Hello everyone, back by unpopular demand is me! I love this story but as you know real life has a tendency to fuck shit up and I was not in a good headspace to write as of late. I am slowly starting to return to my groove. So hopefully this chapter has been worth your wait. I apologize for the delays but can't promise that they won't happen again.

Please leave a comment if you enjoy the story so far, I love hearing from you guys and I'd love to learn what you all think so far.

ENJOY!

Upon their return late last night no one asked them a single question, instead they huddled close in front of the fire and spoke in hushed tones about trivial matters. Clytemnestra watched Augustus finish his drink in a single gulp and stay silent for most of the night. He did not shake in regret, nor cried but all could tell that something fundamentally had changed within him.

On the other hand, Lucius noted that Clytemnestra had not shown any signs of distress or change. He noted the blood sprayed to her robes, and the easy way she still carried herself. He concluded that she was either a spectacular liar or she had already killed. Perhaps both, he thought to himself and decided to keep an even closer eye on her.

Drunk, warm, and well fed they all soon fell asleep in front of the fire. She was tucked between Lysander and Solan, safe in their embrace. It reminded her of all the sleep overs they had in the manor, and how they camped at the gardens one summer. Lucius hopelessly trying to help them make a campfire, then giving up and calling Dobby to take over instead. That summer they had been ten, and they ate chocolate and candy and plenty of cold lemonade. Then they had cuddled in front of their fire, only to wake up back in their bed. Magic felt so innocent back then.

Narcissa, being the responsible one, woke them all up around six am to get ready for the day. Clytemnestra took extra time in the showers and let the cold centre her back to reality. She wore a black jumper and fitted trousers as well as lovely autumn boots. She tamed her hair into a braid over her shoulder and did her make up in bold colours. Satisfied with herself she descended down the stairs only to be greeted by Severus and a mystery box.

He opened up the box, several vials of potion inside. "Good morning." He shoved a vial to his hand, finding no reason to explain.

She recognised the pepper up potion immediately and emptied the vial. "Thank you Severus, you're dear."

Severus acknowledged her with a short nod, then continued to pass around his potions to his fellow classmates, drinking one himself in the process.

Once everyone was peppered up and ready, they left for breakfast. Augustus walked by her side but did not speak a single word to her. However, once they were settled into their table, he started to fill her plate with her breakfast favourites. He took his time to pick the freshest fruits for her, and even peeled her tangerine for her. Still, he did not speak but his actions were understood, not just by her but the whole table.

Clytemnestra read her paper, did her Sunday crossword, and ate her breakfast in equal silence, but she occasionally brushed her hand over his, and bumped their legs together as if to say, 'you are not alone, you were never alone to begin with'. He smiled warmly at her, something he seldom did then helped her finish her crossword.

Once again Lucius observed them in obvious interest. He knew Augustus since boyhood, their father's had been friends and so had their grandfathers and so on. Even then it had taken some time for Augustus to trust him, to open up and leave his shell behind. Narcissa, Yaxley's, and everyone who shared their table had to coax Augustus out of his shell bit by bit, month by month. He had not been privy to their dealings in the woods, but it had changed him fundamentally. Lucius trusted his judgement above all his friends, so he started to question his own judgement about Clytemnestra. He wondered, and he did not realise he had been staring until Narcissa gently nudged him out of his curious state. He turned to his fiancé and apologised, offering her a charming smile to earn forgiveness.

Clytemnestra excused herself from the table right around the same time. "Excuse me for the rest of the day please, I am afraid I have a playdate with the other kids. Do be nice to each other while I am gone." She winked at Narcissa, and Narcissa dismissed her with a single hand gesture, a smile hidden in her face.

Before making it to the Gryffindor table she stopped by the other tables to say good morning to few of her friends and steal some pastries at the same time. Upon her arrival to her destination Lily made room for her between herself and Sirius. After squeezing in, she placed a kiss on Lily's cheek and greeted the others.

Alice eyed her outfit in appreciation. She was sitting opposite to them with Frank at her side. "You look like you're about to commit double homicide."

Clytemnestra flipped her braid from one side to the other, accidentally smacking Sirius in the face. "One down, one more to go?" She laughed, as did the others.

Sirius shoved her, though not with force. "Watch it yeah."

She shoved him back. "Or else what?"

He grinned at her, and was about to respond when Remus cut in. "Play nice children, it's too fucking early."

"Not a morning person then?" Clytemnestra tilted her head slightly to the side, waiting.

Remus responded in a grunt, followed by a stern, "No."

Clytemnestra smiled at him in pity and left him to his tea, instead she conversed with Lily and Alice talking about a recent party the Gryffindor's had thrown, apparently to start the term right. The girls talked about the dancing, and the drinking, but especially the drinking games that followed.

