AN : Thank you all for the follows and favourites and especially for all the reviews Liliange83, jliu1128, olweyes555! I love hearing from you all! It really does inspire me to write more and always makes my day! I have a solid plan for what I want to happen in this school year, however, given the long amount of time that I've been writing this story I'm also starting to go back through it for grammar and (mainly) consistency errors. I'm planning to update the old chapters as well continuing to work on new ones so hopefully updates won't get any slower! Always fun trying to find time to write while studying full time! ;)

Chapter 18

Ordinary People

In the morning Rebekah woke Harry and I, getting us up and out of my bed. We had fallen asleep the night before, both still lying on my bed. Someone had come in, I thought, and pulled the blankets up over us, but I was not sure who. I yawned, and knew that it had been almost midnight the night before when Harry and I had fallen asleep, but I found that I didn't really care. We felt closer, I thought, as I showered in the morning. It was like the brother I had always wanted was finally mine. I found myself smiling as I brushed my teeth and got dressed. I didn't bother to put on my uniform, everyone showed up for the train in muggle attire, and I knew that it would make Rebekah happy to see me wearing one of the outfits that she'd picked out yesterday. As I emerged, leaving my trunk in my room because I knew that someone would come for it, I saw that Harry was similarly dress. He, however, was carrying his trunk, or at least dragging it with him.

"You might as well leave it," I shrugged, and he frowned. "We're in a house full of vampires, they can do the heavy lifting." I shrugged.

"It's a little eery how comfortable with that you sound." Harry admitted, but he left the trunk behind at my insistence.

"If you lived here permanently you'd be surprised at how fast you'd adjust." I insisted, and Harry smiled.

"I suppose I would be surprised, though I think that already i've adjusted quite a lot." he admitted.

"I'm sure that you have. It only gets worse." I confessed to him.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"They're not humans, they don't have the same conscience that we have, and sometimes it almost makes me forget." I admitted, before shrugging. "It's hard to explain." I concluded, thinking back to the previous June when I had given into my rage, and acted in true Mikaelson fashion, destroying my enemies without a second thought. In all honesty my actions had terrified me, and it was not the memories that kept me from delving back into my magic, but rather my fear that I could so easily lose myself in my retribution.

"I don't believe that you leave your consciousness behind." Harry met my gaze. "You're too kind for me to be able to believe that of you." I smiled tightly at him, and didn't argue even though I didn't believe it. Instead, I motioned for him to follow me downstairs for breakfast. We ate quickly, and then climbed into Elijah's SUV. We rode in the far back while Kol and Rebekah sat in the middle and Elijah drove with Nik sitting shotgun. It was strange, I thought for a moment, to have the whole family here in such cramped conditions, and yet it felt natural to have some of the world's most feared vampires and my own saviour brother in the same vehicle. Behind us several other vampires followed with Harry's and my trunks. The Mikaelsons had decided against being subtle. How Harry was supposed to fit into our picture of family I was not entirely certain, as I was sure that the wizarding world would disapprove of his association with the Mikaelsons, and my own father would be horrified if our shared parentage was to come out, but at the same time I found myself not caring.

Elijah had reminded me before my birthday that I was still a child, and with a smile as Elijah steered us easily into London, I realized that I was going to use that to my advantage. Harry hated his home situation, and it was only because he had nowhere else to go that Dumbledore made him return there. Now, looking at the way that he easily talked with Kol and Rebekah, he had another option. I wanted to always see my brother smile like this, and I wanted him to be with me.

Elijah parked the car and motioned for our vampire tail to bring the trunks in. We only really drew attention when we crossed the magical barrier. Parents looked up and froze, shepherding their children away at first until we caught sight of the Creeveys. They were friendly, and when the Weasleys arrived, people stared openly, and apparently unafraid of the vampire guard. Two vampires brought Harry's and my trunk onto the train for us while Rebekah kept an arm wrapped protectively around me. Harry had headed off to catch up with Ron and Hermione, and was speaking animatedly with them, apparently about the past day, according to Kol. When the train signaled that it was time to go, however, Elijah drew me aside, kneeling down to be at a similar height to me.

