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Jacin

Jacin was getting really tired of the infirmary. Honestly he's been in there so many times he was pretty sure he could draw a completely accurate picture from memory. A part of him questioned why he even bothered to go there anymore. There would be no change, he knew that. The rest of him tied that part up, dug a hole, and threw that part in the hole before covering it with dirt and a good few rocks. Because things had to change. He couldn't stand the thought of just walking into the infirmary every day and… Nope. Not gonna think about it.

Forcing himself to think optimistically, he wandered over to Winter's bed. There she lay, sleeping, peaceful, quiet. Thank Merlin. At least she wasn't screaming and desperately fighting the monsters of her head (Jacin hoped).

Taking a seat beside her, he carefully took her hand. "Hey Trouble."

No response.

Jacin sighed, but ploughed on. "So, it's been a pretty hectic week. Levana figured us out."

Still nothing, not even a twitch.

"Most of us managed to get away from that particular confrontation, but, Scarlet ended up losing a finger. She's fine now though."

He waited. No reaction.

"On a slightly happier note, we finally beat Levana! Yeah, Cinder used Iko, Cress and Wolf's memories of her face, her actual face to conjure a giant image of it." He snorted, "That woman was so vain, having the truth sent out finally pushed her over the edge. Cinder ended up killing her, finally. She's gone, Winter. She can't hurt you anymore. She can't hurt anyone anymore. You don't have to be afraid."

Jacin stopped, desperately searching Winter's sleeping face for a smile, a relieved tear, anything to show she was still there, still with him.

…Nothing.

He sighed, letting his fingers fall away from her hand. "Cinder is actually Selene you know. Channary's daughter? Your cousin? You used to play with her, when she was a toddler that is. You probably don't remember. Anyway, the entire fiasco meant the Ministry could finally stop ignoring everything that's been happening here and actually start taking some action. Really though, all they've done is section off all the werewolves because everyone in Levana's inner circle is already dead at this point. Now the only things we have to be afraid of are reporters." Jacin tried to summon a smile. He only succeeded in deepening his frown. "They're all like a pack of starving rats. I had to jinx a bunch of them before they finally took the hint and left me alone. You'd hate it Winter. All the attention. I guess, that's the one good thing about you being stuck here: no-one can hassle you."

Except me, he thought to himself wryly, leaning back in his chair.

That was it. He'd told her everything. The good, the bad. And she'd heard none of it, too tightly held in the grip of her own mind.

The door swung open with an all-too-familiar swish and Jacin's head snapped around, eyes already narrowing into a glare. A short man with a pair of glasses perched carefully on his nose returns his gaze with an unimpressed look. "Calm down Mr Clay, I'm simply here to check up on Miss Hayle."

"You're not one of the infirmary staff." Jacin said.

The man rolled his eyes and strode over to Winter purposefully. "Yes, but this isn't the first time I've helped out."

"And I'm supposed to just take your word for it?" Jacin grumbled.

"What do you think I am, a reporter? What would a reporter possibly have to gain from treating a sick patient?"

Jacin frowned, watching closely as the man pulled out his wand and started waving it over Winter's body, a soft blue light glowing from the tip. He was certain he'd never seen the man before but… he seemed familiar. The way he spoke, or his snappish, no-nonsense personality. It all rang some very loud, very insistent bells in Jacin's mind.

"Do I know you?" He finally asked, when he couldn't take it anymore.

The man didn't glance up from his patient as he answered with a simple, "Yes."

"From where?" Jacin snapped impatiently.

This time the man did look up, his face lined with exasperation. "I've been teaching you potions for the entire school year and I gave your friend Carswell his eyesight back."

Jacin's eyes widened. They did have the same sorts of personalities, but this man and Professor Erland… they couldn't have been the same person. Professor Erland was tall, with a build like a string bean. This man was more like a muggle garden gnome, and nearly as short.

"Professor Erland teaches potions and healed Thorne's blindness." Jacin said slowly, "You're not-"

The man waved him off. "Yes, yes, I know. And it's understandable really. When I took up the position, I was very thorough with my disguise."

"Disguise?" Jacin echoed incredulously.

The man who was apparently Professor Erland nodded. "Yes, indeed. See, Levana knows me from a long time ago, when her little operation was first getting underway. I went by the name Dr Sage Darnel then. I confess that I played a rather significant role in her plans. I was actually the one who suggested using werewolves. I even invented the spell to force them to change." He shuddered. "I should have run when I noticed their appearances starting to change even in human form. They were all just boys, none of them even of age yet. It was bad enough that they had to contend with changes once a month. Now, because of my discoveries, they carried the burden with them all the time. The headmistress didn't see it like that though." He continued, and Jacin was surprised at the venom in his voice. "She loved the side-effects. Loved how her little soldiers stayed monsters their whole lives."

"Why did you leave?" Jacin asked quietly.

Professor Erland sighed and pocketed his wand. "I tried to convince Levana to let me start researching a cure for the side effects. I tried to reason that their more animalistic minds made them much harder for her to control. When she refused, I started working on a cure in secret. Unfortunately, I never got to finish my work. She found out and… ordered my daughter to be killed as punishment." The professor's jaw visibly clenched. "I tried to get her out, but my wife… her loyalty to Levana stretched beyond even my own. She handed our daughter off without a second thought."

Jacin couldn't do anything but nod.

Professor Erland straightened and started to head towards the door. "After that I couldn't summon so much as a scrap of loyalty for Levana. I ran off, assumed a fake name and found work as a doctor under a false name, before finally opening a wand shop."

"Why did you come back?" Jacin asked.

The teacher paused and smirked at him. "Because I knew something she didn't. Before I left, I discovered that one of my colleagues, a man named Logan Tanner, had rescued a certain extremely powerful Lunar baby from a burning nursery. I knew that, if there was any way I was going to get my revenge, it would be through that child. That's why I opened the wand shop. You are aware, that all Blackburns have their wands made especially for them from the moment they're born? They are instantly claimed by that wand, and that wand will only ever work for them. I managed to recover the wand meant for the child, and I used it as a test, to see if any of my customers were perhaps the child I was looking for. When I finally found her… well. I couldn't exactly let her come here alone, could I?"

Jacin glanced at Winter, imagining letting her go to Artemisia without him when he knew the kinds of dangers lurking in the shadows. "No, I suppose not."

Professor Erland followed his gaze, and his face softened, just the tiniest amount. "You know… there may be a way to heal her Lunar sickness. It is purely theoretical," he quickly added, seeing Jacin's hopeful look, "But I discovered that Selene has a magical suppressant of sorts in her nervous system that renders her unable to use her gift without any negative side effects. The magic was compromised, but I may be able to replicate it for Miss Hayle." The professor opened the door, sending one last glance back at Jacin. "I think it's high time we removed those nightmares for good."

A/N: Please review!