"None of us knew just how much of a freak Peter was." Alice nudged Peter lightly, her teasing gentle.

"It's always the quiet ones." James laughed and Peter blushed.

It hurt her heart to see them like this, knowing despite the love of Marauder's Peter's cowardice would win everyday and that her parents were dead because they loved the wrong boy. She wondered if Peter could ever have been different, but she realised she did not care.

"It's not that bad I promise." Peter gave her a shy smile and she returned automatically though it did not reach her eyes.

Alice shoved a final piece of crumpet into her mouth and stood up. "I think I'm done, shall we?"

Both girls stood up, and Clytemnestra turned to Remus before they left. "We'll be doing some potions work, feel free to join us and I can go over your essay with you." She then gestured to the rest of the boys, "Feel free to bring your entourage."

James chuckled at her, speaking to no one in particular. "She knows I live there right? She knows she invited me to my own place?"

Everyone ignored him, and she waved at them before leaving with the girls. Lily took one arm while Alice took her other. "Thanks for not antagonizing them."

Clytemnestra smiled. "They're making an effort."

Alice laughed. "Oh, they're just not sure what to do with you yet, give them time they'll do something to earn your ire."

The girls walked arm in arm back to the head's dormitories and settled in front of the fire place. They all had work to do but it was such a lovely Sunday that they spent their first hour simply chatting idly by. Lily poured them some tea, and eventually they managed to start on some work.

Clytemnestra and Alice mainly focused on their potions essay; meanwhile Lily had already finished hers, so she chose to revise instead. The topic of her essay was about the laws surrounding potion making in the UK and how they compared to other European Wizarding Countries. On the other hand, Alice was writing about the use of certain potions by the Auror department (or broader law enforcement) and how they could aid in the capture and interrogation of Dark Witches and Wizards.

Purpose of these assignments were to understand the cooperation between several disciplines of magic and get an idea about future career plans. If everything went according to plan Clytemnestra would move into a lovely cottage and live out the rest of her days in relative peace. Though she knew that was mostly wishful thinking.

They were all so focused on their work that they did not hear the boys walk in until James cleared his throat loudly to draw their attention. Clytemnestra lifted her head from her parchment and took in the state. It seemed they had played outside like young lads, Remus had dried leaves stuck in his hair and coat, and Sirius had mud on his trousers and grass stains. Peter looked red, and likewise was stained by the mud. It seemed James had been the sole survivor of whatever had ensued between the Marauders.

"What time is it?" Lily lifted her head from her book.

"Way past noon, you guys missed lunch." Sirius replied, then he lifted a bag to show off "but we are here for the rescue."

Clytemnestra had not noticed the passage of time and it seemed neither had their companions. The girls cleared their work and made room for the boys on the floor. They brought with them some soups, chicken, curry, and rice, as well as some pudding for after. Remus settled next to her, and Sirius to his side. Meanwhile, James stuck near Lily, and Peter stayed near James.

"Ten points to Gryffindor if I do say so myself, for our efforts." Sirius made eyes at Lily as she smelled the delicious aroma of the lentil soup.

Clytemnestra gently poked him. "Thank you," but then she grinned, "you didn't spit in it did you?"

Remus shook his head in amusement. "No funny business I promise." She smiled at them both and lifted her cup of soup in delight.

From Alice came an obscene moan as she shoved curry and rice into her mouth. "I am starving, seriously dudes you are the best."

James made a joke about her having a bottomless stomach and handed her a piece of sourdough bread before sharing with the rest of them.

During their late lunch, the girls mostly ate and listened while the boys talked about Quidditch, some things they did during the summer, and a concert Sirius wanted to go to. It was a band she had never heard of and he explained that it was a muggle band, and they did punk.

Clytemnestra smiled, admitted that her knowledge of music was mostly limited to classical music. Upon hearing this Sirius mimicked being shocked and went on to educate her on the finest of both Wizarding and Muggle music.

"Can't believe you've never heard of any of these bands, I mean were you raised in a far away underground cult?"

"No, I was raised by pure-bloods, though I suppose they did try to the best of their abilities. I think both mother and father enjoyed timeless things, I think they thought that if time stopped around them nothing could harm us again."

Sirius jumped slightly when he got pinched by an angry looking Alice, who whispered to him to have some fucking tact.

"Oh no, it's okay." Clytemnestra interjected, "I am sure everyone has some questions."

Lily looked at her with concern. "Doesn't mean we should ask, I mean, can we?"

Clytemnestra nodded, "Everyone gets one question and I get first pick from the pudding."

James gestured towards the spread of desserts and allowed her to choose, she debated for a while before settling for a salted caramel chocolate cake.

First question came from Lily. "You said your mum was muggle-born?" She had asked this of her before but each time she let more information slip free.

