August 17th, 1994

Potter Manor

Harry stepped into the library cautiously with Remus, eyeing the frustrated girl as she let out a groan and tossed her quill directly at the wall. It broke and fell to the floor, some ink getting on the wall and floor. She hadn't spotted them yet, so Harry grabbed Remus's arm and whispered to him. "This is not safe. Maybe we should just… go."

Remus shook his head at Harry. "Something is bothering her. Have you tried asking?"

"Yeah, she threw a book at my head."

"Go find Sirius. I'll talk to her," the man suggested, laughing softly at the relief on Harry's face as the boy sped back out of the library. Remus picked up the quill and vanished the ink. With the broken quill in hand, he made his way over to Cassiopeia, whose hair was beginning to spark. "Your quill broke."

"Good," she huffed, glaring at the quill in his hand. "I'm busy."

"I can tell," he agreed, sitting down across from her. "Glaring at those books. Which are… why do you have books on Death Eaters and the Black family?"

"It doesn't matter because they're not helpful," she huffed, slamming her book closed.

"What's going on? Harry said you threw a book at his head."

Cassiopeia looked up, surprised. "I did?"

"According to him."

"I'm frustrated," she admitted. "Sirius has been telling me a lot about our family, you know. Good and bad. Walburga, Orion, our cousins, all of them. He even told me about Phineas Nigellus. The one person he refuses to talk about it Regulus."

Remus sighed and nodded. It made sense. She lost a brother she hadn't known she had, and the brother she'd gained refused to tell her anything. "Sirius and Regulus… it was tough for them. Sirius missed him a lot during school, but he was terrified that Regulus was suddenly bigoted or hated him during and after our first year. They avoided each other after a big fight in our second year and then, slowly, they got into fights. Physical, never verbal because they were too stubborn to admit why they were each upset. And then we graduated and… I'm not sure if Sirius ever saw him again. He's got a lot of regret and anger and hurt built up that I don't think he's ever worked through."

Cassiopeia looked away, eyeing the books in front of her sadly. "It just feels so important. I've never met him, not when I could remember. I just want to know."

"I think maybe only Walburga would know," Remus told her regretfully. "We haven't figured out how to remove her portrait yet, so you can try. I wouldn't expect anything comforting. She knew her son as the man that would do anything to stay safe, even if it meant listening to her. She might not tell you things you want to hear or even things that are strictly true."

"Who were his friends?" she asked softly. "His close friends?"

"Severus, actually," Remus answered. "I think their friendship began because they both had a lot of anger toward Sirius, but it seemed to evolve. If you want to know who he really was, I'd ask him if you get the chance. These books won't have anything for you."

"They don't," she agreed bitterly. "They just tell me when he became a Death Eater, some of his crimes, and when he died. There are a few ideas on why Voldemort suddenly wanted him dead but nothing solid."

"No more throwing books at Harry," Remus told her firmly. She blushed and nodded. "You've got good aim, Cassiopeia. You're bound to give him a concussion."

"He's got a thick skull, he'll be fine."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

August 20th, 1994

Quidditch World Cup

"Blaise, down!"

Blaise dropped down just in time to miss the flying dagger and watch it dig into a Death Eater's hip. The Death Eater froze and Blaise got up and grabbed it out, dropping it to the ground. It disappeared and, before the person could gather themselves, Blaise hit them with a stunner and bound them.

The fight moved on throughout the fairgrounds. The kids, despite their age, were good fighters. Everyone stayed out of Cassiopeia's way, mostly because her daggers were dangerous and she was not slowing down with them. It was nearly an hour of fighting before Sirius, Remus, and Daniel reached them and helped them fight and protect them. Remus was slowly taking the kids away one by one until it was just Cassiopeia, Harry, and Draco left with them.

The Death Eaters lit a fiendfyre in one of the tents and, when it began to spread, they gave up and were forced to retreat. Sirius knew how to fight it but refused to do so when he had two teenagers to keep safe, so they all returned to Greengrass Manor, where all of the other kids had been funneled to.

