Antlia couldn't help but to giggle as she headed back towards the castle with Remus. For a winter afternoon, it really was beautiful. "Hell, Remus. I'm going to miss you over the break."
Remus grinned warmly at her. "You sure you can't stay for the holidays?"
"Yeah, Father is very determined to have me home."
"That's honestly too bad. At least he wants to try and be a father to you now though."
She gave a small nod. "It's been years since I've seen him, but honestly, I wish Sirius was going to be there. It would have been the perfect opportunity to get to know him better."
It was Remus' turn to laugh. "Maybe this summer we can meet up and I can trick him into spending some time with you."
"I think he'd run away the moment he saw me and realized," she chuckled lightly.
"Well I know he'd love you if he would just give you a chance. We get along, don't we?"
Antlia nodded happily. "Quite well, really."
His smile spread immediately. "I'll work on him then."
She started to come up with a teasing reply but hesitated when she caught sight of the Headmaster standing in the courtyard. He was still quite a ways away, but Antlia's keen eyesight picked up on the fact that he was watching them. "What's Dumbledore doing?"
Remus' smile flickered a little as they continued walking. "I'm not sure. I rarely see him outside on the grounds like this."
They both couldn't help but to fall silent as they drew closer to the Headmaster. He gave them both a soft smile, but his eyes fell on Antlia, a knowing gaze locking on her. But what was it that the old man thought he knew?
"Mr. Lupin, mind if I borrow Miss Dubios for a moment?"
He shook his head, clearly confused and a little uneasy. "I'll catch up with you later, Antlia."
Dumbledore smiled calmly at Antlia as Remus started off, but she only felt tense. She followed him silently in the castle, trying to compose herself and relax. Her mind was going a million miles an hour. What did he want with her? Did he know what she had done? Had he found out about her sneaking off grounds? More importantly, did he know about Tom and that he had been near the school regularly? That she was involved with him? She struggled not to swallow hard as she reminded herself he was a powerful wizard and may not be above using legilimency on her. It had been such a long time since she had practiced guarding her mind. She mind not notice if he subtly tried to invade her thoughts. Calm down, Antlia. She thought to herself as her heart pounded inside of her chest. You have to clear your mind. Stay cool and collected and you can better preform occlumency. You need to figure out what he wants before you start jumping to conclusions.
"Lemon drops," Dumbledore declared to the griffin statue, pulling her out of her thoughts. Almost immediately, the sculpture started to turn and Antlia followed Dumbledore onto the stairs that appeared.
She couldn't help but to mentally mock the Headmaster for choosing a muggle candy for the password, but the moment she saw his office, her entire composure changed. An elegant, full grown phoenix sat on a perch, black eyes staring directly at her. He was stunning. Without really even thinking, she found herself walking towards the beautiful creature, absolutely in awe.
"He's magnificent, isn't he?"
Antlia carefully held a hand towards him, watching as he carefully sniffed her open palm. "Amazing," she breathed. "I've never seen a phoenix in person before."
"His name is Fawkes," the headmaster said, taking a seat as he studied her.
She could feel her mind wanting to reach out to Fawkes as his beak nuzzled into her hand, but every rational bone in her body was screaming out at her. It was perfectly normal for a young witch to be enchanted by such a creature but she knew that thanks to her bond with magical creatures, the phoenix would start reacting in a way that wasn't very typical if she continued encouraging it. She absolutely hated it, but she forced herself to step back and take a seat as well.
"I'm not surprised that he's taken such a liking to you so quickly," Dumbledore smiled softly, his gaze falling back on the teen in front of him.
"What do you mean, Professor?" She asked, trying hard not to tense up.
"Your kind has quite a connection to magical creatures, so I've heard."
She couldn't stop the blush that began to cover her cheeks. "My kind?"
"Professor Kettleburn mentioned to me your day in class with the porlocks. Don't worry, dear. Your secret is perfectly safe with us."
Her nervousness quickly began melting away into anger. So Kettleburn had seen her mark after all. Her professor had known all along and had chosen to say nothing to her? But he had told Dumbledore? Who else had the wizard shared her secret with?
"I imagine that's a lot of the reason why Mr. Lupin is so taken with you as well?"
Was he purposefully trying to piss her off? If it was his intention, it was definitely working. "Remus and I are friends."
Dumbledore nodded, still wearing the same, calm smile. Even it was starting to irritate her. "And I"m thankful that he was another student he can relate to. But, I now find myself in a strange position."
"Yes, Professor?"
"I have two students that often venture off grounds that I have no intentions to stop, but alas, it seems the areas surrounding Hogwarts is growing more and more unsafe each day."
Antlia tried to feign confusion, but her first thought went to Jorkins. Was he trying to insinuate that he was on to her? That he already knew it was her that had tortured the mudblood? Or was he genuinely concerned for her and Remus' safety as students? "What do you mean?"
He studied her carefully, his smile starting to fade but his features still well guarding his true thoughts. "Kettleburn has informed me that several creatures have turned up harmed or worse since the attack on poor Miss Jorkins. Whatever attacked them, it possesses very strong, very dark magic."
She blinked in shock. "You don't mean to say that you think I"m responsible? Professor, I-"
He held up a hand, cutting her off. "No, Miss Dubios. I do know enough about your kind to know that what happened to those creatures wasn't your fault," he paused, a knowing glint shinning in his eyes for jsut a moment. "But I do fear the dark magic that's starting to make itself known in the forest. Whatever is out there, it's not safe, and it may be drawn to a creature such as yourself that harbors such unique magic."
She watched him silently for a moment as a mixture of emotions flooded her. What had happened to the creatures Kettleburn had found? What was attacking them? And if he knew better than to blame her, then was he using the same logic to dismiss the idea of her attacking Jorkins? As much as she hated hearing that innocent creatures were suffering, she was glad to know that the attacks were giving her a bit of cover.
"Be careful, Miss Dubios. I know you have a gentle heart. Don't let the Forbidden Forest hurt it and misguide it."
A few moments of silence washed over them as Antlia thoughts about his words. "I will be, Professor. Thank you for the warning, but was that all you needed me for?"
"Oh, yes," he said, his smile returning once more as he summoned a piece of parchment to him. "Mr. Orion Black has written to me on matters concerning you."
She stiffened a little, not bothering to hide it this time.
"He as informed me of your unique situation and has asked that i change your paperwork to correctly reflect your family name. It seems as if he wishes for you to take the Black family name and for you to be under his custody until your seventeenth birthday."
It was all Antlia could do not to groan. Of course Orion would want to make the official change, and of course he would be showy and pompous enough to write the headmaster about it instead of just his daughter, whom it directly affected. "Oh, thank you for letting me know."
He nodded, looking down at the letter through his half moon spectacles. "I won't keep you any longer, dear. I'm sure you have homework to do and are ready to prepare for the holiday season."
She got up immediately, glad for the dismissal clearing her to leave and go breathe.
"And Miss Black?"
His easy name change struck a nerve with her but she tried to brush it off without showing it. "Professor?"
"Look after Mr. Lupin. I know he really appreciates your potions and help to keep him safe."
