Hi there! Glad you could join me.

Big thanks to those leaving me their reviews and feedback. I have seen some newcomers to my story come and weigh in on their favorite and least favorite characters and their views on certain actions and paths and it is a delight to see all your thoughts on this. I know some of you late arrivals that are still in the early chapters of this tale have been giving your own theories and wishes for the future, so I hope you aren't disappointed when you finally reach these later chapters if they're not how you predicted.

If Someone Cared Enough

Chapter 123: The Cloak, the Wand, and the Stone

Slughorn waddled across the front of the potions classroom, merrily observing his students, "Now class, the ageing potion is a complex and tricky thing to brew, but you'll be surprised to know it is considered only a mid-level glamour elixir. Does anyone know why that is?"

Several hands shot into the air, which was no surprise, N.E. weeded out the slackers and the inept before sixth year; anyone who made it to a seventh year class was serious and studious about potions.

Slughorn smiled before selecting a waving hand, "Miss Evans?"

"It's because the ageing only gives the physical appearance of age," Lily stated, "It changes looks but not actual biology or ability; a person could drink enough to look one hundred but still maintain the vigor and youthfulness of the biological age."

Slughorn beamed at her, "Precisely right! It is because of this that many who use the potion for disguises are oftentimes found out; it takes actual concentration and effort to maintain the illusion of being elderly. There's also the fact that the potion only ages you rather than change your notable features. You hardly can expect to evade ministry capture by merely changing yourself to look like an aged version of yourself."

"It is only right to warn you," he added, casting a dubious, stern glance towards Sirius and James, "But since the potion does not change your age biologically—only physically—you'd be foolish to try and use the potion to get into…mature establishments enchanted with age restrictions wards. Do keep that in mind."

James grinned sheepishly, sinking down into his chair, "How'd he know I was thinking that?"

"Because you're antics are predictable," Severus remarked tiredly as he set out his equipment.

Sirius smirked from his table over by Remus, "Not predictable enough for you to see coming, Snape."

Severus fixed Sirius with an unimpressed look, "It's not that I didn't expect it; I literally couldn't see it coming. That damn cloak is a menace."

James and Sirius snickered while Remus rolled his eyes and shook his head.

Severus pursed his lips, sparing Lily a grateful glance when she brought ingredients for him to his and James's table.

"Remind me again why you're sitting here, Potter?" he asked.

James shrugged, "Never worked with you before. I hear Slughorn practically wax poetic about how talented you are. Thought I'd witness it for myself for once; to really appreciate all you can do."

Severus narrowed his eyes at James, "And it isn't possible you're just hoping that partnering with me will get you an easy Outstanding since you barely scraped by to even get into this class?"

James flushed, looking away, "Well…"

Sirius barked out a laugh, "He's got you pegged, James!"

James glared at his friend, "Quiet. You know how important acing this class is if I plan to be an Auror."

Sirius smirked, "I know, why do you think I'm wasting my time here? Too bad Remus won't be holding your hand anymore, Jamie my boy. He got tired of carrying you in class."

Remus cocked a brow at Sirius, "You realize I'm not doing the work for you either anymore, right?"

Sirius whipped around to Remus, "What?"

"You have to put in some of the work yourself," Remus said bluntly, "Without my input. It's my last year of school and I'd like to spend it just worrying about my own grades instead of everyone else's."

"B-but what if I mess up?" Sirius stammered, "If I screw up our potions, your grade will get docked some too."

"Only by half," Remus said with an unconcerned shrug, "Not like I'm fixing to become an Auror when I graduate anyway, so I don't need my grade to be an Acceptable or higher. So long as I don't get a Poor, I'm fine with mediocrity."

Inwardly, Severus speculated if Remus wasn't that concerned with acing his classes because there was little guarantee he'd get a job even with nothing but Outstandings due to his lycanthrophy. It has to be a discouraging thought.