"I want you to be safe this year, Rowena. You were not wrong before, things are changing, war might be coming, and I know that you've been afraid to use your magic, but if it comes to it, I want you to defend youself just like you did in June, do you understand?" he asked, his siblings surrounding us to give the idea of privacy. I looked around at the Mikaelsons who I considered to be my own family and nodded.

"I understand, and I will." I found myself promising and Elijah smiled and then kissed my forehead.

"Good. If you need anything at all then you know you can always reach us by owl, or by magic. We'll be around too, and you need to be more careful about seeing your father, but you can always go to him or to Minerva McGonagall and they know how to get in contact with us." Elijah promised.

"I know, and I'll be fine, I promise." I nodded again.

"Good." the train whistled again.

"Can I ask you one thing?" I asked before he could shepherd me to the train.

"Anything." he replied.

"Can Harry move in with us?" I blurted, and for a moment he froze. "I know, it wasn't safe, but everyone knows he arrived with us now, and he deserves to have a family too." I rushed.

"We'll see what we can do." It was Nik who answered, while Rebekah held out a hand.

"You need to get on the train unless you want to miss it." she warned.

"I'll miss all of you!" I burst, and gave Rebekah, Kol, and Nik quick hugs before I turned back to Elijah who hugs me and walked me to the train.

"We will see what we can do for Harry." Elijah nodded, and I smiled before I stepped up onto the train. He stepped back, closing the door and I waved to my vampire family as the train pulled out of London.

I spent the trip back to Hogwarts making up with Ginny. I reminded her that Harry was my half-brother, and explained that he had found out in the spring right before vacation, but that we hadn't parted on good terms. I also promised her that when it was possible she could come over and stay the night. She cheered up after that and we spent the ride playing exploding snap with our fellow Gryffindors. The conversation topics on the train were mixed between the Mikaelsons and Hogsmeade trip plans. We were all, finally, third years, and although I had often been to the cottage, I was excited to have Hogsmeade weekend privileges because I had not really explored the village. My time there instead had been focused on magical training and keeping me hidden o when we began to make premature plans for our first Hogsmeade trip I was just as enthused as my companions.

We were halfway to Hogwarts when Harry stopped by. His presence and smile not to mention when he'd pulled me out into the corridor to say thanks for the weekend and promise that I was always welcome to come and see him started another conversation that lasted the rest of the train ride. I abstained from the conversation, leaving my friends to speculate. Ginny was also quiet, engaging in a game of wizards chess while our friends peppered me with questions that I refused to answer. My buying candy for the whole cabin eased them a little, though in the true spirit of Gryffindors they refused to completely give up. We changed into our robes as the shadows outside the train lengthened, excitement ranging through the train at the prospect of getting back to the school in spite of the storm that had gradually worsened as the train wound its way closer to the school. There was some dread at the thought about classes, but I refused to focus on that.

The train pulled into the Hogsmeade station and I debarked, leaving my belongings on the train as I headed towards the carriages. I froze, however, as I saw the spectral horses pulling them. They were huge beasts, winged with skeletal features, and I came to a dead halt, not that anyone else seemed to notice them.

"Rowena?" Ginny even asked, putting a hand on my elbow and trying to tug me into the comfort of the dry carriage, out of the deluge. "Are you okay?" she asked quietly.

"Do you see anything different?" I asked her carefully, and she frowned.

"Different with what? Come on, Rowena, it's pouring out here." she protested, looking around the area, her eyes skipping over the horses.

"Um, never mind." I managed, still weirded out, but refusing to make a scene. I let Ginny lead me into the closest carriage with Amanda and Eva and then we were all rolling our way up to the castle.

I peered out of the window, watching the horse pull the carriage while my schoolmates seemed blissfully unaware of the strange creatures. I sat back, looking at my friends, and wondered if it was because of my magic. It often made me unique, and part of me hated my abilities for segregating me, not that there was much I could do anyways.

