's now become a crazy stalker killer who'll hunt us down one by one and kill us in our dreams while wearing a hideous sweater!"
Ron's eyes went wide as the others stared at him, nonplussed.
"By Merlin, I think Luna and I swapped souls there for a moment!"
Shaking her head, Nasrin led them up to the back row, sharing a table with Harry while Neville sat with Hermione and Ron shared with Seamus.
"So, what do you think Remus-I mean, Professor Lupin-will teach us?" Neville wondered.
"Not sure." The half-Gem admitted, smoothing down Hedwig's feathers.
"He wouldn't even give me a hint, as he felt that it would ruin the surprise."
"Even if he gave you every answer, it wouldn't help you, Potter." Draco sneered as he walked past, Crabbe and Goyle forever at his sides. "Certain people in this world are meant to rise up, while the rest stay in the filth."
"I've always felt the same way." Harry replied with a dark little smirk.
"Watch yourself, Potter." The Slytherin snapped. "You insulted the honor of the Malfoy family, and a Malfoy always repays his debts."
"I thought the Lannister's always repaid their debts?" Ron's eyes widened. "Oh Merlin, I did it again!"
"We'll get Luna and perform an exorcism later." Nasrin assured, turning her attention away from a fuming Draco with Harry.
Remus entered before the blonde could form a word, and he scowled, marching over to his seat.
"Good afternoon, class!" The scarred man greeted cheerily, pulling off his lab coat to drape it over a chair. "Now then, welcome to Year Three Battle Class. During your first year, you learned all about the basics of battling. Last year, you…were supposed to learn about elemental typing, and the various weaknesses and strengths."
Remus scowled slightly, and most of the class squirmed.
Lockheart had done no such thing, and while it had been fun to hear his false stories, they were now aware of how much trouble this had wrought.
Nasrin, personally, was not worried, since Pearl had made sure to cover the material herself, and Harry had been caught up by Remus over the summer, but anyone without a private tutor-or the will to read ahead-was in for a rough time.
Casually unbuttoning his cuffs, Remus rolled up his sleeves and continued.
"This year, we're going to learn about another aspect of battling that can greatly affect the outcome of your battles. Abilities."
With the click of a button, the board flickered on to show some rather cartoony drawings of different Pokemon.
One image depicted a Mankey touching a Pikachu, and an arrow pointed to the next, which showed said Pikachu smiling as the Mankey was surrounded by lightning bolts.
"It's only been within the last century that scientists realized that all Pokemon have at least one ability. It took that long because many abilities were assumed merely to be quirks of the Pokemon species. For example, Slaking."
The next slide showed said Lazy Pokemon punching a Camerupt to his trainer's cheers, while the next image showed that trainer less happy when the Slaking fell asleep.
"They have an ability called Slaking Off that causes them to swing between bouts of extreme battle frenzy and utter slothfulness. It was only when scientists began to experiment with the Pokemon Audino and her move Simple Beam, and attempted to artificially create it, that it was realized that this wasn't by choice, but a part of their genetics. Slaking might not want to become lazy after an attack, but their natural will causes them to do so. By understanding the Abilities of our Pokemon, we can better prepare for battles. Some Abilities are quite obvious, and are quickly seen. Any Pokemon that affects the weather, for instance. Others are quite subtle, and a person might not ever even use the Ability."
Remus clapped his hands, the sound putting everyone at attention.
"Alright, who can tell me of an ability their Pokemon has?"
It was another surprise when Hermione did not raise her hand, but Nasrin said nothing at Ron's look.
"Yes, Mister Malfoy."
"My Servine has the Overgrowth ability, which makes it much stronger when using Grass-type moves."
"Very good, ten points to Slytherin. Now, how about a Gryffindor? Yes, Miss Universe."
"My Rowlet has the Long Reach ability, which means she can strike other Pokemon without making contact." She answered, smiling as Robin hooted proudly.
"Good, good! Ten points to Gryffindor. Now, some of you might not know your Pokemons' Abilities, and that's okay. Your homework will be to compose a list of the Abilities of each of your Pokemon and what they do. You'll also want to begin thinking about how these Abilities can help you, as we'll be focusing on that in the upcoming days."
Remus smiled, giving the class a few moments to note the assignment in their Pokedexes before continuing.
"Now, for the rest of this class period, we're going to get a demonstration of a Pokemon Ability and how it can affect your battle."
A snap of the fingers, and Moony hopped up onto his desk, clearly delighted at being the center of attention.
"Now, most Zorua have the special Ability known as Illusion, which allows them to take on the appearance of a Pokemon in the opponent's party. However, Moony here, as he's from the rarer Avalon strain, has a different Ability. His Ability is known as Mind Games, but would probably be better described as an upgraded version of Illusion. You see, rather than taking a form based a Pokemon your opponent owns, Moony creates the illusion that he's become something that the opponent fears or becomes cautious around. This unnerves Pokemon and trainers, and allows Zorua to either escape or attack. Over the next two days, we're going to have each of you encounter Moony's Ability so you understand it better and learn how to work through it."
Remus tapped his chin, contemplative.
"Now, I think we should mix things up a bit and start in the back of the class, and work our way forward. Miss Granger, you can start."