Remus had become rather bearable in the past year…perhaps the Prince estate could use an assistant account for it's finances. Or even just a live in assistant healer; Lupin did grow up with a nurse for a mother after all.

"But Remus," Sirius pouted, clinging to Lupin's robes, "Do my own work? I'll die! This head's too pretty to waste brain power."

Remus snorted, shaking Sirius's hands off, "Now I know you're just being silly. You'll do fine so long as you actually take the time to read the instructions."

Sirius huffed, sitting back in his chair, "Snape, any chance I can work with you?"

"Dream on!" James jumped in, latching onto Snape like a leech, "I called dibs first."

"You're just sucking up to him," Sirius drawled, "I meanwhile need all the help I can get."

James shushed Sirius, panicked, "Siri, shut up," he sent a furtive glance towards Severus.

"Serious, Snape," Sirius went on, "Surely I'm less annoying than James."

Severus scoffed, calmly extracting himself from James grasp, "Are you kidding, the pair of you are like twins."

James and Sirius grinned broadly at that, looking proudly at one another.

"That wasn't a compliment," Severus scowled.

Lily sighed, turning her attention to Peter, "Well at least I get one of the mild mannered Marauders. Would you like to chop the bananas or grind the dried newt spleen in the mortar?"

"Uh…the bananas, please," Peter requested, looking a little green around the gills as he eyed the jar of spleens.

Lily smiled kindly at Peter as she pushed the cutting board towards him.

"It's frankly a miracle you three made it into this course," Severus muttered, referring to James, Sirius, and Peter, "Lupin must have carried you the whole way."

"And that's why we love him," Sirius declared, throwing an arm around Remus shoulder and trying to kiss him on the cheek.

Embarrassed, Lupin squirmed away, "Knock it off. I'm still not helping you."

Sirius pouted at him, "Villain."

"Anyway," Lupin went on to Severus, ignoring Sirius, "Peter is actually quite good at potions. He knows all the steps and tests well on paper. He just gets nervous when it comes to actually doing it. More than once a blown up cauldron has been simply the result of his hand shaking and accidentally dropping just a hair worth more of an ingredient in it. He always knows where he went wrong."

"Unlike these two who never figure out what they screwed up," he added, jerking a thumb towards James and Sirius.

Sirius huffed, "Oh come on, we do too…sometimes."

"Then why did the your Euphoria Elixir explode last week?" Remus challenged.

Sirius paused, looking off to the side as if searching his memory.

James scratched his head.

"Not enough snake fang?" Sirius hazard a guess.

Remus was less than impressed, "More like too much porcupine quills. Snake fangs aren't even in that elixir."

"Well there's something that has quills and fangs in it," James countered.

"Yeah, the cure for boils," Remus said flatly, "which as I recall you two screwed up by forgetting the flobberworn mucus. Thank you for proving my point."

"Alternatively—Peter!" Remus pointed at his shyest friend, "What did you do wrong the first time you made the cure for boils?"

Peter thought for a minute, tapping his chin, "Um…I stirred the potion to quickly and overexcited the shrake spines."

Remus snapped his fingers, "Correct. That's why you're smarter than these hopeless cases."

James and Sirius gave him puppy dog eyes, "Mean old Remus calling us stupid."

Remus would not be moved, "You do realize the clock is ticking and you two have yet to do anything for today's potion?"

James jerked back with a start, turning to find Severus busily grinding their newt spleen into a fine powder. A second glance showed he'd already gotten the fire going under their cauldron and set the ginger root to soak in bulbadox juice.

"You started without me?" James asked in dismay.

Severus simply grunted, pushing the cutting board and two bananas towards James.

"I plan to have this potion finished before class ends, Potter," he said simply, gesturing for James to begin cutting up the fruit.

Sirius chuckled, "Good old bookworm Snape always has to get the grades. Makes me wish I had him for a partner instead of a jerk who's willing to fail just to prove a point."

Remus did not rise to the bait, "I'll get the ingredients. I expect you to be reading the instructions while I'm gone."