We arrived up at the castle, and ran into the safety of the Great Hall away from where Peeves was lobbing a hail of water balloons down on newly arrived student. I immediately looked to the head table; a wave of relief washing over me when I saw my father seated in his typical black robes. It had been weeks since I'd seen him. Unlike the previous summer he hadn't visited much, and I found that I missed him a lot. I tried to catch his eye, however, he seemed to be deliberately ignoring me, and I felt a wave of anger rush through me. Not only could he not visit, now he had to apparently ignore me. I wondered, with no small amount of dread if he'd start bullying me like he did Harry.

Ginny shepherded me towards the Gryffindor table, and I found myself seated beside Harry. Hermione, who had waved me over towards where she, Ron, and Harry sat, might have put us beside each other on purpose, but whatever the design, I found myself happy to be sitting next to my brother, especially after my father had continued to ignore me. He smiled at me, but we didn't chat much because Professor McGonagall arrived with the very wet new first years. I honestly tried to pay attention to the sorting, but it seemed like a failed endeavor from the start. My gaze continued to drift back to my father, as I longed for the ability to talk with him. I knew that asking earlier for Harry to be able to move in was rash, and until I heard more from the Mikaelsons I wouldn't even dare to mention it to my brother, and yet I wanted him to be family. My father's gaze met mine for an instant before he immediately looked away and I fought a pang of hurt. He wouldn't even look at me, not anymore, and I knew that we had to be more careful, but this seemed simply unfair. I glared at him, willing him to look back and see my anger, but he did not. Instead, the sorting finished and I found myself glaring down at my empty gold plate, the lightning from the magical ceiling reflecting in its surface. Dimly, I heard Nearly Headless Nick telling my brother, Ron, and Hermione about an incident with the House Elves while I played with the food on my plate. Hermione threw down her utensils with a clatter, and I was glad that the attention turned to her because, prior to her fit, Harry had been regarding me with worry. Another omen, I found myself thinking, though again I had no idea what made me think that something bad was coming. Sure, there was a possibility of war, but my trepidation came from another source, though exactly what that was, I wasn't sure yet.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked, taking a pause from his own plate.

Before I could reply, however, the doors to the Great Hall slammed open, and a figure stood framed in them. I jumped, and my magic flared around me, but as I glanced worriedly up at the Head Table none of the Professors, including my father, looked worried. Instead, Professor Dumbledore rose, smiling, and came down from his seat to approach the new arrival. The man was tall, with a strange gait that drew attention to his wooden leg. He had a brilliant blue eye that zoomed about its socket in unpredictable patterns, and there didn't seem to be a single bit of skin that wasn't marred with some kind of scar. All put together his visage was a horrible amalgamation, as though the person who had put him together had no idea what a human face should look like, but there was something darker about his aura that made the hair on the back of my neck truly stand on end.

"And now, on to the next bit of business." he smiled. "I would like to extend a very warm welcome to Professor Moody, who has graciously agreed to fill the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher for the year." I overheard as Ron whispered to Harry and Hermione about Moody once being an auror, though he was now generally considered to be crazy and not worth listening to. I turned my gaze back to the man in question, and had the strangest feeling like he was watching me. I shivered, but tried to ignore the sense of foreboding that he evoked in me. He was an auror, I assured myself, that means he can't be a danger, I tried to reassure me, but my instincts seemed to reject the reassurance.

"Rowena, you alright?" Harry must have felt my shiver because he turned away from Ron and Hermione to eye me with some concern.

"I'm fine, Harry." I replied, though I couldn't help but glance back towards my father who was still ignoring me.

"You've been glaring at Snape and on edge all meal long," he lowered his voice, "something's wrong." Harry repeated stubbornly.

"It's nothing." I snapped, but Harry wouldn't let it go, fixing me with a stare that told me plainly enough that he did not believe me.

"I just miss him, that's all." I finally admitted, lowering my voice even more, and for a moment, Harry glanced up at the main table at my father.

"When was the last time you saw him?" he asked softly.

