As they made their way into the grand entrance, Annabelle gasped and slapped her hand over her mouth when she saw what everyone was gawking at. She looked to her friends, registering their shocked expressions and she began to shake. Sirius's eyes flashed with a mix of horror and fury. Neither could speak, they were so traumatised by the statuesque replicas of themselves positioned before them.

Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall made their way through the crowd and stopped in their tracks when they saw the students. Claire manoeuvred around them and took her place next to Remus.

"What is the meaning of this?" Dumbledore demanded as he looked back from the clones to the real Annabelle and Sirius, then to Remus and Claire.

"We found them in the dungeons, sir," offered Remus. "They drank Polyjuice Potion in order to deceive Sirius and Annabelle. We heard them discussing it just moments ago."

"Here it is, sir," said Claire, as she pulled two vials of liquid out of her pocket, one a dusty lavender colour and the other a light steel blue, and handed them to Dumbledore. She also gave him their wands."We know the whole story." Meanwhile, Rowan Summerby had made his way to the scene, a look of utter confusion written on his face.

"Whatever for?" Dumbledore asked, still taken aback by the situation that he could not believe had slipped his beneath his radar.

"I think I know the answer to that," clipped McGonagall, "But, I prefer to let them speak for themselves."

With a flick of her wand, the cords that were binding them together disappeared. With another flick, the Petrificus Totalus charm was lifted. After staggering a bit to find their footing, Dominica and Septima stepped away from Elsinore and Malachi, but it was Tabitha, the first-year Slytherin that spoke first.

"They made me do it, ma'am!" she exclaimed. "I swear it. I didn't want nothin' to do with it!"

"What did you do, exactly?" Dumbledore asked.

She pointed at Annabelle and Sirius and said, "I had to see to it that those two were where they wanted 'em so they could trick 'em!"

Annabelle felt sick to her stomach. Unbelievably, Elsinore must have been planning to trick Sirius again, since she had become Annabelle a second time. Or had it been more? Rowan had said she'd been frequenting his common room… Humiliation and rage collided within her, kicking up a tempest of emotions.

Just then, the potion began to wear off on the Sirius double. The strange, gruesome transformation back into Malachi took under a minute. He was sneering proudly, most likely in an attempt to save face in light of being caught in front of the whole school. Several other faculty members were also present, including Hagrid. He shook his head in disappointment at the scene.

"Mr. Malfoy," Dumbledore barked. "This is an outrage!"

"The other one is Elsinore, sir," Tabitha eagerly told him. "Elsinore Collins."

"Shut up, you little prat," Elsinore-as-Annabelle hissed.

"It's quite a complex potion," Professor McGonagall said. "Where did you get the ingredients, specifically the necessary hair?"

Neither of them answered.

"You will answer!" ordered McGonagall.

"From their heads!" shouted Elsinore.

Sirius suddenly remembered Elsinore yanking his hair during the duel in the staircase well over a month before. Annabelle put her hand to the spot where she had done the same to her.

"They attacked us a while back," Annabelle said. "She pulled my hair."

"And yours as well?" McGonagall asked Sirius.

He nodded slowly in affirmation. His jaw was set and his arms were crossed, and it was evident to anyone who knew him that he was fighting the urge to blast them both through the ceiling.

Now it was Elsinore's turn to transform back into herself. Once the process was complete, Annabelle and the lunatic stared right into each others' eyes. Elsinore darted her eyes away first.

"It was you?" a horrified Rowan asked her. "All along?"

Elsinore grinned smugly. He looked to Annabelle.

"I told you it wasn't me," she mouthed to him. She felt a jolt of vindication, even though she felt sympathetic to Rowan. Elsinore must have been working her way up to getting him to kiss her by leading him on for a while, disguised as Annabelle. It explained his sudden interest in her anyway.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Rowan replied. He turned and headed toward the boys' loo.

"Everyone connected to this incident is to report to my office immediately!" Dumbledore bellowed as he stormed up the grand staircase.

Professor McGonagall added shrilly, "Everyone else, back to your tables this instant! Professors, please help clear the area!"

She ushered the students involved toward the stairs, bringing up the back in order to make sure Dominica and Septima didn't attempt to scurry off, even though they'd be stupid to because everyone could see they were in this mess up to their eyeballs.