Sirius mimicked Remus sentence in a whiny, mocking tone as the scarred boy walked away.

Pretty soon the room was filled with the quiet clatter of potions equipment and idle chatter from the class. Remus managed to prod Sirius into trying his hand at preparing the ingredients himself on the promise that Remus would add them to the potion at the appropriate time. It seemed like a fair deal, though Sirius didn't seem to realize that the quality of their potion and therefore their grade hinge solely on whether or not to prepared the ingredients right.

James eyed Severus work while cutting up the bananas, "I have a question…Slughorn said this ageing potion is considered an elixir, right."

"Technically speaking yes," Severus replied, pouring the powdered newt spleen into the juice and ginger.

"And elixirs are typically characterized as tasting sweet, right?" James asked.

Severus nodded, "Quite."

James frowned, "Then how in Merlin's bloody toe socks does this taste sweet with spleens of all things in it?"

"Spleens from a slimy lizard at that," Sirius added.

Thankfully Severus didn't have to answer such an inane question because Slughorn chose that precise moment to strut past their tables.

"Marvelous," Slughorn praised as he peered into Lily and Peter's cauldron, "It's a lovely shade of amber; just as it should be at this stage. Once the bananas are added and boil down you should have a lovely emerald green color. That's when you know it's done."

Glancing over at Severus and James's potion, Slughorn chuckled.

"Off to a late start I see, Severus," he noted with mirth, "But you're well on your way to catching up. Glad to see you and our Head Boy can work together."

"Why wouldn't friends work well together?" James asked happily, missing the mortified face Severus made.

Lily giggled into her hands while Peter snickered.

Slughorn turned to Remus and Sirius's table, his smile slipping into a more disappoint half smile.

"Not off to a good start, boys," he tutted, "This is orange, not amber. You didn't soak the ginger long enough, I think."

Sirius looked down into their cauldron in dismay as the portly professor walked off.

"Remus why didn't you say anything?" he hissed.

Remus looked at Sirius with little pity, "I told you to read the instructions thoroughly. It's time you pull your own weight."

If it were anyone else who'd screwed him over, Sirius would probably be downright murderous. Instead, he just looked petulantly dismayed, "…but…"

Remus patted his shoulder, "Relax. From what the book says, ours is a minor mistake. It won't be very effective on ageing anyone, but it won't have any adverse side effects either. That's a passing grade. You did okay for doing it on your own/ Just follow the directions better next time."

"But Snape didn't follow directions," Sirius accused, pointing at the aforementioned boy, "The book says chop the ginger before adding it to the bulbadox juice, but he flattened his and then diced it!"

"Because pressing the ginger releases the juice stored in it," Severus explained blandly, "The juice is the active ingredient rather than the plant itself. By squeezing out the liquid I can make the mixture more potent and the dicing allows whatever moisture remains in the plant to break down easier than from chopped segments."

Slughorn waddled up to their desk, having overheard, "Severus, that's incredible my boy! You're alterations are proving yet again to be right on the mark. Five points to Slytherin!"

James nudged Severus and grinned approvingly at him.

Slughorn then turned to Lily's table and beamed down at Peter.

"Mister Pettigrew, you're doing a marvelous job stirring there; counterclockwise, not too fast. So much improvement from last year's blunders. It would seem pairing you with Lily does wonders for your confidence. Perhaps we should keep this arrangement all year."

"Looks like we'll be working together quite often, mate," James said merrily, nudging Severus again.

Severus bit back a groan and focused on completing his potion.

{page break}

"Best mark I've ever gotten in that class," James crowed victoriously as the class walked out of the dungeons, "My mum's going to be elated."

He turned to Severus, his smile blindly bright.

"You and me, buddy," he said, pointing between him and Severus, "A force to be reckon with for sure. At this rate I'm a shoo in to be an auror."

He slung an arm over a still pouting Sirius shoulders and half pushed, half dragged him towards the stairs.