"Daddy!" Astoria cried, rushing into his arms. Daphne did the same, and he grabbed them, confused.

"Hey, it's okay," he promised. "Where's your mother?"

"She- she didn't make it," Blaise said when both girls were unable to. "An elf took her upstairs to heal her but she's- she didn't."

The few days following the attack were a mess. Sirius and Remus planned the funeral for Daniel and invited the family of three to stay with them for the time being. None of them wanted to be in the house without the strong woman that had loved and taken care of them.

School came sooner than expected and, despite being concerned over sending them there so soon, Daniel sent them to school once they promised they were okay. He saw them off at the station and left to continue taking care of the vaults and legal matters that came with the death of the Lady of a House.

On the train, the friends all sat together and waited for Theo. He'd been unreachable for the last month of the summer, making them all sick with worry. When their compartment door finally opened, Cassiopeia shot up and wrapped him up in a tight hug, ignoring his fallen book.

"I'm okay," he assured her gently, rubbing her back. "I'm okay. Are you?"

"Me?" she asked in surprise, pulling back to look him over. "I'm fine! But you weren't there and then- then the attack, and Lady Greengrass and- was your father there?"

"He was," Theo confirmed softly, taking her arm to push into the compartment. She shoved Draco out of the way and placed Theo down next to her, Blaise and Harry on her other side. Draco made a face at her and went to sit next to Astoria instead. "In fact, I think you hurt him."

"I did?"

"He said someone threw a dagger into his side," Theo explained, watching her. She winced.

"I threw my daggers at a lot of people."

"Could be the one you nearly hit me with," Blaise suggested, laughing at her soft blush. "It's really okay, Cas. You didn't even hurt me."

"She was scary," Harry told Theo. "It's like she'd already fought a million times. She's really good at it."

"Well, Father is okay, but he's got a small limp now," Theo explained. "I only knew it was going to happen the night of. Father wouldn't let me warn you guys, he just said he'd try to keep everyone away from you. Obviously, he lied." Theo paused, his eyes settling on the quiet girls across from him. "I'm really sorry. I wish I could have- I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Daphne gave him a weak smile. "It's not your fault. Honestly, Mum was sick already. We hadn't… told anyone, but she only had a few months left."

"Tell me what I missed," Theo requested.

"Cassiopeia and Sirius sent my father to Azkaban," Draco spoke up. "And killed Aunt Bellatrix."

Theo waited for the rest of the story and when Draco didn't offer it, he looked to Cassiopeia. "What does he mean, you killed his aunt?"

"Technically, we didn't," she defended. "Magic did. Sirius called Judgment on her and magic found her lacking, probably severely so, and it took her magic. She died. As for his father, apparently, he killed Orion. Not really sure how to process that one, honestly."

"Merlin," Theo shook his head. "Anything else?"

"Sirius sent Rabastan to Azkaban as well after forcing him to give the contents of his vaults to Lady Longbottom," Harry grinned. "It was cool."

"Can we discuss the bloody Tri-Wizard Tournament for a moment?" Draco requested.

"Yeah, we didn't have time to talk about it but Merlin," Blaise shook his head with a short laugh. "At least we know what sorta shit is gonna go down this year."

"It might not," Cassiopeia defended, Harry nodding along with her. Everyone stared at them like they were stupid.

"We're used to it, Black," Draco told her.

"You can't- Black is your last name now, too," she rolled her eyes. "Besides, it's going to be seventeen and up and Harry's fourteen."

"I mean there's the whole issue of Karkaroff being there," Theo added with an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, but he's a Death Eater. Something's happening."

"But we don't know what, so there's no point focusing on it," Draco told him. "Just get through the first few days with her like that."

Cassiopeia made a face at him. "Shouldn't everyone know?"

"I mean… no," Daphne answered her. "There's muggleborns and half-bloods that might not have seen it, and it's not like every student reads the paper. There's a good chance a lot of people still don't know."