Annabelle followed directly behind Dumbledore. She was embarrassed and infuriated that she'd been violated without knowing it. It should have been obvious that Elsinore and Malachi were the agents responsible for carrying out the "damage control" that Mary McDonald had warned her about. They were already gathering information on Sirius and reporting to his parents, but now it appeared they were also expected to break them up.

Dumbledore asked to see Remus and Claire first. Professor McGonagall waited in the hall with Annabelle, Sirius, and the scheming Slytherins. Sirius sat down against the wall several feet away from the rest of them. He, like Annabelle, was dealing with a slew of conflicting emotions, and was afraid that if he didn't put some distance between himself and the perpetrators, he would lose control. They were unarmed, which would make it even easier to hex his vengeance all over them.

He thought about how this was affecting Annabelle. She was right there, standing next to Professor McGonagall, yet she felt a million miles away. What had he done to her? How could he ever make things okay again? She wouldn't be involved in this horror show if not for her association with him, and then he publicly condemned her on top of it. He wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out again.

After some time, Remus and Claire exited Dumbledore's office and he called upon Septima Scroggie. Remus went to join Sirius, while Claire, who was still shy around Remus' friends, stood a few feet away from Annabelle against the wall.

As McGonagall ushered Septima into the office, Annabelle glanced at Elsinore who glared back at her, the corners of her mouth turned up in a devilish grin. It incited Annabelle's fury so much so that she felt like reaching out and physically causing her pain. The only thing that stopped her was Professor McGonagall turning back to face them.

A few moments later, the door opened again and out rushed a crying Septima. She sent Annabelle a pleading, piteous look, maybe it was regret; Annabelle couldn't tell, but she no longer cared. Whatever her part in it, Annabelle would not forgive her and averted her eyes from the pathetic girl. Septima ran off down the hall and down the stairs.

Next was Dominica. This time Elsinore hissed and leered at Annabelle while Malachi snickered. Claire saw what they were trying to do and moved closer to Annabelle.

"Just ignore them," she whispered to her. "They can't hurt you now."

Annabelle didn't say anything. Claire was mistaken if she thought she was afraid of them hurting her. She was more afraid that she might hurt them.

Remus made his way back over and asked Annabelle, "Are you okay?"

Annabelle muttered, "No," before looking away.

Dominica didn't look quite as sorry when she exited, but she did seem cowed and uncomfortable, and she hurried off, avoiding Elsinore and Malachi completely.

McGonagall held the door open and Dumbledore called for Tabitha. Again, when she turned her back on them, Elsinore tried to instigate with Annabelle. Remus noticed as well when Elsinore made an exaggerated frown and mouthed, "Don't cry, Mudblood," to Annabelle.

It was the spark that lit the powder keg and Annabelle sprang at her, landing a fast hard slap across her face, which sent her staggering sideways into the wall. Professor McGonagall turned around, stepping between them as Remus and Claire pulled her back, and Sirius got up.

"Don't touch her, filth!" Malachi shouted.

"Who are you calling filth?" Sirius asked as he charged Malachi, ramming into him and sending him onto the floor. He landed one good punch across his face before Remus yanked him off him and forced him back, away from Malachi.

McGonagall drew her wand. "One more outburst from any of you, and I will stop you myself!"

Elsinore squealed, "That little hag just slapped me!"

"You deserved it and so much more," Annabelle fumed. McGonagall admonished her to control herself.

When Tabitha came out, she shot an accusatory look at Elsinore and skipped off down the stairs, presumably to the dungeons. Dumbledore called for Elsinore and Malachi next.

"Why do I have to go in there? I didn't make the potion," she complained as she planted her feet like a child about to have a tantrum.

"It is not up for discussion. Go inside this instant!" McGonagall hollered. She opened the door and followed them inside, turning to Annabelle and Sirius briefly before closing the door behind her.

"You will wait here to be called," she ordered, as she joined Dumbledore in the questioning of the offenders.

Now it was just the four of them, and an awkward silence hanging in the air. The feeling of disgrace was so powerful that both Sirius and Annabelle couldn't look at each other.

Remus decided to break the ice. "Claire had the idea to track them down. We heard everything. It was a set-up from the start."