"Mid-August." I shrugged, thinking back to the brief visit.

August 12

I sat wrapped in a blanket on the porch in spite of the warm air. The breeze chilled me, and shivered. Nik stood on the edge of the porch, mostly in shadows, not saying anything, and from inside the houseI could hear Rebekah clattering nervously around the kitchen. They didn't know what to do any more than I did. It was odd, I thought absent mindedly as I watched Nik scrub a tired hand over his face when he thought I wasn't watching, but here we were all in new territory. They were the oldest beings on this earth that I knew, the most powerful family in the world and yet they were as lost as I was if not more so. Kol and Elijah were nowhere to be seen, something that I was beginning to notice that it was a pattern. This wasn't the first time that I had been unable to sleep. Rebekah would disappear to the kitchen to fix me a hot chocolate and a plate of food that I never ate, and Kol and Elijah would disappear. They made up excuses, Elijah had to call my dad and Kol, well, he was always gone. I heard him sometimes, shouting and ruining things. The ornaments in our house changed with frightening pace and I suspected that it was not just Kol who was destroying things. During the day we tried to all act normal, but I was scared that we were all forgetting what was normal. A tear rolled down my cheek, I could feel it, a cool patch on my cheek in spite of the warm summer breeze. My breath shook and I swallowed it back, another tear joining the first. Nik looked over, and I saw his shoulders collapse as he opened his mouth to say something, but I shook my head and he fell silent. It was always like this. Elijah had asked me once before, had gently offered to make me forget but I couldn't let him do that to me. Rebekah tried to get me to talk, but my human healing was something that they were not accustomed to. They left the memories, the horrors, they never usually stayed long enough to understand the long healing that was required afterwards. A knock on the front door startled me out of my thoughts. A moment later, my father appeared, Elijah trailing after him.

Present Day

"Rowena." he came immediately towards me, and I reached out, hugging him without pause. My father lifted me, and even though I was nearly thirteen, I found myself settled on his lap. I leaned against him, inhaling the familiar sharp scents from the potions lab that I associated with him. Tears that had streamed slowly, if steadily, down my cheeks slowly ceased while I hiccuped quietly, unable to stop myself from shaking in his arms. There had not been much talking that night. He'd simply sat with me, holding me, and I dozed in and out of sleep; exhausted, but unable to sleep.

My father had left the next day he had promised to return. He didn't, at least not when I was awake, but the day after that I had finally gotten a full night of sleep thanks to the Dreamless-Sleep Potion that he delivered. I had taken it before, trying to keep Esther out of my dreams, but where it had not always worked before, it successfully kept my nightmares at bay. At least, it kept the ones that haunted me when I was sleeping away. The potion could do nothing for the memories that haunted me throughout the day, nor could it relieve the dread that filled me when I remembered the June events, or lessen the sombre atmosphere that stalked most of the summer holidays. Still, the sleep had done me good, and when Harry's letter inviting me to the Quidditch match came I had felt confident enough to accept it; determined to make new memories to overrule those from June.

"Rowena?" Harry brought me back to the present.

"It's nothing." I repeated, making myself shrug, but we both knew that I was lying as my head spun with memories of the summer and, as I let myself wonder about the Mikaelsons. I tried not to doubt them because I knew how much they loved me, but sometimes it was hard. I knew about their pasts, but never before had I been so aware of what their violence meant at a personal level.

Thankfully, dessert appeared soon after, and after it had been served I was not held at the Gryffindor table for much longer. Professor Dumbledore's after-feast announcement froze the rest of the Great Hall and, privately, I was thankful that Harry's attention was stolen away by his outrage over the cancellation of quidditch for the year. My classmates were all wrapped up in their protests about the development, shouting in a mingled chaos at the staff tables while Professor Dumbledore was trying to calm them with little success. Although I was not much of a fan, I understood that to the players and the rest of the students, quidditch was important.

