Disclaimer: 'The Secret Tower' is an ongoing 'Harry Potter' fanfic series, and is not meant to be an exact replica of the original series. Aside from a few, all characters were created by, and are property of, J.K. Rowling, author of the original 'Harry Potter' series. I claim no rights to any persons, places, or spells depicted in this story that were originally penned by Mrs. Rowling, only those that are of my own creation.
Ron and Hermione listened intently over breakfast as Harry filled them in on what had happened the night before. Speaking in whispers so as to keep others from overhearing their conversation, they had to strain to hear each other.
"Wow," said Hermione, her eyes wide in amazement. "So you were right...There really IS a hidden room!"
Harry nodded. "And all of the teachers know about it. So does Hagrid." He shook his head. "I can't believe Hagrid lied to us..."
"I can't believe Snape is a father," said Ron, making a face. "And with a decent kid to boot...Odd, but decent..."
"Really," Harry agreed. "I mean, who in their right mind would want to..."
"HARRY!" Hermione cried with a shudder. Her cheeks flushed crimson when a few students sitting nearby glanced over at her curiously, and she lowered her voice again. "I don't want to think about that when I'm trying to eat!"
Ron shook his head. "It's not that that gets me, guys. It's the fact that--"
"What are you three whispering about?" said a voice behind them. They all jumped and looked around to see Snape glaring suspiciously down at them.
"N-n-nothing, Professor," stammered Hermione. "We were just going over our notes for Herbology..."
Snape turned his cold eyes on her. "Notes? I see no notes."
"Not really notes, sir. Just...lesson talk," said Harry, trying to sound as convincing as possible. Snape narrowed his eyes at him, pursed his thin lips, and sauntered away in the direction of the teachers' table.
Ron heaved a sigh of relief. "That was close," he said.
"Maybe we should hold off on this until later," added Hermione. Harry nodded.
"Let's meet at Hagrid's for lunch, then head to the common room before Transfiguration. We can try to get in touch with her then, though she may be asleep..." he said, thinking about the Thought Sender that rested in his pocket. Ron and Hermione agreed, and the three friends parted ways to attend their classes.
*
That afternoon, after spending the past thirty minutes trying hard not to say anything to Hagrid about Cassius, Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat together around one of the small tables in the otherwise empty Gryffindor common room, the Thought Sender lying in the center of their little circle.
"How does this thing work?" asked Hermione, poking the smooth, grey stone.
"You put your thumb on the red one, and just think," Harry said. "I'm wondering, if all three of us put our thumbs on it at once, would we all be able to communicate with her at the same time?"
Ron shrugged. "It's worth a shot, I guess." He reached out and put the tip of his thumb on the edge of the shiny red stone. Hermione and Harry did the same. "Well," asked Ron, "what now?"
Harry concentrated, and thought, "Can you hear me?"
Hermione jumped. "Harry! You don't need to talk so loud! Of course we can hear you!"
"It works!" he replied. "I wasn't talking, Hermione, I was thinking...You guys were hearing my thoughts! Here, give it a go!"
Hermione bit her lip, and thought, "Is it working?"
Harry grinned at her.
"Hey, this is right handy!" Ron's voice piped up. The three friends smiled at each other, when a fourth voice came out of nowhere.
"What's this, here? Harry? Is that you?" said Cassius' voice.
"Yes, Cassius, I'm here! These are my friends, Ron-" Harry started.
"Hi," Ron interjected.
"-and Hermione."
"Hello," added Hermione.
"Well, Ron, Hermione, it's nice to meet you both. I trust Harry told you, of course, how important it is that you tell no one that you know of me?" Cassius said.
"Oh, of course, we won't say a word!" thought Hermione. "It must be so hard, having to be alone all the time..."
"Actually, it's not so bad most times. I have my dad to talk to, and of course dear old Hagrid...And the portraits that Dumbledore had placed in my room. They make for good company on occassion."