"Thank you," said Annabelle. "For finding them."

"Yeah, thanks," said Sirius. "That was brave of you to take them on alone."

"Dumbledore was terribly upset," Claire said. "He isn't going to take what they did lightly."

After about twenty minutes of Claire and Remus conversing in whispers while Sirius and Annabelle brooded apart from each other in silence, the door opened and Professor McGonagall led Elsinore and Malachi out.

"Miss O'Neill and Mr. Black, he will see you now," she said, as she held the door for them. "Mr. Lupin and Miss Shaw, you don't have to stay, but you may wait here if you'd like." Sirius grabbed the door, and held it open for Annabelle, who slipped inside the headmaster's office. McGonagall then ushered the two Slytherins away.

"We'll wait for you," Remus said.

Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk and motioned with his hand to two chairs in front of him.

"Have a seat, please. Would either of you like a lemon drop?" he asked as he lifted a small bowl of sweets from his desk.

Both students politely passed on the lemon drops.

"All right then, let's get to the reason I wanted to speak to you," he began. "After interviewing the students involved, it was easy to conclude that you were both terribly taken advantage of and the culprits' depravity has not gone unpunished."

No shit, Sirius thought to himself.

"Apparently they had some help brewing the potion, but claim the person responsible was under the impression that it was for an extra credit assignment for which the potion maker would also receive credit."

Sirius couldn't stop his eyes from rolling.

"Mr. Black, do you have something you'd like to share?" Dumbledore asked.

Sirius leveled with him. "All due respect, sir, but Severus Snape couldn't possibly be that daft."

Dumbledore sighed and said, "I have yet to speak with him, but if I find that he was aware of the use for which the potion was intended, he will be disciplined accordingly. I do want to remind you that it is not your responsibility to dole out punishments. You've come a long way in your relations with him and I'd hate to see you go backwards. Are we clear?"

Sirius could read between the lines. Stay away from Snivellus. He would never understand what Dumbledore saw in him, but he always seemed to have a weak spot for him. Sirius had the impulse to tell him that Snape had better sleep with one eye open from now on, but he bit his tongue. He knew Dumbledore could have punished him much more harshly the previous school year after almost getting Snape killed in the passage to the Shrieking Shack. He hadn't though, not just for his sake, but for Remus' sake as well. If Sirius had been disciplined, his parents would want to know why, and Remus' cover might have been blown. Maybe Dumbledore was glad Snivellus got a bit of revenge. How unfair that Annabelle had to be caught up in it.

"Crystal clear, sir," he replied.

"Good," said Dumbledore. "I also want to let you know that Mr. Malfoy and Miss Collins will no longer be attending Hogwarts, effective immediately. Rest assured, this was not their first offence, but I do have a discipline code I must adhere to, and considering the level of the infraction, expulsion is the next and final step."

Annabelle was impressed that he had cracked down on them. She was glad to know she wouldn't have to see Elsinore's fiendish countenance glaring at her again. Sirius was still subdued, despite the news.

"Mr. Black," Dumbledore said as if reading his thoughts, "There is no reason for me to contact your parents, but if anything arises… at home because of this, I want to know about it."

Sirius nodded and looked toward the window.

"May I ask a question, sir," Annabelle ventured to the kindly, but commanding old wizard.

"Of course you may," he replied. "You may both ask me anything you'd like."

"Did they say why they did it?"

"I can answer that," Sirius offered. "They did it because my parents recruited them to do something about the Mud…" Sirius cut himself off. He bit his lower lip and took a deep breath, trying to remain calm.

"The Mudblood," Annabelle finished for him. She knew it wasn't his word; he was only giving her the reason that Elsinore and Malachi would give if they were honest. "They did it to help your parents remove me from the picture."

"Truthfully," Dumbledore replied, "They didn't say much at all in their own defence. They couldn't deny masterminding the plan and executing it. They didn't deny that they had attacked you for your hair samples. And they did confirm an animosity shared among all of them that led them to target you. They didn't say anymore though, except for Septima Scroggie, whose part was small and who genuinely seemed remorseful. She gave me the impression that she'd been bullied into it."

"By Dominica, no doubt," said Annabelle.

"Yes, indeed. Jealousy can transform us into the worst versions of ourselves."