When Professor Dumbledore finally regained control of the room he announced the coming of the Tri-Wizard Tournament and I felt the sense of foreboding from the night before return in force. Whatever this tournament was, I had the sudden assertion that it would not bring anything good for Harry or I. Although I supposed that given the track record that my brother and I shared since our start at Hogwarts it wasn't hard to guess that something might happen, but something told me that it was more than just foreboding that made my gut curl. Glancing towards Harry, however, my brother showed no indication that he was worried about anything in the future, speaking excitedly with Ron and twins about entering and laughing at the prospect. Especially after Professor Dumbledore announced the age restriction, I tried to dismiss my concern, but it would not fully abate.

As soon as Professor Dumbledore released us I lost myself in the crowd, seeking the safety of the girls' dormitory. I stole the shower, and then hid myself in my bunk in spite of Ginny and the other girls' attempts to draw me out, claiming exhaustion, which was not entirely made up as an excuse as the bags beneath my eyes could attest to.

When the girls finally settled down to sleep, however, I found myself still lying awake. I remained in the bed assigned for the year, tossing and turning and could not stop myself from lingering on my worry.

In the still dormitory, the same feeling of dread that had plagued me last night returned in full force. I tried to tell myself that it was just from being upset over my father's ignoring me, but I knew that it was more than that. The events at the Quidditch World Cup meant that the war that had caused my mum's death and that still haunted my father was beginning again. Moreover, that same threat was drawing my father away from me and endangering my brother at the same time. Why, I wondered, if one magical world isn't trying to kill me the other is acting up?

Since June, the Mikaelsons had been on high alert, and although I said nothing, it was impossible to ignore how they had all at times disappeared, returning a few days later, quiet and solemn but seemingly pleased with themselves. There were no more attacks, no more threats, and the vampires who cycled in and out as guards at the various houses where we stayed were, if possible, even more respectful than usual. I knew what their deference meant: the Mikaelsons were renewing their ruthless reputations, and protecting me in doing so. Vampires and witches had died this summer, I dared to think perhaps even in droves because of them. I shifted in my bed, the heavy blankets not feeling warm enough. The Mikaelsons had been even more careful, I thought, than before, taking care not to alarm me. Back at Hogwarts, however, knowing that they weren't simply downstairs, I let myself think about what I suspected they'd done, and shivered again.

I tried to turn my mind away from the violence, knowing that although I might hate it, I also loved them unconditionally. I felt like I was complicit in their actions, and unbidden, I imagined what they had done, the witches and wizards who had died. The room around me was silent save for the sleeping breaths from my classmates.

I rose and tugged the crimson blanket from my bed, wrapping it around myself as I exited the room. The Common Room was empty, and I saw that it was already past midnight. I padded down towards the newspaper stand in the corner of the room. I wasn't sure who did it, or why, but as I gathered the various papers from this summer I was glad that they were there. Each year I knew that they were left in the Common Rooms at the beginning of the semester, and often Muggle Born students who didn't have their own subscriptions would read them; catching up on what had happened in the magical world over the course of the summer. Elijah had kept me from reading the Daily Prophet during the summer, and I worried that it was because they were mentioned. Without the pressure of them discovering me mid-act, I sat down, determined to find out what had happened.

I flipped through page after page. The one nice thing about catching up on the news this way was that the papers displayed usually had important stories. I browsed through them, looking for disappearances, murders, and mentions of vampires. It was nearly two in the morning when I gave up, uncertain if I was more frustrated or relieved. The only noted disappearance was that of a Ministry Witch, Bertha Jorkins, and that did not seem to be from my Guardians.

I sat back, the papers surrounding me on the floor abandoned while I stared at the fire. It was dying and the room, though cozy, was cooling. I let a tendril of energy out, and the fire sprang back to life. It was not exactly magic, but even the small release of energy made me feel a little better. I let my powers extend, floating the pile of papers back to a table before I wrapped the blanket tighter around myself.