"Great."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Daphne was, apparently, right. Cassiopeia avoided the curious or confused gazes of many purebloods and some half-bloods. Even muggleborns seemed confused, probably wondering where Belle had gone and who she was. It was surprising how different she looked from the girl she'd been before. Her nose was a bit smaller, her jaw was sharper, and her cheekbones were more defined. She really did look like a completely different person, an obvious issue for her classmates.

The whispers at the Slytherin table spread to the Ravenclaw table behind them and then Gryffindor, and finally Hufflepuff. It was obvious enough that Dumbledore interrupted his welcoming speech, easily able to identify the problem by Cassiopeia's scowling face and the people staring openly at her.

"Ah, I see you've all noticed Miss Black. I had hoped the news had spread quickly, or at least that the rumors wouldn't begin until after my speech. No matter. Belle Potter was, as many of you know, adopted. Over the summer, Sirius Black came to find out that she was adopted from his father and was actually his sister, Cassiopeia. Whatever questions you have can be asked of her later on."

Cassiopeia didn't bother to resist openly glaring at her headmaster. She didn't want the entire school asking her questions. In fact, she had a great urge to hex whoever did ask questions. Dumbledore moved on with his speech and introduced their DADA professor for that year when he had a rather dramatic entrance.

The feast ended with no more interruptions and Cassiopeia took the Marauder's Map and used it to sneak down to the dungeons and avoid the people walking around. She did not have the energy to deal with all of the questions, something no one blamed her for in the least.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

September 9th, 1994

Slytherin Common Rooms

"What's a sexuality?"

Cassiopeia stared at Draco. "Are you… are you serious?"

"Yes?"

"Sexuality is who you're attracted to. You're attracted to women? Or men and women? Or just men?"

"Just women," Draco frowned. "Why would I be attracted to men?"

"Some people are," Cassiopeia explained. "Take me for example. I'm attracted to men, women, and anyone between."

"What would be between men and women?"

"Non binary people. People who don't identify with the binary gender roles. I don't know if we know any here at Hogwarts."

"But you'd date a woman?" Draco asked, amazed. She let out a short laugh.

"I mean, yeah."

"I'd date girls," Astoria added. "I'm gonna ask Ginny to Hogsmeade next month."

"It's actually a lot more common than you think," Cassiopeia told her shocked cousin. "I really think that if everyone was more educated on the LGBT+ community, they'd also identify as some part of it."

"What the hell is that?"

"Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and everyone else like asexual, which are people who don't feel sexual attraction. They can and sometimes do have a sex drive, though. It doesn't have anything to do with that. There's also… let's see, there's aromantic, which are people who don't feel romantic attraction but do feel sexual attraction. Or there are asexual and aromantic people who feel neither."

"Merlin, there's a lot," Draco muttered, looking overwhelmed and confused.

"I can't believe you've never considered that someone can be gay or anything else than hetero," Cassiopeia admitted. "Is it really not common here?"

"No," Daphne told her. "You might wanna explain hetero before he gets confused again. He's bound to explode."

Cassiopeia let out a laugh and set into explaining that, too.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

September 21st, 1994

Potions Classroom

Snape grabbed the calming draught and handed it over gently, watching Cassiopeia's silver eyes stare at the desk in front of her. She took the potion and downed it without question. It took longer than usual for her to calm down, but nearly ten minutes later, she had finally relaxed.

"I didn't intend for you to see that," she said softly. "I should have realized it was possible and I should have… I don't know. Stopped these sessions."

"Leaving these memories unprotected will only damage you in the future," he warned her gently. "I have seen plenty of horrible things, Cassiopeia. Do not concern yourself with me."

When she spoke again, she shifted the conversation entirely, unwilling to dwell more on the memory he'd just seen. It was bad, but not even some of the worst, something that really spoke to what she'd been through. "Can you tell me about Regulus?"

Snape paused at the unexpected question. "He had an unfortunate life. I'm unsure if anything I can tell you will be comforting."