"Will they be punished, sir?" Annabelle asked, not wanting to hear excuses for Dominica or Septima.

"They will both be suspended until the end of January," he replied. "Little Tabitha Greengrass will only be doing two weeks of detention, I'm afraid, as I believed her when she told me she was coerced by her fellow Slytherins into complying."

Annabelle and Sirius remained silent. They had all the answers they were going to get from him, and after a moment, Dumbledore spoke again.

"I estimate that Mr. Lupin and Miss Shaw's discovery cleared up a lot of confusion and doubt for the two of you, and I hope that you will be in better spirits now, considering how everything has been resolved."

Annabelle understood him to mean that now things could go back to the way they were. Sirius and Annabelle could be the happy lovebirds again, no worse for the wear. But she wasn't so sure that was how it worked. This incident had hurt them, and caused them to hurt each other. There would be scars from that. Besides, how was she expected to run back into his arms when his parents seemed ready to throttle him for breathing the same air as her? She was more confused than ever, if that was even possible, but the answers could only be found by talking to Sirius.

Dumbledore sensed their hesitation. "You mustn't let others determine where your journey together begins and ends. That is only for the two of you to decide, even if it means beginning the journey again from a new vantage point."

Annabelle nodded to show she was paying attention, and Sirius continued to gaze out the window, looking miserable.

"Alright, then, Mr. Black and Miss O'Neill," he said as he stood up, "If there are no more questions, then I must attend to some business with a Mr. Summerby and Mr. Snape. Here are some passes to present to your teachers."

"Thank you, sir," said Annabelle.

"Thank you," said Sirius.

"You're welcome," Dumbledore replied. "And if you'd like to discuss the matter again, you may knock any time."

He came around his desk and walked them to the door, holding it open for them. Sirius allowed Annabelle to leave first. As Sirius was exiting, he glanced at Dumbledore once more who gave him an encouraging wink, then closed the door behind them.

Remus and Claire were still outside the office, most likely to make sure everything was fine between the two of them before leaving them alone together. Or maybe it was so Remus could stop Sirius in case he decided to track Snape down instead of going to class. It was hard to say, but as much as Annabelle appreciated their efforts and owed them a debt of gratitude for putting a quick end to the deceit, she couldn't talk to Sirius with them there, and no real amends could be made until they sorted it all out. Remus and Claire meant well, but there would be no discussion with them around.

On the other hand, maybe it was best that they were there. It would give them time to think; to figure out where they wanted to go from there. Nothing puts a damper on a relationship like a vicious witch and wizard working for your boyfriend's parents, running around the castle and biting people's tongues, all while disguised as you.

Annabelle parted with them at her Divination classroom, then Remus and Sirius walked Claire to her class before heading to Ancient Runes. Along with students from other houses, Annabelle shared the class with a handful of Gryffindor sixth-years, Johnny B., Lily, and Dominica to name a few. Dominica was not there. Suspension and expulsion were usually effective immediately, and one was to wait in the dorms until parents could arrive to speak to the headmaster and escort the offending student home.

Annabelle handed the professor her pass and sat at her table with Lily and Johnny B. They instantly raised their eyebrows at her in anticipation, and Annabelle shrugged in response. She'd have to wait until the teacher was done speaking to fill them in.

Once they were examining their crystal balls, Johnny B. said, "So?"

"So, Elsinore and Malachi will be bothering us no more. They are being expelled," Annabelle informed them.

"Wow. Dumbledore must have been furious," said Lily. "Can't say I'm sorry to hear it."

"Dominica and Septima are suspended until the end of January. And that little oddball Tabitha got detention because they kind of threatened her into helping them. Allegedly, Severus did brew the potion, but Dumbledore has no proof yet that he knew what it was going to be used for. Elsinore claims she told him it was for extra credit."

"Dumbledore can't possibly believe that," said Johnny B.

"Apparently he does," said Annabelle. "In fact, he issued a warning to Sirius about not going after him for revenge."

Johnny B. chuckled. "As if a warning will stop him."

"Hopefully it will," said Annabelle. "He doesn't need any more trouble."

"So are you two okay?" Lily asked. "With each other?"

Annabelle shook her head glumly. "We didn't really get a chance to talk. Everything is so strange now between us. Where do we even begin?"