I might not have used a spell since June, but neither could I keep all of the power inside of me. Our garden had been in full bloom constantly, and I had done little things to let my powers out, even if I did not channel the power into spells. Perhaps before I had come into my powers the year before I could have gone longer without using magic, but it was almost like it leaked out of me wherever I went. I could feel the auras of the individuals around me, I had always been able to, but it took no effort now. I could sense and identify people around me from their energy and I wondered distantly what it would be like not to have such powers. As though my magic had called to him, I heard as Harry approached, his feet quiet on the stone steps, his aura announcing him.

"What are you still doing up, Rena?" he asked sleepily. "It's almost three in the morning. You need to sleep, we have classes tomorrow."

"I couldn't sleep." I shrugged. Harry sat silently beside me, and tugged at the blanket until I let him have some of it. Although the fire roared happily in front of us, I was happy for his company. I leaned against him without much thought, and he wrapped an arm around me.

"You know I'm always here, whatever's bothering you, you can always come and chat with me." Harry said softly.

"I know." I murmured, realizing as I said it, that the words were true. I knew that Harry was there for me, and having him there was an incredible relief. I yawned, and let my eyes drift closed.

Hermione woke us the next morning. There were a few other students there, and I knew that the story would circulate around the school, but as I fought to keep my eyes open, I realized that I didn't care. I ran up the stairs to get dressed, and then I trailed after Ginny to the Great Hall. As we left breakfast a half an hour later, our schedules in hand, I realized that this was the first year, that I would start classes without seeing my father in private. I tried not to dwell on the thought as I headed towards my Ancient Runes class. None of my fellow Gryffindors were taking it, and arriving I found that although there were four Ravenclaws, there were only two Hufflepuffs and one Slytherin. Because of the seating, I found myself sitting down beside the Slytherin, whose name was Cleo. She shot me a glare, and I quickly looked away, waiting for the class to start. It didn't take long, and by the time that we were walking out two hours later I was fairly certain already that I was going to like Ancient Runes.

Meeting up with Ginny, Eva, Amanda, Colin, and Aaron for lunch I knew that it was far better than their Divination Class. Sam came late, animatedly describing his Muggle Studies class that I thought also sounded better than Divination, though I doubted that it would hold any real interest for me considering that I knew a lot about the so-called Muggle World.

We ate and then headed off to double Care of Magical Creatures. Hagrid was the teacher, and he beamed down at us. Since I had helped last year to try to free a hippogriff under his care and he had realized that my mother was Lily, Hagrid had been very friendly towards me. As I arrived at the class he beamed at me, and throughout the lesson he'd turn and smile rather frequently at me before holding me back at the end to invite me to tea any time that I was free. I gave him a smile, and accepted the offer without setting a date before I retreated to the castle. I liked Hagrid, but he tended to release secrets too easily, and although Harry and I might be the centre of school gossip because we'd fallen asleep together in the Common Room, I didn't want more hints that we were siblings out there. At least, not yet, I thought, finding myself wishing that we could openly be siblings. I pushed the thought back as we filed into greenhouse three.

I barely listened to the lecture, fighting back a yawn instead. When we were finally released, I retreated up to my bed, sleeping until Ginny woke me for dinner. I joined her for the meal, but as I caught sight of my father at the table I realized that I wasn't very hungry. I excused myself early, but lingered in the Front Hall, wanting to go and wait at his private quarters until he talked to me, but also too nervous to follow through with it. As it was, another figure caught me, and propelled me into an empty classroom.

"Princess." Draco drawled as we were shut in alone.

"Draco, how was your holiday?" I asked, leaning back against a desk. Although we had been hanging out rather frequently last year, after the events in June I had left too abruptly to be able to say goodbye.

"Fine." he bit out scowling. "What happened to you?" I winced at his demanding question, but knew that he had the right to ask it.

"I had a-"

"If you're going to give me family emergency bullshit then don't bother. Something happened, and I want to know what." Draco insisted.

"I was kidnapped, nearly murdered, and had to fight for my life in the woods. I went home early because of it." I blurted, not sure why I was telling him the truth, but wanting to confess it to someone. Draco blinked in surprise. "You wanted the truth." I gave a half shrug.