"Sirius won't tell me anything," she said, biting her lip. "I know… Remus told me just a little, and I read about some of the things he did, but Remus said you were his friend. I feel like… I know I gained a brother, but I also lost one, and I don't know why it's bothering me so much but it is. I just want to know, Professor."

Snape nodded shortly and sat back down across from her. It had been a long time since he'd spoken about his old friend, and it took a moment to remember things from before they'd become Death Eaters, the things that wouldn't scare or upset her.

"I don't want to know lies," she said before he could speak. "I just want to know… who he was. What he was like."

"Very well," Snape agreed. "I met Regulus in my second year of Hogwarts. He was… scared and very alone. In my third year, he told me about your mother and how she treated them. Regulus did as they told him to because he had this fantasy that someday, Sirius would save him from the life he was making for himself. Perhaps James Potter would save him. That never happened. In my sixth year, his fifth year, we both became Death Eaters. Nothing good happened after that. When you were born, it was horribly clear to everyone that his loyalty had shifted to you. He was threatened and more importantly, you were threatened. It was a week later that he died."

"Was he… kind?"

Snape considered the question. "To those he held closest. He was a Slytherin at heart, Miss Black. He protected himself first, something you should learn to do."

"Regulus had reason to want to protect himself first," she said softly, almost offhandedly. "I've always had someone else to focus on."

"We cannot always protect you," Snape told her seriously. "Something is coming, Miss Black. You should pay close attention. You are lucky to have gotten away from the World Cup uninjured."

"Not all of us did, I know. I was protecting my friends and my family, Professor. Surely you can't fault me for that."

"I can, and I do. Protect yourself first."

"You already know I won't do that."

"And that is the problem, isn't it?"

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"This is ridiculous," Cassiopeia told the twins as she watched them bottle up the potion. "It's not going to work."

"Oh yeah?" Fred said, grinning at her.

"And why's that, Black?" George questioned.

"Because Dumbledore is a very powerful wizard," she explained. "And there are undoubtedly charms and spells on the Cup itself. I imagine it'll see your magical core and not your physical age. You can't trick it."

"That's where you're wrong," George insisted as they entered the room to stare at the age line.

"Just watch," Fred agreed. The boys linked arms and tipped the potion back. Cassiopeia shook her head as she watched them jump over the line successfully and waited for what she knew was to come when they dropped their names into the blue fire.

Just as she expected, the fire expanded and tossed them out of the circular area until they hit the ground, now with grey hair and beards to rival that of Dumbledore's. They began fighting, and she walked over to them, putting up a shield in front of her to block a punch George threw at Fred that would've missed and hit her ankle. "The only reason my core was ever touched was because I was an infant. You are two sixteen-year-old boys who think they're smarter than our annoying but unfortunately brilliant headmaster."

"Why are there two old men fighting?"

Cassiopeia jumped at the voice behind her and turned to find Viktor Krum watching the twins curiously. She offered him a smile. "They thought a simple aging potion could trick the cup. I think they've gotten the punishment they deserve."

"Ah, foolish," he nodded, an amused grin on his face. Cassiopeia saw a tall man standing a little ways behind Krum watching them, but more specifically, her. He was glaring openly and she raised an eyebrow. Krum turned and spotted him. "Do you know each other?"

"Cassiopeia Black," the man spat. "You should be dead."

Cassiopeia tensed, her hand dropping down to her thigh in preparation to grab her dagger. "That's what I've heard. Unfortunately for the Death Eaters and Voldemort, Orion was smarter than all of them."

The man tensed, his eyes flashing angrily. "You were owed in return for your brother's betrayal."

Cassiopeia couldn't help but be curious. "Betrayal?"

"He stole something from the Dark Lord," the man answered her. "And so he died and you were meant to be taken as repayment."

"Well, Voldemort obviously wasn't smart enough to kidnap a three-month-old child, so I guess I'm not surprised he didn't take over the wizarding world, either."

"Oh, no."