"What do you do up there all day?" asked Ron.
"Sleep. I study alot, too, but mostly I just sleep. Sometimes, Filch will let me bring Mrs. Norris up here with me, so that I have some company, other than the portraits. It gets dreadfully boring up here all alone at times, I must admit."
"I can imagine," said Hermione, a hint of sadness in her voice. "Is it very dark in there? It must be quite dreary, with no windows."
Cassius' voice laughed, and Harry felt his insides clench. "Well, I have to say," she said, "it's quite different on the inside from what it looks on the outside."
"What do you mean?" asked Harry. Cassius fell silent for a moment.
"Would you like to see?" she asked, her voice sounding somewhat apprehensive.
Harry looked from Ron to Hermione, and back. Hermione nodded.
"Y-yes, sure, if you think it will be okay," he answered.
"How much time do you have before the next class?"
Hermione's voice replied, "About twenty minutes."
"Plenty of time. Harry, you know how to get here. Go and get your cloak, then all of you come on up. When you get to the top landing, Harry, tap your wand against the far wall, where you saw the door appear, three times, and I will let you all in. Got it?"
"Got it," they replied in unison.
"Right, then! I'll see you all soon!" With that, Cassius' voice stopped coming, and without another word, Harry hurried up to his room to get the Invisibility Cloak.
*
He met Ron and Hermione at the foot of the stairs leading up the girls' side of the tower, and they situated themselves under the cloak, creeping slowly up the steps so as not to become uncovered. When they reached the top landing, remaining under the cloak and relieved to not have had to try and pass anyone making their way down from one of the rooms, Harry did as Cassius had instructed, taking out his wand and tapping the wall with it three times. The door appeared, and Cassius pulled it open, a warm smile on her face. Suddenly, she burst out laughing.
"You silly lot, get in here!" Stepping aside to let them in, she closed the door behind them, and touched the knob with the tip of her wand. They heard a sound like shifting rock coming from the other side.
Still laughing, Cassius reached out and pulled the cloak off of them. "How all three of you could fit under that thing is beyond me. Lucky thing you didn't pass anyone on your way up!"
Hermione smoothed her hair as best she could with her hands, and looked around. The room was very similar to the other dormitories, except for there being alot more portraits on the walls (all of them empty, save for one depicting a sleeping old wizard in silvery robes), and the ceiling was much higher. Harry inspected the windows, through which the outside was clearly visible, but the warm rays of the sun were blocked out. He looked at Cassius.
"Enchanted?" he asked, motioning to the window. She nodded.
"Yes, my dad and Dumbledore came up with the idea. The stones work like a two-way mirror...I can see out, but nobody can see in. It's main purpose is to keep the sun out," she explained.
"Blimey," Ron breathed, impressed. Looking around the room, his brow furrowed. "Where's your bird?"
Cassius turned to him, smiling. "You mean the raven Harry has been seeing?"
"Yeah, that's the one. The crazy night bird."
Cassius raised an eyebrow at him. "Right here," she said, and folded her arms in front of her chest. As they watched, astonished, her body changed very rapidly, growing smaller and taking the form of a bird. Within seconds, a tiny, black raven was flying around the room.
"You're an animagus!" exclaimed Hermione. The bird came to a landing on the bench at the end of the bed, and Cassius transformed back into her human self.
"That I am, of sorts. But not by my own accord, mind you. It's an inherited trait..." Her voice trailed off, and she looked slightly troubled as she turned to look out the window longingly.
Harry stepped toward her, quite taken with her beauty, and finding a strong urge to comfort her, to make her problems just disappear, asked gently, "So, why are you kept here? Why are you a secret from the rest of us? What is it that could be misunderstood?"