"You are joking right?" asked Johnny B. "You run straight into his arms, Annabelle. That's where you start."

"It isn't that simple," replied Annabelle.

"You have to talk to him, Annie," said Lily. "You can't just leave things like this. Neither of you did anything wrong. You can't let them win."

"I kind of think it's better if we are apart, at least for now," said Annabelle. "His parents might go easier on him if they think it's over between us."

"Maybe you should let him decide how to deal with his parents," replied Lily.

Annabelle sighed and looked into her foggy crystal ball. She saw nothing.

"Oh, I see something in mine!" Johnny B. exclaimed. "It's you and Sirius, and you are snogging the bejeezus out of each other! See Annabelle? It's going to be alright. The crystal ball doesn't lie."

Annabelle smiled, even though Johnny B. never saw anything in his crystal ball. She appreciated what he was trying to do though.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

At dinner, everyone sat together in their usual spots. Remus recounted in detail what he and Claire had overheard, none of it surprising but galling nonetheless. Sirius and Annabelle avoided speaking to each other in depth, even though they gladly relayed the story and took questions from their friends. They weren't angry with each other; instead they were at an utter loss as to how to recover. They were still mortified by what had been done to them, still hurt and ashamed over the callousness with which they had spoken to each other, and they both just wanted to vanish for a while until all the talk of what happened died down.

Of course, just because Elsinore and Malachi had been thwarted, didn't mean multiple monstrous heads wouldn't grow back in their places. Sirius dating a non-Pureblood was clearly not allowed, and someone else would be all too eager to step in and do his parents' bidding. Knowledge of this caused Annabelle to be incensed for his sake. She didn't know what it was like to have obsessive, controlling parents. Her grandfather had been pretty relaxed when she was a child, and Dumbledore as a legal guardian stayed out of her business almost entirely, delegating to McGonagall should any issues arise. Annabelle preferred it that way, and thought that if Sirius's parents couldn't accept him the way he was, they should just leave him alone. But they couldn't let go. Until they did, Annabelle feared they'd just be faced with more obstacles, each one more spiteful than the next.

That evening, Sirius and Annabelle found it easier to retreat to their dorm rooms than talk about what happened. Annabelle was starting to think it really was over, and Sirius was trying to maintain his cool, but he was beating himself up on the inside. James found him staring out of the window next to his bed.

"Why are you up here, mate?" James asked.

"Just knackered is all," Sirius replied.

"It's not your fault you know," James said. "You did nothing wrong."

"Polyjuice Potion," Sirius muttered. "How did I not figure it out?"

"You did," James said. "Remember? In a day's time, you had the answer. And I'm betting you would have sooner, had it not been so personal."

Sirius turned and sat down on his bed, but didn't speak.

"Come on, don't tell me you are blaming yourself for all this," said James, sitting on his own bed opposite Sirius.

"Why did I think this would work with her?" Sirius asked. "Was I mental? Of course it was doomed from the start."

"It wasn't doomed. They didn't get away with it and you can repair the damage."

"How? She is alienating herself from me now," Sirius replied. "Probably figures she didn't sign up for this and is glad to be free of the Pureblood and his maniacal family."

"She knew about your family and she still chose to be with you," James countered. "She's probably just waiting for you make the first move. You did dump her, even if it wasn't your fault."

Sirius ran his hand through his hair, and hung his head. "Isn't it selfish of me to put her through this?"

"She can decide for herself how much she's willing take," James replied, then tried to get him to laugh. "She's been putting up with you since September and she hasn't run screaming yet, shockingly enough. That's a miracle right there."

Sirius gave a little half-smile, and James got up and gave him a pat on the back.

"Well, you'd better find a way to sort it out with her, because we need her play Quidditch next year."

Sirius laughed. "That's the truth."

"Just think about what you want to say and talk to her tomorrow. Don't wait too long, because you might miss your chance."

"You think because you got Lily back, you're a love expert now, huh, Prongs?"

"Just call me Doctor Looove," James drawled.

"All right, bugger off, ya arse," Sirius laughed. "I really am knackered. You would be too if you had a day like mine."

"Good night, mate. Everything is going to get better. Trust me."

Sirius nodded and James went back down to the common room. By the time he returned, Sirius was fast asleep.