Cassiopeia didn't bother looking when Theo put an arm around her and stared back at the man as Theo spoke.

"Is there an issue, Mister Karkaroff?" Theo asked stiffly. "I'm sure Cassiopeia meant no offense."

"Actually, I did," she scowled, pushing his arm off of her. "I'm not sure what he's trying to insinuate, Theo, but I don't like it. My family, my continued existence, is none of his damn business."

"Okay," Theo said loudly. He put his hands on her shoulders and guided her out of the room, leaving behind Karkaroff and a very concerned Krum. Once they left the room, she shoved his hands away from her again.

"I'm not helpless, Theo! There were plenty of people standing around watching us. I have my daggers, I have my wand, and we bloody well know I can fight. I don't need you to save me from a Death Eater."

"That one you do," Theo told her patiently. "He's got a big grudge against your family after Bellatrix took his spot on Voldemort's side. Then Regulus rose up in the ranks while he was stuck behind, and he was ordered to kill his wife, who was a half-blood from a family on the light. He's a danger to you."

"Well, he wasn't doing anything," she frowned. That time when he reached out, she let him pull her into a tight hug. "I'm sorry for worrying you but I promise I had it handled."

"If Snape hears that you confronted Karkaroff, he's gonna lose his shit on you, Cas."

"It's not like he can give me detention for talking to Karkaroff," she rolled her eyes. Theo's own eyes widened slightly. "Theo, he can't. And I know he's my magical guardian, but that doesn't mean he can ground me or something."

"Actually, Miss Black, you might be surprised to find that I can do just that."

"Ah, shit."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

October 12th, 1994

Owlry

Cassiopeia was walking up the slippery steps when she ran straight into Blaise.

"Ah, shit," he whispered, grabbing her shoulders to steady her. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she assured him with a smile. "Are you? You've been… weird lately."

His eye roll almost made her take it back.

"I'm fine, Cassiopeia," he assured her, plucking her fallen letter from the steps. "You can use my owl. The school owls lose half of the letters they're given."

"Thanks," she smiled, following him into the large room where he called for his owl, Dodie. She watched him quietly as he gave the owl a treat. His hair was more wavy than messy now, and it surprised her. He'd also grown quite a bit over the summer, as had Theo and Draco, but Blaise had lost some of his baby fat and was slimmer and more attractive now.

Her breath caught at her thoughts and, absently, she took a step back from her friend to stare at him with wide eyes.

"Cassiopeia?"

She blinked a few times and forced herself to smile. "Sorry, I'm- uh, a little tired, I think."

"Sure," he scoffed. She knew that her friends knew when she was lying every time, and she cursed herself for it. Still, he offered her his arm and she took it, "Let's head back to Slytherin."

"Why?" she wondered, looking at him as they walked down the steps. She gripped his arm instead of the railing, using him to steady her. The steps always scared her as they were steep and somewhat slippery. He grabbed her hand, and she felt the back of her neck tingle at the touch, and she cursed herself softly.

"Snape called a meeting," he reminded her with a frown. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she shook her head, pulling him to hurry down, unwilling to focus on the issue she only just realized she had.

They made their way quietly from then on until they got to the common room, where she immediately separated from him, grabbing Daphne and Astoria and pulling them all the way across the room from the rest of their friends.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"So what do you guys think is wrong with her?"

Theo and Draco looked up at their friend in confusion.

"Who?"

"Cassiopeia," Blaise said, looking at them like they were stupid. "She's acting… weird."

"No, she isn't," Draco disagreed.

"Yes, she is!"

"She really isn't," Theo raised an eyebrow. "But you are."

Blaise pursed his lips. He'd been much more serious since the past summer. Truthfully, it had been all of the events at the World Cup that had made him realize that while it was okay to not care sometimes and be focused on having fun, most of the time he needed to be serious, especially with the company he kept.

"She was staring at me and acting weird," he explained. "She could barely get a sentence out and tried her best to get away from me. She isn't doing that with you guys?"