"Are you trying to redefine what a trouble maker is?" he asked, and I let out a sharp bark of laughter.

"Not intentionally." I gave a half shrug. "I swear, things just happen to me, it's not like I want them to." I might not quite be pouting, but it was a near thing.

"Right, I don't think that your intentions are a part of this." Draco replied warily.

"Well they should." that time, I did pout.

"How was your summer? Travel the world again?" Draco changed the subject, and I found a small smile forming.

"Not like before." I shrugged. "We spent a few weeks in Spain, but mostly we were in the area."

"You and the vampires who were in the castle last year?" Draco asked, and I blinked in surprise. I had never either acknowledged that Elijah, Nik, and the others were there for me, nor had I told Draco that they were vampires. "I have two eyes, Princess, they are as much a part of your entourage as Snape is, and as for what they are, I head their names, and unlike our classmates I actually know some of my magical history. I went to the library to confirm, but I know who they are. The Original family, called the Mikaelsons." Draco gave a half-shrug. "You said before that Elijah was your guardian, Elijah Mikaelson was here for you, it's like putting one and one together."

"Yeah, it was all of us." I finally said, resigned to the fact that Draco knew that part of my secret.

"Anything else you want to explain or should I just keep putting things together?" Draco asked in a would-be casual tone, though we both knew that one day he would know the full truth.

"I can't tell you more. I already told you more than what they would want me to share." I replied with a little shrug, knowing that my father would be throwing a fit if he knew that I was considering telling Draco more of the truth. Why, I half wondered, was I even considering it in the first place? This was Draco Malfoy that we were talking about, yet looking across at his now-familiar figure, I realized that I had missed his sarcasm and dry humor over the summer. It was a startling thought, and I almost missed what he said next.

"The next thing that I'll figure out then is your relationship with Harry Potter." Draco stood, and walked around me. "I'll see you soon, Princess." he murmured in my ear as he passed me, and then I was alone in the classroom. I suppressed a shiver, but it was not at the thought of Draco finding out all of my secrets. He wouldn't tell, I didn't think, he might torment my brother, but he never blabbered about my secrets, and strangely I trusted him. I took a deep breath, trying to clear my head but realizing instead that the air was still heavy with the scent of the soap, or would it have been cologne, that Draco used. It was oddly comforting, I thought, before I could stop myself.

I shook my head at myself, what was this? I demanded of myself. The invasive thoughts about Draco, wanting him to know about my parentage, and missing him; they were all foreign feelings and I didn't need things to be any more complicated than they already were. This was neither the time nor the place for such thoughts. I leaned against the desk for a moment, shaking my head clear before I steeled myself and left the room.

My thoughts of my father had been driven from my mind until I almost walked into him. His eyes narrowed in suspicion, flickering to a hallway that I had a sinking sense of dread Draco had just disappeared down, before returning to me as the door to the room closed with a solid thump behind me. I met his gaze, lifting my chin slightly, challenging him to speak to me, even if it was to question or scold me. Instead, he fixed his features and walked past me.

I swallowed back the hurt that the motion caused, and then fled up the stairs towards Gryffindor Tower. I cast myself on my bed, but when I failed to turn my thoughts away from my father, I grabbed my book bag and stormed down to the library. I was halfway through the next week's reading before Hermione found me. It shouldn't have been surprising since I was hidden away in the alcove that we had so frequently done research for Buckbeak in, but I still tensed.

"Do you mind the company?" she asked. "The boys are too busy ranting about the quidditch cancellation." I motioned her towards the other half of the table, clearing my things from that section.

"If you ask me what's wrong I'll kick you out." I warned her.

"Fine." she sat down and looked over my book.

"What do you think of Runes so far?" she asked, and a wave of relief washed over me at the neutral subject.

"I really like it, much better than that divination drabble." I replied, before pausing. "Do you ever think that there might actually be something to divination? You know, not what Trelawney teaches, but to the actual art of seeing the future?" Hermione frowned, and sat back.