Cassius bit her lip, thinking. Taking a shaky breath, she asked, "If I tell you guys, do you promise not to get all freaked out about it?" They all nodded, and with another shuddering breath, she began:
"Your Professor Snape is not my father by birth. He raised me, from the time I was four years old, and I consider him to be my dad. I love him very much. When he took me in...Well, he rescued me, really." Pausing for a moment, she bit her lip, and looked around at the three of them. "Have you ever heard of the Villdawick vampires?"
When the others nodded silently (Hermione gave a slight shudder, and Ron wrapped an arm around her waist), she continued.
"Well, when I was a baby, my father...er, I mean, my REAL father...did something that provoked their taste for revenge. So they broke into our home, attacked my mum, and stole me away from my father, and kept me. They used me as a regular source of fresh blood, keeping me alive and using me as a slave. They forced me to work in a dingy little tavern that they owned, cleaning tables and sweeping the floor. When my dad...Professor Snape, that is...found me, he recognized me nearly straight away, somehow, and took me out of there the following morning, while the Vills were sleeping.
"He tried to return me to my real father, but the man refused to take me in, even though he claimed he was happy to see me again, alive, after so long. So I was brought here, to Hogwarts, and Dumbledore felt it would be best if I were kept here, close to Professor Snape.
"Some weeks went by, and I was doing quite well. The teachers all loved me - still do, mind you, and I them as well - and my dad had grown more attached and devoted to me than any of the others had ever imagined possible..."
She broke off, looking down at her hands. With a little sniff and a swipe of her hand, she brushed a tear away from her eye, and went on.
"One day, while playing outside at Hagrid's, I had my first reaction to the sun. The rays hit me, and I just...burned. Hagrid has told me many times since then that it was as if I was on fire, but there were no flames. Just alot of smoke. He rushed me back up here to the school, and I was in the hospital wing, where Madam Pomfrey healed my burns right away. But I remained unconscious for three days. My dad didn't leave my side once the entire time, but to go to the bathroom. He even slept in a chair beside my bed, according to Madam Pomfrey.
"On the evening that I woke up, Dumbledore had come to check on my progress. He and Daddy had a talk about me, and what had happened, and Dumbledore said he believed that the Vills' constant feeding on me had caused me to change gradually. He told my dad that as long as I am alive, I will never fully be a vampire, never acquire the bloodthirst, but I will have some of their traits, like the sensitivity to the sun, and the ability to transform into an animal...among other things. He said there is the possibility that one day, the Vills will come looking for me, to finish the job, so to speak, to make me one of them. For that reason mainly, they agreed that it would be best to keep my presense a secret from the students. And so, for the past eleven years, I've roamed these halls at night, attended after-hour lessons once I got old enough, and spent my days hidden away in my secret tower room, all alone, except for visits from Daddy, Professor McGonagall, and Dumbledore. And, on occassion, good old Hagrid."
The others were silent, too stunned to speak. Harry's heart ached for his new friend, and from the looks on Ron and Hermione's faces, they were feeling the same way.
Blinking back her tears, Cassius looked at the clock in the corner and forced a smile.
"Listen to me, blubbering away like a dunderhead. I've wasted too much of your time...You'd best be going, or you all will be late for your next class." Getting to her feet, she crossed the room and tapped the doorknob with her wand. She held the door open for them, then, biting her lip, said softly, "I hope I haven't upset you all. It's really my concern, not yours. Don't think on it, it's not a big deal. But, please - remember, don't say anything to anyone about our meeting!"
The others nodded, and filed out into the hallway. Harry turned back just as she was closing the door.
"Cassius?"
She stopped, and looked up, straight into his eyes. His breath caught in his throat, and he barely managed to say, "Can we meet again?"
Cassius nodded. "Yes, later. I'll contact you when I prepare to head for my lessons. We'll set a time then. Now, off you go." She smiled. "Let me know what McGonagall has in store for me with that exam, will you? I want to be as ready for it as possible..."
With that, she closed the door, and they watched the hole in the wall fade away, leaving them standing in the darkness.
Poor Cassius, talk about teen angst...Next chapter soon...
~SP