Theo and Draco exchanged a glance, and it was Draco that spoke.

"Mate, she wouldn't be acting like that around us."

"Why?"

"Because we're not the ones she's got a crush on."

"Ah, fuck."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Cassiopeia threw her head back, letting her hair fall off the side of the bed as she stared at Daphne, who was openly laughing at her. "Shut up."

"No, this is funny," Astoria agreed with a grin. "You're finally noticing boys."

"I noticed girls first," Cassiopeia complained. "Why can't I stick to that? None of the girls I had a crush on were one of my closest friends."

"Who did you have a crush on?" Astoria asked curiously. Cassiopeia glanced at the girl.

"It's not important."

"Because you're lying," Astoria accused. Cassiopeia glared, and the girl laughed. "Just tell us! You obviously have a crush on someone else now."

"No."

"It's okay," Daphne laughed. "I knew."

Cassiopeia gaped at her friend. "What? How? When?"

Daphne grinned. "The crush only lasted for about a month before you started acting normal around me again. And the beginning of last year, obviously."

Cassiopeia let out a groan. "So does that mean he knows, too?"

"Probably not," Daphne hummed. "But Theo and Draco will probably figure it out and tell him, so I guess so, yeah."

Cassiopeia flipped over and turned on the bed until she hit her pillow, shoving her face into it and letting out a frustrated scream.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

October 31st, 1994

Great Hall

Hogwarts was forced to sit in two tables while the other schools took one table each. Harry, Ron, Ginny, Cassiopeia, Daphne, Astoria, Draco, Theo, and Blaise all sat together at the end farthest away from the middle of the room, where the cup had been sat.

"If your name comes out of there, I'm going to be so fucking annoyed," Cassiopeia hissed at Harry, who threw his hands up.

"I didn't put it in there!"

"Oh, I believe you on that," she assured him in a whisper. "But you have shit luck and I wouldn't put it past your luck to put your name in there."

"Only an adult with an exceptionally powerful confondus charm could do it," Theo told her, earning himself a glare.

"Then let's hope there are none of those adults around that want him in this stupid tournament."

The relief that flooded through her when the final champion, Cedric Diggory, was chosen was palpable. She clapped loudly despite the fact that she'd only met him once after he'd saved her from the dangerous gal the previous year, purely out of relief.

Then, of course, it was ruined.

The cup lit up again, this time red, and another piece of paper flew out of it and into Dumbledore's hand. She squeezed Harry's hand tight within her own, the seconds feeling like hours.

"Harry Potter!"

"Goddamn it," she hissed as Harry got to his feet, confused, and paused. "Harry, go," she instructed, shoving him forward. He stumbled as he made his way to Dumbledore, and the urge to take a very long nap overcame her.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

November 1st, 1994

Potions Classroom

Snape looked up as his door opened to find Cassiopeia step inside, looking irritated.

"I'm sorry for being late," she told him, dropping her bag to the floor next to the chair she sat in.

"Twenty minutes," he informed her. She nodded a little.

"I know. Professor McGonagall was yelling at me. She gave me detention."

"Why?"

"I hexed Draco."

Snape breathed in slowly and got to his feet. "Why?"

"Nothing important," she muttered, still clearly annoyed. "He just wouldn't leave me alone about something and I lost my temper. It won't happen again."

"And what was he bothering you about that seemed worthy of hexing him?"

Cassiopeia waved at her eyes with one hand and he pursed his lips, nodding.

"You are sure?"

"Yes, I consent," she muttered the way she always did. He'd begun refusing to enter her mind without hearing the words after they'd had a small miscommunication that led to her having a panic attack. Snape muttered the words and met her eyes and they fell into the memory of her hexing her best friend.

"Draco," she said, her voice low and warning. "Leave it."

"You won't even talk to him," Draco continued, earning himself a glare from her and a concerned look from Harry and Daphne. "You're his friend! And a terrible Slytherin if you can't just put your feelings aside to talk to him."