"See you at lunch," he called over his shoulder as he walked away with his friends.

Remus sent Severus an apologetic look before following after James.

Severus groaned deep in his throat with frustration and misery once James was out of sight, "I was hoping he'd have abandoned this whole friendship thing by now."

"James is nothing if not dedicated when he sets his mind to something," Lily pointed out, "I mean, it's his seven yearlong crush on me that's behind this whole plan to begin with. What does that tell you?"

"That he's going to dig in like a tick and be impossible to remove," Severus said with another groan, pinching his brow, "I just wanted a nice, remotely peaceful school year to end my time at Hogwarts on. Is that too much to ask?"

Lily tilted her head and stared at Severus with pursed lips, "You do realize we're the couple who's fought a basilisk, a walking talking horcrux, and a horde of inferi, right? Peace doesn't exactly come easy to us."

"And meant peaceful aside from all the things trying to kill us," Severus groused, "My mundane school life should be uneventful and relaxing. Dull, lacking in surprises, that shouldn't be a hard request."

"Well it is," Lily quipped, "Because our lives are anything but ordinary and you need to accept that."

"Is it too late for Petunia to be the magical one and me to stay home as a quiet, happy muggle?" Severus asked mournfully.

Lily laughed, linking arms with Severus, "Afraid so."

Severus grumbled, face pulled down in a heavy scowl, much to Lily's amusement.

"Tell you what," Lily offered, "What if I do something that's guaranteed to help you…relax." She waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Severus looked around them before cocking an inquisitive brow at his girlfriend, "What did you have in mind?"

"Well," Lily drawled nonchalantly, "It just so happens that I know of a secret room in the school that appears only to those who know how to find it."

"Really?" Severus played along, feigning surprise and amazement.

Lily nodded, her smile all teeth, "And better yet, it can turn into any place we want…like maybe a bedroom?"

Severus grinned wickedly at Lily, pulling her in close after checking to make sure the coast was clear, "And you say this will relax me?"

Lily's smile was devious and sultry all in one, "You'll be practically boneless when I'm done."

Just as Severus was pulling Lily in for a kiss, someone slammed into them from behind, almost sending Lily sprawling to the floor if Severus hadn't caught her by the elbow.

"What in the world?" Severus snapped, looking behind them.

"Oh dear," a seventh year boy said, his pale blonde hair hanging wildly and unkempt about his face. A pile of books and papers lay scattered around him as he kneeled in the mess he made.

"Terribly sorry," he apologized, scrambling to gather up his things, "Didn't see you there. I'm afraid I was a tad bit distracted."

Severus kneeled down, picking on a weird pair of gawdy looking glasses featuring one red and one blue lense, "Clearly…did it have anything to do with these spectacles?"

"Oh yes," the boy replied, taking the glasses back, "Spectrespecs. I haven't got the design right yet."

"You made these?" Lily asked leaning down to better inspect the glasses.

The boy nodded, "They're my own creation. Perfect for seeing wrackspurts."

"And wrackspurts are…?" Severus prompted questioningly.

"Little invisible creatures," the boy explained as if it was the most sensible explanation, "They get in your ears and make your brain all fuzzy. Terrible nuisance."

It was then that Severus realized who they were talking to. Xenophilius Lovegood was a notorious oddball loaded with plenty of bizarre theories and 'findings'.

"Let us help you pick this all up, Lovegood," Severus offered, wanting to get away from the boy as soon as possible, lest he drag them into some insane tale about crumpled Whoozy-Whats-its or whatever the hell he called the damn thing.

"Thank you," Xenophilius said gratefully, "It's my research papers. My life's work, honestly. It would be a tragedy if I lost any of it."

Severus picked up a page on a creature called a nargle, dozens of nonsensical ramblings scribbled into the margins in untidy, loopy font, "Yes, truly a tragedy."

"That's an important one," Xenophilius exclaimed excitedly, snatching the paper from Severus's hands, "Can't risk losing that one."