Clytemnestra made a humming noise, responding after swallowing her bite. "Yes, I don't remember much about her or my dad, they passed away when I was still a baby. I call my adoptive parents mother and father; they were the ones who raised me after all. From what I know of my mom, she was beautiful and kind, and very brave too. She loved books, and dried flowers between the pages. She married young and died young. In a few years I'll be older than she ever got to be."

Suddenly asking her questions did not seem like the best idea but they were also still very intrigued. Sirius remembered how he hated knowing after he learned more about her in potions tutoring, yet they seemed incapable of stopping themselves.

James asked the second question. "You said you studied at Durmstrang, tell us about that?"

"Ooh yes, I've had cousins that went there, they were talking about how advanced it is." Sirius encouraged her, hoping to navigate a less invasive topic.

Clytemnestra took her time to respond. "I suppose compared to Hogwarts' curriculum it is advanced, especially in terms of what you call in here the dark arts. Far be it from me to dispute the ill intentions of many but what we learn is that there is nothing inherently good or evil about magic. It also operates with the idea that by learning more advanced and perhaps morally dubious magic in a more controlled environment we're gaining the knowledge to identify, use, and defeat it in the future." She took a slight pause. "We take Quidditch very seriously there and the house system is different, and I think I like it more here on that count. The library is magnificent, and if you can sneak out to the upper levels of the castle the view of the snowy mountains is breathtaking. It's snow as far as the eye can see, snow and forest."

"That sounds beautiful."

"It was."

"How about your friends?" Peter asked though realised too late the disapproving looks of his friends, telling him not to.

Clytemnestra took in a deep breath and smiled mostly to herself. "Draco, Pansy, Theodore, and Blaise. They were my best friends. Draco was my adoptive brother, according to our mother we took to each other the moment we saw each other. She also said that we had the most uncanny gift of getting each other into trouble. Pansy and I met as children since our families were close, her parents loved to travel so she stayed most summers with us if not the majority of the year. She was my sister in many ways, she could cast a mean hex and not have a single hair out of place. Theodore and I met in school actually, he became Draco's friend first then mine. He was awfully shy but incredibly smart. He got into as much trouble as us but if he smiled, he'd get away with anything. Then of course there is Blaise, I was going to marry him once upon a time."

Despite knowing he ran out of questions Peter could not help but ask, "What happened?"

"He got mauled to death by a werewolf whilst trying to save another student's life."

Remus froze, the sheer terror of her statement ran through him like a knife, cold sweat gathered at the base of his neck and his legs ached with the desire to run. He had always been a monster, his parents told him so ever since he got bitten, he saw it in the way his mother could never meet his eyes, and how his father avoided him, neither of them willing to touch him. He remembered the first time James shook his hand at the Gryffindor table, right after their sorting, how he felt both relief and terror.

His face lacked colour as he turned to face Clytemnestra, carrying the same enthusiasm of a man being led to his execution. He knew she did not know, how could she? But still the fear he felt was primal, cultivated over the years and only eased amongst friends.

Clytemnestra ran her hand over his shoulder and the length of his arm until they were holding hands. "My friend Theodore was so afraid of werewolves. Do you have the same fear?" Her voice was so innocent, so compassionate.

Remus shook his head but did not reply, of course he did not fear werewolves, but he supposed in a way he did both feared and despised them.

She gave his hand a squeeze. "It's okay you know, if you are scared of them but I think they are just like people. I think they are no more capable of committing evil than us."

"But, during the full moon they…" Remus wasn't sure why he argued against himself, why he held onto his own fears so tightly when she was giving her an out.

Clytemnestra shook her head, a soft smile on her lips as if she somehow understood. "Evil requires two things, intent being the most important. Can you say that a lion is evil for killing the gazelle? Or the eagle that swoops down to capture the hare? They go where their nature takes them, they have no ill intent to commit evil, only the intent to feed themselves and their young." She paused for a moment to think of another example. "Unforgivable curses for example, they are not the hardest curses to cast but many can't perform them. The intent to kill, to torture, or possess someone so thoroughly, these are strong, terrible urges but many can't follow through because despite their anger the intent to do those acts is what matters, that powers the curse, that alone sustains it. To be evil you must have the clear intent to plot, and to commit these acts. During a full moon, a werewolf is not in control, it has no intentions, no sound mind or understanding to decide on what act is good or evil. A werewolf is no more culpable than the lion. Ours was a tragedy but you should know there is no need to fear such things, the most evil part of any creature is their human part. All that I love, I have lost to humans and their good or evil intentions."

She let go of her hand and changed sides with Sirius so that he could comfort his friend. Sirius gladly took to his side and for a while no one spoke. He had his arm around Remus and whispered to his ear words of comfort, though he knew it would not be enough.