Hermione smiled and happily headed towards the front of the classroom, Harry and Nasrin sharing a curious look.
How had she known?
"Alright, now it's important, Miss Granger, you remember that, no matter how realistic Moony's illusion is, it isn't real. You have to fight through it and see things for how they really are. If I think it's taking you too long, I'll break the illusion myself."
"I'm ready." Hermione assured with a nod.
Moony leapt down from the desk, but it wasn't a Zorua that landed on the floor.
What rose was a massive purple monster, like a land-shark, fangs bared as it stepped towards Hermione-
The Third Year Gryffindor pressed back against Remus' desk, trembling in horror and pupils terrified pinpricks, breaths coming in sharp bursts of panic-
"Remus!" Nasrin shouted, knuckles white.
"Enough."
The creature seemed to shatter, like thin ice or fragile glass, to reveal Moony once more.
"It's okay." Remus assured, wincing at the flinch his touch earned. "It wasn't real."
"Thought I could do it." Hermione admitted in a mumble. "Should have stuck with the original."
"Miss Granger, do you at least know the name of that Pokemon?"
"Garchomp." She answered faintly, still shaken.
"Good. Five points to Gryffindor. Go take your seat."
Draco scoffed, talking in a stage-whisper to his clique that had Hedwig puffing up her feathers in distaste.
"Of course the little frightened Skitty gets points. If it weren't for the generosity of professors, they would never get any points! And a Garchomp? How pathetic. Leave it to someone of her ilk to be frightened by a Pokemon rather than control and dominate it!"
Remus raised an eyebrow, and Harry squirmed, recognizing that look.
Seeing this look directed at Draco, however, had that Sharpedo smile falling across Nasrin's face.
"Well, Mister Malfoy, by all means, give it a try."
The Prince of Slytherin strolled up with all his usual arrogance and swagger, and the Gryffindors leaned forward in interest, wanting to see what Pokemon Moony became.
He did not become a Pokemon.
"Draco, you are such a disappointment." 'Lucius Malfoy' sighed, advancing on Draco when the boy stumbled back in shock. "You are a Malfoy, the most noble House in all of Avalon, and yet you continue to disgrace our family's name. You aren't smart enough or quick enough or powerful enough. We're supposed to be leaders among men, but you couldn't lead Magikarp to water! Perhaps it is time to talk to your mother about producing a new heir-"
"No!" Draco screamed, falling to his knees. "Please, father, I-"
Moony's illusion faded away with the boy's pleas, and he scowled at making a fool of himself in front of the entire class, stalking back to his desk amid sniggers from Gryffindor.
"Now, as I was going to say after Miss Granger's failed attempt, do not be surprised if you fail this first time. Shaking off a Pokemon Ability takes great determination, and will be something that must be learned. Once you learn to shake off Moony's Ability, you'll find yourself better enabled to deal with other, weaker Abilities. The same holds true for your Pokemon. The stronger your bond, the better chance they'll have of breaking through an Ability or status condition."
Neville was next, and Moony took on Professor Snape's form this time, really hamming up his role to everyone else's amusement, while he became a shiny Charizard for Pansy, who cowered from the black Flame Pokemon as Hermione had done from Garchomp.
"Miss Universe."
Giving Harry's hand a squeeze, Nasrin left Hedwig and Robin behind as she crossed the classroom, determined.
I can do this, whatever it is, I can do it-
Moony shimmered as he crafted the illusion, and the room fell into shocked silence at what they saw.
Scattered across the floor were multiple motionless, bloody bodies, humans and Pokemon alike, shards of what looked like colorful glass surrounding their fallen forms.
Harry's heart dropped as he recognized himself through the carnage.
"No…"
Nasrin's whisper was heartbroken, disbelieving, and she stumbled back.
"No, no…"
A sob tore free, full of pain and terror and grief, and Harry barely registered standing in response.
"No, don't be dead, don't be gone…"
The half-Gem collapsed into herself.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I failed, I'm sorry-"
Harry practically tackled her in a hug, Robin and Hedwig flapping about in distress over their heads.
In flashes of light, the rest of their Pokemon appeared, a shield against the whole wide world.
Squeakers and Togetic hugged either side of her neck, whining in sympathy, as Star wrapped her flippers as far around the girl's chest as she could in a hug while Scooby, Eevee, Snow and Squishie pressed into her belly, letting out low purrs of comfort.
Ludwig bobbed about overhead with the owls, distraught, while Prince leaned against the length of her back and rumbled, Dobby flailing in his indecision on how best to calm the girl.
"I'm right here, Nazz, it's okay, we're all right here…"
It took long minutes for Nasrin to pull herself together, and Remus offered a chilled water bottle as Moony whimpered in apology.
"Are you alright?"
Sniffling, the pinkette nodded jerkily as Dobby twisted the cap off for her, and Harry pet her mussed curls as she gulped down the water gratefully.
The class had already been dismissed, even Ron, Neville and Hermione told to wait outside, and Remus shifted back on his heels with a sigh.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
Nasrin shook her head no immediately, curling into Harry's chest, and the professor relented.
Anyone would be shaken after seeing everyone they loved dead.