"There are no feelings," she snapped, her hair beginning to spark. "I just need some time, okay? It'll go away. Now shut up and focus on putting your things away or I'll hex you."

Draco, apparently, didn't believe her. "Right, the feelings are for Theo and the crush is on Blaise, got it."

Cassiopeia's eyes widened and she shot to her feet, her wand pointed at his throat. He stared at her with wide eyes and she hesitated before hexing him twice - one hex covered his legs and torso with a thick, hot, green goo, while the other hex grew his head until he looked like a bobblehead as it moved from side to side.

"Miss Black!" McGonagall gasped, rushing over. They had been putting their things away in Transfiguration, and she'd paused to hex him. "Detention for two weeks!"

Cassiopeia sat with her arms crossed in front of her when Snape left her mind and he wanted to roll his eyes at her. Still, he had to admit that his godson seemed to have no sense of self-preservation around the testy witch, even when she'd warned him that he'd be hexed.

"Are you done?" he asked her, referring to her angry pout. She looked ready to hex him, but she just nodded and forced herself to relax, looking back up at him and waiting. He cast the spell again and she breathed in, letting them go wherever her mind wanted.

The memory that came to them was a darker one. She was about eight and had dropped the pot holding their dinner on the floor. It had burned her, but the worst part was the mess she'd made and the fact that only her uncle was home and he'd been drinking since Petunia and Dudley weren't going to return until the day after next as they were on a camping trip for Pier's birthday.

"Bitch," Vernon hissed angrily as some of the soup hit his arm and burned him. She backed up hurriedly as he rushed toward her, but her back hit the counter painfully, allowing him to reach her. His meaty fingers wrapped around her neck tightly, surprising her. He squeezed tightly, screaming furious words at her that she couldn't quite understand.

"I need to go."

"What was that?"

"I'm tired," she said, not even bothering to pretend her lie was good. She moved to the door and knew he was following her.

"Black-,"

"I'll see you in class tomorrow-,"

"Cassiopeia."

She froze but refused to turn around. "I don't want to see it or talk about it. Please."

"I won't force you to," he told her slowly. "But is there more of that?"

Cassiopeia hesitated. "Yes."

And then, with that, she ran from the room.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

November 2nd, 1994

Slytherin Common Rooms

"You can't- you can't avoid a teacher," Theo frowned at her, squeezing her hand. "You have potions with him in three hours."

"I'm not going."

"Hiding from your problems is a legit answer," Astoria told her. "But it won't get you anywhere, so I suggest you take this time while you pout to come up with some sort of plan to confront him about whatever happened."

"It's not- it isn't the sort of thing I want to talk to anyone about," she shrugged as Theo tugged her hair lightly, braiding one piece. "We were doing Occlumency lessons and he stumbled on something I didn't want him to see."

"That's the shitty thing about learning it when you're older," Daphne sighed. "You've got more shit you want to hide, but you can't hide anything from your Occlumency instructor. That's why they teach it so young, so that any trauma or anything you experience later in life, you don't have to show to someone else."

"So you're saying I have to show him literally everything inside my head?"

"Only most of everything inside your head," Astoria corrected. "Everything you wouldn't want others to see. All the things that make you vulnerable, for example. Like your friendship with Draco or your crush on Blaise-,"

"I do not have a crush on Blaise-,"

"Those types of things can be used against you," the younger girl finished. "So lock them up."

"She's right," Theo agreed with a regretful smile. "I know it sucks having to show them to Snape but in the end, you'll be much better off for it."

"So if I'm trying to lock up fifteen years of memories, how long would that take, do you think?" Cassiopeia wondered. The sisters exchanged a glance.

"Maybe two or three years," Daphne offered. "It depends on how much you resist, which right now sounds like a lot."

"You're telling me that not only do I have to show Snape every nasty piece of my shitty life but also that it's going to take me three years to do that?" she asked, staring between them. When they both shrugged, she threw her head back onto Theo's lap, and he gave her a soft, sympathetic smile.

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