Eventually Peter broke the silence. "I am sorry, I, I shouldn't have asked."

"Remus seems more distressed than me, perhaps you should apologise to him."

Remus straightened his posture but still stayed close to his friend. "I am much better; thank you and I am sorry for your loss."

There was a complicated expression in his face, but Clytemnestra did not bother to decipher him, she would afford him this privacy. "So am I" she said as she stood up, her things still on the floor already waiting for her return. "I think I am going to take a little walk. Remus, I'll take a look at your essay once I am back."

Lily gave a dirty look at Peter before catching up with Clytemnestra on the hallway. She did not say anything to acknowledge her existence, but they fell into step together. The empty hall echoed their silence until they made it out to one of the balconies on their floor.

From their position they could see the forbidden forest, a group of crows flew away in a hurry, and then there was more silence to follow. Clytemnestra leaned to the stone, the cold making her shiver. She felt Lily's hand on her back but did not react to it. She rubbed gentle circles and came closer to her.

It took her a second to gather her courage to talk. "My father passed away this summer, I haven't told anyone yet. Only Alice knows."

She turned to face Lily, a sad smile on her lips, and much understanding in her eyes. "I am sorry for your loss."

Lily had mist in her eyes, but she did not cry. "I spent most of my summer with Alice and when I got my mother's message, I rushed back but I was too late. Mom was devastated and Petunia, my sister, she blames me. She doesn't speak to me anymore. She says I abandoned our family for a bunch of freaks and that dad died asking for me. I don't know what to believe, I feel so guilty."

Clytemnestra pulled Lily into a hug. "Grief is a beast my dear. Thank you for telling me."

"I don't know why I never told anyone else yet." She sighed, still hugging her. "I guess it makes it somehow less real, especially since my muggle life and Hogwarts is so far apart. I really miss my dad."

"I really miss my dads too."

They stayed on the balcony for a while longer and watched the scenery below. Neither of them made an attempt to converse any longer. Lily said all she wished to say, and Clytemnestra heard all that was meant to be. To ask anything more than that would be a breach of some unspoken deal.

Eventually it was Alice who came for them, she wrapped an arm around each girl's waist and pulled them into a hug so tight that Clytemnestra could not escape, not that she even attempted such a thing. These days she leaped at every chance to be touched, she was starved of it.

Upon their return they found the boys studying quietly in the centre. Sirius was laying down, reading his book, and taking notes as he went along. Remus had red and puffy eyes; his nose buried into his essay and he did not look at the girls as they entered. Peter wrote in haste into a leather-bound book which she assumed to be a journal of sorts. James on the other hand was practicing his transfiguration from a list of spells, presumably the NEWT questions of the year before.

Clytemnestra eased herself next to Remus and bumped shoulders with him. "I am sorry about all that, now show me your essay please?"

Remus smiled at her as he handed her the parchment. "I haven't written the conclusion yet, I am missing something but not sure what. It's frustrating as fuck."

She chuckled softly and started to read with a magical marking quill at hand. The red ink would disappear as the mistakes got corrected or with the erasing spell. She caught a few grammatical errors, and made suggestions on a few points he could add, but mostly he had an excellent essay. "Few dots need connecting, and perhaps a bridge here would help you do just that. Then take this," she was pointing to few things on the parchment as she spoke about her points, "and with it use it for your conclusion so it will follow a more logical flow."

He took back his essay and skimmed over the markings before commenting again. "Thank you for doing this, I fucking hate potions and…" He growled in his frustration and went back to scribbling.

Surprisingly, Sirius also asked that she take a look at his essay, and Clytemnestra was more than happy to oblige as the title alone seemed very interesting. "You know a lot more than you let on at our little tutoring sessions, I didn't think you held any interest in blood potions."

He looked at her bashfully and grinned. "I plan to be an auror don't you know." He seemed very proud of that fact, as if that would personally show his parents.

Clytemnestra chuckled, "Well Mister Auror Man, you impressed me." She flagged only a few grammar issues, and recommended he switch up the placement of a few things to create a better flow. Overall, however, she thought Sirius had a very impressive essay.

His chest puffed up, he looked pleased with himself. "Thank you." He took back his parchment and started to go over the markings.

From then on, she stayed between the pair of them, focusing on her studies with the occasional help here and there. She still felt heavy in the chest, and she still found it hard not to stare daggers into Peter, but she was clever enough to wait and she was patient enough to make his death a truly long one. Clytemnestra never took particular pleasure in death, but she never found a particular sadness in it either but something within her told her that this one would be different to her.

She looked up from her essay and her eyes met James', he smiled at her much like Harry.

Forever she'd be an orphan, but she'd make sure this time around only the wicked laid dead.