"Right," Severus said unconvincingly, "One would hate for it to be misplaced."

Xenophilius shook his head, "Oh it wouldn't be misplaced. If this paper went missing, there would be only one explanation."

He leaned forward.

"Nargles," he whispered conspiratorially, "They're nasty little thieves, of course they'd steal my notes on them."

Severus nodded, though his eyes probably gave away how unsettled he was by Xenophilius. Fortunately, the boy didn't seem to notice.

"This one's important," Xenophilius mumbled, rifling through his papers, "Oh, and this one too."

As the dotty Ravenclaw obsessively organized his notes, he brushed his hair back off his shoulder and the light from one of the many flickering torches caught on something shiny and metal. When he brushed his hair away again and sat back to examine the papers in his hands, the light glinted off the pendant hanging from a simply black braided cord around his neck.

Severus felt his mouth go dry.

"Lovegood?" he asked shakily, "What's that you've got there?"

Lily looked where Severus was pointing and bit back a gasp, eyes widened in horror.

"Hm?" Xenophilius looked down at his chest, "This old thing? I've had it for years."

He held up the necklace to the light, showing off the odd symbol, a circle with a line through it, both inside a triangle. The very same symbol Severus saw in the picture of Gaunt's ring. The same symbol etched into the walls of that mad man's house.

The symbol that Grindelwald wielded during his murderous crusade across Britain.

"You hardly strike me as a Grindelwald fan," Severus noted, trying to sound casual, "Didn't seem like the kind of sort you'd support."

Xenophlilus blinked owlishly at him, "Who?"

"Grindelwald?" Severus repeated, disbelieving that Xeno wouldn't know that name, "Gellert Grindelwald. The Dark Wizard that tried to take over the world and subjugate muggles? The very wizard Dumbledore defeated, therefore immortalizing Dumbledore as one of the greatest wizards of our time?"

"Oh…him?" Xeno looked down at his necklace again, "This isn't his symbol."

Severus scoffed, "It's infamous as his symbol, synonymous with him even. He carved it into the wall at Durmstrang and enchanted it so it could never be removed. The symbol was everywhere during his reign."

"Yes, but he didn't create it," Xeno pointed out.

Severus blinked, "What?"

"The symbol has existed long before that wizard used it," Xenophilius explained, "And it has nothing to do with his movement itself, so people assuming it is a sign of dark magic is just that; assumptions."

Xenophilius gestured helpless, searching for a way to better explain things, "What's that symbol a group of muggles used during their second war? The one on the uniforms of those men who put people in camps? The Swatchka?"

"Swastika," Severus corrected.

Xenophilius snapped his fingers, "Yes that. From what I've read, the symbol existed long before those people used it and it was formally a symbol relating to peace. It just got hijacked for bad purposes. The same can be said for this symbol."

"Well then what does it stand for if not for Grindelwald's cause?" Severus questioned.

"Why the Deathly Hallows of course," Xeno said, very matter of fact.

Lily frowned, "It sort of sounds like the kind of thing Grindelwald would like."

"Don't let the name mislead you," Xeno said reassuringly, "It doesn't mean death as in 'death of others'. It relates to a story, The Tale of the Three Brothers. I'm surprised neither of you know it; it's a classic children's story."

"We were raised in a muggle town," Severus explained, "We haven't exactly heard much wizarding nursery tales."

Xenophilius nodded, eyes widening in understanding, "Right, that would make sense. You're missing out though; it's a grand story. Well, more of a history if you will. Some call it a legend, but it's all true. And this," he held up his necklace, "Is worn to reveal oneself to other believers, to those who wish to help in the quest."

Severus and Lily exchanged wary glances, "What quest?"

"Once there were three brothers," Xeno began cryptically, "Walking together on a winding road at midnight. They came to a bridge of treacherous waters where all those who had passed by before them had drowned. Learned in the magical arts, the brothers simply conjured a bridge and walked across."