"Well, there is supposedly a Hall of Prophecies in the Ministry of Magic and history says that there have been prophecies that changed the course of events, but I don't know." Hermione shrugged, frowning. "Why do you ask?" I froze, and Hermione sighed.

"I know I said I wouldn't ask, but this is getting ridiculous, Rowena, so, what is it that's bothering you?" she asked.

"I don't know. Things are complicated." I slammed the book closed, and Hermione sat there, waiting as I fumed.

"Want to go for a walk?" she asked, and halfway ready to say 'no' I changed my mind and gave Hermione a shrug in silent defeat. We silently dropped our bags off in Gryffindor tower before heading outside and across the lawn.

"So is this about your vampire guardians, your relationship with Harry, your dad ignoring you, or last June?" Hermione had obviously taken my acceptance to go on a walk as a free for all.

"All of them?" I replied hollowly. "I don't know, it's all wrong, 'Mione." We stopped walking by the lake. "I think that something's coming, but I don't know what, it's just a feeling that I can't shake." I shrugged. "I don't want anything else bad to happen. I'm still not over what happened in June, it tore the whole household apart this summer, no one knew what to do and we're all still hurting because of it. Now, after what happened at the Quidditch World Cup, war's coming and I know that my family are going to be at the heart of it, but I can't do anything about it."

"Your birthday was wonderful though." Hermione said.

"It was, and the Mikaelsons all treat me as well as they can, but I'm scared that I don't know who they are, Hermione. I've seen so many sides of them, through memories and in person, and I don't know what to think. They don't acknowledge their violence when they're around me, they pretend like it doesn't exist, but I know that it is there. What am I supposed to do about it? I can't just keep playing along, it makes me a part of it because they're doing it to protect me, but I can't bear to lose them either." I met Hermione's chocolate brown gaze. "As for Harry and my dad, well, things with Harry are wonderful, but we're not supposed to be public, we're supposed to be a secret. I can't give him up though because I've already lost my dad. I haven't seen him in close to a month, he won't talk to me, he barely even looks at me. Why? Because there might be a war coming! I can't do anything about the future Hermione, I just know that something is coming and my family's going to be torn apart because of it and I'm scared because I have everything to lose." there were tears in my eyes before I truly recognized them for what they were. Hermione had a pitying look on her ashen features, and then she reached out and hugged me.

When we finally returned to the castle the shadows were lengthening. I wasn't hungry, so giving Hermione the excuse that I wanted a shower, I retreated up the stairs. Entering the Common Room, I ran into Ginny. She fixed me with a cool look.

"I'm off to dinner." she said, and I sighed.

"I'm not hungry." I told her.

"Because you already ate with Hermione?" Ginny challenged.

"No." I said flatly, opening my mouth to set her straight, before closing it again. "I went for a walk with a friend, there's nothing wrong with that." I finally said.

"What am I to you?" Ginny asked softly, her voice speaking of betrayal. "I'm here when it's convenient for you, but you don't trust me, and you're not there for me. Friendship is a two-way street, Rowena, you should remember that." Ginny pushed past me, as I froze, feeling like I had been slapped, or worse. My self-pity rose up, and I ran up the stairs to our dorm. I didn't vomit upon entering the bathroom, but it was a near miss. Instead, I turned myself resolutely lobster-pink under the hot shower spray. I might have cried more, but it seemed that my tears had been exhausted earlier so instead I hiccuped and sobbed dryly in the privacy that dinner afforded me. Afterwards, I rolled myself in my blankets, swallowed an extra large dose of Dreamless Sleep potion and was unconscious by the time that my roommates returned.

AN: So, sorry not the best chapter for Rowena, but she's only a 13 year old human so I want to make it clear that she's struggling with coming to terms with things. She's accepted the Mikaelsons before, but she's never really been in the middle of their actual violence either so it's been an eye-opener and of course it's difficult for her to adapt to the war-time measures that her father is invoking. It's going to be a bumpy ride for her this year, but I do promise she'll come out stronger at the end of it so hang tight! I also have a new face coming in in the next chapter :)