"As they made it to the other side a dark, ominous figure appeared before them," Xeno said dramatically, "Death. He felt cheated out of this lives that had been his to claim. Cunning and wicked, Death congratulated the brothers and offered them each a reward for outsmarting him."

"The eldest brother was a combative, prideful man," Xenophilius explained, "He asked for the most powerful wand that could ever be made. Death granted his request and fashioned a wand from the branch of an elder tree."

Lovegood tapped the pendant, his finger tracing the line in the center of the circle, "The Elder Wand. With it, one could perform unheard of feats of magic, impossible feats. One could never be beaten in combat, so long as they wielded that wand."

Trailing his finger to the circle, Xeno went on, "The second brother was an arrogant man who wished to humiliate Death even further. He requested the power to recall the dead from the other side. Death plucked a stone from the riverbank and imbued it with his power, creating," he tapped the circle, "the Resurrection Stone. Capable of summoning your loved ones back to the moral realm."

"And what of the triangle?" Severus asked.

"That was the third brother's reward," Lovegood explained, "The youngest brother, most humble and wise, did not trust Death. He asked for something that would allow him to go forward without Death being able to follow. It was with great reluctance that Death gave his own cloak of invisibility."

Lily and Severus listened on, enthralled.

"For two of the brothers, their gifts from Death proved their undoing," Lovegood stated, "The eldest went to the village of a wizard he quarreled with and challenged him to a duel. With the wand's power, he killed his foe instantly. Going to an inn, he found himself taken with arrogance and lust for power and boasted of his wand to the other patrons."

"That night, a man slipped into the brother's room and slit his throat while he slept," Lovegood drew his finger across his throat sharply, making Lily jerked back slightly, "And stole the wand. And so Death claimed the eldest brother."

Lovegood tapped the circle again, "Now the second brother went home and used the Resurrection Stone to bring back his dead lover, a beautiful woman whom had died before they could marry. However, she was not as she once had been in the living. She was sad and cold, as if separated from him by a veil. She did not belong in the moral plane and she suffered for it. Eventually driven mad by longing, the second brother hung himself to be truly united with her once and for all. And so Death took the second brother."

Lovegood traced the triangle on his necklace, "Death searched for many years for the youngest brother. However, he could never find him, the cloak too powerful for even Death to see through. It was only when the youngest brother had reached a great age, that he removed the cloak and gave it to his son. Then, he greeted Death as an old friend and left…as equals."

"The cloak, the stone, the wand," Xenophilius whispered, "Whoever has all three will be the master of death. Grindelwald warped that to mean a tyrant or monster who brought fear to all, but the power is benevolent, defensive, not evil. It means one cannot die, that they cannot be found by Death."

Xenophilius shook himself from his murmurings, "Oh, I've gotten horribly off track, prattling on. I don't want to be late for my next class."

"Thank you for your help," he said, taking the remaining papers from Severus. He scurried off around the corner and out of sight.

"Sev?" Lily said, watching her boyfriend worriedly, "Do you think the Deathly Hallows actually exist?"

"I'm not sure," Severus confessed, his stance rigid, "But if they are, I can think of one person eager to master death itself."

He turned to Lily, "We need to find out everything there is to know about the Gaunts and why that symbol was on the ring."

Were any of you wondering if I was going to bring the Deathly Hallows into this? Because I've debated it for a while before ultimately deciding it was prudent to the story since in canon Voldemort did seek at least one of the Hallows to improve his chances of becoming one who could not die.

I mean, at some point surely someone is going to question why James cloak has lasted so bloody long, right? Might as well bring in the Hallows.

Peter's ability to brew the potion used on Voldemort in the Graveyard during the fourth book leads me to believe he is relatively capable of brewing, possibly even skilled, but just lacked the confidence in school to do it right and probably held himself back by just letting his friends (who lacked faith in his capabilities) swoop in and help him.

Review please.